When i grow up

Like many toddlers, I was fascinated by building blocks. They held me spellbound for hours on end and pushed me to make some imaginative, if not structurally unsafe buildings. I thus grew up with a great passion for architecture, and was very certain I would one day be an architect. But as I drifted into Secondary school, my interests changed. History, among all subjects captivated me the most. I grew very much interested in the past, and as I went from â€Å"Ancient Egypt† to â€Å"Communist Russia† I ound myself captivated by the running of the world.Current affairs became my interest and I deviated from the cartoons in the newspapers to ground-breaking articles on the front page. As years passed, however, Diplomacy as a career seemed more interesting and engaging to me†mostly due to the many sensational events that took place (the Iraq War, the Chernobyl disaster, and the like). Gone were the dreams of building a sky- scraper or discovering a lost civilization; I had a burning passion to be something ther than the usual doctor lawyer or businessman†being a diplomat would fit the bill perfectly.A career as a diplomat would be ideal for me because it involves so many great opportunities: travelling around the world; learning how other countries function; getting a chance to interact with people of different cultures. Most of all, it means I can do what I love, that is, immerse myself in the current affairs of the world, and get paid for it. Most people see a diplomat as person who simply enjoys life abroad on taxpayer's money. I completely disagree with this view.Diplomats are often involved in handling issues could mean war or peace. It is this kind of challenge that makes feel even more inclined towards thus career. I also would like to be a diplomat because it would give me the opportunity to meet world leaders who I have grown up reading books about Would you like a career that is different, active, fresh and can fulfill some of y our real reams? Being a diplomat is more than an ideal career for me, it's a Job that will help to help others.More than that, it is a chance to make the world a safer place. Imagine peace in the Middle East, an America with more humility and peace treaties that do what they set out to do†all this can be achieved through the diplomat's skill of perception, knowledge of the past and the ability to listen. Look out for my name in the future†I do hope you will come to know and respect it. when i grow up By abdulgolden When I Grow Up When I grow up I would like to be a nice and caring Pediatrician (Physician). A pediatrician is a child's physician. I chose this wonderful job because I love children and I want to help them. The one thing I like most about kids is their creativity. They generally have a really open mind and are able to come up with some very interesting solutions to things that older people, would never come up with.I loved being a small kid, I had a lot of attention from my family, did not have to stress out about anything, and most importantly I did not have to go to school. To be honest, I am still a little scared about going to the doctor. When I went once to get the flu shot I was really scared, but before I knew it, it was over. The doctor made me feel so good about myself, she made me feel strong. Then, I looked up at my dad and said this â€Å"daddy, I want to be a nice and caring pediatrician like her†.Duties/Obligation(s)A pediatrician has a lot of duties /obligations even if they are general pediatrician. He/she supervises their support staff to see that the office runs professionally and efficiently. They also need to make sure they provide care for infants, children, teenagers, and young adults. They diagnose and treat infections, injuries, genetic defects, malignancies, organic diseases, and dysfunctions.Large part of a pediatrician's job involves treating illnesses. These can be everything from everyday illnesses such as colds and strep throat, to milestone childhood diseases such as measles, mumps and chicken pox. A pediatrician examines the patient first, next orders tests if needed, and then analyzes test results, last diagnoses the illness and decides on a treatment plan.Education/Special Skills RequiredTo become a Pediatrician you first need to pass the General Education Development. Classes like biology, physics, and chemistry will prepare you for the type of coursework you will be studying in medical school. Then you graduate from a four year univ ersity (collage). Next you take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The MCAT is a standardized multiple-choice test that is required for admission to medical school. Finally finish medical school. Most medical school programs are four years long. Once you have graduated from medical school, you will need to complete a three year pediatric training program at a hospital before you can start your own practice.Last you need to get board certified, which means you can be a pediatrician now. But there are some important qualities you must have. Like communication skills, Pediatricians need to be excellent communicators. They must be able to communicate effectively with their patients and other Healthcare support staff. They also need patience. Pediatricians may work for long periods with patients who need special attention. Children and patients with a fear of medical treatment (like me) may require more patience.But most importantly problem solving skills, they need to evaluate p atient’s symptoms and administer the appropriate treatments. They often need to do this quickly in order to save a patient’s life. Before you go into all these you need to have demanding education and training requirements.Salary ExpectationsAnother thing of why I want to be a pediatrician is because of how much salary I get. Though the average salary of a pediatrician is around $142,585 per year, that is only a range .Now 10% of pediatricians get $41.78 every hour they work, but on the other hand 25% of pediatricians get $59.18 every hour they work. What I am really happy about is that 50% of pediatricians get $74.34 every hour they work. In the future 4.2% of pediatricians will get $80.59 hourly, which means when I grow up I have chance of getting that much money.Depending on the country and place you live will change or maybe stay the same of your salary. Like if I live in Baton Rouge, LA I would earn $118.81 hourly. But if I live in San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, C A I would get $76.40. Since I am hoping to be the manger I will have to spend some of my salary on stickers toys and stuff  like that to make my patients happy and make sure they come back to me whenever they get sick or ill. Also I would need to give salary to my employments. This means, I need to work a lot of hours and be a great doctor/ manager.

