Style of Chinese Negotiation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Style of Chinese Negotiation - Case Study Example In forming such joint venture arrangements, the challenges the Chinese business negotiations pose is so great that there had been instances that many a number of business deals between China and other western countries including USA had failed because of poor negotiations. As John Graham and Mark Lam (2003) see this is because often "Americans see Chinese negotiators as inefficient, indirect and even dishonest, while the Chinese see American negotiators as aggressive, impersonal and excitable". Differences in the management style and problems in negotiations have deep cultural origins. Despite these hindrances, it is possible to win the negotiations with Chinese businessmen, provided a clear understanding of the social, cultural and economic aspects of the negotiation with Chinese entrepreneurs is evolved. This paper presents an in-depth analysis of the intricacies of Chinese negotiations including the cultural background of such negotiations. The paper also deals with the influence of Confucian traits like hierarchy, harmony and faces on communication, characteristics of communication and the Chinese perception of negotiation. Further the paper will also discuss the challenges the Chinese negotiation process poses for managing the international business in China. 2.0 Literature Review: A number of studies had been conducted in the area of business negotiations of the Sino - Western and Sino - American joint venture arrangements. These studies which started around the 1980s have made an in-depth study into the peculiarities of the negotiations of business deals with Chinese government and businessmen. Most important studies have been conducted by Blackman 1997; Chen 1993; Davidson 1987; Deverge 1986; Fang 1999; Frankenstein 1986; Lee and Lo 1988; Pye 1982; Stewart & Keown 1989; Tung 1982. The primary objective of these studies is to bring out an exhaustive narration of the socio-cultural implications of the negotiations with the Chinese and the intricacies thereof. It cannot be said that these studies have completely made the recommendations for the successful negotiation of business deals with the Chinese business empires. An abstract of these studies is detailed in the following sections. 3.0 Role of Culture in Chinese Negotiation: The Chinese culture which is 5000 years old has large influence on their business negotiations. The rural origin of a majority of the people has made them to retain their agrarian values. Social and economic theories attached more importance to the agricultural base rather than commerce and business. Because of the rural base, the human values assumed more prominence in the negotiations than the business profits and gains. John Graham and Mark Lam (2003) say that "Chinese negotiators are more concerned with the means than the end; with the process more than the goal." 'Morality' is the next aspect of culture that greatly affects the Chinese negotiations. Confucianism, which is a 2500 years ancient Chinese philosophical tradition, makes morality the all pervasive factor throughout the negotiation process. For coherence sake, the detailed discussion on 'Confucianism' is included in the section on Chinese Business Culture. The Chinese

Contradicting Notions of the Public Sphere Essay Example for Free

Contradicting Notions of the Public Sphere Essay The notion of Public Sphere by Jurgen Habermas is representative of the social realities of his country. In the same way, Nancy Fraser’s comment on Habermas’s Public Sphere reflects the society she is in. Therefore, their notions of Public Sphere contradict due to their different backgrounds. Considering this idea, readers should consider the backgrounds of the two authors in analyzing their concepts. In analyzing the notion of Public Sphere in the view of Habermas, let us consider the economic situation of Germany. On the one hand, we can say that Habermas’s notion of public is comprised of individuals who have enough food, shelter, clothing, education, employment, or other means of living.   Germany is a stable country, considering its GNP, and small population. On the other hand, the United States is resided by people of different backgrounds, from the poor, the average, up to the rich and wealthy, the Whites, the Blacks, and other migrants, etc. These people who comprise the population of America dictate to Fraser her notion of the public sphere. Considerably, Habermas’s concept of Public Sphere is very ideal. Its idealism actually makes it delimiting of the public it addresses. We can say that the public Habermas portrays or uses to conceptualize his thoughts is basically European. It does not consider the marginalized, the oppressed, or simply those who are experiencing sufferings and demarcation, such as the women, the uneducated, the unemployed or the multicultural population. In conceiving the public sphere as private people coming together as a public, debating over some publicly relevant topics, Habermas was thinking of unity and understanding among the sectors of the public. As such, there is nothing wrong with his ideas of voicing out public opinion within the Public Sphere; in fact it would be beneficial to both the government and the people. Habermas gives an account of the elements necessary to form a democratic country. He addresses this as the bourgeois Public Sphere, which has four primary elements. This sphere, he claims, entirely disregards status, and gives opportunity for everyone to share in the discussion. In other words, he proposes an inclusive Public sphere. Additionally, the discussion within the Public Sphere should address socio -political problems that need to be solved. Habermas considers the evolution of the public sphere he conceptualizes. It started with the bourgeois discussing in coffee shops, salons, and other familiar places. It later comprised the media, as the bourgeois in the 18th century established printing press, news companies, etc. Further consideration of this point suggests the use of media resources for gaining and expressing public opinion, which later limited the said public sphere to those in power. On the contrary, Fraser considers the notion of having the Public Sphere comprised of individuals from all walks of life. She claims that what Habermas proposes is not inclusive, but rather exclusive of those who are educated, and well-to-do. It therefore marginalizes the poor from the rich, and discriminates, in a way, the women and the multicultural individuals. She further argues that it is impossible to claim inclusiveness as marginalized groups are not considered part of the universal public. They themselves formed their own public spheres, which the author termed as counterpublics. She further offers a modern conception of the hegemonic public sphere, which opens up the political realm to everyone. She states that rather than ruling by power, there is now rule by the majority. To deal with the hegemonic domination, repressed groups form into Subaltern counterpublics to represent those who share their ideologies. The marginalized have learned to express themselves, and are working together toward a certain goal. Both authors have their good notions of the Public Sphere. Each works for the common good of the people. In Habermas, we can see that the Public Sphere he proposes is a way to resolve problems in the government and economy of a certain country. In addition, he proposes a body that watches over the public, an organized group of individuals who aim for an honest and successful governance. In her paper, Fraser shares the view that people have formed a Public Sphere that recognizes and represents every individual. She formulates that this sphere would be more representative of the people as it listens and learns from the marginalized sector in society. She disagrees with Habermas that regarding forming a public sphere of the knowledgeable, the more privileged.   In evaluating these two views, we must remember to consider the perspective of the authors. As mentioned above, Habermas who came from Germany may have only considered the society he was exposed to, in coming up with his own notion of Public Sphere. In contrast, Fraser who was exposed to multiculturalism in America may have applied her views in the Public Sphere she proposed. As such, the two authors came up with contradicting beliefs, since they had conflicting societies. Works Cited Habermas, Jà ¼rgen. The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere: An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeois Society. (English Translation). Cambridge Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1989. Alterity. 13 February 2005. Retrieved 25 March 2008 http://www.zephoria.org/alterity/archives/2005/02/nancy_fraser_re.html. Fraser, Nancy. Rethinking the Public Sphere: A Contribution to the Critique of Actually Existing Democracy. Social Text 25 (26): 56-80. Duke University Press, 1990.

Fruits of Love Revealed in Gary Sotos Oranges Essay -- Gary Soto Oran

The Fruits of Love Revealed in Gary Soto's Oranges  Ã‚   Imagine that it's winter and cold outside. There's nervous electricity around you, and love is a new and exciting experience. In your heart you feel warmth you've never known before. This is the moment Gary Soto captures in his poem "Oranges". The feeling and power of adolescent love is created using tone, contrasting imagery, and symbolism. First, the use of tone in "Oranges" clearly helps to set the theme of the poem. Children often talk with simple sentences that directly state what happened. The speaker's choice of words and raw simplicity in the way he tells his story illustrates his youth and the honesty that comes with it. Everything he says, such as "The first time I walked with a girl, I was twelve", is straightforward and simple, much like childhood love. Children tend to have more pure and simple feelings for one another than adults because their lives are simple and uncomplicated. The tone of the speaker helps the reader comprehend those simple feelings of adolescent love. For his next technique, Gary So...

Findings †secondary research Essay

The Bank of China was established in 1912 and thus has a long history of experience in the Chinese banking industry. The bank gained velocity in 1994, after it assumed the role of a state owned commercial bank and in 2003. The liberalization of Chinese economy and the growth of the banking sector has seen rapid growth of Chinese banks into self sustaining institutions of profit despite state control. Bank of China has been quick to adapt to these changes and has thus benefited over the years. The overall business profile of the Bank of China involves, commercial to include corporate as well as retail banking. In addition it has engaged in treasury business as well as conducts financial institutions banking. The corporate banking segment provides financial services to customers with a view to provide them total solutions for all their financial requirements. (About Bank of China,. 2006). On the other hand retail banking is designed to provide customers personal banking services to include savings deposits, credit carts and to the high value customers wealth management business. The treasury business segment includes provision of facilities for currency trading, management of funds, secured debts, financing within and overseas and other ancillary fund management services. As a banking financial institution, the Bank of China provides clearing, lending between banks and custodian services to banks, brokerage houses, funds and insurance operators. The bank claims to be customer centered and has a rich experience of providing banking services, thereby establishing its credentials in the rapidly growing Chinese economy. It is thus providing a complete range of services for personal as well as business banking. HSBC as a prime component of the HSBC group has a vast experience and presence in the global banking industry. HSBC has enhanced its global presence over the years by dynamically adjusting to the growing challenge of fitting in global services in a local World with typical local needs. Thus it fashions itself as the Worlds local bank. HSBC provides a wide range of personal and business banking packages on a variety of platforms to provide value based services to the customer. These have been covered in detail in the previous chapter. To highlight the same a view of the wide range of business insurance packages that have been made available by the bank, to include virtually all the possible contingencies for which insurance is required by business such as small business for turnover less than ? 1 million or less than 10 employees, commercial packaged insurance, customer packaged insurance, business car insurance, keyman insurance for principals in the business should indicate the depth of services provided by it. The insurance package also covers share holders and partners, professional indemnity and trade credit. It is therefore evident that HSBC has been providing complete banking solutions for individuals as well as corporate. Questionnaire to Customers – Bank of China and HSBC The researcher prepared a questionnaire related to the study and 40 clients across a wide cross section of personal and corporate customers were requested to take part in it. These included 10 customers each from Bank of China and HSBC, London. The questionnaire is at Appendix. Multiple choices have been provided to the respondents to ease response as well as collation and analysis. Detailed findings on response to questionnaire are as given below.

