Nikes CSR Policy Ethical Issues and Dilemmas

Nikes CSR Policy Ethical Issues and Dilemmas NIKE – ETHICAL ISSUES AND DILEMMAS INTRODUCTION Nike has been dodging accusations of employing people in the developing and under-developed economies, at low wages and poor working conditions for a considerable period of time. Having tried course correction and public relations as a measure to salvage the bad image generated by the sweatshops that Nike is accused of running, Nike has undertaken massive efforts to overcome these hurdles. Herein we will analyze Nike’s international business operations with a critical eye over the ethical issues and dilemmas that this organization has faced while manufacturing its goods in foreign lands. PROBLEM AREAS There are a number of areas that are seen as weak points or links in this Nike case. We shall first highlight the problem areas and then dive into the ethical theories that are supposed to govern them. According to the Wikipedia dictionary, ethics is defined as a general term for the science of morality.[1] While this branch of study can be further sub-divided into various categories, we have to remember that what is appropriate in a given situation may not be so among different circumstances and the decision of right or wrong is relative to its surroundings. Elaborated here are the issues and problems that stand out due to their ethical nature as issues or dilemmas faced by Nike and its operations towards its employees and customers as mentioned in the case study: Poor Working Conditions – In Nike factories, the laborers were provided with poor working conditions that were certainly below the norms accepted in the developed world. While lower standards of living may apply in the countries that have Nike factory contracts, the inhumanity of these conditions drives attention to Nike’s responsibility towards its employees. Considerable overtime and long working hours had to be endured by Nike employees desperate to remain employed in their country. An example states that Nike factory workers in Korea had to work for seventeen straight hours in silence. This indicates almost barbaric behavior on Nike’s part towards workers in these conditions. Low Wages – Nike contracts with companies to do all of their manufacturing in developing or under-developed countries. While the wage levels there are lower than the ones in developed nations, Nike still fails to employ people at a rate that can sustain their basic needs. The wages provided are much lower than the wages needed and as such cheap labor is thoroughly exploited. Nike has attempted at correcting the problem and employing people at a rate at least equal to the minimum wages prescribed in the country. Child Labor – Child labor laws in many countries are overlooked by Nike and children as young as 12 and 13 years of age are made to work long hours and treacherous conditions. Nike has taken steps to meet the starting age limit subsequently. Operations in Countries with Union Restrictions – Nike has been known to set manufacturing efforts in countries like Indonesia and China that prohibit union operations. This leads to lack of revolt and protests that leave the employees with little choice regarding work conditions and wages. Ethically, it is hard to argue against these countries as their laws do not have provisions for employment governance. In fact these countries often do not have minimum wage requirements and abundant labor is put to use by companies like Nike for the absolute minimum. Expensive Endorsements – While Nike has been continuously targeted by human rights committees, they have unceasingly maintained a high profile image by getting celebrities like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods to endorse their products. Over five years, Tiger Woods is expected to earn 80-90 million US dollars of Nike money.[2] Ethically it would have been more beneficial to engage a part of that money in Nike factory and employee enrichment. Expensive Products – Nike sells its products at steep prices, while we all know that the products are manufactured in contracted factories on foreign lands for low costs. The cost of production being low leads Nike to generate massive profits from the sales revenues. Cover-up Public Relations Efforts – Being involved in child labor initiatives was undertaken by Nike to handle the issue at large and also to rectify the public relations pitch for Nike. The actual problem is being pointed out as adequate wages problem as opposed to the child labor initiatives that seem like a cover up for the bigger issues plaguing Nike. Lack of Development Work at Factory Locations – While one constantly hears stories of sweatshops and defense by Nike regarding its work force problems, one rarely hears of philanthropic activities adopted by Nike in the area of the factory location. For example, at Hershey, PA one hears of the development the company Hershey’s has done for the community. Likewise it reflects as selfish behavior from Nike in not supporting the causes faced by the community occupying Nike’s workforce. Health Hazards in Factories – Skin and breathing problems are observed in factories that makes Nike products. Nike has to make sure that it performs by the standards set by OSHO in protecting employees from hazardous chemicals and processes in the manufacturing cycle. ETHICAL THEORIES Ethical theories can help rationalize certain decisions that Nike has made as a company and highlight the issues pertaining to its followed consequences. Let us now examine some ethics theories and observe the case of Nike in this light.