Monday, December 23, 2019

Internet Helps Women Entrepreneurs Overcome Hurdles

http://www.smallbusinesscomputing.com/tipsforsmallbusiness/internet-helps-women-entrepreneurs-overcome-hurdles.html The Internet may well be the best tool for women entrepreneurs as they seek increased opportunities, female mentorship, start-up capital, and perhaps even a way, if it exists, to let go of any mom guilt. From entrepreneurial websites designed just for women to crowdfunding and online-based small business financing, the Internet offers business-oriented women a wide array of start-up opportunities. Tamara Monosoff, a social entrepreneur and the owner of TamaraMonosoff.com, recalls when—in 2003—she was ready to launch her own business, she found next to nothing online about launching a new start-up as a mom. I had no idea†¦show more content†¦alone, women-owned companies grew by 68 percent at a time when all businesses grew by only 47 percent, according to 2014 data published by Womenable and American Express OPEN. And according to a Dell survey, the U.S. topped a list of 30 countries as the best for women entrepreneurs—followed next in line by Australia, Sweden and France. However, these survey results showed that 75 percent of these countries could do more to support female business leaders. Challenges that women face include male-dominated industries, limited access to capital, and less-than-stellar women s rights issues. In almost half of the surveyed countries, 50 percent of the female population are described as unbanked, meaning that a significant disparity exists between the number of men and women who have bank accounts. According to Business News Daily, other hurdles facing women entrepreneurs include lack of funding from venture-capitalist firms, balancing work and family life, and finding like-minded women in the business world to provide support and mentorship. A recent study from the Kauffman Foundation shows that the lack of available advisors tops the list of challenges for female entrepreneurs. Limitations also arise from gender stereotype. A recent study from the University of California, Santa Barbara, suggests that people generally regard female entrepreneurs as less competent and their businesses less worthy of investment. And, because men lead many venture capitalist firms,

Sunday, December 15, 2019

The Effects of Misconduct on the Armed Forces Free Essays

string(80) " to instill discipline and order in the ranks are the noncommissioned officers\." The armed forces of the United States is one of the most feared and respected military organizations in the world. This image is helped by documentaries, news reports and even by the movies. But the real reason why the US military is considered very powerful and a dangerous enemy can be understood after reading the following explanation: The United States military is unique in the amount of power it can project globally. We will write a custom essay sample on The Effects of Misconduct on the Armed Forces or any similar topic only for you Order Now Although France and the United Kingdom, as well as Germany, Spain, Italy, PRC, and European Union, are capable of projecting power overseas, the United States military is the only one with the higher military capacity to fight a major regional war at a distance from its homeland. The U.S. is also one of the few nations in the world that has a sizable nuclear arsenal and maintains active doctrines for plausible nuclear attack operations. (see Wikipedia: US Military). This is why America is feared and respected. Although there is reason to believe that Americans would prefer that their country and its citizens are respected rather than feared; there is also a lot of apprehension over the notion that U.S. superpower is a bully in the global theater. This negative image which others believe to be the dark side of this great institution is   putting a lot of pressure on the military organization to behave appropriately and to borrow from their lingo: there should be no conduct unbecoming a military officer. For when this happens the chain reaction can be unbelievable. One indiscretion and the whole structure will be placed in a bad light. Consider for example relatively recent events about U.S. soldiers abusing POW’s and some of its members involved in an alleged rape case overseas are a few instances when the rest of the world shakes its head and would love to believe that all this power had corrupted the men and women in uniform. In order to prevent such misconduct and to keep its integrity intact the U.S. military is keeping in place a system of rules, regulations, traditions, and protocols that would ensure that the rest of the world will hold the said institution in high esteem. Military Discipline The word discipline when put inside the world of soldiers takes on a different meaning. This has nothing to do with the kind of discipline kids get at home when they fail to do their homework or when they do not clean their room. Discipline in the ordinary day to day life of normal people can sometimes mean a temporary abstinence on doing something or a temporary increase in work volume to accomplish a task or simply to grit ones teeth and do something that is normally not done if the circumstances are more favorable. In the military soldiers do not wait until things are worse before they will begin to be disciplined. In other worlds soldiers do not wait until they are overweight before they start doing morning jogs and calisthenics. They trained before the need arises, they practice long and hard before the fight and they prepare before the crisis. Discipline in the Army, Navy and the Air Forces is a lifestyle. It can be said that it is more than a lifestyle in fact it is the blood that keeps the institution alive and the invisible force that holds it together. Without discipline the armed forces can easily disintegrate in quickly destroying everything in its path including itself. The infamous tortures at the Abu Ghraib prison – where prisoners of war were being held – was well documented and shown around the world. It was an example of a breakdown in discipline. And noncommissioned officers figured prominently in this fiasco. CNN reporters J. Johns, D. Ensor and M. Mount quoted Rep. Jane Harman in a letter to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Harman said, â€Å"The fog of war is thick, but these acts of abuse and humiliation contradict international norms, military regulations and the very values that our military fights to defend†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (see CNN.com) The report adds that all the perpetrators were, â€Å"†¦all officers or noncommissioned officers† (Johns, Ensor Mount). In an ideal setting this should not have happened especially in the presence of NCOs. The Role of Noncommissioned Officers NCOs are leaders, period. The military cannot function without leadership as much as a body cannot survive without a head. Everything depends upon leadership and in this regard NCOs play a major role. An Army Officer’s guidebook expounds on the meaning of the term and it says: A leader is people fitted by force of ideas, character, or genius, or by strength of will or administrative ability, to arouse, incite, and direct men in conduct and achievement. Leadership is the art of imposing one’s will upon others in such a manner as to command their respect, their confidence, and their whole-hearted cooperation. (Bonn, 320) In the NCO guidebook leadership is seen as basic in the structure of the U.S. armed forces and it says, â€Å"Leadership, despite the great strides in technology, remains the same – influencing and motivating people to get the job done† (Rush, 34).  With regards to the NCOs taking up a part of the burden of leadership, Rudyard Kipling was quoted as saying, â€Å"The backbone of the army is the noncommissioned man!† (as qtd. in Fisher, 3). An article in Wikipedia’s website expounds on the words of Kipling: The noncommissioned officer corps is the junior management of the military. An experienced NCO corps is a key component of Western armies: in many cases NCOs are credited as being the metaphorical backbone of their service. By contrast, the weak NCO corps of the modern-day Russian armed forces, and those modeled after it, is widely blamed for the general ineffectiveness of those militaries. (see Wikipedia: Noncommissioned Officers) NCOs and the Concept of Discipline The U.S. military structure amounts to a pile of junk without discipline and the people that are tasked to instill discipline and order in the ranks are the noncommissioned officers. You read "The Effects of Misconduct on the Armed Forces" in category "Essay examples" NCOs do the dirty work and this is very much evident in shaping a bunch of boys who know nothing about authority and following orders prior to enlistment into hardened men who will obey first before they complain.  Discipline is very important in the military because it is an organization tasked to do jobs that are out of the ordinary and in many instances, in life and death situations. These kinds of jobs will determine the safety of a country, the lives of their fellow soldiers or the civilians under their sphere of influence. NCOs instills this concept of a more serious kind of discipline by being an example for his men. In Semper Fi, a book about the highly respected U.S. Marine corps, a description of the NCO’s methodology – in terms of how he earns the respect of his men and how he hammers discipline into their system – was provided by the authors: The authority of the Marine NCO does not rest on fear; its foundation is the well-earned respect of equally tough men. He leads, and inspires, by being the man he wants his troops to become. The NCO personifies his expectations of the men he commands. He wants his Marines to look â€Å"squared away† and so he dresses and marches smartly himself. Since he wants to instill instant obedience, his men will see him obey instantly when an officer commands. He wants his men to be aggressive in combat, so he himself is the epitome of aggressiveness. The Marine Corps NCO, through his own behavior, creates a desire to be like him. (Carrison and Walsh, 69) The apt description of what an NCO is all about as presented by Carrison and Walsh answers the question on what happens when NCOs misbehave. Using the ideas discussed earlier it would be easy to list the reason why NCOs should always be the quintessential soldier. First of all it is due to his position as part of the leadership of the armed forces. An NCOs actions does not go unobserved and will always be an influence and guide to the new recruit and those under his command. If the NCO is unruly, does not follow orders and breaks the code of conduct then it is not surprising for the rest of the soldiers to do the same. An NCO could not afford to appear irresponsible and uncontrollable or speaks in a manner that show disrespect to his superiors and fellow officers simply because he is not in a normal setting. In an office or in a school perhaps undisciplined behavior and a rebellious attitude towards authority will not really cause too much damage in relative proportion to a similar behavior in the army. When NCO acts like a spoiled brat men dies and blood flows unnecessarily. Worse, the unit can be in grave physical danger and the morale of the troops would significantly decrease leading in more losses and more damage. The chain reaction from an NCO’s lack of prudence can not simply be taken lightly as the repercussions will be felt for many generations. And this is not an exaggeration. The following is an account of what happened more than 200 years ago – in America’s war of independence – that helped changed the course of history. It is a testament to the fact that undisciplined men would cause a series of events that will lead to catastrophe: Following the British victory at the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, Queens County came under military’s control [†¦] From the outset, military officials realized that the war had both military and political dimensions. [†¦] Military misconduct against civilians would only create enmity, hinder the effective prosecution of the war and make post war reconciliation more difficult [†¦] By wars end the people of Queens had become, not loyal subjects, but Patriots – as much by British default as by personal choice. (Fingerhut and Tiedermann, 50) Conclusion The effect of military misconduct especially when an NCO exhibits such undesirable behavior will first result in a breakdown of discipline but it will not end there. The men under the NCOs command will use said breakdown as an excuse for caving in under pressure. Thus when the going gets tough the men who witnessed insubordination and disrespect to senior officers will use that as an excuses for not following orders and then a chain reaction follows. When things begin to turn really uncontrollable, when the spirit of discipline that holds the army together is gone, the same soldiers who are selfless, hard workers, united and having one mind and heart will suddenly transform into a selfish monster who will do everything that seems to be right base on selfish interests. The result of which is written in the annals of military history. These events are labeled as infamous but it has cost more than shame it has resulted in the deaths and humiliation of the innocents. But from a military’s point of view it all boils down to failure in accomplishing a mission and for some cases it means losing the war. Works Cited Bonn, Keith E. Army Officer’s Guide. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2002. Carrison, Dan and Rod Walsh. Semper Fi: Business Leadership the Marine Corps Way. New York: American Management Association, 1999. Fingerhut, Eugene R., and Tiedermann, J.S. The Other New York: The American Revolution Beyond New York City. New York: State University of New York Press, 2005. Fisher, E. F. Jr. Guardians of the Republic: A History of the Noncommissioned officer corps of  the U.S. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. â€Å"Military of the United States.† Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 27 May 2006. Wikimedia  Ã‚  Ã‚   Foundation, Inc. 28 May 2006 https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Military_of_the_United_Statesoldid=55490638. â€Å"Non-commissioned officer.† Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 24 May 2006. Wikimedia  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Foundation, Inc. 28 May 2006 https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Noncommissioned_officeroldid=54910164. Rush, Robert S. NCO Guide. 7th ed. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2003. How to cite The Effects of Misconduct on the Armed Forces, Essay examples

