On Trash and Treasures free essay sample

â€Å"That sweater will certainly keep you warm,† the man remarked as he handed back my change. I smiled politely at him, and I left the store, amused. That sweater would be seriously out of place in my dresser drawer, among the piles of dark-wash jeans and fitted tops. It was not just any sweater, but a men’s extra large oatmeal-colored golf sweater of the thrift-store variety – slightly stained and dingy looking. I had nothing against a thrift store garment; an avid knitter, I was always looking for inexpensive yarn. I had great plans for this sweater. I eyed it for what it could be, not what it was. Three days and many back aches later, I had the sweater bleached bright white and unraveled into five balls of thin gauge yarn. This was when I began to understand the amount of effort that would go into creating this new garment. We will write a custom essay sample on On Trash and Treasures or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I had already made a pattern, drawing inspiration from a beautiful 300-dollar sweater dress that I had spotted online. I would knit, repattern, and block this dress several times before it was finished. My sister pointed out that I could more easily earn three hundred dollars and buy the original than finish this labor intensive project. In spite of this, I pressed on. I have always been interested in fashion. Though I enjoy ogling overpriced designer clothing in department stores, I have to be realistic. But as I go discount shopping, I am often struck by the idea that I really do not know where my clothes come from. When I think about how long it may take me to knit that sweater dress, I wonder how it’s possible for workers in China to churn out so many sweaters each day. Still, the horror stories I hear about sweatshops there seem so very distant. I try never to throw out clothes; there is always someone who will want them. So my credo is this: shop at thrift stores beca use one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. And once in a while, just for the experience of knowing what’s involved in creating clothes, recycle old clothes into something new. That’s what I did with the sweater. One year later, the dress is finally finished with the exception of a few stray yarn ends on the inside. There is a network of strands, scaffolding on the inside of the bodice, pulling together the front panel which was an inch too wide for my liking. A discreet seam runs down the inside of the skirt, which reminds me that I knitted and unraveled multiple times in attempts to reach the exact right size, resorting to the seam after weeks of exasperation. And if I look really closely I can see the yarn, made up of four smaller delicate threads which I unraveled individually from the original sweater. I also see the tiny knots where I tied together these threads for my new yarn. Wearing the dress to school, I finally get to show off all the hard work I have done. A friend compliments me on it and I act casual, as if it had taken no effort at all. She can’t tell that behind my smile, I am remembering all the work it took to complete. Four dollars and nearly four hundred days, I have finally finished. Sure, I could have earned three hundred dollars in that time, but would I have the satisfaction and sentimental value that comes with making an old stained sweater into something of my own? Absolutely not!

Free Essays on Its Not Strange To Mistake Change For Progress

â€Å"It is not strange†¦to mistake change for progress.† Millard Fillmore At the beginning of the story, Manor Farm is prospering. However, the animals are very tired and often unfed. The cruel owner, Mr. Jones, is often drunk, and neglects taking care of the animals. They are desperate for any change. Meanwhile, Old Major begins talking of his â€Å"Socialist Utopia†, where the animals would overthrow the unkind owner and establish their own government, Animalism, where all animals are equal. The exhausted, underfed animals agree to this, because it appeals to them as a place where they would be happy. Animalism was captivating in part because the animals were desperate for a change. In the Battle of Cowshed, they overthrew the farmer and his wife and accomplished what they had set out to do. They renamed the farm â€Å"Animal Farm†, and established the Seven Commandments, which basically stated that no animal was to have contact with humans, or kill another animal. The last of these was â€Å" All animals are equal.† The animals bega n to do everything on the farm themselves. By the end of each day, they were still exhausted, however, they ate as much as they liked. They also believed that there was a difference between working at Manor Farm and working at Animal Farm: they now weren’t working for some human who didn’t feed them, but were working for their own benefit, because all the crops they produced would be divided equally among them. This mentality continued in the more feeble-minded animals until the very end. However, some of them were beginning to see a significant attitude in the pigs (the wisest animals, and self-appointed leaders) after only a short time. The pigs begin, little by little, to take more food than the rest of the animals, covering it up with: â€Å" The pigs need more food, for they are managing the whole farm†. As time goes on, they take more and more food, and change the commandments to suit their n... Free Essays on It's Not Strange To Mistake Change For Progress Free Essays on It's Not Strange To Mistake Change For Progress â€Å"It is not strange†¦to mistake change for progress.† Millard Fillmore At the beginning of the story, Manor Farm is prospering. However, the animals are very tired and often unfed. The cruel owner, Mr. Jones, is often drunk, and neglects taking care of the animals. They are desperate for any change. Meanwhile, Old Major begins talking of his â€Å"Socialist Utopia†, where the animals would overthrow the unkind owner and establish their own government, Animalism, where all animals are equal. The exhausted, underfed animals agree to this, because it appeals to them as a place where they would be happy. Animalism was captivating in part because the animals were desperate for a change. In the Battle of Cowshed, they overthrew the farmer and his wife and accomplished what they had set out to do. They renamed the farm â€Å"Animal Farm†, and established the Seven Commandments, which basically stated that no animal was to have contact with humans, or kill another animal. The last of these was â€Å" All animals are equal.† The animals bega n to do everything on the farm themselves. By the end of each day, they were still exhausted, however, they ate as much as they liked. They also believed that there was a difference between working at Manor Farm and working at Animal Farm: they now weren’t working for some human who didn’t feed them, but were working for their own benefit, because all the crops they produced would be divided equally among them. This mentality continued in the more feeble-minded animals until the very end. However, some of them were beginning to see a significant attitude in the pigs (the wisest animals, and self-appointed leaders) after only a short time. The pigs begin, little by little, to take more food than the rest of the animals, covering it up with: â€Å" The pigs need more food, for they are managing the whole farm†. As time goes on, they take more and more food, and change the commandments to suit their n...

