An Online Degree Helps Define Goals Essay Example

An Online Degree Helps Define Goals Essay Example An Online Degree Helps Define Goals Essay An Online Degree Helps Define Goals Essay There are times in everyone’s life when there is a requirement for an arrangement †an arrangement of any sort. Regardless of what our unique aim, and through no issue of anybody, we may some of the time lose our way because of changing life occasions. Such changes may leave a large number of us flopping for answers and thinking about how to manage what has been given us. Understudies seeking after an advanced degree regularly have the advantage of an arrangement; progressing in the direction of a steady objective that could at last characterize an incredible way. Indeed, even grown-ups who have seen their school age years go back and forth may in any case profit by a characterized objective managed by moving in the direction of a degree. Be that as it may, with a profession, a bustling family, and a family unit to stay aware of, numerous grown-ups can't envision fitting another action †and a bustling one at that into their previously prospering timetables. Simply the time related with heading to and from classes, notwithstanding sitting in the genuine study hall and finishing the work may make the quest for such an extent an unthinkable accomplishment. Be that as it may, with online qualification programs, understudies of all ages and in any circumstance can seek after their professional education in whatever industry that they pick and do as such at their own comfort. Online degree programs are offered through famous colleges and universities around the nation †extra projects that supplement their customary nearby courses. Understudies need just register after which they can logon and finish the coursework as set out by the prospectus. Similarly as a schedule diagrams the procedure for a grounds class so does it set the limits for an online degree; the main distinction is the way where understudies approach the procedure. Online qualification understudies are basically ready to set their own calendar and complete their work from home; defining the objectives that will at last change a mind-blowing course.

The Evil Rooted In Women Essay Paper Example For Students

The Evil Rooted In Women Essay Paper Chaucer, in his female journey thought of ladies as having an insidious like quality, that they generally entice and take from men. They were portrayed of conniving, narrow minded and vain. Through the flaws of the two people, Chaucer demonstrated what is good and bad and how one should live. Under the surface, be that as it may, lies a fatigued look of ladies and how they cause for the destruction of men. (chuckiii, 4) Chaucer clearly had obstinate perspectives on the habits and practices of ladies and communicated it firmly in The Canterbury Tales. In his assortment of stories, he depicted two boundaries in his possibility of ladies. The Wife of Bath spoke to the unrestrained and healthy lady where as the Prioress spoke to the commendable and gave devotees of chapel. (Chaucer, 8) Chaucer outlined the two characters contrastingly in their appearances, general habits, training and most clearly in their conduct toward men. However, amidst differences, the two stories left its perusers with an unsolved conundrum. The Wife of Bath speaks to the liberal extraordinary with respect to female generalizations of the Middle Ages.(chuckiii, 4) Unlike most ladies being unknown during the Middle Ages, she has her very own psyche and voices herself. Besides, she has a favorable opinion of herself and appreciates flaunting her Sunday garments at whatever point the open door emerges. She scares people the same because of the force she has. As a result of her upsetting demeanor Chaucer makes her toothless, fat and enormous. Without a doubt, she is appalling, nearly to the point of not-adequate. The Prioress, then again, fills in as a foil to the Wife of Bath. Chaucer portrays her as compassionate who can not hold up under seeing torment or physical torment. She will cry at the idea of a pooch kicking the bucket. It could speak to that she has a delicate soul with low resilience for torment and suffering.(fordham, 16) The last depiction persists into the cutting edge generaliza tions about ladies as sketchy and apprehensive citizenry who should be thought about. (Fordham, 16) Chaucer paints an exceptionally sensitive and rich image of the Prioress. Her habits of eating are a long way from the brutish celebrations of the time. Chaucer portrays her social graces as extremely effortless, not a drop of anything would tumble from her mouth, and she was exceptionally considerate when taking thing at the table. (lines 131-4). Chaucers last portrayal of Prioress the letter An around her neck that represented Amor vincit omnia significance Love overcomes all. The clasp represents love with which her rosaries are enhanced is a typical adornment for strict dedication which conveys the elegant love song of praise: love vanquishes all. (information, 15) The image that she wears outlines that she is great. Likewise, the Wife of Bath is overwhelming, showy and eventually revolting. She is nothing in contrast with the Prioress who is exquisite, devout, polite or more all cherishing. The Prioresss prevalence over the Wife of Bath is indicated again within the sight of training. The Wife of Bath has voyage a lot and appears to be proficient about things of the world. She raises numerous an admirable statement all through the introduction however Chaucer voids her conclusion on account of her social class and looks when in truth she is really insightful. The Wife of Bath has understanding for the world and knows very well whats going on. Be that as it may, during the Middle Ages, just insightful or scholarly information is recognized.(shef, 14) What the Wife of Bath comprehends and seeks after may not be admirable. On the conflictingly, the Prioress is viewed as educational and high class because of her well-habits. Her capacity to communicate in the honorable language French places her character in a higher class as well.(prioress, 10) Thus, the Prioress is viewed as learned and canny. Fundamentally, the Wife of Bath is somewhat of a foil to the ladie s during the Middle Ages. Her activities and thinking vary from the Prioress as well as nearly from every other person!!! The Wife of Bath is radical particularly with regards to relationship with men. She is described as thinking a lot about adoration which is shown by her physical deformity being hole toothed representing sexual achievement. The Wife of Bath can't avoid revealing to her friends pretty much every last bit of her sexual encounters. She likewise had five spouses and incalculable issues, in this way breaking blameless mens hearts. Her spouses fell into two classes. The main class of spouses was rich yet additionally old and incapable to satisfy her sexual requests. Different spouses were explicitly overwhelming, however harder to control. None of her five marriage was fruitful on the grounds that the Wife of Bath was continually trying to have force and command over them. For example, her fifth however not the last (it was said that she on her method of wedding the 6t h before she disclosed to her story) marriage was troubled in light of the fact that her better half who is half of her age beats her. To outrage him, she tore three pages from his book. After this he beats her once more. She professed to be dead and he felt so regretful that he tossed his entire book in the fire. This gave her the high ground for an amazing remainder. What a complexity between the Wife of Bath and the Prioress. To start with, the savage and misleading demonstration of tearing books at that point malingering will never be finished by the Prioress. Keep in mind, the Prioress is devout, polite, taught, amazing or more all, is LOVING. Second, this issue of marriage and sexual interest will never have its underlying foundations in the Prioresss life. She has taken the pledge of modesty. The Prioress is unadulterated in heart and considers people the same. She doesn't ponder anybody. (I speculated regardless of whether she did, it was just an idea, no activities at any p oint went with her musings.) Its intriguing how the Wife of Bath was continually endeavoring to have power and the Prioress was conceded sway despite the fact that she didnt look for it deliberately. The Wife of Bath and the Prioress the same have control over men. It is uncommon that ladies are given such high height during the Medieval time frame. (medjugorje, 17) The Prioress as her name recommends a superioress in an ascetic network for ladies is imperative to the point that three clerics were in her organization; she basically was their chief. (Catholic, 9) The witch whom the Wife of Bath relates to, at first was conceded sway and control over man. This is demonstrated when the witch offers her significant other the decision: he can have her old and terrible and dedicated or youthful, lovely, and conceivable unchaste. He advises her to pick; he concedes her the power. As referenced over, the Wife of Bath wants what most ladies need and that is control over men. Chaucer depicts the Wife of Bath as a women's activist. Right off the bat in the story, there is a citation said by the Wife of Bath supporting that she is feministic. I dont deny that I will have my spouses both my indebted person and my slave, and as long as I am his better half he will endure in the substance. I will have order over his body during for his entire life, not he. At the end of the day, she is stating that she will have all out command over herself, her better half, and their family unit and explicitly, not simply the spouse. Nonetheless, there are likewise circumstances where she appears to submit to her better half. In any case, since I know your pleasure I will fulfill your physical joy. This was said by the Wife of Bath and supports the non-feministic see. It is considered non-feministic in light of the fact that the lady is yielding to the keeps an eye on want which conflicts with feministic convictions. The Wife of Bath has a decision of not surrendering to the man, yet she ch ooses to let the man have delight for his craving not hers, in light of the fact that from her past experience she realized how much men appreciate it when ladies are accommodating. This citation clearly conflicts with feministic convictions, leaving an unanswered logical inconsistency about the Wife of Bath. The character of the Prioress in a similar light, absolutely keeps one speculating. Is her story the result of the basic thought process, or of one harmed by hostile to Semitism?(theater, 11) The Prioress as far as anyone knows is devout, respectful, instructed, amazing, and all adoring. Unexpectedly, her preamble and story contain solid components of hostile to Semitism. This is appeared through her utilization of the Jew as the antagonist of her story. In any case, there is no verifiable proof of custom homicide of Christian youngsters by Jews, yet that would not have made a difference to the pilgrims.(fordham, 3) Anti-Semitism, guided at a people thought to have both dismiss ed and killed Christ, was distressingly profound situated. (icg, 2) This bias lamentably was uncontrolled at that point, and both the notions and their being communicated with regards to a strict story would not have appeared to be unusual to Chaucers pilgrimage.(theather, 11) Nevertheless, on a less discouraging note, her story can reveal to us something of the medieval mentality towards straightforward devotion and supernatural occurrences, which additionally was very prevalent.(icg,2) Personally, I think this is an anecdote about a Christian marvel; I dont ponder he Jews by any stretch of the imagination. Furthermore, the Jews were removed from England in 1290.(huntington, 7) The Jew just capacities as a vehicle to face up the supernatural occurrence. However, regardless of whether this story is the result of the basic thought process or hostile to Semitism despite everything stays a mystery. This is here the main time when the Wife of Bath and the Prioress identify with one anot her. The Wife of Bath is appearing feministic yet there are additionally a few circumstances in which she do as the men wish. The Prioress keeps one pondering. The vast majority of the religious characters in the Canterbury Tales are obviously either really devout or, all the more regularly, obtrusively insatiable and hypocritical.(chuckiii, 5) The Prioress is by all accounts an ideal woman or is she Chaucer depicts the story of Wife of Bath as deceptive however between the lines there is some useful guidance for some ladies on the planet today. Chaucer, perhaps is attempting to teach ladies through her story that there are times one ought to be a women's activist and times one ought not. On the off chance that a lady would be a women's activist for her entire life, she presumably wouldnt go anyplace in her li

Chemistry Exam Review Free Essays

Dissolving strong silver to shape fluid silver 006 10. 0 focuses Which of the procedures I) cleaving broccoli l) preparing bread Ill) consuming a match includes a synthetic change? 2. Maneuvering silver into silver wire . We will compose a custom paper test on Science Exam Review or on the other hand any comparative subject just for you Request Now Sick just 3. Passing electric flow Again (as) to plate out silver through 4. Dissolving silver nitrate in water to shape an answer 2. II and Ill just 3. Just 4. These 004 10. 0 focuses Which of coming up next is a substance property of sulfur? What's more, Ill just 5. 6. II just . Consumes in air 7. Furthermore, II just 2. Melts at 119 C Dowses (distinctive) †Exam audit †Dowses 8. None of these †(241 27) 007 10. 0 focuses Which Of the properties I) conductivity II) instability Ill) hardness are substance properties? 2 to distinguish a sort of issue? 1. Thickness 2. Warmth 3. Mass 4. Volume 2. What's more, Ill just 011 10. 0 focuses Write 0. 0000072 utilizing logical documentation. 1. 7. 2 x 10-6 4. Just 2. 72 x 10-7 5. These 3. 7. 2 x 10-7 6. Sick just 4. 0. Xx 10-5 7. II just 8. Furthermore, II just 008 10. 0 focuses Which procedure doesn't include a compound change? 012 10. 0 focuses What is in the middle of the electrons and core of a particle? 1. Not much. Nobody knows. 1. Softening of a strong 3. Water fume 2. Oxidation of a metal 4. Air 3. Ignition 5. Littler particles go 10. 0 focuses Which of coming up next is an escalated property? 1. 16 cubic feet 013 10. 0 focuses Which researcher found that the nuclear number, as opposed to the nuclear weight, is progressively liable for the properties of a component? (Shockingly this researcher passed on not long after as a fighter in WWW. 00 Kelvin 2. 1. SST. Augustine 3. 3 miles 2. Chadwick 4. 4 days 3. Mosey 010 10. 0 focuses Which of the accompanying properties can be utilized 4. Milliken 5. Rutherford 014 10. 0 focuses Which of coming up next is F-ELSE? 3 2. 45 protons; 35 electrons; 45 neutrons 3. 35 protons; 45 electrons; 45 neutrons 4. 35 protons; 35 electrons; 45 neutrons 1 The mass of neutron s and electrons are about the equivalent. 2. The mass of a hydrogen iota is about equivalent to a proton. 5. 45 protons; 35 electrons; 35 neutrons 6. 45 protons; 45 electrons; 35 neutrons 7. 35 protons; 45 electrons; 35 neutrons 3. The mass of protons and neutrons are 4. The mass of a proton is a lot more prominent than the mass of an electron. 015 10. 0 focuses what number protons are available in one V+ particle? 8. 35 protons; 35 electrons; 35 neutrons 018 10. 0 focuses Determine the quantity of protons, electrons, and neutrons in the isotope sodium-23. 1. 11 protons; 12 electrons; 12 neutrons 12 protons. The most effective method to refer to Chemistry Exam Review, Papers

