Democratic and Republican Party History

Democratic and Republican Party History The Democratic Party came from the Anti-federalists before Americas independence from Britain rule. The party was organized by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, along with other influential opponents of the Federalists in 1792. The Republicans party is the younger of the two parties, founded in 1854 by anti-slavery activists and modernizers. The party rose to prominence with the election of Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president. Over the past years the two major political parties have been given colors, to which we can associate them with in the election. Republicans have been given the color red and Democrats the color blue. The Republican (red states) are strongest in the South and West, and weakest in the Northeast and the Pacific Coast. The strongest of the red states are Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, and in the western states of Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho. The Democrats (blue states) once were strongest in the Southeast but now they are strongest in the Northeast, Great Lakes and along the Pacific Coast. Dominating in California and Hawaii. The Democratic Party and Republican Party dominate America but differ greatly in their philosophies and ideas. Democrats have a philosophy that is Liberal. Founded on the idea of liberty and equality. Generally they support ideas such as free and fair elections, civil rights, freedom of religion, free trade, and a right to life, liberty, and property. Republicans believe in a social philosophy, which reflects American Conservatism in the U.S. Political Spectrum. Republicans support a pro-business platform, with the further foundations in economic libertarianism and a brand of social conservatism increasingly based on the viewpoints of the Religious Right. Both parties differ in their Economic ideas. Democrats favor minimum wage and progressive taxation Higher tax rates for higher income people. Republicans believe taxes shouldnt be increased for anyone and that wages should be set by the free market. Military is a big topic, Democrats want to decrease spending and Republicans want to increase spending on military. Stand on gay marriage is another big topic, with Democrats supporting and Republicans opposing. Its a never ending battle. Stands on the Death Penalty differ also. Democrats, while support for the death penalty is strong among Democrats, opponents of the death penalty are a substantial fraction of the Democratic base. A large majority of Republicans support the Death Penalty. Abortion has been a big topic for decades and they still differ in their beliefs. Democrats believe it should be legal, supporting Roe v. Wade. Republicans believe it should not be legal, opposing Roe v. Wade. This is where Pro-Life and Pro-Choice come from. Another belief the two parties disagree on is Social and Human Ideas. Democrats are based on a community and social responsibility and Republicans are based on individual rights and justice. Social democratic views improves public service by creating a government system that is able to discover citizens that suffer from unequal circumstances that make it more difficult to fulfill their ambitions. Once this is discovered, the government provides the service to help these individu als. Social conservatism is a political idea that focuses on traditional values. General principles: favor pro-life, opposes euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, and abortion. Now not all Republicans and Democrats believe what their party believes. There are plenty of people that go both ways and other that are directly in the middle. That is why we have so many undecided or independent voters in our elections. Influences that third parties have on American politics are that they bring more light to the issues. Third party voters will mostly go with the party that is closet to independent values. Even though third parties dont win elections, a lot of people vote for them. Taking votes away from the other parties, which has an Impact in the election. John McCain would have won in 2008 if it wasnt for third parties. Many laws were first introduced and then raised by third parties. One example would be prohibition, the legal act of prohibiting the manufacturing of alcohol. I identify with the Republican Party, Im conservative. First off I do not believe in distribution of wealth. I dont see how you can take money away from people that work hard and give it to the people that wont work, sit around all day, or use drugs. Living off the Government shouldnt be a choice for a career in our Nation. Even if the Government taxed the rich they wouldnt even come close to touching our national debt. Small businesses and the wealthy actually help the economy a lot, by purchasing goods from local businesses or running a business and giving jobs to the American People. I believe the Democrats want to tax the rich more and give back to