The Sweet Spin of Success free essay sample

Napoleon Hill, an American author, once said, â€Å"Edison failed 10,000 times before he made the electric light. Do not be discouraged if you fail a few times.† People do not learn from success, but rather from failing to succeed. To try and fail, but learn from your mistakes is something that not enough people truly know how to do. Knowing that, it seems strange that perseverance is a skill that is necessary to have success in life, one which if developed, makes everything within your reach. Lucky for me when I was three years old my grandfather decided to teach me a simple activity that would help me learn and develop this skill: spinning a top. This seemingly easy action was quite a challenge for me. I was uniquely coordinated and this was one of the few activities that did not come easy to me. I was kind of small for my age, incredibly hyper with the attention span of a chipmunk, and in a hurry to grow up and be one of the â€Å"big kids. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sweet Spin of Success or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page † At this point in my life we could go and visit my grandparents at their home in North County every weekend. They lived in a small, one-story house in Florissant. There were wooden floors in the back of the house, where most of our time was spent. We would play games, or sit around, or just go to the store. One day was different though. My grandfather pulled me away from where I had been playing with my older cousins and told me he was going to teach me how to do something he had taught all of the other cousins. That is what lured me away from my careless frolicking into what turned into and intense day of work. I had always wanted to be like the bigger kids and this was my opportunity to prove that I was in fact a â€Å"big girl.† This was the day that I discovered the determination and willpower that lay within me. My grandfather started explaining how to spin a top by showing me and explaining what you do: hold the top bit between your thumb and forefinger, squeeze it, flick your wrist and release. It seemed simple enough, or so I thought. I picked up the bright red top, mimicked my grandfather’s motions, and†¦nothing†¦it fell. I tried again and had the exact same result. â€Å"How could I be defeated by such a simple task?† I wondered. As I kept trying to get the top to whirl the blaring sounds of the television in the other room became muffled and faded into the background to the point where I could barely hear them. All of my attention was pulled to the fiendish red object and how to make it twirl. As the minutes ticked away, my interest turned into annoyance, which in turn became to frustration, which eventually lead to determination to accomplish this feat. As the afternoon wore on, my cousins had gotten bored with whatever they were doing and formed a crowded ar ound me. All of their encouraging words were falling on deaf ears, my focus was so intense. My focus was so intense that I had failed to notice the passage of time. The sun’s rays danced across the pale blue room. There was nothing besides the top, the table, my grandfather, and myself. Finally, around two hours after we started, I did it: I made the top spin. I couldn’t believe it, all my hard work had paid off. At first I thought it was a fluke, there was no way that after hours of trying that it would happen out of the blue, so I just sat there and stared at it, trapped in my own little world, but as my cousin’s cheers reached my ears and shook my back to reality, I realized that I had indeed accomplished my goal. I tried to spin that top a few more times and kept producing the same result. The top twirled around and around. The bright colors painted on top blurred together in a brilliant rainbow. I could feel the pride radiating of off my grandfather as his chest swelled up. Everyone there was extremely excited and surprised that I managed to find the will and determination it took to attain the patience to sit and learn how to do something. That day I did much more than learn to spin a top and spend an afternoon with my grandfather; I found out that not everything is easy. I discovered that when goals are more difficult to accomplish, the better you feel about being able to do it when you finally can. And because of that discovery it is one of my favorite childhood memories and one that has stayed with me the longest. I found a trait that I would need for many years to come. I discovered how to persevere.

Escalation of Vietnam essays

Escalation of Vietnam essays It is my observation that at this point in your administration you are enjoying considerable latitude with the American public. Your overwhelming victory in the recent election has illustrated your popularity. The platform on which you ran promised the American public that our boys would not be sent to die in Vietnam. If you are going to act on your word, and end the war in Vietnam, the time is now. It is also my observation that your top aides having been overwhelming you with advice in the opposite direction. Your beloved Robert McNamara, whose opinion you value deeply, has made this war his personal project. He is guaranteeing that the war can be won within two and a half years. He has stated that there is no risk of a catastrophe. He and General Westmoreland feel confident that the war can be won. However, they have continually been asking for more and more troops since mid-1964. You have already agreed to send more marines and authorize offensive operations. If there is no limit set on the number of troops, it becomes easier and easier to keep sending them. What is our clear military objective? Do our military leaders have a strategic plan for victory? Again in June, General Westmoreland has asked for more troops. After McNamara was sent in July to assess the situation in Saigon, he returned with the request to raise the American presence from 75,000 to 175,000 with a possible 100,000 more to follow. Does this sound like the promises you have made to the American public? The goals of your administration, the Great Society, will have to be halted and perhaps never completed should you lose the support of the public and Congress. In your recent meeting on July 21st with your top aides, it is evident that you feel you are continuing down the right path towards escalation. George Bundy has become militant in his stance, and is urging you to escalate and not to be deterred by the risk of a ground war with Chin...

