The Reagan Tax Cuts And Foreign Policy Essay -- essays research papers

The Reagan Tax Cuts and Foreign Policy During the 1980's President Ronald Reagan's (our 40th president from 1981 to 1989) domestic policy of a substantial tax cut led to greatly increased economic prosperity for our country. During Reagan's administration marked changes were made to the tax code and economic statistics showed a major change for the better. However, at the same time, the Democrats controlled the Congress and continued increased spending against Reagan's wishes. The Joint Economic Committee stated that an across-the-board tax cut was not new. In the 20's the Mellon tax cuts were implemented by Secretary of Treasury Andrew Mellon during the Administrations of Hoover, Harding, and Coolidge. In the 60's Kennedy introduced tax cuts. In both instances the decrease of high marginal tax rates somehow increased tax payments by the rich. Perhaps a foreshadow of things to come. Debates were raging over the Reagan tax cuts, known as the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 (or, ERTA). This act was designed to spur savings, investment, work, and economic efficiency. This policy would impose a 25% across-the-board cut in personal marginal tax rates. In the act of decreasing marginal tax rates, and stimulating economic incentives, ERTA would increase the flow of resources into production, thus lifting economic growth. This policy received much criticism because its opponents argued that ERTA would be a giveaway to the rich, because their tax payments would collapse. Reagan worked hard and skillfully with the congress to obtain legislation to stimulate economic growth and curb inflation, he embarked upon a course to cut taxes and curb inflation. President Reagan was able to sign into law a tax cut in late 1981 even though congressional Democrats tried to block his cuts. All tax payers received these cuts which helped to spur the economy. The cuts were taken over three years with a 5% cut in 1981, a 10% cut for 1982, and in 1983 another 10% cut. Reagan's call for extensive changes in the federal income tax laws helped bring about passage of the Tax Reform Act of 1986. In 1986 Reagan introduced the Tax Reform act of 1986. The tax reform act of 1986 chopped taxes, and indexed taxes for inflation as well. During Reagan's first term the inflation rate was at -5.7%, unemployment was at1.4%, interest rates were at -.7, and the gross na... ... The aides had then illegally given some of the arms money to contra guerrillas. Conclusion The Reagan Tax cuts showed that reducing excessive tax rates stimulates growth, reduces tax avoidance, and can increase the share of tax payments given by the rich. With respect to foreign policy Reagan's performances especially with Mikhail Gorbachev showed a high approval of performance with the people. Reagan had the highest poll ratings for performance of any president since World War 2. It appears that his leadership helped to make the feeling of the country to have a more confident outlook on the future. References "Iran-Contra Affair," Microsoft ® Encarta ® 96 Encyclopedia 1993-1995. 1996 Grolier Interactive Inc. Edition copyright  © 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company. http://www.house.gov/joe/welcome.html http://www.reaganhome.com/taxcuts.html http://www.theatlantic.com/atlantic/election/connections/foreign/reagrus.htm Hyland, W.G., ed., The Reagan Foreign Policy (1987). The American Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Third The Atlantic Monthly, February 1994; Reagan and the Russians; Volume 273. The Joint Economic Committee reports on the Reagan Tax Cuts

The School to Works Program in America

In writing her article â€Å"An Avenue to High Academic Standards,† Lynn Olson confronts the tempestuous side of the education system: a recently added component of the curriculum. Olson claims that this new argument would further enhance the quality and practicality of the educational system. The school to works program was introduced in state and federal law in 1994 but its validity and utility is still being disputed over by various concerned parties. Being the senior editor of the national newspaper â€Å"Education Week,† Olson would seem to be well qualified to provide her readers with a persuasive and realistic analysis to an issue that is being widely debated. Olson†s article gives one the impression that this scheme would be a highly beneficial one to our high school students. However, though Olson†s article deals with most of the issues relevant to this scheme, a few areas have not been covered by her. On the whole, it would seem that this scheme should be brought into vogue as soon as possible as suggested by her. Olson has written a very sound article in which she persuades her reader through the means of sound logic well substantiated with real life examples to further strengthen her claims. She makes use of a simple and well-organized diction to enable her wide readership to understand the article. Also Olson†s sources seem to be well founded and used in a logical manner. Olson has written a convincing article because she substantiates her claims with real life examples of different school to work programs. She embarks on this path by giving the examples of a young high school student and that student†s positive and enriching experience with the school to work program. In this particular case, Olson writes that the school to work program helps this rudderless student to find her vocation in life and thus make a valuable contribution to society. She further adds that this student†s experience is not an isolated one and that numerous students have benefited from this program Olson also writes â€Å"Studies suggest that school-to-work programs can help address one of the greatest problems in education: motivation†. However, she writes that this program solves this problem and she substantiates this by giving the example of the 1994 evaluation of Pro-Tech, a Boston school- to work program. In this evaluation it was found that students who participated in these programs decided to take more rigorous math and physics courses than their peers. Thus, she proves that this scheme gives the students a clear