Project Plan for Whitbread World Sailboat Race

Project Plan for Whitbread World Sailboat Race Free Online Research Papers The Whitbread World Sailboat Race is a nine month round the world race. Bjorn Ericksen has been chosen to head his country’s crew. This entails development of a design, construction of the vessel, and formation of a crew to train for competition in the upcoming Whitbread Sailboat Race. This project must be completed within a 45 week time frame and maintain a planned budget of $3.2 million. Management of this current project requires analyzing of Ericksen strategy, the plan to reduce project duration, the project closure approach, and completion of the project. This paper will show the advantages of crash time, maintaining of performance, budget overruns cost and completion of the project. First one must begin with the strategy of the project. Bjorn Ericksen Project Strategy Analysis Bjorn Ericksen has been selected to represent his country for the Whitbread World Sailboat Race as the project manager. â€Å"Bjorn is pleased and proud to have the opportunity to design, build, test and train the crew for next year’s Whitbread entry for his country.† (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 305) To begin compiling his winning team Bjorn has hand picked to key person for the team. He has chosen as his chief design engineer, Karin Knutsen and as his master helmsman, Trygve Wallvik. Both men will have the responsibility of getting next year’s entry ready for the entries parade in the United Kingdom. The parade takes place on the Thames River which signals the beginning of the race. Bjorn sees two parallel path running through the project; design and construction and training of the crew. The new crew will need to train on the previous year’s vessel until this year vessel is complete and ready for trails. The goal is to have the crew ready to compete and a winning vessel within the next 45 weeks, with the cost of $3.2 million. The new vessel must be ready within the 45 weeks to leave port to begin the race in the United Kingdom. The Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race began in England in September 1973. The race itself was conceived by the Royal Naval Sailing Association over a pint of beer some 30 years ago and was sponsored by a London-based brewery company. Each year countries enter sailing vessels in the nine-month Round the World Whitbread Sailboat Race. In years, about 14 countries entered sailboats in the race. Each year’s sailboat entries represent the latest technologies and human skills each country can muster. (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 304) The race has since changed its name to the Volvo Ocean Race and is run every four years. Karin has slated the first six weeks for the design of the vessel. After the design is finished, projected construction of the hull will take approximately 12 weeks. Accessories such as the mast and sail will arrive in 15 weeks. After the hull, the ballast tank should take two weeks to install. Building of the deck and coating the hull can be completed at the same time. Next all order parts should have arrived and are ready for installation by the crew. When the remaining parts have been installed, testing of the vessel can begin which should take approximately five weeks. The team leaders show a projection of cost starting at $3,152,000 for the race under normal conditions, this would require approximately 50 weeks to complete the project. The team also has a crash time projection and cost of an alternate plan in case of delays or other unforeseen circumstances. However, based on those projections the project could be finished in 42 weeks with a budget around $4.952 million. Based on the first plan from items from the Activity Chart with items A through K, which is from design to testing, the approximate cost is $2,520,000 and will take 36 weeks to complete. The component is selecting a crew, once the crew is selected and equipment purchased. The crew must develop a sailing program as well as a maintenance program must began, this take approximately 15 weeks. After the initial training, the sea trials will take approximately 8 weeks. At this point from M to S of the Activity Chart the cost is approximately $270,000. The operating expense of both boats is $162,000; $60, 000 for the old boat and $102,000 for the new boat. The direct cost of the sea trials will be $200,000 and the indirect cost is $48,000 for the use of the boat. The schedule from design to the sea trials is 44 weeks, the schedule time of 46 weeks from training the crew to the sea trials. This means that scheduled time must be reduced in order to reach the goal and arrive at the starting point on time to begin the race. Plan to Reduce Project Duration The initial cost of the current schedule will cost approximately $3.152 million and will take approximately 50 weeks to finish. The current project estimates are under budget, but the time frame is not acceptable. Bjorn needs to decide which activities need to be crashed, and understand the priorities of the project. The team must define the project’s scope. â€Å"Defining the project scope sets the stage for developing a project plan. Project scope is a definition of the end result or mission of your project- a product or service for your client/customer. The primary purpose is to define as clearly as possible the deliverables for the end user and to focus projects plans.