Implications for Social Wellness and Development

I chose this article because it was very interesting to me. When you are growing out of adolescence into adulthood, you never think of the psychology that is involved in your growing. You don’t think about how and what influences the person you are becoming or the person that you want to be when you reach adulthood. During this stage of social development, you learn more about what you like, how you love and the actual wellness that you are working toward. Most people will never think of this, they think that life is life and that you are just supposed to live it. They have no idea of the development and the consequences that could come from poor judgment. I know that I never thought of this and it took me until I was 23 years old to figure out what I wanted out of my life because before that I just coasted through it carelessly, never worrying about the consequences. The major problem with this is that when an adolescent graduates high school, most of them move out of their parents’ home and into their own apartment or into a dorm. There, they basically have no rules and don’t have to worry about the consequences of their actions. If I had to write a research paper on this subject, I would definitely use this article. There is so much information throughout; there are even diagrams and illustrations. I found the diagram The Indivisible Self: An Evidence-Based Model of Wellness very informative and interesting. There was also the purpose of study and hypothesis where there were five hypotheses, the method and the instruments used to conduct this study. The subscales were very informative as well. The results and the discussion were also very stimulating. I find that psychology is a very complex study that requires much critical thinking but I am loving this subject. You learn so much about yourself and everyone around you.

The Impact of Instant Messaging in the Financial Services Industry: Benefits, Challenges and Recommendations

