Monday, August 24, 2020

Betrayal Essays (1007 words) - Betrayal, 20th Century Fox Films

Disloyalty Disloyalty The American college in Cairo Performing and Visual Arts opened its 1998 Spring Season on February thirteenth in Wallace Theater nearby with Harold Pinter's play, Betrayal. This play was coordinated by Eric Grischkat, and the ensemble configuration was made by Timaree Mc Cormick. AUC understudies have emphatically taken part in the structuring, lighting, setting, coordinating, and in acting. These understudies were Noha Farouk, Shereef Bishay, Karim Bishay, Ramsi Lehner, and Alaa Shalaby. Selling out is play that recount to the account of two dear companions, Robert, and Jerry. Them two were hitched and had youngsters. The two families adored, and regarded one another. In any case, this didn't keep going long in light of the fact that treacheries occurred. This play incorporates eight treacheries; along these lines, one can clearly perceive how all around fit the title is to the primary subject of the play . In any case, Emma depended on selling out her better half since she didn't discover genuine romance with him so she figured she could discover it with Jerry . In any case, she bombed this time as well thus she attempted Casey. Robert was not the ideal individual for Emma as he was so cold. There is nothing that moves him in any event, when he realized that Emma was double-crossing him , he was just worried about whether Ned was his child or not. This isn't the ordinary activity of any spouse who have recently discovered that his better half has been selling out hi m with his closest companion for five entire years ! Pinter has composed this play in an uncommon manner . Its activities move from the last to the previous;( for example the play started in the year 1977 and finished in 1968 ). Pinter said that the best method to deal with this play was by moving in reverse. I concur with him provided that it moved ordinarily from the most seasoned to the most recent it would not have been that fascinating . Eric Grischkat keeps the vitality and the entertainers moving, recollecting that the principle thought is the untruthfulness and selling out of companions who are people, not just thoughts. He left sufficient space for the crowds to utilize their creative mind by following the an excessive number of stops and quiet that are found in the content. The creation of the play was effective in that it was far superior than perusing it . Eric figured out how to pick the correct group to work with, the entertainers , the planner of the sets, scene, ensembles, lights, sound, and projections . They all cooperated to introduce this great execution. The Wallace Theater is a proscenium theater with low roof and little stage which is an obstruction to the executive however he figured out how to take care of this issue with the assistance of the set creator. The activity was clear and it assemble climatically. There was an assortment in the mind-set. All the characters changed a ton from the earlies t starting point till the finish of the play. The ensemble and set architect, Timaree McCormick, has made another world through her exceptional selection of shades of the sets and of the outfits as them two passed on the spot and the time where and when the play happened. In Scene Nine, when it was 1968, Emma was wearing scaled down skirts which coordinated the design of that time, while in Scene One the style were distinctive as it coordinated the design of the 70s. Timaree's choise of hues had certain importance . For instance, Jerry continued wearing the earthy colored shading all through the play. The essentialness of this is he is the individual who knows nothing and who double-crossed his closest companion . She utilized each and every piece of the stage. Despite the fact that the space was restricted, she figured out how to beat this issue. For instance, the doorways and ways out were done from the outside of the Wallace on account of the absence of the space. She utilized each household item on the stage, for example, th e bed that was utilized twice. It was at one time Robert's and Emma's lodging in Venice and other time , the bed inside the room in Robert's and Emma's home in London. She utilized the cover of the phase as the gallery in the lodging in Venice. The plan

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Location Analysis Of A Franchise Restaurant :: essays research papers

