Sox Research Paper

Running head: Nonprofits and SOX Heather Tanenbaum Student ID: 3750548620 Accounting Capstone: Senior Seminar in Accounting ACC499 004016 Summer 2009 Nonprofits and the Sarbanes Oxley Act Submitted: Submitted to: Tee M. Thein Table of Contents Abstract Introduction SOX regulations for nonprofits Reasons for nonprofits to adopt SOX Conclusion Research file memorandum Communication memorandum References Abstract Introduction The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002 (U.S. House of Representatives 2002) was passed by congress as a result of a wave of accounting scandals and related financial irregularities in corporations such as Enron, WorldCom and Tyco. SOX is called the most significant securities legislation since 1933 and 1934 securities ACT. The Act attempted to make ethics more black and white rather than a gray area. The increased guidelines have changed businesses and business relationships.These new requirements have placed greater demands on directors, audit committees, auditors a nd management. Most, of these provisions where only made towards publicly held companies, similar regulations targeted nonprofit organizations (Panel on the Nonprofit Sector 2005). Two hundred and fifteen nonprofit organizations have voluntarily adopted provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX). Many, nonprofits are currently in the process of adopting SOX.The Panel on the Nonprofit Sector (2005), in its final report to Congress in June 2005, recommends more than 120 actions to be taken by charitable organizations, Congress and the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) to strength nonprofits against, transparency, governance and accountability. The most significant provision of the Act is the requirements in Section 404 the reporting on the effectiveness of internal controls over the financial reporting. PCAOB auditing standard 2 requires that the audit of internal control be integrated with the audit of the financial statements.The PCAOB requirements also only apply to public and private for profit companies, these would be new requirements for nonprofits wishing to adopt to SOX. The requirements of SOX section 404 requirements on internal controls have proven to be quite expensive for public companies (D’Aquila 2004; Pomeroy 2006), further research in to the current state of governance in the nonprofit sector would be beneficial before similar measures are mandated. Nonprofits have several reasons they might be compelled to adopt SOX provisions. First, several states are likely to emulate provisions similar to those of SOX.Some of these new laws incorporate elements of SOX including: expanding whistleblower protection, requiring officers of the organization to sign the corporation’s annual report, appointing an audit committee and increasing penalties against those who commit fraud or impede an investigation of fraud. California passed the Nonprofit Integrity Act in 2004. This Act addresses financial reporting, corporate governance, compensat ion, independence and fund raising (Silk and Fei 2005). New Hampshire requires audited financial statements for nonprofits with revenues greater than one million.Massachusetts, Connecticut and Kansas have similar requirements (Anderson and Kelley 2006). Second, unethical behavior seems as common in the nonprofit organizations as it does in the private sector. Recent scandals in nonprofit organizations such as: The NYSE, Upsala College, United Way and Education & Research Foundation, have had a negative effect on the public trust in their charitable organizations (Gibelman 1997). For nonprofits trust from the public is vital because the majority of their funds come from donors.SOX could result in more positive responses from donors, investors and future board members (Orlikoff and Totten 2004). Finally, some provisions of SOX already apply to nonprofits. Nonprofits must establish whistleblower protection and document destruction policies. Other provisions are inevitable, because of t he large amount of grants nonprofits receive which come with the own regulations and restrictions (BoardSource 2003). The purpose of this paper is to provide a reasonable understanding of how nonprofits have been affected by SOX. SOX regulations for nonprofitsSOX requires that companies have an audit committee that includes independent members and members of the board. SOX also requires the company to disclosure whether one of the internal auditor is a financial expert and whether they are directly responsible for overseeing the external auditors. This is to ensure that the financial statements are understand, that there is proper communication with the external auditors and that there is an understanding of internal controls. In order to enhance standards for nonprofit accountability and financial reporting all nonprofits should have an independent audit committee (BoardSource 2003).Sox requires that nonprofits disclose whether a code of ethics has been adopted for senior financial officers. If they do not have a code of ethics reasons for not having one have to be disclosed. This is to encourage the development of a code of ethics in order to enhance trustworthiness to contributors and other constituents. The whistleblower protection policy applies to nonprofits as well as for profit organizations. This regulation protects whistleblowers from special damages and attorney’s fees. It also, prohibits the employer from punishing the whistleblower in any manner.SOX provides additional protection for whistleblowers by, instating criminal penalties for actions taken against whistleblowers. Nonprofits should develop confidential and anonymous procedures for handling employee complaints. Although the CEO and CFO do not need to sign financial statements they do need to understand them and ensure that they are fairly presented in all materially respects. The responsibility for approving the financial statements ultimately belongs to the board of directors. Secti on 404 of SOX requires companies to include an internal controls report along with their annual report.Their internal control report should state the responsibility of management to establish and maintain an internal control structure and procedures for financial reporting. It should also contain, an assessment at the end of the most recent fiscal year as to the effectiveness of internal controls and the procedures for financial reporting (O’Hare 2002; BoardSource 2003; Walters 2003; Tran 2005). SOX requires auditors of public companies to prepare and maintain audit workpapers and other information related to any report in sufficient detail to support the auditors conclusions, for a period not less than seven years.Failing to do so is a criminal offence subject to fines and up to ten years in prison. Existing standards for audits of nonprofits do not include a mandated audit documentation retention period. Instead, those standards require nonprofits and auditors to retain rec ords long enough to sastify any pertinent legal requirements of record retention. Reasons for nonprofits to adopt SOX Larger organizations with more resources will be more likely to adopt SOX. The public and media are more likely to be harsher on larger nonprofits, which makes them more likely to have stronger governance mechanisms.The board of directors have the ultimate responsibility of overseeing proper financial statement presentation (BoardSource 2003; Walters 2003). Research on the relationship between board size and firm value has had mixed results. Yermack (1996) provides evidence that smaller boards are associated with a higher firm value. In 2008, Coles find that are diversified among industries or have high leverage, are more likely to benefit from a larger board of directors. Corporate governance characteristics, have been shown to be related to the size of the board.Bradbury (1990) finds board size and intercompany ownership to be determinants of voluntary audit commit tees in public companies. In another study shows that larger boards are more likely to create audit committee boards (Beasley, Salterio, 2001). In a NASDAQ over the counter study done by Pincus (1989), he found that managerial ownership, leverage, size of the company, proportion of outside directors to total directors, use of Big 8 auditors and participation in the National Market System are related to voluntary formation of audit committees.As a result as the size of the board of directors of a nonprofit increases, so does the likely hood that they will voluntarily adopt SOX. Nonprofits with independent boards of directors are also more likely to adopt SOX. The main reasons nonprofits would voluntarily adopt SOX would be to increase the trust in the public in order to receive more funds. However some nonprofits, feel that the provisions in SOX burden the nonprofits so much that it is beneficial not to adopt SOX.These nonprofits strongly believe that SOX should not be required for n onprofits for the following reasons: †¢ One, nonprofits are grassroots organizations with small staffs and have boards filled with community- minded people with little or no business and management background. If SOX was required out of these nonprofits, the staff would be overwhelmed, along with the board and it would take away from the nonprofits primary mission. †¢ Two, nonprofits are already held to higher standards by the public then private or government agencies because, if the public doesn’t trust the organization they won’t donate their money.Also, nonprofits receive a large portion of their funds from government grants which are held to strict oversight and laws and regulations. †¢ Three, certain regulations of SOX will increase overhead costs and make the nonprofits look less efficient to contributors. On the other hand, by voluntarily adopting SOX, nonprofits are showing to the public that they are concerned about protecting funds, increasing operating efficiency and effectiveness, also enhancing accountability. Conclusion Research file memorandum Communication memorandum References Anderson, S. , and C. L. Kelley. 2006.Advising nonprofit organizations. The CPA Journal 76 (8): 20-26. Beasley, M. S. , and S. E. Salterio. 2001. The relationship between board characteristics and voluntary improvements in audit committee composition and experience. Contemporary Accounting Research 18 (Winter): 539-570. BoardSource. 2003. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act and implications for nonprofit organizations. Available at: http://www. boardsource. org/clintfiles/Sarbarnes-Oxley. pdf. Bradbury, M. E. 1990. The incentives for voluntary audit committee formation. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy 9 (1): 19-36. Broude, P.D. 2006. The impact of Sarbanes-Oxley on private & nonprofit companies. Foley and Lardner, LLP. Available at: http://www. foley. com/publications/pub_detail. aspx? puibid=3511. Coles, J. L. , D. D. Naveen, and L. Naveen. 2008 . Boards: Does one size fit all? Journal of Financial Economics 87 (2): 329-356 D’Aquila, J. M. 2004. Tallying the cost of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The CPA Journal 74 (11): 6-9. Gibelman, M. , S. Gelman, and D. Pollack. 1997. The credibility of nonprofit boards: A view from the 1990s and beyond. Administration in Social Work 21 (2): 21-39. Grant Thornton LLP. 2006.Grant Thornton National Board governance survey for not-for-profit organizations. Available at: http://www. granthornton. com/staticfiles/GTCom/files/Industries/NotForProfit/nfp_board1. pdf. GuideStar. 2005. Nonprofits, Sarbanes-Oxley, and the states. Available at: http://www. guidestar. org/DisplayArticle. do? articleId=779. Hempel, J. , and A. Borrus. 2004. Now the nonprofits need cleaning up; Cozy boardrooms at colleges and charities face increasing government scrutiny. BusinessWeek (June 21): 107. Hymowitz, C. 2005. The Sarbanes-Oxley era, running a nonprofit is only getting harder.Wall Street Journal (June 21): B1. O’Hare, P. 2002. Sarbanes-Oxley raises red flag for not-for-profits. Healthcare Financial Management 56 (10): 42-44. O’Regan, K. , and S. M. Oster. 2005. Does the structure and composition of the board matter? The case of nonprofit organizations. Journal of Law Economics and Organization 21 (1): 205-227. Orlikoff, J. , and M. Totten. 2004. Applying for-profit governance reforms. Healthcare Executive 19 (3): 52. Panel in the Nonprofit Sector. 2005. Strengthening transparency, governance and accountability of charitable organizations. Available at:

