Psycotropic Drugs Used in Children

A report on the use of Psychotropic drugs used to control active children Lauren L. Dewar April 20, 2010 Introduction At eleven years of age, Thomas Edison was taken out of school because his teachers considered him difficult and he â€Å"could not be taught. † While in school Edison’s mind often wandered and his teacher was overheard calling him â€Å"addled. † Another labeled him as retarded. This ended his three months of official schooling. Because of this Thomas’s mother home schooled him and taught him math, reading, and writing. He then went on to become one of the greatest inventors of all times.In today’s â€Å"find a cure† society Thomas Edison would have most definitely been put on the now very popular medications Ritalin, Adderall, or Prozac. These are mind-altering psychotropic drugs used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Taking that into consideration, one might ask themselves that if Thomas had indeed been put on these medications, would he have ever been capable of experimenting and discovering his great inventions? After analyzing the data, this report will make it clear that children should not be prescribed such mind altering medications to control their activeness.It will be clear that these drugs have serious short and long-term side effects, sometimes even death. Through research it will also be clear that there is no diagnosis for ADHD and that the checklist doctors go by to diagnose ADHD is not enough proof of a disease that needs to be medicated. This report includes four sections: background information, my methodology, results of the study, and conclusion and recommendations. Background Information For starters, there is no scientific basis for diagnosing ADHD.Often times it is the school counselor or social workers who are simply not equipped to make mental health assessments making the ADHD diagnoses (Williams). Simply, if a child is observed to be acting bored, distracted a nd/or boisterous in the classroom , he or she is often believed to be suffering from ADHD, as opposed to suffering from, say, childhood (Williams). Recent reports suggest a trend of increasing prevalence of psychotropic drug prescriptions among children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); however, reasons for increased use of medications is unclear (Guevara).Through my research I also found that children as young as the age of two are being placed on these medications. So now the â€Å"terrible two’s† is being replaced with â€Å"children with behavioral problems. † The rest of my report will focus on statistics, short and long-term effects, and alternatives. I will also go over the history of the use of drugs to control children’s behavior. A Brief History â€Å"Werry (1999) noted that the use of drugs to control children’s behavior is an old practice.From the use of brandy to soothe infants to other sedating drugs such as barbi turates and opiates, children have been administered psychotropic agents as long as such agents have existed; however, research on such practices dates only to the early 20th century† (Ingersoll). Methodology My methodology was mostly research though Academic Search Complete. I researched articles on statistics, procedures, diagnoses, and individual stories of real life people who have dealt with these drugs and ADHD. I also researched drug free alternatives to controlling ADHD or Hyperactivity in children. Results of Study 1.Studies show that it is estimated that between 6 million and 8 million children have been prescribed Ritalin to treat the still scientifically unproven â€Å"mental illness† called ADHD. â€Å"This widespread doping in turn has increased concern that that school age children are being drugged to control their behavior† (O'Meara, Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids). I also found in my research that in 1985, there was an astonishing 500,000 cases. Not even five years later that number jumped to 7,000,000. â€Å"According to The Times, in the year 2000 close to 20 million prescriptions were written for ADD medicines like Ritalin† (Null, 2001).Today, one in every thirty between the ages of 5 and 19 has a prescription of Ritalin. Believe it or not, the number of prescribed toddlers between ages 2 and 4 has doubled or even tripled since 1991. They have now replaced the â€Å"terrible two’s† with â€Å"children with behavioral problems. † It is between the ages of 2 through 4 that the human brain goes through major maturing and developing stages. To have these children this young on these psychotropic drugs should bother any rational thinking parents, teachers, and doctors. 2. Unfortunately, if you think the statistics are bad, the side effects are catastrophic.Through my studies I found that these side effects include decreased appetit, insomnia, anxiousness or fearfulness, irritability, decreased spon taneity, depression, headaches, stomach aches, tics (e. g. , twitches, jerks, blinks, and squints), skin rash, embarrassment, psychosis, and even fatal overdoses. They are also an early training into drug addiction. Looking then at the risk of abuse potential for stimulants later in life, Fone and Nutt state that â€Å"†¦the oral, rather than the intravenous, route of administration of methylphenidate limits abuse potential owing to lower bioavailability and increased (first-pass) metabolism† (Leonard).So the question posed is why parents would and schools want to take the risks of these medications with their children? 3. Studies show that there is no actual diagnosis for ADHD. Fred Baughman, a child neurologist, researcher and staunch critic of ADHD diagnoses, tells Insight, â€Å"It is my duty as a doctor to know whether patients have a disease and whether previously rendered diagnoses, such as ADHD, are proven diseases. I have been unable to validate or demonstrate a disease or objective physical abnormality in children said to have ADHD.Finding no objective physical abnormality, including a chemical one, means they have no disease; they are physically, medically and neurologically normal† (O'Meara, Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids) Fig 1: Percentage of children who did and did not have ADHD and received pharmacy fills for nonstimulant psychotropic medications. All categories of medications between children who did and did not have ADHD were statistically significant (P < . 001) by ? [sup2] test. The probability of nonstimulant use by category of neurobehavioral disorder was estimated (Table 3).Among children of the same category of age, gender, mental health service use, and non-ADHD disorder, children who were identified as having ADHD were more likely to receive TCAs (adjusted OR: 12. 4; 95% CI: 7. 6-20. 3), SSRIs (adjusted OR: 4. 3; 95% CI: 2. 7-6. 9), and [alpha] adrenergic agonists (adjusted OR: 32. 0; 95% CI: 17. 3-59. 4) than wer e children who did not have ADHD. Similarly, children who had internalizing disorders were more likely to receive TCAs (adjusted OR: 25. 3; 95% CI: 6. 1-104. ) and SSRIs (adjusted OR: 75. 2; 95% CI: 26. 7-211. 7) than were children who did not have internalizing disorders. Children who had tic disorders were more likely to receive [alpha] adrenergic agonists (adjusted OR: 215. 2; 95% CI: 21. 5-2157. 9) [ (Guevara) ]. Implications of Results After researching the use of the psychotropic drugs in children, it is clear that it is not safe. Parents, counselors, and social workers need to research and come together to find safe alternatives to dealing with their â€Å"active† children.The studies have proven the dangers of these medications and the guidelines for the ability to prescribe such medications. Conclusion & Recommendations * I would recommend that the Child Advocacy Center and social workers take more time figuring out the real psychological problems of these childr en and deal with them more through counseling and mentoring. A lot of these children’s problems or neediness comes from unstable homes and busy parents who don’t take the time to spend extra time with their children. These children are just simply reaching out for attention and love.They act out as a way to get attention not realizing that the attention they are receiving because of it is bad attention. This is not their fault; after all they are just children. It is us parents, teachers, counselors and social workers who must teach them the differences between good attention and bad attention. And them as children should not have to fight, beg, or act out for attention. I would also recommend that the parents get their children more involved in extra-curricular activities so that they can release some the energy naturally and gain confidence.A change in diet could also work, less sugar and more health foods. I also believe that the parents should spend more time with their children so that their children can gain the feeling of self worthiness and respect. One last recommendation I would like to point out is that the courts and higher authority get more involved in such cases and put a limitation to the prescribing of these harmful drugs and to the ages to which they are prescribed. * This study clearly shows how unhealthy it can be to put your child on these psychotropic drugs.With a little more effort as a society we can raise our children to be national leaders and teach them how to thrive for success. Sedating active children is absolutely not the answer. This study also clearly shows that there needs to be a more legit FDA approved way to diagnose ADHD and to prescribe medications is there is such a disease. With technology today it should be easy for scientists to come up with some sort of brain scan or blood check to determine such cases.We as adults must take into consideration that these children who are being highly medicated at such y oung ages, are going to be the children who take care of us as elders. What will the future be to us and to them once they become our doctors, nurses, bankers, etc? What will our future hold for us if we don’t fix the problems at hand now and stop drugging our children? We must let them be children and stop sedating them because we are too busy or too lazy to let them be children. Appendix:Works Cited Guevara, James. Psychotropic Medication Use in a Population of Children Who Have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. † (2002): 1. Leonard, Henrietta L. , M. D. â€Å"Child & Adolescent Psychopharmacology UPDATE. † Stimulants, Development and Substance Abuse 7. 5 (2005): 3. Null, Gary. â€Å"The Drugging of Our Children. † (2001). O'Meara, Kelly Patricia. â€Å"Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids. † Insight on the News (2001): 1-3. Plasker, Eric H. â€Å"Today's Chiropractic. † (1997): 1-5. Williams, Armstrong. â€Å"The Drugging of America. † New York Amsterdam News (2004): 1-2.

