Unionizing Chinese Walmart Store Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Unionizing Chinese Walmart Store - Dissertation Example Wal-Mart has had a resistance of unions in most of the countries but has allowed the formation of unions in China. The largest retailer in the world, which employs close to 23,000 people in China, will allow the federation to form branches in all the outlets in China. The world retailer was under pressure from the other unions that claimed that the company contributed much to a violation of human rights job losses when it carries its operations in China. This was because the United States employees are not under unions. The unions also were formed to meet the demands of the Chinese government that allows unions to have a formal establishment. The formation, however, has not translated to any effective bargaining power of the employees, which was the main aim of forming the unions. The retailer claimed that instead of forming unions, it encouraged the employees to have a direct communication with the company in the issues of concern (Star, 2015). This would make the issues to be taken seriously and follow up with the right actions. Due to the global recession, the retailer agreed to form unions for workers in China so that they would be allowed to carry out their operation in the country where they have ambitious expansion plans. China is the country where the operations of the company lag behind in the global rivalry. In one of the claims that were presented in the courts, the retailer has been considered to engage in unfair labor practices under a different section of the labor code.

Competition Bike Incs Essay Example for Free

Competition Bike Incs Essay Horizontal analysis compares a company’s performance from year to year. I will be reviewing Competition Bikes Inc(CBI) balance sheets and income statements. During CBI year 6, 7 and 8 I have found their net sales , cost of goods to be fluctuating, and few various other items. The net sales from year 6 to 7 increase 33.34 %. The cost of goods from year 6 to 7 was 31.82 %. The gross profit increase 30.89. Comparing year 6 and 7 I found that year 7 improved, but when I compared year 7 to 8 the results were not good for year 8. The company had experienced a 15 percent reduction in net sales. Cost of goods drops 14.8 % from year 7 to 8. Advertising Expenses CBI advertising expenses increased by 37.5 % from year 6 to 7. CBI made a great investment from year 6 to 7 because the net sales increase at a higher rate the increased advertising cost. CBI reduced their advertising expenses by 16.3 % from year 7 to 8. I believed this was done because of the fragile economy. Many companies are trying to make cuts back during a weak economy. These reduces expenses will hold them over until the economy becomes stronger. Website/Sales The website creation and maintenance expenses during year 6, 7 and 8 stayed the same price. Sales commission increase 33.371 % during year 7 from the previous year. Sales commission decrease by 15 % the following year (8). Distribution Network The Distribution network expenses had a positive increased in year 7 by33.3 % jump from the previous year. Distribution expenses are normally supposed to maintain similar numbers, but when you have an increase in sales it is acceptable to increase the distribution expenses. Distribution network expenses decreased 15 percent in year 8. This was caused due to less revenue. Transportation CBI had 33% transportation increase from year 6 to 7. This was caused CBI had more products sold and required more products to be shipped. CBI saw 15 % transportation decrease from year 7 to 8. CBI had less products sold and this caused transportation to decrease in year 8. Administrative Expenses from year 6 to 7 saw 21.43% increase. Administrative Expenses maintain the same expenses from year 7 to 8. Executive expenses increased 29.42 % from year 6 to 7. Year 7 and 8 maintain the same level of expenses. Employment taxes rose by 25.81 % increase from year 6 to 7. Year 7 and 8 maintain the same level of employment of expenses. Administrative expenses are expected due to company having increase production and sales. Utilities expenses rose 3.84 % from year 6 to 7. CBI operation worked proficiently in year 7, and this helped them experienced only an increase of 3.8% in utilities. This was caused due to increase production. CBI utilities increased by 11.11 during year 8. I would suggest CBI have their utilities monitor from day to day to see how they can prevent an increase in expenses when the company is not performing well compared to the previous year. Research CBI saw research and development saw a 37.5 % percent increase from year 6 to 7.During year eight CBI reduces their research and development expenses by 16.3 %. A company should never reduces their research and development if they company perform well in the previous year. I believe this was one of the reasons why CBI had a great year during 7 because they knew what consumers wanted. Due to lack of spending on research and development this caused their sales to drop. Research and development is an important component of competition against other companies without a company will fail to succeed. Interest Income CBI interest income rose 38.1% from year 6 to 7. During year 7 CBI income was properly invested. During year 8 CBI investments had a 3.4% reduction. The reduction was small, but small things do add up over time. I would suggest CBI to monitor their investments and make plans to move around their money if the