Singer Vs Regan Essays - Animal Rights, Animal Welfare, Bioethics

Singer Vs Regan Tom Rybak Phil 340-01 2000-02-03 Singer vs. Regan Despite their rather different philosophical foundations, both philosophers arrive at basically the same conclusions. Singer takes a utilitarian approach, while Regan takes a deontological rights and inherent value position. In the end they both take a position of vegetarianism and advocated banning animal experimentation and sport hunting. In an exchange of letters in the April 25, 1985 issue of The New York Review of Books, Regan writes: Singer and I have been independently applying and developing very different ethical theories to ... the treatment of non-human animals. He continues that it is difficult to exaggerate the radical moral difference between Singer's utilitarianism and the rights view. At the end of Singer's reply to Regan, Singer mentions: The practical value of Regan's book (All the dwell Therein) lies in its attack on our social practices of using animals as research tools and as mere lumps of palatable living flesh. On these practical issues Regan and I are in full agreement. Viewed from the perspective of a society which continues to accept these practices, the philosophical differences between us hardly matter. In 1975, Australian philosopher Peter Singer wrote a book called Animal Liberation. In this book Singer argued that humans should not use animals, all based on utilitarianism. Utilitarians say actions should be judged strictly by their consequences. An action is good if it will provide the greatest benefit to the largest number of individuals. Singer did not stop there, and said that when we calculate consequences, we must take into account the interests not only of human beings but also of animals. If we fail to consider these animals' interests, or if we give human beings special consideration, we are guilty of speciesism. To Singer, animal research is morally acceptable if the benefits to humans or animals used clearly outweigh the harm to the animals used in the research. He usually concludes that the cost to the animals outweighs the benefit to others. Singer's contender, Tom Regan set forth another animal rights view in a 1983 book, The Case for Animal Rights. Regan emphasizes that not only people, but also many animals are entitled to certain rights. He bases his reasoning on the idea that both humans and animals have an elementary understanding of the world and know generally what they desire from life. Regan's rights-based philosophy says that most mammals older than one year qualify for basic rights. Furthermore, Regan argues that it is wrong for humans to use animals for their own needs and in general, to deprive animals of their rights. Regan disagrees with Singer's utilitarian program for animal liberation. Regan allocates intrinsic value to animals and humans. This value describes the animals', or human's right to life and concern for them. Regan feels that the utilitarian view lacks this intrinsic value. In addition, he states the goals of his theologies: The total abolition of the use of animals in science, the total dissolution of commercial animal agriculture, and the total elimination of commercial and sport hunting and trapping. In addition, he sees Singer's utilitarian view noted above, failing on two accounts. First, utilitarianism is concerned only with the desires of a being, e.g. such as the desire for pleasure. At the same time the view takes no regard for the inherent worth of these beings (human or animal). Second, Regan emphasizes the problem of utilitarianism that it would be morally permissible to arbitrarily make an individual suffer for the benefit of the greater good. Regan issues that the best theory of morality will be one that grants rights to all beings who have inherent worth. This prevents morality from becoming an exclusive club as in contractarianism, and does not allow individuals to be exploited on behalf of the greater good. Regan explains that a being has inherent worth when it is a subject of a life, or when the being has preferences, beliefs, feelings, recollections, and expectations. It has been noted that many animals exhibit these features and therefore have inherent worth. Regan criticizes alternative criteria of inherent worth. To say that only intelligent beings have inherent worth will exclude infants and mentally impaired people, which is inadequate. To say that only Homo Sapiens have

Gandhi vs. King essays

Gandhi vs. King essays Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. were civil right activists who took a form of action to obtain equal rights amongst their society. Gandhi moved to South Africa in 1893 to serve the Indian population after failing to establish a legal practice in Bombay. Subsequent to moving to South Africa, he recognized many laws that discriminated against Indians and initiated a change by taking action. Gandhi developed his theory of satyagraba (soul force), which implicates social justice through love as well as suffering the consequences. After meeting with a group of Indian nationalists he wrote down his theories in a pamphlet called Hind Swarf or Indian Home Rule. Martin Luther King Jr. did a non-violent campaign in Birmingham Alabama. Birmingham was one of the few cities where the fourth step in Kings non-violent campaign theory called direct action was necessary. Unfortunately, King was jailed on April 12-20, 1963 for violating a court injunction by leading a protest march in Birmingham. While King was in jail, eight Alabama clergymen published a statement criticizing the use of direct action and referred to this approach as unwise and untimely. While incarcerated, King politely responded to their statement in a letter titled Letter from Birmingham City Jail. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi developed theories that linked to a system that surpassed governmental laws. King and Gandhi had educational as well as logical reasoning for taking each approach towards unjust laws. Mohandas Gandhi based his document on defining the true meaning of civilization where as Martin Luther King Jr. based his document on recognizing the reason he wanted to cease injustice. Both Gandhi and King discussed reasons regarding the use of non-violent actions to fight for their rights. Gandhi differentiates the definition the word civilization...

