International Expansion Strategy for BNP Paribas

Presentation The BNP Paribas bunch is a market head in the financial business with tasks in more than 75 nations. It has a solid nearness in Europe, Asia, and North America, where it gives speculation, business, corporate, and retail banking administrations. Retail banking covers direct financial administrations, for example, credit offices and home loans stretched out to individual customers.Advertising We will compose a custom report test on International Expansion Strategy for BNP Paribas explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More The motivation behind this report is to suggest a global extension system for BNP Paribas. The report breaks down the large scale ecological qualities of the Singaporean market, accessible chances and dangers, and BNP’s qualities and shortcomings in regard to its universal extension technique. Potential Target Market The Singaporean retail banking market has seen a quickened development in the course of recent years. The quickened deve lopment is anticipated to arrive at an estimation of $297bn by 2019 (MarketLine 2015). From 2010 and 2014, the market developed to an estimation of $228bn, averaging a yearly development pace of about 8%, which is higher than that of South Korea (MarketLine 2015). The huge development rate has made the Singaporean retail banking market profoundly serious in the Asia-Pacific region. The key sections driving the Singaporean retail banking market incorporate home loan and client credit. In 2014, contracts were esteemed at $168bn, which was identical to 74% of the market (MarketLine 2015). Conversely, the credit section was worth roughly $60bn, a likeness 26% of the market. In this view, BNP Paribas can use on its market head position in retail banking to extend its home loan and buyer credit administrations to the Singaporean market. Large scale ecological Characteristics of the Market Macro-natural qualities include the outside elements that are not under the immediate control of a firm. In this report, the PESTLE system will be utilized as a model for investigating the full scale ecological qualities of the Singaporean retail banking market. Political Singapore appreciates a moderately steady political and administration scene. The country’s able administration has supported serious capacities in numerous divisions, especially the assembling business. Singapore’s severe anticorruption strategy has seen it being evaluated among the best five nations with the least defilement record globally.Advertising Looking for report on business financial matters? How about we check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More thus, there has been an expanded progression of remote direct speculations into the nation in ongoing years. Singapore has a flourishing financial area with solid liquidity levels. As indicated by MarketLine (2015), the country’s administrative body, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), require s level 1 banks to keep up â€Å"capital proportions of above 9.0† (para. 8). Moreover, the authority expects banks to watch the Base III capital principles on capital sufficiency. Under this worldwide administrative system, banks must keep up an obligatory â€Å"common value proportion of 4.5%† to work in Singapore (MarketLine 2015, para. 12). The severe guidelines have guaranteed that banks keep up a high liquidity in any event, when money surges are rising. Singapore has exacting business guidelines that control outside firms going into its market. Any remote firm is required to enroll as a constrained organization before being permitted to work in Singapore. Moreover, guidelines sanctioned in 2007 specify that any private constrained organization must record yearly comes back with the country’s annual duty division (MarketLine 2013). In this manner, outside organizations working in Singapore can't keep their budgetary records classified. Monetary Singaporean economy depends on exchange and assembling. It has a business-accommodating condition that pulls in gigantic remote direct speculation inflows. The economy endured the 2009 downturn to develop at a yearly pace of 14.7% in 2010 (MarketLine 2013). Nonetheless, in 2011, the monetary development eased back to a low of 5.1% because of the budgetary emergency experienced in the EU. The powerlessness of the Singaporean economy to outside stuns is because of its receptiveness to universal firms and investors. The nation positions third all around in per-capita GDP and has a generally low assessment system (MarketLine 2015). The low expense rates make Singapore an alluring remote venture goal. Singapore stands apart as a budgetary center in the Asia-Pacific area. More than 123 banks work in the Singaporean economy with 117 of them being remote (MarketLine 2015). In general, the country’s financial scene is exceptionally appealing to remote speculation. Social Singapore positions hi gh as far as proficiency levels universally. The Singaporean government’s use on instruction comprises 3% of the country’s GDP with a great part of the assets going to rudimentary and optional training (MarketLine 2013). In advanced education, Singaporean establishments include among the best 20 colleges in the Asia-Pacific region.Advertising We will compose a custom report test on International Expansion Strategy for BNP Paribas explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More Singapore’s populace comprises of an unbalanced number of the older. The high number of older populace is brought about by the country’s low birthrate of 10.8 births per 1,000 people (MarketLine 2013). The developing old populace combined with the low birth rate will introduce budgetary and financial difficulties to the administration later on. The joblessness rate remains at 1.8%, down from 2.2% in 2010 (MarketLine 2015). The low joblessness rate is because of the continued monetary development in the nation. Innovation Singapore’s innovation scene is portrayed by a high versatile infiltration of 156.6 per 100 people (MarketLine 2015). The government’s ‘iN 2015 strategy’ plans to change Singapore into an innovation center point. Under this arrangement, the administration intends to subsidize different projects equipped towards animating the appropriation of advancements, for example, e-wellbeing in the nation. In 2012, Singapore score on protected advancements remained at 152.5 licenses per million individuals, which was higher than that of France (82.5). Singapore has additionally put resources into ‘e-learning’ and e-government to give the essential foundation to mechanical development. Lawful Singapore’s legitimate condition is portrayed by a low duty system and severe guidelines. As indicated by MarketLine (2015), the country’s corporate assessment, which remains at a pace of 17%, is among the m ost reduced in the Asia-Pacific district. The administration decreased the corporate assessment by a rate point to 17% in 2009, making it among the most reduced in the locale. The administration has additionally diminished the term it takes to enroll a business. It takes three days to enroll another organization contrasted with a normal of 12 days it takes in other OECD countries (MarketLine 2015). In addition, in the Asia-Pacific area, it takes a normal of three weeks to begin another business. Therefore, Singapore’s lawful condition is good for the development of business and industry. Condition Singapore’s condition strategy centers around vitality productivity. The nation attempted to improve its â€Å"energy effectiveness by 35% and reusing by 70%† constantly 2030 (MarketLine 2015). Singapore’s endeavors to build vitality proficiency will lessen the expense of working together in the nation. Be that as it may, the nation faces numerous natural diffic ulties in light of the fact that a large portion of its territory mass lies close to the ocean level. In this manner, its beach front regions are helpless against the impacts of rising ocean level in view of its long coastline. The Key Strategic Issues BNP’s solid situation in its market fragments is a wellspring of upper hand. Nonetheless, to be fruitful in the retail banking market in Singapore, the BNP Paribas bunch must use on its upper hands and qualities to make the most of the market openings and business dangers or difficulties that describe the outside environment.Advertising Searching for report on business financial aspects? How about we check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Find out More Openings Mobile Payment Systems The Singaporean individual money and versatile installment frameworks are key subsectors that offer open doors for development. BNP can wander into these two zones to expand its infiltration into this market. In 2007, BNP propelled a â€Å"mobile contactless installment system† in association with MasterCard (BNP Paribas 2015, para. 7). The multi-administrator portable arrangement, called Payez Mobile, brings retail banking administrations closer to the clients. BNP can gain by Singapore’s high portable entrance, at present assessed to be 156.6 per 100 individuals, to enter the retail banking market. Mobile arrangements, for example, Payez Mobile, that permit clients to deal with their exchanges can give the BNP a vital favorable position. Such arrangements can expand the firm’s perceivability in the retail banking market by permitting clients to pull back or store assets in their records through their cell phones. A coordinated portable arrangement that empowers clients to execute across various administrators is another way BNP can enter and develop in the Singaporean retail banking market. Individual Finance Personal money is packed with development open doors for new contestants. BNP as of now has an individual account division that was begun in 2007 in association with the UCB bank (BNP Paribas 2015). The BNP individual account has a decent potential for success of taking advantage of the open doors accessible in Singapore’s retail banking part. Through the individual fina

Relationships and Human Behavior Perspectives Essay

Looking into human practices from alternate points of view, including the five principle viewpoints of natural, learning, social and social, intellectual, and psychodynamic impacts, can now and again shed light on why people act the manner in which they do. Utilizing these points of view to survey how connections start, create, and are kept up can give a more profound comprehension and setting of this wonder. Confining adoration associations with these alternate points of view likewise assists with indicating how the viewpoints themselves contrast or are comparable according to how they think about connections as being framed and kept up. The organic viewpoint fights that inborn causes drive human conduct. In particular, this point of view expresses that the activities of the sensory system and hereditary heredity lead to various sorts of conduct (McLeod, 2007). From this viewpoint, hormonal responses and sentiments of fortification in the mind that are related with a specific individual lead individuals to begin connections (McLeod, 2007). Furthermore, the relationship is kept up on the grounds that people want to duplicate and give their own hereditary material to their posterity, and so as to drive this desire, the mind keeps on activating sentiments of delight and hormonal discharges to fortify the relationship between a given individual and nice sentiments (McLeod, 2007). This point of view is to some degree remarkable from different ones by they way it sees connections, since it guarantees that best in class psychological procedures are not even fundamental for a relationship to last; rather, just biochemical pr ocedures are required. The following sort of point of view, the learning viewpoint, asserts that learning through affiliation prompts explicit practices, and that people will for the most part figure out how to establish practices that they see are compensated (Mikkelson and Pauley, 2013). From this point of view, people structure connections since they see different connections, for example, those of their folks, remotely compensated, and come to relate the thought of â€Å"love† with remuneration. The prizes that one gets from a relationship, for example, consideration, empathy, or even monetary security, are related with â€Å"love† after some time, which fortifies the relationship and makes individuals more probable toâ maintain a relationship after they have been engaged with it for quite a while (Mikkelson and Pauley, 2013). Like the natural viewpoint, the learning point of view regards relationship conduct as something past humans’ cognizant control and doesn't really require cognizant idea, in spite of the fact that the learning viewpoint doesn't profess to know the inward procedures that drive it, and it requires that people have at any rate the capacity to learn with the end goal for them to be associated with connections (Mikkelson and Pauley, 2013). Social and social viewpoints guarantee that people are imbued with what establishes â€Å"right† conduct through socialization. Since individuals experience childhood, as a rule, in family units with wedded guardians, or if nothing else where the guardians date others, kids learn at an early stage that connections are adequate, yet really alluring (McLeod, 2007). This thought is additionally fortified through messages given to the kid through the media, their companions and other relatives, and a great many people they interact with, every one of whom regard â€Å"love† to be probably the most significant standard an individual can accomplish. People hence search out connections in their teenager years since they have been informed that it is a constructive goal to endeavor toward, and they are additionally fortified in their perspectives by their accomplice and other people who know them in the wake of dating or getting hitched, which drives the individual to proceed with their relationship (McLeod, 2007). This point of view is not normal for the learning and natural viewpoints in that it doesn't depend on reflexes or intrinsic drives, however rather requires complex idea, and, additionally, socialization; an individual living outside of society would almost certainly want to be seeing someone, to this viewpoint. The psychological point of view guarantees that human idea is the thing that drives all conduct. In this sense, at that point, people enter connections since they consider connections to be something that they want, and which will give them some sort of happiness or prize for searching out (Mikkelson and Pauley, 2013). On the off chance that they find that they do get some kind of advantage from dating an individual, they will settle on the choice to build up the relationship further, becoming familiar with the individual and maybe in any event, getting hitched, in the event that they accept that they are adequately perfect with the other individual for theâ relationship to last and keep on being fulfilling (Mikkelson and Pauley, 2013). This point of view, similar to the social and social viewpoint, is dependent on human idea as a driver of connections, yet the intellectual point of view esteems connections an individual decision instead of a consequence of cultural weight. Finally, the psychodynamic point of view fights that conduct is because of cooperations between the cognizant and the inner mind. A relationship may start in light of the fact that an individual from the other gender may help a person to remember the caring relationship they had with their folks, however so as to sublimate the wrong want for one’s guardians, the individual searches out a relationship with an individual outside of their family. The relationship is kept up in light of the fact that it furnishes the individual with sense of self satisfaction (McLeod, 2007). Like the psychological and social points of view, the psychodynamic viewpoint depicts connections regarding human idea and intellectual movement, however not at all like those different viewpoints, the psychodynamic standpoint accepts that people are will undoubtedly go into connections, since it attributes the conduct to inborn drives. In this sense, the psychodynamic point of view is fairly similar to the natural viewpoint. These alternate points of view, at that point, can give various kinds of knowledge into human connections. References McLeod, S. (2007). Brain science Perspectives. Recovered from http://www.simplypsychology.org/Mikkelson, A. C., and Pauley, P. M. (2013). Amplifying Relationship Possibilities: Relational Maximization in Romantic Relationships. Diary Of Social Psychology, 153(4), 467-485. doi:10.1080/00224545.2013.767776

