Relgion in Politics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Relgion in Politics - Research Paper Example In fact, the conflict between religion and politics has been great with the main area of focus being in the power of population control. Politics and religion focus on control of the population, but the level of control varies significantly depending on the level of affiliation or allegiance. The desire to control world governments by religion in the past led to serious challenges including the development of rebellion against the religious states and the development of secular states across the world. Currently, there are more secular states that the traditional religious states or government. The success of the change is pegged on the desire to create autonomy between church and state (Pew Research Center). Despite the drive for autonomy, the state leaders are expected to be affiliated with a certain religion. The case is applicable to most countries including the US and European countries. This paper will evaluate the role of religion in politics and changes in politics and religi on by evaluating the changes in trends of governance. Likewise, the current interplay between religion and politics will be evaluated in order to develop the necessary understanding of the current position of religion. History of the relationship of religion and politics The relationship between religion and politics is complex due to several issues associated with both politics and religion. Politics and religion share almost the principles because of the desire to control the population. However, in the past two centuries, the power of religion in shaping political survival has increased significantly by the end of the era coming during the industrial revolution. Coupled with the change in the societal structure and liberalization of the society, the change ensured that the power of religion is greatly reduced and even increased the level of societal liberalizations. The change in population and acceptance of behaviors that religion rejects totally indicates the changing role of r eligion. Through liberalization, the power of religion in shaping the politics of the day has been greatly reduced (Hawkins). The collapse of communism and the end of the famous cold war was viewed as the beginning of a change. However, it was not the end of the global conflict. After the cold war and the end of communism, the dictatorship governments of the time started crumbling and then led to the growth of democracy. The rule of majority spread very fast giving rise to a new world order, which was based on freedom peace and market economies. The peace existing globally affected the spending on security. In fact, the US reduced spending on military operations by closing its overseas bases. The growth of radical Islam throughout Asia during the century was not an issue affecting the western countries because it was not an issue of grave concern. The conflicts in Palestine and other countries were not viewed as important. In addition, the victory of the Taliban in Afghanistan was n ot viewed as a potential problem. The peace allowed tranquility in the world, but ensured that the animosity and hatred of many Muslims towards perceived Jewish and Christian imperialism increased. In the US, Christianity underwent resurgence including the teaching of the family values by the conservatives. During the time, Christianity enjoyed the respect as one of the historical foundations of the western culture. The influence of

Students to demonstrate an understanding of public relations in travel Essay

Students to demonstrate an understanding of public relations in travel and tourism - Essay Example In order to attract tourists in the highly competitive market, the management uses marketing and management tools that should be taken into consideration (Mill and Morrisson, 2002). The most important marketing tool is Public Relations (PR) as it plays a key role in advertising the locations, activities and identities. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the role and importance of PR in the tourism and travel industry. PR in travel and tourism has a very important role to play as it is used in strategic marketing activities and is integrated with marketing communications. The tourism industry is divided into many sectors including travel, tourist destinations, establishments, hotels lodgings and restaurants. The different sectors have their specific audience, public relation tools and convey different messages. The important role of PR is to create favourable perceptions about the tourist destination because success of the industry relies on the different sectors as explained by Deuschl (2006). The sectors need effective PR to gain popularity among the tourists. The PR department creates a positive impression in all the sectors in the travel and tourism industry. The role of PR involves attracting customers and keeping them entertained after they arrive at the destination to their time of departure. The primary purpose of PR is to effectively support other marketing and sales activities attempting to build a positive image of a company, its services and products (Deuschl, 2006). PR help the organization to save money by enhancing relations with the public that constrain or enhance the ability of the entity to meet its obligations. PR is different from other marketing tools, most importantly advertising since it creates the launch of a brand and it has greater credibility. PR promotes improved understanding between the operators and customers. There has been increased competition in the tourism sector among the operators to create

Microfinance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Microfinance - Essay Example Thus, it is essential to consider every region separately in order to come to the right conclusion. In the given paper we will analyze the effect of microfinance in India, Hyderabad. Microfinance is widely used in India and even had some positive results at the very beginning: â€Å"India’s microfinance sector was once touted as a saviour of the poor and a good bet for investors. The high point for the industry came when SKS—then India’s biggest microfinance company with a $1.2 billion loan book, a third of it in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh—went public in July 2010. The $350m offering was more than 13 times oversubscribed.† (â€Å"Road to redemption†) However, according to the same source, the situation started worsening at once. It is essential to analyze the reasons of worsening and make recommendations. According to the available statistics, the credit offered by Spandana and other Microfinance institutions working in the region of Hyderabad, was used by 37% of households. The percent is not very high if to take into account the purposes of taking loan (Chowdhury, 2007). Institutions do not state that credits were taken for business starting purposes. However, 30% of people who took loans said that they used this money mainly for this purpose, while 22% used these funds to buy facilities for the business they already have; 30% of borrowers spent loan to buy new facilities for their households (Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation). Here we can see some positive dynamics. The availability of Microfinance institutions loans changed annual percent of newly created businesses from 5.3 to 7. Competition did not bring any difficulties to the existing businesses (Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation) The expenses are different and depend on the purpose of credit. Data shows that those who took a credit

Operation Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6000 words