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Putin Tightens Grip on Legal System

Question: Discuss about the Putin Tightens Grip on Legal System. Answer: Introduction: The report is all about the closing Case of Putins Russia. This case is all about the Russian economy, Vladimir Putins political power in Russia, and how Western business started to invest in Russia. After the wreck of the Soviet Union and the ruble crash there was an economic growth of Russia which is considered to be the best till date. The era between 2001 2013 witnessed the progressive trend in oil and natural gas which benefitted Russias economy to boost up as this nation mostly depends on its oil natural gas resources (Durkalec Kroenig, 2016). In 2001 the nations President Aliyev authorized the privatization of nearly a hundred of state owned entities belonging to the fuel and energy sectors like the oil and natural gas sector along with machine building of the chemical sectors. The economy of Russia ran into trouble in 2014 due to Russias oil and natural gas prices fell out. The prices of the fuel got slacked as there was an increase in the supply of oil and natural gas globally by United States. The Russian ruble lost its value by half percent against USA, the countries of European Union and the weakening of the ruble (Dawisha, 2015). Starting his career as an officer in KGB Foreign intelligence, Putin dedicated 16 years of service before being the Lieutenant Colonel and joining the politics in 1991.After moving to Moscow he joined the administration of President Boris Yeltsin soon after he became the acting President in the year 1999. He won the presidential elections of 2000 by a major margin and again got reelected as the President in 2004 (Jonson, 2015). Russia witnessed a boom in the commodities and oil prices. Putin was unable to contest the election for the third consecutive time in accordance to the constitutional limits. Putin was then appointed as tandemocracy by then President Dmitry Medvedev in 2008 (The Economist, Februar, 2014). It was in 2012 March when the presidential tenure was extended to six years and Putin again contested in the elections and won with around 65% (Jonson, 2015). Putin became the leader who was internationally recognized as one of the most powerful leaders globally along with hi gh ratings of domestic approval (Sutela, 2013). Putin has been controlling Russia with extreme power. But with the recession that has hit Russia in 2015 has left Russia to stagnant and decline. Russia is the result of Putins leadership and had proved to grow under his leadership (Rutland, 2014). Along with certain poor decision made in military and economy such as invasion and annexation of Crimea and lower the fuel export price Putin seems to be strong but inefficient in controlling the fall of Russia into the abyss. Being mostly depended on its fuel resources Russia needs to find out ways to export its oil and natural gas and counteract the major share of exports globally by US to Iraq. The nation needs to alter the threat of natural gas reserves into the strongest opportunity. The manufacturing of more number of military and defense ships ,tanks, aircrafts and others transportation modes will boost Russias economy (Dawisha, 2015). The Shock Therapy by Yelstin in 1991 regarding privatization of the state owned enterprises gave encouragement and opportunities for the foreign countries to invest in Russia. This was an era in which the foreign investors looked for opportunities. However, the condition for foreign investments does not seem favorable. The companies which had been functioning in Russia for years find it difficult to withdraw and are forced to accept losses that are partial in nature or subsequently lowered their activity levels. The investors however, see a long term profit in the natural gas reserves and there is a decline in the natural oil and gas resource (Durkalec Kroenig, 2016). Thus, those investors are choosing not to withdraw from Russia. Moreover Russia has applied the lessons from the post communism disrupted structures of economy to get some relief. The education sector appears promising from investment point of view as the quality of education is very high and establishment of producti on facilities would be effectively implemented. In spite of the fall in the economy by 4% there is a considerable growth in the food and agricultural industry. The devaluation and restraint on the European food made way for the macroeconomic alterations in this sector. The Russian government continuously expresses enthusiasm in drawing foreign investments. Foreign investors need to look for opportunities and growth carefully (Dawisha, 2015). The foreign investors who are seeking to gain or increase ownership beyond a particular verge needs to get governmental approval from a commission headed by the Prime minister of Russia.129 among 137 foreign investments have already been approved which denotes scope for foreign investments in Russia even in present scenario. Conclusion This report finds out answer to some facts like how Russian economy underperformed in 2014, the political power of Vladimir Putins in Russia, and how Western business started to invest in Russia. References Durkalec, J., Kroenig, M. (2016). NATO's Nuclear Deterrence: Closing Credibility Gaps.The Polish Quarterly of International Affairs,25(1), 37. Dawisha, K. (2015).Putin's kleptocracy: who owns Russia?. Simon and Schuster. Jonson, L. (2015).Art and protest in Putin's Russia(Vol. 61). Routledge. Rutland, P. (2014). The Pussy Riot affair: gender and national identity in Putin's Russia.Nationalities Papers,42(4), 575-582. Sources: Putins Russia: Sochi or Bust, The Economist, February 1, 2014? Russia Economy: The S Word, The Economist, November 9, 2013? Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2014: Russia, www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedomworld/2014/? K. Hille, Putin Tightens Grip on Legal System, Financial Times, November 27, 2013. Sutela, P. (2013).The political economy of Putins Russia. Routledge.

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Linux Operating Systems Essays - Software, Computer Architecture

Linux Operating Systems Tired of using Windows 95, or maybe just plan tired of the plainness of their interface. Well my friend there is a solution to all of your ails. A man by the name of Linus Travolds and many other professors, and programmers from around the globe have come up with a free offshoot of the operating system UNIX. What they have done is truly amazing, and has brought a very powerful multitasking operating system to the masses. This solves all of my problems with the computer and has happily been using a distribution of Linux from a company called RedHat for the past year or so. And best of all I received the operating system for free with the purchase of a book that tells me everything I want to know about this awesome operating system. Some may say that they won't get the game support for Linux that they have for Windows 95, but I beg to differ. There are currently a number of companies who are making Linux available on new systems, and game companies such as ID offer there games already ported over to the Linux operating system. This is why I believe Linux is one of the best choices for an operating system.

