Final Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Final - Term Paper Example Nobody knows for sure how change will turn out. To a certain extent, nothing is permanent except change itself. This should perhaps remind all of us how to cope with change and adopt to it. Some people adopt to change quite remarkably well, while others flounder and get left behind because of a different attitude towards change. Management scholars, change experts, and talented academicians have studied change and its effects on people, on how to manage the change process to make it a positive outcome, or on how to teach people to adapt and accept change as a positive event that will bring new options or opportunities for those quick enough and astute enough to embrace change as beneficial. The conventional wisdom is that people resist change because it implies chaos and uncertainty. However, a paradigm shift is needed to make people realize how change brings with it a new set of opportunities, the chance to start afresh and the option to wipe the slate clean, so to speak. Some peopl e definitely thrive when exposed to change because they are quick enough to grab the chances presented by change when old rules no longer apply and new ones are just now being implemented. The change process can be managed efficiently only if people open up their eyes and their minds to the benefits that change brings. Change can be a positive event because it brings progress for humankind in ways unimaginable but only if it is steered in the right ways. Discussion Since change is inevitable and oftentimes unavoidable too, people should be ready at all times to adopt and adapt to whatever changes are coming their way. Human recorded history is a continuum of constant changes over the centuries and cumulatively, all those changes can now be seen in the way human civilization has progressed over several millennia. Change itself can be evolutionary (gradual) or revolutionary (abrupt) depending on the circumstances but change is happening all around sometimes without people consciously knowing how change is proceeding. Some people will resist change because they prefer to stay in their comfort zones and be happy with the present way of doing things while some people embrace change for new opportunities it brings. This dichotomy in people's responses is starkly illustrated in the two groups of friends who discovered their cheese was missing; Sniff and Scurry were able to adapt and went about searching for new cheese, while another group (Hem and Haw) just waited for the cheese to just re-appear somewhat magically for them, without them doing anything (Johnson, 2003). Change can be managed actively and steered towards a desired outcome if people will be strong enough to do so. In other words, people can influence change in ways that are positive for them in the long run if they want to, all it takes is just personal willpower and political will to achieve positive change. It means people need to be proactive for change to succeed for them or otherwise, change will f orce people to adapt or wither away. This had been the case of most of ancient civilizations in the world, which achieved their heights and peaks of development but in the process, an unexpected change or event came along to which these civilizations were not able to adapt and caused their decline while new societies came along which prospered with change. Put differently, a person can be an active participant by being a change agent himself or choose to be a passive bystander watching all the change events affecting his own

Moving away from hatred Essay Example for Free

Moving away from hatred Essay â€Å"On Saturday in the Serbian Town of Cacak (which is located in the Western-Central part of the country), fans of the local team Borac Cacak were conducting racial chants and wearing KKK attire aimed at one Mike Tamwanera. Usually when you have fans chanting or hissing at a player he usually plays for another team, but Tamwanera who is from Zimbabwe, plays for Borac Cacak. While arrests were made by Cacak police and the club has stated that these fans will be banned from future games, the act itself is extremely disgraceful. It is extremely disappointing to see Serbian people do this type of action The problem lies in the fact that these small group of fans who donned the garments known for extreme racism do not realize that the Ku Klux Klan have also been known to hate all minority groups including Slavic people who we Serbs are a part of. By wearing the white-cloth attire, these fans are showing that they support the hate done to their own people; its the same if Serbs wore Nazi uniforms and paraded around the town (Kross. 