News Story Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

News Story - Essay Example Irrespective of these market determined prices of goods and services economies goes through various phases of boom and depression, a fact that affect consumers ability to afford some goods and services over time (Martha, 1989). Tracing this changes in the 1920s indicated a need to establish measures that can help consumers boost their affordability of various goods and services (Martha, 1989). Introducing these measure which included among others credit buying were established to help consumers get goods and services which otherwise could have been out of their reach. Credit buying is where a consumer is given with a promise to pay later (Martha, 1989). It therefore means that with this mode an individual would be able to access goods and services that otherwise would have been out of his reach and pay for them later when he is able or in installment (Martha, 1989). Credit comes in different forms and has evolved since 1920s, incorporating technology and other modern means of payment. The most modern form of credit buying has incorporate the concept of plastic money and is to most popular known as credit cards (Martha, 1989) Credit buying as indicated in the introduction allows buyers to get good and services now and pay for them later (Martha, 1989). The 1920s introduced many modern conveniences and was commonly referred to as the roaring 20s for this reason. These period marked overwhelming rise of modern consumer culture (Martha, 1989). This meant rise in exciting opportunities to buy stylish clothing, cars and house appliances that defined status and comfort. Among these modern conveniences was the concept of buying on credit to help consumers buy not just within their means. With the surge of new exciting opportunities, new financing modes were introduced to help consumers cope with increasing need for an easy life (Martha, 1989). New products in the 1920s

Create a financial information system on pricing costing funding which Essay

Create a financial information system on pricing costing funding which is being implemented into the railway tickets and makes the prices dynamic - Essay Example was a technical support element to accomplish desktop data entry in the late 1990s has evolved into a strategic element for increasing the revenue through identifying new business development opportunities as well as providing efficient quality of service to the customers a company is serving. Public transportation in the UK serves more than 75% of the total commuters’ transportation in the UK as argued by Simon Taylor (2003)iii. Railways in the public transportation especially accounts for over 50% of the total market share in the public transport as identified by Simon Taylor (2003). This makes it clear that the rail transport market in the UK public transport industry not only forms an integral part of the public transportation but also contributes to the Gross Domestic Product. Alongside, the railway industry is also facing stiff competition from other forms of public transport like the road and air transport that is increasingly cost effective in the UK as argued by Simon Taylor (2003). From the aforementioned it is clear that the railway industry in the UK not only needs to address the competition through the effective use of information technology and managing the information for strategic advantage but also accomplish financial operational excellence ass argued by Helen Knight (2005)iv. The fact that the finance especially the billing and ticketing section of the railway industry is the gateway of income to the industry’s overall operations as argued by Helen Knight (2005) makes it clear that the efficient information management in the form of financial information management system is essential. In this report a critical analysis on the implementation of a Financial Information System in the Railway ticketing system from an information strategy perspective is presented to the reader. The essay presents a critical analysis on the macro and micro business environment for the railway business in the UK through PEST and SWOT Analyses respectively. This

Develop an advertising campaign Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Develop an advertising campaign - Coursework Example The performance campaign will feature well known sports car expert drivers, including Richard Atwood, who is a world class driver and instructor specialising in the Porsche and Ferrari cars. The second expert driver to feature in the campaign is Aaron Scott, who has sported in the GT’s and Formula 3 sports cars for the past fifteen years. He has been a well known instructor for the Carrera Cup and the GT cup. The choice of the two experts was aimed at increasing the effects of celebrity endorsements, which have a profound appeal to the social stature and the sense of belonging of the upcoming buyers of the Nissan Skyline GTR R34 and also sporting car enthusiasts. Through the car, the campaign should leave the mark of excellence, performance and expert status in the ownership of the Nissan Skyline GTR R34. By focusing on the image and the aura communicated by the sporting world, the new buyers and enthusiasts of the car will increase the uptake of the car (Macdonald & Sharp, 2003). The sports car brands that the company is competing with in this segment include Toyota supra, Honda NSX, Mazda RX-7 and Mitsubishi Lancer. Through the advertising campaign, the company hopes to scoop more market from its competitors, by positioning the car as a well-priced sports car fit for racing (Niraj & Pillutla, 2000). 2) Change the perception of the public about the Nissan brand, by demonstrating that it is the number one competitor among performance class of vehicles, with the aim of increasing its presence in sporting events. The purpose of the advertising campaign is that of reassuring the customers, sporting event organizers and media users that the Nissan Skyline GTR R34 is very successful and the best performance vehicle in the world. 2) Increase the production capacity of the GTR R34 sports car in the company by 20 percent, which will cater for the increase in the increase of demand arising from the

