Emily Dickinson Essays (886 words) - American Christians

Emily Dickinson An Analytical Essay on Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson was a woman who lived in times that are more traditional; her life experiences influence and help us to understand the dramatic and poetic lines in her writing. Although Dickinson's poetry can often be defined as sad and moody, we can find the use of humor and irony in many of her poems. By looking at the humor and sarcasm found in three of Dickinson's poems, Success Is Counted Sweetest, I am Nobody, and Some keep the Sabbath Going to Church, one can examine each poem show how Dickinson used humor and irony for the dual purposes of comic relief and to stress an idea or conclusion about her life and the environment in the each poem. Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst Massachusetts; a small farming town that had a college and a hat factory. There, she was raised in a strict Calvinist household while receiving most of her education at a boarding school that followed the American Puritanical tradition. She seldom left her hometown; virtually, her only contact with her friends came to be made through letters. As a young woman, Dickinson rejected comforting traditions, resisted male authority, and wrestled alone with her complex and often contrary emotions. Although she was claimed to be a high-spirited and active young woman, Dickinson began to withdraw from society in the 1850's. The many losses she experienced throughout her life, the death of her father, mother, close neighbors, and friends influenced her life largely and led her to write about death to an enormous amount. Dickinson made a few attempts during her life to be taken as more than an amateur poet; on one occasion, she sent a collection of her poems t o a correspondent who was a published poet. His criticism of her poetry devastated Dickinson, and she never made another attempt towards publishing her works. Evident through her letters and poems, her poetry records intense devotion, sharp, skeptical independence, doubt, and what repeatedly reflects her happiness and despair. In the poem, Success is Counted Sweetest; Dickinson's emphasis is less on humor and more on expressing irony. Here it is bitterness expressed towards the status or notion of success that is most felt by the reader as Dickinson reflects on the nature of success and how it can be best appreciated and understood by those who have not achieved it. While the previous poem expresses the poet's bitterness and sorrow with one aspect of her life, I am Nobody uses humor without irony to address another. In this poem, Dickinson's style appears almost child-like in its of descriptions including frogs and bogs. Dickinson seems to be addressing her spinster, hermit-like existence, and her preference for it. The poet relates through her writing that her situation has not left her without a sense of humor, but in fact has allowed her to maintain a child-like outlook on life rather than adapting to the tedious norms of her society. She mocks the conventional need for self-importance through publicity suggesting that the audience is not that interested by creating the mysterious feeling of an arcane society of social outcasts. In this poem, she effectively uses humor to soften a critique of elite members of her society. In addition, in the poem Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church, she questions the sincerity of those who attend church on Sunday on a customary basis. Through the use of comparing the formalities of church with her own celebration of the Sabbath through the appreciation of nature, Dickinson casually suggests that those in attendance at church may not be as sincere in their worship as she is. Dickinson ridicules the congregation as she accuses them of attending merely for show and to gain status in the community. Also, she argues with the notion that attending church alone will lead towards salvation, suggesting that it is her own actions of finding God in nature that will lead to the path of redemption. The humor in this poem is not as explicit as in the other poems discussed, nor is the irony as directly expressed as in Success is Counted Sweetest. The reader can sense Dickinson's sarcasm in the opening lines of

Sybolism in A Rose for Emily essays

Sybolism in A Rose for Emily essays In the short story, A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner, symbolism is used frequently throughout the story. There are several different symbolic subjects in this story such as the house, Miss Emily as a monument, Homer and the Yankee views, and Miss Emilys old Negro servant who represents death in the story. Miss Emily is compared to her house in many different ways, there is the description of the decaying house which symbolizes Miss Emilys physical and emotional decay, and as well as her mental problems. The representation between Miss Emily and the house is shown through the constant neglect that is given to her from the neighbors and people in the town. Faulkner in one point makes, the house is described to be stubborn and unrelenting, as Miss Emily portrays the same aspects. Miss Emily shows her stubbornness when she doesnt let the new guard attach metal numbers above her door. Also many other signs of this stubbornness is when Miss Emily refuses to believe that her father is dead and when she refuses to pay taxes. This retracts back to the house on how it rejects progression and updating, so does Miss Emily, as they become decaying symbols of their dying generation. Miss Emily really is representing the Old South, her southern heritage and her points of view are given through her actions. Thats where she gets her stubbornness and attitude from the strong characteristics of her Southern heritage. She refused to believe that the times where changing and refused to change into the new society like everyone else in the town was doing. The Southern heritage is also represented through Miss Emilys strict and repetitive ways. The story basically addresses the changes in the South after the Civil War. Miss Emily is considered a monument of the Southern manners and her past values that she has. The Old South generations were dying qui...

