The Position Of Asian-Americans In The Bay Area Political Economy free essay sample

Examines the Asian population in the Bay Area in three steps: a demographic overview, analysis of two recent events (campaign finance scandal and Prop. 187) and an analysis of a new unification of the various Asian-American communities. The Position of AsianAmericans in the Bay Area Political Economy Introduction Historically, the AsianAmerican community of the Bay Area which numbers well over one million people, has had trouble organizing itself into activist collectives and learning to speak with one voice (Lee, 1994). During the last several months, events have forced the disparate community to put aside certain cultural and ethnic differences and join forces to fight a formidable foe  the modern, American metroplex. This paper studies the AsianAmerican population of the Bay Area in three main parts. The first section provides a statistical overview of the AsianAmerican population. The second section discusses two recent events which have had a major impact on the AsianAmerican community. We will write a custom essay sample on The Position Of Asian-Americans In The Bay Area Political Economy or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The third section shows how those same events have

A Very Short History of Chad, Africa

A Very Short History of Chad, Africa Brief History of Chad Chad is one of several potential sites for the cradle of humankind in Africa following the discovery of seven-million-year-old human-like skull, now known as the Toumaà ¯ (Hope of life) skull. 7000 years ago the region was not as arid as it is today cave paintings depict elephants, rhinoceroses, giraffes, cattle, and camels. People lived and farmed around the shores of lakes in the north central basin of the Sahara. The indigenous Sao people who lived along the Chari river during the first millennia CE were absorbed by the Kamen-Bornu and Baguirmi kingdoms (which stretched from Lake Chad deep into the Sahara) and the region became a crossroads for the trans-Saharan trade routes. Following the collapse of the central kingdoms, the region became something of a backwater ruled by local tribes and regularly raided by Arab slavers. Conquered by the French during the last decade of the 19th century, the territory was declared pacified in 1911. The French initially placed control of the region under a governor-general in Brazzaville (Congo), but in 1910 Chad was joined to the larger federation of Afrique Équatoriale Franà §aise (AEF, French Equatorial Africa). It was not until 1914 that the north of Chad was finally occupied by the French. The AEF was dissolved in 1959, and independence followed on 11 August 1960 with Francois Tombalbaye as Chads first president. It was not long, unfortunately, before civil war erupted between the Muslim north and Christian/animist south. Tombalbaye rule became more brutal and in 1975 General Felix Malloum took power in a coup. He was replaced by Goukouni Oueddei after another coup in 1979. Power changed hands twice more by coup: to Hissà ¨ne Habrà © in 1982, and then to Idriss Dà ©by in 1990. The first multi-party, democratic elections held since independence reaffirmed Dà ©by in 1996.

There are two topicschoose one of them Coursework - 1

There are two topicschoose one of them - Coursework Example The authors, Carter and Usry (2002), define cost drivers as factors that cause the expense to happen or any factor that is identified with the event of an expense. Examples of cost drivers include machine hours, direct material hours, direct labor hours and so forth. The process of selecting the system most suitable for a business depends on having a clear comprehension of the benefits and limitations of the two primary costing systems. Also known as the conventional method, the traditional costing framework assigns manufacturing overhead costs to the manufactured products. This method assigns a factory’s indirect costs to the manufactured items on the basis of the volume of units produced, the direct labor hours, or the production machine hours. Therefore, with a traditional costing system the implication is that factory overhead costs are dependent on a given cost driver. The application of this assumption was applicable in the past decades because the listed cost drivers were the biggest contributors to manufacturing costs of products. However, in modern times manufacturing overheads have been driven by numerous factors hence the traditional costing system may be misleading in making effective management decisions (Cokins, 1998). Traditional costing systems apply indirect costs to the products by considering a predetermined overhead rate. The process of traditional costing begins with the identification and selection of the indirect costs and estimation of the expenses for the suitable period. The expense period can be monthly, quarterly, or yearly. The cost drivers that relate to the selected costs are then chosen. Similar to the expenses, the amount of the cost driver is evaluated for the suitable period. The estimated cost drivers and estimated expenses are then used to calculate an overhead rate that is then applied to the products using the figured rate. The conventional

