Arguing for Drug Testing Policy

This memo is in response to your recent e-mail in regards to random drug testing. I believe that implementing this policy would be extremely beneficial to our company as a whole. This is for the following reasons: financial savings, workplace safety, and to maintain our reputation. Financial Savings It is important that we strive to maintain a safe and effective work environment for every single one of our employees.It is estimated that workplace accidents related to drugs have costs employers in the United States $75 to 100 billion dollars per year. Those who abuse are also six times more likely to file worker's compensation claim and use 16 times the amount of health benefits as their fellow employees who do not use drugs. (http://www. employmentdrugtesting. com/screening. html_) Not ensuring that our employees are drug-free could end up costing our company a great deal of money in the long run if an employee under the influence injures themself or nother employee while on the Job here at Life Support, Inc.One might argue that implementing this drug-testing policy would actually cost our company more money due to the cost of the drug tests. However, the cost of a drug test cannot compare to the higher cost of worker's compensation or lawsuits to this company that could potentially occur due to an employee under the influence while on the Job. Spending money on these drug tests is a preventative measure to keep our company from spending more money in the long run. Workplace Safety It is absolutely vital that Life Support, Inc. rovides an environment in which our employees come to work knowing that we value their safety. The facts and figures mentioned above suggest that employees under the influence of drugs are extremely likely to cause and produce accidents in the workplace. The drug users are not the only ones at risk. Employees under the influence of drugs are clearly not performing to the best of their ability; their impaired state can cause them to make careless mistakes or exercise poor Judgment that they normally would not if they were in a ober state of mind.This can cause injury not only to them, but their fellow co- workers. By â€Å"weeding out† the employees who choose to use drugs, we will be providing a safer place for our workers and also show them that we truly value their safety. Maintain Reputation It is important for Life Support, Inc. to maintain a reputable image. By not tolerating drug abuse by our employees we present ourselves as a company that really cares about their people and also the quality of their products. https://donemyessay.com/unit-5-review/Our products will continue o be made of impeccable quality and be held to the highest standards in the industry. Our clients and those who use our products will know that Life Support, Inc. is a name to be trusted. This kind of quality and standards will reduce any possible liability for any malfunctioning equipment. I urge you to consider the potential savings, workplace safety, and our reputation as you continue to make your decision in regards to this matter. As always, please feel free to contact me if I can be of any other assistance to you.

New Business Venture: Forms of Business

A New Business Venture Going into business is not as easy as a snap of a finger. If it were, more people would have one and be successful at it. However that is not the case. There are many steps you must take and the best way to do that is in creating a business plan. Ebert and Griffin state â€Å"Before investing time and money, the starting point for virtually every new entrepreneur is a business plan in which the entrepreneur thoroughly develops and describes her or his business strategy and demonstrates how it will be implemented† (p. 7). In the scenario, I am an inventor who has created an idea that will be suitable for the daily needs of consumers. There are many issues that can hinder my progress as an entrepreneur. The scenario states that I lack the financial and management skills it takes to begin and even own my own business. For example, I am financially unable to â€Å"fund† the costs that will be necessary to begin any investments needed to begin this pro ject. I’m oblivious to how I’m going to begin production of my idea.I’m also aware of similar inventions that could possibly heed the sale of my own, however, â€Å"Innovations are not always new products† as stated by Ebert and Griffin (p34). There are three forms of business: sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. There are many advantages and disadvantages in the different forms of business in relation to my business venture. To begin with, as sole proprietor, I wouldn’t work under anyone and could be my own boss.I could make up the rules and could develop what I wanted based on my own ideas. However, considering I do not have the funds, it would be extremely difficult knowing that I would be â€Å"personally liable (or responsible) for all debts of the business† (AIU Online, 2010). Subsequently, there are partnerships. Ebert and Griffin state that a â€Å"partnership is a sole proprietorship multiplied by the number of partn er-owners† (p41). That’s great if I am feeling uneasy about my skills and do not want to go into something alone.I can use the skills of my partners and I also am backed up financially because the money will not be coming only out my pocket. As well as my chances of getting financing will increase. Yet, my and any ideas have to be agreed upon which can cause problems amongst all partners. Last of all, there are corporations. â€Å"Corporations are businesses that have property rights and separate status from the owners and they are financially liable (or responsible) (AIU Online, 2010).This form of business is great in reference to the amount of liability you are responsible for. As an owner, I am accountable for only the amount of funds I invested. However the disadvantage of this type of business is how extremely pricey it would be to start up. Between the three different forms of business, I would choose to go with partnership. With a partnership, all partners can p itch in ideas for the invention and we could come to a well developed conclusion. Also someone may have talents that I do not possess.Someone may â€Å"contribute a well known name or special expertise† as Ebert and Griffin state (p41). Responsibilities will be many, and with co owners not only will they be delegated out but, it will give all the owners more time to do other tasks that may not be business related. Since you are in a partnership your chances of getting financing may become easier. Loan opportunities are important for your business start up to be successful (Ebert & Griffin, 2009). There are several investors, programs, and banking facilities that are available to you.In conclusion, with business opportunities being countless, and the funds to start those, few, partnership is the best approach for this scenario. In order to be successful in business today funds are not the only thing one needs to possess. Having ideas, a business sense, and time management are needed as well. Take the time to make a business plan is the first step anyone needs to make when deciding to go on a business venture. Then you will know what your total investment is, who you want to involve, where you will begin and how you will finance it all. It can mean the rise or fall of your business.