Unpacking the Development Practioners Lab within the MPA-DP program COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

Unpacking the Development Practioner’s Lab within the MPA-DP program COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog One of the key reasons why I chose the MPA-Development Practice program at SIPA was its focus on building hard skills through workshops and innovative teaching methods that I would use later on in my professional career. For me, graduate school was going to be a bit of a hurdle as I had worked professionally for five years and clearly saw my strengths in practical work rather than academic theoretical learning. The DP-Lab was a perfect opportunity to learn with real cases and examples. The Development Practitioner Lab, or DP Lab, is a required course within the MPA-DP graduate program that spans two semesters. The lab methodically delivers hands-on training for high priority skills in the field of development practice. The course was designed by Professor André Corrêa dAlmeida, whos the program manager, and Laura Budzyna, MPA-DP 12. The lab spans three hours and brings each member of the cohort together for team-oriented and practitioner-led workshops. For me, it was a great way to first get to know my classmates and dive into the hard skills with the mentorship of an established practitioner. It consists of eight  labs each semester and has provided so much value to the students that it has gone from a one-credit pass/fail class to a one-point-five-credit letter graded course. Each semester, the DP Lab focuses on a different competency, complementing the knowledge learned in the programs core courses. Fall 2015 workshops have included:  Stakeholder Institutional Analysis;  Problem Mapping and Causal Analysis;  Logical Framework Analysis;  Spatial Analysis with ArcGIS; and  Mobile Data Collection. A sample of the collaborative ideas generated through teamwork in DP lab. The skills learned in DP Lab are used almost immediately, whether it is within other SIPA courses or the required MPA-DP Summer Field Placement. “DP Lab helped me gain and refine fundamental skills for development practitioners that I utilized in my Summer Field Placement with the National Disabled Peoples Organization of Timor-Leste, says Angela Kohama, MPA-DP 16. I was able to master these skills to the point that I am now the assistant for the course this fall, and anticipate using this development practitioner toolkit in my professional life after the MPA in Development Practice program.” Kohama adds she learned more about  qualitative data collection and program evaluation skills in the DP Lab. The DP Lab also provides a great opportunity to network and get to know leading development practitioners. Budzyna regularly teaches the workshop,  Monitoring and Evaluation, and now works at MIT’s D-Lab. After attending her workshop, Jimena Espinosa, MPA-DP 16, and Laura Lehman, MPA-DP 16, were both accepted as International Development Design Summit Monitoring Evaluation Fellows at the International Development Innovation Network, a partner network of MIT D-Lab. As fellows, they supported the organizational learning through monitoring and evaluation for International Development Design Summits in Colombia, Botswana and India. Other guest practitioners have included: Katherine Rockwell, Office of the UN Secretary Generals Special Envoy for Financing the Health MDGs and for Malaria; Kate Granger, Fintrac; Daniel Charette, Development Alternatives Incorporated; and Nikolas Katsimpras, Advanced Consortium on Cooperation, Conflict and Complexity, AC4,  Columbia University. If youre interested in learning more about the DP-Lab or about the MPA-DP program in general, feel free to email me! Top image:    Chukwudumebi  (Dumebi)  Ubogu  and Lina Henao collaborate on a DP lab assignment using their new ICT4D skills.

Selected Quotations by Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart was a pioneer in aviation, and set a number of records for firsts for women. In 1937, her plane disappeared over the Pacific, and while there are theories about what happened to her, there is not certain answer even today. Selected Amelia Earhart Quotations †¢ About her first airplane ride: As soon as we left the ground, I knew I had to fly. †¢ Flying may not be all plain sailing, but the fun of it is worth the price. †¢ After midnight the moon set and I was alone with the stars. I have often said that the lure of flying is the lure of beauty, and I need no other flight to convince me that the reason flyers fly, whether they know it or not, is the esthetic appeal of flying. †¢ Adventure is worthwhile in itself. †¢ The most effective way to do it, is to do it. †¢ I want to do something useful in the world. †¢ Please know that I am quite aware of the hazards. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others. [Last letter to her husband before her last flight.] †¢ Women must pay for everything. They do get more glory than men for comparable feats. But, they also get more notoriety when they crash. †¢ The effect of having other interests beyond those domestic works well. The more one does and sees and feels, the more one is able to do, and the more genuine may be ones appreciation of fundamental things like home, and love, and understanding companionship. †¢ The woman who can create her own job is the woman who will win fame and fortune. †¢ One of my favorite phobias is that girls, especially those whose tastes arent routine, often dont get a fair break.... It has come down through the generations, an inheritance of age-old customs which produced the corollary that women are bred to timidity. †¢ After all, times are changing and women need the critical stimulus of competition outside the home. A girl must nowaways believe completely in herself as an individual. She must realize at the outset that a woman must do the same job better than a man to get as much credit for it. She must be aware of the various discriminations, both legal and traditional, against women in the business world. †¢ ... now and then women should do for themselves what men have already done -- occasionally what men have not done -- thereby establishing themselves as persons, and perhaps encouraging other women toward greater independence of thought and action. Some such consideration was a contributing reason for my wanting to do what I so much wanted to do. †¢ My ambition is to have this wonderful gift produce practical results for the future of commercial flying and for the women who may want to fly tomorrows planes. †¢ In soloing -- as in other activities -- it is far easier to start something than it is to finish it. †¢ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward. †¢ Never do things others can do and will do if there are things others cannot do or will not do. †¢ Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldnt be done. †¢ Anticipation, I suppose, sometimes exceeds realization. †¢ There are two kinds of stones, as everyone knows, one of which rolls. †¢ Worry retards reaction and makes clear-cut decisions impossible. †¢ Preparation, I have often said, is rightly two-thirds of any venture. †¢ Amelia is a grand person for such a trip. She is the only woman flyer I would care to make such an expedition with. Because in addition to being a fine companion and pilot, she can take hardship as well as a man -- and work like one. (Fred Noonan, Amelias navigator for the around-the-world flight) †¢ A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves. †¢ Better do a good deed near at home than go far away to burn incense. †¢ No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves. †¢ I lay no claim to advancing scientific data other than advancing flying knowledge. I can only say that I do it because I want to. †¢ For the economic structure we have built up is all too often a barrier between the worlds work and the workers. If the younger generation finds the hurdle too absurdly high, I hope it will not hesitate to tear it down and substitute a social order in which the desire to work and learn carries with it the opportunity to do so. †¢ Like many horrid children I loved school, though I never qualified as teachers pet. Perhaps the fact that I was exceedingly fond of reading made me endurable. With a large library to browse in, I spent many hours not bothering anyone after I once learned to read. †¢ It is true that there are no more geographical frontiers to push back, no new lands flowing with milk and honey this side of the moon to promise surcease from man-made ills. But there are economic, political, scientific, and artistic frontiers of the most exciting sort awaiting faith and the spirit of adventure to discover them. †¢ In my life I had come to realize that when things were going very well indeed it was just the time to anticipate trouble. And, conversely, I learned from pleasant experience that at the most despairing crisis, when all looked sour beyond words, some delightful break was apt to lurk just around the corner. †¢ Of course I realized there was a measure of danger. Obviously I faced the possibility of not returning when first I considered going. Once faced and settled there really wasnt any good reason to refer to it. Poem by Amelia Earhart Courage is the price thatLife exacts for granting peace. The soul that knows it notKnows no release from little things:Knows not the livid loneliness of fear,Nor mountain heights where bitter joy can hear the sound of wings. Nor can life grant us boon of living, compensateFor dull gray ugliness and pregnant hateUnless we dareThe souls dominion.Each time we make a choice, we payWith courage to behold the resistless day,And count it fair. Letter from Amelia Earhart to Her Husband In a letter she gave to her future husband, George Palmer Putnam, just before their wedding in 1931, Earhart wrote: You must know again my reluctancy to marry, my feeling that I shatter thereby chances in work which means so much to me. In our life together I shall not hold you to any medieval code of faithfulness to me, nor shall I consider myself bound to you similarly. I may have to keep some place where I can go to be myself now and then, for I cannot guarantee to endure at all times the confinements of even an attractive cage. I must extract a cruel promise, and that is you will let me go in a year if we find no happiness together. About These Quotes Quote collection assembled by Jone Johnson Lewis. Each quotation page in this collection and the entire collection  © Jone Johnson Lewis. This is an informal collection assembled over many years. I regret that I am not be able to provide the original source if it is not listed with the quote. More Women Pilots If youre interested in Amelia Earhart, you might also want to read about Harriet Quimby, first woman licensed as a pilot in the United States; Bessie Coleman, the first African American to earn a pilots license; Sally Ride, the first American woman in space; or Mae Jemison, first African American woman astronaut.   More about women pilots is found in the Women in Aviation  Timeline, and more about women in space in the Women in Space timeline.

Twelver Shiites, or Ithna Ashariyah

Twelver Shiites, known in Arabic as IthnÄ  ‘AsharÄ «yah, or ImÄ miyÄ h (from Imam), form the principal branch of Shiite Islam and are sometimes synonymous with Shiitism, even though factions such as the IsmÄ Ã„ «lÄ «yah and ZaydÄ «yah Shiites do not subscribe to Twelver doctrine.   Alternate spellings include  IthnÄ  ‘AsharÄ «yah,  ImÄ miyÄ h,  and ImamiyÄ . Twelvers are the followers of the 12 imams they consider to be the only rightful successors of the Prophet Muhammad, beginning with Ali ibn Abu Talib (600-661 CE), Muhammads cousin and son-in-law, and ending with Muhammad ibn al-Hasan (born 869 CE), the 12th imam who--according to Twelver belief--will emerge and bring peace and justice to the world, becoming the ultimate savior of humankind (Muhammad never appeared publicly and is currently considered in major occultation as the Mahdi). Sunnis recognize Ali as the fourth caliph, but founding commonalities between Sunnis and Shiites end with him. Some Muslims have never recognized the first three as legitimate caliphs, thus forming the nucleus of Islams protesting Shiites. The seeming subversion never sat well with Sunnis, whose habit it became to mercilessly and brutally persecute Alis followers and assassinate subsequent imams, most spectacularly among those the killing in the battle of Hussayn  (or Hussein) Ibn Ali, the third Imam (626-680 CE), on the plains of Karbala. The killing is most famously commemorated in the annual rituals of Ashura. The copious bloodletting gave Twelvers their two most prominent characteristics, like birthmarks on their creed: a cult of victimology, and a cult of martyrdom. The Safavid Dynasty Twelvers never had an empire of their own until the Safavid dynasty--one of the most remarkable dynasties ever to have ruled Iran--was established in Iran in the 16th century and the Qajar dynasty in the late 18th century when Twelvers reconciled the divine and the temporal in the leadership of the reigning imam. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, through his 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, pushed the fusion of the temporal and the divine furthest, adding a layer of ideological expediency under the banner of Supreme Leader. A strategic revolutionary, in the words of writer Colin Thubron, Khomeini created his own Islamic state above Islamic law. Twelvers Today The majority of Twelvers--some 89%--reside in Iran today, with other large populations existing but being mightily oppressed in Azerbaijan (60%), Bahrain (70%), and Iraq (62%). Twelvers make up some of the most destitute populations in countries such as Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Pakistan as well. The three major legal schools of Twelver Shia Islam today include the Usuli (the most liberal of the three), the Akhbari (who rely on traditional religious knowledge), and the Shayki  (at one time absolutely apolitical, the Shaykis have since become active in the Basra, Iraq, government as its own political party).

