5 Business Projects Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

5 Business Projects - Term Paper Example The plaintiff upon receiving the note from the defendant did not send back any response but commenced work the next day by buying lumber necessary for completion of the defendants work. A second note was sent by the defendants countermanding the first note but was not forwarded before the plaintiff started work. The lower court decided that it was the plaintiff’s duty to go down to the defendants premises and commence work as a sign of acceptance and that the plaintiff was not obliged to expressly accept the offer by making either a written or verbal communication to the defendant and that his action to buy lumber for the work would suffice as an acceptance. The defendants were seeking an appeal on this ruling arguing that the plaintiff was obliged to communicate his acceptance before commencing work. They also argued that the note instructing the plaintiff to start work was a proposition rather than an agreement and that it should have been accepted by the plaintiff before either party could be bound by a contract. The appellate court ruled in favour of the defendant on the basis that any offer has to be accepted by an appropriate act. The plaintiff had to communicate to the defendant in a reasonable manner. According to the court, a mental determination which has not been spoken or an outright act to the other party should not be taken as acceptance binding the parties to a contract. Purchasing lumber was a normal routine by the plaintiff and did not communicate to the defendant of his acceptance thus such an act should not by itself be taken as an indication of acceptance. Plaintiff Parker, also well known as Shirley MacLaine Parker, contracted with the defendant, Twentieth Century Fox, to play the female lead in Fox’s planned musical motion picture â€Å"Bloomer Girl.† which would have fetched the plaintiff a total of $750,000. The defendant repudiated the contract before the commencement of the filming and decided not to go on with the filming

Stress and burnout Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Stress and burnout - Research Paper Example Ayala (2002) further indicates that uncontrolled levels of stress can eventually lead to burnout that is detrimental to the overall productivity of employees in an organization. However, stress may be beneficial because it can lead to creativity and inventions at the workplace. Consequently, it is fundamental to discuss the effects of stress and burnout to an organization and its employees. According to Gryna (2004), burnout is a feeling that results from an extended period of stress. Continuous burnout has a hazardous effect that lowers the self-esteem of individuals while on duty. Employees begin disliking their pastime activities in the organizational context. Notably, burnout correlates with emotional instability highlighting the absence of zeal and enthusiasm. Gryna (2004) asserts that burnout is a condition that arises when an individual lacks the motivation to undertake duty. It is equally attributable to prolonged suffering. Clinically, it is complex to guesstimate the level of employee burnout. Problems associated with stress and burnout to the organization One of the major problems associated with stress and burnout is the employees incapability to produce quality results as they did in the past (Ayala, 2002). Consequently, both stress and burnout are the main inhibitors of success to organizations. These two attributes contribute to huge losses to organizations annually. Gryna (2004) affirms that organizations incur losses because of the increased levels of stress among its staff. The most widespread loss is the reduction in the level of employee’s productivity in the organization. Subsequently, stressed employees exude low morale when undertaking duties and obligations. Lack of confidence contributes to their dismal performance at work because strained employees perform poorly. According to Gryna (2004), burnout increases the rates of turnover of employees; thus, increasing the costs required to run operations in an organization. This is beca use an organization will have to incur costs when recruiting new staff to continue with operations. Moreover, organizations will have to invest in training new employees before entrusting them with duties. High turnover due to burnout affects the employees’ loyalty who may feel neglected by the management (Gryna, 2004). This will make it difficult for them to focus on organizational growth. Interestingly, employees in organizations attribute stress to several to harsh working conditions. Problems associated with stress and burnout to the employees According to Arnold, Demerouti & Wilmar (2005), burnout affects employees’ attitude leading to the deterioration of an individual’s health. Subsequently, burnout leads to financial losses. For example, an employee experiencing burnout is prone to commit errors while on duty. Additionally, there are high chances that conflict can arise in an organization when employees experiencing burnout. Stress and burnout does not o nly affect the organization’s performance but they also affect the overall wellbeing of an individual. For instance, stressed employees exude negative emotions while on duty that may influence their lives. Moreover, an employee suffering from burnout is likely to develop chronic illness that may lead to depression. Arnold, Demerouti & Wilmar (2005) indicates that chronic ailments such as type diabetes have been associated with

