Comparision of Charecters in the Poisonwood Bible and the Mosquito Coast

Comparison of characters from ‘The Poisonwood Bible' and ‘The Mosquito Coast ‘The Mosquito Coast', directed by Peter Weir, is a movie quite similar in many aspects to the book ‘The Poisonwood Bible', written by Barbara Kingsolver, one of those aspects being the similarities between the setting and the characters. In both books, the figure-head of the family, Allie Fox (in ‘The Mosquito Coast') and Nathan Price (from ‘The Poisonwood Bible') both have similar characteristics, however, different approaches to their ideas. For example, Nathan believes in forcing on his views and ways onto the Congolese people, however, Allie believes in cooperation with them to succeed in his goals. Both also seem incredibly lifelike as they seem like determined men who are willing to get to their goals at the beginning, however, they seem somewhat more lifelike when they loose something that is close, and become obsessed with their goals, forgetting the welfare of their own families. Both stories are about two families who leave America, their home country, to go to a foreign land. The two ‘heads', however, leave for very different reasons, but they do somewhat leave their families with no choice but to go with them. In ‘The Mosquito Coast', Allie takes his family to the Central American rain forests as a means to ‘escape' America and it's fate with the Atomic Bombs. Allie also believes that his scientific research is not of any value in America, and believes that his inventions would be more valued if they where taken into areas that have barely been touched by civilization. Nathan, however, leaves his family with no choice when he says that they are moving to the Congo as part of his missionary work. He was actually offered this job, and took it in good stride, believing that he should take his message to places which are less civilized. Nathan Price is a Baptist Minister who lives his life by the Bible. He believes that he is a coward for having escaped the fate of being killed in the Battaan Death March, where his whole team died, but he survive due to prior injuries. After that incident, Nathan became quite obsessed with the idea of God hating him for his cowardice. He vowed never to be a coward again and devoted his life to saving as many souls as he could. Nathan becomes so obsessed with his work that he believed that every obstacle in his way was a ‘test by God' to see his resilience. Allie, on the other hand, is an inventor, so claimed by his son, Charlie. He seems to be obsessed, yet thinks quite morally. Allie believes that America is dying, so he decides to leave as he thinks it is too ‘painful' for him to watch something he loves die. He gave the example of his mother, who was in hospital when she said ‘†Why don't you just give me rat poison? ‘†, whereupon Allie said that he left, as he could not bear watch loosing someone close. Both Nathan and Allie share the same obsession of getting to their goals. So much so, in fact, that they forget about their families welfare and safety almost completely. Even when There is a sudden turn of events, they seem undeterred by what they call their ‘destiny'. Nathan was unmoved by the death of Ruth-May as he sees the rain as an opportunity to baptize the locals, instead of mourn for his daughters loss. Nathan blames the fact that Ruth-May was not actually baptized, hence making her death somewhat ‘acceptable' to him. Allie believes the destruction of his machine was somewhat supported by Reverend Spellgood. Allie seems to be a very non-religious person, however, he does know the quotes of the Bible. This shows that Allie explores a few possibilities, yet he only decides to expand on those that he likes. In that manner, Nathan is somewhat unwise in his approach to helping the people. He decides, as soon as he arrives at his house in Kilanga, to set up an ‘American Garden', whereby he will make food for his family as well as show the the people of Kilanga his prosperity just because he does not worship false idols. Nathan attempts to almost force his ways and ideas onto the Congolese people. He seems unbent on his determination to show no cowardice, yet he does not seem willing to accept other ideas. At a point, he does see that Mama Tataba's technique to plant his beans seem to be more appropriate, and does actually implant those ideas. As time passes by, and he sees not much crowd in the Church, he slightly looses his mind and then decides that all his obstacles where placed by God to deter him and to test him. This is very contrary to what Allie does at the beginning of the movie. Although he may have moved from the USA and dragged his family along, he decides to take a different approach into making his way into the locals hearts. Where Nathan attempted to force his ways onto the locals and believed that he was superior, Allie decided to work with them. He said before the project began ‘†If I don't work hard enough, you tell me. I am not your boss, I am your friend, and I want to work for you†¦ ‘†. He may have planned out the project, but he certainly did work as though he were under instructions to do what he was told. He seemed very cooperative, and whenever Mother Fox got any materials to share, she enhanced her husbands popularity by sharing those goods, for example the cloth she was given by the missionaries. She made clothes for her daughters and noticed that Mr. Haddy, a local, was eying the cloth, she decided to make one for him. In the next scene, it shows that everyone on that small island was wearing the same yellow piece of cloth in some shape of form. Had Nathan been in this situation, he would probably have told his wife of for giving away their resources to the ‘unsaved' souls, yet he might also see it as a tactical move to make them go to Church. Allie took this in stride and made the most out of the people's gratitude towards their family by still making them work hard. Nathan and Allie both seem very lifelike characters in their own environments and also in the real world, they could be anywhere amongst us. Their obsessive and arrogant attitudes can be seen in quite a few people who seem quite determined to get what they want. Nathan seems very lifelike and rationale at the beginning, where the image of a determined Baptist Minister is portrayed. As the story progresses, that image becomes a haze and a more arrogant and devoted trait comes to light, towards the end, he seems possessed by his work, whereupon he forgets the welfare of his own family, remaining undeterred by the death of one of his own children. This, towards the end, seems slightly unrealistic and immoral. However, the presence of this possibility is definitely strong. Allie seems like a genuinely outgoing and friendly person at the beginning, and this is completely believable. Many people use the same cover of saying that they are all equal in order to get work done. His depression also seems very lifelike as he seems to be completely shattered when he sees his beloved Ice Machine blow up. Yet, towards the end, he does seem also obsessed with the idea of exploring new possibilities. He does go paranoid, thinking that his family is against him, so he forces them to sit on their home-turned-boat and decides to go upriver. When the rotor breaks away from the main engine, Allie goes underwater to get it. Due to his extended period underwater, his family worries and Charlie gets the idea of heading back downriver to get help from Mr. Haddy, and quite possibly also return to America. As soon as this idea is shared, Allie comes up and realizes that his own kids are conspiring against him, and punishes them for it. This seems extreme, yet absolutely possible for a man who seems to be addicted to his goal. Not only do Nathan and Allie share similarities, but also their wives. Both Orleanna and Mother always seem to be following their husbands orders, yet at a point, they both realize that what they are doing is wrong. Towards the beginning, both wives are happy to see their husbands working outside, Nathan in the garden and Allie in the jungle clearing space for his house. Orleanna seems to realize quicker on in the story that Nathan could potentially get them hurt, and decides to speak up. This, comparing to Mother's timing, seemed quite early. This could very likely due to the fact that Nathan seems uninterested in his family and Allie cares a lot about them. Mother only decides to go against Allie when they reach the Ocean and the whole family is rejoicing with the thoughts of returning to America, when Allie destroys their enthusiasm by saying that America isn't there and that they weren't going back. This made Mother question Nathans morality, whereupon the lack of enthusiasm spreads across the whole family. Allie goes from being a friend to a leader almost spontaneously. Orleanna starts to make plans of escape immediately after she gets better from hearing the news of the Congo going into an election period and that her family was staying through it, due to her husbands arrogance. She does eventually leave him, however, Nathan changes slightly in a way one may perceive apologetic. Allie, after burning Reverend Spellgood's church bell, goes back to see his family leaving him, and says that they couldn't live without them. When he gets shot, their family escapes with his injured body on the boat. All the characters in both the book and the movie seem incredibly lifelike as the stereotypical family is put into extreme conditions. This causes the stereotypical families, which generally include of the male being the leader f the house, the bread earner, and the females being the followers, commanding her children to follow her father and herself. This changes very quickly when the two families go through some trouble in their respective environments, causing the males to get angrier and the females to look out for the welfare of her children more than anything. Both men forget about the opinion of their families (Nathan, ofcourse, not caring about their opinion any ways), and seem set on doing everything possible, except return to the life of luxury.

Journal of Operation Management Essay

A critical review using P.S. Adler, Mary Benner, David James, John Paul MacDuffie, Emi Osono, Bradley R. Staats, Hirotaka Takeuchi, Michael L. Tushman and Sindey G. Winer, Journal of operation management: Perspectives on the productivity dilemma The article focuses on the critical issue in the areas of operations management, strategy, product development and international business. Taylor and Deming had operation research on an organisation that can increase efficiency by adhering strictly to the proven templates. While Abernathy and March also research how efficiency can impose cost. March and Simon suggest an organisation solve problems but acquiring knowledge that can be reused to solve similar problems in the future. Further on to say knowledge captures the essence of what worked in the past enabling organisation to take short-cuts and avoid deadens, thereby abridging the problem solving. Abernathy also suggested a firm focus on productivity gains inhibited its flexibility and ability to innovate. He observed that the automobile industry, a firm’s economic decline was directly related to its efficiency and productivity efforts. He also suggested that a firm’s ability to compete over time was rooted not only increasing efficiency. Readability Apple Company shows a greater productivity in their creativity and innovation, but has been some critical issue emerging with the new CEO of the company, which have been a mass suicide threat, posed an ethical dilemma facing Apple and its new leader and the employees. Practical application The ethnical issue hit Apple’s new leader, showing a great crisis, workers threaten recklessness in protest over their working conditions where workers can have a safe work environment free of discrimination, and they can earn competitive wages and can voice their concerns freely. Apple’s suppliers must live up to this to do business with Apple. Reflective comments – Evidence of evaluation and critical thinking, i.e. ways in which you understand the academic/practical aspects of the paper (you may use additional pages) The journal describe the different component of work with evaluates evidence. It suggests a good example with Toyota having a good appreciation of different type of evidence and what is offered. Using (Abernahty) research as an evidence measures with the increase in efficiency and (David James Brunner, Bradley R. Staata and Michael L. Tushman) with practical evidence where I think organisation often finds them undecided between contradictory and conflicting goals regarding the issue about foxcoon increasing the monthly wages of employees making it difficult for Apple to deal with then on an agree based while such issue can be resolve with (David James Brunner, Bradley R. Staata and Michael L. Tushman) evidence and will come on good term to do business. Productivity dilemma highlights the tension between a particular pair of widely held goals: efficiency and adaptability. As in the article, the nature of such tension and approaches for handling situation with the employees in Apple wi ll be a constrcutive approach for Apple to resolve conflict to attain efficiency for the growth of the company. Adler argues that the structuring, systematizing and rationalizing associated with bureaucracy can enable creativity and innovation. However creativity and innovation such a tightly coupled systems required cooperation among interdependent participants, which depends in turn on a foundation of trust. This trust is always threatened by the possibility that profit pressure may undermine this cooperation by turning the tool of enabling bureaucracy into a coercive weapon. The CEO of apple can use the official procedure to fight against the workers and also gain trust in the working conditions. The conflict between apple and Foxcoon can refine efficient routines providing the building blocks for innovation. (Brunner and Staats) prose threat organisation can reconcile exploitation with exploration by intentionally destabilising their own processes through deliberate perturbation and by ensuring that disruptions are translated into learning and knowledge creation through exploratory interpretation. These arguments may help Apple and Foxconn suggest that dynamic conservatism identified by (Tushman and Benner) may be at least in part a property of inferior administrative technologies, rather than an inevitable consequence of disciplined processes.