Project on Budgetary Control Essay

1. A budget is concerned for a definite future period. 2. A budget is a written document. 3. A budget is a detailed plan of all the economic activities of a business. 4. All the departments of a business unit co-operate for the preparation of a business budget. 5. Budget is a mean to achieve business and it is not an end in itself. 6. Budget needs to be updated, corrected and controlled every time when circumstances changes. Therefore it is a continuous process. 7. Budget helps in planning, coordination and control. 8. Different types of budgets are prepared by industries according to business requirements. 9. A budget acts a business barometer. 10. Budget is usually prepared in the light of Past Experience. 11. Budget is a constant endeavor of the Management. 2 PREPARATION OF BUDGETS 1. Definition of objectives: A budget being a plan for the achievement of certain operational objectives, it is desirable that the same are defined precisely. The objectives should be written out; the areas of control demarcated; and items of revenue and expenditure to be covered by the budget stated. This will give a clear understanding of the plan and its scope to all those who must cooperate to make it a success. 2. Location of the key (or budget) factor: There is usually one factor (sometimes there may be more than one) which sets a limit to the total activity. For instance, in India today sometimes non-availability of power does not allow production to increase inspite of heavy demand. Similarly, lack of demand may limit production. Such a factor is known as key factor. For proper budgeting, it must be located and estimated properly. 3. Appointment of controller: Formulation of a budget usually requires whole time services of a senior executive; he must be assisted in this work by a Budget Committee, consisting of all the heads of department along with the Managing Director as the Chairman. The Controller is responsible for co-ordinating and development of budget programmes and preparing the manual of instruction, known as Budget manual. The Budget manual is a schedule, document or booklet which shows, in written forms the budgeting organisation and procedures. The manual should be well written and indexed so that a copy thereof may be given to each departmental head for guidance. 3 4. Budget period: The period covered by a budget is known as budget period. There is no general rule governing the selection of the budget period. In practice the Budget Committee determines the length of the budget period suitable for the business. Normally, a calendar year or a period coterminous with the financial year is adopted. The budget period is then sub-divided into shorter periods—it may be months or quarters or such periods as coincide with period of trading activity. 5. Standard of activity or output: For preparing budgets for the future, past statistics cannot be completely relied upon, for the past usually represents a combination of good and bad factors. Therefore, though results of the past should be studied but these should only be applied when there is a likelihood of similar conditions repeating in the future. Also, while setting the targets for the future, it must be remembered that in a progressive business, the achievement of a year must exceed those of earlier years. Therefore what was good in the past is only fair for the current year. In budgeting, fixing the budget of sales and of capital expenditure are most important since these budgets determine the extent of development activity. For budgeting sales, one must consider the trend of economic activity of the country, reactions of salesmen, customers and employees, effect of price changes on sales, the provision for advertisement campaign plan capacity etc. 4 Meaning of Budgetary Control: The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England and Wales has defined the terms ‘budgetary control’ as â€Å"Budgetary control is the establishment of budgets relating to the responsibilities of executives of a policy and the continuous comparison of the actual with the budgeted results, either to secure by individual action the objective of the policy or to provide a basis for its revision.† It is the system of management control and accounting in which all the operations are forecasted and planned in advance to the extent possible and the actual results compared with the forecasted and planned ones. Budgetary Control Involves: 1. Establishment of budgets 2. Continuous comparison of actuals with budgets for achievement of targets 3. Revision of budgets after considering changed circumstances 4. Placing the responsibility for failure to achieve the budget targets. The salient features of Budgetary Control System are as follows: 1. Determining the objectives to be achieved, over the budget period, and the policy or policies that might be adopted for the achievement of these ends. 2. Determining the variety of activities that should be undertaken for the achievement of the objectives. 3. Drawing up a plan or a scheme of operation in respect of each class of activity, in physical as well as monetary terms for the full budget period and its parts. 5 4. Laying out a system of comparison of actual performance by each person, section or department with the relevant budget and determination of causes for the discrepancies, if any. 5. Ensuring that corrective action will be taken where the plan is not being achieved and, if that be not possible, for the revision of the plan. In brief, it is a system to assist management in the allocation of responsibility and authority, to provide it with aid for making, estimating and planning for the future and to facilitate the analysis of the variation between estimated and actual performance. In order that budgetary control may function effectively, it is necessary that the concern should develop proper basis of measurement or standards with which to evaluate the efficiency of operations, i.e., it should have in operation a system of standard costing. Besides this, the organization of the concern should be so integrated that all lines of authority and responsibility are laid, allocated and defin ed. This is essential since the system of budgetary control postulates separation of functions and division of responsibilities and thus requires that the organization shall be planned in such a manner that everyone, from the Managing Director down to the Shop Foreman, will have his duties properly defined. Objectives of Budgetary Control System: 1. Portraying with precision the overall aims of the business and determining targets of performance for each section or department of the business. 2. Laying down the responsibilities of each of the executives and other personnel so that everyone knows what is expected of him and how he will be judged. Budgetary control is 6 one of the few ways in which an objective assessment of executives or department is possible. 3. Providing a basis for the comparison of actual performance with the predetermined targets and investigation of deviation, if any, of actual performance and expenses from the budgeted figures. This naturally helps in adopting corrective measures. 4. Ensuring the best use of all available resources to maximize profit or production, subject to the limiting factors. Since budgets cannot be properly drawn up without considering all aspects usually there is good co-ordination when a system of budgetary control operates. 5. Co-coordinating the various activities of the business, and centralizing control and yet enabling management to decentralize responsibility and delegate authority in the overall interest of the business. 6. Engendering a spirit of careful forethought, assessment of what is possible and an attempt at it. It leads to dynamism without recklessness. Of course, much depends on the objectives of the firm and the vigour of its management. 7. Providing a basis for revision of current and future policies. 8. Drawing up long range plans with a fair measure of accuracy. 9. Providing a yardstick against which actual results can be compared. Working of a budgetary control system: The responsibility for successfully introducing and implementing a Budgetary Control System rests with the Budget Committee acting through the Budget Officer. The Budget Committee would be composed of all functional heads and a member from the Board to 7 preside over and guide the deliberations. The main responsibilities of the Budget Officer are: 1. To assist in the preparation of the various budgets by coordinating the work of the accounts department which is normally responsible to compile the budgets—with the relevant functional departments like Sales, Production, Plant maintenance etc.; 2. To forward the budget to the individuals who are responsible to adhere to them, and to guide them in overcoming any practical difficulties in its working; 3. To prepare the periodical budget reports for circulation to the individuals concerned; 4. To follow-up action to be taken on the budget reports; 5. To prepare an overall budget working report for discussion at the Budget Committee meetings and to ensure follow-up on the lines of action suggested by the Committee; 6. To prepare periodical reports for the Board meeting. Comparing the budgeted Profit and Loss Account and the Balance Sheet with the actual results attained. It is necessary that every budget should be thoroughly discussed with the functional head before it is finalized. It is the duty of the Budget Officer to see that the periodical budget reports are supplied to the recipients at frequent intervals as far as possible. The efficiency of the Budget Officer, and through him of the Budget Committee, will be judged more by the smooth working of the system and the agreement between the actual figures and the budgeted figures. Budgets are primarily an incentive and a challenge for better performance; it is up to the 8 Budget Officer to see that attention of the different functional heads is drawn to it to face the challenge in a successful manner. Advantages of Budgetary Control System: 1. The use of budgetary control system enables the management of a business concern to conduct its business activities in the efficient manner. 2. It is a powerful instrument used by business houses for the control of their expenditure. It in fact provides a yardstick for measuring and evaluating the performance of individuals and their departments. 3. It reveals the deviations to management, from the budgeted figures after making a comparison with actual figures. 4. Effective utilization of various resources like—men, material, machinery and money is made possible, as the production is planned after taking them into account. 5. It helps in the review of current trends and framing of future policies. 6. It creates suitable conditions for the implementation of standard costing system in a business organization. 7. It inculcates the feeling of cost consciousness among workers. 8. It helps the principal of management by exception to apply. 9. Management which has developed a well ordered budget plans and which operate accordingly, receive greater favour from credit agencies. 9 Limitations of Budgetary Control System: 1. Based on Estimates: Budgets may or may not be true, as they are based on estimates. 2. Time factor: Budgets cannot be executed automatically. Accuracy in budgeting comes through experience. Management must not expect too much during the development period. 3. Cooperation Required: Staff co-operation is usually not available during budgetary control exercise. The success of the budgetary control depends upon willing co-operation and teamwork, 4. Expensive: Its implementation is quite expensive. No budgetary programme can be successful unless adequate arrangements are made for supervision and administration. 5. Not a substitute for management: Budget is only a managerial tool. It cannot substitute management. 6. Rigid document: Budgets are considered as rigid document. But in reality, firm’s affairs continuously change under inflationary pressure and changing government policies. 10 ZERO BASE BUDGETS The technique of zero base budgeting suggests that an organisation should not only make decisions about the proposed new programmes, but should also review the appropriateness of the existing programmes from time to time. Such a review should particularly be done of such responsibility centres where there is relatively high proportion of discretionary costs. Costs of this type depend on the discretion or policies of the responsibility centre or top managers. These costs have no direct relation to volume of activity. Hence, management discretion typically determines the amount budgeted. Some examples are: expenditure on research and development, personnel administration, legal advisory services. Zero base budgeting, as the term suggests, examines or reviews a programme or function or responsibility from ‘scratch’. The reviewer proceeds on the assumption that nothing is to be allowed. The manager proposing the activity has, therefore, to justify that the activity is essential and the various amounts asked for are reasonable taking into account the outputs or results or volume of activity envisaged. No activity or expense is allowed simply because it was being allowed or done in the past. Thus according to this technique each programme, whether new or existing, must be justified in its entirety each time a new budget is formulated. It involves: 1. Dealing with particularly all elements of mangers’ budget requests 2. Critical examination of ongoing activities along with the newly proposed activities 3. Providing each manger a range of choice in setting priorities in respect of different activities and in allocating resources. 11 Process of Zero Base Budgeting: The following steps are involved in Zero base budgeting: Determining the objectives of budgeting: The objective may be ‘to effect cost reduction in staff overheads or it may be to drop, after careful analysis, projects which do not fit into achievement of the organizations objectives etc. Deciding on scope of application: The extent to which zero base budgeting is to be introduced has to be decided, i.e. whether it will be introduced in all areas of the organisation’s activities or only in a few selected areas on trial basis. Developing decision units Decision units for which cost-benefit analysis is proposed have to be developed so as to arrive at decisions whether they should be allowed to continue or to be dropped. Each decision unit, as far as possible should be independent of other units so that it can be dropped if the cost analysis proves to be unfavourable for it. Developing decision packages : A decision package for each unit shou ld be developed. While developing a decision package, answers to the following questions would be desirable: †¢ Is it necessary to perform a particular activity at all? If the answer is in the negative, there is no need to proceed further. †¢ How much has been the actual cost of the activity and what has been the actual benefit both in tangible as well as intangible forms? †¢ What should be the estimated cost of the level of activity and the estimated benefit from 12 such activity? †¢ Should the activity be performed in the way in which it is being performed, and what should be the cost? †¢ If the project or activity is dropped, can the unit be replaced by an outside agency? After completing decision packages for each unit, the units are ranked according to the findings of cost benefit analysis. Essential projects are identified and given the highest ranks. The last stage is that of implementing the decision taken in the light of the study made. It involves the selection and acceptance of those projects which have a positive cost-benefit analysis or which are capable of meeting the objectives of the organization. The above analysis shows that zero base budgeting is in a way an extension of the method of cost benefit analysis to the area of the corporate budgeting. Advantages of Zero Base Budgeting: †¢ It provides the organization with systematic way to evaluate different operations and programmes undertaken. It enables management t o allocate resources according to priority of the programmes. †¢ It ensures that each and every programme undertaken by managers is really essential for the organization, and is being performed in the best possible way. †¢ It enables the management to approve departmental budgets on the basis of cost-benefit analysis. No arbitrary cuts or increase in budget estimates are made. †¢ It links budgets with the corporate objectives. Nothing will be allowed simply because it was being done in the past. An activity may be shelved if it does not help in achieving the goals of the enterprises. 13 †¢ It helps in identifying areas of wasteful expenditure and, if desired, it can also be used for suggesting alternative courses of action. †¢ It facilitates the introduction and implementation of the system of `management by objectives’. Thus it can be used not only for fulfillment of the objectives of traditional budgeting, but also for a variety of other purposes. It is contended that zero base budgeting is time consuming. Of course, it is true, but it happens only in the initial stages when decision units have to be identified and decision packages have to be developed or completed. Once this is done, and the methodology is clear, zero base budgeting is likely to take less time than the traditional budgeting. In any case, till such time the organization is properly acclimatized to the technique of zero base budgeting, it may be done in a way that all responsibility centre’s are covered at least once in three or four years. Zero base budgeting as a concept has become quite popular these days. The technique was first used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1962. Texas Instruments, a multinational company, pioneered its use in the private sector. Today, a number of major companies such as Zerox, BASF, International Harvester and Easter Airlines in the United State are using the system. Some departments of the Government of India have recently introduced zero base budgeting with a view to making the system of budgetary control more effective. 