Impact of Capital Structure on Financial Performance of Real Estate Essay

Impact of Capital Structure on Financial Performance of Real Estate Firms Listed In Chinese Stock Exchange - Essay Example Since the real estate industry is capital intensive, a firm’s capital structure greatly impacts on its financial performance. Capital structures dictate the financial ratios of these companies and subsequently these ratios are used to determine a firm’s performance. In addition, the capital structure of these real estate firms also determines the extent of ownership by different shareholders. The study determined that the profitability and the debt levels of the twenty selected firms have an inverse relationship. It can as well be concluded that the capital structure affects the growth rate of these firms. This means that real estate firms in China that post high profits in their financial statements have financial debts that are lower that the industry’s average. In this regard, managements of real estate firms in China prefer capital structures that attract low costs of debt and will have minimal adverse effect on the firms’ performance in terms of profi tability and capitalization. According to the results of the analysis, high debt means high interest payments and this has a direct effect on the firms’ profitability and subsequently the firms’ Earnings per Share. The major factor that influenced capital structures of the twenty firms under this study is that the real industry shifted to the Chinese capital market for capital sourcing since privatization of state owned corporations. This study used an inductive approach on the twenty selected listed real estate companies in the methodology section. The quantitative methods objectively determine the impact of capital structure on the performance of the 20 selected and listed real estate firms. The reason for was because listed firms are regulated and they represent the best samples that would give reliable results for this study. However, the study would have given better results if a larger sample was used for this study and more time allocated for analysis. These

Financial analysis and modelling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Financial analysis and modelling - Essay Example 75661.1 and the SS value is 609526983.2), The Co-efficient values illustrates that all the variables are directly related that means with the increase in Store Size the Profits will also increase, and this is the case with the Clothing Sales and the Non-clothing Sales. It can also be stated that the Clothing Sales are the least related variable among the rest of two variables and can be neglected in order to achieve more accurate and realistic results. h) The R-Square value represents the closeness of the values to the regression line; in the result of this regression analysis the R-Square value is 0.985 which illustrates that the values are closely fitted. This also shows that the variations in any one of the variables (i.e. No-clothing Sales and Store Size) may cause a positive or negative affect of 98.5%. The value of Clothing Sales is ignored as it is not in the significant region and will not affect the overall outcome. i) The P-values indicates the significance values that whether the variable(s) (the independent ones) affect the dependent one(s) or the overall regression analysis. In the regression analysis the P-Values of Non-clothing Sales and Store Size are significant at the 5% significance level. The net present value is the sum of all net cash flows expected from a project over a period of projection (Needles, Powers, & Crosson, 2010). In this case three years projections have been considered for two projects X and Y. The NPV of Project X is negative i.e. less than zero therefore this project should not accepted. On the other hand, Project Y has a positive NPV value i.e. more than zero over a three-year projection period therefore Project Y should be accepted (Moyer, McGuigan, Rao, & Kretlow, 2011). C. Monte Carlo Simulation allows multiples values of an asset or investment based on certain sensitivity or scenario analysis. It allows businesses to prepare better by evaluating the outcome of a project or investment by knowing the possible output

Merits of Arbitrations

Merits of Arbitrations Critically assess the respective merits of arbitrations under the ICC, LCIA and ICSID rules: Introduction: In order to fully comprehend how arbitration that transcend states this discussion will explain how states are bound by contractual obligations in the public and private international arena. It will consider the role of the ICC and the protection of human rights violations within states, asking whether it is better to allow domestic jurisdictions to prosecute or the ICC. This will then be applied to situations when states become involved in investment practices between states and what duty of care these states owe to each other and their investors. Hence considering the legal nature of contracts between states, i.e. can they be easily be rescinded or is there a higher obligation to honour? Does this differ when states are in a position of dominance? Also investment law arguably bridges between private international law and public international law because investment from the WTO, WBO and states such as the US and regions, such as the EU need certain social and democratic treaties to be initiated and fulfilled. The main concern of countries within the international arena is to maintain its sovereignty and integrity from incursions of other states, which is the arena of public international law. This discussion is going to consider the effectiveness of international law in dealing with disputes once an incursion has occurred, focusing on whether the decisions at an international legal level are effective or flouted in either a direct or indirect manner. In order to do this essay is going to consider when a state has been subject to and penalized by international law it can legally not adhere to these obligations. In the case of private individuals that transcend borders there is the problem that the stronger party will lobby to have the case in the state that protects their interests, which will be considered when discussing the LCIA. International Criminal Court (ICC) – Outdated