Strategic Marketing Plan Starbucks in Asia Case Study

Strategic Marketing Plan Starbucks in Asia - Case Study Example whilst walking from his hotel to the conference centre, Schultz spotted an espresso bar and went in to have a look . a few blocks away he entered another espresso coffee bar. In the after that a few blocks away , he saw two other espresso bars. Schultz was on the whole struck by the reality that there were one thousand and five hundred espresso coffee bars in Milan, a city approximately the size of Philadelphia, and a totality of one fifth of one million in the entire of Italy. His mind started churning. Schultz left Starbucks two decade before. The first Il Giornale store opened two decade before in April. It had a mere seven hundred square feet and was located near the entrance of Seattle's tallest building. The first Starbucks locality outside of North America is in Tokyo, and Starbucks is in thirty other countries as well. Industry analysts saw Starbucks as being well on its way to turning into a well known company. Every next year company improves its financial position. Current ratio and Acid test ratio show company strong liquidity position, company has more than double assets to pay his current liabilities. Company long term debt to equity ratio decreased that show company pay off his long term debt. Gross profit margin increase and return on total assets also increase that show proper use of assets. Total assets turnover and shareholder's equity turnover also increase that show company better performance and attract investors to invest their capital in that company, because their funds used properly and firm maximize their wealth every year. Star Bucks posted nearly 18% jump in fiscal 2007 first-quarter profit, helped by record store openings and strength internationally, and backed its targets for the year. The Seattle-based coffee shop operator also said it activated 30% more gift cards and sales of food drove U.S. retail results. Net income for the first quarter 2007 rose to $205 million, or 26 cents a share, from $174.2 million, or 22 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Quarterly revenue rose 21.8% to $2.36 billion. (http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/starbucks-profit-jumps-nearly-18/story.aspxguid=%7BBF2BD3DC-6862-4B81-96A1-A19B5A8A10E0%7D) Star Bucks Asia 2. Corporate Strategy 2.1. Objective and Aims Starbucks' foremost objective is to ascertain itself as the most recognized and esteemed brand in the world. The company plans to continue to expand its outlets all over the world, grow its retail sales, introduce new products and develop new distribution channels in order to achieve its objective. The company's aim is to become the leading coffee brand in every target market by selling high quality products, providing good services and building relationships among customers, employees and the company (Brown 1997). Also, the company aims to build its outlets as customers' "third place", which means it is the place where customers can relax from work or home. 2.2. Internal Operations Starbucks' internal operations can be divided into two parts: Retail and Specialty. The Retail division is governed directly by

5 Page Personal Administrative Project to be done in APA format Essay

5 Page Personal Administrative Project to be done in APA format - Essay Example cy of a university handles the administration of the university and is not that hands on regarding academic matters, the Academic Dean is directly involved in the decision-making and the management of the specific college he or she is assigned to. â€Å"Drawn from the senior faculty ranks, academic deans are seen by many as serving a dual role, that of scholar and administrator† (DiFronzo, 2002). In this sense, the Academic Dean is the symbol of true academic leadership and responsibility. Hence, the Academic Dean is one of the most sought after positions in the university. However true this is, the fact still remains that the Academic Deanship is a position that is riddled with challenges and difficulties as higher education continues to evolve and universities try to keep up with the changing times. On top of this, the Academic Dean is also expected to possess personality traits that are deemed to be necessary in becoming a good and effective academic leader that everyone will respect, â€Å"ranging from a sense of humor to stamina and good listening skills† (Ferren and Stanton, 2004, pp. 1-2). This underlines the importance of the Academic Deanship in the ever-changing world of higher education (DiFronzo, 2002). For this reason, the role of the Academic Dean must be clearly defined through the establishment of the dean’s key responsibilities; for only in knowing completely what the Academic Deanship entails can one become an effective academic leader. The responsibilities of an academic dean are many and complex, with each set varying with every university. In fact, Dean Herbert Hawkes of Columbia College has been quoted in saying that â€Å"there is no such thing as a standardized dean. There is a dean of this and that college, but I have never seen any two deans who could exchange places and retain the same duties† (Gould, 1964, p. 9 as cited in DiFronzo, 2002). This must be remembered in laying down the key responsibilities of the Academic Dean as one duty

