Platos Apology Essay Example for Free

Platos Apology Essay Platos The Apology is an account of the speech Socrates makes at the trial in which he is charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, inventing new deities, and corrupting the youth of Athens. Socrates speech, however, is by no means an apology in our modern understanding of the word. The name of the dialogue derives from the Greek apologia, which translates as a defense, or a speech made in defense. Thus, in The Apology, Socrates attempts to defend himself and his conductcertainly not to apologize for it. For the most part, Socrates speaks in a very plain, conversational manner. He explains that he has no experience with the law courts and that he will instead speak in the manner to which he is accustomed: with honesty and directness. He explains that his behavior stems from a prophecy by the oracle at Delphi which claimed that he was the wisest of all men. Recognizing his ignorance in most worldly affairs, Socrates concluded that he must be wiser than other men only in that he knows that he knows nothing. In order to spread this peculiar wisdom, Socrates explains that he considered it his duty to question supposed wise men and to expose their false wisdom as ignorance. These activities earned him much admiration amongst the youth of Athens, but much hatred and anger from the people he embarrassed. He cites their contempt as the reason for his being put on trial. Socrates then proceeds to interrogate Meletus, the man primarily responsible for bringing Socrates before the jury. This is the only instance in The Apology of the elenchus, or cross-examination, which is so central to most Platonic dialogues. His conversation with Meletus, however, is a poor example of this method, as it seems more directed toward embarrassing Meletus than toward arriving at the truth. In a famous passage, Socrates likens himself to a gadfly stinging the lazy horse which is the Athenian state. Without him, Socrates claims, the state is liable to drift into a deep sleep, but through his influenceirritating as it may be to someit can be wakened into productive and virtuous action. Socrates is found guilty by a narrow margin and is asked to propose a penalty. Socrates jokingly suggests that if he were to get what he deserves, he should be honored with a great meal for being of such service to the state. On a more serious note, he rejects prison and exile, offering perhaps instead to pay a fine. When the jury rejects his suggestion and sentences him to death, Socrates stoically accepts the verdict with the observation that no one but the gods know what happens after death and so it would be foolish to fear what one does not know. He also warns the jurymen who voted against him that in silencing their critic rather than listening to him, they have harmed themselves much more than they have harmed him.

Relationship Between Information Rich in Information Poor

Relationship Between Information Rich in Information Poor 1. Introduction In order to discuss Feathers chapter 5 â€Å"information rich and information poor† conclusion of his book â€Å"The information Society, a study of continuity and change†, we need to understand what actually is information rich and information poor in relation to information society. We need to analyze what the political dilemma is; is it only a political dimension related issue within the information society? Is it a choice? And if there is, which way should be chosen and consider as politically correct? And finally we need to find what other real opportunities or options are given to us. This certainly is a discussion full of perplexity on which I will argue that despite the geo-political discrepancies between developing countries and developed countries the â€Å"digital divide† is not sine qua non to socio-economic political decisions anymore but has evolved in the past years into an Auto-Democratisation and Liberalisation and should be bridged by a more eff icient and targeted educational plan, internationally applied beyond any economical barriers. 2. Defining what information society is The Internet is the only mass medium that is newly created in the second half of last century and as Mehra (2004) says, the internet has tremendous potential to achieve greater social equity and empowerment and improve everyday life for those on the margins of society. The acceleration of development in information and communication technology over the last decade has a major impact on social, political, cultural or economical issues. What is the role being played by the Internet in the information society? The Internet is nowadays seen as the pivotal point of view of the â€Å"information society† and can be regarded as a reflection of our daily reality with its multiple opportunities and danger. The â€Å"information society† produces a â€Å"class division†, a clash between people who havent access to the majority of knowledge and those who are â€Å"information rich†, contributing to the economic wealth. This gap between â€Å"haves† and â€Å"have-nots†, between â€Å"information rich† and â€Å"information poor† keeps increasing and has radical effects of changing or at least substantially affecting our society. A more critical definition of â€Å"information society† given at BusinessDictionary.com combines both: Post-industrial society in which information technology (IT) is transforming every aspect of cultural, political, and social life and which is based on the production and distribution of information. It is characterized by the pervasive influence of IT on home, work, and recreational aspects of the individuals daily routine, stratification into new classes those who are information-rich and those who are information-poor It is generally referred to as the â€Å"digital divide† terminology: â€Å"the gap between those people who have Internet access and those who do not† Collins English Dictionary (2003). With a slightly differentiation Mehra (2004) uses adjectives and add the technical