indication about the direct link that exists between a good quality education and a good job. Therefore, these examples in her article enable her to provide her readers with a logical and realistic argument that seems to make sense. However, by providing real life examples to prove her point, Olson is justified in writing that the school to work program provides a self-explanatory answer to the question â€Å"Why do I have to learn this? † Olson further strengthens her case by elaborating some valid reasons that make this program a beneficial one to the students. Olson writes that the school-to-work program â€Å"engage students in active, hands-on-learning rather than teaching solely from textbooks†. She states that the primary aim of this program is to inculcate theoretical knowledge with practical knowledge, thus enabling the student to practice the theory learned in school in daily life. However, Olson does admit that there is still a slight confusion on whether this scheme actually encourages students to pursue higher degrees after they have graduated from high school. She counterbalances this by stating that it does help students who intend to go to college on deciding which major they would want to pursue in college. Furthermore, she also writes that these schemes provide students with the added incentive of acquiring extra credit hours. Olson also pads her argument by stating that this program provides society with an educated and skilled workforce urgently required by firms. The argument put forth by Phyllis Schlafly, in her article â€Å"School to Work will train, not Educate†, that these programs are the cause of economic requirements of society and are not due to educational upliftment is oversimplistic and lacks in logical coherency. Schlafly may have some substance in her theme that these programs would â€Å"cause a person or animal to be efficient in the performance of tasks by responding to discipline, instruction and repeated practice†. However, her entire article uses negative emotion to pursuade her readers to follow her line of thinking. Furthermore, her argument that this program will deprive a child of a sound education is countermanded by Olson†s claim that this program will motivate students to get a better education. Also George Willett†s statement in his e-mail message that â€Å"greater learning occurred where the practical was aligned with the academic†. However, one of the legitimate shortcomings of Olson†s article is that it does not provide her readers with all the information relevant to this topic. Her article has used only the positive sources that strengthen her case but overlooks all negative aspects that could have been assessed and resolved by her. Thus, as pointed out by Schlafly, one of the realistic drawbacks of the scheme is that it may be made a compulsory program with the students having no choice in the matter. In that case, the system would lose all the advantages of encouraging students to learn and would just evolve into modern child slavery, where the student may be forced to work whether or not he or she may want to. Also, she has not looked into the fact that the students would not be able choose their own programs. It would be allotted to them based on their grades and other factors by an appointed body called â€Å"The Workforce Development Board†, which is a very disturbing thought, placing the very ideals of a democracy at risk. This is one of the realistic fears put forth in Schlafly†s article. Also, as pointed out by Brian Faranell in his e-mail message that â€Å"asking a freshman in high school to declare his major is way to early†. This too is a legitimate fear that Schlafly has not confronted in her article. Therefore, it is recommended that the school to work program be an optional program wherein the only requirement is motivated students. Thus, no student should be forced to enroll in this program, as this would be counterproductive to the child†s welfare and make the very reason for its creation obsolete. Also, there should be sufficient choice in the different types of school to work programs, so as to enable students to choose among the various programs, so that they might be able to choose something that corresponds to their courses and which will help them in the future. Presently, there are certain countries that have already inculcated this scheme to their education system. Thus, it would be judicious to study their system for a period of time before going head long into one of our own. This would help in looking at all the shortcomings in their system and avoid them in our own. However, we must keep in mind that our basic society and education system may be different and that what works in those countries may not necessarily work in ours. It may also be a good idea to schedule a convention of teachers and professors and other educators to use their ideas. It should be always remembered that they are an integral part of the system, and the government should always take their opinion into account before enacting any bill. Thus, if all these shortfalls are removed the school to work program seems to be a viable addition to our educative system. Olson has covered none of these areas, in her article, which leads one to believe that she may not have researched the topic well enough or else she may not want to provide any negative aspects to her argument. Though her not confronting these issues may show that these are really serious problems that have no real short term solutions. Hence, her argument might have actually been strengthened if she had confronted these areas and tried to provide some sort of solution to them. However, on the whole her article seems to be well written. She has based her ideas on sound logic, which enables her to provide a coherent and well-organized thesis. She has well developed and organized her use of sources and has analyzed them well. Therefore, it would seem that her article would merit a good reception from the public. Therefore, it would seem that Olson succeeds in her purpose of providing a strong argument for the implementation of this program. However, as said earlier it would have been stronger if it had been comprehensive: tackling the harder issues as well.

