Three Strikes Youre Out Law Essays - California Law, Criminal Law

Three Strikes You're Out Law Three Strikes You're Out Law We have all heard of the newest anti-crime law, the "Three strikes and you're out" law. It wasn't easy getting this law from the bill stage in Sacramento to the law stage, because it is not a criminal friendly law. Meaning that this law's purpose is to bring pain, suffering, and intimidation to criminals. Our state government was basically ran by the Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, now mayor of San Francisco. Brown had the power to choose who sat on what committee in the house, and using this he could terminate any bill he did not agree with. And with this attitude it took a lot of patients and perseverance by the people trying to pass this bill. But how did the bill become a bill? I will answer this question with help of the Kimber Reynolds story. Monday, June 29, 1992 in Fresno, California a young woman was brutally murdered outside The Daily Planet, a restaurant patronized by the local young people. The girl was visiting home for the summer after being in the Los Angeles area attending school. Her and a friend were getting into their car when two guys on a motorcycle rode up next to Kimber Reynolds blocking her in, taking her purse, and beating her into submission. The story made the 11 o'clock news only minutes after her father had gone to bed. When police ran a background check on the two suspected men, Joeseph Micheal Davis and Douglas Walker, both men had recently been released on parole with multiple offenses on their records. Unfortunately Davis was never brought in because when police were attempting to arrest him he began firing, wounding unsuspecting police officers and ultimately being killed. Douglas Walker was convicted of accessory to murder. Mike Reynolds, Kimber's father, went on the radio on a local radio show called the Ray Appleton Show, KMJ 580. There he would discuss his outrage about how he was sick of repeat offenders being locked up only to be released after a fraction of the sentence was completed. He swore to the people listening that he was going to do something about the problem, even if it takes him forever. Listening to that show was Fresno Assemblyman Bill Jones (R). He was interested in the issue and arranged a meeting with Mike. They discussed ideas about how they could solve this problem. With that in mind Mike used some connections and gathered one superior, one appellate, and one municipal court judge, as well as a well-known local defense attorney, a representative from the Fresno Police Department, an expert in juvenile justice and Ray Appleton. The men did some research and drew up some ideas. Their final legislative proposal was as follows: Double the sentence for a conviction of any felony if there is a previous serious or violent felony conviction. Triple the sentence or twenty-five years to life, whichever is greater, for any combination of two prior violent or serious felony convictions coupled with any new felony. Probation, a suspended sentence, or a commitment to a diversion program as a substitute for serving time in prison is prohibited for felons with at least one prior conviction of a serious or violent felony. Any felon with at least one prior serious or violent felony conviction must serve any subsequent felony sentence in a state prison (as opposed to a county jail). Terms are to be served consecutively, rather than concurrently. Maximum allowable time off for good behavior is reduced to 20 percent. Juvenile convictions for serious of violent felonies count as prior convictions if the felony was committed when the juvenile was sixteen or seventeen years old. When a defendant has at least one prior conviction for a serious or violent felony, the district attorney is required to plead and prove all known prior felony convictions. Prior felony convictions cannot be used as part of a plea-bargain. Now that Mike had the proposal he had Bill Jones submit it to the state legislature. Right away the bill was sent to the Assembly Public Safety committee to be approved. This committee is known as a killer of tough-on-crime bills, and consisted of eight members, Paula Boland, Richard Rainey, Tom Umberg, Tom Bates, John Burton, Barbara Lee, and committee chairman Robert Epple. Both Boland and Rainey were Republicans while the rest were Democrats, and one vacant seat due to unknown reasons. This committee was moderate or even moderately conservative, but because Willie Brown had the power to choose members of the committee he chose those people whom he thought would sway the vote towards

