Global trends of fast food industry

Global trends of fast food industry Now the market has started to change and people has stopped eating at home they prefer to get easy and quick food thats the reason why the fast food chain restaurant is the fastest growing industry in the world at present. Talking about McDonalds which started in the US in 1948 by two brothers, Dick and Mac McDonald, It then started to extend and at present it is stated in the top 100 business of the world (http://www.mcdonalds.co.in/history.htm) and has got somewhere around 34000 units around the world. (Http//: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mcdonalds) It came into UK in 1973 in England and was a great success and it came to India in 1996 (Bangalore). At present there are some where around ten thousand outlets worldwide .It has got 500 restaurants in UK and around 300 in India. As predication made by McDonalds they going to own around 2000 units by 2010 in the UK. (http://www.mcdonalds.co.uk/history.htm) The information acquired is from the student folder of McDonalds and the present worker s have been interview electronically and finally McDonalds official website. McDonalds came to India with a dine in restaurant in Bangalore that has special vegetarian burger named by Mac veggie. In additional to traditional Indian sandwiches, it incorporates Indian favourites such as Chicken tikka. In its list of innovative sandwiches along with burgers, the menu features appetizers like soups, fresh salads; shakes and choice of ice-cream sundaes. (Ref: http://www.mcdonalds.co.in/history.htm) Industry Global Trends The current global trends in international global environment are growth of fast food industry. The fast food industry is growing at very fast rate. People now prefer eating at fast food restaurant rather eating at home. Office going students are major market served in fast food industry. Fast food industry also give people who do not want to go out, prefer eating at home gives home delivery services to the people with schemes of reaching the delivery place within 30 minutes. More more companies are taking advantage of the opportunities waiting overseas by becoming a globally operating corporation and McDonalds is one of the top ten companies corporations of the world. Six major segments make up the fast food segment of the fast food service industry sandwich chains like McDonalds Subway are the number one segment, followed by dinner houses.. Out of all Burger chains McDonalds has the largest market share 46% followed by Burger King with 21.7 % Some people say fast food is low nutrition food due to this some chain have started nutritious food like salads pastas for the customers. The Competitive Global Environment key market drivers Taking the factor of competitive environment, in global environment competition is major factor. Global competitive environment occurs when a firm takes a global view of competition and sets about maximising profits.(keegancreen,2005). The effect of global competition has been highly beneficial to consumers .Global competition expands the range of products and increases the likelihood that consumers will get what they want. (Keegancreen, 2005). Key players for market drivers in market are burger king and subway where each market drivers has it own marketing cost. Back ground of brand role of branding in McDonalds McDonalds was started in 1948 by two brothers. First United Kingdom restaurant was opened in Woolwich, London. McDonalds came to India in 1996 in Bangalore. In 1973 1000 restaurants were opened in US, Japan, Canada England. . . In 1998 in India they introduced traditional burger called maharaja Mac, which become the propular burger in Indian market As far as role of branding is concerned the name is the biggest strength, McDonalds has been around for long time and people know the name quiet well. Taking in consideration India McDonald is having 50 % market share in fast food segment. All McDonald sites work to the CHAMPS standard. That is Cleanliness, Hospitality, Accuracy, Maintenance, Product and Speed. As a brand McDonalds has tie up with some international brand like nestle Pepsi. It also ties up with some popular TV celebrity who is working brand ambassador for them. Competitive Advantage Major competitor in fast food industry where McDonalds is facing competition is from subway. The most important competitive advantage McDonalds is having over subway is McDonald is having their own restaurants as well as delivery services in India, where as subway only do take away and eatings. The advantage of restaurant that McDonalds is having so as result McDonald is marketing to major segments of market which other fast food chains are not doing. The second advantage McDonald is having is of online booking burgers in India, which has recently introduced, people who have internet access can order what they want and will be delivered to their place with scheme of 30 minutes. As we all now that McDonald is one of the fastest growing fast food restaurants in the world which came to India with one restaurant in Bangalore in 1996 and at present it has got more than 123 outlets. Global participation and market served globally Talking about the participation of McDonald, it has got more than 12500 outlets in more than 90 countries globally. They consist of 20% or their own restaurant but the rest 80% are either are given away as franchises or are licensed (www.answers.com/topic/mcdonald-inc). The pricing of McDonald is very nominal as it has a dream of opening 20,000 outlets by year 2010 and having a McDonalds in every major city of the world. So taking that into consideration they have their price very nominal and their major target market is the middleclass people and students. They have got family packages for families and they are the only multinational in India which give the maximum discounts for parties. In India they have introduced many deals like meal for 2 just for Rs.99 { £1.29} only which includes 2 course