Monday, September 30, 2019

Blue Ocean Strategy

In the past ten weeks, this class has tested me by having to read challenging articles that presented several different strategic theories to us. While all of the theories brought us interesting and valuable information, the one that resonated most with me and stuck out the most was the Blue Ocean Strategy. I have always been someone who enjoys a challenge and I feel that while this theory is a challenge, it has the most potential to bring organizations the greatest amount of success.To fully understand why I selected this theory opposed to one of the other ones, I feel that first I need to explain exactly what Blue Ocean Strategy is and who has used it and gained enormous amounts of success. While there are many people who believe taking down the competition is the best plan for their company and will result in huge success, Blue Ocean Strategy does not even factor it into their decision making process as a way to reach success. To discuss Blue Ocean Strategy, we also have to unders tand Red Ocean Strategy.Red oceans are all other strategies that are currently trying to out-compete one another in hopes of being the one on top. The first thing that comes to mind when I think off taxation such as this is the results of Apple first launching the pod. All a sudden a portable music player like this was what everyone wanted, so other companies started doing the same thing and came out with comparable products such as the Zone. Sadly, no one has been able to reach the success that Apple has when it comes to portable music devices.As you can see from the chart, Microsoft, the creator of Zone, tried to reach success by hitting all five points that were mentioned on the left side of the chart. However, they were unable to do so because they underestimated the demand that the pod was producing. Microsoft as well as other companies tried to compete, but could not maintain as high of a demand as the pod and eventually the market became too crowded and the products eventuall y became undervalued and over produced.When the creators came out with Zone it sounds like a Hyperventilation strategy was being used. Hyperventilation is defined as rapid and dynamic completion that is escalated on price-quality positioning (Divine, 1998). While a Zone is very similar to an pod, what the creators thought would make them out-sell the pod was that the Zone cost half of what the pod was. While often times cost is a huge consideration when buying a product or service in this case people were willing to pay the extra money and choose the company that used the Blue Ocean Strategy.Potential Risk: Now take a complete 180-degree turn and you have Blue Ocean Strategy. With this strategy, demand is created rather than fought over. By doing this, there is more room for growth that can be quickly profitable. At first when I read the article, I thought to myself that this seemed too risky and why would a company bother using this strategy; after doing a lot of different research on the topic, I have come to the inclusion that there is a minimal amount of risk.I think it is important to realize that with any strategy there is a certain amount of risk, no matter what choice you decided to make. For Blue Ocean Strategy, there are currently six key risks that a company could face (Kim & Maneuvering, 2004). Of these six risks, the first four revolve around the creation of the strategy itself and the final two relate to the actual execution of the strategy.Search risk Planning risk Scope risk Business model risk Organizational risk Management risk However, there are six principals represented in Blue Ocean Strategy that are signaled to protect an organization from that risk (Kim & Maneuvering, 2004): Reconstruct market boundaries Focus on the big picture, not the numbers Reach beyond existing demands Get the strategic sequence right Overcome key organizational hurtles Build execution into strategy The first principal identifies the direction by which managers ca n methodically create conclusive market space across diverse industry domains and crippling search risk. It teaches companies how to make the competition irrelevant by looking across the six conventional boundaries of competition to open up commercially important blue oceans† (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014). The second principal has to do with looking at the big picture and not focusing on Just what the numbers would be, it deals with planning risk. By looking at the big picture first and foremost I believe this is why, when using this strategy, there is such long-term success that comes with it. Using a visualizing approach that drives managers to focus on the big picture, this principle proposes a four-step planning process for strategies that create and capture blue ocean opportunities† (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014). To reach beyond existing demands hose using the Blue Ocean Strategy must challenge the traditional process of aiming for finer segmentation in order to meet ex isting customer preferences. Instead, this principle, which addresses scale risk, states the importance of aggregating demand, not by focusing on the differences that separate customer but rather by building on the powerful commonalities across uncustomary† (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014). In order to accomplish correct strategic sequence companies must ensure that their business model will be able to produce and maintain profitable growth. This sequence consists of the following: (1) utility, (2) price, (3) cost, and (4) adoption requirements (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014).When a company follows this sequence, it addresses the business model risk. The fifth principal is all about overcoming the hurdles that come your way. This is the first principal in the execution portion of the strategy and therefore in this principal the organizational risk is heavily considered. â€Å"This principle mitigates organizational risk, outlining how leaders and manager can surmount the cognitive, re source, motivational, and political hurdles in spite of emitted time and resources† (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014).Last, but certainly not least, is building execution into the strategy and this is defined as having the ability to encourage others to execute the strategy in the best way they know how. This principle addresses the management risk associated with people's attitudes and behaviors. â€Å"By integrating execution into strategy formula, people are motivated to act† (Blue Ocean Strategy, 2014). While there is still a certain amount of potential risk involved in this strategy, you can see that there are several different principals that were created to eliminate said risk.Cost and Value: A lot of traditional strategies state that you much choose if you want to be known for cost or for value. However, when deciding to use Blue Ocean Strategy, it is possible to have both differentiation and low cost. If you look to the chart to the right you can see that Blue Ocean Strategy has figured out that the key to value innovation is equal parts cost and buyer value. While the chart makes it look simple, in order for this to happen, utility, price, and cost all need to be aligned.By driving both the cost down and the value, the product has the potential to meet so many more people. A really good example of this balance is the Ford Model T. In 1908, Henry Ford was a person with vision who created a company and a product that was not in the market. He made it price friendly so that people could actually afford it and it would fall under the category of value pioneering. When the Model T first came out in 1908, it cost $ 850. 00, which was half the price of anything else out there at the time (Kim & Maneuvering, 2004).The key to success in this example was not using the competition as a benchmark. While Henry Ford could have followed everyone else and created a actionable and customizable car, he knew that it was not what the market needed; they needed af fordability and reliability. Long Term Viability: When a company or organization is in the process of selecting a strategy to use, they want something that will not only last a long time, but also help them build a brand. There have been several companies that have used Blue Ocean Strategy and have had decades of brand equity (Kim & Maneuvering, 2004).Companies will be happy with the results that many have and are expected to continue to use Blue Ocean Strategy multiple times. Blue Ocean vs.. Strategic Supremacy through Disruption and Dominance: Almost the opposite of Blue Oceans is the theory of strategic supremacy, which has been influenced by hyperventilation and understanding the relationships in this theory. By understanding the interaction between strategy and environment, managers can better tailor their strategies to the environment or change the environment to their advantage.This begins with analyzing the current competitive environment (opposite of Blue Oceans) then under standing the rules of the game in that industry. Simply put, the leaders in the industry control the â€Å"rules of the game†, if they do something, he smaller brands will follow to compete. Having the ability to control the rules of the game and controlling the evolution of the market and its competition is part of strategic supremacy. Sometimes old leaders in an industry do not want to change and this gives new entrants an opportunity to sneak in and disrupt the rules of the game and use it to their advantage.Overall, this strategy is all about controlling your market at large and if you do not have the caliber to do this, then you find a niche market to focus on. When competitors disrupt the â€Å"rules of the game† then it comes a competitive battle. When this happens, it eventually turns into a Red Ocean. Leaders often are in their position because they have battled with lowering prices and are able to compete with lower margins. If a leading competitor was disrup ted by a new entrant with lower prices it would change the game and they would be forced to lower their prices or create a new strategic approach to beating the new threat.In this business strategy, I think it leads to saturation in the market where there really isn't a new value for the customer; they Just battle over perceived values, marketing and price wars. If you are someone who is going to enter into a particular market strong, would you rather go into a bloody war with dominant leaders and try to find a way to sneak past them and out into the market with the threat of them copying you and crushing you because they have deeper pockets and more control or avoid this fight and go where nobody else has gone?I think that many existing firms find themselves battling for strategic supremacy and if you are a new business, you should let them fight and enter the market through a Blue Ocean Strategy instead, but you are also never too old to use your brand equity and create a ewe spac e. Blue Ocean Strategies vs.. Coping with Hyperventilation: Companies regularly struggle to sustain their competitive advantages and the reality is that no advantage is sustainable. Technological wonders can happen overnight, aggressive competitors enter the market, organizations are restricted, new laws change the field, markets and trends appear and fade away.In a hypersensitive environment companies must disrupt the advantages of their competitors. To fight back with this, managers must apply the g's according to this theory to analyze industries and competitions strengths and weaknesses. Huge companies that were once thought to be untouchable have been brought to their knees, such as IBM & GM. Having economies of scale, large advertising power, deep pockets and all the other things that give them buyer and supplier power is no longer enough. â€Å"Leadership in price and quality is also not enough to assure success. Being first is not always the same as being best.Entry barrier s are trampled down or circumvented. Goliath are brought down by clever Davis with slingshots. Welcome to the world of hyperventilation† (Divine, 1995). According to Divine, companies cake progress in hyperventilation by actively disrupting advantages to others in order to adapt the market to themselves; this is done by applying the g's framework. The new g's framework is: Superior stakeholder satisfaction, strategic soothsaying, positioning for speed, positioning for surprise, shifting the rules of the game, signaling strategic intent and simultaneous and sequential strategic thrusts.Before going further in depth with applying these g's, this would seem like a very bloodthirsty strategy to destroy your opponents. When you strike first, you better be ready to take a hit or keep swinging. I am not saying that this is not the way to compete, but I am saying that it is not the best way to be in business or enter. Hyperventilation is a Red Ocean Strategy and all of these battle ta ctics do not have to be your fundamental strategy in a Blue Ocean. Moving on, these g's are only based on a strategy of finding and building temporary advantages in the market.These advantages are from market disruption and not sustaining advantages because of the reasons mentioned in the beginning of this paragraph. Looking at the chart below, you can see the qualities of competition in different levels of competition. The g's are about paying in the 4th category whereas Blue Ocean Strategy is about figuring out a way to compete in the first or second category. Even if you are a company who is part of hyperventilation it does not mean you have to play a part of the price war, you can use your branding and find a way into an area of more moderate competition.Blue Ocean vs.. The Core Competence of the Corporation Another theory of competitive advantage is in the knowledge and diversity of core competencies. Focusing on your core competencies creates unique, integrated systems that re inforce your business model. Once you clarify your competencies, then you will know how to support them, increasing your competitive advantage and reducing the ability of a competitor copying you. The theory states that once you establish your competencies you must enhance them by investing in needed technologies and creating strategic alliances.This theory seems to be not as brutally competitive as some of the other theories. It is difficult to argue because identifying your company's core competencies is indeed very important for strategic decisions and success. The reason I believe Blue Ocean Strategy is still a stronger strategy is imply because I do not believe that understanding your core competencies alone will be a sustainable enough advantage. There will still be competitors who change the game, new technologies and entrants that will emerge and I do not think that focus on your competencies are enough in a highly competitive market.In a Blue Ocean Strategy you do not need to worry about the competition as much. This theory points out that your competition may not be able to copy you as easily but that does not mean that they wont be able to take more of the marketplace. For these reasons, I think blue ocean is still the smartest strategy. Blue Ocean vs.. Resource Based View of the Firm The resource based view of the firm (RUB) is a basis for the competitive advantage of a firm that is based on application of their tangible and intangible resources.By doing this a business can transform their short-run competitive advantage into a more sustained competitive advantage. The basic idea is that you first identify potential key resources within your organization. Next, evaluate if the resources are valuable, rare, in-imitable, non-substitutable and other criteria. By protecting and sustaining these resources you can achieve greater organizational success. Similarly to understanding the core competencies of your business, this business strategy is also diff icult to argue.A business should evaluate their resources and these resources may very well be their core competencies especially if they are rare, inimitable and non-substitutable. I believe that simply having a resource based view does not protect you from changes in the market, always or guarantee long-term sustainability or competitive advantage. As mentioned before, technology advances happen overnight and these types of changes can make resources obsolete. Example of Successful Blue Ocean Strategy – Apple: Sometimes the only way to fully understand something is by looking at examples to get a better idea.In my opinion, the most successful company using a Blue Ocean Strategy has been Apple. A game changer for Apple was when they launched what we know of today as tunes. In 2003, they launched tunes, which to this day has changed the way people buy and enjoy music (Blue Ocean strategy, 2014). They saw a need in the market for digital music that was not illegally downloaded and were able to fill the need by providing clear music that was priced reasonably. One of the biggest perks of this is because there are a lot of people that only want one or two songs and no longer need to purchase the entire CD.They have been able to maintain their success by launching a program that was easy for users to use and provide great customer service; it was very difficult for others to even try to replicate. Apple did not want to stop there and saw another chance to move a new idea into the market when they came out with the pad. Apple was getting people to move away from laptops and cheap notebooks and offered customers an entirely new experience. With billions of dollars of success, we have to wonder what they know that others cannot seem to figure out.I feel the biggest reason why this is happening is because they are focusing on the end user. Apple continues to create projects that are solely customer driven. Also, they do an excellent Job highlighting their asset s. For example, do you ever wonder why people get so excited when a new model of their device comes out? It is because Apple markets the parts that others want. I once watched a documentary that claimed when the pad 2 came out, it was almost exactly he same with the exception of the size and weight.This attracted business because the pad is portable and can travel anywhere. A theory that shares similar characteristics to Blue Ocean Strategy is Core Competency by C. K. Parallax and Gary Hammer; the products and services that are produced with this theory is hard to replicate (Hammer & Parallax, 1990). However, Blue Ocean Strategy stands out since they created a market of their own and they have a much greater chance of focusing on things like pricing. It is something that no one has ever seen before so it gets a lot of attention right off the back.Example of Successful Blue Ocean Strategy – WI: Another company who has displayed success as a result of Blue Ocean Strategy is Mic rosoft when they created the WI. Video games are a billion dollar industry and companies continue to try and top their competitors with what they can provide consumers. Instead of fighting this trend, Microsoft decided to ignore the standard features that most video game consoles offer, such as built in DVD players and low processor speed; and in its place offer us something that no one had ever imagined: a censored video game that requires the movement of the player (Stewarded, 2007).In the article, Nineteen's Blue Ocean Strategy: WI, the author writes, â€Å"In Kim & Embrasure's terms, this means that while Microsoft's Oxbow and Sonny's ASS are fighting each other fiercely in a red ocean (I. E. The existing market), Nineteen's WI is calmly sailing in the blue ocean it created for itself (I. E. A new market)† (Stewarded, 2007). This was an extremely successful strategy, to put WI into the market because not only did it attract video game users but also brought in a whole oth er market. When it first came out, I was surprised and shocked to see the gaming system in my grandfather's nursing home.I soon learned that not only were the gaming systems being placed in nursing homes all over the country, but they were also being placed in physical therapy and rehab centers. I believe this example especially proves that Blue Ocean Strategy is superior to Michael Porter's Theory. If Microsoft were to follow Porter's theory instead, they would have looked at the OXBOW or ASS gaming system and did something comparable because he believes that you should try to top the competition (Porter, 1996). This leaves very little room for creativity and the chance to create something as innovated as an interactive video games.Conclusion: â€Å"The only way to beat the competition is to stop trying to beat the competition†. As you can see, Blue Ocean Strategy has a lot to offer companies and organizations that wish to succeed. Out of the eight strategies that we learned about, I feel that not only is Blue Ocean Strategy most different from all the others, but also offers people the most potential. Instead of going off what is already out there or creating something that resembles something else, Blue Ocean Strategy decides to do the exact opposite and create something that is not already out there.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Innovation at the International Foods Essay

