Short story: The Musician

It was a cold winter's day, the snow lay thick on the ground but surrounding the house there were no footsteps left from visitors bringing packages on the cold icy morning. We were the only visitors calling on this freezing day.I'd arrived at the house many times before, even dreamt about it as a smaller child, it was the kind you read about in books. Well I say big it was bigger than ours but then most houses in the county were. It was white and wooden with a broken swing on the porch, maybe a little run down but it wasn't anything that a few hours of hard grafting wouldn't fix. Well the drains they leaked too but I could live with that, as in the summer when I came walking down here with my friends I could smell daisies and all kinds of flowers growing in the fields. We always peeped through the window at the man inside. He interested us so much,not that we ever saw him but all the stories that we'd heard about him from our parents about the myths of his life before telling us we shouldn't come and torture that nice old man, well what were we to do? We were just curious. We approached the house as we did each weekend with a bag of stones†¦.. Inside the house sits a musician trying desperately to write a decent song a song that's listenable to. He waits in his rocking chair swaying to and fro, pipe in one hand pen in the other, desperately searching for the right words to touch the paper. As he begins he names his song â€Å"The Song of The World† Why? I don't know; maybe he thought it would bring hope to his sad lonely life or perhaps he could think of nothing better. The man lives alone. He dreams of days gone by and wishes that he could relive those moments of his youth. Nobody visits. Nobody calls. The grey trees outside growl a lonely kind of call to the man as if trying to tempt him outside so they can warn him of something. The floorboards below him creak as if there is another presence in the house. There isn't of course. There never is. He used to have so much, wife, children but now he has little more than a hovel. He visits the graveyard every day and has done since the accident. Many myths have built up around him in the town. Well that's just what our town is like; every ones business is your own. No one ever wanted to help him but still he continues to create beautiful music for everybody. How do I know so much about him? Well I am the first visitor he's had for twenty years. He doesn't speak much but when he does he seems upset as if he is recalling the past, the past no one has cared about for what seem like an eternity. The first smile I have seen from him is after he's succeeded with the first line and as he continues his smile grows. The phone continues to lie dormant. No relatives call, No friends from days gone by give him a second thought, perhaps it's easier to forget he exists. He moves his pipe, puts down his pen. Slowly he stands the smile no longer on his face. He begins to weep. I am not sure what to do till he finishes crying. He describes how people used to want to listen to his music though now they prefer to make up stories and throw things at his home. Suddenly I was wrapped with guilt; it had only been a bit of harmless fun I decided I was going to help the man whom I had tormented for so long. Each day during my summer holidays I would take fresh pies from my mother to him and I would listen to his stories. I would not know how much was real and how much was make-believe but I didn't really care we became best of friends and now he was happier he found it easier to write his songs again. One day I stole his songs and took them to a recording company. I came running back eager to tell him I'd got him a recording contract. Apparently I had broken his trust. That was the last I ever saw of him. He felt heed sooner be as he was. Even so, after that summer we never threw things at his house again.

