Essay --

Before the Civil War ended, President Lincoln signed for the Emancipation Proclamation to be passed. When the Emancipation Proclamation was passed on January 1, 1863, it was a step toward freedom for African Americans. Although the proclamation freed few, and did not apply to â€Å"slaves in border states fighting on the side of the union,† it sent a message. Lincoln was sending a strong message, not only to the United States of America, but to the world, that the Civil War was no longer being fought to preserve the Union, but was being fought to end slavery (Ask Jones which citation from extra paper). African Americans described the proclamation as the â€Å"document for freedom,† it was hope. The Emancipation Proclamation, while it did not free the slaves, it was a road way toward the thirteenth amendment. In 1865 when President Lincoln was still in office, the Civil War ended, and left the South in shambles. The war left no option except the need to rebuild the Sout h. This was the beginning of reconstruction. Reconstruction originally began under President Lincoln, until April 15, 1865, when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, then President Andrew Johnson took over, and reconstruction took a turn for the worst. Under the short reign of Lincoln, blacks were able to reunite their families, receive land and work for themselves, as well as get an education, and establish black churches. When Johnson took office, after Lincoln’s assassination, reconstruction began to shift for the blacks; it no longer held the same meaning. Their land was taken, and their freedom to work for themselves began to diminish, slowly reconstruction began to return to the idea of slavery. Economics At the war’s end Congress established the Freedmen’s Burea... ...ural music, provide charity and support to those in need and developed the black political leaders. The black church was the beginning of the establishment of the black community, and the most important part of the black church: it was free of white supervision. Blacks struggled to save to build their churches, and often founded Baptist and Methodists churches. One of their most prominent churches was the African Methodist Episcopal (AME). Churches in the black community were a form of ranking. The Presbyterian, Congregational, and Episcopal churches were attended mostly by the â€Å"upper-class† blacks, such as the blacks that had been free prior to the civil war. Poorer blacks, found the â€Å"upper-class† black churches unappealing. Besides churches, blacks understood that they must learn to read, or they were not free. To blacks freedom and education were inseparable.

Strategic Marketing :: essays research papers

Review of Performance: Year 2 By the end of year two Pangea Technologies had achieved great success. Not only did it rank number one in game 5 but it also ranked number one overall. Our management team worked well together and made well informed decisions. We achieved our goal to have at least 40% market share in at least two market segments. In fact, we had 52% market share overall and over 45% market share in every segment. Decision Aggressiveness If there was one thing that set us apart from the rest, it would be the aggressiveness of our decisions. By the end of the second quarter of the second year we had opened offices in every available city selling at least one product to every single market segment. We used our resources generously yet wisely in opening offices, and hiring and motivating salespeople, and it paid off. Financial Performance In year two Pangea has had an excellent financial performance, net operating profit has grown from $1.4 million in quarter 5 to $45.6 million at the end of the year. Our executive team was also willing to invest a lot in order to gain marketshare as well as profits. Our aggressive investments are demonstrated by the large sums of our operating expenses, which were as follows: $4.9 million when gross margin was $15.3 million in quarter 5; $6.9 million when gross margin was $20.7 million in quarter6; $9.9 million when gross margin was $36 million; $11.9 million when gross margin was $59 million. In addition to these second year expenses, we invested around $9 million dollars in the first two quarters each on research and development. Our executive team believed that these cost were necessary for the growth of our company and it proved to be a good strategy. Our investments were in such things as product improvements, opening sales offices, hiring salespeople, and rewarding and motivati ng sales people. Another important investment went to creating and revising our ads, and as a result our ad ratings have improved dramatically. We also increased our ad expenses from $700,000 early in the second year to $4.3 million at the end of the year, which increased our ad reach. Pangea ¡Ã‚ ¦s investments this year were instrumental in the great financial success of the company. This was demonstrated by the company ¡Ã‚ ¦s financial performance score of 26.95, which is well above that of the average and it is the highest score compared to our competitors.