Operation Management - Essay Example Indeed recognition of a modern telecommunication infrastructure is very much essential for boosting up the growth of the economy as well as its social well being (U. S. Industrial Outlook, 1994: Business Forecasts for 350 Industries, 1994, p.28). The report deals with a small US based Telecom Company and its application of operation management practices backed with diverse theoretical frameworks of operation management (discussed in the theoretical framework section). The company in application is basically a provider of telecom manufacturing services to various small scale technology companies. The company has employee strength varying between 30 and 35 and is situated in the United States of America. The areas of specialization of the company are circuit cards manufacturing, system level assemblies and precision sheet metal. The company also receives funds from a big telecom company which provides products like metal chassis and assemblies. Coming to the development pattern of the company, the revenues of the company in the fourth quarter of the year 2012 increased by a small percentage compared to the fourth quarter of the fiscal year in 2011 but the net income of the company declined significantly as compared to the previous year. The growth of the company taxed the current operational processes and a necessity for an automated solution was necessary for the purpose of processing as well as analyzing the telecom invoices. There was also an increase in the number of employees by the company for meeting the demands of the customers and also there were escalations in the number of services being purchased by the employees of the company. The cost per employee also increased because the employees used cell phones, pagers and other electronic gadgets without proper oversight. There was also increase in the costs of internet access for the telecommuters. An urge for Total Quality Management procedure was highly felt. There was development in the information techn ology database along with the advancement in the tools. But the development in the IT tools was not properly engaged in streamlining the billing procedure of the company. Data collection in the United States is more or less straightforward but there is a great difference in the billing processes among various countries as various countries using different ledgers and various global solutions and also with respect to the knowledge of global currencies. Variations in vendor commercial performances added layers of intricacies to the billing organization chore. It can be stated that the company’s financial strength is declining a bit but the company also has a potential market presence and directs towards maintaining a strong position for itself. 2. Outline of the purpose of the study The company encountered a bad phase of revenue decline from year 2004 to 2007 during which it served some of the big companies in the telecom industry as its client. The problem was that these were all high volume but low margin accounts and pricing pressure adversely affected the company’s profit portfolio. After that it moved into the domain of military and aerospace industry which escalated the company’s growth to a certain level. But the military and the

Letter of application Essay Example for Free

Letter of application Essay Though there are many formats, full block format with open punctuation marks is the most popularly used forms in today’s business communication. Full block format means, aligning all the parts of the letters in the left margin without indenting. One line space has to be left between the parts. Open punctuation refers to using punctuation marks only in the main body of the letter in order to ensure clear comprehension and omitting punctuation marks like commas and full stops in all other parts (date, address, salutation, subscription, etc. ) How to Write an Effective Cover Letter? An effective cover letter must convince the employer that the candidate possesses the requisite skills for the job and ensure him that he is the suitable person for the post. So the cover letter should highlight the most relevant skills/achievements/performance, needed for the job. The cover letter is usually written in three or four small paragraphs with enough white space in between. In the first paragraph, (i) mention the subject and reference. In other words, the name of the post you are applying and the source of information (name of the newspaper and the date) are to be mentioned. In case of some other sources like personal contacts, due acknowledgement has to be made. (ii) Express the reason to apply for the post or your willingness to be considered as a candidate. Some sample openings: 1. Your advertisement for the post of Software Engineer in the June 25, 2008 issue of The Times of India interested me as I am confident that I possess the requisite qualification and skills. I wish to be considered as a candidate for the same. 2. I understand from Mr. Rajgopal, one of your faculty that there is an opening in your esteemed organization for the post of Marketing Executive.. 3. I was very interested to see your advertisement for the post Software Engineer in The Hindu of 29.06.2008. I have been seeking for such an opportunity as this, and I think my background and your requirements may be a good match. I am very much interested in working as a Software Engineer in your esteemed concern. In the second paragraph, (i) highlight your academic and professional skills which are more relevant for the post you are applying now. (ii) Give specific and the most important details of your achievements and inform the employer that your resume is enclosed for the other details of your qualification and experience. Some samples: 1. As my enclosed resume indicates, I have a B.E in Electronics and Communication Engineering. I was a University rank holder and was awarded a merit scholarship by the University. I did my internship at Reliance, Bangalore, during the summer vacation. My project work has helped me acquire a wide variety of skills that would benefit your company. 2. My education includes a B.E .in Electrical Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Tiruchi and an MBA from IGNOU, New Delhi. During my undergraduation, I did a summer project in Network Security, at BSNL, Coimbatore. and received a letter of appreciation for my vision and ability to multitask. I wish to begin my career with Polexcel and I believe that my employment with you would be highly beneficial to your company and also add value to my career. In the third paragraph/concluding paragraph, (i) motivate the employer for taking action, i.e., calling for an interview (ii) express your convenience to attend the interview. Some Sample Closings: 1. I look forward to the opportunity of attending an interview when I can provide additional details. 2. I would like to meet you and discuss the employment possibilities at your company. I expect your reply and appreciate your consideration. 3. I shall be pleased to provide any further information you may need and hope I may be given an opportunity of an interview. 4. I wish to begin my career with SR Industries and I believe that my employment with you would be highly beneficial to your company and also add value to my career. 5. I have been looking for an opening like this one, which provides a fast moving, dynamic work environment and accelerated and challenging growth opportunities. (ii) RESUME A resume is a selective record of a candidate’s academic, professional and personal background. It is basically, a professional employment seeking document that presents the summary of an individual’s education, professional training, experience, skills, abilities, achievements and references. The length of the resume should be between 1 and 2 pages long. Format There is no specific format for writing a resume. The resume should have an effective design with a focus on readability and adaptation to the expectations of the prospective employer. Though the parts and the format of a resume differ from person to person and company to company, the standard parts of a resume include the following: 1. heading, 2. position sought, 3. career objective, 4. education, 5. work experience, 6. special skills, 7. achievements, 8. activities, and interests 9. references. Some sample objectives 1. To work as a System Manager in a leading IT company where I will have opportunities to use my knowledge in VB, ASP, NET, XML and SQL server. 