Rough Draft on Drug Wars - 846 Words

Rough Draft Thousands upon thousands of lives have been taken due to the huge demand for drugs crossing from Mexico into the United States. The murder rate is extremely high, and has caused so much chaos between both countries because of this. Drug dealers in the United States contact drug dealers in Mexico, and vice versa, to cross the drugs between borders illegally. A high percentage of the time, either of the drug dealers from both sides will have a scape goat swim the border while carrying high amounts of drugs with them, or will attempt to cross it over smuggled in a vehicle. In Mexico, it is extremely corrupt and even the law enforcement is involved in the crossing of drugs illegally. This being done causes so much conflict†¦show more content†¦Those who were never educated on the effects of drug use are most likely going to be the ones to fall victim of peer pressure and eventually get into drugs themselves. In other cases, it is hard to avoid and can be picked up as a child, se eing family members or other individuals doing drugs. We should educate everyone, as well as having no tolerance laws when it comes to hard drugs and giving longer sentences to those who are caught with the drugs, instead of letting them off on probation or parole. Many people would completely disagree with allowing marijuana to be legal, but if you think about it, it could eventually cause the drug violence to end around the world. Marijuana has the least effects out of all the drugs in the world, and although people take it to the extreme, it is honestly a harmless drug and should not be causing this many people to have their lives taken overShow MoreRelatedAppendix L Com/2201060 Words   |  5 PagesSummarize and paraphrase the contents of the two sources, with the intention of using them in your rough draft. Include at least one direct quotation from each source, and include in-text citations for all sources to avoid potential plagiarism. Identify how you plant to integrate these sources into your rough draft. Source 1 Summary, with direct quotation and in-text citation: | With drugs being an unlawful thing to do it is also violence to the constitution. As William F. Buckley Jr.Read MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1348 Words   |  6 Pagesdepicted the emotional and psychological damages towards the American soldiers during the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War taunted several soldiers after the forced draft and long war time memories. O’Brien presents the book as both a war memoir and a personal autobiography retrospectively. His primary motive of reiterating and working through the flashback memories is to find some meaning towards the Vietnam War. Working and reworking through the memories illuminates the raw conditions the American soldiersRead MoreA Fair Wage System Did Not Exist Even Before The Industrial Revolution1688 Words   |  7 Pageswhat a regular rich man would do. Instead, he got into politics and became a reform congressman. During the Spanish-American War, he created a group called Rough Riders. There was a shortage of people available for the war, and Roosevelt decided that instead of sending American citizens to war by draft, he would recruit volunteers and these volunteers became known as the Rough Riders. He even became secretary of the Navy due to all his work. Roosevelt was a progressive governor in the state of NewRead MoreWhat Problems Did Vietnam Veterans Face Upon Returning Home?2127 Words   |  9 Pages What Problems did Vietnam Veterans Face Upon Returning Home? Rough Draft Gianna Michaelson A general unpopular opinion swept through America and intensified through the twenty years of the Vietnam War. In past wars, a soldier’s friends and family looked forwards to seeing their loved one return home. Up until the Vietnam War, veterans were treated with an immense amount of respect for the sacrifices they made for their country. However, the Vietnam veterans were received with resentmentRead MoreWhy A Mass Murderer Commits A Crime Essay1530 Words   |  7 Pageskillers were admitted into the hospital for psychiatric issues; 42 killers had previously seen a professional. Twenty-four killers were prescribed psychiatric drugs before the crime, and 14 of the people failed to take the prescribed drugs when they committed the crime ( Glaberson and Goodstein). The term shell shock that emerged from World War I, made experts think that soldiers had concussions resulting from exploding ammunition. 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This may be so in the movie depictions, but in the novels, James Bond can be depicted as a bumbling alcoholic who stumbles onto the right answers. James Bond’s successes are circumstantial by his actions, losses, and interactions with a variety of charactersRead MoreTheodore Roosevelt Essay1776 Words   |  8 Pageswell-known Washington personality in later years. In 1886 Roosevelt married Edith Carow of New York, who became his most valued adviser. They had a daughter and four sons, the oldest of whom, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., was a decorated hero in the two world wars. Early Political Career After graduation from college, Roosevelt entered politics and abandoned the study of law when, as a Republican, he was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1881. He attracted immediate attention in the press withRead MoreFemale Chauvinist Pigs : Women And The Rise Of Raunch Culture1671 Words   |  7 PagesChristine Jauregui Professor Harris English 107 June 05, 2015 Rough Draft#1: Gender Stereotypes In the book Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture ch.6 shopping for sex by Ariel Levy, critiques the highly sexualized American culture in which women are objectified, objectify one another, and are encouraged to objectify themselves. Levy refers to this as raunch culture. There is no denying that raunch culture is everywhere today. Music videos, advertisements and evenRead MoreSpina Bifida Essay2326 Words   |  10 Pagesof neural tube defects occurring in the women’s off-spring (p.1886). Drugs Another problem related to the increases in the number of people with spina bifida is drugs. Drugs are considered to be a teratogen, which is a type of action or environment factor, which has a negative affect that will hinder the health of the embryo before birth. According to the researchers, Adzick, Melchoionne, and Mitchell, anticonvulsant drugs should not be used unless used for the treatment of epilepsy (eg, bipolar