Area Analysis of a Franchise Resturaunt Issue Statement: Boston Pizza International Inc. is a Canadian claimed and worked café. It has numerous offices in Canada and has opened offices in the US and in Southeast Asia. Boston Pizza is entering further into the Canadian market and is opening at another area on eighth Street in Saskatoon. The picked area has been the home of numerous past eatery disappointments. It appears to be odd that any eatery would need to open in an area which has demonstrated to be ineffective. What qualities does Boston Pizza have that other cafés don't have that may permit this area to be fruitful? This new area will be the second Boston Pizza establishment in Saskatoon, commending the office working on 50th Street. Will the market zones of these two eateries cover? * The early beginnings of this eatery happened in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1963 the principal Boston Pizza and Spaghetti House opened. The name of the café is apparently odd on the grounds that Boston is the name of a city in the US, and has nothing to do with a pizza eatery situated in Edmonton. Ron Coyle, the first proprietor, named the eatery 'Boston' in light of the fact that the Boston Bruins NHL hockey group was the most loved of the Edmonton region in the 1960's and he needed his business to utilize sports as an advancement. Another explanation, which may have been to a greater extent a happenstance, was that his bookkeeper's family name was Boston ("only way", 37). Boston Pizza and Spaghetti House turned into a well known café and in 1968 it started to work as an establishment. In mid-1968, Jim Treliving, a previous drum major for the RCMP, and his companion Don Spence purchased the diversifying rights for English Columbia except for Vancouver. They opened their first unit in Penticton, British Columbia, and in the main year of activity the pizza eatery netted $52,000 and the dance club which was co-situated with the eatery netted $80,000 (Cameron, 16). In the interim, establishment units opened in Edmonton, Winnipeg and Vancouver. As the pizza chain developed, Treliving and George Melville (who had gotten included with Treliving's eateries as a monetary organizer) got engaged with genuine domain adventures in Hawaii and the Okanagon Valley and furthermore in oil interests in English Columbia (Cameron, 16). In 1983, these two men bought Boston Pizza Spaghetti House from the first proprietor Ron Coyle for $3 million. This cash was raised from private loan specialists ("recipe is simple", 16). During that equivalent year, the base camp of Boston Pizza was moved from Edmonton, Alberta to Richmond, English Columbia where today is found.

Thursday, July 23, 2020

On Time

On Time After considerable twisting and tweaking, I have contrived to design my schedule such that not a single class of mine runs past 3:30 pm. This was done primarily to create the illusion of actually having time. Said illusion is currently failing to function. Case in point: Where did my weekend go?! Follow-up case in point: Where does every weekend go?! Im sitting here, in my room, at my desk. Its nearly 11:30 pm on a Sunday night, and I feel as though Ive spent the last forty-eight hours traipsing through puddles of psets, EMT drills, writers block, dance, and reading assignments with only a moderate degree of success at remaining dry and unruffled. Much of this weekend was admittedly fun-filled: EMT drills consisted of eight hours spent gulping down donuts and pizza, simulating emergency scenarios, and capturing embarrassing videos of fellow EMTs. Writing a short story for my HASS class was entirely entertaining and made me wish that every class I was enrolled in graded me for my ability to come up with bizarre plots. And both my bio and physics psets were actually doable. Shocking, I know. But there are so many things I wish I had more time to do. I actually have a list: 1. Visit the Museum of Science/Museum of Fine Arts MIT students get in free to a lot of the local museums. Which means that I really have no excuse not to go. 2. Read For my birthday, I received some great books, including The Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell and The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I keep reaching for both of these and then I realize that I have an orgo book that I need to be reading. 3. Watch Avatar Yes. I know. Its sad that I havent seen it yet. I have been informed so by several people on various occasions. I inform myself of this fact quite frequently. 4. Write letters to friends I love getting mail from friends, and I always mean to return the favor. Its happened maybe once so far. 5. Bring myself up-to-date on goings-on outside the world of MIT What? The Superbowl? Today? Huh? 6. Draw Its been so long since I last took out my color pencils and drew for fun. 7. Learn how to iron my clothes At least I know how to do laundry 8. Watch every episode of Arthur in existence Aardvarks are cool. 9. Learn how to solve a Rubiks cube I have a friend who can solve it in about twenty seconds. He keeps telling me to learn how to do it. Apparently, it comes in handy when youre trying make new friends. 10. Figure out how to make smoothies that actually taste good so I dont keep craving Jamba Juice when its 20 degrees outside and I dont feel like walking across Harvard Bridge and into Boston, where the closest Jamba Juice, to my knowledge, exists. Someone give me Hermiones Time-Turner, por favor.