Narrative Written By Geoffrey Chaucer - Free Essay Example

The Canterbury Tales are a narrative written by Geoffrey Chaucer; Chaucer typically uses parody, satire, and romances in his collection of poems. While using past tense he managed to tell a story about how each of the characters appeared to him and told each of their tales in the third person narrative style. Chaucer used social commentary by using rhetorical means to provide his commentary on society. He often informed people about a problem and wanted them to appeal to their sense of justice. In The Pardoners Tale Geoffrey wanted to get the point across to society that money is the root of all evil. During his story (poem) the pardoner admits that he speaks or preaches the way he does to get money. Preaching was his way to get back at anyone who offended him or his Brethren. He shows how deep his into his sins by stealing anything he could get his hands on just so he didnt have to spend his own money. The pardoner attempted to sell his relics and pardons, but when he was asked to come forth and unbuckle his bag he hesitated and was called out by the host for not being a real man. In the end, the knight steps forward to make amends between them. The Wife of Baths Tale is a story about how a knight came across a young maiden; he became overcome by lust and raped her. The court was horrified by his wrongdoing and thought he should be put to death by being decapitated. The ladies of the court intercede on his behalf and give him a chance to redeem himself. His punishment is to discover what women want most in the world and to report it to the court within a year. If he does not complete the challenge he will be decapitated. As his time is running out he meets an ugly old woman, she promises she will save him if he helps her in return. So they return to the court together and the king tells the queen the answer of the knight Women most desire to be in charge of their husbands and lovers. The old women requested that the night marry her, but he was in horror and begged for her to choose a different request but she refuses. As a married couple, the old women asked the knight if he would rather have an old and ugly wife that is loyal and good or a young and fair but also coquettish and unfaithful. The night replied with I would rather trust your judgment he then asked her to choose what was best for her. She then becomes both beautiful and good and they live a happy married life. The Canterbury Tales is a narrative that typically uses parody, satire, and romances in the collection of poems. In the story, Chaucer uses his preaching skills to inform his audience about realism in life. He goes through many journeys to prove multiple points, for example in the pardoners tale he stole things and was greedy to prove the point that money is the root of all evil. I believe he told the tales the way he did to let people know that the things they are doing is wrong and there are consequences.

The Balance of Dorian Grays Structure of Personality in...

THE BALANCE OF DORIAN GRAY’S STRUCTURE OF PERSONALITY IN OSCAR WILDE’S NOVEL THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY: A STUDY OF PSYCHOANALYSIS Background of the study Human lives with their desire though some of their desire are failed to deliver because of the norms border. As a human, we live in a community and it is impossible to do as we please. Norms play the role as law where it limits our behavior and make the standard law points about what we can do or what we cannot do. This law usually opposes our desire. When we choose to follow our desire rather than the norms, our society will see us as a bad person. It is because they belive that life has to be bordered by norms and people cannot do as they please without considering their social†¦show more content†¦There are unconsciousness, dreams and symbols, the meaning of sexuality, and the meaning of death. In this study, the writers use tenet stucture of personality, especially id, ego, and super ego. According to Sigmund Freuds psychoanalytic theory of personality, personality is divided into three elements. There are known as the id, the ego and the superego which work together to create human behaviors. Id is completely unconscious part of personality that keep our desires, wishes, and fears. Every people have their id at the time they were born. Ego which is a conscious part of the personality processes experiences and operates as a mediator between the id and superego. Ego is built when people are two to three years old. Superego is a part of personality which act as a moral judgments. Usually, people will build their superego at five years old. If one of these aspects is higher than others, it will lead to an unhealthy personality. The key to a healthy personality is a balance between the id, the ego, and the superego. The superego is in direct opposition to the id, the psychological reservoir of our instincts, and our libido, or sexual energy. The id is devoted solely to the gratification of prohibited desires of all kinds—desire for power, for sex, for amusement, for food—without an eye to consequences. In other words, the id consists largely of those desires regulated or forbidden by social convention. Thus, the

Essay about How Christians Interpret And Celebrate The...

How Christians Interpret And Celebrate The Last Supper Today Holy Communion is very important in Christian worship. This is the occasion on which the priest distributes bread and wine. This is one is of the seven Sacraments. A Sacrament is a physical act with a spiritual meaning. It takes the form of a ceremony intended to reveal and to give a greater sense of closeness to God. The spiritual meaning of Holy Communion is togetherness with God and each other. During Holy Communion the priest takes the bread and wine, gives thanks to God, breaks the bread and then gives them to the worshipers. This is known as the Fourfold Eucharistic actions. Eucharist means thanksgiving. So the Eucharist or Holy†¦show more content†¦This serves the purpose of remembering the Last Supper and also brings a feeling of closeness with God, Jesus and each other. It will also remind Christians of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Holy Communion has four main meanings. The first is remembrance. Holy Communion commemorates the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. Corinthians 11:23-25 writes that Jesus took and broke the bread, referred to it as his body and said, Do this in remembrance of me. Similarly after the supper he took a cup and referred to it as, the new covenant in my blood and said, Do this whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. The second is participation. Jesus did more than just take and break the bread and take and pour the wine. He gave these things to the disciples to eat, thus he was involving them in the last supper. So today the Last supper is more than just a commemoration, where we remember a past event, it is a communion in which we participate in the remembrance and share in its benefits. The apostle Paul wrote: is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 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Berlin Blockade Essay Example For Students

Berlin Blockade Essay After World War II, when Germany was defeated, it was divided into four zones, one for each of the Allies. The eastern part went to the Russians. The other Allied Powers, France, Britain and the U.S. divided the Western portion of the city among themselves. This arrangement reflected the Allied solution for the whole of Germany. Berlin was an island with special status governed by four nations in the sea of the Soviet Zone of Occupation. In 1947, the Western portion of Germany instituted a government under the watchful eyes of the Western Allies. The Soviet sector followed suit in 1949. During this period, the elaborate governance structure of greater Berlin broke under the strain of Cold War tensions. What emerged was West Berlin, which took up ties with West Germany, known as the Federal Republic of Germany. East Berlin, which comprised the ruins of the old and historic center of Berlin and outlying districts to the East, became the capital of the German Democratic Republic. After World War II, the Americans pumped capital into West Germany through the Marshall Plan, which resulted in one of the worlds strongest economies, enormous prosperity and a stable democracy. Germany has been divided ever since and though at every opportunity, lip service was paid by all western nations to its eventual reunification, no one took the matter seriously. Still bound by very complex regulations, West Berlin began to rebuild in earnest. It was given special treatment by West Germany and by the Allies. Its survival became a symbol of Western commitment against Soviet style communism. Money was pumped in, industries revived, a new University created, since Communist professors and principles dominated the Humboldt University in East Berlin. But the East German Government, certain that West Berlin would eventually fall to them, was richly inventive in tactics of intimidation. Highways were blocked for hours or days at a time, as were canal and rail corridors. Finally, they blockaded the city totally. The Americans specifically, General Lucius Clay, invented the Air Lift. For over a year, one B-29 after another flew into Tempelhof Airport and supplied the city until the blockade was lifted. Americans were heroes to West Berliners during in the late forties and well beyond. Berlin cleaned up the war mess, grew and prospered, not quite as dynamically as West Germany, but not too far behind. In June of 1961, Walter Ulbricht, the old head of the German Communist government said in an interview with a Western paper that no one had any intention of building a wall. Widely reported, this caused a massive exodus from the East. They knew then it was coming for sure. Thus, the Wall was constructed by the SED, the Socialist Unity Party of East Germany in August of 1961 as a protective wall against West German fascism and American capitalist imperialism. And for quite some time, it seemed to be working from the perspective of the East German government. It was really designed to give them breathing room by stopping the flood of refugees. Some East Germans escaped, but they were few. Every sort of invention imaginable was put to the test. People disguised themselves as Russian officers, dug tunnels, and flew home made airplanes, packaged themselves as submarines. The Berlin Blockade destroyed the lives of many, if not all Berliners. Families were torn apart, and people died trying to move to the better side of the wall. Without the aide of US air lifts, the wall may never have been removed, and lives would be forever changed.

