Processing

Crystal Hoge Professor Jennifer Mullins Eng. 101 Bi-Term Processing Essay 29 October 2012 Bringing Baking Back from the Old Days Today's society has become all about convience and how to get everything done cheaper and faster. However, my belief is that you should only take convience so far. Convience shouldn't be brought anywhere near the kitchen. My favorite baked item is that of old-fashioned bread. I don't mean that pre-packaged bread that you pick up from your local grocery store.I'm talking about the kind of sweet smelling bread your grandma used to make on Sunday mornings before church. Included in this article are the ingredients and steps necessary to obtaining that delicious, sweet smelling homemade bread. The first step to baking is to aquire the desired recipe the recipe I will be following is the recipe for traditional white sandwich bread. (Yetter, Elizabeth) The required ingredients for this recipe for the recipe are as follows: * 1 ? cup room temperature milk * 1 Tbsp dry active yeast * ? tsp salt * 1 Tbsp softened butter 3 ? cups all purpose flour, or bread flour This recipe will only make one loaf and will take roughly three hours and fifteen minutes. This time includes baking and preparation time. Before starting your preparation, I highly recommend making sure you have all required ingredients, as well as any desired additional indregients. If you wish to have sweeter tasting white sandwich bread I recommend a tablespoon of honey. If you wish to make more than one loaf of bread, simply multiply the recipe. If you desire to make two loaves, double the recipe.If three loaves is what you want, quadruple the recipe. Doing so, however, may elongate the period of time it takes to cook and prepare the bread. Preparation is the next key step in making a successful loaf of bread. First, you will need a large bowl in which you will mix milk and yeast, adding sugar, salt, and two cups of flour at a time to ensure it mixes well. As a test, make sure the dough follows your spoon around the bowl. Next, lightly flour your recently cleaned and dried counter top and knead the dough for four minutes.The process of kneading is basically pulling apart and massaging the dough into a ball. After kneading the dough until smooth, grease a medium sized bowl and place the dough into into bowl. Turn the dough over so that both sides of the dough are lightly greased then cover the dough for one hour and place in a warm, draft-free place, such as a microwave and let rise. After the dough has doubled in size remove it from the covered bowl. Then lightly flour a cutting board. After flouring your surface place the dough onto it and knead for four minutes or until all the bubbles are gone.Once the bubbles are gone, shape the dough into a loaf and place into a greased bread pan. Then, once again cover the pan with a cloth and place back into the microwave and let rise for forty-five minutes. After the bread has doubled in size, uncover the pan and pla ce into a preheated oven of 350 degrees. Cook the bread dough for approximately forty-five minutes. A way to test the bread to see if it’s done is to knock on the top of the bread. If it sounds hollow when you knock on it, it’s done.Once you have verified that your bread is done, remove it from the oven and place it on a rack to cool. After your bread has cooled enough to touch, remove it from the bread pan and place on a cutting board. With a sharpened bread knife, cut the bread into even slices. Remember, your slices should be thick enough to hold a spread and a couple slices of sliced meat. However, it should also be thin enough to chew easily without straining your jaw. To ensure that your bread doesn’t get hard, store your bread in plastic storage bags.Bread made with milk usually has a softer crust than breads made with water. However, in any recipe for milk, you can substitue milk with water or visa versa. Now that you have properly mixed, prepared, cooke d, and stored your bread you should have a nicely browned, sweet smelling loaf of bread that Grandma used to make. Now simply dress your bread with your desired spread, meat, and vegtables, and enjoy! Works Citied Yetter, Elizabeth, White Sandwich Bread, About. com, 2012, Oct. 28, 2012

Family Life During Civil War Essay

As a pivotal point in our nation’s history, the civil war holds a special fascination in the land and minds of the American people. It was a war entirely fought by Americans, often dividing families and even brothers against brothers. The American civil war was unforgettable. It was fought between the United States of America and the Southern slave states of the nearly formed confederate state of America under Jefferson Davis. The Civil War made really a tragic long lasting effect on a family unit of that period. During Civil War, families on both sides of the war had to bear a pain of personal loss. Husbands and fathers and sons died not in hundreds but in thousands of numbers in both the North and South and many of them returned home either handicapped or wounded manner. So many men not only injured physically but due to their wartime experiences, they had suffered more emotionally also. This effected their already burdened struggling families more. This way, the families ha d suffered with physical and psychological pain a lot. Also the families were divided during Civil war. The only bread winner of any family – may be a father or husband or an elder son had to go far off the home. So in those families, especially middle class, wives and mothers had to work in the home and also out of the home. They were the only to take care about every aspects of the family including children. And for this they were not much trained. This situation for city women was much more difficult (.netplaces.com). The painting from the article of war sprits at home by Lily Martin Spencer shows that she herself is sitting in the kitchen with her children and a servant. Lacking an adult male figure, the painting reflects the absence of men in the home during this period in American history. The painting from the article of war sprits at home by Lily Martin Spencer shows that she herself is sitting in the kitchen with her children and a servant. Lacking an adult male figure, the painting reflects the absence of men in the home during this period in American history. Northern families lost a great many loved ones over the course of war and experienced their share of problems and grief, but southern families suffered far more. Many southern towns and cities were destroyed and the impact on the confederate civilian population was enormous in all eras (netplace.com). Most people and families in the south led the pastoral life, organized around agricultural activities. Many people in south had no slaves or very few, so all the man does physical labor. Due to war, families lost their able-bodied man, which had changed the condition of family that women had to do all the work in the house and farms to keep farms functioning with the other works such as cleaning, making and fixing cloths, and raising the children (civilwar.org). As war went on, people also started suffering from hunger. With confederate troops, to feed and burning all the remaining food, combined with the lack of available rail transportation which was being use by war efforts. They also suffered from the lack of goods as all the industries and factories were busy preparing the goods for civil war. As many men and sons were forced to leave their house they were not able to concentrate in the war. Handwritten letters were the main form of communication between soldiers and their relatives during civil war. Soldiers became desperate to hear from their families and for news from home. They even gladly read each other’s letters just to hear about familiar places and everyday situations; anything to take their mind off the war and their struggles. Robert T. Tallman, wrote to William Brown, with an interesting suggestion as a possible means to encourage more communication (ozarkscivilwar.org). â€Å"I have not had a letter for two weeks what is our folks doing. tell them I am dead and maybe they w ill send for my bounty and wages, and I will hear from them that way if no other.†( Robert T. Tallman letter to William Brown – February 11, 1865). Civil war had the same impact on northern families. White families in Virginia first confronted the war’s impact with the enlistments of their male kin. To provide food and protect families, men were pulled away from their loved ones to serve in the confederate army. As one Virginia solider put his duty in the war encompassed â€Å"the defense of our country, our liberty and the protection of our parent, wives, children, and all that is dear to a man† (encylopediavirginia.org). 50 percent of the male enlisted from Virginia tried to help both families and the confederacy. But it was of no use. Wives, daughters, sisters, and other female kin assumed much of the work normally pursued by men- managing plantation, harvesting crops, running business. This pressure took toll on women. â€Å"We felt like clinging to Walter and holding him back†, wrote one Virginia woman in reaction to a family member’s enlistment. â€Å"I was sick of war, sick of the butchery, th e anguish† (encylopediavirginia.org). Virginia Civilians After a Battle Often soldiers tries to maintain their role in family through home letters, but their correspondence proved an imperfect surrogate when the mail, disrupted by war, was slow in coming. Some women also tried to bring their men home by filing petition with the confederate secretary of war for a man’s exemption, or by urging a soldier to desert the army, which were often unsuccessful and so the women has to wait for her man until the war end or sometimes she never gets to see him. These lines from the letter were included in the Civil War diary of Samuel Bennett, a Daviess County native who fought for the Union Army. In it, Bennett’s mother expresses her worries about his welfare. â€Å"Wilson I dreamed last night that you had come home you may be sure that I was sorry when I waked and found it was a dere dream Wilson the crop is in tolerable good order you father commensed mowing yesterday and Amas thought he could mow and your father concluded that he might to get it he does very well Wilson we will get your janes today and if you want a pair of everyday pants I want you to let me know and I will make them and bring them if we get to come and if not I will send them I hope we will get to come yet I must bring my broken lines to a close by saing I hope that it will not bee long till we see each others face Write as soon as this comes to hand I remain your devoted and loving mother untill death†(ket.org). Political divisions sometimes compounded the separation experienced by families. Regions with high unionist concentrations, witnessed the division of house members against each other-pitting father against son, husband against wife, and sometimes brother against brother. John fee wrote in his autobiography that â€Å"The next morning just as I was about starting back to my home, my father said to me, â€Å"Julett is here on my premises, and I will sell her before sundown if I can.† I turned to him and said, â€Å"Father, I am now that woman’s only guardian†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. yet if you sell that woman, I will prosecute you for so doing, as sure as you are a man.†(ket.org) Civil war had made a enormous effect on the family life. Many lost their loved ones and very few got their loved ones back. Thus the civil war era was very hard for every women, men, and child. To claim that the Civil War was unlike any war before or since is an argument this overlooks many of the continuities of time displayed in a history of warfare. Certainly it can be claimed to be the first type of war in several of its features, but entirely different isolates it from this history and leaves out very important aspects of it. Citation * â€Å"The American Civil War.† 123helpme.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * Civil War Trust. â€Å"Civil War Lesson Plans: Southern Life during Civil War.† Civilwar.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * Stoddard, Brooke C., and Daniel P. Murphy. â€Å"Family Life during Civil War.† Netplaces.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * Slipp, Naomi, ed. â€Å"Unpacking Feminist Content in Lilly Martin Spencer’s â€Å"War Spirit at Home†.† WordPress.com. N.p., 17 Dec. 2009. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * â€Å"Women and Children at Home.† Ket.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY of MISSOURI RESEARCH CENTER – ROLLA, ed. â€Å"Tallaman- Brown Family Papers.† Ozarkscivilwar.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * â€Å"Impact of the Civil War on the Tennessee Homefront.† Liberary.mtsu.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. . * Taylor, Amy Murrell. â€Å"Family Life During the Civil War.† Encylopedia Virginia. Ed. Brendan Wolfe. 2 February 2013 Virginia Foundation Humanities 6 feb 2012

Does the Euro Crises prove that any of these member states: Greece, Ireland and Portugal should have not been allowed to join the euro?