Ted Baker Free Essays

The brief was to create an integrated campaign that articulates the Ted Baker brand in one of these four categories; watches, eyewear, footwear and fragrances. Free to work in any media and it can be displayed in the store swell as in the public domain. Using the Ted baker logo within the designs, free to work in any style and using any media. We will write a custom essay sample on Ted Baker or any similar topic only for you Order Now The requirements for the brief were simply 4 posters relating to the certain category we had chosen. Anything else provided would be optional extras. These posters would support the brand and help push the boundaries in terms of styling, attention to detail and quality. Sources of research were initially just images online, billboards etc.. I found with Ted Baker that their advertising campaigns were pretty limited. In Cabot Circus there’s a Ted Baker store with a few bits and bobs dotted around but they don’t sell glasses anyway so most of my research was left to depending on online resources. My research consisted of images with Ray-ban, their campaign ‘Never Hide’ is really well known and is very recognised, really different posters are designed which is shown in my research. My final ideas were very professional and I feel they related to the brand, I felt they were quite strong. Using Photoshop I played about with imagery and layers, I chose a few high resolution images which I overlaid and edited in Photoshop. Then I chose a border which I also overlaid and played about with, I wanted a grungey feel but at the same time I wanted it to be simplistic, similar to the work i would imagine Ted Baker to look like/And want to put up around shops etc.. After experimenting with backgrounds, I finally came up with one final browny/cream coloured type background with a black border, I then edited this in Photoshop and then played around with effects and eventually came up with inverting it and then playing about with the colours, finally I had a red, blue, green and black one. I then started playing about with vectors of glasses and chose 4 different pairs of glasses online and then drew around them with the pen tool. Initially I had live traced them and then live painted, but I felt drawing them with the pen tool was much more accurate and precise, it also meant it was easier to edit the colours if I did need to change the colours for whatever reason. I would’ve preferred to have the posters at a bigger scale, maybe A2 as I feel in a shop these would suit the shop more rather than an A3 poster, it’s not massively noticeable. I used bright colours which had been lowered in saturation so they didn’t stand out so much. I sed the typeface future which was the closest to the Ted Baker Logo typeface as I could get. I used 2 taglines; including â€Å"essential eyewear† and â€Å"eye candy†. I wanted to keep what I was saying professional. The posters all flowed and kept certain things the same, meaning the layout, typeface, background style and positioning of the text. Throughout this brief I took a different approach to how I would normally, I visited the Ted Baker sh op because the posters would be if printed, put up around the store in bigger. The targeted audience are lovers of glasses, Ted Baker or not. I wanted to keep a simplistic feel but at the same time make it very professional, which is different to a lot of the work I would usually produce. I learnt certain simple things in Photoshop which I didn’t know before, ‘overlaying’ etc. I feel I have successfully met the brief and produced some nice final outcomes which meet the requirements and are aesthetically pleasing. How to cite Ted Baker, Papers

Probable Problems Are Quickly Identified †Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Probable Problems Are Quickly Identified? Answer: Introducation Audit planning is considered to be a vital area in auditing primarily carried out at the beginning of the audit to make sure that suitable attention is devoted to particular areas, probable problems are quickly identified. This aspect means developing a common strategy and a comprehensive approach to the projected timing, nature, and degree of the audit. The auditor often plans to do the audit in a timely and effective manner (Arens, Elder, Beasley, and Hogan, 2016). Generally, auditors design detailed procedures so as to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence. This assignment incorporates planning of the audit and having access to the preliminary trial balance sheet for Crimson Enterprises. The assignment extracts data from the company trial balance and identifies the accounts that are likely to require significant audit attention (Trotman, and Wright, 2012). According to the Crimson Enterprises trial balance, the selected seven accounts for audit that basically require attent ion are; Items accounts Current year Prior year % Change 1 Inventories 185,000 174,000 6.32% 2 Cash at bank 70,000 73,000 4.1% 3 Motor vehicles 66,000 66,000 0% 4 Accumulated depreciation (MV 27,940 21,000 33% 5 Accounts receivables 120,750 122,750 2.2% 6 Bank loans 230,000 230,000 0% 7 Sales 181,454 187,450 3.2% Illustration Crimson Enterprises 30th May 2017 1st July 2016 Revenue 181,545 187,450 Cost of Sale 55,963 63,595 Gross Profit 125,582 123,855 Other income - Interest 44 50 Other income - Fees 54,313 57,000 Total Income 179,939 180,905 Operating Expenses Bank charges 319 350 Depreciation 15,185 15,738 Interest expense 10,542 11,500 Printing 339 375 Repairs Maintenance 1,320 5,050 Wage 48,189 53,000 Superannuation 3,661 4,770 Total Expenses 79,555 90,783 Profit/(Loss) before tax 100,384 90,122 Ratio Formulae Current year Prior year Industry average 1 Gross profit margin = Gross profit/Net sales 69% 66% 67.5% 2 Quick ratio Cash + Accounts receivables + Current assets investment/Current liabilities 163% 160% 241.5% 3 Current ratio Total current assets/Total current liabilities 1.63 1.6 1.62 4 Debt equity ratio TL/Share equity 1.8 1.6 1.7 5 Inventory turnover COS/Inventory 30% 37% 33.5% 6 Assets turnover Sales/TA 34.8% 37% 35.9% 7 ROA Operating profits/Total sales 69.2% 66.1% 67.7% Analytical reviews The use of analytical reviews is considered to be one method of increasing the efficiency of auditors (Balaniuk, Bessiere, Mazer, and Cobbe, 2012). Analytical procedures often consist of evaluations of financial data made by the auditor of plausible and expected relationships among both non-financial and financial information. Accounts receivables Accounts receivable is another item that needs much attention when planning for an audit. This is because most of the companies may post some significant amounts of accounts receivables that do not exist and therefore may result in the company making unreasonable profits. The company Accounts receivables should be examined for existence and accuracy assertions. This aspect is important because some debtors may be overstated or understated and thus affects the company debtors. Debtors circularization will be done so as to determine the existence of the debtors and to confirm the amount owed to the company. The 1.65% increase from the FY2016 to FY2017 should be examined so as to ensure the accuracy of the amount posted and the reason that enhanced its increase (Arens, Elder, and Mark, 2012). Because of the riskiness involved, I recommend tracing receivables reports to general ledgers. The auditors should ask for a period end accounts receivables aging details from which they outline th e total to the amount in the accounts receivables accounts in the general ledger. I also recommend confirmation of the accounts receivables. A major auditor activity is often to contact the company clients directly and request them to confirm the amounts of unpaid accounts receivables as of the end of the reporting period being audited for possible misstatements. Bank loans When planning for an audit, bank loans should have much concern because of its riskiness in misappropriation. The amount of bank loans should be examined during audit. This aspect makes this item to require much attention so as to ensure that there are reasonableness and accuracy in the amount posted in the company trial balance. Phone calls should be made to the associated banks so as to determine the percentage used as interest rates and the existence of this loan in the company accounting records (Crowther, 2016). According to the Crimson Enterprises Company, FY2016 indicated that the company had bank loans worth 230,000 and the same amount in the FY2017. This amount should be examined to determine the accuracy of calculations and repayments as the major assertion. Basing on the riskiness of this item, I recommend the auditors to perform a walkthrough of the area to establish various roles in loan operations as this activity helps both new and existing auditors to update in future years (Cohen, Holder, Nath, and Wood, 2012). I also recommend reviewing and testing the process for detailing the origination fees and also reviewing and testing how loan documentations exemptions are reviewed and cleared by the company. I also recommend reviews and tests on reconciliation process for possible misstatements. Inventories Inventory is one of the areas that require more attention. This is because inventories often form a critical part of the company operations. Companies usually purchase more inventories then convert them into finished goods that are sold to customers for a profit. According to the Crimson Enterprises Company trial balance, the trial balance indicates that during the FY2016 the amount of inventories was 174,000 and during the FY2016, the inventory was 185,000. This aspect indicates that the company has a vast amount of unmovable stocks which is usually liability to the company. Reviewing the inventory, there was a significant increase in the amount of inventories by 5.9% which means that the firm did not make huge sales during the FY2016 (Chan, and Vasarhelyi, 2011). Basically, the degree of the analytical review needed often depends on the materiality of the items. After extensive observations, existence is one of the assertions in this area will require additional attention so as to attempt to determine the major reasons that resulted in the variations of the amount available in the bank. This item basically contains more questionable activities on the existence of the remaining stocks because I was able to carry out physically check on its availability. The company financial managers should provide the supporting data, and the quality of internal control systems in the company should also provide assurance, accuracy, and reliability of the accounts. When planning for inventories audit, I recommend that the auditor should perform a cut-off analysis where he or she will examine the company procedures for receiving new inventories into the warehouses. I also recommend that the auditor should observe the physical inventory count to determine existence. Sales Company sales are another item that needs much attention when planning for the audit. This item is selected because of the riskiness that may be involved when a corporation is in operations. This requires much attention because the company often convert its sales to either cash or credit (Gurov, and Milgunova, 2016). This is vital, and thus it requires proper analytical procedures to be done to determine its existence in the sales records. The company should also provide with supporting documents that show the movement of sales during the two fiscal periods. According to the Crimson Enterprises Company, FY2016 indicated that the company made sales worth 187,450 and 181,454 in the FY2017. The variations should be examined to check the reasonableness of the differences. Since this is one of the risky items when planning for an audit, I recommend the auditor to test the controls of the company set up for sales cycle so as to determine how reliable and strong they are (Knechel, Krishnan, Pevzner, Shefchik, and Velury, 2012). The auditor should determine if the financial statements amounts of sales and accounts receivables are accurate by verifying individual transactions for possible misstatements. Cash at bank Cash at the bank is another area in the company trial balance that requires attention. This aspect is because it is more at risk of misappropriation by the management. The managers can misuse the amount in the bank because of their easy accessibility. According to the company financial reports, the amount of Cash at bank at the FY2016 was 73,000 and 70,000 in the FY2017. This item also requires attention because according to the analysis, there is an indication that there was a 4.3% decrease in the amount available in the bank (Hammersley, 2011). This should be examined to determine if the company may have spent a lot of money that was available or there could be a possibility of misuse of the company resources. Carrying out substantial procedures of making several comparisons to prior periods should be done to ensure the accuracy of the amounts posted on the financial statements. This aspect is vital because it will enhance its materiality (Knechel, and Salterio, 2016). Basing on th e riskiness of this item, I recommend that the auditor should send the confirmation letters to banks to ensure year-end financial balance from third parties and also requests the company clients to provide their bank details for existence and confirmation. Motor vehicles Motor vehicles are another item that needs much concern during the audit. Motor vehicles item is at risk because most of the company management often use the company resources such as the cars for private purposes. Planning for this particular audit requires that the company provide the purchasing agreements and log books of the company motor vehicles so as to evaluate the amount it cost during purchase and attempts to compare the amount with the market value (Hellman, 2011). According to the company trial balance, there is an indication that the company machinery is valued at 64,000 as at 2016 and 71,000 at 2017. The 10.9% variations should be evaluated and determined so as to provide the actual amount it cost during the initial procurement. In this case, I recommend that the auditors should basically check at the motor vehicles log books to substantiate the amount indicated and perform a physical check for existence for possible misappropriation (Titera, 2013). Accumulated depreciation The actual depreciation of the company is another item that basically needs much attention because of its sensitivity (Messier, Simon, and Smith, 2012). This item is also selected because of its riskiness during company existence. The method used to determine the amount of depreciation should be examined to ensure that it is free from any manipulations. Planning for this audit will also require that the amount of accumulated depreciation should be calculated again so as to ensure accuracy. The 31.6% increase in accumulated depreciation should be determined and supported with reasonable evidence by the company (Hammersley, Johnstone, and Kadous, 2011). Basing on the riskiness of this particular aspect, I recommend that the auditor should verify the manufacturing, motor vehicles, and equipment different from the current assets for depreciation expenses verifications. The auditor should also compare depreciation expenses to determine possible misstatements. References Arens, A.A., Elder, R.J., Beasley, M.S. and Hogan, C.E., 2016.Auditing and assurance services. Pearson. Arens, A.A., Elder, R.J. and Mark, B., 2012.Auditing and assurance services: an integrated approach. Boston: Prentice Hall. Balaniuk, R., Bessiere, P., Mazer, E. and Cobbe, P., 2012. Risk based government audit planning using nave bayes classifiers. InAdvances in Knowledge-Based and Intelligent Information and Engineering Systems. Chan, D.Y. and Vasarhelyi, M.A., 2011. Innovation and practice of continuous auditing.International Journal of Accounting Information Systems,12(2), pp.152-160. Crowther, D., 2016.A social critique of corporate reporting: Semiotics and web-based integrated reporting. Routledge. Cohen, J.R., Holder-Webb, L.L., Nath, L. and Wood, D., 2012. Corporate reporting of nonfinancial leading indicators of economic performance and sustainability.Accounting Horizons,26(1), pp.65-90. Gurov, V. and Milgunova, I., 2016. Improving of assessment methodology of the audited organizations performance at the stage of audit planning. -, (157), pp.115-118. Hammersley, J.S., 2011. A review and model of auditor judgments in fraud-related planning tasks.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,30(4), pp.101-128. Hammersley, J.S., Johnstone, K.M. and Kadous, K., 2011. How do audit seniors respond to heightened fraud risk?.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,30(3), pp.81-101. Hellman, N., 2011. Chief financial officer influence on audit planning.International journal of auditing,15(3), pp.247-274. Knechel, W.R. and Salterio, S.E., 2016.Auditing: Assurance and risk. Taylor Francis. Knechel, W.R., Krishnan, G.V., Pevzner, M., Shefchik, L.B. and Velury, U.K., 2012. Audit quality: Insights from the academic literature.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,32(sp1), pp.385-421. Messier Jr, W.F., Simon, C.A. and Smith, J.L., 2012. Two decades of behavioral research on analytical procedures: What have we learned?.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,32(1), pp.139-181. Titera, W.R., 2013. Updating audit standardEnabling audit data analysis.Journal of Information Systems,27(1), pp.325-331. Trotman, K.T. and Wright, W.F., 2012. Triangulation of audit evidence in fraud risk assessments.Accounting, Organizations and Society,37(1), pp.41-53.

