Teaching - Every Day Brings Something New :: College Admissions Essays

Teaching - Every Day Brings Something New I started seriously thinking about what I wanted to do with my life, concerning my career, in the 11th grade. From my junior year until my first semester in college, I was certain my purpose in life was to teach. However, people I spoke with, including some family, friends, and even schoolteachers, repeatedly crushed this choice: "Why would you want to be a teacher? Don't you know how much they make? Why would you want to deal with bratty kids all day? Don't you know teaching is one of the most stressful jobs you can have?" Being the naà ¯ve, 17 year old that I was, I listened, and changed my career choice-3 times! I went through 2 years of computer classes to become an administrative assistant, 1 year studying law for paralegalism and 1  ½ years focusing on business management. Throughout those 4 years of unfulfillment, the idea of teaching still lingered in my head. I started asking myself why I decided teaching was not for me. I discovered that even though teaching did ca rry a few negative aspects, they could never come close to the positive. For the past 5 years, I have been coaching the varsity dance team at Woodhaven High School. Although there have definitely been some difficult, stressful situations, I have found the experience very rewarding. The greatest thing about coaching is the satisfaction you feel after a student succeeds in what he or she has set out to accomplish-not only physically, but also mentally. Being a coach is more than just a 9 to 5 job. It's more than staring at a computer for 8-10 hours, not caring about the people around you or your work. This is even more apparent in teaching in a classroom 5 days a week, for as much as 7-9 hours a day. Teaching is adventurous, challenging, and exciting, because every day brings something new. As a teacher, you're not only working for a living, you are acting as a role model to every child around you. A teacher has the chance to change a child's life everyday. The main element of lifelong learning is to never stop learning. One must understand that there's no such thing as a person who knows everything.

Advanced Physical And Intellectual Competence

I recognize the advancing children physical and intellectual competence by creating learning experiences that stimulates physical, cognitive, communicative and creative growth. To advance physical and intellectual competence it is essential to the growth and development of every child to advance their physical and intellectual needs. There are numerous ways to encourage this type of development. Children are encouraged to participate in daily large motor activities to enhance physical development. One activity that they enjoy is dance children naturally love music and there’s nothing better to get their little bodies moving and shaking.One easiest ways to incorporate physically activity into both you lives is pick a few random songs at intervals throughout the day and just dance like crazy. Even just two or three song quickly add up a 10 minutes session, which is just right for your preschool aged children’s attention span. If you’re looking for more ways to expl ore dance which your preschool aged children, think back to silly songs and nursery rhymes of your own childhood and share those. I help children develop cognitive skills by encouraging them to hypothesize and think things out.For example the main aspects for cognitive growth can be fostered with daily activities such as stacking, sorting, observing and learning cause and effect. Coming up with cognitive activities is very easy. You can sort blocks, arranging them by size and color. You can stack object – books are great for this, you can have a treasure hunt too! For this all you need is a short and easy set of objects and a magnifying glass. I allow exploration to your children’s cognitive development. In my center I help children learn, understand, and use words to communicate. One lesson that is especially effective in developing communication skill is music.Music is a great way to encourage language development. You can find a sort of preschool age songs online ca n help you in this area. You can also use I spy, and question and answer games. Anything that involves word development is good activities since children love to ask you questions. A strength of this lesson is that it incorporate children who are English as second language learners and need a good mix of repetition and new material. By incorporating songs, asking daily short conversation, quick simple things repeated daily and practice basic vocabulary every day, children will understand the lessons.Creativity is fostered throughout our classroom. Children have access to, an area and are encouraged to use various art supplies to create their own artwork. Paint, markers, pencils, crayons, oil pastels, and paper are readily available for children to freely explore. An activity I love to do where children use their imagination is designing butterflies. They combine different bodies and wings to design their own butterflies; then animate them in one of several beautiful scenes. Another example is drawing a mural. They explore line, shape, and space while arranging decorative tiles into an abstract picture. Advanced physical and intellectual competence I recognize the advancing children physical and intellectual competence by creating learning experiences that stimulates physical, cognitive, communicative and creative growth. To advance physical and intellectual competence it is essential to the growth and development of every child to advance their physical and intellectual needs. There are numerous ways to encourage this type of development. Children are encouraged to participate in daily large motor activities to enhance physical development. One activity that they enjoy is dance children naturally love music and there’s nothing better to get their little bodies moving and shaking.One easiest ways to incorporate physically activity into both you lives is pick a few random songs at intervals