Roman Republic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Roman Republic - Essay Example The reasons for the decline of Rome are as intriguing as the factors contributing to its rise. In order to understand the causes of the collapse of the Roman Empire, it is essential to understand the confluence of circumstances and variables that contributed to its rise, for these are the same factors that were brought to such an excess that the Empire collapsed under its own weight. Ultimately, Rome's successful development of military might, political dominance and infrastructural innovation led to such an expansion of the Empire that it could not sustain its own mass. This development was driven largely by the egos of Rome's leaders, who believed Roman civilization was so superior that it was a gift to the world to have it spread as much as possible. Military might was arguably the first key factor that enabled the Romans to build their empire. This was achieved through "cultivation of virtues conducive to military strength: unswerving loyalty, obedience, frugality and disregard for peril to life and limb" (Bonta, par. 6). These virtues were evident from the very beginning of the evolution of Rome. Roman history, from its inception, is replete with monumental wars and battles, most of which resulted in Rome's victory and dominance, thereby paving the way for geographic expansion and assimilation of weaker neighbors. Bonta maintains that "for the most part, Roman military history is a dreary catalog of one-sided battles with outmatched and poorly organized foes, of the destruction or absorption of entire nations into the expanding Roman state, and of almost superhuman resilience in rebounding from rare defeats that would have broken the back of any other people" (par. 8). Clearly the expansion of the Roman Empire would not have been possible had Rome not been militarily dominant. And yet, over-zealous military adventures eventually resulted in the destruction of Rome. Political Structures Rome's political structures were cutting edge and in many ways ahead of their time. They vested real power in the hands of the people in a way that had rarely if ever been seen before; and did so in a way that struck a nearly perfect balance between stability and liberty (Bonta, par. 10). Rome "discovered a formula for limiting the power of government by dividing it among several different magistrates and elected bodies" and also "developed a code of written laws that defined and protected the rights of Roman citizens" (par. 10). These developments regarding separation of powers and personal liberty planted the seeds of political thought that served as the foundation of modern Western-style democracies. Roman citizens were genuinely empowered. They enjoyed an unprecedented degree of liberty that was protected by law, and had a hand in electing their government representatives. The satisfaction of common citizens with their representation in the government was a very important factor that led to the stability of the state. The masses, as a whole, felt politically content and this was a critical factor enabling the empire to evolve. Essentially, by giving people a stake in their political system, Rome ensured that it would not have to be distracted by the need to quell internal discontent, and could instead focus on external expansion. The problem for Rome was that these same political privileges were not afforded to many of those