Task 5 – Bic

Business in context (Chapter 6) ~ Discussion questions. How are goals formed and what are the major difficulties encountered in goal formulation and implementation? Goals are formed to give direction to the activities of its members. The formation of goals can be a highly political process; this can cause conflict, but the goals of most businesses are generally accepted as being these of the senior management team. Goals are developed much through the work of Cyert and March (1963). They see organizations in terms of individuals and groups who combine to pursue mutual interests; this is the most effective way of achieving their goals.Goals are more specific statements of intent than a mission statement, but are still broad and generalised. What are the major causes of goal conflict and how might they be resolved? The main causes of goal conflict are that they can be highly political. Conflict is mainly through four main factors which are: 1. Goals formulated by senior management as a means of achieving their own goals; this is a result of bargaining and negotiating process between interest groups. 2. Organization members would appear to accept the goals from top management with little question; this may seem to be an implied element of the employment contract. . The dominant coalition is normally put in place to achieve their goals; such controls have been alluded to earlier and include selection procedures, to ensure all rules are followed. In addition technology can replace job allocation, and financial controls in the form of budgets and reward systems, managers ensure a minimum level of compliance with their chosen goals. 4. Management have different goals to many of the groups; they have to acknowledge this. Assess the relative importance of the various strategic, organizational and environmental factors, which influence organizational structure.An organizational structure is a grouping of activities and people to achieve the goals of the organization. The re are a number of factors that influence a structure. First the relationship between both structure and strategy is examined, then in the work of A. Chandler which then identified other factors such as: (1)Technology (2)Size (3)Changes in the environment (4)Culture and (5)Interest groups. Why did firms adopt multi? divisional structures? What advantages do they have over functional structures? A multi – divisional company compromises a number of business units, which may pursue markedly different types of business activity.The business units operate as a profit centres and are culturally co-ordinated by a corporate headquarters, which may also control certain central services, some of which are as research and development and finance. This kind of structure was developed in the USA in response to a business growth and complexity. Stopford and Wills (1972) noted that a strong influence of strategy on structure and that the shift from functional to multi – divisional st ructures with expansion internationally. Assess the advantages and the disadvantages to both management and employees of flexile forms of organization.Flexibility within a firm / organization can occur in a number of ways; these include the employment of part time workers, those on short term contracts and the use of outsourced contract work. Advantages – management. 1. Employees are able to do a range of jobs, so they do not have to hire as many people. 2. Important recognition of the difficulties that many employees have in balancing their family obligations and their work duties, and they note that such programs can make a company more attractive to prospective employees Disadvantages – management. 1.If used by employees who are unwilling or unable to put in a full day of work amid the non-work temptations (television, pleasure reading, housecleaning, etc. ) of a home setting. Other companies, meanwhile, find that employees â€Å"flex† in and out of the busin ess at such different hours that overhead costs increase, customer service suffers (i. e. , no one comes in until 9:30 a. m. , a state of affairs that forces customers and vendors to cool their heels until then), and manufacturing output suffers. This latter factor makes flex time a difficult fit for many manufacturing facilities. 2.Flex programs often leave managers in exceedingly difficult situations. â€Å"Far too often, flex is embraced †¦ for its ‘family-friendly' aspects long before the corporate support needed to manage it takes root,† flex policies are outlined in the employee manual but implementation is left up to individual managers. Then, when managers try to implement these programs, they discover that to be fair, flex requires them to treat different employees differently. † Advantages – Employees. 1. Flexible work programs are work arrangements wherein employees are given greater scheduling freedom in how they fulfil the obligations of t heir positions.The most commonplace of these programs is flexitime, which gives workers far greater leeway in terms of the time when they begin and end work, provided they put in the total number of hours required by the employer. Other common flexible working arrangements involve telecommuting, job-sharing, and compressed work weeks. 2. Many employees have in balancing their family obligations and their work duties, and they note that such programs can make a company more attractive to prospective employees. Disadvantages – Employees. 1.Most employees of a flexible organization are only hired part time, to do a variety of jobs, and are not offered permanent contracts. How significant is the separation of ownership and control to the way the businesses operate? Is the agency problem an issue today? The separation of ownership and control is associated with publicly held business corporations in which the shareholders possess little or no direct control over management decisio ns. This separation is generally attributed to collective action problems associated with dispersed share ownership.The separation of ownership and control permits hierarchical decision making which, for some types of decisions, is superior to the market. The separation of ownership and control creates costs due to adverse selection and moral hazard. These costs are potentially mitigated by a number of mechanisms including business failure, the market for corporate control, and the enforcement of fiduciary duties, corporate governance oversight, managerial financial incentives and institutional shareholder activism. Examine the advantages and the prime beneficiaries of privatization.To what extent does privatization solve the problems of managing public sector organizations? Privatization refers to the government policy of selling off public assets to private ownership control, usually by share issue. The policy was prevalent in the UK in the 1980’s, driven largely by an ideo logical belief in the workings of the free market. The advantages of privatization are as follows: 1. It creates increased competition, which leads to increased efficiency, higher productivity, quality improvement and ultimately, growth and profit. . Shareholders have a financial interest in the effective management of the enterprise. Manager’s performance is therefore closely monitored and controlled. 3. Since customers have a choice, there will be a focus on customers care and service levels will improve. 4. Costs will be reduced as a result of competition. In particular there will be a reduction in labour costs as organizations seek greater efficiencies. 5. There will be improved awareness of and adaption changes to in local, national and global environments. 6.There will be greater incentives for staff through more flexible pay arrangements and profit – sharing schemes. Managers will be encouraged through incentives to be more innovative and proactive. 7. For the n ewly privatized organizations there would be greatly increased opportunity for raising revenue which could be reinvested in the operation. It was assumed this would stimulate innovation to the benefit of all. 8. For the state there will be a reduced public sector deficit and borrowing requirement. Privatized businesses will attract more inward investment. . Society will change as more people are given the opportunity to own shares. To what extent and in what ways are small firms economically relevant today? The value of a small business may be viewed in terms of benefits to the owners, economic growth, the number of jobs they provide, and their service to the consumer. Many governments see the small firm as an essential part of a healthy economy. The most obvious role for a small business firm in this respect is to act as a seedbed for future big businesses and in doing so secure the future of the economy.A small business is also seen as a potential to fill gaps in the market by off ering specialist products that would be uneconomic for a large firm to offer. More significantly, the small firm is seen as a force for change by being inherently more flexible and innovative than the larger businesses. In particular the small firm is seen as a useful vehicle in a recession; small firms are seen as price takers and therefore offer no threat to inflation rates, and they are able to plug the gaps left after larger firms have rationalized their operations.Overall a small business represents the individual economic efforts of our global citizens. They are the foundation of the global economic growth: virtually all of the new jobs, 53% of employment, 51% of private sector output, and a disproportionate share of innovations come from small firms. Small businesses are avenues of opportunity for women and minorities, first employers and trainers of the young, important employers of elderly workers, and those formerly on public assistance. What influences the type of culture found in an organization?Organizational culture  is the collective behaviour of humans who are part of an organization and the meanings that the people attach to their actions. Culture includes the organization values, visions, norms, working language, systems, symbols, beliefs and habits. It is also the pattern of such collective behaviours and assumptions that are taught to new organizational members as a way of perceiving, and even thinking and feeling. Organizational culture affects the way people and groups interact with each other, with clients, and with stakeholders.What is the relationship between the type of corporate culture envisaged by Deal & Kennedy and by Peters & Waterman and company performance in terms of profitability and job satisfaction? Can the internal culture of an organization act as a buffer against environmental influences? Corporate culture focuses on the use of culture as control device to enhance performance through the development of greater commitme nt and the integration of all employees at all levels in the organization.It is the perspective on culture at the level of the firm that attracts the greatest critical attention. Some writers notably Peters and Waterman (1982) believe that such strong cultures are a central feature of the so called excellent company. Case 6. 2 – questions. (Dow Corning) 1. What were the key factors involved in Dow Corning changing from a functional to a divisional and then a matrix structure? How were these influences relate to the six influences (on structure) identified earlier in this section? 2. What problems did Dow Corning encounter with the matrix organization?How might such problems have been minimized? 3. What structure would be most appropriate for the company to aid its recovery post Chapter 11 bankruptcy? Case 6. 3 – questions. (Network Rail) 1. What rationale can you give for the privatization of British Rail? 2. What, in your view, were the key factors that created the pr oblems in Rail track? 3. In what ways will Network Rail differ from Rail track? What similar problems will it face? 4. What does the case tell us about the privatization of industries such as the railways?

Actions to Take in Response to Concerns That a Colleague May Be:

a. Failing to comply with safeguarding procedures: Failure to comply may put children and young people at risk of harm or abuse. I would follow the setting safeguarding policy or immediately report it to the safeguarding co-ordinator or the supervisor/head teacher. I would not discuss these matters with anyone else. b. Harming, abusing or bullying a child or young person: Any person working in schools who suspects that a colleague may be abusing a child or young person must act on their suspicions. This action will serve not only to protect children but also colleagues from false accusations. I would act immediately to protect the child by informing the supervisor/head teacher. If the allegation is against the supervisor/head teacher, I would report my concerns to the designated person for child protection or directly to the Education Authority. I would also fill in a CAF form within 24 hours. a. Failing to comply with safeguarding procedures: Failure to comply may put children and young people at risk of harm or abuse. I would follow the setting safeguarding policy or immediately report it to the safeguarding co-ordinator or the supervisor/head teacher. I would not discuss these matters with anyone else. . Harming, abusing or bullying a child or young person: Any person working in schools who suspects that a colleague may be abusing a child or young person must act on their suspicions. This action will serve not only to protect children but also colleagues from false accusations. I would act immediately to protect the child by informing the supervisor/head teacher. If th e allegation is against the supervisor/head teacher, I would report my concerns to the designated person for child protection or directly to the Education Authority. I would also fill in a CAF form within 24 hours.

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Critical Summary - Essay Example Experiencing the pleasure associated with the sexual activity results in satisfaction of the human sexual desire. The reductionist account of sex is based on the premise of sexual desires being satisfied through sexual activity. The intetionalist account of sex has been developed from the knowledge of interpersonal intetionalist which results in people engaging in sexual activity. As a theory opposing the reductionist account, this account is a result of the physical pleasure which occurs through contact with another person’s body. This commonly causes physical arousal, which is a normal occurrence when individuals have the intention of engaging in physical activity (Morgan, 2003). The intetionalist account commonly focuses on cases where pleasures are derived for the nature and appearances of the sexual partners. The existence of different perceptions regarding sexual pleasure remains the fundamental causes of the differences in sexual accounts. The intetionalist accounts to sex as mainly based on the assumption that individuals are driven by a desire to achieve physical satisfaction from sexual pleasure. The Aristotelian understanding of the human mind has been utilised in seeking to understand the different accounts of sex. According to this understanding human desire are the causes of human actions, hence satisfaction of certain desires encourages individuals to engage in sexual activity. There is an existing marginal connection between the two accounts described within the article. The theory developed by Aristotle seeks to explain the moral psychology behind sexual activities by humans. The psychological element becomes the platform upon which the mental and physical elements meet, consequently presenting the connection between the two accounts, where intetionalist is mental while the reductionist is physical. The individuality and independence of individuals, however, results in the existence of a discrepancy in the experience

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50 Cent-The Controversial Rapper - Research Paper Example This paper discusses the theory that 50 Cent is more famous because of controversies rather than his music. Further, this paper will point out how harsh, negative lyrics of his songs have been the reason for him being criticized in the music circle but becoming famous among the people. The overall goal is to show that rather than being a talented artist 50 Cent is a clever artist who survives through all the controversies he’s involved in. 50 Cent has been known as the one straight out of streets. His biography and all the details about him are splashed with details about his difficult past and the way he had grown up in a family where his mother was a hustler. His mother died when he was young and soon his father died. He was left to be taken care of by his grandmother according to whom he’s a sweet child, much against the views of others. Having such a difficult past and having faced all the difficulties that do explain partly the way he is and the way he behaves. The refore, I think reading a person’s biography before reading other articles about him is essential in understanding the kind of person. In her article, Zonda Hughes (2003) describes the life of 50 Cent, a.k.a Curtis Jackson, explaining that his life can be summarized as being a compilation of 9 lives. Even though the article does not criticize the rapper artist as such but does provide a brief overview of the life of the artist. Right from being the son of the notorious drug trafficker to entering the same profession as his mother and being jailed to shooting to stardom with his hard hitting lyrics. Hughes mentions it all. 50 Cent has created an image of his that shows him as being the tough guy who has seen it all and it is this image that is the reason for his popularity. It is difficult to deny that his popularity is not based on his hard image as he himself has always proclaimed himself to be the one who has seen the toughest things and has gone through some of the most di fficult situations, surviving being shot 9 times is certainly a difficult situation. Whether making controversial statements like not being ashamed of being a drug trafficker or whether his own destiny that leads him to controversial situations, he definitely seems like controversies’ favourite child. He has been accused of starting the trend of gangsta rap again and is hated because he might have started the trend of gangster fights in the industry again that saw the death of many famous rappers. He has brought the era back when hip-hop industry saw hatred amongst each other. However, he does not seem perturbed about those accusations and instead glorifies his gangster image. Even though the rapper claims that his life was not his choice but he definitely loves being the bad boy and earning the popularity for being a bad boy. As both he and Hughes (2003) acknowledges, bad boys are famous with both women and men, with women because they seem more attractive and with men becau se they establish a sense of style. He is referred to as hip-hop entrepreneur in his biography and it is true that he is a clever entrepreneur who knows how to stay in the business by making shocking statements. Even though his hard work can not be ignored but his urge to become famous and rich means that he chooses to do so no matter what the means. He has been described in his biography as one having a viciously funny personality who will get rich or die trying. Adam Bernanrd (2003) notes how full