2006)† Looking back at these incidents, I am made to reflect on the acts of racism that I have seen and heard of here in America. One case here in America that has definitely struck a bone in me is the Jena Six (6) incident. As we know this is with regard to six (6) black teenagers beating up a white teenager and being charged with attempted murder and conspiracy. Looking at this incident, I am led to believe that the root of the case is rather complicated and is in fact rooted in decades of violence and aggression between Black and White Americans, which has led to a vicious cycle between the two. As Todd Lewan wrote in his article, â€Å"Clearly, something bad occurred in Jena, population 2,971, an old sawmill town in LaSalle Parish that, once upon a time, was Ku Klux Klan country. And, as most white and black residents readily agree, there is no good reason for embracing what unfolded here. † However, digging deeper into the story we see that the issue at heart is basically spawn by misunderstanding and hatred. Hatred that is drawn from differences we refuse to see beyond as human beings. This coupled by the fact that numerous injustices have been made in the past only add up to the existing problem. Racial acts are no longer the only scope of the norms and mores groups become socialized into but aggression and violence become a legitimate way by, which such groups express themselves. Looking back at the incident it is history repeating itself as Black Americans get back at White Americans for disputes and vice versa. In addition to this, the fact that racism is a group privilege as pointed out earlier only compounds the matter. This is since it bolsters the behavior and even perpetuates violent and aggressive acts such as the Jena 6 incident and even the beating of the gypsies in Europe. Moreover, the group does not see that such acts are wrong. Certain acts to them are merely a way by which they can express themselves and the like. Yet to think that even such actions are spawned from misunderstandings or inaccurate interpretations leads me to think that so much pain and suffering can actually be avoided if we simply open our minds. Taking into account the Jena Six incident as taken from Newsweek: â€Å"Decades of suppressed racial hostility spilled forth at the appearance of those swaying nooses. Word spread quickly that day; before long, scores of black students congregated under the tree. As black students, we didnt call it a protest, says Robert Bailey Jr. , one of the Jena Six. We just called it standing up for ourselves. School officials convened an assembly in early September, where local District Attorney Reed Walters appeared, flanked by police officers. I can be your best friend or your worst enemy, he told students, warning them to settle down. With a stroke of my pen, I can make your lives disappear. A visit to the school, along with the fact that the three white boys who admitted to hanging the nooses were only dealt a few days suspension, further inflamed the African-American community. It felt like they were saying, We can do what we want to those ns, says Marcus Jones, Bells father. Things reached a boil later in the semester. During the Thanksgiving holiday, someone set fire to the school, reducing the main academic wing to rubble (no one has been arrested, and though a link between what was ruled an arson and the racial discord hasnt been proved, many suspect there is one). The following day, Bailey was punched and beaten with beer bottles when he tried to enter a mostly white party in town. The white kid who threw the first punch was later charged with simple battery and given probation†¦ (Flores and Kovach. 2007). † We can see that the escalation to the whole incident could have been avoided if it was approached with more understanding from both races. It should not have been about White or Black but rather of what was socially and morally right or wrong. We have to realize that racism not only is morally wring but is also legally wrong. According to UN International Conventions, the term racial discrimination shall mean any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, color, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life. Although it is defined and seen in a sociological standpoint as being a group privilege and can in a certain sense cause a debate as to whether or not such behavior exhibited by a group is deviant; the fact remains that it has moral, ethical and legal ramifications. Racism, be it in the form of a racial slur or an actual physical act (whether in retaliation or not) is just plain wrong. Yes there have been numerous indignations between various races in the past but we have to learn to bridge beyond differences in ethnicity and culture. Perhaps the next step in a progressive and linear development in achieving true equality is for us to start relearning the concepts we have learned. To unlearn what it is to hate and to start seeing others as being our equal. Of course this is easier said than done. In his article entitled â€Å"Racism in America: What has to happen for black and white to unite? † Jeff Hickman sites that a greater problem or obstacle to hurdle in overcoming racism is ignorance. In his words, â€Å"As we all know it takes only a very short time to teach a person to hate, and yet you can spend a lifetime in vain attempting to repair the misguided web of lies racism encompasses†¦One of the most difficult tasks in life to accomplish is to overcome the core fundamental principles that you are taught as a child. Parents, Grandparents, and role models, yield an enormous amount of influence in the moral development of a child (Hickman. 