Lvmh and Luxury Goods Marketing

1. Bernard Arnault has built LVMH into a luxury goods empire by making numerous acquisitions. Describe the strategy is being used here? Discuss why you agree or disagree with this type of strategy. If you disagree, what alternative tactics would you use? Actually Mr. Bernard Arnault, one of the richest men in the world who took control of LVMH in 1990, has been snapping up luxury brands during past two decades one after another. He has build LVMH into a luxury good empire by conducting a selective acquisition strategy with which I agree. Now LVMH has more than 60 brands under control and is still pursuing some others including the old famous family business; Hermes. LVMH structure is made up of Wines and Spirits, Fashion and Leather goods, Watches and Jewelry, Perfumes and Cosmetics and Selective Retailing. Although some may argue that there are issues such as lack of concentration on core business thereby exclusivity and rarity which are main characteristics of luxury brands can be faded, I firmly believe that not only has Mr. Arnault saved these special features of the business and is still focused on prestige, he has improved the profitability of each division by creating synergy between subsidiaries in terms of cost, corporate and management synergy. â€Å"Synergy, in general may be defined as two or more agents working together to produce a result not obtainable by any of the agent independently. Corporate synergy occurs when corporations interact congruently. A corporate synergy refers to a financial benefit that a corporation expects to realize when it merges with or acquires another corporation† (Synergy). As result of corporate synergy and this partnership, LVMH now has a bigger market share, wider range of products and less competition because the competitors are now members of the group and are all working together in a coordinated way. On top of that, they can take advantage of the existing selective retailing outlets to differentiate their products by adding value in their offering and demonstrate them as distinctive. Also, prestige, luxury and quality associated with the brand ‘LVMH’ influences every item being presented in these shops. â€Å"A cost synergy refers to the opportunity of a combined corporate entity to reduce or eliminate expenses associated with running a business. Cost synergies are realized by eliminating costs that are viewed as duplicate within the merged entity.† (Synergy) This means reducing; promotional and advertising costs, sales cost, shipping cost, travel cost and also some managerial cost such as certain executives, human resources and head quarters office cost which finally influences companies bottom-line. â€Å"Synergy in terms of management and in relation to team working refers to the combined effort of individuals as participants of the team. The condition that exists when the organization's parts interact to produce a joint effect that is greater than the sum of the parts acting alone† (Synergy) As stated in the text of this case study,† Arnault implemented a corporate restructuring that groups the company’s subsidiaries into divisions. Previously, the heads of individual subsidiaries reported directly to Arnault; now, division heads meet with him to discuss strategy. Notes Arnault, â€Å"It’s much more efficient, because it allows us to put into practice all the synergies between the different brands in a coordinated way.† Francesco Trapani, CEO of the Bulgari Gruop, the luxury brand recently acquired by LVMH, said: â€Å"The 2010 financial results show how the Company was able to brilliantly overcome the economic slump, reaping the benefits of the efficiency and cost containment strategy and therefore becoming more solid. At the same time, the intense creative and product development activity generated an even more competitive product offer, which enjoyed great success in all product categories.† (Knowel) He added: â€Å"At this positive moment of strong top-line growth, our alliance with the LVMH Group has created new synergies that will enable Bulgari to strengthen even more and pursue its long-term, worldwide growth.† (Knowel) In conclusion, I believe that Mr. Bernard Arnault has made LVMH into the word biggest luxury brand by adopting acquisition strategy and creating cost, corporate and management synergy between divisions of the group. 