Negotiation 101 How to Negotiate With Clients

Many freelance writers feel uneasy at the thought of having to negotiate prices with clients, but it’s an important skill to have if you plan on becoming a freelance writer. It can help you secure higher fees and protect you from savvy clients who know how to negotiate well. However, setting the right price can be difficult. If you charge too much, you might miss out on good projects, but you also don’t want to work for peanuts. Here, we’ll look at various ways to set and negotiate the right price for your work. The Problem with Charging Hourly Rates Some writers think that charging by the hour is the best way to get paid what they think they’re worth, but this approach has various downsides. First, you don’t know how long each project will take before you start it. Second, many clients don’t like paying by the hour because some writers take advantage and drag out the project to increase the fee. For these reasons, we’re going to assume you’re trying to negotiate a fixed price (either per piece or per word) for each project. It’s what we at Constant Content recommend, and it’s what most clients prefer. There are a few things you need to consider before you arrive at the right price. 1. The Project Details The key to pricing accurately is having a good idea of how long a job will take to complete. If the initial brief is too vague, you need to find out the following: What is the approximate word count of the project? What is the project deadline? Who is the content aimed at, and what is the purpose of it? Will the client provide any resources, or will you be doing all the research? The more answers you can get upfront, the more clear you’ll be about the scope of the project. If you can’t get answers to these questions, the client is probably not someone you want to work with anyhow. 2. The Commercial Benefits It’s helpful to view each project from a commercial perspective. Are you producing an article for a small business blog with a relatively small audience? Or are you writing a white paper for a large organization? In the second case, your content is more valuable commercially, so the client will expect you to charge more. 3. The Competition How much are other writers charging for similar work? There’s actually no standard rate for any type of work; it depends on the type of job, the client’s budget, the writer’s experience, and many other factors. The question is: what do you offer in terms of knowledge, experience, and writing ability? The answer to this should dictate how high you set your rates. Don’t always feel like you have to undercut everyone else; clients are happy to pay more for quality writers because they’re harder to find. 4. The Long-Term Benefits It’s not just the price you have to consider. A client might offer you regular work, or give you a reference, in which case you might consider lowering your rates. When you’re starting out as a freelancer, charging less can be a worthwhile tactic for growing your portfolio and getting referrals. Negotiating the Best Deal Most clients today recognize the value of quality content and won’t mind if you try to negotiate a higher fee. Once you’ve seen the project details, worked out how long it will take, assessed the commercial benefits of the content, looked at the competition, and taken into account other benefits, you can make a proposal that maximizes your earning potential without offending the client. Eight Tips on Negotiating Higher Rates If you have a good knowledge of the subject matter, highlight your experience and qualifications, if any. If the client wants a quick turnaround, say you’ll need to charge more because you’re in demand and have other work commitments. Try to get the client to offer their fee first; it could be higher than you expect. If a client won’t give you a price, make an offer that’s higher than you would normally charge. Use this as a starting point for negotiations. Don’t give a price until you have all the details about a project. If you think the fee is too low, don’t be afraid to ask for more and explain why. You might be surprised at how many clients will return with a better offer. If you’re unsuccessful, at least you tried. Be confident. Some clients might take advantage of your insecurities, so stick up for yourself and your work. If the client won’t pay a higher price, ask them if they could shorten the length of the project or extend the deadline to justify the lower price. Closing the Deal If you treat clients with respect and are transparent in your negotiations, clients are less likely to undervalue your work and are more likely to ask for your services in the future. Remember that the rate you negotiate is not permanent; you can always renegotiate your prices for future work. Follow these suggestions and start negotiating with confidence. The more you do it, the easier it will become. Looking to land your next freelance writing client? Constant Content makes it easy for you to sell articles and land writing clients.