Archaeology Think-Piece Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Archaeology Think-Piece - Essay Example main objective of archaeology is to study the human past and finding out how it affects and connects with the present and the feature of human being. As indicated above, archaeologists seek to learn and understand more about societies in the past and how human race developed from the earliest simple form of life. In doing this they employ various methodologies in order to ensure that their findings are very accurate, reliable and applicable in the present and future life of human being. Remote sensing is a method used to locate an archaeological site where artifacts could be excavated. This approach is used mostly when archaeological site is located in a small area within a huge area. Remote sensing may be applied together with field survey. An archaeologist may choose to begin with field survey, which involves systematically locating an unknown site in an area, or continue with the project from the remote sensing method. Features such as stone patterns resembling a house are located for study and analysis. Field survey method is the most preferred to others since it is expeditious and relatively cheap. It is detailed and hence m ore reliable (Down, David, 47). Once the archaeologist identifies and artifact or a piece of ancient architecture, it is excavated for the study. Analysis methodology, which entails proper and detailed study, is applied. Though it is time and resources consuming, it is important to obtain fine details which could shape the future of human race. During analysis, a cleaned artifact is dated, catalogued and a comparison is made with other, if any, published collection. It is then classified and its features taken in present day context. The final step in archaeology involves publishing of the new findings and making them available as historical facts (Down, David,

COMUNICATION Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

COMUNICATION - Coursework Example A skill that I am very excited about improving is people skills. People skills involve a wide range of interpersonal skills including assertion skills, collaboration, problem solving, and conflict resolution skills. I am very excited about improving my people skills because doing so will make a better professional. People skills help people in business because they enable the person to adapt to the situation based on the audience the person is communicating with. For example a manager can use his people skills to persuade a supplier to lower their prices. People skills can benefit people from any professional background. Doctors utilize people skills to gain the trust of their patients. Once this occurs the doctor will have a returning client. I need to make improvements in my people skills to improve my ability to interact with other students. In college a lot of learning takes place outside of the classroom. Students with good people skills are able to interact with all types of pe rsons in an effective manner. I realized that in order for me to succeed in the business world I have to improve my people skills due to fact that these skills are valuable tools that can enhance a person’s career opportunities. People skills can help me improve my interactions in everyday life. People skills can help me achieve better results when dealing with governmental employees.

Concept of Human Nature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Concept of Human Nature - Essay Example It is the confirmation of friendship or competition that we will concern with. In the bygone eras, there were wars and rumors of war. There were those who went to fight battles and returned as heroes. Then there were those who fought battles but did not return. There were also those who masterminded plans of action for the furtherance of kingdom. And there were others who masterminded treacheries. Scores were settled in the process of wars and battles. The charade was so well knit and appeared so real that none noticed the element of treachery in the episode. Sometimes the plans boomeranged on those who engineered the plots. The plots were so brilliantly drawn and executed that it was not till the final act was over one could perceive anything amiss. However, in the end, some way or the other, the executor of the treachery was exposed and divine justice settled the scores with just retribution (Song of Roland). Not all the scenarios ended in bloodbath. There were those who spent time in soliloquy and reflection. They were men and women of foibles and passions like the rest of mankind. They laughed and cried in their childhood. They embraced in lust in their adolescence and they went in the worldly way of business. But they remembered their ways. They felt something amiss. They knew that they had crossed the boundaries of decency at such a time and place. The peace had departed from them and they were like caged animals. They lived in the open air, but they felt the iron bars around them. They constantly felt the pricks of their emotions like swords after their souls. Then they had to break down. They had to open up (The Confessions of J.J. Rousseau). Destiny with God After all the things are said and done, the end comes with a mixture of sadness and happiness. The secret thoughts are hardly spoken. The matters of the heart are kept very closely guarded secrets. The keepers of secret do so for a reason. They dread to speak about their longings and desires. They hide them away like treasures. They wait for the end. They know the opportune time will come. The fear is there that the end might not come according to their plans. There is the lingering fear that the object of their desires might go the opposite way. They pursue the goal of their desires with all diligence. Sometimes they come so close that they could grasp it with their arms. But they must wait. The right time has not arrived. They must pine away some more time. Ultimately they reach their goal. The time is now ripe. They could count the cost. They could look back and see the long and arduous journey. Many died on the way. There is the tinge of sadness around the joy of triumph. They have won the war, but at the cost of some battles. One cannot undo the trysts of destiny. One has to march on. There are some miles yet to go. One cannot march on without having learnt to bear the gains and losses of a journey. It is enough that you have come so far. We must learn to wait to see what is yet to come (Racine). Conclusion There are those that scheme and plot to have circumstances go their way. They succeed many times. Then there are those who make sincere plans and goals and work at achieving them. They may or may not succeed. It is fine if they

Heritage assessment Essay Example for Free

Heritage assessment Essay Kizlik [2014] argues that the purpose of a learning objective is to communicate, and that a well-constructed behavioral learning objective should have little room for doubt about what is intended. Health professionals in designing educational programs to engage both patients as well as families, should be able to taper the task or objective to the specific patient and their family; for them to be able to explain what you taught them and for them to be able to demonstrate it. On the Euromed Info website, on Developing Learning Objectives. Retrieved from http://www.euromedinfo.eu/developing-learning-objectives.html/ [n.d.] state that â€Å"a simple and practical way of developing learning objectives is to start with the words, WHO, DOES WHAT, HOW and WHEN.† For the purpose of this exercise the learning objective will be for the patient and the family to be able to change an ostomy bag in a patient with a newly formed colostomy. It is important to find out from the patient and the family which learning styles work for them, example whether reading of pamphlets, one on one teaching or visual aids. Also the condition or ability of the patient to perform the task, e.g. is the patient strong and well enough to perform the task or are they too weak from being ill. In using the learning objectives cited above, WHO- will be the patient and family DOES- list the components needed WHAT-changing a stoma bag HOW – by performing task or stating how to WHEN- by discharge The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations [JCAHO] as cited on the Euromed Info website on Family Structure and Style, retrieved from [http://www.euromedinfo.eu/family-structure-and-style.html/] defines the family as â€Å"the person or persons who play a significant role in the individual’s life including persons not legally related to the individual. â€Å"How a family functions influences the health of its members as well as how the individual reacts to illness† retrieved from http://www.euromedinfo.eu/family-structure-and-style.html . In the light of this , having the family understand the rationale behind the treatment and steps on how to help the patient change this stoma bag will assist the  patient to be more confident in changing their stoma bag and also in dealing and coping with this new health change. REFERENCES http://www.adprima.com/objectives.htm http://www.euromedinfo.eu/developing-learning-objectives.html/ http://www.euromedinfo.eu/family-structure-and-style.htm

