Healthcare ecosystems influences Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Healthcare ecosystems influences - Research Paper Example In addition, the $5 billion system has managed to unite scientists and physicians of this renowned hospital with various health facilities and professionals. As such, the quality of services provided by the institution has improved, and patients can be assured of prompt and up-to-date service delivery. Ideally, the success and growth of the hospital is embedded on the development of School of Medicine. Although competition has been felt across the medical sector, John Hopkins has always performed immensely due to the frequent research on the current trend of medical operations. John Hopkins Hospital mission statement provides a pictorial presentation of the activities undertaken by the organization. The mission of the organization is to improve the health of individuals in the society and to set the required standards that the world can emulate. As such, the success has been felt in clinical care, research, and education. Although this success has not been effectively achieved, the management is undertaking strategies that will enhance the attainment of its mission. Some of the strategies include educating medical students on the current trends in the medical field, providing medical seminars to health care professionals and scientists, conducting research on biomedical, and providing patient-centered medicine that prevents, diagnoses, and treats various ailments (Kushniruk, 2008). Indeed, the report provided by World Health Organization (WHO) highlighted the superiority of John Hopkins Hospital in disseminating its services in the community. The hospitalà ¢â‚¬â„¢s vision is to provide an inclusive and diverse environment that enhances intellectual creativity, discover, and transmission of innovative knowledge in the world. In improving the health of individuals, though adequate medical services and practitioners, John Hopkins Hospital thrives to achieve its vision. Medical leadership has been

The Marketing Mix Promotion Strategies Case Study

The Marketing Mix Promotion Strategies - Case Study Example This strategic plan saturated the market making it more difficult for newer entrants to gain a step hold in the huge market. This move was also aimed at rivaling the sporting wears giant Nike. The acquisition was done in order to make the company more viable for consumers where they can create a synergy between both the companies so that they can challenge the rival. However, the acquisition led to mixed responses from the consumers resulting in a share value decline as well. Just before the Olympics fever gained momentum, Adidas took the initiative to launch another promotional campaign where they have highlighted their products and the ambassadors. This massive promotional campaign was launched in Europe and one could see huge structures of either Adidas shoes being loaded on a truck, or football players standing in a circle. All these initiatives were highlighting the presence of the brand in the forefront of such a major even in sporting history, whereby players are supporting their attire etc. The combination of the two big brands present in the shoe industry can termed to be a positive sign for the company. They can combine their efforts; match their strengths together in order to create a new level of a brand. However, there are threats of brand cannibalization which led to the main slump in prices when the merger news was spread around.

Beliefs About Students Essay Example for Free

Beliefs About Students Essay It is undeniable that the beliefs about students and education have a profound impact on what is taught and how it is taught, just as the beliefs about life have a profound impact on how individuals live their lives. Educational beliefs are revised and refined and over time becomes stronger as they seem to serve us well and prove to be true. Thus, these beliefs ultimately become our philosophy of education. It is possible that every student that enters a classroom can succeed. However, in order for them to accomplish this, teaching should be student centered. Students should be encouraged to understand and appreciate their uniqueness and to be accountable for their learning and behavior. According to Ornstein and Hunkins (2004) Perennialism relies on the past; especially the past asserted by agreed-on universal knowledge and cherished values. Dunn (2005) also agreed that Perennialism is the oldest educational philosophy and is therefore traditional. It is believed that students are vessels to be filled and disciplined in the proven strategies of the past. This philosophy is supported by the realist philosopher John Locke, who was of the belief that at birth the mind is a blank sheet of paper on which the teacher could write knowledge (Tabula Rasa). According to the essentialist viewpoint, there are certain basic or essential knowledge, skills and understandings that students should master in order to function successfully in the society. These are reading, writing, computing and in today’s world, computer skills. Plato, who was the father of idealism, believed that both male and female are equal and should be educated equally. Therefore, the curriculum is the same for everyone and planning to execution of lessons are dominated by the teacher. However, one should not forget that these beliefs are teacher centered and tend to be more authoritarian and conservative and emphasize only the values and knowledge that have survived through time. Learning occurs through experience, Therefore students should be allowed to develop cognitively through experimentation and to reach their own personal potential instead of being shaped into a specific mould. Dunn (2005) cited Immanuel Kant who agreed that knowledge is rooted in the experience of mankind and can only be achieved by an active and exploratory mind, rather than one that is passive and receptive. Carl Rogers also believed in experiential learning. He believed that unlike academic knowledge, experiential knowledge is required to meet the needs of the learner in order to complete important real-life tasks such as learning to drive a car. Every student is different, no single set of learning outcomes is appropriate for all students. Thus a set curriculum will not be suitable for all. Students should be able to determine what they need to study with the guidance of the teacher. This will help them to arrive at their own understandings. Jean Sartre, a leader of existentialism believed that man’s responsibility is vested in man himself. He further stated that people are entitled to be human with dignity and is a human only when he or she is entirely free and accepts responsibility for his freedom. You may be led to believe that students are blank slates and learn based on mainly academic knowledge that has been tried, tested and proven and that all humans are equal and should be educated equally. However, do not ignore the fact that students are taking to the classroom, their own ideas and materials rather than receiving material in class as it is given. Students restructure the new information to fit into their own cognitive frameworks. In this manner, they actively and individually construct their own knowledge. They also are different thus, the same rigorous curriculum will not work for all students. From these facts one may conclude that in order to help students reach their full potential and gain the knowledge and skills that they will require in their daily lives as a democratic citizen of our society, the student centered approach to how students learn must be practiced. Therefore it is recommended that teachers facilitate students instead of being fountains of wisdom. The teacher should help students in their pursuit for knowledge and also help them acquire the communication, problem solving and critical thinking skills which will enable them to be life-long learners.