aspect of computers to this definition. Looking at the multiple and almost identical definitions of â€Å"information society† and its inextricable â€Å"digital divide† we can conclude that by â€Å"digital divide† it is meant the splitting of those who use or not use Internet resources. the â€Å"have-nots† cannot access computers and Internet resources and therefore are disadvantaged, falling into a an unequal position compared to the †haves†, the one who gains access to information throughout new technologies and therefore participate actively to the social, political, cultural and economical life. This concept comes from â€Å"information society† theorists, which predicts an exceptional social impact on the product society, Webster (2006). Herbert Schillers corporate capitalism (p. 128), Jà ¼rgen Habermass public sphere (p. 163), Anthony Giddenss surveillance and reflexive modernisation (p.206), post-modernist Jean Baudrillards signs signification (p. 244) or Zygmunt Baumans liquid life (p. 260), not to forget Daniel Bells post-industrial society, techniques and technologies of production, change from Primary Industries such as agriculture and industrialism to post-industrialism, are the basis for evidence that technology is central for the productivity increase and resulting economic wealth, referred as Technological determinism. (p. 120). Manuel Castells on the other hand with his network society is focusing on social plurality; leaving the old working class concepts and stratification structures behind, bringing to it new Parameters like flexibility and adaptabilit y and herewith become informational Labour, referred as informational Capitalism. (p. 100) 3. Are â€Å"Haves† and â€Å"Have-nots† always â€Å"information-rich† and â€Å"information poor†? Looking at the given definitions it would almost imply that people having a computer and Internet access would automatically be seen as haves, but sometimes in developing countries and certainly in developed countries were consumers widely have access to these technologies we meet situations where they are not considered as information rich. We should look at a different approach and formalise the differentiation within our daily reality. The â€Å"Information poor† are consumers who use traditional mass media information such as television, DVDs, radios and magazines. They possess a wide range of electronic devices, MP3 players, PDAs, game consoles and other computing machines. They are considered as passive consumers of information and nowadays as passive users of new technologies, downloading digital e-books, listening to their favourite music, playing computer games, reading the last international news. But they do not interact nor create any of this provided Information and are certainly not involved in decision taking. On the opposite â€Å"information rich† stands for a new elite within the information society. They are involved into acquiring and processing information, using web 2.0 online applications, producing personalised journals on community platforms, elaborating group discussions in forums with a certain level of knowledgeable competence. They are acting at manager levels thanks to their acquired knowledge and overall literacy. They are the protagonists of this ever-growing information and technology society who possesses the knowhow of Selective processing, generating and distributing information. This selective process of evaluating provided information is determined by the consumers rather than the producers. Consumers pull out the information that fits their needs to increase the value of the already acquired information. They allocates their own criteria of values to the chosen information, they can absorb in its totality, the Values could also reach a certain level of accumulation where the effective processing of it becomes then ineffective, considered as â€Å"information overload†, but the average â€Å"information rich† does know how to handle this, as I will deepen later. Do it now â€Å"The limit is the sky† would be a perfect slogan on planet Utopia where every active user would have become â€Å"information rich†, information access would have been made unlimited, where the knowledge boundaries would be bridged on an information rainbow but on planet Earth our economical reality becomes a barrier where the consumers are blocked by the depth of that availability made in the acquisition of the needed information. Some are available for free supplied by institutions and governmental authorities, some are partially available for publicity purposes (book retailers, information providers) and others specifically recognised to be accessible only with subscriptions or tuition fees. This brings us to the undeniable fact that information consumers are forced to accept the concept of economical value attributed to information by its producer or provider and herewith underline the political dilemma the â€Å"information society† is confronted with. Information itself contributes to extend the already existing gap between developing countries and developed ones. We could not agree more on Feathers statementthat the comparative success of the information-rich economies, and the relative weakness of those that are comparatively information poor, is in itself an argument for the importance of information. The attributed values to information are considered by information society theorists to be one aspect of the evolution of social economic societies; social, political and cultural wealth have always been mirrors of strong economic powers where it could flourish and participate to its economical success. Following Feathers analysis on developing countries, development and exploitation of information technology has become indispensable and value of information fundamental, as shown with Japan, Singapore and Korea, were scientific and economic information are largely accessible and beneficially contribute to primordial economic changes. But unlike these three economically successful Asian countries, major