Saturday, October 12, 2019
Crime and Punishment Summary Essay -- essays research papers
One July day in St. Petersburg, a poor young man slips out of his apartment and goes out. He is Rodion Romanych Raskolnikov, a former student, and he is preoccupied with something. He arrives at the apartment of Alyona Ivanovna, a pawnbroker, where he is attempting a trial of the unknown deed obsessing him. He has pawned something to this woman a month before, and now pawns an old watch for much less than he had hoped to get. As the woman gets her money, he watches and listens very carefully, storing up details in his memory. He leaves after vaguely mentioning that he may come back soon with another pledge. Tormented, he wanders down the street, mentally at war with himself. He happens upon a tavern, where he stops to eat and drink something, and feels better after doing so. There, he meets Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov, a retired official and a drunkard. Marmeladov pours out his life story to Raskolnikov, telling about his consumptive wife Katerina Ivanovna, his three small children, and his oldest daughter Sofya (Sonya), who has had to prostitute herself to earn money for the family. Marmeladov himself had recently acquired a position, but almost immediately lost it through his alcoholism. He has been away from home for five days, having stolen his salary money and spent it all on drink. Marmeladov asks Raskolnikov to take him home. Rodion does so, and witnesses how Katerina Ivanovna falls on her husband and drags him about by his hair. She kicks Raskolnikov out, assuming him to be a drinking partner of her husband's. As he leaves, he places a handful of change on their windowsill unnoticed. Outside, he regrets this action, but knows he cannot go back to get the money. The next day, he awakens feeling unrested. Nastasya, the landlady's servant, comes in with some tea for him, as well as leftovers from the previous day's meal (since he is behind on his rent, the landlady has stopped sending his dinner up to him). She also tells him that he has received a letter. Agitated, he sends her to get it, and orders her out of the room so he can read it. The letter is from his mother, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and mostly concerns his sister Avdotya Romanovna, or Dunya. Dunya had been working as a governess in the house of the Svidrigailov family, but the husband's unfortunate attraction to her led the wife to kick Dunya out on the assumption that the girl had ini... ...ainder of the day wandering about and settling his affairs, and shoots himself the next morning. Later that day, Rodya goes to see his mother for the last time before turning himself in. He then hurries home, where he finds Dunya waiting for him. He takes leave of her and goes to Sonya. She gives him a cross. He rushes out rudely, not even saying goodbye to her, impatient to get it over with, even though he can't understand why he should go, because he still does not see his act as a crime. He goes to the station, with Sonya following him. He finds out that Svidrigailov is dead, and, stunned, leaves without confessing; but Sonya is waiting for him, and he goes back upstairs and confesses. Rodya is exiled to Siberia, where Sonya follows him. Dunya marries Razumikhin. Pulcheria Alexandrovna dies. Sonya writes to the Razumikhins about Rodya. He is unsociable and hated by his fellow prisoners. He falls ill. At the end of his illness, Sonya herself is ill, and he misses her. When she recovers, she goes to him, and he at last repents truly, falling at her feet and weeping. Having finally recognized his sin, he is resurrectedâ⬠¹able to love Sonya and look forward to his life with her.
