Job interview questions and answer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Job interview questions and answer - Essay Example I’m proven to be a fast learner, have an extremely outgoing personality and ability to work under situations of pressure. I have well proven communication skills. My professional achievements would be a driving force encouraging me all through my career. I have proved my leadership skills and have the aptitude to train. Another added strength of mine is the ability to work efficiently in both self driven and team environments. I need more training in research processes. As my experience had been more into the managerial aspects, I could hardly get any chance to get trained in the area. However, if given a chance to get trained in the area, I am quite sure to acquire expertise in research as well. With regard to the experience I hold in the field, I am confident to be fit for a number of career options. However, considering the success I have had as a leader, I would fit in best into the slot of a leader who is assigned to lead the team towards newer heights of success. If given the opportunity to work in your prestigious organization, I shall endeavor to fulfill the requirements of the position to the best of my ability and to the satisfaction of the management. Moreover, I can contribute largely towards the cause of the company with the expertise I have acquired. I am confident to lead the team towards the vision of the

Comparing the Young and the Old Essay Example for Free

Comparing the Young and the Old Essay We live longer and experience more in life we would become wise to the ways of the world. The funny thing is, this does not always happen. If you listen to the elderly many do become wise but many others seem to get stuck in their past, but yet they think they are wise. They can not seem to see the world changing around them. A firsthand example of this for me is my Grandparents. When we talk about money, specifically the cost of buying a new car they cannot fathom the cost of buying a new car. I remind them of all the safety features that cars now have but they still resist he idea of replacing their 1985 Buick because of the cost associated with a newer and safer car. On the other hand young adults readily accept changes in their world. Now that we are living in the Information Age an enormous amount of information is readily available at our fingertips. Todays younger generation knows quite bit more than their grandparents knew at the same age because of this. The problem is that too many of us will allow ourselves to get stuck in our youth as well. The extreme of a so-called typical young adult would be one who at 18 thinks they already know verything they need to in life. No one, especially an older person can tell them anything about life Another evident contrast between the elderly and the young is their outlook on life. Young adults are more optimistic about the future, whereas their counterparts are more pessimistic. An example might be that you will hear from the majority of young adults, l want to make a lot of money and retire early, but an older adult might say, Money is not everything; as long as you stay healthy you will be happy. Another phrase that I hear quite a bit is to enjoy my youth and to see the world efore I get old. My Grandmother still tells me that to this day. Her belief is that once you reach a certain age when the aches and pains of aging begin you will lose your desire to be more active. Older people seem to get set in their ways and typically resist change. They get comfortable with a certain patter n in their lives and do not like this pattern disturbed. They have no tolerance for anything new. My Grandparents are a good example of how change is very difficult. They have lived in their neighborhood for over forty years and its is not safe any more. They refuse to even think about moving to a retirement community. When I ask either of my Grandparents why they wont move they blame each other for not wanting to move. Young adults on the other hand are much more adaptable to change. Most enjoy spontaneity and look forward to new experiences. What it all comes down to is time, experience and most of all the willingness of old and young alike to learn and share with each other. I know I can learn much from my elders, I hope they see that they can learn much from me.

Money and Staff Retention :: GCSE Business Marketing Coursework Essays

Doward (Guardian 2001) states â€Å"Sotheby’s having registered $178m of losses this year are spending $40m in a bid to retain key Heads of staff†. It might pay Sotheby’s to understand McGregor’s Theories X, Y and Schein`s Social theory as essential when looking for ways to motivate and retain staff. Theory X used financial rewards and punishments for untrustworthy employees involving company policy. Theory Y sees staff needing â€Å"care, independence, self-development and creative work, for company success.†(Cooper`1998). Schein`s social interaction helped staff â€Å"to obtain a sense of identity and belonging, wanting to be seen as meeting work expectations not merely receiving financial rewards†. Theory X relates more to Taylorism, whilst Theory Y/Social ideas follow Maslow`s idea of Self-Actualisation. Holden(1997)states â€Å" HR Manager’s must be able to forecast, plan, organise, monitor, motivate and control effectively †. Jane Wibberley (Senior Personnel Manager Marks & Spencer Southampton) believed in a mixture of Reward Management, Work Appraisal, Management Development and Security. Today’s Human Resource Manager will need to obtain commitment and recognition whilst offering reward and re-enforcement using recognised Employment regulations. Kizer`s (1987) Executive Stress Alleviators (e.g. Wellness Programmes)must be observed for commitment purposes. As to how managers retain key staff, local interviews from Marks&Spencer, Paris, Smith&Randall and Southampton Institute will reinforce that Hard HRM financial reward Practices are not the only way to keep key staff. Taylor`s rational-economic needs initiated the debate as to financial rewards being the sole motivator for staff along with Fordism. Contrary to this Maslow looked to Human requirement of interesting work being at the top of Hierarchical Needs Pyramid (i.e. Self Actualisation) with pay at the lowest. Bennett (1981) looked at motivation and commitment â€Å"as a mixture of Economic rewards, intrinsic satisfaction and social needs†, which Rollinson(1998) stressed â€Å"should be ongoing practices†. Makin(1996) looked beyond financial payments whilst Rose and Edmund Cadbury believed payment incentive schemes â€Å"eliminated judgement and initiative†(Statt`1994) now so vital to HRM. Mullins(1999) states, â€Å"Managers must provide challenging, creative work, unblocking workers growth needs, allowing sufficient opportunity for key workers to have more opportunities to satisfy existence and relatedness needs†, (e.g. promotion). Alderfer supported this, whilst Locke/Hertzberg looked at job enrichment. Adams(1995) believed Managers should ensure â€Å"equitable fairness amongst staff in payment and treatment as underpaid, undervalued staff have less commitment†. The majority of these studies (e.g. Hawthorne Plants 1920/30`s) involved manual staff so there relevance in retaining Executive staff is questionable.

A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin Essay

In the short story A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin, we see a great example of realism in the daily life of an average woman after the civil war. Mrs. Sommers lived her early life with a decent amount of luxury, but after getting married and having several kids, she has become quite cautious with her money. She is known to make her careful calculations and bargain her way to a better price. This can be considered foreshadowing for the experience to come, as Mrs. Sommers loses herself to the greed and desire to have a life filled with opulence and pleasure once again. Due to her financial standing, Mrs. Sommers is very frugal and definitely knows the value of bargaining. She is also known for her unselfishness towards her children They’re on the top of her priority list, and wants to give them the very best. Just like any normal mother during that time period. When fate decides to set the 15 dollars in front of the caring mom, she immediately decides to spend it on her beloved children. She lays awake during the night and comes up with a specific plan for what she would use the money for; with everyone gaining from it. What a clever plan! This far into the story, it’s very realistic and plausible for a mother to be this caring and loving towards her family, especially during this time period. The next day however, she makes a couple mistakes even before she starts shopping. First, she is â€Å"faint and tired†. Two things result from this. Firstly, she sits down on a stool, resulting in her hand brushing against the silk stockings. Secondly, because of her fatigue, she is more likely to not have the energy to think properly or have the gumption to bargain like she usually does. Her second mistake was to go shopping on an empty stomach. This will come back to haunt her later, and aid in her frivolous spending. As Mrs. Sommers sits down on the stool and brushes against the silk stockings, she gives in to their â€Å"siren call†, and breaks down and purchases them. But it gets worse, she then goes to the shoe department and tried to find some matching shoes for her newly found stockings. She buys a very stylish pair of boots, but they too cost a little more than your standard foot covering. She then continues to buy a pair of gloves and a couple magazines; completing her breakdown of personal responsibility and self control in the clothing department. She then continues on to a cute little restaurant, and continues to splurge there, because of course, she hadn’t eaten before leaving home. She then gets in a cable car, and heads for home, wishing that it would continue on forever, never taking a stop. This whole encounter is a realistic view on how those who are not used to having riches, or those who used to have riches, and wish to return to their old life, are apt to become irresponsible with the money to which they have been blessed. It can certainly be easy to lose oneself to the worldly pleasures, especially if they aren’t thinking clearly due to fatigue or hunger. Especially during this time period, the people lived very frugally, since they didn’t have a high income, and this could be very grinding on those who are used to living in high opulence. It’s so important to remember that with great wealth comes great responsibility. And this is very apparent in A Pair of Silk Stockings.

