Staffing Plan for a Growing Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Staffing Plan for a Growing Business - Assignment Example The assembly-line employees have to take a practical test in order to prove their proficiency in their area of expertise whereas, any experienced lawyer can join the organization as contract administrator. The post will be part-time in nature because the company will not be able to afford a legal expert as a regular employee. The assembly line technicians will get paid on daily basis in order to keep the relevant costs lower in order to enhance the profitability of the company in the opening days. However, once the orders are secured, and the company will start supplying surveillance cameras to different states then, it will be in position to take traditional approach towards organizational structure and culture. In the meanwhile, it has to operate with a loosely coupled system because the future is uncertain to say the least. The volume of sales will cement the identity of the organization or it will destroy the company altogether. The post of control engineer will be permanent beca use his presence will be required at all times. The company will have to make a serious effort in order to provide the employees with healthy environment to work in, and if it cannot do so then, the workers will reserve the right to proceed with legal proceedings upon finding working conditions unsatisfactory. The company at the same time has to offer them minimum wages so that they cannot take the matter to the court as well (Fevre, Robinson, Lewis, & Jones, 2013). Larger percentage of the employees will be doing temporary work, and therefore, they will not have any right to claim healthcare benefits. However, the company has to maintain onsite emergency healthcare service in order to deal with unfortunate mishaps. The practice of staffing does not constitute a random process, but it is rather a sophisticated one indeed, because it has to establish job descriptions, job analyses, and payrolls as well. All of the abovementioned

The Criminal Justice System Essay Example for Free

The Criminal Justice System Essay America imprisons 756 inmates per 100,000 residents, a rate nearly five times the worlds average. About one in every 31 adults in this country is in jail or on supervised release. Either we are the most evil people on earth or we are doing something very wrong. (Webb, 2009, p. 4) This paper will look at basic criminal law, the reasons for lives of crime, a brief outline of the modern criminal justice system, and its future. Criminal LawCriminal law seeks to protect the public from harm by inflicting punishment upon those who have already done harm and by threatening with punishment those who are tempted to do harm. Most people accept that there are consequences for criminal conduct. The consequences are generally unpleasant and take away from the law breaker either his liberty or his property. One purpose of criminal law is to respond to harmful acts committed by individuals. However, each type of law provides different responses. A person who acts in a way that is considered harmful to society in general may be prosecuted by the government in a criminal case. If the individual is convicted (found guilty) of the crime, he or she will be punished under criminal law by a fine, imprisonment, or death. Once someone is found guilty of a crime, either a felony or a misdemeanor, punishment is imposed. The reasons for punishing law breakers are varied, and in some instances the reason may vary with the crime. Each reason has its own purpose, with the principal reasons being: Deterrence, Incapacitation, Retribution, and Rehabilitation. (Davenport, 2009)DeterrenceImposing a penalty for a criminal act is also intended to deter that person from repeating the act. If the penalty is significant enough, the law breaker will think twice before doing it again. Also, when the penalties are well known and there is public dissemination of penalties for a particular crime, it is expected that others who might contemplate the crime would be deterred from engaging in the prohibited activity. (Clarkson, 2005, p. 38) When there is a trial, sentencing, and punishment imposed, there is often a lot of publicity. This publicity is part of the deterrent factor in imposing a criminal penalty. Deterrence is frequently an  argument used to support the death penalty. IncapacitationJail or prison terms generally lengthen with the seriousness of the crime. The longer sentences serve as both revenge and deterrence, and also can serve another purpose. The longer a person is in custody, the less opportunity that person has to commit new crimes. This is particularly true of repeat offenders, which is why there has been a movement toward laws known as three strikes which impose long prison terms or even life sentences on individuals with multiple convictions. When an offender has not been deterred by prior penalties, protection of potential victims from that offender becomes an important consideration. Long jail or prison terms for individuals with multiple DUIs are becoming common as a protection for society. At some point it is in societys best interest to protect itself by certifying that a dangerous person is unable to harm others and incapacitation through custody serves that interest. (Farrington, 2003)RetributionA crime is considered an act that not only injures the specific victim, but also harms society at large. (Davenport, 2009, p. 12) A persons harmful acts may outrage the society as a whole. This gives rise to a desire for revenge, and punishing the criminal tends to satisfy that need. Additionally, having a person punished by society provides some measure of revenge for the specific victim of the act. If society provides an adequate punishment, the need for an individual to seek revenge personally is diminished and provides incentive to seek retribution through law enforcement. (Davenport, 2009)RehabilitationThere is also a value that every human life