thomas paine :: essays research papers

Thomas Paine was more than just a writer. He did many things in his life. He wrote pamphlets and books like the Common Sense, or African Slavery on America. He is still recognized for his writings today.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Paine was born on January 29, 1737 in Thetford, England. He was the son of a farmer and corsetmaker. He went to a local school until the age of thirteen. We was forced to leave school so he could help his father at work. He went through many jobs, and felt unhappy at everyone he tried.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He went to sea at the age of nineteen. He traveled from place to place meeting many different people. He got married, but unfortunately she died a year later in 1760. He remarried in 1771. But again he was separated from her three years later. His appointment as excise collector in 1762 was lost in 1765 because of an improper entry report. ( Encyclopedia of World Biography, 66)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Paine moved to America because of a London meeting with Benjamin Franklin. He got a job writing for a magazine called the Pennsylvania Magazine, and eventually became the editor. He wrote the Common Sense in 1776, about independence. It was a instantaneous success. It was even translated into German and printed in England, Scotland, Holland, and France. It sold 120,000 in just three months, and over six million today. It was said to get the people ready for the Declaration of Independence soon after.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For the remainder of the Revolution he was with Washington’s soldiers. He wrote The Crisis which appeared between December 1776 and April 1783. Again he was Paine was know for his phrasemaking. In his later papers Paine attacked Tories, profiteers, inflationists, and counterfeiters. (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 66) On April 19, 1783, he concluded his Crisis series on a note of expectations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He lived quietly after the Revolution. He worked on several inventions, like a pierless iron bridge to cross the Schuylkill River. He wrote the Age of Reason, in 1794, which was a direct attack on the irrationality of religion and a defense of deism. Despite Paine’s belief in the Creator, it was suppressed in England.

Toyota: a Glimpse of Leadership, Organizational Leadership, and Organizational Structure

Toyota: A Glimpse of Leadership, Organizational Behavior, and Organizational Structure Courtney Berry Organizational behavior is the study of application of individuals’ behaviors within structured groups within an organization (Robbins & Judge, 2007). The field of study identifies behaviors within specific groups and individuals in organizations and how the structures of organizations play a role in behaviors (Robbins & Judge, 2007). In the past several months, the leading company in the car industry has been experiencing a quality control and consumer product safety issue. Toyota is not only encountering a quality control issue but also a senior management crisis issue. The corporate leadership team of Toyota did not recognize the importance of addressing the consumer safety issue with the sticking accelerator and not to mention the huge public relations blunder that came with it. Does this failure to address a quality control issue and a real senior management public relations issue have anything to do with Toyota’s leadership, organizational behavior, and organizational structure? Leadership, organizational behavior, and organization structure Toyota’s thought on leadership is to empower employees and develop their people. If the employee has not learned a specific task, the leader has not done a good job (Womack & Shook, 2007). Plan, Do, Check, and Action (PDCA) Cycle is something that Toyota implements (Womack & Shook, 2007). This cycle engages employees to question products and processes and implement new action. Senior leadership is also expected to perform this. In fact, senior leadership regularly makes visits to the plant floors to engage with people and help with processes. This type of leadership employs mutual adjustment and interaction from both the employees and leadership. Leadership has much to do with behaviors within an organization. Organizational behavior looks at behaviors on an individual, group, and organizational level and how the levels are interelated. According to Henry Mintzberg, organizational behaviors can be grouped into three primary categories: interpersonal, informational, and decisional (Robbins & Judge, 2003). These behaviors are found at the managerial role but play an mportant and predictive role at determining the behaviors of an organization and its structure. When Toyota led the way in the car industry the organization was firing on all cylinders in their organizational behavior. At the individual level, job satisfaction empowers the employees to make decisions on the line and create effcient processes that lead to high production. At the group level, communication and decisions are made across multiple teams and employees to engineer the highest level of product leadership (Womack & Shook, 2007). The organizational level mirrors the individual and group level that creates a culture of pride within Toyota. This organizational pride creates a culture of employees with a belief that Toyota engineers the best products. Organizational structure is the backbone to the strategy of an organization. It helps carry out new strategies by differing structure designs and parameters in which individuals and groups communicate within organizations (Mintzber, Lampel, Quinn, & Ghoshal, 2003). The car industry typically mirrors the machine organizational structure. The work is highly standardized and is designed to run by a large technostructure to formalize behaviors and actions (Mintzber, et al, 2003). The structure of this design typically limits power at the operator level. This type of horizontal structure ends up not engaging the people at the organization and does not benefit the customer as a whole (Mitzber, et al, 2003). Toyota, while a machine organization, does not place value vertically and rather creates power horizontally. The organization has a history of empowering their operators with knowledge and career paths. Toyota is noted for this. Conclusion Toyota’s leadership and organizational structure does not predicate the failure for senior management to fail to address a quality control and product issue as well as a public relations issue. The organization’s role of interpersonal communication and decisions made both vertically and horizontally within its structure would lend to fix a problem and engineer the best product. All employees are empowered to ask why an accelerator should be engineered with a certain spec and require certain raw materials. The leadership and structure creat high quality product processes. The organizational behavior could have explained the blunder on senior management to fail to address a quality control issue based on the culture. According to Benjamin Heineman, Toyota’s culture of, â€Å"We did it right, the problem is small, the critics are wrong† (paragraph 5, 2010). Toyota’s culture and pride of engineering the best could have predicted this public relations blunder that has striped consumer confidence and may lead to a business failure or a chief executive officer stepping down. References Heineman, B. W. (2010). Flunking Crisis Management 101. The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://views. washingtonpost. com/leadership/panelists/2010/02/crisis-management-recall. html Mintzberg, H. , Lampel, J. , Quinn, J. B. , & Ghoshal, S. (2003). The strategy process: Concepts, contexts, cases (4th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Robbins, S. P. , & Judge, T. A. (2007). Organizational behavior (12th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Womack, J. P. & Shook, J.. (2007, October). Lean Management and the Role of Lean Leadership [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://www. lean. org/images/october_webinar_project_slides. PDF.