System of Arbitration: The ICC deals only with war criminals as defined under the Rome Statute. Crimes against humanity as defined in the Rome Statue include extermination of citizens, slavery, torture, rape, forced pregnancy, persecution on the grounds of race, religion, culture, gender or ethnicity, disappearances that are forced by the state and systemic attack on civilians. In short what the Rome Statute has done is extend the crimes that contained in a warfare situation to a non-warfare situation, i.e. if the state or political leader commissions such crimes it is contravening international humanitarian law, which results in criminal liability. The other crimes that the ICC deals with are genocide and crimes of aggression against other states or even between factions within the states. However the key factor of prosecutions by the ICC relies on actions by the state, it does not take into account non-state actors, such as corporations; therefore limiting its power and authority. The ICC seems more inte rested in the actions of states as opposed to other actors, which is primarily to do with the fact other organizations are not signatories to the UNDHR. At the moment the ICC has only investigated four states and is taking action against three, which are Uganda, the Congo and the Dafur in the Sudan and the process is lengthy and it is questionable it will sanction the ring leaders as opposed to causing more harm to the poverty stricken. This follows the problems with many international human rights law; for example if one is a large company they should not be able to abuse human rights, such abuses will be dealt with by domestic courts if they are properly protected; however in developing nations where economics outweigh the individual’s rights then these abuses go unchecked. This is partially the liability of the state which should be properly prosecuted; however the transnational corporation should also be held liable for their role in the abuses. Human rights and crimes ag ainst humanity will not be properly protected until companies who commit, initiate or support individual state’s and political leader’s actions that result in crimes of humanity are held criminally liable. It seems to fail to bring many cases because it includes crimes under the genocide convention and these are primarily brought under national courts and not the ICC, which is its domain since 1998. In addition to local tribunals that the UN sets up in post-war areas, so the ICC is not really performing the duties it was set up to do and focuses too much on the state. Prior to the ICC domestic courts brought actions under the genocide convention and focused on the criminals and seemed to be successful. The most famous or infamous examples are those of ex-Nazi Officers after their acts during the concentration camps in Nazi occupied areas of Europe. The conviction of these officers after the war seemed straight forward as with the cases of Knochen[1] and Oberg[2] Yet th e conviction of officers today is still hard under the convention, one example is the case of Imre Fitte in an Ontarian Court in Canada, where the crime was kidnapping and slaughtering Jews in 1944 as a Nazi Officer.[3] Another problem fraught case dating back to Nazi Germany and the Canadian courts is the case of Oberlander; whereby the government has tried to deport Oberlander because of his involvement with the Nazi death squads and the evidence has shown he lied about his innocence, but still has not been convicted of the crime due to legal technicalities: The government is trying to deport Oberlander, 78, after a Federal Court judge found he lied about his involvement with the death squad when he applied to emigrate from Germany in the early 1950s. Cabinet paved the way for his expulsion by stripping him of Canadian citizenship last year. But, as has been the case since proceedings against Oberlander began more than seven years ago, his fate remains unclear amid legal wrangling. Lawyers for Oberlander are seeking a judicial review of the cabinet decision, arguing it was flawed. They are also trying to have deportation proceedings put on hold until that issue is settled. The immigration hearing in Toronto was allowed to resume yesterday it was suspended almost a year ago but board member Carmen DeCarlo cant make a deportation order until a related appeal has been decided.[4] Yet there are successful cases where an individual is prosecuted for genocide, such as another Canadian Case of Leon Mugesera who was convicted of inciting genocide in Rwanda in a speech given in 1992, this resulted in a deportation order back to Rwanda; however Mugesera is still on appeal in Canada.[5] The most famous example of a successful genocide case is the one of Pinochet in Chile; whereby his immunity was lifted and his has been found guilty of this crime with ten other cohorts.[6] In the UK domestic courts held that officers of former Yugoslavia were guilty of the crime of genocide, which seems to be a situation that mirrors the horrors of Nazi Germany: Fridays military court finding in the central Serbian town of Nis jailed Lt. Col. Zlatan Mancic for seven years and Capt. Rade Radivojevic for five years on charges of ordering two soldiers to kill two Albanians during the conflict in April 1999.[7] Therefore there has been mixed success with respect to genocide in domestic court, especially with the necessary requirement of men rea. If one considers the International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda’s (ICTR) actions in respect to the genocide in Rwanda only eleven persons have been found guilty of the crime of genocide, which illustrates that there are problems with prosecuting under the convention as a lot more persons were involved in this bloodbath. In the ICTR cases of Ruggiu[8] and Serushago[9] their guilty pleas were seen as mitigating circumstances and the sentences were more lenient for helping to exterminate persons of another race? Therefore the law seems to be focused on the mindset of the potential accused rather than the atrocities committed by their acts. Another problem with the Genocide Convention is that it needs to be either upheld in a domestic court or by a international tribunal; however to have an international tribunal it needs to international in natur e as illustrated in the Tadic case where there was movement for dismissal as it was argued that the International Criminal Tribunal of Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) had no jurisdiction as it was a domestic conflict.