Ad analysis

We know this because not only is the watch predominantly black in color, normally men's etches are black, but also because it's a large watch with a precise and detailed whiteface. We can tell that the advertisement also is aimed at more athletic, or sporty, men who would want to be like NFG quarterback Eli Manning. The advertisement is using the technique of giving the reader an idea of what they could possibly be if they bought the product. The advertisement is inadvertently saying that if you wear a Citizen Codeine watch, that you could possibly be a superstar, Super Bowl winning, quarterback.They are trying to entice men to buy the watch cause most men have dreams of being a handsome, sophisticated, superstar like Eli Manning and the company Is hoping that men will buy this watch In order to try and become like Eli Manning. This advertisement also features 4 large sentences on the right side of the page. The first sentence Is simply â€Å"Unstoppable†. It then goes on to s ay how Ell Manning Is unstoppable and then It makes the claim saying â€Å"It's unstoppable, Just like the people who wear It†.These sentences are the mall part of the ad, they are trying to make men realize that If they want to be sophisticated and unstoppable† then they must have this watch Like Ell Manning. The advertisement also boasts the fact that the watch will never require a battery. This Is meant to show men that they will not have to worry about buying a new watch battery and getting It Installed. In this ad we see mostly ethos, they are saying that Ell Manning wears this watch so It must be sophisticated and classy. They are using his credibility and hoping that people will trust a NFG superstar.Pathos Is also found In this ad, they use very vivid language when describing Ell Manning and people who ear the watch. They use one word and It Is bolted and repeated throughout the ad. Pathos Is also found In this ad because they are making the reader feel Like If they don't have this elegant watch then they are able to be stopped, but If you do have this watch you are Indeed unstoppable. They are trying to make the reader feel Like they need to buy this watch In order to be successful. Ad analysis By Maydays Eli Manning and the company is hoping that men will buy this watch in order to try the right side of the page.The first sentence is simply â€Å"Unstoppable†. It then goes on to say how Eli Manning is unstoppable and then it makes the claim saying â€Å"It's unstoppable, Just like the people who wear it†. These sentences are the main part of the ad, they are trying to make men realize that if they want to be sophisticated and â€Å"unstoppable† then they must have this watch like Eli Manning. The advertisement also boasts the fact that the watch will never require a battery. This is meant to getting it installed. In this ad we see mostly ethos, they are saying that Eli Manning wears this watch so it must be sophistic ated and classy.They are using his credibility and hoping that people will trust a NFG superstar. Pathos is also found in this ad, they use very vivid language when describing Eli Manning and people who wear the watch. They use one word and it is bolted and repeated throughout the ad. Pathos is also found in this ad because they are making the reader feel like if they don't have this elegant watch then they are able to be stopped, but if you do have this watch you are indeed unstoppable. They are trying to make the reader feel like they need to buy this watch in order to be successful.

Exercise 31

1. What are the two groups whose results are reflected by the t ratios in Tables 2 and 3? The two groups are pre-test and 3-month measures and pre-test and 6-month measures. 2. Which t ratio in Table 2 represents the greatest relative or standardized difference between the pretest and 3 months outcomes? Is this t ratio statistically significant? Provide a rationale for your answer. The t ratio for Total risk score represents the greatest relative or standardized difference between the pre-test and 3 months outcomes because the value of t test statistics is bigger than any other group.This ratio is statistically significant because the p-value corresponding to this group is less than 0. 05. 3. Which t ratio listed in Table 3 represents the smallest relative difference between the pretest and 3 months? Is this t ratio statistically significant? What does this result mean? The t ratio for Stress management the smallest relative difference between the pre-test and 3 months because the va lues of t test statistics is smaller than any other group. This ratio is not statistically significant because here the p-value is bigger than 0. 5. This result depicts that there is no significant difference in the stress management at pre-test and after 3 months. Stress management is same at pre-test and at 3 months. 4. What are the assumptions for conducting a t-test for dependent groups in a study? Which of these assumptions do you think were met by this study? The assumptions for conducting a t-test for dependent groups in a study are the data for both group should be normally distributed and the groups are correlated with each other.The groups are correlated because the same measurement is taken over from the same subject at pre-test, 3 months and at 6 months. There are 25 subjects in this study and out of 25, 21 have completed the study, it means that the data is enough to conduct the paired sample t test. Also the data should be continuous and this assumption was met because the data is obtained on a interval or ratio scale. 5. Compare the 3 months and 6 months t ratios for the variable Exercise from Table 3. What is your conclusion about the long-term effect of the health-promotion intervention on Exercise in this study?We can see that the magnitude of the score value is larger at 3 months and levels off at 6 months, thus we conclude that over time the long-term health-promotion intervention on Exercise in this study has less of an effect than in the short-term. 6. What is the smallest, significant t ratio listed in Table 2? Provide a rationale for your answer. The smallest significant t ratio is 2. 03 for variable Cholesterol at 3 months. This ratio is significant at 5% level and this is smallest among all other significant t ratios. 7. Why are the larger t ratios more likely to be statistically significant?The larger t ratios are more likely to be statistically significant because it takes a larger difference between the treatment and comparator wit h smaller variation. The larger the t ratios the more confident we are about our results. In terms of mathematics, the 99% of the observation for t distribution falls between -3 and +3. So if the t ratio lies outside these values we are more likely to get significant results. 8. Did the health-promotion program have a statistically significant effect on Systolic blood pressure (BP) in this study? Provide a rationale for your answer.No, the health-promotion program do not have a statistically significant effect on Systolic blood pressure (BP) in this study because at both end points such as 3 months and 6 months, the p-values are bigger than 0. 05, so we can conclude that the health-promotion program do not have a statistically significant effect on Systolic blood pressure (BP). 9. Examine the means and standard deviations for Systolic BP at pretest, 3 months (completion of the treatment), and 6 months. What do these results indicate? Are these results clinically important? Provide a rationale for your answer.The mean and standard deviation for Systolic BP for pre-test is 121. 7 and 14. 6, for 3 months the means and standard deviations is 117. 2 and 12. 3 and for 6 months the mean and standard deviation is 115. 6 and 13. 4. These results are clinically important because we can see that the mean Systolic BP is decreased after 3 months and after 6 months. The treatment is effective in lowering the Systolic BP as the time passes. In a long run, these results can be significant. 10. Is this study design strong or weak? Provide a rationale for your answer.The design for this study is strong because the there is only one group and we want to see whether there is any significant difference or reduction in some measurement after receiving the treatment or therapy. This design serves the purpose of the study. The only drawback in this design is that there is no blinding of treatment. Table 2 *p < 0. 05. aPaired t-test results between the pretest and 3-month measures. bP aired t-test results between the pretest and 6-month measures. Table 3 *p < 0. 05. aPaired t-test results between the pretest and 3-month measures. bPaired t-test results between the pretest and 6-month measures.