What are the most useful insights that psychology has contributed to Essay

What are the most useful insights that psychology has contributed to the study of foreign policy - Essay Example er of a foreign policy†, according to Morgenthau, â€Å"can be ascertained only through the examination of the political acts performed and of the foreseeable consequences of these acts.† (1978:5). By this, not only the performance of the political leaders could be traced out, but also, from the predictable consequences the objectives of their acts can be surmised. Foreign policy, as a discipline, is as old as human society itself is, though as a study, it is the invention of eighteenth century. â€Å"Foreign policy practice does not come into language†, states Benedict Anderson (1991), â€Å"until Jeremy Bentham coins the term ‘international relations’ in the 18th century†. The world has emerged as an enormous global village in the contemporary era. No country on the planet can survive while living in a state of isolation or without interacting with other countries. In order to meet their everyday needs, all the countries seek out foreign assistance and support. Even the biggest economies of the world devise foreign policy to entail international markets, for not only acquiring raw material and sale their finished products according to their growing needs, but also they look for strategic bondage and diplomatic cohesion more emphatically. In addition, countries seek political, economic and technological backing for the uplift of their nation. Rationalism is the key to construct national and international strategy. Psychology, being one of the most significant disciplines and a vast phenomenon of analysing the mind and perception of an individual and his personality, has won appreciable popularity as the source of scientific examination of human behaviour. It not only determines individual’s attitude and behaviour, but also carries weight while estimating the policies of nations at large. A step taken by a sovereign while co-operating or conflicting with some other state(s) maintain some psychological aspects in its wake. This leads towards the formation of

Export Strategy for an Organisation Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Export Strategy for an Organisation - Coursework Example Certain recommendations have been provided to AEC so that it can export avocados in the business markets of Netherlands successfully. Moreover, certain challenges have also been depicted that the company might face while exporting the fruit especially in the Dutch business market. It can be affirmed that the proper execution of the stated recommendations would eventually aid AEC in exporting avocados in the business markets of Netherlands with utmost profitability and productivity. Recommendations After having a potential and a broad capture of Middle and South-East Asia business market, AEC can desire to expand its operations in other regions of the world. In this similar concern, an export strategy would be developed for the company for its intention towards exporting avocado in a particular European nation i.e. Netherlands. Netherlands is often viewed to be one of the richest nations in the world and possesses greater per capita income. These facets eventually make Netherlands to be an idle place as export destination, especially in relation to the case of health benefit products like avocado. Avocado is duly considered as one of the nutritious fruits as compared to others. Considering from a general standpoint, most of the countries often seek for obtaining nutritious food products and thus, Netherlands can be the suitable place for the export of the fresh avocados. Also the people of Netherlands are recognised to be quite health conscious, resulting in supporting AEC towa rds exporting this product in the targeted European nation of Netherlands. It can be apparently observed both the nations possess better international trade relation, which would eventually aid in exporting the product to the targeted nation (CBI Market Information Database, n.d.). Background Auspak Avocados, established in the year 2009 is regarded as an Australian based company holding the mission of becoming a foremost leader especially in exporting fresh avocados from Australia. The company is trading as Avocados Export Company (AEC), situated in Brisbane, Queensland and is owned by a group belonging to the growers, packers along with the marketers of avocado across Australia. The company has been viewed to employ technology driven producers and utilise modern packaging facilities in order to ensure better customer satisfaction. The company tends to build as well as develop effective business affiliation based upon the aspects of mutual trust and respect. The company accounts ne arly about 60 % of the production of Australian avocado with emphasising exporting fresh avocados to the international business markets. AEC has become a key player in both South and Middle-East regions of Asia. Moreover, the company has positioned itself as a global leader in the export industry in terms of volume, quality and supply of avocados to the international consumers. The excellent quality of Australian avocados signifies huge demand of this particular fruit in all regions of the globe. With all credentials, AEC is already exporting Avocados in Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Malaysia and Hong Kong. The logistics system of the company has supported it to become a reliable source of year round supply of high quality avocados. The company follows effective strategies in order to en

