Mergers and acquisitions Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Mergers and acquisitions - Coursework Example This paper seeks to examine examples of companies in the USA that were involved in a merger. Mergers often look forward to ensuring profits rather than losses in the business combination. The selected company that involved itself in a merger is the Continental Airlines Company. The company was involved in the merger with another airline company. The two companies were the entities in the merger. An entity in business or in mergers and acquisitions (M & A) describes the organization, company or corporation that is acquired by another organization, company or corporation or that merges with the other in order to ensure a successful business in terms of profits, quality of products and competition and its continuous and long term survival in the world's competitive markets (Harwood, 2005). In the year 2010, an airline company in the U.S, Continental Airlines, merged or was rather acquired by another company, United Airlines (UAL) Corporation, also an airline holding company in the U.S w hich had its headquarters in Chicago in the state of Illinois. The two airline companies merged to form the United Continental Holdings in October 2010. The merger took place to ensure that the new company founded posed stiff competition to other airline companies around the world. The merge was also to ensure better services than the services provided before by the individual airline companies. After merging, the founded airline, United Continental Holdings became the largest airline company in the world as was confirmed by revenue passenger miles (New York Times, 2010). Mergers and acquisitions are often accompanied by transaction prices and payment terms. At the time of the merger between Continental Airlines and UAL Corporation, there were several factors that were involved in determining the transaction price and the payment terms for each of the individual companies after the merger. The first factor that determined the payment terms was the presence of other potential bidders who would provide better payment terms. United Airlines initially held merger talks with the US Airways. It is said that a deal was close between the two companies (New York Times, 2010). Unfortunately the merger talks broke off paving way for talks between the United Airlines Corporation and other airlines. On the other hand, the Continental Airlines also held merger talks with the Star Alliance and even merged. However the two airlines later on separated. This paved way for merger talks between the Continental Airlines and the United Airlines Corporation. Better payment terms were put in place bearing in mind that there were other potential bidders in case of a break off of the merger talks. The second factor that determined the transaction price and the payment terms between the two companies was the share deal that was signed by both entities. When the United Airlines and the Continental Airlines announced their merger in 2010, they struck so many deals. One was of a new name o f the company to be formed which was named the United Continental Holdings. Secondly, the two companies struck deals to share the losses and profits. This share deal was the key factor which was strongly involved in determining the transaction price and payment terms during their merger. The third factor that determined the transaction price and the payment terms was the taxes to be imposed on the newly formed company by the US government. Taxes imposed on a certain company greatly influences the payment terms. In case of friendlier taxation, the two entities could enjoy sharing in large amounts of the profits incurred. However, in case of harsh taxation by the US governm

Swiss Watch Company ROLEX and how they manage customer satisfaction, Essay

Swiss Watch Company ROLEX and how they manage customer satisfaction, loyalty and what the company does to foster customer relations - Essay Example The same include use of titanium and ceramics, apart from gold and diamond in their watches, as well as launching creative customer relations management (CRM) modules to keep the existing customers, whiling adding the new ones. Keeping the quality and customer satisfaction in view, Rolex watch company has limited its production of watches, till recently, between 650000 to 800000 per year. Hence, the demand for their prestigious time pieces has always been more than the production and supply figures, while the waiting list for their stainless steel Daytona watches goes up to five years, at times.(Liebeskind, What makes Rolex tick) & ( Smith, 1996) However, with their planned new production facility at Bienne, the company hopes to add around 400000 cubic meters of quality work space that can cater to almost 2000 employees, in the year 2012†¦.(Swiss watch news, 2009) Rolex watches are made as per the specific customer requirements. For example, Rolex Submariner and Rolex Oyster were designed keeping in view the water sports, while their Explorer range of watches was developed specifically for mountaineers and those needing use of watches in rough and inhospitable terrains. Similarly, Rolex GMT Master was designed to assist pilots with multiple time zones, as the company developed these watches in 1954. While product innovation has been of supreme importance for the company, their time pieces and wrist watches are remembered for reasons other than finding time or date. For example, Rolex gained huge media attention, when its Oyster Perpetual wrist watch helped in solving a murder mystery of English Channel, in 1996†¦..(Morgan, Good reasons why to buy Rolex watches) In addition, the company has least dependence on its suppliers as most of the quality control measures are in-house, for every stage of manufacture. As the entire manufacturing process of the company