Friday, October 11, 2019
Karnataka Mining Scam Essay
Karnataka is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as the State of Mysore, it was renamed Karnataka in 1973. Bangalore is the capital city of the state and is at the forefront of the rapid economic and technological development that India is experiencing. Karnataka, like other Indian states, has a parliamentary system of government with two democratically elected houses, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council. Politics in Karnataka Politics in Karnataka has been dominated by three political parties, the Indian National Congress, the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Bharatiya Janata Party. Politicians from Karnataka have played prominent roles in federal government of India; three cabinet levels ministers in the current United Progressive Alliance government are from Karnataka. Notable among these is Former Chief Minister and Honorable Union Minister for Law, Justice and Company Affairs, Veerappa Moily. Illegal Mining Illegal mining in India is widespread in various ore rich states of India, and has generated controversy, which spans encroachment of forest areas, underpayment of government royalties, conflict with tribals regarding land rights. The spill-over of the effects of illegal mining into problems such as Naxalism and the distortion of Indian democracy by mixed political and mining interests, has gained international attention. Illegal Iron Ore Mining in Karnatakaà The fast growing demand for iron ore accompanied by the sky-high profits involved started the discovery and the subsequent exploitation of iron ore in the Bellary region of Karnataka. Karnataka has an economy that is not specific to one particular natural resource. However, this discovery led to iron ore contributing to the single largest income of the state. In this industry, however, are two politicians who have monopolized the profits ââ¬â the infamous Reddy brothers ââ¬â Janardhana Reddy, and Karunakara Reddy. Reports and investigations that have been carried out prior to the assent of Mr.à Santosh Hegde as the Lokayukta chief, has proved the existence of illegal mining in the state, and the involvement of the Reddy brothers in the same. However, the reports have been suppressed, and subsequently ââ¬Å"lostâ⬠in order to cover up a major scandal. Now, the reality has been unearthed and shamelessly barred open for the country to see, causing a scam of reasonably huge magnitude. The Issue The current ruling political party in Karnataka, the BJP, underwent quite a turn of events in the past few months. With the resignation of Lokayukta justice Santosh Hedge, the illegal mining scam took a forefront. The power of Bellaryââ¬â¢s mining lobby in Karnatakaââ¬â¢s politics in recent years has never been questioned. However, their exercise of it has become more blatant and overt under the BJP government, which has the powerful mining lords, the Reddy brothers, as its cabinet ministers. While the opposition has made sporadic efforts to bring the mining issue to the forefront of the political debate, it took the resignation of the hugely popular Lokayukta, Justice N Santosh Hegde, to catalyze the opposition and take the fight, literally, to the BJP government. It was the Lokayuktaââ¬â¢s decision to protect an honest officer who had unearthed a huge export scam ââ¬â running into thousands of crores ââ¬â in Karwar involving illegal mining that led the former to resign. BJP chief Nitin Gadkari, on a trip to the city to persuade Justice Hegde to withdraw his resignation, went on record to say that illegal mining will be stopped. This situation put the CM Yeddurappa in a difficult position and he admitted publicly about the illegal mining actually being a reality. Yeddyurappa, however was not in a position to take adequate steps as the Reddy brothers, played an important role in the Karnataka governments financial and majority related issues. Growing Opposition pressure on the Karnataka government to act against the Reddy brothers and their alleged illegal mining in Bellary left the BJP divided. The party looked for a consensus on how to handle the situation. Two groups emerged ââ¬â one backing Karnataka Chief Minister Y. S. Yeddyurappa and the other the Reddy brothers. Among the supporters of the Reddys were BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj and Ananth Kumar. Their argument was that the Reddys enjoy considerable support in their areas and any action against them would harm the party. But BJP leaders Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and even L. K. Advani refused to buy the argument. They put their weight behind Yeddyurappa. On July 9, the House was adjourned amidst pandemonium after the Congress and JD-S members tried to raise the issue but were allegedly threatened by Reddy brothers ââ¬â Janardhana Reddy, Karunakara Reddy ââ¬â and Somashekhara Reddy along with two other MLAs, Suresh Babu and B Nagendra. The Congress alleged that the Reddys also tried to assault its MLAs. On July 12, the Opposition MLAs arrived in the Assembly wearing mining helmets. Speaker K Bopaiah objected to it. After that, the Congress and JD(S) MLAs came and sat in the Well. The opposition in the form of the congress government took steps to make full use of the BJPs weakness in the state as it lashed at the ruling government with examples of its past corrupt practices. As on July 20th, Karnataka CM, gave a clean chit to the brothers and said that the case has to be looked into. He said he had no apprehensions about removing them from the cabinet; however, first they have