Strategic Management Process CS 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Strategic Management Process CS 1 - Essay Example But there is a need to emphasize more on employee satisfaction in the statements. In a competitive industry like beverage industry employee is the most important part for a company along with the customers. So the company should add the benefits they are providing to the employees in the value statement. Despite that the mission, vision and value statements of the company is well structured and forward looking. Introduction In this modern world only one thing is constant- that is change. So in the world of change for matching the steps with the competitors the companies have to formulate a robust strategy for them. Every company have some short and long term objectives which they want to meet. Coca-Cola is not an exception. This paper is an attempt to analyze critically the mission, vision statements and the values of Coca-Cola using the view of the famous strategist Michael Porter. The researcher would also suggest any change needed in the statements if needed. Critical Analysis of the Mission, Vision and Values Mission Mission statement of a company describes the reason of the existence of the organizations. It also describes the value they are offering to the customers (Swales and Rogers, 1995, p.225-226). The mission statement of Coca-Cola is â€Å"To refresh the world... To inspire moments of optimism and happiness... To create value and make a difference.† (Coca-Cola Company, 2011) The mission statement of Coca-Cola is describing the reason of their existence through their first two statements and about the value creation through the 3rd statement. The statement accounts for the customers’ interest. The expectation of the shareholders’ is also met. If the company is able to meet the expectations of the customers, it can generate revenue, and the return of the shareholders will get a boost. But through this statement the interest of the other stakeholders’ like the employee expectations is not met, not also the community. Vision The vision statement of the company should focus on the future and provide a solid foundation for the organization. The vision statement doesn’t change like the objective or goal of the company, which is of short term. The vision describes the long term strategy of the company as well as the stakeholders’ importance more precisely (Lipton, 1996, p.84-86). The vision statement of Coca-Cola is as follows. â€Å"People: Be a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be. Portfolio: Bring to the world a portfolio of quality beverage brands that anticipate and satisfy people's desires and needs. Partners: Nurture a winning network of customers and suppliers, together we create mutual, enduring value. Planet: Be a responsible citizen that makes a difference by helping build and support sustainable communities. Profit: Maximize long-term return to shareowners while being mindful of our overall responsibilities. Productivity: Be a highly effective, lean and fast-moving organization.† (Coca-Cola Company, 2011) The vision statement of Coca-Cola emphasizes on the interest of the stakeholders. Their long term strategy is enhancing their portfolio so that they can meet the expectations of different target customers. The corporate social responsibility factor has also been addressed by the company management

U.S History Post Civil War to Present Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

U.S History Post Civil War to Present - Essay Example Westward migration in America began when the first English colonists came to America seeking land for settlement and freedom of religion and social life. In Maryland and Virginia colonists began the process of migration when they moved to the interior of America in search for new land for tobacco cultivation. Although New England colonies also moved west in search for agricultural land, they also wanted to escape the strict religion of the Orthodox Church that was led by puritans. In Pennsylvania and New York migration and settlement patterns were different. Migration from southern parts of America to the west was due to long and violent Indian wars that ended in 1718. Keywords: Populous, Rich, West, East Coast, Agriculture, Mining, Railroad, World Wars, Pioneers, Frontiers, Colonists, Orthodox, Puritans, Religion Introduction The move by people in the United States from cities on the East Coast to the west was motivated by a number of factors. These factors include agriculture, mini ng, railroad, the World Wars and religion. The construction of railroads, discovery of gold in the southwest, agriculture and facilitation of transport for goods from the industrial centers to markets in the west through the railroad were the main factors that led to movement of people from the east coast to the west. By the end of the nineteenth century, Los Angeles and San Francisco located in the west began to grow as cities. However, almost half of the population lived on farms. The move by pioneers to the west was in three great waves. The first pioneers crossed the Appalachian Mountains and settled in the river valleys of Mississippi and Ohio between the 1770s and early 1880s. The second wave took place from the 1840s to the 1860s when pioneers moved from the East Coast to the West Coast settling in Oregon and California. The last movement to the west was in the 1860s when pioneers settled in the Great Plains. These movements ended in 1890 when the government of the United Sta tes decided that there were no more frontiers to be settled. Agriculture In early 1618, the head right system gave fifty acres of land to new immigrants in Maryland and Virginia provided that they cultivated tobacco. Sponsors who paid for passage of emigrants also got a share of the land; emigrants were required to help in cultivation and management of the vast tobacco farms. With time wealthy planters got to own the largest portions of the land forcing smaller farmers to move west in pursuit of land. In 1790, the United States had a population of approximately four million people. Farmers made up the largest population of the labor force. By 1850, the population had grown to over twenty three million people; farmers who had previously made up the largest population of the labor force had decreased. Original colonies had pushed away agriculture to the west and on the Great Plains. There was ample land in the west for agriculture and rearing of livestock. The quick growth of the farm equipment industry brought more land under cultivation fueling the demand for farming in the west. In the late 1870s and 1880s there was a huge demand for beef, all Native American reservations created a boom in the cattle industry. More ranchers focused on the prairies in the west where they grazed their cattle, cowboys who were mostly blacks were