January 2009 Executive Summary Unfortunately, while Instant Messaging (IM) systems have the ability to change the way financial service companies interact for the better, many of today’s implementations pose problems and challenges to address. IM technology has the benefits of gathering input from many different people in dispersed locations. This adds speed and ease to workplace communication, and presence detection eliminates the time typically lost to missed telephone calls and wasted trips to see colleagues. Speed and efficiency are increased from knowing the status of financial transactions in real-time. A main challenge in financial compliance is the regulatory financial framework, which forces financial service companies to archive IM conversations. Poor management in security and retention controls increases the legal risk and personal accountability to corporate officers. Consumer-grade IM has potential for security breach and the leak of corporate data which can be particularly devastating to financial service companies. IM is widely used to distribute research, negotiate prices, execute orders, and stay in touch with clients and colleagues. It provides a direct mode of communication with co-workers, clients and other broker-dealers that enables far closer and more personal relationships. Imposing an IM ban could result in the loss of clients and valuable employees to competitors who are more tolerant of the use of IM in the financial markets. Key recommendations include: Installing an enterprise-grade IM system for all employees in the firm. The addition of consumer-grade IM for client facing employees to keep client loyalty. Educating employees on a company IM policy including regulatory guidelines and using IM for personal use. Enforcing rules through software that monitors and records IM conversations, and also through disciplinary action. Forming a management team to coordinate a strategic IM plan that meets all regulatory and legal needs and effectively solves the challenges and problems discussed. Continuously investing in new technology, updating IM policy, and educating employees to meet long-term regulatory and security requirements, and issues regarding the future direction of the firm. Introduction Instant Messaging (IM) was the first mass based communication application rolled out by users, rather than management who saw immediate business value in this new form of communication. Financial Industry and Government regulators have clarified IM as a form of real-time written correspondence that creates a business record. This paper seeks to explain the risks and problems IM brings to the financial services industry and challenges for management, such as determining the effect on employee productivity. This paper reviews the benefits IM brings to the financial services industry, in the form of improved communication, collaboration, efficiency, monetary benefits and information archiving. It also discusses the problems and challenges that management should be aware as well as the impact on the business, and makes recommendations for addressing these issues and achieving benefits for financial service companies. The Potential Benefits that can be gained from IM Enhanced collaboration There are many arguments for the use of IM as a communications tool in the business environment, including improved brainstorming capabilities and the ability to multitask. Many workers today use the telephone and IM simultaneously, so they can chat with each other privately while, for example, on a group call to a client. Ellen Isaacs (2005), reports that â€Å"users like that they could respond to quick IM questions from co-workers while engaged in another task, such as talking on the telephone, or processing documents or email. Studies note the ability to multitask is a major benefit of IM in the workplace. Current theory emphasises the value of informal social interactions for exchanging information, collaborating, and initiating spontaneous interactions (Cross & Parker, 2004). IM suggests that systems that depict social cues facilitate information and social interactions, enhancing performance. Over time, people develop comfortable working relationships through prior collaborat ion and through socialising. IM has proven its overwhelming value when it comes to gathering input from many different people in dispersed locations. For example, in financial trading, UBS has created over 5,000 group channels around certain topics like foreign exchange, equities and fixed income. Pritchard (2006) reports that if something's happening in European equities, or in foreign exchange, someone can put it on the chat line and other traders can see it instantly. Improved efficiency Processes that were once agonizingly slow and inclined toward misunderstanding and errors can now be accomplished in record time. Handel (2002) reports how this has led to increased popularity among workers because it adds speed and ease to workplace communication, and eliminates the time typically lost to missed telephone calls and wasted trips to the office of a co-worker who is absent or otherwise occupied. It is clear that IM can be an efficient, thought-provoking communications tool, not only within the office but as a bridge between geographically dispersed locations. Jim Craige (2006) at UBS Investment Bank explains how in fixed income trading, having a secure connection to a network of dealers with whom he's in constant contact lets him take care of business faster, as â€Å"it drastically cuts down on the time it takes† to know the status of transactions. Improved communication IM differs from email, primarily in that its focus is on the immediate delivery of messages. Many also acknowledge the tool as less intrusive and a time saver when compared to the telephone due to the ability to detect the presence of other users. Users can set status messages telling others whether they are available or not, which adds to IM’s value as a skilful means of communication. There is often some type of icon next to the name of their buddy to determine how long the person has been online, and if they are actively messaging or â€Å"away† from their desk. From the author’s experience, this saves on making unnecessary phone calls if you can see that the person you want to speak to is not at their desk. It can be decided whether to contact the person later or send an email, voicemail, or other message that the recipient can respond to later. In other instances, help consists of referrals to others who can provide answers or help solve problems. UBS formed a help desk channel for IT where employees could input trouble tickets (a specific IT problem) through a chat system and then receive real-time feedback on the status of their ticket. IM offers a way to quickly resolve questions and issues as they arise. Cost Benefits IM has proven return on investment benefits in certain situations, such as conferencing. Group members can be conferenced in to a conversation from around the world, which saves on long distance calls and travel expenses. Diseconomies of scale in distance can be solved through IM, due to increased collaboration and the cut in communication costs (Cameron & Webster, 2004. ) According to Saeedi (2005), Morgan Stanley saves $18 million annually by relying more heavily on IM than phone calls, plus another $98 million per year in trimmed travel costs, as there is diminished need for face-to-face meetings. Many analysts see IM as stimulating positive change in organizations because of its rapid diffusion, diminishing costs, and ease of use (Jones, 1998). Information Archiving Archiving IM meetings and conversations has become an essential business process for financial companies, since IM users don’t generally just chat, but they also exchange documents, contracts, trade details and other financial information. Starner, T. (2004) says how â€Å"Instant messages are business records, just as e-mails are business records. † This enables employees to go back and review crucial information (they may have forgotten) that is needed for themselves or that is requested from them. Financial institutions are wary because of regulations where in some areas such as trading they cannot use instant messaging without logging and archiving them. There is also scope for managers to review IM conversations and therefore ensure productivity is not being compromised by personal IM use, and that disclosure and industry regulations are being followed. The challenges and problems with the implementation of IM Compliance Compliance regulations, such as Sarbanes-Oxley, have forced companies to archive IM conversations. This is because an IM conversation is still regarded as a sort of document. Sarbanes-Oxley regulation requires an annual evaluation of internal controls and procedures for financial reporting, as well an assessment for the effectiveness of these controls. As IM is involved in this process, these communications need to be logged, archived and available upon request. Many IT units are having difficulty managing several IM systems installed without their knowledge that are used for both personal and important business communications. For example, Thomas Weisel Partners LLC in San Francisco tried to shut down the use of America Online Inc. ‘s Instant Messenger, Microsoft Corp. s MSN Messenger and Yahoo Inc. ‘s Yahoo Messenger after the 11th September terrorist attacks. However, due to resistance from users, the company was forced to adopt monitoring software instead. Managers are in agreement that in financial services, client facing employee’s need the more popular systems to communicate with customers, so efforts to implement a standard IM p roduct rarely work. Beth Cannon, a former Chief Information Officer at a brokerage explains that â€Å"it comes down to some of our institutional customers who required IM as the method to communicate with them. When a client insists on using a specific consumer-grade IM and management who choose to shut it down, they create the possibility of losing that client. However, if they keep it then they open up the company to risks, as well as additional costs in monitoring, archiving and enforcing policy on the technology. The problem of resistance to the removal of the multiple IM systems can be circumvented to a large degree through the use of monitoring software. More vendors of all sizes, such as Stellar Technologies Inc. are scrambling to build robust tools to monitor IM for financial firms, which must meet new government regulations requiring that electronic conversations be monitored and recorded. When organisations implement information management solutions, they must ensure ade quate management controls. Grace Financial report that their administrative tools are great for inputting problematic key words and reviewing highlighted logs. On the other hand, they also report that they have had limited, if any, issues with misuse – just increased software costs. However, they find that it has come in most useful for reviewing conversations where there is a problem with a client order. There is a significantly increased legal and security risk from lack of user management, security and records retention controls for employee use of instant messaging technologies. Following the lead taken by the New York Attorney General, the SEC (Securities Exchange Commission) has already issued some multimillion dollar fines for non-compliance of regulation (Ministries, J. 2002). In May 2002 Merrill Lynch agreed to pay a $100mm penalty resulting from hyping stocks that internal communications revealed that they knew to be bad. However as part of the settlement Merrill Lynch set up a proper system for logging and monitoring IM. With IM becoming such a popular communications tool, it's reasonable to assume that conversations conducted will, at some point, contain information that is company confidential. Therefore an IM system is needed that provides security for messages as they are transmitted, even if all such transmissions will be within the company’s own network. Goldman Sachs has spent considerable financing on ‘Bond. Hub’ which delivers secure messaging beyond firewalls of new fixed-income product issues. This new software could only be implemented with complete security as they wish to protect their extremely valuable client list. The security of ‘Bond. Hub’ has kept control with the dealers and protects access to the high-value content. The right solution of IM security will depend largely on the value of the data, and the company’s view of risk. Unmonitored, uncontrolled consumer-grade IM, such as Yahoo Messenger and MSN Messenger are essentially open channels between corporate networks and the outside world. This involves an amount of risk that most business leaders are unwilling to accept. â€Å"Instant messaging could be fine between two companies if the data being exchanged is very insensitive,† says Miles Clements, a project manager at an Information Security Foundation. â€Å"But a trader should not be able to use IM to trade with another bank. † It is argues by security experts that free consumer chat programs can tear gaping holes in security efforts. This is mainly because consumer-grade IM allows unlimited numbers of people to connect directly to a corporate network. † This was made evident in a case that occurred at the beginning of 2001, where a hacker stole logs from an instant messaging client belonging to the CEO for a company called eFront which specialises in financial services software. The hacker posted the logs to several places on the Web, thereby creating one of the worst possible corporate nightmares. These logs included sensitive company data regarding business partners, employees and affiliate websites. After the posting of the logs, several members of the senior staff for eFront resigned. There are reports already of cybercriminals and hackers exploiting the growing popularity of IM by using it to introduce viruses or other malicious software into financial firms. The Vice President of a top investment bank had his computer infected by a virus and found that his entire ‘buddy’ list had been sent a record of all his IM conversations. He was fired because of negative comments he'd made about his colleagues in what he thought were private IM conversations. Obviously, for the firm in question the logs leaked several confidential facts that were hurtful to the company’s reputation and future business deals. In spite of this, virus attacks are not yet frequent on IM applications, but the latest threat is likely to send worry in to the mind of IM users and the financial service firms that employee them. IT departments need to take a strong lead on securing IM through many different approaches. However, an outright ban on running IM software is unlikely to succeed or risks damaging productivity by closing down a useful communications channel. It seems that financial companies need to act to assess the state of IM use within their organizations and put into place the necessary measures to make sure their IM use does not run afoul the compliance requirements and vital security needs of the financial services industry. From the author’s own experience at Morgan Stanley, employees have to view and learn several materials and then take a test on the dangers of IM, in order to educate users on correct use and also place more legal obligation on the employee and take it away from the company. Employees can frequently disclose information when they are conducting several different IM conversations at once, and accidentally send a message to the wrong person. Inside information, prospecting information etc. can be leaked in these ways fairly easily, with no malevolent intention on the part of employees. This author has experienced the simplicity of replying in the wrong IM conversation when several conversations windows are open. The leak of valuable corporate data can be particularly devastating for financial service companies. Computer experts have warned that a lot of leaks are actually intentional and that financial service professionals are increasingly using untraceable electronic instant messaging systems to communicate sensitive information secretly. The Financial Services Authority said there had been concerns about instant messaging for some months. However, the City watchdog said its existing rules covering conflicts of interest were sufficient to cover such new forms of communication as IM. In the US, securities regulators have cracked down on the use of instant messaging, when the National Association of Securities Dealers told its members they must save instant messages for three years or restrict employees in using the technology. There is the impression that some companies have banned the use of IM technology. On the other hand, Mr. Palmer of Kroll Ontrack, said it was reasonably easy to place a device on a computer server to divert the messages and search for information. If IM technology is to be allowed then employees need to be advised of its use, due to the interception of private information. There is a mixed view on IM security; however there are solutions to plugging leaks and enforcing policy to keep employees in line with company policy. Productivity Instant Messaging can be a productivity-enhancing tool for efficient financial communications with co-workers, clients, customers, vendors, and the like. Although, Nehra (2005) explains that various reports describe how productivity may be adversely affected by employee abuse or overindulgence in personal instant messaging communications. This presents the major challenge with implementing IM technology into the workplace. One thing that has kept deployment of instant messaging at investment banks a low priority among business managers is the perception that it can distract workers from more critical tasks, says Kim Cross, a VP at Morgan Stanley Investment Management. Many financial companies believe instant messaging detracts from employee productivity and introduces new temptations to converse with others beyond their job duties. From the author’s experience at Morgan Stanley, IM offers the opportunity to converse quickly and continuously with friends in a secret manner that the telephone does not allow and this can decrease productivity significantly. However, a study by the Radicati Group looked at the time it took employees to complete two typical daily tasks—both with and without IM—and found that companies could save an average of 40 minutes a day per user with IM. They estimated that a financial services organisation with 5,000 people could see a $37. 5 million a year savings in productivity. Limitations and communication consequences are a definite cause for concern when implementing a new IM system. Possible decreased worker productivity, a lack of direct communication among colleagues, and misinterpretations can be common place when using instant messaging. Additionally, IM does not give the same personal verbal delivery that direct communication gives. From the author’s experience at Morgan Stanley, IM does not always give the same authority or conviction that a ‘real’ conversation over the telephone permits and so may not make clear enough the importance of particular requests. Although IM may have been initially frowned upon, some managers look at this communication as team building â€Å"because it enables peers to bond and form stronger working relationships. † (Robbo, R). However not all sources concur. Shiu, E. (2004), suggests that in fact, 32% of those individuals who use IM in the office acknowledge that IM can encourage workplace gossip, and 29% note that IM has been a distraction at some point in the past. These extensive risks still do not change the opinion of most executives, who are in agreement, that blocking IM entirely is not an option. The question is how to bring out the benefits of consumer IM while ensuring it is properly managed, secure and compliant. The impact of IM when implemented in financial service organisations The primary reason that IM has been such a success in the business environment is that its benefits, even when weighed against the risks, are both immediate and tangible. Industry-wide effects Centrally managed IM deployments have just begun to take hold in business, says Aberdeen Group analyst Dana Gardner. The rapid increase in the adoption of IM is linked to the fact that recent university graduates have developed a strong affinity for IM. Although there is a strong concern over the security of consumer-grade IM, managers have to accept that IM is a preferred communication technique of young employees. Clients want to use IM and so employers have to set-up and integrate IM in to their firm’s communication network. The clients of broker-dealers will also deal with their competitors, and they don't want systems that only allow them to deal with one company so firms need to meet the IM requirements of clients. Top investment banks now share directories to create an open messaging environment for broker-dealers to communicate with each other and to customers. It even opens up the ability for customers to communicate with other customers. Barriers in the industry have come down as customer and broker-dealers are commingling in one giant address book. IM provides a direct mode of communication with co-workers, customers and vendors that enables far closer and more personal relationships than is available in virtually every other means of electronic communications. This could have the negative effect on the industry of making information more transparent and therefore increase price transparency and negatively affect profit. On the other hand, the increase in real-time communication links to other broker-dealers and clients could mean a larger more liquid market. Performance of employees Business IM allows employees to be more efficient in their work output. Data shows that IM users engage in multi-tasking at a rate considerably higher than non-IM users. In a recent survey, 91% of IM users reported that while participating in IM sessions they also perform additional tasks either most or all of the time (Haskin, D. 2004). However it can be argued that users tend to chat often, setting aside legitimate business tasks in the process. Some employees find it hard to concentrate when messages are continually popping up on screen. If the user has their presence detection on, then colleagues and clients will believe that their message has been received and read, therefore attention needs to be given to each instant message. This could mean an overload of information for the user, continually distracting them from their primary tasks and therefore decrease their performance. However, the more successful employees could use the multitasking capability of IM to take on even more work, and show up the less successful employees. This in turn could create the effect of preventing those less successful employees from wasting time using IM for personal use. The multitude of information sources that broker-dealers have competing for their attention could definitely result in a negative impact on performance, as incoming messages add to the pile of e-mail, news summaries, and other data that competes for the users productive time. Therefore management needs to maintain whether some users perhaps require IM and others do not, and if they do, to enforce rules and policies to battle the challenge of productivity. This policy along with many other things, would need to drive home this point that the organisation provides IM to boost business productivity, not as a diversion from work. It needs to be instilled into employee’s that policy will be enforced to coerce users from personal IM use. Given the chatty nature of IM, some would argue that it is bound to have a negative impact on performance, as employees chat about personal matters throughout the workday. Although personal chat with other employees throughout the day could help forge more inter-firm relationships, and this ollaboration could have a positive impact on overall company performance as more and more employees in different teams are being brought together. Therefore the firm needs to find a way to manage this balance between business and personal conversations. This seems unlikely to be controlled to a large extent and so a large amount of trust will be left with the employee. Internal and External Relationships IM appeal s to broker-dealers because they feel that IM delivers a necessary advantage that e-mail and the telephone cannot match, which is speed. They believe that they will not get clients if they do not use the technology. Banning IM seems a possible solution to the risks of IM, however it may not be so easy to enforce. Many broker-dealers facing the financial markets, where seconds make the difference between profit and loss, may be reluctant to part with consumer-grade IM. The impact of banning consumer-grade IM across the board may trigger a revolt among employees and the clients they are in regular IM contact with. Therefore imposing an IM ban could result in the loss of valuable employees to competitors who are more tolerant of the use of IM in the financial markets. As discussed in the previous section, personal use of IM can be used to help forge relationships with colleagues. These same personal conversations can be transferred to those employees who are client facing and used as ‘business’ conversations in order to build and maintain relationships with clients. The fact that IM conversations can be left open so that brokers can maintain an on and off dialogue throughout the day with their client adds significant value. Previously a broker could not call up a client to, for example, make a flippant remark on current news but this can now take a few seconds to write it in an open IM window and their client could view this while multitasking. This casual dialogue can help maintain client loyalty with is the crux of sales in the financial services industry. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of employees believe that the use of IM within their organisation improves productivity, external relationships, and their efficiency. More significantly, however, is that even business managers and IT personnel who are aware of the risks posed by IM, overwhelmingly favour its use noting that the added â€Å"real† business performance more than offsets the potential risks. Management Recommendations Managing the problems and challenges associated with implementing IM This author recommends a dual approach in response to the challenge of the multitude of IM programmes in the company. Primarily, installing an enterprise-grade IM system (an internal instant messaging system where messages can be encrypted) for all employees. Then employees can be allowed to communicate confidential information internally, but only in the guidelines of the company’s written policy. The second approach is to allow client-facing employees consumer-grade IM who insist they need it to keep client loyalty, even though consumer IM tools travel across the public Internet (not encrypted). Monitoring and security can then be focused more on these employee’s who potentially open the organisation to security breaches such as eavesdropping, accidental confidential information loss, and also the risk of intentional information leaks. This can be further facilitated by the installation of content filters to capture messages that use potentially problematic words like â€Å"rumour†. Then these IM conversations can be reviewed to ensure that neither laws nor corporate policies are broken. Achieving the business benefits of IM Instant messaging use is recommended to communicate instantaneously with other brokers, dealers, clients and other third parties so that client loyalty is increased through immediate responses and colleagues can get answers from client questions in real time. IM should be used as a less intrusive method of avoiding tasks, as a broker can use IM simultaneously with chatting on the phone and e-mailing. IM presence detection should be used so that it is possible to see whether clients are online and open to chat and brokers can determine whether they are available to incoming IM transmissions. This can be reflected through IM settings such as â€Å"away† and â€Å"in a meeting† which lets the user know that the instant message may be read or acted upon. In addition managers can quickly see who is online at the office at any given time. Employees can also be strategic in the way they contact their colleagues by first checking they are online before, for example, calling them. IM should be used to avoid the cost of travel and group conference calls through multiple people joining in on real-time IM conversations. Also whilst travelling, employees can engage in IM conversations with clients and colleagues to facilitate the efficiency of information flow. All conversations should be logged for at least three years due to compliance so that after the instant message vanishes, after it is read, and its window closes, employees can go through archiving and find the message again if they did not note important information from the conversation that they need. Further to this archiving should take place to meet industry regulations and as possible evidence to future litigation. Controlling the transition and longer term issues Once the extent of employee’s IM use is identified, the transition should be controlled through developing a strategic IM management plan. A team should be formed, comprising of risk management, compliance and litigation in order to structure a companywide policy so the firm meets finance regulations, and information security needs. Senior Management should lead the IM management controls through bridging the gap between problems and recommending effective tools to manage those risks, such as retention and archiving tools as previously discussed. New financial regulations would need to be adhered to in existing business activity and also reviewed in new financial markets. Therefore future investment in new technology is vital to help maintain IM use and abuse. The firm will need to develop effective, accessible IM tools to meet future needs of broker-dealers who rely on IM for internal and external communication. Employees need to be trained and kept up to date with regulatory guidelines and retention rules. Long-term issues of security will need to be constantly addressed. Those employees who are using consumer-grade IM offer the constant possibility of data theft and electronic eavesdropping. IM needs to be constantly updated with the latest antivirus software to protect from viruses and other threatening security breaches that might be able to penetrate the firms firewall. Finally, if the direction or structure of the firm changes then IM policy must be changed to meet this. References Electronic journals Mearian, L. (2004) IM Spread Causing Management Headaches. Computerworld. [online] 38(49), 7. Available from: http://proquest. umi. com/pqdweb? index=35=759250251=1& sid=6=3=PROD=PQD=309=PQD=1231380861=5238 [Accessed 4 January 2009] Cameron, A. F. & Webster, J. (2004) Unintended consequences of emerging communication technologies: Instant Messaging in the workplace. Computers in Human Behavior [online] 12, 143-160. Available from: http://www. citeulike. org/user/boosda/article/2722853 [Accessed 4 January 2009] Schmerken, I. (2001) Parlano to extend real-time collaboration to mobile finance users. Wall Street & Technology. [online]. 19(4) 54. Available from: http://proquest. umi. com/pqdweb? index=0=70505919=1=5=4=PROD=PQD=309=PQD=1231380676=5238 [Accessed 4 January 2009] To, Pui-Lai. et al. (2008) An empirical investigation of the factors affecting the adoption of Instant Messaging in organizations. Computer Standards & Interfaces [online]. 30(3) 148-156. Available from: http://www. sciencedirect. com/science? _ob=ArticleURL=B6TYV-4PJM9MP1=122878=03%2F31%2F2008=1==search=d=c=C000010119=1=0=122878=081247999793b8e298770009727d9918 [Accessed 17 November 2008] World Wide Web Isaacs, E. et al. (2005) The Character, Functions and Styles of Instant Messaging in the Workplace [online]. Available from: http://www. ics. uci. edu/~jpd/classes/ics105s03/readings/isaacs-character-function-cscw02. pdf [Accessed 10 December 2008]. Bird, D. (2003) Choosing an Instant Messaging System [online]. Available from: http://www. instantmessagingplanet. com/enterprise/article. php/11208_2236051_3 [Accessed 15 December 2008]. Nehra. (2005) Instant Messaging In The Office: What To Know and Do About It [online]. Available from: http://bostonworks. boston. com/nehra/112805. shtml [accessed 29 January 2007]. Shapiro, D. (2004) Instant messaging and compliance issues: What you need to know [online]. CTO. Available from: http://searchcio. techtarget. com/news/article/0,289142,sid182_gci967281,00. html [Accessed 05 January 2008]. Shiu, E. et al. (2004) How Americans Use Instant Messaging [online] Available from:

Comparing Blue Remembered Hills with High School Musical 2

In this essay I'm going to compare two total different plays that are set in a different period of time. I'm going to compare my scripted piece called â€Å"Blue Remembered Hills† written by Dennis Potter and set in the year of 1979 which I preformed for my drama exam and can be seen as a comedy and a tragedy play. The other play I'm going to compare it to is called â€Å"High School Musical 2† directed by Kenny Ortega and set in the year 2007 and can be seen as a comedy and romantic. The play â€Å"Blue Remembered Hills† is about a group of seven year olds playing in the Forest of Dean during a summer afternoon called ‘Willie' , ‘Peter', ‘John', ‘Raymond', ‘Angela', ‘Audrey' and ‘Donald' whilst parts of the ‘Second World War' were happening. This play shows how victimisation and stereotypical views occur even in young children, and ends abruptly when the character of ‘Donald' is burned to death due to an outcome of the other children's actions. However, the most striking feature of this play is that though the characters were young children they were played by adult actors and actresses. The play starts and the first character we are introduced to is Willie eating an apple and pretending to be a pilot a war plane, when pretends he's parachuting from a tree. Once done after arguing over an apple, in which a way Peter acts how a hard bully should be, they gradually spot a squirrel and chase it. Meanwhile in a nearby farm we are introduced to Donald who is playing with Angela and Audrey. We notice and learn how vulnerable Donald is as she suffers some teasing from Audrey and Angela after their fantasy game of mummies and daddies. I'm going to compare this with â€Å"High School Musical 2† which is about a group of teenagers called ‘Troy', ‘Gabriella', ‘Sharpay', ‘Ryan', ‘Chad' and ‘Taylor' who attend East High Wildcats as they think about their plans over summer break from school. Sharpay and Ryan (who are brother and sister) are planning as usual to spend their summer vacation holiday at their families ‘Lava Springs Country Club'. Whilst Troy tried to get a job and gets most of the East High students employed at the country club. Only for Sharpay being the mean girl she is, trying to get the manager ‘Mr. Fulton' to fire them. Throughout the play we begin to see songs being sang from the students at East High, including ‘What Time is it', ‘Everyday' and ‘All for One' which is the last song we hear. With both plays being set from a total different time period, these plays are completely different along with the characters. Sharpay can be compared to Angela who likes to think she is in charge of everything and everyone. They both think of themselves as if they are the â€Å"top dogs† around their friends and like to control people and what says must definitely go. Although the character Gabriella is some sort of a laid back girl who is in between Troy and Sharpay, with Sharpay trying to take Troy off her and can be similar to Audrey from ‘Blue Remembered Hills ‘. But Gabriella and Sharpay are not friends and never really talk to each other unlike Audrey and Angela. ‘Blue Remembered Hills' and ‘High School Musical 2' are not alike in anyway, as their are songs being sung by the characters and there is nothing like that in ‘Blue Remembered Hills'. The times these plays were aired were very different in addition to the society. High School Musical 2†² with it being American were long out of the war and now that America is suppose to be one of the richest countries in the world, there were no great depression, everyone was wealthy and that America had everything going for itself. But as we look at ‘Blue Remembered Hills' it's a lot different. As this was set in England with children living in the English country-open-side who were evacuees from the ‘Second World War' so times were hard when living at this current time period. There were shortage of money income of jobs; children were ‘dragged' up instead of being brought up the correct way only wearing nothing but dirty and stinky rags. Also another problems was shortage of money so young children were unable to have fun with toys etc. Young children had to find environment child-friendly things to make with such as twigs for pretend guns. Although, with the amount of soldiers were getting injured from the war, healthcare at this current time was quite minimal, due to government spending the money to help the wounded and injured from the war. But in the time ‘High School Musical 2' was set, just one year ago, healthcare was fantastic for every American citizens and provided to comfort the patients life-style whilst in hospital. The story about ‘High School Musical 2' is all about a group of teenagers who go off to do summer jobs at Sharpay's & Ryan's country club and Troy forget he used to be whilst his girlfriend, Gabriella and best friend, Chad and others out of the group said he's changed and not the lad he used to be. But by the end of the play, it seems Troy has realised where is priorities are laid and becomes him old self with all the group coming together as one, with the most unexpected character, Sharpay, by Troy taking Sharpay's hand whilst doing a sound called ‘Everyday' and taking her up on stage with the rest of the East High and you could see there were a connection of love and friendship. However, there are a lot of songs used throughout the story with significant characters almost singing a song that shows their feelings and emotions. Compared to ‘Blue Remembered Hills' where that this is all about a group of kids, once again that can be compared with ‘High School Musical 2', but in this case they are older actors playing young youth children during the near-end ‘Second World War'. But by the end of the play â€Å"the killing of the squirrel from Angela and Audrey baiting of the character of Donald have just been rehearsals for a much more horrific persecution at the end of the play†. Donald Duck eventually dies. So ‘Blue Remembered Hills' compared to ‘High School Musical 2' have both finished in a completely different way. As ‘Blue Remembered Hills' never ended in the way with love and friendship and songs unlike ‘High School Musical 2'. ‘High School Musical 2†² is indeed a musical performance, in some sense it can be seen as a comedy and romantic as stated before. The characters have a tendency to lose themselves and become someone they're not. But when we look at' Blue Remembered Hills' this is very different due to the fact of the timing when the ‘Second World War' took place and the characters aren't teenagers, their children. Also ‘High School Musical 2' was originally written for Disney, but because it was such a franchise it was turned into a play, as ‘Blue Remembered Hills' was just written for television. These both plays are very diverse and dissimilar from each other.

