Book Review of “HARDBALL” by Christopher Matthews Essay Example

Book Review of â€Å"HARDBALL† by Christopher Matthews Essay Matthews, Christopher (1999). Hardball: how politics is played, told by one who knows the game (1st Touchstone ed. ed.). New York: Simon Schuster. Hardball was published in 1988 and was written by Chris Matthews. Chris Matthews himself has over 17 years of experience in the political world, having spent a lot of time in Washington in various capacities; as aide to Senator Frank E. Moss, presidential speech writer as well as chief spokesman for Tip O’Neill. This book encompasses his life’s experience in politics and outlines the darker side of this world. The title of the book Hardball in itself is quite significant as it actually communicates the core concept of the book. Chris Matthews has in a very interesting manner, depicted how to play the game of politics; not just politics but hard or dirty politics. Matthews aims to enlighten his reader on how to be politically successful by adopting the right strategies and techniques. Most of them may not be ethical but then, the world of politics does not run on ethics. Quite a few of the tactics that Matthews outlines, can in fact, be even used in general life. Some of the core concepts that Matthews outlines in his book include the importance of making the right friends to help you get ahead, to take favors in the right way, to keep your enemies in front of you, focus on getting ahead and so on. We will write a custom essay sample on Book Review of â€Å"HARDBALL† by Christopher Matthews specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Book Review of â€Å"HARDBALL† by Christopher Matthews specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Book Review of â€Å"HARDBALL† by Christopher Matthews specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer A few of the tactics outlined are quite interesting for instance when he talks about keeping your enemies in front of you. He gives the example of President Reagan and how he appointed James Baker the White House Chief of Staff knowing that Baker was against Reagan and had teamed up with Gerald Ford and George Bush. But according to Matthews, the key to your success in politics is to keep your enemies in front of you. In his hardball style, Matthews also talks about how politicians play with the economy according to the political cycles. He writes in his book, â€Å"Did you ever notice that swings in the economy nearly correspond to the political calendar? Recessions usually occur in the first year after a president wins an election. Recoveries are timed to reach full vigor as the country is poised for a new political season. A president knows that he must complete his term on an economic upswing. If he is going to squeeze out the inflation and cut some benefit programs, hed better do it right up front so that the pain is forgotten by the next election.†(pp. 83-84) Matthews outlines similar concepts throughout his book. He talks about his theory of Spin which he states is â€Å"defining the events in the most self-serving way possible.† (p. 171). Although everyone does know politics is dirty, Matthews in his unique style and by using real life examples of how many politicians, over the years, have incorporated the tactics he talks about, has made it interesting to read. I would not say this book is boring at all. Some of the tactics may not be very respectful, but then politics never is. Matthews has simply tried to encapsulate his seventeen years of experience in the political world and has presented a realistic narration of how successful politicians are those who know how to play â€Å"Hardball!†

Decision Making Process for Entrepreneurs

Decision Making Process for Entrepreneurs For young businesses, it is difficult for entrepreneurs to acquire enough information to help in making decisions. In spite of businesses taking a short period to break-even, it is not reasonable for an entrepreneur to assume that he or she has succeeded.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Decision Making Process for Entrepreneurs specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Entrepreneurs ought to bear in mind numerous considerations when making decisions on matters affecting their young businesses. For young businesses, entrepreneurs need to use metrics like pipeline coverage, sales per employee, and customer payback duration to gauge the performance of their businesses, thus make viable decisions (Rainey Para.1). Sales pipeline refers to coming up with a list of all the sales forecasts. Typically, entrepreneurs ought to consider their projected sales volume and approximate the likelihood of accomplishing each forecast. It is impe rative to update this information periodically. Sales pipeline is represented in the form of a fraction with the numerator representing the total volume in the pipeline and the denominator representing the sales goal. Consequently, sales pipeline measures the success of the business with respect to an established sales goal. As the business continues growing, it becomes easy for entrepreneurs to link closure rates to goals (Rainey Para.4-6). Apart from considering the pipeline coverage in making critical entrepreneurial decisions, young entrepreneurs need to consider the sales average for every employee. This measure might appear simple, but it is of significant value not only to small businesses, but also to big businesses. The value of sales per employee is obtained by dividing the total sales by the number of employees. In most cases, small businesses scale up rapidly ahead of their visions (Rainey Para.7). It is imperative to have accurate data on the average sales per employee to ensure that a business witnesses a continuous growth trajectory. At times, whenever entrepreneurs notice that their organisations are doing well in the market, they rush to hire more employees without putting into consideration the kind of employees the business requires most (Rainey Para.7). Focusing on the average sales per employee helps the entrepreneurs in understanding the importance of recruiting salespeople over other employees.