Integrity Essay

Morals reflect both the being you strive to become and the individual you truly are. The value morals hold in both society and our own minds are vastly immoderate. The degree to which we hold ourselves to our own moral determines our integrity. An adherence to a code of moral or artistic values, incorruptibility, is what’s known as integrity. A lack of integrity is often recalled far longer than actions within integral standings. Both John Proctor, from The Crucible, and Ed Murrow, of Good Night, and Good Luck, share this admirable trait to a great extent. I look for a lot of things in people before I fully bring them into my life. Those whose decisions have a kind of inner uniformity and integrity that makes them morally unassailable, those who I can trust. I want to associate myself with a person who I know would never betray me and always do what’s right, because if not your word than what have you? I define integrity as holding true to your own beliefs and standards. Living your life in a way that makes you proud or content is crucial, as John and Ed lived. The Crucible showed a large variation of characters with an even more significant variant of personalities. John Proctor was accused of witchcraft after a cruel manhunt plagued with lies and deception. His integrity was highlighted throughout the play, for example, when he confessed to the sin of adultery to save his wife. In another instance, John agrees to save his life and confess to witchcraft by post his name on the church, but when it comes to it, he cannot, â€Å"Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my whole life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of those who hang! How many may live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!† (Miller 1166). His integrity could not allow him to sacrifice the identities of those close to him. He gave his existence to preserve the integrity he made for his name. John Proctor was a selfless man of pure integrity. Ed Murrow also shared those qualities. The film Good Night, and Good Luck tells the story of McCarthyism, Joseph McCarthy used the fear of communism to wrongly jail citizens. Ed Murrow is the host of Good Night, and Good Luck on CBS. He sees the wrong in McCarthy’s actions and decides to take a stand  and tell the public his view. His entire career is in jeopardy, even himself exposing the lies of his profession for justice, â€Å"We have currently a built-in allergy to unpleasant or disturbing information. Our mass media reflect this. But unless we get up off our fat surpluses and recognize that television in the main is being used to distract, delude, amuse, and insulate us, then television and those who finance it, those who look at it, and those who work at it, may see a totally different picture too late.† (Good Night, and Good Luck). Ed Murrow risked everything he had and put so much energy into doing what is right. He is a perfect image of integrity. Bothe John Proctor and Ed Murrow were sources of moral value and integrity. Integrity is doing what is right, what is honest and true, and that is exactly what they did. John and Ed are both people we should try to learn from and look up to.