Friday, May 22, 2020

Shooting an Elephant Essays - 1356 Words

In the essay, Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell illustrates his experiences as a British police officer in Lower Burma, and reflects it to the nature of imperialism. Since â€Å"anti-European feeling was very bitter† due to the British Empire’s dictatorship in Burma, Orwell is being treated disrespectfully by the Burmese (12). This allows him to hate his job and the British Empire. However, the incident of shooting of an elephant gives him a â€Å"better glimpse †¦ of the real nature of imperialism – the real motives for which despotic government act† (13). Through his life experiences as a British man, Orwell efficiently demonstrates the negative effects of imperialism on individuals and society. With the usage of effective diction in his†¦show more content†¦He calls himself a â€Å"puppet† to prove and emphasize the fact that even the oppressors lose their freedom and have to live under the pressure of the people they oppress when an imperialist system takes place in the society. Also, Orwell establishes particular effects in his essay by using different sentence structures. As Orwell comes to the decision of shooting the elephant, he states, â€Å"To come all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marching at my heels, and then to trail feebly away, having done nothing – no, that was impossible† (15). The parallel phrases used in this passage recaps the whole situation but the usage of anacoluthon in the end of the link allows Orwell to show how much he is pressurized. In addition, it indicates the readers that there is no way for him to leave the elephant alive after coming to this stage of the situation. Orwell again uses parallel phrases to describe the effects on the elephant after the first shot: â€Å"He looked suddenly stricken, shrunken, immensely old, as though the frightful impact of the bullet had paralyzed him without knocking him down† (16). This structure helps Orwell to intensify the shock and the reaction in the readers as the elephant starts dying. Lack of a grammatical sequence is used when Orwell goes out to kill an elephant and says, â€Å"I had no intention of shooting the elephant – I had merely sent for the rifleShow MoreRelated Shooting an Elephant1601 Words   |  7 PagesOrwell spent the next twenty years as a writer; the essay â€Å"Shooting an Elephant,† set in the Burma of the 1920s and written in 1936, is one of his most famous works. In the early twentieth century, Burma was still a colony of Britain but anti-imperialism protests and social movements developed very fast, causing â€Å"great tension between Burmese, Indians and English, between civilians and police† (Meyers 56). Orwell’s essay â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† is based on this historical tension. In this essay, OrwellRead MoreShooting an Elephant840 Words   |  4 PagesDISCUSS ORWELLS USE OF PERSUASIVE TOOLS SUCH AS, SYMBOLI SM, METAPHORS AND IRONY IN THIS ESSAY AND EXPLAIN HOW HE USES EACH OF THESE TO CONVEY HIS ARGUMENT OR MESSAGE In the extract, Shooting An Elephant Orwell conveys his message through the use of various persuasive tools. He wants the reader to identify when somebody assumes power. This technique is used to show that the powerful are also a captive to the will of people they control. Everyone involved in the situation becomes affected. InRead MoreAnalysis Of Shooting An Elephant813 Words   |  4 Pagespleased and wishes to keep his reputation high. In the short story, â€Å"Shooting an Elephant†, George Orwell, who writes from his own experiences, describes the life of the narrator, a policeman in a foreign country, Burma. The narrator feels forced to shoot a wild elephant that has destroyed parts of a village. He does not want to shoot the elephant, but because the Burmese around him seem determined and excited to see the elephant die, the narrator feels compelled to do what the natives request toRead More Shooting an Elephant Essay1373 Words   |  