Comments on readings Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Comments on readings - Assignment Example Family emergencies with the children whether they are in school or at home will keep her away from her work responsibilities not to mention seeking maternity leave for over three months in order to go deliver and take care of her child. This is more than a company can handle and is actually a loss to them. People have erroneously taken flexible working arrangement as an arrangement which is only for the people with families or rather young children. This is however only a myth as it is a high potential issue even with those without children as it provides convenience and more growth opportunities for an individual. All these myths about flexible working arrangement needs to be put out in the public and people dissuaded from using them once they learn the truth through research. The fact that everybody or at least most people would like the opportunity to juggle between wok and personal time but still get paid doing so is a reality on the ground for many companies (Beninger and Carter, 2013). There are a lot of myths which for a long time have been thought to be truthful as research indicates. The facts being provided by this article should be made public through proper communication pattern to the people. The human resource manager can be in the best position to do so once an individual is hired. Gender gaps are a reality in society and unless something is done about them, they will always be an issue for everyone and especially the women. Gender gaps are social constructs which means they can not only be filled through the correct channels but they can also be completely eliminated by the society if great efforts are dedicated to it. The gender gaps are most common in the employment industries and especially in regards to wages as explained by the author. This has been allowed to continue even though there are laws stating otherwise. What needs to be done

Specific Therapeutic Technique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Specific Therapeutic Technique - Essay Example Manipulative and Body-Based Practices - Here force in controlled conditions is used to regain health specifically in relation to painful joints and muscles. These are basically massage and stretching techniques. The specific therapeutic technique being discussed is Acupuncture- this is falls under 'Whole Medicine' classification of National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. It is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Acupuncture can be defined as the technique of inserting needles at the acupuncture points in the body to restore the health of the body by getting rid of disease and pain. Loss of balance between yin and yang energies is believed to be the cause of diseases. Treatment involves applying pressure on the 12 "meridians" or the primary pathways. There are other secondary pathways which are also used to treat the patient depending upon the severity as elaborated later. This technique is believed to have originated in China in ancient times, stray evidence of its practice even found in stone age though it seemed to become more prevalent from 1st millennium BCE more from the time of Hang Dynasty, though like all ancient practices it is difficult to pin point exact date or country of origin as similar techniques seem to have been used by the Koreans and Japanese. Conventionally however it is associated with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). ... in ancient times, stray evidence of its practice even found in stone age though it seemed to become more prevalent from 1st millennium BCE more from the time of Hang Dynasty, though like all ancient practices it is difficult to pin point exact date or country of origin as similar techniques seem to have been used by the Koreans and Japanese. Conventionally however it is associated with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). During the early days of Chinese Revolution it was dismissed as superstitious and backward, driving it underground for fear of reprisal. It was much later that Mao decided to revive it as he considered ancient Chinese medicine as a cultural treasure and started efforts to improve and modernize it. In the US its early users were Chinese railroad workers who had learnt it from the elders using it as self medication in their families. The theory of acupuncture is explained as certain points on the bodies which loosely correspond to the organs of the body though some points may not have one to one relationship with any organ. It is believed that disease occurs if there is an imbalance between yin and yang energies of the body and treatment involves modifying the activity of body subsystems by applying pressure or heat at pressure points. These points are now conventionally known as acupuncture points. These are present along layers of 12 primary pathway meridians, 8 extraordinary pathways located throughout the body. Un associated points are also believed to be present known as tender points which are used to treat of localized discomfort. Each of the 12 pathways is associated with one of the twelve zang fu organs, 6 are yin and 6 are yang pathways. 3 yin and 3 yang are believed to be present on the arms and 3 each on the legs. Life force or "qi" is

Cyber Crime: Strategies and Types

Cyber Crime: Strategies and Types Cyber Crime: Identity Theft A. Introduction In this era of globalization, one of many things that can distinguish a developed country to a developing country is its progress of science and technology. This is because along with the development of a countrys science and technology, will also developed the countrys ability to enrich their own potential. Great advances in science and technology in developed country are due to their well-established information system. Meanwhile, in the developing country, the information system is still minimal, which make the development of science and technology become blocked. Thus, whether a country will become a developed country or not, is highly depend on their mastery of information system. In times like these, the mastery of the information system will not enough by merely mastering. We need to conquer the speed and accuracy too, because there is almost no point in mastering outdated information. Moreover, the very rapid progress of information makes the age of the information shorted. In other words, substitution of old and new information becomes faster. Old information will be ignored because of the more recent information. But, the development of science and technology, in which also means the development of information system, does not always have good effects. It has bad effects too. One of them is the increased rate of the computer crime. B. Computer Crime Computer crime issues have become high-profile, particularly those surrounding hacking, copyright infringement through warez, child pornography, and child grooming. There are also problems of privacy when confidential information is lost or intercepted, lawfully or otherwise. A computer crime is any illegal action where the data on a computer is accesed without permission. This access does not have to result in loss of data or even data modifications. Computer crime is often attributed to rogue hackers and crackers, but increasingly organized crime groups have realized the relative ease of stealing data with low-level of risk. There are three major classes of criminal activity with computer: 1. Unauthorized use of a computer, which might involve stealing a username and password, or might involve accessing the victims computer via the Internet through a backdoor operated by a Trojanhorse program. Unauthorized use of computers tends generally takes the following forms: Computer voyeur. The attackers read or copy confidential or propietary information, but the data is neither deleted nor changed. Changing data. Example, changing a grade on a school transcript. Unauthorized changing of data is generally a fraudulent act. Deleting data. Deleting entire files could be an act of vandalism or sabotage. Denying service to authorized users. 