† (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 100) The project scope is based on independent critical paths, design and construction. The total time for completion of this project is 46 weeks; however, the race begins in 45 weeks. Bjorn, Karin and Trygve spent the first two weeks planning and estimating the cost of the project. This leaves 43 weeks before the vessel must leave for the United Kingdom. After reviewing the Activity Chart items A-S, the project plan is refined by developing a plan to see which cost estimates should be crashed to meet their current deadline. This critical plan runs activities A, B, C, G, R, S, and L, which will take approximately 50 weeks. This is taken in consideration comparing the maximum crash times, still does not reduce the time of the project enough to meet the time frame needed. It does however, increase the cost significantly. In order to reduce project, Bjorn must reduce the activities of the critical path. The goal is a reduction of seven weeks from 50 weeks to 43 weeks. To do so activities A, B, R, S and L must change, doing so will decrease the project time by eight weeks, activities C and G show no signs of change from either normal or crash times. Limiting activity L could save money, it has a crash cost of $250 per unit. â€Å"One of the primary jo bs of a project manager is to manage the trade-offs among time, cost, and performance. To do so, project managers must define and understand the nature of the priorities of the project† (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 103) this is done by using a project priority matrix. In the case of Whitbread Sailboat Race, time is a fixed factor. The delivery of a crew and vessel are pertinent to the race. The race has a fixed start time that cannot be missed, to do so would mean the project has failed. The cost is higher, the crew and vessel are of higher qualities, which is need for the performance needed to win the race. â€Å"Reducing quality is always an option, but it is rarely accepted or used. If quality is sacrificed, it may be possible to reduce the time of an activity on the critical path.† (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 287) A two week reduction in the hull design would compromise the performance of the vessel based on the quality used. This reduction could result in a defeat in the race, since the best design was not used and could always increase flaws in the construction of the vessel. To create crash time, the building of the hull should overlap the designs final stages. The overlapping of these activities would provide time for activities outsid e the critical path. The current team is already on hand to save money and avoid hiring other crew. Authorization of overtime would be the easiest way to maintain the time constraints and eliminates the need for personnel that are unfamiliar with the project to be hired. This would provide additional crash time. The project manager must maintain the critical path and crash times to achieve the success of the project. Project Closure Approach To begin the project closure a project audit must be performed. The project audit has three major tasks. 1) Evaluate if the project delivered the expected benefits to all stakeholders. Was the project managed well? Was the customer satisfied? 2) Assess what was done wrong and what contributed to successes. 3) Identify changes to improve the delivery of future projects. (Gray-Larson, 2005, p. 461) The two project audits are in-process project audits or post-project audits. The in-process project audit checks the project progress and performance, and then allows for any change that may be needed. The post-project audit consists of the completed project, making improvements for any future projects. Although these audits cost time and money they should be done quickly, to ensure that resources are not wasted. In-process audit can create friction within the project, so it should be performed carefully to maintain the project team morale. It should provide both positive and constructive feedback, and should be performed by an independent audit group to maintain it’s not bias. After each audit, information has been collected and analyzed to see what needs to be changed and any improvements recommended. As the project comes to the close. The closing stages will begin. After the vessel has been built, the old vessel must be off-loaded. The crew will begin work on the new vessel. The old vessel must be sailed to the home port. After the construction has been completed the building crew can be downsized. Since several were specialist in their craft, their services are no longer needed. The implementation phase of the project, each member of the crew is encouraged to keep working journals. The journals will provide a record of the high and low of the project from beginning to the end. The journals may be used for future information and data for future projects. After the vessel is completed the old vessel must be returned. After the trials are complete, and celebration will be planned to accumulate the closure of the project for the crew and staff. The planned celebration is just the beginning before the crew sets sail to the United Kingdom for the Whitbread Sailboat Race. The new vessel and crew will sail to the Thames River in England. At this point in the project the project has reached completion. The journals have been collected and Bjorn will have to compile a final report with the help of the crew. This report will provide in detail the overall expense of the project. The time table it has taken to complete each step of the project. The report should document best practices and lessons learned by the crew for the duration of the project. These will provide a road map for future project managers to follow. The report should shed light on the time table, and show that the program must be started sooner, because 45 weeks is not enough time to launch the project successfully. Each report will provide pertinent information for future project manager, demonstrating from start to finish the best practice for the Whitbread Sailboat Race. From selecting a project manager, crew, design, to sailing to the end of the race. Project Closure consists of develo ping a plan, selection of a crew, communication of plan and plan implementation. The following questions should be answered. 