6 Pagesessay, Shooting an Elepha nt, George Orwell illustrates his experiences as a British police officer, and reflects it to the nature of imperialism. He hates his job as a police officer in Moulmein because an â€Å"anti-European feeling was very bitter† due to British Empire’s dictatorship in Burma. Therefore, Orwell, a white man is being treated disrespectfully by the Burmese which allows him to hate his job and British Empire, the root of everything. However, the incident of shooting of an elephant givesRead MoreEssay on Shooting an Elephant486 Words   |  2 Pages â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;I was not comfortable with many aspects of this story. The prejudice throughout the book was unimaginable, I find I am uncomfortable with any kind of bigotry. Reading of the Burmese people and their disrespect toward someone who was there to â€Å"protect and serve†, was difficult. I suppose I am naà ¯ve, I try to hold on to the belief that people of God are inherently good. I know there are bad apples in all walks of life, bad people areRead MoreShooting An Elephant By George Orwell1670 Words   |  7 Pageseventually caused me to comply. In â€Å"Shooting an Elephant,† by George Orwell, Orwell faced a similar dilemma. â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† is an essay that depicts Orwell’s conflictions about shooting a rampaging elephant while he served as an Imperial policeman in Burma during British colonial rule. In his essay, Orwell describes the difficult decision of whether or not to shoot the elephant and why he made his decision. Although he did not initially want to shoot the elephant, the social pressure of being surroundedRead MoreShooting an Elephant by George Orwell 884 Words   |  4 Pageshuddled in the corner in a state of shock with blood marks on his head and back. However, as I inspected the parakeets back closer, I saw that in fact the blood was flesh from the base of the wing which was missing. Similarly, like Orwell in Shooting an Elephant, I did not know what to do in the situation but I had to find a solution (pg.230). I did not have a clue how to treat an injured bird or if I should figure out first what and how the incident happened. The parakeet was bleeding heavily andRead MoreShooting an Elephant Literary Analysis895 Words   |  4 Pagesstory â€Å"Shooting an Elephant,† demonstrates the total dangers of the unlimited authority a state has and the astounding presentment of â€Å"future dystopia†. In the story, Orwell finds himself to be in an intricate situation that involves an elephant. Not only does the fate of the elephant’s life lie in Orwell’s hands, he has an audience of people behind him cheering him on, making his decision much more difficult to make. Due to the vast crowd surrounding his thoughts, Orwell kills the elephant in theRead MoreThe Feminine Mystique And Shooting An Elephant898 Words   |  4 PagesBoth The Feminine Mystique and â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† discuss the confrontation between the self and society. In The Feminine Mystique, Betty Friedan addresses â€Å"The Problem That Has No Name† referring to the widespread unhappiness of the housewife due to their obligation to uphold their ideal image rather than pursuing their dreams; in â€Å"Shooting an Elephant†, George Orwell comments on the societal expectations of imperialism and its effects on people who have the duty to uphold the law. In both ofRead More George Orwells Shooting an Elephant Essay783 Words   |  4 PagesGeorge Orwells Shooting an Elephant In Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell finds himself in a difficult situation involving an elephant. The fate of the elephant lies in his hands. Only he can make the final decision. In the end, due to Orwells decision, the elephant lay dying in a pool of blood. Orwell wins the sympathy of readers by expressing the pressure he feels as an Anglo-Indian in Burma, struggling with his morals, and showing a sense of compassion for the dying animal.

