Civilian Contractors on the Battlefield Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Civilian Contractors on the Battlefield - Essay Example The following discussion is going to explore the ethical problems, whilst defining the actual position of a civilian contractor on the battlefield. Also it will consider the security problems in depending on civilian personnel, because there interest is in the monetary value of their service rather than the loyalty and security of a nation4. Therefore this may jeopardize the security of battle planning, because if civilian contractors are working on a business level then if the opposition offered a better business deal then these civilian contractors become a breach in the US military strategy5. In the first place the role of the civilian contractor can be seen as military personal as the Hague Convention of 1907 allows that other persons can be combatant in a time of war than just military personnel. Therefore under the Geneva Convention these individuals will be afforded the protections as prisoners of war. This means that on the ethical grounds of using contractors on the battlefield, governments such as the USA can legitimately affirm their use. In essence under the Hague Convention and the Geneva Convention these individuals are in fact quasi-military, i.e. ... ercenaries.7 British Human Rights lawyer Helen Kennedy has illustrated that there is vast problems with the USA naming freedom fighters, armed guerrillas who are not part of a state army as terrorists in order to punish them through vengeance ethically and a breach of humanitarian law. We [the UK] should not be tempted to take the American route There should never be a direct role for victims in punishment. If victims have a direct say in sentencing decisions, how will consistency be achieved between the victim bent on vengeance and the person willing to forgive8 The actions of the US authorities in Guantanamo Bay are an example of a nation of victims having a say in the punishment of possibly innocent people and these victims have no objectivity and mass cruelty and torture is happening. This is happening of civilians that have taken up arms to protect themselves and named terrorists. How does the US government legitimize civilian contractors who are getting paid for there services on one hand, but not freedom fighters on the other The distinction does not make legal or ethical sense, because morally a freedom fighter has a better argument for their actions and to become a war prisoner protected under the Geneva Convention than does the civilian contractor.9 Finally, the security issues that the uses of civilian contractors raise are vast. In the first instance is a contractor is being highly paid there are business reasons for their use on the battlefield.10 Therefore is it not conceivably possible that if the contractor is offered a higher price on the opposition, the needs of the business and money outweigh loyalty Secondly, there is the possibility that there will be infiltration by the opposition through the use of civilian contractors; especially in the case

Identifying Audiences Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Identifying Audiences - Assignment Example Same as with most valuable tools, identification of audience could be used in excess. Adaptation of the speech to the audience is different from telling them what they exactly need to hear. It does not mean grandstanding or even kowtowing to the audience. Adaptation does guide the styles as well as choices of content made by a speaker for a representation. Adaptation of the audience does involve trying to walk a fine line in between over and under adapting. Audiences in a speech situation bring expectations about the speaker, topic as well as occasion. Violation of the expectations of the audience could negatively impact the speech’s effectiveness. For instance where a Politian is giving a speech in the memorial of a mayor who is diseased, then the expectations of the audience are that he praises the mayor. If the speaker talks about some legislations the there is a probability if losing credibility since the audient may be offended. In a business talk the speaker is not expected to talk about how the business will fail in less than a year unless that was the main issue expected by the audience. However, there may also be situations where violation of the expectations of the audience can be a strategy quite effective (UMC Web Team, 2007). In any occasion, the knowledge of topic on any occasion may widely vary; hence, it will be useful for a communicator to find out what the audience does know on that topic. A speaker should not at any one given time overestimate the knowledge of the audience on the same topic. If a speaker does lounge a discussion that is quite technical and the audience is not familiar with, they might likely loose the interest and fail to follow the speaker. Also underestimating the knowledge of the audience drastically could lead to a speech, which sounds condescending. It is always advisable to try to dig up what is the knowledge of the audience on

