Economic Freedom

Part I. Introduction It has become apparent in recent years that the issue of vast globalization, economic development and its impact on various aspects of state wellbeing is the one that needs to be looked at very carefully. Moreover, direct investments into the country’s development and as a result improved quality of life are an additional incentive to increase the economic freedom level.Throughout the centuries scholars and economists have argued on whether economic freedom based on private property and free markets is the only beneficial and effective form of economy formation or centralized system of governing is better. Myriad researches have been brought to public, however, our group believes economic freedom is currently in increasing phase of its development, and thus should be thoroughly examined and reviewed basing on country background and scores obtained.This, in our view, will help to accelerate the wellbeing of Kazakhstan and possibly attract additional cash in flows from external market players. The paper will examine the issue of economic freedom and indices it defines in more details, will cover all the aspects included in consideration of the latter concept and will try to assess the relationship between economic freedom and potential investments rise. Brief definition of basic concepts In order to be in line with the topic and understand it deeply, below we present some underlying definitions of basic concepts that will be used throughout the paper.The classic definition of economic freedom and its index is outlined below: â€Å"Individuals have economic freedom when property they acquire without the use of force, fraud, or theft is protected from physical invasions by others and they are free to use, exchange, or give their property as long as their actions do not violate the identical rights of others† James Gwartney and Robert Lawson Economic Freedom of the World: 1996 Annual Report As obtained from www. economicfreedom. org , â€Å"economic freedom is the key to greater opportunity and an improved quality of life.It’s the freedom to choose how to produce, sell, and use your own resources, while respecting others’ rights to do the same. While a simple concept, economic freedom is an engine that drives prosperity in the world and is the difference between why some societies thrive while others do not. † Considering economic freedom is the issue of highest importance as it deals with each and every aspect of our life. Having greater economic freedom, the society ensures higher income levels, decreased poverty, less unemployment percentages and overall healthier state position in terms of economical, financial and political development.Economic freedom index (EFI) is defined as â€Å"a ranking of countries based on the number and intensity of government regulations on wealth-creating activity. Metrics that an economic freedom index evaluates include international trade restrictions, g overnment spending relative to GDP, occupational licensing requirements, private property rights, minimum wage laws and other government-controlled factors that affect people's ability to earn a living and keep what they earn. † (Extracted from www. investopedia. com).For all over the years, The Heritage Foundation in partnership with The Wall Street Journal has tracked the trends in economic freedom around the world and assigned indices to each country. It is a valuable source to gather information from, and the current paper is mostly based on the latter findings. The key factors influencing the level of economic freedom are the personal choice, voluntary exchange coordinated by markets, freedom to enter and compete in markets and protection of individual property from aggression of other including the government intervention.This implies that in economically free society government protects the individuals and their property, maintain stable monetary environment, refrain fr om creating barriers to trade and fairly allocate benefits; however, in case a government substitutes taxes, government expenditures, and regulations for personal choice, voluntary exchange, and market coordination, it may reduce economic freedom and thus diminish quality of life of the whole state.Five broad areas are considered when summarizing and stating the index for a country: * Size of the government: meaning sound taxing (low marginal tax rates) and wise spendings from the side of the government. * Legal Structure and Security of Property Rights: this indicates the consistence of a state’s legal framework with property protection and application of the laws in various spheres of business conducting and everyday life. * Access to sound money: the essence of this concept is whether a government is able not to abuse its monopolistic power. To get high ratings here, a country’s inflation must be low and stable, and the government must permit people to own currencie s of other nations† (Lawson, Robert A. , Economic Freedom, Library of Economics and Liberty) * Freedom to Trade Internationally: the core idea here is the presence of any barriers to free trade (quotas, restrictions or tariffs). * Regulation of Credit, Labor and Business: such concepts as minimum wages for workers, price controls, business licensing ; potential barriers to entry the business might be reviewed at this stage.Having examined the surface of the issue to be researched, we formulated the research question we are going to obtain the answer to at the end of the paper. Research question: Do countries that exhibit greater degrees of economic freedom perform better than those that do not and will the latter help Kazakhstan to attract more potential investments? Part II. Economic Freedom: Kazakhstani case In 2012 Kazakhstan scored 63. 6 in terms of economic freedom level, and thus ensuring Kazakhstani economy to be number 65th in the world list.As per the Heritage Foundat ion Report as of 2012, current country score is 1. 5 points higher in comparison with last year index. This amount represents slight improvements in property rights freedom, freedom from corruption and public spendings. Figure 1. 1 represents the history of indices obtained by the state in the last 5 years. Country| Year| Overall Freedom| Business Freedom| Financial Freedom| Kazakhstan| 2008| 61. 10| 56. 80| 60| Kazakhstan| 2009| 60. 10| 57. 90| 60| Kazakhstan| 2010| 61| 73. 50| 50| Kazakhstan| 2011| 62. 10| 74. 30| 50| Figure 1. 1 Figure 1. shows the overall trends of economic freedom indices throughout the time. It is clearly seen than in 2009 Kazakhstan scored the lowest, and the backup for this might be the substantial rise of global economic crisis. At that time the state encountered myriad barriers to healthy economic, financial and political environments, as it should have sustained positive financial balances all over the country, diminished bankruptcy potential, saved money of its citizens and remained attractive for the external investments. From that time on Kazakhstan tend to increase its economic reedom index and the line of indicating the latter steadily goes up throughout the years 2010-2012, and the last Heritage Foundation Report proves the fact that the country continues its positive trend of advancing economic freedom and ensuring constant development. As presented in the graph on Figure 1. 2, the state has become one of the first to turn back to the expansion and recovery from the global crisis. This is ensured by the enhanced regulation efficiency (at least endeavors towards that) and constant policy reforms in various areas of country wellbeing.Figure 1. 2 The country also scores higher results if compared to the world and regional averages. As according to The Heritage Foundation, Kazakhstan ranks 11th out of 41 countries in Asia-Pacific region, and it is recorded one of the 20 largest score improvements in the 2012 Index considerations. Figure 1. 3 summarizes the above stated information and graphically represents Kazakhstani standpoint in comparison with global and regional averages indices. Figure 1. 3The government of Kazakhstan being aware of the increased significance of economic freedom stability makes efforts in order to continue its positive index rising over time trend and adapts vast amount of laws, amendments and promotes individual’s freedom protection. â€Å"The link between economic freedom and prosperity is undeniable: the countries that score highly in terms of economic freedom also offer their people the best quality of life† (Azis Isa, Central Asian Free Market Institute Policy Analyst).Many empirical studies using the Economic Freedom Index reveal that a country’s economic freedom is highly correlated with its level of capital investment and the rate of economic growth (Gwartney and Lawson ; Holcombe, 2006). Non-monetary measures such as social welfare and peaceful and healt hy state environment also directly correlate with EFI. Scully (2002) has found that economic freedom is correlated with more equal distributions of income across countries. Rise of GDP per capita levels, promotion of decreased poverty percentages in a given country are also affected by the economic freedom situation of the country.Below is the session of graphs analyzing the correlation of economic freedom levels with various aspects of a state development. Countries with more economic freedom have substantially higher per-capita incomes ans thus more stable economic wellbeing of the society. Figure 1. 4. As seen from the graphical representation, those states that fall into â€Å"most free† group tend to have more vast growth rates and as a result higher level of economic growth throughout the country.The difference between the first and the last groups is rather big, and that proves the above stated assumption. Figure 1. 6 represents the correlation between economic growth and income per capita among the poorest strata of the society. As per the graph, we can suppose there is a direct positive relationship between the variables. Figure 1. 6 Kazakhstan has mostly faced economic freedom challenges throughout its history. Being a young state, it had no solid experience to rely upon rather than remaining habits and regimes obtained during Soviet Union times of ruling.Kazakhstani people do not have much influence over the government and its regulations and laws and majority of them encounter many difficulties in business sphere entry levels, further conducting and maintaining of the latter as well as improving their own individual micro economy. However, there are some positive trends in formation of economic freedom in Kazakhstan, and year to year steady development as shown in the Heritage Foundation Report proves that same fact.As according to the Heritage Foundation Report, â€Å"excessive dependence on raw commodity exports makes the economy particul arly vulnerable to global price changes. Rising commodity prices and improved domestic conditions encouraged substantial economic growth in 2010 and 2011†. The organization in partnership with the World Bank states Kazakhstan has an ambitious economic development program, which is planned to be outperformed in the nearest years, and outlines some problematic zones government of the country should pay intent attention to.The further section of the paper discusses the inefficient potential risk spheres the state should work on in order to relieve the situation in the future and continue its positive trend in developing economic freedom. Economic Freedom in Kazakhstan: Challenging restrictions Once the Annual 2012 Report is over and the country obtained its rating results, we recommend the government to consider the following currently inefficient spheres of the state wellbeing.Kazakhstan still faces many challenges on the way of improving its economic freedom level. * Rule of La w As stated in the Heritage Foundation Report, legal framework is currently very inefficient and actually does not cover some spheres of the freedom the way it should. For instance, intellectual property rights are still in a very shaky position and there is no clearly stated and stable position on that sophisticated issue from the side of the government.Although in the beginning of the current 2012 year there were some endeavors made in order to improve intellectual property rights in the country (banning some Internet resources sites, increased fines and jurisdiction cases), this particular policy just raised a new set of problems and questions and was vastly criticized from the side of the business owners as well as general public, because the new Law on Intellectual Property Rights interfered with basic Constitutional rights of every citizen to express the opinion and thoughts.In addition, the court system lacks the capacity to prove its stability and honesty – this year there were many cases of court system failure: judges were taken with bribes, inefficient cases regulations and many more. Recent changes in anti-corruption law only deepened the definition and presence of the latter in the society as it implies indirect potential involvement from the side of the governmental bodies. * Limited governmentOverall tax burden that exist in the country amounts in 21. 5 % of total domestic income. Government spendings are equivalent to 23. 5 percent of total domestic output. The difference between the two variables kept the substantially large oil revenues, thus relieving the whole situation and leaving public state debt standing at less than 15% of GDP. (as per the Heritage Foundation Annual 2012 report). * Regulatory efficiency ; Open marketsBusiness freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom inefficiencies cases could be considered in that particular section. They in overall have many problems, bureaucratic barriers and lack of regulation from the side o f the government. Business freedom in Kazakhstan, for instance, lack the easy entry possibilities for the individuals, as it is very costly and takes much more time than it is expected to, moreover, increased level of governmental taxes, quotas and tariffs are also barriers to free trade between people and states.However, there are some positive sides in that area – potential WTO entry, expansion of Customs Union are the positive measures Kazakhstan is undertaking in this regard. As for the labor freedom, there is a tendency to think only about employers, leaving the employees aside. Thus, it is very cheap for a company to hire new employee, and it costs nothing to fire him/her. Moreover, in many national companies and even governmental bodies working day are non-scheduled and overtimes are not paid at all.This is a large problem for the whole country. Child labor issue should also be considered attentively when pondering about economic freedom rise. Monetary freedom could be interfered by the government as it may tend to distort domestic prices and try to influence many industries in a row. Inflation rate is also increasing from year to year. This year it tends to be fluctuating thus leaving the individual suffer from potential commodity prices rise. Below is the summary of inflation rates statistics.