has meaning and worth, that there is a spark of good in everyone, even those who have chosen to break the laws of society. With that thought in mind, places that were previously known as jail or prison have become Departments of Correction. Some rehabilitation may come from within a person who is incarcerated. Criminals who are imprisoned may evaluate their actions and reshape their behavior so that when their liberty is restored they are able to readjust to  the boundaries of the law. Often programs are offered to offenders to assist in dealing with certain problems. Participation in programs such as drug and alcohol counseling or domestic violence education serves to potentially rehabilitate an individual. Involvement in such programs is often a condition of either continued freedom or reduction of jail time. (Davenport, 2009, p. 41)Justification for criminal punishment is not mutually exclusive. A particular punishment may advance several goals at the same time. A term of imprisonment, for example, may serve to incapacitate the offender, deter others in society from committing similar acts, and, at the same time, provide an opportunity for rehabilitative treatment of the offender. On the other hand, the goals of punishment may at times conflict. Retribution and deterrence call for the infliction of unpleasant experiences upon the criminal, including harsh prison treatment; but the prison environment may not be conducive to, or may even defeat, rehabilitation. Some offenders may even learn to become better criminals while incarcerated. Criminal CareersWhy do criminals pursue careers in crime? To understand the life of a career criminal we must first look at some Historical Backgrounds and Criminal Career Patterns. Historical BackgroundsThere are many theories as to why criminal activity occurs. The classical school theory has five basic concepts. One; everyone has free will. This means that a person chooses to do right or wrong. It also states that the two main determinates of human behavior are pleasure and pain. This theory also states that crime is immoral because of the bond that the act puts between the individual and their society. Also, that punishment is a necessary evil that can keep violators from repeating the crimes and sets examples for others. Finally they believe crime prevention helps to offset the gains of criminal behavior. (Davenport, 2009)Criminal Career PatternsThere appear to be ten widely accepted conclusions about the development of offending (Farrington, 2003):1 The age of onset of offending is most typically between ages 8 and 14, earlier with self-report data and later with official records, while the age of desistance from offending is  typically between 20 and 29 (though a small subset of offenders continue well into adulthood). 2 The prevalence of offending peaks in the late teenage years: between ages 15 and 19. 3 An early age of onset predicts a relatively long criminal career duration and the commission of relatively more offenses. 4 There is marked continuity in offending and antisocial behavior from childhood to the teenage years and adulthood. In other words, there is relative stability of the ordering of people on some measure of antisocial behavior over time, and people who commit relatively many offenses during one age range have a high probability of also committing relatively many offenses during a later age range. 5 A small fraction of the population (chronic offenders) commit a large fraction of all crimes; chronic offenders tend to have an early onset, a high individual offending frequency, and a long criminal career. 6 Offending is more versatile than specialized; violent offenders in particular appear to offend frequently in other kinds of offenses. 7 The types of acts defined as offenses are elements of a larger syndrome of antisocial behavior that includes heavy drinking, reckless driving, promiscuous sex, and so forth. 8 It appears that, as people enter adulthood, they change from group to lone offending. In fact, most offenses up to the late teenage years are committed with others, whereas most offenses from age 20 onward are committed alone. 9 The reasons given for offending up to the late teenage years are quite variable, including excitement/enjoyment, boredom, and/or emotional or utilitarian reasons. From age 20 onward, utilitarian motives become increasingly dominant. 10 Different types of offenses tend to be first committed at distinctively different ages. This sort of progression is such that shoplifting tends to be committed before burglary, burglary before robbery, and so forth. In general, diversification increases up to age 20; but after age 20, diversification decreases and specialization increases. Analysis of criminal careers has great value. Understanding why or how offenders get involved in a life of crime can lead to policies and procedures that can prevent criminal careers from developing. I have asked offenders in the prison I work in why they did their crime. Most answered that they needed money, some were gang related, and others done out of fits of rage. Most of them thought they would not get caught while some others just did not care or showed no remorse those are the scary ones. The Criminal Justice SystemThe criminal justice system has three component subsystems, they are: Police, Courts, and Corrections (Schmalleger, 2007). PoliceThe first step in the criminal justice system is the police officers or federal agents. When a crime is committed the police investigate the crime scene and if the suspect is still present they arrest the person. The police officer must always read the suspect his/her rights before questioning. During the questioning the suspect has the right to refuse to answer any questions at anytime during the questioning and ask for a lawyer. If the suspect is not at the scene of a crime, after an investigation the police will make a report and a judge or magistrate will issue a warrant for the suspects arrest. After an arrest the suspect is booked. This is a