Changes to Spending Capacity in the US Under Obama

Changes to Spending Capacity in the US Under Obama TABLE OF CONTENTS (JUMP TO) HAS THE SPENDING CAPACITY OF AVERAGE AMERICAN INCREASED UNDER OBAMA? CONCLUSION APPENDIX TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1: Spending capacity presentation Figure 3: Spending in various sectors TABLES Table 1: Comparison between the spending capacity of Bush and Obama HAS THE SPENDING CAPACITY OF AVERAGE AMERICAN INCREASED UNDER OBAMA? There has been a drastic change in the economic condition of America under the political control of Obama. As per the statistics revealed in several of the sources, the spending of the Americans has fluctuated in some of the sectors (Hewitt 2012). As per the average spending calculated in the year 2012, the people are ready to spend  £489 in a week to complete their demands and desires whereas a decade ago, the spending was  £526 in reality. This change in the figures is due to the recession in States[a1] (Garon 2012). People have reduced their travelling expenses as the petrol rate has shown a rise in few years (MATT CHORLEY 2013). On the other hand the public has shown an interest towards clothes and many other things. The spending towards the gym membership and regular holidays has also increased to some extent. Figure 1: Spending capacity presentation (Source: mail online) As per the data of the last two years are concerned, people have spent in housing fuels and power  £66.40 in 2011 and  £68.00 in the year 2012 which clearly shows an increment in the spending. Along with this, there is also a decrement in spending on transport in 2012 than in 2011 (MATT CHORLEY 2013). The total spending in the year 2012 for transport was  £64.00 whereas in 2011 it was  £67.20. As per as the recreation and cultural section is concerned, there is a demotion in the spending in 2012 as compared to 2011. The figure of 2011 is  £64.00 whereas the figure of 2012 is  £61.50 which clearly shows a decrement in the values (MATT CHORLEY 2013). On the other hand, there is an increment in the spending of food and alcoholic drinks in the year 2012 that is  £56.80 whereas in 2011 it was  £56.60. At last, as far as the clothing and footwear sector is concerned, there is an increment in the year 2012 represented as  £23.40 whereas it was  £21.90 in 2011(MATT CHORLE Y 2013).[a2] In comparison to the spending capacity at the time of Obama with that of Bush, there is huge difference. In 2014, Obama declared the budget of $3.78 trillion where as in case of 2008; the budget revealed by Bush was 27% less than 2014. The spending done by Bush was more of a ravage than what is done in the era of Obama in Democracy. There was a trap cost included in the year 2008 with the budget and that is the reason behind the distort picture of budget growth. The spending figures revealed that there was a jump that was from $1.86 trillion in 2001 to $2.98 trillion in 2008 whereas the major thing was that in the year 2009 when the new president Obama came to power, the jump was recorded as $114 billion. In overall the actual comparison of the spending growth can be clear with the table given below:- Table 1: Comparison between the spending capacity of Bush and Obama Figure 3: Spending in various sectors (Source: mail online) Considering all the section on a separate manner, it has been analyzed that there has been a growth of 5 percent (Kuttner 2008). The figure recorded in the earlier years was 29 percent but as per the valuation of the current year, the figure is recorded as 34 percent. As per the research it has been found that on an overall basis there is a decrement in the spending due to the effect of inflation. In 2006, the spending was calculated as  £526.40[a3] (Kuttner 2008). If the transportation sector is considered in the research, there is a drastic downfall i.e. in 2001-02 the total spending in the field of transport was  £82.10 whereas in the current year it is almost  £64.10 (Garon 2012). Subdividing the total spending of the food sector, there is a distribution of spending between the veg and the non-veg section. The