2. Creating or releasing a malicious computer program (e.g., computer virus, worm, Trojanhorse). Malicious computer program are divided into these following classes: 1) A virus is a program that infects an executable file. After infection, the executable file functions in a different way than before: maybe only displaying a benign message on the monitor, maybe deleting some or all files on the users hard drive, or maybe altering data files. There are two key features of a computer virus: The ability to propagate by attaching itself to executable files (e.g., application programs, operating system, macros, scripts, bootsector of a hard disk or floppy disk, etc.) Running the executable file may make new copies of the virus. The virus causes harm only after it has infected an executable file and the executable file is run. 2) A worm is a program that copies itself. The distinction between a virus and a worm, is that a virus never copies itself, a virus is copied only when the infected executable file is run. In the pure, original form, a worm neither deleted nor changed files on the victims computer, the worm simply made multiple copies of itself and sent those copies from the victims computer, thus clogging disk drives and the Internet with multiple copies of the worm. Releasing such a worm into the Internet will slow the legitimate traffic on the Internet, as continuously increasing amounts of traffic are mere copies of the worm. 3) A Trojan Horse is a deceptively labeled program that contains at least one function that is unknown to the user and that harms the user. A Trojan Horse does not replicate, which distinguishes it from viruses and worms. Some of the more serious Trojan horses allow a hacker to remotely control the victims computer, perhaps to collect passwords and creditcard numbers and send them to the hacker, or perhaps to launch denial of service attacks on websites. Some Trojan Horses are installed on a victims computer by an intruder, without any knowledge of the victim. Other Trojan Horses are downloaded (perhaps in an attachment in e-mail) and installed by the user, who intends to acquire a benefit that is quite different from the undisclosed true purpose of the Trojan Horse. 4) A logic bomb is a program that detonates when some event occurs. The detonated program might stop working, crash the computer, release a virus, delete data files, or any of many other harmful possibilities. Atimebomb is a type of logicbomb, in which the program detonates when the computers clock reaches some target date. 5) A hoax is a warning about a nonexistent malicious program. 3. Crimes facilitated by computer networks or devices, the primary target of which is independent of the computer network or device (cyber crime) Examples of crimes that merely use computer networks or devices would include : Cyber stalking Fraud and identity theft Phishings scams Information warfare The third type of Computer Crime has become the most famous right now, because it produce more benefits than the other two. C. Cyber Crime The Internet is a new frontier. Just like the Wild, Wild West, the Internet frontier is wide open to both exploitation and exploration. There are no sheriffs on the Information Superhighway. No one is there to protect you or to to lock-up virtual desperados and bandits.This lack of supervision and enforcement leaves users to watch out for themselves and for each other.A loose standard called netiquette has developed but it is still very different from the standards found in real life.Unfortunately, cyberspace remains wide open to faceless, nameless con artists that can carry out all sorts of mischief. And that is why the cyber crimes can be as they are right now. Cyber Crime is a criminal activity done using a computers and the internet. This includes anything from downloading illegal music files to stealing millions of dollars from online bank accounts. Cyber crime also includes non-monetary offenses, such as creating and distributing viruses on other computers or posting confidential business information on the internet. Cases of cyber crime, 1970 2005: 1970 1990 1. John Draper discovers the give-away whistle in Capn Crunch cereal boxes reproduces a 2600Hz tone. Draper builds a ‘blue box that, when used with the whistle and sounded into a phone receiver, allows phreaks to make free calls 2. Robert T. Morris, Jr., graduate student at Cornell University and son of a chief scientist at the NSA, launches a self-replicating worm (the Morris Worm) on the governments ARPAnet (precursor to the Internet). The worm gets out of hand and spreads to over 6000 networked computers, clogging government and university systems. Morris is dismissed from Cornell, sentenced to three years probation, and fined $10K. 3. After a prolonged sting investigation, Secret Service agents swoop down on organizers and members of BBSs in 14 US cities, including the Legion of Doom. The arrests are aimed at cracking down on credit-card theft and telephone and wire fraud.(1990) 1991 2000 1. Five members of the Aum Shinri Kyo cults Ministry of Intelligence break into Mitsubishi Heavy Industrys mainframe and steal Megabytes of sensitive data. (1994) 2. Hackers adapt to emergence of the World Wide Web, moving all their how-to information and hacking programs from the old BBSs to new hacker Web sites.(1994) 3. Russian crackers steal $10 million from Citibank. Vladimir Levin, the ringleader, uses his work laptop after hours to transfer the funds to accounts in Finland and Israel. He is tried in the US and sentenced to 3 years in prison. All but $400K of the money is recovered. (1995) 4. The French Defense Ministry admits Hackers succeeded in stealing acoustic codes for aircraft carriers and submarines. (1995) 5. FBI establishes fake security start-up company in Seattle and lures two Russian citizens to U.S. soil on the pretense of offering them jobs, then arrests them. The Russians are accused of stealing credit card information, attempting to extort money from victims, and defrauding PayPal by using stolen credit cards to generate cash. (2000) 2001 2005 1. Microsoft become victim of a new type of attack against domain name servers, corrupting the DNS paths taking users to Microsofts Web sites. This is a Denial of Service (DoS) attack. The hack is detected within hours, but prevents millions of users from reaching Microsoft Web pages for two days. (2001) 2. The Klez.H worm becomes the biggest malware outbreak in terms of machines infected, but causes little monetary damage. (2002) 3. Two men hack into wireless network at Lowes store in Michigan and steal credit card information. (2003) 4. Brian Salcedo sentenced to 9 years for hacking into Lowes home improvement stores and attempting to steal customer credit card information. Prosecutors said three men tapped into the wireless network of a Lowes store and used that connection to enter the chains central computer system in NC, installing a program to capture credit card information. (2004) 5. Secret Service seizes control of the Shadowcrew Web site and arrests 28 people in 8 states and 6 countries. They are charged with conspiracy to defraud the US. Nicolas Jacobsen, is charged with hacking into a T-Mobile computer system, exposing documents the Secret Service had e-mailed to an agent. (2004) Australian Institute of Criminology, 9 types of cycber crime: 1. Theft of telecommunication service The phone phreakers of three decades ago set a precedent for what has become a major criminal industry. By gaining access to an organisations telephone switchboard (PBX) individuals or criminal organisations can obtain access to dial-in/dial-out circuits and then make their own calls or sell call time to third parties. Offenders may gain access to the switchboard by impersonating a technician, by fraudulently obtaining an employees access code, or by using software available on the internet. Some sophisticated offenders loop between PBX systems to evade detection. Additional forms of service theft include capturing calling card details and on-selling calls charged to the calling card account, and counterfeiting or illicit reprogramming of stored value telephone cards. 2. Communication in furtherance of criminal conspiracies There is evidence of telecommunications equipment being used to facilitate organised drug trafficking, gambling, prostitution, money laundering, child pornography and trade in weapons (in those jurisdictions where such activities are illegal). The use of encryption technology may place criminal communications beyond the reach of law enforcement. 