Democracy as a Form of Government

In today’s time, the call for freedom and democracy echoes all around the world. Democracy simply means freedom for the people staying in a country. A democratic government simply is a government â€Å"of the people, by the people and for the people. † A government which is elected by the citizens of the country, which is been elected of the people and elected for the betterment of the citizens residing in the country, is a democratic government. Democracy is a very popular type of a government that features free elections, periodically. Democracy is a form of government in which the government is elected completely by the people under a free electoral system. In today’s world, democracy is the best form as a government. Democracy simply means freedom; in a democratic government a citizen has freedom to elect a representative (vote), freedom of speech, freedom of rights, and many more. In a democratic government all the citizens have equal access to power. Democracy is also called â€Å"the last form of government. There are two types of democracy; direct democracy and representative democracy. Direct democracy is a pure democracy. Direct democracy is where there is direct participation of the people. Everyone would gather in town meetings and vote on issues concerning the town. Representative democracy, as the name states, is a system in which the people select others to act in their places. For national purposes, America has two representatives from each state. Liberal democracy exists in the United States of America and also in most parts of the world. The term â€Å"liberal† in â€Å"liberal democracy† does not imply that the government of such a democracy must follow the ideology of liberalism. It is merely a reference to the fact that liberal democracies feature constitutional protections of individual rights from the government. The best and the latest example of an evidence of democracy in America is the election of the new president Mr. Barrack Obama. History has been created as for the first time a non-white president has been elected. This is the biggest and the best example of democracy in the United States of America.

Pros and Cons of Large Universities Essay

University, as stated in The Oxford Dictionary, is an educational institution designed for instruction, examination, or both, of students in many branches of advanced learning. Like any other institution, it may be categorized as either good or bad depending on its level of excellence, how well it prepares its students for the working environment, etc. These defining factors and other essential components, determine whether a certain university is a worthy place to go to school. Thus, based on these defining features, it can be said that Florida State is an exceptional institution to attend college. As previously mentioned, Florida State University is a wonderful place to attend college, as it is considered one of the best research universities in Florida. For instance, unlike some universities, it provides students with the facilities to experiment in the laboratory and gain firsthand experiences in analyzing and understanding their field of interest. That is, it grants students the opportunity to apply what they learn in class to real life situations, thus enabling a greater understanding of their field of interest. It also enables them to think independently and critically rather than solely memorizing the information taught to them. In addition to the above, FSU consists of many libraries such as Dirac, and Strozier, which conveniently house an extensive collection of books and research papers. These libraries are the homes of many tutors and professors who are there specifically to help students in reinforcing the subject matter learned. These tutoring sessions are free of charge, and allows for personalized attention outside of the classroom. Furthermore, Florida State also provides its pupils with an opportunity to study abroad for one semester. This program is advantageous as it gives students the ability to interact with new cultures and assess their way of life. It helps them to become well rounded individuals capable of looking beyond the surface, and also allows for personal, intellectual and spiritual development. Last but not least, FSU is a great school because it provides a communal environment whereby people of different cultures can interact and share their ideals, values, and beliefs. It allows them to actively participate in activities that encourage a relationship between people of different ethnicities, and engages students to utilize the knowledge they obtain to make informed judgments. Nevertheless, like any other institution, Florida State University has its disadvantages. One such disadvantage would be the sizes of the classroom. For instance, many classes range from a student body of 200-300. This can prove disadvantageous because there is less student-teacher interaction and fewer opportunities for students to grasp the information being taught. Also, the out-of-state tuition for students, who are not residents of Florida, may prove to be very costly. Lastly, some professors have little regard for their students’ progression and are focused solely on their area of research. In conclusion, despite these disadvantages, Florida State is a great place to attend college because it is one of the best research universities in Florida. Additionally, it strives to educate its pupils to become well rounded individuals-capable of asserting themselves beyond their field of interest, as well as provides them with many opportunities to grow both spiritually and mentally.

Improve my english Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Improve my english - Essay Example Some of the types of learners include: auditory, visual, kinesthetic and tactile. I am definitely a visual learner because I tend to remember more of what I see rather than what I hear. More specifically, if there is an image drawn with the text, I tend to remember that text in association with that image. This means that I am better at grasping those difficult grammatical points which can be diagrammed or have some pictorial information written with them. I also tend to remember those grammar or language points which are available in the form of a video. Moreover, I like texts having a lot of pictures. This means that if I have to improve my English, then the dull novels would not do me any good as I would lose concentration easily. Instead I should go for magazines which are generally colorful. We all have our own learning styles and one should get accustomed to the learning style that is suitable for

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

English - Essay Example Home Heating Systems are indeed the best choice for homes like yours ( you have mentioned that you have an extended family living together) as they keep the house warm without overheating and many of the modern heating systems (which we frequently recommend) have been shown to cause a 50% lesser risk of dehydration than the conventional Gas or electric systems. Therefore I extend a warm welcome to you, since you have made the right choice in availing our advisory/consultancy services. The reason I am of the opinion that you avail yourself of our "Absolutely Free" Home Improvement Consultation is that you need to be able to identify the types of Home Heating Systems and be able to compare their advantages and disadvantages. This will help you make the right choice regarding the feasibility and brand name of your Home Heating System. A consultation with us will cover the types of brands of Home Heating Systems as well as the best brands in terms of after sales service and warranties. At this point I do not have enough information about the structural attributes of your residence and therefore it is too early for me to comment whether you should abandon your conventional central heating system for the "Forced Air Ducting System" or the modern "Radiant heating system". Heating needs. Also I agree that your old heating system is not a very pretty sight and does damage the wall paint and wall decoration.

Picassos Three Dancers Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Picassos Three Dancers - Research Paper Example The paper "Picasso’s Three Dancers" gives an interpretation of painting "Three Dancers" by Pablo Picasso. There was a concept he referred to as the sublime – an idea that remained just out of reach of definition and therefore could only be suggested, never represented. This element has also been referred to as the meaning of an image which these artists were trying to suggest was as much the result of the audience’s understanding of it as it was the result of the artist’s conception or his ability to transfer this into visual images. These ideas can be discovered in Picasso’s painting â€Å"The Three Dancers†. The title of the painting gives the first clue as to what the artist had in mind when creating this image - one expects to see three people clearly engaged in some form of fluid synchronized movement. Instead, one is confronted with hard lines, jagged angles and bold colors but no realistic forms, no easily understood movements. The Tat e Museum tells us, â€Å"The jagged forms of Three Dancers convey an explosion of energy. The image is laden with Picasso's personal recollections of a triangular affair, which resulted in the heart-broken suicide of his friend Carlos Casagemas. Love, sex and death are linked in an ecstatic dance. The left-hand dancer in particular seems possessed by uncontrolled, Dionysian frenzy. Her face relates to a mask from Torres Strait, New Guinea, owned by the artist, and points to Picasso's association of 'primitive' forms with expressiveness and sexuality† (2004).

The art of Graffiti Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The art of Graffiti - Essay Example One day when I went to this mosque to investigate further, I met an old man who sometimes cleans to floors and walls indoors. I took him around to the back of the mosque to show him the graffiti and to ask him what he thought. He looked very surprised when he saw the drawings. He told me that what the people had done who had drawn the graffiti was unacceptable. He had been brought up not to damage or deface other peoples’ property and to show respect for others. These scribblings, he said, were like a slap in the face—they were like someone had drawn physically on his own body, or taken something that belonged to him away from him. â€Å"The people in this community worked hard save up to build this mosque,† he told me. â€Å"They paid to make this walls clean and white. There is no merit in what was done here. Instead it was an act of defacement and sacrilege. It is unacceptable!† My opinion of the situation closely mirrored that of this gentleman. Itâ₠¬â„¢s just a shame that the risk is not commensurate with the meaning of what they are saying. They really seem only to have drawn gibberish on the side of the mosque—not anything that can constitute the risk. Even if they had written something against to government that would be political expression which would at least give the viewer something to think about. Through out the Middle East there is a fair amount of graffiti on mosques. Because of the political turn in the world in recent years, there is sometimes a strong feeling about Muslims.

Subordinate group member Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Subordinate group member - Essay Example ays author Yen Le Espiritu (1995), mainly due to socio-historical amnesia, limited research has been expended on the immigration and settlement history of Filipinos in the US (p.1). Other sources, such as the book The Filipino Americans by Barbara Mercedes Posadas (1999), do not cover Filipino diaspora to the US during the Spanish occupation in the Philippines. Posadas asserts that the first wave of immigration came during World War II. Some Filipinos were enlisted in the US Army and later naturalized and sworn to citizenship. The second wave was during the 1965 liberalization of immigration laws. Many factors such as the Philippine independence from American colonization, access to naturalization, the institution of export labor by the Marcos regime, and the ethnic community expansion among others have contributed to a new face of Filipino Americans (p.26). Perhaps because of limited available publications on their history, Filipino Americans have often been plagued by questions on identity. In many known Filipino American literary pieces, identity is always a central theme. Reshi Hebbar (1998) from the Post Colonial Studies at Emory College notes that renowned Fil-Am authors like Jose Garcia Villa, Carlos Bulosan, Bienvenido Santos, and Jessica Hagedorn wrote â€Å"to exile themselves from the home country or to accept the status of a hyphenated American or to find a bridge between the two.† Maria P. Root (1997), in her introduction to the book Filipino Americans: Transformation and Identity attributes much of the identity confusion explored by Fil-Am writers to the five centuries of colonization that â€Å"ravaged the souls and psyche of the indigenous people of the archipelago dubbed Las Islas Filipinas †¦ regardless of our nativity, language, class or gender† (xi). She affirms that colonization plays a big part in the Fil-Am experience. Currently, there are communities in the US that have helped many Filipino immigrants and descendants cope up with the