total spending on meat and fish is  £15 and in case of vegetable it is  £4.20. The total spending on the fresh fruits is  £3.20[a4] (Garon 2012). There are some of the graphs that are related to the discussion done above:- (Source: mail online)[a5] (Source: mail online) (Source: mail online) (Source: mail online) (Source: mail online) On a critical note, the spending in the year 2014 has increased. As per the report presented by the TD Securities economist Gennadiy Goldberg, without the increment in the wage rate, the growth in the field of spending will not last for a long time (Hajnal 2010). Taking in to consideration the government report has been analyzed that the spending of the Americans increases in the month of November and therefore the investment is seen in the field of electronic and healthcare. The value is estimated to be 5% rise in the following products. The automobile industry is also responsible for the increment in the spending of Americans. By determining and assessing the spending of the Americans, it can be stated that the American have made themselves free from the tension of rise in payroll tax (Okonkwo 2007). In the year 2014, the economic recovery of the U.S. will get accelerated as there is rise in the consumer spending. Along with this, the gross domestic product of U.S. has grown to 70% . There are high rate of job creation and development in the manufacturing sector in U.S. The upward fluctuation in the graph of consumption is also a positive sign for regarding future growth. As per the research of Alan Ruskin (head of currency strategy at Deutsche Bank Securities), there is a need to include the consumers. There is a 0.2 percent of increase in the personal income for November and 0.1 percent for October. This shows that the consumers are trying to sustain spending along with the management of saving (Okonkwo 2007). There are some of the Americans who are active in nature and due to them the consumer spending in the month of September, October, and November becomes high. Due to the regular effect of the recession, the workers are not getting any increment in the wages due and which automatically there is no growth in the spending part also. The Commerce Department’s November Report has declared that there is a downfall in the personal saving rate of the Ame ricans i.e. 4 percent. The savings are equivalent to the saving done by them during the period of financial crisis. There has been a huge growth in the annual rate as compared to the figures of 2005 to 2007. There are some of the reasons behind the increment in the spending part (Okonkwo 2007). The major is the demotion in the tax taken by the government. As the government has relaxed the Americans from the tax part and therefore the savings from the tax are spend in other necessities (MATT CHORLEY 2013). Along with this the government has improved the job opportunities for the public which increased the earnings of the public at the same time. The stock market has also shown a less downward fluctuation in the recent years and due to this the people who are depend on the share market for their earning are secured from getting definite return. But as per research in the economic market, it was analyzed this kind of the initiative of the government was partial to the some of the Ameri can rather than publically beneficial (Okonkwo 2007). In the month of November, the unemployment rate is calculated to be 10.8 percent. As per the report presented by the Labor Department, there are 10.9 percent of the Americans are still in search of a stable job for earning their livelihood. The stock market will also need time to cover the losses made to the shareholders during recession (Greenstein 2004). As per the recent data of the third-quarter gross domestic product, the economy has expanded to a level of 4.1 percent annually and 2% growth rate in the consumer spending. This reflects that there is less effect of all factors associated with the spending as the American has become more confidence to spend more in the upcoming years. CONCLUSION As per the research is concerned, there has been an increment in the spending capacity of the American under the control of the Obama government. It will take time for this government to improve the condition after the effect of double recession in U.S. with the change in some of the factors such as interest rates, housing prices, bank loan borrowing and tax rates, the government will be able to control the management of the total spending of the American and can improve the upcoming years. BIBLIOGRAPHY Garon, S., 2012. Beyond Our Means: Why America