Training and Development Essay Example

Training and Development Essay Example Training and Development Essay Training and Development Essay PART– A 1. Explain the difference between training and development. 2. How are training needs of an organization assessed? 3. What are the broad responsibilities of a trainer in a training programme? 4. What are the responsibilities of the management of an organization with respect to implementation of training programmes? 5. Write a brief note on recent trends in training. PART– B 1. Why is it necessary to evaluate training processes and activities? 2. Discuss the effectiveness of role playing as a training method. 3. What would be the training scheme for skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers? 4. What problems can an organization face if its training objectives have not been properly evaluated? 5. Write short notes on: a. Mentoring b. Counselling c. E-Learning PART – C 1. What factors does a training and development budget depend upon? 2. What are MDPs? Why they are required? 3. How should the personnel of an organization be trained in the event of market changes? 4. Discuss case study as a training method. 5. Write a note on Corporate University Model. CASE STUDY-1 IS RAJAT IN NEEDS OF REMEDIAL TRAINING? Rajat Sharma has been employed for six months in the accounts section of a large manufacturing company in Faridabad. You have been his supervisor for the past three months. Recently you have been asked by the management to find out the contributions of each employee in the Accounts Section and monitor carefully whether they are meeting the standards set by you. A few days back you have completed your formal investigation and with the exception of Rajat, all seem to be meeting the targets set by you. Along with numerous errors, Rajat’s work is characterized by low performance – often he does 20 percent less than the other clerks in the department. As you look into Rajat’s performance review sheets again, you begin to wonder whether some sort of remedial training is needed for people like him. Questions 1. As Rajat’s supervisor can you find out whether the poor performance is due to poor training or to some other cause? 2. If you find Rajat has been inadequately trained, how do you go about introducing a remedial training programme? . If he has been with the company six months, what kind of remedial programme would be best? 4. Should you supervise him more closely? Can you do this without making it obvious to him and his co-workers? 5. Should you discuss the situation with Rajat? CASE STUDY-2 One Monday morning Sanjay Nagpal, a recent recruit from a reputed management institute in Manipal walked into the sales office at Chennai as a new sales trainee. R aghavan, the Zonal Sales Manager for a large computer hardware firm was there to greet him. Raghavan’s job consisted of overseeing the work of sales officer, field executives and trainee salesmen numbering over 50 of three areas namely Chennai, Bangalore, and Trivendrum. The sales growth of computers, parts and other office equipment in his area was highly satisfactory, especially in recent years – thanks to the developmental initiatives taken by respective State Governments in spreading computer education in offices, schools, colleges, banks and other institutions. Raghavan had collected several sales reports, catalogues and pamphlets describing in detail the types of office equipment sold by the company. After a pleasant chat about their backgrounds, Raghavan gave Sanjay the collected material and showed him to his assigned desk. Thereafter Raghavan excused himself and did not return. Sanjay spent the whole day scanning the material and at 5. 00 pm he picked up his things and went home. 1. What do you think about Raghavan’s training programme? 2. What type of sale training programme would you suggest? 3. What method of training would have been best under the circumstances? Would you consider OJT, simulation or experiential methods?

4 Underrated Skills Your Company Might be Neglecting

4 Underrated Skills Your Company Might be Neglecting According to Bruce Tulgan, Founder and Chairman of Rainmaker Thinking, companies that prioritize specific soft skills behaviors tend to have a stronger and more positive corporate culture. Take Disney or the Marine Corps: They prioritize outreach to young people and value qualities like loyalty and dedication. A profitable rental car chain has high profits and fast growth- according to Tulgan, it’s because they emphasize self-presentation, quality, initiative, and problem-solving. These results aren’t accidents; they’re what happens when an organization focuses on its priorities and emphasizes them throughout the company.AlignmentCompany branding should be consistent and accessible; slogans, images, messages that support the brand’s shared meaning- all should also be backed up by the prevailing company culture.ConsistencyAnyone who’s ever worked an office job has probably gone to a corporate retreat or summit session or company wide love fest, liste ned to keynote speakers, participated (more or less willingly) in breakout sessions, brainstormed, presented, and watched company leaders â€Å"synthesize takeaways† or revamp the mission statement. It’s inspiring and impressive and there’s no way it’s all just bluster, right?Except then†¦ nothing happens. It was a waste of everyone’s time and the company obviously has a lot more mouth than money to put with it. Don’t try to change corporate culture overnight, and definitely don’t come up with buzzwords that sound great but remain utterly detached from what you actually do and how your employees behave.AccountabilityEven if you oversee  the most Millennial crop of interns to ever sigh, check their phones, and make coffee at the rate it would take a burro to climb out of the Andes, it’s foolish to blame the â€Å"generation gap† entirely on them. Your company had a culture before they came along, and now that theyà ¢â‚¬â„¢re here, your company culture has to adapt. They may surprise you with innovation or rapid adaptations to change if you accept and value them as contributors to the team instead of the whippersnappers snapchatting in the break room.That said, it’s fine if your company culture involves no personal media at work- just make sure you’re not also insisting they maintain vibrant social media company profiles, because that contrast just makes you look petty.Self-AssessmentWhat do you value? How is that reflected in the work you prioritize, the people you support, and the work you produce? Would a newcomer to your company agree that there’s a positive culture? Is there cohesion? Retention? Is morale high or resigned? From your earliest stages of hiring interviews to your highest levels of company goal-setting, make sure you’re reinforcing the culture that you want to represent you and your brand.  How to Unlock the Power of Soft Skills  Read More at Hu ffington Post

Nursing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 17

Nursing - Assignment Example The data to use in the model for each component will comprise of the course taken by the student to be context; learning materials, web content and teleconferencing as input; the learning, teaching and practical classes as the process; and finally the product evaluation is through the final exam and practical results. A feasible data gathering and management plan for the institution will be through tests and evaluations carried out during the practice teaching workshops. For those that will complete their courses through distance learning, data assessment will be from their evaluation results through tests and final exams. The reporting of the evaluation results can be through individual assessment forms carried out by an instructor at the end of the hospital based clinical experience that is in June and September. The report can then be forwarded to the League for the Nursing Accreditation Commission and Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (IwasiW, Andrusyzyn, & Goldenberg, 2009). When there are a higher number of facultie, the faster the process of planning and conducting the curriculum evaluation. This is because the faculty reviews test bank and selects most applicable materials for evaluation while at the same time strengthening items in the tests. Direct practice teaching is the most likely feature that will face interest from outside viewers. The faculty should ensure that they provide the best to the students and have a perfect class