differentiation could also be seen within industrialized countries; between the northern highly agriculturized countries and the Southern ones, accessibility ofinformation resources on comparative basis, the consumer gains from information evaluation but also could suffer in detriment of its productivity. To what extent information becomes one of the tools and enhances already existing knowledge to improve long used agricultural and industrial processes. Information does not become the centre of its economical wealth while contributes to it. The awareness based on analysis of acquired information and its resulting decisions to an enhancement or changes in primer sectors economy corroborates the views information helps â€Å"economic societies† but does not evolve to an â€Å"information society† as such. 4. The digital divide as political dimension The question if Internet opens emancipatory possibilities or whether further enlarges the gap that already exists between the â€Å"haves† and â€Å"have-nots† remains controversial. You will not achieve equality by providing each Third World villagers, ethnic minorities or other â€Å"have-nots† with a computer and Internet access. Access to information communication technology cannot be seen as a standalone solution. The origins of this disparity are far deepening within their educational, socio-cultural and socio-economical problems as Berude (2005) explains. Early Finding by the Orbicom initiative, Sciadas (2003) in collaboration with the Canadian International Development Agency, the InfoDev Programme of the World Bank and UNESCO, shows definitively the enormity of digital divide, separating the â€Å"haves† and â€Å"have-nots† countries by many decades of development, mainly concentrated in Africa but some of them also in the Asian area. Desp ite the fact that the digital divide is generally speaking closing, this report shows that the progress made between the poorest and the â€Å"in-between† countries was not sufficient to close this disparity, while â€Å"upper-middle† countries made distinctive progress to the top and herewith widen the overall gap between the very rich and very poor, and this regardless of the acquisition of ICT and installing new fibreglass high debit telephone lines. There is an undeniable necessity to acquire research skills, literacy skills or generally related computer skills before a user can be called an internaut, a protagonist: The use of Internet requires a much higher literacy skill than traditional media like television, radio or magazines in order to find analyse and process the requested information. There is no title page with table of contents (publications) and no fixed schedule (television, radio) on the Internet. The Internet is basically a â€Å"pull medium† where targeting specific information, articles, research strategies and selective thinking are necessary. Media literacy can therefore be considered as a barrier to Internet access, and this in any type of consumer groups, not only in developing countries but also in our Western countries. Unless there are strong political wills were ICT is recognized by governments as a development tool, were significant efforts are made in education, introduction to ICT in schools, were teaching programs are developed, these countries will not have any significant economical growth. In developed countries the Internet was mainly of layers with higher incomes and educational levels. ENLARGE VIEW while the population in many developing countries are totally excluded from access to the Internet. ENLARGE VIEW 5. Other opportunities and options The danger of such a gap within the society cannot be minimized that easily and solutions offered by public institutions like â€Å"Internet access for all† in public libraries, set up of information communication technologies within public schools or private funded projects like Microsoft founder Bill Gates â€Å"one computer for each children†, were the first stones set to cross the gap between information rich and information poor. But it unfortunately is not taking all citizens and generation groups into account. ENUMERE It is necessary to illuminate the different social perspectives which would integrate this socio-economical as well at it socio-cultural aspects in order to create an awareness of the complicity of this dilemma. Bourdieu already suggested and identified this perspective as overall capital. DESCRIBE According to Bourdieu (1993), the overall capital of different fractions of the social classes is composed of differing proportions of the various kinds of capital. It is mainly in relation to the middle and upper classes that Bourdieu elaborates this variation in volume and composition of the four types of capital These differences are a consequence of complex relationships between individual and class trajectories. Moreover, the values attached to the different forms of capital are stakes in the struggle between different class fractions Meritocratic teaching Particular attention should be thrown on the field of media education. The Internet, as an above medium influenced the perception of the users, the Media literacy is seen against the background of Info-Poor-/Info-Rich-effects. Thus, an Internet literacy can lead because of lack of cultural assimilation, for example when many senior citizens to information-poor effects. But even in children and adolescents in turn, the media education challenged when it comes to issues such as the ability, credibility with the media, particularly via the Internet to assess common information. 6. Conclusion By redefining socio-economic gaps between â€Å"haves† and â€Å"have-nots† and whether it is part of the political dilemma, the information society is on its way to become a powerful tool that could eradicate worlds poverty. Yet it the remaining problems are not only to be seen as a sociological struggle, but rather are perceived as a pedagogical challenge. 