[10] The tribunal ruled in the broadest manner and ensured that its jurisdiction was upheld; however this illustrates the deficiencies of current international law, i.e. it needs to take in the actions of civil society and the domestic not just focus on the role of state actors, as the ICC is too focused upon. It needs to learn from the past deficiencies rather than to perpetrate these problems. LCIA ICSID – Fairness in Private International Law: The LCIA deals with commercial disputes and provides a forum for individuals to turn to when a commercial agreement crosses borders. The LCIA follows the law of private international law and does not bring the confusing factors of regime shopping; rather arbitration process relies on the just route. Here are the basic rules of arbitration: The LCIA arbitration rules are universally applicable. They offer a combination of the best features of the civil and common law systems, including in particular: maximum flexibility for parties and tribunals to agree on procedural matters speed and efficiency in the appointment of arbitrators, including expedited procedures means of reducing delays and counteracting delaying tactics tribunals power to decide on their own jurisdiction a range of interim and conservatory measures tribunals power to order security for claims and for costs special powers for joinder of third parties fast-track option waiver of right of appeal costs computed without regard to the amounts in dispute staged deposits parties are not required to pay for the whole arbitration in advance[11] Therefore the aim is to make disputes easier to resolve, without going through a domestic legal system that gives one party over the other an advantage. This introduces the problem of regime shopping that the independent forum of the LCIA would resolve. [The] possibility of shopping around for suitable legislation is often said to be most influential since the other elements depend on the controversial aim of deepening European integration. It is possible that the United States situation may be a precedent. In the United States individuals are free to incorporate under the laws of any state since the location of the company is not relevant.[12] This has caused problems because justice is not being served; rather powerful players are breaching the rules of justice to win their case under the most favorable regime. In the EU this has been seen in the Centros Decision[13], which has been condemned for putting economic interests above the interests of justice. This decision was based around the requirements of registration and trade within Denmark, which raised an issue of conflict between the laws of the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands whereby a properly registered foreign company is to be recognized; whereas Nordic law depends upon registration and whether refusal of registration was permissible to stop the circumvention of national law. The ECJ decided that this refusal went against the principles of competition law, which resulted in regional competition law outweighing domestic law therefore undermining the sovereignty of the state. The aim of the two Danish nationals by registering their company Centros in the UK and then transferring to Denmark was purely to circumvent the fee associated with registration. The question was whether the Danish court could refuse registration in Denmark because the aim was to defraud the Danish state; the ECJ advised that refusing registration was imposing an obstacle of the basic freedoms that make up company law. This case basically has caused competition law to become prevalent over national concerns. In fact it has possibly weakened the regulations of company law so that social and cultural policies will soon be under fire. This seems to be falling under the trap of companies for regime shopping, i.e. the weaker the regulation the higher the investment. In this case the act of defraud was not taken into account, the Danish nationals set out to misuse EU competition law to abuse the requirements of Danish national law. The Centros decision belies this inevitability; however the problem with such lax laws is that they equate to easier exploitation and perfect for re gime shopping for the powerful player in the dispute. This breaches fairness and just rules of law, therefore illustrating the importance of the LCIA. In fact this institution should become the primary organization to deal with international company disputes rather than relying on competing law in domestic regimes. The problem is that unlike the ICC and ICSID it is a voluntary arbitration resolution organization and should be set up through International Convention to deal with these specific disputes. This approach is mirrored by the ICSID, which was set up through states contracting similar to the ICC as an independent branch of the World Bank, but is more concerned with dealing with the problems of individual companies rather than focusing on just state to state problems: The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID or the Centre) is a public international organization created under a treaty, the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes Between States and Nationals of Other States (the ICSID Convention or the Convention). The Convention was formulated by the Executive Directors of the World Bank and submitted by them on March 18, 1965 to member States of the Bank for consideration with a view to signature and ratification. The Convention, entered into force on October 14, 1966.[14] The aim of this arbitration is to ensure that parties are treated fairly and the stronger power does not take advantage of the position. This is especially important in respect to transnational companies who have an economic advantage over a developing country who needs the investment.