bell jar Essays (705 words) - Julius And Ethel Rosenberg

The Bell Jar: A Coming of Age Story Every adolescent experiences the coming-of-age period differently. Some sail through this period with nothing more than a few bumps on the road where as others find it tremendously stressful and painful. The coming-of-age for Esther Greenwood in Sylvia Plath?s The Bell Jar is extremely challenging and at times, life-threatening. In her struggle, Esther contemplates suicide and makes several attempts to end her life. Even though The Bell Jar takes place in the 1950s does not mean that this book is outdated. What it has to say about adolescence, gender roles, identity, society, sex, and pressures to succeed remain particularly relevant today as much as they were back then. The journey through adolescence was as rocky in the 1950s as they are now. While not every adolescent is suffering from extreme depression and has suicidal thoughts, young girls and women can relate to Esther and her struggles with herself and how she fits into the world around her. Every teenage girl has that one thing about herself that she doesn?t like or had that one friend who was better than them is some aspect or other. In the beginning of the book, Esther tells the reader about her beautiful and witty friend Doreen. Doreen is beautiful in a way that Esther isn?t and therefore Doreen seems to get the men?s attention. ?Doreen looked terrific. She was wearing a strapless white lace dress zipped up over a snug corset affair that curved her in the middle and bulged her out again spectacularly above and below? In comparison to Doreen, Esther said that she herself looked like a boy and was ?barely rippled.? Girls can easily relate to the feeling of inferiority. Girls can also relate to the scene where Esther was a third-wheel. ?There is something demoralizing about watching two people get more and more crazy about each other, especially when you are the extra person in the room.? Identity is something all people will struggle with at least one point in their lives. The 1950s was an era of restrictions on women and social confusion of gender roles. In The Bell Jar, Esther faces many choices and decisions that deal with her future, and consequently, the rest of her life. Her lack of identity and her indecision causes her mental breakdown. Esther?s growing disconnection and uncertainty in life is portrayed when she says ?I felt like a race horse in a world without racetracks or a champion college footballer suddenly confronted by Wall Street and a business suit, his days of glory shrunk to a little gold cup on his mantel with a date engraved on it like a date on a tombstone.? Identity, pressures to succeed, and gender roles are still a huge source of frustration for adolescents. Many of us understand what it is like to not know what you want to do with your life. Women today still sometimes have to choose between a family and a career. Numerous college students do not know what career or major to choose. Countless people feel the overwhelming pressure to succeed and choose a path for themselves. These frustrations are shared with Esther. An example of this would be her metaphor of the fig tree. ?I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked?.I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn?t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.? Another example is when she tells Buddy ?If neurotic is wanting two mutually exclusive things at one and the same time, then I'm neurotic as hell. I'll be flying back and forth between one mutually exclusive thing and another f or the rest of my days.?

Abolitionism essays

Abolitionism essays During the nineteenth century the United States of America was experiencing a period of transition. There were many attempts at reform to rebuild the nation and the issue of slavery was a major factor. Massachusetts born abolitionist, William Lloyd Garrison, played a huge part in trying to abolish slavery. There were also a quite a few black abolitionists in the North that played a role in the movement. Their philosophy, along with Garrisons, helped a lot in the movement to rid the country of slavery. William Lloyd Garrisons philosophy simply said, opponents of slavery should view the institution from the viewpoint of the black man, not the white slave owner. They should not, as earlier reformers had done, talk about the evil influence of slavery on white society; they should talk about the damage the system caused to blacks. And they should, therefore, reject gradualism and demand the immediate, unconditional, universal abolition of slavery. Another thing that bothered him was the mention of colonization. He believed that those who agreed with it were not emancipationists, but they were trying to strengthen slavery by ridding the country of blacks that were already free. He believed the only true way to get rid of slavery was to gives all blacks the rights of American citizenship. Garrison transformed abolitionism into a new phenomenon because earlier efforts rapidly lost strength and opposers of slavery had hit a dead end. There were a number of free blacks in the North who were victims of prejudice and mob violence in the cities. With all of the problems they faced, they kept in mind that they were still free. They used their freedom to aid others of the same race in the South who werent free. Many Northern blacks, in the 1830s, came to support Garrison. A free black man from Boston named David Walker, published an important pamphlet in 1892 called Walkers Appeal. The greatest orator ...