Myths About Domestic Violence

Myths About Domestic Violence Lawanna Lynn Campbell endured a marriage full of domestic violence, infidelity, crack cocaine addiction, and alcohol abuse. When she was told to keep silent about being abused by her husband, she took matters into her own hands. After 23 years, she eventually escaped and made a new life for herself. Below, Campbell discusses the myths surrounding domestic abuse and their impact as she struggled to break free from a life of pain, shame, and guilt. MYTH Boyfriends and girlfriends sometimes push each other around when they get angry, but it rarely results in anyone getting seriously hurt. When I was 17, my boyfriend went for my throat and choked me in a fit of jealous rage upon learning that I had dated others before we became exclusive. I thought this was an involuntary reflex he could not control. I believed that his outburst showed just how much he really loved me and wanted me for himself. I quickly forgave him after he apologized, and in some morbid way, felt flattered to be loved so much. I later found out that he was very much in control of his actions. He knew exactly what he was doing. People who abuse often use a series of tactics besides violence including threats, intimidation, psychological abuse and isolation to control their partners. And if it happened once it would happen again. And sure enough, that incident was only the beginning of more acts of violence that led to serious injuries throughout our years together. FACT As many as one-third of all high school and college-age young people experience violence in an intimate or dating relationship. Physical abuse  is as common among high school and college-age couples as married couples. Domestic violence is the number one cause of injury to women between the ages of 15-44 in the U.S. – more than car accidents, muggings and rapes combined. And, of the women murdered each year in the U.S., 30% are killed by their current or former husband or boyfriend. MYTH Most people will end a relationship if their boyfriend or girlfriend hits them. After that first incident of abuse, I believed that my boyfriend was truly sorry and that he wouldn’t ever hit me again. I rationalized that it was only this one time. After all, couples often have arguments and fights that are forgiven and forgotten. My parents fought all the time, and I believed that behavior was normal and unavoidable in marriage. My boyfriend would buy me things, take me out, and show me attention and affection in an effort to prove his sincerity, and he promised that he would never hit me again. This is called â€Å"the honeymoon† phase. I believed the lie and within months I married him. FACT Nearly 80% of girls who have been physically abused in their intimate relationships continue to date their abuser after the onset of violence. MYTH If a person is really being abused, it’s easy to just leave. It was extremely complicated and difficult for me to leave my abuser, and there were several factors that delayed and hindered my decision to get away from him. I had a strong religious background and believed it was my obligation to forgive him and to submit to his authority as my husband. This belief kept me living in an abusive marriage. I also believed that even though we weren’t fighting all the time, it really wasn’t that bad. He owned a business, and at one point, was the pastor of a church. We were prosperous, had a beautiful home, drove nice cars, and I enjoyed the status of being the perfect middle-class family. And so, for the sake of money and status, I stayed. Another reason why I stayed was for the sake of the children. I didn’t want my children to be psychologically damaged coming from a broken home. I had been psychologically and emotionally abused for so long that I developed low self-esteem and had a low self-image. He consistently reminded me that no one else would ever love me like he did and that I should’ve been glad that he married me in the first place. He would belittle my physical characteristics and remind me of my shortcomings and faults. I often went along with whatever my husband wanted to do just to avoid a fight and to avoid being left alone. I had my own guilt issues and believed that I was being punished and deserved the misfortune that happened to me. I believed that I could not survive without my husband and was afraid of being homeless and destitute. And even after I left the marriage, I was stalked and almost killed by him. This type of psychological abuse is often ignored by the victims of domestic violence. Since there are no visible scars we think we’re okay, but in fact, the psychological and emotional torments are the ones that have the most lasting impact on our lives even long after the abuser is out of our lives. FACT There are many complicated reasons why it’s difficult for a person to leave an abusive partner. One common reason is fear. Women who leave abusers are at a 75% greater chance of being killed by the abuser than those who stay. Most people who are abused often blame themselves for causing the violence. No one is ever to blame for another person’s violence. Violence is always a choice, and the responsibility is 100% with the person who is violent. It is my desire that we become educated about the warning signs of domestic abuse and encourage women to break the cycle of abuse by breaking the silence. Sources: Barnett, Martinex, Keyson, â€Å"The relationship between violence, social support, and self-blame in battered women,† Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 1996.Jezel, Molidor, and Wright and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, ​Teen Dating Violence Resources Manual, NCADV, Denver, CO, 1996.Levy, B., Dating Violence: Young Women in Danger, The Seal Press, Seattle, WA, 1990. Straus, M.A., Gelles R.J. Steinmetz, S., Behind Closed Doors, Anchor Books, NY, 1980.U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics’ National Crime Victimization Survey, 1995. Uniform Crime Reports, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1991.Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, August 1995.

Bronsted-Lowry Acid Definition

Bronsted-Lowry Acid Definition In 1923, chemists Johannes Nicolaus Brà ¸nsted and Thomas Martin Lowry independently described acids and bases based on whether they donate or accept hydrogen ions (H). The groups of acids and bases defined in this manner came to be known as either Bronsted, Lowry-Bronsted, or  Bronsted-Lowry acids and bases. A Bronsted-Lowry acid is defined as a substance that gives up or donates hydrogen ions during a chemical reaction. In contrast, a Bronsted-Lowry base accepts hydrogen ions. Another way of looking at it is that a Bronsted-Lowry acid donates protons, while the base accepts protons. Species that can either donate or accept protons, depending on the situation, are considered to be amphoteric. The Bronsted-Lowry theory differs from the Arrhenius theory in allowing acids and bases that dont necessarily contain hydrogen cations and hydroxide anions. Key Takeaways: Bronsted-Lowry Acid The Bronsted-Lowry theory of acids and bases was proposed independently in 1923 by Johannes Nicolaus Brà ¸nsted and Thomas Martin Lowry.A Bronsted-Lowry acid is a chemical species that donates one or more hydrogen ions in a reaction. In contrast, a Bronsted-Lowry base accepts hydrogen ions. When it donates its proton, the acid becomes its conjugate base.A more general look at the theory is as an acid as a proton donor and a base as a proton acceptor. Conjugate Acids and Bases in Bronsted-Lowry Theory Every Bronsted-Lowry acid donates its proton to a species which is its conjugate base. Every Bronsted-Lowry base similarly accepts a proton from its conjugate acid. For example, in the reaction: HCl (aq) NH3 (aq)→ NH4 (aq) Cl- (aq) Hydrochloric acid (HCl)  donates a proton to ammonia (NH3) to form the ammonium cation (NH4) and the chloride anion (Cl-). Hydrochloric acid is a Bronsted-Lowry acid; the chloride ion is its conjugate base. Ammonia is a Bronsted-Lowry base; its conjugate acid is the ammonium ion. Sources Brà ¶nsted, J. N. (1923). Einige Bemerkungen à ¼ber den Begriff der Suren und Basen [Some observations about the concept of acids and bases]. Recueil des Travaux Chimiques des Pays-Bas. 42 (8): 718–728. doi:10.1002/recl.19230420815Lowry, T. M. (1923). The uniqueness of hydrogen. Journal of the Society of Chemical Industry. 42 (3): 43–47. doi:10.1002/jctb.5000420302