Essay The Importance of Music Education - 1936 Words

Opening the invigorating article, â€Å"Why Music Education? 2007† having so many atrocities pulling the world apart, music is a great way for bringing people together (9). Diagnosed with a severe case of autism and blindness at birth, Derek Paravacini is viewed as a music savant. He has the extraordinary ability to play a music piece after just hearing it. Derek has been engrossed by the piano since the age of two and has been performing around the world since the age of nine. From studying various music genres, at age 32 he his able to transform an elegant classical piece into an upbeat jazz piece. His virtuosity has no limit as he continues to absorb every bit of knowledge pertaining to music. School boards that are cutting music†¦show more content†¦With a music education, some students who lack the money for an advancement in musical interests benefit in their educational career more than students in upper class communities. Catterall writes that students in low- income communities do better in schools with music programs (1).According to the article â€Å"Benefits of Musical Education†, in schools providing high- quality music educ ation programs, standardized tests score higher than the schools that offer deficient music education programs, despite the socioeconomic level of the community (1). With higher scores on tests, the school’s community will take more pride its school, in turn giving the school more support. Research proves that schools that provide a music education prosper far more efficiently in other qualities other than just rewarding grades. With challenging classes that students struggle with, art based programs offer a moment of relief in a student’s day. In the acclaimed article Students in music programs have better attendance records and prove to be more active in community affairs (â€Å"Benefts†¦Ã¢â‚¬  2).Having the ability to express one’s self through music will potentially keep that student from expressing themselves in hoodlum activities, helping the community obtain safety. In the acclaimed article â€Å"Why Music Education? 2007† the author explain s programs of music not only benefit kids in school, but the community as well (2). Music not only benefits a person inShow MoreRelatedThe Importance of Music in Education1426 Words   |  6 Pages2015 Final Paper The Importance of Music in Education Whether we choose to believe it or not, music is a very present thing in one’s day to day lifestyle. From turning on the radio in the morning, to listening to it while grocery shopping, putting in our headphones while we study, music is always there. Music is also extremely underrated, which is why so many public schools are constantly threatening to take away music programs all the time. But why is music education so vital in the growth ofRead MoreThe Importance Of Music Education790 Words   |  4 PagesTime Music education is a subject in school that should be essential for all students. If students continued to expand their music education, they would have higher test scores in subjects such as math and English. Having a school system where everyone is able to benefit from a school wide requirement of music education. Music education will help improve student test scores and improve students language development. Students who take music classes have higher test scores. Music education helpsRead MoreThe Importance Of Music Education2171 Words   |  9 PagesThe Importance of Music Education Perhaps the largest distinction between humans and all other animals on earth is the ability to both create and appreciate fine art. The musical art form has existed for thousands of years, and has allowed different cultures to express themselves and connect with one another. The most primitive sounds were simply drum hits and clapping, but over time music has grown in sophistication. Now, complicated symphonies can be heard in halls all across the world, with aRead MoreThe Importance of Music Education Essay951 Words   |  4 Pagestoday’s society? Some say that music education is a waste of valuable resources, takes time away from academic subjects, is noisy and distracting, when in reality this is false. Music is a valuable resource that every human being should enjoy. Although our economy has been failing lately, we should not let ourselves believe that the only way to be productive is in a field that makes us unhappy, like computers or science. In America’s recen t economic downfall, music education is commonly one of the firstRead MoreThe Importance of Music Education Essay885 Words   |  4 PagesImagine a world without music; it would be an extremely boring and quiet place to live. Music is found in every kind of culture and has been used for thousands of years as a means of expression. Music can deliver a message; it can be used as a vehicle for poetry; it can be appreciated for its aesthetic qualities, or it can serve as nothing more than entertainment. Recently, many studies have been conducted proving that music is vital to a childs education and development. However, many schoolRead MoreThe Importance and Effects of Music Education Essay examples1944 Words   |  8 Pages Music evaluated as a subjects that is many times overlooked. If a school seems to have financial trouble, then music and art programs are the first to get cut. Essentially, students do not need them to succeed and they are just hobbies. 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Music educators tend to study how music education came to be. They are huge advocators for music education because of the benefits that come with the programs. Psychologists have studies done around the world to see what the affects of having knowledge in the subject of music are. With so many studies done, there are so manyRead MoreSchools Should Provide Better Funding For Such Programs1734 Words   |  7 Pagesschool years. Do you remember going to music classes? Learning how to pluck out simple songs on the piano, a xylophone, or a recorder; or learning how to sing out a catchy tune? Did you have as much fun as I remember having? This fun is about to come to an end for the coming generations. Public schools are beginning to cut music programs from their budgets altogether, so our children may never know the sweet sol ace of scratching out a simple song. Generally, music programs-- as well as fine arts as a

Passive Anaerobic And Aerobic Exercise Assist System For...

