Management leadership and performance for new products Dissertation

Management leadership and performance for new products - Dissertation Example Based on this research it is through accountable leadership that the decisions on which technological advances are best to adopt in order to ensure improved production are formulated. However leaders should be encouraged to also seek the suggestions of their subjects as they could also be of help. The management of Clydesdale bank has to undertake a market analysis with which they can be able to establish their target group hence market segmentation. Counterfactual experiments are always a challenge for those who continue to practice them and they end up with complicated results. This can be illustrated in a nation that has been dominated by the need for balance of power to the extent that they do not consider alternative perspectives. Despite the fact that some of them go ahead to practice the issue of power transition, they still find themselves experiencing some of the past power stylistics which they thought would change through the transition process. This is attributed to the b elief that, equal distribution of power in a country is a driving force to the international politics. Economic wealth on the other hand, is viewed as a major source of power for many countries that can now be grouped as the developed nations. This is because, for a long period of time they have been able to immerse wealth that enables them to be independent. Through operations management, the organizational structure ensures that there is a flexible relationship between production and the amount of consumption by the consumers. Inputs should at the end of the day be processed into outputs. There has to be a frequent supply of labour to ensure consistency in production. The resources that are acquired have to be used skillfully in order to obtain maximum profit. Through operations the bank should be able to come up with social networks so as to facilitate acquisition of skills from other organizations. This encourages the process of induction in the companies in their endeavor to in crease productivity (Sang-hun 2010, p. 6).

Case study about John F kennedy and the bay of pigs , cuban missile

About John F kennedy and the bay of pigs , cuban missile crisis - Case Study Example However, this president could later on be seen as living up to the policies of his predecessor; Eisenhower. This was clearly evident when he decided to adopt the Bay of Pigs Invasion and gave a go head to his military without giving it much thought. President J. F Kennedy became a leader during the era of nuclear war. He believed that no nation could confidently win a nuclear war. According to Kennedy, the main cause of war and civil strife in the 20th century was Miscalculations. He, therefore, with the counsel of his Intelligence agency, designed and employed a military strategy that was known as the Flexible Response. This strategy was put in place with the anticipation that it would reduce such wars that result from miscalculations. Even though J. F Kennedy had been regarded by many as one of the most flexible and rational presidents of the United States, there had been criticism that he was not as prudent as Eisenhower and, had made the USA even worse. However, these arguments are subjects of a heated debate as there are no diplomatic records on this topic2. By the time Kennedy came to power, the Soviet Union had made several steps ahead of the US in the space exploration. The Soviet had already acquired considerable skills in nuclear war and was becoming a threat to the US, which was at that time very vulnerable to the missile attacks. Soviet Prime Minister, Nikita Khrushchev, in one of the speeches, had announced that their nation was ready for any liberal war3. The Bay of Pigs invasion was a planned attack on Cuba by the American Central Intelligence Force. It was during the time when Cuban government, under the leadership of Fidel Castro, was experiencing defection from the government officials and the citizens4. United States of America, therefore, decided to take advantage of this situation and arranged to attack Fidel in disguise of the defectors. The invasion had been planned before President Kennedy took over from Eisenhower.

The Distributional And Encompassing Coalitions Politics Essay

The Distributional And Encompassing Coalitions Politics Essay Introduction In our term paper we would like to analyze some well-known theories and also combine them with real life examples to have a comprehensive overview of whether the theories are applicable to real life and how accurate they are. For the theme of our paper we decided for the topic interest groups. Based on this topic, we further decided to use Mancur Olsons theory of special interest groups, which he precisely described in his famous book The Rise and Decline of Nations. In the first part of our paper we will mainly focus on providing general information and insights into the Olsons theory and we will also take a general look at the framework of the car lobby itself. In the following part of our paper we will discuss the ex-ante predictions regarding the success or failure when it comes to specifically selected lobby groups, based on Olsons theory as well. The final part offers a brief introduction to the particular car lobby group ACEA and also analyses the actions and influence of the lobby group. The question whether the theory is consistent with our real life example is broadly discussed and advocated as well. 1. Introduction to the Theory In this chapter we will present the theory we will use in order to conduct our case study on the influence and impact of special interest groups on government decisions. We define special interest groups as a coalition of individuals or representatives trying to gain influence on the political environment. In order to have a collective impact on a particular matter they develop access strategies to reach the decisive officials and legislators. Precisely, we will set a framework of a social coalition theory based on Mancur Olsons theory of special interest groups and their collective action in pursuing a common goal, published in his book The Rise and Decline of Nations. We will then apply this framework on the car lobby. The car lobby is considered to have strong internal connections to political officials as they are equipped with a vast number of resources and backed by the politically crucial automotive industry. We will focus on the European Automobile Manufacturers association (ACEA), which is one of the most important car lobbies in the European Union. ACEA is a representative association of the automotive industry with great impact on decisions made in Brussels. It reflects the interest of the car industry in most European Countries. We will analyze its access and impact strategies on EU