2007). † Taking this into account we can see that norms and mores carried from one racist group can actually be passed on to the next generation. Furthermore, studies have also shown the relationship of peers and role models in reinforcing a behavior. Such is the contention of Alfred Bandura, a psychologist who formulated the Social Learning Theory. According to his theory we learn basic skills and behaviors by observing what others or rather role models do. Given the case of racism the more alarming aspect is that violence and aggression are also passed on and reinforced. Rick Van Acker â€Å"the development of chronic aggressive and violent behavior is complex and appears to involve the interplay of multiple risk factors†¦factors related to family functioning, peer associations, and the community in which the child resides, however, probably account for the greatest variation in the learning and expression of aggression and violence† (pars. 3). Hence we have a vicious cycle that we must break. As they say, hate breeds hate. Going back to what Joseph Addison said, â€Å"If men would consider not so much where they differ, as wherein they agree, there would be far less of uncharitableness and angry feeling in the world. † This is something we must all take into heart. The problem raced by racism and the ignorance it has bred is not unique to White Americans, Black Americans, Serbians or what ever other race. The connotations we have and the diversity between races should not be viewed as taboo or dreadful. Instead we should learn to respect the diversity we have cross culturally and see it as part of what makes us beautiful. Moreover, we have to see beyond the differences and realize that we are all the same†¦that we are all human beings. Racism has always been both an instrument of discrimination and a tool of exploitation. But it manifests itself as a cultural phenomenon, susceptible to cultural solutions, such as multicultural education and the promotion of ethnic identities (Sivanandan pars. 1). It is not a hopeless scenario. We can change it through continuous education and culture sensitivity. We must remember that in the end, the world we live in does not shape our society but we as human beings are the ones that create, maintain and change the very fabric of the society we live in. References Fraser, Angus. The Peoples of Europe: The Gypsies. Blackwell Publishing P, 1995. Hickman, Jeff.â€Å"Racism in America: What has to happen for white and black to unite? † The People’s Media Company. 1 May 2007. 25 September 2007. http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/221501/racism_in_america_what_has_to_hap pen. html? page=3 UN International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. 7 March 1966. New York. Kovach, Gretel C. and Campo-Flores, Arian. â€Å"A Town In Turmoil. † Newsweek Society. (20-27 August 2007 Issue). 25 September 2007. http://www. msnbc. msn. com/id/20218937/site/newsweek/page/0/ Kross, Final. â€Å"Racism in Serbia and Kezman. † Fox Sports. 18 October 2006. 25 September 2007. http://community. foxsports. com/blogs/FinalKross/2006/10/18/Racism_in_Serbia_and_Kezman Lewan, Todd. â€Å"Black and white becomes gray in La. Town. † The Associated Press. 2007. 24 September 2007. http://news. yahoo. com/s/ap/20070922/ap_on_re_us/a_place_called_jena Race and Ethnicity. 31 March 2003. Elaine Leeder and US2 Design. 24 September 2007. http://www. sonoma. edu/users/l/leeder/index. htm Racism. 25 September 2007. Wkimedia Foundation, Inc. 25 September 2007. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Racism Shah, Anup. â€Å"Racism. † Global Issues. 20 December 2004. 24 September 2007. http://www. globalissues. org/HumanRights/Racism. asp#RacismagainstGypsies Sivanandan, A. â€Å"Poverty is the New Black. † The Guardian Unlimited. 17 August 2001. 25 September 2007. http://www. guardian. co. uk/globalisation/story/0,7369,538225,00. html World of Quotes. com. 2007. 2003 – 2006 Roy Russo. 24 September 2007. http://www. worldofquotes. com/topic/Difference/1/index. html. Van Acker, Rick. â€Å"Aggression and Violence: Factors Related to Their Development. † T/TAC. 1 May 1997. 25 September 2007. http://www. wm. edu/ttac/articles/challenging/aggression. html.