Italian Phrases for Shopping in Italy

Italian Phrases for Shopping in Italy When you arrive in Italy, shopping in any context- like at the bakery, the pharmacy, or just any negozio (store)- is inevitable. Plus, who doesn’t bring home a suitcase brimming with local oils and products that read â€Å"Made in Italy†? With that in mind, here are the basic phrases you need to know that can help you get by in any shopping situation. General Shopping Phrases/Vocabulary Quant’à ¨? - How much is it?Quanto costa? - How much is it?Quanto spendo? - How much do I spend? TIP: Use â€Å"quant’à ¨Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"quanto spendo† when you have many items and â€Å"quanto costa† when you have just one item. Posso pagare con il bancomat? - Can I pay with my debit card?Accettate carte di credito? - Do you (all) accept credit cards?Accettiamo soltanto i contanti. - We only accept cash.Sto cercando†¦ - I’m looking for†¦ TIP: Notice that the phrase above does not use any preposition like â€Å"per†, for example, to stand in as â€Å"for†. Some phrases in Italian don’t need the preposition in the same way that we do in English, which serves as just another friendly reminder to be careful about directly translating from English to Italian. Sto solo guardando. - I’m just looking.Poi? - Anything else?Qualcos’altro? - Something else?Basta cosà ¬. - That’s all.Vorrei†¦, per favore. - I would like†¦, please.Prendo†¦ - I’ll take†¦Ha bisogno di aiuto? - Do you need help? (formal)Mi piace. - I like it.Non mi piace. - I don’t like it. TIP: If the object you like or don’t like from the above two phrases is plural, like â€Å"le scarpe - the shoes†, then say instead â€Å"Mi piacciono† or â€Å"Non mi piacciono†. È troppo caro. - It’s too expensive.Ha qualcosa di meno costoso? - Do you have anything cheaper? (formal)È un regalo. - It’s a gift.Vuole la confezione regalo? - Would you like it gift-wrapped? (formal)È fatto a mano.  - It’s handmade.È artigianale.  - It’s artisanal/small-scale.La commessa - Shop assistant Phrases for Shopping at a Market Whether you’re going to un mercato all’aperto (an open-air market) or un supermercato (a supermarket), these phrases will help you navigate the experience. Quanto costa al chilo? - How much does it cost per kilo?Quelli come si chiamano? - What are those called?Un etto di†¦(agnello). - 100 grams of†¦(lamb).Come si puà ² cucinare†¦(il vitello)? - How does one cook†¦(veal)?(Otto) fette di†¦(prosciutto cotto), per favore. - (8) slices of...(cooked prosciutto), please.Avete...(le patate)? - Do you have†¦(potatoes)?Posso assaggiare (il pecorino), per favore? - Can I try (the pecorino), please? Phrases for Shopping at a Clothing Store Use these phrases to help you confidently shop for clothing and accessories from the trendiest shops on il corso (the main street) to i mercati delle pulci (flea markets). Sono/Porto/Indosso una taglia†¦(media). - I’m a medium.Vuole provarlo? - Do you want to try it on?Vorrei provare questi, dove sono i camerini?- I’d like to try these on, where are the fitting rooms? TIP: In the phrase above, â€Å"lo† would be used if the item were singular and masculine, like il vestito - the dress. However, if it were singular and feminine, like la sciarpa - the scarf, it would be â€Å"Vuole provarla†? While it’s important to make everything agree, don’t stress if you can’t remember the gender of the object you have. You’ll be safe with using the pronoun â€Å"lo†. Dove sono i camerini? - Where are the fitting rooms?Non mi sta bene. - It doesn’t fit me well.