1) What tasks are required to close the project? 2) Who will be responsible for these tasks? 3) When will closure begin and end? 4) How will the project be delivered? After these questions have been answered, implementation of the close down plan is the next step. The plan includes five activities, 1) Getting delivery acceptance from the customer. 2) Shutting down resources and releasing to new uses. 3) Reassigning project team members. 4) Closing accounts and seeing all bills are paid. 5) Evaluating the project team, project team members, and the project manager. These evaluations are essential to the successful closure of the project. Conclusion Bjorn Ericksen, the project manager has selected the best team possible. With his follow crew members Karin Knutsen and Trygve Wallvik. Bjorn shares his two parallel paths running through the project-design and construction and crew training. This critical path network has developed a time line of 43 weeks; the critical path will take 50 weeks. Bjorn decided to apply crash time to certain activities on the critical path to regain 7 weeks to make the schedule of 43 weeks. If the 7 weeks are not regained the project deadline or beginning of the race will have passed, meaning the project has failed. After the completion of the project the deadline has been met, the project has gone over budget. In some case this would be unacceptable; the cost is not a factor. The successful project used overtime to speed efforts with staffing. After the celebration was complete, Bjorn and his crew prepare for the nine month journey around the world. Bjorn team should be prepared to design build and sai l the vessel to a successful victory. After the race has been finished, performance reviewed, they will be prepared to compete and possibly defend in next year’s race. References Gray, C. and Larson, E. (2005). Project management: the managerial process (3rd ed.). New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies. Gray, C. and Larson, E. (2005). Project management: the managerial process (3rd ed.). Whitbread World Sailboat Race: Case Study New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies. Volvo Ocean Race. Retrieved on September 10, 2008 from volvooceanrace.org/ . Table 1 Optimal Solution Implementation Plan Action Item Deliverable Timeline Who is Responsible Kickoff meeting 7 days Bjorn Ericksen Estimated cost project schedule 14 days after the initial kick-off Bjorn Ericksen, Karin Knutsen, Trygve Wallvik Sailboat design Week 3-9 Karin Knutsen Crew Selection Week 3 Trygve Wallvik Secure Housing Week 3 Crew Construction of Hull Week 12 Karin Knutsen Order Mast Week 8 Karin Knutsen Order Sail Week 6 Karin Knutsen Order Accessories Week 15 Karin Knutsen Routine Sail and Maintenance Week 15 Trygve Wallvik Order Crew Equipment Week 15 Trygve Wallvik Deliver Boat and Crew Week 45 Trygve Wallvik Return Old Boat Week 23 Crew Project Celebration Week 44 Crew Project Closure Week 48 Bjorn Ericksen Research Papers on Project Plan for Whitbread World Sailboat RaceThe Project Managment Office SystemAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaRiordan Manufacturing Production PlanMoral and Ethical Issues in Hiring New EmployeesResearch Process Part OneLifes What IfsOpen Architechture a white paper19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in Capital

Dying Religions of the World Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Dying Religions of the World - Research Paper Example As the report declares The great numbers of religious beliefs found among the people living in the contemporary world testify of the divergence of religious views found in the world today. The believers of the various religious beliefs have organized themselves into different religious groups hence the emergence of denominations, sects, and sub sects among others which originate from the mainstream religious beliefs. With the proliferation of the religious beliefs, various reactions from the wider society and especially from the believers in the mainstream religion have emerged. From the essay it is clear that following doctrines taught to the believers in the religious organizations and other factors, there has been a great shift in the trend and the rate of growth within the religions of the world with some religions showing a positive growth while others have displayed negative growth- the number of followers diminishing with time. The following discussion is about the world religions which are dying with time and the causes attributed to their dying. The believers in this religion practice monotheism and the belief that God has continually sent prophets with a revealed word for the people. Some of the prophets they believe to have been sent by God include Adam, Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, Krishna and Siyyid 'Ali-Muhammad among others. The followers of this religion have for a long time acted as targets of heavy persecution by a number of countries with a particular note to Iran.