The article should be timely and address an economic issue of current Research Paper

The article should be timely and address an economic issue of current interest to Wall Street Journal readers - Research Paper Example There ought to be a clear comprehension to retain profitability as the economy is recuperating from global depression. Due to the inconsistencies and stalled activities caused in its operations, Boeing may certainly lose its credibility in the international market if it jets out of the industry. Gaining ground in terms of positioning and retargeting will be a daunting task to sort out or achieve. For example, the directive from the Federal Aviation Administration in the US to ground operations of the Company’s series due to the accident after an emergency landing in Japan would have an economical impact not only to the Company but also the entire US economy that derives part of its breath from the Company’s operations (Jane). These events will cause a wound into the country’s economy and may suffer dangerous blows in its economic standing thus should get a swift address to prevent more damage to the already improving status. More and more customers would lack value and morale they had in the Company that was once reliable and effective to rely on. The crippled loyalty will ultimately direct potential passengers to the competitors hence leading to huge losses of revenue. This is seen as the resultant effects due to the fact that the economy of US generates most of its revenue from the aerospace as well as the automobile industry hence hurting the economy to this magnitude would trickle down in effect to affect even more industries that may be dependent on Boeing (Jeri). Arguably, the global confidence could be seriously hit by the bad series of happenings of the company including, and not limited to, fuel leakages, faults in computers and frequent fires. These, if not checked, would plunge the enti re airline into misery for which revitalizing would require abundance of resources to restore life and guarantee the economic

Therepresentationofblackfemalesexualityinpopularmusic Essay

Therepresentationofblackfemalesexualityinpopularmusic - Essay Example This will be achieved by first having discussing the images got from the popular music about these women as well as the contradictions that exist. In other words, the popular music shows how Black women are portrayed sexually in their daily lives within the popular music industry. Most Black women in the are represented and grounded in the popular culture through ideologies that surround the Black womanhood in the American society (Emerson, 115). These ideologies can be said to be the images that at most times reflect the degree in which Black women are marginalized (Emerson, 115). The media as well as the popular culture have been the sites for such ideologies on Black womanhood. For example, there are music videos that have received sharp criticism because their content was objective and exploitative in the manner they depicted women of all races and ethnicities. In other words, they have represent Black women according to images like hyper sexualized ‘hot mama’, ‘jezebel’, ‘the asexual’ and ‘the welfare recipient’. Apart from the representations drawn from the controlling images, the performances staged by Black women in popular culture also bear representations that counter the ideologies held on Black womanhood (Emerson, 117). Therefore, popular and expressive culture exists as a site to help resist such ideologies and representations (Emerson, 117). For example, performances staged by Bessie Smith and Ethel Waters showed how assertive they were in their empowerment and sexual subjectivity (Emerson, 117). Most videos done by Black women show how gender has been constrained and limited the independence of Black women (Emerson, 117). The context under which these videos were produced is shown in the images they portray. They are actually made porous by the controlling images that stereotype the Black woman (Mayhew, 64). This in the end brings about different stereotypes.

Synthesis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Synthesis - Essay Example However, she dislikes the criticisms from the judges. On the other hand, Amy Tan dislikes the use of ‘broken’ and says that it shows negativity. Although she uses this word to describe her mother’s language, she dislikes it and says she is looking for a better one to use. To her, ‘broken’ cannot be used in a good way unlike for Nancy, who sees it as good sometimes. There is a common ground on diversity as both writers highly value it and are happy that it is seen. The engaging of Indian woman in ANTM and having black plus size models in the contests is a good thing to Nancy. Amy wants more Asian Americans and Chinese people to engage in writing and not just concentrate in medicine and engineering fields. She argues that joining the writing field with her ‘broken’ English cuts all odds. Despite her teacher saying that writing is not something she could do, she went ahead and proved him wrong. The way her mother was treated in restaurants shows that people do not take their time to understand other people with different cultures. Consequently, this emphasizes the need to embrace cultural diversity (Franklin). Diversity is a show of variety in people’s culture, behavior and style. According to Nancy Franklin, America’s Next Top Model has more diversity among contestants’ than other reality shows. People from different cultures participate in the contest: for instance, an Indian woman in one of the cycles really set a stepping stone to others since not many Indians are found in this field. Indian women show them that being engineers or doctors is not the only career they can take. It also has plus size models and several blacks who made it to the semi-finals. Banks embraces diversity in all sectors which is so evident. This plays a great role in helping women love their bodies, thus boosting self-esteem. Banks starts ANTM to look for a girl who has diversity, can do many different things, pass different challenges and can fit in different

Post operative pain assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Post operative pain assessment - Essay Example The scale of the problem can be analyzed through a large number of clinical studies which have proved that patients often experience poor pain management and assessment by the medical professionals. Although the percentage of patients who complain about post-operative pain is low but the overall situation presents significant concerns. In the recent years medical professionals have tried to use technology based pain assessment techniques but the results do not show any significant improvement from patient’s perspective (Mackintosh). The paper is divided in different sections including tools, communication, training, patient education and recommendations. All of these will be discussed critically with the help of contemporary healthcare practices. There is a wide range of standardized post-operative pain assessment tools which are used by nurses. These can be distinguished in to two fundamental categories including uni-dimensional and multi-dimensional. Research indicates that multi-dimensional tools are rarely used in the post-operative pain assessment especially within the clinical setting. This is because they consume significant time while being highly complex in nature. Hence the most commonly used tools for pain management and assessment are uni-dimensional. The distinctive feature of these tools is that they focus on one or two major aspects of pain experienced by patients, for instance, they are usually used for reducing the pain intensity with respect to its location (Mackintosh). Fundamentally patients are required to mark the pain location on a body diagram which is then used by nurses. Despite of various benefits attached to the use of uni-dimensional pain assessment tools one must use them with precautions because they are specially targeted to reduce certain aspects of pain. Extensive precautions are also necessary because uni-dimensional

Advanced Financial Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Advanced Financial Management - Essay Example Dividend Policy derived from the type of capital structure chosen by the company also affects the value of the company’s stock to a great extent that in turn may enhance the company’s bottom line. For this paper, the financial & investment strategies of The Walt Disney Company will be discussed in order to understand financial blueprints taken by the company from time to time & its effects on the company. Walt Disney is the second largest mass media company in the world with headquarter in California, United States. The common stocks of Disney are traded on New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with a ticker symbol of DIS. As per the records, last time the company had paid dividend was on 16th of January, 2013 to all its shareholders. In the last financial year of 2013-14, the company has shown substantial financial improvement in terms of return on investment & shareholders, subsidiaries & joint ventures’ perspective. The company ranks 17th on Forbes in the list of most valuable brands with as low as 3% default risk as compared to their peer companies. In July, 2014 the US dollar bonds issued by the company were heavily traded as corporate fixed rate bonds near the best value. As a result of an exceptional trading volume of $ 28.9 million on 11th & 14th of July, 2014, Walt Disney became 16th most actively traded corporate bond issuer in the current financial year of 2014-2015 (Verma , 2012). The capital structure shows how a firm can finance its overall operations through optimum utilization of their sources of funds. Main sources of funds can be classified under Debt & Equity. Equity includes common stock, retained earnings & preferred stocks whereas debt includes bonds & bills i.e. long term payables (Baker and Martin, 2011). Using more debt instruments in the capital structure of a company increases the riskiness for the company due to continuous interest payment & obligation for payment of principle in long run. However, higher proportion of

Risk And Information Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Risk And Information - Assignment Example After critical analysis using the expected value criterion method, it was evident that project Y (8000) was best suited to increase the revenues as compared to project X (6000). The expected return of project Y is greater than that of project X. It was therefore decided that the club should invest the cash on starting a bookshop business because it tends to benefit the club more in terms of revenue increase. I am a risk lover, that’s why I’ll opt for option Y which has high risk (high probabilities) but high returns. Risk preference-the risk preference of an individual can cause the change in the probabilities. Risk averse individuals will always prefer low probabilities (low risk but low returns) when making decisions while risk loving individuals will go for high probabilities (high risk but high returns). Therefore, if an individual change his/her risk preferences the probabilities will change. Risk premium- this is the difference between the expected value of returns and the sure thing such that the decision maker is indifferent between the returns and the sure thing. The higher the variance of the returns the larger the risk premium hence the higher the

Freedom of Press Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Freedom of Press - Term Paper Example Indeed, the political rights, which encompass the right to participate freely in the political process, depend on how freely communication and expression through the electronic and printed media is guaranteed. Freedom of the press also makes political leaders and public office holders to be responsible and accountable to the citizens. Furthermore, the civil liberties that allow for freedom of expression and belief, associational and organizational rights, rule of law, and personal autonomy without government control are intrinsically linked to the degree of freedom of the press. Thus, the political stability of any state is strongly dependent on freedom of the press and as a result, freedom of the press is a politically relevant issue. The political rights, which include the right to vote and be voted for, depends on the degree of freedom of the press. The right to vote and be voted for is the distinguishing factor between democratic governments and their undemocratic counterparts. D emocracy involves free, fair and regular contestation for political offices and freedom of the press is an implicit requirement for free and fair elections (Sachs, 2007, 2). For an election to be free and fair, the electorate must communicate and express themselves freely without fear, favor, threats or domination from government and other parties of potential domination. Indeed, freedom of the press ensures free communication and expression that eventually leads to free and fair elections. It is noted that governments that suppress the media are notorious for conducting flaw elections. This was the case with the Iranian government. In fact, the Iranian government aggressively crackdown on the media in the wake of its flaw presidential elections. Furthermore, authoritarian states such as Russia and China notorious for their molestation of journalists in the bid to restricting the flow of information and thereby maintaining the political structure are also excellent examples of state s that conduct flaw elections (Karlekar, 2010, 1). In addition to promoting political rights, freedom of the press ensures that the elected government officials and other public office holders are responsible and accountable to the citizens. This is particularly true in states that have freedom of information legislation, an extension of the freedom of the press. Under this legislation, request can be made of government to make public, information otherwise classified as sensitive or secret. This promotes openness and responsibility on the part of government officials since they will be requested to provide information on how the government is run. Over 85 countries have implemented some form of the freedom of legislation. There is a good-to-excellent correlation between corrupt governments and countries that do not have this form of legislation. For instance, countries such as Sweden, Denmark, and Norway that have some form of the freedom of information legislation (Staples, 2007) have been consistently rated as the world most corrupt-free states. While African and Middle East countries that do not have forms of this legislation have consistently be rated as corrupt states. Thus,