Personal & organization development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Personal & organization development - Essay Example mmunication skills, time management skills and team work skills with the aim of ensuring that I am able to perform my activities in a competent manner. According to my preferred career objectives as well as goals, my career mission statement is to develop analytical competencies and knowledge for a better sustainable as well as competent future career in the field of financial management. I want to build my career in the finance sector working as a financial analyst. In this regard, I preferred to join Museum of Islamic Arts (MIA), a renowned museum in Qatar as a Financial Affairs Officer. I believe that working as a Financial Affairs Officer in the organisation will facilitate me in developing my knowledge as well as competencies towards a better future career and professional life. My association with MIA will facilitate me in developing my communication skills as well as teamwork efficiencies that are essential for building my overall competency level. Considering that the job market of Qatar has been developing in a rapid pace and in a sustainable manner, working in MIA will be fruitful in developing my skills and knowledge in the financial management field so that I am capable of performing the various job activities in a competent manner. The targeted career scope in MIA will also facilitate me in making better decisions and to be innovative and creative in performing the various tasks. Working as a Financial Affair Officer in MIA will facilitate me in developing my financial analytical skills and also enhancing my interpretation skills, which are highly valued in this field of operations. In this long run, I will also be facilitated with the opportunity of developing my time management skills. Additionally, the developed skills and knowledge in relation to financial field will facilitate me in acquiring better job opportunities in the developing job market segment of Qatar. Furthermore, in the long run, I will be able to make effective decisions,

Transportation Safety Administration Research Paper

Transportation Safety Administration - Research Paper Example Keywords: 4th Amendment, AIT Scanner, Pat downs. Transportation Safety Administration Screening at U. S. Airports The Bill of Rights and the 4th Amendment 2001 and Now Introduction: September 11, 2001 will never be forgotten by anyone who is an American citizen. It became a day that the â€Å"light came on† for many people who had before taken security for granted. To the major portion of Americans, terrorism was something that happened in other countries, never their own. A total of 19 terrorists were able to evade security checkpoints and personnel and board four commercial airline planes. The results of that day were a â€Å"wake up call† for security in America but particularly for airline security. (Taylor; Steedman, 2003). After 9/11 security professionals have been seen as a major defense to managing the terrorism threat. The security industry has seen a boom after September 11, 2001. The airline industry has been the fastest to upgrade their security measures, s ince the hijackings occurred on commercial airlines. Immediately following the attacks, President Bush poured $20 billion dollars into intelligence and security. The airlines had to enact new security measures so that people would feel safe flying. Stricter background checks and heavier security for baggage checks were the first placement measures. (Taylor; Steedman, 2003). The following research covers the new airline laws, the TSA and how it effects the Bill of Rights and the 4th Amendment. The New Security Measures: The new security laws were put into place on November 1, 2001. They needed to be in place before the heightened traveling season of Thanksgiving and Christmas of 2001. On November 19, 2001 Congress passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA). The Homeland Security Act was passed on November 25, 2002 and the TSA was moved to the Department of Homeland Security, which had formerly been directly under the Department of Transportation. (Taylor; Steedman, 20 03). Security officers are very important in an airport that caters to millions of people traveling from different parts of the world. They are employed to assure the safety of assets; â€Å"they are on the front line.† (Taylor; Steedman, 2003). A security officer takes his position more personal and is able to detect little things that others would not normally see by observation. These officers are well versed on baggage checks, vehicle checks, screening passengers and personnel and operating detection equipment. Shortly after the TSA was formed, 65,000 new federal employees were hired. (Taylor; Steedman, 2003). They were offered higher wages and better benefits, and increased training from 12 hours to 100 hours on all baggage and passenger screeners. (Blalock; Kadiyali; Simon, 2007). The immediate short term upgrades to security included criminal background checks on 750,000 airport employees, screening of all checked baggage with whatever equipment was available. This inc luded x-ray machines, personal hands on inspections, presence of more air marshals on board, and prescreening of suspicious passengers with the FBI. By 2003 5,000 more air marshals were placed on domestic and international flights. Long-term upgrades included 28,000 airport baggage screeners being equipped with explosive