È comodo. - It’s comfortable.Questi (stivali) sono scomodi. - These (boots) are uncomfortable.Preferisco (la rosa). - I prefer pink.Vorrei cambiare questo, per favore. - I would like to exchange this, please.Stai veramente bene con (quel vestito). - You look great in that dress. (informal)L’alta moda - High fashion To get a more detailed description of how to shop for clothes in Italy, check out this article. Types of Stores There are an endless amount of specialty shops in Italy, so here are the names of each of the most popular ones in case you need to ask on how to get to one or need a recommendation. Il centro commerciale - Shopping centerLa bottega - WorkshopIl negozio - StoreIl negozio dell’usato - Second-hand storeL’edicola - NewsstandLa gioielleria - Jewelry shopLa profumeria - Perfume shopLa libreria - BookshopLa tabaccheria - Tobacco shop TIP: Technically this is a tobacco shop, but it is more of a convenience store where you can cigarettes, magazines, bus tickets, and recharge your phone. Il supermercato - SupermarketLa farmacia - PharmacyLa tintoria - DrycleanersLa pasticciera - Pastry shopLa macelleria- ButcherLa latteria - Milk cheese shopLa panetteria - BakeryLa rosticceria - DelicatessenIl fruttivendolo - GreengrocerLa cartoleria - Stationery shop

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING - Essay Example 180,000/5=?36,000. Motor Vehicles: The depreciation charge for the new vehicle purchased would be ?25,000 x 40% = ?10,000. The remainder of the vehicles that need to be depreciated for the current year cost ?980,000 less the car disposed of ?20,000 = ?960,000. From the total accumulated depreciation figure of ?500,000, ?8,000 is attributable to the vehicle disposed of. As such, accumulated depreciation attributable to the vehicles to be depreciated for the current year amounts to ?492,000, giving a net book value of ?468,000. As such, the depreciation charge for the year for these vehicles is 40% of ?468,000 amounting to ?187,200. Total depreciation charge for the year is the sum of the emboldened figures = ?453,200. (a) (ii) Profit / Loss of Disposal The motor vehicle disposed of cost ?20,000 and the accumulated depreciation in respect of such vehicle was ?8,000 (?20,000x40%). As such the balance on the vehicle was ?12,000. The company was only able to obtain ?8,000 from the sale an d as such made a loss of ?4,000 (12-8). (a)(iii) Impairment Loss for the year As at the date of the impairment review, the item 2 of plant and machinery had a carrying value of ?180,000 less the ?36,000 depreciation charge = ?144,000. The recoverable amount has been ascertained as ?50,000. As per IAS 36, the asset must be written down to the lower of carrying value or recoverable amount. As such, there is an impairment loss of ?94,000 (144-50). (a)(iv) Release of the grant for the year In accordance with IAS 20, the grant has been treated as deferred income and released over the lifetime of the asset. As such, the release for the year would be ?400,000/5=?80,000. (b) Notes to the Balance Sheet as at 30th September 2010: Property Plant and Equipment Land & Buildings Plant & Machinery Motor Vehicles Total COST as at 1 Oct 2009 3,000,000 980,000 980,000 4,960,000 Additions 25,000 25,000 Disposals (20,000) (20,000) Revaluations 2,000,000 2,000,000 as at 30 Sept 2010 5,000,000 980,000 98 5,000 6,965,000 ACCUMULATED DEPRECIATION as at 1 Oct 2009 500,000 