Establishing a Planned Giving Program Essay Example for Free

Establishing a Planned Giving Program Essay Charitable institutions play an important role in society, now more than ever, as socio-economic issues mount. The essence of charitable institutions is to facilitate the sharing or transfer of resources from those with excess to those who are wanting. The culture of giving emerged as a means of ensuring overall social welfare by pulling excess resources to segments of the population having more than they need to people without resources. Charitable institutions develop fund raising activities and schemes to encourage philanthropy as well as manage funds to translate this into programs for the targeted beneficiaries to fulfill this role effectively and continuously. The philosophy of fund raising for charitable work is that philanthropy plays an important role in democratic societies and fund raising is inevitable to philanthropy so that fund raising becomes an absolute necessity to democratic societies. (Kelly, 1998) Over the years, charitable institutions developed many fund raising processes or systems to ensure the short and long-term flow of funds necessary to support their important function. Planned giving is one long-term fund raising program that emerged. This works by providing donors with the option, other than outright giving, to defer giving to charitable institutions years after expressing the giving behavior, usually upon the death of the donor. This then focuses on assets instead of income as the measure of the capacity of donors to give. (Kelly, 1998) The rationale for this option is to facilitate the passing of assets from one generation to another through a system that allocates assets from their estates to charitable institutions upon their death according to their preference (Harrington, 2004). If people elect to pass their assets to charitable institutions then they can do so through planned giving. This also finds support in the governance system by providing incentives to philanthropy in the form of tax exemptions. II. Review of Literature A. Important Concepts and Definitions in Planned Giving Kelly (1998) conceptualized planned giving as the managed effort by charitable institutions to raise funds from gifts of assets of donors utilizing estate and financial planning processes and tools. The purpose of planned giving is to generate major gifts by offering donors with another option aside from outright giving. This fund raising scheme expands the prospect pool of donors by centering on assets, instead of income, as the determinant of the capacity to give. The sole concern of planned giving is facilitating the philanthropy of individual donors as compared to the other fund-raising efforts directed at the public. Previously, this fund raising method was known as deferred giving because financial benefits for the recipient charitable institution usually are postponed until years after the donor has set-up the gift, usually upon death resulting to the appropriation or management of the estate. The description explained planned giving in terms of the implications to charitable institutions and donors of the benefits from financial planning and incentives for planning giving. Weinstein (2002) defined planned giving, also known as charitable gift planning, as the giving of charitable contributions with some level of professional guidance. Most planned gifts have the effect of reducing the estate taxes, income taxes, and/or capital gains taxes of the donor. Charitable gift planning supports the charitable intentions of the donor while at the same time helps donors better manage their assets for their families and loved ones. Usually, planned gifts are bequests, which mean deferred actual receipt by charitable institutions. Non-profit organizations receive the bequest after the death of the donor. There are also other planned gifts, such as donations of appreciated stock, which accrue current contributions for the charitable institution. This definition focuses on planned giving as a process or system and the manner this works in supporting the fund raising activities of charitable institutions and asset management of donors. Hopkins (2005) explained that planned giving ideally concerns â€Å"long-term capital gain property† (p. 245) that is likely to increase in value. The greater the increase in value, the greater would be the charitable deduction as well as the income from tax savings. Value appreciation comprises a core concept in planned giving so that a planned gift is essentially interest in money or an item of property of the donor. Planning giving involves the transference of partial interest in property based on the concept of property as having two interests, which are income and remainder interest. The income interest from an item of property depends on the income generated by the property at the current time while the remainder interest from an item of property pertains to the projected value of the property, or the property produced by reinvestments, at some future date. As such, the remainder interest is the amount equal to the present value of the property when received at a subsequent point in time, which is higher than the income interest assuming that the property is appreciating. Measuring these two types of interest in property is through the consideration of property value, donor’s age, and the period when the income interest will exist. An income interest or a remainder interest in property could be subject to charitable donation. However, a deduction is almost never available for a charitable gift of an income interest in property. By contrast, the charitable contribution of a remainder interest in an item of property will likely give rise to a charitable deduction with compliance of all technical requirements. This provides an explanation of the manner that the system works and serves as an elaboration of the previous definitions. The explanation also provided a rationale for planned giving since remainder interest, which accrues in the future is usually always subject to charitable deductions when compared to income interest accruing at present. Hopkins (2005) further explained the two basic types of planned gifts. One is legacy or charitable giving contained under a will. This is a gift coming out of the estate of a deceased as a bequest or devise. Planned giving in the form of a legacy works through the inclusion of a charitable institution as a beneficiary of the estate of the donor with entitlement following the death of the donor. As such, this perpetuates the philanthropy of individual even in death. The amount assigned to the charitable institution comprises a tax exemption that decreases the estate tax. The other is a gift made during a donor’s lifetime, using a trust or other agreement. An example is charitable gift annuity that commences when a donor gives a charitable institution a certain amount of money that the institution can use, similar to a premium paid for insurance, but with the condition that a beneficiary receive payment of a certain amount every year. The amount given by the donor is subject to tax exemption. After the payment of annuity ceases such as with the death of the beneficiary, the charitable institutions gains the amount paid and all other interest accruing from its appropriation. This explains the options available to donors, with options supporting the charitable intentions of donors and providing them with convenient options for financial planning. B. Basic Steps in Establishing Planned Giving Program for a Non-Profit Organization Establishing planned giving program for a non-profit organization should involve some basic preparatory steps similar to a business plan in profit organizations. The first step is preparation. This involves an assessment of the capability of the organization to manage a planned giving program to determine areas requiring improvements to accommodate the program. Another must do is obtaining the feedback from the board over the development of the planned giving program since the board’s support determines a successful program. This step also involves a feasibility study to determine whether the intended program meets two criteria. One is whether the leaders and members of the organization together with donors believe in continuing its existence in the long-term and the other is whether donors express their belief in the longevity of the organization through significant gifts. (Barett Ware, 2002) In satisfying these criteria there is a higher probability of success. Second step is planning. This step covers the identification of goals and specific objectives of the program, the changes in organizational structure including the creation of committees and sub-committees and assignment of leadership positions and tasks, the plan for staffing such as part time or full time, the budget to cover all aspects of the program, and the timetable for the phases of the planned giving program. (Dove, Spears Herbert, 2002) These areas should receive focus to cover all planned program to support viability. The third step involves the identification of the program’s core and specific features. The idea of planned giving is to provide givers with various options on the ways through which they prefer to actualize their charitable intentions and manage their assets in the process. This means the need to identify the particular planned giving options that the non-profit organization would make available to its donors together with the details of how these works. (Ashton, 2004) This is for the benefit of the staff who would be directly dealing with donors and for the benefit of donors wanting to learn more about giving options offered by its preferred charitable institution. The fourth step is policymaking. Guidelines and protocols are inevitable in actualizing the planned giving program. Policies should cover issues such as legal advice, confidentiality of information, conflict in interest and authority in negotiations. Guidelines should also thoroughly explain procedures in executing and accepting planned gifts, valuation of donations, according of credit for planned gifts, investing managing and administering of planned gifts, and limitations and terms of planned gifts. Lastly, the policies should also establish the functions and roles of the committees and administrators. (Barett Ware, 2002) The fifth step is promoting the planned giving program to individual potential donors as well as the community in general. There are a number of ways for non-profit organizations to promote their planned giving programs including the handouts or leaflets, newsletters and other widely distributed publications, hosted events, seminars, and personal testimonials or referrals. The important thing is to introduce the program to people as a means of developing interest in planned giving and reaching out to existing donors who could be interested in different options. (Reiss, 2000) The sixth step is prospecting. This involves a two-fold consideration. On one hand, this involves the determination of the likely uptake of the program by considering potential donors including the involvement in planned giving by members of the board themselves. This results to identification of anticipated long-term fund raising position of the organization. On the other hand, this also involves the determination of the impact of the program including the possible issues and problems to support contingency planning. (Rosso, 2003) C. Establishing Goals and Objectives for Planned Giving Program Goals comprise statements of the position or outcome that the organization wants to gain while objectives set out the manner of achieving this position or outcome (Lewis, 2006). Establishing the goals and objectives of the planned giving program also goes through a series of interconnected cyclical processes. The first process is communication and clarification of issues, problems, challenges or opportunities that provide a context for establishing the program. These support the determination of goals. If a challenge is giving options then the goal would be diversified giving options for donors and the objective is the development of a planned giving program. (Lauer, 1997) The second process is evaluation of alternative solutions to express needs and requirements into goals and objectives through measures of success that would also constitute the criteria for evaluating the extent of fulfillment of the goals and objectives. (Lauer, 1997) The third process is articulation by drawing the participation of all stakeholders in providing perspectives over the areas for improvement and drawing consensus on actions (Lauer, 1997).