My own experiences of education education essay

Paideias doctrine is based on the belief that schools can be informal and individualised, yet still educate good. ( Paideia School ) How does this comparison with my ain doctrine about Mathematicss? This has decidedly changed and I believe for my ain good. Previous instruction experiences left me really disillusioned, I wanted to alter my sentiments and beliefs, travel frontward, and enable others to alter their doctrines about mathematics every bit good. Some people look upon mathematics as a tabu topic, and we, as instructors, need to guarantee that everyone has chances opened to them to heighten and promote their ain academic acquisition. We need to guarantee that student ‘s acquisition is individualised and that their experiences within the schoolroom are gratifying, motivational yet disputing. Mike Ollerton ( 2009, page 4 ) suggests that ‘The more confident any pupil becomes, the more competent they become. Achievement strains assurance, assurance strains competency and competency causes enjoyment ‘ . So what do I believe mathematics is? Mathematicss for me is an international linguistic communication, which describes, analyses and alterations everything. It consists of a monolithic set of tools and we need to work out which tool to utilize when using or work outing mathematics. We learn new accomplishments and must guarantee we can utilize and use them, by being able to make this makes us more competent to get by with day-to-day life. My ain experiences of instruction connect really much to the information given in the Cockcroft Report ( 1982, chapter 9 ) , which states expressed information on the instruction system of that peculiar epoch. However, the Smith Report ( 2004 ) ( Chapter 3, pages 53- 55 ) identifies the current mathematics tracts for the National Curriculum ( pre-16 ) . This gives a more appropriate portraiture of the National Curriculum, which is loosely used, within schools in the United Kingdom. Education throughout my ain life-time has greatly altered, so how has this affected my ain acquisition, my teaching method? Capable Knowledge is really of import for a trainee instructor because you need to understand the topic and you need to be able to convey it to pupils to guarantee they can understand and construe it to the full to increase their learning capablenesss. My ain capable cognition is continuously altering and progressing, learning a subject allows oneself to better and escalate the techniques for learning a assortment of subjects and of the assorted ways, those students are able to entree their acquisition. In 1986, Shulman introduced the phrase pedagogical content cognition. In his theoretical model, he states: ‘Teachers need to get the hang two types of cognition ( a ) content which is besides known as â€Å" deep † cognition of the topic itself, and ( B ) cognition of the curricular development ‘ . However, why is capable cognition so of import? ‘Teachers who have effectual capable expertness cognize how to construction larning in ways that allow students to link seemingly different subjects, and construct on their earlier acquisition ‘ . ( OFSTED, 2008 ) To guarantee my ain capable cognition continues to better I utilize the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics ( NCETM ) . Using the NCETM enables me to go on bettering my ain teaching method and my professional development, which so ensures that I can dispute and reassure students that they can make their ain academic potency every bit good. The Department for Education ( DfE ) ] set up the National CentreA in response to Professor Adrian Smith ‘s study Making Mathematics Count, ( 2004 ) . How can I guarantee that students and I work collaboratively to heighten their academic larning possible? On my first arrangement I wanted the students to work together in braces or groups ; this is something that had non antecedently been apparent and met with ill will from the students because it was something different. ‘There is now general understanding in research that concerted little group work has positive effects on both societal accomplishments and mathematics larning ‘ . ( Standard ‘s Unit, 2005, by Malcolm Swan ) However, this attack needed more practise and I needed to guarantee the mixture of the group would be able to work together. Once the students were more comfy about working in braces, I was so able to put them in specific groups and this encouraged them to work more collaboratively with different students and non experience uncomfortable or embarrassed about giving their positions or replies. The groups became supportive and were able to develop their ain cognition and understanding even further. To promote collaborative working amongst equals and other learning staff ensures sharing of resources, lesson programs and different schemes, which work with different twelvemonth or twelvemonth groups. Bing able to interchange thoughts and different instruction manners improves larning outlooks for both staff and pupils. Within the attack for coaction, I feel that the usage of staging is an country that worked non merely between the students and me but besides with the more able students and those with lower abilities. Originally introduced in the 1950 ‘s by Constructivist Jerome Bruner, nevertheless Vygotsky used a similar thought that larning depended on the zone of proximal development ( ZPD ) , in which he defined: â€Å" The distance between the existent developmental degree as determined by independent problem-solving and the degree of possible development as determined through problem-solving under grownup counsel, or in coaction with more capable equals. â€Å" ( Vygotsky, 1978 ) In my first arrangement, I used scaffolding to back up larning but I besides found that by lumping certain spots of information the students were better able to retain the information. Why is this? George A Miller ( 1956 ) produced landmark work on the short-run memory. He proposed that: ‘Information is organized into units or â€Å" balls † , and the restrictions on short term memory apply to the figure of balls an person can keep in consciousness at one clip. Balls can hold variable size, and the figure of balls worlds can keep in short-run memory is 7 + 2 ‘ . ( Miller, 1956 ) Another larning theory that I connect with and utilize regularly is that of positive support ( B. F. Skinner, 1971 – Operant conditioning ) , I find that utilizing positive reinforcing stimuluss for illustration spines, raffle tickets improves non merely the student ‘s behavior but besides increases their motivational accomplishments. Skinner suggests that: ‘A reinforcing stimulus is anything that strengthens the coveted response. It could be verbal congratulations, a good class or a feeling of increased achievement or satisfaction ‘ . Learning mathematics can happen in a assortment of different state of affairss. What is most of import is that the student uses a method that works for them and instructors are cognizant of a assortment of different methods to guarantee pupils are accomplishing their full academic potency. Presently, I am experimenting with different starting motor activities and plenaries. At arrangement one, I experimented with rich activities that I produced, tarzia mystifiers ; loop cards and mini-whiteboards because the pupils were non familiar with them, by presenting these different facets easy allowed me to allow the students extend/further their ain acquisition comfortably without experiencing over challenged. I feel that the starter gets the students in the temper for larning – by giving them a assortment of disputing activities gets them believing about the mathematics involved in the undertakings. My plenaries combine to demo how the students have understood the work covered in category and how it links to the acquisition objectives/outcomes for the lesson. ‘Effective instructors make good usage of starting motors and plenaries in the context of synergistic whole-class instruction to prosecute all students in constructive deep acquisition ‘ . ( Department for Education and Skills, Sept 2004 ) Another country that I have been experimenting with is my oppugning techniques. I have besides found Bloom ‘s taxonomy utile in be aftering aims for lessons in my 2nd arrangement and for progressively ambitious inquiries utilizing the cognitive aims. Why is this? ‘You can utilize the stairss in the taxonomy to assist program aims for lessons over a period of clip to guarantee that lessons are doing progressively disputing cognitive demands on students. You can besides utilize them to be after sequences of inquiries in a lesson. By sequencing inquiries in this manner, you can assist pupils to intensify their apprehension, to develop their thought accomplishments and for them to go more effectual scholars ‘ . ( Department for Education and Skills, 2004 ) Another country for experimentation has been the account of rules. By detecting a assortment of different learning staff, I can place and larn how to near different subjects particularly the higher-level work. Within this subdivision, I feel that I am manner out of my comfort zone but I need to dispute this and guarantee that I improve my capable cognition. I do non believe that I will of all time halt larning different facets of mathematics nevertheless, by taking portion in excess observations ; I am able to travel off from my comfort zone and widen my ain acquisition and apprehension. I am able to detect how to explicate cardinal constructs and the alterations needed in accounts for the students of different abilities. What or who is informing my ain pattern? I have found that the people who have influenced my instruction pattern are chiefly the wise mans both at University and at the schools. The constructive feedback from lesson observations is priceless and enables oneself to set their ain pattern to integrate new thoughts and schemes. By being able to detect a assortment of different learning staff, I am able to derive greater accomplishments and attitudes on how to near new subjects, behaviour direction and schemes to get by with ‘the bad lesson experience ‘ . Another good beginning towards informing my pattern has been the Schemes of Work related to different scrutiny boards. My first arrangement covered the AQA course of study, the system was good prepared and set up. However, my 2nd arrangement uses the Kangaroo Maths course of study for KS3 students and a assortment of OCR course of studies covering the additive and modular test boards for the KS4 students. My utilizations of different instruction manners are besides developing within my instruction repertory. I like to guarantee that my lessons incorporate different facets of the Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic and Tactile manners to guarantee that all students are able to entree relevant information in their ain preferable acquisition manner guaranting that Every Child does Matter. Psychologists and learning specializers foremost developed the VAK construct, theory and methods in the 1920 ‘s. Howard Gardner ( 1983 ) suggests that: ‘The VAK theoretical account provides a different position for understanding and explicating a individual ‘s preferred or dominant thought and acquisition manner, and strengths ‘ . So what about the hereafter of mathematics and ICT? British Educational and Communications Technology Association ( BECTA ) , now axed under the new authorities, was one of the chief thrusts into acquiring computing machines into school. BECTA ran Home Access, the former Labour authorities ‘s strategy to bridge the â€Å" digital divide † by guaranting all kids have a computing machine at place particularly amongst the poorest households in the United Kingdom. ( BECTA, 2010 ) A SecEd symposium held in March 2010 stated that: ‘Students today are turning up in a digital age, pass oning and larning via engineering now more than of all time earlier. To fix pupils for future success, schools are encompassing engineering to heighten the instruction and larning experience and transform educationaˆÂ ¦to genuinely transform acquisition schools must incorporate engineering tools that can broaden the instruction experience and link the schoolroom with the twenty-first century ‘ . Within my first arrangement, the school used ‘Mathswatch ‘ as a resource to utilize in lessons and at place by the students. I was besides able to utilize the artworks reckoners to assist pupils recognize and place different facets of graphical work. This was really good for the students and they enjoyed utilizing them. My 2nd arrangement, is a Technology College, where ICT is far more extended. Synergistic whiteboards are in all schoolrooms, ICT is a separate section as recommended in the Smith Report 2004. The usage of Mymaths enables prep to be utilized as a resource that gives instant appraisal. This is another country of experimentation for me, being able to put prep utilizing ICT and acquiring instant accessible consequences, this could be utile when composing studies and roll uping spreadsheets of the student ‘s assessment consequences. The Smith Report ( 2004 ) recognises the relevancy of mathematics to everyone and I feel stresses the importance of why mathematics still deserves its topographic point in the school course of study: â€Å" It is importance for its ain interest, as an rational subject ; for the cognition economic system ; for scientific discipline, engineering and technology ; for the workplace ; and for the single citizen. ( Chapter 1, page 3, point 0.12 ) This point emphasises the value of mathematics within assorted different facets of mundane life. We need to guarantee that students leave school with the appropriate mathematical accomplishments that will enable them to get by in their hereafter callings. My concluding point comes from a rabbinical expression: ‘Do n't restrict a kid to your ain acquisition, for that kid was born in another clip. ‘ Word count ( 2155 )Mentions:BECTA, 2010, ICT, ( online ) , from: webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ †¦ /http: /www.becta.org.uk, accessed 11/04/2011 Cockcroft Report, 1982, Mathematics Counts, ( online ) , from: www.educationengland.org.uk/ †¦ /cockcroft/cockcroft00.html, accessed 11/04/2011. Department for Education and Skills, 2004, Pedagogy and Practice: Teaching and Learning in Secondary Schools – Unit of measurement 5: Starters and Plenaries ( online ) , available at: www.standards.dfes.gov.uk, [ Accessed on 11/04/2011 ] . Department for Education and Skills, 2004, Pedagogy and Practice: Teaching and Learning in Secondary Schools – Unit of measurement 7: Questioning, ( online ) , available at: www.standards.dfes.gov.uk, [ Accessed on 11/04/2011 ] . Gardner, H. , 1983, The Multiple Intelligences Concepts and VAK acquisition manners, ( online ) , from: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.businessballs.com/howardgardnermultipleintelligences.htm, accessed on 11/04/2011 Miller, G.A. , ( 1956 ) , Short-run memory and VAK construct, from: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.lifecircles-inc.com/Learningtheories/IP/GAMiller.html, accessed on 11/04/2011. Ofsted, 2008, Mathematicss: Understanding the Mark, ( online ) , from: www.ofsted.gov.uk, accessed 11/04/2011. Ollerton, M, 2009, Mathematics Teacher ‘s Handbook, Continuum International Publishing Group, London. Paideia Schools, nd, Paideia Schools, ( online ) , available at: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.paideaischool.org/ , accessed 01/04/2011. Sec. Ed. , 2010, ICT and the Future of Education, ( online ) , from: www.sec-ed.co.uk/cgi-bin/go.pl/article/article.html, accessed 11/04/2011 Skinner. B.F. , 1971, Operant Conditioning – Positive Supports, ( online ) , from: hypertext transfer protocol: //tip.psychology.org/skinner.html- , accessed on 11/04/2011. Smith Report, 2004, Making Mathematicss Count – The study of Professor Adrian Smith ‘s Inquiry into Post-14 Mathematics Education, ( online ) , from: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.mathsinquiry.org.uk/report/MathsInquiryFinalReport.pdf, accessed 11/04/2011. Swan. M. , 2005, Standard ‘s Unit – Bettering acquisition in mathematics, ( online ) , from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ncetm.org.uk/public/ †¦ /improving_learning_in_mathematicsi.pdf, accessed 11/04/2011. Teacher ‘s In-Depth Content Knowledge, nd, Shulman, from hypertext transfer protocol: //ww.intime.uni.edu/model/teacher/teac2summary.html, accessed on 11/04/2011 The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics, 2010, NCETM, ( online ) , from: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ncetm.org.uk, accessed 11/04/2011. Vygotsky. L. , 1978, Zone of proximal development, ( online ) , from: www.simplypsychology.org/vygotsky78.pdf – United States, accessed on 11/04/2011.

