Bus 475 Value Alignment

Value Alignment Paper Edleen English BUS/475 March 13, 2013 Carol Sommers Value Alignment Paper This paper analyzes individual values and the organization, HealthCare Synergy, Inc. ’s, values as reflected by their plans and actions. It includes the origin and subsequent evolution of my personal and workplace values. The paper explains how individual values drive actions and behaviors while analyzing the alignment between values and actions and behavior. The paper will demonstrate analysis of the degree of alignment between HealthCare Synergy, Inc. s stated values and their actual plans and actions. It will attempt to explain the differences and analyze the degree of alignment between your values and the organization’s values as reflected by the organization’s plans and actions. Origin of Personal and Workplace Values After careful analysis of the origin of my personal values, I realize a great amount of my values are directly influenced by the upbringing I receiv ed from my parents and other close family members and friends, teachers throughout my education, and maybe even television and movies.Culture, tradition, and social standards helped in nurturing values such as accountability, consistency, commitment, integrity, leadership, and respect to name a few. After considering the origin of my workplace values, I realized these too were in direct correlation with culture, tradition, and social standards learned from personal experiences with people I considered close and valued throughout my life, including previous job positions and employees I’ve worked with in the past.Subsequent evolution of my personal and workplace values have a lot to do with exposure to different cultures, ethnicities, religions, and social and political influences. As my personal and workplace experiences increase, so do my expectations. Actions and Behavior Driven by Individual Values My individual values drive my actions and behavior. Personal morals and val ues add balance and stability to my life and allow me to exist as a well-rounded individual, both in my personal space and my workplace.Without core values such as commitment, dedication, consistency, leadership, loyalty, and respect, it would prove difficult to fit or mold into business settings and adapt to an organization’s business cultures. I analyzed how my personal values alignment with my actions and behavior by predicting the outcome should my values be non-existent. If I display the inability to possess personal qualities employers look for in the workplace- commitment, accountability, loyalty, integrity, leadership, consistency and respect- I will not be trusted or seen as an asset to the company when it comes to achieving their overall goals and objectives.Degree of Alignment: Corporation’s Stated Values Versus Plans and Actions HealthCare Synergy, Inc. prides itself in providing their customers with multiple options for office automation solutions, superio r products and services, and a high level of customer service and technological skill. In order to achieve this, the company must make plans and take the appropriate actions necessary. The company must hire administrative personnel who are versed and knowledgeable in the home health industry.They must also employee software technicians who can fix glitches and trouble shoot software as well as work well with clients and prospects different cultures and ethnicities in order to assist their diverse client base. Medicare billing experts, clinical staff, and a development team are needed in order to keep the software compliant with state and federal health regulations. HealthCare Synergy, Inc. ill not be able to provide superior products and services and high levels of customer support that have kept them in the business for over years without staff who display commitment, dedication, accountability, integrity, consistency, respect, and leadership qualities. Individual Values Versus Cor poration’s Values Based on Plans and Actions To gain market share in the home health industry, HealthCare Synergy, Inc. must set themselves apart from other software vendors by having a competitive advantage. They’re competitive advantage is they not only offer one type of oftware, they offer a variety by working closely with other software vendors who do not mind sharing the market share and developing interfaces. In order for HealthCare Synergy, Inc. to offer these types of tools and automation solutions, they have to work with business people who are also dedicated and committed to doing what it takes to obtain the market share. Networking with the right vendors, working with the right consultants, employing the right technical support, training, marketing, accounting, and development teams is crucial to the company’s success.These individuals will need to display qualities such as loyalty, commitment, dedication, perseverance, accountability, responsibility, integrity, consistency, and leadership outside of knowledge of the industry and how to gain the confidence and trust and cater to the wants and needs of home health agency owners. This paper analyzed my individual values and the organization, HealthCare Synergy, Inc. ’s, values as reflected by my plans and actions and their plans and actions.It includes the origin and subsequent evolution of my personal and workplace values. The paper explained how my individual values have driven my actions and behaviors while analyzing the alignment between values and actions and behaviors of HealthCare Synergy, Inc. The paper also attempted to explain the differences and analyzes the degree of alignment between my values and the organization’s values as reflected by the organization’s plans and actions.

Human and Hazlitt Essay

Prompt: Read the following excerpt from William Hazlitt’s Lectures on the English Comic Writers (1819). Then write a well-developed essay analyzing the author’s purpose by examining tone, point of view, and stylistic devices. William Hazlitt’s purpose in writing this passage was to enlighten the reasons of why with so much tragedy and despair around us we are still able to feel happiness or laugh at a poorly told joke. Hazlitt’s tone is a mixture of condescending and explanation. The passage is written to explain our faults and why we at times express or feel stronger emotions for events, or actions that have some humor. However, at the same time, there is an event or action that is very sad that the emotions produced should be greater, although, they are not. In sight of something of great remorse, we will laugh at something insignificant before we would express remorse. Hazlitt patronizes people in general for laughing at nothing, and for not crying at something tragic. We as humans have the capacity to feel and express strong emotions, both positive and negative, yet we only express the positive emotions, or only allow ourselves to feel the positive emotions. William Hazlitt writes from a neutral point of view, however it is an un-biased neutral point of view. Hazlitt writes as if he is excluded from the human race, as if he is just an observer. It sounds like he removed him-self in order to describe what he saw and observed how people express emotion. By writing the passage from this perspective, he gives the reader the impression that they may be able to achieve a plateau that would allow them to fully feel emotions in a pure manner. Hazlitt’s stylistic devices are clearly recognized and unique, throughout the entire passage he uses hyperbole and overstatement in order to emphasize what he feels. Hazlitt’s purpose was to clearly explain to the reader the oddity of human emotions. To achieve this Hazlitt uses repitition; he repeats the main ideas repeatedly to ensure that the reader will understand his point. In addition to this, Hazlitt also uses a punctuation mark that is rarely seen in lectures today; the exclamation mark. In using this mark he  ads more spice to his writing, it increases the subject’s importance. He persuades the reader that this is a serious subject, and could be the downfall of morality in society. In conclusion, to get his point across Hazlitt uses many different rhetorical strategies in order. The stylistic device he uses makes the readers feel inferior, and in order for them to better themselves, they must recognize their own faults. Hazlitt uses many techniques to inform the reader of the chaotic way in, which a person feels, and expresses emotions.

Management and Organizational Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Management and Organizational Ethics - Essay Example This is ethically right regardless of its costs and consequences. Actually, BBC, (2012) records that, â€Å"Deontological (duty-based) ethics are concerned with what people do, not with the consequences of their actions.† However, this has not been easy for me subject to the temptations resulting from the convenience and money-saving aspect that comes with downloading music from the prohibited websites. Indeed, despite the knowledge of the adverse effects of such unethical behaviors am always under pressure to do it. However, am aware that if I adhere to my responsibility of obliging to the legal proclamation of music copyright owners and consequently buy CDs from legal stores and outlets, that way I would be adding more benefits to the music industry and securing my nation from terrorism (Dan, 2006). Nevertheless, more than often, I find myself collaborating with a crime to infringe on others efforts thus benefiting myself at their expense. Hence, after failing to establish an effective and consistent commitment to ethical behavior, I feel that I should re-evaluate my policy in order to overcome the challenges on my way. Indeed, Hardin (2006) reckons that â€Å"commitment requires action or series of action and will often lead to success.† As such, since my conscience convinces me that what I am doing is ethically wrong despite the inherent benefits that I derive from it, I must, therefore, redefine my policy to ensure that I strictly abide with the set rules governing the music industry. Most importantly, I know that peer pressure affects my pursuit in this endeavor since all my friends feel nothing about this unethical behavior (Dordrecht, 1992; Arrington, 2009). As such, for me to succeed I must change my friends or at least avoid them during leisure times and holidays. This will reduce the pressure to download such music as my friends usually do it as a hobby.

MANAGING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 1

MANAGING - Essay Example In his works, Foucalt has focused on five major topics, including the following: discourse, power/knowledge, de-centered human subject, body, and micro-politics (Izac, 2014). This paper focuses on the topic of power and knowledge, and analyses how Foucault s view on power and discipline explains the managerial work and management power/roles. Among a wide range of subjects and topics covered in the Foucault’s work, there are three central concerns expressed by the author: power, knowledge, and subjectivity (Townley, 1993). Power is viewed by Foucault as a commodity, which is embodied either in a person, structure, or institution and is held or possessed for achieving individual and/or organizational purposes (Townley, 1993). As Foucault (1981:94) explained, â€Å"power is not something that is acquired, seized, or shared, something one holds on to or allows to slip away†¦rather power is relational; it becomes apparent when it is exercised† (Townley, 1993: 520). This definition gives more insight on how Foucault views power. Moreover, Foucault views power and knowledge as two inseparable and interrelated elements (Izac, 2014). He has coined a term â€Å"power-knowledge† as power and knowledge directly imply one another, whereas power produces knowledge, and knowledge produces power. In Foucault’s point of view, â€Å"knowledge is power† as knowledge provides someone with the power and capability to control, manage and change the socio-political order (Izac, 2014; Foucault, 1980). Furthermore, Foucault explains how organisations and institutions, possessing power impose discipline by defining, creating, normalizing and enforcing knowledge and truth in human society (Izac, 2014). Thus, power attained and supported through knowledge produces our reality, dictates our behaviour, and creates our beliefs about the truth (Foucault 1991, cited in Izac, 2014). In this case, knowledge presupposes and constitute power relations at the

The Major Principles of The U.S. Constitution Essay

The Major Principles of The U.S. Constitution - Essay Example Republicanism means that the country of American does not have a direct democratic government and the country gives the right to the citizens to select a representative to govern their country. 2) Popular Sovereignty: In the U.S, the power of the government is directly related to people and hence, the legislative branch of the government is consisted of representatives selected by the people. Moreover, the legislative branch is the one which formulates law that governs the country. Simmons (2010) explains that â€Å"We the people†¦Ã¢â‚¬  the first three words of the preamble to the Constitution describes the essence of popular sovereignty†. 3) Federalism: Federalism is the major principle that divides the power between federal government and central government. This principle has a strong stand in US constitution as it gives a strong foundation to the central government. A country without a powerful central government often turns out to be delicate and weak. However, Federalism maintains the power of the central government and the state government which is essential for the country. limits of government. This is done to avoid the centralization of power in any one branch or government body. According to Simmons (2010)â€Å"The United States has three branches of government; legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislative branch is responsible for making laws while the executive branch carries out the law, and the judicial branch interprets the law†. 5) Checks and Balances: This is one principle which is highly connected to the separation of powers. As per this principle the three different branches of the U.S.government possess the right to check each other’s powers as and when needed. As per Mount (2010)â€Å" In this system, several branches of government are created and power is shared between them. At the same time, the powers of one branch can be challenged by another branch. This is what the