Discuss How Difficult Would It Be for Hong Kong to Develop

The use of befoul Is not desirable, since It Is not commonly use. It would be difficult for the government to promote because not many people in Hong Kong drive cars and there are other car fuel options, for example LAP. From the economic perspective, developing befoul involves high production cost. Befoul is not the only option to fight against air pollution. The demand of befoul is not very high and the Hong Kong government could spend the budget on other aspects. Or else people who cannot be benefit from the scheme would just protest, which adversely affect social harmony.On the other hand, from the experience and research of other countries, it is know that developing befoul would cause deforestation and loss of habitat. It would be difficult for the government to develop befoul because people may think that spending heavy cost to do so Just couldn't solve the problem in a sustainable way. The support from its people would not be enough. From the safety perspective, , since Hong Kong has no experience in handling befoul, accidents may happen. If befoul exploited on a large scale, it would be very dangerous.Accidents not only happen in plants, but also cars, fuel leak could be one of the possibilities that cause harm to the people using befoul. To conclude there are many difficulties In developing and promote befouls to replace peritoneum as car fuels, the government should do consultation and consider the needs of different people before the Implementation. Discuss How Difficult Would It Be for Hong Kong to Develop and Promote Befouls to Replace Petroleum as Car Fee By caterpillar From geographical perspective, bodiless feedstock available in Hong Kong is waste cooking oil and animal fats.Due to the limited space, it is not possible to build many bodiless production plants in Hong Kong, as a result the supply of befoul would not be enough. Moreover, Hong Kong has heavy use of petroleum, since it is cheaper, more efficient and can be imported easily. The use of befoul is not desirable, since it is not commonly use. It would be difficult for the government to promote because not aspects. Or else people who cannot be benefit from the scheme would Just protest, To conclude there are many difficulties in developing and promote befouls to the needs of different people before the implementation.

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The first innovation that was mentioned in this case was that of an Incremental Innovation. An incremental innovation is a series of small improvements to an existing product or product line that usually helps maintain or improve its competitive position over time. Incremental innovation is regularly used within the high technology business by companies that need to continue to improve their products to include new features increasingly desired by consumers. The case describes that the old way of selling â€Å"hard copy† music, movies, and games could shift to providing new ‘e-tailing’ channels through which you can obtain the latest CD of your preference – for example, from Amazon.com or CD-Now or 100 other websites. These innovations increase the choice and tailoring of the music purchasing service and demonstrate some of the ‘richness/reach’ economic shifts of the new Internet game. This is not a drastic change in marketing to sell hard copies of these products; it is simply a shift from the brick and mortar to an online option. It does not shift the way these products are produced, but is however an incremental change in the way it is distributed. The second innovation which was described was a Discontinuous innovation. Discontinuous innovations cause a paradigm shift in science or technology and/or the market structure of an industry. As they are entirely new-to-the world products, made to perform a function for which no product has previously existed, discontinuous innovation requires a good deal of learning for the incumbent organization and its value network, including the user. This Discontinuous innovation is described in the ways in which music is created and distributed, and in the business model on which the whole music industry is currently predicated. Discontinuous innovations also disrupt established routine and may even require a very different set of capabilities and new behavior patterns. The notion of novelty is relative so a discontinuous innovation for one organization might be an incremental one for another. As the case describes, aspiring musicians no longer need to depend on being picked up by A&R staff from major companies who can bear the costs of recording and production of a physical CD. Instead they can use home recording software and either produce a CD themselves or else go straight to MP3 – and then distribute the product globally via newsgroups, chat rooms, etc. In the process they effectively create a parallel and much more direct music industry which leaves existing players and artists on the sidelines. Napster posed a huge threat to the established music business since it involved no payment of royalties. There are now many other sites emulating and extending what Napster started – sites such as Gnutella, Kazaa, Limewire took the P2P idea further and enabled exchange of many different file formats – text, video, etc. In Napster’s own case the phenomenally successful site concluded a deal with entertainment giant Bertelsman which paved the way for subscription-based services which provide some revenue stream to deal with the royalty issue. Apple was another company who saw the need for change, and successfully implemented discontinu ous innovation to shake up the music industry. With the launch of their successful iPod personal MP3 player they opened a site called iTunes which offered users a choice of thousands of tracks for download at 99c each. In its first weeks of operation it recorded 1 million hits and in February 2006. Over 1 billion songs have now been legally purchased and downloaded around the globe, representing a major force against music piracy and the future of music distribution as we move from CDs to the Internet. Works Cited discontinuous innovation. (2013, September 7). Retrieved from Lexicon: http://lexicon.ft.com/term?term=discontinuous-innovation Incremental innovation. (2013, September 7). Retrieved from Business Dictionary: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/incremental-innovation.html#ixzz2eE7EGEmb

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Short - ServeNow - Term Paper Example In order to facilitate the customers and to earn a dominant position in the market, many entrepreneurs aim at maintaining a chain of their business outlets. However this requires tremendous hard work but if their plan works then it yields numerous rewards not only for the entrepreneur but for all the stakeholders. I, being the small business consultant, Solange De Peres, have already advised my client Bushley, that he needs to hire new mangers as internal recruitment is not possible, because the existing staff does not possess the skills required for the vacant positions. In addition to this, I have also advised my client that he must hire those people who are not acquainted with store operations as this way they will spend more time in learning and gaining the experience with Bushley and will not think of changing their jobs quickly. However this will require a lot of time and efforts from my client in training his managerial force, but this can all be managed with the aid of technological good available in the market. I advise Bushley that he should prepare a detailed training program, explaining clearly about the stores’ operations. The training program should describe thoroughly about the responsibilities of each individual manager and how they could perform the respective tasks. After preparing this program Bushley can record it with the help of professional recording software programs such as Pro-tools or logics. Once the training has been recorded he can either upload it on his website, where all manager can have an individual access to it or he can make his account on YouTube and upload his training programs there. The recording software programs that I have mentioned above are the most widely used programs all over the world. They are extremely capable of catering to these professional needs very well. I recommend that Bushley should also consider the option of video conferencing in training his managerial force. Video