Josh Novak who owns a small company called Glow Foods, have been selected to be apart of International Foods Group (IFG) team. IFG Tower was Chicago landmark and part of the company’s logo that appeared at every type of food that existed such as cereal box, breakfast meals, snack foods, etc. There are a lot of differences between Glow Foods, and IFG. In addition, John Ahern (CIO) would like to add more customers to IFG, merging the two Glow Foods and IFG. The goal is to attract the youth and young adult markets in IT. Josh was called to meet up with John Ahern and Tonya (manager of IT marketing) to talk. They started to talk about baseball teams, and the weather. Later on, John started to get to business; John summarized that since they took over Glow Foods they completely thought of arranging their processes including IT. They did not see a reason to run separate data centers. They picked a team to transfer all of Glow Foods’ hardware and software to their corporate systems in a month. Also change their entire Mac’s to PC’s, train employees on ERP system, and keep a small team to deal with Canadian issues. With that being said, IFG’s market their products to women with children and would like to expand and market their products to youths and young adults. John Ahern chose Josh Novack to help grab the youth and young adult customers. There is a team that will help Josh with this project stationed in Chicago. Josh is now the team manager at IFG and in charge of this project to be implemented and result in success. Six weeks after Josh started; he was called to come to Tonya’s office to discuss a few things. Since not everyone in the company is encouraging there will be some serious obstacles to overcome that will need to be discussed and that is both within the IT and the larger company. Tonya will assist Josh the best way she can when it comes to resources, support and to help place Josh’s innovative ideas together. Some serious obstacles that were discussed are expectations, and appearance. There is a possibility that IFG may have different expectations than Glow Foods. Usually, employers hire people based on their skills, interviews, eferences, and presentation. Employers expect them that they are being honest about the type of person that they are, and they want to work for them. Each boss that a person will have all have different expectations to their employees, as they all have different management style, rules, and personality. In reality, there are also expectations of the general work that a person will do, the environment in which they will be working at and the way th at they will be interacting with others in workplace. (CITE) Through experience and research there are common expectations that companies would like their employees to meet. Common expectations are being on time to scheduled work, following supervisor’s directions, maintaining a positive attitude at all times, treat everyone around you with respect, being responsible, and doing your roles. These expectations are usually told to all employees or kept to themselves knowing. Meeting the company’s expectations will help people progress in the company. With all employees meeting expectations, this will maintain the company be successful. CITE) The second part of the serious obstacle to overcome is appearance. Tonya stated that Josh may find that he will get a better response to his ideas if he looks a bit more professional. Just like expectations all companies have their own set of rules when it comes to dressing for work and can be called uniform. Just like police officers have uniforms, so once you see a police officer you will it i s a police officer by appearance. Also when we see people with suits and tie we normally think that they are CEO’s, CIO’s, or Managers. With appearance, an employee can gained more respect from co workers, build self confidence, and also can lead to opportunities. (CITE) Josh can win support for his team’s three point plan to use technology to help IFG’s reach its customers by doing a test to all three ideas and documenting step by step progress and results. In addition, writing a risk evaluation and analysis will help back up any questions that CIO, and CTO may have (John and Rick). Also, a business case should already be in place as well as budget with the technologies needed on both ends, whether the three point plan works or not. Having all of the information in hand will help the team gain some support. Also, think of all of the questions that both John and Rick will ask and look for and include the answers into the plan. This will help gain John and Rick’s support because the ideas were well thought of. Of course, the team will not be able to think off all the questions that John and Rick may have in mind but it will help. In addition, making sure that all the business needs and requirements are met. This is important because it will make the three point plan strong and will help gain support for the team. Here are some ideas that can help each idea gain some support for team. First idea is connecting directly with customers about new product development ideas through an interactive web site with real time response from internal staff. Outlining the cost for this, the number of staff that will be needed for real time response will help, and who will be responsible for the creation of the web site. Also, have the completed GUI or interface of the website ready to show. It looks like this is going to be a 24 hour support, since it is real time response, there should be some guidelines and training needed for the employees that will be assisting and in charge of the real time response to customers. With this being said, listing all possible risk with mitigation actions, and basically writing a risk analysis just for this idea. Wonderful customer service will continue to keep coming back. Second idea is to reach out to different communities and gain insights into their needs and interests. With this idea, an informative survey would help. Outlining all questions and possible answers to help guide future marketing plans. Also, having a set schedule of how this reaching out to people would be implemented for example, knowing what location, what employees will assist, is this web based survey (if so, how will customers be notified), etc. these are a few questions that can help marketing. In addition, flyers, and advertisements at locations where youths hang out the most, and/or events that are attended the most by young adults. Also, knowing what is next after gathering information and/or knowing the results will help the team. Third idea is to implement these and all of the ideas on the cloud. Now, with this idea, there should be another risk analysis. Putting information on the cloud involves a lot of security issues, but also has an advantage to companies. With technology booming every second, a lot of companies are putting their information on the cloud. Listing all possible security issues and how it can be solved will help. Knowing all of the details about the cloud, any credentials that are needed, any firewall rules, monitoring ports, and traffic will help this idea. In conclusion, in my opinion integrating IT into marketing is an innovative idea. Nowadays, everything includes or involves IT whether it is financial department, or marketing department. Information technology is embedded in modern marketing jobs. There are IT tools used everyday by marketing personnel such as blogs, email communication, CRM systems, power point presentations, websites, social medias to name a few. Over all without these IT tools, it will be hard to keep marketing updated and to continue to maintain and gain customers. Using these IT tools help the company markets successful.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Micro Economics