meals. As the competitors are also trying to get these deals but there is a quantity which is very less. There are many carry out coupons which are given at the universities to the student s. At present there is a new trend that has started in India of burger parties which the students find very convenient as it costs less and you dont have to cook anything. Looking at the market of India McDonald has introduced many different burgers only for India like aloo tikki (for vegetarians) etc. As having the flavours of India in a burger, it makes a different market for McDonald because there are still loads of people in India still prefer Indian delicacies. McDonald also give a lot of charity programs like McDonald (UK) supports the Starlight Childrens Foundation, a registered charity that works to brighten the lives of seriously ill children by granting their wishes and entertaining them while they are in hospital. Wishes can range from going to Disneyland, to meeting a favourite soap star or even winning the Grand Prix! Each year the demand grows for wishes, Starlight Fun Centres (mobile entertaining trolleys), Starlight Hospital Projects, hospital parties and outings. McDonald employees have been fundraising the length and breadth of the UK for Starlight and are always looking for new and innovative ways to raise further support. www.mcdonasl.co.uk/pdf/student_information.pdf Role, impact and importance of cultural issues and ethics Cultural issues and ethics play a very important role in these parts of the world. Firstly taking India into consideration is that the biggest issue in India is that there is a ban on usage of beef in any form. So every multinational have to make sure that there product is 100% beef free and then only the government allows then to sell their product in the market. As taking into consideration that at once when India had a big demand for MacDonalds they started to offer beef burger, their market share had had one of the biggest downfall of the year as people stopped going to their restaurants till the time they built back the trust of the people, by having stating on their restaurants and websites that We are proud of the food we serve and we take very seriously the responsibility we have to our customers to deliver hot, safe, freshly prepared and tasty food every time. We do not offer any beef or pork items in India. Only the freshest chicken and fish products find their way into ou r Indian restaurants. www.mcdonaldsindia.com/ourfood/nonveg/index.html By this McDonald had an upper hand in the market as they made sure that all their products are only of chicken, fish and vegetables only. One of the other issues in India is that out of every 5 Indians 3 are vegetarians, so McDonald also offers wide range of vegetarian burgers. As talking about importance of issues there is also big issue that is halal meats for the Muslim as there is against there religion to have any other cut of meat ,so McDonalds in India and some places in united kingdom state in there menu that the meat used is halal or not. Now if we look at the importance of the cultural issues and ethics then we can say if McDonald doesnt follows the criteria they are following right now and introduce beef in India it would lead to ceiling and the market value would fall. McDonalds advertising and promotion in the U.K. and India McDonald is the part of the one of the largest chain . That is one of the most important reasons behind their advertising and promotion because they have to maintain their standard. Advertising and promotions are the marketing tools. McDonalds is famous for introducing the new burgers in the market. While introducing the new burgers in the market they always keep in touch of the todays market trend. This will also important to reduce the risk failure. Their method of doing advertising and promotions in both countries are same. They do there advertising by many ways like television, radio and print. Global advertising may be defined as messages whose art, copy, headlines, photographs, tag lines, and other elements have been developed expressly for their world wide suitability.(Keegan, Green, 2005) Advertising is classified as a hierarchy of effects model suggesting a sequence of events: advertising is used to move people from a state of unawareness to purchase. Strong model shows that advertising gain attention.(Chee H, Harris R, 1993) On their advertising in India they spent around 10 12 crores on the advertising and around twice of the U.K. on the other hand their competitors like subway they are spending around 9 10 crore and burger king is spending around 12 14 crores in Indian market. McDonalds do their advertising and promotions by several ways: they distribute McDonald pamphlets and discount coupons in front of the schools and colleges and even on the high streets. They built up their stalls on the busy roads like high street where they are doing their advertising of the new burgers or deals. In India know McDonalds used to put up their stalls in the marriages where they can attract lots of customer in ones, and they can show there quality of their food. One of the most important things of the McDonalds is its famous Ronald, its recognized as the universal symbol. One of the famous burger of the McDonalds named as double cheese burger by its name you got an indication that where is the target of the McDonalds because its jus for 99 pence. McDonald strategies in terms of quality product and service As the author said earlier that McDonalds is the one of the most important brand for fast food lovers. For been a part of fast food lovers they have to maintain their quality of the product and service. That is one of the most important reasons that where ever you go around the world you will get the same taste and quality of the food and services. The quality of food of the McDonalds is the same around the world. Even in India the chips for the burgers is same as U.K. McDonald is world wide famous for its service. They never let their costumer down. Last year McDonalds have its scheme in India if you order your burger for home delivery you will get your burger in twenty minutes otherwise if they late you will get your burger free. By this way they are showing the importance of the customer services in the market. Consideration of pricing and distribution channels in both the countries As author said that earlier in the report that McDonalds main aim to the middle class market all over the world. They have lots of competitors in the market thats why they have to be very careful about their pricing. For a good healthy business pricing is very important. Price is a major consideration for organisations. It is the one of the major element of the marketing mix that is capable of generating income, helping there by to achieve profit targets.