3. Telecommunications privacy Digital technology permits perfect reproduction and easy dissemination of print, graphics, sound, and multimedia combinations. The temptation to reproduce copyrighted material for personal use, for sale at a lower price, or indeed, for free distribution, has proven irresistable to many. 4. Dissemination of offensive materials Content considered by some to be objectionable exists in abundance in cyberspace. This includes, among much else, sexually explicit materials, racist propaganda, and instructions for the fabrication of incendiary and explosive devices. Telecommunications systems can also be used for harassing, threatening or intrusive communications, from the traditional obscene telephone call to its contemporary manifestation in cyber-stalking, in which persistent messages are sent to an unwilling recipient. 5. Electronic money laundering and tax evasion With the emergence and proliferation of various technologies of electronic commerce, one can easily envisage how traditional countermeasures against money laundering and tax evasion may soon be of limited value. I may soon be able to sell you a quantity of heroin, in return for an untraceable transfer of stored value to my smart-card, which I then download anonymously to my account in a financial institution situated in an overseas jurisdiction which protects the privacy of banking clients. I can discreetly draw upon these funds as and when I may require, downloading them back to my stored value card (Wahlert 1996). 6. Electronic vandalism, terrorism and extortion As never before, western industrial society is dependent upon complex data processing and telecommunications systems. Damage to, or interference with, any of these systems can lead to catastrophic consequences. Whether motivated by curiosity or vindictiveness electronic intruders cause inconvenience at best, and have the potential for inflicting massive harm (Hundley and Anderson 1995, Schwartau 1994). While this potential has yet to be realised, a number of individuals and protest groups have hacked the official web pages of various governmental and commercial organisations (Rathmell 1997). http://www.2600.com/hacked_pages/ (visited 4 January 2000). This may also operate in reverse: early in 1999 an organised hacking incident was apparently directed at a server which hosted the Internet domain for East Timor, which at the time was seeking its independence from Indonesia (Creed 1999). 7. Sales and investment fraud As electronic commerce becomes more prevalent, the application of digital technology to fraudulent endeavours will be that much greater. The use of the telephone for fraudulent sales pitches, deceptive charitable solicitations, or bogus investment overtures is increasingly common. Cyberspace now abounds with a wide variety of investment opportunities, from traditional securities such as stocks and bonds, to more exotic opportunities such as coconut farming, the sale and leaseback of automatic teller machines, and worldwide telephone lotteries (Cella and Stark 1997 837-844). Indeed, the digital age has been accompanied by unprecedented opportunities for misinformation. Fraudsters now enjoy direct access to millions of prospective victims around the world, instantaneously and at minimal cost. 8. Illegal Interception of telecommunications Developments in telecommunications provide new opportunities for electronic eavesdropping. From activities as time-honoured as surveillance of an unfaithful spouse, to the newest forms of political and industrial espionage, telecommunications interception has increasing applications. Here again, technological developments create new vulnerabilities. The electromagnetic signals emitted by a computer may themselves be intercepted. Cables may act as broadcast antennas. Existing law does not prevent the remote monitoring of computer radiation. It has been reported that the notorious American hacker Kevin Poulsen was able to gain access to law enforcement and national security wiretap data prior to his arrest in 1991 (Littman 1997). In 1995, hackers employed by a criminal organisation attacked the communications system of the Amsterdam Police. The hackers succeeded in gaining police operational intelligence, and in disrupting police communications 9. Electronic funds transfer fraud Electronic funds transfer systems have begun to proliferate, and so has the risk that such transactions may be intercepted and diverted. Valid credit card numbers can be intercepted electronically, as well as physically; the digital information stored on a card can be counterfeited. Right now electronic funds transfer fraud is the most famous type of cyber crime. Every year the rate of case about electronic funds transfer fraud always increasing especially in credit card information stealing. From www.spamlaws.com they wrote about credit card stealing in 2005,†Credit card fraud statistics show that about $2.8 million was lost due to credit card fraud, from fraudulent use of MasterCard and Visa alone. In total, credit card fraud costs cardholders and credit card issuers as much as $500 million a year.† Identity Theft Identity theft is really identity fraud. This criminal uses someone elses identity for their own illegal purposes.Examples include fraudulently obtaining credit, stealing money from the victims bank accounts, using the victims credit card number, establishing accounts with utility companies, renting an apartment, or even filing bankruptcy using the victims name. The cyberimpersonator can steal unlimited funds in the victims name without the victim even knowing about it for months, or even years. Anyone who relies heavily on credit cards, Social Security Numbers or network blogging is more susceptible to credit identity theft. Many of our modern conveniences also come with a risk and less protection. The digital age is the perfect age for the Cyber criminal to commit it. Think of the internet as a dark alley in the middle of the night. And these cyber criminals are those people hiding there waiting for the victims to make a mistake. Credit identity theft is a very damaging crime because it not only damages the person financially but also damages the persons reputation as well. Imagine someone borrowing money using your name and never telling you. You will both bear with the burden of paying back the money he borrowed and suffer the humiliation of having this blunder under your name. Identity theft has been referred to by some as the crime of the new millennium. It can be accomplished anonymously, easily, with a variety of means, and the impact upon the victim can be devastating. Identity theft is simply the theft of identity information such as a name, date of birth, Social Security number (SSN), or a credit card number. The mundane activities of a typical consumer during the course of a regular day may provide tremendous opportunities for an identity thief: purchasing gasoline, meals, clothes, or tickets to an athletic event; renting a car, a video, or home-improvement tools; purchasing gifts or trading stock on-line; receiving mail; or taking out the garbage or recycling. Any activity in which identity information is shared or made available to others creates an opportunity for identity theft. It is estimated that identity theft has become the fastest-growing financial crime in America and perhaps the fastest-growing crime of any kind in our society. The illegal use of identity information has increased exponentially in recent years. In fiscal year 1999 alone, the Social Security Administration (SSA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) Fraud Hotline received approximately 62,000 allegations involving SSN misuse. The widespread use of SSNs as identifiers has reduced their security and increased the likelihood that they will be the object of identity theft. The expansion and popularity of the Internet to effect commercial transactions has increased the opportunities to commit crimes involving identity theft. The expansion and popularity of the Internet to post official information for the benefit of citizens and customers has also increased opportunities to obtain SSNs for illegal purposes. Victims of identity theft often do not realize they have become victims until they attempt to obtain financing on a home or a vehicle. Only then, when the lender tells them that their credit history makes them ineligible for a loan, do they realize something is terribly wrong. When they review their credit report, they first become aware of credit cards for which they have never applied, bills long overdue, unfamiliar billing addresses, and inquiries from unfamiliar creditors. Even if they are able to identify the culprit, it may take months or years, tremendous emotional anguish, many lost financial opportunities, and large legal fees, to clear up their credit history. Identity theft occurs in many ways, ranging from careless sharing of personal information, to intentional theft of purses, wallets, mail, or digital information. There are some reasons why the attacker can steal the credit card information: 1. Unsecured network Example: 1. Poisoning Poisoning technique is quiet complicated. First, the attackers need to connect to the same network with the target. After that, the attackers have to look for the IP address of the target. The next step, the attackers should poison the target computer with ARP poisoning or with trojan horse. Then the computer target will move following the attackers track. The attackers will bring the target into fake shop site, and make the target unrealized that he/she has entered the credit card information. 