We stand in the beginning of the twenty first century with new groups in positions of great power within our economic. One would think that, with this peak strength, American man would be secure, ready to move forward. An uncertainty, however, seems to be besetting us. We are unsure of ourselves. Internally, we are ill at ease and suspect one another – so much so that sometimes we seem can forget our fundamental belief in the dignity of mankind. People enjoy a standard of living, but often we do not enjoy life. People are mobile in their cars and can see the whole world in television. Yet people are not sure where they want to go or what they want to see. Modern world baffles people, and we do not know how to turn our knowledge into creative expression both as a nation and as individual citizens. Such a situation, if to continue, is in danger of in the end to sap our viability. Unless people try to understand the fundamental nature of our society as interrelated systems of power – economic, business, political, and moral – we can misunderstand our mission in this world. I believe that the mission of every person is to establish a great civilization on this continent and to create peace and security for mankind. Therefore, the fulfilment of my aspirations for effective and moral living is, and must be forever, a never ending business. My life must be a business. It is the most important business I will ever be responsible forever. I will face challenges and risks with little or no planning. Economics is a kaleidoscope that touches all aspects of the business of living. According to several reports issued by the Small Business Administration (SBA), the single most dominant reason businesses fail is directly attributable to a lack of planning. This paper is intended to build my life’s economic plan. It will consider issues of wants and needs, supply and demand, long term employment probability, unexpected economic challenges, and what I believe the economic future to be and how I will adapt to it. Planning I can use the terms â€Å"plans† and â€Å"planning† to many different aspects of my everyday life. One use of the term â€Å"plan† I will use to describe a procedure for achieving a particular goal or desired outcome. For example, when somebody asks me â€Å"So, what's the plan?† I think of a set of directions to guide my thoughts and actions. That is, I create the directions on what to do and when to do it, and this in turn might tell me those things that are most important and those things to consider. Ideally, my plan should be complete. That is, the contents and ordering satisfactorily accomplishes the goal. The plan should be efficient and foolproof. The instructions of the plan should be easy to memorize, monitor and execute, with little chance of things going wrong (Morris 99). However, in my daily life, plans may still be useful without offering explicit guidance or instructions. A map of the new city or an architect's diagram detailing the layout of a house may also be correctly referred to as plans. However, these plans provide a representation or overview of a project or problem, rather than a set of directions. A clear understanding of the current state and what should to be done, together with awareness of the different means and methods at my disposal may greatly facilitate the efficacy of achieving my goals. Through using planning and strategies, a chosen subset of new alternatives may be found more quickly and more efficiently than would be the case if I used only pure trial or error, or if I regularly investigated each and every possibility in turn. Many theories of planning propose that the first stage is to form a suitable mental representation of the goals. The representation may include the initial state and the goal state as well as a range of possible actions that could be taken (Morris 123). Planning tips, strategies and tactics are known as heuristics and algorithms. My planning involves intended actions to be taken in the future, motivational control may be needed in order to carry them out appropriately. My planning is subdivided into four sections: first, a number of key goals are introduced; second, SWOT analysis is introduced; third, short summary descriptions are provided outlining the main themes and issues to emerge from the savings planning; fourth,   a view on the nature of man as consumer is presented. Goals I have specific goals that consistently pursue. There are a mixture of goals and success factors which are important to the achievement of my goals. True goals are probably confined to the first three categories. Long term employment Profitability Growth Of these three the one of primary importance to me is profitability. From my perspective this could be more specifically defined as Return. Growth and Long term employment are pursued to the extent that they yield a long term benefit in terms of Return. After graduating I am going to be a manager employed by a company. How do I as a manager make my decisions? Perhaps these decisions can be better appreciated by setting up a scenario and observing the behavior patterns of a manager of a factory. Let us suppose that the factory is part of a corporate empire in which top management is ensconced in a big city office and middle management runs the factories located somewhere in the hinterlands, far from the lights, fun, and frolic of the big city. Suppose that I am a middle-level manager of a factory that makes widgets along with an assortment of other products. I have both production and marketing responsibilities and report to a president who is held accountable for the overall operation of the factory by those in the corporate headquarters. In the game of Musical Chairs, the winner lasts as long as it takes to set up the chairs, turn the record over, and play a new round. And in the game of King of the Hill, one remains king for as long as he can fend off new attacks. There is a transient aspect to positions of power that is true in children's games of fun and in adults' games of life. Nevertheless, whether a king is attempting to maximize the profits of his company or trying to maximize his longevity in power, somewhere in the king's organization, there are middle-level managers. These aspirants to power have not yet risen in position to dream of toppling the king. They are still in the Musical Chairs stage of development. While biding their time until they are in a high enough position to try and topple the king, which may never come about for some, they have to think about something else to justify their jobs. And there is no better justification for a job than thinking about the profitability of the company. What this means is that, while top management and the members of the board may be taking a more tangential view of profitability, there is someone in the organization looking at the price of goods in the marketplace, the cost of making goods on the factory floor, and the inventory of finished goods in the warehouse. That person is making, or recommending, some important decisions: 1. Expanding or contracting production 2. Raising or lowering prices 3. Building a new plant or closing an existing one These are certainly important decisions if one is a worker employed by this company. The development and implementation of good system for a business will be a task for a manager. This involves a mixture of techniques and technologies. Related to this development and implementation process is the proper planning and leadership needed to identify and organize modern technology. Also, there is the cultural aspect. This aspect promotes an atmosphere of community and intelligence sharing among company employees. In its intention to get the required resources for its future success, the manager creates and then implements management practices that encourage new technology. In order to better understand the mixture of techniques and technologies used in the development and implementation of business system, the following four basic elements are recapped below (Hoctor 78): 1. upgrading current information systems to tie in with smart business system 2. employing data storage to its fullest extent for optimization. The focus is on using appropriate aged data and real-time data 3. utilizing smart business software for optimizing a company’s operations today as well as in the future 4. making great use of computer networking in particular on E-commerce In modern world, the creation of good system for business is leading the way to optimizing a company’s operations in quality control for changing times. Not only is computer technological innovations are changing more quickly each day, but also are business demands. Managers are being pressed to respond to customer needs. They also face competitive threats in days and weeks instead of months or years. Products and services that could wait for 6 to 12 months just a few years ago today need to get out the door in a much shorter period of time. And it is not just multinational companies or global organizations that are being pressed with shortening time frames. Almost any business, from a small firm up to the world’s largest corporation, is at risk of being replaced by a more quick-witted, E-business-enabled rival. The success of businesses will be estimated by how well managers have developed E-business applications to distinguish themselves from the competition. Therefore, how well the managers can respond to changing times is important factor for its success. Systems for a business can be the means to meet these fast changing times for a modern company. SWOT analysis SWOT is a widely used thinking framework for identifying Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. It enables key factors to be visibly recorded as a high level summary of personal (or a business) situation. It is a summary that is simple but powerful. The technique can be used to document the key factors arising from the review of a particular project or business, through looking at the Opportunities and Threats it faces in the wider world. The SWOT summary may be used to consolidate key issues identified through other forms of analysis (Elkin 90). The uncertain world of the consumer Not all the money may be spent. Some may be saved. Savings will be important to me because we live in a world of uncertainty. The uncertainty aspect that worries me most might be death, but a close second is unemployment. Unemployment is a consequence of a free market environment in which employers not only are free to dismiss, lay off, or in other ways terminate employees but also are forced to do so by the workings of the free market itself. If a factory makes a product, and if for any number of diverse reasons that product cannot be sold, at some point the factory owner must reduce the factory's output. If he does not dismiss any workers, the factory owner is paying for workers who are producing goods that are not being sold. This is a cash outflow at the same time when he is not selling his product. Consequently, there is no revenue from sales to generate a cash inflow to counterbalance the cash outflow. What is his choice with regard to laying off his workers? Does he even have a choice? The answer is no. Thus, savings are necessary to provide some sort of cushion, a security blanket, a nest egg for the bad times. Savings are my safety net to protect myself when things turn against me. Savings have little to do with the running of a communist society. The economic philosophy behind communism is that the state will take on all the burdens of an individual such that he is never exposed to risk of any kind (Dunning 56). Housing, food, medical care, education, you-name-it -these are all the responsibility of the state. The communist system does not expect that an individual has to save, as he would in the free market system, because all aspects of personal security are guaranteed by the state. However, it must be noted that individuals in communist nations do save. Sometimes it is to accumulate the funds necessary to make a major purchase, such as an automobile. Sometimes the act of saving is a default condition in that there is nothing on the shelves that a consumer wants to buy. Saving then reflects the inability to spend. Perhaps this best illustrates the fundamental difference between the two economic systems. In one, a consumer saves because of the inability to guarantee a secure income. In the other, a person saves because of the inability to be a consumer. The philosophic underpinnings of the free market system assume that man is basically an unhappy and dissatisfied individual who abhors work (Dunning 90). People work for one basic reason: if they don't, the alternative is to starve to death in a dark, cold room. Relatively few people find satisfaction in work. Most work is tedious, repetitious, and boring. The primary incentive to man a machine is to earn some money to feed one's family, keep clothes on their backs, provide a roof over their heads, and keep the rooms lighted and warm. Because the very nature of the free market system hardly inspires confidence in the future, man as consumer saves a portion of his pay for a rainy day. The amount that he saves varies from individual to individual and depends on a number of issues. Among these are the extent of his present savings, his possession of material things, the general direction of prices, the relationship between the interest he receives on his savings and the effect of inflation on the price of goods, and his confidence in holding onto his job. While these are the more important considerations one takes into account in determining how much to save, one consideration overrides all others. That consideration is confidence. Possession of material things The desire to possess material things influences spending habits. If a person feels that he is behind, so to speak, on the possession of material things with respect to his peers, he will have a general tendency to. When people see the unemployment lines getting shorter and the want ads for jobs becoming more common, their attitude toward spending becomes more positive. Good times begin as soon as unemployment rates start decreasing. Even with continued high unemployment, the fact that things are getting better permeates the thinking of consumers. If unemployment rates are decreasing, and if one has a job, then the chances of being laid off are nil. The worst is over, and it is time to forget the bad times. Declining unemployment means that the security associated with a job is going to be much greater than during times of increasing unemployment. One can afford to be a bit more profligate than during less auspicious times. As the economy falters because sales are collapsing, fear of losing one's own job makes one more cautious in his spending habits. This is in the best interests of me – spend less, save more, and add to the nest egg in case things get even worse. References Dunning, John H. (2001). Global Capitalism at Bay? Rutledge: London. Elkin, Paul. (1998). Mastering Business Planning and Strategy: The Power of Strategic Thinking. Thorogood: London. Hoctor, James J. (2003). Smart Business Systems for the Optimized Organization. Praeger: Westport, CT. Morris, Robin. (2004). The Cognitive Psychology of Planning. Psychology Press: Hove, England.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Initiative Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Initiative Planning - Essay Example The control of health sector by the private sector dates back to the time when of development of medical sector and hence it has been difficult for the government to take full charge. (Hartman, 2007) This paper will come up with an initiative that will provide a plan that can be used by the government to change the heath care system in the country. It will review various aspects of the health care scheme including tax, insurance, government health centers, and other which can help to streamline the health sector. This heath care plan will come up with various recommendations that can be used as remedy for some of the thorny issue in the health sector. The following are the recommendations that I can make to change the health care system in America The health insurance scheme in the US has continuously become a burden for the employers. There have been various complain from employers that the cost of health insurance scheme for the workers has been having a heavy impact on the budget and therefore some of the companies have resulted either to reducing the size of the employees or to altering the terms of employment. Although there has been a massive company to encourage the companies to contribute to the health insurance scheme of their workers, the cost of this contribution and tax has reduced their profits by a large margin. Therefore my suggestion would be to reduce the amount of contribution that employer make to the insurance scheme for their workers. This can be carried out in many ways. First the amount of contribute per employee can be reduced. Second the cost of this contribution can be shard between the employer and the employee. This relieves the employer of the burden and act as incentives to employ more people. Reducing the insurance among the unemployed The list of those who are employed who are not insured has been increasing as companies take drastic measures to reduce the cost of health insurance on their budget. As such there are those who are considered employed and hence not insured since they can afford their medical expenses. However this has been contrary as most of them cannot meet their daily expense and at the same time meet their medical expense. Therefore the most important way to address this issue would be adjusting the criteria for insurance qualifications among the employed. This adjustment will see the admission of those with a lower salary scale who are not likely to meet their medical expenses. This has to be reflected in adjusted qualification criteria for children which mean there should be the same adjustment in the children health insurance scheme to admit children of those who are not insured and are employed. Changing health related licensing laws Throughout the history of the United States, there has been contribution of the government and the private sector in provision of health care for the people. As such there has been need to give the private sector strength in order to provide for health care. It has been observed that most the people in the United States purchase their insurance premiums through the private

