Curtal sonnet Essay Example

Curtal sonnet Essay The Oxford Dictionary defines Journey as â€Å"an act of travelling from one place to another†; this could, of course, be taken literally. Instead, why not think of â€Å"places† as emotional or mental situations? So you take a journey between different emotional states. â€Å"The journey, not the arrival, matters. † This statement is correct for all four texts I will be discussing. The journey is more important than the arrival because it is the journey that makes people who they are. On a life journey there are tipping points that define who we become. On our life journey, what is the end, death or something beyond? What significance does death have to the person you have become? Nothing; in death we look back at who we’ve become, but we have become like that, not because of the situation that you are in at that moment in time, but the choices or paths that we took on our life journey. A life journey has bumps and dips that can sometimes feel like mountains or craters as deep as hell, but the journey will always continue. We will write a custom essay sample on Curtal sonnet specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Curtal sonnet specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Curtal sonnet specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer It could be argued that we never really have a specific arrival point in the journey, but have multiple points of arrival and departures. Does a life journey ever really end? The journeys that are shown in the texts are inner journeys (spiritual, mental and emotional) that revolve around certain significant points in the subject’s life journey. The four texts that will be compared are; â€Å"God’s Grandeur†-Gerald Manley Hopkins, â€Å"I wake and feel the fell and dark, not day†-Gerald Manley Hopkins, â€Å"Reign Over Me† written and directed by Mike Binder and a visual representation of journey. God’s Grandeur† contains a significant inner journey. In the first four lines of the octet Hopkins describes a natural world through which God’s presence runs like an electrical current. Alternatively in the last four lines of the octet he talks about how humans are robbed of their sensitivity to the beauty of what is left in nature, peo ple have become unaware of the wonders of the world around them. The sestet shifts in argument again, even though humans do not realise it, nature continuously offers the potential of power and re-birth. Hopkins is in awe of the beauty of God’s presence all around him. Hopkins uses a metaphor of God’s grandeur as an electric force. This suggests an undercurrent that is not always seen, but which builds up as a tension or pressure that occasionally flashes out in ways that can be both brilliant and dangerous. In this moment Hopkins is amazed at how rich and full of life God can make him, Hopkins emotions peak at a high at this point in time. Hopkins uses repartition of the word â€Å"trod† and triple rhyming words; â€Å" ave trod, have trod, have trod, all is seared with trade bleared and smeared with toil† to emphasis the struggle of humans, continuous journey, they have been on a journey for so long that they can’t see God clearly anymore, and the use of the word â€Å"smeared† is to exaggerate the same thing again, the screen between God and humans is getting murky and dirty, not easy to see through, so they are losing contact. . Hopkins i s disappointed that humans have destroyed the land by building factories. Seeing this makes Hopkins sad and sorrowful. Again Hopkins emotions drop wildly when he realizes that man does not recognize His power and the beauty of nature; â€Å". the soil is bare now, nor foot can feel, being shod. † This may mean that because humans are wearing shoes we are disconnected to nature, and we cannot feel God’s presence because we have a barrier between us and the earth. Humans have been cutting down trees and ruining the Earth for centuries, we have made the soil bare. Once Hopkins realizes that humans have stopped being one with nature, it made him almost annoyed that we can just ignore God’s presence. Hopkins spirits are finally lifted again when he notices that there will always be the promise of re-birth, new life and â€Å"dearest freshness†. In the last four lines of the sestet Hopkins employs imagery from nature to convey rejuvenation by saying â€Å". last lights off the black West went oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs. ah! bright wings† meaning; that even though the sun goes down in the west he knows that God will bring it back up in the East, he has faith that God will keep the Earth surviving long enough that a similar cycle will happen with nature; that things will go back to how they were, fresh and rejuvenated. Also, Hopkins believes that eventually if God keep the Earth turning someone will eventually notice the beauty and wonder that God’s presence makes. In this poem Hopkins is on an emotional journey, he first starts by being amazed at God’s presence, then his emotions change to almost angry at how human can be so ignorant, then when he realises that God will always be there his emotions transform to astonishment at Gods persistence. Would it matter that he was astonished at the end of the poem, if you didn’t know how hat occurred to redder him this way? The second text that I will be discussing is â€Å"I wake and feel the fell of dark, not day†, this is a terrible sonnet by Gerald Manley Hopkins this poem, is an emotional journey also. In this poem Hopkins is suffering from insomnia, he longs for the brightness of the day time. The darkness of night makes Hopkins feel claustrophobic, the poem emphasises his feelings of loneliness and isolation. The sonnet f inishes with the consolation of sleep, while it opens with its impossibility. Hopkins starts this poem by stating that he wake up expecting day light, but unfortunately he is still stuck in the fall of darkness. The clever use of â€Å"fell of dark†, relates back to the fall of Adam and Eve, or how the Lucifer (the