Everyman-a Medieval Play Review Essay

Summary Everyman is a play which was written to express the importance of morality, to whoever read it or experienced it being performed on stage. Some scholars say that it was written sometime in the late 1400’s, while others insist that it is a translation of a Flemish work called â€Å"Elckerlijc†, which was written by Peter van Diest in 1495. Everyman is an allegory play which is heavily based upon Christian religious perspectives; also it is resoundingly similar to the Christian belief of the resurrection of Christ, and his ascension into Heaven, after the crucifixion. The first act of Everyman, opens with a prologue which takes on the form of a messenger, telling the audience about the fate which is to come to Everyman. The messenger goes on to tell the audience that eventually God will call upon all of humanity to stand before him, and give account of their works which they had wrought in life. The next part of the play is God calling upon Death, to go and bring Everyman to stand before him. God commands Death to go and bring Everyman before him, so that he may give account of his own misdeeds that he has wrought in life. So Death goes and finds Everyman, and tells him that his time has come. Everyman then attempts to bribe Death with a thousand pounds, but Death refuses. However, he states that he will allow Everyman to bring someone with him, so that he does not have to face his judgment alone. Everyman first goes to Fellowship, whom represents friends and companions; and asks him to accompany him to go and stand before the judgment God. Fellowship, whom had promised to stand besides Everyman through whatever may come; tells Everyman that he will not go with him to the grave, because he fears Death and the judgment of God. Everyman is heartbroken, but then goes on to the next in line. Everyman then goes to Kindred and Cousin, which are supposed to represent family and kin; but they too tell him that they will not accompany him on his way to the grave. Thirdly, Everyman turns to Goods, which represents material possessions; nonetheless she also states that she will not go with Everyman to his final judgment. Everyman is very concerned by this point, and so he turns to Good Deeds for companionship. Good Deeds states that she will go with Everyman to face his judgment with him; but unfortunately she lacks the strength for such a journey, because Everyman  has neglected her throughout his life. Good Deeds tells Everyman that he must then go before her sister, Knowledge; for she will know the way in which Good Deeds may regain strength. Upon meeting Knowledge, she tells Everyman that he must go before Confession; and there Everyman confesses his sins. Afterward, Confession gives Everyman a â€Å"jewel† called Penance; which cleanses Everyman of his sins, so that he may stand before God and not be in jeopardy of damnation. With his confession behind him, Good Deeds regains his strength, and is ready to accompany Everyman to the grave. Knowledge then tells Everyman to gather together his attributes of life: Beauty, Strength, Discretion, and Five Wits; so that they too may accompany him to his reckoning with God. But when Everyman gathers them together, they tell him that they will not go with him to the grave; essentially because they are all characteristics of youth, which are all now fleeting from him, as he has the end of life. With that, Knowledge, and Good Deeds accompany Everyman to his final reckoning with God. There enters the character Angel; Knowledge then attests to Angel that Everyman was a good and just person, and in the end, he confessed his sins before God. Then Everyman and Good Deeds go down into the grave, and thus make their way to stand before God in the final judgment of Everyman. Fundamentally, this play ends with the character, Doctor, stating that all accept Good Deeds and Knowledge will all flee from a person, when they go before God for their final judgment. *** Issues in Raised in Key Resources There are several key issues which were raised by the scholars that wrote the major resources which I used to write this report. This play has received a moderate amount of popularity over the past near 500 years; and now today there are some scholars and researchers whom are exceptionally critical, both positively and negatively, of the details as to how it was written. One criticism of note would have to be one which was voiced by Thomas F van Laan. In referring to the general premise of Everyman, he contends of the writer that â€Å"His speech is essentially negative; he focuses solely on the inevitability of death and the destructiveness of sin†. Simply put, Mr. van Laan is stating that at first, the sole purpose of this work appears to emphasize specifically on death and how mankind should feel only sorrow for anything that they do, which goes against the teachings of Christianity. Another criticism of this work which Mr. van Laan refers to is the point in the beginning when God first speaks. Mr. Van Laan states: â€Å"Gods words are wholly negative in force, implying only the difficulty to come, omitting any indication of hope for mankind†. Mr.  van Laan is voicing this criticism on the opening section of the play, fundamentally about how he considers Gods words to be too negative in their approach. In expressing this condemnation, Mr. van Laan is adamant about his beliefs that God would probably not be so disconcerting in his approach to dealing with mankind. However not all that Mr. van Laan has to say about Everyman is negative in nature. He goes on to shed light on the allegory nature of the play, and how this lends credence to its being a unique, legitimate work of theater. He contends that â€Å"The first movement, is a falling action, which traces Everyman’s’ decline in fortune. This shatters the apparent serenity of his life, to the depth of his despair†¦fallowed by the second movement, a rising action, which carries him from this nadir unto his final salvation†¦which is symbolized by the words of the welcoming Angel†. It is my belief, that essentially what Mr. van Laan is stating, is that by using actual characters to personify the specific aspects of human nature; the persona of the play becomes a two-fold endeavor. Firstly, by the characters being literal representations of human qualities; they achieve a form of realism, which is normally only conveyed through the use of spoken dialog. Secondly, the movement’s themselves-transpiring from a state of utter despair, to a state of harmonious bliss; is not only characteristic of all great works of drama, but also of life itself. Throughout Mr. van Laan’s review of Everyman, he states his opinion that by the author using characters to represent the individual aspects of human identity; the play conveys a form of realism, which is distinctly unique. Next brings us to the arguments made by the researcher Roger A. Ladd. His belief is that this play was not written for the everyday person, but was in fact written to be a work which would have been performed for the â€Å"bourgeoisie†. His reasoning stems from research which had been done by scholar Dorothy Wertz; the same scholar who also believes that Everyman was probably written strictly to be performed for the elite rich. In her research, Mrs. Wertz points to the fact that â€Å"by simply examining the vocabulary and phrases used in the original piece, one can determine whom the play had been written for†. In that, she states that â€Å"the wording itself would have been too formal for ordinary citizens of the time period to ascertain†. However, unlike Mrs. Wertz, who believes that Everyman is specifically nothing more than a direct translation of Elckerlijc; Mr. Ladd assumes that it is an amalgamation of Elckerlijc and other English literary customs of the era. Mr. Ladd’s purported theory was reached in part, by investigating the traits of the character â€Å"Goods†, and comparing them with the English anti-mercantile satire traditions which were popular in the late-medieval period. An example of which being, that in the Germanic-Dutch based Elckerlijc, Goods is described as appearing as â€Å"Neglected, rusty. . . heaped up, filthy†. However in Everyman as Mr. Ladd purports, Goods appears in a more English anti-mercantile manner as being â€Å"trussed and piled so high, and in chest I am locked so fast, also sacked in bags†. The Everyman description, falls in line with the late-medieval literary tradition of anti-mercantilism; which according to Mr. Ladd, comes as proof that Everyman could not have been strictly just an English translation of Elckerlijc. Another scholar whom is acquiescent in his research of Everyman is Lawrence V. Ryan. Mr. Ryan takes an approach, which seems to be more about discerning the religious implications of the play Everyman. The first point that Mr. Ryan makes is that †Without theology, the artistic merit may not be fully appreciated†¦that the theology involved is indispensable, not indefensible, and furthermore, that it gives the play its characters, structure, significance, and even its dramatic impressiveness†. One of the main points which all three scholars agree upon is that by being deserted by all those whom Everyman turns to for help; the audience develops a strong sense of pathos, for the plight of Everyman. Mr. Ryan suggests that the emergence of these false-friend characters â€Å"all appear in a climactic order, according to the increased danger of each as a distraction from one’s Maker†. Finally, Mr. Ryan gives his opinion about the reason why all the characters that abandon Everyman, as well as Everyman himself, are all men; and why the only characters that accompany him are women. In essence, the logic behind this as Mr. Ryan contends is that â€Å"All men are born into a state of sin†¦and that for dramatic suspense; the author chose to have the only redeeming characters be women†¦to show that women can counteract this dogma†. Personal Reaction to â€Å"Everyman† My personal opinion of this particular play is one of high appreciation. Unlike some of the reviews of scholars which I have read, which did not display too much positive reception for this work; I personally enjoyed reading it, and doing my report on this play. When I first tried to read the Old-English original version of this play, I found it incredibly hard to ascertain what exactly the meaning was behind what the author had written. Understandably it was difficult for me when trying to use the un-translated Everyman, as Old-English is a version of our language, which has been out-of-date for centuries. When I found the translated version of Everyman on the Fordham University website and began reading it, I almost instantly thought that it had been a work which had been written by either someone whom was a priest, or had been another member of the Christian church in some capacity. Another notion which I had was that if the play had not been written by someone who was a church member, then it obviously had to have been written by someone whom had some form of agenda for getting people involved with the Christian church in some form or another. Perhaps the author had a legitimate reason for wanting people to become more involved with the church or to become closer to god in some fashion. On the other hand, perhaps there was a more sinister motive; like getting more people into the flock of the church, in order to acquire more money flowing into their coffers. Personally, I think that it was a combination of both motives, and that whoever had wrote this play, also had a genuine interest in using a popular mode of expression. Or perhaps the author wanted to show that by turning away from the sins of the flesh; that a person could attain a state of consciousness, which could bring them closer to a higher form of enlightenment. No matter what the personal objectives were for its creation, one thing remains clear; this was that the author of this particular piece was incredibly ahead of his time. From what I have examined in doing research for this report project; in reading other plays that date from the late medieval age, I can honestly say with a certainty, that I have not read anything that dates from this period, which is as unique as this. The usage of human emotions and possessions being personified into literal characters is uniquely a modern notion; and from what I have found, does not appear to have been done in a theatrical piece until sometime around 18th or 19th century. This plot construction is something which I have seen in movies and television shows; which are much more recent, than something that dates from the late medieval period. One example that immediately comes to mind is Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol; although not entirely the same in primary foundation, the underlying principle is similar. Some of the scholars that I read about, that reviewed this work; were quick to dismiss it as being either frivolity, or simply nothing more than an act of religious propaganda. I have to disagree with both sides; I feel that this is a excellent illustration of late medieval/early modern era theatrical work, which will more than likely see its relevance come again. Summary of key scholarship on this play The first article which I used to review for this report on the play Everyman was a modern-English translation, of the late medieval original version of the play. This particular article didn’t offer any insight into it, as in scholar reviews; but it was extremely helpful in writing my summary of the play. Without this article, I am not sure if I would have been able to do this research project on this particular play, as I would not have been able to even ascertain what it was about. The next article which I used to write this report was written by Roger Ladd. Mr. Ladd took a definitively scholarly approach to conducting his research. Some of the main issues which he decided to confront were how the play Everyman deals with the religious implications of how material wealth corrupts the good intentions of mankind. Ladd went into detail, comparing the details of Everyman, to other plays of similar genera that date from the period. He explains about how most everyday citizens of the late medieval period, looked at the assemblage of material wealth, as the path to avarice, which puts their immortal souls in jeopardy. Like many other scholars whom have written journals about the â€Å"morality plays†, Ladd believes that in order to find out whom the plays written for, one has to look into the wording of the work; by doing this, he states that it becomes apparent who the target was. For example Everyman, when the main character is forced to give up his worldly possessions; it is written to appear as if this could have been the most dastardly thing which could have occurred in his life. Other key scholarship reviews of this play, comes from the scholarly works of Lawrence V. Ryan. Ryan takes an approach to his research, which is concerned with how organized religion is suspect in this play. One of his main thesis’ is about how in the play, Everyman attains salvation through his own works, and not by the salvation which comes from God. He talks about how many religious figures were quick to label Everyman as a work of unholy declarations; and that how many of these religious leaders informed members of their churches that they would be in danger of hell by going to watch a performance of Everyman. Ryan is perhaps the most non-forgiving of the three scholars that I chose to use. Mostly, he tries to make it known that he is of the opinion that Everyman was only an English translation of the Dutch work Elckerlijc. He does not make use of very much authentic information to make this claim, he simply relies on paraphrasing works which had been written by other scholars. Next, I used the research from the scholar Thomas F. vanLaan. VanLaan goes into detail describing the individual characters of Everyman. Noteworthy, is how he explains the nature of these characters, and how they relate to the human experience. Differing from the other scholars whom I referenced in this report, Mr.vanLaan gives a very logical accounting of why the author chose to incorporate inanimate human natures, as the title characters for this play. The choices for the human failings and material wealth, was carefully used to make the play appeal to nearly everyone whom would have watched its production. An example being, of how Everyman had acquired material goods in his life, which would have appealed to the rich; while on the other hand, Everyman losing his material possessions would have gained the approval of the poor which might have been in the audience. However, I never found one scholarly review, which did not offer at least one compliment about this great play. Endnotes *** Paul Halsall, Internet Medieval Sourcebook, â€Å"Medieval Handbook: Everyman, 15th Century†, Fordham University (August 1998) (Accessed on October 20th, 2010) http://www. fordham. edu/halsall/basis/everyman. html —The entire summary which I wrote was based upon the modern-English translation of Everyman, which was available online at the Fordham University site.