Injustice Anywhere Essay Example for Free

Injustice Anywhere Essay Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Hence injustice with one individual of a society can affect the life of other individuals of the society. Before we make society understand the need of justice in this essay lets first talk about what justice really is. Justice is the ideal, morally correct state of things and persons. Justice is action in accordance with the requirements of some law. Whether these rules are grounded in human consensus or societal norms, they are supposed to ensure that all members of society receive fair treatment. Justice is distinguished from other ethical standards as required and as, overwhelmingly important: justice can be thought of as distinct from, and more important than, benevolence, charity, mercy, generosity or compassion. All of these things may be valuable, but they are supererogatory rather than required. We need to know more than this: we need to know what justice is, not merely what it is not, and several answers to that problem have been proposed.. Justice is linked, both etymologically and conceptually, to the idea of justification: having and giving decisive reasons for ones beliefs and actions. So, attempts to understand justice are typically attempts to discover the justification the source or basis of justice, and therefore to account for (or disprove) its overwhelming importance. Justice becomes more essential for Islamic country like our due to the emphasis of Islamic teachings on justice. As it is said in Quran: God enjoins justice and kindness, and giving to kinsfolk, and forbids indecency and abomination and wickedness. [Surah Nahl; 16:90] Justice is perhaps the most important of the supreme values of Islam. In fact, it can be said that the main purpose of revelation and the tasks of Prophets (alayhum salam) has been to establish Justice. Thus, one of the early scholars of Islam has said that: Where the signs of Justice appear and its face is shown in any way that is where the Law of God and His religion are found. Justice is the first principle of social life. It can be shown to govern all relations in life: between ruler and ruled, rich and poor, husband and wife, parents and children. In all our dealings, we are required to stand firmly for justice even if it is against our own self and our kith and kin, for love too can lead to injustice. O you who believe! Be firm in justice as witnesses for God, even in cases against yourselves, your parents or your kin [Surah Nisa; 4: 135] And if you give your word, you must be just, even though it be against your kin, and fulfill the covenant of God. For that is what He has commanded you that you may remember. [Surah Anam; 6: 152] The fear of committing injustice may even prevent the doing of an act that is otherwise permissible. In fact one of the derived principles of the Shariah is that all permissible things are permissible provided that no damage or harm results to others from their practice and that in the event that such damage or harm is -suspected or confirmed, the permissible shall be prohibited to avert such damage or harm. Issues of justice arise in several different spheres and play a significant role in causing, perpetuating, and addressing conflict. Just institutions tend to instill a sense of stability, well-being, and satisfaction among society members, while perceived injustices can lead to dissatisfaction, rebellion, or revolution. Each of the different spheres expresses the principles of justice and fairness in its own way, resulting in different types and concepts of justice; distributive, procedural, retributive, and restorative. These types of justice have important implications for socio-economic, political, civil, and criminal justice at both the national and international level. Distributive justice, or economic justice, is concerned with giving all members of society a fair share of the benefits and resources available. Fair allocation of resources, or distributive justice, is crucial to the stability of a society and the well-being of its members. When issues of distributive justice are inadequately addressed and the item to be distributed is highly valued, intractable conflicts frequently result. Procedural justice is concerned with making and implementing decisions according to fair processes that ensure fair treatment. Rules must be impartially followed and consistently applied in order to generate an unbiased decision. If people believe procedures to be fair, they will be more likely to accept outcomes, even ones that they do not like. Implementing fair procedures is central to many dispute resolution procedures, including negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and adjudication. Retributive justice appeals to the notion of just dessert the idea that . people deserve to be treated in the same way they treat others. It is a retroactive approach that justifies punishment as a response to past injustice or wrongdoing. The central idea is that the offender has gained unfair advantages through his or her behavior, and that punishment will set this imbalance straight. While it is difficult to give a complete and adequate definition of justice, most observers can recognize clear examples of serious injustice when they arise. Such injustice comes in various forms, wherever the norms of distributive justice, procedural justice, or human rights are violated. Political injustice involves the violation of individual liberties, including the denial of voting rights or due process, infringements on rights to freedom of speech or religion, and inadequate protection from cruel and unusual punishment. Such injustice often stems from unfair procedures, and involves political systems in which some but not others are allowed to have voice and representation in the processes and decisions that affect them. This sort of procedural injustice can contribute to serious social problems as well as political ones. If voting or litigation procedures, for example, are perceived to be unjust, any outcome they produce is liable to be unstable and produce conflict. In addition,; any procedures that are carried out in a biased manner are likely to contribute to problems of religious, ethnic, gender, or race discrimination. When the procedure in question has to do with employment or wages, such issues can lead to serious economic and social problems. The highly-publicized rape case of Mukhtaran Mai, also referred to as Mukhtar Mai or Mukhtaran Bibi, highlights the Pakistani governments shortcomings in dealing with violence against women and its persecution of rape victims. In 2002, Mukhtaran was sentenced to be gang raped by a tribal council in the province of Punjab as punishment for her younger brothers alleged affair with a woman from a powerful clan. After the initial trial, six men were sentenced to death for the gang rape, while eight others were acquitted. However, last June, the Punjab High Court overturned five of the convictions and reduced the sixth to a life sentence. Mukhtaran Mai received donations adding up to $160,000 from New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristoff s coverage of the case. Mukhtaran has used the money to open two schools in her village, a shelter for abused women and provide her village with an ambulance. When Mukhtaran was invited to the United States to talk about her case, the Pakistani government fearing hat she would malign the countrys image abroad denied her travel visa to the United States, and placed her under house arrest. Only -fallowing great international attention and pressure was the travel ban lifted. While Pakistans High Court suspended the acquittals of Mukhtarans rapists and will be re-examining the case, the governments lassitude in amending the Hudood Ordinances which place insu rmountable obstacles for women to safely and successfully obtain justice in their rape cases foments an environment in which violence is perpetrated against women with virtual impunity. If women are unable to prove rape under the Hudood law, which requires four adult Muslim males to have witnessed the crime or the confession of the rapist himself, then the victims themselves may be tried for adultery or fornication. Mukhtaran is not the only victim of our political injustice. According to press reports cited by the Pakistan Human Rights Commission, a non-governmental organization, more than 10,000 women are raped every year in Pakistan, although the real figure is thought to be much higher. As in all countries, women are often reluctant to report rape, for social reasons as well as distrust of the judicial process. In Pakistan, there are additional legal barriers to pursuing a rape conviction. The rape law itself, one of the offenses of zina under the Hudood Ordinances, requires either the confession of the perpetrator or the eye-witness testimony of at least four Muslim adult male witnesses to the rape. If she is unable to prove rape, a woman who reports rape to the police is vulnerable to prosecution herself under the Hudood Ordinances for fornication if she is unmarried or adultery if she is married. In addition to these formidable legal barriers to the prosecution of rape, there have been several reports of police involvement in rapes and gang-rapes and of police protection of those accused of rape, particularly when they are from influential families. Women who have been raped are also at risk of honor killings, whereby a male relative kills them because they are thought to have dishonored the familys name in the community by transgressing social norms, which is seen to include having been raped. It has been estimated that on average one thousand honor killings take place each year in Pakistan. Even the Pakistan Governments National Commission on the Status of Women has recommended repeal of the Hudood Ordinances on the grounds that they are discriminatory towards women and not in accordance with Islamic injunctions. They are also contrary to the Convention on the Elimination of ; All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) , to which Pakistan is a party, and to the Constitution of Pakistan, which states at Article 25 that (1) All citizens are equal before law and are entitled for equal protection of law. (2) There shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex alone. Crimes of honor are a pre-Islamic practice deeply rooted in the tribal societies of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) where Upper Dir is located, Balochistan province, as well as those of Sindh and Punjab where they are called karo kari. In these rigidly patriarchal communities, wives, daughters, sisters and mothers are killed for the least sexual indiscretion and upon the slightest suspicion of ad ultery. Murders in the name of honor fall under the purview of the customary qisas and diyat law. Riddled with flaws, it makes prosecution extremely difficult. Activists have been urging the government to reform the law but a bill seeking to bolster secular law against honor killings, presented in parliament last year, was defeated as un-Islamic. Drastic changes are needed,† Rakshanda Naz, resident director of Aurat Foundation told IPS. The social mind-set, specially the attitude of the courts, needs to change. Often the courts adopt a lenient view towards an accused on the grounds of grave and sudden provocation† which is nowhere in the law,† she added. Sections of the qisas and diyat law work to the advantage of the accused in the trial and appellate stages. Under section 309 of the law, an adult wall (legal heir) of a deceased could use his right of qisas (to forgive the accused). Similarly, under section 310, the offence of murder is made a compoundable offence and any heir of a deceased could forgive an accused by compounding his right of qisas after receiving compensation.. Since in most honor-related murders, either a husband or parents are the heirs of the slain woman and as the murder takes place in connivance with almost all the family members, they prefer to waive their right of qisas and pardon the accused. Each time, the judicial response has appeared to violate the basic principles of justice, activists observed. Uzma Mehboob, a womens rights activist, said no FIR was registered in a recent case in a remote hamlet in NWFPs Mardan district where a powerful landowner sprayed his daughter and driver, who had eloped together, with bullets. Economic injustice involves the states failure to provide individuals with basic necessities of life, such as access to adequate food and housing, and its maintenance of huge discrepancies in wealth. In the most extreme cases of misdistribution, some individuals suffer from poverty while the elite of that society live in relative luxury. Such injustice can stem from unfair hiring procedures, lack of available jobs and education, and insufficient health care. All of these conditions may lead individuals to believe that they have not received a fair share of the benefits and resources available in that society. Many scholars and activists note that in order to truly address injustice internationally, we must strive to understand its underlying causes. These causes have to do with underdevelopment, economic pressures, various social problems, and international conditions. Indeed, the roots of repression, discrimination, and other injustice stem from deeper and more complex political, social, and economic problems. It is only by understanding and ameliorating these root causes and strengthening civil society that we can truly protect human rights. Addressing political injustice is often a matter of developing institutions of fair governance, such as a responsible police force and judiciary. Legislative action and executive decision-making should likewise be held accountable. Such measures are sometimes a matter of reforming state ;gt; institutions or revising state constitution. In cases where some groups are excluded from political participation, the state can remedy violations of political rights by promoting political inclusion and empowering subordinate groups. Public decision-making should respond to the will of the citizens, and members of the society should have the opportunity to participate in the formulation, execution, and monitoring of state policies. In other words, a culture of political involvement and public participation should be fostered. In addition, there are various social structural changes that might give groups more social, economic, and/or political power. This is often accomplished through the strengthening of the economy and civil society in conjunction with democratization efforts. In some cases countries require outside assistance for election monitoring, nation-building programs and the development of governmental infrastructure to make their political system more stable. Addressing systemic economic injustice is often a matter of economic reforms that give groups better access to jobs, health care, and education. In many cases, lack of access to basic services stems from enormous inequalities in resource distribution. Redistribution of benefits and resources can thus- be an important component of social structural changes to remedy injustice. There are various institutional and economic development reforms that might be put in place to raise living standards and boost economic growth. In addition, by creating social and economic safety nets, states can eliminate tension and instability caused by unfair resource allocation. A central goal of responding to injustice is paving the way for future peace. Once conflict has ended and policies of oppression have been repealed, society members face the task of rebuilding their society. Many believe that measures aimed at restorative justice are well-suited for this task. Restorative Justice is concerned with healing wounds of victims and repairing harm done to interpersonal relationships and the community. It can play a crucial role in responding to severe human rights violations or cases of genocide. Huge advances are made when governments tell the truth about past atrocities carried out by the state. It is thought that true healing equires remembering the atrocities committed, repenting, and forgiving. War crimes inquiries and truth commissions can aid in the process of memory and truth telling and help to make public the extent to which victims have/suffered. One of the tragic examples of restorative injustice in Pakistan is of the incident of taking away Masihs children away from him. According to the law, all parents in Pakistan in cluding Christian parents such as the Masihs have the right to raise their children in their own faith. But the law isnt always followed in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Particularly when it comes to Christians. The girls were taken Jan. 25 by the familys landlady and her husband with police escorts. The couple contended that the children had converted to Islam and should no longer remain in a Christian home. The Masihs maintain that their daughters are still Christians, no matter what anyone says, and that even if they did convert to Islam, they should stay with their parents. But 14-year-old Nadia, 11-year-old Nyla and 9-year-old Nabila are gone, and its unclear whether theyll ever be allowed to return home. The city magistrate overseeing the case admits he decided against the Christians not on the basis of law but on public sentiment and a concern that he could have a religious riot on his hands. Legally speaking, they should have been given to their parents, says Kamran? Abdullah Siddiqi, leaning back in a cushioned chair in his office, where two armed policeman sit against a wall. But Siddiqi says if he did that, Some crazy person would come and say these are the children of Islam. Theyd say were going to chop you. Were going to shoot you. Were going to what did the KKK used to say in America? lynch you. Article 36 of Pakistans Constitution promises to safeguard the rights and interests of religious minorities. But human rights organizations say thats not happening. The U. S. State Department agrees, citing a government-fostered atmosphere of religious intolerance that has led to violence against religious minorities. In Pakistan, 97 percent of the population is Muslim; the rest is made up mostly of Christians but also of Hindus, Buddhists and other groups. Partly at the prodding of concerned American Christian groups, the U. S. Congress earlier this month passed legislation requiring the president to take action against nations that engage in a pattern of religious persecution. In the 1980s, the United States gave Pakistan billions of dollars for economic development. But in recent years, concern that Pakistan was developing a nuclear bomb has prompted sanctions, slashing aid to the millions of dollars, most of it for humanitarian, food and counter narcotics efforts. Pakistans decision to test nuclear weapons in May further cooled US Pakistan relations. Pakistans pattern of religious persecution, documented for years in State Department reports, could lead to further sanctions. This is not the only case, there are still many stories but the need here is not just to highlight the stories but also to make sure these stories end up with the mess they have already poured in our Islamic society. Restoration often becomes a matter of restitution or war reparations. In cases where clear acts of injustice have taken place, some type of compensation package can help to meet the material and emotional needs of victims and remedy the injustice. Repentance can also help to re-establish relationships among the conflicting parties and help them to move toward reconciliation. In some cases, conflicts can end more peacefully when parties acknowledge their guilt and apologize than when formal war crimes adjudication or criminal proceedings are used. In cases of civil war, because the line between offenders and victims can become blurred, a central goal of peace building is to restore the community as a whole. Restoration often becomes tied to the transformation of the relationship between the conflicting parties. However, such restoration cannot take place unless it is supported by wider social conditions and unless the larger community makes restorative processes available. Many note that an adequate response to injustice must involve social structural changes, reconstruction programs to help communities ravaged by conflict, democratization and the creation of institutions of civil society. Only then can the underlying causes of injustice be remedied.