An Analysis of the Kite Runner Essay Example for Free

An Analysis of the Kite Runner Essay An analysis of The Kite Runner â€Å"For you, a thousand times over† Made by Hasnen Ali Introduction The Kite Runner is an extraordinary book, which reminds us how long the Afghani people have been struggling to triumph over the forces of violence. Because of the books strong story, we get an insight in how people might have experienced the crisis in Kabul, even though it’s been shown through a book. The author Khaled Hosseini was a practicing physician until after the book’s release. This was also his first novel, which was released in 2003 and turned out to be an international bestseller. Even though the story of The Kite Runner is fictional, it’s based on a true story and also on Hosseini’s memories of growing up in Kabul. This also means that the genre of the book is not a fictional novel (many look at it that way), but an historical novel. According to an article in USA Today, The Kite Runner has sold over 1. 4 million copies, which is a phenomenal sale for a first time author. The story tells of a friendship between two boys growing up in Kabul. Even though they were raised in the same household, Amir and Hassan are from two â€Å"different worlds†. While Amir is the son of a wealthy and respected man (Baba), Hassan is the son of the family servant (Ali). The most important factor in the story is the relationship between Amir and Hassan. Their intertwined lives and fate, shows that throughout the story even though, when their relationship was inseparable in the start. They still manage to become separated through jealousy. Five years later, during the Soviet occupation, Amir and Baba are forced to flee. They spend their new lives in California, and Amir starts a career as an author. Even though Amir thinks that he has escaped his past. He still cannot leave the memory of Hassan behind him. Setting The story uses two main settings. One is Afghanistan and the other is California. We could also say that the story is divided into three sections: the memories of pre-conflict Afghanistan, adjusting to life in America, and returning to Taliban controlled Afghanistan. There is big difference between these places. While Afghanistan used to be a safe and peaceful nation, their reputation completely changed after Taliban started controlling the country. The country is also portrayed as a demolished and deserted place, while California is shown as a way to escape their problems in Afghanistan. California will always be a much safer place to live, for both Amir and Baba, but Baba still misses Afghanistan, since he used to be wealthy and respected. He misses Kabul because in California, he is completely the opposite. He works at a gas station for many hours, and through the book we can feel that he misses almost everything about his previous home. It’s important to understand their struggle to adapt to their new home, because it shows how different Afghanistan is from California, and we also get a better understanding of the story. Structure and characters The Kite Runner starts with a nameless narrator, talking about his past and how it’s been affecting him for the last twenty-six years. The narrator also gives us clues to what might happen, and the troubles that will arise. After going through a few chapters, we get to know the main characters better and their problems. The characters that we first meet are Amir and Hassan. Amir is the narrator and the main character throughout the story. He is an Afghan man with a special childhood. Through most of his life Amir tries to redeem his reputation in the eyes of his father as he felt he was responsible for his mother’s death. He also wants to prove to his father that he isn’t a weakling, and want to become more like Hassan. Hassan is Amir’s best friend during his childhood and he is also his servant. Hassan is known for his loyalty and strong attachment to Amir. Later in the story, it’s revealed that Hassan is Amir’s brother. This means that Amir’s father had an affair with Ali’s wife, and that Hassan is actually his son. Hassan was also known for begin the best kite runner in Kabul. Baba is a wealthy and respected man, but becomes poor after he flees to America. His relationship with Amir is very turbulent, and he wants Amir to become like Hassan, strong and brave. Ali is Hassan’s father and Baba’s best friend. He is a Hazara, but he got the same characteristics as his son. Ali grew up together with Baba, just as Hassan and Amir did. He got a handicap as well; even though it doesn’t stop him from begin a loyal servant. Rahim Khan is Baba’s closest friend and one of the few people who know that Hassan is Amir’s brother. He is the one that calls Amir to go back to Afghanistan. Assef is a bully and is responsible for the rape of Hassan. This guy is also a fan of Hitler, which clearly makes him a sociopath. When he becomes an adult, he also joins the Taliban. He also has hatred towards the Hazara people, and likes to discriminate them. Soraya is Amir’s wife and has troublesome past. She also takes care of Baba, when he is sick and adopts Shorab without doubts. Sohrab is Hassan’s son. He also plays a major part in the book. Assef enslaves him after he is taken from the orphanage. Since Amir is the main character in the book, he also develops most of all the characters. We notice first that he slowly turns against Hassan, his anger and jealousy grows in one direction, even though Hassan doesn’t do anything wrong. The rape of Hassan is really an event that further separates their relationship. Since there is so much drama in this book, it doesn’t end yet. When the Soviet invades Afghanistan, Amir’s family flees to another country, unaware that they lose most of their wealth. For the first time they get a taste of how it is to be poor. Later in the book Amir gets a call from Rahim Khan and returns to Afghanistan. He finds out about Hassan’s son Sohrab, and is determined to bring him back home to America. Before he could save Sohrab, he had to face Assef. Getting beaten by Assef and saving Sohrab could be seen as a final way to redeem himself. This also made his guilt disappear. Themes and tones In this story, there are a lot of different themes we could discuss like example: bullying, friendship, guilt, betrayal, kite, honor, redemption, father and son relationship, man’s inhumanity to man, discrimination and loyalty. There is a lot of ethnic discrimination in Afghanistan and especially the conflict between the Pashtuns and the Hazara. The relationship between Pashtuns and Hazaras has never been stable; because Pashtuns are mostly Sunni Muslims and the Hazara are Shia Muslim. The Hazara has been discriminated mostly because of their faith, language and facial appearance. In the book Ali is loyal to Baba, because Baba’s father adopted Ali after his parents died. Since then Baba has always followed his father’s example and always been kind to the Hazara people. Guilt is also another theme that is brought up. After the rape of Hassan, Amir cannot bear to be around Hassan, because it reminds him of that day. He even lies to Ali, and says that nothing happened. The problem with Hassan is that he takes the blame for everything and he doesn’t want to hurt Amir. Even when Amir tells Hassan to hit him with the pomegranate, he refuses. When Hassan smashes the pomegranate on his own forehead, Amir’s guilt becomes even worse. In the end Amir makes Hassan and his father leave, and Hassan still considers Amir his best friend. The story is written in a way that it still affects you after your done reading. Even though it’s a dark story with a lot of hopelessness for the people in Afghanistan, there still is some hope and happiness. Honor is expressed in many different ways, but the quote â€Å"for you, a thousand times over† is a great example of how they express theirself. Conclusion The kite is a theme in the book that represents freedom, even though you’re not in fully in control of the kite’s fate. I think the theme describes the fate of Amir and how he develops throughout the book To me the story as said earlier is a historical novel, and not a fictional novel. This is because it’s based on a true story and experiences Hosseini had when he was growing up in Kabul. I as writer of this analysis is a Hazara, and I know what kind of suffering the Hazara people have went through. Sometimes I think that Hosseini might be Amir, but they sure do have some similarities. Links: * http://www. usatoday. com/life/books/news/2005-04-18-kite-runner_x. htm * http://www. gradesaver. com/the-kite-runner/study-guide/ * http://www. wikisummaries. org/The_Kite_Runner * http://polsci167. blogspot. com/2011/09/kite-runner-redemption-within-tentative. html