Business Process Management in Systems Integration Literature review

Business Process Management in Systems Integration - Literature review Example Actually, business process management is a division of infrastructure management, which is a managerial field aimed at maintaining and enhancing a company’s equipment and fundamental tasks (TechTarget, 2005), (Orbis Software Ltd., 2011) and (KnowledgeHills, 2011). This will discuss some of the important aspects of business process management and its role in system integration. Business Systems Integration Various researches conducted by industry analysts revealed that companies are investing 20% to 30% of their IT budget in integrating systems and applications, while they would need to suppose that the systems they spend in are interoperable. However, the circumstances are hard to defend and customers are trying to clarifying this point to their business and systems integration partners. On the other hand, with the passage of time, the process of systems integration is becoming more and more difficult. Additionally, the client’s integration developments at the present t urn into the value chain, which result in n-factorial positions of integration between applications owned by various corporations. Moreover, majority of businesses at the present do not depend completely on a single application image, for instance ERP. In this scenario, the integration projects expand over legacy systems, already available ERP and new purchases (Smith, 2002). Types of BPM At the present, there exist 3 different kinds of BPM frameworks marketplace. In this scenario, first one is horizontal frameworks, which focuses on design and development of business procedures and normally pay more attention on technology and reuse. Second type is vertical BPM arrangements, which focus on a precise group of synchronized jobs as well as include pre-built templates that could be configured and organized according to business needs and requirements. Lastly, the full-service BPM arrangements encompass five fundamental components that are outlined below: (TechTarget, 2005), (Businessba lls, 2009) and (Owen & Raj, 2011) Process discovery and project scoping Process modeling and design Business rules engine Workflow engine Simulation and testing Furthermore, more and more businesses are now adopting on-premise business process management (BPM) as a standard, since progresses in cloud computing have directed to augmented interest in on-demand, software as a service (SaaS) based capabilities and services (TechTarget, 2005). Business process management in Systems integration Enterprise System Integration (ESI) is the standard long-lasting development, merger and incorporation of a lot of advanced computing science, enterprise-wide management and networking fields comprising enterprise application integration, electronic business process management, self-defining meta-data repository, (information sharing and disambiguation), enterprise architecture, etc. In addition, enterprise system integration identifies and helps get rid of following main factors that are outlined below: (Hartweg, 2007) Unnecessary redundancy Duplication of effort Reinventing the wheel Moreover, it also helps reduce the mismatched and unrelated enterprise elements all through the isolated compartmentalized departments that are short of coordination of procedures or systems, through independent development and maintenance budgets (Hartweg, 2007). Use of Process Automation Sometimes processes are considered as a new development model that can eventually move the object

Conglomerate Mergers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Conglomerate Mergers - Essay Example It is rare indeed for such mergers to lead any substantial reduction in competition, solely due to the conglomerate effect. In a few cases, especially if the products acquired, complement the acquirer's own products, "potentially adverse effects can be identified related to so-called 'portfolio power'"2. These are mergers between complementary products, neighbouring products, and unrelated products. A "pure" conglomerate merger involves the acquisition of products that are not related on the demand or supply side. It is a merger in which there is neither horizontal, vertical, complementary nor neighbourhood relationship between the products. Conglomerate mergers involve portfolio power. When the combined market power of a portfolio of brands exceeds the market power of the sum of its parts, a firm is said to have portfolio power. This enables the firm to significantly reduce the competition, as its exercise of market power in the individual markets is much more effective. Portfolio effects could possibly have anti-competitive effects, especially where they affect the structure of the market directly. This increases the possibility of entry preventing strategies and eliminates the competitive restrictions brought to bear upon it by neighbouring markets3. Frequently, customers get an incentive in the form of reduced transaction costs by purchasing from the portfolio of one supplier, where the supplier's firm has many brands under its control due to a conglomerate merger; this is the effect on market structure of conglomerate mergers. If the non - portfolio competitors or competitors who control a few brands do not impose an effective competitive restriction on a firm which has portfolio power, then competition may be reduced to a large extent4. Large conglomerates will usually encourage customers to purchase a range of their products and the result of a conglomerate merger may be that tying or bundling occurs if complementary goods are sold by such firm. This may have adverse effects on competition. Sometimes the predatory behaviour of a conglomerate merger may be feasible when the competition is confined to a small area, thereby enabling firms to face a competitive threat in respect of a few brands or in a few geographic markets at point of time.5 Finally, conglomerate mergers usually facilitate coordination if the merged firm's opponents in one market are also contenders in some of its other markets6. In the case Tetra Laval v. Commission, The European Commission gave a ruling whereby it prohibited the merger of Sidel SA and Tetra Laval BV. Sidel was a manufacturer of stretch blow moulding machines used for packaging liquid foods in plastic. Tetra was a dominant company in the carton-packaging market operating through a related company. Although conglomerate mergers, similar to this one are usually neutral in respect of the competitive aspect, the European Commission was of the opinion that this merger would only serve to enhance Tetra's leverage as in respect of its dominant position in the carton-packaging market. It further, held that this would serve to influence customers using plastic packaging to buy Sidel's machines, thereby foreclosing smaller competitors from the market for those machines. The parties to this merger offered to address the Commission's concerns by entering into certain binding commitments that would preclude the merged entity from engaging in anticompetitive conduct. The

Digital Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Digital Economy - Essay Example The paper tells that the use of search engines for e-commerce and digital economy is one which is congruent with specific associations with how individuals respond to Internet use. There are hundreds of search engines which are available, all which are able to categorize and define the specific concepts of websites that are developed. The categorization that takes effect occurs through an algorithm that consists of traffic, keywords and links that are associated with a website. If a website has a strong association with these links, then there is the ability to create a direct connection with higher search engine ranking results. The top search engines used include Google, Yahoo and MSN, all which have over 85% of users that are using the areas to find businesses and e-commerce. For businesses to gain online recognition is also the need to have search engine rankings that make it easier for consumers to find and which add as a gateway for the search engine development which is associ ated with e-commerce. The agenda which businesses are required to find is to find ways to persuade search engines so ranking is increased and development of the search engines is more effective with specific needs. The use of search engines, while creating easier placement and recognition for consumers, is one which also consists of dynamic changes that alter with the placement of search engines. Businesses that are using search engines are required to look at the dynamics and alterations which continue to fluctuate with businesses while understanding a specific way to create and develop relationships to search engines that lead to higher results. An example of this is with tourist destinations in which travelers are directed to an e-commerce portal for the booking of tickets and other alternatives. The main approach is one which is inclusive of synthesizing the information that is available online combined with continuously maintaining the dynamics that are a part of the search eng ines. The dynamics correlate with the newer information which is required for specific destinations and how this alters the placement and information which is placed on search engines. The use of search engines and the gateways used by businesses then become based not only on the basic placement but also working with the dynamic structure of evolving information that is online to create the best responses from search engine rankings and expected results (Pan et al, 2010: 365). Growth of Search Engines for Online Business The amount of Internet access which individuals have is continuing to grow each year and is dominating the market with those who are interested in accessing information and different businesses. Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the UK are leading the online business trends with over 90% of individuals which have the Internet and regularly access

Does the amout of Solution effect the Crystalization of Copper Sulfate Research Paper

Does the amout of Solution effect the Crystalization of Copper Sulfate - Research Paper Example The experiment requires the following; Boiling tube, thermometer, Source of heat and 8.5g of CuSO4 Procedurally, transfer 8.5g of CuSO4 into a dry clean beaker. To the boiling tube, add distilled 20cm3 water and warm the mixture until all the solid has dissolved. Place the thermometer in the boiling tube and remove the flame and allow the solution to cool while stirring with the thermometer. Note the temperature at which crystals appears. Add 6cm3 distilled water into the mixture in the boiling tube and repeat the procedure. Continue adding 6cm3 portions of distilled water until the total volume of water is 50cm3. Record the temperature at which crystals appear in each case. It’s noted that is noted that crystal appear faster, in the beaker that is highly concentrated than those that are highly diluted. A solid that dissolves in a solvent is a solute. Solvent of a given mass dissolves a fixed amount of a given solute at a particular temperature. The fixed amount of solute form s a saturated solution at that particular temperature. ... When temperature increases more solute dissolves because of the increase in molecular energy of water molecules that increases the interaction of water and solute particle (Giulietti, 1996) However, the amount of solution does not either increase or decrease the rate of crystallization. This is because volume is a constant and has no effect on the rate of crystallization. The rate of crystallization varies when the temperature and concentration of the solution are altered. When the concentration is decreased the capacity to hold on water molecules is increased because of large surface area of intermolecular spaces between water molecules. This is therefore increases the capacity of water molecules to hold the solute thereby decreasing the rate at which crystals form from a cooling solution. However, when the solute concentration of the solution is increased, the capacity of liquid molecules to hold solutes decreases because of reduced intermolecular spaces. This therefore increases t he ease with which crystals reform from the solution thereby increasing the rate of crystallization. A crystal formed consists of the various atoms or molecules arranged in a uniform repeating pattern based on its unique shape. This results in the material having a specific shape and color, and having other characteristic properties. Crystals may be big or little, but they all have the same "shape" Water can only hold a certain amount of solute at a given temperature. When the temperature of the solution is increased, the capacity of water to hold solids substance is increased than cold water because increased energy, making room for more solid substance to dissolve. When no more of the solid substance can be dissolved, the solution termed as saturated. As the solution