institutions and their influence on democratic decision procedures. Furthermore we examine how their actions affect the total soci ety. In order to introduce Olsons theory of special interest groups, it is essential to know the underlying assumptions and problems Olson describes. Given Olsons assumption of rationality of individual behaviour, a social group may fail to achieve collective action. That is, that the group may fail to achieve its common goal. In our case it would mean the group is not able to have an influence on political decisions. To some extent it is individually rational to not take part and contribute in the groups action as it involves personal costs. It is rather rational and self-interest maximizing to withdraw from the action but to benefit from the groups outcome. Clearly, if every individual in that group is assumed to be rational the groups goal would not be achieved. Especially groups with increasing size are likely to face problems of collective action (free-riding) as group members can hardly be monitored in their individual contribution and not be excluded from group benefits. Small groups in contrast, consisting of individuals with homogenous preferences are likely to achieve a common interest. According to Olson, the presence of selective incentives, i.e. frequent interactions within the group, the ability to monitor, punish and reward individual behaviour increases the likelihood of collaboration and overcoming the collective action problem. Therefore, groups with relatively smaller size are privileged to groups larger in size. Although not a particular problem under examination in this case study it is important to mention the collective action problem. It is the underlying obstacle of a groups formation and has to be overcome in order to have an influence on decisions. However, besides overcoming the collective action problem, it is of special interest for us to examine and analyze how interest groups, here applied to the ACEA, gain access and increase impact on political decision procedures and the societies welfare as a whole. 2. Types of Coalitions 2.1. Distributional and Encompassing Coalitions According to Olson, the degree of influence of interest groups and as a result the impact on the societies welfare depends on the type of coalition in existence. He introduces the concept of coalitions called distributional coalitions and encompassing coalitions. Both types of coalition try to gain access to the political environment. In the valuation part of a real life example of an ACEA action we will evaluate to which coalition the ACEA may belong to in order to conduct a proper analysis of their influence and especially about their impact on the society. Distributional coalitions are special interest groups that only represent interests of a small number of firms. The representatives of these groups try to maintain and strengthen the companies market position by supporting protectionist and even monopolistic legislation procedures. Such protectionist measures could be tariffs, taxes or non tariff barriers imposed on market competitors which negatively affect an efficient allocation of recourses and may support inefficient economic segments. This type of interest group will heavily oppose technological progress as it might be harmful to its own position. Thus, the outcome of such penetration of political decisions is disadvantageous from a societies point of view. Successfully influenced legislation will be heavy in favour of a small number of individuals that only make a fraction of the society. But the society as a whole will face a decrease in economic output due to a lack of technological progress and even stagnate over a longer period of time. Distributional coalitions occur especially in the presence of politically stable democracies. They will form in huge numbers all across the society and will grow in size over time. Therefore, they will accumulate power and increase their degree of influence and access on political decision making. With an increasing number of distributional coalitions the political environment will be distorted and a social welfare maximizing outcome of political decisions is highly unlikely. Clearly, these coalitions try to redistribute wealth and income within the interest group leaving the society worse off, as the total welfare decreases. On the other hand, the counterpart of distributional coalitions is encompassing coalitions. The nature of encompassing coalitions is that they do not restrict their actions to the interests of a small number of individuals or firms but rather reflect the interests of the broader society. According to Olson, encompassing coalitions influence political decisions in a way that is beneficial to the society. Since their interests correspond with the broader interests of the society, comprehensive bargaining about legislation will lead to efficient political outcomes (Rosser, 2007). In contrast to distributional coalitions, encompassing coalitions foster technological progress and economic growth. Thus, their actions and impact on political decisions increase the welfare of the whole society. In conclusion of the theory part, based on Olsons special interest group theory, we defined two types of coalitions. Both coalitions, distributional and encompassing, try to gain access and impact on legislation procedures. Distributional coalitions represent the interest of a small number of individuals and rather oppose technological progress, hence, slow down economic growth. Encompassing coalitions reflect the interest of the broader society, hence; rather increase the welfare of the society. 3. Ex-ante predictions 3.1. Olsons framework on EU car lobby Considering the previous definitions and analysis on Olsons developed theory about the influence of interest groups on different realities and its impact in governmental decisions, as well as, the defined framework of the EU car lobbying which is mainly led by ACEA. It is now the purpose of this section to predict the outcome of ACEA actions in the EU political environment based on the theory. In order to achieve our purpose we might first set up some considerations on our previous analysis. First of all, we have to bear in mind that it was never Olsons goal to study the impact of particular organizations or a group. It was, instead, an attempt to highlight the role played by several interest groups in the economic development of a country as a whole. Therefore he did not trail a specific framework which would be possible to apply to a particular organization or group, although his work is accurate enough to study the outcome of any lobbying activity in its broader sense. Focusing now on the car lobbying role, we might also underline some important features of this organization regarding its history, experience, resources and internal decision-making process, some of them already described before. These features might influence the outcome of its actions under the analysis of Olsons model. When referring to automobile industry we immediately link it with a high level of complexity and regulation. Here we might wonder if that is the result of political and social evolution itself or if it may be connected with some kind of external force (interest group coalition) which influences the market outcome. It is our aim now to understand whether or not there are conditions in the car industry to the establishment of a coalition which is strong enough to influence political decisions on related matters. 