Recommendation of options that are available for Singapore Airlines Essay

Recommendation of options that are available for Singapore Airlines for their future strategy direction - Essay Example These services include variety of services ranging from cargo facilities to engine repairing packages as well. In this context, it can be stated that SIA has been implementing product development strategy with utmost concern towards its long run competency and sustainability. The major subsidiaries of SIA in this regards are the SIA Cargo, SilkAir as well as Tradewinds Tours and Travels among others. In addition, SIA has also been implementing the market penetration strategy by developing the products along with the offered services on a continuous basis. In this regards, SIA allows discounts of almost 50% on the â€Å"Exceptional Value Deals† during the holiday seasons focusing mainly upon the seasonal travellers (Kenny, 2009: 153-196; Kumar & Phrommathed, 2005: 50-97). However, in comparison to all the aforementioned strategies, SIA have been extensively concentrated on the diversification approach as its future strategic direction which is quite likely to influence a few noteworthy risk factors in relation to its operations. For instance, if a business organisation diversifies on a continuous basis and in an extensive way, it may result in increasing complexity at the operational level and likewise creating a negative impact over the productivity level of the company. Therefore, it can be advised that SIA should render equal importance to the product development strategies as well with the intention to fortify the product life cycle and simultaneously boost its profitability in the national as well as international market. This would facilitate SIA to develop its existing products and also aid the group to introduce new products for the current market. It is worth mentioning in this context that the company can also opt for market penetration and market development strategies. However, each of these strategic options is noted to possess certain limitations