Create a strategy for the college of business in university of sharjah Term Paper

Create a strategy for the college of business in university of sharjah - Term Paper Example e areas that the university specializes in are entrepreneurship training, administration in business, research portfolio and a simulator in the financial market (University of Sharjah, 2014). A number of dynamics continue to arise in the teaching and learning environment not to mention the job market. The diversification requires that an elaborate plan be established to ensure that there is the institution is within in meeting the predetermined objectives (University of Sharjah, 2014). The university, therefore, seeks to establish itself as a world-class institution in business and management programs. To this end, there is a need to establish a strategic plan that will enable the institution becoming an organization of choice not just locally, but internationally (Sutton & Obst, 2011). To become an institution of choice where excellence is derived and dreams realized. The institution also seeks to produce the best business professionals to be able to satisfy the market needs as appropriate. An institution of learning where civilizations meet. One of the major drives is to be a world-class business university capable of attracting students and professionals from all over the world. The strategic positioning of the university makes it easy for the dream to be achieved. Make the university a professional hub where careers can be developed and skills developed. The University seeks to be the only institution where people can come and develop their skills and go out to the field confident of making an impact in the market. The institution also seeks to be a key consultant in matters concerning business and management strategies. Consulting services are to be made for every individual with particular interest in venturing into management or people who have a need to learn more about business issues. The business seeks to partner with other institutions to broaden the mandate of the university to providing quality services to the people and the clients in this case

Occupational Health and Safety Management (Part II only - Explaining Assignment

Occupational Health and Safety Management (Part II only - Explaining the accident) - Assignment Example The cleaner was working hurriedly due to the heavy workload and pressure that some water would splash on the floor. The waitress, while passing near Wong, slipped when she stepped on the slippery floor. The movements of the waitress caught the attention of Wong who abruptly glanced at her. Such sudden glance caused Wong to injure his fingers. The waitress is newly hired (reported for work on December 22nd) and was wearing heeled shoes when she slipped on the 24th of December. Just recently, the same waitress slipped in the kitchen and as she grabbed the working desk, a knife fell on the floor. The knife had been blunted, which is the same knife used by Wong. The kitchen has ventilation and sufficient lighting. The chef, assistant chef and the cleaner wore aprons and non-slippery shoes. The kitchen does not have slippery floor signage. Kitchen equipment and tools that become rusted or unusable should be properly disposed through a Disposal Form. From December 15 to 24, the cafe person nel were required to work for 11 hours a day. Therefore, at the time of the occurrence of the accident, all the staff were already fatigued and stressed due to extreme work demand. The degree of injury can be considered as a minor injury since the doctor advised Wong to take three days leave from work. Factors that Led to the Accident: Investigated and Not Identified by Manager A trail of occurrences had led to the happening of the accident. All the cafe personnel were fatigued and stressed due to overwork and pressure. The waitress was not wearing non-slippery shoes in the kitchen. The cleaner was carelessly washing the dishes that causes water splashes on the floor. She might also be negligently walking across the floor without taking notice of her surroundings. On the part of Wong, he naturally reacted to see what was happening or whether the waitress would fall toward him. While the waitress was carelessly walking across the floor, the cleaner was carelessly and negligently wash ing dishes; thus water that spilled on the floor made it slippery. The kitchen, although well lighted and ventilated, is not constructed properly. The sink where the dishes are washed should not be placed near the door but somewhere in the inner part of the kitchen, or the corner opposite the kitchen door. The current location of the sink really invites accidents and would be an obstruction to the movement of personnel in the kitchen. The main entrance to the kitchen should be free from any obstruction, either to the left or to the right after entering the kitchen. Although not mentioned in the incident report, the sink may be located on the left or the right side of the door. The door must be able to swing freely forward or backward. No signage was posted at conspicuous places inside the kitchen such as â€Å"Slippery Floor†, â€Å"Unauthorized Persons not Allowed†, â€Å"Always Wear Proper Kitchen Attire†, and several others. There is also inadequacy in the pr ocedure inside the kitchen. The waitress should not be allowed to approach the working area of the chef and assistant chef to get the food. The food ready to be served must be placed by the assistant chef at a place near the entrance of the door, but far enough so as not to cause an obstruction. In this manner, the waitress would not be disrupting the attention of the assistant chef