[3] Egoism – This theory states that individuals or corporations have a right to guide their conduct placing ones own interest foremost in rational decisions. Through this theory one can justify the placement of profits or revenue generation as the high attained goal of an entity. In this regards Nike has played to the theory as far as possible. They have not only conducted manufacturing with cheap labor but also ensured that the factories do not earn even a little extra than they were supposed to. This theory states that every person that promotes self interest bring about social good. In this context we could see that while the founder of Nike, Phil Knight performed with self interest in mind, he was propelling Nike ahead by huge proportions. Doing so, he did manage to bring about the rise of one of the most well known brands in the world today. Social Group Perspective – It is not only self that determines all decisions but the surrounding that forms the social group under which the individual or company resides. It is the norm or standard in social groups wherein an entity can determine the wrong or right in that particular case. For Nike this social group has become a collection of customers, shareholders, employees, foreign contractors and others. The perception of right and wrong is determined by these social groups that operate differently in different places. For example, while the minimum wage in Indonesia, Korea and China may be less that that in the United States of America, the standard of living there will meet the minimum wage requirements and Nike has to ensure that they abide by that. Cultural Relativism – Every country has its unique culture that accompanies it. For Nike, a company that has a presence in many countries in the world, minding the cultural relevance can prove to be an effective means to growth. For example, while bribes are seen as a cultural norm in some countries, they are seen as unlawful in certain other countries. Society as a whole in certain countries is known to consider bribes as a normal occurrence, which for some countries is a crime. This culture makes or breaks certain laws in place and as long as Nike abides by these laws, in the respective country, and at the same time minds its home country standards, controversy for Nike will be minimized. Utilitarianism – This theory works under the premise that the greatest good is for the greatest number. Herein it is the majority that counts above anything else. If only a few elements of the entity think that the decision is wrong, the decisions must be right which is what is said by the majority. In the case of Nike, the decisions that were enforced by the majority are responsible for the sustained controversy surrounding it. The board obviously took certain steps in clearing the controversies that have affected the company. Since these decisions are taken with the view of the company good in mind, with the majority of the people agreeing to it, the decision must be seemed as right. Deontological Perspective – This view goes by the saying ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ The duty to make this world a better place is a duty that one has to take upon themselves, besides following certain obligations. For example, telling the truth is an obligation and that is seen as ‘right.’ In the same way for corporations, it is the giving back in return concept that needs to be perfected. The corporation is obliged to provide a good product and it is entitled to bring positive changes to its constituents. Values Clarification[4] This ethical theory expects that one is familiar with ones own views, reasoning and rationale. It is for this reason that companies try to build cultures within the organization in the same way that Nike has evolved its corporate culture. Nike’s branding, products and apparel indicate its image and success. ETHICAL DILEMMAS Nike has faced ethical dilemmas in operations and manufacturing for a while now. The definition of ethical dilemma states that it is a situation wherein exists conflicts between moral imperatives and choosing one situation consequence over another can lead to compromising of what also seemed like a viable solution in the situation[5]. Let us go over the ethical dilemmas that Nike has faced over its functioning. Manufacturing Ownership – Nike chooses to contract its manufacturing to factories in foreign lands where the wages and conditions do not meet developed nation’s standards. Yet they have their products made there at low costs after enforcing their product controls. While they could manufacture these products in the United States of America, profitability of these products wins over