Comparing and Contrasting HHS, NASA and DHS Acquisition Planning and Essay

Comparing and Contrasting HHS, NASA and DHS Acquisition Planning and Policies - Essay Example The sustainability of a procurement approach is considered when a contracting a project. Furthermore, projects initiated through procurements should seek professional advice prior to their implementation. The financial demands and design are critical aspects that equally need consideration. It took the council a while before amassing sufficient the funds to carry out this community project; thus, cost became a critical issue in the method used. A decision on the procurement route for use should expect variance on the outcome (Morledge, Smith, Kashiwagi, 2006). The time required for the project and resource availability basing on knowledge is equally subject to consideration. The choice of the procurement route is dependent on the objectives that a client intends to attain with the available resources. According to Morledge, Smith, and Kashiwagi (2006, p.96), the traditional procurement is the most common and current procurement approach. Organizations use it in implementing their projects and other business activities within the community. This technique also referred to as design bid build procurement, is efficient regardless of an individual’s knowledge concerning project management. This procurement style carries out complicated activities with indefinite periods for their accomplishment. This procurement is friendly in terms of affordability and other logistical requirements by the client. The Little-tree Parish Council will engage their ideas in the design presented before the contractors make suggestions concerning their needs. In the traditional route, a client lays out the plan for a project of which he/she selects a contractor to carry out the activity. They normally involve low risks since skilled contractors carry out most activities (Morledge, Smith, Kashiwagi, 2006, p.108). When traditional procurement is run for a short period, it can cause irregularities.

The American City Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The American City Business - Assignment Example Among the states, each has a unique legal system implemented except Louisiana that is based on English Common Law. The American population is approximately 307 million people. The population comprises of major ethnic groups coming all over the world (Chicago Business Journal 98). The foreign policy implemented in the United States in ways the country interacts with other foreign nations. Standard of interaction is set in organizations, corporations, and citizens as an individual. The United States has set goals regarding foreign policy. Such is stated in the Agenda on the Foreign policy of the US Department of State. The goals ascertain building a sustainable democracy. The prosperous life to benefit the people of America, as well as the international community. From the Foreign affairs House committee, export controls are some of the jurisdictions. Such mention the proper use of nuclear technology and measures are taken to safeguard business associated with America abroad. Agreement s on international commodity, education, and protection offered to American citizens abroad are stated on the policy. Moreover, the foreign policy faced lots of criticism both domestically and abroad as well praise in other regions. The said policy gets consent and advice of US Senate. The president has a role to negotiate treaties regarding foreign nations. Treaties are implemented upon ratification from two-thirds of the Senate. The president is the commander in chief of the United States Armed forces. He/she have authority over armed forces. However, the Congress only has the power to declare war. The foreign affairs docket is headed by United States Secretary as foreign minister. He /She has a role in conducting diplomacy. The president appoints both Secretary of the state as well as Ambassadors upon advice and consent from the Senate. Moreover, the Congress has the authority of regulating commerce with foreign countries (Chicago Business Journal 98).

Do managers take decisions for the good of the organisation or do they Essay

Do managers take decisions for the good of the organisation or do they behave the way they do for other reasons - Essay Example In the process of evolution, it is highly likely that the business developed from a one man enterprise or family business to a partnership, then to a public limited or private limited company. Ultimately it branched out from a local to regional and regional to international undertaking. It is highly probable, even inevitable, that the evolution and change in outside form also bring about changes in the internal handling of business decisions and operational practices. This becomes necessary as the tasks of managing the different aspects of the business become too complex and heavy for one man or a number of partners to manage alone. Ultimately as the business expands, it has to reinvent itself as a model of modern business enterprise. This will invariably involve the assignment or scheduling of tasks to professionally hired managers, with expertise in production techniques, Human Resources, marketing and sales, finance and accounting etc. Each departmental head becomes a prized resou rce, responsible for meeting his departments and workers goals and assignments. Authority and responsibility become interlinked, but seldom has it been seen that the upper management is taken to task for targets not achieved or a failed project. Rather, more often than not it is the middle and lower management and supervisors/ workers that are made to bear the brunt of the axe and the shame associated with it. This state of affairs often makes one stop and think- do managers take decisions for the good of the organization or do they behave the way they do for other reasons? This paper will argue that the interests of the organization are not always uppermost in the minds of the managers, rather, as they gain and wield power- managers tend to collude with each other for their own collective benefit, while in many cases insisting that failure was because of the ineptitude of people on the lower rungs of the ladder. I would rather state that managers keep their own interests uppermost in their mind at every turn. They are interested in their own survival, going as close to the top as they can, and toppling others who they consider as competition. The lower management or their subordinates are just pawns in the game (Rosen, 1988). The Evolution of the Modern Business Enterprise If we look at the evolution of a modern business, we see that it is quite likely to have its beginnings as a sole proprietorship or family business, in which every family member has a share of responsibilities. Or it could have started as a partnership, where two or more partners pooled together their skills, resources and business acumen to offer products and services to the general populace or those that needed their wares. The disadvantage here was that of unlimited liability, or cases where even their personal property could be attached to repay debts if the business failed. In time this led to the evolution of the corporate form of business ownership. As the Industrial Revolution swept through Europe and the Americas, investment was needed from both public and private sources to raise capital for infrastructure and the laying of railroads, transport and communication, factories and warehouses. The beginning of assembly line production at the Ford Motor Company meant that things could now be mass produced after breaking down the process into a series of steps. Then F.W.

Raising Children in the Digital Age Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Raising Children in the Digital Age - Essay Example This essay describes the issue when television and the internet is being used in the schools, in social networking, and in the entertainment, cultural, as well as political arenas. Many children have become so engaged in using these media to the exclusion of others, and to the point where their dexterity in using these media have surpassed that of their parents. The researcher states that many concerns on the appropriate use of these media have been raised based on issues which relate to representations of sex and violence in the television as well as concerns on pornography and child endangerment. These concerns have prompted considerations on the implementation of age bans on the use of the television and the internet. Despite these concerns, the current age of globalization and information technology clearly manifest the benefits of television and internet use among children. With these benefits, children should be exposed to television and the internet and not be banned from usin g them until a certain age. Children should in fact be exposed to media and not be banned until a certain age. The researcher then concluds that although the internet and the television have inherent dangers, these dangers reflect more on the insufficient guidance which parents and teachers have on the children. It is also concluded that with adequate guidance and supervision, these children will be able to gain the information and the full benefits of these media without falling into the dangers or risks of internet and television use.

Essay on the Oedipus Rex Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

On the Oedipus Rex - Essay Example As a result, Teiresias is painfully reminded of his blindness: â€Å"Truth is not in you – for your ears, your mind, your eyes are blind!† (Sophocles I.370). Oedipus also blames his brother-in-law Creon for treachery and secret council with the oracle. He threatens the servant to death in the situation when this servant may die even if he obeys. Jocasta who is shown as a devoted wife (she tries to comfort Oedipus and obeys all his orders) is accused of arrogance: â€Å"Leave the lady to enjoy her noble family† (Sophocles III.1070). They all forgive and remain silent, which is an indication of the severity of their grief for Oedipus: near such misfortune, their pride loses its importance. This disregard of Oedipus’s attacks is one of the tactics that help different characters withdraw from the situation of suffering. This is not the only tactic, though. Teiresias calms himself down with the acceptance of the fact that he cannot change the future. He is a servant of gods, a keeper of truth, and his inner truth gives him strength: â€Å"It is not your fate / to fall because of me. It’s up to Apollo / to make that happen. He will be enough† (Sophocles I.451-453). However, he is dissatisfied with himself, because even knowing this, he came to Oedipus: â€Å"Alas, alas! How dreadful it can be / to have wisdom when it brings no benefit / to the man possessing it† (Sophocles I.374-376). This is a typical problem of prophets in tragedy (other examples are Cassandra and Laocoon). Such popularity of the helpless prophet character may be due to the importance of the concept of fate for Greeks. Jocasta seems to suspect something from the very beginning, but she has at least two protective arguments. The first is her care for Oedipus being so sincere and unconditional that there is tempt to claim it maternal: the main thing that concerns her is always her husband’s condition, and several times she does whatever she can to calm him down, up to the

Describe at least five important aspects of Arabic language. Be Essay

Describe at least five important aspects of Arabic language. Be specific - Essay Example One of the complex and interesting aspects on Arabic language centers on the fact that spoken forms of the language vary in terms of grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. The two forms of the language manifest side by side in which one is strictly a spoken form and the other is strictly a literary form. Standard Arabic is the well-defined entity and is uniform across the Arabic speaking world with only minimal variations in vocabulary (Wahba, Taha, and England 225). The grammar, syntax, and vocabulary have changed minimal since the Qur’an (in the 7th century). Arabic languages are fundamental Semitic languages most closely linked to Hebrew, Aramaic, and Phoenician. Semitic languages may be characterized by a limited and a rich consonant system. Semitic languages also typified by a rich inventory of guttural consonants that encompass laryngeals, pharyngeal, and the uvular fricatives. In the same way as other Semitic languages, Arabic language has intricate and unusual morphology. Arabic language possesses nonconcatenative â€Å"root and pattern† morphology (Wahba, Taha, and England 225). The standardized written Arabic is unique from and more conservative compared to all of the spoken varieties. Arabic language is a synthetic language, rather than an analytical one meaning that endings may be awarded to words to highlight the function of the words within a sentence. In English, word order mainly determines this function, while in Arabic; the ending of a word determines the function of the word. There are 28 letters within the Arabic alphabet comprising of consonants, symbols, and vowels. The characters employed within their words may be frequently connected; therefore, excluding some which may be linked to their predecessors. The pronunciation of vowels varies from one speaker to another and appears to mimic the pronunciation of the matching colloquial variety, whereby vowels and consonants can be either

No topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

No topic - Essay Example The cytoskeleton is composed of three kinds of connective fibers, the smallest of which are microfilaments, then followed by intermediate filaments, and the largest kind of fiber are the microtubules. Of these three, the microtubules have the most involvement in the cellular processes within the cell, which can be attributed to the composition as well as the mode by which the network expands or retracts within the eukaryotic cell. Microtubules are made up of ?- and ?-tubulin dimers arranged in a lattice to create a series of protofilaments (Figure 1). 13 of these filaments are laid side-by-side to form 25nm tubes. Due to the head-tail arrangement ?- and ?-tubulin dimers, the whole microtubule network is considered to be polarized, with some of the tubules growing towards the nucleus (minus end) and some shrinking away from the nucleus and elongating towards the cytoplasm (plus end), making the tubules act like polarized particles (Galjart, 2010). The plus end of the microtubules cont ains a guanosine-triphosphate (GTP) cap that attracts tubulin dimers connected to GTP to expand as needed (Maurer et al., 2012). The expansion or contraction of the tubes is called dynamic instability, occurring through the hydrolysis of GTP to guanosine-diphosphate (GDP), which allows the tubules to alternate between elongating (called rescue) and shrinking (called catastrophe) even if the amount of tubulin dimers available in the cell is constant (Curriea et al., 2011). Figure 2 shows the head-and-tail arrangement of the dimers, as well as to how the hydrolysis of GTP to GDP causes the microtubule fibers to undergo rescue or catastrophe. Figure 1. Arrangement of the ?- and ?-tubulin dimers within the lattice of a protofilament, with the red arrow showing the direction of growth (Maurer et al., 2012). Figure 2. The formation of a microtubule fiber consists of a dimer bound with either GTP (straight) or GDP (curved), depending on whether the plus end undergoes shrinkage (catastrophe ) or elongation (rescue) (Galjart, 2010). As shown in figure 2, the plus end of an elongating microtubule fiber contains a GTP cap which attracts dimers with GTP. The straight arrangement of the GTP-containing dimers ensures that the elongating or rescuing tubules are stable enough while expanding. On the other hand, as the tubule shrinks or becomes catastrophic, the GTP-dimers undergo hydrolysis, forming GDP-dimers which curve backwards due to the dimers’ curved conformation from the loss of a water molecule. The de-polymerization of the tubule by reduction of GDP-dimers completes the shrinking process, allowing the free dimers to convert into GTP to be later used in tubule elongation processes in other parts of the cell. The polarized nature of the microtubules and the strong affinity of the GTP-caps to GTP-dimes help the microtubule-ends to actively select GTP-dimers instead of GDP-bound ones. Elongation or shrinkage of the microtubule fibers due to polymerization or addit ion of dimers, or de-polymerization or the reduction of dimers are able to generate forces that could push or pull the organelles within the eukaryotic cell. This alternate shrinking and elongating action by the tubules is an essential task especially during the stages of cell division when the organelles and the chromosomes are pulled towards the opposite sides of the dividing cell (Curriea et al.,

Business Ethics and the Global Dimensions of Business Essay

Business Ethics and the Global Dimensions of Business - Essay Example Many businesses are targeting the real estate market of both India and China (Plunkett Research, 2011). The Asian markets are a great target, but the company has to select its location carefully and expand slowly to minimize business risk. I do not recommend a full expansion plan into Asia because they are a lot of countries in Asia that are extremely poor with a lack of economic resources. A country that must be an immediate target for the company is the island of Japan. Japan eight months ago was hit by the fourth biggest earthquake in the world’s history; a massive 8.9 richer scale earthquake (CountryWatch, 2011). As a construction company the firm can capitalize on the natural disaster to profit in the short and medium term. There should be plenty of construction projects in Japan for the next five years. The firm should seek a horizontal growth expansion plan. This plan works best if the country selects locations that have a high demand for the service the industry offers . Emerging economies typically have plenty of construction projects available since better infrastructure is needed to achieve social progress. Asia is the world’s largest continent with an area of 17.3 million square miles (CultureGrams, 2011). ... The two most practiced religions are Buddhism and Muslim. People in Asia are disciplined and believe in the common good of the group. Socialism is widely practice throughout Asia. The eastern economic region is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. Eastern Asia is composed of the following countries: 1. China 2. Japan 3. North Korea 4. South Korea 5. Mongolia 6. Taiwan China has been the fast growing economy during the past three decades reaching yearly GPD growth of approximately 9%. The income per capital in China is one the rise. In 2008 the real gross domestic product of China was $7,600. That number is relatively high since the prices of goods in China are similar to the prices Americans paid during the 1950’s. China is the most populated place in the world. XYZ could promote housing projects of very tall building in order to optimize their real estate capacity per square feet of land. The real estate markets in China are extremely favorable due to a rising mid dle class that is looking to upgrade their current living accommodations. India has also become a hotspot for business due to the high quality of labor at affordable prices (Plunkett Research, 2011). There are ethical issues that should be considered when entering the Asian markets. Corruption is widespread across many governments in Asia. Executives have to make tough decisions whether to participate in what would be considered unethical behavior in the United States due to the difference in business customers and overall cultural factors. Bribes are not considered the same in China than in the United States since Chinese culture on many instances accepts bribe as normal behavior of doing business. There is also the consideration of labor laws. Labor laws in many emerging economies

Operational Difference †Major company stake is owned by franchises Essay Example for Free