Eng Compare and Contrast Essay Example for Free

Eng Compare and Contrast Essay This paper will be examining two theories on personality development; Sigmund Freud’s argument on the three structures of personality and Albert Bandura’s findings on social learning also called observational learning (Witt Mossler, 2010). Sigmund Freud the neurologist based his study on his grown mental patients while Albert Bandura the psychologist based his theory on observing young children within pre-set environments. Both Sigmund Freud and Albert Bandura have two different academic approaches to personality development. Sigmund Freud presented structured mental tendencies (Id, Ego and Super-ego) on personality development while on the other hand Albert Bandura stressed on external influences. Both theories have credible contrasting as well as similar assumptions. A theory can be defined as, â€Å"A coherent set of ideas that helps to explain data and make predictions† (Santrock, 1989, p. 33). Santrock further explained that a theory makes assumptions that can be tested to determine their accuracy. Personality, according to the Oxford Dictionary from http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/personality is the combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual’s distinctive character. In other words it is the combination of mental, emotional and physical character traits that are peculiar to an individual. The Oxford Dictionary also defined development as â€Å"A specified state of growth or advancement; or a change in situation.† Both Freud’s and Bandura’s theories are based on personality development. Sigmund Freud presented an argument that man’s personality is mainly governed by three different levels of consciousness or mental state; the id, the ego and the super-ego. He argued that the id is a demanding inborn force that drives a newborn to desire food, pass urine, defecate, be warm and gain sexual pleasure. He went on further to argue that the id demands immediate gratification and personal pleasure. It usually wants satisfaction and is ruled by what Freud called the pleasure principle. Freud presented the argument that this kind of self-gratifying behavior in infants is inborn not learned. For example, a young child will shamelessly play with its genitals in pursuit of the pleasure it receives. This child will seek this sexual pleasure regardless of where he/she is, or who is watching because according to Freud’s theory, the id is totally unconscious (Santrock, 1989, p. 34). While on the other hand, Albert Bandura did not present any argument on the children’s inborn nature (Witt Mossler, 2010). However, Bandura focused his study on how external forces such as caregivers and other children around them affected children’s behavior. He argued and demonstrated in his experiments that children carefully observed and modeled or copied the behavior of others around them. He went on further to suggest that those children who watched television also modeled the behavior that they witnessed on the screen. Dr. Bandura demonstrated in his experiment, how children learned and copied aggressive behavior towards a toy clown. He placed the clown along with many other toys and the children in a room. As part of the experiment, several adults walked through the room, each one hitting the clown in passing. The children in the room, after observing the adult behavior, modeled it by hitting the clown without any prompting or provocation. Unlike Sigmund Freud, Albert Bandura had no medical explanation attached to his assumptions. Freud’s next level is the super-ego. It is the conscience that governs behavior that is socially accepted. It is the level that teaches humans to imitate the behavior of his/her caregivers within the environment (Witt Mossler, 2010, p. 5 chapter 2). Similarly Bandura’s social learning states that children imitate the adults around them. This means that their super-ego governs their behavior just as Freud claimed. This is illustrated when girls play dress-up to look just like their mothers and boys display aggressive behavior just like their fathers. This means that Freud’s argument on super-ego which is formed through social learning is the same as Bandura’s observational learning (Witt Mossler, 2010). Freud’s final mental level of personality is the conscious mind named the ego; it balances the demands of the id and the super-ego. According to Freud, the ego makes rational decisions (Santrock, 1989 p. 34). An example of this is a New Yorker’s internal drive (id) to avoid buying a train ticket and jump over the turnstile at the subway station. The super-ego cautions against that behavior because of the probability of getting caught while the conscious, rational ego points away from the long line at the ticket counter and towards ticket vending machines that are available. The ego satisfies both the id (got on the train) and the super-ego (acted within the law). Similarly, Bandura’s social learning theory speaks to conforming to social behavior within the children’s environment (Witt Mossler, 2010). In that the children in his experiments were conforming whether in a good or bad way; the ego will respond to the super-ego (good or evil). Therefore, it can be argued Sigmund Freud the medical doctor/neurologist who based his study on his mentally ill adult patients and Albert Bandura the psychologist who pre-set modeled behavior before young children both arrived at credible assumptions. In most parts, the assumptions have similarities despite Freud’s medical approach as against Bandura’s psychological social environment approach. A significant contrast is the age difference of the subjects that they studied; Freud’s adults and Bandura’s young children. Dr. Sigmund Freud presented structured mental tendencies (Id, Ego and Super-ego) on personality development while on the other hand Dr. Albert Bandura stressed on external influences. Both theories have credible contrasting as well as similar assumptions. REFERENCE http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/personality Santrock, J. W. (1995). Life-Span Development. Dubuque, IA: Brown Benchmark Witt, G. A., Mossler, R. A. (2010). Adult Development Life Assessment. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Inc