Substance Misuse Prevention: Needle Exchange

Substance Misuse Prevention: Needle Exchange PDG A single type of prevention or intervention strategy with regards to substance misuse. The needle exchange The UK currently has an ambiguous and sometimes conflicting set of policies with regards to some issues surrounding drug use. In the words of Rice, the UK has: an uneasy consensus of conflicting forces, opinions and positions that have shaped the whole legislative framework and surrounding issues that govern the way that we, as a society, deal not only with controlled drugs, but the problems that they cause directly and that are associated with their use. (Rice et al 1991) If one considers the various ways in which this â€Å"consensus† has evolved over the last few decades, one could suggest that there is a clear dichotomy between those who feel that the way forward is through dual mechanisms of enforcement and prohibition (sometimes referred to as the illegalisation movement), and those who believe that systems employing legislation, harm reduction, empowerment and education comprise the rational way forward. Both parties appear to believe that their mechanism is the only way to protect society. (Holmberg SD 2006) Holmberg’s view is further strengthened with an examination of recent events. The illegalisation movement has been demonstrated to be largely ineffective in countries where it has been employed on a large scale (viz. USA) (NSDU 2004). The harm reduction movement, considered by some to have a defeatist doctrine, accepts that drug use will still occur despite the imposition of the most draconian measures and therefore aims to reduce the potential levels of damage associated with drug use. (Reinaman Levine 2004) To summarise the thrust of Fordham’s work, it is often the case that when there is multi-agency involvement in decision making and government by committee, we arrive at a collective consensus of varying opinions that get amalgamated into some form of legislative framework that allows both the opposing factions to equally claim both victory and also to point to deficiencies in the scheme where they can manage to abdicate responsibility when it does not work effectively. (Fordham, F et al. 2007) If one considers the specific concept of the needle exchange, then this can be assessed on a variety of levels of differing complexity. At the most simplistic level, it is a mechanism of harm reduction. Bulmenthal documents the fact that IV drug abusers can go to extraordinary lengths to continue their habit if their equipment is confiscated thereby exposing themselves to illness transmission risks by sharing needles. (Bluthenthal R N et al. 2005). The Des Jarlais paper putting forward the premise that if they are going to persist in injecting then it should be in the safest manner possible. (Des Jarlais et al 1995) On a more complex level there are some that suggest that providing a needle exchange increases IV drug use. Such views are not based on available evidence. The Aggleton paper demonstrating clearly that syringe exchange centres, with access to clean and sterile equipment, neither increases the incidence of drug use, nor does it increase the frequency of injection of confirmed users (such factors are demonstrably far more dependent on the local availability of the drugs (CDCP 2002)) . More importantly, neither do they increase the number of new converts to drug injection (UNAIDS 2003) (Aggleton. P 2000) Arguably a more important consideration of a needle exchange is the potential benefit for improvement in the general health of the user (and some would argue in the Public Health). The Gostin study shows that use of a needle exchange implies contact between user and healthcare services who have the ability to place the user in contact with those services best suited to reduce high risk activities. (Gostin et al . 1997). This is also relevant in consideration of the fact that the majority of drug abusers have at least one associated pathology (viz. mental illness, physical illness or other social pathologies). Because they will typically be a highly mobile and itinerant population, these individuals are easily lost to any type of organised healthcare follow up or intervention. The needle exchange can act as an opportunity to intervene to try to assist the user deal with their problems. The simple provision of needles represents a lost opportunity in this respect. There are two other important elements relating to the needle exchange. By protecting an addict form HIV/AIDS one is also protecting their sexual partners from exposure. The second (often cited) element is one of cost. Needle exchanges are comparatively cheap to run and this must be compared to the social and financial costs of not running them. Aggleton concluded that each syringe exchanged cost 18p. This equates to  £13 per case of HIV/AIDS prevented. Compared to a lifetime of healthcare costs for a single HIV/AIDS case, the savings to society are incalculable. (Aggleton P 2000) References Aggleton. P. (2000) UNAIDS, Report on the Global HIV/AIDS epidemic, June 2000; quoted in Success in HIV Prevention,. UNAIDS Best Practice Collection. Geneva, UNAIDS. 2000 Bluthenthal RN, Kral AH, Erringer EA, et al. 2005, Drug paraphernalia laws and injection-related infectious disease risk among drug injectors.  Journal of Drug Issues. 2005 Vol.6 CDCP (2002) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: HIV/AIDS Surveillance report 2002 : 14 Des Jarlais DC, Hagan H, Friedman SR, et al. (1995) Maintaining low HIV seroprevalence in populations of injecting drug users. Journal of the American Medical Association. 1995; 274 : 1226 1231. Fordham, F Jones L , Sumnall, H McVeigh J Bellis M (2007) The economics of preventing drug use An introduction to the issues National collaborating centre for drug Prevention for the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence HMSO: London 2007 Gostin L O, Lazzarini Z, Jones T S, et al. (1997) Prevention of HIV/AIDS and other blood-borne diseases among injection drug users: a national survey on the regulation of syringes and needles. Journal of the American Medical Association. 1997; 277 : 53 62. Holmberg SD. (2006) The estimated prevalence and incidence of HIV in 96 large US metropolitan areas. American Journal of Public Health. 2006; 86: 642 654. NSDU (2004) National Survey on Drug Use and Health: 2003 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration. HMSO: Sept 2004: Reinarman, C., Levine H G. (2004) Crack in the Rearview Mirror: Deconstructing Drug War Mythology. Social Justice 31 (2): 182 199 Rice D P, Kelman S, Miller L S. (1991) Estimates of economic costs of alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness, 1985 and 1988. Public Health Reports. 