current trend continues. Balances sheets CBI accounts receivable rose 164.3% from year 6 to 7. During year 8 CBI accounts receivable drop 15 percent. CBI should monitor accounts receivable more closely to make sure past due balances are paid on time. This was caused due to the company noticing a large increase on accounts receivable during year 7 and they tried to capitalize on it. This caused their accounts receivable to drop. Raw Materials CBI manages their raw materials well during year 7. CBI had 3.1% percent reduction in year 8. CBI should incorporate lean production method and Just in time production to avoid wasteful spending and production. Liabilities CBI liabilities increase 1.2% from year 6 to 7. This is expected due to year having 7 having an increase in sales and productions. CBI reduces their liabilities by 3.1% from year 7 to 8. This is good because CBI had a 15 percent reduction in net sales. Vertical analysis A method of financial statement analysis in which each entry for each of the three major categories of accounts (assets, liabilities and equities) in a balance sheet is represented as a proportion of the total account. The main advantages of vertical analysis are that the balance sheets of businesses of all sizes can easily be compared. It also makes it easy to see relative annual changes within one business(Investopedia,2013). Income Year 7 net sales were 7% higher than year 6.CBI preserved their selling expenses at 6.7% of total Net Sales. CBI reduced General Admin Expenses from 17.1% during year 6 to 15.5% during year 7.This would lead to an increase in Operating Income from 2.8% of Net Sales from year 6 to 5.3% in year 7 and CBI Net Earnings would increase from 1.1% (year 6) to 3.3% (year7). CBI did not perform well in year 8 because their expenses increase during year 8. This caused CBI net earnings to reduce.. CBI Administrative expenses increased 15.5% from year 6 to 7. CBI net sales increase 18.4% from year 7 to 8. CBI operating expenses income was reduce 5.3%of net sales to 1.9 % causing CBI net earnings from 3.3% to a .7%. I would recommend CBI to monitor their general and Admin expenses. Majority of expenses stayed the same during year 6,7 and 8. However during year 8 the CBI did not perform well. I believed CBI needs to find ways to reduces expenses when the company is having a low sales volume. CBI should incorporate just in time principles and lean manufacturing principles. I believe this would help reduce wasted production and this would help reduce utilities expenses. Just in time principles and lean manufacturing principles could also reduce employee expenses. ASSESTS CBI in the cash and cash equivalent accounts drop from 6.2 % in year 6 to 2.7%. However, during year 7 more products were sold compared to year 6. CBI accounts receivable had a major increase from year 6(6.5%) to year 7(16.6%).CBI needs to monitor their accounts receivable accounts more closely and make sure they’re collecting the amount owed to them. During year 8 CBI cash and cash equivalents had risen from 2.7 %( year 7) to 10.3%(year 8). The reason why this happen was due to CBI had started to monitor their accounts receivable. This helped them collect the money they were owed on past due accounts. I would recommend CBI to avoid making purchase on accounts and find ways to use the cash in a more efficient way. CBI should realize it important they have enough reserves during a recession. This will help hold them over until the economy bounces back. â€Å"Trend Analysis is the practice of collecting information and attempting to spot a pattern, or trend, in the information (Wikipedia,2012).†CBI sales were lower than year 7, but they still were able to make a profit. CBI should expect to see growth in the next few years based on their current trend. CBI is expected to have 3,510 units sold in year 9. CBI will have 3,660 units sold in year 10. Finally during year 11,CBI will sell 3,800 units. The forecast numbers are based on the economy recovering. This will encourages CBI sponsors to invest in professional riders and this will increase new bike sales. Currently is cost CBI 1,047.50 to make each product. I would recommend CBI find suppliers who have the same quality parts, but at a lower cost. I would also make recommend CBI is following just in time and lean manufacturing principles. This could help CBI increase their profit margin. Ratio analysis- analyzes numbers Ratio analysis is a method used by businesses to assess their financial situation by comparing two sets of linked data. Current ratio will measure a companys ability to pay short-term obligations. CBI had a reduction from year 7 (5.9%) to 8(5.35%). Two wheel racing (TWR) current ratio was 4.2% for year 7 and 8. A debt ratio will determine if a business is able to handle any unexpected liabilities it that may come up. A business needs to make sure they enough money to pay off debt to avoid problems with their debt. During year 7 CBI debt ratio was 46.8%. The follow year the debt ratio was 46%. The debt ratio only drops .08 percent during year 8. TWR debt ratio was 38% in year 7 and 8. An acid test ratio will determine if a company can back their liabilities. CBI is doing better than (TWR) by 1.12% and .85%. Inventory turnover- determines the number of times a company can sell it average level of inventory throughout the year. CBI bicycles are customizes for customers so I am unable to compared CBI and TWR. Average collection period, This determines how well a company is able to collect money to the customers they extended credit to.CBI has