Food Safety And Food Quality Assurance Environmental Sciences Essay

Food Safety And Food Quality Assurance Environmental Sciences Essay The food industry/fish industry has a moral and legal obligation to produce safe and wholesome food. Food firm management must continue to be the first line of defense in the production and manufacture of safe food (Alli, 2004). The first step in food safety program is a food factory safety program is the establishment of a safety committee with full authority for assuring the manufacture of safe and wholesomeness of food. The second major safety compound which is important in any food firm are the methods on the food processing. The food plant must have strict operating specifications or every unit operation in the plant. Every food plant has different operating specification even it plant processes same products. The third key safety factor in every food firm is the hazards associated with the various commodities and/or the various processes or usually methods in use. Raw material that are use in food plant should be monitor by the quality assurance team. It is to reduce hazard on raw material. Furthermore, on food processing plant, hazard may also appear. Biological, chemical, and physical hazards can cause seafood-related illnesses. Biological hazards include Clostridium botulinum, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella, E. coli, and pathogenic staphylococcus. Chemical hazards include compounds such as Pb, carcinogenic compound, , which can cause illness from long-term exposure. Physical hazards include foreign objects in food that can cause harm when eaten, such as glass, hair, , or metal fragments. Food Safety and Food Quality Assurance Food safety is the assurance that food will not cause harm to the consumer when it is prepared and eaten according to its intended use. The assurance that food may not cause harm, injury, or illness is determined by (1) all harmful substances present in the food have been eliminated or prevented from exceeding the acceptable level; and (2) the food has been prepared, handled, and stored under controlled and sanitary conditions in conformance with practices prescribed by government regulation (Alli, 2004). The fish industry, like many other industries, has used basic quality control programs, and more complex quality assurance programs and quality management systems, in its efforts to achieve food quality. Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP) and the Hazard Analytical Critical Control Point (HCCP) system can be integrated into a food industry, quality management system, or inspection and monitoring materials, products, and processes for food safety hazards can be part of quality control program. On implementation of food safety system, food industry policies should be based on food safety regulation. There are some food safety regulations as follows: Food safety regulation 1995 in the UK These regulations came into force on 15 September 1995 and implement the provision of the directive on hygiene foodstuff (93/94/EEC; section 12.3.2.1.) except for those which relate to temperature control (section 12.5.4.). This main feature of regulations is that proprietors are required to identify and control food safety risk at all stages in preparation and selling of food using hazard analysis (Forshyte and Hayes, 1998). This must be done according to the following principles: Analysis of potential food hazards in the operation. Identification of those points in the operation where hazards, may occur. Deciding which the points identified is critical to ensuring food safety. Identifying and implementing effective control and monitoring procedures at those critical points. Review of the system periodically and whenever the operation changes. Fish, shellfish and fishery products legislation in the EC Legislation Council Directive 91/493/EEC legislation is concerned directly with fish. This legislation aims to harmonize measures for the handling and treatment of all fish and shellfish at all stages up to retailing. There is the usual detail in food standards, this covering factory vessels and fish processing factory. The Council Directive, 91/492/EEC lays down health conditions for the production and placing on the market of live bivalve mollusks (Foshyte and Hayes, 1998). The commission Decision 93/51/EEC on the microbiological criteria applicable to the production of cooked crustaceans and mollusks shellfish is summarized in Table 1.1. The Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) regulation in the USA According to Forsythe and Hayes (1998), this regulation is divided into four subparts, as follows: General provision: This part is concerning personnel. No person affected by disease or boils, sores, infected wounds, etc, may work in food premises where there is a reasonable possibly of food being contaminated or other personnel infected. Building and facilities: the need for clean surround to factories is stressed so that pets are not attracted and food not contaminated. Factories should be constructed so that cleaning is facilitated and adequate working and storage space should be provided. Floors, walls and ceilings should be constructed well to allow for adequate cleaning, duct and pipes should not be suspended working areas where drip or condensate may contaminate food materials or food contact surfaces. Table 1.1. The examples bacteriological standards for fish products in several countries Countries Standard Product Microorganism Level EU Fish products 91/493/EEC and Commision Decision 93/51/EEC Cooked crustaceans and molluscan shellfish Salmonella Absent in 25 g, n=5, c=0 Cooked crustaceans and molluscan shellfish Other pathogens and toxin thereof Not to be present in quantities such as to affect health Whole products Mesophilic aerobic bacteria m = 10000 M = 100000 n = 5 c = 2 Crab meat Mesophilic aerobic bacteria m = 100000 M = 1000000 n = 5 c = 2 France Sliced fish, crumbed or not; fresh fish fillets, refrigerated Total aerobes Faecal coliforms S. aureus Anaerobic shulphite reducer Salmonella 50.000 per g max 10 per g max 100 per g max 2 per g max Absent in 25 g Shellfish, bivalves, urchins live Faecal coliforms Faecal streptococci Samonellas 300 per 100 ml max 2500 per 100 ml max Absent in 25 g USA Marshall (1986) Crab meat, fresh or frozen E. coli 4 per g max Shrimps, raw, breaded Viable aerobic bacteria 100000 per g max E. coli 4 per g max S. aureus 100 per g max Japan Marshall (1986) Frozen foods: Require only thawing before consumsption Total viable bacteria Coliforms Absent in 1 g Heated before consumption Total viable bacteria Coliforms Absent in 1 g Raw oyster Total viable bacteria;E coli 50000 per g max; 230 per 100 g max Korea Anon (1995) Fish product Number of bacteria Coliform E coli Negative for