The railroad in the United States Essay Example

The railroad in the United States Essay In the simplest manner: the railroad changed the face of a nation. The railroad in the United States changed how people traveled, did business, and how Washington governed people. The railroad created new standards and new laws that still affect the way we live today. It helped create a new type of wealth that had never been seen before and became the first big business in the United States. Without the railroads impact, it would be difficult to fathom where the United States and the world would be today.The golden age of the railroad is considered to be by many the period that stretched between the end of the Civil War and the beginning of the First World War.1 Railroading from 1865 to 1929 covers the great expansion, the golden age and the beginning decline of the railroad. The emergence of the modern America, and the beginning of the Great Depression of the United States also can be seen within these dates; this emphasizes the large role that the railroads had in the industrializa tion of the America. It is clear that the history of the United States coincides with the history of the railroad; during these times the railroad played a vital a vital role in thebuilding of the United States. But, the relationship was symbiotic, because it is also possible to see that the direction in which the country was going played a role in how the railroad was formed, controlled, and regulated. Truly, the railroad is a form of transportation that helped make the United States what it is today.The year 1865 finally brought an end to war that had sliced a nation in half. The war, however, was not a destructive force to the railroads. With the exception of the southern lines, American railroads were generally in excellent shape in 1865.2 The Civil War brought new strength to the American railroads. The need to provide for the war had caused the railroads of the United States to expand by as much as 35,500 miles at the end of the war.3 The War had brought new strength to the ra ilroads and the railroads were now standing before their golden age. This golden age began with a big bang: the completion of the transcontinental railway.The story of the transcontinental railway could very well be suited for a Hollywood movie. It involves corruption, greed, great visions, and great strength. Public demand for a transcontinental railway was originally inspired by a proposal made in 1836 by the American statesmen John Plumbe and Robert John Walker.4 The demand for therailway was later increased with the arrival of the gold rush in 1849. In 1861, the Pacific Railway Bill was passed, this bill called for the building of the transcontinental line to be done by two companies, Union Pacific Company and the Central Pacific Company. The job of the Union Pacific Company was to build west from Omaha, while the job of the Central Pacific Company was to build east from Sacramento5. The bill also called for the companies to receive a right-of-way strip for their line (and whate ver they needed for rail yards, sidings, and other facilities), as well as five alternate land sections on each side of the track.6 The companies were also offered loans that went from $16,000 per mile of track in the lowlands to as much as $48,000 a mile in the mountainous regions.7The Union Pacific got of to slow start until they acquired a good engineer by thename of General Dodge, who was one of Shermans Civil War railroad men. UnderGeneral Dodges direction the work on the Union Pacific soon took on a furious pace and a military atmosphere; military preparedness and quickness were exactly what was needed to deal with the hostile Indians.Life on the Central Pacific was by no means pleasant, but they did not have much a problem with the Indians.8 However, one thing that was a problem on the Central Pacific was the lack of labor. California, being largely uninhabited at the time, did not provide a large labor resource; and so the managers of the Central Pacific had to look elsewher e for their labor needs. One of the places they looked for new labor was China. The Chinese turned out to be well suited for the job, and at one point nine-tenths of the labor force of the Central Pacific was Chinese.Eventually the two the companies came within sight of each other, and a meeting place for the two rails was designated. The meeting place chosen was a waterless basin of sagebrush just north of the Great Salt Lake in Utah. This place was called Promontory Point. It was decided that the two companies would meet and there would be a greatceremony to connect the railways. The ceremony was planned, and all of the railroad officials and dignitaries came to drive in the final spike. On May 10, 1869, this event finally took place. The driving in of the final spike came with a little embarrassment: First, one of the leaders of Central Pacific went up to drive in the golden spike and missed; next, the leader of the Union Pacific stepped up to drive in the golden spike and he too missed.9 Eventually, the final spike was driven in: though it is not clear who actually did it. Despite all this, the nation celebrated for the Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast had at last become connected by rail; and the railroad now stood on threshold of its golden age.The years following the completion of the transcontinental line brought an abundance of new railways. The rail network in the United States went from 35,000 miles in 1865 to 164,000 miles in 1890. This building was brought to an all-time high, when in 1916 the total length of the rail network in the United States reached 254,000 miles.10With such a rapid pace of construction, the building in the half-century after the Civil War led to an average annual construction, of over 4,000 miles a year. Even though this rapid construction was not equally spread throughout the country, every area did see some expansion.The transcontinental rail also led to great expansion in the West. The transcontinental railway, and th e railways following, brought eastern markets within a few days of western grain and cattle lands, and eventually helped create great cities in the West itself.11 The new railways of the West also brought about the virtual extermination of the buffalo. The new rails cut the herds in half and destroyed their natural habitat. It also became a game for people heading west on the railway to shoot the animal from their train window.12Now that the railroad spanned across the continent, the railroad was becoming a major player in the expansion of industry. The industry of the United States was rapidly expanding, and the railroad was becoming more than just a small factor in a great group of expanding industries. Railroads encouraged growth not only through the offering of their transport services, but also through the transportation need, of other industries. Railroads were not only the biggest shippers of industrial products; they were also American industrys best customers.13 The railroa ds became a huge buyer of steel, coal, lumber, and oil. To say that the railroad was an important factor in the industrialization of America is a huge understatement. The railroad became the pulse of industry and was considered by many the leading factor in the expansion of industry in the