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Another metric that can help entrepreneurs make informed decisions on future strategies for their businesses is the customer payback period. Customer payback period is the best metric for examining the cost of recruiting a customer into a business. Nevertheless, this measure requires a lot of time to come up with concrete information. Depending on the cost of acquiring a customer, all a business do es may be either sensible or insensible. A business that acquires customers at low cost always does well in the market (Rainey Para.8). Initially, entrepreneurs do guesswork when determining the cost of hiring customers. However, with time, they can the customer payback period metric to determine the cost of acquiring customers. Once the entrepreneurs understand the cost of acquiring customers, they embark on determining the period their businesses would take to recover this cost. Customer payback period helps entrepreneurs in determining the amount of money their businesses require to grow (Rainey Para.9-10). Besides, it helps them project the amount of profit their businesses are likely to make. All the three measures apply to all businesses. Consequently, entrepreneurs across the globe and in all industries can use them to determine what needs to be changed in their businesses to enhance performance. In case an entrepreneur wishes to lure investors to his or her business, he or s he would require having knowledge about the three metrics. Rainey, Don. 3 Numbers All Entrepreneurs Should Know, 2012. Web. https://www.inc.com/don-rainey/three-numbers-all-entrepreneurs-should-know.html. 3 Numbers All Entrepreneurs Should Know In the early days of a startup, it can be tough to find good data to help with decision-making. Put a priority on these three numbers, and youll be fine. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Decision Making Process for Entrepreneurs specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More To make good decisions, you need good data. That’s a given, right? But in a start-up, what data should you be looking at? In the early days of a startup, sometimes there isn’t much to measure. A comparison of this year’s sales compared to last year’s isn’t all that helpful if you’ve only been around for eight months. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start coll ecting data right away. So where can you find relevant information? As an investor, I would offer three metrics that will give you some insight into your current operations and help you do some short-term forecasting. For most small companies, this will be a good step toward focusing attention on the information that will lead to informed decisions. Pipeline coverage The sales pipeline is a listing of all your sales prospects. Typically, you’d include the projected sales amount and estimate the probability of success for each account. You’d update the information regularly. Sales pipeline coverage is a fraction. The total amount in your pipeline is the numerator, and the sales goal is the denominator. So sales pipeline coverage measures everything in the sales pipeline against the sales goal. As the business matures, you’ll get better at estimating closure rates, and you’ll be able to tie closure rates to milestones. If you’ve only had one meeting with a particular customer, you might assign that deal a 20% chance of closing. Once the customer has agreed to pricing, you might bump that up to 50%. In practice, you want your pipeline coverage to be over 2.5x. That should virtually assure you make your target, as long as you’ve got a reasonably competent sales effort and have done a good job qualifying your customers.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Sales per employee This metric is simple enough, and it’s good for businesses of all sizes. Just take the gross sales number and divide it by the number of employees. Since small businesses typically scale too fast ahead of their prospects – the optimism of entrepreneurs is both their blessing and their curse – sales per employee is a critical measure within growing companies. Warning: Once you start focusing on this number, you’ll quickly see the intrinsic appeal of hiring salespeople over other personnel. Customer payback period The very best metric for evaluating your business, customer acquisition cost, takes a while to assess. Ultimately, everything your business does will either make sense or not depending on how much it costs you to acquire a customer. If you can acquire customers cheaply or profitably, you will do well. At first, customer acquisition cost is just a rough guess. But once you have that in hand, you can start thinking about the custo mer payback period. If the cost to acquire a customer is known, the logical question is how many months it will take to recover that cost. The value of this metric lies in its ability to help you figure out how much money you need to grow and how profitable your company is likely to be. Put another way, how many customers can you afford to acquire with your existing capital or operating profits? How much growth can you support? Growth is more capital-intensive than failure. The length of your customer payback period gives you a window into your growth potential. The beauty of these three metrics is that they apply universally. CEOs can use them to better understand what’s working and what needs to be changed in order to meet short and long-term goals. For a company seeking outside funding, knowledge and management of these metrics is critical to allowing investors to understand your business and potential.