Tesco is biggest supermarket

Tesco is biggest supermarket INTRODUCTION Tesco is biggest supermarket chain in the U.K. it has more than 1700 stores in the U.K alone and has about 2318 stores in the whole world. It also sells its products through online Tesco.com. Tesco is the U.Ks largest retailers which operate through its branches under the name of Extra, Metro, superstore and Express. Political and other conditions of UK and European union has very much influence on the Tesco performance. Tesco employs a large number of students and disable people and elderly people and pays them in most cases lower wages. Consumers are getting to know about health issues and their approach in choosing the food product is increasingly changing. (Ivythesis, 2009) Tesco has serving more than 40,000 food products including non food items and clothing to its customers. The companys own products which contribute about 50% of its sales are categorized in three different types Value, normal and finest. As a convenience produce most of Tesco store have gas store and filling stations. It is becoming one of U.K biggest independent filling outlets. Tesco is operating others business as well which includes retail banking, Tesco insurance, Tesco mobile as well. (bized, 2009) The company is also the first in U.K which allows their customer to pay or cash their cheques at the tills. Tesco has been employing a large number of British people and it facilitating it by allowing the new branded product into Tesco which helps the new companies to grow and employ more people. But recently company realized to look for some other products which are not available in U.K market. Recently Tesco has been facing stiff competitions from Sainsbury and Asda food giants. The goal of Tesco management is to focus on competitive advantage by adding more value in its products like Tesco has starts giving delivery services to its customers as well. The business and organizational strategy applied by Tesco has helps the organization to make its core business which is in the UK more strong. It also helps the company to expand its business internationally. These services includes providing the financial services like offering Credit cards, loans, insurance and banking services. There is also a strategy to find the potential market to enhance the market share of the company in Asia, Europe and in United States. The strategy to explore new market has started in 1997and it has been the foundation of success of Tesco business. There has been a huge expansion in its expansion of operations with the opening of thousands of store for the past12 years has been made possible with the implementation of this strategy, they are having competitive edge over other businesses and are profitable. In fact Tesco is market leader not even in U.K but also outside the U.K as well. (tesco plc, 2009) 1) STRATEGY OF TESCO: Tesco has been doing business in the stock exchange since 1947 and it was having share price 27 pence in the beginning. It has been keeping on growing and has become a popular name on the High street of the UK. Tesco has a strategy which is describes as Pile it high and sell it cheap but with time as people attitude has been changed and there become a trend in the better interior of stores, Tesco has made huge investments in the refurbishments of its stores and make them very attractive to shop for customers. It has added many value added service and product in its operations. It has start selling petrol and customer gets discount when they buy from Tesco and then they spend money to buy petrol. It has made a huge investment on the implementing of Tesco loyalty card scheme. 1.1 STRATEGY: Tesco has done well by successfully implementing the four parts of its business strategy. A strong UK core business , Non food Retailing services International The objectives of this strategy are: To be a successful retailers in the world. To grow the core UK business. To be as strong in the non-food items as in food items. To develop retailing services- such as Tesco personal Finance, Telecoms and Tesco.com. To put the community in the heart whatever we do. Tesco has taken considerable steps to attract customer with advent of Tesco Extra, Tesco Metro, Tesco Super stores and Tesco Express at town with filling stations. These stores provide all essentials food and non food items at very competitive prices. These stores give a direct challenge to other stores like ASDA, Sainsbury etc. Tesco has introduced a loyalty club card. Customer gets points from every purchase they made and then they can get product with these points. For Tesco this thing help to get a value data about customer, what is customers buying behavior and how they respond to the sales promotions carried on in the store. Apart from the product it sells it has worked on the other services as well. It has start providing the Loans, credit cards and online sale of products. Tesco has taken to expand in other countries like India, Japan, and U.S.A and in Europe as well. It has continuing working on the improvements of services to its customers. In USA it has made a partnership with Safeway Group. (articlebase,2009) 2) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS: 2.1 PESTEL FRAMEWORK: 2.1.1 Political Factors: Tesco has stores worldwide and its main business is in UK. These countries includes many European countries. It also has stores in Taiwan, Japan and India as well. Political and other environmental factors of UK and European are having a too much influence on the Tesco performance. These legislations advise to these stores to hire people for different position in the company. These people include the students, disables and senior citizens as well. As local business in the Tesco suffers heavily because of competitions, in order to survive these local stores cuts the jobs so Tesco has hire a large number of People to accommodate them. Tesco usually pays them low wages. 2.1.2 Economical Factors: Tesco is very much concern to the economic factors because prices and demand gets affected with this. Goods and services are heavily affected if the economic conditions of people is not good and many people are unemployed and it influence the people purchasing capacity so demand for the goods and services will be affected. Tesco is heavily dependant on UK market, Although international business are growing but Tesco is still dependent on the U.K food market and if the demand for UK food market get slow down then it will badly affect the Tesco performance. 2.1.3 Social/Cultural Factors: Currently the U.K people trend shows that they prefer to go at that store from where they could get everything. There has been huge demographics changes in the UK population happened i-e ageing people, increase in the number of female workers and declining in the preparations of food in the home, which has force Tesco to sell supporting products and services as well. Customers demands of services and products are created by the change of their social and cultural changes, their beliefs. People are recognizing the hygienic problems. Tesco is adopting a product mix in order to meet the demand of organic products. It has start mentioning the product with labels on it for people who strictly want to use product which are free from animals ingredients. U.K has a diverse population from different cultural background people. Areas which are densely populated with Asian people prefer to go for their traditional foods so keep this thing in mind Tesco management have introduced mostly those products which are in demand in those areas. (321books, 2009) 2.1.4 Technological factors: Technological improvement has benefited both the company and customers. Goods are readily available in the store which has increased the customer satisfaction and it has become easier to manage the ordering system. Customers get served more quickly than before. Tesco stores are utilizing the following technologies in their outlets: Wireless devices Intelligent scale Electronic shelves labeling Self check out machine Radio frequency identification. By the use of electronic tills and fast fund transferring machine and new scanner has increased the operational activities of the Tesco which has improve the image of the Tesco further. (Finch, 2004). 2.1.5 Environmental factors: Starting from 2003, managers were under great pressure to look into society issues and adopt policy which benefits for both the society and for the company. (Lind green and Hingley, 2003). In order to prove that company care about society, they need to clearly work about environmental issues. By recognizing this trend Tesco has been working on the environmental issue to prove that it is a socially responsible organization which cares about the environment. Government has introduced new policies which aim to reduce the waste pollution and encourage the companies to take steps to reduce the pollution. Recently a new legislation has been created in which a heavy tax has been imposed on those products which are not environment friendly. This tax has been directly affecting the Tescos products and damaging the relations with suppliers and customers. 