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Compensation Management Essay Example for Free

Compensation Management Essay Compensation does not refer, however, to other kinds of eployee rewards such as recognition ceremonies and achievement parties. The ultimate objectives of compensation administration are: efficient maintenance of a productive  workforce,  equitable pay, and compliance with federal, state, and local regulations based on what companies can afford. The basic concept of compensation administration—compensation management—is rather simple: employees perform tasks for employers and so companies pay employees wages for the jobs they do. Consequently, compensation is an exchange or a transaction, from which both parties—employers and employees—benefit: both parties receive something for giving something. Compensation, however, involves much more than this simple transaction. From the employers perspective, compensation is an issue of both affordability and  employee motivation. Companies must consider what they can reasonably afford to pay their employees and the ramifications of their decisions: will they affect  employee turnover  and productivity? In addition, some employers and managers believe pay can influence employee work ethic and behaviour and hence link compensation to performance. Moreover social, economic, legal, and political forces also exert influence on compensation management, making it a complicated yet important part of managing a business. Compensation and Reward system plays vital role in a business organization. Since, among four Ms, i. e Men, Material, Machine and Money, Men has been most important factor, it is impossible to imagine a business process without Men. Advantages of Fair Compensation System: Therefore a fair compensation system is a must for every business organization. The fair compensation system will help in the following: 1. If an ideal compensation system is designed, it will have positive impact on the efficiency and results produced by workmen. 2. Such system will encourage the normal worker to perform better and achieve the standards fixed. 3. This system will encourage the process of job evaluation. It will also help in setting up an ideal job evaluation, which will have transparency, and the standards fixing would be more realistic and achievable. . Such a system would be well defined and uniform. It will be apply to all the levels of the organization as a general system. 5. The system would be simple and flexible so that every worker/recipient would be able to compute his own compensation receivable. 6. Such system would be easy to implement, so that it would not penalize the workers for the reasons beyond their control and would not result in exploitation of workers. 7. It will raise the morale, efficiency and cooperation among the workers. It, being just and fair would provide satisfaction to the workers. 8. Such system would help management in complying with the various labor acts. 9. Such system would also bring about amicable settlement of disputes between the workmen union and management. 10. The system would embody itself the principle of equal work equal wages. Encouragement for those who perform better and opportunities for those who wish to excel. Need for designing of compensation Policy: After going through the role and essentials of a sound compensation system, it becomes imperative that every business organization should be set up for itself a proper Compensation Policy. The Management of the organization must have well-designed Compensation Policy. The policy calls for deciding the criteria for promotions, up-gradations etc. It would also be necessary to fix up the standard expectations from each and every workmen/employee. The policy should determine the norms to be followed for Performance Appraisal or Job Evaluation. It should also chalk out the need for training, provisions for fringe benefits, welfare schemes etc. It must prescribe the manner in which such benefits would be extended and levels within the organization to which such benefits are extendable. The incentive schemes and its details, Pay package structure, Tax implications etc. are matters of concern while designing the compensation Policy. Importance of Compensation System: Money makes the mare go is the proverb. It holds good for all the factors participating in the business process expects its fair share of prosperity of the business. Compensation/ Reward System play a vital role in the business organization. And its importance can be very well ascertained as follows: 1. Sound Compensation/Reward System brings amicability and peace in the relationship of employer and employees. . The system brings out the best out of every employee in the organization. It aims at creating a healthy competition among them. And as such, encourages them to work hard and efficiently. 3. The system provides adequate opportunities to those who wish to perform better. The system provides growth and advancement opportunities to the deserving employees. 4. The system upholds the principle of equal wages. It provides transparency and parity too. 5. The perfect Compensation system provides platform for happy and satisfied workforce, this minimizes the labour turnover. The organization enjoys the stability. 6. The organization is able to retain the best talent by providing them adequate compensation thereby stopping them from switching over to another job. 7. The business organization can think of expansion and growth if it has the support of skillful, talented and happy workforce. 8. The sound Compensation system is hallmark of Organization’s success and prosperity. The success and stability of organization is measured with pay-package it provides to its employees. 9. Both employer and employees get benefited because of the sound Compensation System. 0. A sound Compensation System helps the organization keep pace with changing environment. It helps the organization to cope up with the wage levels in neighboring industries. 11. Sound Compensation System minimizes the complaints from the employees, provides them the congenial work environment to perform better and sets up for them the targets to be achieved. Definite targets help employees kn ow their role in the organization, which minimize wastage, and enhance overall efficiency. It also helps organization to reduce the cost of production and maximize profits The Compensation System Time RatePiece rate BonusProfit sharingIndirect Monetary Incentive Time Rate System: This system is divided into three categories. Time Rates Ordinary level High Wage LevelGraduated Time Rates Ordinary Level: It is calculated on time (daily, monthly, weekly etc. )The formula for calculation of salary is Rate per hour X Hours worked = Earnings (RPH X HW=E). High Wage Level: It is calculated on hourly basis put over time is not paid. The formula for calculation of salary is RPH X HW = E Graduate System: Payment: the basic is linked with dearness cost of living. The index of cost of living is varying and that is considered for calculating the remuneration. Formula: Basic Salary is Rs. 2,000/- and Cost of living Index (D. A) is 100% then, Rs 2000+100% of Rs 2000 as cost of living is added, thus total remuneration is Rs. 4000/-. It is after 6 months, cost of living index change 150%. Then basic salary + 150 % of basic salary si. e Rs 3,000/- will make it Rs, 5000. Piece Rate/ Payment Rate (Payment by Results) System of Piece Rate (Payment by Results) Straight Piece RatePiece ;amp; Time Combination Differential Piece Rate Taylor System Merrick System Gantt Task System Straight Piece Rate: Payment: Flat rate is applicable per unit, which is predetermined. The time spent is not considered. Formula: PPR X O = Earnings. Piece Rate and Time Rate Combinations: Payment: It is a dual rate system, designed to perfect inefficient workers. The worker is ensured to get the minimum payment. If the payment is calculated on the basis of piece rate guarantees and number of pieces fall below the minimum wages guaranteed, he is paid by time Rate. Differential Piece rate: Payment: In favour of piece rate system, minimum wages were assured. However, under this system, instead of combining time-rate and piece-rate, there are dual rates for different efficiency level. The purpose behind keeping high piece rate for higher efficiency is as the level of production increases, the cost per unit falls. Bonus: Bonus is given by the company to their employees as a reward. It is been fixed by the government i. e 8. 33%. Bonus encourages the employees to work hard. It is a motivating factor for the employees to improve their efficiency. Profit Sharing: Profit Sharing is the most motivating factor. When the company makes profit it gives some kind of share to their employees as an Annual increment. This helps to motive employees to work hard and get more increment. Indirect Monetary Incentive: Indirect Monetary Incentives like traveling allowance, HRA, Dearness allowance, medical facility etc. are very motivating for the employees. Elements or ingredients of a good wage plan: Before we discuss these two plans, it would be fruitful to know the ingredients of a good wage plan. These are:- 1. It should be easily understandable i. e all the employees should easily understand what they are to get for their work. They should be instructed in how the wage plan works. 