devil) is a â€Å"fallen† angel. Hopkins is trying to get across the meaning that darkness is cruel or the equivalent to â€Å"Lucifer†, compared to the brightness of daylight. Hopkins is exhausted and he feels as though the night time is endless â€Å"But where I say Hours I mean years, mean life†. The last four lines of the octet describe how Hopkins is wondering where God really is, â€Å" like dead letters, to dearest him that lives alas! Away. † Hopkins has been trying to get a response from God for all the hours of the night, but he feels like pleading with God for sleep is pointless. He thinks that God is just ignoring him. The first line of the sestet has a metaphor â€Å"I am gall, I am heartburn. † Hopkins is now feeling so terrible that is feels like he is the pain; the darkness is so overwhelming that he feels that he himself has become the insomnia. â€Å"The lost are like this. s I am mine, their sweating selves; but worse† Hopkins now feels like he can understand how â€Å"the lost† (damned) feel, that they too; are trapped in never ending darkness. Hopkins emotional journey in this poem moves from a pleading state with God, through self-pity then to an emotion that is almost undefinable, he is irritated at God for not helping him throu gh his suffering of insomnia, but disappointed with himself for being so. Between the two poems Hopkins emotions change of emotions from the joyfulness of ‘Gods Grandeur† to the despair of â€Å"I wake and feel the fell of dark, not day† is a journey in itself. Hopkins must have experienced a pivotal moment in his life for his emotions to change so dramatically. â€Å"Reign Over Me† written and directed by Mike Binder has a very powerful inner journey (both mental and emotional). It is the story of a man named Charlie and his struggle to deal with the loss of his family in the tragedy of 9/11, Charlie suffers from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and is helped through the struggle by his former college roommate Alan. In the movie, Charlie starts off weaving through the traffic on this motorised scooter, symbolising that he is in his own world. Charlie is stuck in a loop the whole way through the movie, every day is a struggle to just get up out of bed. He lost his family and he is constantly trying to shut that out, he pretends he doesn’t remember any of that pivotal moment in time. â€Å"He just shut down. Quit work. He stopped wanting to talk about her. Then he acted like he didn’t remember them. Then he pretended like he didn’t remember us. † Charlie’s in-laws are constantly trying to talk to him, while Charlie is just trying to forget. He is in a state of denial for most of the movie, until Alan gets him to talk to someone. First he tries a therapist, but Charlie refuses to talk. Eventually Charlie confides in Alan and tells him the story of how he lost his whole world â€Å".. and I felt them burning. † This is the beginning of a new journey for Charlie; he has finally realized that he must remember them to enable himself to move on. Charlie’s emotions peak at amazing highs and drop so low at times that he doesn’t know if he can live with the pain of losing his family, but with the help of his in-laws and his friend Alan, Charlie’s journey has gotten back on a more stable path. What Charlie went through, made his mind and soul so distressed that his journey to recovery will never end, it will be a constant struggle to stay on the stable path. So this particular example of journey has no arrival, but the process of his emotional peaks and falls has made his journey a lot more important than where he will end up. Again, does a life journey ever really end? Will Charlie ever arrive at a point where is can just stop? No, he must always continue on. The final text in a visual representation of a journey, in the middle of the frame you are looking at a set of steps (outside) leading up to darkness with a caption above reading â€Å"Life is a Journey-Enjoy the journey. † The steps in the visual are not perfect or straight, they are rough and uneven. This is a symbol meaning that life may not be easy; it will have parts that are unstable and scary. Also, the steps are leading up to darkness, this represents that we do not know where life will lead us, and it is unknown. If we knew where we were going what would be the point of the journey? Why wouldn’t we just jump around the hard parts and go straight to our destination? No one knows where life will take us; each decision has a separate path leading us to another choice. It doesn’t matter where we end up if there was no story of how we got there. There is a circle of light on the bottom few steps. This is a symbol that only the place where we are standing at a certain moment in time is lit up, we can only see so far ahead of us. Once that light ends it is unrevealed where the path will lead. The caption above the image reads â€Å"Life is a journey-Enjoy the journey. † A life journey has multiple inner journeys; each inner journey is important and significant. There would be no point to the journey if we didn’t not enjoy each moment. Enjoy life; it is the only real journey we ever undertake. Each inner journey is experience differently by the main subject of the individual texts. In both of Hopkins poems he experiences two vastly opposing emotional states. One is admiration for God’s presence, while the other is disappointment at how God can just ignore Hopkins suffering. Neither one of his poems bring him to any kind of conclusion, therefore his journey continues and does not arrive anywhere. In â€Å"Reign Over Me† Charlie’s grief moves through the seven stages but does not conclude. He will always grieve but is stable enough for his life journey to continue. Like Hopkins, Charlie’s journey is not over when our involvement is over. In the visual representation we cannot see the end of the path so the only option is to persist up the steps, even though it is scary and unknown still the journey continues. So what is the arrival without each separate step of the journey?