All About Controlled Drugs Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

All About Controlled Drugs - Assignment Example 4. Intra-spinal: provides direct access to the spinal cord for the administration of specific drugs such as anesthetics. Requires trained staff and damage to the cord or hemorrhage are the disadvantages. (Howland, 2006) 6. Inhalational: main advantage is its use in the administration of anesthetic drugs as well as drugs for respiratory diseases since it provides easy access to lungs. Also, quick action because of extensive blood supply of lungs is another advantage. The short duration of action due to less partial pressure and exhalation of the inspired drug is a major disadvantage. Another disadvantage is a short list drug that can be administered by this route. (Howland, 2006) The major drug interactions and actions in the body include: Durg-Drug interaction i.e. addition of another drug might enhance or lower the activity of the drug. First Pass metabolism i.e. Drugs have taken through oral route undergo a process of activation and metabolism. This decreases their decreases their bioavailability and provides the bloodstream with the active metabolite of the drug. Drug-Enzyme interaction i.e. several enzymes in the body act on drugs to release their active metabolites. Drug-Receptor Interaction i.e. Final action of the drugs takes place when they bind to their specific receptors and cause either activation or deactivation of the receptor to produce the desired effect. (Katzung, 2009) Antidepressants: these drugs include Diazepam, Verapamil and Lorazepam etc. the generic names are Xanax etc. These drugs more commonly known as sleeping pills inhibit Gaba receptor and lower the levels of stress. Opioids: These drugs have a specific action of painkillers. They act on their specific opioid receptors in the body namely alpha, beta, and mu. They bind to these receptors and inhibit the transmission of pain sensation or alteration of brain’s perception of pain. (Howland, 2006)

