CONTRASY BETWEEN LEONARDO DA VINCI ARISTOTLE Essay Example

CONTRASY BETWEEN LEONARDO DA VINCI ARISTOTLE Essay I believe that Aristotle and Leonardo da Vinci led similar lives. They both sought for knowledge and studied similar topics. I think that both were renaissance men, as it would be described in Leonardos day. This refers to the fact that both men studied a variety of subjects. I believe both men were ahead of their time, and I think both men made differences in our time. Both mean were very similar, but came from two different time periods. In my attempt to summarize these to fascinating lives, I hope you can depict some links both professionally and personally between them. Aristotle was born in 384 BC in Stagira, the modern Starro on the northern cost of Aegean. (work cited book 1, pg.13)The new generation wanted to forget the past and strive for a better future. His father Nicomchus, was a doctor. Aristotle learned earlyfirst aid techniques. This training could have contributed to Aristotles special interest in biology. When Aristotle was ten his father died. His guardian then be came Proxenus, his uncle. (w.c.b. 1, pg.14) In 367, when Aristotle was 17, Proxenus sent him to the Academy of Plato in Athens to study. (w.c.b. 2, pg. 1819) Plato became almost a father figure to Aristotle. Plato was an aristocrat with literary, political, and intellectual learning. Socartes influenced him. When Aristotle arrived at the Academy he was not the best looking man. He was bald, with small eyes and skinny legs. (w.c.b. 2, pg. 1) he made up for his looks with good dress. He wore a cloak, sandals, and rings on his fingers. The Academy was a training group for political politics. (w.c.b. 1, pg. 16) Aristotle was a brilliant student. At the Academy Plato nicknamed him The Brain and The Reader. (w.c.b.1, pg.20) Aristotle once during his time at the Academy, won recognition for one of Platos smartest students. Aristotle began to shift his ideas away from Platos. He became more interes