(Chee H, Harris R, 1993) Channels of distribution are the link between producers and consumers or industrial users. Therefore a distribution channel consists of individuals and organisations that make products and services accessible to the ultimate consumer.(Chee H, Harris R, 1993) McDonalds also having a very good brand image, which is one of the most important pricing objectives. Whenever they introduce their new burgers, they have their market targets for example: cheese burger for the teenagers etc. When they do pricing in India, they always keep in mind that India is the price sensitive market. They always do cheap pricing in India because they aim to middle class people. On the other hand in U.K. it has very reasonable rates as compare to their competitors in the international market. In India you will get four vegetables burger in just 20 Rsp (around 1pound) and in the U.K. you will get veggie burger in 2.69 pound. Global marketing efforts McDonalds holds the most markets share in the burgers industry. The McDonalds industry firms are famous for introducing new products at regulars shorts terms of time, the introduction of products that keeps with todays trends is also important to reduce the risk of failure. In this competitive world McDonald is a leader which creates new products for market as keeping in mind that customer will like it. McDonald always observes the market trends which regular changes according to customer needs. It always brings new products with different deals to survive in this competitive world, with high competition from the other top firms in the industry; this will help him to keep one step ahead. The role of marketing within the McDonald is to sure that the needs of customer are met and the business makes profit. McDonald has a broad range of customers as well as their burgers are popular throughout the world. Firstly we have to understands that what exactly customer needs? After analysing th eir feedback try to put in the restaurants. Actually the marketing team plays an important role in organisation. It helps the organization to increase the sales profitability and developing new products with promotions. According to McDonald restaurants international, India is top fifth market for McDonald who growing very faster in todays world .McDonald hopes to increase their outlets in India to 170 by the ends of 2006 from the present figure of 121. McDonald introduced delivery service, something new that no other restaurant was doing. Home delivery was a success for McDonald and subway. The competition looking for new methods of increasing their customer basis. Many fast food chains decided to diversify the customer and bring new offer as well as product for those who dont like burgers (e.g. deli sandwiches, cheese breads, cheese bites, salads etc). They all try to come up with some new, bigger, better burgers at a low price. McDonald has always new marketing strategy for uplif tment in this industry. One of their main strategies that they still follow today is diversification of the products. McDonalds is always adding something new to their menu, trying to reach new markets. Another strategy they used in the past and still using .McDonald is always trying to come up with some new idea to make a burger into something slightly different. It shows different enough that the customer will think its a new products launched. As you now McDonalds as a global marketing topic in India and u.k, so I will do swot analysis on McDonald Company. Firstly we taken the strength of company name recognition is obvious is big strength for them because they serving to consumer from a long time. Most of their competitors dont have free home delivery only restaurants which help a lot to increase in the regular sale. They provide very nutritional and well- balanced meals to customer. McDonalds does have restaurants to run is also a weakness which is higher overhead costs, due to the restaurants that other competitor doesnt have it so result of higher overhead cost must be charge its is not low cost producer. This is another weakness for McDonalds they have lost their lot of customer due to competition with competitors. McDonalds opportunities are a lot, they can increase there revenue through introduced new burgers and increase brand loyalty. .McDonald have threats from competitors well, right now there is one closest com petitor is subway. Subway having more competitive price than McDonald. It is generally lower than McDonald. Subway was very profitable when they promote their deal of delivery a sandwich within 5minutes and that to the costumer can see and tell the fillings of their meal. CONCLUSION At last I will conclude that McDonald has a successful history in the past of introducing different type of new burgers product to increase sales and reach new customer. McDonald is always searching for new market and follows new trends in the markets. To introduce new products at regular interval of time makes the leader of fast food industry in todays world. The level of success that achieved to McDonald due to introduced double cheese burger as well as promotion of product in the market. The more expensive advertising campaign than in