Medical Negligence and Malpractice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Medical Negligence and Malpractice - Essay Example Personal cases of medical professionals will also be discussed where they reveal the true face of pharmaceutical industry in addition to the existing laws against such practice. Finally suggestions and recommendations will be made to effectively handle such problems. According to the Canadian Bar Association (2010), Medical professionals are under strict legal binding to provide their patients with the best care and treatment possible. Rule no. 3A of Medical Duty states that it is a duty of any medical professional as he/she legally owes proper care to the patient (Khan, et al 2002, p.71). They may completely refuse to undertake any given case due to any reason, personal or other. Once they accept any patient, they are bound to providing proper medical treatment. As Keir et al (2007, p.33), providing detailed and the best possible care to their patients is what actually constitutes proper and efficient practice of medicine. If in case the professional fails to deliver the kind of ser vice that would be given in any normal circumstances then it is referred to as Medical Negligence (Barnes, 2001, p.113). In such a case, if the patient suffers an injury due to the doctor’s negligence of medical professional, then the patient reserves the right to sue the medical professional against medical malpractice (Bardale 2011, p.23) In the recent times of capitalism, pharmacies are also not left behind in the rat race of increasing profits (Gad, 2009, 04). Following table gives the evidence Table: Top 25 Drug Companies by Sale (2006) According to Rat h (2003, p.50), pharmaceutical industry is now striving to driving its forces to increase the sale of its product rather than achieving its main motive of curing the diseases in the world. The ultimate aim to innovate new medicines is only to relieve symptoms of any disease, not to eradicate it. Eradicating and eliminating any disease through thoughtful research in the field of medicine would mean destroying the chance to earn millions of dollars in form of prescriptions. For this purpose, new breakthrough and advancement in the field of curing any disease are suppressed and do not get the kind of attention it deserves. This suppression is the reason why many fatal diseases are still incurable. In order to boost sales, pharmaceutical companies are deliberately holding back information which the public has every right to know like the common side effects and risks to other organs of the body.(Company, 2002, p. 326) The real face of drug companies (Luisa, 2011) shares the experiences of Gwen Olsen, who used to belong the same industry. Gwen states the frightening and alarming truth about this industry which has become extremely corrupt, running only after the financial gain rather than medicating its patients. Olsen (2009, p. 09) even states that as a Medical Sales Representative, she was trained by the company to give misinformation to doctors and medical professionals about the medicines her company produced. It has just become a game of money where disease seasons are awaited and KPIs matter more than empathy towards curing their patients. Agell (2004) talks about her personal experience with the viciousness of pharmaceutical industry. She had the honor of spending about twenty years of her life for â€Å"

Why I Decided To Go To College Essay Example for Free

Why I Decided To Go To College Essay For this essay I will be giving a better understanding about how I ever decided to buckle down and get into taking college courses to get a Bachelors in health and sciences. Then discussing what kind of learning style I have most dominant and which style is my weakest. Being in the United States Coast Guard, you have to sit down with your supervisor every six month to do a personal evaluation. During the last evaluation, he asked me about college and I told him that I wasn’t interested. He told me that I shouldn’t waste this opportunity to get a cheap higher education and doing it all online makes it possible for anybody that works ridiculous hours. After the evaluation, I looked into what kind of degree I wanted. I didn’t know what I was interested in doing outside the military. So my wife and I sat down and we discussed what I could see myself happily doing. It came down to health and science or outdoor education. I figured with a better understanding of the effects of what physical strains does to the body would be a more appropriate choice. After doing all three inventories for this assignment, it showed that my most dominant learning style hands down was being a kinesthetic learner and that my weakest learning style was audible. Being a Kinesthetic learner means that the more hands on the better you will remember something. Instead of you learning with more of your ears or eyes, you retain more information through the whole body with muscle memory.† If your highest preference is kinesthetic, you prefer to be a hands-on learner and most likely love to move around frequently, like athletics, and to build things with your hands. Be grateful for your talents and also, it is important to know that most company and school environments cater to people  whose highest learning style preference is visual.† (The Center for New Discoveries in Learning, 2012, paragraph 03)  instance, in boot camp, we had lectures and seamanship class. In these lectures it would be a sit and listen to the Company Commander about the lesson trying my hardest not to fall asleep and getting the whole company in trouble. Whereas seamanship class we would interact with the Company Commander as a unit learning different types of vessels stabilities and getting hands on time about how to tie knots, fighting fires onboard a cutter, and the lighting off different types of flares for distress purposes. Having the audible learning style as my weakest means that I have a hard time sitting down and listening in on classroom discussions. After taking all three inventory test and all of them calling me a â€Å"Tactical† (Bixler, 2010) or a kinesthetic learner, I would have to agree with it. Growing up I hated going to class and not being able to move around or just staring outside waiting for the bell to ring. But now I defiantly use my kinesthetic learning style to my advantage at work. Working outside all day gives me the opportunity to exercise it. In conclusion, I have decided to go to online college to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in health and science after my supervisor encouraged me. After taking three different learning style tests, I have come to realize that I am a kinesthetic learner. This means that I learn better through physical activities rather than sitting down and listening to the Company Commanders at boot camp. I agree to the results of being a kinesthetic learner. Refrences The Center for New Discoveries in Learning. (2012). Learning styles inventory. Retrieved from http://www.howtolearn.com/learning-styles-quiz Bixler, B. (2010). Learning style inventory. Retrieved from http://www.personal.psu.edu/bxb11/LSI/LSI.htm

Internet Advertising Essay -- essays research papers

Internet Advertising Internet Advertising is the way of the future and it is very evident since many companies and businesses have their own web sites and advertisements are located all over the World Wide Web. The Internet or World Wide Web is quickly becoming the most effective way for a business to advertise their products or services to customers. Web sites such as search engines or small sites that sell advertisement space for sponsoring are profiting highly from the increase of advertising on the Internet. Also contributing to the profit of businesses is the fact that the number of people that have access to the internet is growing as well as internet services which will allow potential customers to view these advertisements. Internet advertising is rapidly growing and advertisements will become more apparent in our Internet usage. When advertising on the Internet, it is both the businesses as well as sites like search engines that profit. In 1995 when the Internet was not as highly recognized as is today, advertising totaled US$312 million. It is estimated that in the year 2000, advertising spending will increase to $5 billion and this money will go to search engines or smaller web sites that are allowing companies and businesses space to advertise their product or service. Businesses will profit from the use of Internet advertising because it is much cheaper and is more effective when compared to standard advertising. Larger firms can also sponsor smaller web sites...