Chorley Fabrics Ltd Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Chorley Fabrics Ltd - Essay Example The amount of units to produce was acquired by taking the values of the availability of resources (from another table) and the usage of resources per product. This was divided into the former to get a quotient: the maximum use of resources. Both Stevenson (2005)1 and Middleton (2006)2 explain how to use Excel in this fashion via the Solver tool. After this, the amount of units produced was multiplied by the profit per unit to obtain the value for total profit. X1, X2, X8, X9 and X10 are the profit bringers, and thus they should be placed on the schedule in order of profit received, starting from the highest: X2, X8, S9, X1 and X10. The others, as there is little profit from them, should be moved to the bottom of the list. X4 can likely be eliminated altogether. From this, using the SUMPRODUCT formula, which adds the sums of products of corresponding arrays, it can then be determined how much of each resource is used per week. For example, X1 can have 15 units produced, at a cost of 1.8 units in M/C 1. Unit 2 can have have 28 units, at a cost of 1.2 in M/C 2, and so on down the list. All these values are added up to get the total usage of resources. Alternatively, all values in the row corresponding to each product can be added to get the total cost per unit. Resource Usage Available M/C 1 369.75 400 M/C 2 206.75 250 M/C 3 280.00 280 M/C 4 212.82 270 M/C 5 324.00 340 Mat 1 600.00 600 Mat 2 780.00 780 Labour 182.80 229 This table denotes the usage of all resources, based upon the values gained from the procedure described above. Going by this, it can be seen that M/C 3 and both raw materials are used to optimum efficiency. There is no surplus or deficit. M/C 2 and M/C 4, hwever, are lacking; there is a a period of 44.3 hours left over for 2, and a period of 57.2 hours for 4. M/C 1, 3, and 5 are used efficiently; there is little available time left for them. 5. Marginal Benefits Resource Final Value Marginal Benefits Constraint R.H. Side Allowable Increase Allowable Decrease M/C 1 Usage 369.75 0.00 400 1E+30 30.24822533 M/C 2 Usage 206.84 0.00 250 1E+30 43.15699565 M/C 3 Usage 280.00 7.93 280 7.303252788 14.80479303 M/C 4 Usage 212.84 0.00 270 1E+30 57.15903366 M/C 5 Usage 322.01 0.00 340 1E+30 17.99473323 Mat 1 Usage 600.00 13.98 600 65.70689655 61.87637795 Mat 2

A report on Agile and OOAD Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

A report on Agile and OOAD - Research Paper Example Guidelines for Combining Agile with other approaches 9 VIII. Case Study 10 IX. Recommendations and Challenges 10 X. Bibliography 11 I. Introduction In the past few years, there have emerged a large number of software development practices and processes. In this scenario, agile software development methodologies have become a trend in quickly changing software industry. In the past, only the traditional software development methodology was the only method to develop software products. However, it was not supportive for late changes and iterations. In order to deal with the issues presented in traditional software development approaches there emerged a very attractive software development approach, known as agile software development. Soon it became a standard software development approach which received a great deal of support of all kinds of experts from the software industry. At the present, the majority of software development firms and software developers are aware of agile softwa re development methodologies. They use it all the way through the software development lifecycle. Basically, agile software development approach is based on some principles which can be tailored according to varying requirements of software projects. This report will present a detailed analysis of agile software development. ... In this scenario, the term â€Å"agile† is used to reveal number of meanings like that implement changes rapidly, deliver the completed product rapidly and accommodate change frequently. In view of the fact that there are a large number of software development approaches (for instance Scrum, XP and many more) which come under the umbrella of agile software development paradigm and they differ in emphasis and practices, however they all follow the same principles which come under agile agenda. In this scenario, many researchers present the common description of the agile manifesto. According to researchers agile methodology and its family members are based on the following principles (Kavitha & Thomas, 2011; Lucia & Qusef, 2010; Paetsch, 2003): Working software application or a product should be delivered as rapidly and regularly as possible (it should be delivered in days in place of weeks and in weeks in place of months) Working software application should give an insight int o the progress of the overall project Improving the customer satisfaction by providing them rapid and regular release of implemented software application. Agile software development methodologies are aimed at supporting and accommodating late changes all the way through the software development lifecycle. In fact, late changes in requirements are effectively accommodated without having serious effects on the overall development or project. Agile software methodologies are designed to support effective collaboration, communication and close on a daily basis cooperation between business people and developers in fact among all the stakeholders Agile software development methodologies are highly based on

Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Essay Example for Free

Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Essay This research is a review of an article by Douglas C. Foyle’s Public Opinion and Foreign Policy: Elite Beliefs as a Mediating Variables. In addition, the latter part of this research evaluates the article and provides recommendations for further possible scholastic contributions. Foyle’s research is focused on the subject area of public opinion and its correlation and influence to foreign policy. The increasing interest of scholars about this subject matter has been immense and is widely acknowledged in recent scholarly contributions in recent times (Foyle 141). Thus, in this research, Foyle seeks to narrow down his focus on the correlation of the influence of public opinion to foreign policy and the elite beliefs of policy makers. This, in its context, establishes the beliefs of policy makers as the mediating variable that determines the possibilities of public opinion to influence foreign policies. Thesis Foyle argues that the beliefs of decision makers on the matter of the influence of public opinion on foreign policies have an actual effect to decision making (141, 144, 164). The research elaborates on this by citing findings which suggest that the influence of public opinion may vary on a number of factors. The factors according to Russet, includes both the decision time and the type of issue under consideration (144). In its argument, the research regards decision makers as the top level policy makers, frequently cited in the study as the leaders who are at the top of the hierarchy; are likely to participate, and has final authority for the decision (144). Public opinion, however, are determined through various representatives such as editorial opinion, polls, letters, etc (144). Foyle cited V. O Key’s definition of public opinion as â€Å"those opinions held by private persons which governments find it prudent to heed. †. Consistent with Key’s perspective, Philip Powlick, relying on interviews with State Department and National Security Council (NSC) officials, discovered policy makers did vary in how they operationalized public opinion. He reported officials relied more often on the news media and elected representatives as indicators of public opinion. They used mass opinion (such as polls and letters) to a lesser extent and other elites and interest group activity least of all. (144) On the other hand, Foyle refers to beliefs as the perceptions of the policy makers on the desirability and importance of public opinion in influencing decisions in foreign policies (145). Furthermore, Holsti defines a belief system as â€Å"the set of lenses through which information concerning the physical and social environment is received. † Also, Vertzberger believes it â€Å"usually include principles and general ideas on the nature of the social and physical environment that constitutes policymaker’s field of action† (144). Logic In this light, the belief system is analyzed with a theoretical framework containing two dimensions; normative beliefs and practical beliefs (141, 145). In this study, both concepts are utilized and measured as the logic which supports Foyle’s argument. Normative beliefs measure the desirability of the public opinion to influence policies in the perspective of the policy maker. According to Foyle, this belief is composed of the judgment of an individual on whether input from public opinion is desirable or not in affecting foreign policy choices (145). On the other hand, practical beliefs measure the level of necessity of public support for a foreign policy to be successful (141). It presents the point of view of policy makers towards the idea of support from the public as to whether it is necessary or not for the success of a foreign policy. This logic further observes the correlation of elite beliefs and the influence of public opinion to foreign policy by using both the normative and practical beliefs as defining dimensions in which forms four possible distinct belief systems; delegate; executor; pragmatist, and guardian. (Foyle 145). These four systems are ideologies that illustrates an individual’s take on both the desirability of public opinion in affecting foreign policies and the level of necessity of the public support. One of the these systems are the delegates who are defined as policy makers who believe public opinion is desirable in influencing foreign policies, and public support is necessary for the success of these policies (145). Executors, however, are defined as those who believe that public opinion is desirable, thus input from others is acceptable but support is not necessary for the success of a policy (146). On the other hand, pragmatists are the ones who do not credit public opinion entirely but they consider public support as a necessity for a chosen policy (146). Lastly, guardians are the ones who block the connections of both the importance of public opinion and the requirement of a public support (147). These four systems are used as a tool to measure the classification of a policy maker in how it views the relationship of the input of public opinion and choices on foreign policies. With all these components utilized as the logic of the study, Foyle believes that categorizing policy makers into these belief systems, and understanding their individual beliefs on the relationship of public input and foreign policies, would further prove his arguments in this study. Also, this logic examines the feasibility of using normative and practical beliefs as a predictor of decision maker’s behavior (147). Research Method The study uses qualitative content analysis to evaluate the interaction between the beliefs and behaviors of policy makers. (147) Foyle employs extensive archival materials available on the beliefs and