The Jmu Mailroom Case

THE JMU MAILROOM CASE If you expect your mail to come with the same â€Å"speedy delivery† made popular by mailman Mr. McFeeley of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, you may be disappointed over the next few weeks. While mail delivery is not drastically slower than normal, employees in the JMU postal service warehouse can offer several reasons why they are having trouble delivering mail as promptly as usual. The majority of the five-member crew who work in the warehouse, now located on South Main Street across from Duke’s Plaza say they are upset because postal service management did not take their opinions into account before throwing changes at them. We were consulted, but they didn’t take anything we said into account,† said Eric McKee, a postal service employee who works in the warehouse. Changes have included moving the warehouse to a building 10 minutes from campus which consists of a basement without running water or bathroom facilities. Employees m ust walk outside to the front of the building in order to use bathrooms. McKee, along with another delivery employee who wished to remain anonymous for fear of losing his job, complained of the â€Å"great physical stress† involved in carrying the large tubs of mail instead of carrying mailbags that can be thrown over the shoulder. According to another employee who wished to remain unnamed, in addition to the physical stress, the tub-delivery system slows up mail delivery considerably. The employee said by slinging mailbags over the shoulder it was easier to carry large loads of mail, something nearly impossible with the tubs. According to Terry Woodward, director of postal services, the change from mailbags to bins came the day after the warehouse change location. The changes were brought about to accommodate the growing volume of mail that has come as a result of the increasing numbers of departments and students in the university, Woddward said. Delivering the mail with the tub system instead of a bag system reduces steps, Woodward said, thus speeding the delivery time. While Woodward acknowledged that the changing system is the cause for mail slowdown, he said he expects delivery to speed up as employees get used to the new system. The warehouse used to be located in a trailer behind Anthony-Seeger Hall. The new location is a five-to-ten minute drive to campus, which employees say slows down their delivery time substantially. One delivery worker said the move has brought about â€Å"new obstacles,† such as having to wait 10 minutes for a train to cross in front of him. The facility was forced to move off campus Aug. 3 when the Facilities Management Department took over the trailer postal services used to occupy next to Anthony-Seeger Hall, Woodward said. Woodward said he expected initial resistance to the changes by postal employees, but hoped the workers would keep an open mind while giving the new system time to smooth out. â€Å"There’s certainly been some resistance,† Woodward said about postal employees’ reactions to the changes. One such case of resistance may have brought about the firing of Troy Munford, a summer postal service employee who said the new system is â€Å"unmanageable. † Munford claims he was fired for â€Å"insubordination† by Sonja Mace, operations manager for the postal service, when he told her the system wasn’t working and tried to arrange a meeting between the heads of postal services and the employees. Munford said that after he told Mace â€Å"you promised to give us your best and obviously your best wasn’t good enough,† Mace â€Å"stomped her foot . . . nd said, ‘you’re fired. ’† Due to Munford’s firing about two weeks ago, some employees were afraid to speak out or have their names printed in the paper for fear they may also lose their jobs. By making the changes, Mace â€Å"has doubled, if not tripled, the workload† of the employees, he said. ‘I’m just concerned for the people who are still her e,† Munford said. He said he is afraid some of them â€Å"will hurt themselves eventually, due to the physical difficulty of the job. † Mace refused to comment on any personnel issues regarding the change.

Brief History of BMW Essay

BMW began making its mark on history almost 90 years ago. Aircraft engines were the first thing to be produced followed by bikes and then cars – these vehicles also have been setting milestones in the area of motorsport from the very start. We can establish BMW roots back well over 100 years, to December 3, 1896. That date marked the formation of Wartburg works in Eisenach, the BMW manufacturing center for all cars made from 1928 to 1940. From that site and Wartburg’s numerous alliance before being sold to BMW in 1928 stretched activites as diverse as saucepan manufactured, powered mountain bikes, and the brake company. The car-construction tale of the Eisenach arm is the subject of a sub-sequent chapter. ( Airborne Excellence- page 5) However, basics of the heartland Munich-based company arrived in 1916 when the two airplane-engine manufacturing workshop Gustav Rau GmbH and Rapp Motorenwerken GmbH) were subject to takeovers and closures that resulted in the March 7, 1916 registration of Bayerische Flugzeugwerke AG (BFW). Its purpose as stated in the Munich Register of Companies â€Å"the manufacture and commercial distribution of airplanes and any related machinery, equipment and other objects, and further, in the pursuit of this purpose, the founding of other enterprises in any legally permissible form, or participation therein, and also the running of companies of any sort†. When Franz-Joseph Popp took over Karl Rapp as the new managing director on 5 October of 1917, he register the company as the Bayerische Motoren Werke GmbH. At the same time Poppo registered the company’s trademark, which still remains today- the stylized whirl of a rotating propeller surmounted by the letters BMW. (Achievements in White and Blue BMW in Retrospect- page 8) In 1917, BMW’s first aircraft engine was produced, the 6 cylinder Type IIIa. In 1919 using an aircraft powered by its successor, the Type IV, Franz Zeno Diemer set an altitude record of 9,760 metres. After WW1 BMW turned all kinds of activities, including shoe-making, to survive, But Popp and Friz were engineers, first and foremost, and there was no doubt that BMW would return to aero engine manufacture. (Motorcycle Marvels- Chapter2). In 1923 they enter the motorcycle production as a result. The motorcycle, the R 32 produced 8. 5 horsepower at 3300rpm from its flat-twin engine. The 2-cylinder 494cc motorcycle could reach a top speed of 59mph. 090 of them were manufactured during its three year life span. It was 1928 that made history in terms of the BMW car. BMW buys the Eisenach automobile plant, where the Austin Seven was successfully produced under the name â€Å"Dixi 3/15 PS†. Later it rebadged them to DA2. Which further went on to become a BMW – going on sale in 1929 as the BMW 3/15 PS DA 2 with a range of different body shells. A small car with a lot of appeal, its popularity helped the company to survive the lean years of the Depression. By 1932 BMW’s first â€Å"real† car (AM 4) went into production, this model was the successor of the Dixi and the first production car to be built totally in house by BMW. The model had a 50 mph top speed, 4 cylinder engine with suspension valves and double driving camshafts. In 1936 a sporting legend was born when the BMW 328 went on to win at the nuburging, which was basically the fastest standard-production 2-liter sports car. It went on to win over 120 other race between 1936 and 1940. BMW became a priority target during World War 2 and reaped a terrible reward for its famous aero engine and military prowess. The BMW factory at Munich was totally devastated after the War. The first post war model, the V8 equipped 501 luxury sedan produced in 1951 was a poor production choice for a country that was also devastated by the war. Demand was low and the 501 did not even com e close to meeting BMW’s expectations. So in a tightrope act between two extremes, to prevent the company bleeding to death at the top end of the automobile market, BMW’s policy was to introduce mini cars at the other end of the market. The BMW Isetta finally won the hearts of the public. Just 2. 29 m long, the company obtains the licence to build the motocoupe from ISO in Italy. Powered by a 12 or 13 hp BMW motorcycle engine. Over 160,000 people bought an Isetta in the Fifties, making it the best-selling BMW of the decade and a symbol for the boom years after the war.