process where he/she has a picture taken, finger printed, and personal information is recorded (Schmalleger, 2007). CourtsThe prosecutors office becomes involved after an arrest. The information that is collected at the scene of the crime is turned over to the prosecutions office so they can determine if enough evidence exists for a conviction. It is not a good idea for a prosecutor to be involved in the beginning of an investigation because the defense counsel does not have the  opportunity till after they are either hired by the defendant or appointed one to them. The defense attorney is not involved in a criminal case until he/she is appointed or hired by the defendant. They cannot be involved prior to an indictment or arrest. At a preliminary hearing the defense attorney will hear the evidence presented and then determine if the evidence presented by the prosecution is strong enough for a plea bargain or a trial (Schmalleger, 2007). A judge or magistrates function begins with issuing a warrant if one is needed. A warrant is needed only if the criminal has not already been arrested. After a criminal defendant has been arrested, he/she is brought before a judge for a first appearance. This is when the judge will inform the defendant of the charges brought against him/her, read the defendant his/her rights again, and sometimes provide the defendant the opportunity to make bail. The next step for the criminal defendant is the preliminary hearing. During the preliminary hearing a judge will determine if there is probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed and if there is enough evidence to show the defendant committed the crime. This is when the prosecution presents the evidence to the judge and the defendant has the right to hire an attorney or if he/she cannot afford one the court will appoint the defendant a defense attorney (Schmalleger, 2007). The first appearance for a criminal defendant before the court that has the authority to conduct a trial, is called an arraignment (Schmalleger, 2007, p. 18). In this process the judge will hear the information (charges) and read it to the defendant, and again his/her rights are read to him/her by the judge. This is when the criminal defendant will enter a plea of either; not guilty, guilty, or no contest (Schmalleger, 2007). CorrectionsOffenders are then turned over to the correctional authorities, from the court system after the accused has been found guilty. Depending on the sentence, offenders will serve their time either in a jail or a prison. Jail is where you are held until you are sentenced. Jails are maintained by  municipalities or counties, and are generally used for incarceration sentences of less than one year. In most states, jail is for pre-trial detention for those who cannot raise bail (if bail is available), and also for post-conviction detention of those convicted on misdemeanor charges, which are defined as those convictions carrying a sentence of a year or less. Jails are generally run by counties, and every countys system will be different. Prisons are maintained by states or the federal government, and are used for sentences longer than one year. Prison is for post-conviction only, and is exclusively for felony convictions, that is, those charges with a sentence of a year or more. Prisons are operated by a states department of corrections (or equivalent agency), and tend to be more standardized; manning them are corrections officers from a statewide pool. The FutureLocal, state, and federal spending on corrections adds up to about $68 billion a year. Our overcrowded, ill managed prison systems are places of violence, physical abuse, and hate, making them breeding grounds that perpetuate and magnify the same types of behavior that they are intended to prevent. (Webb, 2009) One way that we can reverse this trend is through privatization. Corporations can bring more effective management and turn a tax drain into a profitable business. This can be done by employing the inmates as labor and giving them job skills at the same time. Another way we can reduce costs and prison overcrowding is by legalization and decriminalization of certain drugs. Drug offenders, most of them passive users or minor dealers, are swamping our prisons. According to data supplied to Congress Joint Economic Committee, those imprisoned for drug offenses rose from 10% of the inmate population to approximately 33% between 1984 and 2002. Experts estimate that this increase accounts for about half of the dramatic escalation in the total number imprisoned over that period. Justice statistics also show that 47.5% of all the drug arrests in our country in 2007 were for marijuana offenses. Additionally, nearly 60% of the people in state prisons serving time for a drug offense had no history of violence or of any significant selling activity. We need to save prisons and jails for  the more violent offenders. It is time to change the law. As a Correctional Officer, I have witnessed firsthand the results of the modern legal system. While there is clearly a lot of progress to be made there is also many educational and vocational programs available to offenders. The largest obstacle to their reform, however, is that the offender has to want to change. He must develop a conscious and be aware of the harm he has inflicted upon others. More importantly, he must have a desire to live productively, peacefully, and within the laws of society. References Clarkson, C. (2005). Understanding Criminal Law. London: Sweet Maxwell Ltd. Conklin, J. (2009). Criminology. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall. Davenport, A. (2009). Basic Criminal Law: The Constitution, Procedure, and Crimes. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Press. Farrington, D. (2003). Evidence-based Crime Prevention. New York: Routledge PressSchmalleger, F. (2007). Criminal Justice Today. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall Publishing. Webb, J. (2009, March 29). Whats Wrong With Our Prisons? Parade, 4-5.