14 PERFORMANCE BUDGETS Performance budgeting (or programme budgeting) has been designed to correct the shortcomings of traditional budgeting by emphasizing management’s considerations/ approaches. Both the financial and physical aspects are incorporated into the budget. A performance budget presents the operations of an organisation in terms of functions, programmes, activities, and projects. In performance budgeting, precise detainment of job to be performed or services to be rendered is done. Secondly, the budget is prepared in terms of functional categories and their sub-division into programmes, activities, and projects. Thirdly, the budget becomes a comprehensive document. Since the financial and physical results are interwoven, it facilitates management control. The Main objectives of Performance Budgeting are: (i) to coordinate the physical and financial aspects; (ii) to improve the budget formulation, review and decision-making at all levels of management (iii) to facilit ate better appreciation and review by controlling authorities (legislature, Board of Trustees or Governors, etc) as the presentation is more purposeful and intelligible; (iv) to make more effective performance audit possible; and (v) to measure progress towards long-term objectives which are envisaged in a development plan. Performance budgeting involves evaluation of the performance of the organisation in the context of both specific, as well as, overall objectives of the organisation. It presupposes a crystal clear perception of organisational objectives in general, and short-term business objectives as stipulated in the budget, in particular by each employee of the organisation, irrespective of his level. It thus, provides a definite direction to each employee and also a control mechanism to higher management. 15 Performance budgeting requires preparation of periodic performance reports. Such reports compare budget and actual data, and show variances. Their preparation is greatly facilitated if the authority and responsibility for the incurrence of each cost element is clearly defined within the firm’s organisational structure. In addition, the accounting system should be sufficiently detailed and coordinated to provide necessary data for reports designed for the particular use of the individuals or cost centres having primary responsibility for specific cost. The responsibility for preparing the performance budget of each department lies on the respective Department Head. Each Department Head will be supplied with a copy of the section of the master budget appropriate to his sphere. For example, the chief buyer will be supplied with the copy of the materials purchase budget so that he may arrange for purchase of necessary materials. Periodic reports from various sections of a departme nt will be received by the departmental head that will submit a summary report about his department to the budget committee. The report may be daily, weekly or monthly, depending upon the size of business and the budget period. These reports will be in the form of comparison of budgeted and actual figures, both periodic and cumulative. The purpose of preparing these reports is to promptly inform about the deviations in actual and budgeted activity to the person who has the necessary authority and responsibility to take necessary action to correct the deviations from the budget. 16 FUNCTIONAL BUDGET A functional budget is one which is related to function of the business as for example, production budget relating to the manufacturing function. Functional budgets are prepared for each function and they are subsidiary to the master budget of the business. The various types of functional budgets to be prepared will vary according to the size and nature of the business. The various commonly used functional budgets are: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Sales budget Production budget Plant utilisation budget Direct-material usage budget Direct-material purchase budget Direct-labour (personnel) budget Factory overhead budget Production cost budget Ending-inventory budget Cost-of-goods-sold budget Selling and distribution cost budget Administration expenses budget Research and development cost budget (xiv) Capital expenditure budget Cash budget 17 Illustration: Sales Budget: Sales forecast is the commencement of budgeting and hence sales budget assumes primary importance. The quantity which can be sold may be the principal budget factor in many business undertakings. In any case in order to chalk out a realistic budget programme, there must be an accurate sales forecast. The sales budget indicates for each product: 1. The quantity of estimated sales and 2. The expected unit selling price. These data are often reported by regions or by sales representatives. In estimating the quantity of sales for each product, past sales volumes are often used as a starting point. These amounts are revised for factors that are expected to affect future sales, such as the factors listed below. 1. Backlog of unfilled sales orders 2. Planned advertising and promotion 3. Expected industry and general economic conditions 4. Productive capacity 5. Projected pricing 6. Findings of market research studies 7. Relative product profitability. 8. Competition. 18 Once an estimate of the sales volume is obtained, the expected sales revenue can be determined by multiplying the volume by the expected unit sales price, the sales budget represents the total sales in physical quantities and values for a future budget period. Sales managers are constantly faced with problem like anticipation of customer requirements, new product needs, competitor strategies and various changes in distribution methods or promotional techniques. The purposes of sales budget is not to attempt to estimate or guess what the actual sales will be, but rather to develop a plan with clearly defined objectives towards which the operational effort is directed in order to attain or exceed the objective. Hence, sales budget is not merely a sales forecast. A budget is a planning and control document which shows what the management intends to accomplish. Thus, the sales budget is active rather than passive. A sales forecast, however, is a projection or estimate of the available customer demand. A forecast reflects the environmental or competitive situation facing the company whereas the sales budget shows how the management intends to react to this environmental and competitive situation. A good budget hinges on aggressive management control rather than on passive acceptance of what the market appears to offer. If the company fails to make this distinction, the budget will remain more a figure-work exercise than a working tool of dynamic management cont rol. 19 The sales budget may be prepared under the following classification or combination of classifications: 1. Products or groups of products. 2. Areas, towns, salesmen and agents. 3. Types of customers as for example: (i) Government, (ii) Export, (iii) Home sales, (iv) Retail depots. 4. Period—months, weeks, etc Example of Sales Budget: XYZ Ltd. Sales Budget for the Year Ended 31 March XXXX Particulars Units Selling Price (P.U) Total Sales Value (Rs.) Product A Product B Total 5000 10000 75 80 375000 800000 1175000 20 LEADING TO THE PREPARATION OF THE MASTER BUDGET When all the necessary functional budgets have been prepared, the budget officer will prepare the master budget which may consist of budgeted profit and loss account and budgeted balance sheet. These are in fact the budget summaries. When the master budget is approved by the board of directors, it represents a standard for the achievement of which all the departments will work. On the basis of the various budgets (schedules) prepared earlier in this study, we prepare below budgeted income statement and budgeted balance sheet. Illustration: Floatglass Manufacturing Company requires you to present the Master budget for the 31 March 2012 from the following information: Sales: Toughened Glass Bent Glass Direct Material Cost Direct Wages Factory Overheads: Indirect Labour Works Manager Foreman Rs. 500 per month Rs. 400 per month 2.5% on Sales Rs. 600000 Rs. 200000 60% of Sales 20 workers @ Rs. 150 per month 21 Stores and Spares Depreciation on Machinery Repairs and Maintenance Other Sundries Administration, selling and Distribution Expenses Rs. 12600 Rs. 3000 Rs. 8000 10% on Direct Wages Rs. 36000 per year Solution: Master Budget for the Year Ending 31 March 2012 Particulars Amount (Rs.) Sales: Toughened Glass Bent Glass Total Sales Less: Cost of Production: Direct Material Direct Wages Prime Cost (A) Fixed Factory Overhead: 480000 36000 516000 600000 200000 800000 Amount (Rs.) 22 Works Manager’s Salary Foreman’s Salary Depreciation Light and Power Total Fixed Factory Overhead (B) Variable Factory Overhead: Stores and Spares Repairs and Maintenance Sundry Expenses Total Variable Factory Overhead (C) Works Cost (A+B+C) Gross Profit (Sales- Works Cost) Less: Administration, Selling and Distribution Expenses Net Profit 6000 4800 12600 3000 26400 20000 8000 3600 31600 574000 226000 36000 190000 23 CAPITAL EXPENDITURE BUDGET: The capital expenditure budget represents the planned outlay on fixed assets like land, building, plant and machinery, etc. during the budget period. This budget is subject to strict management control because it entails large amount of expenditure. The budget is prepared to cover a long period of years and it projects the capital costs over the period in which the expenditure is to be incurred and the expected earnings. The preparation of this budget is based on the following considerations: 1. Overhead on production facilities of certain departments as indicated by the plant utilization budget. 2. Future development plans to increase output by expansion of plant facilities. 3. Replacement requests from the concerned departments 4. Factors like sales potential to absorb the increased output, possibility of price reductions, increased costs of advertising and sales promotion to absorb increased output, etc. Merits/Advantages: 1. It outlines the capital development programme and estimated capital expenditure during the budget per iod. 2. It enables the company to establish a system of priorities. When there is a shortage of funds, capital rationing becomes necessary. 3. It serves as a tool for controlling expenditure. 4. It provides the amount of expenditure to be incorporated in the future budget 24 summaries for calculation of estimated return on capital employed. 5. This enables the cash budget to be completed. With other cash commitments capital expenditure commitment should also be considered for the completion of the budget. 6. It facilitates cost reduction programme, particularly when modernization and renovation is covered by this budget. 25 FIXED AND FLEXIBLE BUDGETS Fixed Budget: According to Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England, â€Å"a fixed budget is a budget designed to remain unchanged irrespective of the level of activity actually attained†. A fixed budget shows the expected results of a responsibility center for only one activity level. Once the budget has been determined, it is not changed, even if the activity changes. Fixed budgeting is used by many service companies and for some administrative functions of manufacturing companies, such as purchasing, engineering, and accounting. Fixed Budget is used as an effective tool of cost control. In case, the level of activity attained is different from the level of activity for budgeting purposes, the fixed budget becomes ineffective. Such a budget is quite suitable for fixed expenses. It is also known as a static budget. Essential conditions: 1. When the nature of business is not seasonal. 2. There is no impact of external factors on the business activities 3. The demand of the product is certain and stable. 4. Supply orders are issued regularly. 5. The market of the product should be domestic rather than foreign. 6. There is no need of special labour or material in the production of the products. 7. Supply of production inputs is regular. 8. There is a trend of price stability. Generally, all above conditions are not found in practice. Hence fixed budget is not important 26 in business concerns. Merits/advantages: 1. Very simple to understand 2. Less time consuming Demerits/Disadvantages: 1. It is misleading. A poor performance may remain undetected and a good performance may go unrealized. 2. It is not suitable for long period. 3. It is also found unsuitable particularly when the business conditions are changing constantly. 4. Accurate estimates are not possible. Flexible Budget According to Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England,†a flexible budget is defined as a budget which, by recognizing the difference between fixed, semi-variable and variable costs is designed to change in relation to the level of activity attained.† Unlike static (fixed) budgets, flexible budgets show the expected results of a responsibility center for several activity levels. You can think of a flexible budget as a series of static budgets for different levels of activity. Such budgets are especially useful in estimating and controlling factory cos ts and operating expenses. It is more realistic and practicable because it gives due consideration 27 to cost behaviour at different levels of activity. While preparing a flexible budget the expenses are classified into three categories viz. 1. Fixed, 2. Variable, and 3. Semi-variable. Semi-variable expenses are further segregated into fixed and variable expenses. Flexible budgeting may be resorted to under following situations: 1. In the case of new business venture due to its typical nature it may be difficult to forecast the demand of a product accurately. 2. Where the business is dependent upon the mercy of nature e.g., a person dealing in wool trade may have enough market if temperature goes below the freezing point. 3. In the case of labour intensive industry where the production of the concern is dependent upon the availability of labour. Merits/ Advantages: 1. With the help of flexible budget, the sales, costs and profit may be calculated easily by the business at various levels of production capacity. 2. In flexible budget, adjustment is very simple according to change in business conditions. 3. It also helps in determination of production level as it shows budgeted costs with classification at various levels of activity along with sales. Hence the management can easily select the level of production which shows the profit predetermined by the owners of the bu siness. 4. It also shows the quantity of product to be produced to earn determined profit. 28 Demerits/Disadvantages: 1. The formulation of flexible budget is possible only when there is proper accounting system maintained, perfect knowledge about the factors of production and various business circumstances is available. 2. Flexible Budget also requires the system of standard costing in business. 3. It is very expensive and labour oriented. Need for flexible budget: 1. Seasonal fluctuations in sales and/or production, for example in soft drinks industry; 2. A company which keeps on introducing new products or makes changes in the design of its products frequently; 3. Industries engaged in make-to-order business like ship building; 4. An industry which is influenced by changes in fashion; and 5. General changes in sales. 29 Illustration: A factory which expects to operate 7,000 hours, i.e., at 70% level of activity, furnishes details of expenses as under: Particulars Variable Expenses Amount (Rs.) 1260 Semi- Variable Expenses 1200 Fixed Expenses 1800 The semi-variable expenses go up by 10% between 85% and 95% activity and by 20% above 95% activity. Construct a flexible budget for 80, 90 and 100 per cent activities. Solution: Particulars Budgeted Hours Variable Expenses Semi-Variable Expenses Fixed Expenses Total Expenses Recovery Rate Per Hour 70% 7000 1260 1200 1800 4260 0.61 80% 8000 1440 1200 1800 4440 0.55 90% 9000 1620 1320 1800 4740 0.53 100% 10000 1800 1440 1800 5040 0.50 30 Difference between Fixed and Flexible Budget: Fixed Budget Flexible Budget It does not change with actual volume of It can be recasted on the basis of activity activity achieved. Thus it is known as rigid level to be achieved. Thus it is not rigid. or inflexible budget. It operates on one level of activity and under It consists of various budgets for one set of conditions. It assumes that there different levels of activity. will be no change in the prevailing conditions, which is unrealistic. Here as all costs like – fixed, variable and Here analysis of variance provides useful semi-variable are related to only one level information as each cost is analyzed of activity so variance analysis does give useful information. If the budgeted and actual activity levels differ Flexible budgeting at different levels of significantly, then the aspects like cost activity facilitates the ascertainment of ascertainment and price fixation do not give a cost, fixation of selling price and tendering correct picture. of quotations. a meaningful basis of not according to its behaviour. Comparison of actual performance with It provides budgeted targets will be meaningless comparison of the actual performance with specially when there is a difference the budgeted targets. between the two activity levels. 31 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 ICAI Module on Cost Accounting 2 Newsletters and opinions published by ICAI 3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget 4 www.icai.org