Communication Between People and Computers Essay

Communication Between People and Computers - Essay Example The action of the film is set in futuristic Los Angeles, in highly developed and technologically integrated and advanced society. Everything in the setting of the movie suggests that the audience faces the future society. First of all, it is a high level of technification: it seems that every person is very good with computers and has at least two devices, a smartphone at hand and a computer at home. Also, computers are really smart even compared to the latest developments people have today: they are controlled by voice, and their voice recognition functions are quite impressive. Finally, the level of integration of technology into human life does suggest the movie is set in the future. From what one sees on the screen, it is possible to draw the conclusion that it is the society, in which â€Å"anatomopolitics of the human body [†¦] and a regulatory pole centered on population with panoply of strategies concentrating on knowledge, control, and welfare† have been merged ( Rabinow 91). This is the world, in which people and technology are a unified whole and in which the traditional dichotomy of the society and technology does not work. In fact, it is the world where new understanding of people in regard to everything they made predominates. The way the city is shown also suggests that the movie is set in the future. More specifically, the streets are clean, and there is no dirt and trash there. People’s apartments as well as working space are bright, roomy, and various gadgets do not look like the modern ones.

Their Eyes Were Watching God | Analysis

Their Eyes Were Watching God | Analysis Hurstons â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† presents several themes such as speech and silence, love and marriage, and finally gender roles. Zora Neale Hurston does an outstanding job of instituting what men such as Joe Starks believed were the standard roles for the African American female. Hurston pertinently described Janie through her relationship with Joe, the metaphoric value of the mule, and her dialogue as a woman of strength, not concerned with the ideals of her white female counterparts, sitting up on a high chair and overlooking the world. Janie desired a greater purpose. In Hurstons â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God†, men and women inhabit separate roles. Not only are the women portrayed as the more fragile sex, Hurston essentially defines them by their relationships to and with the men. Thus, marriage is paramount in this story. The message sent here is that women can and do only obtain power through marrying powerful or, at least, motivated men. By the use of tradition, women are limited to the confines of positions of piteousness, passiveness, domesticity, and of course as sexual objectivity. The men consistently silence the womens voices, limit their actions with proprietary notions and insult their appearance and sexuality. In contrasts, when the women exhibit any traditionally male characteristics such as authority, intelligence or ambition, men deem them as unattractive and masculine. The male characters set out to prove to their peers that they are masculine by showing their wives who is in charge. This was not always due to personal desire, but also by society and at large as well as environmental pressures. The author immediately introduces the female perspective. In â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God†, Hurston celebrates Janie as an artist that enriches Eatonville and details her self-discovery. Without delay, on first page of the book, Hurston substantiates the contrast between men and women by initiating Janies quest to reach fruition of her own dreams and presaging the female quest theme throughout the remainder of the novel. Now, women forget all those things they dont want to remember, and remember everything they dont want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly (Their Eyes Were Watching 1). As a Black woman, Janie asserts herself beyond expectation and the persistence that she consistently shows characterizes her unrelenting quest for true love—the kind she dreamed of as a child. She is aware of her status in society, but is unwavering in her determination to disregard it. Anyone or anything attempting to encumber Janie from her mission for happiness annoys her. â€Å"So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he dont tote it. He hand it to his womenfolks. De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see, opines Janies grandmother in an attempt to justify the marriage that she has arranged for her granddaughter† (Their Eyes Were Watching 14). The excerpt founds the presence of the substandard status of women in this culture, a status that Janie must reverse, in some way, in order to surface as a heroine. Despite this obstacle, Janie refuses deterrence from attaining her dream. In â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God†, Zora Neale Hurston reveals the importance of gender roles and their place in African American culture during the 1930s. In Chapter 6, Hurston displays the importance males exhibiting superiority their female partners and their attempts to force them into roles of subservience. In this chapter, Joe Starks attempts push Janie into a passive role by hushing her in conversations, physically abusing her in their home, and handling her as an item in his possession. The author establishes this early in the novel to serve as a catalyst for Janie to make the decision that her personal growth and development as a strong woman will only materialize when she escapes the mold into which Joe has forced her. Hurston exhibits that Janie should be allowed to have the right to do what white women do on a constant basis; perch on high stools on their porches while relaxing. â€Å"Everybody was having fun at the mule-baiting. All but Janie† (Their Eyes Were Watching 56) demonstrates the way Joe stresses that Janie give the impression that she is living the white womans dream of relaxing at home and being civilized, as that is the role dictated by her gender and because it promotes the his portrayal as a powerful leader of the town. Even when Janie pleads, â€Å"Taint nothin so important Ah got tuh do tuhday, Jody. How come Ah cant go long wid you tug de draggin-out?