the poor so they look good and get the votes, just my two cents. Increase spending on Military, why wouldnt you? We have the strongest military in the world and the Democrats want to decrease spending? It shows weakness, we have to be strong. Now I dont mean we need to be in every country in the world and be protecting all our allies. We need to keep our military strong because we never know when someone will try to attack us. This has been proven in 2001 with 9/11 and also the attack in Benghazi on 9/11/12. If we let the world know we are decreasing spending on our military they might not think twice about attacking. My stand on abortion, first I will let you know I am very religious. So my opinions will come from religious beliefs and also how I feel about abortion. I support abortion in the case of rape or if it is harmful to the women. If a 12 year old is raped then she should be allowed to have an abortion because she is too young and birth could potentially result in death. In the case of just rape the women should go to the hospital and get a rap kit from a doctor. If you do choose to wait months before an abortion then I do not support it in that case. I oppose gay marriage; I dont think it should be legal for the same sex to marry. I dont see any positives that could come from it. It wouldnt help our economy; it wouldnt help our states or government. I feel the Democrats are for it just to get votes; even President Obama came out in an interview and said he supports gay marriage. Thats one of the main reasons I feel its getting harder for Republicans to get a person in the white house cause the Democrats support almost everything the Republicans dont, abortion, gay marriage, Immigration, Etc. Since the division of the Republican Party in the election of 1912, the Democratic Party has consistently positioned itself to the left of the Republican Party in economic as well as social matters. The two parties, in my mind, will never come to a compromise. They are too far apart in their belief, thats why we continue to refer to them as left and right. The third parties will always be around, though they may never win. They will continue to propose new laws and take away votes from the two major parties. I identify with the Republican Party because I feel they are right, their beliefs align with mine.

The Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Treating Depressio

In this assignment I will introduce my research project and examine some of the issues surrounding my topic, take an initial look at the research papers I have chosen for my literature review and consider the wider context that the research took place in. I have chosen to look into the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy(CBT) on treating depression in primary care. I am interested in this particular area of counselling as my impression is that it is currently the favoured form of counselling that is offered when people approach their GP for help. Currently the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom recommend CBT as the best talking therapy for treating a wide range of conditions (Barret, 2009). As part of the UK government’s Improving Access to Pyschological Therapies (IAPT) scheme there is an emphasis on using CBT to help(Barrett, 2009). As I am interested in pursuing a career in counselling I want to find out more about CBT to see if this is a career path I wish to follow. There seems to be a logic in training in a field of counselling with good employment prospects but I would only want to do this if I also believed in it’s effectiveness. Therefore I would like to see if CBT is the best therapy for the NHS to use to help people, specifically those with depression. I have chosen depression as focus as I am aware of how many people are affected by depression and think that it is important that the NHS provides the best kind of help to these people. Through my job as debt counsellor and experiences of volunteering for the Samaritans I have spoken to many people with depression and am curious about what is the best way to help them. I want to look at how CBT compares to other alternatives avail... ... It is worth adding that to only look at the situation from a cost perspective does not consider the human suffering angle. It could be argued that it would be immoral to withdraw the option of therapy from the elderly because there is no economic incentive. In practice, however, Hebble (2004) found that old people do not receive the same level of help as those of working age. Holman’s study will provide an interesting insight into whether therapy should be provided more to the elderly. Having looked at the world surrounding the IAPT scheme and introduced the specific studies we have concluded this part of the literature review. Having gained an understanding of the political and social issues that influence the research. The next paper will look into the research methods used and consider what effect these methods may have had on the outcome of the studies.