7. References Beasley-Murray, J. (2000, June 15). Value and Capital in Bourdieu and Marx. InI one-stop shopping for the real news. Retrieved December 30, 2009, from http://www.williambowles.info/sa/cultural_capital.html Berude, L. (2006). The Digital Divide, or Who Gets to Be Part of the Information Society? Multimedia Information and Technology Digital, 32(3), 26-33. Families, cultural resources and the digital divide: ICTs and educational advantage. (2003, April 1). Australian Journal of Education, 47, 18-39. Retrieved December 30, 2009, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb6475/is_1_47/ai_n29004669 Feather, J. (2008). The Information Society: A Study of Continuity and Change (5 ed.). London: Facet Publishing. Sciadas, G. (2003). Monitoring the Digital Divideand Beyond. Montreal, Canada: Orbicom. Webster, F. (2006). Theories of the Information Society: Third Edition (International Library of Sociology). New York: Routledge. information society definition. (n.d.). BusinessDictionary.com Online Business Dictionary. Retrieved January 2, 2010, from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/information-society.html

Nikes Entry into China

Nikes Entry into China China is one of the major fastest growing markets in the world and the most popular markets for foreign entrants. One of todays major business challenges requiring logistics insight is the dramatic growth in international sourcing, mainly to low cost countries such as China and Malaysia (David J.Closs, 2005). IBM Global Business Services reported that low cost country helps raise revenue. Most of the companys CEOs are looking for revenue growth by reduce costs to maintain or expand profit margins. Obviously, cost is one of the factors that all companies that desire to reduce. After a company study of future sourcing, Nike had chosen China as one of the long-term most low-cost suppliers. By quoting Nike Inc. Cain.com said that labour costs accounted for a huge share of the prices of the companys shoes and had to be kept below 24 per cent of prices to stay competitive. Since, Nike is the leading sports brand in China. In 1981, Nike started production in China. However, for a company like Nike that has a reputation of making the best products for their customers, they have to take in other factors such as quality. Its one reason why they did not choose countries such as Africa to be their supplier. In addition, one factor that China has to offer is labor capability to make quality goods for Nike. Furthermore, China was also chosen because the domestic market size. Mark Parker, who is the President and CEO of Nike stated that Nike is a growth company and China is being one of their most important sourcing markets and also swiftly becoming their second biggest consumer market in the world. About one of every three pairs of Nike shoes they sell in the world is made in China. Similarity, Nike was taken these advantages to tap into the large market it offers. In others word, China was also taking the opportunities to capturing the market in China which will help stiffen the companys foundation in its industry. The fact of lowering cost is to achieve profit maximization. Production in a first world country would increase cost and lead to reduce profit. China as a second world country for the foreseeable future is also the reason why Nike chose to enter into China. 2.0 Analysis 2.1 Advantage gained by Nike for entering China When Nike first entered the international market through China, they gained many benefits. This is because China is a low-cost country, so NIKE has no involvement in the manufacturing of its products and all of its production has been outsourced mainly to manufacturers. For example, Goodbaby Group, Chinas top manufacturer and retailer of baby care products, has announced an online retail partnership with the Nike Inc as part of its efforts so that they able to win more brand recognition (China Daily, 2012). Nike has been working with manufacturers in China for about 20 years. The employees and factories produce a lot of Nikes most highest-performance athletic products. One of the most fundamental impacts Nike have is to create positive, systemic change in their global supply chain, and for the industry as a whole. The deep brand and supply chain footprints in China create distinctive opportunities for Nike while it continues to help influence and gain from Chinas success. The achievement in China is built regarding the deep connections with Chinas Nike-branded footwear and athletes. According to Barney Jopson (2012), the apparel and equipment product are produced by nearly 700 contract manufacturers worldwide, and employing almost 800,000 employees. China represents the largest sourcing country for Nike, with roughly 180 contract manufacturers employing more than 210,000 workers (Barney Jopson, 2012). China is the major sourcing market for Nike, which producing around 35 percent of footwear and also an important sourcing market for Nike apparel and equipment. Besides this, the company engages in public discourse and policy formation in China by sharing their experiences. First is the legal protection of employees that went into effect in January 2008, for the aim of strengthening legal protection for Chinas employees. Nike supports the regulatory environment that strengthens legal protections for employees and promotes well-mannered working conditions throughout the supply chain and this helps to prevent discrimination. Second is the international trade. Since Chinas World Trade Organization (WTO) entry in year 2001, Nike has worked to ensure that trade disputes between China and its trading partners are settled and negotiated i n a manner consistent with international norms. For example, trade disputes over apparel and footwear and equipment with Chinas main trading partners in United States. According to a survey by the American Chamber of Commerce, three United States companies say their China operations are profitable while most say their margins are higher in China than other places in the world. Nike not only supported the