† (Their Eyes Were Watching 60) confirms her desire to abandon the preset, generalized roles of gender that women faced during this period. Janie wishes to forge her own path and do what brings her personal satisfaction as a woman and not what the perception of contentment is for all women. Janies idea of pleasure, ho wever, is not present in the old-fashioned roles that the women of the 1930s were expected to accept. Later in the chapter, we read, â€Å"Here he was just pouring honor all over her; building a high chair for her to sit in and overlook the world and she here pouting over it!† (Their Eyes Were Watching 62). Joe does not seem to grasp that satisfying Janie does not include giving her a life that mimics that of a white womans. Instead, Janie would rather immerse herself into her own culture, celebrating the essentials that are intrinsic to being a black woman. Unfortunately, Joe either cannot or will not fulfill this for her, thus she elects to entertain the company of Tea Cake, who seems to gain happiness from partaking in lifes simpler pleasures, such as singing, storytelling, dancing and fishing—including Janie in his activities. All the way through the novel, we continue to witness the outward display of the superiority that men feel over women. If their spouses do not obey or follow the strict roles of gender, it is commonplace for them to endure beatings, not unlike the mule in chapter six. Even something as small as an undesirable meal, could result in physical abuse. Many men believe that women are in need of guidance in every aspect of their lives, needing instructions for basic tasks on a consistent basis. This sentiment solidifies the belief of the male gender that their sex is greater and superior over women. Many men feel that women are completely ignorant and need men to tell them what to do all of the time; a sentiment that adds fuel to them feeling their gender is greater to their female counterpart. In chapter six Janie objects, â€Å"You sho loves to tell me whut to do, but Ah cant tell you nothin Ah see!† He responds, â€Å"Dats ‘cause you need tellin, It would be pitiful if Ah didnt. Somebody got to think for women and chillun and chickens and cows. I god, they sho dont think none theirselves† (Their Eyes Were Watching 71). Here, Joe alludes that women have brainpower akin to a chicken or clumsy cow and that they should embrace their roles as the lesser mate. Eventually, Janie escapes her traditional female mold of speaking only when spoken to and obeying mindlessly. She finally finds her voice at the end of chapter six when she says to Joe, â€Å"Sometimes God gits familiar wid us womenfolks to and talks His inside business. He told me how surprised He was†¦and how surprised yall is goin tuh be if you ever find out you dont know half as much ‘bout us as you think you do. Its so easy to make yoself out God Almighty when you aint got nothin tuh strain against but women and chickens† (Their Eyes Were Watching 75). Janie communicating with Joe in this fashion serves to inform Joe that she believes that God speaks to both sexes equally. She is standing up to the leader of the town. Janie wants Joe to understand that he is not the god of the town because she too can be in touch with God. In addition, she wants Joe to know that she is aware that his gender does not make him a supreme being over her or any woman. This marks a both an evolution and revolution for Janie as a character. We now begin to see her inner thoughts. She is now prepared to battle for her equality and liberation. By the chapters conclusion, we witness a woman refusing to allow men to continue to silence and demanding equal treatment. Janies metamorphosis from a passive woman to one wishing to take an active role in shaping the rights and duties of the female gender is established. â€Å"She knew now that marriage did not make love. Janies first dream was dead, so she became a woman† (Their Eyes Were Watching 24). No longer afraid to challenge her grandmothers staunch expectations, Janie realizes that her grandmothers archaic views of the role of women as pathetic and weak beings with the inability to survive without male protection—even with the absence of love in the relationship, represent boundaries on her full potential. She loathed her grandmother. â€Å"†¦ Nanny had taken the biggest thing God ever made, the horizon† (Their Eyes Were Watching 85-86). Still, Janie is undaunted and follows her to follow her instincts, including leaving her first husband and marrying her second one, in the absence of a divorce. â€Å"Janie hurried out of the front gate and turned south. Even if Joe was not there waiting for her, the change was bound to do her good† (Their Eyes Were Watching 31). The blather and gossip that permeates her small town when she takes a younger man and leaves with him, after being left a widow following the death of her second husband, does not hinder her path even slightly. The happiness she finds in her relationship with Tea Cake is that much sweeter as she has made the decision to go through it alone. Janies moment of personal triumph is â€Å"Discovering the two things everybodys got to do fuh theyselves,† (Their Eyes Were Watching 183). â€Å"They got tuh go tuh God, and they got to find out about livin fuh theyselves,† are the sentiments Janie shares at the end of her journey (Their Eyes 183). Hurston has depicted a female character as an evolving heroine, an architect of her own destiny, and one who has a full grasp on navigating the voyage to self-awareness. Says Mary Helen Washington in the Foreword of Their Eyes Were Watching God, â€Å"†¦for most Black women readers discovering Their Eyes for the first time, what was most compelling was the figure of Janie Crawford powerful, articulate, self-reliant, and radically different from any woman character they had ever before encountered in literature. Janie Crawford is defiant; she defies men, but most importantly, she defies our own preconceived notions of what the role of an African-American woman should be in modern literature.† The definitions and roles of gender for both male and female characters were clear in the 1930s. Janie is symbolic of many women today in her refusal to accept the preconceptions about her duties and abilities. In the 21st century, the majority of men have learned, though some reluctantly, to accept and appreciate the equal abilities and thoughts of modern women and Hurston had the foresight to give women a voice that had previously been silent in literature.