Spends While the World Saves illustrate., Princeton University Press. Greenstein, F.I., 2004. The George W. Bush Presidency: An Early Assessment, JHU Press. Hajnal, Z., 2010. America’s Uneven Democracy: Race, Turnout, and Representation in City Politics illustrate., Cambridge University Press. Hewitt, H., 2012. The Brief Against Obama: The Rise, Fall Epic Fail of the Hope Change Presidency, Hachette UK. Kuttner, R., 2008. Obama’s Challenge: Americas Economic Crisis and the Power of a Transformative Presidency illustrate., Chelsea Green Publishing. MATT CHORLEY, M.P.E., 2013. Why your cash really IS going up in smoke: Alarming new figures reveal how families’ biggest cost is now heating and looking after their homes Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2521821/Families-spending-revealed-Biggest-cost-heating-looki. MailOnline news, sport, celebrity, science and health stories. Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2521821/Families-spending-revealed-Biggest-cost-heating-looking-homes.html [Accessed July 29, 2014]. Okonkwo, U., 2007. Luxury Fashion Branding: Trends, Tactics, Techniques, Palgrave Macmillan. 1 | Page [a1]Reference? DONE [a2]Also mention George bush period from 2001 to 2009 then explain and compare changes in spending capacity with Obama period [a3]Reference? DONE [a4]Reference? DONE [a5]These graphs are irrelevant. We are talking about US why you are using UK graphs Delete all

Ships Main Engine Lube Oil System :: essays research papers

Ship's Main Engine Lube Oil System Cleanliness of the lube oil is very vital in the Main Diesel Engine Lube Oil System. A strainer is a device that is usually made up of a single layer of course gauze, and a very course wire mesh. This setup is used to filter out large objects that could cause blockage or damage to the lube oil system. A filter is used to filter out much smaller particals. The filtering elements in a lube oil filter has a more complex make-up. Aboard our ship, we have self cleaning lube oil filters along with the standard lube oil filters. The size of the cartridges in these filters usually range from 3-12 mm. Our ship has two full flow filters per engine. The plates inside of a strainer corrode and erode very easily. Special attention must be given to these plates when cleaning them. Make sure that a gap has not formed at the end of the plate. If there is a gap, rags and other particles may pass right by. If in doubt of the condition of the plate, it should be renewed. The cost of a single plate is much cheaper than the cost of cleaning out an entire clogged system. All gasket surfaces must be checked closely to ensure a proper seal. Our ship has a high pressure lube oil system. Because of this, basket type strainers are used. Lube oil systems are equipped with a wide variety of strainers. It is important to operate these strainers at all times to prevent clogging. Aboard our ship, we have Hayward Plug-type Duplex Basket Strainers. All of these types of strainers are one way. The liquid to be strained enters to the top and filters through the bottom. Both strainers and filters clean lube oil using a similar process.

Feminism in Poetry Essay

All women have a place. That is barefoot, pregnant, and chained to the stove. Ideas like this are what started the feminist movement. Women desired to be judged by their worth as a person rather than their physical appearance or biological factors. Women sought out social, economic, and political equality. Many women wanted to do their part to support the cause. Some of the most notable influences of the feminist movement were poets such as Sylvia Plath, Lucille Clifton and Anne Sexton. Through their poems, the truth was exposed. This encouraged women everywhere to demand justice and equality. Although there are many feminist themes poets can write about, Sylvia Plath writes of male domination. In her poetry, all men appear to be the opposing force that keeps women from living a happy life. For example, in her poem â€Å"Daddy†, Plath exploits her father as being a fascist Nazi. Much like the Nazi, a fascist is known for being controlling with the power to oppress societies. Plath felt like a â€Å"Jew† amongst her Nazi father (40). However, towards the end of the poem, the representation of Plath’s father and husband (or all men) go from Nazis to â€Å"Vampires† (72). It is clear that in this change of metaphor that Plath went from living the terrors of a male dominant society to living with the undead terrors of her memories. In the same way, Plath’s poem â€Å"Lady Lazarus† conveys the message of male dominance. For example, the speaker