Police Brutality Of The United States - 1415 Words

Police Brutality Police abuse is one of the most violated human rights in the United States. Police are portrayed as heroes that stop bank robbers, stop kidnappings and catch murders, but as of recent year’s police actions have come into the public eye. While typically citizens worry about their safety from criminals, it also seems they have to keep an eye out for the people who are supposed to protect them from danger. Thousands of complaints about police brutality is reported each year, and seems to be growing more. China has a population four and a half times bigger than the United States and only twelve killings were reported by law enforcement in 2014, but in the United States ninety two times more people were killed than a country with nearly 1.4 billion people (Fairbanks). Within our police system in America, there are openings and loopholes that give liberty to police officers who either abuse their authority given to them or do not live up to ethical standards in toda y’s society. Police officers either make people feel safe or unsafe. That either depends on the person’s background history with police or hearing other’s stories. As of lately police have been in the media a lot. Television stations, newspapers, and tabloids get involved with the topic of police brutality. If you turned the TV to the news right now, you would see a case of police brutality happening in the United States. There are many experiences of police brutality on social media. â€Å"PoliceShow MoreRelatedPolice Brutality And The United States Essay1408 Words   |  6 PagesPolice brutality in the United States has escalated in recent times. To develop a peaceful environment amongst human beings, one of the main topics to look at is human rights. While more often than not, police brutality violates the concept of human rights it is still a very important task to discuss the topic and create possible solutions to such a concerning and threatening issues in the United States. In this case, statistics is a very important factor that is required to display how serious ofRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States1479 Words   |  6 Pages Police Brutality in the United States University of Nebraska Kearney Colton Blankenship Abstract This research paper is an overview of police brutality in the United States. The paper covers what police brutality is and the definition. The information about police brutality is expanded about what is reasonable and excessive use of force an officer can use. Information is included about the thoughts of what the citizens feel about police brutality. Among the white andRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States1286 Words   |  6 PagesPolice brutality continues to be one of the most serious and contentious violations of human rights in the United States. The unreasonable amount of force used by police officers prevails because of a lack of accountability. This makes it feasible for officers who do violate human rights to get off clean and recommit the violation. A sad fact is that police and/or public officials deny time after time any claims of human rights violations, claiming it was an abnormality, when they should be takingRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States Essay1484 Words   |  6 PagesAssault Being a minority in the United States has never been easy and does not seem to be getting any better. Minorities have been exposed to violence by law enforcement for many decades. Law enforcement s are tasked with protecting and serving its citizens, not to harass and assault them. Police brutality is a continuous problem in the United States and officers need to be accountable for their actions. This research project will examine how police brutality often leads to death because of someRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States1630 Words   |  7 Pages Police Brutality is an ongoing problem and existent concern in the United States and should be resolved immediately. Law enforcement must function as an element that consists of organized and civilized officers. The presence of police brutality is becoming more of an issue as society grows. The problem posed by the illegal exercise of police power is an ongoing reality for individuals of a disfavored race, class, or sexual o rientation. Police brutality must be stopped so that police do not forgetRead MorePolice Brutality Of The United States2239 Words   |  9 PagesIntroduction Police brutality against minorities across the United States has become a huge topic of interest. There are multiple events where interactions with minorities have had a horrible outcome. Police brutality is defined as the use of excessive force against a civilian and has caught the attention of many in the past few decades. This paper will argue that law enforcement officers disproportionally target minorities as criminal suspects. Racial profiling takes place due to law enforcementRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States1608 Words   |  7 PagesPolice abuse remains as one of the most deliberate human rights violations in the United States. For over a decade police have acted in ways that makes us question their professionalism. Makes the wonder if law enforcement are taking advantage of their criminal justice â€Å"powers† October 22 is â€Å"National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, Repression and Criminalization of an Entire Generation†. (Aol News). On October 22 many people across the country wear black to fight back against police brutalityRead MorePolice Brutality And The United States Essay1474 Words   |  6 PagesBeing a minority in the United States has never been easy and does not seem to be getting any better. Minorities have been exposed to violence by law enforcement for many decades. Law enforcement s are tasked with protecting and serving its citizens, not to harass and assault them. Police brutality is a continuous problem in the United States and officers need to be accountable for their actions. This research project will examine how police brutality often leads to death because of some officersRead MorePolice Brutality Of The United States Essay2135 Words   |  9 PagesThe United States is facing a continuous wide spread of police brutality from the past to today. TV Networks, newspapers/magazines, bloggers and forums are getting involved into the discussion about police brutality. After a father bought a t oy gun for his son for his birthday, his son went outside to play and a police officer saw him with the gun not knowing it was a toy and shot him several times. This incident occurred in Sonoma County in October 2013. Something close to that happened in NovemberRead MorePolice Brutality Of The United States1376 Words   |  6 Pagesprominent at this time in social media and mainstream media is the presence of police brutality in the United States. Two instances in the news recently are the disputes that resulted in the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown. On July 17, 2014, a plainclothes officer for the New York Police Department stopped Eric Garner on the street and attempted to take him into custody. After Garner resisted arrest, the police officer placed him in an apparent chokehold—a move that is banned by the NYPD

Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury - 2455 Words

Ray Bradbury writes Fahrenheit 451 during a time free thinking seems to be slowly disappearing thanks to the advances in technology such as television and the radio. These advances are becoming the principal vehicle to exercise the imagination, once entertained by the knowledge provided by books. As a child Bradbury learnt about the burning of the library of Alexandria thousands of years ago. He was fifteen years old, and Hitler was burning books in the streets of Berlin. These events from the past and the present inflict sadness to Bradbury, a man who loves books, a man that learns everything with books and libraries. Bradbury is aware that if events like these can happen in Alexandria and Berlin, is just a matter of time to see another library burning, another street with a pile of knowledge burning. Heroes, philosophers, adventurers consumed by the flames at 451 degrees. Bradbury uses an array of symbols in Fahrenheit 451, which together conveys an amalgam of emotions. These emot ions are strictly connected to the plot in the story, the dangers that humanity faces if a totalitarian government takes all sources of knowledge away, and free thinkers are persecuted, exterminated. Fahrenheit 451, the title of this novel, is also the first symbol present in the story. Bradbury could have used any other name for this novel, but by using Fahrenheit 451 he is creating an allusion to the plot in the story. Just by reading the title the reader gets an idea of what the book is allShow MoreRelatedFahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury719 Words   |  3 PagesThe flash point of paper, or the temperature at which paper will burst in flames, is 451 degrees Fahrenheit. In Fahrenheit 451, written by Ray Bradbury, the main character, Guy Montag, is a â€Å"fireman† in a futuristic society where he and his coworkers start fires, rather than put them out. Books are banned and burned, along with the owner of the book’s house and sometimes even the owner of the book, upon discovery. Technology has taken over in a sense that social interaction between the average personRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury1952 Words   |  8 Pagesis clearly displayed in the plight of Ray Bradbury’s novel about a dystopian American society, Fahrenheit 451, which contains many ideas and bits of content that some people believed should be censored. In fact, one of the reasons that this novel was censored for displaying the dangers of censorship, which is both extremely ironic, and telling as to where this society is going. Thanks to several distributors and oversensitive parents and teachers, Fahrenheit 451 has been banned in many schools overRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury954 Words   |  4 Pages In Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the author uses allegory (often misinterpreted by readers) to show the dangers of mass media consumption and the decline of reading traditional media. Many readers draw incorrect conclusions (lessons learned) from the book due to how generally the book applies its theme. Government censorship, though an important topic, is not the intended focus of the novel Fahrenheit 451. Finally, Bradbury’s original message of the book shows the beauty of traditional media andRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury1592 Words   |  7 PagesWhen writing the introduction to Fahrenheit 451, author Neil Gaiman stated that â€Å"ideas--written ideas--are special. They are the way we transmit our stories and our thoughts from one generation to the next. If we lose them, we lose our shared history†. Gaiman is absolutely correct; especially because what he is saying heavily applies to books. Books are a critical aspect in shaping humanity as a whole, they create and share a network of creative ideas, history, and overall entertainment; to loseRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury1661 Words   |  7 Pages1.) In the novel, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Montag’s view on life reverses. Two characters the influence the main character Guy Montag are the old lady whose house and books were burnt down and Mildred. The old lady was caught preserving books in her home. Firemen including Montag were ordered to burn the books. The old lady refused to leave her books, so she too was burned. She bravely gave an allusion as her last words, â€Å"Play the man,’ she said, ‘Master Ridley.’ Something, somethingRead MoreFahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury818 Words   |  4 PagesFAHRENHEIT 451 BY RAY BRADBURY Important People in Montag’s Life In Partical Fulfillment Of English 2 Ms Irina Abramov By Helen Hernandez November 9, 2012 â€Å"There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them† -Ray Bradbury. In the past there were events that affected book writers. People will get together to burn books because they thought it was inappropriate or they were against their literature. Montag is a fireman in a futuristic society who would startRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury918 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Fahrenheit 451,† written by Ray Bradbury, is a futuristic, dystopian novel based upon a society secluded by technology and ignorance. In this future society, books are outlawed and firemen are presented with the task of burning books that are found in people’s homes. Montag, a fireman, finds himself intrigued with the books, and begins to take them home and read them. As the story progresses, Montag learns the truth behind why books are outlawed and flees his city to join the last remnants of age-oldRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury863 Words   |  4 PagesTh e novel, Fahrenheit 451 was written by Ray Bradbury and it took place in the dystopian future. Throughout each novel, we are able to see a major theme, which is censorship. In this essay, I will explain how this theme are explored in the story by using the literary devices. To begin with, in this novel, censorship is not given a straight description, but we can see how the author shows it through many literary elements, such as using the setting, tone and symbolisms even foreshadowing. This novelRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury943 Words   |  4 PagesIn the novel Fahrenheit 451, written in 1951 by Ray Bradbury. There are many similarities between the novel and contemporary society, including technology, family lifestyle and censorship. In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury’s main focus was on technology, such as televisions. Televisions were a big deal back in 1950, individuals were thrilled to get their hands on the new device. When it comes to Mildred, Montag s wife in Fahrenheit 451 novel. Mildred was so obsessed with televisions. She had three differentRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury1592 Words   |  7 PagesWhen writing the introduction to Fahrenheit 451, author Neil Gaiman stated that â€Å"ideas--written ideas--are special. They are the way we transmit our stories and our thoughts from one generation to the next. If we lose them, we lose our shared history†. Gaiman is absolutely correct; especially because what he is saying heavily applies to books. Books are a critical aspect in shaping humanity as a whole, they create and share a network of creative ideas, history, and overall entertainment; to lose