Company Policy - Recruiting and Selecting Coursework

Company Policy - Recruiting and Selecting - Coursework Example No single firm can succeed without having laid down policies that govern its day to day operations. For that reason, ASDA also has its laid down rules, principles, guidelines or directions that must be adhered to while selecting and recruiting employees. These rules and guidelines enable the firm to receive highly qualified and skilled employees. In addition to that, the selected employees are best suited for the job to ensure the overall growth and progress of the firm. In ensuring that all employees as well as potential ones understand its policies, ASDA has printed leaflets and availed them in all its outlets. Furthermore, the selection and recruitment policy is available online in the company’s website for public viewing. The policy has clarified the entire process involved in the selection and recruitment of new employees. It states that individuals wishing to work in ASDA should fill in application forms available online or visit nearest ADSA stores, and fill application forms. Thereafter, shortlisted individuals are called for interviews and their personality and working competencies scrutinized. Qualified individuals are selected and further taken to psychology tests where their IQ is tested. People with high IQ and pleasant personality are selected and given roles that makes use of their brilliance. ADSA also has clear procedures that allow recruitment of old people aged fifty years and above. The old people are viewed to have experience which is beneficial to the supermarket. These policies are extremely vital in ensuring the growth and progress of the company. It stresses on employment of qualified people who work to ensure that the supermarket achieves its goals and objectives. It serves the supermarket’s purpose in providing quality service to the people. Employing old people promotes the society’s culture to respect and take care of the elderly people. It gives them a chance to take part in nation building. The policy is updat ed every now and then to ensure that it reflects the current changes in the market demands. The regular updates ensure that the supermarket employs qualified individuals who are focused and dedicated in advancing its goals. The recruitment and selection policy is accepted and known by all stakeholders in the business. The society, customers, employees and customers makes up the stakeholders in ADSA. Every group has a role to play in the business; thus, wide knowledge of the supermarket’s policy will ensure that they perform their roles in the best manner possible. For instance, employees will understand what is expected of them, how to conduct their duties as well as the procedures involved in securing promotions. The customers, on the other hand, will understand best how they should be treated by the supermarket’s employees. Furthermore, having knowledge of the recruitment and selection policy will make them appreciate the supermarket’s employees. They will vie w them as qualified individuals who have their interests at heart. The policy plays important roles in ensuring steady growth and advancement of ASDA supermarket. Employing of qualified individuals after a rigorous interview process makes the chain of supermarket to meet the demands of the public, customers and the society. The psychological tests conducted to employ the managerial staff also promote the company’

The Transformation of Shell Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Transformation of Shell - Case Study Example It has had a very good working relationship with the stakeholders in the industry and they include: partners, shareholders, suppliers, contractors and also their customers. The values that govern the company include respect for all, high sense of integrity and honesty at all levels within the organization. Mutual respect, openness, communication, team work, joint solving of problems and a high level of professionalism also govern the company. Partners, suppliers and the society at large. The company acknowledges that the success of its company largely depends on the contributions made by its employees. The company thus respects the basic rights of its employees by providing them with a good working environment so the employees can work comfortably .They provide them with clean and hygienic employment conditions for them to work in. Once they employ their staff, they tend to motivate them by making the best use of their talents through training them so that they get new skills (Post, Preston, and Sauter-Sachs, 2002). The environment in which the employees work is all-inclusive whereby all the employees regardless of their background are given equal opportunities to develop their skills and talent. The employees are also included in the decision making process by including them in the planning stages and also offering them the necessary support and guidance while they perform their duties. A feedback program has also been put into place whereby the employees are encouraged to raise any concerns that they may have and also give opinions on what they would want to see improved in the organization. The customers are also a very important aspect in their business. The company has come up with innovative ways that assists them to win and maintain their customers. They do so by providing goods and services that are very competitive in price, very high quality, safe and above all, environmentally friendly. For the company to be able to be competitive, a team of professionals in the environmental, commer cial and information technology departments support them (Post, Preston, and Sauter-Sachs, 2002). Shell also seeks to have a mutually beneficial working relationship with all its business partners' .The partners include the suppliers, contractors, and any other parties that they could be having a joint venture with. They seek to promote the basic business principles that they possess. With their partners on board, it assists the company to make strategic decisions on whether to get into more partnerships or pull out of the existing partnerships. The company has been involved in the corporate social responsibilities whereby they try to do their business by complying with all the rules and regulations under the law, observing the basic human rights while at the same time providing proper guidelines on issues to do with the safety, health, security and the environment. Business Principles The Company believes in fairness, honesty and integrity while performing their duties and they expect to be treated the same by their partners and competitors. The company has come up with a policy against bribery, soliciting of money, and any other activities by the employees that would be with in conflict

Experimental economics, summary paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Experimental economics, summary paper - Essay Example The people bidding do not know the reserve price. Another rule is that the seller cannot bid on himself to avoid prices going up artificially. This practice is unethical and illegal. â€Å"No auction house that values its reputation – and the long run profits its reputation secures – would systematically engage in this practice† (Ashenfelter). The fact that reserve prices are kept secret is considered by many an illogical tactic. This occurs because the most dominant strategy used is to bid up in regards to the true valuation of the object which makes the optimal reserve price identical irrelevant of the reserve price being known or kept a secret. Another variable that must be considered in the English auction system is buy-in rates. Sometimes buy-in rates are high despite the fact that the reserve price is also high. These types of sellers are looking to maximize their profit both in terms of final price and buy-in revenues. Auctions that are able to get a lot o f bidders to buy-in generate greater profits than places with few bidders participating in the game. Low turnout of bidders is an undesirable marketplace. When this occurs many sellers prefer to take their items off the market temporarily to protect themselves against collusion from the buyers in an attempt to depress the price. The highest bidding in an auction is only accepted if the bid ends up exceeding the reserve price.

Eltons interpretation of the roles of Somerset and Northumberland Essay Example for Free