Information Security Fundamentals Essay

Answer the following questions. Use complete sentences. 1. How does a false positive alarm differ from a false negative one? From a security perspective, which is least desirable? A false positive attack is where the system IDPS was alarmed but no attack ever occurred. The false negative is where an actual attack occurs and the IDPS isn’t alarmed at all. The least desirable would definitely be the false negative, if an attack does occur and the IDPS doesn’t even alarm well what’s the point in even having it if it isn’t going to alarm. 2. What is a honeypot? How is it different from a honeynet? A honeypot is a decoy system that will lure potential hackers away from the networks critical systems. A honeynet is where the system subnet is constantly changing and it lures attackers away by redirecting the the subsystems that are rich in information. 3. What capabilities should a wireless security toolkit include? Definitely should be able sniff incoming packets, scan the wireless hosts, and be able to view the level of privacy. Keeping an eye on vulnerability is a must because wireless networks can be a little easier to breach especially if the right security measures are not implemented. 4. A key feature of hybrid IDPS systems is event correlation. After researching event correlation online, define the following terms as they are used in this process: compression, suppression, and generalization. Compression is when it will take several occurrences and will examine it multiple duplicates. Suppression is where the IDPS will just alert you if something major has happened instead of it just triggering off something simple it will still let you know that something triggered it. Associates alarms with higher leveled events, can be useful when corresponding with multiple failed ports. 5. ZoneAlarm is a PC-based firewall and IDPS tool. Visit the product manufacturer at www.zonelabs.com, and find the product specification for the  IDPS features of ZoneAlarm. Which of the ZoneAlarm products offer these features? 6. Using the Internet, search for commercial IDPS systems. What classification systems and descriptions are used, and how can these be used to compare the features and components of each IDPS? Create a comparison spreadsheet identifying the classification systems you find. 7. Use the Internet to find vendors of thumbprint and iris scanning tools. Which of these tools is more economical? Which of these is least intrusive? 8. There are several online passphrase generators available. Locate at least two of them on the Internet, and try them out. What did you observe?

Lemur Catta †the ring-tailed lemur

Lemur Catta – the ring-tailed lemur Free Online Research Papers Did you know that lemur catta is the scientific name for the â€Å"ring-tailed† lemur? Did you know that the word lemur means â€Å"ghost† in the native Madagascan tongue? The lemur catta (or you can call it the ring- tailed ghost if you want) is one of about sixty species of lemurs, and all species live only on the island of Madagascar. Lemur catta are very social animals, and they are very easy to identify. With long arms and legs, flexible fingers and toes, extremely long, and easily identifiable black and white tails, large, black outlined eyes, there is nothing in the world that closely resembles a ring-tailed lemur. These lemurs have very limited eye movement, and have to completely move their head if they want to look to the side. Ring-tailed lemurs grow to about 17 inches and to about a maximum of 9 pounds. (Fleagle, 1988) The ring-tailed lemur is a terrestrial quadruped, which means all four feet are specialized for walking, and the animal spends most of it’s time on the ground. Lemurs live in groups of about ten to twenty animals, and these groups are mixed male and female. (Sauther, Sussman, Gould, 1999) The ring-tailed lemur is part of the sub-order prosimii (prosimians), along with the lorises and tarsiers. Prosimians are much smaller than their relatives, anthropoids, with the ring-tailed lemur not usually growing over 10 pounds or 20 inches. (Fleagle, 1988) The lemurs are a part of the infraorder lemuriformes, because they are only found in one place in the entire world, a small island off the coast of Southeastern Africa, Madagascar. (Pastorini, Thalmann, Martin, 2003) There are about 60 different types of lemurs, with some being extremely alike, and some being drastically different. The ring-tailed lemur is part of the genus lemur, and there are no other types of this genus found in Madagascar. The ring-tailed lemurs are the only species in this genus, because of odd scent glands found on the wrist and close to the arm pits. Because the ring-tailed lemur is so unique, there are no other sub-species of it. The ring-tailed lemur, as mentioned earlier is a very unique lemur, because of the similarities the lemur’s hands have with human hands. Lemurs don’t have claws, they have nails, and their grasping ability is just like that of a human, with opposable thumbs. Ring-tailed lemurs, as it has been stated over and over, are native and confined to Madagascar, and they are found nowhere else in the world. However, lemur catta are mainly found in dry woody areas in the south to the southwest, and there are even some found in the southeast near the Andringitra. (Yoder, Irwin, Goodman, 2000) These areas are extremely dry, and because of that the trees are very bare. Lemur catta is a highly terrestrial quadruped, and mainly feeds on the ground. In fact, it is observed on the ground over 65% of the time. (Sauther, Sussman, Gould, 1999) Ring-tailed lemurs are herbivores, eating plants, flowers, and fruits; however, these lemurs sometimes try and expand the horizons, with the occasional insect or small mammal. Obviously they are not only specialized to being ONLY a herbivore, but ring-tailed lemurs only eat insects and mammals when it is needed. (Simmen, 2003) Lemurs do not have many specializations to help them hunt during the day; in fact, some of their characteristics will hurt them in hunting. Lemur catta lack trichromatic color vision, which most other primates have. This will largely affect them in hunting small prey, and is likely the main reason why they rarely do. Mating for ring-tailed lemurs is seasonal, and it starts in mid-April. In the fall, females produce only one offspring, and the gestation period for that female is almost 5 months. However, twins and triplet occur when there is an abundance of food; however, this is an very rare sight. Directly after birth, the young lemur catta cling to the mother’s bellies, only to switch and cling to the back after about two weeks. They can climb after about 3 weeks, and become totally independent from their mothers after about 6 months. The ring-tailed lemurs become sexually mature at about 18 months, but don’t start mating until they are about 2-3 years old. When thinking about all of the mentioned aspects, the ring-tailed lemur is an extremely rare species, and it is only found on one small part of one small island in the entire world. It is very easily identifiable, however, and there is almost nothing else in the world that could pass for one of these, not even another lemur. They have very unique characteristics, and they are even very much different than the other 60 species of lemurs, in their diet, gestation periods and maternity habits, just to name a few. But the thing that sets them apart from all the other lemurs, and the reason they are in their own genus, is because they have unique sensory glands on their wrists and in the armpits, which helps them mark their surroundings. So, when talking about lemurs, there is nothing that is at all like the ring-tailed ghost. Bibliography 1. Fleagle, J. G. 1988. Primate Adaptation and Evolution. Academic Press 2. Sauther, M.L., Sussman, R.W., Gould, L. 1999. Wiley-Liss, Inc: 120-132 3. Pastorini, J, Thalmann, U, Martin, R.D. PNAS, May 2003; 100: 5879 5884 4. Ward, S.C., Sussman, R.W. 2005. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 575- 90 5. Yoder, A.D., Irwin, J.A., Goodman, S.M. 2000. Journal of Zoology 252: (1), 1–9. 6. Simmen, B. 2003. International Journal of Primatology 24: 949-968 Research Papers on Lemur Catta - the ring-tailed lemurThe Hockey GameGenetic Engineering19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraBringing Democracy to AfricaThe Spring and AutumnThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseWhere Wild and West MeetCapital PunishmentHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionResearch Process Part One