Monitoring and Evaluations in Development

Monitoring and Evaluations in Development When management of certain programs establishes them, they need to make a follow up that ensures that there is compliance with the set standards and expectations of the project (Vaagaasar, 2009). Project management involves the process through which a project is established, implemented, monitored, evaluated, and any adjustments made to the system to attain its set goals and objectives (Livingston, 2008).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Monitoring and Evaluations in Development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Oxfam being an international federation of fifteen organizations working in 98 countries need to have a strong monitoring and evaluation team to handle its large volume of work and projects. Currently Oxfam has entered into a contact with Dak Nong Doet that seeks to improve the province’s education quality delivery, the project focuses on teachers, pupils, ministry of education and training, and teacher s. To ensure that the goals of the project have been attained, Oxfam needs to have an effective monitoring and evaluation program. This paper discusses the role that monitoring and evaluation plays in an organization and gives recommendations on the best approach that the organization can adopted for effective monitoring of Dak Nong Doet education project. The nature of Oxfam projects Oxfam is an international recognized NGO that establishes various programs targeting different needs within the society especially in rural development areas, poverty reduction programs, hungers and other such programs that needs fast and effective attention. There are different projects that the international organization manages and their nature and approach always vary with the intended outcome. Projects may take the form of civil society developments, ethnic minority issues address, and focus on girl and boy child, addiction programs, and women empowerments. One of the most renown program that Oxfa m has undertaken successfully is the education system where it aims at improving education for the less fortunate in communities; the main focus of these programs are the disadvantaged areas like third world countries, disaster stricken areas among other areas that need arises (Long and Plosser, 1983). In the past few years, the main focus that the company has had is to improve education in Tra, Vinh, Lao Cai and Dak Nong provinces where the main focus has been girl child programs; when dealing with the projects, the company has its main focus on the school, the child and the ministry as they are players in the segment for an effective implementation.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the same years, the organization has been advocating for the expansion of its programs or models through Ministry of Education and Training (Posond, 2008). The next coming years, th e organization is focusing on building effective governance in education in Vietnam where it will have the main focus on the teachers, school managers, pupils, and education representatives in all level of education (Marcus, 2010). Oxfam has signed a performance contract with Dak Nong Doet where it aims at promoting social accountability in the provinces education sector; with the project that has its own objectives, the organization need to have an effective Monitoring and Evaluation in Development programs. The Monitoring and Evaluation in Development needs to address all areas of the program failure to which it will mean that the projects will not take shape and objectives will not be attained (Walkenbach, 1997). Monitoring and Evaluation in Development Project management evaluation stage has the following roles to play in the entire project management: A project can be defined as a designated ally of tasks that aims at accomplishing a certain task within an organization; it has a period, expected expenditure, expected outcome, and a work framework or schedule; in every stage of the project, there are certain measures that needs to be considered to ensure that the project is running smoothly. Oxfam project evaluation should address all risky areas and ensure that correct measures have been taken to adhere to the set objectives and goals (Newbold,1998). In a nutshell Monitoring and Evaluation in Development has the following main objectives to attain alongside the projects main objectives:Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Monitoring and Evaluations in Development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More to plan, organize and control activities: this is to ensure that the set level of operation is maintained in time, costs, and the expected delivery time Manage activities and organize resources (both human and physical) for the project. This ensures that the human capital that is involved in the pro jects fits their roles and they do not get higher or lower gains from the projects. The nature of Oxfam projects is that a person can get direct benefit from the project at the expense of the larger population; such moves should be controlled by Monitoring and Evaluation programs (Pons, 2008) putting all the logistics of a project into place so that there will be full attainment of project goals and objectives: the engagement that Oxfam has entered with Dak Nong Doet should be looked into to ensure that both parties to the program adhere to what they had promised each other; when such moves have been taken then the goals of the project will be attained effectively Ensuring that the project is accomplished in time with the available resources and if possible have some new strategies of completion of tasks that is better than the original plan. Dak Nong Doet and Oxfam project has some probable risks that the organization’s monitoring and evaluation programs should address befo re they limit the attainment of the entire project. The adoption and deployment of the Oxfam-Dak Nong Doet education system involves great risks, primarily due to the vast initial costs, high over-budget ratio, chances low success rate, failure to meet the project goals, and partial attainment of the initially set implementation. Furthermore, initiation costs are typically greater than a tailored integration plan but maintenance and modification costs of post-implementation are lower; Dak Nong Doet and Oxfam decided to have an approach that not only sees Dak Nong Doet students attain good education but one that ensures continuity and maintenance of the project. McComb, Kennedy, Green and Compton (2008) creates an evaluation framework regarding the main issues encountered in the rural development programs and the related costs and benefits; the study has emphasized the requirements of a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of; the writer also suggest that evaluation and monitoring should try to assess attempts of incorporating intangibles into conventional cost-benefit analysis. It is proposed that decision making should be based on scoring methods, cost/benefit analysis, risk analysis and ranking. However, some scholars argue that scoring and ranking techniques are straightforward but insufficient due to the project interdependence. Cost/benefit and risk analysis methods are insufficient either for the interrelated criteria (McComb, Kennedy, Green and Compton, 2008). The concept of Monitoring and Evaluation as should be adopted by Oxfam and Dak Nong Doet project The main aim that the monitoring and evaluation of the program focus on is the development of leaders and managers who can be relied upon to see the entire project come to pass effectively; the leaders should assume the role of planning and making responsive decisions that will see the program come to pass effectively, at any one point the programs should ensure that the programs reach majority of p opulation living in poverty and to sustain the change over a period of time. The Oxfam and Dak Nong Doet project monitoring and evaluation programs should consider the authenticity of policies, strategies and programs for both quantitative and qualitative change; this will facilitate the existence of equal resources distribution and ensuring that the target group get the benefits as had been anticipated.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The programs should embrace high levels of transparency, accountability and high performance as it can only be through such policies that it can succeed and the people targeted by various projects benefit. With an effective monitoring and evaluation standards, the organization will be assured that its funds address issues in the society and they remain sustainable as the company would have wanted them to be. Data collection methods for the evaluation When a project is running, there are checks and balances that should be implemented to offer red flags in the case the set objectives and pathways as has been laid are not adhered to. Project managers have the mandate of ensuring that there are effective internal controls that address any chances of risk; to collect data on the progress and the steps to make the following are effective method of monitoring and evaluation data collection; Use efficient test-run reports Before implementation and after implementation of a project, a Oxfam should be taking an appropriate research on what the world is going through and make relevant reports that can aid in the management of the project; it should be in touch with the occurrences in the project area and other areas of the economy. It is important to consider the following key report types: Single-page project report: this is a short report that offers a single but direct grasp of the project. It should be summarized to offer an overview of what the project if like and how it is expected to be; when there is an observable disparity between what is on paper and what can be observed on the ground Budgetary information: it provides room for an aggregate roll-up on budgetary status; the main issue is to ensure there are resources for every project Project dashboard: they have one-lie simplified reports on execution level and the progress of the project. Resource allocation view: a comparison of the current available resources and their chances of availability in the next 12 months Strategic alignment: reports that align the entire project with the role and goals of an organization. Flexible pivot table capabilities: it uses drag-and-drop pivot table-style analysis to offer management platform of answering certain questions pertaining the project as they arise. Conduct postmortems To manage effectively projects, managers need to have an ongoing budgetary and analyzing method; they should never assume that since the project has been well planned; then that is the end of the story, they should understand that there are changes that might affect the project negatively thus they need to be checked effectively. A constant review of the budget, periods and the final periodical results will assist project managers keep the project on its toes. There are some changes that are expected to be observed in a project as it develop, they include an improvement on the lives of the children and the general school environment. To have the data, the monitoring and eval uation team should undertake regular surveys on the area of implementation the surveys should look into the expected result after certain duration and compare the same with the on paper or the project blue print expectation, in the case there is some disparity they should be addressed effectively (Kumar, 2005). Recommendation for an effective Monitoring and Evaluation program for Oxfam and Dak Nong Doet project Oxfam and Dak Nong Doet project should adopt computer aiding monitoring and evaluation systems supported by qualitative and quantitative data from the field; the systems can be in-house developed or they can be sourced from commercial markets, in whichever the way that they have been attained, and then the system should be responsive to the needs of the projects. They need to have the capacity of interpolating of different issues and information then give the desired response to the managers for effective decision-making. The operators of computer aided project developments s hould have a good understanding of how the system works as well as understand the various logistics that are involved in the project at hand, it is by doing so that appropriate mechanism can be adopted (Shane, 2003). An effective computer aiding monitoring and evaluation is likely to address the following areas: Project evaluation process or methodology: give a framework of the pathway that the project should follow Cost and benefits measurement: evaluate the benefits and gains that every stage in the project is leading to a dif there is a stage that is not fully operation, the system should be strong enough to alert the managers (Wenzhe, Maoshan, Duffield, Young and Youmei, 2007). Progress reporting: the system should be able to check and report the progress of the system periodically and offer reports that can be used to improve the project, to be in a position to do this, the system should incorporate some checks and balances and have optimal performances levels. Communication o f key project data: in management of a project, data and information is of essence, there is need to have timely and relevant data at all times. This will offer the much-needed resource to manage the project effectively: an effective system should have the ability to offer the required data when needed and portray the data in an acceptable manner. Resource and capacity planning: resources are limited, they need to be effectively managed and put in optimal use, an effective system should have the capability of offering a resource allocation tracking system Cost and benefits tracking: as the project unfolds, there is an urgent need to have all the areas on track, the system should ensure that it looks into the development of a project and make improvements changes where needed (Gary, 2010) Computer aiding monitoring and evaluation assess the project as a whole and assist managers to have a better track of the project progress, they are of great benefit to management and they need to be of the right operation, failure to which a project will suffer. The main objective of an effective computer aiding monitoring and evaluation program is to put available resources into optimal use; resources are scarce so their management and utility is paramount in modern societies (Cleland and Ireland, 2006). Managers should understand that their main role id linking the laid down strategy with actual performance, they should understand that they should be the pioneers of development and operation in the firm (Wheelen and Hunger, 1998). When they fail to undertake effectively their duty, they should be assured they are leading their organization to failure. The first thing that program managers should embark on is internal analyzing of its potential, and ways that the potential can be put in proper use. With limited resources and having a variety of mutually exclusive projects to undertake, the managers should ensure they select that project that offers maximum returns to the ta rget population and cost the organizations involved relatively manageable costs (Andersen and Vaagaasar, 2009) To create synergy and keep a project running, program managers needs to develop management elements and factors that can be used to motivate the team players to work hand; they should be encouraged through being shown the success they have made so as they can feel motivated to develop the project further. A project is bound to be faced with a number of risks; there is need for management to establish the risks that are to be associated with the project and develop adequate mitigation measures. When managing a project, there is needed to have an honest management and team, this will facilitate the development of appropriate decisions making systems to the benefit of the company (Wynant, 1980). Communication is important monitoring and evaluation as well as in initialization, concluding and making final reports of project; computer aiding monitoring and evaluation keeps proje ct managers on track and reminds them on their role to communicate the progress of the project for evaluation purposes. There is need to develop and maintain effective communication method. Managers should be able to offer directions and receive feedbacks from the ground using an appropriate communication method (Anderson, 2010). Depending with the technology adopted and the nature of a project, communication can take different forms: they include online reports, word of mouth, and periodical letters. Project success can be measured in terms of the practicability of business relationships that is directly proportional to the quality of communication (Anbari, 2010). Conclusion Oxfam-Dak Nong Doet project aims to improving the provinces education system; the focus of the project is to school administrators, pupils, parents, ministry of education and training, and teachers. The project has its main risk such as chances of not attaining its set goals and objective if risks associated ar e not effectively managed. Monitoring and evaluation program address risks within a project and ensures that every stage adheres to the pathway as planned and outcomes are attained as required. For an effective monitoring and evaluation, Oxfam should adopt a computer aiding monitoring and evaluation program that assist to keep track the progress of the project; when such a program has been adopted then the project will be successful. References Anbari, F., 2010. The Chunnel Project. Washington: The George Washington University Anderson, B. , 2010. Project Leadership and The Art Of Managing Relationship. Project management, 64(3), p. 58. Andersen, E. S., and Vaagaasar, A., 2009. Project management improvement efforts-creating project management value by uniqueness or mainstream thinking? Project Management Journal, 40(1), pp. 19-27. Cleland, D., and Ireland, R., 2006. Project management: strategic design and implementation. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional. Gary, L., 2010. Project management theory and practice .Baca Raton: Auerbach publishers. Kumar, P., 2005. Effective Use of Gantt chart for Managing Large Scale Projects Cost Engineering, 47(7), pp. 14-21. Livingston, J., 2008. Founders at work: stories of startups early days. Berkeley: Apress Long, J., Plosser, C. I.,1983. Real Business Cycles. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Marcus, G., 2010. Fundamental of agile project management: an overview. New York: Asme press. McComb, S., Kennedy, D., Green, S., and Compton, W., 2008. Project team effectiveness: the case for sufficient setup and top management involvement. Production Planning Control, 19(4), pp. 301-311. Newbold, R. C., 1998. Project Management in the Fast Lane; Applying the Theory of Constraints. New York: St. Lucie Publishers. Pons, D., 2008. Project management for new product development. Project Management Journal, 39(2), 82-97. Posond, D., 2008. Project management for new product development. Project Management Journal, 39(2), 82-97. S hane, S., 2003. A General Theory of Entrepreneurship: the Individual-Opportunity. Northampton: Edward Elgar Publishing. Vaagaasar, A., 2009. Project management improvement efforts-creating project management value by uniqueness or mainstream thinking? Project Management Journal, 40(1), PP. 19-27. Walkenbach, J., 1997. Gantt charts in Excel. PC World, 15(12), p. 386. Wenzhe, T., Maoshan, Q., Duffield, C., Young, D., and Youmei, L., 2007. Risk Management in the Chinese Construction Industry. Journal of Construction Engineering Management, 133(12), pp.944-956. Wheelen, L., and Hunger, J.,1998. Strategic Management and Business Policy: Entering 21st Century Global Society. Massachusetts: Addison Wesley. Wynant, L., 1980. Essential elements of project financing. Harvard Business Review, 58(3), pp.165-173. Monitoring and Evaluations in Development For projects to be successful they need to be monitored and evaluated efficiently and effectively. Several techniques are applied during the whole process of project monitoring and evaluations development. The most common is the most significant change technique (MSC). The MSC technique â€Å"is a form of participatory monitoring and evaluation† (Davies Dart 2005, p.8).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Monitoring and Evaluations in Development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is preferred as participatory because it involves different stakeholders who are involved in making decisive changes being recorded as well as analyzing the collected data (Ramalingam 2006, p.17; Dart Davies 2003, 157). It qualifies as a monitoring technique because it is applied along the program cycle through the provision of valuable management information. On the other hand, it is considered as an evaluating technique because it ab le to provide required â€Å"data on impact and the outcomes† (Davies Dart 2005, p.8; Serrat 2009, p.1) that is important in assessing a program performance. The MSC technique revolves around the gathering of vital changes that occur from the field and the significant stories (Mcdonald, Bammer Deane 2009, p.57) are selected by the field staff. Upon the capture of the stories, the stakeholders sit down, loudly read the stories and engage in in-depth discussions. The MSC was developed by Rick Davies in 1996 (Coy n.d, p.3; Lunch, 2007, p.28) as way of monitoring and evaluating participatory â€Å"rural development programme in Bangladesh† (Willetts Crawford 2007, p.367; Le Cornu, Peters, Foster 2003, p.3). It was seen as the alternative for the complex monitoring and evaluation techniques. Lastly, when the techniques have been successfully implemented the teams focus on the impact the program would have. The essay explores the challenges that face successful applicatio n of the most significant change technique. Like any other technique, the most significant change technique is faced by numerous challenges. One of the challenges that face successful application of the MSC is the ability to make the staff in a project to adequately and fully understand the MSC (Davies Dart 2005, p.55).Advertising Looking for essay on project management? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Although it seems like a simple technique, most of the people find it challenging as it uses a different approach of monitoring and evaluating a project. This is because it is carried across multi-lingual and cross-cultural contexts with the aim of collecting the most successful stories. In these contexts, it may be difficult to implement the MSC because of the communication barrier created. Because of its inclusivity procedure, the Most Significant Change technique does not discriminate people across ethic or language divide. The communication barrier created by this inclusivity and context makes it hard to decide on the basic indicators and domains to use. Other than communication, training the project staffs to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge could be very difficult (Davies Dart 2005, p.55). Training the participants to fully understand the participatory monitoring and evaluation, the trainers are faced with the challenge of deciding what skills to prescribe (Estrella 2000, p.218). This is because the different people used in capacity building are of different levels. For instance, there are those who already have the required skills and need to improve while others are new in the capacity building program and need to acquire the basic skills (Coninck 2008, 144). The choice becomes very difficult because the stakeholders should be at the same level skill wise for the MSC to be successful. The different levels of capacity mean that differing perspectives and capacities are brought on to the table. The implication of this is that at the community level, the stakeholders could be hindered by the powerbase. The stakeholders with much strength could use their influence to control the resources meant for all people. Participatory monitoring and evaluation would be compromised because only few people’s stories would be recorded. Another challenge faced during MSC application is capacity building. Capacity building entails the identification of the participants to be involved in a participatory project monitoring and evaluation. Capacity building consists of different participants who have different level of understanding, skills, and education. Therefore, it becomes challenging to fully accommodate all the people and train them on the same domain without conflict of interest. The need to build the capacities of the participants collectively (Estrella et al. 2000, p.218) could be very challenging making it difficult to successfully apply the participatory monito ring and application. Like development research, MSC requires the proper outlining of the motives (Akker n.d, p.1).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Monitoring and Evaluations in Development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Dominant shareholders may have negative influence on the implementation of a successful MSC. This is because their willingness to share their resources and power may be compromised. They may not be willing to share their resources and capacities with the other participants or shareholders which compromises the whole project monitoring and evaluation process. For examples, donors may only require the local people to participate at the initiation phases which make the locals participation somehow superficial (Estrella 2008, p.221). This may jeopardize the success of the MSC as more time would be required to negotiate the participants and reach a common operative ground. The fact that capacity buildi ng entails different participants as it is based on the wider range of people inclusion principle means that the participants and stakeholders involved share different expectations (Estrella 2008, p.219; Mikkelsen 2007, p.281). This translates that their access needs are totally different which makes it difficult to decide on which stakeholders to start up with. It also brings the challenge of choosing what concepts and skills to use and deciding the initiation point for the MSC implementation. However, it is argued that capacity building should be started with stakeholders who have been occasionally excluded from participatory monitoring and evaluation. This ensures that the needed skills and confidence are build. This may be difficult in choosing the people because as noted the people are from different cultural and lingual backgrounds making communication a barrier. The wider range of the people included in a capacity building means that the people have different visions. This ca n make it difficult in negotiating the shareholders to accommodate the prescribed vision. It may take a lot of time in deciding the most appropriate and accommodative ground. This would jeopardize the allocated timeframe making the whole process delayed thus increasing the possibilities of coming with a successful MSC.Advertising Looking for essay on project management? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More PME involve a lot of stakeholders participating (Mikkelsen 2007, p.283), however the challenge that faces the facilitator is to choose which shareholder to participate at what level because they all cannot participate at the same level. This may cause delay in choosing and allocating the different levels thus compromising the PME success. The inadequate availability and access to resources has been reported as major constraints in abilities building among the stakeholders involved in a PME (Estrella 2000, p.227). Based on this context, the resources do not necessarily mean funds but the material resources, information, and human capital. The inability to have trained and skilled project facilitators, sufficient materials, and adequate information on the locals and the Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation makes individual capacity and institution building in the MSE compromised. The costs incurred in the training and purchase of the required materials may significantly affect the budget allocated in the monitoring and the evaluation processes. Project facilitators are often faced with the challenge of ensuring that they are not faced with bias which may compromise the success of MSC. For instance, the inclusivity principle requires that all people be actively involved and their change stories collected with bias (Moore Offer n.d, p.117). However, the facilitators may be faced with the problem of choosing between the views of the most articulate participants and those of the others. The ability to make a choice from different collections challenges the facilitators as they try not to be biased and be accommodative to all participants regardless of the abilities. The selection process may also be biased if the facilitators do not facilitate the process across a wider range of spectrum. The challenge that is faced is coming with the most consistent and appropriate team to work with without bias in terms of gender or abilities. Given that MSC operates under the participatory context for validity reasons, it is often faced with the challenge of measuring the impact brought about by the participatory projects (Davies Dart 2005, p.68). The stakeholders are often faced with the challenge of choosing the most appropriate participatory ME to adopt instead of empowering the participants. It is utterly difficult to depend on the purposive sampling involved in MSC sampling. This is because the process involves the collection of the success stories rather than being inclusive. This makes it difficult to record the negative aspects of a particular project. In other instances, it is hard to decide on the appropriate stories from the different cultures â€Å"therefore there would be little value to the use of MSC in such an environment† (IOD PARC 2010). MSC is faced with entry of inaccurate data which is not time bound which may make it insignificant (Kotvojs n.d, p.6). In the most remote areas, it would be hard to successfully apply the MSC te chnique as the validity of the recorded information may be compromised. Since, the MSC technique depends heavily on the collected data, its success may be jeopardized if the collected and recorded information is lost. This would make it impossible to analyze the outcome and the impact of a particular program or project. The collected data requires a lot of time to make reviews (Scott Proescholdbell 2005, 29) and this may be hard for MSC. The concept of the applying the Most Significant Change technique is often not well conceptualized. For example, its application in 3 Australian funded project programs was faced with overcoming misunderstanding (Kotvojs n.d, p.3). It was perceived as an alternative of replacing the monitoring and evaluation process rather than playing a greater part in the broader monitoring and evaluation plan. Therefore, MCS is faced with misconceptions on the role it effectively and essentially plays in participatory ME. Field officers may be challenged in expl aining the importance of the technique and its application. This has the capacity of making its MSC unsuccessful because of the mixed opinions and reactions in regard to the questions asked (Outreach Evaluation Resource Center, 2009, p.1). The evaluation of the development projects involves a lot of heterogeneous activities that may be a challenge (Kumar Seth n.d, p.1). The people involved in project have diverse motives and views. Therefore, the use of the MSC may be compromised because the stakeholders’ motives are all different. For example, the MSC is based on storytelling technique (Groot, Toornstra Tarla 2001, p.1) in which the success stories are recorded. In conclusion, MSC technique which is participatory tool applied in the evaluation and monitoring of projects, is often faced with challenges that jeopardize its success. For instance, it is prone to bias as the tool depends on the selection of the most success stories from a list of many. Because of its wide range o f participants with different languages and cultural contexts, communication barrier is created. This hinders the relay of information to the participants. It also prohibits proper understanding between the stakeholders and the project facilitators. It is also faced with the challenge of disseminating the required skills and knowledge across to the participants. This is because of the different abilities and capabilities that shareholders have. For example, the different participants have different level of education, understanding and capacity. The officer is faced with the challenge of deciding on which group to start up with. Depending on the locality of the targeted group MSC may be hard to successfully apply because of inadequate resources and time. Some of the projects require more resources than others making its application jeopardized. The participants involved in a MCS technique all have different expectations and it may be hard to decide on what changes need to be recorde d. Other than different expectations, the stakeholders bring perspectives and capabilities which may be differing. For instance, one of the groups may be constraint while the other may be willing to benefit from the MSC technique application. These differences make it hard to fully apply the MSC. Time constraints the facilitation of a proper MSC technique. Reference List Akker, J. V. n.d, Principles and methods of development research [Online] Available at http://projects.edte.utwente.nl/smarternet/version2/cabinet/ico_design_principles.pdf Coninck, J.D. et al. 2008, Planning, monitoring and evaluation in development organizations: Sharing training and facilitation experiences, Thousand Oaks, California, Sage publications. Choy, S. n.d, Most significant change technique: a supplementary evaluation tool [Online] Available at http://avetra.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/30.00.pdf Dart, J. J. Davies R.J. 2003, A dialogical story-based evaluation tool: the most significant change t echnique, American Journal of Evaluation, Vol. 24 no.2 pp.137-55 De Groot,.W. T, Toornstra, F. H. Tarla, F. N. 2001, Storytelling for Participatory Rural Appraisal [Online] Available at planotes.org/documents/plan_02309.PDF Davies, R. Dart, J. 2005, The ‘Most Significant Change (MSC) technique: A guide to its use [Online] Available at: http://mande.co.uk/docs/MSCGuide.pdf. Estrella, M. et al.2008, Learning from change: Issues and experiences in participatory and evaluation, Southampton, Intermediate Technology Publication Ltd. IOD PARC. 2010, Most Significant Change in practice [Online] Available at iodparc.com/resource/msc.html Kotvojs, F. n.d. MSC: Misconceptions, strengths and challenges [Online] Available at aes.asn.au/conferences/2009/Papers/Kotvojs,%20Fiona%20-%20MSC.pdf . Kumar, A Seth, M, n.d, â€Å"Stories of change for assessing programme impact: Most Significant Change (MSC) technique as a tool for monitoring and evaluation of development programmes† [Onli ne] Available at http://istr.conference-services.net/resources/588/1799/pdf/ISTR2010_0485.pdf Le Cornu, R., Peters, J. Foster, M. 2003, Exploring Perceptions of ‘Significant  Change’ in Reforming Schools [Online] Available at aare.edu.au/03pap/lec03358.pdf Lunch, C, 2007, The Most Significant Change: Using participatory video for monitoring  and evaluation[Online] Available at: http://insightshare.org/sites/default/files/The%20Most%20Significant%20Change%20using%20PV%20for%20ME.pdf . Mcdonald, D., Bammer, G., Deane, P. (2009).Research integration using dialogue methods, Acton, ANU E Press. Mikkelsen, B. 2007, Methods for Development Work and Research. New Delhi: Sage. Moore, A. Offer, L. n.d, Assessing changes in social capacity: experience with the ‘Most Significant Change’ technique, Extension Farming Systems Journal, vol. 5 No.1, pp.113-118. Outreach Evaluation Resource Center. 2009, Handout Five Qualitative Interviewing â€Å"Story† Metho ds  http://nnlm.gov/pnr/training/data_collection/DC_Handout5_story_tech.pdf Ramalingam, B. 2006. Tools for knowledge and learning: A Guide for development and  humanitarian organisations [Online] Available at odi.org.uk/resources/download/153.pdf Serrat, O. 2009, The Most significant change technique [Online] Available at adb.org/Documents/Information/Knowledge-Solutions/Most-Significant-Change.pdf . Scott, S. Proescholdbell, S. 2005. Structured Storytelling Method communityresearchworks.com/Toolbox/ParticipatoryEvaluation/NC_Storytelling_Method.pdf. Willetts, J. Crawford, P. 2007. The most significant lessons about the Most Significant Change technique, Development in Practice, Vol. 17, no. 3, pp.367-379