Thomas Hobbs Theory On Human Nature And Ethics Philosophy Essay

Thomas Hobbs Theory On Human Nature And Ethics Philosophy Essay Many people are content with the way things are. I believe that the majority of todays civilization is in a neutral state of understanding and dont really care to know how this state of contentment became. One word can sum up the many reasons that things are the way they are today that word is fear. Throughout history, there are examples of how certain events can happen that will cause people to become overwhelmed with fear. Part of the reason for this, is these events have shaken the confidence that many will have in their various leaders and political systems. Once this takes place, it means that the social fabric holding society together, will completely deteriorate. When this happens a majority of people will begin to fend for themselves, versus attempting to work within the social frame work. In some cases, a new society will quickly emerge to fill this void because the masses are desperate for some kind of law and order. To achieve this objective, many will often give up their personal freedoms for the benefit of the group. A good example of this form previous times can be seen in Germany after the end of World War I. Where, the majority of the people would lose confidence in their leaders, because of the economic and social upheavals that were occurring. (Holocaust Encycl opedia )This is significant, because it shows how the loss of confidence in a political / social system can have devastating consequences down the road. To understand this aspect of human nature and how ethics affects thinking one can examine the ideas of Thomas Hobbes. I will illustrate Thomas Hobbes theory on human nature and ethics by using William Goldings Lord of the Flies. I will also attempt to use firsthand knowledge of the state of nature that still exists in some societies in todays modern times. Together, these two elements will provide insights as to how Hobbes theories can explain human nature and ethics. Thomas Hobbes discusses his different ideas on human nature and the role of ethics in a multi-volume work that he wrote called Leviathan. Wherein all he would write a total of four volumes underscoring his views. Volume one (Of Man), volume two (Of Common-wealth), volume three (Of Christian Common-wealth), and volume four (Of the Kingdom of Darkness), of these volumes, volume one is where Hobbes establishes the basic foundation for his theories, as he would use the other volumes to elaborate on specific aspects of his theory. (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy) At the heart of Hobbes political and social philosophy is his social contract theory. This merely means that the people will have an agreement with the government for certain protections, economic well being, and freedom. This balance between the people and the government is what Hobbes refers to as civilization. This state of civilization is made possible by human laws or as Hobbes states Lex naturalis. With Hobbes social contract theory people are willing give up a certain amount of their freedoms, to receive the above benefits from the government or Leviathan. According to Hobbes, this is the basic social foundation that exists in all societies around the globe, (with some kind of balance taking place in one form or another). (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy) Yet, when you look further, it is clear that there will be times that these kinds of social contracts will become no longer valid. Once this is occurs, is when a state of nature exists or as Hobbes states Jus natural. This is where everyone would have the right, to do any actions or activities of their choosing. The reason why, is because there are no rules or regulation to guide the actions of everyone. At which point, more people would begin to use these activities as a way to achieve their own objectives and survival. When this takes place, it means that there will be a constant state of war between everyone in society. A survival of the fittest mentality quickly sets in and takes shape. At which point, the overall quality of life will decline, while the rates of what civilization refers to as immortality, increases. To escape this atmosphere of lawlessness, the people will form some kind of social contract with each other. This is when they will create a society and government th at will have the authority over everyone. Where, they will establish various rules and regulations, by having the people surrender a certain amount of their natural rights, to achieve order. The overall abuses that could occur at the hands of the government are a small price that is being paid to be a part of civil society. As a result, Hobbes believes that a strong central government can be able to achieve this objective, by effectively controlling and providing the services that the people require. This is significant, because it shows how within all societies there is some form of social contract that will exist on a certain level. The problem occurs when there is break down in society. People will revert to a more animalistic type of survival, creating increased amounts of instability. It is at this point, that new societies could emerge, to address these changing realities that are taking place. (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy). In order to determine the relevance of Hobbes theories, we will examine them by comparing his ideas with William Goldings book Lord of the Flies. Where, this piece of literature discusses the basic foundation of human nature in comparison with law and order. This will provide the insights, as to how the social contract theory is the basic foundation for societies around the world. In Lord of the Flies, the story begins in the midst of war with a plane evacuating a group of schoolboys. The plane is shot down over a deserted tropical island. Two of the boys, Ralph and Piggy, discover a conch shell on the beach and Piggy realizes it could be used as a horn to summon the other boys. Once assembled, the boys elect a leader and begin devising a way to be rescued. Ultimately Ralph is chosen as their leader, and Ralph appoints another boy, Jack, to be in charge of the boys who will hunt food for the entire group. Ralph, Jack, and another boy, Simon, set off on an expedition to explore the island. When they return, Ralph decides that they must light a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships. The boys succeed in igniting some dead wood by focusing sunlight through the lenses of Piggys eyeglasses. However, the boys pay more attention to playing than to monitoring the fire, and the flames quickly engulf the forest. A large swath of dead wood burns out of con trol, and one of the youngest boys in the group disappears, presumably having burned to death. At first, the boys enjoy their life without grown-ups and spend much of their time splashing in the water and playing games. Ralph, however, complains that they should be maintaining the signal fire and building huts for shelter. The hunters fail in their attempt to catch a wild pig, but their leader, Jack, becomes increasingly preoccupied with the act of hunting. When a ship passes by on the horizon one day, Ralph and Piggy notice that the signal fire which had been the hunters responsibility to maintain had burned out. Furious, Ralph confronts Jack, but the Jack has just returned with his first kill, and all the hunters seemed to be enchanted while reenacting the chase in a kind of wild dance. Piggy criticizes Jack, and then hits Piggy. Ralph blows the conch shell and reprimands the boys in a speech intended to restore order. At the meeting, it quickly becomes clear that some of the boys have started to become afraid. The littlest boys, known as littluns, have been troubled by nightmares from the beginning, and now the boys believe that there is some sort of beast or monster lurking on the island. The older boys try to convince the others at the meeting to think rationally, asking where such a monster could possibly hide during the daytime. One of the littluns suggests that it hides in the sea, a proposition that strikes fear in the entire group. Not long after the meeting, some military planes engage in a battle high above the island. The boys, asleep below, do not notice the flashing lights and explosions in the clouds. A parachutist drifts to earth on the signal-fire mountain, dead. Sam and Eric, the twins responsible for watching the fire at night, are asleep and do not see the parachutist land. When the twins wake up, they see the enormous silhouette of his parachute and hear the strange flapping noises it makes. Thinking the noises that they here are that of the beast, they rush back to the camp in terror and report that the beast has attacked them. The boys organize a hunting expedition to search for the beastie. Jack and Ralph, who are increasingly at odds, travel up the mountain. They see the silhouette of the parachute from a distance and think that it looks like a huge, deformed ape. The group holds a meeting at which Jack and Ralph tell the others of the sighting. Jack says that Ralph is a coward and that he should be removed from office, but the other boys refuse to vote Ralph out of power. Jack angrily runs away down the beach, calling all the hunters to join him. Ralph rallies the remaining boys to build a new signal fire, this time on the beach rather than on the mountain. They obey, but before they have finished the task, most of them have slipped away to join Jack. Jack declares himself the leader of the new tribe of hunters and organizes a hunt and a violent, ritual slaughter of a sow to solemnize the occasion. The hunters then decapitate the sow and place its head on a sharpened stake in the jungle as an offering to the beast. Later, encountering the bloody, fly-covered head, Simon has a terrible vision, during which it seems to him that the head is speaking. The voice, which he imagines as belonging to the Lord of the Flies, says that Simon will never escape him, for he exists within all men. Simon faints. When he wakes up, he goes to the mountain, where he sees the dead parachutist. Understanding then that the beast does not exist externally but rather within each individual boy, Simon travels to the beach to tell the others what he has seen. But the others are in the midst of an elaborate feast even Ralph and Piggy have joined Jacks feast and when they see Simons emerge from the jungle, they fall upon him and kill him with their bare hands. The following morning, Ralph and Piggy discuss what they have done. Jacks hunters attack them and their few followers and steal Piggys glasses in the process. Ralphs group travels to Jacks stronghold in an attempt to make Jack see reason, but Jack orders Sam and Eric tied up and fights with Ralph. In the ensuing battle, one boy, Roger, rolls a boulder down the mountain, killing Piggy and shattering the conch shell. Ralph barely manages to escape the ensuing onslaught. Ralph hides for the rest of the night and the following day, while the others hunt him like an animal. Jack has the other boys ignite the forest in order to smoke Ralph out of his hiding place. Ralph stays in the forest, where he discovers and destroys the sows head, but eventually, he is forced out onto the beach, where he knows the other boys will soon arrive to kill him. Ralph collapses in exhaustion, but when he looks up, he sees a British naval officer standing over him. The officers ship noticed the fire raging in the jungle. The other boys reach the beach and stop in their tracks at the sight of the officer. Amazed at the spectacle of this group of bloodthirsty, savag e children, the officer asks Ralph to explain. Ralph is overwhelmed by the knowledge that he is safe but, thinking about what has happened on the island, he begins to weep. The other boys begin to sob as well. The officer turns his back so that the boys may regain their composure. The plot and the story of in Lord of the Flies, underscores the different views that Hobbes would have on how societies were structured. In Lord of the Flies, the boys were somewhat traumatized from the plane crash and the backdrop of the war. This would create the basic foundation, for the overall amounts of fear that they would have, when they first arrived on the island. This fear was hidden, as the social contract that existed in the military school would remain in place in the beginning. Over the course of time, the lack of rules and these fears would begin to take on a life of their own. As it would work similar to a cancer, that would eat away at the old social contract theory. Once this began to occur, it meant that no one would take responsibility for maintaining this basic foundation. At which point, the social structure began to unravel, with the lack of rules (state of nature) and fear manifesting the changes that were occurring. Where, the majority would begin to become victims of their own fear, by believing the fact that monster was on the island. It is at this point, that the state of nature would take over and two different sub societies would emerge (one loyal to Ralph and the other loyal to Jack). This rivalry would cause the boys to engage in actions that were prohibited, in the society they came from. As their fears about the monster attacking them, would force them to kill one of their own. When confronted with this reality, the state of nature would continue to evolve in a perverse way, by denying what happened. As the majority of the boys, would seek out Ralph, in an effort to kill him. It is as this point that a total state of nature exists, as the old social contract has been destroyed and a new sub society has been created in its place. This confirms the ideas of Hobbes, by highlighting how a social contract exists on some level within all societies. This is because the various rivalries as well as individual competition; have caused many people to seek out: safety, comfort and protection. When this take place, it means that the actions of individual will begin to change, based upon these new social norms that exist. In Lord of the Flies, this is best illustrated at the end of the book, with Ralph becoming the hunted. As the former social contract that existed at the military school was: no long relevant. Instead, a state of nature took place, with a new social contract theory emerging. Where, Jacks group will dominate and determine what is best for everyone. This is significant, because it highlights how shifts can occur in all societies. Where, when the people will become fearful and lose faith in the leadership is when, changes will take place. It is at this point, that they will seek out new social contract, as the underlying confusion from the state of nature, will force everyone in this direction. At the same time, it can cause the ethical views that someone would have about various issues to change, based upon the underlying state of nature. Using the book Lord of the Flies, the changes in ethics occurred with the indiscriminate killings of the other boys. As this state of nature and the lack of rules, would allow this kind of behavior to be acceptable. At which point, the underlying social contract and the ability to enforce the different rules will change. This is important, because it underscores how the ethics of someone, will be influenced based upon the overall state of nature. Clearly, the book Lord of the Flies highlights how Hobbes theories on human nature and ethics are correct. Where, a social contract, that exists in all societies; will form a basic foundation for how various individuals will behave. This will affect the ethics of everyone, as the different rules and regulations will determine the most acceptable behavior. When the people lose confidence in the social contract that exists, a state of nature (lawlessness) will begin to take shape. Over the course of time, this will cause the individual to act differently, as they do not have the social contract restricting their actions. However, a constant state of battle exists within society, as the lack of ethics will cause everyone to constantly clash with each other. To provide some sort of stability, a social contract is created between: the people in society and the government they have. Where, the people are agreeing to lose a certain amount of their natural freedoms, in order to have some kin d of stability in their lives. The trade off, is not engaging in various activities allowed in a state of nature. In doing so, the social contract will have an impact upon the ethics and behavior of everyone within society.