Operational Difference – Major company stake is owned by franchises Essay As I went through the historical span of Burger King History, the franchises of Burger King played a major part in expansion of the parent company from the early 1960’s till date. The relation of franchises and management has always been influential and significant in success and failures of Burger King History. Primarily, the company operated with major investment from franchises and minimal from the company, so the decisions and relationship with franchises was crucial. Flame broiler a unique device that improved with decades in Burger King history The company was set-up on the basis of the oven called ‘Insta-broiler’ for cooking burgers. The purpose had been inspired from McDonald’s speedy service. It was further mechanised into a gas grill without changing patties and self functional by means of a conveyor belt. Further, the device was also customised and technologically advanced to produce Chicken sandwich, Chicken Whopper, Veggie burger, etc. Drive –thru service The company though was working hard on franchises and unique device to meet operational needs; it was mainly oriented to meet demand of production at ‘Drive-thru’ restaurants. This was because the company had major part of its sales revenue i.e. 70 % from ‘Drive-thru’ operations. Later this competence was adapted by McDonald and other competitors as well. However the effectiveness and efficiency of Burger King’s ‘Drive-thru’ was easily highlighted. Competitive methods of Burger King The purpose of its competitive strategy is to build a sustainable competitive advantage over the organization’s rivals. It defines the fundamental decisions that guide the organization’s marketing, financial management and operating strategies. As there were many significant changes in the history of Burger King, eventually there were different competitive methods used in different span in history. Some of the significant competitive methods are listed as follows: 1} Initial decade in Burger king’s history, ‘Insta-broiler’ a device competitive in making burgers and technological advancements in the same gave it a competitive advantage. 2} High amount of franchises worldwide executed major ownership stake and customised operations in the outlets. This was tightened and a new company structure was formed, followed by a new competitive aptitude. [Year 1963 -1967] 3} Push sale approach led increase in competitive breakfast market and thus improve in position in market. Burger King moved to second position in US fast food market after McDonald. [Year 1982-1985] 4} Launched a Burger King Kids Club program that help the company to increase sales and successful entry into a new market segment. [Year 1990-1995] 5} Introduction of a TURNAROUND PLAN named ‘Go Forward Plan’, which was significant to attain objectives like increasing profit, create a customer image, teamwork, etc.[Year 2000]. One more advantage Burger King introduced was ‘Revamped Chicken Whopper’, helpful to compete with other competitors. Burger King McDonald’s (BK is simply not as big as McD) Some of the basic company facts and objectives of both the companies, help us understand how Burger King is not as big as McDonald’s in global terms. Facts Burger King McDonald Founder 1941 by Richard and Maurice McDonald 1953 by Keith J.Cramer Present chain 12,150 outlets in 50 states and US territories and 74 countries More than 31,000 outlets in 119 countries Revenue $2.5 Billion Number of employees 360,000 employees 1,500,000 employees (1.5 million) Customers 11.8 million customers daily worldwide 58 million customers across the globe Products offered Flame-broiled burgers including the Whopper, Burger King also offers chicken sandwiches, fish sandwiches, French fries, onion rings, salads, chicken fries and Croissanwiches for breakfast. McDonald’s predominantly sells hamburgers, various types of chicken sandwiches and products, French fries, soft drinks, breakfast items, and desserts. In most markets, McDonald’s offers salads and vegetarian items, wraps Calorie content A Burger King Double Whopper has around 920 calories A McDonalds Big Mac consists of 540 calories Objectives Burger King McDonalds Market share 21.9 % in US fast food industry 44% in US fast food industry Value for money More bigger product for reasonable price Product size is smaller with inexpensive price Franchising More than 90 % of the outlets are franchised A little less than 30 % Suppliers The suppliers vary with various franchise in different locations worldwide. McDonald chooses best suppliers and type and quality of meat varies with country culture. Advertising The BK adverts were quite confusing and sending wrong messages in potential market which affected cultural values and also brand image at times. McDonalds often had appropriate ways of advertising and were supportive to increase sales and popularity of the brand. Issues relating to Burger King The case study is very critical in understanding the issues related with Burger King’s history. Some of the prominent issues from past to present can be listed as follows: Franchise management – The company found it difficult to manage more than 90% franchise in the business of Burger King products and services. Crucial reason was also the percentage of stake ownership , which was initially 38% and was improved to 42% by Donald Smith, former McDonald executive. Changes in leadership – The history of Burger King marked approximately 20 changes in management. The changes in short term span affected oragnisation focus over goals and objectives, affected brand image adversely and lacked consistency in operation. Unhealthy food – The Company came prominently in highlight during the era from 2003 as potential customers had responded to be health conscious. The period marked spread of mad-cow disease and obesity levels among children was a rising concern. Market recession – The US economy faced economic recession from 2006 and needs brand to take effective measures to sustain and avoid losing loyal customers to competitors. Recommendations for future development in UK The Burger King opened its first branch/outlet in UK in 1977 on Coventry Street in London. Since then till date Burger King has 654 restaurants in UK ( out of which 73 are owned) whereas it has 139 ‘drive-through’ restaurants. Considering the present fast food environment in UK, following recommendations come in lime-light: HEALTHY FOOD – Burger King UK has currently many problems within the environment in company and surrounding, however one of the prime concern is healthy food. The company needs to produce fast food with less saturated fats and salt content. The problem of obesity in UK is high as well and addressing to this concern is the need of demand to survive over the competitors. PRIME LOCATIONS and EVENTS – Burger King needs to increase its influence and market share in UK, by serving at prime hot spots as well as at travel destinations. The presence of Burger King on high streets and at various national rail stations and airport is reasonable, however it needs to be accessible at hot tourist spots and business oriented commercial areas. SPEED – Burger King needs to increase its speed of delivering products and services to customers, as it has been competing with McDonalds over more than 50 years and still lacks speed during peak periods. Speed in operations helps to generate revenue in coping zone. Schools of strategy – Burger King’s evolution (analyse critically) Strategy formation is judgmental designing, intuitive visioning, and emergent learning; it is about transformation as well as perpetuation; it has to include analyzing before and programming after as well as negotiating during †¦Ã¢â‚¬  – Henry Mintzberg However there is a difference in perspective leading to strategy arguments. Mintzberg identified this and tried to debate and answer different perspectives through his 10 Schools of Strategy/Thinking. The burger King History prominently highlights two of them, explained as follows: 1] The Power School – Strategy Systems as Processes of Negotiation According to the power school, strategy systems are described to be mainly shaped by power and politics, whether as a process inside the enterprise itself or as the behaviour of the enterprise as a whole within its external environment. Strategies that may result from such processes tend to be emergent in nature, and take the forms of positions and actions more than perspectives. On the one hand parts of the power school (‘micro power’) see strategy making as the interplay, through persuasion, bargaining, and sometimes through direct confrontation, among narrow scope interests and shifting coalitions, with none dominant for any significant period. On the  other hand other parts of power school (‘macro power’) see the enterprise as promoting its own welfare by controlling or cooperating with other enterprise (such as Franchises), through the use of strategic manipulation as well as collective strategies in various kinds of networks and alliances. EXAMPLE – Burger King at different period in history, tried to take control over franchises by executing greater control over their operations and direct confrontation with various industry giants/ suppliers. These various processes implemented to achieve power through strategy highlights ‘THE POWER SCHOOL’. 2] The Configuration School – Strategy Systems as Process of Transformation The school follows a formation approach wherein the organisation is transforming into one type of decision making structure into another. The school interrupts the period of stability by some process of transformation. It has configuration of strategy formation from other nine schools which are – Design school – Strategy formation as an architecture process Planning school – Strategy formation as a formal process Positioning school Strategy formation as an analytical process Entrepreneurial school – Strategy formation as a visionary process Cognitive school – Strategy formation as a mental process Learning (or Emergent) school – Strategy formation as an emergent process Power school – Strategy formation as a process of negotiation Cultural school – Strategy formation as a collective process Environmental school – Strategy formation as a reactive process The school recognises a appropriate combination of any one or more of them taking into context a particular type. EXAMPLE – Burger King history marks use of Positioning school in year 1980 -1983 to create a brand image and achieve second position in US fast food market. Click here to Continue Reading this Article Rate This Article Tags: burger king, free essay Category: Business, Free Essays Similar Articles Kicl students’ perceptions on the consumption of McDonalds, KFC and Burger Kings Analysis of Marks Spencer’s International Strategy Role of Advertisement and Sales Promotion in ELP: Subscribe If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it. Including student tips and advice. Subscribe via RSS Feed Connect on Facebook Follow Us on Twitter Connect on LinkedIn Connect on YouTube Click here to ask a question about this article.  « Management Function: Critical Analysis of the role of a modern industrial manager Shareholder-Wealth Maximization model (SWM): a Financial Report on Luton Brickworks Plc.  » Similar Articles Kicl students’ perceptions on the consumption of McDonalds, KFC and Burger Kings Analysis of Marks Spencer’s International Strategy Role of Advertisement and Sales Promotion in ELP: Analysis of Marks and Spencer’s Past Failures and Present Developments Strategic Analysis of Marks and Spencers Plc (MS) Looking for Something Similar? Get Student Advice We send regular advice and updates for students. We promise not to spam. Subscribe via RSS Feed Connect on Facebook Follow Us on Twitter Connect on LinkedIn Connect on YouTube

Child Benefit Scheme From A Historical And Political Perspective Social Work Essay