2. It should be capable of easy computation i. e. it should be sufficiently simple to permit quick calculation. Mathematical tables may be supplied, by reference to which calculations can be quickly made. 3. It should be capable of effectively motivating the employees, i. e it should provide an incentive for work. If both the quality and quantity of work are to be stressed at the same time, a plan should be selected that will not unduly influence the worker to work too fast or to become careless about quality. . It should provide for remuneration to employees as soon as possible after the effort has been made. Daily or weekly payment of wage would be preferable to induce employees to work. 5. It should be relatively stable rather than frequently varying so that employees are assured of a stable amount of money. Reasons or factors affecting wage differentials: Wages differ in different employments or occupations, industries and loc alities, and also between persons in the same employment or grade. One therefore comes across such terms as occupational wage differentials. Wage differentials have been classified into three categories: First, the differentials that can be attributed to imperfections in the employment markets, such as the limited knowledge of workers in regard to alternative job opportunities available elsewhere, obstacles to geographical, occupational or inter-firm mobility of workers, or time lags in the adjustments of resource distribution and changes in the scope and structure of economic activities. Examples of such wage differentials are inter-industry; inter firm and geographical or inter-area wage differentials. Second, the wage differentials which originate in social values and prejudices and which are deeper and more persistent than economic factors. Wage differentials by sex, age, status or ethnic origin belong to this category. Third, occupational wage differentials, which would exist even if employment markets were perfect and social prejudices, were absent. Wage differential arises because of the following factors:- a. Difference in the efficiency of the labour, which may be due to inborn quality, education and conditions under which work may be done. . The existence of non-competing group due to difficulties in the way of the mobility of labour from low paid to high paid employments. c. Difference in the agreeableness or social esteem of employment. d. Differences in the nature of employment and occupations. Norms for Fixation of Wages in Industry: 1. While computing the minimum wages, the standard working class family should be considered as consisting of four consumption units and t he earnings of women, children and adolescents should be excluded. . The minimum food requirements should be determined on the grounds of a net intake of 2700 calories as laid down by Akroyd for a normal adult in India. 3. Clothing needs should be established on the basis of a per capita consumption of 16. 62 meters per year. 4. As regards housing, the minimum wages should be determined from the standpoint of the rent corresponding to the minimum area specified under the government Industrial Housing Scheme. 5. Miscellaneous expenditure on items such fuel, lighting etc. hould from 20 per cent of the total minimum wage. The resolution further prescribes that the authorities involved in the issue should justify any deviation from these norms. Retirement benefits related enactments in India: Employees’ Provident Fund Act The Act was passed with a view to making some provision for the future of the industrial worker after his retirement or for his dependents in case of his early death and inculcating the habit of saving among the workers. The object of the Act is to provide substantial security and timely monetary assistance to industrial employees and their families when they are in distress and or unable to meet family and social obligations and to protect them in old age, disablement, early death of the bread winner and in some other contingencies. The act provides for a scheme for the institution of Provident Fund for specified classes of employees. Accordingly, the Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme was framed under Section 5 of the Act, which came into force on 1st November, 1952. Main features of the Act The Act is applicable to factorize and other establishments engaged in specified industries classes of establishment, which have completed three years of their existence and employing 20 or more persons. The Act, however, does not apply to co-operative societies employing less than 50 persons and working without the aid of power. An establishment, which is not otherwise coverable under the Act, can be covered voluntarily with the mutual consent of the employer and the majority of the employees. Employees drawing a pay not exceeding Rs. 5000 per month (And now it is amended to Rs. 6500/- ecently) are eligible for membership of the fund. Every employee employed in or in connection with the fund from the date of joining the factory or establishment. The normal rate of contribution to the provident fund by the employees and the employers as prescribed in the Act is 10 percent of the pay of the employees. The term â€Å"wages† includes basic wage. Dearness allowance including cash value of food concession and retaining allowance, if any. Employees’ State Insurance Scheme The Employees’ State Insurance Scheme Act, 1948 is a pioneering measure in the field of social insurance in our country. This act came into force from 19th April, 1948. The Scheme under the Act aims at providing for certain cash benefits to employees in the case of sickness, maternity, employment injury and medical facilities in kind, and to make provisions for certain other matters in relations thereto. The term â€Å"employee† has wide connotation and would include within its scope functions of clerical, manual, technical and supervisory. Persons whose remuneration (excluding remuneration for overtime work) does not exceed Rs. 6500 a month are covered under the Act. The Act does not make any distinction between causal or temporary employees or between technical or non-technical employees. Employees employed directly by the principal employer and those employed by or through contractor. However, the definition of â€Å"employee† does not include any member of the Indian naval, military or air force. Compensation Structure and its components: One of the most vital factors the motivation, retention and the morale amongst the employees is the compensation system, policies and review philosophies of any organization. While the bargain able employees generally have their unions to negotiate or review terms with the Management-which are governed by the Long Term Settlements- the terms of the managerial employees are mostly seen to be at the mercy or the goodwill of the organization, reviews of which may or may not be regular or timely, or often do not seem to meet the expectations or logic of such employees. Management Compensation therefore, now plays a very significant part along with the working style and environment, empowerment etc. in the organization’s success strategy. While individual organizations may have differences in their methodologies based on factors best suited their perceived needs, some general directions are evident, and are discussed below. 1. Salary, Basic Salary or Consolidated Salary continues to remain as the major component of compensation, though Salary Scales are often discarded these days, or used only as guides. Individual Salary is generally decided initially using the Scale, but thereafter performance, contribution to targets or results generated determine the revisions periodically, which may vary widely from individual to individual. Salary broad handling is therefore, getting recognition and acceptance. 2. Grade wise flat Allowance is being considered generally, except where tax exemption benefits are still available, when they continue as separate components. Allowances may be linked to the Salary as a percentage or by slabs, but preference is for flat amounts, which do not increase automatically, and therefore increase could be discretionary, and therefore controllable. 3. Reimbursements of expenses incurred on Company work has become limited, and in line to conform to the tax laws. Being actual in most cases, they are not considered as a part of the compensation, unless it is provided towards personal benefits. 4. Annual payments: Bonus or Commission, and Leave travel are common features some tax reliefs apply for the latter. 5. Benefits generally comprise of mostly unfurnished company owned or leased accommodation, use of company or leased vehicles, medical coverage, retrial benefits covering Provident Fund, Pension or Superannuation and Gratuity, post-retrial medical assistance, easy loan schemes at low or zero interest rates for house building, cars or vehicles, furniture or utility items etc. enting employees owned housing, club entrance free reimbursement etc. Minor benefits could be provision of security, driver or gardening assistance, else of products or assets at a concessional rate, relocation and transfer expenses including admission etc. fees for children, credit card fees, phones etc. 6. Employee stock option schemes which has been popular in IT in dustry-,is not extensively used yet, not being tax advantageous to other industries, nor seen as being very attractive with lesser growth trends for their share values especially in the well-established older companies. 7. Most companies, as against earlier visible costs, use the â€Å"Total cost to the Company† concept as basis. Cost of the most benefits are averaged or computed on actual basis, and within the system of the overall cost, but with greater compliance to tax laws, this basket concept is on the wane. 8. Retiral benefits: Some in recognition of the past contribution of pensioners, and to partly offset the inflation post retirement practices periodic improvement in pensions, or a guaranteed grade minimum pension. 9. Performance Bonus that does not increase future liability is being given more as recognition of results generated. It requires transparent, balanced and fair systems and benchmarks, and also agrees targets by the managers in advance during planning and review discussions. 10. From the earlier grade oriented compensation system within reasonable boundaries, compensation often has to be somewhat tailor made for specialist or key contributors to retain them in the very volatile job market. 11. Compensation review periods have become annual generally and sometimes oftener, as compared to every three to five years earlier, in the fast changing market situation. Conclusion To summarize, the need to regularly carry out detailed compensation reviews both within and out of the organisation with full support and commitment from the top is essential. Openness and transparency are important to the managers in the very sensitive and personal issues of management i. e. remuneration, and therefore policies and practices should match. The remuneration and the system have to be fair and dynamic Dealing with human feelings still remains a competitively attractive feature.