Effect of economy on culture and social structure

Effect of economy on culture and social structure Introduction As societies grow, community members and local officials are continually confronted by the desire to balance social, fiscal, environmental, and economic goals. They face the challenge to decide on the amount and forms of the new development that the society can confront so that not to put lives of the members of the community at risk.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Effect of economy on culture and social structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Thus, socio-economic impact evaluation is intended to assist societies in decision making, which in turn promotes long-range sustainability, economic prosperity, social well-being and a healthy community (Edwards, 2009). Social structure, particularly in social networks, influences economic results for three major reasons. First, the social networks determine the quality and flow of information. Most information is nuanced, subtle and hard to confirm. For this reason, players do not consider impersonal sources but rather rely on individuals they are familiar with. Second, social networks are a vital source of conducting evaluation. This is of importance because the significance of punishment or reward is frequently magnified based on their effect if they come from known persons. Finally, trust emerges in the context of a social network. Thus, in today’s world, any issues tied to economics play a major role in shaping the notions of culture and social structural frameworks in the society (Granovetter, 2005). Economic structure and culture Economic models naturally presume that employees choose work searching for benefits and costs that are levelled at margin. However, in any actual labour market, social networks have a major role. Potential employees and employers desire to learn from each other, i.e. from individual sources which have information that they trust such as social capital (Granovetter, 2005). Social interaction transmi ts information on employees, employers and jobs which flows constantly through the social networks. These networks are maintained by many people largely for the non-economic reasons. Normally, people make use of existing social networks and contacts, meaning that there usually is no need for making any financial investment in such networks. This reduces the costs below prescribed intermediaries. Pre-existing social networks are unequally distributed in various directions leading to unequal playing ground in labour markets without engaging any player (Granovetter, 2005).Advertising Looking for essay on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Models of economy also feature productivity of the personal attributes that can be changed through learning. However, one’s place in any social group may have a vital influence on the productivity, for many reasons. First, many tasks can only be accomplished throug h a serious collaboration from others, second is that several tasks are too complicated and delicate to be carried out â€Å"by book† and need â€Å"tacit knowledge† exercise suitable only though interacting with knowledgeable individuals. Since good interaction with one another is vital, this means that those joining the company through individual contacts become leaders and more productive, as well as avoid errors that may hold-up the outsiders (Granovetter, 2005). Individuals do trade with each other and the effect of knowing one another in terms of price differs with their association, the shifting of cost to various partners and market circumstance. To comprehend how variations from equilibrium price might occur, one should evaluate both economics and sociology of circumstance. A change of the trading partners is less or more hard under varying situations and relies on noneconomic and economic costs of separating long-time ties along with available social options. Therefore, the economic elasticity of the structure relies on social construction of trade relations and is unpredictable without the knowledge of that social structure (Granovetter, 2005). Conclusion The models of economy may be simplified if relations of economy with the non-economic features of the social life stay inside the black box; such strategy conceptualizes from several social occurrences that strongly influence costs and the existing techniques of the economic actions. Eliminating such occurrences is risky when prediction is the main goal. References Edwards, M. (2009). Socio-economic impact analysis. Community Guide to Development Impact Analysis. Web.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Effect of economy on culture and social structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Granovetter, M. (2005). The impact of social structure on economic outcomes. Journal of Economic Perspective. 19(1): 33-50.

REPORT ON AM TRANSMISSION AND RECEPTION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

REPORT ON AM TRANSMISSION AND RECEPTION - Essay Example The following laboratory experiment is a practical demonstration of AM technique with the application of a balanced modulator. First the message signal will be modulated with carrier signal using balanced modulator. The modulated signal is then amplified sufficiently and transmitted through antenna. The transmitted signal is then received through a receiver. Before mixing the signal to local tune, the received signal efficiency is enhanced through a RF amplifier and then shifted to pre-define IF frequency, normally at 455 KHz in AM broadcasting systems. The desired signal is boosted by using an IF filter. It discards the undesired portion of signals. Finally, the original message is recovered using a envelop detector. For modulation of carrier we first we will generate the carrier wave through the application of VCO-LO while the message signal will be generated through signal generator. The whole process involves following steps; After adjusting everything and setting the oscilloscope vertical mode to ALT and trigger on channel 1 as shown in figure (5) bellow, the message signal (M) is connected the oscilloscope channel 1 and channel 2 probe is to be connected to output of the modulator. Now if we vary the frequency of message signal while keeping the amplitude constant the frequency of the Amplitude modulated signal also changes while its â€Å"amplitude† will remain constant as shown in figure (6) on next page. Also the output signal with modulating index 1 and when it over-modulated is shown in figures (8) and (9) respectively below. In case of over-modulation the modulation index will have greater than unity value. Since the condition for envelope detector in terms of modulation is defined as; Now as further step the two-post connector at the output of balanced modulator is connected to â€Å"SSB† and â€Å"AM† terminals while another two two-post

Asset Management - Assessment 2 - orders 741163 and 741172 should be Coursework