Sample Appeal Letter for a College Rejection

Sample Appeal Letter for a College Rejection If youve been rejected from college, you often have the option of appeal. The letter below illustrates a possible approach for appealing a college rejection. Before appealing, however, make sure you have a legitimate reason for appealing a rejection. In the majority of cases, an appeal is not warranted. If you do not have significant new information to report to a college, do not write an appeal. Also, make sure the college accepts appeals before writing one.   Features of a Successful Appeal Letter Address your letter to your admissions representative.Present a legitimate reason for appealing.Be respectful and positive, not angry or whiny.Keep your letter brief and to the point. Sample Appeal Letter Ms. Jane GatekeeperDirector of AdmissionsIvy Tower CollegeCollegetown, USA Dear Ms. Gatekeeper, Although I was not surprised when I received a rejection letter from Ivy Tower College, I was extremely disappointed. I knew when I applied that my SAT scores from the November exam were below average for Ivy Tower. I also knew at the time of the SAT exam (because of illness) that my scores did not represent my true ability. However, since I applied to Ivy Tower back in January, I have retaken the SAT and improved my scores measurably. My math score went from a 570 to a 660, and my reading score went up a full 120 points. I have instructed the College Board to send these new scores to you.I know Ivy Tower discourages appeals, but I hope you will accept these new scores and reconsider my application. I have also had the best quarter yet at my high school (a 4.0 unweighted), and I have enclosed my most recent grade report for your consideration. Again, I fully understand and respect your decision to deny me admission, but I do hope you will reopen my file to consider this new information. I was tremendously impressed by Ivy Tower when I visited last fall, and it remains the school I would most like to attend. Sincerely, Joe Student Discussion of the Appeal Letter As stated above, before writing a letter of appeal, you need to make sure you have a  legitimate reason to appeal. You must also make sure the college allows appeals- many schools do not. Theres a good reason for this- nearly all rejected students feel they have been treated unfairly or that the admissions staff failed to read their applications carefully. Many colleges simply dont want to deal with the flood of appeals they would receive if they allowed applicants to argue their cases. In Joes case, he learned that Ivy Tower College (obviously not the real name) does accept appeals, although the school discourages appeals. Joe addressed his letter to the Director of Admissions at the college. If you have a contact in the admissions office- either the Director or the representative for your geographic region- it is best to write to a specific person. If you dont have the name of an individual, you can address your letter with To Whom It May Concern or Dear Admissions Personnel. An actual name, of course, sounds much better. Now on to the body of Joes letter. Note that Joe is not whining. Admissions officers hate whining, and it wont get you anywhere. Joe is not saying that his rejection was unfair, nor is he insisting that the admissions office made a mistake. He may think these things, but he isnt including them in his letter. Instead, in both the opening and closing of the letter, he notes that he respects the decision of the admissions folks. Most important for an appeal, Joe does have a reason to appeal. He  tested poorly on the SAT, and he retook the exam and brought up his scores dramatically. Notice that Joe makes mention of being sick when he first took the SAT, but he is not using that as an excuse. An admissions officer is not going to reverse a decision simply because a student claims some kind of testing hardship. You need actual scores to show your potential, and Joe comes through with the new scores. Also, Joe is wise to send along his most recent grade report. He is doing extremely well in school, and the admissions officers will like to see those strong grades. Joe is not slacking off senior year, and his grades are trending upward, not down. He is certainly not revealing signs of senioritis, and he has avoided the issues in this weak appeal letter. Note that Joes letter is brief and to the point. Hes not wasting the time of the admissions officers with a long rambling letter. The college already has Joes application, so he doesnt need to repeat that information in the appeal. Joes letter does three important things in a concise manner. He states his respect for the admissions decision; he presents the new information that is the basis for his appeal, and he reaffirms his interest in the college. Were he to write anything else, he would be wasting the time of the admissions officers. A Final Word About Joes Appeal It is important to be realistic about an appeal. Joe writes a good letter and has significantly better scores to report. However, he is likely to fail in his appeal. The appeal is certainly worth a try, but the majority of rejection appeals are not successful.