I won :: essays papers

I won Do revolutions have to have bloody conflicts in them to be called that? The Industrial Revolution is a direct contradiction to that statement; it is the only revolution in history not to have one single drop of blood shed at any time. The Industrial Revolution was a period from 1700-1850 in which new technology was being discovered at an alarming rate. The average British person born in 1760 saw more changes in his or her lifetime than ten generations of ancestors had seen in theirs. There were many factors that aided the Industrial Revolution. One for instance was the change in farming many wealthy landowners started to buy out small landowners this process was called enclosure. In the 1700’s many wealthy landowners began to look for new ways to increase the size of their harvests. The first man to experiment in this way was Jethro Tull he improved the process of sowing the seed by a seed drill; it allowed farmers to sow seed in well-spaced rows at specific depths. The second invention to follow was the invention of crop rotation; many farmers wanted to find a way to keep their fields fertile so they would waste a year of planting. So instead of letting the field be barren was to grow a different crop each year so it would stay fertile and you could still grow crops. The next improvement in farming was when Robert Bakewell began trying to raise his quality of livestock; by allowing only the best animals to breed he increased the weight of his sheep and al so greatly improved the taste of the mutton. This improvements in farming had great effects on the population, since there was a more food more children were born and that fuel more workers for the factories. The next fuel for the Industrial Revolution was that Great Britain had many advantages. First was the abundant natural resource which Britain had all three that were needed coal, waterpower, and iron. Second was a favorable geography since Britain was a island nation had many great harbors, they had many ships which gave them a great over seas trade which provided great raw materials. Among other were great political stability, good banking system and a favorable climate for new ideas. The cotton industry was the first struck by the Industrial Revolution. By 1800 six major inventions had totally transformed the cotton industry.

TMA from WOU

Corporate Finance (BBF304) TMA 1 (25%) Total Marks: 100% 1. Given the following weighted market value of stocks in your portfolio and their expected rate of return, E(Ri), answer the following questions. (30 marks) Stock Weighted Market Value (%) E(Ri) Gamuda 14 – 0. 05 Public Bank 37 0. 12 Petronas 24 0. 14 SapuraCrest 10 0. 08 Celcom 15 0. 06 (a) W hat is the expected rate of return for your common stock portfolio? (6 marks) (b) Critically discuss why most investors hold diversified portfolio. (4 marks) (c) What is correlation, and explain why it is important in portfolio theory? (5 marks) (d) The capital asset pricing model (CAPM) contends that some risks are diversifiable, but others are not. Critically discuss what is the relevant risk variable considered in the CAPM? In your discussion, provide ONE (1) example for the relevant risk. (10 marks) 2. What is the concept of Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH)? Compare and contrast between three forms of Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) – weak, semi-strong, and strong forms. (10 marks) . Critically discuss TWO (2) evidence supporting and TWO (2) evidence against the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH). (10 mark) 4. There are three probable economic outcomes in the evaluation of stock A and B for the second half of 2012. Based on the following information, answer all the questions. (25 marks) State of Economy Boom Normal Recession Probability of State of Economy 20% 50% 30% Returns on stock A Returns on stock B 8% 5% 2% 20% 12% -10% (a) What is the expected rate of return for stock A and B, respectively? 9 marks) (b) W hat is the standard deviation for stock A and B, respectively? (9 marks) (c) Assuming that stock A and stock B have beta of 0. 8 and 1. 6, respectively. The expected return of the market is 8% and the risk-free rate is 5%. W hat is the required return for stock A and B using Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) method? (4 marks) (d) Based on your calculated answer in part (a) and (c) above, which stock should you invest in? Justify your answer. (4 marks) e) Assume that you want to create a portfolio by investing in these two stocks; 50 percent in stock A and 50 percent in stock B. What is your expected return on this portfolio? (4 marks) 5. Compare and contrast Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT) and Fama and French Three Factor Model (TFM). (13 marks) 6. In Malaysia, Cagamas is currently the sole issuer of mo rtgage -backed securities. Critically discuss THREE (3) contributing roles of Cagamas in the financial sector associated with property market in Malaysia. (12 marks)