2. How do LVMH executives adjust prices in response to changing economic conditions, and why? In response to changing economic conditions, LVMH executives adjusted prices in sepcific ways in each market. In Asian markets, Patrick Choel, president of the perfume and cosmetics division has increased wholesale prices in order to discourage discount retailers from selling the products to consumers at low price. Instead, he has reduced the advertising budget to offset profitability in case the company faces a decline in sales. In countries where LVMH faced currency devaluation, managers raised the price to counteract the effect of currency depreciation. In Indonesia, the chairman of Vuitton, Mr. Yves Carcell canceled the plan for opening a new store. Since Japan market is sluggish and there has not been a sign of soon economic recovery, Japanese consumers are reluctant to invest in stock market. Mr. Arnault figured out the difference between Japan where most of his business is, and the rest of Asia. He noted: â€Å"Japan is in a growth slump, but it isn’t going to have the same difficulties as Korea or Indonesia†. Japanese had not many other spending option and executives decided to raise prices at Louis Vuittons Japanese store. Also Louis Vuiton manageres has worked closely with tour operators to predict the number of Japanese tourists traveling in Asia and to Hawaii whom 75% of sales depends on. At peak of tourism, they increase the price by 10 to 22 percent to maximize profit. Furthermore LVMH took advantage of crisis by renegotiating store leases in Asian cities. In some cases, the company extended lease terms longer than before and reduced the rate by as much as one-third which resulted saving for the company. The overall result has been an increase in price and the rationale behind this decision is the fact that price perception is a critical component of luxury goods’ appeal. In fact, executives know that sales volume would decline sharply due to the effect of crisis and they have lost a big number of their customers. It is not a good time for expansion and opening new stores, so they decided to stay focused on the narrow market segment of their loyal customers. Those who still had notable disposable income shaped a niche market which was still large enough to be profitable. On the other hand, LVMH helped profitability by reducing the cost and cutting expenditures on advertisements. This was the adjustment executives made as opposed to the other alternative; reducing the price and presenting products to a bigger number of consumers. 3. Explain why some customer might think the high retail prices charged for luxury goods are worth paying? As peoples income increases, they are more willing to buy luxury goods because the demand of luxury items increase as people get wealthier. According to wikipedia.com once the consumption of luxury was limited to the elite classes which meant whatever the poor cannot have and the elite can was identified as luxury. Consumers are willing to pay high prices for luxury goods because the brand is associated with quality, durability, scarcity and beauty. In fact, consumers pay for these values that they obtain by purchasing a luxury item. â€Å"Several researchers focus on exclusivity dimension and argue that luxury evokes a sense of belonging to a certain elite group. Prof. Jean-Noel Kapferer, takes an experiential approach and defines luxury as items which provide extra pleasure by flattering all senses at once† (Luxury). Using luxury goods is a lifestyle and shows the wealth of consumer. These can also be reasons behind why some pay high retail prices charged for such items. 4. How were luxury goods marketers affected by the slowdown in tourism that followed especially after the attacks of September 11, 2001? If we take a look at marketing mix, we can see what has been affected by slowdown in tourism is place, where a good or service is presented. Luxury goods are mainly presented in duty free shops at airports, in hotels and attractive places as tourist destinations. With the slowdown in tourism, as people are less willing to travel, airports hotels and attractive places are not that busy compared to the days before September 11 terrorist attack. Even those who still travel might care less about luxury because their main concern is security during the flight and at destination. I think this is how luxury goods marketers were affected by slowdown in tourism.

