Discuss the different outlooks and experiences of Native Americans and Essay

Discuss the different outlooks and experiences of Native Americans and the Spanish Conquistidors during the colonial period of american history - Essay Example For the Indians part, the arrival of the Spaniards was originally thought to be the return of a god, Quetzalcoatl. This is indicated in many reports by the Spanish that tend to highlight the naivetà © of the Indians, but is also mentioned in the written record of the Indians: â€Å"It was as if he [Motecuhzoma] thought the new arrival was our prince Quetzalcoatl. This is what he felt in his heart: He has appeared! He has come back! He will come here, to the place of his throne and canopy, for that is what he promised when he departed!† (Leon-Portilla, year). However, while the Spanish insisted that this impression was long-lasting, the Indians themselves indicate that they quickly understood that this was not the god they had expected. While those in Tenochititlan understood this as the Spaniards proceeded to burn all their sacred treasures with eyes filled with greed, the Cibola tribes and other plains tribes similarly could not submit their own religious beliefs and lives t o the greed and domination of the Spaniards. For their part, the Spanish seem not to have been completely unsympathetic to the plight of the Indians that had been encountered. Juan Jaramillo (1896) describes his expedition with some detail, indicating highly practical Indian populations who had not only two-story houses, but innovative constructions such as hot rooms built underground against the chill of the winters and the hide-covered constructions (teepees) that others used as a means of portable housing to follow the herds of buffalo. While he does not indicate these people were rich by any means, he does indicate that they were courteous, welcoming and content with their lives upon their first encounter. However, investigations into reports of â€Å"cruelties† committed by the Spaniards turned out an interview of Juan Troyano, whose testimony seemed somewhat puzzled as to why the Indians would not immediately and peacefully surrender everything they

Business Ethics, Invisble Hand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Business Ethics, Invisble Hand - Essay Example A business's biggest interest is profit maximization. All businesses, be it a small-scale or a large corporation or enterprise, seek to maximize their profitability as much as they can. After and in accordance to this, a firm aims to minimize costs. It is not hidden that when businesses attempt to achieve these aims, they crush many ethical values such as responsibility to the society in the form of, perhaps, pollution control guidelines. They leave, to the society, negative externalities only so that they can earn profits. Under such circumstances, you cannot expect a business to care for the environment or the people around them. True, that firms satisfy our material needs and this does lead to the general good. But in providing us with these services and goods, they will do whatever it takes to get to that level of profit maximization and cost minimization. I do not think that the 'invisible hand' furthers us to greater public welfare because firms forget all about ethics when it comes to power and profits. To support this, let's take the example of California's power market. The electricity industry was freed of regulations so that competition could be promoted and that the invisible hand could work. However, the opposite happened. They failed to provide the service; there were blackouts and prices were also very high. The sellers kept developing new ways of abusing the system until the State intervened (Shaw, W.H., 2004). My second argument is that with globalization taking its toll increasingly and hence, with competition growing immensely, it has become extremely important for firms to maintain and raise their positions in the global market. One would think that competition increases efficiency, along with which, prices are decreased. In any case, the customer, or the society as a whole, benefits. However, this is not usually the case. Globalization emphasizes on competition, true. But as a result it creates awareness in the society, gives customer choices, makes them powerful and hence, demanding. All this put together, puts great pressure on a firm operating in the free global market. Mostly, an average customer is not going to think of buying from a firm who is socially responsible and who has value for ethical guidelines and how it treats its employees or competitors. A customer would want to buy from a firm who provides the good or service, they don't care how, they just want the service. This leads to many businesses sacrificing their ethical values and moving towards the bigger motive of profit earning. Many businesses today in third world countries, especially, adhere to such unethical practices. An example of the water industry in Pakistan can be taken. Such filthy water is provided in the homes of people than many suffer from diseases such as hepatitis, yellow fever etc due to this. Conclusion In the end, it is important to note that not all firms yield to such unethical practices and not all situations demand such practices. Today, 'going green' is also a way of earning profits. However, the arguments presented above do take place and the society is exploited as a result. There are both sides to the pictures. It is only up to the business