The Common European Asylum Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

The Common European Asylum - Essay Example The European Union as established in the Treaty of Maastricht is an area which ensures freedom of movement. The treaty of Amsterdam (1997)further reformed the Maastricht treaty and all dealings related to free movement of persons; controls on external borders; asylum, immigration and judicial cooperation in civil matters were brought under the legal framework. The Schengen (Agreement 1985) signed by three countries Benelux, France and Germany was also included in this treaty which eliminated all border controls and guaranteed the free movement of citizens from participating countries. At the European Council summit in Tampere in 1999, the member states aimed for the establishment of a common EU policy on issues of immigration and asylum. Among one of its elements that it sought to achieve was the development of a common European asylum system. Point 14 of the Tampere European Council states the requirements of such a common system. This System should include, in the short term, a clear and workable determination of the State responsible for the examination of an asylum application, common standards for a fair and efficient asylum procedure, common minimum conditions of reception of asylum seekers, and the approximation of rules on the recognition and content of the refugee status. It should also be completed with measures on subsidiary forms of protection offering an appropriate status to any person in need of such protection. (tampere european council 15 and 16 october 1999 presidency conclusions) Directives This was also the first stage of establishing the common European asylum system wherein four directives were laid down in order to harmonize various aspects of asylum policies. The deadline for adoption of the first legally binding instruments was set for five years after entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam, a period which expired at the end of April 2004. 1. reception directive; regarding reception of asylum seekers 2. Dublin II regulation; regarding the country responsible for examination of asylum claim 3. qualification directive; regarding the definition and content of refugee and subsidiary protection status 4. Procedures directive; regarding procedures used to consider asylum claims. The first directive laid down in the tampere council was the reception directive. It came into force on 1st September 2003. It states the minimum standards on the reception of asylum seekers. Its objective was to provide the asylum seekers with a dignified standard of living. The reception directive defines the material conditions for the refugees once they land on the EU territory. Their accommodation, food, clothing and financial assistance is all given due care. Family reunion is also given consideration along with medical and psychological care. Finally the integration of the minor children into the education system is also prioritized. The doors of the labor market are also opened to the asylum seekers. All these material reception conditions are provided to ensure a decent standard of living for the applicants as well as their families. At the same time extra care is also to be granted to the most vulnerable applicants who have faced some forms of violence or who are disabled o r minor children and pregnant women. At the same

Art in South Africa Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Art in South Africa - Research Paper Example From the early days of colonization by the Dutch, then the independence from the British, the apartheid era from 1949 to 1989 and the post apartheid era, art in South Africa has been hugely diversified in terms of subject and matter. The population in South Africa is hugely diverse when it comes to the issue of race. The leading races found in South Africa include Blacks, Whites, Indians and Coloured’s. The role of race in South African Art cannot be ignored as it has had a significant impact and resonates in Most of the South African artists work. An exhibition of South African artwork from the 19th century to modern popular art pieces will take place at University Gallery for students, faculty, and staff attending Indiana State University. The exhibition will run for one week in celebration of the South African Art Struggles during the apartheid period. The art exhibition will run daily for the seven days starting from 12pm to 5 pm and later on Guest artists from South Afric a will take to the podium and share their experiences on the history of art in South Africa. Objectives The history of South Africa has been told through many forms. However, art is one of the forms that captured the history of the country since Ancient times. Students in the university will have a better understanding of South Africa history in the eyes of different artists, through different races and lastly through different forms of art media. The history of art itself in South Africa is an intriguing one, and in holding the exhibition, cultural understanding of South Africans will be achieved. At the end of each exhibition and lectures, students and lectures will fill single cards to determine the impact on students. Context The audience that this exhibition target includes students and lecturers from different faculties at Indiana State University. The university population is composed of students from different cultural background. Knowledge on the different cultures is essen tial for each student and faculty individuals in the university. This will help in understanding other people’s culture while at the same time ensuring that there is cohesion in the University population. Students need to learn beyond their own culture and this art show will be  enable better understanding of   differences in other cultures. South Africa has a rich cultural background and those who wish to have future dealings in South Africa will find the exhibition particularly educative. Community Connections For the exhibition to run smoothly volunteers from the student body will be required to ensure that security and issues of mobilizing and ushering in guests are taken care of. The transportation of the artwork will also require students and other volunteers. The University Gallery will need to be cleaned daily.   Preparations for the lectures by the various guest artists has to be done. The help of the student community will be beneficial to ensure that the exhi bition is a success. Budget The exhibition will require funds to help transport various south African art pieces from Art galleries around the university. The galleries will also need some amount of money to be paid so that they can lend the paintings and other art pieces. This will be achieved by organizing fundraising events to help collect enough money. The South African consulate will also be approached to offer the sponsorship of