The U.S. Economy of the1960s and 1970s

The U.S. Economy of the1960s and 1970s The 1950s in America are often described as a time of complacency. By contrast, the 1960s and 1970s were a time of significant change. New nations emerged around the world, and insurgent movements sought to overthrow existing governments. Established countries grew to become economic powerhouses that rivaled the United States, and economic relationships came to predominate in a world that increasingly recognized that the military may not be the only means of growth and expansion. The 1960s Effect on the Economy President John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) ushered in a more activist approach to governing. During his 1960 presidential campaign, Kennedy said he would ask Americans to meet the challenges of the New Frontier. As president, he sought to accelerate economic growth by increasing government spending and cutting taxes, and he pressed for medical help for the elderly, aid for inner cities, and increased funds for education. Many of these proposals were not enacted, although Kennedys vision of sending Americans abroad to help developing nations did materialize with the creation of the Peace Corps. Kennedy also stepped up American space exploration. After his death, the American space program surpassed Soviet achievements and culminated in the landing of American astronauts on the moon in July 1969. President Kennedys assassination in 1963 spurred Congress to enact much of his legislative agenda. His successor, Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969), sought to build a Great Society by spreading benefits of Americas thriving economy to more citizens. Federal spending increased dramatically, as the government launched such new programs as Medicare (health care for the elderly), Food Stamps (food assistance for the poor), and numerous education initiatives (assistance to students as well as grants to schools and colleges). Military spending also increased as Americans presence in Vietnam grew. What had started as a small military action under Kennedy mushroomed into a significant military initiative during Johnsons presidency. Ironically, spending on both wars the war on poverty and fighting the war in Vietnam contributed to prosperity in the short term. But by the end of the 1960s, the governments failure to raise taxes to pay for these efforts led to accelerating inflation, which eroded this prosperity. The 1970s Effect on the Economy The 1973-1974  oil  embargo by members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pushed energy prices rapidly higher and created shortages. Even after the embargo ended, energy prices stayed high, adding to inflation and eventually causing rising rates of unemployment. Federal budget  deficits grew, foreign competition intensified, and the stock market sagged. The Vietnam War dragged on until 1975, President Richard Nixon (1969-1973) resigned under a cloud of impeachment charges, and a group of Americans were taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held for more than a year. The nation seemed unable to control events, including economic affairs. Americas trade deficit swelled as low-priced and frequently high-quality imports of everything from automobiles to steel to semiconductors flooded into the United States. This article is adapted from the book Outline of the U.S. Economy by Conte and Carr and has been adapted with permission from the U.S. Department of State.