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Dossier, Terrorism Intelligence report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Dossier, Terrorism Intelligence report - Essay Example Both Al Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya are founded on universal Islamic precepts of jihad and brotherhood. Hence, the role of their leaders is secondary to their message. For instance, even when Al Qaeda’s leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was assassinated, there was no cessation in the local insurgency. Similarly, there is no conclusive evidence that Osama bin Laden is alive, yet the numbers of terror attacks targeted at western interests have seen an unprecedented rise since the events of September 11. Also, the Southeast Asian region is populated by numerous militant Islamist outfits, whose ideologies are nearly the same. The threat posed to Australian interests in Southeast Asia comes from small and marginalized groups who are spread all across the region. Alongside Jemaah Islamiah (JI) in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia; â€Å"we have the Kumpulan Mujahidin Malaysia; and al-Maunah in Malaysia; the Abu Sayaff in the southern Philippines; Pattani United Liberation Organiza tion in southern Thailand; and Laskar Jihad, Majlis Mujahideen, and Islamic Defenders' Front in Indonesia.† Hence the security measures taken by the Australian government should not confine itself to a particular militant entity, but should focus on the broader phenomenon of global Jihad.The present wave of Islamic revivalism and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism across the world originated during the 1970s. The movement started as a reaction to the disillusionment and failure associated with modern neo-liberal economic policies.

E-marketing plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

E-marketing plan - Assignment Example The artists have acquired more power as they have even started selling their music without the recording company. (Porter’s Five Forces- Strategic Management) Building a successful profession requires network, money and resources. Money is required to invest into finance marketing and music videos. Network is also very essential in order to sell products, markets and advertisements. Contacts and networking are required at venues and concerts everywhere the artists perform. It is very difficult to be successful and receive sufficient market share especially for a new player. With the help of the internet, people have more contacts, networks and it has become easier to sell music online. (Porter’s Five Forces- Strategic Management) Until some years back, there threat of substitutes was very low as the music was available in only one common channel. But in the recent past, there have been numerous cases of piracy which is becoming a major threat to the music industry and the recording company. (Porter’s Five Forces- Strategic Management) The format by which music is made available, the channel and the source of the music are predetermined. There are no alternate sources available for the buyers to buy the music other than purchasing them at stores. But in the recent past, there have been several cases of music privacy which provides buyers to acquire the music through other channels paying very minimal amounts o nothing at all. Information regarding the artists, purchasing of song directly from iTunes can be made directly. The song video can also be viewed from YouTube. Online downloading of music has also been a major set back for the recording companies. Consumers now can download music for free with good quality instead of paying for the CD. This means that the recording companies need to reduce their prices and have different channels for promotion, advertising and sales. (Porter’s Five Forces- Strategic Management) The

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Financial Service Assignment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Financial Service Assignment 2 - Essay Example vital contributor towards the steadiness with regard to the financial structure along with being a significant element in the course of operations associated with the existent economy (Department of Mathematics, 2008). The structure of derivatives market in the present times has been learnt to lure increased concentration next to the present environment related to fraud cases, financial crisis along with the collapse of few of the market participants. It was an evident fact that the recent financial catastrophe principally occurred because of the planned credit-linked securities which were not actually derivatives. This made the regulators and the policy developers think regarding intensification of the guidelines for boosting the lucidity and security for both the wide array of financial instruments as well as derivatives (Department of Mathematics, 2008). Derivatives are referred as financial contracts the worth of which is considered as a resultant of certain definite underlying assets. The underlying assets are believed to entail equity indices as well as equities, loans, exchange rates, commercial along with residential mortgages, bonds, interest rates, commodities and natural calamities like the hurricanes and the earthquakes. The derivative contracts appear or are available in numerous forms however, the most widespread forms entail forwards or futures, swaps and options (Acharya & et. al., 2009). A forward contract is referred to a certain contract in which the involved two parties comply to trade the definite â€Å"underlying asset† in the upcoming days at a specific point of time which has been ascertained earlier and at a preset price. Thus, the buyer complies today to purchase a definite form of asset in the upcoming days and the other party i.e. the seller complies to give delivery of that definite asset at the agreed and predetermined time. Futures are regarded as standardised form of forwards that are capable of being dealt in on the exchange

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Challenges that Steven B. Belkin faced and recommendations for their Case Study

Challenges that Steven B. Belkin faced and recommendations for their solution - Case Study Example This paper presents the situation analysis that examines the TTG Company and its environment. TTG was established as a private corporation that provided group travel designated groups of individuals at a low cost. The aim of formation of the group was to meet the increasing demand for low-cost travel groups in the U.S. The industry itself is not yet mature. It is ten years old and is still growing given that it has only ten competitors to TTG. The main customer base of TTG is prime groups that are known to be extremely responsive to group travel such as shrines, medical associations and teacher associations among many others. The main product provided by the firm are deluxe group tours. This analysis provides an examination of the internal and external environment of TTG Corporation. The internal environment is examined using strengths and weaknesses. TTG has the strength of low-cost services compared to its competitors. The company wishes to provide its deluxe group tours at low cos ts of $199 per person for a trip to the Caribbean or Europe. Moreover, the back to back business strategy aims at minimizing airfare because as the firm will be dropping one group for a holiday, it will be picking up another group that has completed its holiday in the same destination. In addition to the cost, the company has an excellent marketing strategy that if implemented, could lead to increased sales turnover for the firm. The firm intends to market its products and services throughout the U.S using agents and different kinds of broadcast media. TTG has several weaknesses that could undermine its excellence in the industry. To begin with, the firm is new in the industry since it is a new firm that is venturing into the industry. Consequently, the company has no experience of doing business and providing group tours. The inexperience of the firm could undermine its marketing efforts. Financial challenges are other issues that are affecting TTG. The company has inadequate capit al to establish and run the firm. Steven and Alan faced difficulties of soliciting funds from investors and other financial companies that lend capital to firms since the company had no assets. TTG had the opportunity of venturing into the lucrative group travel industry. The industry is less developed therefore offering the company an opportunity to venture and grow with the industry. In addition to the opportunity in the industry, TTG has the opportunity of diversifying and venturing into other businesses in future. TTG faces the threat of high competition in the industry. Although the industry is still growing and has only 11 firms including TTG, it is characterized by free entry and exit and therefore, there could be new entrants venturing into the industry. This could trigger rivalry among competing firms. Unfavourable competition from dominant firms could affect the operations of TTG. 7Cs Methodology The 7Cs of consultancy is important to any organization including TTG that is operating in a new environment as described below. Client: customers are important people in an organization as they are the reason for the existence of an organization.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Importance of Professional Networking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Importance of Professional Networking - Essay Example Therefore, even when there is a job opening, people may not know about it (Zack, pp. 103-104). They only method that the company would use is that of â€Å"personal recommendations† of the employees which are already working in the company. Quite understandably, if someone has a friend in a company due to his networking abilities, he may be the first one to know about that opening thus increasing the probability of him getting the job (Baber & Waymon, pp. 63-64). It is also very much a matter of enthusiasm and interest as well. The point here is that when employers are hiring, they always want focused, hardworking, and determined people to perform those tasks. In a way, professional networking is the manifestation of the same. If an individual were really determined about getting a job then only he would spend his time and energy in networking with the professionals (Vermeiren, pp. 89-93). Most people would prefer to spend their time with their friends, family or by entertaini ng themselves in some or the way. However, a person who has created and kept himself in close contact with his network of professionals, he must be really very passionate and eager about his work as well. Furthermore, it also depicts that the person has a healthy set of communication and presentation skills as well. May be a few decades back, it was all about â€Å"what you know,† your skills, knowledge, attitude, results, school, education and others. However, today is not only about what you know but it is also, about â€Å"who you know.† It may sound a bit unfair and unethical but one should look at it in a way that if you have all the skills, knowledge, and abilities but if no one knows about the same, then all of that is useless (Baber & Waymon,... This essay outlines the increasing importance of professional networking in assisting in work finding for jobseekers and cutting the costs of finding best candidates for jobs for employers. Many executives, managers and head hunters are keeping a close eye on the internet and websites like LinkedIn so that they could minimize the time, energy and costs required for this process Today, finding a job has become an art in itself. Many experts have repeatedly identified that this art can be mastered by learning â€Å"professional networking† May be a few decades back, it was all about â€Å"what you know,† your skills, knowledge, attitude, results, school, education and others. However, today is not only about what you know but it is also, about â€Å"who you know.† It may sound a bit unfair and unethical but one should look at it in a way that if you have all the skills, knowledge, and abilities but if no one knows about the same, then all of that is useless Important here to note is that today we are living in a society where the need is to embrace diversity and celebrate the differences rather fighting with it.. Therefore, people who are good at social networking are better performers when it comes to understanding people from diverse backgrounds. They know how to deal with people in their own styles. Therefore, they present themselves to the company as great candidates for available jobs Professional networking is also a viable option for job seeking because of the new â€Å"online† element which has came onto the scene.