higher collected amount compared to TWR. CBI was 11.3% higher in year 7 and 8. Gross Profit Margin, will tell investors how much revnue was gain after selling the product(Cost of Good-revenue/gross profit. TWR profit margin is 32.10% higher than CBI profit margin in year 7(27.4%) and 8(27.0%). TWR is operating more effectively. Operating profit margin Measures management efficiency (Operating income/total sales). CBI year 7 was 5.3% and TWR was 5.2%. Year 8 TWR performed better with 5.3% compared to CBI(1.9%). Net Profit Margin show investors the percentage of each sale dollar earn as net income. During year 7 CBI net profits was 3.3% and in year 8 it was .8%.TWR was 5.14% year 7 and 8. The portion of a companys profit allocated to each outstanding share of common stock. Earnings per share serves as an indicator of a companys profitability(Investopedia,2013).TWR was $.08 for year 7 and 8. CBI was $.20 during year 7 and $.04 in year 8. Return on total assets-determine how successful a company is to earn profit with their assets. TWR total assets was 4.8% for year 7 and 8. CBI was 4.5% in year 7 and year 8 was .8%. Return on Common Equity- Income between net income and stockholder equity. During year 7 CBI equity was 8.5% AND TWR was 8.1%. CBI equity in year 8 was 1.5% and TWR was 8.1% Price / Earnings Ratio- Stock prices and company earning. CBI earning share 49.67 and TWR was 29. During year CBI price jump to 83.73 and TWR was still 29. Times Interest Earned Determines the numbers of times operating income can pay interest expense. Year 7 interest earn was 5.27 and TWR was 4.24. During year 8 CBI interest earn drop to 1.77 and TWR remained 4.24. ‘Working capital is a financial metric(current assets minus company liabilities) which represents operating liquidity available to a business, organization or other entity, including governmental entity(Wikipedia,2013).† The financial metric system will analyzes if a company will be able to pay their short term liabilities or do they need to take an alternative solution. CBI working capital in year 6 was $382,394: CBI working capital at the end of year was 1,306,617. CBI increased their working capital by 70.7% at the end of year 8. After reviewing CBI working capital the results indicated they will be able to pay their short term liabilities Recommendation I would recommend CBI to have their accounts executives to build a better relationship with customers and make sure they’re satisfied with the work they are receiving. One of the most important things a company can do is listen to their employees. I would also recommend CBI to reduce their accounts receivables. This could be done by making sure that larger orders from customer are sent out faster. CBI inventory cost increase over 24% from year 6 to year 8.CBI should follow the just in time and lean manufacturing principles. This will reduces inventory cost for CBI. CBI transportation expenses are one of their highest expenses. I would recommend CBI to consider to purchasing their own delivery truck and see if this will help them reduce their transportation expense. Internal controls Internal controls helps a company infrastructure run smoothly. Internal controls also help protect and prevent fraud. Internal control will try to remove the temptations for employee to act unethically in the aspect of putting the company at risk of lawsuit. CBI purchase department (PD) will purchases orders from suppliers based on their monthly budget. Once the order has been received the PD will evaluate bids from different suppliers. Once the order has been received they’re given to the production line. The invoice will be sent to the PD. If there are any supplies left they will be sent to raw materials. The PD will then send an accounting department who issues a check to the supplier. Recommendation I would recommend the whole entire processed be revamped. The first thing I would recommended is to separate the duties of researching the bid and purchasing orders. The next thing I would suggest is to make the receiving department in charge of verifying the shipping when the packages arrive. The receiving department needs to verify every item is there from the supplier and their no missing item from the delivery. The receiving department should maintain an inventory control system. After the receiving department has approved the invoice, they should forward to the purchasing department. The purchase order will be forward to the accounting department for payment. Accounting has currently been only receiving unverified invoices. Risk Accounting has currently been only receiving unverified invoices. The lack of verification could cause CBI to get double charge for item they already paid for. Currently their lack of inventory control system. Currently unused supplies are being sent to raw material without anyway of tracking it. This would make it easy for employees to steal because lack of inventory control system. Recommendation I would suggest an inventory control system be implemented. I would make sure all packages received by receiving department be verified by management to avoid being double charge. The inventory control system will help prevent theft from employees. I would also hire outside firm every quarter to check inventory levels to make sure no one is stealing from the company. Sarbanes-Oxley Act Sarbanes-Oxley Act is government regulation that congress pass in order to improve financial disclosures. This would help prevent accounting fraud and improve financial disclosures from corporations(Wikpedia,2013).