Strategic Retail Management Essays

Strategic Retail Management Essays Strategic Retail Management Paper Strategic Retail Management Paper People need a lot of things from their basic things to their luxuries and wants. They turn to the sellers of the merchandise that they need. These sellers may be small retail business owners or big ones such as a department store. Retailing is an important feature of the economy in distributing goods and services from the producers to the people who need them. Retailers usually purchase large amounts of goods from producers, manufacturers or from wholesalers. A quick glance at the supply chain from the production factories would reveal that retailers are at the bottom rung of the chain. Retail stores or shops are usually located where the people are. If people will have to travel long distances just to go to retailers, their business will not grow. Since retail shops are where people go to for their basic needs, they usually develop a connection with their favorite shops. Not a few develop loyalty to the shops they frequently go to. The Retail Environment There are different kinds of retail environments that people may go to. Traditionally sellers and buyers converge on markets. Markets, however, have been supplanted by the rise of malls and big supermarkets. Some retail environments may be in the form of stores where an attendant gets what the customer wants. There are also self-service shops where the customers just get what they want and then pay at the cashier. In stores and shops, however, what can be noted is that the traffic of people never stops. There is interaction most of the time. The retail environment is a place where the economic relationships of people can be highlighted. Yet, such relationships are not only economic, both buyers and sellers may also develop social connections through the retail environment (Berman Evans, 2006). Morale and Motivation at the Retail Environment The morale and motivation of the workers in a retail environment is very important to its operations. A motivated workforce will mean that they will also transfer that motivation to the customers that will visit the shop. In order to facilitate this, the workers at the retail shop should enjoy certain benefits and privileges. In this regard, the retail environment should have clear role perceptions, motivation from the manager or owner, and ability, which can be enhanced through training (Weitz, Sujan, and Sujan, 1986). If the management of the retail shop can ensure the motivation of its workers, this would redound to better customer service to the consumers. In a study conducted by Kim, Kang and Kim (2005), they discovered that there are several dimensions of retail shopping motivation from consumers, especially those who are older. They can either consume service, value and food or they can engage in shopping for diversion and leisurely appreciation of aesthetics. Through the model created by these researchers, they found out that people who are lonely and in need of social interaction tend to go to malls and retail shops. Through their experience at the retail shops, their loneliness can be lessened. In this regard, the workers of a shop can make buyers happier by helping them in value consumption and provide them good services (Kim, Kang Kim, 2005). Such kind of motivational spirit would work well if the workers themselves have motivation and if they have high morale. In times of sadness and loneliness, then the workers at the retail shop could also help people become more cheerful. Retailing Trends for Small Businesses One of the most interesting developments in retail management is in two areas, both of them involving technology deeply. Supply chain management is now increasingly integrated with computer applications that enable store owners to manage their inventories more effectively. The technology is also becoming more affordable so even small businesses can afford it. With the availability of online applications, retail management has become more technologically dependent (Krafft Mantrala, 2005). Another important development in retailing is the increasing popularity of the Internet as the place to shop. With credit cards and online payment schemes, more and more people, especially the busy ones, are depending on the Internet and their credit cards for their purchases. If it is any indication, the success of Ebay and other online shopping sites have also led to the emergence of a new kind of entrepreneurs and retailers who are using the Internet in marketing their products. Whatever their products are, they are now able to reach out to a wide segment of buyers not only in their immediate vicinity but also to the whole world (Krafft Mantrala, 2005). This internationalization of retail management has an important impact on the operations of businesses as well as in their business model. With the integration of the Internet as an effective marketing arm, it supplements the traditional marketing media being used by retailers. The internet also helps small retail businesses to get in touch with their customers more quickly and instantaneously. In doing so, they can easily get feedback from them and act on such feedback right away. As such, the marketing aspect of retailing, the interfacing with customers, and the gathering of feedback becomes easier because of the Internet and other online applications. With the internalization of retailing, however, businesses need to think more creatively about their strategy in reaching out to their target market. Another important thing to think about is how to motivate and raise the morale of the customers similar to what they experience when they go to retail centers or to malls. Obviously, retailers also need to take into account the value added needs of the customers that would contribute to a better experience to them when they are shopping online or on site. Apparel shopping on the Internet has been growing in the past few years yet there are hesitations on the part of shoppers to buy clothing over the Internet. This is because of the perceived risks in buying items there. For one, buyers do not get the same visual and texture sensation when they shop on a store. They cannot try on an item of clothing shown online. Given this limitations, retailing through commerce should appeal to other aspects of the buyer experience (Park Stoel, 2002). The Future of Retail Retail management will not be relegated to the dustbins of history. Although economic recession may facilitate the rise and fall of different means of product distribution and retail management but as long as people need goods and services, retailing will remain as a key feature of the country’s economy. Yet the future of the retail industry is worth looking at. Dawson (2000) identified six major challenges to retail management. These challenges have to be addressed in order for retailers to thrive in their industry. The first one is about the challenges of growing and â€Å"bigness†. Big supermarkets and retail chains are on the rise and these industry giants are undermining the small-time players. As such, small and medium businesses should think of creative ways to survive the intense competition. Secondly, brands are highly arbitrary, always in flux and subject to constant change. Choosing which brands to market and distribute may be a crucial issue for retailers. Another challenge would be the over-capacity of the space for retailing. This would refer to the need for careful management of space and buildings of retailers to ensure that both aesthetics and functionality are ensured. In addition to this, changes in the products and services being marketed tend to be abrupt and turbulent. Even the tastes and preferences of consumers can easily change. Retailers therefore should be quick to understand the dynamics of the market so they can prepare for difficulties and problems along the way. The past decade has seen the rise of outsourcing and offshoring in the discussion of business models, processes and services. The challenge that retailers need to address in this area is achieving the balance between internalization and outsourcing of functions. Outsourcing may be an option for businesses but if overdone, it could easily be a source of fragmentation in the business and the loss of trade secrets. Lastly, retailing through e-commerce is yet to prove itself as effective. In order to deal with these challenges, Dawson (2000) recommends several areas that retailers need to look at. One is making the retail firm relevant to the times and to the changing preferences of consumers. There should also be an effective assessment of the risks that the retail firm faces. Another important aspect is to remodel the organization, establish an effective means of gathering knowledge, which will help in development the corporate culture of the firm. Competition is definitely a big issue in retailing. As such, effective strategies should be devised to deal with globalization and competition from large scale companies such as Wal-Mart (Dawson, 2000). Conclusion Retailing will remain as a very important feature of the country’s economy. Actual retailing helps customers with their needs for various products and services. Retailing also gives consumers value added. Through the act of being at the retailer’s shop or store, the loneliness and sadness of certain people can be alleviated. This is not something that people can easily enjoy in huge shopping complexes and warehouses. In spite of big challenges in the retail industry, there are still those that manage to survive. There are also those, however, that cannot cope with the difficulties of the industry and are forced to close or to seek for ways to mitigate their losses. Wendy’s Hamburger has experienced losses in the last two years or so. Some of its stores are no longer visited by customers. Big franchises of the hamburger chain also closed down. Some of the most notable ones are those that are in Australia. Likewise, fifty Wendy’s locations were closed in the United States just recently. This trend could be attributed to intense competition from other hamburger retail chains most notably, McDonalds. More importantly, though, the chain was not able to create a brand name for itself similar to BigMac or Whopper (Wolf, 2007). Retailers can learn valuable lesson from this. Branding is very important in facing the intense and uncertain competition in the world of retailing. Retail management is a difficult business but if the trends in the market can be anticipated, then the right action can be done to make the business thrive.

How To Create Your Best Counter-Argument

How To Create Your Best Counter-Argument Counter Argument Writing Tips One of the best assignments in your students’ time is writing a counter-argument. Why you may ask? Such a task will make any student not only improve his writing skills but also his thinking. This skill will remain with you all during your life and will be very helpful for your future career. This type of assignment will help make your own arguments even stronger. You will be able to participate in any argument and prove your point of view. When you address the counter-argument in your argumentative essay, you exponentially sublimate your essay. Your writing will be more mature, academic, and developed. You show your high-level thinking when you develop the counter-argument to the toughest point of view. It’s really essential to build a strong case and provide the relevant evidence; and to reach this, you have to be aware of the counter argument within your essay. If your essay is written with no regard to the really obvious counter-argument, it is poor. Instead, when you’re able to create a sound counter-argument, it will influence positively your personal life. Master this skill – and you will be able to see other people’s perspective even if someone’s opinion is different from yours. Thanks to that skill, you will become an emotionally intelligent and compassionate person. What Is a Counter Argument? Almost every essay contains an argumentative aspect. As a rule, students provide a thesis and search for arguing in favor of their thesis. Your task is to provide the details, facts, and some research supporting the thesis to show why it is correct. According to Harvey, when you provide a counter-argument in your essay, you show your confidence. When someone has a skeptical attitude, placing a counter argument helps you predict all the objections your reader might have and be ready for them. You present yourself as a person who considers all the alternatives before arguing for one point of view. It means that you don’t avoid difficulties, but confront them, and all this makes you interesting to a reader. The counter-argument has to disagree with your thesis and is the most obvious point of your essay. For that reason, it has to be worth addressing. So including it to your writing would be a good choice while your teacher would appreciate it if you are able to recognize the points of view which disagree with yours. A solid counterargument is built via three steps: A student raises an objection against his argument. A student expands on the position of the objection and then rejects it. A student reaffirms why his position was correct originally. The aim of the counter-argument is to convince other people successfully. However, there is no sense to address an argument no one agrees with. When providing your counter-argument, the reader has to reflect that this is really true and become interested in how you are going to refute it. Imagine how this works in court – â€Å"objection, your honor† – and the judge gives you few seconds to provide a reason for your objection, and it’s very important, while someone’s fate depends on it. So the counter-argument in your essay has to be as strong as in court. Steps for Writing a Counter-Argument Think of the three most obvious objections to your point of view and write them down. Think which of them is the weakest and which the strongest one. Then you have to select the most convincing objection and use it in your essay as the counter-argument. Choose a transitional word/phrase and offer an issue with your argument. For example, someone draws a different conclusion. You can propose a better, alternative solution, for instance. Develop your counter-argument. Now write some more sentences and explain why people have to believe your objection, give some daily-life examples. Now use a transitional word/phrase to get back to your thesis and show that this counter-argument is not valid. Give explanations, it is very important. Reaffirm your thesis more precisely. It’s crucial to do the thesis in a way that makes it more precise and stronger. You have to keep in mind an average reader, persuade him deeply. Let’s Start a Counter Argument From the very beginning, your counter argument should slip into your essay. So it’s crucial to use proper transitional words and phrases. This way, you will show your reader that you are able to deviate from the main path in your essay and get back to it in a while. In order to make your counter argument look properly, you shouldn’t sound upset, but your reader has to be redirected from the main argument’s idea. In this case, transition words are crucial for starting your counter-argument. Transition Words The success of your counter argument and your essay in total depends on the transition words you use. A transitional phrase has to be strong to help your reader understand your line of thinking and understand it well. And, of course, your mark will be much higher. Examples of transition words â€Å"Admittedly†¦ (state objection)† â€Å"On the one hand, some experts argue that†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Conversely, some argue that†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Some might object, claiming†¦Ã¢â‚¬  You can also use some questions, as: â€Å"Nonetheless, why†¦?† â€Å"However, does that†¦?† Try different combinations until you feel comfortable with them. Counter Argument Rebuttal One of the most pleasant parts of the essay is a counter-argument rebuttal. In this part, you discuss why you are right and why your counter argument is wrong, also, you show why your thesis is surpassing. This rebuttal should convince your reader that your thesis is correct and that overall counter argument is absolutely wrong. The best examples of the counter argument essays will show you how to refute properly. The more solid the rebuttal is, the more integral is your argument. Some very confident students can address how some parts of the counter argument provided are valid, however, that this validity doesn’t matter at all, for example, if they are irrelevant, or if they don’t address certain groundwork of the topic. The aim of the rebuttal is to show how the counter-argument isn’t consequent to the entire correctness of your thesis. It’s not necessary to follow a structure in your rebuttal paragraph; however, it might be very helpful. A more concrete structure is more comfortable for many students: Create an opening sentence that is strong and sums up the core of the argument you object. Admit the claims’ validity. Choose the transition to link it to a strong topic sentence, which clearly asserts why the counter-argument is completely wrong. Support the topic sentence with the experts’ research in the form of quotation or even paraphrase. Explain or expand the evidence of the expert, as well as its importance and significance. Provide some example from current events or even history to support your position and make your rebuttal stronger. A concluding sentence has to illustrate how exactly counter-argument fails and shows that the main argument was superior. Examples of Counter Argument Homeschooling On the one hand, some experts in child development claim that homeschooling has multiple benefits. It is one of the best options for too sensitive or creative children, for those who can’t succeed in traditional school. Besides, children who are trying to reach professional goals, such as athletes or musicians very often can’t attend school and homeschooling is the only alternative for them. Homeschooling allows adjusting the curriculum to the needs of the kid so the kid is able to succeed. Rebuttal Example Conversely, some argue that homeschooling might have some advantages, such as more attention on the student or more personalized lessons. However, those obvious â€Å"benefits† are liabilities to the development of a child. A unique environment offered by the traditional school forces a child to cope with the challenges, such as mean teachers, bullying, embarrassment, teasing, etc. The traditional school provides various unpleasant experiences. On the other hand, these experiences make the child develop and become stronger. Every successful person becomes successful only through competing against worthy opponents.   School environment stimulates students to overcome obstacles and improve themselves. According to Dalien, the traditional school prepares children for the real world by making them interact with different people. During lessons, children learn to work in groups and negotiate the world without parents supervising or intervening them. Homeschooling isn’t abl e to provide children with social skills which are so important for them to enter the world of adults. Drinking Age Nonetheless, why a young person can drive at 15 and go to the army at 18? Does it make sense that a person can drive all over the country, lose his or her life for the country, and still can’t order a glass of beer in a bar? America’s European neighbors raise their children with a less serious approach to alcohol. This makes the United States look too puritanical and old-fashioned. It makes the impression that America is raising young people who have an unhealthy attitude toward alcohol. Rebuttal Example Admittedly, the drinking age in America is higher than in other countries of the world, and there are certain reasons for that. The American nation has always been individual and not concerned about what other nations were doing. According to statistics, children usually manage to access alcohol drinks at an inappropriate age. Parents believe that a lowered drinking age would cause alcohol abuse among teenagers, and this concern is very essential. In the case the legal age to buy a drink is lowered, teenagers all across the country will drink and even over-drink. This is about human psychology. Moreover, it is necessary to know that 21 is not the random age chosen by Congress. The reason was that the number of young people killed annually in car accidents was twice higher before the 21 law was enacted in 1984. By the end of 2005, the selected drinking age saved about 25,000 lives in America, according to Dean-Mooney, 2008. Nothing can be more important than saving young lives. Thus, other laws related to age or what other nations think of us do not matter. Only keeping young people safe from those substances they can’t cope with because they are not wise enough to use them is important. Conclusion Creating a counter argument and refuting it gives you a chance to show your teacher your critical thinking abilities, and how you actually worked on your essay from different points of view. You show yourself as a refined student when admitting the validity of people who have a viewpoint different from your own. You can prove that you understand how your opponents think. And it is the quality of an experienced writer. Ability to add a counter argument and refute it makes you a better person, while you can consider things from others’ viewpoint. As a student, you should give counterargument and rebuttal examples until you are able to write your own ones. It will help you develop your critical thinking skills as well as emotional intelligence.