behavior of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. Foyle believes that a qualitative content analysis of Eisenhower’s and Dulles’s normative and practical public opinion beliefs establishes them as pragmatists. Based on these beliefs, I outline predictions of decision-making behavior for these two individuals and compare these predictions with decisions made during the Chinese offshore islands crisis in September 1954. (147) There were several steps taken to administer the collection of data and its evaluation. According to Foyle, beliefs can hardly be measured directly, thus it must be inferred from the data which, in this kind, should be retrieved from available statements by the policy makers being examined (148). In this light, the study examined public and private communications, public writings and speeches. These are found in several public sources and archives to come up with a clear characterization of the individual’s beliefs (148). In addition, three types of data were used to consider elite beliefs on public opinion; (1) private communication before and after taking office; (2) public statements before taking office; and (3) unprepared extemporaneous statements in office (149). Since there are reservations to the reliability of the qualitative content analysis, Foyle made use of two methods to deal with this issue (149). Foyle ensures that the beliefs analyses are completed initially before the detailed examination of behavior are reported. This succession, according to Foyle, makes sure that there are no influences by the examination of behavior on the beliefs analysis. In addition, Foyle employed an external party to measure the validity of the analysis and to ensure that there are no unintentional influence findings by that analyst (149). To determine the influence of beliefs to policy maker’s behavior, process training and congruency testing were utilized (Foyle 150). The procedure starts with the identification of the predicted theoretical relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Thereafter, the outcomes of the observations between the dependent and independent variables are determined and examined in relation to the theory’s predictions (150). Therefore, if the outcome is in accordance with the theory, there exists a relationship between the variables.

General Studies Essays Use of Torture

General Studies Essays Use of Torture Can the Use of Torture be Justified? This report aims to, in the first instance, define torture. It then examines the history of torture and looks at international law that relates to torture.  Ã‚   The main part of the study analyses ethical theories in relation to torture and uses these ethical viewpoints to examine whether or not torture can be justified in any circumstances.   In addition, the Algerian War and the Iraq War will be used as case studies to further discuss the ethical issues surrounding torture.   Conclusions will be drawn and the author’s answer to the question ‘can the use of torture ever be justified?’ will be given, based on the findings in the rest of the report. Limitations of Study This study has its limitations.   First of all, only two case studies are used.   There are numerous cases of torture throughout the world and throughout history that could be utilised.   In doing so, perhaps a different conclusion would be made.   As torture is such an emotive subject it is difficult to ensure that the facts are truly represented.   Before the nineteenth century some countries publicly acknowledged torture as an instrument of judicial inquiry, however today the vast majority of countries where torture is practised will blankly deny any knowledge of it.   This, of course, makes a study of torture difficult. In addition, as will be seen, there are numerous, conflicting ethical theories that can be applied to the topic of torture.   A person’s personal beliefs will influence how much credence they give to each viewpoint.   Consequently, the author’s opinions are likely to differ from the reader’s.   Definition of Torture Torture has a widely understood definition of causing someone severe pain or mental anguish, usually in order to gain some information from the person being tortured, most usually a confession.   Amnesty International state that ‘torture is the systematic and deliberate infliction of acute pain in any form by one person on another, in order to accomplish the purpose of the former against the will of the latter’ (Klayman, 1978, p482).   This definition encompasses both physical and mental pain.  Ã‚   It also notes that torture has a purpose, and does not allow torture for the sake of the torturer’s amusement.   The Commission for the European Convention on Human Rights defines torture simply as ‘deliberate inhuman treatment causing very serious or cruel suffering’ (Morgan Evans, 1999, p95).   It offers examples of forcing people to adopt a stress position in rooms where there is a continuous loud hissing noise, hooding, and deprivation of food and water. The Commission for the European Convention on Human Rights’ definition is the author’s preferred definition.   This is because it defines torture, not by the torturer’s intentions, but by the effect the treatment has on the tortured.  Ã‚   A Brief History of Torture The word torture often conjures up images of medieval torture instruments such a branding irons and head screws.   From the mid fourteenth century to the end of the eighteenth century torture was an accepted practise by armies, judicial systems and even churches (Maran, 1989, p vii).   Public opinion changed in the nineteenth century, but torture continued to be carried out.   Once the torture of Jews by the Nazis in the Second World War became public knowledge, numerous international laws were bought into effect to prevent the use of torture.   