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Early School Leavers Essay Example for Free

Early School Leavers Essay Why do student dropout of school? Do you know why students drop out of school? Nowadays students usually drop out of school, to get a career. More than before job seekers are looking for people who have finished high school (at least). The fact that students drop out of school is caused for different reasons. There are three main causes why students drop out of school: they cant afford tuition, they prefer to work, and they fail the course. Family problems are one cause. If parents are divorced, no-one may be taking responsibility for the child. If parents are uneducated, there may be little encouragement to do homework or to stay in school. Financial factors are also important. Some students want to work in order to support their families. In contrast, others may have family businesses and not see any benefit in obtaining a high school certificates. Perhaps the main reason why students drop out is for academic reasons. For many students, school is stifling and boring. The curriculum does not challenge them or grab their attention and they are unable to be creative. Others have learning difficulties that need specialist help. New Zealand has the second-worst drop-out rate in the developed world. It shows that 26. 9 per cent of New Zealanders aged 15 to 19 are not in education. More than a quarter of Kiwi teenagers quit school early. Many students fail to complete their basic schooling. This can cause serious problems for the individual, their families and the country. In this opinion, I will examine the reasons why students leave school early, and suggest some possible solutions. I both agree and disagree with the reasons presented here. The paper said one of the main reasons is that students drop out because they PERCEIVE that classes are boring. The truth is that many classes ARE extremely dull, due to poor lesson-planning and unmotivated, apathetic teachers. Demonizing the students’ perception of the classes is nothing more than a tactful yet deceptive approach at the internal shortcomings of the educational bureaucracy. Instead of engaging work and active intellectual discussion/debate, students are forced to jump through the hoops of pointless busy work and futile self-help/self-awareness assignments such as this one. Student disinterest and apathy are products of a stagnant and stifling environment. Dropout rates, I personally believe, would be exponentially lowered if educators took a less bureaucratic approach at student achievement. You can’t have a successful one size fits all plan that will actually end up working. The theories of Dr. Howard Gardner attest to this by outlining the many different ways that people can think. Standards written by left-brain officials cannot work for predominantly right-brain students. For years in this school system my creativity and viewpoints have improve in some classes, but for the most part have been stifled by teachers not willing to either put forth the effort necessary to facilitate such individuality or that are simply opposed to any unorthodox thinking or changes in practice. In an environment where the students are not the â€Å"customers† and when individuality is squelched in the name of following senseless, regimented practices, the students are done a great disservice. I am committed to graduate ONLY because I know that I must do so to get anywhere in life. I am frustrated, dissatisfied, and stifled by MANY of the practices employed in many classes I have this year and have had in the past within the school system. Many who read what I have written here will look down on my views, because they will [see] them as â€Å"rocking the boat,† something that I believe it is safe to say is frowned upon here as a general rule. There is a quote by John Locke that says, â€Å"New opinions are always suspected and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not common. There is such logic in this and the sad thing is that my ideas (in this respect) are neither new nor radical, only despised because they require energetic commitment to be put into practice. It saddens me deeply that the school boasts of a forward-thinking, cutting-edge, technologically-cantered, example-setting school system, when in reality these claims are only partially true. Money is NOT the issue. I am so fed up with the excuse of lack of funding bein g used to excuse time-wasting, needless activities! An engaging, entertaining, worthwhile class can be executed with nothing more than a committed instructor and engaged students . I am not referring to some ideal, yet non-existent classroom setting. My PHYSICS class this year has been absolutely enthralling EVEN THOUGH some of the required, yet frustrating practices have been implemented in her class on a regular basis. At the end of the day, those who come to school with a genuine DESIRE to take something away from the experience do so; and those who have no drive do not do so, REGARDLESSS of the implementation of the practices put into place in hopes of improving student achievement. The problem with these types of measures is that they focus solely on boosting TEST SCORES. THIS IS NOT THE PROPER APPROACH! (Standardized tests are 9 times out of 10 are a very poor representation of student UNDERSTANDING. Simple memorization is not adequate education! I can memorize scores of random information and then ace a test over it, but all that proves is that I have a good memory. Memory is of importance, there is no doubt of this, but equally, it is NOT the main goal. A deep understanding of the material is vastly more instrumental in the students gaining REAL-WORLD understanding. It is no wonder to me why so many graduates/dropouts here go into construction/metalworking, etc. These are the only classes many individuals find worthwhile because they are the few classes offered that provide hands-on experience that guarantee understanding through practice, not simple words. I guarantee you I can read an instructional book on how to do just about ANYTHING, and then write extensively on how to do it, but that writing is no proof whatsoever that I actually understand how to perform said task or that I am physically capable of doing the activity in a real-world setting. I have a lot more that I could say but basically all I’m trying to get across is that the entire focus in this school is wrong and that is one of the main reasons for teenage dropouts here. As can be seen, there is no one solution to the problem of school drop-outs. Educational authorities, parents and schools need to work closely together to find the reason for each student’s decision to leave school, and to try to do as much as possible to encourage them to stay in the system.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

