Analysis of William M Thayers A Biography of George...

In his biography of Americas founding father and first president, George Washington: The Patriot President, author William M. Thayer describes the heroic acts of leadership that Washington displayed while fighting in the American Revolution and during his two terms as President. Using a personal style that appeals to young readers, Thayer provides many glimpses into the private life of George Washington that give a better impression of the man behind one of historys most legendary figures. By tracing the path of Washingtons incredible life, from his childhood farm on Mount Vernon to his participation in the French and Indian War of 1754, the author successfully recreates the key events in Washingtons development. The book is filled with tales of Washingtons bravery on the battlefield, his natural ability to lead men during both war and peace, and his fierce sense of patriotism in the face of British aggression. After reading George Washington: The Patriot President the lesson that gr eatness is earned through hard work and determination is made clear. George Washingtons life began with his birth in 1732, to Augustine Washington and Mary Ball Washington, British immigrants who were living in the newly founded American colony of Virginia. He had a total of nine siblings, including a pair of older half-brothers, and the large Washington family worked their way up from the gentry class of common farmers to become wealthy landowners. Working as a farmer at first,

Barriers to Effective Planning free essay sample

Effective planning requires a thorough knowledge of both present conditions and future goals. Because these things are not always entirely knowable, and because most situations are constantly changing, planning can be a very challenging process. In companies and organizations, planning is usually undertaken by groups, a fact that increases the complexity of the task. Poor Communication The planning process is complicated when communication within or between groups is poor. Insufficient communication of tactics, plans and priorities leads to replication of effort and people working at cross purposes when they should be working together. Poor communication may be caused by undeveloped skills, rivalries, misunderstanding of the planning process or excessive complexity within the planning group structure. Resistance The difficulties of the planning process are not always the result of accident or incompetence. Not infrequently, people who are going to be affected by change dont like the idea and resist it. Resistance to planning for change within organizations can take the form of malingering, undermining of morale or straightforward opposition. We will write a custom essay sample on Barriers to Effective Planning or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Contingency plans to accommodate resistance should be included in any comprehensive planning process. Insufficient Resources If plans become excessively ambitious, they can sometimes by stymied be a simple lack of resources on the part of a company or organization. This is particularly true if the planning involves physical plant renovation or expansion. Grand plans are much less expensive to create on paper than in bricks and mortar, and planners can easily lose track of the eventual cost of their plans. Unknowable Future No matter how thorough a planning process is, the future always holds surprises. Planners who forget this fact tend to create excessively detailed and specific plans, and then have these plans compromised by unexpected events or changing conditions. Well laid plans for a company expansion or a new product line may be torpedoed by an unexpected economic crash. Lack of Creative Thinking The human mind tends to base its thoughts, activities and expectations on what has happened in the past. Often, this is a valuable trait, but in a planning process it can become a liability. If planning requires the development of new ways of doing things, an inability to overcome the past on the part of the planners can become a liability that obstructs innovative thought. Inertia Inertia is most frequently a problem for large and long-established organizations. Inertia can be created by a combination of archaic infrastructure, calcified modes of thinking, oversize bureaucracy and fear of change. Forward thinking elements within an organization that want to engage in creative planning may have to spend a lot of time and energy overcoming the inertia of things that have gone before.