Eltons interpretation of the roles of Somerset and Northumberland Essay Geoffrey Elton presented a view of Somerset as an incompetent leader, who failed to fill the political vacuum the ascension of an infant monarch had created; nonetheless, he was noble minded and had visionary aims. On the other hand, Elton saw Northumberland as ambitious and power greedy; however, he did recognise that Northumberland had introduced welcome reforms to the finances and administration, which certainly marked an improvement upon Somersets rule. In this essay, I will argue that Eltons assessment of their reforms and actions was correct, although his judgement of their characters, although true to a certain extent, has been exaggerated. Somerset demonstrated very little concern for humanitarian reform, as has been said by historians such as Elton, and his rule merely exacerbated problems at the end of Henrys reign. However, Northumberland showed more political ability in tackling the equally bad situation he faced and was not as power hungry as Elton suggested. There were significant problems at the end of Henrys reign. His foreign policy had led to a poor financial situation; wars with France and Scotland, although a matter of national pride, actually achieved very little and led to huge debts. Over 2 million had already been spent on the war with Scotland, however victory would have far outweighed these huge financial repercussions. Somerset, therefore, inherited huge financial problems with huge debts and a debased coinage; in addition, the war with Scotland continued and hostilities with France were high. However, it would be a mistake to say that the situation was at a point of no return, Somersets political inability is demonstrated in his failure to deal with the situation inherited from Henry. Indeed, his actions worsened the financial status of the Crown and served only to escalate discontent in his reign. Somersets political inability is shown in his failure to discontinue the damaging Scottish war; he didnt realise, as his successor did, that the Scottish war was unsustainable. Rather, Somersets decision to continue the war was the worst possible start for his rule and indicative of his inability, it lead to a poor economic situation throughout his protectorate and also to his neglect of the more important issues facing his subjects. The Chantries Act (1547) that continued the dissolution of the monasteries in Henrys reign created inflation; as a result, prices, especially grain, rose rapidly fuelling discontent among the poor. Had Somerset been more politically astute, he would have ended the Scottish war and undertaken financial reform. Instead, he made little or no effort to resolve the economic problems and left Northumberland with a worse situation than he had inherited. In this respect, I agree with Elton, who said that Somerset was without any sign of administrative or political sense, 1 this was not, however, limited to his economic policy. Somerset also inherited a nation divided on religion. Henry, although he had split from papal authority, never made the full transition from Catholicism to Protestantism as Northumberland did later in the Edwardian period. Rather, the doctrinal modifications, which followed the split from Rome, resulted in a confused nation. The ten articles of 1536 had seemed to establish England as Protestant; however, the six articles 3 years later represented the return of some Catholic doctrine. As a result, there was a certain confusion and ambiguity as regards the state religion to some extent to do with the competition of the conservative and reform factions of the court, but also the fact the Henry had never been totally converted to Protestantism. Nevertheless, since he followed a monarch who had implemented perhaps the largest religious reform in the history of the church, Somerset had to deal with a situation of religious insecurity. Arguably, the effects of religious reform are harder to forecast than the effects of economic policy; therefore, it is easier to condemn Somerset as inept on the basis of his economic policies than it is on the basis of his religious reforms. Somersets religious reforms moved towards Protestantism with the introduction of a new Prayer Book and the Act of Uniformity as well as the Chantries Act, which abolished the remnants of Catholicism. However, in an attempt to appease both sides of the spectrum, a certain ambiguity still remained and Catholicism had not been categorically denied. However, the reforms were met only with discontent, for some it was too extreme and for others too moderate. The Treason Act, which ended restrictions on the discussion of religious doctrine, served only to make matters worse and led to disorder. In terms of religious reform, the outcome would have been more stable had Somerset done nothing. We have seen that religious turmoil was the result of a lack of continuity in the short Edwardian and Marian eras. This suggests that a period of stability following the fast paced religious reform of the Henrician rule would have been beneficial in Somersets protectorate. However, as we have noted, the outcome of religious reform would have been much harder to gauge at the time. While Somersets religious policy is not the sign of an expert politician, it cannot be used to condemn him to the same extent as his economic record. His religious reform, therefore, supports Eltons view that Somerset had talked much about liberty but had produced disorder. 2 His aim to appease the extremes can at least be seen as well meaning, while his actions were not those of an experienced politician; furthermore, his belief that appeasing the extremes was possible at this point is arguably naive. Somerset was poor at dealing with the growing feeling of discontent in England. Not only was he largely responsible for the growth of discontent due to his economic and religious policies, but more importantly, instead of dealing with the roots of discontent he attempted to control the disorder that resulted. The Vagrancy Act (1547) was a heavy-handed attempt to control the public, it meant that anyone out or work for 3 days would be branded with a V and sold into slavery for two years. He put out the message that dissent was not to be tolerated, though his action was strong it showed few signs of effective leadership. As his reign progressed it was clear that he showed no signs of dealing with the root of the issue, rather to avoid rebellion. A reform programme was supposedly being put together by John Hales, who later turned out not to exist. Furthermore, having blamed the problems on enclosure, reforms to remedy the problem were merely piecemeal and demonstrated indecisiveness. Somerset was inept; the paranoid measures preceding his fall such as bans on football and on the spreading of rumours simply confirm the hypothesis that Somerset had no real understanding of the political situation. In a similar vein to his belief that he could appease the religious extremes, attempting to pacify a discontented populace with piecemeal anti-enclosure measures and a fake reform programme was equally naive. Somerset fell from grace because of his own inability to rule; Eltons assessment was clearly correct: Somerset was disastrous as a leader. 3 However, Eltons view of Somerset as a humanitarian reformer with the best intentions exceeds the reasonable bounds of optimism. Most people, who have a most basic sense of human rights, would see the Vagrancy Act as simply morally corrupt. His poor management of the economy and heavy-handed measures of control hit those most in need the hardest. This demonstrates almost a total disregard for the needs of the poor; furthermore, anyone regarded as a humanitarian reformer, or at least a man with good intentions, would be incapable of passing the Vagrancy Act. It has been conceded that some good will may have lay behind his religious reform, also anti-enclosure legislation may show faint concern for the poor. However, such evidence is far outweighed by his record of controlling legislation. Somerset was not a humanitarian reformer; Elton seems to have avoided the conclusion that a rudimentary presentation of the facts would suggest. Rather, the failure of anti-enclosure legislation is evidence of Somerset appeasing the elite as well attempting to pacify the poor, an end from which he could gain a lot more politic al capital. Indeed, far from concurring with Eltons thesis on this issue, I suggest that Somerset was motivated by a desire to secure his own position of power. His continued use of proclamations as well as his neglect of the Privy Council demonstrates this theme. The Treason Act had done more than permit religious discussions; it repealed a previous act, which said that royal proclamations had the same force as acts of Parliament. Consequently, Somerset was now able to issue proclamations without the consent of his council and he frequently availed himself of this opportunity. Indeed, on average Somerset issued 13 more proclamations per year that usual. Furthermore, his attempts to hold onto power by control rather than tackling the root issues point to a man who was motivated by a need to secure his own position. Elton did recognise his neglect of the council: He alienated his fellow councillors whose feelings and ideas he persistently ignored. 4 However, Elton did not recognise the power seeking nature of Somersets character. I would agree with Heard who presented Somerset, not as a man with noble aims as Elton suggests, but as an arrogant self-seeker. 5 Therefore, It seems that Elton was correct in his judgement of Somerset as an inept leader as demonstrated in his economic and to some extent his religious policies as well as his abysmal handling of a situation of unrest, which he himself had created. However, Somerset was power seeking, not a man of noble aims; his record of legislation was clearly not motivated by a concern for the poor. Elton said: It is difficult to say who did more harm to the country they were supposed to govern. 6 It can certainly be said that Somerset exacerbated the poor situation after Henrys reign, the economic situation worsened through continuation of the wars and the Chantries Act. Religious confusion was not eased and arguably fuelled dissent and he left a country in unrest after the rebellions that led to his fall. Therefore, I agree with Eltons view that he was inept and cause harm to the country, although I disagree with Eltons view of Somersets aims. Northumberland, on the other hand, introduced welcome reforms. Elton argues as much, however I believe Elton exaggerated his assessment of Northumberland as power hungry; furthermore, Northumberlands effective reforms did not harm the country and it is unjust to tar Northumberland and Somerset with the same brush. Northumberland inherited a worse situation than Somerset and demonstrated political astuteness in his action, which dealt with the root of the problem. In addition, his dealings with the Privy Council and use of proclamation were far removed from the power hungry tactics of Somerset. Though his religious policy was arguably harsh and his attempts to alter the succession seem power seeking, Elton exaggerated this element of Northumberlands character. Arguably, Northumberlands best move was to end the Scottish and French wars. Indeed, the way in which the two leaders dealt with the wars can be seen as key in defining their rule and also how we interpret their ability. The treaty of Boulogue, although bad for England in the short-term, allowed the finances to improve and Northumberland to focus on the serious social unrest, Somersets mess that Northumberland was forced to deal with. The treaty is a clear indication of Northumberlands superior ability to Somerset; indeed, this theme is shown throughout the governance. Far from harming the country, Northumberland had shown realism and taken the first step towards recovery. Furthermore, re-evaluation of the coinage and prohibition of usury in 1552 helped to improve the economy. Northumberland, in contrast with Somerset, made some positive achievements; his economic policies helped to reverse the terrible situation left by Somerset. Moreover, his governance seems to have shown a commit ment to reform, which had a current and lasting positive effect. The reformation of the revenue courts was indicative of this commitment to reform. In 1549, five ministries were responsible for collecting money and the situation was worsened by corruption in some courts. Although reform was not carried out under his rule, the recommendations of the Royal Commission were carried out in the Marian era. Therefore, the Boulogue treaty coupled with other economic policies and a clear commitment to financial reform demonstrates that Northumberland was an able politician. Northumberlands economic policies were sound and he should be praised for steering a course out of the economic disaster created by Henry and worsened by Somerset. Indeed, it is arguable that Northumberland set the foundations for stable finances through into the Marian and Elizabethan eras. Elton notes that in Marys reign financial and administrative recovery owed nothing to the queen or her policy. 