Neaera the Great: An Explication of One Woman’s Movement to Power :: Creative Writing Essays

Preface Though we are discussing ancient times, this paper is not traditional academic work. The subject (and I mean that in more ways than one) of my focus is a woman named Neaera who is placed on trial for proclaiming herself and her children as citizens of Athens, even though she is widely viewed as a prostitute of foreign birth. My central contention throughout this discussion is that she is a woman of extraordinary courage and to an incredible degree, takes control over her circumstances and makes powerful choices. In tune with this description, I choose to write in a style that accurately reflects the reverence that I hold for Neaera. Rather than an analytical exchange of observation, I intentionally take the tone of someone who is much like a boxing promoter. I place myself firmly in Neaera’s corner and instead of articulating her greatness through the shadowy form of a third person who remains academically objective and unattached, I take a direct stand for he r as a praiseworthy historical figure. To this end, I write from the first person with the motive to reveal and uplift Neaera’s impressiveness and I adopt a general manner of speech atypical to academic language. Additionally, I use of myriad of persuasive methods that are relatively uncommon and I do so because, fundamentally, Neaera is an uncommon and atypical character. In light of this revelation, the least that I can do is to make sure that my form and content align as a means of writing a paper that is outside of the norm in order to honor a woman who consistently chose her own way. In other (more effective) words, Neaera rocks and I’m willing to rock out in order to make sure that she gets the props that she deserves. Neaera the Great: An Explication of One Woman’s Movement to Power Consider the possibility that how we listen to people creates the way life will be for them as well as for ourselves. Is this a radical statement? Perhaps. Many of us hold fast to the idea that we are the controllers of our own fate (myself included) and that, for instance, even if someone listened to us as if we were never going to amount to anything that would ever resemble success, we would eventually triumph in the end (especially against the odds stacked against us by would be detractors).

Are the Royal Family a Luxury we can no Longer Afford?