Chapter 8 The Quidditch World Cup Free Essays

Clutching their purchases, Mr. Weasley in the lead, they all hurried into the wood, following the lantern-lit trail. They could hear the sounds of thousands of people moving around them, shouts and laughter, snatches of singing. We will write a custom essay sample on Chapter 8 The Quidditch World Cup or any similar topic only for you Order Now The atmosphere of feverish excitement was highly infectious; Harry couldn’t stop grinning. They walked through the wood for twenty minutes, talking and joking loudly, until at last they emerged on the other side and found themselves in the shadow of a gigantic stadium. Though Harry could see only a fraction of the immense gold walls surrounding the field, he could tell that ten cathedrals would fit comfortably inside it. â€Å"Seats a hundred thousand,† said Mr. Weasley, spotting the awestruck look on Harry’s face. â€Å"Ministry task force of five hundred have been working on it all year. Muggle Repelling Charms on every inch of it. Every time Muggles have got anywhere near here all year, they’ve suddenly remembered urgent appointments and had to dash away again†¦bless them,† he added fondly, leading the way toward the nearest entrance, which was already surrounded by a swarm of shouting witches and wizards. â€Å"Prime seats!† said the Ministry witch at the entrance when she checked their tickets. â€Å"Top Box! Straight upstairs, Arthur, and as high as you can go.† The stairs into the stadium were carpeted in rich purple. They clambered upward with the rest of the crowd, which slowly filtered away through doors into the stands to their left and right. Mr. Weasley’s party kept climbing, and at last they reached the top of the staircase and found themselves in a small box, set at the highest point of the stadium and situated exactly halfway between the golden goal posts. About twenty purple-and-gilt chairs stood in two rows here, and Harry, filing into the front seats with the Weasleys, looked down upon a scene the likes of which he could never have imagined. A hundred thousand witches and wizards were taking their places in the seats, which rose in levels around the long oval field. Everything was suffused with a mysterious golden light, which seemed to come from the stadium itself. The field looked smooth as velvet from their lofty position. At either end of the field stood three goal hoops, fifty feet high; right opposite them, almost at Harry’s eye level, was a gigantic blackboard. Gold writing kept dashing across it as though an invisible giant’s hand were scrawling upon the blackboard and then wiping it off again; watching it, Harry saw that it was flashing advertisements across the field. The Bluebottle: A Broom for All the Family – safe, reliable, and with Built-in Anti-Burgler Buzzer†¦Mrs. Shower’s All Purpose Magical Mess Remover: No Pain, No Stain!†¦Gladrags Wizardwear – London, Paris, Hogsmeade†¦ Harry tore his eyes away from the sign and looked over his shoulder to see who else was sharing the box with them. So far it was empty, except for a tiny creature sitting in the second from last seat at the end of the row behind them. The creature, whose legs were so short they stuck out in front of it on the chair, was wearing a tea towel draped like a toga, and it had its face hidden in its hands. Yet those long, batlike ears were oddly familiar†¦. â€Å"Dobby?† said Harry incredulously. The tiny creature looked up and stretched its fingers, revealing enormous brown eyes and a nose the exact size and shape of a large tomato. It wasn’t Dobby – it was, however, unmistakably a house-elf, as Harry’s friend Dobby had been. Harry had set Dobby free from his old owners, the Malfoy family. â€Å"Did sir just call me Dobby?† squeaked the elf curiously from between its fingers. Its voice was higher even than Dobby’s had been, a teeny, quivering squeak of a voice, and Harry suspected though it was very hard to tell with a house-elf – that this one might just be female. Ron and Hermione spun around in their seats to look. Though they had heard a lot about Dobby from Harry, they had never actually met him. Even Mr. Weasley looked around in interest. â€Å"Sorry,† Harry told the elf, â€Å"I just thought you were someone I knew.† â€Å"But I knows Dobby too, sir!† squeaked the elf. She was shielding her face, as though blinded by light, though the Top Box was not brightly lit. â€Å"My name is Winky, sir – and you, sir -† Her dark brown eyes widened to the size of side plates as they rested upon Harry’s scar. â€Å"You is surely Harry Potter!† â€Å"Yeah, I am,† said Harry. â€Å"But Dobby talks of you all the time, sir!† she said, lowering her hands very slightly and looking awestruck. â€Å"How is he?† said Harry. â€Å"How’s freedom suiting him?† â€Å"Ah, sir,† said Winky, shaking her head, â€Å"ah sir, meaning no disrespect, sir, but I is not sure you did Dobby a favor, sir, when you is setting him free.† â€Å"Why?† said Harry, taken aback. â€Å"What’s wrong with him?† â€Å"Freedom is going to Dobby’s head, sir, † said Winky sadly. â€Å"Ideas above his station, sir. Can’t get another position, sir.† â€Å"Why not?† said Harry. Winky lowered her voice by a half-octave and whispered, â€Å"He is wanting paying for his work, sir.† â€Å"Paying?† said Harry blankly. â€Å"Well – why shouldn’t he be paid?† Winky looked quite horrified at the idea and closed her fingers slightly so that her face was half-hidden again. â€Å"House-elves is not paid, sir!† she said in a muffled squeak. â€Å"No, no, no. I says to Dobby, I says, go find yourself a nice family and settle down, Dobby. He is getting up to all sorts of high jinks, sir, what is unbecoming to a house-elf. You goes racketing around like this, Dobby, I says, and next thing I hear you’s up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, like some common goblin.† â€Å"Well, it’s about time he had a bit of fun,† said Harry. â€Å"House-elves is not supposed to have fun, Harry Potter,† said Winky firmly, from behind her hands. â€Å"House-elves does what they is told. I is not liking heights at all, Harry Potter† – she glanced toward the edge of the box and gulped – â€Å"but my master sends me to the Top Box and I comes, sir.† â€Å"Why’s he sent you up here, if he knows you don’t like heights?† said Harry, frowning. â€Å"Master – master wants me to save him a seat, Harry Potter. He is very busy,† said Winky, tilting her head toward the empty space beside her. â€Å"Winky is wishing she is back in master’s tent, Harry Potter, but Winky does what she is told. Winky is a good house-elf.† She gave the edge of the box another frightened look and hid her eyes completely again. Harry turned back to the others. â€Å"So that’s a house-elf?† Ron muttered. â€Å"Weird things, aren’t they?† â€Å"Dobby was weirder,† said Harry fervently. Ron pulled out his Omnioculars and started testing them, staring down into the crowd on the other side of the stadium. â€Å"Wild!† he said, twiddling the replay knob on the side. I can make that old bloke down there pick his nose again†¦and again†¦and again†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Hermione, meanwhile, was skimming eagerly through her velvetcovered, tasseled program. â€Å"‘A display from the team mascots will precede the match,†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ she read aloud. â€Å"Oh that’s always worth watching,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"National teams bring creatures from their native land, you know, to put on a bit of a show.† The box filled gradually around them over the next half hour. Mr. Weasley kept shaking hands with people who were obviously very important wizards. Percy jumped to his feet so often that he looked as though he were trying to sit on a hedgehog. When Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic himself, arrived, Percy bowed so low that his glasses fell off and shattered. Highly embarrassed, he repaired them with his wand and thereafter remained in his seat, throwing jealous looks at Harry, whom Cornelius Fudge had greeted like an old friend. They had met before, and Fudge shook Harry’s hand in a fatherly fashion, asked how he was, and introduced him to the wizards on either side of him. â€Å"Harry Potter, you know,† he told the Bulgarian minister loudly, who was wearing splendid robes of black velvet trimmed with gold and didn’t seem to understand a word of English. â€Å"Harry Potter†¦oh come on now, you know who he is†¦the boy who survived You-Know-Who†¦you do know who he is -â€Å" The Bulgarian wizard suddenly spotted Harry’s scar and started gabbling loudly and excitedly, pointing at it. â€Å"Knew we’d get there in the end,† said Fudge wearily to Harry. â€Å"I’m no great shakes at languages; I need Barty Crouch for this sort of thing. Ah, I see his house-elf’s saving him a seat†¦.Good job too, these Bulgarian blighters have been trying to cadge all the best places†¦ah, and here’s Lucius!† Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned quickly. Edging along the second row to three still-empty seats right behind Mr. Weasley were none other than Dobby the house-elf’s former owners: Lucius Malfoy; his son, Draco; and a woman Harry supposed must be Draco’s mother. Harry and Draco Malfoy had been enemies ever since their very first journey to Hogwarts. A pale boy with a pointed face and white-blond hair, Draco greatly resembled his father. His mother was blonde too; tall and slim, she would have been nice-looking if she hadn’t been wearing a look that suggested there was a nasty smell under her nose. â€Å"Ah, Fudge,† said Mr. Malfoy, holding out his hand as he reached the Minister of Magic. â€Å"How are you? I don’t think you’ve met my wife, Narcissa? Or our son, Draco?† â€Å"How do you do, how do you do?† said Fudge, smiling and bowing to Mrs. Malfoy. â€Å"And allow me to introduce you to Mr. Oblansk – Obalonsk – Mr. – well, he’s the Bulgarian Minister of Magic, and he can’t understand a word I’m saying anyway, so never mind. And let’s see who else – you know Arthur Weasley, I daresay?† It was a tense moment. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy looked at each other and Harry vividly recalled the last time they had come face-to-face: It had been in Flourish and Blotts’ bookshop, and they had had a fight. Mr. Malfoy’s cold gray eyes swept over Mr. Weasley, and then up and down the row. â€Å"Good lord, Arthur,† he said softly. â€Å"What did you have to sell to get seats in the Top Box? Surely your house wouldn’t have fetched this much?† Fudge, who wasn’t listening, said, â€Å"Lucius has just given a very generous contribution to St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Arthur. He’s here as my guest.† â€Å"How – how nice,† said Mr. Weasley, with a very strained smile. Mr. Malfoy’s eyes had returned to Hermione, who went slightly pink, but stared determinedly back at him. Harry knew exactly what was making Mr. Malfoy’s lip curl like that. The Malfoys prided themselves on being purebloods; in other words, they considered anyone of Muggle descent, like Hermione, second-class. However, under the gaze of the Minister of Magic, Mr. Malfoy didn’t dare say anything. He nodded sneeringly to Mr. Weasley and continued down the line to his seats. Draco shot Harry, Ron, and Hermione one contemptuous look, then settled himself between his mother and father. â€Å"Slimy gits,† Ron muttered as he, Harry, and Hermione turned to face the field again. Next moment, Ludo Bagman charged into the box. â€Å"Everyone ready?† he said, his round face gleaming like a great, excited Edam. â€Å"Minister – ready to go?