Asch Study Research Paper

Solomon Asch finally conducted the experiment in 1951 on a group of male participants. Asch created two cards, the first card had a line that the participants had to match up with another line on the second card, this card had three lines that the participants could choose from. Asch first gathered eight confederates, â€Å"actors posing as participants† (Pastorino, 512). All eight of these confederates where told to purposely say the obvious wrong answer. So asch took eight confederates and one participant and asked them which line on the second card was the same length as the line on the first card. The confederates went first so that the participant could hear their answer. After the confederates said their answer the participant was then supposed to give his answer. Seventy-four percent of the time the participant would conform to the confederates answer. Through this experiment Asch found immense information. Those who conformed first obviously showed disbelief, even with all the disbelief they still conformed. Almost three quarters of the people put under the group pressure conformed to the obvious false answer. In psychology this is the Asch Effect. The Asch Effect is â€Å"the influence of a group majority on the judgements of an individual† (Zimbardo, 571). Although the majority of the participants conformed to obvious wrong answer, there were some that stuck with their own beliefs. These people are called Heroes, â€Å"Heroes are people who are able to resist situational forces that overwhelm their peers and remain true to their personal values† (Zimbardo, 572). These type of people challenge the corrupt society and don’t go with the groups beliefs. As well as Heroes, there are Independents who may fall in disbelief of the others, but still go along with their own answers. Solomon Asch created a study to test the powers of conformity by designing a test consisted of line to find research and information needed when learning about conformity. Conformity is when someone adopts a group’s behavior, attitudes, and opinions just to fit in. There were many people who conformed to Asch’s study. Seventy-four percent of the participants put into the study conformed to the group’s false answers. Although the majority conformed there were other that didn’t conform to the answers of the group, these people were the Heroes and the Individuals. In conclusion the majority of the people put into this study conformed to the group’s answers. Panarchy. Solomon Asch : Opinions and Social Pressure (1955). Panarchy Panarchie Panarchia Panarquia. 2001-2010. Web. 16 Jan. 2011. lt;http://www. panarchy. org/asch/social. pressure. 1955. htmlgt;. Pastorino, Ellen, and Susann Doyle-Portillo. What Is Psychology? Australia: Thomson Wadsworth, 2009. Print. Zimbardo, Philip G. Psychology: AP* Edition with Discovery Psychology. Boston, MA: Allyn amp; Bacon, 2010. Print.

Making a Managment decision Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Making a Managment decision - Essay Example In such a scenario the performance appraisal tool, if it has been done in a proper manner, could be of significant use in arriving at the right Employees in an organization comprise the human asset of the organization and needs to be managed with as much or greater care than the other assets of the organization. Many a time this aspect of employees is neglected by managers leading to faulty decisions in their appraisals and thereby leading to discontentment. For any performance appraisal to be effective it is necessary that those being appraised understand the standards required of them and against which they re being assessed. This has twin benefits in that the employee understands the process and accepts the managers decisions better an also can then set themselves to try and achieve the standards. Performance appraisals are used quite often just to assist managers in making salary raise decisions. This is likely to affect the regularity of the use of performance appraisals and its utility as a performance enhancing tool. Performance appraisal decisions are quite often found to be subjective and not objective. An example of this is that it is quite likely that the decision of he manager is affected by a single good or bad job done by an employee and fails to see the quality of the rest of the work done over the period. Top down performance appraisal decisions have the risk of being looked as being thrust upon the concerned individual and utilizing peer to peer and upward assessments to encourage greater acceptance among employees provides for better harmony. (Murray, Joanne. Effective Performance Reviews. A Step-by-Step Plan to Make Them More Meaningful). One of the ways of eliminating the likely disregard for the human asset value in an organization by managers is to train them on the value of it and ascertain the success of the

Green Infrastructure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Green Infrastructure - Essay Example Green infrastructure integrates set up green spaces and new places and must string through and enclose the constructed ecology and connect the metropolitan area to its extensive rural surroundings. Thus, it required to be distributed to all spatial scales from sub-regional to local vicinities levels, accepting both available natural green places inside local societies; it must also accommodate larger sites in the metropolitan periphery and wider hinterland. Green infrastructure is specifically pertinent to the housing and economic development, and to the reproduction of metropolitan hinterlands. Here green infrastructure is about expanding going hand in hand with the conservation and improvement of the current ecological assets and the construction of new ones. It is about placing the ecology right at the middle of the planning procedure and creating a tactical and connected multifunctional system of places with benefits for people and the natural world. This includes making it plian t to the impact of climate change and facilitating local authorities to accomplish their role to protect biodiversity while observing the decree of Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act2006. On the other hand, green infrastructure pertains to the rural ecology. In the extensive landscape, green infrastructure is regularly seen at a wider scope, encompassing bigger national or regional parks; wider aspects such as river conduits, and flood fields, and the establishment of wide green channels and environmental systems.

Academic electronic medical record system usability testing Coursework

Academic electronic medical record system usability testing - Coursework Example Some researchers suggest that the main reasons for the backlog in new technology applications are the following: a large number of end-users (e.g. physicians, nurses, and other medical technical personnel) are still strong followers of traditional pen-and-paper methods of information retrieval and storage; high costs of implementation and maintenance of the systems; the usability of the programs are highly variable amongst the software developers and the end-users, with those not having enough computer technical know-hows end up not using the system to their advantage; the use of computer-based records interfere with the time allotted to interact with the patient; and because future nurses are not taught how to use electronic health records (EHR) as early as possible during their studying years (McBride, 2011; Master of Technical and Scientific Communication Program Students, 2004; Moody, et al., 2004; Natarajan, et al., 2010). ... Common EHR Usage in Hospitals Using HER’s in hospitals provide improvements in health care delivery mainly due to the reduction of inaccuracies in patient health and medicine records. There is considerably less misinterpretation of information handled from the reduced use of handwriting which often leads to inaccuracies in patient records or from missing information due to illegibility (Garrido, et al., 2005; Simon, et al., 2007). But EHR is not limited to the storage and retrieval of patient health information, as it also functions as a database for other kinds of data such as drug dosage and actions, disease symptoms, and physician information which many identified users can access in order to synchronise patient medical information and history from (Wang, et al., 2008). At the same time, EHR can also function as an alarm or reminder notification system for regular users in their work duties, such as patient check-up times or administration of drugs, creation of electronic m emos such as patient health progress, among others (Bonnel & Smith, 2010; Moody, et al., 2004; Simon, et al., 2007). This makes for the EHR's contribution in enhancing care delivery for end-users and other stakeholders, and it is expected that the number of agencies putting EHR in effect will also increase in proportion to the improvements made in the program user interfaces. Impact of Teaching EHR in Schools Due to the costs of EHR instalment and maintenance, it can be expected that the bulk of end-users of such programs would be large health facilities such as hospitals or other medical institutions, or individual practitioners tied to these facilities. This is mainly from the high volume of patients or clients that enter regularly or intermittently and have their health records