The use of microrobotics in healthcare Research Paper

The use of microrobotics in healthcare - Research Paper Example Nanobots are engineered nanodevices or nanomachines whose size is as small as a microbe and are expected to have a wide range of application in the field of medicine as therapeutic agents and other medical uses (Kroeker). The tiny size of the robot is their unique feature which will enable them to interact at the bacterial and virus levels. They could also be easily injected into the bloodstream by which they can reach the target site to fix any problem. This potential application is now being considered for cancer treatment as cancer-killing robots can be injected in to the bloodstream by which they can locate the malignant cancer cells and destroy them through laser or other mechanisms. The efficiency of the nanorobots is such that the tumor could be completely removed right till the last molecule. Such a utility of the nanorobots offers immense benefits both to the patient and the medical team as it is less traumatic and at the same time more efficient than other forms of treatmen t that are currently in use such as chemotherapy. In chemotherapy apart from the malignant cells some non-target normal tissue cells are also damaged. This causes unwarranted stress to the body which is already waging a battle to fight out the tumor cells. Surgery, which is being touted as the last alternative in cancer treatment is also not always effective as it still retains the chance of a tumor relapse as even if a single molecule is left in the body from the surgery the tumor has the potential to return. In such cases even the effort from the medical team might go in vain as it is not always possible to completely remover the tumor cells. The use of nanorobots in such cases will not only cause the non-target cells to remain undamaged while eliminating every single cancer cell but will also ensure that the patient will not be out through a highly invasive or traumatic procedure. Only such a treatment will result in complete recovery for the patient (What are the capabilities of Nanobots?). In addition to their potential use as cancer curing agents, nanorobots could also be used in other common ailments. They can be used to remove particles from the bloodstream by which clogged arteries can be completely opened up by removing every cholesterol molecule. In case an organ is affected nanorobots can be made to swim to the affected region and perform a micro-surgery on the organ in a non-invasive and less traumatic manner thereby preventing the need for any surgery on the already damaged organ. The fact that surgeries are still a painful experience for all concerned cannot be sidelined and hence researchers are constantly searching for an alternative procedure that would be less invasive and traumatic. They can also be used to repair normal tissue damage such as internal wounds. In addition to clearing the damaged tissue cells nanorobots can also be engineered to build newer and healthy cells in the area and seal the wound. By this process the presence of any scar tissue from the wound healing process can also be alleviated. As nanobots do not necessarily warrant a surgical intervention those people suffering from allergies to anesthetics, hemophilic patients who are incapable of undergoing surgery and others with surgery related problems would be immensely benefited by nanobots.. Studies have also shown that nanobots can also function as