Monday, November 25, 2019

The Us President Is Effectively Unrestrained Essays

The Us President Is Effectively Unrestrained Essays The Us President Is Effectively Unrestrained Essay The Us President Is Effectively Unrestrained Essay â€Å"The US President is effectively unrestrained in the exercise of political power within the US system of government†. How far do you agree with this statement? (30 marks) The power of the President has evolved since the constitution was ratified in 1788. It can be said that the President enjoys a more exercised form of power as American politics has developed and adapted but they are not â€Å"effectively unrestrained† due to the many checks are balances that a President must regard when asserting their power. The constitution sets out formal powers of the President in article II. These include chief administrator, commander-in-chief, chief lawmaker and head of state. However, there has been a growth of informal powers that include chief legislator, party leader, world leader and chief diplomat. It is with these informal powers that President is able to have more freedom with exercising and asserting their power. Following this is Neustadt’s theory of â€Å"persuader in chief†. This can be expressed through the State of Union address. On the 25th January 2011, Barack Obama gave his state of the union address focusing on his views on the issues in America. Furthermore, Barack Obama gave a speech to Congress in September 2011 about his proposed American Jobs Act. This supports the â€Å"persuader in chief† theory because the speech was televised to the American nation and therefore Obama was not only trying to appeal to Congress but also the American public. This is significant in exercising power because if Obama can win over the public then Congress would be more likely to pass the act. Aaron Wildavsky came up with the â€Å"two presidencies† thesis that claimed there are two faces of the President; domestic and foreign. When it comes to foreign policy, it can be said that the President enjoys a large amount of exercised power which may not be restrained. This is because in times of crisis such as war or terrorist attacks, the President can â€Å"wrap himself in the flag† and have emergency power on these extraordinary occasions because the President will have the nation’s best interests at heart. Congress is too willing to allow the President to make decisions when it seems they may be unpopular because they are not willing to take blame. As Truman proclaimed â€Å"the buck stops here† implying that it is the President who is scrutinized by the public when policies become unpopular. This can be said for Lyndon Johnson who, despite congress passing the Golf on Tonkin resolution in 1964 which was essentially a blank cheque for the war in Vietnam, received thorough unpopularity having rhymes such as â€Å"hey, hey, LBJ how many kids have you killed today? † chanted at him. However, Congress was more than willing to provide Johnson with whatever was required to win the war. Furthermore, the same can be said for George W Bush and the War on Terror following the 9/11 attack. This plays with the idea that the President is a â€Å"world leader† and can be seen as the world’s police officer as they are the ones making critical decisions even when it comes to situations that can affect politics globally. The Supreme Court, which is supposed to be a faction to the checks and balances of the President, have also increased the President’s unrestrained power to an extent because they have failed to make decisions on critical areas like Vietnam and even the New Deal Industrial Recovery Act under Roosevelt. This is significant because if the Supreme Court isn’t participating in decision making then they are not effectively restraining the President because they are having no input towards the President’s actions. Furthermore, we have the increased use of veto. This can be interpreted in two ways. Some may say that the veto is detrimental to a President’s power because they shouldn’t have to use this act as a last resort because Congress should want to cooperate with the President and not force him/her to use a veto. However some may see a veto as an exacerbating power because they are willing to assert their authority. Early presidents only used the veto when they felt legislation was unconstitutional. Since Nixon, the practice of the veto has been widely expanded. In 1974, Gerald Ford used a veto to pass The Freedom of Information Act. From this we see an emergence of Schlesinger’s â€Å"imperial Presidency† thesis. Arthur Schlesinger recounts the rise of the presidency as it grew into the imperial, powerful position that it is today. His writing reflects a belief that the presidency is becoming too powerful and that very few people are making a real effort to stop it. He analyzes the back and forth struggle for power between Congress and the Presidency. However, there are formal checks and balances on the President that do try to restrain their exercised power, the first being the Constitution. The U. S. Constitution divides the powers of government into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. Generally speaking, the legislative branch, Congress, makes the nations laws. The executive branch enforces the laws through the president and various executive offices. The judicial branch, made up of the Supreme Court and lower federal courts, decides cases that arise under the laws. This division of government is called the separation of powers. The purpose of the separation of powers is to prevent tyranny, which is arbitrary (random) or unfair government action that can result when one person has all the power to make, enforce, and interpret the laws. In addition to the broad separation of powers into three branches, the Constitution keeps the legislative and executive branches separate with various specific provisions. Article I, Section 6, prevents members of Congress from serving as officers of the government in the executive branch. Article I, Section 5, says each chamber of Congress, namely the House of Representatives and the Senate, is the sole judge of who wins congressional elections and who is qualified to serve there. The same part of the Constitution gives the House and Senate sole authority to make their rules of operation. Furthermore, certain constitutional amendments have been made to ensure that the President does not exercise too much power. In 1951, the 22nd amendment was made to the constitution that declared that no President could serve longer than two terms. This is significant in controlling the President because if a were President were to be in power for a long amount of time then complacency might take affect and cause the President to take a more dictatorship form of government. Congress is the most consistent form of restraint on the President. In order for a bill to be passed, Congress must have a simple majority in both chambers. However, as the President is not a part of the legislature, unlike the UK counterpart the Prime Minister, the President must solely rely on persuading the votes in Congress. Whereas in the UK the Prime Minister enjoys a more relaxed approached to government with the fusion of powers concept because he/she is the leader of the majority party in Parliament. Furthermore, Congress also has the power to make a President a â€Å"lame duck†. After the 2006 midterm elections George W Bush was a lame duck and similarly with Barack Obama in 2010 when the Republicans won the majority of seats in the House of Representatives with 255 to 178. This meant that it would be harder for bills that he favoured to pass through Congress when his party did not hold the majority. Although we said that the â€Å"two presidencies† thesis may prove that power is unrestrained, it can also convey how power is restrained when it comes to domestic policy. This is because Congress is a collective body that is elected to represent the people and the chances of their re-election is dependant to the success of their domestic policies as the people they represent are more concerned with these matters. Therefore, Congress will be more critical of bills passed if they relate to domestic policy as they are looking after â€Å"the folks back home† which makes it incredibly hard for the President to pass through any legislation. Professor Filner said that â€Å"President and congress are like two halves of a bank note, each useless without the other†. This is significant because although Congress works to balance the President’s power, cooperation is a must in order to achieve good results. Lastly, we have the judiciary and its role of ensuring the President does not exert too much power. Judicial review is the power of the courts to review laws, treaties, policies or executive orders relevant to cases before the court and nullify (overturn) those that are found unconstitutional. Judicial Review is not an American invention, but a standard part of British common law that became part of the legal process in the United States. The first recorded use under the US Constitution was in 1792, when the circuit courts found an act of Congress related to military veterans unconstitutional. United States v. Nixon, 418 U. S. 1974), was a landmark United States Supreme Court decision. It was a unanimous 8-0 ruling involving President Richard Nixon and was important to the late stages of the Watergate scandal. It is considered a crucial precedent limiting the power of any U. S. president. Similar to this is the use of impeachment to reign in a President. This is when an investigation is taken out to delve into the actions of a President. Both Nixon and Clinton faced impeachment, Ni xon was issued a Presidential pardon and Clinton who was actually impeached was acquitted. Impeachment can be seen as a form of deterrence for any President because results could be imprisonment. To conclude, there are times when the President is restrained because that is how the Founding Fathers intended the President to be. However, American politics has evolved and there are circumstances to which a President is allowed to exercise an increased amount of power because part of his/her â€Å"head of state role† includes people turning to them for answers and decisions and therefore emergency powers need to be at hand in order for them to be able to do this. However, they are not effectively unrestrained because there are always collective bodies there monitoring the President’s decisions. Even if the policies are dealing with foreign affairs, the media are always around documenting and reporting back to the republic and their opinions can be seen as restraining to a President much like Lyndon Johnson and the Vietnam War.

Friday, November 22, 2019

British castles

British castles Essay BRITISH CASTLESGreat Britain’s castles exemplify artistic characteristics and were essential elements in the lives of kings, lords, nobles, and chieftains. The word castle means a building or group of buildings usually intended as a residence of a king, lord, noble, or chieftain. There are many different types of castles, and the features about them are simply amazing. Warfare was also an important issue involving castles. They had to have some means of protection. The castles reached their fullest development in the medieval period, even though fortified building had been around much earlier. The castles created a feudal system, which gave them their greatest importance. The feudal system was divided into three classes: the knights and nobles, clergy, and peasants. The knights and nobles’ job was to defend society, the clergy was to pray, while the peasants had the duty to till the soil and support other classes (Collier’s Encyclopedia 532). The origin of has be en traced back to the late Roman times when men placed themselves under a man stronger and wealthier than themselves (Rowling 31). The knights lived in castles built upon hilltops or in the bend of rivers. There they received vessels, held meeting: and upon occasion, defended themselves from rivals. There are many different general styles of castles in Britain. One of the styles is a motte and bailey, which was one of the first types of castles built. The castle was made of a motte, which was a large man-made mound of earth. The top of the mound was surrounded by wooden palisades, which were like logs. Within those logs was a wooden keep. This was used as a lookout tower and a last refuge or keep (Farndon 7). The only way to get into the motte was across a sloping bridge, placed on high pillars. The bailey was next to the motte, and wooden palisades also surrounded it. A ditch of water protected the bailey. The motte and bailey were connected by a flying bridge that could be torn down if the bailey was not needed anymore. Since the motte and bailey were made of wood and earth none of the castles have survived completely today (Remfry 1). Norman’s were few so they must have had to force people to help build it (Farndon 6). By the eleventh century the motte and bailey form of castle was widely spread (Alistair 3). Another type of castle is a shell keep. This was one of the first stone castles built. The keep was a circular wall that had buildings surrounding it. The keep was surrounded by an open-courtyard. This had the advantage of clustering the major components of the castle into a single strong, easily defensible keep (Remfry, Types of castles 1). Due to the fact that the shell keep was light enough to be supported by a man-made mound, many of the keeps were added to the existing motte and bailey castles. This keep was so much stronger and larger that it took longer to build than a motte or bailey. A Masonry Tower was a square that was 30 or 40 feet high. This tower was made of paste and stones, but brick and rubble were often used to fill walls at times. These towers were freestanding and the stone led to a better defense if needed. A later development of the design was a Welsh D-Tower which is a combined square keep with a round tower that made the masonry tower even stronger. The Tower of London is the most famous of these Towers (Remfry, Types of castle 2). A donjon was quite common and found in many shapes. The donjonWas considered to be a last line of defense. They were surrounded by a stone curtain wall, which was defended by several towers. The wall was very thick, as, much as nine or ten feet thick and maybe 40 foot in height. The wall has an apron like based on it to thicken the wall base, and causing solid or liquid material (Simpson 14). A later design to these towers was a gatehouse. The gate caused a weak defense so they later surrounded it by a pair of Towers. These other towers would allow attackers to be defeated from above or on the side of the gatehouse. A portcullis was also used to protect the gate with a metal grate (Remfry 2). Finally, a concentric castle was an unusual type of castle. It represented the highest form of a castle. It usually consisted of a donjon and curtain wall, even two or more walls. The second wall was lower than the first, allowing archers to drop from both walls and fire upon attackers. The tower also consisted of round towers, large moats, and gatekeeps. If the first tower was destroyed, the attacker was still faced with a whole other complete castle. If the castle were constructed properly, it would be invincible. Edward I built a majority of the castles to put down the Welsh rebellions (Remfry 2). READ: From Village to City EssayWarfare was very important with the lords of the castles. A good built castle could rarely be taken down by a direct attack. During a siege, the attacking army would surround the entrance of the castle and prevent supplies from entering (Mfeinberg 1). The army would literally starve everybody to make him or her surrender. This would take months or even years, and in this time they would demolish the castles appearance with weapons. The most common of these weapons was a catapult, which would hurl stones at the castle wall and at the defenders. A catapult could also be used to hurl other things at the castles such as heads or bodies. That would get very messy! It could also be used to hurl things at one point of the wall because they were so accurate. This could cause the castle to crumble. Another weapon of the middle ages was a ballista. This was a huge crossbow that hurled arrows the size of trees. It could also be used to hurl large stones (Brown 64). This would really start to destroy the castles in little to no time at all. A different siege weapon was a battering ram brought close to the gate and rammed until broken (Mfeinberg, Siege warfare 1). Other methods were used to get around the wall. A rolling tower, the height of the wall, was used to get close to the wall and drop soldiers at the top of the wall. Castles on cliffs were common and made it hard for the enemy to attack. There was good visibility to see attackers and made an excellent source of water and supplies. A castle with access to supplies could withstand a siege longer than one that did not. A moat was added to castles to make them stronger. A moat is a large ditch that went around the castle, filled with water. It also contained a drawbridge that limited access to the castle. Another addition to a castle were arrow loops, which were small slits in the wall that allowed archers a long field of fire and made him hard to hit. On the top of the wall crenellations served a purpose of arrow loops. A crenellation is an alternating pattern of high a low spots that affords an archer a place to hide (Mfeinberg, siege warfare 1). Instead of an archer, a crossbowman was used but a second assistant was needed to reload a second crossbow. Since windows were the only source of natural light, secesses behind them were the size of small rooms. They had built in seats behind them. For security windows near the bottom of the castle were very narrow, whereas the top ones were wide (Macaulay 31). Later advancements were even better for the castles. A round tower stronger than the square had a better platform for fire and was harder to undermine. A glacis or sloping wall was placed at the bottom of the tower to prevent ram attackers. A murder hole was used to drop cold water to put out fires. Rocks and hot water were also dropped upon attackers to annoy them. The combination of these things resulted in the gatehouse. These consisted of a pair of towers that if attackers managed to enter the gate murder holes and arrow would attack them loops from close range. A final characteristic added to castles was a posten gate. That was a small gate that allowed escape incasing the castle started to fall. During a siege it was also used to send out a huge number of troops to harass the attackers. Many of these methods made a castl e almost defeatless. But in the 16th century these methods all changed when gunpowder was invented. Then everyone started using canons to defeat the castle. The canon had more power than a catapult or ballista. The canons could level walls sometimes within a couple tries. Gunpowder revolutionized warfare and the use of castles and sieges became part of history (Mcfeinberg, siege warfare 2). The lord and lady of a castle wore beautiful garments. They would sleep naked and put on linen under garments when rising for the day. After they bathed in cold water, which was only once a week, they would put on their outer garments. Their garments were basically the same. A long sleeved tunic slipped over the head and fastened at the neck with a burch. The second tunic went over the first. It was shorter with either sleeveless or with wide, loose sleeves and often lined with fur. Finally a mantle made with a circular piece of material, lined with fur and fastened at the neck with a chain. The lords garments were shorter that the ladies and had looser sleeves. Both wore belts tied at the waist or fastened with a metal buckle. The man’s costume was completed with a long hose attached to the belt that held up his pants. The women’s hose were shorter and suspended from garters below the knees. The lord and lady both wore shoes: sandals for around the castle and boots for the outdoors (Gies 110). READ: World History - Power Comes From The Barrel Of A Gun EssayThe colors of there tunics, mantles, hose, and shoes were bright blues, yellows, crimsons, purples, and greens. Their garments were usually made out of wool, though fine silks were often worn. Camlet was sometimes used for winter robes, which was woven from camel or goat hair. The fur trimmings were of squirrel, lambskin, rabbit, otter, marten, beavers, fox, ermine, and sable. For festive occasions belts might be silk with gold or silver threads with jewels attached to them. Both men and women wore head coverings indoors an outdoors. The lord usually wore a linen coif tied by string to his chin. Feathers and buttons decorated this. The lady wore a linen wimple either white or colored that covered her hair and neck. Outside, hood and caps were worn over the coifs and wimples. Elegant gloves, jewelry, necklaces, gold rings with stones, pins, hairbands, shoebuckles and bracelets completed the costume (Gies, 111). The morning was spent in routine task depending on whether the castle had quest. The lord had conferences with members of his counsel. The lady conversed with her quest or stayed busy with embroidery and other projects. The knights practiced fencing and tilting, while children did their lessons with a tutor. The tutor was usually one of the lord’s clerks. When the lesson was over the children would play. The girls played with dolls and the boys with tops and balls, horseshoes, and bows and arrows. In the courtyard, the grooms swept out the stables and fed the horses. Smith’s worked on horseshoes, nails, and wagon fittings (Gies, 112). In the kitchen the cook and his staff turned the meat on a spit and prepared stews and soups in iron pots hung over the fire on a hook and chain that could be raised and lowered for different temperatures. Some of there meat was pork, beef, mutton, poultry, and game. When the boiling meat was ready it was lifted out of the pot with an iron meat hook, a long fork with a wooden handle and prongs attached to the side. The soup was stirred with a long-handled slotted spoon. Salting or smoking preserved the meat. Most common was to keep the meat alive int’l ready for use. On fast days they served fish (Gies, 113). The lords had to use hunting as a way of life. At dawn on summer days the lords, his household, and quest would go into the forest while the huntsman, a professional and regular member of the lord’s staff would hunt the deer down with their dogs. There were three kinds of dogs: the lymer, a bloodhound, bachet, and a gray hound. The bloodhound was kept on a leash an d used to finish off the prey at bay. The bachet was a smaller hound and a gray hound was larger than the modern breed and capable of killing a deer on its own. When the animal was brought to the bay it was usually beheaded. Sometimes they would use bow and arrow to kill. Skinning and dividing up the meat, including the hound’s share (Gies 125) followed the kill. A meal would also include beer. The lords and there acquaintances love to drink beer (Quenells 43). Dinner would be served between 10:00 a.m. and noon. The dinner consisted of two or three courses each served in separate dishes. All of the courses consisted of the same kinds of food except for the last course, which consisted of fruits, nuts, cheese, wafers, and spiced wine. On holidays and weddings a large quantity of food would be served. When HenryIII daughter married there was more than sixty pasture cattle eaten at the first and principal course at the table (Gies, 117). During dinner the quest might be entertai ned with music or jokes, and stories. When dinner was over one of the quest would entertain the company with a song of their own. The way of life lived in these times were very different from how we live things now. Their way of attack then was very brutal and took strong men to pull the job off. Now gun-power is invented so it is easier to defend us from attackers. The lords and ladies were very creative in their ways of doing things. It would have been amazing to live in those times.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Article Review #1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Article Review #1 - Essay Example The independent variables were interpersonal-based service encounter and technology-based service encounter, while the dependent variables were brand loyalty and online purchase. The author applied The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model in predicting the behavioral intention of online purchases. The literature review is considered exhaustive, since it provided studies that explore the components, which impact consumer viewpoint perceptions of quality encounters, such as friendliness and display of proper emotions. It also mentioned studies that determined the relationship between service encounter satisfaction and repeat purchase intentions. From here, the author hypothesized that a positive customer encounter can motivate customers to use a hotel’s online reservation option. After that, the author connected studies that link satisfaction and brand loyalty and developed the second hypothesis from there. For two more hypotheses, the author identified the relationship between technology-based and interpersonal-relationship based encounters and brand loyalty. Finally, the author connected studies that built the relationship between brand loyalty and the intention to purchase services online. The research design followed the quantitative approach, with 2000 questionnaires distributed in 270 hotels. The response rate was 26.9% or 538, which is quite low. After eliminating incomplete replies, only 505 results were chosen. The hotels included international and national franchise hotels, as well as independent ones. The author improved the validity of this instrument through pre-testing and gathering insight from experts. Twenty tourists were used to pre-test the survey instrument. Factor analysis is applied, which is considered appropriate for the research, since it studied underlying data patterns. The findings adequately discussed if