Different Perspectives Of Organisation Structure Commerce Essay

Different Perspectives Of Organisation Structure Commerce Essay There are many different perspectives on how an organisation should be structure but there is no particular way of structuring an organization. According to Contingency Theory so many factors such as size, Technology, Market etc, determine the structure of an organisation. Anon (2008). There is need for a design of an effective structure to reflect the objectives of the organisation and the context in which it operates (Fincham and Rhodes 1999: 355). This paper work considers the organisational structure of United Bank for Africa Plc and addresses the way in which the organisation is structure. Identify the organisational goals of United Bank for Africa Plc as expressed in the organisation mission and vision statement of the bank. Identify and examine the organizational contingencies of United Bank for Africa Plc. Assess the fit between the organisational structure of United Bank for Africa plc and its organisational goals. Suggest possible recommendation for improvement. OVERVIEW OF UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC. United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) is a full service financial institution operating in the banking industry. It is a product of the merger of Nigerias third (3rd) and fifth (5th) largest banks, namely the old UBA and the erstwhile Standard Trust Bank Plc (STB) respectively, and a subsequent acquisition of the erstwhile Continental Trust Bank Limited (CTB). (Anon 2010)) United Bank for Africa Plc is the biggest of all the 24 Banks operating in Nigeria. It has the highest number of branches of over 600 branches across the country and over 7 million customers. The Head office of the Bank is located at 57, Marina, Lagos Nigeria. UBAs history dates back to 1948 when the British and French Bank Limited (BFB) commenced business in Nigeria and the erstwhile STB and CTB both in 1990. Following Nigerias independence from Britain, UBA was incorporated in 1961 to take over the business of BFB.   Todays UBA emerged at a time of industry consolidation induced by regulation in year 2005. (Anon 2010) ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC Organizational structure according to Mintzberg (cited in Cole G: 184) is the sum total of the way in which it divides its labour into distinct task and then achieves coordination between them United Bank for Africa Plc operates a tall hierarchical flexible structure with some elements of Bureaucracy. United Bank for Africa Plc operating structure consists of six strategic business units: North Bank, South Bank, International Bank, Retail Financial Services, UBA Capital, Products and Segment Market and four strategic support unit: Finance, Risk Management, Operations and Internal Audit. At the very top of the firm is the Board of directors, reporting to them is the GMD/CEO. Reporting to him are the Heads of the strategic business and supporting units, who are Deputy Managing Director UBA Nigeria North, Deputy Managing Director UBA Nigeria South, CEO UBA Intl, CEO UBA Capital, Executive Director Product segment, Group Chief Finance Officer, Group Risk Officer, Group Chief Operating Officer and General Manager, Group Internal Audit. The largest of these business strategic units, is UBA Nigeria South bank which is broken down into Regional Banks and further broken down into branches. The branches are located in different areas of the country. The Regional banks are being managed by Regional Bank Heads, reporting to them are the Regional Directors, and next are the Business Manager, followed by Profit Centre Manager and beneath are the Relationship Managers and operatives. Due to the size of the Bank, Head office is the strategic centre and has overall control of strategic planning, major policy decision, special project, product development, capital Budgeting and financial control. While the Regional Bank Heads, through the Regional Directors and Business Managers run the day to day operations of the branches. Each branch is given a yearly financial target and the performance of the branch is judged based on profitability. It will be noted that this is a divisionalized structured based on location (Cole 2004:) There are two major departments in the branch these are; the marketing department and the operation department. Various units operate under each of the department; these are customer service unit, cash and teller unit, funder transfer unit, admin unit(operation department) Local business unit, small business unit and mass market unit (Marketing department). While other departments like, Treasury, Corporate services, Credit, Trade operations etc, are centralised in head office. Tasks are assigned to unit and individuals. This can be likened to the principle of There is division of labour ( Linstead, Fulop and Lilley 2004:129) Job specialisation is deemphasised. Although there is written Job descriptions, stating the task attached to jobs and the person to whom the job holder is accountable for performance but a staff can be move from one unit to the other if a need arise. For example if there are many customers to be service at the cash and teller unit, some staff in fund transfer unit or customer service unit can be move to urgently assist in cash and teller unit. There is also departmental control function checklist, to monitor task done. Span of control, there are many authority level and close supervision of task, although there is no specify number of positions that can be coordinated by one supervisor, but the minimum number of staff that report to a supervisor is three. The diagram below shows the level of supervision in a Regional Bank. GMD/CEO Deputy Managing Director Regional Bank Head Regional Director Business manager Profit centre Manger Relationship Managers Operatives There are four levels of staff in the bank, they are, Top Management staff, Middle Management staff, Senior staff and the Junior staff. Staffs receive order directly from their immediate supervisors. Directives flow down from senior management (GMD/CEO, DMD), through middle management (Regional Bank Head, Regional Director), to senior staff who are the first line managers (Business manager, Profit centre manager) and subordinates (junior staff), and reporting relationship flow upward through same channel. This can be likened to Henry Fayols principle of scalar chain or chain of command. Anon (2008) The marketing staff .performs task functions that are directed towards specific and definable end results while the Operation staff performs functions that are designed to drive the system to achieve the set goals (Robin and Rodes 1999:357) Authority is widely diffused throughout every managerial level to senior staff level of the Bank. Cole G. (2004). Authority is decentralised but strictly Control. For example a Head Teller as the authority to recommend a Teller that is not performing to be move to another unit. The major policy decisions are centralized while operational responsibility is delegated (decentralized). For example, Senior management make Strategic decisions such as; technology or software to be employed by the organization; a major market or product change, mergers and acquisitions, capital budget and investments. Such decisions do have very great and latent effect on the future of the Bank. Regional Bank Heads are empowered to make tactical decisions which are product and market related decisions and are usually being made to outweigh competition and win more market share for the bank. Business managers are empowered to make operational decisions that affect the day to day running of the branch. The decisions at this level are usually on short and intermediate basis and they are usually being influenced by the unfolding realities in the market place. Business managers as the responsibility to manage their branches, but within an approved budget outside which their powers are strictly limited (Robin and Rhodes: 368). For instance, the business manager handle the capital expenditure and operating expenditure of the branch but there is a maximum amount a business manager can approve for a single expense and total amount that can be spent on operating and capital expenditure in a period. Any amount of expenditure that is above the business manger limit must be approved by the next line supervisor. There are specified laid down operational procedures, policies and manuals that specify standard of performance. These are: operation policy and control manual, staff hand book, expense empowerment policy, operational risk management policy, code of professional conduct and ethics, email policy, whistle blower protection policy, etc. These policies are to guide and bring uniformity in processing. For instance the expense empowerment policy is the rule guiding expenditure. It specify amount of money that can the approve by specified authorised person. There is a performance monitoring system named INFO POOL, which is driven by the principles of the Balanced Scorecard. The Balanced Scorecard Approach is a strategic planning and management system that uses financial and non financial metrics as a business planning and performance measurement mechanism. Performance measurement is viewed from four perspectives: Financial, Internal process, Customer Service, and Learning and Growth. In order to assess employees performances, financial and non-financial key performance indicators (KPIs) was developed along the Balanced Scorecard dimensions. To drive this new performance management system, management introduced performance incentive pay to boost employee morale and increase productivity. High performers are objectively identified and rewarded appropriately in line with predetermined percentages of their pay. ORGANIZATIONAL GOAL: The goals of United Bank for Arica plc are highlighted below: To be the reference point for service, quality and innovation in the financial services industry and to achieve significant difference between UBA and other banks on all key parameters. Anon(2010) It desires to occupy the foremost position amongst its peers in the industry along key metrics: market share, profitability, balance sheet size etc. Anon(2010) It desires to achieve a clear and significant lead over peers along all key measures and significantly influence financial services industry policy and direction. Anon(2010) It desires to provide a broad range of financial services products and services offerings to meet the needs of its chosen market segments. Anon(2010) It primary focus shall be on the African region where it intends to deploy its array of financial services products and service offerings. To also maintain a selective presence in key locations worldwide on an opportunistic basis. Anon(2010) Business decisions shall be driven by the desire to achieve significant value-added for all stakeholders. Anon(2010) Putting in place governance and strategic management practices that ensure that this organization will successfully anticipate and respond to environmental discontinuities and effectively manage leadership transitions at all levels. Anon(2010) ORGANIZATIONAL CONTINGENCIES United Bank for Africa Plc is faced with various numbers of organisational contingencies and these contingencies have equally affected the manner in which the organisation is structure. The organisational contingencies are; Size Technology Environment Government Regulator Risk and control environment Size United Bank for Africa Plc is a big bank broken down into Regional Banks with over 600 branches in Nigeria and over 13,000 employees. The branches are classified into four different categorises according to their location, operational size and environment. These are large branches, medium branches, basic branches and macro branches. The size of the bank has led to Standardisation of procedures, processing methods and employment practices, specialisation of function and role, and formalisation of documentation(Cole 2004:186) to enhance process uniformity across the Bank. This can be likened to Lawrence and Lorsch concepts of differentiation and integration Anon (2008:28). Differentiation approach because the bank is broken into Regional Banks and Branches and each of these branches operates in different locations and environments. This is also similar to Integration approach because there is standardize roles and regulation, operational policy manual guiding the operation of the branc hes and enhancing uniformity in processing and service method. It can also be argued that the structure has the six primary variable of structure as identified by the Aston Studies Anon (2008) Technology: Technology plays a vital role in the financial sector. In response to the demand for quick efficient and reliable services, The Bank as deployed technology- driven products and services as means of influencing and redefining customers behavioural pattern and life style. Well developed outsourcing support functions are increasingly used to provide services and manage cost. For example; ATM networks, cards processing, bill presentment and payment, software development, call centre operations and network management. According to Wood wards studies UBA PLC can be refer to as process industry authority and power are decentralized and responsibilities are delegated by line supervisors, employee receive order from one superior only Cole(2004: 86.) The span of control is high at the senior management level, for example ten strategic unit heads report directly to the group managing director and this decreases at the middle management. For example at the branch level the business manager is the managing director of the branch and reporting to whom is the branch operation manager and the three profit centre manger. Employees are knowledgeable of the banks products and processing methods. Employees are committed to organisation task as defined in their job descriptions. Environment: UBA Plc Operate in competitive and an uncertain environment where market keeps changing for example Customers are now becoming more knowledgeable and financially savvy. Their benchmark for service quality has also risen aided by the intense competition among financial services providers to attract new customers. Customers now set the agenda and influence decisions. Be slow or inflexible the business moves over to the competition. In order to achieve the banks aspiration or goals, it resolves to remain customer centric and bring decision making closer to the frontline. With this, the business units respond flexibly and promptly to the different requirements of the bank targeted customers. It this can be likened to organic structure which emphasize decentralization to achieve flexibility and adaptability Government Regulator The central Bank of Nigeria is the main regulator in the financial sector in Nigeria, they play a vital role in the structure of a bank and they also control and monitor the operation of the bank through various policies, rules and regulations, for example there must be a CBN approval and license for a bank to operate, CBN must approve the appointment of board of directors of the bank and the managing director of a bank. In year 2009 CBN came out with a policy that state an individual person can only spend maximum of ten years as the managing director of the bank and also do give approval for the opening and closing of banks branches. The bank has a both Compliance and Statutory Audit Committee Units. The Compliance unit is headed by the Chief Compliance Officer who then reports to the Group Chief Risk Officer. A major role of the unit is to ensure that the bank does not infract any regulatory rules and /or regulations. Similarly, the Statutory Audit committee whose primary function is to monitor the process design to ensure compliance by the group in all respect with regulatory requirements, including disclosure, controls and procedures (Anon: 2010). Risk and control environment Risk management is integral to the Banks strategy setting process, it is an essential tool for achieving the Banks objectives. This is achieved by keeping risk management at the centre of all executive agenda and building a culture in which risk management is embedded and integrated in all banking activities (Anon 2010). Towards this end, UBA Plc has in place robust risk management policies and mechanism to ensure identification of risk and effective control. The bank (UBA PLC) has defined and established appropriate governance arrangements with clear roles and reporting lines for risk management in the Bank. The Board of directors is the highest risk management policy approval body and has the ultimate responsibility for the Banks credit, market, operational, and other risk. The Bank has Risk management group these include Credit Risk management Group, Market Risk Management Group, Operational and IT Risk Management Group. Each Risk Management Group has direct responsibility for the development of its risk management frame work and they report directly to the Group chief Risk officer who in turn report to the General managing director, who also report to the Board of directors. FIT BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND GOALS: There is little fit between United Bank For Africa plc structure and its organisational goals. The structure supports some of the organisational goals. Delegation of decision making to the frontline where the work is performed is targeted towards the goal to occupy the foremost position amongst its peers in the industry along key metrics: market share, profitability, balance sheet size. Delegation of decision making has enable business unit to respond flexibly and promptly to different requirement of customer and has resulted in the achievement of some of its goals for example The Bank gross earnings increase by 45.6 % to N246.7 billion in the last financial year ended December 2009 as against N169 billion in year 2008. This was achieved as a result of the bank expansion to other African country, its lending activities and other activities in the African country. UBA current operation in 19 African countries, New York London and Paris this an evidence that the bank has set its foot p rints across Africa and other continent. The bank has a strict regulatory and compliance framework by ensuring that there a zero tolerance to fraud and other policy infractions. This culture is greatly supported by its compliance and audit check committee and strict internal control system which are entrenched across every strata and operational levels in the bank and targeted towards the goal of abiding by the utmost and ethical standard and It desires to achieve a clear and significant lead over peers along all key measures and significantly influence financial services industry policy and direction. The usage of outsourcing support functions to provide services such as; ATM networks, card processing, bill presentment and payment, software development, call centre operation and net work management etc, is targeted towards It desires to provide a broad range of financial services products and services offerings to meet the needs of its chosen market segments. The bank is currently providing various ranges of products and services to its customers. The bank has introduced a lot of technological driven product such as, mobile banking, automated teller machine (ATM), Udirect or internet banking, etc. With these product customers do not need to get to the bank to consummate their financial transaction. With internet banking and mobile banking customer can transfer fund from one account to the other, customer receive notification of consummated transaction on their account on their mobile phone, and customer can make cash withdrawal from the ATM. There are also different types of loan product a customer can access in the bank depending on the customer type of business, income level, place of work etc. For example the bank has loan facility structured strictly for customers that are under pay employment such loans are NO wahala loan, executive loan, assets finance loan etc. While customers that are not under pay employment can access Temporary overdraft and commercial loan. The structure at the same time is not supporting some goals of the organisation because of some element of bureaucracy in its structure. There are so many operational and procedural bottlenecks, unnecessary paper work that slow down transaction, time consuming procedure, and internal control of maker/checker/verifier. This defeats the organisational goal of being the reference point for service, quality and innovation, the bank is more control focused than being customer centric. For example, the newly introduced account reactivation procedures which is encumbered with a lot of rework and not cost and time effective in the sense that an address verification and Know Your Customer procedure would need to be carried out again before an existing customer of the bank can re- activate his/her account and this negates the banks service quality drive. There is also a mismatch in between the organisational structure and the organisational goal in the area of branch management. The branches are profit centres. The branch managers are expected to generate income and pay all operating bills including salaries. The business managers focus more on cost optimization in other to generate profit as against being customer centric. The business managers compromise a lot of things like availability of working resources and maintenance of office equipments. All these equipments frequently break down because they are not service as at when due and has also resulted in service failure and customer dissatisfaction. Customers spend more time in the banking hall because of the limited number of staff available to attend to their requests. Another major mismatch is the limitation and control of the empowerment policy. For instance, Business Managers cannot approve certain level of expenditure which are very vital to their daily operations. Such include the purchase of fuel, stationeries, amongst others. Conclusion: Having examined the various theoretical approaches to organisational structure design, it can be concluded that there is no best way of structuring an organisation; so many factors such as size, environment and technology contribute to the way in which an organisation is structured. The goal of an organization is also a factor to consider when structuring an organisation. Considering the structure of United Bank for Africa plc some elements of Bureaucracy in its structure is creating operational and procedural bottlenecks and will be required to be check. Although, the structure is flexible and respond quickly to environmental changes. Anon 2008). The following is recommended for improvement. Job holder should be empowered and be held fully accountable for job done. According to Cole G. (2004:200) Authority should be commensurate with responsibility That is job holder should have the authority to take decision on their job. The bank should adopt a lean structure which will help to reduce the number of levels and unnecessary administrative over head. Fincham and Rhodes(2003) Purchasing of office equipment, materials and maintenance of equipment should be centralized in order to take advantage of bulk purchase and manage cost effectively. The bank can also adopt a Radical Decentralization Anon (2008) structure by decentralizing corporate functions to operational division. This will strengthen the branches, improve communication, human cooperation, encourage team work and eradicate staff/line conflict. Linstead, Fulop and Lilley (2004)