Does, the Perspiration Workout Unit of the ‘Passive Anaerobic and Aerobic Exercise Assist System for the Inactive and Sedentary Population’ have a clinically relevant effect on the inactive and chronically sedentary population, by simulating â€Å"Passive Aerobic Exercise†? A review of scientific literature, using four data bases. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author Dr. Pradeep J.N.A., Professor and Director of Academic Affairs, PDMF University Indian Chapter, Chennai, India. director@pdmfuniversity.edu.in Co-authors Dr. R. Sivaraj, Professor HOD, Department of Pharmacology, Aarupadai Veedu Medical College Hospital, Vinayaka Missions University, Puducherry, India. Dr. N. Jeyabalan, Professor HOD, Department of Pathology, Aarupadai Veedu Medical College Hospital, Vinayaka Missions University, Puducherry, India. Dr. T.S. Manoharan, Senior consultant, Department of Cardio Thoracic Surgery, Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Chennai, India. Mr. Pratush Menon, Research Assistant and aspiring Biomedical Engineer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Abstract The ‘Passive Anaerobic and Aerobic Exercise Assist System for the Inactive and Sedentary Population’ is an integrated apparatus, a combination o three kinds of therapy system’s executed together (simultaneously or subsequently). The

How Bp Failed at Crisis Communication Free Essays

string(28) " a lot of things correctly\." How BP failed at crisis communication British Petroleum (BP) suffered a large-scale public relations and crisis communication disaster, when an oil-drilling rig accident on 20th April 2010 incurred a spillage of several million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This catastrophic spill has been regarded as one of the most severe environmental damages recorded in the U. S. We will write a custom essay sample on How Bp Failed at Crisis Communication or any similar topic only for you Order Now history, causing public animosity and frustration, substantially because of inappropriate BP? s crisis communication plan (Tangley, 2010). The oil spill contaminated local environment and coastline of U. S. states Louisiana and Mississippi. Consequences were severe as the spill crippled heretofore developed Gulf Coast fishing industry for a couple of years. On international scene, it has led to a continued discussion on the safety measures of offshore drilling (Tangley, 2010). On the top of that, BP has been forced to continuously invest into improving of their image in media and on social networking sites, trying to eliminate as much negative PR campaign as they possibly could (McClam, Weber, 2010). BP reacted promptly in their statements, however, without emphasizing the compassion for those who were harmed and by appearing to be insufficiently determined to clean up the environmental disaster. The company should not have been over-optimistic about the scale of the oil spill. On the other hand, BP should have stepped up their social networking communication and assessment of the right spokesperson to a unique situation. Although that crisis scenario is a unique event that is hard to predict, it is definitely not unexpected, considering what business BP operates in. By the year of 2015, 83 percent of companies will face a crisis that will negatively impact their share price by 20 to 30 percent, according to Oxford-Metrica study. This is more likely to happen to oil producing companies, as they are considered to be operating in a one of the most dangerous industries. Facing such a deep company crisis is not only about ways of how to minimize negative exposure in the press; however, it is also about reducing the environmental damage in the first place. Company has to confront the situation without any futile delays and send a clear message to the public in its determination to manage the situation as best as possible. Definitely not by holding out on facts and baffle general public, as BP did (Oxford Metrica, 2011). For example, the officers from BP said that the explosion of Deepwater Horizon drilling at Macondo oil field caused an oil spill of about 2. 7 million barrels. In contrary, the US government’s estimate of 4. 9 million barrels spilt into the sea almost doubles BP? s assumption (Oxford Metrica, 2011). There were several companies involved in the Deepwater Horizon accident. The oil rig was not owned by BP, but a contracting company Transocean. The Macondo oil well was owned partially by BP (65%), Anadarko Petroleum (25%) and Mitsui (10%). The defect of a blowout preventer was supplied by Cameron International (Oxford Metrica, 2011). â€Å"Finally, just before the accident, Halliburton fitted the cement cap intended to seal the well. The number of players involved has given rise to shifting of blame† says the Oxford Metrica study. BP used this opportunity and tried to avoid the spotlight by accusing their contractors and suppliers of being responsible for a Deepwater Horizon accident. George Santayana, a Spanish philosopher, said â€Å"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. † BP? s failure is a perfect example of this dateless quote. As the Exxon Valdez accident badly spoiled the view of general public on oil industry and this case has shown serious under reactions of both Exxon and American government, BP should have devised a risk mitigation