Legal Transplants in Todays Global World Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Legal Transplants in Todays Global World - Essay Example Amidst the debate, one thing is clear - transplanting foreign rules requires extreme caution and thorough consideration because despite the success of early European countries with it, legal transplants are not for everyone. However, with the advent of globalization and the increasing integration of national economies as a result of it, legal transplants have become not only a trend, but a rule at times. As this paper will argue, globalization, as a driving force for economic integration, has influenced the growth of legal transplants and created both formal and informal institutions that are forcing countries to hastily, if not blindly, copy foreign commercial laws with little consideration to the country's culture and historical experience, thus rendering the transplant unsuccessful. Brings laws and legal cultures into more direct, frequent, intimate, and often complicated and stressed contact. It influences what legal professionals want and need to know about foreign law, how they transfer, acquire, and process information, and how decisions are made. This influence takes effect in two ways. ... Triggered by the desire for a better investment climate in their home country and a more market-oriented home economy to aid in their business endeavors, these individuals can pressure local legal professionals to adopt better commercial and economic laws utilized in other jurisdictions. Thus, the increased flow of information brought about by a globalised world can influence those individuals who are directly affected by these laws, who in turn influence the politicians and law makers who supply them. Faced with pressures from those who demand better economic and commercial laws, lawmakers often result to legal transplants because of the simplicity and efficiency of the process of adopting these laws compared to the harrowing course that can take place in creating new ones. A second effect of globalization is the external pressures that come from other countries, international organizations, and trade associations, forcing legal transplants on countries in an effort to create a harmonized world economy. One of the consequences of globalization is the need to harmonize economic laws the world over to facilitate a more efficient global trading environment and create free markets. As a result, international organizations like the World Trade Organization (WTO) force countries, wanting to be members to adopt certain economic laws to foster the country's trading environment. Another international organization, International Monetary Fund (IMF), also forces countries wanting their assistance for loans to adopt certain policies that have been proven effective in most developed countries. In this regard, globalization has effectively created institutions that induce legal transplants, if not force them, on developing countries. Thus, a legal

Global Marketing Assignment 2 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global Marketing Assignment 2 - Case Study Example Networking helps the new brands to improve their sales and markets. The networks expand the market segments for the new brand to increase the customers and reach the targeted customers (Philip & Keller, 2005). Thus, it is significant to have the connections to increase the market awareness of the brand. Lastly, there are enough infrastructures in place to make sure that there is efficient movement of the products. Honey needs good storage facilities to be in place. There is also need for transportation requirements to reach the customers. The Korea market has enough transport modes, roads, and railways to enhance the movement of the foods. Thus, the Korean foods have the advantage of the efficient infrastructure to improve its connections. There exist factors in the same market that make it unfavorable for the Korean honey. First, is the less experience on circulation of the products in Korea. The Korean culture and the environment of business are somehow different. The Korean food has only done some few exporting to Japan; thus, the Korean market does not do much international marketing. The globalization involves advertising the products overseas past Japan. As a result, it may provide great business to the business through broadening its customer base and improving the reputation of the Korean food brand. Customers prefer a brand that is selling in various markets to be of better services and higher quality than the other brands, in this case, the food markets. It may also provide opportunities for future opportunities in the international Korean market (Adcock & Al Halborg, 2001). Secondly, the Korean food act as an intermediary and not the producer. Thus, it has less control over suppliers in crucial factors such as quantity, quality and packaging technology. Managing of suppliers makes them improve their quality of their products, and it is the important factor in selecting a supplier (Kerin, 2012). Having control

Business Legal Plan Assignment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Legal Plan Assignment - Research Paper Example In terms of the legal form of ownership that I want for this business, I would choose that of a limited liability company or LLC. This is because in this form of business ownership, the liability of an owner is limited to the extent of his capital investment in the business. Furthermore, the limited liability company is a business enterprise that is itself a legal entity, separate and distinct from the owners. A limited liability company can sue and be sued under its own name. Under normal circumstances, the personal assets of the business owners need not be attached to meet the obligations of the limited liability company. I find this aspect very appealing and sensible, compared to a sole proprietorship or a partnership, where the creditors can even lay claims against the personal assets of the owner or partners in order to satisfy their outstanding sums. In a limited liability company, a Court of Law may consider attaching the personal assets of the owner only in cases of proven fr aud and misrepresentation (Keatinge et al, 383-384). The level of protection and support to a limited liability company varies from State to State. If the owners choose to classify the business as an ‘S Corporation’ for taxation purposes, they can save on the double taxation aspect.

P and Q Inventory Management Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

P and Q Inventory Management Systems - Essay Example The model also plays an important role in order to monitor the current ‘in-stock’ items and reduce the risk of ‘stock-out’ of the items (The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2011). The P system of inventory management possesses various similarities as well as dissimilarities to the Q system inventory model. The model is used to record the time in which the product or the item should be in stock and are ready to be employed. In this context, the monitoring and ordering processes are performed when the level of the items reduces to the minimum quantity. The items are ordered at certain intervals of time, for instance, in very specific day of a month or week. This process is often convenient while ordering a group of products at the same time (The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2011). According to the Q-system of inventory control, the order quantity of the items is fixed and the interval period of ordering depends on the level of reordering of the items. However, the reordering in the P-system is fixed and the quantity of ordering items varies in different review cycles. Continuous monitoring is speculated to be highly required in the Q-system of inventory control. On the other hand, the P-system of inventory control attempts to purchase inventory at a specified gap taking greater time for reviewing and recording the stocks in comparison to the Q system (Gopalakrishnan, 2004). Hence, the fundamental difference between the Q system and the P system can be identified as the treatment of highly demanded commodities (in case of Q system) and other goods (in case of P system). It has often been noted that inventory management not only reflects the efficiency of an organization in waste management or resource allocations but also exhibits its flexibility in dealing with alterations related to customer purchase behavior. As the process tends to operate to the coordination of

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah Essay

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah (Malaysia) - Essay Example Yet, clear cutting, deforestation, and over cutting of the timberlands has resulted in severe shortages of lumber in countries such as the Philippines where 9 percent of the forests were cleared in the period 1980 thru 1990 (Ascher 13). There are a myriad of forces at work that create a climate where short-term gain outweighs the sound long-term management of a countrys natural resources. Flawed government policies and a failure to understand the implications of the economic driving forces has resulted in forest ove4r cutting in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The generic and overly simplistic viewpoint that over cutting the forests in under-developed nations is a combination of greed, corruption, and ignorance marginalizes the effect of government policy. While it is true that these can have a significant effect, such as Malaysia where over $1 billion was unaccounted for in 1994, it is more often the well-intentioned, though misguided, government policies that result in forest mismanagement. In addition, governments have failed to enact strict enforcement and accountability policies that would limit the influence of special interest groups and hold government officials more responsible for the budget. Ascher illustrates the extreme case of Indonesia where President Suharto engaged in the "off-budget pursuit of development strategies ranging from downstream wood products to aerospace" as well as "†¦motives such as political campaign finance and personal aggrandizement" (81). The redistribution of resources without sound budgetary con trol disrupts pricing as well as contributing to over production. One of the more clearly misguided efforts at managing the forestry sector output has been the proliferation of export bans of raw timber around the world. The Indonesian economy lost $400 million in 1981-82 when it banned the export of raw timer in an effort to spur