states that â€Å"I am your opus, I am your valuable† it seems the woman in the poem feels as if she is a possession to men. However, in the final stanza she informs â€Å"Herr God, Herr Lucifer† to â€Å"beware† because â€Å"Out of the ash I will rise and I eat men like air† (79-84). The woman rises from the ashes like a phoenix, stronger and with a new sense of empowerment. It is as if men mean nothing and hold no more significance in her life. Plath uses these powerful poems to make a clear position in the feminist movement against the social inequalities that women faced in their everyday lives. Next, the feminist movement was partially about being proud of being a woman. Lucille Clifton, a strong, blunt woman presents such feminist themes. Clifton asserts her feminist ideas in the form of a woman’s body. In her poem â€Å"Homage to My Hips†, a person’s first impression might be of a woman proud of her full figure. However, â€Å"hips† in this poem are a symbol of the strength and life that women possess. Therefore, when she says â€Å"hips†, she is speaking for all the women. For instance, Clifton points out that: â€Å"These hips are big hips; they need space to move around in. They don’t fit into petty places. These are free hips. † (1-6). Undoubtedly, Clifton believes that women should have the same opportunities as men. If they are limited by their actions, there is no room for them to thrive. In the same way, Clifton illustrates her feminist views through the woman’s body in her poem â€Å"Wishes for Sons†. The poem directed toward men, talks specifically about the biological factors of a woman. Clifton wishes men to experience menstruation, the cramps, hot flashes, and the blood clots. Clifton wishes â€Å"them one week early and wearing a white skirt† (5-6). Indeed, she wants men to experience the embarrassments and fears a woman faces. Equally important, she wishes for men to experience the arrogance of gynecologists, â€Å"not unlike themselves† (18). Truly, Clifton’s brusqueness brings a sense of truth. In this poem, Clifton asks the age old question, why are males considered the stronger ones? Women are strong and can endure great pain that a man would collapse under. Lucille Clifton is one of the most powerful feminist poets, because she is direct and not afraid to speak her mind. Through her poetry, she empowers women to stand up and be strong. Finally, Anne Sexton is known more for her confessional poetry. However, her support of the feminist movement is evident throughout her poems. In her poem â€Å"Little Girl, My String Bean, My Lovely Woman†, Sexton praises and gives her advice to her daughter. Before the feminist movement, having a daughter was not celebrated. This poem is evidence that Sexton stepped out of the social norm and took one step closer to liberation of all women. Sexton writes of â€Å"†¦old wives speaking of womanhood. I remember that I heard nothing myself. I was alone. I waited like a target. † (35-38) Again, this is referring to how no one ever talked about the challenges of womanhood. By making aware of these challenges, Sexton stood alone and took the criticisms of society. Furthermore, Sexton tells her daughter that her â€Å"bones are lovely† (52). Like many girls that are coming of age, they view themselves through the eyes of society or men. Sexton wanted to tell her â€Å"before they enter† (50). In the final stanza, Sexton tells her daughter that if she is â€Å"sure of yourself† she â€Å"will strike fire, that new thing† (95-98). To summarize, if her daughter stays true to herself as a woman, she will succeed in her new life. Because Sexton ties her intimate life in with her poetry, it makes the message of feminism even more meaningful. In conclusion, there are the many sides to feminism. Plath exposed a more daring approach. She wrote of the role of women in a male dominated society and the constant struggle of woman versus man. On the other hand, Clifton has a more passive but straightforward approach. She spoke of matters that women then were too embarrassed to speak of. This is why she might have felt she had to be the voice for all women. Her bold poetry made her one of the most popular poets of the feminist movement. Lastly, because she was a confessional poet, Sexton’s intertwined her feminist views with her personal life. This method made her feminist message more meaningful and passionate. Many women, along with these popular poets set out to change the course of history. They strived for equality and fought hard to obtain it. It would be in vain if women today did not take advantage of the rights that they struggled to achieve.