Sociology Assignment Essay Example

Sociology Assignment Essay 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Summarize the contributions of Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Karl Marx to the field of sociology. Be sure to note any theoretical differences they may have had with one another.Emile Durkheim reinforced the social method and asserted that the social reality/environment can be studied objectively and empirically. Durkheim through his social facts was able to lay down the foundation for empirical sociology; not to mention his assertion of collective consciousness which is termed as culture.Max Weber is considered to be one of the most influential figures in establishing sociology as an academic discipline. He advocated the need for objectivity in the methodology of analyzing the social world which he saw as multi-layered and whose relations are interdependent. He introduced the concept of ideal types as a basis for the comparative analysis of societies.Karl Marx placed an emphasis on the economic and materialistic view of history and the structure of society. He grounded his ideas on the assertion that economic institutions are prevailing structures from which the rest of society is built on (superstructure). Weber opposed this Marxian conception of history which attempted to put into center the position of economics as the cause and mover.2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Explain the similarities and difference between the three major sociological perspectives of structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Identify which perspectives use a macro-level and a micro-level of analysis.Structural functionalism centers on the structural form of the society by further analyzing the social functions that govern/cause these structures in place. Given its focus and the emphasis on the normative and social systems; it conducts itself in the macro-level of analysis.Conflict theory on the other hand sees individuals in society as promoting their own self-interest and advantage thus leading to a clash with others. It is a theory grounded o n seeing human being as competitive and it is the latter that causes social change. We could view this as following from the dialectic established by Marx. The Conflict theory operates too in the macro-level.Symbolic Interactionism values and studies the self and how the individual creates meanings in social relations. It is far more qualitative in approach and belongs in the micro-level of analysis. It takes into account the interactions and the interpretations of former mentioned by the actual participants.Structural functionalism and Conflict theory are somewhat opposing poles, perhaps due to the fact that both renders perspective at a macro-level of analysis. Durkheim is taken to be one of the influences of Structural functionalism thus it comes as no surprise that the consensus and collective agreement of functions arise. Marxian thought laid the premise from which the conflict theory operates. As such one sees society as building on function that blends and workspeople have ro les, and play the parts available in a particular society. Conflict theory disagrees with this and sees social groups and classes as opposing each other that makes a society evolve.Describe what C. Wright Mills meant by the term sociological imagination.C. Wright Mills explicated the term ‘sociological imagination’ to refer to the capacity of individuals to connect their seemingly personal lives and issues at a social level including the historical forces as influential in their personhood and experiences even if these factors are seemingly remote/alien (Mills, 1959). They connect the private with the public in such a way that one’s dilemma is viewed within the domain of society itself. A poor man sees himself as not alone but as part of a poverty stricken group and could point at social institution as the source of their plights.4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Discuss what separates sociology from common sense. Be sure to give examples of how sociological research might disp el commonly accepted views.Commonly accepted views lack empirical groundings and are often opinion driven. There is always the higher probability of resorting to hasty generalization and being flawed in one’s assumptions if we only rely on common sense. Sociology studies the social reality and the phenomena that constitute it and may affirm validly or disprove entirely common sense beliefs and notions of how the social world works.One may take for example a particular held belief regarding the media, employing a sociological approach we don’t make mere guesses and everyday assumptions that put into objective scrutiny the influences of the media and/or if our belief is correct. Another point would be the misunderstanding of western states regarding certain tribal practices, west scholars have been quick to judge in the past that these tribes are unstructured and uncivilized albeit, after sociological approaches have been furthered there is a perspective that exist viewi ng the difference of culture as an important factor and both valid world-views.5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Describe the similarities and differences between conflict theory and the feminist perspective.The Conflict Theory and Feminist perspective shares in common the view of society as having opposing groups. Although it must be noted that feminists would utilize the conflict theory into various strands that results to a variation as to what constitutes the groups in conflict. A Marxist feminist would share the most similarities with the social conflict theory in the sense that it accepts the root of gender oppression as economic and the clash of the proletariat and bourgeoisie towards a revolution is necessary in order to liberate women. In the generic sense feminist perspective may see the battle of two sexes as a conflict, but can also view the conflict as an opposition of a patriarchal system vs. the person specifically the woman.6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Define the term scientific method and t he five basic steps used in the scientific method.The scientific method is used as a form of investigation regarding a scientific (social/natural) problem in an empirical manner (Scientific method, 2007). It is a method employed by scientist in order to warrant objectivity and validity. It is most basic sense the scientific method has five steps of inquiry: 1.) identify the problem, 2.) formulating the hypothesis; 3.) observation and data gathering 4.) Testing the hypothesis and data availed and   5.) analysis and conclusion. It must be noted that the scientific method is far easier to employ in the natural sciences compared to the social sciences.7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Describe the various types of research designs and discuss the strengths and weakness of each design. Which type of research design is most commonly used by researchers, and which type of research design is the least reliable?The Survey design uses a usually random pen-paper. Question and answer method that is usually employed by sociologists. It aims as objectively gathering data that pertains to how a particular group would view something or how relations are deemed by participants. There are critiques to its capacity to be truly objective plus the issue of being cost and time inefficient. There is also the problem of complex behaviors as not being captured in surveys. The strength of survey design would be its dealing with actual conditions.The field study design constitutes direct participation and observation of the researcher within the environment and with the subjects. There are strengths in terms of external validity; there is better probability of getting natural and unconditioned responses. It is criticized in terms of internal validity as well as the tendency for subjectivity.Historical research is the least reliable in the sense that it attempts to root its approach in original data and patterns. Sociologists themselves are critical regarding utilizing this design. The experimental d esign sets various conditions artificially and the sociologist less uses it as a method due to its control over variables. The latter is preferred by psychologists.8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Discuss how a researcher might select a random sample of subjects for a research study. Which sample selection methods should researchers use and which methods should be avoided?A researcher may employ probability sampling that includes assuring that each group in the environment studied would be included in the selection in order to guarantee equal representation. Another random form of sampling is the simple form wherein a researcher would literally randomly pick a subject belonging in the social phenomena. As much as possible researchers should avoid picking subjects that are belonging to a particular group alone in order to guarantee objectivity,9.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Discuss the issue of ethics and social research. Give examples to support how research could be harmful to human life.The ethical aspect of social research is raised whenever researchers employ the use of deception in order to guarantee the objectivity of the study. There is also the problem of social research left unchecked that becomes the basis for oppressing a particular set of members with in a society. It would be harmful if for example a gay man is unknowingly subjected to social research that would to a certain extent put him in a bad light. Invasion of privacy can also be an issue.10. Describe how the internet can be used to conduct social research. Is the Internet a good or bad place to conduct social research?The internet could be a potential place for conducting random surveys, via email or through an actual site. However, there is always the danger if the participant is being truthful since it is somewhat difficult to verify his/her identity. It would be convenient but possibly dubitable in terms of results.

That Dark Type is Called Boldface

That Dark Type is Called Boldface That Dark Type is Called Boldface That Dark Type is Called Boldface By Maeve Maddox In comparing style manuals, I came across these instructions: Never underline text. If you need to call attention to certain words, use body copy that is bolded or italic. St Anselm style guide Bolded? We talk about italic type, serif type, and sanserif type. Whats wrong with boldface? Its not as if bolded saves any syllables. Use body copy that is boldface or italic. Apparently bolded is creeping into use: This is a discussion on Compressing bolded type within the Adobe Acrobat forums in Adobe Tools category; Notice the bolded type sandwiched between lighter weight typefaces. a lighter blue that will only be legible if you combine it with a larger font size or at least as in this example a bolded type On the other hand, not everyone has opted for that ugly johnny-come-lately: A single syllable or letter in boldface type in the stems marks the position of the accent throughout this grammar. Use the word â€Å"Abstract† as the title, in 12-point Times, boldface type, centered relative to the column, Authors names in boldface type, subjects or titles in lightface type. Bolded indeed. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Fly, Flew, (has) FlownFlied?35 Genres and Other Varieties of FictionWriting Styles (with Examples)

Chapter 2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Chapter 2 - Assignment Example It is against this backdrop that intellectual standpoints advanced at the end of 19th century, in the bid to bring about positive changes. Resultantly, this intellectual context birthed the First Reform Era which bequeathed the US history with abolitionism, Reconstruction, Civil and Women’s Rights Movements and farm movements. During the years (1901-1909) Theodore Roosevelt served as American president, he expanded the power and influence and power of the executive arm of the government, particularly, the presidency. Right from the time of the American Civil War, up to the beginning of the 20th century, the US Congress had been retaining the seat of power. However, starting from 1880s, the executive arm began to get increasingly powerful, so that later on, Roosevelt extended this development. Having insisted that the President had the right to use all political power, the Office of the President became the center of American politics, in lieu of political parties and the Congress. With this increased political power, Roosevelt helped fuel the expansion of the American Empire by challenging the ideas of limited government and waging a highly aggressive foreign policy. Being led by strong leaders such as Dorothea Dix and Elizabeth C. Stanton, women did midwife several important reforms during the Progressive Era. Women clamored for the passage of the 19th Amendment which prohibited the act of denying any US citizen, the power to vote, with this denial of votes being based on sex. It is these same women caucuses that redefined the functions of the federal government and widened the scope of the federal government’s roles, in light of health, working conditions, wages, education, sanitation and social welfare. The US Election of 1912 remains unique because it enabled Wilson to win by 42%, against Progressive candidates Taft, Roosevelt and Debs who totaled 58%, and thereby enabling Woodrow Wilson to

Organisational Mischief. Organisational Behaviour vs. Misbehaviour Literature review

Organisational Mischief. Organisational Behaviour vs. Misbehaviour - Literature review Example Such type of behaviour is it become regular would hamper the culture of the organisation. A key element of the contract that exists between the employer and the employee is the input of employee compliance, and the acceptance of degree of managerial control. In order to defend their sense of self, employees often engage in activities such as burning down the workplace or stealing a pencil, circulating rude cartoons in the office to playing jokes or pranks on their co employees. Such activities do not deny that employees at work often joke at each other only because of the sake of enjoying the joke. Organisational mischief involves a mixture of psychological self defence. Some form of mischief is individualistic whereas some are formed in groups. Individual mischief includes like individual act of being absent, inattentiveness of the employee usually by chatting with colleagues or day dreaming, no or less compliance with the given instruction by the company, trying to keep information to oneself, bullying other employees, sexual harassment, breaking of equipment out of frustration and also leaving organisation at an inconvenient time. Some social mischief’s which happens in the organisation are such as organised fiddles, using the work place for discussing the non work things, workplace games, practical jokes, wind-ups, piss takes, harassment and bullying. In such types of organisational mischief’s people try to protect the material aspect of implicit contract (Tony, 2006, p.143). The research topic chosen is organisational mischief especially in the category of joke. Joke are practised in the organisation sometimes just for the sake of making a joke. The organisational misbehaviour or mischief remains a further paper to research as it gives an area to find out more about the misbehaviour by the employees and the need to issue some ethical code of conduct with respect to the mischiefs in the work place. The paper starts with the literature review o f the topic which takes into consideration the critical review of workplace mischief, the major issues and concepts which are used in such type of mischief. Critical Literature Review Organisational Behaviour vs. Misbehaviour In an organisation there are many forms of behaviour as well as misbehaviour which are not stock in trade of any required discipline but they might be very common. These forms of behaviour might scant attention from the textbooks and are not regarded as an important feature of the organisation. Factors such as bullying, practical joking, sexual harassment also includes rituals and also rites of passage. Different forms of misbehaviour are connected with each other. Both the management and the social scientists have overlooked the organisational misbehaviour despite of the fact that they know misbehaviour exists in the organisation, this action is seen as inessential by the management. Sometimes there is complicity with the other members of the organisation abou t misbehaviour. Employees are not official allowed to exhibit their respective behaviour. Therefore there is a substantial agreement that until and unless such types of behaviour interferes with organisational purpose it is most likely to pass unnoticed by the management.

What were the main effects of the 1979-1997 Conservative governments Essay Example for Free