Analysis of Lorcins View of Imperialism

Analysis of Lorcins View of Imperialism Imperialism, Colonial Identity, and Race in Algeria, 1830-1870; the Role of the French Medical Corps (Patricia M. E. Lorcin) As Conklin has argued in her book , that only in the third Republic France was the mission to civilise employed as an official ideology to justify imperial conquests, Lorcins research focuses on the historical development of social hierarchies in French North African colony, Algeria. Assessing how physicians without professional background knowledge in ethnographic analysis racially distinguished between the Berber-speaking Kabyles and the Arabic-speaking inhabitants of Algeria, the author asserts that such distinction influenced French perception of Algeria, informed the colonial policies developed and dictated her future colonial enterprise in the region. In her assessment of the intellectual contributions of French physicians and surgeons to this civilizing mission, Lorcin argues that the medical corps which was attached to the French troops in Algeria facilitated the projection of French imperial power that was essential to the development of a socio-political domain in the colon y. She attributes the medical corps achievement to the scientific methodology of their work and their awareness of current philosophical and intellectual currents. In other words, their work carried methodological and analytical weight, which ensured initial acceptance and in many cases ultimate validity. Importantly, their publication not only brought them political opportunities which stimulate more physicians interest in the venture, but subsequent assessment of North African culture and environment by Eurocentric historians were based on their racial conclusions. During the cholera and smallpox epidemics of the early 1830s, colonial medical officials in their line of duty to the local population served as the eyes and hear of the colonizer. The medical officials not only kept the metropole abreast of medical developments through publications in literary journals in order to further scientific research in Europe, but also passed information about the natives culture to France. That is, in the process of studying the condition of hygiene in the colony, colonial medical personnel without previous training as anthropologist developed negative stereotypes of the indigenous population based on speculation and self-proclaimed knowledge of the natives culture. In fact, these medical officials blamed sporadic epidemics that decimated the depopulation of the colony on their primitive cultural practices of polygamy, circumcision, the abandonment of sick children and bad political leadership. Sexuality and the relation of the sexes were particular inde x for evaluating the natives level of civilisation, hence, everything Arab, especially their religion became evil and needed to be destroyed and everything Kabyle became inferior and needed reform. Graduates of the medical school of Paris formed the larger part of the medical corp that went to Algeria to promote Frances idea of health through civilisation. These graduates went to North Africa with an idea of a superior European culture and of a primitive Africa that was in urgent need of civilization. In other words, colonial physicians during their time in the colony constructed an African Other, not only based on the pre-conceived racial superiority their civilisation, but also based on the assumption that they understand the colonised culture and society. Linking this racism ideology (i.e. class defines mans nature and destiny) to the paternalistic idea of the Utopian philosopher Saint Simon, Lorcin posits that the French standard of living, culture, environment, civilisation and morality were used by the medical officials as indicators in studying and explaining the environment of French Algeria. These evaluation of the Algerians were published in European journals and hel ped reinforce the prevailing notions of the inferiority of African indigenous society and culture in France. As a corollary, the publications won over the French public into supporting the civilising mission in Africa. Lorcin identified two important factors which made the medical corps indispensable in the French administration of Algeria: first, their research publication on the culure and society of the colonised which put them in active colonial politics legitimise the use of assimilation policy in the colony, and secondly, their regular contact with the native population put them in a position to discover which tribe was likely to cooperate with French rule (p. 665). These two factors resulted in the categorization of the local population the plain-dwelling Arabs as unfriendly religious fanatics and thieves, and the mountain-dwelling Kabyles as friendly primitive race. One of the physicians, Eugene Bodichon, in his unguided quest to propose how to secure the colony compared African environment with other European society in the 1830s and blamed his perceived backwardness of Algeria on African climate and hierarchy of race, thus advancing the concept of moral hygiene through assimilation and a gricultural plantation which he claim would purge the natives of their laziness and moral deterioration. The physicians intellectual contributions not only facilitated colonial rule by linking French rule to health and civilization, but also justified assimilation policy by claiming hierarchy of race. Although the physicians access to the homes of the natives gave them an idea of the daily activities of the Algerians, however, their pre-conceived racial ideology had a tremendous influence on the development of French ethno-racial attitudes that informed the imposition of her culture on the people. In other words, the extensive focus of the physicians publications on the unhygienic aspect of the natives society coupled with the derogatory description of ethnic groups provided justification for the mission to civilise. In all, her biographical approach which shows the physicians individual contribution worth commendation.

Contributions of Feminism to Archaeological Theory

Contributions of Feminism to Archaeological Theory Introduction In its stages of conception, archaeology was considered to be merely a sub-discipline of both history and anthropology, and, in many cases, was restricted as a rich mans hobby. Developed during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the initial episode in the history of theoretical archaeology is usually referred to as culture history, a means by which early archaeologists established rudimentary predictive models patterning human behaviour within designated temporal and spatial contexts via the interpretation of artefactual evidence. Though universally popular during the first half of the twentieth century, culture history was rebelled against during the 1960s. Perceived as restrictive due to its reliance on categorisation of artefacts the paradigms of culture history were abandoned in favour of the newly developed school of thought known as New Archaeology. In an attempt to incorporate a level of scientific reasoning to anthropological archaeology, these primarily American archaeologists, chiefly Lewis Binford and his associates, moved away from simple descriptions of the past in favour of questioning why cultures developed and adopting hypothesis evaluations (Renfrew and Bahn, 1996). The scientific basis and reliance of New Archaeology instigated the widespread development of processual archaeology. Two decades later, processualisms focus on science and impartiality were increasingly questioned. Led by Ian Hodder, Michael Shanks and Christopher Tilley, a new approach to theoretical archaeology emerged, which emphasised the necessity of relativism in archaeological investigation (Shanks and Tilley, 1992). This methodology, known as post-processualism, however, has been criticised by proponents of processualism and New Archaeology for abandoning scientific competency and rigour, and the debate over the most appropriate theoretical approach to any archaeological analysis is still much in evidence. Theoretical archaeology now relies on a wide range of influences. During the 1970s and 80s, gender-related and feminist archaeology became popular among those archaeologists seeking a post-processual approach to cultural identity. Though phenomenology, post-modernism, and post-processualism are still discussed in the literature and relied upon to evaluate cultural diversity, feminist archaeology is, for the most part, unique in focusing on the collection of evidence of female social roles in past cultures and their influence in developing and sculpting individual societies (Gilchrist, 1998). Archaeological theory It is possible to summarise the history of how archaeology has been conducted in the twentieth century into three expansive concepts; predominantly description, explanation, and interpretation (Trigger, 1989). The chronological sequencing methodologies, encouraged by the culture history approach, allowed the description and ordering of artefacts using stratigraphic excavation and stylistic seriation, particularly with regard to ceramics and lithics. Though much disregarded following the development of processual and post-processual archaeology, the descriptive approach of culture history dominated the majority of the twentieth century, and successfully produced charts and maps of cultures based upon artefacts and stratigraphic sequences which are still relied on as initial datasets for investigation (Hodder and Hutson, 2003). Arguing for a new recognition of the processes behind the evidence obtained from the archaeological record, the development of complex processual archaeology encouraged many advocating theorists to analyse the evidence away from simple classifications and to view the archaeological record from a taphonomical viewpoint. Proponents of behavioural archaeology, such as Michael Schiffer (1983, 1995), argued that the culture history assumption of artefacts existing as in situ fossils restricted the comprehensive analysis of archaeology to categorisation alone. Processualism criticised culture history, and Binfords early statement that artefacts were â€Å"fossils† upon which past reconstructions could easily be made (Renfrew and Bahn, 1996), for epistemological simplicity. The recognition that much of the value of evidence from the archaeological record was being lost through the collection approach of culture history necessitated a review and reassessment of the methodology of arch aeological investigation, which, in turn, illustrated the problematic approaches of processualism with regard to the rigid, ethnocentric tenets of scientific archaeologists. Archaeology, it was criticised, saw what it wanted to see and moulded the evidence to fit ethnically biased hypotheses, predominantly a result of the domination of Caucasian male scientists within the field during the 1980s. For example, feminist archaeologists emphasised the androcentric approaches of theoretical archaeology by denouncing statements, from male archaeologists, that the commonly-cited Venus figurines of Europe represented the palaeolithic equivalent of pornography. During the era of processualism, a new-found movement of feminist archaeology began questioning the cultural presence of females in the archaeological record, debating their very existence at all (Conkey and Spector, 1984; Wylie, 1991). Feminist archaeology The exploration of the social status of genders in the past is the all-encompassing drive behind feminist archaeology. Though it has only recently become a field of study in its own right, the interest in prehistoric matriarchy stems largely from the nineteenth century, particularly with regard to claims made by J. J. Bachofen in 1861 and Frederick Engels in 1884. Engels and Bachofen proposed that matriarchy formed an important, universal phase in human culture after an initial stage of promiscuity and prior to what was termed the world historic defeat of the female sex (Key and MacKinnon, 2000). Engels suggested an early stage in human development was characterised by group marriage, with descent traced through women and matrilocality. Women had supremacy in the household and their high status derived from their central position within the social relations of production (Conkey and Gero, 1997), however, these conclusions were based not on archaeological evidence but on ancient myths and ethnographic cases. Marija Gimbutass interpretation of Early Neolithic farming communities as matrifocal and probably matrilinear, egalitarian and peaceful, worshipping a supreme goddess, is a result of her research into the symbolism of female figurines and statuary from household contexts in south-east Europe and the Near East (Gimbutas, 1974, 1989, 1991). Although unsupported by many archaeologists, her views have become unassailable for certain ecofeminist groups, and at least contrast with the androcentric evaluation of hunt scene cave art. The analyses of Palaeolithic figurines illustrate that differences in ethnological and epistemological approach potentially result in hugely varying disparities in the interpretative conclusions of particular artefacts, sites, and periods in history and prehistory. Overall, applying concepts of gender to all aspects of a specific culture is profoundly more productive than the restricted, narrow approaches of New Archaeology and culture history. It is important to archaeological interpretation that multiple varieties of gender, and their associated arrangements within a given culture, are illustrated and emphasised, in contrast to the previous assumption of a single dichotomy between proactive male and passive female roles. Feminist archaeologists, in general, have aspired to determining the quantity of genders in past societies, with particular regard to the engendering of biological sex. The most reliable sources of this data, as purported by many feminist archaeologists, are from funerary deposits. However, this data is frequently invisible or vague within the archaeological record, and the differentiation between the dichotomy of the biological status of sex and the cultural status of gender remains problematic. Furthermore, feminist archaeologists claim that a false dichotomy between the genders, often referred to as labour division, exists. Within modern indigenous and developed cultures, men and women are often assigned different functions within the community, and it is reasonable to assume that this division existed in the past, however, there is significant dislocation between gender-specific roles in most cultures. Feminist archaeology has contributed greatly to the umbrella field of archaeology by encouraging an avoidance of the polarisation of genders, thereby providing more subtle and comprehensive understanding of societies (Bem, 1993). Feminist archaeology has therefore contributed greatly to the understanding of archaeological interpretation. It has encouraged new questions and new methodological approaches to data sets, and has revolutionised observations and analyses of existing data, particularly with emphasis on removing bias from interpretation. In contrast to the assumptions purported by other schools of theoretical archaeology, feminism has critiqued and argued against presumed concepts, encouraging the application of epistemological analysis to gender roles. By challenging preconceived ideology regarding the interaction between men and women within past societies, feminist archaeology adopts a refreshingly questioning approach in contrast to the previous interpretation of sites based on current modern attitudes, practices and socio-cultural biases. Conclusion Unfortunately, there is no single consensus on the definition of feminism and feminist theory, and, therefore, it is unrealistic to portray feminist archaeology as a homogeneous, ideologically-coherent framework. As a movement of resistance and struggle against male oppression for womens empowerment, theoretical feminist objectives include a critique of female status in past societies and the definition of gender difference for women. Initial rethinking of the new female history, anthropology and archaeology focused on the countering of androcentric narratives, the recognition of powerful individual women in the past, the search for matriarchies in past societies, and the redressing of the balance hitherto ignored by theoretical archaeology. Sà ¸rensen (1992) has outlined three predominant categories of archaeological sources most useful for pursuing archaeologies of gender: burial activities, individual appearance through costume, particularly from funerary contexts, and some types of art. Though this is a short analysis of the benefit of feminism to archaeological theory and practice, details given here illustrate several ways that a feminist stance can improve and contribute to archaeological interpretations. In comparison to the previously biased analysis of singularly male roles within prehistory, feminist archaeology offers the opportunity to consider all aspects of men and women, particularly roles, status, and contemporary perceptions, from a balanced perspective. Many theoretical archaeologists now believe this to be essential to a comprehensive understanding of past societies. Economic relationships between communities, political structures, and ideological status are affected by our often biased interpretation of gender roles, and feminism, above all other schools of archaeological theory, attempts to desegregate the prejudiced views of gender superiority and inferiority, allowing clarity of interpretation, and giving a voice to the hitherto ignored female se ctions of past societies. Bibliography Bem, S. (1993) The Lenses of Gender. New Haven, Yale University Press Conkey, M. W. and Spector, J. D (1984) Archaeology and the study of gender. Advances in Archaeological Methods and Theory 7: 1-38 Conkey, M. W. and Gero, J. M. (1997) Programme to practice: Gender and Feminism in Archaeology. Annual Review of Anthropology 26: 411-437 Gilchrist, R. (1998) Womens archaeology?: political feminism, gender theory and historical revision. In Hays-Gilpin, K. and Whitley, D. (eds.) Reader in Gender Archaeology. London, Routledge Gimbutas, M. (1974) The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe: myths and cult images. London, Thames and Hudson Gimbutas, M. (1989) The Language of the Goddess. London, Thames and Hudson Gimbutas, M. (1991) The Civilisation of the Goddess. New York, Harper Collins. Hodder, I. and Hutson, S. (2003) Reading the Past: Current Approaches to Interpretation in Archaeology. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Key C.J. and MacKinnon J.J. (2000) A Feminist Critique of Recent A rchaeological Theories and Explanations of the Rise of State-Level Societies. Dialectical Anthropology 25(2): 109-121 Renfrew, C. and Bahn, P. (1996) Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practices. London, Thames and Hudson Schiffer, M. B. (1983) Advances in Archaeological Method and Theory. London, Academic Press Inc. Schiffer, M. B. (1995) Behavioural Archaeology. Utah, University of Utah Press Shanks, M. and Tilley, C. (1992) Reconstructing Archaeology: Theory and Practice. London, Routledge Sà ¸rensen, M. L. S. (1992) Gender archaeology and Scandinavian Bronze Age studies. Norwegian Archaeological Review 25: 31-49 Trigger, B. (1989) A History of Archaeological Thought. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Wylie, A. (1991) Gender theory and the archaeological record: why is there no archaeology of gender? In Gero, J. and Conkey, M. (eds.) Engendering Archaeology: Women and Prehistory. Oxford, Blackwell Publishers