development of Chinese football, it also concerned about the development of youngsters by launching a series of activity called I have a dream in August 2002, a large scale of youth sports. Since Nike established in China in the early of 1980, it gained several early entry timing of foreign direct investment, which includes new markets, distribution channels, segmentations, and lack of strong competition. Nike first launched their products in China and this gave the company to monopoly in market through different distribution channels. At that period, not much company are providing the same areas of business, therefore Nike did not faced much competitors. Other than this, the company also gained advantage related in products, such as new product, material supply, new product positioning, and brand loyalty. China continues toÂÂ  beÂÂ  aÂÂ  veryÂÂ  viableÂÂ  resource when dealing with overall trade and labour markets around the world. Nike now has more than 7,000 retail stores in China and the company plans to expand their distribution to second andÂÂ  third-tierÂÂ  cities. 2.2 Shortcomings of entering China It is very difficult for Nike to control all the quality products around the world. Nike has involved in a serious of quality scandals in China. Many products had been recall due to low quality and some products have been caused injury to consumers in China. According to Ni and Hu (2012) say that Shanghai quality authorities have been found out three sample pairs of Nike shoes do not meet the standards and in 2011, women sports shoes had thinner soles than required. According to Ni and Hu (2012), Bureau prohibited Nike continues produces the shoes and later asks for recall all the shoes which do not meet the quality standard, but the shoe still available at Zhabei outlet of RT-Mart on October 10. However, the shoes were then pulled off the shelves. In 2011 September, Beijing had fine Nike Zoom Hyperdunk due to deceptive advertising and low quality, (Ni and Hu, 2012). Nike has been fined US $779,416 for selling sneakers had only one air cushion in each shoe at a higher price and low standard in China compared those selling in other countries which has two air cushions and has much lower prices, (Zheng, 2012). The Nike Zoom Hyperdunk does not meet the quality set by the government and thus they need recall all the sneakers and offered refund. Besides that, Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) warning consumers stop using Nike football helmet and returned to Nike. The Helmet Chin Straps plastic cups can breaks and caused exposing the player to facial or head injuries (Villanueva, 2007). It is a big concern that Nike shares is declined 1.1% in China and in future the company expect the orders will down to 6%, (Chang, 2009). Furthermore, revenue earn by Nike in China is dropping due to excess inventory, high discounting and slowing in demand. Manager in China does not keep sufficient inventory record because they unable to relay the information to order materials from other country. They do not know what materials need to be imported and when in advanced and cause the production cannot run in schedule. As a result, there have excess inventory in Long March Factory in Guangzhou. The employees who are responsible for checking materials does not know what are the materials needed to be order in following month production schedule and they did not frequently coordinate the records with the planners, (Nike in China, n.d). The planners order the materials does not base on the consumer demand but instead base on guessing method, and they seldom check what the materials left are in storage. As a result, Nike needs to discount the prices in order to reduce the excess inventory, (Marcial, 2013). Sale of excess inventory at discounted prices could significantly impair the Nike brand image. Fail to examine accuracy demand of products could affect the revenues and net income earn by Nike. There is intense competition faced by Nike, either local brands such as Li Ning, Anta Sports, China Dongxiang and Peak Sports or international brand such as Adidas from U.S., Reebok, Asics, and New Balance. Even now, Nike is well positioned at the top in China; however there have multi brands still compete fiercely with Nike. Based on the report, Nike is known in the first place, with a 2009 market share of 10.2%; Li Ning at the following slot which is second place for the first time, with 10.0%; thus Adidas, in third place, with a 9.6% share (as cited in Smith, 2010). The sales lead that Nike and Adidas held over domestic competitors has vanished. From this report is showing that the results of these top three sportswear brand are close proximity with each other, therefore this showing that Nike still in dangerous condition although it is remain in the first position. Furthermore, in the end of 2011, Li Ning had 8,255 stores while Nike had 7,500 outlets in China (as cited in Ranasin ghe, 2012). As a result, Nike not only needs to face this strong local competitor, Li Ning, but also need to do the preparation for facing other competitors in China. 3.0 Recommendation Nike is popular for its high-quality sport shoes and other apparels. It has gained the acceptance in consumers mind that Nike-made products are of high-quality. In order to maintain and gain its competitive advantage over its main competitors such as Adidas, Reebok and others, Nike has adopted the expansion strategy by outsourcing the production line to low-cost countries. China, Indonesia and Vietnam have become the primary manufacturing destination for Nike. The purpose for outsourcing the production line to China is to reduce the waste in terms of cost of hiring the labor, cost of shipment and many more. Cheaper labor and facility cost in China compared to the United States enabled Nike Corporation to enjoy the economies of scale. It eventually lowers the total production cost and Nike will be able to make more profit. It is recommended that Nike should continue to fully adopt the expansion