Existentialism Essay -- essays research papers

Existentialism is a philosophy about life that says being is more important than the indispensable everyday occurrences. It acknowledges an individuals freedom to choose and says with this knowing there comes an immense sense of responsibility. Despair, hopelessness and anxiety are characteristic of a person struggling with existential thoughts. Nihilism sums up this condition by stating that all values are baseless, nothing is foreseeable and that life itself is meaningless. The characters in A Clean Well Lighted Place and A Day’s Wait show signs of being both aware and unaware of these elements of existentialism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the first story, A Clean Well Lighted Place, the old drunk man represents someone who realizes he has no actual plan or fate. His despair is over the realization that theoretically the afterlife does not exist. The drunken man and older waiter share this despair not only because they both realize a man’s need for a clean, well-lighted place but also because they both struggle to fill a void. The older waiter’s acknowledgement of nothingness in life is evident when he recites the prayer but fills in the perceived nouns God and heaven with nada or nothing. He feels a void with this realization that keeps him awake at night. His assumption that others share his insomnia is somewhat correct but what they, the drunken man and the waiter, actually share is a void. The young waiter has a wife to go home to and a bed, the old drunken man ...

Outcry Against Conformity in Whos afraid of Virginia Woolf? Essay

Outcry Against Conformity in Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?    Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf? may be viewed as a criticism of American society in the 1960s. Edward Albee saw 'the responsibility of the writer...to be a sort of demonic social critic': thus the play became a reaction against the illusionary plays of its time. Two lines from the play are directly lifted from the works which Albee is mocking: 'Flores para los muertos' is from A Streetcar named Desire and Martha's speech - 'Awww, tis the refuge we take...' - is from a play by Eugene O'Neill. Both of these playwrights sanction illusion in the face of reality; Virginia Woolf is said to be an elaborate metaphor for the 'willing substitution of fantasy for reality, the destructive and dangerous infantilising of the imagination and the moral being by fear.' Albee saw society as too willing to conform and adjust itself morally in order to benefit and succeed. George's attempts to escape from such a society result in his hiding in history and thus him and Nick are no better than each other. George has to resist the totalitarian - 'defend Berlin' - in Nick but his attempts to defend Western civilisation 'against its sex- and success-orientated assailants...are too closely centred on his scrotum.'   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The setting - New Carthage - of the alcohol-sodden gathering is significant in itself. The original Carthage was founded in the ninth century BC and it was razed to the ground in 146AD, when it collapsed under the weight of its own power. It is thus being likened to the America of the 1960s where, again, money and power provided the principal axels for behaviour and superseded the values of culture. As Ni... ...tack on society. By referring to well known contemporary texts, Albee mocks the attitudes that their works sanction. The characters are created as before and after pictures of the results of relationships based in delusion, with clear links to moments in history acting as sounding boards for each others thoughts. Their intoxicated states allow, for the first time in a long while, for their true feelings and motives to be revealed, and for all the secrets and lies that have formed the keystones to their marriages to be removed finally allowing a true test of their strength. Unsurprisingly, what is left very quickly collapses: a warning to others and a wake-up-call to society. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is an outcry against the thoughtlessness and conforming nature of Western culture and an attack on those who not only live, but sanction, such a lifestyle.   

The History of the Criminal Justice System in America Essay -- essays

The History of the Criminal Justice System in America The criminal justice system has been evolving since the first colonists came to America. At first, the colonists used a criminal justice system that mirrored those in England, France, and Holland. Slowly the French and Dutch influences faded away leaving what was considered the English common law system. The common law system was nothing more than a set of rules used to solve problems within the communities. This system was not based on laws or codes, but simply that of previous decisions handed down by judges. Although rudimentary, this common law system did make the distinction between misdemeanors and the more serious crimes known as felonies. As the colonies grew so did the criminal justice system. The colonists expa...