[15] Therefore like the fair minded approach of the LCIA it provides an independent place of arbitration that deals with the real problems in state and foreign direct investment and takes away the problem of domestic rules and laws that would clash otherwise. This can be seen in the following exploration of state contract and private international cases, which cause a problem to determining a fair verdict or resolution in domestic courts. In the case of Serbian Loans[16] any contract that is not a contract between states in their capacity as subjects of international law is based on the municipal [domestic] law of some country†¦ The rules thereof may be common to several states and may even be established by international conventions or customs, and in the latter case may possess the character of true international law governing relations between states.[17] Therefore when it comes to investment contracts between states then it will have elements of adhering to the contractual word of the agreement; as well as the duty of care that the obligations are met as in public international contractual agreements. There has been a suggestion that cases that are on a private international matter allows the domestic court that makes the decision have an extraterritorial effect in imposing the obligation across borders, i.e. applying the higher standard of obligation and care that public international law holds.[18] On the o ther hand, the case of Holmes v Bangladesh Biman[19] argued that foreign jurisdictions have no legitimate reason for subjecting their civil law on foreigners in their own country. Therefore these two cases make it difficult for correctly pursuing fraud, negligence or any circumstance that leads to an action when it is a case of foreign investment, i.e. where would you make the action and could you legally serve and enforce the action papers in foreign jurisdiction. There is a possibility by using international treat formalities such as the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extra-Judicial Documents in Civil and Commercial Matters[20] and the Convention of the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters[21]. There are safety clauses for states to protect its sovereignty under private international law, as this is a major factor in any treaty under public international law, which was used in the case of Westinghouse v Rio Tinto Zinc[22] where the request fel l outside the ambit of the treaty and enabled the UK court to 12(b) of the Convention on Service to deny the request because it impinged on the sovereignty of the UK. The Lotus Case[23] reaffirms the basis of public international law in private international law, which is preserving the sanctity of a state’s sovereignty. Therefore creating difficulties in actions between parties in respect to foreign investment as this falls within the jurisdiction of the offended party’s state, which may not extend to the other party’s state. The case of Nationality Decrees in Tunis and Morocco [24] questions the legitimacy of this approach and introduces the subject of international relations and treaties, i.e. international public law; whereby contractual obligations between states should be fulfilled and only in extreme cases impinged upon. Therefore from an investment perspective, which may be third parties the question of extending jurisdiction should be upon the legality of the contract between the two parties and if the contract was between the two states how the obligations and duty of care would be resolved? The ICJ does not deal with such subject matter and has on occasion had to determine domestic or international jurisdiction in the case of Certain Norwegian Loans[25] where it was decided that it was the jurisdiction of the domestic court. On the other hand, similar facts in the Serbian and Brazilian Loans Cases[26] were held to be an international dispute for the ICJ to settle. This creates a difficult situation for states to understand the extent of private investment matters because its obligations may or may not be held at the normal level of private contract law or the higher level of public international contractual obligations. Therefore the ICSID deals independent with the problems between states and companies that want to invest directly in a given state; whereas the LCID deals with the conflicts between companies that are in differen t states. In both cases it is a lot more successful. Conclusion: Unlike the war crime and human rights arbitration it is a lot more successful to have an international place of arbitration and tribunal for commercial and foreign investment conflicts, as it reduces the problems with state sovereignty and regime shopping. The problem with the ICC is the limitations that the contracting states have placed upon it. It needs to be a lot more proactive and have the powers to deal not just with states, but also actors that assist in human rights abuse. At the moment the ICSID system is the best because it has the backing of International Convention and resolves problems in competing International Private Law systems within states. The LCIA is a voluntary organization, which is a good system but needs to be supported by an International Convention such as the ICSID. The ICC has this International Convention support but has failed on the grounds that its jurisdiction is too limited and previous domestic prosecutions and UN tribunals are much more effective . It would be more effective if it could deal with all actors that cause or have a role in gross human rights violations, because the ICC is not living up to its basic premise: The International Criminal Court (ICC)is the first ever permanent, treaty based, international criminal court established to promote the rule of law and ensure that the gravest international crimes do not go unpunished.