3.2. Car industry and interest groups coalitions Olson identified a main requirement, to the appearance of successful interest groups: the maturity level of a certain industry. When considering this point we easily realize that automobile manufactures and all its stakeholders have been interacting for long enough to derive some successful coalition actions. Olson supported this direct relation between industry maturity and the success of interest groups action with some empirical evidence on US market. For that reason we are lead to undertake the US market as a benchmark (due to several similarities with EU system) and then conclude that it might also be the case that car industry is in a well-developed position to set off some thriving coalitions. Apart from industry maturity, so far we dont have enough information which leads us to conclude if ACEA is a distributional coalition or an encompassing one. In order to do so, we have to analyse some of the car industry background. As any other market operating industry, companies withi n the car industry can be considered rational. Therefore they will be profit-maximizers. If so, an association like ACEA, which is willing to increase companies benefits, might above all care about the impact of certain decisions for companies and not really be concerned about the outcome for society as a whole. Unless we argue that an increase in society surplus due to certain decisions will increase companies benefits. We have found the first reason why we should look at ACEA as a distributional coalition as defined in the previous section. It is also true that there are better conditions for an interest group coalition to arise and to be successful in a stable economy. Despite that, it works even better in a democracy where the de facto political power is closer to a centrist orientation rather than the extremes of laissez-faire or a socialist command. It is actually the case of the European Union. Another argument which may be crucial in our approach is that it is more likely that some groups goals prevail when the opposition, even if it exists, is not sufficiently strong to offset others damage, which will make them suffer in silence. Altogether it would lead us to conclude that ACEA, as the major car lobbying player, is closer to be a distributional coalition rather than an encompassing one. Even though it is not our main focus here, we might also refer the adoption of this framework is not consensual in the field. Some experts would be against what we are arguing here, mostly because it is not guaranteed that car lobbying activities have only negative effects in societys view. At this point it is fair to mention that some might consider lobbying activities as a way to undertake more openness and competitiveness in the political system which would lead to more transparency in EU (Schendelen, 2002). We could also support this idea in the sense that lobbyists bring out facts about political matters mainly through the media. The reason to mention this argument here, is to ensure that we do not exclude the possibility of some positive effects in further analysis of the actual ACEA activity. Bringing together our reasoning we might be in a position to set up some predicted impact ACEA may have towards political decisions in EU. This is our goal for the next subsection. 3.3. Expected ACEA impact In pursuing our attempt to apply Olsons framework to car lobbying in the EU, it seems logical to argue that car lobbying actions might be strong enough to influence political decisions on this field. Every coalition which may arise within this market segment (e.g.: ACEA) will then be the reason for time-consuming political decisions throughout crowded agendas and bargaining tables. It is expected that ACEA will achieve that by finding some means of communicating directly with EU representatives. That kind of action is also likely to involve high amounts of money due to the necessity of qualified people who work with complex regulation and try to persuade politics. For that reason ACEA will only be successful if it is able to aggregate high amounts of contributions from the biggest companies in the industry. If it happens to be so, this pressure would somehow be able to slow down societys ability to move towards more efficient technologies and to reallocate resources (e.g.: alternatives to oil market or more efficient energy-using technologies, however we will have some deeper analysis into these results in the next section). Once big enough, this distributional coalition could have its well-noticeable impact in the rate of economic growth. Thus, we could also mention that the build up of this distributional coalition would increase the complexity of regulation in areas related with car industry. In its extreme upshot it would by some means influence the course of social evolution. 4. Analysis and empirical evidence We will focus our analysis in the field where the ACEA plays its higher stakes: the negotiations for the reduction of CO2 emissions by automobile vehicles. Particularly, we intend to highlight ACEA evolution and its impact on the quality of policy making by the European Commission in the last two decades. Then, we intend to figure out if there is a link between this groups actions regarding the topic and the European Union performance in technological development, more specifically the move towards a greener and more fuel-efficient society. But first, its important to provide a brief characteristics description of this particular interest group. 