Wright Demonstrating the Ideals of Organic Architecture in Taliesin West

Wright demonstrating the Ideals of Organic Architecture in Taliesin West Exterior image of Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona â€Å"Organic can merely mean something biological, but if you are going to take the word organic into your consciousness as concerned with entities, something in which the part is to the whole as the whole is to the part, and which is all devoted to a purpose consistently, then you have something that can live, because that is vital† (1) (Meehan 52) The famous American architect by the name of Frank Lloyd Wright based his designs on what he called â€Å"organic architecture†.His philosophy of what modern architecture should be is one as unique as his buildings, but nevertheless he was a pivotal figure in the progression of modernism in the United States. As described by Kathryn Smith, his winter home in Scottsdale Arizona â€Å"[reveals], more than any of his other buildings, a closer understanding of Wright the man as well as Wright the archit ect. † (Smith 92) This winter home is known as Taliesin West and is an epitome of organic architecture.Wight’s work has previously been demonstrated with the International Style, but upon deeper understanding of his architecture one can come to the conclusion that it does not exactly agree with the movement. He allowed his work to be included in first exhibition of the International style in the hopes of demonstrating the immense difference of his structures compared to the work by Le Corbusier’s, Alvar Aalto, Walter Gropius and many others. Before exploring the relation between Taliesin West and Organic Architecture, an investigation of his lectures and writings must be completed to thoroughly grasp his principles of design.Comprehending his journey until 1936, when he bought the land to construct his new project, will grant the knowledge needed to effortlessly connect the two. Wright started his career at an early age, in 1885, in the city of Chicago. He first worked for architect Joseph Silsbee, than spent five years under the direction of Alder and Sullivan. In 1893 he made the decision to commence his own firm and went through a large learning curve for the next seven years – being a young, ambitious architect with no true reputation and little individual experience. The first decade of the 1900s saw Wright’s first real break-through with the Prairie House.The ideas he demonstrated in this school of thought have a clear connection to his later developed definition of organic architecture. â€Å"Reproductions and variations of foreign styles did not seem to Wright an authentic expression of American culture†¦ † (Twombly 59-60) The drive to appropriate the types of buildings to their suitable land in America pushed Wright further in his designs. The time period expanding form 1910 to 1930 gave rise to many hardships for Wright. In 1911 he built his new home in Wisconsin, named Taliesin, and in 1914 it was the pl ace of the tragic death of his wife and two children.Wright remarried but in 1927 got divorced for Olga Lazovich Hinzenberg to whom he stayed married until his death. By the 1930s Wright’s Organic style had clearly matured and he became confident in his principles, nonetheless he would continue the exploration of his style through experimentation. He opened the Taliesin Fellowship in 1932 in his Wisconsin estate. This fellowship was not to be like a school at all – â€Å"instead of teachers, pupils, and pedagogy† he envisioned having â€Å"skilled craftspeople, novices, and physical labor. (Twombly 212) This is a direct result of â€Å"Wright [believing] that education should be in doing, not in the classroom. † (Twombly 212) A former apprentice of the Fellowship, by the name of Bruce Brook Pfeiffer, describes that upon their first encounter with the desert in 1928 (when Mr. and Mrs. Wright went to Phoenix to collaborate on a hotel called the Arizona Bal timore) â€Å"they would take weekend trips out on the desert. They thought the desert was a wonderful place. The air was clean, beautiful and dry. (Pfeiffer) Following the gradual decline of Wright’s health, he was recommended to relocate to a warmer climate and so the desert was the ideal location. He previously stated â€Å"living in the Desert is the spiritual cathartic a great many people need† (Smith 88) In 1936, after the inspection of several sites, Mr. and Mrs. Wright purchased eight hundred acres of land in Paradise Valley, located approximately twenty six miles of Phoenix, Arizona. (Smith 88) When he visited this site Wright said â€Å"it’s a look over the rim of the world. † (Pfeiffer) This desert floor landscape would be Wright’s and the Fellowship’s new winter home.To now further explore Wright’s own definition of the term â€Å"Organic Architecture† it is essential to note that he used the word â€Å"natureâ₠¬  with two main definitions. The first way in which he used the term alluded â€Å"to the outdoors †¦ or the â€Å"external† nature. † (Twombly 304) In this context there were four major ways in which nature informed his designs, the first of these being the need to be close to the outdoors and nature itself. The inspiration that could be drawn from surroundings as models for architectural forms and construction principles was also a crucial influence to his