Explanations of East Asian Economic Development

The economic success of the East Asian countries has inspired many economists to study the background of their rapid growth. Interestingly, different economists interpret this success in entirely different ways. During the 1970s and an important part of the 1980s advocates of the neoclassical model argued that growth in East Asia was the result mainly of the market mechanism and the emphasis on export promotion in these countries. Especially since the mid-1980s the neoclassical approach was criticised by economists who stressed that government intervention played a crucial role in the process of economic growth. This paper aims at presenting a survey of the arguments recently put forward by the critics of the neoclassical approach to explain the role of government in the economic success of the countries in East Asia. Such a survey is very useful, since it forms a new breeding ground for the discussion on the role of the government in the economic development of other Developing countries and the countries in Eastern Europe. Without a doubt East Asia’s economic expansion during the past twenty years is one of the most remarkable economic changes since the Second World War. Gross national product of the East Asian countries increased by more than five per cent per year in the period 1965-1990, which is considerably larger than that of Latin America (1. 8 per cent), sub-Saharan Africa (0. 3 per cent), or even the OECD (2. 4 per cent). Six of the seven fastest growing economies in the period 1960-1985 (measured on the basis of the average growth of per capita GDP) were East Asian countries. The economic success of these countries has inspired many economists to study the background of this rapid growth. What is rather remarkable in this context is the fact that different economists interpret this success in entirely different ways. During the 1970s and an important part of the 1980s advocates of the neoclassical model argued that growth in East Asia was the result mainly of the market mechanism and the emphasis on export promotion in these countries. This interpretation dominated the debate for a long time. Especially since the mid-1980s the neoclassical approach was criticised by economists who stressed that government intervention actually played a crucial role in the process of economic growth. In this paper these economists are referred to as the new interventionists. The debate between the neoclassical economists and the new interventionists seems to concentrate on the issue concerning the role of the government in the process of economic development in general and the East Asian growth miracle in particular. In this article East Asia includes the following countries: Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. A significant part of the literature used for this article concentrates mainly on South Korea and Taiwan. This paper mainly aims at presenting a survey of the arguments recently put forward by the critics of the neoclassical approach to explain the economic success of the countries in East Asia. In particular, it emphasises their view with respect to the role of the government in the process of economic development. Such a listing of the contributions of the new interventionists concerning the backgrounds of the Asian miracle and the possible contribution of the government is very useful The article is structured as follows. Section 2 presents a survey of the contributions of development economists with respect to the role of the government in the process of economic development as put forward by them in the 1940s and 1950s. Section 3 describes the reactions of the neoclassical economists on these early contributions. They emphasised that especially the market mechanism played an important role in the growth of the East Asian countries. Section 4 deals with the critics of the neoclassical economists and describes their approach to the backgrounds of the Asian miracle. The discussion on the role of the government in the process of economic development originated in the 1940s and 1950s, this discussion fits into the post-war predominance of Keynesian economics. During this period several theoretical models contributions in the literature pointed out that market imperfections justified government intervention. The main emphasis was on the existence and benefits of economies of scale and the external effects of production. One of the most influential models was the model of industrialisation based on the notion of infant industry. The existence of dynamic economies of scale and positive external effects of production in certain industries prompted the government to actively stimulate the development of these industries since the private sector was thought to be incapable of assessing the long-term economic benefits of investing in these industries. According to this model the government would stimulate the development of these industries by means of subsidies and protective measures until they were sufficiently developed to produce without government support. Other models went further in their recommendations concerning the role of the government in development. According to several economists, the economic growth potential of developing countries was restricted since many of these countries mainly exported primary goods. They expected that the prices of these goods relative to prices of industrial goods would fall permanently; this is also known as export pessimism. By combining the infant industry argument with export pessimism they pointed out that a structural change in the production structure of these countries was absolutely necessary in order to obtain positive long-run economic growth prospects. The government ought to play an important role since such a drastic change could never be realised through the market mechanism due to considerably large coordination problems in the economy. The emphasis was put on improving infrastructure and education. Both these aspects were assumed to be extremely important in order to realise such a structural change. Furthermore, the mutual dependence of industries was pointed out: the development of one industry was also determined by the development of other sectors, either as a producer of inputs4 or as a demander of output. This caused simultaneous support of different industries necessary. Later on, the debate in literature concentrated on the way in which the government ought to intervene. Some supported simultaneous intervention in all industries essential to economic growth; others stressed the limited availability of scarce resources which would hinder the execution of such a comprehensive strategy. They advocated government intervention mainly in those industries that had the most relations with other industries (unbalanced growth strategy; see Hirschman, 1958). These models very much influenced the economic policies pursued by the various developing countries during the 1950s, 1960s, and a large part of the 1970s. The idea of a government intervening in the process of economic growth was appealing to many politicians. It contributed to developing models of central planning, and it stimulated to using trade policies, such as import quota, export subsidies, and fixed exchange rates, introducing price controls and subsidies in markets for goods and production factors, and establishing public enterprises in important sectors like mining and heavy industries. Many governments pursued policies of import substitution (and later also export promotion). Initially, several countries appeared to be successful in achieving economic growth by way of government intervention. However, as increasingly more problems arose with respect to the models of planned economic growth, this approach was increasingly criticised by economists whose ideas matched the neoclassical tradition. This is the term to which they are referred to in the debate on the role of markets versus the Government in the process of growth. Mainly at the fact that the above described models primarily pointed at the imperfections of the market mechanism; the models seemed not to be concerned about the possibility that government intervention in itself could also lead to an inefficient allocation of resources. The neoclassical economists rejected the implicit assumptions that allocate inefficiency due to market imperfections would always be larger than the inefficiency resulting from government failures. This assumption would imply that the government has sufficient information in order to determine for which particular industries positive externalities and dynamic economies of scale could be expected, and to properly assess the costs and benefits of supporting certain activities and industries. This also would imply a well-functioning apparatus of government within which this information would be translated into a policy in the right way. Moreover, it meant that the government would also be strong enough to resist pressure groups and to minimalize the negative effects of rent-seeking behaviour. Finally, it was anticipated that the government put maximum welfare for the country as a whole before maximising the individual objectives of those representing the government. The neoliberals very much doubted the fact that these conditions had been sufficiently met in developing countries. They were rather convinced of the fact that especially such factors as lobbying, rent seeking, and a government pursuing maximisation of the individual welfare function, would negatively affect the efficiency of intervention. Therefore, they concluded that the imperfections of government intervention generally exceeded market imperfections. Only in some cases the government could play a role, e. g. with respect to providing physical infrastructure, macroeconomic stability, and maintaining order and upholding the law. This is all the government should do. The device of getting the prices right plays a crucial role in the neoliberal view: If the markets are not interfered with, scarce resources will be allocated most efficiently. Their starting points were the basis of the IMF and World Bank policy. Recommendations that were part of the structural adjustment programmes presented to developing countries in the 1980s and 1990s. The neoliberal interpretation of the role of the government versus the role of the market in the process of economic development has also been applied in analysing the economic success of East Asia of the past three decades. According to the neoliberals, the governments of these countries observed the limits of their capabilities, and the economic success, therefore, was caused mainly by the market which functioned quite well. They especially pointed out the emphasis governments placed on developing and stimulating exports, private entrepreneurship, and the execution of market-oriented policy measures. Focusing on export enhanced the development of industries with a comparative advantage. The East Asian countries especially developed those industries in which they had a comparative advantage. The governments had created the right environment – by providing macroeconomic stability and public investment in social and physical infrastructure – in which the private sector was encouraged to invest in such a way that it, would contribute positively to economic development. The neoliberal interpretation of the economic success of the East Asian countries was supported by the observation that several African and Latin American countries, where the government had played a very significant role for several decades, had experienced a deep economic crisis since the 1980s. The failure of government intervention and the positive contributions of the market mechanism were elaborately discussed in studies by, among others, these studies considered the East Asian countries as examples of countries where the market mechanism had positively influenced the process of economic development. The neoliberal criticism of the models from the 1940s and 1950s was justified to a certain extent. They rightly emphasised that too much government interference in the process of economic development could lead to considerable inefficiencies. They provided a theoretical basis for the possibility and consequences of government failure (Islam, 1992). Since the early 1970s and especially during the 1980s practically everybody agreed on the fact that government-led economic development, with an important role for state enterprises, would lead to large inefficiencies. However, this did not automatically mean that the neoliberal alternative provided a correct interpretation of the backgrounds of the successes in East Asia. Since the mid-1980s there was increasing criticism of the neoliberal interpretation of the role of the market versus the role of the government in development. These critics can be referred to as new interventionists. This group of economists argued that the government could contribute more to economic development than just providing certain important public goods. They based their ideas mainly on their analysis of the backgrounds of economic success in East Asia. The centre of their analysis proved to have rather a lot in common with the analyses of and themes addressed by development economists of the 1940s and 1950s. Criticism of the Neoliberal Model and the Arguments in Favour of Government Intervention According to the new interventionists, the neoliberal interpretation could not explain satisfactorily the success of the East Asian countries. A growing amount of research showed that government could indeed contribute positively to growth by means of comprehensive intervention in the economic process. This was not in keeping with the usual neoliberal starting points, and therefore alternative approaches were sought after to explain for this finding. An important alternative explanation of the East Asian economic success was found by emphasising the extent of problems concerning coordination in less developed economies. Critics of the neoliberal interpretation pointed out that the government could play an important role in stimulating the process of economic development by reducing coordination problems, related to the hoice of and relationship between production decisions that hinder development. These problems concerning coordination are the result of dynamic economies of scale of production and external effects