Cult of Domesticity Essay

Women faced many restrictions during the 1800’s based solely on their gender. The Cult of Domesticity served as a basic guide that explained the appropriate ways women of this time period were expected to act. It essentially laid out four proper characteristics women had to portray: piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness. Many authors captured the difficulties in a woman’s life with having to deal with such strict expectations in their writing. These included Emily Dickinson with her poems â€Å"I felt a funeral in my brain†, â€Å"This is my letter to the World†, and â€Å"These are the days when the Birds come back†, Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper†. These pieces of literature proved women’s struggle to live with the pressures of the Cult of Domesticity, and society itself. Emily Dickinson herself was a very odd, secluded woman and that expressed her thoughts through her poems. In â€Å"I felt a funeral in my brain†, Dickinson writes â€Å"And I and silence some strange race/ wrecked, solitary, here† (15-16). This is a prime example of the solidarity that held her captive and caused her descent into madness. Her poem is a cry out for help, but being the submissive woman she was supposed to be, she hid away her feelings while still acting weak and inferior. Another example of submissiveness can be taken from her poem â€Å"This is my letter to the World†. It starts off â€Å"This is my letter to the world/ That never wrote to Me† (Dickinson 1-2). She is again crying out against the unfairness that the â€Å"world† never wrote to her, or acknowledged her because of her sex. As a woman she was constantly in the shadow of a man and therefore did not matter. From â€Å"These are the days when the Birds come back†, Dickinson wrote â€Å"Thy consecrated bread to take/ and thine immortal wine! † (17-18). Her allusion to the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist enforces piety. Women needed to always act as the â€Å"handmaidens of God†, to repent for the sins of Eve in the Old Testament. Religion was a big enforcer of a woman’s quiet way of life and acted as something to occupy their time at home with. Emily Dickinson’s struggle with society’s expectations is greatly shown through her poetry. Dickinson’s many poems were great in number, but creates only one part of the perspective from a woman about the Cult of Domesticity. In Kate Chopin’s â€Å"Story of an Hour†, young Mrs. Brently Mallard discovers the news of her husband’s death. Once the shock and grief wear off, she comes to an important realization. â€Å"’Free! Body and soul free! ’†(Chopin 2). Louise finally is free, without her husband’s name bearing down on her and out of the clutches of domesticity. She no longer needs to act like the perfect wife at home, constantly taking care of the house and looking after her husband’s every need. She can live for herself like she always wanted. â€Å"There would be no powerful will bending hers† (Chopin 2), and she would no longer be the victim of submissiveness. Her husband no longer had the superior power, which all men were granted at the time of birth, to control and dictate her every move to the point where she was just like a small child that needed guidance and direction. But, in the end her joy is all for naught. Brently is not dead. And Mrs. Mallard, when receiving the news of his return, â€Å"die[s] of heart disease† (Chopin 2). The thought of being pushed into that submissive state of being that she had just escaped from ultimately caused her premature death. Chopin’s character Louise was a lot like the narrator of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† in regards to their relationship with overpowering husbands. â€Å"John laughs at me of course, but one expects that in a marriage† (Gilman 1). The narrator acts with submissiveness as she accepts that she is inferior to her husband, he is always right, and she is just the silly woman. She feels she must take his lead and constantly follow because that is how society wants her to feel. Her opinion does not matter at all, and she even states outright â€Å"I don’t like our room a bit† (Gilman 2). She detests the room, with its ugly, yellow wallpaper and barred windows, but since her husband says it is the best place for her she just, once again, accepts it and does not say another word on the subject. The room she would like to sleep in was prettier and airier. But John said that â€Å"there was only one window and not room for two beds† (Gilman 2). This not only reinforces her submissiveness, but also her purity as a woman. The narrator, though married and a mother, sleeps in a different bed from her husband. This is not to keep her â€Å"gift† safe anymore, but to keep from tempting him and to guarantee the rest she needs to recover from her anxiety. Emily Dickinson, Kate Chopin, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman were all talented writers and advocates in their own ways for the struggles of women with the Cult of Domesticity in the 1800’s. Each accomplished a way to present a light into the minds of the women who were being suffocated by the men’s superiority. Emily Dickinson created poems full of solemn and even remorseful moods that mirrored depression and repression that women felt because of society’s expectations. Kate Chopin and Charlotte Perkins Gilman created characters that not only used the same suffocating repression, but empowered their women by taking the men out of the equation. Only then were their characters given a chance; Louise without Brently and a small taste of freedom, and the narrator’s ability to finally â€Å"creep† along the room in peace when John faints. The Cult of Domesticity was a cause for women’s repression but also their strength and growing stand to the unfairness of the treatment they were being dealt for so long.

The Great Gatsby8 essays

The Great Gatsby8 essays In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby is a mysterious man living in the West Egg district of Long Island. Gatsby is extremely wealthy and owns a mansion with a large swimming pool, a fancy car, and dozens of servants. Every Saturday night, he throws extravagant parties which many people, most of whom haven't even been invited, attend. No one really knows anything about Gatsby, except that he is rich and generous. However, many rumors are created about him. Some say that he was a German spy during the war and some say that he killed a man. As the summer progresses, Nick Carraway the narrator who is also Gatsby's neighbor, learns more about who Gatsby really is, or rather who he isn't and reasons why he lives his life as he does. Nick doesn't approve of Gatsby's lifestyle and the way he earns his money, but nevertheless he sees Gatsby as superior to those who surround him. Nick admires the romantic hope that motivates Gatsby to pursue his dreams. Jay Gatsby's greatness is a result of his naive belief that he can make his dreams a reality. In the beginning of the novel, Nick sums up Gatsby's character and the reasons why he respects him. "...Gatsby who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn. If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him...This responsiveness had nothing to do with that flabby impressionability which is dignified under the name if the 'creative temperament'it was an extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have never found in any other person and which is not likely I shall ever find again."(6) Nick makes it very clear that he doesn't agree with the way Gatsby makes and uses his money. Although Nick comes from a very wealthy family himself, he was taught to work hard for his money. Nevertheless, he does find himself admiring Gatsby. He values Gatsby's hope, no matter how false...

Allegory of the Cave essays

Allegory of the Cave essays What the Allegory Implies for People Living in a World of Senses The Allegory of the Cave implies that if we rely on our perceptions to know the truth about existence then we will know very little about it. The sense are unreliable and their perceptions imperfect because perceptions are only how we as individuals view things and not how they truly are. People are like the figures in the cave because they believe the things they see are how they truly are, much the way we believe the things we perceive to be the truth. The cave is like the world we live in because the things we see only resemble their true forms, much they way the shadows on the wall were only resemblances of their physical form. We can only know what is true when we know what is importance to us beyond what our senses perceive. We can not live ethically if we do not understand this. The virtues of the soul are akin to bodily qualities however we can not rely on these qualities for the truth, we must only understand their implications. Opinion gives way to knowledge through reasoning. Through the reasoning of this statement we can assess that our senses (opinions or perceptions) give way to understanding (knowledge) through their implications, or in other words, by our reasoning of their implications. People today are like the people of the cave because we are chained by our senses to what we perceive to be the true. The darkness is a metaphor for our eyes not being able to see in the dark how things physically are because sight is a sense that we can not rely on to see the truth even in the light. Plato implies that reality is like sitting in a cave with our back to the light. We can describe the shadows we see on the wall, but we never turn our heads around to see where the light comes from. Even worse, we never really see each other we are in the dark. The world we live in is like the cave because the shadows represent the objects we perceive to be t...

Rate of Radioactive Decay Worked Example Problem

Rate of Radioactive Decay Worked Example Problem You can use the equation of the rate of radioactive decay to find how much of an isotope is left after a specified length of time. Here is an example of how to set up and work the problem. Problem 22688Ra, a common isotope of radium, has a half-life of 1620 years. Knowing this, calculate the first order rate constant for the decay of radium-226 and the fraction of a sample of this isotope remaining after 100 years. Solution The rate of radioactive decay is expressed by the relationship: k 0.693/t1/2 where k is the rate and t1/2 is the half-life. Plugging in the half-life given in the problem: k 0.693/1620 years 4.28 x 10-4/year Radioactive decay is a first order rate reaction, so the expression for the rate is: log10 X0/X kt/2.30 where X0 is the quantity of radioactive substance at zero time (when the counting process starts) and X is the quantity remaining after time t. k is the first order rate constant, a characteristic of the isotope that is decaying. Plugging in the values: log10 X0/X (4.28 x 10-4/year)/2.30 x 100 years 0.0186 Taking antilogs: X0/X 1/1.044 0.958 95.8% of the isotope remains

Relection writing refer to group work in legal skills course Essay

Relection writing refer to group work in legal skills course - Essay Example Most importantly, they must work closely with the clients they serves. Therefore I see the need to rise above myself and learn to interact with people. As I join a student firm, I know that I can perform various tasks like collaborating with others to reach certain goals, share information, and cultivate relationships. Following the Belbin theory on Team Roles, I know that I can also determine my distinctive contribution to my group, and at this moment I feel my giving stress to being an implementer, a vital cog in team work. Last year was my freshman year’s first encounter with a group. I recall how I tried to find a place in my student firm. We did various tasks which taught me a lot, particularly in making concrete the abstract legal skills learned through readings and lectures. However, I think that we could have done better, achieved desired outcomes such as in exercises in doing interviews and negotiating with other firms. But there were behavioural difficulties in the t eam. Of course, theorists on organizational behaviour like Keith Davis say that no one can be totally blamed for failures in an organizational setting. Team efforts, he noted, result in team results. And so, I think this was precisely our main difficulty—we were not fully a team. Individually, we were too conscious of protecting our self image and self esteem. And feeling threatened by problems which faced us, teamwork did not fully surface. Of course, the desirable outcomes could have been achieved. And Davis says conflicts should not be bad at all for organized groupings. It can stir a search for approaches to get the desired results, also allow problems to become more crystal clear so that these can be faced and resolved. But this was not the case last year. Our conflicts caused the issues to become muddled. We could not face what were unknown and so we could not fully resolve them. In my joining a group this year, my team members and myself seemed better prepared for team building and team success. In spite of the failure of most firms during freshman year, there is a common agreement among my classmates that we are no longer greenhorns this year. We can learn from whatever mistakes we made, and build on the failures last year. Naming our firm came to my group as the great test to the social process of group dynamics which we were tasked to do. And we were prepared this time to forming a firm with scientific tools for learning the different roles we can play. We also assumed different kinds of leadership which can be listed under the Belbin theory of Team Roles namely: as Plant, Monitor Evaluator, Coordinator, Resource Inventory Communicator, Implementer, Complete Finisher, Team workers, Shaper or Specialist. And through our group interactions, we disproved a mathematical logic by showing that â€Å"two plus two equals three.† Our firm did have individual members who can be singly counted and added to form the whole team. However, our relatio nship was an added factor to count such that the team, aside from the individuals, was an additional count. Of course, I have much to thank my group members, especially our chairperson who proved to be an able Coordinator. He led us to focus together on work objectives, drew out our individual strengths, and delegated work. Reflecting on myself as being naturally silent and shy, my Coordinator delegated me with tasks which I could well perform. More importantly, the whole team gave me a listening ear and accepted my