designs.The use of materials that would connect to the immediate nature was very important in the making a construction organic. Lastly, in the designs Wright created, there was always a sensitivity of the local climate conditions. Wright’s second definition for the term â€Å"nature† refers to a philosophical view on the environment. This use of the word related to a concept he called the â€Å"internal† nature of a house. Wright’s statement that â€Å"architecture rightly defin ed is the structure of whatever is† (Meehan 54) clearly relates to the â€Å"idea† of the house which he connects to his philosophy.Wright also believed that through the study of nature one could find specific characteristics to everything and these characteristics make every item be what they are. His philosophy also encompasses the idea that essence, which every item contains, exists before perception. This philosophical view of nature is difficult to apply or relate to a specific building because it is more relevant to the thought process behind the design. Floor Plan of Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona Taliesin West is known to be one of Wright’s best examples of organic architecture because it so clearly demonstrates these principles. The buildings are neither large nor monumental, but they command a presence on the landscape. Under Wright’s first definition of the word he states an organic building must connect to ground and be close to the outdoor s. A primary example of that demonstrates this is the masonry wall surrounding the buildings. This wall creates an extension into the natural landscape and seems to connect them as one. (Pfeiffer) Large openings to the outdoors along with massive windows create a direct link to the outdoor Desert. Wright was also great at capturing views with his huge windows.One of his fellowship workers explains how he would capture two perfect views into one window by framing the mountains in the top half, and framing the desert floor on the bottom half. (Pfeiffer) This created a great show whether someone was standing or sitting. To compare with the surrounding landscape there are â€Å"small pools extended throughout the plans [that give] a luxury of water and fountains in contrast with the dry Desert. † (Pfeiffer) Although Wright brings in this new element of nature it still emphasises the need to connect to nature.Another aspect of his primary definition is to use forms found in nature and on the land as inspiration for building forms. While speaking to his students he has presented the argument that â€Å"you are never going to get out of yourselves anything more than you are, then you can take in, than you can see as yourselves. † In this statement he refers to the importance of going in nature and examining it with a close, intensive look. This is how one can gain the knowledge nature has to give and discover the construction principles it applies. The slopping roof of Taliesin West showcases this state of mind.The roof is jagged and peaks, as to blend in with its background. Wright was an exceptional fan of the abstract mountains in the background of his land. He described the desert landscape saying â€Å"†¦ here, everything is fresh, original edges pretty much preserved, erosion still going on at a terrific rate making chasms. † (Brierly 5) The slopping walls also seem to derive from this inspiration. The lines carved into the wall that s urrounds the complex was a direct inspiration of when Wright saw the water erosion lines on a canyon he visited. Pfeiffer) The roughness of the desert is also resonated throughout the construction of the edifice. Masonry Wall, Exterior image of Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona He further uses materials as an important part of a construction being organic. In this case, the canvas roof was a great inspiration for him. When he first arrived in Arizona for an earlier project, he decided to build a camp site for himself and his workers instead of staying in a hotel. In the campsite, which he called Ocatilla, they used canvas as roof material and this was the beginning of his admiration of the material in this climate.He loved the soft, natural glow of light dispersed in the space by the canvas. He was determined to keep this canvas roof in Taliesin West and so he did. He also often modified it when he would return from a summer spent in Wisconsin. When the material needed to be replac ed due to inconvenience he made sure to experiment fully and pick a material that would give the same effect of lighting. The Desert rocks he used in the masonry walls of the buildings and going around the building are a prime example of selective material use.All the rocks used in these structures were taken directly from the land on which they were built on. This gave the resort a multi coloured facade that blended in the surrounding land impeccably. By using these materials Wright also strengthened the connection between Taliesin West and its building ground. Bruce Pfeiffer also describes how they used a method called â€Å"desert ruble masonry wall† to make these walls. They would build a wooden frame and place the flat side of the stones facing outwards and proceed by filling it in with concrete.He goes on to describe how they would fill in all the small holes with rounded rocks and describes it as â€Å"each