Engineering Computer Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Engineering Computer Technology - Essay Example Picasa, which manages and store the user’s images online. YouTube which enables users to publish and store their videos online. Google Translate which does translation services of most languages. Blue tooth headsets have both advantages and disadvantages associated with the technology. The first advantage is that there are no wires used thus the limitations associated with distance constraints are minimized if not eliminated. With wireless headsets, handling calls while driving is easy and simplified. It allows hands free phone call reception thus eliminating accidents associated with driving while on a phone call. Bluetooth wireless signals use low power signal unlike wired headsets. Blue tooth headset is universal meaning it can be used in any device that is Bluetooth enabled. On the other hand, Bluetooth headsets are more expensive compared to their wired counterpart.It can be as much as ten times the cost of the normal traditional headsets. It has a mono output which affects the quality of sound it generates as compared to the traditional wired headsets. Finally, Bluetooth headsets are limited in some way by signal range. The device has to be close to the headset for a quality sound and operation. Amazon.com, Inc is an e-commerce platform and company founded by Jeff Beros in 1994. It was originally based in a garage in Bellevue, Washington but since then it has grown to be then leading and largest online retailers. It has its headquarters based in Seattle, Washington USA. It was started as an online bookstore but since diversified to include other item like DVD,cd, software and video games. The company was incorporated as Cadabra after which it went online in 1995 as Amazon.com (Spector, 13). Management information system provides the information needed by an organization for effective and efficient management. Management information system entails the computer systems used

International Legal and Ethical Issues in Business Essay - 1

International Legal and Ethical Issues in Business - Essay Example Likewise, workers are also protected against discrimination (based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age), harassment, unhealthy/ hazardous working environments, and unfair dismissal. With these rights, come also the responsibilities of the employee. Aside from arriving at work on time and dressing appropriately (which includes wearing suitable safety equipment if required), employees are also expected to show respect to the employer, colleagues and customers, take care of the company’s property, follow reasonable and lawful orders, obey safety rules and not discriminate or harass other people in the workplace. If these obligations are not met by employees, then their employer also has the right to dismiss their employment (Steingold, 2009). On the other hand, the working hours in the US are considerably shorter than in the UK and the rest of the member nation-states of the European Union. It has been noted that the European Working Time Directive sets the maximum length of working week to 48 hours, and a minimum rest period of eleven hours each day. Although the policy applies to all members, in the UK it is still possible to exceed this limit provided that it is the employee who opts for such a condition (Cressey & Jones, 1995). In France, a recent legislation limits the working week to only 35 hours (but options are still available for those who want to exceed). While in the US, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 allowed for 44-hour work week, which was later reduced to a 40-hour standard in 1950. Despite this law, majority of the American workforce still work more than 40 hours in a week due to the lines of work they have (Mishel, Bernstein, & Boushe, 2003). Challenges in Filing a Formal Complaint If Mary decides to file a formal complaint against her employer on the basis of her somehow ‘insignificant’ situation in the company, then she will face the hardships of proving her case successfully. The burden o f proof is upon her and she needs to provide evidence to back her claims. Although Mary is relived by the fact that the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 guarantees fair treatment towards employees and that violation against this charter is punishable by law, she is still required to substantiate that she is treated in an unfair manner by the management and by her colleague for that matter. Furthermore, Mary needs to prove that the workplace has become a hostile environment for her. In legal terms, a hostile work environment is primarily one of the reasons an employee cannot reasonably perform his or her duties and responsibilities. This is due to certain behaviors by management or co-workers that are considered ‘hostile.’ Nevertheless, the said term is still subject to much debate and substantiation (Cihon & Castagnera, 2008). A boss being rude, one who yells and purposefully annoys is a qualified ground for a hostile work environment -- cause for severe physical st ress and mental anguish on the part of the employee. Certainly, acts of lasciviousness and other forms of sexual harassment are always deemed constituents of a hostile environment. Yet, for Mary’s case these did not occur. She was not discriminated and she was in no way attempted to be