TESCOS NEIGHBOURHOOD MARKET ENTERS UNITED STATES

TESCOS NEIGHBOURHOOD MARKET ENTERS UNITED STATES The world economy has evolved from isolation from each other by barriers to cross-border activities wherein distance is no longer an issue due to advances in transportation and telecommunication technology. Moreover, it is noted that material culture is starting to look similar as national economies are merging into an interdependent and integrated global economic system (Friedman, 2005). All these processes are linked and referred to globalisation. The impact of globalisation has encouraged companies to expand its operation across its home country in order to compete in the challenging market environment. As one of the leader in the retail industry, Tesco PLC (Tesco) has taken advantage of the current environment by moving into the United States (US) for expansion purposes. The report will analyse Tescos strategy in the US by analysing the impact of globalisation towards the industry, evaluating the reasons and strategy for internationalisation, the effect and challenges faced in regards to the internalisation exercise. Description of Tesco Tesco is a United Kingdom (UK) based international supermarket chain, which has the largest global sales and domestic market share sales. Based on its revenue, the company is the third largest retailer in the world next to Wal-Mart and Carrefour (Data Monitor, 2010). The key to Tescos success is based on its low prices, high quality products and experienced customer service which overall has lead to continuing growth of profit to the company. In 2006, Tesco announced its plan to enter the US market by opening small size grocery stores named Fresh Easy Neighbourhood Market (Fresh and Easy). Tesco has selected the less aggressive market location on the west coast, California, Nevada, and Arizona to avoid the highly competitive market. The store has started its operation together with the distribution centres in 2007. Based on the latest financial report in 2009, it was noted that Fresh and Easy is currently trading at loss. Tescos competitive advantage According to Teece, Pisano and Shuen (1997), the success of a company highly depend on the uniqueness of the companys resources and capabilities in creating competitive advantages. The two main perspectives in the Resource-Based View (RBV) are the internal analysis of phenomena within an organisation and external analysis of the industry and its competitive environment (Collis and Montgomery, 1995; Eisenhardt and Martin, 2000). The resources and capabilities are evaluated in terms of value, rarity, inimitability and organisation (Barney, 1995). Furthermore, Carpenter and Sanders (2009:103) suggest that in turn for a company to gain competitive advantage, it should possess resources and capabilities that are valuable, rare, inimitable, non-substitutable and exploitable (VRINE model). The value of the resources and capabilities interacts with the market sources and will differ based on time and industry. The three fundamental market forces; scarcity, demand and appropriability determines the value of the resources and capabilities (Collis and Montgomery, 1995). To answer the question of value, organisation could evaluate whether its available resources and capabilities are meeting the market demand. As for Tesco, it relies on its brand, supply chain capabilities, store location and varied product offering wherein all these components have satisfied the value requirement, as it has been able to meet the demand in the grocery market. For instance, the company has a strong brand image that is associated with good quality, trustworthy goods that represent excellent value (Data Monitor, 2010). Resources and capabilities owned by Tesco are similar to other retailers but in terms of the brand name and variety product offering differs them from the competitors. Tesco pays detailed attention in transforming its brand through packaging and the promotion of every little worth concept. The success of the company in terms of customer loyalty relies on the loyalty card system and customises approach for each customer. In RBV concept, Tesco can be characterised as a competitive parity company based on its valuable but not rare resources and capabilities (Collis and Montgomery, 1995). Tescos strong position within the retail industry is due to its different approach in the service concept and introduction of various quality products. Moreover, it has competencies in its supply chain that affected its operational level in the work routines. Competitors could imitate the said resources and capabilities but it is difficult to do so as the tacit amount of knowledge, time and huge investment is required (Hanan and Freeman, 1984) which in the meantime, Tesco will continue to gain its competitive advantages. Based on the above evaluation, it is observed that Tesco has managed to exploits its resources and capabilities that as a result provide competitive advantages to the company. Tescos exploitation of its resources and capabilities is reflected in its market share and financial performance. Tesco currently controls about 30% of the grocery market in the UK with a turnover of  £56,910 million (Data Monitor, 2010). Moreover, with the aided competitive advantage, Tesco has managed to perform well in its international operation. Theory of globalisation The era of globalisation has started in the early 1970s due to the convergence of several political, technological, social and competitive factors. According to Yip (1989), it is considered as one of the most important business strategies as it is a process which businesses create value by leveraging its resources and capabilities across borders. The topic on globalisation has been widely discussed which resulted to different perspectives and arguments. There are two different theories in relation to globalisation which are hyperglobalists and transformationalist theory. Hyperglobalists theory argues that the world is moving towards a global world that is subject to massive economic and political process of change which is clearly identified by the existence of a single global economy. National culture differences are largely seen by the progressive powerful multinationals as variations in consumer preference is reflected in the international marketing mix (Wall and Rees, 2004:14). In view of this, the theory supports the globalisation in terms of efficient allocation of resources through international trade. In contrast, the transformational theory argues that globalisation is a powerful force impacting economic, social and political environments which involve uneven processes with unpredictable outcomes rather than linear progression to a predictable outcome. Many have argued that globalisation tends to reinforce inequalities of power both within and across nation resulting in global hierarchies if privilege and control for some but the economic