strategy to other low-cost countries like China by outsourcing the manufacturing line. It c ould strengthen the leadership position of Nike Corporation in financial performance as Nike make more revenue and profit with low production cost. First, it is recommended for Nike Corporation to adopt innovation strategy to strengthen companys competitive advantage over the competitors. New design and innovation are very significant for Nike Corporation. One of the visions for Nike is designing for the future by unleashing the innovation. President and CEO of Nike, Mark Parker, said that Nike has set the target at improving the products through design. In the past, Nike has spent multi-million dollars on Research Development to design the athletic shoes which differentiate itself from other shoemaker companies. Nike has gained the recognition from the consumers for its uniqueness and sophisticated design. Nike China has contributed much to the innovation strategy as many advanced shoes design are made in China from the talented Chinese designers. Out of every three pairs of shoes, there is one of them is made in China. One of the innovative products came out from Nike was the Nike-Ipod sport kit with the collaboration with Ap ple Inc. It enhanced the runners experience by combining the sport and the music. It was viewed as a breakthrough for both sport and music industries. Second, Nike has excess inventory, high discounting and slowing in demand. To overcome this, China has several competitive advantages. There are few strategies which can enable exploiting competitive advantage through different goal-means combinations (Bartlett et al., 2008): Multinational strategy achieves most strategic goals by emphasizing national differences. The firms which have adopted this strategy tend to operate business based on local environment. They are flexible and responsive to local environment, but there is a lack of capability to learn globally within these firms owing to the fact that almost all national units operate independently. By using multinational strategy, Nike can achieve most strategic goals by emphasizing national differences. This is because Nike can adopt their strategy to operate business based on local environment. They can morph their strategy according to the local market, which is China. International companies like Nike apply all the approaches to create and exploit innovations. This can be their competitive advantages for the China as Asians culture tends to be more shy and conservative in innovative. The strategies discussed above respectively possess unique assumptions about how to build up global competitive advantage. Nike used the Price Leadership Strategy and Value based pricing. This is when a company sets its price based on the value the consumer places on the product. This is why customer willing to pay high prices regardless of the products actual value. Nike already had the strong brand recognition among the people in China. For example Liu Xiang, Liu is an Olympic Gold medalist and World Champion. His 2004 Olympic gold medal was the first in a mens track and field event for China. His athletic gear is sponsored by Nike. No doubt all China people will get to know about Nike. As the excess inventory of Nike in China, I would suggest that they can cooperate with other parties such as their suppliers, distributor and competitors. This can enhance the global competitive advantages in the increasingly complex global environment (Bartlett et al. 2008) This is called strategic alliances. This also can solves high discounting rate for Nike as their inventory level is stable, do not need to discount to reduce inventory. Based on appendix 1 (Regional Product Distribution of Suppliers), China has most worker which is 175,960. This can be their competitive advantage because the production rate of China is very high compare to other country. Third, facing immense competition and failing to rise above others is always going to be one of the greatest shortcomings that a company would face. Which in this case, Nike has to start standing out from its biggest competitors Li Ning and Adidas. At the current state, Nike only has a marginal lead over the two companies. We recommend Nike to be a standout in its industry. They are already making great products, but their competitors are also making great products. In order to rise up and above them, Nike should change the way they serve their customers, create a unique sales style, such as giving expert advice for customers in helping them to make their purchase decisions. They could also create an environment where they feel welcomed and at ease when they are in a Nike shop. A totally new feel towards selling sports ware and clothing. This can help differentiate Nike from its competitors and increase brand awareness. 4.0 Conclusion Nowadays, Nike has more than 7,000 retail stores in China and they plans to develop their distribution to second andÂÂ  third-tierÂÂ  cities.When Nike first entered the low cost country such as China, they gained many benefits. As we know that, China represents the largest sourcing country for Nike and also the most important sourcing market for Nike apparel and equipment. But, Nike has facing the problem of quality controls in China. For example, many low quality products had been recall and some products have been caused injury to consumers in China. Furthermore, revenue earn by Nike in China is dropping due to excess inventory, high discounting and slowing in demand. Thus, we recommend to this industry to adopt the multinational strategy which emphasizing national differences and being able to operate the business based on local environment. Besides that, Nike also faced with intense competition like Reebok and international brand such as Adidas. We recommend Nike to adopt the innovation strategy to strengthen companys competitive advantage over the competitors. New design and innovation are very significant for Nike Corporation to enhance their leadership position. For