Compare some aspect of character in Hamlet by Shakespears and One flew Essay

Compare some aspect of character in Hamlet by Shakespears and One flew over the cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey---How do characters deal with similar problems A - Essay Example ween the two pieces of text is that the issue of madness is dealt with in both texts: Hamlet is thought by many to be mad, and indeed he himself says, â€Å"I am but mad north-northwest†, with Claudius confirming this by saying, â€Å"Madness in great ones must not go unwatched†. The whole action of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest takes place in a mental institution, with the main protagonist, R.P. McMurphy, himself being a patient at the institution: as R. P. McMurphy points out early in the text, â€Å"I must be crazy to be in a loony bin like this†, and later in the text, he makes reference to his madness many times, with quotes such as, â€Å"Is that crazy enough for ya? Want me to take a shit on the floor?†. A further similarity in the two characters is the fact that both men are strongly motivated by outside events; Hamlet cannot cope with his mother re-marrying after the death of his father, and R.P. McMurphy is obstinately obsessed with needing to be the centre of attention in the institutional setting; as he says soon after we meet him, â€Å"I like to make a good impression on the right man if he can prove to me he is the right man†, showing that R.P. McMurphy is egotistical and obsessed with assessing the characters of people he meets, just as Hamlet proves himself to be through the events in Shakespeare’s play. Further, Hamlet and R.P. McMurphy are both defined as characters by their need, their thirst, for revenge. For R.P. McMurphy, he wants revenge on Nurse Ratchet after she re-seizes possession of the ward; for Hamlet, the whole thrust of his character is to avenge the death of his father, as he says, â€Å"†¦From this time forth/My thoughts be bloody or worth nothing†. Indeed, it is revenge that ultimately drives the characters to their end, even though both characters try to cover their thirst for revenge with deviations at every opportunity, through manipulation and trickery. Similarly, the ultimate downfall of each character occurred due to a

Various marketing strategies Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Various marketing strategies - Case Study Example This process starts with a Futuristic Environmental Scan and defines the ideal vision in terms of mission, values and end outcomes that the organization wishes to set for itself. Only after the statement of such Ideal Future a Current State assessment based on SWOT(Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) is taken up to identify the gaps and make marketing strategies to close the gap(s).As a result of subscriber clients adopting this model it was found that clients began developing competitive edge and the organization was much clearer on what their competitive "positioning" in market place was and found themselves moving positively in that direction, to the delight of their customers(Haines,2004).Thus this process leans directly into the process of competitive marketing strategy making as it includes environmental scan both-present and future and enables movement in the desired direction.Types of Competitive Marketing Strategies The generic competitive marketing strategies and their standard objectives have abounded in literature and often include the following: (a) Overall Low-Cost Leadership Marketing Strategy: Its primary object is to find a sustainable cost advantage over rivals, using lower-cost edge as a basis either to under-price rivals and reap market share gains or earn higher profit margin by selling at going price. (b) Broad Differentiation Marketing Strategy: Its primary objective is to incorporate differentiating features that cause buyers to prefer firm's product or service over rival brands. Looking on the obverse side it implies that an organization must..."The airline industry is, by its very nature, a service industry. In a free market, the success or failure of an individual airline is largely dictated by the quality of the service it provides" (Harvard Business School, 1989).Its differentiation strategy began with the immense popularity of The Singapore Girl marketing icon. This icon evoked an awareness of warm Asian hospitality and courtesy's backed this up with its very efficient service standards and already had a winning combination on hand. However it ventured into a fairly elaborate differentiation strategy to address the changed needs of new clientele. This differentiation took the form of: - the introduction of gourmet cuisine in-flight dining with vastly improved servings for economy class passengers as well, - hiring top of the line culinary experts' panel to train chefs and execute quality checks with a future vision to make its in-flight food an industry benchmark, - multi million dollar cabin revamp with first-class cabins coming with an ambience of a mini-suite in a luxurious hotel and details covering the entire distance from custom-built seats to cashmere blankets, - launch of its Frequent Flyer Programme(FFP), KrisFlyer, - as the bulk of SIA clientele are non-Singaporeans specific trainings were organized for SIA crews to enable them to be conversant with and make announcements in the languages of the countries to which they flew.