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

EARLY JAZZ PIANO STYLES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

EARLY JAZZ PIANO STYLES - Essay Example With Bennie Moten’s innovation, jazz piano incorporated some blues in it which accounted for the â€Å"blues-rooted modern jazz† (Schuller 4). Gioia’s account brought up the influence of Mexican band performers to the birth of jazz in Kansas City, New Orleans (7). It was during the time when the Louisiana Purchase only resulted to a one-eighth Anglo-Saxon population and the Latin Americans dominated in numbers in the said area (Gioia 6). Decades passed, and the influence of African-Americans grew to be more noticeable with the introduction of rhythm and blues. In fact, modern jazz is described as a hybrid of various Latin and African-American music genres, such as Broadway music, pop, blues, samba, reggae, funk, and other symphony music (Gioia 8). This essay follows the discussion of various musical works in jazz piano and descriptions of each popular jazz work in history. In particular, it discusses the popular Stride Ragtime, specifically the Harlem stride pian o, Boogie Woogie, Earl Hines’ jazz piano pieces, and G. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. Descriptions of these masterpieces will also be supported by some music authors’ perception of their music for validation and complementary interpretation. Stride Ragtime: Harlem Stride Piano Among the best pianists in New York, four of them were experts in stride playing. James P. Johnson, Luckey Roberts, Willie â€Å"The Lion† Smith and Richard â€Å"Labba Labba† Maclean were among the victors in stride ragtime battle known as â€Å"cutting contests† in which they were known as ticklers (Martin and Waters 108). Stride ragtime is played fundamentally by the left hand which strides â€Å"up and down the keyboard† using a â€Å"base note or an octave played on the first and third beats of the 4/4 measure† while goes on to alternate with a midrange note â€Å"on the second and fourth beats† (Martin and Waters 108). Stride ragtime originate d from ragtime itself but was developed into stride piano using some techniques such as speed, variations, incorporation of blues, and other improvisations that were â€Å"sometimes planned† (Martin and Waters 108). Harlem Stride Piano incorporates speed and flash. The effect appears to be vigorous and full of energy, a mimicry of American society shortly after World War I in which American lifestyle was fast-paced, hectic, and seemingly always in a rush. It also depicts sounds heard in cars and other automobiles, telephones, and airplanes (Martin and Waters 108). It also suggests a pleasing and lively mood because of the seemingly ‘caricature’ accompaniment which is a perfect background to slapsticks and pathos visual shows. Eubie Blake was particularly famous for being a pianist and composer during early, middle, and late 1900s and took the stride ragtime to a new level (Martin and Waters 109). Most importantly, James P. Johnson fathered stride piano by being s o absorbed in his craft through composing jazz pieces for Broadway musicals and concerts and keeping on learning and experimenting for the said genre (Martin and Waters 109). Boogie-woogie â€Å"Noisy offspring† was labeled to another genre of jazz piano, which became an instant hit in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century (Silvester 3). Boogie-woogie came to the existence in 1940s following combination of ragtime and rhythm of African music as evident by the qualities

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Exploratory Research on Pizza Heaven Essay Example for Free

Exploratory Research on Pizza Heaven Essay 1. Exploratory research is a form of research conducted for a problem that has not been clearly defined. It helps determine the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects. Even from the definition of exploratory research we can see, that it is done in order to define the problem and to help understand in which direction the further research should go. Exploratory research is preliminary, and is not conclusive, the quality of information provided is not perfect, and also the focus group chosen(40people) was not really representing the whole of the students at West coast. Therefore they should not yet implement the findings, because the data provided by 40 students might not be applicable to all student at West coast. 2. The problem Pizza Heaven has faced is that their sales have slipped. That could be due to competition from national chains such as Pizza Hut or Dominos, so questions about competition should be asked. (Because potential clients might like something about the competitors more e. g.pizza itself, delivery, atmosphere in restaurants) also, they noted that the selection was often poor Sales could have slipped, because of the range of products Pizza Heaven offers, so that topic has to be covered as well, including questions about new possible pizzas. (Because it may be that competitors are offering some types of pizza that Pizza Heaven dont have) A decrease in sales can also be due to poor customer service, so that topic should also be covered. People said that pizzas were usually dry and cold why? maybe delivery took too long, that should be explored in more details. 3. Step One: Establishing the Need for Marketing Research The need is already established, as there is a decrease in sales Step Two: Defining the Problem So the problem is a decrease in sales, due to what ? Step Three: Establishing Research Objectives Hard Competition? Poor range of products? Need better customer service? those are the questions to ask. Step Four: Determining Research Design. Descriptive and Causal Research should be done. Step Five: Identifying Information Types and Sources Primary data should be collected, but also secondary data could be of a little use, for example if the sales dropped overall and not only by Pizza Heaven, due to crisis or some other reason Step Six: Determining Methods of Accessing Data We should have people asking the question, and also questionnaires coming with each pizza could help. Step Seven: Designing Data collection Forms Can be questionnaires(must be worded objectively, clearly, and without bias in order to communicate with respondents), surveys, or both can be done through email (although there is only a 5% response rate) Step Eight: Determining Sample Plan and Size Sample Size should surely be more than 40 people from one location. Also a sample should be representative, e. g. not only student of age 18-20, but also every other age groups. Step Nine: Collecting Data Step Ten: Analyzing Data Step Eleven: Preparing and Presenting the Final Report.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Facts about Earths Moon Essay -- essays research papers