throughout the day and just dance like crazy. Even just two or three song quickly add up a 10 minutes session, which is just right for your preschool aged children’s attention span. If you’re looking for more ways to expl ore dance which your preschool aged children, think back to silly songs and nursery rhymes of your own childhood and share those. I help children develop cognitive skills by encouraging them to hypothesize and think things out.For example the main aspects for cognitive growth can be fostered with daily activities such as stacking, sorting, observing and learning cause and effect. Coming up with cognitive activities is very easy. You can sort blocks, arranging them by size and color. You can stack object – books are great for this, you can have a treasure hunt too! For this all you need is a short and easy set of objects and a magnifying glass. I allow exploration to your children’s cognitive development. In my center I help children learn, understand, and use words to communicate. One lesson that is especially effective in developing communication skill is music.Music is a great way to encourage language development. You can find a sort of preschool age songs online ca n help you in this area. You can also use I spy, and question and answer games. Anything that involves word development is good activities since children love to ask you questions. A strength of this lesson is that it incorporate children who are English as second language learners and need a good mix of repetition and new material. By incorporating songs, asking daily short conversation, quick simple things repeated daily and practice basic vocabulary every day, children will understand the lessons.Creativity is fostered throughout our classroom. Children have access to, an area and are encouraged to use various art supplies to create their own artwork. Paint, markers, pencils, crayons, oil pastels, and paper are readily available for children to freely explore. An activity I love to do where children use their imagination is designing butterflies. They combine different bodies and wings to design their own butterflies; then animate them in one of several beautiful scenes. Another example is drawing a mural. They explore line, shape, and space while arranging decorative tiles into an abstract picture.

Mis Five Forces Analysis

A Five Forces Analysis of Allscripts, An Electronic Health Records (EHR) technology company Robert A. Brinker GBA 530 – Management Information Systems Professor Billie Whitfield February 6, 2012 The purpose of this paper is to identify competitive forces at work based on Michael Porter’s Five Competitive Forces from his Competitive Analysis Model (McNurlin, 2009) and provide recommendations to Allscripts, an electronic health records (EHR) technology company, as to business technology related improvements.Reviewing the United States healthcare industry would be a massive undertaking, so I will narrow my analysis specifically to an industry that has great momentum, the Health Information Technology (HIT) industry. The healthcare industry was said to be in a makeover year in 2010. (PwC, 2010) â€Å"The U. S. health care sector includes more than 780,000 hospitals, doctor offices, emergency care units, nursing homes, and social services providers with combined annual reve nue of more than $2 trillion†. Hoovers, 2011) Many of these healthcare sector participants are very fragmented and information shared between them is either insufficient or non-existent. Most experts agree that the current spending on healthcare is unsustainable now representing 17. 3 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. Many factors are driving the high cost healthcare, but one thing is certain in that the delivery of healthcare hasn’t changed much over the last century at the patient and physician level. The delivery of healthcare is an antiquated paper driven process and in much need of modernization.The demand for HIT has been fueled by new Healthcare Reform legislation and incentives known as the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act or HITECH, passed by President Obama in 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The intent of the HITECH Act is to promote the modernization of the healthcare sy stem to improve the quality of patient care and decrease overall costs by bringing technology to the practice of medicine. â€Å"More than $88. 6 billion was spent by healthcare providers in 2010 on developing nd implementing electronic health records (EHR), health Information exchanges (HIE), and other HIT initiatives†. (PwC, 2010) The HIT industry has incredible momentum and such high demand that HIT companies are entering the marketplace at an significant rate. Although this industry has become very competitive and saturated over the last 2 years, there are several prominent companies leading the EHR industry. Among them are Allscripts, GE Centricity, and eClinicalWorks, which have been researched for this paper. Below are specific areas where key competitive forces are at work relative to Porter’s Five Forces Competitive Analysis Model.Threat of new entrants Suppliers of EHR systems and software to hospitals and physician practices were initially few in number earl ier in the decade, but it has become a fiercely competitive industry. Privately owned small businesses now dominate the supply and demand for electronic medical records (EMRs) over the last several years. (Folino, 2009) As stated earlier government regulations have had a great impact on the threat of new entrants given the passing of new healthcare related regulations and proposed financial incentives issued to medical practices that implement EHR technology in their practices.Also, the increase in new entrants is certainly due to the low capital investments required to produce EHR products to the marketplace. In the past significant investments in large servers and data storage was required, which has been replaced in large part by internet based cloud technology. This trend is very likely to continue as cloud technology grows in acceptance and prices decrease. Threat of