Child Benefit Scheme From A Historical And Political Perspective Social Work Essay This essay will analyse the child benefit scheme from both a historical and political perspective in which it will examine the debates on child benefit in the 1970s when the scheme was first introduced and compare them to the current debates and reforms the coalition government have proposed to introduce. The child benefit scheme was fully introduced in 1977 through the Child Benefit Act 1975 proposed by the Labour government coming from a socialist perspective. Child benefit merged Family Allowances, which were paid to those with more than one child, and Child Tax Allowances into one single payment. These were both previous welfare benefits specifically for children. Child benefit is a universal, tax free benefit paid to all children in the household. It did not exclude those on higher incomes or was any different for single parent families as it was paid to every child (Greener Cracknell, 1998). Child benefit was a recognition by government that there are extra costs when parents have children. Child benefits have been increased by the successive governments over the years in relation to inflation and the needs of children and families. It is regarded as a positive benefit, helping relieve child poverty and social exclusion. It is recognised as a fair and worthy way of spending pub lic money and an investment for the future (Greener Cracknell, 1998). There were a number of positive and negative arguments for and against the introduction of child benefit. One of the main causes for an improved system of child support was the rising levels of child poverty in Britain in the 1960s and 1970s (Hendrick, 2008). Child Benefit was seen as a way of protecting and preventing a child against poverty (Bennett Dornan, 2006). Poverty had increased as of the deprivation caused by the likes of inflation and the rise in food prices (McCarthy, 1983). There were a number of reports highlighting the decline in living standards of children such as those by 1960s scholars Margaret Wynn and Della Nevitt questioning whether support for children in the 1960s matched the needs of children (Field, 1982). Further, the social researcher Richard Titmuss expressed that child support in Britain was badly designed and had to be improved as only those with more than one child received Family allowances (Field, 1982). Additionally a report on Circumstances of Fam ilies (1966) presented to us that half a million families who have one and a quarter children live on or below the official poverty line (Field, 1982). Therefore these reports show that child poverty was an ongoing issue at the time and a valid reason as to why a new child policy such as child benefit would be a beneficial action for childrens future. It provides a form of stability as it does not depend on income (Bennett Dornan, 2006). The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) were highly influential in the introduction of Child Benefit. They campaigned for the protection of children since their establishment in 1965. The CPAGs main aim was to persuade Harold Wilsons Labour government to increase Family Allowances and therefore brought child benefit into the public eye (Field, 1982). When it came to the child benefit campaign The CPAG had been claimed as the main stimulus for its introduction (Field, 1982). They even used threats to the government to demand better welfare for children. They were a Group who represented the poor, acting as an agent of those in poverty. Their purpose was to help poor families and not only focus on changing the structures in society (Field, 1982). CPAG campaigners tried to convince poor people that it was not their fault they were in poverty but was structures within society that did not fairly redistribute resources (Field, 1982). According to Field (1982) the Group had strong support fo r an appropriate form of child support to be put in place as they believe it was needed to eradicate child poverty. The Group recognised raising a child costs more money and sharing the cost through the redistribution of income was thought to be the best way of improving childrens welfare (McCarthy, 1983). Therefore looking at the political issues in the history of child benefits are important to examine the evolution of child benefit. The CPAGs influence in child benefit shows the large impact pressure groups can have on political issues and how they raise public awareness. McCarthy (1983) also claims if the CPAG had not became involved in the cause the issue may not have been discussed at all. It also shows that government are not the only protagonists in the policy process as the Group had such a peripheral role on child benefit. Trade Unions also had a large contribution to the introduction of child benefit and supported the change from wallet to purse. The TUC/Labour party committee in the early 1970s stated the benefit scheme must tackle the problem of poverty and provide enough to do this (McCarthy, 1983). According to the CPAG policy briefing (Bennett Dornan. 2006) the scheme was going to cost too much money and the Labour government claimed the benefits introduction would be postponed as of administrative and legislative problems. In May 1976 suspicions grew that the Labour government was abandoning the scheme as they introduced the Child Interim Benefit to single parents which was thought to be a temporary provision until the government had enough funds to fully introduce child benefit (McCarthy, 1983). It has been claimed the shelving of child benefit could have been due to James Callaghan succeeding as Prime Minister from Harold Wilson. According to Field (1982) Callaghan did not support an increase in family allowances in the 1960s. Callaghan believed the public were against the benefit scheme as it meant a decrease in take home pay for men (Field, 1982). The Cabinet leaks by the CPAG however seemed to have one of the largest impacts on the child benefit scheme as it revived the political debates on child benefits. It revealed that the TUC had reacted badly to the fact that child benefit implementation would reduce take home pay for men and they therefore became completely against its introduction despite the fact child benefit would bring income back up again (Field, 1982). The Labour government decided to abolish the scheme and were reluctant to go against the TUC. Therefore the lead up to the implementation of child benefit has shown the way government ministers make decisions on social policies. We can see from the literature that the government did not necessarily make a decision on the needs of the public but was the opinions of the TUC dominated their decision. The lea ks led to government embarrassment and a swift change of mind to implement child benefit. This shows Labour may have introduced child benefit to keep the public happy and to avoid being voted out. It appeared in the 1970s that there was a wide support for reforms of the Family allowance as the Labour and Conservative governments supported change as well as the trade union movement. The proposal for the introduction of child benefit raised the subject of whether the monthly payment should be paid into the purse (mother) or wallet (father). With the previous system men received all welfare benefits for the family. The argument that the benefit should go to the purse was so that the person who primarily cared for the children could organise the family budget for the likes of food and clothes (McCarthy, 1983). This can also make sure that the money is spent on the child and on items the child needs (Bennett Dornan, 2006). Recent evidence from CPAG (Bennett Dornan, 2006) claimed that child benefit is regarded as highly valuable to mothers. The benefit may also be the only formal income the mother receives and is regarded as an independent income for some mothers. It appears the s hift from wallet to purse was significant argument in the introduction of child benefits and was one of the main reasons for change. The transfer was also an issue for the trade unions where the majority of members were male at this time. There were sexist attitudes towards this move as men would lose out on their tax allowances and therefore became against child benefits. However the change from wallet to purse did make sense and became implemented. Therefore this was an argument that welfare for children had to be improved and changed. Since the introduction of child benefit in 1977 there have been a number of increases and changes depending on the government in power. The largest change however since its introduction will be the Conservative Liberal Democrat coalition reforms pledged in October 2010 and is an issue both parties seem to agree on. According to Roberts (2010) {online}, the Liberals Democrats believe this move has been long overdue. The policy proposes that if at least one person in the household is paying the higher tax rate earning more than  £43,875 per year then that household will no longer be eligible to receive the benefit. These cuts have caused public uproar. The coalitions aims are to cut public spending by an average of 25% across all departments excluding health and overseas developmental (AVECO, 2010) {online}. An ongoing argument against the withdrawal of child benefits from higher rate taxpayers is that it is unfair, and the design of the policy is unclear. The media highlight this showing how unjust the policy proposal is and will hit the middle classes most. Ed Miliband in Labour opposition states how it is unreasonable that a person earning two salaries just under  £43,875 can keep their monthly payment but those earning over this threshold when the other parent is not working will not receive their benefit (Prince, 2010) {online}. According to the Comprehensive Spending Review by 2014-15 the cut in child benefit will be saving  £2.5 billion a year preventing those on a lower income from subsidising higher earners (Spending Review, 2010). It has been argued Child benefit is in some cases wasted as of its universalism and payment for every child. For instance even those who do not need the extra income still receive it. Further, it is argued it is ill-targeted across the board and w asted on those at the top end of the income scale rather than targeting those who are really in dire need of that extra piece of income which the Conservative government believe are good enough reasons to remove Child benefit from higher earners. Therefore the policy reform comes from a right wing background which believes that the state should not be relied on by its citizens such as those who are better off and are able to provide for themselves. Whereas in 1977 child benefit was seen as a collective investment. The Labour party challenge the coalition cuts by informing that stay at home mothers will be the worst affected under this move. It is viewed as unfair as for example if a family has the main breadwinner on a  £45,00 wage and a female carer staying at home to look after their children, they will lose out on thousands of pounds a year for their family. Single earner families lose out the most (Prince, 2010) {online}. The media claim 15% of tax payers will be affected by this change (Prince, 2010) {online}. A further argument agreeing that women will be the most affected by this is the fact that for some females child benefit is the only form of income the mother receives. Katherine Rake of the Family and Parenting Institute states that for some handling the family budget is the only form of independence some mothers have (Collins, 2010) {online}. With these reforms it seems the Coalition government are reverting back to old ways, favouring male income which the old style family allo wances did. Undoubtedly the policy is designed to save on public expenditure and target those who need it most. The policy however could create problems within the family. It could cost families thousands as it could prevent those on a wage below the cut off from taking employment promotions which take them above the line (Prince, 2010) {online}. When single mothers enter a new relationship with a person who is on the higher tax rate wage which would remove the eligibility for child benefit. Additionally the Labour MP Parmjit Dhanda commented on the reform saying couples may claim they are separated to avoid losing the payment as they feel they should be entitled to it. Checks on this neo-liberalist reform would be difficult and expensive and therefore implementation could become difficult as of the removal of its universalism (Chapman, 2010) {online}. It is valuable to look at the policy from a historical and political perspective as it has shown how the policy has evolved and why the policy was implemented with the rise of child poverty and a need for a satisfactory form of child support. Cost is obviously a key factor in the cuts however whether this cut is affordable for the future of children remains to be seen. The reforms have brought about controversy politically and publicly as it has raised the subject of who is deserving of child benefit as it has now decided who receives it. In conclusion child benefit has therefore become a success in Britain and has become relied on by many. The fact that child benefit has lasted over 40 years shows this significance as well as the fact that it has angered many who will be losing out after the proposed coalition reforms.