resulting from the strong mutual dependence of certain industries. If such circumstances do play a role, the allocation of resources on the basis of the market mechanism can quite easily become sub-optimal. To begin with, in practice market prices provide information abou t the current profitability of productive activities; they contain hardly any – if at all – information on future profitability. Under these circumstances, if there are any activities that lead to economies of scale in the future, current market prices give the wrong signals with respect to optimal allocation. In this case, allocation will not be dynamically efficient. Moreover, investment decisions at the level of the individual entrepreneur may be sub-optimal if the future profitability of an investment project also depends on the degree to which investments are made in other sectors at the same time. In this case, too, allocation of resources based on the free market principle results in dynamically inefficient allocation. According to the new interventionists, interventions of East Asian governments were mainly aimed at decreasing these coordination problems, thus stimulating economic growth. The interventions actually improved the economy since barriers caused by economies of scale and external effects were taken down, which probably would not have happened if resource allocation was based purely on market principles. The model explaining the East Asian economic miracle as proposed by these new interventionists matches some of the central thoughts of the development economists of the 1940s and 1950s. One major difference, however, is that this model is formalised in some recent contributions. Recent theories on industrial organisation also point at the positive effect of limited competition – rather than free markets – and protection and co-ordination by the government. The remainder of this section will discuss in more detail several of the above mentioned aspects of the East Asian intervention policy, such as the characteristics of industrial policies, the instruments that were used to stimulate specific investments, the institutional context, and the preconditions. Industrial policy The contents and effectiveness of the industrial policies pursued in the East Asian countries is the central focus of several new interventionist studies, Focusing mainly on the analysis of the Korean experiences, this is also presents a new interventionist interpretation of the economic development of South Korea. In her analysis she shows why the Korean government policy can be considered dynamically efficient. She emphasises the fact that government intervention led to a situation of getting the prices wrong, which, according to her, precisely resulted in an optimal allocation of scarce resources. By deliberately disturbing prices, the government was able to reduce the coordination problems that occur when allocation of resources is left to the market mechanism. Policies aiming at disturbing the market mechanism led to other priorities concerning what should be produced as compared to the outcomes of the market as the coordinating mechanism. The industrial policies of other rapid growers in the region have been interpreted in a similar manner in other studies; characterises the process of economic development in South Korea as the process of late industrialisation. Fast growth in this country is mainly based on the implementation of existing (Western) technologies. The aspect of learning, adopting and adjusting existing technologies is central in her analysis. Since learning processes have the characteristics of a public good and are for example, closely related to increasing economies of scale and the external effects of production, government intervention is vital in the process of late industrialisation. The government sees to it that the Western technology is copied and implemented as efficiently as possible, and that the labour force is educated sufficiently to work with the new technology. Moreover, they coordinate production decisions in different industries. Thus, the government becomes an entrepreneur who decides what, when, and how much to produce. The active intervention resulted in the industrial development of South Korea, which would not have been realised without government intervention. The government especially stimulated those industries that were thought to be of crucial importance to the long-term development of South Korea. Whereas in the 1960s mainly export-oriented industries were stimulated, in the 1970s emphasis was placed on the development of heavy and chemical industries, the electronics industry, and shipbuilding. In the 1980s the centre of attention of industrial policies shifted towards stimulating the development of high-quality industries, the so-called sunrise industries. Due to government intervention South Korea became a leading producer of microchips, and had an important share in the world markets for consumer electronics, cars, and in shipbuilding. In this context, leading economists point out the difficulties involved in the development of especially heavy and chemical industries, and in electronics and shipbuilding. The relatively long time these industries require reaching maturity, and the limited profitability (or even temporary loss) during the initial phase cause these industries to be rather unattractive when it comes to private investment. This provides a legitimate reason for an active industrial policy by the government. Instruments of government intervention The East Asian governments used various instruments that enabled them to influence the organisation of production decisions and the allocation of production factors, in order to achieve that scarce resource would be applied in the areas they preferred. These instruments primarily aim at creating rents, i. e. providing subsidies for certain investments. A subsidy may be a strong instrument to influence the use and allocation of means; provided that the granting meets certain conditions. A subsidy will contain a protective element on the one hand, and provide an incentive to implement specific activities on the other hand. Given these conditions, a subsidy may contribute to the fact that investors who are granted a subsidy may take into account more than short-term profitability only, and may also consider future possible profitability of the decisions. In these cases, the dynamic aspects of implementing investment decisions are taken into account, and thus granting subsidies may contribute to a better allocation of means. Initially, subsidies were granted by means of programmes for cheap credit and selective credit loans. In countries like South Korea and Taiwan, the government had a significant impact on determining the nominal deposit and loan rate in the 1960s and 1970s. Moreover, they also introduced guidelines with respect to the allocation of bank loans to the private sector. Thus, they were able to stimulate the development of specific industries and private activities by granting them access to external funding and by subsidising this Funding. The role of the export promotion policy Especially with respect to the role of export-oriented policies as part of industrial policies, and the related specific instruments of government intervention in East Asia, the neoliberals and the new interventionists do not agree. In the neoliberal model the emphasis of government policies on export promotion is very important, since they believe that competition on world markets stimulated East Asian companies to produce efficiently. They exported especially those products for which the countries had a comparative advantage in production. According to the neoliberals, the rapid growth of exports justified this approach. Subsequently, the development of export industries was thought to have a positive effect on the production in other sectors of the economy. In this model – the so-called model of export-led development – the rapid growth of the export industries led to a growth in investment and was therefore the driving force behind the overall economic success. The new interventionists disputed the neoliberal point of view. Some of them point out the fact that the governments created comparative advantages, thus actually reversing the causal relationship between export growth and14 comparative advantages. The above mentioned industrial policies in South Korea can again be used to illustrate this view. The South Koreans developed advantages in shipbuilding, and in the electronics and car industries, all industries in which they initially did not have comparative advantages. Some new interventionists stressed the fact that government intervention stimulated especially those export industries for which competition in international markets was fierce, in order to stimulate the building up of a competitive external sector. To a certain degree, this view resembles the neoliberal interpretation of the role of international trade, although the new interventionists put much more weight into the role of government intervention to develop such a competitive external sector. They argue that international competition can be regarded as an efficiency check of interventionist policies and the policy measures used. The success or failure of export producing firms provided the government with information which enabled it to decide whether or not to continue support to particular industries, and to decide on the extent of this support. Thus, protection measures and the granting of subsidies were linked to the performance of firms with regard to the development of sales in foreign markets. Others, however, resist the argument that exports played a crucial role in stimulating the economic growth of these countries. On the one hand, they point at the limited share of the export sector in total GNP of most East Asian growing countries in the period concerned. Considered this limited share, this sector could never have been the driving force behind the strong economic development during the 1960s and 1970s. On the other hand, the direction of the causality between exports and investments as supposed by the neoliberals is questioned. It is more likely that the explosive export growth was the result of a strong increase in domestic investments, rather than the other way round. The increase in these investments led to an increasing demand for imports, which – taking into account the limited availability of foreign currencies – went hand in hand with an increase in exports. This increase in exports was realised by reducing the domestic consumption of tradable goods, making them available for exports. Exports were not hampered by any unfavourable exchange rate policies, which had indeed been the case in many other developing countries in the 1960s, 1970s, and part of the 1980s. They argue that export production was actively stimulated by means of several instruments, particularly the above described systems of subsidisation. Therefore, some new interventionists argue that the explanation of economic growth in East Asian countries lies in the factors that influenced the strong growth in domestic investments, such as the creation of rents to stimulate investment behaviour. Cooperation between the state and the private sector in the previous sections it has been pointed out continuously that the East Asian governments proved to be able to reduce coordination problems, which contributed to stimulate economic growth. However, this still has not answered the question concerning the way governments were able to dispose of sufficient information to efficiently coordinate investment decisions and to determine which industries were important in realising a dynamically efficient allocation of scarce resources. Several studies have examined this aspect. These studies show that very close ties existed between the government, banks, and the private sector. These ties led to frequent contacts between the government and the private sector about the economy’s weaknesses and strengths. In this way, the government gained a better understanding of the nature of the coordination problems that played a role in the economy. On the basis of this information the government was better able to take decisions concerning intervention. In the case of South Korea, civil servants from different ministries, bank managers, and managers of large companies regularly met on so-called deliberation councils. Apart from this there were also monthly export meetings. At these meetings, presided by the president of the country and attended by16 senior civil servants, managers of banks and companies, economic bottlenecks were directly discussed, and decisions were taken concerning the outlines of the industrial, trade, and financial policies. Specific attention would be paid to the performance of the export industries, and if necessary the export policy would be adjusted on the basis of the information available. The South Korean private sector was very much organised on the basis of conglomerate structures, the so-called Chaebols. A limited number of very large conglomerates were actively involved in various economic activities, thus controlling an important part of the total production of the private sector. The government actively stimulated the development of these large conglomerates. The idea was that this would lead to an optimal use of economies of scale and external effects due to the strong mutual dependence between industries. In this way, the conglomerates would internalise existing coordination problems. Moreover, an advantage of the existence of several large conglomerates was that there were only a small number of ties between the government and the private sector, so that a relatively small number of policy makers and managers would be responsible for making important decisions. This added to an efficient exchange of information and a reduction of coordination problems. Some studies describe the model of the East Asian economies as a governed market. This means that private companies competed and cooperated and were supervised by the government. Other studies – especially referring to the case of South Korea – characterise the relations between government and the private sector as a quasi-internal organisation. This model describes a firm as an organisation that minimalizes transaction costs by internalising certain activities, i. e. hese activities are executed