sterilized products Exection half-processed surimi Negative for half-processed surimi Source: Forsythe and Hayes (1998)Equipment. This subpart includes a very brief description of desirable features in the design and construction of food processing equipment. Design and construction must ensure that contamination of food with lubricants, fuel, metal fragments, etc. are avoided. Food contact surfaces must be corrosion resistant, made of non-toxic materials and be resistant to the action of any food materials. Production and process control. This subpart includes regulations for the inspection, cleaning and storage of raw materials, restrictions on the use of food premises, and equipment and regulations on the cleaning and maintenance of equipment. International implementation of HACCP concept HACCP is internationally accepted as the major means of assuring food safety as promoted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Forsythe and Hayes, 1998). The joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission describes the steps needed to implement the HACCP system. Before implementing a company should have minimum hygiene measures, for example, according to the Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene, the appropriate Codex Codes of Practice and appropriate food safety legislation. These requirements should be well specified and documented, fully operational and verified in order to facilitate the successful application and implementation of HACCP (National Board of Experts-HACCP, 2002 in Plaggenhoef et al., 2002 ) The HACCP system which is science based and systematic, identifies specific hazards and measures for their control to ensure the safety of food. HACCP is a tool to assess hazards and establish control systems that focus on prevention rather than relying mainly on end-product testing (FAO/WHO, 1997). e. ISO 22000:2005 ISO 22000 is international standard that was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 34, Food products. This International Standard specifies the requirements for a food safety management system that combines the fol owing general y recognized key elements to ensure food safety along the food chain, up to the point of final consumption: interactive communication, system management, prerequisite programs, and HACCP principles. This International Standard integrates the principles of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system and application steps developed by the Codex Alimentarius Commission. By means of auditable requirements, it combines the HACCP plan with prerequisite programs (PRPs). This International Standard specifies requirements for a food safety management system where an organization in the food chain needs to demonstrate its ability to control food safety hazards in order to ensure that food is safe at the time of human consumption (ISO, 2005). 1.3. The Relationship between Prerequisite program, HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) and TQM (Total Quality Management) Fish plants that operate with HACCP system will have the required prerequisite programs that includes GMP and some industry sectors in Indonesia include SSOP. The fish processing plants that do not have HACCP system, the GMP remains essential for addressing food safety. It is more appropriate for the HACCP prerequisite to be used instead of the basic GMP. The prerequisite programs provides more comprehensive coverage of the requirements relating to conditions and activities in a food plant than will the GMP. In food plants that do not operate with HACCP systems but have implemented the ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems standard, as a minimum the GMP should be part of the applicable regulatory requirements of the standard (Alli, 2004). All food plants need to develop and implement a program of GMP to address food safety requirement. Food plants that develop and implement the HACCP systems to address food safety also need to develop and implement the HACCP prerequisite programs. The activities for GMP or the HACCP prerequisite programs that are developed at a food plant should be documented as SOP. In addition, where monitoring, inspection, or testing is carried out as part of the programs, records should be kept as evidence that these activities are actually performed (Alli, 2004). HACCP is an approach to hygienic food production by prevention of problem (Forsythe and Hayes, 1998). The hazards analysis portion of HACCP involves a systematic study of the ingredients, the food product, the conditions of processing, handling, storage, packaging, distribution and consumer use (Pearson and Dutson, 1999). TQM is an effort for continuously improving the quality of all process, products, and services through universal participation of all employees, that lead greater customer satisfaction and loyality, and improved business results (Sarvadan, 1992 in Pearson and Dutson, 1999). In many cases, the TQM approach has produced remarkable changes in how management and employees envision and interpret quality. The TQM approach requires a company to develop a strategy, involving all levels and functions of the company, which focuses on satisfying the customer. Everyone involved TQM will have a new mind set towards quality. Consequently, there will be a drastic and permanent change in the culture of company, giving company personnel an entirely new focus on quality improvement (Pearson and Dutson, 1999). The combination of TQM and HAACP, include GMP and SSOP, provides a total systems approach to food processing, encompassing the elements of food safety, food quality and food productivity (NFPA, 1992). This combine method will stress commitment, education, preventive and corrective action, statistical control, record keeping, verification and teamwork (Pearson and Dutson, 1999). TQM teams, responsible for developing and implementing HACCP, should comprise representatives from a variety of discipline and workers from all levels. This type of diversity assures effective evaluation of all areas that may have an impact on safe food processing (Pearson and Dutson, 1999). Summary In summary, hazard in food industry may be includes biological, physical, and microbiological aspects. They present new challenges to the industry and they must be eliminated during the manufacture of safe and wholesomeness food. All finished product must be audited for quality assurance through the marketing channel, and every plant must establish quality assurance department with full authority to uphold the policies and standards of food firm for the production of safe and safety. High quality foods that are safe are in great demand and the technology is available to any food firm to live well within the rules and regulation for the production of foods that are most acceptable.