† â€Å"Ready when you are, Ludo,† said Fudge comfortably. Ludo whipped out his wand, directed it at his own throat, and said â€Å"Sonorus!† and then spoke over the roar of sound that was now filling the packed stadium; his voice echoed over them, booming into every corner of the stands. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen†¦welcome! Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup!† The spectators screamed and clapped. Thousands of flags waved, adding their discordant national anthems to the racket. The huge blackboard opposite them was wiped clear of its last message (Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans – A Risk With Every Mouthful!) and now showed BULGARIA: 0, IRELAND: 0. â€Å"And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce†¦the Bulgarian National Team Mascots!† The right-hand side of the stands, which was a solid block of scarlet, roared its approval. â€Å"I wonder what they’ve brought,† said Mr. Weasley, leaning forward in his seat. â€Å"Aaah!† He suddenly whipped off his glasses and polished them hurriedly on his robes. â€Å"Veela!† â€Å"What are veel -?† But a hundred veela were now gliding out onto the field, and Harry’s question was answered for him. Veela were women†¦the most beautiful women Harry had ever seen†¦except that they weren’t – they couldn’t be – human. This puzzled Harry for a moment while he tried to guess what exactly they could be; what could make their skin shine moon-bright like that, or their white-gold hair fan out behind them without wind†¦but then the music started, and Harry stopped worrying about them not being human – in fact, he stopped worrying about anything at all. The veela had started to dance, and Harry’s mind had gone completely and blissfully blank. All that mattered in the world was that he kept watching the veela, because if they stopped dancing, terrible things would happen. And as the veela danced faster and faster, wild, half-formed thoughts started chasing through Harry’s dazed mind. He wanted to do something very impressive, right now. Jumping from the box into the stadium seemed a good idea†¦but would it be good enough? â€Å"Harry, what are you doing?† said Hermione’s voice from a long way off. The music stopped. Harry blinked. He was standing up, and one of his legs was resting on the wall of the box. Next to him, Ron was frozen in an attitude that looked as though he were about to dive from a springboard. Angry yells were filling the stadium. The crowd didn’t want the veela to go. Harry was with them; he would, of course, be supporting Bulgaria, and he wondered vaguely why he had a large green shamrock pinned to his chest. Ron, meanwhile, was absentmindedly shredding the shamrocks on his hat. Mr. Weasley, smiling slightly, leaned over to Ron and tugged the hat out of his hands. â€Å"You’ll be wanting that,† he said, â€Å"once Ireland have had their say.† â€Å"Huh?† said Ron, staring openmouthed at the veela, who had now lined up along one side of the field. Hermione made a loud tutting noise. She reached up and pulled Harry back into his seat. â€Å"Honestly!† she said. â€Å"And now,† roared Ludo Bagman’s voice, â€Å"kindly put your wands in the air†¦for the Irish National Team Mascots!† Next moment, what seemed to be a great green-and-gold comet came zooming into the stadium. It did one circuit of the stadium, then split into two smaller comets, each hurtling toward the goal posts. A rainbow arced suddenly across the field, connecting the two balls of light. The crowd oooohed and aaaaahed, as though at a fireworks display. Now the rainbow faded and the balls of light reunited and merged; they had formed a great shimmering shamrock, which rose up into the sky and began to soar over the stands. Something like golden rain seemed to be falling from it – â€Å"Excellent!† yelled Ron as the shamrock soared over them, and heavy gold coins rained from it, bouncing off their heads and seats. Squinting up at the shamrock, Harry realized that it was actually comprised of thousands of tiny little bearded men with red vests, each carrying a minute lamp of gold or green. â€Å"Leprechauns!† said Mr. Weasley over the tumultuous applause of the crowd, many of whom were still fighting and rummaging around under their chairs to retrieve the gold. â€Å"There you go,† Ron yelled happily, stuffing a fistful of gold coins into Harry’s hand, â€Å"for the Omnioculars! Now you’ve got to buy me a Christmas present, ha!† The great shamrock dissolved, the leprechauns drifted down onto the field on the opposite side from the veela, and settled themselves cross-legged to watch the match. â€Å"And now, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome – the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you – Dimitrov!† A scarlet-clad figure on a broomstick, moving so fast it was blurred, shot out onto the field from an entrance far below, to wild applause from the Bulgarian supporters. â€Å"Ivanova!† A second scarlet-robed player zoomed out. â€Å"Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volkov! Aaaaaaand – Krum!† â€Å"That’s him, that’s him!† yelled Ron, following Krum with his Omnioculars. Harry quickly focused his own. Viktor Krum was thin, dark, and sallow-skinned, with a large curved nose and thick black eyebrows. He looked like an overgrown bird of prey. It was hard to believe he was only eighteen. â€Å"And now, please greet – the Irish National Quidditch Team!† yelled Bagman. â€Å"Presenting – Connolly! Ryan! Troy! Mullet! Moran! Quigley! Aaaaaand – Lynch!† Seven green blurs swept onto the field; Harry spun a small dial on the side of his Omnioculars and slowed the players down enough to read the word â€Å"Firebolt† on each of their brooms and see their names, embroidered in silver, upon their backs. â€Å"And here, all the way from Egypt, our referee, acclaimed Chairwizard of the International Association of Quidditch, Hassan Mostafa!† A small and skinny wizard, completely bald but with a mustache to rival Uncle Vernon’s, wearing robes of pure gold to match the stadium, strode out onto the field. A silver whistle was protruding from under the mustache, and he was carrying a large wooden crate under one arm, his broomstick under the other. Harry spun the speed dial on his Omnioculars back to normal, watching closely as Mostafa mounted his broomstick and kicked the crate open – four balls burst into the air: the scarlet Quaffle, the two black Bludgers, and (Harry saw it for the briefest moment, before it sped out of sight) the minuscule, winged Golden Snitch. With a sharp blast on his whistle, Mostafa shot into the air after the balls. â€Å"Theeeeeeeey’re OFF!† screamed Bagman. â€Å"And it’s Mullet! Troy! Moran! Dimitrov! Back to Mullet! Troy! Levski! Moran!† It was Quidditch as Harry had never seen it played before. He was pressing his Omnioculars so hard to his glasses that they were cutting into the bridge of his nose. The speed of the players was incredible – the Chasers were throwing the Quaffle to one another so fast that Bagman only had time to say their names. Harry spun the slow dial on the right of his Omnioculars again, pressed the play-by-play button on the top, and he was immediately watching in slow motion, while glittering purple lettering flashed across the lenses and the noise of the crowd pounded against his eardrums. HAWKSHEAD ATTACKING FORMATION, he read as he watched the three Irish Chasers zoom closely together, Troy in the center, slightly ahead of Mullet and Moran, bearing down upon the Bulgarians. PORSKOFF PLOY flashed up next, as Troy made as though to dart upward with the Quaffle, drawing away the Bulgarian Chaser Ivanova and dropping the Quaffle to Moran. One of the Bulgarian Beaters, Volkov, swung hard at a passing Bludger with his small club, knocking it into Moran’s path; Moran ducked to avoid the Bludger and dropped the Quaffle; and Levski, soaring beneath, caught it – â€Å"TROY SCORES!† roared Bagman, and the stadium shuddered with a roar of applause and cheers. â€Å"Ten zero to Ireland!† â€Å"What?† Harry yelled, looking wildly around through his Omnioculars. â€Å"But Levski’s got the Quaffle!† â€Å"Harry, if you’re not going to watch at normal speed, you’re going to miss things!† shouted Hermione, who was dancing up and down, waving her arms in the air while Troy did a lap of honor around the field. Harry looked quickly over the top of his Omnioculars and saw that the leprechauns watching from the sidelines had all risen into the air again and formed the great, glittering shamrock. Across the field, the veela were watching them sulkily. Furious with himself, Harry spun his speed dial back to normal as play resumed. Harry knew enough about Quidditch to see that the Irish Chasers were superb. They worked as a seamless team, their movements so well coordinated that they appeared to be reading one another’s minds as they positioned themselves, and the rosette on Harry’s chest kept squeaking their names: â€Å"Troy – Mullet – Moran!† And within ten minutes, Ireland had scored twice more, bringing their lead to thirty-zero and causing a thunderous tide of roars and applause from the green-clad supporters. The match became still faster, but more brutal. Volkov and Vulchanov, the Bulgarian Beaters, were whacking the Bludgers as fiercely as possible at the Irish Chasers, and were starting to prevent them from using some of their best moves; twice they were forced to scatter, and then, finally, Ivanova managed to break through their ranks; dodge the Keeper, Ryan; and score Bulgaria’s first goal. â€Å"Fingers in your ears!† bellowed Mr. Weasley as the veela started to dance in celebration. Harry screwed up his eyes too; he wanted to keep his mind on the game. After a few seconds, he chanced a glance at the field. The veela had stopped dancing, and Bulgaria was again in possession of the Quaffle. â€Å"Dimitrov! Levski! Dimitrov! Ivanova – oh I say!† roared Bagman. One hundred thousand wizards gasped as the two Seekers, Krum and Lynch, plummeted through the center of the Chasers, so fast that it looked as though they had just jumped from airplanes without parachutes. Harry followed their descent through his Omnioculars, squinting to see where the Snitch was – â€Å"They’re going to crash!† screamed Hermione next to Harry. She was half right – at the very last second, Viktor Krum pulled out of the dive and spiraled off. Lynch, however, hit the ground with a dull thud that could be heard throughout the stadium. A huge groan rose from the Irish seats. â€Å"Fool!† moaned Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Krum was feinting!† â€Å"It’s time-out!† yelled Bagman’s voice, â€Å"as trained mediwizards hurry onto the field to examine Aidan Lynch!† â€Å"He’ll be okay, he only got ploughed!† Charlie said reassuringly to Ginny, who was hanging over the side of the box, looking horror-struck. â€Å"Which is what Krum was after, of course†¦.