4.1. ACEA a heavyweight special interest group The European Automotive Manufacturers Association ACEA, is well-known and highly respected Economic interest Grouping within the Europe. ACEA was established in 1991 with Brussels headquarters, Secretariat and Secretary General. Later ACEA also opened two other offices in Beijing and Tokyo even though the main purpose was to advocate the car manufacturers rights and interests on the highest European level possible. Today ACEA has significant importance and voice because it is gather 18 big and powerful car, truck and bus manufacturers such as BMW Group, GM Europe, Volkswagen, IVECO, Renault, Jaguarà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The automotive industry itself is a vital part of European Union economy, the ACEA members alone contribute every year roughly 20 billion euros into research and development, claim 42.8 billion on net exports and deliver taxes on approximately 3.5% of the European Union GDP. Surprisingly for such a significant lobby group, the organization of the ACEA is quite simple. The main organ is the Board of directors. Each member of the directors board is also a CEO in a company, which is a member of ACEA. The board of directors is the decision-making organ and selects a President on an annual basis. Decisions are taken into force by the Joint Committee, which is represented by senior executives of the member companies. In the case of particular issues, there is also available a specialized Committee to discuss and help on the issues. Apart from these organs, there are also more than twenty specialized working groups working for the ACEA, who are responsible for technical expertise and advisory. Every member of the specialized working group is an expert in his field and works for the member company. The general and main purpose of ACEA is to be included in these activities with European Union: 1.To have a constant dialogue with European Union and all the other organizations influencing the automotive industry; 2.Cooperation with all the responsible and decision-making organs in order to offer the industry knowledge and expertise, which ACEA has. To provide relevant opinions and suggestions to the policy makers; 3.To provide valuable partnership within the whole organization as well as to offer partnership to other interdependent industries, in order to achieve the mutual beneficial policies; 4.To provide strategic reflection on the current and future completion within the industry and on corporate responsibility; 5.To communicate the importance and activities of the industry, also to communicate the acquired data, information and expertise. 6.To monitor all the activities and threats which might influence the industry and afterwards properly respond to them or cooperate with the stakeholders. 4.2. Analysis of real-life outcomes 4.2.1. The growing size of the group Taking a closer look at this groups evolution along the last decades, we conclude that its rate of growth in terms of size and influence has been staggering. Having as a predecessor the old CMCC (Comità © des Constructeurs du Marchà © Commun), founded in 1972 and consisting of seven members, the ACEAs number of members in 2005 was two times bigger. In September 2012, the organization comprised 18 different automobile manufacturers. What can explain this phenomenon? Since the CMCC times we can perceive this interest group as an umbrella association. This kind of groups provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations that are part of it. In this kind of arrangement, the umbrella organization is to some degree responsible for the groups under its care. Economies of scale, a better pool of experts and experience, shared apprenticeship and exchange of know-how are some factors that theoretically attract more groups, enhancing the ability for smaller organizations and companies to influence the politic-process in a legislation negotiation context. An important point is that it is harder for a single organization and also smaller lobby groups operating outside large established lobby groups to get their voice through in this matter. In practice, it is more often the ACEA that stands for the press-releases and statements in the media, but what the ACEA does do and say is a product of the discussions within the organization by smaller organizations within them; so, in that way the smaller companies grow in strength and enhance their ability to influence and compete in Brussels over this issue. By gathering and discussing the issue under one organization like ACEA, the organizations and companies get greater power in Brussels than if they would split up into 10-15 smaller organizations, so this means that representation is a mean for these organizations and companies to permeate the EU. We can almost consider this to be a kind of natural monopoly, in terms of the rights of representing the industries interests. This phenomenon confirms Olsons hypothesis of increasing size, influence and access to policy making, in respect to this special interest group. 4.2.2. The official position of the ACEA regarding CO2 emissions reduction Officially, according to its own institutional information, the ACEA agrees with the Commission that something has to be done about the CO2 emissions and they fully support the EU objective of reducing car emissions. But the ACEA believes that most of the burden within this situation has been placed on the car manufacturers. The ACEA calls for an integrated approach, which means that everybody has to do their part in order to reach the goals. The association wants the other elements (fuel industry, policy makers and car users) to take a larger part in lowering CO2 emissions. The integrated approach to lower CO2 emissions that the ACEA presents contains five components. The first one is vehicle technology which they themselves are responsible for. Then we have alternative fuels which need to be developed further with help from the fuel industry. The third component is consumer behavior, that we as consumers/drivers need to be educated in so-called Eco-driving, which in the long run saves 5-7% save in fuel consumption and therefore also in emissions. The fourth component is infrastructural measures concerning for instance traffic lights and the planning of roads in larger cities which often causes traffic jams. If steps could be taken to solve these infrastructural problems a lot of emissions would never occur. The last component concerns CO2-related taxation, which would stimulate buyers to choose fuel-efficient cars, if they cost less in taxes; and in this area the ACEA believes that the Commission has failed on their part of the agreement. To steer free from stricter car safety and emissions regulations, lobbyists have been stating and defending before the EU decision-makers that driving behavior, trees next to roads and other infrastructure are also very important factors. Important as they may be, these are matters which the European Parliament and other EU institutions have no power over as they are controlled at member state level. Therefore, bringing these topics to discussion at a EU level is fallacious and distorting the reality of the fact and, as we later expose, may contribute to the preservation of a certain status quo in the industry. Its important to bear in mind that the cars that yield the biggest profit to carmakers are the biggest ones in size SUVs and 44. Precisely the ones raising more concerns, due to their higher rates of CO2 emissions. 