substitutes Overall, with demand for EHR systems growing it appears to be a very lucrative industry with substan tial growth potential.As with most technologies cost will begin to fall as more and more suppliers enter the marketplace. As the prices begin to fall more hospitals and physicians will find it more cost-effective to implement EHR, however as of now the cost to implement an EHR system is prohibitive for many, especially for small medical practices that dominate the healthcare landscape such as in New Jersey. As technology evolves through innovations such as cloud based technology and prices drop it can have a positive impact on substitute EHR products by improving affordability and ease of implementation.In short, there will be simple and lower costs alternatives available. Bargaining power of suppliers Supplier integration is becoming a trend in the EHR marketplace as well, such as a recent partnership between eClinicalWorks and Dell computers. Dave Garets, president and CEO of HIMSS Analytics, a Chicago based healthcare information technology company, is a healthcare analyst who ha s had 30 years of experience in the IT field. He said that â€Å"partnerships like the one between Dell and eClinicalWorks are strategic and a good idea for larger corporations. (Folino, 2009) These supplier integrations are important as most EHR systems are software based and of course need compatible hardware systems on which to execute the final EHR product to the end-user, the healthcare provider. Compatibility issues abound and have so far been a challenge, particularly with the iPad, a trendy device which is fast becoming the hardware tool of choice for many applications. Healthcare providers have to shop separately for EHR software offered by EHR vendors and the computer hardware, which is offered by computer companies. Bargaining power of buyersOf Porter’s Five Forces, this one is quite evident. There is a large concentration of buyers in the EHR market, such as medical groups, primary care and specialist practices, hospitals, etc. and they have a lot of EHR vendors to choose from. Although buyers are not tremendously educated they can be selective. GE Healthcare markets its Centricity EHR system using a brand message that says, â€Å"Build new standards of Excellence, by building new standards of efficiency. † (GE Healthcare, 2012) This messaging can help buyers perceive the value through increase excellence and efficiencies.Online demonstrations are also a critical aspect of EHR companies attracting buyers. Features such as ease of use and medical practice application can be realized online very easily. This can help healthcare providers determine if an EHR system is worth further exploration. Intensity of rivalry Growth in this industry is very likely to continue as the need for modernization of healthcare continues and the a tipping point is reached where the adoption of EHR systems becomes a must for physicians practices and hospital systems.Currently the adoption rate is low but federal incentives continue to fuel an intense rivalr y amongst competitors in the health information technology arena and the degree of differentiation among companies in this space appears to be minimal. â€Å"Regardless of HIT's potential advantages, clinicians in the country's many small primary care practices can be overwhelmed by it and will need to be convinced that EHRs are affordable, enhance efficiency, and improve care. Then, they will need extensive, ongoing support. (O’Malley, 2011) Lyons Advisors, LLC, an IT consultant also states that â€Å"IT professionals will be most effective if they are helped to understand how a medical practice is different from other worksites†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Lyons, 2011) It appears obvious to me that a clear differentiator for companies in the EHR market would be to increase the education, training, and ongoing support of healthcare providers through the implementation of the EHR system. This needs to be done so by IT professionals educated on the inner workings and needs of the medical community that are their customers.As a result of this review and research, I submit the following recommendations to Allscripts: †¢ Consider integration partnerships with hardware technology companies with tablet type computer products, as portability will be important for healthcare providers as they move throughout their practices, the hospitals, nursing homes etc. Once such partnership could be with Apple and compatibility with its iPad. This partnership would go far to elevate Allscripts as an innovator and differentiate itself from its rivals. Make online demos accessible to healthcare professionals so they experience the intuitiveness and application of the Allscripts EHR system to their practices. Online demos could be made available to healthcare providers through You Tube, company websites, medical society websites, etc. †¢ Differentiate and promote the Allscripts brand from competitors by educating IT staff on the medical and clinical needs of healthcare profess ionals, so that IT staff truly understands the specific needs of their customers relative to EHR application.This would bridge the gap that currently exists between the technology and real efficiencies and patient care improvements. It could also minimize likely decreases in revenue as their patient load decreases throughout the implementation phase. Allscripts is a leader in the health IT arena, but like most companies there is much room for improvement to stay competitive in a lucrative, but fiercely competitive marketplace. A marketplace that has a long future as the need for the modernization of the U. S. ealthcare system takes shape, as it is behind the curve compared to almost every other service industry. America and patients alike deserve healthcare that is cost-effective, efficient, and innovative. References McNurlin, B. C. , Sprague, R. H. , Jr. , & Bui, T. (2009). Information Systems Management in Practice (8th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Top health indu stry issues of 2011. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) at http://www. pwc. com accessed on January 30, 2012 View: Making over healthcare. 2010) Issue 14. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) at http://www. pwc. com accessed on January 30, 2012 Healthcare Industry Description. Hoovers. Retrieved at http://www. hoovers. com/industry/health-care/1374-1. html on September 18, 2011 Big Business Eyes EMR Industry. By Lauren Folino, Oct 6, 2009. Access at http://www. inc. com/news/articles/2009/10/emr. html on February 4, 2012 Introduction of an Electronic Medical Record System into Physician Practice Offices: Why Is It so #%! &-ing Hard for Everybody? —Part III.Joseph P. Lyons, MA, CPA,* and Stephen Klasko, MD, MBA. Information Systems (2011) Tapping the Unmet Potential of Health Information Technology O'Malley, Ann. The New England Journal of Medicine 364. A12 (Mar 24, 2011): 1090-1091 Allscripts corporate website, accessed at http://www. allscripts. com on February 3, 2012 eClinicalWorks corp orate website, accessed at http://www. eclinicalworks. com on February 3, 2012 GE Healthcare corporate website, accessed at http://www. gehealthcare. com on February 3, 2012

Exam Retailing Essay

Retailing-consists of the final activities and steps needed to place merchandise made elsewhere into the hands of the consumer or to provide services to the consumer. Last step in supply chain. Trends that affect Retailing today: * E-tailing- ie. The Internet accounts for less than 5% of retail sales but has changed consumer behavior. (speed, convenience, control, vast info, lowest prices) hasn’t destroyed †¦ *Bricks-and-Mortar retailers – Retailers that operate out of a physical building. ’ but B & M retailers must give customers more control to combat E-tailing. Outshopping-when customers get needed info (such as proper size or how to assemble a product) in the store and then orders it online for a lower price and to avoid paying sales tax. * Price Competition Loss Leader-selling a product at or below its cost Bottom Line-net profit on an income statement *Same-Store sales-compares an individual store’s sales to its sales for the same month in the previous year. *Market Share-the retailer’s total sales divided by total market sales *Scrambled Merchandising- exists when a retailer handles many different and unrelated items. The result of the pressure being placed on many retailers to increase profits by carrying additional merchandise or services (with higher profit margins) that will also increase store traffic ex. Convenience store that sells low margin gasoline but high margin bread, milk, beer, ciggs ETC. Supercenters, gift cards in grocery stores but causes cost increases in RENT, INVENTORY COSTS, LABOR COSTs *Category Killer-a retailer that carries such a large amount of merchandise in a single category at such good prices that it makes it impossible for customers to walk out without purchasing that they need, thus KILLING the competition Categorizing Retailers Census Bureau- NAICS code Number of outlets- Chain? Or not? *Standard Stock list-a merchandising method in which all stores in a retail chain stock the same merchandise *Optional Stock List approach-merchandising method in which each store in a retail chain is given the flexibility to adjust its merchandise mix to local tastes and demands. *Channel Advisor or Captain-the institution (manufacturer, wholesaler, broker, or retailer) in the marketing channel that is able to plan for and get other channel institutions to engage in activities they might not otherwise engage in. Large store retailers are often able to perform the role of channel captain. *Private Label Branding- May be store branding, when a retailer develops its own brand name and contracts with a manufacturer to produce the product with the retailer’s brand, or designer lines, where a known designer develops a line exclusively for the retailer. Margin/Turnover Gross margin percentage- measure of profitability GROSS MARGIN/NETSALES Gross Margin-NET SALES – COST OF GOODS SOLD Operating Expenses-expenses that a retailer incurs in running the business other than the cost of merchandise Inventory Turnover- refers to the number of times per year, on average, that a retailer sells its inventory. High Performance retailers-retailers that produce financial results substantially superior to the industry average. Low margin/low turnover-operates on a low gross margin percentage and a low rate of inventory turnover†¦ will not be able to generate sufficient profits to remain competitive and survive. High Margin/Low turnover-(bricks and mortar) high gross margin percentage and low ate of inventory turnover ( high end stores, mom and pop) Clicks and Mortar-instore and online Low margin High turnover- low gmp, high rate of inventory turnover (wal mart, amazon. com) High, High- convenience stores, 7 eleven, circle k, Location- new non traditional places. Size *Store management- the retailing career path that involves responsibility for selecting, training, and eval uating personnel, as well as instore promotions, displays, customer service, building maintenance, and security *Buying-retailing career path whereby one uses quantitative tools to develop appropriate buying plans for the store’s merchandise lines. Analytical method –finder and investigator of facts Creative Method- Idea person Two pronged approach- both analytical and creative CHAPTER 2 Strategic planning- involves adapting the resources of the firm to the opportunities and threats of an ever changing retail environment * Development of mission statement * Definition of specific goals and objectives for the firm * Identification and analysis of the retailers strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats –SWOT ANALYIS * Development of basic strategies that will enable the firm to reach its objectives and fulfill its mission Mission statement- a basic description of the fundamental nature, rationale, and direction of the firm. Market Share- retailer’s TOTAL SALES/ TOTAL MARKET SALES Profit-based Objectives-deal directly with the monetary return a retailer desires from its business ROI/RONW- Return