example, change the way they serve their customers, such as giving the potential customers expert advice and suggestion, so that customers will feel respect and make better purchase decision. In conclusion, we learned that the company should implement expansion strategy by outsourcing the production line to low-cost countries such as China, Indonesia and Vietnam which are the primary manufacturing targeted destination for others company. For Nike, the purpose for outsourcing the production line to China is to reduce the cost such as cost of hiring the labour, cost of shipment and so on. It helped strengthen the leadership position of Nike in term of financial performance as Nike can make more revenue and profit with low production cost and also built up a strong reputation. References Barney Jopson (2012), Nike profit up despite falling China order, retrieved February 27, 2013 from http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/b48a6dae-4aee-11e2-9650-00144feab49a,Authorised=false.html?_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2Fb48a6dae-4aee-11e2-9650-00144feab49a.html_i_referer=#axzz2MCUQZfC3 China Daily (2011), Nike to invest in China very aggressively, retrieved February 27, 2013 from http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-10/11/content_13872475.htm Want China Times (2013), Mounting labor costs forces Nike to relocate in China, retrieved February 27, 2013 from http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclass-cnt.aspx?MainCatID=0cid=1102id=20130227000098 Ni,Y., Hu,M. (2012).ShanghaiDaily.com. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/print.asp?id=514991 Zheng,X. (2012).Tougher penalties urged for double standard companies. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012-10/27/content_15851155.htm Villanueva,L. (2007). Nike football helmet chin strap recall issued following reports of head and facial injuries. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from http://www.newsinferno.com/?p=2029 Chang, G.G. (2012). The coming collapse of consumption in China. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonchang/2012/09/30/the-coming-collapse-of-consumption-in-china/ Nike in China. Retrieved February 17, 2013, from http://www.yingyudaxue.com/book/nike-in-china Marcial, G. (2012). Inside Wall Street :Nike slows but is still in race. Retrieved February 17, 2013, from http://money.msn.com/top-stocks/post.aspx?post=13a96856-28f2-4dc2-bc78-26b601bdf647 Smith, G. (2010). Sportswear in China how local brands challenged the might of Nike and Adidas. Retrieved February 17, 2013, http://www.warc.com/Samples/93120.pdf Ranasinghe, D. (2012). No Medals for Chinas Sportswear Firms. Retrieved February 17, 2013, http://www.cnbc.com/id/48454835/No_Medals_for_Chinarsquos_Sportswear_Firms Bartlett, C.A., Ghoshal, S. and Beamish, P.W., (2008).ÂÂ  Transnational management: text, cases, and readings in cross-border management. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies. Retrieved February 26, 2013 Competitive Challenge Nike, Retrieved February 26, 2013, From http://www.ukdissertations.com/dissertations/business/competitive-challenge-nike.php Paresh Ashara, (2012). Nike:Marketing Strategies. Retrieved February 26, 2013, From http://www.slideshare.net/PareshAshara/nike-12906460 Porter, M.E., (1998).ÂÂ  The competitive advantage of nations. The Free Press, New York: NY. Retrieved February 26, 2013

AA Meeting :: Free Essay Writer

12 Step Meeting   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The meeting I attended took place in Bothell on a weeknight at 7:00 pm in the evening. The meeting was held in a local church and there were 17 people in attendance, excluding myself. Among the 17 people, there were 6 women and 11 men. The average attendee was approximately between the ages of 40-50, 4 people were under the age of 30, and two were somewhere around 60. Of the 17 people, 16 were white and one woman was of an Asian-American descent.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The focus of the meeting was Step #2 –humility. There were a few AA birthdays and in general the meeting consisted out of birthday-people reliving their stories and some talking about humility.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Prior to the meeting I was expecting to enter into a room filled with smoke and nervous, agitated people. My impression of AA and of alcoholics mostly came from movies and my own prior experience with population suffering from different psychiatric disorders. I was expecting a lot of smoking, coffee drinking, twitching and general nervous behaviors. To my surprise the meeting mostly was attended, by normal in appearance people, that I would never suspect of having any addiction problems. The people were not twitching (to my surprise), but instead were very calm, cool and collected. Many talked about God and holding AA as the higher power in their lives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The meeting I attended best compares with the meetings I saw in the film 28 Days. While in rehabilitation center Gwen attends a series of inside the rehab meetings. As in the 28 Days meetings, the meeting I attended was held in a circle with people facing each other. There were no outbursts as in the movie, but there was an official â€Å"huger† who dispensed hugs as needed, be it a birthdays or a new attendee such as my self. Movie consisted of constant outbursts at therapy sessions, emotions of the film characters were all over the place, people were angry, happy or depressed. The people at the meeting I attended were mostly quiet and most seemed very depressed. I came away form the meeting, with enormous feeling of sadness, for all attending.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many of the stories heard by me at the meeting coincided with different stories, from 28 days. Just like Gwen in the beginning of the movie crashed her car and was court ordered to go into rehab, many of the people at the meeting had similar fates.