What were the main effects of the 1979-1997 Conservative governments Essay What were the main effects of the 1979-1997 Conservative governments reforms to collective labour law and what distinguishes the approach taken by the current Labour administration? In order to answer this question collective labour law must be explained and defined so the effects of each government can be focussed in the appropriate area. This essay will then move on to examine the situation prior to 1979 so as to assess the extent of the Conservative administrations impact of collective labour law at that time, a type of before and after measurement. Having done this, the emphasis will switch to examining Thatcherite and Conservative ideology hoping therefore to explain the mechanics of the legislation that the Tories then introduced. Its effects will then be assessed. After this point this essay will turn its attention to Labour Party ideology, in order to use it as a means of putting into context the legislation which the party has introduced, this will then be assessed in greater detail. The link between New Labours administration and the European influence will also be examined at this point in the essay, and how this has impacted on British collective labour law. A summary will then be given and all conclusions will be drawn together in order to answer the set question. Brown (1993) said, It is generally more useful to use the term [collective labour law] to cover a broader set of joint regulatory behaviour, whereby employers deliberately permit representatives of employee collectives to be involved in the management of the employment relationship. This generally means that employers choose to liase with union representatives to discuss the manner in which the company is run and debate issues affecting its employees. Collective labour law is the legislation outlined by the government that regulates this area of bargaining and discussion, including union regulation, recognition, membership, organisation and industrial action (of all kinds). The Labour Party, formed in 1893, has its roots firmly in the industrialisation era. It is traditionally working class in membership. Jon Monks (cited in Salamon pg104) said that Labour and the trade unions had shared values: primacy of collective bargaining, expansion of the welfare state and state intervention to promote economic growth and employment. The Labour Party was elected to power in 1974. Though as New Labour the party has now adopted The Third Way at that time, it still supported the Corporatist ideology, part of which meant supporting the trade unions and collective bargaining. During this time, trade unions accounted for ninety per-cent of party membership, [provided the party with] eighty per-cent of its annual income [and] sponsored fifty per-cent of its MPs (Salamon pg105). The Employment Protection Act of 1975 (and Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act of 1978 encouraged trade union membership and activities as well as legislated so that statutory time off had to be given in order to enable union officials to complete their union duties. The act also facilitated trade union recognition by employers (under section 11 of the EPA 1975) with the instigation of a set union recognition procedure involving ACAS (Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service), and obliged employers to consult and share information with unions regarding organisational changes and matters directly affecting employees. However in an effort to protect all employees, not just union members, the act also provided legal procedures for extending the terms and conditions of the employment contract where major unions were not recognised and could not bargain on behalf of the employees. The legislation from that particular Labour administration also promoted conciliation, arbitration and employees participation (in the bargaining process). The act also tried to regulate incomes with the setting up of 26 regional wages councils to standardise incomes and set recommended minimum wage levels. In 1980 trade union membership in the following unions was; Transport and General Workers Union, 1887000, the Amalgamated Engineering Union, 1166000 and the General Municipal Boilermakers Union stood at 916000. In 1979 total union membership stood at 13447000 with a union density of 55. 4% (Bain Pierce 1983). It can be seen from the above that the Labour administration of 1974-1979 was one of support for trade unions, collective bargaining and collective labour law. Membership of trade unions was, it can now be see, at an all time high. However, all this was to change once the Conservatives came to power under Margaret Thatcher in 1979. According to Farnham, (1999, p215) [the change in State policy] had considerable implications for public policy on employee relations, which shifted from one focused on voluntary collective bargaining in conditions of full employment and strong trade unions (with attempts at bargained corporatism through social contracts) to neo-laissez-faire. Thatcherite and Tory ideology was indeed one of laissez-faire, liberalist (neo-unitarist) foundations. It was a kind of economical Darwinism, survival of the fittest. Mrs Thatcher is famous for having apparently said that there is no such thing as society. For this reason it is not possible to legislate for the benefit of it, only for individuals. According to Salamon (2000: p292) the Conservative government aimed to redress the perceived power imbalance in favour of trade unions and allow management to re-exert its prerogative which was to promote responsible trade unionism, to protect individual members against union tyranny and to promote employment opportunities and labour flexibility through de-regulating employment. It can be seen from this statement that the Conservative government very much believed in the individuals right not to join a trade union, and to give back control (it having been removed by the unions ability to strike without notice) of industries to the organisations themselves. Blyton and Turnbull (1994 p155) describe Mrs Thatchers opinion as being that the nationalised industries which should have virtue on their side were hopelessly distorted and confined by state control and the absence of market competition. The unions, who were beneficiaries of these monopolies were accomplices to the most scandalous inefficiencies and had to be stripped of power. This philosophy could perhaps explain the reason why the Conservatives chose to introduce eight acts of legislation affecting the unions within thirteen years. These acts covered three main points. They restricted the scope of lawful industrial action thereby reducing trade union power. They established rights to disorganise (Lewis cited in Salamon p107) by establishing non-membership rights thereby undermining the maintenance of collective relations. The final point is that the legislation intervened in the internal affairs of trade unions by promoting a representational democratic model, thereby reducing the influence of activists in union decision making. The acts themselves are listed as follows: The Employment Act 1980; this reduced employment rights under unfair dismissal and reduced in instances in which dismissal could be classed as unfair. It also placed restrictions on closed shops (where all employees must be union members) in that an employee could work in a closed shop but not be a member on the grounds of strongly held political convictions. New closed shops now needed 80% of its work force to be in agreement or 85% of all those voting in order to make their place of work a closed shop. A right to be re-instated after maternity leave was introduced, the trade union recognition procedure was repealed, a code of conduct regarding picketing was established and secondary picketing (picketing away from the site of the dispute) was outlawed. Secondary and sympathetic (workers in differing industries striking in support of other workers) strikes had restrictions placed on them. The grounds for refusal to join a trade union were extended. The Employment Act 1982; this reinforced many points from the previous act including the restrictions on closed shops, and protection and compensation payments for non-members. Ballots on closed shops had to be taken in all existing arrangements across the UK, and union labour only commercial contracts became illegal. The act made it legal to selectively dismiss striking employees and redefined trade dispute in that political strikes became illegal. The act also removed trade union immunities from the civil courts (which affected strike action). The Trade Union Act 1984; this act concerned itself with the internal affairs of the trade unions. It stated that ballots had to be held every five years to elect officials to the unions National Executive Committees, secret ballots had to be held before industrial action took place (and not more that four weeks before the action was to take place). Ballots also had to be taken to establish who the union was to give its political funding and this had to be reaffirmed every ten years. The act also redefined political objects on which the unions political fund could be spent. The Wages Act 1986; after this act the wages councils (of which there were twenty six) were only allowed to specify a single minimum wage rate of pay and a single overtime rate which applied to every worker regardless of skill. Workers under twenty one were no longer covered by this wage protection. The Sex Discrimination Act 1986; this removed the exemption that the small firms (five or less employees) had from the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975. The Employment Act 1988; under this act a union must hold separate ballots for industrial action if those who are likely to take part in such action have different places of work. Ballot papers must ask whether the member is prepared to take strike action or action short of a strike. Members were given the right not to be unjustifiably disciplined by their union, and a new commissioner for the Rights of Trade Union Members was appointed. The Employment Act 1990; when this act was passed pre-entry closed shops became illegal, unions became vicariously liable if any of its officials called for strike action without following the proper procedures, employers were given greater freedom to dismiss any employee taking unofficial strike action, and further restrictions were placed on secondary action. Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights Act 1993; under this act employees were given the right to decide which union they joined. Postal ballots had to take place now before any strike could occur, and unions had to provide employers with at least seven days notice before any strike action could take place. The twenty-six wage councils were abolished and ACAS requirement to encourage collective bargaining was removed. At the end of the Conservative run of administration (finally finishing with John Major as Prime Minister in 1997) it is evident that the legislation very much followed the Conservative ideology of individualism, legislating for the individual and stripping collectives of their powers, as evidenced by the following figures. In 1990 the Transport and General Workers Union membership stood at 1224000, the Amalgamated Engineering Union at 702000 and the General Municipal Boilermakers Union membership stood at 865000. In 1978 the total number of working days lost that year was 9405000 but in 1995 that number was just 415000. From this can be seen the total effect that the Tories had on collective labour law and bargaining. Blyton and Turnbull (1998 p263) said, Throughout the 1980s the Thatcher government had made a virtue out of standing firm. The Conservatives had actively discouraged collective bargaining and hindered the trade unions as much as possible, so much so that union membership had dwindled to the figures in the previous paragraph. In 1997 trade union membership stood at 7154000 employees, a massive drop of 6293000 from that of 1979, and a union density of 30. 2%, again a big drop of 25. 2%. The effects of the Conservative era of power can clearly be seen here. When John Major and his party were defeated, the unions were virtually powerless, with their membership drastically reduced. Labour is traditionally the party of the trade unions as has previously been discussed. However, since the birth of New Labour things have changed considerably. In the 1980s Labour became concerned by their apparent unelectability so its leaders reformed and modernised the party image, which included loosening the link between themselves and the trade unions, even incorporating a Business Manifesto for their 1997 election campaign. At this time the party also adopted The Third Way. This replaced the previous Corporatist ideology behind the party. The Third Way is a middle ground between the traditional socialist views of the old left wing party and the right-wing views held by the Conservatives. The result of the image overhaul and change in strategy is that the trade unions became part of a coalition supporting Labour, but not the senior partners as of old (Salamon: 2000). Accordingly the New Labour Party focuses much more on the fact that labour flexibility has become an increasingly important issue for government strategies which are aimed at improving economic competitiveness and reducing unemployment (Salamon pg 282). Unconditional labour market de-regulation could have a detrimental effect on socially desirable employment policies such as social benefits, training, employee protection legislation and even the national minimum wage. Labours employment strategy [now] emphasises inclusion, social partnership and fairness at work (but without special favours towards trade unions) (Salamon pg 292) It has re-introduced the statutory union recognition procedure, introduced a national minimum wage and has signed up to the Social Chapter (European Union legislation). Metcalf (who is a member of the Low-Pay Commission) believes that the commission is an exemplar of social partnership which rehabilitated the unions and employees into a process that contrasts sharply with the there is no such thing as society' confrontational Thatcher era. (Salamon pg293) For this reason since New Labour came to power in 1997 the government has heavily legislated in many areas, and employment has not been excluded from this. One act in particular has directly impacted on Collect Labour Law, which is:- The Employment Relations Act 1999. This act effects trade union recognition and de-recognition (bringing back in the standard procedures), access to workers when industrial action is being considered and ballots are taking place. It also affects ballot procedure. The time between ballot result allowing action to take place has doubled from twenty-eight days to two months. Unfair dismissal is also affected as workers can no longer be dismissed for lawful industrial action. Finally, union membership rights were changed slightly in that the act states people can not be refused employment because of their trade union affiliations. Everyone has the right to belong to a trade union and the right not to be excluded from one. Along with this element of the act is a section dictating that compiling a blacklist of union members by employers is also illegal. This act strengthened the trade union and employee position, but it could also be argued that it is not a great overhaul of the law given the Labour Partys legislative history during previous administrations. Labour could be seen to be attempting to pacify the unions whilst trying not to alienate big business. The remaining major issue to be considered in this area of the essay is Europes influence on Collective Labour Law and the government in the United Kingdom. Once Labour formed the government in 1997 the Conservative decision to opt out of the Social dimension of the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 was reversed under the treaty of Amsterdam 1997 and in so signing, Labour consented to the treaty and all its terms. Maastricht (1992) could be considered as the Constitution of the European labour Market. It dealt principally with issues of fair remuneration, a national minimum wage, improvement in working conditions, unions rights and development of the employees rights to consultation and information. There were three immediate effects (in the form of European Directives handed down by the European Commission) when the UK joined the treaty. The European Works Council Directive, Parental Leave Directive and the directive covering the burden of proof in Sex Discrimination cases. The only directive to have any direct impact on collective labour law was the European Works Council Directive. This was aimed at large multinational firms and ensured proper communication between employee representatives (such as shop stewards) and management. The Working Time Directive is one further outcome of the agreement to the Social Chapter. The basic rights and protections that the Regulations provide are a limit of an average of 48 hours a week which a worker can be required to work (though workers can choose to work more if they want to), a limit of an average of 8 hours work in 24 which night workers can be required to work, a right for night workers to receive free health assessments. a right to 11 hours rest a day, a right to a day off each week, a right to an in-work rest break if the working day is longer than six hours and a right to four weeks paid leave per year. As can be seen from the above legislation Labour has not acted according to their ideological heritage, preferring instead to develop greater support for market competition, deregulation and privatisation. The party more strongly believes in the Stakeholder Economy, Welfare to Work, Social Partnership and Fairness at Work (Salamon pg21) principals and schemes. Most of the legislation is concerned with individual rights at work and not at all with collective labour law or collective bargaining. To a certain degree Labour now has little control regarding employment legislation as it is handed down to the government by Europe. However, it was New Labours choice to sign the treaty and harmonise the United Kingdom with the other member states and so must accept and implement all directives that are issued. The effects of the previously mentioned legislation can be seen in the following figures. In 1999 trade union membership in the following unions was; Transport and General Workers Union, 881625, the Amalgamated Engineering Union, 717874 and the General Municipal Boilermakers Union stood at 712010. Whilst the TGWU and GMBU show a decline in membership (and so in the powers of collective bargaining), the comparison is in fact to 1990 when the Conservatives still had another five years in power, membership has actually slightly increased since 1997 In 1999 trade union membership stood at a combined total of 7801315 employees, an increase from 1997 (when New Labour came to power) of 647315. The number of working days lost due to industrial action also dropped in 1999 to 266400 from 415000 in 1999, a drop of 148600 (all above figures from Salmon pg113). So as can be seen above the actions of both parties during their respective administrations have had a profound effect on collective labour law and collective bargaining, with the Tories having most impact. Labour is conspicuous in that it has done comparatively little to over turn the Tory instigated legislation. The actions of both parties can be explained by their ideologies, with Labours changing radically during the last decade. Their approaches have differed in that the Conservatives stripped the unions (which are the primary partners in bargaining and negotiation) of the majority of their rights and were not concerned with how ruthlessly it was done. The individuals rights were improved, but only as a means of weakening union power and increasing the strength of big businesses and employers in accordance with Conservative thinking and strategy. The Tories refused to sign up to the Social Chapter as they believed that employment legislation should come from within the country that is to be affected by it and in joining would lose total legislative control. In contrast to this Labour have signed up to the Social Chapter and tried to make the employment situation better for employees as individuals. This is because according to the third Way which creates a perceived political and cultural ideology within which management, unions and employees have to work (Salmon pg 21) it would benefit both employers and employees. It can be seen from this that both parties have similar outcomes from their legislation (in so much as figures for union membership and days lost in industrial action have only improved in comparatively mediocre terms and figures) though each party has taken a different approach for differing reasons. Bibliography Books Farnham, D. (1997) Employee Relations In Context London: CIPD Salamon, M. (2000) Industrial relations Theory and Practice: London, Prentice Hall (4th edition) Blyton, P. and Turnbull, P. (1998) The Dynamics of Employee Relations, Basingstoke: Macmillan (2nd edition) Cully et al. (1999) Britain At Work, London: Routledge Incomes Data Services Ltd (2000) Trade Unions Employment Law Handbook: London: IDS Websites http://www.cipd.co.uk http://www.dti.gov.uk http://www.libr.port.ac.uk http://www.labour.org.uk http://www.conservatives.com http://www.tuc.org.uk