Walt Disney Company Case study

Walt Disney Company Case study Disney’s has different characters that have proven successful in different market segments and as such, cross-platform franchising has enabled the company to create a sustainable competitive advantage (Russell 2012). For example, the company targets children and young teens with its princess and Cars franchises.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Walt Disney Company Case study specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition, Disney’s uses music labels such as Hanna Montana or Jonas Brothers to reach out to a diversified consumer group. On the other hand, the Pirates of Caribbean targets the adults and older teens’ markets. Through product differentiation, Disney has managed to reach out to multiple markets, and this has helped to promote the Disney brand as a whole (Russell 2012). Disney has also adopted product differentiation through its Pirates franchise. This is aimed at gaining sustainable co mpetitive advantage. The Pirates franchise comprises of a series of products such as DVDS, movies, figurines/ships and toys, customers, and Disney world ride. All these products have been integrated into a single franchise that targets different consumer markets. The movie Car is among the major brands that has created a competitive advantage for the company. After the hit movie Cars, Disney went ahead to produce a series under the brand name Cars. To reach out to customers, Disney used DVDs in addition to launching the Disney TV channel. As a result, the company has managed to reach out to different consumers of different age groups and locations. The Cars brand is also available through an online virtual gaming world which targets teens and children. All these practices are part of the company’s product differentiation strategies which the company has adopted in an attempt at reaching out to different customers, thereby creating a competitive advantage. Disney has developed a strong brand which differentiates the company from other competitors in the industry. For example, the brand name, â€Å"Pirates† is used on Disney’s products to appeal to target customers from different segments of the market. Product appeal results in consumer loyalty among the targeted consumer markets thus giving the company an upper hand over its competitors. As noted by Bob Iger, the company has manaed to create multiple experiences through product appeal thus generating consumer enthusiasm (Disney Institute 2012). This has enabled Disney to give its consumers a reason to come back and share the same experience.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The application of market diversification has also given Disney competitive advantage in the market. For example, Disney has been moving its franchises with the objective of capturing the growing t eens’ market. In addition, the company has broadened its viewership on its Disney Channel franchise in a bid to capture new markets. Under the leadership of Bob Iger, the company has moved Disney Channel from premium channels to basic channels. In addition, it has also focused on launching local versions its major key markets around the globe. All these activities have led to a sustainable market share of the company. Marketing mix entails the 4ps that is, product, price, place/distribution, and promotion. Disney’s Cars franchise is one of the company’s leading franchises. According to Disney (2012), the Car franchise has helped the company to achieve huge success in the film industry. As part of its marketing mix, Disney produced the hit movie Cars, which was followed by series of Cars in the form of animations available to targeted markets. The company also produced Cars 2 which promoted the Cars franchise. Other accessories associated with the Disney Cars fra nchise include personal care, food, apparel, home dà ©cor, electronics and toys (Disney 2012). Different products of the Car franchise are promoted through the Disney Channel, personal selling, displays, and advertisements. For instance, Cars was introduced to the movie theaters and to the public by designing cartoon car characters which were later displayed in merchandise stores along with the real Car movie as part of its promotion exercise. The Cars franchise is currently promoted through Cars e-magazine, internet platform and other mobile phone applications such as Cars’ Lightning Was Here (Disney 2012). The products are found in movie theaters’, online platforms, and leading merchandise stores. Disney has adopted a strong distribution network in order to ensure that the products are available to consumers within the stipulated timeframe. Disney uses premium prices as part of its pricing strategy (Garcia 2011). The prices offered by Disney are modest and affordabl e given the high level of competition in the entertainment industry.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Walt Disney Company Case study specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Considering that the company’s executives constantly under pressure to increase profit margins the company has adopted aggressive pricing. This strategy is intended to increase sales. Since Disney has already gained its market share, it uses competitive pricing. Competitive pricing is associated with quality products such as the products associated with Cars franchise. Based on the case study, Disney’s major focus has been on family-friendly fairs with a major emphasis on teens and young children. However, due to increased competition in the industry, Disney should consider choosing another market segment. A good example of a new market segment for Disney to target would be young girls in Middle East. Through the Disney Princess franch ise (Walt Disney 2012) the company could target an untapped market in the Middle East. Jasmine as portrayed in the film Aladdin is a girl who was later captured and treated like a slave (Walt Disney 2012). Middle East is an emerging economy with a fast growing population of women. The Middle East market is promising especially the female segment (Krupnick 2011). Therefore, targeting girls in Middle East is appropriate because the population has an increasing purchasing power. Krupnick (2011) add that the Middle East market is composed of oil-rich nations whose purchasing power has been on rise. For instance, Middle East has a purchasing power of more than 8% (Newman 2006). Therefore, it is important to note that the targeted market will afford Disney branded dolls and other feminine related accessories. Some products such as body and hair perfumes for girls which are a reflection of Jasmine would be highly marketable. Furthermore, Middle East Women inclusive of girls have larger inf luence on products because of their family spending. Arab females have been categorized as an attractive market target group because they form the largest group of media consumers (Carter 1997). In addition, they have a higher buying power just like other buyers in Western markets. The population of females of ages below 30 years is higher compared to that of men.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This means that there is a ready population which can be targeted (Carter 1997). Advertising through the media and magazines are the most appropriate methods of reaching the target market. This is because traditionally, magazines and media have been the key advertising medium for existing and emerging brands (Carter 1997). If at all Disney is to reposition itself in the Middle East market, the management should take in to consideration market changes and market trends. Products diversification would be a viable option as it would ensure that the target market gets to enjoy a variety of Disney’s products. For example, Jasmine diversified fragrances, perfumes, dolls, t-shirts, and clothing have the capacity to evoke various feelings among the target market. Perfumes with different scents and sizes have different effects on different people and are thus recommended. Jasmine dolls should be of different sizes, color, and be clothed differently in order to meet new market trends a nd customers’ preferences. Also, Disney needs to invest heavily on TV commercials and magazines because females from the Middle East are heavy consumers of TV commercials (Carter 1997). In addition, Disney could upgrade its products and give them a youthful look which create memorable experiences and brand image in the minds of the consumers. Finally, the company should improve its current products by adding new features as a way of making them more appealing to the target customers. Carter, Meg. â€Å"The Buying Power of Arab women. (Latest Developments in Advertising in the Middle East). † Campaign. 6 Jun. 1997: 1. Print. Disney. Disney Consumer Products: Disney-Pixar Cars. 2011. Web. https://www.disneyconsumerproducts.com/Home/display.jsp?contentId=dcp_home_ourfranchises_disney_cars_usforPrint=falselanguage=enpreview=falseimageShow=0pressRoom=UStranslationOf=region=0. Disney Institute. Disney’s approach to Brand Loyalty. PDF files. 24 Nov. 2012 disneyinstit utecollateral.com/files/PDP/BrandLoyalty_Extended.pdf Garcia, Jason. â€Å"Disney Pricing Strategy: Seeking More Profits out of Long-Term visitors.† Orlando Sentinel. 20 Jun. 2011: 1. Print. Krupnick, Ellie. Arab Women The Majority Of Couture Clients, Executives Say. 10 Oct. 2011. Web.. huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/07/arab-women-couture-clients_n_999680.html. Newman, Mark. Purchasing Power. 2006. Web.worldmapper.org/posters/worldmapper_map170_ver5.pdf Russell, Christina. The Walt Disney Company. PDF files. 24 Nov. 2012, christinalrussell.com/documents/DisneyFinanceProject_000.pdf. Walt Disney. Disney Consumer Products: Disney Princess. 2011. Web. https://www.disneyconsumerproducts.com/Home/display.jsp?contentId=dcp_home_ourfranchises_disney_princess_usforPrint=falselanguage=enpreview=falseimageShow=0pressRoom=UStranslationOf=region=0

Does Your Business Need a Proofreader

Does Your Business Need a Proofreader Does Your Business Need a Proofreader? Does your business need a proofreader? Yes. Yes, it does. That’ll be all. Thank you for reading. What? You want to know why your business needs a proofreader? Okay, we’ll set out a few reasons below. But by the end of this post, you’ll wonder how you could ever have questioned it! 1. Polished Professionalism Whatever your business, you need to make a good first impression. And the first thing anyone will see is often something you’ve written (e.g., a company website or press release). Think about it this way: If you were meeting a client for the first time, would you turn up with your hair in a mess, odd socks on, and a coffee stain on your shirt? No? Well, you need to apply the same standards to your writing! Unlike a bad hair day, you cant cover up typos with a hat.(Photo: Bruce Guenter/flickr) 2. Typos Can Be Costly Errors in business writing can be costly in two ways. First of all, it can cost you the trust of customers and clients. Mistakes in website copy, for example, may make customers think twice about using your services, since it suggests a lack of care or attention to detail. More literally, though, typos can be expensive: For instance, the publisher Penguin once had to destroy 7,000 copies of The Pasta Bible at a cost of $20,000 because the book accidentally recommended using â€Å"freshly ground black people† instead of â€Å"freshly ground black pepper.† Pasta is definitely better seasoned with pepper. It’s fair to say that a thorough proofreader could have saved everyone involved a lot of trouble! 3. Proofreading Is a Skill We don’t blame anyone for not knowing all the rules about comma usage. Nor do we expect everyone we meet to be as keen on correct pronoun choice as we are. That’s because it takes a special kind of person to obsess over the details of spelling, grammar, and punctuation: a proofreader. In other words, the only way to be sure of great proofreading is to hire a professional. This also lets you and your colleagues concentrate on other work, boosting efficiency across your business. 4. Letting Your Content Shine! If you’ve gone to a lot of effort writing copy, you owe it to yourself and your business to let it shine. But self-editing is difficult, especially if you’re too close to what you’ve written. A professional proofreader, on the other hand, will bring a fresh pair of eyes to your work. This means we can spot errors you might miss, ensuring that your message comes through loud and clear. Eyes, fresh and ready for proofreading. Still not convinced? Then send us a 500-word sample and we’ll show you what we can do for free.