Thursday, May 7, 2020

Essay on Business Outsourcing - 1599 Words

Outsourcing to foreign shores, or offshoring, is an idea that has long been in practice, yet meets resistance when American business seeks to send jobs overseas. Sending jobs overseas may help a faltering American business keep their doors open and keep more important jobs open for American workers. Outsourcing has been a business practice for hundreds of years. Adopting legislation to curb Offshoring will limit American businesses competitive edge, one that helps small business thrive and grow, and helps big business to plant an American flag in the international business of offshoring. Offshoring began in the industrial revolution, with the advent of advances in transportation and communication. America had successfully entered†¦show more content†¦The U.S. has lost 2 million jobs due to global trade over the past 20 years but in just 10 years has added 35 million new jobs (Kirkpatrick, David 2004). While American businesses are sending jobs overseas, it does not mean that these jobs are for Americans. Many qualified American white-collar workers would not work at the same salaries offered by smaller or start up companies. Many companies are spending less and less on human resources to stay competitive. A typical salary would start at $50,000; add administrative costs, training and benefits and you are at roughly $78,000, a 56% increase on the original estimate (Gambhir, Satnam 2004). A typical outsourced worker would come in at much less than the original estimate of $50,000 Another misconception is that very few quality businesses are involved in outsourcing. Nothing could be farther from the truth, according to Satnam Gambhir, â€Å"In fact, it would be challenging to find a single Fortune 500 company that is not outsourcing any part of its daily business operations to offshore outsourcing firms.† In order to stay competitive in this new business practice, American businesses have to realize that American technology in IT and Telephony and fiber optics directly contributed to the outsourcing boom (Gambhir, Satnam 2004). The myth that offshoring will increase unemployment can be addressed easily; Employment is on the rise according to Global Insight inc. John A. ChallengerShow MoreRelatedOutsourcing : A Business Model1107 Words   |  5 PagesOutsourcing is a business model in which one company provides services for another company for a specified length of time and cost. Outsourcing is a trend is becoming more common in information technology. The primary reason for outsourcing is to reduce IT cost and to get access to a larger pool of specialized expertise. Businesses can focus on core competencies by outsourcing the IT works. The global trends in IT outsourcing (ITO and Business process outsourcing (BPO) suggests strongly that outsourcingRead MoreOutsourcing, Business And The Alignment Of It With Business Processes2015 Words   |  9 PagesAbstract Outsourcing is the notion of the day in today s business world. Outsourcing means to get the product or service on contractual basis from an outside supplier. Now this term is also developing widely in the field of information technology. The small and large scale industries utilise IT outsourcing and business process outsourcing to have the benefits for business like cost reductions, high production and efficient business activities. For the best use of IT outsourcing, there must be wellRead MoreBusiness Process Outsourcing Essay1346 Words   |  6 PagesThe trend in the world of business grows rapidly. Historically, it is difficult to find the best solutions for the common issues in business such as quality, cost and innovation. Nevertheless, business experts have reacted by implementing strategies. One of these strategies is the farming out of services to a third party (Overby 2007), which is called outsourcing .According to The Daily Telegraph (2007), worldwide outsourcing is no w valued at approximately $US4 trillion. Originally, it was thoughtRead MoreEssay on Outsourcing business processes1979 Words   |  8 Pages Outsourcing Business Processes Summary This paper captures the most prominent services and issues associated with todays outsourcing environment. Outsourcing is the modern business term for having other companies accomplish basic business processes rather than doing them inhouse. While outsourcing has always been an important business option, modern technical capabilities are fast making outsourcing a critical requirement in competitive, cost conscious industries. However, our recent experienceRead MoreXerox Is A Leading Business Process Outsourcing1068 Words   |  5 PagesFrame: Overview Xerox is a leading business process outsourcing and document management technology and services firm operating out of 180 countries around the world. In 2014, Xerox reported year end revenues of $19,540 million, down 2.3% from 2013, and a net profit of $969 million, up 17.7% from 2013. Xerox’s operations are broken down in to several main segments: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): Xerox business process outsourcing services provide support functions such as customer care, transactionRead MoreXerox Is A Leading Business Process Outsourcing1570 Words   |  7 Pages1: Frame: A: Overview Xerox is a leading business process outsourcing and document management technology and services firm operating out of 180 countries around the world. In 2014, Xerox reported year end revenues of $19,540 million, down 2.3% from 2013, and a net profit of $969 million, up 17.7% from 2013. Xerox’s operations are broken down in to several main segments: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): Xerox business process outsourcing services provide support functions such as customer careRead MoreDisadvantages of Business Process Outsourcing Essay1766 Words   |  8 PagesIn the recent decade, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) has become a usual business phenomenon from a new business strategy in the bank industry around the world. Banks are increasingly outsourcing more activities to third parties and relying more heavily on vendors now more than ever before. (Deloitte, 2012) The Swiss bank UBS is not an exception. Since UBS set up the UBS India Service Centre in Hyderabad in 2006, parts of its back-office and middle-office functions have been outsourced to lower-costRead MoreXerox Is A Leading Business Process Outsourcing1570 Words   |  7 Pages1: Frame: A: Overview Xerox is a leading business process outsourcing and document management technology and services firm operating out of 180 countries around the world. In 2014, Xerox reported year end revenues of $19,540 million, down 2.3% from 2013, and a net profit of $969 million, up 17.7% from 2013. Xerox’s operations are broken down in to several main segments: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): Xerox business process outsourcing services provide support functions such as customer careRead MoreBusiness Process Outsourcing ( Bpo ) Industry Essay1677 Words   |  7 Pages3.0 Marketing 3.1 Industry Voxpro is operating in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry. The BPO sector has several key market drivers the first one being the rising awareness among firms about the advantages of outpouring some of which include cost saving, improved service provision, it allow the company to focus on their main production areas, and it enables the company to partner with skilled manpower (Mello 2014, p. 268). Hence, BPO is a popular sector and very marketable among firmsRead MoreBusiness Process Outsourcing (Bpo)2672 Words   |  11 PagesReport Business process outsourcing (BPO) is a broad term referring to outsourcing in all fields. A BPO differentiates itself by either putting in new technology or applying existing technology in a new way to improve a process. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is the delegation of one or more IT-intensive business processes to an external provider that in turn owns, administers and manages the selected process based on defined and measurable performance criteria. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Internal Control and Shady Accounting Practices Free Essays