Reservoir Dogs :: essays research papers

1. A cult film. It is a known fact that taste in movies is something that is different for every person. But that doesn’t mean people can’t agree on anything in this matter. Some films capture the hearts of many people all over the world, and are loved and remembered by all. These films deserve a place in history books. We refer to them as ‘Classics’. E.g. Citizen Kane, Casablanca, The Godfather †¦ Of course not all films that are viewed by millions of people are classics. Some film producers like Jerry Bruckheimer are known to produce action-packed, hyped up, commercial films with low artistic value and make billions of dollars. These films are called box office hits, because their main success is at the box office. E.g. Pirates of the Caribbean, American Pie, Titanic †¦ But what exactly is a cult hit? Cambridge advanced learner’s dictionary defines ‘cult’ as someone or something that has become very popular with a particular group of people. What is a particular group of people you might ask. Well the answer to that question can be traced back to the beginning of the art of cinematography. Since the beginning of cinema there have been film fans and film fanatics. The latter were - and still are – those who live and die for movies, people who see five new films a week. These people are what one would call ‘particular’. They are no longer satisfied by the average Hollywood movie. They want something special, something that sets the film above others. But what exactly makes ‘Reservoir Dogs’ a cult film?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2. Tarantino In January of 1991 a film titled Reservoir Dogs (1992) hit the Sundance Film festival. The writer-director was a first-timer by the name of Quentin Tarantino. The film garnered critical acclaim and the director became a legend in the England, UK and the cult film circuit. The fact that it was directed by Tarantino was enough to make sure this movie would be one. Of course this did not happen over night: after having seen his three first films it became clear that he had some trademarks of his own that made his movies original. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is always a long pointless conversation that is remotely or not at all relevant for the course of the movie. E.g. ‘the Madonna conversation’ in the beginning sequence of ’Reservoir Dogs’, ‘the the differences of European fast food conversation’ in ‘Pulp Fiction’ †¦ †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He always ads a Dutch element to his films:

Optimal Capital Structure Essay

The optimal capital structure for a company should be the mix of equity, debt and hybrid instruments that minimizes the overall cost of funding, i.e. it should minimize the company’s weighted average cost of capital. In practice, however, it is not possible to specify this optimal capital structure exactly, for any individual company. It clearly makes sense to obtain funds at the lowest possible cost. In the long run, debt is cheaper than equity. However, when a company’s financial leverage increases as it takes on more debt capital, there is an increasing risk for stockholders. The cost of equity therefore will rise, perhaps offsetting the benefits of raising cheap debt capital. Although management cannot be specific about the optimal capital structure for their company, they should at least be aware of †¢how banks and the capital markets might respond to an increase in the company’s leverage level if it were to borrow new funds, and †¢Whether the company is sufficiently low geared to make new debt capital an attractive option, compared to a new issue of equity as a fund-raising measure. There are two approaches to managing a company’s capital structure: a reactive and a proactive approach. The reactive approach is to take funding decisions when a requirement for more—or less—funding becomes apparent, and to raise or reduce capital by the method that seems best at the time. The proactive approach that is found in companies with large and well-organized treasury functions is to †¢forecast future funding requirements or funding surpluses as much as possible †¢establish targets for capital structure, in particular a target leverage level (a target range) and a target maturity profile for debt capital †¢If appropriate, raise funds early when new funding requirements are anticipated, in order to take advantage of favorable conditions in the capital markets or low bank lending rates. This approach calls for accurate and flexible forecasting skills, and good treasury management systems. A proactive approach also can be taken to reducing funds, whenever a company considers its current funding to be in excess of requirements for the foreseeable, long-term future. By having a target leverage level and a target debt maturity profile, management can decide which method of removing surplus capital might be more appropriate, i.e. †¢reducing equity, by raising dividends or buying back and canceling stocks, or †¢Redeeming loans early. Company’s capital structure is never static and will change over time. Retained earnings that should be earned continually add to equity and reduce leverage levels. It is not unusual, therefore, for companies to experience funding cycles of high leverage, as new loans are obtained to fund capital expansion, and decreasing leverage, as retained earnings are earned. The cash flows generated from profits could be used to redeem loans and thereby replace debt capital with equity in the company’s capital structure.