The Effects Of Gangs In Society Criminology Essay

The Effects Of Gangs In Society Criminology Essay How to define a gang has always been a matter of controversy. The relationship of the gang to its local community and the salience of race have been at the heart of academic and popular differences on the nature of gangs., according to the Gang Research. In the current essay I would like to describe the effects of gangs in the community and the effects of community policing. These two issues are important and cause many problems in society. Nowadays, the effect of gangs in community is negative and annoys people. People are disturbed by the groups of people trying to harm the society. Modern society faces many different problems, including terrorism and gangsters. People unite and form groups of particular interests, forming the gang. Gang is a group of people engaged in banditry.  Gangsters are the people in the criminal law that have committed one of the most dangerous crimes against the foundations of public administration and society, as described in Gangs and their effect on community.  Criminal laws of various states do not always provide special offense thuggery, but many countries are close to this type of crime compounds (burglary, various kinds of violent acts, etc.).   Banditry actions. Often there are referred to banditry actions of the various armed rebel groups and wars. For example, the used phrases like Chechen bandits, gang Makhno, etc. Use of the term among the bandits against members of such groups was intended to provide them common criminals rather than political opponents. It is also necessary to  note that participants in such anti-government groups may, together with political objectives and goals pursue personal enrichment (through robberies, ransom for the hostages, etc.), as stated in Gang research. The gang often refers to organized street gangs controlling a territory or a hood (neighborhood).  Street gangs are probably the most famous Bloods, MS-13, and Crips from South Central Los Angeles.  Members of street gangs are black with large majorities, followed by Latinos and Slavs.  They come from poor neighborhoods in North America and Central America.  Bloods and Crips have been the subject of many Hollywood movies depicting the life of gangster in Los Angeles.  Colors, with Dennis Hopper and Sean Penn are one of the first of its kind.  Other fraternities such as motorcycle clubs like the Hells Angels and the criminal organizations (Sicilian Mafia, Chinese triads and Japanese yakuza) are often referred to as gangs.  The first gangs emerged in Los Angeles in the black ghettos and then in other major cities like New York and Chicago, but Toronto and Montreal in Canada, to name a few.  Community negatively perceives the existence of the gangs and tries to avoid the m. The majority think that this problem has to be more effectively controlled by the government, as stated in Gangs and their effect on community. Environment and gang activity. Quite often in environments suffering socially and economically provide gang members (mostly youth) a sense of belonging and protection against other gangs. Through this ritual, the violent practices of dress codes, a code of honor   Often where the prospects of gainful employment are low, gangs provide illegal means of earning a living.  Such as trafficking in narcotics or stolen property, extortion, assault They are very diverse and different, and sometimes become targets of choice for some ideological and extreme beliefs, which influence and motivate them, as described in Gang research. Unfortunately, innocent people can get caught in the crosshairs, so all those who live in the community where a gang is present are in greater danger as a result of the affect of the gang on their society., according to the Gang Research. Gangs in New York. In the U.S., the term gang used for a street gang, back in the 1860s formed such criminal organizations, such as the Irish Boodles in New York City.  Pushed by the waves of immigration increased the formation of ethnically based street gangs.  In these Big Five were called classic bands, the Irishmen organized in the Whyos, Hudson Dusters, or Gophers, Italians in the Five Points Gang and Eastern European Jews in the Eastman Gang.  After 1900, there were essentially only the Eastman and Five Points left, as described in Gangs in America.   Almost all of these Big Five were from politicians of the Tammany Hall secured; gangs such as the Eastman Gang and the Whyos offered illegal services for a price list.  However, the Mafia and the Camorra in New York City had come.  About the Black Hand Gang, the Unione Sicilian was undermined.  The over-controlled Italian voices were certainly of interest of Tammany Hall, as stated in Gang research.  Funded by the alcohol prohibition were formed out of the five clans today known as La Cosa Nostra American Mafia, also called the Five Families.  Accordingly, it came to the dissolution of traditional street gangs of New York City to 1920.  While this entry focuses gangs in the United States, gangs are a recognized feature of urban life in areas as diverse as Johannesburg, Rio de Janiero, Paris, and Hong Kong., according to the official data. Gangs in Los Angeles. A hotbed of banditry in the U.S., the city of Los Angeles, California.  In particular, the district South Los Angeles is the most dangerous region of town.  Here you fight the Bloods and Crips, the 38th Street Gang, the 18th Street Gang, the Mara Salvatrucha, the mutually Florencia 13 and other gangs.  In addition, there are always conflicts between African Americans and Latinos, as stated in Gangs in America.  All these gangs lay claim to a particular territory and have their own distinctive mark, such as colors, clothing, tattoos, hand signs and graffiti.  Historically, returns the current path from Los Angeles to increasing conflicts between blacks and whites in the course of the 1940s.  At that time, many blacks moved to Los Angeles, but could find no ghettos in the then appropriate accommodation.  The attempt from the break ghetto and to purchase in other parts of the city housing, put the local white residents against strong segregation efforts, ranging in some ca ses up to the inclusion of racial restrictions in the land book and much of the city for non-whites out of reach made.  Only in the south and southwest, where the residential areas of the lower middle class were white, blacks still could not find housing, but also here met with the resistance, as stated in Effects of Gangs. Mid to late 1940s was against this background, black residents from the borders of the Central Avenue-ghettos terrorized by gangs of white youths as the Spookhunters. In return, were founded the first black gangs like the businessmen, Slauson or flips, which are often offered the only protection against racist attacks, but also constitute a cultural or social home, as described in Gang research. Mark Twain on Gangs. In his 1884 classic Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain described the elaborate oath that the imaginative Tom Sawyer creates for members of his potential gang. Now well start this band of robbers and call it Tom Sawyers Gang. Everybody that wants to join has got to take an oath, and write his name in blood., as stated in the Chapter 2. In Huckleberry Finn. This shows the simple way of the creation of a gang, and the consequences can be much more complicated for both- the society and members of the gang. Todays members of the gang are criminals and they can not be distinguished in their actions from the other criminals. Community relation to Gangs. Some people believe that the gangs have become a permanent feature of the urban landscape around the world, as described in Gang Research. Community strives to do anything possible to prevent gang crimes, to make the life safes and to create foundations that will be able to protect them. In the modern world cooperation and communication on the topic of gangs in extremely important, as today the number of crimes is very high and people feel less safe each day. Without the cooperation of the community and police it will be very difficult to protect the families and to live in safety. As a fact, an unsupervised lower-class peer group, with leadership, structure, and adherence to a local territory is formed in the society and make the living even more difficult and unforeseen, as described in Addressing Community Gang Problems. People are disturbed and nervous because of the gangs present in the cities, as these local groups are capable to do anything from the theft to murder. Scary stories about them and no clear changes of the government considering the gangs have not changes the situation for the better. The Effects of Community Policing. The concept of community police officers (called Community Policing and Neighborhood Policing) is based on the assumption that an effective fight against crime and antisocial behavior requires close cooperation between the Police and members of the community.   Community Policing is both a philosophy and an organizational strategy that allows police and community residents to work closely together in new ways to solve the problems of crime, fear of crime, physical and social disorders, and neighborhood decay., as stated in The Effects of Community Policing and Technology on Index Crime Clearance Rates. Assumptions concept. The concept of community police patrols involves increasing the number of pedestrians  Police officers (and other similar services), they should be the members of the communities in which they work.  Building mutual trust and faith in the rule of law continues in through the establishment of direct contacts with the people-police should be open to citizens by showing patience, understanding and willingness to help, even if you entrusted to the problems have no direct connection with the violation of the law.  Conceptually, the police officer has to be more a sort of friend than a civil servant and representative government.  You can then count on the active participation of community members in efforts to combat crime.   According to The Effects of Community Policing and Technology on Index Crime Clearance Rates, the man goals of the community policing are: to bring community resources together to solve problems, decrease fear of crime, to listen to and address citizen concerns, to increase public confidence in the Police Department, to impact specific crime problems, and educate the public about its Police Department. Social scientists have differed on whether or not gangs necessarily exhibit criminal and delinquent activity. Some hold that gangs are fundamentally the product of delinquent subcultures; others believe gangs are a response to social disorganization. The United States National Youth Gang Center reports there are about 25,000 gangs in the United States, with nearly three quarters of a million members., according to the Gang Research. In the past, the view prevailed that the task of the Police is merely react-in a manner provided by law-the fact of the crime (the repressive function).  There was allowed only interference with pathology.  Today, there are beliefs that the role of police is not only to ensure safety, but also to concern for the quality of community life.  The first step should be here to determine the needs (problems) given community (for example, homelessness, importunate begging, alcohol abuse), and then preparing and implementing programs tailored to these specific needs.  It is desirable here also active as organizing talks drugs or encouraging young people to play sports. Community Policing (the police public service), and neighborhood policing (neighborhood) is a strategy and philosophy of policing based on the belief that the cooperation and support of the public can contribute to the control of crime.  The public can help identify what is suspicious and police have focused on existing problems.  The community ahs to become involved in the life of humanity, as there can be presented many crimes with the help of cooperation. Strategy. When using the strategy of community policing officers and police departments, they are regarded as part of the public.  Cities and countries that have adopted this philosophy, directed more than traditional police departments to the concept of policing as a public service.  Community policing is usually more in the emphasis on walking patrol activity than that the police checked the place and also visited them in cars.  The basic idea is to build confidence and a sense of reciprocity between the police and the public.  This approach requires that the police were helpful, impartial and sensitive to the interests and concerns of others, and there is also known as a new form of police work. Although the police disagrees with the complainant (the developer), they should try to understand this problem.  The police would have to show empathy and participation, but not to be enrolled in the automatic way.  The police must also improve their planning, problem solving, organizati on, interpersonal communication, and most importantly in critical thinking, as described in Gangs, Gang membership, and comprehensive strategies.   A change in its police service to the public is how the police can identify what is truly high-quality service and how it subsequently provided to the public.  In the past, police always respond only to specific problems, and do so quite peculiar way and did not pay almost no attention to the proactive approach.  For this, the work of the police today is truly effective, and there is the need to:  take seriously the needs of the public, take into account the needs of police actions and programs, which are then focused on the public. It is in this sense that the police are becoming more receptive to public needs and can also better understand how their work has an impact on society.  It is said that this philosophy is created by Tom Potter, former police chief in Portland, Oregon, when a young policeman patrolling activities are performed.  Other legends were Sir Robert Peel, who came up with nine principles, on whom stands a modern police work. Community policing. Community policing- are the social attitudes in a system of relationships between people, the rules of mutual behavior and dormitories, the applicable laws, customs and traditions, and moral norms.  Public order is a whole set of systems of social relations, which develops as a result of social norms: law, morality, norms of public organizations, non-legal norms of customs, traditions and rituals. Public order and public safety are the main objects of protection in the work of the interior.  The socio-legal categories, covering specific sphere of social relations, are characterized by a number of features that define the content of the activities of internal affairs for the protection (security) of these relations, as described in The Effects of Community Policing and Technology on Index Crime Clearance Rates.   First, public order and safety apply to all citizens without exception, and from birth until death.  Second, public order and public security tend to focus on elementary actions, deeds and rules of human behavior.  They occur openly and publicly, and usually they are understood by others.  Third, public order and safety are governed by the law as well as other social and technical norms (morality, customs, traditions, and even fashion).  Fourth, in the sphere of public order and safety annually there are made a huge number of offenses, the tens of millions.  And all offenders, and that much of the population, one way or another can be subjected to the forced exposure of the police.  Fifth, in the field of public order and safety there is circulation of objects and subjects of high risk: the acquisition, storage, use, transportation and civil service firearms, explosive and highly toxic substances, radioactive isotopes, etc. Therefore, licensing and permitting activities o f the Interior  exercising state supervision and control in this area, allows preventing and suppressing the violation of the rules and thereby minimizing the occurrence of serious implications, as a rule, in violation of relevant rules, standards and requirements.  Sixth, with the sphere in question that is closely connected with such dangerous anti-social phenomena as drug addiction, alcoholism, prostitution, vagrancy and begging. That is why, in some cities there are special units, the so-called morality police.  Seventh, in the sphere of public order and public safety are regularly held various mass public events with a large concentration of people in different rooms or in a limited area, which often poses a threat to life and health, the normal functioning of organizations.  These include political (rallies, marches, demonstrations), economic (picketing, hunger strikes), cultural and entertainment (festivals, concerts, days, cities), sports (Olympics, football and hock ey competitions), religious and other public events.  Their implementation requires a great deal of organizational work of the interior, bringing order to ensure order and security of considerable forces and means of the police and interior troops. Community policing is described as the state of social relations, which enforced the law and other legal rules, one of the components of the social order.  This is the state of the actual settlement of social relationships, qualitative expression of the rule of law.  In addition to compliance with the law enforcement in society, it is ensured by the customs, norms and morals, the internal rules of organization, etc. The rule of law is characterized by a level of legality in the state and the degree of realization of the rights and freedoms of citizens, as well as their performance of public authorities and duties conferred by law, as stated in The Effects of Community Policing and Technology on Index Crime Clearance Rates.   Solving the crimes in the local areas has always been challenging. When community policing is practiced in conjunction with some investigation variables, it has significant mixed (positive and negative) interaction effects on murder and robbery clearance rates., as described in The Effects of Community Policing and Technology on Index Crime Clearance Rates. Nowadays, technology has positive effects in investigation and in doing the corresponding research.   Positive interaction effect with community policing on different issues is beneficial for the society. Proper management of the situation and involvement of people who care about their safety is helping a lot, when the case is connected with the gangs. There is created a framework and the detection of crimes becomes more real and much quicker, and as well, this helsp to pertain to terrorism and national security Structure of the Community policing. Structure of the Community policing are the  legal organization of society (laws and legitimize their government agencies and non-state actors and citizens);  relationship and communication in society;  and certain (normative) order of these relationships and bonds (clear definition of the status of members of their subjective rights and legal duties, powers).   Community policing can be classified according to the territorial coverage (the rule of law in the state, city, etc.), as well as branches of law and legal coverage (constitutional, administrative, financial, etc.), according to U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented policing Services.   Classifications of the community policing: Symptoms: to allocate the following signs of enforcement:  Certainty.  Community policing is based on specific formal-legal regulations.  System: community policing is a system of relations based on a single essence of law, the prevailing form of ownership, the system of economic relations and provides a unified force of state power.  Organization: community policing occurs when there are organizing activities of the state, its bodies. State warranty: the existing rule of law is guaranteed by the state, protects them from violations.  Stability: arising under state law and ensures the rule of law is quite stable. Unity: based on common political and legal principles that will ensure the unity of the state and the rule of law, order for the whole country.  All these components are equally guaranteed by the state, any of the violations are considered violations and repressed by state coercion. It is obvious that the gangs affect the community in different ways, as it depends on where a person lives. According to the survey done by the  National Criminal Justice Reference Service, the specific results of a 2008 show that the gangs in the community cause: rise in violent crime and  drug  related arrests and rise in robbery and  homicide  cases, as described in Effects of Gangs. Considering these facts, there is a considering influence from the gangs on community, especially there is a negative effect, which leads to the increased crime and also to the higher risk for the people to get hurt. The gangs make people feel danger and insecurity in the community, as no one can protect people from the gangs if the measures are not taken. Conclusion All in all, it can be said that there are many issues that disturb the society and there is a considerable influence from the gangs. The effects of gangs in the community and the effects of community policing take place in the society, but there have to be taken more proper measures to ensure safety and living in comfort for the people. As a fact, the best way is to eliminate the groups of people who harm the society. Consequently, there has to be tighter cooperation between the community and police, there has to be developed the new of communication, etc. There have to be present the newest technologies that will allow police to take proper actions and to know everything in advance. Nowadays, the importance of the national security has become one of the main issues, as different circumstances lead people to committing different crimes, either in groups or individually. This problem has to be revised at the state level and its importance does not have to be underestimated under any c ircumstances.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Aids and its History :: Free AIDS Essays