Fraud Case

THE NATION’S NEWSPAPER BS2003-01b Collegiate Case Study Adelphia founder, 2 sons, 2 others arrested in fraud By David Lieberman and Greg Farrell www. usatodaycollege. com Accounting fraud Part II: The results â€Å"Creative accounting† is not a new technique, but it can certainly be a costly one. Businesses feel the pressure to appear profitable in order to attract investors and resources, but deceptive or fraudulent accounting practices often lead to drastic consequences. Are these so-called creative practices always illegal or can they ever be justified? This case study will present examples of companies who have used inappropriate accounting practices, the results of their deceptions and the government's plan to avoid future incidents. WorldCom scandal brings subpoenas, condmnation By Andrew Backover and Thor Vladmanis Andersen’s partners chart firm’s future today By Greg Farrell Client-starved Arthur Andersen cuts 7,000 jobs By Greg Farrell Dominoes hit WorldCom partners, clients By Michelle Kessler Adelphia plans to file Chapter 11 Cable firm expected to seek bankruptcy protection today NEW YORK — The waiting should be over today. Adelphia Communications plans to file for bankruptcy protection, nearly three months after the onceproud No. 6 cable operator first disclosed dealings with the family of founder John Rigas that turned it into a symbol of corporate scandal. The company is expected to announce that it has raised as much as $1. 5 billion from banks led by J. P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup to keep operating while a bankruptcy judge decides how creditors will be paid. A Chapter 11 filing — the biggest in cable history — could help efforts to find a buyer for some, or all, of Adelphia's systems, which serve 5. 7 million subscribers. The court can protect an acquirer from unexpected liabilities, including those stemming from several shareholder lawsuits and investigations into Adelphia's finances by two grand juries and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company could pay off its estimated $19 billion in debt if it can sell systems for $3,500 per subscriber, roughly the industr y norm. But stockholders could lose their entire investments. Adelphia shares closed Friday at 15 cents in over-the-counter trading. Case Study Expert: John D. Martin, Ph. D. Professor of Finance, Baylor University USA TODAY Snapshots ® Politicians role in monitoring business Opinion leaders1 say government should be more involved in oversight and regulation of private enterprise2: 52% 45% Agree Disagree Source: Edelman Public Relations Worldwide/ StrategyOne Research survey of 400 respondents. 1 – College educated 35- to 64-year-olds with household incomes of more than $100,000 2 – Does not add up to 100% due to rounding By Darryl Haralson Marcy E. E. Mullins, USA TODAY By Darryl Haralson andand Marcy Mullins, USA TODAY Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, MONDAY, JUNE 24, 2002 And a sale may devastate Coudersport, Pa. , where Adelphia is headquartered. It's by far the largest employer in the rural, mountain town of 3,000. Meanwhile, Adelphia will tr y to reassure its subscribers. â€Å"Adelphia is committed to reversing its admittedly difficult present financial situation,† it wrote last week to 3,500 franchise officials. â€Å"Most importantly, there should be no change in service to Adelphia customers as a result of these developments. † Adelphia's downfall began on March 27, when it disclosed that a Rigas family partnership had borrowed $2. billion using company assets as collateral. The amount has since been raised to $3. 1 billion. That stunned analysts, who believed that the operator was already too deeply in debt. Barraged with questions, Adelphia put off release of its 2001 annual report. More questions were raised when it was confirmed that the SEC was investigating. As the stock plummeted, Nasdaq weighed delisting Adelphia shares. T hat took effect on June 3. After acknowledging that it would have to restate its earnings, Adelphia put several cable systems on the block. The company defaulted on bank loans and failed to make interest payments on bonds. And Rigas and sons Timothy, Michael and James were forced to relinquish their jobs and board seats. Then new interim CEO Erland Kailbourne stunned company watchers by disclosing a series of cases where the Rigas family allegedly used Adelphia for private gain. Among other things, the company paid for their apartments in New York, built a golf course on Rigas-owned land, helped the purchase of the Buffalo Sabres hockey team, created a Rigas-run investment firm and subsidized a documentary film. Cover story Adelphia founder, 2 sons, 2 others arrested in fraud Investigators say company was ‘personal piggy bank' By David Lieberman and Greg Farrell USA TODAY NEW YORK — For 50 years, John Rigas lived the American Dream. Half a century ago, the son of Greek immigrants left a job making TV picture tubes at Sylvania. The World War II veteran bought a small movie house and a newfangled business — a cable TV company — in the remote town of Coudersport, Pa. , and was on his way to making a fortune. But his oversized ambitions led him this week into an American Nightmare. Wednesday, Manhattan U. S. Attorney James Comey accused 77-year-old Rigas and two sons — Timothy and Michael — with â€Å"one of the largest and most egregious frauds ever perpetrated on investors and creditors. † Rigas attorneys were unavailable for comment. With TV cameras capturing the humiliating moment, the founder of Adelphia Communications, the No. 6 U. S. cable company, was led away in handcuffs here. He became the first CEO arrested in the latest wave of corporate accounting scandals and the most vivid symbol of whitecollar crime since Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky in the 1980s. Two other former Adelphia executives, James Brown and Michael Mulcahey, were picked up in Coudersport. Later in the day, Adelphia itself — which filed for bankruptcy-court protection last month — charged Rigas and his family with violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, in a filing in Federal Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 2 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, THURSDAY, JULY 25, 2002 Bankruptcy Court in New York. The Rigases could be forced to pay three times any damages the court finds. The lawsuit alleges about $1 billion in damages. Behind their â€Å"small-town facade,† the Adelphia lawsuit says, the Rigases â€Å"used their domination and control of Adelphia, and their isolation from the scrutiny of the outside world, to engage in one of the largest schemes of selfdealing and financial wrongdoing in American corporate history. † The Justice Department and the U. S. Postal Inspection Service charged the five executives with securities, wire and bank fraud, saying they â€Å"looted Adelphia on a massive scale† and used it as a â€Å"personal piggy bank. Rigas private funds sloshed with Adelphia's in the same cashmanagement system. A U. S. judge set bail for the Rigases at $10 million apiece, secured by cash and property. Allegations against the Rigases range from big schemes to hide financial problems at the cable company to relatively small-scale thievery. For example, Timothy was accused of using a company jet for an African safari vacation in 2000. Adelphia's lawsuit adds that John's daughter, Ellen, used company planes to bring guests to her wedding to Peter Venetis, who became an Adelphia board member. The couple's cozy position enabled them to save $150,000 since 1998: They lived rent-free in two Adelphia-owned apartments on Manhattan's swank Upper East Side, the lawsuit says. In less than four years, the Rigases â€Å"stole hundreds of millions of dollars, and through their fraud (and) caused losses to investors of more than $60 billion,† Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson says. The defendants could face jail time in the criminal case. By filing a complaint instead of a full-fledged indictment, the grand juries weighing evidence in the case can remain empaneled to approve charges against others. They have 10 days to indict those arrested, and 20 days to charge others. Also Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit in U. S. District Court that's similar to the criminal complaint, and includes a third Rigas son, James. The SEC would bar the defendants from serving any publicly owned company. It also wants them and Adelphia to pay restitution and fines. Adelphia said in a statement that the claim against it would â€Å"only have the effect of further penalizing the company's stakeholders who were the victims of the Rigas' improper conduct. The Adelphia cases are low-hanging fruit for prosecutors eager to show that they're getting tough on white-collar criminals. â€Å"This is an old fashioned hand-in-the-till case that's easier to prosecute than an esoteric fraud like Enron,† says Jack Coffee, who teaches securities law at Columbia University. â€Å"To prosecute Enron, you're going to have to teach the jury an intermediate college course i n accounting. † Jacob Frenkel of Smith Gambrell and Russell agrees. â€Å"This could be sexiest of all the cases,† he says. â€Å"Here, you're talking about corporate looting. Every guilty disposition arising out of this indictment should become a show-andtell in all business schools as the antithesis of public company management and stewardship. † Talking tough, getting tough The arrests came as House and Senate negotiators agreed on tough measures, including jail time, for executives convicted of fraud. And Wall Street was impressed after weeks of growing fearfulness about a possible tsunami of corporate scandals. The Dow Jones industrial average soared 489 points Wednesday. That's the second biggest one-day point gain ever. That contrasts with the 179-point drop on July 9, when President Bush called for a new era of corporate responsibility. The arrests aren't â€Å"about Democrats and Republicans,† says Lynn Turner, former chief accountant of the SEC under President Clinton. â€Å"This is about investors, and they like what they're seeing now. † Even people who aren't obsessed with stocks seem to like the idea of big shots getting a comeuppance. â€Å"We are angry, and we have every right to be angry,† says futurist and consumer expert Marian Salzman of Euro RSCG Worldwide. There's a feeling that we need to kick out the evil-doers in the industry. † But some might recoil at the image of a dignified old man being led before the cameras in handcuffs. â€Å"They're actually going to look sympathetic,† says Robin Cohn, author of The PR Crisis Bible. â€Å"Why would you Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 3 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, THURSDAY, JU LY 25, 2002 handcuff an old man? He's not a murderer and a rapist. That's not to say they aren't crooks. But I think the public would rather see somebody they know in handcuffs — like (former Enron CEO) Ken Lay. And the incident could make the government look somewhat silly, she says. â€Å"I can't imagine Saturday Night Live not doing anything with this. † Corporate crime is in the spotlight these days. Last month, federal prosecutors arrested former ImClone CEO Sam Waksal on charges of illegal trading on inside information and obstruction of justice. Their investigation has expanded to include friends and family of Waksal, who also might have illegally traded on inside information about ImClone last December. Investigators are trying to determine whether any inside information was passed to Waksal's friend Martha Stewart, who sold her ImClone stock just before a Food and Drug Administration announcement, denying an application to market a cancer-fighting drug, drove the stock price down. In coming months, the Justice Department is expected to charge top executives of Enron and WorldCom with fraud. The department's Enron Task Force won one court battle last month when a Houston jury found auditor Arthur Andersen criminally guilty of obstruction of justice. It appears, though, that officials wanted to start off with a bang as they arrested the Rigases. â€Å"What's unusual here is the level of detail included in the criminal complaint, and the number of defendants arrested simultaneously,† says former prosecutor Robert Mintz, now at McCarter & English. â€Å"Usually, the government builds a case slowly, with eventual defections among defendants. Here, it has leveled a wide range of allegations against upper management. That suggests that the government believes it has strong case and that they expect a rush to the prosecutor's door by defendants who will vie to strike deals. The cases build on information that began to come out in late March. Adelphia disclosed then that the Rigases had used assets of the already debt-heavy company to secure loans to private, family-run partnerships. That borrowing is now put at $3. 1 billion. Independent directors forced the Rigases out of their executive positions and board seats, installing f ormer banker Erland Kailbourne as interim CEO. When they investigated the company's condition, they found and disclosed case after case in which the Rigases made no distinction between their personal funds and businesses and Adelphia's. Bad news gets worse But Adelphia was already in a tailspin. Investors lost confidence. Auditors refused to certify the company's financial reports. And lenders cut it off, leading the company to miss interest and dividend payments. Among the charges leading to the Rigases' arrest: u That the family began using Adelphia as collateral for private loans in 1996, even though the company â€Å"was one of the largest junk bond issuers in the United States. † Investors weren't told. u That the Rigases secretly inflated Adelphia's cable TV subscription numbers to make investors think it was still growing at a healthy pace. In 2000 they began to count subscribers from systems in Brazil and Venezuela, where Adelphia owns a minority stake. In 2001, Adelphia began adding customers who just ordered high-speed Internet services from the Rigases' non-Adelphia systems. And earlier this year, they folded in people who ordered home security services from Adelphia. u That they used accounting legerdemain to disguise Adelphia's actual expenses for digital decoder boxes. In 2001 the company claimed that it sold 525,000 boxes for $101 million to an unaudited Rigas-owned company that has no cable systems. That, starting in 2000, Adelphia spent $13 million to build a golf club on land mostly owned by John Rigas. u That in 1999, they told analysts that Adelphia could provide two-way communications to 50% of its customers. The real number was 35%. u And that the Rigases took more than $252 million from Adelphia to pay for margin calls on their purchases as the company's stock price fell. Contributing: Michael McCarthy R eprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 4 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY NEWS SECTION, FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2002 WorldCom scandal brings subpoenas, condemnation Accounting rumors rattle Wall Street By Andrew Backover and Thor Valdmanis USA TODAY The accounting scandal that enveloped WorldCom reverberated through Wall Street and Washington on Thursday. u Congress subpoenaed top WorldCom executives. u President Bush and Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill separately railed at corporate wrongdoers. u Unfounded rumors of accounting problems hit stocks of other companies. WorldCom on Tuesday revealed what could be one of the biggest accounting frauds ever. Company officials said $3. billion in expenses had been hidden in financial statements, inflating profits in 2001 and the first quarter of 2002. The Securities and Exchange Commission has since charged WorldCom with fraud. Bush, at an economic summit in Canada, said he is concerned about the economic impact from â€Å"some corporate leaders who have not upheld their responsibility. † O'Neill, a former chief executive of Alcoa, said in an interv iew on ABC's Good Morning America that the people responsible should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. WorldCom has raised fears and rumors about more business accounting scandals. Trading was halted for General Motors stock Thursday afternoon because of rumors of accounting irregularities. GM said they were untrue. Broadcast giant Clear Channel Communications denied it is under an SEC investigation, yet its stock fell almost 13%. The House Financial Services Committee set a July 8 hearing into the WorldCom case. Subpoenas went to: u Current WorldCom CEO John Sidgmore. u Former chief financial officer Scott Sullivan, who was fired this week. * Former WorldCom chief executive Bernie Ebbers, who was ousted in April and who owes WorldCom $408 million for personal loans. Salomon Smith Barney telecom analyst Jack Grubman. Once one of WorldCom's most bullish supporters on Wall Street, he has been criticized for possible conflicts of interest. His firm collected millions of dollars in fees as a WorldCom financial adviser. WorldCom spokesman Brad Burns declined comment on whether Sidgmore would invoke his Fifth Amendment right not to testify. Ebbers and Sullivan couldn 't be reached. Salomon says Grubman â€Å"will fully cooperate. † And there could be more investigations. The House Energy and Commerce Committee told WorldCom to turn over financial records by July 11. WorldCom, strained by $30 billion in debt, will cut 17,000 jobs, or 21% of its workers, starting today. Workers will get severance pay, Burns says. Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 5 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2002 Andersen's partners chart firm's future today By Greg Farrell USA TODAY NEW YORK — Arthur Andersen's U. S. partners will huddle in a nationwide teleconference today to determine the firm's immediate future. At issue: who should lead the firm's U. S. operations on an interim basis, and what steps Andersen should take to remain in business. According to senior partners briefed on the meeting's agenda, Andersen's 1,700 U. S. par tners will decide whether to ask Paul Volcker to assume control of Andersen's domestic operations. In February, Andersen CEO Joseph Berardino asked the former Federal Reserve chairman to head an oversight board dedicated to fixing the firm. A month later, a federal grand jur y indicted Andersen on a charge of obstruction of justice for its role in shredding Enron documents last October. Friday, in a last-ditch effort to stanch client depar tures and restore confidence in Andersen, Volcker offered to lead Andersen if its top par tners asked him. On Tuesday, Berardino resigned. Managing partner C. E. Andrews will meet with Volcker today to discuss his takeover plan. While many obser vers think Volcker's arrival could persuade the J ustice Depar tment to drop the indictment, some Andersen partners are wary of being the subject of an idealistic experiment in transforming the accounting industry. The partners will also discuss, and probably adopt, a â€Å"Renaissance† program aimed at returning Andersen to its roots as a highly regarded auditing firm. This proposal, supported by Andrews, has gained support among older partners who want to stay and rebuild the firm. In other developments: u At federal cour t in Houston, Contributing: Thor Valdmanis J ustice Depar tment lawyers will respond to Andersen's motion to halt further grand jury testimony prior to a May 6 trial. If Judge Melinda Harmon sides with Andersen, it will make the government's obstruction of justice case against Andersen more difficult to win. u Andersen's top global partners will meet Tuesday in London to pick an interim CEO. Andersen's global operations continue to fragment. Its Japanese affiliate, Asahi & Co. , announced plans to merge this fall with rival KPMG. Andersen has also discussed selling affiliates to Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Wednesday night, Deloitte spokesman Matthew Batters suggested the firm was only interested in hiring individual Andersen partners and picking up clients leaving the firm. Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 6 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, TUESDAY, APRIL 9, 2002 Client-starved Arthur Andersen cuts 7,000 jobs Long expected, layoffs offer first tangible sign of firm's distress By Greg Farrell USA TODAY WorldCom has engaged in what could be one of the bArthur Andersen fired one partner in January for his role in shredding Enron documents. On Monday, the auditing firm announced it will lay off 7,000 of its 26,000 U. S. employees because of the consequences of that shredding. The job cuts at Andersen have been expected for weeks, ever since the Justice Department unsealed an indictment against the firm for its role in destroying its paperwork just as a Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into Enron was about to begin. Since the indictment, unsealed on March 14, scores of clients have deserted Andersen. As Andersen partners leave the firm for opportunities at other Big Five rivals, more clients are expected to migrate. So far, Andersen has weathered the crisis without filing for bankruptcy protection. But the layoffs, announced Monday, are the first tangible sign of financial distress at the firm. Of the 7,000 employees being let go, the vast majority are auditing staffers and managers, as well as administrative personnel. A small number of Andersen's 1,700 U. S. partners are also being let go. According to managing partner Grover Wray, most partners are still needed to serve Andersen's remaining clients. Rather than hand out severance checks to laid-off employees, Wray says Andersen is implementing a program called â€Å"salary continuation. † nder this plan, laid-off workers will continue to be paid for a certain number of weeks, depending on how long they've been with the firm. During that period, these employees will keep their benefits and be free to use their office space to search for new jobs. We are trying to treat our people with a level of dignity,† Wray says. In addition to client defections, Andersen also faces major liabilities for the role it played in Enron's collapse into bankruptcy last fall. Plaintiffs lawyer Bill Lerach filed an expanded complaint Monday against Andersen and former Enron managers in federal court in Houston. But the expanded lawsuit, on behalf of a major Enron shareholder — the Unive rsity of California system — adds nine Wall Street investment banks and two law firms to the list of defendants. Representatives from the banks — JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, CS First Boston, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, Barclays and Lehman Bros. — either declined comment on Monday or denied the complaint's allegations of complicity in Enron's collapse. Notably, Lerach's complaint leaves out two key players in Enron's demise — Michael Kopper, who headed some of the special purpose entities that kept Enron liabilities off the company's balance sheet, and Ben Glisan, the former Enron treasurer accused of facilitating some of Enron's dubious accounting practices. Glisan is now believed to be cooperating with the Justice Department probe of Enron's activities. Lerach would not comment on whether the pair supplied his investigators with information. But Larry Finder, a former U. S. Attorney now in private practice in Houston, doubts either is helping Lerach. Finder says that if either of them is providing information, it would be to the Justice Department first, where they face criminal liability. And the Justice Department wouldn't necessarily welcome a decision by a witness to cooperate in civil litigation. Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 7 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, TUESDAY, JULY 9, 2002 Dominoes hit WorldCom partners, clients Unpleasant ripple effect also spreads to vendors, charities, sponsored events By Michelle Kessler USA TODAY The WB television network, PGA Tour and Texas Parks and Wildlife service aren't in telecom, but they've already been hurt by the WorldCom scandal. That's because they all did business with WorldCom, as did thousands of other companies. Now they're all trying to figure out where they stand with the struggling giant — and coming up with backup plans. This is not going to be pleasant for a lot of companies,† says Kerry Adler, CEO of WorldCom customer Webhelp. Among those affected: u V e n d o r s . WorldCom repor ted that its capital expenditures dropped 42% to about $1. 3 billion in the first quarter from a year ago, yet it remained a big customer for many telecom equipment makers. While it's unclear how accurate WorldCom's numbers are becaus e of the accounting scandal, what is clear is that its spending has slowed. The hardest hit is Juniper Networks, says Banc of America Securities analyst Christopher Crespi. WorldCom provided about 10% of Juniper's annual revenue, including â€Å"less than $7 million† this quarter, Juniper says. If WorldCom stops buying, that could dampen Juniper's forecast for the year. â€Å"It could easily subtract $50 million or $60 million off their top line,† says Soundview Technology analyst Ryan Molloy. Customers Cisco Systems, Nortel Networks and Redback Networks could also get stung, but WorldCom accounts for just a small percentage of total sales, says U. S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray analyst Edward Jackson. All telecom equipment makers could be affected in coming months, even if they didn't do business directly with WorldCom, analysts say. WorldCom was known for buying the latest, most high-tech equipment, forcing competitors to do the same if they wanted to keep up. With WorldCom out of the picture, spending could lag. u Contractors. In 1999, when consulting firm EDS signed an 11-year, $6. 4 billion contract to provide technology services to WorldCom, telecom was a growing industry. EDS is stuck with the deal and a related pledge to buy $6 billion worth of telecom services during that period. Now, EDS says it no longer wants to spend that much with WorldCom. It's in talks to work out a deal. RMH Teleservices has a five-year contract to provide customer service for WorldCom's MCI division. That accounted for 19. 5% of RMH's revenue from October to March. â€Å"While we cannot predict the future . . . we expect to continue to provide these services for MCI,† RMH leader John Fellows said in a statement. u Business partners. Last year, WorldCom pledged to buy millions of dollars in advertising from AOL Time Warner over several years. The exact terms were not disclosed. Now, that deal could be off, meaning fewer ads for Time magazine, cable's TBS and the WB television network. WorldCom also provides service to the company's AOL Internet division. AOL says it has backup providers in case WorldCom service is disrupted. Satellite cable provider DirecTV is holding meetings to determine how to handle its 4-month-old partnership with WorldCom. WorldCom was to provide the underlying network for part of DirecTV's high-speed Internet access service. Similar questions are being asked at Internet Security Systems, a software company that agreed in May to provide security services to WorldCom customers. The value of the two deals was not disclosed. * Sponsored events. Last week's Fourth of July fireworks Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 8 AS SEEN IN USA TODAY MONEY SECTION, TUESDAY, JULY 9, 2002 celebration on the Mall in Washington was supposed to be paid for by WorldCom, which has sponsored part of the festivities for five years. But the company pulled out. The National Parks Foundation scrambled to find new funding from AT. Also in Washington, the MCI Center arena might soon be looking for a new sponsor and name. The WorldCom Classic, an annual PGA Tour stop in Hilton Head, S. C. , is in the same situation. u Charities. Each month, about 10,000 teachers receive free training in math, science and the arts from the MarcoPolo project, which is sponsored by WorldCom's charity arm. Now, program administrators and partners — including the National Geographic Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science and The Kennedy Center — are tr ying to make the proj ect independent of the struggling company. Last week, they pulled WorldCom's logos from the MarcoPolo Web site. They're applying to make it a â€Å"public charity,† says Caleb Schutz, president of WorldCom Foundation. There's a lot to lose if the company . . . pulled the plug. † For now, WorldCom still funds MarcoPolo. u Customers. The Texas Parks and Wildlife department spent last week printing temporary fishing and hunting licenses as a quick contingency plan. The department relies on a WorldCom computer network to transmit license information to 2,500 vendors. †Å"We certainly have to consider what might happen to our contract,† says Suzy Whittenton, a wildlife director. Webhelp, which outsources customer service for companies such as Microsoft, uses WorldCom to connect its overseas technology specialists with help-seekers in the USA. Because of a contract, Webhelp can't switch providers but was forced to get a backup provider in case WorldCom fails. That means twice the bills. â€Å"It's expensive, and at the end of the day, our clients pay for that,† says CEO Adler. Reprinted with permission. All rights reser ved. Page 9 Behind the Story: A Reporter’s Notebook The collapse of Enron and WorldCom, precipitated by revelations that both companies had misrepresented how profitable they were, threatens the health of the the nation’s stock markets. If investors can’t believe earnings numbers issued by the biggest companies in the USA, they won’t put their money into the market. And when investors take their money out of the market, as they’ve been doing for more than two years, businesses suffer. They can’t invest, they can’t grow as quickly and they can’t afford to hire more people. Greg Farrell Money reporter USA TODAY As the Enron and WorldCom examples demonstrate, there’s no room in a public marketplace for â€Å"creative accounting. † Once a few cheaters are revealed, the integrity of the entire marketplace is open to question. Greg Farrell is a reporter in USA TODAY’s Money section. He writes about fraud and white collar crime. In the past year, he has been reporting on Enron, Arthur Andersen, Martha Stewart and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Page 10 For discussion ADELPHIA PLANS TO FILE CHAPTER 11; ADELPHIA FOUNDER, 2 SONS, 2 OTHERS ARRESTED IN FRAUD (LIEBERMAN AND FARRELL) 1. Adelphia Corporation was the sixth largest cable company at the time of its collapse. The company was accused of a number of fraudulent activities including the manipulation of its financial reports. Specifically, the firm was accused of misreporting its cable subscription numbers in order to give the impression that the firm was growing faster than it was. For example, they counted subscribers from systems in Brazil and Venezuela where the company owns a minority stake in the company’s total subscribers. They also counted customers who ordered high-speed Internet services from companies owned by the Rigas family and clients that ordered home security services from Adelphia. Why would Adelphia’s management engage in what appears to be blatant misrepresentation of their number of subscribers? 2. When CEO John Regas of Adelphia was led away in handcuffs on racketeering charges, some complained that the justice department was making too public a display of its tough stance on white-collar crime. This type of treatment is normally associated with murderers and rapists. How do you feel about the importance of making a public spectacle of white-collar criminals? 3. The Adelphia lawsuit stated that the Rigases â€Å"used their domination and control of Adelphia, and their isolation from the scrutiny of the outside world, to engage in one of the largest schemes of self-dealing and financial wrong doing in American corporate history. Financial economists refer to this type of behavior as an agency cost since corporate executives are the agents of the firm’s owners or principals. How can stockholders protect themselves from the potential for self-dealing by corporate executives? ANDERSEN’S PARTNERS CHART FIRM’S FUTURE TODAY (FARRELL) 1. Arthur Andersen was once the premier public accounting firm but a string of high profile financial reporting disasters that culminated with the failure of Enron caused the demise of the once proud firm. Andersen’s failure highlights the fact that the principal asset of a public accounting firm is the firm’s reputation. Once the firm’s â€Å"credibility† is challenged its clients are no longer willing to pay for its auditing services. What is it that a public accounting firm does that requires it to have a sterling reputation for honesty? 2. Anderson’s initial lay off was 7,000 of its 26,000 employees before the firm completely collapsed and all employees lost their jobs. However, all of Andersen’s clients still needed auditing services so in many instances the employees continued to audit the same firms they had audited for Andersen, just for another auditing firm. If the employees just moved from one firm to another, was there really a layoff? Did Andersen employees really suffer from the demise of Arthur Andersen? Isn’t this also true of the Adelphia, Enron, and WorldCom employees? For more information, log on to http://www. usatodaycollege. com Page 11 Future implications WORLDCOM SCANDAL BRINGS SUBPOENAS, CONDEMNATION (BACKOVER AND VALDMANIS); DOMINOS HIT WORLDCOM PARTNERS, CLIENTS (KESSLER) The financial press coverage of the failures of Adelphia, Enron, and WorldCom have focused principally on stockholders who have lost everything they invested and creditors who stand to lose a portion of what they have loaned the company. However, other important consequences of these high profile failures are often overlooked including: (1) the financial and emotional losses suffered by employees who lose their jobs and face the prospect of a lengthy period of unemployment and possibly the dislocation costs of moving to another community to find work, (2) the local community public services and school systems who lose valuable tax revenues, and (3) the budget crises created for local charities and the arts that depend on corporate contributions for their continued survival. Bankruptcy courts focus on the contractual obligations of the firm to creditors and suppliers. It has been argued that the corporation is a â€Å"guest† of the society and as such has obligations to the entire web of stakeholders that have a financial stake in the firm’s survival. Should the claims of these â€Å"silent stakeholders† also be considered when a firm fails? About The Expert John D. Martin,Ph. D. Professor of Finance Carr P. Collins Chair Hankamer School of Business Baylor University From 1980 until 1998 John Martin taught at the University of Texas at Austin where he was the Margaret and Eugene McDermott Centennial Professor of Finance. Currently holding the Carr P. Collins Chair in Finance at Baylor University in Waco, Dr. Martin teaches corporate finance and financial modeling. His research interests are in corporate governance, the evaluation of firm performance, and the design of incentive compensation programs. Dr. Martin publishes widely in both academic and professional journals. Included among his academic publications are papers in the Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Finance, Journal of Monetary Economics, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Financial Management, and Management Science. Professional publications include papers in Directors and Boards, Financial Analysts' Journal, Journal of Portfolio Management, and Bank of America Journal of Applied Corporate Finance. u Dr. Martin co-authors several books including the following: u Financial Management, 9th edition (Prentice Hall Publishing Company) u Foundations of Finance, 4th Edition (Prentice Hall Publishing Company) u Financial Analysis (McGraw Hill Publishing Company) u The Theory of Finance (Dryden Press) Dr. Martin consults with a number of firms including Citgo, Hewlett Packard, Shell Chemical, Shell E, Texas Instruments and The Associates. Additional resources Working Paper Series — Financial Engineering, Corporate Governance, and the Collapse of Enron http://www. be. udel. edu/ccg/research_files/CCGWP2002-1. pdf For more information, log on to http://www. usatodaycollege. com Page 12