United States.While the network of rails was spreading, great financial networks were also developing. Groups of once independent railroad companies were grabbed up and consolidated to form large railroad systems.14 One prime example of this was The New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, which were formed by the consolidation of about 200 originally independent lines.The large consolidation brought about the need for new standards and new technology that would help the railroad continue to grow and operate more efficiently. One of the new standards that was needed was a standard gauge for the railroads to operate on. This was needed because the expansion of the rails had now brought the need to move the freight from one line to another. This was not possible because throughout the country there were different gauges. For example in the south the popular gauge was five feet, but on other railroads like the Erie the gauge was six feet. It was decided amongst railroads that a standard must decided on, and that standard became four feet, eight and one half inches.15Another standard that was created and is still used today is standardized time. Until the movement for Standard Time, each town had its own time. There were, for example, thirty-eight different times in the state of Wisconsin alone. Given the amount of different times, the speed of trains, and the distance these trains traveled. This spelled one thing: complete chaos. Eventually the problem was solved in 1883, when the General Time Convention was held by the railroads. At this convention it was decided that the continental United States would be broken up into four standard time zones. People soon found it easy t o set their clocks by railroad time, and thus the railroad standard became a national standard.Other technological innovations that were created to aid the expansion and consolidation of the railways were: the use of steel rails, the automatic coupler, and the air brake. The automatic coupler allowed a coupler to close on impact, but still be able to open from the side of the car. The air brake, invented by George Westinghouse, allowed trains to stop much quicker than they had been able to in the past.Besides bringing about new technology, the consolidation of the railways also brought about the great railroad barons. The railroad had become a likely stop for the strong businessmen interested in making millions by manipulating the rail system. But in gaining such immense power, many railroad builders and consolidators became unethical and ruthless in their business practices. Watered stock, stock market rigging, corrupt rate wars, rebating and labor violence all became part of the n ew railroad picture. 16Railroad barons like Jay Gould James Fisk were masters at these tricks. One example of how money was made was by stock watering, which was the process of increasing the number of shares of a company without adding to the companys assets.17Perhaps one of the greatest of the great railroad barons was Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt. Originally from the steamboat business, Vanderbilt gained control of such railroads as the New York Central and the Erie through ruthless business practices. A prime example of Vanderbilts ruthless practices is how he obtained control over the New York Central Railroad. Vanderbilt was frustrated with the current managers of the New York Central because they often bypassed his railroad when sending freight into New York City. So, Vanderbilt simply stopped shipping their freight and passengers one day. The New York Central stock rapidly began to drop on Wall Street because of Vanderbilts actions. Seeing that the stock was now cheap, Van derbilt began buy up the stock while it was cheap, and the company eventually fell into his hands.18 But practices like this could only go on for so long.The railroads activities had become too corrupt for most people and were beginning to become a financial burden for many farmers and business owners. Business owners and farmers began to resent the railroad and decided that something must be done. Taking the initiative was a group called the Patrons of Husbandry, popularly known as the Grange. The Grange was originally formed as a social group to bring farmers out of the isolation of their farmhouses.19 They had picnics, suppers, and other events, that well frequently held at the local Grange Hall. However, as railroad abuse increased the group shifted from entertainment purposes to more political purposes.The Grangers bonded together to establish many things that helped farmers, but their primary purpose eventually became to bring reform to the railroads.20 The Grangers quickly gr ew in size and gained enough power to elect people free of railroad influence, in the state legislatures. They pushed for new laws that would regulate the railroads monopolies, and eventually succeeded. But the Grangers success only came at the state level through what were called Granger laws. Even though these laws were aimed to regulate monopolies, though such things as freight and passenger rates, they were easily evaded by the railroads. However, some progress had been won. The nation was beginning to shift from an attitude of laissez-faire capitalism to a more progressive state of mind.One of the biggest things people learned from the Granger laws was that reform of the railroads was going to have to take place on a national level. In 1885, a Senate committee conducted an investigation of railroad business practices. The final report from the committee listed the familiar abuses of the railroads, such as watered stock and unreasonably high rates. This investigation made it cle ar that Federal Government must do something and in 1887 it did. The Interstate Commerce Act, in language that was perhaps deliberately vague, required that all interstate rates be reasonable and just and prohibited the familiar competitive practices of rebates, drawbacks, and pools.21 The act also required that the railroad publish their rate schedules and file them with the government. An Interstate Commerce Commission was created to administer the act and enforce it. The success of the Interstate Commerce Act was short lived and was easily evaded because of its loose wording.22 In 1890 the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed, but it too failed in regulating the railroads because of loose wording.23The move for railroad regulation was ultimately lost until the arrival of Theodore Roosevelt and a strong Progressive movement. Roosevelt considered railroad regulation to be a major issue and strongly moved for the greater empowerment of the Interstate Commerce Commission. His wish was gr anted in 1906 when the Hepburn Act was passed. The Hepburn Act greatly extended the power of the Interstate Commerce Commission. It also abolished the granting of passes and made the laws against rebates stronger.24 Following the Hepburn Act, were more and more laws aimed at regulating therailroads. As the new regulations went into effect, the railroad slowly began to slip down hill. But concern with the regulations was turned away from with the arrival of the First World War.Many problems faced the railroads as America entered World War I in 1917. One was the increase of rail traffic caused by the war. The railroads became