on investment/ Return on Net Worth STRATIEGIC PROFIT MODEL (MEMORIZE) Net ProfitMargin| Net Profit /Total Sales| Return on Assets| Net Profit* /Total Assets| Financial Leverage| Total Assets/Net Worth| Return on Net Worth| Net Profit*/Net Worth| X = Asset Turnover| Total Sales/Total Assets| Stockouts- products that are out of stock and therefore unavailable to customers when they want them Productivity objectives- state how much output the retailer desires for each unit of resource input: Floor space, labor, and inventory investment. * Sales prod: net sales/ total square feet of retail floor space * Labor prod: net sales/#of full time equivalent employees * Merchandise prod: net sales/average dollar investment in inventory Societal Objectives- those that reflect the retailer’s desire to help society fulfill some of it’s needs. * Employment objectives * Payment of Taxes * Consumer Choice * Equity * Being a benefactor RASM- (revenue per available seat mile) calculation used by airlines. Yield Management- the understanding, anticipating and reacting to changing customer needs in order to maximize the revenue from a fixed capacity of available services. (1)low marginal costs (2)fixed capacity (3) perishable product (4)fluctuation demand (5)different market segments Personal Objectives-reflect the retailer’s desire to help individuals employed in retailing fulfill some of their needs. * Self Gratification * Status and respect * Power and authority Strategy- a carefully designed plan for achieving the retailers goals and objectives. 3 strategies Get shoppers into your store/ traffic strategy Convert these shoppers into customers by having them purchase merchandise (retailers conversion Do this at the lowest operating cost possible that is consistent with the level of service that your customers expect Target market-the group of customers that the retailer is seeking to serve Location-geographic or cyber space where the retailer conducts business Retail mix- the combination of merchandise, price, advertising and promotion, locations, customer service and selling, and store layout and design Value proposition- clear statement of the tangible and/or intangible results a customer receives from shopping at and using the retailer’s products or services Operations Management- deals with activities directed at maximizing the efficiency of the retailer’s use of resources. It is frequently referred to as day to day management. CHAPTER 6 Horizontal Price Fixing- occurs when a group of competing retailers (or other channel members operating at a given level of distribution) establishes a fixed price at which to sell certain brands of products ILLEGAL violates Sherman Antitrust Sec 1 Vertical Price Fixing-occurs when a retailer collaborates with the manufacturer or wholesaler to resell an item at an agreed upon price Price discrimination- occurs when 2 retailers buy an identical amount of â€Å"like grade and quality† merchandise from the same supplier but pay different prices. Clayton act makes only certain forms illegal DEFENSES Cost justification- differential in price could be accounted for on the basis of differences in cost to the seller in the manufactur, sale, or delivery. Due to differences in quantity or method. Changing market differences-justifies based on the danger of imminent deterioration of perishable goods or on the obsolescence of seasonal goods. Meeting Competition in good faith -lower price was made in good faith in order to meet an equally low price of a competitor Deceptive Pricing-occurs when an misleading price is used to lure customers into the store and then hidden charges are added; or the item advertised may be unavailable. Predatory Pricing-exists when a retail chain charges different prices in different geographic areas to eliminate competition in selected geographic areas. Palming off-occurs when a retailer represents that merchandise is made by a firm other than the true manufacturer Deceptive advertising-when a retailer makes false of misleading advertising claims about the physical makeup of a product, the benefits to be gained by its use, or the appropriate uses for the product. Bait and switch- advertising or promoting a product at an unrealistically low rice to serve as â€Å"bait† and then trying to â€Å"switch† the customer to a higher priced product. Product liability laws-deal with the seller’s responsibility to market safe products. These laws invoke the forseeability doctrine, which states that a seller of a product must attempt to foresee how a product may be misused and warn the consumer against hazards of misuse. Expressed warranties- are either written or verbali zed agreements about the performance of a product and can cover all attributes of the merchandise or only one attribute Implied warranty of merchantability- made by every retailer when the retailer sells goods and implies that the merchandise sold is fit for the ordinary purpose for which such goods are typically used Implied warranty of fitness- a warranty that implies that the merchandise is fit for a particular purpose and arises when the customer relies on the retailer to assist or make the selection of goods to serve a particular purpose Territorial restrictions-are attempts by the supplier, usually a manufacturer, to limit the geographic area in which a retailer may resell its merchandise Dual distribution- occurs when a manufacturer sells to independent retailers and also through its own retail outlets One way exclusive dealing arrangement-occurs when the supplier agrees to give the retailer the exclusive right to sell the suppliers product in a particular trade area Two way exclusive dealing arrangement- occurs when the supplier offers the retailer the exclusive distribution of a merchandise line or product in a particular trade area if in return the retailer will agree to do something or the manufacturer, such as heavily promote the suppliers products or not handle competing brands. ILLEGAL. Tying agreement-exists when a seller with a strong product or service requires a buyer to purchase a weak product or service as a condition for buying the strong product or service Ethics-set of rules for human moral behavior Explicit code of ethics-consists of a written policy that states what is ethical and unethical behavior Implicit code of ethics- an unwritten but well und erstood set of rules or standards of moral responsibility Chapter 14 Empowerment- occurs when employees are given the power in their jobs to do the things necessary to satisfy and make things right for customers. Servant leadership-an employees recognition that their primary responsibility is to be of service to others. 