of the walls at Taliesin West [being] an artistic creation. à ¢â‚¬  (Pfeiffer). The third major material element of the construction is the use the redwood. This material was used to support the roof, creating an abstract mountain like rooftop, and throughout the interior of the building. The wood is local to the surrounding area of the Desert. The colour of the wood compliments the landscape and the multicoloured walls of the structure.Lastly, Frank Lloyd Wright was a great believer that a house should always â€Å"go with the natural climate†. (Twombly 310) This is the concluding manner in which nature informs Organic Architecture. This is a concept that Wright had been applying for an extended period of time and can be traces back the Prairie House. In Taliesin West he designed deep overhangs for the roof to create much needed shade in the long sunny days of the Arizona climate. He also had blinds made of the canvas which could be close the large arches leading to outside on overly sunny days.These blinds ended up being replaced by actual glass windows to regulate the heat of the building. Another prime demonstration of this is again the used of the canvas roof. The lighting it gave to the rooms was a perfect complement to the intense Arizona sun. Wright often experimented with the arrangement of the canvas and the wood beams. The lighting of a space is very important for the atmosphere it creates. When the canvas roof became too much of an nuisance because it would leak a lot and was becoming expensive to replace every few ears, Wright experimented and made sure to replace it with a material that would give the same glow to the space. He initially only replaced part of the canvas with glass, but eventually it was all substituted by glass (Smith). When using the word â€Å"nature† in terms of his philosophy, Wright was somewhat less direct. He used the word in this sense to stand for the essence of a building and the â€Å"working of the [organic] principle. † Taliesin West applies to all the dim ensions of his â€Å"organic principles† and would therefore be Organic architecture. The characteristics he believed everything in nature had also applied to the Desert itself.When speaking of this inspiring landscape he would say â€Å"[a]characteristic thing in the desert here is, of course, the desert itself† (Brierly 4) When Wright envisioned Taliesin West, it was his initial purpose to have an ever changing, organic structure. He would adjust it as needed as time passed. A former apprentice of the fellowship once pointed out that â€Å"Thanks to [their] seasonal migrations †¦ Mr. Wright was able to view †¦ Taliesin West with a fresh eye each time he arrived at [it]. † A demonstration of this is the rearranging of the wood beams and canvas to adjust the light.Another dimension of this philosophy is the fact that everything in nature contains an essence. These essences are all active. Nothing possesses a static essence. They can be partially the sa me but will always be different as time passes. (Twombly 312) This is what happened in Taliesin West since its original plans â€Å"were based on the life of the Fellowship† (Smith 89) and it now holds the same presence it did when it was originally built â€Å"with the spirit of youth and exuberance of life† (Twombly 235) but has different purposes and slightly different configuration. Exterior image of Taliesin West, Scottsdale, ArizonaWright had an exceptional career and is recognised to be one of the most pivotal and influential architects of modern architecture in America. Through his upbringing close to nature and his eternal patriotism to America he had a clear vision to a country filled with culture – with this culture being reflected in its architecture. Wright was a man that believed the base of any culture is its architecture. Wright built structures with specific characteristics which made them uniquely themselves. Taliesin West had details that coul d ever only be found in it and nowhere else.It has been made clear to me through the study of Wright’s philosophy that the fact that a building would hold these specific details about itself that make it uniquely it, is the fundamental definition of what organic architecture. The essence built into the complex is the reasons it is and organic design. Taliesin West can be said to be â€Å"part of the desert on which it sits† (Smith 90) Bibliography Brierly, Cornelia. Desert life: Desert Foliage At Taliesin West. Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, 1988. inForm, Arch. Taliesin West. n. d. April 2012. Meehan, Patrick J. Truth Against the World: Frank Lloyd Wright speaks for an Organic Architecture.New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1987. Pfeiffer, Bruce Brooks. Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West Planet Architecture series. 2003. CD-rom. Smith, Kathryn. Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin and Taliesin West. University of Michigan: Harry N. Abrams, 1997. Twombly, Robert C. Frank Lloyd Wrigh t: His Life and His Architecture. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1979. Week, The Architecture. Great Buildings. n. d. April 2012. Wright, Frank Lloyd. Frank Lloyd Wright Essential Texts. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2009. Wright, Frank Loyd. The Natural House. Horizon Press Inc. , 1954.