† Harry hastily pressed the replay and play-by-play buttons on his Omnioculars, twiddled the speed dial, and put them back up to his eyes. He watched as Krum and Lynch dived again in slow motion. WRONSKI DEFENSIVE FEINT – DANGEROUS SEEKER DIVERSION read the shining purple lettering across his lenses. He saw Krum’s face contorted with concentration as he pulled out of the dive just in time, while Lynch was flattened, and he understood – Krum hadn’t seen the Snitch at all, he was just making Lynch copy him. Harry had never seen anyone fly like that; Krum hardly looked as though he was using a broomstick at all; he moved so easily through the air that he looked unsupported and weightless. Harry turned his Omnioculars back to normal and focused them on Krum. He was now circling high above Lynch, who was being revived by mediwizards with cups of potion. Harry, focusing still more closely upon Krum’s face, saw his dark eyes darting all over the ground a hundred feet below. He was using the time while Lynch was revived to look for the Snitch without interference. Lynch got to his feet at last, to loud cheers from the green-clad supporters, mounted his Firebolt, and kicked back off into the air. His revival seemed to give Ireland new heart. When Mostafa blew his whistle again, the Chasers moved into action with a skill unrivaled by anything Harry had seen so far. After fifteen more fast and furious minutes, Ireland had pulled ahead by ten more goals. They were now leading by one hundred and thirty points to ten, and the game was starting to get dirtier. As Mullet shot toward the goal posts yet again, clutching the Quaffle tightly under her arm, the Bulgarian Keeper, Zograf, flew out to meet her. Whatever happened was over so quickly Harry didn’t catch it, but a scream of rage from the Irish crowd, and Mostafa’s long, shrill whistle blast, told him it had been a foul. â€Å"And Mostafa takes the Bulgarian Keeper to task for cobbing – excessive use of elbows!† Bagman informed the roaring spectators. â€Å"And – yes, it’s a penalty to Ireland!† The leprechauns, who had risen angrily into the air like a swarm of glittering hornets when Mullet had been fouled, now darted together to form the words â€Å"HA, HA, HA!† The veela on the other side of the field leapt to their feet, tossed their hair angrily, and started to dance again. As one, the Weasley boys and Harry stuffed their fingers into their ears, but Hermione, who hadn’t bothered, was soon tugging on Harry’s arm. He turned to look at her, and she pulled his fingers impatiently out of his ears. â€Å"Look at the referee!† she said, giggling. Harry looked down at the field. Hassan Mostafa had landed right in front of the dancing veela, and was acting very oddly indeed. He was flexing his muscles and smoothing his mustache excitedly. â€Å"Now, we can’t have that!† said Ludo Bagman, though he sounded highly amused. â€Å"Somebody slap the referee!† A mediwizard came tearing across the field, his fingers stuffed into his own ears, and kicked Mostafa hard in the shins. Mostafa seemed to come to himself; Harry, watching through the Omnioculars again, saw that he looked exceptionally embarrassed and had started shouting at the veela, who had stopped dancing and were looking mutinous. â€Å"And unless I’m much mistaken, Mostafa is actually attempting to send off the Bulgarian team mascots!† said Bagman’s voice. â€Å"Now there’s something we haven’t seen before†¦Oh this could turn nasty†¦ It did: The Bulgarian Beaters, Volkov and Vulchanov, landed on either side of Mostafa and began arguing furiously with him, gesticulating toward the leprechauns, who had now gleefully formed the words â€Å"HEE, HEE, HEE.† Mostafa was not impressed by the Bulgarians’ arguments, however; he was jabbing his finger into the air, clearly telling them to get flying again, and when they refused, he gave two short blasts on his whistle. â€Å"Two penalties for Ireland!† shouted Bagman, and the Bulgarian crowd howled with anger. â€Å"And Volkov and Vulchanov had better get back on those brooms†¦yes†¦there they go†¦and Troy takes the Quaffle†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Play now reached a level of ferocity beyond anything they had yet seen. The Beaters on both sides were acting without mercy: Volkov and Vulchanov in particular seemed not to care whether their clubs made contact with Bludger or human as they swung them violently through the air. Dimitrov shot straight at Moran, who had the Quaffle, nearly knocking her off her broom. â€Å"Foul!† roared the Irish supporters as one, all standing up in a great wave of green. â€Å"Foul!† echoed Ludo Bagman’s magically magnified voice. â€Å"Dimitrov skins Moran – deliberately flying to collide there – and it’s got to be another penalty – yes, there’s the whistle!† The leprechauns had risen into the air again, and this time, they formed a giant hand, which was making a very rude sign indeed at the veela across the field. At this, the veela lost control. Instead of dancing, they launched themselves across the field and began throwing what seemed to be handfuls of fire at the leprechauns. Watching through his Omnioculars, Harry saw that they didn’t look remotely beautiful now. On the contrary, their faces were elongating into sharp, cruel-beaked bird heads, and long, scaly wings were bursting from their shoulders – â€Å"And that, boys,† yelled Mr. Weasley over the tumult of the crowd below, â€Å"is why you should never go for looks alone!† Ministry wizards were flooding onto the field to separate the veela and the leprechauns, but with little success; meanwhile, the pitched battle below was nothing to the one taking place above. Harry turned this way and that, staring through his Omnioculars, as the Quaffie changed hands with the speed of a bullet. â€Å"Levski – Dimitrov – Moran – Troy – Mullet – Ivanova – Moran again – Moran – MORAN SCORES!† But the cheers of the Irish supporters were barely heard over the shrieks of the veela, the blasts now issuing from the Ministry members’ wands, and the furious roars of the Bulgarians. The game recommenced immediately; now Levski had the Quaffle, now Dimitrov – The Irish Beater Quigley swung heavily at a passing Bludger, and hit it as hard as possible toward Krum, who did not duck quickly enough. It hit him full in the face. There was a deafening groan from the crowd; Krum’s nose looked broken, there was blood everywhere, but Hassan Mostafa didn’t blow his whistle. He had become distracted, and Harry couldn’t blame him; one of the veela had thrown a handful of fire and set his broom tail alight. Harry wanted someone to realize that Krum was injured; even though he was supporting Ireland, Krum was the most exciting player on the field. Ron obviously felt the same. â€Å"Time-out! Ah, come on, he can’t play like that, look at him -â€Å" â€Å"Look at Lynch!† Harry yelled. For the Irish Seeker had suddenly gone into a dive, and Harry was quite sure that this was no Wronski Feint; this was the real thing†¦ â€Å"He’s seen the Snitch!† Harry shouted. â€Å"He’s seen it! Look at him go!† Half the crowd seemed to have realized what was happening; the Irish supporters rose in another great wave of green, screaming their Seeker on†¦but Krum was on his tail. How he could see where he was going, Harry had no idea; there were flecks of blood flying through the air behind him, but he was drawing level with Lynch now as the pair of them hurtled toward the ground again – â€Å"They’re going to crash!† shrieked Hermione. â€Å"They’re not!† roared Ron. â€Å"Lynch is!† yelled Harry. And he was right – for the second time, Lynch hit the ground with tremendous force and was immediately stampeded by a horde of angry veela. â€Å"The Snitch, where’s the Snitch?† bellowed Charlie, along the row. â€Å"He’s got it – Krum’s got it – it’s all over!† shouted Harry. Krum, his red robes shining with blood from his nose, was rising gently into the air, his fist held high, a glint of gold in his hand. The scoreboard was flashing BULGARIA: 160, IRELAND: 170 across the crowd, who didn’t seem to have realized what had happened. Then, slowly, as though a great jumbo jet were revving up, the rumbling from the Ireland supporters grew louder and louder and erupted into screams of delight. â€Å"IRELAND WINS!† Bagman shouted, who like the Irish, seemed to be taken aback by the sudden end of the match. â€Å"KRUM GETS THE SNITCH – BUT IRELAND WINS – good lord, I don’t think any of us were expecting that!† â€Å"What did he catch the Snitch for?† Ron bellowed, even as he jumped up and down, applauding with his hands over his head. â€Å"He ended it when Ireland were a hundred and sixty points ahead, the idiot!† â€Å"He knew they were never going to catch up!† Harry shouted back over all the noise, also applauding loudly. â€Å"The Irish Chasers were too good†¦He wanted to end it on his terms, that’s all†¦. â€Å"He was very brave, wasn’t he?† Hermione said, leaning forward to watch Krum land as a swarm of mediwizards blasted a path through the battling leprechauns and veela to get to him. â€Å"He looks a terrible mess†¦.† Harry put his Omnioculars to his eyes again. It was hard to see what was happening below, because leprechauns were zooming delightedly all over the field, but he could just make out Krum, surrounded by mediwizards. He looked surlier than ever and refused to let them mop him up. His team members were around him, shaking their heads and looking dejected; a short way away, the Irish players were dancing gleefully in a shower of gold descending from their mascots. Flags were waving all over the stadium, the Irish national anthem blared from all sides; the veela were shrinking back into their usual, beautiful selves now, though looking dispirited and forlorn. â€Å"Vell, ve fought bravely,† said a gloomy voice behind Harry. He looked around; it was the Bulgarian Minister of Magic. â€Å"You can speak English!† said Fudge, sounding outraged. â€Å"And you’ve been letting me mime everything all day!† â€Å"Veil, it vos very funny,† said the Bulgarian minister, shrugging. â€Å"And as the Irish team performs a lap of honor, flanked by their mascots, the Quidditch World Cup itself is brought into the Top Box!† roared Bagman. Harry’s eyes were suddenly dazzled by a blinding white light, as the Top Box was magically illuminated so that everyone in the stands could see the inside. Squinting toward the entrance, he saw two panting wizards carrying a vast golden cup into the box, which they handed to Cornelius Fudge, who was still looking very disgruntled that he’d been using sign language all day for nothing. â€Å"Let’s have a really loud hand for the gallant losers – Bulgaria!† Bagman shouted. And up the stairs into the box came the seven defeated Bulgarian players. The crowd below was applauding appreciatively; Harry could see thousands and thousands of Omniocular lenses flashing and winking in their direction. One by one, the Bulgarians filed between the rows of seats in the box, and Bagman called out the name of each as they shook hands with their own minister and then with Fudge. Krum, who was last in line, looked a real mess. Two black eyes were blooming spectacularly on his bloody face. He was still holding the Snitch. Harry noticed that he seemed much less coordinated on the ground. He was slightly duck-footed and distinctly round-shouldered. But when Krum’s name was announced, the whole stadium gave him a resounding, earsplitting roar. And then came the Irish team. Aidan Lynch was being supported by Moran and Connolly; the second crash seemed to have dazed him and his eyes looked strangely unfocused. But he grinned happily as Troy and Quigley lifted the Cup into the air and the crowd below thundered its approval. Harry’s hands were numb with clapping. At last, when the Irish team had left the box to perform another lap of honor on their brooms (Aidan Lynch on the back of Confolly’s, clutching hard around his waist and still grinning in a bemused sort of way), Bagman pointed his wand at his throat and muttered, â€Å"Quietus.† â€Å"They’ll be talking about this one for years,† he said hoarsely, â€Å"a really unexpected twist, that†¦.shame it couldn’t have lasted longer†¦.Ah yes†¦yes, I owe you†¦.how much?† For Fred and George had just scrambled over the backs of their seats and were standing in front of Ludo Bagman with broad grins on their faces, their hands outstretched. How to cite Chapter 8 The Quidditch World Cup, Essay examples