past campaign but the potential for a successful product will cover the cost and bring in substantial profit. The advertising of the product is very important but the promotion of this product along side for market. The promotion may be had to be bigger and better than the competition or the product may need to be altered to give it that little bit of edge over the competitions. Recommendation I would personally recommend to McDonald Company to open more outlets in India especially express outlets which help a lot to increase the share in the markets. As you now express highways is growing faster in India which help a lot to company get more customers easily as well as customers to get better and good quality of food for (e.g. If I am going for long journey suddenly I feel hungry on the highway I get McDonald I think its great idea for launching new products and giving new deals in India. As some of rural area people would like to have some fast food.) Appendices TIME PLAN AND MINUTES OF MEETING October November December January Research work Proposal Report writing Presentation and submission Meetings   2nd 15:30 to 1600hrs 17th 8:00 to 9:00 hrs   6th 11:00 to 13:00hrs 15th 12:25 to 14:30hrs 27th 16:30 to 17:45hrs   4th 12:00 to 15:00hrs 17th 12:00 to 14:00hrs 26th 11:00 to 14:00hrs 16th 12:00 to 15:00hrs 17th 17:00 to 22:00hrs 23rd 12:00 to 18:00hrs 24th 13:00 to 20:00hrs

Globalization in Sub-Saharan Africa Essay

ABSTRACT It is factual that globalization began before the industrial revolution was existent in the colonial period and continues to be a major influence on how governments worldwide operate. When analyzing the effects of globalization, a common controversial debate is whether globalization has maimed the society or has brought significant benefit. The African society is used severally by anti-globalists to defend their views. This paper explores the negative dynamics of globalization in Sub-saharan Africa e.g. undermining of state sovereignty and hastening of environmental degradation of the continent. However, it does not suggest that globalization is entirely bad nor does it say that globalization is the only cause of Africa’s problems. It proposes some measures that can be considered when globalizing the African market so that this negative effects can be minimized. INTRODUCTION The nations of the world have synchronized their trading goods and services, financial markets, Ideologies, innovations and cultures through globalization. The free flow market policy adopted by many countries has led to significantly positive outcomes in the broader African region for example, creating new job ventures and advancements in technology. However, globalization has also cast a dark shadow on some sectors of the African economy , an issue that this paper will put into perspective with a particular case study on the Democratic Republic of Congo. Some proposed consequences of globalization addressed here include increased conflicts in the area, erosion of state sovereignty, imbalance in the ecosystem and income inequality. Sub-Saharan Africa is a term used to refer to all of Africa except the Northern region. Most of their economies are agricultural based and are not as stable as those in the Western world. The average income in sub-Saharan Africa is below the poverty line level. Nevertheless, this region enjoys a large comparative advantage on raw resources in the extractive industries for example minerals and oil. The demand for these minerals can perhaps explain why immediately before the great recession in 2008,there was the 27% increase in FDI; the highest ever seen(Jaja:3).Foreign companies can obtain these minerals at a very low cost in some African countries and reap huge marginal benefits. Some of the avenues they use to get them are questionable as is the case with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Congo Zaire) is a central African nation that borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its neighbouring countries include Central African Republic Southern Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Angola and Tanzania (the two are separated by Lake Tanganyika).It is the second largest nation by area with over 65 million people. It was a Belgian colony and gained independence in June 1960. DRCongo has the most variety in biodiversity in Africa and enviable amounts of rare natural resources such as diamond, copper, gold, cobalt, timber and coltan. With its resources one would expect that such a country would be awash with prime economic developments, projects to exploit all agricultural potential and high standards of living. On the contrary, most of the civilians in DRC live in poverty and have not benefited from the rich well of resources they have. They are victims of years of civil war, propelled by power- hungry, conniving national leaders and part of the international community. A sneak peak into the colonial history of DRCongo reveals that the exploitation of the minerals for self-intrests is not a recent phenomena. POLITICAL BACKGROUND OF THE DRC In the late 1800s, King Leopold of Belgium acquired full rights of ownership of the Congo territory at the Conference of Berlin. He governed it like private property and the area experienced some developments. However, this came at the expense of the local people because they were treated as slaves and could not reap any fruits from their labour. Intense pressure from the international community on the Belgian parliament led to the reclaiming of the Congo region from the king’s hands. It was renamed The Belgian Congo state from 1908. There was significant economic growth at the time but the indigenous people were on the losing end again, exploited and enslaved. The fight for independence was won on June 1960 with Patrice Lumumba as Prime Minister and Joseph Kasavubu as president. Lumumba would later be fired and Joseph Mobutu, chief of staff of the new army, aimed to ‘restore’ the relationship between the two leaders with the help of the USA