The moon is a wondrous thing. Every night it's outside, up high in the sky, giving light to the world. Most people take advantage of the moon's light, because they don't know why or how the moon shines. Scientists today are busy proving theories and studying the moon, which will hopefully help society to understand the moon more. They know a lot about the moon, but there is still much more to learn. ?The Eagle has landed.? Many people use this phrase without knowing where it came from. On July 20, 1969, NASA astonished the world, when Neil Armstrong spoke these words when the Apollo spacecraft, nicknamed ?the Eagle,? landed on the moon?s surface. He later spoke the famous words, ?One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,? when he was the first man to set foot on the moon. When astronauts walk on the moon, they are allowed to breathe, because of their space suits. These space suits have oxygen tanks in them, and allow astronauts to stay out in space for up to seven hours at a time. They have to think ahead a few steps so they can step or turn without difficulty, because they have to take huge steps. The pull of gravity on the moon is one-sixth lower than the pull of gravity on the Earth, which makes them a lot lighter on the moon. The moon?s gravitational pull controls the ocean?s tides on the Earth. The moon pulls the Earth and water towards it, which causes an increase of water nearest the moon. As the moon pulls the core of the Earth towards it, the water on the side farthest away from the moon flings around to the side, and creates an increase of water there, too. The increase of water is called a high tide. On the sides of the Earth not facing the sun or moon, there are low tides. Each beach or po... ...lieve that millions of years ago, a piece of rock as big as Mars hit the Earth, and the collision blasted a huge amount of rock into space, and the shattered pieces of rock went into orbit around the Earth. Over millions of years, the rocks clumped together to form the moon, and now it is not the pieces of rock that orbit the Earth, but the moon itself. Scientists, Native Americans, and many other people have their theories of how the moon became, but none have been proven. Scientists have studied the moon for many years, and have proven many theories, but not this one. Most people still take advantage of the moon, even after society has learned so much about it. They won?t think of it until the day the moon isn?t there anymore, which won?t happen anytime soon. Scientists have helped us greatly in understanding the moon, but there is still much more to learn.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Csf Proposal