Group 3 1. Why did accounting fraud occur at WorldCom? Fraud occurred at WorldCom for a variety of reasons. The senior executives had unchecked power because the board of directors were only figure heads, the ethics hot-line was nonfunctional, and in internal audit department did report to the appropriate link in the corporate chain to minimize fraud. We will write a custom essay sample on Internal Control and Shady Accounting Practices or any similar topic only for you Order Now These reasons, combined with a poor company culture, created the environment where fraud was able to become an acceptable business process. The senior executives at WorldCom had a â€Å"do it or else† attitude that was unchecked by any external force. That external force should have been the board of directors. Unfortunately the board of directors were being directed by the senior executives, given information about WorldCom that was disorganized to hide highly controversial and aggressive accounting techniques. These directors should have recognized they were being used and realized their agency to the stock holders to administer the oversight they were compensated to provide. The ethics hot-line, according to the case, while existed, was not known or trusted by the general population of employees at WorldCom. While many employees were aware of unethical activity, no of them felt that using this channel was a viable solution to addressing problems at WorldCom. Finally, the Internal audit department reported to the senior executive who ultimately steered their activity. If the executive was informed that internal audit was close to uncovering the unethical acts of managers, he directed their internal activity to other areas of the firm and blocked access to their department to the files that could expose the problem. If the internal audit department reported to the board of directors, better policing of executive activity would have been possible. All of these reasons had an element of poor culture in their makeup. Allowing senior executives to bullying their subordinates, inattentive directors, allowing for the ethics channel to be nonfunctional, and accepting the unethical actions of seniors as the way things get done, ultimately doomed WorldCom to a spiral of actions that had the momentum of everyone’s livelihood at stake, with no system in place to automatically apply the brakes to protect the shareholders. . What is the difference between earnings management (or earnings smoothing) and accounting fraud? What are the relevant criteria to use in distinguishing ethical from unethical accounting practices? I don’t think there is a difference between earning smoothing and accounting fraud. Both practices intentionally mislead investors to alter their opinion of their holdings. Even if altering earning to smooth it out is mean only to put investors at ease, the underlying goal of smoothing is to change the perception of risk and volatility, which demand premiums in the market. Relevant criteria for distinguishing ethical from unethical accounting practices are if the accounting practice materially changes what the average investor values the company at and items addressed in GAAP and other accounting standards that are against conventional accounting guidelines actively used and unchallenged in the business landscape. 3. What internal processes or systems do you recommend to prevent fraudulent practices such as those present at WorldCom? Why were these practices not detected sooner? It appears WorldCom’s fraudulent activities was uncovered by the companies own internal accounting department, indicating that at least one of five internal controls – â€Å"monitoring of controls† was functional. However, I believe if there were to have been periodic external auditing from impartial entities outside of WorldCom, the fraudulent activities would have been uncovered sooner than it occurred in 2005. Other internal control processes that could have prevented WorldCom’s fraudulent activities and demise are; hiring competent, reliable and ethical personnel, particularly in leadership positions that the company’s board of trustees failed to accomplish, or perhaps were oblivious and complacent with the â€Å"red flag warnings† – falsely professed financial growth and profitability to increase the price of WorldCom’s stock, and underreporting line costs (interconnection expenses with other telecommunication companies) by capitalizing these costs on the balance sheet rather than properly expensing them. In addition to inflating revenues with bogus accounting entries from corporate unallocated revenue accounts. I also believe there was failure with â€Å"assignment of duties†, or separation of duties if you will. Because, Mr. Ebber’s seems to have been in control of his CFO – Sullivan, Controller – Myers, and Director of General Accounting – Yates. All of whom were unethical leaders at WorldCom that helped concoct â€Å"shady† accounting practices that led to the demise of WorldCom. It is my opinion that the above mentioned practices were not detected early enough due to micro management of lower taff employees by unethical leadership through autocratic style leadership, and environment that instilled fear in employees for fear of losing their jobs if any concerns were raised. An unfortunate reality that sadly exist in many big corporations, and even in governments. 