Should American Soldiers have Invaded into the Irak War Essay

Should American Soldiers have Invaded into the Irak War - Essay Example activities to religiously aggravated 'jihad.' There is currently a self-governing Iraqi regime, and a contract in place to get rid of a considerable number of US military troops from the state. President Bush argued all through the two terms of his administration that the warfare in the country Iraq was a front procession in a war in opposition to global violence and terrorism. This belief was contemplated annually in special foundational addresses, and brought about substantial debate in the U.S and around the world. This essay will cover up the reasons as to why the American soldiers shouldn’t have invaded into Iraq. At the present it is finally recognized that there were no organic associations between Al Qaeda and Iraq in 2003, nor were artillery or weapons of mass obliteration and destruction ever found. So the question which arises is that should American soldiers have invaded into the Iraq War? A number of people think that the war was a fair and just route, while on th e other hand many believe that it was an intended endeavor by the American government to guard their economic wellbeing. This essay will draw attention to the two aspects of the debate that have been carried out in recent times. Individuals that defended this confrontation, particularly those that admire George .w. Bush state that if Iraq is not calmed down or stabilized, it could turn out to be a ground for terrorist breeding and a secure location for Osama Bin Laden or one more Saddam. The truth remains that the American armed forces that marched into Iraq failed to present the weapons they declared Hussein had his hands on. If the government of the United States truly planned to get rid of leaders who crush or trample upon the rights of humans or of their nation, Saddam must not have been the single target while at the moment of the attack. In my own opinion, American attack on Iraq was established on economic motives. US administration had the oil in mind which is abundantly fou nd in Iraq, and that was the purpose for execution the attack even without the complete agreement or support of the UN Security Commission. An attack on Iraq for the intention of "government transformation" would not be an officially authorized war if one considers the international law. As stated by Mohammad Taghi â€Å"Article 2(4)  of the UN Charter states that All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations." Random assassinations, use of grenades, dozens of aggressive groups, and an intensified feeling of insecurity and depression troubles Iraq. The proof of enveloping and relentless chaos is all over the place, from the official figures of mortality to extended approximations of numerical results, from the news of families abandoning hazardous areas by the amount of tens of thousands to the demolishing of governance. As stated by Thomas G. Manken â€Å"The lethal fighting is all-pervading, but without an evident front or a visible strategy and for those reasons, among others, it is poorly understood.† Bombing of nationals population is a type of violence and terrorism  even more repugnant comparative to low-tech terrorism street killing and bombing of innocents. Opponents of the attack argued that it lead to the loss of hundreds of Iraqi nationals and military in addition to

The X and the Y Theories of Management Research Paper

The X and the Y Theories of Management - Research Paper Example Some leaders consider the role of decision making as solely theirs and engage no one else even when the issue at hand requires them to do so. Such managers allow no flexibility on the workers and expect them to follow the set guidelines. Other leaders are accommodating and therefore, give some level of independence to their employees, encourage teamwork, involve employee’s opinions in decision-making and often delegate duties. The X and Y theories are based on assumptions that human personality and behaviors differ and play a major role in determining the appropriate management styles to be applied. This paper focuses on the different management theories applied in managing different job types. The X theory by McGregor posits that management should intervene on the performance of its employees. This is by controlling their activities, altering their behaviors to guarantee their actions, are in line with wants of the organization, as well as inspiring them to ensure they direct all their effort towards progression of the organization (Fisher 12-17). The theory explain this by claiming that most human beings, hate responsibilities, dislike work, have no ambition, and thus require to be directed and sometimes threatened to work effectively. Another argument to support this theory is that people resist change, put their own needs above those of the organization, and value their security beyond all other things. Leaders using this theory in management frequently turn out to be autocratic (Stewart 2). The Y theory on the other hand, claims that people are not dormant and are always willing to direct their efforts towards the success of the organizations. However, the management is insensitive to their need of appropriate working environment. This would enable them grow individually and be in a position to contribute to organizational growth. The theory further argues that most employees prefer rewards to satisfy their self-esteem by encouraging them to be inve ntive, and imaginative other than work related rewards. Such rewards make the employee to feel secure and more committed to their work. Neither the X nor the Y theory is good or bad because they apply to different types of jobs and work settings. However when applied in wrong job settings, conflicts could arise in the management. Usage of theory Y by some managers can cause them loose control and being incapable of making final decisions as required. Theory Y could result in the manager being too judgmental on the doings of employees (Stewart 3). The X theory is applicable in a number of job types especially in the public service where organization structures obligate only those in higher administrative ranks to make and oversee implementation of policies. Revenue collection authorities are a good example of managements that follow the X theory. They fear that not only the citizens but also their employees may possibly cheat on them. They assume that employees are untrustworthy and thus try to monitor, supervise, and, control their operations. The employees end up wasting plenty of time writing reports to validate their decisions (Barnett web). They therefore, underperform, which emphasizes the manager’s mentality that they are incompetent. In military and most of the police departments, the superiors give orders that all those under them have to carry out without questioning their

Working Capital Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Working Capital Management - Essay Example The company has a policy of maintaining a strong balance sheet and free cash flows on a sustainable basis to become free from shot term debts and strengthen the position of liquidity. As on 2011, Nissan Motor Company achieved a positive free cash flow of 379.5 billion Yen (Nissan Motor Co. Ltd, 2013). The company uses its free cash flow for repurchasing stocks in order to increase the available capital with the company. According to the market demand, Nissan Motor Company also uses the free cash flows to investment in assets like factories, equipments, operational infrastructure and also decides to allocate a part to the shareholders as long term plans for raising capital. The use of free cash flows helps Nissan Motor Company to meet short term expenses without incurring current liability. The use of free cash flows by the company influences the approach of capital structure decisions. Nissan Motor Company reduces the debt capital and focuses on increasing the equity capital in its c apital structure model. The theory of Capital Structure proposed by Miller and Modigliani is applicable in such wide number of scenarios where the companies should adopt a balance between the debt and equity capital for raising finds in order to maintain an optimal cost of capital (Pratt,

Recruitment Process. Talent Management. People Equity Essay

Recruitment Process. Talent Management. People Equity - Essay Example Therefore, as a recruiter it is a responsibility to hire those employees who can maintain an ethical culture along with ensuring augmented productivity of the organization. During interview process, it is necessary to judge an individual through various perspectives in terms of qualification, enthusiasm about the given job, whether he/ she can adjust with organizational rules and regulations and the capability of attaining the given targets. When a recruiter selects a fresher as an employee then it is required to be assured that he/she should maintain the morale and culture of the organization, however through a fresher the chances of increasing productivity is quite minimal. Therefore, for a fresher it is necessary to arrange training sessions regarding the work procedure to show the mechanism of achieving the given targets within a specified period of time. Through an effective training session employees must familiarize themselves about the procedure of work and how to increase pr oductivity. Regarding a fresher, an organization should consider that the person does not hamper organizational ethics and culture because they are new in the system. However, when a recruiter hires an experienced person for the job then an impact may be created upon the organizational culture to a certain extent because an experienced person generally knows the basic strategies that can be used to enhance productivity by achieving the targets without any botheration regarding the rules and the regulations. Therefore, when a recruiter selects this type of individuals, he/she should be aware about the attitude and behavior of an experienced person towards the organizational culture. During the interview process, recruiter must discuss properly about the rules and the regulations of the organization with the experienced person. Scenario 2 Talent reservoir for an organization can be assured through proper talent management procedure within the organization which can in turn facilitate to have a pool of skilled employees who can fulfill the company’s goals. In this context, the HR department can play a pivotal role as recruitment and selection procedure is very essential to identify and manage a talent effectively within the organization. Nowadays, talent management is considered as a key ‘buzzword’ in corporate level HR along with training. Talent comprises those individuals who can create a difference in the performance of the organization either through their instant involvement or in the long-term by representing maximum levels of potential. Effective organizations are developed by creating value through people, sales, innovation and customer services among other essential actions. Every organization strives to achieve their business objectives and this struggle mainly involves in supporting, recruiting, training, controlling and reimbursing the entire staff of the system. To support this circumstance, talent management can play a crucial p art for maintaining all these aspects in a proper way. There are certain procedures of talent management which should be taken into consideration (Stewart, 2008). The procedures are: Workforce planning, recruiting On-boarding, performance management Training and performance support Succession planning Compensation as well as benefits Critical skill gap analysis If a recruiter hires a skilled employee according to the job requirement then it can become quite easy for the management to find and nurture the talent within the system which would be fruitful for the organization in terms of attaining long-term profit and ensuring fulfillment of company goals (Bersin, 2006). Scenario 3 Alignment, capability and engagement are the three factors which determine

Working Capital Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Working Capital Management - Essay Example The company has a policy of maintaining a strong balance sheet and free cash flows on a sustainable basis to become free from shot term debts and strengthen the position of liquidity. As on 2011, Nissan Motor Company achieved a positive free cash flow of 379.5 billion Yen (Nissan Motor Co. Ltd, 2013). The company uses its free cash flow for repurchasing stocks in order to increase the available capital with the company. According to the market demand, Nissan Motor Company also uses the free cash flows to investment in assets like factories, equipments, operational infrastructure and also decides to allocate a part to the shareholders as long term plans for raising capital. The use of free cash flows helps Nissan Motor Company to meet short term expenses without incurring current liability. The use of free cash flows by the company influences the approach of capital structure decisions. Nissan Motor Company reduces the debt capital and focuses on increasing the equity capital in its c apital structure model. The theory of Capital Structure proposed by Miller and Modigliani is applicable in such wide number of scenarios where the companies should adopt a balance between the debt and equity capital for raising finds in order to maintain an optimal cost of capital (Pratt,