and Belgium governments. In January 1961, Katanga forces and Belgian troops executed Patrice. The Katanga succession ended in 1963 with the help of UN forces. There were several governments afterwards; the most notable one being that of Mobutu Sese Seko. His ‘career’ as president began in 1971. He was largely dictatorial; for example he revoked the powers of the legislature, fired the prime minister and conducted an election where he was the only candidate. Funds were mismanaged, state cooperations collapsed and the country was in debt. He renamed the country several times but officially used Congo-Zaire. Note that he had several billions of US dollars in a Swiss Bank account and still had favour with the USA government. It is believed that he even had a world bank official as a personal assistant. This in turn gave him â€Å"confidential information about granting aid to Zaire†. (Reno 1998:152) In 1994, the DRC was a refuge for the many Rwandese Hutus fleeing the Rwandan genocide. Refugee camps a few kilometers from the border with Rwanda were planning zones for attacks into Rwanda. Mobutu cheered them on. However in 1996, Rwandan led forces backed by Uganda and the The Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire, led by Laurent Kabila, advanced into Kinshasa to close down Hutu camps in Eastern DRC.As a result, Mobutu’s government was overthrown when he was away and Laurent Desire Kabila was declared president. Kabila’s leadership was no different from his predecessor’s. Conflict between his government and rebel groups ensued in August 1998 because Kabila saw the Rwandese rebels as threat to his government. The Ugandan group, led by Congolese warlord John Pierre Bemba, formed the Movement for the Liberation of Congo, joined the Rwandese and together they terrorized the citizens and the government .Kabila requested for military assistance from the international community but they hesitantly supported him since they did not know him enough to trust him. In 1999, the rebels and the government signed a peace accord and six other countries were witnesses. A new constitution was promulgated in May 2005 and in 2006 the first free and fair elections were held. Tension increased just before elections and the government, backed by the UN, disarmed all non- governmental factions to keep the nation stable. The trail of this civil war commonly equated to Africa’s first world war has left a trail of death, despair and pain amongst the people with over 5 million dead, several displaced, and thousands of women and children raped. It is interesting to question the ability of the rebel groups to oust governments sequentially. Could someone be funding them? Are there some hidden interests? The minerals in the DRC, and coltan in particular, are treasured gems in the technological era. When raw, coltan, which is composed of columbium and tantalum, looks like black mud or sand. It is used to produce capacitors. Capacitors are used to conduct electrical charge in high tech equipment for example cellular phones, computers and some jet engines. The DRC has the world’s largest reserves of the mineral. Four fifths of the world’s supply of coltan is in Africa and DRC has eighty percent of it. In the late 1900s,the sales of tantalum increased by three hundred percent. This time period coincided with the times of civil war in the DRC.As Dena Montague states in her article, â€Å"Stolen Goods: Coltan and Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo†, international cooperations such as Banro-resources cooperation, Finconcorde and Raremet imported DRC coltan via Rwanda for use in Asia, Europe and US A. In response to UN accusations of involvement in illegal trading H.C Stark, one of the largest producers of capacitors commented that they only purchase raw materials from established companies. However, established companies were indeed involved in illegally obtaining goods from DRC. Investors restructured deals in support of Desire Kabila instead of Mobutu in 1996.This was a violation of the constitution which stated â€Å"The soil and subsoil belong to the state-prospecting, exploration and exploitation requires permits from Ministry of Mines and Energy.† Local militia backed by Ugandan and Rwandese forces got supplies in form of food, money and military equipment in exchange for smuggled goods. The militia men took stronghold of areas with huge deposits of gold and coltan e.g. Bukavu, Lubumbashi and Mayi. Gold was exported through Uganda and into United Arab Emirates. It was difficult to trace from there. It is worth noting that between 1995 and 2006,gold was one of Uganda’s main exports. Additionally, Uganda had GDP growth rate of 6% per annum in 1999 yet the average GDP in Sub-Saharan Africa was about 2.5%in the same time. These trade revenues undermined the power of the central Congolese government because the Ugandan economy gained more from D.R. Congo’s resources more than the DRC’s economy did. The fact that the international community was in one way or another involved in increasing conflict in the DRC is undeniable. If the corporate investors were genuinely trading with DRC to improve the state of the country, they would have questioned the legitimacy of the DRC based enterprises and suppliers. Another simultaneous consequence of the years of instability was an imbalance in the ecosystem. Wildlife products such as elephant tusks and animal skin were and are still very marketable globally. They were sold or bartered in exchange of food, ammunition and other goods. With a nation in strife, this meant that there were neither environmental regulations nor expensive wildlife products. In the 1990s, there were increased rates of elephant poaching and habitat encroachment in the forest areas of Kahuzi Beiga National Park. Statistics by the UN reveal that in the area of Garamba Park, north eastern DRC, 4000 out of 12000 elephants were killed between 1995 and 1999.