Financial Crisis and Brazil Essay Example for Free

Financial Crisis and Brazil Essay The economic crisis that has swept the world since 2008 has wrought havoc in national economies all over the world. As a group, one of the more particularly hard-hit groups of nations has been the Latin American countries of Central and South America. One notable exception to this trend appeared to be the nation of Brazil. The gloomy projections appeared not to apply to Brazil. According to Mauricio Cardenas of the Brooking institute: This doom and gloom has not infected Brazil, however, where President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is showing unprecedented self-assurance. Speaking in Madrid, Lula said somewhat rhetorically that this idea that markets can do everything is over,† and more fundamentally â€Å"The times in which emerging countries depended on the IMF are over. † This is not Hugo Chavez speaking, but the president of Latin America’s largest economy, who enjoys 80 percent popularity in his country. (Cardenas, 2008) Although Brazil weathered the early months of the financial crisis better than its Latin American neighbors, the longer the crisis has continued, the more the Brazilian economy has weakened. One of the factors that prevented an immediate collapse of the Brazilian Economy in the wake of the 2008 Crisis was the relative lack of foreign banks in the country. (Cardenas, 2008) Unlike many Latin American nations that have a high percentage of foreign banks (i. e. Mexico: 80% foreign banks), Brazil has only 30% foreign banks. (Cardenas, 2008) In the short term, this allowed Brazil to assume that a contraction in foreign lending would not have as deep an impact on their economy than that of other nations. Brazilian banks, in times of previous economic prosperity, had built reserves, rather than engaging in profligate loaning, leading to the hopes that these reserves were sufficient against the day that foreign banks severely restricted credit. (Cardenas, 2008) By September of 2008, this theory seemed to erode in the face of certain economic indicators. The Bovespa index, a market indicator similar to the Dow Jones industrial Average, lost half of its value from May to September of 2008. (Cardenas, 2008) 10% of that drop occurred in the second half of September. More strikingly, the value of Brazil’s currency, the Real, fell 32% against other world currencies. (Cardenas, 2008) These factors show that Brazil may still be prone to suffer in the economic crisis. Other analysts, such as John Williamson of the Peterson Institution of international Economics, have been less sanguine about the prospects of Brazil’s economy. Wiliamson stated: Moreover, the markets decided that while many of the emerging economies might no longer have any need for an inflow of loans, many (like Brazil) are still significant net debtors to the rest of the world and therefore still vulnerable to a sudden withdrawal of foreign credit. Compounding this is the fact that one may have a balanced overall position and still be vulnerable because debts are concentrated at short maturities. Hence one read, for example, of the Bovespa index falling by over 10 percent in a day (it has cumulatively halved in value since the peak in May). Likewise, the real has fallen by a cumulative 32 percent in the past month. The markets clearly do not believe that Brazil has been made invulnerable†¦ (Williamson, 2008) The world market contraction has had a significant effect on Brazil’s foreign trade. (Williamson, 2008) The export economy has relied upon raw materials for 50% of exports, and the prices of these materials have dropped dramatically in the face of world-wide declines in demand. (Williamson, 2008) The other half of Brazil’s exports, differentiated manufactured goods have also decreased in the face of reduced demand. Ironically, the weakness of the real against foreign currencies has softened the negative effect of these factors. (Williamson, 2008) The soft real will inspire increased purchase of manufactured goods from Brazil. This will soften, but not eliminate, the negative effects of low demand. The decrease in foreign capital that these commodity price decreases have reflected, will rapidly eat through Brazil’s trade surplus, and put strain on lending institutions in Brazil. (Williamson, 2008) The future of Brazil’s economy has been reported with varying degrees of optimism. The GDP of Brazil is projected to contract anywhere from 1. 5 to 20% in 2009 after growing 5% in 2008. (Williamson, 2008) An increase in the shift of agricultural exports to China has also contributed to the overall positive projections of the Brazilian economy. (Xinhua, 2009) The increase from March of 2008 (8. 5%) to March of 2009 (12. 5%) amounts of agricultural exports to China reflect this phenomenon. (Xinhua, 2009) The president of Brazil claims that the crisis has passed, and that Brazil has weathered the worst part of the economic crisis of 2008. (Xinhua, 2009) The longevity of the world-wide recession will determine if this is in fact a true prediction. (Xinhua, 2009) Brazil weathered the economic crisis of 2008 comparatively well, but suffered great financial repercussions late in the year. The economy seems to be in a stage of recovery, but its continued well being will rely on the recovery of other nations that control lending power and demand for Brazil’s exports. Work Cited Cardenas, M. (2008) â€Å"Global Financial Crisis: Is Brazil a Bystander? † Retrieved June 4th, 2009 from Brookings Institution website: http://www. brookings. edu/opinions/2008/1015_financial_crisis_cardenas. aspx Williamson, J. (2008) â€Å"The Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Brazil† Retrieved June 4th, 2009 from Peterson Institution of international Economics website: http://www. iie. com/publications/papers/williamson1008. pdf Xinhua (2009) â€Å"Brazils agricultural exports to China up 52. 5 percent in March† Retrieved June 4th 2009 from China’s people’s Daily website: http://english. people. com. cn/90001/90778/90857/90861/6634356. html

The Myth Of Bigfoot

The Myth Of Bigfoot Bigfoot, is he real or is he just a myth and hoax. Some call it Bigfoot and others call it Sasquatch, but no matter what you call he is real and not just a hoax. The legend of Bigfoot goes as far back as ancient Indian tribes. There is not a lot of evidence on Bigfoots existence how ever the evidence that does exist is enough to convince people that he is real. If you dont believe in Bigfoot im not going to tell you that you are wrong, I just want to tell the other side and hopefully convince the non believers that Bigfoot is not a hoax. There are certain things that one should hear about Bigfoot before making the conclusion that he is fake. Bigfoot is just a large bipedal ape, who can be traced back to other bipedal apes who existed hundreds of years ago. The history behind Bigfoot goes back as far to Indigenous populations and ancient Indian tribes. Tribes such as the Hopis, Seeahtik, Spokane, Lokota, and tribes in Canada (just to name a few) all have stories that have been passed down that describe Hairy man like creatures. It has the same description that Bigfoot has now in the present time. They did not mistake this creature for another animal like a bear, deer, or a wolf, because they have words and stories about those as well. They also have painting that resemble a large hairy man that looks like an ape. Totem poles older than 500 years with Bigfoot creatures carved into them. The first recorded Bigfoot sighting occurred in British Columbia in 1772 from a Spanish explorer who was exploring parts of Canada. The name Bigfoot became popular in 1958 after a picture appeared in the newspaper of a man named Jerry Crew holding a plastic cast of a footprint. It was a cast of Sasquatchs foot. Due to the size of the print the media began to refer to the creature that created them as Bigfoot and the name has stuck ever since. There are people who study Bigfoot and other mysterious creatures. This field of study is called Cryptozoology, which means the study of hidden animals. They call the creatures the study cryptids These range from animals/creatures that are thought to be extinct or still walk among us. They can be animals, mammals, reptiles, insects, and even dinosaurs. Cryptozoolgy is not thought of a real field of scientific study among most of the scientific community. What is Bigfoot? Bigfoot is described as a large bipedal humanoid. Bipedal apes have existed in the past. Australopithecus is a bipedal ape that existed a few million years ago. The most well known of these is one they call Lucy and most recently Ardi. Bipedal apes have existed before and Bigfoot is a bipedal ape that exists today. Bigfoot stands between 6 and 8 feet tall and weighs between 400 and 900 pounds. Has dark brown, black, and dark reddish fur/hair. It has a pronounced brow line/ridge, large low-set forehead, and the tops of its head has a crest similar to that of a gorillas. Bigfoot is said to have an unpleasant smell. The smell is that of wet dog and skunk, its very distinct and strong smelling. Bigfoots most famous attribute is of course his big feet. His feet can range anywhere from 12-24 inches long can be up to 8 inches wide. Bigfoot is basically a large monkey or ape that has adapted to walk upright on two feet just like Australopithecus did. Bigfoot lives almost everywhere in the world. There have been sightings on every continent, except Antarctica. Sighting in every State in the US except Hawaii. A lot of sightings out of the United states mainly occur in British Columbia with 115 reported/documented sightings with the last one in February 2010. Ontario has a lot at 61 last recorded July 2009. Colorado is one of the places in the united states with a lot of sightings at 106 with last sighing in September of 2009. With most sighting in Park and Teller county. Different places around the world call Bigfoot by different names however they are all the same idea. Bigfoot /Sasquatch Is not to be confused with the Yeti, the snow monster who resides in the Himalayan mountain region. He lives in very rural areas of the world. Surrounded by trees and lots of foliage. Typically in the mountains where it is easy to find food and shelter or hide. He is thought to live in caves and structures that occur naturally in mountains and in rock structures. The same type of shelter other animals such as bears would use. He also makes nests or huts. There have been a few Bigfoot nests or huts found, and are specifically designed for a Bigfoot. They are made from branches and sticks and have an entrance that is unusually big for a human but it seemed big enough or a Bigfoot to fit and live in. They have been found in places that have no trace of a human and they way its built suggests that it was built by something larger that a human. No one can confirm what bigfoot eats since no one has had the chance to study it. But it is commonly thought that bigfoot eats whats around him. Plants, fruits, and maybe small animals like rabbits and squirrels. There is no real hard evidence of Bigfoot like bones or a body, but there are videos, pictures, footprints, hair samples, and countless number of sightings. Bigfoot footprints were the first pieces of evidence to stir up the controversy over Bigfoot. The first footprints to become widely introduced to the public were the Yeti tracks found near Mt. Everest by Eric Shipton. These tracks caused more interest in the Bigfoot tracks in North America. Some of the most famous tracks were found by a man named Jerry Crew. He was a bulldozer operator who made the cast of the footprint at Bluff Creek in 1958. He found it near the construction site at Louse Camp. A lot of these foot prints have been proven to be fake, but more often they have be proven to be unknown species. These footprints have been found all over the world. Most of these footprints can be fake or hoaxed. They are found in very remote parts of the wilderness where people dont go. It is unlikely that a person planted a fake foot print in the middle of nowhere. They are found by hikers and explorers who just happen to come upon them. It would be hard to place a footprint without making one with your own feet. Especially the Yeti track found in the Himalayas. Pictures are the most unreliable form of evidence in the Bigfoot mystery. There are tons of Bigfoot photos out there and many of them are fake. The photos can easily be manipulated or edited to resemble or make what people will say is Bigfoot. They are just an unreliable source which is not a good thing when trying to prove that Bigfoot is real. The only pictures that I and most can say are credible are pictures taken from the videos of Bigfoot. The most famous picture is taken from the 1967 video shot by Rodger Paterson. Its frame 352 the famous look back frame it shoes Bigfoot walking in front of the camera and looking back. Has not been proven to be fake or a hoax. Pictures can be misleading because a lot of them turn out to be not Bigfoot but other animals or even trees and plants. Some animals most commonly mistaken in pictures are bears and deer. They can be hidden in the background so they can be blurry and possibly resemble a Bigfoot. People often take pictures at strange cam era angles which can make things deceiving and turn what is a normal tree or animal into something that looks nothing like it. Sometimes the photographer can catch the animal in some unnatural position which leads to confusion and people saying that is a Bigfoot. Bears are commonly mistaken due to their size, shape, color, smells and the noises that they can make. Hair samples are the least common type of evidence. There have been a few samples found and only a few have been proven unknown DNA and species. Most of the time they turn out to be from another animal in the area or synthetic hair. Video evidence is the one piece of evidence that is the most controversial and the most widely recognized. There are many videos that capture Bigfoot and there are a few that have become famous around North America. Some of the videos have been proven to be fake but there are a few that have yet to be proven fake. The most famous and well known video of Bigfoot is the Paterson and Gimlin film. After the rise of Bigfoot in North America Paterson and Gimlin began to do their own research and became fascinated by Bigfoot. It was taken October 20, 1967 in Bluff Creek. Same area that the Jerry Crew foot prints had been found. In the early afternoon Paterson and Gimlin spotted what they believed to be a female Bigfoot. Patersons horse was alarmed at the sight of the creature and threw him to the ground. Patterson was an experienced horse man so he was able to quickly gain control and grab hi camera a 16mm hand-held Kodak movie camera. Patterson took 24 feet of color film footage. They esti mated the creature to be 7 feet 3 ÂÂ ½ inches tall, and weighing about 700 pounds. Left footprints 14 ÂÂ ½ long by 6 inches wide. Had made an agreement not to shoot it unless in self defense, and they also decided not to follow the Bigfoot fearing a confrontation with it and perhaps others of its kind. This film has been studied numerous amount of times and has not been proven fake. There have been attempts to recreate it and to debunk the video but no has successfully done it. Rodger Patterson died January 15, 1972 and he took it to his grave that what he saw was indeed Bigfoot. Bob Gimlin who now live in Yakima also denies that the video was a hoax and is 100% that what they saw that day was Bigfoot. The Memorial Day Bigfoot video was shot May 26, 1996 at Chopaka Lake, Okanogan County Washington. Filmed by Loir Pate while on a fishing trip. Shows Bigfoot running across a hill then disappearing behind a slop the reappearing again before disappearing behind the trees. This video has also been reviewed and studied and has also not been proven to be a hoax. It has been tested to see if a human could match the stride and the speed while running across a hill. Derek Prior a three time All-American sprinter form the University of Washington ran the same route to determine if the running speed of the creature was too fast for a human to duplicate. He was able to run the same path at 17.1 mph and a stride of 6.8 feet. The creature in the film ran about 8.53 mph and had a stride of 4.25 feet. This was calculated by using fixed objects to determine the speed. This did not prove that it was a hoax however it raised more questions about why the creature had such a short stride. One mystery is that at the end of the footage the creature appears to grow taller by 8 inches. Some experts and witness say that it was a young Bigfoot that was put on the shoulders of the larger one, why and how no one really knows why. This could also explain the short strides and slow running speed to the creature. The Paul Freeman video is one of the other most viewed and studied videos. Paul Freeman was an avid Bigfoot hunter and Cryptozoologist. He had claimed to find Bigfoot tracks with dermal ridges. The casts were convincing enough to be considered critical pieces of evidence. Studied by Grover Krantz and Jeff Meldrum of Idaho State University. On June 10, 1982 Freeman spotted a Bigfoot near Walla Walla, Washington being nearly 8 feet tall and covered in reddish brown fur. In 1994 Freeman was in the Blue Mountain regions in Oregon. It shows a Bigfoot walking in the forest through the trees. The footage is considered to be Authentic many Bigfoot enthusiasts and hunters but it is considered too low resolutions to conclusive. The thing that make this video so compelling is that Freeman says that there might be two Big feet walking around and its hard to see but you can barely pick out two shapes in the forest. This has not been proven to be two or just something else. Paul Freeman died at th e age of 59 from complications of diabetes, and he never once denied that Bigfoot wasnt real. Two other popular videos are the Harley Hoffman video and the British Columbia snow walker video. The Harley Hoffman video shows Bigfoot walking almost directly in front of the camera. Not much is known about Harley Hoffman and his video except that no one has proven that its fake and more and more people are considering this video to be the real thing. The British Columbia Snow walking video is also another video with not much information or background connected to it. It depicts a Bigfoot or walking through the snow. Not proven to be fake but is another video where the resolution is too low quality to determine much. The three videos that in my mind are 100% real and not hoaxed are Paterson and Gimlim film, the Memorial Day footage, and the Paul Freeman video. None of these videos have been proven fake. Video is the best evidence there is to back up the statement that bigfoot is real. Foot prints and hair samples are also big pieces of evidence to consider in the mystery of Bigfoot . All of this evidence can be hoaxed from videos to foot prints, so why do people do this. Some do it just to make a point in saying that you are wrong for believing it. Some think that they can just make a buck off it and want to try to become famous. Many people have a hard time believing in Bigfoot saying that it is impossible for it to survive in the regions it lives in. Some people even take bones that were from Baboons and Gorillas and claim it was form a Bigfoot. People who dont believe in the theory of evolution have a very hard time believing that there is a bipedal human like ape walking among us. Do gorillas live in the jungle? Yes they do , so why cant another ape like creature live in the woods and forests around the world? We know that gorillas exist and we know that chimpanzees can walk on two feet sometimes. To put it in easiest way possible, Bigfoot or Sasquatch is just another species of monkey who can walk on two feet just like Australopithecus and homo-sapiens that lives in the dense wooded areas of our mountains and forests. It is just a species of animal that is hard to study because it is so elusive. There are new species of animal that we have yet to discover and every once in a while a new one turns up and Bigfoot is one of those rare species that no one knows much about. People are afraid of the unknown. Bigfoot or Sasquatch is an ape like creature who is not a myth it is real and

Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Essay -- Compare Contrast

There are many different types of victims we have discussed over the course of this class, but we’re only going to talk about two types in the following paper. These two types of victims are common just as any another victim across America. These include sex assault victims and child abuse victims, which are both primary victims in cases. The two share a tie together, both are a victim of abuse and can cause lifelong consequences, but they also pose many differences as well. Many questions arise when talking about victims, for example why is a child or adult being abused and what are the life altering affects to these actions. Throughout this paper we discuss both sexual assault victims and child abuse victims and compare and contrast between the two. We’ll start with child abuse victims and the affects and reasons of this abuse. There are four types of child abuse and I will list them in order from least to greatest, neglect, physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Neglect takes first with the NCVS having 54% reports of child neglect in 2007. Neglect is a very serious form of abuse it is the failure for a parent or guardian to provide for a child’s basic needs, including physical and educational needs. We grow and development drastically in the first twelve years of our life so when parental guidance and love is absent it affects a child’s developmental skills along with learning right from wrong. Many forms of neglect occur in larger households and with households with domestic violence. Many parents with multiple kids become too busy focusing on the older children they tend to forget the youngest one. So it’s common for a three year old to walk out of the front door and on to the street when no one is there to tell him or... ...formation about Domestic Violence and Services: http://www.domesticviolenceservices.com/rape.html †¢ †¢ Karmen, A. (2013). Crime Victims: An Introduction to Victimology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thompson Learning. †¢ †¢ Kilpatrick, D. G. (2000). The Mental Health Impact of Rape. Retrieved from National Violenc Against Women Prevention Research Center: http://www.musc.edu/vawprevention/research/mentalimpact.shtml †¢ †¢ Rainn. (2009). Effects of Sexual Assault. Retrieved from Rape, Abuse and Incest National Netwrok: http://www.rainn.org/get-information/effects-of-sexual-assault †¢ †¢ Shannon. (2007). Was it my fault? Self-Blame and Survivors. Retrieved from Pandora's Project: http://www.pandys.org/articles/selfblameandsurvivors.pdf> †¢ †¢ RAINN.org. (2009). Types of sexual violence. Retrieved from: http://www.rainn.org/get-information/types-of-sexual-assault.

Appalachian Music :: essays research papers

Appalachian Music Appalachee - people on the other side Folk music - What is folk music? Traditional songs existing in countries. Handed down through generations. Passes on by word of mouth, not written in musical notation. Don't know who wrote it. Melody and lyrics change as they are passed on. Folk Music is History in song: Tells about daily lives. Tells about Special events - often tragedies, themes of romance, battle, adventure, and history. Purpose of folk music: Entertainment, recreation, socializing, dancing, games. Teaching, make work go faster, religious. Tells a story (ballads). Origins of Appalachian people: Ireland Scotland England Music influenced by folk and mountain music: Country Bluegrass Modern folk Musical instruments used (folk instruments): Dulcimer, fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, autoharp, mouth bow, washtub bass. Body percussion, spoons, washboard, Jew's harp. Harmonica, jug. Bluegrass Music - What is bluegrass music? Direct descendant of old-time string band tradition, which developed out of Southern mountain dance music & songs. Combines old-time string band music with gospel harmonies & blues rhythms. Played on acoustic instruments (natural sound): Banjo, guitar, fiddle, mandolin, bass fiddle, dobro (resophonic guitar) Instrumental leads used to show off technical ability Distinctive vocal harmonies Originations of Bluegrass Bill Monroe - "The father of Bluegrass" Grew up in Rosine, Kentucky (Ohio County) Music takes its name from Bill Monroe's band, The Blue Grass Boys Influenced by - Pendleton Vandiver ("Uncle Pen") the uncle who "raised" Bill and taught him how to play the fiddle. Arnold Schultz, black "blues" singer and guitar player. Timeline: 1911 - Bill Monroe born on September 13 1940's - development of bluegrass music 1950's - people began referring to his style of music as Bluegrass 1960's - concept of "bluegrass festival" introduced 1996 - Bill Monroe died on September 9 1997 - Bill Monroe inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Because of his influence on popular music Bluegrass Music featured in: Films of "Bonnie and Clyde", "Deliverance" Television Shows of "The Beverly Hillbillies", "The Dukes of Hazard" Written Overview A sample overview of the history of bluegrass music follows. It should be brief but comprehensive, as it may also be the introduction of the music to teachers as a study guide before or after an in school presentation or they may include this information in a history of social studies discussion if a program presentation is not possible. Bluegrass Music: The Roots The street balladry of the people who began migrating to America in the early 1600s is considered to be the roots of traditional American music. As the early Jamestown settlers began to spread out into the Carolinas, Tennessee, Kentucky and the Virginias, they composed new songs about day to day like experiences in the new land.