[27] Bibliography: Arab Regional Office (2004) Quarterly Report, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Beirut, Lebanon, March 2004 found at: http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/5/arab-mar04.doc Bagheri, 2004, Competition and Integration among Stock Exchanges: The Dilemma of Conflicting Regulatory Objectives and Strategies, OLJS 24(69) Bananalink, Banana Trade Wars can be found at: http://www.usleap.org/Banana/bananatempnew.htm#tradewars B.R. Barber (1995) JIHAD v McWorld: How Globalism and Tribalism is Reshaping the World, New York, Times Books Catherine Barnard, 2000, Social Dumping And The Race To The Bottom: Some Lessons For The European Union From Delaware E.L. Rev. 2000, 25(1), 57-78 P. Craig, G. De Burca (1999) The Evolution of EU Law, Oxford, Oxford University Press R.K. Gardiner (2003) International Law, Harlow, England, Pearson Laurent Garzaniti. David Pope, 1993, Single Market-Making: EC Regulation Of Securities Markets Comp. Law. 1993, 14(3), 43-54 ICC, About the Court, can be found at www.icc-cpi.int ICSID, Cases, can be found at: http://www.worldbank.org/icsid/cases/cases.htm International Law Commission, 1996, Chapter Three – State Responsibility can be found at http://www.un.org/law/ilc/reports/1996/chap03.htm LCIA, Arbitration Rules can be found at: www.lcia-arbitration.com Prevent Genocide’s website at: http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#europe Siems, 2003, Convergence, Competition, Centros and Conflicts Of Law: European Company Law In The 21st Century, E.L. Rev. 2002, 27(1), 47-59 N.E. Simmonds, Introduction in W.N Hohfeld (2001), Syrpis, 2001, Smoke without Fire: The Social Policy Agenda and the Internal Market, ILJ 2001(30) UN Mission in Iraq (UNIKOM) can be found at: http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/unikom/ K. Waltz (1991) America as a Model for the World? PS: Political Science and Politics: 24(4) M. Waters (1995) Globalization, London, Routledge Weiler, 1999, The Constitution of the Common Market Place: Text and Context in the Evolution of the Free Movement of Goods in Craig De Burca (eds), 1999, The Evolution of EU Law, Oxford University Press, Oxford Worldwatch Institute (2004) State of World 2004: Progress Towards a Sustainable Society, London, Earthscan UN, Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Some Questions and Answers, found at: http://www.un.org/law/icc/statute/iccqa.htm United Nations Press Releases, Roman Statute of International Criminal Court, ESCWA, July 2nd 2002 found at: http://www.escwa.org.lb/information/press/un/2002/july/02_2.html UN website, ICTR, can be found at: http://www.ictr.org/default.htm UN website, ICTY can be found at: http://www.un.org/icty/ [1] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s website at: http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#europe [2] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s website at: http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#europe [3] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s Website at http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#americas [4] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s Website at http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#americas [5] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s Website at http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#americas [6] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s Website at http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#americas [7] Reported on Prevent Genocide’s website at: http://preventgenocide.org/punish/domestic/index.htm#europe [8] UN website, ICTR, can be found at: http://www.ictr.org/default.htm [9] UN website, ICTR, can be found at: http://www.ictr.org/default.htm [10] UN website, ICTY can be found at: http://www.un.org/icty/ [11] LCIA, Arbitration Rules can be found at: www.lcia-arbitration.com [12] Siems, 2003, Convergence, Competition, Centros and Conflicts Of Law: European Company Law In The 21st Century, E.L. Rev. 2002, 27(1), 47-59 [13] Centros Ltd v Erhvervs-og Selskabsstyrelsen (C212/97) [2000] 2 W.L.R. 1048 (ECJ) [14] ICSID, Cases, can be found at: http://www.worldbank.org/icsid/cases/cases.htm [15] Tesoro Petroleum Corporation v. Trinidad and Tobago (Case No. CONC/83/1) [16] France v Serbia (1929) Series A Nos 20/21 [17] Ibid [18] Deutsche Schachtbau v Shell International [1990] 1 AC 295 [19] [1989] 1 All ER 852 [20] The Hague, 1965, UKTS 50 [21] The Hague, 1970, UKTS 20 [22] [1978] AC 547 [23]France v Turkey [1927] PCIJ Series A No 10 [24] (1923) Series B No 4

Hacker Crackdown :: essays research papers

The Hacker Crackdown: Law and Disorder on the Electronic Frontier by Bruce Sterling is a book that focuses on the events that occurred on and led up to the AT&T long-distance telephone switching system crashing on January 15, 1990. Not only was this event rare and unheard of it took place in a time when few people knew what was exactly going on and how to fix the problem. There were a lot of controversies about the events that led up to this event and the events that followed because not only did it happen on Martin Luther King Day, but few knew what the situation truly entailed. There was fear, skepticism, disbelief and worry surrounding the people that were involved and all of the issues that it incorporated. After these events took place the police began to crackdown on the law enforcement on hackers and other computer based law breakers. The story of the Hacker Crackdown is technological, sub cultural, criminal, and legal. There were many raids that took place and it became a sym bolic debate between fighting serious computer crime and protecting the civil liberties of those involved. In this book Sterling discusses three cyberspace subcultures known as the hacker underworld, the realm of the cyber cops, and the idealistic culture for the cyber civil libertarians. At the beginning of the story Sterling starts out with discussing the birth of cyberspace and how it came about. The Hacker Crackdown informs the readers of the issues surrounding computer crime and the people on all sides of those problems. Sterling gives a brief summary of what cyberspace meant back then and how it impacted society, and he investigates the past, present and future of computer crimes. For instance he explains how the invention of the telephone led to a world that people were scared of because the telephone was something that was able to let people talk to one another without actually being in the same area. People thought that it was so strange and so different because they didn’t understand all of the information behind it. Back then people thought of the telephone as a tool tha t allowed others to talk to them in a way that was so personal yet impersonal. Sterling then goes on to explain how â€Å"phone phreaks† played such an important part in relating the telephones to computer crimes and how they were so closely related back then.