Case Study on Googles Strategy in 2008 free essay sample

Case Analysis (Google’s Strategy in 2008) Introduction Google is the most used search engine worldwide as of 2008 (Gamble 2008). This is largely due to the consistently reliable search results it produces as its core product, in effect creating confidence amongst consumers. To keep this competitive advantage Google needs to identify forces that seem most likely to bring about major change to the industry within the next 3 – 5 years. In doing so, Google need to identify 3 – 5 factors that promote success in the search industry to help focus and navigate through the coming half decade. Forces most likely to bring about major change to the search industry in the next 3 – 5 years Innovative and game-changing concepts have been the driving force behind the success of Google over the past decade. Google need to look to the future to remain on top and maintain their competitive advantage against the competition. The introduction of the Android operating system for mobile phones was designed to compete with Apple’s iPhone and at only a fraction of the cost (Gamble 2008). Over the coming decade the Android will play a vital role in increasing Google’s mobile search market and increase its share of banner ads (Gamble 2008). The Android still needs time to mature and develop a more extensive range of apps for its mobile users to hold a larger share of the market. Over the next 3-5 years it will be evident that the Android will be a one of the most dominant players in the search industry. The ‘cloud computing’ concept may be one of Google’s most anticipated due to the idea that all computers can be linked up to one, anywhere in the world, is a major advantage to any global business. The licensing of Google’s online Beta word processing application will rival the Microsoft office version and at a 600% price difference it makes Google’s application look more attractive (Gamble 2008). As this concept may be easy to imitate by other firms, Google will have the upper hand firstly by having their reputation and secondly by the vast amounts of cash reserves Google can afford to spend in order to make their ‘cloud computing’ application unsurpassed. The agreement between Google and the U. S federal Communications Commission grants permission to use unused television airwaves. Newer and more advanced technologies will be designed to accept and transmit these frequencies, in effect creating larger Wi-Fi areas (Gamble 2008). The possibility for any device to have multi-frequency accepting transmitters provides communication in remote locations and around the world with endless possibilities. Not only will this bring about major change to the Search industry; it will dramatically change the Communications Industry. Key Factors that define success in the search industry 1. Google’s number one principle of corporate Philosophy is ‘focus on the user and all else will follow’ (Gamble 2008, p. C262). When Google made this statement they emphasized that its main objective was to please the customer, by putting the user’s interests first and success will follow accordingly. Being upfront by advising users that they refuse to make sacrifices to increase shareholder value shows uninterrupted user focus. When it comes to usage, the users appreciate basic ingredients; easy to use, instant results, search placement is unavailable for purchase and relevant advertisements to your search (Gamble 2008). Communication between the user and the application are the insights that so many companies miss, and are probably the easiest to grasp. Many companies spend time and money on inventing new technologies to what their understanding is of what people want; where majority of the time†¦it’s usually not. By focusing on what the user wants, other applications can be formed around this base of information. . While Google may have many applications that may be mind blowing, they believe that to be successful in the search industry you must be able to conduct your core service extremely well (Gamble 2008). This type of approach can be seen as building from the inside out, by focusing on what is important and applying yourself to what you’re good at. Nike does running shoes, Porsche does Sports cars, Starbucks does coffee and Google does search. In all of these companies, it’s simple to identify their bi-products but without the quality of their core product, these companies would cease o exist. 3. When it comes to search, instant gratification is priority number 1 (Gamble 2008). For success to be achievable it is a necessity to either meet expectations or to go beyond, and for the search industry; the standard is one of instance. By showing that Google are different from other corporations also helps in their success. It may be noted that Google may be the only company whose goal is to have users leave its website as quickly as possible (Gamble 2008); leaving the website quicker means the user found what they were looking for quicker, which encourages repeat use. This standard of timeliness expectancy can be seen across man different industries; building a house is 6 months, basic letter postage cross country is 1 week, ordering a coffee is 5 minutes and search is instant. 4. Being able to trust the accuracy of your search engine will, at the bottom line, make or break your company. Many companies have lost trust among users by manipulating partner sponsors to be displayed even if they have nothing to do with what the search is about. An example of this may be an advertisement for an electrician where the search indicated plumber. Google go to great measures to ensure that the veracity of search results are not compromised, it is not possible to buy a better Page Rank and sponsored links are relevant to the search item indicate (Gamble 2008). As Google pride them self on the simplicity and user friendly interface, it is essential that the search results and advertisements are not confused for being one or the other. Having a clearly defined area where advertisements may be relevant to the search is the key to the quality of the engine. Conclusion Google are at the forefront of search technologies and it seems as though the future is bright for the company. By pushing the boundaries of what is possible, Google will embrace and most likely cause change within the industry. Success will come naturally if Google maintain their innovative thinking and maintain their user focused philosophy. References Gamble, J. E. 2008, Google’s Strategy in 2008, (case 14, pp. C259 – C276). University of South Alabama Gamble, J. E. 2008, Exhibit 1, The Principles of Google’s Corporate Philosophy. Source: www. google. com

The Panini Company Business Plan

Business Plan â€Å"The Panini King†Ã‚  will provide freshly made Panini’s in a short time with several choices in the type of bread, cheese and meat for the customers. There will also be side–dishes such as chips, dips, and salads.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The Panini Company: Business Plan specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is being planned and built by an educated and vastly experienced entrepreneur, Mr. Peter McConkey. Since market conditions in an area can have a significant impact on the profitability of the restaurant (Goodpasture et al), â€Å"The Panini King† located in a busy business area will satisfy an unmet demand for fast food do-it yourself (DIY). The Panini King is not â€Å"just another† fast food company rather it will be a  unique combination of excellent customized food at value pricing in an entertaining atmosphere. Our studies and experience show that customers (1) want value for everything that  it purchases, (2) a clean restaurant (3) want choices (4) want useful suggestions, and (3) want quick service – a necessity for any fast food company (restaurantowner.com). Panini King will do this  by providing customized, fresh and tasty sandwiches  within a short frame of time. It will also provide customers options in bread, cheeses, and meat in their Panini’s along with a healthy salads, chips, and drinks. â€Å"In 2010, the United States fast food market is forecast to have a value of $57.6 billion, an increase of 12.1% since 2005† (McCarty).This plan is prepared to establish the financial viability of the restaurant and to raise $40,000 in a 7-year term loan to finance the equipment and leasehold improvements. Additional financing required will be provided by the owner. Objectives In the first three years of operation the objectives are to make the joint a popular destination for customers, ke eping the cost of food under 30% of revenue, keeping labor cost between 25 to 30% of revenue, reaching annual sales volume of  1 million dollars, controlling costs, and hiring professionals such as CPA’s, to keep the business under control.Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Mission The mission of â€Å"The Panini King† is to be a premier fast food company. Our guests will not just enjoy their Panini’s but also enjoy the ambience when visiting The Panini King, hoping to give an experience that is as pleasing to the senses as it is to the palate. With its comfortable, conversational surroundings, and quality ingredients, it is easy to see why Panini King would succeed in its mission (Panera Bread, 2009). Keys to Success There are key external factors that are outside the control of the owner but can have but are likely to have an impact on business (I BISworld). However, the keys to our success lies in : (1) Creating a friendly and comfortable atmosphere that will set us apart from our competitors. (2) Serving healthy menu selections at unbeatable prices in a clean environment, consistently. (3) Controlling costs and (4) Hiring and retaining the most suitable people for the job. Company Summary The identifying characteristics of the Panini King will be Entertaining surroundings, Quality food, Variety, Longer hours, Self-service, and Friendly employees. Company Ownership Peter McConkey, the  sole proprietor of the Panini King with Bachelors in Science degree from University California with Major in Economy and Minor in Management. Mr. McConkey had his initial experience from family owned business based on which he has launched his own business initiative. He also has experience in distribution and customer relationship and has demonstrated his skills in marketing and advertising. Start-Up Summary Panini Joint’s  start-u p expenses include Restaurant Layout – employees, and professionals to plan leasehold improvements and interior design. Travel – Travel expenses for Mr. Peter to travel to his location of business. Lease Hold Improvement/Equipment – would be installed after the initial planning. Marketing Strategy A mix of TV advertisements and distribution of flyers to local businesses will be used to announce the opening of the restaurant.  Local radio and print media will also be used to announce the opening of the best and only Panini fast food company in California. Free Panini’s will offered to the first 100 customers and a novel concept of having Panini’s named after customers who visit the joint the most and place it in a prominent place. The ultimate form of advertising is the word of mouth and this is what we will encourage our loyal customers to do on an ongoing basis.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The Panini Company: Busi ness Plan specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Sales Strategy The sales strategy is to provide best customer service to increase  repeat customers.   Once the sales reaches over $ 400,000 per year we plan to open additional joints in other cities across USA. We intend to franchise the name and the business system across the country and maintain a standardized approach to all centers. This in turn will result in more jobs creation which will be available to young, dynamic and hard-working individuals. Bibliography Goodpasture, John et al, Restaurant Market Analysis. University of Wisconsin-Extension, 1994. Web. IBISworld â€Å"Takeaway Food Retailing in Australia†. 2009. Web. Mccarty, Michael â€Å"Fast Food Market Forecast – The Subway Example of Strategic Product Positioning.† Fast Food Market Forecast – The Subway Example of Strategic Product Positioning. 2007.  Web. Panera Bread. The Proof is in the Su ccess (2009).  Web. What Do Customers Want? (2009).  Web. This term paper on The Panini Company: Business Plan was written and submitted by user Bodhi Cruz to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Documentary Review essays

Documentary Review essays The documentary I watched is about Thaipusam festival. I watched it on National Geographic Channel and was amazed to discover the meaning, the process and the traditions and practices of Thaipusam. It was interesting to watch the procession yet at the same time learn more about it in detail. Every January/February, depending upon the lunar month - on a full-moon day in the Tamil month of Thai, the Hindus will celebrate Thaipusam in honour of their Hindu God, Lord Subramaniam (sometimes referred to as Lord Murugan) who is a son of the Hindu God Shiva. He is believed to represent virtue, youth and power. As mentioned in the documentary, Thaipusam is celebrated in Singapore and also in Malaysia, although it does not occur in India, which is rather strange to me. Thaipusam is important to the Hindus, as they believe that it reinforces the solidarity of the minority Hindu community and symbolises the eternal struggle between good and evil. This festival is known for the devotees who fulfil vows by shaving their heads bald or performing rituals. Some have their cheeks, chest and tongue pierced with flesh hooks or thin sharp spear like metal rods that looks more like skewers. Personally, I find the piercing ritual rather horrifying as it was a gory scene with lots of blood. Some of the devotees carry milk pots, while some carry a 'Kavadi'. The Kavadi is a large festive structure, made of aluminium, covered with colour and peacock feathers. It symbolises a mountain, with an effigy of Murugan at the top. Some Kavadi can reach 3-4 metres in height. Others pull wheeled altars that are atta ched to the back by hooks. They all involve some form of body piercing. As they are said to be in a trance, there is no pain of piercing such stuff on their bodies. But as a viewer, it was rather painful for my sight. Young devotees as early as the age of 9 also participates in this festival, they have to go for a thorough bath du...