The Case of Coca Cola Gaining a Stake in Innocent Drinks Assignment

The Case of Coca Cola Gaining a Stake in Innocent Drinks - Assignment Example The management body of Innocent however confided that in terms of consumer responsibility they would remain the same in terms of generating natural and healthy products to the consumers while rendering valuable information as to the contents on the product packages and also working in terms of rendering charitable funds. They further mentioned that gaining of funds through the selling of a certain portion of the company’s stake would contribute in enhancing the potential of the concern to fulfill responsibilities related to the consumers and the society in general (Sweney, 2009). Evaluation of the Selling Activity of Innocent’s Stake to Coca Cola The evaluation of the impact of the corporate sell out of Innocent’s Stake to Coca Cola on Innocent’s own image can be made based along certain views and ideologies related to marketing and consumer philosophy. Firstly it needs to be understood that the current age of consumption does not only relate to customer s atisfaction at the subsistence level. Rather it tends to stream out from the level of subsistence to the level of maximization of consumer benefits and other parameters related to leisure, comfort and luxury. This era of change in consumer’s demand patterns has greatly emerged owing to the abundance of resources not only relate to the physical and economic level but where such resources relate to the sociological and cultural triggers that in turn is governing the changes in consumption ideologies. This era of abundance in terms of psychological, sociological and physical resources has also led the consumers to gain a breakthrough from the traditional notions where a move to gain luxurious and comfortable products was taken on an erroneous note. Changes in the economic and societal lifestyle of the consumers act as potential triggers in making them gain interest in new product categories that would help them gain new taste and rise along their social status (Lazer, 1969, p.8) . The case of selling of Innocent’s Stake to Coca Cola relating to the above discussion holds a positive outlook for it would assist Innocent in enhancing its brand and product portfolio. Enhancement of the product portfolio of the juice and smoothie manufacturer would in turn assist the company in penetrating a larger consumer base in the existing markets. Further in addition to gaining funds the above decision of Innocent would largely contribute in its market development activities in foreign markets relating to European regions. Consumers of Innocent through the above change would also gain the chance of earning a taste of other beverages from under the same brand umbrella. The management body of Innocent in the light of selling of a certain portion of the company’s stake to Coca Cola also worked largely in the dimension of public relation activities to help in enhancing and sustaining a positive relationship base with the consumer sphere. Richard Reed, Co-Founder of Innocent through public relation activities tended to reassure the consumers that in spite of the sell-off of the company’s stake every other thing related to product attributes, packaging and

Individual Constitution and Systems of the State Essay Example for Free

Individual Constitution and Systems of the State Essay During the time when the state’s first declared their independence from Great Britain there was an enormous demand for a balance in power. However, the establishment of such posed to be no easy task for our founding fathers. Originally the new state’s constitutions foundation was based off the thirteen colonial charters (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p56). Which was modified a short while later, as the colonies were expanded, to include the â€Å"rights of Englishmen† (Bowman Kearney 2011, p. 56). According to Bowman Kearney (2011), â€Å"All state constitutions both distribute and constrain political power among groups and regions† (p. 55). In that such provide the basic and key components for government to allow for an even distribution of power for the three branches, while offering protection for individual rights. â€Å"Constitutions represent the fundamental law of a state, superior to statutory law. Only the federal Constitution and federal statutes take priority over state constitutions† (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p. 55). Over the course of many years the state’s constitutions have been slowly amended to meet the needs of a growing governmental body. The current Texas constitution was created in 1876 and is composed of a preamble followed by 17 articles, â€Å"to include Bill of Rights, Legislative Department, Executive Department, and Judicial Department† (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). Article I of the Texas constitution is the Bill of Rights. It is in this article that individual rights are outlined for citizens in which the government cannot overlook under any given circumstance. Upon reading the Texas Constitution, the impression is given that religious freedom and for no man to be unjustly persecuted by the hand of the government pose to be the most important feature detailed in the Bill of Rights. Just like the United States Constitution there are limitations to the freedoms being granted in this portion of the Texas document (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). In replica of the United Stated Constitution, state level constitutions are sculpted after the federal government in which it delegates power throughout three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p.27). Article III of the Texas Constitution writes the legislative department; section 1 states that, â€Å"The legislative power of this State  shall be vested in a Senate and House of Representatives, which together shall be styled The Legislature of the State of Texas (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). Sections 2 through 7 details the composition of the legislative department to include the House of Representatives and the Senate and also stat es the qualifications for such positions. The Senate entails thirty-one members and is prohibited to exceed such limit. The House of Representatives is comprised â€Å"of 93 members until the first apportionment† (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013) then it may increase by ratio not to exceed 1 representative per 15,000 inhabitants. However the numbers are to never surpass 150 members. The remainder sections write the limitations of the legislature power, details processes, and conditions the expectations in regards to the conduct of each official (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). In the State of Texas, the Legislative Branch is granted the most powers in writing. One can find supporting evidence to the fact after a complete examination is done of this document. A conclusion can be drawn that as a result of all powers given, this branch is able to have a limited amount of regulation over the other two branches of government. Also, it is here that bills of law are p assed to ensure the necessary provisions stated in other articles are upheld. The power of the executive branch is amalgamated from the office of the governor (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p. 68). Historically, the executive branch held increasingly more power and stature resulting from constitutional amendments allowing for governors to be elected by popular vote. (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p. 59). Such unbalance in power eventually led to the people giving governors higher authority to veto legislative bills and granted longer terms. This trend continued through the early 1800s, 1830s and 1840s however, somewhat ended during the Jacksonian Era due to â€Å"the Jacksonian principle of popular elections to fill most government offices resulted in a fragmented state executive branch.† (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p. 59). Within the Texas Constitution the executive branch powers can be found in Article IV, â€Å"The Executive Department† (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). The Executive Department must contain â€Å"a governor, lieutenant-governor, secretary of  State, comptroller of public accounts, trea surer, commissioner of the land of office and attorney general† (Ericson Wallace, 2010). Throughout the remainder of the article, elaboration of the rights and responsibilities of each member is outlined (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). The Judicial Branch power is bestowed in a supreme court, courts of appeal, district courts, and various other courts as authorized by the state’s constitution. Usually the state’s judicial branch is headed by the state Supreme Court who tries cases from courts of lower levels (Bowman Kearney, 2011, p.68). Article V from the Texas Constitution includes the powers of the Judicial Department to be vested in â€Å"one Supreme Court, in a Court of Appeals, in District Courts, in County Courts, in Commissioners Courts, in Courts of Justices of the Peace, and in such other courts and may be established by law† (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). The head of the Supreme Court is governed by a chief justice and two associate justices. With further reading, the rules and regulations for the court justices and order of operations can be found written in the sections of this article (The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research, 2013). In conclusion, many amendments have been made to reflect the needs of a growing population all through history. Conferring with Bowman Kearney (2011), â€Å"constitutional revision must be an ongoing process if the states are to cope with the changing contours of American society and stay in the vanguard of innovation and change† (p.70). In addition, meeting the need of such a vastly growing entity can be a difficult mission. Original limitations set forth by previous documents have been altered to reflect an even distribution of power and added protections for individuals. Due to the Texas constitution’s length of 63,000 plus words it is seen as one of the most verbose document of other states. According to Joe E. Ericson and Ernest Wallace, â€Å"Its wealth of detail causes it to resemble a code of laws rather than a constitution. Its many requirements and limitations on both state and local governments make it one of the most restrictive among state constitutions† (Ericson Wallace, 2010). References Bowman, A. O., Kearney, R. (2001). Sate and Local Government (8th edition). Boston, MA: Cengage Ericson, J. E., Wallace, E. (2010, June 12). Constitution of 1876. Retrieved April 12, 2014, from Handbook of Texas Online: https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/mhc07 The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research. (2013). Texas Constitutions 1824-1876. Retrieved April 12, 2014, from Rare Books and Special Collections: http://tarlton.law.utexas.edu/constitutions/texas1876/a1 The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research. (2013). Texas Constitutions 1824-1876. Retrieved April 12, 2014, from Rare Books and Special Collections: http://tarlton.law.utexas.edu/constitutions/texas1876/a5 The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research. (2013). Texas Constitutions 1824-1876. Retrieved April 12, 2014, from Rare Books and Special Collections: http://tarlton.law.utexas.edu/constitutions/texas1876/a4 The University of Texas School of Law: Tarlton Law Library: Jamail Center for Legal Research. (2013). Texas Constitutions 1824-1876. Retrieved April 12, 2014, from Rare Books and Special Collections: http://tarlton.law.utexas.edu/constitutions/texas1876/a3