However, torture still continues to this day, but as its use is still widely condemned, details of torture are either kept non-public, are down played or justified by manipulation of public opinion.   So called civilised countries are just as likely to be the perpetrators of torture today as countries with a known poor human rights record (Kellaway, 2003, p34).  Ã‚  Ã‚   The International Context of Torture International law currently absolutely and unequivocally prohibits torture in all circumstances.   There are many international laws and conventions that define torture as a crime against humanity.   These include The European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and the European Convention on Human Rights.   These two pieces of law are intended to work side by side. The UN Committee Against Torture is a body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the Convention against Torture and other torture related law.   All member states are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how the rights are being implemented (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights). Ethical Theories Applied to Torture There are many and varied ethical theories that could be applied to the question, ‘can the use of torture ever be justified?’   Theories that conclude that torture is never acceptable will be examined first. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) developed Kantian Theory. It is based on the belief that reason is the final authority for morality.   A moral act is an act done for the right reasons (Lovell Fisher, 2002, p314).   Kantian Theory is closely related to the doctrines of all major religions, the Bible states ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’.   At the centre of Kantian ethics is his categorical imperative, which is a set of universal rules that outline ‘that only the good will, a will to act out of a sense of duty, has unqualified moral worth’ (Pojman, 1998, p194). Using deontological theory, whereby actions are intrinsically right or wrong, torture can be seen to be unacceptable, whatever the circumstances and consequences.   Deontologists hold that one cannot undertake immoral acts like torture even if the outcome is morally preferable, such as the early ending of a war or the saving of lives. Edmund Burke, the late eighteenth century writer and politician, accused the British of suffering from what he termed geographical morality (Lee Smith, 2004, p16).   ‘Geographical morality’ is when people are prepared to be shocked by and to condemn torture in other countries while condoning its practice by their own authorities.   The British are not the only ones to be guilty of this, many countries, especially in the West can be accused of ‘geographical morality’.  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, there are many other theories that show that torture could be morally acceptable in some situations. John Stuart Mill (1808-73) put forward an ethical theory known as utilitarianism. Utilitarianism can be summed up in the phrase, ‘everyone should act in such a way to bring the largest possibly balance of good over evil for everyone involved’ (Almond, 1988, p127).   Using this theory, torture can be justified if it brings about a greater good for a greater number of people.   The ends justify the means.   Using Utilitarianism Theory, if the torture of one person means that several people are located and rescued from a dire situation, then that torture is justifiable.   Consequentialism offers the idea that torture is justifiable if the consequences of the torture are morally right.   Consequentialism is an ethical view that establishes the rightness or wrongness of actions by the good or bad produced by its consequences.   Interlaced with the question ‘can torture ever be justified?’ is the question ‘can war ever be justified?’   As torture is an agent of war, this seems appropriate.   Just War Theory can be used to justify torture on the grounds that it is acceptable in response to certain situations.   St Thomas Aquinas (1225-74) described ‘jus ad bellum’, the conditions that he believed has to be met for war to be justified.   War has to be ordered by a legitimate authority, it must be waged for a just cause and the intention of those who wage war should be the triumph of good over evil (Almond, 1998, p197).   Of course, the problem with utilising this Just War theory is that fulfilment of the conditions is subjective.   However, it is possible that torture could be morally justified using the Just War Theory if it was carried out by a legitimate government whose general aim is good and with the best of intentions. The concept of proportionality is found in Acquinas consideration of the Just War Theory. He argued that warring activity should be proportionate to the aggression made and therefore not excessive to that aggression.   This would imply that torture, an extremely aggressive warring activity, would be ethically acceptable in response to extremely aggressive actions.   It can be argued that the intentions of a torturer make a difference to the moral value of the action of torture.   In consequentialist theories of ethics, intention is important, as intention is what you hope to achieve by the action.   For Kant, intention can make all the difference between morally correct behaviour and morally incorrect behaviour.   Ideology can play a part in legitimising the use of torture.   Ideology is the body of ideas and beliefs of a group, possibly religious, or nation (Maran, 1989, p11).   