America Needs More Immigrants Essays -- Immigrants Immigration Persua

America Needs More Immigrants America is sometimes referred to as a "nation of immigrants" because of our largely open-door policy toward accepting foreigners pursuing their vision of the American Dream. Recently, there has been a clamor by some politicians and citizens toward creating a predominantly closed-door policy on immigration, arguing that immigrants "threaten" American life by creating unemployment by taking jobs from American workers, using much-needed social services, and encroaching on the "American way of life." While these arguments may seem valid to many, they are almost overwhelmingly false, and more than likely confused with the subject of illegal immigration. In fact, immigrants actually enhance American life by creating, not taking jobs, bolster social service funds through tax payments, and bring valuable technical knowledge and skills to our country. If we are to continue to excel as a nation, the traditionalists who fear an encroachment of foreign-born Americans must learn to ac cept that we achieved our greatness as a result of being "a nation of immigrants." Â  A common argument among those opposing further immigration is that foreigners take U.S. jobs and cause unemployment among the displaced American workers. In the July 13, 1992 edition of Business Week , a poll states that sixty-two percent of non-blacks and sixty-three percent of blacks agree that "new immigrants take jobs away from American workers." This is a widely held, if erroneous belief, among Americans. However, Julian L. Simon, author of The Economic Consequences of Immigration , states: immigration does not exacerbate unemployment...Immigrants not only take jobs, but also create them. Their purchases increas... ...cent more likely...to have post-graduate educations" than Americans, according to Simon. The traditionalists opposing immigration must recognize our lives are enhanced by their knowledge and education, and that in order to "preserve our nation", they must realize we are a "nation of immigrants" and let others prove their worth. Â  The issue of immigration must be dealt with rationally, not emotionally. Facts, figures, and statistics must be studied by both sides in order to reach a decision most beneficial to our nation. Our lives are enhanced by the new jobs created by immigrants, the social service funds bolstered by their tax payments, and the valuable technical skills and knowledge brought with them. These benefits far outweigh any negative effects and prove the value of immigrants as they pursue the American Dream in our "nation of immigrants." Â  