Anthropology is a discipline that systematically Essays

Anthropology is a discipline that systematically Essays "Anthropology is a discipline that systematically studies human culture and the evolutionary dimensions of human biology." It let us help to get information about humans with their past and present. Anthropology relates to other dimensions of studies such as biological science and physical science to get the understanding of human history and cultures. It is also a study of the biological human with their physical elements. Anthropology is studied under four main subfields; Cultural Anthropology, Archeology, linguistic Anthropology and Biological anthropology. "Cultural anthropology is a subfield of anthropology concerning itself primarily with contemporary societies, their belief systems, and social behavior." A Cultural anthropologist studies human through ethnography which is a "written anthropological description of a culture produced by a researcher conducting field research in that culture." It is based upon face-to-face interviews and is conducted in a native language. Archeology is the subfield of anthropology studying the lifestyles, history, and evolution of societies by examining their remaining artifacts." It is studied through "scientific recovery, analysis, and interpretation of the physical artifacts left by the former societies." Archeologist does not excavate field sites randomly to collect artifacts instead it is done through "systematically for a specific purpose." Linguistic anthropology is "the subfield of anthropology dealing with languages, their diversity, and connections, as well as the interface between language and culture. It examines such diverse topics as the relationship between language and brain function, how language changes change, links between language and human behavior." Biological anthropology "explores the study of human biology within the framework of evolution and highlights the relationship between biology and culture." "Biological anthropology looks atHomo sapiensas a genus and species, tracing their biological origins, evolutionary development, and genetic diversity." Anthropologists want t know why things happen. For example, we know how communicable diseases are spread but we may not know why they spread? Anthropologists use various methods to find out the answers. Such as Observational Methods allowing the investigator to "obtain knowledge about the group being studied without interfering with their privacy too much." Interviews and Questionnaires This group of methods gives emphases on "community interaction through the medium of language." Participant Observation is an anthropological fieldwork method for collected research. It needs the anthropologist participate in the culture they are researching as well as observing it. The information obtained is then recorded and reproduced upon to gain further vision into the culture being studied or the question being asked by the researcher. Life Histories is a term used to explain when a person expresses their whole life experience, usually starting from the beginning to the present. Participator y Approach method involves full participation of the researcher with their "subjects or community they are studying." Development is an "illusive term to describe" as it depends upon the various point of view to explain, but here in anthropology development is "concerned with social and economic development" in reference to "human needs and capital." Anthropology involves a thought of all aspects of people's social, economic and cultural life with the social behaviors of the community. Anthropology not only involves the people of given community and the ways they live but also how it is "affected on the global level and also identifies the interrelationships that exist between different aspects of people's lives." Anthropologists are conscious about human societies, and the significance of their cultural diversity and biodiversity, their varied ways of empowering people through a sense of community. Likewise, anthropologists are also conscious about health conditions, nutrition, and child's education that are in worst condition nowadays. In conclusion, an anthropological perception on human development is studying the existing political and economic theology of globalization. Anthropology helps us grow intellectually to shape a good social institution letting us know who we are. We can learn a lot about ourselves and the entire elements related to us which helps to bring a real change. Sources: Strada, M. J. (2009).Through the Global Lens An introduction to the Social Sciences(Third ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Syllabus for Mass Communication and Media Studies Essays

Syllabus for Mass Communication and Media Studies Essays Syllabus for Mass Communication and Media Studies Paper Syllabus for Mass Communication and Media Studies Paper In this frame and then select File Print Frame to print this page Course Description (Formerly COM AAA. Fulfills the general education requirement In communications but is not a writing course. ) Prerequisite: WRIT 101 or WRIT 101 S. A survey of mass communication designed to enhance media literacy. The goal is to interpret, evaluate, and produce media messages. Topics include media industries and the impact of the media, as well as regulation, policy, and ethical issues. Emphasis is on critical thinking and analysis of vital aspects of pervasive elements of popular culture, such as news, advertising, childrens entertainment, and a free press. Students may receive credit for only one of the following courses: COM AAA or COM 302. Course Introduction We live In a media-saturated culture where media literacy Is Important. This course Is designed to make you a more literate consumer and potential producer of media content. Course topics will Include the following: 1 . Overview of Mass Communication (background, historical/cultural aspects) 2. Print Media (newspapers, magazines, book publishing) 3. Electronic Media (radio, sound recording, motion pictures, television, the Internet) 4. Media Professions (news, public relations, advertising) 5. Regulation of the Mass Media (laws, rules, regulations, and ethics) 6. Impact of Mass Communication (global perspective and social effects) Course Goals/ObJectives After completing this course, you should be able to: 1 . Demonstrate media literacy by accessing, Interpreting, evaluating, and producing media messages 2. Trace the development and evolution of mass media In order to analyze, interpret, and evaluate the role, impact, and regulation of media in society 3. Recognize and apply mass communication theories in order to analyze, interpret, and evaluate how media shape peoples views of reality. Course Materials Title: Dynamics of Mass Communication (SIS) Author: Dominick, Joseph Edition: 12TH Copyright: 2012 publisher: MCGRAW HILL (Singapore) ISBN: 9780071318266 Grading Information Class Participation: 20 percent Writing Assignment: 25 percent Midterm Exam: 25 percent Final Exam: 30 percent TOTAL: 100 percent Technical Requirements for Written Assignments: Written assignments will be valuated on your command of the following technical and formatting skills: Spelling and Grammar Content and understanding of course concepts Strong thesis and/or argument Originality of topic, thesis and research Extent of research and sources used (No Wisped, please! Properly attribution of sources with proper in-text MEAL formatting The grade ranges for this course are as follows: 90-100 = A 80-89 = B 70-79 = c 60-69 = D 59 F Project Descriptions Reading Assignments: Reading assignments are to be completed on time (I. E. , by the Monday of the week they are scheduled for discussion). You shou ld be prepared to participate in class discussions about the assigned reading. Participation will count toward the class participation portion of your grade. Writing Assignment: You will be required to prepare a 5-7 page (double-spaced) analysis of a topic related to mass communication. Specific topics will be yours to choose, based on the readings, class discussions and topics raised in this course. It is possible that not everyone shares the same views as you. Free and open discussions, which include the opportunity for intellectual and emotional disagreement, are fundamental in an educational environment and should be expected by all class members. Language In this course, our language should not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, economic status, educational background, ethnicity, marital status, national origin, personal appearance, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. Written work should conform to standard rules of English usage, grammar and spelling. One final note: please dont plagiarism. In the past, I have personally caught FOUR students trying to turn in essays and/or assignments copied from other sources. COMIC instructors have access to sophisticated tools to root out plagiarism. To put it succinctly, if you cheat I will catch you and you will fail this course. If you take research or information from another source, cite it properly and you should be fine. Plagiarism is the theft of intellectual property and results in an automatic failing grade. Academic Policies Academic Policies are not course specific and are therefore created and housed separately from this syllabus. You may access and print Academic Policies from the Syllabus sub-menu in your classroom.