within the organisation. This may cause the allocation within an internal organisation to be superior to allocation resulting from the market mechanism. The model contains a central management that determines the outlines of the activities of the firm and that delegates the execution and immediate responsibility for the results to different divisions. The divisions are accountable to th e central management and have to provide information regularly, enabling the management to change its strategy on the basis of this new information – if necessary. In this way, coordination problems between the different activities can be reduced. The comparison to the characteristics of the Korean society applies to a certain extent, if the government is regarded as the central manager and the various conglomerates as the divisions. Due to the intense and informal contacts between the government and the private sector, the government had at their disposal information concerning the nature and extent of coordination problems in the economy. On the basis of this information, economic policies could be designed and choices could be made on which industries should be supported, since they were supposed to be of crucial importance to the growth of the country. Furthermore, economic policy programmes could constantly be adjusted on the basis of new information so that they would positively contribute to the economic development of the country. To conclude, it can be argued that the strong ties between the government and the private sector contributed to an intense exchange of information. Based on this information, the government was able to follow and if necessary adjust the activities in private industries. The new interventionists considered the combination of these ties and the nature of the way the government created rents and distributed these among firms and industrial sectors as an important explanation of the successful government intervention in the various East Asian countries. Initial conditions and political factors The new interventionists also point at other factors they feel have been important in realising that the government translated the information they eceived from the private sector into a policy that contributed to the successful18 reduction of coordination problems. These factors are closely related to the initial conditions that applied at the moment this miraculous process of economic growth was started. They also point at certain specific political economic circumstances. To begin with, the new interventionists emphasise that in these count ries the educational system and the level of education of the labour force were of a relatively high standard as early as the 1950s, especially compared to countries in Latin America and Africa. This positive initial condition had various positive consequences. To start with, this meant that labour productivity was relatively high and that the East Asian economies were at least capable of working with relatively high-grade production processes as early as the 1950s. Moreover, this meant that the copying of Western technologies is the essence of late industrialisation – could be executed faster. Finally, the high level of education had a positive effect on the quality of the civil service. The latter was not to be underestimated as an aspect of the success of the East Asian intervention policy. Several authors have therefore paid special attention to the aspect of the quality of the civil service. An efficient apparatus of government was of great importance in order to translate the information on coordination problems in the economy into a policy that could contribute to increasing economic growth. Moreover, the work ethic of the average civil servant in the Eastern Asian countries was also important in explaining the efficiency of government intervention. In many developing countries civil servants seemed to be easily corrupted, whereas in most East Asian countries this was relatively less common. Consequently, the abuse of, for example, the granting of subsidies and other benefits to firms could be kept rather limited. To explain this phenomenon the new interventionists argued, among other things that in such countries as South Korea and Taiwan a high degree of social responsibility had been developed and introduced through the educational system. Education very much contributed to a sense of social awareness. This led to the fact that a position as a civil servant involved a high social status. This may be an explanation for the fact that the best students often accepted a19 position with the government whereas a similar position in the private sector would pay far more. This high status would also contribute to a lower degree of corruptness as compared to that in many other developing countries. Moreover, a career with the civil service was considered the perfect way to a high position in the private sector. Apart from these initial conditions, several authors argue that the political economic circumstances in the East Asian countries contributed to the fact that government intervention could concentrate on the efficient use of scarce resources. As is well-known from the public-choice literature, a government may implement a policy because they are being pressurised by certain groups in society that are crucial to a possible re-election. In such case, in their policy the government may to a certain extent want to comply with the wishes of their future voters, rather than pursue a policy that contributes to economic growth as much as possible. 9 For example, they may not use subsidies to support certain important economic activities; instead subsidies may be used to secure political support. In many Latin American and African countries such a populist policy has been pursued in the past with all the associated negative consequences to general economic growth. In case of a more autocratic government, the government will use part of the means available to bribe representatives of powerful lobbies who could jeopardise the government’s continuity or to forcefully suppress these lobbies. In South Korea and Taiwan the government hardly ever faced lobbies of real importance so that a populist policy was not necessary. Therefore, they could develop and pursue their policies independent of any lobby and they could efficiently employ subsidies and other instruments to promote economic growth, rather than use them in order to gain political support. There were several different reasons for this particular circumstance, according to the new interventionists. Among others, for an empirical analysis of such kind of political economic processes, to start with, countries like South Korea and Taiwan were characterised by a relatively equal income distribution due to which the governments of these countries were less pressurised into taking popular measures to please certain lobbies. The equal income distribution was mainly the result of the land reforms of the 1950s which took place both in South Korea and Taiwan. Thus, equal income distribution had been realised before the start of the period of rapid growth. More recently, empirical support for the positive relation between equal income distribution and economic growth has been found. Moreover, some mention the fact that both the South Korean and the Taiwanese society were characterised by a relatively cultural unity, This meant that this potential source of political instability was less strong than it often was in other developing countries and that this made it easier to develop a solid nation state. Some authors also mention the fact that the Japanese oppression of South Korea before 1945 drastically reduced the role of lobbies in this country. With respect to Taiwan, the flight of political leaders and their supporters from China had actually decimated the differences between the various political lobbies. Finally, there was no elite based on the ownership of natural resources, since these countries hardly had any natural resources. In several Latin American countries this elite was an important opponent of the government. The new interventionists offer an alternative explanation for the economic success of the East Asian countries during the past few decades. They point at the existence of coordination problems and argue that these problems are the main obstacle for economic development. For this reason the government should play an active role. The analysis of the role of the government in East Asia shows under which circumstances government intervention may have a positive impact on the economic growth of a country. The contributions by the new interventionists appear to resemble those by the development economists21 from the 1940s and 1950s. The difference, however, is that the new interventionists have provided the understandings of the development economists with a more solid theoretical and empirical basis. Some questions remain unanswered, however. For example, the new interventionist analysis of the role of the government in the East Asian success has not convincingly shown why the efforts of the governments of these countries seemed to have been explicitly concentrated on promoting long-term economic development. This paper has described all conditions that must be met in order for government intervention to contribute positively to economic growth, as was the case in East Asia. Another starting point for future research refers to the empirical foundation of the existence, nature and importance of coordination problems in a less developed economy. Although the new interventionists have frequently and convincingly described the existence of these failures, until now their empirical proof has been scarcely provided. Therefore, micro-level research – i. e. t the industrial level – into the significance of these coordination problems in economic development is vital. Related to this, more empirical research ought to be conducted into the importance of dynamic efficiency in a less developed economy. This requires more analysis of the nature of the possible economies of scale, the external effects in such economies, and the way in which they could be exploited by government interventi on. The debate on the role of the government was quite explicit after the World Bank had published a study in 1993 which contained an in-depth analysis of the backgrounds of the East Asian success. The new interventionists criticised the World Bank for the contents of this report ,the analysis in this report builds on an earlier World Bank report (World Bank, 1991) in which the neoliberal view on the role of the government is somewhat changed with respect to their previous attitude on this subject. Both the 1991 and 1993 reports assign a more positive role to government intervention. The reports argue that interventions may add to economic growth, provided that these interventions are market friendly. The market friendly nature of interventions means that markets ought to function freely, unless the results are clearly better in case of government intervention. Furthermore, checks and balances have to be introduced: interventions must always be subject to the discipline of the domestic and foreign markets as much as possible. Finally, intervention must be straightforward and transparent, based on clear regulations, so that the contents and consequences can be monitored by anyone. The 1991 World Bank report introduces the market friendly approach of government policy as the alternative road between market and government. Starting from this analysis framework, the 1993 report studies the economic development of East Asia and endorse the positive role of the government in the process of economic development of these countries. Furthermore, the report argues that the distortions that were a result of government interventions were small, especially as compared to those in other developing countries. Government policies were often embedded in a competitive environment, all according to the market friendly approach. At the same time, however, the analysis shows that government intervention was by no means always successful. The market is considered to remain the most efficient coordinating mechanism. Therefore, the report’s advice is to get the prices right. The final conclusion is that the most important positive contributions of government intervention referred to creating a stable macroeconomic environment – in the form of low inflation and government deficits, and a stable exchange rate – and investment in the development of human capital. The government created the right environment within which private initiative could optimally contribute to economic growth. Economic policies should concentrate on these factors, the World Bank argues. The recent World Bank report does only partly do justice to the new interventionist’s criticism. The policy recommendations still seem to be rather neoliberal. Although the World Bank report initially appears to lead to a synthesis of the neoliberal model and the new interventionist understandings, the policy implications of the analysis of the two camps differ very much. The new interventionists point at the importance of government intervention and set great store by industrial policies and the use of subsidies and other instruments in order to realise a dynamically efficient allocation of resources, whereas the World Bank continues to argue that the government ought to aim mainly at creating macroeconomic stability and should aim solely at creating the right conditions for private initiative. Conclusion To conclude, since the early 1990s there appears to be some general agreement concerning the debate on the role of the government in the process of economic development in East Asian countries. The World Bank – being the main representative of the neoliberal point of view – and its critics agree on the fact that the governments of these countries severely intervened in the economic process. Thus, it would make great sense for developing nations in Africa, South America and south East Asia to place prodigious importance of state intervention to economic development and to dismay the western â€Å"liberal† model as useless and deceptive. As they themselves (western countries, including Japan) all at some point in their economic development guided their economy towards what they thought was suitable and progressive, which is called â€Å"industrialisation†.