†Section 302: A mandate that requires senior management to certify the accuracy of the reported financial statement Section 404: A requirement that management and auditors establish internal controls and reporting methods on the adequacy of those controls. Section 404 had very costly implications for publicly traded companies as it is expensive to establish and maintain the required internal controls (Investopedia,2013). CBI does not mention that they were audited by outside firm. I highly recommend CBI to hire auditing firm to review the company’s annual statement before releasing the numbers to the public to make sure there is no accounting errors. Internal controls are implemented and effective at the end of year 8(Dec 31). The CEO, and CFO certification is need because it is required by SOX and this could not be located. Auditor releases the following statement to shareholders. A material weakness is a control deficiency, or a combination of control deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the company’s annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis Recommendations CBI needs to make sure they are in compliance with the regulations set forth by Sarbanes-Oxley CB. The first thing I would recommend is to conduct a internal control assessment. The next thing I would recommend CBI to hire accounting firm to review their internal controls. The control needs to be based on Sox guidelines. The CEO and CFO needs to certify they’re aware of the CBI internal control and the actions the company have taken to protect investor’s investments. It is very vital CBI CEO and CFO certifies they’re aware of internal control because Sarbanes-Oxley requires this to be done. Since the accounting firm made assessment that the internal control is effective their might be some problems that could arise from the following statement, â€Å"A material weakness is a control deficiency, or a combination of control deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the company’s annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.† I would recommend the CEO or CFO to take action fix the internal control problem because they could face jail time for making statements that were not true. .† CBI should base their guidelines set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Tread Way Commission(CSOTWO). CSOTWO is joint inivate five private sector organizations devoted to providing leadership through progress and guidance on enterprise risk management, internal control and fraud dictation. This is a great way for C BI to improve the internal control process. References Free Dictionary(2013) http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Sarbanes-Oxley+Act+of+2002 Investopedia(2013) http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/horizontalanalysis.asp#axzz2Hh4rgfuE True Bussiness(2013) http://truetobusiness.com/finance/ratio-analysis Wikipedia(2013) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_control

Motif of Blood in Shakespeares Macbeth :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Motif of Blood in Macbeth Shakespeare In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the motif of blood plays an important factor in the framework of the theme.   A motif is a methodical approach to uncover the true meaning of the play.   Macbeth, the main character in the play, thinks he can unjustly advance to the title of king without any variation of his honest self.   The blood on Macbeth’s hands illustrates the guilt he must carry after plotting against King Duncan and yearning for his crown.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeare used the image of blood to portray the central idea of Macbeth, King Duncan’s murder.   The crime is foreshadowed in the second scene of the first act.   The king shouts, â€Å" What bloody man is that?† (I,ii,1)   He is referring to a soldier coming in from battle.   The soldier then explains to King Duncan of Macbeth’s heroics in battle.   One assumes that Macbeth is bloody just like the soldier.   The soldier describes Macbeth in action â€Å"Disdaining Fortune, with his brandished steel, / Which smoked with bloody execution.† (I,ii,17-18)   This line connects Macbeth with killing, and hints at the future.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The evil deed of murdering the king becomes too much of a burden on the Macbeths.   The blood represents their crime, and they can not escape the sin of their actions.   Macbeth realizes that in time he would get what he deserves.   Since he can not ride himself of his guilt by washing the blood away, his fate may have been sealed.   They   try to use water for vindication, but Macbeth says that all the water in the ocean could not cleanse his hands.   He imagines the blood from the murder staining the ocean red.   Lady   Macbeth differs from her husband in this aspect.   She believes her conscience would be cleansed at the time her hands are physically cleaned.   She tells her husband to have the same beliefs as she or he would be driven to insanity.   Ironically, Lady Macbeth is the one that is driven to the brink of lunacy as she commits suicide at the end of the tragedy.     The image and scent of blood symbolizes the unending guilt of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.   The blood on their hands represents the inability to annul the murder from their memories.   While sleepwalking, Lady Macbeth was aggravated with own hands.   She was seen muttering, â€Å"Out damned spot! Out, I say!† (V,I,39)   This proves that her evil deed in still on her conscience.