2. To be a part of a fast growing multinational company that will enable me to use my analytical, interpersonal and communication skills. 3. Entry level position is design and development of microprocessor circuitry; eventual advancement to positions as Technical Manager or Project Leader. Resume Style There are three acceptable resume styles: Chronological, Functional and Hybrid (a combination of both) Chronological Resume: This is the most commonly used resume style. It focuses on education and experience and the details are arranged in reverse chronological order. Functional Resume: Functional resumes highlight accomplishments and emphasise skills. The requisite skills are demonstrated by means of the experience the candidate possesses. Combination Resume: As the name suggests, it combines the best features of chronological and functional resumes. This style is very rarely used. In short, the style of the resume depends on the nature of the job and the skills and qualification of the candidate. Points to Remember in Writing a Resume Make the design and format readable with main sections noticeable and the individual components distinct, separate and clear. Give well defined headings Leave enough white space between the parts. Align everything to the left Leave at least one inch margin Use standard font, preferably, Ariel or Times New Roman with 10 or 12 font size. Be specific, factual and objective. Edit carefully for grammar, vocabulary and spelling errors. Avoid punctuation as much as possible. Avoid columns, vertical, horizontal lines, or boxes. Avoid decorative designs, and typography Make the resume computer-friendly. Thus the success of employment search largely depends on a candidate’s ability to design an effective cover letter and a persuasive resume. LETTER OF APPLICATION In response to your advertisement in The Times of India of 29.06.2008, I wish to apply for the post of Software Engineer in your reputed concern. My academic record reflects my sincerity and strong determination. I graduated with a B.Tech in Information Technology from Anna University, Coimbatore with distinction in May 2008. I received the Chief Minister Merit Scholarship during 2006-2007 for my academic performance. As a dynamic and extroverted student, I took active interest and participation in many extra curricular and co-curricular activities and won prizes. I have enclosed my resume for the details of my qualification for your perusal. As I have a sound academic background, good oral and written communication skills, proficiency in computers and high degree of commitment, I would be able to contribute to the growth and expansion of your company. I look forward to having the opportunity to further discuss my qualifications for the post of Software Engineer at your firm. OBJECTIVE To obtain a challenging position as a Software Engineer in an innovative software company where I will have opportunities to utilize my computer proficiency, communication and interpersonal skills to contribute to the growth of the company and also enhance my career prospects. EDUCATION Anna University, Coimbatore B.Tech. in Information Technology, May, 2008. SH Senior Secondary School, Chennai passed Higher Secondary, April, 2004 SOFTWARE SKILLS Programming Languages: C, C++, JAVA, PERL Technologies: HTML, Java Security, JDBC Operating Systems: Linux, Unix, Windows 95/09/NT, DOS ACHIEVEMENTS Won Chief Minister Merit Scholarship for academic proficiency in III tear Won First prize in Inter – University elocution contest, in 2007. Secured Second position in Debugging’ contest, held at IIT, Chennai. ACTIVITIES Was the Student Secretary for the Society of Information Technologists Had been a member of National Cadet Corps for three years during my school Have participated in many extra – curricular activities and won prizes PERSONAL DETAILS Age Date of Birth 21 years 14.08. 1987 Marital Status: Single Languages Known: Tamil, English, Hindi, German Interests: Reading fiction, Web designing and Listening to Carnatic REFERENCES 1. Dr. V.Thanuvalingam Dean (Academic) Anna University Coimbatore 2. Dr.K.Viswanathan Professor Head Department of Information Technology Anna University Coimbatore Task: Assume that you have completed your degree and draft a letter of application to be sent to your dream company. Prepare your own resume to be enclosed along with the cover letter.

Sam Houston Summary Essay Example for Free

Sam Houston Summary Essay Sam Houston had to face many obstacles since he was a little boy. He had very little education; however he educated himself with many readings from his father’s library. Houston served as governor for Tennessee and Texas. He also served as a United States senator for thirteen years. . He befriended General Andrew Jackson and remarried three times. Houston was made the first president of the Republic of Texas in 1836 and was re-elected in 1841. He gave many speeches throughout the years. Houston died on July 26, 1863, in Huntsville, Texas. Sam Houston, fifth child of Samuel Houston and Elizabeth Paxton Houston, was born on March 2, 1793. His father, Samuel Houston, a member of the revolutionary member, went bankrupt in 1806 and had no other option but to sell the Timber Ridge and move west to Tennessee. His father died the same year! A year later, Sam Houston, his mother, and his eight siblings resided south of Knoxville in Maryville, Tennessee. At the age of fourteen, Sam Houston had little education but spent a large amount of time reading books in his late father’s library. He also spent a great amount of time clearing land and developing a farm. The family decided that he would work as a clerk in a store because in his brother’s eyes he wasn’t doing anything worthwhile. Sam showed no interest in this job which resulted in his disappearance from the job and home. He crossed the Tennessee River with the Cherokee Indians. Houston joined a band of approximately three hundred Cherokees led by Chief Oo-loo-te-ka. The chief liked Sam greatly that he soon adopted him and gave him the name â€Å"Colonnen†. Colonnen refers to â€Å"The Raven† which is a symbol of good luck to the Indians. He went into debt due to bringing gifts home to his Indian friends each time he went to visit his family. At the age of nineteen, Houston had to find a way to get out of debt and decided to become a teacher. He charged the students a higher rate than usual which only took six months to pay off his debts. At the beginning it was just a way to make money but he soon realized that he had a strong interest in teaching. The War of 1812 had begun shortly after Houston began teaching. His career ended really soon. â€Å"Euclid soon defeated him and ended whatever thoughts he may have had of a permanent careers as a teacher. Houston was not amongst the early volunteers of the war; however he decided to enroll in a local academy to further his education in math. On March 24, 2013, Sam decided to enlist in the United States Army. Within a few weeks of training he became a sergeant. Nine months later, Sam was promoted to third lieutenant. Early in the 1814, Houston came under command of General Andrew Jackson. He became really good friends with Jackson for approximately thirty years. During the war, Houston was wounded and General Jackson ordered him to stay out the rest of the battle. The Indians refused to surrender. Houston volunteered to lead the attack; however his men hesitated to go forth, Houston ran forward and the Indians ended up shooting him twice in the right shoulder. Jackson ordered the Cherokees to complete the battles which