A Mat Rempit is a Malaysian term

A Mat Rempit is a Malaysian term for â€Å"an individual who participates in illegal street racing†, usually involving underbone motorcycles (colloquially known as Kapcai) or scooters. Not all Mat Rempits are involved in street racing; some of them perform crazy stunts for fun, such as the wheelie, superman (lying flat on the seat), wikang, and scorpion (standing on the seat with one leg during a wheelie),or shuttu le katti. Mat Rempits usually travel in groups and race in bustling city centres on weekend nights.In recent times, Mat Rempits have been linked to gangsterism, gang robbery,[1][2] street fighting, assault,[3] vandalism, theft and bullying. Most motorcycles used by the Mat Rempits do not meet standard specifications, or have been modified extensively for greater speed, or just to make the exhaust noisier. Additionally, some Mat Rempits do not have valid motorcycle licenses, do not pay road taxes, and ride stolen motorcycles. [4][5] A growing number of housing estate s have also been turned into racing tracks. 6] It is estimated that there are about 200,000 Mat Rempits in Malaysia. [7] In some other countries, the term Mat Rempit is also used, but more to refer to one as a motorcycle lover or rider (Mat Motor), as opposed to an illegal motorcycle racer. Sometimes, the term â€Å"Mat Rempit† is misused to refer to any individual who rides an underbone motorcycle. Related to this is the Mat Konvoi, which claim to be the non-racing version of Mat Rempit.