Abstract The creation of the Eurozone following the Maastricht Treaty led to the region becoming one of the largest single currency areas in the world. However, at the heart of this project lay a series of inherent weaknesses. This paper discusses these weaknesses from the perspective of three countries: Ireland, Portugal and Greece. Each of these countries had their own particular economic and fiscal issues which would have exposed them to economic shock should the Eurozone experience a financial downturn. This was the case in 2008 when the US led financial crisis spread to Europe. This paper assesses that none of these countries were sufficiently prepared to join the Eurozone but also that they also possessed their own unique structural weaknesses which would perpetuate any financial crisis. It is for this reason that these three states would not have been allowed to join and also that they all sought bailouts in order to stop their domestic governments from bankruptcy. Introduction The development of the Eurozone represented a further attempt in the European Union to create increased economic and fiscal convergence and integration. The recent financial crisis has provided this new project with its first major test. This paper begins by reviewing the development and evolution of the Euro and the Eurozone. In doing so, it looks at the considered need for fiscal stabilisation at the international level. This section also highlights the various fiscal and economic mechanisms which were put in place prior to allowing any country to join the project. Subsequent to this the eligibility of three countries, Ireland, Portugal and Greece is considered. Here, the rationale for these countries joining, as well as reviewing the structure of their respective economies, is taken into consideration. Further to this, the question of whether these countries met the stabilising mechanisms prior to joining is assessed. This paper then highlights various other reasons why it may hav e been beneficial for them not to join the Eurozone. Finally, this paper reviews the recent meltdown in the Eurozone area and highlights that this event was precipitated by a structural weakness in both US as well as global financial markets which left these three countries exposed to debts sufficient for them to require bailouts and restructuring programmes which were indicative of shock therapy. This paper concludes that Ireland, Portugal and Greece should have been allowed to join the Eurozone since neither of these countries had met the eligibility criteria. In addition each of these states possessed their own structural weaknesses that ultimately would have exposed them to an economic downturn, regardless of the causation. Euro Evolution The Euro is the common currency which is used by the majority of member states of the European Union (EU). It originated in 1992 following the signing of the Maastricht Treaty which contained three aspects to combining and increasing EU governance. The Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM), as a vehicle for economic integration and financial convergence, was first muted in the late 1970s as a vehicle for furthering economic integration (Civitas, 2013), and represented the latest international drive towards economic stability. Originally known as the European Monetary System, it was wound up in 1992 with the development of the ERM (Civitas, 2013). Progression towards the ERM included the creation of an independent central bank, which was mandated to achieving and maintaining price stability across the Eurozone space; a Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) which consisted of an intergovernmental agreement which was conjoined with the EU legal framework, the aim of which was to limit member state fiscal deficits; and a no co-responsibility (in layman terms, a no bail out clause) which was enshrined within Article 125 of the Treaty (Europa, 1992). These mechanisms were considered to be decent fiscal instruments for EU and Eurozone governance and, as a result, member states did not consider that it was important to coordinate their economic policies. This latter aspect was forwarded by powerful member states such as the UK, France and Germany, which did not consider that they would have any benefit from these policies. For them, any subsequent domestic policy changes were considered to have a detrimental impact upon their finances (Campaign against Euro Federalism, 2013). However, as a precursor to Euro membership, aspiring member states need to comply with a pre-set series of fiscal guidelines. EU Member states which join the Eurozone must meet a series of convergence criteria (European Commission, 2014). These criteria are based on a series of fiscal; mechanisms which are utilised to restructure the economies of member states in order that the transition to conversion to the Euro are based upon macroeconomic indicators which are used to measure The convergence criteria are formally defined as a set of macroeconomic indicators which measure stability of prices and inflationary pressures; sound and sustainability public finances which includes an imposed limit on government borrowing as well as national debt in order that member states avoid possessing an excessive national deficit (European Commission, 2014). However prior to this, aspiring member states need to conform to the exchange-rate stability mechanism, through which participation in the ERM takes place for at least two years prior to membership without there being any evidence of a strong deviations from the ERM cr iteria (European Commission, 2014). A further factor in the progression towards joining the Eurozone for any aspirant state is an assessment of long-term interest rates. Indeed this latter criterion was a mitigating factor in the UK’s failure to adhere to ERM controls in the early 1990s (Civitas, 2013). More recently the Eurozone has been engulfed in a global financial crisis which began in the USA and spread to Europe via Iceland (this is discussed in greater detail later in the paper). The fallout from this particular crisis is yet to fully land. However, the Eurozone has progressed through a series of crises since the idea was first muted in the later 1970s and, more recently, via the sovereign debt crises of recent years. It is evident that the Eurozone is not an exact science and that there exist a number of structural issues at the heart of this project. Economic and Political Reasons for the Three joining the Euro The aforementioned group of PIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain) joined the Euro at its inception. This section discusses three of these states, Ireland, Greece and Portugal. Bardhan, Edelstein and Kroll (2011) noted that Ireland benefitted from a number from Eurozone membership. Additionally, it is noted that the period of economic convergence provided the country with an array of stabilising fiscal factors which led to the country becoming known as tiger economy (Bardhan, Edelstein and Kroll, 2011; BBC, 2011) but in 2008 the country was the first Eurozone country to fall in to recession (BBC, 2011). However this outcome was the end of a dream which, for Arestic and Sawyer (2012), was based upon a political aspiration of economic success as well as personal and national prosperity for the Irish population. Greece joined the Eurozone in 2001 (BBC, 2001). EU membership was previously extremely popular in Greece and its populace had experienced tough austerity measures in order to comply with the economic and fiscal mechanisms which were needed to ensure a successful transition to the new currency. Similarly, there was a political determination to join the new currency since it was seen that progression would provide increased international scope for the country (BBC, 2001). Lynn (2011) argues that the historic role, in terms of political development, of Greece was a contributory factor in the national rush to join the Eurozone and considered that this outcome was to be achieved at all costs. Schadler (2005) suggests that the at all costs caveat was provided by the austerity measures and the near compliance with pre-set regulatory fiscal criteria which ensured membership of this exclusive group. In effect, whilst Ireland had hoped for increased economic wealth and prosperity, Greek aspira tions largely concentrated upon gaining increased international respect and recognition. With regards to Portugal, it is noted that this country did not join the EU space until 1986 and, effectively, was a late comer to this political institution. This is of particular importance to its membership of the Eurozone since wholesale economic change first began thirteen years later as a precursor to Eurozone membership in 2002 (Porter and Prince, 2012). Porter and Prince (2012) argue that the country’s membership of the Euro came at the behest of a political leadership that had a largely uneventful foreign policy. They link the convergence with EU policies such as membership with the Eurozone with the decreasing influence within its former colonies (Porter and Prince, 2012). This includes the return of former territories to China during the same period as the shift in focus towards its near neighbourhood was taking place. To summarise, it can be evidenced that there were numerous reasons why Ireland, Greece and Portugal joined the Eurozone. These include increased pros perity and wealth as well as increased political clout and international recognition. Was the Convergence Criteria met by the Three? It is of particular concern that Ireland, Greece and Portugal required mass fiscal stimuli packages and bailouts in order to shore up their economies and protect the respective states from going bust. A central factor in this outcome, it can be argued is a failure of these three states to adhere to the fiscal criteria that membership of the Eurozone required in order to provide a secure transition to the new currency. As stated previously, aspirant Eurozone states were required to attain to a number of preset economic and fiscal controls which would have indicated their capabilities and successful transition to the Eurozone. Maduro (2012) holds a perspective which states that structural failings within the ERM, as well as the wider EU, failed to address the excessive cross-border flow of capital which was a contributory factor in the subsequent economic crisis. Mauro also highlights that a particular failure of the EU to implement the then existing rules relating to EU budgetary frameworks also impacted upon states abilities to progress to the Eurozone successfully. For Maduro (2012) this particular outcome was important to the success of the Greek model, as well as its subsequent economic crash, since it revealed that both the local and supra national system for monitoring public finances was not working as effectively as it should have. It is noted that Greek economic perfor mances were outside of the considered ERM requirements and that from 2000 to 2008, the budget deficit given to the European Commission was nearly three per cent of the country’s GDP. In 2001, it is also noted that Greece was warned by the European Central Bank ECB, that the country still work to do to if it was going to successfully be adpted into the Eurozone. This included developing the structure of its economy and bringing inflation under control (BBC, 2001). Nevertheless Greece did join the Eurozone despite having a series of noted failings within its central fiscal requirements. Bardhan, Edelstein, and Kroll, (2011) note that the Irish economy had been inflated by a large housing bubble. This helped inflate the Irish economy to a status of having near full employment by the turn of the century (Bardhan, Edelstein, and Kroll, 2011). However a party to this success proved to be the Irish commitment to the controls which had been placed upon it by the ERM. Regling and Watson (2010) argue that a failure of the ERM structure had a detrimental impact upon the Irish economy since the loss of fiscal independence was a mitigating factor on both the creation of the bubble as well as the failure of the Irish government to combat increasing inflationary, and other fiscal pressures. Regling and Watson (2010) blame this outcome on the structure of the ERM and highlight that a small nation requires having, as full as possible, fiscal controls. Portuguese compliance with ERM criteria provided a greater economic stimulus that had first been thought was possible (Constancio, 2005). This produced a similar outcome to the Irish economic experience of the ERM and realised a booming Portuguese economy. Constancio, (2005) also notes that subsequent pay increases outstripped inflationary pressures and this outcome provide to be decisive in the battle to retain control of this area of fiscal policy, particularly where an economic downturn would result in the possibility of rampant inflation. These outcomes, Constancio (2005) argued led to pay increases in Portugal outstripping their EU partners. Essentially this outcome was borne of the structural failings discussed earlier into this paper and were only exposed when these state were impacted by the financial crisis. In terms of the Eurozone qualifying criteria, it is to be noted that none of these three countries met the criteria for joining the Eurozone. Ireland, Portugal and Greec e, therefore were in good company and were aligned to the German, Spanish, Austrian et al experiences of convergence criteria which all failed to meet qualifying critiera. Indeed, , of all the member states only two, France and Luxembourg, were the only countries to satisfy all the convergence criteria (Arestis, Brown, Sawyer, 2001). Any other Reason why any of the Three should have not Joined the Euro The earlier discussions as to the reasons why these three states, Ireland, Portugal and Greece joined the Eurozone produced divergent responses and listed from economic reasons to political vanity and reshaping of foreign policy. These issues alone are not sufficient to realise the potential pitfalls should they experience an economic downturn, as was the case in 2008 onwards. Arestis and Sawyer (2012) noted that in the case of Greece the risks far outweighed the benefits. They compared Greece with Austria and recognised that both economic models were similar apart from Greece having a far lower wage economy that Austria. Austria, therefore, was capable of resisting economic shock. Had the Greek government recognised this potential risk then it is recognised that it would not have been in their benefit to join this monetary union. With regards to Portugal and Ireland, Constancio (2005) argues that these economies had not resolved the structural issues of boom and bust. AS a result ec onomic recession was a highly probable outcome in the event of an economic bust. In essence, therefore for reasons of due diligence it is arguable that neither of these staes should have joined the Eurozone. One other potential reason for not joining the Eurozone is the philosophical argument of losing sovereignty. After the ERM had its first crisis in the early 1990s, Palm (1996) noted that the loss of state sovereignty also meant the loss of fiscal control. Whilst this particular issue is discussed elsewhere in this paper, Palm (1996) specifically discussed the loss of fiscal control in terms of an absence of asymmetric county-specific economic shock which, he argued, would be a thing of the past. Instead Palm (1996) stated that it is entirely feasible that or counterbalancing methods would be needed in order to stop economic contagion since all member states would be affected in one way or another. With hindsight Palm (1996) is discussing the response to the Eurozone crisis of 2008 to the present day. It is unfortunate, therefore, that the three countries were unable to consider due diligence when considering their membership of the Eurozone. Had they have done so they would have r ecognised the exposure to the potential banking failures and acted accordingly. Euro crises The recent fiscal crisis in the Eurozone has highlighted that it is exposed to the international financial climate. The recent fiscal crisis began in earnest in the USA with a series of regulatory changes to the US banking system in the early 2000’s (Jickling, 2012). The collapse of US subprime lending facilities impacted on Europe, firstly in Iceland where its ballooning financial sector had been exposed to the debt crisis in the USA (Lewis, 2009), and latterly on other Eurozone member states which had been exposed to large banking debts and bad practices . This has included Cyprus and the PIGS group of nations, Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain. The latest crisis occurred in Cyprus where experiences there were in line with similar financial and economic failings within the Eurozone space. In each case, it can be evidenced that a number of structural failings as well as an inordinate exposure to risk have been causal factors in their particular fina ncial collapses Menendez, 2013). Indeed, Iceland subsequently possessed a national debt which was ten times its national GDP (Glitner, Landbanksi and Kaupthing, 2009). Jickling (2012) Argues that the underlying causal factors of the recent crisis in both the USA and in the Eurozone were structural and that, as a result, it can be evidenced that there were four factors which needed to be addressed. These factors are: imprudent mortgage lending, bursting of housing bubbles, the structural imbalance of global debt as well as issues relating to securitization (Jickling, 2012). Menendez (2013) notes that following the financial crisis the three countries, Ireland, Portugal and Greece were impacted further when they were faced within increased demand for higher interest rates on borrowing as well as reduced fees from issued bonds. This particular outcome also impacted upon the three mechanisms which were available to these countries (renegotiation, bond issues and monetization) when attempting to relieve themselves of the economic and fiscal burdens (Menendez, 2013). The resultant outcome was that the reform processes which they were able to utilise led to reform of their respective public sectors. Prior to this, Klein (2007) had argued that such an outcome would be indicative of the new model of international crisis management. Indeed with subsequent remedies for filling the vacuum caused by financial shortfalls becoming more autocratic and oppressive it is arguable as to whether the EU space witnessed for the first time a Bolivian style response to a financial crisis (Klein, 2007). Janssen (2011) argues that one possible solution could have been that the Euro is devalued however this would not have been beneficial to Germany since its economy is export driven. As such, the political shenanigans which led to the creation of the Eurozone, and which failed to realise the preset criteria for the vast majority of countries has continued to perpetuate the structural issues that reside at the heart of this institution. For Ireland, Portugal and Greece, however, the economic and fiscal issues remain. Conclusion In conclusion, the creation of the Eurozone has been some thirty years in the making and has been considered as a regional attempt at satisfying the need for a cross border fiscal control system. The ERM was developed in order to progress this ideal but failed to address a number of structural issues that resided within the international monetary system. As a party to this, the resultant exposure of the UK to fiscal issues resulted in this country leaving the ERM some twenty years ago. Since this time the project has developed and went live with a number of nations converting their currency to the Euro. As such the Eurozone was created. However the qualifying criteria of the Eurozone was not met by all but two countries and the subsequent exposure to the US banking crisis by Eurozone members left a number of them in need of financial bailout packages. This included Ireland, Portugal and Greece. These three countries were heavily exposed to this crisis as a result of their own structu ral issues which included booming economies and exposure to a credit bubble. When these bubbles burst, the Eurozone project was in crisis and, today, a number of issues remain unresolved. This includes how to restructure the economies of states that reside within the Eurozone. However as a result of the exposure of these three countries to the recent crisis, the failure to restructure their economies prior to joining, as well as their failure to adhere to all the preset compliances evidences that they should not have been allowed to join in the first place. This issue aside, with only France and Luxembourg satisfying the qualifying criteria the question of whether any other state should have been allowed to join remains a matter of debate. In conclusion, the Eurozone crisis which engulfed these three countries typifies the weakened global fiscal structure which led to the crisis in the first place. Bibliography Arestis, P., Brown, A., Sawyer, M. (2001) The Euro: Evolution and Prospects, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing. Arestis, P., and Sawyer, M. (2012) The Euro Crisis, London: Palgrave McMillan. and Institutions, London: John Wiley & Sons. BBC (2001) Greece joins the Eurozone, (online), available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1095783.stm, (accessed on 29/10/14). BBC (2011), Europe’s PIGS: Country by country, (online), available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8510603.stm, (accessed on 29/10/14). Campaign against Euro Federalism (2013) What is to Happen?, London: Campaign against Euro Federalism. Civitas (2013) European Monetary System, London: Civitas. Constancio, V. (2005) European Monetary Union and the Portuguese Case, (online), available at http://www.bportugal.pt/en-US/OBancoeoEurosistema/IntervencoesPublicas/Lists/LinksLitsItemFolder/Attachments/9/interv20050727.pdf, (Accessed on 29/10/14). Europa (1992) Treaty of Maastricht on European Union, (online), available at http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/institutional_affairs/treaties/treaties_maastricht_en.htm, (accessed on 28/10/14). European Commission (2014) Who can Join and When, (online), available at http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/euro/adoption/who_can_join/index_en.htm, (accessed on 28/10/14). Glitner, Landbanksi and Kaupthing (2009) Joint Quarterly Report, Reykjavik: Glitner, Landbanksi and Kaupthing. Jickling,M. (2012) CausesoftheFinancialCrisis,(WashingtonDC:CongressionalResearchService). Klein,N.(2007)ShockDoctrine,Toronto: KnopfCanada. Lewis,M.(2009)WallStreetonthetundra,(online),availableathttp://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2009/04/iceland200904?printable=true¤tPage=all, Vanity Fair, (accessedon28/10/14). Lynn, M. (2011) Bust: Greece, the Euro and the Sovereign Debt Crisis, London: John Wiley and Sons. Maduro,M.P.(2012)Democracy and Justice: The formula for a new EU and Euro governance, (online)availableathttp://network.globalgovernanceprogramme.eu/democracy-and-justice/, Network, (accessedon29/10/14). Menendez,L.(2013)TheSpreadoftheEuropeanSovereignDebtCrisis,University ofIowa:CentreforInternationalFinanceandDevelopment. Palm, F. (1996) The European Exchange Rate Mechanism and The European Monetary Union, (J), De Economist, Vol. 144, (2), pp. 305 – 324. Porter, D., and Prince, D. (2012) Frommer’s Portugal, London: John Wiley and Sons. Regling, K., and Watson, M. (2010) A Preliminary Report on the Sources of Ireland’s Banking Crisis, Dublin: Ministry of Finance. Schadler, S. (2005) Euro Adoption in Central and Eastern Europe: Opportunities and Challenges, New York: International Monetary Fund.