7 This adds strength to the argument that Northumberland deserves particular credit for his economic policy. Certainly, Elton was unreasonable to ask which of the two did more harm to the country. In doing so Elton comes dangerously close to equating the achievements of the two; however, Northumberland could not be accused of harming the country, particularly in reference to the finances. However, on this issue, it seems that this quote should be taken with a pinch of salt, for, within the same paragraph Elton praised Northumberlands economic policies. Ignoring that rather peculiar quote, I would concur with Eltons high acclaim of Northumberlands financial reforms, which Elton says provided the basis for sound finance in the reign of Elizabeth I. 8 His religious policy resulted in a largely more favourable result than that of Somerset. Northumberlands policy was clear; the Church of England was to become Protestant. The 1552 Prayer Books changed the services to meet Protestant doctrine and all glamour was removed in favour of simplicity. Somersets mistake had been to introduce half-hearted, indecisive reform that attempted to appease as many people as possible. By contrast, Northumberland was decisive; arguably, this was a risky strategy as it may have incited catholic rebellion. However, rebellions were small and Northumberland was successful in crushing them. It is clear that his religious policy was, once again, a sign of his political ability. Northumberland had recognised that decisive action would create the stability required after the fast paced and confusing reform of his predecessors. His religious policy has been accused of being harsh; though this may be the case, it was a successful policy. Furthermore, it is arguable that had Mary not usurped the Protestant reformation, Northumberlands religious policy would have enjoyed the same long-term success as his financial policies. Northumberlands successful consolidation of the reformation supports Eltons argument that he showed skill in public affairs 9. Further support for Eltons assessment of Northumberlands role comes from his handling of the social unrest. He deserves credit for his handling of the serious law and order problem during his rule. The aftermath of the 1549 rebellions and bad economic situation following Somersets fall coupled with three bad harvests and a collapse of the cloth trade meant that Northumberland had serious social unrest and disaffection to deal with. Rather than attempting to control and crush the unrest like Somerset, Northumberland attempted to solve the root problems and therein Northumberlands greater understanding of the situation is demonstrated. Sheep tax was abolished, enclosure commissions were abandoned, an Act in 1552 protected arable farming and a new poor law meant that Northumberland had a more successful social policy. Furthermore, his success with financial recovery enhanced his efforts at calming dissent largely through reducing inflation. In this regard, though not a humanitarian reformer, Northumberland demonstrated a concern for social justice 10, which was clearly greater than that of Somerset. Again I would support the view of Elton that Northumberland showed political skill demonstrated here by his social policy, which solved the root problems rather than attempting to control the dissent. Therefore, Elton was correct in pointing out the very positive achievements of Northumberlands reign. He played an important role in halting the financial and religious problems, which were created by Henry and exacerbated by Somerset. This was not a point that Elton expressly put forward, however I think this was a significant part of Northumberlands role, which should be emphasised. I would also agree with Elton that his financial reforms were influential far past his fall although I would venture to suggest that his religious reform also had an influence in the future, though to a lesser extent, in shaping Elizabeths policy 11. There may be an argument, however, to suggest that the assessment of Northumberlands role in the preceding paragraphs has gone too far to presenting Northumberland as a political genius. It must not be forgotten that Northumberland always had the benefit of hindsight, having seen the failures of Somersets reign. His financial, religious and social policies can all be seen as informed by the failures of Somersets reign. Whether, for example, Northumberland would have followed the same decisive religious policy had he been the direct successor of Henry is an interesting question. Therefore we must conclude that Northumberland was an apt politician, though certainly not anywhere near a political genius as we must recognise that he was able to learn from Somersets reign. It is possible to argue on the exact political abilities of Northumberland and how much advantage hindsight afforded him; however, the fact remains that his achievements were positive. While I may give more credit to Northumberland in some areas of his role, I would concur with Eltons view that Northumberland was an apt politician. Moreover, his view that Northumberlands rule marked an improvement on Somersets 12 is clearly correct and is supported by other historians, such as Alan Smith: Northumberland was a much more realistic and effective ruler than the traditionally overpraised Somerset. 13 Elton was correct in his assessment of Northumberland as greedy, however he has exaggerated the claim that Northumberland was power hungry. It is clear that this desire for power was present in his character as revealed in the desperate attempt to alter the succession at the end of his rule; nevertheless, it did not dominate his governance as Somersets desire for power motivated much of his policy. It is undeniable that during his rule his power and wealth increased significantly. Initially he gave himself the Earldom of Warwick and later became the Duke of Northumberland. He proceeded to make financial gains through land; many of his followers took the liberty to do the same. Clearly, he exploited his position to satisfy his greed and many argued this was at the expense of the King. Therefore, I would not argue with Eltons view that Northumberland was greedy. His desperate attempt to alter the succession is certainly a sign of a serious desire for power. He attempted in vain to abandon the previous succession acts of Henrys reign to bypass Mary and Elizabeth and install Lady Jane Grey, through whom Northumberland could retain a high level of power. It was a failure from the outset, he was unable to secure Marys arrest and upon the death of Edward the people of England opted unsurprisingly for the rightful heir. It was a dismal end to his governance and certainly evidence of a serious desire for power. However, as evidence of his desire for power, it should be viewed in the context of his whole governance. This was an act of desperation at the end of a rule in which his policies could not be seen as indicative of a thirst for power. Many of Somersets policies were methods of control to secure his position; moreover, he had demonstrated his desire for power through continued use of proclamation and a neglect of his council. Northumberland, despite the end of his rule, displayed a far more restrained policy and attitude to government, which leads me to the conclusion that Elton has exaggerated his claims of Northumberland as power hungry. Northumberland restored the Privy Council to its proper position under his guidance and control. Although he did not limit his power to use proclamations, he was much more cautious with their use making sure they were always based on parliamentary statute; furthermore, he made sure he consulted the council. This restrained attitude to government is evidence of him limiting his power and therefore is not demonstrative of desire for power. Of course, one could argue that he had learnt from Somersets mistakes and realised that the approach he took was the best way to keep in his councils favour and thus maintain power. This argument leads to the opposite conclusion that this attitude to government demonstrates his desire for power. However, the fallacy of the latter argument is that his attitude to government led to the retention of his position, not to power. His motivation for this relationship with his council was to remain in his position; the fact remains that through these means h is power was limited and therefore it seems that it is more reasonable to accept the former argument. His policy and governance was not indicative of power hunger. Therefore, his desperate attempt to alter the succession coupled with his moderate policy and governance as discussed above lead to the conclusion that he did have a desire for power, but not to the extent that Elton suggested. It is worthy of note that the very nature of Somerset and Northumberlands rules implies a certain extent of power hunger. Their positions relied upon taking advantage of the political vacuum opened up by the infant monarch. Therefore, I would agree with Elton that Northumberland was greedy, however to say that Northumberland was exceedingly ambitious of power 14 is an exaggeration and is not supported by his record in power. Lastly, it must be noted that though Northumberland may have displayed some unpleasant character traits, this does not infringe upon the success of his reform programmes. In brief conclusion, I agree with Eltons interpretation of the roles of Somerset and Northumberland to a certain extent. I agree with Elton that Somerset was incompetent and his role did indeed harm the country exacerbating the problems he inherited from Henry. However, Eltons view of Somerset as a humanitarian reformer is an error. Largely, I concur with Eltons view of Northumberland although I would give him more credit for dealing with serious problems he faced and leaving a lasting political influence. Furthermore, he was undoubtedly greedy, yet Elton has exaggerated his desire for power. If we ignore the characters of the two rulers, Eltons general view seems to be that Somerset was damaging whereas Northumberland brought forward marked improvements. In this general sense, I would agree with Eltons thesis. 1 Elton, G.R. England under the Tudors. p. 208 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. p. 210 4 Ibid. p. 208 5 Heard, N. quoted from Webb, C. Was it the policies pursued by Henry VIII that caused the mid-Tudor crisis? http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/2809/page15.html 6 Elton, G.R. England under the Tudors. p. 210 7 Elton, G.R. England under the Tudors. p. 214 8 Ibid. p. 209 9 Ibid. p. 210 10 Smith, A.G.R. The Emergence of a Nation State. p. 71 11 Anderson, A. and Imperato, T. An Introduction to Tudor England 1485-1603. p. 154 12 Elton, G.R. England under the Tudors. p. 209 13 Smith, A.G.R. The Emergence of a Nation State. p. 73 14 Elton, G.R. England under the Tudors. p. 209