[61]The area was controlled by Ugandan troops and Sudanese rebels. This created a human-animal conflict. The militia fed on wild meat when on their missions. Wild meat was also the only easily available food source for the displaced persons. Rebel leaders disarmed the guards in national parks, thus they were unable to patrol the forested areas. Local conservationists also raised the alarm on the decreasing numbers of the bonobo monkeys; famed for language learning abilities when in captivity and complex social behavi or in the wild(Gretchen Vogel).Another result of the clash between man and animal as suggested in the article â€Å"Effects of War and Civil Strife on Wildlife and Wildlife Habitats†, was the spread of human monkey pox and bubonic plague. The people were exposed to more diseases other than water- borne and tropical diseases. With lack of adequate healthcare and restricted movements, the people’s lives were at risk too. The flora and soil were not spared either. The people burned the vegetation and cut trees to get timber and to create room for living and farming. Due to the uncertainty they were in, it is unlikely that their methods of farming were conservative e.g. overharvesting and thus leading to soil erosion. Timber, which is a fundamental raw material for the building industry, was cheaply available to local and international traders thus they found the political situation in the DRCongo very favourable to their activities. Globalization of trade and financial commodities in the world has a general pattern where most of the trade and investments are dominated by a few nations. They make policies that work to their advantage, a fact clearly outlined by Joseph E. Stilitzp in his article â€Å"Globalism Dis contents†. Agriculture, which is the backbone of many African countries, is sometimes left out in some of the import tariff reliefs given internationally on account of globalization. Some regional agreements also exercise some form of discriminatory trade towards agricultural products. Additionally, globalization has led to liquidity of funds due to free financial markets. This means that capital investments can quickly be converted to cash. African states are become vulnerable to liquidity perhaps because of several sectors of the economy that need quick monetary solutions and overreliance on foreign loans as Stiglitzp highlights. One probable outcome from this phenomena in the period of conflict in the D.R.C would be that the rich political leaders in the country became richer and richer whereas the common people sunk deeper into poverty. It is likely that the agricultural sector was neglected(and this is where the people economy was/is based)and the mining industry prioritized. Middlemen from some countries traded weapons and money, with the rebel groups and some political elite, for coltan and other minerals. It is also likely that some foreign companies were given full ownership rights of some mines after giving the leaders of the time were given some money. The Congolese will indeed find it hard to trust their leaders again. The harsh reality right now is that so many families are focused on the primary needs of fending for their families so the idea of demanding for their rights is would sound unpractical. The fragility of this state can be traced to the days of state formation and the nature of subsequent governments. If the leaders who came into power prioritized the formation of a strong army and building of the nation, then we would perhaps tell a different story. This region and several others in Sub-saharan Africa have faced a humanitarian,environmental and political turmoil for too long. To avoid a repeat of the civil war situation and its consequent effects, specific codes of conduct that promote economic and political stability should be considered in the globalization aspect. Foreign investments into Africa require strict policies and an end of the bargain that considers the welfare of the people e. g a company that wants to invest must contribute directly or indirectly towards building a hospital, school or social hall. This will be effective in ensuring that the transition between a globalized market and the previous one involves the whole society in all dimensions of life. This can only happen with government system that is dedicated to building a brighter future for these great nations. The effective building of DRCongo’s economy will involve Congo’s immediate neighbors, the whole of Africa and the world. Conservationists should develop programs in war torn areas so that resource conflicts do not arise in the future. Global gatherings that address environmental issues should also prioritize the critical environmental crisis the Democratic Republic of Congo and in other areas affected by similar or even worse conditions. REFERENCES Globalization, Culture and the Great Disruption: An Assessment International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences February 2012, Vol. 2, No. 2 Dena Montague, Stolen Goods: Coltan and Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, SAIS Review 22.1 (2002) 103-118 Joseph P. Dudley1,*, Joshua R. Ginsberg2, Andrew J. Plumptre2, John A. Hart2, Liliana C. Campos3Conservation Biology Volume pages 319–329, April 2002 Effects of War and Civil Strife on Wildlife and Wildlife Habitats Alan Cowell, Letter from Britain: Lack of African Dream Lets a Nightmare Prevail by The International Herald Tribune, 2 August 2006 Stiglitz Joseph.Globalism Discontents Conflict in Congo Threatens Bonobos and Rare Gorillas * Gretchen Vogel Science 31 March 2000: 287 (5462), 2386-2387. [DOI:10.1126/science.287.5462.2386] Report of the UN Panel of Experts on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources and Other Forms of Wealth in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 2002. Reno, William. 1998. Warlord Politics and African States. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner.(preface of the book)

All Quiet on the Western Front Essay