Corporate Acceptable Use Policy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Corporate Acceptable Use Policy - Case Study Example The paper intends to discuss the purpose of the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) developed by AT&T for its employees. The Purpose of an Acceptable Use Policy An Acceptable Use Policy is a collection of particular rules and policies which are implemented by the network and websites managers in order to enact certain restrictions regarding the utilization of available websites and networks. Most of the times, AT&T is found to be committed to obeying the government rules and regulations regarding the utilization of online sources, e-mail transmission and text messaging. The company always focuses on protecting the AT&T’s network and its online sources without getting interferences from the hands of the other users. In order to fulfill these overall objectives, AT&T implements AUP in every facet of its service operations. Through the utilization of Internet Protocol (IP) services, customers agree to follow the AUP of the company in order to uphold the companies’ responsibility t owards the customers. AUP of AT&T offers easy internet access, hosting services and also delivers internet or wireless data network to its end-users (AT&T Intellectual Property, 2012). Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability (CIA) are three basic attributes of Information Security. In order to maintain confidentiality, AT&T has designed its Identification (ID) process in such a way so that the users are bound to access protected internet sites within AT&T service accounts. Through ‘AT&T access ID’ users can create the account with their names and individually selected password that facilitate them an easy access regarding any of the internet sites. According to the terms and conditions of AT&T, if users or employees can create access ID then it is not only beneficial for the company to maintain its confidentiality but also for the users to protect their personal account from the hands of the other users. Regarding privacy, the company is fully committed that they w ill protect users’ privacy and safeguard their personal information in an efficient manner (AT&T Intellectual Property, 2012). AUP of AT&T provides strong integrity by which the company’s employees are liable to maintain proper utilization of network services. According to AUP, employees must uphold integrity in order to avoid hacking and misuse of product resources by which the company may secure its network system. As per the AUP rules, employees should make proper use and have limited access to the company’s resources and must provide services at the right time by which AT&T can maintain integrity towards its network security. In addition, AUP directs that the company’s system administrator should have a proper access to system files in order to maintain the integrity of a computer network system (AT&T Intellectual Property, 2012). With regard to AUP, employees must not disclose the private information, software and system files regarding the companyâ €™s network services to any third party. AUP provides restrictions to the employees that they should not misuse the availability of the company’s essential resources. Moreover, the employees should not share the essential information regarding the company’s services with their relatives and friends by which it can protect its availability of resources from the hands of the third party users (AT&T Intellectual Property, 2012). Recommendations for Improving AUP In order to improve AUP, AT&T should maintain and follow certain legal rules.  

The character of Scrooge Essay Example for Free

The character of Scrooge Essay He asks the ghost: Tell me if Tiny Tim will live if these shadows remain unaltered by the future, the child will die. This shows that Scrooge feels guilty for not giving his clerk more money as he witnesses their way of life. The ghost then takes Scrooge to visit his nephew Fred on Christmas day. Fred is having a splendid time and is celebrating a more modern Christmas with fun, laughter, drinking booze and playing games such as: similes and yes or no. It is less religious as they have more money and a bright, dry gleaming house However, they still have strong moral values like the Cratchits. Dickens suggests that Scrooge is missing out on the fun and games by saying, that the consequence of his taking a dislike to us and not making merry with us, is, as I think, that he loses some pleasant moments, which could do him no harm. This suggests that Scrooge starts to feel a bit of remorse, since he turned the invite down. Scrooge is forced to realise that he has missed a chance to be merry with the only family he has left in the world. Finally, the ghost shows Scrooge two personifications of the social situation in the form of two children: Ignorance (a boy) and Want (a girl), who symbolise mankinds downfall. Dickens uses this personification to emphasise the point of mankinds destruction, for instance the spirit says, Most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which Doom This signifies if people continue to ignore the poor, society will crumble. In this stave Scrooge feels new emotions such as regret for not paying his clerk Bob Cratchit enough money, since he lives in poverty with a huge family and a crippled son, and more regret for not attending the invite from Fred. Also, he feels a lot sadder and some happiness for Freds games and the laughter, Scrooges family had without him. The ghost of Christmas yet to come represents death and judgement, this ghost is also known as a phantom because it is wearing a black cloak which conceals its face and it doesnt say a word to add to the morbid atmosphere. They visited a house where there was one little knot of business men with a lady trying to sell some of Scrooges possessions, he sees nobody is upset by his death, but instead raiding his hose and selling off his property. I hope he didnt die of anything catching Eh? Dont you be afraid of that. This shows that people are joking over his death and no-one cares about his departure from the face of the earth. He is very upset that no-one cares about his death, all they can do is laugh and attempt to make a profit from his belongings. Scrooge asks the spirit If there is any person in the town, who feels emotion caused by this mans death Show that person to me, spirit They go to the Cratchits house, but The only emotion that the ghost could show him, caused by the event, was one of pleasure. This emphasises that no-one liked him and cared about him at all, so they were not sad to witness his death. After a while, they return to the Cratchits house where Bob has just returned from work. Dickens makes Scrooge feel miserable, regret and guilt that he did not offer his help to save Tiny Tim from dying, by making the Cratchit family more depressed, for instance, My little, little child! Cried Bob. My little child! He broke down all at once. This makes the reader feel sympathy for the Cratchits and anger towards Scrooge, as he did not help a poor family at need. Also, it makes Scrooge feel terrible and he realises that he must change his ways and become a better person, to stop these perceptions from happening. Stave four is a particularly religious section of the book, as it deals with Scrooges redemption and moral reformation. The language used by Dickens is similar to that used in a religious teaching, for example: Oh cold, cold, rigid, dreadful death, set up thine altar here. This biblical language is meant to make us aware that as readers we are being taught a moral lesson. All Christians believed strongly in heaven and hell; the thought of spending the rest of eternity in hell, frightened most Christians, so even the meanest of people would consider changing their ways to go to heaven. In stave five, Scrooge awakens on Christmas day as a changed man. He buys the largest turkey in town and donates it to the Cratchits. Ill send it to Bob Cratchits! This shows that Scrooge has finally reformed and he is now a better man, as he is being a lot more generous. Dickens shows that Scrooge has learnt his moral lessons and is not going back to his old ways, he does this by this continual joy, care and generosity, throughout the character of Scrooge in stave five, for example: Heres the turkey. Hallo! Whoop! How are you! Merry Christmas! This again emphasises that Scrooge has realised and acknowledged his faults and changed them; plus he donates lots of money to the poor, Scrooge says, not a farthing less This once more shows Scrooges generosity, the poor and the two gentlemen were very grateful. He also celebrates a lovely Christmas with his nephew; Dickens shows this by saying, Wonderful party, wonderful games, wonderful unanimity, won-der-ful happiness This stresses the changes Scrooge has made and that he is having a magnificent time with his family, at last. The next morning Scrooge was at his office ready to meet Bob Cratchit and give him a pay rise, he says Ill raise your salary, and endeavour to assist your struggling family And thats exactly what Scrooge did, he did not just raise Bobs salary, but he became like a second father to Tiny Tim, who did not die. There are many references to heaven in this stave such as: I am as happy as an angel, He went to church and God bless us, every one! in contrast to the references to hell when he was parsimonious, mean-spirited and had a cold heart, for instance, It is doomed to wander through the world , ages of incessant labour by immortal creatures, for this earth must pass eternity and dark master! This creates the impression that Scrooge was going to hell in stave one because he was stingy, cruel and uncharitable. Dickens teaches a social lesson to us, near the end of the book, so we remember it. He tells us not to worry if people laugh at the sudden change in you as long as you are doing good deeds that is all that matters, for instance, Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him. This puts emphasis on Scrooges reformation and confirms that Scrooge has changed for the better and for good. A Christmas Carol is an inverted tragedy, since it has five staves similar to the five acts of a Shakespeare play; but Scrooge begins a cold-hearted, cruel, spiteful and uncharitable and ends a loving, caring generous man with a stronger, warmer heart, especially to the poor and needy. Through the character of Scrooge, Dickens hoped to change the views of society by showing the rich people, who would have read the book that they were Scrooge (not sharing their wealth; being grumpy and cold-hearted). It reflects that money does not lead to happiness, but living a high-quality Christian, moral life does. As the book continues on, Scrooge becomes more and more enthusiastic to learn his moral lessons, for example: As I know your purpose is to do me good, and as I hope to live to be another man from what I was This shows his eagerness to gain knowledge of his moral and social lessons and his acceptance of his faults. Christianity was a vast issue in the 1840s, and the idea of burning in hell would have made a lot of people change their miserable, tight-fisted ways. This Christian theme is set throughout the book and if you repent your ways you will be saved (go to heaven). Dickens uses Christmas because it is an occasion when generosity, exuberance and affection should be in our hearts as a time to convey this message of charity.