If the ideology of the tortured is believed to be morally wrong and the act of torture prevents the spread of this ideology then torture can be deemed to be justified. So, in conclusion, there are ethical theories that both state that torture can never be justified and those that state it can be, in different, varying circumstances. Case Study: Torture in the Algerian War (1954-1962) The Algerian War lasted from 1954 to 1962.   The war was the final part of the process of the decolonisation of Algeria from France.   The war was one of the 20th Centurys bloodiest colonial struggles, and it continues to be the object of intense controversy, especially in France (BBC News, 2001).   It is now public knowledge that the French utilised torture against some Algerians.   This torture has been widely condemned in recent years.   However morality has a historical dimension and the morality of today cannot be used to judge the actions of fifty years ago.  Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1955 a French civil servant, Williaume, was sent by the French government to investigate allegations of torture in Algeria by French military personnel. His report failed to unequivocally condemn the torture that he discovered (Nacquet, 1963, appendix). As a result, the period 1955 to 1962 saw an increase in the amount of torture, not only through Algeria, but also in France itself Paul Aussaresses, a retired French general is quoted as saying â€Å"as far as the use of torture is concerned, it was tolerated, if not recommended.† Aussaresses is unusual in that he openly talked about and wrote about the act of torture and his participation in it.   Although many others have reviewed the use of torture in the Algerian War, Aussaresses is one of the few who were involved and can give first hand accounts.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Therefore his comments that defend the use of torture will be used to form the basis of this part of the report.  Ã‚   Torture, Aussaresses said, was sanctioned at the highest level because of the need to extract urgent information from the enemy.   â€Å"It was a matter of stopping actions which were being prepared for deeds causing the deaths of my fellow French and Algerian citizens,† he said.   He claims to have stopped Algerian bomb makers from killing French civilians by extracting confessions though electric shocks and suffocation. (BBC News, 2001).   Aussaresses seems here to be using Mill’s Theory of Utilitarianism to justify the torture that occurred; he believed it bought about a greater good for a greater number of people.   Whether or not this torture can be considered justified in the light of his comments depends on whether or not the torture did indeed stop other deaths, and of course, whether the reader subscribes to the Theory of Utilitarianism.   Sources note that the effect of the torture of Algerians by French was a retaliation whereby Algerians took part in ‘killing and raping collaborators, rivals and settlers’ (Joly, 1991, p36).   So, in actual effect the torture that Aussaresses describes as the catalyst for saving lives, actually served to result in more life loss.   Therefore, regardless of the beliefs of the author or reader regarding the Theory of Utilitarianism, in this instance the act of torture was not justifiable on the grounds that it bought about the largest possible balance of good over evil for everyone involved. Aussaresses is also quoted as saying â€Å"the men I executed were always men guilty of blood crimes. They had blood on their hands.   I would do it again today if it were against Bin Laden† (BBC News, 2001).   Aussaresses seems to be utilising the concept of proportionality from Acquinas’ Just War Theory to justify the acts of torture and killing here.   He believes his acts were justified as they were in proportion to those perpetrated by the Algerians involved.   However, it is the author’s opinion that the concept of proportionality has no place in ethical thinking.   The old adage ‘two wrongs do not make a right’ is very topical here.   Indeed, may proverbs lead and guide ethical thinking.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Torture cannot be justified because other crimes have been committed by those tortured.   It can be questioned, what right did Aussaresses and his contemporaries have to dish out this punishment?   If people had committed cr imes they should have been tried in a court and justice meted out in that manner.   French people were led to believe that France was ‘crusading for the defence of Western values against the barbarians of the East’ (Hoffman, 1963, p.85).   It is clear, then that ideology was used as a justification to the public of the acts of torture that occurred.   However, the author subscribes to the theory that this justification is flawed due to ‘geographical morality’ as discussed earlier.   I believe this justification was simply used to ensure the public accepted the practise of torture.   Case Study: Torture in the Iraq War (2003 onwards) There has been some conflict in Iraq for the past couple of decades.   For the purposes of this paper the latest Iraq War, commencing 2003 and still continuing will be considered.   This war is a useful case study as it demonstrates, in these more recent times, when torture is seen to be less and less acceptable, how it both still occurs and is justified in different terms to previously.   There is much discourse as to whether or not the Iraq War itself is justified, so the use of torture as part of it questioned considerably.   Using Aquinas’ Just War Theory, the Iraq War is unjust and therefore any torture taking place as part of it is also so.   The War is not believed, by the author to be just as it does not Aquinas’ third condition, that those waging the war are dong it simply to triumph good over evil. There is no doubting that both American and British troops have been involved in some kind of torture of Iraqi nationals.  