Kosovo & Serbia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Kosovo & Serbia - Essay Example It was then that â€Å"the Slavonic tribes, mixed with the Avars, made their appearance in the Balkans, which was sparsely inhabited by many different tribes of the Illyrians, the Dardanians, the Thracians and probably others whose names have fallen into oblivion† (Almond, 1998). The present day hostility between Albanians and Serbians could be traced back to this period. Contemporary Albanians, who descended from the aforementioned tribal groups, were defeated in warfare by migrating Slavonic tribes. While some of the conquered were assimilated into Slavonic tribes, the rest took refuge in inaccessible geographic locations like mountain tops. The victorious Slavs on the other hand took control of the most fertile and irrigable lands in the region. Hence, the geography of the Balkans is an important aspect of ethnic rivalries there. â€Å"There is little doubt that the process of appropriating the possessions of the pre-existing population created a deeply felt resentment between those who lost their homes and their land and those who profited from the conquest. This hatred was transmitted from father to son over many generations and it became a constant factor in the relationship between the Serbs and the Albanians. Inherent to this feeling remained a strong desire to retake the lost areas if an opportunity appeared†. (Velebit, 1999) The other important historical development occurred during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, when Serbian leader Nemanyitch made Kosovo his capital. This meant that Serbs who made Kosovo their home were forced out of this rich and fertile piece of geography. Serbian peasants suffered the most in the process. But the balance of power continued to change through the following centuries, with no particular ethnic group able to maintain dominance over other groups and geographic locations for long. Toward the end of the fourteenth century, some of the

Bisphenol-A Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Bisphenol-A - Research Paper Example Numerous studies have proven that bisphenol A can disrupt the hormonal system of animals and humans. Other structural and physiological effects were noted in dysfunctions of sexuality, disrupts reproduction, triggering diabetes and respiratory illnesses, affecting mental abilities, behavior, encourages aggression and hampers learning outcomes. Other studies however are subject of controversial debates. Bisphenol – A 3 Introduction A review of greater than eighty (80) bio-monitoring investigations from nine (9) nations suggests exposure to industrial chemical, bisphenol A or BPA and this issue is ubiquitous in people from all over the world (Vandenberg, et al, 2010). Bisphenol-A (BPA) is one of the top produced volume of chemicals worldwide (Vandenberg, Maffini, Sonnenschein, Rubin and Soto, 2009) with around 3.8 million tonnes production in 2006 and corresponds up to 100,000 40-tonne HGVs. The largest share of this chemical is further processed in Europe area in a form of poly carbonates and epoxy resins, with over 6 billion pounds generated each year and over 100 tons discharged into the atmosphere by annual production. BPA, the building block of polycarbonate plastic (PasticEurope, 2009), is also one of the first synthetic substances that was known and has similar mode of action to that of the sex hormone of females known as estrogen. (Doods, 1936). Nevertheless, the said substance did not become successful in medical therapy since diethylstilbestrol (DES), a more potent synthetic estrogen was discovered (Doods, 1938). Years after, Bisphenol A became an industrial chemical, and exist in several everyday products, however, research reports found out that it can affect human hormone system, which presently have been the subject of dispute. Polycarbonate containers used as reusable food containers, some paper and cardboard, polyvinyl chloride and others have been examined for BPA content. Also, residual BPA were examined leaching from the epoxy resins lini ng cans all throughout specific foods including vegetables, canned pet foods, and fish.(Vandenberg, Maffini, Sonnenschein, Rubin and Soto, Bisphenol – A 4 2009), The experts added that canned infant formula and others were found to contain BPA which may have leach from the epoxy resin. Moreover, it is very alarming to find out that in blood serum samples, median levels of unconju ­gated BPA (biologically active) were higher compared to the levels predicted by toxicokinetic models, which form the basis of United States regulations for the said compound, arriving at the range that has been presented to cause adverse effects in animals (Environmental Health Perspectives, 2010). Objectives This paper is directed to highlight controversies over bisphenol A, a ubiquitous chemical produced from polyvinyl chloride plastics, polycarbonate and epoxy resins. It also presents relevant information regarding threats, health risks and interventions involved in the contamination process du ring the past decade and until recently. Literature Review Bisphenol A is a chemical substance, found mostly in very common products such as CDs, DVDs, plastic bowls, drinking bottles and containers for food water boilers, mobile telephones, motorcycle helmets, roof coverings, computer housings water boiler, safety glass (glassy polymers), Car parts (transparent plastic parts),

What do you consider to be the main differences between a unitarist Essay

What do you consider to be the main differences between a unitarist and pluralist approach to the management of the collective employment relationship - Essay Example Unitarist and Pluralist in the management of collective employment relationships. The unitary approach to management is where there is an integrated and harmonious entity that subsists for common purposes (William & Smith, 2006). This theory portrays the employer and employee relationship to be one where there is harmony and understanding. The main assumption of this theory is that there are a common set of values and these bind the two parties, i.e. the employer and the employee together. Also these ensure that there are no conflicts among the two parties. This is one of the oldest theories that have been developed to describe employment relationship however it is one which clearly and very smoothly connects to the contemporary methods as well. These include the ideas related to the corporate culture and human resources management. However there are a number of drawbacks of this theory as well. Firstly, it fails to recognise the difference between the interests of the managements and those of the employees. The theory only assumes that all decisions made by mana gers is in the interest of the employees. There is a lack of good communication in this theory and including bettered communication is the only mode of explaining the countervailing force in all cases including, individuals, groups and even trade unions. Also as explained by Palmer (1983), where conflicts arise, the conflicts should be resolved by dismissing the employee or with the interference of law. Although the Unitarian theory was available, with the growing amount of complexity and the increased scales of business units, there was a strong need for a theory to be developed to be stronger in nature than that of the Unitarian theory. This theory required being able to accept that there are always a limited amount of conflicts that are present in an organisation and this needed to be a mode of achieving a consensus among the two parties, i.e. the

An Analysis Based on Marks and Spencer Annual Reports Essay

An Analysis Based on Marks and Spencer Annual Reports - Essay Example In 2007, Cash inflow from continuing operating activities had been increased by '259 million. Cash inflow from continuing operation in 2008 has been decreased by '206.6 million that has reflected a higher working capital outflow. In 2007, there was reduction in cash outflow on leasehold repayments as compared to 2006 and hence it resulted to an increase in the working capital which was accounted to be '114.1 million. Non Financial Performance Marks and Spencer's stores in UK are highly sophisticated and are established in such a way that it can offer most convenient shopping to the customers. According to the latest survey' Over 21 million people visit Marks and Spencer's stores each week' is highly important in a fluctuating market where competition among groceries and other large scale retailers are fierce (Your M&S- 2008) Amenities including vehicles parking and restaurants are available at its most stores. Around 300 Marks and Spencer stores in UK are equipped with entrance cameras that can record the number of people who visit the stores. It is helpful to establish the ratios between the visits numbers and sales. The annual report details its strategies that it is changed and technologies are upgraded in order to capture customer footfall more accurately. Marks and Spencer has introduced thermal image cameras in its stores that are more sensitive in picking up flow of individuals and separating groups of people as they walk into the stores (Your M&S-2008). The annual reports also indicate that Mystery Shopping strategy is another way used by Marks and Spencer in order to evaluate the service qualities and convenient shopping... This essay stresses that Marks and Spencer’s stores in UK are highly sophisticated and are established in such a way that it can offer most convenient shopping to the customers. According to the latest survey’ Over 21 million people visit Marks and Spencer’s stores each week’ is highly important in a fluctuating market where competition among groceries and other large scale retailers are fierce (Your M&S- 2008) Amenities including vehicles parking and restaurants are available at its most stores. Around 300 Marks and Spencer stores in UK are equipped with entrance cameras that can record the number of people who visit the stores. It is helpful to establish the ratios between the visits numbers and sales. As the paper declares the annual report details its strategies that it is changed and technologies are upgraded in order to capture customer footfall more accurately. Marks and Spencer has introduced thermal image cameras in its stores that are more sensitive in picking up flow of individuals and separating groups of people as they walk into the stores. The annual reports also indicate that Mystery Shopping strategy is another way used by Marks and Spencer in order to evaluate the service qualities and convenient shopping possibilities. Each of the stores will be anonymously visited once a month by the experts. Marks and Spencer has created a broad approach towards customer orientation programs. ‘Marks and Spencer’s new manifesto campaign goes a step further by introducing powerful messages on provenance and healthy eating.

The Berlin Wall A World Divided 1961-1989 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Berlin Wall A World Divided 1961-1989 - Essay Example This essay highlights that the differences in economic and political ideologies could have easily led to the eruption of another world war but as history dictates it the war didn’t materialize in the relatively volatile environment. Distinctively, minds engaged instead of arms for the greater good of the world. This period provides a unique period on a historical lens where the greater public demanded an ear and vouch for their future.This paper stresses that throughout the narrative a number themes are strongly expressed in regards to the period of time which are consistent. A strong sense and theme of conflict is portrayed during the times. Conflicts in ideology where the East is largely welcoming to a communist economic model where on the other hand the West are in favor of a capitalist economic model. There are also conflicting living standards across each side of the wall where the living standards on the West were comparatively economic favorable than those in the East. The strong theme of conflict is also largely emphasized on the political set up across each divide; the West can be perceived to adopt a more democratic government where the larger public have their say in state issues, this is opposed to dictatorial government perceived to be in place in the East where razor wires are erected without the public’s consent.  The aspect of leadership is also brought under the knife in the historical theatre where different world leaders adopt different styles of leadership which are hugely consequential.