nuclear bomb history :: essays research papers

The United States stored nuclear weapons in 27 countries and territories around the globe during the Cold War, according to "Where They Were," the cover story in the November/December issue of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. The article, by three noted nuclear weapons analysts, is based upon a newly declassified Pentagon history released under a Freedom of Information Act request originally filed in 1985. During the Cold War, 18 sovereign nations and nine former or current American territories or possessions hosted U.S. nuclear weapons. Today, the United States is the only nuclear power that deploys nuclear weapons overseas. U.S. bombs remain stationed in Belgium, Britain, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey. "We can now fill in many gaps in the history of the arms race and the Cold War," says Robert S. Norris, a Natural Resources Defense Council senior analyst and a co-author of the article. "Until now, there has never been official information on where, when, and what kinds of nuclear weapons were deployed overseas, and finally we have authoritative information about their presence in such surprising places as Japan, Greenland, Iceland and Taiwan." The authors also found that during the peak years in the early 1970s, the United States had more than 7,000 nuclear weapons in NATO countries in Europe, and more than 2,000 on land in the Pacific. A variety of naval vessels, including aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, frigates and attack submarines, routinely carried another 3,000 nuclear weapons. Altogether, the United States deployed 38 types of nuclear weapon systems abroad. Germany was home for 21 U.S. weapon systems, which were first installed in 1955. Guam hosted 20 types and the Japanese island of Okinawa, while under U.S. occupation, hosted 19. William M. Arkin, a co-author of the article, points out that while historians knew that nuclear weapons were stored in some countries, they were unaware about others and knew nothing of the details. The Pentagon document, he says, fundamentally revises post-war nuclear history. "There isn’t a nuclear analyst alive who didn’t believe that the first U.S. nuclear weapons deployed overseas were sent to Britain," he says. "Now we know they actually went to Morocco first." Arkin also is the co-author of "Nuclear Battlefields" (1985), the first book to document the worldwide nuclear infrastructure. "Where they Were" is based upon the formerly top secret study, "History of the Custody and Deployment of Nuclear Weapons: July 1945 through September 1977," which was prepared by the Office of the Secretary of Defense in 1978.