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Ethics Review - Article Example What the article requires people involved in accounting and finance was the same thing that was asked of us when I worked as a customer service representative for a contact center. We were always reminded to be truthful to our customers like telling them our real name, giving them the correct picture of the situation or problem, and the like. We were also reminded not to disclose to others vital information of our customers like their credit card number and phone number. I think the company I worked for is okay. But in order to improve the company’s relation with its clients, management should continue emphasizing to the employees the importance of practicing good ethical behavior. Ethics is important in accounting and financing because being truthful and honest allows one to gain the trust of other people. When we work with others and observe acceptable behavior, we do not only help the company grow but we also help ourselves too. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act emphasizes the importa nce of providing true and accurate facts in financial statements. The said act also requires companies to be transparent in their financial and accounting activities. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act puts into action the principles Shanker laid down in her article.

Hospitality-Accounting Professions in Hotel Essay

Hospitality-Accounting Professions in Hotel - Essay Example The role of the accountant should be emphasised in order to gain competitive advantage. Another unique and contributing factor of accounting in shape of improved planning, controlling, co-ordinating and evaluation of firm's performance. In addition, both industry and regulatory bodies should work together to promote the fair accounting practices in the industry. While keeping in view the case of Australian hospitality industry in competition with the international hospitality industry, Australia should use fairness as an approach to compete with the global competition. I would like to express my gratitude to all the people who have been instrumental in the completion of this paper. First, my mentor, who has been very patient in guiding me throughout this undertaking. I would also like to thank the Australian hospitality industry managers who have dedicated their time and thoughts. I would also like to thank my friends and loved ones that have supported me until the completion of the paper. Lastly, I would like to thank our Lord Almighty for giving me the fortitude to accomplish this feat. To you be all the glory! Perhaps the foremost social and ethical responsibility levied upon private and public organisation in recent decades is the adoption of fair and just accounting practices. This responsibility is being increasingly codified in laws and various accounting standards. Its influence is becoming increasingly pervasive through a constant series of new and improved standards as well as steady enlargement in the size and scope of administering agencies. The improvement in public scrutiny and controlled market discipline is largely dependent upon the meaningful and accurate disclosure of information. This not only helps the shareholders but also helps the organisation to conduct business in a safe and efficient manner by achieving their targets through improving their risk management processes. The researchers find many gaps in the appropriate disclosure of risk by the organisations. Many surveys have been conducted, a wide variety of studies and interviews from the information users and shareholders have pointed out towards gaps in the currently disclosed information. The demand of provision of accurate and timely information is increasing. (AICPA, 2005) describes the following uses of the business reports. Promote a common understanding of terms and alternatives that facilitate negotiations between users and companies about the (Murphy, 1999) sees Financial reporting and financial statements in particular can be thought of as a less through which one can view a business. Financial reporti

Creativity versus Intelligence Essay Example for Free

Creativity versus Intelligence Essay I have been accepted by a research company, a company I have been dreaming to be a part of ever since I discovered that I have extreme interest for research and that I possess skills that only researchers have. My mother however has a bakeshop that I play a large role in; without me, my mom will be having excruciating difficulty running the business alone. As soon as I received the letter stating that I have been accepted to the part-time research job I applied for I went to the company downtown and spoke to the one in charge of the Human Resources division. I have been told that if I have finally decided to accept it, I should return for the contract to be signed. I left the research company and drove around town thinking of what I should do. As I was driving my mother called and told me to drop by at the bakeshop as soon as I can. When I arrived there a few minutes later she told me she’ll make an offer I could not refuse. She said she will promote me – from being an assistant baker to be the head, a dream which I have been yearning to attain as well. Creative Thinking Strategy I left the bakeshop to think. I called my best friend and told her I would like to brainstorm with her with regards to my dilemma. I am aware that in brainstorming I should: 1) â€Å"suspend judgment† or to make a final assessment or evaluation later; 2) â€Å"think freely† or to include countless options even though they are ridiculous or seemingly impossible to attain; 3) â€Å"tag on† or to develop and adapt the ideas of other individuals; and 4) come up with countless of ideas (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). This is what my best friend and I did: First, I â€Å"suspended judgment† by considering both accepting the job in the research company and taking the promotion in the bakeshop as excellent choices (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). This helps me avoid being biased on one over the other (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). This strategy plays a large role in balancing my options at least initially (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). Second, I engaged in â€Å"thinking freely† (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). This led me to come up with ridiculous options like â€Å"maybe I should give up both opportunities and focus on my studies first; maybe later I will have these chances knock up my door once more† and â€Å"maybe I should just ask my mother to wait until I finish my contract with the research company† (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). Third, I â€Å"tagged on† as well (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). I developed and adapted the idea of my best friend to just stay in the bakeshop since my mother needs me more than the research company (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). She said that I should be doing my responsibility first as a child before I attend to somebody else’s (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). I took this seriously and thought I should really pick this as the best option especially that it is our own business after all (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). The current generation, as well as, the succeeding generations will be the first ones to benefit from this if I just stay and help make it more successful (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). Finally, I listed down all the other options I have including taking both jobs and just go through everything successfully by employing time management and discipline (Harris, 2002, n. p. ). The Solution The option I have chosen is to accept the part-time job at the research company, as well as, the promotion at the bakeshop while attending college. I will do my best to carry out my responsibilities through time management as well as discipline. Reflection on the Difference between Intelligence and Creativity I realized that, indeed, â€Å"time pressure quashes creativity because it limits people’s freedom to ponder different options and directions† (Murray, 2002, p. 24). If the company obliged me to return there to sign the contract ASAP or if my mom pressured into deciding ASAP, I would not have thought clearly, I would not have gotten the chance to evaluate all the possible options that I have and would not get to pick the best alternative as well (Murray, 2002, p. 24). This also made me realize the difference between intelligence and creativity. Intelligence may be innate, it may be there when you need it; it may also be acquired through a good education. Intelligence is stored and may just be retrieved if necessary. Creativity on the hand may also be innate and may also be acquired; but it is different in such a way that unlike intelligence it cannot just be retrieved and utilized. There are other factors to consider for instance â€Å"time pressure†, this may get in the way of creativity (Ordonez et. al. , 1997, pp. 121 140). One may be intelligent but one cannot be too creative especially if he or she is under time pressure; in fact it has been concluded in a certain study that â€Å"†¦if one is crunched the less likely he or she will be able to solve a tricky problem† (Murray, 2002, p. 24). References Harris, R. (2002). Creative Thinking Techniques. Retrieved November 14, 2008 from http://www. virtualsalt. com/crebook2. htm Murray, B. (2002). A Ticking Clock Means a Creativity Drop. Retrieved November 14, 2008 from http://www. apa. org/monitor/nov02/tickingclock. html Ordonez, L Benson, L. (1997). Decision under Time Pressure: How Time Constraints Affects Risky Decision Making. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes (71) 2, 121 – 140.