Are we happier than out forefathers? Essay

The word ‘Forefather’ is the word of great honor and regard, and it may be one of the biggest controversy and irony if we entangle ourselves whether we are leading a happy life or our forefathers were. Though science and technological development has made our lives comfortable and easy, providing all luxuries and comforts yet, the side effects of it’s are worst as we have lost the peace of mind and the time has come that we people are now resisting on YOGA and meditation i.e. the teaching of our forefathers. Flourishing of YOGA and meditation centers in town and cities are the instance of it. Internet makes us close to the people of the world yet we have lost the warmth and charm of physical meetings and physical presence. The warmth and charm our forefathers felt by traveling abroad and by physical meetings to the people concern. Although science advancement has opened many phases of employment yet it is not fulfilling the proper needs of employments as we have seen the youths wandering here and there in search of jobs. In this concern, our forefathers were at much better place as heredity occupation system was in existence and children very often applied the same profession of their forefathers. Imaginations have been lost in literature arena as today mostly our findings are in the shape of Medical journals and technological journals, but the emotions, sentiments and even the voice of the people crafted by our Forefathers in their time has been totally missing out. If it is not so why so far we have not been able to give birth any other Shakespeare, Milton, Mirza Ghalib, Iqbal or Kabir Having all the advancement of science, we people have become much centralized and selfish that hardly we have enough time to take care of the emotions and sentiments of the members of our family and relatives as our forefathers stuck to it very hard.

Peace and Democracy US Impacts in the Middle East

Peace and Democracy US Impacts in the Middle East Introduction During the cold war era, the United States of America and the United Social Soviet Union embarked on an arms race that put the entire world in a state of dilemma.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Democracy: US Impacts in the Middle East specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Although the era came to an end without the death of any individual as a result of direct confrontation of the two powers, its after effects left the involved nations to have adverse deficits on their budgets amongst other technicalities. However, one thing that became clear after the end of the cold war is the fact that the United States of America remained to be the worlds strongest single force (Maguire, 2009). Since the end of the cold war, USA has had a number of political interests on several regions of the world. To be particular, USA has had a huge interest in the Middle East. From the political interest that the worlds su per power has on the world the region coupled by the policies that the nation has developed towards its actions in the region and the natives, it is evident that the fact that a nation has supreme powers may have huge impacts on other nations whether positive or negative. However, the aim is to determine the view of those individuals who are for the rules and policies that the United States has formulated towards the Middle East and its impacts on the region and those individuals who are against US policies and activities on the region. To determine this, this paper shall focus on the reign of Bill Clinton and the impacts of the Clinton government in the Middle East and compare the same activities during George W. Bush administration. This analysis shall provide a clear platform as to the factors that determine the foreign relation policies that the US comes develops with regards to US foreign policy interests. US Interests in the Middle East After the end of the cold war, USA has c ome up with a number of foreign policies that affect the Middle East in one way or the other. It is due to this fact that several debates with regards to the US foreign policies have always emerged.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More One of the main foreign policies that the US has advanced to support its activities in the Middle East is to encourage and fight for democracy in the region (Maguire, 2009). This may seem as a genuine political move that aims at improving the political, social, cultural and economic status of the region. However, the above initiative can be viewed from different perspective. The Neo-Isolationist approach is the first perspective that can be used to view the situation. According to the people who support this ideology, the conflict that arose between Israel and its Arab neighbours is a regional affair. Such matters fall under the juris diction of regional bodies that have the power and mandate to come up with mediation to calm down the situation and formulate long lasting solutions to the conflict. Thus, according to the people who are in favour of this approach, USA did not have the mandate or the jurisdiction to be involved in such issues (Maguire, 2009). However, since the US involved itself in the issue political critics have always stated that the United States foreign policies on the issue are in favour of the Israeli government. This is the very same strategy that Islamist terrorist recruiters exploit while integrating new followers into their armies. Thus, the people who believe in this school of thought advocate for the US government to cease getting involved in the issues of the Middle East. According to them, the involvement of USA in the Middle East has brought about animosity from a few influential people in the region who use the shortcomings of US foreign policies to their advantage. Such people nor mally do not look at the efforts to the United States in bringing peace and advocating for democracy in the region but look at the policies that the US has for the region and use it against USA and its initiatives in the region (Maguire, 2009). According to Neo-Isolationists, this has been the main factor that has encouraged anti-Americanism among local communities in the Middle East despite the fact that the United States is in most cases engaged in peaceful negotiations of peace and democracy in the region.