Here Follows Some Verses :: essays research papers

Here Follows Some Verses...   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In all of Anne Bradstreet’s poetry that we have read, she has taken an experience of hers and then dissected and related it to Christian and, more generally, Puritan merits. â€Å"Here Follows Some Verses,† is no exception. After the burning of her house 1666, Bradstreet wrote this poem. It expresses her longing for the house and the possessions that were consumed in the fire. The poem also shows the author’s solid faith in God. There is a minor conflict between her religious merits and her connection with her lost items (namely her house). This conflict spurs questions that irk analysis of theology. However, they are resolved before the end of the poem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The beginning of the poem is a wake up call. Bradstreet introduces the fire early in the poem, jolting our attention. She does this so that the sense of urgency she felt is convey to the reader. The first thought that comes to Bradstreet’s mind is to ask God for help, â€Å"†¦And not leave [her] succorless.† This was her first and, for her, most natural reaction to distress. Once she had escaped the house, she said that it was God’s will for the house to burn. From this we see that the author is a pious woman with solid faith. Soon after, we see that Bradstreet has a less religious side to her personality. After escaping from the house and looking at the ashes where her home once stood, she begins to long for the material possessions consumed in the fire. The flow of the poem changes from shocking to sad when the Bradstreet surveys the site and wherever she looks has memories of the things that once used to be there. There is a lot of repetition at this point. The words no and nor are repeated several times between lines 28 and 34, stressing her pining for her home and the memories that she will never have.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The superficial side of Bradstreet shows itself for only a short time, however. She accepts the fire as an act of God.

Home Recipe for Food Tech/Cooking Students †Fresh and Fried Spring Rolls Essay

Ingredients – makes 16 large spring rolls: 1 cup thinly sliced carrot 1 cup shredded Chinese cabbage 1 cup spring onions thinly sliced 1 cup mushrooms diced 1 1/2 cups thin rice noodles 16 sheets of defrosted spring roll pastry ( for fried spring rolls) 16 sheets of rice paper (for fresh spring rolls) 450g chicken mince (if making fried spring rolls) Method: Fried Spring Rolls: 1.Boil enough water to submerge the noodles and place both the water and noodles in a bowl to break them up and soften them. Let them soak for about 2-3 minutes. Remove with a colander. 2. Chop up all vegetables finely and mix together a long with the chicken and noodles in a large bowl. 3.Line up the spring roll pastry diagonally to you and put the mixture of veggies on the corner closest to you. 4.Roll the pastry up until you reach halfway. Fold in the corners and continue to roll. 5.Once you roll it until you have a little flap of pastry sticking out, wet it with a few drops of water to seal it to the rest of the roll. 6.Cook the spring rolls in the vegetable oil for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and crunchy. 7.Remove from oil and drain excess off via paper towel. 8.Serve the fried spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce for dipping. Fresh Vegetable Spring Rolls: 1.Place the noodles in warm water to soften them like you did with the noodles in step 1 of the fried spring rolls. Remove with a colander. 2.Place the rice paper in warm water after removing the noodles. 3.Follow steps 2-5 of the fried spring rolls recipe with the exception on using no chicken and substituting the pastry for the softened rice paper. 4.Serve with soy sauce.

Primary School and Typical Young Kid Essay

I can remember one event in my grade school days that I did not like. You could say it being one of my worst days of my life. I was in the fifth grade, in a school in Clovis, NM. This school believed in paddling if you got in trouble. The teacher I had, acted like he love to enforce this rule. He would tell us, every time we acted out, that he was going to paddle us as he waved his paddle in the air. We were told to do homework for the weekend and to bring it back on the next Monday. I didn’t want to do this long homework assignment, I wanted to go play with my friends and play video games. I was a typical young kid; I just wanted to have fun. That whole weekend I did not touch that assignment. I don’t even think I took my homework out from my backpack. The Moring of that Monday I completely forgot about my homework. When I got to school and sat down at my desk, the teacher asked â€Å"Who did their homework†? Most of the class raised their hands; I was not one of them. The teacher told for the ones that did not do their work have to stay in for recess and finish it. That just made me mad; I wasn’t allowed to go play with my friends. When recess time came and when my friends went out to play, I just stared out the window and refused to do my work. About the time recess was over and the class was coming in, the teacher walked in and told us to bring our work to his desk in front of the class. There was only two of use that gave him a blank assignment. He didn’t take that to well, as he grabbed both papers and directed us to follow him to the office. At the office he looked up for our parent’s numbers from the school records. When he called my step mom and told her what I did he asked if it was ok to discipline me, if he couldn’t do it than she was to come and do it herself. He hanged up the phone with only the word â€Å"Ok† and then he took both of us out in the hall and paddled us both with two swings each across our bottoms. I did not like that school day, I never saw that teacher the same way after that incident. It made me be aware of my actions. From that day I made sure I did all my work. I didn’t want to get paddle again. It was a very cruel way to punish but it was a very infected to make the kids listen.