Will be writing about the impact of recent technology in breast cancer Annotated Bibliography

Will be writing about the impact of recent technology in breast cancer - Annotated Bibliography Example hnologies, the study indicates that superior imaging techniques show promise for postoperative specimen evaluation and have helped improve breast cancer screening. Further, the study shows that digital mammography has helped improve the sensitivity of mammography especially for women aging 50 years and below and that it may help improve the specificity of tomosynthesis. This source contributes to the collection of Annotated Bibliography (AB) by highlighting the role that the improved technology has played in the treatment of breast cancer. The specific technologies highlighted in this article clearly shows how improved technology has contributed towards the treatment of breast cancer. Joann, G. Elmore, MP, Armstrong, K., Constance, D., & Fletcher, S. (1997). Barclay J. Increase in ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast cancer in relation to mammography: a dilemma. Journal of Natl Cancer Inst Monogr. 22:151–6. In this article, Elmore et al. demonstrates that the increased utilization of screening mammography has had a remarkable change in detected ductal carcinoma, in situ cases of breast. The articles show that, in 1993 alone, there were about 23,276 newly diagnosed DCIS cases in the U.S. Of these 4,675 were in women aging between 40 and 49. The authors indicate that DCIS accounted for about 14.7 percent of newly diagnosed breast cancer cases among women aging between 40 and 49, and 40 percent of the mammographically detected breast cancer cases in this group were DCIS. In women aging between 40 and 49, an approximate 2,707 lumpectomies and mastectomies were conducted for DCIS. This source contributes to the AB collection by demonstrating the use of screening mammography, one of the current technologies, in the detecting ductal carcinoma, in situ cases of breast. Glass A, Lacey J, & Carreon J. (2007). Breast cancer incidences, 1980–2006, combined roles of menopausal hormone therapy, Estrogen Receptor Status, and screening mammography. Journal of Natl Cancer

Biblical Foundations Essay Example for Free

Biblical Foundations Essay Curriculum development is establishing a plan of what a school is going to teach during a school year. The time frame of the curriculum can vary from a quarter to a semester to even being taught the entire school year. Wayne (2010) suggests that each individual’s personal biblical worldview impacts each person in their beliefs and opinions about curriculum development differently. The stance taken by this individual is that of trying to see things in the manner that God would want. God is all knowing and being all knowing, He knows what is best in all things at all times. The Bible says: â€Å"For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together† (Colossians 1:16-17). Developing a curriculum is not to be taken lightly. Prayer, studying the word of God, and meditation must all be a part of the development. The role of teachers is to not only teach our students the curriculum that is set before them but to be a leader and a role model. Being a role model is a scary concept. Scary because it means that one is to not just use the words that they speak but they are to show it by the way they act and live their life. Christian teachers have a tremendous job to accomplish. They influence not only the other teachers around them but also the students that they are around every day. The curriculum that is being taught is of the utmost importance but the Christian witness that is being shown is of even more importance. The public school system does not make this easy for those who are Christians. Speaking the word of God is prohibited within this setting. Knowing this, as Christian teachers, being a deliberate Christian role model is of the utmost importance. Many might say that this is impossible but that is far from the truth. The Bible says: â€Å"With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible† (Matthew 19:26). The Bible also says: â€Å"†¦Everything is possible for him who believes† (Mark 9:23). Teachers are some of the most innovative and creative people. Christian teachers are to use this to their benefit. The God we serve is the one and only living God and through him, all things are possible. This makes the possibilities of being a good Christian role model limitless. The role of the learner today should be one of wanting to learn. Teachers can encourage this by using student-centered learning according to Blumberg (2008). This can be a very powerful way of getting the learner to want to learn. Student-centered learning does not have to be the entire focus of the class. The focus here could be put into place after the teacher has instructed the students. In a ninety minute class, the teacher is more than able to instruct the students, and then put them in student-centered learning. This helps the learner to focus on what they have learned and not on what the teacher is teaching according to Blumberg (2008). The approach here helps the learner to focus on what they need to be doing and less time on what is going on around them. In our society today, the biblical worldview is quickly being taken away while the modern worldview is silently creeping in to the minds of everyone. Scripture tells us: â€Å"†¦Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light† (2 Corinthians 11:14). We, as Christians, are becoming so conditioned to being politically correct that we are forgetting what is biblically correct. We sit back and think that if we just ignore what is going on, then it will just go away. Instead of that, things have gotten worse and even our young children and adults are beginning to believe that what is taking place is alright. No prayer in school, it is the holiday break not Christmas break, it is spring break not Easter. A worldview is what we develop because of what is going on around us. Many do not even realize that their worldview is being formed or altered. When asked what their worldview is, many cannot even explain it, let alone tell you where their view came from. Today’s Christian society needs to step up and take a stance on what needs to be taught within our public schools. Many in our Christian society have pulled their children out of the public school system to either put them into private Christian schools or to homeschool them. Although this is not wrong, it is not accurate either. The government of today has been shaped and is being shaped by the beliefs of many different religions. â€Å"The U. S. was the first western nation to be founded predominately by Protestants — not Roman Catholics. That fact alone expresses America’s willingness to experiment with the novel and a defiance of tradition. Its history includes the emergence of utopian experiments, religious fanaticism, and opening the door to such exotic religions as Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Taoism. Such has been the winding road of religious evolution in America† (History of Religion in America). In trying to make the United States a place of religious freedom, our government has instead made the life of a Christian more difficult. The government’s role in our society should be that of making sure that our children are educated to the standard possible. Although religious viewpoints should be left up to the families of the children, the government still needs to maintain that our freedom is not taken away within the schools. There does need to be guidelines that need to be established but without the persecution of believers of Christ. The church needs to be very careful when getting involved with curriculum development outside of Christian schools. There are so many beliefs that are out there that if the church were to get too involved, the government could and has stepped in to tell us that all has to be taught or expressed. This is where the parents need to step up to the plate. Parents can become and should become a part of the school. Becoming a part of the Parent Teacher Organization is a good start. Getting to know the teachers and expressing to them the needs that should be better met for the students should be of the utmost important. Parents have the right to have a say in the development of the school curriculum. Done in the proper manner, parents can even have a powerful impact on the curriculum their children are taught. Being a part of the process instead of being a part of the problem is the best plan any parent should be a part of for their child. Teachers, learners, society, government, church and family all have an important role in developing curriculum. Each on has a specific role that affects each and every one of us. Teachers and learners work together every day. They get to know each other on a level that can and should encourage trust with one another. Society and government go hand in hand in expressing what the people of that particular area want. Church and families hold the values we want our children to have as well as the standards of life we want. The development of curriculum is to be held to a high standard. Each group that is listed above help to provide the high standard that our children deserve in the educational field.