2.1.6 Legislative factors: Tesco performance has been affected by various government policies and legislation. Tesco is bound by law no to take payments from supplier to take order for goods and any such kind of activities. The existence of strong competitors has created a demand of stiff competitions in prices of branded products and a strong demand for product diversification. Government policies to control the monopoly and reduction of buyers powers can reduce the chances to enter in this sector with such controls. (Mintel Report, 2004: Myers, 2004). Tesco has been giving discount on buying the petrol to its customers based on amount it spends on the purchase of groceries at the stores. Tescos keep the prices on the promotions low while it increase the prices on other products in the store in order to compensate. 3) PORTERS FIVE FORCES FRAMEWORK: 3.1 Threats of new entrants: There is four big supermarket which are Tesco, Sainsbury, ASDA, Liddell which makes 75% of total market and Waitrose, Somerfield and Budgens makes about 10% percent of total market. The trend in people of UK has been changed to one stop shopping and they want to get everything at one place so majority of grocery stores has transformed into one stop supermarket. These big supermarkets heavily affects the surrounding butcher and food shops. These big supermarket does not let any new business to come into their area as they give very stiff competitions and starting business in those area are more difficult because of huge capital investment. In order to make a solid position in the UK market, Tesco has been spending a huge amount of money on the development of existing infrastructure. 3.2 Bargaining Power of Supplier: Suppliers power of bargaining get affected from big store as the supplier fear that if they put their own conditions of bargaining then they might lose it client and will not be able to operate their business. Tesco always negotiate with suppliers to get the best competitive prices and get a better price as compared to small food chains. The UK small food chains also threatened from this big supermarket as they get cheap goods from abroad for their promotional activities. So the relations with the suppliers can have affects on the freedom and margin of the company. (321books, 2009) 3.3 Bargaining Power of Customers: Tesco club card scheme is very successful in order to retain the customers with Tesco which has increase the profit margin of the Tesco significantly. In order to fulfill the customers needs, the customized services such as lower prices, better choices, constant flow of promotional products and availability of all the product which customers demands enables Tesco to retain its customers. In recent years a huge changes has occurred in the food chain stores due to a change of behavior of customers, So Tesco has started keeping more non food items as well in its stores. It has also provides a strategic expansion of its business into new markets such as retail banking, pharmacies, phone shops. 3.4 Threats of substitutes: A demand for a particular product can be reduce due to a general substitution because there is always a threat that customer will switch to alternatives (Porter, 1980). Substitute for needs and product for product has been observed in the grocery industry. It is more affected with the new trend. Small stores are opening up in the industry. In this case supermarket like Tesco is trying to taking over the small stores and opening up big stores in town centers. (Ritz, 2005). 3.5 Bargaining Power of Competitors: Tesco is getting lot of customer information through its loyalty club card and trying to improve its relations with the consumers. In UK food industry, because of high competitive expansions, most of these big stores are taking further steps by investing more money in the information system of the business. 4) CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS: By doing an evaluation of Tesco industry it has become an important to identify the success factors to consider the effectiveness of Tesco. 4.1 Branding and Reputation: The company is expanding rapidly by working hard on its packaging and spending every penny on promotions which contribute to the environment as well. Tesco is doing well in the information system applications. By introducing loyalty club card system which has helped the Tesco to get a valuable data about customers behaviors about their spending, choices and etc. 4.2 IT integration: Tesco is always step ahead in applying the new technology and it has become a necessity rather luxury in Tescos operations. A system that controls stocks, helping to serves the customers; keeping valuable record of customers transactions and ordering system is the lifeline of the Tesco. 4.3 Supplier Management: To have a competitive position in the market Tesco also get most of its products from oversee countries which are cheaper as compared to UK. Tesco has been supporting British companies for its branded products but recently it has start importing products which are not manufacturing in the UK. To keep a better communication to get its products on time Tesco has adopted a advance communication system which enables the suppliers to delivers products on time. 5) MARKET OBJECTIVES AND STRATEGIES IMPLEMENTATIONS: Tesco has plan to introduce two types of strategies, first one will going to focus to explore the market and find new customer with its new products and second one is on the diversifications of products. 5.1 Joint development and joint ventures: Tescos has a long term strategy to focus on the Japan market. In making possible Tesco is making partnerships with local business to enter into the market. By doing joint ventures Tesco will have a economy of scale and has made a good image of its brand name. (Andrew, 2009) By the entering into partnership with the local businesses in the foreign countries, Tesco will get the necessary skill in order to penetrate in the market. So in future it will be easy for Tesco to operate its operations independently. By doing joint venture with the international companies Tesco will improve its operational skills as well. 5.2 Product Diversification: UK is diverse population which comprises of different ethnic people from different countries. Tesco can do more development expansion by opening up new stores in those areas where people strictly go for their traditional food, so Tesco can add whole range of products which is in demand in these areas. 6) CRITICAL EVALUATION: Ro have a sustainable competitive advantage Tesco should apply following strategies: Firstly Tesco should adopt a strategy of cost leadership by offering goods and services to its customers at low prices in a broad market. This strategy will help the Tesco to reduce its cost, Tesco will be able to sell its products competitively and thus generate huge profit. If Tesco has to adopt another strategy then, It has to offers it products and services with a unique features which customers value it. Then Tesco has to gives some other value added services in technology, competitive price, special features and customer service improvements. Last strategy of niche is from either cost leadership strategy or product differentiation but focus on narrow market. In order to perform cost leadership strategy Tesco has to work on internal efficiencies that will help Tesco to cope with external pressure. As these both strategies are aimed at broader market, it may be possible than Tesco focus on small market or with a limited range of product. In other words, Tesco may be pursuing the strategy to be a leader in cost and keeping a huge variety in product. This can be done with a specific product in a market or by selecting a specific market for its products. The problem which many of organizations have that these organization implement all these strategies one time and most of them stuck in middle. But Tesco is very careful when it select a market, they have a clear strategy regarding it. (Wringley, 1988) 7) CONCLUSION Tesco is a very well established organization in the UK. Tesco apply different strategy in the organization to make the business grows. Its primary focus is to attract the customers and keep the loyal customers attached with the organization. In order to evaluate the customers it has apply different technology process in order to know the customers needs, their attitude and likes and dislikes. It has a specific layout which has been applied in all its branches. Tesco is investing a lot money on its information technology improvement which has helped it to improve its sales and get a competitive advantage over its competitors. 8) REFERENCES Publications from the Tesco preliminary result.2004. [online]. [Accessed on 2 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: . Publications from the Tesco web site. Tesco plc.2009. [online]. [Accessed 2 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/about_us/strategy. Publications from 321books web site. Porters five forces model.2009. [online]. [Accessed 5 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.321books.co.uk/catalog/tesco/porters-five-forces.htm. Andrew.2007. Article base web site. [online]. [Accessed 5 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.articlesbase.com/sales-articles/success-of-tesco-in-great-britain-163894.html. Publications from a article from web site.2006. [online]. [Accessed 8 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/08/tesco-strategic-analysis.html. WRINGLEY, N. 1988. Store choice, store location and market analysis. NY (USA). T.J press. [Accessed on 8 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xbYOAAAAQAAJpg=PA106dq=tesco+analysisei=xkZDS7naLqXczQTRkZDtDgcd=1#v=onepageq=tesco%20analysisf=false. PANDELETON, D. 2004. Tescos Steering Wheel Strategy. [online]. [Accessed on 9 December 2009]. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/Business%20Strategy/BSTR187.htm.