20% of customers generate 80% of sales value proposition-the promised benefits a retailer offers in relation to the cost the consumer incurs customer relationship management CRM-comprised of an integrated information system where the fundamental unit of data collection is the customer, supplemented by relevant information about the customer erformance appraisal and review- is the formal, systematic assessment of how well employees are performing their jobs in relation to established standards and the communication of that assessment to employees Motivation-is the drive that a person has to excel at activities, such as a job, that he or she undertakes Esprit de corps- occurs when a group of workers feel a common mission and a passion fo r that mission and a pride in being part of the group Fixed component- typically is composed of some base wage per hour, week, month, or year Variable component-is often composed if some bonus that is received if performance warrants Fringe benefit package-is a part of the total compensation package offered to many retail employees and may include health insurance, disability benefits, life insurance, retirement plans, child care, use of an auto, and financial counseling Job enrichment- the process of enhancing the core job characteristics to improve the motivation, productivity, and job satisfaction of employees.

Writers Strike

The Writers Guild of America is a labor union that represents the thousands of professionals who write what we see and hear on our televisions, in movies, and. The guild combines the efforts of two different US labors; those east of the Mississippi are included in the Writers Guild of America, East. Those members in Hollywood and southern California would be part of the Writers Guild of America, West. Once ever three years the East and West guilds come together to negotiate an agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers is the association that conducts all the negotiations across all the industry-wide guild and union contracts. In the particular year of 2007 when it had come to the negotiating time of year the Writers Guild felt it was time to fight for change this time around. When home video was just starting out the studios asked the writers to take an 80% cut on their pay of videocassettes in order to expand the industry. This was done with the understanding that once home video was a healthy market the studios would give back what they had given up. With sales soaring with the selling of DVD’s and the use of digital downloading the writers pay has yet to be changed from their pay cut. Dave McNary of Variety Magazine stated that â€Å"the Writers Guild wants studios and networks to take a serious look at the Guilds proposals – which seek a doubling of DVD residuals, spelling out terms of new media work and broadening WGA jurisdiction over new media, reality and animation. Attempts at a negotiation to avoid a walkout failed as the Guild announced they would start their strike on November 5, 2007. The Writers guild had a solid reason behind their strike. Patric Verrone, President of the Writers Guild of America stated, â€Å"What we must have is a contract that gives us the ability to keep up with the financial success of this ever-expanding global industry. † In response to the Writers Guild’s DVD proposal the Alliance of Motion Picture Television Producers tayed with the fact that the studios’ DVD income was needed to pay for the rising costs of production and marketing. The AMPTP took a solid stance on their approach to the negation. AMPTP spokesman Jesse Hiestand shared that â€Å"the AMPTP may have different companies with different assets in different businesses, but they are all unified in one common goal – to reach an agreement with writers that positions everyone in our industry for success in a rapidly changing marketplace. Although the AMPTP was after mutual benefit things always didn’t go that way. One of the major issues that happened throughout the writers strike was the fact that negotiations between the two parties would fall through. One particular issue that broke up the negotiation was the issue of payment for content broadcast free or bought over the Internet. Finally after 100 days ups and downs the two parties came to an agreement. The deal they came to put in effect a scale of royalty payments for writers whose work is sold over the internet. Over the 100 days the writers strike lasted, there are several things that could have been handled better. One of the greatest things is this childish behavior reported by Multichannel News Reports stating â€Å"Representatives for the writers guild and the studio alliance are blaming each other for the lack of negotiations. † They could of avoided this issue and possibly could have had an agreement before the strike if they approached the negotiation by separating the people from the problem and working together towards mutual benefit. The greatest thing that went well in this negotiation is the positive outcome. Writers Guild President Patric Verrone said, â€Å"this was not a strike we wanted, but one we had to conduct in order to win jurisdiction and establish appropriate residuals for writing in new media and over the internet. Rather than being shut out of the future content creation and delivery, writers will lead the way as TV migrates to the internet and platforms for new media are developed. Those advances now give us a foothold in the digital age. † The outcome that came from the negotiations between the two parties sets them off to a positive co-existence in the future.