The Need for a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan Dissertation

The Need for a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan - Dissertation Example 11). While it might be difficult, and sobering, to convince a reluctant boss that consideration must be given to keep all of their employees safe form violence while on the job, it is certainly worth the effort. To begin, it is helpful to point out some real world examples that bring the problem a little bit closer to home. Consider a bank, where tellers are on the frontline of ealing with the public on a daily basis, with thousands (in some cases much more) of dollars in their grasp. Without a violence prevention program in tact, an unsuspecting teller, and the public at large, can quickly become the victim of a violent act of grave proportions. There are many types of businesses that have a propensity towards violence occurring in the workplace. Consider any business that has its primary function being various interactions with the public. By the sheer nature of having unsecured people entering the office or place of business on a daily basis, all employees and an unsuspecting publ ic are put at risk. To not have some type of prevention effort in place to ward off possible attacks, management and owners are simply doing a disservice to the very employees that have devoted their working lives to the company. This is not to mention the customers who have a basic assumption that they are safe during the time that they are in a place of business. The management and owners owe it to the very customers that make them money to keep them relatively safe from harm in every way possible. Owners need to be aware of the risks, and cannot simply adopt a ‘this will not happen us’ mentality. A firm example of this can be seen in a company that utilises armoured trucks to transport money and various precious metals around major cities all across the United States. Such employees literally put their lives on the line to protect that which they are transporting, yet they all too often become victims of violent crimes. Without an adequate plan of workplace violence prevention, the drivers and guards would be left at a loss for which protocols to follow when they are under threat (Bruce & Nowlin, 2011, p. 294). Yet, almost all such companies do have a violence prevention plan in place. Naturally, such a plan does not work in every case, unfortunately, but they have thwarted many a violent attack in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. The owner who simply says that their business is not subject to violent attacks, such as the one described in this example, is missing the point. Any business that has any number of employees is, at some point, vulnerable to an attack. Consider any transportation company. Their drivers would be under the risk of attack from criminals who would seek to rob them of their merchandise. Any employee, working alone or with a partner, that is off site for any part of the work day is in a dangerous position and should have some kind of protection to ward off a possible violent attack that might occur. It is not only businesses that work with the public that are subject to violent attacks either. Consider the recent attacks at post offices, tax agencies, and general office

Social policy Case Study Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social policy Case Study - Assignment Example They can seek help from programmes or organisations such as Childline, Sane, Supporting people, Refugee council, The Children's society, Housemate, NCH, De Paul Trust, Crisis, Scottish Churches Housing Action etc.that are specifically dealing with problems like those of Jake's. These social work organisations do help people as much as possible but after a point, they find difficult to move further as different policies prove to be a setback to their efforts of improvement. The current white paper that propagates the idea of 'valuing people' is the first of its kind since the last 30 years. So it is quiet evident that not much has been done for the improvement of this sector in the past. According to Department of Health the programs for improving services are based on the key principals; civil rights, independence, choice and inclusion. It stated, "Valuing people takes a life-long approach beginning with an integrated approach to services for disabled children and their families and then providing new opportunities for a full and purposeful adult life." (para.3) From this it appears that all are welcome for support and assistance but if we study the white paper in detail some other facts come into light. The National Austic Society has rightly pointed after observing the definition of 'Valuing people' that "the definition goes on to say that IQ below 70 is not in itself a sufficient reason for deciding whether an individual requires support. An assess ment of social functioning and communication skills should also be taken into account when determining need." (para.7) So the discussed white paper brings both; a ray of hope and a situation of dilemma to people like Jake. All this affects the social work professionals' attitudes too. The Independent Living Bill of disabled persons states that the disabled people are equal in freedom, choice, dignity and control to others and have the right to assistance and support. This automatically implies that Jake and his family can expect an independent and decent life for him. The current white paper also has set an objective to provide choices of housing to people like Jake so that they can live independently. According to Twigg, NHS and the Community Care Act 1990, "established the current arrangements for community care, introducing care management and according primary responsibility for community care-lead agency status-to social services." (1999, p.370). Sadly the housing policy is not aimed at those who need it badly. The housing policy that greatly follows the key legislation like the 1972 Housing Finance Act, 1977 Homeless Act, and 1996 Housing Act etc. is not completely a social policy. Of late it has taken a social character, which does not enable the social workers to fully utilize it for the betterment of the needy. Still the social policy is an indicator for the social workers to decide upon their plan of action. (Pahl, 1999, p.173) stated: 'social policy is now beginning to recognize the contribution which carers make to individualsThe National Health Service and