Social Security Policy In Hong Kong Social Work Essay

Social Security Policy In Hong Kong Social Work Essay Welfare services are significant elements in a society, which welfare should provide, to what extent the welfare can be provided and how to provide may vary among different society. There are some models help us to understand the factors affecting the welfare system such as the Residual Welfare Model and the East Asian Welfare Model. We will examine whether Hong Kong a typical example of these two models by analyzing the social welfare policies. Social welfare refers to the well-being or betterment for individuals through direct benefits, services or disposable income (Wong, 2010). According to Ronald B. Dear, Social policies are those principles, procedures, and courses of action established in statute, administrative code, and agency regulation that affect peoples social well-being. Social Welfare Policies are some sort of these social policies. They may be thought of as those policies that affect the distribution of resources Richan (1988). In the following analysis, we will 5 main kinds of welfare policies which are housing, education health care, social care and social security to illustrate whether Hong Kong a typical example of both the East Asian Welfare Model and Residual Welfare Model or not. There are various characteristics of the Residual Welfare Model, the individual characteristics, economic characteristics and the characteristics of government and state. For the individual characteristics, people are recognized to be self-independent, self-interested and self-responsible. For the economic characteristics, laissez fair economy and the invisible hand are upheld since people believes that market can solve the social problems and to maintain the well- being of the society. The government and state are the major providers of social welfare and control to what extent the welfare can be provided. Under RWM, the government and state should not over burden itself with social welfare/ services and interfere with individual right and interests. Therefore, only the basic welfare should be provided i.e. law and order, defense, transport and communication infra- structure. Welfare seems as residual, temporary and substitutes of the normal structure of supply which means the family and the market economy. Only when the normal structure of supply breaks down, social welfare and services should be provided. In order to avoid the reliance on the welfare system, some of the welfare/ services may come with the stigma of dole or charity element. The poor is the major group of people to receipt welfare and they always recognized as the incompetent second class members of society. To ensure the welfare can be provided to the people in need, welfare will always have selec tivity. The most common method is by means test. According the Mishra, the main features show that a minimal government or state is preferred. The government just wants to provide welfare for the paupers and poor which is just minority group of the society. The services provided are just serving the basic need for them and range of statutory services is limited. Combining all these elements, welfare is just a safety net, confined to those who are unable to manage otherwise. Main features Residual 1. State responsibility in meeting needs (ideology of state intervention) Minimal 2. Need-based distribution as a value (ideology of distribution) Marginal 3. Range of statutory services Limited 4. Population covered by statutory services Minority 5. Level of benefits Low 6. Proportion of national income spent on state service Low 7. Use of means test Primary 8. Nature of clients Paupers/ the poor 9. Status of clients Low 10.Orientation of the service Coercive 11. Role of non-statutory agencies in welfare Primary Fig.1, The main features of Residual Welfare Model, (Mishra, 1984) Whether Hong Kong a typical example of Residual Welfare Model? We used the 5 main kinds of social welfare policies in Hong Kong to illustrate Hong Kong is adopting the RWM or not. Education Hong Kong provided different schemes for people to pay for their education fee. One of the education subsidy schemes is Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme. Government will subsidize the parents to meet towards school fees for pre-primary education of their children in the form of Pre-primary Education Vouchers. In addition, Hong Kong government announced 12 years of free education in Policy Address 2009-2010. It provides 12 years compulsory free education to children. For the Tertiary students, Tertiary Student Finance Scheme was released. Government provided larger amount of subsidies to tertiary students. The total amount of grant paid by government is $621.93 million in 2009-10. Fig.2, Publicly-funded Programmes Summary of Statistics The Continuing Education Fund (CEF) subsidizes adults who willing to pursue continuing education and training courses. Adequate applicants will be refunded 80% of their fees, a maximum sum of HK$10,000. Apparently, government pays effort on the education policies and the population covered is really broad. Health Care For the Clinics part, 70 % of primary consultations take place in private sector while others take place in government funded clinics. Moreover, there are 41 public hospitals in Hong Kong. However, there are only 12 private hospitals. And the Hong Kongs 12 private hospitals provide a total of 2794 beds. It less than 10% into the number of hospital beds in Hong Kong. Furthermore, in Healthcare Reform (2009-2010 Policy Address), government decided to increase the healthcare expenditure from 15% of the Governments recurrent expenditure to 17% by 2012. The strategy of healthcare reform reflects the governments direction of healthcare in the follow few years will still highly intervene in the healthcare services. All of these healthcare policies show that government has a quite high level of intervention and these services are open to all the Hong Kong residents without any selectivity. As a result, the health care does not match to the principles of residual welfare model. Housing Government also had launched lot of policies about housing. There are about 710  000 public rental housing in the Housing Authoritys portfolio, housing about two million people. Tenants Purchase Scheme (TPS) was introduced in 1997 to enable at least 250  000 families living in public rental housing to buy their flats at an affordable price which is lower than the market price. Besides, Home ownership schemes (HOS) is another ownership scheme. It is designed to assist residents to buy their own flats and HOS flats are subsidized public housing. It is easily to find that government had interfered a lot in the housing supply. The population covered not just focus on the minority. Therefore, it differs from the principles of residual welfare model. Social Care In the field of social care, it provides a wide range of services taking care of the elderly, children, young people, disabilities, the victims of domestic violence, etc. This is quite different from the RWM since the population covered is large. The most common method adopted by the HK Government to provide the welfare services is to form partnership with non-government organizations. The government give a Lump Sum Grant to the NGOs and they provide the services to those in need. The expense on the Social Welfare Organization occupied the third large proportion of the total expense on welfare in Hong Kong. Fig.3, The expense of the social services organization Social Security Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme The characteristics on providing services on social security seem more close to the RWM. The aim of social security is to provide for the basic and special needs of the members of the community who are in need of financial or material assistance (Social Welfare Department, 2008). It is a short- time help. CSSA is a safety net for those who cannot support themselves financially and bring their income up to a prescribed level to meet their basic needs (Social Welfare Department, 2008). The old age, single parent and unemployment are the three major groups of people of to apply CSSA (Statistics on Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme 1998-2008, 2009). In order to select the most needed, people apply for CSSA should go through the financial tests. They need to pass the income and assets tests. Office interview and home visit will conduct to investigate and verify the applicants circumstances and information provided. Since this is a short-time help, the government do not want people rely on it, there is some special arrangement for those aged 15-59 in normal health to actively seek full-time jobs and participate