Societys Conception of Sex Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Paper

Society's Conception of Sex    The connotation of the word sex is so vague that it can be manipulated to mean virtually anything, however the definition of the word within society has remained the same.   Penetration is the defining factor of sex in its literal sense, however it can be altered to include a variety of acts.   Anthropologist Margaret Mead, and President Clinton found loopholes in the connotation of sex, and used it to the benefit.   The context in which Mead used the word was to encompass the various acts that accompany intercourse, such as oral sex, to prove that Samoan society is far more promiscuous than our own.   President Clinton also used the vagueness of the word to his benefit.   He manipulated the connotation of sex to only include intercourse, so that he may escape incrimination of adultery and perjury. In both cases the hazy connotation of the word was used as an advantage, but society's definition of the word remained clear. Mead manipulated the definition to include acts other than penetration in order to prove that Samoan society is more open in their sexuality.   She used the word to create a utopian Samoa, where people freely engaged in promiscuous sexual acts, like oral sex.   Her definition of penetration included more than just penetration, it encompassed other actions such as oral sex.   By altering the definition of sex to include other actions, Mead was trying to prove that Samoan society was better off because of their sexual freedom.   She claimed that the openness to sex in Samoa created a sense of free love, a quality that our country lacked at the time.   Her alteration of the word was used to criticize the co... ...p; Mead's definition of sex included many other acts, to prove that free love was rampant in Samoa.   Society did not agree with her because the popular definition of sex did not include any other actions.   Penetration has been the defining factor of sex.   President Clinton used this social law to claim his innocence concerning his involvement with Monica Lewinsky.   He asserted that he did not have sexual relations with his intern.   This term sexual relations is so broad that any sexual act could fit under its definition.   The American public did not agree with his statement, because under society's beliefs, oral sex falls into the category of sexual relations.   These two situations prove that individuals have tried to manipulate the connotation of sex to their advantage, but society's conception of sex has remained static.

Popular Culture in Today’s Society

Reflections of Pop Culture on Society Popular culture, commonly referred to as â€Å"pop culture†, is constantly changing and heavily influencing people worldwide; one can hardly tell the history of the human race without some mention of pop culture. Pop culture molds and defines the beliefs and values, as well as, influences the actions of society. Social media, as well as the natural ache we all carry to fit in, pushes people to embrace and succumb to pop culture. Pop culture greatly influences what people choose to do, such as: where to eat, what to buy, where to go on vacation, or what music music to listen to.We have all heard an advertisement on the radio for the local restaurants or heard our favorite musician telling us which radio station we should listen to. What about our favorite celebrity boasting about which store they buy their clothes from? We see these people being adored by the public and want to be like them. So we head out to the nearest department store an d buy the same brand of jeans or sneakers. When we see celebrities we want to ne like them, be adored like them. In his poem â€Å"Emily Dickinson and Elvis Presley in Heaven,† Hans Ostrom says that Dickinson â€Å"sports Levis and western blouses with rhinestones† andPresley â€Å"wears baggy trousers and T-shirts, a letterman's jacket from Tupelo High† (759). Ostrom is making reference to how Emily Dicksinson and Elvis Presley are even following current trends in Heaven. Pop culture has a considerable influence on the way we, society, view ourselves and each other. When we look at the covers of magazines and see the thin women and the buff men, we think that is the acceptable way to look and work to make ourselves look that way. We see that as the only way to be considered attractive and acceptable. As people, ant to be like the things we see around us.We yearn to be accepted and have found that submitting to the current fads gains us the popularity and accept ance we ache for. In the essay â€Å"Corn-Pone Opinions† it was said that â€Å"We are creatures of outside influence; as a rule we do not think, we only imitate†(Twain 717). If someone hears that a specific movie receiving good reviews from the people in their neighborhood, they will go see that movie to fit in, whether it seems like something that would interest them or not. Someone will spend their whole life going to see the movies or eating at the restaurants that veryone else likes or other such things because â€Å"the outside influences are always pouring in upon us, and we are always obeying their orders and accepting their verdicts†(Twain 719). Pop culture is often used as a means to reflect someone's views, which are then accepted into the minds of society. An example of this is the 1954 hit, Godzilla. This movie was released with the intent of spreading the political views of the director, Ishiro Honda. However, the version of the movie that became p opular worldwide was â€Å"stripped of the political subtext- and the anti-American, antinuclear messages†(Staples 23). Americans would not want to watch a movie that was dripping in disdain towards the American government's decision to use nuclear weapons. Had Godzilla been shown as more than a â€Å"conventional monster-on-the-loose movie†, it probably would not have been as popular in the United States (Staples 723). Even today people are using social networking sites such as youtube, facebook, and twitter to express their opinions about what is going on in the world (i. e. Kony 2012). Society is also reflected in popular movies and books. Most teen movies follow the same simliar plots with similiar characters.They have a tall, slim female who rules the school with her jock boyfriend. Nowadays the enemy is no longer authority, it is â€Å"other teens and the social system that they impose on one another†(Denby 709). These movies have an outcast who, in the en d, always triumphs and, somehow, overrun the social system. These movies are so popular and successful because it is what the audience wants to see. People can relate to â€Å"the kids who cannot be the beautiful ones, or makeout with them, or avoid being insulted by them†(Denby 709). We view these people as heroes because we, urselves, want to be like them and triumph. Even books are written in a way that makes them more entertaining for their audience. As a child, you read picture books â€Å"using words and images interchangably†(McCloud 738). Then you progressed to chapter books, which had less pictures, but still used both pictures and words to tell the story, and then novels that do not contain pictures. However, today people have begun to lose an interest in reading. We would rather see pictures telling the story because â€Å"words and pictures have great powers to tell stories when creators fully exploit them both†(McCloud 738).Pop culture has a way of forming itself to fit what society is interested in. Pop culture is one of the biggest contributing factors to the way our society works. It works towards forming our opinions and beliefs and even contributes to what we decide to do, buy, eat, etc,†¦ The things we hear about on the radio, the people we see on television and in movies are all parts of pop culture, working its way into our lives and molding our society. In conclusion, the extent of pop culture's relfection on society is a major one; I personally believe that it is nothing but a reflection of our society.