plan with various safety features, assuring that similar ecological disaster of these proportions will not happen again. Instead, the company has exchanged a following of a strict safety precautions and minimizing overall safety risk for being a risk-seeking company that is pushing to minimize costs and maximize profit. This accident has proven that the industry has lost a focus on prevention and their control mechanisms could not keep up with the newly acquired technologies in offshore exploration and production. Additionally, the company deliberately overlooked all warning signs that have been present. This game was not worth it, as BP has taken a significant financial hit. Their stock price fell by more than 40% in one week after Deepwater Horizon explosion as it proves Figure 1 which compares a percentage change of stock prices of BP, Transocean, Cameron International and Halliburton early before and after the explosion of Deepwater Horizon. The peak loss of 46% in June 25 resulted into a $95 billion loss in market value capitalization of British Petroleum. Additionally, BP was forced to reserve $39. 9 billion in order to eliminate he consequences of oil spill; also pay $20 billion as a compensation for people directly affected by the spillage; $10. 8 billion as an expense for companies that capped and sealed the oil well and consequent cleaning operations and next $9. 1 billion on additional fees, penalties and fines (Oxford Metrica, 2011). This giving a total of $79. 8 billion entailed a significant decrease in net income for consequent 5 years to come. Figure 1: Comparison of stock prices of companies involved in Deepwater Horizon explosion [pic] Source: Oxford Metrica, 2011. By going back to the PR campaign that has been launched straight after the oil spill, BP has done a very good job when they covered most of the negative publicity. BP? s webpage informed the general public about the will and devotion of the company and how hard they are trying to minimize the environmental damage or help the people affected; while not mentioning a word about the fact that BP takes responsibility for the disaster. Their Facebook account informed the subscribers how the company focuses on using the latest technology available in order to stop the spreading of oil spill. To this moment, BP got a lot of things correctly. You read "How Bp Failed at Crisis Communication" in category "Essay examples" Nevertheless, it is not an immediate action which caused the negative exposure on media throughout the world. Tony Hayward, the CEO of BP, was actively engaged in the PR campaign, was ready to provide interviews to media and was willing to pay all the penalties and fines to the US government. However, Oxford Metrica review claims that â€Å"a string of clumsy comments and cultural misunderstandings, combined with a seeming inability to cap the well, dominated the media and, understandably, fear and anger took hold† (Oxford Metrica, 2011). Despite the fact that BP is a huge global organization, we can observe that both of their public relations staff and higher management structures clearly did not handle the Deepwater Horizon disaster appropriately, at least from a public relations and goodwill point of view. Taken a closer look at what makes a global company with size of BP at least neutral in terms of a general audience perception, using common sense would inevitably lead unbiased observer to identify several key parts. Being as honest to public as possible, quick reaction time, correct usage of social networks and media exposure of the right representatives would most ikely be among them. However, BP undergoing their biggest crisis, not only from the technical point of view and the actual damage inflicted on the environment, but mostly image-wise, failed significantly at reacting accordingly; given the fact that the BP case is publicly known as being the biggest PR failure of the recent history. As mentioned before , being sincere about the huge environment tragedy, that was caused by a company, even if indirectly, is something what public audience would certainly expect. It is obviously a bad idea to try to make it appear less serious than the situation is in reality, especially when media around the world are posting photos and airing images of an oil rig in flames and spilling thousands of gallons of oil into its surroundings. Mr. Thoma J. Roach, journalist from the magazine Rock Products has made a very good point on this matter, noting that BP`s CEO Tony Hayward reportedly said that the Gulf of Mexico is a big ocean and compared the amount of oil pouring into it as tiny and insignificant. However, Roach claimed that such a statement is dismissive and that it pictures environmentalists and all the people in those industries devastated by the disaster as crybabies. Moreover, instead of placating them, it challenged them to come back strengthened with better evidence, more arguments and intensity. He also concluded that such a public relations strategy is only baiting the enemies (Roach, 2010). In simplicity, if Hayward would say something more sincere and actually true, BP could have looked better and avoided more negative publicity not only for the disaster itself, but also for their way of handling it. Even though delivering the information is the most important part of the whole public