Astrology and Pagan Symbolism in Christianity

Astrology and Pagan Symbolism in Christianity Astrology and Pagan Symbolism in Christianity First of all we shall start the definitions of the key words as used in the research question. Astrology can be defined as the study of how events on earth correspond to the positions and movements of astronomical bodies which are the moon, sun, planets and the stars. Paganism in general is a term for the ancient and modern religions which identify nature as the body of the divine e.g. Taoism is the paganism of China, Hinduism is the Paganism of India, Shinto the paganism of Japan and Santeria, Voudon Macumba are the paganisms of the African Diaspora; etc On the other hand symbolism is the applied use of symbols i.e iconic representations that carry particular conventional meanings. Symbolism also refers to a way of choosing representative symbols that are in line with the abstract rather than literal properties, allowing for the broader interpretation of a carried meaning than more literal concept-representations can allow. A religion can be described as a language of concepts related to human spirituality. Symbolism hence is an important aspect of most religions. Christianity is the monotheistic system of beliefs and practices that are based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and that emphasizes the role of Jesus as savior and Christ. Discussion Zodiac is one of the oldest conceptual images in human history. It reflects the sun as it figuratively passes through the 12 major constellations over the course of a year. It also reflects the 12 months of the year, the 4 seasons, and the solstices and equinoxes. The term Zodiac relates to the fact that constellations were anthropomorphized, or personified, as figures, or animals. Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary on December 25th/a> in Bethlehem, his birth was symbolized by a star in the east which three kings or magi followed to locate and adorn the new savior. He was a child teacher at age 12 and at the age of 30 he was baptized by John the Baptist, and thus began the ministry. Jesus had 12 disciples whom he traveled about with performing miracles such as healing the sick, raising the dead, walking on water, he was also known as the King of Kings, the Son of God, the Light of the World, the Alpha and Omega, the Lamb of God e.g. After being betrayed by Judas his disciple and sold for 30 pieces of silver, he was crucified, placed in a tomb and after 3 days resurrected and ascended to Heaven. The birth sequence of Jesus is completely astrological. The star in the east is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky at night, which on December 24th aligns with the three brightest stars in Orions Belt. These three bright stars are referred today what they were called in ancient times, The Three Kings. The Three Kings and the brightest star Sirius, all point to the place of the sunrise on December 25th. This is why the Three Kings follow the star in the east, in order to locate the sunrise or the birth of the sun. Virgin Mary is the constellation Virgo, also known as the Virgo the Virgin which in Latin means virgin. The ancient glyph for Virgo is the altered m. This is why Mary with other virgin mothers, such as Adoniss mother Myrrha and Buddhas mother Maya begin with an M. Virgo is also referred to as the House of Bread, and the represents of virgin holding a sheaf of wheat. The House of Bread and its symbol of wheat represent August and September, the time of harvest. In turn, Bethlehem literally translates to house of bread. Bethlehem therefore refers to the constellation Virgo, a place in the sky, not on Earth. Another very interesting phenomenon that occurs around December 25th is that from the summer solstice to the winter solstice, the days become shorter and colder. From the northern hemisphere perspective, the sun appears to move south gets smaller and more scarce. The shortening of days and the expiration of the crops when approaching the winter solstice symbolizes the process of death to the ancients. By December 22nd, the Suns demise was fully realized, for the Sun having moved south continually for 6 months, makes it to its lowest point in the sky. And here a curious thing occurs, the Sun stops moving south, at least for 3 days. In the three day pause, the Sun stays in the vicinity of the Southern Cross, or Crux, the constellation. After this time on December 25th, the Sun moves 1 degree, this time north, foreshadowing longer days, spring and warmth. And thus it was said, the Sun died on the cross, was dead for 3 days, only to be resurrected or born again. This is why Jesus and num erous other Sun Gods share the crucifixion, 3 day death, and resurrection concept. It’s the Suns transition period before it shifts its direction back towards the Northern Hemisphere bringing spring and thus salvation. However, they didn’t celebrate the resurrection of the Sun until the spring equinox, or Easter. This is because at the spring equinox, the Sun officially overpowers the evil darkness, as daytime thereafter becomes longer in duration than night, and the revitalizing conditions of spring emerge. Therefore the obvious astrological symbolism around Jesus regards the 12 disciples. They are simply the 12 constellations of the Zodiac, which Jesus, being the Sun, travels about with. In fact, the number 12 is seen more often throughout the Bible which has more to do with astrology than anything else. Looking at the cross of the Zodiac, the figurative life of the Sun, this was not an artistic expression or tool to track the Suns movements. It is a Pagan adaptation of the cross of the Zodiac. That is why Jesus in early occult art is shown with his head on the cross the Sun of God, the Light of the World, the Risen Savior, who will come again, as it is every morning, the Glory of God who battles against the works of darkness, as he is born again every morning, and can be seen coming in the clouds, up in Heaven, with his Crown of Thorns, or, sun rays. Now, of the many astrological-astronomical metaphors in the Bible, the most important has to do with the ages. In the scriptures there are numerous references ‘Age’. To understand this, we need to familiarize with the phenomenon called the precession of the equinoxes. Ancient Egyptians along with cultures long before them recognized that approximately for every 2150 years the sunrise on the morning of the spring equinox would occur at a different sign of the Zodiac. This is concerned with the slow angular wobble that the Earth maintains as it rotates on its axis. It’s called a precession because the constellations go backwards, rather than through the normal annual cycle. The time that it takes for the precession to go through all 12 signs is roughly 25 to 765 years. This is also called the Great Year, and ancient societies were very aware of this. Each 2150 year period was called an age. From 4300 b.c. to 2150 b.c., it was called the Age of Taurus, the Bull. From 2150 b.c. to 1 a.d., it was called the Age of Aries, the Ram, and from 1 a.d. to 2150 a.d. it was called the Age of Pisces, the age we are still in to date, and in and around 2150, we shall enter the new age called the Age of Aquarius. The Bible reflects a symbolic movement through 3 ages, while foreshadowing a 4th. In the Old Testament when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the 10 Commandments, he was very upset to see his people worshiping a golden bull calf. He reacted by shattering the stone tablets and instructing his people to kill each other in order to purify themselves. I would attribute this anger to the fact that the Israelites were worshiping a false idol or something to that effect. The fact is that the golden bull is Taurus the Bull, and Moses represents the new Age of Aries the Ram. That is why Jews even today still blow the Rams horn. Moses represents the new Age of Aries, and upon the new age, everyone should shed the old age. Other deities mark these transitions as well, a pre-Christian god who kills the bull, in the same symbol. Jesus is the figure who ushers in the age following Aries, the Age of Pisces the two Fish. Fish symbolism is very repetitive in the New Testament. Jesus fed 5000 people with bread and 2 fish. When he began his ministry walking along Galilee, he befriends 2 fishermen, who followed him. I have seen Jesus-fish on the backs of peoples cars. Yet they do not know what it actually means. It is a Pagan astrological symbolism for the Suns Kingdom during the Age of Pisces. Also, Jesus assumed birth date is essentially the start of this age. In Luke 22:10 when Jesus is asked by his disciples where the next Passover will be, Jesus replied ‘Behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you bearing a pitcher of water follow him into the house where he entereth in.’ this scripture is one of the most revealing of all the astrological references. The man carrying a pitcher of water is Aquarius, the water bearer, who is always seen as a man pouring out a pitcher of water. He represents the age after Pisces, and when the Sun leaves the Age of Pisces (Jesus), it will go into the House of Aquarius, as Aquarius follows Pisces in the precession of the equinoxes. Also what Jesus is that after the Age of Pisces will come the Age of Aquarius. We have all heard about the end times and the end of the world. Apart from the depictions in the Book of Revelation, the main source of this idea comes from Matthew 28:20, where Jesus says ‘I will be with you even to the end of the world.’ Otherwise, in King James Version, ‘the world’ is a mistranslation, among many mistranslations. The actual word being used is aeon, which means ‘age.’ ‘I will be with you even to the end of the age.’ Which is true, as Jesus Solar Piscean representation will end when the Sun enters the Age of Aquarius. The entire concept of end times and the end of the world is a misinterpreted astrological allegation. Lets tell that to the approximately 100 million people in America who believe the end of the world is coming. Furthermore, Jesus character, a literary and astrological hybrid, is most explicitly similar to the Egyptian Sun god Horus e.g., inscribed about 3500 years ago on the walls of the Temple of Luxor in Egypt are images of the enunciation of the immaculate conception, the birth, and the adoration of Horus. The images begin with Thaw announcing to the virgin Isis that she will conceive Horus, then Nef the holy ghost shall impregnant the virgin Isis, and then the virgin birth and the adoration. This exactly entails Jesus’ miracle conception. In fact, the literary similarities between the Egyptian religion and the Christian religion are staggering. The plagiarism is continuous. The story of Noah and the Ark is taken directly from the traditions. The concept of a Great Flood is common throughout the ancient world, with over 200 different cited claims in different periods and times. However, one needs look no further for a pre-Christian source than the Epic of Gilgamesh, written in 2600 b.c. In this story is told of a Great Flood commanded by God, an Ark with saved animals on it, and even the release and return of a dove, all held in common with the biblical story, among many other similar occurrences. Then there is the plagiarized story of Moses. Upon Moses birth, it is said that he was placed in a reed basket and set adrift in a river in order to avoid infanticide. He was later rescued by a daughter of a king and raised by her as a Prince. This baby in a basket story was lifted directly from the myth of Sargon of Akkad of around 2250 b.c. Sargon was born, placed in a reed basket in order to avoid infanticide, and set adrift in a river. He was in turn rescued and raised by Akki, a royal mid-wife. Furthermore, Moses is known as the giver of the Ten Commandments. However, the idea of a Law being passed from God to a prophet on a mountain is also a very old motif. Moses is just a law giver in a series of law givers in mythological history. In India, Manou was the great law giver. In Crete, Minos ascended Mount Dicta, where Zeus gave him the sacred laws. While in Egypt there was Mises, who carried stone tablets and upon them the laws of god were written. The Ten Commandments are taken outright from Spell 125 of the Egyptian Book of the Dead. What the Book of the Dead phrased I have not killed Thou shall not kill, I have not told lies became Thou shall not bear false witness I have not stolen became Thou shall not steal,† and so forth. In fact, the Egyptian religion is likely the primary foundational basis for the Judeo-Christian theology. Baptism, afterlife, final judgment, virgin birth and resurrection, crucifixion, the Ark of the Covenant, circumcision, saviors, Holy Communion, the great flood, Easter, Christmas, Passover, and many more, are all attributes of Egyptian ideas, long predating Christianity and Judaism. Justin Martyr, one of the first Christian historians and defenders, said: When we say that Jesus Christ, our teacher, was produced without sexual union, was crucified and died, and rose again, and ascended into Heaven, we propound nothing different from what you believe regarding those who you esteem Sons of Jupiter. In a different writing, Justin Martyr said He was born of a virgin; accept this in similarity with what you believe of Perseus. Its quite obvious that Justin and other early Christians knew how similar Christianity was to the Pagan religions and practices. However, Justin had a solution, as far as he was concerned, the Devil did it. The Devil had the foresight to come before Christ, and create these characteristics in the Pagan world. The Bible is just but an astro-theological literary fold hybrid, just like nearly all religious myths before it. In fact, the aspect of transference, of one characters attributes to a new character, can be found within the bible itself. In the Old Testament theres the story of Joseph. Joseph was a prototype for Jesus. Joseph was born of a miracle birth; Jesus was born of a miracle birth. Joseph was of 12 brothers, Jesus had 12 disciples. Joseph was sold for 20 pieces of silver; Jesus was sold for 30 pieces of silver. Brother Judah suggests the sale of Joseph, disciple Judas suggests the sale of Jesus. Joseph began his work at the age of 30; Jesus began his work at the age of 30. The parallels go on and on. At the time of Jesus, the Mediterranean world was ruled by the Roman Empire. The Romans were pagans, who had their own gods namely; Jupiter, Venus, Mercury and so on. The names of these gods have survived to date in the names of the planets, the days of the week, names of months and general linguistic usage. The other cultures in the area also had their own gods and goddesses, who corresponded more or less to the Roman pantheon. Greek was the language of culture in the Middle East; the main centre was Alexandria in Egypt and the Roman world was one in which trade and religion passed rapidly between the cities and towns along the marvello. Celebrating the Solstice was forbidden by the Church, but many customs survived anyway. In the 4th Century, Pope Julius I declared that 25th December was Jesus birthday and so celebrations were in order. This effectively transformed the Pagan occasion into a Christian holy day (holiday). This was not, however, merely a convenient way to Christianize a Pagan celebration. There is no historical evidence to prove what date Jesus was born on, or the season, or even the year. But after many years of calculation, contemplation and argument, 25th December was assigned. And since the why is more important than the when, that date has been good enough for Christians ever since. Conclusion Paganism has a wider influence on our lives than we might care to think. Take for example, the simple wedding ring. This has profound Pagan origins yet is considered an essential part of the wedding ceremony by many Christians. Overemphasizing the relevance and importance of religious symbols can lead to conflict. Consider the tensions that rose in France during 2004/5, following the banning of Muslim headscarves, Sikh turbans, Jewish skullcaps, large Christian crucifixes, and other conspicuous religious symbols that dont blend into secular state schools5. The headscarf issue resulted in just a handful of school expulsions but more damagingly generated ill-feeling, divided the country and achieved nothing positive. Paganism has had a wide influence on Christianity given the many examples of rites and regalia that support this assertion. And this raises the question: So what? Christians should be cautious about condemning practices as Pagan, just because of their origins. The origins may be interesting, but not so important. What is really important, however, is what we do with these things. References: J. G. Frazer (1993) The Golden Bough, Macmillan Co. Ltd, London R. Graves (1961) the white Goddess, Faber Faber, London A. His lop: (1990) The Two Babylon’s, Loizeaux Brothers; 2nd edition. M. D. Magee Sun Gods as Atoning Saviors an online resource investigating the origins of Christian and Jewish teachings Strabo:( 1982) The Geography of Strabo, Loeb Classical Library Tertullian:( 870) Adversus Judaeos, trans. Rev. S. Thelwall, 1870 B. G. Walker 🙠 1983) the Womans Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, Harper Row, NY