Non - Naturalism in British Television Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Non - Naturalism in British Television - Essay Example The paper addresses contemporary television sequences and raises new questions about such issues in adaptation. The importance of the content lies in its attempt to place British television at the centre of late twentieth century British culture and to relate the criticism of television drama to a wider history of aesthetic debates and arguments. The study does not proposes a theory of everything or a new general theory of television, but enlightens with historical and critical analysis of one bit of television, a particular corner of the field of dramatic narrative which has a particular political, cultural and aesthetic efficacy of its own, at the same time, it shares the efficacy of the ‘television’ itself. According to Dennis Potter, a professional writer for television as well as a creative artist, most television ends up offering its viewers a means of orienting themselves towards the generally received notions of ‘reality’. The best naturalist of realist drama, of the Loach-Garnett-Allen school for instance, breaks out of this cosy habit by the vigour, clarity, originality and depth of perceptions of a more comprehensive reality. The best non-naturalist drama, in its very structures disorientates the viewer smack in the middle of the orientation process which television perpetually uses. It disrupts the patterns that are endemic to television, and upsets or exposes the narrative styles of so many of the other allegedly non-fiction programme. It shows â€Å"the frame in the picture when most television is busy showing the picture in the frame†. It is potentially the more valuable of the two approaches. Naturalism and realism have had a history of disagreement since nineteenth century. ‘Non-naturalism’, then is shorthand founded on shorthand. The critic or professional has ever referred to naturalism in television drama as a term of approval, something