in the Support for Self-reliance Scheme of the Department (Social Welfare Department, 2008). Sub-conclusion In the 5 main kinds of social policies, only the social security seems to be the typical example of residual welfare model. Social security just provides short-term help and to fulfill the basic needs of the recipients. Moreover, a series and comprehensive investigation and financial test are needed. And the CSSA may cause the Stigmatization. People may have bias on those CSSA recipients. Besides Government pays effort to teach and encourage the recipient to work in other to leave the safety net. In this sense, it conforms to the principle of residual welfare model. On the other hand, the other four categories of social welfare policies are not much like the residual welfare model. They are more like universal benefits and services having no or less selectivity, because benefits available to everyone. Those policies not only provide basic needs of individual but also to improve the quality of life, cultivate the citizens, and so on. Therefore, the expenditure on welfare keeps increasing. Thus, Hong Kong is not a typical example of residual welfare model. The East Asian Welfare Model (the EAWM) Definition There is another model related to social welfare policy which is the East Asian Welfare Model. It shares the Confucian ethics and value emphasizing on education, strong family relations, benevolent paternalism, social harmony, discipline, respect for tradition and strong work ethic. To determine whether Hong Kong is a typical example of The East Asian Welfare Model, we can see if it matches the elements of the model. Dominated on economic concerns In the EAWM, welfare policies are dominated on economic concerns in order to improve the productivity of labour force and provide strong working incentive. As it aims to help increasing the productivity of an economy, it is also called as a productivist social policy. Hong Kong does match this element. There is a concept of from welfare to workin Hong Kong. When more people have their own jobs, the numbers of CSSA recipients will decreases and the productivity of an economy will be increased too. Targeted employment assistance for various CSSA Recipients In Hong Kong, the government targets employment assistance for various CSSA recipients. For example, the Three trial Enhanced Community Work Projects which includes training elements in 2005 to 2006 were aimed to enhance the employability of participants. Up to October in 2006, there were 145 Intensive Employment Assistance Projects which provided intensive employment assistance services to unemployed CSSA recipients. Hong Kong government also supports for Self-reliance Scheme (SFS) that encourages and assists employable recipients to take up paid employment so as to make them to become self-reliant. This scheme includes Active Employment Assistance programme and Community Work programme. They aimed to help people finding jobs and thus increase the productivity of Hong Kong. Regulator rather than provider The Hong government acts as a regulator of welfare policy rather than a provider in EAWM. Hong Kong matches this element since Hong Kong government contracts out the services by giving funds to different organizations and asks them to provide welfare services for it. For example, it provides funds to The Neighbourhood Advice-Action Council to build Family Crisis Support Centres in order to tackle family crisis. It also gives funds to Po Leung Kuk and Childtime International Nursery Limited to build up child care centre so as to provide child care services. It gives funds to St. James Settlement and Hong Kong Society for the Aged to provide elderly services such as building up Elderly Community Centres. Way to maintain social stability and legitimacy In the EAWM, welfare has been seen and used as a key element to maintain social stability, to get the legitimacy of governments which lacked democratic legitimacy and to ameliorate grievances. Hong Kong matches this element. In Hong Kong, the Chief Executive and government officials are not elected by universal suffrage. With less legitimacy, welfare service becomes one of the tactics to pacify the grievances and to maintain social stability. Welfares can keep social stability as when peoples needs have been satisfied, they are expected not to commit crimes. Hong Kong government does do a lot to give financial assistance to the poor. For example, CSSA Scheme gives financial assistance to those who cannot support themselves. Social Security Allowance (SSA) Scheme provides monthly allowance to Hong Kong residents who are severely disabled or 65 years old or above. It shows that Hong Kong government uses welfare as a tool to maintain social stability, and so as to retain the legitimacy of the government. Low social welfare expenditure Hong Kong Government expenditure on social welfare is low compared with the Western countries. The welfare expenditure (% of GDP) of some western countries is above 20%, some are up to 29%. In Hong Kong, the welfare expenditure (% of GDP) is around 8% due to the low tax rate and the reliance on the market and the family to provide welfare. Hostile to the idea of welfare state Hong Kong is also hostile to the idea of welfare state. In the welfare states, the tax rate is high such as the corporate tax rate is 25% and the personal tax is up to 58% in Denmark. The high tax can support rate of large welfare expenditure. Welfare states provide comprehensive coverage of welfare including old-age pensions, unemployment benefits health and childcare services. The welfare is also very favourable since is more than the basic needs. In Sweden, the unemployed will receive 80 percent of his or her normal income under the unemployment benefits. However, in Hong Kong, the tax rates are extremely low compared with the OECD standards. The corporation tax rate is 17.5% and personal tax rate is only 16%, around 1/3 of the OECD standard. Hong Kong is one of the places with the lowest tax rates, named as tax haven. The low tax rates encourage competition i.e. the harder you work and more you gain. In the White Paper Social Welfare into the 1990s, government stated that it worked hard to improve the dependency culture and remind the citizens incentive to work and undermines the productive engine of the economy. It is to encourage self- independence and responsibility. Significant role of the family The family plays a significant role in Hong Kong social welfare. Hong Kong is influenced by the traditional Confucian culture which is family oriented. The role of family is measured not just by its affluence but also by its core values, the kindness, caring for others and mutual support. The family members support and look after each other. The number of elderly living with their son is higher than that in Western countries. The Government policies also promote the family values to lighten the dependency on social welfare system. Under Hong Kong tax system, allowances are given to the taxpayers who taking care of their children, parents and grandparents. It is to encourage family members to look after the youth and the elderly. Besides, the Public housing allocation policy will give special consideration to the family with elderly. The housing policy is family oriented. In the Policy Address 2009-2010, CE suggested to set up a Happy Family Info Hub to promote family core values, and to introduce family education as well as support services for the family. (Policy Address 2009-2010) Piecemeal, pragmatic and ad hoc welfare development Welfare development in Hong Kong is piecemeal, pragmatic and ad hoc. There is no comprehensive long term development plans on social  welfare, for example, the public housing policy in 50s, the aims of the policy is to settle the fire victims of Shek Kei Mei squatter areas. Besides, The Government legitimacy is shattered in the 67 riot. After that, Government started the social security policy including public assistance scheme, old age and disability allowances in the early 70s. The aims of the social security policy are to deal with critical issues and maintain society stability. Social welfare policies are reactive measures to address ad hoc issues without long term planning. Conclusion In conclusion, only social security policy in Hong Kong fit the Residual Welfare Model but other policies such as housing, education, health care and social care do not fit the model. On the other hand, the social welfare systems in Hong Kong fit most of the elements of The East Asian Welfare Model. Therefore, we do not agree that Hong Kong is a typical example of both models since it is not a typical example of the Residual Welfare Model but a typical example of the East Asian Welfare Model.