Ethics and Corruption in Cycling

Ethics and Corruption in Cycling Ethics in Sport- The Case of Cycling Introduction The Higher Moral and Ethical Ground Conclusion Bibliography Introduction As one of the world’s more demanding sports, cycling extracts as well as expects a maximum performance from its professional participants. It pits them directly against the world’s best in the sport on almost every outing, thus creating a field of competition whereby they are judged, and rated in almost every outing against the leading stars. Unlike other team sports whereby one’s performance is measured, and or gauged against those of a like skill or position, cycling does not provide this cushion or hedge. One’s performance comes under direct scrutiny each, and every outing with time sheet comparisons to indicate one’s standing, be it the mountain climbing segment, sprints, or overall balanced performance through a stage or Tour. The demands of strength, endurance, intestinal fortitude, and mental stamina that is spread in most cases over days, and in the case of the Tour de France, weeks, creates an atmosphere of pressure to perform that is unkno wn in any other type of professional sport. Dr. Alejandro Lucia (Cheung, 2003), a world recognized authority in the physiology of professional cycling, has stated that the training as well as discipline required to participate exact a high mental toll that is also a factor of the high stress of physical conditioning as well as genetics. As would be expected, each country with major participants in professional cycling has its own cycling federation, however, the Union Europà ©enne de Cyclisme, European Cycling Union, is the confederation that oversees the Union Cycliste Internationale, International Cycling Union, which is the professional organization that oversees professional cycling events globally (UEC, 2007). This organization has the responsibility for the issuance of licenses to professional cyclists, along with the enforcement of rules and regulations, which in this instance includes doping (UCI, 2007a). The professional cycling devisions that the the UCI oversees are road cycling events, track, mountain bike, cyclo- cross, BMX, Trials, indoor cycling, and para-cycling (UCI, 2007a). The International Cycling Union is a non-profit-making organization that was founded on 14 April 1900, and is headquartered in Aigle, Switzerland (UCI, 2007b). The organization’s aims represent: The regulation of professional cycling on the international level, The promotion of cycling internationally, in every country as well as at all levels, The organization of professional cycling World Championships for all cycling divisions, The encouragement as well as maintenance of friendly and professional relationships between all cycling divisions, The promotion of sporting ethics as well as fair play, The representation of professional cycling along with the defence of its interests internationally, And the collaboration with the International Olympic Committee concerning cycling events held in the Olympics (UCI, 2007b). It is item 5. the promotion of sporting ethics as well as fair play, along with morals that represents the focus of this examination. And in keeping with such, the International Cycling Union has adopted a ‘Code of Ethics’ that defines and specifies the conduct of action, and rules governing all professional cycling events (UCI, 2007c). It specifies that all executive, management, administrative, cyclists, and other individuals and associations in any way affiliated as well as coming under the aegis of the International Cycling Union must adhere to said ‘Code of Ethics (UCI, 2007c). It sets forth that on a daily basis, all participants must comply with the rules of the ‘Code of Ethics’ with respect to (UCI, 2007c): human dignity, principles of nondiscrimmination concerning race, gender, ethic origin, gender, philosophical as well as political opinions, religion, marital staus, or any other forms of discrimination for whatever reason, the principle of nonviolence in any form as well as the exerting of any type of pressure, and or harassment by any means, specify physical, professional, mental, and sexual, the maintenance of integrity, to hold the priority of the best interests of the sport on a daily basis, to hold the priority of the interests of the sport as well as its athletes regarding financial interests, to protect the environment, to maintain neurality in political issues, and Olympism. Within this ‘Code’ it is required that all parties uphold the principles as well as interests of professional cycling as well as refraining from any behaviour that might jeopardize the sport, and or the reputation of the UCI (UCI, 2007c). Within this framework is the important concept of ‘integrity’, which means â€Å"the firm adherance to a code of †¦ moral or artistic values †¦ (Interactive Playground, 2007). The preceding is specially inportant in the context of this examination as it focuses on the ‘ethical and moral questions’ of drug use in the sport. Integrity represents a skill that is learned over time (Interactive Playground, 2007). As a part of the UCI ‘Code of Ethics’, integrity, under Article 4, is stated as the fact that all parties associated with the UCI shall therefore refrain from the asking for, acceptance of, and or proposal, either directly or indirectly, that any payment as well as commission, along with any advantages and or services of any type that has not been agreed to or authorized by the UCI shall not be undertaken (UCI, 2007c). Furthermore, under inetgrity it also states that when any type of offers of the aforementioned variety are made, that the UCI be so informed (UCI, 2007c). Said conditions under integrity, Article 5, go on to add that parties as covered under their association with the UCI can only accept symbolic gifts that are bestowed in the spirit of freindship as a matter of local custom, and that any other types of gifts are to be forwarded to the UCI (UCI, 2007c). The ‘Code’ goes on to cover such fields as ‘Conflict of Interests’, and Confidentiality’ in laying out specific terms of conduct (UCI, 2007c). In keeping with the foregoing, the UCI has established an ‘Ethics Commission’, that has been granted authority in the following areas (UCI, 2007c): to oversee and ensure that all facets of the ‘Code’ are respected, to field and receive complaints with regard to any infringement to the ‘Code’, to provide advice as well as assistance concerning ethical matters in all phases of the ‘Code’, to provide advice on the avoidance as well as resolution of conflicts of interests, to recommend sanctions as a result of offences against the ‘Code’, to set forth measures for the application and adherence to the ‘Code’, and to put forth proposals recommending programmes to teach and advise on ethics. The foregoing represents an extremely important facet in this discussion in that the UCI has taken an active stance in the areas of ethics, and morals, as defined by integrity. The foregoing represents a critical aspect in the examination of breaches, and scandals that have befallen the sport of cycling that have made the news recently, particularly in the instance of the most recent winner of the Tour de France. The Consequences of Individual Actions As indicated in the UCI’s ‘Code of Ethics’ as well as by the actions taken by this organization as far back as the 1960s when an article representing doping was introduced into the organization’s rules, drugs have been a key consideration in ensuring that a level as well as trustworthy representation of the sport was, and is a part of its operation (UCI, 2007d). The preceding focus was further enhanced by the following subsequent rules, and regulations (UCI, 2007d: in 1966 a similar article, on doping as referred to in 1960, was added to the UCI Technical Guide, in 1967, the UCI published its first list representing substances that were prohibited, in 1967 the UCI put into motion the first sanctions taken against riders that refused to undergo testing, 1967 represented the publishing of the first Medical Control Rules, which were the forerunner to the Anti-doping Rules The above historical understanding of the stance, and active programmes of the UCI is important in the context of recent events on doping in the sport of cycling. This examination shall cover the most noteworthy of these types of events, noting that doping issues have been a part of individual athlete rule broaching since the 1960’s (UCI, 2007d). The Tour de France represents professional cycling’s most premier, and prestigious event. It’s â€Å"†¦scale and social and cultural significance demands the academic attention that it has not always received †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 1). Covering in excess of 4,000 kilometres throughout France, and a few neighbouring countries, millions of on-hand spectators as well as hundreds of millions across the globe via television, and other forms of media follow the event. First conducted in 1903, the Tour has been held as a pinnacle of sporting fairness that shows athletes at their best over three weeks of grueling competition through mountains, and flat stages that average around 150 plus kilometres per day (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 228). Waddington (1998, p. 161) advises â€Å"†¦that a good Tour takes one year off your life, and when you finish in a bad state, they reckon three years†¦ You cant describe to a normal person how tired you fee l†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . They add that â€Å"†¦fatigue starts to kick in on the Tour after ten days if youre in good shape, and after five days if youre not in your best condition physically† (Waddington, 1998, p. 161). Waddington (1998, p. 161) adds that â€Å"Then, it all just gets worse and worse, you dont sleep so much, so you dont recover as well from the days racing, so you go into your reserves, you get more knackered, so you sleep less†¦ Its simply a vicious circle†. Robert Millar, a Scottish cycling professional who rode in the Tour, goes on to state that â€Å"It takes two weeks to recover from a good Tour, three months to recover from a bad one† (Waddington, 1998, p. 161). This event is being utilized in the context of this examination as a result of the intense competition between riders to look good on the world stage in cycling’s biggest event. The preceding translates into the fact that the â€Å"†¦Tour de France cannot avoid seeing an