Creation of amended television Essay

Introduction To determine the success of the common policy European Union directive regarding the amended television without frontiers act, it is necessary first to understand the objectives of the act and the broader objectives fostered by the European Union regarding television and broadcasting. In general, the European Union aims at establishing and maintaining free movement of capital, goods and persons. There is also a general effort to establish the conditions necessary for unrestricted broadcasting across the territory of its Member States. This means that the EU generally strives to allow television broadcasting of member-state content to happen freely within the EU. The â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive is the legal document that establishes the framework for television broadcasting activities in the EU to occur in this unrestricted fashion. Overall and most often, this directive is considered the â€Å"cornerstone† of the European broadcasting policy. This should give at least some notion that it is generally considered to be a success; most specifically this success is noted in terms of its principle objective, which is to co-ordinate the national rules of Member States regarding the television broadcasting. As necessary, the â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive looks to remove barriers established by internal markets for television broadcasting and related services within the Union and also to establish a   broader means of governing the broadcasting activities of Member States as a collective unit. Areas in which the broadcasting directive is most fundamental include in the freedom of reception and retransmission, the promotion of production and distribution of European programs to provide access to major sporting events from around the EU and establish and maintain measures to protect minors. The Amended Television Without Frontiers Directive: Overview Digital television first launched in Europe between 1995 and 1996. The first digital service in Europe dramatically changed the landscape for audiovisual communications and broadcasting. Increased deregulation and the introduction of new technology within the broadcasting sector appeared to pave the way for still further developments. Digital technology, from the get-go, both multiplied and diversified the broadcasting channels and services series. It also established a convergence of the telecommunications, media and information technology sectors (Aubry, 2000). By 1997 and 1998, interested authorities had confirmation of a new trend in the broadcasting industry. The Statistical Yearbook of the Strasbourg-based European Audiovisual Observatory confirmed that the progress of digital technology in Europe was creating a significant growth in the number of broadcasting operators, particularly pay-TV and pay-per-view services. Over 330 digital channels broadcast by satellite at the beginning of 1997. In 1996, only a year before, the number of broadcasting channels was as low as ten (European Audiovisual Observatory, 1997). By January 1, 1998, More than 480 digital programs broadcast by satellite by January 1, 1998 that could be received in parts of Europe (European Audiovisual Observatory, 1998). Seventeen pay-per-view providers were also providing customers with over 200 channels in 1998, which compared to the six services providing offering only 42 channels between them in 1996 (European Audiovisual Observatory, 1998). The trend regarding digital television was clearly that it was not only bringing more channels on the European audiovisual scene but that the entire range of the content broadcast was expanding dramatically over even a short period of time, particularly due to the special channels available via systems like pay-per-view. As a result of the growing range of channels offered, in 1997, major European digital providers, such as Spain’s Canal Satellite, Germany’s Premiere, and the United Kingdom’s BSkyB, launched a series of new digital multichannel packages in Europe. The packages offer a very diversified range of thematic programs such as cinema, sports, information, music, and travel (Aubry, 2000). The audiovisual products increased in range as the demand for cinema, television, video, and multimedia increased dramatically between 1995 and 2000. In particularly, the growth in total income was staggering; an estimated climb of 69% was seen during that period, accounting for an increase from euro 31,847.7 million to euro 53,871.1 million in just those five years. Much of the increase was also generated by the newly developed television systems and such new forms of audiovisual consumption as pay-per-view, video-on-demand, and multimedia service packages (Norcontel, 1997, p. 173). In a very brief period, the landscape for audiovisual broadcasting in Europe had transformed dramatically. The industry was also subject to a large number of alliances between traditional operators of classical television and, increasingly, in paid television systems. Both mergers and joint ventures between major and minor satellite, cable, and terrestrial provider companies were viewed favorably by the European competition authorities. The mergers and ventures were seen to ensure the development of an Information Society as they supported and often facilitated the provision of new audiovisual content and services (Aubry, 2000). In terms of objectives, the European Commission also intends to ensure that the audiovisual market remains open to competition; therefore, it carefully sees to it that the said market not be distorted or foreclosed by dominant positions and access barriers such as exclusive broadcasting rights (particularly as regards sport events) and State aid to the broadcasting sector. The Member States have therefore to ensure that pluralism and competition are maintained in the audiovisual sector by preventing the creation of dominant positions resulting from agreements such as concentrations, mergers and acquisitions of businesses. In response to concerns that high entry barriers were gradually being created to limit the European-wide access to broadcasts, the European Council created the â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive on October 3rd, 1989 (Council Directive 89/552/EEC of 3 October 1989 on the co-ordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities (OJ, 1989, p. 23). Rapid changes in the audiovisual market had been seen since the beginning of