4.2.3. The 1998 ACEA-EC agreement In 1995 the European Council approved a community strategy to reduce CO2 emissions from passenger cars to an average of 120gkm for newly registered cars by 2005, and at the latest by 2010. The ACEA agreement represented the first VA explicitly aimed at climate protection. Theoretically, this represented an ideal context for the use of this new policy instrument, as the basic conditions were in place: a strong euro car industry association a large share of the market, a level of trust between government and industry, and concern for the economic effects and competitiveness implications of regulations. The strategy was based in 3 policies: 1. A voluntary fuel economic agreement 2. A fiscal framework for member states 3. A fuel economy labeling scheme In 1998 a Voluntary agreement was reached between EC and ACEA under the terms of which the industry is committed to reduce average CO2 emissions figures from all cars to 140g/ by 2008. An intermediate target was set for 2003 at 170g/km. The negotiation was marked by an important democratic deficit: the process bypassed the EP, the only directly elected EU institution, and failed to ensure public participation NGO have only be consulted once during the years of negotiations. Because negotiations have been carried out behind closed doors, the danger of regulatory capture has been always present during the negotiations. This agreement also lacked monitoring, as until 2002 the only source of statistical data regarding ACEA progress concerning the goals was coming from car association sources, and an enforcement mechanism. Actually, the agreement didnt contain any enforcement mechanism it did not contain sanctions for non-compliance or measures to address the issue of internal free riders. The industry would effectively be its own watchdog. Given the highly competitive characteristics of the car industry, conditions for failure where perfectly reunited. Another interesting fact is the length of negotiations: the time span for conclusion was four years, in comparison to an average of two years, regarding the European voluntary agreements normal standards. The lack of a high level of technical capacity of the EC, in comparison with all the expertise from the ACEA side, adding to the lack of credible threats for the industry, left the EC negotiators at the mercy of the pure political bargaining. In this situation, the strength of such a strong interest group dictated the final outcome (figure 1). The content of the agreement was clearly outdated. The target of 140g/km was meant to bring about cars that would drive at 5 liters for 100km. However , recent OECD studies prove that a 50-80% improvement in fuel economy would be possible using existing technology at little extra cost over 10-15 years. In contrast , its impact would not even likely stabilize CO2 emissions from passenger cars at 1999 levels by 2010. Furthermore, the objective was not sufficiently ambitious to support a technological shift from the internal combustion engine towards lower emissions technologies such as electric or hybrid engines, not to mention hydrogen based fuel cells. Although these technologies were more or less close to commercial production, barriers of higher costs and lack of supportive infrastructure delayed their large scale development. The terms of the ACEA agreement were clearly not designed to support the introduction of much needed zero emission technologies, but to assist the continuation of the conventional car design. 4.2.4. The 21st century negotiations The voluntary agreement signed in 1998 set the deadline for the main goals accomplishment for the year 2008. However, that deal proved not to be the final one. The ACEA worked successfully to delay the date first until 2010 then until 2012. The association argued that the dates were not reasonable and its consequences, in times of economic crisis, would seriously harm the industry, with direct consequences on the employment level. Yet time has shown that most of their alarmist claims were not borne out in reality. In fact, many companies will meet the legal requirements even earlier than they have to According to European Commission official data, CO2 emissions from road transport increased by nearly 23% between 1990 and 2010, and without the economic downturn growth could have been even bigger. Transport was the only major sector in the EU where greenhouse gas emissions are still rising, being light-duty vehicles a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, producing around 15% of the EUs emissions of CO2. Since then, the EU has been putting in place a comprehensive legal framework to reduce CO2 emissions from new light duty vehicles as part of efforts to ensure it meets its greenhouse gas emission reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol and beyond. The legislation sets binding emission targets for new car and van fleets. For cars, manufacturers are obliged to ensure that their new car fleet does not emit more than an average of 130 grams of CO2 per kilometre (g CO2/Km) by 2015 and 95g by 2020.This compares with an average of almost 160g in 2007 and 135.7g in 2011. In fact, the new goal for 2015 was actually the original EC goal for 2012. Due to lobbying regarding the first voluntary agreement, the 120g of CO2 for 2012 turned into 130g by 2015. Recent studies prove that carmakers will reach these values well ahead of time. In July 2012, the Commission proposed legislation setting out the modalities for implementing the 2020 targets. The ACEA was a major player during this round of negotiations. Volkswagen, nowadays the most relevant member of the European automobile industry and the one that invests the most in lobbying (figure 2) has described the 95g legislative target as not based on sound impact assessment nor on a realistic appreciation of the costs and technical progress necessary to meet the goal within the timescale. A new loophole, inserted following lobbying by the ACEA, would undermine the overall fleet target. Instead of calculating average fleet emissions by adding up the emissions of every car and dividing by the number of cars, carmakers will be allowed to offset the most polluting cars against a smaller number of their cleanest cars. If this accounting trick makes it into the final law, carmakers will be able to sell more polluting cars, resulting in real average fleet emissions in excess of 95g CO2/km. At the same time, Greenpeace and several other pro-environment groups and parties call on the European Parliament and EU governments to lower the 2020 cars target to 80g CO2/km and to back a 2025 target of 60g CO2/km. Its a clear fact that efficiency standards reduce Europes need for expensive crude oil imports and drive down fuel bills for drivers. European drivers currently pay between à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1,235 and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2,143 