providing the home country with employment and opportunities in the manufacturing segment. Advertising Budgets – Nike has endorsed many athletes and celebrities like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan paying them exorbitant amounts of money. While the brand has succeeded in maintaining an image of athleticism, it has compromised on how the money could have been used to better serve the country where they have their factories. Public Relations – Nike has had to go lengths to protect its public image and had to employ many legal experts and public relations individuals. The dilemma occurs when Nike may have to admit to its mistakes but doing so would cost them greatly, hence the truth may have to be manipulated and then disclosed, which does not conform to ethical standards. Employee Enrichment – With the profits that Nike generated from manufacturing products in foreign countries at low costs, a dilemma in front of them can arise from the fact that even if the country’s wage and standards are met they fall way below the US standards. While Nike can invest in employee welfare, it is not a norm in the country that runs their factories. Besides a lot of these factories are contracted to do Nike manufacturing and Nike as such is not obligated to conduct factory and employee welfare. CONCLUSION While Nike has faced severe criticism due to its manufacturing decisions, it as a brand and product has fought and sustained its success. Ethics experts will continue to question Nike in unfavorable ways, however when we apply the ethical theories that have relevance in the business world, we observe that Nike does its best to meet the requirements. This is especially evident when Nike made decisions to conduct independent audits and engage in human rights activities. On the other hand Nike faces ethical dilemmas due to its operations and these dilemmas will continue to exist in the world economy. Nike has gone with the route of foreign contracting in its earlier phase and has received tremendous criticism through it. Faced with its plenty of ethical dilemmas, Nike has managed to sustain the product, develop new products and continue to be a force to reckon with as a consumer brand. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethics [2] http://www.golftoday.co.uk/news/yeartodate/news99/woods12.html [3] http://www.mgmtguru.com/mgt499/TN2_PAGE3.htm [4]http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:ofLIUDDIiW0J:jan.ucc.nau.edu/~dgs2/theories.pdf+theories+in+ethicshl=en [5] www.ethicsscoreboard.com

Karl Marx’s Views on Family Ethics Essay -- Karl Marx Communist Manife

Karl Marx’s Views on Family Ethics Karl Marx and Frederick Engels Karl Marx devoted much of his time to the study of morality, better known as ethics. Karl Marx was a firm believer in Communism and he authored the Communist Manifesto, along with Frederick Engels. Family ethics is an issue dealt with by Karl Marx in his teachings and writings. According to Marx and his co-author, Engels, morality is the slave of interest. Moral codes and ethics are believed to be dependent on the person and relative to the social setting.[1] Ethics are discussed on a philosophical level and also in everyday controversial topic discussions or debates. Marx was a huge supporter of freedom and believed that freedom was a result of the Communist party and its beliefs. Karl Marx had little faith in the future of Capitalism and the system of Monarchy, and he believed that once these two ideas of politics were eliminated, Communism would move in and replace the wrong thoughts instilled with Capitalism and Monarchy, and provide the world with sense and reason. Stating his feelings clearly in the Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx noted that the selling point in the economy should be the people themselves, not the working labor, money, or rent from the property.[2] To supplement these theories, Marx proposes an end to the problem of men and their activities, which is to direct men’s attention on the economy so that there could be prevailing freedom. There are some discrepancies in Marx’s theories, like the question of what else has an impact on freedom. There are other issues, but the issue remains that peo ple are unaware if freedom ethics applies to all people and how it affects the modern society. ... ...roposal for the world and Communism was too far-fetched and would not work. Every time there has been a push towards Communism, it has always failed. There have been several unsuccessful attempts, all ending in a problematic dictatorship. While he did realize freedom was a major issue, he lacked in knowledge that family life was also significant. Notes [1] Kamenka, Eugene. Marxism and Ethics. New York: W.D. Hudson, 1969 - Pg. 4. [2] Kamenka, Eugene. Pg. 13. [3] Heyer, Paul. Nature, Human Nature, and Society. Greenwood Press, 1982 – Pg.126. [4] Heyer, Paul. Pg. 125. [5] Heyer, Paul. Pg. 127 [6] Kamenka, Eugene. Pg. 26. [7] Kamenka, Eugene. Pg. 49. [8] Kamenka, Eugene. Pg. 51. [9] Koren, Henry. Marx and the Authentic Man. Pittsburgh, PA, 1967 – Pg. 33. [10] Koren, Henry. Pg. 67. [11] Koren, Henry. Pg. 68.