increase in the demands on competitors with the ever-growing importance of television, whose systematic coverage of every stage has also brought in, on top of the necessary battle for the stage win, the necessary battle for permanent presence in front of the TV cameras, therefore making races ever faster† (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 229). They add that there is a â€Å"†¦ long-standing presence of doping in the Tour brings us back to the excessive nature of the race† (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 229). The first instance of doping in the Tour de France occurred in 1924 as a result of the confessions of the Pelissier brothers who admitted using â€Å"†¦cocaine for the eyes, thats chl oroform for the gums† † (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 230). The next significant doping issue occurred in 1955 when Tour riders Jean Mallejac, Ferdi Kubler and Charly Gaul† admitted to taking substances (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 229-230). Doping issues were subsequently repeated in † (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 230): 1966 representing the first year in which â€Å"†¦-doping tests were carried out in the Tour de France †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 230). In 1975 the first rider tested positive for doping, In 1977 another incident was uncovered, In 1980, there was another issue of a rider testing positive for drugs. But, the most noted example came in 1998 when the winner of the Tour, Marco Pantini tested positive in a subsequent race called the Tour of Italy in 1999 (Appleyard, 2006). In 2000, Frenchman Richard Virengue, a celebrated rider in the Tour, admitted to using drugs during a Festina trial (Dauncey and Hare, 2003, p. 232), with the biggest scandal taking place in 2006 when major Tour riders Jan Ullrich, a winner of the Tour in 1997, and Ivan Basso where forced to withdraw from the event (Leicester, 2006). But, for the first time in the history of the Tour de France in 2006, the winner was later declared ineligible and stripped of his title after testing positively for drugs (Bagratuni, 2006). Subsequent testing after the Tour was completed found that Landis tested positive for the 17th stage to Morzine that he won in what has been termed â€Å"†¦ spectacular fashion after a long ride over 130 kilometres †¦Ã¢â‚¬  that included â€Å"†¦ three major alpine peaks† ( Bagratuni, 2006). The discovery wound up causing the cancellation of a later racing event in the Netherlands as well as Denmark, and set off an international furor over doping that had been building for years (cbc.ca, 2006a). The scandals brought back to the forefront past cycling scandals, as a result of the magnitude of the 2006 Tour winner being stripped of his crown. A lot of journalists stated that the 1998 scandals nearly killed the Tour’s integrity as well as value when an employee of the Festina team was arrested with a carload of â€Å"†¦ performance enhancing drugs †¦Ã¢â‚¬  that included one called erythropoietin (EOP), which is â€Å"†¦ a hormone that helps the blood carry more oxygen †¦Ã¢â‚¬  which thus lets riders carry on longer as well as faster (cbc.ca, 2006a). That incident lead to the arrest of six members of the Festina cycling team, out of nine utilized in the Tour, who admitted to the use of drugs that aided in their performance, along with the leader of the Credit Agricole team Christophe Moreau, who later in that same year â€Å"†¦ tested positive for anabolic steroids† (cbc.ca, 2006a). The litany continues with the following incidents as well as allegations (cbc.ca, 2006a): 2002 saw Stefano Garzelli, the â€Å"†¦ leader of the Vini Caldirola team †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (cbc.ca, 2006) tested positive for probenecid. The preceding is a diuretic that is often used to mask the presence of other drugs. 2003 saw Igor Gonzalez, a Spanish cyclist, being banned from the Tour de France after he tested positive for an anti-asthma. 2004 saw the police in France seize EPO, amphetamines as well as male hormones, and the arrest to Cofidis team cyclists. Lance Armstrong, the most celebrated Tour winner was accused of doping allegations, and later cleared. The preceding has damaged the reputation, and sporting fairness of cycling, and represents a long list of doping scandals that have also rocked other sports. The spectacular performances of the 1970s, and 80s East German swimming teams saw a large number of stellar performers later come down with negative health and side effects â€Å"†¦such as liver cancer, organ damage, psychological defects, hormonal changes and infertility †¦Ã¢â‚¬  that called into question that they might have taken performance enhancing drugs (cbc.ca, 2006b). Kornelia Ender, the winner of four gold and the silver gold medals during the 1972, and 76 Olympics revealed she had been taking drug injections since she was 13 (cbc.ca, 2006b). Her situation mirrors that of other East German swimmers Barbara Krause, four gold and silver medals, Carola Nitschke, and others (cbc.ca, 2006b). Incidents of doping scandals hit the 1983 Pam Am Games that was held in Caracas, Venezula, U.S. Track and Field, professio nal baseball and football in the United States, and a host of other sports (cbc.ca, 2007a). The pressures to perform in all manner of sports is clear, and in the case of professional cycling has been particularly damaging owing to the international nature of the sport. The Higher Moral and Ethical Ground The preceding examples as well as histories of cycling, and other scandals have left the sport in a serious state of affairs. These events, and created a situation that has put â€Å",,, cycling at a fork in the road† (Case and Sachs, 2006). The failure of Floyd Landis to pass drug tests after winning the Tour de France resulted in the disbanding of the entire team as sponsors canceled their contracts (Abt, 2006). Gibbs (2000, p. 4) opens up a broad range of considerations in the case of ethics that takes into account that it, ethics, brings with it the responsibility for others. He states that ethics also takes into account that â€Å"We also are responsible for each other in a mutual way when justice requires us to become present, one-to-another† (Gibbs, 2000. p. 4). A situation that is made even more the case in cycling as a team is built to promote one rider, and when that rider or members of the team fails, the entire team suffers. The case of the collapse of Floyd Landis’ team after the 2006 Tour scandal is evidence of this point. Gibbs (2000, p. 4) stated the foregoing above, which in a team sport such as cycling makes such a bind more important. He adds that â€Å"†¦we are bound asymmetrically to each other, and ethical mutuality is possible only because of that excess of responsibility† (Gibbs, 2000. p. 4). And add that such represents a community whereby the actions of one affect the standings of others. As a community, cycling represents a prime example of the foregoing. Mottram (2003, p. 52) brings forth an interesting proposition that â€Å"The motivating factors for drug misuse do not necessarily lie in the hands of the athlete†. He (Mottram, 2003, p. 52) points to a number of studies whereby â€Å"†¦the majority of athletes, coaches, medical practitioners and others involved in sport do not favour the use of performance-enhancing drugs†. There is an ‘however’ he states, which represents that â€Å"†¦these results may reflect the respondents ethical and moral attitudes to the problem, but in practice the pressures of competition may compel them to take a more pragmatic approach to drug taking† (Mottram, 2003, p. 52). Gibbs (2000, p. 4) adds to the foregoing in stating that â€Å"†¦ethics are the will, conscious intentions, deliberate choices, or the perfection of an individual rational life†. Sports, and in this instance cycling, embody rules of fair play, ethics, and other value systems that the public idealizes, and seeks to believe in a world of uncertainty, corporate, and political corruption. Fans, and more importantly children, tend to view winning athletes as role models, thus when that trust is shattered it damages not just the individual, but the sport as a whole. Dauncey and Hare (2003, p. 182) describe this as â€Å"The spectators ethical analysis of the conduct of their favorite riders is arguably more complex than that of the Tour organizers (limited to the rules of the race) or that of the French state (limited to French law and Republican values towards sport) or that of cycle sports international ruling bodies such as the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)†. Conclusion Ethics is a concept, ideal, and principle that is rooted in moral philosophy. Plato’s dialogues delves into the question â€Å"†¦of the subjectivity or objectivity of morality provides the focus for the earliest complete works of philosophy †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Graham, 2004, p. 1). Our belief, and use of moral values represents an evolution of the human spirit that is traced back to Plato, and his teacher Socrates. They held that â€Å"†¦ there is a radical difference between the world of facts, and the world of values, between physis and nomos to use the Greek words, the difference being that when it comes to matters of value, the concepts of true and false have no meaningful application† (Graham, 2004. p. 1). Thus, Graham (2004, p. 1) holds that â€Å"By implication, then, in ethics there is no scope for proof and demonstration as there is in science and mathematics; ethical argument is a matter of rhetoric, which is to say, of persuading people to believe what you believe rather than proving to them that the beliefs you hold are true†. Rist (2001. p. 1) states that there is a core concern in ethics that is â€Å"†¦widely admitted to be a crisis in contemporary Western debate about ethical foundations†. He tells us that we are members of a larger community and that what binds us together in a livable society is the belief, and practice of ethics as a matter of trust (Rist, 2001. p. 205). He (Rist, 2001. p. 119) brings up the foundational principle of â€Å"†¦the problem of the relation between fairness and justice (in what circumstances and by what criteria should people be treated equally†, and that rules are seemingly needed if fairness as well as rights â€Å"†¦ are to be enforced†. He continues that ethics refers to the good life for humans as a whole, and that morality â€Å"†¦is limited to what we are