Implication of Market Imperfections for Economic Development Finance Essay

As the period section shows, the operation of capital markets does not match the assumptions underlying perfect competition but instead is characterized by market imperfections that can create capital availability gaps. Despite the united states well developed capital markets, a firm’s location, industry, amount and form of capital needed and the number and type of financial institutions serving its area can all affect its access to capital. Nonetheless, some common capital markets imperfection first, equity capital in amount below several million dollars is not available from public markets and institutional sources. Moreover, for small and early stage firms, equity capital is largely limited to firms in â€Å"hot† industries with perceived high growth potential. Second, debt capital for small firms and in amounts below several million dollars in largely available from private financial institutions. Thus, debt availability is dependent on competition and lending polices within the local banking and commercial finance market. Small business and real estates loan below $50,000 are not available from private financial institutions in most markets and in some cases the threshold may be higher furthermore, regulatory policies, cyclical economic conditions and limited competition all affect the cost and availability of debt. Several implications for economic development finance practice emerge from this analysis. First, local economic and financial market conditions shape capital supply gaps. Therefore, to design effective intervention strategies, practitioners need to understand local capital market conditions, the private financial institutions active in their region and how their business strategies and lending policies affect capital supply. The formal aspects of capital market analysis and its application to program design, since capital markets are dynamic, with conditions changing capital availability and economic development from year to year, practitioners also gain critical knowledge through their ongoing engagement in financing transactions and dialogue with private financial institutions, firms and industry associations, second, development finance professionals are in the business of expanding the supply of small amounts of capital and higher risk capital. These are the most ubiquitous capital supply gaps to address. Finally, the private capital market are the potential imperfection competition (supply side) information access transaction costs rational profit maximizing behavior regulatory factors conclusion public equity market extensive publicly available information provided by firms. Firms followed by analyst, high costs to firm for legal, disclosure, printing and underwriter’s fees cyclical factors and fads affect investor demand, may be discrimination for or against certain industries impose high transaction costs not viable for raising small amount of equity below several million dollars public debt market extensive. Extensive publicly available information provided by firm credit ratings available high costs to firm for legal, disclose printing and underwriter’s fees cyclical factors and fads affect investor demand, may be discrimination for or against certain industries impose high transaction costs not viable for raising small amounts of debt below several million dollars private equity market limited, depends on location, investment and sector must be collected and analyzed by investor may not be feasible for small transactions low to moderate cost. Primarily for legal work cyclical factors and fads affects investor demand, may be discrimination for or against certain industries non regulated hard to raise small amounts of equity. Available largely for firms with very high growth potential and capacity for IPO or acquisition private debt market moderate, depends on location, investment and sector must be collected and analyzed by lender, may not be feasible for small transactions low to moderate costs primarily for legal work regulations affect types of loans. Discrimination for or against certain industries, type of firms, location etc, may occur limits types and level of risk, banks are required to meet community credit needs most important capital source for small firms and development projects, limited supply of long term debt, small loans and riskier financing. Most important financing source for small business and small scale or unconventional development projects, both of which will have little access to the public markets. Developing relationships with and designing programs that work in tandem with key private capital market institutions, especially commercial banks and venture capital firms, is central to the work of economic development finance. Expanding capital availability for economic development entails two types of market interventions. 1)Perfecting the operation of existing capital markets and 2)Creating alternative development finance institutions.  