2. Sniffing This technique is unstable, why? Because its depend on the attackers luck. Just like poisoning, the attackers have to connect to the same network with the target. After that, the attackers should scan all of MAC address in the network. Next, the attackers start the sniffing program, such as Cain and Able or Wireshark. Last, the attackers should wait until someone in the network open a shop site and enter the information of the credit card. 2. Vulnerabilities on the site Example: 1. SQL Injection With this vulnerability the attacker can enter admin panel without knowing the username and password. They just need to enter a right syntax as username and password to enter the admin panel. If they are already in admin panel they can see the complete information of the buyer. 2. Blind SQL Injection Blind SQL injection is the most favorite vulnerability for the attackers. The attackers will only need the web browser to do this technique. First, the attackers have to found a right page to be injected with some syntax. After that the attackers should drop all database table, and looking for user table or admin table. If there is user table the attackers can drop the column and the attackers could get the full data of the user, included the credit card information. But, if user table doesnt exist, the attackers should use the admin table. The attackers should drop the admin column and search for the admin password. After the attackers cracks the admins username and password, the attackers could go to the admin panel and look for the information of the buyer. 3. Order log Order log is an old vulnerability, but theres still websites that have this vulnerability. With this vulnerability the attackers only need to use search engine and look for the order log. If the order log has already founded the attacker will open it, and suddenly get full information about the buyer. 4. Admin Directory This vulnerability makes visitor of the site be able to open admin directory freely. So, the attacker could use this chance to see the database. Order database is always in the database. In the order database, the data of the buyer will be saved completely, including credit card information. 3. Human error Example: Social Engineering or Human Manipulating Attacker could use security weakness which is human. Why? Because human is easy to be manipulated. First, the attackers could request the target to do something unimportant, and then set a trap for the target. Attackers will manipulate the target to follow the attackers scheme. Then, if the target has already been trapped, the attacker could make the target gives the complete information about the credit card. There are several ways that can be done to avoid the potential victims from identity theft : The potential victims should request a complete credit report every once a year and check it closely. When get unwanted pre-approved credit card offers, shred them up before tossing them. When in public, do not recite social security number outloud to a bank teller or store cashier. Use a secure mailbox that locks. When asked to give mothers maiden name as a code access, use another key word instead. Change the personal identification numbers on accounts regularly. Pick up and keep printed receipts at bank machines or gas pumps. Even if have been victimized, there are still things that can be done : Before calling the police, contact bank or credit card company and freeze the account. The reason for this is twofold: first, it will help minimize monetary loss, and two, most banks and creditors have a time period in which the notification still valid and can be used to protect the victims. Then call the police department. It does not matter if the identification is being used in the victims city or halfway across the world because the police are required by federal law to take the report. After making police reports, the victim could contact any of national credit bureaus and put a fraud alert on their account. While dealing with the credit bureau, the victim should get a current copy of their credit report. And read it carefully. Then, the victims can contact their insurance company and ask for compensation. At least one insurance company has developed an insurance policy to help deal with identity theft. REFERENCES Anonymous. Computer Crime Definition. cited from http://www.mariosalexandrou.com/definition/ computer-crime.asp [21 November 2009] Anonymous. Cybercrime. cited from http://www.techterms.com/definition/cybercrime [21 November 2009] Australian Institute of Criminology. Nine Types of Cybercrime. cited from http://www.crime.hku.hk/ cybercrime.htm [21 November 2009] Hoar SB. Identity Theft: The Crime of The New Millennium. cited from http://www.cybercrime.gov/ usamarch2001_3.htm [5 December 2009] Karnow CEA. Cybercrime. cited from http://www.davislogic.com/cybercrime.htm [5 December 2009] Herries S. Overcoming Identity Theft: What to Do After You Have Been Comprimised. cited from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/272448/overcoming_identity_theft_what_to_do_pg2.html?cat=17 [5 December 2009]

Lily’s Reflections in Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse Essay

Lily’s Reflections in Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse Embodying the spirit of the female artist, Lily Briscoe in To the Lighthouse examines critical issues pertaining to her role in Virginia Woolf’s novel. In Part Three of the novel, Mrs. Ramsay’s legacy plays an especially important role in Lily’s thinking processes. Flowing experimentally like the sea that day, Lily’s thoughts encompass the novel’s themes of the passage of time, the role of the woman, and the role of the artist. Though time can break down physical matter, its prodding cannot disperse vivid memories. In the beginning of Part Three, Lily feels that Mrs. Ramsay’s death signals the deadening of emotions over time, for she can feel â€Å"nothing, nothing – nothing that she [can] express at all† (125). Lily feels that without Mrs. Ramsay’s art of bringing people together, everything becomes â€Å"aimless†, â€Å"chaotic† and â€Å"unreal† (126). Lily echoes Mr. Ramsay’s sentiments of having â€Å"perished† and wishes Mrs. Ramsay were in charge of the household again (126). Although Lily is a friend of the Ramsays, she is deeply affected by the unravelling of the Ramsay’s family life and remarks, â€Å"The empty places. Such were some of the parts, but how bring them together?† (126). Lily is able to solve this dilemma at the end of the story; however, for the moment, she can only imagine Mrs. Ramsay saying â€Å"life sta nd still here,† for this is the older woman’s way of turning a moment into something permanent (138). Later in her mind’s eye, Lily sees Mrs. Ramsay through William’s eyes and thinks â€Å"beauty had this penalty – it came too readily, came too completely. It stilled life – froze it. One forgot the little agitations; the flush, the pallor, some queer distortion, some light or s... ...izes it on the canvas. Lily is no longer a passive woman confused about her artistic abilities. Time’s passage is inevitable, but Lily learns that she can match wits with time by using her artistic talents. Mrs. Ramsay had shown Lily that time can be stopped with beauty, but Lily opts for a more realistic capture of time with artwork that transcends all ages. As a female artist, Lily dashes Mrs. Ramsay’s hopes as well as overcomes the societal expectations for her to become married. Not only does Lily redefines what it means to be a woman, she also renews the image of the artist. Intertwining her reflections on time, womanhood, and artistry, Lily emerges as a more mature person in the end of Woolf’s novel To the Lighthouse. Work Cited Woolf, Virginia, To the Lighthouse. Edited by Susan Dick. Oxford, United Kingdom: Blackwell Publishers 1992.