Differences Of Mermaid Myths From Cultural Beliefs English Literature Essay

Differences Of Mermaid Myths From Cultural Beliefs English Literature Essay Myth is traditional ancient stories which have actually occurred in a previous age, explaining cosmological and supernatural traditional of a people, their gods, heroes, cultural traits and religions beliefs (Leach 1975 778). This essay will compare relationship between mermaid myths from different cultural beliefs and its symbols which represent the inner meaning of each myth. It is certainly true to say that the idea of mermaids when first arrived into peoples mind is a mythology aquatic creature with female human torso; instead of legs, mermaids have tail of a fish. They have beautiful crystal clear voice, which seduced men to fall into the hallucination when they are singing. In other word, it could be understood that Mermaid themselves portrait the beautiful seduction of the female sex. Nobody could possibly stand the pleasing voice if any of them get close to the mermaid. This significant also has been taken as a theme, connotation, slogan or the meaning of some certain tales and advertising products. Though, there are some questions about the mermaid myth that have been wondered by mythological researcher. (Doty 2004 11) They have a broad presentation in different myths and folklores depending on those cultural beliefs. The appearance of mermaids can be differentiated up to the imagination and the message they want to send. As long as they maintain the female figure with dramatically long hair, it is a copy right of mermaids characteristics. Significance and meaning are broadly different as well according to a particular cultural mythology. Initially, the word Mermaid means sea woman. Mere is an old English means sea and maid from maiden, means woman. Males equivalent is Merman, where it could be recognized clearly the use of direct word man after mere, Mythological research. (Doty 2004 11) Unfortunately, the ideology of this aquatic myth is focused on the representation of womans enchantment and seduction due to the emphasis of appearance. Merman obviously does not play a big role in those issues. Besides, there is another dark story of mermaids attitude, where they would portray foxy planners. They are depicted to be squeezing life out of mostly sailor, while attempting to escape from sea storms. In some myths, mermaids also carry humans down to their underwater kingdom. These two ideas are more terrified than the first mermaid tale, but still emphasize on seduction. It is normal in term of classical myth to depict women as negative or passive models, said Marta Weigle in Myth and Mythmaking in Fantastic Literature by Women. (Shinn 1986 19) If women in mythology described as negative example, then Why is a mermaid not portraying as a creature with more masculinity? Since a holy spirit of aqua is a Goddess in Thai Pra-mae-kong-ka or waters spirit in Greek mythology not including the famous Poseidon. Anything associated with water should be translated to the meaning of softness. Women do not have masculine body constructed as men. They would not be able to intensively fight as the way male heroes did. Therefore, they have to use the ability of enchanting nearby men who lured by their stunning bodies and music. Greek mythology explains the characteristics of mermaid in similarity. Greek addressed the name of Sirens. Three dangerous bird-women lived in mysterious rocky coast, where they lure nearby sailors to enchanting by their fine music. Sirens portray as seductresses as same as the description of women in mythology. Women were sources of sin (Shinn 1986 110). Sirens sometimes portrayed in later folklore as fully aquatic and mermaid-like. They still sustain the figure of female who is the best in seducing human in every myth. witcombe.sbc.edu/water/artmermaids.html there is another mermaid myth in Japanese beliefs. According to old Japanese tale, Mermaids organs could give the miracle affection to people who desired in particular supernatural power. Anyone who ate flesh of a mermaid would achieve the immortality and vice versa A mermaids heart would turn back to mortal human. This mermaid myth is rather extra-ordinary to the ideology of Western mermaid. The ability of gaining immortality would persuade the dark side of human to hunt mermaid selfishly, as human is afraid of aged and death. However, there is a drawback to remind a sin of going against the nature. A person, who became an immortal, would live in the world alone for eternity. He or she could only watch their beloved people died as time passed by while he or she was the only one who survived for decades. That is the agonic pain human could feel without physical wound. (Doty 2004 15) Such myths that are embedded into the different cultures are the result of the fears of water. Regarding to Geoffrey Galt Harpham, the author of On The Grotesque: Strategies of Contradiction in Art and Literature, The grotesque is the concept without form: the world nearly always modifies such indeterminate noun as monster, objects or things (Harpham 1982 3). A byproduct of fear as a mermaid may be makes the figure of the mermaid a monstrous, an abject; a grotesque. Feared and unbearable, human invent a figure that represent their different suppressed fear; fear of oceans, fear of travelling or perhaps fear of women. Human in the presence of the fearful figure get what is called the temptation. Temptations are not grotesque not because they are hideous dragons and gorgons terrible beasts are not necessarily grotesque but because in the midst of an overwhelming impression of monstrousness there is much we can recognize, mush corrupted and shuffled similarities, (Harpham 1982 5). Due to these temptations, the abject, the grotesque human fear and cannot bear is in fact rather something familiar. The idea results in a cross over between human and non-human. To mermaids, theyre fish crossing over with human; the familiar with the abject. Even though Mermaids myth is broadly presented according to culture and belief, there are basic understandings of mermaid maintained. Mermaid could not be a mermaid if there is no seductive characteristic in any sense. The tale of different world becomes very well known narrative by media and the adaptation such as The Little Mermaid of Waltz Disney Picture. In the adaptation, the mermaid figure Ariel plays the protagonist who longs to explore the land above and eventually falls in love with the human prince Phillips while recuing him from a shipwreck. Difference leads to the struggling situation, and audiences love to consume the conflict within a plot. As the crossing over gets narrowed down into something forbidden, the mermaid figure in the narrative seeks to become human. She is then seen as a human being the protagonist and has humanly feelings. From the frightening image of a sea monster grotesque, the mermaid myth gets varied by the new identity as a protagonist who is portrayed as a young curious and delightful girl who can fall in love with the most forbidden condition; racial difference. Therefore, the forbidden love issue between human and mermaid appears to be the most famous genre. Within the Thai culture, according to Jit Phumisak, there are fewer stories about mermaids comparing to the western; although, mermaids have appeared in some Thai literatures. Most people might imagine that mermaid has half and half body between human and fish but in the very first Thai literature mermaid appeared as a snake in Li-lit-ong-karn-chang-nam (à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¥Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ´Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¥Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ´Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã…  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ³) à  Ã‚ ¸-à  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ªÃƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ «Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ·Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ±Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã…“à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ·Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚  à  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ·Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ µÃƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸-à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ±Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ±Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸-à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ´Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢ (He, Pra-insuan rode on the white cow and use mermaid as a weapon) à  Ã‚ ¸-à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ´Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸-à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã…  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã… ½Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ² à  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ªÃƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã… ¾Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã… ¾Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ à  Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã… ¾Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã…  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¥Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ² à  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ²Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ´Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‹â€ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ±Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¹Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ £Ãƒ  Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¯Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (With a power of mermaid he could destroy anything) Pra-insuan uses the holy white cow as his transportation and use a snake as his weapon but in this poem the writer didnt use the word snake but he used mermaid or nguak Which means that snake and mermaid referring to the same thing. This mermaids appearances are nearly like mermaids archetypes in general; although differentiate to fit the Thai literature world. The myth of mermaids is also used through a symbol by using its appearance and its characteristics. The symbolism of a mermaid that is widely known is the Starbucks Coffee logo having a twin-tailed siren in the middle surrounded by the green circle labeled the company name. Siren is a name calling for a creature having a half-fish, half-woman body in Greek mythology. According to the myth, sirens actually take forms of a bird or a fish but soon after, the myth stated as the siren was a fish-woman. The origin of the twin tails is a combination of a fish tail and a womans legs. Usually Sirens are hunting around rocks or cliffs. Additionally, they are believed to be daughters of the river Achelous and the nymph Calliope and usually they live in mountains. Basically, a symbolic figure of siren can have diverse meanings such as an inferior of women, a impure imagination attracted towards the beginning or the end of life, or a suffering of a yearning leading to death meaning though they ha ve a beautiful face and breast, they could not satisfy the craving occurred by their music and charm because of their atypical bodies. But essentially they give a meaning of temptations or seduction meaning the use of the charm to death. According to Juan Eduardo Cirlot, the author of The Dictionary of Symbols, The spell thus cast is attributed to the siren whose songs so captivates the listeners that he falls into the ocean (of the lower water and of nascent forms) teeming with multitudinous life. (Cirlot 2002 298) What significance of sirens is that they were given such a beautiful rhapsody which really the music has reductive and deadly sense hidden that anyone who hear the song may step into sirens places without knowing that he will be a prey of them. So this feature is what Starbucks company got the idea of the logo from the myth of sirens. The Starbucks logo was inspired from the invention of the name of the company. At first, the company name Starbucks was taken from the cha racter who is the first crew on the ship, Pequod, from a literature named Moby Dick. According to Sara Gilbert, the author of The Story of Starbucks, The striking green, black and white logo that adorns all the Starbucks products is a salute to the companys earliest incarnation.(Gilbert 2008 13) The name, Starbucks, is an intention of the company that every costumer reminds of a fascinating scent of a deep ocean. And that intention comes to a research on the symbol to represent of it, and so they come up with a twin-tailed mermaid or so called siren which was copied from a Nordic woodcut of the sixteen century. The first usage of the twin-tailed siren was the original symbol from the woodcut which the siren was having a Rubenesque body, showing its breasts and navel and wearing a crown. Also, apart from her breasts and navel, her tail symbolizes as a more sexual connotation openly. According to Howard Schultz, Dori Jones Yang, the author of Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Bui lt a Company One Cup at a Time, That early siren, bare- breasted and Rubenesque, was supposed to be as seductive as the coffee itself .(Schultz and Yang 1997 33) The company gives the significance of the siren as a creature who devour men to death, when compared to the smell of the coffee that the smell was like such a sweet song a siren singing which is, due to the mythology, having a seductive music and it seduces people who hear of it to come to its place or people who smell of their coffee would come to the shop. According to Bryant Simon, the author of Everything but the coffee: learning about America from Starbucks, With Schultzs approval, they drew her as a less seductive, less dangerous icon, more a sweet, mild-mannered mermaid than a sexually dangerous mermaid.(Simon 2009 42) Later on, the company changed the appearance of the siren logo by covering up its breasts and belly button to have less sexual connotation and it was redrawn by focusing on the sirens face into a sweet ly smiley siren than a dangerously seductive previous one. Importantly, the new siren logo gives a new brighter good feeling of a siren rather than a woodcut siren. Also they changed color of the surrounding circle from brown to green which is more nature conservative and it gives a feeling of more friendly along with the new siren than the preceding version and it is the one used in every branch until today. In conclusion, the mermaid myth has long been bounded to the civilizations of mankind. Each culture around the world may have its own interpretation of the mythical sea creature, but it is notable that all share similar features of half fish half human. The figure is often seen as the representation of the females dark side, for example the seductresses of the sea that lure sailors to their end in the deep water of the oceans by their beautiful deceiving voices. Or the scary mythical creature that holds the secret to eternal life and youthful that people are after with little knowledge of the consequence of their greed. The figure of a mermaid can be called a grotesque; the non-thing that stands for anything opposing human, all that is feared and disgusted by human. However, from another point of view, the mermaid grotesque can be seen as rather familiar to human as a mermaid features half of a woman body, and in some narrative come in contact with such personal side of the human lif e; love. Furthermore, the figure of mermaid can not only represent aspects of darkness of the femininity but also the humans mind in general, for example, seduction, sexual desire, fears, greed, religion or even forbidden sexual perversity. Different tales were told in many different narratives about the mermaid through space, time and media means.