For the fast several years an AIDS vaccine has been the key focus in AIDS research. While the government sees the vaccine as a termination to the disease, but a portion of the public along with many renowned scientists from around the world would argue against a vaccine. The United Nations and the US military have threatened to administer a mandatory vaccine to children at the age of 12 and all military employees. Reports predict a massive resistance to a mandatory AIDS vaccine in the US. (www.newsmax.shtml) The Committtee to Protect Medical Freedom warned that the vaccine would infact put more people at risk of contracting the deadly disease. AIDS is not like polio or smallpox, which can occur randomly without any warning; the public already knows how to avoid this disease.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Coverage of ‘promising’ vaccines is extremely misleading, and those being tested so far appear harmful and dangerous. (newsmax.com) Even with the disparencies surrounding these vaccines, the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases is sponsoring an HIV vaccine test on babies born to HIV-infected mothers. The program has admitted that a small percentage of their trial applicants have indeed become infected, but now have access to the best medical care available. The available data on such vaccines gives no basis for testing on humans. Scientists and Government officials have been debating on this issue for many years now. However, the divergence of AIDS and HIV has a long and tedious history full of twists and turns and dead end roads.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Little to nothing was known about AIDS when it first erupted in the late 1970s. When the epidemic finally reached noticeable proportions in the early 1980s, numerous hypotheses emerged. â€Å"Theories attempting to explain the origin of the disease ranged from the comic to the bizarre: a deadly germ escaped from a CIA laboratory: God sent the plague down to punish homosexuals and drug addicts: it came from outer space, riding on the tail of a comet.† (newdawnmagazine.com) Though some of the theories were outlandish, a few hold ample evidence. Among the theories dismissed and rejected by the government were those of covert human medical experimentation and primate viruses. The government ignored all the dangerous viral creations that were genetically altered for cancer research, vaccine research, and secret biological warfare. (newdawnmagazine.com) There are claims that the polio vaccine given to Africans in the late 1950s was prepared using chimp kidney cel ls that were contaminated with the ancestor virus of HIV.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Julius Caesar :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Julius Caesar Brutus displays the traits of a tragic hero through out this play but being a good person but makes an error in judgment, and when this error occurred it causes his own downfall. First off is that Brutus makes an error in judgment by joining the conspiracy to over throw Caesar. But the only reason that Brutus had joined was because his tragic flaw was honor; he lived his life on the guidelines of honor and loyalty. Now lastly Brutus had caused his very own downfall when after killing Caesar all of Rome has now turned against the conspirators. Those are some of the reasons that display Brutus is a tragic hero.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Brutus had joined the conspiracy for honor and for the good of Rome. Yet by joining this group his honor is really being put to the test because when he joined the conspiracy he pledged to take part in the murder of Julius Caesar. Brutus and Caesar are best friends, so now how is it honorable to kill one of your friends? But Brutus and the other conspirators had claimed that Caesar was just about to claim himself the king of Rome. When one has claimed themselves the king of Rome the people of Rome have the right to kill that person. So by saying this when the conspirators knew that Caesar was about to claim the thrown they strike and kill him. But another one of Brutus’ traits has now appeared, loyalty.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Loyalty and honor are the only tragic flaws that Brutus has but these are the reason that he has killed Caesar. Brutus had said that he had killed Caesar for the good of Rome and that his ancestors would have wanted this. Which is true that his ancestors had said that if any man were to claim themselves the king of Rome to kill them, but Caesar had never claimed himself king. The conspirators had only assumed that. So in reality by killing Caesar it wasn’t displaying loyalty and honor it was really showing stupidity. But Brutus’ tragic flaws are the real reason of his own downfall, as well as Rome’s.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Unfortunately Rome’s downfall was because Brutus had caused his own downfall. It first started when the conspirators killed Caesar, but what had made the situation worse was allowing Antony to speak at Caesar’s funeral. After the funeral the locals of Rome was so moved by Antony’s speech that they were in a blind fury and had to kill any conspirator that they had found, which ended up in the death of Cinna the poet.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

William Goldings Lord of the Flies Lord Of The Flies: Piggy, Ralph, Ja

Lord Of The Flies is possibly one of the most complex novels of the twentieth century. This complexity and depth is evident when the characters are compared to the psychological teachings of Freud. The book shows examples of this psyche in the characters Jack, Piggy and Ralph and how they change during their time on the island. Towards the end of the eighth chapter it became very apparent that Piggy and Jack both had two very different ideas on how they would survive. Jack thinks that hunting and having fun is key, Jack is more worried with instant gratification and doesn’t worry about what will happen off the island he worries about having fun and living on the island. Piggy is only concerned with keeping the fire lit and getting off the island. Unlike Jack, Piggy believes more in thinking about the future, how they will be saved and how they can endure the time they are on the island. When the fire goes out Piggy cries out at Jack, who was in charge of the fire, â€Å" You and your blood, Jack Merridew! You and your hunting! We might have gone home.† This shows the extent of Piggy’s will to be rescued. As a result of these major differences Jack decides to head down the beach and build a new tribe. He tells the others on the island that with his new clan â€Å"we hunt and feast and have fun†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Chap. 8 p140) by announcing this he appeals to the childish more uncivilized collection of the kids. The boys recognized that Jack was a stronger and more self-sufficient chief so many ch...

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Spirit Bound Chapter Fifteen

