Toyotas Culture and Leadership Strategy

Theoretical Background Efficient leadership is seen as one of the crucial factors affecting the company’s performance. Researchers, as well as practitioners, stress that leadership strategy should be consistent with the organisational strategy as well as the culture of the company (Witcher Chau 2010).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Toyota’s Culture and Leadership Strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Bersin (2012) claims that a high-profile top manager can be unable to run a company if he/she chooses the wrong leadership strategy or worse has no leadership strategy at all. Toyota has been one of the examples of an organisation with the strong leadership consistent with the company’s organisational strategy. It is possible to evaluate the leadership strategy employed to get an idea of the way effective leadership strategy is linked to the organisational strategy. The evaluation of the co mpany’s leadership strategy should be considered in terms of the theoretical framework. The transformational theory has been regarded as the most efficient leadership approach for decades (Witcher Chau 2010). In terms of this paradigm, the leader inspires team members and implements the change. At that, the change should be ongoing as the business world is constantly transforming. Notably, such frameworks as lean leadership and servant leadership have been developed within the transformational theory. These leadership styles are based on the concept of collaboration, effective communication, guidance and mentoring. The styles will be discussed in more detail based on the particular example of Toyota. Toyota’s Background First, it is necessary to provide some background information about the company in question. Toyota was founded in 1937 when it produced its first automobiles. Importantly, one family runs the company throughout its entire history. This contributes to the creation of a particular culture and vision in the organisation. In 1958, the company penetrated the US market (Company history 2015). This was the start of the company’s global growth. Now, it is a high-performing company with a significant market share. It has also developed rapidly, and it had 9.7% of the global market share in 1998 while it achieved 13% market share in 2008 (Cole 2011). Schwagerman and Ulmer (2013) emphasise that the company has grown steadily for 40 years though other carmakers’ sales decreased. The financial crisis of 2008 had a significant adverse impact on the development of the company and led to some reduction in production. However, the company managed to overcome the difficulties and was even more successful than its primary competitors who faced more substantial losses.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More At that, the quake-tsunami that took place in 2011 was a significant impact the company is still trying to recover from. The natural disaster disrupted the supply chain that was highly efficient but unprepared for such a large-scale crisis (Agence France-Presse 2013). It is noteworthy that Toyota has been an illustration or even a symbol of performance excellence and high quality. Piotrowski and Guyette (2010, p. 90) note that the organisation has been â€Å"touted as the pinnacle of automotive excellence† by such rating agencies as Consumer Reports. Nonetheless, there have been a number of constraints associated with poor quality, and the company had to recall millions of cars in the 2000s. For instance, the scandal associated with car mats took place in 2009 (Cole 2011). Another serious quality crisis took place in 2010 when the company lost more than $2 billion as repair costs (Piotrowski Guyette 2010). Such crises had a significant adverse effect on the company’s performance and image. It is clear that some changes should be implemented. Thus, Mark Hogan who is American and has not moved through the ranks of the company was appointed (Agence France-Presse 2013). Some other international professionals are also promoted to top management positions to link the company’s leadership to the global market trends and peculiarities. Toyota’s Leadership Toyota’s Leadership and Culture Irrespective of numerous difficulties, the company is still one of the leaders of the industry. It is necessary to evaluate the strengths of the leadership strategy used in the company to come up with methods to improve it. Liker and Convis (2011) provide a detailed analysis of the company’s approach to leadership and note that lean leadership employed has proved to be effective and consistent with the organisational strategy and culture. Toyota is regarded as the creator of the lean leadership strategy, which is based on the principles introduced by Henry Ford (Shang 2014). Importantly, the lean approach has proved to be inefficient when it is not linked to the corporate culture of the organisation (Al-Najem, Dhakal Bennett 2012). To understand the essence of the lean leadership, it is crucial to consider some peculiarities of the company’s culture. Toyota’s culture is characterised by the so-called 4P model that consists of such major elements as philosophy, process, people/partners and problem solving (Liker Hoseus 2008).