Can ‘Death of a Salesman’ be Described as a Tragedy Essay

Aristotle first defined a tragedy in literature as a story where the main character is a hero – a very brilliant person – except that he has one major flaw which leads to his downfall, namely, death. Shakespeare then expanded on this and produced his world famous tragedies such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and Hamlet. In all of these plays, the main character is a person of high social standing and exceptionally talented, however each has a very serious flaw as well. For example, Romeo is of Italian nobility and is very efficient with a sword and dagger – but he is a fool for love and falls in love with Juliet as soon as he sees her, despite already being in love with Rosaline beforehand. That is the flaw which eventually leads to his demise. This definition has over time become the benchmark for a tragedy. Arthur Miller was an immigrant to the USA and can be seen as the opposite of Willy. Willy, however, is a proud born and bred American and holds to heart the very fundamentals of the American Dream – a very capitalistic ethos. Miller, on the other hand, had communist beliefs which eventually landed him in trouble with the government. Both Death of a Salesman and another of Miller’s plays, All My Sons both have the foundations of the American Dream and also both secretly criticize the capitalistic belief. In Death of a Salesman, Willy dies just trying to live the American Dream and he never gives up on it – an indication of his extreme optimism in all things – despite how blatantly unrealistic achieving the American Dream was for him. The characterisation of Willy Loman is also quite interesting. He strives to be like a very old, successful salesman he met that worked from home, who when he died, numerous people he knew went to his funeral. He is someone everyone can relate to and make us love him, but he also has qualities that we all loathe and make us hate him at times. This is purposefully done by Miller to only make it more shocking when Willy dies in the end – despite it is made quite obvious to readers it is inevitable. His name is also carefully planned out by Miller – Willy is an average name and nothing special, but his surname is a clear reference to what he is. ‘Loman’ – ‘low man’ is clearly meant to show how ordinary he is, despite just how much Willy strives to be the opposite. Willy’s main character flaw is that he is just too proud. For example, when he is offered a job by Charley – his neighbour – after being fired, Willy straight out refuses and is quite offended as he sees it as giving up and asking for help. This is shown by when Willy says, â€Å"I don’t want your goddam job! After Charley politely offers him a good one. Willy’s strong beliefs in the American Dream are also shown when he says, â€Å"A man can’t go out the way he came in, Ben, a man has to add up to something†, by ‘coming in’, Willy means when a man is born and by â€Å"going out†, Willy means when a man dies. Also, â€Å"adding up to something† must mean being rich in Willy’s context. This follows the American Dream in that a man makes something of himself from nothing. Willy’s greatest fear has always been dying with nothing – exactly what happens in the end. A use of dramatic irony by Miller, Willy willingly fulfils his own utmost fear. That quotation is also foreshadowing Willy’s death – another intentional device by Miller. Besides his pride, another flaw of Willy is very poor and deteriorating mental health and he is subject to random flashbacks and hallucinations – often of his dead and once very successful older brother, Ben, someone Willy idolizes. An example of one of his hallucinations is when Willy says, â€Å"Ben, I’ve been waiting for so long†, despite Ben being dead at this point. The play is also cleverly structured by Miller. Music – for example a flute – plays in the background during some scenes for an added dramatic effect. This flute is heard in both the opening and ending scene. The play also makes heavy use of flashbacks, but sometimes a flashback scene plays on stage at the same time as the scene set in the present. This technique is seen in Act Two, while Willy is in the restaurant with Biff and Happy. On the whole, the structure is skilfully used to make the storyline more immersive to the audience. Although, it does not have the same level of effect when being read from a book. The historical context of the play greatly influences both the themes and language of the play greatly. Death of a Salesman is set during the late 1940s. This time setting influences both the characters and the audience, as the play first premiered on the tenth of February, 1949 – the life of Willy Loman was something Americans going to watch the play at that time could relate to. Sixty years on, more modern audiences will react differently as times have changed and the idea of the American Dream isn’t as dominant anymore. Besides the American Dream, other common themes can be found in the play. Betrayal is quite clear as Willy betrays Linda by cheating on her with the Woman, and Willy also sees the way Biff rebels against him as betrayal and as Willy himself says, â€Å"Spite! â€Å". Another