monsanto good or evil :: essays research papers

ANNISTON, Ala. -- On the west side of Anniston, the poor side of Anniston, the people ate dirt. They called it "Alabama clay" and cooked it for extra flavor. They also grew berries in their gardens, raised hogs in their back yards, caught bass in the murky streams where their children swam and played and were baptized. They didn't know their dirt and yards and bass and kids -- along with the acrid air they breathed -- were all contaminated with chemicals. They didn't know they lived in one of the most polluted patches of America. Now they know. They also know that for nearly 40 years, while producing the now-banned industrial coolants known as PCBs at a local factory, Monsanto Co. routinely discharged toxic waste into a west Anniston creek and dumped millions of pounds of PCBs into oozing open-pit landfills. And thousands of pages of Monsanto documents -- many emblazoned with warnings such as "CONFIDENTIAL: Read and Destroy" -- show that for decades, the corporate giant concealed what it did and what it knew. In 1966, Monsanto managers discovered that fish submerged in that creek turned belly-up within 10 seconds, spurting blood and shedding skin as if dunked into boiling water. They told no one. In 1969, they found fish in another creek with 7,500 times the legal PCB levels. They decided "there is little object in going to expensive extremes in limiting discharges." In 1975, a company study found that PCBs caused tumors in rats. They ordered its conclusion changed from "slightly tumorigenic" to "does not appear to be carcinogenic." the Environmental Protection Agency ordered General Electric Co. to spend $460 million to dredge PCBs it had dumped into the Hudson River in the past, perhaps the Bush administration's boldest environmental action to date. The decision was bitterly opposed by the company, but hailed by national conservation groups and many prominent and prosperous residents of the picturesque Hudson River Valley. Anniston is not much of a model city anymore. The EPA officials who set up an Anniston satellite office to deal with the PCB problem are now alarmed about widespread lead poisoning as well. The Army is building an incinerator here to burn 2,000 tons of deadly sarin and mustard gas. And the Anniston Star has been questioning Monsanto's past mercury releases. Officials at Solutia Inc., the name given to Monsanto's chemical operations after they were spun off into a separate company in 1997, acknowledge that Monsanto made mistakes.