and social exclusion of others (Wall and Rees, 2004:15). Therefore, the affect of globalisation is differently experienced across the globe. Based on the above theories, it is believed that globalisation can act as a tool that could benefit every human being across the globe. Although the negative effect has been discussed and identified, the same should not be ignored and must be addressed for the benefit of mankind. Globalisation drivers and its impact on the retail industry Yip (1992) has identified the globalisation drivers based on the industry conditions. Each industry has its own level of globalisation that is determined by the external drivers which are normally uncontrollable by the business or market environment. Economic, Political and Legal Financial Factors Factors In respect of the retail industry, technological factors play an important contribution to the drivers of globalisation. The technology change has impacted on the lower cost of transportation and communication as well the unit cost of production through economies of scale or the localisation of productive capacities and sourcing in low-cost economies (Lasserre, 2007:17). For example, the current electronic global marketplace would not exist without the existence of the global communication network such as the World Wide Web. Moreover, the low cost transportation has made shipping products around the world more economical, thereby helping in creating a global market. In response to the changes, Tesco has managed to apply the technology to selling through online which has is impacted on the companys sales performance. Moreover, as a result of globalisation, there is a convergence of consumer needs which has increased the brand awareness of consumers worldwide (Yip, 1989). Urbanisation and industrialisation of societies are one of the reasons for convergence of customer behaviour and needs. By having the same needs, consumers are bound to have the same requirement that leads to standardisation of products. Meanwhile, the liberalisation of trade and investments played an important factor in supporting the need of globalisation. It has therefore created a common market place and economic integration worldwide. Previously, there were rules and regulations that limit the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as to protect the local players. However, the scenario has changed and with the development of the free trade among nations, many companies took the advantage by doing cross-border investments to expand its market existence and profitability. In terms of Tesco, its initial output was significantly limited by the size of its domestic market in the UK but now, it has the chance to take advantages of economies of scale by going global. The trend in globalisation creates changes in the macro dimension of the environment. The change in the economic dimension has leaded the society to enter world or global economy. Clearly, the changes could be seen in the emergence of global market, global competitor and the integration of the economic. The impact of the fundamental changes is noted through the capital movements, concern on productivity and employment as well as emergence of the world economy as a dominant economy unit (Friedman, 2005). The continuous and rapid globalisation of the world economy indicate that globalisation of retailing activities is a major management issue for retailers nowadays and currently it is foresee to be more intensified in the near future. Tescos Strategy for Internalisation 5.1 Country and Risk Analysis Framework The county analysis framework provides an overview of the national business environment in terms of opportunities and risks which enable companies to enhance value creation and strategic fit for its business. Ghemawat (2007) examined distance as the root of most costs and risks of conducting business in new markets and concluded that distance is more than geography; it includes dimensions of culture, administrative and political power, and economics. Therefore, in decision-making, businesses must account for these dimensions of distance as its influences in different ways. CAGE framework is used for the analysis as it provides further in-depth analysis on the country compared to PESTEL framework. The total population of 301 million in US indicate a huge market opportunities that allow Tesco to build its position as a world largest retailer. By penetrating the market, Tesco foresee a better growth in terms of its international expansion. It is seen as a right move by Tesco to the previous expansions have proven to be a success. The operation in the US will be similar to the UK due to the same language used as medium of communication. This leads to an easy option in conducting business wherein the similar concept in the UK could be exported to the US with minimal changes in adapting to the market. US have been a dominant global power in terms of economy, political, technological and cultural affairs and has a long enjoyed its status as a superpower over nations policy making (Data Monitor, 2010). It is clearly seen from its economic point of view where the county is categorised as the largest economy in the world which is back-up with the most developed economic systems. This links to the process of entering the US market which is supported by a comprehensive legal framework for business entities that creates a positive investment climate. US have favourable policies in promoting Foreign Direct Investment. Furthermore, in the international arena, it has secured the support of majority of nations that allows it to direct global policies. With the stabilised politic environment, there is absence of violence that ensures a safety business environment. All this factors have encouraged Tesco to pursue its goal in penetrating the US market. Cross-Cultural Risk RISK Based on the risk analysis, it is identified that the main related risk to Tesco in the US are financial, economic and operational risk. In terms of financial risk, the fluctuation of the currency exchange rate and inflation will definitely have an impact on Tescos ability to operate at an efficient capacity. As to reduce the risk, Tesco has decided to enter single markets at a time and evaluate the success before considering for further expansion. For the US expansion, stores are opened based on geographic region rather than entering different states, which allow Tesco to limit its exposure to a loss if the expansion is unsuccessful. Meanwhile, for the operational risk, problems related to logistic and stock will lead to inefficiency of production and performance. 