Orientalism Essay Example

Orientalism Essay Example Orientalism Paper Orientalism Paper Essay Topic: Literature Orientalism is a field of study which is at style of thought based upon an ontological and epistemological distinction made between the Orient and the Occident. It invokes a flexible positioning superiority in which Europe is put into a number of positions of superiority. It is part of an overall campaign of self-affirmation, belligerency, and outright war, (Said xix) however, and in this we see the religious implications. For much of its history Orientalism carries within it the stamp of a problematic European attitude toward Islam. (Said 73) Islam was a threat to a Christian Europe the Ottoman Empire lay geographically close to Christian lands, so there was not only the threat of different religious ideas but also the treat of a mighty military and political power. It resulted in a historical fear of Islam. Orientalism was essentially an attempt to domesticate that threat, but the Orient needed first to be known, then invaded and possessed, then re-created by scholars, soldiers, and judges who disinterred forgotten languages, histories, races, and cultures in order to posit them as the true classical Orient that could be used to judge and rule the modern Orient. (91-92) The Occident responded with the creation of an imaginative geography within which Islam could be confined. Orientalism legitimates a vocabulary, a universe of representative discourse peculiar to the discussion and understanding of the Orient (Said 71) and it consisted of a set of representative figures, or tropes. (Said 71) This does not go to say that Orientalism formed the cornerstone of truth of the Orient, but rather that it was Western ignorance which becomes more refined and complex, not some body of positive Western knowledge which increases in size and accuracy. (Said 62) As a field of knowledge it is a closed body of knowledge in which objects are what they are because they are what they are, for once, for all time, for ontological reasons that no empirical material can either dislodge or alter. (Said 70) The fact that Orientalism derived its authentic from its unchanging nature would cause problems with the emergence of the 19th century. Orientalism would have to change to survive with the times. There was disillusionment when it was realized that the classical Orient did not properly represent the actual Orient. It became what was known as the betrayed dream. What was realized was that one could only really use generalities to describe the Orient in order not to conflict with the specific actualities; it was almost as if a bin called Oriental existed into which all the authoritative, anonymous, and traditional Western attitudes to the East were dumped unthinkingly. (Said 102) These generalities created an aura of eccentricity surrounding the Orient, by which the Orient becomes a living tableau of queerness. (Said 103) This tableau was designated as a disciplined way from which the Orientalist could approach it; essentially, its foreignness [could] be translated, its meanings decoded, its hostility tamed. (Said 103) From this arose the tactics of modern Orientalism. Orientalism was reconstituted, redeployed, redistributed and in the secular framework. (Said 121) There were four components to this process, the end product being naturalized supernaturalism. The first component was due to the Orient expanding past the Islamic lands. This simply goes to say that there were more lands under scrutiny and a binary opposition between Islam and Christianity was no longer possible; there were too many cultures and religions that could come into interaction. All such widening horizons had Europe firmly in the privileged center, as main observer. (Said 117) Secondly, there was the component of historical confrontation that no longer was viable; the Orient was simply not viewed in a confrontational light. Rather, it was viewed as an (inferior) object of study. It involved a greater involvement with source material and confronting the Orients peculiarities with objective detachment. The third component deals with the notion of historicism. This idea promoted the belief that the Occident could penetrate the Orient on the precedent that all cultures are presumably organically and internally coherent historicism encourages such an intellectual penetration. This was done by sympathetic identification by which the Orientalist saw the elements of kinship between himself and the Orient, and this supposedly gave him access to the Orient. Lastly, the core of modern Orientalism rested in the practice of classification. This process involved reducing vast numbers of objects to a smaller number of orderable and describable types [that] belonged to a system, a network of related generalizations. (Said 119) Thus, when an Oriental was referred to, it was in terms of such generic universals as his primitive state, his primary characteristics, his particular spiritual background. (Said 120) Also, this process was carried out in the name of objectivity and claimed its authority from such scientific procedures, rather than on religious superiority as the classical Orientalism did. This was the essence of naturalized supernaturalism, by which religious structures were recast in the secular. From this it is very evident that Orientalism is a man-made field and not a universal or pure