Lease vs Buy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Lease vs Buy - Research Paper Example The acquisition or lease of the transportation equipment is critical to the nature of the company’s business of bringing its guests to different locations to areas which would further enhance the company’ s delivery of value to its customers. What should the company do? ABC Company plans to acquire transportation equipment or two buses with a five year life and a total cost of $40 million which will transport clients to different areas as a way of adding value to its services. A bank is ready and will to provide a loan for the acquisition. The company can borrow the required $40 million, using a 10 percent loan to be amortized over five years. Therefore the loan will call for payments of $10.4 million per year as can be estimated using a financial calculator. As an alternative, ABC can lease the equipment for five years at a rental charge of $11.2 million per year, payable also at the end of the year. If it is lease, the equipment will not be owned and the risk of loss will belong still to the XYZ Company as lessor. However, ABC Company will be liable pay to annual rental for five years from which tax benefits can also be derived. If it decides to buy the equipment, ABC will be able to save on tax on depreciation for the equipment and maintenance c ost. Since the lessor will own the two buses at the expiration of the lease, the company is somewhat confused on which is the better option. Relying on the comparative figures of $10.4 million payable yearly to the bank to finance acquisition and the rental payments of $11.2 million for yearly payments looks somewhat incomplete to ABC Company without including other factors which can be further quantified. The lease payment schedule is established by XYZ Company the potential lessor with the $11.2 million for five years was given to ABC Company and the latter is at present stage of

Discuss the different outlooks and experiences of Native Americans and Essay

Discuss the different outlooks and experiences of Native Americans and the Spanish Conquistidors during the colonial period of american history - Essay Example For the Indians part, the arrival of the Spaniards was originally thought to be the return of a god, Quetzalcoatl. This is indicated in many reports by the Spanish that tend to highlight the naivetà © of the Indians, but is also mentioned in the written record of the Indians: â€Å"It was as if he [Motecuhzoma] thought the new arrival was our prince Quetzalcoatl. This is what he felt in his heart: He has appeared! He has come back! He will come here, to the place of his throne and canopy, for that is what he promised when he departed!† (Leon-Portilla, year). However, while the Spanish insisted that this impression was long-lasting, the Indians themselves indicate that they quickly understood that this was not the god they had expected. While those in Tenochititlan understood this as the Spaniards proceeded to burn all their sacred treasures with eyes filled with greed, the Cibola tribes and other plains tribes similarly could not submit their own religious beliefs and lives t o the greed and domination of the Spaniards. For their part, the Spanish seem not to have been completely unsympathetic to the plight of the Indians that had been encountered. Juan Jaramillo (1896) describes his expedition with some detail, indicating highly practical Indian populations who had not only two-story houses, but innovative constructions such as hot rooms built underground against the chill of the winters and the hide-covered constructions (teepees) that others used as a means of portable housing to follow the herds of buffalo. While he does not indicate these people were rich by any means, he does indicate that they were courteous, welcoming and content with their lives upon their first encounter. However, investigations into reports of â€Å"cruelties† committed by the Spaniards turned out an interview of Juan Troyano, whose testimony seemed somewhat puzzled as to why the Indians would not immediately and peacefully surrender everything they

Lease vs Buy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Lease vs Buy - Research Paper Example The acquisition or lease of the transportation equipment is critical to the nature of the company’s business of bringing its guests to different locations to areas which would further enhance the company’ s delivery of value to its customers. What should the company do? ABC Company plans to acquire transportation equipment or two buses with a five year life and a total cost of $40 million which will transport clients to different areas as a way of adding value to its services. A bank is ready and will to provide a loan for the acquisition. The company can borrow the required $40 million, using a 10 percent loan to be amortized over five years. Therefore the loan will call for payments of $10.4 million per year as can be estimated using a financial calculator. As an alternative, ABC can lease the equipment for five years at a rental charge of $11.2 million per year, payable also at the end of the year. If it is lease, the equipment will not be owned and the risk of loss will belong still to the XYZ Company as lessor. However, ABC Company will be liable pay to annual rental for five years from which tax benefits can also be derived. If it decides to buy the equipment, ABC will be able to save on tax on depreciation for the equipment and maintenance c ost. Since the lessor will own the two buses at the expiration of the lease, the company is somewhat confused on which is the better option. Relying on the comparative figures of $10.4 million payable yearly to the bank to finance acquisition and the rental payments of $11.2 million for yearly payments looks somewhat incomplete to ABC Company without including other factors which can be further quantified. The lease payment schedule is established by XYZ Company the potential lessor with the $11.2 million for five years was given to ABC Company and the latter is at present stage of