the nineties. They required a substantial revision of the terms, however. In May, 1995, and further to the European Commission proposal, a revised version of the original â€Å"Television Without Frontier† Directive was put forward. The new Directive was adopted on June 30th, 1997 (Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council 97/36/EC, 1997, p. 60). This revised version provided an up-to-date regulatory framework that was adapted to reflect the needs for legislation focusing on digital broadcasting. The particular points about the new directive included the tightening of certain legal concepts. As regards the Member States’ jurisdiction over broadcasters, rules governing teleshopping and the coverage of major events were introduced. The protection for children was also increased (Aubry, 2000). Analysis According to article 2a of Directive 97/36, Member States of the EU must ensure the freedom of reception and they also cannot in any manner restrict the retransmission on their territory of television programs broadcast from other Member States that falls within the fields co-ordinated by the Directive. Essentially the only exception to the rule, the only instance in which it is permitted to restrict retransmission is in the event that, according to the provisions of Article 22, there is a serious infringement of the provisions governing protection of minors. According to Article 2 (1) of the Directive, each Member State is responsible for ensuring that all television programs transmitted by broadcasters under its jurisdiction comply with the provisions of the Directive as well as with the national regulations applicable to broadcasts intended for the public in that Member State. It follows that the receiving State may not apply to programs emanating from another Member State legal provisions specifically aimed at controlling the content of television broadcasts at national level. Although Member States can adopt more details or constraining rules in the areas that cover the Directive according to article 3 (1) of the Directive, rules may not be applied to programs broadcast by cross-border channels located in other Member States. It is also worth nothing that the European Court of Justice currently distinguishes between national legislation in areas not covered by the Directive, like the protection of consumers against misleading advertising, and matters that are considered to be already fully regulated by Community law. This certainly includes regulations relating to the protection of minors. Under certain circumstances, a receiving EU Member State has the option to adopt measures to protect the interests of consumers against national advertisers. They may not take measures to control television program broadcasts by foreign operators. Only the Member States with jurisdiction over the broadcaster concerned is responsible for its control (European Audiovisual Observatory, 1997, p 13). The â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive sets quota requirements for the promotion of European works on television. These provisions do not apply to television broadcasts that are intended for local audience and do not form part of a national network (Aubry, 2000). According to Article 4 of the Directive, the Member States must ensure, â€Å"where practicable and by appropriate means†, that broadcasters under their jurisdiction reserve for European productions a majority proportion of air time. This doesn’t include any time devoted to news, sports, games, advertising, teletext services and teleshopping. According to Article 5, European television channels must reserve at least 10% of their transmission time to European works created by producers unaffiliated with broadcasters. Certain flexibility is granted for the implementation of the quota requirements, however, the European Commission supervises the implementation of Articles 4 and 5 of the Directive is supervised by the European Commission. All Member States must submit to a report containing a statistical statement on the achievement of the quotas. This is required every two years and any failure to achieve the required proportion must be reported and explained. Measures must also be adopted or envisaged to remedy the situation where possible (Aubry, 2000). Conclusion In terms of its success, the Amended â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive certainly does establish a viable means of maintaining a viable community base for television broadcasting within the European Union. Whereas limited channel choice characterized analogue broadcasting, the need for the viewer to fit in with the schedulers, and a clear understanding that the television was a device for watching broadcast programs. Digitalization, on the other hand, creates the possibility of hundreds of channels. It essentially allows televisions to serve as a multipurpose, multimedia terminal. Digitalization allows viewers to program their own schedules, watch programs when they want, and even interacting with the programs themselves. Overall, the EU member countries have managed to maintain a relatively unrestricted system for broadcasting content produced   by other member countries. However, the amended â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive was first implemented as a measure to combat growing efforts by EU member states to restrict such broadcasting freedoms. Only time will tell whether the commonality established by this directive will be maintained and proven successful. For one thing, the effects of digital television will be interesting to determine and watch in terms of shared broadcasting among EU-member broadcasting companies. References. Audry, P. 2000. The â€Å"Television Without Frontiers† Directive, Cornerstone of the European Broadcasting Policy, Strasbourg: EAO. European Audiovisual Observatory, 1997, Legal Guide to Audiovisual Media in Europe, Strasbourg: EAO. European Audiovisual Observatory, 1997. Statistical Yearbook. Strasbourg: EAO. European Audiovisual Observatory, 1998. Statistical Yearbook, Strasbourg: EAO. Levy, D. A. L. 2001. Europe’s Digital Revolution: Broadcasting Regulation, the EU and the Nation State. London: Routledge. Norcontel, 1997. Economic Implications of New Communication Technologies on the audiovisual markets, Screen Digest, Stanbrook and Hooper. OJ Council Directive 89/552/EEC, 1989. â€Å"The co-ordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities†, Official Journal of the European Union, 17 October, 1989.