The Nature of the Absurd How Brecht and Pirandello Express the Notion of Absurdity :: Essays Papers

The Nature of the Absurd How Brecht and Pirandello Express the Notion of Absurdity The word absurd can only be described by the Myth of Sisyphus, written by Albert Camus. It is a myth written about a man whose passion for life led him to his own torture. He was a man condemned by the gods to a life of dreadful punishment. His punishment was continuously rolling a rock to the top of a mountain. Each day the rock would roll its entire weight to the bottom, and Sisyphus would push it back to the top. Sisyphus is the absurd hero, as much through his passion for life as his torture. His whole life is pushing towards a goal that is accomplishing nothing. He lives a purposeless and powerless life. The tragic part of this story is that Sisyphus is conscious to this fact. He knows that every step he takes is one that lacks success. He knows as he is in the duration of his descent, as he thinks about the passions of his life, that he will once again face the sorrows of his hopeless labor when he faces the rock at the bottom of the hill. This is what makes the myth absurd. He can still be filled with happiness, especially on his descent, even though he is condemned to his fate. He never gives in to the circumstances and rises above. He can hold his head up and keep going, just as we do. Today we live our lives no less absurdly then Sisyphus did. We get up and work at the same tasks day after day. I have been going to school almost every day for the last 15 years. I have been following the structure that I am expected to follow, and accomplish little within each day. Sisyphus teaches us that we always have the ability to rise above our lot by laughing at our condition. Two pieces of literature that portray the notion of absurdity are Mother Courage by Bertolt Brecht and Six Characters in Search of an Author by Luigi Pirandello, because they both teach us lessons about our ability as humans to overcome our circumstances. Brecht wrote Mother Courage on the eve of World War II, and has a very pessimistic view of the world.