Asset Management - Assessment 2 - orders 741163 and 741172 should be done by the same writer - Coursework Example 73). These two are considered viable considerations because they aid in analyzing the profitability of the given investment. Given the 6 projects that have been earmarked by the company, the best form of discount rate that will be preferred would be the Weighted Average Cost of Capital. This is selected against the backdrop that it helps in identifying the cost of working capital available to the company (Muller, 2002, p 36). This is done by way of calculating the individual rates at which the company is expected to execute payment on average to its securities so as to clear or finance its capital assets. The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is preferred over others as it holds the potential of ensuring that payment of security holders are not done offhand but on an average basis to ensure that the net present value can be measured. In its generalized form, it is important to establish that the optimization of the CAPEX and OPEX are both directed at the generation of capital fund revenue for the company: only that they are to be done in two different fashions. For the 100m CAPEX, any spending decisions made on it must be one that can potentially increase the wealth or value of assets that are already in place and that will become useful beyond the given tax year (Cliff, 2009, p. 83). On the part of the 20m OPEX, it would also be expected to be used in a more value for money fashion even though they have to be used to cater for expenses that will be incurred whiles the project is underway (Investopedia, 2012). Given the prevailing background, it is strongly recommended that for the development drilling, both G-3 and G-4 be drilled in 2015. This is because of the collective wealth creation that will accrue from the two wells when drilled concurrently. For example, it is said that the value of G-1 will decline by a percentage rate of 8% per annum. What this means is that if the company would opt for periodic drilling whereby it would

Answers Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Answers - Assignment Example In the organization setting, performance management is created with an objective to understand the depth as which the company’s objectives are being achieved. Through technology, an organization is able to create more efficient performance management systems (Grossberg, 2012). Technology eliminates the traditional performance appraisal systems that also required employee interviews. The traditional approaches had bias. What do compensation, benefits, and payroll all have in common as related to employees? Share an example of how HR technology can impact the value and efficiency of each of these HR functions: compensation, benefits, and payroll. Compensation, payroll and benefits can be referred to as reward systems. A rewards system is aimed at providing compensations to employees for the employees in the organization. Moreover, all employees require a rewards system to improve their performance. Technology enables the creation of a reward system that eliminates error and employee elimination from the system. For instance, an organization may have a system that monitors performance and provide a detailed reward system that considers the performance of each employee (Grossberg, 2012). Before its creation, it is an obvious assumption that employee management was poorly handled. Human resources systems were mandated with numerous activities that increased their exposure to errors. In addition, their consideration of the performance of employees was biased and based on personal opinion (Petrescu & Simmons, 2008). With the HRIS, employees feel more comfortable with the rewards system and how salaries are

Corporate Social Responsibility: Tesco and Sainsburys

Corporate Social Responsibility: Tesco and Sainsburys Importance of CSR: Case studies of Tesco and Sainsbury Executive Summery Corporate social responsibility which needed explanation some decades ago, is now included almost every mission statement and does matter in the recent time. It is to a very large extent true that with the awareness of consumer, Media, certain rules from the authorities and pressure from NGOs have lessen the harm of the corporate world to the society. But on the other hand it has been observed that if a conflict between profit and doing the right thing is seen profit wins. To start with, the project will examine what CSR stands for in reality in the light of the definitions provided by different intellectuals. It will further highlight does corporate social responsibility matter followed by the discussion about the importance of CSR in the recent times. After that the project further enquires the different approaches towards CSR as some people are in favour and many are against CSR activities in the business. Furthermore, the project throws light on the obligation and practices of the different institutions and authorities which includes businesses, Government, Professional accountants, Non government organization and general public as well. The impartial conclusion has been made after enquiring the findings from previous literature, previous progress in respect of CSR, corporate worlds role in current situation, future priorities declared by government, accountants, non- government organizations and civil society . Moreover, an analytical approach of case studies has been adopted in the project where mainly two companies Sainsbury and Tesco have been chosen to demonstrate the corporate worlds current role with regards to CSR. In addition to two companies Sainsbury and Tesco, the analysis of the scores of other companies is also included to reach the conclusion. Finally, the projects propose some recommendation with regards to CSR for Government, Professional accountant, Businesses and civil society that they need to make collective efforts to make this world a better place not only for themselves but for the successors as well. Chapter 1 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 What is CSR? Although every organization has formed a different definition for corporate social responsibility yet there are common grounds and connection between them. CSR is about how companies manage business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. (www.mallenbaker.net) With the passage of time CSR has become very important issues in the corporate world and even for other stakeholders including media. For instance the financial times and guardian have special reporters for Corporate Social Responsibility of the corporate world. Social responsibility can be found in almost every weekly newspaper. According to Mallenbaker CSR is something which ‘like original sin can never be escaped by corporate world. The following illustration will help to explain CSR to a very large extent: In terms of the above mentioned illustration, to bring the quality of management, the organization or company has to consider all the inner and outer circle factors which will ultimately bring about the positive effect on the society. For instance if the company tries to show its responsibility in respect of Environment it has to satisfy the government, non-government organization and civil society concerned with environment. Similarly for work place it has to keep in mind the employees rights and unions as well. 1.2 Who are Stakeholders? Person, group or organization that has direct or indirect stake in an organization because it can affect or be affected by the organizations actions, objectives and policies. Key stakeholders in a business organization include creditors, customers, directors, employees, government (and its agencies), owners (shareholders), suppliers, unions and the community from which the business draw its resources (www.businessdictionary.com). Businesses generally need to manage their relationship with their stakeholders for both short and long term benefits. It is considered more valuable for any company to involve the stakeholder in the whole process and communicate them through a sophisticated process. For the lasting relationship with the stakeholders, the managers need to expand role of the stakeholders by moving form just informing and responding to involving them in corporate social responsibility process. 