Graduate School Versus Work: A Post College Decision in America Essay

Education stimulates and develops human thoughts and wisdom. In many developed countries, people are responsible to receive fundamental education to secondary school by law. Students attending university after high school became a social trend in North America for decades. Universities develop and train student with advance professional skills and knowledge. Graduate school and work are ultimate options university graduated students consider after achieving their bachelor diploma. Although comparable high expectations are anticipated from work and graduate study, graduate school is a more advantage option for university students after graduation. At work and in graduate schools, university graduates are expected with high standard thinking and skill qualities. Critical reasoning is the main study component at the university level. University students scrutinize rudiment theories strategically, and correlate concepts together making extensive understanding of the studied subject. Practice in researches, experiments, and case studies formulate students’ independence to learn and anal...

Philosophy is Important Essay -- essays research papers

Philosophy is Important Philosophy is an important subject, because it helps us understand three big questions; â€Å"why are we here†, â€Å"what do we do†, and â€Å"how do we treat each other†. These are important questions to answer because without them we may end up in a situation much like the Taliban is in right now. Complete chaos created from confusion about those three big questions. These questions are left in a general sense because there are many different ways to look at them. After all we have many different people with many different ideas and so to come to a more concise understanding of such important topics we need everyone’s viewpoint. This is the purpose of something philosophers call â€Å"The great conversation†. For example: Think back to the attack on the US of September 11th. These attacks were caused for a variety of reasons, one of which being that the Taliban believed they had the answer as to the correct way to run a society. Therefore â€Å" The Great Conversation† was stopped. After all if I am the Taliban and I believe I have the answer as to how to run a society because I feel I have answered the three big questions, then why keep discussing? Why include anyone else’s opinions and beliefs? Because if you don’t then things could become violent, just as they did in Afghanistan. So you say you don’t want to be like Afghanistan? Well good! So then how do you determine the answer to those three big questions, and what if there is more than one answer? That’s the purpose of philosophy and more specifically â€Å"The Great Conversation†, to come up with the best possible answer to all questions that may arise without eliminating the possibility that a better answer may exist. Take â€Å"Plato’s Cave† for example: People sit in a cave looking at shadows cast on a wall, from the light of a fire behind them. They have been chained to the floor for centuries. They are fed, clothed, and generally stimulated by the shadows, which are those of puppets on a bridge behind them. The people believe the shadows are real. But ponder just for a second; what if you were one of those people? What if you were released from your shackles and allowed to move about the cave freely. How would you explain to the others that the shadows they are seeing are not real people, but actual shadows made by the puppets on the bridge behind them? Would they believe you? Now switch roles. What if... ...t is true?† Once again we deal with two opposite ends of a debate spectrum. We focus on a few things here. One of which is where does knowledge come from? Those who believe that the exercise of reason, rather than experience, authority, or spiritual revelation, provides the primary basis for knowledge are called Rationalists. Basically they believe people have revelations, and are born with knowledge (innate.) On the opposite, those who believe that experience, especially of the senses, is the only source of knowledge are known as Empiricists. Reason versus experience, you decide for yourself. For our last and final study we explore Ontology; the nature of being. Is it human nature to fill your space with material goods? Do they bring you happiness? Is that happiness true happiness? If you answered â€Å"yes† to any of those questions you may be a â€Å"Materialist† while if you answered â€Å"no† to any of those questions, there is a chance you may be an â€Å"Idealist†; someone who believes that the use of ideas, thinking, questioning, and active mental stimulation are far more valuable in terms of achieving happiness than the passive, vegetable style consumption of goods that plagues many of us. Philosophy is Important Essay -- essays research papers Philosophy is Important Philosophy is an important subject, because it helps us understand three big questions; â€Å"why are we here†, â€Å"what do we do†, and â€Å"how do we treat each other†. These are important questions to answer because without them we may end up in a situation much like the Taliban is in right now. Complete chaos created from confusion about those three big questions. These questions are left in a general sense because there are many different ways to look at them. After all we have many different people with many different ideas and so to come to a more concise understanding of such important topics we need everyone’s viewpoint. This is the purpose of something philosophers call â€Å"The great conversation†. For example: Think back to the attack on the US of September 11th. These attacks were caused for a variety of reasons, one of which being that the Taliban believed they had the answer as to the correct way to run a society. Therefore â€Å" The Great Conversation† was stopped. After all if I am the Taliban and I believe I have the answer as to how to run a society because I feel I have answered the three big questions, then why keep discussing? Why include anyone else’s opinions and beliefs? Because if you don’t then things could become violent, just as they did in Afghanistan. So you say you don’t want to be like Afghanistan? Well good! So then how do you determine the answer to those three big questions, and what if there is more than one answer? That’s the purpose of philosophy and more specifically â€Å"The Great Conversation†, to come up with the best possible answer to all questions that may arise without eliminating the possibility that a better answer may exist. Take â€Å"Plato’s Cave† for example: People sit in a cave looking at shadows cast on a wall, from the light of a fire behind them. They have been chained to the floor for centuries. They are fed, clothed, and generally stimulated by the shadows, which are those of puppets on a bridge behind them. The people believe the shadows are real. But ponder just for a second; what if you were one of those people? What if you were released from your shackles and allowed to move about the cave freely. How would you explain to the others that the shadows they are seeing are not real people, but actual shadows made by the puppets on the bridge behind them? Would they believe you? Now switch roles. What if... ...t is true?† Once again we deal with two opposite ends of a debate spectrum. We focus on a few things here. One of which is where does knowledge come from? Those who believe that the exercise of reason, rather than experience, authority, or spiritual revelation, provides the primary basis for knowledge are called Rationalists. Basically they believe people have revelations, and are born with knowledge (innate.) On the opposite, those who believe that experience, especially of the senses, is the only source of knowledge are known as Empiricists. Reason versus experience, you decide for yourself. For our last and final study we explore Ontology; the nature of being. Is it human nature to fill your space with material goods? Do they bring you happiness? Is that happiness true happiness? If you answered â€Å"yes† to any of those questions you may be a â€Å"Materialist† while if you answered â€Å"no† to any of those questions, there is a chance you may be an â€Å"Idealist†; someone who believes that the use of ideas, thinking, questioning, and active mental stimulation are far more valuable in terms of achieving happiness than the passive, vegetable style consumption of goods that plagues many of us.