436,000 500,000 1,436,000 Depreciation on Disposals (8,000) (8,000) Depreciation written off for revaluation (500,000) (500,000) depreciation charge for the year 60,000 196,000 197,200 453,200 as at 30 Sept 2010 60,000 632,000 689,200 1,381,200 Impairment of assets (94,000) NET BOOK VALUE as at 30 Sept 2010 4,940,000 254,000 295,800 5,583,800 (c) MEMO To: Peter Williams, Marketing Director From: John Doe, Financial Accountant Date: 15th April 2011 Subject: Queries on the Financial Statements for the year ended 30.9.10 I am writing to you in response to the various queries you made known to me in relation to the aforesaid Financial Statements of Green PLC. Revaluation Surplus The land and buildings were revalued by ?2 Million in the aforesaid Financial Statements so that the resulting value of the asset at the end of the said period was ?5 Million. This is permitted under IAS 16 Property Plant and Equipment, which prov ides that assets can be valued using the Revaluation Model, under which the asset will be recognised at its fair value as opposed to the cost of the asset. The accounting entry in the case of an upward revaluation is to increase the asset value to the revalued amount and to create or increase the Revaluation Reserve by the amount revalued (i.e. the difference between the carrying amount of the

Bad marketing, bad budgeting, and bad customer service can lead to the Research Paper

Bad marketing, bad budgeting, and bad customer service can lead to the failure of a business - Research Paper Example (Mercer, David. 1996; Shim, Jae. K, Siegel, Joel.G, Shim, Allison.I. 2011) A good and healthy business needs a perfect alignment and coordination of these components in order to be profitable. Organization can not exist without its market; all its strategies are based on winning the market. Marketing focuses and revolves around customer’s needs and demands. To any organization customer- i.e. the consumers of its product are everything. They are revenue generating and are the reason for which the organization exists. Marketing emphasizes on a long term perspective of building strong and long term relationships with the customers. The aims of marketing is to reduce down the dissatisfied customers, identify reasons for their dissatisfaction and work on strategies and products that fulfill their demand and needs, keep them satisfied and brings customer loyalty as increased customers lead to increased revenues and profitability. (Mercer, David. 1996) Market research and advertisement are important aspects of marketing. Market research helps the organization to gain an understanding about the environment it operates in and gives an in-depth knowledge about the opportunities and risks which helps the organization in formulating its future strategies for success. Advertisement and promotion on the other hand are other tools to develop or increase brand recognition and increase market share. Other strategies of marketing like after sales services, promotional offers etc. are all ways to win customers for growing revenues and profitability. (Mercer, David. 1996) Budgeting is a tool and technique used for systematic and productive management. Budgeting allocate funds and set targets to achieve a desired outcome. Budgets are created after determining the over all strategies of the company, then these strategies are translated into long tem and short term goals and objectives which provides the basis of budgeting and allocating resources.