Property Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Property Economics - Essay Example The homeowners who planned to sell the properties were unable to sell due to a massive fall in prices that led to â€Å"upside down" mortgage. Notably, the mortgages were greater than the property resulting in reduced incentive for homeowners. The graph below indicates the trends in housing sector prices (Sanders, 2008). The housing sector experienced the bubble leading to the eventual collapse of the subprime mortgage market. The subprime mortgages are provided to homeowners with below-average income (Christopher et al., 2008). With the trend in the housing sector, there was a need to engage in more subprime mortgages. Consequently, this led to mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures that caused the devaluation of the housing-related securities (Sanders, 2008). Therefore, there was the reduction in business investment and household spending. Notably, these experiences were dominant in regions with high household debt and highest housing price decline (Immergluck, 2011). The increase in interest rates resulted in global investors reducing their purchases of the mortgage-backed debt while the securities found it risky to continue with the lending (Sanders, 2008). Subsequently, the mortgage crisis was a major factor that worsened the effects of the Great Recession in America (Christopher et al., 2008) . Immergluck, D. (2011). The Local Wreckage of Global Capital: The Subprime Crisis, Federal Policy and High-Foreclosure Neighborhoods in the US. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research,

The Taboo of Human Sexuality in the African American Christian Dissertation

The Taboo of Human Sexuality in the African American Christian Community - Dissertation Example The assumption that the African American body is derived of purposed majesty is an argument that has been challenged by years of social evolution and individual interpretations of religious scriptures. Making the connection to the physical body and to the body of Christ, in the black community, is a step forward in securing positive regard towards black sexuality; though this connection to theological ideals is often challenged even within the African American culture. So, from where are the assumptions of unifying sexuality and divinity? Outside of the cultural expectations of sexuality lies the affirmation of the physical body as a gift from God, offered in the text of the Christian Bible. In the very beginning of the Bible, God clearly states the purpose of human sexuality. It was his deliberate, considered choice to make us complete with sex organs and equipped for sexual intercourse. However, historical symbolism and deviations from solid Christian philosophy created negative connotations of the African American community as Christian literature separated white from black as a distinction between good and evil. The depiction of the devil as "The Black One"†¦and the typological "blackening" of those believers (as) influenced by evil" set the tone for the cultural view of blacks as a representation of anti-religion. Moral implications of outspoken human sexuality formulate the idea that sexuality is a taboo subject, resultant of misconceptions, scriptural misinterpretations, and the historical determination in the dominant white cultures view that the African American is a lesser entity.

What drives teenagers to commit suicide?

What drives teenagers to commit suicide? Suicide can be defined as an act or an instance of taking ones own life voluntarily and intentionally. Suicide is not a choice to survive or a choice to escape. Instead, successful suicide is inevitably mortal. Suicide is the third leading cause of death and injury among adolescents and young adults in the worldwide. Suicide is a serious public health problem. According to the World Health Organisation (2004) an estimate approximately one million people die from suicide worldwide annually, and 10 to 20 times more people attempts suicide. A study by Lee.M.B Lung.W (2008) showed that suicide and psychiatric disorders have a strong connection; 16.3% of the general population and 25% of general medical patients outside of psychiatric departments have had suicidal thoughts or suicide attempts. There are many causes for youths wanting to commit suicide. Thus, we must be aware of the symptoms for suicide in order to prevent suicide from happening. What drive teens towards suicide? Stress Caruso (2007) believes that stress is not intrinsically appalling. Every human living in this world has stress that may cause them to take action to events and to improve themselves to be better and rise to the challenge. However, he mentioned that if overly exposed to stress, stress can be catastrophic. Too much pressure can cause or exacerbate suicidal feelings. Level of stress is seems to be playing a vital role in affecting people especially the youths towards committing suicide. Many researchers have discovered that stressful life events increases the risk of youths choosing suicide as the only solution. Stressful events such as family and romance conflicts or the presence of disciplinary problems frequently predate suicidal behaviour. (Brent, 1993; Vijayakumar Rajkumar, 1999; Yen et al., 2005) From Engars research (2004), he found that suicide is the second-leading cause of death in college students. It is believed that high anxiety levels and tensions cause them to attempt suicide. Take South Korea as an example, approximately six in every 10 South Korean youths have thought of suicide at least once, showing to the seriousness of the teen suicide issue. (Yonhap, 2008; Yein Jee, 2008) This is further proven from the survey, carried out by the state-run Korea Youth Counseling Institute, of 4,700 secondary school students in South Korea, 50-60 percent of the respondents had thought of suicide whereas 10-20 percent of them attempted suicide. (Yonhap, 2008) Youths there felt suicide urges when experiencing conflicts with family members, utterly lacking of hope, had problems with friends, or if friends took their own lives, having to do much more at school than expected, strivingfor a higher standards of education in this globalised era in order to get a better job etc. Depression Lickerman (2010) believes that depression is unquestionably the most common reason why people take their life. Depression is a severe dejection that is accompanied by feelings of hopelessness and meagerness typically felt over a periods of time. In another words, it is an illness where peoples thoughts, moods, behaviour and feelings are infected. Since depression can affect thinking, things will seems to get even harder when one is feeling down and he or she may not be able to look at the possibility of a good outcome. They will never be happy nor think that things could go right for them again. The person does not envisage when a problem can be overcome. (Eveleth, 2008; Lyness Nock, 2010) Suicide is the permanent solution for depressed people as they think there are no other solutions to the temporary problems they are experiencing. A depressed youth may feel that there is no another way out from issues, no other getaway from emotional pain, or no way outof a desperate sorrow. (Lyness Nock, 2010) According to American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, more than 19 million Americans which aged 18 and above are severely affected by depression every year. Another analysis of the result is that one out of ten men and one out of four women will experience depression in their life. Kyle Eveleth, a Prudenville junior and psychology major believes the loss of support from family and friends could lead to this illness, which is one of the risk factor towards suicide attempts. Substance Abuse Teens under the influence of alcohol and drug are also more at risk for suicidal behaviours and suicidal thoughts. They may become over-sentimental and impulsive and may result in attempts to end their own lives. (Lickerman, 2010) Alcohol is a depressant that slows the function of the central nervous system. This alters a persons five senses as the brain is blocked from getting the right information. (Dowsen Shatz, 2009) Under the right amount, alcohol can aid a person to feel relax and less worried. However, if one overused, alcohol may cause wobble, lose their coordination, blurred vision, and slur speech. They will be confused and disoriented. (Dowsen Shatz, 2009) Drugs on the other handare chemicals that change the way our bodies function. A drug may be helpful or harmful. Drugs dull our senses, alter our sense of consciousness, and reduce physical pain in the brain. (Dowsen Vranken, 2008) Misuse of these substances can mean serious misery and danger. Situations is worse for teens with propensity to illness due to their biologic, or family history, or other life stresses. Suicide attempts occur especially when both substances are consumed together. (Lyness Nock, 2010) According to National Statistical Office (NSO) in South Korea, there were about 12,000 suicides representing 5 percent of all deaths in 2007, a shocking increase of 14% compared to previous year. A poll taken by NSO shows that girls and teens who drink alcohol are more likely to feel the suicidal urge compared with non-drinkers and boys. (Yonhap, 2008) Several studies (Miller, Mahler Gold, 1991; Way et al, 2005) have found that teenagers with alcohol or drug abuse contributesup to 70% of alchohol-drug related suicides. Therefore, it is undoubted that substance abuse significantly influence teens towards suicide. Family risk factors Under family risk factors, inherited biological factors may also contribute towards suicide and suicidal behaviour. From the family, twin and adoption studies, this factor has been proven to lead to the increase of risk of attempted and completed suicide. (Nock, Borges, Bromet, Cha, Kessler Lee, 2008) There is evidence to suggest biologic factors may give rise to suicidal behaviour via gene-environmental interactions. This is said to be disruptions in the functioning of the inhibitory neurotransmitter serotonin. (Pandey, 1997) When it is disrupted, humans mood and emotion will be affected. Dr. Boeree (2009) says that inadequate serothin may be associated to increase in aggressive behaviour, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorders and suicide. As for twins, some studies had been conducted to prove the relationship between suicide. Researchers Roy, Segal and Sarchiapone (1995) ascertained suicide is more prevalent in monozygotic co-twins than dizygotic co-twins where this tendency is very rare. These results strongly shows that genetic factor do play a role in suicidal behaviour in twins. Furthermore, teens who has family history involving depression or substance abuse are most liking associated with suicide, as are those who have been abused sexually. (Fritz, 2010) Another factor that is included in family risk factor is the frequent change of residence. Most families that often move their place of residence may bring a considerable effect on their children. Children that experience this frequently may be distressed or psychologically disturbed and, therefore, affect his or hers physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being. They may feel instable and insecure in their living conditions. The frequent breakdown of connection with peers, discontinuation of group activities, distress, and worries due to the new environment can be distressing and confusing. Those childrens psychosocial well-being may be largely affected, and hence, rise suicidal thoughts and behaviours if they are not capable to handle. Parents may be unable to provide sufficient love and care which include neglecting their childrens psychosocial needs. To get more attention from their parents, a suicide attempt may be carried out to express them. (Ping, Mortensen, Pedersen, 2009) How does teens with suicidal tendencies behave or react ? Depression Depressive symptons is a significant indicator. Depressive symptoms includs crying a lot, lost of interest, weight changes, sleep disturbances, restlessness, and feeling a low energy. An epidemiological study shown that hopelessness and low self-esteem were the most predictive symptoms for suicidal behaviour. In this analysis, almost 56% of the patients attempted suicide. (Yaldizli.O, Kohl.H.C, Graf.M, Wiesbeck.AG, Wurst.M.F (2010) Anxiety The suicidor will feel fear, worry, and hopelessness. In this situation, symptons of anxiety will be shown physically and mentally. For instance, sweating, stomach aches, muscle weakness. Someone who has anxiety might experiences sense of panic. A study examined the rates of anxiety, mood and substances abuse disorder among teenagers. The result of the study shown that the level of anxiety will have higher risk of suicide.(Galera C, Bouvard MP, Encrenaz G, Messiah A, Fombonne.E 2008) In conclusion, suicide does not solve the problem but brings more sorrow and hardship to the victims family members and friends. We can help potential suicide victim by watching out for early suicidal symptoms or signs. These can be highly unsociable and introvert behaviour and frequent mentioning about ending ones life. We should bring the victim immediately to a psychiatrist or counsellor to set the victims life back on the right path again. The most effective way of preventing suicide is to find the main reason or reasons why the victim is contemplating suicide. This will help to reduce the number of suicide cases in the world.