Fiscal And Monetary Policy Economics Essay

Fiscal And Monetary Policy Economics Essay Like the Economics for Dummies states, anti-recessionary economic policies come in two flavors: Fiscal Policy and Monetary Policy. Monetary policys technique is to increase the money supply and lowers interest rates. When interest rates are lowered, more people are about to access loans, buy houses, and increase purchasing power. Fiscal Policy involves lowering taxes and increasing government spending so that the economy will have more after tax money. Fiscal Policy Expansionary and contractionary are two types of fiscal policy. Expansionary policy involves raising government expenditures and lowering taxes so the government budget deficit can grow or the surplus to fall. In 2011, Japan suffered from a natural disaster. The north east area of the country was struck by a tsunami causing their country to endure financial issues. Japan used expansionary fiscal policy to help get them out of that terrible economic situation. Expansionary fiscal policy helped Japan by raising their private consumption growth. Contractionary fiscal policy is the opposite of expansionary policy. Government expenditures will be decreased and taxes will be raised to help the budget deficit or surplus. The Role of Government Budgeting One of the main tools of fiscal policy is the federal budget. Aggregate demand is affected by the government expenditures and taxes affect investing and consuming. The effects of government expenditure and tax revenues are important in the aggregate demand equation because they can cause AD increase or decrease. Government expenditures include transfer payments, purchases of goods and services, and interest payments on government debt Swanenberg. Tax revenues are brought in from social security, indirect taxes, income tax, and corporate taxes. When the amount of taxes brought in is above expenditure expectations, this will factor to a budget surplus. Fiscal Policy Pros and Cons Fiscal policy is the usage of government spending and the use of taxes to control the economy. As defined by Investopedia, fiscal policy is the means by which a government adjusts its level of spending in order to monitor and influence a nations money supply, (2009). Whenever the government makes a decision on what service and good to buy, how much to tax on said good or service, or the payment relegations dispersed, the government is exercising the fiscal policy. The fiscal policy is mostly used to show how government spending and taxation affects the aggregate economy levels. The fiscal policy really was not used as much until after World War II. When there is a surplus in the government budget, (revenue is higher than spending), the fiscal policy is a contradiction whereas when there is a deficit in the budget, (spending is higher than the budget), the fiscal policy is defined as being expansionary, as stated by the Library of Economics and Liberties (Weil 2008). The Library of Ec onomics and Liberties also states, when there is a deficit in the fiscal policy, economists focus more on the difference in the deficit and not the levels of the deficit, (Weil 2008). The fiscal policy however is not perfect. Just like everything in nature, the fiscal policy has its strengths and weakness. According to Dr. Wood, one main strength about the fiscal policy is that since it is basically government ran, it has good stability when used properly in the economy (Wood 2009). Contrary to monetary policy, the fiscal policy focuses on one area instead of the economy as a whole which can result in less mistakes and less headaches. Government interaction aids the fiscal policy by helping with resource allocation. As mentioned before, the fiscal policy is not perfect. Because the fiscal policy deals with the government, there may be little to no room for flexibility, (Wood 2009). An example would be, the government cant decide to raise taxes to compensate government spending. David Weil has stated that, fiscal policy also changes the burden of future taxes, (Weil 2008). The fiscal policy can sometimes result in the domino effect, meaning having one problem can cause more problems, which can result in another problem, and so on. The fiscal policy is usually only implemented once a year so this itself can be a weakness. One reason is because the government may be funding a project, such as a highway being built, and may not be finished in the allotted time, thus causing a problem in government spending. As of October 2012, Forbes has elucidated that the fiscal policy is not as effective as it once was by stating, the Central Bank cant lower its interest rates, (Smith 2012). Smith also goes on to state that, if the government steps in and borrows lots of money then the rate of interest will tend to rise, (Smith 2012). Monetary Policy After the Great Depression, market economies learned that they were not adjusting to economic downturns quickly enough. The lack of response was one of the causes of long-lasting economic crises. Therefore the government started to stick its hand in the economy to keep it from spiraling out of control using fiscal policy. When GDP contracts, the government spends more, and taxes less, which gets the economy growing. Another form of government macroeconomics is monetary policy and it is practiced by the Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed fiddles with the money supply to keep the economy in between inflation and recession. Back in the 1960s President Johnson had to increase government spending due to the Vietnam War. Economists believed as the President kept spending money, it would lead to inflation. The inflation would be caused by an economy that is already stable, plus increased government spending, which only creates higher prices and aggregate supply will be limited. The Federal Reserve Bank and monetary policy was then instituted. Its job is to make the necessary corrections in the economy that the government will not make. The Fed is a private sector. The Federal Reserve Bank affects the economys rate of interest. Our central bank increases the amount of money circulating in the economy because the higher quantity of something decreases its price. With a lower price of money, also called a lower interest rate, more people will be willing to borrow money, which means they spend more money in turn giving the economy a boost. The only problem is some economists believe it will cause prices to spike quickly. So out of fear of inflation, the Fed decreases the amount of money circulating in the economy which raises the price of money, or raises the interest rate. Higher interest rates mean less borrowing, which means less spending, which slows the economy down. Now the fear is the economy will fall into a recession so the Fed lowers interest rates again. The Fed raises the interest rate out of fear of inflation which then causes Recession. The Fed lowers the interest rate out of fear of recession which then leads to inflation. The Fed controls the money supply, which increases or decreases interest rates that can potentially boost or slow an economy and the Fed must keep a good balance because one direction is recession and the other is inflation. Overall monetary policy plays a big part in our economy, without it there would be a lot of confusion in the business world. In particular, the main one would be the banking system. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is the body thats responsible for most of the monetary policy decisions that are made. Monetary Policy has to do with recession and inflation which is very important in our economy. Another important fact about monetary policy is aggregate supply and demand. Monetary policy affects them deeply depending on the economies input, output, and rate of inflation. Strengths and Weakness of Monetary Furthermore, monetary policy that is speedy and flexible and somewhat isolated from Political pressure. It doesnt raise inflation value of money by weaken its purchasing Power. Whenever inflation advance faster than expected, they may sell government bonds to take money out of circulation. This also can minimize access to credit and slow consumer spending. The decisions they had made really had an effective impact on our economy. Monetary policy has stable prices which is keeping inflation low, it also quality business and households to make financial decisions without worrying about sudden unexpected prices increasing. The long term enable policy makers assess. The best policy tends to seek between these short- and long- term goals. Lower interest rates to expand the money supply and stem rising unemployment Rates during recession. Although the weaknesses practicing monetary policy cause the central bank to lose control of currency valuation, it wouldnt be possible for interest rate s. It also devalues the currency; further more monetary policy can achieve low inflation in the long run and affect economic output and employment in the short run. Sustainable Low inflation and economic growth off disagree. When inflationary pressures decrease, the unemployment rate may advance for a short period as the pace of the economy slows. It also can take up to months or even an year maybe even longer to have the intected effect. Conclusion Monetary and Fiscal policy both have their pros and cons. Fiscal policy can result in a nasty domino effect causing one problem to make another and repeat. Fiscal can also have issues with time lags. Although monetary policy is not very effective in a recession, it is flexible and works well to slow down the economy. Many prefer fiscal over monetary because its brings low taxes and low interest rates.

Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory Essay -- Sociology

The old African proverb ‘it takes a whole village to raise a child’ (Mohamed, 1996, p. 57) rings significantly through Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (Bronfenbrenner and Evans 2000); a theory which focuses on gaining insight into human development through identifying the circumstances and considering the environmental influences of which a child is raised not just the genetic components. This essay will endeavour to encompass my understanding of Bronfenbrenner’s theory by incorporating the effect of the theory in child development and the significance of the nested systems with the purpose of illustrating the importance for the development of secondary emotion and the development of the expression of emotion from infancy through to adolescence. Bronfenbrenner’s approach was to study children in their natural environments to explore how a child experiences and interprets their world within a complex system of relationships (Berk, 2009, p. 26). His theory regards the environment of a child; taking into account the practices within that environment and how they might influence development and of the child’s individual connections to show the way in which external forces and the child interrelate to influence their development (Paquette and Ryan, n.d.). It is important to recognise how the interaction of the systems with bidirectional (adults affect children’s behaviour but children’s behaviour can also affect adults’ behaviour [Berk, 2009]) influences within and between the systems can strengthen or interrupt healthy child development as each system contains roles, norms, values, beliefs and rules that can effectively shape their development. From this writers perspective Bronfenbrenner’s theory ... ...ampos, R. G., & Barrett, K. C. (1989). Emergent themes in the study of emotional development and emotion regulation. Developmental Psychology, 25(3), 394-402. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.25.3.394. Mohamed, E.R. (1996). It Takes a Whole Village to Raise a Child. Peabody Journal of Education, Mentors and Mentoring 71(1), 57. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1492552?uid=3737536&uid=2&uid=4&s id=21100750938471 Paquette, D., & Ryan, J. (n.d.). Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory. Retrieved from http://pt3.nl.edu/paquetteryanwebquest.pdf Wilson, R.L. (2003). The emotional life of children. Wagga Wagga: Keon. Wilson, R.L. (2012). Child and adolescent psychology. Week 4. [Psy113 CSU Forums]. Retrieved March 23, 2012 from Charles Sturt University website http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=PSY113_201230_B_D_forum