Saving Water Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Saving Water - Essay Example Water scarcity is a big problem now everywhere and the possibility of wars in future for the control of water resources cannot be ruled out. This paper analyses the importance of saving water and the consequences of not doing that. Along with food and oxygen, water is an essential commodity for all living things to sustain their life on this earth. Nobody can sustain their life with the help of food and oxygen alone. Water is necessary for many of the bodily functions. â€Å"Though our Earth is made up of 2/3 water, only 1/100 of that water is drinkable†(Save Water Slogans). In other words, availability of drinking water resources is limited. It should be noted that the population size is growing at alarming rate as time goes on. Thus the demand for drinking water is growing day by day. At the same time available fresh water or drinking water resources are getting polluted because of the injudicious activities of human. These facts clearly suggest that water shortage is going to be a big problem in future unless we take proper actions to save water now. Over-consumption of water leads to the over-consumption of another non-renewable resource, energy. Water in your home must be heated for a number of uses, such as cleaning and bathing, and this takes energy. Additionally, your local water utility must use energy to process and deliver water to your home, so the over-consumption of water requires more energy out of the utility company as well (Csiszar). Water is used for power generation in many countries. Hydroelectric power is one of the major energy sources for many countries. Water flowing through the rivers is stored with the help of dams and this water is used to operate huge turbines for power production. Water may become ineffective for power production after it reaches the ocean. In short, saving or storing of water before it reaches ocean is necessary to solve our water scarcity problems. â€Å"Conserving water reduces the demands to

V6 & V8 Car Engines Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

V6 & V8 Car Engines - Essay Example The V6 engines are better than V8 engines because they are not as big as the V8 engines, are more fuel-efficient, can be produced in V8’s production line, and are more affordable for an average American. Fuel usage and reasonable speeds are the leading factors that an individual should consider before buying an engine. The V6 engines have been remodeled to include these properties. This is because, speed and fuel usage are the properties that the engine displays and uses when in use. Therefore, it is worth considering the fuel usage and speed displayed by V6 or V8 engines. Efficient and economical engine is worth buying than fuel guzzling engines. Understanding the speed and power of the engine is important for drivers especially when they are using the car. The 6-cylinder V6 turbo engine and the 8-cylinder V8 engines display different qualities and specification; thus, it is worth determining which of the two is best for the American car users (Gearhead). Initially, V8 engines were known to be more powerful than V6 engines because the later were known to be slow in speed, noisy and less powerful. However, the manufacturers became concerned about these defects and decided to correct them; a move that led to the 2014 manufacturing of the new V6. The GM manufacturers made the new 2014 V6 to operate under the modern technology within the car industry. Some of these technologies include the casting processes and full four cams phrasing to the ultra-fast with a torque-based engine. The V6 turbo engine is known for its low fuel usage, but has high car functioning speed. On the other hand, the V8 is a higher fuel consumer when functioning under the same features and technologies as V6. Therefore, the V6 engine model is more desirable and satisfying then V8 (Tori). It is also necessary noting that the V6 engines are economical for the American society. When analyzing the fuel usage

Micro & Macro economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Micro & Macro economics - Essay Example The response to the increase in APA is depicted in the figure below. The line is seen to shift leftwards and repositions the IS line such that the IS curve and the APE line continue intersecting at the original GDP line. Since the decrease in need for funding the APA is matched with an increase in the funding by the nation’s producers, hence the requirement for funding remains equal to the ASF supply. The present situation is APE This case is just opposite to the above case where there is decline in the funding supply (ASF). All decreases in the ASF includes a reduction in M x V in comparison to the price index (p). During the phase, the rates of interest would be rising, tracking the point of intersection of ASF and GDP lines as they move up across the IS line. The rates of interest would remain below its original level unless and until substantial concessions on costs are able to allow profitable operations at low prices which consequently compensate for the loss in output and unemployment. The fall in the supply of funds of the country (ASF) would trigger a dramatic rise in the interest level because producers would react to the fall in sales. This would be done by the price-output adjustment which involves deflation, output, employment, interest rates and profits, until the equality is restored among the ASF, APE and GDP lines. Output and employment are expected to continue declining unless and until prof its and prices rise to their original levels. The process will end with the fall in employment and output levels, rise of interest rates and thus unchanged outputs and profits (Ashby, â€Å"Case #5m – Money-and-Credit-Caused Recession†). The figure below would depict the cost push inflation. Due to a wide spread increase in the costs of production, the profit levels, employment levels and output levels would fall. This would be accompanied with the rise in the interest levels in the nation. The employment and output would continue to fall unless and until the negative economic profits can be eliminated completely and successfully. This would happen by allowing the reduction of output till the level that prices rise by the amount equal to the increase in cost (Ashby, â€Å"Case #5c - Cost-Push Inflation†). Growth problem in the economy can be explained in the diagram below. It is seen from the diagram that an increase in the output would be followed by an increas e in the rates of interest. Producers would immediately react to the low demand in the economy. The rates of interest would fall along with the employment and output levels until they reach their original positions. Since the initial fall would be compensated by an offsetting rise in price levels, they would be maintained at the original positions. After returning to the original position, the economy would suffer a shock which would push down the levels of output, employment and rates of interest below their original positions leaving the price levels at their unchanged positions (Ashby, â€Å"

Viral Marketing Campaign for the Movie Cloverfield Essay

Viral Marketing Campaign for the Movie Cloverfield - Essay Example The marketing for this movie was solely based on exploiting the adventurous instinct of the humans and a deliberate effort was made to create an environment that greatly boost the chances of the movie to do good on the box office and it did. Many sites on the internet boasted the marketing campaign of the movie which many termed as mouth watering technique to money and consumers closer to you. The recent presidential campaign of Barak Obama is also dubbed as viral marketing technique to raise funds for his electoral campaign as he has been able to better the fund raising efforts more than the money making machine of Clintons’. Thus no technique, no source has been more effective and efficient than viral marketing in terms of exploiting the social bond between people. In a world where community concepts are being limited to the FACEBOOK.COM and ORKUT.COM virtual spaces, viral marketing is something which have the power to tap the changing social structures of the society. So what actually Viral Marketing is? The subsequent section will discuss about it so be prepared to read about one of the most fascinating tricks of modern corporate world Viral Marketing is a technique which uses already existing social networks to produce and increase awareness of a brand or to achieve other marketing objectives through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of Pathological and computer viruses. In its essence, viral marketing is marketing phenomenon where people use to spread word of mouth for a product or service and it spreads, it tend to get much bigger and bigger in its scope and influence. This kind of viral marketing can take place through various means mainly through the use of internet. The sources on internet include video clips, flash games, eBooks etc. since most of these tools are feely available to most of the people using them therefore it becomes fun and adventure to follow the marketing techniques

Fetal Homicide in Florida Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Fetal Homicide in Florida - Research Paper Example In accordance with the issues discussed in the paper the law defines the death of a viable fetus as the death of unborn child and any fetus killed by a violent act against the pregnant woman is termed as manslaughter. Each person has the right to life and so is the fetus or the unborn child. The fetal homicide laws recognize all stages of the fetus as being victims of abortion and any abortion is termed as fetal homicide. The fetus is recognized as a developing human being from conception to birth. The killing of any unborn child has also been categorized as manslaughter in the fetal homicide laws just the same as the killing of the mother. Three standards are used in determining whether a fetus is a person. Born-alive standard is when the fetus is born alive, the viability standard is used when a fetus is capable of having a meaningful life outside the womb and the conceptions standard is that life begins at conception and that any conceived fetus qualifies to be a person. Under com mon law, a child is only considered as a person once it is delivered alive. However, life begins at conception and should any fetus should be considered a person. Death is the failure of the fetus to be born alive. The conception standard should be used in the modern statutes as this will prevent any abortion or homicide on unborn of the unborn child. Any unborn child should be left to grow in the mothers womb until it matures not unless there any medical conditions.

Tecnology Adventage Essay Example for Free

Tecnology Adventage Essay Modern technology has solved many problems that people face and play an important role in the development of many countries. Modern technologies create many kinds of products computers, cloning technology, and video games etc.. Technology today has made life better and quicker In our modern society, people cant see themselves without computers, cell phones, voice mailetc As we look at technologies, questions are risen. The Technological progress make our society more convenient and safe. Making impossible things possible are similar features of the change which previous people have experienced by social change, like shifting from a hunting society to an agricultural society and establishing a commercial society due to the invention of new tools. To consider these advantages and change of society, modern technology, which we use today, might be not only a new tool but also the tool, which makes a dramatic change in history. However, the contribution of modern technology to society should not be eliminated and should be distributed evenly. ADVANTAGE: Modern technology has solved many problems that people face and play an important role in the development of many countries. Modern technologies create many kinds of products computers, cloning technology, and video games etc.. Technology today has made life better and quicker In our modern society, people cant see themselves without computers, cell phones, voice mailetc As we look at technologies, questions are risen. The Technological progress make our society more convenient and safe. Making impossible things possible are similar features of the change which previous people have experienced by social change, like shifting from a hunting society to an agricultural society and establishing a commercial society due to the invention of new tools. To consider these advantages and change of society, modern technology, which we use today, might be not only a new tool but also the tool, which makes a dramatic change in history. However, the contribution of modern technology to society should not be eliminated and should be distributed evenly. ADVANTAGE: Modern technology has solved many problems that people face and play an important role in the development of many countries. Modern technologies create many kinds of products computers, cloning technology, and video games etc.. Technology today has made life better and quicker In our modern society, people cant see themselves without computers, cell phones, voice mailetc As we look at technologies, questions are risen. The Technological progress make our society more convenient and safe. Making impossible things possible are similar features of the change which previous people have experienced by social change, like shifting from a hunting society to an agricultural society and establishing a commercial society due to the invention of new tools. To consider these advantages and change of society, modern technology, which we use today, might be not only a new tool but also the tool, which makes a dramatic change in history. However, the contribution of modern technology to society should not be eliminated and should be distributed evenly. ADVANTAGE: Modern technology has solved many problems that people face and play an important role in the development of many countries. Modern technologies create many kinds of products computers, cloning technology, and video games etc.. Technology today has made life better and quicker In our modern society, people cant see themselves without computers, cell phones, voice mailetc As we look at technologies, questions are risen. The Technological progress make our society more convenient and safe. Making impossible things possible are similar features of the change which previous people have experienced by social change, like shifting from a hunting society to an agricultural society and establishing a commercial society due to the invention of new tools. To consider these advantages and change of society, modern technology, which we use today, might be not only a new tool but also the tool, which makes a dramatic change in history. However, the contribution of modern technology to society should not be eliminated and should be distributed evenly.