Paul Baumer’s experiences of the war transforms him into someone of whom some may describes as lacking in expression, immoral, and maybe even a systematic automaton. These traits are often emphasized throughout his duty in World War II and are even furthermore supported through harsh traumatic incidents. But like all young adults, his innocent mind was concealed from the true face of war, and before such time, he was like any other teenage boy. It is evident that he was particularly interested in school and would sometime recollects back to his regular life, such as things â€Å"that [is]at home in the draws of [his] writing table lies the beginning of a play called ‘Saul’ and a bundle of poems† (19). However, once he joined the army, he lose all sight of such pleasure and as the global conflict drags on deeper, his range of expression begins to narrowed into what was only necessary, and his daily routine soon becomes systematic. He changes so much that he ceased to see the light of all things, and his thoughts and actions soon turns into that of immoral kinds. However, even though the darkness of war soon engulfs most of his conscience, there still lies a small light of hope, the light of his genuine human soul. Many cannot realize the terror war brings, and often, the soldiers are the one who are the most affected. The journey endured in combat can draws one’s hopes out and input fear and reinstall the human instincts as one thinks purely of survival. But unlike most, Paul began such journey at a very young age, and was not yet ready to experience the world. He has yet to even see the real world, but quickly jumps into the middle of the world’s largest conflict. The training camp was the first step to the extraction of his personality. After weeks of preparations for the front, Paul and his friend soon realized that â€Å"what matters is not the mind but the boot brush, not intelligence but the system, not freedom but the drill† (22). The boys soon divert back to their ancestor’s state of mind, an era where survival of the whole is the first priority while anything else comes afterwards. Beneath the wall of apathy Paul has built up, there still exists a spark of humanity. Paul can still feel things like grief and over the death of friends like Kat, where Paul is stunned to learn that Kat is dead, â€Å"Do I walk? Have I feet still?† Paul’s emotions, although restricted, are still there. Paul tries to preserve himself and his soul throughout the war in the hopes of making the world a better place. Although he knows that he probably won’t succeed in his goals because he and the rest of his generation are so beat down by the loss and horror of war, â€Å"†¦we will grow older, a few will adapt themselves, some others will merely submit, and most will be bewildered; the years will pass by and we shall fall into ruin† the fact that he still hopes and cares, â€Å"But perhaps all this that I think is mere melancholy and dismay, which will fly away†¦ enough to want to fix the problems that started this war and maybe even prevent others from going through this ever again† shows that even at the worst of times, shows that Paul manages to preserve his humanity (294). In another occasion such as when one of his comrade, Kemmerich, dies, he channeled his thoughts toward the justification of Muller claiming his soon deceased friend’s boots. Although Paul did express some sympathy towards his dying friend, it seems almost artificial as he quickly turned his attention towards a more important matter, at least in his mind, the matter of Kemmerich’s belongings. He begins to speculates about who should claim what and should they really be claiming it. Of course, the rule of survival conjures up in his mind, and he remembered that â€Å"†¦the boots [were] quite inappropriate to Kemmerich’s circumstances, whereas Muller [could] make good use of them† (21). He even went further to justify the claim by stating that, â€Å"we have lost all sense of other considerations, because they are artificial. Only the facts area real and important for us. And good boots are scarce† (21). This presents a concept derived from the war, in which personal thoughts and individualism is limited and physical survival is accentuates. In a indirect way, his last thought depicts the barbarism of war, that way Man steps back in development and his conscience becomes simple; he only view upon on his needs and nothing else. For war is a two sided coin, with one side, the objective is seen as the motive, while on the other side, a sacrifice must be made to achieve the objective. But ignorantly, we ignore the mean and only focus upon the end. We hope that our actions, the vision of our â€Å"better world† will be achieved, and that the world will become more peaceful. But our efforts are in vain, and our hope is nothing more than a child’s dream. War is a cycle, of which will never end. It’s there to resolve problems momentary. It’s there to break us down, and remind us that we are nothing more than savages who seek power and land. What others may see as normal and moral may be view differently by those who is not in their position. Frequently throughout Paul’s journey as a soldier, his actions were often viewed upon as immoral; in that he gave little thoughts to his action, almost to the extent that he could not think of the situation any other way. In a specific incident, one of his younger comrade was badly wounded and would eventually die, so he and Kate agreed upon that â€Å"[they] ought to put him out of his miseryâ €  (72). Many of a third perspective may deem that as inhuman, to shoot some just to shorten their pain. Perhaps in his view, he was helping the poor lad by ending what would be a week or so of hell before he dies. But such thoughts may lead one to wonder if he may even think himself as a being greater than other, one who is has the authority to decide for the life of another. Humans are defined by our extension of complex thinking and our ability to empathize another. But in this case, Paul has yet to know how the pain of being severely injured, and only thought upon his assumptions. If he was in any other position, his first normal reaction may have been to carry that boy to the nearest help. As the war drags him into more the intensified front, he soon comes across â€Å"[young recruits] flock together like sheep instead of scattering, and even wounded are shot down like hares by airmen† (130). He sees some died right in front of him and some who runs out due to claustrophobia. However, in none of these occasions did he mourn for the dead, or even consider emotions such as sadness and sympathy. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he may have encountered numerous of such sight. When Paul sees the young recruits being kill due to lack of experience, he