Irving Washington, The History of New York Essay examples -- LIterary

Irving Washington was born in 1783 in New York into a large family where he was the youngest of eleven children. He started his career from a law office feeling that it was a job not to his heart content. Being light-hearted and sardonic in his nature he attempted to write for the journal of his brother Peter called â€Å"The Morning Chronicle†. Later Irving and Peter thought of creating a high-quality literary mockery. Originally the text intended nothing else but a satire upon the â€Å"Picture of New York† by Dr. Samuel Mitchell whose text was rather boastful of erudition and pedantry; however, it turned out to be different from the original perspective broadening the scope of interpretative thinking over to history and philosophy as two great narratives. The text was published December 6, 1809 in New York when Irving Washington was 26 and brought him considerable critical acclaim. Worth mentioning are the two timelines: the actual historical timeline of the story which embraces the first two decades of the XVII century. Literary selection suggested revolves around a historical episode of purchase of New York (namely Manhattan Island) from the Indians and further life of the Dutchmen. In 1626 Peter Menuit arrived at the colony called New Amsterdam to govern as well as take part in educational and religious activities of the settlers. The first priority for the governor to realize was a purchase of the Island of Manhattan. The estimated sum of transaction was twenty-four dollars, which Irving Washington calls â€Å"a measure almost unparalleled in the annals of discovery and colonization† (Tuttleton, 1993, p. 209-212). The second timeline is actually tangible through the author’s voice within the frame of narration, as he comes from two... ... The other side of the conflict is never articulated, thus suppressed, kept silent and, therefore, eliminated, which makes the entire concept of conflict as a productive means of history. Irving Washington wrote the text looking back two centuries. Apart from being a satire it deconstructs the concept of history by devaluation of the conflict via removal of one of its constituents or dehumanization of it which is one of the main implied themes of the story. Works Cited Aderman, Ralph. M. Critical Essays on Washington Irving. // John G. Lockhart. Review of Knickerbocker’s History of New York. G.K. Hall & Co., 1990. P. 50. Irving, Washington. A History of New York: Washington Irving: History, Tales and Sketches. NY: the Library of Congress, 1983. P. 449-55. Tuttleton, James W. Washington Irving: the Critical Reaction. AMS Press, 1993. P. 209-212. Irving Washington, The History of New York Essay examples -- LIterary Irving Washington was born in 1783 in New York into a large family where he was the youngest of eleven children. He started his career from a law office feeling that it was a job not to his heart content. Being light-hearted and sardonic in his nature he attempted to write for the journal of his brother Peter called â€Å"The Morning Chronicle†. Later Irving and Peter thought of creating a high-quality literary mockery. Originally the text intended nothing else but a satire upon the â€Å"Picture of New York† by Dr. Samuel Mitchell whose text was rather boastful of erudition and pedantry; however, it turned out to be different from the original perspective broadening the scope of interpretative thinking over to history and philosophy as two great narratives. The text was published December 6, 1809 in New York when Irving Washington was 26 and brought him considerable critical acclaim. Worth mentioning are the two timelines: the actual historical timeline of the story which embraces the first two decades of the XVII century. Literary selection suggested revolves around a historical episode of purchase of New York (namely Manhattan Island) from the Indians and further life of the Dutchmen. In 1626 Peter Menuit arrived at the colony called New Amsterdam to govern as well as take part in educational and religious activities of the settlers. The first priority for the governor to realize was a purchase of the Island of Manhattan. The estimated sum of transaction was twenty-four dollars, which Irving Washington calls â€Å"a measure almost unparalleled in the annals of discovery and colonization† (Tuttleton, 1993, p. 209-212). The second timeline is actually tangible through the author’s voice within the frame of narration, as he comes from two... ... The other side of the conflict is never articulated, thus suppressed, kept silent and, therefore, eliminated, which makes the entire concept of conflict as a productive means of history. Irving Washington wrote the text looking back two centuries. Apart from being a satire it deconstructs the concept of history by devaluation of the conflict via removal of one of its constituents or dehumanization of it which is one of the main implied themes of the story. Works Cited Aderman, Ralph. M. Critical Essays on Washington Irving. // John G. Lockhart. Review of Knickerbocker’s History of New York. G.K. Hall & Co., 1990. P. 50. Irving, Washington. A History of New York: Washington Irving: History, Tales and Sketches. NY: the Library of Congress, 1983. P. 449-55. Tuttleton, James W. Washington Irving: the Critical Reaction. AMS Press, 1993. P. 209-212.