Mumbai attacks Essay Example for Free

Mumbai attacks Essay INTRODUCTION The day of 26th November, 2008 would have been as usual and pleasant as any other day for Mumbai but the terror attacks by the members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, considered as terrorist organisation by India, who wreaked havoc in the India’s largest city. There were ten gunmen, nine of whom were subsequently shot dead and one captured by security forces. Witnesses reported that they looked to be in their early twenties, wore black t-shirts and jeans, and that they smiled and looked happy as they shot their victims. It was initially reported that some of the attackers were British citizens, but the Indian Government later stated that there was no evidence to confirm this. Similarly, early reports of twelve gunmen were also later shown to be incorrect. On December 9, the ten attackers were identified by Mumbai police, along with their home towns in Pakistan: Ajmal Amir from Faridkot, Abu Ismail Dera Ismail Khan from Dera Ismail Khan, Hafiz Arshad and Babr Imran from Multan, Javed from Okara, Shoaib from Narowal, Nazih and Nasr fromFaisalabad, Abdul Rahman from Arifwalla, and Fahad Ullah from Dipalpur Taluka. Dera Ismail Khan is in the North-West Frontier Province; the rest of the towns are in Pakistani Punjab. Ajmal Kasab was the only attacker captured alive by police and is currently under arrest. Much of the information about the attackers preparation, travel, and movements comes from his confessions to the Mumbai police. Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab was born on July 13, 1987. He briefly joined his brother in Lahore, who worked as a labourer, and then returned to Faridkot. He left home after a fight with his father in 2005. He had asked for new clothes on Eid, but his father could not provide them, which made him angry. He then became involved in petty crime with his friend Muzaffar Lal Khan, soon moving on to armed robbery. On Dec 21, 2007, Bakr-Eid day, they were in Rawalpindi trying to buy weapons when they encountered members of Jamaat-ud-Dawah, the political wing of Lashkar-e-Taiba, distributing pamphlets. After a brief chat, they decide to sign up for training with the Lashkar-e-Taiba, ending up at their base camp, Markaz Taiba. According to Deputy Commissioner of Mumbai Police he spoke rough Hindi and barely any  English. Some sources said his father asked him to join the militant group, Lashkar-e-Taiba so that he could use the money they gave him to run the family. When asked about this, Ajmal Amirs father told reporters, â€Å"I dont sell my sons.† Even David Coleman Headley is charged for scouting the locations for 2008 Mumbai terror attacks by Laskar-e-Taiba. He is alleged by FBI for conspiring to bomb targets in Mumbai, India; providing material support to Lashkar-i-Taiba, a militant Pakistani Islamist group; and aiding and abetting the murder of U.S. citizens. Training Ajmal Amir is alleged to be among a group of 24 men who received training in marine warfare at a remote camp in mountainous Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Part of the training is reported to have taken place on the Mangla Dam reservoir. Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, a senior commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, reportedly offered to pay his family Rs.150,000 for his participation in the attacks. Another report said the 21-year old man was recruited from his Punjab, Pakistan home in part based on a pledge by recruiters to pay USD $1,250 US (Rs. 62,412.50) to his family when he became a martyr. Other sources put the reward to USD $4,000. Stages of training This batch of 25 went through the following stages of training: †¢ Psychological: Indoctrination to Islamist propaganda, including compiled footage of Indian atrocities in Jammu Kashmir, and imagery of the atrocities suffered by Muslims in India, Chechnya, Palestine and across the globe. †¢ Basic Combat: Lashkar’s basic combat and terror methodology course,  the Daura Aam. †¢ Advanced Training: Selected to undergo advanced specialised training at a camp near Mansehra, a course the organisation calls the Daura Khaas. This includes advanced weapons and explosives training supervised by retired personnel of the Pakistan Army, along with survival training and further indoctrination. †¢ Finally, an even smaller group selected for specialised marine commando and navigation training given to the fidayeen unit selected to target Mumbai. From the batch of about 25, 10 were handpicked for the Mumbai mission. They also received training in swimming and sailing, besides the use of high-end weapons and explosives under the supervision of LeT commanders. According to a media report citing an unnamed former Defence Department Official of the US, the intelligence agencies of the US had determined that the former officers from Pakistans Army and Inter-Services Intelligence agency assisted actively and continuously in training. They were given blueprints of all the four targets Taj Mahal Palace Tower, Oberoi Trident hotel and Nariman House. The type of training which he got completely washed his brain and it was enough to make him think only of destruction and only destruction. Feeling of hatred incited him against India to that level that he only wanted to kill Indians and to destroy India. Pakistanis give these terrorist institutions the name of militant organisations to hide these from the eyes of the world but these are recognised as terrorist groups in India, USA and UK. These institutions give militant training to those individuals who do not have sufficient money and gradually prepare them as a ‘militant terrorist’ in the name of ‘jihad’. ATTACKS Entry into India According to investigations the attackers traveled by sea from Karachi, Pakistan across the Arabian Sea, hijacked the Indian fishing trawler Kuber, killing the crew of four, and then forced the captain to sail to Mumbai. After killing the captain, the terrorists entered Mumbai on a rubber dinghy. The captain of Kuber, Amar Singh Solanki, had earlier been imprisoned for six months in a Pakistani jail for illegally fishing in Pakistani waters. The first events were detailed around 20:00 Indian Standard Time (IST) on 26 November, when 10 Urdu-speaking men in inflatable speedboats came ashore at two locations in Colaba. They reportedly told local Marathi-speaking fishermen who asked them who they were to mind their own business before they split up and headed two different ways. The fishermens subsequent report to police received little response. Involvement in Attack He was captured on CCTV during his attacks at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus along with another terrorist, Ismail Khan. Ajmal Amir reportedly told the police that they wanted to replicate theIslamabad Marriott hotel attack, and reduce the Taj Hotel to rubble, replicating the 9/11 attacks in India. Ajmal Amir and his accomplice Abu Dera Ismail Khan, age 25, attacked the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) railway station. They then moved on to attack a police vehicle (a white Toyota Qualis) at Cama Hospital, in which senior Mumbai police officers (Maharashtra ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar and Additional Commissioner of Mumbai Police Ashok Kamte) were traveling. After killing them in a gun battle and taking two constables’ hostage in the Qualis, Ajmal Amir and Ismail Khan drove towards Metro cinema. Ajmal Amir joked about the bullet proof vests worn by the police and killed one constable when his mobile phone rang. They fired some shots into a crowd gathered at Metro Cinema. They then drove towards Vidhan Bhavan where they fired a few more shots. Their vehicle had a tire puncture, so  they stole a silver Ã…  koda Laura and drove towards Girgaum Chowpatty. Earlier, the D B Marg police had got a message from police control at about 10pm, saying that two heavily armed men were at large after gunning down commuters at CST. 15 policemen from D B Marg were sent to Chowpatty where they set up a double barricade on Marine Drive armed with 2 self-loading rifles (SLRs), two revolvers and lathis (or batons). The Skoda reached Chowpatty and halted 40 to 50 feet from the barricade. It then reversed and tried to make a U-turn. A shootout ensued and Abu Ismail was killed. Ajmal lay motionless playing dead. Assistant sub-inspector Tukaram Omble, who was armed only with a lathi(gapp), was killed when the police charged the car. Umbale took five bullets, but held on to Ajmals weapon, enabling his colleagues to capture him alive. A mob gathered and attacked the two terrorists. This incident was captured on video. Some reports said that Ajmal Amir was shot and had bullet wounds in his hand or both hands. There are other reports by doctors who treated him that he had no bullet wounds. While it is reported that he told the police that he was trained to kill to the last breath, when he was arrested, he pleaded with the medical staff: I do not want to die. Put me on saline. Later, after interrogation in the hospital by the police, he said: Now, I do not want to live, requesting the interrogators to kill him for the safety of his family in Pakistan who could be killed or tortured for his surrender to Indian police. Fidayeen terrorists are strictly instructed by Lashkar commanders not to be captured and interrogated, use aliases instead of their real names and hide their nationality. He is also quoted as saying I have done right, I have no regrets. Reports also surfaced that the group planned to escape safely after the attack, ruling out this being a suicide mission. It is also reported that he expressed to Indian police his willingness to switch loyalties, saying: If you give me regular meals and money I will do the same that I did for them. Ajmal Amir has told interrogators that right through the fighting, the Lashkar headquarters from Karachi, Pakistan remained in touch with the group, calling their phones through a voice-over-internet service. Investigators have succeeded in reconstructing the group’s journey through the Garmin GPS set that has been seized from him. The mail sent from a bogus group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen claiming responsibility has been traced to a Russian proxy which was then traced back to Lahore, Pakistan with the help of the FBI. It was in fact the Lashkar-e-Toiba operating under an alternate