5.2 US Retail Industry Analysis The competitive environment involves factors that are relevant to an organisations strategy. The industry-based view can be analyse using Porters five forces as include it includes the overall structure rather than focusing on one element (Peng, 2009:35). The competition in the US grocery market is intense as they compete in terms of price, product and promotion. Some of Tescos major competitors in the US are Trader Joes, 7-Eleven, Safeway, and Wal-Mart. Tescos Fresh and Easy operates within the retail industry that forces are driven in the industry would identify the strength and weaknesses of the organisation. There has been a significant growth in the grocery environment in terms of size and market dominance of large players. Competitive rivalry is considered a high threat as other retailers are applying the same operation concept wherein power has been built through operating efficiency. As a result, retailers have to be innovative to maintain and build its market share. Hence, Fresh and Easy has refocused its strategy based on price and value with added value elements of good customer service (Times online, 2007). High competition is a powerful force and stands as a strong barrier for new entrants who desire to enter the industry. For example, it will be difficult for new entrants to raise sufficient fund due to large fixed costs and highly developed supply chains. This is in line with Tescos huge investment for Fresh and Easy in terms of advanced technology for stock controls systems (Euromonitor International, 2009). However, a high level of product differentiation together with low cost and dynamic market revenue growth has elevated the rivalry to an extent. Retailers in this sector are highly fragmented and therefore retailers will put considerable barriers to entry to ensure less competition in the market (Alexander and Korine, 2008). The more standardised or undifferentiated the product, the lower the switching cost and hence there is a high threat of the bargaining power of buyer. Buyer power acts to force the price down but due to the various choice of substitute products, retailers have the power for the price setting. Therefore, in meeting customers needs, customising service combine with low prices, constant promotion and better choices have enabled Fresh and Easy to control and retain its customer base. There is a low threat to the bargaining power of suppliers as often retailer such as Fresh and Easy dictate the price to be paid to the supplier as if the suppliers does not agree on the price, they will be left with no retailer. The relationship with the suppliers has impacted the limitation of the strategic freedom for the company which influences its margin. As a result, the forces of the competitive rivalry will reduce the profit margins for retailers and suppliers. There is a threat of consumers switching to substitutes due to the variety of choices of products in the market. The industry has change overtime wherein small chains of convenience stores are emerging which provides more alternative choices to the consumers. In response to this trend, Tesco has started to open Fresh and Easy based on small-scale operations in local town and city centres. The biggest threats for Tesco in regards to its Fresh and Easy stores are the rivalry and bargaining power of buyers. The retail industry in the US is viable which results to healthy profitability provided the company continuously improves itself and is flexible in the challenging market. 5.2 Tescos expansion to US Due to competition and the impact of globalisation, companies are expanding its operation to other countries outside the home country which indeed require that application of the global strategy. According to Peng (2009:18), global strategy is defined as strategy of firms around the globe which particular form of international strategy which is characterised by the production and distribution of standardised products and services on a worldwide basis. Tescos motivation for expansion to the US with its Fresh and Easy stores are merely based on market and innovation seeking as its main goal is to achieve higher profit margins as well as future organisational learning and growth. Ghemawat (2007) suggest that in order to boost sales and market share, companies have to maximise its local relevance. Therefore, by entering the US retail market organically has provided advantage to Tesco to start fresh by creating a highly distinctive new store concept. This route allows the company to manage its capital expenditure and learn from experience for its future expansion. Fresh and Easy is a small format convenience grocery stores focusing on fresh foods and ready meals at low price. The strategy to break into the US market is based on three key areas: affordability, freshness and convenience (Data Monitor, 2010). By focusing on convenience store, Fresh and Easy will not be directly competing with retailers like Wal-Mart and meanwhile will differentiate itself from the larger format traditional retailers. In addition, Ghemawat (2007) suggest that strategic choice requires some degree of prioritisation of which the AAA Triangle Model can assist the company in doing so. It is suggested that it is impossible to employ three strategies but companies normally should focus on own or two in trying to build competitive advantages. Due to the matured and intense competition in the US retail industry, it was difficult for Fresh and Easy in terms of arbitrage. Therefore based on the said model, Tesco global strategy was based on a minimal adaptation of which Fresh and Easy stores are designed, by adapting to the local responsiveness and aggregation on standardisation of product to take advantages of economy of scale. International strategy adopted by Tesco for Fresh and Easy is similar to its Tesco Express approach in the UK, featuring fresh produce, alcohol and an in-store bakery with minimal adaptation to the US consumers requirement (Times online, 2007). This is line with the integration-responsiveness framework which indicates the replication of the strategy by using its core competency and specific advantage wherein pressure of local responsiveness and pressure for global efficiency are both low (Peng, 2009:353). By using this strategy, expansion process will be at a slower compared to the global retailers but the advantage of this strategy is it provides a greater learning effect and broader knowledge-based to the company (Palmer, 2005). The minimal adaptation incorporated is related to the store format wherein larger pack sizes and more space allocation on frozen food to cater for various types of product assortment which is based on the US consumers preference (Euromonitor International, 2009). Meanwhile, the chain uses a straightforward everyday low prices strategy which is 15% cheaper compared to other competitors (Finch, 2009). The existence of Fresh and Easy has created awareness by the competitors wherein competitors have improved its products offering and seeking for a suitable location in order to compete. In terms of aggregation, it uses one brand name fit all strategy which was argued by consumers as there are no differentiation among the store brand products on value price product, natural and organic and premium products. In lieu of this, Fresh and Easy did not manage to create consumer perceptions on the brand name and subsequently affected its sales performance. 