1991; 106: 280 92. UNAIDS (2003) Fact sheet High-income countries’. WHO Publication 2003 Internet shopping: Impact on consumer behaviour Internet shopping: Impact on consumer behaviour Electronic commerce is becoming increasingly important to both corporations and individuals as a result of the dramatic development of technology and the emergency of a global economy. The expansion of the usage of the Internet by organisations and people is one of the main contributors to the development of e-commerce in terms of e-shopping, electronic business and internet commerce. Studies have shown that by the middle of the 1990s internet based services had rapidly emerged in usage and coverage leading to their application and deployment in the creation of a new method of shopping, (Wiggins, 1995). Thus online marketing has become vital to new e-commerce and traditional offline companies in order to take advantage of these new technologies. However the essential ingredient of marketing and business generally is the satisfaction of customers needs hence a full understanding of consumer behaviour in terms of internet shopping is a critical success factor for any company making use of it as a form of doing business. Consumer behaviour is complex and can be described as a dynamic interaction between affect and cognition, behaviour, and environmental events, (Blythe, 1997). Due to the new characteristics of the global economy it has been contended that customers value immediate responses to their demands in terms of goods and information. A demand which technology based e-commerce is arguably able to meet. Therefore it is useful to explore the main determining factors on customers choice of e-retail site. Additionally research has revealed that consumer acceptance of e-shopping in the UK is much higher than in many other European countries (Forrester Research, 2000). Literature also suggests as do previous studies that young educated people constitute a principal demographic engaging in online shopping. This research focuses on university students following other studies in arguing that they represent the principal demographic of online shoppers but also includes a sample representing other demogr aphics in order to comparatively analyse behavioural patterns for shopping online between different groups. Due to the nature of internet there are critically problems related to shopping online the major ones suggested as being security and privacy problems. These originate and are due not only to the deficiencies inherent within Internet and e-commerce security but also as a result of customer distrust of such measures as a result of perceived inadequacies with procedures, (Panko, 2001). Yet even with these problems online shopping has grown exponentially therefore an interesting interaction must be occurring between consumer behaviour and these factors, an interaction this research proposes to examine and analyse. Research suggests that online sellers have made successful efforts to increase customers confidence and usage of shopping online through the improvement of security performance and privacy protection. Companies like eBay and Amazon.com illustrate successful examples of e-shopping which are argued benefit from a successful brand building strategy increasing customer loyalty. As a result it is suggested that online shopping has become and will continue to become a full and effective business model, (Black, 2005). However this depends to a large extent on the development of technology as well as effective marketing. This research then aims to examine consumer perceptions of business innovations and the nature of business innovations in terms of technology and marketing to altering these perceptions and behaviour resulting out of these perceptions. This project makes use of both qualitative and quantitative methods aiming at triangulating the research factors involved to provide useful data for analysis of relevance to the objectives listed above, (Gummeson, 2000). The research is divided into four phases. The first element is a literature review and analysis of secondary data forms dealing with both theory as it applies to online shopping, various business practices in terms of the environmental conditions of online shopping and general theories dealing with consumer behaviour, (Ghauri, 2005). The aim of this section in furtherance to reviewing literature in the area is to establish patterns of congruence within theoretical literature not directly concerned with online shopping. An initial questionnaire will be conducted with a sample of 300, 250 of whom will be randomly selected from a university campus and 50 from local city centre. The questionnaire is aimed at gathering descriptive data of use in modelling behavioural patterns while shopping online. An initial control question identifying those persons who have bought goods online will help identify a representative sample of consumers who are of relevance to the objectives of the research. The data from this will be analysed for recurring themes, issues of differences and similarities in behavioural patterns between students and other demographic groups and some common behavioural indicators for shopping online which in turn form the base of the investigation to be carried out in the ensuing qualitative research. In terms of qualitative data collection three focus groups will be held, each with 8 participants. The first two focus groups will be sampled from the 250 university student participants in the questionnaire who expressed willingness towards further participation in research. The third focus group will be drawn from the 50 non-student demographic and if necessary the sample will be supplemented through advertisements in local media and outlets. From the 24 participants in the focus group it is hoped that six participants two from each focus group will accept an invitation to participate in an interview to explore in more detail the issues arising from the questionnaire and the issues raised in the focus group sessions. It is obvious that the research may take up a certain amount of participants time and thus a flexible schedule for the interviews as well as inducements in the form of online shopping vouchers will be used to assist in increasing the response rate to these parts of the research. The primary focus of the semi-structured interviews is to follow up on specific themes highlighted in the previous forms of research and also allow time for the respondents to discuss freely and offer their insights into the relevant issues raised by the research so far, (Silverman, 2004). To conclude it is expected that this combination of research methods will yield fruitful and insightful data relevant to the objectives of the research. In particular the triangulation achieved through the supplementing of descriptive quantitative data with exploratory qualitative data will it is hoped illuminate specific interactions between theories from the literature and practice in day-to-day patterns of behaviour for online consumers and further explain specific and general elements particular to UK consumers.