Mirror Essay -- essays research papers

In the first stanza, the "I am not cruel, only truthful" phrase reveals the mirror's personality and charter. Unlike humans a mirror cannot judge her with opinions. Sylvia Plath uses onomatopoeia to give the mirror human characteristics. On line five she writes "The eye of a little god, four-cornered" which shows that the mirror is given God-like powers over the women. It becomes almost an obsessive relationship between the mirror and the women because she looks to the mirror for comfort only to confronted with the truth about your youth wasting away. The mirror triggers conscious and unconscious memories of her life faithfully. On line thirteen it reads "I see her back, and reflect it faithfully" once again showing that truthful charter of the mirror. Regardless of the fact she hates her reflection the women becomes dependent on the mirror, and on line fifteen you can see that relationship were it says "I am important to her. She comes and goes." The phase "I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions." Shows that a mirror is not capable of showing anything else, then what is put in front of it. The mirror shows no color and has no preference. Although the mirror revels reality the women still clings to objects that blind her from the truth. In the second stanza, the phase "Then she turn to those liars, the candles or the moon" shows that the woman is attempting to hide her flaws behind the darkness. It is very ...

Alex Robbins.Durango Street

Durango Street Reading Log for Chapters 15, 16, 17 Character: Alex Robbins Alex Robbins is a social worker. His goal is to break up the gang â€Å"the moors†, but until chapter 17 he has no success. Alex Robbins is one of the main characters in the book, because he affects the gang â€Å"the moors†. In chapter 17 he is at Rufus’ home, because â€Å"The Gassers† cut the pigtail of Rufus’ sister. When Rufus comes home Alex Robbins is talking to his mother, that he wants to talk with â€Å"the Gassers† about what happened. But when Rufus asks about what happened, Alex tries to tell him a lie. But Rufus is smart and knows that he is telling a lie. After Rufus knows what happened, he is very angry and Alex sais that he wants to solve this issue, but Rufus sais that he has no idea of gangs. I think the idea of Alex is very absurd. In this case there is no way out. He can’t speak with the police, because it will make more problems. Alex also made a very inexperienced impression, when he talked the first time to â€Å"the moors†. Everybody laughed about him and he couldn’t accomplish himself. He seemed to be much untaught. He is a little bit the opposite of Rufus, who is very smart. Finally, I think Alex really wants to reach his goal to break up â€Å"the moors†, but he has to learn a lot, how to handle these guys.

Film Criteria Research Paper Example

Film Criteria Research Paper Example Film Criteria Paper Film Criteria Paper Running head Personal Film Evaluation Criteria Paper Personal Film Evaluation Criteria Paper Elizabeth Bryant University of Phoenix Personal Film Evaluation Criteria Flashing back on all the films I have watched over the years I never taken notice to analyze not one of them the way that I have learned in this film study course. My techniques used as of the present time for evaluation the qualities of films has just began because I have started this course. The way how I view films back then is totally different now. Throughout the five weeks of the course I have encountered several techniques and approaches to evaluate films. Viewing films goes deeper than the pleasure and enjoyment as a viewer one must be aware of other aspects and different approaches that go with filmmaking such as auteur cult, psychoanalytical, personality, humanistic, genre, political, gender, and eclectic. I will discuss auteur and genre this two are one of many techniques and approaches that influence my viewing the most. Auteur is one approach that seems to influences my viewing the most because just like a painting, writer, or a musician there is a distinctive difference in the style and practice in the word auteur and auteur theory is a film director who practice accords with the theory. : In others words instead of the actors or storyline bringing the moviegoers or audiences to the theaters it is the directory in auteur films that has this affect and effect. However, definitely consideration of the director’s five film depicts certain style is an auteur. The word auteur first coined to describe the mark of a film director on his films by Francois Truffaut. Therefore, when evaluating a film using the auteur approach, I must take a careful look into the directorial style, reflection of the director vision, the director’s strongest impressions, and personality, his or her unique creativity in shaping the material. Most noted auteur was Alfred Hitchcock, Frederico Fellini, and Satyajtt Ray. Another approach that influenced my viewing is the genre film and genre is a fundamental that means I communicate especially in storytelling unlike the approach to films in auteur theory. One is to focus one particular director on the films however; the genre opens up a much broader films range from different directors from different backgrounds. For example, a film that compared to direct horror movies, but raised in different eras ids described as a Wes Craven film. Although genre approach is developing his or her exceptions clearly stated, it also raises the questions whether expectations filled and that variations and innovations were present in the films. In conclusion, as students and film analysis or critics there are many techniques and approaches to analyzing films whether one is using a genre or auteur approach. Each of these approaches comes with questions to fill the needed exceptions of analyzing films. I can definitely say that my criteria for analyzing the quality of a film have changed because this course started. Meanwhile, when I am watching a film I will be looking at it them in a new prospected and not just the pleasure and enjoyment of the film. When I am watching a film I will look at them in a new prospected and not just the pleasure or enjoyment of the film. Analyzing films in-depth now helps me to have a clear understanding of the director intended purpose, plot, and plan of films I am not saying that all film will affect me in the same way but I need to stay opened-mined. References http://auteur. askdefine. com/ http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/film/ slate. com/id/2152404/

Becoming A Man essays

Becoming A Man essays A Day No Pigs Would Die is a story that Robert Peck wrote to show the reader his adolescent life, fate, and the journey from boyhood to manhood. Peck leads the reader through the intricate web of his youth, almost as though he were a stitching needle. The author makes sure not to miss a single stomach pumping detail, leaving the reader, well, not quite wanting more. As a young Shaker boy, Robert lived with his mother Lucy, father Haven, and his aunt carrie. The novel begins with a vivid scene in which he helps bring a calf into the world up on the ridge above their farm. The mother seemed to have been posessed by some force of the underworld, causing her, her calf, and Rob a great deal of pain. Robert learns at an early age the value of a simple life, hard work, and a strict moral code. While other boys his age spend their time playing, Robert helps his father on the farm and does his own daily chores, while raising a pig in hopes of supplementing the family income. The role fate plays in this story is Robert's future, and how he will make a living. He is destined to become a farmer just like his father, on the same land he grew up on. He knows that when his father dies, he will become the man of the house, and he will be in charge of his mother and his aunt. Robert would like very much to become famous, but he is resticted in that it is against his religion. Robert grows up feeling this constant sense of predestination, with his whole life planned out before his eyes only making him feel even more the urge to break free and live free. Robert's father becomes ill with a lung disease, and does all he can to help his son be ready to be the head of their household. Haven develops a cough, and eventually has to start sleeping out in the barn with the animals since it is warmer there, and he is worried about his wife becoming ill aswell. After a few years of preparation and rigorous teaching, Haven does not wake up one morning o...

How Would You Answer This Crazy Interview Question

How Would You Answer This Crazy Interview Question Unless you’re new to the job search game, you’ve probably been asked questions like, â€Å"Where do you see yourself in five years?† or â€Å"What are your best qualities?† You give the answers you rehearsed in front of your mirror- complete with a pageant-winning smile, of course- and everyone moves on. First thing first, make sure to review these hardest interview questions. But if an interviewer really wants to see how you think on your feet, they might surprise you with a moral dilemma. No better way to meet the real you than to get a sense of your most basic priorities, right? A popular anecdote making the rounds, reportedly from a real job application, goes something like this:You’re driving down a dark road, during a wild storm. You drive past a bench, with three people huddled miserably on it, waiting for a bus in the raging weather:An older lady who looks like she’s in distress, and possibly needs medical help.An old friend of yours who once saved your life.The man (or woman) of your dreams. Seriously, love at first sight material.Your tiny car has room for just one passenger (non-negotiable). So†¦ which one do you invite into the car?  If you choose the woman in distress, you’re a hero; if you leave her behind, you could be seen as a first-class heel. Or do you choose your old friend? You owe him a major favor, and you have a personal interest in this guy’s well-being. But then there’s your potential spouse, your possible future.What to do, what to do? You need to offer a well-reasoned response, but you have to do it fast.The winning answer earned the candidate a job offer: I’d get out of the car, and give the keys to my friend. He could drive the sick lady to the hospital, and I’d wait for the bus with the person of my dreams.Clever! So what can this teach us about moral dilemmas in job interviews? Well, for starters, I have yet to see an interview that’s reall y a life-or-death situation, so be creative! They’re testing your ability to think fast and solve problems. The very shrewd answer accomplishes two things:It shows flexible thinking. The candidate can read a number of different outcomes and find a solution that satisfies just about everyone involved.It’s memorable. Your job interview shouldn’t necessarily be an extension of your standup routine, but a bit of humor and smart thinking can make you stand out in a pack of similar candidates.So when you’re preparing for your next interview, be ready for some unorthodox questions. Who knows, your answer could be the next one going viral as â€Å"The best job interview answer ever!†