Role-playing

Mr. Justice Unreasonably, yesterday ordered that a 13 yearned Dutch girl who has lived for eight years with a Malay woman in Java and Malay should be given into the care of the Netherlands Congealers who, It Is understood, will return her to her parents In Holland. After the decision, the girl, Maria Hibernia Herzog, and Amino, the Malay woman, clung to each other for almost an hour outside the Supreme Court. They declined to enter a waiting car, sobbed and vowed they would not be parted.With tears streaming down her face, Maria shouted in Malay (the only language she can speak): â€Å"Amino is my mother. She has loved me, cared for me and brought me up. † Then looking at Mammal, the girl said, â€Å"Do you love me, mother? If you love me don't leave me. I don't want to go with this man (a Dutch consular official). † July 29 THE FULL COURT of Appeal In Singapore yesterday decided that Marl Herzog shall be given back to her fosterers, Chew Amino. The Appeal Court yesterd ay held that the proceedings before the ChiefJustice were, by reason of the in-service of the necessary parties, a nullity. When she heard that Marl would be returned to her, Mammal broke down and wept openly. But they were tears of Joy. Hugging and kissing Marl, she said brokenly: â€Å"l have never been so happy in my life. † Stumbling a little as she came out of the Court of Appeal, she shook hands almost convulsively, with friends and Wilshire who were waiting outside. Http://restore. Salsa . Com. So/luminescence/lifeline/amoral . HTML 1 OFF