Becoming a Human and the Transformative Power of Grace

Becoming a human has both a philosophical and theological inclination. For Hegel, becoming is the unity of being and nothing. It means that being exist out of nothing and this being undergone a process of development which made the being a becoming. So becoming means the being in transit, or in the coming to be. Theologically however, becoming means more than the existence of being out of nothing.Becoming means not only transformation; it is a movement from one condition to another (Wawrykow, p.  22). Becoming involves change and development. Applying becoming to human being therefore speaks of the origination of the human beings, which was simply nothing as being come out of nothing and what men will be is still a becoming.In theology and religion, becoming a human usually apply to Jesus Christ as God who became man. In Saint Paul’s letter to the Philippians chapter two, verse. 7 referring to Jesus, Paul says â€Å"but made himself nothing,† Here the essence of becom ing is clearly manifested.It was from this situation that Jesus became human and Paul goes on to say that when Jesus became nothing he was becoming a human â€Å"taking the very nature of a servant† verse 7. Jesus previous condition according to Paul is that he was â€Å"in the very nature of God† Verse 6 in which he has moved to a different condition of becoming a human being. In his letter to the Romans, Paul describes the human condition in Chapter 3 verse 23, as being lost in sin and had fallen short of God’s Glory.Paul categorically said that all have sin and God will punish everyone with sure death because of the sins committed. The gravity of man’s sins according to Saint Paul is that even men knew God â€Å"they neither glorified him as God, nor gave him thanks† Chapter 1 verse 21. Thus, Jesus becoming a human is an act of grace made available by God to human being. This is clearly explained by Paul in chapter 6 verse 23, which says,  "For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord† (NIV).Here there are two theological discussions involve about the condition of human being. First, all human beings according to Paul have fall into sin and deserved God’s punishment. Andrew Purves and Charles Partee call this fallen condition as depravity. Although depravity for them does not mean of total abandonment of God of the human being, they pointed out that human depravity means, â€Å"nothing about us is beyond the reach of sin. In other words, all the human faculties are exposed to sin and are indeed contaminated by sin.Paul admits this in Romans Chapter 7: 14-25, in his confession of his condition with sin contaminating all his being. Paul confessed that he wants to good but he cannot do the good he wants but the evil the he do not want to do. In verse 23 Paul explained that the reason of his struggle is that there is another law at work in him. Paul said, â€Å" But I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me prisoner of the law of sin at work within the members of my body† Romans 7: 23.Because of this condition of the human being, Paul emphasized that there is an extreme need for human being to be rescued from the fallen condition. Theologians call this as redemption. This was exactly the purpose of Christ’s human becoming which Paul explained in his letter in Philippians chapter 2. G. M. Newlands contends that Jesus life, death, and resurrection were in relation to humanity in order to be reconciled to God. Newlands pointed out, â€Å"It is through the transformative humanity of Jesus Christ that we recognized the divinity within him† (p. 107).He meant that God is not only compassionate on the human being’s predicament but also the source of effective transformation. The nature of God’s grace according to William B. Arnold, there are two importa nt manifestations of God’s grace. According to him, God’s grace Comes to us â€Å"freely and without dependence on our asking† (p. 30). Paul in Romans Chapter 5 verse 8 explains this, Paul says â€Å"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. † Arnold pointed out that God’s transformative grace is God’s initiative.The implication of God’ transformative grace in human being is that it reconciled man to God, in a way that his fallen nature has been restored to its former condition prior to his fall in to sin. Paul stated in Romans chapter 11 verses 30 that gentile people had been at one time disobedient to God â€Å"have now received mercy as result of their disobedience. † Conclusion Human becoming must be seen in the context of Jesus intension of taking human dorm and live a human life, and die on the cross for the forgiveness of sin and for the redemption of humanity from the fall to sin.The transformative grace of God has been the God’s initiative and the proof of God’s love for his creation, as he did not totally leave humans just by them selves despite of their sins. The transformative grace is the grace of God that enables human to able to be united with God, through the work of the Holy Spirit. It is also the saving grace of God given to human being through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, that who ever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life, John 3: 16. He be then a new creation and his old fallen nature is gone I Corinthians 6:17.Work Cited Arnold, Williams. Introduction to Pastoral Care. Pennsylvania, USA: The Westminster Press, 1982. Newlands, George M. Christ and Human Rights: The Transformative Engagement. England: Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2006. Purves, Andrew and Partee, Charles. Encountering God: Christian Faith in the Turbulent Times. USA: Westminster John Knox Press, 2000. Wawrykow, J oseph Peter. The SCM A-Z of Thomas Aquinas. London: SCM Press, 2005. John 3: 16 Romans 1:21 Romans 3:23 Romans 5:8 Romans 6:23 Romans 7:14-25 Romans 11:30 I Corinthians 6:17