Discrimination Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discrimination - Article Example Actually, the word justice was originated from the Greek word ‘polis’ which has greatly been altered from its real sense. It was a gradual development that the concept of justice became the inevitable part of moral ideals beyond its mere political meaning. The key point that the writer puts forward is that all citizens must be ensured justice irrespective their class, strength, or ethnicity. However, reverse discrimination obviously ignores the majority groups while it attempts to favor the unwanted groups like the black. Apart from it, if some ethnic groups such as Americans, Indians, Chicanos, are to be considered as low classes the concept of minority seems to be the creation of ethnic groups. The term equality in legal perspective has less importance in the reverse discrimination concept. The writer wants to specify that the law must consider all citizens equal regardless of their wealth and talent, or ethnicity. In addition, the weaker sections should be equally considered by the law by means of special privilege; and they can not be considered as unwanted segments of the society. However, the writer does not purport a specific alternative to reverse discrimination which would preserve equality and justice in their true

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah Essay

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah (Malaysia) - Essay Example Yet, clear cutting, deforestation, and over cutting of the timberlands has resulted in severe shortages of lumber in countries such as the Philippines where 9 percent of the forests were cleared in the period 1980 thru 1990 (Ascher 13). There are a myriad of forces at work that create a climate where short-term gain outweighs the sound long-term management of a countrys natural resources. Flawed government policies and a failure to understand the implications of the economic driving forces has resulted in forest ove4r cutting in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The generic and overly simplistic viewpoint that over cutting the forests in under-developed nations is a combination of greed, corruption, and ignorance marginalizes the effect of government policy. While it is true that these can have a significant effect, such as Malaysia where over $1 billion was unaccounted for in 1994, it is more often the well-intentioned, though misguided, government policies that result in forest mismanagement. In addition, governments have failed to enact strict enforcement and accountability policies that would limit the influence of special interest groups and hold government officials more responsible for the budget. Ascher illustrates the extreme case of Indonesia where President Suharto engaged in the "off-budget pursuit of development strategies ranging from downstream wood products to aerospace" as well as "†¦motives such as political campaign finance and personal aggrandizement" (81). The redistribution of resources without sound budgetary con trol disrupts pricing as well as contributing to over production. One of the more clearly misguided efforts at managing the forestry sector output has been the proliferation of export bans of raw timber around the world. The Indonesian economy lost $400 million in 1981-82 when it banned the export of raw timer in an effort to spur

Organizational Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Organizational Change - Essay Example This essay discusses the issue of needed organizational change in business field. The researcher states that the often heard clarion call in every organization today is â€Å"Change or change will change you.† It is apparent therefore that an organization that does not heed this call and sticks its head in the sand like the ostrich is bound to die eventually. The researcher thinks that surviving in the present day global economy needs an organization to be flexible in addition to adapting readily to the constantly-changing global marketplace. In addition, the researcher states that there are numerous issues these days that are involved as far as change implementation is concerned. The time span for instance, that is needed in implementing the change is important. Frequently, the project team tasked with the change implementation is not given off their normal duties to execute the change program. Another big factor explained in this essay is cost, with the cost estimates consta ntly changing during the stages of implementation. Change expenditures must be estimated carefully for the change to be approved by the top management as well as tracked throughout the entire change period. It should be noted that the cost of the change must not exceed its advantages. In conclusion, the researcher sums up that a diversified functional team for change implementation brings about a common sense of responsibility cutting across every level of the organization, resulting to effective implementation.

Physical therapy intervention with a stroke patient Essay Example for Free

Physical therapy intervention with a stroke patient Essay The clinical manifestations of neurologic disease are as varied as the disease processes themselves. Symptoms can be subtle or intense, fluctuating or permanent, an inconvenience or devastating. First clinical manifestation is Pain, it is considered an unpleasant sensory perception and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage. Pain is therefore considered multidimensional and entirely subjective. Seizures are the result of abnormal paroxysmal discharges in the cerebral cortex, which then manifest as an alteration in sensation, behavior, movement, perception, or consciousness. The alteration may be short, as in a blank stare lasting only a second, or of longer duration, such as tonic- clonic grand mal seizure that can last several minutes. Dizziness, an abnormal sensation of imbalance or movement. It is fairly common in the elderly and one of the most common complaints encountered by health professionals. Visual Disturbances, visual defects that cause people to seek health care can range from the decreased visual acuity associated with aging to sudden blindness. Weakness, specifically muscle weakness is a common manifestation of CVA. Weakness frequently co exists with other symptoms of disease and can affect a variety of muscles, causing a wide range of disability. Weakness can be sudden and permanent, a sin stroke, or progressive, as in many neuromuscular diseases. Abnormal sensation, numbness, abnormal sensation, or loss of sensation is a manifestation of cerebrovascular accident. Altered sensation can affect small or large areas of the body. It is frequently associated with weakness or pain and is potentially disabling. Both numbness and weakness can significantly affect balance and coordination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Assessment of cortical motor integration is carried out by asking the patient to perform a skilled act like asking a patient to throw a ball, move a chair. Successful performance requires the ability to understand the activity desired and normal motor strength. Failure signals cerebral dysfunction. Examining the Motor System, a thorough examination of the motor system includes an assessment of the muscle size, tone and strength, coordination, and balance. The patient is instructed to walk across the room while the examiner observes posture and gait. The muscles are inspected, and palpated if necessary, for their size and symmetry. Resistance and Abnormalities are documented after. Assessing the patient’s ability to flex or extend the extremities against resistance test muscle strength. Once the leg is straightened, it is exceedingly difficult for the examiner to flex the knee. Conversely, if the knee of the patient is flexed and is asked to straighten the leg against resistance, a more subtle disability can be elicited. For example, the right upper extremity is compared to the left upper extremity. In this way, subtle differences in muscle strength can be more easily detected and accurately described. Coordination in the hands and upper extremities is tested by having the patient perform rapid, alternating movements and point-to-point testing. First the patient is instructed to pat his or her thigh as fast as possible with each hand separately. Then the patient is instructed to alternately pronate and supinate the hand as rapidly as possible. The n lastly, the patient is asked to touch each of the fingers with the thumb in a consecutive motion. Speed, symmetry, and degree of difficulty are noted. Coordination in the lower extremities is tested by having the patient run the heel down the anterior surface of the tibia of the other leg. Each leg is tested in turn. The motor reflexes are involuntary contractions of muscles or muscle groups in response to abrupt stretching near the site of the muscle’s insertion. The tendon is struck directly with a reflex hammer or indirectly by striking the examiner’s thumb, which is placed firmly against the tendon. Testing these reflexes enables the examiner to assess involuntary reflex arcs that depend on the presence of afferent stretch receptors, spinal synapses, efferent motor fibers, and a variety of modifying influences from higher levels. Common reflexes that maybe tested include the deep tendon reflexes like biceps, brachioradialis, triceps, patellar, and ankle reflexes and superficial or cutaneous reflexes like abdominal reflexes and plantar or Babinski response.    References: Brunner, K., Suddarith, L. (2003) Medical- Surgical Nursing.   J. G. Ferguson Publishing Company.