1.3 Background The history of social responsibility of the corporate in the world is as old as business itself. For instance the laws to protect forest during commercial operation can be found almost 5000 years ago. In ancient Mesopotamia almost 1700 BC King Hammurabi introduced some laws for farmers, builders and innkeepers which showed that they would be prosecuted if they caused any death or major problem for the citizens. In old Rome senators grumbled about the failure of business to contribute sufficient taxes to fund their military campaigns. (www.brass.cf.ac.uk ) With the advent of industrialisation the impacts of the business on society assumed a new dimension. By the 1920s the world saw a new discussion about social responsibility of the business which was actually the beginning of the modern Corporate Social Responsibility movement. In March 2006 the European commission published its latest communication on CSR which clearly defines that the companies should recognise the social and environmental concerns in their business activities. The aim for this communication was to make Europe ‘pole of excellence ‘on CSR.Uk government also encouraged such activities and in the ‘global reporters surveys UK companies were rated the top 3 reporters. Almost 80 % of FTSE 100 companies report on social and environmental issues. (www.corporateRegister.com) 1.4 Project Objectives A large part of the project includes the discussion about the importance of the CSR to the businesses, Government, civil society and especially for the professional accountants who can play a very important role in respect of CSR reporting. It has been tried to achieve the following objective in the project. * What is CSR in reality with its true spirit * Importance of CSR in the current era * Stakeholders expectation from Corporate World * Role of professional Accountant * What the businesses are doing in this respect * How CSR can be developed * Is there any legislation exists or needed The debate on CSR is growing day by day but in reality a big part of the corporate world and society almost does not know the real meaning of the this term. Some recognise it as a report for public relation. Some say it is about to improve the business competitiveness. Some call it a good business practice. The other feels it is just a type of threat. CSR in reality is a framework of relations between corporate world and the rest of society both nationally and internationally. It is not the activities just for the big countries in the world but for all the companies exist in this world because people exist everywhere. CSR is good for long term business development as well as for wider society. The world has seen progress in every area and this thing has increased more concerns for the society. Thats why the partnership of society and business world is needed to deal with all the concerns. Government in this aspect ha a very important role to play to bound and encourage the corporate world to recognise its social responsibility and act positively. This task is not only the responsibility of one department ,company or community but participation is needed from every field of life including Governments, Corporate world, NGOs, Professional Accountants ,Professional bodies and Civil society. 1.5 Priorities So For CSR has gained more attention for all including media but on the other hand the real importance of the CSR is being neglected or going behind the scene in some way or other. Many organizations are using CSR as a tool to make money for their shareholders ignoring the other stakeholders of the business which is totally against the true spirit of CSR. The government and private bodies made some priorities in the past and started working on CSR. They precisely mentioned some principle to go along with these issues. For example U.K CSR department announced publically that it will highlight the importance of social and environmental responsibility, assist the involvement of all the small and medium sized companies in this respect. They further mentioned that they will favour the transparency of CSR reporting and aware the whole corporate not only in U.K but all over the world. To talk about the professionals who are considered responsible for reporting financial and social issues used to follow only a set of rules established by GAAP and other bodies. These rules and regulation do not seem to be helpful for the professional accountants to report social and environmental issues. The professional used to look into the past for reporting like historic cost, prudence etc and have ignored the changing trends of the world which has become the global village. Although management accounting deals with the removal of waste which is also a part of CSR yet there are so many things which the accountants are lacking. The accountants should know the reality that the standards only provide guideline and it is accountants who by using their own moral standards ethically can make the things bit better. In terms of the firms priorities for CSR, it seems that they are claiming more than taking practical steps and their priorities together with their practise are ambiguous. Although CSR reporting have become tradition in many companies but still they are lacking many aspects. It seems that they are looking after their own benefits only and not giving importance to other stakeholders .They seems to follow Friedmans idea that money belongs to shareholders only and they have to decide where to invest it. They are planning for short term ignoring long term. They do no consider this reality that by investing in social issues like community development, employees betterment , customer care, environment issue etc not only improves the reputation of the companies but develop the companies benefits in long term. But in spite of all the claims it seems that saying something and doing something practically are two separate things. One can find hundred and thousands of press releases about CSR but less practical steps can be found. It does not mean that nothing is being done on CSR but more needs to be done. Chapter 2 2. Literature review This Chapter will examine the academic literature on Corporate Social Responsibility. More specifically the review will focus upon what CSR in reality stands for, its importance, Rules and Regulation, what the companies are doing in respect of CSR, Professional Accountants Role and expectations of the stakeholders. CSR which has been used for business ethics, defined as tantamount to corporate philanthropy, and considered strictly as relating to environment policy has different meaning and importance for everyone. (McWilliams, Siegel, Wright, 2006) Through the power of collective action, the Global Compact seeks to advance responsible corporate citizenship so that business can be part of the solution to the challenges of globalization. In this way, the private sector in partnership with other social actors can help realize the Secretary-Generals vision: a more sustainable and inclusive global economy. (www.unglobalcompact.org) 2.1 The concept of CSR JCI believes that CSR is about what business can do not about what business must do. It is about opportunities not about obligations or new rules. (www.davidgrayson.net). The recent CSR concept was first found in the mid-twentieth when the focus was just on social issues like charity and Labour issues. But later the area of discussion widened and covered ecological issues as well. It included how business should take account of its economic, social and environment impacts in the way it operates- maximizing the benefits and minimizing the downsides. Corporate social responsibility means that a company or business is not only accountable to its shareholders but to all its stakeholders which include its customers, suppliers, employees, local communities, investors, environment, governments etc. CSR to a very large extent has been noticed a voluntary action with less legal requirements. 