SMART Methodology Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

SMART Methodology - Personal Statement Example As I have outlined in my first assignment, my interaction in a group environment has been characterized by immense learning. However, I have identified areas that require my attention. Since I hail from a culture where people are generally shy and not too open, I tend to take time and effort to open up. In addition to this, since English is my second language, I am shy when it comes to interaction. Hence, I have outlined three important aspects I would like to work on. I would like to be more open and receptive to ideas, I definitely want to emerge out of the comfort zone and interact more freely; and I also want to learn to build my trust in people. In addition to this, I would also like to become a more involved team-player and develop leadership skills in order to help steer my team towards a goal. In this paper, I would be developing an Action Plan, based on the SMART Methodology, to overcome these problems and achieve the envisaged goals. ACTION PLAN My action plan would be chalked out in terms of the various stages involved in the process of attaining the envisaged goal. The following is the step-wise procedure towards achieving the goals: Areas of Concern:It is very important to outline the areas that require improvement, in order to chalk out the action plan. My biggest short-comings are, my inability to open up and talk without feeling shy or intimidated. Once I achieve this goal, I would want to look at becoming a team-player, communicating effectively and acquiring leadership skills. Hence, these are the problems I would like to address and work on improvising, in my Action Plan. Addressing the Areas of Concern: An action plan, based on the SMART methodology is based on the following aspects: It is Specific in nature, Measurable in terms of time-frame and effectiveness, Achievable, Relevant to the areas of concern and finally, Trackable. The following action plan is based on these pointers: In order to open up and become less shy, I would firstly start identifying my feelings and what I would really like to communicate, Unless I am clear about this, I cannot communicate the same with the others. Upon understanding this, I must write it down. This will help train my flow of thought and help me express myself better. The writing can be formal or informal, based on the kind of emotions and the kind of interaction I would like to have. In a formal atmosphere, I would definitely like to express myself in a formal tone, without delving into informal aspects. This process is specific, because it is directly aimed at procuring a particular result that I have set. The time-frame set for this is at least a continuous cycle of fifteen days. Rigourous pursuit in this direction, would ensure that I am able to express myself clearly and in entirety. In the process of developing my ability to express myself, I would start interacting with people slowly. Every person has a comfort group. I would firstly open up with people that I am comfortable with. Their encouragement would give me the requisite confidence in taking my pursuit further. In addition to this,I would also work on improving my communication skills

Historical figure-prove with evidence that Jesus actually excited Research Paper

Historical figure-prove with evidence that Jesus actually excited - Research Paper Example In the simplest terms, this is the case of Paul having the means to verify through James whether he had a brother Jesus or not. This is a natural means of verifying Jesus’ existence through relationships verification. This same process works in the case of for Paul directly knowing Peter, the disciple who is nearest to Jesus. If Jesus did not exist, then Peter would have told Paul so. This is common sense, given the public nature of Pauls work. Peter would have corrected him if Jesus did not exist. Also, Jesus being a life-defining figure for Paul, it would have been fantastic if he did not try to discuss Jesus with Peter and James. Peter and James would have corrected hm if Jesus did not exist. The personal relationships of Paul with James and Peter therefore stand as very solid pieces of evidence for the historical existence of Jesus. In turn, Pauls life accounts in the Bible can be taken as concrete evidence for the same (Ehrman, 2012). In Galatians 2, we have an account of the precise nature of that personal relationship and interaction between James the brother of Jesus and Paul, with Paul attesting to his being accepted by the disciples as a representative of the church to the Gentiles, in the same manner that Peter was the apostle for those who were part of the group of circumcised people. â€Å"James, Cephas and John, those esteemed as pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me (Galatians 2:9 New International Version). In Galatians 1, too, Paul narrates his personal close contact with Peter, who he calls Cephas, and his encounter with James. This was when he visited Jerusalem, and when he stayed there with Peter for fifteen days: â€Å"Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother† (Galatians 1:18-19). Evans (2012), on the other hand, focuses on the

LOVE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

LOVE - Essay Example According to More’s work, love influences the duties assigned to individuals in different fields in life. In support of this assertion, More expounds on how love make men accept women to be assigned light duties (Barnet and Bedau 464). It is out of love that women are spared from things that can affect them in life. In connection with this, More also claims that Stewards ensure people work to earn a living but do not wear them out by keeping them at work for long hours. That is, the practice of humanity as a result of love make people save other people from problems since charity begins from home (Barnet and Bedau 468). In his work, More also argued that it is bad to deprive other people pleasure so that you can enjoy it yourself. According to him, depriving oneself pleasure for other person’s enjoyment portrays one’s humanity (Barnet and Bedau 468). In addition to this, More asserts that taking care of patients and providing them with what they need for recovery is a product of love (Barnet and Bedau 473). In tandem with More’s argument, the poem â€Å"Love is Sickness† presents love in a unique way. The metaphor â€Å"love is a sickness† shows that the modern society compares love to the sickness that affects the patient (a person in love). From the claim, it is apparent that love has symptoms, and it can be diagnosed. The poem also claims that love is full of uncontrollable woes.