Cultural Masculinity and Crime Essay

Masculinity is a fact that is conceptualized in Goliath in various ways and to a number of argumentative ends. On the other hand, there is a unique culture of masculinity which is identified as a connection between the ‘tough’ and ‘rough’ males and the law enforcers. Other connections include the nature of significance that is attached to homosocial bonding as well as the masculine camaraderie and familiar social concerns of the youth. This is a common masculine culture that maps well onto the cultural traits of hegemonic masculinity that is depicted elsewhere within the literature on crime and masculinity. Therefore, masculinity is to some extend, used in the description of a given culture together with a series of activities that are ideologically and empirically allied to men. The fact that men are vilely overrepresented in almost all major violent events is not unusual. This kind of prevalence of male’s takes place in the arrest, character report as well as victimization data. Therefore, lack of attention paid to what it is being male that causes sadistic behavior is not anything surprising. However, recent work has recommended that masculinity is a crucial construct when it comes to understanding both crime and violence. Toughness, coupled with eagerness to resort to vicious behavior to be in position to resolve some of the interpersonal disputes are central characteristics of mannish identity. Conviction that gender roles are constructed socially is highly approved in the social science context. Basing on this construction, it is important to note that not all men posses the same levels of masculine traits. Primary differences in gender roles are highly inclined to be crucial variables in the comprehension of violence (Vold, 2002). Consequently, any form of male-to-male violence examination without fully understanding and unfolding the influence as well as the meaning of masculine gender is incomplete. Moving towards the relationships that exist between crime and masculinities, various criminologists have highly centered on men and boys but fully ignored women and girls. The main reason behind this is that there exists a considerable realism that the male dominate crime. For these criminologists, women are most subjected to exhaustive as well as all- embarrassing criminological gaze. Specifics of men are disgraced. Each in his own way has generally contributed to what has become a traditional criminology. Therefore the investigator needs to inspect and examine women and not men, to be able to examine the high gender ratio in crime. Men have a implicit monopoly on the charge of syndicated corporate and opinionated crime. Criminologists have continuously advanced gender as the main analyst of criminal occurrences. Historically as well as contemporaneously, criminologists have related masculinity purely with men and boys. Criminology is therefore dualist; it concentrates mainly on gender differences in crime eschewing an assessment of gender similarities in crime (Messerschmidt, 1993). Pre-feminist criminology The earliest theories of criminology relied mainly on indispensable ‘sex roles’ frame work to be able to explain the relationship that exists between crime and masculinity. These sex roles were used to find out the various types and range of offenses committed by both male and female. Therefore for sex-role theorists, criminological theory is termed cryptically as biological differences that exist between men and women. Criminal behavior is learnt in the same manner as conforming behavior. Therefore various people may come to engage in criminal behavior due to the excess of definitions that are favorable to the violation of the law compared to the definitions which are unfavorable. Boys get involved in crime to a great extent compared to girls. Higher levels of criminal acts among the boys may possibly be explained through differences in care as well as supervision of the male and female. In as much as boys and girls exist within poverty-stricken neighborhoods, the nature of social setting does not explain the rate delinquency among the boys as well as girl delinquency which is always low. The main difference comes about because girls are supervised a little bit more carefully in their behavioral traits in accordance with the known social codes. This takes place with greater care and consistency compare to boys. They are taught to be nice while the boys are taught to be ‘real men’, meaning they have to force themselves through situations. Boys whose behavior closely related to girls were considered ‘sissy’. The issue of masculinity and the connections it has to criminal traits in male has been discovered in both the past as well as the present criminological contemplation discussions. An attempt to link the issue of masculinity with felony was brought about by (Sabo & Kupers, 2001) He alleged that masculinity was internalized mainly during adolescence. Boys engage in highly delinquent forms of behavior compared to girls. Boys are taught to be both ‘tough’ and ‘rough’. The common traits associated with masculine behavior like toughness and dominance that are termed essential in asserting a strong reputation in masculinity, are acquired through these contacts with older males. Sabo and Kupers view the family as a structural conformity that has biological demands, working well for the society when the role of women is emphasized mainly in the internal affairs of the family; a wife being the manager of the household and men providing income-earning function in the society Masculinity within patriarchal society is stereotypically referred to as independent, aggressive, dominant, competitive as well as unemotional. It represents characteristics which are direct opposition to femininity. Sex roles differentiate some of the behaviors that are appropriate for men and women. The characteristics of masculinity are closely related to both positive and powerful terms of social identity (Vold, 2002). When gender roles are over exaggerated and their terms barely defined, negative consequences can easily occur. For instance, certain behaviors tend to be viewed positively, like independence. Conversely, assistance from others is required to overcome some of the personal problems like drug and alcohol addiction or even financial hardships. Independence can get in the way of potential remedy and behaviors that are productive. In addition to that, aggressiveness and high level confrontation can be of great use in various circumstances; on the other hand, they can be counter productive when trying to promote compromise. Fascinatingly, criminologists have persistently identified gender as the key predictor of behaviors associated with crime whereby men and boys commit disproportionate amount of crime. Masculinity is developed through learning and imitation whereby organizations, peers, and society as well as parents tech and train patterns that are appropriate as far as behavior is concerned. Those kinds of support and peer networks maintain and encourage the existence of ideas about masculinity. In many situations, if men decline to adhere to the stringent guidelines that are masculine gendered, or publicly express attributes of feminine, they are usually considered weak and also vulnerable. There are existences of theories which try to argue out that using criminal male accomplishment in reference to status achieved by the toughness as well as courage which it takes to perpetrate the level of crime. This is likely to be there when the masculinity of an individual is questioned. There is lack of traditional outlets that can be used to prescribe the stereotypical masculinity. Various forms of violence incidences were highly likely to include men who are highly masculine who had few outlets to affirm their level of masculinity. Prison environments are usually designed to restrict substitute modes of adaption that is separate from hypermasculine responses to both the prison as well as other inmates (Messerschmidt, 1993). On a stronger note, prisons are meant to socially castrate males together with their ability to adhere to good definitions of masculinity allowing for multiple modes of responding to their ability for success and incarceration. Rational outlets of Masculinity Explanations as to whether the outlets for traditional masculinity are essential only in a sense of dichotomous sense are not common and whether the quality of every single outlet play a crucial role too is not also clear. Therefore the operationalizations of what are commonly known as masculine outlets, for that reason are poorly constructed. Though the idea of proper traditional outlets addresses the subject of perceived status, satisfaction on a personal level may play a crucial role in how an individual others view them. For example, being married during the time of an offense is likely not to be important like being married happily at the time of an offense. The condition of being married is bound to be crucial; the quality of the affair may play a similarly important role in masculine accomplishment. Incase success within a marital affiliation is a desirable position; men with similar position can uphold their desirable success. On the same note, knowing whether a man has children or not is likely to be different from knowing whether a man is living in the company of his children. Fathering a child is different from being the father of a child. Successful parenting is an enhanced traditional outlet than simply having a child. The quality of the relationship between a parent and a child is likely to bring about a sense of pride that in turn can form a positive outlet for the display of masculine nature. Any given position that can be envied by other males would be an affirmative arena for masculine behavior. One other problem concerning customary outlets is the use of just the traditional outlet to emphasize masculinity. Some other alternative outlets may play a fundamental role. The use of violence is seen as an alternative incase legitimate means for the display of masculinity are not available. What is not a there in most cases is, however, the discussion about other means of legitimate masculine display apart from violence. For example, the number of sexual associates of the past can be. The show of one’s manhood through various sexual encounters has been highly theorized as an essential feature of masculinity. As an extension of the idea, literature about anthropology show that a number of children that a man can father are likely to play a crucial role. More numbers of express the virility of the man (Popay & Jeanette, 1998). The past displays of violence are an additional area that is likely to be important in the acquisition of the knowledge about masculinity. Incase a man has proven his level of masculinity in the past several time; then he has the ability to draw from those experiences to affirm his masculinity in any given occasion. The existence of quite a number of less appropriate outlets for a man to be able to demonstrate his masculinity is an essential area to explore in future. The idea of traditional outlets needs to be reconceptualized then broken down into two separate categories. Tog start with, a category that has positive social outlets, for instance, successful parenting and job satisfaction would be the most appropriate ways of assign successful masculinity. Addition of less appropriate outlets like number of past sexual partners, children as well as successful violent encounters can tap into different way than the way a man can assert some level of masculinity without necessary involving violence within the existing condition. Due to the fact that the determination of masculinities and femininities can not be done biologically, it makes meaning to identify and also examine some of the possible masculinities by the females (femininities by both men and boys) and the nature of relationship that exist between them and crime. Masculinity is evoked by a way of clarification of the various activities of the male, especially the young and strong. The actions of both the police and the youths can be described as assertion of masculinity (Campbell, 1993). Masculinity is viewed as being ‘accomplished’ through engagement in rioting, violence as well as a variety of displays of machismo by the young men. It is Campbell’s argument which, upon being faced with the problem of the reconstruction of a male identity in circumstances of social immobility and expanded levels of adolescence in which importantly, traditionally empowered masculine qualities is absent. These young and lower working group men find other highly destructive forms of masculine expressions. The consequential mode of masculinity is in some ways, not dissimilar from that of sub-cultural accounts that are usually experienced. Within the face of justifiable opportunities that are ‘blocked’, a means of being victorious ‘as a man’ is usually associated with engagement with crime or delinquency. Men and women have got different experiences in life based on the present social and economical marginal communities (Burke, 2005). The interaction of race as well as class with gender puts in some different dynamics to the masculinity that is negotiated (Popay & Jeanette, 1998). Though doing gender is one way of looking at the accomplishment of masculinity, some of the imposed characteristics are likely to play a fundamental role in gender display. The examination of masculinity the way it is constructed for the male through political, cultural and class can lead to varied results compared tog the examinations of masculinity which are believed to be constructed by men (Burke, 2005). Factors which are not within the realm of masculinity need to be discussed when it comes to understanding the causes and effects of masculinity as a source of criminality. Situational variables are likely to essential where the issue of violence is concerned more than just the personal level traits of masculinity. Other than the types of masculine traits that are highly intrinsic to violent men, the forms of situational variables, for instance, location, time of the day as well as presence of others are highly likely to take place in a male-male situations of violent. Hegemonic Masculinity Males who try to exhibit higher levels of masculine traits and who posses fewer acceptable outlets to fully affirm masculinity are highly like to get involved in events that are violent. This confirms the notion that men who do not have masculine resources are more likely to resolve to criminal acts. To add on that, traditional situational variables like presence of third party, use of drugs and alcohol, physical location among other factors are likely to cause some level of impact to the outcome of the events that are usually associated with violence and crime. At the same time, the unfolding actions such as the use of character attacks as well as sequencing of various actions have to be highly considered (Messerschmidt, 1993). These contexts can easily strengthen or even change the brunt of masculinity on both violent as well as non violent events. Females are more liable to experience the strains, for instance the burden of family members and restrictions on their behavior. Female are highly restricted to the confidential sphere. This form of strain involves restraint of the available opportunities of criminality as well as the excessive social control. It is a little bit hard to participate in serious violent as well as property crime incase someone spends a little time in public and is burdened with the demands of the family. The chances of men being in public is higher compared to that of women, therefore they go through conflicts with others as swell as criminal victimization. Therefore they are more likely to be involved in violence. On this thread, the various forms of strain which are experienced by men and women lead to higher rates of crime done by the former (Collier, 1998). Male and female also differ basing on their response towards strain emotionally. Strain leads to certain forms of negative emotions for instance anger. In turn, this creates a considerable amount of pressure to take corrective action. Though they both respond to anger, male and female have different experiences in anger. Female anger is usually accompanied by high levels of emotions such as fear and depression. Male anger on the other hand, involves moral outrage. Women learn to blame themselves for negative treatments by others and are ready tog view their anger as inappropriate and some failure of self control. Conversely, men tend to b lame others for their negative conduct and view their fury as an assertion of their masculinity. As a result, men are more likely to commit property and violent crimes while women tend to resort tog self destructive forms of deviance like the use of drugs and eating disorders (Pease & Camilleri, 2001). Beyond Dualism A result of exclusive concentration of the differences in gender has been aimed at directing the theory in criminology away from factors that seriously complicate gender differences, for instance when the female engage in what has been traditionally and culturally been defined as â€Å"male crime†. Such forms of approaches lead tog a full as well as complete situational appreciative of what really gender and crime is. Abstracting gender from within its social context as well as the insensitivity to issues of agency like perspectives masquerade the possibility that gender patterns of crime may vary situationally. The dualism that exists between individuals as well as social and the split between psychology has remained focal to sociogenic criminology. But the problem with criminology, as pointed out by the feminists has not been due to the fact that a range of experiences have been unified, the result being ways in which both men and women are likely to exist within different relations to the notions of community. Criminology has failed in trying to engage with the ways upon which the subjects that are under scrutiny have been produced within discursive limits. In trying to conceptualize individual as well as historical form of subject positions, the approach exposes itself to analysis of the various ways in which criminal boys as well as men have themselves been produced through a set of apparatuses of social regulation together with management (Messerschmidt, 1993). The framing of debates around boys, schooling as well as urban disorder through making a reference of the catastrophe of masculinity transcends the specialty of crime and criminality. The masculine group in this context is can be referred to the outlaw, a figure produced by the cultural construction of the socially powerful. Literary, a sub-cultural criminology outlaws represents the joy riders, the urban trash scroungers and the gang members who engage in what they do with a destructive mind in operation. They are deemed to move within space of everyday as a fully absorbed body of experience. It involves a subject without a topic, a body of wrongful desires colliding with others along its teleological route (Burke, 2005). The sub-cultural theme lacks the common ethical part due to the conception of everyday as a series of the symptoms that are idiosyncratic; this form of criminality becomes rendered as a set of lifestyle of choice. (Arnot, & Cornelie, 1999). It is long been a truism that girls are fond of internalizing and boys tend to externalize their pain and despair. For that reason, boys are highly likely to be arrested for serious crimes of all sorts. The fact that a large number of boys and girls are brought up in dysfunctional families can act as a proof as to why the habit is rampant and provides with reasons as to why criminal ways and cultural constructs of masculinity contribute to the prevalent behavior. In many occasions, boys are locked up for exhibiting some sort of behaviors which are contrary to the expectations (Burke, 2005). In most cases, these behaviors take place in the inner city where effects of racism as well as poverty often cause young, poor and black males strike as a way of exhibiting compulsive masculinity to be in position to compensate for the feeling of shame, frustration. And in compulsive masculinity, the masculine values tend to be rigid prescription for toughness, thrill-seeking as well as a willingness to use violence to iron out interpersonal conflict. Nevertheless it is usually recommended with great dismay that the reform about feminism refers to turning men into women; making men ‘soft’, emasculating them so that they unable to battle or stand with fulfillment in the world. Solving the problem of violence as well as building the culture of certainty of peace needs change in masculinities. However, this does not mean that should become weak or incapable. On the other hand, violent usually takes place due to masculinities that are constructed to make violence an easy option or simply the only option to be considered. Building peace is a highly complex and arduous undertaking and it is worthy of heroic effort both from men and women. This understanding of competence essentiality to some masculinity can be connected to equality other than exclusiveness: democracy requires skilled practitioners. Education can not easily re-socialize both boys and men to the extent of pressing them into a non-violent mould but it can open up a varied diversity of pathways so that the boys and men have an ability to use broader scale of their capacities such as the nature of communication, emotions and politics. Education has the ability to show boys and men quite a number of ways of being a man. It can enable them to familiarize this kind of diversity. It can inculcate in them the capacities for actions that are non-violent and train them some of the techniques that involve peace because of the acquisition of the techniques of combat (Collier, 1998). Efforts in education in this line cannot produce considerable results in isolation. There is need for a strong support through action in some areas of life that are likely to make greater range of experience possible for men as well as non-violent conducts which are easier for them. This involves actions that are aimed at reducing gender hierarchies together with antagonisms within the spectrum of social life. To achieve this fit, they should be addressed in the recommendations from the meetings, media, work places, public arena and other spheres of life including both private and public institutions. An example of the need for change is the important social mission of peacekeeping. This is presently performed by the organizations like police as well as international peacekeeping forces that are overwhelmingly staffed by men who are perceived to have a profoundly masculinized cultural behavior and are highly liable tog acts of confrontation. In this case, there is need for organizational change both in culture as well as in the femininity division of labor. The effective and a long term strategy aimed at reducing adolescent male crime would need to confront the highly daunting challenges of trying as much as possible to change the patriarch gender order, together with oppressively hierarchical group structures and their attendant masculine social construction. Conclusion Masculinities and crime are terms of conceptual revolution within the social life and they reflect the various changes within our understanding of the real world as factors that that are present within our midst. Questions about femininity and masculinity should be given an upper hand due to the fact that they influence our lives directly. References Vold, G. B. , Bernard T. J. , & Snipes J. B. (2002). Theoretical Criminology. Georgia: Oxford University Press. Messerschmitt, J. W. (1993). Masculinities and Crime: Evaluation and Reconceptualization. New York: Rowman & Littlefield. Sabo, F. , & Kupers, T. A. (2001). Jail Masculinities. U. K. Temple University Press. Burke, R. H. , (2005). A preamble to Criminological Theory. New Jersey: Willan Publishing, 2 Collier, R. (1998). Masculinities: Acts of Crime and Criminology. New York: SAGE Publishers, Arnot, M. L. , & Cornelie, U. (1999). Gender & Crime in present Europe. London: Routledge Publishers. Popay, J. , & Jeanette, E (1998). Men, femininity Divisions and Wellbeing. U. K. : Routledge Publishers. Pease, B. , & Camilleri, P. J. (2001). Performing with Men within the Human Services. New Jersey: Allen & Unwin Press.