Economics and Environmental Hazards Essay

In the 21st century, global warming, littering, waste, and temperature rises have been the subject of focus for many scientists. While examining the many causes of global warming, scientists found fossil fuel emissions and CO2 emissions to be a major cause. Although Earth is known as the Blue Planet for its vast water sources, much of that water is saltwater. Only 3% of the Earth is fresh water, and 70% of that is in glacial ice, unreachable by most. Thus, only 0. 5% of the Earth is made of usable freshwater. This limited amount of water is unsuitable for the world’s expanding population. Much of this water, however, can be easily conserved by switching from bottled water to tap water. Through using tap water and conserving plastic, we can save 27 times the amount of water we currently are saving, and use water sources wisely so as to not run out. Literature Review In the 1930s, the subjects of global warming, water, and lack of resources for fossil fuels became concern for Americans. The New York Times ran their first global warming article in 1929, when it first was considered a myth. Now that global warming has become a major concern for people, we realize how much we have wasted nature’s resources- especially water. Although 75% percent of the Earth is made up of water, less than 1% is drinkable and accessible by people. Countless blogs, websites, newspapers, and academic journals, such as the Journal of Dental Association (2003) and BioMed Central (2009), describe how our thoughtless actions have led to water depletion. Through processing, we waste 26 liters of water to get 1 liter of bottled water. The bottles are made in China using crude oil and transported thousands of miles on oil-eating machines, causing the ozone layer to melt. There are now seldom disputes to the existence of ozone depletion, and media uses print and internet to support the cutting down on bottled water. Bottled Water: Economics and Environmental Hazards. Thousands of years ago, water was a gift from the gods, to be saved and cherished. It allowed ancient civilizations to grow into structured societies, and gave people the ability to survive on domesticating animals and growing plants. Today, in the modern world, water is often taken for granted, and has become a daily thing of our lives. We see water fountains everywhere, and bottled water can be purchased in bulk. However, at the current rate we are using water, freshwater amounts are likely to decimate. This gift from the gods has brought environmental harm to the world and wasted the money of thousands of people. Thus, in order to protect the environment and save our own money, we must make good choices and switch from excessively using bottled water to using tap water. One of the top reasons people often buy bottled water is because of the convenience it provides (Ferrier, 2001, pp. 118-119). Easy life is what the entire economy runs on, as we have seen from the declining economy. As income lessens, people are reverting back to an older lifestyle of doing things themselves instead of purchasing services and goods. While bottled water may taste better because of chemicals that companies add in, it also costs significantly more. A New York Times reporter calculated that eight glasses of New York City tap water were about 49 cents a year, but 8 glasses of bottled water would be 2,900 times more expensive- as much as $1,400 per year. Because water is something that every household needs, it is reasonable to conclude that by switching to bottled water, families could cut their water expenses in half (Helm, 2008) and America as a whole could save. The high costs of purchasing bottled water are often due to the processing that bottled water must go through and the costs of shipping and plastic. Instead of drinking water from a local river or other water source, people choose to drink water shipped from Fiji, where extra charge is added for shipping. The plastic that is used to make the bottle also adds charge. A replacement for this kind of convenience is drinking from the bottles and then continuously refilling them to save your money and the environment. According to the Container Recycling Institute, 85% of water bottles in the United States end up in landfills (cited in Aslam, 2006). Unfortunately, plastic takes up to 1,000 years to decompose and the fuel emissions that delivery trucks emanate destroy the ozone layer. Even more smog and smoke is given off by the manufacturing plant, contributing to global warming, evaporation of our current freshwater supply, and melting/mixing of glacial freshwater and ocean water. About 70% of freshwater is in glacial ice, and as a result of temperatures rising, the freshwater melts, mixing in with saltwater and becoming undrinkable until further chemical processing. Another common myth about bottled water is that it is healthier. A study conducted by University of Birmingham researchers found that â€Å"†¦The majority of participants believed that bottled water has some health benefits but that they were not necessarily significant or superior to the benefits provided by tap water† (BioMed Central, 2009). The participants, users of the university’s sports center, stated that the health benefits of bottled water were negligible, and it was taste and convenience that truly motivated them to buy bottled water. Some research even suggests the opposite- that bottled water is less beneficial to health than tap water. While communities actively add in fluoride – a cavity fighter- to the water supply, the majority of bottled water contains little to no fluoride (Rugg-Gunn, 2003). Many large water companies currently undergo processes such as distillation and/or osmosis – both remove all fluoride from the water (American Dental Association, 2003). Since we now know that bottled water is not healthier than other water sources, we must reflect again on the numerous drawbacks of bottled water. Landfills continue to grow and grow, leading to larger emissions of ozone-depleting gases (Sarma, 2002). Birds and other small animals choke on plastic, mistaking it for food, and also die as a result. The ecosystem is dying as a result. The world works as a whole, a cycle, a circle. The consequences of our actions will always come back to bite us, or in the case of water, our posterity when they have low water supply. Conserving water today will benefit people later. In addition, as we become closer and closer to high UV radiation exposure and losing our ozone layer, scientists are frantically trying to build labs, gather money, and conduct extensive research about how to conserve the environment and water. By not procrastinating, and saving plastic and water resources now, we will save great amounts of money. The exotic island of Fiji is known for its pure, fresh, crisp water, even to Americans who live thousands of miles away. A 16 ounce bottle of Fiji water currently costs from $1. 50 to $2. 50. At a rate like that, when we are at the edge of the Great Lakes and other vast water sources, but purchase water from the other side of the world, our money is being sold away to foreign countries. Most of 2. 7 million tons of plastic used for bottling and packaging come from China (Aslam, 2006). The result is a national economic breakdown, not only in the water industry, but in all industries, since people cannot cut down on the amount of water they need to drink. It takes 63 million gallons of oil per year to manufacture water bottles (Niman, 2007). That is not only more water than Fijians themselves drink that we are buying, but also 63 million extra gallons of oil and plastic that we toss away. Ironically, one third of Fijians are in destitution and lack the amount of water they need. Because one liter of bottled water uses 26 liters of water, one kilogram of fossil fuel, and one pound of CO2 (Thangham, 2007), little is left for the Fijians in destitute. This is true for not only Fiji waters, but all waters in the world. In 2007, Fiji, one of the world’s most popular drinking water sources, became the first bottled water company to release its carbon footprint -85,396 metric tons of CO2eq (Corporate Social Responsibility, 2008). Imagine the carbon footprint total for the world, or even the United States. Perhaps American water companies have not released their carbon footprints because of how overwhelmingly large they are. If we could cut down on how much bottled and imported water we drank, we could preserve a large amount of water for the future.

How to Ensure Individual Freedom and Community-Building in a Society?