The Hero And The Crown Part One Chapter 1

To Terri The Hero and the Crown takes place some considerable span of years before the time of The Blue Sword. There are a few fairly dramatic topographical differences between the Damar of Aerin's day and that of Harry's. Part One Chapter 1 SHE COULD NOT REMEMBER a time when she had not known the story; she had grown up knowing it. She supposed someone must have told her it, sometime, but she could not remember the telling. She was beyond having to blink back tears when she thought of those things the story explained, but when she was feeling smaller and shabbier than usual in the large vivid City high in the Damarian Hills she still found herself brooding about them; and brooding sometimes brought on a tight headachy feeling around her temples, a feeling like suppressed tears. She brooded, looking out over the wide low sill of the stone window-frame; she looked up, into the Hills, because the glassy surface of the courtyard was too bright at midday to stare at long. Her mind ran down an old familiar track: Who might have told her the story? It wouldn't have been her father who told her, for he had rarely spoken more than a few words together to her when she was younger; his slow kind smiles and slightly preoccupied air had been the most she knew of him. She had always known that he was fond of her, which was something; but she had only recently begun to come into focus for him, and that, as he had told her himself, in an unexpected fashion. He had the best – the only – right to have told her the story of her birth, but he would not have done so. Nor would it have been the hafor, the folk of the household; they were polite to her always, in their wary way, and reserved, and spoke to her only about household details. It surprised her that they still remembered to be wary, for she had long since proven that she possessed nothing to be wary about. Royal children were usually somewhat alarming to be in daily contact with, for their Gifts often erupted in abrupt and unexpected ways. It was a little surprising, even, that the hafor still bothered to treat her with respect, for the fact that she was her father's daughter was supported by nothing but the fact that her father's wife had borne her. But then, for all that was said about her mother, no one ever suggested that she was not an honest wife. And she would not have run and told tales on any of the hafor who slighted her, as Galanna would – and regularly did, even though everyone treated her with the greatest deference humanly possible. Galanna's Gift, it was dryly said, was to be impossible to please. But perhaps from the hafor's viewpoint it was not worth the risk to discover any points of similarity or dissimilarity between herself and Galanna; and a life of service in a household that included Galanna doubtless rendered anyone who withstood it automatically wary and respectful of anything that moved. She smiled. She could see the wind stir the treetops, for the surface of the Hills seemed to ripple beneath the blue sky; the breeze, when it slid through her window, smelled of leaves. It might very well have been Galanna who told her the story, come to that. It would be like her; and Galanna had always hated her – still did, for all that she was grown now, and married besides, to Perlith, who was a second sola of Damar. The only higher ranks were first sola and king; but Galanna had hoped to marry Tor, who was first sola and would someday be king. It was no matter that Tor would not have had Galanna if she had been the only royal maiden available – â€Å"I'd run off into the Hills and be a bandit first,† a much younger Tor had told his very young cousin, who had gone off in fits of giggles at the idea of Tor wearing rags and a blue headband and dancing for luck under each quarter of the moon. Tor, who at the time had been stiff with terror at Galanna's very determined attempts to ensnare him, had relaxed enough to grin and tell her she had no proper respect and was a shameless hoyden. â€Å"Yes,† she said unrepentantly. Tor, for whateve r reasons, was rather over-formal with everyone but her; but being first sola to a solemn, twice-widowed king of a land with a shadow over it might have had that effect on a far more frivolous young man than Tor. She suspected that he was as grateful for her existence as she was for his; one of her earliest memories was riding in a baby-sack over Tor's shoulders while he galloped his horse over a series of hurdles; she had screamed with delight and wound her tiny hands in his thick black hair. Teka, later, had been furious; but Tor, who usually took any accusation of the slightest dereliction of duty with white lips and a set face, had only laughed. But whenever she decided that it must have been Galanna who first told her the story, she found she couldn't believe it of her after all. Having told it for spite and malice, yes; but the story itself had too much sad grandeur. But perhaps she only felt that way because it was about her mother; perhaps she had changed it in her own mind, made a tragedy of nothing but sour gossip. But that Galanna would deliberately spend enough time in her company to tell her the story