The Conelly’s bond with Roan Inish

The film directed by John Sayles; The Secret of Roan Inish is a captivating story about an Irish family; The Coneelly’s. The family’s bond to the island of Roan Inish and the seals that reside nearby is exceptional and mystifying. Why are the Coneelly’s so drawn to the island? The family’s roots on Roan Inish start far back with Fiona’s great great great grandfather Sean Michael who arrives on the island on a prayer. Another Coneelly; Liam, solidifies the connection to Irish island through his marriage to Nula. Finally the loss of Fiona’s brother Jaime at Roan Inish keeps the island on the mind of the family almost constantly. The Coneelly’s attachment to the Island of Roan Inish is firmly rooted by several factors. One of the most important factors of this revolves around the oldest known member of the family, Sean Michael. Sean Michael was aboard a fishing vessel that capsized; drowning all of the Coneelly fishermen on board except Sean Michael. As the legend tells it; Sean Michael had such a strong soul the sea would not take him. Seals rescued Sean Michael and took him to the island of Roan Inish; where he colonized and single handedly rebuilt the Coneelly family. Another pivotal member of the family is Liam. On the island everyone is family and when it comes time to find a mate the men leave Roan Inish to find their bride. Young Liam indeed left the island to find his bride; on an island not far away he came across a selkie; a half woman, half seal creature. As the legend tells it a man who is able to keep the skin of a seklie will have her affection forever. Liam took that advice seriously and captured the skin; and then rightfully gained her affection. They eventually bore children. Their love of the sea was constant; Nula even suggested they build a cradle for their newborn from wood that once sailed the sea. This cradle was passed down through the Coneelly family for years to come and used as a bassinet for each new Coneelly family member. Eventually Nula comes to realize Liam has been keeping her seal skin; at this point she returns to the sea but the seals always seem to stay close to the island of Roan Inish. Once Nula returns to the sea the Coneelly’s ban the hunting of seals. This is a solid symbolic bond between the Island, Seals and the Family. Finally the last important factor for the family connection to the island is that of young Jaime, Fiona’s brother. After Fiona is told the story about Jaime’s disappearance she becomes obsessed with the idea that Jaime is alive. Fiona makes two trips to Roan Inish before convincing the other family members Jamie exists. On the first trip she is brought to the island by Hugh. Fiona spends a fair amount of time on the island and then spies Jamie in a field. She tries to summon Jamie but he runs away, gets into the family bassinet which he is using as a boat and drifts away. On Fiona’s second trip to the island her boat mysteriously becomes untied from the dock. The boat seems to be lead to the island by way of the Seals. Fiona sees Jamie again and confirms that he is being cared for by the seals. This is another paramount symbol of a strong connection between the Coneelly family and the island. The bond between the Coneelly family and Roan Inish is steadfast and strong. Their ties between the seals and the island run deep. Sean Michael’s colonization of the island starts the great tie between the family, island and seals. Liam’s marriage Nula strengthens the relationship with the seals and symbolizes the connection between the two. The seals overseeing and caring for Jamie after the Coneelly’s left the island proves that the seals and family are one. Theese clues demonstrates that the Coneelly family belongs on the Island of Roan Inish where the seals and family can live together.

Lance Armstrong essays

Lance Armstrong essays Its mid summer, a steamy 80-100 degrees farenheit, 15-35 mile per hour winds blow across the flatlands and mountains of one of the worlds most beautiful countries, France. 189 men, riding $5000 bicycles embark on a journey which will cover the flat lands of the north, and the treacherous mountain passes of the Pyrenean and Alpine mountain ranges of the south, totaling 3282 kilometers with only 2 rest days, each stage averaging 164 kilometers, for 22 days the race will be shaped by crashes, attacks, clash of wills and the struggle to be #1. For many, the race started on July 6 2002. But for one man, the race for his life began in the fall of 1996. A talented young racer, Lance Armstrong, was coming into form after winning the world championships and having his first taste of success in The Tour de France by winning stage 18. By October, the racing season was winding down and Lance was preparing for 5-7 hour days he would spend on the bike during the winter. Little did he know that his body was being destroyed by a ravenous disease which spreads like a wild fire, Cancer. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer and his malignant testical was removed in a few days. Doctors then discovered, that due to the stages in which his cancer was in, it had spread to his lungs and his brain. Within 2 weeks, Lance had gone through brain surgery, testicular surgery, and was given a 50-50 chance of having a full recovery, which doctors later told him was extremely optimistic, realistically Lance had about a %20 chance of fully recovering. He underwent the strongest forms of chemotherapy which broke down all the fitness he had worked fo r, but he remained optimistic and after results were being seen he had dreams of returning to the sport he loved. 5 months after his diagnoses, Lance was back on his bike. Lances dedication was like never before, nearly 15lbs lighter than his pre-cancer form, he began to work on his mountain climbin...