University should provide more online courses Essay

University should provide more online courses - Essay Example Introduction of online courses for those with special needs not only makes it an attractive package for students but also has great advantages to an institution such as student population growth and boosting the institution’s image. Furthermore, there has been significant growth in E-learning globally as from 2007, the number of students in the higher education sector has become a marketing tool if not a requirement. Disabilities are considered to be diverse thus a disability is defined as any physical, mental, sensory, or other existing impairment that is related to hearing, seeing, learning, speaking or physical mobility that may immensely affects one’s participation in social-cultural and economic aspects within a setting or society. (Turnbull 19) Many studies have pointed out the need for equality of students hence it should be noted that learning is a social-interaction process. It is therefore important to break the barrier that students who are challenged face in exercising their right to participation on all available platforms in a school setting, be it, leadership, projects, library access or class participation. There should be a platform that ensures that those with disabilities no longer feel inferior to their peers but can also perform on an equal level. 2. This objective would seek to look at the advantages that would benefit both the institution and the students with disabilities. It will address the roles both parties have to perform ensure success. enquiry for the next stages. Specifically, the research phase will cover information gathering on existing E-learning initiative for the last five years on a national level. This trend data should give a useful indication of the viability of the platform. In an attempt to make the learning process better and satisfy learning needs, elements such as infrastructure, learning outcomes and the local context need

Do u agree or disagree with Boethius view on free will Essay

Do u agree or disagree with Boethius view on free will - Essay Example Most certainly, free will is practical, and the independence of choice by people to embrace virtue is a factor reliant on the exercise of free choice of the will. The choice to do the unethical is also subject to the free will and decision of an individual. All humanity is rational, and the choice to do evil does not come from God. If humans were to follow the will of God, there would be no evil. Therefore, the presence of evil in the society emanates from the authority of humans to observe the free choice of the will. The free choice of the will of individuals may be compromised because of the desires that humans possess. The passion possessed by individuals explains their how their desires drive them to commit evil despite God’s wish for humanity to prevail. Even so, there is no connection of God with the evil and all source of evil is from free choice of the will that individuals posses. God bears no responsibility for the actions of humans. The relationship that humans hav e, with God, requires the need to practice virtue. God does not require humans to compromise the free choice of will to have intolerable conducts in the society. The determination of causation in humans has unlimited provisions, and understanding is of basis of establishing what is better than the other is. This entails a succinct understanding of the ability of humans to launch detailed and comprehensive inquiry in a concern or problem. The voluntary decisions of the mind render the determination of the problem causation an unlimited endeavor. The notion of necessity and causation of phenomena or a problem has virtually no end and any inquiry would turn to end at supposition (Cahn 869). The only way to determine problem causation is to bring the diverse causes to narrow positions and assume that the unit used is representative enough to believe in the cause. Determination of causation refers to the notion that every action of humans is unavoidable. Free choice of will has an effect on the determination of causation. Every event has a cause, the basis of which its necessity originates. Human actions emanate from the causes, and their fulfillment is out of free choice of the will. The causes of the various actions of humans are the necessitating factors that motivate the observance of the free choice of will. In response to the question of necessity and liberty of the mind, there is a distinct relationship between necessity and the free choice of the will. Necessity refers to the factor that adjoins the cause and the effects of a choice. Since the mind possesses the freedom of choice, liberty is a creation of necessity. It is on liberty of mind that the proof of free choice finds its basis. It entails the capacity to pursue the diverse actions we have according to the forces dictated by the will. That is, if one chooses to advance an issue, he or she enjoys the freedom. Similarly, if the same person chooses to reverse the decision, they would enjoy the same lev el of freedom to do so as they would to perform the contrary (Cahn 869). That would offer a ten tentative means of determining free will. Since liberty of the mind and necessity have relationships, and God has a dictation on necessity, then God has control over the liberty of the mind. If necessity was to demand evil, liberty of mind that acts on the necessity would lead to choice of the evil. The relationship between necessity and liberty of mind may be a reason for immoral conducts of humans. Ethics and religion, in any society, show

Is there a need for Public Health Nutritionists to be accredited as a Essay

Is there a need for Public Health Nutritionists to be accredited as a regulated and professional body in the UK Discuss - Essay Example On the other hand, a growing number of information is now accessible through internet and various media types. There is then a conflict on who to believe when it comes to nutrition. In this case, although voluntary registration appropriately assesses capabilities of public health nutritionists, there is still a need for mandatory regulation and accreditation as a professional body in United Kingdom that will address the complex nutritional demands of its citizens. British culture in relation to food made some gradual alterations. As surmised by Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (2008), â€Å"there is a healthier pattern of intake†¦ but there is still need for immediate actions to ensure further improvements in patterns of food consumption and intake of several nutrients.† In this area, although progress has taken place, guidance to guarantee its continued rise is still required. The role of organizations is to keep up with the current trend. Presently, the Nutrition Society is the leading organization in the â€Å"advancement of scientific study of nutrition and its application to the maintenance of human and animal health† (Buttriss & Daniels, 2003). This ensures proper screening of individuals and legal organizations in nutrition and related fields. The said organization offers a voluntary approach in registration processes, wherein â€Å"assessment mechanisms focuses on attainment of minimum standard of compete ncy in knowledge, skills, and attitudes on the required tasks† (Davies, Margetts & Hughes, n.d.). The minimal techniques employed seemed to contradict the graveness of the situation involving the present overall nutritional status of British people. Specifically, Nutrition Society initially was in charge during the creation of voluntary registration for public health nutrition (PHN). In an article entitled Overview of the Public Health Nutrition Landscape (Anon., n.d.), it defined public health nutrition as

Discuss the overall trend in postwar aggregate productivity in the US Essay

Discuss the overall trend in postwar aggregate productivity in the US - Essay Example labor has been averaging around slightly above one percent faster than MFP: from 1953-2012, labor productivity grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent per year, and MFP grew at an annual average rate of 1.1 percent per year ().this projects a volatile economic growth rate annually. The volatility could be attributed to measurement error in estimation arising from both series. Getting an accurate measurement of these rates is a daunting task given the fluctuations in the rates market. Another reason stems from the fact that series have certain gas between then that cyclical. To illustrate this, consider when the MFP growth fell—in fact, took on negative values—during the recessions that started in 1969, 1980-81, 1990, and 2007 ().the negative values are an indication of how less optimal the inputs have become in yielding the expected returns. Besides, a negative MFP growth can also arise from variation in the utilization rates of capital and labor over the business cycle (). In the last 60 years the long-term mean growth rates of labor productivity and MFP have varied substantially in three episodes. In the initial episode, the 1950s through early 1970s, there was a high growth of MFP.MFP growth averaged at 1.7 percent per year from 1953 through 1972. In the next episode, from the late 1970s through early 1990s, there were lower MFP growth with an average of 0.5% annually. In the last episode, from the mid-1990s up to now, experiencing an intermediate level of MFP growth of 1.0%

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

Review - Essay Example The organizational model provided by Miner also provides for evolution by providing for these three aspects of structural change in processes. Formalized job systems that are coordinated by management form the basis for replication of job activities. Variation in these processes is provided for through idiosyncratic jobs created specifically around particular people. The mechanisms in place for elimination of some processes over time is achieved in the model through managerial actions such as layoffs, budget changes and reorganization, so that some jobs are selectively retained while others which are not beneficial for further evolution of the organization are eliminated. This study is important because it demonstrates how strategic planning or organizational change and evolution requires the establishment of clear and stable goals. As a result, to some extent formalization of internal organizational processes is necessary, and this does not necessarily deter the process of evolutionary change. Since some processes within the organization are created through the process of innovation in responses to they changes in the environment, these processes must be formalized in order to ensure that useful activities are identified and preserved, so that they continue to contribute to organizational efficiency. The model proposed by the author has provided concrete mechanisms to deal with the issue of selective job retention, through the establishment of definite boundaries and providing for adaptation, while also clarifying that such adaptations are not necessarily guaranteed, because they will depend upon the environment and the feasibility of carrying them out†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦345 words 2. The article by R.M. Cantor (2003) deals with the changes in organizational pathology that occur when a distressed organization is turned around from failure and set on the