to be proven guilty by law. A day after the Karnataka government ordered a probe by his institution into illegal export of minerals, Lokayukta Santosh Hegde said he would seek information from the Centre and Andhra Pradesh on the quantum of iron ore exported illegally through various ports. The Yeddyurappa government referred illegal export of minerals, including iron ore, from 2000 till date to Lokayukta probe, after the opposition stepped up their campaign and demanded a CBI probe into the issue. This snowballed into a four-day session in the parliament just to argue on this ambiguity which was criticized by Mr. Santosh Hegde recently as ââ¬Å"mockery of democracyâ⬠referring to the expenses entailed for each day in running such a parliament. The most recent development on this is that the state government has rejected the opposition demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the mining scam in the state. N Santosh Hegde on 28th August stated that the services of the CBI could be required in the later stages of investigations. The Congress had taken out a Bellary Chalo march seeking a CBI probe into illegal mining scam which went unnoticed. Opposition members stayed in the Assembly overnight, sleeping in the lobby, with no let-up in their demand for a CBI enquiry into what Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah termed a ââ¬Å"Rs 20,000 crore scamâ⬠. The opposition accused the ministers-cum-mining magnets Reddy brothers ââ¬â G Janardhana Reddy and G Karunakara Reddy ââ¬âof involvement in the alleged multi-crore scam. The Karnataka government had seized huge quantities of ore illegally extracted in the state, and corruption in mining sector in Karnataka would be to tune of Rs 10,000 crore to Rs 15,000 crore. Commenting on this issue, Union Law and Justice Minister M Veerapa Moily said Mineral resources, as national properties, should not be allowed to be plundered and stringent steps had to be taken to check the illegal mining in Karnataka. Off-shoot on the issue The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) members created ruckus and demanded the dismissal of the Karnataka government over the issue of illegal mining in the state. Settling political scores with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which targeted Uttar Pradeshââ¬â¢s BSP government over the issue of farmersââ¬â¢ killings in Aligarh district last week, the BSP hit at the BJP government in Karnataka, seeking its dismissal. BSP and JD-S members demanded the dismissal of the Karnataka government for its alleged involvement in illegal mining in the state. The three Reddy brothers ââ¬â Tourism Minister Janardhan Reddy, Revenue Minister Karunakara Reddy and Somashekhara Reddy ââ¬â have allegedly encroached on forest land to conduct illegal iron ore mining operations in Karnataka say BSP leaders. Currently, the situation has toned down, and there is a lull in the Karnataka government as investigations are being carried out with vigor by the Lokayukta. It has submitted a letter recently seeking permission to approach the state governments of Goa and Andhra Pradesh to unearth the quantum of iron ore exported from ports of these two states.
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Chinaââ¬â¢s Olympic Torch Controversy
In a world where media are able to put a glaring spotlight on certain events, actions done by ordinary individuals gain greater attention from other people. The internet further amplifies the magnitude of these events because people from other countries can immediately know what is happening. This enables them to draw their own conclusions regarding the actions that were just covered. Such is the case of the controversy surrounding the on-going Olympic Torch relay. What was supposed to be a journey that could promote peace and understanding among different cultures has turned into a fiasco. Protesters have come in full force to disrupt this event. From Paris to London, the world has to come to witness several people trying to grab the Olympic Torch. The protesters targeted this event as a venue to ventilate their sentiments regarding Chinaââ¬â¢s treatment of the unrest that had erupted in Tibet last month where China sent its paramilitary forces to crackdown on the Tibetan protesters (ââ¬Å"Chinaââ¬â¢s View of the Olympic Torchâ⬠. 09 April 2008. TIME Magazine online). This has led to protest calls from various sectors especially in Western countries. Some clamor by asking China to stop its heavy handed treatment of dissenters in Tibet while others like Hillary Clinton have asked their governments to boycott the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies as a strong disapproval of Beijingââ¬â¢s standing policy with regard to Tibet. This issue can be seen as part of a long standing question in international relations (ââ¬Å"Clinton urges Bush to boycott Beijing Olympicsâ⬠. 