Kush, Meroe, and Nubia

Archeologists have confirmed the inhabitation of the Nile above Aswan in the Paleolithic period that lasted more that 60,000 years of the Sudanese history. By the 8th millennium BC, during the Neolithic era, people had settled in the brick houses and their economic life was characterized by fishing, hunting along river Nile, cattle herding and grain gathering. The skeletal remains give an evidence of blending between the Mediterranean people and the Negroid during the Neolithic period that has existed until today.The northern Sudan oldest history evidence originates from the Egyptian sources that described the land upstream starting from the first cataract as wretched or Cush. For 2000 year and more in the time of old Kingdom, the economic, political and social life of the central Nile region was influenced by the Egyptians, even as the political power of the Egyptian waned in the Cushite, the Egyptians still had a substantial influence in the Cushite way of life.For many centuries, the Egyptian caravan exchanged grain for ivory, carnelian, hide and incense with Cushite. Slaves and gold were highly valued by the Egyptian traders. The Egyptian penetrated the Cush in the Middle kingdom after construction of fort at Sammah to guard the gold flow from Wawat mines.Asian nomads that were referred to as Hyksos invaded Egypt destroying many links to the Cush in around 1720 BC. During the reign of Pharaoh Ahmose 1, Egypt revived its political power during the New Kingdom around 1110BC and took the Cush as one of its provinces; however there were Egyptian tributary districts as far as blue and white Nile and red sea. After gaining full control over the Cush, the Cush adapted every way of life and temples became their center of worship up to the 6th century after the coming of Christianity.  By the 11th century, the new kingdom had collapsed, got divided and Cush emerged again as an independent kingdom that was governed from Napata. The Cush Kingdom conquered and ruled Egypt between 750 and 740 BC after which Egypt was re-united. Confrontation between the Assyrians and the Egyptians in 688-663BC resulted to Cush Pharaoh retaliating returning to dynasty in Napata where he originally ruled from prior to the unification of Egypt. In 590 BC, the Cush court was compelled to move to Meroe, a safer place than Napata due to the Egypt attack as it tried to regain its control over Cush again. Meroe developed for several centuries independent of Egypt and extended its dynasty to the present day Khartoum from the third cataract located at Sawba.The pharaoh traditions still persisted in Meroe, a well managed irrigation system sustained the huge growing population at Meroe. By the 1st century BC, there was development of the Meroitic script that was similar to the indigenous Egyptian script. The succession system at Meroe was not necessarily hereditary and crown was passed from brother to sister or to brother and selection of the queen was very crucial to smoot h succession. The Cush fell after it was invade by the predatory Blemmyes who were nomads but Meroe continued to be with contact with the Indians and Arabs.By the 2nd century, the Nobatae occupied the North of Cush at West Bank, this was subsidized by the Romans as a buffer between the Blemmyes and then the Axum in the 5th century, now the current Ethiopia that capture and demolished the city of Meroe ad there from Meroe kingdom ceased. In the 6th century, three states that were descendants of Meroe Kingdom emerged; these were Nobatia, Muqurra and Alwa.These kingdoms used Greek titles to rule the Meroetic population in imitation of the Byzantine Court. Missionaries started to preach in Nobatia in 540 AD and the Nubian kings were converted to Monophysite Christianity that was being practiced in Egypt, many bishops and religious leaders were consecrated in Egypt. The Mediterranean civilization was rekindled by the coming of Christianity.The use of Greek in liturgy led to development o f the Nubian language that combined both the Coptic and old meroitic scripts. The Nubian kingdoms survived many centuries but with the arrival of Arabs in 640 and subsequent conquering of Egypt posed a threat to these Christian kingdoms. Historians believe that the Muqurra and Nobatia kingdoms were forced to merge by the Arabs to form the Dunqula kingdom around 700 this resulted to isolation of the Nubian church since Egypt became dominated by the Muslims.The introduction and spread of Islam after Muhammad’s death lead to division between the south and north Sudan society. Islam encouraged economic growth, political stability and education development to its followers. Islam was spread to the east and north by the Arab armies who also attacked the Nubian territory in 642 and 652 thereby demolishing its cathedral.Though with continued arabization of the Nile valley, there were tension between the Arabs and Nubian territory and the resulted to a peace treaty which encouraged tr ade between the two opposite sides and other regions. This lead to emergence of two Arab speaking groups, the Juhayna and the Jaali. These groups aided in bringing down the Nubian territory.The Nubian territories remained independent up to the 13th century when they were overruled by the Muslims due expansion of Islam   to the continuous intermarriages between them and Arabs which resulted to the dark age of Christianity as slavery intensified. This forced the Nubian communities to seek Arab protectors for fear of their security. The Islam was not part of the old Nubian territory until15th to 16th centuryREFERENCEKush, Meroe and Nubia, retrieved on 13th, October, 2007, available at www.shsu.edu/~his_ncp/Sudan.html