Average Cost Curves Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Average Cost Curves - Case Study Example These critical business decisions will be made with the help of Average Cost Curves. These graphs will convey information about optimum production levels and the most beneficial expansion scheme. Total Average Cost is the average fixed cost plus the average variable cost. The Short Run Average Cost (SRAC) is the average cost of the product when at least one input variable remains fixed. This is usually the building or the plant used in manufacturing. The Long Run Average Cost (LRAC) is the average cost over a longer time period when all input variables have changed. It takes into account new plants, buildings, and large capital investments. Though these curves will vary depending on the individual product and situation, for a successful business they will almost always assume the same general shape. The shape of the SRAC curve and the LRAC curve are influenced by the changing input variables plotted against differing production levels. As Acme begins production, the cost of the first few units is heavily influenced by the fixed costs such as the lease on the building. The graph will start at a high average cost per unit. As they increase production levels, the fixed costs become spread out over more units and the SRAC begins to fall. At this point, the graph will begin to slope downward as the quantity rises. The SRAC will continue to decrease as production increases toward full capacity, as both fixed and variable (due to material volume) cost per unit declines. This period of declining SRAC is known as the economy of scale. When the factory has reached full capacity, its resources are being optimised and the total average cost per unit has reached a minimum. Manufacturing beyond this point will begin to increase the average cost as variable costs rise, and the process will enter a period of diseconomy of scale. Added expenses such as temporary labour, overtime, and additional management are a few of the factors that can contribute to the rising variable cost. Here, the graph turns upward reflecting the higher average cost. As more units are produced, the average cost continues to rise dramatically reflecting the inefficiencies involved with over capacity production. This is known as the law of diminishing returns. A key component and indicator on the graph of the SRAC is the Marginal Cost (MC). This is the total cost of producing the next unit. With an efficient factory running near capacity, this will be at a minimum, and less than the average. However, going beyond this point will cause the marginal cost to spike upward on a steeper slope than the average. When the marginal cost line crosses the average, production is at its most efficient. As marginal costs rise, it pulls the SRAC curve up with it, though at a less responsive rate. Acme could remain profitable in this area of increasing costs and diminishing returns as long as MC is below the selling price. However, to maximise resources it is desirable to keep the SRAC at a minimum. The point at which the marginal cost begins to rise and cross the SRAC is the point at which Acme must consider expanding their production capabilities. Acme has already planned for this expansion. They are no where near market saturation and the product design has a long life ahead of it. Their sales are increasing and they have studied various plans on the

Do you believe tht the incresing power of dvertising tht these uthors Essay

Do you believe tht the incresing power of dvertising tht these uthors points to is hrmful to mericn culture - Essay Example widely red nd generlly pprecited nlysis of mening in dvertisements is discussed by Glori Steinem where she wlks the reder through gllery of dvertisements nd discusses their ideologicl content. Her own criticl perspective is informed by vriety of theorists, including Ferdinnd de Sussure, Krl Mrx, Louis lthusser, Rymond Willims, Sigmund Freud, nd Jcques Lcn. Steinem's pedgogic objective is to tech the nive reder how to interpret dvertisements long the lines of these theorists, nd mny reders do find tht their criticl bilities re gretly developed by pplying Steinem's theories: dvertisements lose whtever simple qulities they my hve hd nd become insted texts bout production nd consumption in the consumer society, bout the plce of commodities in socil life, nd bout the cretion of needs to service n economic system tht must sell wht hs been produced. In ddition to teching the interprettion of dvertisements, Steinem explins how dvertising constructs the ideologicl principles tht re embedded in it. For exmple, mny dvertisements borrow ides from externl sources ("referent systems") such s culturl history or concepts of nture. In the process of ppropriting, reworking, nd using them, dvertising trnsforms the borrowed ides. The dvertisements for Virgini Slims cigrettes, which frequently refer to the history of women's, struggle for socil nd economic equlity in meric, illustrte this process. Selected events from this struggle re retold nd edited in selected wys, nd progress is depicted s contemporry women's hving gined the right to smoke. Similrly, hundreds of products tht proclim their "nturl" qulities re in relity highly ltered through complex mnufcturing processes. Instnces like these, Steinem clims, illustrte the construction of ideology through dvertisements. The resulting distortions over the long run lter our understndings of th e originl ides tht were borrowed nd (mis)used within dvertising. Steinem's pproch to the interprettion of dvertisements is founded on her gol of trnsforming the reder's skills. She does not tret s problemtic tht uninstructed reders mke whtever sense they do of the thousnds of dvertisements populting their dily lives. Neither does she tke ny gret interest in how the copywriters who produced the dvertisements thought bout their work. Insted, she ssumes tht nive reder's filure to see the issues she uncovers is flse consciousness of their mening, flseness on which dvertising depends to do its work. The pproch hinges fundmentlly on Steinem's own skill in pplying the vrious theoreticl perspectives to the dvertisements. From the outset she bedzzles the reder by observing detils nd ptterns in dvertisements tht ordinrily slip by n udience. She repetedly points out the contrdictions between wht dvertisements seem to sy nd wht they relly men ccording to the vrious perspectives. lthough Steinem considers dvertising's udience nive, she does not ssume tht its members re merely receivers of pckged messges tht emnte from dvertisers. Rther, she rgues, the udience is implicted in the production of mening, collbortion tht dvertising continully invites: [] crucil feture of these odds nd ends of thought used by ds is tht they do not exist "independently" but in our thought: it is we, s subjects, who re ppeled to s providers of these