An analysis of eBay

An analysis of eBay INTRODUCTION 1.eBay is known all over the world as the leading online Marketplace (TM) which came in to life in 1995,eBay Inc, was founded by Pierre M. Omidyarand its headquartered in San Jose, California, TM (2002). eBay created a special platform for the sales of goods and services by a passionate village of individuals and business. On days there are millions of items across thousand of categories for sale on eBay just like Half.com, eBays site dedicated to fixed price trading. eBay allows trade on a Local, National and International basis, with customize site in marketing all over the world. eBay, together with its sub-visions, bring online marketplaces for the sale of goods and services, online payment services, and online communication offerings to a diverse community of individual and business in the USA and Internationally. The company operates in three Intentions: eBay Marketplace, Payments, and Communications. The eBay Marketplaces: This platform provides infrastructure to enable online commerce in a variety of formats, including the traditional auction platform; and its other online platforms, such as Rent.com, Shopping.com, Kijiji, mobile.de, and Marktplaats.nl. Its services include trust and safety programs, reply forum, safe chanel program, eBay standard purchase protection program, customer support, tools and services. The Payments segment: Feeds a product for small businesses, online sellers, and individuals that enables them to send and receive payments online. Its services include joining the network, crosscheck of its PayPals account holders, withdrawing funds. The Communications segment: provide voice over Internet protocol calls between Skype subscribers, also provides connectivity to traditional fixed-line and handheld telephones. The company also provide online apartment rental services and comparison shopping resource service, as well as provides an Internet payment platform that allows merchants to process, and manage online payments. 2. MISSION STATEMENT OBJECTIVE eBay pioneers communities built on commerce, sustained by trust, and inspired by opportunity. eBay brings together millions of people every day on a local, national and international basis through variety of websites that focus on commerce, payments and communication. This has also help the company in various ways between their numerous customers worldwide. They have engaged in the method stated below. A Place to Buy. You can get almost anything item you need or want at very low deal better than you can find at any traditional brick and mortar, even online stores. But caution should be taken because of rotten or fake items deals on eBay. A Place to Sell. No matter the size of our product or services, eBay has various categories channels to sell items. eBays global reach can even move unusual items that are not in demand in our own neighborhood in to cash. A Place to Shop. Large variety of items can be found for sale on eBay, many members have discovered that eBay is one of the best place in the world to window or comparison shop. These items include photos, detailed descriptions, and owner experiences. Because you see lots of the same items side by side in various conditions and know what each one sold or selling for, eBay gives you insight into the real market value of most types of goods around the globe. A Website:With no physical building eBay store, Founded in San Jose but now carry out daily activities from various cities, eBays service exist basically online apart from the delivery of bought and sold items every other network of the business are handled through eBay website. Socially Responsible: eBay with its B2C way of handling business has lower the barriers to buying and selling, these bring a massive global awareness to it business. It also fosters new economic opportunities to developing areas and brings cultural understanding between different populations. This has made eBay one of the worlds most interesting and exciting trans-national ambassadors. 3.THE IMPACT OF DIGITAL MEDIA ON EBAY eBay is a cutting edge in commence by selling almost everything be it of what nature with its presence in every corners of the globe with no physical store, with limited staffs but satisfy it numerous customer worldwide. But how is this possible? Social Media Marketing: Recent addition to organizations plans. Integrated marketing communications is a practice organization follow to connect with their target markets. Integrated marketing communications coordinates promotional elements, advertising, personnel selling, public relations, publicity, direct marketing and sale promotion. Increasingly viral marketing campaigns are also grouped into integrated marketing communications for eBay. The growth of social media has impacted the way organizations communicate, the internet provide set of idea which enable persons to develop social and business platform, share knowhow and collaborate on project online. Cell Phones: Usage has also become a benefit for eBay media marketing. Today many cell phones have social networking capabilities, individuals are notified of any happenings on social networkingsites through their cell phones in real-time. This constant connection to social networking sites means products and companies can constantly remind and update followers about their capabilities, uses, importance, etc. Since cell phones are connected to social networking sites, advertisements are always in sight. Computers: The use of computer has come to stay in our daily life be it at home, offices, school, this is one of the basic tools used by eMarketers worldwide, eBay uses the help of computer since they dont physical store to carry out their daily business and this is done by logging into their website by typing in the URL address with an access from ISP provider. Once logged in, you see various categorizes of product, prices, description of items and options of payment of items bought. Buying of items online and shipping to every part of the globe is an everyday activity at just by the use of a computer, Newsweek (2004) Internet Marketing: eBay use the internet known as digital marketing, web marketing, and online marketing is the marketing product and services over the internet. Internet marketing is considered to be broad in scope because it not only refers to marketing on the Internet, but also includes marketing done via e-mail and wirelessmedia. Digital customer data and electronic customer relationship management systems are also often grouped together under internet marketing. This market joins the vast idea and technical background of the Internet, including design, development, advertising, and sales.Internet marketing also refers to the placement of media along many different stages of the customer engagement cycle through search engine marketing on specific websites. 3.1 THE USE OF THE INTERNET BY eBay The internet as change the landscape of the world in every way things are done in every way things are done globally. Never before have people been able to interact in such a cost effective and comfortable way. The business world as seen a better new of doing its daily activity, business now are done in very short span of time even without the presence of both party at the same place or time. Now it is possible for you to establish your own company with a very small financial investment or in some cases even without any start-up capital. eBay use the internet in carrying of its daily business to meet target market and satisfy its customer at a very low cost and maximizing profit. Information: People worldwide are using the internet on a regular basis, with email and search engines as the most popular services. Information is power. People are able to influence, direct, convince, educate and manipulate others through one single tool: The distribution of information. Email and discussion forums allow people to share their thoughts, ideas and experiences with other people from all corners of the world. Within a relatively short period of time the Internet and its communication channels will be part of our daily lives as are running water and electricity. Cost Effectiveness: The internet is by far the most effective communication tool. If you want to send a letter via conventional or so-called slow mail, it will cost at least around $1 assuming you restrict yourself to two single sheets of paper. Sending the same amount of information via email will be up to 100 times cheaper with immediate delivery. In addition to this, email with its numbers of advantages over the slow mailing system of delivery of messages, sending and get a reply on the spot. Online Auction: In this massive marketplace, eBay rules the auction sites. According to the Nelison Rating, eBay is among the top ten most trafficked sites on the internet. eBay leads the online auction industry with a more than 60 percent share of the market, its closest competitors, Yahoo! Auctions, is only half its size followed by Amazon.com, all these are done with the help of the internet and makes eBay smile to the bank on daily basis. Low Cost Operation: Running business requires tons of capital no matter the size of the outfit, the business has to pay for rental shops, offices, motor vehicle, staffs, before it can think of making its profit which is the primary idea of the business, but doing online business you cut down your expenses to a very little amount of capital and that is the edge eBay is use to run its operations and has really help the business since it does not have physical presence anywhere, it does its business around the globe and sell lots of items to its customers worldwide. The internet helps eBay in an immeasurable way of cutting down cuts of operations and get to all part of the world without even being there in presence. 4. INTERNET AS A MARKETING PUBLIC RELATIONS TOOLS Public relations is defined as a management function which identifies, establishes and maintains mutually beneficialrelationships between an organization and the public upon which its success or failure depends. Whereas advertising is aone-way communication from sender to the receiver, public relations considers multiple audiences and uses two way communication to monitor feedback and adjust both its messages and the organizations actions maximum benefit. The internet is used as a tool in Public Relations and has replaced the use of paper form of notifications and is carried out in method stated below. Tweeter: Social media is a great way to have a conversation with your market and manage connections with prospects, customer, bloggers. Even if you dont join Twitter you can monitor what people are saying company, trends, friends and products. This is quite useful from a marketing and PR standpoint. Tweeter has a search engine that let you post any information and can be linked to eBays platform. Facebook: Business firms states their URLs on cable Tv   commercials, were friends and followers can join them on Facebook. This is sharp method way of internet PR, youre a startup entrepreneur, you could start a group to help entrepreneurs connect and exchange ideas. Search to make sure one doesnt exist already in your area. Your friends on your facebook will have first hand information of what is happening around you and your business and will also pass to from friends to friends if even they are not yours. eBay is linked to facebook which acts as an indirect form of PR, Instant message could also take form by chatting on both platform. Email: This is the fastest, stress less and cheapest form of PR and e-marketing with the use of the internet, when searching for information or to joint an organization like eBay, Amazon you go through a process of filling and providing certain information about yourself and your preference requirement, all these information is kept in their database and at the end you provide your e-mail. The organizations use their database information to communicate with you, through this medium you are updated with the latest information relating to previous request. As you change your preference change it is also updated in their database. eBay use this form of PR to promote their product to you and information is sent to you in respect of delivery of the item you paid for. Website Feedback: Various website use a page known as website feedback as a form PR tool to give a comments, complain or report on your experience you may have after buying a product or trial of certain items in other for them to know how their customer feel about product bought from them. 5. EBAY SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGHT:The Company use the advantage of Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Both parties (Buyers and Sellers) subscribe with the company and information is collected by eBay on individuals. This is known as Business2Consumer (B2C) of their business. However the strong customer relationships are founded on a Consumer2Consumer (C2C) business platform, where strong business relationships occurs, for example where buyers and sellers leave feedback for each other for the next transaction to take place. WEAKNESSES: Organizations works painfully to overcome fraud. However the eBay model does leave itself open to a number of fraudulent activities. But the company act with the issue very quickly. These includes inferior goods being marketed to unknown and suspecting eBayers. Other forms of theft could include the redistribution of stolen goods. Make it known that fraud and theft are problems with outsiders not eBay. The weakness is that mischievous individuals can exploit the C2C business platform. Many companies, systems breakdowns could disturb the trading transaction of eBay on daily bases. eBay and Paypal have suffered shutdowns and total breakdown. As technology improves for the better weakness will be less an issue. OPPORTUNITIES: Acquisitions bring new business strategy openings. eBay has into agreement to buy off online telephone company Skype Technologies with a deal reported of about worth $2.6 billion. PC users use Skype talk to each other for free and make cut-price calls to mobiles and landlines once you have subscribe to the services. This will bring in more customers to the business and also make profit to continue to grow. THRATS:The world Internet brands, success attract competition. Overseas competitors competing in their home markets have the technical experience that could give them a stronger advantage over eBay. It came to the notice of eBay that it has met with other USA home Internet companies when trading overseas. For example, Yahoo! Stand out in the Asian market. Doing the same market is a threat. As with weaknesses above, the name is attacked by mischievous individuals. When e-mail sent to unknown eBayers disguards to come from eBay. Logos, and design of the pages looks just the same. However they are designed so that you input private information that the thieves can use to take passwords and identifications. Not all costs can controlled by eBay, example shipping charges and credit card charges. With fuel prices to rise, the customer suffers the increment of delivery and postal charges. This affect the total cost of auctioned items very expensive. When provider of credit card merchants like Visa or Mastercard decide a charge for online business transaction the total cost of the same items would increase with a negative effects on the final customer of the product and will make eBay loose some of its future consumer and will affect the profit and share value of the company. 6. CONCLUSION EBay is well aware that in order for the company to maintain its competitive advantage and make it sustainable in the long run, the company must take advantage of the changes at the corporate, organizational and business levels. EBay embraces the five building blocks which are applied randomly throughout eBays history: improvisation, co-adaption, regeneration, experimentation and time pacing as evident by the strategies discussed. The company also embraces the 10 principles of competing on the edge about strategy, organization and leadership. With all hands on deck EBay can go further if the managing, marketing department embrace more with its IT department by merging with more social media platform not just their website because social website break more distance with communities of friends of my friends. Security department should work more bringing down the risk of internet fraud, this is one area of online business transaction that turn people away from buying online, because nobody wants to their money to end up on the place after paying for an item or product.