Copying Morality? Essay

Software piracy and illegal file shares is becoming a bigger issue in modern day society, more likely with the youth of society. All computers now come with burn-ware technologies in which the user can take a product and create copies of that software. Originally, this process was created in order to provide methods of backing up a person’s computer files, in case of hardware crashing and system reboots. However, the situation has changed. People are now able to copy any type of media file (DVDs, CDs, operation systems, etc) and give out these products, free of charge. Do you like that CD that your friend bought the other day? Ask him to burn you a copy, then you can have it too. Did your latest version of Microsoft Windows crash on you and you don’t have the recovery discs? No problem. Get a friend to burn you a copy of their recovery discs. And what’s the best thing about these transactions? You don’t have to pay for anything! Broke college students rejoice! In Bernard Gert’s essay, Is it Moral to Make Copies of Software for my Friends? ,the ethics of this trend are discussed. What are the ethical guidelines when it comes to computers? Is it acceptable to copy software? Gert’s conclusion is that it is not morally acceptable to copy software, no matter who the software is for and regardless if it is free of charge. It is an illegal action, as there are laws against such activity, and therefore it is unacceptable to partake in such action. Although still possible to perform while still illegal, this doesn’t mean that it is acceptable. A law cannot be broken just because someone has the means of doing so. Gert first explains the ethics of breaking the law. He states that â€Å"one cannot limit the subject matter of the law to a particular law one dislikes. † He uses the example of smoking by minors to back up this argument. The law is that you must be 18 years old in order to buy cigarettes. However, minors cannot just go out and buy cigarettes and smoke because they dislike the law. It’s still a law; not liking the law isn’t a justifiable reason to try and break it. The only time that it is acceptable to break a law is in the situation in which the law is unjust. If a law is unjust and has a negative effect on society, then it should not be a law in the first place, thus making it acceptable if the law is to be broken because eventually, this will cause the law to be overturned. However, current software copying laws are not unjust, and if they are to be considered unjust, there is no clear and valid reason of why they are unjust. Copying laws are not morally unacceptable, making it unacceptable to break these laws. Gerts compares this issue to speed limits. Speed limits are the accepted law of whatever state they are set in. These speed limits are not hurting society and are morally acceptable within the community. Because of this, it is looked down upon when a driver breaks the speed limit, becoming so unacceptable that legal action can take place. Speed limits are not suggestions, they are laws. These laws are in no violation of morality and therefore they must be followed. Gert also believes that it is not acceptable to break a law in the event that one thinks that some other law would be better. If society allows violation of the current law due to the fact the society is in favor of other laws that are not passed, then it becomes acceptable for everyone to break every law. If everyone has this mentality, then law becomes obsolete. Why even bother having any laws if everyone feels that they can break them because they don’t agree with them? Gert believes that this mentality will lead into anarchy. As for software laws, Gert believes that because these laws are not unjust and are not causing any harm, it is not morally acceptable for anyone to be breaking the law. He claims that he does not know enough about the current laws to admit that there may be other more suitable and better laws that for this issue. However, that does not mean that software copying shouldn’t be illegal or have penalties. Gert states that illegally copying software cannot be described solely based on the â€Å"morally relevant issues, as it brings in one’s biases with regard to software†. People may only see it as doing a favor for a friend when they copy software. How can an act with good intentions possibly be immoral? According to Gert, it doesn’t matter of what the intentions were; motives don’t determine the morality of an action. In conclusion, for these reasons, Gert determines that copying software is not morally acceptable. II. Evaluation According to Gert, it doesn’t matter of what the intentions were; motives don’t determine the morality of an action. Here, I find myself agreeing with Gert. Just because you have good intentions, it doesn’t mean that it’s acceptable to violate the law. Hitler had good intentions, didn’t he? He wanted to cleanse his country and make his country better for the people he deemed valuable. Sure, he killed millions of people, but the good intent was there, right? Wrong. His intentions do not justify anything that he did. A person could justify burning software by saying that he is doing it to help out his friend, but his good intentions mean nothing. He still did something that was against the law, and therefore it is wrong. The second and last thing that I agree with Gert about is that it normally should not be acceptable for a person to break the law. The only time it is permissible is when the law is an unjust one that brings more harm than good to society. In America’s early years, did the settlers not eventually find King George’s rule to be unjust? Did we not find his laws and policies unbearable? Did we not oppose them and fight them? America was born by breaking the law! And this is acceptable! Why? Because it was against injustice. The only time a law can be broken is when it is unjust. We, as Americans, cannot argue with