forced the Indians to sign the Treaty of Fort Jackson. This treaty consisted of giving up their claims to more than three-fifths of Alabama. Sam Houston was treated at one of their hospitals in eastern Tennessee and then transported back to Maryville. After the treatment he was assigned to the Southern Division of the United States Army. He was on light duty in the adjutant general’s office. On October 28, 1817 Houston was appointed federal subjacent to the Cherokees. At the age of twenty-five, on March 1, 1818 he resigned from the army and as Indian subagent too. Three months later, Sam Houston returned to Nashville to begin the study of law with Judge James Trimble. It only took Houston six months to learn and pass the bar examination. He then moved to Lebanon and opened a law office. In 1819, Houston was elected attorney general, and he then returned to Nashville. He was very successful and knowledgeable but he was not satisfied with the pay. He resigned in1820 in private practice in Nashville. â€Å"In 1823 he ran for the United States House of Representatives from the ninth Tennessee District. † (pg 15) Houston’s second term ended on March 1827, he went back to Tennessee to run for governor. He put himself in the public’s eyes by attending political rallies and any events that included the voters. â€Å"In early September he defeated Cannon by more than 11,000 votes in a total of more than 75,000 and won the governorship. † (19) In 1824 Sam Houston was introduced to a woman named Eliza Allen. She was only twenty and Sam Houston was thirty-five at the time. He asked her father for his permission to marry his daughter. Her father gave him permission to wed his daughter. She did not love Sam; however her family pretty much pressured her into marrying Houston only because he was a successful man. She followed their command and accepted his proposal in October 1828. They exchanged wedding vows on January 22, 1829 at the Allen’s home. Unfortunately, three months after the marriage his wife left him and went back home to her family. She refused to be with him and on April 16th Houston resigned as governor of Tennessee. It is still unknown why she left Houston, although she was pressured into marrying Houston. Sam and his companion, H.Haralson, journeyed down the Cucumber River to Ohio on April 23, 1829. He ended up in Arkansas with his Cherokee friends. His companion continued to travel leaving Houston behind with his adopted father and friends. Sam Houston soon discovered that the Cherokee nation had to move out of Arkansas and into east-central Oklahoma. The Cherokees were worried that the whites were going to take their current land again. Houston became their advisor and a listener to the Cherokee tribe. â€Å"Houston departed to Washington to inform President Jackson that several Indian agents should be removed and the Treaty of 1828 honored. He traveled to Washington D. C. to inform how the Cherokees received unbroken promises and that they rather have money verses gold. Sam Houston wed another woman, Tiana, while still married to Eliza. It wasn’t a big deal because she was considered Indian and his other wife was Cherokee. Within time he got a weakness for alcohol. It started interfering with his everyday live, was turned down when he campaigned for a position on the Cherokee council, and he also hit his adoptive father. Soon after, his mother fell ill and was rushed back to her home in Tennessee where she died in September 1831. A month later he traveled back to the Cherokee nation. In April he was arrested and punished for striking congressman, Stanbery, with his cane. He was found guilty and received a reprimand. In October 1832, Houston started preparing for his trip to Texas; however his wife refused to go. Houston left her some of his possessions and then divorced her. Sam Houston set up headquarters in San Felipe and began to plan a defensive strategy against the Mexicans. The volunteer soldiers under Stephen Austin battled and successfully took San Antonio, killed Milam, and forcing General Cos to surrender. The soldiers believed that the war was over; however Houston was not convinced that it was over. He made a public announcement that Texas was in need of 5,000 trained men by March 1, 1836. While Houston and the men prepared for the war they were approached by Fannin and the two leaders that won at war in San Antonio. Fannin, Johnson, and Grant came in making promises to the soldiers causing thousands to leave Houston and to join their militia. Sam Houston continued to lead approximately sixty to seventy men. On January 20, Houston traveled to San Felipe to meet with Governor Smith. Houston spent the rest of February with the Cherokees and Indians in the northeast. After arriving at the convention site, Washington-on-the-Brazos, he received news that Santa Anna’s army had attacked Texas and â€Å"besieged† the Alamo and the remaining soldiers. The declaration of independence was adopted on March 2nd. Two days later, Houston had become â€Å"commander in chief of the land forces of the Texian army both Regulars, Volunteers, and Militia, while in actual service. † On March 11th, Houston reached Gonzalez and found 374 volunteers that were led by Edward Burleson. While preparing the men for war Houston received news that Santa Anna’s army had â€Å"taken† the Alamo and attacked and burned all of its defenders. Houston ordered Fannin and his army to retreat to Victoria. They were captured and murdered by the Santa Anna’s army. On April 20th, the battle began between Santa Anna and Houston’s soldiers. Unfortunately, Houston was injured during the battle. Houston’s army men had captured and killed many men causing Santa Anna to offer a peace treaty. Houston refused until both government leaders were present. Fortunately, Houston’s approach succeeded. Sam Houston and Eliza’s divorce was not final until 1837. Houston served as president for two years, December 1836 to December 1838. He was reelected in September 1840. In 1836, a small group of soldiers were attacked by the Mexican General Santa Anna. Houston’s army won the battle against the Mexican forces at San Jacinto and gained independence for Texas, opened up a law office, and promoted a land development after his term expired. He traveled to Mobile, Alabama to interest a wealthy merchant, William Bledsoe, in the Sabine City project. While visiting the Bledsoe estate Houston met Margaret Lea. They were married in Marion, Alabama, on May 9, 1840. They had eight children. Margaret convinced Houston to stop drinking and attend church. Houston continued to work towards annexation with the United States. He used the United States and Great Britain hatred to one another in hopes to make each country want to snatch up Texas so that the other country could not. With high hopes of joining with the United States, the United States still was unwillingly to annex Texas. In 1845, Texas became part of the United States. â€Å"Houston’s joyous moment at the approach of annexation was tempered by the death of Andrew Jackson on June 8, 1845. The family rushed to the Hermitage but arrived a few hours late. They attended the funeral and were guests at the Donelson plantation for several weeks. † (139) Meanwhile, Mexico was at war with Texas for ten years. Houston remained in Washington to work in support of the war. Houston left Washington in the spring of 1847 because his wife had surgery due to breast cancer. â€Å"Houston traded Raven Hill for land within a few miles of Huntsville and planned to build a home for his family. He remained in Texas for the rest of the year, keeping abreast of the war news as General Winfield’s Scott’s army took Mexico City. † (147) In January 1847, Sam Houston obtained a new six year senate term. Houston became a presidential candidate but Houston’s mind and heart was with his family. In 1852, Franklin Pierce was elected; however if Houston put in the effort he could have