Meaning of the River in Siddhartha Essay -- Hesse Siddhartha Essays

Meaning of the River in Siddhartha Siddhartha, in Herman Hesse's novel, Siddhartha, is a young, beautiful, and intelligent Brahmin, a member of the highest and most spiritual castes of the Hindu religion, and has studied the teachings and rituals of his religion with an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Inevitably, with his tremendous yearning for the truth and desire to discover the Atman within himself he leaves his birthplace to join the Samanas. With the Samanas he seeks to release himself from the cycle of life by extreme self-denial but leaves the Samanas after three years to go to Gotama Buddha. Siddhartha is impressed by the blissful man but decides to lead his own path. He sleeps in the ferryman's hut and crosses the river where he encounters Kamala, a beautiful courtesan, who teaches him how to love. He is disgusted with himself and leaves the materialistic life and he comes to the river again. He goes to Vasudeva, the ferryman he met the first time crossing the river. They become great friends an d both listen and learn from the river. He sees Kamala again but unfortunately, she dies and leaves little Siddhartha with the ferrymen. He now experience for the first time in his life true love. His son runs away and Siddhartha follows him but he realizes he cannot bring him back. He learns from the river that time does not exist, everything is united, and the way to peace is through love. Siddhartha undergoes an archetypal quest to achieve spiritual transcendence. During his journey, he both embraces and rejects asceticism and materialism only to ultimately achieve philosophical wisdom "by the river". When Siddhartha is ... ...n, and all of the enjoyments and lavishes. He becomes entrapped in Samsara, the physical world, characterized by repeated cycles of birth, but finally breaks out of it after twenty years and returns to the river. At the river he joins the simple life of Vasudeva, according to Carl Yung would be considered the wise old man archetype, and for the next twenty years he listens and learns from the river. The river is no longer the divider between the material and spiritual worlds but now it symbolizes a unity in which past, present, and future, all people and their experiences, all features of life flow together. Siddhartha comes to realize that there is no conflict between the spiritual and the material, that all human occurrences are to be accepted, and that the only difference between the ordinary people and the sages is that the sages understand this unity.