Effect of Globalization on the Food Industry

Effect of Globalization on the Food Industry Introduction The food industry is a complex, diversified sector that enhances production, processing and distribution of the food energy consumed by the world’s population. The food industry is among the largest industries in the world because it not only plays a vital role towards everyone’s health but also because it employs billions of people; hence, creating jobs (Maddox, 1994, p, xi). The expansion of this industry emerged few decades ago, after it transformed from a food production industry through agriculture towards a globalized industry that encompassed vast sectors like technology and transport. Therefore, as the world embraced globalization, the food industry did not lug behind. The objective of this paper is to analyze major transformations depicted by the food industry and elaborate how globalization relates to fast food and obesity. More so, the paper will outline the ideological underpinning of the slow food movement and the critics involved. Major transformations that the food industry has undergone in recent years 200 years ago, farmers locally produced food and sold it to the local market. However, the industry has gradually undergone a major transformation in recent years due to globalization and urbanization. This is the case because people no longer live in places where the food grows because globalization has led people to migrate to urban cities. This means that food is currently produced, processed and distributed to diverse populations through the aid of globalization that include biotechnology, technology advancement and the availability of convenient transport (Maddox, 1994, p, xi). The transformation of food industry keeps transforming due to changing lifestyles, demographics, expanding incomes and education levels, which trigger an increase in consumer demands for quality, variety and safety of food. Therefore, diversification of people into diverse demographic locations has led the food industry to find ways of producing, processing and distributing valuable and hygienically packa ged food that meets the consumers’ demands. Apparently, the food industry did an outstanding thing by embracing globalization because food availability has become an easy task. This relevance depicts through the fact that people can now acquire any food of choice at their own convenience because food is within peoples’ reach. Food is found in kiosks, grocers, restaurants and big outlets like the supermarkets. Therefore, globalization enhanced availability of reliable and fast transport that greatly aided the food industry by easing food distribution. The other relevance that food industry transformation triggered is that it improved the way food undergoes packaging (Maddox, 1994, p, xi). Unlike in the past when food had no means of preservation, modern food is hygienically packed and last longer. This means that people can consume packaged food without worrying about health implications caused by poor sanitation or staleness. Generally, transformation of food industry has greatly eased people’s lifestyle by allow ing them to get the food they desire on their own convenience unlike in the past where people had to live within the farming location or travel to the farmers’ markets in order to acquire food. The relationship between fast food and globalization Globalization is the major driver that triggered a fast moving world and the fast food industry is not exempted. This means that the world we live in today has accepted and adapted fast food as part of its food customs. This is a fact because eating traditional food in major cities is becoming a hard task because such places are full of fast food eat-inns (Inglis Gimlin, 2009, p, 258). Fast food is becoming people’s option due to its availability, convenience and cheap price tags compared to natural food. The other reason that contributes to fast food dominating the food culture is that technology has advanced insistent advertising that succeed in diminishing the natural food culture. The renowned McDonalds food chain possesses distinctive clip adverts that capture unintended appetite. Therefore, globalization not only enhanced diverse modernization but also deconstructed the healthy food culture by turning it from natural to fast food (Inglis Gimlin, 2009, p, 258). The inte nsity of the relationship between globalization and fast food shows in a developing country like china where its strong traditional food culture is slowly eroding because the Chinese are embracing modernization that encompasses change in lifestyle and food preferences. On another perspective, adaption of fast food through globalization has a major negative effect of health implications to both the developed and the developing countries. The main health complication that fast food fosters is obesity, a disease that has triggered an intensive research and debates from scholars. Scholars have differed in the sense that while others observe obesity as a disease caused by sociological incline, other scholars argue that the disease is hereditary. However, the real fact is that obesity is a disorder where an individual puts on excess weight or gets fat by consuming more food than the body system requires, or consumes food containing high fat and sugar; hence, storing the excess residue as calories. Obesity is creating serious global attention because it rates as the fifth main cause of death in developed countries. Over the past two decades, the epidemic is spreading to the developing countries; hence, becoming a global concern. The food industry is blame d for this disaster because it embraced globalization by improving peoples’ living conditions that ended up eliminating communicable diseases but still fostering non-communicable diseases like obesity by processing fast food that are cheap and available yet full of unhealthy fat and sugar (Inglis Gimlin, 2009, p, 258). Though cases of filling lawsuits against the â€Å"big food† companies like McDonalds are arising, the concerned parties should broaden their horizons and realize that globalization plays a major role in the pandemic. This is a fact because economic globalization triggers cheap prices, while social globalization triggers lifestyle habits, TV viewing and a fast food culture. Therefore, despite that social globalization contributes a higher percentage in promoting obesity, the Big food companies play the role of distribution to the final consumer; hence, the consumers should play the major part of curbing obesity by consuming healthy food (Inglis Gimlin, 2009, p, 258). Principles that support the slow food movement Several aspects contribute to the development of the slow food movement but the main phenomenon supporting the movement is food justice. This phenomenon chips in as a result of the movement’s aim of changing peoples’ perception towards fast food and encouraging them to eat natural organic food acquired from farmers’ markets and other producers (Jayaraman, 2013, p, 19). According to the union’s objective, people should shun away from the usual cheap, mass-produced non-organic stuff. A recent speech in TEDx Manhattan, by the movement’s president Josh Viertel depicts how the slow food movement has the potential to turn the fast food phenomenon around by making sustainable agriculture a widely accepted movement. More so, the president looks forward to advocate for Farm Bill education as well as creating slow food eat-ins where people can eat healthy natural food in eating joints within their reach. Despite the entire efforts outlaid by the union and its members, critics still prevails. These critics claim that organic slow food is natural but expensive and convincing people to squeeze out more money to purchase natural food becomes a tussle for the union. Nevertheless, the slow food movement is barely four years old and there is hope that it will manage to reach its goal of killing the fast food culture that has dominated the developed countries (Jayaraman, 2013, p, 19). Conclusion Globalization is an advocate of speed, an aspect that accelerates urbanization, transport system, technology and the food industry. However, despite its positivity in modifying life, it has also brought along damaging effects like the presence of big food companies that end up offering fast food that promote health complications. Despite the presence of anti-fast food movements like the slow food movement, people are yet to embrace natural lifestyles and healthy eating. This leads to the conclusion that the food industry has one remaining transformation phase of learning and embracing nutrition (Inglis Gimlin, 2009, p, 260). Though this phase will negatively affect many big food companies, the obesity pandemic will reduce at a higher percentage. Therefore, the concerned parties should utilize the availability of modern information technology to educate the world on the importance of eating healthy. References Inglis, D., Gimlin, D. L. (2009). The Globalization of Food. Oxford: Berg. Jayaraman, S. (2013). Behind the Kitchen Door. Cornell university press. Maddox, I. (1994). Practical Sanitation in the Food Industry. CRC Press.