Burger King's Position on Ethics Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Burger King's Position on Ethics - Term Paper Example Guiding Documents First, Burger King has ethics policy documents guiding aspects of the firm’s operations. One of the four documents is the Code of Business Ethics and Conduct which guides the overall firm operations. Through this policy, Burger King commits to â€Å"†¦taking no ethical shortcuts of any kind. Integrity and honesty are simply not optional† (Burger King Corporation, 2009). The other one is the Code of Business Ethics and Conduct for Vendors that guides vendors on internal and customer relations to ensure ethical practices. The Code of Conduct for Directors is Burger Kings third ethical policy document. This document details the ethical execution of the directors’ roles in the firm. The last document the Code of Ethics for Executive Officers (Appendix 1) also explains how the senior management at Burger King ought to execute their functions in an ethical manner. The document acknowledge the special challenges posed by occupying leadership posit ions and the ethical dilemmas faced, and then details the steps that ensure ethical carriage of duties. Together, these four policy documents exhaustively establish Burger King’s position on ethics in all the firm’s operations (Investor Relations, 2009). ... Burger King’s budget on Lobbying is considerably high- $135,289 in 2010- from which we can discern maintenance of a public position on ethics through the connection of the Vice President heading ethics and being a lobbyist. However, Burger King concentrates on internal mechanisms to ensure ethical operations and does little on a public ethics position. This is a major fail on the part of the firm as issues on ethics are largely swayed by the public’s perception. Internal Guidelines The internal guidelines on ethics revolve around guiding matters of inclusion and diversity, conflicting interests, data privacy, financial reporting, food and drink safety and quality, hiring practices, communicating with the outside world and protecting the environment among other important aspects. The internal guidelines aim at ensuring ethics forms an important part of Burger King’s company culture and hence are exhaustive, covering all possible aspects at which ethical considerat ions and dilemmas may arise. These Codes of Ethics policy documents for the different levels of workforce- employees, vendors, directors and executive officers- effectively cover aspects of employee-employee and employee-public interactions. Defined Process The Burger King Corporation (2009) details the internal process to follow in case of a breach of ethics; first, each employee has to understand the firm’s ethical policies. In cases where an employee discerns a breach of the firm’s ethical policy, he/she should report to the chief of ethics, compliance officer, human resource representative or attorney from the law department. Such information will only be disclosed to the relevant parties, with the reports taken seriously and promptly investigated. However,

Managerial accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Managerial accounting - Essay Example The essay will also look at the role played by management accountants today and assess whether this is relevant to modern day business requirements. Management accounting is concerned with identification, measurement, analysis and communication of information necessary to help an organization achieve its objectives. Management accountants are usually senior managers in a company and have the responsibility of supervising junior accounting staff who deal with basic accounting for the firm. Unlike financial accountants, managerial accountants prepare and analyze data for purposes of deacon making within the organization (De Loo, Verstegen, and Swagerman, 2011). Financial accountants on the other hand prepare data and financial statement for third parties such as shareholders. Changes in the traditional role of management accountants has been necessitated by developments within the business environment such as changes in consumer preferences, technological changes, socio-economic changes and volatile political environment. In this scenario, businesses and organizations have had to reorganize themselves in order to responds to changes in the external environment (Scapens and Jazayeri, 2003). This reorganization involves examining the significance of various departments and employees in relation to modern day business requirements. Management accounts have faced strong challenges over the years over whether they deserve to be part of contemporary business structures. Such pressures were significant in driving changes within the managerial accountants’ role that have made the position relevant today. This paper will start by examining the traditional roles that management accountants play in organizations. The essay will further look at the changes that have taken place in modern day organization and the difficulties that traditional accountants encounter in executing their traditional roles. The

Alcan case study analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Alcan case study analysis - Essay Example In its entirety, business management is highly critical and constantly evolving especially in the aspect of resources, and this is the central idea where the Alcan case revolves around, managing the work force, because people is the most essential asset of any business that hopes to be successful for the long term2. In the Alcan case, the conflict created by lack of communication and the inability to effectively manage the work force created placed the smelting industry at risk of loosing enormously even to a point of closure. The succeeding paragraph will therefore attempt to dissect each of the issues contributing to the tension as well as the solutions that were implemented, ending the rift between management and labor union. The main issue involved in the Alcan Case is Industrial labor relations creating an impact in the productivity of the manufacturing plant. In an industry that utilizes human resource as the main key to productivity, human resource management plays an imperative role in the sustainability of that industry whereby excellent degree of skills are required to handle issues from recruitment requisites, skills training and performance ensuring personnel and management policies conforming to regulations. Managing the work force as well production is a very complicated task that requires a higher level of understanding of theories related to management and organization. There are many proponents to these theories, and almost all of them are relevant to the issues present in the Alcan Case. It is important to note that the core of the Alcan issue involves the increasing grievances of the workers owing to the tension within. Among the theory applicable to this case is the system theory whereby managers are to recognize the various parts of the organization when attempting to resolve issues There are several contemporary theory of management, among them includes contingency, system and chaos theory. Contingency theory asserts that when managers make a decision, they must take into account all aspects of the current situation and act on those aspects that are key to the situation at hand3. System theory on the other hand, helps managers view the organization from a broader perspective, since this theory brought a new perspective for the interpretation of patterns and events in the workplace. It recognizes various parts of the organization, specifically the interaction and coordination within central administration with its programs, engineering with manufacturing, supervisors with workers. Chaos theory recognizes that events indeed are rarely controlled. In his article, Mcnamara claimed that many chaos theorists refer to biological systems when explaining their theory and suggest that systems naturally go to more complexity, and as they do so, these systems become more v olatile (or susceptible to cataclysmic events) and must expend more energy to maintain that complexity. As they expend more energy, they seek more structure to maintain stability. Mcnamara further said that this trend continues until the system splits, combines with another complex system or falls apart entirely. This trend is what many see as the trend in life, in organizations and the world in general4. The underlying root cause of the Alcan/Lynemouth smelting industry was a classic case of human resource mismanagement. There was an

How do Nike, Adidas and other sports enterprises work with the spread Thesis

How do Nike, Adidas and other sports enterprises work with the spread of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) to highlight their own brands in China - Thesis Example The Cone Communications/Echo Global CSR Study organized by The Cone Communications, 2013, carried out a clear fact about the test to enterprises in present world’s continuously challenging and ever changing market place, and that is: the challenge of creating a â€Å"real and meaningful impact†. In modern world the question is not about engaging in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) but in how companies can use it to make an â€Å"impact†. An impact by which it can create a different image in the society, can create a better brand image among the people and also can establish a unique brand image among the people of the country. As such, CSR is not just an option anymore but is rather â€Å"emphatically and indisputably a must-do† (Cone Communications 3). Corporate social responsibility is about how a firms decisions and activities affect the society (Lamb et al 95). Corporate social responsibility requires action and accountability in five main dimensions, economic, legal, ethical, environmental and philanthropic (Lamb et al 95). These are areas a firm will need to work on and develop systems and activities that enables it to attain the best and holistic results in all they do. Over the years, marketing has evolved from its traditional position fueled by the economic ends and expectations of the Industrial Revolution. In the 1960s, marketing was based on the 4Ps, namely product, price, place and promotion (Lindgreen et al 123). In that era, marketing was a tool for the improvement of sales and the increment of profitability. The focus was on transactional marketing where the end was to increase transactions by calling on more customers to become interested in the products of a company. Contemporary marketing on the other hand requir es some degree of social marketing on the part of the corporate entity in order to