U.S. Involvement In Nicaragua Essays - Nicaraguan Revolution

U.S. Involvement in Nicaragua U.S. Involvement in Nicaragua Not very many Americans know the truth that lies beneath the U.S.' involvement in Nicaragua. Most would be surprised to find out that U.S. armed forces and politicians violated U.S. laws and deliberately sabotaged Nicaragua's stable government by paying the dictator's henchmen to kill Nicaraguan citizens. The United States is considered one of the major superpower nations in this world. It is highly influential to other countries and often takes responsibility to intervene with other another country's problems?especially when it deals with the spreading of communism. When Nicaragua's dictatorship was overthrown by the popular Sandinistas, a communist regime was successfully put in place. The U.S. immediately feared that Nicaragua's surrounding countries would eventually become communist due to the Domino Theory. The negative impact of becoming further engaged in the Nicaraguan politics was destructive to both the U.S. and Nicaragua. These actions destabilized the Nicaraguan economy, encouraged civil violence, and motivated members of the American government to violate certain laws to continue their aid to the guerillas. To fully comprehend the negative impacts of U.S. intervention in Nicaragua, one must be somewhat familiar with Nicaragua's history. The period in which the Somoza family ruled Nicaragua started on New Year's Day in 1937, when Anastasio Somoza Garcia had himself elected president. The Somozas ran Nicaragua as their own private estate; "...all three Somozas were dictators who ran the affairs of their country to their personal benefit and against the interests of the vast majority of their countrymen" (Walker 16). Under their dominion, life for the Nicaraguan citizens was harsh, because they suffered from abject poverty. They lived in inadequate housing, ate and dressed poorly, and were overall extremely oppressed by their leaders' corruption. When the people finally realized that life wasn't going to get any better, they decided to turn to their only other option, the communist Sandinista government. The U.S. were so anti-Communist that they began to send large sums of money to Somoza's Guardsmen (who the leaders of the Contras) in order to sabotage the Sandinista government. One of the goals the U.S. would like to achieve when dealing with Third World nations is to help them become more industrialized and economically stable. Unfortunately, the opposite of this occurred in Nicaragua. Before U.S. involvement, Nicaragua's economy was reasonably sturdy in the sense that there was a consistent flow of money in and out of the country. "With increasing investment in Nicaragua, as a result of the Alliance for Progress, and the Central American Common Market, this was a period of unprecedented progress" (Pastor, 35). It is obvious that stronger nations would not invest their time and money into a country that was economically declining, thus displaying that at this time, Nicaragua was doing quite well for a Third World nation. With the correct equipment and help from richer nations, Nicaragua could have benefited from the high quality of its land and resources, which would raise the citizen's yearly income and help with overcoming destitution. U.S. money for the reconstruction of Managua after the incredibly huge "Christmas Earthquake" in 1972 never reached where it was most needed. Instead, Anastasio Somoza Debayle (the president of Nicaragua at the time) "transformed a tragic national loss into a personal financial gain" (Pastor, 36). Somoza's greediness enticed him to pocket the money instead of directing the funds where they were intended to go. Thus very little was done to help the disaster victims and this is just another example of how his dictatorship was oppressive to the people. This quandary could have been simply avoided if the U.S. had sent an official to manage the money and secure its proper usage. Through the 1960's, Nicaragua received from the U.S. $92.5 million in economic aid, and $11 million in military aid. From 1971 to 1976, Nicaragua received three times that amount in economic aid but less in military. (Pastor, 43) From these statistics, it seems that Nicaragua's economy is being supported by U.S. funding more each year. It is fair to say Nicaragua's economy was dependent on U.S. aid. When Somoza issued terror raids on his people, the U.S. chose to impose sanctions withdrawing all funding to Nicaragua. By advertising Somoza's acts of human brutality, the U.S. was able to persuade other countries to consider terminating their current aid to Nicaragua. Not only did Nicaraguan slip further into debt, but also the situation worsened for the poverty-stricken people. "Nicaragua's economy had failed to attain its prerevolution level in 1983. Investment had stagnated or declined, depending on the sector. The external debt, which was high at $1.5 billion in 1979, reached $3.8 billion in

Ancient Potters essays

Ancient Potters essays Our knowledge of ancient science and technology is based entirely on what we have uncovered at archeological sites. When researchers first started finding things belonging to ancient peoples, they formed ideas about how those people lived and operated in their society. As more information came to light, many ideas had to be changed. New discoveries enabled researchers to get a clearer picture of how certain areas of the ancient world practiced their trade. Many of the new discoveries had to do with pottery. There is now an abundance of information telling us about ancient potters, concerning how they produced their wares and to where these wares were sold. Apart from the progression from open fire to the use of kilns, more specific elements of the pottery process were revealed. With the use of modern technology, researchers realized that the ancient potters were not just using whatever clay was available but were using certain kinds. As the craft developed, the potters learned which clay to use for its strength and color. We now know that it is the levels of iron and calcium contained in the clay that determine these things. Also, it was discovered that, contrary to popular belief, paint was not used to illustrate the pottery. Instead, a mixture of clay and water, called a slip, was used. The slip was added before the clay was fired. To get the change in color desired, the potters (probably unaware of the chemistry involved) deprived the fire of oxygen at one point in the process and then reintroduced it. Another big discovery was the terra sigillata molds. These molds were used to mass-produce a certain kind of pottery. The pottery was called Samian ware. Samian ware was the ancient equivalent of fine china. It was all red and had a glossy shine to it. And, usually when a potter would make this stuff, he would add his trademark, his symbol. The symbol became a mark of excellence. But, even in these ancient...