Ishmael Bernal and Religious Interpretations Essay Example for Free

Ishmael Bernal and Religious Interpretations Essay Ishmael Bernal’s films have received countless acknowledgements throughout the years because of his unique style of â€Å"working out patterns of symbolic details† (Lumbera 25). And through these patterns, Bernal was able to portray his views on things as an auteur. This paper examines his interpretations of religion and religious activities through his films. But this only includes three of his works: Manila by Night (1980), Himala (1982), and Hinugot sa Langit (1985). These three films’ devotional approaches are analyzed by both their mise-en-scene and fabula. On that note, religion as tackled in this paper only pertains to the Philippine religion of Christianity/Catholicism, since Bernal’s films appear to be only on the Catholic’s view. How did Bernal attack Catholicism? Why did he represent the country’s most widespread religion in that manner? What are the implications of his works on the era during such films were distributed? How do these films affect the contemporary time? And what do these films impose on the society and on the religion majority of it believes in? Hence, this paper has these films examined through the eyes of a spectator, and relates that analogy to Bernal’s own philosophies as an auteur. Religion in Mise-En-Scene and Iconographies Through the apparatus theory, Bernal’s religious interpretations in his works can be examined. Ponsford’s Film Theory and Language from media. edusites. co. uk says apparatus theory suggests that film is created to illustrate different ideas and that everything has meaning even starting from the camerawork up to the editing. Manila by Night is a drama film made by Bernal in 1980. It is a multiple-charactered film where the characters’ existences in the city were unveiled as they live by the ruthlessness of drugs, poverty, adultery, and lust. In Manila by Night, Bernal constantly used iconographies and effigies of divine entities in several sex scenes through elaborate camerawork and editing. An example is a scene where a couple (Adelina, played by Moreno and Pebrero, played by Ojeda) who routinely cheated on each other made love while religious icons peered over them (Santos 21). There is another sex scene where instead of figures, Bernal focused a shot on a chaplet necklace worn by the indolent college guy (Alex, played by Martinez) for a few seconds just before he had premarital sex with his girlfriend (Vanessa, played by Alajar). Bernal not only used these icons in sex scenes. In one scene where the neurotic mother of Alex, Virgie (Solis), trashed their home when she found out he was doing drugs, multiple shots of religious statues were shown simultaneously with the scene of flying plates and broken furniture in the screen. Hinugot sa Langit also has a remarkable mise-en-scene in terms of religious interpretations. It is a film about infidelity, unwanted pregnancy, and abortion. In the scene where Carmen (Soriano) was rushed to the hospital after attempting to commit suicide, the disparity between the two conflicting characters of Aling Juling (Solis) and Stella (Austria) was clearly depicted. Aling Juling, being the sanctimonious that she was, gave the feeble Carmen her Holy Bible, hoping that it helps Carmen as it did to her. Seconds after Aling Juling left the room, Stella put a bag of apples on top of the bible as she jokingly referred to it as â€Å"holy mansanas (apples)† which may be interpreted as the apple Eve took from the treacherous snake in the Garden of Eden. The style Bernal had in Manila by Night was still used in Hinugot sa Langit. There was the scene of Mang David’s (Ventura) child’s wake where an image of Christ hung over Carmen and Mang David’s backs as they talked about the latter’s debts from Aling Juling. There’s still that style but other sightings of the religious icons and statues were not shown in that ambiguous manner anymore; instead they were shown conspicuously to prove a point like every time Aling Juling conducted prayer meetings and worship time. The irony in showing religious images and sinful acts simultaneously is an apparent symbolism of the societal hypocrisy towards faith and Christianity. Morality Issues on Manila by Night, Himala, and Hinugot sa Langit These three films are all packed with morality issues and what are morality issues if there is no religion? Morality, I believe, is bound by the norms and rules of whatever religion an individual believes in. Therefore, people do what for them is â€Å"right† because the religion they keep their faith in tells them to do so. Himala is a story of a girl named Elsa (Aunor) who claims to have seen the Blessed Virgin Mary on the top of the very hill where she was found by her non-biological mother years ago when she was still a baby. Since then Elsa started to â€Å"heal† people through the use of the power that was allegedly bestowed upon her by the Virgin Mary. She was situated in a small town called Cupang where the soil was always dry because of a â€Å"curse† from long time ago. Since then people came flocking to Elsa’s house to seek treatment from her miracles. She had her own followers and a bunch of detractors. In the end, when she faced piles of troubles—from not being able to â€Å"heal† anymore to being raped along with her best friend who later on committed suicide—she came clean and announced that there is no miracle, that it is the people who create their own miracles. She was shot dead at that same moment. The morality issues in this film is particularly apparent during the time when documentarist Orly (Manikan) battles with himself whether to have Elsa and Chayong’s (Centeno) rape video shown to the public. In the end he seeks help from the priest, which only made it clear that his decisions still depended largely on the â€Å"Catholic opinion† even though he was a self-proclaimed atheist right from the start. Manila by Night touches more morality issues than Himala. Since it is a film using a multiple-character format, the struggles each persona faces vary. There was a cheating guy (Pebrero), a liar prostitute (Adelina), a hypocritical ex-prostitute (Virgie), a happy-go-lucky gay (Manay Sharon), a dope-pusher lesbian (Kano), a blind whore (Bea), a college dropout (Alex), and his girlfriend (Vanessa). Their characters differ from each other but what’s uncanny about it was that their lives intertwine one way or another. Set in the city during a time when people’s freedom was being suppressed, these characters faced the question of what to do in times like that. Whether they hold on to their principles and strive to live for the good or just continue their dishonest lives to be able to endure everything and coexist. In a country where Catholicism is dominant, what Bernal showed in Manila by Night questions the values the religion upholds for its followers. The ending of the film where after all the mayhem that happened in the city during the past night seemed to be forgotten and the characters are portrayed as monotonous citizens living their routinely-charged lives is a strong point for proving how people trapped in the confusion of what’s good or evil can act as two-faced individuals who eventually become victims of the system. Hinugot sa Langit, on the other hand, tackles a more brazen topic that’s related to religion: abortion. When Carmen found out she was having Jerry’s (Tantay) child, she was faced with only two options: one is to keep it and the other is to abort. The problem the film earlier gave was that Jerry was already married with someone else and he made it clear right from the start that he didn’t want anything to do with the child Carmen was carrying. This, on top of the incessant urging of her straightforward cousin Stella, pushed Carmen to the edge of option number two. But her landlady, Aling Juling, insisted otherwise—saying abortion is a sin to God. As Carmen’s pregnancy became relatively closer to three months (which is the point when a mere embryo becomes human according to the abortionist) she began thinking about the issue of whether abortion is already an act of killing or not. But eventually, she chose to have abortion. Near the end of the film where she pounded on Mang David for stabbing Aling Juling to death, Bernal used a brilliant camera shift from Mang David’s staring face to Carmen’s while she was yelling, â€Å"Wala kang karapatang pumatay ng tao! You have no right to murder anyone! ),† as if giving the former a reason to say that she did not have any right to kill her child either. As Oggs Cruz put it in his blog, â€Å"Hinugot sa Langit may be branded as preachy and anti-abortion but in reality, the film has side stories that suggest a more pressing issue: societal hypocrisy. † This is not only apparent in the abortion issue but also in Aling Juling’s actions. It’s just that, as Cruz again puts it, â€Å"abortion is the most telling of issues. The Philippines being a prominently Catholic nation declares abortion as criminally and morally wrong yet funnily, the practice is unwrittenly accepted among women who are time-pressed with a decision. † Elsa and Aling Juling While Manila by Night’s interpretations of religion banks largely on its mise-en-scene, what Bernal created in Himala and Hinugot sa Langit were characters who seemed to embody the â€Å"divine† and through them, Bernal showed how false devotions and idolatry can be misleading. Elsa’s alleged involvement with the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary made her just as acred as the holy mother of Christ in the people’s eyes. She became, in an obvious way, the people’s source of blind faith that led them to their own pits of darkness as shown in the last part of the film where healthy and sick people alike experienced a stampede that caused them physical pain. This false faith is also ostensible in Aling Juling’s character in Hinugot sa Langit. Even from the start of the film, her character already proved to be a hypocrite. She dressed conservatively, regularly attended prayer and worship meetings, firmly discouraged Carmen to do an abortion, and constantly spoke about the Divine. But she also wanted to have the informal settlers removed from her land at any cost just to be able to build a chapel, claiming it is for the greater good. Aling Juling proved to be the perfect devotee, but failed to act as a true child of God for the other people; and there lies the biggest fallacy built in her persona. There was also one scene where Carmen and Aling Juling went into a brief screaming match about how should the former handle her problems. In the one line of Carmen saying, â€Å"Ano pa bang gusto Niya (pertaining to God), ano pa bang gusto mo?! What else does He want, what else do you want?! ),† the character of Aling Juling seemed to be a symbolism of the â€Å"god† Carmen had come to believe in. Instead of the all-powerful, all-knowing One, because of her problems, Carmen landed on believing Aling Juling’s preaching as that of God’s. Elsa and Aling Juling both died at the end, and both by being brutally attacked. What I see in this phenomenon is the attempt to â€Å"kill off† the wrong and misrepresentative beliefs brought about by these two characters, and probably the only way