Lincoln :: essays research papers

Abraham Lincoln (pronounced linken) (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865), sometimes called Abe Lincoln and nicknamed Honest Abe, the Rail Splitter and the Great Emancipator, was the 16th President of the United States (1861–1865), and the first president from the Republican Party. Lincoln staunchly opposed the expansion of slavery into federal territories, and his victory in the 1860 presidential election further polarized the nation. Before his inauguration in March of 1861, seven Southern slave states seceded1 from the United States, formed the Confederate States of America, and took control of U.S. forts and other properties within their boundaries. These events soon led to the American Civil War. Lincoln was a master politician who emerged as a wartime leader skilled at balancing competing considerations and at getting rival groups to work together toward a common goal. He personally directed the war effort, which ultimately led the Union forces to victory over the seceding Confederacy. His leadership qualities were evident in his diplomatic handling of the border slave states at the beginning of the fighting, in his defeat of a congressional attempt to reorganize his cabinet in 1862, in his many speeches and writings which helped mobilize and inspire the North, and in his defusing of the peace issue in the 1864 presidential campaign. He is criticised by some for issuing executive orders suspending habeas corpus, imprisoning opposing government officials, and ordering the arrest of several publishers. Lincoln had a lasting influence on U.S. political and social institutions. The most important may have been setting the precedent for greater centralization of powers in the federal government and a weakening of the powers of the individual state governments, although this is disputed as the federal government reverted to its customary weakness after Reconstruction and the modern administrative state would only emerge with the New Deal some seventy years later. Lincoln was also the president who declared Thanksgiving as a national holiday, established the U.S. Department of Agriculture (though not as a Cabinet-level department), revived national banking and banks, and admitted West Virginia and Nevada as states. He also encouraged efforts to expand white settlement in western North America, signing the Homestead Act (1862).

Drug Abuse in Kazakhstan :: Drug Abuse, Substance Abuse

Today the problem of drug abuse is the most serious and severe problem not only in Kazakhstan but throughout the world. The current problem is very acute in Kazakhstan. There are 49, 984 registered drug addicted people, and among them the amount of children is 3, 071 (Over 3 thousand drug addicted kids are registered in Kazakhstan, 2011). Drug addiction is considered a disease, and it is in fact spreads like a virus among children. The danger from drugs is too great to ignore. Although the problem of drugs may seem impossible to avoid, we still can prevent this problem throughout society by taking some powerful and effective actions. People are supposed to help youth drug abusers kick the habit and abolish it as soon as possible in order to ensure the healthy growth of youth and social stability. Today more and more teenagers in Kazakhstan are victims of drug abuse and government should take urgent actions to improve this situation by providing drug education program, making effecti ve laws to stop drug dealers, and creating more medical centers. According to the poll conducted among Kazakh schoolchildren in 2006, 12 percent of junior pupils have used drugs once in their life, 2-5 percent of schoolchildren regularly use drugs. On the whole, the Kazakh teenagers use â€Å"light† drugs like marijuana. Only in the first six months of 2007, 986 adolescents using drugs were registered versus 464 for the whole 2006. (Girfanov,2007). The first reason of the drug abuse among teenagers might be changes in family circumstance. It can include parents’ lack of supervision. As Thompson (n.d.) states, lack of family supervision over the child can be a cause of his/her drug abuse, meaning that if parents do not have proper discipline, the child can be exposed to drug usage. Also, Singha (2010) states that if parents give children an opportunity to do whatever they want especially in such critical teen age, it will result that teenagers will do whatever they want and will wrongly construct the personality. Another reason for drug abuse among teenagers is loneliness or depression. According to Singha (2010), such factors as pressures from the peers, family problems, education pressure and first-love relationships can encourage teenagers to start using drug. This phenomenon is self-explanatory, because in such vulnerable age everything is perceived so sensitively.

Male-female Stereotypes and the War of the Sexes in The Promises of the

All of us have heard generalizations about the opposite sex. Most of us have said our share of them when the phone does not ring at the appointed hour or the love of our life mentions those dreaded words: â€Å"open relationship.† Men have trouble understanding women, and women have trouble understanding men. This problem is universal, extending through different cultures and time periods. The Egyptian folktale â€Å"The Promises of the Three Sisters† reflects the division between the sexes, a theme which is as relevant in our modern society as it was then. In â€Å"The Promises of the Three Sisters,† the king represents the male world. In his castle, he is completely isolated from all female elements; the only companion mentioned is a male advisor. When he goes down to the village, he is confronted by the female world, as represented by the three sisters. The sisters have a supernatural quality, which shows how mystical the female world appears to the king. The women are weaving, a traditional female activity associated with an almost magical creativity. They are orphans, so their origin is mysterious. Also, their hut is removed from the familiar and conventional village. Each sister promises the king something if he marries her. The older two promise him physical gratification: a cake that will feed him and his army and a carpet that will seat him and all his soldiers. The inclusion of his army is an appeal to the traditionally male value of force and power. The youngest sister promises him emotional satisfaction: twins, a boy and a girl. Her approach is more typically female, since it appeals to his personal feelings and includes a daughter in the bargain. The king responds to his first contact with the fem... ...ard female sexuality. The female protagonists in the story—Sitt el-Husn, the old woman, and the third sister—are asexual, while the sexually potent older sisters and the Long-Haired Lady are all seen as dangerous. The men in the story feel that â€Å"giving in† to a woman sexually is allowing that woman control over them, and they are not ready for women to be equal to them. â€Å"The Promises of the Three Sisters† was told in a male-dominated society, and thus it begins with negative stereotypes of women: the conniving sisters, the extremely sensitive Sitt el-Husn. However, as the story progresses, Sitt el-Husn breaks the stereotype and is seen by her brother as an equal. Shattering the male-female stereotypes is necessary in order to achieve understanding between the sexes. Reference Yolen, Jane, ed. Favorite Folktales from around the World. New York: Pantheon, 1986.