Puppy Mills

Tiffany Baldeo MWF 8:00-8:50am ENC1101 Informative Essay Puppy Mills, Be gone! Bulldogs on sale! Yorkie puppies available here! Have you ever wondered where all these cheap puppies for sale in pet stores come from? The answer is that they are produced in factory-like environments known as â€Å"puppy mills†. Puppy mills are large-scale dog breeding operations where profit is given priority over the well-being of the dogs. Puppy mills treat dogs like products, not living beings, and usually house them in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions without adequate veterinary care, socialization, or even food and water.The cute puppies for sale at your local mall were probably bred from dogs that don’t play outside or get groomed. Puppy mill dogs are typically kept in cages with wire flooring that injures their paws and legs and cages can be stacked up in a column, which means waste falls on the dogs housed below them. Compromised health and conditions like matting, sores, mang e, severe dental disease and abscesses are often widespread. Many puppy mill puppies are born with or develop overt physical problems that make them unsalable to pet stores, which mean they end up abandoned or just left to die.Many sick puppies do manage to end up at pet stores, though, where the new puppy owner unknowingly purchases the sick dog. Breeding dogs at the mills sometimes spend their entire lives outdoors, exposed to the elements, or crammed inside filthy structures. When a parent at a puppy mill is no longer able to produce, the dog may be given to the nearest shelter, abandoned, or even destroyed. Also, because the puppies produced in puppy mills do not have safe and healthy homes selected for them ahead of time, if they are not purchased by the time they hit a certain age, they may suffer the same fate.Female dogs usually have little to no recovery time between bearing litters. When, after a few years, the females can no longer reproduce or when their breed goes out o f style, the dogs are often abandoned, shot, or starved until they eventually die. Many pet stores with cute puppies for sale will tell you that they don't get their puppies from puppy mills. They'll say their puppies are all from â€Å"USDA licensed breeders. † If you dig a little deeper into what that actually means, you'll find that it's not worth much. The standards of care required by the USDA are woefully inadequate and not what most of us would consider humane.They leave a lot of room for dogs to be severely mistreated. Even if they were adequate, they're not enforced. Take a look at a scathing report done by the Inspector General on USDA's lax enforcement of the law regulating breeders and judge for yourself whether USDA licensing of puppy mills is enough to make you shop at stores that sell puppies. In fact, you only have to be licensed by USDA as a commercial breeder if you are selling puppies to pet stores or brokers. So USDA licensure is actually a pretty good ind icator that the breeders are, in fact, puppy mills.Small hobby breeders, who sell their dogs directly to the public, including those who only sell their puppies online, do not have to be licensed or inspected by USDA. Don’t support the industry. Most pet shop puppies come from puppy mills, and so do most dogs sold over the Internet. Pet shop puppies are separated from their mother at as young as six weeks of age. The health of the puppies is not always guaranteed. Purchasing a puppy for sale at a pet store or online often supports the horrible puppy mill industry. Buying anything in pet stores that sell puppies supports the industry, too.Buy all your pet supplies, toys, pet food, and kitty litter, from stores that do not sell puppies, or buy your pet supplies online from websites that do not sell puppies. Breeders or owners of large kennels are supposed to adhere to regulations and follow protocol when it comes to their business and the wellbeing of the animals that are in th eir facilities. The puppy mills project states that of the 3,000 USDA licensed breeding facilities, a large number of them have violations that go unpunished and led to the maltreatment of the animals behind the walls.The United States government should be making more strides to help the animals that must endure these horrific living conditions. The Animal Bill of Rights is being used by the Animal legal defense Club to show that there is a large amount of support that is going towards the promotion of more strict animal rights. They also need to help congress come up with harsher punishments for the people that feel that they are above the law and do not need to follow the laws when it comes to animals and abuse.The Fund also states in their website that in the United States about 45 states including the District of Columbia have a type of felony level animal cruelty provision which may be in forced in cases of animal fighting or death of an animal. States need to take a closer loo k at the puppy mill facilities or â€Å"breeding kennels† and take more drastic measures against people who violate regulations. It is not fair to the animals that they have to live in such conditions that can make them sick and feel unloved.

Visual Identity Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Visual Identity - Assignment Example And (6) how does the visual identity graphic fit with the product or service of this company or organization? The company logo is the famous logo for Apple, Inc. and is famously recognized globally by various people who have had interests in computers and its applications. The logo, representing the company Apple was first introduced to me during academic pursuit, as early as one could remember using the personal computer. Likewise, I remember that the logo was initially in rainbow-colored horizontal stripes, but using exactly the same graphic form (an apple with a bite at the right side). Currently, it is in its monochromatic form to indicate a more professionalized and sophisticated style commensurate to the image that the organization aimed to project. A little research apprised me that there was one logo prior to the famous visual representation of the company known as Newton Crest which was used only for one year in 1976 (Edible Apple, 2009). The graphic design is a perfect fit for the company as it accurately provided a visual identity: the representation of the apple with a bite, or byte that the designer, Rob Janoff, disclosed meant: â€Å"the â€Å"bite† in the Apple logo was originally implemented so that people would know that it represented an apple, and not a tomato. It also lent itself to a nerdy play on words (bite/byte), a fitting reference for a tech company† (Edible Apple, 2009, par. 3). Therefore, aside from the apple image, the color selection and the bite were appropriately and effectively designed and evolved through the years to depict transformations from â€Å"using a colorful logo as a means to â€Å"humanize† the company† (Edible Apple, 2009, par. 4), into â€Å"one capable of churning out sleek and cutting edge products† (Edible Apple, 2009, par. 9). Therefore, the visual identity perfectly fit the image of the company in terms of providing opporunities for easy r ecognition and recall of the corporate name and the brand

Business Ethics Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Business Ethics - Article Example By using private companies which it purchased, slush funds, and sham contracts the company was able to reroute the brides through extra levels of corporate disguise. The obvious moral issue here is that bribery is wrong. 2. Johnson and Johnson executives had a string of emails and other written communication explaining that the paying of bribes was a usual procedure of doing business in the countries. One email revealed that practically 95% of business in Greece is done this way. Also it is apparent that the method was so open that Greece accountants could not understand why it needed be hidden in their written notes. Brides were used to pay for the expenses of doctors going on medical conference trips. Johnson is a behemoth of a company and certainly other companies follow their leadership role. Their leadership role is based on experience with proven business techniques developed for surviving in a competitive market. One of these techniques, which Johnson as a well financed compan y can do well is bribing. 3. One can use the utilitarian rule of ethics here, the greatest good for the greatest number. It would be the variety of action based utilitarianism in which one's action would produce such a good.

Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Research - Essay Example Based on the data from World health organization cigarette smoking and other forms of tobacco use kill more than 4 million people worldwide every year, with about 1.25 billion active smokers worldwide. With the same trends of tobacco use it is estimated that tobacco smoking will kill 8.4 million people a year by year 2020 (WHO 2000). Now even though these numbers are alarming the advertising of tobacco smoking is increasing in volume and specificity. It is estimated that in year 2006 in United States, the 5 largest tobacco companies spend 12.50 billion dollars on advertising, or more accurately more that 34 million dollar per day in advertising and promoting cigarette smoking. What is most important is that the as the cigarette smoking declines, the amount of money spend on advertising is drastically increasing (Slater et al 2007). Also some new price strategies that are designed by the tobacco companies, like price discounts that are paid to wholesaler and large distributors to lowe r the price of the cigarettes, actually lead to increased number of smokers among youth and adolescents in United States (Federal Trade Commission 2006). The advertising in tobacco industry goes as far as designing cigarettes that are specially attractive and appealing to women, where the targeting of women as smokers goes beyond marketing because the companies try to find specific factors of motivation, patterns of social activities associated with smoking, specific product preferences etc. in order to produce gender or age specific products (Carpenter et al 2005). As we can see the tobacco industry is a strong factor that is promoting the use of tobacco neglecting the negative effects of smoking in the process. Since tobacco smoking is a major health problem, the health system has very important role in promoting the negative effect of smoking and its participants: doctors, nurses, public health workers and other medical personnel. As stated by World health organization the public health community and health professionals should lead the way in solving the problem of tobacco use (WHO 2000). The role of health professionals is important because there are studies that show that the chances of smoking cessation increases after a patient receives advice from a health care professional (Fiore et al. 2000). There are many programs in the world designed to reduce the incidence tobacco use among physicians and other health care professionals around the world. There are information’s that indicate that maximum 10 percents of physicians in Australia, Norway, Canada, United States, United Kingdom and other developed countries smoke tobacco. This incidence is much higher among the countries in Europe. As opposite of this up to 40 percent or more of the physicians smoke in France, Italy, Spain, Turkey and other countries in Europe (WHO 1993). This is interesting because the study conducted by Emanuela and Anna 2009 also showed that incidence of tobacco use

BRIC Emerging Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

BRIC Emerging Markets - Essay Example In line with this, Lopez-Claros (2005) explains that the competitiveness of each nation to compete in the world market is not limited to their ability to maintan exchange rate competitiveness but also the importance of improving their productivitity in order to increase the businesses' return on investment and also improve the aggregate growth among the four countries' economy. As part of increasing the BRICs competitiveness against other countries around the world, enhancing one's knowledge on economic development could empower each nation to positively act upon the challenges associated with the challenges related to FDI and trade, political stability and sustainability in each nation (Lopez-Claros, 2005; Henisz, 2000; Olson, 1996; Bhagwati, 1989). Globalization strongly promotes the practice of free trading around the world. In line with this, balancing the volume of local and foreign trade activities is crucial in terms of maintaining a strong economic growth because allowing the import level of foreign goods to exceed the export level within a country is harmful in terms of the country's economic development (Bhagwati, 1989). Given that a country becomes very dependent on the importation of goods and services, it is likely that the country would experience slow growth and unemployment problem because of the significant decline in the demand for locally manufactured and provided goods and services (Bhagwati, 1989). A great imbalance between the import and export is enough to cause the sudden decrease in the countries' gross domestic product (GDP). (Campos & Coricelli, 2002; Boix, 1999) Political Stability The socio-political stability of Brazil, Russia, India, and China could significantly affect the economic development of each nation (Henisz, 2000) In line with this, several past research studies revealed that the governemnt's ability not to interfere with the private property rights of the businessmen is necessary in terms of maintaining the long-term capital investments necessary to enable the BRICs to experience a rapid economic growth (Henisz, 2000; Olson, 1996). Equally important for the continuous economic growth of BRICs, the government in each nation should develop and implement effective stabilization programs related to taxation, business regulation, and other relevant economic policies that could promote the increase in private investment (Henisz, 2000) aside from intervening on global trade activities like imposing import restrictions and providing export subsidies among others (Bhagwati, 1989). Whenever a new foreign business would enter the country, the government shuld impose a strict entry regulation in order to prevent the incidence of fly-by-night business operators (Djankov et al., 2002). With regards to tax policy, collected tax revenue should be invested in economic activities including the development of infrastructure, improvement in educational services, and investment on new technology in order to create new job opportunity and demand for the local products and services (Lopez-Claros, 2005). All these can be easily achieve

Components of a Valid Contract Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Components of a Valid Contract - Research Paper Example Certain kinds of contracts require documentation. These contracts have to acquire signatories from the involved parties under the rule of law to be abiding. Contracts are falling under this category abide by statue of frauds and vary from one place to another within varied jurisdiction. A promise or offer needs to be in a contract to render its validity. Offer is, usually, the first element in a contract to ensure that the contract is legally valid to be acceptable. There is a distinct difference in the offer to be an option or an advertisement. Making of an offer requires the availability of two or more parties, and these parties should be ready to agree to a mutual consent in agreement. The constituents of the offer should be open to both parties, and the return value should be acceptable. After presenting a contract offer, acceptance is a crucial validation element (Liuzzo, 2010). Acceptance should only prevail when the offer is clear and within the bounds of the law. Acceptance either can be in the form of writing if it is within the statue of fraud or verbally accepted. For example, promises made in marriages are acceptable in a condition that there is a written draft of the agreement made. In another form of contract for the sale of the car, the seller may gi ve an offer of $20,000. If the buyer accepts, the offer there is a definite creation of a binding contract in a written format. It is worth noting that counter offer has no classification as a form an acceptance. It is, usually, a form of rejection for the offer in place (Gillies, 2004). In a perfect example, if the car buyer counter-offers a purchase of $100,000 it counts as a typical rejection of the initial sale offer. In the case of the counter acceptance by the seller, the contract may automatically face its completion. However, in the case of rejection

Should Cultural Anthropology Stop Trying to Model Itself as a Science Essay

Should Cultural Anthropology Stop Trying to Model Itself as a Science - Essay Example This paper illustrates articles by two schools of thought that seem to offer conflicting ideas on the question of cultural anthropology modeling itself as a science. This is because humanities and sciences tend to appear as though they compete for validity, as though, the two disciplines are two opposite extremes. In this regard, Geertz bears in mind that cultural anthropology is best done through interpretation, the humanities way, while Carneiro is of the view that studies should be done through studying the causes and effects. Carneiro’s way is the scientific method. According to the articles, Geertz opinion is that the humanistic approach to cultural anthropology is the best. This is based on the understanding that interpretation leads to definite contextual comprehension. In this regard, the application of scientific approaches puts to risk analysis of cultural aspects being incomplete. In addition, the issue of anthropology being a science gains popularity with its dual ancestry where it is the most scientific humanity of all. This is, in addition to being the most, humanist of all sciences. Based on the information it is crucial to note that anthropology should stick to being human in that all information should be deduced through interpretation for utmost accuracy. This is, in addition to attempting to prove, or disapprove scientific laws by generating deeper interpretations of diverse cultural phenomena. On the other hand, based on Carneiro, scientific should be used to explain cultural phenomena based on facts and evidence to create logical and rational explanations. This is as proposed through cause-effect studies, as opposed to the mere interpretation of causes and effects. In addition, cultural anthropology focuses on analysis thus, to Carneiro; it is a science, as opposed to the humanistic methods applied by interpretation. In this regard, the analysis goes deeper into details in an attempt to capture more information than that which is fou nd in humanist anthropology.

Corporate Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Corporate Ethics - Essay Example Also I have personally spoken to some of the employees to understand and identify the key areas. Add to that some research about the history of the company has also been done. Based on the meeting the following areas requiring change has been identified. Identifying the Areas requiring change HR functioning is a very much core and specialized area. But the HR functions of the organization is scattered among individuals. This consists of some employees belonging to the administrative position looking after paper works and a management team looking after HR issues. There we need to achieve centralization. During the meeting and the one on one conversation it was identified there is scope to improve the morale of the employees. Some of the employees were a bit unsure about their job description. This is something that needs to be changed. One the major problems faced by the organization has been relatively high attrition rate (Goswami, 2010). Probable Action Plan In order to have a full y functional centralized HE department, we need to hire some HR executives to look after the core areas such as recruitment, payroll processing, performance management, etc. Also these executives act as a touch point to various departments. The employees looking after the admin work can also be a part of the HR department forming HR and admin division. We must make sure that detailed Job descriptions are prepared across the all departments. The HR manager should entrust the responsibility to the executives looking after different departments. The executive should carry out a job interview for specific job holders to prepare a detailed and appropriate job description. Along with job description the employees should be provided the KRA or key result areas, so that the employees can understand the parameters based on which they can be judged. The organization must have a proper performance management system. This will not only help the employees identify strengths and areas of developm ent, but also help the employees to understand how they could contribute towards the success of the organization in future. One the major problems faced by the organization has been attrition. Therefore to diagnose the problem we should ensure that there is a structured salary, increment and recognition system. It should be made clear to the employees that the increments would be performed based on the findings of the performance management system. Also to motivate the employees there would be existence of reward and recognition system. This would include both monetary as well as non monetary rewards. During the meeting with the employees and managers, some key players should be identified. Those employees could be granted Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP). During the meeting with the employees we found out that there is a need for training, especially for the people who are at constant touch with the customers. For, example customer services reps and sales & marketing professionals . Hence, the corporate team may identify a relevant training partner to impart training. The training could be provided in small pilot batches. Elements of Diagnosis Plan Probable Results Proper JD and KRA Better understanding of roles and responsibilities Proper Internal communication Credibility and Trust Well Designed Performance Management System Helps the employees to identify strengths and weaknesses Salary, increment and recognition system Acts a motivating factor ESOP Retention of key players Training and