Normative ethics Essay

Metaethics talks about the nature of ethics and moral reasoning. Discussions about whether ethics is relative and whether we always act from self-interest are examples of meta-ethical discussions. In fact, drawing the conceptual distinction between Metaethics, Normative Ethics, and Applied Ethics is itself a â€Å"metaethical analysis. † Normative ethics is interested in determining the content of our moral behavior. Normative ethical theories seek to provide action-guides; procedures for answering the Practical Question (â€Å"What ought I to do? â€Å"). The moral theories of Kant and Bentham are examples of normative theories that seek to provide guidelines for determining a specific course of moral action. Think of the Categorical Imperative in the case of the former and the Principle of Utility in the case of the latter. Applied Ethics attempts to deal with specific realms of human action and to craft criteria for discussing issues that might arise within those realms. The contemporary field of Applied Ethics arouse in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Today, it is a thriving part of the field of ethics. Numerous books and web-sites are devoted to topics such as Business Ethics, Computer Ethics, and Engineering Ethics. Ethical Relativism Distinctions within Relativism There is a distinction between â€Å"morals† and â€Å"mores†. The latter can be defined as â€Å"harmless customs† (e. g. , â€Å"tea at 4†); the former as â€Å"treatment of others† (e. g. , â€Å"the practice of Apartheid†). In discussing Relativism, we are concerned only with â€Å"moral practices. † The Problem of Relativism: What one society considers Right, another Society considers Wrong. Therefore, RIGHT AND WRONG are RELATIVE to a PARTICULAR SOCIETY. Here we need to be aware of two things: (1) Confusing â€Å"harmless conventions† (The British drive on the left side of the road) with â€Å"harmful practices† (Clitorectomy is customary among the Somali). (2) Even if â€Å"moralities† may differ from society to society, it need not follow that Morality Itself is relative — for there is a further distinction between CULTURAL (â€Å"descriptive†) RELATIVISM and NORMATIVE (â€Å"Ethical†) RELATIVISM. Cultural (â€Å"descriptive†) Relativism: The descriptive relativist simply notes certain sociological FACTS: (a) Factual Claims: â€Å"x is considered right in Society y at time t† and â€Å"x is considered wrong in Society z at time t. † (b) Empirical Conclusion: Moralities are relative [Note that the claims of Cultural Relativism are either true or false. ] Normative (ethical) Relativism The normative relativist goes BEYOND any sociological facts. (a) Normative Claim: â€Å"What is considered right in Society x at time t IS right for that Society. † (b) Theoretical (metaethical) Claim: Morality Itself is Relative. Note that ethical relativism does not logically follow from any truths uncovered by descriptive relativism. Note also that the ethical relativist has a hard time explaining how radical moral change can occur within a certain society (as with slavery or women’s suffrage in the United States). Ethical Egoism Psychological and Ethical Egoism. As a metaethical theory of motivation, psychological egoism asserts the descriptive claim that all of our actions can be reduced to self-interest: â€Å"Whenever people do something, it is only because they think something desirable for themselves will result from it. † The claim is descriptive and thus open to counterexamples, and it is broad, stating a reductionistic thesis regarding all of our actions. (Contrast psychological egoism with the psychological state of sympathy, where ‘the weal and woe of the other becomes the motive for our action’.) Ethical egoism is a normative theory that states that our actions ought to be done from the perspective of self-interest. One of the problems with this position is that it might not be in one’s self-interest to have eveyone act from the perspective of self-interest. This ‘state of nature’ would not be desirable (in Hobbes’ terms, life would be â€Å"beastly, brutal, and short†) and so it might ultimately be in one’s self-interest to enter into a contract with others that would place restraints upon self-interested actions. Utilitarian Theories Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is a normative ethical theory that places the locus of right and wrong solely on the outcomes (consequences) of choosing one action/policy over other actions/policies. As such, it moves beyond the scope of one’s own interests and takes into account the interests of others. Bentham’s Utility Principle: (1) Recognizes the fundamental role of pain and pleasure in human life, (2) approves or disapproves of an action on the basis of the amount of pain or pleasure brought about i.e, consequences, (3) equates good with pleasure and evil with pain, and (4) asserts that pleasure and pain are capable of quantification (and hence ‘measure’). In measuring pleasure and pain, Bentham introduces the following criteria: INTENSITY, DURATION, CERTAINTY (or UNCERTAINTY), and its NEARNESS (or FARNESS). He also includes its â€Å"fecundity† (will more of the same follow? ) and its â€Å"purity† (its pleasure won’t be followed by pain & vice versa). In considering actions that affect numbers of people, we must also account for its EXTENT. John Stuart Mill adjusted the more hedonistic tendencies in Bentham’s philosophy by emphasizing (1) It is not the quantity of pleasure, but the quality of happiness that is central to utilitarianism, (2) the calculus is unreasonable — qualities cannot be quantified (there is a distinction between ‘higher’ and ‘lower’ pleasures), and (3) utilitarianism refers to â€Å"the Greatest Happiness Principle† — it seeks to promote the capability of achieving happiness (higher pleasures) for the most amount of people (this is its â€Å"extent†). Act and Rule Utilitarianism. We can apply the principle of utility to either PARTICULAR ACTIONS or GENERAL RULES. The former is called â€Å"act-utilitarianism† and the latter is called â€Å"rule-utilitarianism. † Act-utilitarianism — The principle of utility is applied directly to each alternative act in a situation of choice. The right act is then defined as the one which brings about the best results (or the least amount of bad results). * Criticisms of this view point to the difficulty of attaining a full knowledge and certainly of the consequences of our actions. * It is possible to justify immoral acts using AU: Suppose you could end a regional war by torturing children whose fathers are enemy soliders, thus revealing the hide outs of the fathers. Rule-utilitarianism — The principle of utility is used to determine the validity of rules of conduct (moral principles). A rule like promise-keeping is established by looking at the consequences of a world in which people broke promises at will and a world in which promises were binding. Right and wrong are then defined as following or breaking those rules. * Some criticisms of this position point out that if the Rules take into account more and more exceptions, RU collapses into AU. * More genearl criticisms of this view argue that it is possible to generate â€Å"unjust rules† according to the principle of utility. For example, slavery in Greece might be right if it led to an overall achievement of cultivated happiness at the expense of some mistreated individuals. Deontological Theories Acting from Duty Deontological normative ethical theories place the locus of right and wrong in autonomous adherence to moral laws or duties. Monistic deontology — Kant’s Categorical Imperative (â€Å"Act only on that maxim whereby thou canst at the same time will that it should become a universal law†) provides the source of right action. Its first formulation states â€Å"Act as if the maxim of your action were to secure through your will a universal law of nature;† its second formulation states â€Å"Always act so as to treat humanity, whether in your own person or that of another, as an end in itself, never as a means only. â€Å" Actions that conform to these imperatives (i. e., right actions) and are, furthermore, done from a sense of duty, are the epitome of morally praiseworthy actions. Critics of Kant’s approach claim that his Categorical Imperative does not contain within it a way to resolve conflicts of duties. â€Å"Lying is wrong† can be interpreted as â€Å"Never lie† and thus Universal Principles can ‘harden’ into Absolute Principles. Pluralistic deontology — For the 20th Century philosopher W. D. Ross, there are a number of duties that reflection reveals — and these form a group of prima facie obligations. The phrase â€Å"prima facie† (‘all things being equal’) refers to the fact that these duties do not bind us absolutely, but rather that they generally hold — absent any further considerations. Two key duties are nonmaleficence (don’t harm others) and beneficence (help others). Other prima facie duties include ‘don’t lie,’ ‘don’t kill,’ keep promises,’ etc. When conflicts occur between duties, our actual duty becomes that which â€Å"intuitive judgment† discerns as the right thing to do (e. g. , lying to save the life of an innocent person). Critics are cautious about referring to ‘intuition’ as the criterion for determining our actual course of action. Stephen Toulmin suggested that we â€Å"weigh up, as well as we can, the risks involved in ignoring either, and choose ‘the lesser of two evils’. † Thus, while the principles may be deontic in nature, a resolution of conflicts of principles could appeal to probable consequences. Virtue Ethics Historical Perspective There is a long tradition in ethics that places great importance on the â€Å"kind of person one is. † We not only want those around us to â€Å"tell the truth† (for example, according to the Categorical Imperative), but also to be honest. Both Aristotle (arete) and Aquinas (virtu) emphasized this aspect of ethics by highlighting the role of what we would today call character in their discussions of ethics (and the classic virtues of courage, justice, and moderation). David Hume also gave virtue and personal merit a key role in his ethical theory. The recent revival of interest in virtue ethics can be traced back to Philippa Foot. She writes that a person’s â€Å"virtue may be judged by his innermost desires as well as by his intentions; and this fits with our idea that a virtue such as generosity lies as much in someone’s attitudes as in his actions† . The Moral Concept of Virtue We should distinguish the virtues found in a particular society or culture (e. g. , chastity) from those virtues that can be supported by moral reasoning (e. g. , honesty). â€Å"A virtue is a trait of character that is socially valued, and a moral virtue is a trait that is morally valued†¦Moral reasons must support a claim†¦of moral virtue† . By emphasizing the priority of character in discussions of ethics, virtue theorists can say: â€Å"†¦rather than using rules and government regulations to protect subjects in research, some claim that the most reliable protection is the presence of an ‘informed, conscientious, compassionate, responsible researcher’†. The underlying view here is that â€Å"character is more important than conformity to rules and that virtues should be inculcated and cultivated over time through educational interactions, role models,† etc. A practical consequence of this view is that the education of, for example medical doctors, should include the cultivation of virtues such as compassion, discernment, trustworthiness, integrity, conscientiousness as well as benevolence (desire to help) and nonmalevolence (desire to avoid harm). Critical Evaluation of â€Å"Virtue Ethics† Often times we encounter â€Å"morality between strangers† (as when one enters an Emergency Room after a car accident). At these times, it’s not the person’s character, but his/her need to follow rules and procedures that seem to come to the forefront (â€Å"Virtue is not enough†). Furthermore, persons of ‘good character’ can certainly formulate ‘bad policy’ or make a ‘poor choice’ — and we need to evaluate those policies and choices according to moral principles. Constructive Evaluation of â€Å"Virtue Ethics† Yet â€Å"†¦ethical theory is more complete if the virtues are included†¦motives deserve to be at center stage in a way that some leading traditional theories have inadequately appreciated† †¦ â€Å"To look at acts without also looking at the moral appropriateness and desirability of feelings, attitudes, forms of sympathy, and the like is to miss a large area of the moral picture† (B&C, 4th Ed., 69) Liberal Rights and Communitarian Theories Today we often find moral problems framed by perspectives derived from political philosophy. Issues like euthanasia, stem cell research and abortion as well as distributive justice concerns such as social security and medicare, are likely to be seen along the liberal/conservative divide. Traditional moral theories need to take these frameworks into consideration. Will Kymlicka’s Introduction to Political Philosophy provides analyses of the philosophical ideas behind the â€Å"ideological debates† that now envelop many topics in moral philosophy. Of particular value is his discussion of liberal equality, libertarianism, and communitarianism. Liberal equality is often associated with the work on John Rawls in his Theory of Justice. It argues that we should rationally affirm two fundamental principles of justice designed to protect our political liberties and social opportunities. It can be directly contrasted with the libertarian ideas found in Robert Nozick’s Anarchy, State, and Utopia. Nozick challenges Rawls’s approach to social inequalities and argues for a minimalist state. But both authors (and their followers) conceive of individuals as ‘Socratic’ in nature, capable of reasoning about their life plan and questioning, in principle, the world around them. In this sense, they are both ‘liberals’ in the tradition of John Stuart Mill’s essay, â€Å"On Liberty. † â€Å"For liberals, the question about the good life requires us to make a judgment about what sort of a person we wish to be†. Thus liberals will emphasize the role of choice and freedom from government interference in private matters. For communitarians, on the other hand, individuals are not atomistic, ‘unencumbered selves’ — individuals are situated within a community, embedded in the received wisdom of our human culture. Communal values are ‘authoritative horizons’ wherein we take our orientation toward life . The â€Å"self is not prior to, but rather constituted by, its ends — we cannot distinguish ‘me’ from ‘my ends’ [and] our selves are at least partly constituted by ends that we do not choose, but rather discover by virtue of our being embedded in some shared social context† . Since self-determination does not occur in a vacuum, the government needs to support a social environment that is conducive to the development of what is best in all of us. For those communitarians who are ‘social conservatives,’ this will often take the form of a promotion ‘family values’ that can, for example, discourage changes in the institution of marriage. Broadly speaking, these two positions account for the divide between ‘liberals’ and ‘social conservatives’ in dealing with matters such as abortion and euthanasia. In these situations, liberals tend to become ‘pro-choice’ and social conservatives tend to become ‘pro-life. ‘ ***** As is to be expected in a modern, pluralistic democracy, many of these issues are addressed in the political realm and through the political process (including the courts). But the kinds of ‘cases’ that arise within these