won. January 15, 1853, he was elected to a new six-year term as Senate. In October 1853, Houston’s family moved to Independence, a city fifty miles to the southwest, while leasing out his home in Huntsville. In 1859, Sam Houston appeared to be leaning toward retirement. Houston invited the public to vote in his favor; however he did not campaign. â€Å"Texans who wanted his leadership had drawn him into the contest, and they did the campaigning. Houston became the only man in the United States to serve as governor of two states. He promised funds for railroads, schools, river improvements, and a protector of Texas if Mexico should try to battle again. Houston was all about the people he served and not the political party. Some petitioned for him to run for president, but he refused to participate in the national convention. When Abraham Lincoln was elected president of the United States, Houston warned Texans that the civil war was going to happen if Lincoln violated the Constitution. The Texas convention removed Houston from office and replaced him with Lieutenant Governor Edward Clark. This resulted because Houston refused to take oath to loyalty to the newly formed Confederate States of America. He wanted to avoid war at all cost and declined Lincoln’s offer to use the federal troops to keep him in office and Texas in the Union. After leaving the Governor’s mansion, he continued to support Texas. Sam Jr. joined the Confederate Army, against his father’s advice, was wounded at the battle of Shiloh. He was reunited with his family but on crutches. Houston moved his family to Huntsville because United States â€Å"took† Galveston and â€Å"destroyed the Houston’s family’s main source of income. † (197) In the winter of 1863, Houston fell ill. He developed an awful cough and was diagnosed with pneumonia. His wife stayed by his side and heard his very last words before his death, â€Å"Texas†¦Texas†¦Margaret. † Texas and his family were very important to Sam Houston. Sam Houston, one of the most important political figures to Texas. Houston served as governor for Tennessee and Texas. He also served as a United States senator for thirteen years. . He befriended General Andrew Jackson. He remarried three times; however he had eight children with his third wife. Houston was made the first president of the Republic of Texas in 1836 and was re-elected in 1841. He gave many speeches throughout the years. He led a successful battle for Texas Independence. On July 26, 1863, Houston died of pneumonia in their â€Å"Steamboat House. † He will always be remembered!

The Impact Of Terrorism On Tourism Tourism Essay

The Impact Of Terrorism On Tourism Tourism Essay In this study the main discussion will be about the impact of terrorism on tourism, how it is affecting tourism in any country and in this study the writer will discus in particularly about Egypt and how the tourism industry is in particular has been affected by these terrorist attacks. The main reason why the writer thinks that this area should be discussed is because many countries are affected with the action of terrorism and terrorists even though they happen to be safe countries. These kinds of attacks dont represent the country as a whole, they are groups of people who have issues with the government and they want to be in the spotlight and get media coverage from all over the world by attacking tourists. The main benefit from this research is to find out the main reason for these attacks, what are the consequences of the attacks on the tourism industry of Egypt? Why do terrorists attack tourists? How did they face it in the past and how should the country react upon terrorism in the future? Main data collection will be from journals and books; it is based on secondary research findings only. Then again there are some limitations of secondary research available in hand but there are some alternative ways to get the information needed for the study. The objective of this study is to analyse the impact of terrorism on tourism, which includes tourists movement and the consequences on the destination. The study will focus on the affects that the destination faces after the attacks, and how this kind of attacks affects tourism in the country. Tourism is a main income for many countries in the world; most of the developing countries are dependent on it even the less developed countries are counting on tourism as a second source of income after petrol, so it is fastest growing economic sectors in the developed/developing world (Aly Strazicich, n.d.). In the late 1960s and 1970s, tourism was often promoted as a way to reduce persistent balance of payment deficit and as a major source of foreign exchange (Essner, 2003). And it was direct and indirect on the government revenue, it was recognized as a means to diversify the economy and reduce reliance on traditional agriculture and industry (Aly Strazicich, n.d.). Simple terrorist attacks can affect on the tourism revenue, and this would be a bad impact on the country foreign exchange (Essner, 2003). It has been hard to define the word terrorism but one of the definitions describes it as: Any act taken with extraordinary methods including the use of force and violence with the aim of influencing social and political structure (Kucukaltan 2006, p.29). Egypt is one of the countries that depend on tourism, previous statement shows that in 2002 tourism represented 26% of their foreign exchange (write fix, 2010). However, due to some terrorist attacks this can change, such as in 1998 tourism has been affected very badly it has been reduced from 3,727 in 1997 to 2,565 in 1998 (Essner, 2003). In the next sections the author will be disusing about the methodology of this research, the literature review and solution and recommendations if available. Methodology: Secondary analysis is a form of research in which the data collected and processes by a researcher are reanalyzed by another, often for different purpose (Babbie 2007, p.227). Using secondary data has its advantages and disadvantages, to start with, its advantages: It is faster to collect and at a lower price than the primary data, it can provide the researchers with their research start point and help to define the research problem and learn the objectives (Kotler, et al., 2008). The disadvantages of using a secondary data research is: the needed information may not be researched or may not exist, or the definition needed is different or inappropriate for the research on hand (Kotler, et al., 2008). In this study the main resources that will be used are secondary resources. Most data collected will consist of relevant academic books, previous case study researches and the internet. The main books that will be used in this study will be from: Tourism and Terrorism by Professor Derman Kucukaltan, other books are more about terrorism and its conflict on the world, such a book: Global terrorism by James M. Lutz and Brenda J. On the other hand there are some academic books also available on Google books that will be used in this study such as: Inside Terrorism by Bruce Hoffman, and another book about the Mediterranean tourism edited By Yiorgos Apostolopoulos, Philippos J. Loukissas, Lila Leontidou, the chapter in the book is about tourism in Egypt written by Turgut Var and Kahlid Zakaria El Adli Imam. In addition to the books there are few reports and researches done about the impact of terrorism and tourism in Egypt, such as the one written by: Mark Bennet and Harry Bray and another report written by Hassan Aly and Strazicich from The Ohio State University. Other information about Egypt tourism statistics, recent terrorist attacks in Egypt news and figures will be used from some Internet sources, such as Al Jazeera English web site, BBC news, npr station online broadcasting and many more other websites. Literature review: Terrorism and tourism: Global Terrorism is a concern for all (Suder, 2006). To begin with it is