Micheal Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) in Gary, Indiana, U. S. was an American singer. He was the 7th of nine children in the family. He went Gardner Elementary School in California 1969 to study, then he was home schooled. By the early 1960s, his brother had begun performing around the city; by 1964, Michael and Marlon had joined in the band called The Jackson 5.In his life, he had contributed to music, dance, and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for many year. Micheal Jackson Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. Michael began his musical career at the age of 5. In 1964, Michael and Marlon joined the Jackson Brothers—a band formed by brothers Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine—as backup musicians playing congas and tambourine.Jackson later began performing backup vocals and dancing. When he was eight, Jackson began sharing the lead vocals with his older brother Jermaine, and the group's name was changed to The Jackson 5. In these early years the Jackson 5, Jackie, Jermaine, Tito, Marlon and lead singer Michael played local clubs and bars in Gary Indiana. Soon he will be discover by the world. In Micheal Jackson life, there are many thing made him famous.. In his carrer, there are many thing made him famous.He won seven Grammys and eight American Music Awards thank the ablum called the Thriller released in late 1982, which was 1983's best-selling album worldwide. On March 25, 1983, Michael Jackson reunited with his brothers for a legendary live performance which was taped for a Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever television special. It is best remembered for Jackson's solo performance of â€Å"Billie Jean† which gave him his first Emmy nomination. In the show, he performed â€Å"The Moonwalk† that made his famous in his carrer and show.Beside his carrer he had time for other things. Michael like d to read books. He had more than 10,000 books in his Neverland library. He enjoyed helping other people especially ill children because he didn't have a normal childhood. He gave more than 500 million dollars to more than 40 charities with different causes. He liked shopping, traveling, arts, rare collections, music, climbing trees, animals. Even through he gone, he still an idol to everyone and will remenber forever. Micheal Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) in Gary, Indiana, U. S. was an American singer. He was the 7th of nine children in the family. He went Gardner Elementary School in California 1969 to study, then he was home schooled. By the early 1960s, his brother had begun performing around the city; by 1964, Michael and Marlon had joined in the band called The Jackson 5.In his life, he had contributed to music, dance, and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for many year. Micheal Jackson Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. Michael began his musical career at the age of 5. In 1964, Michael and Marlon joined the Jackson Brothers—a band formed by brothers Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine—as backup musicians playing congas and tambourine.Jackson later began performing backup vocals and dancing. When he was eight, Jackson began sharing the lead vocals with his older brother Jermaine, and the group's name was changed to The Jackson 5. In these early years the Jackson 5, Jackie, Jermaine, Tito, Marlon and lead singer Michael played local clubs and bars in Gary Indiana. Soon he will be discover by the world. In Micheal Jackson life, there are many thing made him famous.. In his carrer, there are many thing made him famous.He won seven Grammys and eight American Music Awards thank the ablum called the Thriller released in late 1982, which was 1983's best-selling album worldwide. On March 25, 1983, Michael Jackson reunited with his brothers for a legendary live performance which was taped for a Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever television special. It is best remembered for Jackson's solo performance of â€Å"Billie Jean† which gave him his first Emmy nomination. In the show, he performed â€Å"The Moonwalk† that made his famous in his carrer and show.Beside his carrer he had time for other things. Michael like d to read books. He had more than 10,000 books in his Neverland library. He enjoyed helping other people especially ill children because he didn't have a normal childhood. He gave more than 500 million dollars to more than 40 charities with different causes. He liked shopping, traveling, arts, rare collections, music, climbing trees, animals. Even through he gone, he still an idol to everyone and will remenber forever.