very busy and subsequently operating cost rose. The railroads began to lose money due to the Interstate Commerce Commissions hold on the rates.25 Another problem that faced the railroads during World War I was that of management. Railroad executives found it very difficult to operate their rail lines together during the war. The creation of a railroad War Board w as an attempt to help the situation, but it did not work very well. Eventually it was decided by the government that they must take over, so an act was passed that allowed the Interstate Commerce Commission to control the movement, distribution, and exchange of railroad cars. This too failed because the commission was inept in exercising its authority. Given all the failed attempts, the government decided in 1918 to take complete control of the railroad.26 The government remained in charge of the railroad until the Transportation Act of 1920, which called for their return to private management.The future was not bright for the railroads: ever since the arrival of the First World War the railroads had experienced a general decline. This was due mostly to the development of new types of transportation. Millions now owned Henry Fords model T automobile, and various other cars.27 The twenties brought the arrival of motorbuses, which also took away from the railroads business. Other new forms of transportation, such as trucks and airplanes, also took their toll on the business of the railway. So, as the nation was roaring through the Twenties and heading for the Great Depression, the railroad was becoming ever increasingly a thing of the past.If there is to be an a lasting lesson from the history of the railroads from 1865-1929 it is that major industrial innovations can only live an unregulated life for so long. The United Stated was a booming country experiencing wide spread industrialization. The railroad was an essential part of this boom, but railroads had to change just as the to country had to change. The free going attitude of laissez-faire can only last so long in a country where equality and fairness before the law are valued. The railroads fully rode the first wave of industrialization and faded into the background when their time had come. The significance of the railroad will probably never be fully realized, but their impact will always be felt. The railroad in the United States Essay Example The railroad in the United States Essay In the simplest manner: the railroad changed the face of a nation. The railroad in the United States changed how people traveled, did business, and how Washington governed people. The railroad created new standards and new laws that still affect the way we live today. It helped create a new type of wealth that had never been seen before and became the first big business in the United States. Without the railroads impact, it would be difficult to fathom where the United States and the world would be today.The golden age of the railroad is considered to be by many the period that stretched between the end of the Civil War and the beginning of the First World War.1 Railroading from 1865 to 1929 covers the great expansion, the golden age and the beginning decline of the railroad. The emergence of the modern America, and the beginning of the Great Depression of the United States also can be seen within these dates; this emphasizes the large role that the railroads had in the industrializa tion of the America. It is clear that the history of the United States coincides with the history of the railroad; during these times the railroad played a vital a vital role in thebuilding of the United States. But, the relationship was symbiotic, because it is also possible to see that the direction in which the country was going played a role in how the railroad was formed, controlled, and regulated. Truly, the railroad is a form of transportation that helped make the United States what it is today.The year 1865 finally brought an end to war that had sliced a nation in half. The war, however, was not a destructive force to the railroads. With the exception of the southern lines, American railroads were generally in excellent shape in 1865.2 The Civil War brought new strength to the American railroads. The need to provide for the war had caused the railroads of the United States to expand by as much as 35,500 miles at the end of the war.3 The War had brought new strength to the ra ilroads and the railroads were now standing before their golden age. This golden age began with a big bang: the completion of the transcontinental railway.The story of the transcontinental railway could very well be suited for a Hollywood movie. It involves corruption, greed, great visions, and great strength. Public demand for a transcontinental railway was originally inspired by a proposal made in 1836 by the American statesmen John Plumbe and Robert John Walker.4 The demand for therailway was later increased with the arrival of the gold rush in 1849. In 1861, the Pacific Railway Bill was passed, this bill called for the building of the transcontinental line to be done by two companies, Union Pacific Company and the Central Pacific Company. The job of the Union Pacific Company was to build west from Omaha, while the job of the Central Pacific Company was to build east from Sacramento5. The bill also called for the companies to receive a right-of-way strip for their line (and whate ver they needed for rail yards, sidings, and other facilities), as well as five alternate land sections on each side of the track.6 The companies were also offered loans that went from $16,000 per mile of track in the lowlands to as much as $48,000 a mile in the mountainous regions.7The Union Pacific got of to slow start until they acquired a good engineer by thename of General Dodge, who was one of Shermans Civil War railroad men. UnderGeneral Dodges direction the work on the Union Pacific soon took on a furious pace and a military atmosphere; military preparedness and quickness were exactly what was needed to deal with the hostile Indians.Life on the Central Pacific was by no means pleasant, but they did not have much a problem with the Indians.8 However, one thing that was a problem on the Central Pacific was the lack of labor. California, being largely uninhabited at the time, did not provide a large labor resource; and so the managers of the Central Pacific had to look elsewher e for their labor needs. One of the places they looked for new labor was China. The Chinese turned out to be well suited for the job, and at one point nine-tenths of the labor force of the Central Pacific was Chinese.Eventually the two the companies came within sight of each other, and a meeting place for the two rails was designated. The meeting place chosen was a waterless basin of sagebrush just north of the Great Salt Lake in Utah. This place was called Promontory Point. It was decided that the two companies would meet and there would be a greatceremony to connect the railways. The ceremony was planned, and all of the railroad officials and dignitaries came to drive in the final spike. On May 10, 1869, this event finally took place. The driving in of the final spike came with a little embarrassment: First, one of the leaders of Central Pacific went up to drive in the golden spike and missed; next, the leader of the Union Pacific