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 7

There was a sort of universal gasp. Stefan went white, his compressed lips showing in a tight line. Bonnie felt as if she were choking on words, on explanations, on recriminations about Caroline's own behavior. Elena may have had as many boyfriends as the stars in the sky, but in the end she had given all that up – because she fell in love – not that Caroline would know anything aboutthat . â€Å"Don't have anything to say now?† Caroline was taunting. â€Å"Can't find any cute answer? Bat got your tongue?† She began to laugh, but it was forced, glassy laughter, and then words were spilling out of her almost as if uncontrollably, all words that weren't supposed to be spoken in public. Bonnie had said most of them at one time or another, buthere , andnow , they formed a stream of venomous power. Caroline's words were building up to some kind of crescendo – something was going to happen – this kind of force couldn't be contained – Reverberations, Bonnie thought as the sound waves began building up†¦. Glass,her intuition told her.Get away from glass. Stefan just had time to whirl to Meredith and shout,†Get rid of the lamp.† And Meredith, who was not only quick on the uptake but also a baseball pitcher with a 1.75 ERA, snatched it up and threw it at – no, through – – an explosion as the porcelain lamp shattered – – the open window. There was a similar shattering in the bathroom. The mirror had exploded behind the closed door. Then Caroline slapped Elena across the face. It left a bloody smear, which Elena patted tentatively. It also left a white handprint, turning to red. Elena's expression was one to wring tears from a stone. And then Stefan did what Bonnie considered the most astonishing thing of all. He very gently put Elena down on the floor, kissed her upturned face, and turned to Caroline. He put his hands on her shoulders, not shaking, only holding her still, forcing her to look at him. â€Å"Caroline,† he said, â€Å"stop it.Come back. For the sake of your old friends who care for you, come back. For the sake of the family that loves you, come back. For the sake of your own immortal soul,come back. Come back to us!† Caroline just eyed him belligerently. Stefan half turned aside, toward Meredith, grimacing. â€Å"I'm not really cut out to do this,† he said wryly. â€Å"It's not any vampire's forte.† Then he turned toward Elena, his voice tender. â€Å"Love, can you help? Can you help your old friend again?† Already Elena was trying to help, trying to get to Stefan. She had pulled herself up very shakily, first by the rocking chair and then by Bonnie, who tried to help her under the burden of gravity. Elena was as wobbly as a newborn giraffe in roller skates, and Bonnie – almost half a head shorter – was finding her hard to handle. Stefan made a motion as if to help, but Matt was already there, steadying Elena on the other side. Then Stefan had Caroline turned around, and he was holding her, not letting her dart away, forcing her to face Elena fully. Elena, while being held at the waist so that her hands were free, made some curious motions, seeming to draw designs more and more quickly in the air in front of Caroline's face, at the same time clasping and unclasping her hands with the fingers in different positions. She seemed to know exactly what she was doing. Caroline's eyes followed the movements of Elena's hands as if compelled, but it was clear from her snarling that she hated it. Magic, Bonnie thought, fascinated. White Magic. She's calling on angels, just as surely as Caroline was calling demons. But is she strong enough to pull Caroline out of the darkness? And at last, as if to complete the ceremony, Elena leaned forward and kissed Caroline chastely on the lips. All hell broke loose. Caroline somehow squirmed out of Stefan's grip and tried to claw Elena's face with her nails. Objects in the room went sailing through the air, propelled by no human force. Matt tried to grab Caroline's arm and got a punch in the stomach that doubled him over, followed by a chop to the back of the neck. Stefan let go of Caroline to scoop up Elena and get her and Bonnie out of harm's way. He seemed to assume that Meredith could take care of herself – and he was right. Caroline swung at Meredith, but Meredith was ready. She grabbed Caroline's fist and helped her in the direction of the swing. Caroline landed on the bed, twisted, and then rushed Meredith again, this time getting a grip on her hair. Meredith pulled free, leaving a tuft of hair in Caroline's fingers. Then Meredith got under Caroline's guard and hit her squarely on the jaw. Caroline collapsed. Bonnie cheered and refused to feel guilty about it. Then, for the first time, as Caroline lay still, Bonnie noticed that Caroline's fingernails were all there again – long, strong, curved, and perfect, not one of them chipped or broken. Elena's Power? It must be. What else could have done it? With just a few motions and a kiss, Elena had healed Caroline's hand. Meredith was massaging her own hand. â€Å"I never realized ithurt so much to knock people out,† she said. â€Å"They never show it in movies. Is it the same for guys?† Matt flushed. â€Å"I†¦uh, I've never actually†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It's the same for everyone, even vampires,† Stefan said briefly. â€Å"Are you all right, Meredith? I mean, Elena could†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"No, I'm fine. And Bonnie and I have a job to do.† She nodded at Bonnie, who nodded weakly back. â€Å"Caroline's our responsibility, and we should have realized why shereally had to come back this last time. She doesn't have a car. I'll bet she used that downstairs telephone and tried to get somebody to pick her up, but couldn't, and then she came upstairs again. So now we have to take her home. Stefan, I'm sorry. It hasn't been much of a visit.† Stefan looked grim. â€Å"It's probably as much as Elena could take, anyway,† he said. â€Å"More than I thought she could take, honestly.† Matt said, â€Å"Well, I'm the one with the car, and Caroline is my responsibility, too,† he said. â€Å"I may not be a girl, but I'm a human.† â€Å"Maybe we could come back tomorrow?† Bonnie said. â€Å"Yes, I suppose that would be best,† Stefan said. â€Å"I almost hate to let her go at all,† he added, staring at the unconscious Caroline, his face shadowed. â€Å"I'm afraid for her. Very much afraid.† Bonnie pounced on this. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"I think – well, it may be too early to say, but she seems to be almost possessed by something – but I have no idea what. I think I have to do some serious research.† And there it was again, the ice water dripping down Bonnie's back. The feeling of how close the frigid ocean of fear was, ready to topple down on her and take her on a swift trip to the bottom. Stefan added, â€Å"But what's certain is that she was behaving strangely – even for Caroline. And I don't know whatyou heard when she was cursing, but I heard another voice behind it, prompting her.† He turned to Bonnie. â€Å"Did you?† Bonnie was thinking back. Had there been something – just a whisper – and just a beat before Caroline's voice came? Less than a beat, and just the faintest of sibilant whispers? â€Å"And what happened here may have made it worse. She called on Hell at a moment when this room was saturated with Power. And Fell's Church itself is at the crossing of so many ley lines, it isn't funny. With all that going on – well, I just wish we had a good parapsychologist around.† Bonnie knew they were all thinking of Alaric. â€Å"I'll try to get him to come,† Meredith said. â€Å"But usually he's off in Tibet or Timbuktu doing research these days. It'll take a while even to get a message to him.† â€Å"Thank you.† Stefan looked relieved. â€Å"Like I said, she's our responsibility,† Meredith said quietly. â€Å"We're sorry to have brought her,† Bonnie said loudly, rather hoping that something inside Caroline could hear her. They said their good-byes separately to Elena, not sure of what might happen. But she simply smiled at each of them and touched their hands. By good luck or by the grace of something far beyond their understanding, Caroline woke up. She even seemed mostly rational, if a little fuzzy, when the car reached her driveway. Matt helped her out of the car and walked her to the door on his arm, where Caroline's mother answered the doorbell. She was a mousy, timid, tired-looking woman who did not seem surprised to be receiving her daughter in this state on a late summer afternoon. Matt dropped the girls off at Bonnie's house, where they spent a night in worried speculation. Bonnie fell asleep with the sound of Caroline's curses echoing in her head. Dear Diary, Something is going to happen tonight. I can't talk or write, and I don't remember how to type on a keyboard very well, but I can send thoughts to Stefan and he can write them down. We don't have any secrets from each other. So this is my diary now. And†¦ This morning I woke up again. I woke up again! It was still summer outside, and everything was green. The daffodils in the garden are all in bloom. And I had visitors. I didn't know exactly who they were, but three of them are strong, clear colors. I kissed them so I won't forget them again. The fourth one was different. I could only see a shattered color, laced with black. I had to use strong words of White Power to keep that one from bringing dark things into Stefan's room. I'm getting sleepy. I want to be with Stefan and feel him holding me. I love Stefan. I would give up anything to stay with him. He asks me, Even flying? Even flying, to be with him and keep him safe. Even anything, to keep him safe. Even my life. Now I want to go to him. Elena (And Stefan is sorry about writing in Elena's new diary, but he has to say some things, because someday maybe she will want to read them, to remember. I've written down her thoughts in sentences, but they don't come that way. They come as thought-fragments, I guess. Vampires are used to translating people's everyday thoughts into coherent sentences, but Elena's thoughts need more translation than most. Usually she thinks in bright pictures, with a scattered word or two. The â€Å"fourth one† that she talks about is Caroline Forbes. Elena has known Caroline almost since babyhood, I think. What bewilders me is that today Caroline attacked her in almost every way imaginable, and yet when I search Elena's mind I can't find any feelings of anger or even any pain. It's almost frightening to scan a mind like that. The question I'd really like to answer is: What happened to Caroline during the short time she was kidnapped by Klaus and Tyler? And did she do what she did today of her own free will? Does some remnant of Klaus's hatred still linger like miasma, tainting the air? Or do we have another enemy in Fell's Church? And most importantly, what do we do about it? Stefan, who is being pulled from the compu.