4. What external processes or systems do you recommend to prevent and detect fraudulent practices such as those present at WorldCom? Were the directors on the board or the external auditors to be blamed? External auditing is an effective process that can in many ways prevent fraudulent activities within organizations, as the respective auditing teams have no â€Å"loyalty† to management or leadership within the company undergoing review by the external auditors. Retrospectively, I believe that the board of trustees of WorldCom at the time of the scandal would have wished that they had carefully looked into the background and leadership style of Mr. Ebber’s and his co-conspirators to have checked for any signs of unethical behavior that many companies continue to blindly ignore. Barely about a year ago, Yahoo’s former CEO was publicly humiliated, and subsequently fired by the company for â€Å"embellishing his academic credentials†. A very minor issue that could have been easily prevented, had the board of trustees of Yahoo looked thoroughly into Thompson’s background by doing their due diligence. Unfortunately, the board of trustees of Yahoo failed at this task, much like what happened back in the late nineties with WorldCom and Ebber’s. 5. You are a representative from the SEC. Briefly describe any sections of Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that you would cite to either Mr. Sullivan or Mr. Ebber’s when they refuse to comply with your request for information. Under the federal regulations and securities Section 3(a)(47) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U. S. C. 78c(a)(47)), refusal of any individual(s), or company(s) to conform to set accounting practices including external auditing by appropriate personnel (entities) will be liable to punitive actions set forth by federal legislations – up to or more than 25-years imprisonment and fines. Additionally, accounting and auditing practices by firms and individuals associated with a particular entity, or provide other services to any or such entities are prohibited to prevent conflict of interest, and accurate reporting of accounting practices. All of which were corporate infractions engaged in by Mr. Ebber’s and his co-conspirators at WorldCom. 6. The E/R ratios of other telecommunications companies during the late 1990’s hovered around 50% or at best high 40%. If you were an investor, would you have invested in WorldCom? I probably would have. Despite the fact that WorldCom’s E/R ratio seems to have been lower than its competitors , which should have raised a red flag in any potential investors mind. However, like my decision to still invest in WorldCom despite its â€Å"too good to be E/R ratios†, many investors back then may have ignored what was obvious because WorldCom’s â€Å"cooked books† from previous years all â€Å"seemed financially sound†, thanks to Ebber’s and his co-conspirators great efforts at evading external auditors, fooling the public and its shareholders, and â€Å"muscling† junior employees to cover up its â€Å"shady accounting practices†. So naturally, any potential investor would probably back then have made the same mistake of investing in WorldCom. Obviously, not expensing largest operating expense â€Å"line costs† – incurred to gain access to other carriers networks to allow WorldCom to complete customers calls, as reported in its SEC filings will make its E/R ratio lower compared to WorldCom’s competitors, resulting in an â€Å"inflated performance† – overstatement of earnings and understatement of operating expenses. 7. Contrast the roles of Vinson and Cooper in the case. Should Vinson have been charged with committing crime? According to the section â€Å"Resolution of Ethical Conflict† in the Institute of Management Accountants’ Code of Ethics, how should employees proceed when under pressure by senior managers to engage in unethical behavior? As stated by James Comey, the U. S. attorney that prosecuted Ms. Vinson’s case, â€Å"just following orders† is not an excuse to break the law. Why? Because, like many accounting professionals, Ms. Vinson knew right from wrong as it pertains to the prescriptive law of accounting ethical practices. In her own statement and admissions to prosecutors during the initial stages of her prosecution, and attempt to become a witness for the prosecution to gain leniency. (Pulliam, 2003). She (Ms. Vinson) stated that â€Å"each time she was ordered to â€Å"cook† or cover unethical accounting practices, she thought and hoped it will be the last time she caved in for such unscrupulous activities. Unfortunately, she kept on caving for years till the scandal was uncovered†. In light of the facts, and Ms. Vinson and Cooper’s knowledge of right and wrong concerning the ethical practices of their chosen professions, it is appropriate for both of them to have been held liable for conspiring and engaging in such fraudulent activities as purported by WorldCom. As outlined by the IMA, accounting professionals in any company that are micro-managed, â€Å"muscled†, or coerced to engage in any fraudulent activities or witness any such improprieties, should first report the issue to an immediate supervisor that is not involve in such activities. In the event such option does not exist, one should then report the issue to a higher management staff that is not involved in such impropriety. it’s also advisable for one to seek legal counseling with a private attorney about how to proceed in such matters n the event that reporting to an external body is imminent. Reference:PULLIAM, S. , Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Online, June 23, 2003| | How to cite Internal Control and Shady Accounting Practices, Essay examples