Fitting In :: essays research papers

Fitting in Fitting in is an important part of life because it has almost everything to do with turning out in life. Knowing the right people will directly effect a persons life later on, job wise and high school reunions. Part of fitting in is rejection. This happens because when someone does not reject a particular person then they might be rejected for not rejecting that person. "... waking up in the morning and wondering if anyone would really miss me." this is a thought that might course through someone's mind after being rejected. Most people respond differently, Some people might dress and act totally different just to try to "fit in" that way. Most will just forget about that group or single person. I have often observed that people often times try to find out why that person or group rejected them and try to make it better. Being rejected is like someone saying "You do not fit in with us so leave us alone" its a nasty feeling. Some people let others down easy and that is nice of them. Why is it so hard to fit in? There is so much social pressure now that it is getting harder and harder to "fit in". When I say social pressure I mean how to act, look, sound, walk, and so on. Clothes play a very important role in fitting in with the crowd. People say that a first impression is the most important one so people try to make the best first impression by dressing up or showing someone there not. Some people try to stay in fashion, they do this to stand out or be noticed. A huge role in fitting in is changing or, in other words, being someone you are not. To describe this I think of putting on a mask over your whole body. Some people just spend all day "lying there and thinking about all the stupid things I've done today." Lastly, being liked by other people is what "fitting in" is all about. Like I said before, you change yourself, dramatically sometimes, just to fit in. Changing yourself might include dress, hair, self. Changing yourself might just make it harder to fit in so people just stick to what they have changed themselves since they do not know what else to do. Often people wonder "What if I say this to them, well if I say this then they might not like me. Even though...." Emotional stress can damage a person so much they just do not care anymore. Individuals will do amazing things just to achieve "Fitting in" after

Cafe love

†Amour, amour et seul' I'm alone. Meaning, I have no one to love, no one to love me back and quite frankly at nearly forty years old I feel past the point of having the chance to make a change. The fact that I live in Paris; the romantic capital of the world, does little to help the situation. I've lived here almost all my life; parents used to live in Wales, then England, then California for some time. Being young, I travelled with them, but now, here in Paris, I finally feel at home. I struggle to answer the question â€Å"why did I come to Paris, of all places†? I suppose it's because here that I can at least dream of one day, maybe, possibly finding some way of not being alone anymore. Everywhere I look, seems to be another person's life filled only with what I want. I'm not selfish and I'm sure that having someone else in my life would make me a happier person. This is why I have a strong resentment towards people who have a habit of betraying, lying or simply being unpleasant. Because they take life for granted, not experiencing, learning or challenging. That's not to say that I am unhappy, I often sit with my steaming coffee at one of the many street cafes in town and spend time people watching, as I pass time and reflect on my achievements I wonder what all these souls have achieved, where have they been? Where are they going? Are they on their way home to a loved one? I just need someone to feel complete. â€Å"I, capitalized, full. I, looking like a snowfall as I come calling. I, waiting for a saviour in the gas-station at midnight. I, holding no neighbourhood, loving the air. I, silent beside a man holding a megaphone outside of planned parenthood I, fading.† It's busy. Busier than its been in a while, packed with all different sorts of people. Young children, some in push chairs, some being held tightly in their mother's arms. Teenagers are also present, not really enjoying the surroundings yet smiling when in the company of grandparents. Women chattering around small tables, women standing impatiently waiting to be served, wives and girlfriends being held close by their husbands and boyfriends. The only men seated are extremely old or waiting to meet their wives. One regular customer, wearing a neatly pressed pin-striped suit, is sitting alone at a small table by the roadside, distancing himself from others. He's recognisable to me so my eyes are drawn to him. He glances over towards me and on seeing me staring back at him shifts in his chair uncomfortably. There are two glasses on the table, so I can only assume that he is waiting for company. He checks his watch several times and looks around; I look too although I don't know what I expect to see. He's an attractive man. Even though he's seated he looks tall, six foot at least. Clean shaven, glossy hair with a small amount of gel and shiny shoes which is a clear sign that he takes care over his appearance. I can imagine that he's not drinking coffee to avoid unpleasant smelling breath. So making the decision of ordering water was wise. I begin looking at him in more detail. I don't worry that he may notice me staring. It's now that he stands and strides towards the road. Definitely over six foot tall. He suddenly stops and looks back. A phone rings, as he reaches into his pocket I realise it's his. He directs a smile at me and walks back towards the road all the while in conversation. Probably his wife. â€Å"I, alive before the fireworks with one eye on the storm, I, skating on the ice with one foot in the ocean, I, drunk beneath the shelter of a thousand poets There is no-one as blind as those who choose not to see I, me.