Cheers rise from the jubilant crowd as the crowning moment we’ve all been waiting for finally arrives. Thousands fill the Mall, craning their necks as Queen Elizabeth II steps out onto her balcony, offering a smile to her adoring subjects. Clad in her bedazzled hat, she surveys the scene: a vast sea of British flags, frantic in their support of sixty years on the throne, waving in time to a raucous rendition of God Save the Queen. It probably never entered anyone’s heads that the funding was taken from their taxes as they donned absurd red, white and blue creations in the name of patriotism.No one asked how much it was costing. Or who was paying for the whole shebang! I wasn’t bothered at the time either, nor the school kids and workers, happy for a day off and an excuse to watch telly. Those who went to see it in person couldn’t even see the Queen properly, unless they were pressed against the gates of Buckingham Palace. If they could, they weren’t able to see each Swarovski crystal they had paid for on her outfit. Whilst she was living it up, waving to her subjects, I reckon she was trying to push one nagging thought to the back of her mind.That by letting the country take the day off, good old Liz had set us back ?1. 2 billion. I’m sure a recession is when a country has no money to spend, which explains the job losses and major cuts being made. So where is this money coming from? As it turns out, the taxpayers have already paid for staging the Jubilee concert, the crowd control and the enormous television screens so everyone could watch the event unfold from the Mall. They never asked if we wanted to fritter our taxes on such a frivolous event, as opposed to something that would benefit us, like, perhaps, digging us out of recession.The day may have boosted public spirit, but spirit won’t pay the bills, especially in these times of supposed austerity. The argument from those in charge was that the tourism gene rated would boost the economy. They sold the rights to the coverage to over one hundred and forty countries around the world, hoping it would cover much of the cost, if not make a profit, which would go to the Diamond Jubilee Trust. The Trust is designed to benefit countries in the Commonwealth, and ‘deliver iconic projects †¦ that are a fitting and enduring tribute to Her Majesty the Queen’, according to their website.These include investments in areas such as sport for youths, helping the disabled, and protecting our country’s heritage. Whether or not the money was raised seems to be an undisclosed matter, perhaps a stark indication that the profit they originally anticipated wasn’t reached. The fact that the Diamond Jubilee is being celebrated worldwide perhaps shows what a prominent figure the Queen is the whole world over. Maybe that has gone to her head, as it is no doubt her British loyalists paying for the commuting and security for her.Why sh ould we cough up so she can swan off to Timbuktu or the like? Perhaps she’s caught onto the fact that her position isn’t quite what it used to be when the monarchy could order a criminal to be beheaded as easily as calling their maid for a cup of tea. Perhaps she’s upset now that she has so few powers, besides handing out awards to heroes and celebrities. She even had a role in the James Bond sketch for the Olympics to boost her appeal.It’s sad to see what antics the old dear has been reduced to just to gain public appreciation, but then again, maybe it’s time she paid attention and realised that her position doesn’t have the same status it used to. When you tot up all dear Queenie’s accounts though, it turns out she’s only got a meagre ?310 million for herself, which must be a hideous hardship for the 86 year old. How she copes with only being 262nd on the Sunday Times Rich List I’ll never know. If you can’t be t he richest person in your own country then what’s the point?All the tireless hours she devotes to us, the hard work she puts in and she’s still not number one. Seems unfair, but wouldn’t you work as hard if the reward was a private jet to ferry you around the world, and a team of security to protect you. I would be more than happy to put in more effort if I was presented with such lavishness in return. But I think that, despite her obvious money troubles (?310 million of them! ), it’s good she pays council tax. Paying her way in her own country is an honourable thing to do. She doesn’t have to, but the point is, she chooses to.I’m sure she’d be willing to pay the full amount too, if the special rate arranged for her wasn’t so appealing. ?1,375 for a palace, what a bargain! That’s the same amount my parents pay for their three-bedroom house in Scotland. Something doesn’t quite add up. Central London location, more bedrooms than I care to count, and still paying less than most people in Britain. Probably less than some people hit hardest by poverty. But they don’t mind, at least she pays it, right? Figures from the Queen’s accounts show that we each paid 52p towards the upkeep of the Royal Family last year.The money is from taxes, which I am sure are supposed to go towards running vital public services that will benefit us. Do the Queen and family fit that bill? I suppose they provide a service of sorts: going out of their way to support charities and appear at important events, showing the nation what wonderful leadership we have. That’s around ?35 million per year we pay to keep Her Maj though, which could pay for any number of things, from a better justice system to better medical research to help save the lives of her people.Surely she can see (with or without her glasses) that our taxes could be put to better use. Although, it’ll soon be more than 52p weâ€℠¢re spending, with the wonderful announcement of Kate and Wills expecting their first child. Someone else to splash out on. Two private consultants at the prestigious King Edward VII hospital examined Kate after being admitted with ‘hyperemesis gravidarum’ or acute morning sickness. It must have been very acute to warrant two consultants, each on a salary of around ?125,000 a year.Surely, as professionals, it would have only taken one to confirm she was pregnant and it was causing her ill-health. All that attention and she’s not even blood-related to the Royals; she’s only married to the second-in-line. Perhaps it’s because this child, be it a boy or a girl, will one day be ruling our country. Then again, if their spending keeps spiralling, there won’t be much of a country to run. Maybe we can no longer afford the Royal family. Rather like Gran’s best china, they’re only brought out on special occasions to add some glamour.The r est of the time they sit on a very grand shelf gathering dust until they are needed again. Then they must be polished at great expense by us to make sure they are looking magnificent for their sporadic appearances. Are the costs of storage and upkeep worth maintaining a traditionally nostalgic Britain on the rare instance that they are required to appear at an event? Cutting the budget for the Monarchy may need to be something that is considered soon, or else the Royals will find themselves out of the luxury they are so accustomed to.