Commonwealth of Independent States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Commonwealth of Independent States - Essay Example The initial goals of CIS creation were as follows. First, it was made to initiate a close economic cooperation between members through establishing a so-called 'common economic space'. Second, coordination of policies between allied states with mutual respect for interests was proposed. The third main objective of CIS was to create a unified military-strategic space under a joint command. Thus, the CIS was devised as a regional union, based on the concept of a state, complete with a centralized economy and cross-border ties at the macro and micro levels. Newly acquired independence meant little for post-soviet countries, as their economies were interdependent. In particular, membership in CIS meant the delay of energy crisis for every former Soviet republic. Despite the potential benefits CIS members could gain every of them understood the price they had to pay for using Russia's abundant energy resources. "The Soviet experience constantly reminds the new elites of the CIS that Russia could effectively usurp their independence in any supranational body in which it is the only major power center." (Aslund et al 1999, p.19). Indeed, it was never a secret that Russia uses CIS to influence the policies of regions, which were subjects of domestic policy just a few years ago. To put it simply, every CIS member except Russia faced a dichotomy: on the one hand they had to secure their newly proclaimed sovereignty, on the other - they were unable to survive without external economic help. Although allies behaved differently from each other in this complex situation, they can be divided into three general groups. The first group, which may be called extremely pro-Western, refused from as much cooperation with Russia as possible. Three Baltic regions, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania refused to enter CIS and decided to seek help from other neighbours. Politically, Lithuania is headed towards Poland, and Estonia along with Latvia favour toward Finland and Scandinavian region. The main reason for turning back on Russia was the fact that since their forced incorporation into the Soviet Union they've never acknowledged the legality of that claim. Still, even politically independent, Baltic States remain under Russian economic influence, as it remains their main trading partner. The second group, the most numerous one, tries to balance between Western help and alliance with Russia. Since Russia perceives CIS as a tool to hinder if not stall the movement of NATO towards East, these members of CIS try to gain as much use as possible from this confrontation. For instance, in spite of membership in the Council of Europe and some if not frequent calls for economic help from United States (e.g. during electoral campaign of Viktor Yuschenko), Ukraine has clearly stated its attitude to Russia as "the most important strategic partner", according to words of Leonid Kuchma. Other countries that can be referred to this group are Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and

Utilizing the Time Value of Money Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Utilizing the Time Value of Money - Essay Example But do to some limitations of these tools other tools such as Profitability Index and Payback Period. The payback period determines the duration of the time it would take to recover the investment made initially. This will give us the number of periods it would take to breakeven for the initial investment made. The profitability index is used as well in investment decisions because it measures the value created per dollar invested. So if the PI shows a greater than 1 value, then it means that the investment is returning a greater amount than invested. These two techniques are used because they resolve the disadvantages of NPV and IRR methods. (Helmkamp, 1990) The first disadvantage of a NPV calculation is its dependency on the interest/discount rates. It is very difficult for the investor to know the correct discount rate since they can change though out the life of that investment making considerable differences on the decision. (Investopedia, 2008) Another issue with the discount rate is the differences in the risk factor of the investment. Since the risk can change, therefore the discount rate, this can make lives very hard in calculating NPV. (Investopedia, 2008) Another disadvantage lies in the facts that NPVs are just mathematics calculations that do not take into account the real options available for investment.

Anthropogenic Disturbance on Benthic Communitiy Essay

Anthropogenic Disturbance on Benthic Communitiy - Essay Example Although in the early days it was believed that there could be no life at the bottom of the sea, a steady production of energy deep down at the ocean floor has led to a thriving benthic community which may however be affected by environmental and anthropogenic changes. Investigation of benthic communities is done by deep sea diving and actually obtaining samples of such organisms from the ocean floor. Traps, dredging and investigation of seafloor sediments could be useful in establishing the biological nature of such communities. The benthic organisms are essential for the environment as they clean up the water and are responsible for re-mineralization of organic matter. Since benthic sea creatures are a diverse group with many functions, they also tend to form a major link in the biological chain. This project deals with the study of human disturbance on the benthic community and the changes in the structural and functional manifestations of these organisms when anthropogenic interventions are obvious in any ocean floor inhabited by these organisms. Dudgeon (2006) studied benthic invertebrates and their drift in eight streams within Northern Indonesia where rainforest streams and oceans are disturbed by anthropogenic activities. The benthic community studied were that found in Papua New Guinea and South East Asia and in general not predatory. The results indicated that the benthic communities were strongly affected by channelisation and conversion of forests to agriculture. Some benthic species were found to show drifting activities at night showing some sort of community reactions to changes in the external environment. Arasaki et al (2004) suggests that anthropogenic disturbance is one of the major problems in marine communities and any such disturbance could be quantified by using multivariate techniques for analysing the distribution of such communities. The results of the study showed that ecological trends are determined by faunal abundance and all central continental regions with widespread distribution of benthic communities seem to be affected by human activities. There are many studies that show the effects of fishing or dredging on the benthic commu