Loan and International Best Practices Essay Example for Free

Loan and International Best Practices Essay A Non-performing asset (NPA) is defined as a credit facility in respect of which the interest and/or installment of principal has remained ‘past due’ for a specified period of time. Identification[edit] NPA is a classification used by financial institutions that refer to loans that are in jeopardy of default. Once the borrower has failed to make interest or principle payments for 90 days the loan is considered to be a non-performing asset. Non-performing assets are problematic for financial institutions since they depend on interest payments for income. Troublesome pressure from the economy can lead to a sharp increase in non-performing loans and often results in massive write-downs. With a view to moving towards international best practices and to ensure greater transparency, it had been decided to adopt the ‘90 days’ overdue’ norm for identification of NPA, from the year ending March 31, 2004. Accordingly, with effect from March 31, 2004, a non-performing asset (NPA) is a loan or an advance where; Interest and/or installment of principal remain overdue for a period of more than 90 days in respect of a term loan, The account remains ‘out of order’ for a period of more than 90 days, in respect of an Overdraft/Cash Credit (OD/CC). The bill remains overdue for a period of more than 90 days in the case of bills purchased and discounted, Interest and/or installment of principal remains overdue for two harvest seasons but for a period not exceeding two half years in the case of an advance granted for agricultural purposes, and Any amount to be received remains overdue for a period of more than 90 days in respect of other accounts. Non submission of Stock Statements for 3 Continuous Quarters in case of Cash Credit Facility. No active transactions in the account (Cash Credit/Over Draft/EPC/PCFC) for more than 90 days. Classification[edit] Banks are required to classify non-performing assets further into the following three categories based on the period for which the asset has remained non-performing and the realisability of the dues: Sub-standard assets: a sub standard asset is one which has been classified as NPA for a period not exceeding 12 months. Doubtful Assets: a doubtful asset is one which has remained NPA for a period exceeding 12 months. Loss assets: where loss has been identified by the bank, internal or external auditor or central bank inspectors but the amount has not been written off, wholly or partly. Sub-standard asset is the asset in which bank have to maintain 15% of its reserves. All those assets which are considered as non-performing for period of more than 12 months are called as Doubtful Assets. All those assets which cannot be recovered are called as Loss Assets.