Feminism, focusing on the rights of women, the differences between men Essay

Feminism, focusing on the rights of women, the differences between men and women - Essay Example For long, the discourse on masculinism and feminism, their differences and commonalities included, have either centred around sexism or on the politically correct narrative of equality of men and women. The differences between the males and the females are chiefly studied as physiological and psychological. The physical differences between men and women, for example, weight, shape, size, and anatomy, are tangible and measurable. Due to their characteristic physical attributes men exhibit ‘greater functionality’ and ‘more survival value’ than women. (Conner, 2000). The psychological differences, though, more subtle and difficult to describe, have an important bearing on forming and maintaining of relationships. Psychologists, like Freud, accepting the male as the norm, inadvertently committed the mistake of fashioning the female model with the male cloth (Gilligan, 1987). The differences in physical characteristics, the psychological and thinking patterns, are reinforced by the fact, that 78 genes have been identified that differentiate women from men (bbc.co.uk, 2003), while women have four times as many brain cells as men (Connors, 2000). The greater number of brain cells enable women, to understand, consider, and tackle multiple problems at once, while men, with linear and sequential perspective, prefer to solve them one at a time (Connors, 2000). Various studies have shown that the male and female perceptions start taking shape early in life. As a group, finding their way out of a maze, boys exhibited, by improvising a formal and hegemonic chain of command. Using scouts they maintained a respectable difference from each other. Teenage girls on the other hand, when confronted with the problem, resorted to ‘collective intelligence’ and generated a feeling of ‘togetherness’ to find the way out (Gilligan, 1987). It is also observed that the attitude of boys and girls, toward

Healthy foods vs. not healthy foods Essay Example for Free

Healthy foods vs. not healthy foods Essay Eating is something that we all have to do to stay alive and we do it at least three times a day. We live in a world where there are so many choices and no one but ourselves are responsible for the foods we eat. In this essay I will compare and contrast the differences between eating healthy foods instead of not so healthy foods. First I’m going to discuss the healthy foods. The two areas of healthy food I’m going to talk about are the benefits and taste. The Benefits of eating healthy foods are that our bodies stay healthy, keeps you full and satisfied longer during the day, giving you more energy through out the day and in the long run keeping us out of the doctor’s office. If you’re trying to lose weight consuming healthy foods is a start to lose weight. The taste of healthy foods is fresher and if you prepare it well the taste will satifa you but it can sometimes lack good taste if you don’t know how to prepare it. Second I’m going to discuss the benefits and taste of the not healthy foods. There is no benefit of eating food that isn’t healthy for you. When we consume foods that have no benefits we end up with all types of health problems like diabetes, heart conditions and being overweight Which all can lead to high medical bills. The taste of these kinds of food might tastes better at the moment due to all the ingredients that are in them and might cost cheaper so it becomes easier for us to consume. In the long run we are responsible for what we eat and the choices of food we buy but we should all consider the benefits it will make or not make.