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Toyota’s Culture and Leadership Strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Characteristic features of this culture are the emphasis on open communication, development and training as well as building trust. Liker and Hoseus (2008) highlight two primary parts within Toyota’s culture. The external part starts with the organisation’s customers while the internal part concentrates on employee s and their involvement in the culture. Importantly, the basic principle of the company (and the core of its culture) is ‘go and see’ (Daft Samson 2014). The case when Kiichiro Toyoda found one of his workers standing in front of his machine trying to understand why it was not working. The founder of the company literally rolled up his sleeves and looked into the machine’s pan. He found a lot of sludge there, which was the reason for the malfunction. This case has become one of the major concepts for the organisation’s employees (executives, managers, workers and so on) who have been trained that to understand the core of the problem it is essential to dig into it. The Role of the Leader The role of the leader is clearly defined and incorporated into the organisational culture. Hence, the leader is an observer who spends a lot of time with employees and is an empathetic listener (Wilson 2013). The leader is a lifelong learner who is ready to acquire knowl edge or to be trained. The leader is an initiator who develops, communicates and implements the plan. This is the person who is able to take risks as well. The leader is a lifelong teacher who is eager to find and realise new teaching opportunities. The leader is a role model who inspires employees. Finally, the leader is a supporter who encourages, guides employees and who has the necessary skills of the so-called servant leadership. Servant leadership presupposes prioritising employees at the top while placing the leader at the bottom of the pyramid (Shang 2014). Such leaders have three primary responsibilities. First, they support the operations, which implies guidance and mentoring. Secondly, they promote the system, which presupposes effective articulation of the vision and mission as well as development of the healthy atmosphere in the company. Finally, they lead the change through mentoring, encouragement and employment of various tools. Importantly, the servant leadership al so involves the concept of value-adding work, which is the process of doing tasks in the environment where all members add value.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Lean Leadership Since Toyota’s culture is described, it is possible to define lean leadership and evaluate its effectiveness. The concept of the lean leadership has developed from the lean manufacture. The primary concern of the latter is eliminating wastes. The concept transcended other areas, and now lean leaders focus on eliminating any wastes in production, quality, provision of services, communication, and so on. The central goal of the lean approach is to change the culture of the organisation from â€Å"passive and defensive to open and pro-active† (Al-Najem, Dhakal Bennett 2012, p. 125). The company with lean leadership ensures that customers are the major priority, and the customers should also feel that. This type of leadership presupposes elimination of barriers between senior management and employees. Another characteristic feature of the lean approach is standardisation (Chandra 2013). Mann (2009) stresses that lean leadership can be effective when senior management adopts it and sets an example, which leads to the development of the corresponding mind-set. As has been mentioned above, the leadership strategy has to be closely linked to the company’s culture, and this is the case with Toyota. The company’s corporate culture is based on the principle of empowerment of employees who are trained and committed to the culture. Leaders have to go and see what is really happening on the site. Prior to obtaining the right to make decisions, they have to be at â€Å"gemba†, which is the place where â€Å"the value-creating work happens† (Ahmed 2013, p. 32). There are no barriers between senior management and employees. Cooperation and open communication are the basis of the decision-making process. Finally, both Toyota’s culture and leadership strategy are based on the principle of empowerment. All employees are adding value, which is especially crucial when it comes to quality. Improvements to Be Made None theless, it is clear that the company, which has always been a symbol of high quality, has been involved in a number of quality scandals. This shows inefficiency of the leadership practices. Senior managers seem to forget about the ‘go and see’ principle or worse they chose to conceal some issues, which later led to significant impairment of the quality of products and services provided (Rajasekera 2013). Hence, it is essential to make sure that senior managers are committed to the culture as the lean leadership starts with top management. At that, these leaders should also be aware of major trends existing in the global market to be ready to address various issues that can occur (Agence France-Presse 2013). It seems that the principle of reporting about problems and malfunctions rather than concealing them was abandoned in the late 2000s (Piotrowski Guyette 2010). The organisation is lacking for transparency when it comes to operations, as well as communication among employees. These impairments in the leadership practice can be removed through the implementation of the change. Employees should be trained and mentored to become more committed to the corporate culture of the organisation. Apart from that, it is clear that the leadership failed in the period of crisis. The quake-tsunami in Japan and the flood in Thailand in the 2010s impaired the supply chain of the company, and it was unprepared to act in the time of crisis. Heineman (2014) stresses that crisis management should be incorporated into the leadership strategy utilised. The focus on quality should remain but executives should pay more attention to possible threats and crisis situations. The practice based on the ‘go and see’ principle should be facilitated by practices based on the principle ‘evaluate and foresee’. Employees should constantly question decisions made and make sure that the slightest issues are tackled properly. Finally, the organisation has t o be more transparent when it comes to internal as well as external communication. Rajasekera (2013) argues that Toyota’s inability to employ social networking has led to a significant damage of the company’s reputation. At that, modern customers are heavy users of such kind of technologies. More so, public opinion is often constructed through social networks. Therefore, it is crucial to utilise this platform as a way to increase the organisation’s openness. The focus should be made on the quality. Conclusion On balance, it is necessary to note that Toyota has long been a symbol of quality in business operations and leadership. The company has developed and successfully utilised the lean leadership. This paradigm consists in the elimination of all possible ‘waste’ in operations, manufacture, communication, leadership and so on. It presupposes elimination of barriers between senior managers and the rest of the employees. It is also based on the princ iple ‘go and see’ where all employees are active contributors adding the value. The leadership strategy is closely connected with the organisational culture, which makes it so efficient. However, the company has had certain difficulties associated with impaired quality lately. At that, the situation can be improved if Toyota returns to the core values and practices. The major focus should be made on such aspects as decision-making, transparency, and crisis management. Reference List Agence France-Presse 2013, ‘Toyota leadership changes signal new direction, analysts say‘, Industry Week. Web. Ahmed, M. H. 2013, ‘Lean transformation guidance: why organisations fail to achieve and sustain excellence through lean empowerment’, International Journal of Lean Thinking, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 31-40. Al-Najem, M., Dhakal, H. N. Bennett, N. 2012, ‘The role of culture and leadership in lean transformation: a review and assessment model’, Internat ional Journal of Lean Thinking, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 119-138. Bersin, J. 2012, ‘It’s not the CEO, it’s the leadership strategy that matters‘, Forbes. Web. Chandra, P. V. 2013, ‘Approach to lean leadership through creating a lean culture’, International Journal of Engineering Science and Innovative Technology, vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 35-40. Cole, R. E. 2011, ‘What really happened to Toyota?’, MITSloan Management Review, vol. 52, no. 4, pp. 28-35. Company history, 2015. Web. Daft, R. L. Samson, D. 2014, Fundamentals of management: Asia Pacific edition, Cengage Learning Australia, South Melbourne. Heineman, B. W. 2014, ‘The crisis management lesson from Toyota and GM: â€Å"It’s our problem the moment we hear about it†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ, Harvard Business Review. Web. Liker, J. Convis, G. L. 2011, The Toyota way to lean leadership: achieving and sustaining excellence through leadership development, McGraw-Hill Professional, New Yor k. Liker, J. Hoseus, M. 2008, Toyota culture: the heart and soul of the Toyota way, McGraw-Hill Professional, New York. Mann, D. 2009, ‘The missing link: lean leadership’, Frontiers of Health Services Management, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 15-26. Piotrowski, C. Guyette, R. W. 2010, ‘Toyota recall crisis: public attitudes on leadership and ethics’, Organization Development Journal, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 89-97. Rajasekera, J. 2013, ‘Challenges to Toyota caused by recall problems, social networks and digitisation’, Asian Academy of Management Journal, vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 1-17. Schwagerman, W. C. Ulmer, J. M. 2013, ‘The A3 lean management and leadership thought process’, The Journal of Technology, Management, and Applied Engineering, vol. 29, no. 4, pp. 2-10. Shang, G. 2014, ‘Toyota way lean leadership: some preliminary findings from the Chinese construction industry’, in Proceedings of IGLC22, Oslo, pp. 1145-1156. Wilson, L. 20 13, ‘Six qualities of lean leadership’, Industry Week. Web. Witcher, B. J. Chau, V. S. 2010, Strategic management: principles and practice, Cengage Learning EMEA, Hampshire. This essay on Toyota’s Culture and Leadership Strategy was written and submitted by user Otto Skinner to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Topic - Thinking About Topic Is Key to Making Your Essay Effective