to fill their tanks every year. A 95g CO2/km target without loopholes would cut costs to between à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬962 and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1,665 by 2020, according to independent calculations. If EU governments decide to set a target of 60g CO2/km by 2025, fuel costs will drop further to between à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬494 and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬863 by 2030. The new proposal must go through a long negotiation process between EU governments and the European Parliament before it can become law. Lobbying is likely to continue, with increasingly new arguments and strategies. For example, in 20th September 2012, VDA, a German automobile industry lobby controlled by the ACEA, proposed the possibility of getting bonus points for electric cars they have not actually sold, but to also allow car companies to bank CO2 credits. If the companies reduce their CO2 emissions more than required by 2015 they should receive a credit for this performance which should be used for underperformance in following years. After all, the Commission failed to propose any efficiency targets for 2025. Without this milestone, the rate of technological innovation could slow down in Europe, threatening the competitiveness of European cars on the global market. Europe is currently the global leader on vehicle efficiency, but the United States and China are catching up. The US has recently proposed its own 2025 target for carmakers embraced by thirteen global carmakers including BMW, Toyota and Hyundai curiously, not VW. 5. Conclusion According the Olsons theory, there are several types of interest groups, which we can basically divide into small and big interest groups. Generally sma

The Civil War Essay -- essays research papers

The Civil War During both the civil war and civil war reconstruction time periods, there were many changes going on in the Union. The Emancipation Proclamation, as well as legislation such as the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amendments, was causing a new awakening of democracy; while the renouncing of secession by the South marked a definite triumph for Nationalism. As well, the government was involved in altercations of its own. During reconstruction, the legislative and executive branches eventually came to blows over the use of power. The nation was being altered by forces which caused, and later repaired, a broken Union. The first of these "forces", was the expansion of democracy. As early as 1862, Lincoln was taking a major step in that direction. On September 22, Lincoln announced the freeing of all slaves in areas not in Union control. Although the proclamation did not free all slaves everywhere, it was the action that would push Congress to pass the thirteenth amendment in 1865. The amendment, ratified later in 1865, stated that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude . . . shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." It seemed democracy had triumphed by giving freedom to slaves, but the amendment was not complete. It only stopped slavery, and made no provisions for citizenship; therefore, blacks were still not considered United States citizens. The fourteenth amendment was the democratic expansion that fixed that problem. Originally passed to "put a number of matters beyond the control or discretion of the president," the ame ndment also made "All persons born or naturalized in the United States . . . citizens of the United States." It also provided that, "No State shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States." This not only gave new meaning to black men's freedom, but it also gave a new and broader meaning to citizenship. Those drafting the amendment hoped that the broadness of would cover "unanticipated abuses", yet, the general phrasing was only an advantage to abusers. There is no listing of the "privileges or immunities" offered to U.S. citizens. In fact, there is not even a clarification of what rights a "citizen" has. These generalities, and the abuses that went with them, prompted ... ...civil rights bill. The bill would have given blacks a considerable new amount of freedom from discriminatory southern actions. Johnson took his stand against the radical Republicans in congress when the fourteenth amendment was first passed. While Congress required ratification of the amendment as part of reconstruction, Johnson denounced the amendment and advised states not to ratify it. "the battle between the executive and legislative branches settled into a predictable rhythm: Congress would pass a bill, the president would veto it, Congress would override it." This "rhythm" continued until Johnson violated the Tenure of office act, which required senate approval to remove presidential cabinet members. Johnson violated the act by removing Secretary of War Edwin Stanton. The House of Representatives approved articles of impeachment and in May 1868, Johnson was impeached by the House. The senate, by one vote, did not remove him from the office of president. Neither side had won that battle for power; Johnson had lost his ability to be an effective president, yet it had been established that impeachment could not be used as a congressional political weapon.

Sociology 101 Study Guide Exam 4

Deviance 1) defining deviance is difficult and subjective (sociologists don’t agree). 2) for our purpose deviance must A) violate significant norms. B) Result in negative evaluation for reaction. 1) Conflict theory. – stress that the power elite uses the legal system to control worker and to stabilize the social order, all with the goal of keeping itself in power. The poor pose a threat, for if they rebel as a group they can dislodge members of the power elite from their place of privilege. To prevent this, the power elite makes certain that heavy penalties come down on those who’s crimes could upset the social order. 