UK Tour Operators Analysis

UK Tour Operators Analysis A tour operator combines tour and travel components to create a holiday, it designs travel routes for tourists and offer perfect arrangements of the airlines and hotels. In a word, a tour operator offers package holidays. A travel agent is a kind of retail business which is a buyer of tour operator, it sells travel-related products and services to customers on behalf of tour operators, airlines, hotels and other entities. Nowadays, tour operators and travel agencies are closely related to each other. Some tour operators own the distribution channel, they set up retail shops selling products and services directly to the final customers, or they establish close relationships with travel agencies under contracts. The development of the industry should be attributed to the development of transportation in the early age. With the invention of aircraft, the demand for travel increased rapidly. But in recent years, situations become more complex than ever before in such a changeable economi c climate, UKs tour operator industry are fluctuated in growth. This part of report focuses on the market and development during the year 2005-2008. The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) was formed in 1950 by 22 leading travel companies, now represents over 5,300 travel agencies and nearly 1000 tour operations. Its Members range from small, specialist tour operators and independent travel agencies through to publicly-listed companies and household names; from call centres to internet booking services to high street shops, occupy more than 90% of the British market. Thus statistics of ABTA can be used to conduct this report. According to the annual report of ABTA, during the year 2005-2006, bookings through ABTA members were 6% down on the prior year. The package holiday market continued to decline but specialist holidays, cruise tours and flight-only bookings all grew significantly. Company failure level rose substantially from 33 in the previous year to 47 this year. The industry structure changed a lot: independent agents turned to favour dynamic packaging with concentration on niche markets including long-haul, cruising, UK holidays and self-packaging. Big operators drove bookings online and through their own retail networks. 2006 is one of the most challenging years in the industrys history, with traditional business model under great pressure and uncertain future for many others. During the year 2006-2007, 32.8  million overseas visitors who came in 2007 spent  Ã‚ £16.0  billion in the UK, the volume remained stable but spending fell in cash terms for the first time since 2001. Financial statuses of ABTA members were quite positive: total net current assets of  £5.11 million (6% up) and total income of  £5.70 million (13% up). Company failure levels fell dramatically from 47 to 32 compared to the previous year. Several weaker players in the industry have been winnowed out of the market but the figures are still very enco uraging. The industry remained in good health. Consolidation and merger activity has been a key feature of the outbound tourism market in 2007. New business models had made that the differences between the tour operator and travel agency become increasingly blurred. 2008 is again a challenging time for the industry: at one time the fuel price had reached $150 a barrel which is the double of the price in 2007; sterling lost a large amount of its value against most currencies; what makes things worse is that the credit crunch caused the worlds economic downturn, consumers changed their spending patterns, companies struggled to survive. In spite of these factors, UK outbound visits remained increase by 1.5 million from 69.2 million last year to 70.7 million this year. The number of company failures fell from 32 to 30 compared to the previous year. But unfortunately, because of the high cost of fuel, the UKs third largest travel group-XL Leisure Group collapsed on 12 September 2008 leav ing 85000 passengers still on their holidays. This failure resulted in one of the most extensive repatriations in the UK travel industrys history with 85,000 passengers being flown home in a joint action by TUI, Thomas Cook and Virgin orchestrated by the CAA. Another important issue happened in 2008 is the merger of ABTA and the Federation of Tour Operators (FTO) which represents the continuing integration of travel agency and tour operator within the industry. The industry will benefit greatly from the combined different strengths that both organisations offer. The FTOs experience and expertise in operational issues fit ideally with ABTAs traditional functions. PEST analysis of the remote environment (P)olitical/Legal 3.1.1 Political instability and Terrorism Political instability is described as a condition of a country where a government has been toppled, or is controlled by factions following a coup, or where basic functional pre-requisites for social-order control and maintenance are unstable and periodically disrupted (Cook 1990). It is clear that the political instability in a certain country is negatively influencing travelers decision making with prospective travelers seeking substitute travel plans. It will reduce the demand for travel significantly as tourists concern about the safety first and nobody wants to travel in a dangerous environment that strikes, wars and terrorists attacks happen. Among all the factors influencing political instability, terrorism is the most significant one that affecting tourism in UK in recent years. After the heart-broken event of terrorist attack on 11th September 2001, the concern about safety in travelling is increasing rapidly. A series of coordinated suicide bomb attacks on Londons public tra nsport system during the morning rush hour happened on 7th July 2005. The discovery of two car bombs set to detonate in Londons bustling theater and nightclub district Friday, June 29th, 2007 has encouraged residents to remain alert. Following that case, a jeep rammed into a Scottish airport in Glasgow on June 30th, forced Britain to raise the threat level to Critical -the highest alert status. All of the events listed above had negative influences on tourism in UK and businesses of UKs tour operators. Report said that 15% of the advanced bookings were cancelled during the summer peak travel time in 2007. Government and Tourism Government always participates in tourism activities through several kinds of ways: government makes policies for the development of tourism industry; government makes policies that will have impacts on tourism industry. In this part, the report will address issues like the carbon tax influences on the industry, VAT effects on the industry and financial incentives government used on the industry. According to Conservatives 2007, aviation contributes just 5.5% of the UKs CO2 emissions but emissions from UK aviation increased significantly by more than 90% between 1990 and 2004. Government urged to take measures to reduce the negative impact of carbon emissions on environment: from 2001 to 2007, the original APD which is at a rate of  £5.50 on flights from the UK to elsewhere in the European Union and the European Economic Area and  £22.00 for other flights was introduced; a new tax which doubled these charges was introduced from February 2007. These changes in carbon taxation would result in changes in prices of travel products using aviation and finally affect the demands for travelling and sales for tour operators. According to Karen Mayor and Richard S.J. Tol, due to the changes in February 2007, countries near the UK would see a small drop in visitor numbers, and the UK itself would see a larger drop (1.2%). The recent doubling of the boarding tax will reduce arrivals by some 528,800 people in 2010, this is a 1.3% reduction (Karen Mayor, Richard S.J. Tol, 2007). UK government applies a rate of 15% VAT (Value Added Tax, temporary cut from 17.5%) which is the standard rate on tourism products, while most other EU countries apply reduced rate of VAT around 5% on tourism products. Report said that a cut to the 5% UK reduced VAT rate on tourist attractions admission and accommodation will boost employment and result in gains of up to  £760 million savings in increased income and corporation tax. It also predicts an additional  £440 million will be injected into the industry supply chain. The Government had announced an 18% cut in funding for VisitBritain over the next three years on October 2007. Tourism Alliance Chairman, Ros Prichard OBE, stated This cut in funding means that, in real terms, the Government will have reduced VisitBritains funding by around 50% between 1997 and 2011. That is a catastrophe for UKs tourism industry, VisitBritain will be lack of funding to advertise and promote UKs attractions, financial incentives to the industry had been withdrawn and other capital allowances had been reduced, while funding for VisitBritain had been cut back just at the time when they were needed the most, the growth in sales of the industry will suffer. (E)conomic 3.2.1 National economy and disposable income (impact of economic recession) The world is now suffering from the economic downturn caused by financial crisis, businesses collapse, jobs are destroyed, UKs economy is significantly influenced by the crisis. According to National Statistics Online, UKs GDP contracted by 1.6% in the fourth quarter of 2008 when the crisis started. It is now 2% lower than the fourth quarter of 2007. For the year 2008 as a whole, GDP rose by 0.7 per cent with a down trend of 3% in the previous year. UKs economy is experiencing the worst recession in over a century. The recession is a disaster for employment in UK, unemployment rate rose to 6.7% (0.6% higher than the last quarter and 1.5% on last year). 29.3 million people were in work in the period December to February according to the labour force survey (LFS). The number of people employed fell by 126,000 this quarter and down by 227,000 on the last year. All the situations listed above lead to the decrease of national income and disposable income. Tourism is sensitive to economic uncertainty and downturn: most travel activities involve disposable income, as total income drops, disposable income drops, people would conserve their money to cover the cost of life essentials, food, shelters and family necessities. The demands then decrease making tour operators suffer. 3.2.2 Fuel price Fuel cost is a major cost of airline companies, the cost will be paid by customers as fuel surcharge. Tour operators will raise the price of their products, especially for long-haul products when fuel price goes up. The travel enterprises will then be in danger of losing customers. When international crude oil price hit the record of $148 a barrel in September 2008, both airline companies and travel enterprises struggled to make ends meet. The fuel surcharge of some long-haul flights was even same as the ticket price, this might change customers behaviour at some degree, people may stay closer to their home or switch to other entertainments. The economic crisis UK encounters leads to a substantial decrease of oil price which could possibly boost travel industry to some extend though the major influence is negative. 3.2.3 Exchange rate The exchange rate, or the value of the British Pound relative to the currencies of other countries, has had a significant effect on both inbound tourism and outbound tourism. In 2007, the weak dollar makes UK accommodation and food more expensive for visitors from America, the exchange rate put London 15th in its popularity table in July 2007 down from number seven a year earlier according to Cheapflights. Due to the recent Pound depreciation, visitors from other European countries or America can expect to pay around 30% less than they would have done a year ago. British Tourist Authority (BTA) produced a study on The Price Sensitivity of Tourism to Britain, the findings show that overseas visitors are highly sensitive to changes in the cost of staying in Britain: for every 1% movement in the exchange rate which increases the cost of staying in Britain, the UKs international tourism earnings will decrease by 1.3% ( £160m). Research also found that more fixity in the exchange rate arrangements generates a positive effect on tourism and the more fix the exchange regime is, the greater the impact on tourism (Marà ­a Santana-Gallego, Francisco J. Ledesma-Rodrà ­guez, Jorge V. Pà ©rez-Rodrà ­guez, 2007). (S)ocial Social factors like age, changing life style affect the industry through changing consumer behavior. 3.3.1 Age and tourism According to United Nations Statistics and National Statistics Online, for the whole world, since 1950 the proportion of older persons has been rising steadily, passing from 8 per cent in 1950 to 11 per cent in 2007, and is expected to reach 22 per cent in 2050; For UK, the percentage of the population of state pensionable age exceeded the percentage of the population under 16 for the first time in history in 2007. The industry now is facing an older growing society due to rising life expectancy, marketing of the industry should focus more on older persons: the advertising and products should target more at older persons. 3.3.2 Changing lifestyle There is a growing trend of buying online which could reduce a persons shopping trip frequency, the access to the worlds products through internet reduces the flows of shopping tourists from one city to another or cross countries. More and more people tend to prefer clubs or watching TV at home rather than going out for a trip at weekends. 3.3.3 Growing concern about environment Tourism is one of the largest industries in the world with incredible developments each year, it contributes a lot to the worlds economy while the huge infrastructural and resource demands of tourism (e.g. water consumption, waste generation and energy use) can have severe impacts upon local communities and the environment if it is not properly managed. A concept: sustainable tourism which is defined as tourism which leads to management of all resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems by World Tourism Organisation becomes more and more popular. People concern more about the environment, they tend to favour ecotourism products. When developing new tourism products, tour operators should design their trips to be environmentally, culturally and socially friendly. (T)echnological 3.4.1 Technology development of transportation With the development of piston engine aircraft, the mass tourism boomed in 1950s. Transportation technology is always regarded as crucial in the development of tourism, places inaccessible before by car or train can be accessed swiftly by air. It is largely due to the improvement of transportation that tourism has expanded. The highlight of a trip is usually the experience in destination, visitors often neglect the process of getting to the destination. In this case, the faster the visitor can reach the destination, the more attractive the destination will be. The development of transportation especially the speed of the transportation tool will have a major impact on long-haul travel. 3.4.2 Internet and the industry The world enters a new information era with the development of internet technology. The worlds internet users are increasing sharply. According to Internet World Stats, there were 43,800,000 internet users in UK in March 2009 which represents 70.9% of the population, that is a 180% growth from the year 2000. Internet has become an essential part of peoples life. For tour operators, internet provides tour operators platforms of advertising and transaction, which can make their products more accessible to the customers thus bring more sales and profits. Moreover, it is cost-effective and time-efficient using the internet. For customers, internet makes it easier for them to browse the products and make bookings. More and more people are now booking their holidays on the internet, tour operators need to focus on the website design as well as the security of the transaction system. The internet technology makes it possible for meetings online, different companies can communicate or negotiate with their counterparts more efficient through videoconference. Face to face contact is not compulsory anymore. Business travel will suffer from that, there might be a decline in business travel sales for tour operators. 