relations process, one may argue that delivering it too late or in a bad form is as much important. Frederick E. Allen, former CEO of Jacobs Suchard, has made a good point on this matter using the BP? s public relations blunders as an example, mentioning that he would expect hundreds of press release updates from BP Global on Facebook, however during the tough times, BP`s PR section has issued only about hundred of them. On top of that, only few of them had something to do with the spill and its aftermath (Allen, 2012). To improve this part of the strategy, BP clearly needed to utilize all of their resources, including their own web page, to its fullest potential and in appropriate time. What BP shown during their crisis and also afterwards, was clearly a lack of competent people responsible for writing short memos and messages on one of their main communication channels – their website. On the other hand, even when the PR department is doing a tremendous job on social networks, it does not necessarily mean that it will have actual impact. This is caused by the way how social networks are used by the audience. Basically, company needs a massive amount of followers on given social network prior to the actual case, so they can immediately use it to reach their target audience with tweets or updates. So despite BP had a capable social network manager who succeeded in posting a lot of material, they did not really matter too much as BP lacked followers, as their staff weren’t active on this matter before it became a really needed tool in times of crisis (Allen, 2012). As mentioned earlier, significant blunder of the company in PR area was a wrong choice of a spokesperson. A lot of critique went on Mr. Hayward`s head. Thomas Roach has described BP`s CEO as blunt-speaking, hard-edged and criticized BP for using him also as a  chief spokersperson for the company, mentioning that American industry already learned a  lesson from Japanese competitors in the 1980s, specifically, that the person who is the best engineer does not necessarily make the best manager. Tony Hayward was thus a  bad hire for BP, as he was not a  outstanding leader with appropriate communication skills (Roach, 2010). Maybe BP wanted to look like they stood behind their CEO, thus even after his publicly known and very unfortunate quotes, they did not want to take him down and replace him by someone with better set of communication skills. However, Mr. Hayward has most likely done more damage with his inappropriate appearances than it helped BP to look like they are maintaining their integrity. Despite the immediate PR reaction after April 2010, the company seemed to be unable to appreciate the cultural context, since BP did not speak the language which the American public wanted to hear. BP did not appreciate the political context as well and at that time, they heavily damaged the lingering relationship with US government as exclusive emitter of oil-drilling permits for locations rich on oil. To conclude the case, it can be claimed that BP has run their technical operations during the crisis bad, but their immediate PR reaction was even worse. Moreover, BP? s public relations department was over-optimistic and endlessly reassured the general public by optimistic assessments that the amount of spillage is â€Å"relatively tiny† and the situation will be dealt with soon (Roach, 2010). Additionally, the company should have been more compassionate to the victims of the oil rig explosion and to those who were harmed by the latter oil spill. However, this case can be seen as a valuable lesson for not only petrochemical industry, but the whole multinational companies segment of the businesses around the world. Lessons that BP did not learn from the Exxon Valdez case years ago will hopefully be learned by other companies from BP`s case. On the other hand, this environmental disaster has happened during the Information era, when everything is immediately spread worldwide and when one has to respond to the audience as quickly as humanly possible. Thus, it cannot be isolated in a time period of a year 2010, but it must be viewed as a continuous process. Even after all cleaning work will be done, there still will be a future aspect of the case, as general public will keep demanding a preemptive measures by BP. This will create another playfield where BP can work on their public relations and slowly present itself as they have learned their lessons and from now on, BP will become a whole new company with a new approach to safety and crisis management. This actually seems to be the case, as articles in 2011 and further does not generally mention BP in such a bad light as they were doing previously, which can be accounted to applying new PR strategies. Specifically, we can see a good presentation of BP in a NY Times article from the middle of 2011 written by Julia Werdigier, author of more than a thousand articles for NY Times. In the article, BP is given a credit for announcing the new, safer, deep-water drilling standards of BP together with a more general safety measures (Werdigier, 2011). With articles like this, BP is starting to turn their image around. But in the end, only time will reveal if the PR department of one of the biggest multinational companies will learn their lesson. References Allen, F. (2012). The Gulf Spill: BP