Central African Republic Essay

Darfur is an area in Sudan which lies in the western part of Sudan and boarders Libya, the Central African Republic and Chad. It has an approximate residence of six million people who are among the poorest people in Africa and only rely on nomadic herding and subsistence farming. Genocide in Darfur has taken place only ten years after the genocide in Rwanda which claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. In Darfur, thousands of people have been killed and almost double the amount has been displaced from their home areas. Many of the people have become refugees in their homeland and are currently living in a network of internally displaced people (IDP) camps which completely rely on the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations help for their most basic needs for living. Others have fled to the neighboring countries such as Chad which has also been affected by the Darfur genocide. Others who are still in the villages are under constant threat of bombing, murder, rape, raids and torture and their only help for safety is from undermanned and underfunded African Union (AU) peacekeeping force whose personnel compared to the situation on the ground. However, this force which is referred to as the ‘AMIS’ force larks civilian protection and has no adequate means to stop the violence. Due to its anemic capacity, the only thing which it now does is to monitor and give reports on ceasefire violations. The current crisis which are experienced in Darfur are as a result of neglect of people by the government and the entire world, cases of drought which has persisted for many years, oppression of the residents and the poor by the government and the affluent people and conflicts between the people and tribes in the northern in Sudan. The Sudanese Liberation Army/ Movement (SLAM) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) are the two main rebel groups in Sudan. These groups represent the agrarian farmers who most of them are non Arabs African Muslims from different tribes. They mounted a challenge and pressure to the Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir whose response was very brutal. The government increased arms and support to the militias and the local tribes known as the Janjaweed for the main purpose of seeking to defeat the rebel movement. Entire villages have been wiped, food and water supplies have been destroyed and livestock killed by the government supported groups. No part of the entire Darfur civilian population has not experienced the murder, rapes and torture by the government armed groups. The government military has painted their attack aircrafts white, the same color which the United Nations humanitarian aircraft which a violation of the international humanitarian law. This move by the government is to confuse the villagers so that when they approach the villages, the people will confuse them for the United Nations aircraft which have come for their help but in the real sense their mission is to kill and bomb them. The current humanitarian situation on the ground in Darfur is constantly deteriorating to worrying levels. There has been increased attacks which has increased the number of IDPs and refugees. Visitors of the camps who includes the Save Darfur Coalition have reported worrying and dire conditions the people undergo and its a pity they have survived under the conditions for such a long time and there seems to be no hope of remarkable improvement. The only help which seems to be forth coming is from the United Nations and the non-governmental humanitarian relief agencies who have introduced some refugee camps and provided several thousands of of aid workers who despite the relief agencies support work under logistical and difficult conditions due to constant harassment the Sudanese government and the red tape. These humanitarian operations and their workers are increasingly being targeted by the fragmenting rebel movement elements and the government. Their vehicles are being robbed and hijacked constantly, the aid workers are intimidated and assaulted when performing their duties and their offices are being looted and broken into making their work more harder. In the wake of 2007, reports from the United Nations showed that more that 80,000 Darfurians joined the already over populated IDP camps due to the continuing violence. The humanitarian bodies and United Nations as a result of the government harassments and the worsening security problems have given warning of their growing inability to support and sustain their operations. They say that any interruption of the flow of the humanitarian aid is likely to cause more deaths than the ones already experienced and per month death rates could raise up to 100,000 in case the humanitarian support system collapses. Civilians in Darfur have suffered deliberate and indiscriminate attacks violating their human rights such as rapes, pillage and torture. The government of Sudan has continued to protect the people accused of violation of human rights. In the cases of Ahmad Harum and Ali Kushayb who were arrested and charged with 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity such as murder, prosecutions, torture, rape and forcible displacements in 2003 and 2004, the government has refused to hand over the two suspects but instead they have given one of them a prominent post in the public positions and the other was promoted to the state as the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs. This responsibility was towards the well being of the very victims of the crimes he was alleged to have committed and is currently the key liaison to the United Nations-African Union peace keeping force who are in charge of the victims protection. He was also appointed in late 2007 to a committee in charge of hearing complaints on human rights abuse in Sudan and Ali Kushayb was released from the Sudanese in October 2007 for lack of evidence. (Draklich &Wagner p167). Sexual violence against women and the girl child have been featured mostly in the government and militia attacks with the main aim of terrorizing the population and gain control over them and their displacement mission. The worrying issue is that even after the displacement, the militia groups have set their camps near the IDP camps and therefore continued to sexually harass the women. (Human Rights Watch, p 5-7) Rape and many forms of sexual violence have remained endemic and have threatened the safety of women and girl children reflecting the current dynamics of law and order breakdown. Women and girls are not ready to admit their sexual abuse by the militia for fear of social stigmatization and have no trust that the government will take any action. Most of the authorities refuse to acknowledge the problem which is experienced by women and instead, they accuse the victims of giving false information to the international social aid workers of their fate for the purpose of political gains. Some of the local Sudanese authorities have even gone a step ahead to stifle the humanitarian agencies who are working on the issue and due to this, agencies which are running women’s health clinics in the largest IDP camps are constantly subjected to harassment and obstruction by government officials and decline to publicize their duties. As the conflicts increases, so do the sexual perpetrators who now include the military, militia, rebels, police and criminal gangs who attack civilians in IDPs, towns and rural areas near the military bases and areas under rebel control. On February 2008, the government groups performed ground and air attacks in the towns of Sirba, Silea and Abu Suruj. This led to more than 1000 deaths, property destruction, massive displacement and several cases of women and girls rape cases and sexual assaults by the government officials. In 2006, sexual violences cases were reported during the government and militia attacks in Abu Sakin regions where women and girls were abducted, brutally raped and forced to walk back to the camps while naked and to date, the military has declined to give information of the suspects. Other rape cases reported by the human rights officers during government attacks were in Deribat, Kabkabiya, Zamzam IDP camp, Kalma IDP camp in South Darfur among others. (Human Rights Council , p. 26-30).