Ã‚  Ã‚   A Red Cross report, the Armys own Taguba report (British Red Cross, 2004), even the photographs published in newspapers all point to this.  Ã‚   In Camp Bucca during the period August 2003 to February 2004 the following acts have been reported; forcibly arranging detainees in various sexually explicit positions for photographing, and punching, slapping, and kicking detainees, amongst others (Observer, 2004). There is an aspect of ideology being used to justify torture.   It has been noted that the media portrays Islamic people as those who ‘will stop at nothing, including disgraceful acts of terrorism, to disrupt Western values’ (Lee Smith, 2004, p 215).   However, it is the author’s opinion that this does not justify torture.   It is also the author’s opinion that information gained through torture is likely to be unreliable due to this very fanaticism, and therefore make the ‘purpose’ of torture unobtainable. The Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill is the emergency legislation that was created in response to the US terror atrocities on September 11th 2001.  Ã‚   It has been accused of eroding civil liberties.   It has contributed to a heightened sense of vulnerability in the British public and perhaps, in part, although not its aim, it has contributed to making the mistreatment and torture of Iraqis more acceptable.  Ã‚   Bin Laden has been vilified in Western press and the torture of Iraqis can be seen as proportional to the atrocious acts committed by Bin Laden and his followers.   There is a real sense of ‘geographical morality’ in the justification of torture by the US and the UK.   When videos of kidnapped Westerners being tortured are viewed, there is universal damnation in the West, but Western personnel behind closed doors are practising similar acts. Conclusion This paper has explored the issue of torture and discussed whether or not is can ever be justified.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The definition of torture, a brief history of torture and the international context of torture have been discussed.   The main part of the report has dealt with the question ‘is torture ever ethical?’ by first exploring ethical theories in relation to this question, and then applying relevant theories to tow case studies, the Algerian War (1954-1962) and the Iraq War (2003 onwards).   It is worth noting that the justifications offered for torture in both cases were very similar, despite the two occurrences being fifty years apart.   Finally, the author would like to offer their opinion and draw to a conclusion the debate offered by the question ‘can torture ever be justified?’   It is the author’s opinion that torture can never be justified and can never be considered the ethically correct thing to do.   There is no ethical theory offered in this paper that the author subscribes to that can correctly be applied to any of the justifications offered in the two case studies used.   Not only that, but torture does not fulfil its intended purpose of gaining useful information and it often brings about more barbarity. Bibliography Almond, Brenda. (1998). Exploring ethics: a travellers tale, Bodmin: MPG Books. Badiou, Alain. (2001). Ethics: an essay on the understanding of evil, London: Verso. BBC News French general on trial over Algeria (2001). 14th April 2005. Available from World Wide Web: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/1675992.stm BBC News Chirac condemns torture general (2001). 14th April 2005. Available from World Wide Web: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/1312556.stm British Red Cross (2004).   13th April 2005. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.redcross.org.uk/uploads/documents/info%20sheet%20-%20iraq%20november%202004.doc Danner, Mark (2004). Torture and Truth: America, Abu Ghraib, and the War on Terror, New York: New York Review of Books. Evans, Malcolm D. and Morgan, Red (1998). Preventing torture: a study of the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Oxford: Clarendon Press. 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Comparison of Babylonian Art vs. Egyptian Art Essay -- essays papers

Comparison of Babylonian Art vs. Egyptian Art Over the history of man, there have been many prosperous empires that ruled in different parts of the world. Babylon and Egypt are two of these empires that ruled almost 500 years apart, but had one thing in common, great artistic works. Wall paintings such as the Babylonian work Investiture of Zimrilim, and the Egyptian Queen Neferati Making an Offering to Isis are examples of the great works of their times. Both pieces are rich in meaning and background, share many similarities, but differences can be seen in their style due to the time periods. The wall paintings Investiture of Zimrilim and Queen Neferati Making an Offering to Isis have backgrounds that let viewers into a small view of their ancient times. The first, Investiture of Zimrilim comes from circa 1750 B.C.E. in the great Babylonian Empire of Mesopotamia. It was constructed on a mud plaster wall of the Palace of Zimrilim, who was a contemporary of the Babylonian Ruler, Hammurabi. The palace was located in the capital city of Mari, about 250 miles north of Babylon. This painting was one of the many extravagant wall paintings Zimrilim had to depict his dominance. It was made to show the empowerment of Zimrilim from the Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of war, fertility, and love. The piece was eventually destroyed by the Babylonians who turned on Zimrilim and ransacked his palace; however parts of the painting survived. The second piece, Queen Neferati Ma...