7 April 2008. Yahoo News). The question being, should individuals from other countries be involved in another countryââ¬â¢s problems? To be able to generate an answer to this question, one must define the parameters for the terms individuals, involvement and problems. In the case of the individuals, there are two kinds that are pertinent to this discussion. These are the private citizens and the public officials. The ordinary citizens include those who try to disrupt the proceedings by attempting to wrest the Olympic torch and by displaying the Tibetan flag are examples of what are known as private citizens. Public officials refer to politicians in other countries that are expressing their dissent over the policies of other countries. Involvement is defined here as the actions done by the identified individuals. This may include cajoling, beseeching or pressuring officials through such acts disrupting the events or by issuing officials statements condemning the policies of the country in question. Problems, due to space constraints and timeliness, would be limited to issues on human rights. This issue is one of the most important points of contention between Western countries especially the United States and other nations such as China and Russia in recent years. This paper argues that involvement in issues such as human rights should be limited to the actions done by private citizens and that public officials should refrain from issuing official statements that criticizes the policies of other governmentââ¬â¢s with regard to human rights. Why is this so? If one is to look at the recent track record of the US government regarding the issue of human rights, one would find sufficient ammunition to fire back to the US side of the fence. The well-documented infamous cases of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo prison camps highlight the abuses that are also taking place within the backyard of the United States. Theses cases have led some officials from both China and Russia to criticize the alleged double standards being practiced by the United States in its dealings with other countries. China and Russia often challenge the US claims made through official State Department reports regarding their respective human rights record (Cody A14). In a nutshell, they argued that before the US issues such official statements it should first see to it that its own house is in order. One could also consider the lack of efficacy of these official calls on these countries to reform. It had only infuriated them and their existing policies on human rights have not changed despite these repeated calls. Also, these official statements have contributed to making negotiations in other important areas such as security and trade even more difficult at best and highly contentious at worst. Now if one is to engage in involvement, one can argue that it would be best left in the hands of private citizens. This is warranted for several reasons. In an era where there have been numerous cases of human rights of abuses, there is a recognizable need to highlight this particular issue. The private citizens at this point are in the best position to do it for two reasons. One is that they are not burdened by the labels of hypocrisy and lacking in moral authority that have been attached to the US government in the aftermath of its prison camps fiasco. When an individual like Steven Spielberg protests by declaring himself unavailable to be a technical consultant for the Beijing Games he is not labeled as hypocrite and his message is delivered to the public. Two, private citizens who exhibit involvement; especially in the form of very dramatic forms of protests can get their much desired media mileage. They consequently derive public sympathy for their respective causes as well. One could cite the case of Olympic medalist Sebastian Coe who was manhandled by the paramilitary forces assigned by Beijing to protect the Olympic torch(ââ¬Å"Chinaââ¬â¢s View of the Olympic Torchâ⬠. April 2008. TIME Magazine online). The incident involving him generated substantial media attention on the protest against the Chinese governmentââ¬â¢s action on Tibet while not causing any direct problems among government officials. The protests done by ordinary citizens if carried by major news outfits can generate support from around the world wit hout exactly obliging their governments to issue officials statements that can adversely affect immediate and long-term relationships with countries whose policies are being questioned.
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Plato, Descartes and the Matrix Essay
After obtaining knowledge from the Matrix, Platoââ¬â¢s Allegory of the Cave or The Republic and the first Mediation from Descartes, I see that there are a few likenesses and contrasts. I would need to say that The Matrix and Platoââ¬â¢s hole purposeful tale were more comparable because the individuals included in both stories, they existed in this present reality where they were being cheated about what the fact of the matter was. In the Matrix, once Neo saw this present reality and that all that he thought was true was really a hallucination, is very much alike to the shadows on the dividers of the surrender that the prisoners saw in Platoââ¬â¢s Allegory of the hole. In both stories, both characters could encounter reality as well as the phony world and was given opportunity to see reality and were confounded. Nonetheless, the detainee in Platoââ¬â¢s story in the wake of picking up this new information let others in servitude know of his recently discovered learning however felt that the first truth was less demanding to with the exception to. Then again Neo in The Matrix chose he needed to realize what the right truth was. Both characters were intrigued by figure out reality however they recognized reality in an unexpected way. Plato thought it was fundamental for the affixed man in the Allegory of the Cave required to escape from the hole to look for reality. Socrates portrays a gathering of individuals who have lived anchored to the divider of a buckle the greater part of their lives, confronting a transparent divider. The individuals watch shadows anticipated on the divider by things passing before a blaze behind them and start to attribute structures to these shadows. As indicated by Socrates, the