The US has gone through several keyboom and bust cycles since the Essay

The US has gone through several keyboom and bust cycles since the Civil War - Essay Example There was also the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania, and coal in the Appalachian Mountains. In 1873, there was a recession causing the collapse of the New York Stock market. This recession lasted until 1897. The next period is the progressive era of the 1890 to 1920. This period saw the emergence of a powerful middle class who advocated for the regulation of the American business environment. Due to their efforts, the American congress passed the Sherman antitrust act. This law was meant to prevent large business organizations from controlling a particular industry. It was passed in 1890. In 1912, President Woodrow Wilson introduced the income tax system. It is during this period that saw the creation of the Federal Reserve2. The role of this organization was to regulate the monetary system in America. There was the growth of the American economy between the periods of 1920-1929. This point in time is called the Roaring twenties. It is during this period that the automobile industry grew, and there was a reduction in taxes. The oil industry grew, as well as the glass industry. As a result, millions of people were employed in these industries. However, between 1921 to 1941, the economy of the state came under recession. This period is referred to as the Great depression. There was a failure in the country’s stock market, and money circulation was low3. Due to an increase in the country’s debts, congress raised the rate of income tax. The periods of 1945 to 1973 saw the rise of the American economy. This period is referred to as the post war period. This period saw the emergence of a well educated workforce, and the maturity of $200 billion war bond. This period saw the emergence of labor unions to advocate for the right of workers. The periods of 1972 to 1992 saw an increase in the capital and operational costs of several sectors of the American economy4. This period is referred to as the deregulation and reagonomics phase. This period saw the enac tment of the airline deregulation act, and the monetary control and the depository institution deregulation act. President Jimmy Carter instituted the 1977 stimulus package for purposes of recovering the economy. In 1980, there was a massive unemployment rate, with over 1.1 million people losing their jobs. In 1981, President Ronald Reagan introduced the concept of reagonomics. This concept led to a reduction of the income tax. The rate of reduction was 25%5. Between the periods of 1990, to the late 2000 is the era of globalization. There was the growth of the American stock market, and an increase to its GDP by 69%. This period was followed by the great depression of 2008 to 2010. This period saw the collapse of the construction industry, and the housing prices6. There was a collapse of leading financial institutions such as the Lehman brothers, and AIG insurance company. To bail out the economy, the American congress passed out over $700 billion. President Obama initiated the 2009 Investment and American recovery act. This law was meant to provide a stimulus of about $ 787 billion to the American economy. In conclusion, this paper identifies seven major boom and bust cycles that America had. These are the gilded age, the progressive era, the roaring twenties, the great depression, the age of deregulation and reagonomics, the period of globalization, and the great depress

The Glass Castle Essay Example for Free

The Glass Castle Essay The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is an extremely shocking novel in that even it weren’t true the events in the story would still be shocking, but the fact that it is true makes it that much more disturbing. In the book Jeannette is on more than one occasion, a victim of sexual abuse. Although there is one event in particular that I found exceptionally troubling. And that is when Jeannette and her family are in their upper class house in Phoenix and innocently leave their doors and windows open. One night, random perverts sneak into their home and sexually assault the children. And it wouldn’t be so bad if Jeannette didn’t play it off as though it were nothing. She almost makes it seem like barely mentioning when she says that â€Å" I was awakened by someone running his hands over my private parts†(103). And the man who assaulted her had a book â€Å"with pictures of boys and girls wearing only underpants†(103). From the eyes of someone like I, who can make no connection with perverts other than the horrific news stories of rape and murder I occasionally hear about, this event is tremendously disturbing. When I read this part of the book I thought she was in mortal danger. I’ve never actually heard of someone sexually assaulting a child without it involving some sort of murder or kidnapping. It really goes to show she is familiar with perverts and wrongfully – or rightfully I’m not really sure – does not feel an extreme panic type of danger when dealing with pedophiles. This event teaches Jeannette what is really worth worrying about. After Rex and Jeannette go out she realizes this is like hunting Demon, â€Å" except the enemy was real and dangerous instead being the product of a kid’s overactive imagination. (103)† And it goes to show that a big reason why Jeannette is so mature and matures so quickly is due to the fact of her constant experience of traumatizing events and moments of extreme danger.