2) Functional theory- Argue that crime is a natural part of society. Stress that the sociall classes differ in opportunities for income and education, so they differ in opportunities for crime. As a result, street crime is higher among the lower social classes and white-collar crime is higher among the higher social classes. The growing crime rates of women illustrate how changing gender roles have given women more access to what sociologist call â€Å"illegitimate opportunities. † 3) Social foundations- Labeling Theory-questions who applies what label to whom, why they do this, and what happens as a result of this labeling.The significance of reputations, how they help set us on paths that propel us into deviance or that diver us away from it. Anomie Theory-concept developed by Emile Durkheim to describe an absence of clear societal norms and values. In the concept of anomie individuals lack a sense of social regulation: people feel unguided in the choices they have to make.Differential Association-a theory developed by Edwin Sutherland proposing that through interaction with others, individuals learn the values, attitudes, techniques, and motives for criminal behavior (how people learn to become criminals).Crime 1). Elements – 2). Categories- Mental illness 1) Dr. Thomas Szasz – mental illness are neither mental nor illness. They are simply problem behaviors.2) Rosenhahn study-A study done proving â€Å"it is clear that we cannot distinguish th e sane from the insane in psychiatric labels might be a solution and recommended education to make psychiatric workers more aware of the social psychology of their facilities. In this study 8 â€Å"mentally healthy† people took hallucinations attempting to gain admission to 12 different psychiatric hospitals in five different states. All were admitted and diagnosed with psychiatric disorders.After admission they acted normal again and told staff they felt fine, all were forced to admit to having t a mental illness and agree to take antipsychotic drugs as a condition of their release. All but one was diagnosed with schizophrenia. The second part of his study involved an offended hospital challenging Rosenhan to send pseudopatients to its facility, which its staff would then detect. Rosenhan agreed and in the following weeks out of 193 new patients the staff identified 41 as potential pseudopatients, with 19 of these receiving suspicion from at least 1 psychiatrist and 1 other staff member.In fact Rosenhan had sent no one to the hospital Substance Abuse1) Types of drug use-2) Social policy-3) Conflict view-Individuals and groups in society struggle to maximize their share of the limited resources that exist and are desired by humans. Given that there are limited resources, the struggle inevitably leads to conflict and competition. These struggles can lead to changes in institutions and societies as different groups come into power. Social control- The techniques and strategies for preventing deviant human behavior in any society.1) Formal- Expressed though law as statues, rules and regulations against deviant behavior. Usually carried out by those in a position of power and/or authority such as a police officer, judge, or principal of a school.2) Informal- Denominates customs, traditions, norms and other social values inherited by the individual. Informal sanctions may include ridicule, sarcasm, criticism and disapproval. In extreme cases sanctions may in clude social discrimination and exclusion. Prejudice- An attitude or prejudging, usually in a negative way.Discrimination1) Individual- Treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor of or against, a person based on the race, class, group, or category to which that person or thing belongs rather than on the individual.2) Institutional- The unfair, indirect treatment of an individual embedding in the operating procedures, policies, laws, or objectives of large organizations. Can occur without conscious cause, is often subtle and nearly invisible, reinforced by the interrelationship of social institutions.Example- jobs not hiring people under the height of 5’4† which eliminates most Mexicans and women, or in other countries women aren’t allowed to participate in some religious activities or government. Post-Industrial Society- Society based on information, services, and high technology, rather than on raw materials and manufacturing.Economic System s1) Capitalism-An economic system characterized by the private ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of profit, and market competition.2) Socialism-An economic system characterized b the public ownership of the means of production, central planning, and the distribution o goods without a profit motive. Genocide- The attempt to destroy a group of people because of their presumed race or ethnicity (ethnic cleansing). Minority-People who are singled out for unequal treatment and who regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination. Plessey vs Ferguson- Decision by the US Supreme Court that confirmed the principle of â€Å"separate but equal† and minority segregation.Brown vs Board of Education-This case took on segregation within school systems, or the separation of white and black students within public schools. Up until this case, many stats had laws establishing separate schools for white students and another for blacks. This landmark case made those laws unconstitutional. This case set the foundations for the civil rights movement. Exploitation Theory- occurs when one social group is able to take for itself what is produced by another group.The concept is central to the idea of social oppression, especially from a Marxist perspective, and can also include noneconomic forms, such as he sexual exploitation of women by men under patriarchy. Amalgamation-(melting pot) all groups should combine their traditions calues and characteristics with one another to create a new group. Assimilation-The loss of a subaltern group’s native language and culture under pressure to assimilate to those of a dominant cultural group.Contact Hypothesis-This is the principle that brings people together who are in conflict (or where one is bullying the other), the conflict will subside as they get to understand one another.Power1) Authority-Power that people consider legitimate, as rightly exercised over them; also called legitimate power.2) Tradition al-Those who exercise authority do so because they continue a tradition and support the preservation and continuation of existing values and social ties. For example Queen is Head of States in Britain, a position she inherited on the basis of traditional rules of succession for the monarchy.3) Rational Legal- Those in authority give orders (and expect to be obeyed) because the office they fill gives them the right to give orders. Anyone who fills the same position has the right to issue orders. Orders are only to be obeyed if they are relevant to the situation in which they are given. Example, a teacher orders â€Å"complete your homework by Thursday† the order is expected to be obeyed, but if the same teacher asked the student to go get her milk from the store, they wouldn’t be expected to obey.4) Charismatic-People obey because of the personal qualities of the person doing the telling. Well-known charismatic figures include Jesus Christ, Hitler, and Chairman Mao. How ever, charismatic figures may arise in any social grouping and such people assume positions of authority over others on the basis of personal qualities of leadership b other group members.5) Coercive-People forced to do as they are told under threat of punishment. For example a prison or a school classroom.6) Renumerative-Power rest on the material means provided by money or some other reward which the members desire and the organization controls. Government-Political authority; a group of people who have the power to make and enforce laws for a country or area.1) Monarchy-A state or nation in which the supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in monarch. The head of state is often for life or until abdication.2) Democracy-Have the consent of the people. The officials xercising power have legitimate authority because they have been elected, and the mechanism for changing the government is through peaceful and regular elections.3) Oligarchy-Political power effectively rest with a small, elitre segment of society. Greek for â€Å" few rule†4) Totalitarianism-The state regulates nearly every aspect of public and private behavior.5) Dictatorship-A government headed by a dictator or more generally any authoritarian or totalitarian government. Power Elite-C. Wright Mill’s term for the top people in U. S. corporations, military, and political who make the nation’s major decisions. Types of Work-