Physical Therapy Essay

The profession of physical therapy intrigues me mainly because physical therapy has had a positive impact on my life and I want to be able to have a positive impact on others. Over the years I have had my fair share of injuries and have been fortunate enough to have a physical therapist work on me. The fact that my physical therapist was able to minimize my pain and expedite my recovery made me extremely appreciative of the profession. Physical therapy is an essential part of athletics, which is a large part of my life, and greatly benefits the sports world. Without physical therapists injuries would be much more detrimental and would therefore decrease the attractiveness of competing in a sport. In addition, I would love to work in a professional field pertaining to sports because they have had such a large impact on my life and have shaped who I am today. Physical therapy has many benefits outside of sports as well, including general physical activity. I lead a very active lifestyle and can’t imagine life without physical activity due to an injury, disease or illness. By providing rehabilitative care for individuals of all activity levels physical therapists allow them the freedom to be physically active. I believe that in order to live life to the fullest, your body needs to be able to take you wherever you want to go. I can’t think of a better profession than having a beneficial impact on others lives and helping them enjoy their lives. In addition to these personal reasons there are outside factors that also make the physical therapy profession appealing. Once you begin working, your job security increases greatly because injuries, illnesses and diseases will always be prevalent in society. This is very comforting to have the peace of mind that you won’t be replaced and it allows you to enjoy your job more. Also, most physical therapists work regular hours, which allows you to enjoy your time off work and not be worried about getting called in. Finally, I know multiple people that are either physical therapists, clinic owners, or even still students that couldn’t be happier with the decision they made to work in the field of physical therapy. The benefits of physical therapy on physical activity are immense and essential to people’s health. Overall, physical therapy impacts the general health of people in countless ways. Without physical therapy and  rehabilitative care, injuries, illnesses and diseases could be catastrophic to a person’s physical activity level. Physical therapists provide care that allows individuals to perform necessary daily tasks and carry out actions that improve their quality of life. In addition to general health and daily activity, physical therapy greatly benefits athletics. If athletes didn’t receive care after an injury, their healing time would increase dramatically. By providing specialized care, physical therapists help athletes return to play. This, in turn, keeps the sports industry running properly as the top athletes are able to perform and provide entertainment. Lastly, physical therapy benefits physical activity teaching proper form for activity, which helps prevent future injuries. By providing people with the knowledge necessary to live a physically active life, physical therapists greatly benefit physical activity. In order to be able to contribute to the career of physical therapy, I need to first fully understand what the profession entails. By gathering as much knowledge as possible about physical therapy, I will have the tools needed to be a great therapist and contribute to the career. To positively impact physical therapy, I would first need to practice professionally, which reflects positively on physical therapy as a whole. I believe it would be extremely beneficial to athletes to learn proper technique for physical activities. One contribution I would do my best to make happen would be providing a camp for sports teams that educate young athletes on form and injury prevention. I wish someone had taught me how to prevent injuries because I spent very little time being 100% healthy. Also, by specializing in a certain area of physical therapy I would have the knowledge necessary to create new treatments and exercises to maximize the benefit of therapy. Finally, I would also love to own a clinic, which would have a immense impact on my patients and physical therapy as a profession. The first person I interviewed was a woman. She is a physical therapist at a clinic in Truckee, CA where I’m from. She received her Bachelors degree from UC Santa Barbara and her Masters degree from Chapman. I chose to interview her because she helped out with the local high school teams, almost like a trainer, but also because I was curious to see what it’s like to work in a clinic. Over the years I’ve had my share of injuries so I’ve gotten to know  her pretty well. She turned me on to physical therapy related professions because she has helped me rehab my more serious injuries and she has done a lot of athletic training type work for me during soccer. I interviewed her because I wanted her opinion on physical therapy versus athletic training since she does both. My second interview was with a man who is a recent graduate of the kinesiology program Saint Mary’s. He received his Master’s degree in Kinesiology, but still wasn’t exactly sure what profession he wanted to be in. He said that Kinesiology is a very versatile major and that you can do a lot of different careers with it. He recommended that I continue on the path of Kinesiology because he hasn’t even figured out what he wants to do yet, but he still has options to choose from. His final advice to me was to do everything to the best of my potential and the rest will come to you. In conclusion, physical therapy is a career I could definitely see myself pursuing because of the countless benefits that come with the career. As a physical therapist I would strive to provide the best care for each of my patients in hopes that I would have a positive impact on their lives. Physical therapy is an essential health care profession and I am very interested in becoming a part of it. References â€Å"Kinesiology Interview.† Scott Eberhardt. Personal interview. 27 Mar. 2014. â€Å"Physical Therapy Interview.† Joanna McMullen. Personal interview. 27 Mar. 2014.