Scm and Erp Software Implementation at Nike †from Failure to Success

Introduction: Nike was founded under the name Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964. In 1972 the first pair of sports shoes was sold and experienced enormous growth and achieved a 50% market share within the sports shoe market in the US only eight years later. After sluggish focus and growth in the 1980ies, Nike experienced strong growth in the 1990ies and cemented the position as global recognizable brand. The increased international focus created strains on the supply chain, which was consider inadequate to cater efficiently to the organization and the rapid changes consumer demands .As a consequence of the afore mentioned supply chain problem Nike faced inefficient inventory management, problems in flow of goods and poor demand forecasting capabilities. In addition Nike was facing though competition in Asia, which as a region performed worse than expected. Given this it is clear that both external, internal and situational factors were the catalysts behind the Organizational Buying Behavior (OBB) of Nike catalyzing the mammoth project of implementing global supply chain management (SCM) software and an integrated ERP system.Question 1: What are the failure factors for the first NIKE-i2 ERP-SCM implementation? Using conventional project management measurements it is clear the implementation of i2 was a colossal failure . I analyze the failure using a combination for factors from the OBB and analysis based on the five phase implementation framework. Nike states a clear vision of what they want to achieve with the i2 implementation: â€Å"Achieving greater flexibility in planning execution and delivery processes†¦.. ooking for better forecasting and more profitable order fulfillment† . However, I believe Nike overall underestimated the SCM project as I see some indications that the main focus and resources were on the general ERP framework and implementation of the Single Instance Strategy (SIS). As a consequence the project management turned out to be weak. T he lack of prioritization of the SCM project is also visible in the lack of external consultancy services obtained.Both project management and appropriate usage of external consultants are evaluated as key critical success factors for successful implementation of large scale IT projects. (Appendix 3) So I see the project being initiated on the wrong foot, but would consider phase 2, 3 and 4 as the phases where the project fell apart. I strongly believe external consultants with expertise knowledge would have challenged a number of the technical issue and decisions made by the project management. The implementation of i2 on the legacy system is such example.SIS required a large degree of integration and data migrations, so deploying the SCM software on the legacy system instead of as part of the SAP ERP is a strategic mistake. This specific decision later proves unwise when Nike begins to experience large problems in data integration as formats and outline of i2 didn’t match t he other systems. Also in the data specification and parameterization external experts would have stepped in and limited the vast number of customization enquiries from Nike.I believe this specific problem has its roots in the inadequate blueprinting of Nike. The missing blueprinting –the realignment of the long term business strategy with capabilities of the software – is not uncommon as it is estimated that 51 percent of failing IT projects, fail due to lack of understanding between IT and business departments† I believe there is evidence of that happening in this case as well. The fundamental idea behind the SCM software in terms of demand planning did not fit well with the business strategy of Nike.Nike used a bottom-up demand process where the retailers committed to an order in advance before manufacturing. With i2 Nike changed this core process as the demand now was forecasted using a top-down approach. The combination of the changed process and lack of pro per data integration lead to duplicated orders and overproduction. As the original i2 software did not support the many SKUs of Nike, heavy customization was required, which in turn diluted the quality of the software as the specifications were unclear.McAfee of Harvard Business School has said: â€Å"What Nike and i2 Technologies Inc. began experiencing the problem actually is not the software itself†¦ The culprit there was misspecification† Further on the subject of customization, Nike had great difficulties balancing customization with speed-to-market. I believe the external factors of significant competition, changing market place and resulting disappointing financial performance in growth markets lead Nike to rush the implementation and interfered with normal OBB.The rushing meant that a guideline, templates and implementation methodology was discarded by Nike with the argument that the i2 provided material was too rigid. In general I would argue that Nike required technology that was not sufficiently available at the time. This pushed i2 to enter unknown software-territory and program-to-order disabling sufficient time for vendor/developer testing. The criticality of this was further boosted due to lack of testing from Nike, which clearly illustrates faults in phase 4 of the implementation as well. (Appendix 3)Lastly, I find evidence that a global ERP and SCM software potentially would be difficult to manage successfully at the time due to the structural issue of