Portfolio of work Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Portfolio of work - Article Example This medium will allow the company to benefit from direct sales of the publication. Unlike online sources which often rely on advertising revenue, a print magazine can take advantage of both direct sales of the product as well as advertising proceeds. Furthermore, it will be easier to estimate the readership and market share of the product when this format is adopted (Williams, 2009). The magazine will have giveaways and prizes attached, so a tangible medium is the best alternative. Mothers are the target audience for the monthly edition. These women are likely to be educated, working and social. Age may not be a relevant segment because stories will target mothers with teenagers, infants or children of school-going age. Nonetheless, the design of the magazine will be biased towards fun-loving and upbeat personalities. These women will not be one-track minded. They may be administrators at their places of work, members of the local rotary club or volunteers at their churches. A numbe r of them are likely to wear the proverbial ‘many hats’. This explains why the magazine will contain a rich mix of topics. Since the publication will be relatively cheap, it is probable that readers will not belong to one income status. It is meant to be all-encompassing and accessible, even to those who are struggling to make ends meet. This idea is ripe for the local print magazine market because women require an unpretentious and accessible reading item. The current magazines in the market do not cover a wide range of topics like the ones that this magazine will contain. Most of them have very narrow topic selections. ‘Real Mom’ will be different because it will address all manners of lifestyle issues. Furthermore, its emphasis on people’s real-life experiences will make it personal and relatable. The magazine will go for a $1.5, which is much lower than other magazines in the market. Low prices often guarantee a wide reach and thus high circulati on. Furthermore, this amount will lure infrequent magazine readers to try out this new brand. Part 2: Cover letter Dear ‘Real Mom’ Hiring Manager I would like to submit my application for the position of staff writer as described in your newspaper advertisement. Real Mom is a publication that is at the heart of my personal interests. I have been an advent reader of the magazine since its inception. Its engaging topics have always been delivered in a fun and heartwarming manner. As a former writer for ‘Fitness Fanatic’ magazine, I have submitted 150 articles and published 75% of them. I wrote about various lifestyle topics like â€Å"the unpalatable taste of artificial sweeteners†, â€Å"Cheat days," â€Å"Etiquette rules for weight watchers," â€Å"Halle Berry’s workout regimen† and â€Å"Unrealistic expectations at the gym." I relied on interviews, newspapers, books and online authorities for these articles. These topics were often original ideas that I pitched to my superiors. Therefore, I meet one of the requirements you described in the advertisement about conducting research and conceptualizing ideas. Prior to the submission of topics, members of my organization gave the senior editor suggestions on possible areas of publication. Sometimes the magazine leaned towards particular angles, which we needed to build on. I am thus familiar with group dynamics after collaborating with several staff members in such sessions (Conley and Stephen, 2006). This is