2.2 Importance of CSR The exploitation in the business world is as old as business world itself. Whether it was employees rights, communities inconvenience, environment, shareholders, customers, suppliers, creditors or debtors it has been obvious everywhere. But as the CSR ha gained a lot of attention, the world has become the global village now where the comments like ‘ Profit is only responsibility can not be accepted. (Husted, B.W. and Salazar, J., 2006). Where selected stakeholders like particular suppliers, creditors or shareholders can not be favoured by managers, where abuse of power by business can not exist, employees can not be exploited and society can not ignore the damage of the environment. The main reason for the awareness for all these things is CSR. One thing is sure that the pressure on business to play its role on social issues will continue to grow in future. In the last ten years the institution which worked hard within the global sphere of operation gained more respect, power, monetary benefits and influence as well. On the other hand the institutions like police, judiciary and scores of government institutions have been failed in doing so. But the pressure is growing day by day in this respect. The governments have admitted this thing that it can not change the whole world without the help of the people who are living in the world particularly the corporate world which is getting benefits from the society. So the government is in one way or another putting pressure on the businesses to contribute towards the social issues. On the other hand businesses have also come to known that for long term recognition and benefits, they have to be active in respect of CSR. They have to recognise the rights of their employees respect their suppliers, save the environment and contribute towards the other issues which exist in the society 2.3 Intangibles and CSR The importance of the intangibles can not be ignored as the new International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) stated that from 2005 all listed European companies must report acquired intangible assets. The intangible assets includes Brand value, goodwill etc. (www.csr.gov.uk). It is said that intangible assets are more important for a business than the tangible ones. CSR not only helps in building these assets but protects and expands them. For example the brand value of any business do not start form the beginning but retained afterwards with different CSR activities which may include Consumer specific activities, health and safety measures , Sponsoring community development programme, support for clean environment and so on. 2.4Competitiveness A business can be more competitive and successful as well by adopting CSR policies which is an edge for any company. For example a link between a business and customer give more information to the business about the needs and requirements of the customer. Ultimately this thing results in the business becoming more competitive in terms of product development. CRS also makes the businesses more efficient and competitive in respect of price by taking steps like minimizing waste .If the companies prefer to make the recyclable products, it can help on the one hand to reduce a danger for environment and on the other hand can help a lot to reduce the cost of the product which ultimately results in low price for the customer and more benefits for the businesses. 2.5 Different Approaches towards CSR Corporate social responsibility is one of those topics-like Manchester United and the New York Yankees- that raises passions both for and against. (Simon, 2005). Different approaches can be found about CSR which are contradictory. This part will examine some of the approaches available and analyze them. For many years, Milton Friedman (1962) has been known as the villain in the business and social literature. His notion, that business are owned by their shareholders and they have to decide about their money if they want to give it to the charity or not, has been criticized (Husted and Salazar, 2006).He further had an argument that CSR is indicative of self-serving Behaviour on the part of manager and reduces shareholders wealth (Abagail , Donald and Patrick 2006).But without going into details this idea seems to be true that how spending more on social issues will help to maximize the benefits of the businesses . The shareholders do not have any problem to spend a moderate amount on these types of issues. On the contrary, there are others who have totally different opinions. For example Jones says in his stakeholders theory that the firms which are loyal and honest to their stakeholders ultimately create incentives for their own firms. Some say that CSR is only used by some companies to get competitive advantages. (Abagail , Donald and Patrick 2006) Some are with the viewpoint that CSR is not about giving charity only but it is more than that. It is about helping the community, taking steps to save environment, taking care of the rights of employees, improving relationship with customers and about contributing towards other social issues. (www.mallenbaker.net) One thing is quite sure from the previous experiences that companies cannot maintain business success and shareholder value by maximising short-term profits and the importance of the CSR can not be ignored in the recent time. (Oketch, M. 2004). The companies should, therefore, should take part in the activities which allow them to get benefit in the long run, and contribute as much as possible to the community without making a loss. This will take them towards a win-win situation. 2.6 CSR and Poverty Reduction Because of the unfair distribution of the wealth, people in some countries do not have food to eat and water to drink while in some countries people have more than they need. Although poverty reduction and CSR do not seem to be connected with each other yet the social responsible business can contribute to reduce the poverty especially in developing countries. Creating Jobs, Training the people, addressing the issue of child labour, gender equality, health care, community development, higher minimum wage and better working place conditions are some of the steps under the roof of CSR which can help to reduce the poverty to a certain level. A proactive approach of corporate world, society, professionals and governments is needed towards CSR to reduce the poverty. 