Dance Critique Essay

Late last Saturday day night, on April 14,2012, I attended the very first dance concert at John Anthony Theater at Collin College Spring Creek Campus. This concert was performed by Collin Dance Ensemble, which is a vibrant company that performs innovative contemporary modern dance. Their goal is to produce dance works at the highest level of artistic excellence. The dance company attends and performs at the American College Dance Festival annually and has been selected for the Gala Performance at the regional festivals sevens times. At 7:30 pm, people started walking in to the theater, just a few minutes after, the audience seats filled with the crowed people who come to support the dancer, or maybe interested in dance performance, and mostly have â€Å"dance appreciation fever† like me. After the introduction of director, all the lights dimed down and the curtain slide up. The light focuses in the middle of the proscenium stage where there are group of seven dancers sat down in the middle of the stage ready to perform. They started it off with the piece called Friendships that was choreographer by the Chair of Dance Department and also a director of Collin Dance Ensemble, Tiffanee Arnold. Under the direction of Tiffanee Arnold, Collin College’s Dance Program has gained the reputation for excellence in dance education, choreography and performance. Music is Sinking Friendships by Jonsi, this piece was kind of bored to me as an unprofessional audience to really understand the concept of every part o f the story they tried to tell. Not very clear, but I can point out some of the movement of the dancer described the image of friendships such as holding hands and dance in circle as a group. And it was ballet so I’m not very interested. Outside topic, the theater was freezing cold. I try to concentrate to the performance to forget the coldness. The Time Between choreography by Reyna Mondragon is one of my favorite piece of the show. There were many of interesting parts, there were people ran across the stage back and forth while few others were illustrated the movement of time. The dance used running motion to create tick tick tick moves, it looked kind of cool to demonstrate the clock ticking. Through the  music by Clint DiFranco, Welcome to Lunar Industries, this piece is very modern. I love how to change the speed now and then during the performance. They just went freestyle in the climax of the song; there were a lot of running and walking movements, jumping, exciting and then they cut it out the slow motion dance with rhythm and powerful moves. People still ran across the stage, in my opinion they say that does not matter what’s going around you, time keeps running and life goes on. So far that night, one bored me and one got my attention to the show. Here comes the solo of Jake Harkey, the only male student in the group, performed Unseen Injuries by Tiffanee Arnold. This dance is in support of Collin College’s Center for Scholarly and Civic Engagement Book-In-Common: Soft Spots by Clint Van Winkle. And also it was inspired by several passages in the book, in particular: â€Å"But nobody talks about the mental wounds. It is the unseen injury that slips through the cracks, leads people to drinking, puts pressure on spouses, and causes healthy men to call the fire department for host symptoms. You are suppose to about-face and forward-march, forget about the war as soon as you get home, take 800 mg of Motrin and carry on like nothing ever happened. But how was I supposed to let go when I was reliving it every day?† (p.137; C. Van Winkle). One soldier, one person stood still in the middle of the stage. He was on the basic training clothes letting all the extensive madness out of his head. He raised the hands to try to reach out a reality of peace. Sometimes, he look back at what he had done as a soldier and all the images of war come back in his mind. The stress out anger movement was dynamic with the vocal sound. I can feel the pain through what he wanted to tell. He used wide range of space to show the falling and depression. He nailed the part wonderful as a college student. The one-foot stand come up to me as unbalance mind of a soldier in the war. Growing up in a country had a long history of fighting in war, I learn and see a lot about the soldier that come back from the war through real life and books. I can see in them not only the physical pain they had been through but also the spiritual scar that the war had impacted in them. I think that is why this piece Unseen Injuries gets my intention the most. The obsession will follow  them for the rest of their life. Narrative modern dance described the feeling of those soldier had been yearly in war. The performer was success to send out emotion of a soldier after war. It would seem sadly they are often overlooked impacting not only the injured but their friends, families and wider communities. Those with psychological trauma can go undetected and it can be years before medical treatment is sought. Tiffanee has a great choice on music of Message in a Bottle: Nancy’s