6.0 Tescos future in US In terms of profitability, Fresh and Easy has yet to make profit from its operation. There is uncertainty for the company to achieve profitability in the near future as its expansion process has delayed as compared to its initial plans due to economic crisis which particularly affected the consumers in some of its first few store opened in 2007. Therefore, it will definitely take longer period for Fresh and Easy to achieve its target goals. It was observed that Tescos Fresh and Easy stores use one brand name fits all strategy for its products and marketing strategies (Times online, 2007). This approach is not relevant to the US market as consumers have a strong perception of brands (Euromonitor International, 2009). This has to lead to confusion to consumers as there is no product differentiation between discounts or value priced, natural and organic and premium products in the stores. Fresh and Easy should separate its brand names similar to its UK approach i.e. finest for premium products and value for discounted products that will lead to a better merchandising, pricing and marketing strategies. This assist consumer to have different brand names for each category than price focused items. Further analysis is required in analysing the progress of Fresh and Easy in the US. By doing so, a decision can be made either to leave the market and expand to other potential markets. Based on Tescos track record on its international operation, the company has successfully penetrated the market well which is reflected in the financial performance. Strategy formulation is an important element as it is a continuous learning process which enables Tesco in planning for its future expansion. Tescos strategy for expansion to the US seems flawed as a different global strategy was applied although in-depth research was made before the expansion. Tesco should maintain its existing strategy to enter a market through joint venture or acquisition with an existing player in the market as it is observe as an effective manner for expansion (Palmer, 2005). Moreover, Tesco should take note that other companies which have attempted to enter US highly competitive market have failed due to the reason of not understanding the psyche of the American consumer. Tescos bold move to the US without a partner seems unreasonable as the existence of a partner will provide essential knowledge for local business environment and consumer cultures. This indeed observed when Tesco overlook on the interpretation of a convenience store in US which differs from the UK. In the US, convenience store is associated with petrol stations wherein the UK, is it a store. In addition to this, Kay (2009) indicates that findings from the US consumers suggest that consumers are less loyal to the US as purchase are made based on the cheapest price at any stores. Based on this differences, Tesco did not managed to introduce the British model in the US market although is foresee as a competitive advantage in the retail industry. Conclusion During the past years, there has been a growth in the scale of international investment and as the process continues, it is important to understand the learning and experience gained from the expansion exercise. It is undeniable that by entering new markets like US, it acts as one of the main drivers for the companys revenues and expansion strategy. However, Tesco needs to evaluate its strategy in order to sustain its performance in the US. One of the mistakes made by Tescos US expansion is believing that exporting successful business model to foreign country is an easy process. Although Tesco has its own competition advantages, the aspect of culture should not be left out as it plays an important role in ensuring the success of the business (Ghemawat, 2007). The success of a strategy depends on the strength in terms of learning, knowledge and suitability. Tesco would need to apply the entire lesson learned from the expansion exercise as future expansion is dependent on the companys capacity to recognise the sources for international learning of the knowledge gained. This will definitely allow Tesco to move, adapt and learn fast for better performance in the US market.

Hitchcock, The Artist :: essays research papers

Hitchcock, The Artist   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Shadow of a Doubt† was one of those movies I would flip right past if it happened to be on television. If I knew that it was a Hitchcock film, perhaps I’d pause for a few seconds to see if it looked scary. If it didn’t captivate me within those few seconds, I’d cruise right by until I found MTV. But, being somewhat forced to watch â€Å"Shadow of a Doubt† in class, I had no choice other than to buckle down and pay attention. I was pleasantly surprised. I expected some twists and turns, since it is an Alfred Hitchcock film. I didn’t expect the suspense or the romance. It was surprisingly entertaining in both plot and dialogue. I could tell by the many different film elements that this was a trademark Hitchcock film. â€Å"Shadow of a Doubt† is an Alfred Hitchcock work of art, because of its originality, openness to interpretation, and different approach to suspense.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"A work of art† is defined by Encarta Encyclopedia Online as â€Å"something made or done exceptionally well.† This film was unquestionably done well, if not exceptionally well. But, what does â€Å"done well† mean? I think it means that the work is completed fully with the best efforts of everyone involved. Not only is it fully researched, but meticulously planned and painstakingly designed. Therefore, the work in question is more like a child to those who created it, rather than a work of art. It contains their blood, sweat, and tears, and maybe a little insight into their minds. So, in the case of â€Å"Shadow of a Doubt† it is a work done well, by Alfred Hitchcock. Hitchcock was quoted in a 1998 review of â€Å"Shadow of a Doubt†, by Ted Prigge as saying â€Å"he enjoyed playing the audience like a piano.† Hitchcock did this almost effortlessly in this film (1). He had the ability to scare people, without shoving horror down their throats. It's what separated him from any other director of suspense: he knew the secret to scaring people was preying on real human emotions (1). His subtlety is what took â€Å"Shadow of a Doubt† from an everyday movie to an intricate thriller.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Movies of the past had a different approach to scaring the audience. In the 20th century, scary movies were more than entertainment. They were designed to lure the viewer into buying the action figures and tee shirts that the movie had spawned.