A press kit about Intensive English Program (IEP) at Western Assignment

A press kit about Intensive English Program (IEP) at Western Washington University (WWU) - Assignment Example Pitch letter Western Washington University ‘Western Front’ [Date] Karen Smith Communications Facility 255 Western Washington University (360) 650-3252 Dear Ms. Smith, On November 11, 2013 Open Doors – an Institute for International Education published a report indicating the drastic rise in the number of international students at colleges and universities across the United States with most of the growth driven by students from non-English speaking countries i.e., China and Saudi Arabia, for the 7th consecutive year. The Western Washington University currently houses 63 international students from over 15 countries including Libya, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Russia, Germany, Italy, Venezuela, Columbia, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Kuwait, and Japan. Such influx of international students is indicative of a trend that demands a supportive framework in the form of a formal educational / training program tailored to suit the English language needs of such students. The Intensive English Program at the WWU (Western Washington University) in Bellingham is designed especially for international students offering a mix of educational and non-educational programs for students as well as professionals. This program would benefit not only the prospective students planning to enrol in graduate and post-graduate courses but also those intending on learning English purely for business and / or social communication purposes. The program aims to welcome all international applicants including those who do not meet the university's English language requirement and offer appropriate courses for preparation. The IEP promises to open a world of possibilities for all those aspiring to learn the English language from a group of well-qualified and dedicated staff with impressive professional achievements in the field of language teaching. The process of application is relatively easy and does not require the submission of IELTS or TOEFL test scores. Evan Ryan - Assistant secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs stated that "International education promotes the relationship building and knowledge exchange between people and communities in the United States and around the world that are necessary to solve global challenges". An English language program such as the IEP is a step forward in that direction. The Western Front has had an impressive history of catering to its vast student community and has consistently been a source of vital information for them for over 3 decades now. We are sure that the readers of The Western Front would want to access more information about IEP and we look forward to addressing all their queries and concerns in whatever we can. Please do feel free to contact - [include name here], principal / co-ordinator [of the program] at [insert phone number here]. For further information about the program, and other related issues we invite you to explore our website at: [insert link here] or contac t us directly at: [insert email here] for an opportunity to discuss it further. Regards, [Name] [Phone Number] [Organization] 2. Press Release The Bellingham Herald 1155 N. State St., Bellingham, WA 98225 Celebrating 30 glorious years of one of the most popular and highly successful educational programs – the Intensive English Program, offered at the country’s best learning institutions- The Western Washington University, Bellingham. The Intensive English Program offered at the Western Washington University's Bellingham campus offers a variety of programs aimed at regular and degree program students with at least 23 hours of instruction per week. WASHINGTON, Date: _ _/_ _/ _ _ _ _ There has been a steady rise in the number of international students in colleges and universities across United States. In the academic

Discuss the overall trend in postwar aggregate productivity in the US Essay

Discuss the overall trend in postwar aggregate productivity in the US - Essay Example labor has been averaging around slightly above one percent faster than MFP: from 1953-2012, labor productivity grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent per year, and MFP grew at an annual average rate of 1.1 percent per year ().this projects a volatile economic growth rate annually. The volatility could be attributed to measurement error in estimation arising from both series. Getting an accurate measurement of these rates is a daunting task given the fluctuations in the rates market. Another reason stems from the fact that series have certain gas between then that cyclical. To illustrate this, consider when the MFP growth fell—in fact, took on negative values—during the recessions that started in 1969, 1980-81, 1990, and 2007 ().the negative values are an indication of how less optimal the inputs have become in yielding the expected returns. Besides, a negative MFP growth can also arise from variation in the utilization rates of capital and labor over the business cycle (). In the last 60 years the long-term mean growth rates of labor productivity and MFP have varied substantially in three episodes. In the initial episode, the 1950s through early 1970s, there was a high growth of MFP.MFP growth averaged at 1.7 percent per year from 1953 through 1972. In the next episode, from the late 1970s through early 1990s, there were lower MFP growth with an average of 0.5% annually. In the last episode, from the mid-1990s up to now, experiencing an intermediate level of MFP growth of 1.0%

A press kit about Intensive English Program (IEP) at Western Assignment

A press kit about Intensive English Program (IEP) at Western Washington University (WWU) - Assignment Example Pitch letter Western Washington University ‘Western Front’ [Date] Karen Smith Communications Facility 255 Western Washington University (360) 650-3252 Dear Ms. Smith, On November 11, 2013 Open Doors – an Institute for International Education published a report indicating the drastic rise in the number of international students at colleges and universities across the United States with most of the growth driven by students from non-English speaking countries i.e., China and Saudi Arabia, for the 7th consecutive year. The Western Washington University currently houses 63 international students from over 15 countries including Libya, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Russia, Germany, Italy, Venezuela, Columbia, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Kuwait, and Japan. Such influx of international students is indicative of a trend that demands a supportive framework in the form of a formal educational / training program tailored to suit the English language needs of such students. The Intensive English Program at the WWU (Western Washington University) in Bellingham is designed especially for international students offering a mix of educational and non-educational programs for students as well as professionals. This program would benefit not only the prospective students planning to enrol in graduate and post-graduate courses but also those intending on learning English purely for business and / or social communication purposes. The program aims to welcome all international applicants including those who do not meet the university's English language requirement and offer appropriate courses for preparation. The IEP promises to open a world of possibilities for all those aspiring to learn the English language from a group of well-qualified and dedicated staff with impressive professional achievements in the field of language teaching. The process of application is relatively easy and does not require the submission of IELTS or TOEFL test scores. Evan Ryan - Assistant secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs stated that "International education promotes the relationship building and knowledge exchange between people and communities in the United States and around the world that are necessary to solve global challenges". An English language program such as the IEP is a step forward in that direction. The Western Front has had an impressive history of catering to its vast student community and has consistently been a source of vital information for them for over 3 decades now. We are sure that the readers of The Western Front would want to access more information about IEP and we look forward to addressing all their queries and concerns in whatever we can. Please do feel free to contact - [include name here], principal / co-ordinator [of the program] at [insert phone number here]. For further information about the program, and other related issues we invite you to explore our website at: [insert link here] or contac t us directly at: [insert email here] for an opportunity to discuss it further. Regards, [Name] [Phone Number] [Organization] 2. Press Release The Bellingham Herald 1155 N. State St., Bellingham, WA 98225 Celebrating 30 glorious years of one of the most popular and highly successful educational programs – the Intensive English Program, offered at the country’s best learning institutions- The Western Washington University, Bellingham. The Intensive English Program offered at the Western Washington University's Bellingham campus offers a variety of programs aimed at regular and degree program students with at least 23 hours of instruction per week. WASHINGTON, Date: _ _/_ _/ _ _ _ _ There has been a steady rise in the number of international students in colleges and universities across United States. In the academic

Bachelor Degree Essay Example for Free

Bachelor Degree Essay The need for competent bedside nurses has drastically increased and so will it continue in the future. The level of basic education that a nurse should have has always been an issue of debate and controversy. The ADN program is shorter and more concise which focuses on the clinical skills and is more tasks oriented. It lacks the theory and science behind nursing as a profession. ADN nurses usually have 2-3 years education and are focused to provide individualized care to their patients based on their diagnosis. The BSN program is a four-year degree, which is knowledge, theory and research based and the emphasis is on the entire picture of the field of nursing. The BSN nurse would use the researching and critical thinking background of her education to care for patients. Many do not realize there is a difference between the two. Both associate degree graduate and baccalaureate degree graduates take the same NCLEX board exam for licensing and enter the same job. Unlike associate-degree nursing programs where the nurses function primarily at the bedside in less complex patient care situations, the BSN program prepares the nurse to practice in all health care settings critical care, outpatient care, public health, and mental health. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has posted a detailed position statement (2000) and fact sheet (2010) on their websites endorsing the position that the minimum entry level requirement for nurses be a BSN degree. The BSN nurse is well-qualified to deliver care in private homes, outpatient centers, and neighborhood clinics where demand is fast expanding as hospitals focus increasingly on acute care and as health care moves beyond the hospital to more primary and preventive services throughout the community. At increasing numbers of hospitals nationwide, baccalaureate-prepared nurses are being utilized in ways that recognize their different educational preparation and competency from associate-degree nurses. In these differentiated practice models, BSN nurses not only provide more complex aspects of daily care and patient education, but also design and coordinate a comprehensive plan of nursing care for the entire length of a patients stay from pre-admission to post-discharge including supervising nurse’s aides and other unlicensed assistive personnel, designing discharge and teaching plans for patients, and collaborating with patients, physicians, family members, and other hospital departments and resource personnel. Evidence shows that nursing education level is a factor in patient safety and quality of care. As cited in the report When Care Becomes a Burden released by the Milbank Memorial Fund in 2001, two separate studies conducted in 1996 – one by the state of New York and one by the state of Texas – clearly show that significantly higher levels of medication errors and procedural violations are committed by nurses prepared at the associate degree and diploma levels as compared with the baccalaureate level. These findings are consistent with findings published in the July/August 2002 issue of Nurse Educator magazine that references studies conducted in Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Ohio and Tennessee that also found that nurses prepared at the associate degree and diploma levels make the majority of practice-related violations. AACN and other authorities believe that education has a strong impact on a nurse’s ability to practice, and that patients deserve the best educated nursing workforce possible. A growing body of research reinforces this belief and shows a connection between baccalaureate education and lower mortality rates. Baccalaureate nursing programs encompass all of the course work taught in associate degree and diploma programs plus a more in-depth treatment of the physical and social sciences, nursing research, public and community health, nursing management, and the humanities. The additional course work enhances the student’s professional development, prepares the new nurse for a broader scope of practice, and provides the nurse with a better understanding of the cultural, political, economic, and social issues that affect patients and influence health care delivery. Throughout the last decade, policymakers and practice leaders have recognized that education makes a difference. (http://www. aacn. nche. edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/impact-of-education. References http://www. aacn. nche. edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/impact-of-education. (n. d). The Impact of Education on Nursing Practice . Retrieved May 21, 2013, from http://www. aacn. nche. edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/impact-of-education.