stepped up to drive in the golden spike and he too missed.9 Eventually, the final spike was driven in: though it is not clear who actually did it. Despite all this, the nation celebrated for the Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast had at last become connected by rail; and the railroad now stood on threshold of its golden age.The years following the completion of the transcontinental line brought an abundance of new railways. The rail network in the United States went from 35,000 miles in 1865 to 164,000 miles in 1890. This building was brought to an all-time high, when in 1916 the total length of the rail network in the United States reached 254,000 miles.10With such a rapid pace of construction, the building in the half-century after the Civil War led to an average annual construction, of over 4,000 miles a year. Even though this rapid construction was not equally spread throughout the country, every area did see some expansion.The transcontinental rail also led to great expansion in the West. The transcontinental railway, and th e railways following, brought eastern markets within a few days of western grain and cattle lands, and eventually helped create great cities in the West itself.11 The new railways of the West also brought about the virtual extermination of the buffalo. The new rails cut the herds in half and destroyed their natural habitat. It also became a game for people heading west on the railway to shoot the animal from their train window.12Now that the railroad spanned across the continent, the railroad was becoming a major player in the expansion of industry. The industry of the United States was rapidly expanding, and the railroad was becoming more than just a small factor in a great group of expanding industries. Railroads encouraged growth not only through the offering of their transport services, but also through the transportation need, of other industries. Railroads were not only the biggest shippers of industrial products; they were also American industrys best customers.13 The railroa ds became a huge buyer of steel, coal, lumber, and oil. To say that the railroad was an important factor in the industrialization of America is a huge understatement. The railroad became the pulse of industry and was considered by many the leading factor in the expansion of industry in the United States.While the network of rails was spreading, great financial networks were also developing. Groups of once independent railroad companies were grabbed up and consolidated to form large railroad systems.14 One prime example of this was The New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, which were formed by the consolidation of about 200 originally independent lines.The large consolidation brought about the need for new standards and new technology that would help the railroad continue to grow and operate more efficiently. One of the new standards that was needed was a standard gauge for the railroads to operate on. This was needed because the expansion of the rails had now brought the need to move the freight from one line to another. This was not possible because throughout the country there were different gauges. For example in the south the popular gauge was five feet, but on other railroads like the Erie the gauge was six feet. It was decided amongst railroads that a standard must decided on, and that standard became four feet, eight and one half inches.15Another standard that was created and is still used today is standardized time. Until the movement for Standard Time, each town had its own time. There were, for example, thirty-eight different times in the state of Wisconsin alone. Given the amount of different times, the speed of trains, and the distance these trains traveled. This spelled one thing: complete chaos. Eventually the problem was solved in 1883, when the General Time Convention was held by the railroads. At this convention it was decided that the continental United States would be broken up into four standard time zones. People soon found it easy t o set their clocks by railroad time, and thus the railroad standard became a national standard.Other technological innovations that were created to aid the expansion and consolidation of the railways were: the use of steel rails, the automatic coupler, and the air brake. The automatic coupler allowed a coupler to close on impact, but still be able to open from the side of the car. The air brake, invented by George Westinghouse, allowed trains to stop much quicker than they had been able to in the past.Besides bringing about new technology, the consolidation of the railways also brought about the great railroad barons. The railroad had become a likely stop for the strong businessmen interested in making millions by manipulating the rail system. But in gaining such immense power, many railroad builders and consolidators became unethical and ruthless in their business practices. Watered stock, stock market rigging, corrupt rate wars, rebating and labor violence all became part of the n ew railroad picture. 16Railroad barons like Jay Gould James Fisk were masters at these tricks. One example of how money was made was by stock watering, which was the process of increasing the number of shares of a company without adding to the companys assets.17Perhaps one of the greatest of the great railroad barons was Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt. Originally from the steamboat business, Vanderbilt gained control of such railroads as the New York Central and the Erie through ruthless business practices. A prime example of Vanderbilts ruthless practices is how he obtained control over the New York Central Railroad. Vanderbilt was frustrated with the current managers of the New York Central because they often bypassed his railroad when sending freight into New York City. So, Vanderbilt simply stopped shipping their freight and passengers one day. The New York Central stock rapidly began to drop on Wall Street because of Vanderbilts actions. Seeing that the stock was now cheap, Van derbilt began buy up the stock while it was cheap, and the company eventually fell into his hands.18 But practices like this could only go on for so long.The railroads activities had become too corrupt for most people and were beginning to become a financial burden for many farmers and business owners. Business owners and farmers began to resent the railroad and decided that something must be done. Taking the initiative was a group called the Patrons of Husbandry, popularly known as the Grange. The Grange was originally formed as a social group to bring farmers out of the isolation of their farmhouses.19 They had picnics, suppers, and other events, that well frequently held at the local Grange Hall. However, as railroad abuse increased the group shifted from entertainment purposes to more political purposes.The Grangers bonded together to establish many things that helped farmers, but their primary purpose eventually became to bring reform to the railroads.20 The Grangers quickly gr ew in size and gained enough power to elect people free of railroad influence, in the state legislatures. They pushed for new laws that would regulate the railroads monopolies, and eventually succeeded. But the Grangers success only came at the state level through what were called Granger laws. Even