AltaPointe Health Systems Company Essay

Define a value chain and the significance of the center of gravity. Please also provide an example of a value chain from your place of work or from a company that you have researched. A value chain is a set of activities that are associated together that start with raw materials from suppliers, then goes to a set of activities in which are involved in marketing a certain product, and then ends with providers developing the final properties to the vital purchaser. Value chains can usually be split into two parts: upstream and downstream. The upstream deals where the company begins, how it develops, and what it produces. Then, downstream starts with where the goods, for example, are being transported and how it distributes to suppliers. A company’s center of gravity is the most important part of the company and what the essential proficiencies are. It is usually where the company began, according to Galbraith. It is also where the company stands the strongest. In other words, whatever may be there strongest suit is what the company’s center of gravity is. My company that I work for, AltaPointe Health Systems, can be used as an example of a value chain. AltaPointe Health Systems is a community based company that provides services of mental health to consumers that are struggling mentally and/or patients that are struggling with substance abuse issues. We have two hospital facilities (for adults and children), many residential homes, and also outpatient services. Since the primary focus of a value chain is to study the company of value-creating events, AltaPointe’s surfaces around one primary vision and that is psychiatry. Our value chain starts with having patients who come in (voluntary or involuntary) who are mentally ill or abusing substances. They tell us what is going on and our psychiatrists make an analysis based on their assumption of the patient’s sickness. They decide whether or not our facility is right for them (especially if they come in voluntary). Our doctors and nurses have daily activities with them; whether it is group sessions or one-on-one with the  social worker and doctor, decide what is causing their problems, and make a decision on what is the best way to treat them. The patients then stay for however long it takes to get the patient stable and on the correct medications, and then send them onto our outpatient facilities where they will see a doctor once a month. In this case, our materials that we need to carry on our facilities would be: beds, medications, and supplies for nurses and staff. Activities that are involved in keeping our services are: having mentally ill patients that need psychiatric help and pay to come see us. Without them, we would not be a company. As far as distributors getting the final goods: in our case, it would be our patients getting better and having our name talked about in an extremely good way to the community and other communities near us. If we have happy patients, we will have a successful business that keeps running. Our CEO also works with Bryce Hospital in Tuscaloosa, which is another psychiatric inpatient facility. Businesses like these, are what helps us to stay open and help one another out. In what ways may a corporation’s structure and culture be internal strengths or weaknesses? Look at your organization, and analyze its structural and cultural strengths and weaknesses. How can the weaknesses be improved? There are three basic types of organizational structures. They are simple structures, functional structures, and divisional structures. Simple structures don’t have any product categories and is designed for small organizations. Functional structures are for medium-sized companies that have several products. Lastly, divisional structures are for large companies that have many product lines in different industries. A corporation’s structure can be a company’s strength and/or their weakness. If the correct structure is developed correctly, then the business can grow and thrive like it should. If the wrong structure is built, then the company could have problems operating correctly. A corporation’s structure has to get its strength from the foundation, because without the foundation you don’t have anything to build on. Based on these three structures is how you want to choose your foundation for the company/business. However, if you do choose the wrong structure, then the business could fall apart because people will not know what their accurate role is within the organization. It is almost  as if everyone would get confused on what they should be doing. Corporate culture is where the beliefs, expectations of a company, and values come together within members of the organization and is passed on from one group of employees to another. A strength of culture could be the organization’s ability to relate with one another and able to get along and be civil with other employees. It is also to have the respect of values that the CEO and other leadership members have for the company. Weaknesses would be the exact opposite. If employees do not understand what the culture is for the company or do not show respect to it, it could make a company fall really fast. Employees are a huge part of a company and without them, you have absolutely nothing. They have to have the ability and want to have respect for others and the management team. For the company I work for, our organizational structure would be a simple structure, because it is a small organization. Our internal strengths would include having the right management. I believe we have top workers that are our chief officers and are able to make excellent decisions. They are always on top of the issues that need to be worked out and help manage the Board of Directors meetings. Our foundation has always been a good one and they keep our company running in good condition at all times. Our biggest structural weakness is our employees not knowing where they stand within the company. Our top managers have difficulty with relating to our other employees whom are not in top management. We have so many employees that work within the hospitals that include: nurses, behavioral aides, security, etc., and our chief officers or hospital administrators do not take the time to try to see if they have any needs or concerns within the company. This is where our company starts making mistakes. This could be an easy fix by making sure our managers take the time to speak with them. They need to start having meetings with other employees and ask what their ideas are and what needs to be improved. As far as cultural strengths, ours is following expectations. Our employees might not like it sometimes, but they know what our CEO expects out of them. They know they cannot call in sick every time something goes wrong and they know their number one priority is the patients’ needs. Our cultural weakness is definitely communication and feedback. If something  goes wrong within one of our hospitals, it is because there was a lack of communication or someone did not speak up when they needed to. This is when the patients start getting ill and irritated. It is completely unnecessary. If our employees would care a little more about what maybe could go wrong, and communicate more than what they are doing, everything would be a lot different.