major theme would be one man – Willy in this case – being kept back from his dreams by society. In addition, the language used by characters matches the historical setting and context. In performances of the play, characters do not usually have the New Yorker accent you would expect, but they talk like a New Yorker. For example, words like ‘gee’, and rhetorically asking the person they are talking to if they ‘hear this? ‘On the subject of whether we can define Death of a Salesman as a tragedy or not is not a simple question as there is substantial evidence for both sides of the argument. To begin with, those who say that it is a tragedy may argue that it ends with the death of Willy, the main character, just like other tragedies. Moreover, Willy has explicit flaws which slowly lead to his downfall throughout the play. Finally, Willy may not ever do anything that can be deemed ‘heroic’, but within his own household he is very much a figure that is looked up to – so it may still be a tragedy, albeit on a less grand scale. In contrast, you could argue that it is not a tragedy as all other characters from Shakespeare’s tragedies were people of high standing – whereas Willy is not. Additionally, Willy is not at all a hero by any definition – in fact he is in some ways a bad person as will be shown. Finally, Shakespeare’s heroes have quite dramatic flaws, whereas Willy has the same flaws as every ordinary human being. These are quite convincing arguments to why it isn’t a tragedy. We will be looking at each argument more in-depth. The play follows the tragedies of Shakespeare in that the main character dies in the end. Willy commits suicide by crashing his car so that his family would get the life insurance money of $20,000 and make life easier for them. This is of course a noble reason to kill oneself as it is very selfless. However, it would make Willy a hypocrite as killing himself is also him giving up – something he condemned. Nevertheless, his intentions were admirable and this could make him seen as a hero since he willingly died for a selfless cause.

Legalization of medical marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Legalization of medical marijuana - Essay Example According to the Drug Policy Alliance, during the year 1999, the most comprehensive study of medical marijuana's effectiveness to date by the Institute of Medicine, concluded, "Nausea, appetite loss, pain and anxietyall can be mitigated by marijuana." This statement opened the doors for many people in over 26 states to support the legalization of the drug. However, despite the strong support for the legalization, Congress still holds firm that they will not allow the legalization without their approval, regardless of the majority of Americans who have voted to legalize the drug. In July of 1787, five members of the Committee of Detail began arranging and preparing the United States Constitution. This Committee was in favor of allowing the United States Constitution to have "essential principles only; lest the operations of government should be clogged by rendering those provisions permanent and unalterable which ought to be accommodated to times and events." During their task they were able to enumerate 18 powers for Congress, the 18th power being the "Elastic Clause." This clause gave Congress the complete authority "to make all laws that shall be necessary for carrying into execution the foregoing powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States." The Committee decided that along with the decision to enforce the "Elastic Clause" they would also implement the "Supremacy Clause". According to article VI, Paragraph 2 of the United States Constitution the "Supremacy Clause" states, "This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding." This portion of the United State Constitution solidifies the fact that everyone must follow the federal law even if it conflicts with state law. Valid state laws or court orders cannot override the federal law because the United States Constitution clearly states that federal law is supreme to anything in the Constitution or laws from any state to the contrary notwithstanding. These two clauses make it nearly impossible for a state to legalize medical marijuana without authority from the U.S. Congress. June 14, 2005 lawmakers of the House of Representatives voted 161-264 against a law stating that the federal government could not prosecute patients who use medical marijuana under a physician's orders in states that allow the practice. The Congress could have had the opportunity to prohibit the Justice Department from spending money to undermine state medical marijuana laws, however, the 161 votes for the bill did not pass even though it was the most votes that had ever been received during the past three years that the amendment has been offered. This vote came one week after a 6-3 ruling by the Supreme Court that the federal government can still enforce national anti-drug laws in the states that allow medical marijuana uses. This decision ultimately gave Congress the right to regulate and decide about medical marijuana use regardless of state laws. Many people have opposing views on the Supreme