name after being banned by U.S. Methodology The attackers had planned the attack several months ahead of time and knew some areas well enough for the attackers to vanish, and reappear after security forces had left. Several sources have quoted Kasab telling the police that the group received help from Mumbai residents. The attackers used at least three SIM cards purchased on the Indian side of the border with Bangladesh, pointing to some local collusion. There were also reports of one SIM card purchased in New Jersey, USA. Police had also mentioned that Faheem Ansari, an Indian Lashkar operative who had been arrested in February 2008, had scouted the Mumbai targets for the November attacks. Later, the police arrested two Indian suspects, Mikhtar Ahmad, who is from Srinagar in Kashmir, and Tausif Rehman, a resident of Kolkata. They supplied the SIM cards, one in Calcutta, and the other in New Delhi. Type 86 Grenades made by Chinas state-owned Norinco were used in the attacks. Blood tests on the attackers indicate that they had taken cocaine and LSD during the attacks, to sustain their energy and stay awake for 50 hours. Police say that they found syringes on the scenes of the attacks. There were also indications that they had been taking steroids. The gunman who survived said that the attackers had used Google Earth to familiarise themselves with the locations of buildings used in the attacks. DISPUTE ON NATIONALITY Dispute There was a dispute on the matter regarding the issue of nationality of Ajmal Kasab in the court. After the attacks, India asserted that Ajmal was a Pakistani national based on his confession and evidence gathered due to the information provided by him. Several reporters visited the village in Pakistan where Ajmal Amir said his family lived, and verified the facts provided by him. Former Pakistan Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif confirmed that Ajmal Amir was from Faridkot village in Pakistan, and criticized President Zardari for cordoning off the village and not allowing his parents to meet anyone. Investigative journalist Saeed Shah travelled to Ajmal Amirs village and produced national identity card numbers of his parents, Mohammed Amir and Noor Elahi soon after they themselves disappeared on the night of December 3, 2008. Also, the Mumbai Police said that much of the information that Ajmal Amir provided had proved to be accurate. He disclosed the location of a fishing trawler, MV Kuber, that the terrorists used to enter Mumbais coastal waters. He also told investigators where they would find the ship captains body, a satellite phone and a global-positioning device, which they did. Despite mounting evidence, Pakistani officials, including President Asif Ali Zardari, initially denied the assertion that Ajmal Amir was Pakistani. Pakistani government officials attempted to erase evidence that there was a Lashkar-e-Taiba office in Deepalpur, near Kasabs village. The office was hurriedly closed in the week of December 7. Moreover, at Faridkot many residents and local plainclothes police appeared to be trying to hurriedly cover up Ajmal Amirs connection with the village. The atmosphere turned hostile, and several reporters who went to Faridkot were roughed up. In early December, dealing a major blow to Pakistans claims, Ajmal Amirs father admitted in an interview that the captured terrorist was his  son. In January 2009, a month after the attacks, Pakistans national security advisor Mahmud Ali Durrani admitted to Ajmal Amir being a Pakistani citizen while speaking to the CNN-IBN news channel. The Pakistan Government then hastily acknowledged that Ajmal was a Pakistani, but also announced that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani had fired Durrani for failing to take Gilani and other stakeholders into confidence before making this information public, and for a lack of coordination on matters of national security. This is a satire on the administrative system of Pakistan. Kasab’s confession on Nationality The statement made by the Pakistani minister was contradicted by their own official and even Kasab. Kasab even admitted before the court that he is a Pakistani and belong to Faridkot in Pakistan. Kasab accepted before the trial judge that he was a Pakistani national and told the court that he is fine with government-provided lawyer to defend him. Kasab appeared before special judge M L Tahiliyani via video link from the Arthur Road jail where he is presently lodged in a high security cell giving the media the first glimpse of the surviving terrorist who along with his nine accomplices were involved in the carnage. Tahiliyani asked Kasab to identify himself and asked him where he was from. Kasab replied that he was from Faridkot, in Pakistans Punjab province. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS Kasab’s confession Pakistani terrorist Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, in his dramatic confession before a special court Monday, said that he was a decorator by profession but since his income was little, he was attracted to jehad (holy war). Through some contacts, he came in touch with the terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and later underwent training under Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Abu Hamza, Abu Kafa and Abu Jhundal, the masterminds of the Nov 26, 2008, Mumbai terror attacks, at a place called Battal in Pakistan. Recounting how he joined terrorism, Kasab said he worked with Haji Sultan as a small-time decorator in Jhelum in Punjab province. It was a month before the Bakr-Eid festival, that co-worker Muzaffar and he spoke of how they were not making enough money from the work. Muzaffar suggested that they could indulge in thefts or dacoity to make more money. While on a visit to Rawalpindi, Kasab had approached some LeT activists whom they located in the Raja market. I told them that I wanted to become a jehadi. One of them enquired about where we stayed and asked us to bring our belongings there. Another accompanied us with a piece of paper on which Markaz Taiba Murqui was written and gave us some money, he said. There they met more boys and joined them. After 21 days, Kasab was sent to Mansera, and then to Mankheda Aksa. Later, all the boys were taken to a hilly place called Battal where they were trained to operate pistols, guns, AK-47s and other weapons for 21 days. Later, they were sent to Daura Khaas for three months. Kasab said three people trained them Abu Ansa, Abu Basheer and Abu Abdul Rehman. From Battal, he travelled to Azad Kashmir, the Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where he met Sayeed. All the boys were taken to another camp and trained for three months by Abu Maviya, Abu Saiful Rehman, Abu Talaah and Abu Sariya. Here they learnt to operate rocket launchers, grenades and other deadly weapons. Later, Kasab said, he was given a weeks break to go home. Upon return, Sayeed, Abu Hamza and Abu Kafa selected some of the boys to go to Kashmir.  They also learnt swimming from Abu Imran and were for a month taken to Karachi, where they were trained to get acclimatised to the sea. They returned to Muzaffarabad in PoK, were given identity cards and clothes which they wore on the day of the Mumbai terror attacks. Kasab and Abu Ismail were the first to get out after landing at Colaba in south Mumbai that evening. They hailed a cab to go to Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), as instructed by Hamza and left one bomb in the taxi and another at CST. After entering the CST, they opened fire as instructed by Hamza; Ismail lobbed grenades inside the station premises and opened fire from his AK-47. The duo continued firing and throwing grenades at regular intervals and continued moving ahead even as the security forces started confronting them and later surrounded them. Seeing little or no retaliation from the stunned police forces that night, the duo decided to take the CST subway, but Ismail beckoned him to go to Platform No. 1 where a train was waiting. They continued moving ahead in the direction of the bridge at the end of the station. They tried to force open some vehicles parked outside in a small lane. They saw a person coming from the opposite direction and Kasab killed him. Ismail started firing ahead and the duo jumped a short wall there and entered one of the wards of Cama Hospital. Ismail asked Kasab to wait at the hospital gate and he went inside, firing and later led him in. As they went inside, Kasab held a person as a shield after the police forces confronted them. They started firing and throwing grenades, outside the main gate they fired at a car and encountered firing from a jeep nearby. They hid behind a bush and later dragged out the limp bodies of three policemen and hijacked the jeep to go towards the Metro cinema junction. It was in Cama Hospital that Kasab and Ismail gunned down Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare and his associate Vijay Salaskar. They also killed another senior police official, Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte, before hijacking the police jeep. However, they kept moving in circles and by then, the jeep had developed a flat tyre. Kasab was also injured on his right elbow and left wrist and pleaded that he could not do anything more. Ismail urged him on and said that even he had sustained a bullet on his knee. Then they saw a Skoda car, they ordered the passengers a couple, to stop, forcibly took the keys from them and took the vehicle, blindly following another car as they did not know where to proceed. At a point on the road (Girgaum Chowpatty), they saw a police barricade, and when they were ordered to stop, Ismail attempted to take a u-turn on the road, but failed. The police rushed towards them and dragged out Kasab and hammered him with a baton, snatched his gun and attacked him in the tummy with the butt. Kasab claimed that he did not fire at anyone at that juncture and had lost consciousness. When he revived, he found himself at Nair Hospital, under arrest by the Mumbai police. TRIAL Chargesheet Indian investigators filed a formal 11,000 page Chargesheet against Kasab on 25 February 2009. Due to the fact that the chargesheet was written in Marathi and English, Kasab had requested that an Urdu translation of the charge sheet be given to him. Kasab has been charged with murder, conspiracy and waging war against India along with other crimes. His trial