Topic - Thinking About Topic Is Key to Making Your Essay EffectiveThe topic of your high school essay is the very first thing you need to consider in developing an appropriate essay topic. It will help you be able to write a really great topic for your essay if you think about the things that matter most to you. If you want to write an essay that's very persuasive, it would be better if you think about what you're passionate about, what you love to do and what makes you happy. These are some really good topics to be based on your personality.As a matter of fact, there are a lot of interesting topics that you can find and use in your assignments or projects, but you will be surprised to know that many high school students will only choose one or two. They don't like the topic of a topic because they don't believe that they have what it takes to write an essay well. They simply don't feel comfortable enough with the topic that it would be hard for them to write a good topic.As a matter of fact, you need to put some effort into finding topics that you will feel comfortable with. It would be best if you can find a topic that you love doing and it's a topic that will make you happy. This is the best way for you to be able to develop a topic that will be easy for you to write.Although you'll be developing topics that you want to use, you need to know that some topics that are popular today can already become outdated over time. If you want to be able to have topics that are up-to-date, you should always write about topics that you really enjoy. It would be much better if you try to think about topics that you already enjoy doing or at least topics that will make you feel good about it.When you're just starting out, you don't necessarily have to worry about how you're going to write a topic or how you're going to write a good topic. In fact, when you have the right perspective, it would be easy for you to create a topic that is perfect for you. Just remember that the entire point of having an essay is to present the facts about something and you should have a clear perspective about the type of topic you're going to write.When you have a clear perspective on what the main idea of the essay should be, you should then consider the different topic that you can use. You should think about what you would love to talk about and what kind of topic that you would be comfortable with. As a matter of fact, this is the best way for you to determine which topics that you need to take advantage of.Once you have determined which topics that you are going to be using, you can then begin to search for topics that you will feel comfortable to talk about. It would be best if you try to ask your friends and classmates for topics to base your topic on. You may also look for topics online or in the library so that you can determine which topics are already popular.Once you have determined what topics you are going to be using, it would be best if you could base your essay issue on the topics you found. Don't forget to try to think about all the aspects of the topic, such as the structure of the essay and the other points of view that will be discussed. The last thing you want to do is make your essay less effective because you don't know what to focus on. As a matter of fact, knowing what to focus on would be the key to make the whole essay works.

Definition of an Aliphatic Compound

Definition of an Aliphatic Compound An aliphatic compound is an organic compound containing carbon and hydrogen joined together in straight chains, branched chains, or non-aromatic rings. It is one of two broad classes of hydrocarbons, the other being aromatic compounds. Open-chain compounds that contain no rings are aliphatic, whether they contain single, double, or triple bonds. In other words, they may be saturated or unsaturated. Some aliphatics are cyclic molecules, but their rings are not as stable as those of aromatic compounds. While hydrogen atoms are most commonly bound to the carbon chain, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, or chlorine atoms might also be present. Aliphatic compounds are also known as  aliphatic hydrocarbons or eliphatic compounds. Examples of Aliphatic Compounds Ethylene, isooctane, acetylene, propene, propane, squalene, and polyethylene are examples of aliphatic compounds. The simplest aliphatic compound is methane, CH4. Properties of Aliphatic Compounds The most significant characteristic of aliphatic compounds is that most of them are flammable. For this reason, aliphatic compounds are often used as fuels. Examples of aliphatic fuels include methane, acetylene, and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Aliphatic Acids Aliphatic or eliphatic acids are the acids of nonaromatic hydrocarbons. Examples of aliphatic acids are butyric acid, propionic acid, and acetic acid.

Energe policy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Energe policy - Research Paper Example (Fox-Penner and Peter S, 2010) A huge sum of monety is required before their implementation is attained. This may lead to tax rate increament. Although the regulations may affect people in terms of employment and costs, it is implemented for the advantage of the people. This is due to the health risks caused by these energy productions and also the environment. The life of a human being is more important than the money or the living standards of people. (Fox-Penner and Peter S, 2010) People should gauge the advantages and disadvantages in order to react to the effect of energy from Obama’s administration. In this paper we will be able to see two policies which should be considered and be implemented immediately and one which is not necessary for it to be implemented. Ozone is a combination of chemical reaction which includes methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and other volatile organic compounds. The Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards should be implemented in order to prevent its effects to the living things both animals and plants. This is in section 109 of the clean Air Act which includes both primary and secondary standards .The primary standards are used to protect the health of the citizens while the secondary standards are used in protecting the animals, vegetation, visibility and buildings. This act thus suggests that there should be control measure implemented on sources of air pollutants like industries and vehicles among others in order to reduce the effect of air pollution to the environment. (Implementation of the Clean Air Act National Ambient Air Quality Standards, 1998) This is because there effect will lead to an increase in health complication amongst the citizens subjected to the pollutants. The result of this will include spending money in solving these issues and many people might lose their lives. This will cost the government of about $19 to $90 dollars in order to be implemented which is high but it should also be considered that its effect will be affecting everyone. The effect of the ozone will affect the ecosystem at large as most of the plants will not be able to survive and humans will immune system will decrease increasing the chances of its effect to the human system. Emission reduction strategies should be used in both the local, state tribunal agencies from the menu of control measures in order to attain the national Ambient Air Quality standards on attaining a new primary ozone standard. Coal is a major producer of electricity in America by producing 54% of electricity supplied in the market. It is also used for cement among other purposes at home. Although it is useful to the American citizen it also has effects both to the health and the environment. The use of coal ash has many effects during combustion as they affect the human health for example they cause cancer and respiratory complications. They also affect the environment as it contains toxic elements like sulfur, mercury an d fluorine among others which also affect the environment. Coal plants emit carbon dioxide which affects the climate change as it prevents the emission of heat from the Earth surface which leads to the global effect. This can be seen by the reducing level of waterways as a lot of water evaporates. The percentage of coal production is over million tons and about 78% million are disposed while the rest is sold. Coal also causes aid

Titus Andronicus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Titus Andronicus - Essay Example The two sons are beheaded. Unsatisfied, she goes ahead and persuades her sons Demetrius and Chiron to rape Lavinia the only daughter of Titus. After raping her, they go ahead and chop off her tongue and hands so that she could not give them away to their crime. Eventually, Lucius, the only surviving son of Titus is prohibited from Rome. Nevertheless, he (Lucius) goes ahead and forms an alliance with Goths the enemy of Rome for purposes of attacking Rome. The new misfortune hits the tired, aged Titus with a great impact. Consequently, he starts acting awkwardly and everyone thinks that he has gone crazy. Given Titus awkward behavior, Tamora tries to capitalize on it via pretending to be the revenge figure, coming to offer him the needed justice on condition that he convinces Lucius, his only surviving son, to cease the Rome attack. Titus having faked his madness, lures her, captures her sons, murders them and creates a pie out of them. The pie is fed to their mother, after which Titus kills both Lavinia, his daughter, and Tamora. The main reason for Titus killing her daughter is to put an end to her suffering and shame over her rape. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to characterize the existing relationship between Titus and his only daughter Lavinia in Shakespeares Early Blood Titus Andronicus. In addition to that, I will give my own opinion about her killing (Shakespeare Sc i-iv). Play Analysis Titus Andronicus is the play tragic hero and the general of the Rome Empire. He is the father of Lucius and Lavinia. He spent his ten years fighting the enemies of Rome and winning reputation for his country. On the contrary, his heroic deeds have drained much out of him making him feel incompetent enough to lead his country despite the country’s desire to crown him the new emperor. First, he is held up by his countrymen as model of piety because of his staunch adherence to traditions. However, it is this strict reverence to tradition that inspires his enemies to stem up revenge against him. Being the play hero, he pursues his revenge to the end. Unfortunately, he dies in the process of seeking revenge. Lavinia is Titus Andronicus’ only daughter. She refuses to be made an empress by Saturninus because she had fallen in love with Bassianus. Chiron and Demetrius brutally rape and disfigure her in the forest. Eventually, she becomes mute and her presence on stage is quite horrifying. Robbed and deprived of her every means of communication, and her precious chastity, the play portrays her as one of the most incapacitated heroines. From the character analysis of Lavinia and Titus, it is evident that the two are very united as they seek revenge against those who have harmed them. Lavinia being unable to talk leads young Lucius, Marcus and Titus to a book giving description of rape, prompting his father and brothers to confirm that she was raped. To get the whole information regarding her rape, they hand her a stick so that she can identi fy who did the harm to her. Lavinia writes â€Å"Rape. Chiron. Demetrius.† This makes Titus seek revenge for their deed. Titus sends his young son Lucius to Demetrius and Chiron with a scroll and weapon describing the act (rape) in riddles. Titus revenge is engineered by his urge to bring justice to Rome. In doing so, he tells Demetrius and Chiron to their face that he knows what they did to her daughter