Swot Long Pest Analysis Of Mcdonalds

Swot Long Pest Analysis Of Mcdonalds One strength for McDonalds is that it has a wide product range. Some examples of the products they have are, beef chicken and fish burgers, wraps, salads, deli sandwiches and chicken nuggets. This is a good thing as it means that they can target lots of people if they have something to suit everyones needs which will gain them more customers. Another strength for McDonalds is that it is the market leader in the fast food market. It is by far the largest fast food chain worldwide bringing in more customers than any other company and also having the most restaurants. This is a strength as it means they have control over the market and take more risks. It is easier for McDonalds to move into new markets as they have the money and facilities to do this which another fast food company may not be able to do it they arent as well established. (Scribd, 2008) 2.2 Weaknesses With McDonalds being the worlds largest chain of quick service restaurants it is the one everyone firstly thinks of when it comes to fast food. This can be seen as a weakness as currently the government are trying to lower obesity levels and to do this they are attempting to make people eat healthier. With McDonalds having their unhealthy image this can put people off as they trying to convince people to avoid places like this. 2.3 Opportunities One opportunity for McDonalds is the ageing population. This is an opportunity as it means they can change their restaurants to fit in with the eating habits of older people. They could do this by making their restaurants more like cafes which will encourage older to people to come to McDonalds if they dont see it as a fast food place anymore. This can be done by having healthier products available such as sandwiches and they can also provide a wider variety of hot drinks and more cakes and muffins. Another opportunity is peoples changing lifestyles. People are currently more time poor than they used to be and have busier lifestyles. This is a good thing for McDonalds as people are more likely to buy fast food if they are busy as they may not have time to cook meals for themselves and their families. Also there are now more single person families in the UK, this is an opportunity for McDonalds as people who are single may not want to cook for just themselves or may find it cheaper to buy fast food. They are also less likely to go out for meals as it may be seen as socially unacceptable to eat alone in a restaurant and might have fast food instead. (Mintel, Chicken Burger Market Internal Market Environment, 2008) 2.4 Threats Currently the market is becoming saturated with more and more competitors entering the market every year, this is causing slowing growth as people are turning to the new alternatives which is a major threat to McDonalds. Also there is government intervention as they are trying to stop people eating so much fast food. The government have intervened with the advertising campaign as they now have to have healthy images for the happy meals by advertising the options of fruit and vegetables and juice instead of fizzy drinks and fries. Although this does make it more likely for people to buy happy meals people could still however be put off. Another threat would be the prices of raw ingredients as these are rising at the moment. If they go up too much this could result in McDonalds raising the prices but at the moment it is just lowering profit. (JapanToday, 2009) 3.0 Porters Generic Competitive Strategies http://www.icsrpa.org.ge/images/stories/genericstrategies.jpg http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newSTR_82.htm In order for McDonalds to operate successfully in the fast food industry where there is substantial competition from other brands they need to identify a competitive strategy. This can be achieved through cost factors or differentiation. Getting this right could lead to above average or even superior profits. The first section of Porters strategy is cost leadership, this is best suited to a business which serves a mass market like McDonalds. To reach maximum efficiency you need to supply standard products to many consumers. This is much like McDonalds who are the worlds largest fast food chain, although their approach to marketing in the past has been targeting children with happy meals, their best selling product. In more recent years their adverts have included pulling factors for both children and adults alike. As well as this massive advertising budget they have a limited yet carefully designed menu. Perfect for mass market production, it enables them to make just a select number of meals with timely precision. And to attract the number of sales they require they put lots effort into providing meals that any of their customers could choose from. The menu is updated quite often and alterations are made to make sure theres a good range. There are different options like beef burgers, chi cken burgers, deli sandwiches to grasp the mass market. The key being that whatever you taste, beliefs or religion there should be a product suited to you. Its also convenient being located in city centres, shopping areas and road convergences. A large benefit of McDonalds over independents is you know what to expect every time you go as the ingredients and cooking methods are generalised. Porter says that its difficult for any competitor serving the mass market with standard products to charge above average prices, as competitive rivalry is too fierce. But what the theory doesnt consider is the added perceived value of the brand. Theres no recognition that McDonalds stands out from the other competitors based on its reputation. This is the major reason behind their aggressive growth and mass market performance. Twinned with their successful franchise based business model, without which they couldnt achieve such good geographical coverage or as competitive economies of scales. So aside from selling some cost leading products theyre also able to attract people into buying more premium meals, for instance the chicken legend meal in 2008. The most expensive set meal theyve ever sold. This moves McDonalds slightly away from cost leadership, although their target will always reside with the broadest categories, some product differentiation is happening. In Porters Strategy he defines differentiation it by saying an organisation is differentiating when theyre still able to serve a broad target market, but by providing a service which is different or better due to its added value. The customer needs to be prepared to pay extra for additional features or quality. This allows for a higher or premium price to be charged, giving rise to superior profits. I suppose this is the aim of McDonalds to be able to build on their cost leading success, generate revenue from superior hamburgers where people are willing to pay for it. These ideas are emulated by other competitors in the fast food sector. Burger king have low cost and ever more expensive meal options, topping the five pounds mark. As do Subway with their different filling choices, six inch sandwiches cost from  £2.49 and you can pay over  £5 for a foot long meal. Traditionally this would seem expensive for a sandwich, drink and snack. The big issue with this currently is that differentiated products dont perform well when theres economic downturn. This is best demonstrated by Marks and Spencers in the second quarter of 2008 their food sales fell by around five percent, while at the same time Aldi and Lidl experienced an increase in market share. Showing that consumers where less willing to pay for perceived added value, even MS customers who are typically brand loyal. McDonalds in my opinion would suffer badly under these circumstance should they go further down the differentiation route. The reason being the products would most likely dive in number of sales while demand for the usual set of value options would benefit. The other side of Porters competitive strategy is the narrow scope. Meaning the business doesnt serve the mass market but a small number of customers instead. Cost focused strategy is taken up by organisations following a narrow target market, and where customers are very price sensitive. For the business to make profits there are two important factors, firstly costs must be kept to a minimum and price set at achievable rates. This type of strategy direction isnt commonplace in what we think of as the main fast food sector. But when considering the entirety of small takeaway businesses in the UK, most of them are in-fact forced to take this strategic route. As barriers to entry by the big franchises like McDonalds restrict them from winning more custom. Coupled with tight margin and this is almost impossible. Differentiation focused strategy on the other hand looks to serve that narrow band of customers, but instead of being run on tight margins businesses change and alter their products or service so that consumers are prepared to spend a great deal of money. This is also known as niche marketing. When it works well the business can match or even exceed profits made by broad differentiated firms, despite not having the mass market customers. Whether this is possible in the fast food sector is doubtful, the simple nature of the products is based around convenience and value. So for someone to start selling to a limited number of people for an inflated price seems unlikely. It would just be too difficult without a quality reputation and a large budget for promoting yourself. Porters idea of differentiation focused strategy is one which McDonalds could never take up as the concept of applying it to fast food is flawed, making it very unprofitable for any business to undertake. (Capon, 2009) 4.0 Strategic Fit In recent years McDonalds has seen a dramatic change in its external environment with more competition, changing demands from consumers, advances in technology and changing view from governments around the world. McDonalds strategy is to produce good quality food at a low price for the consumer. In recent years McDonalds has seen a rise in competition which has effected its market share within the fast food market. The likes of Burger King and KFC have grown dramatically over recent years and McDonalds have had to develop internally to counter the growth of their competitors. An example of this would be McDonalds broadening its food menu. McDonalds have attempted in recent years to move away from the traditional image that McDonalds serves only unhealthy fast food by creating healthy options on their menu. This was an internal change within the company as nowadays McDonalds tries to emphasise where their ingredients come from and the new healthy options. Another influence that made M cDonalds consider its image and what products it sold was the changing demands from consumers for healthy products. Government campaigns and the media in general gave consumers more awareness of the risks of eating unhealthy. This made McDonalds respond with more salads, fruit, and lower calorie items. Another way McDonalds could adapt their strategy involving healthy eating/drinking is by creating more healthy drinks for consumers. Currently McDonalds only sells orange juice as an alternative to fizzy drinks they could expand their range of drinks involving carbonated waters or other fruit based drinks which give consumers a healthier option. Another issue in the external environment that will effect McDonalds strategic fit is the economy. Currently consumers around the world do not have as much disposable income to spend on treats such as fast food takeaways. In recent years McDonalds prices have increased meaning many consumers are moving to lower priced takeaways. An example of this was in 2009 where McDonalds increased the price for children happy meals a standard Happy Meal increased by 16.5 per cent, from $4.25 to $4.95. This increase may be due to McDonalds growing use of local ingredients or the currently refurbishment programme throughout its stores around the world. To improve the companies strategic fit in this area it suggests that McDonalds tries to create more lower end products which are cheaper for consumers. As consumers have less disposable income they will be less willing to spend nearly  £5 on a meal when they can still not guarantee a good quality of product. 5.0 New Product or Service From carrying out our SWOT analysis we identified some opportunities for McDonalds to take advantage of. These were the ageing population within the UK and consumers changing lifestyles and demands. From these we have identified a new direction that McDonalds can expand into. We have looked at McDonalds main competitors and found that many do not operate a delivery service. We feel this is an opportunity for McDonalds to differentiate from their competition. We have chosen delivery service mainly because of peoples changing lifestyles and the fact that most people no longer have time to cook meals. We believe that the delivery service would be popular with many McDonalds consumers with the main target being students. This is because we feel that students would rather pay extra for their meals if they dont have to go out and purchase it themselves. Most students live in central locations and are unlikely to have cars meaning the only way to get to McDonalds is by walking which may be inconvenient. The delivery service will operate through the day and evening making it a substitute to an independent typical takeaway. Appendix 1 Porters Five Forces Porter agues that five basic forces drive competition in an industry, competitive rivalry, threat of new entrant, threat of substitute products or services, bargaining power of buyers and bargaining power of suppliers. Industry Competitors McDonalds is the number one fast food company in the UK in terms of foodservice sales, with a 12% share of the total sector in 2008. Amongst chained fast food brands, McDonalds held an impressive 27% of foodservice sales in 2008, although it must be noted that its share of fast food sales amongst chained operators was down by one percentage point from 2007. This fall is due to the expanding competitive environment in which it operates, you may think of McDonalds as being a monopoly business and with around 31,000 restaurants in 116 countries and this is right in one sense. McDonalds strong brand presence and efficient operating service has allowed them to expand rapidly, opening up in developing countries worldwide. But now other businesses such as Nandos, KFC and Subway are growing in strength. There are many driving forces behind this from a greater demand for choice, healthy options, and the expansion of franchise business models (KFC, Subway). KFC, the number two fast food brand by sales and number four in terms of outlets, saw marginal growth in its share of foodservice sales in 2008. KFC accounted for 14% of sales amongst chained fast food brands and 6% of total fast food, unchanged from 2007. Burger King was the number three fast food company in sales terms, with a 4% share of the total sector, down from 2007. Expansion plans of KFC, particularly in the parts of the country where it is under-represented, such as the North and Wales, have been seen by some as a move for more dominance. Threat of New Entrants The major barriers in which a firm looking to enter the market faces are the economies of scale and the access of the distribution. In order for a firm to enjoy success in the industry, they must spend a large amount of capital on advertising and marketing. The industry is very competitive because firms are always attempting to steal customers from each other. Its also very price focused, without a monopoly on the competition you would find it difficult to survive without alternative low cost products. However the McDonalds franchise model has made it easier to enter the market, for example Subway has built their strategic plan around franchise options. Because fast food is a global business, theres a threat that new entrants in foreign countries could gain market share and power. Especially where McDonalds finds it difficult to adapt to cultural customs e.g. India. This growth could transfer oversees into McDonalds home markets like the UK Germany and the USA. When every aspect is considered though, its going to be difficult for new entrants to achieve substantial market share in such a dominated industry. Threat of Substitute Products or Services Theres a wide range of products which could be considered alternatives to eating in McDonalds, such as purchasing a burger from the local store and taking it home to warm up, this is a cheaper alternative but is more time and effort consuming, therefore not a convenience like McDonalds. However, according to MINTEL the UK ready to cook food market went up from  £504m in 07 to  £530m in 2008. By 2013 its estimated to be worth  £728m a 37% increase over last years figure. And sales of the chilled meat burger brand Rustlers reflect this, last year sales increased by 57.9% to  £30m. Alternatively you could go to one of the popular in store cafes, like at Debenhams, BHS or even an independent cafà ©. Burger restaurants, like Fine Burger Co and Gourmet Burger Kitchen offer the same products but use better quality as there USP. There are also a number of upper-class restaurants like Cafà © Rouge and Pret A Manger who could take business away from McDonalds by appealing to people on lunch breaks from the office. Pubs and Gastro pubs also compete, offering deals such as two meals for the price of one, it isnt difficult to find a burger and chips for under  £5. Or in the high street theres businesses like Greggs and Ainsleys who do take out food but arent classified as restaurants, theyre cheaper and a strong alternative during the economic downturn. Because people are becoming more health conscious, theres likely to be some switch over from what people perceive as fast food to healthier options. We believe this is the main threat to McDonalds, as its campaign for healthier products has come under lots of criticism, uptake of these ranges hasnt been as good as McDonalds hoped and this could play into the hands of other business using basic ingredients as their selling point. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Because McDonalds is such a large competitor in the market, suppliers will be keen to win their custom. This also means that they control and influence heavily on what price they pay for goods. Such strong dominance means that suppliers will have little bargaining power over the price they get, only regulations and free trade agreements will ultimately protect them. McDonalds have gone a step further than bargaining with suppliers, theyve taken over a number of them and switched to their own supply in many cases. This is called backwards vertical integration, something which large businesses do to reduce costs, guarantee a good supply and ensure to quality of products from their farms. An example of this is supplies such as beef, milk, flour, sugar and yeast to be used in its products. McDonalds has also formed strategic alliances with companies such as Walmart, Disney and Coca-Cola which lead towards balanced vertical integration, whereby they also begi n to control other outlets for their products as well as suppliers. The limited bargaining power suppliers may have is from the growth of other brands, whereby they can attempt to switch customers. However I believe this is weak as each brand will have individual suppliers and the more powerful they get the more bargaining power they will have. Bargaining Power of Buyers Bargaining power isnt measured by the number of people complaining in store, its most evident by the shift in consumer spending from one type of product to another. As fast food chains and other substitutes are so easily accessed, and theres relatively no switching costs, the individual consumer can simply go elsewhere to spend their money. McDonalds may notice this change in footfall but unless there are vast numbers, individual people still have little persuasion or power to negotiate over the price they pay for their lunch. However, if individual consumers choose to act in unison they may be able to excise power. An example of this is, in the mid-1990s when the health scare over British beef erupted, McDonalds faced the prospect of large numbers of its consumers acting together and refusing to buy their hamburgers. Therefore it switched from suppliers of British beef to supply of Dutch beef. An emerging issue is the pressure on fast food prices, as value for money becomes a key tr end this will become more important consideration for customers. One pound menus will become more popular as consumers impacted on by the recession looking for a cheaper option, this will push down the average transaction spend. Also Meal deals have become very common place in the fast food sector, with all the big brands offering them. Appendix 2 LoNGPEST Analysis Local Political The first political issue at a local level that will affect McDonalds is local government legislation. McDonalds need to make sure they adhere to employment legislation such as the Minimum Wage, Working Time Directive and Working conditions legislation. McDonalds needs to make sure it cooperates with all the employment legislation as McDonalds is a global company a negative story about their employment methods such as paying below minimum wage could seriously affect their reputation at a local level. At a local Level McDonalds also need to have an understanding of the Waste Management regulations that will involve their restaurants. McDonalds will need to make sure they deposit their waste material in the right way and dont cause any contamination of the local environment. This could lead to fines or a worse public image to the local population around the restaurant. Another political issue that will influence McDonalds is trade unions in the local area. If employees are unhappy about pay or hours of work then they will go to their local trade union leader to complain about the current working situation. This could influence McDonalds as they will need to make sure they have the right amount of employee interaction in their store to keep all employees happy. At present McDonalds do not directly work with certain unions on all issues regarding McDonalds. Local Economic The local economy will also be an issue to McDonalds. For example if the local economy is performing well then the customer base for products and service will be large and profitable. However wages will be high and employees will be in short supply in the local population. Currently regions are in a depressed state where there is smaller opportunities for selling products and services with people having less disposable income. During the recession the local populations disposable income was severely reduced with a lack in confidence to buy services and consumers more willing to save money than spend. As MacDonalds is seen by most people as a treat they are more likely to cut back on purchasing the product and look at other options. The final economic issue which may affect McDonalds locally is the rate of unemployment in the local area. This issue could influence McDonalds as high unemployment levels in the local area could expand the range of employees for work but could mean more workers without the required skills to work in the McDonalds stores. This could increase the amount of money McDonalds have to spend on training their staff. Local Social The first socio Cultural issue at a local level is the local community around McDonalds store. McDonalds will have a direct influence of the quality of life within the local community. If a Macdonalds is created in a small town it may increase traffic volume which will have an affect on the quality of life for the population. An increase in traffic volume could be a benefit to other shops but it could also be a disadvantage with a higher risk of pollution and higher risk of accidents. Also a McDonalds store opening in a small town or village may lead to local suppliers of fast food been but out of business such as fast food takeaways, chip and fish shops which may have been around a long time within the village. This could give McDonalds a bad public image in the community if they are putting other providers out of business. The second socio Cultural issue at local level is Social Change within the local area. As fast food companies have become more under pressure from the local and national media their has become a growing trend for people to look for more healthy options. This will be an influence for McDonalds as they will need to start expanding their range of healthy goods to attract the new consumer demands. McDonalds have already began to implement new salad options to their product range to attract new consumers who are interested in healthy products. McDonalds are also trying to provide information about where their suppliers are based for their ingredients. Many consumers of McDonalds are now wanting to know how chicken products are farmed for McDonalds so the company is trying to provide information to consumers. On the McDonalds website the company goes into detail regarding the source of their ingredients. McDonalds have had to provide this information as recently there has been many high pr ofile TV programmes that have questioned how McDonalds farm their chickens for their products. (Mintel, Chicken Burger Bars Strengths and Weaknesses, 2008) National Political One political issue which may affect McDonalds is advertising laws. The government and the advertising standards authority have put pressure on fast food companies such as McDonalds to stop aiming their advertisements at children and young people and are no longer allowed to advertise at certain times of the day when children may be watching. This is to try to combat the problem of increasing obesity in the UK and by stopping children from seeing adverts for things like happy meals etc. they are less likely to want them. (Mintel, Chicken Burger Bars Issues in the Market, 2008) Another political issue which may affect McDonalds is minimum wage. The government controls the minimum amount which companies have to pay their staff. If the minimum wage was to be increased by the government then it would mean an increase in costs for McDonalds. With them being a global brand it is very important that they comply to these rules as they dont want to end up with a bad reputation for not paying their staff fairly. National Economic One economic issue which may affect McDonalds is exchange rates. The British pound is currently very weak compared to other countries. This is a bad thing for McDonalds as it means any money which is made in the UK will be worth less when it is exchanged into another currency which will mean lower revenues for the company. Another economic issue which may affect McDonalds is the current economic situation. With the UK being in a recession people now have less disposable income and therefore are more likely to send their money on necessities rather than luxury products. McDonalds could be seen as a luxury product as although food is a necessity there are cheaper alternatives for people to buy rather than fast food. However from research we have found it would suggest that the fast food market hasnt been affected by the recession. This could be due to the fact that although there are cheaper options it is still not a very expensive thing to buy so people are willing to buy it. Also with it being a convenience food people who dont have time to cook are still going to be buying it. National Social One social issue which could affect McDonalds is that there is an increasing amount of single person families. This is a positive thing for McDonalds as a chicken or a burger meal is a lot more convenient compared to cooking a meal for one. Also people are more likely to get food from a fast food outlet than to go to a restaurant as sitting alone in a restaurant could be seen as intimidating for people. (Mintel, 2008) Another social issue which may affect McDonalds is that people are now starting to eat more healthily. People are now a lot more concerned with there health due to the government making people aware of the dangers of not eating healthily. There are now more healthier options available for people who are wanting something quick and convenient such as the Boots Meal deal which is the same price as a McDonalds and still tastes as good but is a lot better for their health. Global Political One political issue which may affect McDonalds is alliances and agreements. When McDonalds expands to other countries it has to be made sure that the two or more countries regulate the conduct of international trade and commerce. It was easy for McDonalds to trade with The UK and US are an alliance because of their history, in the 1980s the close friendship between Margaret Thatcher and the US republican president Ronald Reagan. This was not however the case for all countries as for a country such as India for example McDonalds had to think about the different laws that they would have to abide as they have religious laws. They also have trading laws as most of the country are vegetarian they may have to have certain staff who do not touch the meat as they are against it. Another political issue which may affect McDonalds is Health and Safety. In all countries there are Health and Safety laws for within the workplace. It is important that McDonalds abide by these rules not just purely for health and safety but also to keep up their reputation. Also with it being a food market it is even more important. There are the general health and safety acts that apply to all companies as workers have the right to work in an environment where health is not a risk and the odds are you wont get hurt or ill through work. Managers would therefore have to firstly look at what decide what can harm you in your job and work out the precautions to stop it by doing risk assessment. Also they should give employees health and safety training that is required to do the job free of charge before the employee starts work. Also any uniform and protective clothing should be provided for example hair nets and gloves for hygiene reasons. Global Economic One economic issue which may affect McDonalds is the exchange rate, import and export tax. Both the exchange rate and the import and export tax has a major effect on the company as it can hugely affect profits depending on whether the pound is strong or weak or whether the tax is high or low. Another issue is labour cost, levels of disposable income and income distribution. When expanding globally it was important for McDonalds to look at the difference in the other countries economy when regarding to the labour cost, levels of disposable income and income distribution. As for some countries the labour cost could either be a lot cheaper or a lot more expensive which is important for McDonalds to know as this affects profits. Also the levels of disposable income and the income distribution in the area McDonalds planned to place the outlets as if they were placing it somewhere where the disposable income was r