† Late afternoon at the cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ is normally the busiest time. Which makes it my favourite time to sit and observe everyone. The clientele is always the same, with a few new comers each day, but only a few decide to stay. It looks especially pretty today, the tops of the tables and chairs where people have not yet sat are quilted and neatly decorated with snow, it also creates a pathway on the ground of delicate footsteps from the waitresses' angelic feet. A coffee cup has been left at my table, it is beginning to freeze and what there was once coffee is a frosty covering, somewhat improving its appearance looking almost beautiful and glistening in the light. It's sad I know, but somehow I become attached to this cup. It's centre stage on the table, soaking in all my attention. As I look closer, a small crack becomes visible. I begin to imagine some wonderful life stories of the coffee cup, battles, fights and journeys. After pondering over the past of the cup, I conclude that it was just dropped in the kitchen. After all, it's only a mug. I'm sitting alone, enjoying the company of strangers. A waitress comes over with my coffee, taking away the crystallized coffee mug. Now I am alone amongst strangers again. As I stay later the snow begins to melt and the nice Christmas feeling of the crisp coldness in the air also begins to fade. I take a lighter out of my coat pocket, and because the waitresses have seemed to disappear, I walk slowly around the cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ lighting the candles at the remaining empty tables. I take my time, I'm not worried about anyone seeing me. When I have finished I sit back at my table, and admiring the sparkling candles. The Christmas feeling is half restored by the warm comforting feeling of subtle lights. â€Å"I, wearing white and thinking black I, planning a journey that's too far to walk, drive or sail I, the one who never planned but always expected I, lighting up a cigarette with the echoes of my mind I, breathing in the smoke that no-one else can find.† An old couple walk almost silently into the cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½, they take no notice of me at all. They take a while getting comfy at the table behind mine before they begin talking. The woman looks to be in her late fifties, and is wearing a red poncho which drapes to the floor making her bottom half invisible. The man is the same age, also wearing red. I smile at the fact they look the same, very elegant. He must have been wearing a black hat but removed it when entering the Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ because he's now holding it in his right hand. They begin conversation, I listen in excitedly, ‘Did you want a drink my dear?' He questioned the women whilst glancing around for a working waitress. †Erm, yes a hot chocolate please Eric† I stop listening for a second, and make a mental note of the man's name. He politely ordered for himself and his wife whilst searching for his wallet. He looked inside and shuffled uncontrollably to the bottom. Finally, he held out only two euros. Looking over at his wife, he saw her becoming quite impatient. ‘I haven't got all day!' She shouted whilst quickly gesturing towards her watch. Eric cancelled his order and paid for hers, looking quite flustered. ‘Keep the change', he murmured under his breath. His wife stood up and took her drink off him, ‘What took you so long buying one silly drink?' Questioned his wife, again impatiently. Eric stared blankly back at her, ‘I†¦just, couldn't remember what you wanted.' The woman then began arguing about how he wastes so much time over everything and just does not listen. If only she saw what I just saw, she wouldn't bother to question his actions. I stand up and move away from the couple, there is a knot forming in the back of my throat and my vision is becoming blurry. As I look down at the table, the snow has now completely melted, as one of my tears drop I can see it clearly on the glass table top. As I stare at the single tear, it seems to multiply like bacteria in seconds as more and more appear, as if by magic . â€Å"I, the small tear that leads to tears, I, the one who is ambiguous, I, attempting to buy groceries with good looks and failing miserably. I, thanking Allen Ginsberg, I, reading like the poet and writing like the fool I, nothing, really.† I sit alone for a while. Wondering how such an old couple can have a such a new and romantic love. I turn to change my view of the cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½, I'm about to turn to my left to admire the fine Christmas lights recently put on display but a small, dark haired little girl managed to catch my view. At first glance I thought she was sitting on her own because she was making such a mess of her table. But I saw a man to the left of her returning with napkins. He sat down next to her and began to mop up what looked like melted ice cream on the table. ‘Dad, I don't want it,' moaned the small girl. Immediately, I'm concentrated and fully focused on this little girl. Why was she moaning, why was she on her own? The man put a final napkin down and replied, ‘I know that's not†¦' The small girl stared violently, signally for him to stop talking – or else. I am even more involved now, it's times like these where I just want to ask what's going on. But I know I cant, that's just bad etiquette. Often I jump to conclusions and think up reasons why people are having such conversations. In this case, the situation that came to my mind first was; a girl, no family, living alone on the streets of Paris having to steal food from this cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½. My mind then began on a journey of