underdeveloped bandwidth infrastructure , which could indicate Nike required a technical solution which was not complete available in 1999. As the SCM software required a big-bang implementation , the mistakes mentioned above considerably increased the risk of failure. So due to urgency Nike selected to implement a highly customized solution discarding advice from the vendor, avoiding third party/external consultations, neglecting testing and proper training of end-users.As Steel say s â€Å"Could we have taken more time with the roll-out? Properly. Could we have done a better job with software quality? Sure. Could the planners have been better prepared to use the system be it went live? You can never train enough! † Question 2: How do you evaluate the role of i2 in this process? In believe both companies are to be blamed for the failed implementation. Looking isolated at i2’s role, I believe both tactical and strategic mistakes were made. As a vendor i2 had a responsibility to work together with Nike to create a common understanding of the capability of the software and the business management impact.If the client was not adequately knowledgeable about the product delivered i2 should have made a point of this in the RFP, by stating that a certain level of technical knowhow and expertise was expected and required from the client as well, to secure a smooth implementation. Such point – or clause – would have created the necessary aware ness at Nike and would have secured the necessary focus from Nike before engaging in the implementation. We learn from the case that Nike when they started working together with i2 already had tried several other solutions without being successful, which further underlines my point.Philip Kotler describes a common pitfall in B2B transactions as the B2B market is dominated by fewer buyers than on the consumer market, which can provide an undesired purchasing power to large corporations. In addition Nike was on the forefront of the technology required, which eventually meant i2 was pressured to provide significant more customization to the software. The fact that the customization widely exceeded the 10-15% maximum customization recommendation from i2 illustrates the negotiation and purchasing power Nike had over i2.I sincerely believe it was a tactical mistake from i2 to allow to the large degree of customization. i2 added further to the tactical mistakes by not highlighting potentia l issues with running the i2 on the legacy system hindering data integration effectually diminishing the usability – and in turn satisfaction – of the software. During the implementation phase i2 made another tactical mistake by not being close enough to Nike and co-manage the process or the rollout. To rollout without proper/any testing and training was a huge mistake committed by Nike, but i2 should have intervened.I believe project management on both sides was weak, which allowed for these mistakes caused by poor communication and lack of managing expectations. Unfortunately for i2 the number of tactical mistake converted in a strategic issue damaging the reputation of i2, when Nike publically assigned the blame of the failure to them. i2 had in the cooperation with Nike a unique opportunity to position itself as a world leading SCM software vendor as the project was groundbreaking in terms of size and complexity.However, instead of gaining this competitive advantag e the failed implementation, the public statements by Nike and the following class-action lawsuits from the Nike shareholders labeled i2 as incompetent. i2 severely miscalculated the tactical benefits of pleasing the client versus the strategic gains of completing the project successfully. I believe i2 was too focused on the short-term completion, which made them cut corners and discard own recommendations in order not to have a conflict with the client.Overall, I find it unfair to blame i2 entirely. After all, the vendor selection is always the responsibility of the buyer and proper evaluation and testing of the product for its functionality would have averted this kind of failure. â€Å"Implementing a supply-chain management solution is like crossing the street; High risk if you don't look both ways, but low risk if you do. † Question 3: Nike was one of the first companies to start using the SAP module Apparel and Footwear Solution (AFS). From NIKE viewpoint, do you think t hat is a good strategy?In my opinion Nike took a chance when start using AFS. Being one of the first users of the AFS software, could potentially have been a risky endeavor as software in the initial stages can be prone to bugs and other dis-functionalities. However, Nike implemented the AFS to perfection, which meant that the risk was very well handled. Especially the meticulous testing, seeking external consultancy service and skeleton roll-out stands out as key steps for the success of this specific project.To analyze if it was a good strategy we need to analyze Nike’s financial performance against the main competition . The aim is to analyze if Nike after the implementation of AFS was performing more efficiently – measured on key financial parameters – hence creating a competitive advantage. I find clear evidence that is the case. I believe Nike created a competitive advantage by being a first-mover in the usage of AFS. Nike had the key objective to manage a nd turn the inventory faster and more efficiently. In my research I find that in addition to turning the inventory 4. times versus 3. 