Benefits of Being Vegetarian Essay

In the last decade, we have witnessed an explosion of scientific knowledge that has made more information available to humanity than in all previously recorded history. Due to the dedicated research of scientists and doctors, we now understand more than ever before about our physical body and what measures promote good health. As more evidence is coming to light about the beneficial effects of maintaining a vegetarian diet, the number of vegetarians around the world is steadily on the rise. Throughout history, many great philosophers, mystics, saints, and enlightened thinkers have recognized the value of vegetarianism. It is only recently that science has confirmed the views on vegetarianism explained by these great people. More and more people are realizing that this diet can increase the health and well-being of our body, mind, soul, and the planet. Books, journals, magazines, and newspaper articles have published research on the health benefits of a vegetarian diet. Doctors and nutritionists widely recommend that people reduce their consumption of meat, high-fat foods, and eggs as a health measure. They encourage the increased use of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains in one’s diet to cut down on cholesterol in the body and to minimize the risks of heart attacks, high blood pressure, strokes, and cancer. The results of medical findings have already had a far-reaching impact on the food and restaurant industries. We find more foods are being produced without animal products. If we look back even twenty years, a vegetarian eating at a restaurant hardly had any choices offered on the menu. Today, we can find a variety of delicious vegetarian dishes at most restaurants. Natural food stores and vegetarian restaurants abound in most cities. Even large grocery chain stores carry a large variety of vegetarian foods. Those who carefully consider the advantages of vegetarianism will see that the quality of their life and health can be greatly improved on such a diet. Longtime vegetarians have testified to the changes they experienced when they gave up meat. Many have reported that they felt more energetic, not only physically, but also mentally. Animals that do not eat meat, such as the elephant, the horse, the mule, and the ox, are known for their great strength and endurance. Having more stamina, vegetarians tend to exhibit improved efficiency and concentration in their physical as well as intellectual work. There is an expression, â€Å"You are what you eat.† In countries of the East where vegetarianism has been the diet for thousands of years, people recognize that whatever they eat forms a part of their body and also influences their 1 thoughts. They believe that if they eat the flesh of an animal that the mental and emotional vibrations or characteristics of the animal will form a part of their own nature. Today, science is researching the effect that our own stress hormones have on our body and the damage that long-term stress does to our organs. Imagine eating animals whose last days or minutes of life on earth were drenched with the hormones released in their state of fear they were in when they were about to be slaughtered. Those who eat meat are ingesting not only the flesh, but all the hormones of stress that are released due to the animal’s fear as well. Thus, many people brought up in the traditions of the East prefer to live on plant foods, which are more conducive to mental equipoise. Many enlightened beings, saints, mystics, and spiritual teachers have traditionally advocated a vegetarian diet for spiritual and moral reasons. For those pursuing a spiritual path, a vegetarian diet is essential for several important reasons. First, spiritual teachers have always taught that we are more than just a body and a mind; we are also soul. They have also taught people the process of meditation to help rediscover our true nature as soul. To help gain proficiency in the spiritual practices, vegetarianism is a helping factor. To be able to concentrate in meditation, we need to be calm and collected. If we eat the flesh of dead animals, our own consciousness will be affected. In the East, vegetarianism has been considered essential to spiritual development. Spiritual teachers promote a life of nonviolence. Helping factors for spiritual growth include developing the ethical virtues of nonviolence, truthfulness, purity, humility, and selfless service. The vegetarian diet is a natural by-product of nonviolence, in which no harm is done to any living creature. That is why saints through the ages have recommended a vegetarian diet, avoiding meat, fish, fowl, and eggs. Vegetarianism also improves the health of the planet. Ecologists and environmentalists are concerned about protecting the living creatures on earth. Environmentalists have pointed out that one solution to the problem of food shortages is better utilization of our resources. For example, the amount of grain needed to feed one cow to provide meat for one person could feed many times that number of people. Ecologists have also shown that raising cattle and processing meat requires much more fuel, water, and energy than is used to produce grains and vegetables. Vegetarianism is one effective means of conserving our vital resources. People around the world are becoming more enlightened and concerned about obtaining the highest quality of life. They are more interested in solving the mysteries of the universe and more keen to find personal fulfillment and lasting happiness. We are simultaneously concerned about the welfare of our global community and the preservation of our planet. How we maintain the health of our body, mind, soul, and planet is a choice each has to make. A balanced vegetarian diet will result in improved health and fitness, greater mental equipoise, and higher spiritual attainment. Following the vegetarian diet can help us achieve the health and purity of our body, mind, soul, and planet. We will not only be contributing to peace for ourselves and all life, but we will also be doing our part toward making Planet Earth a haven of joy and peace. Being a vegetarian can help us attain a healthier body, mind, soul, and planet. Along with this, we can augment our well-being through meditation. Vegetarianism prepares the groundwork for the health of body, mind, and soul. Meditation can add to our overall health by reducing stress to our body and mind, and can put us in touch with the soul. If we sit in meditation we can take steps towards a healthier state of well-being.  © Copyright S.K. Publications For more information: www.sos.org 3