Topic: How to ensure individual freedom and community-building in a society? Every people want to live freely to do whatever they want in a society with freedom and want to communicate with every social groups or governments to build up a good community. If we want to ensure individual freedom I shall briefly that what is the freedom and community is? Freedom is the power or rights to act, speak or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Community means that all people living in a particular area or place which call local communities.How to ensure individual freedom and community-building in a society? First of all, Individual freedom is talk about people is given rights to pursue life, liberty and happiness. To ensure individual freedom in society is security. Security is the most important point for the individual freedom because security is the degree of protection to safeguard for citizens live in country. If the country does not maintenance the security for the citize ns or in society have not well developed in security, so the citizens or in society have no freedom to act or rights to do everything and it might be harm in society.But if the society does maintenance the security for the citizens or this country in society will have no war. And also a country which provides citizens live in freedom under well developed in security in everything that they feel free to do anything they want. Hence, people have individual freedom that want to do everything freely because freedom is born out of an understanding of natural law and natural consequences and that drive each of us to be personality responsible for our own actions, to be self-reliant in our thinking and in our work.Second, to ensure individual freedom in society is self-autonomy because self-autonomy is a self-governing in society whom responds for our own actions in society. If we have self-autonomy to do something, to govern in our own decision in society, it seems that we strongly have a bility to do everything. So self-autonomy is another point that seek to individual freedom. For the community-building is creation or enhancement of community among ndividual within regional area or with common interest. To improve community-building we have to make social capital. Because social capital produce a sense of belonging which make an increasing overall health of community. Social capital is a social group that cooperated between citizens and governments that participates in society. To increase evidence shows that social capital cohesion is critical for societies to prosper economically and for development to be sustainable.Social capital is focus on social relations that have productive benefits. It is the most important participates in this society is to make social group and the governments make it to the strong system one to ensure which mean to build up the local communities or social truth governments and create more policies. Thus, to ensure community-building in society is we have social capital which have group of social or governments cooperating to build up the strong community.To sum up, we seems to ensure individual freedom and community-building in a society have many reasons or explanations to describe. For reasons or explanations to ensure individual freedom are security and self-autonomy. If every people live in society does have individual freedom which means that their society must have well developed in security and have self-autonomy. But for the ensure community-building is about social capital which means that all citizens and governments work together with a good community in society.

The Masks of Robert Browning Essays

The Masks of Robert Browning Essays The Masks of Robert Browning Paper The Masks of Robert Browning Paper The Victorian era was a time known for Its family values. Robert Browning broke the mold of the Victorian writers by turning to dramatic monologue. Readers at the time could not appreciate his technique. Today some of his poems can be linked with authors such as Stephen King or Dean Kenton. Do his writings give us an insight into a hidden mad man? No. Robert Browning brought his characters to life and awakened the very real possibilities of the common man having a dark side. His use of persona and dramatic dialogue can be seen In Porphyrys Lover, and My Last Duchess. These works show his use of a mask and give insights Into the true Victorian era. Even though the entire era of the Victorians was a mask to give the impression that family values were their main concern, Robert Browning revealed the hidden chaos of his generation, the anger of the lower class against the upper class and the rise In news media coverage of tragedies.. The Victorian era of family values was a mask to hide the social conditions which Included orphanages, extreme poverty and call conflict. The mid-Victorian period was dominated by a double tankard which insisted on a rigid public respectability while condoning widespread sexual immorality by men. This hypocrisy led to extensive protests culminating in a series of highly publicized scandals in the asses and ass which marked the triumph of dogmatic puritanical morality (Fisher 14-19). Robert Browning focuses on the hypocrisy of men in My Last Duchess. Victorian men treated women as possessions which were disposabl e. Men felt as if it were their duty to control women (45-46). In this work Browning displays how the men of wealth and power treated women. The poem was based on true events of Alfonse II, Duke of Ferreira in Italy, whose first wife, Lucrative, was rumored to have been poisoned after three years of marriage. Browning portrays the bad qualities of the Duchess as being easily pleased, modest and courteous to those who served her. This description was a perfect depiction of what was considered the female duty during the Victorian age. Robert Browning focuses on the chaos between the upper and lower classes In his poem Porphyrys Lover, an example of Borrowings Interest In criminal psychology and violence. The deader learns that the speaker is a man who alone in a cottage, he waits for his beloved Porphyry to enter. Evidently, her absence had been the result of her attendance at a gay feast, one of the vainer ties this suggests the upper class (lines 24-27). The speaker is in a substantially lower class than his lover. The idea of her sneaking away to be with her lover implies the unacceptable of the affair. In a Literary Correctly of the poem, Gayety Devil suggests, The plot revolves around a socially mismatched love affair; upper class girl falls in love with boy from the wrong side of the tracks. The boy has his revenge on society by murdering its representative: the girl. Another view of this poem is the religious connotation at the closing, and yet God has not said a word which necessitates the idea that the speaker has escaped punishment (60). Porphyrys Lover was printed with Johannes Gorilla In Meditation, under the heading Madhouse Cells suggesting that the two poems are related. Eleven drowning tendency to use analytical Taluses In Nils poetry to relate to current events, Johannes Gorilla , was the founder of the Reformation sects of antinomian, a belief labeled heretical by the orthodox because it taught hat those among the elect (that is, those predestined for salvation, according to so me forms of Calvinist and Wesleyan) could not sin regardless of the apparent evil of their acts (Dickinson). The belief in predestination was strong during the Victorian era. Browning thought a man who believed in predestination and a man who killed the woman he loved were both insane (Carson 397-398). Using masks or different persona Browning could speak out with greater originality and boldness than would ever have been possible in his own person. His writings were ahead of their time in action and thought. He delved into the history and assumed characters to represent current events. Through these characters he revealed the dark and evil acts of mankind. Readers often relate the mental states of the speaker in his poetry to his own state of mind; nothing could be further from the truth. The reader must look into the time in which these poems were written to get a complete analysis of them. The nineteenth century brought the printing of newspapers which were filled with stories of violence from the wars and in society. Just as the media of today seems to only portray the dark side of mankind, Browning centered his writings to he demands of the public. Human beings seem to be fascinated with the twisted minds of seemingly normal people. Browning reaches that part inside people that is drawn to look at a car wreck, silently hoping to see blood. This need for the grotesque dwells inside of man; Browning had the audacity to reveal that hunger to the world. Robert Browning avoided sharing himself inside his writings to escape criticism. He developed the technique of the dramatic monologue which reveals hidden characteristics of the speaker. His experience in writing plays may have influenced this technique. He had the ability to get inside the mind of a schizophrenic killer and hypocritical monks. During this era the reader must remember the developments of scientific research and the psychological studies by Freud. This was a time of intense developments and deep thought. Society demanded more knowledge. Robert Browning could be considered a genius of the human mind because of his uncanny understanding of the workings of the mentally challenged. Browsing writings can be seen as a type of transference of persona instead of a mask. He is not hiding behind his characters, he is inside them.