shadows are as close as the detainees get to review the reality. He then clarifies how the savant is similar to a detainee who liberated from the hollow and comes to comprehend that the shadows on the divider are not constitutive of reality whatsoever, as he can see the genuine type of reality as opposed to the minor shadows seen by the detainees. Descartes considers and rejects the likelihood that my faculties could just lead me adrift. We research situations when we have been tricked by our faculties, through the activity of those extremely same faculties. However, wouldnââ¬â¢t I be able to be envisioning now, and not understand this? This theory is hard to negate, on the off chance that you permit that aà ââ¬Å"fantasyâ⬠require not be disconnected and unreasonable. It is coherently conceivable to have an intelligible dream where, for instance, I am in Sheffield, at my machine, composition a consummately or at any rate sensibly mindful response to Ask a Philosopher, regardless of the fact that such dreams happen just seldom if whatso ever. Coherent probability is everything Descartes needs. This is what might as well be called the Matrix situation. As a general rule, while I form my answer, I am dozing in a ââ¬Å"unitâ⬠having encounters sustained specifically to my mind by a super-machine. The Matrix speculation is hard to negate. However it still isnââ¬â¢t sufficient for Descartesââ¬â¢ reasons. Since, even on this speculation, certain key convictions stay unchallenged. Specifically, the conviction that there exists a universe of material questions in space. The presence of a physical world is one of the essential suppositions of the Matrix story. That is the reason Descartes makes the additional stride of imaging a capable, non-physical sagacity fit for creating the knowledge of ââ¬Ëan universe of material protests in spaceââ¬â¢ in me, despite the fact that in all actuality no such world exists. A fiendishness evil spirit. Anyhow how ââ¬Å"wickedâ⬠is this spirit, truly? Berkeley took Descartesââ¬â¢ contention for uncertainty and stood it on its head: nothing could possibly consider confirmation of the presence of ââ¬Ëmatterââ¬â¢, on the grounds that all we ever have is ââ¬Ëexperienceââ¬â¢. All that exists, in extreme the truth, is God and ââ¬Ëlimited soulsââ¬â¢ similar to us who have encounters that God delivers in us. ââ¬â When you gaze out at the world you are taking a gander at within Godââ¬â¢s thoughts. Ignorance is bliss of illusion when we have security in the unknown of danger. Itââ¬â¢s when we establish the danger we want to return to the ignorance to regain the safety. The very nature of man is to need what he doesnââ¬â¢t have. All promoting was focused around that start. You have an auto; however, you donââ¬â¢t have another auto or that auto that was constantly publicized. The very nature of all creatures is ââ¬Å"Fight or Flight.â⬠When they exited the hole ââ¬â they didnââ¬â¢t have the security of the cavern. So as I studied that story, they came back to the hollow. Security is a manifestation of solace however is not acknowledged until we have lost it ââ¬â or expects that we will lose it-. The extent that obliviousness, the greater part of us does not feel we are uninformed. We are and need to be unmindful of something else we would go insane. For example, might you want to know the date and time of yourà passing? In the event that you realized that, it would cloud any of your problems. You could presumably consider nothing else, irregularly. That information would overpower you. Study the passing line convicts. Obliviousness is most happy when we donââ¬â¢t know we are incorrect yet think we recognize what we are doing ââ¬â or we think we are on the whole correct. We werenââ¬â¢t sheltered when we fail to offer particular knowledge of looming dangers, yet we feel safe when we donââ¬â¢t think about those risks. To be certain are beliefs are true to ourselves we must firs t pretend that they are not and then begin to question their truths. Descartes argued that our customary knowledge of the world canââ¬â¢t give the sort of ensured establishment on which all other information could be based. We are frequently disillusioned to discover that what we have been taught are simply biases, or that what our faculties let us know is erroneous. That ought to make us ponder about whether the various things that we think are clear may moreover be mixed up. With a specific end goal to test whether what we think we know is genuinely right, Descartes recommends that we embrace a strategy that will dodge slip by following what we know back to a firm establishment of indubitable convictions. Obviously, it is conceivable that there are no totally unshakeable truths. It is additionally conceivable that we may find that our partialities canââ¬â¢t be uprooted or that convictions we think are extreme establishments for all our different convictions are not so much extreme whatsoever. The purpose of our contemplations is to test those convictions, regardless of the possibility that we have held them for quite a while. Furthermore that assess toward oneself will take a true effort. In request to figure out if there is anything we can know with conviction, Descartes says that we first need to uncertainty all that we know. Such a radical uncertainty may not appear sensible, and Descartes positively does not imply that we truly ought to uncertainty everything. What he recommends, however, is that with a specific end goal to check whether there is some conviction that canââ¬â¢t be questioned, we ought to incidentally imagine that all that we know is faulty. This misrepresentation is what is known as a speculative uncertainty. To verify that we consider the affectation important, Descartes recommends that there may be great contentions to believe that such questioning is defended and along these lines more than just something we ought to put on a show to do. Hisà contentions fall into two classifications: those pointed against our sense encounters and our supposition that we can recognize being conscious and envisioning, and those pointed against our thinking capabilities themselves. http://philosophy.tamu.edu/~sdaniel/Notes/descar1.html