important that terrorism and tourism is defined. Researchers had been giving many different definition of terrorism and it is difficult to define it, but from the writer point of view, the most appropriate definition will be that: Terrorism is a form of war; its goal is to destroy economies through random death and panic (Tarlow, 2006, p.82). It is also described as the planned, politically motivated attack perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub national groups or secret against usually intended to influence an audience (download it, n.d.). Terrorism may also be a use of violence or threat of violence against civilians; in general terrorism could be defined as any act taken with extraordinary methods including the use of force and violence with the aim of influencing social and political structure (Kucukaltan, 2006, p.29). These are only some of the definition about terrorism but all the definition has a common principle about terrorism which is; that terrorism is a kind of violence. Most countries countenance national and/ or global fear of unending terrorism, especially after September 11; it became a priority of the world to fight against terrorism and to stop the growing number of terrorist organization (Kucukaltan, 2006). In addition there are different kinds of terrorist attacks, such as: Kidnapping, explosions, murder and hostage taking (Das Kratcoski, 2003). However tourism is the world number one industry and the service is reliant on the peoples protection and their security (Schuelke, 2000). And it is one of the fastest growing economic sector in the world and in Egypt since 1987 (Apostolopoulos, et al., 2001). In addition according to Aly and Strazicich (n.d.) report, tourism was recognized for its direct and indirect impact on government revenue and as a mean of diversifying the economy and reduces dependence on traditional agriculture and industry. Terrorism is confused with criminal behaviour, yet they are totally different elements. Tourism crime is a business while tourism terrorism is unwisely motivated by a group of people. Crime is known nationally in the country, but terrorism in known internationally because of media interest they get (Tarlow, 2006). According to Das and Kratroski (2003, p210) a terrorist mean: whoever practices violence and terrorism for realizing a political objective and anyone who resorts to terrorism for consuming power. In addition Terrorists seek to destroy nations or governments through random death that lead to an economic collapse, terrorists goals are different in that they seek the distribution of a tourism industry rather than the personal or commercial benefits from a specific action (Tarlow, 2002). Furthermore terrorist are willing to lose and risk their life in order to achieve their goals (Tarlow, 2002). And this is exactly what is happening in Egypt, all the attacks are done by angry people who are not agreeing with the government and so terrorism is the answer to their anger and achieving their goal, and because they want their voice to be heard they intend to seek media attention. Because terrorist seek media attention any event is an open target for terrorist (Tarlow, 2002). Moreover, the press and the media have a huge impact on them as they put them on the spotlight in any negative event (Das Kratroski, 2003). And from the writer point of view the media as well have a an affect on the destination image after broadcasting any event that had happened in that destination, it might build a good reputation or break the reputation of the destination. The history of terrorism in Egypt: Egypt tourism has a long history; it started during the presidential of Anwar Al Sadat, when he first made peace with Israel. This opened and changed the view of the Westerns to the Arabs and their leaders (Apostolopoulos, et al., 2001). Tourism represents one of the most beneficial sectors of Egypt economy but it is highly in danger to internal violence and regional politics (Apostolopoulos, et al., 2001). In other way it is unstable domestic economy that Egypt has. It all has started in the late 1970s when al-gamaa al-Islamiya began insulting and fighting the revolution that Egypt was going through, they targeted government officials, Coptic Christians, policemens, officers and tourists (Essner, 2003). These extremist Muslims group (al-gamaa al-Islamiya) launched their campaign all over again in 1992, this time their main targets where foreigner tourists, these terrorist attacks has paralysed the government and damaged the tourism between 1992 and early 1994 (Apostolopoulos, et al., 2001). Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya are responsible for all the terrorist attacks that happened for the last 12 years, when they started first in 1992 they attacked a German cruise which no one was killed from the tourist but three Egyptian were hurt, then they attempted another attack in the same month where they killed a British tourist and wounded two others (Essner, 2003). In summer 1994 Egypt experienced a revival in their tourism industry and it rose again, furthermore their main tourists were mainly from the Gulf States (Apostolopoulos, et al., 2001). After a refresh growth of tourism, in 1996 there was another attack on tourists that killed 18 Greek tourists and another attack in the same month killed more than 58 persons who were mostly tourists (Apostopoulos, et al., 2001). Egypt tourism has lots of ups and downs. All this was affected by the terrorist attacks on tourist, tourism revenue increased enormously from 1994 to 1995, by 34% in 1995. And from 1995 to 1996 it fell by nearly 15% and it continued into 1997 where it fell 3% more (Essner, 2003). Although of all these attacks that Egypt had faced through the last 12 years, Tourism still plays a very big role in its economy, they got used to it and they copped with it. Tourists still visit Egypt but they are not satisfied with the security, but because it is a beautiful country tourist sacrifice and go to visit it. The main type of terrorism in Egypt is: Terrorism targeting a political regime: The aim is to destroy the government system, they want to send a message to the world and they want the government to use the Sharia Law. National Terrorism: The attacks are only in Egypt, they dont attack other countries and they have no support from outside the country. Organizational Terrorism: means Any kind of violent action carried out by two or more people to reject state regime and its application to debilitate state authority and to give messages to national and/ or international public opinion (Kucukaltan, 2006, p.39). And the main terrorism organizations in Egypt are Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya. (Kucukaltan, 2006). Terrorism targets: Terrorist always attack people who are not protected and have weak security (Das Kratcoski, 2003). Therefore they have often used tourists as targets, because they are easy to attack and attract a lot of attention from the media (Frey, 2004, p17). Likewise the main targets of these terrorist attacks in Egypt are to be targeted on foreign tourist (Hazbun, 1997). Tourist has always been the main targets of Egypt terrorist attacks, from the beginning of this revolution in 1992 till 2009 all attacks where involved in tourist locations, such as in Luxor, Egyptian museum, Khan Al-Khalili souk in old Cairo and many other locations, in addition to the attacks it was the first foreign woman to be killed in a terrorist attack in 1992 (AL Jazeera English, 2008). Terrorists are attacking tourist destination because they know that tourism is Egypt main income to the country and they are attacking many foreigners and this will provide them with high media coverage. Kucukaltan (2006) identifies the main reasons why terrorist attacks tourism and these reasons are: Because attacks on tourism have immediate repercussions in the world public opinion. It damages the image of the