Hofstede Theory of Cultural Differences

Hofstede Theory of Cultural Differences As we know that today we are living in an era of globalization and culture has a very significant impact on the organization in which operates. Thats why so many researchers have placed too much importance to create a good relationship between the practices and culture of an organization in which it operates, but on the other hand according to the Earley (1994), if management practices are not according to the needs and demands of their employees so then the following problems will arise such as de motivation, low productivity and high turnover. So in order to overcome such problems, a very serious attention much is given to improve the culture of an organization as it ultimately effects the development and effectiveness of HRM strategies and policies. For better understanding of the effect of national cultures on development and effectiveness of HRM strategies, firstly the concept of culture must be clearly understood. A pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaption and internal integration that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems. Brewster et al (2008), p.14-15 This definition of culture basically defines that culture is a set of believes, norms and values that people acquire and share with others. The basic feature of culture is that, culture is adaptive. It is helpful for those people who are coming or joining a new place and easily come to know about the existing problems in an organization. Another definition for a culture is: the core of culture is composed of explicit and tacit assumptions or understandings commonly held by a group of people; a particular configuration of assumptions/understandings is distinctive to the group; these assumptions/understandings serve as guides to acceptable and unacceptable perceptions, thoughts, feelings and behaviours; they are learned and passed to new members of the group through social interaction; culture is dynamic it changes over time (Milliken and Martins, 1989). This definition by Milliken and Martins basically defines that culture has two characteristics, first is, its a collective phenomenon, everybody used to share it and secondly it shapes the way people of that culture thinks and respond. As discussed earlier, this is an era of globalization, every single nation has its own culture, their way of thinking, perceiving, responding is absolutely different from different nations. That is why every culture has its own set of values, beliefs and norms. And it easily be seen by different examples of nations like wise: if we see USA the rate of freedom is very much high over there similarly independence, individualism and level of competition tends to be very high in USA but on the other hand lets take Japan where much importance is given to belongingness, all the work is done on group consensus, seniority is also taken into account and cooperate with each other as much as they can similarly in Arab countries family harmony and parental guidance is high and much of the authority is given to the senior member of the society. In Asian countries like Pakistan, ratio of hospitality is very high, respect for seniors and aged people are also high, mostly a decision is taken by havin g guidance from a senior member of a family. Most of the cross-cultural researchers like Hodstede and Trompenaars argued that the culture of the society plays a vital role and helps a lot in reshaping the practices of the management. As the society vastly vary in cultures, management has to keep in mind different methods for motivation of the employees from different cultures and sometimes it creates a problem for the management in decision making process. Hofstede Cultural Dimension: Now I will explain in detail that how management practices differs when organization operates in diverse cultures. Taking into consideration the work done by Hofstede (1980), where he carried out a research by analysing the questionnaires filled up by IBM employees in 70 countries. He concluded that cultural differences depend on four factors: Power Distance: Power distance is the extent in which less powerful members of the society or organization enjoys unequal distribution of the power. For instance, Females and Minorities. In organizations where power distance is high, Hierarchy tends to be taller where all major decisions are taken by few members of the top level management and all decision making process is centralised. High power distance also means that low level management cannot challenge the decision taken by upper level management and also it is very difficult to meet them. But on the other hand where power distance is low, decision making process is decentralised, all the big and small decisions are approved by taking help from the low level management. The basic concept over here is the employee empowerment, and these organizations are found with flat hierarchical pyramid. For Instance: Virgin group of companies. Where chairman of the organization have made small departments and they are allowed to take all decisions regardi ng their department, this helps them out in good decision making skills and also the employee empowerment. Uncertainty Avoidance: Uncertainty avoidance is the extent to which people feel threatened about a typical situation and have created a set of beliefs in order to avoid these situations. High uncertainty avoidance companies or nations tend to have a strong belief on heir experts and their knowledge and their managers are low risk takers and have a high need for security and these countries are usually developed nations. And countries with low uncertainty avoidance tend to be more risk takers. All activities running in an organization are usually unstructured and there are few written rules, as the managers are willing to accept the risk that is why employee turnover is high in these organizations. From the perspective of HR, all employees are open to accept the new ideas and viewpoints. Individualism versus Collectivism: Individualism refers to the extent to which people look after for themselves and their immediate family only. People in individualistic society tend to gain individual rewards and want to take all decisions by themselves. As they are responsible for their decisions only, they also rewarded individually. Countries which are high in individualism tend to be wealthier and developed, where all promotions are made on the basis of market value. But on the other hand, societies with collectivism tend to work in a group and take care for each other in exchange of loyalty. Countries which are high in collectivism tend to be poorer, where individual initiatives are low and promotions are given on the basis of seniority. Hofstede argued that countries like America, Great Britain and Australia tend to be individualistic societies. Where employees are running behind the individual recognition and promotion in an organization is the major motivational force. But countries like China, Japan and Pak istan, tend to be collectivist society, where all decisions are made on group consensus. Everybody take care for each other and employees are more focused towards group recognition. And the most important over here is that, management encourages cooperation and loyalty and they are treated as a family rather than an individual working for the organization. In 1992 Holden mentioned collectivist society as: Japanese managers spend up to 30% of their time, in and outside normal office hours, educating their younger colleagues and initiating them in the lore and wisdom of the company, preparing them functionally and psychologically for the operations outside the firm (Holden, 1992, p.31) Masculinity versus Femininity: A Masculine culture is the one in which basic social values are success, money and things. A country which is high in masculinity, people laid great importance on recognition, advancement, showing off, material achievement and being outward. But on the other hand countries which are high in femininity, tend to be caring and loving. A great importance is laid on cooperation, group decision making, friendly atmosphere and more employee freedom. Organizations which are working in low masculine society, promotions are made on the basis of merits and all employees are treated as a member of one family, but in organization working in high feminine society, rewards are set in such a way so that more and more competition takes place between employees rather than cooperation. Conclusion: It can easily be concluded that, Hofstede shows that national cultures contain at least four dimensions and every organization has to come up with these dimensions as they are working in diverse cultures. After analysing these dimensions a company can easily operate in diverse cultured society as national culture has a significant impact on the organization. Knowledge of different cultures is very much essential for the organizations which are working as multinationals and also for HR Professionals, as people who are going to hired by the organization have different set of beliefs regarding motivation, loyalty, career development and decision making. So a proper match must be there between the organization practices and the national culture, in this way an organization can easily succeed in a society in which it operates. So that there would be a positive impact of national culture on the development and effectiveness of HRM strategies and policies.