Soft Drinks Sales New Strategies

Sales of soft drinks declined in the US in 2006 for the first time in more than two decades. Many beverages manufacturers became successful in the past and they are still at the top, but they can lose their power unless they do something to reverse the trend. In this article we’ll try to find new ways to help soft drinks manufacturers to face their biggest challenge of the century. To begin with, it would be a good idea to follow a stretching marketing strategy by producing a new line of soft drinks which would have been positioned as healthy and not fattening. Many companies introduced new products of the same line less fattening such as Fanta Zero or Pepsi Light, but consumers identify the brands of these products with fat and unhealthy drinks. However, if these manufacturers created new brands with names like Bio or Nature, a specific market segment would be directly targeted and sales would stop their decline. In addition, soft drinks companies could follow a different promotion strategy so that their products would look more fashionable and more modern. By doing this, companies would compensate their sales decrease in one segment by increasing their market share in another one. New consumers would be the ones who drink something while they are in bars or discos and new competitors would be alcohol drinks companies. This promotion strategy could consist of advertisements which relate soft drinks with nightlife with new slogans like â€Å"Welcome to the Coke side of night†. Furthermore, product placement in James Bond movies would be a great idea. If Bond changed its Martini for a coke many people would start to see soft drinks with different eyes. To conclude, we should remember that classic soft drinks market is still profitable and new strategies should try to avoid damaging classic products image. Also it’s necessary to point out that soft drink manufacturers will never be as powerful as they were before as long as consumers are demanding everyday more sophisticated and concrete products.

Service Request Sr-Kf-013

Running head: SERVICE REQUEST SR-KF-013 Service Request SR-kf-013 for Kudler Fine Foods University of Phoenix Online Business Systems BSA 310 Manuel Torres, MSc September 14, 2009 Introduction Kudler Fine Foods put forth a service request for the development of its Frequent Shopper Program. According to Apollo (2004), this program will track purchases of individuals to accumulate loyalty points for redemption by the customer. The loyalty points will be redeemable for gift items, specialty foods and other products or services.The behavior patterns of customer purchases will directly help Kudler Fine Foods to produce sales events. The following paragraph will focus on the newly proposed electronic commerce website. After laying out the aspects of electronic commerce, the issue of legality will be brought forth. Once the legal aspects of the frequent shopper program are understood, ethics can be brought to the table. Security considerations will be proposed with a financial analysis to justify expenditures with the development of the frequent shopper program.Finally, weigh the benefits and liabilities for the proposed frequent shopper program. Electronic Commerce Aspects Kudler Fine Foods has proposed creating an electronic sales database of all their products that can be linked to a website. In return this will allow customers to purchase any of his or her items online and have them shipped to his or her homes. With the creation of this electronic commerce, loyalty points can be added to online purchases as well as physical purchases. The loyalty points can also be redeemed for gift items and specialty foods on the website.Before a customer can purchase products online they must register their name, e-mail address, mailing address and credit card information. After providing the proper information they will be prompted to create a user name and password for future use. When an account is set up for a customer, bonus loyalty points could be given as an incentive t o register with Kudler Fine Foods. All customer information will be stored in a database at the La Jolla main office. A link on the website can be connected to partnerships and external companies for a further variety of rewards.A search utility will be available to help customers find specific items quickly. Kudler Fine Foods electronic commerce website will have a shopping cart function which will take a customer to a check out page which allows the customer to use his or her loyalty points towards the total cost of their purchases. Legal The legal aspects of creating an electronic commerce website are minimal. The minor legalities needed for the website benefits Kudler Fine Foods because According to Apollo (2003), Anne Shousha is Kathy Kudler’s sister-in-law and her only legal counsel.Anne Shousha is a successful tax attorney and only charges Kathy $100 an hour for formal meetings and nothing for telephone calls. Copyright laws and customer rights are the only parts of la w that Anne Shousha will have to investigate to insure legal protection of Kudler Fine Foods. Ethics To the average person purchasing items online and having them delivered to his or her home is convenient. When businesses force customers to give up private information for statistical reasons so that they can buy from them online, their ethics are in question. Some companies require phone numbers even though they are not needed for any reason.In today’s world, people expect to have to create an account with a company when he or she purchases items online. Not every person realizes that all his or her information gets traded with other companies. Kudler Fine Foods should take under consideration the privacy of their customers by limiting the information needed for purchases and never trading customer information with another company. Security Considerations Realizing that customers have to give up private information such as addresses and credit card numbers to make a purchase ; Kudler Fine Foods must onsider high security in their budget. A good portion of the $5,000 in the budget section of Apollo (2003), Kudler Fine Foods has set aside for the design and development of their website should go towards an encrypted server. The encrypted server will secure a connection to their website so that a hacker cannot view a customer’s information. By encrypting the server a tiny lock icon will show up in the address bar of a customer’s browser which makes the customer feel safer when purchasing from Kudler Fine Foods website. ConclusionKudler Fine Foods has a well thought out plan to create an electronic commerce that customers can earn loyalty points and redeem them by purchasing items online. This website should definitely increase sales and profits for Kudler Fine Foods. They must pay close attention to the design of the website so that it will appeal to customers. Kudler Fine Foods must give attention to the legal and ethical aspects of taking c ustomers information. Finally, they must also make sure that they take into consideration the gains and losses from giving loyalty points out to customers. References Apollo Group, Inc. 2004). Kudler Fine Foods. Marketing Overview. Retrieved September 13, 2009. BSA/310 –Business Systems. https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler/Sales/KudlerSM001. htm Apollo Group, Inc. (2003). Kudler Fine Foods. Budgets. Retrieved September 13, 2009. BSA/310 –Business Systems. https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler/Finance/KudlerBudget001. htm Apollo Group, Inc. (2003). Kudler Fine Foods. Legal Overview. Retrieved September 13, 2009. BSA/310 –Business Systems. https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler/Admin/KudlerAdmin002. htm