2.7 Professional Accountants role Scores of Professional accountant have already started taking steps to adopt the concept of CSR and ready to contribute towards a contemporary issues especially environment-being the most important currently. But they have been criticised usually for not unfolding the required information which the stakeholders are looking for. Their CSR reporting fails to be logical and does not produce comparable data on environmental issues, risks and uncertainties which can be relevant to the business current and future performance . The main objective of corporate reporting is to communicate economic measurement of the information about resources and performance that would be useful to users who have a right to this information. To fulfil this objective, corporate reports have to possess the following qualitative characteristics: relevance, reliability, comparability, objectivity and timeliness (Barry Elliot and Jamie Elliot, 2004). Accountants, who are actually considered responsible for reporting all the aspects, have been following set rules made by professional bodies and other authorities. These bodies have only provided basic rules which do not include the ultimate guidance on social and environmental issues. Furthermore accountants have been focusing on past only rather than dealing with present and future. For instance historic cost, prudence, representational faithfulness and so on have been their basic areas of interest. These concepts actually do not help when reporting social and environmental issues. After years of criticism both professional bodies and government worked out certain criterias about these issues. But in spite of the fact that accounting standards have some provisions and government has put some restriction, the accounting professionals need to take these new issues into consideration while reporting financial performance. The standards only provide basic guidelines to standardise the system globally and the whole world will be a better place if theory and practice is balanced for its betterment. The accounting professionals need to use their moral standards as well while reporting. 2.8 Governments role The role of the governments is very vital to improve the contribution of the business to the social development. According to many intellectual the basic thing which prompts any organization to play its responsible role in society is legislation in that particular area. There are laws which cover many areas like minimum wage, Health and safety and disclosure to investors but the governments have probably need to make some amendments in laws in the areas such as social and environment. Whereas on the other hand many opine that if the legislation regarding CSR is prepared, the businesses will only make efforts which the law requires but never more. At the moment many companies are doing their best voluntarily but the legislation can effect their motivation and they may step back. The governments have been facing two challenges. First how to engage more and more companies in CSR and secondly how to make the contribution of the companies better in terms of CSR. For the first challenge the government has made a set of rules and regulation for the companies to follow CSR and reviewed it action and polices across the board and made CSR a priority. For the second challenge the governments have been encouraging the roles of the companies which are doing their bets for the social issues. The governments can make corporate social responsibility better by providing best practice guidance, intelligent regulation and incentives to the companies where needed. Some suggestions of making a separate department for CSR have also come to the surface from many critics. They think that accountants are not supposed to deal with CSR especially social and environmental issues. 2.8.1 U.K Government U.K business world to some extent going in the right direction as the global Reports 2006 survey shows that U.K companies were rated the top three reporters (www.csr.gov.uk). ‘Since I became Minister for CSR in May 2002 we have seen rapid growth in Interest in the application and implications of CSR. What has impressed me most has been the level of creativity and enthusiasm brought to the subject from all quarters. Weve seen encouraging progress. Id like to highlight some significant recent developments and look at where we need to focus for the future. (www.csr.gov.uk) The government encourages companies to report on their CSR performance in different ways like: * Issued guidance on environment reporting * The ACCA sustainability reporting awards * Supported the global Reporting Initiative The U.K Government has brought the regulation up to date as well. From October 2007 Quoted companies must also disclose the information about employees, environment, social and communities matters. Company act 2006 also has shown some legislation in this respect. (www.corporateRegister.com) 2.8.2 European Union Role Like UK European commission also considers Corporate Social responsibility an important area and have already started working. In 2001 the European commission developed a strategy on CSR which resulted in the establishment of a Multi-Stakeholder forum on CSR in October 2002.In march 2006 European commission published its communication on CSR which states that CSR can make a significant contribution and make Europe a ‘ pole of exellance. During its presidency of EU in 2006, Finland held a conference with the name ‘ Corporate social responsibility policies promoting innovation and competitiveness which also emphasized on the importance of the Corporate Social Responsibility. (www.csr.gov.uk) 2.8.3 International Commitment In September 2006 a ‘world summit on sustainable development was arranged in Johannesburg where all participant committed to promote corporate responsibility and made a future line of work. Some critics, however, says that the government is trying to avoid its duties because it is just dependent on the NGOs. Governments are trying to push NGOs on the front foot instead of going forward themselves. It is true that governments are making efforts for the development of CSR but the main problem is practice. It has been observed in different surveys that the non-government organizations in the world are making more efforts and taking practical steps for the solutions of social issues than the governments and the Governments are lacking the implementation of the its theory . 2.9 Consumer and CSR To talk about the role of the general public, they have also a very important role to play. Sometime the companies want to be more efficient and wishes to make CSR Central to their corporate identity. For instance the Seventh Generation who are the suppliers of the chlorine-free toilet tissues and Ben Jerrys, who are the eco-friendly ice-cream maker, have not been responded well by the consumer. It seems that only minority of people are ready to pay premium prices for these responsible products. This type of behaviour from consumer can demoralise the companies or force them to limit their CSR activities. Some critics says that only consumer can not be blamed for not supporting CSR activities as it is the duty of the government that it should aware the general public about CSR. If a common consumer does not know what CSR is or how it can be supported, how consumer can encourage such activities. 