The Call of the Wild Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Call of the Wild   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Call of the Wild, by Jack London, is a classic piece of American literature. The novel follows the life of a dog named Buck as his world changes and in turn forces him to become an entirely new dog. Cruel circumstances require Buck to lose his carefree attitude and somewhat peaceful outlook on life. Love then enters his life and causes him to see life through new eyes. In the end, however, he must choose between the master he loves or the wildness he belongs in.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The novel starts on Judge Miller’s property in Santa Clara Valley. Buck is the king of his domain and everyone knows it - from the lowly house dogs to the Judge’s sons. However, a gardener with a gambling problem soon ends Buck’s relaxed life. He sells Buck in order to obtain more money; Buck is sent west to be a sled dog and is cruelly mistreated along the way.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A quick learner, he adapts well to the sled dog life. His heritage also helped him become accustomed to the harsh Klondike climate. Some difficulties such as sore feet and a voracious appetite set him back at the beginning, but he speedily overcomes them. Buck goes through several masters and many thousands of miles. Along the way, he learns â€Å"The Law of Club and Fang†: never challenge a human that has a weapon, and once a fighting dog falls to the ground, roaming huskies quickly destroy it.   Ã‚  Ã‚   ...

Essay --

Mady Bunnell English 11 Hour 2 Almost 50% of people with eating disorders meet the criteria for depression.Only 1 in 10 men and women with eating disorders receive treatment. Only 35% of people that receive treatment for eating disorders get treatment at a specialized facility for eating disorders. Up to 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder (anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder) in the U.S. Along with all these appalling statistics, eating disorders have the highest mortality of any mental disorder(1). There are multiple causes of eating disorders leading to horrific consequences, but various treatment plans await those victims seeking to get help. An eating disorder is established by an unhealthy relationship with food and weight preferences that interfere with ones personal life. As of May 2013, The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders classified anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating as the three main eating disorders. Anorexia is classified as having an intense fear of gaining weight and a typical unhealthy practices of intense starvation for long periods of time. Bulimia involves repetitive cycles of binge eating followed by self induced vomiting, also known as purging. Binge Eating is associated with cycles of consuming colossal amounts of food in a rapid manner. People who binge eat also cannot control how much they as well as when to stop. Eating disorders do not just appear out of out of the blue, people tend to use food as a coping mechanism to deal with pain emotions or to have some sort of control in their lives, with the short rush of fulfillment, eating disorder victims are inclined to skim over the severe and fatal repercussions of their actions. Eating... ... eating disorder victims. They are required to stay for certain amount of time and then follow up with outpatient care. During the inpatient process, specialists are a lot more hands on with their patients. Doctors and therapists dictate exactly what each individual does throughout the day, how much and what patients are granted to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner to meet the nutritional needs of the patient, and psychotherapy counseling. There are multiple causes of eating disorders leading to horrific consequences, but various treatment plans are available to anyone struggle with the burden of an eating disorder. Eating disorders are simply mental demons that strive to mutilate any sense of self-esteem that victims may possess. By heeding the symptoms as soon as possible fatal repercussions can be averted through the the outpatient and outpatient processes.