told we ought, or more probably what we ought not to do† (Rist, 2001, p. 120). Hare (1997, p. 1) tells us that ethics can also be termed as a moral philosophy whereby it represents the point that â€Å"†¦philosophers come closest to practical issues in morals and politics†. Outka and Reeder (1993, p. 29) advise that the idea representing moral philosophy is and has been central to the history of philosophy and figures prominently with regard to â€Å"†¦recent moral, legal, and political thought and action†. They bring forth the interesting proposition that â€Å"†¦there is agreement on very general principles †¦ (of morality) †¦ such as the Golden Rule, and disagreement over more specific precepts, or that there is agreement over general moral ends and disagreement over particular means or purely factual considerations†. Morality represents the concept of does and don’ts, and that the â€Å"†¦mark of a civilized society is that its members share this concept, for only because they have it do civilized people acknowledge that human conduct everywhere is properly judged by standards accessible to members of societies other than their own, whose opinions they are not entitled to ignore† (Outka and Reeder, 1993, p. 29). The preceding is central to this discussion of the ethical, and moral questions of drug use in cycling. The ‘Code of Ethics’ as defined by the International Cycling Union has nine key points, representing (UCI, 2007c): human dignity, principles of nondiscrimmination concerning race, gender, ethic origin, gender, philosophical as well as political opinions, religion, marital staus or any other forms of discrimination for whatever reason, the principle of nonviolence in any form, as well as the exerting of any type of pressure and or harassment by any meas, specify phyical, professional, mental and sexual, the maintenance of integrity, to hold the priority of the best interests of the sport on a daily basis, to hold the priority of the interests of the sport as well as its athletes regarding financial interests, to protec the environment, to maintain neurality in political issues, and Olympism. The foregoing harkens back to Gibbs’ (2004, p. 4) statement that we are â€Å"†¦responsible for each other in a mutual way when justice requires us to become present, one-to-another†. He adds that â€Å"†¦we are bound asymmetrically to each other, and ethical mutuality is possible only because of that excess of responsibility†. That sense of community represents what the International Cycling Union is, and thus the highly damaging effects of individual actions to the whole. As the overall governing body of cycling, the International Cycling Union seeks to make these principles a reality, however, it has failed to manifest these into the consciousness of some of its members, which represents a real source for concern. It, the taking of drugs, has been stated by the International Olympic Committee in the following manner (Mottram, 2003, p. 52-53): â€Å"†¦ the use of doping agents in sport is both unhealthy and contrary to the ethics of sport, †¦it is necessary to protect the physical and spiritual health of athletes, the values of fair play and of competition, the integrity and unity of sport, and the rights of those who take part in it at whatever level†. It, drug use, represents a condition that â€Å"†¦is contrary to the very principles upon which sport is based† (Mottram, 2003, p. 53). Dubin (1990) states that â€Å"Sport is considered as character building, teaching the virtues of dedication, perseverance, endurance and self-discipline†. He adds the important observations that â€Å"sport helps us to learn from defeat as much as from victory, and team sports foster a spirit of co-operation and interdependence†¦import(ing) something of moral and social values and†¦integrating us as individuals, to bring about a healthy, integrated society drug abuse would have no place in sport† (Dubin, 1990). Thus, the question, in light of the preceding examples of drug use, is why so many athletes have resorted to cheating†, and â€Å"Why are the rules that govern sport often regarded as obstacles to be overcome or circumvented rather than as regulations designed to create equality of competitive opport unity and to define the parameters of the sport?† (Dubin, 1990). The unfair advantage of the use of drugs in sport lessens the outcome, and masks the potential of those who have superior abilities that are hidden by cheaters. It reduces the concept of sport itself, which is defined as â€Å"an activity, pastime, and competition †¦ â€Å" (Allwords.com, 2007). The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, 2007) states â€Å"The spirit of sport means competing fairly and performing to the best of your abilitythe pursuit of excellence with honor†. The international implications of doping in sport has drawn the attention of the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO, 2005) which drafted doping in sports, whereby it stated that â€Å"†¦ sport should play an important role in the protection of health, in moral, cultural and physical education and in promoting international understanding and peace†. The preceding is a broader application of the meaning and purpose of sport than addressed in this examination, but nevertheless is an important facet in the understanding of the attention and implications of sport in our lives, as stated by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, 2007). Such higher ideals were and are behind the International Cycling Union’s ‘Code of Ethics’, and the personal as well as individual responsibility of each and every person as well as organization affiliated or associated with it. Loland (2002, p. 143) advises that â₠¬Å"†¦fair play is commonly understood as a set of norms for rule conformity and justice†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . He continues that (Loland, 2002, p. 144): Fairness, represents when â€Å"Parties voluntarily engaged in sport competitions ought to act in accordance with the shared ethos of the competitions if this ethos is just†. And that fair play provides for an equal platform of rules, regulations, methodologies and systems whereby â€Å"†¦competitors are given equal opportunity to perform by eliminating or compensating for significant inequalities that the competitors cannot influence in any significant way and for which they cannot be held responsible†. Loland (2002, p. 144) states that unless there is fair play, then the performance of athletes is not based upon talent, but some hidden advantages that corrupt the outcome and prompts inequality. The use of substances to enhance sport’s performance represents an issue that is as old as sport itself (Mottram, 2003. p. 307). Fair play is the operative concept behind the rules and regulations of the International Cycling Union, and is the ethical and moral foundation. The efforts of the ICU, as put forth by McNamee and Parry (1998) is that â€Å"†¦ the moral structure of sport in terms of an implicit social contract (and thus to offer a rationale for why we should condemn cheating and so forth) needs further careful exploration through studies of both the history of sport and the contract tradition†. Midgley (1974. p. 143) continues that â€Å"the social contract is just one sort of analogy for underlying moral structures that seem to bind societies together, as a co nceptual tool used by the prophets of the Enlightenment to derive political obligation from below rather than from above†. Fairness and justice go to the root of modern civilization as the basis for order, and cooperation. Hare (1970. p. 179) argues that it is â€Å"†¦our duty to obey the rule always keep your promises is simply part of a game (the institution of promising, in this case), and that we could just as easily decide not to play, in which case the duty would disappear†. He concludes that â€Å"For unless one accepts this principle, one is not a subscribing member of the institution which it constitutes, and therefore cannot be compelled logically to accept the institutional facts which it generates.† (Hare, 1970. p. 179). The preceding are the principles and reasons for the existence of the International Cycling Union and its binding ‘Code of Ethics’ on its members. It is the duty of these members to uphold and adhere to the principles of this ‘Code’ as it represents the foundation for public trust and belief in the fact that the outcome of competitions reflects honest and accurate performances. The ‘Play the Game Conference’ held on 10 November 2005 issued a declaration that best sums up that reasons for fairness, honest, integrity, morals and ethics in sport (Pro Cycling News, 2005). It calls for the organizing bodies within sports to: Ensure that corruption, is eliminated from sports, And that the integrity of sports management is upheld by maintaining ethical behaviour, Through a demonstration of commitments to counter corruption. Corruption in sport represents any activity that changes the outcome from what it would have been if everyone adhered to the rules. It thus then provides the public with a true recording of performances in an arena they can trust and believe in. The pressures to perform mean little if such is aided by unfair advantages that skew results, thus it is the duty of the monitoring organization to enforce the rules as strictly as possible to minimize cheating, as well as to administer strong drug testing. The community of cycling is larger than the athletes and members of the International Cycling Union. It includes every spectator that has and will ever watch the sport. In light of the recent and numerous scandals, much needs to be done to re-establish a platform of trust that the public can look ate and believe that the ills of the past, are in fact in the past. Such will restore cycling to its former prominence, and help to further bound the community of athletes and fans to fair play, e thics and morality. Bibliography Abt, S. (2006) Cycling: Shunned by sponsors, Landis’ team dies. 15 August 2006. Retrieved on 17 April 2007 from http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/15/sports/bike.php Allwords.com (2007) sport. Retrieved on 18 April 2007 from http://www.allwords.com/query.php?SearchType=3Keyword=sportgoquery=Find+it!Language=ENG Appleyard, B. (2006) Drugs and Debauchery. 3 July 2006. Vol. 135. New Statesman Bagratuni, J. (2006) Tour winner Floyd Landis tests positive in latest cycling shock. 27 July 2006. Retrieved on 17 April 2006 from