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
The oppression of Victorian women and expressing feminist sentiment, Dissertation
The oppression of Victorian women and expressing feminist sentiment, concerning hysteria, in The Awakening in terms of the gothi - Dissertation Example Victorian women faced multi-faceted oppression by society; however, this was perceived as the only appropriate mode of life for them. Any woman, who dared to defy conventional norms by indulging in an illicit relation, expressed sensual desires, and mouthed discomfort against masochistic behaviours, was socially condemned and regarded as hysterical (Austin & Boyd, 2010, p.496). Utter disregard for womanly penchants and suppression of feminist sentiments produced negative impacts on female psyche which by the end of 19th century was understood as a medical disorder by the likes of Sigmund Freud. It was due to the efforts on Freudââ¬â¢s behalf and the literary masterpieces from the late 19th century that put forth the logic that hysteria was a natural phenomenon resulting from feelings of oppression and belittling of humanly yearnings (Sulloway, 1992, p.47). Feminism which before 19th century was largely encapsulated as the freedom to give birth and enjoy motherhood, was propagated as an urge for attaining social equality, privilege for preferred sensual orientation, and independence for selecting a way of life. Gothic literature primarily focused on enlightening people about the actuality of hysteria and the dislike towards biased moral/cultural norms was voiced strongly (Toohey, 2012, p.242). It expressed feminist sentiments and described the impact of stereotypical gender roles from a femaleââ¬â¢s perspective. Kate Chopin's ââ¬Å"The Awakeningâ⬠(1899), Charlotte Perkins Gilman's ââ¬Å"The Yellow Wallpaperâ⬠(1892) and Henry James ââ¬Å"The Turn of the Screwâ⬠(1898), etc. displayed feminist sentiments concerning hysteria profoundly (Serafin & Bendixen, 2005, p.362). The Awakening, the centre of discussion here, displays a Victorian era society in Louisiana during 1899, and underlines tabooed themes of feminine biological desires and pursuance of self-identity through the protagonist Edna Pontellier. Revealing hysteria as a repercussion of pursuing self-identity in The Awakening: The Awakening is one of those few literary masterpieces that covered the theme of oppression and depression comprehensively. In this novel, forced social obligations and suppressed female emotions were shown as the cause of bringing them to the verge of insanity. It did not deal with any single aspect of oppression but provided an in-depth analysis of how feminist pursuance of self-identity and female individuality was totally crushed in a male-dominated society. Edna was not just searching for freedom to entertain her unfulfilled sensual urges that was an outcome of unhappy and excessively authoritative marital relation, but she wanted to gain freedom for self-discovery. Here it is important to pay attention to the fact the Victorian era men played a significant role in the outbreak of maddening behaviours among women. Danahay explains that in Victorian era, biased gender role distinction primarily on the biological basis was the ââ¬Å" most extreme form of segregation yet seen in an industrialised nationâ⬠(2005, p.2). Women had no particular rights upon their body or mind whatsoever, hence; it was paramount that there was no acceptance for ââ¬Å"permissible sexual activities,â⬠and ââ¬Å"range of role choicesââ¬
Monday, October 7, 2019
Why does knowledge of different generic approaches to strategy matter Essay
Why does knowledge of different generic approaches to strategy matter - Essay Example For long term sustainable growth organizations need to follow a well charted out business plan which defines the strategy derived from organizationââ¬â¢s vision and mission and transforms the strategy into business activities and actions in all departments including HR. Defining and designing strategy is a complex task. It is derived not only from the vision and mission of the company but various internal and external factors also need to be taken into account for developing an appropriate and well designed strategy. There are many different generic approaches to strategy. HR being considered a strategic partner, these approaches to strategy also has its implications on Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM). This paper aims at studying the different approaches to strategy and their implications on SHRM. For the critical analysis of this issue it will make use of the recent literature as well as any empirical evidence available from the real world. Strategy and its Importance What is strategy? The above discussed definition of strategy is a very broad one. Defining the phenomenon of strategy is a difficult assignment. There are various ways in which the definition of strategy can be approached. Application of different approaches may yield conflicting results about how to act, yet each will be based on a