How Are the 5 Principles of Politics Manifested?

How are the 5 Principles of Politics manifested in the documentary Last Man Standing: Politics, Texas Style? The documentary: ‘Last Man Standing: Politics, Texas Style’ tells the story of two sets of elections in Texas in the year of 2002. The main election shown is the race for State Representative, between the incumbent, Rick Green and his opponent, Patrick Rose. As well as this, the election for state Governor between Perry and Sanchez is also shown.Throughout the film, the five principles of politics: The History Principle, The Rationality Principle, The Institution Principle, The Collective-Action Principle and The Policy Principle, manifest themselves in many different ways. The first aspect of The 5 Principles is The History Principle. This principle is concerned with how everything to do with politics got to be like it is today. This includes: Why institutions are the way they are, why certain groups of voters choose to vote for certain candidates and how past ev ents can affect politics and elections particularly. This principle is demonstrated very clearly in the documentary.Firstly, Texas was historically a democratic state but this has changed in recent times and it is clear that in recent history, republicans have a better record in elections in Texas. The documentary explains that during the ‘technological boom’ in Austin, a lot of new voters moved into this area and into Texas in general. The people were predominantly white but the minority groups were also growing which meant that Texas good very easily swing towards the democrat or republican side. One political commentator in the documentary said when talking about voters in Texas, ‘They go out there, find a Republican and they vote for them’.This shows that at the time of the election this election, the Republican Party were favorites and so therefore was Rick Greene. In this particular case, of the Republican rise, it is clear that religion and more spec ifically the activity of churches has also had a significant impact on this rise and therefore on the shaping of politics. Furthermore, in the other election followed by the documentary, Tony Sanchez, a Hispanic man, was running. We learn that it was going to be very difficult for Sanchez to win votes because historically, Hispanic politicians have found it very difficult to do so in Texas.These points also show that historical activity in an area, in this case Texas, can influence politics. Perhaps the most significant way that the History Principle manifests itself in the documentary is through the accusations towards Rick Green that arose one month before the Election Day. He was accused by media of having worked for a supplement business and this was seen as unethical activity by the much of the public of Texas and this indeed showed in the results of the election. This story shows that past events can influence and effect the decision of voters and is a clear demonstration of t he History Principle.The second principle is The Rationality Principle. This principle explains that all political behavior has a purpose. This behavior can range from a simple conversation between friends about the current political situation to The President of the USA making political speeches but it always has a reason and a purpose. In the documentary, this principle is highlighted in several ways. The political behavior of voters is demonstrated when they are interviewed and asked who they are going to vote for.Some voters were very blunt in saying that they were going to vote Republican, simply because they believed that Texas should be a Republican state and that is what they had always voted Republican. On two occasions, voters implied that they were planning to vote for Patrick Rose simply because of his looks. These two examples show how different factors can influence the political behavior of voters. Furthermore, the behavior of the politicians themselves is shown throu ghout the documentary because most of everything that the politicians do is politically orientated.Firstly, it is clear that throughout their campaigns, both Green and Rose talk negatively about each other. When planning and giving their political speeches they attempt to take negative aspects of each other and present these to the voters to try to better their own chance in the election. An example of this was when Rose was talking to voters and explained to them that the other candidate, Green was not from Texas where as he was, clearly an attempt to down his opponent.Another clear example of this was when Rose attempted to take advantage of the stories that came out about Green by going to the newspaper for support and producing a television commercial. Exactly the same technique was used by Perry towards Sanchez in the race for state Governor, again an attempt to down his opponent by releasing the story. This is the first significant aspect of behavior shown by both politicians. Other aspects of politician behavior were shown throughout the documentary including: constantly expressing their own views, visiting households to talk to voters. All of hese factors explain the fact that the politicians have a clear reason behind their behavior, whether it is attempting to down their opponent or talking about themselves, the majority of their behavior is concerned with simply winning votes, which is called electoral connection. The third principle is the Collective Action Principle. This is the idea that all politics