Overview and purpose of the project: The purpose of this project is to continue to change the way the UST community thinks about waste. Composting confronts the idea that, when you throw something away it just disappears, and provides alternative to sending our waste to landfills. In the fall of 2012, the CSF funded a project to expand Dr. Chester Wilson’s vermiculture composting system, which composts all of the coffee grounds produced by Beakers on the second floor of OWS.The goal of this previous CSF project was to expand the efforts of Dr. Wilson by collecting and composting much of the coffee grounds produced on north campus, as well as to raise campus awareness on the benefits and ease of composting. This project is well underway, and one can see the worms working their digestive wonders in the parking ramp under ASC.Quinn Wrenholt, the primary applicant of the fall vermicomposting CSF proposal, and other members of the Composting Club have been collecting the coffee gro unds from the library Coffee Bene, as well as from T’s, the Loft, and Summit Marketplace in the student center since this spring semester began (with average daily collection of between 12 and 18 gallons of coffee grounds – more than 50 gallons each week).The collection crew, which consists of seven motivated individuals, comprises the core group of the Composting Club and has already logged more than 30 cumulative hours of volunteer time providing a direct service to our campus through collecting the coffee grounds we produce. Further Composting Club activities have included another 60 hours of volunteer time contributed to the development of a long-term research project connecting the worm composting bins in the ASC parking ramp to the research occurring in the UST Stewardship Garden located in the Green Space behind the BEC.These activities, in particular the daily collection of the mass amounts of coffee grounds has drawn the attention of Tommie Media on numerous o ccasions already this semester. Quinn Wrenholt will also soon be submitting a blog to the UST Sustainability Blog detailing the progress of the project up to this point and describing in more detail the research being done and some of the additional goals of the Composting Club (http://ustsustainblog. com) This proposal is to expand our on-campus composting even further by placing vermicompost bins in different departments and office areas around campus.This will allow coffee grounds and other food waste produced in these areas to be composted on site. The composting club will maintain these new bins in addition to the bins in the ASC. Additionally, each bin will be sponsored by an individual who works in the area covered by the bin. These Compost Club Liaisons are the keystone to this project with the Composting Club providing all the necessary support. This project’s proposed budget reflects exactly the number of vermicomposting bins that we have received demand and support for so far (see Appendix A).This expansion will be a great addition to the composting work started by Chester Wilson on South Campus and expanded to North Campus this past fall, as it will allow many UST faculty and staff to directly participate in the composting process. Additionally, the continued and increasing amount of alternative waste disposal will continue decrease our University’s carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions and increase the awareness of our campus community on issues pertaining to sustainability and waste. How the project will be implemented:This project already has all the necessary infrastructure and support in place, except the purchasing of the new, additional worm bins. The vermicomposting station in the ASC parking ramp will serve as the central headquarters for this outreach project. The Composting Club will work with the liaisons to find good locations for the bins within each department. The volunteer liaisons will serve as the day-to-day man agers, adding their offices’ coffee grounds to the bin each day, and encouraging others to dispose of their waste in the appropriate receptacle.The liaisons will also serve as the point contact person should an issue arise with any of the bins. They will have access to a Compost Club Hotline which can be used to address questions and also guarantees bin removal within 30 minutes of being contacted, if needed. This is the ultimate backup if by some error or flaw a bin develops a smell or leak. These bins will be removed to the ASC parking ramp and dealt with accordingly where no one will be bothered and cleanup is easy.This is also the contingency plan for any case-by-case bin placement issues that occur; though at this point, all of the departments participating in the project have ensured feasibility and acquired permission for their bin(s). The Composting Club will be in charge of the overall maintenance of all on-campus worm bins. When the time comes for the finished compo st to be collected from the bottom tray of the stack, the Composting Club will remove the finished tray and replace it with an empty one.The finished castings will be separated and collected in the ASC parking ramp where we have the facilities and space for doing so (see video for more detailed information and images of the Worm Factory system: http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=0sxWOCWEpsg). Only the active composting will take place on site and will be contained by the bins – all of the more intensive and potentially messy procedures will happen off-site in the ASC parking ramp.If this project is approved, when the time comes for purchasing and distributing the new bins to the different locations across campus, the Composting Club will continue to work with the Physical plant to facilitate our fund expenditure. As we distribute the bins, we will also offer short ‘how to’ demonstrations for maintaining a healthy worm bin to the various departments, their liaisons , and other interested parties. Already, we have presented during the first five minutes of a few department meetings with great response from the faculty in attendance.Additionally, the Composting Club has assembled a list of FAQs relating to vermicomposting in the Worm Factory bins and containing information pertinent to this project. These FAQs can be viewed in Appendix B. Budget: For the CSF Vermicompost project last fall, all of the materials (excepting the worms themselves) were purchased from The Eggplant Urban Farm Supply, located on Selby Ave just a few blocks away from our campus. For this project, we plan to continue to utilize this neighboring business as a resource and supplier. Three-tray worm bin: $89 each – Total cost: $$$$Each location will initially receive one, three-tray stack (excepting McNeely Hall which has requested two bins to cover the entire building). As of the time of this proposal’s submission, we have received requests for __ bins (See Ap pendix A). Additional trays: $10 each – Total cost: $$$$ We are requesting funding for an additional __ trays in order to respond to various rates of waste input in different departments, buildings, and offices. It is difficult to anticipate the scope of the waste produced in different offices prior to the actual collection of that waste.By altering both the number of trays in each stack and the number of worms in each tray, we can address the needs of different departments on a case-by-case basis. 10 lbs of worms: $189 (+$26 S&H) – Total cost: $$$$ This is enough for five to six of the trays mentioned above. So we will likely require a minimum of __ lbs of worms. Flexible spending – Total cost: $300 In the Vermicompost CSF proposal submitted this past fall, we requested $500 to cover additional expenses related to developing the project.These funds have been instrumental in the project’s success and have been used to purchase rugs for the bin systems, br ooms for keeping the ASC vermicomposting area clean, buckets and tubs for the collection of the coffee grounds, and more worms and trays than were originally estimated in order to keep up with the steady supply of grounds so far this semester. Also, some of the money has been allotted to fund a collaboration project with a couple of students from the UST club Engineers for a Sustainable World to design a compost sifter to facilitate the processing of finished compost and the collection of the worms.This will be very important in facilitating the collection of worm castings from the bins, and in enabling the research projects currently being developed. For this CSF project proposal, fewer unforeseen expenses are expected as much of the infrastructure for the project is now in place. However, the purchasing of rugs for the bins and other case-by-case needs are anticipated. For this reason, we are requesting an additional $300 to cover these expenses and which also may be used to purch ase another worm bin if needed by a particular department or building. Proposed budget total: $$$$$Include defined metrics for a clearly measurable outcome and a schedule of appropriate progress reports to the CSF through the duration of the project: To monitor the outcomes of this project, the Composting Club, in coordination with students actively conducting research on the vermicomposting systems, will calculate the amount of carbon we are eliminating from the atmosphere by aerobically composting UST’s coffee grounds and some of our campus food waste. Currently, this waste is going to landfills, where it degrades much more slowly in and anaerobic environment conducive to the production of methane and other harmful greenhouse gases.We will also make regular estimates of the amount of worm castings being produced. The castings are a valuable soil amendment, and there is potential for another student research project to pursue the branding of these castings. This way, any cas tings that are produced in addition to those used in the UST greenhouses and Stewardship Garden can be officially donated, which would make this not only a campus sustainability project and research opportunity, but also a non-profit business.These numbers can be easily recorded because it will be students from the composting club along with Chester Wilson that are handling and hauling the material and maintaining the worm bins across campus. We will submit semesterly basic reports to the CSF in a format such as this: |Fall 2013 (Implementation) | Spring 2014 |Fall 2014 |Spring 2015 | |Waste composted |0 |x |x |x | |Carbon Eliminated |0 |x |x |x | |Castings Produced |0 |x |x |x | | Additional reports may come from the research projects that are now being planned and implemented relating to this project and integrating it to other ongoing campus sustainability projects.If your project will offset greenhouse gases and reduce the campus carbon footprint, describe thoroughly how this wi ll happen: Assuming 2 tons of waste per month composted (we will have a much more accurate estimate of the waste composted by the worms bins at the end of this semester), which would equate to the prevention of 1. 76 metric tons/month of CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere. This is equivalent to eliminating 4. 56 cars from the road per month.That is just the reduction based on that waste not being in the landfill, there would be additional carbon reduced from not having to transport that waste to the site. Further benefit would come from the utilization of the worms castings as a soil amendment in food production areas. Healthier soils are better at sequestering atmospheric CO2 and can hold more of it than denuded soils lacking nutrients and organic matter. (See Appendix C for calculation source). Although campus greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced, this project serves even more to catalyze a sustainable initiative that can be expanded in years to come.In its first semes ter of existence, the Composting Club and the vermicomposting operations now located in the ASC parking ramp have already generated an awesome amount of student and faculty interest. Further, the project from the fall of 2012 has provided a conduit for alternative waste disposal on campus. The action of composting much of our campus waste is already providing a platform for further reductions of greenhouse gas emissions, reductions in waste, and overall reductions in UST’s carbon footprint.Describe if and how students will be involved and/or the educational value to our community: The fall vermicomposting project was designed to encourage students to consider their relationship with their food and food waste, and to provide an alternative method of waste ‘disposal’ for our campus. This project is designed to do the same for our faculty and staff, further strengthening the link between food waste and climate change and increasing our carbon reduction efforts. Stud ents have already gotten involved with this project and the Composting Club is ready to expand our efforts!We are in the process of planning educational tours of the vermicomposting operation in the ASC parking ramp, which will be offered during Earth Week in addition to other sustainability-related project tours. Composting Club activities and the maintenance of the worm bins provide great opportunities for donation of service hours directly benefiting our campus. Further student engagement has come in the form of new research projects and connections with other campus projects. These integration projects include providing fertile worm castings to the UST greenhouses and the Stewardship Garden.As previously mentioned, students are currently in the process of developing research proposals to further develop the UST vermicomposting project and continue outreach and integration efforts – currently students are looking into branding the vermicastings, and also into connecting wi th other local community gardens to do soil testing and begin long-term, case-specific amendment studies. These projects would have beneficial impacts on the surrounding UST community, in addition to the benefits added by the use and donation of the finished castings.The increasing presence of composting efforts on campus allows the university community to fulfill our mission statement by â€Å"thinking critically and acting wisely to advance the common good. † This project is in line with the University Mission Statement because it provides students and now faculty the opportunity to be directly involved with the food chain and to participate in their waste. In recent years people have been increasingly encouraged to buy locally and to know where their food is coming from.While there is still a long way to go to reach these goals, movements are starting and people are daily becoming more aware of the problems human society faces. Unfortunately, there are still many people wh o never think about where their waste goes beyond ‘into the garbage,’ and never consider where there food comes from beyond ‘the grocery store. ’ Through the implementation and continued growth of this project, we will give the St. Thomas community the chance to experience the whole lifecycle of their food from soil and seed, to food on the table, to waste and back to soil, all within the onfines of our own campus and all on a sustainable level. Highlight innovations and the potential for the project to be scalable across our campuses: Integral to the mission of this project is scalability and its ability to grow. The Fall 2012 CSF Vermicomposting project has been hugely successful and has drawn substantial interest from individuals across campus. This proposal is an expansion of that project, catalyzed by the interest and eagerness of others to partake and participate in alternative waste disposal.While working with the worm bins in the ASC parking ramp or while collecting the coffee grounds from UST producers, Compost Club members were occasionally approached by interested faculty or students about what they were doing or concerning the good coffee smell permeating the air near the bins. After introducing the interested individual to the project and showing them the worms, almost without fail, the students and faculty alike were interested in contributing their own coffee and their own food waste from home or from their office or department.Unfortunately, because the current vermicomposting system is already operating near capacity, we are unable to collect grounds or waste from these sources; however, it was this community interest that stimulated this expansion idea. This project has great potential to be scaled across our campuses and to continually grow and develop as a UST legacy. As other faculty and staff see the bins that we are planning to place in several departments across campus, we are expecting the bins to generate int erest by other departments, offices, and campus buildings.The new demand will provide perfect support for future project proposals, further expanding UST’s composting and decreasing our waste and carbon output. If applicable, include lifecycle costs, possible investment payback schedules and potential long-term savings: The lifecycle costs of this project are minimal due to the low costs of maintenance and relatively low initial costs. These compost bins are long-term sustainable investments and are designed for in-home or in-office use. Chester Wilson has been using the same worm bins for more than ten years.These systems have proved reliable and durable and we are confident in using the Worm Factory worm bins for this proposed project. Although the money saved by sending the waste to the on-campus composting location, instead of having it picked up will be relatively minimal, dealing with much of our own waste in a sustainable and efficient manner right here on campus is a key feature of this project. Self-contained and efficient systems are worth highlighting as they embody a shift from a linear system of use and dispose to a more closed-loop cycle of use, compost, reuse.There is also great value in the production of the castings as a fertile soil amendment. To date, they have been used in the greenhouses extensively in place of relatively costly potting soils and synthetic fertilizers, which are also much more energy intensive to produce. Appendix A: Appendix B: FAQs: What can be put in the worm bins? The worms are not particularly picky eaters. Too much citrus can be uncomfortable for them, and meat and dairy products are always a risk to compost.While they are unlikely to hurt the worms, these items tend to be the main culprits for bad smelling compost. When the bins are distributed, the Composting Club will offer a brief training session for each department and their liaison. What if the bin begins to smell bad? As discussed in the video, the Wor m Factory bins are designed to allow plenty of oxygen to flow through the system. Keeping the bins aerobic keeps the smell down, and remember that these systems are designed for in-home or in-office use.In the chance that the bin does begin to smell, the Compost Club Liaisons will have the responsibility of calling the club hotline – we guarantee full removal of smelly bins within 20 minutes of that phone call. Will the bin attract pests/rodents? Rodents signify a much larger problem than the mere presence of a Worm Factory composter. Pests, in particular fruit flies, can pose problems for indoor composting systems. There is actually a simple treatment that can be applied to the medium in the bins (the stuff the worms live in) that repels gnats and flies.Again, the Composting Club hotline will be the ultimate back-up for any issues with your bin; guaranteed quick removal. Are the bins messy? No. The bins are designed to hold the food waste and to collect the moisture produced . Composting Club will regularly collect the liquid (or Compost Tea) generated by the bins and will also be on-call to respond to any cleanup needs. All processing of finished compost will be conducted off-site in the ASC parking ramp. There, we have to facilities to deal with this slightly more messy process.Where will the bins be located? This should be determined on a departmental basis. The worms are really tolerant, but cannot be too hot, too cold, or too dry. Basically, by keeping the bins out of the sun, but in a heated/temperature-controlled area, they will be more than fine. The Composting Club will monitor the moisture levels in the bins and make any changes as needed. We recommend that the bins be placed in an easily accessible location – near the most common waste sources whenever possible – but that they remain mostly out-of-sight.Behind furniture, under counters, or unused storage closets or rooms make ideal locations. What are the responsibilities of the Compost Club Liaison? The liaison will be responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of the bins and for calling the Composting Club hot line with any issues. At its most basic, the day-to-day maintenance will consist of collecting your office or department’s daily coffee grounds and adding them to the bin. Nothing about the job should be taxing or burdensome to the individual. Who will be in charge of emptying the bins once they have finished composting?Once again, the Composting Club will take care of emptying the bins when the compost in the bottom tray of the stack is finished. We will also be regularly monitoring the bins and will therefore know when the trays are ready to be emptied. All processing of finished compost will take place off-site in the ASC parking ramp where we have the facilities for doing so. How long does it take for the food waste to become finished compost? The answer to this question varies depending on the number of worms and the amount and type of food waste present.I like to think of one tray representing one-two weeks of composting. So a stack of three trays would represent a three-six week composting process. Appendix C: StopWaste. org is the website of a waste management organization located in Alameda county, CA. The organization is in charge of the waste management plan for the county, and the provide a variety of sustainable development plans and waste reduction initiatives for the businesses, schools, government buildings, and local industry in the fourteen cities comprising the county. http://www. stopwaste. us/partnership/calculator/

Saturday, November 9, 2019

MCdonald vs Taco Bell Essay

Since the last decades the fast-food industry has been developing rapidly and has effectively penetrated majority of the market internationally. MC Donald, started in 1954, is now the world leading global food service retailer generating a revenue of 28.11 billion U.S dollars in 2013 (MC Donald’s revenue 2013). Contrarily, due to the poor managerial function, Taco Bell , an American chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962, hits upon a weak sales during 2000 (Taco Bell corporation). This essay will discuss about the different managerial skills namely planning, organizing, leading and controlling adopted by these two organizations. Planning refers to the most important means, which one must use to ensure success of an organization (Wren, Bredeian and Breeze 2002, 906-918). Changing their Big Mac into Maharaja Mac show how Mc Donald is being actively engaged in building strong customer relations. In comparising, Taco Bell were not respecting the quality of their product as it contained genetically modified corn which results in lower sales (Dorey 2000, 1136-7) Organizing are building strong labour forced to help the business to perform in a competitive way. In order to make improvements, MC Donald focus mainly on training his workforce professionally, they also delivered training programs up to 40 languages to help employees to adapt to different cultures. Taco Bell, in 1988 due to his poor labour management, sales were being lost (Hueter and Swart 1998, 75-91) Leading is the use of influence to motivate employees to achieve organizational goals (Richard Daft, quoted in Rysward Barnat, 2014). Donald Thompson, CEO of MC Donald, has led the company thought a very competitive period and maintains their market share. Taco Bell was engaged in infringing stage laws as they were not paying employees who work overtime for them (New York Times 1997). Controlling is an ongoing process which determines whether the film on target towards its goals. MC Donald make their employees work according to standards. Each franchise must abide the severe supplier policies. Taco Bell following a pressure campaign launched against them, they had to increase the wages of the farm workers who supply them tomatoes. Through strict and clear approaches under the winning leadership and planning of Donald Thompson, the CEO of MC Donald has created a good image for the company and therefore these results in loyal customers. Conversely, Taco Bell with his poor managerial skills,  they suffer a lot from weak sales for their products. A perfect combination of the four management function of Fayol has been the key driver behind the success of MC Donald.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