Letter. Farewell Nancy by Ed Harcourt is very romantic and particular fit in the motif of this dance. I see a lot of dancing on ground level to create the sea scene. Soft and flexible are the word to describe their actions. The music inspired me to more focus on the dance. It represents the emotion of the main character want to see her lover so badly in distance relationship. And she also is a quite entertainer with piece Can’t Shake It. It got people excitement by their funky dance moves on those fluffy dresses. The audiences included myself were very enjoyable in this song. They showed that they couldn’t shake most part of their body from their trunk to head. Shame face and frustrated movements revealed to be ashamed part of their body couldn’t be shake. I think the dancer also enjoy themselves in such a piece. The performer are all college student so they were bit lack of perfection timing with each other and the steady movements which required in most ballet pieces. They were connected to the audience strongly in Scars, strong movements and ran toward downstage at the end. I would they were success to give out the message of each piece to me as the audience. Just a few was kind of bitter to figure out. I was born in 90s so ballet and jazz were not my type of entertaining dance. It is little bit far from my generation. But modern is more enjoyable to me. I like to move fast with rhythm especially hit all the beat of the music is way cooler. I don’t know any of Jazz moves in there cause I cannot tell. One thing I saw a lot that the modern and ballet, those dancers use many of motif manipulations such as incorporative with the turn and jump, repetition, levels (ground, middle, high jump),  rhythm was actually the part that I pay attention the most. Overall the concert was very great to me. Couple piece I did not understand what they try to say at all or I just did not be interested. Through all pieces by Tiffanee Arnold, I see that her choreography always tell a story along the dance. There is always something meaningful and deep down inside the performance that she wants the audience to see the piece and later on cautious thinking the background story.

Persuasive essay on school uniforms Essay

Nearly all students do not support school uniforms; however they do not know the benefits in wearing them. Believe it or not, there are a lot more pros than cons when it comes to wearing school uniforms. First off, school uniforms will develop a better teaching and learning environment. They will also save families a good deal of money. And lastly, school uniforms will eliminate a lot of bulling and labeling. A school would be a better place, for teachers and students, if school uniforms were required. The most important benefit of school uniforms is the atmosphere it would create. With school uniforms kids couldn’t wear anything outrageous or abstract. This would limit distractions in the classroom, producing a better teaching and learning zone. Also, school uniforms would make for a better student teacher relationship because everyone would be looked at as an equal. Another distraction uniforms could remove is the problem with females wearing reveling clothing. Lastly, a majority of students can take up thirty minutes picking out there clothes for the next day. If uniforms were mandatory that time could be used to do school work or get a better night sleep for the following day. Read more: Should there be school uniforms essay Families would save an unbelievable amount of money from school uniforms. Students wouldn’t have to worry about buying the newest, hippest clothes which cost a fortune. That would save families hundreds of dollars. Sure, kids would still need clothes other than their uniform, but not as many. Families would also be more time efficient with uniforms. One example of this would be a smaller laundry load. In addition, you wouldn’t need to worry about rushing to get something washed for the next day because you already know what you will be wearing. Bulling and labeling would be cut down if school uniforms were accepted by a school system. If uniforms were mandatory everyone would be equal and no biases could be set by someone’s apparel. Like wise, students couldn’t label someone as a scrub or high maintenance. When someone gets picked on, it is most likely because they are wearing something that is â€Å"not in† or because they are dressed â€Å"different†. If school uniforms were worn this would be a non-issue. Lastly, you couldn’t be labeled regarding your personal  interests. For example, if you were wearing a band’s tee-shirt or a preppy clothing line. If this wasn’t and concern everyone would be open to each other and groups wouldn’t be made based on what you are wearing. The only reason Student do not wish to wear uniforms is because they only care about looking good. However, they don’t know they can till look good in a school uniforms. Also, much more students would be open to school uniforms if they knew all the success they would get from them. Student and staff would have a much better school year if school uniforms were worn.