College Essay examples -- essays research papers

The Importance of a College Education Johnny is a fifth grade student who is almost ready to graduate and move on to the sixth grade. Johnny however, can not multiply or divide. He cannot spell or read. Johnny fell behind in the third grade. His teacher overlooked his failure and promoted him so that he would not be held up socially. Johnny's fourth grade teacher promoted him to fifth grade hoping that he would catch up with his classmates. Johnny is now about to enter the sixth grade with the educational skills of a second grader. The situation described above is called social promotion. It is the process of moving children through grades regardless of learning or skill. For years it has been the common practice in education to move " students from grade to grade because of chronological age" (Mitzel 468). Students should have an adequate education in order to be equipped for the twenty- first and twenty-second century. The injustice of social promotion should be ended and society must discover the best route to achieve genuine student success. "Students who are socially promoted have no skills for life. The number of social promotions each year nears two million" (American Federation Teachers, afta.com). Social Promotion shows children that no matter what grade they achieve they will be promoted. This creates two problems. Students will not work to achieve; laziness is created in children. Second, the students who work hard and learn the material are often overlooked so that a teacher may help a student who is behind because of social promotion. Social promotion was brought to the attention of the country when President Clinton gave his State of the Union Address in 1999. In this address he stated many educational goals such as a mandatory third grade reading goal and the reformation of the school system in order to equip it for the twenty -first centuries. Along these same lines the President has called an end to social promotion. President Clinton proposed not just to hold back failing students but to do something about their failure. Such as remedial classrooms, identifying weakness before it is too late, strengthening learning opportunities and placing strong well-trained teachers in classrooms (Galston 35). If a student was asked in the nineteenth cen... ...ided to go back and get a degree. My mother has my utmost respect for her dedication for higher education. Even after all these years she could’ve just relaxed and enjoyed the fruits of her labor, instead she chose to attend college again. After weighing all of my options and seeing all the signs I knew it was time to get back in the game. I mean, today's society's level of norm based on an individuals qualifications has three fold in the past 30 years, whereas more than 55% more high school seniors attend college than in 1968. (http//:bostonu.edu) Once where an individual could be successful and needed no college education, now needs to attend some form of continuing education institution. As a result, I am now attending the University of Phoenix. I now attend to college to please myself, achieve a goal and to create better opportunities for me and my future generation. It took a while for me to fully understand and appreciate what a college education was for and could do, starting with Johnny in the 3rd grade to the advantages it held for me. I admonish everyone, young or old to pursue their degree if they have not already done so. It is never too late...for education.