though these laws were aimed to regulate monopolies, though such things as freight and passenger rates, they were easily evaded by the railroads. However, some progress had been won. The nation was beginning to shift from an attitude of laissez-faire capitalism to a more progressive state of mind.One of the biggest things people learned from the Granger laws was that reform of the railroads was going to have to take place on a national level. In 1885, a Senate committee conducted an investigation of railroad business practices. The final report from the committee listed the familiar abuses of the railroads, such as watered stock and unreasonably high rates. This investigation made it cle ar that Federal Government must do something and in 1887 it did. The Interstate Commerce Act, in language that was perhaps deliberately vague, required that all interstate rates be reasonable and just and prohibited the familiar competitive practices of rebates, drawbacks, and pools.21 The act also required that the railroad publish their rate schedules and file them with the government. An Interstate Commerce Commission was created to administer the act and enforce it. The success of the Interstate Commerce Act was short lived and was easily evaded because of its loose wording.22 In 1890 the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed, but it too failed in regulating the railroads because of loose wording.23The move for railroad regulation was ultimately lost until the arrival of Theodore Roosevelt and a strong Progressive movement. Roosevelt considered railroad regulation to be a major issue and strongly moved for the greater empowerment of the Interstate Commerce Commission. His wish was gr anted in 1906 when the Hepburn Act was passed. The Hepburn Act greatly extended the power of the Interstate Commerce Commission. It also abolished the granting of passes and made the laws against rebates stronger.24 Following the Hepburn Act, were more and more laws aimed at regulating therailroads. As the new regulations went into effect, the railroad slowly began to slip down hill. But concern with the regulations was turned away from with the arrival of the First World War.Many problems faced the railroads as America entered World War I in 1917. One was the increase of rail traffic caused by the war. The railroads became very busy and subsequently operating cost rose. The railroads began to lose money due to the Interstate Commerce Commissions hold on the rates.25 Another problem that faced the railroads during World War I was that of management. Railroad executives found it very difficult to operate their rail lines together during the war. The creation of a railroad War Board w as an attempt to help the situation, but it did not work very well. Eventually it was decided by the government that they must take over, so an act was passed that allowed the Interstate Commerce Commission to control the movement, distribution, and exchange of railroad cars. This too failed because the commission was inept in exercising its authority. Given all the failed attempts, the government decided in 1918 to take complete control of the railroad.26 The government remained in charge of the railroad until the Transportation Act of 1920, which called for their return to private management.The future was not bright for the railroads: ever since the arrival of the First World War the railroads had experienced a general decline. This was due mostly to the development of new types of transportation. Millions now owned Henry Fords model T automobile, and various other cars.27 The twenties brought the arrival of motorbuses, which also took away from the railroads business. Other new forms of transportation, such as trucks and airplanes, also took their toll on the business of the railway. So, as the nation was roaring through the Twenties and heading for the Great Depression, the railroad was becoming ever increasingly a thing of the past.If there is to be an a lasting lesson from the history of the railroads from 1865-1929 it is that major industrial innovations can only live an unregulated life for so long. The United Stated was a booming country experiencing wide spread industrialization. The railroad was an essential part of this boom, but railroads had to change just as the to country had to change. The free going attitude of laissez-faire can only last so long in a country where equality and fairness before the law are valued. The railroads fully rode the first wave of industrialization and faded into the background when their time had come. The significance of the railroad will probably never be fully realized, but their impact will always be felt.

buy custom The Gulf Cooperation Council essay

buy custom The Gulf Cooperation Council essay The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was established in 1981 and comprises of six member countries namely Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates (Saidi, 2011). These countries are all oil exporting nations; therefore, they formed the cooperation to fight their challenges jointly. GCC was established with an initial aim of protecting the member countries from threats caused by the Iran- Iraq war. On the other hand, corporate governance is defined as the structure, in which large business enterprises are governed and controlled. Corporate governance at GCC has made its economy flourish, and the member states continue enjoying the continued period of explosive growth (Saidi, 2011). These countries have an exceptionally strong economic block whose growth has been on the rise. This paper will focuses on the corporate governance of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and how this compares with the Euro. Corporate governance can sound like a relatively new term in the GCC member states. This is because it is not long since the concept was introduced to the Arab countries. Nevertheless, for the short period that it has endured in the region, corporate governance has helped the region to improve the manner in which corporations in the area are governed, significantly (Saidi, 2011). It can be said that implementation of corporate governance is erratic, perhaps, due to the underlying values that are a norm in the area. Despite of this, philosophy and concepts of corporate governance are currently remarkably well accepted in the region (Saidi Kumar, n.d). In line with this statement, it is worth noting that nearly all member countries of GCC have embraced corporate governance codes that are used in publicly listed corporations. Oman took the lead by instituting corporate governance standards for listed companies in 2002. It can, therefore, be said that corporate governance in the GCCs member states has shown some remarkable strides over the recent couple of years. It has been mainly accelerated by public governance and the need to pursue the high standards in governace. It has seen economies in member states grow at a tremendous rate owing to diversification of their economic investment portfolio. The investment in the infrastructure has been on the increase, and this involved both the public and private sectors (Saidi Kumar, n.d). An economic block, which enjoys social integration and political stability, is usually a target for many investors, such as proved to be the GCC. The increase in the