Reasons For Strategic Decision At Thai Airways

Reasons For Strategic Decision At Thai Airways An inspired and carefully considered business strategy can be used to guide a company to achieve greater profitability and success, as it is known that strategy can be viewed as plan, ploy, pattern, position and perspective (Kourdi 2009, p3). To those companies that rely on low price to attract customers, such as budget airlines, business strategy plays a significant role in their business. However, business strategy should be based on the understandings about competition and threats in the industry, micro and macro environment factors that affect the success of their business, and strengths and competitive advantages of the company. Only can business strategy that is based on these understandings be used to achieve success of business Question 1: Reasons for Launching a Low-cost Airline with Thai Airways Tiger Airways is going to launch a low-cost airline with Thai Airways, which will target domestic and international destinations within five hours flying times distance on the basis of Bangkok (Creedy 2001). There are many reasons that Tiger Airway launched this airline jointly with Thai Airways, and the following five reasons are the most important ones: To compete effectively. It can be seen from the case that, by joint venture, it is easier for Tiger Airways to grow its business in Thailand, and will compete effectively in this region with Jetstar and AirAsia (Creedy 2001). Additional network advantages. By joint venture, it will build better network relationship with Thai Airways and may have advantages to deal with future spread risk and competition, as Thai Airways becomes a partner rather than a competitor (Creedy 2001). Additional cost advantage. By possessing 49% of the joint venture, and other 51% owned by Thai Airways, Tiger Airlways has chance to use the advantage of Thai Airways to maintain and even strength its low cost advantage (Creedy 2001). To reduce risk. By additional network and cost advantages brought from this deal, Tiger Airways is capable to face further spread risk. Pan-regional strategy. This joint venture is an important step forward in Tigers pan-regional strategy. It is noted by CEO of Tiger Airways, Tony Davis, that Bangkok is one key South East Asian gateway within striking distance of both India and China (Creedy 2001). By additional network advantage from joint venture with Thai Airways, it becomes easier for Tiger Airways to implement this strategy. Reasons for Strategic Decision Tiger Airways decision of launching a new airline jointly with Thai Airways can be considered as a strategic decision. Reasons are stated as follows: This decision affected the long-term direction of Tiger Airways. As mentioned above, this decision was an important step forward for its pan-regional strategy (Creedy 2001). This decision helped achieve advantage for Tiger Airways. Additional network advantage with Thai Airways and cost advantages were achieved by this joint venture decision. This decision expanded the activities scope of Tiger Airways to low-cost flight to Bangkok/ Thailand, and might expand to India and China as well This decision had major resource implication. It is mentioned in the case that by 2015, 68 flights would be allocated to this low-cost airline (Creedy 2001). This decision created new opportunity for Tiger Airways. By this decision, Tiger Airways became more competitive with Jetstar and AirAsia, which created new opportunity for the growth of Tiger Airways (Creedy 2001). This decision affected operational decisions of Tiger Airways. Investment in this new airline needs to be taken into consideration by Tiger Airways. Obviously, this decision can be viewed as a plan, a ploy, a pattern, a position, a perspective. Therefore, it is a strategic decision. Macro Environment Analysis PESTEL model is a good technique that can be utilized to analyze macro environment factors that affect the industries, as well as low-cost airline industry. It contains six factors which are Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental factors (Robinson 2009, p75). Political: Government instability is a major factor to the low-cost airline industry. For example, the affairs of Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra and his Red-Shirt, led to a fatal drop in tourism industry, which may decrease the customer amount of low-cost airline industry (BBC 2010). Economical: Economy recession and financial crisis affected the profitability of low-cost airline industry players. A survey carried by Airline Business indicated that although revenue didnt show decline, profitability was affected by the financial crisis. Many players encountered a loss in 2008 compared to 2007 (Dunn 2009). Social: The attitude of income distribution and balancing work and leisure are factors that cant be neglected. People who are willing to distribute their money on travelling and their free time of leisure will increase the customer amount of the industry. Technological: Technology that makes standing seats for airlines available influence this low-cost airline industry seriously. The availability of standing seats for airlines will cut down the cost of industry will make it more attractive (BBC UK, 2010). Legal and Environmental: Employment laws, competition law, threat of natural causes, carbon dioxide emission are other factors of the low-cost airline industry. Question 2: Corporate Strategy, Business Level