3-D Magnetic Data Inversion with Physical Bound

3-D Magnetic Data Inversion with Physical Bound A new method Mohammad Rezaie1*, Sahar Moazam2 1 PhD in mineral exploration, Faculty of Mining, Petroleum and Geophysics, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood, Iran. 2 MSc in mineral exploration, Faculty of Mining, Petroleum and Geophysics, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood, Iran. Abstract Inversion of magnetic data is an important step in the interpretation of practical data. Smooth inversion is a common technique for inversion of magnetic data. Physical bound constraints can improve the solution of the magnetic inverse problem. However, how to introduce the bound constraint into the inversion procedure is important. Imposing bound constraints makes magnetic data inversion a non-linear inverse problem. In this study, a new algorithm for 3D inversion of magnetic data is developed which use an efficient penalization function for imposing bound constraints and Gauss Newton method to achieve the solution. An adaptive regularization method is used for choosing regularization parameter in this inversion approach. The inversion results of synthetic data show that the new method can produce models which adequately match with real location and shape of synthetic bodies. The test carried out on the field data from Mt. Milligan Cu-Au porphyry deposit shows that the new inversion approach could produce the magnetic susceptibility models consistent with the true structures. Keywords: Magnetic data, Inversion, physical bound, Gauss Newton, Regularization. 1. Introduction Magnetic surveys can provide useful information about the Earths interior. Magnetic measurements are usually used to delineate magnetic anomalous bodies and indicate their locations and depths. One of the most important topics in the quantitative interpretation of potential field data is the inversion of practical data (Rezaie et al. 2015). Inversion can be defined as a mathematical procedure that constructs a subsurface property (susceptibility) model using measured (magnetic) data by incorporating a priori information as available. The recovered models must predict the measured data adequately (Foks et al. 2014). 3D inversion of potential field data such as magnetic data is generally difficult (Jin et al. 2013). The main difficulty is the non-uniqueness of the solution in magnetic inverse problem. There are infinite equivalent source distributions that produce the same measured magnetic data set (Blakely 1996). The standard approach to overcome this issue is applying a priori infor mation. Several approaches have been introduced for incorporating priori information into the inversion process (Last and Kubik 1983; Barbosa and Silva 1994; Li and Oldenburg 1996, 1998, 2003; Pilkington 1997, 2008; Portniaguine and Zhdanov 1999; Farquharson 2008; Lelievre et al. 2009; Zhang et al. 2015). Last and Kubik (1983) developed the compact inversion method which produce compact and structurally simple model. Guillen and Menichetti (1984) minimize the moment of inertia of the body with respect to the center of the body or along single axis passing through it. Barbosa and Silva (1994) generalize the moment of inertia functional to impose compactness along several axes. Li and Oldenburg (1996, 1998) developed a model objective function that produce smooth models. This method can locate anomaly sources accurately nevertheless, the values of the recovered model are smaller than the true values due to the smoothness effect of the objective function. Portniaguine and Zhdanov (1999) developed a focusing inversion method based on compact inversion method for potential field data. Barbosa and Silva (2006) developed an interactive method for inverting magnetic data with interfering anomalies produced by multiple, complex, and closely separated geologic sources. Farquharson (2008) used L 1 measure of Li and Oldenburgs model objective function to recover dipping structures and models which have angled interfaces.   Lelievre et al. (2009) used Li and Oldenburgs (1996, 1998) model objective function and developed advanced constrained inversion by geological information. Zhang et al. (2015) improved Li and Oldenburgs method by applying Lagrangian multipliers in the model objective function to add geological constraints. In the 3D inversion of potential field data, particular bounds of the physical property may be known. This physical bound constraint can improve the solution and make it more feasible (Rezaie et al. 2017a). Consequently, how to introduce the bound constraint into the inversion procedure becomes an important issue. Portniaguine and Zhdanov (1999, 2002) used a penalization algorithm to impose bound constraint in focusing inversion of potential field data. Li and Oldenburg (2003) chose a logarithmic barrier method incorporating bound constraints on the re covered smooth model. Zhang et al. (2015) imposed bound constraint in smooth inversion of potential field data via a method using Lagrangian multipliers. However, imposing bound constraint makes magnetic data inversion a non-linear inverse problem. Therefore, the logarithmic barrier and Lagrangian multipliers methods increase computation time. Another issue in solving non-linear inverse problem is choosing regularization parameter that can increase computation time (Farquharson and Oldenburg, 2004). In this study, we develop a new 3D magnetic data inversion method based on the Gauss- Newton (GN) algorithm that can incorporate bound constraints on the recovered model using penalization algorithm introduced by Portniaguine and Zhdanov (1999, 2002). Also, we will use an adaptive regularization method for regularization parameter selection in our magnetic data inversion method. Finally, the capabilities of the proposed method are illustrated by its application to the inversion of a synthetic data set and to the 3D inversion of magnetic data from the Mt. Milligan deposit at British Columbia, Canada. 2. Methodology 2.1. Forward model for 3D magnetic anomalies Susceptibility distribution in the sub-surface () produce magnetic field (T) at the surface. The purpose of forward modeling is to compute this magnetic field. The total component of the magnetic field is given by (Blakely 1995): (1) where (Henry.meter-1), R denotes the volume occupied by causative body. is distance and is magnetization vector which can be obtained as a vector sum: (2) where is earths magnetic field and is remanent magnetization. If we ignore remanent component, the magnetization will be in the direction of the earths field and can be obtained simply as: (3) To compute total component of the magnetic field in Eq. (1), it is required to discretize the subsurface under the survey area into rectangular prisms of known sizes and positions with constant susceptibilities. The formulation for computation of magnetic response for each rectangular prism was presented by Bhattacharyya (1964) and later simplified into a form that is more suitable for fast computer implementation (Rao and Babu 1991). We use the formulation developed by Rao and Babu (1991) to compute magnetic response resulting from individual prisms. If the observed magnetic anomalies are caused by M subsurface prisms, the magnetic field at the field point i is given by: (4) where N is the number of observation point. The forward modeling of magnetic data using Eq. (1) and Eq. (4) can be written as following matrix equation: (5) Here, G is forward operator matrix that maps the physical parameters space into the data space. denotes the vector of unknown model parameters and is data vector that is given by measurement data. There are some error in measurement data because of noise that is usually assumed to be uncorrelated and have Gaussian distribution (Rezaie et al. 2017b), So (6) where, is vector of observed data and is vector of data error. The main purpose of the magnetic inverse problem is to find a geologically plausible susceptibility model ()based on G and some measured data () at the noise level. 2.2. Inversion method In the typical minimum-structure inversion procedure, subsurface of the survey area is discretized into rectangular prisms (cells) of known sizes and positions with the values of the physical property (e.g. susceptibility) in the cells that are called the model parameters to be estimated in the inversion (Rezaie et al. 2015). The solution can be obtained by minimization of an objective function, which is a combination of a measure of misfit between observation and predicted data and a measure of complexity of the model subject to a physical bound constraint (Li and Oldenburg 1996): (7) where is a regularization parameter. L is lower susceptibility bound, U is the upper susceptibility bound and the misfit functional is defined as (8) Here, is data weighting matrix given by . Where,stands for the standard deviation of the noise in the ith datum, and is a stabilizing functional (stabilizer) which measure minimum norm of model structure (Li and Oldenburg 1996, 1998, 2003): (9) where are coefficients that affect the relative importance of derivative components in different directions. resembles first-order finite-difference matrices in x, y and z directions. We have to use an additional depth weighting matrix for compensating lack of the data sensitivity to the deeper model parameters (Zhdanov 2015): (10) Now, Eq. (9) can be reformulated to apply the depth weighting matrix to the objective function. (11) where is the cumulative first-order finite-difference matrix. Eq. (7) is reformulated using matrix notation to incorporate depth weighting easily: (12) where and . Eq. (12) is transformed into a space of weighted model parameters by replacing the variables and (Rezaie et al. 2017a): (13) The solution of Eq. (13) is obtained according to the regularization theory similar to the classical minimum norm optimization problem (Tikhonov et al. 1977). The solution of the magnetic inverse problem is obtained by minimizing this equation using the GN method. The upper (U) and lower (L) susceptibility bounds can be imposed during the inversion process to recover more feasible model. If an achieved susceptibility value falls outside the bounds, the value at that cell is projected back to the nearest upper or lower susceptibility bound (Portniaguine and Zhdanov 1999). To solve Eq. (13) with GN method, assume the obtained solution denoted by at the (n − 1)th iteration, and the predicted data corresponding to this model are .Then at the nth iteration, a model perturbation can be achieved by solving following equation so that the inverted model can be updated by (Aster et al. 2013): (14) where is the regularization parameter in nth iteration. Then the solution of the inverse problem in Eq. (7), is given by (15) In order to recover a more feasible model of the subsurface, upper (U) and lower (L) physical bounds of susceptibility are imposed in each iteration to force. If a given susceptibility value falls outside the bounds, the susceptibility value of that cell is projected back to the nearest physical bound value. The solution to Eq. (14) is also equivalent to the least-squares solution of (16) The least-squares solution of the Eq. (16) is obtained by a fast iterative method such as Lanczos Bidiagonalization (LB) (Pagie and Saunders 1982) at each GN iteration. therefore, the proposed algorithm would be suitable for large scale problems (Rezaie et al. 2017a,b). The GN iterations stop when the RMS misfit reaches an acceptable level or the model corrections become small enough (Pilkington 2008). We have used an adaptive method for choosing regularization parameter similar to which was proposed by Farquharson (2008) which is a fast and efficient algorithm for choosing regularization parameter. The regularization parameter is started at 100 () which is a relatively large value. If an inversion is performed with the regularization parameter fixed at this value, a model would be produced that had a small amount of structure and predicted data under fit the observations. At each iteration, the regularization parameter is damped to give a slow but steady progression of models with increasing structure and decreasing data misfits: (17) where    based on empirical experiments. 3. Synthetic test We apply our algorithm to a synthetic test to evaluate the reliability of the introduced method. The synthetic model consists of two different blocks with dimension 200 m 200 m 200 m which are embedded beneath the surface so that susceptibility of uniform background is zero. The Susceptibility of each block is 0.06 (SI). Perspective view of the true model is displayed in Fig. (1a). Fig. 1 perspective view of the synthetic model with 2 blocks (a). Magnetic anomaly produced by the synthetic model with 5 % Gaussian noise of the accurate datum magnitude. Depth to the top of the shallower block (block (1)) is 50 m and depth to the top of the deeper block (block (2)) is 100 m. The total-field anomaly data have been generated above the surface assuming an inducing field with inclination (I) of 75, declination (D) of 25 and a strength of 50000 nT. The data generated over a grid of 1000 m 1000 m with sample spacing of 25 m. There are 1600 data and 5 % Gaussian noise of the accurate datum magnitude has been added (Fig. 1b). The subsurface is divided into 40 40 20 = 32000 rectangular prisms with the same size of 25 m for inversion. The inverse problem has been solved using the proposed method that is described in the preceding section (). The solution obtained after 5 iterations with RMS of 0.05. Fig. 2 shows a plan section and a cross section through the recovered model from proposed inversion method. The result indicates acceptable smooth reconstruction of the synthetic multisource blocks at different depth levels below the surface. The recovered bodies in the model are smooth and adequately matched with real location of synthetic bodies. Fig. 2 Plan sections through the recovered susceptibility model obtained from the 3D inversion of magnetic data at depth= -125 m (a). A cross-sectional slice of the susceptibility model at Northing= 500 m (b). The borders indicate the true position of each body. 4. Inversion of field data Mt. Milligan is a Cu-Au porphyry deposit situated in central British Columbia. Geological information obtained from a major drilling program show the host rocks of the deposit are Mesozoic volcanic and sedimentary rocks and contain intrusive monzonitic rocks that have accessory magnetite. There is an intensive hydrothermal alteration primarily in the region near the boundaries of the monzonite stock. The monzonite body is known as the MBX stock (Oldenburg et al. 1997). The copper and gold are concentrated in the potassic alteration zone, which is mainly around the contact of the monzonite intrusions (MBX) and may extend outward and into fractured volcanic rocks. However, magnetite is one of the strong indicators of the potassic alteration. In this region, magnetic data are acquired at 12.5 m spacing along lines in the east direction that spaced 50 m apart (Li and Oldenburg 1996). We use the data at 25 m spacing which yields 1920 data points. The reduced magnetic anomaly map is shown in Fig. (3). Fig. 3 The magnetic anomaly map of Mt. Milligan. The data are on 25 m 25 m grid. The direction of the inducing field is I= 75 and D= 25.73 with a strength of 58193 nT. It is assumed that each datum have an error whose standard deviation is equal to 5 percent of its magnitude (Li and Oldenburg 2003). To invert these data, the subsurface of the area is discretized into 48 40 18 = 34560 cells each of size 25 m. The positivity constraint was imposed which means lower (L) physical bounds of susceptibility are set to 0 SI. The solution is obtained after 112 iteration with RMS error of 0.05 which is about the predicted noise of the data. The recovered model is shown in Fig. (4) as one plan-section and one cross-section. The true edge of MBX stock and mineral assemblage which were derived from the drilling results overlaid on the cross-section. Fig. 4 The recovered susceptibility model shown in a plan-section at the depth of -80 m (a). A cross-section at the northing of 600 m overlaid by true boundary of monzonite body (MBX) with black line and mineral deposit with red shaded polygon (b). The results indicate that the anomalous body of magnetic susceptibility highs are mostly associated with the monzonite intrusion. There is a moderate anomalous body at the center of cross-section which is probably caused by magnetite content of potassic alteration. This area coincides with mineral deposit. Thus, the obtained solution is in a good agreement with true geologic boundaries of Mt. Milligan deposit. 5. Conclusions We have developed a new algorithm for inversion of magnetic data using Gauss Newton method. In each GN iteration LB method is used for solving least- square problem. Therefore, the proposed algorithm is efficient for large scale problems. We used an adaptive regularization method for choosing regularization parameter in each iteration which is a fast and efficient method for choosing regularization parameter. In the new algorithm, the physical bound constraint can be imposed during the inversion process via penalization function which does not need any transformation. Therefore, this method of imposing bound constraint is more efficient. The obtained results show the new developed 3D inversion method is able to produce a smooth solution which define the shape and extent of synthetic bodies adequately. Furthermore, the application of this inversion algorithm for a field magnetic data from Mt. Milligan deposit produced a model that is consistent with the available geological information. Compression methods such as wavelet compression which can compress the kernel matrix and using parallel programing that decrease the required memory and computation time will be subject of future works for large scale problems.