Tips for Learning Irregular Verb Conjugations in Spanish

Tips for Learning Irregular Verb Conjugations in Spanish Learning the Spanish conjugation of verbs can seem cumbersome for those of us who are native English speakers. Most forms of English verbs vary little, we often add a -s or -es in the third-person singular and add -ed for the simple past tense. In Spanish, by comparison, verbs undergo many changes. If you can unlock the key to verbs, then you can unlock the key to the language. Regular verbs, meaning verbs with three common endings, -ar, -er and -ir that are conjugated or change the same way according to their ending, can take on 16 different forms due to changes in tense, mood or inflection. Irregular verbs, may seem even more insurmountable. Irregular verbs can have more than 50 different patterns. What follows are some handy tips for handling irregular verbs. Thankfully, there are few patterns that emerge that can help Spanish learners grasp irregular verb changes. Irregular Verbs Are Common Since many irregular verbs are commonly used, it will not take long until the irregular forms come naturally. English provides a good example of this. The English verb, to be, is perhaps the most commonly used verb in English. Its conjugation is irregular, too. Am, is, are are all forms of the verb. In Spanish, the verb to be, has two forms that are both irregular. Lets look at one form, ser, which is the permanent form. The conjugation  is not regular, and like English, the forms must be memorized. An example of ser  translated into the indicative, present tense is soy, meaning am,  eres, meaning are and  es, meaning is.   Irregular Verbs Can Follow Regular Patterns A number of verbs with an e in the stem change to an -ie- form when that syllable is emphasized. Thus calentar becomes calienta, comenzar becomes comienza  and perder becomes pierde. All follow a similar pattern in certain conjugations. In some ways, when you learn one irregular verb you will also learn dozens more. Irregular Verbs Have Many Similarities Many irregular verbs have similarities, most notably, verbs that are irregular in the future tense are irregular in the same way in the conditional form. For example, decir, to tell,  becomes dirà ­a in the first-person conditional and dirà © in the first-person future. Another example of this  is hacer, to do, becomes  harà ­a in the first-person conditional and  harà © in the first-person future. In these examples, for decir, the -ec- in the stem turns into -ir- and for hacer, the -ac- in the stem turns into -ir-. The ending gets dropped and gets conjugated according to the regular ending changes in the conditional and future tense for -ir and -er. Look at Pronunciations Some verbs are irregular only in their spelling. A good example of this is the verb  sacar, meaning to take out,  which  becomes saquà © in the first-person preterite.  If sacar  was conjugated using the regular -ar verb change, it would be sacà ©, which is not a Spanish spelling. It looks and  sounds incorrect in Spanish. This skill will take some  time to acquire since pronunciations will start to look or sound incorrect the more a speaker practices Spanish. Most Used Irregular Verbs Irregular Verb Meaning Ser or Estar To be Haber or Tener To have Hacer To do Decir To say, to tell Sentir To feel Poner To put Seguir To follow Ir To go Ver To see Saber To know Querer To want Dar To give

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Database Secuirty - Coursework Example As such, the company ought to put in place structures that will ensure information security in two main ways, (1) authentication and authorization, and (2) general policies and procedures. The firm’s database containing all information pertaining to tenants and other aspects of the business will be stored in two main servers. These servers will be accessible by all tenants and building managers. Every database user will have a login account that will allow them access to the database. There are two general types of accounts, (1) tenant accounts for tenants, and (2) manager accounts for building managers. Each account will determine the scope of information that the given user is allowed. While manager accounts will have administrator privileges, tenant accounts will have very limited access to the database. Each login account will have a password that will be created by each user upon creation of the account. A firewall is in essence a baseline control for the securing of any network environment of any enterprise. Routers are usually integrated with a firewall. Examples include software based packet filtration and Network Address Translation. A distinct firewall that is hardware based is recommended. This is due to the disturbing fact that hackers in this time and age employ advanced technology and methodologies that they use to breach networks. A good example of this is APT (Advanced Persistent Threats). These employ advanced phishing techniques and complex algorithms. The threat posed by such security menaces may damage a company’s reputation or compromise the integrity of its confidential information, causing it to lose clientele as banks would in the case where credit card numbers are leaked. The use of a firewall supplemented by an antivirus is not sufficient to ensure information security. An intrusion detection system will be put in place. An intrusion detection system is vital for the

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