2.10 NGOs and CSR NGOs and trade unions have been pointing their fingers at the international government bodies for their lack of commitment towards CSR. It is to some extent true that companies have been left alone with less guidance and little support from governments. It has been noticed that Non-government organizations have been working more actively than the governments. Whether they are social or environmental issues non- government organizations seems to be excelled. For instance in many parts of the world different charitable or non- profitable organizations are going ahead to the governments institutions, professionals, and corporate world. ActionAid , Amnesty International UK , Oxfam GB , Refugee Council , Saferworld , Save the Children UK and World Development Movement are some of the examples of the NGOs which are working for social and environmental issues and putting their best efforts without making any profit. 2.11 CSR in developing countries CSR aims both to improve the contribution of the business in society and maximize the benefits out of the business activity. The more CSR activities can be found in the richest countries than in the middle and low-income countries. The agenda of CSR is less visible in these countries. CSR actually offers opportunity to the governments, Private Sectors, Professional Accountants to bring changes in the current social system in these countries. Even the companies which are doing their businesses in the developed countries can do a lot in these countries by expanding their Corporate Social Responsibility practices to these countries. By doing this they can enlighten their image and get long term benefits as well. However over the past few years the governments, businesses NGOs and civil society have managed to some extent to adopt CSR agenda and have started doing something in the developing countries as well . For instance the countries like South Africa, China, India, Brazil and Philippines have started CSR movements in their respective countries. But it is the beginning and still lot to do in this regard. 2.12 Consequences in the absence of CSR The above mentioned discussion about CSR and its importance made one thing very clear that CSR has become essential both from the business an Social point of view. If the society, the accounting professionals, businesses and other academics in the financial field do not challenge these issues and stop being passive in order to meet the true purpose of their roles, the problems will continue to grow. As far as the businesses are concerned they make money while working in a society. If the society where they are working is strong enough in respect of money and can enjoy the basics needs of the life the economy will grow which will result in a prosperous Situation. If the companies are making money from the people, it is not strange to give some part of it back to the people in the form of facilitating them in different respects such as community development, helping the poor, Taking care the children, take care of the suppliers, customers, employees and contribute towards the solution of the environmental issues which is in reality their surroundings as well. It is said that to get love from some one you have to give it first. By doing all the efforts regarding CSR the companies actually enhance their image side by side other benefits for long term. In the absence of CSR business can make money but can not earn long term benefits and respect in the society in current situation. To talk about the professional accountant, it is obvious that they follow certain rules and regulations while reporting but they need to follow morality and ethics as well. The professional, of course, are the part of society and not the part of problems in society. As CSR has become a source of betterment for the society, they should take care of the social and environmental issues while reporting for the companies and should try to point the risks in future with regards to business side by side giving analysis of the past. If they just ignore the issues of the society, who knows they can be ignored by the society. Chapter 3 3. Methodology Knowledge is a series of inventive activities which applying models to unfold the reality (Watofsky, 1983) .This type of inventive process changes time to time and human beings observe the changes. But the models which human beings themselves recognise vary time to time. The method of case study has been adopted in the project which will itself answer many questions like ‘How, when and why. The procedure to go for case study is more explanatory and flexible than the other methods. Case study procedure is found suitable because it helps to understand the complex issues deeply, points out the problems during the procedure and suggests remedies as well. The Case studies of Sainsbury and Tesco in this project are carried out in order to know the current situation of CSR and its importance in corporate world in U.K. The reason for selecting Sainsbury and Tesco is that the both companies are the very successful and big names in the U.K, represents other business community and rivals as well. The project aims to observe the CSR importance by analyzing their intern

Medical Marijuana :: Medicine Drugs Essays

Medical Marijuana Marijuana has been hailed as a prescription for many ills and physicians once used it to stimulate appetite, relieve chronic pain, and treat asthma and migraines. But is marijuana really a medical miracle? If so, do its clinical benefits outweigh its drawbacks? Should we legalize marijuana? Is medical marijuana really worth the risks? These are the issues one needs to think about before making the decision to legalize marijuana. Marijuana is a drug that is derived from the dried and cut leaves of the hemp plant known as "cannabis sativa". Marijuana has a variety of street names such as "grass", "Mary Jane", "pot", "smoke", "reefer", "herb", and "weed". The active ingredient in marijuana is delta tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) (3). . Marijuana has been used throughout history and in many different cultures to change mood, perception, and consciousness (to get "high"). Its effects range from increasing creativity to provoking mystical experiences, to heightening the capacity to feel, sense and share. After alcohol, it is the most popular of what are called "recreational drugs." It has been used around the world for other purposes. In some primitive tribes of South America, Africa, and India, "cannabis" is used in religious ceremonies and for medical purposes. African mine workers have used it to ease the drudgery of their work and many Jamaicans use it at the end of the day to relieve fatigue. It has been use d as an intoxicant in various parts of the world for centuries and in the United States, for the most part the 20th century. Marijuana was first described in print in a Chinese book of medicine, "Herbal," in the 2nd century B.C., and was used in China as an anesthetic 5,000 years ago. The ancient Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and East Indians used the drug to control muscle spasms, reduce pain, and to treat indigestion. It was commonly used in folk medicines in Africa and Asia. As early as 1611, marijuana was cultivated for its fiber in Jamestown, Virginia. In 19th century America, marijuana was used by the medical profession for treating spastic conditions, headaches, labor pains, insomnia, and menstrual cramps. It is still used as a medicine in the Middle East and in Asia (9). The controversy dealing with marijuana stems from the legalization of the drug for medical use.