Planning International Pricing Decisions

Planning International Pricing Decisions Outline and discuss the main factors a marketing firm would have to take into account when planning international pricing decisions. (50% of the available marks for this question) Introduction Many organizations emphasize that price is the most independent, variable yet convenient element of marketing mix. Pricing plays a main role in the international marketing and implementing effective marketing strategies. Price is one of major part of marketing mix. This is mainly based on the fact that pricing changes appear rapid and immediate in the market. Too many managers find pricing decisions very challenging and often difficult to make. This is in conjunction due to the fact that most of the modern organizations believe and know the importance of the strategic role of pricing in international marketing. For many small companies operating in local markets, pricing decision are based on the relatively straight forward for allocating the total estimated cost of producing, managing and marketing a product or service between the fore cast total volume of sales, and adding an appropriate profit margin. Such as fluctuation in exchange rate, acceleration inflation in certain countries and the use of alternative payment methods such as leasing, exchange and counter-trade. For these reason, it is important to know at the outset that development and implementation of pricing strategies in international market should follow the following stages. Analyse the factors which influence international pricing, such as the cost structures, the value the product, the market structure, competitor pricing levels and a variety of environmental constraints. Confirming what impact the corporate strategies should have on pricing policy. Evaluating the various strategic pricing option and selection the most appropriate approach. Implementing the strategy through the use of a variety of tactics and procedure to set the prices at small business unit level. Managing prices and financing international transaction. The factors effecting international pricing include following Corporate and marketing objectives Insurance Firm and product poisoning Product range, life cycle, substitute, product differentiation Marketing product development Available resources Inventory Shipping cost Pricing objectives The pricing decisions in general can analyse and viewed by two ways pricing as an achievement of marketing objectives or pricing as a fixed element in a business decision. If the previous view is followed, the company uses price to achieve a specific objective. Pricing decision should be consistent with the marketing objectives of the firm in a particular market as well as the overall policy of the company. Price escalation Price escalation is defined as changes in the price of specific goods or services in a given economy over a period of time. Excess profits do exist in some international markets, but generally unequal differences in price between the exporting country and importing country. Shipping from one country to another country the cost arises specifically, the term relates to situations where ultimate price are raised by shipping costs, insurance, packing, tax. The majority of this cost arise as a direct result of moving goods across borders from one to another country and join to escalate the final price to a level significant higher than local market. Competition The nature of market structure in particular is an important determinant of price. It refers to the number of competing firms, their size and relative position. In the case of an oligopoly structure, the entering firm would have little freedom to choose a price depending on the income levels, a certain market can takes only a certain level of pricing . A company can also use competitor`s prices as a landmark for poisoning its product as compare to competitors for example, if it wants to poison its product as being of higher quality than its competitors. When a company entering in to a market and using competitive prices, a company needs to check on the cost structure of its competitor`s. Price is just one of the element of marketing mix and has thus to be matched with other element of it. Pricing controls Companies doing business in foreign countries encounter a number of different types of government price setting. To control prices, government may establish margin, set prices and floor or ceiling, restrict price changes, compete in the market great subsidies or act as purchasing of monophony or selling monopoly. A company entering of entering a foreign market with a penetration strategy with a lower price Target Customer Marketers have to calculate and understand a particular portion or target customer group in the market that they are entering. Knowledge of demand elasticity the price is vital, as is knowledge of how customer will react in the case of price change. But with differentiated product, market share of a company can even be improved through higher prices. Brand names and image of high quality are two of the factors that characterise differentiated product that can be sold at the quality prices. References Chris Philips, Isobel Dooley and Robin Lowe, International marketing strategy, Pg 420,421 Ghauri and Cateora, International marketing 2nd Edition, Pg 442 452 Discuss the causes of and solutions for parallel imports and their effect on price. (50% of the available marks for this question) Introduction Parallel import is a non- imitation product imported from another country without the permission of the intellectual property owner. Parallel imports are often referred to as grey product, parallel imports develop when importers buy products from distribution in one country and sell them in another distribution which are not part of the manufacturer`s regular distribution system. Parallel imports are legitimately produced goods imported legally into a country without the authorization of a trademark, copyright, or patent holder. This practice is lucrative when wide margins exist between prices for the same product in different countries. For example the price of a Volkswagen car is in Germany showroom is 107.4 and in Spain that car price is 102.6 the same in France 103.9 and in UK 130.9. A variety of conditions can create the profitable opportunity for parallel imports in the market. Causes of Parallel imports There are several causes of parallel imports including: Fluctuation in currencies value Restricted import quotas High tariff Price differentials Restricted supply The possibility of parallel imports occurs when the price differences are greater than the cost of transportation between two markets. In Europe, because of different taxes and competitive price structures, price for the same product vary between countries. The variation in the value of international currencies between countries frequently leads to condition that make parallel imports profitable. Restriction brought about by import quotas and high tariff can lead to parallel imports and make illegal imports attractive. Example India has a three-tier duty structure on computer spare parts ranging from 40 to 70 percent on imports. As a result estimates are that as much as 30 percent of India domestic computer hardware sales are accounted for by grey market. Purposefully restricting the supply of a product in a market is another practice that causes abnormally high prices and thus makes a parallel market profitable. Such was the causes with Mercedes-Benz cars whose supply was limited in the United States. The grey market that involved in Mercedes cars was partially supplied by Americans returning to the United States with cars they could sell for double the price they had paid in Germany Possible Solution of parallel imports is as follow Reduce the price differentials between market Materially alter the product Educate the dealer Terminate the dealer agreement Buy back the grey market goods This is not strange for companies to find them self competing in one country with their own product imported from another country at lower prices. Most probably such prices differentials will cease to exist once all restrictions to trade are eliminated in the Europe union and a full fiscal union is achieved. To prevent parallel markets from developing such marketing and pricing strategies are used, companies must maintain strong control systems. These control systems are difficult to maintain and there remains the doubt that some companies are less anxious with controlling grey markets than they claim. Price Changes due to parallel imports The parallel imports have a negative effect on the original product. Sometimes grey market upset prices level and result from ineffective management and lack of control, observed evidence shows that the treats of parallel imports do decrease retail prices. In itself, these price effects are not enough to justify a free organization concerning of parallel trade.. The possibility of parallel imports occurs whenever price differences are greater than the cost of transportation among two markets, and the price of product are higher in domestic than neighbour countries. Example Japanese merchants have long maintained very high prices for consumer. As a result, prices for Japanese product sold in other country as lower price than they are in Japan. For example, Japanese can buy canon cameras from New York catalogue retailer and have them shipped to Japan for a price below that of the camera purchased in Japan. In addition to the higher prices for product at home, the rising value of currency makes these price differential even wide References Marketing across Cultures 5th Edition Jean-Claude Usunier and Julia Anne Lee Pg 297 198 International marketing strategy by Chris Philips, Isobel Dooley and Robin Lowe chapter 11 page 436,437) Question 4. Distinguish and explain the differences between tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade. What strategic options are open to marketing firms when attempting to deal with the problems of non-tariff barriers in economically developed and industrialised countries? Choose at least one industrialised country to illustrate the points made. . Introduction Tariffs have always played an important role in generating revenue for the country. In most of the under developed countries, tariffs plays an important role in developing the economic policies of the country. For political reasons, tariffs are applied on imports, but sometimes they are also applied on exports. It is generally the easiest form of revenue generations. When a shipment comes on the border of the country, the custom officers analyze the products and charge tax on it on the basis of the formula. Since the goods cannot enter in the country without the written authorization of the tax authorities, thus it is very easy to collect the duty. Nowadays the free trade organizations discourage the tariffs applied on the goods. World trade organization (WTO) has played an important role in persuading the countries in reducing the tariffs imposed. But nowadays countries are more focused on the non-tariff trade barriers. These barriers are imposed on countries which do not comply with the guidelines laid down by the world trade organization. Tariff barriers to trade Tariffs are the restrictions imposed by the country on the imports and exports of goods and services. Tariffs have always been used as an instrument to increase the revenue generation and also to protect the local industry from the foreign competition. There are different types of tariffs which can be imposed by a country but the most common one are as follows. Ad valorem: it is set on the basis of the percentage of the value of the products being imported in to the country. But sometimes it isnt that useful because if the international price of the commodity decreases, than the tariff applied on it also reduces. Specific tariff: it is the specific amount of money that imposed on a product. Thus if the price of the product decreases than it does not affect the tariff. Revenue tariff: this kind of tariff is imposed specifically to generate revenue for the country. E.g. if a country does not grow coffee, than the government can impose a duty on the import of coffee beans to generate revenue. Prohibitive tariff: this kind of tariff is imposed to restrict the import of a specific product. Usually the tax imposed is so high that it is almost impossible for the companies to import or export the product. Protective tariff: this kind of tariff is imposed to specifically protect the local industries from the foreign influence. All the governments use this option to facilitate the local industries from the foreign competition. Environmental tariff: this kind of tariff is imposed on the imports and exports to the countries which have substandard environmental controls. These kind of tariffs are also known as eco-tariffs or green-tariff Retaliatory tariff: this kind of tariff is based upon revenge. E.g. if United States impose a tariff on Chinese imports than the China will also impose a tariff on the imports from USA. Sometimes countries use this option to influence the tariffs imposed by other countries. Non-tariff trade barriers: Non-tariff trade barriers are the types of barriers which are imposed by a country to restrict the imports but they are not like the usual tariff barriers. Some common examples of the Non-tariff barriers are anti-dumping measures and countervailing duties. The use of non-tariff barriers have significantly increased over the past few years because of the work done by World Trade Organization (WTO) to reduce the tariff barriers imposed by different countries. Some Non-trade barriers are permitted in limited circumstances, especially when it is required to protect health, safety, sanitation or natural resources. But generally it is criticized because it violates the free trade rules set by the Worlds Trade Organization (WTO), the European Union (EU) and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Examples of Non-tariff Barriers: The most common examples of non-tariff barriers are as follows. General/product specific quotas. Products standards Ban on imports Packaging conditions Labelling conditions Rules of origin Additional trade certificates like Certificate of origin, Certificate of Authencity. Dealing with the Non-tariff barriers: We are living in a very competitive environment. All the companies in the world are working hard to have a competitive edge over each other. Tariff and Non-tariff barriers play an important role in achieving the overall goal of the company in the foreign and domestic market. If a company wants to enter into a foreign market, it has to develop a strategy to enter into the market and makes profit. Governments use the Non-tariff barriers to facilitate the local industry from the foreign competition and also impose duty on their products to generate revenue. China has been one of the fastest growing economies in the world. For the last three decade, chinas economy has grown at approximately 10 percent per year. The main reason of chinas success is that it has dramatically penetrated into the foreign market while protecting its local industry. Most of the western countries and independent think-tanks blame china for manipulating with its currency and use cheap labor to boom it exports. China has very strict barriers on imports. A company has to go through very strict procedure to invest into the local market. (http://www.iie.com/publications/papers/lardy0507.pdf). China has imposed a lot of Non-trade barriers on the imports from the foreign countries. This has played an important role in developing the local industries. The Chinese government has helped the local industry to improve its efficiency by giving them financial and tax relief. The imports from China have drastically affected the American manufacturing industries. Although the imports from China has significantly increased in US but US exports isnt catching up at the same ratio. This has caused a huge trade deficit between the US and Chinese trade. Now USA has imposed anti dumping tariff on Chinese products. Recently the US international trade commission has ruled that the Chinese imports are hurting the American firms by selling the oil well pipes at a very low rate. Thus the Chinese steel pipe producers will face anti dumping tariffs of up to 99.14 %. This type of tariff barrier is called protectionist barrier. This kind of move can damage the relationship between the countries. (http://www.e-to-china.com/tariff_changes/data_tariff_changes/2010/0505/78017.html). The request for protection imports have significantly increased during the 2009. Many countries are targeting Chinese producers/exporters and trying to limit the imports from China to help their local industries to grow. (http://www.e-to-china.com/tariff_changes/data_tariff_changes/2010/0505/78017.html) Conclusion: To conclude we can say that non-tariff barriers play an important role in the revenue generation of the country. Most of the countries use tariff and Non-tariff barriers to protect their local industries and also to generate revenue. The most common type of Non-tariff trade barrier is protectionist barrier. Governments use this option to protect their local industries from the foreign competition. Tariff has been used by countries to generate revenue but sometimes it can also be used for political gain. Some countries can use these tariffs to unfairly restrict the imports from certain countries for personal reasons. Thus World Trade Organization played an important role in persuading the member nations to reduce the tariffs. This move has not only encouraged the trade between the countries but also helped in increasing the friendly relationship. Reference: http://www.bea.org.mk/Upload/Content/Documents/Report%202007%20NON-TARIFF%20BARRIERS.pdf http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariff http://www.e-to-china.com/tariff_changes/data_tariff_changes/2010/0505/78017.html http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL31403.pdf http://www.card.iastate.edu/publications/DBS/PDFFiles/06wp438.pdf Question 5. Q5: under what circumstances might an international marketing firm consider using joint ventures to exploit business opportunities within a big emerging market (BEM)? Choose a particular product or service industry and a specific BEM as a vehicle for discussion. Introduction International operations have become one of the most integral part of a businesses and all the organizations adopt different strategies to penetrate into the foreign market. The success of an organization depends upon how well it has understood the market situation and modified its strategy accordingly. All the foreign markets have a unique risk and opportunities. Thus the companys main goal is to minimize the risk and explore the opportunities to attain the overall goals and objectives of the company. Thus the most commonly used strategy to enter into a foreign market is Joint Venture. A joint venture is an arrangement where two or more firms join forces for manufacturing, financial and marketing purposes and each has a share in both the equity and the management of the business There are many ways to approach a business opportunity in the market but Joint venture is considered to be the most appropriate and less risky. However one needs to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of joint venturing before entering into the relationship. When a company enters into a market, they make a series of contractual relationship with the local business by either licensing or distribution agreement. The main benefit is the parent company has limited integration with the local companies. They only pay them a limited amount of money but do not share profit. However if the company wants a more dynamic relationship, than it can form equity joint venture, so that both can work together to increase the profitability of the company, and also share the profit and loss together. Advantages and Disadvantages of Joint Venture There are many advantages and disadvantages of having a joint venture. On one hand, it enables a company to outsource it operations to other companies to reduce its overall cost, but its also very risky. The main risk is the ability and willingness of the other company to follow the guidelines and procedure laid down by the company. Capital requirement Advantage One of the most important advantages of having a joint venture is that the financial resources can be shared. E.g. A Company may be interesting in opening a business that requires a significant amount of money. Although it might have the required labor and technical resource but it doesnt have the financial capacity to fund the project. This kind of project is a good candidate for a joint venture. To start this project, the company can look for other companies which can share the financial cost to start the project. Disadvantage The most obvious disadvantage of having a joint venture is that the companies have to share their profits generated from the operations. A lot of issues can arise from this aspect because both the companies are not only sharing financial resources but they also share some technical know-how and intellectual property rights. These types of resources are difficult to value thus it can create some misunderstandings between the companies. Reduction of business risk Advantage A joint venture allows the investor to diversify its risk. The most important way of reducing the risks faced by the investor in the market is to diversify its portfolio by investing in different markets. Another advantage of joint venture is that when a company collaborates with a local firm than it can benefit from its local knowledge. The main risk that a company can face in the foreign market is the little knowledge of local needs. Economies of scale Advantage One of the most significant advantages of joint venture is achieving economies of scale for both companies. E.g. if the manufacturer gives the contract of sales and distribution to its local partner, it can focus mainly on bringing the product to its local partner. With proper planning, joint ventures can effectively reduce the cost associated with the product from the production to the end user. Control over Functional activities Advantage In joint ventures, the companies can also have a more dynamic relationship with each other by giving direct access to each others processes. E.g. a company can reduce its manufacturing cost by giving the production contract to the local company, but instead it can also seek a way to have some control on the manufacturing and production process of the local partner. Thus the foreign company can benefit from the local companies knowledge about the market and they can also share their business practices to strengthen their relationship. Sharing technology and management skills Advantage In joint venture, both the companies can share their expertise to improve the overall efficiency of the business. The main advantage of having a joint venture is that the foreign company can learn from the experience of its local partner about the local market. And the local partner can also take benefit from the foreign company to improve its technical and managerial skills. Both companies can share important information regarding their businesses to strengthen their relationship. Disadvantage Although sharing technology between the businesses can be a good idea, but sometimes the practices learnt from joint ventures can be used beyond Joint venture in other business. This is the main factor that discourages the companies to form joint ventures. Joint venture in Big emerging market International operations are one of the most important part of business strategies of the company. As the world has become a global village, the companies are faced with an intense competition and thus companies are continuously in search of exploring new market opportunities. Joint ventures have become an integral part of the businesses. Most of the big brands in the industry had joint ventures in past with other companies which helped them to increase the profitability. China is one of the largest economies in the world. Its products are exported all over the world. It has enjoyed approximately 10 percent growth rate for the 3 decades. It is one of the biggest exporters to United States. Chinas market is considered to be the best emerging market in the world and most of the big names have already entered into the market. These companies have effectively used the local companies and utilized their knowledge to increase the profitability of the companies. General Motors, Toyota, Motorola, IBM etc have affectively used joint venturing to reduce their production cost and increase the profitability of the companies. Chinese has significantly gained a huge market share in the telecom industry. Mobile phone giants like Apple, Motorola, Siemens, and Sony Ericson all operate in China. They assemble their products in China to enjoy cheap labour and manufacturing cost. Conclusion To conclude we can say that joint venture is one of the most important tools used by the companies to improve the productivity and profitability. It helps the foreign companies to enter in to a foreign market with the help of the local knowledge. Thus both the companies can use utilize each others resources to increase the productivity. In this way, the local companies can learn from the international business practices and managerial skills of the foreign company and the foreign companies benefit from the local knowledge of the local company. Although there might be some complications involved in joint venturing but if both companies work together, they can easily overcome any challenge.