Coca Cola Marketing Mix Essay

Soft Drink demand market is very strong all over the world. Now there are 2 major Company of Soft Drinks †¢ Coca Cola †¢ Pepsi Co they are competitors to each other. The world’s largest beverage’s company Coca Cola began more than a century ago. The Coca Cola company world headquarter is at Atlanta Georgia, USA. Formation of Coca Cola company was in a simple way, but today it is spread worldwide. It has a Wonderful history and an exciting future. From sometime before 1970-s Coca Cola had started doing business in India. But due to changes in the policy of Indian Government, Coca Cola had to wind up its business from India in 1977. After 16 years, in 1993 it again started doing business in India through one of its subsidiary company Coca Cola India Private Limited. It gradually went in for merger by acquisition the various well known products to stop the direct competition from the local market. Coca cola is the brand with the highest brand equity. No doubt it has gone through the ups and downs of business to reach that position. The marketing mix of Coca cola has been changing over time with more and more products being added such that today it has 3300 products. So what is the marketing mix of Coca cola? Product The company has the widest portfolio in beverage industry comprising of 3300 products. Beverages are divided into diet category, 100% fruit juices, fruit drinks, water, energy drinks, tea and coffee etc. As per Nielson’s data, Coca cola is the No.1 brand in sparkling beverages, juice, and retail packaged water in 2010. Coca cola has its market presence around 200 countries. Coca cola brands in India are Fanta, Maaza, Limca, sprite, Thums up, Minute Maid, Nimbu fresh, Nested iced tea etc. Coca-Cola made its return to India COCA – COLA in 1993 and made significant investments to ensure that the beverage is available to more and more people, even in the remote and inaccessible parts of the nation. Sprite has not only established itself as a brand which successfully boasts it’s ‘cutthru’ perspective with an authentic, edgy, irreverent, urban and straight forward style, but has also achieved status of an undisputed youth ‘badge‘ brand. Fanta entered in the year 1993. Perceived as a fun youth brand, Fanta stands for its vibrant color, tempting Taste and tingling bubbles that not just uplifts feelings but also helps free spirit thus encouraging one to indulge in the moment. Limca has remained unchallenged as the No.1 Sparkling Drink in the Cloudy lemon Segment. The success formula is the sharp fizz and lemoni bite combined with the Single minded proposition of the brand as the provider of â€Å"Freshness†. Maaza has today come to symbolize the very spirit of mangoes. Universally loved for its taste, color, thickness and wholesome properties, Maaza is the mango lover’s first choice Price Due to the availability of wide range products the pricing is done according  to the market and geographic segment. Each sub-brand of coca cola has different pricing strategy. Their pricing strategy is based on the competitors pricing, Pepsi is the direct competitor to coke. Beverage market is said to be a oligopoly market (few sellers and large buyers), hence they form into cartel contract to ensure a mutual balance in pricing between the sellers. Price strategies are important to Coca Cola because the price determines the amount of sales and profit per unit sold. Businesses have to set a price that is attractive to their customers and provides the business with a good level of profit. Long before a sale was ever made Coca Cola had developed a forecast of consumer demand at different prices which inevitably determined whether or not the product came on the market, as well as the allocation of adequate money and resources to produce, promote and distribute the product. Place Coca cola is the world’s most favourite brand and is available all over the world. The distribution system of coca cola follows the FMCG distribution pattern. The effective distribution network of coke has almost eroded the small and middle level players in the market. In India they have captured even the rural market by extensive distribution and have eroded the market share of Bo onto, Kalmar etc. Promotion Coca cola adopts various advertising and promotional strategies to create an increased demand in the market by associating with life style and behaviour and mainly targeting value based advertising. You are more likely to see a coke ad individualised for a particular festival or in with a general positive message. Coca cola uses CSR as its marketing tool to gain emotional benefits in consumers mind. The current promotions through CSR include â€Å"Support my school† campaign with NDTV. It has many brand ambassadors like Shahrukh khan, Hrithik Roshan, South Indian Actor Vijay and Trisha , Ghambir, Aamir khan etc and has signed contract recently with Imran khan. It allows price discounts and allowances to distributors and retailers in order to push more products into the market. It employs both push  strategy through promotions and pull strategy through advertisements and campaigns. Company introduces different themes and concepts to sell their product and advertises mainly in electronic media and out of home advertising. These advertisements build brand image and create awareness. ïÆ'ËœBig names of Indian film industry mainly become the brand ambassadors of the Company. ïÆ'ËœThroughout the years, the slogans of the Coca-Cola have been memorable. For E.g. Thanda Matlab Cola-Cola Jo chaho ho jae Cola-Cola enjoy Coca-Cola-Piyo sir utha ke Brrrrrrr!!! Coca Cola on a regular basis Advertise through Billboards, Hoardings. They occupy the prime locations of the Urban and Semi Urban areas to advertise their products †¢ Bill Boards are used on Highways, main City roads, Across big buildings, Shops etc. †¢Also in India the Coca-cola can be seen painted on walls, bus stands, dhabas etc focusing in rural areas if India Coca-Cola uses direct marketing in many ways. First, the company partners with various restaurants, movie theatres, etc. to carry its product. This way, when a customer orders a drink, the only brand they are offered is Coca-Cola, which forces them to buy a drink from that brand. By doing this, Coke forces out other competition, and keeps the restaurants, or other businesses, purchasing their product over and over again. E.g. Mc Donald’s. According to mobilemarketingmagazine.com, Coke uses mobile graphics and texts to appeal to markets on a more personal level. Coca Cola also sponsors various sporting events in India and around the world in major sport events like Cricket, Football, Hockey, Olympic and Motor Racing etc. Coca-Cola uses the internet to promote its products. The company has its own website, which is quite simple to navigate through. The website allows customers to become interactive through various games, contests, shopping, and through a special section of the website that enables consumers to find out how they can help their community. ïÆ'ËœAlso in the modern era of communication and networking, the company uses various social networking sites like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter to connect with the consumers. The  internet marketing thus helps to reach to those consumers who can’t afford to spend time on T.V and are always online