Financial Accounting Essay -- Business and Management Studies:

Financial Accounting Financial accounting or ‘book-keeping’ is the process of recording financial transactions from the day-to-day operation of a business. The sale of goods to a customer and the subsequent settlement of the debt are two examples of financial transactions. Sales Accounting When credit sales are made to customers, a record needs to be kept of amounts owing and paid. Payment is normally requested with an invoice. An invoice usually gives details of goods supplied, quantities, prices and VAT. Credit sales are usually made on weekly a basis, which means that the customer has to pay within that period to obtain the discounts, if any offered. Overdue payments need to be chased, so sales accounting systems normally produce reports analysing the indebtedness of different customers. Debt control is vital to business profitability and computerised systems can produce prompt and up-to-date reports as a by-product of the main application. Human Resources --------------- The human resources (personnel) function is responsible for the selection (usually by interview), recruitment, training and development of staff. Personnel records on employees will store all the information needed by Salaries and Wages to make the correct payments to employees; this will include details of, for example, gross salary, tax code, statutory sick pay and holiday entitlement. Depending on the size of the organisation, information may also be held concerning: qualifications, courses attended; and career development plans. Design ------ The design function is present where an organisation develops its own products and services; a trader who simply buys and sells goods has no need of a design team unless designing logo’s etc which maybe carried out by another firm. Design is part of the research and development (R&D) function, which is vital to organisations wishing to radically develop their product range. The nature of design teams depends on the product or service being designed. The skills and talents of a car design team are clearly very different from those of a team designing a cover for a magazine. Production Markets for a business’s products should ideally, drive the production function. In other words, it should be geared to produce the necessary mix and quantities of products required by customers. If goods ar... ...ons need specialist staff to develop, introduce, maintain and update the various systems that make use of information technology. The responsibilities of ICT Services are much broader than those traditional held by wholly centralised computer services or data processing departments because communication is a larger part of IT with the introduction of the internet and E-mail amongst other things.. The development of cheaper and more powerful microcomputer systems has resulted in computer facilities being distributed more widely. For this reason, ICT Services needs to provide a much more flexible service and support user systems at the point of use. For example, uses of network workstations need support when equipment, such as a shared printer, breaks down or they may require help in the use of software on the network. This contrasts with a centralised department, which holds all the computer equipment, carries out all computer processing and restricts user access to specialised applications, run through dedicated terminals. ICT Services may be known variously as Computer Services, Management Information Services or less commonly now, the Data Processing Department.

Business Management: questions and answers Essay

1. Define business ethics. Who determines whether a business activity is ethical? Is unethical conduct always illegal?Business ethics is the principles that determine the acceptable conduct in the business workplace. Customers, competitors, government regulators, interest groups, and the public determine whether a business activity is ethical. No, not all conduct is always illegal. 2. Distinguish between ethics and social responsibility. Ethics is the conduct that is acceptable in the business area and social responsibility is the business’s obligation to make a positive impact on society and lower its negative impacts. 3. Why has ethics become so important in business?Ethics has become so important in business because it builds trust among individuals and in business relationships, which leads the company and its employees in a comfortable environment. This also helps the business to have confidence that their employees are happy in their work area. 4. What is an ethical issue? What are some of the ethical issues named in your text? Why are they ethical issues?An ethical issue is a problem that a person needs to choose from several actions that may be considered right or wrong. Some ethical issues discussed are lying, abusive behavior, violations, stealing, sexual harassment, and many others. These are ethical issues because each of these issues can damage the workplace and the production of the company. 5. What is a code of ethics? How can one reduce unethical behavior in business?A code of ethics is formalized rules that a company expects of its employees before they start to work there. One can reduce unethical behavior in business by giving the employees advanced information on which conduct is acceptable and which isn’t. This helps for future problems with employees. 6. List and discuss the arguments for and against social responsibility by business (Table 2.8). Can you think of any additional arguments (for or  against)?Arguments for social responsibility are since businesses may help create a few social problems, they should help solve them also. Other arguments are that the businesses have the funds to help the social arguments; businesses should do their fair share to help others; and it can prevent increased government regulations. Arguments against social responsibility are that the managers of the companies are only concerned with making a profit. Another argument is that it may give the business too much power then it should have. Other arguments against social responsibility are that social problems are the responsibility of government agencies and those businesses may not have the expertise to make decisions about social problems. An additional argument I would say is that every company should be required to give some kind of donation to a school or charity at least once a year because they are making money and should help others also with their profit, this would be better for their companies recognition. 7. What responsibilities does a business have toward its employees?The responsibility a business has towards its employees is to provide a code of ethics to solve any future problems towards the employees. They should also have to pay them a decent salary for their work, and give them information about the company’s happenings. Also, employees want to be listened to by someone who is in a higher position. 8. What responsibilities does business have with regard to the environment? What steps have been taken by some responsible businesses to minimize the negative impact of their activities on the environment?The responsibilities businesses have regarding the environment are animal rights and pollution. Businesses have created positions in their business for enivornmental affairs. The businesses try to eliminate the waste practices they use and the emission of pollution or the chemicals they use if they are harmful to the environment. Many companies have turned to alternative energy sources. 9. What are a business’s responsibilities toward the community in which it operates?A business’s responsibilities toward the community it is in are through donations to organizations and to give money to schools to provide  better education. Companies also provide scholarships to students, support for teachers and computers for students. Also businesses are providing trainings for the unemployed. Book: Business Organization and Management

Overworked Employees Signs And Possible Consequences Free Essay Example, 1500 words

The job performance of the workers is extremely important for the success of a business. Since the start of the global recession last year there have been a lot of layoffs of employees. Many employers are committing the mistake of assuming a compressed staff can perform the same work output. The overworking of employees is a symptom that is spreading across America. According to Butler (2005), 54% of American workers feel that they are overworked. Companies that overworked their employees are damaging the corporate culture of the company. These employees begin to resent their workplace. Such an employee does not have the proper motivation to contribute more than the minimum. Overworked employees lose their creativity and their ability to concentrate. If employees are pushed to produce beyond their limits the company is going to receive a declining work quality from them (Breaking out of Internal Prisons , 2005). Also, these employees are not able to benefit from professional develo pment opportunities because their excessive workload does not provide the person the time needed to get involved in activities to improve their skills and abilities. We will write a custom essay sample on Overworked Employees: Signs And Possible Consequences or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page According to Butler (2005), 54% of American workers feel that they are overworked. Companies that overworked their employees are damaging the corporate culture of the company. These employees begin to resent their workplace. Such an employee does not have the proper motivation to contribute more than the minimum. Overworked employees lose their creativity and their ability to concentrate. If employees are pushed to produce beyond their limits the company is going to receive a declining work quality from them (Breaking out of Internal Prisons , 2005). Also, these employees are not able to benefit from professional development opportunities because their excessive workload does not provide the person the time needed to get involved in activities to improve their skills and abilities. Companies that overwork their employees are forgetting the importance of developing human capital. In order to increase the performance of the employees, companies have to improv e the capabilities of their staff. 3.0 Flexible schedules and alternative work arrangements The first step towards finding viable solutions in a company faced with employee overworking issues is to accept the existence of the problem. Companies must look for ways to remedy the situation in order to satisfy the needs of the employees. It takes time and money to properly train employees, thus businesses do not want to lose their employees. When a staff is overworked the chances of the employees leaving for a better job situation increase. An alternative solution to deal with overworking employees is a flexible schedule and the utilization of alternative work arrangements.

War in Afghanistan Battle of Tora Bora

The Battle of Tora Bora was fought December 12-17, 2001, during the War in Afghanistan (2001-2014). Commanders Coalition General Tommy FranksGeneral Bismillah Khan Mohammadi Taliban/al-Qaeda Osama bin Laden Battle of Tora Bora Overview In the weeks following the attacks of September 11, 2001, Coalition forces commenced an invasion of Afghanistan with the goal of toppling the ruling Taliban and capturing Osama bin Laden. The first to enter the country were members of the Central Intelligence Agencys Special Activities Division and a variety of US Special Forces. These operators coordinated with local resistance groups and militia, such as the Northern Alliance, to conduct a ground campaign against the Taliban. By December, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters had been forced to retreat into a cave system known as Tora Bora. Situated in the White Mountains, southeast of Kabul and near the Pakistani border, Tora Bora was believed to be an elaborate underground base, complete with hydroelectric power, barracks, and storage facilities. To assault this fortress, three militia leaders gathered around 2,500 men and a collection of old Russian tanks near the base of the mountains. Two of these leaders, Hazarat Ali and Hajji Zaman, were veterans of the war against the Soviets (1979-1989), while the third, Hajji Zahir, came from a notable Afghan family. In addition to facing bitter cold, the militia leaders were plagued by a dislike of one another and the fact that it was the holy month of Ramadan which required fasting from dawn to dusk. As a result, many of their men routinely slipped away in the evening to celebrate iftar, the meal that breaks the fast, with their families. As the Afghans prepared on the ground, an American aerial bombardment of Tora Bora, which had commenced about a month earlier, came to its climax. On December 3, without informing his co-commanders, Hazarat Ali arbitrarily announced that the attack would begin. Pushing up the slopes towards the first line of Taliban caves, the Afghans were attacked by a number of bin Ladens men. After a brief exchange of fire, they fell back up the ridge. Over the next three days, the militias fell into a pattern of attacking and retreating, with some caves changing hands multiple times within a twenty-four hour period. On the third day, around three dozen Coalition Special Forces, led by an American Delta Force major, arrived on the scene. The unidentified major, who uses the pen name Dalton Fury, had been dispatched with his men as intelligence showed that bin Laden was at Tora Bora. While Fury assessed the situation, the militias pressed their attacks from the north, west, and east, but to no avail. They did not attack from the south, closest to the border, where the mountains were the highest. Under orders to kill bin Laden and leave the body with the Afghans, Fury devised a plan calling for his Special Forces troops to move over the southern mountains to attack the rear of the al-Qaeda position. Requesting permission from higher headquarters, Fury states that he was denied. He next asked for GATOR land mines to be dropped in the mountain passes leading to Pakistan in order to prevent bin Laden from escaping. This request was also denied. With no other choice, Fury met with the militias to discuss a frontal attack on Tora Bora. Initially reluctant to guide Furys men, the major relates that additional financial encouragement from the CIA operatives present convinced the Afghans to move out. Climbing up the slopes, the Special Forces operators and the Afghans fought several skirmishes with the Taliban and al-Qaeda. Four days after arriving on the scene, Fury was about to depart to aid three of his men who were pinned down when the CIA informed him that they had a fix on bin Ladens location. Rescuing his men, Fury and a handful of Special Forces advanced to within 2,000 meters of the position. Lacking Afghan support, believing that bin Laden had around 1,000 men with him, and under orders to let the militia take the lead, Fury and his men pulled back with the intention of making a full assault in the morning. The next day, bin Laden was heard on the radio, allowing his position to be confirmed. Preparing to move out on December 12, Furys men were stunned when their Afghan allies announced they had negotiated a ceasefire with al-Qaeda. Angered, the Special Forces troops moved forward to attack alone but were stopped when the Afghans drew their weapons. After twelve hours, the standoff ended and the Afghans agreed to rejoin the battle. It is believed that this time allowed bin Laden to shift his position. Renewing the attack, heavy pressure was placed on al-Qaeda and Taliban forces from advancing ground troops and heavy aerial bombardment. Through the day on December 13, bin Ladens radio messages became increasingly desperate. After one these broadcasts, a Delta Force team observed 50 men moving into a nearby cave. One of the men was tentatively identified as bin Laden. Calling in massive air strikes, the Special Forces troops believed that bin Laden died in the cave as his radio went silent. Pushing through the remainder of Tora Bora, it was found that the cave systems were not as complex as originally thought and the area was largely secured by December 17. Coalition teams returned to Tora Bora six months after the battle to search for bin Ladens body but to no avail. With the release of a new video in October 2004, it was confirmed that he had survived the battle and remained at large. Aftermath While no Coalition troops died at Tora Bora, it is estimated that around 200 Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters were killed. Intelligence now suggests that bin Laden was able to escape from the Tora Bora area around December 16. Fury believes that bin Laden was wounded in the shoulder during the air strikes and received medical attention before being moved over the southern mountains into Pakistan. Other sources indicate that bin Laden traveled south by horseback. Had Furys request to have the passes mined been granted, this movement may have been prevented. Also, as the battle commenced, Brigadier General James N. Mattis, whose 4,000 Marines had recently arrived in Afghanistan, argued to have his men deployed to Tora Bora to cordon off the area with the goal of preventing the enemy from escaping. As with Furys requests, Mattis was turned down. Selected Sources New York Times: Lost at Tora Bora60 Minutes: Elite Officer Recalls bin Laden Hunt