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Democracy: US Impacts in the Middle East specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Another perspective that can be used to describe the engagement of the United States of America in the Middle East and its resultant foreign policies is the national interest perspective. According to the people who believe in this theory, the United States is involved with the Middle East in orde r to sustain its political, economic, diplomatic and military interests (Maguire, 2009). According to this theory, the United States develops stable relationships with bodies that play a critical role in the international system. Once this is achieved, the United States shall only be involved in regional conflicts such as the one in the Middle East only if such an issue affects other the United States or its interest. This includes the world economy and the status of its allies. This will ensure that the world economy is maintained and at the same time, USA shall still be able to access and secure its oil interest in the Persian Gulf (Maguire, 2009). This doctrine has been put into practice with Theodore Roosevelt and George H. W. Bush who, during their reign as the presidents of the United States, ensured that the interest of the United States of America have been kept first in all matters. Thus, in accordance to this belief, the United States is involved in the conflicts of the Mi ddle East for economic and military reasons. The nation has developed foreign policies that will ensure that their oil interests are kept intact. In addition, the department of defence is particularly interested with the Middle East. Due to this fact, the department of defence has formed alliance with local governments in the region. In the process, the military is normally engaged in local mission within the gulf region. In addition, the military also gets access to ample resources that are essential in reducing the cost of development of warfare weaponry. The vast lands that are available in the region also provide a serine environment for testing these weapons and training the US military. In the course of these actions, the United States involvement in the Middle East also strives to ensure that Israel remains as a sovereign state. Thus, the need to secure its national interests thus plays a critical role in shaping the foreign policies of USA especially with regards to the Midd le East. The Clinton Administration During the 1992 presidential campaign, Clinton came up with a strategic plan that managed him to attract majority of the US voters. In his campaign, Bill Clinton focused on democratic development; a strategy that made his campaign to take a different approach as compared to his rival, George W. H. Bush. His new strategy and ideas were against the realism ideas that Bush was advocating for.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the process, Clinton managed to have more supporters, a move that made him to win the presidential elections of 1992 (Maguire, 2009). As a result of his democratic ideas, Clinton managed to gather the support of individuals from different cultures, backgrounds and political ideologies. For instance, Clinton managed to gather the support of neoconservatives Joshua Muravchik being one of them. Muravchik had developed to be an influential conservative and in the process, he had gathered the support of many individuals who wanted to end the reign of Saddam Hussein (Maguire, 2009). The neoconservatives however felt that George H. W. Bush had let them down since he failed to deliver a New World Order, a promise that he had made to the American people. As a result, neoconservatives turned to Clinton for hope. However, Clinton would also disappoint the neoconservatives. The reign of President Clinton was marked with a remarkable accord in a bid to fight for peace in the Middle East. In S eptember 1993, the Oslo Declaration of Principles was signed in Washington DC in the presence of Bill Clinton, Yasser Arafat who was the chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and Yitzhak Rabin, the Israeli prime minister. The Oslo Declaration of Principles was the framework which the two parties in the Israel-Arab conflict would base their negotiations on in the process of trying to achieve peace between the two parties. The Oslo Declaration of Principles was signed in the United States. However, USA had not been involved in its initial developments. Therefore, the fact that USA was involved in the last minute in this peace initiative developed negative attitudes from Israeli-Palestinian veto players. In addition, this move led to the development of Islamist terror groups that posed danger both to the United States and to its regional partners. Therefore, policy makers in Washington DC had the