5 of the competition, Nike has significant less cash tied up in inventory – $2. 7bln versus $3. 4bln – which is remarkable as Nike produces a larger revenue than Adidas. A final point showing great operational efficient at Nike, is the ability to create a cash flow from these activities, where Nike in 2011 generated $1. 8bln in cash versus the competitors $1. 6bln. The competitor’s gross profit margin only exceeds Nike’s in 2011 after Nike has clearly outperformed on this factor as well throughout the time period being analyzed.It could be an indication that the competitors are closing in on Nike’s competitive advantage in the areas of software implementation. I believe it was a good strategic decision to be an AFS first-mover. Nike handled the implementation very well and thereby managed to balance the risk and rewa rd to the benefit of Nike against the competition. We see that Nike has outperformed Adidas in terms of gross profit margin continuously with exception of the last year in the analysis. I argue that the outperformance is based on primarily the relative efficiency of the supply chain.The main indication of Nike’s superior supply chain is the inventory and inventory turn rate. We see below that Adidas has significantly higher holding of inventory relative to Nike and that Nike turns its inventory faster. In more efficient supply chain and hence business operation is reflected in the ability to generate cash from the operating activities. Nike evidently creates a larger cash flow than Adidas. The financial markets also recognize Nike’s competitive advantage as the stock shows a significant better performance than Adidas. (+171% vs. +86%, 2007-)

Movie Analysis M vs. Bicycle Thieves Essay - 1399 Words

Analysis of M and Bicycle Thieves One thing that both movies, M and Bicycle Thieves, share collectively is the open ending; both movies make audiences interpret their own perception or ending of the movies. Also, both movies contain a sense of tragedy in the final scenes; in the movie M, I felt somewhat sympathetic toward the mentally ill killer even though I knew he was the serial killer and might be pretending to get away. The feeling of sympathy toward the serial killer in the presence of his victim’s families also made me feel guilty about my feelings. Also, in Bicycle Thieves, when Antonio stole the bike, I wanted him to get away without his son finding out about it, which is also a contradictory or immoral feeling knowing that the†¦show more content†¦The movie, Bicycle Thieves, has some of the characteristics of classic Hollywood movies: there’s a protagonist; there’s a conflict (jobless and bicycle theft); and there’s an obstacle (Antonio has to find it to keep his job). H owever, there’s no happy or moral ending, but it has an open ending. For me, this is somewhat tragic ending because Antonio, who is an ideal father for his son Bruno, becomes a thief, and Bruno’s delusion that his father is a â€Å"hero† is crashed, and that we see in the close-up shots of Bruno’s face when he sees his father running away with a bicycle. The movie M depicts a society where everyone is in fear of something, and everyone is doubting others; the central idea of this movie is that no one is safe and everyone is â€Å"isolated.† The movie M shows the influence of German Expressionism movement by incorporating many ideas from it. This movie incorporated many shadows which was a very significant part of German Expressionism; the audience relies on the serial killer’s shadow to know his presence in many scenes. The first half of the movie is slow-paced, and the shadow of the serial killer is huge (exaggeration). Techniques such as Mise-en-scene is utilized in this movie, for example, when the serial killer kidnaps, Elsie, audiences don’t see him killingShow MoreRelatedStrategic Marketing Management337596 Words   |  1351 PagesStrategic and marketing analysis 2 Marketing auditing and the analysis of capability 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Learning objectives Introduction Reviewing marketing effectivene ss The role of SWOT analysis Competitive advantage and the value chain Conducting effective audits Summary 3 Segmental, productivity and ratio analysis 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 Learning objectives Introduction The clarification of cost categories Marketing cost analysis: aims and methods An illustrationRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesAcademic Positions: Franklin D. Schurz Chair, Department of Management, Mendoza College of Business, University of Notre Dame; Matherly-McKethan Eminent Scholar in Management, Warrington College of Business Administration, University of Florida; Stanley  M. Howe Professor in Leadership, Henry B. Tippie College of Business, University of Iowa; Associate Professor (with tenure), Department of Human Resource Studies, School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University; Lecturer, Charles UniversityRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 PagesCapital Feigenbaum−Fei genbaum International Management, Sixth Edition Hodgetts−Luthans−Doh Contemporary Management, Fourth Edition Jones−George Driving Shareholder Value Morin−Jarrell Leadership, Fifth Edition Hughes−Ginnett−Curphy The Art of M A: Merger/Acquisitions/Buyout Guide, Third Edition Reed−Lajoux and others . . . This book was printed on recycled paper. Management http://www.mhhe.com/primis/online/ Copyright  ©2005 by The McGraw−Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved