Saturday, January 25, 2020
Bioterrorism Threat Weapons
Bioterrorism Threat Weapons Bioterrorism is a real threat to our country. Its a threat to every nation that loves freedom. Terrorist groups seek biological weapons; we know some rogue states already have them.Its important that we confront these real threats to our country and prepare for future emergencies. -President George W. Bush June 12, 2002 Biological weapons are one of the biggest threats we face today. They are potentially as deadly as nuclear weapons and can leave an area contaminated for weeks. Despite this however, the threat of biological weapons does not seem to be a major priority of our current administration. There seems to be a significant rush to implement counter-terrorism policies that focus on more conventional means of attacks and more specifically those attacks that we have already experienced. Consequently, we see much improvement in the screening of airline passengers and the regulation of traditional explosives, but no further regulation of biological weapons, dispersion systems, or the implementation of better response procedures. Therefore, more should be done to prevent biological attacks and prepare our nation to respond in the event there is one. According to the Terrorism Knowledge Base, since nineteen sixty eight there have been a total of thirteen incidents involving biological weapons with forty-six injuries, and six fatalities. Of these thirteen incidents, nine of them have taken place in the United States, with all of the injuries, and five out of six of the deaths all taking place in the United States as well. If these statistics are examined in a general sense and in comparison to other weapons used in terrorists attacks (bombs, fire, firearms, etc) then the trend of biological terrorism does not seem very important. However, the reality is that the more technologically advanced we become globally, the more efficient biological weapons and their dispersion systems become, and the greater the threat is for an attack. We are currently in an age where scientific discovery, and advances in biology are putting us at risk for an attack from a terrorist group, or even an individual with access to biological weapons and a gru dge. In order to repair our current system, revision of our current policies must be done, as well as creation of new policies and procedures to mitigate the threat. This paper will provide information on our current policies, how the problems with out current policies can be fixed, and a risk assessment of the Brazos Valley with specific emphasis on the Texas AM University System. Current Policies: The following are the policies that have been developed in response to the threat of biological weapons. All polices regarding biological weapons should have two parts: prevention of a biological weapon attack, and response after a biological attack. While each is important on its own, together they make a comprehensive plan to create policies around. Before any suggestions can be made, however, our current policies must be known and judged against the threat we currently face. There are three main policies and plans concerning biological weapons that have come from the White House. They are Homeland Security Presidential Directive 10, Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21, and Project Bioshield. Together these are designed to provide us with maximum protection and response in the case of a biological threat. Homeland Security Presidential Directive 10 (Biodefense for the 21st Century): Homeland Security Presidential Directive 10 has four major goals as outlined by the White House: threat awareness, prevention and protection, surveillance and detection, and response and recovery. Each of these is an integral part of the overall plan. Threat Awareness In order for our government to prepare for a biological attack, we must know the nature of the threat. This is where the ââ¬Å"Threat Awarenessâ⬠pillar comes into play. This pillar seeks to provide our government with the ability to use technology and intelligence to provide the most realistic appraisal of our current threat. The concept of threat awareness allows us to create functional policies specially designed around our current threat. There are three totals components of the threat awareness pillar: biological warfare related intelligence, assessments, and anticipation of future threats. Biological warfare related intelligence is the name given to the process of using the intelligence community (Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, and others) to gather all information pertaining to biological weapons. This would involve overseas missions for intelligence gathering purposes, development of systems to analyze collected data, and the dissemination of that data to all important parties. Biological warfare related intelligence also incorporates Red Teaming, a term indicating the team in a preparedness exercise (similar to a war game) whose role is to simulate enemy tactics. ââ¬Å"Red Teaming efforts are used to understand new scientific trends that may be exploited by our adversaries to develop biological weapons and to help position intelligence collectors ahead of our problem.â⬠(www.whitehouse.gov) Assessments are the second component of the threat awareness pillar. ââ¬Å"The Unites States requires a continuous, formal process for conducting routine capabilities assessments to guide prioritization of our on-going investments in biodefense-related research, development, planning and preparedness.â⬠(www.whitehose.gov) The Department of Homeland Security will be made responsible for gathering information and production of periodical assessments and making recommendations of division of resources based on the assessment. The anticipation of future threats component asserts that the need to stay current with existing technology is of great importance. It enables the government the government to anticipate and prepare for the emergence of new threats (www.whitehouse.gov). How these assessments are to be done and what exactly is to be included in them, is not stated in the White Houses version of Homeland Security Presidential Directive ten however. Prevention and Protection The first component of the prevention and protection pillar is proactive prevention. As stated by the White House, ââ¬Å"preventing biological weapons attacks is by far the most cost-effective approach to biodefense.â⬠This will be accomplished by limiting access of biological agents and dispersal methods to countries, groups, or individuals seeking to develop, produce, and use these agents. (www.whitehouse.gov) This will be accomplished using law enforcement investigative techniques, diplomacy, and export controls. Agencies responsible for prevention are the Department of State, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, and the intelligence community, but specific duties are not given. The second component of prevention and protection is critical infrastructure protection. The directive explains that protection of critical infrastructure, especially in the case of those that would be important after an attack (public health, food, water, energy, agriculture, transportation, etc.) should be protected. Once again, details as to how this is to be done are not given, only that it should be done. Surveillance and Detection The first component of the surveillance and detection pillar is attack warning. This would entail the development of an attack warning system, similar to severe weather warning systems, ââ¬Å"which rapidly recognizes and characterizes the dispersal of biological agents.â⬠The logic behind this component of surveillance and detection is that an efficient and effective response can be mounted to counter the threat if the biological agent used in an attack is able to be detected and characterized earlier. The second component of surveillance and detection is attribution. The ability to attribute an attack to a particular country, group, or individual can help authorities to deter attacks with the promise of severe repercussions to the group or country that perpetrates the attack. The recently created National Bioforensic Analysis Center of the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasure Center is responsible for the analysis of the biological agent, and interpretation of data to determine responsibility. This concept has been tried for lesser crimes (three-strike laws) with varied degrees of success. Response and Recovery The components of the response and recovery attack are numerous. But this is necessary as the response after an attack is a huge intricate undertaking. This part of the Directive 10 is composed of: response planning, mass casualty care, risk communication, medical countermeasure development, and decontamination. Response planning is the most important part of the response and recovery pillar. Without a reasonable plan of attack, nothing can be accomplished. Evidence of this idea can be seen in the days and weeks following Hurricane Katrina, when recovery efforts were mishandled by Federal Emergency Management Agency due in large part to ill-preparedness. As a part of this component, the plans are also to be tested regularly at the local, state, and federal level. Mass casualty care, decontamination, and medical countermeasure all go together in preventing loss of life after an attack. In order for all of these to occur, there needs to be funding in areas of research pertaining to countermeasures of biological agents, and also funding in the public health arena such that all medical facilities are adequately prepared to handle such an event. This includes stocking medical facilities with countermeasures and keeping them abreast of terrorism activities via a communication network. Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21 Released October two-thousand seven, Homeland Security Presidential Directive twenty-one in a much more comprehensive version of the response and recover pillar of Homeland Security Presidential Directive ten. It delves into exactly how we go about preparing for the aftermath of a biological attack. The five major priorities / goals when considering preparedness are: preparedness for all potential catastrophic health events; vertical and horizontal coordination across levels of government, jurisdictions and disciplines; a regional approach to health preparedness; engagement of the private sector, academia, and other nongovernmental entities in preparedness and response efforts; and the important roles of individuals, families, and communities. To accomplish these priorities, Homeland Security Presidential Directive twenty-one outlines several actions that must be implemented to mount a successful response to a biological attack. These are mostly the same as those mentioned in Homelan d Security Presidential Directive ten; however, the greatest difference is in the case of Homeland Security Presidential Directive twenty-one, deadlines are established as to when these should be done. Biosurveillance Biosurveillance calls for the establishment of a ââ¬Å"national epidemiological surveillance system for human health.â⬠This would entail an electronic network linking federal, state and local public health assets. This system would also have to protect patient privacy, while giving access to those medical professionals most likely to come into contact with the agents. This network would also include keeping health professionals abreast in what to look for in the way of symptoms. The deadline for this goal was one-hundred eighty days, but only required meetings to examine progress. Countermeasure stockpiling and distribution Countermeasure stockpiling and distribution calls for the creation of a plan to amass a supply of common countermeasures including antibiotics, anti-virals and others. The countermeasure stockpiling and distribution section of the directive mandates that a template or plan for these efforts would be created within nine months of its release date, but once again, does not explain exactly how anything is to be done, only that it should be within nine months. Mass Casualty Care Through a joint effort between the Secretaries of Health and Human Services, Defense, Veteran Affairs, and Homeland Security, experts at the state, federal and private levels are to provide feedback on ââ¬Å"high-priority gaps in mass casualty care capabilities.â⬠After this event, there is to be an analysis of the information in order to build a plan for mass casualty care after a biological attack. This plan would call for changes in out public health system specifically geared towards biodefense, and not towards improving our public health system as a whole. Community Resilience Perhaps the most important component of Homeland Security presidential Directive 21, this section encourages engaging citizens in education and risk awareness in the area of biological weapons. Civic leaders, citizens and families are to be educated such that they are able to lessen some of the risk in their respective areas. Project Bioshield The Project Bioshield Act of 2004 was signed on June 21, 2004 by current President George W. Bush. Project Bioshield deals specifically with the development and the procurement of countermeasures from pharmaceutical companies. The signing of the Project Bioshield Act allowed for the production of seventy-five million doses of anthrax vaccines for stockpiling, production of botulinum antitoxin, and production of a safer smallpox toxin. Project Bioshield is not designed to fix all of our problems, but solve a big problem in the lack of response resources. Problems with our current system and policies Our current biological weapons policies consist mainly of Homeland Security Presidential Directives ten and twenty-one and the Project Bioshield Act. Together, they represent the most comprehensive plan we have, but still fall short of providing us with the protection and security from what President Bush describes as a ââ¬Å"real threat to our country.â⬠While our current system provides a good foundation for a biological weapons defense policy, it has several major gaps. Our current policies display one major flaw in our biodefense plan: we know what to do, but not how to accomplish it. In the summary of all three aspects of our biodefense policy, there is no detailed plan of how to repair the holes in our system. Also, despite being released in April two-thousand four, many of the objectives seen Homeland Security Presidential Directive ten, are yet incomplete; particularly in the case of the ââ¬Å"Response and Recoveryâ⬠objective. What this translates to is we are no t following the plans we have set up to prevent and respond to bioterrorism. In two-thousand one, approximately one-half a billion dollars w as spent on civilian biodefense. Every year since then, the spending has gone up with spending reaching approximately seven and one-half billion dollars. (Schuler 88) We are considerably further than we were in two-thousand one, but still significantly lacking in bio-terrorism security. There are only a few things we currently lack, but they are very important to our security. Firstly we lack a decent public health system. ââ¬Å"The basic needs of bioterrorism preparedness remain the basic tasks of public health- identifying unusual disease events, their cause, and intervening to alleviate the situationâ⬠(Avery 284) The federal government is attempting to pump more resources into a flawed system. Without a good public health system, any biodefense plan ultimately falls apart because our public health system is of utmost importance in response efforts. Another big flaw in our system is the lack of talented people. Having great policies and resources but lacking talented employees to put them into practice is unacceptable. Federal agencies are losing potential employees to the private sector when the demand for defense talent will to continue rise by as much as twenty-five percent through the year two-thousand ten. (Partnership for Public Service 224) Policies cannot be put into action without talented people leading them. It is estimated that nearly half of the federal employees in occupations critical to out biodefense will be eligible to retire within the next five years. (Executive Summary 224). An additional significant error with our current system is lack of action. While our current policies are not perfect, they do provide a very good base plan. So why are we not where we need to be? The reason may be budget concerns, or biological weapons are less of a priority than they should be, but whatever the reason, creation of policies without putting them into action leaves us at risk. In Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21, it calls for public outreach and education to inform the general public as to the dangers of biological weapons, and how to reach in the case of the attack, but this has not been done. In Homeland Security Presidential Directive 10, a biosurveillance system is proposed to keep our public health facilities informed as to emerging threats and suspicious events in other parts of the country. While the directive was released in two-thousand four, this has not been accomplished. Proposed Biological Terrorism Prevention and Response Plan Our current policies and recent actions have provided us with a good foundation to build a solid biological weapons prevention and response plan on. However, in order to mitigate the threat more needs to be done. My plan has the potential to fill in most of the holes in our current policy / system. I propose several changes in out current system and policies. My proposed will emphasize all aspects of security (prevention and response). Our current public health seems to be the most important part of the equation, so this is where my biodefense plan will begin. Phase I: In order to mount an efficient response in the aftermath of an attack, we must have a well-organized public health system. This particular part of the plan would call for government-funded upgrades in public health facilities. As stated previously, an analysis of our current public health system shows that ââ¬Å"upgrading public health facilities for broad based-surveillance avoids the threat of tunnel vision that is inherent in the bioterrorism-specific approach.â⬠(Avery 285) Upgrades to our public health facilities should include larger stockpiles of antibiotics, anti-virals, and other countermeasures. According to Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21, ââ¬Å"few if any cities are presently able to meet the objective of dispensing countermeasures to their entire population within forty-eight hours after the decision to do so.â⬠These stockpiles should be large enough to aid in the response after most any disaster, and located in such places that they could be sen t to affected areas within twenty-four hours. Proximity to a major metropolitan area should not be a concern in response efforts. This phase would also require coordination with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to coordinate and distribute supplies of counter-measures to several regions in each state. Other responsibilities of our current public health system include vaccination of general public. This would be improved beyond our current status. The next step in upgrading out public health system is personnel training and education. Biological weapons can utilize some of the most deadly bacteria and viruses in the world. Medical personnel should be trained in the recognition and treatment of the most deadly agents. This would necessitate training provided by the Center for Disease Control and other similarly competent private sector facilities and professionals. While many biological agents present with peculiar symptoms, many present with flu-like symptoms and can be easily confused with other less lethal illnesses. All of this information needs to make its way to not only our medical doctors and nurses, but all those involved in public health. The last step of my public health plan is the creation of a centralized network available to all public health facilities. This network would be created and maintained by the federal government with the aid of such agencies as the Center for Disease Control and the National Institute of Health. This network / database would track the progression of illnesses and symptoms throughout the country. It would also serve as a link between facilities. In the event of an attack in one part of the country, all facilities can be put on alert almost instantly. This could lead to significantly less deaths during the aftermath of an attack, and aid in the day to day operations of our countrys public health system. Phase II: Homeland Security Presidential Directive 10 is a general diagram for both prevention and response. While it outlines both aspects, it does not go into great detail as to how its plans are to be accomplished. The same can be said for Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21. Our major policies do not give a detailed picture of what out initial response plan is. We cannot organize a functional response if we do not possess a nation-wide incident response plan for a biological attack. So Phase II would be the creation of a thorough plan that is able to be utilized in all regions of the country. One standardized plan would alleviate any indecisiveness when deciding what to do for a specific region as well as make training much easier. With one standardized plan there is no question of what the local government is to do, everything is planned and only has to be executed. This plan would have three major goals: defining authority after an attack, setup a timeline for when response efforts need to be completed, and provide a basis for training first responders and other charged with response. In the aftermath of an attack authority is always a concern. Because agencies often have different ideas on how response should proceed, authority needs to be defined before an attack ever happens. The two options for authority are federal and state with each having their advantages. Federal agencies have near limitless resources when compared to state agencies. They are usually able to procure and implement necessary resources much faster. State agencies have the benefit of local knowledge. Local knowledge of a particular region and its working is an invaluable asset during times of disaster. Federal agencies cannot possibly all aspects of a particular region and thus this responsibility falls to the state government. State governments also the advantage of being able to react more quickly because of their close proximity to the affected area. So the best compromise between the two would be joint authority shared between the state government (governor, mayors, city managers, etc.), and a representative of the federal government designated by the president. Because a plan will already be in place prior to an attack, the state government would have a definitive game plan within the days following an attack. After the government representative arrives, they can work as a cohesive team to plan the best course of action. Along with defining authority, the national response plan should define timelines as to when certain actions are to be taken. Phase one of this plan would ensure that countermeasures were available in the event of a biological attack. This timeline would establish when these countermeasures are to be given, Phase III Our current president has described biological weapons as a very serious threat. Mitigation of this threat can be achieved, but needs specialized actions from personnel trained in biology as well as investigative techniques. Phase II would call for the creation of an agency dedicated to the threat of bioterrorism. The First step of phase II is finding people with diverse experience (science, investigation, intelligence gather, etc.) to work in this agency. Bioterrorism is a much different threat than most conventional methods of terrorism. To mount a superior defense / offense, it takes a deep understanding of biology, biochemistry, virology, and several other biological sciences. Investigating offenses involving such agents cannot be done without the proper knowledge and practical experience. Most agencies currently tasked with counter-terrorism do not have the requisite personnel with science backgrounds, nor the resources to handle their other responsibilities and the threat from bioterrorism. The need for people with expertise in those areas has been established as is yet unfulfilled. We cannot properly stop a threat if those that are tasked with this responsibility do not know everything there is to know about the threat. The first step would be to obtain the right personnel for the agency. The agency would be made up of doctors, scientists, policy makers, first responders, investigators (law enforcement), security personnel, and any other necessary personnel to mount a comprehensive response. The next step would be to define the responsibilities of the agency. I propose this agency be accountable for investigation of biological weapons threats, regulation of biological agents, working in tandem with intelligence agencies here and overseas, and working with other countries to insure the regulation of said materials there as well. These responsibilities are no small task. They will require countless hours of intelligence gathering, diplomacy, investigation, and law enforcement. The scope of this agency would be extensive, but still well within reach if done properly. This agency would have to utilize techniques used by the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigations, and many other similar agencies in order to reach such massive goals. Phase IV Phase IV would consist of public education / outreach. The group of people most vulnerable to biological attacks is everyday citizens. If we are to protect the public, then they must be educated as to risks, current counter measures, and what to do in the case of an attack. This is where the educational outreach programs would enter. They would have to be non-invasive as in a pamphlet given out to each patient after a doctors visit, or educational videos provided to employers to be shown at employment orientations. Using this idea could save us billions of dollars in expenditures subsequent to an attack by saving much time and effort in organizing and coordinating public actions. Phase V Phase V would consist of training those people responsible for first response. Our first line of defense is not government agencies, but the people who are closest to the attack; this will always be local law enforcement, firefighters, and local public health staff. Current local law enforcement agencies are unprepared and unknowledgeable about probably biological attacks and they of all responders would be well versed in what to expect and how to react after a biological attack. Phase V would mandate training of all probably first responders at least once a year. This training would include simulated attacks in a simulated environment. All those that would be involved in the response efforts would be trained in what to do, and then using that training to a simulated attack. This training would also help the public rest easier knowing that their first responders are prepared for the possibility of a biological attack. Advantages vs. Disadvantages Advantages: The greatest strength of the proposed plan is its comprehensiveness. This plan covers all aspects of biological terrorism (prevention and response) as well as addressing the current holes in our system. It provides us with the best possible response, along with directing preventative techniques prior to an attack. Agencies dedicated to specific purposes have a long history of effectiveness as can be seen in the Center for Disease Control and other similar agencies. This plan could not work if the responsibilities were placed upon another agency already tasked with other unrelated obligations. Biological weapons are too great a threat to be relegated to one of the many responsibilities of an agency with many other missions. Also in comparison to outsourcing these responsibilities to the private sector, this proposal represent a method of maintaining security, but also maintaining faith in out government. Most citizens want to know that their government is more than capable of protecting them from major security threats. This proposal has the advantage of allowing all responsibilities to stay in house such that there is no division of responsibilities between government and private. This proposal also allows for improvements in out current countermeasure stockpiles, a public more concerned with their own safety, and a standardized response plan such that Disadvantages: The greatest thing working against an agency of this type is cost. As stated previously, biodefense funding has gone up significantly every year since two-thousand one. (Schuler 88) A plan of this magnitude would be costly. Also, creating of another agency has the possibility of making an already confusing counter-terrorism more perplexing. Brazos Valley threat assessment All the problems that plague the nation in reference to a biological weapons threat are compounded in the Brazos valley Area. The main industry in the region is Texas AM University, and this is also could be considered a high value target. Risk assessment: A threat assessment can be viewed as having three components: the threat to a target, the targets vulnerability to the threat, and the consequences should the target be successfully attacked. (Willis 16) In this regard the risk assessment regarding the Brazos Valley is three-parted. Threat to the target: According to the CDC, bioterrorism agents are typically divided into three categories: categories A, B, and C (www.cdc.gov). Category A organisms include biological agents with both a high potential for adverse public health impact and that also have a serious potential for large-scale dissemination. Category B agents are moderately easy to disseminate and have low mortality rates. Category C agents are pathogens that might be engineered for mass dissemination because they are easy to produce and have potential for high morbidity or mortality. Based on information gathered from interviews with Assistant Chief Freddy Komar of the Bryan Police Department and Doctor Garry Adams of the Texas AM University School of Veterinary Medicine, the biggest threat to Texas AM and the surrounding areas is the dissemination of a Category A organism, more specifically one that can be easily ported to an aerosol method of dispersal. With an effective dispersal in a highly populated and confined area o r event like a football game at Kyle Field, the destructive potential is massive. As an agricultural staple, the Brazos Valley Area Targets Vulnerability to Threat: The government of the Brazos Valley operates in a continuous state of alertness according to an Interview with Mr. Bill May. Using the Texas AM University Engineering Extension Service (TEEX), the Brazos Valley trains emergency workers from all over the world at the request of their home agency. TEEX uses a large training facility to provide simulated disasters in order to prepare the trainees for any type of disaster. TEEX is different from other agencies in that it provides the most realistic training found in the country, if not the world. However, this only takes care of the aftermath. The front line of defense is the local law enforcement branches. In speaking with the assistant chief of police, I found that while Texas AM is a veritable hub for disaster training, the first line of defense against bio-terror
Friday, January 17, 2020
Dogfight over Europe: Ryanair Essay
Ryanair was launched at a time that did not seem highly favorable to the airline industry. As a matter of facts, in 1986, the market was still recovering from the aftermaths of the OPEC oil embargo and the 1979ââ¬â¢s oil crisis which led to an important increase in the jet oil prices, along with a recession that cut demand for air travel and thus gave an impulse to the aircraftsââ¬â¢ cheaper substitutes, such as trains and ferries. Despite that high bargaining power of suppliers and threat of substitution products that made the external environment unfavorable, the Ryan brothersââ¬â¢ wish to launch their airline did not diminish. The companyââ¬â¢s first service was launched in 1985 between the southeastern Irish city of Waterford and Gatwick Airport, located on the outskirts of London. One year later, the newborn company started operating between Dublin and the British capital. Two majors Airlines operated on this latter route at that time: British Airways and Aer Lingus, the Irish flag-carrier company. Moreover, some strong US airlines reached out for new routes into Europe after the deregulation of the domestic US airline industry, which made the pressure of competitors even more intense in the airline industry. Last but not least, charter flights, which thrived during the 1960ââ¬â¢s to bypass the European regulations and to tap the increasing demand for leisure travel, were transporting 60% of all European passengers by the mid-1980ââ¬â¢s. Despite this high unwelcoming rivalry in the market, Ryanair made the choice to focus on the challenging Dublin-London route, which was reputed to be quite lucrative for both British and Irish flag-carriers. At that time, data showed that three-quarters of a million round-trip Dublin-London travelers opted to use rail and sea ferries rather than aircraft. This information, highlighting the high pressure and threat that the airline industry was undergoing on behalf of the substitution products, confirmed the unattractive character of the local market. In spite of this fact, Ryanair initiated service on the Dublin-London route in 1986, using a 44-seat turboprop during its early stages. Ryanair adopted a launch strategy that differentiated it from its competitors in two main ways. First, it employees would focus on delivering first-rate customer service; second, the company would charge a simple, single fare for a ticket with no restriction, while British Airways was offering a spectrum of ticket prices with varying restriction and the full range of classes of service. The company publicized its first Dublin-London service fare of Ià £98 dollars, whereas Aer Lingusââ¬â¢ and BAââ¬â¢s least expensive, unrestricted round-trip fares on the route were priced at Ià £208. At the same time, Ryanair would offer meals and amenities comparable to what Aer Lingus and British Airways provided. Thus, the newborn company benefited from the beginning from a distinctive business model focused on low operational costs and low fares, but which was not undermining the quality of its services. These low operational costs are partly linked to the companyââ¬â¢s choice to operate on secondary airports, located outside London. Indeed, Gatwick and Luton airports were charging low landing and take-off charges compared to Heathrow main airport, which allowed Ryanair to keep its overhead costs at a lower level than British Airways, and thus gave it a competitive advantage toward other airline companies. However, this choice of secondary airports could also arise as a weakness of the company, since it prevents it from reaching a broader target of customers who predominately go through main airports such as Heathrow. Finally, British airwaysââ¬â¢ and Aer Lingusââ¬â¢ tickets for the Dublin-London round-trip were priced at Ià £153 higher than the cheapest rail-ferry ticket (costing Ià £55), which may have deterred most travelers of flying the route. When launched, Ryanair charged fares which were only Ià £43 higher than the rail-and-ferry onesââ¬â¢ for this journey. Knowing that the journey took nine hours by rail and ferry and only one hour by air, the newborn company could therefore tap into a segment of customers who might be ready to pay an additional Ià £43 for gaining 8 hours while travelling comfortably, which might be a valuable offer. Thus, this pricing strategy could enable the company to gain large shares in the market of these potential customers. (2) How do you expect (a) Aer Lingus and (b) British Airways to respond? And why do you expect each of them to respond that way? Ryanairââ¬â¢s launch is 1986 put a pressure on its two major competitors who are operating on the same challenging Dublin-London route. Indeed, the newborn company, benefiting from low costs, setting low fares, but offering a similar level of quality, would rapidly gain market shares over its competitors. British Airways and Aer Lingus had therefore to respond on an efficient way to retaliate to Ryanairââ¬â¢s entry in the airline industry. a) When Ryanair was launched, Aer Lingus domestic and European routes earned a modest operating profit while its trans-Atlantic flights sustained operating losses for the sixth time in seven year. Despite these difficulties, Aer Lingus, whose main profits where coming from its diversification in the hotel business (among others), was still backed by the Irish government, and aiming at its objectives of providing an air transport service that was ââ¬Å"safe, efficient, reliable, and profitableâ⬠. Moreover, for being the only Irish airline before Ryanair, the company, which was touting the many benefits it brought to the Irish community, might have been benefiting from a good reputation and reliability in its local market. Thus, thanks to the state support but also to its reputation, Aer Lingus operationsââ¬â¢ were well established in Europe, but also in the United States, where the airline has been operating for years. These resources and capabilities, reinforced by the recent successful introduction of a computer reservation system, therefore gave to the company a ââ¬â temporary ââ¬â advantage toward the newborn Ryanair. To retaliate to this latterââ¬â¢s entry, we expect that Aer Lingus reduces its European routesââ¬â¢ fares to match Ryanairââ¬â¢s ones. Thus, relying on its value of ââ¬Å"safetyâ⬠and ââ¬Å"efficiencyâ⬠, and implementing a low cost / low fares business model on its European and domestic flights, the company could protect its market shares from Ryanairââ¬â¢s prospective growing success. Besides, it may be all the more attractive to customers since it was spending tens of millions of pounds in renewing its fleet of jets, while Ryanair was just starting to operate with turboprops, and still did not have permission to fly larger jet aircraft on the route. b) As Ryanair started operating in 1986, British airways (BA) had been earning record profits for the last years, and its forthcoming privatization in 1987 was planned to improve these performances. The companyââ¬â¢s strategy was mainly focusing on international routes and intercontinental flights. Indeed, BA was operating one of the worldââ¬â¢s most extensive airline route networks, serving 145 destinations in 68 countries. This focus is highlighted by the fact that international journeys accounted for roughly two thirds of the seats that the company sold, and nine tenth of its revenues. One of British Airwaysââ¬â¢ advantages is its establishment in Heathrow airport, a major international transportation hub, through which 80% of the companyââ¬â¢s passengers were passing. This focus on Londonââ¬â¢s main airport therefore arises as a competitive advantage toward Ryanair, whose flights, which are taking off and landing in secondary airports, hamper it from reaching a broader target of customers. Besides, British Airwaysââ¬â¢ large range of offers, implying from first class to economy tickets, distinguishes it from a low cost company as Ryanair, and may also arise as an advantage to some customers, looking for a better quality of service. As a result of this importance differentiation in service, and from our analysis, British Airwaysââ¬â¢ reaction to Ryanair entry should not be as thundering as Aer Lingusââ¬â¢ one. Indeed, BA already operates on a different segment than Ryanair, targeting business class and international customers. Since BA is mainly operating on international flights from and to main airports, Ryanairââ¬â¢s new focus on point-to-point flights and minimizing overhead costs should not arise as a threat to the British company. Moreover, with the prospective deregulation of the European airline industry whose foundations were laid by the 1986 Single European Act, British Airways should benefit from a major opportunity to expand to new European routes, relying on its valuable international experience. These forthcoming benefits and growth therefore make British Airways a company which does not ââ¬Å"share the same playgroundâ⬠with Ryanair.
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Employee Motivation - 9463 Words
Insights Into Employee Motivation, Commitment and Retention Barbara J. Kreisman Ph.D. Research/White Paper Insights Denver February, 2002 The Leadership Journey is a supervisory, management, and leadership training system consisting of 24 courses delivered on DVD, CD-ROM, VHS, and Online. Call 1-800-541-7872 or visit www.btedemo.com to preview courses. Page 1 Table of Contents Executive Summaryâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.3 W hy Employee Retention and Motivation Is Importantâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.5 Turbulence In The Work Environmentâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.5 At The Root Of The Problemââ¬âDemographicsâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.6 Retention As A Strategic Business Issueâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.6 Calculating The Cost Of Attritionâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.8 Why Employees Become Disengaged and Leaveâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.9 The Phenomena Of Intrinsic Motivationâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.13 Turnover Is Not Aâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦That role is as a catalystââ¬âsomeone who can ââ¬Å"reach inside each employee and release his or her unique talents and convert them into performanceâ⬠(Buckingham and Coffman, 1999). To effectively motivate and retain employees, a manager needs to deal with each person one at a timeââ¬âasking questions of, listening to, and working together one-on-one. A ââ¬Å"good managerâ⬠therefore, is one who will help talented people find satisfaction in their work, and ââ¬Å"satisfactionâ⬠is key to an employeeââ¬â¢s decision to stay or leave an organization. (Buckingham and Coffman, 1999; Kreisman, 2002; Kaye and JordanEvans, 1999). It must be recognized, however, that over the last 10-15 years, most organizations have de-layered and eliminated many middle management positions. Todayââ¬â¢s managers often have large numbers of direct reports in addition to individual responsibilities of their own (Buckingham and Coffman, 1999). Very few have the time to effectively make the emotional tie with their subordinates that is really effective. Through use of various training tools and processes, specifically, the Insights Discovery System, the process of communication and understanding between manager and employee can be accelerated. The intent of this research paper is to illuminate numerous employee-retention related issues that are of particular significance to organizations today. It further seeks to demonstrate how the InsightsShow MoreRelatedThe Motivation And Emplo yee Motivation1584 Words à |à 7 PagesThe central problem that always employers and employees face is the employee motivation. The workers who put no effort to do their best in their jobs which will lead to low quality of work and give no benefit to the organization are the one who are not motivated (Amabile 1993). On the other side, employees who are apparently to be very intelligent, action oriented, ambitious, autonomous and always put an effort and sacrifice their time to put the organization at the ease are the one who feel motivatedRead MoreEmployee Motivation886 Words à |à 4 PagesThis is a dissertation abstract on Employee Motivation: Why study motivation? To state it simple you need to know motivation to be a better leader to accomplish your business goals. Employees are like sheep you need to lead them to accomplish the mission. It is much easier to lead a group of individuals when they have a vested interest to accomplish it. You create that interest through motivation. The key to a successful organization in many ways is motivation. It is one of the most difficult tasksRead MoreEmployee Motivation 1164 Words à |à 5 Pages Bauer and Erdrogen (2009) define motivation as ââ¬Å"the desire to achieve a goal or a certain performance level, leading to goalââ¬âdirected behaviorâ⬠(p.97). McConnell (2006) argues that true motivation is self motivation. Today, health care organizations place a lot of emphasis on production and performance. However, motivating employees is a common challenge faced by health care managers and Bauer and Erdrogen (2009) state it is also one of the factors that greatly affect performance. McConnell (2006)Read MoreMotivation of Employee2476 Words à |à 10 PagesMotivation of Employee People join and work in organization to satisfy their needs. They are fascinated to organizations that have the funds of rewarding their wants. These wealth are called ââ¬Å"incentives (compensation, benefits)â⬠(M. Maccoby, 9) of rewards; organizations use them to initiate people to contribute their efforts on the way to achieve organizational goals. The continued existence of an organization depends on its capability to attract and stimulate people to accomplish these individualRead MoreEmployee Motivation2339 Words à |à 10 PagesEmployee Motivation A question often asked by first-line supervisors and managers is ââ¬Å"How do we motivate our employees?â⬠Effectively motivating employees to achieve a desired outcome is one of the most important functions as a supervisor or manager. There is evidence to show organizations are facing challenges retaining employees due to limited opportunities for advancement and the current competitive labor market. It does not appear things will get any better in the future. The loss of employeesRead MoreMotivation Theories And Motivation Of Employee Motivation Essay1517 Words à |à 7 Pagesour control and some that are not. Employee motivation is something that can directly affect an organizations production. It is no secret that un-motivated employees equates to un-productive workers, but how can we combat this? In order to better understand this concept we will look at the definition of employee motivation, some of the motivation theories and some motivation techniques that could be useful in our organizations. What is employee motivation? Motivation is a word used quite often in manyRead MoreMotivation And Efficiency Of Employee Motivation Essay2331 Words à |à 10 PagesMotivation is defined as ââ¬Å"the process that account for an individualââ¬â¢s intensity, direction and persistence of effort toward attaining a goalâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ (Robbins Judge, 2016, p. 126). It is a flat out need to keep employees motivated in the workplace and boost them to perform beyond expectations. In addressing what elements of employment result in both motivation and efficiency, this paper briefly sketches some of the theories of motivation applied in workforce and analyses how these theories are appliedRead MoreEmployee Motivation And Motivation Theory1878 Words à |à 8 Pagesvaluable resources for companies and them could be competitive advantages for modern companies. It is important for modern companies to improve employee satisfaction and performance so that they can improve their organisational performance and competitiveness (Armstrong, 2006). As a result, Employeeââ¬â¢s motivation management is significantly for companies. Motivation is a cognitive process to guide, initiate, direct and maintain goal-oriented activities. It can also be defined as the driving forces directingRead MoreMotivation Strategy For Employee Motivation Essay2082 Words à |à 9 Pagesthe strength and weaknesses of at least two theories of motivation. With the rapid changes of modern business environment, the competition between organizations becomes more and more fierce. In order to be competitive enough to stand out from the rest, businesses try to enhance their competitiveness by improving different area in the management aspect. In addition to, as service sector has become the most dominant industry nowadays, employee?s performance become more crucial as it can directly affectRead MoreEmployee Motivation Essays1371 Words à |à 6 PagesEmployee Motivation What motivates employees today? This is an increasing concern to managers today because the definition of motivation is a very complex. One cannot actually define motivation but can give theories to better explain it. In this paper, I am going to talk about some of the major theories and factors that affect motivation at the job. The first theory is the two-factor theory which was suggested
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Commercial Recuperation Essay - 1925 Words
Commercial Recuperation Essentially what Hebdige is saying with his statement is that eventually a subcultures generic trademarks will cross over into the mainstream. This will in tern render the original intentions of subversion diluted pastiches of there former representations. The validity of this statement is interesting in two ways. Firstly are subcultures subversive qualities diluted through popularisation? And secondly and perhaps more importantly in terms of more contemporary subcultural representations; how valid is the statement that what might be considered subcultures are actually subversive in terms of attempted displacement of a dominant ideology. It is these two areas withâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦But more than this was the relevant timing of the punk movement and subsequently, why it is so important as an example within this discussion. The high unemployment rates and the economic uncertainly present throughout Britain where largely to blame. As was the realisation that the promised age of prosperity and utopia promised by the passing generation was never going to come to the present one. As Polhemus puts it ââ¬Å"had Mclaren and Westwood not been around to toss a few sticks of dynamite in the right direction an eruption would have occurred anywayâ⬠(1993:90). Punk saw itself as being in direct conflict with the established order it felt had betrayed a generation as John Fisk highlights the main function of conflict sub cultural groups in his article ââ¬ËThe Popular Economyââ¬â¢ ââ¬Å"The power domain in within which popular culture works is largely, but not exclusively, that of semiotic power. One major articulation of this power is the struggle between homogenisation and difference, or between consensus and conflictâ⬠(Quoted in Storey, 1994:511) The movement was just that; a movement. It not only had itââ¬â¢s own music and political overtones in nihilism and anarchy it also had itââ¬â¢s ownShow MoreRelatedSample Resume : Hdfc Bank Essay6659 Words à |à 27 Pagesa noteworthy part of RBI s liberalization of the Indian Banking Industry in 1994. The bank was initiated in August 1994 for the purpose of HDFC Bank Limited , with its main office in Mumbai, India. HDFC Bank started operations as a Scheduled Commercial Bank in January 1995. HDFC Bank is headquartered in city of Mumbai. As of March 31, 2015, the Bank s dispersion system was at 4014 branches in a couple of, 464 urban areas of India. Clients crosswise over Asian country are kept up through numerousRead MoreThe Impact Of E Trade Institutional On Trust And Online Buying1224 Words à |à 5 PagesOn the other hand, clients frequently choose to leave a supplier in view of deficient reactions instead of for the disappointing issue itself. In a light of the presumption that clients often complain before they leave suppliers, administration recuperation and protest administration endeavors are utilized as the primary strategies for holding clients. In any case, clients don t generally indicate disappointment before they leave a supplier, and the wonder is particularly common in e-commerce. OnlineRead MoreA Sad and Cruel Industry: Human Trafficking Essay1079 Words à |à 5 Pagespersons were estimated to be between five billion and nine billion dollars. Human tr acking often includes school aged children, specifically those not living with their parents, who are susceptible to coerced labor corruption, domestic servitude, or commercial sexual exploitation. As opposed to many other forms of criminality, the trauma experienced by children who are trafficked is often sustained and repeated, leading to severe psychological effects. Trafficked children often suffer from anxiety, depressionRead MoreEssay On The 2008 Crash1123 Words à |à 5 Pagessubstances light up the strange and troubling money related issues for America from the alarming 2008 crash and its outcome. In any case: for U.S. budgetary and regard markets, there has beginning now on an extremely fundamental level been a full recuperation from the Great Recession. Key pointers of execution for these business sections the Dow30, SP500, Russell 2000, NASDAQ, etc.ââ¬âare all at higher obvious levels today than they were five years back. Undoubtedly, even in the wake of controlling forRead MoreTypes Of Knowledge Management Systems1129 Words à |à 5 Pagesquality, system security, system flexibility and system calamity recuperation programs. Web 2.0 and Cloud registering as Paas, Saas, Iaas. 4G Networks, Pre-4G innovations incorporate Long Term Evolution (LTE) and the portable WiMax. RFID and Wireless sensor systems. Remote and altered zone systems with high limit system framework, abnormal state system unwavering quality, system security, system flexibility and system calamity recuperation programs. Cooperation apparatuses incorporate email andRead MoreEssay On The Tennessee Chamber Of Commerce And Industry754 Words à |à 4 PagesChamber builds up a Business Agenda of proactive issues that addresses these business concerns. We as a whole realize that Tennessees financial quality depends on a dynamic and energetic business and modern group that is competitive in a world commercial center and gives occupations to Tennesseans and their families. Reestablishing our finance for the marketplace must be a Tennessee Chamber of commerce top priority need ahead with not a single solution in sight. Memphis offers a differing, metropolitanRead MoreWhy Google Adsense High Paying Key Phrases1093 Words à |à 5 Pagesnonetheless donââ¬â¢t think of huge money, and the remaining reason is the placements of the commercials. so you ought to be taking some care of those all with a purpose to make extra cash with Google Adsense. if you are blogging the usage of the subsequent subjects then i hope Youââ¬â¢ll no longer make proper money with Adsense, due to the fact Youââ¬â¢ll now not get the most applicable and excessive paying commercials from Adsense, right here is the listing of low paying niches/subjects: Wallpapers CelebritiesRead MoreWater Dams Essay examples750 Words à |à 3 PagesCambodia, and Vietnam, said that the ecosystem of the Mekong was deteriorating and added: If the current riddem of damage continues, the forests, the biodiversity, the existence of fish and quality of the soil will all be damaged to the point were recuperation will be impossible. For some years now, many Asian countries have looked at the Mekong River as an opportunity to generate electricity and with this be able to develop faster. Being that most of the regions around the rive are poor governmentsRead MoreRecovery And Rebirth : The Age Of The Renaissance1414 Words à |à 6 Pagesresult of its commercial preeminence and political evolution, northern Italy (mid-14th century) was mostly a land of independent cities that dominated the country districts surrounding. the city-states were the centers of Italian political, economic, and social life. a secular spirit emerged as increasing wealth created new possibilities for the enjoyment of worldly things. Age of Recovery recovery from the ââ¬Å"calamitous fourteenth centuryâ⬠Italy and Europe began slowly recuperation from the BlackRead MoreKeeping Money Association Case Study1276 Words à |à 6 PagesConsumer Protection in Sales of Insurance Regulation, whereupon I will expound in a minute â⬠¢ Ensuring that the parent bank or bank holding organization have set up proper controls over bookkeeping and different frameworks, including catastrophe recuperation programs identified with the protection deals line of business â⬠¢ Ensuring that the bank or bank holding organization has controls to secure the protection of client data, predictable with important state or different controls â⬠¢ Monitoring cases
Tuesday, December 24, 2019
Globalization Strategy Of The Korean Pop Music - 9775 Words
Executive Summary Today hybridisation has become a globalisation strategy especially for cultural products. It is defined as a re-organisation of different cultural elements and creates new culture forms or produces hybrid cultural products which could reach a wider range of global audiences. Culture Technology (CT), a concept similar to hybridisation has been applied by Korean music labels in marketing their music products overseas. This has been viewed by many marketers and scholars as one of the key reasons that promotes overseas popularity of Korean pop music (K-pop). Inspired by the hybridisation strategy of cultural products and successful applications of CT in K-pop, this paper looks into hybridisation in music products in a value chain approach. This would be the first attempt to discuss hybridisation in music products along value chain. Precisely, in this paper, based on the music products value chain models built by different scholars, a new value chain model will be built. The new model wil l be mainly divided into three parts ââ¬â inputs, labels and distributions. Then, how hybridisation functions in this model and why it could help enhancing music productsââ¬â¢ foreign marketability are to be discussed according to the three parts. Examples of applications will also be given to prove the validity and applicability of this model. S.M. Entertainment with Super Junior and EXO and Sony Music with One Direction are taken as the examples and will be compared on the ChineseShow MoreRelatedGlobalization of Korean Popular Culture in Asia4150 Words à |à 17 PagesGlobalization of Korean Popular Culture in Asia 1. Introduction Since 1990s, Korean Popular Culture has had a strong influence in Asian countries, including China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Singapore. This new popular cultural phenomenon in Asia is called the ââ¬Å"Korean Waveâ⬠, also known as hallyu in Korean pronunciation, which refers to the surge of popularity of Korean popular culture abroad, particularly in Asia(Kin 284). The ââ¬Å"Korean Waveâ⬠is first coined in mid-1999 by journalists in BeijingRead MoreK Pop s Shady Business Secret Essay1239 Words à |à 5 PagesK-pop s Shady Business Secret The Korean pop or K-pop industry over the last decade has experienced a major increase in popularity that has made it a billion dollar competition for foreign music industries. They are especially known for their extravagant music videos and visual aesthetics, which have attracted worldwide followings. K-pop companies are also infamous for being brutally strict on training and restrictions for their trainees and idols. They fixate on the business growth over the musicalRead MoreSouth Kore South Korean Industry3414 Words à |à 14 Pages Korean Industry Thirin Santiworakun National University Julie Kidder November 17, 2014 South Korean Industry Industry is very important to a country because it is the source that produces the goods and services to satisfy the needs of people. Nowadays the country that looks distinguished in Asia is South Korea because you can see that many high brands are made in Korea. Everybody can create the brand name but the hardest thing is how to make people recognize that brand and how to breakRead MoreGlobalization And The World Economy And Global Markets Essay1270 Words à |à 6 PagesGlobalization is often connected to the world economy and global markets. HoweverHowever, it is much deeper than economic exchange of goods; it also deals with people s lifestyles, culture, language, and identity. Many people support the ideology of globalization and believed it made the world a better place for global population by turning the whole globe into a well-connected village. However, the critics of globalization claim it made our world worse than ever before in the history, diminishingRead MoreSamsung Case Study6174 Words à |à 25 Pages| ECONOMIC | * Work hand in hand with the government; consist the same agendas and values.Change driver- Globalization Promotion Committee consisted of a set of committees on policy planning, administrative reform, educational reform, science and technology influences Samsung as well. | * Main contributor of economy status in south KoreaChange driver- top down reform of the Korean economy to meet the rapidly changing conditions of the world economy. | SOCIAL | TECHNOLOGICAL | * ValueRead MoreThe Social Construction Of Contemporary Youth Cultures2156 Words à |à 9 Pagesinformation technology, communication, fashion). As we know, globalization is considered to be the process of ideas, goods and communication flowing cross-border with unprecedented speed, range and volume. It is regarded as the presence of the same lifestyles, products, consumption patterns, and cultural experiences across the globe, across many economically AF fluent or economically poor countries of the world. (Firat A F, 1997) This globalization and reproduction from markets and their productions allRead MoreStandardization Adaptation15058 Words à |à 61 Pagesculture Authors: Ingrid Bernier and Elise Meyer Supervisor: Jean-Charles Languilaire Level: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration, Marketing Key words: Culture, international marketing, marketing strategies, standardization and adaptation Purpose: Compare two strategies, standardization and adaptation, to show how companies manage cultural differences. Method: Our research method is a descriptive one. Then, we collect data from secondary sources such as the books, articles, journalsRead MoreSamsung Strategic Management6168 Words à |à 25 Pages1. Introduction 1.1. Background The Samsung Group was founded by Byung-Chull Lee in 1938, in Taegu, Korea, as an exporter of dried fish, vegetables and fruits. Byung later established flour mills under the name Samsung, which means three stars in Korean language. He also produced confectionery machines in this period. In 1951, Samsung Moolsan, a holding company, was established which later The building of Samsung Sanghoe in Daegu in 1930s became Samsung Corp. in 1953, Cheil Sugar Manufacturing CoRead MoreSummary Article Nikes Dispute with the University of Oregon9247 Words à |à 37 Pagesstarted to pop up around the globe... and subsidiaries including Cole Haan Cole Haan Cole Haan is a fashion label that was founded in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in 1928.The name comes from founders Trafton Cole and Eddie Haan. Originally Cole Haan was a men s footwear label... , Hurley International Hurley International Hurley International is a clothing company located in Costa Mesa, California founded by Bob Hurley. The company puts emphasis on skateboarding, surfing, music, and funRead MoreComment on How Changes in Macro and Market Environment Forces Impact on the Level of Competition in an Industry.18606 Words à |à 75 PagesGermany any advertisement believed to be in bad taste can be prohibited. This patchwork of national advertising regulations means that companies attempting to create a brand image across Europe often need to make substantial changes to advertising strategy on a national basis. Supplementing the work of the European Commission are national bodies set up to investigate anti-competitive practices. For example, the Competition Commission in the UK, the Bundeskartellant in Germany and the Competition Council
Monday, December 16, 2019
The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 24~25 Free Essays
string(117) " the Food Guy and his female and the Tall Guy who always smelled of burning weeds and sometimes gave him hamburgers\." Twenty-four The Sheriff Sheriff John Burton stood by the ruins of Theoââ¬â¢s Volvo, pounding the keys of his cell phone. He could smell the cow shit heââ¬â¢d stepped in coming off his Guccis and the damp wind was blowing cowlicks in his gelled silver hair. His black Armani suit was smudged with the ashes heââ¬â¢d poked through at Theoââ¬â¢s cabin, thinking there might be a burned body underneath. We will write a custom essay sample on The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 24~25 or any similar topic only for you Order Now He was not happy. Didnââ¬â¢t anybody answer their goddamn phone anymore? Heââ¬â¢d called Joseph Leander, Theophilus Crowe, and Jim Beer, the man who owned the ranch, and no one was answering. Which is what had brought him to Pine Cove in the middle of the night in a state of near panic in the first place. The second shift of crank cookers should be working in the lab right now, but there was no one around. His world was falling down around him, all because of the meddling of a pothead constable who had forgotten that he was supposed to be incompetent. Croweââ¬â¢s line was ringing. Burton heard a click, then was immediately disconnected. ââ¬Å"Fuck!â⬠He slammed the cell phone shut and dropped it into the pocket of his suit jacket. Someone was answering Croweââ¬â¢s phone. Either he was still alive or Leander had killed him, taken his phone, and was fucking with him. But Leanderââ¬â¢s van had been parked at Croweââ¬â¢s cabin? So where was he? Not at home, Burton had already checked, finding nothing but a sleepy baby-sitter and two groggy little girls in nightgowns. Would Leander run and not take his daughters? Burton pulled out the phone and dialed the data offices at the department. The Spider answered. ââ¬Å"Nailsworth,â⬠the Spider said. Burton could hear him chewing. ââ¬Å"Put down that Twinkie, you fucking tub of lard, I need you to find me a name and an address.â⬠ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s a Sno Ball. Pink. I only eat the marshmallow covers.â⬠Burton could feel his pulse rising in his temples and made an effort to control his rage. In the rush to get to Pine Cove, heââ¬â¢d forgotten to take his blood pressure medication. ââ¬Å"The name is Betsy Butler. I need a Pine Cove address.â⬠ââ¬Å"Joseph Leanderââ¬â¢s girlfriend?â⬠the Spider asked. ââ¬Å"How do you know that?â⬠ââ¬Å"Please, Sheriff,â⬠the Spider said with a snort. ââ¬Å"Remember who youââ¬â¢re talking to.â⬠ââ¬Å"Just get me the address.â⬠Burton could hear Nailsworth typing. The Spider was dangerous, a constant threat to his operation, and Burton couldnââ¬â¢t figure out how to get to him. He was immune to bribes or threats of any kind and seemed content with his lot in life as long as he could make others squirm. And Burton was too afraid of what the corpulent information officer might really know to fire him. Maybe some of that foxglove tea that Leander had used on his wife. Certainly, no one would question heart failure in a man who got winded unwrapping a Snickers. ââ¬Å"No address,â⬠Nailsworth said. ââ¬Å"Just a P.O. box. I checked DMV, TRW, and Social Security. She works at H.P.ââ¬â¢s Cafe in Pine Cove. You want the address?â⬠ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s five in the morning, Nailsworth. I need to find this woman now.â⬠The Spider sighed. ââ¬Å"They open for breakfast at six. Do you want the address?â⬠Burton was seething again. ââ¬Å"Give it to me,â⬠he said through gritted teeth. The Spider gave him an address on Cypress Street and said, ââ¬Å"Try the Eggs-Sothoth, theyââ¬â¢re supposed to be great.â⬠ââ¬Å"How would you know? You never leave the goddamn office.â⬠ââ¬Å"Ah, what fools these mortals be,â⬠the Spider said in a very bad British accent. ââ¬Å"I know everything, Sheriff. Everything.â⬠Then he hung up. Burton took a deep breath and checked his Rolex. He had enough time to make a little visit to Jim Beerââ¬â¢s ranch house before the restaurant opened. The old shit kicker was probably already up and punching doggies, or whatever the fuck ranchers did at this hour. He certainly wasnââ¬â¢t answering his phone. Burton climbed into the black Eldorado and roared across the rutted ranch road toward the gate by Theoââ¬â¢s cabin. As he headed out to the Coast Highway to loop back to the front of the ranch (heââ¬â¢d be damned if heââ¬â¢d take his Caddy across two miles of cow trails), someone stepped into his headlights and he slammed on the brakes. The antilocks throbbed and the Caddy stopped just short of running over a woman in a white choir robe. There was a whole line of them, making their way down the Coast Highway, shielding candles against the wind. They didnââ¬â¢t even look up, but walked past the front of his car as if in a trance. Burton rolled down the window and stuck his head out. ââ¬Å"What are you people doing? Itââ¬â¢s five in the morning.â⬠A balding man whose choir robe was three sizes too small looked up with a beatific smile and said, ââ¬Å"Weââ¬â¢ve been called by the Holy Spirit. Weââ¬â¢ve been called.â⬠Then he walked on. ââ¬Å"Yeah, well, you almost got to see him early!â⬠Burton yelled, but no one paid attention. He fell back into the seat and waited as the procession passed. It wasnââ¬â¢t just people in choir robes, but aging hippies in jeans and Birkenstocks, half a dozen Gen Xââ¬â¢ers dressed in their Sunday best, and one skinny guy who was wearing the saffron robes of a Buddhist monk. Burton wrenched his briefcase off the passenger seat and popped it open. False passport, driverââ¬â¢s license, Social Security card, stick-on beard, and a ticket to the Caymans: the platinum parachute kit he kept with him at all times. Maybe it was time to bail. Skinner Well, the Food Guy finally got a female, Skinner thought. Probably because he had the scent of those mashed cows on him. Skinner had been tempted to roll in the goo himself, but was afraid the Food Guy would yell at him. (He hated that.) But this was even better: riding in the different car with the Food Guy and his female and the Tall Guy who always smelled of burning weeds and sometimes gave him hamburgers. You read "The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 24~25" in category "Essay examples" He looked out the window and wagged his tail, which repeatedly smacked Theo in the face. They were stopping. Oh boy, maybe they would leave him in the car. That would be good; the seats were chewy and tasted of cow. But no, they let him out, told him to come along with them to the small house. An Old Guy answered the door and Skinner said hi with a nose to the crotch. The Old Guy scratched his ears. Skinner liked him. He smelled like a dog whoââ¬â¢d been howling all night. Being near him made Skinner want to howl and he did, one time, enjoying the sad sound of his own voice. The Food Guy told him to shut up. The Old Guy said, ââ¬Å"I guess I know how you feel.â⬠They all went inside and left Skinner there on the steps. They were all nervous, Skinner could smell it, and they probably wouldnââ¬â¢t be inside long. He had work to do. It was a big yard with a lot of shrubs where other dogs had left him messages. He needed to reply to them all, so each could only get a short spray. Dog e-mail. He was only half-finished when they came back out. The Tall Guy said, ââ¬Å"Well, Mr. Jefferson, weââ¬â¢re going to find the monster and weââ¬â¢d like your help. Youââ¬â¢re the only one who has seen it.â⬠ââ¬Å"Oh, I think youââ¬â¢ll know him when you see him,â⬠said the old guy. ââ¬Å"Yââ¬â¢all donââ¬â¢t need my help.â⬠Everyone smelled sad and afraid and Skinner couldnââ¬â¢t help himself. He let loose a forlorn howl that he held until the Food Guy grabbed his collar and dragged him to the car. Skinner had a bad feeling that they might be going to the place where there was danger. Danger, Food Guy, he warned. His barking was deafening in the confines of the Mercedes. Estelle Estelle was fuming as she cleared the teacups from the table and threw them into the sink. Two broke and she swore to herself, then turned to Catfish, who was sitting on the bed picking out a soft version of ââ¬Å"Walkinââ¬â¢ Manââ¬â¢s Bluesâ⬠on the National steel guitar. ââ¬Å"You could have helped them,â⬠Estelle said. Catfish looked at the guitar and sang, ââ¬Å"Got a mean old woman, Lawd, stay angry all the time.â⬠ââ¬Å"Thereââ¬â¢s nothing noble in using your art to escape life. You should have helped them.â⬠ââ¬Å"Got a mean old woman, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd. She just stay angry all the time.â⬠ââ¬Å"Donââ¬â¢t you ignore me, Catfish Jefferson. Iââ¬â¢m talking to you. People in this town have been good to you. You should help them.â⬠Catfish threw back his head and sang to the ceiling, ââ¬Å"She gots no idea, Lawd, whatââ¬â¢s hers and whatââ¬â¢s mine.â⬠Estelle snagged a skillet out of the dish rack, crossed the room, and raised it for a rocketing forehand shot to Catfishââ¬â¢s head. ââ¬Å"Go ahead, sing another verse about your ââ¬Ëmean old woman,ââ¬â¢ Catfish. Iââ¬â¢m curious, what rhymes with ââ¬Ëclobberedââ¬â¢?â⬠Catfish put the guitar aside and slipped on his sunglasses. ââ¬Å"You know, they say a woman was the one poisoned Robert Johnson?â⬠ââ¬Å"Do you know what she used?â⬠Estelle wasnââ¬â¢t smiling. ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m making my shopping list.â⬠ââ¬Å"Dang, woman, why you talk like that? I ainââ¬â¢t been nothin but good to you.â⬠ââ¬Å"And me to you. Thatââ¬â¢s why you keep singing that mean old woman song, right?â⬠ââ¬Å"Donââ¬â¢t sound right singin ââ¬Ësweet old woman.'â⬠Estelle lowered the pan. Tears welled up in her eyes. ââ¬Å"You can help them and when itââ¬â¢s over you can stay here. you can play your music, I can paint. People in Pine Cove love your music.â⬠ââ¬Å"People here sayin hello to me on the street, puttin too much money in the tip jar, buying me drinks ââ¬â I ainââ¬â¢t got the Blues on me no more.â⬠ââ¬Å"So you have to go wreck your car, or pick cotton, or shoot a man in Memphis, or whatever it is that you have to do to put the Blues on you? For what?â⬠ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s what I do. I donââ¬â¢t know nothin else.â⬠ââ¬Å"Youââ¬â¢ve never tried anything else. Iââ¬â¢m here, Iââ¬â¢m real. Is it so bad to know that you have a warm bed to sleep in with someone who loves you? Thereââ¬â¢s nothing out there, Catfish.â⬠ââ¬Å"That dragon out there. He always be out there.â⬠ââ¬Å"So face it. You got away from it before.â⬠ââ¬Å"Why you care?â⬠ââ¬Å"Because it took a lot for me to open my heart to you after what Iââ¬â¢ve been through, and I donââ¬â¢t have much tolerance for cowards anymore.â⬠ââ¬Å"Call it like you sees it, Mama.â⬠Estelle turned and went back to the kitchen. ââ¬Å"Then maybe you better go.â⬠ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢ll get my hat,â⬠Catfish said. He snapped the National back into its case, grabbed his hat from the table, and in a moment he was gone. Estelle turned and stared at the door. When she heard his station wagon start, she fell to the floor and felt a once warm future bleed a black stain around her. Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch The cave lay under a hillside, less than a mile from the ranch road at Theoââ¬â¢s cabin. The narrow mouth looked down over a wide, grassy marine terrace to the Pacific, and the interior, which opened into a huge cathedral chamber, echoed with the sound of crashing waves. Fossilized starfish and trilobites peppered the walls and the rocky floor was covered with a patina of bat guano and crystallized sea salt. The last time Steve had visited the cave it had been underwater, and he had spent a pleasant autumn there feeding on the gray whales that migrated down the coast to Baja to bear their young. He didnââ¬â¢t remember the cave consciously, of course, but when he sensed that Molly was searching for a hiding place, the map in his mind that had long ago gone to instinct led them there. Since theyââ¬â¢d arrived at the cave, a dark mood had fallen on Steve and, in turn, over Molly. Sheââ¬â¢d used the weed-whacker on the Sea Beast several times to try to cheer him up, but now the sex machine was out of gas and Molly was developing a heat rash on the inside of her thighs from repeated tongue lashings. It had been two days since she had eaten, and even Steve refused to touch his cows (Black Angus steers, now that Molly knew he couldnââ¬â¢t tolerate dairy). Since the coming of the Sea Beast, Molly had been in a state of controlled euphoria. Worries about her sanity had melted away and she had joined him in the Zen moment that is the life of an animal, but since the dream and the horrible self-consciousness that had descended on Steve, the notion of their incompatibility had begun to rise in Mollyââ¬â¢s mind like a trout to a fly. ââ¬Å"Steve,â⬠she said, leaning on her broadsword and staring him squarely in one of his basketball eyes, ââ¬Å"your breath could knock a buzzard off a shit wagon.â⬠The Sea Beast, rather than go on the defensive (which was fortunate for Molly, because the only defense he could think of was to bite her legs off), let out a pathetic whimper and tried to tuck his huge head under a forelimb. Molly immediately regretted her comment and tried to patch the damage. ââ¬Å"Oh, I know, itââ¬â¢s not your fault. Maybe someone sells Tic Tacs the size of easy chairs. Weââ¬â¢ll get through it.â⬠But she didnââ¬â¢t mean it, and Steve could sense her insincerity. ââ¬Å"Maybe we need to get out more,â⬠she added. Dawn had broken outside and a beam of sunlight was streaming into the cathedral like a copââ¬â¢s flashlight in a smoky bar. ââ¬Å"Maybe a swim,â⬠Molly said. ââ¬Å"Your gills seem to be healing.â⬠How she knew the treelike growths on his neck were gills, she wasnââ¬â¢t sure ââ¬â perhaps more of the unspoken communication that passes between lovers. Steve lifted his head and Molly thought that she might have gotten his attention, but then she noticed that a shadow had come over the entrance to the cave. She looked up to see half a dozen people in choir robes standing at the opening of the cathedral. ââ¬Å"Weââ¬â¢ve come to offer sacrifice,â⬠one woman managed to say. ââ¬Å"And not a breath mint among you, Iââ¬â¢ll bet,â⬠Molly said. Twenty-five Theo H.P.ââ¬â¢s Cafe was crowded with early morning old guys drinking coffee. Theo downed three cups of coffee quickly, which only served to make him anxious. Val and Gabe had ordered a cinnamon roll to share, and now Val was feeding a piece of it to Gabe as if the man had somehow managed to reach middle age and earn two Ph.D.s without ever having learned to feed himself. Theo just wanted to blow the bitter chunks of indignation. Val said, ââ¬Å"I certainly hope that the presence of this creature isnââ¬â¢t responsible for how I feel right now.â⬠She licked icing from her fingers. Right, Theo thought, the fact that youââ¬â¢ve fucked up all the previously fucked-up people in town and committed a string of felonies in the process shouldnââ¬â¢t be the rain on your little love parade. However, Theo did sub-scribe to the ââ¬Å"honest mistakeâ⬠school of law enforcement, and he honestly believed that she was trying to right a wrong by taking her patients off their medication. So although Val was currently irritating him like a porcu-pine suppository, he was honest enough to realize that he was merely jealous of what she had found with Gabe. That realized, Gabe started to irritate him as well. ââ¬Å"What do we do, Gabe? Tranquilize this thing? Shoot it? What?â⬠ââ¬Å"Assuming it exists.â⬠ââ¬Å"Assume it,â⬠Theo spat. ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m afraid if you wait for enough evidence to be sure, weââ¬â¢ll have to find you an ass donor, because this creature will have bitten yours off.â⬠ââ¬Å"No need to be snotty, Theo. Iââ¬â¢m just being sensibly skeptical, as any researcher would.â⬠ââ¬Å"Theo,â⬠Val said, ââ¬Å"I can write you a scrip for some Valium. Might take the edge off your withdrawal symptoms.â⬠Theo scoffed. He didnââ¬â¢t scoff often, so he wasnââ¬â¢t good at it, and it appeared to Gabe and Val that he might be gacking up a hair ball. ââ¬Å"You all right?â⬠Gabe asked. ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m fine. I was scoffing.â⬠ââ¬Å"At what?â⬠ââ¬Å"At Dr. Feelgood here wanting to give me a prescription for Valium so Winston Krauss can fill it with MMs.â⬠ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢d forgotten about that,â⬠Val said. ââ¬Å"Sorry.â⬠ââ¬Å"It would appear that we have multifarious problems with which to deal, and I donââ¬â¢t have a clue where to start,â⬠Theo said. ââ¬Å"Multifarious?â⬠Gabe said. ââ¬Å"A shitload,â⬠said Theo. ââ¬Å"I know what it means, Theo. I just canââ¬â¢t believe it came out of your mouth.â⬠Val laughed gaily at Gabeââ¬â¢s kinda-sorta humor. Theo glared at her. Jenny, who was almost as cranky as Theo for having had to close H.P.ââ¬â¢s the night before and then open the restaurant in the morning when the morning girl called in sick, came by to refill their coffees. ââ¬Å"Thatââ¬â¢s your boss pulling up, isnââ¬â¢t it, Theo?â⬠she asked, nodding toward the front. Out the window Theo could see Sheriff John Burton crawling out of his black Eldorado. ââ¬Å"Back door?â⬠Theo said, urgent pleading in his eyes. ââ¬Å"Sure, through the kitchen and Howardââ¬â¢s office.â⬠Theo was up in a second and halfway to the kitchen when he noticed that Val and Gabe had missed the entire exchange and were staring into each otherââ¬â¢s eyes. He ran back and slapped the table with his open palm. They looked at him as if theyââ¬â¢d been dragged out of a dream. ââ¬Å"Attention,â⬠Theo said, trying not to raise his voice. ââ¬Å"Sheriff coming in? My boss? Deadly drug dealer? Weââ¬â¢re criminals. Weââ¬â¢ll be making a break for the back door? Now? Hello?â⬠ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m not a criminal,â⬠Gabe said. ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m a biologist.â⬠Theo grabbed him by the front of the shirt and made for the kitchen, dragging the biologist behind him. The criminal shrink brought up the rear. The Sheriff ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢m looking for Betsy Butler,â⬠Burton said, flipping open a badge wallet as if everyone in the county didnââ¬â¢t immediately recognize his white Stetsonover-Armani look. ââ¬Å"Whatââ¬â¢s she done?â⬠Jenny asked, putting herself between the sheriff and the door to the kitchen. ââ¬Å"Thatââ¬â¢s not your affair. I just need to talk to her.â⬠ââ¬Å"Well, Iââ¬â¢m on the floor alone, so you have to follow me if you want to talk or Iââ¬â¢ll get behind.â⬠ââ¬Å"I donââ¬â¢t want to talk to you.â⬠ââ¬Å"Fine.â⬠Jenny turned her back on the sheriff and went to the waitress station behind the counter to start a fresh pot of coffee. Burton followed her, suppressing the urge to put her in a choke hold. ââ¬Å"Do you know where she lives?â⬠ââ¬Å"Yes,â⬠Jenny said. ââ¬Å"But sheââ¬â¢s not home.â⬠Jenny glanced back through the kitchen window to make sure that Theo and his bunch had made it through to Howardââ¬â¢s office. Burtonââ¬â¢s face was going red now. ââ¬Å"Please. Could you tell me where she is?â⬠Jenny thought she could jerk this guy around for another ten minutes or so, but it didnââ¬â¢t look as if it was necessary. Besides, she was pissed at Betsy for calling in anyway. ââ¬Å"She called in this morning with a spiritual emergency. Her words, by the way. The flu I can understand, but Iââ¬â¢m working a double after closing last night over her spiritual emergency ââ¬â ââ¬Å" ââ¬Å"Where is Betsy Butler?â⬠the sheriff barked. Jenny jumped back a step. The man looked as if he might go for his gun any second. No wonder Theo had bolted out the back. ââ¬Å"She said she was going with a group up to the Beer Bar Ranch. That they were being called by the spirit to make a sacrifice. Pretty weird, huh?â⬠ââ¬Å"Was Joseph Leander going with her?â⬠ââ¬Å"No oneââ¬â¢s supposed to know about Betsy and Joseph.â⬠ââ¬Å"I know about them. Was he going with her?â⬠ââ¬Å"She didnââ¬â¢t say. She sounded a little spaced out.â⬠ââ¬Å"Does Theo Crowe come in here?â⬠ââ¬Å"Sometimes.â⬠Jenny wasnââ¬â¢t volunteering anything to this creep. He was rude, he was mean, and he was wearing enough Aramis to choke a skunk. ââ¬Å"Has he been in here today?â⬠ââ¬Å"No, havenââ¬â¢t seen him.â⬠Without a word, Burton turned and stormed out the door to his Cadillac. Jenny went back to the kitchen, where Gabe, Val, and Theo were standing by the fryers, trying to stay out of the way of the two cooks, who were flipping eggs and thrashing hash browns. Gabe pointed to the back door. ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s locked.â⬠ââ¬Å"Heââ¬â¢s gone,â⬠Jenny said. ââ¬Å"He was looking for Betsy and Joseph, but he asked about you, Theo. I think heââ¬â¢s going up to the Beer Bar to find Betsy.â⬠ââ¬Å"Whatââ¬â¢s Betsy doing at the ranch?â⬠Theo asked. ââ¬Å"Something about making a sacrifice. That girl needs help.â⬠Theo turned to Val. ââ¬Å"Give me the keys to your car. Iââ¬â¢m going after him.â⬠ââ¬Å"I donââ¬â¢t think so,â⬠the psychiatrist said, holding her purse away from him. ââ¬Å"Please, Val. Iââ¬â¢ve got to see what heââ¬â¢s up to. This is my life here.â⬠ââ¬Å"And thatââ¬â¢s my Mercedes, and youââ¬â¢re not taking it.â⬠ââ¬Å"I have guns, Val.â⬠ââ¬Å"Yeah, but you donââ¬â¢t have a Mercedes. Itââ¬â¢s mine.â⬠Gabe looked at her as if sheââ¬â¢d squirted a grapefruit in his eyes. ââ¬Å"You really wonââ¬â¢t let Theo use your car?â⬠His voice was flat with disappointment. ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s just a car.â⬠They all stared at her, even the two cooks, burly Hispanic men who had until now refused to acknowledge their existence. Val reached into her purse, brought out the keys, and handed them to Theo as if she were giving up a child for sacrifice. ââ¬Å"How will we get home?â⬠Gabe asked. ââ¬Å"Go to the Head of the Slug and wait. Iââ¬â¢ll either pick you up or call you from my cell phone and let you know whatââ¬â¢s going on. It shouldnââ¬â¢t take long.â⬠With that, Theo ran out of the kitchen. A few seconds later Valerie Riordan cringed at the sound of squealing tires as Theo pulled out of the restaurant parking lot. Skinner Skinner liked chasing cars as much as the next dog, and they didnââ¬â¢t get away as easily when you chased them in another car, but despite the excite-ment of the chase, Skinner was anxious. When he had seen the Tall Guy come out to the car, he thought that the Food Guy was coming too. But now they were driving away from the Food Guy and toward the danger. Skinner could feel it. He whined and ran back and forth across the backseat of the Mercedes, leaving nose prints on the window, then jumped into the front seat and stuck his head out the passenger window. There was no joy to the turbo-charged smells or the wind in his ears, only danger. He barked and scratched at the door handle to warn the Tall Guy, but all he got for his efforts was a perfunctory ear scratching, so he crawled into the Tall Guyââ¬â¢s lap, where it felt at least a little safer. The Sheriff Burton first noticed the Mercedes behind him when he turned onto the access road to the Coast Highway. A week ago he might not have thought twice about it, but now he was seeing an enemy in every tree. DEA wouldnââ¬â¢t use a Mercedes, and neither would FBI, but the Mexican Mafia could. Except for his operation, they ran the meth trade out of the West; perhaps theyââ¬â¢d decided that they wanted the whole trade. That would explain the disap-pearance of Leander, Crowe, and the guys at the lab, except that it had been a little too clean. They would have left bodies as a warning, and they would have burned down all of Croweââ¬â¢s cabin, not just the pot patch. He pulled his Beretta 9 mm. out of its holster and placed it on the seat next to him. He had a shotgun in the trunk, but it might as well be in Canada for all the good it would do him. if there were two or less in the car, he might take them. If more, they probably had Uzis or Mac 10 machine guns and he would run. The Mexicans liked to have a crowd in on their hits. Burton made a quick right off the highway and stopped a block up a side street. Theo Why hadnââ¬â¢t he let Skinner out at the cafe? He hadnââ¬â¢t been able to figure out the electric seat adjustment on the Mercedes, so he was driving with his knees up around the wheel anyway, but now he had an eighty-pound dog in his lap and he had to whip his head from side to side to keep Burtonââ¬â¢s Caddy in sight. The Caddy made an abrupt turn off the highway and it was all Theo could do to get the Mercedes around the corner without screeching the tires. By the time he could see around Skinnerââ¬â¢s head again, the Caddy was stopped only fifty yards ahead. Theo ducked quickly onto the passenger seat and tried to call on THE FORCE to steer as they passed the Caddy. The Sheriff Sheriff John Burton was prepared for a confrontation with DEA agents, he was prepared for a high-speed escape, he was even prepared for a shoot-out with Mexican drug dealers, if it came to that. He prided himself on being tough and adaptable and thought himself superior to other men be-cause of his cool response to pressure. He was, however, not prepared to see a Mercedes cruise by with a Labrador retriever at the wheel. His Uber-mensch arrogance shriveled as he stared gape-jawed at the passing Mercedes. It made an erratic turn at the next corner, bouncing off a curb before disap-pearing behind a hedge. He wasnââ¬â¢t the sort of man who doubted his own perceptions ââ¬â if he saw it, he saw it ââ¬â so his mind dropped into politician mode to file the experi-ence. ââ¬Å"That right there,â⬠he said aloud, ââ¬Å"is why I will never support a bill to license dogs to drive.â⬠Still, political certainties werenââ¬â¢t going to count for much if he didnââ¬â¢t get to Betsy Butler and find out what had happened to his prized drug mule. He pulled a U-turn and headed back to the Coast Highway, where he found himself looking a little more closely than usual at the drivers in oncoming cars. Molly There were thirty of them all together. Six stood side by side at the cave entrance; the rest crowded behind them, trying to get a look inside. Molly recognized the one doing the talking, she was the ditzy waitress from H.P.ââ¬â¢s cafe. She was in her mid-twenties, with short blonde hair and a figure that promised to go pear-shaped by the time she hit forty. She wore a white choir robe over jeans and aerobics shoes. ââ¬Å"Youââ¬â¢re Betsy from H.P.ââ¬â¢s, right?â⬠Molly asked, leaning on her broadsword. Betsy seemed to recognize Molly for the first time, ââ¬Å"Youââ¬â¢re the craz ââ¬â ââ¬Å" Molly held up her sword to hush the girl. ââ¬Å"Be nice.â⬠ââ¬Å"Sorry,â⬠said Betsy. ââ¬Å"Weââ¬â¢ve been called. I didnââ¬â¢t expect you to be here.â⬠Two women stepped up beside Betsy, the pastel church ladies that Molly had chased away from the dragon trailer. ââ¬Å"Remember us?â⬠Molly shook her head. ââ¬Å"What exactly do you all think you are doing here?â⬠They looked to each other, as if the question hadnââ¬â¢t occurred to them before this. They craned their necks and squinted into the cathedral chamber to see what was behind Molly. Steve lay curled up in the dark at the back of the chamber, sulking. Molly turned and spoke to the back of the chamber. ââ¬Å"Steve, did you bring these people here? What were you thinking?â⬠A loud and low-pitched whimper came out of the dark. The crowd at the entrance murmured among themselves. Suddenly a man stepped for-ward and pushed Betsy aside. He was in his forties and wore an African dashiki over khakis and Birkenstocks, his long hair held out of his face with a beaded headband. ââ¬Å"Look, man, you canââ¬â¢t stop us. Thereââ¬â¢s something very special and very spiritual happening here, and weââ¬â¢re not going to let some crazy woman keep us from being part of it. So just back off.â⬠Molly smiled. ââ¬Å"You want to be a part of this, do you?â⬠ââ¬Å"Yeah, thatââ¬â¢s right,â⬠the man said. The others nodded behind him. ââ¬Å"Fine, I want you all to empty your pockets before you come in here. Leave your keys, wallets, money, everything outside.â⬠ââ¬Å"We donââ¬â¢t have to do that,â⬠Betsy said. Molly stepped up and thrust her sword into the ground between the girlââ¬â¢s feet. ââ¬Å"Okay then, naked.â⬠Molly said. ââ¬Å"What?â⬠ââ¬Å"No one comes in here unless they are naked. Now get to it.â⬠Protests arose until a short Asian man with a shaved head shrugged off his saffron robes, stepped forward, and bowed to Molly, thus mooning the rest of the group. Molly shook her head dolefully at the monk. ââ¬Å"I thought you guys had more sense.â⬠Then she turned to the back of the cave and shouted, ââ¬Å"Hey, Steve, cheer up, I brought home Chinese for lunch.â⬠How to cite The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 24~25, Essay examples
Sunday, December 8, 2019
Cloning Banning Essay Example For Students
Cloning Banning Essay Banning on human and organ cloning is posing a problem on those educated ones inacademia. Researcher and scientist Dr. Ian Wilmut has successfully cloned asheep, and has gathered from this experiment evidence that strongly proves thathuman and organ cloning could be performed safely and effectively. Unfortunately, our government has almost immediately banned such cloning in thiscountry. Did they realize the benefits of such a discovery? Perhaps they simplybelieve that it is some sort of unethical, immoral experiment that is notbeneficial to our society. Perhaps they should take a closer look at exactlywhat these researchers have derived from years of experimenting. In this paper,I will propose a possible plan to persuade our government to take another lookat human and organ cloning. Many positive benefits could come out of this, andit is our responsibility, for the sake of a healthier future, to push policymakers to change their minds and loosen their grips on such a banning. Cloningof various organisms has been going on for years. This concept of cloning wasconceived in 1938, but it was not until 1994 that a method using an embryo wasused to clone a cow (Business Week). Much to many peoples surprise, the ideaof cloning humans is not an aged concept. It is fairly new, but that h ardlymeans that the amount, or rather quality, of research to support safe humanand/or organ cloning, is poor. This bioethical issue is quite debatable, and ithas caused further debate, especially after the March 4, 1997 banning of the useof federal funds for research leading to human cloning (Time). The governmentwas pressured. Due to time restrictions, they had to make a challenging decisionon whether or not to ban human cloning in the United States. Their ruling hasleft a large number of researchers and curious citizens alike in a cloud ofconfusion. My solution to the problem is this: an elaboration on the history,technique, ethics, and reasons for researching the technology of cloning isnecessary. Our government must be further educated on this issue. Lets take alook at how to go about proving this solution. The first thing that must becleared up for the government and for all those who believe otherwise, is whatis cloning, and what is a clone. A clone is an organism derived ase xually from asingle individual by cutting, bulbs, tubers, fission, or parthenogenesisreproduction (Cloning, 11). The biological term cloning is the productionof a genetically identical duplicate of an organism. In the world of scientifictechnology, these exact definitions mean the difference between falsepremonitions of cloning, and the real-life phenomenon of good, ethical cloning. Let me pose an interesting idea for you. Human cloning already happens byaccident. Monozygotic twins, or identical twins, are clones of each other they have the same exact genetic information due to the division of an embryo indevelopment, which produces two identical embryos. A human clone is really justa time-delayed identical twin of another person. The government doesnt banthe birth of identical twins, does it? It is unheard of to think that identicaltwins are zombies without souls or personalities. So how can the advances inscience having to do with cloning organisms be so rash in their moral andethical implications? The government should take a closer look at this marvel. Is this hypocrisy? You decide. An important issue that could be resolved isinfertility. Infertile couples could have children with human cloning. OnSaturday, October 17, 1996, the Board of Directors of RESOLVE of NorthernCalifornia adopted a resolution and policy statement saying that cloning mayoffer infertile individuals a legitimate way of forming families, that theysupport research to make human cloning safe and effective, and that they opposegovernmental efforts to deny infertility patients the option to use cloningtechnology to have children (HCF). Many infertility patients have tested withvarious forms of treatment, some which are not exactly the safest, and many haveproved unsuccessful. This cloning method is safe and with more research, has thepotential of high success rates. This is factual information based on research. .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .postImageUrl , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:hover , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:visited , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:active { border:0!important; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:active , .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uc3baf62c8baa70e2e6dce6929812db2d:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: How Cahokia Was Mighty EssayWith so much support for human cloning, how did the policy makers decide againstit? Step by step the technology to clone people is advancing. Of course, theprocedures and applications have not been perfected, but many clinics in theU.S. already have the equipment to start cloning. Many fear that theseinstitutions may try to do something before the levels of risk are reduced to anacceptable standard. President Clinton only put a ban on such experimentationfor five years, which means that thereafter the ban will be expired and humancloning may have another chance at production (Business Week). But why did theydecide upon this in the first place? S cientists need to research human cloningfor the future. In five years, when they are ready to prove to the world thatthey are finally ready and advanced enough to start cloning humans, due to thelack of decent government funding, they will be unable to provide accurate data. Once again, senate will reject the idea, and such projects will be furtherdelayed. So what is the answer to this bizarre cycle? The government must fundresearch and experimentation to allow scientists to clone humans. They need totake another look at these simple facts and realize that in order for theperfection of human cloning procedures to occur, large amounts of funding musttake place. This funding needs to come from our government. In this society,where everyone is out to be an individual, the line between what is moral andwhat is immoral is very distorted. I, Carlos Ortiz, a twenty-year-old collegestudent, have been researching this matter for approximately a month. Afterreading through just a few internet sources, outlining two or three books on thesubject of cloning, and writing one single research paper on the benefits ofhuman and organ cloning, I have become so educated on the subject of cloning. Not only have I learned a great deal on this much debated bioethical issue, butI have also grown an interest for cloning possibilities and formed a strongopinion on this topic. Throughout my explorations in the past month, I have comeacross unbelievable amounts of studies, papers, and websites devoted to provingthe benefits of human cloning. This procedure is only here to benefit the humanrace. How is it that we have so much information proving the beneficial aspectsof human cloning, yet our government so harshly voted against it? In a nutshell,it is due to the lack of knowledge. We need to educate these people. Modern dayscientists must keep working at trying to convince the government and oursociety that human cloning will not endanger the human race. They must keepworking at discovering new and interesting data to support these beliefs. Wemust educate those who are ignorant to these beliefs, and demonstrate for themhow much our society actually has to gain from this scientific phe nomenon. If wedo not take advantage of human cloning, then we might never know what we mighthave benefited from. The best approach is to provide positive theory to ourpolicy makers, and prove to them how this procedure can be perfected. With theirfunding and support, we can research the consequences, alter them if they areharmful, and allow the future of the human race to benefit from a trulymagnificent discovery human cloning. BibliographyHuman Cloning. Business Week. 10 August 1998: 32-33 HumanCloning. Time. 09 February 1998: 81-96 Human Cloning Foundation. 2February 1998 http://www.humancloning.org/ Winters, Paul A. Cloning. SanDiego: Greenhaven Press
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