Physical Activity Interventions for Postpartum Depression

Physical Activity Interventions for Postpartum Depression One of the most hazardous occasions for women to indicate depressive symptoms is the period that follows childbirth (Robertson, Celasun Stewart, 2003). According to http://www.apa.org (2015) the percentage of women that are likely to experience symptoms of postpartum depression ranges between 9% and 16%. According to the same source (http://www.apa.org, 2015) new mothers diagnosed with postpartum depression lose the ability to cope with everyday tasks and infant care and are prone to experience stress and melancholia. Robertson,Celasun Stewart,(2003) underline the correlation of the postpartum depression symptomatology with symptoms of severe depression such as lack of energy, low mood and loss of the ability to experience pleasure and report the probable presence of suicidal thoughts. The same researchers also address this complex disorder for new mothers as a severe health issue that affects the immediate family of the women and pinpoint the need to provide efficient solutions to the target population. According to the official website NHS.uk(2015) physical activity has been identified as one of the most prevalent options of treatment of mild depression and evidence supports the coping skills physical activity provides to depressive patients.The website also informs that the psychological therapies such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and interpersonal therapy, are the first choice of treatment for moderate postnatal depression to women with no psychiatric history. Robertson, Celasun Stewart,(2003) associate the lack of evidence on successful physical activity interventions as potential alternative treatment for postpartum depression with the undermining of the disease by patients and health professionals, particularly when there is scientific evidence on the positive impact of physical activity on depressive symptomatology(Nice.org.uk, 2009). Currie, Develin, (2002) acknowledge the lack of leisure time due to childcare and financial struggle as potential barriers for mothers with postnatal depression to engage to physical activity programmes. The meta-analyses conducted by Dennis Dowswell(2013) on postnatal depression revealed that, compared to standard treatment ,when women received interventions with psychological or psychosocial context, they were less inclined to develop symptoms of the condition. In their meta-analysis, Daley, Jolly, MacArthur(2009) did not attain evidence to support the replacement of traditional treatment of post-natal depression , with exercise interventions that can deliver results as successful as standard treatment. In a meta analysis (Dally, Jolly, MacArthur,2009)pram –walking group intercessions have been reviewed as easily accessible to women that are diagnosed with postnatal depression and are promoted by well-being practitioners as beneficial. The findings also indicate that Intervention focused on aerobics have successfully reduced the levels of depression for mothers and it might be profitable for future interventions targeting PND to include a mixture of aerobic and mild exercise. The first intervention to be discussed is conducted by Armstrong Edwards(2004), where they designed a 12-week randomised controlled trial for women that have delivered a baby in the past year. The aim of the RCT was to investigate the impact of a physical activity intervention group which involved pram-strolling women with their infants contrasted with the control group that provided social support. Kanotra et al(2007) acknowledge social support as one of the basic needs that arise for women postpartum.The meetings of the social support group were non-organized. In the pre-intervention stage of physical wellness, depression levels and social support were evaluated by quantitative measures. The same measures evaluated the effects after the 12th week when the Intervention was completed. The aim of the Intervention was for the pram-strolling group to indicate a decrease of the symptoms of postnatal depression while enhancing their wellness levels. The enhancement of the social support levels of both groups and the participants’ perspectives of the activities were defined as secondary endpoints. The researchers deduced that pram-strolling groups, integrated with psychological treatment and medication, can provide a cost-effective alternative form of coping with postnatal depression and improving their personal lives, especially when traditional treatment fails to provide efficient results. Robertson, Cesalun, Stewart (2013) acknowledge the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Rating Scale (EPDS), a set of 10 question self-rating scale as the most efficient and approximate to medically evaluated measures for depression. The researchers (Armstrong Edwards, 2004) supported that there was a correlation among fitness and depression; the improvement of the one had a significant effect on the improvement of the other. The results supported this rationale. The authors also suggested that other factors could influence the amelioration with regards to the depression levels.. The findings of the trial showed that in the first group, the symptoms of depression were diminished as well as the physical condition of the mothers was considerably ameliorated. Furthermore, social support was sustained at the same levels for the two groups. Although one of the hypothesis was confirmed, several weaknesses of the study have been acknowledged by the researchers that can undermine the value of the trial and establish it as not applicable to new mothers with postnatal depression(Armstrong Edwards,2004). As it has not been supported by evidence that the Cornish Walking Wheel, which was the measure used for fitness evaluation, can provide an accurate representation of â€Å"the maximum volume of oxygen consumption (VO2max)† (Armstrong Edwards, 2004, pp.6), it is not a reliable measure for fitness evaluation and needs to be examined in future research. Although it is acknowledged that the researchers tried to evaluate the Cornish Walking Wheel in the pilot study they conducted, this evaluation is not sufficient for the fitness measure to be perceived as reliable for fitness evaluation and future research on physical activity interventions of postnatal depression can explore the validity of the measure. Another weakness of the trial as recognised by Armstong Edwards(2004) is the choice of Social Support Interviews (SSI) in the Social Support Group. Although the questionnaire has been used in previous research (O’Hara,1995), it was not assessed for this Intervention against other validated measures. The authors recognise that the lack of results on the levels of social support could be attributed to the brief span of the trial and the measurement’s inability to recognise even mild variation of the social support levels provided to the targeted population. In order for Interventions to be reliable measurement-wise, Armstong Edwards (2004) suggest that the formulation of appropriate measures for each exercise group of postnatal women needs to be established. Armstrong Edwards(2004) raise another issue regarding the small sample of the trial (19 participants) which does not allow the results of the interventions to be generalized. Some other traits that confine the generalizability of the findings include the demographic homogeneity of the trial’s participants as well as the correlation of their high educational, socioeconomic background and regional proximity. As a result, the findings of the interventions, although successful to an extent, they are not applicable to different populations. In order to confirm the success of the randomised controlled trial for postnatal depression focused on pram- walking activities, future trials should be designed to target demographic heterogeneity and the recruitment of participants from various ethnical and socioeconomical backgrounds(Armstrong Edwards,2004). The second study of choice is a pilot study conducted in the UK. In their pilot study Gillinsky, Hughes McInnes(2012) executed a randomized controlled trial that consists of two groups with exercise courses and one 10-week body with pram-strolling activities. The pilot study aims to alter the behaviour of exercise and physical wellbeing and research the efficiency of behavioural and motivational intercessions. The application of accelerometers in the MAMMiS trial (Gillinsky, Hughes McInnes,2012) provides validity to the trial by measuring impartially the levels of physical activity of the participants for a week. The fact that the accelerometer is on for all the wakening hours of their daily schedule is one of the criteria to differentiate this study to more traditional ones on postnatal depression, is ithe fact that it provides flexibility to the daily schedules of new mothers by measuring the physical activity around the clock. One of the advantages of the study is the design (RCT),due to the nature of randomised controlled trials providing evidence that the results of an intervention are caused by the treatment option via randomization(Ebbp.org,2015) and the 12-week follow-up after the intervention is completed. One of the limitations of this trial is that it is a pilot study and pilot studies are implemented to locate certain weaknesses and modify them in order to design a larger, successful trial. Pilot studies explore the potential of an intercession and their results should not be taken at face value, especially because the sample sizes of a pilot study are always small(Leon, Davis Kraemer,2011).Furthermore, the efficacy of the study is potentially limited due to the fact that the trial is delivered by only one health-care professional and to a specific population in the Scottish countryside. In order to design successful intercessions of physical activity on PND based on this pilot study, the target population and the researchers involved need to be distinctive(Gillinsky, Hughes McInnes,2012). On an analysis focused on the impact of exercise on depressive symptoms Daley, Jolly McArthur(2009) concluded that physical activity interventions can be successful only as complementary treatments of postnatal depression, as there was no evidence to indicate successful rates when patients replace standard treatment(medication and psychological support) with exercise. Strà ¶hle (2008) in his paper reaches the same conclusion by arguing that although exercise has not been assessed on delivering clinically valid findings and as a result it cannot be applied instead of traditional treatment, whose clinical value is established. However, he acknowledges the helpful reaction exercise has on depression and encourages future researchers to investigate the appropriate duration and regularity of physical activity interventions(Strà ¶hle,2008). In addition, Robertson, Celasun Stewart(2003), recognise as unlikely for researchers to develop a single effective treatment option for the whole po pulation of postnatal depression, considering there is a variety of probable factors than can lead to the development of postnatal depression. Nevertheless, they underline the demand for sufficient evidence that can be used as a manual from professionals in primary and secondary care.(Robertson, Celasun Stewart,2003). Conclusively, it has been reviewed that studies investigating the efficiency of physical activity on postpartum depression (Daley, Jolly McArthur, 2009) lack sufficient follow-up findings and are characterised by small samples. These two factors indicate that postnatal depression interventions targeting exercise have not been sufficiently explored and future researchers should concentrate on developing interventions with larger populations and longer span of follow-up effects.After the literature review conducted by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence in England (NICE)(Nice.org.uk,2009) that supports the benefits of exercise on patients that indicate mild depressive symptoms, the next steps of the research community should be the formulation of cost-effective interventions of moderate exercise that can contemplate the treatment of women diagnosed with postpartum depression (Daley, Jolly,McArthur, 2009). REFERENCES http://www.apa.org,.(2015). Postpartum Depression Fact Sheet. Retrieved 2 March 2015, from http://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/depression/postpartum.aspx Armstrong, K., Edwards, H. (2004). The effectiveness of a pram-walking exercise programme in reducing depressive symptomatology for postnatal women. International Journal Of Nursing Practice, 10(4), 177-194. doi:10.1111/j.1440-172x.2004.00478.x Currie, J., Develin, E. (2002). STROLL YOUR WAY TO WELL-BEING: A SURVEY OF THE PERCEIVED BENEFITS, BARRIERS, COMMUNITY SUPPORT, AND STIGMA ASSOCIATED WITH PRAM WALKING GROUPS DESIGNED FOR NEW MOTHERS, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. Health Care For Women International, 23(8), 882-893. doi:10.1080/07399330290112380 Daley, A., Jolly, K., MacArthur, C. (2009). The effectiveness of exercise in the management of post-natal depression: systematic review and meta-analysis. Family Practice, 26(2), 154-162. doi:10.1093/fampra/cmn101 Dennis CL, Dowswell T. (2013). Psychosocial and psychological interventions for preventing postpartum depression. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2, Art. No.: CD001134. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001134.pub3 Ebbp.org,. (2015). EBBP. Retrieved 3 March 2015, from http://www.ebbp.org/course_outlines/randomized_controlled_trials/ (EPDS), E., Depression., P. (2015). Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. Psychology Tools. Retrieved 4 March 2015, from https://psychology-tools.com/epds/ Gilinsky, A., Hughes, A., McInnes, R. (2012). More Active Mums in Stirling (MAMMiS): a physical activity intervention for postnatal women. Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials, 13(1), 112. doi:10.1186/1745-6215-13-112 Kanotra, S., D’Angelo, D., Phares, T., Morrow, B., Barfield, W., Lansky, A. (2007). Challenges Faced by New Mothers in the Early Postpartum Period: An Analysis of Comment Data from the 2000 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) Survey. Matern Child Health J, 11(6), 549-558. doi:10.1007/s10995-007-0206-3 Leon, A., Davis, L., Kraemer, H. (2011). The role and interpretation of pilot studies in clinical research. Journal Of Psychiatric Research, 45(5), 626-629. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2010.10.008 Nhs.uk,. (2015). Postnatal depression NHS Choices. Retrieved 2 March 2015, from http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/postnataldepression/pages/introduction.aspx Nice.org.uk,. (2009). Depression in adults: The treatment and management of depression in adults | treatments-for-mild-to-moderate-depression | Information for the public | NICE. Retrieved 2 March 2015, from http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg90/ifp/chapter/treatments-for-mild-to-moderate-depression Ohara, M., Swain, A. (1996). Rates and risk of postpartum depression— a meta-analysis. Int Rev Psychiatry, 8(1), 37-54. doi:10.3109/09540269609037816 Robertson, E., Celasun, N., and Stewart, D.E. (2003). Risk factors for postpartum  depression. In Stewart, D.E., Robertson, E., Dennis, C.-L., Grace, S.L., Wallington, T.(2003). Postpartum depression: Literature review of risk factors and interventions. Strà ¶hle, A. (2008). Physical activity, exercise, depression and anxiety disorders. Journal Of Neural Transmission, 116(6), 777-784. doi:10.1007/s00702-008-0092-x

Effects of Child Abuse on Psychological Development :: Effects of Child Abuse on Behavior

Most people do not know how to cope with abused children. I became interested in this topic because when I was a teenager I had a friend who was abused by her stepfather and I didn’t know how to help her. I would like to know how children’s psychological development is affected, and how we can help these children cope with their misfortune. The most common effect is that maltreated children are, essentially, rejected. These destructive experiences impact on the developing child, increasing the risks for emotional, behavioral, social and physical problems throughout life. The purpose of this paper is to outline how these experiences may result in such increased risks by influencing the development of the child’s psychology. Psychological Development Child abuse is not a new problem. Each year in the United States alone, there are over three million children who are abused or neglected by their parents or caregivers. Many are brutally beaten and permanently injured. Child abuse has been a problem that has existed through out history and in recent years many researchers have begun dealing with this issue. There is a variation among researches on their approach to the topic. Child abuse is not only the mental or physical injury it is also sexual. These kinds of abuses harm the child’s mental and physical health. The emotional and psychological effects of maltreatment may be far more harmful to the well being of the child than the apparent physical injury. Many studies indicate that abused children are at increase risk of becoming like their parents and repeating the abusive pattern of child rearing to which they were exposed (national committee for prevention of child abuse 1983). Background Child abuse and neglect has recently become the focus of attention of all prevention centers and organizations for children care. Mistreatment of children has existed through history. Children are unable to protect themselves of physical abuse. They have been abandoned, terrorized, beaten, killed and sexual abused. A major portion of the literature of my review focused on child abuse has dealt with the personality characteristics of the abusive parent and the abused child rather than focus on the psychological damage sustained by the abused child. When we think of a â€Å"family† in a typical setting around the fireplace we may picture a beautiful and calm environment where everything is perfect. The reality here in this domestic tranquility is when we realize that the concept of â€Å"family† is the most frequent place of all types of violence (Gelles, 1979).