Ethics Auditing Essay Example

Ethics Auditing Essay Example Ethics Auditing Paper Ethics Auditing Paper Ethics Auditing: Identify the benefits and limits of ethics auditing. Is there a strategic role that ethics auditing may play in a company? Ethics Auditing By definition, an ethics audit is a â€Å"systematic evaluation of an organization’s ethics program and/or performance to determine its effectiveness. † (1) This concept of ethics auditing is fairly new and few companies have conducted an ethics audit. However, performing such audits will likely become more mainstream as recent legislation encourages greater ethical accountability for companies to demonstrate they are abiding by the law and have established programs to improve their ethical decision making. The U. S. Sentencing Commission (the â€Å"Commission) has amended the Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations (â€Å"FSGO†) whereby an effective compliance and ethics program must â€Å"exercise due diligence to prevent, detect, and report criminal conduct and otherwise promote an organizational culture that encourages ethical conduct and a commitment to compliance with all applicable law. (2) The Commission noted there are seven minimum requirements of an effective ethics program: (1) Standards and procedures to prevent and detect criminal conduct; (2) Responsibility at all levels of the program, together with adequate program resources and authority for its managers; (3) Due diligence in hiring and assigning personnel to positions with substantial authority; (4) Communicating standards and procedures, including a specific requirement for training at all levels; (5) Monitoring, auditing, and non-retaliatory internal guidance/reporting systems, including periodic evaluation of program effectiveness; (6) Promotion and enforcement of compliance and ethical conduct; and (7) Taking reasonable steps to respond appropriately and prevent further misconduct upon detecting a violation. These requirements should be addressed through the ethics audit. Framework for an Ethics Audit In addition to the requirements noted by the Commission, there are many different questions that can be addressed by an ethics audit. How broad should the audit be? How often should the audit be performed? How will the company communicate the results with its constituencies? As each company has unique needs, each ethics audit should be unique. An example of a framework for an ethics audit is detailed below(4). Companies can adapt this framework to their own needs and circumstances. Step 1: Secure Commitment of Top Managers and Board of Directors As noted in the class slides, â€Å"a corporation only acts through those who act for it and it is the latter who must assume responsibility for the corporation. † (3) Essentially, management and the board of directors are responsible for the direction of a corporation. If there is no commitment from the top levels of a corporation, it is very unlikely that an audit would be successful. Step 2: Establish a Committee to Oversee the Ethics Audit The committee should consist of members who are knowledgeable about ethics auditing and come from various departments. In most cases, companies may not have internal employees that have the skill set to serve on an ethics audit committee. In such circumstances, external consultants, such as the Ethics Resource Center, can be used to assist with the audit. Step 3: Define the Scope of the Audit Process As mentioned above, each organization is unique and therefore, the scope of an ethics audit will differ from company to company. The committee should establish a scope based on the company’s risks and how those risks will be addressed. The committee should then monitor the progress of the audit based on the scope defined. Step 4: Review Organizational Mission, Values, Goals and Policies and Define Ethical Priorities In this step, the committee should examine and review all of the company’s policies, procedures and practices related to any areas defined in the scope of the audit process. All of these items may or may not be stated in the company’s mission statement. In some cases, the committee may find areas where policies need to be established and procedures updated. An effective ethics audit should review all these areas and assess their strengths and weaknesses. Step 5: Collect and Analyze Relevant Information This step is the where the majority of the audit work will take place. The committee should review internal and external documents