Bag of Bones CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

For men, I think, love is a thing formed of equal parts lust and astonishment. The astonishment part women understand. The lust part they only think they understand. Very few perhaps one in twenty have any concept of what it really is or how deep it runs. That's probably just as well for their sleep and peace of mind. And I'm not talking about the lust of satyrs and rapists and molesters; I'm talking about the lust of shoe-clerks and high-school principals. Not to mention writers and lawyers. We turned into Mattie's dooryard at ten to eleven, and as I parked my Chevy beside her rusted-out Jeep, the trailer door opened and Mat-tie came out on the top step. I sucked in my breath, and beside me I could hear John sucking in his. She was very likely the most beautiful young woman I have ever seen in my life as she stood there in her rose-colored shorts and matching middy top. The shorts were not short enough to be cheap (my mother's word) but plenty short enough to be provocative. Her top tied in floppy string bows across the shoulders and showed just enough tan to dream on. Her hair hung to her shoulders. She was smiling and waving. I thought, She's made it take her into the country-club dining room now, dressed just as she is, and she shuts everyone else down. ‘Oh Lordy,' John said. There was a kind of dismayed longing in his voice. ‘All that and a bag of chips.' ‘Yeah,' I said. ‘Put your eyes back in your head, big boy.' He made cupping motions with his hands as if doing just that. George, meanwhile, had pulled his Altima in next to us. ‘Come on,' I said, opening my door. ‘Time to party.' ‘I can't touch her, Mike,' John said. ‘I'll melt.' ‘Come on, you goof.' Mattie came down the steps and past the pot with the tomato plant in it. Ki was behind her, dressed in an outfit similar to her mother's, only in a shade of dark green. She had the shys again, I saw; she kept one steadying hand on Mattie's leg and one thumb in her mouth. ‘The guys are here! The guys are here!' Mattie cried, laughing, and threw herself into my arms. She hugged me tight and kissed the corner of my mouth. I hugged her back and kissed her cheek. Then she moved on to John, read his shirt, patted her hands together in applause, and then hugged him. He hugged back pretty well for a guy who was afraid he might melt, I thought, picking her up off her feet and swinging her around in a circle while she hung onto his neck and laughed. ‘Rich lady, rich lady, rich lady!' John chanted, then set her down on the cork soles of her white shoes. ‘Free lady, free lady, free lady!' she chanted back. ‘The hell with rich!' Before he could reply, she kissed him firmly on the mouth. His arms rose to slip around her, but she stepped back before they could catch hold. She turned to Rommie and George, who were standing side-by-side and looking like fellows who might want to explain all about the Mormon Church. I took a step forward, meaning to do the introductions, but John was taking care of that, and one of his arms managed to accomplish its mission after all it circled her waist as he led her forward toward the men. Meanwhile a little hand slipped into mine. I looked down and saw Ki looking up at me. Her face was grave and pale and every bit as beautiful as her mother's. Her blonde hair, freshly washed and shining, was held back with a velvet scrunchy. ‘Guess the fridgeafator people don't like me now,' she said. The laughter and insouciance were gone, at least for the moment. She looked on the verge of tears. ‘My letters all went bye-bye.' I picked her up and set her in the crook of my arm as I had on the day I'd met her walking down the middle of Route 68 in her bathing suit. I kissed her forehead and then the tip of her nose. Her skin was perfect silk. ‘I know they did,' I said. ‘I'll buy you some more.' ‘Promise?' Doubtful dark blue eyes fixed on mine. ‘Promise. And I'll teach you special words like â€Å"zygote† and â€Å"bibulous†. I know lots of special words.' ‘How many?' ‘A hundred and eighty.' Thunder rumbled in the west. It didn't seem louder, but it was more focused, somehow. Ki's eyes went in that direction, then came back to mine. ‘I'm scared, Mike.' ‘Scared? Of what?' ‘Ofi don't know. The lady in Mattie's dress. The men we saw.' Then she looked over my shoulder. ‘Here comes Mommy.' I have heard actresses deliver the line Not in front of the children in that exact same tone of voice. Kyra wiggled in the circle of my arms. ‘Land me.' I landed her. Mattie, John, Rommie, and George came over to join us. Ki ran to Mattie, who picked her up and then eyed us like a general surveying her troops. ‘Got the beer?' she asked me. ‘Yessum. A case of Bud and a dozen mixed sodas, as well. Plus lemonade.' ‘Great. Mr. Kennedy ‘ ‘George, ma'am.' ‘George, then. And if you call me ma'am again, I'll punch you in the nose. I'm Mattie. Would you drive down to the Lakeview General'-she pointed to the store on Route 68, about half a mile from us ‘and get some ice?' ‘You bet.' ‘Mr. Bissonette ‘ ‘Rommie.' ‘There's a little garden at the north end of the trailer, Rommie. Can you find a couple of good-looking lettuces?' ‘I think I can handle that.' ‘John, let's get the meat into the fridge. As for you, Michael . . . ‘ She pointed to the barbecue. ‘The briquets are the self-lighting kind just drop a match and stand back. Do your duty.' ‘Aye, good lady,' I said, and dropped to my knees in front of her. That finally got a giggle out of Ki. Laughing, Mattie took my hand and pulled me back onto my feet. ‘Come on, Sir Galahad,' she said. ‘It's going to rain. I want to be safe inside and too stuffed to jump when it does.' In the city, parties begin with greetings at the door, gathered-in coats, and those peculiar little air-kisses (when, exactly, did that social oddity begin?). In the country, they begin with chores. You fetch, you carry, you hunt for stuff like barbecue tongs and oven mitts. The hostess drafts a couple of men to move the picnic table, then decides it was actually better where it was and asks them to put it back. And at some point you discover that you're having fun. I piled briquets until they looked approximately like the pyramid on the bag, then touched a match to them. They blazed up satisfyingly and I stood back, wiping my forearm across my forehead. Cool and clear might be coming, but it surely wasn't in hailing distance yet. The sun had burned through and the day had gone from dull to dazzling, yet in the west black-satin thunderheads continued to stack up. It was as if night had burst a blood-vessel in the sky over there. ‘Mike?' I looked around at Kyra. ‘What, honey?' ‘Will you take care of me?' ‘Yes,' I said with no hesitation at all. For a moment something about my response perhaps only the quickness of it seemed to trouble her. Then she smiled. ‘Okay,' she said. ‘Look, here comes the ice-man!' George was back from the store. He parked and got out. I walked over with Kyra, she holding my hand and swinging it possessively back and forth. Rommie came with us, juggling three heads of lettuce I didn't think he was much of a threat to the guy who had fascinated Ki on the common Saturday night. George opened the Altima's back door and brought out two bags of ice. ‘The store was closed,' he said. ‘Sign said WILL RE-OPEN AT 5 P.M. That seemed a little too long to wait, so I took the ice and put the money through the mail-slot.' They'd closed for Royce Merrill's funeral, of course. Had given up almost a full day's custom at the height of the tourist season to see the old fellow into the ground. It was sort of touching. I thought it was also sort of creepy. ‘Can I carry some ice?' Kyra asked. ‘I guess, but don't frizzicate yourself,' George said, and carefully put a five-pound bag of ice into Ki's outstretched arms. ‘Frizzicate,' Kyra said, giggling. She began walking toward the trailer, where Mattie was just coming out. John was behind her and regarding her with the eyes of a gutshot beagle. ‘Mommy, look! I'm frizzicating!' I took the other bag. ‘I know the icebox is outside, but don't they keep a padlock on it?' ‘I am friends with most padlocks,' George said. ‘Oh. I see.' ‘Mike! Catch!' John tossed a red Frisbee. It floated toward me, but high. I jumped for it, snagged it, and suddenly Devore was back in my head: What's wrong with you, Rogette? You never used to throw like a girl Get him! I looked down and saw Ki looking up. ‘Don't think about sad stuff,' she said. I smiled at her, then flipped her the Frisbee. ‘Okay, no sad stuff. Go on, sweetheart. Toss it to your mom. Let's see if you can.' She smiled back, turned, and made a quick, accurate flip to her mother the toss was so hard that Mattie almost flubbed it. Whatever else Kyra Devore might have been, she was a Frisbee champion in the making. Mattie tossed the Frisbee to George, who turned, the tail of his absurd brown suitcoat flaring, and caught it deftly behind his back. Mattie laughed and applauded, the hem of her top flirting with her navel. ‘Showoff!' John called from the steps. ‘Jealousy is such an ugly emotion,' George said to Rommie Bissonette, and flipped him the Frisbee. Rommie floated it back to John, but it went wide and bonked off the side of the trailer. As John hurried down the steps to get it, Mattie turned to me. ‘My boombox is on the coffee-table in the living room, along with a stack of CDs. Most of them are pretty old, but at least it's music. Will you bring them out?' ‘Sure.' I went inside, where it was hot in spite of three strategically placed fans working overtime. I looked at the grim, mass-produced furniture, and at Mattie's rather noble effort to impart some character: the van Gogh print that should not have looked at home in a trailer kitchenette but did, Edward Hopper's Nighthawks over the sofa, the tie-dyed curtains that would have made Jo laugh. There was a bravery here that made me sad for her and furious at Max Devore all over again. Dead or not, I wanted to kick his ass. I went into the living room and saw the new Mary Higgins Clark on the sofa end-table with a bookmark sticking out of it. Lying beside it in a heap were a couple of little-girl hair ribbons something about them looked familiar to me, although I couldn't remember ever having seen Ki wearing them. I stood there a moment longer, frowning, then grabbed the boombox and CDs and went back outside. ‘Hey, guys,' I said. ‘Let's rock.' I was okay until she danced. I don't know if it matters to you, but it does to me. I was okay until she danced. After that I was lost. We took the Frisbee around to the rear of the house, partly so we wouldn't piss off any funeral-bound townies with our rowdiness and good cheer, mostly because Mattie's back yard was a good place to play level ground and low grass. After a couple of missed catches, Mattie kicked off her party-shoes, dashed barefoot into the house, and came back in her sneakers. After that she was a lot better. We threw the Frisbee, yelled insults at each other, drank beer, laughed a lot. Ki wasn't much on the catching part, but she had a phenomenal arm for a kid of three and played with gusto. Rommie had set the boombox up on the trailer's back step, and it spun out a haze of late-eighties and early-nineties music: U2, Tears for Fears, the Eurythmics, Crowded House, A Flock of Seagulls, Ah-Hah, the Bangles, Melissa Etheridge, Huey Lewis and the News. It seemed to me that I knew every song, every riff. We sweated and sprinted in the noon light. We watched Mattie's long, tanned legs flash and listened to the bright runs of Kyra's laughter. At one point Rommie Bissonette went head over heels, all the change spilling out of his pockets, and John laughed until he had to sit down. Tears rolled from his eyes. Ki ran over and plopped on his defenseless lap. John stopped laughing in a hurry. ‘Ooofl' he cried, looking at me with shining, wounded eyes as his bruised balls no doubt tried to climb back inside his body. ‘Kyra Devore!' Mattie cried, looking at John apprehensively. ‘I taggled my own quartermack,' Ki said proudly. John smiled feebly at her and staggered to his feet. ‘Yes,' he said. ‘You did. And the ref calls fifteen yards for squashing.' ‘Are you okay, man?' George asked. He looked concerned, but his voice was grinning. ‘I'm fine,' John said, and spun him the Frisbee. It wobbled feebly across the yard. ‘Go on, throw. Let's see whatcha got.' The thunder rumbled louder, but the black clouds were all still west of us; the sky overhead remained a harmless humid blue. Birds still sang and crickets hummed in the grass. There was a heat-shimmer over the barbecue, and it would soon be time to slap on John's New York steaks. The Frisbee still flew, red against the green of the grass and trees, the blue of the sky. I was still in lust, but everything was still all right men are in lust all over the world and damned near all of the time, and the icecaps don't melt. But she danced, and everything changed. It was an old Don Henley song, one driven by a really nasty guitar riff. ‘Oh God, I love this one,' Mattie cried. The Frisbee came to her. She caught it, dropped it, stepped on it as if it were a hot red spot falling on a nightclub stage, and began to shake. She put her hands first behind her neck and then on her hips and then behind her back. She danced standing with the toes of her sneakers on the Frisbee. She danced without moving. She danced as they say in that song like a wave on the ocean. ‘The government bugged the men's room in the local disco lounge, And all she wants to do is dance, dance . . . To keep the boys from selling all the weapons they can scrounge, And all she wants to do, all she wants to do is dance.' Women are sexy when they dance incredibly sexy but that wasn't what I reacted to, or how I reacted. The lust I was coping with, but this was more than lust, and not copeable. It was something that sucked the wind out of me and left me feeling utterly at her mercy. In that moment she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, not a pretty woman in shorts and a middy top dancing in place on a Frisbee, but Venus revealed. She was everything I had missed during the last four years, when I'd been so badly off I didn't know I was missing anything. She robbed me of any last defenses I might have had. The age difference didn't matter. If I looked to people like my tongue was hanging out even when my mouth was shut, then so be it. If I lost my dignity, my pride, my sense of self, then so be it. Four years on my own had taught me there are worse things to lose. How long did she stand there, dancing? I don't know. Probably not long, not even a minute, and then she realized we were looking at her, rapt because to some degree they all saw what I saw and felt what I felt. For that minute or however long it was, I don't think any of us used much oxygen. She stepped off the Frisbee, laughing and blushing at the same time, confused but not really uncomfortable. ‘I'm sorry,' she said. ‘I just . . . I love that song.' ‘All she wants to do is dance,' Rommie said. ‘Yes, sometimes that's all she wants,' Mattie said, and blushed harder than ever. ‘Excuse me, I have to use the facility.' She tossed me the Frisbee and then dashed for the trailer. I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself back to reality, and saw John doing the same thing. George Kennedy was wearing a mildly stunned expression, as if someone had fed him a light sedative and it was finally taking effect. Thunder rumbled. This time it did sound closer. I skimmed the Frisbee to Rommie. ‘What do you think?' ‘I think I'm in love,' he said, and then seemed to give himself a small mental shake it was a thing you could see in his eyes. ‘I also think it's time we got going on those steaks if we're going to eat outside. Want to help me?' ‘Sure.' ‘I will, too,' John said. We walked back to the trailer, leaving George and Kyra to play toss. Kyra was asking George if he had ever caught any crinimals. In the kitchen, Mattie was standing beside the open fridge and stacking steaks on a platter. ‘Thank God you guys came in. I was on the point of giving up and gobbling one of these just the way it is. They're the most beautiful things I ever saw.' ‘You're the most beautiful thing I ever saw,' John said. He was being totally sincere, but the smile she gave him was distracted and a little bemused. I made a mental note to myself: never compliment a woman on her beauty when she has a couple of raw steaks in her hands. It just doesn't turn the windmill somehow. ‘How are you at barbecuing meat?' she asked me. ‘Tell the truth, because these are way too good to mess up.' ‘I can hold my own.' ‘Okay, you're hired. John, you're assisting. Rommie, help me do salads.' ‘My pleasure.' George and Ki had come around to the front of the trailer and were now sitting in lawn-chairs like a