What if it Were You Essay Example for Free

What if it Were You Essay Probably the most debated topic today is abortion. It is uncommon for the topic to be brought up when new friends are first meeting because almost everyone has a stand on the issue, and there are only two possible stands (which happen to be largely the opposite). According to the Websters dictionary, the definition of abortion is: expulsion of a fetus from the womb before it is viable. You might say that this definition is a little unclear because we must ask, what does Webster mean by viable? In the same edition, the definition of viable is: able to take root and grow. Now I dont know about you, but I think that if you nourish and feed a fetus from the first day of conception properly, it will be able to take root and grow. If you dont believe me, every single human life today (including yours and mine) are walking proof of this. So then, if the definition of abortion is a fetus expelled before it can take root and grow, the definition contradicts itself, and abortion is therefore the expulsion of a human. Now where Im from, expulsion of a human is a crime in which in most cases is punishable by death if not life imprisonment. I cant even begin to understand how the issue of abortion is even a question, or  much less exists! What a sick and twisted world we live in. Its a good thing for all those hardcore pro-choicers out there that their mothers happened to be pro-life. Ironic, huh? I am going to give a few arguments against abortion, and I will then look at the opposing views and make a rebuttal. The first and foremost argument is that abortion is just wrong it is the killing of the innocent(Pearce 7). Considering that the majority of America and this world believe in (a similar) God, God definitely is pro-life (or at least his mother was). Anyone that wants to follow God simply cannot be for abortion under any circumstances. God is the creator of life and intended for a child to be born the natural way not sucked up by a vacuum and discarded into a trashcan. Now if youre not one of those people that believe in God, you might still be against murder. Im telling you that abortion is no different than murder. The major question that comes into  mind for many Christians is: When does a fetus/baby have a soul? or rather, When is the fetus a human? A medical group of biochemists and geneticists were asked the same question, and found 19 to 1 that: The majority of our group could find no point in time between the union of sperm and egg, or at least the blastocyst stage, and the birth of the infant at which  point we could say that this was not a human life. A good comparison to remember is that a fetus is to a baby as a ten year old child is to an adult: each is just an older version of the former (and all are human). There are many women that have now gone insane because of abortions. They realize what they have done and feel as if they have killed the very child they should have loved(Green 1). The number one comeback to any pro-life arguments is that abortion is the womans right to choose. My rebuttal is simply, What if the aborted fetus was a female (or hence a woman), Where the heck was her so-called right to choose? The same excuse can be made for a mother of ten children all under the age of 11, that wants to kill herself. She might say, Its my body, my life, why the heck cant I commit suicide? I have the right to choose death. I would say that no, she really doesnt have that right because she will be affecting at the lives of at least ten other people. Im gonna guess that those ten kids cant probably survive too well without her. So does she have the right to choose death of her own body, much less that of somebody elses (the unwanted fetus)? Heck NO! My question is why doesnt a woman have the right to choose  right after the baby has been born? Or does she. Partial-birth abortion is a practice supported by many pro-choicers in which the baby is killed after it has partially been born. If a woman held a gun to her child after it was halfway out and shot it, would it be murder? What about  ¾ of the way out? What if the baby is only connected by the toe, or to the umbilical cord? Its considered murder if the mother shoots her baby once it is completely out of the womb. a In regards to my statement that women who have had abortions often go insane, many people believe that it is the fault of us pro-lifers that we are too harsh, and therefore make them feel remorseful. The fact is, the truth hurts. If someone killed someone, and then was told how bad it was, they would feel sorry too. Everyone today wants to never be told what is right and wrong, so that they cant be held culpable for their actions. That is just like Platos allegory of the cave, in which everyone is tied up and watches shadows on the wall, not realizing that there is another world out there. One man (Socrates) unties himself and escapes. When he comes back to tell everyone about this whole new world, they beat him up and choose to deny it. And as in Platos day, there are many of us who  wish not to see the truth and take the easy way out. We must all do what Socrates did: escape from the world and find and preach the truth. Another argument made for abortion is: What if a teenage girl is raped? My answer is Give it up for adoption! One might answer me back and say, There are already too many orphaned kids who arent that well taken care of. My answer is to ask those poor orphaned kids if they would rather be alive than dead by putting a gun up to their head, or better yet, threaten them with a vacuum to suck their brains out. I can almost guarantee you that they will choose life, and be happy that their mothers also did. One final argument for abortion is people want to know what if the child will be disabled? First of all, go see the movie that is based on a true story, RADIO. Disabled people can teach so many people how to love. They have taught me what unconditional love is. But aside from all this, just like with the orphaned kids, just put a gun up to them, and they will probably give you some indication to stop. After reading a first draft of  this essay, one of my peers asked me, Should a person who has no sign of consciousness (retarded) and does nothing good to this world be entitled to live? My answer is Why would they  not be entitled to live? Even if we knew that someone was going to do harm to this world, it would be murder to kill him. If someone had killed Hitler before he had done so much evil, it wouldve still been murder. There once was a pregnant woman who had syphilis and was an alcoholic, and the father was also an alcoholic. Should she have aborted her baby, who had such a high risk of turning out deformed? If she had aborted that baby, she wouldve killed Beethoven. (True story!) Finally, I would like to conclude with the steps in an abortion process. There are types of induced abortions: Dilatation and curettage; Suction; Hysterotomy; and saline poisoning. Dilatation and curettage, or D and C is a process by which the doctor sticks an instrument (curette) up into the uterus, and cuts the baby to pieces, and then scrapes all the pieces out (Wilkes 18). Blood is not uncommon. Suction is a method by which the baby is sucked through a vacuum and then spit into a tube into many pieces. Hysterotomy is similar to a Caesarian section in which the doctor cuts open the mothers stomach, and then throws the baby away. (See pictures attached.) The saline poisoning method is done by injecting a needle of poison into the amniotic sack of the baby, and watching it go into  convulsions for about an hour, and then dies. The mother goes through labor, and delivers a dead baby. By the way, science now tells us that a baby has a fully developed nervous system at three months, and can thus feel everything. In the movie The Silent Scream, the doctors poke the baby, and you can see it jump and writhe in pain. People today just dont have hearts anymore. So I hope I have convinced you that abortion is wrong and evil, and must be banned. Some say that there is another civil war to be fought over  abortion. This might seem a bit rash, but the truth is, abortion is that serious.