Still Doesn’t Get It. Retrieved October 22, 2012, from http://www. forbes. com/sites/frederickallen/2012/04/20/the-gulf-spill-bp-still-doesnt-get-it/ McClam, E. , Weber H. R. (2010). BP’s failures made worse by PR mistakes. Retreived October 30, 2012 from website http://www. msnbc. msn. com/id/37647218/ns/business-world_business/t/bps-failures-made-worse-pr-mistakes/ Oxford Metrica. (2011). Reputation Review 2011 [Report]. Retrieved from October 30, 2012, from website: http://www. oxfordmetrica. om/public/CMS/Files/825/Aon_Oxford% 20Metrica%20Reputation%20Review_2011. pdf Roach, T. (2010). BP’s PR Lessons. Retrieved October 22, 2012, from http://www. rockproducts. com/index. php/key-issues/community-relations/9719-bps-pr-lessons. html Tangley, L. (2010). Bird Habibats Threatened by Oil Spill. Retrieved October 26, 2012, from website: http://www. nwf. org/News-and Magazines/NationalWildlife/Birds/ Archives/2010/Oil- Spill-Birds. aspx Werdigier, J. (2011). BP to Tighten Deep-Sea Drilling Practices as It Tries to Rebound. Retrieved October 23 from LexisNexis Academic database. How to cite How Bp Failed at Crisis Communication, Essay examples

Integrated Project Management for Conference-myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theIntegrated Project Management for International Conference. Answer: The integration of the new and innovative computer controlled conveyor belt can be stated to be a change to the overall production process of the company. The change in the process of the production would be considered as the conveyor belt would assist in the movement and positioning of the items in the conveyor belt within a gap of less than 1 millimeter. The addition of the computerized conveyor belt would lead to a new system in the production intended for future installations along with the replacement of the old systems (Gutfeld, et al., 2014). The changes in the project management plan could be observed by the fact that the duration of time taken for the completion of the entire project was required to be lessened form 530 days (Lpez Labrada, 2016). This would save much time along with putting the entire system of production back to time soon. Thus, one of the requirements of change that was prominent in this case was the reduction of the current schedule. The requirements also introduced changes in the management plan of the project in terms of needing additional resources for the implementation of the project. The provision of the internal resources which could be only used once and assigned to complete efficiency had to be materialized. The initial process groups included the team of the project. However, the requirements regarding changes in the project in the case of the duration of project completion was observed to need the involvement of additional resources and teams. The involvement of two teams of RD teams for the design stage was used. Further two additional teams of RD were again used in the development process of the project. The documentation process of the projects observed to involve one RD team at the rate of 60$ per hour (Vanhoucke, 2016). The assembly/test stage needed one additional RD team and the purchasing department had to include one additional Procurement team for the fast completion of the project. Life cycle of the project associated to the computerized conveyor belt was subjected to change due to the requirements of change as the initial duration of project was reduced from 530 days. However, the requirements of the project according to the new schedule was observed to involve ten percent of the entire duration of activity for the purpose of training prior to the activities associated with the allocation of the resources as a part of the management plan of the project. The feasibility of the change is very much facilitated during the initiation phase by the resource manager after he realizes the importance of meeting the requirements for the additional internal resources to the team (Xu, 2017). The planning phase is observed to have effective solution devised by the project team regarding the implementation of project of the computerized conveyor belt by proposing the resource manager to extend assistance through the involvement of additional teams. This phase has also been o bserved to have structuring of reduced costs in the conduction of various phases of the installation of computerized conveyor belt system in the company. References Gutfeld, T., Jessen, U., Wenzel, S., Laroque, C., Weber, J. (2014, December). A technical concept for plant engineering by simulation-based and logistic-integrated project management. InSimulation Conference (WSC), 2014 Winter(pp. 3423-3434). IEEE. Lpez, D. S., Labrada, L. S. (2016, October). Strengths and opportunities for improvement in the center of telematics development to establish the Integrated Project Management. InSoftware Process Improvement (CIMPS), International Conference on(pp. 1-8). IEEE. Vanhoucke, M. (2016).Integrated Project Management Sourcebook: A Technical Guide to Project Scheduling, Risk and Control. Springer. Xu, J. (2017, July). Advances in Green Supply Chain, Resource Optimization Management, Risk Control and Integrated Project Management Based on the Eleventh ICMSEM Proceedings. InInternational Conference on Management Science and Engineering Management(pp. 923-934). Springer, Cham.