this. However, are piracy laws unjust? Gert certainly doesn’t think so. I’m not sure if I agree with him. A weakness that Gert has is that he admits that he does not know much about the piracy laws. He knows that there are laws making copying illegal, however, he does not explain them because he does not know enough about them to do so. It makes me wonder â€Å"if you don’t know everything about your subject, then why are making such an effort to persaude me to believe your opinion? † He loses credibility and this hurts him. If you are going to argue a viewpoint, I would prefer that the person pleading his case knows a lot about the subject matter. To be honest, I don’t think Gert knows a lot about the situation. He rarely actually talks about the core subject: copying software. Instead, he talks about the morality of breaking the law in general. He just happens to throw software piracy in there to add another example of the morality of breaking the law. This severely hurts his thesis and essay in general. Another weakness in this paper is the ‘slippery slope’ argument that he makes about breaking laws in favor for other laws. He claims that this will lead to anarachy. If people don’t want to obey the law because they think some other law would be better, how will this lead to anarchy? Couldn’t it be possible that it will just lead to the replacement of laws? If there is such replacement, how will it lead to chaotic anarachy? He does not explain why such a process will lead to anarachy; he just states that it will lead to it. Not only is his argument flawed, there is a flaw within the flaw. He can’t even explain his wrong reasoning. But then again, maybe that is the whole point of illogical reasoning: there is no logical reasoning! A final weakness that I found a couple of times in Gert’s essay is that he uses some faulty analogies. He compares software laws to speeding laws and drinking laws, among other breif examples. He uses these examples in his arguments about the morality of breaking the law. If one does not agree with the speed limits, he is not obligated to break them simply because he does not like them. If an 18 year old wants to drink when the legal drinking age is 21, he cannot do so just because he doesn’t agree with the law. Thus, if a person wants to copy a CD for their friend and it is illegal, he cannot do so. I don’t believe that piracy laws fall in the same field as speed limits and underage drinking. I think those problems impact society much more than a burned copy of Blue Oyster Cult’s â€Å"Don’t Fear the Reaper†. These are just different situations and they shouldn’t be compared on the same level. So it is morally acceptable to copy software for my friends? I personally believe so for a couple of reasons. I am guilty of illegally copying music and movies, and I see nothing wrong with anything that I have done. I’m a criminal justice major and I understand the piracy laws. I still see nothing wrong with it. If burning a CD or a DVD is so morally wrong, then why do stores provide the means of doing so? Stores sell burnable discs in which you can copy anything onto them. How can anyone be expected NOT to burn software or a CD? These discs aren’t illegal, but the act of copying is illegal. Yes, I understand that the original purpose of these rewritable CDs and DVDs were to be storage devices for personal work, but the times have changes as the technology has evolved. Do not provide the means of a crime if you do not want the crime to happen. I’m positive that the main reason why people burn software is because of the money involved. Downloading something is free. If I have a free option, then why should I bother buying something? If I only like one song on a CD, why should I have to shell out twenty-five dollars to buy the whole thing? CDs only cost companies ten cents to burn, and an additional two dollars for the packaging. I understand that there are labor fees to be paid as well, but why does the media industry have to charge their consumers, their lifeblood, these ridiculous prices? My laptop crashed recently. Nowadays, laptops are being sold with the software already installed onto the hard drive. This has added a hidden cost to the overall cost of the laptop. Along with this, no discs are provided. You’re paying for software that you have no legal copy for. When your laptop crashes, you no longer have the software. So when my laptop crashed, resulting in me buying a new hard drive, what did the technical support people tell me to do? They told me that I had to buy the operating system separately. It was an annoyance to do so, but it was an option. Do you know how much Windows Vista goes for? Two hundred fifty dollars. Well, there goes that option for this poor college student. My solution to my problem? I found a friend with Vista and I got him to copy the software for me. If the legal copy did not cost so much, I would have purchased it. I think that’s the root problem of this issue. If companies didn’t sell their software at such an absurd price, more people would turn away from illegal means of obtaining said software and actually acquire it legally. I see no problem with downloading software because of this key reason. Illegal copying and downloading of software, music, and movies is just something that isn’t possible to monitor. There are millions of people all over the world doing this. How can officials possible prosecute these people? How can they possibly track them down? Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as email tracking and there is no such thing as download tracking. There is no such technology to know exactly what illegal site someone has been on and downloaded something from. If you take my mp3 player, there is no way that you would be able to tell which songs I purchased and which ones I have illegally downloaded. It is the same situation if you took a look on my computer. Which files were obtained illegally? You’ll never know.