Feature of a just society Essay Example for Free

Feature of a just society Essay Assess whether an unequal distribution of property between individuals could be a feature of a just society? (50 marks) By a ‘just society’ we are referring to the principle of people getting what they deserve – or desert theory. Those such as Nozick believe that individuals have an absolute right to property of income that they themselves create; Marx outlined his belief in absolute equality; Rawls, however, is the only philosopher able to claim the middle ground and suggest a sensible solution: claiming that an unequal distribution of property can, with certain constraints, benefit the poorest in society. Nozick’s view on the distribution of property focuses on the issue of how it came about. Self-ownership of one’s own talents and abilities is key to his way of thinking. If, for example, Cristiano Ronaldo asked his football club to pay him 25p for each ticket sold, the fans being happy to pay the extra, and 400,000 people watched him play that season – then he would be ? 10,000,000 better off. This is perfectly just according to Nozick, since Ronaldo is using his own talents to make money; which the fans voluntarily gave to him. However, in some philosophers eyes, this would be seen as unjust is Ronaldo was allowed to keep all, or even any, of that money. Be that as it may, Nozick stated that people were ‘ends in themselves’ and any attempt to use them in ways they don’t agree to = even for some ‘greater good’ – would violate their liberty. Such as example would be taxation. People, thus, have a right to own what they produce: conservatives would even argue that property becomes part of a person’s personality. The only constraints Nozick places on property is that it should be ‘justly acquired’ (not stolen or gained via the forced labour of others), ‘justly transferred’ (fair price given – not cheated or robbed), and the ‘rectification of injustice’ (giving back property that was stolen or otherwise unjustly taken). If one were to accept Nozick’s view, the result would be a society with huge economic inequalities. There is also the problem with individuals, through no fault of their own, not being able to support themselves. Relying on philanthropy and personal savings that one has been able to save doesn’t seem ‘just’ – especially if one is a pauper and kept at the mercy of the bourgeoisie. In this sense a worker may accept a wage cut, but how much true liberty do they have in making this decision? It could be argued in a society which has no ‘safety net’ welfare system, very little. Nozick goes onto state that we have ‘self-ownership’ of the things we create. This would therefore suggest that the proletariat working in factories, and the like, would have a right to what they produce since they have mixed their labour with it. But in a capitalist society, which Nozick supports, this would be, and is, the case. There therefore seems to be a rule for some and another for others with Nozick’s idea of ‘self-ownership’, which seriously undermines the legitimacy of his justice. Furthermore, history shows us that a great deal of initial acquisition of property was unjust: based on theft, slavery and colonisation. All property that derives from unjust acquisition being unjustly held, one does not have the right to transfer said property, nor does the recipient have the right to what they are receiving. It would, moreover, prove very difficult, if not impossible, to rectify the injustice of the past, as Nozick thinks one should do, since we have no way of establishing what belongs to who in many cases. The conclusion we are forced to draw is that Nozick’s theory has no application if we cannot start from a just beginning. Marx, on the other hand, focused on the plight of the proletariat, who, having nothing but their labours to sell are exploited by the bourgeoisie; who are in turn protected by the state which keeps private property legal: allowing a small number of individuals to own the ‘commanding heights’ or means of production. In such circumstances people cannot make use of their right to ‘self-ownership’ as Nozick claims, for they are creating items for the profit of the bourgeois and not themselves. Marx therefor believed in a needs based theory of justice. This would entail the abolition of private property and see that every man, woman and child gets what they need and gives what they can. The principle can be summed up as thus, â€Å"from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs. † Property does, however, seem to come naturally to human beings with philosophers such as John Locke claiming it is a ‘Natural Right’. When one takes the liberal view that we are rational, self-seeking, egotistical beings, it only seems right that the acquisition of property should follow. It is also true that the large percentages of the states in the world are run this way. Though this on its own cannot justify private property, it does heavily suggest that there will always be a place for private property no matter what your vison of the ‘prefect’ society is. Furthermore, one could argue that private property offers the allure of material success that motivates people to work. Even if one does not buy this argument, Rawls claimed that injustice in the distribution of property in society can work to the advantage to the poorest in society – via a welfare state etc. Rawls invented the ‘veil of ignorance’ to prove in the ‘original position’ what justice