Modern Outlook on ADHD - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 825 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2019/07/31 Category Medicine Essay Level High school Tags: ADHD essay Did you like this example? Stephen R. Herrs article, ADHD: Has this diagnostic fad run its course?, is a modernistic outlook on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or better known as ADHD. In the past, ADHD was the answer to any parent having behavioral issues with their children, but Herr challenges this idea that there is something wrong with children simply for exhibiting child-like attributes. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Modern Outlook on ADHD" essay for you Create order Like many other disorders in the past that are seen as unethical today, Herr believes that ADHD is no longer a reasonable explanation for the behavior of children. He believes that there are bigger underlying issues that explain why children act the way they do, and that many parents use ADHD to avoid addressing the real problems with their children. Misdiagnosing children and using medication to solve their behavioral problems has proved to have negative, and potentially fatal, effects on children. Herr builds his argument on why ADHD is used to cover up authentic issues children face by utilizing rhetorical appeals as well as his use of parallels between behavior displayed by adults and children. Herr begins his argument by stating why he believes so many parents think their children suffer from ADHD. He describes ADHD as an attempt to deal with some of the difficulties of raising children. Since many parents do not want to face the fact that their children have other issues, millions of children are misdiagnosed with ADHD and given harmful medications to cure their condition. He goes on to say, there is no evidence that suggests placing children on Schedule II drugsimproves their intellectual abilities over an extended period. This shows his audience that the drugs they are giving their children are actually not improving their condition. Herr utilizes pathos by describing how these medications are not actually helping their children and have proven to be extremely detrimental to the health of whoever is taking them. Herr uses pathos a second time towards the end of his argument. He tells his audience that adults have blindly accepted what society told them was wrong with th eir children and, in turn, children have suffered due to this negligence. Herr makes his audience fear for the wellbeing of their children due to their own carelessness, further convincing them that ADHD is antiquated, and their children are facing potential harm attempting to treat a disorder that is not real. In addition to his pathos appeals, Herr also employs logos to support his argument with scientific evidence. He provides a study from Michigan State University that shows nearly one million children in America are potentially misdiagnosed with ADHD Utilizing logos in this way enables Herr to show his audience his ideas are more than just personal opinions and that it is very likely that their child is one of the million who have been misdiagnosed. Herr goes on to use logos a second time by stating, 4.5 million kids have been diagnosed with ADHD, with nearly half of them taking medication. Not only are children being misdiagnosed, they are being given medications that are not necessarily making them any better. Furthermore, he adds, In 2008, the ADHD pharmaceutical market was worth $4 billion. This indicates that the more children who are diagnosed with and prescribed medication for ADHD makes more and more money for pharmaceutical companies. Diagnosing children with ADHD is not only a quick fix, but also a way to make revenue. Herr using logos to show his audience that many children are being misdiagnosed and looked upon by pharmaceutical companies as an easy way to make profit, plants a seed of doubt in their minds about whether their child actually suffers from this disorder, or if the problem lies elsewhere. Towards the end of his argument, Herr uses parallels between adults and children to show that there are other problems causing children to act out. He asks, Dont most adults become distracted when they are tiredbecome fidgety when they are bored Adults are not diagnosed with ADHD and given medication when they display these behaviors. These types of behaviors in children are looked at as a problem, while adults who display the same behavior do not have a problem of any sort. Herr makes his audience reflect on how their behavior is very similar to the behavior of children when they are tired or bored. This allows them to realize that it is possible that children do not suffer from ADHD, children are acting based on other factors such as exhaustion or uninterest. Overall, Herr is effective in his use of rhetorical appeals as well as drawing parallels between children and adults in an effort to prove ADHD is not a legitimate disorder. The audience can clearly see that there are some major flaws with both diagnosing children with ADHD and administering drugs to their children that are not scientifically proven to work. Herrs argument encourages parents to look more deeply into some of their childrens behavioral issues in order to give them the best care possible.