country. It damages the economy of the country by destroying their tourism image. It creates an international diplomatic-crisis environment between the country and the country of the target of the victim. Therefore it is understandable from the above evidence and the reasons for these terrorist attacks to be held; it is also clear that the main targets for terrorist in Egypt are the foreign tourists. This has a huge impact on tourism as tourist has become common targets of these terrorist attacks, all these attacks has an affect on the tourist decision making, as tourist have fear and insecurity to travel to a country with a previous terrorist attacks, and this will create a barrier to the travellers and as a result a limitation to the growth of tourism will occur (Cooper et al., 2008). The impact of terrorist attacks: The main and most negatively affected from these attacks is the GPD of the country; the country will lose a lot of its income because of these terrorist attacks (Frey, 2004). Moreover, the second most important is that the country loses its sense of safety and security which will make tourists and the locals feel unsafe staying or living in that area (Fyall Garrod, 2005). Terrorism has a significant affect on tourism, for example: it can influence people of the advantages of living in the country side than in the city, because high population cities make them a target for terrorists. The transportation costs will increase; it also has a huge affect on the country revenue, especially if tourisms is one of the main revenue of the country GPD (Frey, 2004). On the other hand the Tourism marketing is the managerial process of anticipating and satisfying existing and potential visitors wants, it also means securing environmental and social needs as well as core consumer satisfaction (Fyall Garrod 2005, p.42). Therefore it is important that the destination has a good marketing image, and terrorism has a large negative impact on the destination image, for example one of these impacts of terrorism will be the Media whenever there is an event of a negative nature that is covered by the media it will have a huge impact on tourist demand, and this will help to destroy the destination image (Fyall Garrod, 2005). The recovery period after the attack: Recovery is defined as:The act, process, duration or an instance of recovering (The free dictionary, 2010). However, to get a full recovery from a terrorist attack it is not enough to get back to where you began before the attack, it is important that they reach the level where they are suppose to reach if the attack didnt happen to the destination (Bonham, et al., 2006). For Egypt to achieve full recovery they must achieve it by increasing their tourist arrival number faster and not just to where they were before the attack but where they are suppose to be if the attack didnt happen (Bonham, et al., 2006). There has been different ways that the Egyptian Government and especially the tourism industry had been trying in order to recover after the terrorist attacks since 1992. firstly, after the first attack in 1992 the government allocated US $25m to promote tourism in Egypt, they started by doing a campaign to help recovering, in 1995 and 1996 Egypt tourism industry recovered very strongly, through their visitors arrivals, number of nights and visitors spent has increased remarkably. This was due to the campaign which helped in developing new businesses such as building new hotels and resorts in the Red Sea Cost and Sinai Cost (Dean, 2004). When any tourism industry is under a high pressure and trying to recover from negative shock, the tour operators and the destination start to reduce their prices to sell and make the destination more competitive and attract more visitors (Cooper et al., 2008). The airlines and hotels are the most to be affected by the attacks as they reduce their prices significantly and this is because they want to maintain their occupancy level (Cooper et al., 2008). And this what had had happened to Egypt Air after the attacks in 1997, as many tourists cancelled their flights, and the airlines lost around 85,000 passenger, and at the end of the year they have announced their loss by 240 million Egyptian Pounds, it was a bad year for the company as they also had to reduce 50% of their domestic flights prices (Dean, 2004). Additionally an experience from other tourist-reliant destination such as Turkey and Israel indicates that it is unpredictable to know the revival of tourism after such an attack on the destination (Gurtner, 2004). There are few points that could help in recovering fast after any terrorist attack, such as: Response requires ingenuity and resilient attitude from the local community. Recreating a positive image of the destination, by international marketing and public relation; The government should ensure safety and security for the locals and the tourists. And many other ways in recovering such crisis (Gurtner, 2004). Recovering is the most important aspect that the government should be concerned about after any attack or crisis the country might be facing. For Egypt it has been hard to attempt a good recovery, because whenever they recover from the attack they face another attack after a short time. And this makes it difficult for them to recover a full recovery, because they always have to start from the point they left it before the attack and start all over again. Tourism in Egypt can be unpredictable and it has been described as a snake and Ladder, the tourists are tempted up the Ladder by a wealth of sea resorts, natural desert beauty and multi-layers of Pharaonic, Coptic and Islamic cultures, then tourists are plunged into the Snake-pit by terrorism and regional insecurity (Aly Strazicich, n.d.). Decisions and analysis As it has been discussed previously in the literature review, that tourism in Egypt is a very important aspect to the countrys economy, because it represents around 26% of it GPD. Egypt is a very beautiful country; it has been a tourist destination since the presidential era of Anwar Al-Sadat, and it continued to be a famous tourist destination world wide. People go to Egypt to visit the Pyramids, the Egyptian Museum, Luxor and the coastal cities of Egypt, as they have beautiful beaches and wonderful weather all year round. On the other hand, terrorism in Egypt has a huge effect on tourist arrival number to the country. Terrorism had started in 1970s when first Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya group was formed, but it was more active in 1992 when they first started attacking tourist all around Egypt, especially in tourist destination and attractions such as in Kahan Al-Kalili Souq, Luxor and beach resorts. They have killed many of their foreigner tourists; they had killed the first British Woman in 1992, moreover in 1996 they killed around 18 Greek, along with 58 other tourist where killed a month latter and this was an extremely terrible shocking news when it has been announced all over the word by the media. From the writers point of view although of Egypts bad reputation and enormous terrorist attacks that they had especially targeting tourists, tourism in Egypt had never stopped although they had their bad phase when the tourist arrival enormously drooped, however people still visited Egypt because they know that its a beautiful country and these attacks do not represent the country as a whole, it just represented a group of political oriented people. People still visit the country and for some years it recovered from the affect of these attacks, but it has never recovered completely .Egypts tourism had its ups and downs and the country had tried and is still trying to recover from these attacks. They are working on keeping Egypt a famous and attractive tourist destination. From the writers point of view, tourism has been the terrorist groups main target, and they want to send their message to the world, as