investment ratio by the private sector in GCC has fostered productivity growth. It is also found that the vibrant private sector in GCC has taken the lead in accelerating economic integration in the region (Saidi, 2011). Even foreign investors have targeted the region resulting to mergers and acquisitions amo ng multinationals and local corporations. There is, however, a lot of effort that needs to be put towards expelling the perception that the concept refers to extravagance and compromises the economic performance of an organization. The set codes and guidelines need to be enforced, so that companies and other organizations in the area can realize sustainable improvement (Saidi, 2011). When best worldwide practices in corporate governance are incorporated into companies, within the local settings at the region, the economy at GCC will attain much higher levels than it has, at present. The corporate governance structures, as stipulated in the guidelines by regulators, have been implemented in the six member states of GCC, at different phases. Some of the countries in the cooperation are advanced compared to others, in the viewpoint of corporate governance. This implies that there have been limitations that have hindered successful implementation of the concept of corporate governance among members of GCC (Saidi, 2011). This was influenced by factors, such as isolation of economic block from the entire world economy. Moreover, the region is dominated by large and well established businesses that are familyowned and which have been depending on internal sources of income, for a long time (Saidi, 2011). Development of corporate governance is further derailed by the presence of a coompetitive banking network in the area, in order to meet the requirements of the organizations, based in GCC. Effective corporate governance is concerned, among other things, with the overall accountability and empowerment of all those involved. However, most of the efforts are aimed at ensuring that the management structure of companies in the GCC member states adhered to the standards of corporate governance (Saidi Kumar, n.d). Previous studies have shown that the banking sector in GCC countries is well established so that banks retain their role in funding of businesses. Financial institutions have also embraced the concept of corporate governance in most of their operations, thereby bringing about the effectiveness in the region (Saidi, 2011). The banks and other financial institutions are paramount stakeholders in progressive performance of organizations within the GCC. This provides, therefore, an excellent platform on which the research will be based. Although GCC countries enjoy sound economic growth, their monetary policy is yet to be improved. A strong currency, such as the euro, helps towards placing countries that are members of the European Union in a better position, while carrying out international trade (Saidi, 2011). However, GCC cooperation is yet to come up with a strong currency that marches the euro. These countries need to develop a common currency, which has to be strong like the currency of the neighboring trading blocks. Just like scenarios that advocate for change face a lot of resistance, implementation of corporate governance has also faced various challenges, some of which were outlined above. Some challenges are only witnessed in concentrated localities, and not in others. In order to realize some considerable change in the region, government authorities need to support and foster the changes (Saidi, 2011). When the government pledges its support to the initiative, significant success may be achieved. Moreover, there is also a need to institute structural, legal and regulatory reforms, in order to bring an overhaul in the entire economic sector. Buy custom The Gulf Cooperation Council essay

Roman catholic funeral and burial practices Research Paper

Roman catholic funeral and burial practices - Research Paper Example They are also known as ecclesiastical funerals in the Church. When a member of the family or a loved friend passes away, the others are left grieving and wondering why it had to happen to him. However the truth lies that every person is going to see his end one day or another and thus, instead of feeling tremendous sorrow for the deceased one, people try and hope for the best and thank Jesus for all that he has done and everything he had provided the person with during his lifetime. The Roman Catholic Funeral rites thus help to offer a very profound journey for the dead that helps his family and friends to pass through the beautiful emotions of grief and loss as well as joy that the person is going to a happier place where he is believed to have an everlasting life in heaven or paradise. There are a number of varied beliefs on what happens after death, for all different religions. In the Roman Catholic Church, people are taught that after death, a body begins to decompose into the Ea rth. During this process, the soul however leaves the body and undergoes an immediate evaluation. This is according to the Hebrews 9:27 "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." (KJV). They believe that there are very few people who end up going to heaven after their death. They are those people that spend their lives worshipping God and let God show them the way in every aspect of their lives. They are thus glorified and are rewarded by eternal bliss in heaven. Some saints, the Virgin Mary and Apostles qualify for walking on this path after their death. On the other hand, those who commit sins during their lifetime or reject the existence and worship of God are transported to Hell after their death. It is here that they are tortured for the rest of whatever they have left, their souls are not give mercy and they are stuck forever in this position that they are believed to have created for themselves, by inflicting upon them, deeds during the course of their lifetime. Yet another state that many dead people enter into right after their death is the state of purgatory. This takes place when a person loves God ‘imperfectly’ during his lifetime but dies in a state of grace. Purgatory is said to be the state where such people have to suffer for a long time in order o cleanse themselves of whatever imperfections have been accumulated within their souls because of their deeds in their lives. They might have committed certain mortal sins, but after some ablution these are cleansed off and forgiven in the Sacrament of Peace. However, such people are still believed to have some punishments which need to be discharged. (CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA) The Roman Catholics believe that Purgatory is much like Hell because when people are tortured here in order to cleanse themselves, they are tortured endlessly with fire. This happens till they are perfectly pure again to be able to qualify to enter the gates of Heaven. It is also belie ved that if the friends and family of the deceased pray to God for his soul, then his stay in purgatory is shortened, otherwise he has to endure fighting with fire till he is absolved. The difference from Hell is that one in Purgatory eventually gets to enter Heaven unlike those who already are in Hell. Moving on to the actual funeral rites in the Roman Catholic Church, these have three parts.