Dreams3 essays

Dreams3 essays My Java class assignment due by midnight tonight and I have not started it yet. Cognitive: Questioned my programming ability Emotional: Worry I would fail out Behavioral: Work slower than normal Chemistry Lab for Wednesday class is still not done. Cognitive: Questioned my reason for being here (Kettering) Emotional: Worry I would fail out Physical: Bite fingernails, and pace room Behavioral: Work slower than normal, and repeatedly stop to eat. Calculus Exam taken in morning without any studying. Cognitive: Questioned my reason for being here (Kettering), and thinking of taking Calc 1 at GRCC Emotional: Worry I would fail out and parents be disappointed Behavioral: Work slower than normal, tap finger on desk, sit and stare Calculus Exam back have to see grade. Cognitive: Might as well start sleeping in. Emotional: MAJOR stress, feeling stupid Cognitive: I too stupid to go here drop and go somewhere else Emotional: Sad and feeling inadequate Behavioral: To be frankly honest: alcohol, sex and loud music. PARTY. Biting finger nails, and doubting my self. All of my stress is dependent on this school and my lack of motivation and will-power to force myself to study and do homework. My main coping method is parties on the weekends to relax. This involves smoking and drinking. I do not smoke a lot nor do I drink to get drunk just enough to almost relax. These ar ...

Critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of using customer Essay

Critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of using customer focused interactions as a basis to standardise and improve business operations - Essay Example Focusing on precision and customer service accelerates the transformation process. British Telecom chose not to rely on such systems to solve its immediate problem. British Telecom saw a dramatic expansion in the number of services offered to its customers. Additional revenues from these services and related ventures have been sufficient to justify further investments of more than five billion dollars in second-generation packet switching, terminal technology, and support systems. (Johnson and Clark, 2001, 115-120) While new business units may become the principal vehicles for growth, the existing core business can also be redefined from within. New capabilities cannot only alter how the original business is conducted, but can alter the nature of the business itself. British Telecoms business focus a decade ago was voice transmission (Fraser, Shobrys & Kruse, 2003, 10-13); today it has a much broader scope of activities and services. Not all companies choose to spawn new businesses (Johnson and Clark, 2001, 115-120). New information processing capabilities can be viewed as central to the success of a traditional business and treated as a proprietary asset to be kept closely guarded in the inner sanctum of the enterprise. Yet even in such cases, those new core competencies will drive redefinition and transformation of the traditional business from within. In this way, successful customer interaction efforts ultimately lead to business transformation. (Slack, 2001, 1100-1121) â€Å"Quality management approaches can be categorized broadly into three stages according to the evolution of management control. Management can implement control before an activity commences, while the activity occurs, or after the activity has been completed.† (Hsieh, Chang & Lu, 2000, 191–201) For example, British Telecom might have chosen to address its directory services crisis with a limited solution that automated operator database access and audio response--the type

Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy Utopia Essay

Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy Utopia - Essay Example Its massive growth accompanied with the explosion of the city and the growing gap between the rich and poor made it seem like the industrial system was heading off the deep end. As a social remedy, muckrakers exposed the social ills that capitalism was creating and in turn became one of its saviors. One of these writers was Edward Bellamy who published Looking Backward, a novel in which Julian West, a man from 1887, awakens to find a utopian socialist society juxtaposed against the harsh world from he came from. This book, depicting the evils of capitalism, also offered solutions that helped mobilize groups to help their common man. The progressive reform movements of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century were the response to the problems in American industrial society criticized by Edward Bellamy in Looking Backward. Capitalism, Bellamy argued, was the root of all problems in American industrial society. He pointed to competition, corruption, and most of all the inequitable distribution of wealth as being responsible for the poor living conditions of most people in the early nineteenth century. In the latter part of the book, West goes back to the Boston of the past to see a world marked by clear distinctions and divisions between the rich and the poor. ... Similarly, the stories of Horatio Alger gave the poor a sense of false hope that they could escape the chains of poverty and become rich and powerful. These parables were not true given the fact that the upper class did almost everything possible to keep them as poor as possible in order to profit personally. John Rockefeller realized that by reducing wages and working conditions, his own pocketbook swelled to a tremendous amount. Child labor and terrible working conditions were of the two most notable results of capitalism and self motivated profit. Likewise, Cornelius Vanderbilt and Andrew Carnegie created monopolies and trusts that squeezed out competition from the market to be able to control and set a high price for the consumer. While Bellamy identified competition as one of the most negative aspects of capitalism, the "robber baron" or "captain of industry" alternative was no better. (Manuel, 215) The distinction was where the profit went to. In the early nineteenth century, the private individual reaped the profit while in the utopian world of the future; the profit was every ones to share. . In return for twenty five years of labor in the Industrial Army each American receives an equal share of the nation's production every year of his or her life. Service to society guarantees full support by society. When West goes to talk to his fiance's family about the problems of society he proclaims, "Do you not know that close to your doors a great multitude of men and women, flesh of your flesh, live lives that are one agony from birth to death" (Bellamy, 210) By throwing him into the street, the family tries to eliminate anything that might threaten their system of