Monday, April 27, 2020

The New Deal and the Role of the Supreme Court

Written in 1998, Barry Cushman’s book â€Å"Rethinking the New Deal Court: The Structure of a Constitutional Revolution† is a historical analysis of the famous shift by the US Supreme Court from opposing the social legislations of the New Deal to provide full legal support of the programs.Advertising We will write a custom book review sample on The New Deal and the Role of the Supreme Court specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The author attempts to provide an in-depth analysis of the transformation of the constitutional law during the New Deal era in 1930s. In this book, Cushman’s thesis states that the â€Å"switch in time† by the Supreme Court was a result of a long-prepared and internal revolution perpetrated by a building-up of erosions of the SC’s commercial clause and jurisprudence, which took place in a â€Å"web-like and interconnected manner†1. Therefore, this thesis attempts to refu te the common notion that the dramatic change in the court’s decision resulted from short-political concerns, especially due to the 1936 elections and President Roosevelt’s announcement of his Court-packing plan. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive review of Cushman’s book, using a critical approach to the arguments used to support his thesis. According to Cushman, the current notion that the cowardly Supreme Court decided to change from opposing the legislation of the New Deal by abandoning a number of doctrines to save itself from Roosevelt’s politics is not only wrong, but also misinformed. To refute this claim and support his thesis, Cushman has attempted to base his arguments on in-depth historical accounts of the situation before the court’s major shift. Noteworthy, the author claims that the major turning point was in 1934 rather than after the 1936 elections. For instance, the author bases this claim on a historica l account of the 1934 rule on milk prices. In history, the Supreme Court, sitting in the state of New York, made a famous ruling by upholding the statute to control the prices of milk. This had a major impact on the subsequent decisions on statutes that were increasingly trying to increase government control of prices for basic commodities. In addition, Cushman agrees that the pre-New Deal economic laws had been scrapped by 1940 due to Roosevelt’s economic packages. However, the author uses historical evidence to refute the previous claims on the how, when and why the SC decided to abandon its previous doctrines when approaching the topic of government control of the national economy.Advertising Looking for book review on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Cushman develops an argument criticizing the poetics of the judicial power in the US. The common way of thinking about the courts and judges has been wrong, yie lding a wrong impression that the court’s shift was driven by its coward nature, especially when dealing with political issues. The standard perceptions of the courts and judges in the US is reductionist because it makes people perceive law as political issues and treat judges as politicians elected through the electoral system. The American society, ridden with the mentality of politicizing every issue, developed a belief that the Supreme Court was acting politics. However, Cushman attempts to refute this claim, arguing that the SC’s steps to strike the deal contributed to the process of saving the country from the Great Depression, which collided with Roosevelt’s Court-packing program. The author attempts to show that the historical chronology of events leading to the SC’s shift in doctrines fails to support the standard notion that the court acted in a political and cowardly manner. The reader is introduced to a relatively new historical knowledge that shown how the nine court judges had decided to change their approach and abandon the previous doctrines2. The author provides historical evidence that the court judges were not aware of the president’s plan when they arrived at this decision. The major issue that provides ground to Cushman’s argument is the historical consideration of the reason for the court to take a long time to embrace the new deal. Using a historical approach to the topic, Cushman argues that the Americans have remained confused on the constitutional revolution that took place between 1930 and 1940. Cushman borrows from the historical ideas evidence, which shows that the laissez-faire legal system of the time had a different structure from the current system. For instance, it did was not based on a collection of isolated doctrines.Advertising We will write a custom book review sample on The New Deal and the Role of the Supreme Court specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Instead, it was based on a combination of interrelated doctrines collected into a whole system. Thus, they were analogous to a tapestry or a web. Accordingly, a change affecting any of the interwoven doctrines was likely to cause major implications on the overall web. Thus, the constitutional revolution that led to abandoning the previous doctrines the SC was used is based on this idea. By agreeing to uphold the statute on the control of milk prices in New York, the SC made one of the first steps towards interfering with the entire ‘web’ of the doctrines. Since a change in one of the doctrines in the interwoven web had a high likelihood of causing major changes in the entire system, the SC judges realized that the previous system could not work after some of the doctrines were abandoned. Therefore, it was necessary to change the whole structure. Accordingly, there is little evidence to show that political interferences or a coward nature of the SC judges led to the sudden shift, contrary common claims. Bibliography Cushman, Barry. Rethinking the New Deal Court: The Structure of a Constitutional Revolution. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Footnotes 1 Barry Cushman, Rethinking the New Deal Court: The Structure of a Constitutional Revolution (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), 54. 2 Cushman, 158Advertising Looking for book review on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This book review on The New Deal and the Role of the Supreme Court was written and submitted by user Madeleine U. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.