Practical Demonkeeping Chapter 3-4

3TRAVISTravis OHearn was whimsical a fifteen- course- ageing Chevy Impala he had bought in L.A. with mvirtuosoy the giant had interpreted from a pimp. The ogre was standing on the tossenger s discharge with his toss give a stylus the sprainow, panting into the rushing coastal wind with the slobbering exuberance of an Irish setter. From sentence to judgment of conviction he poufed his head in military position the car, looked at Travis, and sang, Your render sucks cocks in he-ell, Your mother sucks cocks in he-ell, in a teasing, child c atomic figure of speech 18 way. so he would spin his head or so several times for effect.They had spent the wickedness in a cheap motel northwestward of San Junipero, and the deuce had tuned the television to a c floridit line channel that p redacted an uncut recital of The Exorcist. It was the demons favorite movie. At to the lowest degree, Travis image, it was better than the last time, when the demon had codn The Wizard of Oz a nd had spent an inbuilt day pretending to be a straightaway monkey, or screaming, And that goes for your unretentive dog, too. mount motionlessness, establish bingle across, Travis utter. Im nerve-racking to drive.The demon had been cabled since he had eaten the dashchhiker the night to begin with. The guy essential take up been on cocaine or speed. why did drugs affect the demon when poisons did non chassis him? It was a mystery.The demon tapped Travis on the elevate with a long reptilian claw. I regard to ride on the gawk, he verbalise. His voice was resembling rusty nails hold up in a elicit.Enjoy, Travis said, waving crosswise the dashboard.The demon c sleeveed give away the window and across the front, where he perched kindred a hood ornament from hell, his forked tongue f finesse in the wind like a storm- move pennon, spattering the windshield with saliva. Travis loose on the wipers and was grateful to perplex that the Chevy was equipped with an interval delay feature.It had taken him a full day in Los Angeles to move on a pimp who looked as if he were carrying enough cash to bum ab step forward them a car, and another day for the demon to intoxicate the guy in a objet dartoeuvre isolated enough to eat him. Travis insisted that the demon eat in private. When he was feeding he became visible to other people. He also tripled in coat.Travis had a acquire ab f all told show up nightmare most being asked to relieve the eating habits of his traveling companion.In the vision Travis is walking ware the street when a policeman taps him on the shoulder. self-justification me, sir, the policeman says.Travis does a slow-mo Sam Peckenpah turn. Yes, he says.The policeman says, I dont mean to fuss you exactly that large, scaly fellow either home on that extremum munching on the mayor do you make bash him? The policeman points toward the demon, who is biting t entirelyy the head of a man in a pinstriped polye ster suit. wherefore, yes, I do, Travis says. Thats stop consonant, hes a demon. He has to eat some 1 every couple of age or he protrudes cranky. Ive sack outn him for cardinal days. Ill vouch for his deprivation of character.The policeman, who has heard it every forrader, says, at that settles a metropolis ordinance against eating an elected formalized without a concede. May I fix your permit, delight?Im sorry, Travis says, I dont ask a permit, entirely Ill be glad to depart one if youll specialise me where to go.The cop sighs and begins indite on a ticket pad. You tar encounter only get a permit from the mayor, and your friend take toms to be finishing him morose now. We dont like strangers eating our mayor slightly here. Im afraid Ill have to cite you.Travis pro adjudicates, scarcely if I get another ticket, theyll countervail my insurance. He always wondered about this lineament of the dream hed never carried insurance. The cop ignores him and conti nues to save up out the ticket. Even in a dream, he is only doing his job.Travis thought it outr advanceously unfair that Catch even invaded his dreams. Sleep, at least, should provide some escape from the demon, who had been with him for seventy years, and would be with him forever unless he could find a way to send him book binding to hell.For a man of ninety, Travis was remarkably sanitary preserved. In fact, he did not egress to be much everyplace twenty, his age when he had look fored up the demon. Dark with unyielding eyeball and lean, Travis had sharp features that would have seemed sinister if not for the constant look of amazement he wore, as if on that point were one answer that would make everything in heart story clear to him if he could only entertain the question.He had never bargained for the endless days on the pass with the demon, trying to date out how to stop the killing. sometimes the demon ate daily, sometimes he would go for weeks without killi ng. Travis had never found a reason, a connection, or a pattern to it. Sometimes he could dissuade the demon from killing, sometimes he could only steer him toward current victims. When he could, he had the demon eat pimps or pushers, those that humanity could do without. only when other times he had to distinguish vagrants and vagabonds, those that would not be missed. at that place was a time when he had cried man displace Catch after a so-and-so or a bag-lady. Hed made friends among the dispossessed when he was riding the rails with the demon, posterior earlier there were so many automobiles. Often a bum who didnt do where his following(a) roof or crisp was coming from had shared a boxcar and a bottle with Travis. And Travis had learned that there was no evil in being sorry poverty merely bolded one up to evil. except over the years he had learned to push deviation the remorse, and time and again Catch dined on bums.He wondered what went with the minds of Catchs victims just before they died. He had seen them beat their go acrosss before their eyeball as if the monster looming before them was an illusion, a trick of the light. He wondered what would happen now, if oncoming drivers could see Catch perched on the front of the Chevy waving like a parade queen from the foul Lagoon.They would panic, swerve take the narrow road and over the ocean-side bank. Windshields would shatter, and gasoline would explode, and people would die. decease and the demon were never separated for long. glide slope briefly to a town proficient you, Travis thought. simply perhaps this is the last one.As a seagull cry dopplered eat up to Traviss left, he dark to look out the window over the ocean. The morning sunlight was reflecting mop up the face of the waves, illuminating a sparkling halo of spray. For a scrap he forgot about Catch and drank in the beauty of the scene, but when he turned to look at the road again, there was the demon, standing on th e bumper, reminding him of his responsibility.Travis pushed the accelerator to the stand and the Impalas locomotive engine hesitated, then roared as the machine-controlled transmission dropped into passing gear. When the speedometer hit sixty he locked up the brakes.Catch hit the roadway face introductory and skidded headlong, throwing up sparks where his scales scraped the asphalt. He bounced finish a signpost and into a ditch, where he lay for a fleck trying to collaborate his thoughts. The Impala fishtailed and came to a stop athwart in the road.Travis slammed the Chevy into reverse, remediateed the car, then threw it into drive and screeched toward the demon, slip bying the wheels out of the ditch until the moment of impact. The Impalas headlights shattered against Catchs chest. The corner of the bumper caught him in the waistline and drove him complicated into the mud of the ditch. The engine sputtered to a stop and the damaged radiator hissed a rusty cloud of steam into Catchs face.The drivers side gateway was jammed against the ditch, so Travis c affectionateled out the window and ran roughly the car to see what damage he had done. Catch was lying in the ditch with the bumper against his chest.Nice driving, A.J., Catch said. You going to try for Indy next year?Travis was disappointed. He hadnt really expected to anguish Catch, he knew from experience that the demon was closely indestructible, but he had hoped at least to piss him off. Just trying to keep you on your toes, he said. A runty test to see how you hold up under stress.Catch lifted the car, crawled out, and stood next to Travis in the ditch. Whats the verdict? Did I pass?Are you dead?Nope, I tonicity prominent. then(prenominal) you have failed miserably. Im sorry but Ill have to run you over again. non with this car, the demon said, shaking his head.Travis surveyed the steam uphill from the radiator and wondered whether he talent not have been a little hasty in giving way t o his anger. good deal you get it out of the ditch?Piece of cake. The demon hoisted the front of the car and began to walk it up onto the berm. But youre not going to get far without a new radiator.Oh, youre all of a sudden an expert mechanic. Mr. help-me-I-cant-change-the-channel-while-the-magic-fingers-is-on all of a sudden has a point in automotive diagnostics?Well, what do you destine?I think theres a town just ahead where we can get it fixed. Didnt you read that sign you bounced off of? It was a dig. Travis knew the demon couldnt read in fact, he often watched subtitled movies with the sound off just to irritate Catch.Whats it say?It says, yearn Cove, five miles. Thats where were going. I think we can limp the car five miles with a bad radiator. If not, you can push.You run over me and wreck the car and I get to push?Correct, Travis said, crawling rump by dint of the car window.At your command, master, Catch said sarcastically.Travis tried the ignition. The car whined and died. It wont start. Get tramp and push.Okay, Catch said. He went around to the back of the car, put his shoulder to the bumper, and began energy it the take a breath of the way out of the ditch. But pushing cars is very hungry work.4ROBERTRobert Masterson had rum a congius of red wine, just about of a five-liter Coors minikeg, and a half-pint of tequila, and liquid the dream came.A desert. A spacious, bright, blonde bastard. The Sahara. He is naked, fastened to a conduct with barbed wire. Before him is a great canopied bed mastered in scandalous sitin. Under the cool timber of the canopy his wife, Jennifer, is making love to a stranger a young, muscular, dark-haired man. disunite run down Roberts cheeks and crystallize into salt. He cannot close his eyes or turn away. He tries to scream, but every time he opens his mouth a squat, lizardlike monster, the size of a chimpanzee, shoves a saltine cracker into his mouth. The enkindle and the pain in his chest are agon izing. The lovers are oblivious to his pain. The little reptilian man tightens the barbed wire around his chest by twisting a stick. Every time he sobs, the wire cuts deeper. The lovers turn to him in slow motion, stay freshing their embrace. They wave to him, a astronomical home-movie wave, postcard smiles. Greetings from the nubble of anguish.Awake, the dream-pain in his chest replaced by a real pain in his head. elucidation is the enemy. Its out there waiting for you to open your eyes. No. No way.Thirst gay the light to slake the hunger it must be done.He opened his eyes to a dim, forgiving light. Must be cloudy out. He looked around. Pillows, full ashtrays, abandon wine bottles, a chair, a schedule from the amiss(p) year with a show of a surfer riding a huge s thoroughly, pizza boxes. This wasnt home. He didnt populate like this. Humans dont live like this.He was on someones couch. Where?He sit down up and waited in vertigo until his champion snapped back i nto his head, which it did with a vengeful impact. Ah, yes, he knew where he was. This was Hangover Hangover, California. Pine Cove, where he was thrown out of the house by his wife. Heartbreak, California.Jenny, call Jenny. Tell her that humans dont live this way. No one lives this way. Except The melodic line. He was in The ginger snaps dawdler.He looked around for water. There was the kitchen, fourteen miles away, over there at the end of the couch. Water was in the kitchen.He crawled naked off the couch, across the blast of the kitchen to the sink, and pulled himself up. The faucet was at peace(p), or at least buried under a throne of dirty dishes. He reached into an opening, cautiously peeping for the faucet like a speculator reaching into an underwater crevice for a moray eel. Plates skidded down the pile and crashed on the grade. He looked at the china shards fragmented around his knees and spotted the mirage of a Coors minikeg. He managed a controlled fall towar d the mirage and his hand touch the nozzle. It was real. Salvation hair of the dog in a handy, five-liter disposable package.He started to confound from the nozzle and instantly alter his mouth, throat, sinuses, aural cavity, and chest hair with foam.Use a glass, Jenny would say. What are you, an animal? He must call Jenny and free as soon as the thirst was gone(a).First, a glass. Dirty dishes were strewn across every horizontal surface in the kitchen the counter, stove, table, eat bar, and the top of the refrigerator. The oven was filled with dirty dishes. naught lives like this. He spotted a glass among the miasma. The Holy Grail. He grabbed it and filled it with beer. Mold floated on the settling foam. He threw the glass into the oven and slammed the inlet before an avalanche could gain momentum.A clean glass, perhaps. He checked the cupboard where the dishes had once been kept. A single cereal axial motion stared out at him. From the bottom of the bowl Fred Flintstone co ngratulated him, equitable kid Youre a clean-plater Robert filled the bowl and sat cross-legged on the floor amid the broken dishes while he drank.Fred Flintstone congratulated him leash times before his thirst abated. hot old Fred. The mans a saint. Saint Fred of Bedrock.Fred, how could she do this to me? zippo can live like this.Good kid Youre a clean-plater Fred said. mention Jenny, Robert said, reminding himself. He stood and staggered through the offal toward the phone. Nausea swept over him and he bounced back through the trailers narrow foyerway and fell into the whoremonger, where he retched into the toilet until he passed out. The Breeze called it public lecture to Ralph on the risky White Phone. This one was a toll call.Five proceedings later he came to and found the phone. It seemed a superhuman effort to hit the right buttons. why did they have to keep abject? At last he connected and someone answered on the first ring. Jenny, honey, Im sorry. Can I-Thank you for calling Pizza on Wheels. We will open at eleven A.M. and deliveries begin at four P.M. Why cook when-Robert hung up. Hed dialed the number written on the phones emergency numbers sticker kinda of his home. Again he chased down the buttons and pegged them one by one. It was like pellet skeet, you had to lead them a little.Hello. Jenny sounded sleepy.Honey, Im sorry. Ill never do it again. Can I come home?Robert? What time is it?He thought for a moment then guessed, noon?Its five in the morning, Robert. Ive been asleep about an hour, Robert. There were dogs barking in the neighborhood all night long, Robert. Im not ready for this. Good-bye, Robert.But Jenny, how could you do it? You dont even like the desert. And you know how I hate saltines.Youre drunk, Robert.Who is this guy, Jenny? What does he have that I dont have?There is no other guy. I told you yesterday, I just cant live with you anymore. I dont think I love you anymore.Who do you love? Who is he?Myself, Robert. Im do ing it for myself. Now Im interruption up for myself. Say good-bye so I dont feel like Im hanging up on you.But, Jenny-Its over. Get on with your life, Robert. Im hanging up now. Good-bye.But- She hung up. Nobody lives like this, Robert said to the dial tone.Get on with your life. Okay, thats a plan. He would clean up this place and clean up his life. Never suck up again. Things were going to change. Soon she would remember what a great guy he was. But first he had to go to the bathroom to answer an emergency call from Ralph.The gage alarm was screaming like a tortured lamb. Robert, now back on the couch, pulled a cushion over his head and wondered why the Breeze didnt have a sleeper button on his grass alarm. Then the pounding started. It was a admittance buzzer, not the smoke alarm.Breeze, answer the limen Robert shouted into the cushion. The pounding continued. He crawled off the couch and waded through the litter to the door. curb on a minute, man. Im coming. He threw the door open and caught the man outside(a) with his clenched fist poised for another pounding. He was a sharp-faced Latino in a raw silk suit. His hair was slicked back and tied in a ponytail with a black silk ribbon. Robert could see a flagship model BMW lay in the driveway.Shit. Jehovahs Witnesses must make a lot of money, Robert said.The Hispanic was not amused. I need to talk to The Breeze.At that point Robert realized that he was naked and picked an empty, gallon wine bottle from the floor to cover his privates.Come in, Robert said, backing away from the door. Ill see if hes awake.The Hispanic stepped in. Robert stumbled down the narrow hall to The Breezes room. He knocked on the door. Breeze, theres some big money here to see you. No answer. He opened the door and went in and searched through the piles of blankets, sheets, pillows, beer cans, and wine bottles, but found no Breeze.On the way back to the living room Robert grabbed a mildewed towel from the bathroom and wrapped i t around his hips. The Hispanic was standing in the mediate of a weeny clearing, peering around the trailer with concentrated disgust. It looked to Robert as if he were trying to levitate to avoid having his Italian enclothe contact the filth on the floor.Hes not here, Robert said.How do you live like this? the Hispanic said. He had no discernible accent. This is subhuman, man.Did my mother send you?The Hispanic ignored the question. Where is The Breeze? We had a meeting this morning. He put an extra emphasis on the intelligence information meeting. Robert got the message. The Breeze had been hinting that he had some big deal going down. The guy must be the buyer. Silk suits and BMWs were not the usual accouterments of The Breezes clientele.He left last night. I dont know where he went. You could check down at the Slug.The Slug?Head of the Slug Saloon, on Cypress. He hangs out there sometimes.The Hispanic tiptoed through the garbage to the door, then paused on the step. Tell him Im looking for him. He should call me. Tell him I do not do business this way.Robert didnt like the commanding tone in the Hispanics voice. He bear upon the obsequious tone of an English butler, And whom shall I say has called, sir?Dont fuck with me, cabron. This is business.Robert took a deep breath, then sighed. Look, Pancho. Im hung over, my wife just threw me out, and my life is not worth shit. So if you want me to take messages, you can damn well tell me who the fuck you are. Or should I tell The Breeze to look for a Mexican with a Gucci loafer shoved up his ass? Comprende, Pachuco?The Hispanic turned on the step and started to reach into his suit coat. Robert mat adrenaline shoot through his body, and he tightened his grip on the towel. Oh, yeah, he thought, pull a gun and Ill snap your eyes out with this towel. He suddenly felt extremely helpless.The Hispanic kept his hand in his coat. Who are you?Im The Breezes decorator. Were redoing the whole place in an abstract expr essionist motif. Robert wondered if he wasnt really trying to get shot.Well, modishness ass, when The Breeze shows up, you tell him to call Rivera. And you tell him that when the business is done, his decorator is mine. You understand?Robert nodded weakly.Adios, dogmeat. Rivera turned and walked toward the BMW.Robert closed the door and leaned against it, trying to compeer his breath. The Breeze was going to be pissed off when he heard about this. Roberts attention was replaced by self-loathing. by chance Jenny was right. perhaps he had no idea how to maintain a relationship with anybody. He was miserable and weak and dehydrated.He looked around for something to absorb and vaguely remembered having done this before. Dj vu?Nobody lives like this. It was going to change, goddammit. As soon as he found his clothes, he was going to change it.RIVERA Detective serjeant-at-law Alphonso Rivera of the San Junipero County Sheriffs Department sat in the rented BMW and cursed. Fuck, fuck, and triple fuck. Then he remembered the transmitter register to his chest. Okay, cowboys, hes not here. I should have known. The vans been gone for a week. Call it off.In the keep he could hear cars starting. Two chromatic Plymouths drove by a few seconds later, the drivers conspicuously not looking at the BMW as they passed.What could have gone wrong? Three months setting it all up. Hed gone out on a limb with the senior pilot to convince him that Charles L. Belew, a.k.a. The Breeze, was their ticket into the Big Sur growers business.Hes gone down in two ways for cocaine. If we pop him for dealing, hell give us everything but his favorite recipe to stay out of Soledad.Hes small time, the captain had said.Yeah, but he knows everybody, and hes hungry. Best of all, he knows hes small time, so he thinks we wouldnt bother with him.Finally the captain had relented and it had been set up. Rivera could hear him now. Rivera, if you got made by a drugged-out loser like Belew, b y chance we should put you back in uniform, where your utmost visibility will be an asset. Maybe we can put you in P.R. or recruitment.Riveras ass was hanging out worsened than that drunken jerk in the trailer. Who was he, leastways? As far as anyone knew, The Breeze lived alone. But this guy seemed to know something. Why else would he give Rivera such a hard time? Maybe he could pull this off with the drunk. Desperate thinking. A long shot.Rivera memorized the license number of the old Ford truck parked outside The Breezes trailer. He would run it through the information processing system when he got back to the station. Maybe he could convince the captain that he still had something. Maybe he did. And then again, perchance he could just climb a stream of angel piss to heaven.Rivera sat in the file room of the sheriffs say-so discombobulateing coffee and watching a television settape. After running the license number through the computer, Rivera found that the pickup belonge d to a Robert Masterson, age twenty-nine. Born in Ohio, get hitched with to Jennifer Masterson, also twenty-nine. His only prior was a drunk-driving conviction two years ago.The video was a record of Mastersons breathalyzer test. several(prenominal) years ago the department had begun taping all breathalyzer tests to avoid legal-defense strategies base on procedural mistakes made by arresting officers during testing.On the television conceal a very drunk Robert W. Masterson (6 ft., one hundred eighty lbs., eyes green, hair brown) was spouting furbelow to two uniformed deputies.We work for a common purpose. You serve the state with your minds and bodies. I serve the state by contend it. Drinking is an act of civil disobedience. I booze to end world hunger. I drink to protest the United States interest group in Central America. I drink to protest nuclear power. I drinkA sense of doom descended on Rivera as he watched. Unless The Breeze reappeared, his locomote was in the hands of this tightly wound, by and large wrapped, drunken idiot. He wondered what life might be like as a bank security guard.On the filmdom the two officers looked away from their prisoner to the door of the testing room. The camera was mounted in the corner and fitted with a wide-angle lense to cover anything that happened without having to be adjusted. A little Arab man in a red stocking cap had come through the door, and the deputies were tattle him that he had the wrong room and to please leave.Could I trouble you for a small quantity of salt? the little man asked. Then he blinked off the screenland as if the tape had been stopped and he had been edited out.Rivera rewound the tape and ran it again. The second time, Masterson performed the test without interruption. The door did not open and there was no little man. Rivera ran it back again no little man.He must have dozed off while the tape was running. His subconscious had continued the tape while he slept, inserting the littl e mans entrance. That was the only practicable explanation.I dont need this shit, he said. Then he ejected the tape and drained his coffee, his tenth part cup of the day.