please Let Us Skate :: essays research papers

"Please Let Us Skate" "Hey you guys! Skating is prohibited in this park. Would you please be so kind and leave. Thanks for cooperating and have a great day" exclaimed a security guard who worked for the park. Apparently the security guard's idea of a great day in the park means monk-like silence. With an area restricted on roller-blading and skate-boarding, we are forced to skate elsewhere. "As a security guard for the past year, I want to keep the park as safe as possible," says the security guard. "Skaters get in the way. Skaters are crashing into other people who are just here to relax. It is very dangerous and it is prohibited in this park." Well, for one thing, roller-blading hasn't been accepted as a sport here in Hong Kong and will continue to be that way unless something is done about the places where skaters are allowed to skate. There are many places where cycling is allowed but where skating is not allowed. Why is this? Maybe it is because people here don't feel that we skaters deserve the right any cyclists, or anything on wheels, have. All we ask for is a decent place to skate where we wouldn't have our rights denied. I have been skating for two and a half years now. Until recently, I have started to skate with a couple of my friends whenever we have the time to. There has never been a time where we haven't been stopped and kicked out. This has been very irritating for us and we still don't understand why we're not welcomed at any parks, other than the answer we always get, "You might hurt someone". Personally, I think the only people that are going to get hurt are the ones with the skates, us. Another big problem we Roller-bladers face here in Hong Kong is the fact that we are not only rejected by society but also by other skaters, skate- boarders. There are many places to skate here in Hong Kong and of those, 90 percent are dominated by local skate-boarding cliques. They don't like the idea of mixing with those have an extra 4 wheels stuck to their feet and usually get rid of us their way. Skate-boarders and Roller-bladers simply cannot get along. Personally, I enjoy the fine art of Roller-blading and

Crash Review

Crash (2004) Paragraph 1: Crash tells the story of people from wildly disparate walks of life as they collide and intersect with one another. Each life is in some way personally affected, changed, damaged, or victimized by racism. They’re also all in some way guilty of racism themselves. via interlocking stories, the cultural, racial, and spiritual isolation of Los Angelinos. Due to the sprawling city's decentralized, car-reliant layout, Haggis's characters have become sheltered from those not in their own socio-economic sphere, and this seclusion has led to virulent narrow-mindedness. Rick Cabot (Brendan Fraser) is the white District Attorney of Los Angeles who participates in racial politics in order to further his career. Rick and his wife Jean are carjacked by Anthony and Peter, both of whom are black. To preserve his support in the black community as the election approaches, Rick arranges for his assistant to blackmail Detective Graham Waters, who is black, into testifying against a white cop whom Graham thinks is innocent in order to create a press event that will reassure voters of Cabot's racial sensitivity. The film alludes to the possibility Rick might be having an affair with his black assistant. Jean Cabot (Sandra Bullock) is Rick's wife, whose racial prejudices escalate after she and her husband experience a carjacking. When a tattooed, Mexican-American locksmith changes the locks to her house, she insists that the locks be changed again in fear that he is keeping an extra copy of their house key. Following an accident in her home, she comes to the realization that the person who is her only true friend is Maria, her Hispanic maid who she has belittled and treated sub-human up until this point. Anthony (Ludacris) is a black, inner-city car thief who steals cars to sell to a chop shop. Anthony brings awareness to many racial and stereotypical views others hold to blacks even though some of his actions at the same time reinforce them. He provides a good example of the term ‘double consciousness. ’ Anthony steals a van which was full of trafficked people from South East Asia. Even though he is aware of racism suffered by black people, he refers to the immigrants as Chinamen, a stereotype in itself. After refusing to sell the trafficked people to the chop shop owner, he instead shows compassion for them and lets them out onto the Asian district of Los Angeles and gives them money to eat. Peter Waters (Larenz Tate) is Anthony's friend and partner in crime. He is also Detective Waters' younger brother. Like Anthony, he is black. Peter is shot to death by Officer Hansen, who picks him up in the Valley, hours after their failed carjacking of Cameron's Lincoln Navigator and mistakenly shoots him after assuming he is drawing a gun during an escalating argument. In reality he was reaching into his pocket to show the cop a figure of Saint Christopher, identical to the one Officer Hansen had stuck to his dashboard. As he is dying, he has an expression of shock/surprise and holds out his hand to reveal he had no weapon. Detective Graham Waters (Don Cheadle) is an African-American detective in the Los Angeles Police Department. He is disconnected from his poor family, which consists of his drug-addicted mother and criminal younger brother. He promises his mother that he will find his younger brother, but he is preoccupied with a case concerning a suspected racist white cop who shot a corrupt black cop. Flanagan (William Fichtner), an assistant to the district attorney, offers Graham the chance to further his career in exchange for withholding evidence that could possibly have helped the white cop's case. Flanagan also tries to convince Graham that the black community needs to see the black cop as a hero, and not as a drug dealer, as Graham suspects that he may have been. Graham is both offended and opposed, and is ready to storm out, when Flanagan mentions that there is a warrant out for Graham's brother's arrest, and that this is his third felony, which carries a life sentence in the state of California. Graham makes a very difficult personal decision to withhold evidence and possibly corrupt a case in order to have the District Attorney forget about his brother. That brother is eventually revealed to be Peter, the hitchhiker who is killed by Officer Hansen. Graham's detachment from his mother culminates when his mother, having learned of Pete's death, blames Graham as the reason behind his brother's murder. It is shown that she has always favored the younger brother. This fact exasperates Graham at the end when his mother claims Pete came home and brought groceries for her, when in reality, it was Graham that took the time to restock her previously desolate food supply. Ria (Jennifer Esposito) is a Latina detective, as well as Graham's partner and girlfriend. When a phone call from Graham's mother interrupts his sexual romp with Ria, she becomes upset with Graham for being disrespectful to his mother and his subsequently racially insensitive remark towards Hispanics after implying she was a Mexican, which she was in fact Puerto Rican and Salvadorean. She is shown to be racist toward Asians, as she criticizes an Asian woman's driving. Officer Tommy Hansen (Ryan Phillippe) is a Los Angeles police officer who, after observing his partner Officer John Ryan pull over Cameron Thayer and Christine Thayer and sexually molest Christine, requests a change of partner because of feelings of guilt over the incident. His supervisor, Lieutenant Dixon, tells him he will transfer him if he claims his â€Å"uncontrollable flatulence† requires him to drive a one-man car. The next day, after he presumably files the request, he is reassigned to a single-man patrol car. While on patrol he joins a police chase of Cameron Thayer, who was being car-jacked, but fought off his carjackers and is fleeing the scene with one carjacker still in the car. After driving into a dead-end, Cameron, now resentful of the LAPD, confronts the police officers. Tommy jumps in front of Cameron and tries to convince him to stand down to avoid a confrontation which could possibly result in Cameron's death. He then vouches for Cameron, stating that he is a friend of his, and lets him off with a â€Å"harsh warning. Tommy is later seen driving in his car when he picks up Peter Waters, who is hitch-hiking. He ultimately reveals his own insecurities with other races (African-Americans in particular) through his treatment of Peter Waters and how he quickly dismisses Waters' attempts to compare similarities between them. He pulls over when he assumes that Peter is laughing at him, and tells him to get out of the car. As Peter reaches into his pocket, Tommy wrongly assumes that P eter is reaching for a hidden gun, and shoots him dead. He removes Peter from the car to cover up the incident. We later see Peter, who is the brother of Graham Waters, dead in the grass near where Tommy pulled over. Finally, we see Tommy walking away from his burning car wearing a pair of latex gloves, thus concealing his involvement in the shooting. Officer John Ryan (Matt Dillon) is a bigoted white police officer who sexually molests Cameron's wife, Christine, under the pretense of searching for a weapon after pulling over their vehicle and accusing them of endangerment due to Christine performing fellatio on Cameron while he was driving. Meanwhile, Ryan is trying to get help for his father, who possibly suffers from prostate cancer but has been diagnosed with a bladder infection, despite the ineffectiveness of treatment. His anger manifests in prejudice, as is evident when he exhibits a racist attitude towards an HMO employee preventing his father from seeing an out of network, non-HMO physician. His racial prejudices seem to stem from the destructive impact that local affirmative action policies had on his father's business. After Hansen requests solo patrol, Ryan is partnered with a Hispanic-American with whom he seems to get along. Ryan later puts his own life on the line to save Christine, the woman he molested earlier, from certain death in a fiery car wreck. Lieutenant Dixon (Keith David) is Officers Ryan and Hansen's shift Lieutenant. An African American, Dixon believes that the LAPD is a racist organization that he personally had to work extra hard in to earn a ranking position. When Hansen requests to change partners, Dixon refuses stating that doing so because of Officer Ryan's racism will reflect poorly on their unit. He claims that going on record about supervising racist officers such as Ryan can be a move that will cost both Hansen and Dixon their jobs. In order to get away from Officer Ryan, he then suggests that Officer Hansen ride in a solo car claiming to have a condition of â€Å"uncontrollable flatulence. † Cameron Thayer (Terrence Howard) is a black television director. He witnesses Officer Ryan molesting his wife and later realises that the producers of his television show propagate racist stereotypes about black people. In an emotional moment, he fights off Anthony and Peter when they try to steal his car, takes away Anthony's gun, and argues