3.4.3 Virtual Tour Another developing technology which will have a strong impact upon tourism is virtual reality (VR), which is a technology allows a user to interact with a computer-simulated environment. Most current virtual reality environments are mainly visual experiences, displayed either on a computer screen or through special stereoscopic displays. According to Chemistry Industry technology news (March 2009), recently, Mobile aroma recreation system (MARS) devices, developed by researchers at the University of Warwick, UK, could be used to recreate these detected odours for VR users in real-time with the help of electronic noses. Electronic noses could one day be incorporated into virtual reality (VR) systems to add realism to simulations of holiday experiences. The new technology will make VR much more real than ever before, enable customers to experience the whole live holiday at home. On one side, virtual reality leads to the risk of diminishing the interest for travel; On the other side, V irtual Reality can be used to recreate historic sites and events for such purposes as education, special project commissions and showcase features at national and World Heritage visitor centres. VR technologies are also being used to provide a means of protecting the fragile state of some heritage sites, helping to educate visitors not so much about their history but in how to explore, interpret and respect them, says Professor Bob Stone, Scientific Director of Virtual Presence Limited, based in Manchester, UK. Though tour operators cant change the remote environment, they should change their strategies to adapt to the environmental changes. Porters 5 forces Analysis of the competitive environment UKs tour operator market is a quite mature market with four major players. After a long history of consolidation, Thomson Holidays (part of The World of TUI group), Thomas Cook, MyTravel Group (formerly Airtours) and First Choice dominate the tour operator market in UK. The industry is full of vertical and horizontal integration, vertical integration includes forward integration-acquisition of the retail network namely travel agencies, backward integration-acquisition of suppliers like airlines, hotels and transportation companies. Horizontal integration includes mergers between big companies and mergers between big and small tour operators. Michael Porter (1980) developed a framework for industry competitive analysis, consisting of five different competitive forces which refer to microenvironment. The frame work is shown in the figure below: 4.1 Threat of new entrants Tour operator industry is an industry which has relatively high entry barriers. UKs tour operator market is quite mature and its vertical integration had finished in the 1990s. Today all major tour operators in UK are highly vertically integrated and operate their own travel agencies, airlines, hotels and resorts, transportation companies and so on. Some of the tour operators become quite large multinational enterprises, they can reduce transaction cost due to large amount of orders, they enjoy the benefits of quantity discount and economies of scale. They always have esteemed reputation for organizing good tours. When people have demands for travel, they turn to those tour operators, people recognize their brand thus will be loyal to the companies. All of the factors mentioned above reduce the threat of industry entry, however, the threat still exists. With the individualistic change of demands and the changeable nature of tourism environment, new players are entering the tour opera tor industry focusing on niche markets. They supply special products designed for customers with special needs. The new players always rely on product quality to gain competitive advantage as well as filling gaps between new demand and supply. Ecotourism and adventure tourism was introduced by those new players. In order to expand the market share and cope with the threat new player had brought, major player began to purchase the niche operators, series of mergers happened within the industry: Headwater is a tour operator specialized in organizing cycling holidays and walking holidays which enables customers to explore at their own pace. Simply Travel is a leading specialist tour operator in UK offering an off-the-beaten-track alternative to the package holiday, creating inspirational holidays and providing a high-level of personal service. Thomson acquired both of the two companies as departments of Thomson Holidys; Panorama used to be the largest tour operator in Ireland for Winte r Sun departures from Ireland and Irish Ski holidays, it became one part of MyTravel Group and was given the responsibility of managing Manos Holidays after it was also acquired by MyTravel; First Choice took control of Meon Holdings specialized in villa holidays and Sunsail which is a tour operator specialized in watersports clubs, Yacht charter and Flotilla sailing. Large players can enhance their brand name attractiveness and achieve a long-term sustainable competitive advantage through acquiring new specialist players. 4.2 Rivalry among existing competitors The industry competitive environment has changed due to industrys horizontal integration, which is a tour operator offering one or several travel products takes over another that offers very similar travel products or services. The industrys competitive environment among existing competitors used to be full of disordered competitions, players competed with each other focusing on low price, they cut their price as much as possible to gain market shares, the whole industry became profitless and all the players suffered from that. In addition, their product quality was quite low due to the reduction on cost, they tried to keep their profits at a certain level while the prices they offered must be low. After industry horizontal integration, situation has changed: mergers and take-overs not only take place among small and large tour operators but also happen among large tour operators. According to Air Travel Organisers Licensing (ATOL) 2007 figures, the four big players in the industry o ccupy more than 80% of the tour operator market shares: Thomson accounts for 28% of total market shares while MyTravel Group has 21%, followed by Thomas Cook with 19% and First Choice with the proportion of 17%. All the four big tour operators offer full-range products from domestic holidays to outbound holidays, from business travel to leisure travel, from normal sight-seeing holidays to specialist holidays, differences among the four players are not significant. Companies compete with each other mainly based on brand identity and creating brand loyalty, a good brand offers distinctiveness and consistency to its target customers, thus branding strategy becomes dramatically important in companies marketing strategy to expand market shares. MyTravel Group launched freedom card-a kind of bonus card offers its members discounts bonus points and upgrades in order to maintain customer purchase and loyalty; Thomson also sought a way to keep their customers loyal to the company by setting up Founders Club new shareholders were given membership in the Thomson Founders Club which offered a 10% discount on Thomson holidays. Exit barriers of the industry are high due to some reasons listed below: Though investments on non-transferable fixed assets are quite low, redundancy costs are very high because those large travel companies often have a large number of employees thus it costs a lot to dismiss employees, in addition, there will be significant social problems if such large companies go bust. Those large tour operators usually have close relationships with their suppliers and buyers under restricted contracts, the penalty costs would be significant if they break the contracts. 4.3 Threat of substitutes The development of information technology especially internet has brought new opportunities and threats to the tour operator industry. Through using computerized reservation system (CRS), tour operators can obtain efficient information distribution systems and networks. Internet plays an important role in purchasing holiday products in terms of provision, accessibility and flexibility. With the emergence of internet technology, a kind of online holiday booking website was created. It can be seen as a kind of substitute to the traditional tour operators. Online holiday booking websites like Expedia.co.uk and Lastminute.com offers designed holiday routes, air tickets booking, hotel booking and so on just like what traditional tour operators do but in another much more efficient way. Customer can gain great benefits through using the new technology on booking, they have more choices and have easier access to the holiday products. The major tour operators are not resistant to the technology and are now investing heavily on their own virtual networks: MyTravel Group announces its intention to launch a new interactive digital television channel to be called Going Places TV and finally it was launched on channel 669 in February 2003; Thomson, recently enhanced its main website with a series of new features and content, in an attempt to retain customers and encourage them to book through the site. It also introduced additional editorial content to help consumers, as well as to enable the site to be picked up by Google in natural searches. Takeovers and merger are quite common: MyTravel Group acquired WorldChoiceTravel.com (WCT), a fast growing, US based provider of travel reservation services in March 2001; Thomson acquired a teletext operator Travel House in order to gain control of the virtual marketplace. The technology of internet makes information shared much easier and more widely than ever before, people can gain knowledge about the destination, the way to get there and accommodations there by easily clicking on the relevant websites. Information asymmetry no longer happens in recent years, the usage of tour operator becomes less and less. Cheap budget airline companies and online hotel booking websites provide travelers opportunities to get low-price air tickets and accommodations, these are really threats to tour operators. People tend to organize their own trips, they choose their own destinations, drive their own cars, book hotels from hotel websites or booking websites or even live in their own houses, they will experience more freely holidays through doing that. There is a growing trend of using this do-it-yourself (DIY) approach in travelling which could be a substitute of tour operators. Most travelers concern about price when making decisions, when there is no price advan tage booking from tour operators, travelers tend to favor DIY travel. Major tour operator like Thomson, MyTravel, Thomas Cook, First Choice offer a range of products featured with free concept, with only air tickets and hotel bookings at a low price with their popular trusted brand names. 4.4 Bargaining power of suppliers The bargaining power of the industrys suppliers should be described as low. On one hand, there are few tour operators in the industry to bargain with: suppliers like independent hotels and airline companies widely exist in recent times while only few tour operators are operated due to the consolidations within the industry, the suppliers dont have too much power bargaining with the major tour operators but still have certain degree of bargaining power on smaller tour operators. On the other hand, vertical integration with the hotels, airline companies and other transportation companies makes the bargaining power of suppliers at the lowest point. The backward integration enables tour operators to establish close relationships with their suppliers by signing contracts of cooperation or even the purchase of the suppliers: First Choice launched its own airline quite early in 1987 which represents the beginning of forward integration, in 2000 a joint venture with Royal Caribbean Cruises L td is announced and later a company called Island Cruises was set up and put into operation in 2002; MyTravel Group acquired Europes biggest resort complex, the Bellevue Hotel in Majorca, which comprised of 17 blocks of apartments and 8 swimming pools in January 2000. In June 2001 the company announced strategic alliance with Aqua Sol Hotels Limited, a leading hotel group in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Groups in-house airlines Airtours International and Premiair begin to trade as MyTravel Airways in May 2002. Thomas Cook owns Thomas Cook Airline and has a fleet of 45 aircrafts, the company has a partnership with SENTIDO Hotels Resorts the international hotel chain based on a franchise concept with 4-star plus beach hotels. The major tour operators all participant in the dynamic areas of tourism, there are few needs to bargain with suppliers, in a simply word, tour operators are self-sufficient. 4.5 Bargaining power of buyers The bargaining power of buyers should also be described as low. The buyers being discussed here stands for travel agencies not the ultimate customers due to the nature of the industry. The most important factor that affects bargaining power of buyers is forward integration between tour operators and travel agencies. According to Bloomsbury Business Library Business Management Dictionary, forward integration is a means of guaranteeing distribution channels for products and services by building relationships with, or taking control of, distributors. Forward integration can free the supplier from the threat or influence of major buyers and can also provide a barrier to market entry by potential rivals (Business Management Dictionary, 2007). Through forward integration, major tour operators take control of the distribution channel, they can sell their products in a more efficient and cost-effective way. Forward integration of tour operators and travel agencies makes it increasingly di fficult for smaller independent tour operators who cant reach their customers through high street travel agencies. As major tour operators all have their own travel agencies, independent tour operators rely on independent travel agencies. The number of independent travel agencies is declining because they cant offer customers the same discount as the integrated chains, in this case, independent tour operators cant compete with major tour operators on price, the number of smaller independent tour operators also decreases. The development of internet technology also has an important impact on the bargaining power of buyers, it has changed the pattern of traditional distribution, shocking the market by the rapid transformations which it generates across the whole industry. These days, the online travel market is experiencing a profound evolution. Trends in overall online travel market size are shown below: Now the bargaining power of buyers is being threatened by disintermediation the elimination of intermediaries, for example, the wholesalers found in traditional retail channels, in favor of direct selling to the consumer (Bloomsbury Business Library Business Management Dictionary, 2007). The disintermediation is caused mainly by the development of internet. Major tour operators have embraced the growth of online travel systems and the need for fast and efficient distribution systems and networks, they have built their own online distribution channels like websites and