was to have started on April 15 but was put off as his lawyer, Anjali Waghmare, had been dismissed for a conflict of interest. He has gotten a new lawyer named Abbas Kazmi. On 28 April, he wrote a letter through his lawyer to the magistrate  requesting a perfume bottle, a toothpaste, Urdu Times newspaper and permission to walk in the adjacent varandah alongside his barack. He also requested the court to deposit the amount (given to him by the terrorists) seized from him by police into his jail account. Time line of Proceedings On 26 Nov 2008, Ujjwal Nikam was appointed as Public Prosecutor. In Jan 2009, M L Tahiliyani was appointed as judge to conduct the trial. In Feb 2009, an 11,000-page charge sheet was served on Kasab. In Mar 2009, advocate Anjali Waghmare was appointed as Kasabs lawyer. Kasab appeared through video-conferencing. In Apr 2009, Waghmare was removed as Kasabs lawyer. Abbas Kazmi was appointed as defence lawyer in mid-April. Trial began on April 17, 2009. On 20 Apr 2009, the prosecution submitted a list of charges, including the murder of 166 people. On 6 May 2009 Kasab pleaded not guilty to 86 charges. In May 2009, an eye witness identified Kasab in court. Another said he saw Kasab and nine others arrive by boat. Two doctors who treated him, identified him. On 2 June 2009, Kasab told the judge he now also understood Marathi. In June 2009, the special court issued non-bailable warrants against 22 absconding accused including Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafeez Saeed and chief of operations of Lashkar-e-Toiba, Zaki-ur-Rehman Laqvi. On 20 July 2009 Kasab retracted his non-guilty plea and pleaded guilty to all  charges, but his trial will continue. Visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in an interview with Thai publication The Nation during the ASEAN conference in Phuket in July 2009 that had Kasab been educated, he wouldnt have been a terrorist. On 18 December 2009, Kasab says he is innocent, he was framed and tortured by Indian Police. In a surprising U-turn he claims to have come to Mumbai 20 days ago and was simply roaming at Juhu beach when police arrested him. Details of proceedings Ajmal Amir has written to the Pakistani High Commission in India requesting help and legal aid. In the letter, he confirmed the nationality of himself and the nine slain terrorists as Pakistani. He also asked the Pakistani High Commission to take custody of the body of fellow terrorist Ismail Khan, who was killed in an encounter in south Mumbai on the night of November 26. Pakistani officials confirmed the receipt of the letter and were reported to be studying its details. However, no further updates were given on the matter by Pakistan. Kasabs trial was delayed due to legal issues, as many Indian lawyers were unwilling to represent him. A Mumbai Bar Association passed a resolution proclaiming that none of its members would represent Kasab. However, the Chief Justice of India stated that Kasab needed a lawyer for a fair trial. A lawyer for Kasab was eventually found, but was replaced due to a conflict of interest. On February 25, 2009, Indian investigators filed an 11,000-page Chargesheet, formally charging Kasab with murder, conspiracy, and waging war against India among other charges. Kasabs trial began on 6 May 2009. He initially pleaded not guilty, but later admitted his guilt on 20 July 2009. He initially apologized for the attacks and claimed that he deserved the death penalty for his crimes, but later retracted these claims, saying that he had been tortured by police to force his confession, and that he had been arrested while roaming the beach. The court had accepted his plea, but due to the lack of completeness within his admittance, the judge  had deemed that many of the 86 charges were not addressed and therefore the trial will continue. Kasab could, and will almost certainly, be hanged if given the maximum penalty of death. Indian and Pakistani police have exchanged DNA evidence, photographs and items found with the attackers to piece together a detailed portrait of the Mumbai plot. Police in Pakistan have arrested seven people, including Hammad Amin Sadiq, a homeopathic pharmacist, who arranged bank accounts and secured supplies, and he and six others begin their formal trial on 3 Oct 2009 in Pakistan, though Indian authorities say the prosecution stops well short of top Lashkar leaders. In November 2009, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that Pakistan has not done enough to bring the perpetrators of the attacks to justice. On the eve of the first anniversary of 26/11, a Pakistani anti-terror court has formally charged seven accused, including LeT operations commander Zaki ur Rehman Lakhvi. Ujjawal Nikam, public prosecutor in the matter of Kasab, said there was ample evidence to show Kasab and the two arrested accused, Faheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed, were part of the conspiracy hatched in Pakistan to strike terror in the financial capital. He said foreign experts would be examined but their names and addresses should be kept secret. Nikam also said that further investigations in this case were on and supplementary chargesheet would be filed later. Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam told the court that Kasab, the prime accused in the case, would be charged with murder of 166 persons in the attack unleashed by Pakistan-based terror outfit LeT on November 26, 2008 here. Although he was not directly involved in killing all 166 persons, Kasab was an active member of conspiracy hatched in Pakistan to commit terror attacks in India, Nikam said in his brief preliminary address to open the case. Kazmi who had earlier defend to 30 accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blast trial, told the court he was willing to defend Kasab. Nikam said 1,820 witnesses had been cited but only potential among them will be examined. Prosecution would place 750 articles and 1350 documents as  evidence. Nikam told the court that Kasab was directly involved in seven different cases of terror attacks. These pertain to murder of five crew of Kuber boat, including its navigator Amar Singh Solanki, bomb blast in a taxi at suburban Vile Parle, firing at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Cama Hospital firing attack, killing of three police officers near Cama Hospital and theft of Skoda car and attack on police team near Chowpatty, he said. In all these cases, Kasab was involved with co-conspirator Ismail Khan, who was killed in police encounter near Chowpatty, Nikam alleged. He said there are five other cases in which Kasab has been charged with murder conspiracy, although he had not directly participated in them. These are firing in Hotel Taj Mahal, Hotel Oberoi, Restaurant Leopold Cafe, Nariman House and bomb explosion in a taxi at Mazgaon. The court took on record advocate Ejaz Naqvi as defence counsel for Faheem Ansari and Ahmed. Since Naqvi did not appear in morning session and Faheem sought time to appoint another lawyer, the court asked Faheems wife to call Naqvi to the court. Later, he came and told the court that he would continue to defend Faheem. Demanded trial by International Court The alleged gunman in the 2008 bloody siege of Mumbai said he should be tried by an international court because he does not expect justice in India. Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, 21, told a special court that police had falsely implicated him in the case. I should be tried in an international court, he told Judge M.L. Tahiliyani. Earlier Kasab retracted his confession that he sprayed gunfire into a crowd at the railroad station. He also said police tortured him into admitting having a role in the attacks. Kasab also said thathe wanted to call witnesses from Pakistan for his defense, and that he should be allowed to meet Pakistani officials. Witnesses would include a passport officer, he said, without providing other details. The judge asked him to file a petition through his attorney. Kasab could face the death penalty if convicted. Murder and conspiracy to wage war against India are among the charges he faces. Kasab told the judge he came to Mumbai as a tourist and was arrested 20 days before the siege began. On the day the attacks started, Kasab said police took him from his cell because he resembled one of the gunmen. They then shot him to make it look as if he had been involved in the attacks and re-arrested him, Kasab said. ANALYSIS It is mockery of the Indian Judicial System that even the charge is proved on the convict but the trail is going on. In the month of July last year the convict pleaded guilty of all the charges, but the Judge said that the other 86 cases have not been addressed therefore the trial should continue and in the month of September he again told the court that he was forced to plead for guilty by the Indian police. Has anyone think over it that if the verdict would have been given as soon as he pleaded guilty what would happen? Such kinds of questions were raised, and will raise on Indian Judicial System if it will continue to follow such kind of path. The Court should has given its verdict on the basis of the evidences produced by the public, eye witnesses and moreover the acceptance of the charge by the convict. The other matters could have been addressed later on. Even there was news that Kasab giggle over the question asked by the judge and made fun of it. This is a satire on the discipline of the courts. The judge has to order him to  behave in the court. This clearly shows that giving a chance of fair trial to convict made him to perceive as nothing is going to happen to him for the next ten years. People have such kind of mentality towards the Judicial System. If a suit has been filed in a court then the guilty has nothing to do with it for many years. Our Judicial System needs changes. This system has to be discarded and a new system should be introduced. Indian Police is not required to file a charge sheet of 11,000 pages and judges are needed not to give judgements running through thousand of pages. A simple and logical statement is sufficient for the parties involved in it and for the general public as well. In my view this trial of Ajmal Kasab should be finished because there is nothing more to think over it. Otherwise it will lead to expenditure of more and more money of the government on such a heinous criminal, which is of no worth.