EISENHOWER Surname Origin and Last Name Meaning

EISENHOWER Surname Origin and Last Name Meaning The surname Eisenhower is a common Americanized spelling of the German occupational surname Eisenhauer meaning iron cutter or iron worker. Eisenhauer derives from  the Middle High German isen, meaning iron and  houwà ¦re, a derivative of houwen, meaning to cut, chop, or hew. The surname is similar in meaning to Smith, Schmidt and other surnames that mean blacksmith. Alternate Surname Spellings:  EISENHAUER, ISENHOUR, ISENHAUER,  ICENHOUR, IZENOUR Surname Origin: German Where in the World is the EISENHOWER Surname Found? According to  WorldNames public profiler, the Eisenhower surname is found most prevalently in the United States, with an especially strong presence in the state of Pennsylvania. A few occurrences of the surname also appear in Canada (specifically the Peel region of southwest Ontario), Germany (Berlin and Bayern) and England (specifically Worcestershire). The Eisenhower spelling of the surname is not very prevalent in Germany, found only in Berlin according to the surname distribution map at  verwandt.de.  The German Eisenhauer spelling, however, is found in 166 localities throughout Germany, most prevalently in  Bergstraße,  Odenwaldkreis,  Rhein-Neckar-Kreis and  Aurich.   Famous People with the EISENHOWER Surname: Dwight David Ike Eisenhower - 34th President of the United States Genealogy Resources for the Surname EISENHOWER: Meanings of Common German SurnamesUncover the meaning of your German last name with this free guide to the meanings and origins of common German surnames. Eisenhower / Stover Family GenealogyView a family tree of the ancestors of former US president Dwight D. Eisenhower, as well as those of his mother, Ida Elizabeth Stover. Biographical information on Dwight and his brothers is also available. From the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home. Eisenhower Lineage and ReferenceAccess digital copies of a  series of bulletins on Eisenhower, Eisenhauer, Isenhour, Icenhour, Izenour, etc., family history compiled by Fannie B. Richardson beginning August 20, 1956. Eisenhower Family Genealogy ForumSearch this popular genealogy forum for the Eisenhower surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Eisenhower surname query. See also Eisenhauer. FamilySearch - EISENHOWER GenealogyExplore over 144,000 results, including digitized records, database entries, and online family trees for the Eisenhower surname and its variations on the FREE FamilySearch website, courtesy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. DistantCousin.com - EISENHOWER Genealogy Family HistoryExplore free databases and genealogy links for the last name Eisenhower. The Eisenhower Genealogy and Family Tree PageBrowse genealogy records and links to genealogical and historical records for individuals with the Eisenhower surname from the website of Genealogy Today. Looking for the meaning of a given name? Check out First Name Meanings Cant find your last name listed? Suggest a surname to be added to the Glossary of Surname Meanings Origins. - References: Surname Meanings Origins Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967. Dorward, David. Scottish Surnames. Collins Celtic (Pocket edition), 1998. Fucilla, Joseph. Our Italian Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 2003. Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989. Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003. Reaney, P.H. A Dictionary of English Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1997. Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997. Back to Glossary of Surname Meanings Origins

Monday, November 4, 2019

Tension between Idealism and Naturalism Assignment

Tension between Idealism and Naturalism - Assignment Example Naturalism involves the observation of science and relevant impact of it to the society. Naturalism is an ideology that everything in the universe is a product of physical stuff or nature. It shows that there is nothing supernatural in the world, and everything could be explained using application of hard and soft sciences. It is a method of truth-seeking within the society and has an impact on the public policy. It doesn’t mean the denial of human spirituality but an embrace of real spirituality. Naturalism clashes with idealism in the sense that, it suggests humans are like stardust and their atoms exchanged with the rest of the Earth system. It connects humans to nature and shows the sense of its feeling to the universe. The greatest Greek artist Praxiteles used the idealism to explain the charm of his work to the society by representing the god Hermes holding the young Dionysus on his arm playing with him. The idea shows the Greek art expansion within a short period. In Praxiteles works, there are no traces of rigidity but depicts that god stands before us in a relaxed pose that does not impair his dignity. Praxiteles shows the society the hinges of the body to improve the understanding and clarity of his work. He wants to bring to bring to reality in his idealistic styles the impression of a living body in all its grace and beauty. It is important to understand that Praxiteles and other Greek artists achieved the Hermes beauty through knowledge. Hence a quote â€Å"no living body quite as symmetrical, well-built and beautiful as those of the Greek status†.

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Matt Holmes & Cool Company Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Matt Holmes & Cool Company - Case Study Example Assets would be written down if the company continues to use those assets. Lack of recoverability of the net carrying amount must be recognized as asset impairment and it occurs under certain circumstances such as changes in regulation and business climate, technology changes, usage rate decline, and forecasts of a notable decline it the asset’s long term profitability. It appears that the Cool Company must perform an impairment test as the firm experiences changes in business climate. However, it must be noted that every change in business climate would not indicate asset impairment. ‘A quoted market price in an active market’ would be the best evidence of fair value and it must be applied as the basis for measurement (â€Å"Goodwill and other..†). Market inputs such as credit data and yield curve are some of the alternative methods of estimating fair value. From an asset impairment analysis, the Cool’s department manager would get valuable informat ion that would assist him to determine whether or not those suspected assets should be written down. 2. King Company Good will is an account that can be seen in the asset side of the balance sheet. Often, good will arises as a result of acquisition of a company by another company. The amount paid for the acquired company over book value generally reflects the value of that firm’s intangible assets. Since the good will is not a physical asset as land and buildings, it is recorded as an intangible asset on the balance sheet. Intangible assets include good will, corporate intellectual property, and brand recognition. Typically, good will indicates the value of intangible assets such as patents, strong brand name, better employee relations, and better customer relations. US GAAP defines good will as the â€Å"excess of the cost of an acquisition price over the fair value of acquired net assets†; similarly, goodwill and some other intangible assets will no longer be subject ed to amortization (â€Å"Stock dividend). Therefore, the reported amounts of goodwill would not decrease and moreover, goodwill recorded on the acquisition will not result in a ‘drag’ on future earnings for goodwill amortization. According to Graham, when goodwill is recognized by a subsidiary, it should be tested for impairment at the subsidiary level using the subsidiary’s reporting units; and if goodwill at the consolidated level is impaired, it would be recognized at the consolidated level (116). In total, the King Company would not face issues that were pointed out by senior accounting staff because the goodwill accounting has changed. Ethics case 1 Marco Chemical Corp The government and public are the stakeholders involved in the situation specified in the Macro Chemical case. The director of the Marco’s R&D division would not be ethically liable even if the chemical caused any disaster because he had strongly recommended the chemical’s furt her testing for side effects. On the other hand, the Marco’s president has worked against his professional ethics. The president had been advised by the R&D’s director regarding the chemical’s further testing in the laboratory for its side effects on other insects, birds, animals, plants, and even humans. However, the president did not consider such warnings as he focused only on the improvement of company’s sales and profits. In other words, he did not take human values or

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Marketing Plan of John Lewis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Marketing Plan of John Lewis - Research Paper Example This essay describes marketing scenario as ever changing and with changes come unprecedented challenges, the retailer companies are facing several challenges and the need of the hour is to come up with new marketing plans which are capable of tackling these never seen before challenges. John Lewis is one of the biggest departmental stores in UK; it was founded by John Spedan Lewis. John Lewis had to enter into a partnership to compete against the other biggies like Tesco in the UK. â€Å"The John Lewis Partnership's 76,500 Partners own the leading UK retail businesses - John Lewis and Waitrose. Our founder's vision of a successful business powered by its people and its principles defines our unique company today. The profits and benefits created by our success are shared by all our Partners.† (John Lewis). John Lewis is one of the biggest players in the market only behind Tesco, Wal-Mart and France’s Carrefour. It is the fourth major player should its revenue be conside red, it is in the top five for sure should profitability be considered. John Lewis is a much diversified organization, it is doing quite well. The company operates in televisions, travelling, electrical so on and so forth. It is fair to say that John Lewis has been doing well into its divided segments but the need of the hour is to have a competitive marketing plan in place which would further improve the profits and compete against the likes of Tesco, Wal-Mart and France’s Carrefour.... It is the fourth major player should its revenue be considered, it is in the top five for sure should profitability be considered. John Lewis is a much diversified organization, it is doing quite well. The company operates in televisions, travelling, electrical so on and so forth. It is fair to say that John Lewis has been doing well into its divided segments but the need of the hour is to have a competitive marketing plan in place which would further improve the profits and compete against the likes of Tesco, Wal-Mart and France’s Carrefour. Marketing plan for the organization is as follows: Market Demographics One of the most crucial parts of a marketing plan is situational analysis; important factors like SWOT analysis, organizational strategies, marketing effectiveness, and customers are discussed under situational analysis. It is ideal to apply the FEPOS approach under situational analysis, FEPOS approach will shed light upon functions, environment, productivity, systems, organizations and lastly strategy will be discussed. Functions: Operating in diverse areas that are profitable for the company is very useful, for instance more and more people are opting to buy LCD and LED TVs, John Lewis sells these HD TVs in its store as well as online, this is very helpful and should be continued in the future. Electronic goods are also sold by the company which is again really good. Consumer electronics is in demand these days, the disposable income in the hands of the people has increased and as a result of which they have started buying electronic goods, this is a wonderful opportunity for John Lewis to capitalize upon. Environment: The environment is

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Did the case of Horsham kill the case of Boland Essay