Difficulties Of Rene Descartes Cogito

Difficulties Of Rene Descartes Cogito The most important contribution of Renà © Descartes in the history of Philosophy is his cogito. In the same way, however, the cogito has also been the most critical problem of his philosophy. This essay will focus more on the difficulties of the cogito. But first, on the side of the cogito: one importance of the cogito is that it is the byproduct of the Method, which is another contribution of Descartes not only in modern philosophy, but also in the field of science. The origination of the cogito from the Methodic Doubt is quite anticipated: all prior knowledge and truths must be erased, unless they are indubitable. In other words, all knowledge and opinions are subjected to examination, whether they can survive the test of doubt. Descartes, having found the fact (or act) of his doubting indubitable, hence maintains the fact that his existence enables his doubting (or thinking) as a clear and distinct idea, and thus the conclusion: Cogito, ergo sum: I think, therefore I am. We understand therefore that the cogito is a product of deduction or inference. However, as I have said, the cogito is quite anticipated. This is because the rules of his Method lay down an algorithm that has a quite predictable result, as if laying down a theore tical step-by-step means to prove something that is already true. The cogito is also considered a product of intuition and not of deduction. However, as far as methods of analysis are concerned, Descartess Method and cogito are valid. Moreover, insofar as the solipsistic argument, the cogito is a rather fair argument. By this, I mean that the cogito is a solipsistic truth, or a belief in the self as only reality or basis of reality. When Descartes has proposed that all knowledge and opinions must be cleared off the mind (or must be brought into doubt), there is still in Descartes the belief that the only thing he can be sure of is that he exists. He cannot deny the fact that he exists, even if the very idea of his being is most accessible via experience (hence, this he must doubt also). Thus if Descartes denies his being in the first place, his cogito will never materialize as a basis for truth. But since Descartes adopts a solipsistic view, he is safe from committing contradiction. To put simply: insofar as the I is concerned (the I, which thinks and doubts), the I exists. Nevertheless, Descartes paradox, which is the cogito itself, is not an absolute oxymoron. By the cogito being a paradox, I mean the self-contradictory problem of the cogito; that is, the problem of which came first: the cogito or the sum. Using the Method of Doubt, the cogito seems to go before the sum, since it is the act of doubting/thinking that came before the conclusion for the act of existence. But in the context of Descartes, it is implied that thinking is actually in the context of being. Now the strength of the cogito argument is that it is a closed argument, relying only on the idea that existence constitutes thinking and thinking reflects existence. It is in these strengths of the cogito, however, that it is also problematic. First is on the solipsistic view. The very problem of the cogito here is the question of reality outside the I. Since Descartes uses himself and only himself in his basis for truth, anything outside himself can be doubtful or false, and thus cannot be a basis for truth. Only the thinking I, thus the human person, can prove and claim ones existence. Thus, the other for the thinking I is doubtful, insofar as the I is concerned. The problem is that Descartes is as if denying the existence of animals, plants and other things, since these things do not and cannot think. Moreover, after proving that he is a thinking thing, the next question that arises is: now how do we establish an edifice of knowledge? Descartes takes emphasis on putting a foundation for knowledge by first using the Method, but forgets how to formulate the next set of algorithm once the Method has been applied. The problem of the solipsistic ar gument of the cogito is that nothing more exists outside the selfs being a thinking thing. It only proves the existence of oneself insofar as the thinking I is concerned, and does not prove the idea and the existence of other things other than the self. Besides, other Is can think of me a mere fiction. In the problem of the solipsistic argument of the cogito, however, the idea of a Perfect Being other than the thinking self exists. Descartes said that since he is cogito (thinking/doubting thing), he is therefore an imperfect being. But since he is imperfect, he has an idea of a perfect thing, which can come only from a Perfect Being, which is God. Nevertheless, nothing more exists outside the thinking self aside from the self itself and God. Now the second weakness of the cogito is in its contradictory problem. Although the cogito (cogito-sum relationship) is a closed argument (like Spinozas freedom-necessity concept); one cannot ignore to question the validity of its argument. In this argument, whether the cogito conditions the sum or the sum conditions the cogito, the idea of existence is still in danger, because it is subject to doubt. The sum (I am) only works for the thinking I, but existence alone cannot prove thinking. Thus what seemed to be a safe closed argument is not free of loopholes at all, because existence in general is not enough to prove thought. Nevertheless, the cogito is concerned for the existence of ones being a res cogitans or thinking thing only. Moreover, that material objects exist because of God is another argument that branched out from the cogito. After concluding that the Supreme Being cannot deceive, Descartes proceeds to concluding that material objects thus also exist. However, this only results to another circular argument: cogito presupposes God, which tells the res cogitans that its ideas come from external objects; but then it is from these external objects that the cogito must doubt first before it realizes that it is a res cogitans, then assume the existence of a Perfect Being. Generally, we find Descartess Method of Doubt and cogito weak. The main premise that we cannot distinguish reality from dream is not even strong enough to be a basis for truth. Although Descartes skepticism is optimistic at finding a certain knowledge that we can know of, still it is rather destructive of the foundation of knowledge that is the objective of his skepticism in the first place. The problem is that Descartes proposes arguments for why everything can be subjected to doubt, such as the dream argument, the deceiving God argument, and the evil demon argument. It is difficult to follow Descartess advice because it is more difficult to prove a negation than proving otherwise (in the case of Descartes proving the negation of knowledge to prove the opposite), since if we convince ourselves with these arguments of Descartes, then we must act and think as if we are experiencing illusions and hallucinations all the time. This is of course difficult for us. In fact one example where we can prove Descartes could probably be right all along that an evil demon is deceiving us (e.g., dwhen something defies the laws of physics) is when we experience a Criss Angel trick. Perhaps we can say that the main problem of Descartess philosophy is both its extreme rationalist and non-rationalist approach. Descratess philosophy is rationalist because it proclaims reason as the only valid criterion for certain knowledge and thus truth. It is non-rationalist, however, in the sense that it somehow forgets other valid functions of the human mind or reason: that is reason as the faculty of mans sentient soul, can, aside from thinking and doubting, imagine, sense and feel.