The first form of intervention changes the operation of private capital market institution either by eliminating the sources of market imperfections that create capital gaps or changing the behaviors, perceptions and risk preferences of private finance and institutions. Practitioners produce the greatest impact by changing the performance of existing capital markets since they are the primary means for financing economic activity and allocate hundreds of billions of dollars of capital. This critical area of economic development finance practice involves three interventions. Risk sharing tools and policies that encourage private sector institutions to bear greater risks and extend higher risk debt financing. Loan guarantees are the most common example of risk sharing. Other approaches include portfolio based loan insurance and financial incentives. Chapter 8 focus on these interventions. Bank regulatory polices can reduce barriers to economic. Development investments by financial intermediaries and create incentives and standards to expand services, lending and investment for economic development purposes banks also provide an institutional platform that development finance practitioners can use to address disinvestment and capital market failure. The use of banking regulations and banking institutions to expand capital availability is the focus of absorbing information and other transaction costs for private lenders and investors by collecting and generating information, preparing financing applications, analyzing potential investment or servicing loans. This is a cross cutting approach that is discussed under program models. Despite the importance of expanding capital availability through private sector financial markets, there are limits to the first intervention strategy. When the institutional structure of capital markets does not support the channeling of sufficient capital to regional economic development needs or when capital availability and economic development. Private financial intermediaries are too risk averse, it become necessary to establish alternative financial institution to ensure capital availability. New public sector, non profit and community based financial institution can re-direct the region’s own savings and attract external funds to expand the supply of capital to business enterprises and development projects, five alternative development finance institutions are covered in this book, revolving loans funds, a common and easily adaptable finance program. Economic development finance involves using both strategies, often in complementary and synergistic ways. For example, or region might create loan guarantee programs to expand bank financing for higher risk small business debt of $100,000 or more while also creating a new revolving loan fund or micro enterprise fund to supply debt in smaller amounts. Similarly state regulations might be altered to allow increased bank, insurance company and pension fund investment in venture capital while new quasi public intermediaries are created to manage this new source of private equity capital. These are only two examples of many ways in which both intervention strategies can be combined. Each community will create its own examples based on local economic development goals and opportunities and in accordance with its capital market environment. As an entry point into economic development finance. However this presents an incomplete picture of financial markets, ignoring the demand side of the market place, economic development finance practice also requires an understanding of the financing needs of small businesses and development projects and what forms of capital should be supplied to address these needs. Additionally, practitioners needs skills to manage individuals financing transactions such as evaluating whether business or development project can productively use capital and defining the appropriate type and terms of financing to offer.

Cloud Computing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Cloud Computing - Essay Example The flipside of the application lies in its precarious state of security. Being accessible to a number of users and within any locality, cloud computing is highly insecure and the fear of interception, loss or unauthorized access of data exists. A SWOT analysis reveals the advantages that cloud computing offers to institutions and businesses organizations keen in embracing convenient and fast methods of data storage and accessibility while at the same time showing the mundane flaws involved. Chief among the strengths of cloud computing is the ability to integrate a number of applications into one system and offer the user a single product able to offer various services. This could be equated to an omnibus that carries various passengers and conveniently drops each one at his destination. The technology substantially reduces the costs incurred in investment. While the technology demands that the university pay close to seven thousand dollars, the other option of self investment would cost universities about three hundred thousand dollars. Other strengths are the mobility which essentially allows access of the data from any locality and the expanded memory capacity as its RAM is larger. This boils down to the availability of more space for institutions to store their ever increasing data (Beard). Cloud computing comes with inherent weaknesses. Ideally, any organization that decides to adopt cloud computing technology must inevitably adjust their models. A business organization for instance must adjust the business model in tandem with the cloud computing technology. This is synonymous to an overhaul and could be expensive especially for large organizations which already have established cultures. The biggest weakness in cloud computing, however, lies in the security of the technology. The technology being an amalgamation of various institutional applications in a remote