Did the case of Horsham kill the case of Boland - Essay Example The essay "Did the case of Horsham kill the case of Boland?" analyzes two cases about proprietary deviation and the connection between them. The case of Boland is concerned with the violation of wife’s unregistered right of possession of her matrimonial home in which her spouse had an equal share but had his name alone shown as the registered proprietor of the property in the land register. The husband had mortgaged the property to Williams & Glyns’s Bank without his wife’s knowledge even though they were living together in the same house. The mortgagee bank also did not care to verify with his wife if she had any interest before lending her husband against the mortgage of the said property. The question was whether the wife had an overriding interest by virtue of section 70 (1) (g) Registration Act 1925.since the appellant had sought to distinguish the â€Å"word actual occupation† as mentioned in the said section from her real status. The House of Lords ruled that actual occupation had only its literal meaning of physical presence and as long as she was physically present in the matrimonial home with all the rights of an occupied. Hence the wife had an overriding interest even though it could be argued that hers was the equitable interest as a minor interest entitled her interest only in the proceeds of a sale. The mortgagee bank failed to verify the factual position at their peril. Thus an equitable mortgagee does not get priority over an equitable interest of which he is deemed to have constructive notice.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Broadview Ltd vs Andrea Leadsom Analysis

Broadview Ltd vs Andrea Leadsom Analysis Broadview Energy Developments Ltd Vs Secretary Of State for Communities and Local Government and Others [2016] EWCA Civ 562 Court of Appeal, Civil Division Presiding Judges: Longmore, Lewison, McCombe LJJ Between: BROADVIEW ENERGY DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED (Claimant Appellant) and 1)THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT 2)SOUTH NORTHAMPTONSHIRE DISTRICT COUNCIL 3) HELMDON STUCHBURY GREATWORTH WIND FARM ACTION GROUP (Defendants and Respondents) MATERIAL FACTS Broadview is an independent renewable energy company which sought permission for development of wind farm for renewable energy, South Northampton shire district council refused to allow in November 2011(at 2). Broadviews appeal to planning inspectorate and was successful through public inquiry, granting it permission, in May 2012. (at2). The third defendant, the windfarm Action group (HSGWAG), challenged the decision, thus rendering it quashed by justice Mackie Qc in the High Court; resultantly, the issue was remanded for redetermination to the planning inspectorate awaiting a new recommendation (at3). During second public enquiry parties made representations between 8 to 24th October 2013 and on 11th oct 2013 Mr. Eric Pickles, the secretary of state decided to take the matter to his consideration on grounds that it involved a renewable energy case(at3). Second inspector recommended to grant the permission of farms on 14 Apr 2014 relying upon the balance of outnumbering benefits and minute adversities of the wind farm(at4). Delays were faced in Secretary of States decision; a reason being consultation on court of appeals decision in a different case that could subsequently render a fresh interpretation of section 66(1) of act 1990 (at5). Contrary to planning inspectors recommendation, the planning permission was refused by the decision letter of Secretary of State, dated 22 Dec 2014(at6). Mr. pickles had delegated the task to Mr. Kris Hopkins, the parliamentary undersecretary of state. Mr. Hopkins credits Mr. pickle for the choice of refusal of planning permission as deemed fit acc ording to where the balance of perks and adversities fall, alongside its conflict with development plan, accompanied by shortcoming on statutory requirements and numerous elements of national planning policy(at7). MP Mrs. Andrea Leadsoms badgering and active lobbying in opposition to the wind farms became grounds for Broadviews further appeal on 28th Jan 2015, (at89). She even successfully campaigned for the Secretary of State to call in the application (at 8). As per facts Mrs. Leadsoms tea room conversation with Mr. Hopkins in 2013 coupled with their numerous oral and written correspondences and the lobby room became basic grounds of appeal on fairness of decision and possible bias. Throughout this time, Broadview kept trying to seek a meeting and later on made a freedom of information request to get to know the status of correspondences (ibid) (at10). This was state of evidence for Broadviews application to quash Mr. Hopkins decision(ibid). The planning court rejected the claims of Broadview and hence their appeal(at11) Qs / LAW ISSUES 1) duty of fairness owed by political decision-makers in the context of an application for planning permission. 2) how the Secretary of State should deal with representations from the local Member of parliament. DECISION Unanimously, lord justice Longmore(at38), Lewison(at39) and McCombe(at40); the court appraised and upheld the decision of Cranston Justice, the judge in the second planning court. Hence, dismissing Broadviews appeal. DETAILED REASONS FOR THE DECISION The gist of Cranston Js judgement was based on his personal experience, and stood that meeting of the MP with a minister was not of any length and part and parcel of her role, being a representative of a certain area(at17). Wrong to conclude anything biased or sinister (at1718). R (Alconbury) Vs Secretary of State for Environment [2003] affirmed that a MP contacting Minister regarding a planning issue was inevitable (at18). Ministers are bound to abide by Planning Property Guidance (at18). The judgement comprises of three notions: (1) Broadview was aware of advancements by objectors (2) Letter received after close of enquiry lacked fresh material (3) Correspondences raised no new issues therefore it was satisfactory to deem that response would be similar(at1920). The judge concluded that there had been no evidence to support the contention that the decision was vitiated, provided, Broadview had failed to provide evidence to authenticate its stance of bias, unfairness or material brea ch of planning property standards; therefore, Broadviews allegations failed. Lord Justice Longmore comments in the judgement starting by affirming that Mr. Hopkins did not differ from inspector on any question of fact material or take account of new evidence therefore liability to inform inspector did not arise. Moreover, giving a chance for both parties to be heard is obligatory and this liability to inform other party to comment on a representation made is defined in rules laid down in in Errington Vs Minister of Health (1935) and also in the rule enshrined in Latin phrase audi alterampartem(at25). Minister did not entertain any privately made representations. Preventing the proceeding from being subverted by use of rule quoted above, it is a required measure to not call parties for cross-questioning on every representation, especially when they are repetitive. Moreover, a technical breach of para 4 of Guidance is likely but not a breach of rules of natural Justice; case law of Fox Land Vs SSCLG (2014) shedding light on the particular angle of the issue(at2 6). His Lordship states that it is easier to ascertain the written representations, and the content of those written correspondences make it clear that the oral ones where merely the same as they were being referred to in the subsequent letters. His Lordship further contended that he did not concur about Cranston Js belief of talk between MP and Minister to be merely a part and parcel. He argued that MP doesnt hold a different position then of any parties involved(at29). His lordship considers the possibility of Mr. Hopkins abiding by audi alteram partem prinzep and then justifies how the chronology of events render it improper to conclude that Mr. Hopkins would have had any effect of indulging in the tea room conversation and thus a mere technical breach subsequently could not make any difference to ultimate decision(at30). The court will not enquire into likelihood of prejudice in case decision-maker receives are representation in privacy established in R Vs Sussex Justices ex parte M cCarthy (1924). Case law from Kanda Vs Government of the Federation of Malaya (1962) further cemented the stance with the example of police constable not awarded a chance to comment on allegations on him (at31). His lordship furthers his stance by saying that usually in such cases, court readily opts to assess the representations made, although the courts have discretion, but in my view, it should not have been exercised in current scenario(at32). By end of July 2014 Broadview had their freedom of information request granted, however, it was highly unlikely that Broadview would had been successful in invoking court to take matter out of hands of the Parliament entrusted decision-makers: Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Pickles (at33). Lobby Badgering had no effect on the decision as the matter was already decided. Moreover, miss Leadsoms attempt was to merely know the decision rather diverting it in certain direction(at34). Thus, Longmore concluded the events not such to justify quashing of decision (at35). He further clarifies that it was Ministerial responsibility that the respected decision-makers abided by in deciding the finely balanced matter (at36). He also signifies the need of Ministers to avoid Lobbying and concludes that any blatantly ignorant accusations of bias would be clarified under light of Magill Vs Porter(at37). For these reasons, he dismissed the appeal (at38). Lord Justice Lewison said that he agrees with Longmore LJs Judgement and also with additional observations of McCombe LJ, hence agrees for dismissal of appeal. Lord Justice McCombe agrees with Longmore on dismissal of this appeal, however, shows disagreement on certain areas(at40). According to him there was undoubtedly a breach of paragraph 4 of the Guidance by what appears to have occurred in the tea room conversation. If the chronology of events would have been otherwise, the lawfulness of this decision would have been in peril (at41). He also explains the significant breach of ordinary principals of fairness in English Law to support his stance (at42). He continues how one party should not have any advantage in manner not afforded to other interested party (at43). He argued over comment of part and parcel and defined fine lines between talks upon ordinary consistency matters and lobbying. In his final comments, concluding to the dismissal of appeal, he also emboldened the need of Ministers to adhere to ordinary laws of fairness and natural justice. RATIO DECIDENDI With respect to the allegation of bias made by Broadview, a fair-minded and informed observer would conclude that there had been no real possibility of ministerial bias in the present case. Further, there was simply no evidence to support the contention that the decision was vitiated by actual bias. Accordingly, Broadview had failed to establish that the ministerial decision against planning permission for its proposed wind farm had been unlawful through unfairness, bias or material breach of planning propriety standards (para21, Cranston J). I would therefore conclude that while the tea room conversation (and even the lobby badgering) should not have occurred and should have been cut off by Mr Hopkins more firmly than he may have done, those events are not such as to justify quashing the Secretary of States decision. (para 35, Lord Justice Longmore). I have had the advantage of reading in draft the judgments of Longmore and McCombe LJJ. I agree that the appeal should be dismissed for the reasons given by Longmore LJ. I also agree with the additional observations of McCombe LJ (at39 Lord Justice Lewison). On the facts of this case (in particular in the light of the chronology and the factors set out in paragraph 30 of my Lords judgment), however, this breach was not of sufficient moment to call for the quashing of the Secretary of States decision on the grounds of a breach of the principles of natural justice. Had the chronology been otherwise, and if the conversation had been more closely proximate in time to the decision taken, then it seems to me that the lawfulness of the decision might well have been in peril (para 41, McCombe). Representations which are essentially repetitive of submissions already made are rather different. In such case a court will more readily assess whether such repetitions really made a material contribution to the decision under challenge. If it concludes that they did not, the quashing of the ensuing decision should not follow. A court always has discretion as to remedy in public law and should, in my view, not exercise that discretion in the present case. (at Para 32) If a party to an inquiry or an objector seeks to bombard a minister with post-inquiry representations which are merely repetitive of the representations made at the inquiry itself and every time that happened the Minister was obliged to circulate the representatives for comment, the decision-making process could easily be subverted. (Longmore LJ at 26). When a Minister is involved in a quasi-judicial decision it is incumbent on him to make clear to any person who tries to make oral representations to him that he cannot listen to them (Longmore LJ at 28).