was out of character; Galanna preferred whenever possible to look vaguely over the head of the least of her cousins, with an expression on her face indicating that there was a dead fly on the windowsill and why hadn't the hafor swept it away? When Galanna was startled into speaking to her at all, it was usually from a motive of immediate vengeance. The tale of Arlbeth's second wife would be too roundabout for her purposes. Still, that it had been one of the cousins was the best guess. Not Tor, of course. One of the oth ers. She leaned out of the window and looked down. It was hard to recognize people from the tops of their heads, several stories up. Except Tor; she always knew him, even if all she had to go on was an elbow extending an inch or two beyond a doorframe. This below her now was probably Perlith: that self-satisfied walk was distinctive even from above, and the way three of the hafor, dressed in fine livery, trailed behind him for no purpose but to lend to their master's importance by their presence pretty well assured it. Tor went about alone, when he could; he told her, grimly, that he had enough of company during the course of his duties as first sola, and the last thing he wanted was an unofficial entourage for any gaps in the official ones. And she'd like to see her father pulling velvet-covered flunkeys in his wake, like a child with a toy on a string. Perlith's head spoke to another dark head, the hafor waiting respectfully several arms1 length distant; then someone on a horse – she could not distinguish voices but she heard the click of hoofs – emerged from around a corner. The rider wore the livery of a messenger, and the cut of his saddle said he came from the west. Both heads turned toward him and tipped up, so she could see the pale blur of their faces as they spoke to him. Then the horseman cantered off, the horse placing its feet very delicately, for it was dangerous to go too quickly across the courtyard; and Perlith and the other man, and Perlith's entourage, disappeared from her view. She didn't have to hear what they said to each other to know what was going on; but the knowledge gave her no pleasure, for it had already brought her both shame and bitter disappointment. It was either the shame or the disappointment that kept her mewed up in her rooms, alone, now. She had hardly seen her father or Tor for the week past as they wrestled with messages and messengers, as they tried to slow down whatever it was that would happen anyway, while they tried to decide what to do when it had happened. The western barons – the fourth solas – were making trouble. The rumor was that someone from the North, either human or human enough to look it, had carried a bit of demon-mischief south across the Border and let it loose at the barons' council in the spring. Nyrlol was the chief of the council for no better reason than that his father had been chief; but his father had been a better and a wiser man. Nyrlol was not known for intelligence, and he was known for a short and violent temper: the perfect target for demon-mischief. Nyrlol's father would have recognized it for what it was. But Nyrlol had not recognized anything; it had simply seemed like a wonderful idea to secede from Damar and the rule of Damar's King Arlbeth and Tor-sola, and set himself up as King Nyrlol; and to slap a new tax on his farmers to support the raising of an army, eventually to take the rest of Damar away from Arlbeth and Tor, who didn't run it as well as he could. He managed to convince several of his fellow barons (demon-mischief, once it has infected one human being, will usually then spread like a plague) of the brilliance of his plan, while the mischief muddled their wits. There had been a further rumor, much fainter, that Nyrlol had, with his wonderful idea, suddenly developed a mesmerizing ability to sway those who heard him speak; and this rumor was a much more worrying one, for, if true, the demon-mischief was very strong indeed. Arlbeth had chosen to pay no attention to the second rumor; or rather to pay only enough attention to it to discount it, that none of his folk might think he shunned it from fear. But he did declare that the trouble was enough that he must attend to it personally; and with him would go Tor, and a substantial portion of the army, and almost as substantial a portion of the court, with all its velvets and jewels brought along for a fine grand show of courtesy, to pretend to disguise the army at its back. But both sides would know that the army was an army, and the show only a show. What Arlbeth planned to do was both difficult and dangerous, for he wished to prevent a civil war, not provoke one. He would choose those to go with him with the greatest care and caution. â€Å"But you're taking Perlith?† she'd asked Tor disbelievingly, when she met him by chance one day, out behind the barns, where she could let her disbelief show. Tor grimaced. â€Å"I know Perlith isn't a very worthwhile human being, but he's actually pretty effective at this sort of thing – because he's such a good liar, you know, and because he can say the most appalling things in the most gracious manner.