Analysis Of Mercadonas Internationalizing Economics Essay

Analysis Of Mercadonas Internationalizing Economics Essay Mercadona is a 100 Spanish-owned Distribution Company within the supermarket segment. It is the largest chain of supermarkets in Spain. The executive President is Juan Roig. They have the SPB ´Ã‚ ´ policy, which means in Spanish Siempre Precios Bajos ´Ã‚ ´ (Always Low Prices). They are able to offer SPB because they buy their products directly from the sources, setting up long-term agreements with manufacturers. This Model is called `The Total Quality Model ´ (Mercadona, 2010). Recent research on retailers (Esade, 2011), shows that Mercadona is the leader in the ranking of house brands that are preferred by the customers. STATEMENT ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL PROFILE: Mercadona has establishments in many cities in Spain but has no presence overseas. In spite of the crisis, the profits of Mercadona are still growing, and they are strong enough to start internationalizing. Mercadona has increased its turnover an 8% up on the previous year and grew 4% in sales per floor area. It is possible to continue advancing and growing, even in the highly adverse times we are living in ´Ã‚ ´ (Juan Roig, Annual Report 2012). The process of internationalization of the leader supermarket network in Spain started a few years ago. Applying a strategy is very difficult and requires studies of the different target markets. Mercadona is a LSE (Large Scale Enterprises according to the EU definition) with more than 250 employees. LSEs characteristics (Sirkeci and Cawley 2012, p.5) are mainly risk-averse, focus on long-term opportunities, capacity to take advantages of economies of scales and scope and use advanced techniques for finding information. RATIONALE FOR INTERNATIONALIZATION: According to Svend Hollensen (2007, p.5), international expansion provides new and potentially more profitable markets; helps increase the firm ´s competitiveness; and facilitates access to new product ideas, manufacturing innovation and the latest technology. Mercadona is a mature and potentially global firm which capability to internationalize. It is prepared for globalization, basing in the nine strategic windows of Solberg (1997). (See appendix 2) ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS TARGET MARKETS: To decide the target market is important to consider the geographic the physic and the cultural distance (Johanson and Vahlne, 1977 cited in Hollense, S, 2007, p.244). According to the geographic distance, the nearest markets are Portugal, Morocco, Italy and France (Brief summary in appendix 3). Analyzing the physic distance, Italy is the nearest one because the culture is very similar. Portugal is also very similar, but is geographically so near than before or after, Mercadona will have presence there and it is not necessary to study the market. Analyzing Morocco is also very similar but the religion is different and this factor may difficult the expansion. France is discarded based on the physic distance and the competitive rivalry. We just have Italy, and according to Mercadona ´s characteristics this is the most interesting country (El Confidential, 2012), a very close country psychologically and geographically. The protectionist regulation could be avoided by acquiring a super market chain of the country. Mercadona has a group there, directed by Francisco Espert, which is managing purchases from suppliers and studying the characteristics of the local sector of distribution (Carlos Herranz, 2012). Mercadona is trying to find the best partner for the internationalization, maybe acquiring Esselunga ´Ã‚ ´ (A. Caparà ³s, 2006) which is very similar as Mercadona. But is so much similar that would be very difficult to change the present culture. (add other approaches to analyse the target markets) ANALYSIS OF THE CHOSEN TARGET MARKET- ITALY: Italian retail market has several key characteristics are for example highly fragmented and a limited international presence (see appendix 3). Recent research on Italy ´s Grocery (Euromonitor, 2012), grocery retailers had seen their sales increasing by 1% to 122à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ billion in 2011, although grocery retailing stores sales are expected to decline slightly over the forecast period. In spite of the financial crisis, Italy is maintaining as one of the biggest economies in the world and it is consider as a country with high standards for business, investments and trade. Mercadona, if internationalize in Italy, would be on the Northern Italy, in which the population is higher, most of the between 15 and 64 years old, that are the commonly customers in grocery. According to the political and legal factors, Italy has a stable government and nowadays they are removing several bottlenecks to facilitate bureaucratic burdens on citizens and SMEs. Finally, the technology in Italy is developed. Carrefour has self-scanning and self-payment machines, Esselunga was the first Italian supermarket chain in introducing online shopping and Coop uses ZBD ´s epaper. Mercadona will not have problems in introducing its technology in Italy. A deeply analysis of the economy, demography, politic and legal factors and technology is available in appendix 4. COMPETITORS ANALYSIS: If Mercadona decide to internationalize in Italy, It would have to compete with big retailers, like Carrefour and Auchan, and local leaders such as Coop, Conad, Esselunga y Selex. According to Graziella Ascenzi (Expansion, 2012), the Italian retailing market is very fragmented between small and big firms, with regional differences based not only in gastronomy traditions but also on households income. In the north of Italy (Target Market) there are many competitors for Mercadona. Detailed regional ´s competitors research and competitor ´s company descriptions are available in appendix 5. CUSTOMER ANALYSIS: Customers in Mercadona are known as the bosses ´Ã‚ ´ (Mercadona, 2011).Demand is driven by consumer income and demographic trends. In Italy consumers are being more interested in private labels and cut-price promotions. (Grocery Retailers in Italy, 2012). Italian consumers are moving away from expensive expenses and looking for discounted prices. This could be a competitive advantage for Mercadona, whose prices are low. Supermarket retailers have increased the private label range which helps Mercadona to introduce its house brands. Moreover, Mercadona ´s supermarkets have an average retail area of between 1300 and 1500 square meters (Mercadona, 2012), and as it is said in the research, hypermarkets with a selling space of 4,500 square meters appears to struggle to remain attractive and customers are moving towards those supermarkets bigger than 1,200 sp. meters which are often placed in more reachable areas. Here we could consider another advantage for Mercadona ´s strategy. More information is detailed in appendix 6. POTENTIAL POSITIONING: Mercadona has low prices (according to their policy SPB ´Ã‚ ´) and high quality. The main competitor in Italy (Esselunga) is situated very near so it could be more difficult for Mercadona to set up their business, but it is easier for them to face the situation with their `Total Quality Model ´. RECOMMENDATION: In my opinion, Mercadona should internationalize, starting in Italy with which Spain has very similar culture (Mediterranean Food, for example) and geographically is near too. According to a recent research in the Wall Street Journal (see appendix 7), it is strong enough to face the internationalization and the potential competitors that will have. A method could be buying a grocery retailer in the target market and learn of it before the establishment of their own brand. APPENDICES: APPENDIX 1: The company employs over 70,000 people, all of them with permanent contracts. Their goal is to satisfy the daily food , cleaning, hygiene and pet care needs of the more than 4.6 million households that do their grocery shopping at Mercadona every day ´Ã‚ ´. (Mercadona, 2012). It has establishments in 46 provinces in Spain in 15 Autonomous Communities and represents a 13.5% share of Spains total food retail space while contributing to the dynamics of the commercial environments in which they are located. The Total Quality model had been a success in terms of company growth and profitability, sustained by the success of Mercadona ´s high investments in employee training and satisfaction (Mercadona, 2010). SOURCE: adapted from Mercadona ´s Annual Report ´Ã‚ ´ (2011) Mercadona is also well-know because of the good quality of their house brands as for example Hacendado ´Ã‚ ´ that is used for food, Bosque Verde ´Ã‚ ´ used for cleaning products or Deliplus ´Ã‚ ´ for hygiene products. They buy products from a manufacturer and put their own name on the products. SOURCE: adapted from Mercadona ´s Annual Report ´Ã‚ ´ (2011) APPENDIX 2: Source: Adapted from Solberg (2007) Solberg (1997) discusses the conditions under which a company should `stay at home ´ or `strengthen the global position ´ as two extremes. (Hollensen, S, 2007). Mercadona is situated in the window number 6, mature according to the preparedness for internationalization (growth, profit and good basis for dominating the international markets) and potentially global according to the industry globalism (which is determinate by the international marketing environment). APPENDIX 3: The Italian retail market has several key characteristics. It is highly fragmented; The top 10 retailers have generated only 20% of retail sales in 2008 compared to 29% in Spain 43% in the UK. International retailers have a limited presence, although Carrefour, Auchan and Spar have all gained a place within the top 10.  Internet retailing is growing too, but has less presence than in other West European markets, accounting 2% of sales in 2008 in contrast to an average of 5% for the region as a whole (Euromonitor, 2009). Mercadona has a website in which you can buy your grocery and then that will be sent to your home. This could increase the internet retailing in Italy. Cuota+obj+Mercadona APPENDIX 4: ECONOMY: The Italy Economy is one of the most developed with a per capita GDP higher than the EU average (Economy Watch, 2010). Most of the Economy is based in the tourism; because it is the world ´s fifth most visited country in the world due to its history and culture. Because if the crisis the rate of unemployed has been on the rise in the past few years with levels of 8,4% (OCDE, 2010) with a labour force of 25,05 million (International Living, 2012). According with the World Bank, Italy has been categorizes as a country with high standards for business, investments and trade. In 2012, Italy ´s GDP was US$ 1.771,14 a bit lower than past years but it is remained one of the biggest economies in the world during the financial crisis. DEMOGRAPHY: Italy currently has the forth-largest population in the Europe Union and the 23rd-largest population worldwide (Demography in Italy, 2012). The highest density is in the Northern Italy. Milan is the most populated city in Italy with 7.4 million of citizens. About 69% of the population is between 15 and 64 years old (This range of years is the one that buy the most). 98,4% of the population is able either to read or to write. There are different religions, predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community. (Kmike, 2012) POLITICAL AND LEGAL FACTORS: Italy has been a democracy since the end of World War II. It is a republic in which the president is elected by popular vote. Italy has a  bicameral  legislature consisting of a 315-member Senate and a 630-member Chamber of Deputies. Taxation in Italy is quite a complicated issue because there are numerous taxes that each citizen has to pay. Moreover taxation is high, representing 43.3 percent of the GDP. However, the number and quality of the public services are some justification for high taxes, and measures to simplify the tax system have been introduced since 1998.  Income tax  accounts for 34.9 percent of total tax revenues, while  value-added tax  (VAT) contributes 35.4 percent. In addition, local governments  levy  other  indirect taxes. (Encyclopedia of the Nations, 2010) For a long time, larger chains were discouraged by the difficulty of gaining planning permission for larger format stores, but this has become easier since the reduction of planning guidelines in 1998 (Euromonitor, 2009). The current administration has removed several regulatory bottlenecks to economic activity which could increase GDP growth by around 0.3%-0.4% per year over a decade, easing bureaucratic burdens on citizens and SMEs (OCDE, 2012). TECHNOLOGY: Mercadona does not skimp in technology and it was the retailer in Spain using the scan barcodes and it owns automated logistics warehouses just outside Madrid (Computers monitor deliveries from suppliers and organise shipments to stores). Mercadona also has online shopping available at their website. In Italy, competitors use technology too. For example, Carrefour has self-scanning and self-payment machines, Esselunga Sharpens its Pricing Strategy with Oracle ® Retail Planning Platform and it was also the first supermarket to introduce the online shopping (Oracle, 2012), and Coop has introduced de ZBD ´s epaper reflecting the technological style ´ of their shops (Retail Systems, 2010). APPENDIX 5: Mercadona ´s competitors are detailed here for the different parts of Northern Italy: In Lombardy, the market is dominated by Esselunga with a 27,7% of the market share, followed by Carrefour and Auchan (10%) andCoop (8%). In Veneto, Selex is the leader with a 33,3% of the share. Far away it is followed by Despar (10,9%) and Coop (9,5%). In Piedmont Carrefour is the first supermarket with a share of 20%, in second position is Coop (18,7%) and with a 12,6% of the share it is Selex. In Friuli Venezia-Giulia, Coop controlled the 27,9% of the grocery, followed by Despar (23,3%) and Selex (10,6%). In Trentino-Alto Adige Agorà ¡, Despar and Coop covered respectively a 31,4%, 24,5% and 22,3% of the share. Finally, in Valle d ´Aosta the C3 group owners a 39,7 per cent of the market followed by Carrefour with a 27,5% and Conad with a 17,1%. COOP: Their vision is Together to the top. It motivates them to do our very best in every way, each day. Their corporate profile expresses how they perceive their work: close, diverse, distinctive, innovative and partnership-oriented. (Coop, 2012) leitbild_pyramide-en ESSELUNGA: Esselunga is a leading Italian grocery store chain, with supermarkets and hypermarkets in northern Italy. The Italian grocery chain has long been rumoured to be a takeover target of foreign retailers because it operates in some of the richest regions in Italy. The company has been busy opening new stores and remodelling existing locations. Founded in 1957,  Esselunga is owned by Supermarkets Italiani S.p.A., and controlled by its  founder and Chairman Bernardo Caprotti and  family.  (Hoovers, 2012) CARREFOUR: Over the past 40 years, the Carrefour group has grown to become one of the worlds leading distribution groups. The worlds second-largest retailer and the largest in Europe, the group currently operates four grocery store formats: hypermarkets, supermarkets, cash carry and convenience stores. The Carrefour group currently has over 9,500 stores, either company-operated or franchises. Carrefour ´s three values are: Committed, Caring and Positive that bring them closer to their customers and consumers and reflect their personality. (Carrefour, 2012) In the figure they are briefly explained the five forces of the Porter Model that could be related with Mercadona. APPENDIX 6: In Mercadona, the customers are referred as The bosses ´Ã‚ ´. The Italian consumption has raised 1,6 percent year to patterns seen before 2007. But the spending is falling down (In 2008-2009 it decreased until 1999 levels) because of the recession. Spending less on vacations, food and clothing have brought overall spending to the levels seen in 1999. The Euro zone ´s third largest economy is recovering from its post-war recession. (Deepa, B. 2011)