and more importantly, gather employee, customer and stakeholder feedback through surveys. As employees are the key to carrying out an effective ethics program and to successful business operations, gathering and understanding their feedback is crucial. Customer and stakeholder perception of the company is also critical, so collecting their thoughts and opinions will help to create and maintain customer satisfaction and uphold stakeholder expectations. Step 6: Verify the Results The results collected in Step 5 should then be verified by an independent source. The independent assessment will verify the quality, accuracy and completeness of the audit. Having a third party verify this information will also offer an extra layer of assurance to external constituents. Step 7: Report the Findings The final step of the process is to report the findings to management and the board of directors through an ethics audit report. The report should outline all six steps discussed above and identify what the committee discovered throughout the process. In some cases, the findings may be more meaningful if combined with some benchmarking of similar companies in the industry. Such benchmarking is available through the OCEG Benchmarking Study that discusses best practices across industries. Benefits of Ethics Audits There are many reasons companies go through the process detailed above and perform an ethics audit. In some cases, management may simply want to comply with the FSGO or the board of directors may encourage compliance with these guidelines. From a business perspective, the auditing process can highlight trends, improve organizational learning and facilitate communication and working relationships (5). Internally, companies are able to assess their current policies and possibly find ways to increase efficiency in its operations. Additionally, the buzz word in the business world today is â€Å"transparency†. An ethics audit is one way to provide employees, customers and stakeholders with greater transparency. Many constituents have become wary of verbal assurances from companies. An ethics audit is verified by a third party and thus, seems to carry more weight than internal communication from management. Limits of Ethics Audits While the benefits of performing an ethics audit may be many, there are also some limitations. Many people interchange the words â€Å"ethics† and â€Å"integrity†. How do you measure the integrity or ethics of an organization? It is certainly not as easy to measure integrity as it is to measure financial performance. Financial performance can be quantified while integrity and ethics are the subjective aspects of a company’s culture. Models such as Six Sigma, the Balanced Scorecard and the Triple Bottom Line have been developed to capture structural and behavioral organizational ethical performance (6). However, these models likely will involve external consultants, which can prove to be costly to an organization. Additionally, ethics audits could uncover an issue that, when reported, could hurt employee, customer or stakeholder relations. This could also lead to public scrutiny. Strategic Role of Ethics Auditing Ethics auditing can be an important piece of the strategic direction of a company. The ethics audit can prove to be a useful management tool in helping a company to identify important initiatives and improvements. By identifying such initiatives, companies can prioritize its resources to focus on such ideas. The ethics audit can also help companies to fulfill their mission statements and identify areas where improvement of operating practices may be needed. In summary, and perhaps most importantly, the auditing process can demonstrate the positive impact of ethical conduct and convince constituents of the value of adapting more ethical and socially responsible business practices (7). Reference Page Cited Materials: (1) Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell, Eighth Edition, p. 243 (2) Ethics Resource Center, FSGO, Part 2 Article: thics. org/resource/fsgo-series-part-2 (3) Corporate Governance Social Responsibility Class Slides, 9/26/2011 (4) Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell, Eighth Edition, p. 252 (5) Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell, Eighth Edition, p. 245 (6) Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell, Eighth Edition, p. 248 (7) Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell, Eighth Edition, p. 265

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