Strategy and Operational Strategy Corporate Level Strategy According to the definition from Collis and Montgomery (2005, p8), corporate level strategy can be defined as the way that a company uses to create value through configuration and coordination of its multimarket activities. There are three main emphases of this definition, value creation, configuration and multimarket activities. It is indicated in Appendix 1 that the corporate strategy of Tiger Airways is that: To create a portfolio of profitable routes throughout Asia and Australasia by establishing airlines in market where low-fare, low cost business model has exceptional potential for sustainable profitability with ancillary services such as luggage upsize, seat selector and sports equipment check-in. Business Level Strategy One model developed by Bowman called The Strategy Clock can be used to get good understanding about business level strategy, which relates competitive advantage to cost advantage and differentiation advantage. These successful strategies can be illustrated as following levels: Low price/ low added value, Low price, Hybrid, differentiation without price premium and Focused differentiation (Angwin et al 2007, p121) All these different strategy are classified based on two factors, price and value. It can be seen from Appendix 1 that the price of Tiger Airways is low because the company implement cost leadership strategy. Besides, compare to other airlines, the value added by Tiger Airways is limited. Luggage is limited to a certain size; seat selection will be charged. Only is purchased food or drink is allowed compare to free food and drink in SIA. Thus, the activities are low value-added. Therefore, based on these two factors, the business level strategy is Low price/Low added value. Operational Strategy According to the definition of Lowson (2002, p57) that operational strategy can be viewed widely as a value delivery strategy. It is all about decisions which helps create and deliver product/service, value to customers through companies core competencies. Therefore, the main operational strategy of Tiger Airways is to maintain and enhance the core competencies of low fare/ low cost. Many decisions have been made based on this strategy: Joint venture with Thai Airways to launch new airline. Install advanced 3-D weather radar to increase efficiency (Tiger Airways.com 2010) Minimize service that charges customers on customers behalf. Question 3: Porters Five Forces Analysis Porters five forces model is one of the most well-known models in business literature that produce the competitive situation in any industry (Beamish Williams 2008 pp76-77). The five forces and their relations are indentified as follows: Threat of new entrants Threat of substitutes Bargaining power of buyers Bargaining power of suppliers Intensity of rivalry Source: Caneval Ventures. Models on the dynamics of innovation. http://www.caneval.com/vision/innovation/innovation2.html [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] Threat of new entrants The threat of new entrants of the low-cost airline industry is very fierce (4 out of 5). Although the investment of setting up new airline companies is huge to those organizations which are not in the airline industry, it is feasible to other organizations which are already in airline industry to establish new companies which serve the low-cost airline industry. The establishment of Tiger Airways can be an example to support this point. Tiger Airways is partially by SIA, which is the leading airline service provider all over the world. Threat of substitutes Long distance coaches, trains, passenger ships, network and other airline service providers (such as SIA) are the main substitutes of the low-cost airline industry. It can be seen from Appendix 2 that, although the low-cost airline industry is a booming industry with high growth rate, Network airline service providers are still the main provider in the airline industry. And Long distance coaches and trains play much more significant role in transportation in countries such as China because of the poor development of air transport. Therefore, this threat is very high (3 out of 5). Bargaining power of buyers In low-cost airline industry, though customers are easy to find substitutes but these substitutes may cause higher price or take more time to reach their destinations. Therefore, the bargaining power of buyers is not so strong (2 out of 5). For example, it is clearly seen from Appendix 3 that SIA return ticket for travelling between Singapore and Hong Kong is around 100SGD expensive than that of Tiger Airways. Bargaining power of suppliers Obviously, the main supply of low-cost airline industry should be the aircrafts, and Boeing and Air Bus are the two suppliers of aircrafts to low-cost airline industry. It means that these two companies are in the position of monopoly. Therefore, their bargaining power is extraordinary strong (5 out of 5). Intensity of rivalry The intensity of rivalry of low-cost airline industry is not so fierce (2 out of 5). Although the core competency of low-cost airline players is low fare/low cost, they have regional characteristic, which means only few airline players are recognized by customers in a certain areas. For instance, in South East Asia, Tiger Airways and AirAsia are the two recognized players by customers. In conclusion of the analysis of Porters five forces model, the outcome can be summarized as the following