truth. Orientalist disciplines were changing (even as Orientalism claimed the values of an unchanging, classical Orient) into their modern form, in which power welt in the new, scientifically advanced techniques of philology and anthropological generalization. (Said 121) Silvestre de Sacy was the forerunner of modern Orientalism: his work virtually put before the profession an entire systematic body of texts, a pedagogic practice, a scholarly tradition, and an important link between Oriental scholarship and public policy. (Said 124) He was responsible for his revisionist projects: all of his work was presented as a revised extract of the best that had already been done, said, or written. (Said 125) He was reproducing the Orient for the Occident, but only those parts that he deemed useful or important; these were carefully selected and arranged topics from the greater body of Oriental knowledge. He believed that the vastly rich (in space, time, and cultures) Orient cannot be totally exposed, only its most reprehensive parts need be. (Said 125) Sacy was thus in a position of authority that modern Orientalism so proudly touts he was the one that chose what was important from the Orient and his choices gave semiotic power to the topics that would now represent the entire Orient.

Dolphin Safe Tuna

Dolphin Safe Tuna Environmental and animal welfare groups promote dolphin-safe tuna, but the dolphin-safe label is in danger of being weakened in the U.S. and some animal protection groups do not support dolphin-safe tuna. Do Some Cans of Tuna Contain Dolphin Meat? No, cans of tuna do not contain dolphin meat. While dolphins are sometimes killed in tuna fishing (see below), the dolphins do not end up in the cans with the tuna. How are Dolphins Harmed in Tuna Fishing? Two types of tuna fishing are notorious for killing dolphins: Purse seine nets and driftnets. Purse seine nets: Dolphins and yellowfin tuna often swim together in large schools, and because dolphins are more visible and closer to the surface than tuna, the fishing boats will look for dolphins to find the tuna. The boats will then set a purse seine net in a circle around both species and capture dolphins along with the tuna. Purse seine nets are giant nets, typically 1,500 - 2,500 meters long and 150-250 meters deep, with a drawstring at the bottom and floats at the top. Some nets are equipped with fish aggregating devices that attract fish and help prevent the fish from escaping before the net can be closed. In addition to dolphins, the animals who are caught unintentionally - the incidental catch, can include sea turtles, sharks, and other fish. The crew is ususally able to release sea turtles back to the ocean unharmed, but the fish usually die. The problem with dolphins being killed in purse seine nets occurs mainly in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that between 1959 and 1976, over 6 million dolphins were killed in purse seine nets in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. Driftnets: EarthTrust, an environmental NGO, calls driftnets the most destructive fishing technology ever devised by humankind. Driftnets are giant nylon nets that drift behind a boat. The nets have floats on top and may or may not have weights on the bottom, to keep the net hanging vertically in the water. Driftnets come in a variety of mesh sizes, depending on the target species, but they are a wall of death, killing everyone who gets caught in them. The United Nations banned driftnets over 2.5 kilometers long in 1991. Previously, driftnets up to 60 km long were in use and legal. According to EarthTrust, before the ban, driftnets killed over a hundred thousand dolphins and small cetaceans every year, along with millions of seabirds, tens of thousands of seals, thousands of sea turtles and great whales, and untold numbers of non-target fish. Pirate fisheries still use giant, illegal driftnets and will sometimes cut the nets loose to avoid getting caught, leaving these walls of death to continue drifting and killing indiscriminately for centuries to come. Although dolphin deaths from both methods has been greatly reduced, a 2005 study titled, Non-recovery of two spotted and spinner dolphin populations in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean found that dolphin populations have been slow to recover. Can Tuna be Caught Without Harming Dolphins? Yes, a purse seine net can be made to release dolphins. After encircling both the tuna and dolphins, the boat can conduct a backdown operation in which a portion of the net is lowered enough for dolphins to escape. While this technique does save dolphins, it does not address other incidental catch issues, such as sharks and sea turtles. Another way to catch fish without harming dolphins is long line fishing. Long line fishing uses a fishing line that is typically 250-700 meters long, with several branches and hundreds or thousands of baited hooks. While longline fishing does not kill dolphins, the incidental catch includes sharks, sea turtles and seabirds like albatross. The Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act In 1990, the U.S. Congress passed the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act, 16 U.S.C. 1385, which charges the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) with regulating dolphin-safe tuna claims. The dolphin-safe claim means that the tuna were not caught with drift nets, and that â€Å"no tuna were caught on the trip in which such tuna were harvested using a purse seine net intentionally deployed on or to encircle dolphins, and that no dolphins were killed or seriously injured in the sets in which the tuna were caught.