Ethics in Organizational Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Ethics in Organizational Leadership - Essay Example It explains that an act is ethical if it gives beneficial gains rather than pain. Employees’ acts are therefore ethical if it gives high benefit outcomes (Arnold, et al., 2013, p.89) This theory is based upon the social virtues in outlining code of conducts that regulates wrong or right and its major focus is on intrinsic worthiness that a given society share such as honesty, integrity etc. In this theory, wrong and right are judged based on the set regulations that have been formulated (Arnold, et al., 2013, p.89). The employees are therefore bound ethically to abide by the organizational/ professional rules in place. A conflict of misunderstanding would erupt if the virtues and moral baselines differ between a leader who has been socialized into different moral standards and those of the employees owing to cultural differences. The Virtual theory is based on virtues but these virtues may differ and a leader may have different moral values and virtues different from the employees. The three theories of ethics significantly differ in their baseline account for ethics but they join together in conceptualizing the communal/collective formulation of ethical standards; it is a group duty and not individual. The three differ in tracing the source of ethical

Art as a way to creatively call attention to social issues Essay

Art as a way to creatively call attention to social issues - Essay Example Evolution of technology has had positive impact on artistic values in society and in aesthetics. In his essay â€Å"The Art of Collecting Light bulbs,† Kimmelman (2005) exposes characteristics and qualities contained in art making such as being ubiquitous and converting uselessness into an asset. However, as Restak (2004) explains in his essay â€Å"Attention Deficit: Brain Syndrome of our Era,† technology serves not only as an ally but also as a distraction to our daily activities. For instance in the summer of 2003, e-mails from themobproject@yahoo.com began to circulate inviting people to convene in a public place so as to take part in a random act with the sole purpose of confusing others (Bill 2003). The first successful mob took place in New York Macy where hundreds of people entered the store in search of a â€Å"love rug.† After that about two hundred people flooded the lobby and mezzanine of the Hyatt hotel in synchronized applause for about fifteen seconds, and the next shoe boutique in SoHo was invaded by participants pretending to be tourists on a bus trip (Bill 2003). These activities provide the viewers with a sense of wonderment which heightens people’s curiosity and help them become aware of their surroundings. Moreover Restak states that ADD and ADHD is not actually a state of mental condition but merely a new state of cognition. Boredom arises when the brain attempts to account for incredible amounts of information available to us through technology and is simply overwhelmed. This causes the brain to develop differently in order to successfully understand everything that modern human expose themselves to, hence a way of thinking that certainly is an unprecedented change in cognition. This partially stems from multitasking which is a mechanism that humans have developed in response to suddenly having a much higher amount of distractions in comparison to just a few decades ago. Technology and modern art have