Case analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Case analysis - Assignment Example Further, the company introduced e-books which most people found convenient and were environmental friendly than print books. Therefore, the company opted to receive and reuse unwanted books, which they thought was still an appealing option for green consumer. The firm gave the community and the school a nonprofit equity stake, which offered them with high financial value in case the firm was sold or merged. In turn, this would ensure that such nonprofit partners understand that future stock alternatives were going to rely on their performance as a company in ensuring literacy level is on the raise. It is evident that as the company expanded, it had to rethink about its donation percentage since the current donation practice disadvantaged it. Therefore, the management was forced to amend the original fifteen percent of all sales because when the company expanded nationally, the average sale of university and college books started dwindling, which meant that, they were operating under a loss. The company continued to perform dismally but changes in oil and gas prices positively affected the company in the sense that the fifteen percent donation increased the firm’s gross margin. Initially, the company had thought of giving half of its profit margins to nonprofit partners such as the community and the school. However, they realized that this concept was a big problem to external investors. If they could give half of the company’s profit margins, it meant creation of lower valuation for the firm because investors would claim fifty percent of what they might have received otherwise. In turn, this would lead to inability to raise funds thus straining themselves. Better World Books donated over $ 8 million to international literacy programs via the sale of its books. Since the company sold over 10,000 copies of books on daily basis, it attained a profit margin

Theories on Dualism in Philosophy

Theories on Dualism in Philosophy Dualism in Philosophy is a theory which, at its basis, holds two radically distinct principles or concepts. One of the most commonly held interpretations of dualism is the concept of the existence of two distinct human entities, that of body and that of soul. It is this interpretation of dualism that the following explication will predominantly address. Dualists believe that the mind determines our personality and the body is a container, or vessel for this self (REFERENCE). Widely considered as the two vanguards of modern dualism are substance dualism and property dualism. Substance dualism holds that the mind or soul is a separate, non-physical entity from the human form, whilst property dualism maintains that there is no soul distinct from the body but only one entity (the person) which has two irreducibly different types of properties, mental and physical (REFERENCE). Substance dualism leaves some room open for the stance that the soul could possibly exist separately from the body, either before birth or after death. Property dualism does not allow for this notion although does permit that both the mental and physical relationship of cause and effect to work in harmony together. The cause of one event may be described as a physical event in the brain and under another event, as a desire, emotion or thought. Substance dualism however, has become increasingly omitted from the majority of contemporary discussions. It could now be considered that few phi losophers currently find the idea of the soul coherent or productive. Although the first use of the term dualism was cited in the 14th century to describe the Islamic faith (REFERENCE), the Western philosopher who spoke most about dualism was Renà © Descartes. Descartes believed that everything non-physical; all feelings and sensations that can be described but cannot be located physically become part of your mind or soul. Descartes dualism, (known as Cartesian Dualism) rested on very certain and definite ideas. He stated that the mind and body were two very different things and that all substances have a property of a special nature. To offer an example, the property of the mind is consciousness, an entity whose entire essence is to think (and therefore takes up no space), whereas the properties of bodily or material substances are length, breath or depth (and therefore their essence is to take up space). The mind has been widely considered as an intangible entity and non-physical in contrast to the body, which is extended and can take many material forms which can be described by their size, shape, position or movement (REFERENCE). Descartes considered that that the mind is the place in which a persons feelings, sensations and thoughts are known only to themselves, whilst all of the functions that the body performs are observable to all. His theory also asserted the idea that both the body and mind interact with each other, the mind having an effect on the body and the body having an effect on the mind, although the