Non-Audit Services (NAS) Impact on Auditor Quality

Non-Audit Services (NAS) Impact on Auditor Quality The provision of Non-Audit Services (NAS) by auditors to their audit clients reduces total costs, increases technical competence and motivates more intense competition. However, the recent corporate collapses in the US, Australia and elsewhere, was surprising our attention. The issue of Enron arouses great concerns on corporate governance revealing the audit independence problem when CPAs provide audit and NAS for the same clients. In the view of the fact, now a days because of NAS, the audit practice is questionable, whereas third parties believe that without independence, there is no value for accounting and auditing practices (Salehi, M., 2009). Therefore, regulatory has been drawn to the issues of auditor provided NAS and audit quality. In fact, these services do not necessarily damage auditor independence or the quality of NAS. Because of that, this paper contributes to seen the impact of NAS on auditor quality. INTRODUCTION OF NON-AUDIT SERVICES Traditionally, audits have provided Certified Public Accountant (CPA) firms with a large percentage of their overall revenues. However, for many years consulting services constituted a relatively minor portion of the firms revenues. In recent years, firms have expanded the scope of services they offer to audit and other clients such as NAS. Today NAS provided more than 50 percent (%) or more of the total revenues earned by the CPA firms. As Accounting Today in USA (2001, April) states, the income of accounting firms in 2000 showed that the proportion of international and national assurance service was 35%, whereas that of tax advisory service and management advisory service accounted for 21% and 44% respectively. It shows that management advisory service has become the source of total income of accounting firms. NAS generally refer to the services above or beyond the related audit services or services other than traditional CPA work. Many scholars in their studies use different terms for some relevant issues, namely Management Advisory Services (MAS) and Management Consulting Service (MCS). According to Purcell and Lifison (2003), NAS as traditional CPA works including assurance, investment assurance, commerce registration and accounting affairs, tax advisory service, management advisory service, finance and investment advisory service, public offering, mergers and acquisitions services, information technology advisory service and others. However, there are three basic principles of the prohibition of specified NAS is predicated: An auditor cannot function in the role of management; An auditor cannot audit its own work; and An auditor cannot serve in an advocacy role for its client. Most of the firms growth comes from NAS that CPAs provide for their clients when dealing with auditing affairs (Purcell and Lifison, 2003). So, what the motivation and attraction in provision of NAS to companies? Firth (1997a) contends that companies usually entrust outside consultants/firms for service in the following situation: One-off assignments Urgent problems Expert techniques Arbitrating initial disputes Seeking advise Decrease the risk overall management The economic causes for offering NAS include; Growth opportunities Personnel attraction and retention Meeting clients needs Risk diversification opportunities The Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002 states that NAS provided to a client should not be more than 5% of the total auditors remuneration; otherwise, the client must obtain pre-approval from its audit committee, as non-audit fees paid in excess of this percentage would deem the auditor as not being independent. In Malaysia, under Malaysian Institute of Accountant (MIA) suggests that audit firms should not accept any appointment if they are also providing NAS to a client; whereby the provision of NAS would create a significant threat to their professional independence, integrity and objectivity. Effective June 1, 2001, Bursa Malaysia (previously known as Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange or KLSE) requires all listed companies to disclose non-audit fees in their annual reports. This is to protect shareholders interests and to increase corporate transparency. Consistent with the practices in other Commonwealth countries such as Australia and the United Kingdom (UK), which also have made it a requirement that non-audit fees of listed companies to be disclosed in the annual report. THE ISSUES OF NON-AUDIT SERVICES The main question/issue that arises when auditors provide or could provide both audit and NAS is whether the auditors are able to conduct their audits impartially, without being concerned about losing or failing to gain additional services, and the subsequent economic implications for the audit firm (Lee, 1993). Auditors seek to provide NAS because of the considerable economies of scope that ensue, i.e. cost savings that arise when both types of service are provided by the same firm. However, the result from several researchers show that the joint provision of audit and non-audit services gives rise to economic rents, which create incentives for audit firms to compromise their objectivity, e.g., waive audit adjustments, to retain audit clients (Palmrose 1986; Simunic 1984). For disclosure of NAS, investors should have enough information to enable them to evaluate the independence of a companys auditors. The proposed rules would bring the benefits of sunlight to the auditor independence area by requiring companies to disclose in their annual proxy statements certain information about, among other things, the NAS provided by their auditors and the participation of leased personnel in performing the companys annual audit. Generally a company required to disclose the fee paid for each NAS performed by its auditor and the fee charged for the annual audit. An exception to these general disclosure requirements is that issuers would not have to describe a NAS, nor disclose the fee for that service. In NAS and its independence, England and Australia have asked companies to publish audit and NAS fee in their annual financial report. According to Dopuch et al (2003) found that disclosure of NAS reduced the accuracy of investors beliefs of auditors independence in fact when independence in appearance was inconsistent with independence in fact. THE EFFECT OF NON-AUDIT SERVICES The dramatic increase in the nature, number, and monetary value of NAS that accounting firms provide to audit clients seen may affect their independence. Accordingly, the proposals specify certain NAS that, if provided by an accounting firm to an audit client, impair an auditors independence. Sami and Zhang (2003) investigated the effect of non-audit services on the backdrop of SECs revised rule that stressed perceived audit independence. They suggested that investors perceive that NAS impair auditors independence. According to Defond et.al. (2000) regulators are concerned about two effects of NAS. One is a fear that NAS fees make auditors financially dependent on their clients, and hence less willing to stand up to management pressure for fear of losing their business. The other is that the consulting nature of many NAS put auditors in managerial role. From the SEC regulations mandating fee disclosures (SEC, 2000), Auditors services relationship raises two types of independence concerns. First, more the auditor has at stake in its dealing with the audit client, particularly when the NAS relationship has the potential to generate significant revenues on top of the audit relationship. Second, certain types of NAS, when provided by the auditor, create inherent conflicts that are incompatible with objectivity. While, according to Firth (1997b), synergy would occur between auditor and auditee when an accounting firm provides audit and NAS simultaneously and consequently it would influence independe nce of auditor. Simunic (1984) indicates that CPA providing NAS would decrease the possibility for presenting the true financial statements and would influence the users of the statements on the recognition of CPA independence. It would further affect audit quality, the reliability of financial statements and the judgment of decision-making. How NAS Can Affect Auditor Independence? The dramatic expansion of NAS may fundamentally alter the relationships between auditors and their audit clients in two principal ways. First, as auditing becomes an ever-smaller portion of a firms business with its audit clients, auditors become increasingly vulnerable to economic pressures from audit clients. Large non-audit engagements may make it harder for auditors to be objective when examining their clients financial statements. Under any circumstances, it can be difficult for an auditor to make a judgment that works against the audit clients interest. Where making that judgment may imperil a range of service engagements of the firm, of which the audit is a fairly small part, it may be unrealistic to expect that an auditor can ignore completely what the firm stands to lose by the auditors action. Second, certain NAS, by their very nature, raise independence issues. Providing certain NAS to an audit client can lead an audit firm to have a mutual or conflicting interest with the client, audit its own work, advocate a position for the client, or function as an employee or management of the client. However, not all NAS pose the same risk to independence. Only these specific NAS that impair independence, namely: Bookkeeping or other services related to the audit clients accounting records or financial statements of the company. The prohibited services are: (a) Maintaining or preparing the companys accounting records; (b) Preparing the financial statements or the information that forms the basis of the financial statements that are required by the company and; (c) Preparing or originating source data underlying the companys financial statements. Design and implementation of financial information systems that aggregate source data or generate information that is significant to the financial statements taken as a whole, unless it is reasonable to conclude that the results of these services will not be subject to audit procedures during the audit of the companys financial statements. This rule does not preclude the external auditors from working on hardware or software systems that are unrelated to the companys financial statements or accounting records. Appraisal or valuation services, fairness opinions or contribution-in-kind reports or other opinions or reports in which the external auditors provide an opinion on the adequacy of consideration in a transaction, unless it is reasonable to conclude that the results of these services will not be subject to audit procedures during the audit of the companys financial statements. This rule does not prohibit the external auditors firm from providing such services for non-financial reporting purposes (e.g., transfer pricing studies, cost segregation studies and other tax-only valuations). Actuarial services involving amounts recorded in the financial statements and related accounts for the company where it is reasonably likely that the results of these services will be subject to audit procedures during an audit of the companys financial statements. This prohibition extends to providing the company with any actuarially-oriented advisory service involving the determination of amounts recorded in the financial statements and related accounts for the company other than assisting the company in understanding the methods, models, assumptions and inputs used in computing an amount. Internal audit outsourcing services relating to the internal accounting controls, financial systems or financial statements of the company. This prohibition on outsourcing does not preclude the external auditors from providing attest services related to internal controls, evaluating the companys internal controls during the audit or making recommendations for improvements to the controls, or management from engaging the external auditors to perform agreed-upon procedures engagements related to the companys internal controls. Management functions. This rule prohibits the external auditors from acting, temporarily