The Triple Bottom Line In Hospitality Tourism Essay

The Triple Bottom Line In Hospitality Tourism Essay The last few years have been very challenging for the whole hospitality sector, as the majority of business people and travelers moved to online conferences whenever possible and holidays became a luxury for many people. Beside this shortage the most important hotels in the world and its shareholders have decided to give a lot of emphasis in sustainability and green technology. This happened because they understood that in order to be a key player in this competitive market, they absolutely needed to set up a long term strategy, which consisted in profitable operation combined with particular focus to the needs of the people who both use and work in the hotel and also focus on careful trusteeship of natural resources. These ideas, well known as the triple bottom line, were pointed out for the first time by John Elkington  [1]  in 1997,who basically assumed that in order to be sustainable, without particular regards of the industrial sector, it is vital and necessary for a corpora tions business to operate with more responsibility, and concerning of not only economical margins (profit), but also environmental (planet) and social issues (people). My purpose in this research is to investigate how these three pillars of sustainability should fit the nowadays hospitality sector. According to Dr. Hervà © Houdrà ©, General Manager of the Willard InterContinental Hotel, the triple bottom line in hospitality is achievable giving a lot of emphasis to all the three steps, starting from the economic viability: The Sustainable Development concept is not the consequence of the delusion of people who determined that this world would be better if we were going back to our natural roots and resources. SD is definitely geared toward profitability and the future. Without profit it seems obvious that no business would be sustainable(Hervà ¨,2008). From this quote we understand that it is very important to remember that an hotel it is not a NGO or a NPO and must be profitable to remain sustainable. With this crucial principle, the idea should be to drive a business with also an ethical point of view and use sustainable development to reach an high turnover but also lowering the costs, in order to have a better profit margin, wich creates value for the shareholders. The second step concerns social responsibility. As briefly pointed out in the introduction, hotels two major components in this issue are employees and the community. An hotel should be recognized as a fair employer and be sure that its employees are happy and proud to be associated with its name, for instance Accors hotels motto is encouraging its 170,000 employees through the idea that one employee can make the difference.. The hotel should also be well integrated in the community by helping worthwhile causes and every organization should select those that are appropriate to its goals and community. Not only it is right and ethical to offer our help across borders, but if an international clientele sees that the hotel is involved in international causes, this will probably reinforce the perception of generosity and caring of both the hotel and the country, facing in this way a double outcome. The last pillar is about the environmental protection. Among other steps, the hotel will apply for national and international environmental certifications and awards, such as ISO 14001, ISO 22000 (both are international environmental certification), and the IHRA environmental award. An hotel may also consider the idea of starting a his own initiative concerning the environment, like Taj Hotels Group did with EARTH (Environment Awareness Renewal at Taj Hotels), a project which is about the effort of one of Asias largest and finest group of hotels to commit to energy conservation and environmental management. This project has also received a certification from Green Globe, the only worldwide environmental certification program for travel and tourism. Moreover, in everything that an hotel does in order to reach this kind of goal, it will be useful to research for an association with a well-known organization to benefit from their existing infrastructure and consequently to ensure the c orrect and ethical application of the funds that will be donated or, more in general, the actions that will take place. STAKEHOLDER APPROACH As pointed out by Business Ethics,Ethical Decision Making Cases: O. C. Ferrell, John Fraedrich, Linda Ferrell,it is crucial for a 21st century company to build a strong relationship and interaction with its stakeholders, because they are both influenced by and have the ability to affect the business, as noticed before in the second pillar of sustainability. This general view has been transposed also in the hospitality sector, where now it is frequent to witness this kind of stakeholder approach in order to maximize the positive impact and minimize negative impact on society. Although there are many different approaches, it is important to highlight key features, which include assessing the corporate culture, identifying stakeholder groups and related issues, and gaining also feedbacks from them. After that being stated it stands to reason that communication is a key part of this project and letting all stakeholders know about the strategy is just as important as setting and implemen ting the triple bottom line strategy in the first place. The hotel industry is well positioned to demonstrate to the world that a sustainable development is possible, because every year hundred millions of people enter in contact with it. Consequently, as a major player, hospitality can reach many families and individuals through a good communication plan. Travel and tourism represents one of the most important sources of economic activity in the world, and therefore a single hotel can influence many industry stakeholders. It has already been noticed how an hotel may enter in contact with some of its primary stakeholder such us employees, clients and shareholders in the three pillars. It is also interesting to investigate more deeply the links with other primary stakeholders like suppliers and then to have a look at a secondary stakeholder like the media. Regarding the suppliers, hotels are in the right position to share the values of sustainability development and they should actually encourage them to embody this principles in their strategy. One big example is given by the Willard Intercontinental Hotel, which is actually asking its suppliers to deliver sustainable products, also forcing them to search for and add these products to their catalogues, in order to be available also to other clients. This is really important because in this industry, usually, one supplier deals with more clients and consequently the approach of a sustainable product strategy by a supplier may lead to a massive usage of these sustainable products throughout the entire hospitality sector. In fact, as highlighted by dr. Houdrà ¨, Willar Intercontinental procurement company, Avendra, represents also Fairmont Hotels, Marriott International, Hyatt Hotels Corp. and Club Corp USA. This means that, thanks to the hotel efforts (in this case the Willard Intercon tinental), if Avendra completely embraces the strategy its 3 billion dollars buying power will reflect in 3 billion dollars of sustainable products purchased, which furthermore will be sold at all their hotel clients and which will finally enter in contact with the final customers, creating in this way a real virtuous circle of sustainable awareness. How anticipated in the introduction an organization should also be conscious of its secondary stakeholders, in order to handle efficiently its position with particular focus in the external market. In the hospitality sector a key player may be identified as the media. Nowadays, in fact, they are facing a lot of interest and coverage of initiatives related to the sustainable development. All the regards shown about global warming and oil prices means that the media are seeking for stories concerning the strategies to thwart these issues. A hotel should make efforts to be acknowledged of its initiatives and values by the media representatives (both normal and web-based) and also share news of its actions in order to encourage its clients to spend their nights in it. By doing this, sustainable development becomes a unique selling point for a hotel, which enables him to gain also competitive advantages. There may be also another step, where the hotel encourages or shares the initiatives even with its competitors (for instance exactly as Willard Intercontinental did with Avendra) but, in this case it will be paramount for the hotel to be acknowledged by all the stakeholders as the early mover and pioneer in the sustainability field and to do that clear values that support the hotel vision should be provided in a mission statement: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Accountability: We are dedicated to performing our assigned tasks with excellence and to deliver outstanding results; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Education and development: We provide everyone the opportunities, knowledge, and skills to grow both personally and professionally; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Empowerment: We have the authority to take ownership, anticipate needs, and make decisions which exceed our customers expectations on first contact; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Integrity: We believe in honesty, ethical behavior, respect, and trust; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Professionalism: We are an action-oriented team of savvy experts who are passionate and quality driven; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sustainable Development: We are committed to economic viability, and social and environmental responsibility; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Working smart: We encourage innovation, proactivity, agility, and a safe work environment. Houdrà ¨, H., 2008. Sustainable Hospitality ©:Sustainable Development in the Hotel Industry.Cornell Industry Perspectives No. 2. Ã¢â‚¬ ºOnline Ã‚  P.5-20. Available at willarddc.com/sd/docs/willardwhitepaperproof.pdf  Ã¢â‚¬ ºAccessed 20 Oct 2010 Ã‚ 

Peter Tosh and Nelson Mandela Fighting from Opposite Corners Essay

Peter Tosh and Nelson Mandela Fighting from Opposite Corners The Prize: Equal Rights Peter Tosh and Nelson Mandela are two men who dedicated their lives to fight for equal rights. They are united by common goals but walked on different paths in their struggles against the oppressors. The major commonality, which made both men brilliant leaders and revolutionary thinkers, was their passion. The passion they had for their beliefs and turning their visions into reality. Tosh and Mandela’s divergent approaches started during their youth and followed both individuals through a lifetime struggle. Peter Tosh was born on October 9, 1944 in Westmoreland, Jamaica. Born with the name Winston Huburt McIntosh, curtsey of his absent churchgoing preacher father James McIntosh and mothered by Alvera Coke, Tosh found himself alone in the world. Peter faced the hardships of Jamaican country life including lack of supervision and a poor economic standing. Immediately challenged as a child, he was watched by his aunt but claimed that he raised himself. Peter always took responsibility for his actions and never relied on others for help. Self-reliance was the strongest characteristic trait gained during this period. The separation from his parents deeply rooted his need for finding peace in this world. "I was born raised in righteousness, not to say that my parents was righteous, because they did not know righteousness. They were being led away to a shitstem, or being deceived by deceivers, you see, because they wanted to know what was righteousness" (Holmes and Steffens, Reasoning with Tosh). Tosh negatively associated his parents with all that is bad in society and that which one must never become. He chose at a young age to live his life ... ...Piersons, Leroy Jodie and Steffens, Roger. Discography/Track Notes: Peter Tosh — Honorary Citizen. Honorary Citizen Box Set. Sony Music Entertainment Inc., 1997. 15) Steffens, Roger. "The Peter Tosh Biography." Honorary Citizen Box Set. Sony Music Entertainment Inc., 1997. 16) Stepping Razor Red X, The Peter Tosh Story. Nicholas Cambpell, 1992, Northern Art Entertainment. Inc. 17) Tosh, Peter. "Peter Tosh: Honorary Citizen". Sony Music Entertainment Inc., 1997. 18) Tosh, Peter. "Peter Tosh at Sunsplash 1980" The Beat Magazine, 1989. 19) Tosh, Peter. "Herb" High Times Magazine, September 1976. 20) Unknown Reporter. The Weekend Star, Friday, July 4. 1980 21) Walker, John. "Tough Tosh." Trouser Press Interview, 1983. 22) White, Timothy. "In the Path of the Steppin’ Razor." Web: www.boomshaka.com/tosh/razor.html 23) www.anc.org, Mandela Notes