Impact of the Russian revolution †Ideology matters Essay

I. BACKDROP: GERMAN IDEALISM AND RUSSIAN REVOLUTIONARIES German philosophers in the 19th century were often â€Å"Idealists,† that is to say that they maintained that ideas have a force, power, and reality that is more â€Å"real† than that concrete, reality that so consume us in our daily lives. German idealism dominated the 19th-century Russian revolutionary movement from the Decembrist Revolt of 1825 until long after Lenin’s successful revolutionary coup that we call the October (or Bolshevik or Communist) Revolution of 1917. While I never want to downplay the central role of raw hypocrisy in human affairs, much of what we in the United States have interpreted as hypocrisy in the Soviet Union-the dissonance between the profound humanism of Marx’s ideas and the coarse violence of the Stalinist dictatorship-this hypocrisy can also be seen as the desperate attempt to coerce reality through the power of belief-through the power of the Idea. And one way to interpret the ultimate collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 was that the Soviets had lost their ability to convince themselves that the Leninist/Stalinist Idea had the power to transform reality into a better future. With the collapse of this self-justifying, central Myth that legitimized the Soviet experience, the Soviet Union died not with a bang but rather whimpered into Lev Trotsky’s â€Å"dust bin of history.† With this introduction, I would now like to offer three examples in the Russian Revolutionary experience where Ideas profoundly affected the future course of events. Only toward the end of the Twentieth Century have these effects begun to run out of steam. II. THREE EXAMPLES A. â€Å"MODERATE† SOCIALISM AND THE FEBRUARY REVOLUTION OF 1917 The first example involves the reaction of moderate socialists to the February Revolution in Petrograd in 1917. Moderate Socialists, including the Marxist Mensheviks in contrast to Lenin’s Bolsheviks, had adopted a position that Russia was not yet ready for a Socialist Revolution; reading Marx’s Stages of History quite literally, they understood that the Bourgeois Revolution had to come first and had to take place under the leadership of the bourgeoisie. The working class movement thus had to be satisfied with playing the role of a party of the extreme opposition-the bourgeois revolution must come first and be developed, and the responsibility of the proletariat was to encourage this historical necessity. Real consequences flowed from this belief. When the women, workers, and soldiers of Petrograd spontaneously took to the streets in February 1917, it took only several days for them to overthrow the 300-year-old Romanov dynasty. They then handed power they had won in the streets to their moderate socialist leadership-none of whom were philosophically or psychologically ready to assume the mantle of power. Consistent with their beliefs, the socialists in turn handed power to the bourgeoisie who established the Provisional Government. Not having the complete courage of their convictions, however, the moderate socialists also established the Petrograd Soviet which basically held veto-power over the actions of the bourgeois Provisional Government. This â€Å"compromise† established the period of â€Å"Dual Power† which was inherently unstable. In retrospect, it is amazing that the Provisional Government, amidst the catastrophe of World War I, managed to hold on to power until October of 1917 when Lenin’s and Trotsky’s Bolsheviks managed a coup d’etat to take power. Lenin, like his Menshevik cousins, was a Marxist, but his Marxism focused less on the determinist element of Marx’s Stages of History than on the ability of the individual to assert his will on history. For him, there was no need to wait patiently for the bourgeoisie to fulfill their historical duty at their own leisure; Bolshevism could force the pace. Lenin’s Will to Power and his belief in the power of the Idea to change reality made the difference between his success and the moderate socialists’ failure. B. LENIN’S IMPERIALISM, THE HIGHEST STAGE OF CAPITALISM The second example of the power of the Idea concerns Soviet influence on the developing world. Lenin wrote Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism in 1917, during the trials of the First World War and before the Bolshevik Revolution, to explain two crucial contradictions facing Marxists of the day. The first contradiction concerned the delayed outbreak of the promised world revolution. After all, it had already been sixty-nine years since Marx in the Communist Manifesto had proclaimed that â€Å"A Specter is haunting Europe-the specter of Communism.† What had gone wrong? The second failure of the Marxist promise involved the inability of the world’s proletariat to prevent war and its rejection of internationalism for nationalism. It had been a common belief among those of all political stripes from the far right to the far left, that socialist influence on the proletariat had made a major European war impossible. One of the central socialist beliefs was that wars are fought for the benefit of capitalist profits. Now, with the spread of democracy and the entry of powerful socialist parties into Europe’s parliaments, the capitalists could try to provoke war to their heart’s delight but would find it impossible to vote war credits through parliament or to mobilize soldiers who, following their socialist leadership, would refuse to fight. These ideas evoke memories of the anti-Vietnam War poster: â€Å"What if they gave a war and nobody came?† Lenin’s ingenious answer to both questions came in his book, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism. In it he argued that the concentration of production had transformed the capitalism of free competition into monopoly capitalism. The concentration of production also had dramatically increased the socialization of production. Big banks had changed from pure credit institutions into business banks and as such they dominated whole sectors of industry. Together the banks and industry were tied in with government. This coalescence of bank capital with industrial capital with strong government ties had led to the formation of a financial oligarchy that controlled large sections of the national economy. Share issues and state loans had increased the power and amount of surplus capital which flowed beyond political frontiers and extended the financial oligarchy’s control to other countries. The capital exporting monopolies had divided the world among themselves; international cartels formed the basis for international relations, and the economic division of the world provided the ground for the struggle for colonies, spheres of influence, and world domination. But once the world was divided up, the struggle had become one for the repartitioning of the world. Because the economic development of individual countries is uneven and sporadic, some were left at a disadvantage in this repartitioning. Imperialism represented a special, highest, stage of capitalism. The transition to a capitalism of this higher order was connected with an aggravation of contradictions, frictions, and conflicts. Monopolists assured profits by corrupting the upper stratum of the proletariat in the developed countries. The imperialist ideology permeated the working class. In other words, the burden of bourgeois oppression had been shifted from the shoulders of the domestic proletariat to those of the colonial peoples. In effect, the domestic proletariat had been bribed and they came to see that their material interests were tied up with colonial enterprise. Now, successful war to repartition the world in the favor of a particular nation made fighting war against fellow proletarians in other countries worthwhile. With his theory, Lenin seemingly had explained those two problems with Marx. The revolution had not yet swept the world because the potential revolutionaries, the proletariat, had been bribed by the illusion of short-term, material gains to forget their true, long-term interests. They had rejected their class-based internationalism for nationalism because wars fought to expand colonial holdings appeared to be in their material self-interest. Hence they did not prevent the outbreak of the Great War. This theory held long-term importance because Lenin, unlike Marx and Engels, did not see the revolutionary perspectives as centered uniquely upon advanced capitalist countries. After the Great War, in a period of â€Å"Capitalist Encirclement† the Soviets attacked â€Å"the weak link in the chain of imperialism,† the colonies. Political influence went to where the oppression was-the colonies. In the colonial and post-colonial world after World War II, given the absence of an entrepreneurial bourgeoisie with the will and capacity to transform existing conditions and to overcome the entrenched interests opposed to full-scale development, a gospel of competitive individualism seemed useless for modernization to those in the Third World. What appeared to be needed to get the underdeveloped country moving has been collective effort inspired by a national sense of political purpose. Only governments had sufficient capital, organizational skills, and commitment to make rapid development possible. Ideologically, therefore, the intelligentsia of such countries gravitated to one or another of the various socialist doctrines-something that in general might be described as state capitalism, that is, the state and not private individuals perform the entrepreneurial duties of gathering land, labor, and capital for productive enterprise. Socialist rhetoric disguised this crucial essence . For most of the twentieth century, Soviet Russia provided the model for those in the Third World who wished to rapidly modernize their countries. And rapid modernization was necessary for the sake of national prestige and independence. Russia’s success seemed obvious when we note that within forty short years Russia had risen from the ashes of World War I to defeat Hitler, to become one of the world’s two superpowers, and to be the first in space. Just as important as was this practical example was the vocabulary provided by Lenin. That Marx himself had had little to say to the underdeveloped world mattered little. I would argue that many Third World leaders, for two contentious examples Ho Chi-Minh and Fidel Castro, who led revolutions to assert national pride, independence, and prosperity, turned to Communism because Lenin had provided a vocabulary with a coherent explanation for colonial degradation and a means for asserting national regeneration. Additionally, of the major powers, the Soviet regime alone more-or-less consistently supported the aspirations of those wishing to throw off the oppression of colonialism and capitalism. Of course, today, the Communist model no longer holds the same allure it once did. C. TWO MARXIST HERESIES: LENINISM/STALINISM AND MUSSOLINI’S FASCISM The final example of the power of ideas generated during World War I involves the intimate, kissing cousin-relationship between Stalinist Communism and Mussolini’s Fascism. Despite facile assumptions, Fascism and Communism were not antipodes. Although their exact relationship remains difficult to define, there exist commonalties, as one author has pointed out: Fascism was the heir of a long intellectual tradition that found its origins in the ambiguous legacy left to revolutionaries in the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Fascism was, in a clear and significant sense, a Marxist heresy. It was a Marxism creatively developed to respond to the particular and specific needs of an economically retarded national community condemned, as a proletarian nation, to compete with the more advanced plutocracies of its time for space, resources, and international stature. Was this kind of self-awareness present as thinkers and politicians struggled to define these two ideologies as they co-developed earlier in this century? In fact, many did recognize that their common interests held much greater weight than did the Talmudic differences between Fascism and Communism. Arturo Labriola’s Avanguardia Socialista of Milan by 1903 had become the forum for Italy’s Sorelian syndicalist revolutionaries, who were struggling to make Marx relevant and against reformist socialism. Such luminaries as Vilfredo Pareto and Benedetto Croce graced its pages, followed shortly by a second generation of Sorelian theoreticians, who came to dominate Italian radicalism for more than a generation. Together they constructed an alternative socialist orthodoxy, which they believed was the true heir to classical Marxism. Clearly, their ideas were no more heretical to those of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels than was Lenin’s Marxism. By 1904 Mussolini, then a socialist agitator in Switzerland, had begun his collaboration with Avanguardia Socialista, a relationship he maintained for the next five years. The syndicalist contributors to the journal affected the future Duce’s intellectual and political development. Radical syndicalists like A. O. Olivetti innovatively argued that, under retarded economic conditions, socialists must appeal to national sentiment if their ideas are to penetrate the masses. For him, both syndicalism and nationalism were dedicated to increasing production dramatically. As long as Italy remained underdeveloped, the bourgeoisie remained necessary to build the economic foundation requisite for a socialist revolution. Olivetti spoke of a national socialism, because in an underdeveloped economy, only the nation could pursue the economic development presupposed by classical Marxism. When Mussolini took over as editor of the socialist paper, Avanti!, in December 1912, he attracted anarchists and even some rigid Marxists like Angelica Balabanoff, whom he took on as his assistant editor. Paolo Orano, who served on the editorial staff of Avanti!, along with other syndicalists like Sergio Panunzio, set the tone of that socialist paper. Mussolini also founded and edited Utopia from November 1913 until December of the following year. This bi-monthly review attracted many of the most important young socialist and syndicalist theoreticians, who helped Mussolini to develop his own ideas. In the final years before the First World War, many independent national syndicalists, including Panunzio and Ottavio Dinale saw war as progressive. Helping to put together the rationale for Fascism, they supported Italy’s fight with the Ottomans over Libya in 1911, and, along with Mussolini, they called for Italy’s intervention in the First World War. Many socialists now passed into Mussolini’s Fascist ranks, and syndicalists such as Panunzio, Olivetti, and Orano, became its principal ideologues. As early as October 1914, Olivetti in Pagine Libere spoke of an Italian socialism infused with national sentiment, a socialism destined to complete Italy’s unification, to accelerate production, and to place it among the world’s advanced nations. Over the next three years in L’Italia Nostra, Olivetti spoke of the nation as uniting men of all classes in a common pursuit of historical tasks; class membership did not align an individual against the nation, but united him with the nation. Patriotism was fully compatible with the revolutionary tradition of Italian socialism. By the time of Mussolini’s accession to power, Fascism had given clear evidence of its commitment to industrialization and modernization of the economy. Not only were the Futurists, Nationalists, and National Syndicalists agreed that maximizing production was the first order of business, but all also advocated urban development, the rationalization of financial institutions, the reorganization of the bureaucracy on the basis of technical competence, the abolition of â€Å"traditional† and nonfunctional agencies, the expansion of road, rail, waterways, and telephonic communications systems, the modernization and secular control of the educational system, and the reduction of illiteracy. What does this mean for Fascism’s relationship with Soviet Russia? Mussolini by 1919 was pointing out the absolute decline in economic productivity in Russia as proving its failure to recognize its historic obligations. He suspected that the Bolsheviks ultimately had to commit themselves to national reconstruction and national defense, that is, to some form of developmental national socialism as defined by Fascism’s former syndicalists. Speaking of the Bolshevik failure to comprehend their revolutionary necessities, Mussolini presciently predicted that Lenin had to appeal to bourgeois expertise to repair Russia’s ravaged economy. Bolshevism, he said, must â€Å"domesticate† and mobilize labor to the task of intensive development, something which could have been anticipated, because Marxism had made it quite clear that socialism could be built only upon a mature economic base. Russia, not having yet completed the capitalist stage of economic development, me t none of the material preconditions for a classic Marxist revolution. Russia was no more ripe than was Italy for socialism. Lenin, in the practical working out of his revolutionary government, did run headlong into many of these conundrums predicted by the syndicalists. In the months following his takeover, he had expected that the revolution in Germany would bail Soviet Russia out of its difficulties. Thus, while the first Fascists were organizing for a national revolution, the bolsheviks were still dreaming of an international insurrection. Lenin, changing horses, in 1921 proposed the New Economic Policy to replace the ideologically purer but failed War Communism. Like Fascists, Lenin now spoke of holding the entire fabric of society together with â€Å"a single iron will,† and he began to see the withering away of the state as a long way away: â€Å"We need the state, we need coercion†-certainly a Fascist mantra. After Lenin’s death in 1924, this logic culminated in 1925 with Stalin’s â€Å"creative development† of Marxism: â€Å"Socialism in One Country,† a national socialism by any other name. Mussolini suspected that Stalin might be abandoning true Communism. This, it seemed, might provide economic advantages to Italy, and to Mussolini it made sense for his country to build ships and planes for the Soviets in exchange for one-third of Italy’s oil supplies. For him the even more interesting possibility was that Stalin might be the true heir to the tsars and an imperialist with whom Fascism could see eye-to-eye. In 1923, the Duce predicted, â€Å"Tomorrow there will not be an imperialism with a socialist mark, but . . . [Russia] will return to the path of its old imperialism with a panslavic mark.† Mussolini convinced himself that Russian Communism was proving to be less revolutionary than was Fascism. The Duce and some of his followers considered it possible that the two movements were moving together closely enough as to be no longer easily distinguishable. Even dedicated Fascist party workers such as Dino Grandi, Mussolini’s foreign minister from 1928 to 1932, early recognized Fascism’s affinities with Lenin’s Bolshevism. He had taken at least part of his own intellectual inspiration from revolutionary syndicalism, and in 1914 he had talked of the First World War as a class struggle between nations. Six years later, Grandi argued that socialists had failed to understand the simple reality of what was happening in revolutionary Russia. The Bolshevik Revolution had been nothing less than the struggle of an underdeveloped and proletarian nation against the more advanced capitalist states. Not only Fascists made this sort of analysis. Torquato Nanni, a revolutionary Marxist socialist and an early acquaintance of Mussolini, as early as 1922 had anticipated these developments. He analyzed the common economic foundations of Fascism and Bolshevism, which produced the related strategic, tactical, and institutional features of these two mass-mobilizing, developmental revolutions. Both, he wrote, had assumed the bourgeois responsibilities of industrializing backward economies and defending the nation-state, the necessary vehicle for progress. Lev Trotsky, the organizer of the October Revolution, consistently, even mulishly, argued that Fascism was a mass movement growing organically out of the collapse of capitalism. He also rejected all notions of any sort of â€Å"national† Communism. Nonetheless, he too recognized a certain involution. â€Å"Stalinism and Fascism,† he said, in spite of a deep difference in social foundations, are symmetrical phenomena. In many of their features they show a deadly similarity. A victorious revolutionary movement in Europe would immediately shake not only fascism, but Soviet Bonapartism. (that is, Stalinism) He, however, refused to go as far as his sometime ally, Bruno Rizzi, who later argued that the assumption of similar developmental and autarchic responsibilities could only generate social and ideological convergence. He lamented, â€Å"that which Fascism consciously sought, [the Soviet Union] involuntarily constructed.† For him, the governments of Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, and even Roosevelt were lurching toward a global system of â€Å"bureaucratic collectivism,† a new form of class domination. Fascist theoreticians agreed with such convergence notions. By 1925, Panunzio claimed that Fascism and Bolshevism shared crucial similarities. Fascists noted that the Soviets had created an armed, authoritarian, anti-liberal state, which had mobilized and disciplined the masses to the service of intensive internal development. The supreme state generated and allocated resources, articulated and administered interests, and assumed and exercised paramount pedagogical functions. Thus, while the first Fascists were formulating the rationale for a mass-mobilizing, developmental, authoritarian, hierarchical, anti-liberal, and statist program guided by a charismatic leader, events had forced the Bolsheviks along the same course. Both intended to create a modern, autarchic, industrial system, which would insure political and economic independence for what had been an underdeveloped national community. With forced industrialization and â€Å"state capitalism,† the Soviets hoped to bring Russia all the benefits of bourgeois modernization. In the face of required austerity, to mobilize their respective populations, the Communists and Fascists alike supplemented economic incentives with pageantry, ritual, ceremony, and parades. All this, coupled with territorial aggression, completed a compelling picture of â€Å"systemic symmetry.† III. CONCLUSION I have presented three diverse examples of the impact of the Russian Revolution on subsequent history. There are other potential examples. I find it interesting that events so crucial to the twentieth century, now seem to be fading so rapidly in their influence. One real benefit of examining the Communist Revolution within the larger question of â€Å"how best to develop† is that the Revolution loses its sense of seminal criticality. For all the pathos surrounding the effort, it becomes just another interesting attempt at rapid development-a failed attempt at that. While I would happily argue that Marx still has relevance for us today, especially in his critique of capitalism if not particularly in his solutions, clearly Lenin and Stalin no longer do.