Spanking is NOT Child Abuse :: Corporal Punishment, Argumentative Essay

â€Å"My father liked me, when I wasn't being an idiot. And he loved me, too -- enough to spank the daylights out of me when I was being an idiot.† -- Diana Gabaldon, Outlander "There is a great difference between spanking a child and abusing a child. One is an act of love; the other is an act of hostility" -- James Dobson, MD There is a great deal of outrage from people who are reading stories about the misconduct of professional athletes and connecting them to a crusade against child abuse. I'm against child abuse. Isn't everyone? However I'm not against spanking.    We have all encountered this situation: A small child is standing in the middle of a department store throwing a complete temper tantrum demanding a toy. His mother, exasperated threatens him with time-outs and other deprived privileges, but the stubborn child continues to kick and scream. In the "old days," a mother wouldn't think twice about marching the defiant child to the bathroom and giving him a good spanking to straighten him out, but these days, parents have to worry about someone screaming child abuse. Whether or not to spank a child has become a heated issue in today's society. Many authorities and psychologists believe that spanking breaks a child's spirit and only leads to violence. They think that it causes the child to become depressed, angry or hostile and they have conducted many studies to prove these things. This type of harsh punishment occurs often, but it is called child abuse. There is a great difference between abusing a child and properly disciplining a child. "One is an act of love; the other is an act of hostility, and they are as different as night and day" (Dobson 35). First of all, spanking does not lead to violence. Our surrounding world and media do. "The average sixteen-year- old has watched 18,000 murders during his formative years, including a daily bombardment of stabbings, shootings, hangings, decapitations, and general dismemberment" (Meier 34). It seems unjust to blame parents who are trying to raise their children properly for today's violence. If a child touches a hot stove he does not become a more violent person because of it, he just learns not to do it again because he learned a valuable lesson from the pain (Meier 34). Many anti spanking researchers have tried to conduct research studies to consolidate their beliefs against