challenge of coping with the short-term effect development of resistan ce from Islamist terror groups and long-term effect of political reformation in the affected states. Although at that time it was not visible, the role played by regional actors in the efforts to bring peace between Israel and Palestine provided a conducive environment for the development of conflicts between the parties involved. In addition, the fact that the United States spearheaded the Oslo Declaration of Principles would have adverse effects especially from regional actors. It is due to this fact that Laura Drake asserted that these two issues that seem to be so apart from one another would intersect in the process of mediation (Maguire, 2009). In addition, Drake asserted that the fact that USA supports undemocratic states in its efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East would definitely undermine all its diplomatic efforts in the region. The Senate committee that was in charge of foreign affairs saw the authenticity of these allegations and published a report on the same. I n this report, the main question that was posed was whether local Islamist movements played a critical role in the peace process in the Middle East. However, this issue was not considered given the fact that the United States foreign policy to such issues normally focused on its national interests. In such a process therefore, the initiatives of USA in the region normally undermine the political activities of local groups and put a lot of its emphasis on its national interests. Therefore, with regards to this, USA pressed on with its efforts to solve the Israel-Arab conflict without neglecting the Arab democratic wave that had developed during the Eastern Europe revolutions after the end of the cold war. The outcomes of this issue led to the release of the National Security Strategy of 1996. According to this strategy, the US government had developed a foreign policy based on the concept of engagement and enlargement (Maguire, 2009). However, political analysts and critics suggested that this strategy ignored the interest of influential stakeholders and most importantly, it lacked direction. They viewed this strategy and the policies that supported it as a means of encouraging democracy in the Middle East to ensure that these regimes are based on a market economy that will provide a serine environment for the US government to benefit from its Middle East interest. Therefore, in the eyes of many analysts, this strategy mainly focused on the United States domestic agendas (Maguire, 2009). However, as the USA continued with its efforts of democratizing the Middle East, it experienced a huge obstacle. This was a clash of civilization that was brought about by a huge conflict between Islam and the influence from the West. This thus led to the development of extremist and radical regimes in the Middle East. These acts came true as per Laura Drakes prediction. As a result of the intense conflicts between the two groups, Clinton declared a state of emergency as a resu lt of the increased violence that aimed to disrupt the peace process between Israel and Palestine. In addition, he froze all the assets of individuals who were linked to any terror group that supported these acts of violence in the region. The Bush Administration George W. Bush became the president of the United States in the year 2000. A year later on September 11th 2001, USA experienced the most lethal terror attacks that have ever been witnessed in the history of the nation. A day later on CNN, Abdullah II, the King of Jordan, in his statement, asserts that these attacks would not have occurred if Israel and Palestine has come into a consensus at the camp David summit that was held on the summer of the year 2000 (Maguire, 2009). However, Dennis Ross who was the special envoy to the Middle East during the Clintons administration stated that the two incidences were completely unrelated. He believed that Osama bin Laden had used the situation to his advantage to ensure that his prop agandistic ideas are realized. Thus, the prevailing political reformation process in the Middle East gave local politicians within the region to bring out their differences that in most cases did not have the interests of Palestinians at hand. However, the debate that was at hand at this time was the responsibilities of the United States on the attacks. Many scholars believed its involvement in the democratization of the region played a critical role in the development of Islamic threats. As Martin Kramer asserted, the United States would have suspected of such attacks and that the nation should be prepared for even tougher times ahead (Maguire, 2009). This was due to the huge growth of anti-Americanism in the region. Daniel Brumberg presented a different strategy that would solve the issue. He stated that a time had come of the United States government to differential between Islamists and national ideologues. To ensure this strategy was successful, the public in the Middle East wa s not to be involved in the prevailing politics. This brought about the suspicion of whether USA wanted to honestly push for political reforms in the Middle East. Thus, at this time, the national interest perspective of the United States had failed. According to an article that was published in the Foreign Affairs, Martin Indyk admitted that the United States has seen a window of opportunity in the Israel-Palestine negotiations (Maguire, 2009). This made them to push back the democratic demands of the region. However, as a result of their