Essay on Episode Of Hands - 792 Words

Episode of Hands The unexpected interest made him flush. Suddenly he seemed to forget the pain,- Consented,-and held out One finger from the others. The gash was bleeding, and a shaft of sun That glittered in and out among the wheels, Fell lightly, warmly, down into the wound. And as the fingers of the factory owners son, That knew a grip for books and tennis As well as one for iron and leather,- As his taut, spare fingers wound the gauze Around the thick bed of the wound, His own hands seemed to him Like wings of butterflies Flickering in the sunlight over summer fields. The knots and notches,-many in the wide Deep hand that lay in his,-seemed beautiful. They were†¦show more content†¦It gives evidence of having lived two separate lives, one on top of the other, but neither owning the upper hand at any time. It is a poem of change, and how things never change as they are expected to do, nor do they change before our eyes as we would believe, but instead change us in a way that makes us blind to ourselves. quot;As the fingers of the factory owners son, That knew a grip for books and tennisquot;; here is described the mans childhood, and here, quot;As well as one for iron and leather,-quot;, is described his adulthood, with responsibilities and duties to perform. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The style of Hart Crane is nearly unmatched. Here he uses a free verse structure, written as a Blackwood Article, in a story that depicts an event which is the theme and the subject of the poem. He uses little rhyme, with any structure, but the words flow from frame to frame as though a rhyme scheme had been used quite frivolously. There is also a great deal of imagery. A good amount of emphasis is placed upon the hands, the lifeblood of our interaction with the world, and as the hands are described against the sunlight we can nearly see a picture perfect masterpiece within our minds that helps us along in the story. There is also a well hidden hint at imagery here; quot;His own hands seemed to him Like wings of butterfliesquot;, means quite clearly, that he has most recently undergone aShow MoreRelatedReview Of The Defenders1015 Words   |  5 Pagesthe years. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist are all coming together to stop The Hand from l eveling New York to get what they want. Ladies and Gentleman, as always I am the Gentleman Snark. Today I will bring you review of the first four episode in the Defenders series, so let’s begin. Spoilers: We are discussing the first half of the Defenders series. Story: Story is simple, The Hand have set up for a big performance and a grand finale for New York. So it is up to our unlikelyRead MoreEssay about Bipolar Disorder and Zaps Bipolar Experiment893 Words   |  4 PagesI chose the Zaps Bipolar experiment because my dad has Bipolar disorder. Ive seen first hand how Bipolar disorder intervenes in a persons life and affects their mood. Ive also learned how to recognize the symptoms typical of a manic phase and depressive episode. The purpose of this experiment is just that: to explain the typical symptoms of a manic episode and a depressive episode, and the most salient differences between the two. In addition, the experiment aims to introduce two patients withRead MoreMy Inner Fish : A Journey Into The 3.5 Billion Year History1608 Words   |  7 Pagescommon fish. Upon reading his detailed scientific accounts, I can easily identify with a relation between his episodes and concepts from the general biology laboratory. Even though I was able to identify connections with course ideas and biological concepts throughout the book, I was immediately pulled to: â€Å"Handy Genes,† â€Å"The Best-Laid (Body) Plans,† and â€Å"Making Scents.† Among the episodes, the first that grabbed my attention was â€Å"Handy Genes.† Throughout the chapter, the reader is informed of theRead MorePatient Case Study830 Words   |  4 Pagesmoderate risk of injury related to frequent episodes of numbness and weakness in the right arm related to possible signs of carpal tunnel syndrome Interventions to reduce risks of injury (1) Encourage the patient to diminish individualized risk factors that put her at risk for injury related to the symptoms of her carpal tunnels (numbness weakness in right arm) (2) Teach patient on ways of managing her symptoms during an acute episode to prevent the risk of developing an injuryRead MoreSummary : The Book Thief 849 Words   |  4 PagesChapter/Page # Summary of episode Relevance/analysis Significant quotation Quotation Page Number Pages 3-8 In this episode the author introduces the narrator. It is soon to be explained that this narrator is death. Death tells the story of a young girl who he calls â€Å"The Book Thief.† Typically, Death is a figure that many people would describe as dark and evil in this novel, however, Death describes himself differently. One significant thing Death is interested in is colors, which is a very humanlyRead MoreFinal Paper - Bipolar Disorder1202 Words   |  5 Pagesdepression. It is described as a category of mood disorders. Mood disorders are defined by the presence of one or more episodes known as mania and hypomania. Bipolar disorder affects about five million Americans, about 3 out of every 100 adults. This disorder had been found equally in men and women. The signs and symptoms of major depressive episode are feelings of sadness, anxiety, guilt, anger, isolation, or hopelessness and disturbances in sleep and appetite, fatigueRead MoreEssay On Annual Event1434 Words   |  6 Pagesfrontrunners of law to the current law students, encouraging them to be career oriented. It is anticipated that the first season of Law Fest will be successful in spreading knowledge to aspiring lawyers as well as future entrepreneurs, as the legal system hand-in-hand supports entrepreneurship. We would like to express our special thanks of gratitude to Mr. Md. Shajahan, Chairman, Board of Trustees, Mr. Atiqul Islam, the Vice-Chancellor, and Mr. Gias Uddin Ahmed, the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Designate) of NorthRead Moreâ€Å"The Simpson’s† is about the satiric adventures of a working class family in the city of1000 Words   |  4 PagesSimpson’s† is about the satiric adventures of a working class family in the city of Springfield. â€Å"The Simpsons is an example of an American sitcom. A sitcom is situation comedy, which is when the same setting and same characters appear in every episode. Sitcoms surfaced in the 1950s in America showing the ideal family. Slowly sitcoms started to show the reality of life and dealt with social issues such as divorce and unemployment. Sitcoms have become very popular because people could relate toRead More How Stevenson Builds Suspense and Tension in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde1137 Words   |  5 Pagesthe question at h and. I have understood that I should comment on at least three episodes of the novel and clearly stress out how the writer built up the suspense and tension of the story. However I am going to look at techniques such as using shot quotations and not being to repetitive. The episodes l am going to be explaining are the incident of the letter, the remarkable incident of Dr Lanyon and the Last Night. In the Incident of the Letter, Stevenson starts of the episode by telling usRead MoreBlack Culture And Issues Within The Media1625 Words   |  7 Pagestwo main young black characters. On one hand, there is Will Smith, portrayed as the stereotypical black male similar to Smash Williams from Friday Night Lights. Will excels in sports and is very funny, which fits right with how most television shows portray young black males. On the other hand, there is Will s cousin, Carlton Banks, Carlton is the polar opposite of that he is very intelligent and often made fun of. The Fresh Prince of Bel air, airs an episode that challenges the way in which black