body and mind remain separate. He maintained that our identity comes from the ability to think and reason and it is therefore conceivable that we could survive without our bodies (as the soul/mind is separate from the body) and still remain the same person. Descartes was convinced that that we didnt need our bodies to live an intellectually aware and active life and consequently the mind could escape death. He felt that even if we drastically changed or altered our appearance, then it would not affect our personali ties and upon observation it would still be possible to recognise someone by reference to his or her character (REFERENCE). As Descartes asserted: Our soul is of a nature entirely independent of the body, and consequently it is not bound to die with it. And since we cannot see any other cause which destroys the soul, we are naturally led to conclude that it is immortal Renà © Descartes, Discourse on the Method, 1637 (REFERENCE) Dualism has received a lot of attention in the past and Descartes has not been the only philosopher who has written on the concept. Great thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle and Aquinas have all put forward their ideas on the subject each one differing slightly. Plato believed that the soul belonged to a level of reality that was higher than that of the body. He stated that the soul was immortal and this derived from his theory of ideas, which he called forms. Plato asserted that for every existence there is a perfect form of said existence. For example for every chair there is an ideal, perfect form of that chair, as with every dog there is a perfect dog (REFERENCE). Platos form theory maintained that the physical world is where the body exists for the subject in order to receive sense impressions, whilst the soul is immaterial and is capable of knowing eternal truths beyond the material world. All knowledge that we have acquired is from the acquaintance we have had with the forms bef ore our immortal souls became imprisoned in our body. Thus, the ultimate aim of the soul is to break free of the chains of the body and flee to the realm of ideas. There it will be able to spend eternity in contemplation of the true, beautiful and the good (REFERENCE). Aristotle was another philosopher who tried to explain the idea of the body and mind. Even though Aristotle was a pupil of Plato, his thoughts on dualism were very different form that of Plato although he still believed that the soul was the part of the body that gives it life and that the soul turned all physical form into a living organism of its particular type (REFERENCE). Whilst Aristotle believed that the body and soul were inseparable he asserted that the soul still develops peoples skills, character and temper, but it cant survive death. Once the body dies then the soul inevitably dies with it, and this provides an example of early monistic theory. Monism is the theory that the mind and body are inseparable, and monists do not accept that an individuals characteristics are anything more than physical ones (any ideas of consciousness are nothing more than electrical brain activity). This is where Aristotles principles differ from monism. He believed that a human is not just a living, physical body and nothing more. He thought that the body and soul were different, and because humans have a soul they are capable of having an intellectual life (REFERENCE). Aquinas (REFERENCE) agreed with Aristotle in the sense that he thought that the soul animated the body and gave it life and he called the soul the anima. Aquinas believed that that the soul operated independently of the body and that things that are divisible into parts, are destined to decay. As the soul isnt divisible it is able to survive death. However because of the link with a particular human body, each soul becomes individual so even when the body does die, the soul once departed still retains the individual identity of the body it once occupied (REFERENCE). The separation of the mind, or soul, and the physical body seems to be a concept which holds little weight under scrutiny. As Ryle (REFERENCE) asserted, to think of the body and soul as two separate entities is to make a category mistake and refers to what he considers the erroneous notion that the soul is something identifiably extra within a person, or to quote directly; a ghost in a machine. Ryle famously illustrated his hypothesis with the example of the university: A foreigner, having visited the colleges, libraries, sports facilities etc. asks to see the university: Ryles intention was to emphasize the requirement of the various constituent parts to form a whole. However, in order to facilitate a conclusive analysis, a clear definition of the concepts discussed is essential. Thus, a soul may be defined as that which thinks, feels and desires; a non-spatiotemporal essence that encapsulates the personal identity of an individual. The body may be identified as the frame in which t he soul is contained. Ryle, in advocating the unity of body and soul, assumes a Materialist stance and would thus contend that those features generally attributed to the soul are all explainable in terms of neurophysiological reactions. In Confessions of a Philosopher, Brian Magee supported this view, claiming: The human body is a single entity, one subject of behaviour and experience with a single history. We are not two entities mysteriously laced together. Yet, there has been an enduring allegiance to the inverse; that we are composite beings of both corporeal matter and incorporeal soul, thus subscribing to Dualism. Plato, a principal proponent, asserted in his Republic that at death the immortal soul, temporarily imprisoned within the contingent, perishable body, rejoins the realm of