What is superconductivity and what practical applications does it have Essay

What is superconductivity and what practical applications does it have (radiotelescopes, MagLevs, etc) - Essay Example Their application makes use of the properties rendered to them by electric and magnetic reactivity that is exploitable in major engineering projects. As briefly indicated in the applications segment, it is clear that superconductivity phenomenon offers a wide range of application solutions that increase efficiency and safety. According to the Bardeen, Cooper and Schrieffer (BCS) theory, electron pairing phenomena near the Fermi level then inside Cooper pairs occasions some rare form of interaction that stabilizes the crystal lattice of the material in question (Creswick et al, 1995). The three scientists behind the discovery were led to this discovery by the existence of a band gap on the Fermi level which was then extrapolated to the interpretation of crystal lattice phenomenon. Further research that included the isotope effect was applied in conjunction with the critical temperature observation of a physical state that exhibited superconductor features finally led to the discovery credited to Bardeen, Cooper and Schrieffer who won the Peace Nobel Prize in 1972 (hyperphysics.edu, n.d). This happens when the material is subjected to the temperatures specification that supports the superconductivity phenomena. Electron pairing of this phenomenon obeys quantum mechanics principles where lattice vibrations cause them to attract each other in what is referred to as phonon interaction. This happens in type I semiconductors that consist of about thirty pure metals of the periodic table. Type I superconductors obey the BSC theory and only experience superconductivity below the critical temperature (Tc). The exact temperature for which each of these superconductor materials exhibit this zero electric resistance phenomenon is referred to as critical temperature (Tc) and it varies from one material to the other. To achieve the critical temperature for any of these materials in order to acquire the near

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Logistics - Essay Example In the management of erection logistics suitability and adaptability of the carriers are very important. Some of the functions relating to logistics, such as chartering arrangement for barges, supply vessels, helicopters, etc., are outsourced through the external agencies for customized sea freight and air freight services. Other important factors that need to be considered include waste disposal, material handling equipments, inventory management and clearance of goods in airports and seaport. Human resources management involves recruitment of qualified, experienced and certified professionals for employment in various levels of the management structure. Strategic planning and coordination is essential for storage and movement of the materials in cost effective management. Based on the risk parameters established for storage and handling of various types of materials and machineries, special arrangements for movement of materials with care should be made. The procedures for this pur pose should be incorporated into the system for effective management. Planning and Coordination Field logistics vary from project to project, consequently, so does the planning process. Somuyiwa, and Adewoye (2010) stated: IT in supply chain has enabled the gathering, storing and analysis of unprecedented amounts of data. It equally facilitates planning at all levels through data analysis and sharing, which enable planning to occur at the strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Similarly, IT gathers, integrates, and analyzes logistical data to streamline local and global supply chain. (p.43) The distance between the project to the sea and airports and the traffic level are the important factors which govern the planning process. Storage and transshipment of the materials at the port or airport depends upon the frequency in schedules for arrival and departure of the careers. Online location of the careers is important for monitoring status of the shipments in relation to the sch edule of operations. This will enable timely clearance of the goods, making arrangements for storing in offshore supply bases or moving them to the respective offshore platforms. Offshore mooring or establishing floating warehouses near the offshore oilfields should be considered based on the cost factors involved. This should be balanced with the increased efficiency achievable in logistics management in terms of time or deadlines. Cost-benefit analysis will enable the management to firm up the plans in line with the overall strategic logistics management decisions. Advance checking of the documents related to the goods such as pro forma invoice, packing list, inspection certificate, insurance and test certificate is essential to avoid problems in the last minute. Also, the transport documents such as Shipping Order, Bill of Lading and Sea/Air Waybill, other financial documents like letters of credit or insurance documents and the government documents such as licenses and declarati ons should be checked in advance. This will be useful in identifying the inconsistencies. Rectification of the defects on time will avoid delays in clearance. Documentation is very important, especially in the case of port or airport with heavy traffic. Here, officers at various levels may have to be coordinated in case there is any discrepancy in documentation.

Globalization and Impact on Companies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Globalization and Impact on Companies - Essay Example The major problems faced by the MNCs in the current era are  Problems associated with differences in the culture across the national borders. It is very decisive to recognize that key to winning globalization lies in both economic cultural aspects. Due to cultural differences, the workforce within an organization cannot converse with each other efficiently then this obstructs the overall efficiency of the company. Human resource (HR) management becomes highly complex for the company’s that operates across different markets. There are problems faced by the HR managers in while coordinating diversity in workplaces. Lesser diversity in organizations lowers its business efficiency (International Labour Organisation, 2004). This model will help to analyze that since globalization, the business expansion process of a firm in the international market, makes it go through structural changes. This implies that at different stages of business internationalization, the multinational co rporations (MNCs) should go through separate organizational structures (Veder, 2008). At this stage, an MNC either only increases its geographical spread of business or increases product diversity. If the geographical spread is diversified, then the companies entail less product diversity. However, if the product diversity is more, the firms expand its business within the limited geographical spread.If the scope of internationalization is wide, then a firm should not allocate much money is product diversification. This is because under such cases the strategy of expansion should be guided by duplication or coordination. Hence the firms should encourage specialization of its factors of production under this strategy (Schenk, 2011).  

Discuss how clinical protocols tie into quality management programs Research Paper

Discuss how clinical protocols tie into quality management programs within in the clinical setting - Research Paper Example Brown et al., second this in their study on quality assurance in healthcare in developing countries when they stress on the fact that improving quality actually pays rather than costs, and how health managers with limited budgets cannot afford to ignore that fact (Brown, Franco, Rafeh & Hatzell, n.d.). Buttell et al., mention a few clinical measures recommended by the Institute of Medicine, which are; to improve leadership and knowledge, to identify and learn from errors, to set performance standards and expectations for safety and to implement safety systems in health care organizations (Buttell, Hendler & Daley, 2007). A safe healthcare environment is essential for any medical or clinical institution. Clinical protocols must be followed to ensure quality management and control. They tie into quality management programs within the clinical setting by making healthcare safe, effective, patient-centered, apt, resourceful and impartial.  The thing that  should be aiming for, is constant  improvement. So that, future generations may also benefit from improved healthcare standards as a result of following clinical protocols. In order to achieve the objective of uninterrupted  improvement, merely defining the parameters of what quality care actually is will definitely not be sufficient although the mission hasn’t quite reached completion. Brown, L. D., Franco, L.M., Rafeh, N., Hatzell, T. (n.d.). Quality Assurance of Health Care in Developing Countries. Quality Assurance Methodology Refinement Series. Retrieved from http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/Pnabq044.pdf Buttell, P., Hendler, R., Daley, J. (2007). Quality in Healthcare: Concepts and Practice. The Business of Healthcare. Retrieved from