† Not all tuna sold in the U.S. is dolphin-safe. To summarize: If the tuna were caught without driftnets and without chasing, encircling or killing dolphins, it can be sold in the US and is dolphin-safe.If the tuna were caught by chasing and encircling dolphins, but no dolphins were killed or seriously injured (and other requirements are met), the tuna can be sold in the U.S. but cannot be called dolphin-safe.If the tuna was caught by chasing and encircling dolphins, and dolphins were killed, it cannot be sold in the U.S. Of course, the above is a simplification of the law, which also requires tuna canners to file monthly reports and requires large tuna purse seine vessels must carry an observer. NOAA also conducts spot-checks to verify dolphin-safe claims. For more details on the NOAAs tuna tracking and verification program, click here. You can also read the full text of the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act here International Law International law also applies to the tuna/dolphin issue. In 1999, the United States signed the Agreement on the International Dolphin Conservation Program (AIDCP). The other signatories include Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, European Union, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Vanuatu, and Venezuela. The AIDCP seeks to eliminate dolphin mortality in tuna fishing. Congress then amended the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to effct the AIDCP in the United States. The AIDCP definition of dolphin-safe allows dolphins to be chased and encircled with nets, as long as dolphins are not killed or seriously injured. This definition differs from the U.S. definition, which does not permit the chasing or encircling of dolphins under the dolphin-safe label. According to the AIDCP, 93% of the sets made by chasing dolphins resulted in no deaths or serious injuries to dolphins. Challeges to the Dolphin-Safe Label Despite the dolphin-safe label being voluntary, and the fact that a fishery need not attain the dolphin-safe label in order to export tuna to the U.S., Mexico has twice challenged the U.S. dolphin-safe label as an unfair restriction on trade. In May of 2012, the World Trade Organization found that the current U.S. dolphin-safe label is inconsistent with the United States obligations under the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. In September, 2012, the U.S. and Mexico agreed that the U.S. would bring its dolphin-safe label in line with the WTOs recommendations and rulings by July of 2013.   To some, this is yet another example of how environmental and animal protection are sacrificed in the name of free trade. Todd Tucker, research director for Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, states, â€Å"This latest ruling makes truth-in-labeling the latest casualty of so-called ‘trade’ pacts, which are more about pushing deregulation than actual trade . . . Members of Congress and the public will be very concerned that even voluntary standards can be deemed trade barriers.† Whats Wrong with Dolphin-Safe Tuna? The UK-based Ethical Consumer site calls the dolphin-safe label somewhat of a red herring for several reasons. First, the vast majority of canned tuna is skipjack tuna, not yellowfin tuna. Skipjack tuna do not swim with dolphins, so they are never caught using dolphins. Also, the site points out that, It has been estimated that saving one dolphin, by using (fish aggregating devices), costs 16,000 smaller or juvenile tuna, 380 mahimahi, 190 wahoo, 20 sharks and rays, 1200 triggerfish and other small fish, one marlin and ‘other’ animals. The very strong implication that dolphin-safe tuna is sustainable or more humane makes the label problematic. Some animal protection groups object to dolphin-safe tuna because of the impact on tuna. Tuna and other fish populations are threatened by overfishing and from an animal rights perspective, eating tuna hurts tuna. According to Sea Shepherd, bluefin tuna populations have fallen 85% since industrial fishing began, and current quotas are too high to be sustainable. Environmentalists and animal advocates were disappointed in 2010 when the parties to CITES refused to protect tuna. In September of 2012, conservation experts called for better protections for tuna. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, five of the worlds eight tuna species are threatened or nearly threatened. Amanda Nickson, Director of Global Tuna Conservation at the Pew Environment Group stated, There is sufficient science available to set precautionary limits . . . If we wait five, 10 years for the science to be perfect, in the case of some species we may not have anything left to manage. Aside from concerns about extinction and overfishing, fish are sentient beings. From an animal rights perspective, fish have a right to be free of human use and exploitation. Even if there were no danger of overfishing, each individual fish has certain inherent rights, just as dolphins, seabirds and sea turtles do. Buying dolphin-safe tuna recognizes the dolphins rights, but fails to recognize the tunas rights, which is why many animal protection groups do not support dolphin-safe tuna.