The Competing Explanations of Deviance Essay -- Legal Issues, Life Sen

How are the Competing Explanations of Deviance Relative to Juveniles who are Serving Life Sentences in Prison? America is the only country that incarcerates persons under the age of 18 to a life sentence in prison (Knafo 2013). Scientist says that the full level of maturity is not reached until a person is in their mid-20. Immature children without an adult brain are committing adult crimes and are serving adult time. Why? The answer unfolds in the explanations of deviance. Statistics states that nearly 3000 juveniles who are put in American prisons are given a life sentence without the option of parole (EJI). Each case has extensive evidence that deviant behaviors led to bad actions and eventually a life sentence in prison. For example, Sara Kruzan was introducing to a life of socially deviant behavior. She was forced to prostitute and be under the dominating controls of a pimp. Eventually, the amount of deviant behavior she was exposed caused her to reach her boiling point and to kill her pimp. So, the result was deviant behavior caused another form of deviant behavior which lead to Sara Kruzan serving a life sentence in prison at the tender age of 13. Thankfully, the state the crime was committed in set new laws and Sara was later released from prison (Knafo 2013). Unlike Sara, many other juvenile serving life sentences are still waiting to be released. In this paper I would like to discuss three of those juveniles and the congruent explanation of de viance. The layout will be as follows: 1. Cyntoia Brown (Biosocial Explanation) 2. Jacob Ind (Psychological) 3. Erik Jensen (Sociological) Three Explanations of Deviance Understanding the three explanations of deviance reveals the complexity or deviant behavior each j... ...are relevant to those juveniles serving life in prison. Works Cited Bikel, O. (Director). (2007). When kids get life [Documentary]. USA: WGBH Educational Foundation. Birman, D. H. (Director). (2011). Me facing life [Documentary]. USA: Cinema Guild. Deviance. (2001). In World of Sociology, Gale. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/worldsocs/deviance Equal Justice Initiative. (n.d.). Children in Adult Prison. Retrieved November 14, 2013, from http://www.eji.org/childrenprison Knafo, S. (2013, September 20). Here Are All The Countries Where Children Are Sentenced To Die In Prison. The Huffington Post. Retrieved November 14, 2013, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/20/juvenile-life-without-parole_n_3962983.html Thio, A., Calhoun, T. C., & Conyers, A. (2010). Readings in deviant behavior (6th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Conintelpro and Malcolm X Essay

My intention is to do a research paper on a topic which is still a very controversial topic right up until today, the assassination of Malcolm X, and who really played a major part in it. The reason I am so interested in writing on this topic is because the FBI until this very day, refuses to open and reveal documents about his assassination and who was really involved. What are they hiding? I intend to provide evidence that two innocent men went to prison and that there are some who were involved in his murder still walking the streets today. Too many bogus movies and uninformative documentaries have been presented before the public portraying only one viewpoint of this story in order to misinform and deter the public from the truth. Malcolm X was depicted as an advocate of violence which was another lie advocated by The FBI. Both the FBI and CIA refuse to reveal documents pertaining to his death. I will also touch on both assassinations of John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, and why their deaths appear to be very suspect as well. This paper will also focus on J.  Edgar Hoover, the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which he transformed into his own secret police force called COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program). J. Edgar Hoover’s main objective was to neutralize any movement or individuals which he felt was a threat to National Security, which in most cases was a product of his own imagination. Even Charlie Chaplin was on Hoover’s list as being suspected of advocating communist propaganda. The sources I will use will be an article from Goodmen Project. com, whatreallyhappened. com, and Cointelpro – the FBI war on political freedom.

Charging Overweight Passengers by the Pound Essay

In the world today, obesity is becoming a serious problem that affects one’s life in different situations. One of these situations is flying in the airplane. David Landsel in his article â€Å"Some Airlines Make Obese Passengers Buy Two seats† pointed out that different airlines are taking some policies concerning this issue. However, united airlines are not taking any policies. Southwest and Midwest airlines claimed that overweight passengers should buy an extra seat. If the airplane is not full, and more seats are available, a refund will be returned to the passenger. American airlines put limitations on the services that the airline provides, but passenger is not forced to purchase an extra seat. Air France travelers that suffered from obesity will have the opportunity to buy the extra seat with a 25 percent discount. With these different deals about the fat passengers, there is surely a disagreement about accepting these policies or rejecting them. Obese passengers should buy two airline seats. This is because of several reasons that may be benefit for the obese passengers and the normal weight passengers. So this will help make everyone more comfortable. Some critics claim that obliging obese passengers to buy an extra seat is a ridiculous statement. They should not be penalized for something that they may not be able to deal with. They might have a disease that makes them that way. They argued that this is discrimination to obese people and should not be practiced. But this is not true. Discrimination against someone for something is based on an opinion without objective truth. In this case, it is completely obvious that the passenger is taking up more space than the accommodated seat space. So the argument of the opposing side fails to take into account. Other critics argued that airline tickets are sold per individual not per pound, and people should not be penalized because of their weight. This is a non convincing argument since airlines sell tickets by seat not per person. If someone takes up to two seats, he should have to buy two seats. That is how it is and should be. Obese people sitting in a single seat can become a serious issue. Passenger will seriously squeeze the passengers beside him, leading discomfort and cause a struggle to get out of the seat to the toilet. No one would accept an obese person sitting next to him squishing and taking more than his space for the whole entire flight. It is not fair to the people sitting next to fat travelers who are crushed and uncomfortable for the whole flight. Skinny people will be crowded out by overweight people. Second, airplane seats and seat belts are designed to hold an average weight of 170 pounds, so seat belts fail to restrain heavy passengers. This poses a safety risk for them on the aircraft. Another airline obesity issue is that obese passengers can affect the balance of the airplane by adding more weight. This excess weight requires more work for the plane to move a heavier object which makes the airplane sometimes in a dangerous position. One third argument that supports the statement that obese travelers should buy two airlines seats is that everyone is entitled to hundred percent of the seat for which he paid. Severely, obese people spill over to the next seat that is occupied by the person that purchased the ticket to that seat. Sometimes, fat passengers took up one third to one half of the other passenger seat space. So if any person takes up more than one seat space, he must purchase the additional space he requires. Urging passengers with high body mass to purchase an extra seat is a fair policy that needs to be done by the airlines in order to keep all their flights safe and comfortable for all the passengers. So, obese people must know that airlines are taking these policies to protect them. Delta’s Suzan Elliott states that the airline has no plans to implement any policy that discriminates against any of our passengers. This is how all the airlines think about this issue, but the difference is the way they practice these policies and deal with them with regard to the refund and the cost of the extra seat.

Christ in the Old Testament Essay

The Old Testament was like a world where God would unexpectedly appear to humans and interact with His creations. The main reasons for this particular action was to inform that person of what He was about to do. God would also use his appearances as a way to to strengthen and encourage his people. In this world, where God sneaks down to conform into the physical form of a human, was for the purpose so that His creations would be more easily able to relate to Him and receive His message more adequately. These appearances are known as Christophanies, and are shown throughout the Old Testament. James Borland writes a book named Christ in the Old Testament. Borland paints a detailed picture of what this world of Christophanies consisted of during that time. Appearances of God date all the way back to the early chapters of Genesis. Even though God appeared several times in throughout the book, not all those appearances are considered theophanies. It is difficult to find a comprehensive definition of what theophany is. For an example, God’s brief appearances to Abraham, Joshua, and Gideon are different than the appearances made in Shekinah, or as Jesus the Messiah. Borland quotes The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, which states â€Å"the idea of theophany is something temporary and not permanent† (15). There are Several different connotations of the term theophany, that will help better formulate the term Christophany. The different connotations can be distinguished in dreams, visions, shekinah glory, incarnation of Christ, after his resurrection, his second coming. They all differ from Christophany. Borland presents the idea of Christophany as concrete reality of the time before God began to reveal an ample amount of the Scriptures. The book is divided into different chapters that are in logical order. In the beginning of the book Borland first defines a Christophany, distinguishing and making it clear from other types of God’s manifestation. The primary difference between the Old Testament Christophany and the incarnation of Christ according to Borland,â€Å"Is not only in the transitory nature of the one and the permanency of the other. More importantly the incarnation of Christ involved a permanent union between God and complete manhood†(20). Christophany and incarnation are two different ideas. Christophanies were actual occurrences. They were not imaginary, or a hallucinatory experience. Borland said that a Christophanies must stand or fall with the entire word of God and cannot be separated out as later additions to legitimatize certain holy places (21). These were very special events. Some Characteristics of a Christophany that were included in the book: Christophanies could only be initiated by God, and He revealed Himself as He willed. Christophanies were revelatory or revealing. Each had an immediate purpose, such as the assurance of promises, warnings, or instruction. Christophanies were for individuals rather for multitudes, That is why the incarnation of Christ would not be considered a theophany. Christophanies were intermittent occurrences. There was no predictability as to when a Christophany might occur. They were random. Christophanies only lasted several minutes and they were always audible and visible. The recipient were not â€Å"hearing things† as the world today might say if a Christophany were to happen. Because of the incarnation of Christ, Christophanies are no longer necessary today (33-34). In the other chapters Borland offers several proof that the Old Testament Christophanies were actually appearances of God, Such as Scriptural, and theological. the person that appeared in the Old Testament was all deity and was proved to be the Father Son and the Holy spirit. The author often addresses the objections of various dissenting theologians, and various Scriptures that seem to preclude Christophanies. In the case such as in the book of Joshua where the text explains that Joshua saw a â€Å"man†, Borland is convinced that this is still an appearance of God, or Jehovah. In the last few chapters Borland explains the form of Christophanies. He explains that they are visible and were not through a vision. They were audible, and completely put in a human form in every and any recognizable way. Borland examines in depth several individual passages in where God appears or speaks. Borland also focused on the theology of the Christophany in the last few chapters, relating these appearances to four major forms of theology: bibliology, theology proper, Christology, and biblical theology. The main point that is made is that God had a purpose for revealing Himself in each Christophany. The world that existed during the time of the Old Testament is evident that it is not the same world that exists in the New Testament. Throughout the years since the Old Testament, God has appeared to humanity in different ways. Ways that are not considered Christophanies. It is amazing how God is willing to step out his throne and step down to communicate to a sinful person. The whole idea of God making an effort to communicate with his creation Whether it was in the old testament or in modern times, demonstrates his humility and love. As Christians we should respect and honor him for that. In writing this book James Borland did a wonderful job writing this book. It was very informational, and this book should be passed down for generations to come.