Touching Essays

Idiom| Explanation + Example | 1)| Don't give up the day job. | You are not very good at that. You could definitely not do it professionally. â€Å"I really like the way you sing, but don't give up your day job. | 2)| Cash cow. | An easy way to earn money regularly. â€Å"Income tax is a real cash cow for the government. † | 3)| Bite off more than you can chew. | Trying to do something that is too difficult or time consuming to finish. â€Å"I'm glad you want to prepare the report by yourself. Just be sure that you don't bite off more than you can chew. † | 4)| Clear the air| Discuss something that was causing people to feel upset. There seems to have been a misunderstanding. I'd like to explain what happened, just to clear the air. † | 5)| Turn your back on| Give up on, or abandon. â€Å"I needed your help but you just turned your back on me† | 6)| Not cut out for| Not suitable for something. â€Å"He tried mountain climbing, but he simply was not cut ou t for it. † | 7)| Scrape the bottom of the barrel| The very last, or the very worst. â€Å"These are the last volunteers we could find. We really had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find them. † | 8)| A class act| Sophisticated, above average. â€Å"He offered to help, even though he doesn't know me.He's a real class act. † | 9)| Clean up your act| Improve your behavior. â€Å"If you are ever going to improve your English skills, you must start getting in to class on time and doing your homework. Why don't you clean up your act? † | 10)| Get your act together| Get more organized. â€Å"You have been late for work every day this week. If you want to keep this job, you must get your act together. † | 11)| A piece of the action| Participation in an activity. â€Å"I heard that you are looking for partners in your new investment. If you don't mind, I would like to get in on a piece of the action. † | 12)| Actions speak louder than words. Pe ople's intentions can be judged better by what they do than what they say. â€Å"Why don't you give her a hug instead of saying you are sorry, actions speak louder than words. † | 13)| In the air| Being discussed, generally obvious. â€Å"The days are getting longer and the flowers are blooming. Spring is in the air. † | 14)| Go ape| Go crazy. â€Å"Jack was really angry. I thought he was going to go ape. † | 15)| A grey area| Something that is difficult to define. â€Å"I researched your case, but there are not any black and white answers. Your situation seems to fall into a grey area. † | 16)| Up in arms| Angry. The crows was agitated. Everyone was up in arms over the government decision. † | 17)| Be glad to see the back of| Be happy when a person leaves. â€Å"That guy bothers me, I'll be glad to see the back of him. † | 18)| Give him/her credit| Acknowledge an achievement or contribution of a person. â€Å"Although he is not easy to work for, you have to give him credit for managing the company well. † | 19)| Go behind someone's back| Do something without telling someone. â€Å"Don't trust Jane. She acts friendly but she's always going behind someone's back. † | 20)| Each to his own| Everyone is entitled to his own individual opinion. I can't say that I like George's new furniture. It seems very plain and uncomfortable. Oh well, each to his own. † | 21)| Eager beaver| Enthusiastic person. â€Å"John did all of his homework before supper. He sure is an eager beaver. † | 22)| Early bird| A person who is early, or gets up early. â€Å"Dave was in class 30 minutes before anyone else. What an early bird. † | 23)| Scratch the surface| Examine only a part of something. Uncover only a few facts about something â€Å"Cancer research is a very long-term process. So far, we have just begun to scratch the surface. † | 24)| Give him the slip| Leave him.Hide from him. â€Å"I think that m an is following us. Let's give him the slip. † | 25)| Cold shoulder| To treat someone in an unfriendly manner. â€Å"I don't think Jim likes me. I tried to speak with him but he gave me the cold shoulder. † | 26)| Get the ball rolling| Start something. â€Å"All right everyone, we spent a lot of time planning this project. Now, it's time to get the ball rolling. † | 27)| Jump on the bandwagon| Join a popular trend or activity. â€Å"I like that new procedure and I've decided to jump on the bandwagon. † | 28)| A losing battle| Something that cannot be accomplished. I've tried fixing this phone many times, I just can't do it by myself. It's a losing battle. † | 29)| Keep something at bay| Keep something away. â€Å"Sarah found it difficult to keep the salesperson at bay. † | 30)| Spill the beans| Tell a secret. â€Å"I won't be the one to spill the beans. † | 31)| Beggars can't be choosers| People cannot complain about something they get for free. â€Å"I don't like the color of the sweater she gave me, but beggars can't be choosers. † | 32)| Flesh and blood| A relative. â€Å"I must help him. After all, he's my own flesh and blood. † | 33)| Give the benefit of the doubt| Believe someone's statement, without proof. The teacher's explanation did not seem logical, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt. † | 34)| A safe bet| Probably true. Will probably happen. â€Å"It's a safe bet that your English skills improve quickly if you study at Elanguest. † | 35)| Fit the bill| Seems correct. â€Å"That seems to fit the bill. I'll take it. † | 36)| Black and blue| Bruised. â€Å"He was beaten until he was black and blue. † | 37)| In cold blood| With no compassion or mercy. Usually associated with ruthless murder. â€Å"The assassin was evil. He killed him in cold blood. † | 38)| Out of the blue| Unexpected. â€Å"A great idea just came to me out of the blue. † | 9)| Cal l someone's bluff| Make someone prove what they say. â€Å"He implied that he would terminate my contract, but I called his bluff. † | 40)| Rock the boat| Create problems for other people. Everyone likes Anthony. He doesn't rock the boat. † | 41)| By the book| Doing something according to rules. â€Å"He's a good cop. He does everything by the book. † | 42)| Give someone the boot| Dismiss or get rid of someone. â€Å"Mr. Smith is an easy boss to work for. He doesn't like to give someone the boot. † | 43)| Get to the bottom of| Learn about and understand fully. â€Å"We are not sure what happened, but we intend to get to the bottom of this. | 44)| Out of bounds| Not permitted. â€Å"Hans wanted to ask Mary out on a date, but I explained that she is out of bounds. Mary is engaged to Jack. † | 45)| Bread and butter| Regular income. â€Å"We are very dependent on our advertising revenue. It's our bread and butter. † | 46)| The best thing since s liced bread| A good invention or innovation. â€Å"I love this paper folding machine. It's the best thing since sliced bread. † | 47)| Give me a break| Don't expect me to believe or agree with that. â€Å"You think the teacher is joking? Give me a break. † | 48)| Don't hold your breath| Don't wait too long because it might not happen. Yes, it's possible that they will lower taxes, but don't hold your breath. † | 49)| Cross that bridge when you come to it| Deal with a problem if and when it becomes necessary, not before. â€Å"I'm not too wirried about a possible downturn in the economy. Anyway, let's cross that bridge when we come to it. † | 50)| The bubble has burst| A previously positive situation has encountered a serious problem. â€Å"Last year, the stock market was doing very well. Unfortunately, it seems that the bubble has burst. † | 51)| The buck stops here| Problems are resloved here. â€Å"A lot of people try to pass problems to other pe ople.At my desk, however, the buck stops here. † | 52)| Burn your bridges| make it impossible to return. â€Å"Be polite when you hand in your resignation. After all, you don't want to burn your bridges. † | 53)| My ears are burning| I think someone is saying something about me. â€Å"Pierre is talking again. My ears are burning. † | 54)| Put on the back burner| Leave it for later. â€Å"I don't think we'll have time to complete it this year. Let's put it on the back burner. † | 55)| Someone means business| Someone is serious â€Å"Watch out for Harry. He's someone who means business. † | 56)| At the touch of a button| Quickly and easily. â€Å"No problem.I can change your account information at the touch a button. † | 57)| Have your cake and eat it| Enjoy something without paying for it. â€Å"He expected to pass without studying. Unfortunately, you cannot have your cake and eat it, too. † | 58)| A close call| Something (usually bad) almost happening. â€Å"That car almost hit us. That was a close call. † | 59)| Enough is enough| This should stop. â€Å"I have listened to his complaints for years but enough is enough. † | 60)| A fat cat| A wealthy person. â€Å"He has everything he needs. He's a real fat cat. † | 61)| My two cents worth| My humble opinion. â€Å"He seems like a corrupt politician.That's just my two cent's worth. † | 62)| Hang out| Be together, spend time with each other. â€Å"Hey Lauren, let's get together tonight, we can just hang out and practice our English. † | 63)| A change of heart| A changed opinion. â€Å"At one time, I supported George Bush. As time went on, however, I had a change of heart. † | 64)| Get something off your chest| Explain something that is bothering you. â€Å"Gary, you don't seem happy. Is there something you would like to get off your chest? † | 65)| Don't count your chickens before the eggs have hatched| Don't make pla ns for something that might not happen. Yes, I think we will probably get a raise in pay this year. Remember, though, don't count your chickens before the eggs have hatched. † | 66)| A chip on his shoulder| He is angry about something. â€Å"I don't know why he's so unhappy. He seems to have a chip on his shoulder. † | 67)| Come full circle| A process has been completed. â€Å"The salmon has returned to the place where it originally hatched. Its life cycle has come full circle. † | 68)| Squeaky clean| Legitimate and proper. â€Å"We checked all of her references. She's squeaky clean. † | 69)| In the clear| Out of trouble. â€Å"His innocence has been proven. He's in the clear. | 70)| Steer clear of| Avoid. â€Å"She's not very nice. I think we should steer clear of her. † | 71)| Round the clock| All day. â€Å"She's a very hard worker. She usually works around the clock. † | 72)| Turn back the clock| Go back in time. â€Å"I feel old. I wis h I could turn back the clock. † | 73)| Like clockwork| With mechanical efficiency. â€Å"He's very predictable. He always eats at the same time, like clockwork. † | 74)| Wake up and smell the coffee| Think more realistically. â€Å"He doesn not respect you as much as you think. Wake up and smell the coffee. † | 75)| The other side of the coin| Another version of a story or event. The global summit will encourage meaningfull dialogue. On the other side of the coin, it might result in violent protests. † | 76)| Left out in the cold| Left unaided or unprotected. â€Å"They don't include me in their group. I feel left out in the cold. † | 77)| With flying colors| With enthusiasm and exuberance. â€Å"I can't wait to see you all. I'll be there with flying colors. † | 78)| Scrape by| Have just enough but not more. â€Å"Our budget is not satisfactory but we will find a way to scrape by. † | 79)| A tough cookie| A stubborn, strong person. â⠂¬Å"Don't get Shirley upset. She's a tough cookie. † | 80)| Keep your cool| Don't become upset. Relax, keep your cool. † | 81)| Lose your cool| Become upset. â€Å"Don't get upset. If you lose your cool, it will make matters worse. † | 82)| In a tight corner| Without any good options. â€Å"Milo has run out of options. If he takes any more chance, he might find himself in a tight corner. † | 83)| A couch potato| A lazy person. â€Å"Luis just watches tv all day. He really is a couch potato. † | 84)| Takes its course| A situation develops naturally. â€Å"There is nothing we can do to relieve the effects of her disease. We can only wait and let the illness take its course. † | 85)| Up the creek| In trouble. â€Å"I warned Bill but he would not listen.Now, he's up the creek. † | 86)| Crocodile tears| Exaggerated or faked sympathy. â€Å"She told me she was sorry but she was not, it was just crocodile tears. † | 87)| When it comes t o the crunch| When there are no more possibilities. â€Å"Victor seems to have a casual point of view. When it comes to the crunch, though, he is a real professional. † | 88)| A far cry from| Very different from. â€Å"His personality is a far cry from his father's. † | 89)| Off-the-cuff| Without research, planning, or considering. â€Å"I haven't had the time to think about it. My off-the-cuff impression, however, is that it is a good idea. | 90)| Can't cut it| Cannot do it. â€Å"Kim shouldn't be working here. She just can't cut it. † | 91)| In the dark| Ignorant. â€Å"They didn't tell me anything. I felt like they had left me in the dark. † | 92)| A shot in the dark| A guess. â€Å"I'm not sure but I could take a shot in the dark. † | 93)| Call it a day| Stop. â€Å"I'm tired. Let's call it a day. † | 94)| Late in the day| (Almost) too late. â€Å"The government just decided to buy new helicopters, but it seems a little late in the day to make such a decision. † | 95)| In broad daylight| Without trying to hide it. â€Å"They robbed the bank in broad daylight. † | 6)| Makes someone's day| Make someone happy. â€Å"Your letter made my day! † | 97)| Wouldn't be caught dead| Would never. â€Å"I hate that dress. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing it. † | 98)| Get a raw deal| Receives less than what is deserved. â€Å"Be sure to read the contract carefully before you sign it. You don't want to get a raw deal. † | 99)| Runs deep| Entrenched, or ingrained. â€Å"He loves his country. Patriotism runs deep in his veins. † | 100)| Out of your depth| Beyond your existing knowledge or ability. You don't seem to have much experience in this subject. Are you sure you're not out of your depth? † | |