Equal But Different Essay -- essays research papers

For centuries blacks have suffered discrimination from the white society. They were thought to be uncivilized because of their dark skin color. Today, discrimination against skin color no longer exists legally in the United States. Public schools and workplaces are mixed with a variety colors and races from different countries. Though, it may seem that skin color doesn’t matter in society, the majority of society only make close friends or marry someone from their own race. Most of these feelings towards another of a different skin color are deeply rooted in our minds from previous generations. Their mentality prevents them from behaving the same. Difference in behavior from a multicolored society is evident in schools, in society, and in television. Most teenagers only hang around people from their own race. There is evidence of this in the school cafeteria. The cafeteria is split up in two parts. On one side, black teenagers eat with their same-colored friends. On the other side, whites and latinos sit separately in their own tables. Someone might say, â€Å"Well, that group sits apart from the other because they don’t speak the same language as the other group†. You mean to tell me that no black or latino can speak English. If skin color doesn’t matter then why doesn’t everyone sit together at lunch? When everyone is growing up they imagine themselves getting married to someone perfect with their skin-color. With a few exceptions, the majority of the population marries someo...

Political Stupidity Essay

In E . J. Dionne’s essay, â€Å"Political Stupidity, U. S. Style† he wants to address the political stupidity that the government is making. To start his argument, he raises an emotional question, â€Å"Can a nation remain a superpower if its internal politics are incorrigibly stupid? † The author is saying are we letting politics, irrational ideas on fiscal policy and an antiquated political structure undermine our power. He divides political stupidity into three parts: stupid tax policies, irrational ideas on fiscal policy and antiquated political structure. In his essay, â€Å"Political Stupidity, U.S Style,† Dionne employs ethos, connotation and an emotional appeal. In paragraph sixteen, Dionne uses ethos. He writes, â€Å"I’m a chronic optimist about America. † E. J. Dionne is confident about the future to get better but we need well intentioned republicans who care about the nation interest to realize something has gone fundamentally wrong with their party and work to help bring it back. To get rid of political stupidity, he wants to form a senate, a new conservatism that is worthy of our name, liberals willing to speak out on the threat our daft politics poses to our influence in the world, and moderates. However the readers might have complete trust of the government of the United States and so they might not like someone questioning their credibility. In paragraph number seventeen, Dionne uses connotation saying â€Å"We need moderates who do more than stick their fingers in the wind to calculate the halfway point between two political poles. † Dionne is hoping to make people aware of the political stupidity and the need to bring change in the system of politics. Sticking their fingers in the wind, means a person putting his finger in the wind is unlikely to come up with original solutions, and decisions are made without backing evidence. It says that the politicians are making blind decisions without even thinking about its consequences. It also makes them look like fools running the country. However, if some people think that the politicians were fools, the United States would not have been a super power. In paragraph seven, Dionne uses a strict emotional appeal as a mean to persuade his audience. He writes, â€Å"The simple truth is that the wealthy in the United States- the people who have made almost all the income gains in recent years- are under taxed compared with everyone else. † Consider two reports from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. One, issued last month, highlighted findings from the Congressional Budget Office showing that, â€Å"The gaps in after-tax income between the richest 1 percent of Americans and the middle and poorest fifths of the country more than tripled between 1979 and 2007. † The other, from February, used Internal Revenue Service data to show that the effective federal income tax rate for the 400 taxpayers with the very highest incomes declined by nearly half in just over a decade, even as their pre-tax incomes have grown five times larger. He writes this, hoping that by using the reports from the Congressional Budget Office, he would be able to prove his point that the United States is politically stupid. It seems as if he is trying to bring awareness among the people of the United States about the decisions made by politicians. Although he has demonstrated his evidence very convincingly and it seems that he would get his readers attention and they would listen to his concerns but some of his readers think that he is being blunt and through his essay he is making direct acquisitions on the politicians of the United States. The United States is falling behind and the public seems not to notice. In paragraph number fourteen, Dionne talks about the structure of our government. He talks about how the ratio between the largest and smallest state was 13 to 1. Now it’s 68 to 1. He writes,† because of the abuse of the filibuster, 41 senators representing less than 11 percent of the national population can, in principle, block action supported by 59 senators representing more than 89 percent of our population. And you wonder why it’s hard to get anything done in Washington? ’’ Dionne gives convincing evidence to support his claim which is the politics of the United States is stupid. He uses ethos and shows his concerns by saying he is a chronic optimist about America. He also uses reports to prove his point and persuade the audience. However he seems blunt and tells it like it is without any fear.