fiercely with armed white police officers. Just when it is very likely that he will be shot to death, Hansen intervenes on his behalf and prevents any outbreak of violence. After being let off with a warning, Cameron then proceeds to let Anthony go and even gives him his gun back. At the scene of Hansen's burning car (to eliminate evidence of a murder), he is able to find contentment and reconnnects with his wife. Christine Thayer (Thandie Newton) is Cameron's wife. She is molested by Ryan after she and Cameron are pulled over for her giving oral sex to her husband while he was driving them home. She becomes furious with her husband because he didn't defend her. The two insult each other over their upbringings – as both Cameron and Christine have grown up in more privileged environments than many other African Americans. The next day she is trapped in an overturned car due to a car accident and, by a twist of fate, Officer Ryan is the man who willingly endangers himself to save her life. Daniel Ruiz (Michael Pena) is a Mexican-American locksmith who faces discrimination from Jean and others because he looks like a gangbanger to them, when he is actually a devoted family man. After Anthony and Peter steal Jean and Rick's car, Daniel comes over and changes the locks on their home. Daniel seeks a safe environment for his young daughter, Elizabeth, who had a bullet go through her window in their previous home. That is why he moved to a safer neighborhood and enrolled her in a private school. Near the beginning he gives Elizabeth an invisible â€Å"cloak† that he says will protect her should someone try to shoot at her. Farhad shoots at Elizabeth and Daniel but they escape unhurt, because the gun contains blanks chosen by Dorri earlier in the film. However, Elizabeth believes that this is due to the protective powers of the â€Å"cloak. † Farhad (Shaun Toub) is a Persian store owner who is afraid for his safety. He is depicted as frustrated by the racial harassment he experiences in the United States (despite being an American citizen), as well as deterred by difficulties with speaking English. To protect his store – the only thing his family has – he goes to a gun shop and attempts to buy a gun. The gun store owner quickly becomes frustrated with Farhad's conversation with his daughter Dorri in Persian, leading to harassment from the owner, who believes that Persians are Arabs and therefore, terrorists, one of these comments being â€Å"Yo, Osama, plan the jihad on your own time. † The owner refuses to sell Farhad a gun, but finally sells the gun to Farhad's daughter after being cryptic and lecherous about which bullets she needs. The store run by Farhad and his wife Shereen (Marina Sirtis) has a door which will not close properly, so they call a locksmith, Daniel. Farhad's suspicion of others is compounded by his difficulty understanding English; he does not heed Daniel's warning that his shop door needs replacing, believing Daniel intends to cheat him, and as a result suffers a break-in. Shereen reacts to the slurs written on the walls of the store: â€Å"They think we're Arab. When did Persian become Arab? † Blaming Daniel for the invasion and racially-motivated destruction of his store, and angered by the insurance company rejecting his claim on the grounds of negligence, he confronts Daniel at his house, wielding his gun. Farhad fires at Daniel but accidentally shoots Daniel's daughter Lara, to the horror of both Daniel and Farhad. Fortunately, unknowingly to Farhad, the gun contains blanks. Farhad leaves without further incident, later telling his daughter that his â€Å"farishta,† his guardian angel, protected him and his family. Dorri (Bahar Soomekh) is Farhad's daughter, and is more acclimated than her father to American culture. She purposefully purchases blanks after her father has upset the man at the counter in the gun store. She is constantly trying to calm her father down during his emotional outbursts. She is also an employee at the hospital; she escorts Graham and his mother to Peter's body after it is discovered in a field. Paragraph 2: Thirty-six hours in the life of a disparate group of Los Angelinos linked together by a car crash. The debut film from Million Dollar Baby screenwriter Paul Haggis as succession of characters become involved in heated exchanges that either bring to the surface long-buried prejudices or fan the flames of hatred already out in the open. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles. Reminiscent of Magnolia and Short Cuts, Crash comprises a number of separate stories that are loosely connected. Set over a period of 24 hours, each vignette offers a different perspective of the multi-ethnic melting pot that is life in Los Angeles. The film uses its characters not so much to tell a story, but to express an opinion, from the racial cop (Matt Dillon), to the campaigning District Attorney (Brendan Fraser) anxious to capture the black vote, to the black television director (Terence Howard) toning down his ethnicity in a predominantly white industry. All fit into well-defined stereotypes and engage in the kind of dialogue reserved more for an impassioned polemic than everyday conversation. Paragraph 3: Conclusion: It's a bold effort that initially attempts to tackle the issue of racial conflict in a refreshingly unstinting way for a mainstream film. Crash taps into the underlying tension of city where the haves and have nots might pull up next to each other in traffic, but are still a world apart. Haggis ventures beyond the more commonly explored white black issue to encompass a gamut of ethnic vantage points including Hispanic, Korean and Iranian.