Laws of England and Wales Essay Example for Free

Laws of England and Wales Essay The defendant who seeks to avoid criminal liability on the basis that s/he was suffering from a mental disorder at the time of the alleged crime must have a defence that falls within one of the following, legally recognised, categories: Insanity, Diminished Responsibility or Automatism. While, at one level or another, these mental disorder defences share common characteristics, they each differ significantly. Unfortunately, this point does not appear to be fully appreciated in English Law. Discuss the validity of this statement. Inherent in our legal system is an idea of culpability. The word itself embodies notions of moral responsibility and blame. There are two elements that will allow us to determine whether or not someone is to be considered culpable. The first is that the person on whom we wish to apportion blame is an actual agent of harm as opposed to a mere causer. That is to say that they are instrumental in an action and are not simply a victim of a spasm or similar associated condition. The second is that he/she has the capacity to understand the laws and moral order that exist within society. Harts principles of justice assert that a moral license to punish is needed by society and unless a man has the capacity and fair opportunity or chance to adjust his behaviour to the law, its penalties ought not be applied to him. Such deep-rooted notions of culpability have necessitated development in the area of defences to ensure that those who fall outside of the legally recognised parameters of accountability are afforded protection. Amongst such defences are Insanity, Automatism and Diminished responsibility. This essay will identify the similarities and differences of these defences by exploring their theoretical foundations and determine whether, in practice, they are sufficiently understood by the courts to achieve their desired end. The theoretical basis for an insanity defence is embedded in the notions of fair opportunity as discussed above. It is felt that the insane man is too far removed from normality to make us angry with him. The impetus of the law and its functions might well be considered outside of his comprehension and similarly, so too might the moral implications of his act. Therefore, it would not be either efficacious or equitable to hold such a man criminally  responsible . As Duff remarks of the potential insane defendant if she cannot understand what is being done to her, or why it is being done, or how it is related as a punishment to her past offence, her punishment becomes a travesty?. Therefore, if a defence of insanity is successful the defendant will be given a special verdict namely not guilty by reason of insanity. Although this special verdict may bring indefinite detention (a fact which is reconciled in theory by compelling considerations of public interest ) it still serves to ref lect a lack of culpability and therefore, blame. The basis on which the non-insane automatism defence is founded is somewhat more fundamental than that of insanity. It was developed to exculpate those who had been the victim of events rather than those who had fallen foul to circumstance . A plea of automatism is not merely a denial of fault, or of responsibility. It is more a denial of authorship in the sense that the automaton is in no way instrumental in any criminal act. Lord Dilhorne remarked in Alphacell that an inadvertent and unintended act without negligence? might be said, not caused. Others have described such acts as acts of god. It is with this class of act that the defence of automatism is concerned acts which might be said seen as inconsistent with the requirement of an actus reus . This lack-of-instrumentality concept is reflected by the fact that on a finding of automatism a defendant will be granted an unqualified acquittal by the courts. Detention is unnecessary for as well being blameless, the automaton present s no future threat to society. Whilst Insanity and Automatism serve as general defences in law, Diminished responsibility operates only as a defence to murder. It offers those bordering on insanity the opportunity to argue that at the time of the killing they were suffering from such abnormality of mind so as to substantially impair their mental responsibility. If such an argument is successful (all other things being equal) the potential murderer will be convicted of manslaughter and hence will escape the mandatory life sentence that a finding of murder brings. The defences existence is justified (much like insanity) by notions of responsibility and blame. The doctrine, it was felt, was needed to reflect the view that where there was less responsibility there ought to be less punishment. Despite some clear differences in the three defences theoretical foundations and intentions, it could be said that technically they have become somewhat confused in law. Discussion will now turn to the two automatism defences before then going on to examine diminished responsibility in context. Whilst both automatism defences are grounded in the idea that where there is no responsibility there should be no blame, policy reasons have necessitated their independent development. Because of this, the person who seeks to raise automatism as a defence is subject to a very tight definitional distinction. This tight definitional distinction between automatism and insanity is highlighted by Glanville Williams when he describes non-insane automatism as any abnormal state of consciousness.while not amounting to insanity. Such statements offer little definitional worth, as to understand automatism we must first understand insanity and this, as will become clear, is no easy task. The contemporary framework of the insanity defence can be found in MNaghtens Case where Lord Tindal authoritatively ruled that?: ?to establish a defence on the ground of insanity, it must be clearly proved that, at the time of the committing of the act, the party accused was labouring under such a defect of reason, from disease of the mind, as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing; or, if he did know it, that he did not know he was doing what was wrong. Subsequent development of a non-insane automatism defence, for reasons discussed above, necessitated judicious refinement of these insanity parameters to insure that those who sought to invoke the former were deserving . Therefore, considerable onus was placed upon the meaning of the rules, especially the phrase disease of the mind. First, it was decided that mind referred to the mental faculties of reason, memory and understanding and not simply the organic mass that is the brain. Then, in Sullivan, (the defendant was charged with assault which, he  claimed, was the result of the post-ictal stage of an epileptic seizure) the definition expanded to catch transient and intermittent impairment of the mind. It was held that the permanence of a disease cannot on any rational ground be relevant to the application by the courts of the MNaghten rules. This finding ran contrary to contemporary medical definitions and began to impinge upon the design of the non-insane automatism defence: that being to catch one-off, faultless incidents of automatism. Perhaps more significantly, Sullivan continued to develop Quick on what is now thought to be the defining boundary between the two defences, that of internal and external causes. This distinction was cemented in Burgess where Lord Lane explicitly referred to the difference between internal and external causes as the point on which the case depends, as others have depended in the past The defendant in Burgess was a sleepwalker who assaulted a friend whilst in a somnambulistic state. It was held that somnambulism was a disease of the mind under the MNaghten rules largely because it was considered a pathological (and therefore, internal) condition by expert witnesses in cross-examination. While, to some, this internal/external distinction makes good sense, to others its effect is wholly inappropriate, as it fudges the boundaries between the theoretical rationales of insane and non-insane automatism. Irene Mackay, for example (as well as pointing to contradictory obiter ) attacks the distinction with reference to its effect. She contends that sleep can hardly be called an illness, disorder or abnormal condition. It is a perfectly normal condition. Of interest here, Graham Virgo points to anecdotal evidence that cheese might cause sleepwalking. If such evidence could be substantiated, the somnambulist could potentially escape a special verdict by virtue of the fact that eating cheese would be considered an external cause. Such a consideration is far from easily reconcilable with the aforementioned notions of blame and responsibility as expounded by Harts principles of justice. Mackay continues to attack Burgess on a second defining point. She contends that the court failed to properly adopt the definition of disease of the  mind as put forward by Lord Denning in Bratty namely that it is any mental disorder which has manifested itself in violence and is prone to recur. Considering statistical evidence showing that no one had ever appeared before a court twice charged with somnambulistic violence, Mackay remarks something which is prone to recur must be at least inclined to recur or have a tendency to recur or be to some extent likely to recur. Despite such protestations, current medical opinion is that sleepwalking is caused by internal factors and may be likely to recur . Therefore it is suitable for MNaghten insanity as defined. The result of these calculated distinctions between the two defences is that epileptics, sleepwalkers, those suffering from arteriosclerosis and diabetics during a hyperglycaemic episode, may all now be regarded as insane. This is surely an unacceptable position. After all, such people appear to fit far more comfortably within the (theoretical) realms of automatism than insanity. They are rational people, capable of recognising rule following situations, who are (largely) the victims of one off incidents of involuntariness. If we are to label a diabetic insane because they neglected to take their medication, are we to do the same with one who gets a migraine from omitting to take aspirin? The difference of cause is the resultant harm and the need for the courts to protect society. Incidentally, close scrutiny of the MNaghten rules leads us to conclude that where a defendants inability to recognise he was doing something wrong was due to something other than a defect of reason caused by a disease of the mind he would generally have no defence at all. Things do not get any clearer when the defence of Diminished Responsibility is brought into the frame. The statutory provision for the defence is found in Section 2(1) of the Homicide Act 1957 and provides that a person shall not be convicted of murder: If he was suffering from such abnormality of mind (whether arising from a condition of arrested or retarded development of mind or any inherent causes or induced by disease or injury) as substantially impaired his mental  responsibility for his acts or omissions in doing or being a party to the killing. The problems begin with semantics and normative questions of degree: what qualifies as abnormality of mind, how much is substantially and what is mental responsibility? Even debates on the questions have offered little assistance. For example, the Government, in an attempt to explain the key term, said that abnormality of mind referred to conditions bordering on insanity while excluding the mere outburst of rage or jealousy. Such an explanation is obviously of little worth considering that the response of judges and psychiatrists?[to the section]? have ranged from the very generous to the very strict. In fact the courts it seems, have entertained practically any ground where it was thought morally inappropriate to convict the defendant of murder. For example, psychopaths, reactive depressives , alcoholics and those in disassociated states or suffering from irresistible impulses have all been brought within the protective scope of the section. Lord Parker in Byrne, also attempting to clarify the sections ambit, said that it dealt with partial insanity or being on the border line of insanity. He went on to add that Inability to exercise will-power to control physical acts? is? sufficient to entitle the accused to the benefit of this section; difficulty in controlling his acts? may be. Confusions are evident here for, as Smith and Hogan note: A man whose impulse is irresistible bears no moral responsibility for his act, for he has no choice; a man whose impulse is much more difficult to resist than that of an ordinary man bears a diminished degree of moral responsibility for his act It would appear then, that the former should be acquitted as insane rather than have his punishment mitigated. However, if the inability to control his acts is not caused by a defect of reason or disease of the mind then the defendant has no defence in insanity. In this respect therefore, the defence of diminished responsibility appears to be patching up the deficiencies of MNaghten; acting as a device for circumventing the embarrassments that flow from a mandatory sentence, or the stigma attached to a finding of insanity, by allowing judges to follow in a common sense way their sense of  fairness. Greiw, writing in 1988 comments on the section. He suggests that the section is not to be seen as a definitional aid rather it is to be seen as legitimising an expression of the decision-makers personal sense of the proper boundaries between murder and manslaughter. The result of the lax and open wording has allowed the defence of diminished responsibility to be used almost as a catch-all excuse, spanning, and adding to, the defences of insane and non-insane automatism. It has been able to accommodate states of mind and circumstance that would be insufficient for either automatism or insanity whilst at the same time justifying this accommodation by virtue of the increased severity of a murder charge. To some this position is considered entirely unacceptable and contrary to the theories of blame and responsibility discussed hereto. Sparks for example, comments to say that we are less willing to blame?a man if he does something wrong, surely does not mean: we are willing to blame him less, if he does something wrong. It would seem however, that due to the inadequacies of MNaghten and the acceptance that some states of mind falling short of insanity should be considered mitigatory, the courts had little choice but to develop the defence of diminished responsibility in this way. From the issues discussed in this essay it is clear that whilst, in theory, the three defences of Insanity, Automatism and Diminished Responsibility, do indeed exhibit differences, in practice they have become somewhat amalgamated. This is probably due to two factors: First, it must be accepted that there is no sharp dividing line between sanity and insanity, but that the two extremes? shade into one another by imperceptible gradations. This proposition leads us to conclude that first, the problem is one of definition. Second, the courts are aware that pleading a blackout is one of the first refuges of a guilty conscience and is a popular excuse. Therefore, they have tended to view the problem of involuntariness with great circumspection and have adopted a restrictive approach as to when there should be a complete exemption from liability. In order to balance this definitional problem with the requirement of  certainty, whilst ensuring that only the deserving are completely acquitted, the law has had no alternative but to define distinct parameters. It is these parameters which have both caused the fudging of the two automatism defences and necessitated the creation of a diminished responsibility defence. Whilst, in some respects, this amalgamation is unacceptable, its effect has been to provide blanket coverage for those defendants suffering from either a mental disorder, disassociated condition or episode of sudden involuntariness. Far from saying that the law has failed to fully appreciate the differences it appears that the courts, due to restrictions, have simply created ad hoc a range of defences whose purpose is to reflect, on a continuum, impeachable notions of culpability. Bibliography. Books 1. Ashworth, Principles of Criminal Law (2nd ed., Oxford, 1995) 2. Clarkson. C.M.V. Keating. H.M. Criminal Law. Text and Materials. (4th ed., 1998, Sweet Maxwell) 3. Hart. H.L.A., Punishment and Responsibility, (1968, Oxford) 4. Smith , J.C. B. Hogan., Criminal Law (6th Edition, 1988, London, Butterworths.) 5. Williams. G., Textbook of Criminal Law (2nd ed., Stevens Sons. 1983) Articles Dell, Diminished Responsibility Reconsidered. [1982] Crim.L.R. 809 Duff. R.A., Trial and Punishments J.L.S.S. 1986, 31(11), 433 Goldstein. A., The insanity Defense (1967) Griew. E., The future of Diminished Responsibility. Crim. L.R. 1988, Feb, 75-87 Laurie. G.T., Automatism and Insanity in the Laws of England and Scotland. Jur. Rev. 1995, 3, 253-265 Mackay. I., The Sleepwalker is Not Insane. M.L.R. 1992, 55(5), 714-720 Padfield. N.,Exploring a quagmire: insanity and automatism. C.L.J. 1989, 48(3), 354-357 Royal Commission on Capital Punishment, Cmnd. 8932 (1949-1953) Smith. J.C., Case and Comment. R. v. Hennessy. (1989) 86(9) L.S.G. 41; (1989) 133 S.J. 263 (CA) Smith. K.J.M. Wilson. W., Impaired Voluntariness and Criminal Responsibility: Reworking Harts Theory of Excuses ? The English Judicial Response. O.J.L.S. 1993, 13(1), 69-98 Sparks. Diminished Responsibility in theory and Practice (1964) 27 M.L.R 9 Virgo. G., Sanitising Insanity ? Sleepwalking and Statutory Reform C.L.J. 1991, 50(3), 386-388 Cases 1. Alphacell [1972] 2 All ER 475 2. Burgess [1991] 2 W.L.R. 106 C.O.A. (Criminal Division) 3. Byrne [1960] 3 All ER 1 4. Cooper v. McKenna [1960] Q.L.R 406 5. Hennessy (1989) 89 Cr.App.R 10, CA 6. Kemp [1956] 3 All ER 249; [1957] 1 Q.B.399 7. MNaghtens Case (1843) 10 C F, 200, 8 Eng. Rep. 718. 8. Quick and Paddison [1973] Q.B. 910 9. Seers [1985] Crim.L.R, 315 10. Sullivan [1984] A.C. 156 (House of Lords) 11. Tandy [1988] Crim.L.R 308 12. Tolson (1889) Legislation 1. Homicide Act. 1957. 2. Trial of Lunatics Act 1883