should be. As virtue of us, humans, being free rational beings, we would consent to a free market state, but only as long as rights were guaranteed and protection for the poor put in place. For the freedom to starve is no freedom at all. We would agree to these conditions for human life, since we would not know, in theory, what our race, creed, religion, talents, opinions or health would be in advance. In this sense it is reasonable to assume that we are rational egotistical beings, for it makes sense, and is in our own self-interest, to want these conditions. As for the capitalist free market aspect, wealth creation can be the only means by which the poorest in society can benefit; via the state taxing the rich and redistributing some of it to the poor. In this hypothetical situation we would have legal and foundational equality, as well as equality of opportunity. No one should be disadvantaged by the outcome of natural chance, the contingency of circumstances or choice of principles. In this light, the racist and the liberal would both be permitted to criticise each other; prevented from physically harming each other; and neither allowed to alter or remove foundational equality from the constitution. Importantly, Rawls thinks that once a certain level of martial wealth has been acquired (? 26,000 a year in the UK), then we would value such legal and foundational rights more; as well as basic liberties such as freedom of speech and association. Thus liberty will be preferred to less liberty, but greater wealth. This leads to Rawls’ ‘difference principle’, that we would choose to maximise the minimum level of welfare. This would create a society with a smaller gap between the rich and the poor, but also a smaller average wealth. One can object to this and state that it makes more sense to maximise the average level of wealth, especially if there is equality of opportunity meaning that one can improve oneself. However, one could imagine a society which is less prosperous, but more ‘just’ –something based alone the lines of Marx’s desert theory. Conversely, however, justice, in terms of the distribution of property, actually comes from prosperity and wealth creation gained and produced by some, so that others can benefit from the resulting taxation of said people. In conclusion, only Rawls can offer a theory of justice that appears sensible to the rational egotistical being; as well as avoiding the un-pragmatic approaches of Marx and Nozick. Even is one does not accept Rawls’ theory of justice – for one may be very rich and have lots of land – then at least it shows one what justice should look like.

War of 1812 Essay -- essays research papers

Introduction With the ongoing battles between England and France in the early 19th century, the newly formed United States found itself thrust in the middle of this struggle. In the early part of the century Napoleon was on a mission to once again establish a mighty French empire of early years. But with the build up of the royal British Navy the English were trying fiercely to hold Napoleon in check. The United States was determined to stay neutral and continue its trading with both nations. However several mandates passed by both France and England made this very difficult. With England’s naval blockade and the repeated search and seizure of American trade vessels, the United States, led by an aggressive group of leaders in congress known as the Young War Hawks, took a very aggressive approach to Britain and its royal navy. However, the War Hawks and President Madison also had plans of expansion in mind, to extend its boarders to the North Pole, home to royal colonies of the now hated Great Britain. With this plan and the negative feeling toward Britain, the war was just around the corner. And in June of 1812, a full-fledged war was upon them. The war, which lasted approximately two years, was a very bloody and costly battle to both the United States and Britain. Systematic Analysis To begin to look at this war we must take a look at the system the world was in at the time. The world was dominated by a bi-polar system, with France and England being the two poles. However you also had another player in the system, Russia. Although not quite as powerful as either of the top two, but if thrown in the mix could tip the scales toward one side or the other. The United States at this time preferred to practice a policy of isolationism, and stay out of the turbulent affairs of Europe. The constant struggle between the French and the British dominated the world scene. The French who were led by Napoleon were trying to establish an empire and dominate all of Eur ope. This struggle had been raging since the turn of the century. The British as in any bi-polar system were dead set on preventing this from happening. With the United States only a minor player in the international system at the time there was nothing the United States could do in this affair except continue its policy of neutrality, and isolationism. With a bi-polar international system, you are always i... ...ithout the other. When looking at the system as a whole you provide ample proof that the bi-polar system is very unstable and susceptible to conflict at anytime, especially when the two powers are countries that have been at each other since their creation. Each country is trying to gain dominance over the other. Napoleon would not stop his process until he accomplished his goal or was defeated. The state level also ties into the system, as the states goal was dominance or defeat. The United States tried to invade modern day Canada to increase it national territory and fought many bloody, deadly battles in order to accomplish this goal. Which they eventually failed and did not gain any territory but did not lose any either, the British also attempted to capture key cities and failed as well. Individual level you see how countrymen will rally in support of their country and this is plain and simply human nature. That is why when you look at the three levels they all are interlocke d and must have one, in this war, to have the other. So in a war that was a defeat for France and a draw for the United States and Britain, each level was very prominent and a necessity in The War of 1812.