picture. Low-cost airline industry is an attractive industry, as buyers dont have strong bargaining power, which means this market is a seller market; low threats of substitutes means low-cost airline is a good choice among the products or services. Besides, although bargaining power of suppliers is extraordinary high, every player in the industry will face this problem, and because of a booming industry with high growth rate, low-cost airline industry is an attractive industry. Question 4: Value Chain Analysis Porters value chain model is a typical value chain model, which state nine kinds of business activities (Wang 2007, p81). And these business activities are classified into assistant and basic activities, which can stated as below: Wang Weijun (2007). Integration and innovation orient to e-society. New York: Springer Science+ Business Media, LLC. p81. However, this model aims at manufacture companies. Tiger Airways is in the industry of low-cost airlines, which is a service industry, therefore, the model needs to be modified based on the assumptions as follows: All the purchases are for infrastructure development purpose. Service is produced once purchase happens. Therefore, it can be seen from the case and other information from website and Tiger Airways 2010 annual reports that the value added activities are presented as follows: In the case, it is said that by 2015, 8 flights would be allocated to the new launched low-cost airline; this is the value-added activity which develops the infrastructure of Tiger Airways (Creedy 2001). In the annual report, it is stated that all new directors to the Board are briefed by Management on the Groups business activities, strategic directions, and will be sent for external training and development programmes. This is the value-added activities on manpower resource management (Annual report 2010). By this, Tiger Airways is able to make out better corporate, business level and operational strategies for the long-term development of the company and sustain the cost advantage as well. According to the media release of Tiger Airways, in 2010, by partnering with Honeywell, the company installed advanced 3-D weather radar enhance safety and passenger comfort. This can be viewed as a value-added activity based on technology development (Tiger Airways.com 2010). The annual reported stated that by renewing contracts with airports, ground services, providers and other suppliers, and purchased two aircrafts from Airbus (own rather than lease), enabled Tiger Airways to further reduce operating cost and in tune increase value to customers (Annual report 2010). According to the website, extra service is provided such as luggage upsize, seat selection and as well as related service, for example, hotels, insurance and car hire to enhance the types of service that customer can enjoy through Tiger Airways. There are many other business activities done by Tiger Airways, which enrich the value of service provided by Tiger Airways and gain wide recognition among customers, this is the exact reason helps Tiger Airways be one of the leaders in South East Asia to provide low-cost airline service. Question 5: Common Cost-cutting Strategies According to many literatures, there are many different kinds of cost-cutting strategies, for instance, rationalization, standardization, central processing of transactions, technology application and cost management strategy (OBrien Datta 1989, p165). Therefore, related to low cost carriers, the common cost-cutting strategies can be presented as follows: Rationalization. To low cost carriers, non-value-added activities are removed and only do those value-added activities remain. For example, there is one rule in Tiger Airways that only is purchased food or drink is allowed. Standardization. Another strategy is to standardize the service of low cost carriers. It can be seen for Appendix 4 that the service of Tiger Airways is standardized, as extra services will be charged by a certain price. Central processing of transactions. Crucial processes are identified by low cost carriers that need to be focus on to provide the basic service to their customers. Technology application. New technology can be applied to reduce operational cost and even reduce the proportion of risk. As mentioned above, the 3-D weather radar is applied by Tiger Airways to increase the accuracy of weather prediction to reduce unnecessary loss by reason of bad weather (Tiger Airways.com 2010). Cost management strategy. This strategy is used by low cost carriers to understanding the factors that affected the cost such as fuel, labour, distribution, inventory management, purchasing, and foreign exchange (IATA Training Portfolio). Take Tiger Airways as an example, the two main business regions are South East Asia and Australia. Therefore, the foreign exchange rate between AUS Dollar and SGD is a factor that cannot be neglected Another evidence stated in Tiger Airways 2010 annual report that by renewing contracts with airports, ground services, providers and other suppliers, and purchased two aircrafts from Airbus (own rather than lease), enabled Tiger Airways to further reduce operating cost. Three Future Strategies The strategies will be given according to Ansoffs product/market matrix. Source: Berger Roland., Kotler Philip., Bickhoff (2010). The Quintessence of Strategic Management. London: Springer Heigelberg. p36. Market Penetration. To Tiger Airways, it should use activities such as