Utilitarianism Classical Utilitarianism Essay Example for Free

Utilitarianism Classical Utilitarianism Essay Classical Utilitarianism is a moral philosophy, which was developed in 19th century England by Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill and Henry Sidgwick. The essential feature a utilitarian reside in, is the notion that an action is right if it produces the most amount of happiness well limiting suffering. Utilitarianism focuses solely on the consequences of the action, in an attempt to bring about the most happiness from each situation, well ensuring everybody’s happiness is equally considered. A utilitarian decides each action, by calculating the overall utility (good) that will results against the overall disutility (bad) that will result from a particular action. The action with the highest total net utility will be chosen. Within Utilitarianism there is a division between the conceptions of what is perceived as good; Hedonist Utilitarianism and Preference Utilitarianism. Classical utilitarians believe in Hedonist, were pleasure or happiness is perceives as the only intrinsic good. In modern society most utilitarians believe that the concept of good refers to preferences, and that individual preference satisfaction should be maximized for example artistic creation. There is a further division between utilitarians; Act Utilitarianism and Rule Utilitarianism. Rule Utilitarianism, holds that one should always follow rules that tend to promote the general welfare of humans for example a rule might be not to killing people. Act Utilitarianism holds that one should always act to promote the general welfare. Utilitarianism is plausible firstly because general overall happiness is achieved for the greatest amount of people. Second, because of it simplicity it is easy to determine whether an action is moral or immoral. You simply have to calculate the total utility against the total disutility for each action, and chose the action that will result in the most happiness. Third, the majority of society uses Utilitarianism when they are confronted with daily decisions. For example in peak hour traffic the majority of drivers would let another driver change into their lane, because the other driver obviously needs to change lanes. The other driver is likely to gain more happiness from being let in than the potential unhappiness it will cause you by waiting a few extra second in traffic. Fourth, it is a simply way off living a moral life, were you do not necessary have to be religious to be moral in your decision-making. The strongest objection against Utilitarianism is that it cannot accommodate for moral considerations such as individuals rights and justice. This is because Utilitarianism only considers the consequence of an action. This objection is highlighted in a case concerning an innocent man whose was wrongfully convicted of a crime. In 1974, England, Gerry Conlon was falsely imprisoned, for the bombing of a pub in the town of Guilford, which killed five people. This case raises the issue that the consequences of an action should not be the only things considered when deciding which action to take. If a utilitarian was to view this case critics would argue that a utilitarian would have to conclude that even with, bad consequences resulting from convicting an innocent man, their would overall be more good consequences derived from the peace of mind gained from the loved one of the deceased, as well as the community of Guilford. Critics of Utilitarianism would argue that greater consequences would result in convicting the innocent man, therefore Utilitarianism is unable to regard the importance of justice, this philosophy must therefore be wrong. With the objection that Utilitarianism cannot accommodate for the importance of justice, a utilitarian would address this concern with the response that by choosing the action that results in the best consequences, justice will ultimately be protected. Justice will always be protected even if it is not a utilitarian ultimate purpose. In regards to Gerry Conlon case, a utilitarian would never choose to convict an innocent man of a crime he didn’t commit because, even if more happiness was achieved in the short run through this false conviction, in the long run more unhappiness is likely to result. In the long run the guilty man would be likely to bomb again or commit another crime, also if the liar was discovered then the situation would cause greater disutility than utility, and may result in the dispatch of the justice system, as-well as great upset for the deceased family members who thought the bomber had already been punished. Therefore even though Utilitarianism doesn’t accommodate the moral consideration of justice directly, greater utility will always be created from upholding the justice system. The other aspect of the objection address criticism that Utilitarianism doesn’t accommodating individuals rights, therefore critics believe Utilitarianism must be wrong. A utilitarian would argue that just because rights are not directly considered in relation to the consequences of an action, they do in-fact have some impact on the chosen action. With majority of the population getting happiness out of doing the right thing, rights are often protected through Utilitarianism. For the small minority of people that don’t experience unhappiness from disregarding human rights, the existence of the police force ensures human right are protected from these members of society. With human rights being protected under law, people rights will be upheld under Utilitarianism because there will always be a larger amount of disutility from violating the law than from the personal gains of a human right offender. For example the CEO and CFO of Tyco a New Jersey-based company stole $150 million and inflated Tyco incomes by $500 million, in doing so they violated the rights of investors. After the police discovered this fraud, the justice system penalized both, with a sentence of 8-25 years in prison with the addition of $2. 92 billion paid to Tyco Investors. Under Utilitarianism this case wouldn’t occur because the benefits of stealing this money would never outweigh the consequences that result from being caught for defrauding investors. Therefore even though rights are not considered in the consequence of an action, they have a strong connection with the chosen action. Word- 992.