Business plan for a restaurant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business plan for a restaurant - Essay Example The business should get to meet its financial targets and be aware of its financial position. The business should aspire to meet its social responsibility by running profitably, ethically and in accordance to the legislations and regulations (LLC 2010, p. 67). Goals The restaurants goals shall get tied to its mission and vision statements. The goals should be SMART; specific, measurable, realistic, achievable, and timely (Hatten 2011, p.88). The restaurant’s goals shall allow the business to plan and understand its point of success. The goals shall not become fixed as they will get updated with time as the business proceeds. The restaurant team should aim to achieve the business goals and assist to ensure they are met for the eventual success of the business (LLC 2010, p. 77). The restaurant’s goals shall be to provide impeccable and irresistible service by showing graciousness, warmth, efficiency, knowledge, integrity and professionalism. The restaurant also aims to im prove the quality of life of the local community around the Waterloo station and beyond by conducting donations and fundraisers (Walker 2007, p. 75). Location The Waterloo station serves as a superb location for a restaurant business. The completion of the construction of a retail balcony at the station for retail and catering outlets, the station provides a fantastic location opportunity for a restaurant business (Walker 2007, p.116). The station provides a great strength for the potential business due to its strategic positioning, which serves a large number of passengers. For the restaurant to become successful, it will require a customer base, and this will be partly covered by its location at Waterloo (LLC 2010, p. 97). At Waterloo station, the restaurant will get located...Its location on the first floor of the station also ensures that it is easily visible and accessible to potential customers The business other strength will lie in its pricing. The restaurant plans on offering prices for its services that are slightly lower to its competitors present at the station (Patti 2004, p.44). The other strength lies in the fact that the restaurant shall focus on Italian cuisine. This cuisine is popular and caters for a variety of meals that will attract a wide customer base. Weaknesses Since the establishment will get located at the first floor, there is a slight chance that customers might shun it. Some customers want a quiet place to have their meals and this cannot be promised at the first floor where the movement is relatively high to the second floor. Opportunities The business opportunity lies on the completion of the construction of the retail balcony at the Waterloo station. This makes the restaurant among the first establishments to grasp the retail spaces offered. The other opportunity lies in the restaurant’s menu. The restaurant’s plans on offering diabetic, vegan, and low fat diets makes it standout with the few restaurants offering such services at the station Threats The restaurant faces stiff competition from older restaurant establishments at the station. Some establishments have already developed a devoted customer base, and it will be difficult to lure such customers away

Going Paperless Through the Juvenile Offender Tracking System Essay

Going Paperless Through the Juvenile Offender Tracking System - Essay Example Although there has been a decrease of juvenile offenders in the Harris County (Harris County, 2010), there is still a need of keeping the records and tracing juvenile offenders; though there are only a few of them left, the community’s safety should not be risked. The Juvenile Offender Tracking System (JOTS) is the technology used by the Harris Country Juvenile Records Department in keeping track of the youth offenders in their jurisdiction. According to a report by the Justice Information Management System in Harris County (2002), the said technology is used to track misdemeanor by juvenile offenders and keep records of their acts since the first of January 1996. JOTS tracks, specifically, those whose age is â€Å"older than 9 and less than 17.† Texas is not the only state that uses technology as a way to keep an eye of their records. Internet has surely embraced by the justice system.

Effects of Democratic and Autocratic management

Effects of Democratic and Autocratic management Different companies have different management systems. Every manager wants to use special management style for developing their own company. Managers personalities will influence the type of style adopted. Selecting the correct management style may lead to greater motivation and productivity the workers. There are many management styles, such as democratic, autocratic, consultative, Laissez Faire, and paternalistic. Every management style leads to each company has a different structure. If a company has a good management style, it will motivate its workforce. It may allow a company get more profits. If managers want to build a successful company, selecting a right management style is very important. Although each management style not only has advantages, for a company, they need to choose a management style carefully. If the management style cannot motivate workers, this company will have big problems, such as lower efficiency, hardly completed tasks or hardly execute managers decisi ons. Managers have many different ways to handle their labours. Some managers want to completely control the workers; some managers want to let workers more relaxed and have the freedom to finish their jobs. In this essay, I will compare and contrast two different management styles, which are democratic and autocratic, and evaluate how they can affect employees and motivate them. Firstly, I will explain democratic management style. This management style allows people joining manage the company and having their own ideas and ways for finish their jobs. However, workers must complete the job on time. Bill Gates is the most famous example of using the democratic management style. If the workers has different opinions, Bill encourage workers argue with him. (Ruth, 2008) Under this management style, when managers need to make important decisions, they will hold a meeting; listen to their workers ideas or suggestions. This way involves workers to manage the company; workers will think they are a part of company. Many people just work for money, if managers have no idea about how to motivate them; it may be result in lower efficiency. For a company to use, a management style of democratic which require worker have professional skills. And then, I will illustrate advantages and disadvantages about democratic management style. If the company use democratic management style, directors can get along well with workers, because between the boss and the workers, good communication is very important. Thus democratic management style helps them have a good communication. When important and complex decisions need to be made, the managers may be not able to consider all of the ways, so listening to other peoples ideas is very important. The democratic management style has the higher degree of motivation people. Although the democratic management style has many advantages, it also has some disadvantages. When the company has to make a decision, it will spend lots of time on collecting the workers ideas. They need hold to a meeting, and then choose the best solution. Another disadvantage is that if the workers have not enough skill and experience, potential mistakes are exiting, and sometimes, the manager cannot accepts workers ideas on each decision, workers will think the managers do not respect them. It will be harmful develop company. (Blurt it, 1999) Secondly, I will explain autocratic management style. This management style is totally different to democratic. Howell Raines and Martha Stewart is the classic example of how to use the autocratic management style to building a successful company. (Money-zine, 1999) Autocratic management style means the manager make all the important decisions, and require workers just need to complete tasks. In all the processes, workers do not take part in decision making. This will lead to workers is no sense of belonging, and workers cannot show their special abilities. Under this management style, workers just follow the directors commands. There are some advantages, the decision made quickly, because directors