eternal truths. In his 2nd Meditation, Descartes reinterpreted Platos arguments, concluding that as our identity ensues from non-physical processes, such as the ability to reason, it is conceivable that we could survive a posthumous existence: Our soul is of a nature entirely independent of the body and consequentlyit is not bound to die with it. And since we cannot see any other causes which destroy the soul, we are naturally led to conclude that it is immortal. The Materialist contention that the soul cannot exist without the body would ostensibly appear the more rational position. Some elucidation is, therefore, required to account for the otherwise unprecedented attention Dualism has received over the centuries and, accordingly, Ryles alleged category mistake. As may be inferred, the concept of a non-contingent soul affords the possibility of survival beyond physical death. In allowing for the fulfilment of a moral equilibrium; the realization of human potential; a validation of existence; the remuneration of the pious; and a basis for rejecting the alternative, the abrupt termination of individual consciousness, life after death may be considered a desirable objective. However, not one supposition of a seemingly inexhaustible list renders the proposition necessarily true. Is it even coherent to postulate the existence of a non-empirical, unverifiable entity? There are four kinds of argument that may be raised in defence of the notion. First, we each have a unique consciousness, impenetrable to the outside world. Our thoughts, beliefs etc. may be inferred by others, but never directly experienced. Nevertheless, our body and its processes remain outwardly perceptible. The existence of a soul resolves the seemingly irreconcilable conflict between the public and the private. Second, the fact that we are held morally accountable for our deeds presupposes that we have complete freedom of choice. However, the premise appears unsubstantiated when countered by the fact that our every thought may be described in terms of the physiological processes occurring in the brain and central nervous system. These processes are accounted for by causal conditions extending beyond a person, prior even to their existence. If we are bound by such conditions that remain beyond our control, how may we be considered free, and, thus, held morally accountable? The postulation of some essence, independent of the deterministic causal chain, and with the capacity to influence moral choices provides a potential solution. Third, the quandary of multiple personality disorder must be remedied. If a body can house several personalities, each with its own distinct self-concept and set of behavioural patterns, the body is clearly not central to personal identity. How may this be accounted for? It is evident that we each possess a number of different, yet un-fragmented perspectives. In a pathological condition, however, what holds these perspectives together is lost. Does this suggest the existence of some ethereal glue, cementing the various facets of a self as one? Finally, there exist a number of people claiming to be in possession of paranormal powers such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis etc. In assuming these accounts to be accurate, the Materialist notion that the mind remains entirely dependant on intermediate physical agencies is negated. In sum, if undisputed, the implication of the evidence given is that humans may comprise partly of some imperceptible essence, independent of physical processes. Furthermore, if death remains no exception to the rule, it is plausible that, in a limited capacity, the soul may be preserved, and with it our self identity. However, are there sufficient grounds for refuting the evidence? In truth, convincing though the Dualist arguments may appear, not one case made remains entirely exempt from Materialist criticism. Recently, there has been increasing support for an anthropological view. In attempting an analysis of the brain, in The Minds I, Douglas Hofstadter offered the analogy of an ant colony: A colony has different levels: the colony itself, groups of ants such as workers, teams of ants, and individual ants themselves. We assign meaning to the higher levels (for example that a group of worker ants is removing the carcass of a fly) and hold that these higher levels encode informatio n for the colony. But these higher-level patterns of behaviour are ultimately mere products of the random motions of individual, unintelligent ants. Thus, according to Hofstadter, our every thought, belief or idea is merely a product of random neural firings. It consequently follows that we need not appeal ultimately to meaning to account for reality; we do so purely for the sake of convenience. How well, therefore, do the four lines of argument raised stand up in light of this? The first may be immediately dismissed: The fact that one individual organism may not experience the neural firings of another is unexceptional. In the case of the second: If, on every occasion, what we formerly considered to be higher ideals and beliefs in truth function as labels, then moral law exists as little more that a highly complex system of control. The requirement to apportion a soul is, thus, mooted. Further more, the condition of multiple personalities may be explained by some form of repression, whilst numerous reports of paranormal incidents have proved fairly dubious. To this the following must be added: First, functions such as conceptualisation and memory recall are generally considered to be requisites of self-identity. The implication is that these processes are independent of the mind and could, thus, be sustained by our immaterial souls. The dilemma arises when faced with apparently irrefutable evidence of the inverse. It is widely accepted that, not only are certain mental abilities inherited, but that diseases affecting the mind, such as Downs syndrome, are genetically based. It may be, therefore, surmised that mental ability and function is significantly dependent on the hereditary process. Second, damage to the brain directly affects cognitive functions. For example, were a persons brain spheres to be severed, when presented with an object on the left, the right hemisphere of the brain would recognise it. However, the left hemisphere, the main area for speech and communication, would receive no information via the corpus callosum. Thus whilst the person could point at the object, he could not recount what he sees. Third, certain psychological processes, such as memory, may be discerned as patterns of energy events within the brain. Although, as yet, direct correlation with individual energy transfers has not been possible, the localisation is sufficient to facilitate neurological research. Furthermore, various types of intelligence are associated with specific cerebral hemispheres, for example, the right hemisphere controls artistic and intuitive mental processes. On evaluation, evidence would appear to suggest that those features generally identified within a soul, could equally be explainable in terms of physiological processes. That is not to say the Dualist has not attempted to evade the predicament. In fact, two schemas have been devised. Those subscribing to the first have postulated the immediate replacement of the body at death. For Buddhists the body is physical, for Christians; spiritual. Although, with the reincarnate generally lacking any awareness of a previous existence and ethereal bodies widely acknowledged to exist on a different spatiotemporal plane, verification remains difficult. Advocates of the second schema have suggested that the soul could exist disembodied, in a very limited capacity. For Catholics this may be temporally (Purgatory) until united with a body (Beatific Vision), or permanently (Hell). But what of Ryle and his ghost? The situation must be readdressed. It is clear that in attempting to rationalize the theory of the soul, one invariably returns to the starting point; that, whilst the notion cannot be dismissed entirely, it does appear physiologically unlikely. Ryles statement, however, was more than just a hypothesis; it was a definitive claim. Thus, though empirical evidence seems to lean in favour of the Materialist, whilst Dualism continues as a legitimate possibility, Ryles contention will remain unsubstantiated. Ultimately, the concept of a soul depends on the equally unverifiable existence of some divine entity to effectuate this recondite posthumous transition. Here lies the significance; although those Dualists subscribing to theism tend to recognise that the confirmation of their faith will be fulfilled by eschatological verification, the concept of some spiritual self within plays a fundamental role in their lives, not only in the provision of an intangible channel through which they might commune with God, but also in apportioning a sense of order, clarity and purpose to their existence.

The Day Labor Market in Phoenix, Arizona Essay -- Business Economics U

The Day Labor Market in Phoenix, Arizona Introduction This paper focuses on the Macehualli Day Labor Union located in Phoenix, Arizona in the 85032 area. Throughout the history of the United States, illegal immigrants have come from all over the world to find work and a better way of life. It is estimated that right now there are about seven million illegal aliens living in America. About 69% of these illegal immigrants are Mexican and over 283,000 of them live in Arizona1. In this paper, we presuppose that the illegal aliens we refer to are Mexican. This is because the aliens living in the geographic area around the day labor center we examine are over 99% Mexican (Reza, 2003, personal interview). Many Mexicans risk everything they have, including their lives, in their attempts to cross the border and live the â€Å"American Dream.† Most immigrants are motivated by the lure of lucrative employment across the border. They come to this country with the hope of finding a higher paying job. In most cases, the immigrants are young men who leave their families behind, but intend to earn enough money to eventually bring their loved ones across (Reza, 2003, personal interview). Over the past three decades, the influx of illegal immigrants has become even more noticeable (Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1999). In the year 2000, unauthorized immigrants accounted for about 2.5% of the U.S. population2. These immigrants’ illegal status is a serious obstacle in their search for employment. Almost all employers require some proof of United States citizenship. For citizens and legal immigrants, this is easily established through a driver’s license or state identification card. Illegal workers, on the other hand, obvi... .... 11 Jun. 2003. Day Labor Union Workers. Personal Interview. 25 Oct. 2003 Gonzalez, Daniel. â€Å"Future Will Require Immigrants by Millions for Jobs, Report Says.† The Arizona Republic 31 Aug. 2003 : A6. Reza, Salvador (Director of the Macehualli Day Labor Union). Personal Interview. 25 Oct. 2003. Smart pages. 2 Dec. 2003 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. â€Å"Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the United States: 1999 to 2000† 2 Dec. 2003 . U.S. Department of Labor. 2 Dec. 2003 minimumwage.htm>. Valenzuela, Abel Jr. â€Å"Day Labourers as Entrepreneurs?† Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 27.2 (2001) : 335-352 Valenzuela, Abel Jr. â€Å"Day Labor Work† Annual Review of Sociology 29 (2003) : 307-33