Occupational Health And Safety And Risk Management Construction Essay

Occupational Health And Safety And Risk Management Construction Essay The principles of the new framework are to reduce risk by requiring all stakeholders to eliminate or minimize the risks they created in workplace, Instilling greater ownership of Occupational Health and Safety standards, thus, the focus will be then be shifted from complying with prescriptive requirements to make employers suited to their particular situations in order to achieve desired safety outcomes and lastly, preventing accidents through higher penalties for poor safety and health management Duties of employers Every employers duty is to take necessary measures to ensure the safety and health of his employees and people who may be affected by his instructions even though they are not his employees in the workplace. The measures necessary to ensure the safety and health of persons at work include, providing and maintaining a safe environment, without risk to health, ensuring adequate safety measures are taken in respect of any machinery, equipment, plant, article or process used by his employees and employees are not exposed to hazards arising out of the arrangement, disposal, manipulation, organization, processing, storage, transport, working or use of thing under the control of the employer. Developing and implementing procedures dealing with emergencies that may arise while those persons are at work and ensuring that employees at work have adequate instruction, information, training and supervision as is necessary for them to perform their work. Every employer is required by the regulations, giving to people whom are not his employees the prescribed information about details in which he conducts his undertaking as this might affect their safety or health while those employees are at his workp lace. Duty of Workers Occupational Health and Safety requires workers to comply with all safety and health standards that apply to their daily requirements on the job. Employees should follow the employers safety and health rules and use all necessary protective gears and equipments and follow safe work practices for the job directed by the employer. Employees should report all hazardous conditions to a supervisor or safety committee and report hazardous conditions to relevant authorities, if employers do not fix them. Duties of everyone at workplace Everyone in the workplace is to provide protection when required, any suitable protective tools, for his use alone or for use by him in common with others, for securing his safety, health while at workplace and to co-operate with his employer or any other person to such extent that will enable his employer to comply with the provisions of the Act. No employees at workplace shall wilfully or recklessly interfere with or misuse any appliance, protective clothing, convenience, equipment or other means or thing provided pursuant to any requirement under this Act for securing the safety, health of persons at workplace. Any employee who wilfully or recklessly does any act which endangers the safety or health of himself or others shall be guilty of an offence. Task 2: Identifying Hazards and Managing Risk A hazard is something which endangers people health or environment. Risk is the likelihood that the harm will occur from exposure to the hazard. Accidents rate will increase if the management having the mindset of nothing will go wrong There might be some hazards in the working environment which are not obvious such as poor lightings, slippery floor and etc. Hence, Risk Management is crucial in all working environment. It allows the management to detect hazards early and taking all precaution to prevent accidents from occurring. There are 5 steps to perform risk management; looking for Hazard, decide who might be harm and how, decide on control measures, put control in place and review the controls Look for hazard Management can walk through the workplace and look for hazards in a systematic way looking at physical things and workplace activities, asking workers regarding hazards around them, conducting a safety audit and reviewing your workplace records such as sick leave and incident reports. Decide who might be harm and how Estimate the likelihood of an incident occurring at your workplace and the consequences if incident had occurred for each hazard. Management should involve employees in this assessment such as women who are pregnant or employees whom are not familiar in your workplace. Decide on control measures Measures should be implemented such as getting rid of the hazard or replacing it with a less harmful or using of protective equipments unless there is a provision that you must follow for specific hazards. Put control in place Management need to put controls in place and supervise through a process of systematic observation to allow a feedback on the effectiveness of the new control measures compared to the seriousness of the risk which previously assessed. Review the Controls Review the controls that you have put in place and makes improvements if necessary. Task 3: Managing Psychosocial Hazards In workplace Psychosocial Hazards are issues obstructing to a persons psychological development in an environment. Issues like, work related stress cause by excessive overwork, violence, being bullied, mobbing and burnout. One of the most common issues that occurred in a workplace is Work Stress. There are different perspectives at looking on issue Stress. Stress can be looked as a form of motivation, allowing organizations to push employees to their limit and obtain the best performance out of its employees and it can be also an issue which will affects employees health, performance as they will be less motivated and less productive. Excessive demands and pressure can be caused by a poor work design and poor management from an organization. Most cases of work stress are caused by how the work is designed and the way organizations are managed. Stress can affects different people in different way. Employees whom are affected by stress can become increasingly distressed and irritable, unable to relax or concentrate while working, having difficulty to think logically and making decisions and experience insomnia. In extreme cases, employees may not able to handle stress and do something that is unexpected which endangers the health of their colleagues or even themselves. If a large numbers of employees in an organization are affected, performance of the organization will also be affected. Organizations will experience employees increasing absenteeism and decreasing commitment to work, impairing performance and productivity, unsafe working environment and damaging its image among its workers and externally. Organizations with such issues will not only affect its performance, it will also be less likely to succeed in a competitive market. Therefore, Human Resource Department needs to understand the importance of Work Stress in an Organization. Risk Management must be managed well in order to asses all possible risks in the working environment that have high possibilities causing damage to employees and the organization. The most effective method to find out the employees problems and why, is to question them directly as managers may have a different point of view from his employees about what are the causes of the problems. There is a strategy to solve the issue which is crucial for employer to understand is to prevent the problems, foresees problems. Monitoring employees satisfaction and health regularly, ensuring employees know whom to talk to about their problems and having the ability to give them a helping hand in their problems, refer them to the right channel when they are experiencing real difficulties. Managers should do a follow up after a period of time and if necessary, revise your approach to work stress problems. A good employer not only designs and manages work in a way that avoids common risk factors for stress but also to achieve a healthy working environment, minimize harmful aspects of work. Work can be a self-promoting activity as long it takes place in a safe and health promoting environment. Task 4: Notifying, Reporting and Managing Incidents Immediate corrective activities are used when an accident occurred and the true nature was unknown. It is an activity that required a description of what had to be done after a problem had occurred and what are the actions were to be taken to prevent the same problem from happening. Direct Cause The direct cause is the direct results in actions that most people do not do. Incidents should be investigated to identify the cause of the incident. There are also tools to assist the investigation like 5 whys, cause and effect, fish bone diagram, design of experiment, simulations, process deconstruction and analysis of design implementation. 5 Whys 5 Whys is a question-asking method used to understand the cause and effect of a particular problem. 5 Whys will lead you there but sometimes it will be more, and sometimes less. Based on the scenario, Tony was injured when he was attempting to clean the chute on the back of the truck and lost his balance and fell. Did the Company inform all concrete drivers the safety regulations and procedures to clean a truck? Yes. What are the reasons that Tony did not follow the Safety regulations and procedures? No. The Company should come up with safety regulations and procedures to clean a truck. Did all concrete drivers understand the safety regulations and procedures? Yes. The company should impose a fine to allow the drivers to understand the importance to follow the safety regulations and procedures strictly. No. The company should simplify the handout or even translate into difference language for difference race of employees. Contributing Factors Contributing causes are those careless actions that result a direct cause. Such actions may not be sufficient to result in the event taking place. Below are some examples; Drivers parked the truck on an uneven road. Handbrake was not properly pulled. No proper footwear. Preventive Activity Preventive Activities are to prevent the same incident to occur and it can only be determined when direct and contributing factors have been identified. Solutions should be considered on its effectiveness and suitability to the company and its employees and is within the companys budget. It is better to consider about alternatives before choosing a solution and to correct the process for a long term perspective instead of the short term. As a project usually takes years to complete, company should implement building a station for drivers, allowing them to park the truck at their convenience and a stairs up to a floor whereby drivers are able to stand there to wash their truck with a minimum risk. Follow-up Activity Follow-up Activities allows company to have knowledge about whether the implementations are able to minimize risk or even any other improvements are required to achieve zero percentage of risk. Information from this process results in an effective future of the Company. Surveillance and Supervision Supervision of the implementation can be undertaken on a regular or periodic basis. It is to observe the performance of the implementation and ensuring drivers are using the new implementation with safety regulations and right procedures. Monitoring Monitoring the performance of the new implementation through a process of systematic observation and detect changes which are attributable to the new implementation. Evaluation Evaluation is a review of its performance and effectiveness of a new implementation, looking at what the new implementation had achieved and what could be done to improve it.

Compare Contrast Two Persuasive Arguments Essay -- Comparison Between

Compare Contrast Two Persuasive Arguments Should legendary coach Bobby Knight been fired from the University of Indiana? Does the punishment fit the crime? The two articles â€Å"The Knight Who Thought He Was King,† and â€Å"Knight Fall† try to answer these two controversial questions. Each of these articles present the debated issue in their own distinct ways. â€Å"Knight Fall† is written in a way that the reader really doesn’t know what side the author is choosing, that is until the last few sentences. On the other hand, the other article is very distinct, and the reader knows for a fact, just from reading the first few sentences, that the author is not what you call a â€Å"Bobby Knight fan.† Both of these articles use the three rhetoric appeals to help persuade their audience.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"He also thought -indeed, no thought to the contrary seems ever to have made its way into his head- that he was larger than the university itself†¦he signed the papers placed before him and then blithely violated the very agreement he supposedly had accepted, obviously on the assumption that the policy simply did not apply to a god such as him.† (Yardley.) Well if this isn’t straightforward enough for one to understand, then the reader has problems. This is how Yardley uses intrinsic ethos. He is an author for the Washington Post, in the style section, and writing about sports. One who is reading this article is not expecting a remarkable well-informed sports article. Throughout the article he uses a sophisticated vocabulary and strong, powerful words to grasp the attention of his audience. This article doesn’t exactly give the reader much leeway in choosing a side; there is not one good thing about Bobby Knight in this article.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout this editorial, the author really tries to get to your emotions. He uses pathos to try to persuade the reader into not liking Bobby Knight. â€Å"He screamed at referees, berated and belittled members of his own team, heaved chairs.†(Yardley) He is trying to make you dislike Knight, for the things that he has done in the past. He is making Knight to be this immoral individual, who tries to hurt and inflict pain on others. He also states how Knight violated policies, only because they didn’t apply to him. All of this is mentioned just to get the reader to think â€Å"yea, I’m glad he was fired, he was a confused menace to society, who should have been fi... ...be a coach today. â€Å"Knight Fall† also uses cause and consequence. It brings up the point that if Harvey (the student) didn’t come forward and complain about Knight’s abuse, then Knight probably would still be coaching. But that incident was only the tip of the iceberg. Knight had done so many things before that, and in the article, each incident is brought up, and questioned; whether if Knight had not done that, if he still would be coaching. Of course all of this means nothing; it’s all too late. It’s just the two different perspectives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Well these two articles aren’t too hard to compare. One uses such vulgarity, that it makes such an impact on the reader, that the reader has no choice but to believe what the author is telling you. The other, a very informative and thorough article, lets the reader read, and learn, before â€Å"choosing a side.† Reading this will help you understand the situation, from both points of view, and then only to see the authors point of view in the last paragraph of the entire article. In the other article, Yardley doesn’t waste any time in stating his opinion, opening his article with disgust for Knight. These are two perfect articles to compare.

Atmospheres Unlimited in Macbeth :: Macbeth essays

Atmospheres Unlimited in Macbeth      Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeare becomes a master of diverse atmospheres in his tragedy Macbeth. We shall examine closely the changing, more forcefully developing atmospheres here.    In his book, On the Design of Shakespearean Tragedy, H. S. Wilson explains why the atmosphere is so important in Macbeth:    Macbeth is a play in which the poetic atmosphere is very important; so important, indeed, that some recent commentators give the impression that this atmosphere, as created by the imagery of the play, is its determining quality. For those who pay most attention to these powerful atmospheric suggestions, this is doubtless true. Mr. Kenneth Muir, in his introduction to the play - which does not, by the way, interpret it simply from this point of view - aptly describes the cumulative effect of the imagery: "The contrast between light and darkness is part of a general antithesis between good and evil, devils and angels, evil and grace, hell and heaven . . . and the disease images of IV, iii and in the last act clearly reflect both the evil which is a disease, and Macbeth himself who is the disease from which his country suffers."(67-68)    L.C. Knights in the essay "Macbeth" mentions equivocation, unreality and unnaturalness in the play - contributors to an atmosphere that may not be very realistic:    The equivocal nature of temptation, the commerce with phantoms consequent upon false choice, the resulting sense of unreality ("nothing is, but what is not"), which has yet such power to "smother" vital function, the unnaturalness of evil ("against the use of nature"), and the relation between disintegration in the individual ("my single state of man") and disorder in the larger social organism - all these are major themes of the play which are mirrored in the speech under consideration. (94)    Charles Lamb in On the Tragedies of Shakespeare comments on the atmosphere surrounding the play:    The state of sublime emotion into which we are elevated by those images of night and horror which Macbeth is made to utter, that solemn prelude with which he entertains the time till the bell shall strike which is to call him to murder Duncan, - when we no longer read it in a book, when we have given up that vantage-ground of abstraction which reading possesses over seing, and come to see a man in his bodily shape before our eyes actually preparing to commit a muder, if the acting be true and impressive as I have witnessed it in Mr.