English Literature-Bluffing, Gail Helgason

Bluffing- Gail Helgason By P. Baburaj, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of English, Sherubtse college, Bhutan Author of: Language and writing, DSB Publication Thimphu Communicative English, P. K. Books, Calicut A perception on Literary Criticism, P. K. Books, Calicut Flashback: A term which is probably from the cinema and which is now also used to describe any scene or episode in a play,novel, story or poem which is inserted to show events that happened in an earlier time. It is frequently used in modern fiction. Flashback in the story.Medicinal smell reminds homemade solution. Waiting in the hospital- she remembers the morning three weeks ago. When she sees Merlin- she remembers how she taught Liam to spot wildlife. Foreshadowing: The technique of arranging events and in formations ina narrative in such a way that later events are prepared for or shadowed forth beforehand. The end is contained in the beginning and this gives structural and thematic unity. It refers to plot technique in which a writer plans clues that hints at what is going to happen later in the plot . Similar essay: Unknown Woman by Rabindranath TagoreForeshadowing is used to arouse the reader’s curiosity,build suspense and help prepare the reader to accept events that occur later in the society. Fore Shadowing -She is running to Jasper hospital but we don’t know why –arouse curiosity to read further to know more. -The expensive trade mark-the word expensive is used to let the readers know in the later part of the story that he is extravagant and spends all his money. -That wasn’t the same as telling the whole story-it gives us a clue that there is some story which we will come to know later. Contemporary story, languagemodern, charactersrealistic, third person limited. -Five scenes- alternate from present to past. -Present- Gabriella is running in the pavement and is waiting to see Liam in the hospital. -Past- the scenes set three weeks earlier at a remote lake. Theme- Commitment Third person limited- The point of view is limited to Gabriella and anyth ing known about Liam is filtered through Gabriella’s perceptions. Bluffing means try to deceive somebody by pretending to be stronger, braver, clever, loving etc. Than one really is (pretending -Chambers Dictionary) Setting JasperHospital and Jasper National Park. Conflict Internal- Person V/S Person (Gabriella V/S Gabriella). External-Gabriella V/S Liam. The couple V/S Nature. Liam He is anegoist (not want to learn from other people) He is jealous (Clive) as he was not invited for a big expedition. Extravagant- in spending all his money to buy boots, jacketsetc,(outdoor gear) Ambitious- wants to see his pictures in the glossy Magazines. Clever and selfish- trick the two young men. Jolly type Very determined, serious, silent and not trustable(in the face of great danger he ran away).Lacks dedication and sincerity and commitment in life. Gabriella Gabriella was not sure- why Liam ran away, whether to save her or himself. Gabriella failed to understand Liam. Oneminute he behave s like a stranger-does not care anything,another minute he surprises her through surprising small deceitsor sometime extravagant gestures. Gabriella’s dream gets shattered. Very sincere, committedand a dedicated wife. A biology teacher. She is very clever and resourceful. In front of the grizzly, she exhibits her presence of mind and courage. She is very practical minded and good at bluffing.By P. Baburaj, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of English, Sherubtse college, Bhutan Liam -On the other hand not committed in the beginning. -He is careless and carefree. -Always away from her. -Does not show his feelings and affections. -He does not spell out his feelings. Gabriella Gabriella plans to break her commitment and may leave him (they may separate which will result in loss of faith and loss of love for Liam). Gabriella feels – Liam will be a great burden (wounded Liam). Gabriella thought- just to stay for the rest of the afternoon.Gabriella/Liam -Two different persons having two different characters. – In the beginning Gabriella is very much committed to Liam and their relation. -She always finds a way so that they can be together. -She takes care of him and always worries about uncertainty in their commitment. But at the end -She sees his distorted face. -She charges and backs off from the commitment (even if she knew that his condition is due to his love towards her). -He sacrifices his life for her. Gabriella cannot be trusted. -When Liam-strong, healthy, smart and capable-she seems to be committed. But after the accident-she sees the distorted face and she awares the uselessness of Liam, she breaks the commitment. -When Liam is really in need of her care and support, she backs off. Bluffing Gabriella -She hides her egg sandwiches to make Liam. -Gabriella throws away the cleaning solution given by Liam-another example. -Gabriella getting angry and running away from Jasper park-example of bluffing. By P. Baburaj, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of English, Sherubtse college, Bhutan -Gabriella’s story of waiting outside the room in hospital for three weeks. -Gabriella stretches her lips when she sees the wound- another example of bluffing. Though Gabriella cannot stand and she sees Liam’s horrific scared face, she sits there and smiles. -May be in heart of heart she might have expected Liam to come forward and save her from the Grizzly. But he runs away without telling even a word. Liam The food items Liam carries and hides. Liam’s bluffing to the teenagers-telling the story of Grizzly and elk carcass. He says the reasons for his running away-he said just to save her life but he wanted to save his life only. By P. Baburaj, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of English, Sherubtse college, Bhutan **************************************