The Relationship between Hamlet and the Bible. Essay -- GCSE Coursewor

The Relationship between Hamlet and the Bible.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It may appear that anything could be twisted into a typological pattern. Such interpretations appear to suffer from the structuralist faults of skating too lightly over actual texts, ignoring details that cannot be forced into a preconceived mold, and robbing narratives of their concrete shapes through abstraction. I would stress that there is more to Shakespeare than typology, but I would also insist that typology is often an important part of his drama. To make this claim plausible, however, requires more detailed attention to the text of his plays. In what follows, I will call attention to the textual and dramatic details that justify a typological reading of Hamlet. Claudius's murder of King Hamlet, the act catalyzing the drama of the play, is presented as a  sin of primordial character and cosmic implications. Claudius confesses that his fratricide parallels the murder of Abel: O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven; It hath the primal eldest curse upon 't, A brother's murder (3.3.36-38). Hamlet's description of his psychological condition at the beginning of the play pushes the imagery back to the beginning of biblical history: How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world! Fie on 't! Ah fie! 'Tis an unweeded garden, That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature Possess it merely (1.2.135-37). Claudius has not only committed fratricide, but regicide. The king being peculiarly the image of God, regicide is a kind of deicide. At least, it is an act of rebellion against divine authority. Claudius is thus not only Cain but Adam.(7) Claudius's sin has, for Hamlet at least, turned Denma... ...y identical to all the other links." (A Theater of Envy, p. 273). Works Cited Erlich, Avi. 1977. Hamlet's Absent Father. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Fineman, Joel. 1980. 'Fratricide and Cuckoldry: Shakespeare's Doubles.' In Representing Shakespeare: New Psychoanalytic Essays, edited by Coppelia Kahn and Murray M. Schwarz. Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins Press, 70-109. Fleissner, Robert. 1982. ' "Sullied" Or "Solid": Hamlet's Flesh Once More.' Hamlet Studies 4:92-3. Fowler, Alastair. 1987. 'The Plays Within the Play of Hamlet.' In 'Fanned and Winnowed Opinions': Shakespearean Essays Presented to Harold Jenkins, edited by John W. Mahon and Thomas A. Pendleton. London and New York: Methuen. Freud, Sigmund. 1953-74. The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works. 24 vols, trans. James Stachey. London: Hogarth.   

Journalism Debate Paper Topic: Face book Essay

The word â€Å"media† is often characterized as form of communication, which can be sort as television, television, radio, and newspaper. Its primary purpose is to provide essential information about the latest happening around the community, which will supplement interest of the public as a part of the society. For the longest the important role of media for the people can be cited as the protector of the over all interest of the public with its popular tagline as the watch dog of the society. (Tech Terms) For long period of existence media is a part of the society, which its importance and application had encounter evolution that enhances its power to assist people. In modern time where the ways of living is said to be changing from old to modern the use of media in the society had added its application as a socializing tool to enforce better links for the people. With modern technology allows the media to be a socializing tool for the public via internet social networking. One of the better exemplar of this internet social networking is the facebook, which is design for socialization application in the internet. Although, it can be argued whether the internet enhances or not process of strong community bond. Nevertheless, it is clear that internet makes new possible connection, which provides people a different way of to socialize and be connected by means of social networking sites. (Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication) This paper will explore the facts about the importance and role of media in the society as socializing tool, which has the profound ability to bring the people together and improve the socializing process of the people by means of internet media social networking like the facebook. Therefore, this paper will determine media as a primary source of information in the society as a major contributor to improve the socializing process of the society. Furthermore, this paper will establish social networking is unifying force in our society, brings us together through internet social networking. I Argue that media’s internet social networking is effective as a unifying force for the society in which brings together the people. With its full potential to make a link to people from different countries all over the world, media as social networking is definitely a unifying force, which has the ability to unite the society and the people globally. Also, I argue that social networking does not distract the moral value of socializing and its importance in the community. Rather social networking is tool that provides an accessible way to socialize people online, which can lead to personal socialization depends exchange of information. Media’s social networking is tool in which people can use to socialize without any discrimination on races and culture as person the person is familiar with computer operating procedure is concern social networking is accessible for everyone. I argue that social networking will be classified as a distraction to the real duties of civic life – because it has its own characteristics of society as the online community, which online base community where group of people with same goals and interests exchange information using web tools. (Web Strategist) Therefore, social networking does not distract community socializing in real life rather it broadens the process socializing to unify people together and be connected globally. In present time, countries from all around the globe are now globally connected By means of modern technology the internet, with this international relation of people is achievable by means of internet connection under the social networking or better known as the online community. Social networking or online community is a socializing tool in which the act of socializing is based online. Social networking was designed to provide the people an easy way to socialize with the use of online internet. Therefore, people from all around the world were able to get friend and meet other people from other countries in different races. The â€Å"facebook† is a perfect model of an effective social networking site. As a social networking site, face book was designed by a by two sophomore student in Harvard University namely Mark Zuckerberg and Chris Hughes in February 2004. One year after its groundwork in 2004, facebook already gather 12. million users from 2,000 colleges and universities (Ncaa. org). As a social networking site facebook is more popular among students from college and high school. At present time facebook site now have more than 70 million active users from the – Untied States, United Kingdom and from countries around the world. Facebook is now the 2nd most-trafficked social media site in the world with More than 65 billion page views per month (Facebook). The Data shows that face book is an effective social networking, which the people are using it socialize. Just like any other social networking sites, facebook offers its user to socialize globally in able to meet new people as sign of socializing. Also, the site of facebook is characterized as an online community in which its users are from all around the world. Facebook data show that 45 percent of users return to the site each day and More than 6 million active user groups on the site. Aside from socializing the applications of facebook are used by its user as a site where they can share their photo in which more than 14 million photos uploaded daily in the site. Nevertheless, the most important fact about facebook is that people spend an average of 25 minutes only on the site daily. With these facts about the user’s statistics of facebook, it is clear to say that facebook as media social networking does not take away the essence of civic socializing rather it improves and broaden the social capabilities of the community. With the fact that people uses facebook as an alternative connection to – socialize, gather and share information, it is clear that media social networking sites are made to unite the people. Furthermore, statistics shows that people spend an average of 25 minutes only on the site daily is a clear indication that social networking does not distract the real duties of civic life instead provides the people better way to socialize. In the end, it is determined that media serves as a unifying force in the community in which it brings the people together. Media as social networking tool does not distract the essence of civic socializing instead it improves the way people socialize by means of social networking sites. Facebook as a social networking is site that does not distract or take away the real duties of civic life in terms of socializing instead it enhances the process of socializing, which brings the people together. Works Cited Tech Terms (2008), Definition of Media: TechTerms. com: Retrieved April 16, 2008 from http://www. techterms. com/definition/media Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (2007) The Benefits of Face book â€Å"Friends:† Social Capital and College Students’ Use of Online Social Network Sites: Retrieved April 16, 2008 from http://jcmc. indiana. edu/vol12/issue4/ellison. html Web Strategist (n. d) Defining the Term â€Å"Online Community†: Retrieved April 16, 2008 from http://www. web-strategist. com/blog/2007/12/28/defining-the-term-community/ NCAA. org (n,d), Cyber Communities: Retrieved April 16, 2008 from http://www. ncaa. org/sportsmanship/social_networking_ppt. pdf Facebook (2008) Press Room: Retrieved April 16, 2008 from http://www. facebook. com/press/info. php? statistics