South Africa: Federal or Unitary?

South Africa: Federal or Unitary? Abgenia Rivoningo Hlophe South African Governing System Introduction The governing system of a country is a crucial component in understanding the manner in which the political sphere functions. This essay will examine the federal and unitary system of government and relate it one to South Africa. In this respect, this essay will focus on the key features of the systems. Notably, this essay aims to prove that the governing system of South Africa, despite having come to existence in 1909 with a constitution that was unitary (Welsh, 1994:243), is federal. However, an inclusion of the unitary system is mandatory for the sake of comparison. Federal and Unitary systems definitions and affirmative argument. Andrew Heywood defines the federal system of governance as a system where power is decentralized, meaning that the central and peripheral levels of government are sovereign (2013:381). He further emphasizes the statement that power is decentralized in a federal state by expanding on the concept of decentralization, reviewing its strengths, as the ability to encourage participation, responsiveness, legitimacy and liberty (Heywood, 2013:383). Adding to this assertion, Kenneth Newton credits the federal system for having many strengths that will make a country successful if it is utilized. He describes the federal system as a way to separate power and encourage consensus within the government (2010:60).Another advantage that he outlines is that the federal system provides the government with an opportunity to address the different needs of people irrespective of geographical location (2010:61). To contrast the federal system, Heywood speaks of the unitary system of government. In this system, power is centralized and there is only sovereignty of power in one authority (2013:385). Additionally, he draws attention to the fact that there are instances where power can be decentralized, which is when there are devolved assemblies (2013:386). Furthermore, the unitary system’s centralization of power has the advantage of having national unity, encouraging uniformity, equality and progress (Heywood, 2013:386). Also adapted from Newton’s dissertation, are the strengths of the unitary system. He writes that unitary systems having central government increases accountability and promotes more organized decision making and fairness (2010:112). With an understanding of the respective systems of government, it places one at an advantage to grasp how a country resembles a particular system, when looking at the key features of the system which follow. Key features associated with South Africa’s governing system. As priory stated, South Africa is a federal system. A federal system has certain characteristics and features which aid in the understanding of what it means for a country to be federal. The features are prescribed as the existence of a written constitution, two relatively autonomous levels of government, a constitutional arbiter and linking institutions (Heywood, 2013:384). Each of these features will be investigated and referred back to the South African context. Firstly, the existence of a written constitution. This is perhaps the most important feature. In any federal system, the constitution must be a formal written document that outlines how government works, the role of each section of government as well as the legislative framework. South Africa has a written constitution which is regarded as the ‘supreme law of the Republic† (South African constitution, 1996:08). Any law that that exists in South Africa must be justified in accordance with the constitution, otherwise it does not have any validity. The presence of a written constitution is vital to the classification of South Africa as a federal system, the constitution forms the foundation of the argument being presented. There are three levels of government namely the national, provincial and local government. Of these levels of government, two levels are â€Å"relatively autonomous† (Heywood, 2013:384). That means that the national and state government each have a certain range of power. In the constitution of South Africa it is clearly stipulated that the spheres of government are distinctive, interdependent, interrelated (South African constitution, 1996:40). It may appear to present a complexity to the initial definition, however when closely reviewed, the constitution says that the spheres are merely interdependent not that they don’t hold separate reins of power. In fact there is further evidence in the constitution to prove the decentralization of power, it states that the different spheres of government have legislative authority (South African Constitution, 1996:44). Indeed, the national and provincial level of government have power, they are only obligated to remain within the borders of the constitution. Also, the fact that all levels of government have a right to be represented in parliament through the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces, shows that there is autonomous power because the procedure to get a law passed, is the same for both national and provincial government. Not only the abovementioned but the fact that each province has a legislature where there is a structure separate from national government and has the power to pass bills that affect the province without having to attain permission from national level. Of course, the bill would have to be constitutional but the fact that it can be implemented by provincial authority shows the decentralization (South African Constitution, 1996:82). Since South Africa places great emphasis on the Head of State, the laws implemented at national level, which are constitutional, are of the greatest authority. Even with that understanding, there are matters which the Head of State cann ot check such as the dispute between two provinces, or to suppress a rebellion or establish a productive impose (Molteno, 1896:40). Comparatively, critics might present the structure of the world’s largest economy and oldest federal system, the United States of America (USA) to dispute the claim made about South Africa being solely federal, on the basis that it does not have separate branches but rather it has levels of government that are interdependent. While that might appear plausible, John McCormick writes about how the USA is a unique federal system because of its set up but even so, there is â€Å"shared power, checked and balanced with one another† (2009:48). Another feature of a federal system is exposed, specifically, the presence of a constitutional arbiter. Heywood tells us that this is the formal undertaking of the constitution which is implemented by the Supreme Court and hereby has the authority to arbiter in the event of a dispute between the national and the provincial government (2013:384). Nowhere is this better outlined than in the South African constitution, the courts are independent and are accountable only to the constitution and the law, no entity can interfere with the courts (1996:84). Although the courts, whether being the high court or a magistrate’s court in a particular province, rule according to national legislation, it should not be mistaken as being under the national government. It complies with the constitution particularly, not with a certain level of government, therefore the provincial government cannot have its own laws in the magistrate’s court. Thereby adhering to its main characteristic of being a federal feature. Another interesting feature of a federal system, is the linking of institutions. An assertion by Heywood will be implored upon to understand this feature. He explains this as an effort to garner cooperation and understanding between the national and provincial government because these are the autonomous levels and the local government adheres to the provincial rule (2013:384). This is done through bicameralism, which in the South African context would be the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces. Kenneth Newton raises an awareness of a weak and strong bicameralism, which means that one house is stronger than the other (2010: 113). Keeping this in mind, the South African parliament is made up of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces and they both participate in the legislative proceedings, however, there are some issues such as war and peace treaties, army and navy, currency and taxation (Molteno, 1896:118) which are left to national government, where the National Council of Provinces may not vote upon. From that we can say that South Africa has linking of institutions with a â€Å"weak bicameralism† system because the National Assembly is stronger than the National Council of Provinces. While the evidence seems to correlate with the claim that South Africa is a federal system, supporters of unitary systems many present the argument, that South Africa is unitary because the National government has a lot of power vested in it and there is a parliament. However this naysayer’s argument can be countered by David Welsh’s information that when South Africa began to function as a republic in 1909, there was a unitary system in place and the key players of the Inkhata freedom party who proposed federalist policy were attempting to strip the central government of power, which granted the constitution we have today, was a successful attempt (1994:243). This has been mentioned because it explains why South Africa has a parliament. Bearing in mind that South Africa used to be a British colony and as it is a widely recognized fact that, Britain is where the concept of a parliament started. This does not suggest that South Africa is unitary but rather there are remn ants of colonization which proved to be effective and were not eradicated. Conclusion This essay has defined as well examined the key features of a federal system without isolating the unitary system, and further related the features to South Africa. Based on the evidence of the presence of a written constitution, two autonomous levels of government, constitutional arbiter and linking of institution as well as decentralized power in the South African political sphere, it is with concrete knowledge that the initial stance, that South Africa has a federal system of government is found to be correct. Regardless of the presence of a parliament. South Africa evidently has decentralization of power and thus shows all the attributes of a federal system. Bibliography Heywood, A. 2013. Politics. United Kingdom: Palgrave Macmillan. McCormick, J. 2009. Comparative Politics in Transition. Indianalopis: Cengage learning. Molteno, P. 1896. A federal South Africa. London: Sampson Law and Marston. Newton, K Van Deth, J. 2010. Foundations of Comparative Politics. South Hampton: Cambridge University Press. South African Government. (1996). South African Government. 9108-96. [Online] Available from www.gov.za/documents/constitution/9108-96.pdf . [Accessed: 03 March 2014]. Welsh, D. 1994. Evaluating federal systems. Cape Town: Jutaco.

Womens Identity in the Early 1900s Essay examples -- Women Studies,

Ibsen wrote this play in 1879. It is a three-act play with prose dialogue. The play takes place in the 19th century in Europe. It is a play about a woman, who struggles to find her own identity. The main point is women need treated as humans and not dolls. Women need to know their place and that they have rights. They also have duties as a wife and mother. As a wife, they need to be trustworthy and as a mother, they need to be role models. As do husbands need to respect their wife and know that, they have their own opinions and titled to them. Women cannot be good wives and role models to their children, if they do not know who they are and what their roles are in life. Ibsen uses the symbolism in his setting to show various aspects of Nora's character and reveal the theme of women's identity in the early 1900's. Symbolism, is used before the play even begins. The title A Doll's House is a symbol of tendencies for characters to play roles. The setting is in Helmers' apartment; the set is set up to furnish the thought it is his home and not hers (obj. 3). Nora returns with a Christmas tree setting the mood for the play (obj. 3). She also brings presents for the children. The presents signify pushing roles onto the children (obj. 3). Helmer proceeds to call Nora his "little lark" and "little squirrel" (pg. 1559). She answers "yes" (pg. 1559) right away leaving the impression that she is inferior compared to Helmer. He treats her in a demeaning way that she tolerates because she really knows no different. This also sets the tone that Helmer is superior over Nora throughout the play (obj. 3). He shows us his superiority over her with the macaroons that he forbids her to have. Yet she has them anyway and hide... ...he image of man; therefore, women have the same capabilities as do men (obj. 1). Every human being in life is equal and needs treated with respect and dignity (obj. 1). Ibsen is aware that women need to know who they are in order to be productive in society. He does a good job of bringing out the overall theme in A Doll's House of women's identity (obj. 2). In the theme, we are able to see his view of women and their need to be independent. Ibsen used symbolism to define the characters and the role of women's identity in society. This is not a typical structure of a home in 19th century, which left the ending causing immense controversies. Ibsen was taking a stand when he wrote this play (obj. 1). In the way, he wrote the play using Nora as the protagonist and Torvald as the antagonist, made this one of the best-constructed plays of the 19th century. Women's Identity in the Early 1900's Essay examples -- Women Studies, Ibsen wrote this play in 1879. It is a three-act play with prose dialogue. The play takes place in the 19th century in Europe. It is a play about a woman, who struggles to find her own identity. The main point is women need treated as humans and not dolls. Women need to know their place and that they have rights. They also have duties as a wife and mother. As a wife, they need to be trustworthy and as a mother, they need to be role models. As do husbands need to respect their wife and know that, they have their own opinions and titled to them. Women cannot be good wives and role models to their children, if they do not know who they are and what their roles are in life. Ibsen uses the symbolism in his setting to show various aspects of Nora's character and reveal the theme of women's identity in the early 1900's. Symbolism, is used before the play even begins. The title A Doll's House is a symbol of tendencies for characters to play roles. The setting is in Helmers' apartment; the set is set up to furnish the thought it is his home and not hers (obj. 3). Nora returns with a Christmas tree setting the mood for the play (obj. 3). She also brings presents for the children. The presents signify pushing roles onto the children (obj. 3). Helmer proceeds to call Nora his "little lark" and "little squirrel" (pg. 1559). She answers "yes" (pg. 1559) right away leaving the impression that she is inferior compared to Helmer. He treats her in a demeaning way that she tolerates because she really knows no different. This also sets the tone that Helmer is superior over Nora throughout the play (obj. 3). He shows us his superiority over her with the macaroons that he forbids her to have. Yet she has them anyway and hide... ...he image of man; therefore, women have the same capabilities as do men (obj. 1). Every human being in life is equal and needs treated with respect and dignity (obj. 1). Ibsen is aware that women need to know who they are in order to be productive in society. He does a good job of bringing out the overall theme in A Doll's House of women's identity (obj. 2). In the theme, we are able to see his view of women and their need to be independent. Ibsen used symbolism to define the characters and the role of women's identity in society. This is not a typical structure of a home in 19th century, which left the ending causing immense controversies. Ibsen was taking a stand when he wrote this play (obj. 1). In the way, he wrote the play using Nora as the protagonist and Torvald as the antagonist, made this one of the best-constructed plays of the 19th century.