Search for My Tongue and Presents form My Aunts in Pakistan Essay Example for Free

Search for My Tongue and Presents form My Aunts in Pakistan Essay In this essay I shall compare the ways in which each poem describes being part of two different cultures. The word culture is a religion or a belief you belong to or something shared by people. A culture can be a Somalian culture in which we like to eat rice however I am also a part of British culture which I like to eat fish and chips. In my opinion I think it is important to belong to a culture because it represents you and what you do in your life. If you are part of more than one culture you will have a clash. The moral of a Muslim culture says dont steal furthermore the school culture, kids may tell you to steal. We have been looking at these two poems exploring these themes. The first poem is Presents from My Aunts in Pakistan. This tells the story of a teenage girl who does not feel comfortable in the Pakistani clothes sent to her by her relatives but prefers wearing denim and corduroy, which are her everyday clothes in England. The second poem we have been investigating is Search for My Tongue. It examines about a young adult that forgot about her two tongues which means her two languages. The poet testify that she forgot her native tongue which is Guajarati and knows her foreign tongue on the other hand she feels uncomfortable talking at the same time using both languages. Although the poem is using the same metaphor, one talks about a young teenager who is confused in her own thoughts. The young teenager cannot decide whether she is more British or Pakistani. The other poem called Search debates about mother tongue and foreign tongue. A mother tongue is the language that you were born with alternatively a foreign tongue is a language that you learn by yourself. Even though the poems have many differences, theyre also equivalent because they both use a metaphor, which means when something is represents things we cannot see, hear, touch, taste and smell because they are abstract. An example would be a fire which symbolizes anger or exasperation. However, the metaphors are conflicting in each poem. In Presents from My Aunts in Pakistan it is clothes that show her identity and her culture; whilst in Search for My Tongue it is tongue which represents her language. I will introduce the poem by demonstrating how Moniza Alvi develops that idea that the young teenager is torn apart being half British and half Pakistani through her feelings about clothes. At first, the clothes from her aunts are brilliant; she describes the salwar kameez an exotic peacock blue. An example would be they sent me a salwar kameez peacock blue. In this quotation she is suggesting the peacock an exotic bird that has beauty and confidence which contrasts with her feelings. Blue suggests peace, which contrasts her inner conflict and her low self esteem. An example would be a fractured land. In this extract she is feeling another side of her identity she tries to imagine how it might have been if shed lived in Lahore instead, and wonders would she have been more or less at home or still feeling torn apart from two cultures which are the Pakistani culture and the British culture. However, the clothes can also hurt her, for example, candy stripped bangles snapped drew blood. In this quotation she is sensitive and fragile because it indicates her. The word blood suggests her cultural identity which is Pakistani culture. The word snapped specifies that she has been torn apart from two different cultures. The clothes make her feel awkward for example satin silken top was alien. In this extract the girl in Present feels that she is alien and alien implies she does not belong in this world. The word alienated is a use of oxymoron because alien and sitting room does not go together. The poet us oxymoron because you should feel at home when you are sitting in the sitting room however the girl in Presents she feels uncomfortable sitting in her living room wearing her Pakistani clothes. The clothes remind her that she is half-English, which makes her feel uncomfortable and at the same time, she says the clothes are radiant in the wardrobe. Even though she isnt wearing them, they seem full of light and beauty compared with her other things. She is drawn to the flourishing colours. The girl in Presents form My Aunts in Pakistan feels that she would be more relaxed in her everyday English clothes. An example would be I longed for denim and corduroy. In this quotation she is showing that she really likes the British clothes. Denim and corduroy symbolizes British clothes. They are dull and normal unlike beautiful satin silken clothes. This tells us that her Pakistani clothes which are stunning contrast with her lifeless British clothes which were bought from MS. As her English friend dont like her Pakistani clothes, for example, did not impress her school friend. In this extract the English people are shown not value Indian culture. The girl internalises this idea. Her English friend does not like the bright colours of Indian clothes she likes the dull English clothes. However, the girl in Presents admires the delicate way the clothes have been made. An example would be I admire the mirror work. In this extract she tries to see her identity in the Asian clothes drown to her beauty. It also shows her mixed feelings about her heritage; she loves it and hates it at the same time. The opening part of Search for My Tongue is that the girl feels like she is making you imagine having a voice. An example of this would be I have lost my tongue. In this extract the tongue represents her language she has lost part of herself. Tongue sounds more physical and more painful. This is similar to Presents because it connects to the candy stripped bangles she is sensitive and fragile which connects to Searchso both of the poems we can see that they are in pain. In Search for My tongue a powerful image shows the awkwardness of having two languages. An example would be two tongues in your mouth. In this quotation she feels awkward in her mouth. As two tongues are in her mouth she feels muddle up and confused as she cant talk English and Guajarati at the same time. This is similar to Presents because the girl feels that her clothes have clung to her. It connects with Search as both show awkwardness. Also, they both suggest that the main characters have to make a choice between two cultures. You cant have both. As the poet feels it is impossible to combine both languages. For example, you could not use them both together. In this extract she suggests having two tongues puzzle you. This is similar to Presents for the reason that the girl does not feel right with Pakistani clothes she likes wearing her dull every day clothes which are denim and corduroy. The poet sometimes feels she is losing her native language. An example would be I thought I spit it out. In this quotation she feels that she is rejecting her native language and she is feeling that she is losing it. In contrasts with Presents she does not feel comfortable wearing her Pakistani clothes. Both of the poems have similarities which they are both lost and dont know what culture they are from. The two poems are also different in their use of structure which means when something is laid out or it makes something clear. Sometimes, structure is hidden. It is important to understand the structure because the poet lays out the poem so it emphasis the poem. An example would be when the poet uses rhythm and rhyme. We notice that then the other normal rules. In Presents Form My Aunts in Pakistan, she uses symmetrical structure she does not follow a path she follows her thoughts and memories as the girl is confused. The poet shows the flow of her thoughts as how one memory triggers another. First of all the poet starts of talking about her salwar kameez. Then she goes of and talks about her mothers jewellery then she goes back to her birth place which triggers her thoughts about her real culture which is Pakistani culture.