is collective action. In theory, political leaders should act on behalf of voters and act as a voice. However conflict is always likely due to self-interest of the politician as well as the activity of bargaining between politicians and political parties.This principle is shown in the documentary. Firstly, both politicians engage a lot with voters and one reason that they do this is to try to understand what the voters want from their representative. This demonstrates the theory that politics is collective action and that agendas set by politicians can be a direct result of the opinions and demands of the voters. However, the ideology that political leaders should echo their voters is not realistic and conflict between the voter’s opinion and the individual needs of the politician can be seen throughout the documentary.Often during the campaign, both Green and Rose made public speeches in which they would mention their plans or agendas if they were to be elected. These statements were often met with applause or cheering from the audience and this shows that that the politician may in fact be saying these things to simply please that particular group and therefore win votes, meeting his individual needs and not necessarily the needs of the other voters.The fourth Principle is the Institution Principle which explains the rules and procedures that provide incentives for political behavior, thereby shaping politics. These in stitutions provide authority for politicians and also highlight the areas in which they can govern this authority. This principle is mainly concerned with the rules and procedures for Politicians once they are in office and active so it does not arise a lot. However, the rules of this particular election were illustrated during the documentary.Although the politicians are able to use almost any technique they want to win votes and minimize votes for their opponent, there were some procedures that had to be followed. During debated between the politicians and the final debate before the election between Green and Rose particularly, there was a concise structure to be followed through giving speaking and then answering questions. Another way in which this principle is apparent in the documentary is during the final Election Day when the political parties are shown counting the votes from different areas in the state.The aspect of delegation within political parties is also one that is mainly seen after elections, but is shown in minor ways during the election campaign. We see that politicians would delegate responsibility in the campaign to other individuals to within their party. The final principle is the Policy Principle. This explains that political outcomes are the products of individual preferences and institutional procedures. Again, this principle is demonstrated mainly after the elections and during the time when the politicians are actually in office.This would be demonstrated when agendas are produced by the politicians, whether these agendas are as a result of the individual preferences of the voters or of the politicians themselves. The History Principle, the Rationality Principle, and Collective action principle are illustrated in several ways throughout the documentary. On the other hand, both the Institution Principle and the Policy Principle are not highlighted as much by the documentary, simply because these principles become more apparent afte r the elections and during the politicians actual reign in Government.

The Capital Structure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 17

The Capital Structure - Essay Example Besides this, debt is considered cheaper by the providers of finance and it attracts tax relief on interest payments. The greater the level of debt, the more will be the financial risk to the shareholder of the company. Hence the return required would be higher. This also helps in establishing the gearing mix of a company. The higher a company is geared, the higher would be the risk involved. There are many factors that contribute towards the availability of different sources of funds. Gearing is one major issue which has a critical effect on the capital structure of a company. The higher a company is geared, the more difficult it would be for the company to raise debt finance as the institution giving out the debt would be exposed to greater risk. One view is that there is an optimal capital mix at which the average cost of capital, weighting according to the different forms of capital employed, is minimised. As for gearing increases, the return expected by ordinary shareholders beg in to rise in order to compensate them for the risk resulting from a larger share of profits going to the providers of debt. The cost is comparatively lower than the cost of equity because debt is relatively less risky from debt holder’s point of view as a debt would give the debt holder the legitimate amount of debt to which he/she is entitled to, besides the interest income, the debt can be made secure. Interest rates are usually higher on long-term debt as compared to short-term debts as the lender would require the compensation for the increased period of time he/she is deprived of his/her funds. A company finds itself committed to long-term debts with adverse interest charges and huge penalties if the debt is paid up early. Inflation and uncertainty about changes in future interest rates are one of many reasons why companies hesitate to borrow long-term debts at increased rates of interest.