Anthony Burgess and A Clockwork Orange Essay -- A Clockwork Orange

John Anthony Burgess was born on February 25, 1917, in Manchester, England. He was born to Catholic parents (mom died early). Anthony’s mother died when he was only two years old from an illness, so he was brought up and raised by his aunt. A few years later when his father remarried, his stepmother primarily raised Burgess. Anthony’s father was not around much and frankly didn’t care much for Anthony. Burgess’s upbringing was rough and somewhat traumatizing, which reflect in some of his works, including the novel, A Clockwork Orange. Burgess married at a young age and had only one child, Paolo Andrea Burgess. In a review article about Anthony Burges, Thomas Horan said, â€Å"As Burgess acknowledged, he was a neglectful parent, too preoccupied with his writing and composing to take much notice of the high-spirited urchin who often rd a lot of things throughout his 76-year-old life, but he is most famously known for his controversial novel, A Clockwork Ora nge. Works Cited Burrow, Colin. "Not Quite Nasty." London Review of Books. LRB Ltd (1997-2004), Nov. 2005. Web. 1 Jan. 2014. Covert, Colin. "Anthony Burgess." Hutchinson's Biography Datbase 2011: 1. Ebscohost.com. Web. 8 Jan. 2014. Criticism, Contemporary Literary, and Carolyn Riley. Contemporary Literary Criticism. Detroit: Gale Research, 1973. Print. Horan, Thomas. "A Clockwork Counterpoint: The Music and Literature of Anthony Burgess." Academic Search Premier. Studies in the Novel, Apr. 2011. Web. 8 Jan. 2014. . Liukkonen, Petri. "Anthony Burgess." Anthony Burgess. Ari Pesonen, 2008. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. "Movie Spotlight: "A Clockwork Orange"" Review. Newspaper Source Plus (2013): 1-2. Ebscohost.com. Web. 8 Jan. 2014.

Capital budgeting practices in different countriesindustrial Essay

Capital budgeting practices in different countriesindustrial corporations - Essay Example In today’s world of complex business process, corporate capital budgeting is one of the most important and critical decisions faced by the financial managers. In businesses individuals invests large sums of money which generate cash flow benefit over a period of more than one year. This is the crux of capital expenditures. The goods on which capital expenditures are made include purchasing of new equipments, acquiring of new technologies and that of launching research and development programs and so on. Along with these capital expenditures, a huge volume of cash outlays are involved with significant implications on the future values of the company. Analysis of capital expenditures is a crucial dimension in the business sphere. In this respect concept of capital budgeting (CB) can be introduced. In simple terms it is a business practice utilized for planning the acquisition of long term investments. The prime factor included in capital budgeting is that the organization or the company which builds and starts to use in one year will be highly useful in the future years (Finkler, 244). The importance of capital budgeting is immense as it includes decisions for the future profitability of the companies. Now this technique varies across geographical borders and difference exists in a stark manner within the corporations of developed and developing countries. Developed countries like United States of America exercise thorough scientific analysis associated with the capital budgeting techniques. ... While in the developing countries, the corporations practice formal processes and some also do not follow proper scientific methods for evaluation resulting from the lack of familiarity with such scientific methods (Blum, 1). The underlying mechanism of this paper is based on highlighting the capital budgeting practices in different countries industrial corporations. Decision making is the most crucial process within business operations. Effective decision making evolves from properly analyzing and evaluating the alternatives that are available and then selecting the most feasible as well valuable decision from the available options. The process of capital budgeting assesses the business operations of the companies through quantitative evaluation techniques. Through these techniques, capital budgeting method involves the forecasting of the performances of the future decisions associated with long term investments within the corporations. Capital budgeting techniques utilizes data fro m the financial and operating reports of the firms for predicting the performance of the investment in the corporate and their also their strategic options. In majority of the businesses CB process follows a synchronized application process which involves some fundamental evaluation techniques. The first step of CB is to collect investment ideas followed by a analysis of costs and benefits associated with the proposed investments. Then the subsequent step involves ranking attachments to each of the proposed investments followed by implementation of the selected investment and also simultaneous evaluation of the investments which are implemented. There are certain valuation techniques