Work of clifford geertz in history

Work of clifford geertz in history What Does The Work Of Clifford Geertz Have To Offer Research Into History? With the publishing of his book, ‘The Interpretation of Cultures in 1973, Geertz has often been hailed as the ‘champion of symbolic anthropology. Geertz outlined culture as ‘a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic forms by means of which people communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge about and attitudes towards life He believed the role of anthropologists was to try and understand the underlying symbols of the culture in question, a term he describes as ‘Thick Description. Geertz also conducted extensive work on religion, particularly on Islam, in both Southeast Asia and North Africa. His most famous use of thick description is portrayed in the essay ‘Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight, and his theories still influence anthropology to this day. But how does the work of an anthropologist, concerned with analysing modern societies, apply to historians whose work concerns cultures from the past? In this essay I will examine how both anthropologists and historians attempt to examine humanity ‘in the mist, and how cultural historians in this endeavour have attempted to use an anthropological model to answer historical questions in order to do so. With the development of cultural history historians creation of the past as an ‘other, a place completely different from our own, they attempt to view history through an anthropological lens. But despite differences between historical and anthropological research there has been much interdisciplinary study between the two, with social and cultural historians attempting to use synchronic analysis as a way of viewing the past they are studying. History becomes a view of time and space all within a single plane that stays unmoving and none changing under the cultural historians gaze, just as the Bayeux tapestry shows the history and context of the Norman Conquest of England. Even with the rise of synchronic analysis, historians have not abandoned diachronic analysis as an analytical tool. Historians still feel they need to explain the context of the subjects they are studying in order for their research to be viewed as ‘complete. This has led to many criticisms of Geertzs work and how historians have applied his research to past societies. Geertzs detachment of culture and history has, in many cases, created more problems for the cultural historian than it has solved. Due to these difficulties, cultural historians have shied away from many larger historical debates in order to study features outside of the historical main-stream. They have focussed on small and, in some historians views, inconsequential histories, becoming bogged down in their own tedium. With this, social history has focussed on the development of social theory, rather than the society in questions development over time. With these views in mind, I have attempted to uses Geertzs analytical models with my own research: ‘Hearts and Minds: A Study on the impact of Christianity on paganism in the Byzantium Empire during the fourth century CE. Using examples drawn from my own work, I will attempt to see the merits of using an anthropological model while studying the religions of the past; those that were still evolving and those religions that were dying out. At this stage it is important to define the object which cultural historians have attempted to study with an anthropological view point; history itself. As a noun, ‘history can be defined as: 1) a continuous, systematic narrative of past events as relating to a particular people, country, period, person, etc., usually written as a chronological account; chronicle: a history of France; a medical history of the patient. 2) a systematic account of any set of phenomena without particular reference to time: a history of the American eagle. The definition of history as ‘a continuous, systematic narrative and as ‘a systematic account of any set of phenomena without particular reference to time, or, as phrased by Michael Chanan ‘the formal analysis of a given system as it exists in the present moment (synchronic) and analysis across time, or historical explanation (diachronic) means the historian has to show their awareness of both in order to fully explore the topic they are researching. The historian Marc Bloch stated that the ‘good historian was like the giant in the fairy tale. He knows that wherever he catches the scent of human flesh, there his quarry lies. While C. Wright-Mills remarked about the anthropologist: ‘What social science is properly about is human variety, which consists of all the social world in which men have lived, are living and might live. ‘ Cultural historians have embraced Geertz, using his ideas and methods and applying them to historical models, such as Matthew Eric Engelke and Matt Tomlinsons ‘The limits of meaning: case studies in the anthropology of Christianity. Although historians are not as prone to theoretical disputes as much as anthropologists, it is also true that Geertz does not serve as a marker in generalised struggles among historians. According to Paula S. Fass, the limitations of social history in previous historiography led to the development and ‘subsequent dominance of cultural history in the 1970s and 1980s. Despite the move in focus away from political elites towards the examination of social groups and their ‘behavioural tendencies , cultural historians felt that social history had ‘ignored both the uniqueness of individual experience and the ways in which social life is created through politics and culture due to the dehumanization of such social groups by reducing them to quantifiable data. Social historians reliance on structural explanations and development of group categories began to ‘deaden history as an exploration of contingent experience. By the mid 1980s, cultural historians were adapting work done by social historians, such as Herbert Gutman and Eugene Genovese, and taking them further by exploring ‘the way agency was attributed to participation in predefined group activity. Cultural historians increasingly used the anthropological and ‘post-modern perspective of identity as an ever-changing construct, what anthropologists refer to as ‘liminal experiences and deconstructing identity entirely. Due to this, social historians research potentials have become ‘quite limited due to the constrictions of primary sources in the construction of ‘ordinary life, while, in the words of Fass: ‘Cultural historians, in contrast, put their faith in a fuller exploration of language and because, in their view, all culture is connected, all forms of articulation could be examined as exemplary. Geertzs ideas have become so attractive to historians due to the development of cultural history, with historians focussing on the past as a place structurally different from the modern world: ‘worlds where peoples motives, senses of honour, daily tasks, and political calculations are based on unfamiliar assumptions about human society and the cosmic order. Phillip Pulsiano and Elaine M. Treharne in ‘A Companion to Anglo-Saxon Literature, explore the religious aspects in Old English poetry in relation to Geertzs definition of religion itself. Both anthropology and history, according to Geertz, are both similar and different, both looking for the same type of answers but asking different questions. Historians focus on broad sweeping actions and movements , while anthropologists focus on small, well bounded communities wallowing in the detail of the obscure and unimportant (or, as Geertz phrases it in his typically artistic style: ‘History (it is said), is threatened by the history-from-below rather than focussing on the Movers-and-Shakers, such as Kings, Philosophers and Bishops). Anthropologists ‘present static pictures of immobile societies scattered across the remote corners of the inhabited world, while anthropologists accuse historians of ‘schematicism, of being out of touch with the immediacies and intricacies, ‘the feel as they like to put it, considering themselves to have it, of actual life. With this said, it has not been unusual for historians and anthropologists to conduct research in each others field; historical research such as Roger Chartiers ‘The Cultural Origins of the French Revolution, Carlo Ginzburgs ‘The Cheese and the Worms: the Cosmos of an Sixteenth Century Miller, and Natalie Zemon Davis ‘Society and culture in early modern France: eight essays to name but a few. Despite the attraction of Geertzs theory to social historians, the differences between historical research and ethnography can hinder the historians full utilisation of Geertzs ‘Thick Description model. Historians are restricted to the textual evidence written by a literate elite, with the culture and symbols of those who existed outside of the elites literacy focus lost in the minds of those who lived through it; a stark difference from the ability of anthropologists to observe the effects of culture and its symbols when studying cultures ‘in the field. Despite historians criticisms of anthropologists reliance on oral testimony, with its possible ‘invented tradition and frailties of memory, Geertzs ability to examine the religious development of Morocco and Indonesia almost first hand must be greatly envied by social and cultural historians. Despite the difference between history and anthropology, many historians (especially social historians like Michael MacDonald and Robert Darnton) have embraced Geertzs ideas. However, this raises another question; why would historians, whose work is essentially diachronic in nature, be interested in the synchronic analysis of an anthropologist? It is important at this time to look at the meaning of synchronic analysis. As William H. Sewell Jr. explains: ‘Although a synchronic description or analysis is often glossed over as a ‘snapshot that ‘freezes time or as a ‘slice of time, that is not quite right. Such a description is, rather, one in which time is suspended or abolished analytically so that things that actually occur in the flow of time are treated as part of a uniform moment or epoch in which they simply coexist To put it otherwise, in synchronic description acts of cultural signification, rather than being treated as a temporal sequence of statement and counterstatement or as linked by causal chains of antecedent and consequence, are seen as components of a mutually defined and mutually sustaining universe of unchanging meaning. The use of synchronic analysis on what Geertz called ‘cultural systems presented cultural historians with the ability to explore the past with a new analytical model. Robert Darnton, in his book ‘The Great Cat Massacre uses such analyses to explore episodes from eighteenth century France, especially in his essays ‘Peasants Tell tales: The Meaning of Mother Goose (an analysis of the cultural significance to French, German and Italian fairy tales) and ‘Workers Revolt: The Great Cat Massacre of the Rue Saint Severin (in which he explores the cultural context of the massacre of cats in Paris by printing apprentices during the late 1730s). The use of thick description allows historians to suspend time rather than be carried along with historical narrative, and in the process analyse the transformations of the past with greater accuracy and depth. Geertzs ideas of thick description have allowed historians like David Sabean to explore witchcraft in seventeenth century Germany. Despite criticisms by anthropologists of the diachronic approach taken by historians in the past, many historians are still attached to the ideas of history in transformation. Many American ‘new social historians and those within the French ‘Annales school try to define themselves against historical narrative and by those ‘attempting to manage or side-step conceptual problems by writing historical accounts , such as Haim Hillel Ben-Sasson, as seen in his book ‘A History of the Jewish people. William H. Sewell Jr has best conveyed this view: ‘It [Geertzs theory] tells us, perhaps surprisingly, that adequately realized synchrony is more important to good historical analysis than adequately realized diachrony. In the eyes of professionals it is more important for a historian to know how to suspend time than to know how to recount its passage. This is shown in the work of historians such as Noriko Onodera, who examines the evolution and development of the Japanese language, and Stephen M. Feldman, with his analysis of the separation of the Church and State during the twentieth century. Although Geertzs theories have become popular with cultural historians, there have been many critics of not only his own work but how historians (especially those studying cultural aspects) have used Geertzs work in their own research. Although Geertzs work features events as they happen in real historical time, he uses a ‘literary device to make his work less formerly structured. This means that he uses the social and historical impact of the cultural model he is analysing as a writing style rather than a strict analytical tool. This is best demonstrated in Geertzs essay ‘Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight. William Roseberry, in an analysis of Geertzs essay (in his book ‘Balinese Cockfights and the Seduction of Anthropology), argues that Geertz does not take into account the history of its development, and that we should think of the ‘material social process as a ‘production rather than as a ‘product'(stating that the issues on development are mentioned but never taken up by Geertz). Roseberrys view, one which I personally agree with, is that ‘[the cockfight] has gone through a process of creation that cannot be separated from Balinese history. Geertz detached culture and history by treating history as a text to be read and scrutinised rather than being an essential thread in the fabric of Balinese life. Maybe due to this separation, historians, despite their enthusiasm, have been in many cases less than successful in their attempts to marry history with ‘Thick Description. For example, Roger Becks attempt to apply Geertzs description and interpretation to the symbol system of Mithraician mysticism is hardly successful, and neither is his comparison with the symbol system of the Mexican Chamulas. With historys diachronic roots, anthropology as a whole has had difficulty in finding fertile ground with historians outside of cultural history. With focus on ‘eccentric bits of evidence (or, as I view it, ‘obsession with the mundane), cultural historians and anthropologists writing about history search for evidence around a central point of argument and ‘build a mountain around a molehill and that molehill can lie on the periphery of the subject. Rather than pushing back the frontiers of historical research by opening up and exploring new channels of investigation through analysis of symbols within societies in the past, cultural historians have become intent with finding ‘hidden histories rather than bringing new light to work at the focus of historical debate. Despite the development of social theory by anthropologists and the rise of cultural history and its application to history, almost none deal with the explanation of historical change, with the main problem created by most social theory being the accounting for social order or social structure rather than the development and history of those roots. With my own research I have focused on the impact of Christianity on paganism in the eastern half of the Roman Empire during the fourth century CE, analysing how Christianity infiltrated aspects of the educated elite, society, the state apparatus and its depiction through art and on coinage. My work also focussed on a number of other factors: The peasants in the eastern half of the Roman Empire were naturally conservative and were initially hostile to the Christian community that were mainly based in urban centres. Eastern Roman peasants clung to their local pagan deities as they took care of their ‘first-order concerns: healing, death and family as pagan spirits and deities took care of these concerns there was no initial need to abandon them in favour of Christianity. Bishops and preachers that attempted to convert the peasantry failed as they were distrusted by the peasantry because of their connections to local government. Bishops and preachers also addressed them in Greek or Latin and in complex rhetoric styles, alienating them from the peasantry who spoke in their ‘everyday local dialects. The destruction of pagan temples in the urban centres and the construction of Christian basilicas on top of them or in their vicinity changed the power balance within such centres against the pagan cults. Only the establishment of monasteries away from the urban centres deep in the countryside led to the slow conversion of the peasantry through the contacts they made with them through local trade and due to the conversion tactics that the monasteries employed. Due to the amount of written documentation available to us, initially it may seem that Geertzs theories on symbolic systems in reference to early Christian rites and formal rituals may make Christianity in the fourth century eastern Roman Empire accessible to us. Although the study of early Christianitys cultural anthropology through field work is obviously impossible, the archaeological record of pagan temple destruction and the construction of Christian basilicas with the reused stone cannot be described as ‘thick description as the reuse of the stone from the pagan temples is not a symbolic act in its own right, but a form of cheap and readymade building material. However, Geertz himself has used written accounts from the past as effectively as he used his own field work and that of other anthropologists. This, however, cannot be said about localised pagan rituals; ones performed in homes and fields in small, personal shrines. Eric Wolf suggested that these rituals were due to peasants ‘first-order concerns, such as protection of the family unit in this world and the next. The lack of documented evidence, even if written by a condescending Christian elite, makes symbolic analysis extremely difficult. If we focus on pagan ‘lost ceremonies then Geertzs theory appears to be a hopeless endeavour. That is because, despite the richness and detail as a complex of symbols, textual evidence rarely mentions local pagan rituals for what they are, and when it does many aspects of them are either exaggerated or incredibly distorted, therefore destroying their immediate ritual context. Even if the ritual context had survived through the textual, or through the archaeological, evidence that would allow us to subject it to symbolic interpretation, it cannot now be interpreted in the way we can interpret Christianity; we cannot trace the evolution of a religion which is now extinct. To conclude, the work of Clifford Geertz has a lot to offer research into history, as long as his work is used correctly. In my introduction I stated ‘how both anthropologists and historians attempt to examine humanity ‘in the mist, and how cultural historians attempt to use anthropological models to answer historical questions in order to do so. In this endeavour, cultural historians have been unsuccessful. Geertz, and other anthropologists, benefit from the ability to view culture closely (and as Geertzs brush with the Balinese police shows, perhaps a little too closely). Cultural historians, in contrast, have to rely on the words of those they are trying to move away from, the literate elite, in order to view the lives of those who had no written history of their own. Rather than viewing humanity ‘in the mist, cultural historians, for instance have attempted to determine a peasants accent by studying the peasants reflection in a muddy puddle. Historians reluctance to abandon diachronic analysis undermines the benefits of synchronic analysis, despite anthropologists attempts to conduct historical research. Cultural historians attempts to ‘suspend time removes them from the historical development that took place, therefore allowing them to be caught up in the difficulties that anthropologist themselves have faced. This problem is only exacerbated by the reliance on textual evidence. As shown with my attempt to use Geertzs theories in relation to my own research, I too had difficulties overcoming this problem. As I used a large amount of archaeological evidence when researching the power shift from pagan to Christian domination in eastern Roman urban centres it was nearly impossible to apply ‘thick description and investigate symbolic systems due to their lack of context. Again, the reliance on textual evidence written by a hostile group means that there are other historical methods which would be more beneficial when symbolic contexts and restricted written records are unavailable. At face value, I understand the appeal Geertzs theories would have for cultural historians trying to uncover the mindset, culture and experiences of those who lived in the past. However, the ability for anthropologists to study their subject at first hand, and therefore place more emphasis on first-hand accounts, leaves cultural historians at a crucial disadvantage. Geertzs theory changed the face of anthropological research, but I doubt it will do nothing but frustrate the historian by reminding them of what they are missing. Bibliography Books R. Beck, The Religion of the Mithras Cult in the Roman Empire: Mysteries of the Unconquered Sun (Oxford New York, 2006) H. H. Ben-Sasson A History of the Jewish people (Cambridge, 1976) M. Bloch, ‘The Historians Craft (Manchester, 1954) P. Burke, The French historical Revolution: ‘The Annales School, 1929-89 (Stanford 1990) M. Chanan, Musica practica : the social practice of Western music from Gregorian chant to postmodernism (London, 1994) R. Chartier The Cultural Origins of the French Revolution (Durham, 1991) R. Darnton, The Great Cat Massacre (New York, 1984) N. Z. Davis Society and culture in early modern France: eight essays (Stanford, 1987) M.E. Engelke and M.Tomlinson (ed.) The limits of meaning: case studies in the anthropology of Christianity (New York, 2006) S. M. Feldman Please Dont Wish Me a Merry Christmas: Critical History of the Separation of Church and State (New York, 1997) C. Geertz Islam Observed: Religious Development in Morocco and Indonesia (Chicago, 1971) C. Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures'(New York, 1973) E. Genovese Roll, Jordon Roll: The World the Slaves Made (New York, 1974) C. Ginzburg The Cheese and the Worms: the Cosmos of an Sixteenth Century Miller (Baltimore, 1980) H. Gutman Work, Culture and Society in Industrializing America (New York, 1976) M. MacDonald, Witchcraft and Hysteria in Elizabethan London(London 1991) N. Onodera, Japanese discourse markers: synchronic and diachronic discourse analysis (Amsterdam, 2004) P. Pulsiano and E. M. Treharne A Companion to Anglo-Saxon Literature (Oxford, 2001) W. Roseberry, Balinese Cockfights and the Seduction of Anthropology (New York, 1982) E. Wolf, Peasants (Englewood Cliffs, 1966) C. Wright-Mills, ‘The Sociological Imagination (London, 1959) Journals P. S. Fass ‘Cultural History/Social History: Some Reflections on a Continuing Dialogue, Journal of Social History, 37, 1(2003), pp. 39-46 C. Geertz, ‘History and Anthropology New Literary History, 21, (1990) p.321-335 W. H. Sewell Jr., ‘Geertz, Cultural Systems, and History: From Synchrony to Transformation, Representations, 59 (1997) p. 35-55 Internet Sources http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/history (Dictionary Reference.Com, 2010) C. Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures (New York, 1973) p.89 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/history M. Chanan, Musica practica : the social practice of Western music from Gregorian chant to postmodernism (London, 1994) p.95 M. Bloch, The Historians Craft (Manchester, 1954) p.26 C, Wright-Mills, The Sociological Imagination (London, 1959) p.147 W. H. Sewell Jr. ‘Geertz, Cultural Systems, and History: From Synchrony to Transformation Representations,59 (1997) p.35-55, p.36 P. S. Fass ‘Cultural History/Social History: Some Reflections on a Continuing Dialogue Journal of Social History, 37, 1 (2003) p.39-46, p.39 Ibid. p.39 Ibid p.39 Ibid p.39 H. Gutman Work, Culture and Society in Industrializing America (New York, 1976) and E. Genovese Roll, Jordon Roll: The World the Slaves Made (New York, 1974) Fass, ‘Cultural History/Social History: Some Reflections on a Continuing Dialogue p.39 Ibid p.40 W. H. Sewell Jr., ‘Geertz, Cultural Systems, and History: From Synchrony to Transformation p.38 C. Geertz, ‘History and Anthropology New Literary History, 21, (1990) p.321-335, p322 Ibid p324 Ibid.p.322 Ibid p.321 Ibit p.321-322 Ibid. p.322 See C. Geertzs Islam Observed: Religious Development in Morocco and Indonesia (Chicago, 1971) M. MacDonald, Witchcraft and Hysteria in Elizabethan London(London 1991) R. Darnton, The Great Cat Massacre (New York, 1984) W. H. Sewell Jr., ‘Geertz, Cultural Systems, and History: From Synchrony to Transformation p.40 See ‘Religion as a Cultural System in C. Geertz, The Interpretations of Culture (New York, 1973) D. W. Sabean, Power in the Blood: Popular culture village discourse in early modern Germany (Cambridge, 1984) See P. Burke, The French Historical Revolution: ‘The Annales School, 1929-89 (Stanford, 1990) C. Geertz, ‘History and Anthropology p.42 Ibid. p.41 N. Onodera, Japanese discourse markers: synchronic and diachronic discourse analysis(Amsterdam, 2004) p.23 S. M. Feldman Please Dont Wish Me a Merry Christmas: Critical History of the Separation of Church and State (New York, 1997) p.255 W. H. Sewell Jr ‘Geertz, Cultural Systems, and History: From Synchrony to Transformation p.37, c. Geertz The Interpretation of Cultures p.412 W. Roseberry, Balinese Cockfights and the Seduction of Anthropology (New York, 1982) p.1022, I bid p.1022 R. Beck, The Religion of the Mithras Cult in the Roman Empire: Mysteries of the Unconquered Sun (Oxford New York, 2006) p.69, Ibid P77 Fass, ‘Cultural History/Social History: Some Reflections on a Continuing Dialogue p.43 Ibid p.43 C. Geertz, The Interpretation of Culture p.8 E. Wolf, Peasants (Englewood Cliffs, 1966) p.59