My Town :: essays papers

My Town To give you a better view of "My Town," I will perch him atop the highest point of the some-kind-of-wonderful city of Hillside: The Giza pyramid-shaped pile of garbage majestically sitting in the town dump. The movie theater is to the west; a neon-pink fluorescent sign frames this week's shows: Th' Bach, Scram 3, and y' of Th' Bholdr. Teenage employees relinquish all responsibility for the missing "E"s. A makeshift lemonade stand is set up a block away. Sometimes, its determined entrepreneurs, the set of five-year-old twins, Brooke and Blake Simone like to mix their drink of choice with "extra flavoring," such as leaves, rocks, and the occasionally, yet classic family of ants. Needless to say, the single dime in their yellow Teletubbie cash box has not multiplied since their first day of business. The strip mall to the north has been replaced by Car Max, the automobile superstore. Unfortunately, the abundance of cars has not, in fact, improved anyone's driving skills, or lack of them. Further west is Proviso West High School; the peeling, forest-green painted fence that protects the school grounds failed to prevent kleptomaniacs from stealing seven car stereos from the parking lot last December. The football field behind the school patiently waits with its freshly mowed green splendor for the team of big, burly boys (and one girl) to actually win a game. At 5:30 AM, a shivering Student Council vice-president with the intent to do extra work trudges the perimeter of the edifice, praying for an open door to a building that doesn't like to be occupied outside of the normal school hours. Psychologically, two opposing beliefs surface for why I dream of dancing sugarplums and college diplomas rather than a pin on my Dairy Queen hat that reads "Employee of the Month." A child is either influenced by his surroundings and peers or repelled into the opposite direction. As a magnet gone a rye, I am thankful that Hillside has not influenced me to blend in with the crowd; neither the cemetery across the street from school nor the various monument and flower shops entice me to- pardon my morbidity- just drop dead. The strategically located bowling alley down the block does not tempt me to ditch school. Certainly, the smell of the garbage dump has turned me off to the wide-eyed world of garbage disposal and handicapped my nose, thus threatening me into giving a hoot.

My Reaction To The Sociological Imagination Chapter One: The Promise Essay

After reading The Sociological Imagination Chapter One: The Promise by C. Wright Mills, I had mixed emotions about multiple topics in which he discussed. The overall subject of the Sociological Imagination is one that I found to be confusing. Firstly, I agree with his statement that, â€Å"Nowadays people often feel their private lives are a series of traps,† (Mills 1). This statement is then followed by the acknowledgement that humans, as individuals, are nothing but spectators of our everyday milieu. When going about our daily lives, many individuals feel as if they must do certain things because they cannot overcome the obstacles standing in their way. I agree with this idea because I personally feel as if some days I am â€Å"trapped† in my own life, and there is nothing I can do to escape. Whether this is with my daily high school schedule, daily work schedule, or even my weekly CCAC schedule, I feel as if there is no way out. I become so caught up in everything at once that I just want to â€Å"break free† in a sense, escaping for just an hour, so I can relax. The second point he conveys, is the idea that individuals can only vision their fate in accordance to the knowing of their place in the hierarchy of one’s surroundings. One example indicating social stratification is how ranking individuals allows for the knowledge of fate, such as a given class rank in high school. The class rank is a numerical value given to each student allowing for them to know where they stand while being compared to their peers. The previous example demonstrates how I also agree with Mills’ idea. However, there were also numerous topics that contradict my opinion and I am not in complete accordance with. One of these topics that Mills discusses, but I do not agree with is when he states, â€Å"Neither the life on an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both,† (Mills 1). My reaction to this quote is that I believe it is false. I personally believe that to understand the life of an individual, one does not need to know the history of their society. If one would trace history back far enough, everyone will end up back at the same few places. Therefore, making all history of society even and unnecessary to understand the life of an individual. Although I disagree with this idea, I understand Mills’ idea of the historical involvement. Overall, this chapter of Mills’ work left me with a reaction of mixed emotions. I agreed with some aspects of his work, yet disagreed with certain aspects of his work. I never thought of an  individual and history in a co-ordinance together. I also would have never thought of a daily life being â€Å"trapped†. This chapter led me to want to further read into the ideas of social positions, social values, and social troubles and issues. My final reaction to this chapter is that Mills’ has a uniqu e way of thinking, and it led me to personally have mixed emotions to his overall work. The first main point of C. Wright Mills’ chapter that I found to be appealing is the idea of social positions. It should be clarified that social position is not discussing positions in terms of physical location, but as a hierarchical stature. It is similar in that of the location on the totem pole. Mills notes that,â€Å"†¦[Sociological Imagination] is the idea that the individual can understand her own experience and gauge her own fate only by locating herself within her period, that she can know her own chances in life only by becoming aware of those of all individuals in her circumstances,† (Mills 2). This quote is showing that in order for individuals to know their own future, they must know where they rank in place with everyone else. Another phrase that may also seem applicable here, is self-consciousness. Knowing everyone’s locations allows individuals to estimate where they may be in a few years, without over or under estimating themselves. If they see someone who is relatively close to their own social status being successful, they can then come to the conclusion that they too, will be successful. Their social position can then help them look back in history and see where they may be able to assist in the current making of history. Every person lives out a biography during their lifetime, and it helps shape society, even though their input is minor to the current history making (Mills 2). Social positions have helped shape history from generation to generation. The second point I would like to discuss, is the idea of social values. A value is something that holds importance and meaning to someone or a group of people. When asked a question regarding public issues and private troubles, Mills responds quite simply that, â€Å"To formulate issues and troubles, we must ask what values are cherished yet threatened, and what values are cherished and supported, by characterizing trends of our period, (Mills 5). By this quote, Mills shows the importance values have on society, and that they must be characterized depending on how they make people feel. The state of an individual is directly related to the state of their values. People  experience well-being when they have values that are not being threatened. This is due to the fact that they have nothing to worry about, and they can go through their day in a normal fashion. However, when the opposite occurs, and the individual has values that they feel are being threatened, the individual then experiences a crisis. A crisis is a sudden change or a stage of danger. Furthermore, if all of the individual’s values are threatened at the same time, they experience a full panic, overwhelming fear. In continuance, if one does not know of any cherished values nor experience any threat, they are in a state of indifference. In addition to the above, the final feeling is the experience of uneasiness or anxiety. This occurs when the individual is unaware of cherished values, yet feels a threat. Often people have these feelings, but are unaware of the direct cause of them. One example Mill uses in his work is the time period after World War Two. He mentioned how not everyone was aware of the values, but all felt a threat. From the previous one can conclude that there was a full feeling of uneasiness in America. As one can now see, values play in important role in society and in the individual. The final idea that I would like to acknowledge is the idea of social troubles and issues. There is a distinct difference between troubles and issues, and Mills makes that very clear in his work. According to Mills, â€Å"Troubles occur within the character of the individual and within the range of his or her immediate relations with others†¦,† (Mills 4). In other words, troubles are the problems that are concerned with the self and personal awareness within their direct surroundings. Troubles are private matters to an individual and occur when their values seem threatened. He also states that, â€Å"Issues have to do with matters that transcend these local environments of the individual and the range of her inner life,† (Mills 4). This also means that they are public matters, and become a problem when the public values become threatened. Issues are public matters and can range as small as one group of people to as large as a few communities. There are many common examples showing the difference between troubles and issues. Unemployment is a perfect example to differentiate between the two. Unemployment as a trouble is if one man is unemployed, and as an issue is if ten percent of the nation’s workers are unemployed. As one can see, the trouble is personal and the issue is public. Another example is war. The trouble of war is the need to survive and to  make money out of it as a career. The issue of war is the cause and effects on others, therefore making it public. Those are examples of the major differences between troubles and issues. In conclusion, after reading the article The Sociological Imagination Chapter One: The Promise by C. Wright Mills, I had an overall feeling of mixed emotions. I strongly agreed with some of his topics, while disagreeing with others. Throughout the entire paper I was capable of understanding Mills, even while is disagreement. The topic I found to be most appealing was the fact that some individuals feel a sense of being â€Å"trapped† within their own lives. Although it sounds contradicting, Mills was capable to explain the idea thoroughly and fully. I also believe that with the understanding of social position, values, along with troubles and issues one is fully capable of understanding the Sociological Imagination. Social positions is knowing where the individual stands comparatively in their society, or if taken broader, in history. Social values are the ideas that individuals cherish and when threatened causes different experiences within one’s self. Social troubles occur when values are threatened, but at a private and small scale. In opposition, issues occur when the same or different values are threatened, but at a public or macro scale. Overall, I believe that Mills’ Sociological Imagination is a grand topic that may be analyzed to help new ideas begin. Works Cited Mills, C. Wright. The Sociological Imagination