other extremities such as that she is actually German pretending to be French..? It is when the man began speaking, and took the part of the father, that my mind stopped travelling such journeys . ‘Dad, just talk to Mummy. I don't like being with you only at weekends. I miss Mum. Please.' The small girl now speaking out of pure desperation. The father replied quickly with ‘Darling, it's not that simple. Marriage, well, it's not easy you know.' He then took the girls hand for second before she pulled away almost automatically. The father reached for his grey coat which he had drooped over the back of the chair and began to put it on. The girl took this as a sign that it was the end of the conversation, obviously something she was use to hearing. They begin to walk my way so I turn quickly. Much too quickly, resulting in my coffee spilling half on the floor and half on me. I stand and look at the mess, for a few seconds I wonder if this would be a good excuse to ask the father for a napkin, in order to engross myself in conversation. I decide against it considering they have already left. On my way to the washroom I start to think about the marriage that the mother and father must have had. Because it must have affected the small girl a lot for her to mention and be so upset about it. Perhaps one of them met someone else, perhaps they simply went different ways. But whatever happened to that marriage, surely the love in the marriage must have died. I wish I didn't wonder so much sometimes, it only leads me to imagine the worst of things. How can love not work out, if I found love I would hold onto it and never let it go. How can It go wrong? When you fall in love you want it to be forever and you love them for who they are. So any flaws can be worked out or you just love them in spite of that. The thought of suddenly not being loved must eat people up inside. Heartbreaking. Possibly my life is too good to risk being heartbroken. Because even if I am on my own, at least it's only me that's liable to hurt myself. No one else can hurt me, I'm in charge. Maybe it's not as idealistic in reality. â€Å"I, immune to heartache I, the liar.† After drying my coffee stained skirt, I brush past the waitresses who seem to be re-appearing due to the increasing customers. I see one waitress finish cleaning my table. It's getting dark, which means I really should be soon returning home. I usually hate this time because it means I have to walk lonely through the streets looking at the couples hand in hand or the mothers and daughters smiling. And because I'm such a paranoid person I automatically think they're only smiling because I'm there and they want to make me jealous. But at this moment in time, I really don't know how I feel. After witnessing that small girl's unlawfully relationship with her father; wondering how things in a marriage can become that disastrous. When I think about that, I'm reluctant to feel jealous by those couples smiling back at me, because one day, they could be heartbroken and wonder themselves why they put them selves in such a vulnerable position. Suddenly, I'm startled. At first for no particular reason I feel as if I'm being watched. This feeling causes me to look wearily around, a tall man is admiring me. His eyes fixated on me. In response I smile, I feel as if I know him. He is still looking at me, so I begin to look at him in closer detail, he's an attractive man with a well cared for appearance, his shiny shoes gave that away. I scare myself with shock when I realise who he is, the regular who comes here. The man who's forever getting stood up by his wife. He stands and walks nervously towards where I'm standing, frozen. As he walks, I have the decision to walk away and pretend I have no idea that he's walking to talk to me. Or I could stay and see what he wants; everything seems to be a little flirtatious even though he's married. Maybe, I never really had hard evidence. I do have quite a writers' imagination. He begins to speak, †Hello. I hope you don't mind but I often sit here alone and see you here alone too.† I look straight into his blue exotic eyes, immediately I feel a connection. Just two strangers, just two alone strangers. I feel like I have been frozen in time as I begin to recite a monologue of thoughts to myself. ‘I was wondering if you would like to sit alone together some time?' â€Å"I, giving up structure. I know that words once read will always be spoken And fabric once torn will always be scarred, And the night will always be broken by the Gentle murmur of cars†¦ But, what is costume without personality,, Or a poet without publication What is a man without attempt, Or a woman without patience. Here comes the thunderstorm. I, silent.†

Institutional Discrimination in America - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1093 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/04/01 Category Society Essay Level High school Topics: Discrimination Essay Did you like this example? For about 250 years we had slavery in America, 90 years of Jim Crow, 60 years of separate but equal, and 35 years of racist housing policy. All these years of racism and discrimination has brought not only individual discrimination between one person and another, but also institutional discrimination carried out by social institutions. One of the worst policies introduced by a social institution, that still affects us today was, the Federal Housing Administration that was introduced in 1934 and lasted until 1968. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Institutional Discrimination in America" essay for you Create order A practice that denies mortgages based on race and ethnicity. This brought us housing segregation that is still a huge problem. Until we cooperate together and admit our faults, America will continue to not be equal forever. Not only does institutional racism affect housing and public schooling, but it affects politics, healthcare, jobs, and so many other sectors. Many people believe since slavery was abolished and hate crimes are illegal, racism no longer is an issue. But just because something is made illegal, does not mean it is not happening. For example, people are still murdering, raping and millions of cases are not solved, and no justice is provided. Just like systemic bias is treated. Here are some examples of institutionalized racism, A study from CNN on wrongful convictions among three types of crimes (murder, sexual assault, and drug crimes,) show, that black people are more likely to be wrongfully convicted than white people and are also likely to spend longer in prison before being exonerated for their crimes and 58% of prisoners are black or Hispanic despite making up one quarter on the U.S. population (Vega 2017). Another huge issue that stems from these uneven incarceration rates, is tha t in many states, felons are not allowed to vote do that means more than 1 out of every 10 black men cannot vote. One more fact from the National Education Association, 74% of black students and 80% of Latino students attend schools that are more than half-minority populations. This is segregation and it is an effect that stemmed from the Federal Housing Administration Mortgage Insurance requirements in 1965. How did this all start? After World War II and all the vets came home, the FHA helped finance military housing. They alleviated the home ownership crisis according to an article off Boston fair housing. But what they also did was isolate residential developments that we call the suburbs today. They, stripped the inner city of many of their middle-class inhabitants, thus hastening the decay of inner-city neighborhoods. Loans for the repair of existing structures were small and for short duration, which meant that families could more easily purchase a new home than modernize an old one, leading to the abandonment of many older inner-city properties (Fair Housing Center). They also practiced a policy of redlining which denies and limits financial services to neighborhoods based off of its racial or ethnic makeup. There was even a wall built to separate the blacks and the white so the FHA appraisers, could approve mortgages on white peoples properties so they can invest, and their childr en can have good lives and good futures. People of color where left out of the new suburbs and shoved into urban housing projects. According to the National Public Radio, Today African-American incomes on average are about 60 percent of average white incomes. But African-American wealth is about 5 percent of white wealth (Domonoske 2016). Why do you think this is? The good old housing policy! Middle class families usually invest in the equity of their homes, so they gain more wealth. White families used their home equities to send their kids to college, give them good health care, and give their wealth to them as well. So, none of these resources where given to African Americans because they were prohibited from being in the suburbs! Our federal government created this segregation and people do not know about this history. This practice of redlining still exists, an article by the Hill, reported that ATT discriminated against low-income areas in Cleveland not bringing them top broadband capabilities. A theory that was introduced by Emile Durkheim, mechanical solidarity, is a social integration of members who have similar beliefs. The members of these societies have a collective conscience that makes them cooperate. This was happening in these white suburban communities. They where living around, communicating, working, and working for only other white people. It was a euphoria for the racist white person, and it was completely legal. White people all had the same experiences, same values and they did not want things to change and once things did start to change, they moved out of the communities and the prices for homes just would go up. After Martin Luther King was murdered, Congress passed a Fair Housing Act of 1968. A policy meant to bring equal housing opportunities regardless of race, ethnicity or religious beliefs. But over the next 50 years, this act was rarely enforced. Today, it is still much harder for black families to get a mortgage or home loan than it is for a white person. In a report by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, racial bias in the housing market was evidenced by the rate at which homebuyers were shown available housing. The report found that renters and homebuyers of color were shown and told about less homes white homebuyers (2012). It is a basic right that should be offered to every single person in this country regardless of their race or ethnicity. Another major thing that gets affected by this institutional discrimination, is our public schooling that is paid by property taxes. People who live in better, nicer neighborhoods, have access to the best schooling with better paid teachers, better supplies and equipment, and many more resources. This is a huge problem because kids are not being taught equally and it is only getting worse. According to an article by Vox, Black children are now more likely to grow up in poor neighborhoods than they were 50 years ago (Chang 2018). Research says that growing up in segregated, poor neighborhoods will affect so much of your life. It can determine your education level, your income, your happiness, health and even your life span. This is all a result from redlining and the Federal Housing Administration. People still to this day have no idea about segregation today and its history and where it came from. Just like Durkeims theory of mechanical solidarity, white people are too comfortable with being just around each other. Nothing will change until we admit our faults as a country and come together to create an equal world for everyone.