Managing Information Technology Essay

Question #1: What would be your prioritized list of IT investments? Four IT investments need to be prioritized; 1. 2. 3. 4. Ecommerce & Web sales Aligning the various systems (legacy, SAP, ERP) together. Hire relationship managers Make IT a â€Å"partner† 1. After only 3 years, KL’s Web sales have reached $156M, equalizing its in store sales, and now represent 15% of total sales. This is very encouraging and exciting. KL needs to continue to invest in Ecommerce & Web sales in order to continue this great growth. Selling via the Internet should be a priority because it’s cheaper than your ordinary brick and mortar sales points, there is less overhead expense, and this market is growing exponentially. The company should work towards gaining the most market share possible developing an industry leading website, timely and dependable delivery, and customer service. Accomplishing the above means getting all the company sharing information and data more efficiently (see point #2). 2. KL has a complex IT infrastructure with various systems in use around the world. The result is a frustrated bunch of employees upset with the fact that communication data sharing is awful. To remedy this the company needs to invest more in training to get the whole company, including the USA, to use SAP as soon as possible. 3. Assign/hire relationship managers to improve information sharing, facilitate plans, priorities, communications, and relationships, and in turn get the whole system to work together. 4. To avoid such problems in the future, KL needs to make IT a â€Å"partner† in the decision making process. In other words, the company needs to better involve IT in company strategy and tactical planning. With the IT team, the company needs to develop and define an Enterprise Operating Model and Architecture that include business strategy, current IT assessment, IT strategy and IT plans. Question #2: Would your colleagues on the executive committee agree with your selection and prioritization? The above priorities should be well received because they solve or improve many of the frustrating employees around the company. This answer will look at each division (upper management, sales & marketing, order fulfillment and distribution, and ITS) and see why the four IT priorities should be well received by the executive committee. The KL upper management is on record stating that the company has IT challenges â€Å"†¦around coordinating the various, and at times conflicting, business priorities across the enterprise. We sure could use better IT tools for this as well as ready access to timely performance data.†, CEO Joseph Campbell. In addition, COO Jens McCreary stated that the company needs to improve global supply-chain management and leverage the expertise to outpace out competitors and cut our operating costs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Considering these quotes it’s safe to assume that the CEO and COO should be accepting of these four IT priorities because will want to see IT provide better services in order to reach their goals. The products, manufacturing and distribution divisions of the company want to see SAP standardized and compatible across the company in order to better share information. Priorities #2 and 3 should please this division. Sales & marketing hope to see inter-operating unit and communications and coordination issues to be resolved and they need real-time data. Priorities #1, 2 and 3 should encourage the sales and marketing team. The order fulfillment and distribution divisions need capabilities to forecast sales and manage our product and cash flows need to be more competitive. They want to be able to deliver in a J.I.T. basis (optimize effectiveness) and have data integration between the legacy systems, SAP, Oracle, etc. These issues should improve with priorities #2 and 3 and this making these priorities acceptable to this division. Finally, the information technology services (ITS) claim that not spending enough on IT (more spent on production and sales), and Web and ecommerce should be priority. Priorities 1 to 4 all favor the ITS team, and therefore should be well received.

Reciprocal Pronoun Definition and Examples

Reciprocal Pronoun Definition and Examples A reciprocal pronoun is a  pronoun that expresses mutual action or relationship. In English the reciprocal pronouns are each other and one another. Some usage guides insist that each other should be used to refer to two people or things, and one another to more than two. As Bryan Garner has observed, Careful writers will doubtless continue to observe the distinction, but no one else will notice (Garners Modern American Usage, 2009). See also: Anaphora (Grammar)Reference Examples ofReciprocal Pronouns Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.(John F. Kennedy, in a speech prepared for delivery on the day of his assassination, November 22, 1963)Men often hate each other because they fear each other; they fear each other because they dont know each other; they dont know each other because they can not communicate; they can not communicate because they are separated.(Martin Luther King, Jr., Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story, 1958)All birds and animals talk to one anotherthey really have to, in order to get along.(E.B. White, The Trumpet and the Swan. Harper Row, 1970)The capacity of human beings to bore one another seems to be vastly greater than that of any other animal.(H. L. Mencken, Notes on Democracy, 1926)There is no such thing as the StateAnd no one exists alone;Hunger allows no choiceTo the citizen or the police;We must love one another or die.(W.H. Auden, September 1, 1939)People whose grandparents were all long-lived and lived with the family, shoo t each other before they are 40.(Robert Benchley, How Long Can You Live? The Benchley Roundup. Harper Row, 1954) [W]ith a gasp of exasperation he rips away a great triangular piece [of the map] and tears the large remnant in half and, more calmly, lays these three pieces on top of each other and tears them in half, and then those six pieces and so on until he has a wad he can squeeze in his hand like a ball.(John Updike, Rabbit, Run. Alfred A. Knopf, 1960)They all come together and Tohero introduces Margaret: Margaret Kosko, Harry Angstrom, my finest athlete, its a pleasure for me to be able to introduce two such wonderful young people to one another.(John Updike, Rabbit, Run. Alfred A. Knopf, 1960) Usage Guide: Each Other or One Another? Each other and one another are known as the reciprocal pronouns. They serve either as determiners (in the possessive case) or as objects, referring to previously named nouns: Each other generally refers to two nouns; one another to three or more.(Martha Kolln and Robert Funk, Understanding English Grammar. Allyn and Bacon, 1998)In modern English, most people normally use each other and one another in the same way. Perhaps one another is preferred (like one) when we are making very general statements, and not talking about particular people.(Michael Swan, Practical English Usage. Oxford Univ. Press, 1995)A Practical Grammar: In Which Words, Phrases, and Sentences Are Classified According to Their Offices, and Their Relation to Each Other(Title of a textbook by Stephen W. Clark, published by A. S. Barnes, 1853)Prescriptive style commentators have tried to insist that each other should be used between two people only, and one another when more than two were concerned. Yet Fowler (1926) spoke firmly against this distinction, arguing it had neither present utility nor a basis in historical usage. His judgment is confirmed in citations recorded in the Oxford Dictionary (1989) and Websters English Usage (1989).(Pam Peters, The Cambridge Guide to English Usage. Cambridge Univ. Press, 2004)