areas should also be addressed within the framework of applied ethics as a way to get clearer about the nature of the problem and its potential for resolution. Indeed, we often see analyses found in applied ethics, such as the concept of a ‘person in the morally significant sense’ or the distinction between ‘killing’ and ‘allowing to die,’ embedded in the political debate itself. Ethics of Care In the 1970s and 80s feminist writers began to question the assumptions behind many of the traditional ethical theories. Carol Gilligan’s work in moral psychology challenged â€Å"justice-based† approaches to moral discussion: â€Å"†¦ men tend to embrace an ethic of rights using quasi-legal terminology and impartial principles †¦ women tend to affirm an ethic of care that centers on responsiveness in an interconnected network of needs, care, and prevention of harm. Taking care of others is the core notion. † Annette Baier’s philosophical account of an ethics of care â€Å"does not recommend that we discard categories of obligation, but that we make room for an ethic of love and trust, including an account of human bonding and friendship. † In both of these accounts, there is a specific criticism of â€Å"Traditional Liberal Theory† and its emphasis on impartiality and universality: The impartiality and the ‘standpoint of detached fairness’ advocated by liberal theories of justice, overlook, for example, the moral role of attachment to those close to us. Speaking from the perspective of medical ethics, â€Å"The care perspective is especially meaningful for roles such as parent, friend, physician, and nurse, in which contextual response, attentiveness to subtle clues, and the deepening of special relationships are likely to be more momentous morally than impartial treatment† In articulating the challenge to â€Å"universal principles,† Beauchamp and Childress write: â€Å"We can produce rough generalizations about how caring physicians and nurses respond to patients, for example, but these generalizations will not be subtle enough to give helpful guidance for the next patient. Each situation calls for a set of responses outside any generalization†¦. † Proponents of an Ethics of Care emphasize the roles of Mutual Interdependence and Emotional Response that play an important part in our moral lives: â€Å"†¦many human relationships involve persons who are vulnerable, dependent, ill, and frail †¦ [and] the desirable moral response is attached attentiveness to needs, not detached respect for rights† (B&C, 373) and â€Å"The person who acts from rule-governed obligations without appropriately aligned feelings such as worry when a friend suffers seems to have a moral deficiency. In addition†¦insight into the needs of others and considerate alertness to their circumstances often come from the emotions more than reason. † Thus the emotions seem to have a ‘cognitive role,’ allowing us to grasp a situation that may not be immediately available to one arguing solely from a ‘justice perspective. ’ Critical Evaluation of the Care Ethic The example of a nurse who personally wants to help a patient die, but who will not do so as it violates professional duty, shows that â€Å"†¦the ethics of care must confront situations in which bona fide requirements of impartiality conflict with acting partially from care. † Some feminists actually interpret the ‘care ethic’ as culturally determined by the male hierarchy. For example, a terminally ill grand mother may request to be allowed to die because she doesn’t want to be ‘a bother’ to her family. Here someone like Susan Sherwin â€Å"sees a need to examine the social context of care as well as to establish limits to the ethics of care. Both enterprises would involve appeals to justice†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Constructive Evaluation of the Care Ethic Sensitivity and emotional response to particular situations (like family discussions with physicians) provide important guides to morally acceptable actions. A care ethic also seems to favor adopting procedures from Conflict Resolution and Dispute Mediation as alternative ways to approach an apparent ethical conflict. Hedonism The term â€Å"hedonism,† from the Greek word (hedone) for pleasure, refers to several related theories about what is good for us, how we should behave, and what motivates us to behave in the way that we do. All hedonistic theories identify pleasure and pain as the only important elements of whatever phenomena they are designed to describe. If hedonistic theories identified pleasure and pain as merely two important elements, instead of the only important elements of what they are describing, then they would call it Hedonism uld not be nearly as unpopular as they all are. However, the claim that pleasure and pain are the only things of ultimate importance is what makes hedonism distinctive and philosophically interesting. Philosophical hedonists tend to focus on hedonistic theories of value, and especially of well-being (the good life for the one living it). As a theory of value, hedonism states that all and only pleasure is intrinsically valuable and all and only pain is intrinsically not valuable. Hedonists usually define pleasure and pain broadly, such that both physical and mental phenomena are included. Thus, a gentle massage and recalling a fond memory are both considered to cause pleasure and stubbing a toe and hearing about the death of a loved one are both considered to cause pain. With pleasure and pain so defined, hedonism as a theory about what is valuable for us is intuitively appealing. Indeed, its appeal is evidenced by the fact that nearly all historical and contemporary treatments of well-being allocate at least some space for discussion of hedonism. Unfortunately for hedonism, the discussions rarely endorse it and some even deplore its focus on pleasure. This article begins by clarifying the different types of hedonistic theories and the labels they are often given. Then, hedonism’s ancient origins and its subsequent development are reviewed. The majority of this article is concerned with describing the important theoretical divisions within Prudential Hedonism and discussing the major criticisms of these approaches. The Origins of Hedonism . a. Aristippus and the Cyrenaics The Cyrenaics, founded by Artistippus were also sceptics and Hedonistic Egoists. Although the paucity of original texts makes it difficult to confidently state all of the justifications for the Cyrenaics’ positions, their overall stance is clear enough. The Cyrenaics believed pleasure was the ultimate good and everyone should pursue all immediate pleasures for themselves. They considered bodily pleasures better than mental pleasures, presumably because they were more vivid or trustworthy. The Cyrenaics also recommended pursuing immediate pleasures and avoiding immediate pains with scant or no regard for future consequences. Their reasoning for this is even less clear, but is most plausibly linked to their sceptical views – perhaps that what we can be most sure of in this uncertain existence is our current bodily pleasures. b. Epicurus Epicurus founder of Epicureanism, developed a Normative Hedonism in stark contrast to that of Aristippus. The Epicureanism of Epicurus is also quite the opposite to the common usage of Epicureanism; while we might like to go on a luxurious â€Å"Epicurean† holiday packed with fine dining and moderately excessive wining, Epicurus would warn us that we are only setting ourselves up for future pain. For Epicurus, happiness was the complete absence of bodily and especially mental pains, including fear of the Gods and desires for anything other than the bare necessities of life. Even with only the limited excesses of ancient Greece on offer, Epicurus advised his followers to avoid towns, and especially marketplaces, in order