An Operational Analysis of Subway Restaurants

Completed By: Olga Gomez, Nancy Guadron, Paula Clark, and Tyann Peres Completed By: Olga Gomez, Nancy Guadron, Paula Clark, and Tyann Peres An Operational Analysis of Subway Restaurants University of Houston-Downtown MGT 3332 Summer 1 Dr. Steven Coy An Operational Analysis of Subway Restaurants University of Houston-Downtown MGT 3332 Summer 1 Dr. Steven CoyTeam Aces came to an agreement and decided to conduct an operational analysis of various Subway Restaurants throughout the Houston and Katy area. Each team member was charged with the task of visiting a Subway location near their residence. This way each member was given the opportunity to observe the concrete steps required for Subway to complete a service from beginning to end. When you hear the words â€Å"fast food,† you imagine being offered a service in which you are quickly in and out with your order, and nothing else to it.In this instance that is not the case; Subway did not become one of the largest sandwich chains overnight. It has taken years of productiveness from the owners, top managers, employees and each customer of Subway. Throughout this paper we will analyze Subway’s operations by identifying the type of process used and the basic layout of their facilities. We will also provide a detailed service blueprint that will help to get a better understanding of the service process from the beginning, when the customer places an order, to the end, when that paying customer walks out the door with their subway sandwich.After visiting our Subway locations, we will also be able to explain the strengths and weaknesses that we observed from the interaction between employees and customers and the overall Subway experience. One of the locations visited and observed during hours of operations was the Subway restaurant located at 19214 Clay Road, Suite A, Katy TX 77449. This restaurant has been serving the Katy community for approximately ten years. This particular location was observed in or der to help create the service blueprint.The service blueprint lists all of the service functions that are performed and the average time expected to achieve the completion of each function. It begins with the customer’s action; the customer walks into the store and places an order, the employee then acknowledges the customer’s request. This is followed by the customer deciding on the size and type of sandwich they would like made. The Subway employee then begins to prepare the customer’s sandwich with their size and type specifications in mind.At this point, the employee asks the customer to decide on their type of meat and cheese, once the customer communicates this decision, the employee adds the requested meat and cheese. He/she gives the customer the choice of having their sandwich toasted or not. If the customer decides to toast the sandwich the employee then proceeds to put it in the toaster for a minute then moves on to adding the dressings and sauces. I f the customer does not want their sandwich toasted, the employee continues along with the process.The interaction continues with the choosing of any vegetables and final touches which may include adding oil and vinegar or salt and pepper at the customer’s request. Finally, as we approach the end of the service process, the employees wraps the sandwich and offers the customer the option of adding a cookie or the option of making their sandwich purchase as a meal, which would then include chips or a drink for a set additional price. Once the customer has chosen, the employee then collects payment to complete the transaction, and hands the order over to the customer, thus concluding the service process.This entire process happens in between the line of interaction. A line of visibility does exist in all Subway locations, on one side you have the components that are visible to the customer, which include the bread baking and all of the products and produce used to make a Subway sandwich. On the other side of the line of visibility, you have those items not visible to the customers’ eyes, which include the preparation of the bread before baking it, the extra vegetables, meat, and cheeses to be cut and prepped, the chips and drinks used to stock the storefront, as well as the storage of all the other products necessary to perations such as paper products, bags and any office supplies. All of this is required in order to ensure the success of the service process. Even though the customer does not realize what exactly occurs behind the line of visibility, it does not mean they don’t care. Every paying customer hopes and expects that their food is being handled and prepared in the safest and best way possible. This means that employees must be equipped to complete all tasks required in the minimal time possible, while maintaining the utmost standards of sanitary handling and preparation.Please refer to blue print 1 for a visual representation of h ow the actual process explained above works. After getting a closer look at how the service process works by completing the blue print you can see that the employees work diligently to complete the process in less than five minutes. From this you can learn that during peak hours which include lunch and dinner rush, employees work faster than normal to meet the 5 minute process standard. This way may cause a customer to feel rushed.For instance if the employee sees that the customer line has exceeded more than five it begins to rush the process; this causes the customer to make abrupt decisions on what they want in their sandwich. At the same time this can easily cause the employees to make mistakes during the process. For instance they can accidently add the wrong vegetables or sauces simple because they are trying to rush through the process in order to get the customer in and out. This urgency of completing the process faster than usual can turn a customer away.Many paying custome rs like to have the undivided attention of the employees since they do feel like they should get their money’s worth through the service. To help both the employees and customers during this circumstances the manager should ensure the employees that yes you might have to pick up the speed to meet the lunch rush demand; but they will have to be courteous without making the customer feel rushed. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Subway location 19214 Clay Road, Suite A, Katy TX 77449