Victoria Secret in Turkey

The Middle East consists of several countries in West Asia. Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Gaza Strip, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, West Bank, and Gaza, are all the 19 countries that are categorized as the Middle East. The term Middle East is considered to be a Eurocentric term and is used as a synonym for the Near East. Since the Middle East extends over so many countries, there are major economic, cultural, and religious differences.Some of the countries in the Middle East are extremely wealthy oil nations like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates, that generate large amount of revenue and are on the top list of the world’s wealthiest nations based on income per capita. And then there are some really poor nations, like Gaza and Yemen, which are characterized by unrest and war. The Middle East also varies a lot when it comes to culture and religion. Islam is the biggest religion i n the Middle East and many of the countries have really strict religious rules, with little freedom for women.But there are also countries where Judaism and Christianity are represented, and women have equal or almost equal rights as men. Victoria’s Secret was founded in 1977, in San Francisco by Roy Raymond. It started with three stores and a mail-order catalog. In 1982, after only five years of operations, Raymond sold the company to Leslie Wexner for $4 million. During the 80’s Victoria’s Secret rapidly expanded into U. S malls. By the early 90’s Victoria’s Secret had become the largest American lingerie retailer, topping one billion dollars.There are approximately 1,000 Victoria’s secret lingerie stores and 100 independent Victoria’s Secret Beauty stores in the U. S. We sell a range of brassieres, panties, hosiery, cosmetics, sleepwear, and other products. In 1995 Victoria’s Secret had their first fashion show, which today has become a huge hit. The show features some of the world's leading fashion models such as current Victoria's Secret Angels Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Miranda Kerr. Because of the huge differences in economy, culture, and religion, we at Victoria’s Secret decided to focus on one country at a time.We decided that it would be the best opportunity to open our store in Turkey. Turkey has the largest economy in the Middle East based on nominal gross domestic product (GDP) and the cultural and religious barriers are not as dominant as in some of the other Middle Eastern countries. Turkey also has a huge market for tourism. Market Turkey has a large population with 71 million people. They have generally a young population, with 61% of the people being younger than the age of 35. Turkey’s average gross national product (GNP) per capita is $7,500.About 71% of the population lives in the urban areas. Istanbul is Turkey’s largest city with about 12 million peo ple, and Ankara, the capital, has about 5 million people. Turkey is located in Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea. Turkey’s location gives them an excellent base for economic activities throughout the region. Turkey has a budget revenue of $176. 8 billion and a budget expenditure of $189. 2 billion. Turkey is running a budget deficit of 1. 6% of real GDP.This budget deficit, together with uncertainty related to the monetary policy-making, and political disorder in Turkey’s neighbor countries, makes the Turkish economy vulnerable to destabilization shifts in investors’ confidence. Turkey has a young and well-educated population, but 10. 3% of the Turkish population is unemployed. The labor force is 27. 43 millions, where 25. 5% works within the agricultural sector, 26. 2% works in industries, and 48. 4% works within the service sector. Young people between the age of 15 and 24, 25% are unemployed. Women are still an untapped labor force in Turkey.Researchers say that about half of all Turkish women enter the labor market at some point in their lives, but most end up quitting because of family obligations or poor working conditions. We feel that this is a great opportunity for our company, because our target market is women. We will strive to create ideal working conditions for all of our employees so they feel that they want to keep working for Victoria’s Secret. Economic and Political Climate We at Victoria’s Secret have been attracted to the Turkish market by the country’s rapidly expanding economy, political and economic stability, and the possibility of European Union membership.Since Turkey is an associated member of the EU, it had to adopt many directives, regulations, and laws that are required by the EU. Turkey is going through changes, to strengthen its democracy and integrate its economy into the global market. The changes that Turkey is going through are goin g to be beneficial to us, because it will make Turkey an easier market to enter and to do business in. It is also crucial for us that Turkey’s government are become a more stable government. It would be hard for Victoria’s Secret to thrive when the government is unstable and there are rapid and drastic policy changes.For a business to survive in a foreign country, it is crucial that there is a government that can maintain itself in power and whose fiscal, monetary, and political policy are predictable. Turkey has an open market economy, with a blend of both modern and traditional industries. Turkey’s industry and service sector are becoming the major drivers of the Turkish economy. Their private sector is becoming increasingly important, as state involvement is reducing. The traditional textiles and clothing sectors, still account for one-third of industrial employment in Turkey.During 2011, the United Sates exported to Turkey for $15 billion, this is 34% increa se from 2010. Foreign direct investment (FDI) has in the recent years been attracted to Turkey because of their market reforms, strong growth and economic and political stability. The U. S. has officially invested about $6-7 billion in Turkey, a number that is understated because U. S. companies have invested through third countries. There are no restrictions over the export of goods from Turkey. Exports are exempt from the value added tax (VAT), duties and transaction taxes. Goods manufactured in Turkey have a duty free access to the EU.There are also no import restrictions over goods imported to Turkey, with the exclusion of some restraints of very minor character. For imports that are imported to Turkey from countries other than European Union, customs duties and charges are applicable in agreement with the requirements of the customs union. Regardless of origin of goods, whether from the EU or a non-EU country, VAT is at a rate 18% (1% or 8% for certain basic goods). Good and se rvices imported into the country, industrial, commercial, agricultural goods and services, and deliveries of goods and services caused by other activities, are all subject to VAT.The guidelines involving to the remittance of foreign capital and dividends out of the country are set out in Law No. 1567. According to these regulations, foreign investors have the same privileges and responsibilities as Turkish investors. The regulations also guarantee the transfer of profits, fees, and royalties and the repatriation of capital in the case of a liquidation or sale. For foreign businesses to enter into Turkey there is no longer a minimum amount of capital requirement, due to Turkey’s new Foreign Direct Investment Law. â€Å"It is no longer obligatory to bring a minimum of $50,000 in share capital. As long as the form of company is included in the Turkish Commercial Code, it is your own choice on what company you want to establish. â€Å"It is no longer obligatory to establish eit her a limited liability company or joint stock company. † In 2006, Turkey cut its corporate income tax rate from 30% to 20% making it one of the most competitive rates in the OECD. These corporate income tax rates, has mad Turkey an attractive business environment that presents advantages and potential opportunities for business wishing to enter the market. Culture and InfluencesCulture is defined as â€Å"the sum of the total of the beliefs, rules, techniques, institutions, and artifacts that characterize human populations. † Societies are composed of its people and their culture; it is therefore difficult to talk about one aspect without referring to the other. Sociocultural has become the term that is used among businesspeople when talking about cultures and societies. For Victoria’s Secret to be successful in opening a store in Turkey it is crucial for us to realize that there are a culture differences from that of our own, as well as learning the characteris tics of the culture so that we can adapt to them.Since culture is so broad, a listing of its components may ease the analysis of the sociocultural viewpoint. These components include: aesthetics, attitudes and beliefs, religion, material culture, language, societal organization, education, legal characteristics, and political structures. The component that apply for Victoria’s Secret launch in Turkey is in particular religion, but aesthetics, and societal organization can also have an impact.Religion is an important component of culture and holds responsibility for many attitudes and beliefs the people have. In Turkey, the people practices the religion Islam and the population consist of 99. 8% Muslims, mostly Sunni. The Muslims follows the Koran, which is the collection of Allah’s revelations to Muhammad, and is said to be the messenger of God. Following the Koran means freedom, and it is said to bring happiness for the Muslim to follow Gods word. For all Muslims the basic spiritual duties consist of the ive pillars of faith: accepting the confession of faith; making the five daily prayers while facing Mecca; giving charity; fasting during the daylight hours of Ramadan, a 29- or 30-day month in Islam’s lunar calendar; making a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a person’s lifetime. The Turkish state is becoming more and more modernized, and so is also its religion. Turkey seeks to modernize Islam because they believe that it might hinder their development in becoming a more globalized and modern country. We believe that Turkey is a good place to open our next store in the Middle East because they are open for this kind of new businesses.Aesthetics refers to a culture’s sense of beauty and good taste. As the Turkish people are getting more modernized, they will also get more influenced by the rest of the world. We believe that the fashion trends that are popular in the U. S. will become popular in Turkey as well, and that V ictoria’s Secret lingerie can become part of the Turkish women’s daily life. Societal organization â€Å"is the patterned arrangement of relationships defining and regulation the manner by which its members interface with one another. The women in Turkey don’t have the same status as women in the U. S. , and the men and women’s roles may vary a lot. This might cause a problem when launching Victoria’s Secret in Turkey, nevertheless, we believe that the Turkish women, as they get more influence by the fashion trends in rest of the world, they will create a desire to buy our products. Victoria’s Secret is facing some sociocultural challenges when launching our business in Turkey, and we will have to give our customers some time to adapt to our products.However, when considering Turkey is development toward a more modern and global nation we have a bright outlook for the future, and believe those challenges will be exciting to tackle. Competit ion â€Å"International strategy is concerned with the way firms make fundamental choices about developing scare resources internationally. † It is going to be crucial for Victoria’s Secret to implement an international strategy because it involves decisions that deal with what products or services to offer, which markets to enter, and how to compete.It also deals with all the various functions in the organization, such as marketing and production. The goal with an international strategy is to create competitive advantage, which means that the business has achieved and maintained a unique and valuable position both globally and within a nation. To create sustainable competitive advantage it is important that a product or service creates value for consumers and for which customers are willing to pay for, are rare, are difficult to imitate or substitute, and are organized in a way that allows the company to fully exploit and capture the value of the product or service.Th ere are numerous lingerie companies in Turkey that can act as competitors when launching Victoria’s Secret in the country. The Turkish economy is growing and the local companies are developing great skills when it comes to adapt to customers demand, which results in companies that are becoming stronger when competing in the global market. However, the main reason why Victoria’s Secret has become so successful is because we have been able to create products and services that meet the criteria for a sustainable competitive advantage. Therefore we believe that we will be able to successfully compete against the Turkish lingerie companies.Turkish is the predominant language in Turkey, spoken by 90% of the population. Minority languages include Kurdish, which is spoken by 6% of the population, although this isn't recognized as an official language. 1. 2% of the Turkish population speaks Arabic but most of those speakers are bilingual and speak Turkish as well. Because we wi ll compete at a local level we believe that it will be important to communicate in Turkish. We will make sure that we have employees that are fluent in Turkish to be a part of our marketing and business team in order to establish a local presence with our products.Because verbal communication is more dominant than written expression in business in Turkey we will focus much of our advertising through media such as radio and TV. Since most of population is Muslim we have to take this into consideration when creating our advertising campaigns. Something that could be a challenge for us is the variable prices many stores and competitors have. This cultural difference where everything is negotiable have to be considered when entering Turkey. A wide range of shops has no prices listed. Customers simply have to ask the price of everything and the sales person will have the right answer.Even luxury shops selling diamond jewelry are open to negotiation. We have chosen not to adjust to this c ultural difference. It does not go well with our business model and we believe that customers will be able to adjust to Victoria’s Secret stricter price listings. But, it is still something to be aware of when training our employees that will be working in our stores. Special offers and other sales or marketing tricks are common in the Turkish business environment. The â€Å"buy one, get one free† offer can be seen in most retail stores in Turkey. This is something that we will use and take advantage of.We will use the same strategies as we have in the US. Making special offers for customers if they buy more than one of selected items. Seasonal offers will also be implemented. Victoria’s Secret in the Middle East We want to make Victory Secret the most known lingerie brand in the world. By expanding with a third store in the Middle East, and more specific in Turkey, we are certain that we will be able to reach this goal. 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