a result they have achieved it all the way through the media coverage that they get during every negative event. Media has a big influence on tourist decision making either negatively or positively. Moreover tourists are always looking for a holiday that will give them peace, secure and safety and Egypt doesnt provide that to its tourists. Safety and security is a very important aspects in any destination, tourist want to feel that they are in a secured and a safe country in order that they could relax and enjoy their holiday. For this reason, it is important that the government rebuilds the confidence in its target tourist market and provide them with a secure and a safe holiday that they are looking for. Terrorism war in Egypt started more than 12 years ago and it is still continuing and it will continue for more years to come if the Egyptian government doesnt do anything that will help to stop terrorism and find a solution that both parties (Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya group and the Egyptian government) will agree on. From the writers point of view, the Egyptian government doesnt seem doing or working very hard in order to fix the situation in the country, in addition, the government should react fast to such situations, because terrorism never stops, it grows and spread very fast every day especially in a country like Egypt. When these terrorist groups will notice that there is no reaction from the government and as a result more attacks will be made by the groups and damage will be done to the country. The Egyptian government should initially consider the economy of the country and how its affecting the GPD of the country, followed by the countrys citizens who are also negatively affected from these terrorist attacks mainly that most businesses are locally owned and these businesses lose after any attack, especially if it is a tourism base business such as: the Airlines, hotels and souvenirs shops. Moreover terrorism destroys the feel of security of the locals in their own country. The government should fight for the security of the citizens and provide them with their rights. The Egyptian government should look after their citizens because they are also affected from these attacks. They should be more responsible to the people and provide a safe and more secured country to them. To demonstrate how important and affected the tourism industry could be by terrorism the following charts explains it all. Figure 1.0 (Andersen, 2000). To begin with, the first chart shows how tourist arrivals have increased from 1993 till the end of 1997 when then again enormously dropped in 1998 because of Luxor attack in 1997. This shows how tourism is significantly affected by any terrorism attack, and how it is important that the government should try to stop these attacks because it is affecting the countrys economic. Figure 2.0 (Andersen, 2000). Furthermore the second graph show how unpredictable tourism is in Egypt and any attack could affect the occupancy of the hotels. There are some years such as in 1997 and 1999, tourism is very high and active and in the next year it falls enormously and this is all because of terrorist attacks. In fact these attacks could be affecting the country on monthly bases rather than yearly. Conclusion and Recommendations: To conclude, this study has discussed the impact of terrorism on tourism in the case study of Egypt. Egypt is one of the famous tourist destinations in the world; it attracts millions of tourists every year to the country. Egypt GPD is dependent on tourism as an income, it represents around 26% of the country GPD therefore it is important for the government to make their country a safe and a secure destination for the locals and the tourists, but terrorism is one of the factors that is destroying tourism in the country. Terrorism in Egypt has a long history, it started in the late 1970s and stopped for a while and back once more very strongly in 1992, while this time they have been attacking tourists and getting media attention world widely. Egypt main terrorist group is called Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya; they are a group of Muslim, who wants the government to make the Sharia Law the main government law. So these terrorist are fighting politics. And their main targets are always set on to tourists, especially foreigner tourists, although many of their attacks have killed local Egyptian people. However they always tend to attack tourist destination and attraction in Egypt, such as the Luxor and Khan Al-Kalili Cairos old Souk and many other places. Terrorist always intend to get media coverage and this makes them on the spotlight in any event world widely, and this is what they want to. Terrorist have different kind of attacks that they perform, such as: Hijacking, Kidnapping, and Suicide bombing and several other performances. Egypt has been attacked by terrorist for many years, and every time they try to recover from the attack they get attacked again, and they always have to start from the beginning to recover the consequences of the attack. In this study the writer had suggested sever ways that the government could try to end these attack in the country, such as negotiating, build a relationship with the terrorist group in order to understand them, prevent tourist travelling in a very big groups and turning away the media attention from them, these are however only few from many other recommendations that the government could do to prevent terrorism in the country. Because of time, the writer has not done a primary research in this study, the writer only used secondary research, and therefore more research is needed to be done to examine other factors that are responsible of these attacks, such as: How do the locals feel about these attacks? How has it affected them? and in which ways?, and the second point will be from the tourist point of view, how will they feel if they where in Egypt in a specific attack?, and will they come back to Egypt after they have seen or listened about a terrorist attack that happened in Egypt even though they have planned to go before the attack happen?, why will terrorism affect their decision making process, how is media important and how does it affect the countries reputation, so many things that could be discussed further more in the study. There are several ways that the Egyptian government could fight against terrorism in the country; here are some of the recommendations or the ways that would be effective in fighting against terrorism: Egypt tourism authority should take more responsibility of these attacks and also try to explain to the tour operators that they should prevent group tours and gathering, because terrorist always targets big groups, because their aim is to kill as much as they can in every attack they do. They also should try to prevent the media attention that these attacks get from the international media, because these media coverages has a big affect on tourist decision making when they want to travel, and tourist always intend to go away from a country that has political violence, and they always look for alternatives for that specific country. In addition there are several countries that could be replaced to Egypt such as: Cyprus, Greece and Turkey. Egypt government should put together with the tourism authority a new marketing campaign to the destination; they should build a new target market to the destination, and develop new projects. The government should build an international relation with the countries that they lost because of terrorism and try to compose a stronger relationship. Because these terrorist attacks does not represent the country, but it represent a group of people only, the people who are against the government and their laws. These are only few recommendations that the government could carry out to prevent or to decrease these terrorist attacks in the destination.