Free Varsity Green Analysis Essay

Free Varsity Green Analysis Essay Varsity Green Abstract In the recent years, college sports have hit the headlines for the wrong reasons due to a litany of scandals that continue to erupt. It becomes shocking news when it becomes a reality that certain students have been secretly using his colleagues to get money through college sports, of course with the help of the administration. However, such incidents are often blamed on the very structures of college sports. According to literature, they have been designed in such a way that they only generate money for the university and a few private companies, leaving the students with absolutely nothing. It must, however, be appreciated that people are coming to terms with this reality and sooner than later, people responsible for that will be punished. Literature Review The author of Varsity Green forcefully emphasizes the subject of college athletics that is mostly avoided by the vast parts of the writers. He exposes the rot of corruption and money making, which has almost replaced athletics as a sporting activity. According to him, college athletics has since ceased to be a sport, as most people associate it with an opportunity to make money. In fact, the athletes themselves do not take the sport seriously. In most instances, they are literally searched to go and compete, as they do not focus on the sporting aspect of athletics. They find no fault going into bars and restaurants as late as hours to their sporting. In the end, competitions are often delayed for hours in order to give them time to feel a relief from their drunkenness. This is how unfortunate things have got in the past. Another unfortunate trend that is associated with college athletics is immorality, because the young athletes often do not know how to manage their funds. They hardl y have any financial education or thoughts of investment. In the end, they only spend their money on luxurious lifestyles at the expense of the sport. This paper presents a detailed account of the inside story regarding television revenues and coach salaries, as well as merchandise rights associated with athletics. According to literature, the issue of money in college athletics becomes a matter of concern upon realization that college coaches were earning more than college presidents. However, it was hard to believe this because most of the coaches certainly had nothing to show for their handsome pay. It became apparent that this money was either not being put into proper use or was just a property of the wring people. It is this unfortunate situation that Mark Yost intended to expose in this book. It remains to be seen if this expose will eventually lead to its cessation (Parker-Pope, 2011). College sports have always been associated with a mad rush for material wealth. However, Marks expose reveals the extent of influence that money wields the culture of sporting in colleges. According to literature, academic institutions are known to capitalize on the success of their athletes as well as their athletic programs to enrich themselves, stock their laboratories, and train better to maintain the trend of athletic success. While it is good to use the talents to develop them, the immoral aspect comes in due to gross corruption and misappropriation of these funds. In most cases, the athletes never benefit themselves from their hard-earned cash. It is the moneyed elites that significantly benefit from this money at the expense of the hard working athletes. Yost particularly focuses on the trend that has lately taken shape during the past decade where persons in positions of leadership in such colleges become multibillionaires within a stint of time. At some point, Yosts analysi s of corruption and immoral culture that drives schools to take an active role in sports goes beyond college. According to him, it is an unfortunate culture that intends to develop sportsmen instead of academics from learning institutions. In this regard, schools focus on the short term economic gain instead of long term academic ones. Although the book dwells on the lives of athletes and stakeholders in athletics, it is suitable for fanatics of any sports because it is basically the same thing that happens elsewhere. As for policymakers, they should understand exactly what happens behind the scenes in order to formulate policies that would make the society better that it currently is. However, it still remains to be seen how successful Yost would be in changing the money culture is college athletics (Yost, 2009). Recent Events The issue of corruption in college sports will only rest when college athletes are paid a share of the money generated through their athletics programs. If this does not seem to happen, questions are bound to be asked. For instance, the Knight Foundation has been actively involved in trying to de-commercialize college sports. According to the institution, sports should first be seen as a form of entertainment before it is looked at as a source of livelihood. It notes that things become a bit dangerous when non-participants unfortunately become the lot that wants to make commercial gains in the end. The worst thing that usually happens is that the real players remain abandoned, with hardly anyone to buy them necessary materials for training. The institution has also given itself the role of scrutinizing all the agreements made between colleges and private firms on behalf of the players so that latters are not treated unfairly. In the past, such details would not be availed to students due to fear that they might demand for their share (Yost, 2009). While the world continues to laud the United States for having some of the strongest college sporting teams, the country is struggling to conceal the stark reality in their colleges. For instance, the University of California was recently sanctioned when it got to the public domain that certain individuals within the institution had used unscrupulous means to get money from the sports kitty. One wonders why this money should be kept somewhere when players are never paid. Indeed, it looks as though the decision to keep it is intended at making it available for corrupt deals (Calkins, 2010). Where Does the Money Go? There is no doubt that college athletics raise lots of money from media agreements as well as ticket sales. However, the manner in which it is spent raises more questions than gives answers. For instance, it was noted that over 60% of the revenue was used in paying for sports memberships, thereby effectively taking the money away from the people who generated it. Of the remainder, a significant amount is used to fund particular events related to sports and academics. Indeed, this raises doubts considering that most school activities are often funded by the government. It is only a small portion that is well utilized in the general improvement of sporting facilities as well as the welfare of the athletes. According to literature, the expenditure that sustains all the athletic programs, services, as well as supports athletes during championships, only constitutes a meager 40%. This means that a whopping 60% is either not properly accounted for or simply used in a manner that does not b enefit the people who generate the money. It is this immoral expenditure that Yost intended to expose in his book Varsity Greens by use of which he manages to let people know certain secrets that would otherwise have remained hidden to the general public. It stimulates peoples thoughts to demand for accountability not only in athletics but also in other college sports where corruption is rampant. Indeed, his work can be considered a great success in the sense that it dwells in area that has always been avoided by writers. Such issues as corruption could easily put a writer at loggerheads with the culprits. For people who do not wish to get into controversy, they would rather avoid such topics instead of taking a bold step towards making the society a better place (Yost, 2009). Recommendation The book boldly exposes the issue of corruption in college sports. It faces a subject that many writers would like to avoid. In doing so, Yost shows a rare commitment to serve the community and work towards making it a better place. The book particularly suits young people who would wish to engage in college sports, as it cautions them against allowing their talents to be used by selfish characters for personal gain. In addition, it enlightens them about the social evil, a corruption, and the ways how to avoid it. Indeed, the book is a must read for every college student who wishes to live a decent life of integrity (Parker-Pope, 2011). Conclusion In conclusion, college sports have hit the headlines for the wrong reasons due to a litany of scandals that continue to erupt. That is why the author of Varsity Green forcefully emphasizes the subject of college athletics, which is mostly avoided by most writers. He exposes the rot of corruption and money making that has almost replaced athletics as a sporting activity. According to him, the issue of corruption in college sports will only rest when college athletes are paid a portion of the money generated through their athletics programs.