Essays --

According to Mondy, Noe, & Gowan (2005), global dimensions such as variations in cultural practices imply that the success of organizations depend on management’s ability to market and manage in multicultural settings. To a greater extent, organizations that operate only within one country enjoy the benefits of dealing with a relatively homogenous set of cultural, legal, and economic variables. When a company operates multiple businesses in several countries, it is not blessed with such relative uniformity (Mondy, Noe, & Gowan, 2005). Consequently, the human resource management function in multinational companies such as Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is significantly complicated by the need to adapt human resource management procedures and policies to the differences among the various countries in which the organization operates. With respect to the case of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, there are several issues that Kathleen Taylor (President, Worldwide Operations) should focus on so as to create a balance in concepts related to cultural awareness and control mechanisms. These issues include cultural factors, economic factors, labor cost factors, and industrial relations factors. In the case of cultural factors, it is a widely accepted fact that wide-ranging cultural variations in different countries demand corresponding variations in human resource practices among an organization’s foreign subsidiaries. For example, the cultural norms in a country like Japan or other Far East countries and the importance that people place on the patriarchal system has an effect on the typical Japanese worker’s perception of his/her relationship to the employee. Consequently, this has an influence on how that person works. Such cultural diff... ...es of each business unit. The president must have the experience and capacity to manage generational and cultural diversity in the complex global environment. The communication strategy employed by the company should transmit the values, image and objectives of the company as the finest home or destination away from home that meets and exceeds the needs of diverse clients and stress it from time to time. The president should orient the organization to administer a results-driven approach. This approach sets targets for each department and ensures that those goals are achieved through evaluation and control. She should be open-minded to allow views of other departments to form the basis of her decisions. Finally, the president should keep herself abreast with the happenings in the hotel industry and benchmark accordingly through expert advice and continuous learning.

Thomas Aquinas’ Account of the Various Dimensions of Prophecy

The Summa Theologica, one of the principal works of St. Thomas Aquinas, has created remarkable impacts not only in his time but also up to the present generation. A writing that is, according to him, a compilation of Christian doctrine as a manual for his students, the Summa Theologica is actually a complete, systematically arranged exposition regarding theology and Christian philosophy. It consists of questions, articles, and arguments discussing different concepts related to theology (Aquinas,154).One of the most famous and controversial topics included in the Summa Theologica is the various dimensions of prophecy of the philosopher and theologian: prophecy of foreknowledge, prophecy of denunciation, and prophecy of predestination. The first mentioned dimension of prophecy pertains to the revelations of God regarding the events in the future that depend primarily on man's freewill. The samples given by Aquinas have something in relation to life and death, wars and dynasty, and the likes.Therefore, in fulfilling the prophecy of foreknowledge, one's free choice is the major influential factor. In contrast to the first prophecy, the prophecy of predestination deals with what God has revealed that He alone can do, has believed is present for eternity, and what is in His absolute decree. Therefore, a man's free choice is not a contributing attribute in this dimension of prophecy. Lastly, the prophecy of denunciation talks about the event that may and will happen through God's revelation of the future which can be hindered by miraculous deeds.Thus, it is regarded as a â€Å"conditional promise† which is mainly dependent upon other factors that will or may prevent it from happening (Aquinas,154). Aquinas also believed that other than knowledge, revelation is a necessary requirement for salvation. Through this, man can know the supernatural end that actually affects his acts. More importantly, without revelation, only a few would know the truths concerning God after a longer time and with of course, a great possibility of error.Thus, he proved that â€Å"reason,† which is anchored to man's knowledge, is essential not in proving what the truths of faith are but in defending, explaining, and developing the revealed doctrines of Christianity (154). However, not all agree with Aquinas’ belief; some question one of his points of view, specifically regarding active intelligence. Henry Corbin’s statement disapproves of Aquinas’ perception that active intellect functions not in separate ways with spirituality (249).Corbin strongly disapproved this and emphasized that if these two will be linked and treated as one in terms of functions, spirituality may lose its true essence since intellect is classified with relevance to the social norm (249). Thus, when not separated with the socialized arena of active intelligence, beliefs regarding religious arena might as well be affected. A spiritual entity dominated by religious forces, which are influenced by a socialized field of intellect, might as well in return be socialized.This occurrence will result in modifications in one’s points of view and confusion about what truly exists and what does not. An example given in that statement describes the transformation of one’s belief in monotheism to monism (Corbin 249). The former explains that only one god exists but when not done separately from the aspect of intellectual side, it then results in monism wherein one believes that one god only exists but with manifestations in various religions. This scenario just illustrates what Corbin tried to explain if intellect comes in the way of spirituality.