† No women rode in Arlbeth's army. A few of the bolder wives might be permitted to go with their husbands, those who could ride and had been trained in cavalry drill; and those who could be trusted to smile even at Nyrlol (depending on how the negotiations went), and curtsy to him as befitted his rank as fourth sola, and even dance with him if he should ask. But it was expected that no wife would go unless her husband asked her, and no husband would ask unless he had asked the king first. Galanna would certainly not go, even if Perlith had been willing to go to the trouble of obtaining leave from Arlbeth (which would probably not have been granted). Fortunately for the peace of all concerned, Galanna had no interest in going; anything resembling hardship did not appeal to her in the least, and she was sure that nothing in the barbaric west could possibly be worth her time and beauty. A king's daughter might go too; a king's daughter who had, perhaps, proved herself in some small ways; who had learned to keep her mouth shut, and to smile on cue; a king's daughter who happened to be the king's only child. She had known they would not let her; she had known that Arlbeth would not dare give his permission even had he wanted to, and she did not know if he had wanted to. But he could not dare take the witch woman's daughter to confront the workings of demon-mischief; his people would never let him, and he too sorely needed his people's good will. But she could not help asking – any more, she supposed, than poor stupid Nyrlol could help going mad when the demon-mischief bit him. She had tried to choose her time, but her father and Tor had been so busy lately that she had had to watt, and wait again, till her time was almost gone. After dinner last night she had finally asked; and she had come up here to her rooms afterward and had not come out again. â€Å"Father.† Her voice had gone high on her, as it would do when she was afraid. The other women, and the lesser court members, had already left the long hall; Arlbeth and Tor and a few of the cousins, Perlith among them, were preparing for another weary evening of discussion on Nyrlol's folly. They paused and all of them turned and looked at her, and she wished there were not so many of them. She swallowed. She had decided against asking her father late, in his own rooms, where she could be sure to find him alone, because she was afraid he would only be kind to her and not take her seriously. If she was to be shamed – and she knew, or she told herself she knew, that she would be refused – at least let him see how much it meant to her, that she should ask and be refused with others looking on. Arlbeth turned to her with his slow smile, but it was slower and less of it reached his eyes than usual. He did not say, â€Å"Be quick, I am busy,† as he might have done – and small blame to him if he had, she thought forlornly. â€Å"You ride west – soon? To treat with Nyrlol?† She could feel Tor's eyes on her, but she kept her own eyes fixed on her father. â€Å"Treat?† said her father. â€Å"If we go, we go with an army to witness the treaty.† A little of the smile crept into his eyes after all. â€Å"You are picking up courtly language, my dear. Yes, we go to ‘treat' with Nyrlol.† Tor said: â€Å"We have some hope of catching the mischief-one did not say demon aloud if one could help it – â€Å"and bottling it up, and sending it back where it came from. Even now we have that hope. It won't stop the trouble, but it will stop it getting worse. If Nyrlol isn't being pricked and pinched by it, he may subside into the subtle and charming Nyrlol we all know and revere.† Tor's mouth twisted up into a wry smile. She looked at him and her own mouth twitched at the corners. It was like Tor to answer her as if she were a real part of the court, even a member of the official deliberations, instead of an interruption and a disturbance. Tor might even have let her go with them; he wasn't old enough yet to care so much for his people's good opinion as Arlbeth did; and furthermore, Tor was stubborn. But it was not Tor's decision. She turned back to her father. â€Å"When you go – may I come with you?† Her voice was little more than a squeak, and she wished she were near a wall or a door she could lean on, instead of in the great empty middle of the dining-hall, with her knees trying to fold up under her like an hour-old foal's. The silence went suddenly tight, and the men she faced went rigid: or Arlbeth did, and those behind him, for she kept her face resolutely away from Tor. She thought that she could not bear it if her one loyal friend forsook her too; and she had never tried to discover the extent of Tor's stubbornness. Then the silence was broken by Perlith's high-pitched laughter. â€Å"Well, and what did you expect from letting her go as she would these last years? It's all very well to have her occupied and out from underfoot, but you should have thought the price you paid to be rid of her might prove a little high. What did you expect when our honored first sola gives her lessons in swordplay and she tears around on that three-legged horse like a peasant boy from the Hills, with never a gainsay but a scold from that old shrew that serves as her maid? Might you not have thought of the reckoning to come? She needed slaps, not encouragement, years ago – she needs a few slaps now, I think. Perhaps it is not too late.