actions, adverse consequences have occurred and this time, it was in US soil. These acts were regarded to as a threat to the national security of the United States. This therefore made the political reformation process in the Middle East to be a matter of national interest to the United States. This view was supported by most policy makers in Washington DC. There were also anti-Israeli and anti-America protests in Saudi Arabia and Egypt. These prot estors viewed Americans as infidels while the Arab nationalists viewed them as imperialists. This division of interest provided a serine environment for terrorists such as Osama bin Laden to have an easy time to support their activities. These issues made it necessary for the United States to reconsider the Oslo process. However, the United States felt that Israel did not have a willing partner (Palestine) to ensure that the goals and objectives of the initiative were arrived at. To make matters worse, the Israeli navy managed to capture a Palestine vessel that was with over 50 tonnes of weaponry that had originated from Iran (Maguire, 2009). This clearly showed that Arafat supported the political war over the peace process. This made Ariel Sharon to ask President Bush not to welcome Yasser Arafat to the White House. This acts made President Bush to talk about the issue in his famous Rose Garden speech. In the speech, he advocated for a peaceful process to mediate the Israeli-Arab c onflict. To ensure that this is achieved, Bush supported the idea an independent Palestine state to push in for the renewal of Palestinian leadership. In addition, he also supported the UN reform of land for peace and urged for the end of the ongoing political war in the region. Thus, according to this speech, Bush viewed that it was essential for the region to have democracy as a tool that will push towards the development of peace between Israel and Palestine and the larger Middle East region. Conclusion Since the end of the cold war, the United States has focused its attention to the Middle East. The main aim of their interest in the region is to push for a political change in the region by bringing in the idea of democracy in the region. However, the actions of the nation in the region can be viewed on two different perspectives; the Neo-Isolationist and the national interest. Given these views, the United States involvement in the middle east has led to the development of sever al foreign policies during the Clintons and Bushs administrations in order to support their activities in the region. These policies have been formulated to safeguard the national securities and interest of USA within and outside of the country and to ensure that its democratic mission in the region is achieved. Maguire, Lori. The Foreign Policy Discourse in the United Kingdom and the United  States in the â€Å"New World Order.† Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2009. Print.

Kelloggs A Michigan Traded Company Essays - Kelloggs, Free Essays

Kelloggs A Michigan Traded Company Essays - Kelloggs, Free Essays Kelloggs A Michigan Traded Company Financial Statement Analysis Executive Summary Objective: Our goal in composing a financial statement is to construct the most comprehensive, thorough document possible, in order to attract investors and to confirm that we have taken the time to explore as many potential issues for your business as may arise. Summary of findings: Our level of cereal marketing investment early in 1998 was not sufficient in the face of extremely competitive market conditions. This situation hurt our volume performance for much of the year and, combined with other issues in markets around the world, led to a decline in both sales and earnings. Nonetheless, we continue to have the utmost confidence in the future of our grain-based businesses, and we are fully committed to return to both top-line and bottom-line growth. Appendix # 1- Market Research Description of firm and its management: Kellogg's products are manufactured in 20 countries on 6 Continents and distributed in more than 160 countries. Mr. Langbo has been employed by the Kellogg's Company since 1956. He was named President and Chief Operating Officer in 1990 and became Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer in 1992. In June of 1998, Mr. Carlos M. Gutierrez was named President and Chief Operating Officer. The competitive environment: The Company has experienced intense competition for sales of all of its principal products in its major markets, both domestically and internationally. The Company's products compete with advertised and branded products of a similar nature as well as unadvertised and private label products, which are typically distributed at lower prices, and generally with other food products with different characteristics. Principal methods and factors for competition include new product introductions, product quality, composition, and nutritional value, price, advertising and promotion. Economic climate and outlook: Although our 1998 business results were below our performance expectation, it was a year in which we put in place key elements of a stronger foundation for future growth. This included investments in new product development and a complete overhaul of our corporate headquarters and North American organizational structure. Should suitable investment opportunities of working capital needs arise that would require additional financing; management believes that the Company's strong credit rating, balance sheet and earnings history provide a base for obtaining additional financial