History of Bolsheviks in Russia Essay

The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903. The Bolsheviks were the majority faction in a crucial vote, hence their name. They ultimately became the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Bolsheviks came to power in Russia during the October Revolution phase of the Russian Revolution of 1917, and founded the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic which would later in 1922 become the chief constituent of the Soviet Union. The Bolsheviks, founded by Vladimir IllyichLenin, were by 1905 a mass organization consisting primarily of workers under a democratic internal hierarchy governed by the principle of democratic centralism, who considered themselves the leaders of the revolutionary working class of Russia. Their beliefs and practices were often referred to as Bolshevism. Bolshevik revolutionary leader Leon Trotsky commonly used the terms â€Å"Bolshevism† and â€Å"Bolshevist† after his exile from the Soviet Union to differentiate between what he saw as true Leninism and the regime within the state and the party which arose under Josef Stalin but as we will get to know there are similar traits to the Bolsheviks regime and that of Stalins. The Bolsheviks were journalists long before they were state leaders, and they never forgot the impact of a well-aimed message and the role of media. Newspapers were the life-line of the underground party. Formative ideological and political debates were conducted in them; reporters and deliverers evolved into party cadres; and readers became rank-and-file supporters. At times, newspapers smuggled from abroad kept the Party alive; and Lenin’s editorials often forestalled factional division. Revolutionary struggle taught Bolsheviks the value of mass media, and confirmed their belief that culture is inherently partisan. In times of political turmoil, they exploited it skillfully. Illegal front-line newspapers helped turn soldiers against the Great War; effective propaganda helped win the Civil War. Yet the revolutionaries knew that the same weapons could be used against them. When they took power, they protected themselves by denying the opposition access to public opinion; printing presses, theaters, movie houses were all eventually confiscated and placed under state monopoly. The Bolsheviks considered these measures necessary and just to maintain power and control as the ruling and dominant political party. Soviet authorities were never ashamed of their monopoly on different aspects of culture. Culture was a weapon of class struggle as identified by similar events in the Chinese Revolution as the media and its variety of channels would amplify the rate and effieciancy of propaganda. Allowing the enemy access to mass media would have seemed criminally stupid. To debate the ethics of censorship was a waste of time; the Bolsheviks’ concern was how to mold popular values, how to reach the masses, reflect the wishes of the state and censure alien ideals. This essay will look at the reason why the Bolsheviks were convinced that a stringent control over the media through a monopolistic system was necessary for holding unto political power but would eventually lead to press freedom for the masses due to a systematic process of internally socializing the Soviet Union with a strong appeal to the working class which would help solidify the Bolsheviks political power in the long term. With a strong thought that they overly represented the working class, the control over the media represented one of the strongest tools to control and effectively influence the social working class in the Soviet Union. 1 Bolsheviks and the Media The early twentieth-century media suited Bolshevik purposes. Under Bolshevik sponsorship, they spoke with one powerful voice, unweakened by dissent or excessive subtlety, unencumbered by complexity. Red propaganda depicted a world of stark contrasts: Bolsheviks were valorous and self-sacrificing; the Whites were cruel and debauched. It was no time for half-tones or self-conscious irony. Bolshevik propaganda might seem heavy-handed, yet judging by its success, much of the public did not resent the overbearing tone. Opponents on both the left and right were no match for the Bolshevik blitz, and some, like the Whites, were particularly ineffective in shaping public opinion. Discussions of Soviet mass culture have usually dwelt on its administration and rhetoric more than content and reception. This is unfortunate, because mass culture was a rare example of equilateral negotiation in Soviet society. The culture gap could not be forced as it stood as an obstacle to the unity of the nation behind one unilateral political party. The economy could be socialized; industry could be whipped into higher production; and citizens could be made, at tremendous cost, to behave as they should. But socialist society demanded not that people just say the necessary things, but also think them in private. Socialism had to be internalized. Many Bolsheviks saw the mass media as the path from ideology to internal thought. It converted abstract phrases into concrete images. Propaganda demanded the cooperation of three groups: the Party and state, which provided the content; the skills of writers and artists, who made ideas into image; and the audience, which received and digested the images. Leaders, artists, and citizens all acknowledged the wishes of the other. The audience craved interesting material; the state needed its values represented by symbols; artists desired an arena for their creative energies (and a respectable living). One side-the audience-stayed mute about its thoughts, yet even at the height of tyranny, no mass audience could be forced to watch a movie or read a book. After claiming to represent the working class and finally taken power in Russia, the Bolsheviks saw themselves as the rightful representation of the working class. Though the Bolsheviks felt they were right in claiming to represent working class within their many promises and strong influence, they were not justified in making this claim in the end. The party felt it had won the right to represent the proletarians by promising freedom and self-government, but after demonstrations such as the Kronstadt Rebellion and the formation of the Cheka, it became apparent that the Bolsheviks had betrayed the working class. Firstly, the Bolsheviks felt that they were a clear representation of the working class. One of the main reasons for this assumption was Lenin’s irresistible promises to the working class. In Lenin’s work â€Å"Declaration of the Rights of the Toiling and Exploited Peoples† he outlines the rights and privileges promised by the Bolshevik party if they should come into power. One of the first rights he outlines is â€Å"The sovereignty of the people; i. e. , the concentration of the supreme power of the state in a unicameral legislative assembly composed of representatives of the people. Lenin sets out to demonstrate how the Bolshevik party stands for people’s representation in government, to further show the proletarians that the Bolshevik party is a â€Å"people’s party†. Lenin then goes on to point out that workers should be given the right to â€Å"Unrestricted freedom of conscience, speech, press and assembly; the right to strike and to form trade unions. † Because these new rights and freedoms were never available to the proletarians under the Tsarist regime, the promises made by the Bolsheviks were too good to pass up. In addition, the strength of the influence of the Bolsheviks’ served to gain support of the working class to the extent that other parties could not reach. Alex Shotman demonstrates how he and many others like him were influenced more by Lenin, leader of the Bolsheviks , than any other party leader. The result of this debate and many others like it demonstrate how Bolshevik influence dominated in comparison to that of any other party. Because of the many promises and strong influence of the Bolshevik party, its members felt that they were justified in representing the working class. The validity of this idea, however, proved to be questionable after the Bolsheviks came into power. 2. Monopoly and the Media The Bolsheviks established a state monopoly of the media that absorbed literature, art, and science into a stylized and ritualistic public culture–a form of political performance that became its own reality and excluded other forms of public reflection. Although Lenin had control he wasn’t completely supported by the people of Russia. To gain support Lenin made a secret police force, which was in charge of erasing any opposition to the party. The Bolsheviks were also renamed the Communists. Freedom of press was cancelled, unless you supported the Communist cause. The government took control of all ways of life. Lenin also made peace with the germans as he knew if war continued, the revolution wouldn’t fully work. Although some were angery with the losses Russia had in the treaty, the Bolsheviks were in control, though it was not a steady form of control. There was still widespread opposition and soon a civil war broke out. he socialist ideologyon the freedom of press viewed it from two categories. Firstly the Leninism-marxism was completely against the idea of freedom of press as either absolute or abstract. The argument embodying this was that in a capitalist society the notion of freedom of press applied only to the Bourgeoisie and therefore the right to freedom of press applied to only a small percentage of the population. The first action to implement restrictions on the freedom of speech was the introduction o f the Decree of the Press authored by Lenin himself. The Decree and form of press which advocated for opposition and insubordination to the ruling communist party. An excerpt from the Decree below details the the thought of Lenin on how the monopolising the press would later benefit the masses and the working class: â€Å"For the bourgeoisie, freedom of the press meant freedom for the rich to publish and for the capitalists to control the newspapers, a practice which in all countries, including even the freest, produced a corrupt press. For the workers’ and peasants’ government, freedom of the press means liberation of the press from capitalist oppression, and public ownership of paper mills and printing presses; equal right for public groups of a certain size (say, numbering 10,000) to a fair share of newsprint stocks and a corresponding quantity of printers’ labour. † He recognised both the revolutionary potential of the workers’ press, see for example a number of his early articles such as Where to Begin and What is to be Done, and the reactionary role of the bosses’ papers (as did Marx later in his life). However, the class nature of society had actually corrupted the press, according to this resolution. Against the bosses’ newspapers, the revolutionary government set up a commission to examine the links between the capitalist press, shareholders and who owns, funds and organises the bosses’ newspapers. However, at this stage of the revolution the bosses’ press had not been suppressed, that came soon after with the invasion of Soviet Russia by 19 different armies and attempts to undermine the revolution. Sadly, these measures of suppression in part laid the basis for the later dictatorship of Stalin and the snuffing out of freedoms alone with wholesale state terror and murder of millions. In one way the suppression of the press proved Marx’s original point about human freedom but in a far more terrible way. 3. Aftermath of Monopolising Freedom of the press in the Soviet Union The Bolshevik leadership took it for granted that the revolutionary changes that they would carry out in the area of property relations, that is economic reforms, would result in equal revolutionary changes in culture. Thus in the first decade of their rule, the Bolsheviks would allow a degree of tolerance for independent creativity as well as developing government policies to mould the thoughts and behaviour of its citizens. The Bolsheviks were prepared to use propaganda on a scale never before used by any government to create a people attuned to the ideological dictates of their rulers. To this end, Lenin created a series of institutions to manage every aspect of public activity. The Supreme Council of the National Economy was formed to direct and coordinate all aspects of the communist economy. All matters dealing with the security of the State were entrusted to the Cheka and the Revolutionary Military Council handled every aspect of the Civil War. To manage the social revolution, Lenin consolidated all cultural organisations into a single large bureaucratised institution called the Commissariat of Enlightenment (=Narkompros) under the leadership of Anatolii Lunacharskii until (1929). Lunarcharskii was the Cultural Commissar and his all â€Å"counterrevolutionary newspapers were closed. a State monopoly over newspaper advertising was created. Lenin hoped to restrict the publication of anti-government newspapers by denying them advertising revenue. However, despite this, some 3,000 anti-Bolshevik newspapers continued to be published between November 1917 and June 1918. July-September – all independent newspapers were closed down by the Bolsheviks. On 27 May 1919 a state monopoly on paper was created. The state could now control the publication of all books. 6 June 1922 saw the censorship of all publications and pictorial matter was placed under the control of Narkompros. Publications of he Communist Party and its affiliates the Communist International and the Academy of Sciences were exempt. Due to these rules of censorship any semblance of independent thought disappeared from public life in Russian. From 1918 onwards, authors and painters learned to practice the art of self-censorship because they knew that the government censor would be keeping a strict vigilance on the work. Despite this however, Stalin was to in troduce even more severe censorship laws after 1928 to further ensure that the government controlled the mind and the social development of the ‘communist citizen’.