Operational Management Business Plan of a Special Event Essay

Operational Management Business Plan of a Special Event - Essay Example Siegel (2009, Pg. 21) says that this domain constitutes an important and critical part of business that governs the efficiency and quality with which products are manufactured or services are provided and involves numerous human intensive procedures. In fact, operations management also encompasses the effective distribution and supply of goods to customers. The history of operations management can be traced back to the Second World War when various researchers undertook complex studies to understand the various basic processes that influenced the course of army operations such as logistics, troop movement, supply routes etc (Pycraft, 2009, Pg. 43). This extensive focus on analyzing the pattern of military operations led to the evolution of military systems and provided the much needed insight into understand multilateral and interdisciplinary process that constitute the field of operations research. The discipline of operations research thus encompasses various scientific domains and depends on solutions like statistics, modeling and structured algorithms to provide some useful answers to complex problems that pertain to various business processes and operations within an organization. In this context, operations research does not rely much on considering the exact nature or area of specialization of the organization. According to McMahon (2007, Pg. 87), the sole purpose of employing operations research methods is to determine a scientific answer to a given complex scenario that can enhance the performance of the company and thus requires the collaboration of experts from several disciplines to understand the problem from a quantitative perspective. Thus, operations research provides numerous tools, methods and procedures that help solve many issues pertaining to operations management (Wagen, 2009, Pg. 63). Operations management is also influenced by industrial engineering that helps understand a given problem area from an engineering perspective and develop re quisite solutions. The current paper describes the usefulness of operations management in organizing special events like seminars and conferences. Various issues pertaining to event management like planning, purchasing, inventory management, logistics, budgeting and quality will be considered when describing the applicability of operations management to this particular business area. The manner in which different components work together in organizing a successful event and the role of operations management in reducing costs and ensuring profitability has been highlighted. Specifically, the paper discusses the usefulness of operations management in organizing a networking event for reputed firms such as an investment bank. Investment banks regularly organize such events to interact with potential customers, forge new contacts with major players in different industries and strengthen relationships with existing customers. Typical attendees to these events included high profile repres entatives from several prominent companies operating in various industries. Role of operations management in organizing events A networking event, such as the one discussed in this paper, is not just a luxurious business party, but is in fact an important marketing exercise for investment banks that is aimed at promoting their services through personal interaction with potential clients. While the event has to display the reputation and prominence of the investment bank, the primary goal of the event

An improvement of Intrusion Detection System using HCI Essay

An improvement of Intrusion Detection System using HCI - Essay Example Network/system specialists and administrators mostly know more about computer networks and systems than regular computer system owners. Some IDS users may have different duties than others. Therefore the time and effort required to detect attacks may not be the same. IDS users can be categorized from two perspectives: (1) their knowledge about network/system security management; and (2) the time and effort that they could put into intrusion detection. From the first perspective, different knowledge levels divide users into advanced, intermediate, and novice levels. From the second perspective, we see them as three types: keen users, regular users, and casual users. An IDS interface is expected to support numerous actions. Generally, the interface shall apply both graphs and text to help present information. SnortReader shall support adaptable functionality, which means that users are able to change its look and the behavior according to their needs. Another important point is that SnortReader shall provide real-time intrusion status information and enable users to locate intrusions quickly and accurately. All user actions are divided into two types: configuration related and data-navigation related.