† â€Å"Enough.† Tor's voice, a growl. Her legs were trembling now so badly that she had to move her feet, shuffle in her place, to keep the joints locked to hold her up. She felt the blood mounting to her face at Perlith's words, but she would not let him drive her away without an answer. â€Å"Father?† â€Å"Father,† mimicked Perlith. â€Å"It's true a king's daughter might be of some use in facing what the North has sent us; a king's daughter who had true royal blood in her veins †¦.† Arlbeth, in a very unkinglike manner, reached out and grabbed Tor before anyone found out what the first sola's sudden move in Perlith's direction might result in. â€Å"Perlith, you betray the honor of the second sola's place in speaking thus.† Tor said in a strangled voice, â€Å"He will apologize, or I'll give him a lesson in swordplay he will not like at all.† â€Å"Tor, don't be a – † she began, outraged, but the king's voice cut across hers. â€Å"Perlith, there is justice in the first sola's demand.† There was a long pause while she hated everyone impartially: Tor for behaving like a farmer's son whose pet chicken has just been insulted; her father, for being so immovably kingly; and Perlith for being Perlith. This was even worse than she had anticipated; at this point she would be grateful just for escape, but it was too late. Perlith said at last, â€Å"I apologize, Aerin-sol. For speaking the truth,† he added venomously, and turned on his heel and strode across the hall. At the doorway he paused and turned to shout back at them: â€Å"Go slay a dragon, lady! Lady Aerin, Dragon-Killer!† The silence resettled itself about them, and she could no longer even raise her eyes to her father's face. â€Å"Aerin – † Arlbeth began. The gentleness of his voice told her all she needed to know, and she turned away and walked toward the other end of the hall, opposite the door which Perlith had taken. She was conscious of the length of the way she had to take because Perlith had taken the shorter way, and she hated him all the more for it; she was conscious of all the eyes on her, and conscious of the fact that her legs still trembled, and that the line she walked was not a straight one. Her father did not call her back. Neither did Tor. As she reached the doorway at last, Perlith's words still rang in her ears: â€Å"A king's daughter who had true royal blood in her veins †¦ Lady Aerin, Dragon-Killer.† It was as though his words were hunting dogs who tracked her and nipped at her heels.

Mint Lube Case Study

Banin Akif MBA – I Seat # 7049 Operations Management CASE STUDY (MINIT-LUBE INC. ) Q. 1What constitutes the mission of Minit-Lube? Ans:The mission statement for Minit-Lube can be derived as followed: Our Mission: To provide fast, reliable and superior services in a customer friendly environment while ensuring lowest possible fares. Q. 2How does the Minit-Lube operation strategy provide competitive advantage? Ans:Minit-Lube operations strategy provides the organization advantage over its competitors in the following ways: Services Design: Minit-Lube has a superior service design as it provides fast oil-change, interior cleaning and lubrications services to 3 cars at a time. – Quality management: Quality exceeds normal standards as all employees are neatly dressed and fully trained from minit-lube school. – Process: Efficient use of human resource enables fast service provision as three workers simultaneously work on a car to provide oil-change services. – L ocation: Spotless environment provides customer a refreshing feeling. – Layout design: Minit-Lube layout supports process focused ‘job shop’ practice which maximizes the efficiency and quality. – Human Resource: Well trained staff graduated from minit-lube school, ensuring cost effectiveness by building good customer relationships and providing speedy and accurate service. Each individual specializes in its own work enabling the maximum level of service. – Scheduling: Service providedin least possible time frame with use of efficient human resource in order to meet customer schedules. – Maintenance: Minit-Lube provides reliable maintenance solutions because of their trained staff and superior operations management. Q. 3 Is it likely that Minit-Lube has increased productivity over its more traditional competitors? Why? How would we measure productivity in this industry? Ans:Minit-Lube increased productivity over its traditional competitors in the following ways: – Well trained/educated labor: labor plays a vital role in productivity and as employees of minit-lube are both well educated and trained, they increase the productivity of the organization. More Output in lesser time: As compared to its competitors, at minit-lube the car comes in and goes out in only 10 mins which significantly increases the output and therefore, productivity. Also, providing service to 3 cars simultaneously also enhances the productivity if the competitors are servicing less than 3 cars keeping all other factors constant. Productivity= Output____ Input = No. of cars serviced in an hour____ Labor hours put in by the team