Case X Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Case X - Essay Example Udon has none of these. Porter then goes back to her patrol car to call in the license plate. It turns out that the car, while registered to Udon, does not have current tags. Since Udons license plate displayed the current registration tag, Porter surmises, correctly, that Udon has stolen the tag. Porter also finds out that Udon does not have a drivers license, had never possessed a drivers license, and does not have insurance. Porter goes back to the car to talk to Udon, and then, upon coming back to the car, the policewoman notices the smell of alcohol on Udons breath. Therefore, Porter asks Udon to get out of the car so that she can give Udon the field sobriety test. However, Udon refuses, stating that she is pregnant and bleeding and needs to go to the hospital. Porter, having heard similar excuses 100 times a day from people who are trying to get out of a ticket or having to do a field sobriety test, refuses the request and continues to ask Udon to step out of the car so that Udon can take a field sobriety test. Udon continues to refuse, then finally relents. Since Udon was heavily intoxicated, she fails the field sobriety test in spectacular fashion, so Porter handcuffs her and takes her to the station. While in the car, Udon continually states that she is bleeding and needs to go to the hospital. Porter immediately assumes that, even if Udon is bleeding, it is probably because she is on her menstrual cycle and Udon was not to be trusted. After all, Udon gave Porter a false name, was driving in a car that was not registered, was driving intoxicated, and had neither a drivers license nor insurance. There was no reason for Porter to believe Udons story about having a miscarriage and needing to go to the hospital. And, as stated before, people, when pulled over, offer all kinds of excuses as to why they are speeding or why they cannot perform a field sobriety test.

To what extent have OTC derivatives been a major factor in the global Dissertation

To what extent have OTC derivatives been a major factor in the global financial crisis - Dissertation Example (In  his 2002 Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BK) letter to shareholders, company chairman and CEO Warren Buffet) This dissertation paper attempts to explore the extent to which derivatives can be considered to be one of the major factors that have led to the current problems in the global financial sector and looks at what steps can be taken to prevent a crisis on this scale happening again. This shall be on the basis of a review of the available literature. OTC Derivatives and the Global Financial Crisis Table of Contents Abstract Page 2 Table of Contents Page 3 Chapter 1 Introduction Page 4 Chapter 2 Literature Review Page 6 Chapter 3 Research Methods Page 32 Chapter 4 Analysis and discussion of research findings Page 33 Chapter 5 Conclusions and recommendations Page 42 Chapter 1: Introduction Outline the project Aims and objectives Reason for choosing this The research methodology Any limitations of the research The main findings The onset of the Great Recession of 2008 was preceded by a slump in the housing market and a credit crunch that affected the entire economy of the United States. The ensuing financial crisis acquired global dimensions though at first it seemed that the US would be the hardest hit due to the crisis. Even though the US Congress passed the TARP or the Troubled Asset Relief Program to provide assistance to the banks worst hit by the crisis, the recession continued unabated. Further, the crisis itself was thought to have been brought about by a combination of factors that included poor regulatory oversight over the derivatives side of the banking business, predatory lending and the ill effects of well intentioned efforts to spread the risk associated with sub-prime lending across the financial system. This paper looks at the role of derivative instruments and derivative securitization specifically in terms of the effect that they had on the financial system and how unchecked â€Å"gambling† by the banks led to â€Å"casino capitalis m† and the resultant financial crisis that engulfed the entire economy and even other parts of the world. Since the focus of this paper is mainly on the United States and derivatives in particular, the available literature would be surveyed on these aspects. The emphasis throughout the paper would be on a critical analysis of the literature with a questioning attitude that goes beyond a normal review. The aim of this dissertation is to examine the role played by OTC Derivatives in causing the global financial crisis and the continuing aftermath of the crisis. The last part of the sentence above is significant as the derivatives having played a part in exacerbating the crisis have continued to torment the regulators and the investors alike who are yet to tackle the â€Å"volcano of derivatives† which are sitting on top of the financial system. Further, this dissertation also discusses the attempts at regulating the derivatives by the various regulatory agencies involved and the way ahead to avoid a repeat of the crisis that we saw in the winter of 2008. The dissertation is divided into different sections with the literature review and the research findings being the ones with the most emphasis. In addition to these two sections, the research methodology and the conclusions are given due weightage according to the marking criteria for the dissertation. Chapter 2: Literature Review 1.1 Background The global financia