Hippies in the 60s and the Media

Hippies in the 60s and the Media The Myth of the Sixties It has been said that of all the artificial concepts of the twentieth century, the sixties have the greatest hold on the imagination. The decade has come to take on mythical proportions, a time in the history of the world where â€Å"everything changed,† and whether for good or for naught depends on which side of the fence you stand on. The hippies, artists and bohemians, then and now, regard it as a magical time, while the â€Å"squares,† conservatives, members of the mainstream and the like view it as a nightmare. And whether one was too young or too old to participate, or, in fact, was not even born, holds no relevance; the legend of the sixties will never die. However, the truth is that the decade and its participants were nothing more than the embodiment of three powerful myths: the myth of the hippies as â€Å"dirty scum,† as orchestrated by the media and the politicians; the myth of the hippies as world-changing revolutionaries, as created by the hippies t hemselves; and the perpetuation and extension of this last myth by marketers and advertisers for profit. This paper will examine the sixties with these three myths in mind. Before we can fully decipher the first myth (the role the media played in the creation of the hippy counterculture), it is necessary to look at the movement’s precedents. The late 50s and early 60s saw the arrival of three â€Å"subcultures,† the Beats, the Teds and the Mods, all of which received more media attention than they deserved; that is, practically every aspect of these groups (the number of members, the extent of their activities, the duration of the movements, etc.), was exaggerated (Green, 41). For example, the early sixties were presumably host to countless â€Å"turf wars† between two of these subcultures (the Rockers and the Mods). The first of these took place in Clacton in 1964, and although the actual turnout was low, the rival groups were quickly labeled as â€Å"gangs† by the media (Green, 46). The day after the event, nearly every national newspaper ran frenzied, front-page stories on the incident, urging Home Secretary Henry Brooke to take action (ibid). A year later, similar scenes repeated themselves in Brighton, Weston-super-Mare and Great Yarmouth, and media reports were filled with â€Å"broken deckchairs, fleeing grannies, stern-faced policemen, outraged councilors, etc.,† which were largely embellished or outright fabricated (Green, 47). The reality was in fact a pale imitation of the myth. It evolved later that there were no â€Å"gangs† as such, there was little evidence of premeditated hostility (most people had come just to watch), and for all the reports of â€Å"blood and violence† there was actually very little (Cohen, 1973). But the seeds had been sown, the damage had been done, and by the time the Rocker and Mod subcultures died down, there was the need for another â€Å"public nuisance† to take their place, another â€Å"group defined as a threat to societal values and interests, its nature presented in a stylised and stereotypical fashion by the mass media, the moral barricades manned by editors, bishops, politicians and other right-thinking people, diagnoses and solutions pronounced by accredited experts† (ibid). Enter the hippy. The term hippy, on the surface, constitutes a vast array of bohemian and student subcultures, ranging from artistic-intellectuals to dropouts and dope smokers (Brake, 92). There are those who see them as romantic, childlike and pagan; others who see them as juvenile, hedonistic and offensive. The British hippie underground grew out of the â€Å"beatnik literary-artistic scene,† the peace movement and the corresponding American faction, spurred on by such pseudo-political groups as The Yippies, the Diggers and the Merry Pranksters, as well as various individuals including Ken Kesey (author of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test), LSD guru Timothy Leary, and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg, who appeared at the Albert Hall International Poetry Incarnation in 1965 (Brake, 102). However, while there were certainly symbolic precedents as mentioned above, and without a doubt small segments of the population were â€Å"tuned in† to a new way of thinking and acting, the fact was that an actual, pervasive, unifying movement didn’t really exist: â€Å"We’ve all gone along with the illusion that Ginsberg and Dylan and Baez and the Beatles and the Stones were all part of the same thing. Well, they are part of one thing, in the sense that we’re all human beings and we are all part of the word and each other. So is Lyndon Johnson, so it the mafia head of Chicago, so are the Hell’s Angels. We’ve tended to make the distinction between Us and Them. Now if we’ve got to recognise anything, there’s not much difference between the Angles beating that kid over the head with a pool cue, and the Chicago cops beating you over the head because you’ve got long hair† (Gleason, 219). It could be argued that if there were any changes taking place, they weren’t so much cultural as economic and social, which pegged young people against their parents, and led to vastly different worldviews and lifestyle choices (Brake, 93). While the hippies were loosely grouped around the concept of social and political change (which, in America, largely meant protestation of the Vietnam War), in Britain, there was never any corresponding social impetus. If anything, their behaviour was nothing more than a purposeful attempt to exhibit distinctly oppositional beliefs than those condoned by society, favouring â€Å"immediacy, spontaneity and hedonism† (Weider and Zimmerman, 1977). And it is these tendencies that the media jumped on. British newspapers reported hippies as being â€Å"dirty, idle, promiscuous and drug-users† (Brake, 96). A typical report showed a nude, bearded, long-haired man with the caption: â€Å"The hippy cult is degrading, decadent and plain daft† (ibid). A story about the London Street Commune who decided to squat in an abandoned Georgian mansion in 144 Piccadilly described their home as: â€Å"lit only by the dim light of their drugged cigarettes,† complete with â€Å"drug taking†¦couples making love while others look on†¦a heavy mob armed with iron bars, filth and stench, foul language†¦these are not rumours but facts, sordid facts which will shock ordinary decent living people† (News of the World, 1969). A similar report appeared in The Daily Mail on 2 August, 1969: â€Å"It makes me ashamed to be British. They [the hippies] live around in filthy clothes, mauling in each other in the streets. No wonder our country has gone to the dogs.† The hippies acted as convenient scapegoats, and the Tories eagerly jumped on the bandwagon in portraying them as moral degenerates who needed to be squelched so as to save the world from its baser instincts (Green, 448). The truth is that most of these hippies were not degenerates and criminals but students and ex-students, who were able to engage in a lifestyle filled with LSD, rock music and â€Å"free love† because of student grants and welfare payments (Brake, 95). Not only did the media paint an inaccurate picture of them, but the hippies believed their own hype and bought into their own myth. For while they railed against materialism, their lifestyle was only supported because of the benefits they received from living in a welfare system; while they were â€Å"anti-technology,† they had access to hi-tech stereo systems and complex light shows; in short, they â€Å"felt freedom was an individual element yet were controlled by a powerful state† (Brake, 97). The movement was short-lived because a â€Å"full-time leisure expressive subculture can only develop in an economy with sufficient surplus and employment† (Brake, 99). When the economy plummeted, so did the membership of the subculture; the hippies faded away in the wake of unemployment and economic crisis (ibid). However, even describing the hippies as an actual â€Å"movement† is questionable. One problem is that in looking at subcultures, it needs to be taken into account that they are actually a minority, who, because of their dramatic style, are given vast media coverage (Green, 158). Many hippies were latchers-on at best. Those who joined may have been rebellious, they may have adopted specific styles and values, but their rebellion did not embody genuine opposition (Green, 159). For many involved, it was not about social or political change at all; it was merely about fashion. As Angela Carter wrote in her Notes for a theory of sixties style: â€Å"The nature of our apparel is very complex. Clothes are so many things at once. Our social shells, the system of signals with which we broadcast our intentions, are often the projections of our fantasy selves†¦clothes are our weapons, our challenges, our visual insults† (Carter, 1967). Murdock and McCron, in a vast-raging counter-cultural study, found that most of the people they surveyed were not actually involved in local subcultures, but had adopted the styles because of the teenage entertainment industry (Murdock and McCron, 1976). The respondents â€Å"were expression and extension of the dominant meaning system, rather than deviation from or in opposition to it† (ibid). The truth is that most people are not seduced by subcultures, and only dress or act in similar stylistic ways when they have become acceptable by the mainstream. Much of the hippie culture was deliberately manufactured for marketing consumption, and much of the art and music of the sixties was commercialized and transformed into a commodity for the larger society (Brake, 99). Some of the decade’s premier acts the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, etc. – and rock ‘n roll in general, which had once been so threatening, had become as safe as the blue-chip companies that spo nsored and sold it (Green, 446). While the decade spawned a number of unconventional institutions, such as the underground press, it also launched substantial fortunes for such figures as Richard Branson and Tony Elliot (Green, 445). Smart, â€Å"alternative† capitalists took advantage of the period, and â€Å"transmogrified† the decade’s slogans into designer labels (Rowbotham, xiv). Furthermore: â€Å"The ‘underground culture,’ considered so radical and pervasive at the time, shifted just as radically. The progressive and loud rock of the 60s turned into the heavy metal of the 80s, with mysticism giving way to pulp science fiction, sexual freedom to braggadocio, liberation to repression. The nudity of the underground was packaged and mass-marketed by Rupert Murdoch. In the 1960s the young dropped out; in the 1980s they are dropped out. Drugs were considered a tool to heighten reality, and became an escape from the present† (Fountain, 215). The transformation of the hippie movement from extreme to mainstream, particularly in terms of merchandising, illustrated how well people had mastered the game, and were able to manipulate it according to their own agenda: hip consumerism had become mass consumerism (Frank, 1997). Current reactions to the sixties are mixed. While some regard it as a â€Å"golden age,† all â€Å"dope, revolution and fucking in the streets,† others, particularly the younger generation of today, see it as â€Å"a period smacking of weakness, of airy-fairy wishy-washiness, of an ascendancy of the cranks† (Green, 449). Everyone’s youth is of course a golden age, and part of the reason for the enduring myth of the sixties is that there are so many baby boomers today. Normal Mailer has noted how often the â€Å"reverberations that follow are out of all proportion to the presumed smallness of the original event† (ibid). Perhaps no better description could apply to the sixties. The decade is cloaked in myth, and there are no signs of this changing anytime soon. Today there is a thriving 1960s nostalgia industry, which is all about the clothes and the music, and has nothing do with politics or cultural change. This â€Å"sanitized† version of the era, safe for mass consumption, is just as much a myth as the sixties being a virtual â€Å"hell on earth.† However, whichever one you choose to subscribe to, one thing is probably certain: it didn’t actually happen that way. Bibliography Brake, Mike. The sociology of youth culture and youth subcultures. Sex and drugs and rock ‘n’ roll? London: Routledge Kegan Paul Ltd, 1980. Carter, A. â€Å"Notes for a theory of sixties style.† New Society. 14 December, 1967. Cohen, Stanley. Folk Devils and Moral Panics. Albans: Palladin, 1973. Fountain, Nigel. Underground, the London Alternative Press, 1966-74. London: Routledge, 1988. Frank, Thomas. The Conquest of Cool: Business Culture, Counter Culture and the Rise of Hip Consumerism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997. Gleason, R. â€Å"Rock for sale,† in Eisen, J. (ed.) The Age of Rock 2. Sights and Sounds of the American Cultural Revolution. New York: Vintage Books, 1970. Green, Jonathan. All dressed up: The sixties and the counterculture. London: Random House, 1998. Murdock, G. and McCron, R. â€Å"Consciousness of class and consciousness of generation† in S. Hall and T. Jefferson (eds.) Resistance Through Rituals: Youth subcultures in post-war Britain. Hutchinson: London, 1976. News of the World. â€Å"Hippies, drugs and the sordid truth.† 21 September, 1969. Rowbotham, Sheila. Promise of a dream: Remembering the sixties. London: Penguin Books, 2000. Weider, L. and Zimmerman, S. Understanding Social Problems. New York: Praeger Press, 1977.