IN MY PANICKED MIND RIGHT then, getting up and running on foot to Lehigh–despite it being miles and miles away–seemed like a totally solid plan. A heartbeat later, I knew this was out of my league. Way, way out of my league. As I shot up from my table and tore out of the room, I felt a sudden longing for Alberta. I'd seen her jump into action at St. Vladimir's and knew she could take charge of any situation. At this point in our relationship, she would respond to any threat I brought to her. The guardians at Court were still strangers to me. Who could I go to? Hans? The guy who hated me? He wouldn't believe me, not like Alberta or my mother would. Running down the quiet hallways, I dismissed all such worries. It didn't matter. I would make him believe. I would find anyone I could. Anyone who could get Lissa and Christian out of this. Only you can, a voice hissed in my head. You're the one Dimitri wants. I ignored that thought too, largely because in my distraction, I collided into someone rounding a corner. I gave a muffled cry that sounded like â€Å"Oomph† as my face slammed into someone's chest. I looked up. Mikhail. I would have been relieved, except I was too pumped full of adrenaline and worry. I grabbed his sleeve and began tugging him toward the stairs. â€Å"Come on! We have to get help!† Mikhail remained were he was, not budging against my pull. He frowned, face calm. â€Å"What are you talking about?† â€Å"Lissa! Lissa and Christian. They've been taken by Strigoi–by Dimitri. We can find them. I can find them. But we have to hurry.† Mikhail's confusion grew. â€Å"Rose†¦ how long have you been down here?† I didn't have time for this. Leaving him, I fled up the stairs to the main levels of the complex. A moment later I heard his footsteps behind me. When I reached the main office, I expected someone to chastise me for leaving my punishment, except†¦ no one seemed to even notice me. The office was in chaos. Guardians were running around, calls were being made, and voices rose to frantic levels. They knew, I realized. They already knew. â€Å"Hans!† I called, pushing my way through the crowd. He was on the other side of the room and had just hung up on a cell call. â€Å"Hans, I know where they are. Where the Strigoi took Lissa and Christian.† â€Å"Hathaway, I don't have time for your–† His scowl faltered. â€Å"You have that bond.† I stared in astonishment. I'd been ready for him to dismiss me as a nuisance. I'd been ready for a long fight to convince him. I gave him a hasty nod. â€Å"I saw it. I saw everything that happened.† Now I frowned. â€Å"How do you know already?† â€Å"Serena,† he said grimly. â€Å"Serena's dead†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He shook his head. â€Å"No, not yet. Though she certainly sounded like it on the phone. Whatever happened, it took everything she had to make that call. We have Alchemists coming to get her, and†¦ clean up.† I replayed the events, remembering how Serena had been slammed against the asphalt. It had been a hard blow, and when she didn't move, I'd assumed the worst. Yet if she'd survived–and apparently she must have–I could just barely form a mental image of her dragging her cell phone out of her pocket with bloody hands†¦. Please, please let her be alive, I thought, not sure who I was praying to. â€Å"Come on,† said Hans. â€Å"We need you. There are teams already forming.† There was another surprise. I hadn't expected him to bring me on so quickly. A new respect for Hans settled over me. He might act like an asshole, but he was a leader. When he saw an asset, he used it. In one swift motion, he was hurrying out the door, several guardians following him. I struggled to keep up with their longer strides and saw Mikhail coming as well. â€Å"You're doing a rescue,† I told Hans. â€Å"That's†¦ rare.† I hesitated to even speak the words. I certainly didn't want to discourage this. But Moroi rescues weren't normal. When Strigoi took them, they were often regarded as dead. The rescue we'd done after the Academy attack had been an oddity, one that had taken a lot of persuasion. Hans gave me a wry look. â€Å"So is the Dragomir princess.† Lissa was precious to me, worth more than anything else in the world. And for the Moroi, I realized, she was precious too. Most Moroi captured by Strigoi might be regarded as dead, but she wasn't most Moroi. She was the last in her line, the last of one of twelve ancient families. Losing her wouldn't just be a hit to Moroi culture. It would be a sign, an omen that the Strigoi were truly defeating us. For her, the guardians would risk a rescue mission. In fact, it appeared they would risk a lot of things. As we arrived at the garages where the Court's vehicles were stored, I saw masses of other guardians arriving–along with Moroi. I recognized a few. Tasha Ozera was among them, and like her, the others were fire users. If we'd learned anything, it was how valuable they were in a fight. It appeared the controversy of Moroi going to battle was being ignored right now, and I was amazed at how quickly this group had been summoned. Tasha's eyes met mine, her face grave and drawn. She said nothing to me. She didn't need to. Hans was barking orders, splitting people into groups and vehicles. With every bit of self-control I could muster, I waited patiently near him. My restless nature made me want to jump in and start demanding to know what I could do. He would get to me, I assured myself. He had a role for me; I just had to wait. My self-control was also being tested with Lissa. After Dimitri had taken her and Christian away, I'd left her mind. I couldn't go back, not yet. I couldn't stand to see them–to see Dimitri. I knew I'd have to once I began directing the guardians, but for now, I held off. I knew Lissa was alive. That was all that mattered for the time being. Still, I was so wound up and filled with tension that when someone touched my arm, I nearly turned on them with my stake. â€Å"Adrian†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I breathed. â€Å"What are you doing here?† He stood there looking down at me, and his hand gently brushed my cheek. I had only ever seen such a serious, grim look on his face a couple of times. As usual, I didn't like it. Adrian was one of those people who should always be smiling. â€Å"As soon as I heard the news, I knew where you'd be.† I shook my head. â€Å"It happened like†¦ I don't know, ten minutes ago?† Time had blurred for me. â€Å"How could everyone know so soon?† â€Å"It was radioed across the Court as soon as they found out. They've got an instant alert system. In fact, the queen's kind of in lockdown.† â€Å"What? Why?† Somehow that annoyed me. Tatiana wasn't the one in danger. â€Å"Why waste resources on her?† A nearby guardian gave me a critical look over that. Adrian shrugged. â€Å"Strigoi attack relatively close by? They take it as a pretty serious security threat for us.† Relatively was the key word. Lehigh was about an hour and a half from Court. Guardians were always on alert, though with each passing second, I wished they'd move faster and be on alert. If Adrian hadn't shown up, I was pretty sure I would have lost my patience and told Hans to hurry. â€Å"It's Dimitri,† I said in a low voice. I hadn't been sure if I should tell anyone else that. â€Å"He's the one who took them. He's using them to lure me there.† Adrian's face grew darker. â€Å"Rose, you can't†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He trailed off, but I knew his meaning. â€Å"What choice do I have?† I exclaimed. â€Å"I have to go. She's my best friend, and I'm the only one who can lead them to her.† â€Å"It's a trap.† â€Å"I know. And he knows I know.† â€Å"What will you do?† Again, I knew exactly what Adrian meant. I glanced down at the stake I'd unconsciously pulled out earlier. â€Å"What I have to. I have to†¦ I have to kill him.† â€Å"Good,† said Adrian, relief flooding his features. â€Å"I'm glad.† For some reason, that irritated me. â€Å"God,† I snapped. â€Å"Are you that eager to get rid of any competition?† Adrian's face stayed serious. â€Å"No. I just know that as long as he's still alive–or, well, kind of alive–then you're in danger. And I can't stand that. I can't stand knowing that your life is in the balance. And it is, Rose. You'll never be safe until he's gone. I want you safe. I need you to be safe. I can't†¦ I can't have anything happen to you.† My flare of anger vanished as quickly as it had come. â€Å"Oh, Adrian, I'm sorry†¦.† I let him draw me into his arms. Resting my head against his chest, I felt his heartbeat and the softness of his shirt, I allowed myself a brief and fleeting moment of comfort. I just wanted to sink into him then and there. I didn't want to be consumed by these feelings of fear: fear for Lissa and fear of Dimitri. I went cold all over as a sudden realization slipped over me. No matter what happened, I would lose one of them tonight. If we rescued Lissa, Dimitri would die. If he survived, she would die. There was no happy ending for this story, nothing that could save my heart from being crushed into pieces. Adrian brushed my forehead with his lips and then leaned down toward my mouth. â€Å"Be careful, Rose. No matter what happens, please, please be careful. I can't lose you.† I didn't know what to say to that, how to respond to all that emotion pouring from him. My own mind and heart were flooded with so many mixed feelings that I could barely form a coherent thought. Instead, I drew my lips to his and kissed him. In the midst of all the death tonight–the death that already had happened and that which was still to come–that kiss seemed more powerful than any he and I had ever shared. It was alive. I was alive, and I wanted to stay that way. I wanted to bring Lissa back, and I wanted to return to Adrian's arms again, return to his lips and all this life†¦. â€Å"Hathaway! Good God, do I need to hose you down?† I broke abruptly from Adrian and saw Hans glaring at me. Most of the SUVs were loaded up. Now it was my turn to act. I gave Adrian a look of farewell, and he forced a small smile that I think was supposed to be brave. â€Å"Be careful,† he repeated. â€Å"Bring them back–and bring yourself back too.† I gave him a quick nod and then followed an impatient Hans into one of the SUVs. The most bizarre sense of deja vu settled over me as I slid into the backseat. This was so like the time Victor had kidnapped Lissa that I nearly froze up. Then, too, I had ridden in a similar black SUV, directing guardians toward Lissa's location. Only it had been Dimitri sitting beside me–the wonderful, brave Dimitri I'd known so long ago. Yet those memories were so etched into my mind and heart that I could picture every detail: the way he'd tucked his hair behind his ears, the fierce look in his brown eyes as he'd stepped on the gas to get us to Lissa faster. He'd been so determined, so ready to do what was right. This Dimitri–Dimitri the Strigoi–was also determined. But in a very different way. â€Å"You gonna be able to do this?† asked Hans from the front seat. A hand gently squeezed my arm, and I was startled to see Tasha beside me. I hadn't even noticed she was riding with us. â€Å"We're counting on you.† I nodded, wanting to be worthy of his respect. In best guardian fashion, I kept my emotions off my face, trying not to feel that conflict between the two Dimitris. Trying not to remember that the night we'd gone after Lissa and Victor had been the same night Dimitri and I had fallen prey to the lust charm†¦. â€Å"Head toward Lehigh,† I said in a cool voice. I was a guardian now. â€Å"I'll direct you when we get closer.† We'd only been on the road for about twenty minutes when I sensed Lissa's group coming to a halt. Dimitri had apparently chosen a hideout not too far from the university, which would make it easier for us to find than if they'd kept moving. Of course, I had to remind myself that Dimitri wanted to be found. Knowing that the guardians with me wouldn't need my directions until we were closer to Lehigh, I steeled myself and jumped into Lissa's head to see what was going on. Lissa and Christian hadn't been harmed or attacked, aside from being pushed and dragged around. They sat in what looked like a storage room–a storage room that hadn't been used in a very long time. Dust coated everything in a heavy layer, so much that it was hard to make out some of the objects piled on the rickety shelves. Some tools, maybe. Paper here and there, as well as the occasional box. A bare lightbulb was the only light in the room, giving everything a harsh and dingy feel. Lissa and Christian sat in straight-backed wooden chairs, their hands bound behind their backs with rope. For a moment, deja vu hit again. I remembered last winter when I too, along with my friends, had been bound to chairs and held captive by Strigoi. They'd drunk from Eddie, and Mason had died†¦. No. Don't think like that, Rose. Lissa and Christian are alive. Nothing's happened to them yet. Nothing will happen to them. Lissa's mind was on the here and now, but a little probing let me see what the overall building had looked like when she'd been brought in. It had seemed to be a warehouse–an old, abandoned one–which made it a nice place for the Strigoi to hole up with their prisoners. There were four Strigoi in the room, but as far as Lissa was concerned, only one really mattered. Dimitri. I understood her reaction. Seeing him as a Strigoi had been hard for me. Surreal, even. I'd adapted somewhat, simply because of all the time I'd spent with him. Still, even I was caught by surprise sometimes at seeing him like that. Lissa hadn't been prepared at all and was in total shock. Dimitri's dark brown hair was worn loose around his chin today, a look I'd always loved on him, and he was pacing rapidly, causing his duster to swirl around him. A lot of the time, his back was to Lissa and Christian, which made it that much more troubling for her. Without seeing his face, she could almost believe it was the Dimitri she'd always known. He was arguing with the other three as he walked back and forth across the small space, agitation radiating off him in an almost palpable wave. â€Å"If the guardians really are coming,† snarled one Strigoi, â€Å"then we should be posted outside.† She was a tall, gangly redhead who appeared to have been Moroi when turned. Her tone implied that she did not think guardians were actually coming, though. â€Å"They're coming,† said Dimitri in a low voice, that lovely accent making my heart ache. â€Å"I know they are.† â€Å"Then let me get out there and be useful!† she snapped. â€Å"You don't need us to babysit these two.† Her tone was dismissive. Scornful, even. It was understandable. Everyone in the vampire world knew Moroi didn't fight back, and Lissa and Christian were firmly bound. â€Å"You don't know them,† said Dimitri. â€Å"They're dangerous. I'm not even sure this is enough protection.† â€Å"That's ridiculous!† In one smooth motion, Dimitri turned and backhanded her. The hit knocked her back a few feet, her eyes widening in fury and shock. He resumed his pacing as though nothing had happened. â€Å"You will stay here, and you will guard them as long as I tell you to, do you understand?† She glared back and gingerly touched her face but said nothing. Dimitri glanced at the others. â€Å"And you'll stay too. If the guardians actually make it this far inside, you'll be needed for more than just guard duty.† â€Å"How do you know?† demanded another Strigoi, a black-haired one who might have been human once. A rarity among Strigoi. â€Å"How do you know they'll come?† Strigoi had amazing hearing, but with their bickering, Lissa had a brief opportunity to speak undetected to Christian. â€Å"Can you burn my ropes?† she murmured in a nearly inaudible voice. â€Å"Like with Rose?† Christian frowned. When he and I had been captured, it was what he'd done to free me. It had hurt like hell and left blisters on my hands and wrists. â€Å"They'll notice,† he breathed back. The conversation went no further because Dimitri came to an abrupt halt and turned toward Lissa. She gasped at the sudden and unexpected movement. Swiftly approaching her, he knelt down before her and peered into her eyes. She trembled in spite of her best efforts. She had never been this close to a Strigoi, and the fact that it was Dimitri was that much worse. The red rings around his pupils seemed to burn into her. His fangs looked poised to attack. His hand snaked out and gripped her neck, tilting her face up so he could get an even better look into her eyes. His fingers dug into her skin, not enough to cut off her air but enough that she would have bruises later. If there was a later. â€Å"I know the guardians will come because Rose is watching,† said Dimitri. â€Å"Aren't you, Rose?† Loosening his hold a little, he ran his fingertips over the skin of Lissa's throat, so gently†¦ yet there was no question he had the power to snap her neck. It was like he was looking into my eyes at the moment. My soul. I even felt like he was stroking my neck. I knew it was impossible. The bond existed between Lissa and me. No one else could see it. Yet, just then, it was like no one else existed but him and me. It was like there was no Lissa between us. â€Å"You're in there, Rose.† A pitiless half smile played over his mouth. â€Å"And you won't abandon either of them. You also aren't foolish enough to come alone, are you? Maybe once you would have–but not anymore.† I jerked out of her head, unable to stare into those eyes–and see them staring back at me. Whether it was my own fear or a mirroring of Lissa's, I discovered my body was also trembling. I forced it to stop and tried to slow my racing heart. Swallowing, I glanced around to see if anyone had noticed, but they were all preoccupied with discussing strategy–except for Tasha. Her cool blue gaze studied me, her face drawn with concern. â€Å"What did you see?† I shook my head, unable to look at her either. â€Å"A nightmare,† I murmured. â€Å"My worst nightmare coming true.†