Bernal suggests to do that is through a vicious, one-time manner. Bernal as Auteur This paper is not about Bernal but about the works of Bernal. But since he is an auteur, understanding his background is essential in understanding the concepts behind his works. The auteur theory proposes that the director is the author of the film and that the director is the primary creative source, therefore the films produced express the director’s distinctive vision of the world (Pramaggiore and Wallis 398). Therefore, his politics mirror his representation of religion, thus making his films a reflection of his own beliefs. According to Bayani Santos’ Bernal as Auteur, Ishmael appreciated the values of Gregorio Aglipay and Catholicism. He also admired the disciplines of Iglesia Ni Cristo but criticized it for its exploitation of religion in politics. It was also said that he â€Å"respected Catholicism as faith, but always qualified it with a historical reminder of its political and economic crimes against the nation† (Santos 19). It was also said in the same article that Bernal’s view of shallow Catholicism among Filipinos as facts of Philippine life was not just mocking jibes against superficial religiosity but rather â€Å"accurate descriptions, as synecdochical of Philippine reality† and having the satirical impact arrive after a realization by the audience that, indeed, the descriptions are ‘us’ (21). Bayani continued on to saying that Bernal’s politics are â€Å"deeply buried in many of his works† (31). His politics involve not only his aforementioned views on Philippine religion but also his involvement in communism. This notion is perceivable in the three films being analyzed by this paper. In Manila by Night, Bernal took jibes on Martial Law more than anything. In Hinugot sa Langit, he â€Å"showed the desperate situation of the poor in a script that scrupulously avoided overt political commentary† (31). In Himala he managed to speculate a Marxist view of religion as an opiate when Elsa’s death became a dismaying reversion to mass hysteria and fanaticism (31). Bernal’s Films then and now These three films were produced during the second golden age of the Philippine cinema, during the years that mark off the end of the Marcos Martial Law regime. Bernal’s films were acclaimed during those times because both the films and timing were apt to belong to the cinema that recognizes the struggle as the most gigantic cultural, scientific, and artistic manifestation our time, the third cinema (Solanas and Gettino 47). This is what makes Bernal’s films timeless. The impact these films made during those times were huge. Bernal revealed how the Marcos regime exploited the Filipinos. This is overtly seen in Manila by Night, where his depiction of the supposed city to signify the â€Å"New Society† is the exact opposite of it. The term â€Å"New Society† claimed that the dictatorship had eradicated corruption and transformed Philippine society (Lumbera 359). This same â€Å"New Society† was also exploited, although for good reasons, by Bernal in his film Himala. According to Lumbera, Himala criticized the manipulative religiosity of this society which â€Å"drew the people’s attention away from the realities of poverty, violence, and moral decay† (359). This, however, is still manifested in the present time. There is this one scene in Himala that is applicable to both the past and present times. When people started coming to Cupang for Elsa and Elsa’s â€Å"apostles used the water Elsa blessed for profit, it was a hypocritical move on the side of Elsa and her followers to lure people into giving them money when all they were meant to do in the first place was to offer treatment for everyone who asked for it. The past screams about the pretentious â€Å"New Society† and the present stages the scene in real life whenever such religious items or services that are supposed to help them are still sold for amounts to the people. (e. . : a priest’s service fees, blessed rosaries, mass guides) Another thing that might have helped in the success of Himala is the fact that superstar Nora Aunor played the lead role. In the Noranian Imaginary, it is said that Himala is as much about the popular hysteria mediated by the idol Nora Aunor as it is about the mass hysteria endemic to Catholicism as held by many (Tadiar). People saw Elsa in Nora and Nora in Elsa—th e same poor, unfortunate protagonist who strive against all odds to defend herself and achieve goals. In these times, Nora may not be that same girl many Filipinos used to idolized, but the imprint she left on Elsa’s character is so known to almost every Filipino as â€Å"that† girl who everyone admired. Elsa’s death at the end of the film may be read as liberation from such faith, since she made confessions about the inexistence of miracles prior to his death. But the people’s continuous idolatry in her after she passed away seems to be a symbol of the people of today—those who still continue hang on to false hope and devotion even after such devotion proves to be wrong. As Patrick Flores puts it in Himala: Fall of Grace, â€Å"Himala is against the miracle and it is against the cinema. † Hinugot sa Langit, lastly, also speaks of a timeless issue in Catholicism: abortion. The values the film imbibes a great impact on the beliefs of the majority of the Filipino citizen. The question of whether abortion is or is not an act of murder is still being debated upon until today. Bernal’s films speak of ageless and timely issues concerning the Filipino people and that’s what makes his films succeed not only in the era during which it was manufactured, but also in the present time.