Capital Punishment in the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Capital Punishment in the USA - Essay Example The main argument against capital punishment states that capital punishment disregards the value of human life2. Human value is viewed as being highly valuable and should not be taken away under any circumstances, legal or otherwise. It is believed that not even the worst form of crime should deprive one his life. Those against capital punishment believe that the value of the criminal’s life should not be destroyed by their crime even if they killed someone. They argue that a substitute of this form of punishment can be through life imprisonment which gives the offender a chance to turn over a new leaf and lead a better life. In summary, human life is valuable and no authority should take it a away and no crime warrants for capital punishment. Capital punishment violates the due process of law in several ways. First, the imposition is arbitrary and irrevocable. This denies the offender the opportunity to benefit from reversal of a conviction or discovery of any new evidence wh ich might reverses the verdict. Additionally, the death penalty violates the Constitution's provision of equal protection of its citizens3. It was observed to be imposed randomly and with biases based on one’s skin color, social status and ethnicity. This shows that the death penalty does not conform to the due process of the law. The death penalty violatebiasesst important universal human right which is the right to live. This right should be respected at all times regardless of the form of crime that an individual has committed. This argument is similar to the one concerning the value of human life. This argument supports the point that a victim could kill their attacker in the process of a murderous attack. In such a case, the victim can be argued to have committed murder in self defense. In conclusion, killing does not correct the act committed by the offender, instead their natural worthiness is taken away. Moreover, it does not bring any form of retributive justice in s ociety. Capital punishment results to the wastage of limited resources that could have been directed to other meaningful activities in fighting crime3. In addition to, it is time consuming and wasted the energy of prosecutors, defense counsel, prosecuting attorneys and the legal enforcement personnel. It burdens the criminal justice system and has negative effects of societal values and morals. It goes ahead to prove that killing is right which is not true. There are higher chances of execution of the innocent as offenders may get killed due to the loopholes in the justice system. Jurors and prosecutors make mistakes and in the event an offender is innocent, they are killed for a crime that they did not commit which is highly regrettable. This together with the mistakes in the legal system can lead to death of innocent people where capital punishment is practicable3 . There is ample evidence for such situations leading to the conclusion that capital punishment should be abolished to avoid the loss of innocent lives.  

Philosophy Statement Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Philosophy Statement - Assignment Example eedback from students, evaluating unique academic performance, motivating and addressing weaknesses, and reporting to authorized personnel (school administrators, parents, care givers) the outcomes of academic reviews and performance of students, as required. Roles/Responsibilities of the Learner: Learners have roles and responsibilities that are diverse and multidimensional. Learners are expected to assume the roles of active participants, as collaborative members of the learning environment, as a source for constructive feedback. Their responsibilities include â€Å"dialogue and interactions with peers and teachers, practical investigations, performances, oral presentations and discussions† (Education Scotland, n.d., p. 1), among others. Beliefs about Teaching: Good teaching is viewed as being able to practice what one preaches. By being a role model to students, good teachers could effectively impart lessons that could be emulated by students through the values and manifestations of actions that are consistent with good morals and ethical codes of conduct. On the other hand, bad teaching simply exhibits actions and delivery of academic information that are contrary to the standards of ethical and moral practices expected of the profession. Beliefs about Learning: Learning happens in progressive stages and could be enforced through motivating students in a conducive learning environment. Learning is most effective when teachers design strategies that encourage participation of students and acknowledge their contribution to the learning environment. Prejudice, discrimination, restricting encouragement and freedom of expression and exhibiting inequality across gender, ethnic and cultural background definitely make learning less effective. Applications in Language Classroom: Given the beliefs and philosophies in teaching, one would strive to promote equality and the integration of diversity in culture in one’s language classroom to focus on the unique