The cinema of shane meadows

The cinema of shane meadows Over the last ten years Shane Meadows has helped to create a realistic portrayal of Working classed Britain. Director of films such as; Twenty four seven, A Room for Romeo Brass, Dead mans Shoes and This is England, Shane Meadows has helped to bring and to create social realist films for a new generation. His films stand side by side with more mainstream titles such as Brassed off, The Full Monty and Billy Elliot, each helping to bring the working classes and the social issues which they have faced to the forefront of National British cinema. What this essay intends to do is to explore Shane Meadows work as a director of British films, looking directly at how the past reflects the aesthetics and conventions within his films, how his cinema embodies the spirit of working classed identity and the social issues that are touched upon within his work and also why Meadows has become a popular film maker in contemporary Britain. The essay will look at three of Meadows films in particular; TwentyFourSeven, A Room for Romeo Brass and This is England, and will analyse the relationship that each film has with one another and why he has constructed an autobiographical take upon each of these films. Shane Meadows born in 1972 in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, grew up within a working classed community. Meadows teenaged years were in a time which saw great political change for many people in the 1980s, with the working classes seeing only negative outcome to a new British government. Industrial areas, most notably within the North of England, saw the threat of unemployment around every corner and the very essence of working classed life was destroyed by Thatchers government, in her quest for a post industrial, classless society. Meadows experiences as a youth and the political and social changes that took place within the 1980s have been established throughout Meadows works. I think my 1980s is a richer time to draw on than any other.† Meadows has said when questioned on the reasons why his own childhood experiences are prominently featured in many of his films. As a British Realist film maker, Shane Meadows has distinctly borrowed from recognisable techniques and traditions from movements of the past. His notable influences are in the New wave cinema of film makers such as Karl Reisz, Lindsay Anderson and Tony Richardson from the 1960s and Mike Leigh and Ken Loach who have contributed to socio-realist cinema throughout the 1980s up until present day. What this has meant for Meadows is that his films are able to create a recognisable identity for a nation that people can be able to associate with. By creating a bond to the cinema of New wave and Realist cinema, Meadows is able to critique our nation through the use of a popular and recognisable aesthetic which is associated with many British dramas. The British New Wave cinema was the first step into creating a realist aesthetic in British narrative films. Through the inspiration of Documentary and the Italian neo-realist films that had come before, its film makers such as Karl Reisz and Lindsay Anderson were able to create a cinema which focused upon the intent of bringing social issues to the screen through realistic interpretations. Before they contributed to narrative cinema, Anderson and Reisz focused their talents upon Documentary, in which they created a movement, known at the time as the Free Cinema movement. Their approach was opposed to the traditional expository mode which British documentary film maker John Grierson produced within his production company; GPO pictures. Griersons documentaries sought to tackle the social problems of the working class misrepresented in British cinema, by siding with them. The voice of god narration and selective viewpoint was avoided within the Free Cinema movement, providing a poetic approach that stripped their documentaries of voice-overs and the right wing political stand point of the Grierson styled documentary, became left wing, criticising the British political system by focusing on the real working class, although, from a distance. I want to make people ordinary people, not just top people feel their dignity and their importance.† Lindsay Anderson said of his commitment to presenting the working class within his works. Although Griersons approach was highly criticised by the filmmakers of the free cinema movement, it was from Grierson himself who said that documentary was The Creative treatment of actuality.† This broadly used term could simply be interpreted as the way the film maker is able to create a display of artistic elements, from the construction of real people with real problems in real settings. Implicit in the Free cinema formulation were two related conceptions of freedom: on the one hand, a freedom from commercial constraint and, on the other, a freedom to give vent to a personal or unusual, point of view of vision.† The importance of the realist aesthetic within the Free cinema documentaries and the New wave narrative film was to make it clear that the artist was at the centre of the work. This did not necessarily mean that he was involved within the film itself, but the style of the film, ideologies and messages were that the film maker was trying to get across. The other importance was the ability to create the feeling of something new, to transform the real from Meer observation but to create a poetry which was able to work upon more than one level, and it was through the representation of a group of outsiders (the working class) that the film makers were able to do this. Films such as The Loneliness of the Long distance runner, A taste of Honey, A Sporting Life and Saturday Night, Sunday Morning, shifted the emphasis from middle class idealistic families, to a focus upon the youth living and working within industrial cities, situated in the Northern areas of England. The late 1950s/early 1960s became the first time since the Second World War that workers started to benefit from decent salaries and some, an almost disposable income. The youth in particular were able to separate themselves from their work lives and the authority figures that held a grasp over them, enabling them to spend their wages on the consummation of the latest in fashionable products. This is also true of New Wave films, which focused less on the importance of work within the lives of the characters but on their leisurely activities. The decline in the working class traditions and the rise of the working classed youth became notable. They were becoming defined not by what they produce but of what they consume and this was an indicator of the times. When looking at Saturday night Sunday morning by Karl Reisz, the main protagonist, Arthur Seaton (Albert Finney) may work within the confines of a factory, but when his working is shown, it is briefly and only to underline the important images or to support the leisurely aspect of his life. E.G. when he is finishing work. By wasting his money upon a sex, drugs and almost rock and roll lifestyle he is separating himself from the authority figures that keep him in his place during his working hours. Its not a unity of a working class that can be seen within this film or many of the New wave films of the 1960s, it is very much about issues of one person in particular, in the case of Saturday night, Sunday Morning, it is Arthur. Writer John Hill stated that Despite the ostensive commitment to represent the working class, the British New Wave, through their adoption of conventional narrativity and realism, tend to have the opposing effect, that is, the creation of an accentuated individualism.† The emphasis on the individual in this working class aesthetic of the New wave films may come down to the absence of work as a dominant presence. Instead it seems that the importance of working class life, as a youth, is separating themselves from the authority figures and dominant forces of work and instead making leisure and the way in which the characters separate themselves from work in their free time. In Meadows work, there is a felt presence of the New wave films throughout his work The focus upon just one main protagonist and their personal struggle rather than the united struggle of the working class is that it is extremely difficult to represent political problems within narrative film, without a need to create a bond to the personal effects that the political has upon the working class within realist cinema. But what exactly did the filmmakers do to try and create a believable and purposeful reality, and at once avoid the idealistic and theatrical approach that the Traditional Hollywood films employed? The main focus of reality in these New Wave films is by Meadows first feature film TwentyFourSeven was released in 1997. A resurgence in British Realism lead to a shift in focus for many of the films released within the 1990s. Whereas the films of the New Wave in the 60s, focused upon the employed youths personal struggle with working classed life and the hedonistic, anti-establishment attitude they portrayed in their leisurely pursuits and the 80s saw reactions against the Thatchers governments destruction of traditional working classed values and perceptions, the 90s took upon a different perspective, with Britain very much a post industrial nation, class now determined not what they made and who they were as a unified work force, but instead was now determined by what they consumed. This perspective now shifted upon the youth of today, from pre pubescent Children to teenagers growing up on rough, poverty stricken council estates. Unemployment has left the youth in the same position and status. Samantha Lay stated that Dramas focus more tightly on family relationships and partnerships. Poverty, unemployment and social exclusion are not the driving forces of their narratives, but are merely signalled as contributory factors to family strife, so that it is the working class family that has failed, not the state or capitalist society.† British Realist films focus upon the effect that politics have had upon the class system, specifically the working class whos inevitable decline since the 1950s has lead to an alienation of masculine identity and the emphasis as class as a unification. Meadows films are about the alienation of family life and the journey of finding a place to really belong. The perspective of a child or in the case of Twenty Four Seven; Young Adults, gives Meadow a chance to see the Working Class from a different perspective. What Meadows films do which many mainstream British films do not do is to question the stereotypical view of the average British person, by keeping to a low budget, Meadows keeps the focus upon the identities within his own regional upbringing. Unemployment plays a big role within the films of the British realist aesthetic that were made within the 1980s up until our contemporary time. Children and the youth are not affected in the same in which the adults are but their perspective is of the upmost importance. The period aspect to this is England, Twenty Four Seven and A Room for Romeo Brass gives you an aspect of political change. Within the 90s and the 2000s working class focused films created a way of escaping from the reality of the situation. Characters were able to find success from the economic situations that have dragged them down, most notably through entertainment. This can be seen within films such as Billy Elliot, Brassed off, The Full Monty and to an extent Trainspotting. Each of these films proved popular to the British movie going audience and tried showing how the working class could develop and escape from the working class life that had been dragging them down. Meadows approach, although not entirely pessimistic is about the positive which comes out of the negative situations, or the defeat of people. Unstable protagonists at the start of each three films, struggle with the uneven situations that their parents are entangled within, often dragging the children down with them. It is this alienation from family life which causes distress and change from these characters. Their questionable actions often ending in violence leads to the chance meetings in which potential father figures, genuinely interested in the emotional and physical state of the these characters help the characters from emotional unrest. In This is England, Shauns violent playground fight is caused from the mention of his Dads death. His walk home from school leads to the meeting of a Skinhead gang, most notably Woody who notes Shauns unhappy presence. His happy go lucky attitude and genuine care for Shaun makes him feel wanted in a place where hes alienated not only from family life but from being part of a sub culture which will accept him for who he is, which is evident from the mocking attitude of some of Woodys friends who are not as caring as Woodys father attitude to the situation is. In A Room for Romeo Brass, the fight between Romeo and the two boys leads to the rescue from Morell who is alerted from nearby. Again, the importance of chance turns a violent hateful act, into one with positive outcomes, in which children/teenagers are brought into the world of the adult. The Subculture is what draws the children into an adults world. Leisure drives them from the woes of family life and from the authority figures which are bringing them down. The masculine father figures within Meadows films help to refocus the output of the violence of the youth that they have taken under their wing. The troubled teenagers caught in violent episodes, find new ways in which to focus their negative energies. This frustration for life in post industrial estates, in which domestic problems of parents causes great angst often leads to violence. By refocusing these ill thoughts and actions through healthy attitudes, the Father figure is able to guide the youth away from everything that is holding them back. Woodys optimistic and peaceful father figure for fatherless tearaway Shaun in This is England, enables his alienation from a social perspective to be reinstated into a group in which he belongs. The anger and frustration of these Skinhead youths does not lead to the targeting of people, but of decrepit, rundown buildings on council estates.