Dr John McLoughlin essays

Dr John McLoughlin essays John McLoughlin was one of the most influential figures of the fur trade and settlement periods of Pacific Northwest history. Chief Factor of the Columbia District of the British Hudson's Bay Company, he reigned as a benevolent autocrat, befriended Americans, and eventually became an American citizen at Oregon City. He was born in Quebec in 1784 and trained as a physician near Montreal. He became a physician and traveled to the Northwest region in 1824 as a representative of the Hudson Bay Company. Here he occupied the position of Chief Factor from 1825, when the regional headquarters of the company was moved from old Fort Astoria to Fort Vancouver, until his retirement in 1845. During his reign as Chief Factor, Dr. John McLoughlin directed the operations of the fur trade in all the country west of the Rocky Mountains and north of the California line, as well as the more localized activities of agriculture, livestock raising, sawmilling, flour milling, dairying, and salmon fishing. From 1825 to 1843, when the provisional government was first established by the settlers in the Willamette Valley, he was the undisputed governor of the vast area bounded by the Rocky Mountains on the east, Mexican territory (California) on the south, the Pacific Ocean on the west and the Dr. John McLoughlin exercised control over the Indians of the region, welcomed and provisioned missionaries and settlers, encouraged schools and church instruction and for a number of years was the only medical practitioner in the region. His contributions to the development of the Northwest region in general and the Oregon country in particular make him truly deserving of the title by which he is often referred to, Father of the Oregon In 1857, the man who had ruled an empire two and a half times the size of Texas, died broken and bitter. He was 75 at the time. Five years later, in an act o ...

UNIT 6 Discussion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

UNIT 6 Discussion - Research Paper Example Legalization of Marijuana would have a positive outcome on society. To imagine a United States where marijuana was legal, it is imperative to study the impact of its controlled legalization in the Netherlands. Their policy on soft drugs tolerance has seen a drop in criminal activity and the transfer of marijuana small amounts (Timothy & Goldfinger p2).heroin addiction rates in the Netherlands have gone down by 0.14%, while the crime rate has been falling consistently, coinciding with the relaxation of these laws. While there are obviously differences between the Netherlands and the US, it is clear that the forecasts of social disaster should Marijuana be legalized are misplaced. If legalization of marijuana would mean that hard drug and alcohol usage decreased, then the net outcome would be welcome since the effects of Marijuana on the user and society is less than that of the former two (Timothy & Goldfinger p2). The claim that there would be an increase in Marijuana usage should it be legalized is true to a point. It could, however, be explained by an increase in users willing to admit to marijuana use. Government estimates showing 11.8 million users in the US is conservative, with NORML estimating that close to 50 million users live in the US (Timothy & Goldfinger p2). Therefore, any initial jump can be explained. After legalization, a discouragement campaign could be set up akin to that against tobacco. Age limits for use and purchase would be set up, which is only possible on legalization since illegal dealers will not ask for I.D. In conclusion, the concern should not be on Marijuana, but on tobacco and alcohol. Both have more addictive and deadly indicators. The message obviously is not about concern for society, nor for the user’s health. Rather, it is hypocritical, unintelligible, and biased

Holocaust Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Holocaust - Essay Example Much of this was caused by the fact that stakeholders within early European society believed that people of Jewish decent still bore a direct level of responsibility for the crucifixion and death of Christ. Such a level of innate and cultural distrust and even hatred ultimately coalesced with the economic and political pressures that Germany faced after the First World War and gave rise to the Nazi Party; a harbinger to the holocaust. 2. For the most part the film appeared to be rather unbiased. However, it must be stated that no attempt was made to understand the situation from the perspective of the German citizen or the German soldier. Naturally, the film-maker probably glossed over this due to the fact that seeking to understand the issue from such a perspective was deemed as merely trying to understand evil; something that they did not want to waste valuable time on. Yet, even though this may be true, it would have provided a further level of credibility to the film if the film- maker(s) had allowed for an alternative approach and a view of the situation through the eyes of those who were responsible for carrying it out. Even if such a view might have been unpleasant, it was necessary in order to understand the dynamics for why such inhumanity can persist and why a broad based public outcry for it to stop was never realized or witnessed. Moreover, even though the film is useful in understanding the plight of the individual caught up in the horrors of the holocaust, too much of an emotional appeal also detracts from the merit of objectivity that could otherwise be represented. Naturally, it is not fair to disregard the horrors that the individual faced during the ethnic cleansing of Jews within Europe; however, too much of a focus upon the individual loses sight of the mechanisms, causation, and realities for why this was being carried out and what forces encouraged it. 3. How does this film contribute to our knowledge of the Nazi Holocaust? Ultimately, the film contributes to an understanding of the Holocaust in the sense that it allows the viewer to come to a more informed understanding of the way in which the Holocaust not only Germany’s Jews but Jewish populations throughout the remainder of occupied Europe. This is an important understanding to gain due to the fact that a misconception with regards to the overall scope of the Holocaust is one of the most common misconceptions that exists. Whereas it is true that the Germans were responsible for murdering unknown tens of thousands of Jews within Germany itself, the bulk of the Holocaust victims were derived not within Germany’s borders; rather, these were derived from areas of heavy Jewish concentration within Eastern Europe – specifically Poland and Ukraine (Cowen 167). In helping the viewer to come to a further understanding of the scope of the Holocaust and the personal ramifications that it had upon the lives, experience, and future of the individuals that were fortunate enough to survive it, the viewer is led to a more informed understanding with respect to the many different ways in which this particular occurrence impacted upon the future of not only Europe but the rest of the world. 4. Ultimately, Suedfeld posits a litany of different reasons for why the Holocaust actually took place. The first of these theories he