Street Crime

Street crimes are commonplace in Pakistan. Almost everyone has a story to tell about having a purse or a wallet stolen; everyday street crimes appear in the news headlines. They usually only occur in the big cities, where there are homeless street-people. An analysis of the official data compiled by the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) reveals that, on an average, 124 mobile phones are snatched/stolen every day. In the preceding year, the figure had stood at 76.The growing trend of cellphone snatching and theft in Karachi reflects the failure of the police in containing the crime. Despite the IMEI mechanism having been activated to get the handsets jammed by the concerned cellular companies, there has been a little or no improvement in the overall situation. The major causes are unemployment and illiteracy but there are some other factors too like lawlessness, fundamentalism, backwardness and double standards prevailing in the society.The government should take steps to contr ol these street crimes in Pakistan to make Pakistan a peaceful country – STREET CRIME the increase of street crimes. Daily we hear of murders, robberies and rapes. These are categorized as â€Å"street crimes†. Some crimes are senseless and preventable. Mobile phone snatching, car (autos) snatching on gun point, purse snatching from women and target killing are also street crimes that are newly introduced.The main reasons of these crimes are unemployment, illiteracy, poverty and inability of the institutions, responsible to maintain law and order. Government must take preventive measures as early as possible otherwise they will take the whole society in grip of street crimes. In the first instance, sincere steps must be taken to solve the unemployment problem,. Existing education system provide incentives to poor people and training of police department on modern scientific lines.

Paul Krugman, in Praise of Cheap Labor Bad Jobs at Bad Wages Are Better Than No Jobs at All.

In Praise of Cheap Labor Bad jobs at bad wages are better than no jobs at all. By  Paul Krugman|Posted Friday, March 21, 1997, at 3:30 AM ET For many years a huge Manila garbage dump known as Smokey Mountain was a favorite media symbol of Third World poverty. Several thousand men, women, and children lived on that dump–enduring the stench, the flies, and the toxic waste in order to make a living combing the garbage for scrap metal and other recyclables. And they lived there voluntarily, because the $10 or so a squatter family could clear in a day was better than the alternatives. Advertisement The squatters are gone now, forcibly removed by Philippine police last year as a cosmetic move in advance of a Pacific Rim summit. But I found myself thinking about Smokey Mountain recently, after reading my latest batch of hate mail. The occasion was an op-ed piece I had written for theNew York Times, in which I had pointed out that while wages and working conditions in the new export industries of the Third World are appalling, they are a big improvement over the â€Å"previous, less visible rural poverty. I guess I should have expected that this comment would generate letters along the lines of, â€Å"Well, if you lose your comfortable position as an American professor you can always find another job–as long as you are 12 years old and willing to work for 40 cents an hour. † Such moral outrage is common among the opponents of globalization–of the transfer of technology and capital from high-wage to low-wage countries and the resulting growth of labor-intensive Third World exports. These critics take it as a given that anyone with a good word for this process is naive or corrupt and, in either case, a de facto agent of global capital in its oppression of workers here and abroad. But matters are not that simple, and the moral lines are not that clear. In fact, let me make a counter-accusation: The lofty moral tone of the opponents of globalization is possible only because they have chosen not to think their position through. While fat-cat capitalists might benefit from globalization, the biggest beneficiaries are, yes, Third World workers. After all, global poverty is not something recently invented for the benefit of multinational corporations. Let's turn the clock back to the Third World as it was only two decades ago (and still is, in many countries). In those days, although the rapid economic growth of a handful of small Asian nations had started to attract attention, developing countries like Indonesia or Bangladesh were still mainly what they had always been: exporters of raw materials, importers of manufactures. Inefficient manufacturing sectors served their domestic markets, sheltered behind import quotas, but generated few jobs. Meanwhile, population pressure pushed desperate peasants into cultivating ever more marginal land or seeking a livelihood in any way possible–such as homesteading on a mountain of garbage. Given this lack of other opportunities, you could hire workers in Jakarta or Manila for a pittance. But in the mid-'70s, cheap labor was not enough to allow a developing country to compete in world markets for manufactured goods. The entrenched advantages of advanced nations–their infrastructure and technical know-how, the vastly larger size of their markets and their proximity to suppliers of key components, their political stability and the subtle-but-crucial social adaptations that are necessary to operate an efficient economy–seemed to outweigh even a tenfold or twentyfold disparity in wage rates. A  nd then something changed. Some combination of factors that  we still don't fully understand–lower tariff barriers, improved telecommunications, cheaper air transport–reduced the disadvantages of producing in developing countries. (Other things being the same, it is still better to produce in the First World–stories of companies that moved production to Mexico or East Asia, then moved back after experiencing the disadvantages of the Third World environment, are common. In a substantial number of industries, low wages allowed developing countries to break into world markets. And so countries that had previously made a living selling jute or coffee started producing shirts and sneakers instead. Workers in those shirt and sneaker factories are, inevitably, paid very little and expected to endure terrible working conditions. I say â€Å"inevitably† because their employers are not in business for their (or their workers') health; they pay as little as po ssible, and that minimum is determined by the other opportunities available to workers. And these are still extremely poor countries, where living on a garbage heap is attractive compared with the alternatives. And yet, wherever the new export industries have grown, there has been measurable improvement in the lives of ordinary people. Partly this is because a growing industry must offer a somewhat higher wage than workers could get elsewhere in order to get them to move. More importantly, however, the growth of manufacturing–and of the penumbra of other jobs that the new export sector creates–has a ripple effect throughout the economy. The pressure on the land becomes less intense, so rural wages rise; the pool of unemployed urban dwellers always anxious for work shrinks, so factories start to compete with each other for workers, and urban wages also begin to rise. Where the process has gone on long enough–say, in South Korea or Taiwan–average wages start to approach what an American teen-ager can earn at McDonald's. And eventually people are no longer eager to live on garbage dumps. (Smokey Mountain persisted because the Philippines, until recently, did not share in the export-led growth of its neighbors. Jobs that pay better than scavenging are still few and far between. ) The benefits of export-led economic growth to the mass of people in the newly industrializing economies are not a matter of conjecture. A country like Indonesia is still so poor that progress can be measured in terms of how much the average person gets to eat; since 1970, per capita intake has risen from less than 2,100 to more than 2,800 calories a day. A shocking one-third of young children are still malnourished–but in 1975, the fraction was more than half. Similar improvements can be seen throughout the Pacific Rim, and even in places like Bangladesh. These improvements have not taken place because well-meaning people in the West have done anything to help–foreign aid, never large, has lately shrunk to virtually nothing. Nor is it the result of the benign policies of national governments, which are as callous and corrupt as ever. It is the indirect and unintended result of the actions of soulless multinationals and rapacious local entrepreneurs, whose only concern was to take advantage of the profit opportunities offered by cheap labor. It is not an edifying spectacle; but no matter how base the motives of those involved, the result has been to move hundreds of millions of people from abject poverty to something still awful but nonetheless significantly better. Why, then, the outrage of my correspondents? Why does the image of an Indonesian sewing sneakers for 60 cents an hour evoke so much more feeling than the image of another Indonesian earning the equivalent of 30 cents an hour trying to feed his family on a tiny plot of land–or of a Filipino scavenging on a garbage heap? The main answer, I think, is a sort of fastidiousness. Unlike the starving subsistence farmer, the women and children in the sneaker factory are working at slave wages  for our benefit–and this makes us feel unclean. And so there are self-righteous demands for international labor standards: We should not, the opponents of globalization insist, be willing to buy those sneakers and shirts unless the people who make them receive decent wages and work under decent conditions. This sounds only fair–but is it? Let's think through the consequences. First of all, even if we could assure the workers in Third World export industries of higher wages and better working conditions, this would do nothing for the peasants, day laborers, scavengers, and so on who make up the bulk of these countries' populations. At best, forcing developing countries to adhere to our labor standards would create a privileged labor aristocracy, leaving the poor majority no better off. And it might not even do that. The advantages of established First World industries are still formidable. The only reason developing countries have been able to compete with those industries is their ability to offer employers cheap labor. Deny them that ability, and you might well deny them the prospect of continuing industrial growth, even reverse the growth that has been achieved. And since export-oriented growth, for all its injustice, has been a huge boon for the workers in those nations, anything that curtails that growth is very much against their interests. A policy of good jobs in principle, but no jobs in practice, might assuage our consciences, but it is no favor to its alleged beneficiaries. You may say that the wretched of the earth should not be forced to serve as hewers of wood, drawers of water, and sewers of sneakers for the affluent. But what is the alternative? Should they be helped with foreign aid? Maybe–although the historical record of regions like southern Italy suggests that such aid has a tendency to promote perpetual dependence. Anyway, there isn't the slightest prospect of significant aid materializing. Should their own governments provide more social justice? Of course–but they won't, or at least not because we tell them to. And as long as you have no realistic alternative to industrialization based on low wages, to oppose it means that you are willing to deny desperately poor people the best chance they have of progress for the sake of what amounts to an aesthetic standard–that is, the fact that you don't like the idea of workers being paid a pittance to supply rich Westerners with fashion items. In short, my correspondents are not entitled to their self-righteousness. They have not thought the matter through. And when the hopes of hundreds of millions are at stake, thinking things through is not just good intellectual practice. It is a moral duty