to limit the resulting desires for unnecessary things. Once we experience unnecessary pleasures, such as those from sex and rich food, we will then suffer from painful and hard to satisfy desires for more and better of the same. No matter how wealthy we might be, Epicurus would argue, our desires will eventually outstrip our means and interfere with our ability to live tranquil, happy lives. Epicureanism is generally egoistic, in that it encourages everyone to pursue happiness for themselves. However, Epicureans would be unlikely to commit any of the selfish acts we might expect from other egoists because Epicureans train themselves to desire only the very basics, which gives them very little reason to do anything to interfere with the affairs of others. c. The Oyster Example With the exception of a brief period discussed below, Hedonism has been generally unpopular ever since its ancient beginnings. Although criticisms of the ancient forms of hedonism were many and varied, one in particular was heavily cited. In Philebus, Plato’s Socrates and one of his many foils, Protarchus in this instance, are discussing the role of pleasure in the good life. Socrates asks Protarchus to imagine a life without much pleasure but full of the higher cognitive processes, such as knowledge, forethought and consciousness and to compare it with a life that is the opposite. Socrates describes this opposite life as having perfect pleasure but the mental life of an oyster, pointing out that the subject of such a life would not be able to appreciate any of the pleasure within it. The harrowing thought of living the pleasurable but unthinking life of an oyster causes Protarchus to abandon his hedonistic argument. The oyster example is now easily avoided by clarifying that pleasure is best understood as being a conscious experience, so any sensation that we are not consciously aware of cannot be pleasure.

Chevron Oil Industry Analysis

http://factsanddetails. com/world. php? itemid=1541&catid=51&subcatid=326 Chevron: Industry Analysis Threat of New Entrants The threat of new entrants is extremely low due to several factors. First, the oil industry which consists of thousands of oil and oil service companies throughout the world is an extremely large market. â€Å"According to the Department of Energy (DOE), Fossil fuels which include coal, oil, and natural gas make up more than 85% of the energy consumed in the U. S. as of 2008† (investopia). The fact that it is such a large market, make it very competitive for new entrants.Also, the oil industry is already in the mature stage, dominated by many major players including Chevron that has been around for a long period of time with various locations worldwide. This shows that they have an established reputation that is hard to compete with. Also, there are several barriers to entry which make it a very competitive market. These challenges include high capital co st, economies of scale, distribution channels, technology, environmental and governmental regulation as well as high levels of industry expertise.According to the Turnkey Analyst, â€Å"it is very difficult to build sustainable competitive advantages in the energy industry where oil’s commodity nature inhibits pricing power within the industry. Market participants are constantly required to invest capital to maintain cash flows and market share. † Therefore, these barriers to entry make it hard for new players to enter the market. http://turnkeyanalyst. com/2012/06/turnkey-research-note-chevron-corporation-nyse-cvx/ Rivalry among Existing Firms The oil industry is different from other due to the high demand for oil.Despite being a national company, Chevron has many competitors including regional as well as independent companies. Chevron is among the second largest oil companies in the world. Its competitors are Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell and BP. (chevron). Since oil is a commodity, the rivalry among existing firms is low. This is because there is not much of a differentiation. Threat of Substitute Products The threat of substitute is low. Substitutes for the oil industry would be alternative energy such as solar power, wind power, hydroelectricity or perhaps nuclear energy.However, due to factors such as â€Å"government regulations and environmental issues, nuclear and hydroelectric energy sources are not a threat within the next. Further, photovoltaic sources are limited by technological issues and geothermal sources are limited by geographic availability† (Miller). These might be a potential threat in the future due to emerging technologies and innovation that may lead to less consumption of oil-based fuel. An example would be hybrid cars that will result in less dependency on oil services.However, this shift in a more sustainable supply chain seems to be in the long term due to certain barriers such as high costs such as investments in n ew facilities. According to Chevron, â€Å"fossil fuels will continue to have a prominent role in the world’s economy for decades to come in both transportation and electricity generation. According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy will account for less than 20 percent of the energy mix in 2035. † They believe that there will always be a demand for their products due to growth of the global economy and alternative energy sources do not seem to be a serious threat.Another factor that shows that alternative energy is not a serious threat is the fact that there is not enough support from the government. â€Å"Even though governments throughout the world are vowing to expand to green energy, they continue to give far more subsidies to fossil fuel than renewable – 10 to 12 times more, according to recent reports† (Wood). http://www. chevron. com/documents/pdf/ChevronApproachtoAssessingClimateRegulationImpacts. pdf http://www. renewableenerg yworld. com/rea/news/article/2010/12/oil-and-renewables-slicing-up-the-subsidy-pie Bargaining Power of SuppliersWithin the global industry exist many companies but is dominated by a few major players. Due to large capital investment in these companies, they â€Å"Supplier power is high because OPEC controls 40% of world’s supply of oil and, thus, has a strong influence on the price of oil† (Miller). Inspite of its size and scope, the oil industry is one of the most powerful in the world. Large companies such as Chevron control each aspect of the supply chain such as producing, refining, and drilling. Due to capital investments, it allow for these oil companies to acquire and own each part of their supply chain.The fact that they are their own customers give them more power allowing them to be more efficient. With all the their capital assets, they are able to obtain the resources such as operating their own macturing facilities, distribution channel giving them more co ntrol in this aspect. This shows that they have a high bargaining power. Their only supplier would be the oil reserves from oil producing countries. Bargaining Power of Buyers The bargaining power of buyers (individual) is low because oil is a commodity. Despite rise in prices, people will continue to buy it in order to fulfill their needs such as driving.With the lack of substitutes for oil, it gives little power to buyers who rely heavily on this resource. The cost of switching to another energy source is too high. Therefore, there is a high demand for oil which determines the market price. Industrial buyer power is also low because their supply can be limited by upstream suppliers. (Miller) To conclude, the overall attractiveness of the oil industry is high because there is low threat of new entry as well as buyer power and threat of substitutes. Also, the fact that supplier power is high is a favorable since the few major players in the industry are both suppliers and buyers.