do not spend time on collecting workers ideas, and so, the tasks will be completed on time. Another advantage is that autocratic management style helps companies increasing efficiency when the company employ many lower skilled workers. On the other hand, this management style also has som e weaknesses. There is no two- way communication between managers and workers. Managers just require workers what they should do, but directors do not want to know what they think. Another disadvantage is that workers cannot always work hard for company. If there is another company can offer the higher salary, the worker will resign. This will become a problem for building a successful company. (Learn management2, 2000) Thirdly, I want to illustrate how to motivate workers? Workers are the basic resources of a company, so if managers want to build a successful firm, motivating them is very important. Motivating workers not only one way which increase salary, there are many ways for motivation labour. First, managers must have a good example for cheerful. Second, managers need to listen to workers think. Third, managers can draw a good picture of future showing for workers. Fourth, managers can not blind making decisions because of their personal like and dislike. Through above four methods, it can help motivate workers. In fact, not everyone works just for money. Many people think work is very interesting, so managers need to try to use another way to motivate them, other than increasing their wages. (Wiki how, 1999) Finally, I will compare which management style can more affect employee the most. Every style has good aspects for the companies. In this part, I will mainly compare democratic management style and autocratic management style. Democratic management style allow people to join decisions making, although the company need to spend more time collecting ideas, this way can improve workers enthusiasm. Once people have a sense of belonging, people will work harder. They will think the company is like working for their family; they will have greater powerful for job. However, there also are risks for the company. If workers take part in decisions, they must have professional skills and enough experiences, if some people do not actually reach this level, the mistakes will be made. On the other hand, under the autocratic management style, managers make all the decision, people just follow the order working. In fact, this management style also influences workers. Despotic leader always think peo ple just work for money, so if they pay workers, the workers will follow their orders, and the job will be completed on time. If a manager chooses the autocratic management style, they think increase the salary can motivate them. Nowadays, almost managers choose to allow people take part in decision making, because when managers want to encourage employees attending decision making, the autocratic management style should be not used, and if the workers become repugnant, the autocratic management style are also not effective. (Money-zine, 1999) In order to reduce the risks, they through provide more professional training chance for workers, or cooperate with professional school for obtain labour. If building a company, the boss makes all the decisions, and controls everything. It will lead to the boss having to work all the time and the potential mistake will still exist. It may be bad for the company. Mr. Robbins said that work committees and meetings are tow most popular ways of encouraging workers participation. (Stephen, 2002) Therefore, although the company need to spend many times on collecting ideas form workers; almost managers choose allowing workers taking part in decision making, such as democratic management style or paternalistic management style, and try to other ways to reduce mistake or error. Whether democratic or autocratic, managers just want to choose the best management style for their company. I think all managers want to motivate workers and increase efficiency. However, they choose different way to achieve their goal. The democratic management style and the autocratic management style are totally opposite management style. The democratic management style allow workers attend to make decisions, making workers feel they are a part of the company, and making them know development of the company is also their responsibility. However, the autocratic management style, managers make all the decisions, workers just complete managers commands. This allows workers do their job, and get their salary. Whether the company develop or not, they will not care. In the long term, their enthusiasm decrease. If managers want to motivate them, it may be by through increasing their income, but this is not the best way for motivation. If managers want to build a more efficiently company, motivating workers is become the most important thing.

Is Abortion Murder? Essay examples -- essays research papers

Many people believe that morals or ethics should not have any persuasion at all in our laws. Do you believe that slavery is immoral? Is the issue of slavery a moral position? Is the legislation on that moral position appropriate? Then what you have most likely said is that it is appropriate to legislate moral issues that you are in favor of. Should slavery be enforced purely as a moral issue? This is an important point because many people say that we should not force a particular morality on the issue of abortion. Slavery was brought up because it involves human rights, as abortion does also. The question is whether an unborn child is a human being that has the same inalienable rights that a black human being has. This stems the question, â€Å"Is abortion murder?† If so then there has been a legal genocide going on in the United States since 1973 with over 40 million victims. â€Å"Life, biologically speaking, begins at fertilization. We all begin with the same raw materials: an egg and a sperm. We are fully human when these gametes unite at fertilization, as nothing else is added to us- only nourishment and time to grow.† (Earll, 2003) According to Carrie that means that we are human at the moment of conception. At this controversial point is where Carrie with the pro-lifers and the pro-abortionists butt heads. Pro-abortionists like Henry Morgentaler say that, â€Å"I believe that an early embryo may be called a potential human being. But remember that every woman has the potential to create twenty-five human beings in her lifetime. The idea that any woman who becomes pregnant as a result of non-procreative sexual intercourse must continue with her pregnancy does not take into consideration the fact that there is a tremendous discrepancy between the enormous potential of human fertility and the real-life ability of women and couples to provide al l that is necessary to bring up children properly.† (Morgentaler, 1996) This summarizes most pro-abortionists views that abortion is not about the child but about the mother and what she wants. Others do not see an unborn child as being a human being. Stephen Currie agrees with this when he wrote â€Å"It is a mistake, however, to see this as evidence that the smallest fertilized egg is somehow already a person. Perhaps "life" does begin at conception in some way, but fully human life does not.† (Currie, 2000) This shows t... ...torials that promoted abortion were unimpressive and seemed written out of anger and never mentioned what most girls who have had an abortion felt like after the fact. I found the pro-life editorials very hopeful and full with a sense of love for the innocent children. Unlike the pro-abortion editorials they took slanderous stab at those who oppose them which helped me to respect what they were saying more. People like Hank Hanegraaff are showing others who are not educated about unborn children that, â€Å"They deserve protection, not capital punishment.† We now have a president that also believes in the sanctity of life and has shown it by proclaiming Sunday, January 18, 2004, as National Sanctity of Human Life Day. References Earll, C. (2003) The Sanctity of Human Life. Retrieved February 10, 2005 from http://www.family.org/cforum/pdfs/fosi/bioethics/sanctity_of_human_life.pdf Morgentaler, H. The Moral Case for Abortion. Free Inquiry, Free Inquiry, Summer 1996 Currie, S. Abortion. Opposing Viewpoints Digests ® Series. Greenhaven Press, 2000 Hanegraaff, H. Practical Apologetics, Annihilating, Abortion Arguments. Retrieved February 11, 2005 from http://www.equip.org/free/DA375.pdf