couple of old cronies at their London club. George was telling Ki how he had shot it out with Rolfe Nedeau and the Real Bad Gang on Lisbon Street in 1993. ‘George, what's happening to your nose?' John asked. ‘It's getting so long.' ‘Do you mind?' George asked. ‘I'm having a conversation here.' ‘Mr. Kennedy has caught lots of crooked crinimals,' Kyra said. ‘He caught the Real Bad Gang and put them in Supermax.' ‘Yes,' I said. ‘Mr. Kennedy also won an Academy Award for acting in a movie called Cool Hand Luke.' ‘That's absolutely correct,' George said. He raised his right hand and crossed the two fingers. ‘Me and Paul Newman. Just like that.' ‘We have his pusgetti sauce,' Ki said gravely, and that got John laughing again. It didn't hit me the same way, but laughter is catching; just watching John was enough to break me up after a few seconds. We were howling like a couple of fools as we slapped the steaks on the grill. It's a wonder we didn't burn our hands off. ‘Why are they laughing?' Ki asked George. ‘Because they're foolish men with little tiny brains,' George said. ‘Now listen, Ki I got them all except for the Human Headcase. He jumped into his car and I jumped into mine. The details of that chase are nothing for a little girl to hear ‘ George regaled her with them anyway while John and I stood grinning at each other across Mattie's barbecue. ‘This is great, isn't it?' John said, and I nodded. Mattie came out with corn wrapped in aluminum foil, followed by Rommie, who had a large salad bowl clasped in his arms and negotiated the steps carefully, trying to peer over the top of the bowl as he made his way down them. We sat at the picnic table, George and Rommie on one side, John and I flanking Mattie on the other. Ki sat at the head, perched on a stack of old magazines in a lawn-chair. Mattie tied a dishtowel around her neck, an indignity Ki submitted to only because (a) she was wearing new clothes, and (b) a dishtowel wasn't a baby-bib, at least technically speaking. We ate hugely salad, steak (and John was right, it really was the best I'd ever had), roasted corn on the cob, ‘strewberry snortcake' for dessert. By the time we'd gotten around to the snortcake, the thunderheads were noticeably closer and there was a hot, jerky breeze blowing around the yard. ‘Mattie, if I never eat a meal as good as this one again, I won't be surprised,' Rommie said. ‘Thanks ever so much for having me.' ‘Thank you,' she said. There were tears standing in her eyes. She took my hand on one side and John's on the other. She squeezed both. ‘Thank you all. If you knew what things were like for Ki and me before this last week . . . ‘ She shook her head, gave John and me a final squeeze, and let go. ‘But that's over.' ‘Look at the baby,' George said, amused. Ki had slumped back in her lawn-chair and was looking at us with glazing eyes. Most of her hair had come out of the scrunchy and lay in clumps against her cheeks. There was a dab of whipped cream on her nose and a single yellow kernel of corn sitting in the middle of her chin. ‘I threw the Frisbee six fousan times,' Kyra said. She spoke in a distant, declamatory tone. ‘I tired.' Mattie started to get up. I put my hand on her arm. ‘Let me?' She nodded, smiling. ‘If you want.' I picked Kyra up and carried her around to the steps. Thunder rumbled again, a long, low roll that sounded like the snarl of a huge dog. I looked up at the encroaching clouds, and as I did, movement caught my eye. It was an old blue car heading west on Wasp Hill Road toward the lake. The only reason I noticed it was that it was wearing one of those stupid bumper-stickers from the Village Cafe: HORN BROKEN WATCH FOR FINGER. I carried Ki up the steps and through the door, turning her so I wouldn't bump her head. ‘Take care of me,' she said in her sleep. There was a sadness in her voice that chilled me. It was as if she knew she was asking the impossible. ‘Take care of me, I'm little, Mama says I'm a little guy.' ‘I'll take care of you,' I said, and kissed that silky place between her eyes again. ‘Don't worry, Ki, go to sleep.' I carried her to her room and put her on her bed. By then she was totally conked out. I wiped the cream off her nose and picked the corn-kernel off her chin. I glanced at my watch and saw it was ten 'til two. They would be gathering at Grace Baptist by now. Bill Dean was wearing a gray tie. Buddy Jellison had a hat on. He was standing behind the church with some other men who were smoking before going inside. I turned. Mattie was in the doorway. ‘Mike,' she said. ‘Come here, please.' I went to her. There was no cloth between her waist and my hands this time. Her skin was warm, and as silky as her daughter's. She looked up at me, her lips parted. Her hips pressed forward, and when she felt what was hard down there, she pressed harder against it. ‘Mike,' she said again. I closed my eyes. I felt like someone who has just come to the doorway of a brightly lit room full of people laughing and talking. And dancing. Because sometimes that is all we want to do. I want to come in, I thought. That's what I want to do, all I want to do. Let me do what I want. Let me I realized I was saying it aloud, whispering it rapidly into her ear as I held her with my hands going up and down her back, my fingertips ridging her spine, touching her shoulderblades, then coming around in front to cup her small breasts. ‘Yes,' she said. ‘What we both want. Yes. That's fine.' Slowly, she reached up with her thumbs and wiped the wet places from under my eyes. I drew back from her. ‘The key ‘ She smiled a little. ‘You know where it is.' ‘I'll come tonight.' ‘Good.' ‘I've been . . . ‘ I had to clear my throat. I looked at Kyra, who was deeply asleep. ‘I've been lonely. I don't think I knew it, but I have been.' ‘Me too. And I knew it for both of us. Kiss, please.' I kissed her. I think our tongues touched, but I'm not sure. What I remember most clearly is the liveness of her. She was like a dreidel lightly spinning in my arms. ‘Hey!' John called from outside, and we sprang apart. ‘You guys want to give us a little help? It's gonna rain!' ‘Thanks for finally making up your mind,' she said to me in a low voice. She turned and hurried back up the doublewide's narrow corridor. The next time she spoke to me, I don't think she knew who she was talking to, or where she was. The next time she spoke to me, she was dying. ‘Don't wake the baby,' I heard her tell John, and his response: ‘Oh, sorry, sorry.' I stood where I was a moment longer, getting my breath, then slipped into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face. I remember seeing a blue plastic whale in the bathtub as I turned to take a towel off the rack. I remember thinking that it probably blew bubbles out of its spout-hole, and I even remember having a momentary glimmer of an idea a children's story about a spouting whale. Would you call him Willie? Nah, too obvious. Wilhelm, now that had a fine round ring to it, simultaneously grand and amusing. Wilhelm the Spouting Whale. I remember the bang of thunder from overhead. I remember how happy I was, with the decision finally made and the night to look forward to. I remember the murmur of men's voices and the murmur of Mattie's response as she told them where to put the stuff. Then I heard all of them going back out again. I looked down at myself and saw a certain lump was subsiding. I remember thinking there was nothing so absurd-looking as a sexually excited man and knew I'd had this same thought before, perhaps in a dream. I left the bathroom, checked on Kyra again rolled over on her side, fast asleep and then went down the hall. I had just reached the living room when gunfire erupted outside. I never confused the sound with thunder. There was a moment when my mind fumbled toward the idea of backfires some kid's hotrod and then I knew. Part of me had been expecting something to happen . . . but it had been expecting ghosts rather than gunfire. A fatal lapse. It was the rapid pah! pah! pah! of an auto-fire weapon a Glock nine-millimeter, as it turned out. Mattie screamed a high, drilling scream that froze my blood. I heard John cry out in pain and George Kennedy bellow, ‘Down, down! For the love of Christ, get her down!' Something hit the trailer like a hard spatter of hail a rattle of punching sounds running from west to east. Something split the air in front of my eyes I heard it. There was an almost-musical sproing sound, like a snapping guitar string. On the kitchen table, the salad bowl one of them had just brought in shattered. I ran for the door and nearly dived down the cement-block steps. I saw the barbecue overturned, with the glowing coals already setting patches of the scant front-yard grass on fire. I saw Rommie Bissonette sitting with his legs outstretched, looking stupidly down at his ankle, which was soaked with blood. Mattie was on her hands and knees by the barbecue with her hair hanging in her face it was as if she meant to sweep up the hot coals before they could cause some real trouble. John staggered toward me, holding out a hand. The arm above it was soaked with blood. And I saw the car I'd seen before the nondescript sedan with the joke sticker on it. It had gone up the road the men inside making that first pass to check us out then turned around and come back. The shooter was still leaning out the front passenger window. I could see the stubby smoking weapon in his hands. It had a wire stock. His features were a blue blank broken only by huge gaping eyesockets a ski-mask. Overhead, thunder gave a long, awakening roar. George Kennedy was walking toward the car, not hurrying, kicking hot spilled coals out of his way as he went, not bothering about the dark-red stain that was spreading on the right thigh of his pants, reaching behind himself, not hurrying even when the shooter pulled back in and shouted ‘Go go go!' at the driver, who was also wearing a blue mask, George not hurrying, no, not hurrying a bit, and even before I saw the pistol in his hand, I knew why he had never taken off his absurd Pa Kettle suit jacket, why he had even played Frisbee in it. The blue car (it turned out to be a 1987 Ford registered to Mrs. Sonia Belliveau of Auburn and reported stolen the day before) had pulled over onto the shoulder and had never really stopped rolling. Now it accelerated, spewing dry brown dust out from under its rear tires, fishtailing, knocking Mattie's RFD box off its post and sending it flying into the road. George still didn't hurry. He brought his hands together, holding his gun with his right and steadying with his left. He squeezed off five deliberate shots. The first two went into the trunk I saw the holes appear. The third blew in the back window of the departing Ford, and I heard someone shout in pain. The fourth went I don't know where. The fifth blew the left rear tire. The Ford veered to that side. The driver almost brought it back, then lost it completely. The car ploughed into the ditch thirty yards below Mattie's trailer and rolled over on its side. There was a whumpf! and the rear end was engulfed in flames. One of George's shots must have hit the gas-tank. The shooter began struggling to get out through the passenger window. ‘Ki . . . get Ki . . . away . . . ‘ A hoarse, whispering voice. Mattie was crawling toward me. One side of her head the right side still looked all right, but the left side was a ruin. One dazed blue eye peered out from between clumps of bloody hair. Skull-fragments littered her tanned shoulder like bits of broken crockery. How I would love to tell you I don't remember any of this, how I would love to have someone else tell you that Michael Noonan died before he saw that, but I cannot. Alas is the word for it in the crossword puzzles, a four-letter word meaning to express great sorrow. ‘Ki . . . Mike, get Ki . . . ‘ I knelt and put my arms around her. She struggled against me. She was young and strong, and even with the gray matter of her brain bulging through the broken wall of her skull she struggled against me, crying for her daughter, wanting to reach her and protect her and get her to safety. ‘Mattie, it's all right,' I said. Down at the Grace Baptist Church, at the far end of the zone I was in, they were singing ‘Blessed Assurance' . . . but most of their eyes were as blank as the eye now peering at me through the tangle of bloody hair. ‘Mattie, stop, rest, it's all right.' ‘Ki . . . get Ki . . . don't let them . . . ‘ ‘They won't hurt her, Mattie, I promise.' She slid against me, slippery as a fish, and screamed her daughter's name, holding out her bloody hands toward the trailer. The rose-colored shorts and top had gone bright red. Blood spattered the grass as she thrashed and pulled. From down the hill there was a guttural explosion as the Ford's gas-tank exploded. Black smoke rose toward a black sky. Thunder roared long and loud, as if the sky were saying You want noise? Yeah? I'll give you noise. ‘Say Mattie's all right, Mike!' John cried in a wavering voice. ‘Oh for God's sake say she's ‘ He dropped to his knees beside me, his eyes rolling up until nothing showed but the whites. He reached for me, grabbed my shoulder, then tore damned near half my shirt off as he lost his battle to stay conscious and fell on his side next to Mattie. A curd of white goo bubbled from one corner of his mouth. Twelve feet away, near the overturned barbecue, Rommie was trying to get on his feet, his teeth clenched in pain. George was standing in the middle of Wasp Hill Road, reloading his gun from a pouch he'd apparently had in his coat pocket and watching as the shooter worked to get clear of the overturned car before it was engulfed. The entire right leg of George's pants was red now. He may live but he'll never wear that suit again, I thought. I held Mattie. I put my face down to hers, put my mouth to the ear that was still there and said: ‘Kyra's okay. She's sleeping. She's fine, I promise.' Mattie seemed to understand. She stopped straining against me and collapsed to the grass, trembling all over. ‘Ki . . . Ki . . . ‘ This was the last of her talking on earth. One of her hands reached out blindly, groped at a tuft of grass, and yanked it out. ‘Over here,' I heard George saying. ‘Get over here, motherfuck, don't you even think about turning your back on me.' ‘How bad is she?' Rommie asked, hobbling over. His face was as white as paper. And before I could reply: ‘Oh Jesus. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Blessed be the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Oh Mary born without sin, pray for us who have recourse to Thee. Oh no, oh Mike, no.' He began again, this time lapsing into Lewiston street-French, what the old folks call La Parle. ‘Quit it,' I said, and he did. It was as if he had only been waiting to be told. ‘Go inside and check on Kyra. Can you?' ‘Yes.' He started toward the trailer, holding his leg and lurching along. With each lurch he gave a high yip of pain, but somehow he kept going. I could smell burning tufts of grass. I could smell electric rain on a rising wind. And under my hands I could feel the light spin of the dreidel slowing down as she went. I turned her over, held her in my arms, and rocked her back and forth. At Grace Baptist the minister was now reading Psalm 139 for Royce: If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me, even the night shall be light. The minister was reading and the Martians were listening. I rocked her back and forth in my arms under the black thunderheads. I was supposed to come to her that night, use the key under the pot and come to her. She had danced with the toes of her white sneakers on the red Frisbee, had danced like a wave on the ocean, and now she was dying in my arms while the grass burned in little clumps and the man who had fancied her as much as I had lay unconscious beside her, his right arm painted red from the short sleeve of his WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS tee-shirt all the way down to his bony, freckled wrist. ‘Mattie,' I said. ‘Mattie, Mattie, Mattie.' I rocked her and smoothed my hand across her forehead, which on the right side was miraculously unsplattered by the blood that had drenched her. Her hair fell over the ruined left side of her face. ‘Mattie,' I said. ‘Mattie, Mattie, oh Mattie.' Lightning flashed the first stroke I had seen. It lit the western sky in a bright blue arc. Mattie trembled strongly in my arms all the way from neck to toes she trembled. Her lips pressed together. Her brow furrowed, as if in concentration. Her hand came up and seemed to grab for the back of my neck, as a person falling from a cliff may grasp blindly at anything to hold on just a little longer. Then it fell away and lay limply on the grass, palm up. She trembled once more the whole delicate weight of her trembled in my arms and then she was still.