Christmas Traditions Around Th Essay -- essays research papers

RELIGIOUS PRACTICE AND POPULAR CUSTOMS The Bible provides no guidelines that explain how Christmas should be observed, nor does it even suggest that it should be considered a religious holiday. Because of the lack of biblical instructions, Christmas rituals have been shaped by the religious and popular traditions of each culture that celebrates the holiday. On Christmas Eve, churches around the world hold evening services. At midnight, most Catholic and many Protestant churches hold special candlelight services. The Catholic midnight Mass was first introduced by the Roman Catholic Church in the 5th century.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Greece The Greek Christmas, or Christougenna, pays respect to the Nativity of Christ while also incorporating popular superstitions. On Christmas Eve, Greek children go from house to house knocking on doors and singing Greek songs that tell of the arrival of the Christ child. The family celebration focuses on a Christmas Eve dinner, which, in the Greek Orthodox tradition, follows several weeks of fasting. According to legend, mischievous, often hideous looking elves called Kallikantzaroi wreak havoc in houses for the next 12 days. Burning incense or leaving a peace offering is supposed offer some protection against the elves. Most families decorate a small wooden cross with basil and dip it into a shallow bowl of water. This is believed to give the water holy powers. The water is then sprinkled throughout the house to keep the mischievous spirits away.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Russia After the Russian Revolution of 1917, authorities of the newly formed USSR prohibited the practice of all religions. After the USSR broke up in 1991, the Russian Orthodox Church revived Christmas rituals. Like the Greeks, some Russians fast during a period before Christmas. Then, at the sight of the first star in the sky on Christmas Eve, a 12-course supper begins, with one course for each of Jesus’ 12 disciples. The meal includes , or beet soup; stuffed cabbage; and kutiya, a dish of whole wheat grains soaked in water for hours and seasoned with honey, nuts, and crushed poppy seeds.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Italy During the Christmas season Italians perform music at shrines of the Virgin Mary. They also play songs at the homes of carpenters in honor of Saint Jos... ...s and red sashes, and wear crowns of greenery and glowing candles  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Germany The German custom of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmastime has become one of the most popular images of Christmas around the world. At one time, Germany supplied the world with almost all of the decorative glass ornaments for Christmas trees. The Christmas season begins in Germany during the first week of December, when town squares become filled with stalls selling everything from toys to hot spiced wine. On the evening of December 5, children wait for a visit from Saint Nicholas, who brings them gifts. Most children also receive gifts on Christmas Eve. In some parts of Germany, Santa Claus distributes gifts, but in other regions children’s treats are delivered by Knecht Ruprecht, a mythical figure dressed in animal skins. From Christmas Eve through all of Christmas Day and the next day, stores are closed and all work stops as families exchange gif ts, attend church, and wish one another Frà ¶hliche Weihnachten (happy Christmas.) Around the world, every custom celebrates Christmas in a different way...as with famalies in the same culture.