Bag of Bones CHAPTER ELEVEN Free Essays

string(107) " I was assured that this was the court’s depo, and nothing to do with either Plaintiff or Defendant\." I woke in the early hours of the following morning convinced that there was someone in the north bedroom with me. I sat up against the pillows, rubbed my eyes, and saw a dark, shouldery shape standing between me and the window. ‘Who are you?’ I asked, thinking that it wouldn’t reply in words; it would, instead, thump on the wall. We will write a custom essay sample on Bag of Bones CHAPTER ELEVEN or any similar topic only for you Order Now Once for yes, twice for no what’s on your mind, Houdini? But the figure standing by the window made no reply at all. I groped up, found the string hanging from the light over the bed, and yanked it. My mouth was turned down in a grimace, my midsection tensed so tight it felt as if bullets would have bounced off. ‘Oh shit,’ I said. ‘Fuck me til I cry.’ Dangling from a hanger I’d hooked over the curtain rod was my old suede jacket. I’d parked it there while unpacking and had then forgotten to store it away in the closet. I tried to laugh and couldn’t. At three in the morning it just didn’t seem that funny. I turned off the light and lay back down with my eyes open, waiting for Bunter’s bell to ring or the childish sobbing to start. I was still listening when I fell asleep. Seven hours or so later, as I was getting ready to go out to Jo’s studio and see if the plastic owls were in the storage area, where I hadn’t checked the day before, a late-model Ford rolled down my driveway and stopped nose to nose with my Chevy. I had gotten as far as the short path between the house and the studio, but now I came back. The day was hot and breathless, and I was wearing nothing but a pair of cut-off jeans and plastic flip-flops on my feet. Jo always claimed that the Cleveland style of dressing divided itself naturally into two subgenres: Full Cleveland and Cleveland Casual. My visitor that Tuesday morning was wearing Cleveland Casual you had your Hawaiian shirt with pineapples and monkeys, your tan slacks from Banana Republic, your white loafers. Socks are optional, but white footgear is a necessary part of the Cleveland look, as is at least one piece of gaudy gold jewelry. This fellow was totally okay in the latter department: he had a Rolex on one wrist and a gold-link chain around his neck. The tail of his shirt was out, and there was a suspicious lump at the back. It was either a gun or a beeper and looked too big to be a beeper. I glanced at the car again. Blackwall tires. And on the dashboard, oh look at this, a covered blue bubble. The better to creep up on you unsuspected, Gramma. ‘Michael Noonan?’ He was handsome in a way that would be attractive to certain women the kind who cringe when anybody in their immediate vicinity raises his voice, the kind who rarely call the police when things go wrong at home because, on some miserable secret level, they believe they deserve things to go wrong at home. Wrong things that result in black eyes, dislocated elbows, the occasional cigarette burn on the booby. These are women who more often than not call their husbands or lovers daddy, as in ‘Can I bring you a beer, daddy?’ or ‘Did you have a hard day at work, daddy?’ ‘Yes, I’m Michael Noonan. How can I help you?’ This version of daddy turned, bent, and grabbed something from the litter of paperwork on the passenger side of the front seat. Beneath the dash, a two-way radio squawked once, briefly, and fell silent. He turned back to me with a long, buff-colored folder in one hand. Held it out. ‘This is yours.’ When I didn’t take it, he stepped forward and tried to poke it into one of my palms, which would presumably cause me to close my fingers in a kind of reflex. Instead I raised both hands to shoulder-level, as if he had just told me to put em up, Muggsy. He looked at me patiently, his face as Irish as the Arlen brothers’ but without the Arlen look of kindness, openness, and curiosity. What was there in place of those things was a species of sour amusement, as if he’d seen all of the world’s pissier behavior, most of it twice. One of his eyebrows had been split open a long time ago, and his cheeks had that reddish windburned look that indicates either ruddy good health or a deep interest in grain-alcohol products. He looked like he could knock you into the gutter and then sit on you to keep you there. I been good, daddy, get off me, don’t be mean. ‘Don’t make this tough. You’re gonna take service of this and we both know it, so don’t make this tough.’ ‘Show me some ID first.’ He sighed, rolled his eyes, then reached into one of his shirt pockets. He brought out a leather folder and flipped it open. There was a badge and a photo ID. My new friend was George Footman, Deputy Sheriff, Castle County. The photo was flat and shadowless, like something an assault victim would see in a mugbook. ‘Okay?’ he asked. I took the buff-backed document when he held it out again. He stood there, broadcasting that sense of curdled amusement as I scanned it. I had been subpoenaed to appear in the Castle Rock office of Elmer Durgin, Attorney-at-Law, at ten o’clock on the morning of July 10, 1998 Friday, in other words. Said Elmer Durgin had been appointed guardian ad litem of Kyra Elizabeth Devore, a minor child. He would take a deposition from me concerning any knowledge I might have of Kyra Elizabeth Devore in regard to her well-being. This deposition would be taken on behalf of Castle County Superior Court and Judge Noble Rancourt. A stenographer would be present. I was assured that this was the court’s depo, and nothing to do with either Plaintiff or Defendant. You read "Bag of Bones CHAPTER ELEVEN" in category "Essay examples" Footman said, ‘It’s my job to remind you of the penalties should you fail ‘ ‘Thanks, but let’s just assume you told me all about those, okay? I’ll be there.’ I made shooing gestures at his car. I felt deeply disgusted . . . and I felt interfered with. I had never been served with a process before, and I didn’t care for it. He went back to his car, started to swing in, then stopped with one hairy arm hung over the top of the open door. His Rolex gleamed in the hazy sunlight. ‘Let me give you a piece of advice,’ he said, and that was enough to tell me anything else I needed to know about the guy. ‘Don’t fuck with Mr. Devore.’ ‘Or he’ll squash me like a bug,’ I said. ‘Huh?’ ‘Your actual lines are, ‘Let me give you a piece of advice don’t fuck with Mr. Devore or he’ll squash you like a bug.† I could see by his expression half past perplexed, going on angry that he had meant to say something very much like that. Obviously we’d seen the same movies, including all those in which Robert De Niro plays a psycho. Then his face cleared. ‘Oh sure, you’re the writer,’ he said. ‘That’s what they tell me.’ ‘You can say stuff like that ’cause you’re a writer.’ ‘Well, it’s a free country, isn’t it?’ ‘Ain’t you a smartass, now.’ ‘How long have you been working for Max Devore, Deputy? And does the County Sheriffs office know you’re moonlighting?’ ‘They know. It’s not a problem. You’re the one that might have the problem, Mr. Smartass Writer.’ I decided it was time to quit this before we descended to the kaka-poopie stage of name-calling. ‘Get out of my driveway, please, Deputy.’ He looked at me a moment longer, obviously searching for that perfect capper line and not finding it. He needed a Mr. Smartass Writer to help him, that was all. ‘I’ll be looking for you on Friday,’ he said. ‘Does that mean you’re going to buy me lunch? Don’t worry, I’m a fairly cheap date.’ His reddish cheeks darkened a degree further, and I could see what they were going to look like when he was sixty, if he didn’t lay off the firewater in the meantime. He got back into his Ford and reversed up my driveway hard enough to make his tires holler. I stood where I was, watching him go. Once he was headed back out Lane Forty-two to the highway, I went into the house. It occurred to me that Deputy Footman’s extracurricular job must pay well, if he could afford a Rolex. On the other hand, maybe it was a knockoff. Settle down, Michael, Jo’s voice advised. The red rag is gone now, no one’s waving anything in front of you, so just settle I shut her voice out. I didn’t want to settle down; I wanted to settle up. I had been interfered with. I walked over to the hall desk where Jo and I had always kept our pending documents (and our desk calendars, now that I thought about it), and tacked the summons to the bulletin board by one corner of its buff-colored jacket. With that much accomplished, I raised my fist in front of my eyes, looked at the wedding ring on it for a moment, then slammed it against the wall beside the bookcase. I did it hard enough to make an entire row of paperbacks jump. I thought about Mattie Devore’s baggy shorts and Kmart smock, then about her father-in-law paying four and a quarter million dollars for Warrington’s. Writing a personal goddamned check. I thought about Bill Dean saying that one way or another, that little girl was going to grow up in California. I walked back and forth through the house, still simmering, and finally ended up in front of the fridge. The circle of magnets was the same, but the letters inside had changed. Instead of hello they now read help r ‘Helper?’ I said, and as soon as I heard the word out loud, I understood. The letters on the fridge consisted of only a single alphabet (no, not even that, I saw; g and x had been lost someplace), and I’d have to get more. If the front of my Kenmore was going to become a Ouija board, I’d need a good supply of letters. Especially vowels. In the meantime, I moved the h and the e in front of the r. Now the message read lp her I scattered the circle of fruit and vegetable magnets with my palm, spread the letters, and resumed pacing. I had made a decision not to get between Devore and his daughter-in-law, but I’d wound up between them anyway. A deputy in Cleveland clothing had shown up in my driveway, complicating a life that already had its problems . . . and scaring me a little in the bargain. But at least it was a fear of something I could see and understand. All at once I decided I wanted to do more with the summer than worry about ghosts, crying kids, and what my wife had been up to four or five years ago . . . if, in fact, she had been up to anything. I couldn’t write books, but that didn’t mean I had to pick scabs. Help her. I decided I would at least try. ‘Harold Oblowski Literary Agency.’ ‘Come to Belize with me, Nola,’ I said. ‘I need you. We’ll make beautiful love at midnight, when the full moon turns the beach to a bone.’ ‘Hello, Mr. Noonan,’ she said. No sense of humor had Nola. No sense of romance, either. In some ways that made her perfect for the Oblowski Agency. ‘Would you like to speak to Harold?’ ‘If he’s in.’ ‘He is. Please hold.’ One nice thing about being a best selling author even one whose books only appear, as a general rule, on lists that go to fifteen is that your agent almost always happens to be in. Another is if he’s vacationing on Nantucket, he’ll be in to you there. A third is that the time you spend on hold is usually quite short. ‘Mike!’ he cried. ‘How’s the lake? I thought about you all weekend!’ Yeah, I thought, and pigs will whistle. ‘Things are fine in general but shitty in one particular, Harold. I need to talk to a lawyer. I thought first about calling Ward Hankins for a recommendation, but then I decided I wanted somebody a little more high-powered than Ward was likely to know. Someone with filed teeth and a taste for human flesh would be nice.’ This time Harold didn’t bother with the long-pause routine. ‘What’s up, Mike? Are you in trouble?’ Thump once for yes, twice for no, I thought, and for one wild moment thought of actually doing just that. I remembered finishing Christy Brown’s memoir, Down All the Days, and wondering what it would be like to write an entire book with the pen grasped between the toes of your left foot. Now I wondered what it would be like to go through eternity with no way to communicate but rapping on the cellar wall. And even then only certain people would be able to hear and understand you . . . and only those certain people at certain times. Jo, was it you? And if it was, why did you answer both ways? ‘Mike? Are you there?’ ‘Yes. This isn’t really my trouble, Harold, so cool your jets. I do have a problem, though. Your main guy is Goldacre, right?’ ‘Right. I’ll call him right aw ‘ ‘But he deals primarily with contracts law.’ I was thinking out loud now, and when I paused, Harold didn’t fill it. Sometimes he’s an all-right guy. Most times, really. ‘Call him for me anyway, would you? Tell him I need to talk to an attorney with a good working knowledge of child-custody law. Have him put me in touch with the best one who’s free to take a case immediately. One who can be in court with me Friday, if that’s necessary.’ ‘Is it paternity?’ he asked, sounding both respectful and afraid. ‘No, custody.’ I thought about telling him to get the whole story from the Lawyer to Be Named Later, but Harold deserved better . . . and would demand to hear my version sooner or later anyway, no matter what the lawyer told him. I gave him an account of my Fourth of July morning and its aftermath. I stuck with the Devores, mentioning nothing about voices, crying children, or thumps in the dark. Harold only interrupted once, and that was when he realized who the villain of the piece was. ‘You’re asking for trouble,’ he said. ‘You know that, don’t you?’ ‘I’m in for a certain measure of it in any case,’ I said. ‘I’ve decided I want to dish out a little as well, that’s all.’ ‘You will not have the peace and quiet that a writer needs to do his best work,’ Harold said in an amusingly prim voice. I wondered what the reaction would be if I said that was okay, I hadn’t written anything more riveting than a grocery list since Jo died, and maybe this would stir me up a little. But I didn’t. Never let em see you sweat, the Noonan clan’s motto. Someone should carve DON’T WORRY I’M FINE on the door of the family crypt. Then I thought: help r. ‘That young woman needs a friend,’ I said, ‘and Jo would have wanted me to be one to her. Jo didn’t like it when the little folks got stepped on.’ ‘You think?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Okay, I’ll see who I can find. And Mike . . . do you want me to come up on Friday for this depo?’ ‘No.’ It came out sounding needlessly abrupt and was followed by a silence that seemed not calculated but hurt. ‘Listen, Harold, my caretaker said the actual custody hearing is scheduled soon. If it happens and you still want to come up, I’ll give you a call. I can always use your moral support you know that.’ ‘In my case it’s immoral support,’ he replied, but he sounded cheery again. We said goodbye. I walked back to the fridge and looked at the magnets. They were still scattered hell to breakfast, and that was sort of a relief. Even the spirits must have to rest sometimes. I took the cordless phone, went out onto the deck, and plonked down in the chair where I’d been on the night of the Fourth, when Devore called. Even after my visit from ‘daddy,’ I could still hardly believe that conversation. Devore had called me a liar; I had told him to stick my telephone number up his ass. We were off to a great start as neighbors. I pulled the chair a little closer to the edge of the deck, which dropped a giddy forty feet or so to the slope between Sara’s backside and the lake. I looked for the green woman I’d seen while swimming, telling myself not to be a dope things like that you can see only from one angle, stand even ten feet off to one side or the other and there’s nothing to look at. But this was apparently a case of the exception’s proving the rule. I was both amused and a little uneasy to realize that the birch down there by The Street looked like a woman from the land side as well as from the lake. Some of it was due to the pine just behind it that bare branch jutting off to the north like a bony pointing arm but not all of it. From back here the birch’s white limbs and narrow leaves still made a woman’s shape, and when the wind shook the lower levels of the tree, the green and silver swirled like long skirts. I had said no to Harold’s well-meant offer to come up almost before it was fully articulated, and as I looked at the tree-woman, rather ghostly in her own right, I knew why: Harold was loud, Harold was insensitive to nuance, Harold might frighten off whatever was here. I didn’t want that. I was scared, yes standing on those dark cellar stairs and listening to the thumps from just below me, I had been fucking terrified but I had also felt fully alive for the first time in years. I was touching something in Sara that was entirely beyond my experience, and it fascinated me. The cordless phone rang in my lap, making me jump. I grabbed it, expecting Max Devore or perhaps Footman, his overgolded minion. It turned out to be a lawyer named John Storrow, who sounded as if he might have graduated from law school fairly recently like last week. Still, he worked for the firm of Avery, McLain, and Bernstein on Park Avenue, and Park Avenue is a pretty good address for a lawyer, even one who still has a few of his milk-teeth. If Henry Goldacre said Storrow was good, he probably was. And his specialty was custody law. ‘Now tell me what’s happening up there,’ he said when the introductions were over and the background had been sketched in. I did my best, feeling my spirits rise a little as the tale wound on. There’s something oddly comforting about talking to a legal guy once the billable-hours clock has started running; you have passed the magical point at which a lawyer becomes your lawyer. Your lawyer is warm, your lawyer is sympathetic, your lawyer makes notes on a yellow pad and nods in all the right places. Most of the questions your lawyer asks are questions you can answer. And if you can’t, your lawyer will help you find a way to do so, by God. Your lawyer is always on your side. Your enemies are his enemies. To him you are never shit but always Shinola. When I had finished, John Storrow said: ‘Wow. I’m surprised the papers haven’t gotten hold of this.’ ‘That never occurred to me.’ But I could see his point. The Devore family saga wasn’t for the New York Times or Boston Globe, probably not even for the Derry News, but in weekly supermarket tabs like The National Enquirer or Inside View, it would fit like a glove instead of the girl, King Kong decides to snatch the girl’s innocent child and carry it with him to the top of the Empire State Building. Oh, eek, unhand that baby, you brute. It wasn’t front-page stuff, no blood or celebrity morgue shots, but as a page nine shouter it would do nicely. In my mind I composed a headline blaring over side-by-side pix of Warrington’s Lodge and Mattie’s rusty doublewide: COMPU-KING LIVES IN SPLENDOR AS HE TRIES TO TAKE YOUNG BEAUTY’S ONLY CHILD. Probably too long, I decided. I wasn’t writing anymore and still I needed an editor. That was pretty sad when you stopped to think about it. ‘Perhaps at some point we’ll see that they do get the story,’ Storrow said in a musing tone. I realized that this was a man I could grow attached to, at least in my present angry mood. He grew brisker. ‘Who’m I representing here, Mr. Noonan? You or the young lady? I vote for the young lady.’ ‘The young lady doesn’t even know I’ve called you. She may think I’ve taken a bit too much on myself. She may, in fact, give me the rough side of her tongue.’ ‘Why would she do that?’ ‘Because she’s a Yankee a Maine Yankee, the worst kind. On a given day, they can make the Irish look logical.’ ‘Perhaps, but she’s the one with the target pinned to her shirt. I suggest that you call and tell her that.’ I promised I would. It wasn’t a hard promise to make, either. I’d known I’d have to be in touch with her ever since I had accepted the summons from Deputy Footman. ‘And who stands for Michael Noonan come Friday morning?’ Storrow laughed dryly. ‘I’ll find someone local to do that. He’ll go into this Durgin’s office with you, sit quietly with his briefcase on his lap, and listen. I may be in town by that point I won’t know until I talk to Ms. Devore but I won’t be in Durgin’s office. When the custody hearing comes around, though, you’ll see my face in the place.’ ‘All right, good. Call me with the name of my new lawyer. My other new lawyer.’ ‘Uh-huh. In the meantime, talk to the young lady. Get me a job.’ ‘I’ll try.’ ‘Also try to stay visible if you’re with her,’ he said. ‘If we give the bad guys room to get nasty, they’ll get nasty. There’s nothing like that between you, is there? Nothing nasty? Sorry to have to ask, but I do have to ask.’ ‘No,’ I said. ‘It’s been quite some time since I’ve been up to anything nasty with anyone.’ ‘I’m tempted to commiserate, Mr. Noonan, but under the circumstances ‘ ‘Mike. Make it Mike.’ ‘Good. I like that. And I’m John. People are going to talk about your involvement anyway. You know that, don’t you?’ ‘Sure. People know I can afford you. They’ll speculate about how she can afford me. Pretty young widow, middle-aged widower. Sex would seem the most likely.’ ‘You’re a realist.’ ‘I don’t really think I am, but I know a hawk from a handsaw.’ ‘I hope you do, because the ride could get rough. This is an extremely rich man we’re going up against.’ Yet he didn’t sound scared. He sounded almost . . . greedy. He sounded the way part of me had felt when I saw that the magnets on the fridge were back in a circle. ‘I know he is.’ ‘In court that won’t matter a whole helluva lot, because there’s a certain amount of money on the other side. Also, the judge is going to be very aware that this one is a powderkeg. That can be useful.’ ‘What’s the best thing we’ve got going for us?’ I asked this thinking of Kyra’s rosy, unmarked face and her complete lack of fear in the presence of her mother. I asked it thinking John would reply that the charges were clearly unfounded. I thought wrong. ‘The best thing? Devore’s age. He’s got to be older than God.’ ‘Based on what I’ve heard over the weekend, I think he must be eighty-five. That would make God older.’ ‘Yeah, but as a potential dad he makes Tony Randall look like a teenager,’ John said, and now he sounded positively gloating. ‘Think of it, Michael the kid graduates from high school the year Gramps turns one hundred. Also there’s a chance the old man’s overreached himself. Do you know what a guardian ad litem is?’ ‘No.’ ‘Essentially it’s a lawyer the court appoints to protect the interests of the child. A fee for the service comes out of court costs, but it’s a pittance. Most people who agree to serve as guardian ad litem have strictly altruistic motives . . . but not all of them. In any case, the ad litem puts his own spin on the case. Judges don’t have to take the guy’s advice, but they almost always do. It makes a judge look stupid to reject the advice of his own appointee, and the thing a judge hates above all others is looking stupid.’ ‘Devore will have his own lawyer?’ John laughed. ‘How about half a dozen at the actual custody hearing?’ ‘Are you serious?’ ‘The guy is eighty-five. That’s too old for Ferraris, too old for bungee jumping in Tibet, and too old for whores unless he’s a mighty man. What does that leave for him to spend his money on?’ ‘Lawyers,’ I said bleakly. ‘Yep.’ ‘And Mattie Devore? What does she get?’ ‘Thanks to you, she gets me,’ John Storrow said. ‘It’s like a John Grisham novel, isn’t it? Pure gold. Meantime, I’m interested in Durgin, the ad litem. If Devore hasn’t been expecting any real trouble, he may have been unwise enough to put temptation in Durgin’s way. And Durgin may have been stupid enough to succumb. Hey, who knows what we might find?’ But I was a turn back. ‘She gets you,’ I said. ‘Thanks to me. And if I wasn’t here to stick in my oar? What would she get then?’ ‘Bubkes. That’s Yiddish. It means ‘ ‘I know what it means,’ I said. ‘That’s incredible.’ ‘Nope, just American justice. You know the lady with the scales? The one who stands outside most city courthouses?’ ‘Uh-huh.’ ‘Slap some handcuffs on that broad’s wrists and some tape over her mouth to go along with the blindfold, rape her and roll her in the mud. You like that image? I don’t, but it’s a fair representation of how the law works in custody cases where the plaintiff is rich and the defendant is poor. And sexual equality has actually made it worse, because while mothers still tend to be poor, they are no longer seen as the automatic choice for custody.’ ‘Mattie Devore’s got to have you, doesn’t she?’ ‘Yes,’ John said simply. ‘Call me tomorrow and tell me that she will.’ ‘I hope I can do that.’ ‘So do I. And listen there’s one more thing.’ ‘What?’ ‘You lied to Devore on the telephone.’ ‘Bullshit!’ ‘Nope, nope, I hate to contradict my sister’s favorite author, but you did and you know it. You told Devore that mother and child were out together, the kid was picking flowers, everything was fine. You put everything in there except Bambi and Thumper.’ I was sitting up straight in my deck-chair now. I felt sandbagged. I also felt that my own cleverness had been overlooked. ‘Hey, no, think again. I never came out and said anything. I told him I assumed. I used the word more than once. I remember that very clearly.’ ‘Uh-huh, and if he was taping your conversation, you’ll get a chance to actually count how many times you used it.’ At first I didn’t answer. I was thinking back to the conversation I’d had with him, remembering the underhum on the phone line, the characteristic underhum I remembered from all my previous summers at Sara Laughs. Had that steady low mmmmm been even more noticeable on Saturday night? ‘I guess maybe there could be a tape,’ I said reluctantly. ‘Uh-huh. And if Devore’s lawyer gets it to the ad litem, how do you think you’ll sound?’ ‘Careful,’ I said. ‘Maybe like a man with something to hide.’ ‘Or a man spinning yarns. And you’re good at that, aren’t you? After all, it’s what you do for a living. At the custody hearing, Devore’s lawyer is apt to mention that. If he then produces one of the people who passed you shortly after Mattie arrived on the scene . . . a person who testifies that the young lady seemed upset and flustered . . . how do you think you’ll sound then?’ ‘Like a liar,’ I said, and then: ‘Ah, fuck.’ ‘Fear not, Mike. Be of good cheer.’ ‘What should I do?’ ‘Spike their guns before they can fire them. Tell Durgin exactly what happened. Get it in the depo. Emphasize the fact that the little girl thought she was walking safely. Make sure you get in that ‘crossmock’ thing. I love that.’ ‘Then if they have a tape they’ll play it and I’ll look like a story-changing schmuck.’ ‘I don’t think so. You weren’t a sworn witness when you talked to Devore, were you? There you were, sitting out on your deck and minding your own business, watching the fireworks show. Out of the blue this grouchy old asshole calls you. Starts ranting. Didn’t even give him your number, did you?’ ‘No.’ ‘Your unlisted number.’ ‘No.’ ‘And while he said he was Maxwell Devore, he could have been anyone, right?’ ‘Right.’ ‘He could have been the Shah of Iran.’ ‘No, the Shah’s dead.’ ‘The Shah’s out, then. But he could have been a nosy neighbor . . . or a prankster.’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And you said what you said with all those possibilities in mind. But now that you’re part of an official court proceeding, you’re telling the whole truth and nothing but.’ ‘You bet.’ That good my-lawyer feeling had deserted me for a bit, but it was back full-force now. ‘You can’t do better than the truth, Mike,’ he said solemnly. ‘Except maybe in a few cases, and this isn’t one. Are we clear on that?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘All right, we’re done. I want to hear from either you or Mattie Devore around elevenish tomorrow. It ought to be her.’ ‘I’ll try.’ ‘If she really balks, you know what to do, don’t you?’ ‘I think so. Thanks, John.’ ‘One way or another, we’ll talk very soon,’ he said, and hung up. I sat where I was for awhile. Once I pushed the button which opened the line on the cordless phone, then pushed it again to close it. I had to talk to Mattie, but I wasn’t quite ready yet. I decided to take a walk instead. If she really balks, you know what to do, don’t you? Of course. Remind her that she couldn’t afford to be proud. That she couldn’t afford to go all Yankee, refusing charity from Michael Noonan, author of Being Two, The Red-Shirt Man, and the soon-to-be-published Helen’s Promise. Remind her that she could have her pride or her daughter, but likely not both. Hey, Mattie, pick one. I walked almost to the end of the lane, stopping at Tidwell’s Meadow with its pretty view down to the cup of the lake and across to the White Mountains. The water dreamed under a hazy sky, looking gray when you tipped your head one way, blue when you tipped it the other. That sense of mystery was very much with me. That sense of Manderley. Over forty black people had settled here at the turn of the century lit here for awhile, anyway according to Marie Hingerman (also according to A History of Castle County and Castle Rock, a weighty tome published in 1977, the county’s bicentennial year). Pretty special black people, too: most of them related, most of them talented, most of them part of a musical group which had first been called The Red-Top Boys and then Sara Tidwell and the Red-Top Boys. They had bought the meadow and a good-sized tract of lakeside land from a man named Douglas Day. The money had been saved up over a period of ten years, according to Sonny Tidwell, who did the dickering (as a Red-Top, Son Tidwell had played what was then known as ‘chickenscratch guitar’). There had been a vast uproar about it in town, and even a meeting to protest ‘the advent of these darkies, which come in a Horde.’ Things had settled down and turned out okay, as things have a way of doing, more often than not. The shanty town most locals had expected on Day’s Hill (for so Tidwell’s Meadow was called in 1900, when Son Tidwell bought the land on behalf of his extensive clan) had never appeared. Instead, a number of neat white cabins sprang up, surrounding a larger building that might have been intended as a group meeting place, a rehearsal area, or perhaps, at some point, a performance hall. Sara and the Red-Top Boys (sometimes there was a Red-Top Girl in there, as well; membership in the band was fluid, changing with every performance) played around western Maine for over a year, maybe closer to two years. In towns all up and down the Western Line Farmington, Skowhegan, Bridgton, Gates Falls, Castle Rock, Morton, Fryeburg you’ll still come across their old show-posters at barn bazaars and junkatoriums. Sara and the Red-Tops were great favorites on the circuit, and they got along all right at home on the TR, too, which never surprised me. At the end of the day Robert Frost that utilitarian and often unpleasant poet was right: in the northeastern three we really do believe that good fences make good neighbors. We squawk and then keep a miserly peace, the kind with gimlet eyes and a tucked-down mouth. ‘They pay their bills,’ we say. ‘I ain’t never had to shoot one a their dogs,’ we say. ‘They keep themselves to themselves,à ¢â‚¬â„¢ we say, as if isolation were a virtue. And, of course, the defining virtue: ‘They don’t take charity.’ And at some point, Sara Tidwell became Sara Laughs. In the end, though, TR-90 mustn’t have been what they wanted, because after playing a county fair or two in the late summer of 1901, the clan moved on. Their neat little cabins provided summer-rental income for the Day family until 1933, when they burned in the summer fires which charred the east and north sides of the lake. End of story. Except for her music, that was. Her music had lived. I got up from the rock I had been sitting on, stretched my arms and my back, and walked back down the lane, singing one of her songs as I went. How to cite Bag of Bones CHAPTER ELEVEN, Essay examples