Essay Questions Essay

Need to reword the statement by taking a position and then showing in the thesis statement the focus of the paper. Include the focus of body paragraphs: A Topic of Paragraph B Topic of Paragraph C Topic of Paragraph Colonial Period 1. â€Å"The English founded colonies to escape oppression in England.† Assess the validity of this statement. The statement, â€Å"The English founded colonies to escape oppression in England.† Is not valid because the English colonies were founded for either (A) economic motivations, (B) religious idealism, and to (C) enlarge the British Empire. The statement â€Å"The English founded colonies to escape oppression in England† Is partly valid in regards to (A) middle and (B) southern colonies, (C) New England however, is and exception to this rule. 2. â€Å"The British colonies were so antagonistic to each other that they were unable to unite to face the attack of common enemies.† Assess the validity of this statement. 3. â€Å"Before 1763 British mercantilist policy, while restricting colonial economic development, allowed colonial political life to develop unhampered by the Mother Country.† Assess the validity of this statement. 4. â€Å"The colonial wars fought between the British and the French for domination of the North American continent created a sense of national spirit among the British colonies and created a basis for later unity.† Assess the validity of this statement. The colonial wars fought between the British and French did not bring unity to the American Colonies, in fact it brought rebellion to colonies due to the end of (A) salutary neglect which included the (B) quartering act, and (C) stamp acts. 5. Analyze the extent to which religious freedom existed in British North American colonies prior to 1700. 6. Though there where many differences in the development of the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies, they had much in common. What conditions and experiences were common to American colonists regardless of their colony or region? 7. Analyze the relative importance of religious dissent and demographic change in undermining the Puritan dream of establishing a godly and orderly society in seventeenth century New England. 8. For the period before 1750, analyze the ways in which Britain’s policy of salutary neglect influenced the development of American society as illustrated in the following: a. Legislative assemblies b. Commerce c. Religion The British policy of salutary neglect supported colonial development in the period before 1750 of legislative assemblies, commerce and religious diversity. 9. Analyze the cultural and economic responses of TWO of the following groups to the Indians of North America before 1750. a. British b. French c. Spanish 10. How did economic, geographic, and social factors encourage the growth of  slavery as an important part of the economy of southern colonies between 1607 and 1775?