reasoned and possible approach. Strategy itself can be based on four basic conceptions that is rational, fatalistic, pragmatic and relativist. Each concept will be suitable for a given set of internal and external environment (Goldman, 2006) . Only an effective strategy ensures sustained profitability and growth. Approaches of Strategy Todayââ¬â¢s highly competitive world demands commitment to change and a clear and well defined direction charted out through strategy. There are four basic approaches to strategy namely Classical, evolutionary, processual and systematic (Whittington, 2001). These four approaches of strategy are mapped against some criti cal elements of strategy. These critical elements identified are leadership, decisions, planning, innovation, diversification, internationalization, organization and strategic change. Sloan influenced classical approach is driven by policy. It is authoritative and centralized in nature with major focus on economics only. It is rooted in the elitist mentality and hence an authoritative view of the world and the concerned issues. This approach does not encourage involvement by the workers and hence Human capital management is not emphasized. This classical approach sets long term targets and goals and it is believed that managers have the capability and the willingness to adopt and practice those profit maximizing strategies devised by them through rational long term planning. In short it is top down driven strategy with very minimal role or almost no role for SHRM. The concept behind evolutionary approach is that managers are free to adopt any method but in the long run only the top performers will survive. It is based on the theory of survival of the fittest hence named evolutionary approach. It is believed that achieving the best fit between internal and external factors can yield organizations profits in the short run whereas investing in the long range activities can be counterproductive. This theory is strictly against long term
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Federal function Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Federal function - Essay Example In the recent past, the federal government has been faced with a looming crisis in which it plans laying off about eight hundred thousands staffs, their employment status hangs on the balance as the federal government braves to as from Saturday impose a shutdown, a move that is likely to render such a huge population staffs suspended, it will also include several agencies right from the offices to the parks rolling out their operations. A move to reverse the highly anticipated action is in its top gears as the United States president Barrack Obama has considered a crisis meeting consultation in the White house with John Boehner a speaker in the Republican House. The shutdown negative impact is due on spring where by even the tourists from the international community would experience rough rides, they will find attraction sites closed on Saturdays, sites like the Liberty statue, museums in Washingtonââ¬â¢s Smithsonianââ¬â¢s, former prisons of Alcatraz amongst other sites with fa scinating features will not be operational, in the mean time vital organization that deliver services like security, control of air traffic, border authorities and the all important postal services would partially operate or would totally close down. The anticipated move will not only threatens the staffs at various work places but will also affect acutely government agencies, Pentagon and the congress included. The move by the congress to classify workers into non-essentials and essentials has not augured well with most employees who value the conscious of the status. The non-essential workers would be expected not to show up for job on Mondays while the essential ones would have their schedule uninterrupted on Mondays. A further hitch is also in the rife as the staffs risk having their laptops and BlackBerries shut down. According to Jeffrey Zients White House deputy director on management and budget (Askill, 2011), the pattern of the shut down may be uneven, National parks, forests and institution of Smithsonian would remain closed as the Institute of Health Clinical Centre will consider new patients but clinical trials will remain suspended. The overseas stationed troops in countries like Iran and Afghanistan will not be give n their wages but will be paid for welfare recipient. The holidaymakers of Americans origin who been considered late for their passport applications as well as the visitors who would want to pay a visit to America and made US visas application would be compelled to eat a humble pie as their request will not succeed. The debate as to whether the non-essential workers would be paid after the shut down as in previous years also sent mixed reactions as the federal government has this year clarified their position that it wonââ¬â¢t be as usual. What the government is doing The US president Barrack Obama had along late night meeting with Boehner and Harry Reid, the senate leader to strike a deal that would avoid the unfortunate circumstance from coming into play, Obama expressed optimism that both the parties are committed to finding a solution to what is viewed as a possible menace. He is expecting early positive responses from the Republicans in order to halt the steps facilitating t he shut down becoming a reality. On the issue, the Republicans proposes a forty billion dollars cut deficit on the federal while the Democrats resoluted on the thirty four and a half billion
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