advertising, sales promotion to increase seat occupancy rate, which in turn will reduce the operating cost, this is the way to build strong core competencies. Market Development. It is evident in the case that market development is a suitable strategy for Tiger Airways to reduce operating cost and company development (Creedy 2001). By adding new airlines through joint ventures with other airline companies, it will give Tiger Airways have chance to benefit from advantages of other airline companies. Diversification. There are two main types of diversifications, related and unrelated diversification. Thus, To Tiger Airways, the company may use related diversification strategy to expand its business, such as to international express business. Through this strategy, the company can reduce the operating cost. References: Angwin Duncan., Cummings Stephen., Smith Chris (2007). The strategy pathfinder: core concepts and micro-cases. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. pp121-122. Annual report (2010). Chairmans statement. http://www.tigerairways.com/news/Annual_Report_2010.pdf [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] BBC (2010). Thailand red-shirts set out new conditions. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8671991.stm [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] BBC UK (2010). Are standing seats a standing joke? http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8779388.stm [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] Beamish Karen., Williams John (2008). Analysis and Evaluation. Oxford: Elsevier Ltd. pp76-77 Berger Roland., Kotler Philip., Bickhoff (2010). The Quintessence of Strategic Management. London: Springer Heigelberg. p36 Caneval Ventures. Models on the dynamics of innovation. http://www.caneval.com/vision/innovation/innovation2.html [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] Collis J. David., Montgomery A. Cynthia (2005). Corporate strategy: a resource-based approach. New York: McGraw-Hill. P8. Creedy, S. (2001), Tiger Airways to start Thai low-cost airline, The Australian, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/tiger-tostart-thai-low-cost-airline/story-e6frg8zx-1225900253006 [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] Dunn Graham (2009). Low-cost carriers: Ready for battle. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2009/04/21/325429/low-cost-carriers-ready-for-battle.html [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] IATA Training Portfolio. Cost Reduction Strategies. http://www.iata.org/training/courses/Pages/talf02.aspx [Last accessed: Dec. 7th 2010] Kourdi Jeremy (2009). Business Strategy: A Guide to Taking Your Business Forward. 2nd ed. London: Profile Books Ltd. p3. Lowson H. Robert (2002). Strategic operations management: the new competitive advantage. 1st ed. Oxon: Routledge. p57 OBrien Richard., Datta Tapan (1989). International economics and financial markets. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p165. Robinson Peter (2009). Operations Management in the Travel Industry. Oxford: CAB International. p75. Tiger Airways.com (2010). 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Greatest Ambition Summary Essay

Morris Lurie was born in Melbourne in 1938. He is better known for his short stories though he has written some novels too. He has won several awards in Australia for fiction. The years spent away from Australia in voluntary exile form the subject matter of much of his writing. Background/Setting The main character is a school boy whose â€Å"greatest ambition† is to be a comic strip artist. The story explores the uncertainties and trials of being an adolescent with unsupportive parents. In the short story ‘My Greatest Ambition’ by Morris Lurie, we experience the disillusionment of a thirteen-year-old boy as he tries to live a dream that he initially thought would set him apart from all others. Nu’s illusion is set up when his father calls him a â€Å"prince† right before Nu’s meeting. It was the first time that his father had complimented him throughout the duration of the memoir. Even though his father was not directly trying to give Nu false hope, the effect of this praise on Nu seemed to point him to that direction. The reference to a â€Å"prince† relates to success and fortune, which would subconsciously give Nu the impression that he would prosper and become a successful comic strip artist at ‘Boy’ magazine. The disillusionment begins when he approaches the office. Nu expects the building itself to be grand and imposing but instead he sees a very mediocre building that â€Å"looked like a factory†. He outlines his disappointment when he says: â€Å"No neon, no massive areas of plate glass, no exotic plants growing in white gravel†. Each time he repeated the word â€Å"no†, it added to his growing sense of disappointment. He also uses repetition with the word â€Å"ordinary† as he describes the details of the building, which emphasises his realisation of disillusionment. When Nu is being toured around the factory he says, â€Å"†¦I was eating an ice-cream†, which indirectly makes Nu seem more immature and out of place. This contrasts from the illusion that Nu had earlier of himself â€Å"walking to work every morning†¦with a pipe in my (his) mouth.† Since his fantasy of being a grown man smoking his pipe and going to work had turned into being a 13 year old in a ridiculous suit eating ice-cream, the disillusionment becomes a more prominent factor in the story.