or permanently, as a director, officer or employee of the company or performing any decision making, supervisory or monitoring function for the company. However, the external auditors may assess the effectiveness of the companys internal controls and recommend improvements in the design and implementation of internal controls and risk management controls. Human resources functions. The external auditors may not seek out prospective candidates for managerial, executive or director positions, act as negotiator on the companys behalf such as determining position, compensation or fringe benefits or other conditions of employment or undertake reference checks of prospective candidates. The external auditors may also not engage in psychological testing or other formal testing or evaluation or recommend or advise the company to hire a specific candidate for a specific job. Broker or dealer, investment adviser, or investment banking services. The external auditors are prohibited from serving as promoter or underwriter, making investment decisions on behalf of the company or otherwise having discretionary authority over the companys investments, or executing a transaction to buy or sell an investment of the company, or having custody of assets of the company. Legal services that could be provided only by someone licensed, admitted or otherwise qualified to practice law in the jurisdiction in which the service is provided. Expert services in an advocacy capacity unrelated to the audit. This precludes engagements that are intended to result in the external audit firms specialized knowledge, experience and expertise being used to support the audit clients positions in adversarial proceedings. This prohibits the external auditors from providing expert opinions or other services to the company or a legal representative of the company for the purpose of advocating the companys interests in litigation, or regulatory or administrative investigations or proceedings. This rule does not however preclude the company from engaging the external auditors to perform internal investigations or fact-finding engagements including forensic work and using the results of this work in subsequently initiated proceedings or investigations. Any other service that the Audit Committee determines is impermissible. According to Zulkarnain (2006), in Malaysia, scholars reported that only a small number of the shareholders and auditors that participated in their study believed that NAS provision increased their confidence in auditor independence. On the other hand, Teoh and Lim (1996) found that the provision of NAS was ranked as the second most important factor that undermines auditor independence. Arrunada (1999) pointed out that joint provision of audit and NAS would reduce overall costs, raises the technical quality of auditing, enhance competition and need not prejudice auditor independence or the quality of NAS, which would ultimately increase auditor independence (Goldman and Barlev, 1974). Based on the standard organization analysis, Arrunada (1999) showed that cost savings gained from the joint provision of audit and NAS will be transferred to customers as a decrease in price in both markets, and also that the provision of NAS would result in an increase in client- and firm-specific assets, where firm-specific assets would always have a positive effect on independence. This argument is supported by Grout et al. (1994), who argued that permitting auditors to perform joint services would reduce auditors dependence on a single client and encourage them to diversify as a consequence. Opponents to the joint provision of audit and NAS claimed that auditors would not perform their audit services objectively and that joint provision would impair perceived independence because ultimately they would be auditing their own work or acting as management (SEC, 2001), and managements power over the auditor could be increased due to auditors reliance on fees received (Canning and Gwilliam, 1999). Thus, it may influence their mental attitude, impartiality and objectivity, and independence of thought and action (Flint, 1988). The year 2002 had seen the biggest corporate collapses in the United States history that have raised lots of questions regarding auditors independence. For example, Arthur Andersen, being the auditor of the three biggest bankruptcies, Enron, WorldCom and Global Crossing, was heavily criticized for the collapses. It is said that Andersen was purportedly stressing more on non-audit services (NAS) than the audit itself. Auditing profession as a whole has been badly blamed for the collapses and changes were being proposed to ensure that audit firms reduce their over-reliance on NAS (The Star, 2002). As a result, to ensure the independence of auditors and to protect the interest of investors, the accounting profession in most countries has come up with a code of ethics as a guidelines for auditors competency and independence. In Malaysia, under MIA rules that become effective January 15, 2002, professional independence is considered impaired if total fees arising from provision of NAS to a client is 20% or more of the audit firms total annual fees received for two or more consecutive years. Before 2001, the regulators in Malaysia emphasized only on the disclosure of audit fees in the companies annual reports, as required by the Companies Act 1965. Several studies have examined whether the provision of non-audit services impairs audit quality. However, the previous studies report seems conflict in the results depending on the proxy of audit quality used. Teoh and Lim (1996) found that the disclosure on non-audit fees would influence and impair audit independence. A survey done by Gul and Teoh (1986) in Malaysia, suggests that the provision of NAS reduces public confidence in auditors independence. The auditor can be interpreted to compromise its independence if the provision of NAS is significantly tied to the issuance of clean audit opinion. Wines (1994) found that the auditors of those companies that received clean reports over the period derived a significantly higher proportion of their remuneration from NAS fees than the auditors of companies that received at least one audit qualification. This finding suggests that auditors are less likely to give qualified reports to clients financial statements when high levels of NAS f ees are involved. Firth (2002) found that companies that have relatively high consultancy fees are more likely to receive a clean audit opinion due to the non-audit work clearing up problem areas at the client company; or it might be due to high consultancy fees, thus impairing auditor independence. Ayoib, Rohami and Nor (2006) suggests that non-Big Five auditors are less independent when issuing audit reports for NAS purchased companies. This is also consistent with the preposition that large auditors are more independent than smaller auditors (DeAngelo, 1981). The results imply that audit opinion is dependent on the amount of NAS fee. It could be argued that small auditors could not resist against management pressure when issuing qualified opinion. Frankel, Johnson and Nelson (2002) suggest that their results provide evidence that auditor independence is compromised when clients pay high nonaudit fees relative to total fees. Securities and Exchange Commissions (SEC) concern about the growth of nonaudit fees relative to audit fees during the 1990s (e.g., see Levitt 2000). The SECs concern that the growth in the provision of nonaudit services compromises audit firm independence is based on the premise that the provision of nonaudit services increases the fees paid to the audit firm thereby increasing the economic dependence of the audit firm on the client. Based on the use of discretionary accruals and earnings benchmarks as proxies for biased financial reporting, Hollis, Ryan and Brian (2003) find evidence supporting the claim that auditors violate their independence as the result of clients paying high fees or having high fee ratios. DeAngelo (1981) models that as the economic bond between the audit firm and client increases the audit firms dependence on the client increases. Nonaudit fees further increase the client auditor bond by increasing the portion of audit firm wealth derived from a client (Simunic 1984; Beck et al. 1988). Nonaudit fees can also threaten independence when clients use them as contingent fees. Magee and Tseng (1990) note that while contingent fees are explicitly prohibited by audit standards, clients can create contingent fees by withholding profitable nonaudit services when the auditor does not allow the client to report its preferred financial condition. Costs and Benefits of Restricting Certain Non-Audit Services (proposals by SEC) There is increasing concern that the growth of NAS provided to audit clients affects the independence of auditors. If investors lose confidence in auditors ability or willingness to provide an unbiased and impartial examination of companies financial statements, then investors trust in the reliability of publicly available financial information, and in the integrity of the securities markets, may be damaged. Currently, accounting firms may not provide certain services to their audit clients without impairing their independence. The Securities Exchange and Commission (SEC) proposals extend and clarify those restrictions that should be used to evaluate the effect of NAS on an auditors independence and by designating certain NAS that if performed by an auditor for an SEC registrant that is an audit client, impair the auditors independence. The SECs proposals on the provision of NAS may affect to: 1. Benefits (a) Investors. For the reasons explained above, the SEC believes that the proposals will enhance auditor independence and thereby enhance the reliability and credibility of financial statements of public companies. SEC expect these benefits to inure primarily to investors who, if the proposals are adopted, should be able to review public companies financial statements with greater assurance that reliance on the statements will lead to more informed investment decisions. (b) Public Accounting Firms. SEC anticipates that the proposals will confer two primary benefits on public accounting firms: The proposals should clarify what NAS may be provided to an audit client without jeopardizing auditor independence. The proposals could improve competition in the market for the provision of NAS by public accounting firms. Because the restrictions on providing NAS to an audit client would apply equally to all accounting firms, the overall impact of the proposed restrictions may be to re-distribute the restricted NAS among the public accounting firms. 2. Costs SEC proposals on NAS may impose costs on issuers and public accounting firms. (a) Issuers. The proposed amendments have the effect of restricting issuers from purchasing certain NAS from their auditors. (b) Public Accounting Firms. Some public accounting firms provide a wide variety of services both to audit and non-audit clients. Our scope of services proposals is likely to affect these firms in several ways. The primary cost for these firms is that they individually may lose one source of revenue because they will no longer be able to sell certain NAS to their audit clients. CONCLUSION In conclusion, evidence suggests that although auditors have market based incentives to remain independent, auditor independence may be threaten when an auditor provide NAS to their clients and is reasonable that the NAS actually impair independence and quality of auditor. Hillison and Kennelley (1988) had recommended three additional alternatives to a total prohibition of NAS provision to audit clients: Offer NAS to non-audit clients only, Prohibit certain types of NAS, or Permit all types of NAS with full disclosure requirements. However, some professional and academic seen it seemed not much enough to protect auditor independence and It would further affect auditor quality. Thus, national and international professions should be redefined accounting and auditing regulation as well as scanted new regulation regarding to NAS and giving clear picture about that services to auditors as well as investors and heavy penalties, to whom overriding these regulation.