Essay --

Although the European Union consists of a large variety of institutions, the most important institution is the European Commission. Established in 1958 and based in Luxemburg and Brussels, this hybrid institution (executive and bureaucratic) â€Å"epitomizes supranationalism and lies at the center of the EU political system† (Dinan, 2010, p. 171). It has a substantial bulk of responsibilities and carries out these responsibilities with a vast number of constituents, acting as the executive for the EU. These responsibilities include anything from drafting and initiating policy to managing the financial framework of the EU, and can have a large impact on the other institutions of the EU. In order to â€Å"promote the general interests of the Union,† the Commission strives to unify the interests of the member states and is continually working for implementation and harmonization of EU law (Dinan, 2010, p. 191). Although not the most popular, in the sense that â€Å"Europeans generally view the Commission as power-hungry, insensitive to their concerns, and subversive of national political systems,† the Commission carries out responsibilities that play a key role in EU policy on a daily basis (Dinan, 2010, p. 171-172). These responsibilities include drafting and initiating policy, supervising the enforcement of the acquis communautaire and other legislation, managing the budget, and representing the interests of the EU internationally. Given its core position within the structure of the EU (kind of as an overseer of the EU as a whole), the Commission has developed active relations with the other institutions in order to carry out these responsibilities. Although other institutions also play an active role in the implementation of EU policy, no othe... ...itiate policy, supervise the enforcement of the acquis communautaire and other legislation, manage the budget, and represent the interests of the EU internationally. Although it may not have the final say in arbiting law, it has quite a lot of influence on the Council and ECJ due to its knowledge on the acquis communautaire and EU law. Due to its high volume of responsibilities, the Commission must have a large number of experts in order to fulfill them. If anything about drafting or initiating law is in question, there will always be an expert that can answer it, whether it is a DG or advisory committee. Through this network of responsibilities and experts, the Commission has become the most important institution by being able to effectively â€Å"implement a range of EU policies and programs;† one of the most prominent goals of the European Union (Dinan, 2010, p. 202).