Censoring the Pages of Knowledge Essay -- Books Literature Essays

Censoring the Pages of Knowledge Imagine a world where you could not read or own any books. How would you feel if you had someone burn your house because you have books hidden within the walls? One of the most prevalent themes in Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451 is the idea of censorship. In Bradbury's fictional world, owning books is illegal. A fireman's job is not putting out fires like one may assume. In Fahrenheit 451, a fireman has the job of starting fires. Firefighters start fires in homes containing books. If this were reality, there would be no homes to live in. Books have become an integral part of American life. However, the theme of censorship is still relevant in American life. Censorship is enforced in an interesting way in Fahrenheit 451. Normally if someone was asked about the roles of firemen, they would respond, "firemen are people who put out fires." The role of firemen in Fahrenheit 451 is completely different. Firemen are the enforcers of the censorship laws. They are called upon when a person is known to have books in their house. The opening line of Bradbury's novel is, "It was a pleasure to burn" (3). Firemen seemed to enjoy their status as book burners. Many even got an adrenaline rush out of burning books. Guy Montag, the protagonist and main character of the novel was a fireman who once felt starting the fires in people's homes was thrilling. In describing Montag's actions during one particular fire, Bradbury writes, "He wanted above all, like the old joke to shove a marshmallow on a stick in the furnace, while the flapping pigeon-winged books died on the porch and lawn of the house" (3). This quote demonstrates the mentality of the firemen an d the opinion of the government. Books are evil in t... ...in restrictions are needed. Pornography should not be available to children. I do not have a problem with parental advisory labels on music. However, putting a ban on all books is a very scary proposition. Bradbury's novel does not come close to describing how miserable this world would become. Everybody in this world depends on books whether or not they are literate. It can be said that we get most of our morals and values from books. These morals are found in books such as the Bible, Aesop's Fables, and sometimes even the trashy romance novels that women tend to love. Without books, the world could be explained in one word, educated. An uneducated world is a miserable world full of fighting and conflict. An uneducated world is a world at constant war. A world with out books is a dystopian world. Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Ballantine Books, 1953.

How Democratic Britian Was by the 1928? Essay

â€Å"Democracy is the government of the people, for the people, by the people† (Abraham Lincoln, President of the USA, 1860-1865)† For any country to be called democratic, certain conditions have to exist. Firstly, all adults should have the right to vote but the right to vote did not in itself make Britain democratic. Between 1850 and 1928, other features of a democracy were created. These features included a fair system of voting, a choice of who to vote for and access to information to make an informed choice. It should also be possible for people from all backgrounds to become Members of Parliament themselves and parliament should be accountable to the voters. Although the transition from a political system dominated by aristocracy to one of universal suffrage was a long and protracted one by 1928, most of the features of a democracy had been met. Consequently Britain had become more democratic than it was in 1850. It is no wonder that John Kerr describes Britain as being â€Å"nowhere near being democratic in 1850.† The state of democracy in Britain had been set by the Great Reform Act of 1832 which increased the number of men who could vote in a general election and redistributed parliamentary seats so that there was a more equal ratio of MPs to constituents. However Britain was still far from being democratic. The system was not fair as voting took place in hustings meaning there was no secret ballot, making it possible for candidates to bribe and intimidate the voters and general elections were only held every seven years. Another aspect of the British political system that was undemocratic was the unequal distribution of seats and MPs still representing county and borough constituencies with great variations in size of population. Moreover, the Tory dominated House of Lords was unelected and it could stop the elected majority of the House of Commons getting bills though parliament a nd only wealthy men could stand as candidates for election as there was a property qualification. It could be suggested that Britain was undemocratic in 1850 as working class men and all women were excluded from the franchise and only 7% of the population were entitled to vote. Between 1850 and 1928 a series of acts were introduced that extended the franchise. The Second Parliamentary Reform Act of 1867 was the first piece of legislation that tried to amend the political system. As a result of this Act, the size of the electorate increase to 2.5 million including the skilled working class meaning a third of males were now able to vote. However, the vote still depended on property and the one year residency requirement discriminated against a large proportion of the working class. The introduction of the Representation of the People Act in 1884 doubled the electorate making the number of voters five million and the franchise qualification was now the same in both boroughs and counties. Although Sir Albert Maine described the new system as an â€Å"unmoderated democracy† there was still a long way to go until Britain became democratic. The men who did not have the franchise in 1867 such as the soldiers and male domestic servants were still deprived of the vote in 1884 and as with 1867 plural voting still existed and no women were allowed to vote. The Representation of the People Act 1918 extended the franchise to all adult males because of their important role in the Great War meaning that all males over the age of twenty one were now enfranchised. For the first time, women over the age of 30 were given the vote provided they were educated, married and had a home. Although this was a major step towards democracy as regards women’s suffrage, it mus t be noted that there was not equal universal suffrage, and that women would have to wait until the 1928 Equal Franchise Act to be set on equal voting terms as men without qualifications, to receive the vote at the age of 21. As a result of the increase in voters in towns, changes were made to National Party Organisation as party leaders had to find ways of persuading the electors to vote for their candidate. National organisations such as the Conservative Central Office in 1870 and the National Liberal Federation in 1877, were developed by the parties to canvass support at elections. Liberal and Conservative Associations were developed in all major towns and electors were encouraged to join and attend meetings. Liberal and Conservative clubs were set up as social centres to encourage support such as the Reform Club in Manchester and the Carlton Club. This led to more central co-ordination of policy and strategy. Propaganda and persuasion would be the means of enlisting the support of the voters and the parties had to ensure that their known supporters were registered as voters. The Conservative Primrose League was created to canvass support in small towns and the counties. Tighter discipline was imposed in both parties and the result was a development of political parties and their organisations. Overall, better representation helped the growth of democracy as well as better access to information as manifestos had to be created and distributed to the population. The 1970 Education Act (1872 in Scotland) increased the literacy levels in the country so that information about political parties and their policies became more accessible to the population. By the late 19th century literacy was fairly well established and daily national newspapers became vital sources of information. The development of the railways was crucial in giving the population better access to information. The population was able to make more informed choices in elections as they became more aware of political issues. Socialist groups eventually joined with the Trade Union movement to form the Labour Representation Committee in 1900 which in 1906, became the Labour Party- a party that claimed to represent the working class. This meant that the electorate had a genuine choice of parties with different political ideologies: the Conservatives, Liberals and the Labour Party. Consequently, this pushed Britain forward towards democracy as different can different parties can voice different views on how to deal with the problems the country faces. Although Britain had become more democratic with better access to information and a choice of parties certain aspects of the system were unfair until legislation was introduced to improve this. The Reform Act of 1867 improved the distribution of seats making the system fairer in addition to extending the franchise. The facts show that many small boroughs lost one or even both of their MPs who were then redistributed to areas of the country that were under-represented. For example, Scottish constituencies were allocated 5 seats. However, democracy was still far from being reached in Britain as MPs were still not evenly distributed, the electorate largely remained the same and balance of political power was not altered. The Redistribution of Seats Act of 1885 moved Britain closer towards democracy as it aimed to construct constituencies of equal size to have a fairer representation of the people. As result of the Act, 79 towns with a population of under 15,000 lost both their seats and the total number of MPs was increased from 652 to 670. In fact, in his book â€Å"The extension of the Franchise 1832-1931† puts forward his opinion: â€Å"together, the 1884 Franchise Act and the 1885 Redistribution Act brought about one of the most radical changes in the parliamentary election system during the nineteenth century. Bribery and corruption were still present in elections in the late 1860s and two laws were passed in an effort to eliminate this. The Secret Ballot Act of 1872 allowed voting to be done in secret so electorates were free from intimidation. It meant that the newly enfranchised working class would not be pressurized into voting for their landlords in fear of losing their home or jobs. The secret ballot was an improvement in Britain towards democracy and the Chief Commissioner of Police in London reported there had been no trouble at the elections. However, employers were still bribing their workers and between 1867 and 1885 four towns were disenfranchised due to corrupt practices. Moreover, an opponent of the Act Lord John Russell, argued it would undermine the â€Å"legitimate influence of the aristocracy, over people who looked to them for leadership†. Many believed that it was you duty to tell people how you voted, it was considered† honest and British† and there was a belief that secrecy would lead to further corruption. The Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act was introduced in 1883 and it meant that if there was any corruption in any election it would lead to a heavy fine or imprisonment. There was less intimidation; the new code of ethics had moved Britain forward towards democracy. S.Wood said that â€Å"elections certainly became more orderly†. Despite these steps towards democracy, plural voting still existed and MPS were still not paid. Even though the property qualification for MPs was abolished in 1857 meaning that ownership of land was no longer a prerequisite for becoming an MP but one issue that still had to be resolved was the payment of MPs. This made the Parliament Act of 1911 a â€Å"great achievement† according to Stephen J. Lee as MPs finally got a salary of  £400, meaning that anyone could stand as an MP, whether they are working, middle or upper class. However, in reality working class men could not afford to give up their day job to become a politician so very few working class men stood as candidates. In addition, the Act reduced the life of the government from seven years to five years .The House of Lords which Lloyd George described as â€Å"five hundred men, ordinary men chosen accidentally from among the unemployed,† no longer had power over bills to do with taxation or government spending and could only delay bills for up to two years. Despite the fact this made the elected house more accountable to the voters, Britain was still not fully democratic as the House of Lords still had some power despite being an unelected body. Although Britain had made strides towards democratic by 1928 there were still other factors that were undemocratic such as universities still having Seats in Parliament until 1949 and the franchise was not being given to 18 year olds until 1969.Moreover, elections in Britain use the First Past the Post System meaning the person with the most votes wins the election. However this could be seen as being unfair in that the percentage of seats the larger parties end up with in Parliament is always greater than the percentage of votes they have achieved in the election. For example, in the 2005 General Election although the Labour Party got 36.2% of the votes, they had 55% of the Seats in Parliament. For many years, smaller parties like the Liberals gave argued for a system of Proportional Representation which makes the proportion of seats a party has equal to the percentage of votes the party got in the election. First Past the Post was confirmed as the voting system for general elections in the United Kingdom in 1918 and this has not changed since. By 1928, Britain had become a more democratic country as all the features that would be expected in a democracy were in place such as universal suffrage, the secret ballot and better representation. There was a choice for voters of different backgrounds of three main political parties and working class candidates were able to stand for election as MPs were paid. Furthermore, access to information was greater than it had been in 1850. However, 18 year olds were not given the vote until 1969 and the electoral system is still an issue today as many people argue that Proportional Representation should be used in British elections.