Whole Body Scanner Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Whole Body Scanner - Term Paper Example This paper looks to discuss these new machines and their impact and repercussions. Whole Body Scanner Airplane passenger screening had not changed for a long time but the events that occurred on 11th of September 2001 caused a drastic change in the airplane security planning. In the past screening were more focused on passengers entering the lounges and so on with detectors specified to detect metallic objects and x-ray machines used to scan the items for carry-on purposes (Elias, 2010). After the terrorist attacks taking place from time to time and after the recent attack in the Russian airport there has been a growing need to improve security. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) under the U.S Department of Homeland Security has had to face a number of barriers in order to make their screening process more effective. Airport traffic has been on the increase for a long time and screening processes make it cumbersome for the passengers. There also needs to be a balance be tween the needs of the passengers and the security. Scares continue to take place even now as with the happening on 25th December 2009 when a Nigerian man attempted to ignite an explosive device while on board a plane heading to Detroit (O’Connor & Schmitt, 2009). Airports across the world are looking towards new technology to help security staff catch suspicious people and detect object deemed illegal on flights now. The problems that arise out of these technological advancements in airports are many such as privacy concerns, health concerns and subjection of minors to the scanning. On the other hand such technology can prove helpful in foiling terrorist plans, so there needs to be a weighing of the harms and benefits. Imaging technology has been bought and installed in the various airports all across the United States. According to the TSA there are two types of imaging technology that is being used, the millimeter wave and the backscatter x-ray. As of now, according to the TSA, there are 486 of these imaging devices that are being used across 78 airports in the United States (Transportation Security Administration). The millimeter wave scanner is used to scan the whole body and is used in the detection of objects that may be concealed in or under a person’s clothing. The millimeter scanner is cylindrical in shape with panels which contain scanners in them that rotate around the individual and produces an image of the individual. The scanner emits radio waves that pass through an individuals clothing’s and then returns an image of what is beneath the clothes. The scanner comes back with a picture of the human body which is generally what the security personnel hope to see, however, if other items are seem on the scanner then this may well be a reason for unease. The scanner does not take up too much time to do its job. The millimeter scanner produces a 3D image of the person being scanned that can be rotated and zoomed if the need be. Th e other scanner in use is the backscatter scanner which is what passengers in the United States will see more often. This scanner consists of two boxes opposite to each other with enough space for a person to stand in between them. These boxes take x-rays of the person in a time of about twenty seconds. The electromagnetic waves that are being emitted by the boxes are absorbed by the body but if there are any foreign bodies present on the person then these will show on the scans. There are some concerns that the waves being emitted are a form of radiation and may be dangerous for a person. This scanner takes a 2D image of the scanned person (Cynthia, 2010). The use of

Italian Mafia v.s. Russian Mafia in the United States Research Paper

Italian Mafia v.s. Russian Mafia in the United States - Research Paper Example They are known to exist in Europe, Asia and America. Most of these mafias have targeted America. They may have considered the country as a strategic location to extend their operation. Italian, Russian and Asian mafias are considered present in the United States. The Italian and Russian mafias are the ones to have developed a strong alliance with its American members. They have successfully penetrated almost all part of U.S. territory. According to Frank Shanty (2008), the Italian mafias became known to U.S. in 1880. During that period, over five million Italians migrated to the country (Woetzel, 2004). There were various reasons for the immigration. Some were brought to America for their talent. Others were political refugees and escapee from legal issues (Woetzel, 2004). As a consequence, one could find many Italian Americans roaming around the cities (Shanty, 2008). These people of dual citizenship have formed gangs which alarmed the American society. A gang was perceived as a criminal organization. It can be inferred then that the Italians were the pioneer of gangs in America. In 1900, an issue came out that â€Å"a monolithic and corporate-like crime† group was preying on America (Shanty, 2008). This organization was allegedly composed of Italian American members. Nonetheless, investigators have not found any group of such kind. The controversy was then labeled as a misconception. The idea was just bro ught up due to anti-immigrant sentiment and sensation journalism (Shanty, 2008). In the following years, the thinking developed further. Crime fighters have theorized that Italy was behind the organized criminal organization. They specifically described it as an Italian conspiracy (Shanty, 2008). Several articles then were released digging up the history of Italians. An Italian man named Lucky Luciano even came up and made a revelation. He stated that in 1931, an association of younger Italians had murdered almost one hundred Mafioso leaders across the

Arrticle #2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Arrticle #2 - Essay Example that disparities in hiring can be addressed through collaborative efforts between college graduates and employers on matters of knowledge, skills, and qualification. The concerns highlighted by Goldfarb are relevant to any given individual seeking employment after graduating from college. Meeting employment requirements is a significant challenge for new labor market entrants. Most employers build qualification on the number of years of experience, thereby disregarding new graduates on the basis that they need more experience to secure an employment position. Experience comes after working and applying one’s knowledge and skills. Without experience, then new college graduates are likely to remain unemployed. Personally, graduate training could address this hiring paradox. The article, Benefits of College Degree in Recession Are Outlined, by Pà ©rez-Peà ±a (2013) presents a recession scenario that seemed to favor people with college degrees. The hardships associated with the 2007-2009 recession were less felt by people with college degrees compared to people with high school diploma and associate’s degrees. Holders of college degrees observed a slight change in their percentage wage drop, while holders of high school diploma and associate’s degrees saw their wages drop by at least double the college graduates’ percentage. The recession was a good measure of the positions held by various education levels in the labor market. On the same note, the recession tested job security concerns that holders of certificates, diploma, and degrees have in relation to their respective level of education. Personally, the recession outlined that advanced education level are better and relatively stable in time of economic hardships. The labor market is increasingly shifting its demand towards advanced knowledge, skills, experience, and individual competitiveness. The article, The Go-Nowhere Generation, by Buchholz and Victoria (2012) is an account of a growing behavior

Cybercrimes Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cybercrimes - Research Paper Example 9). Balkin and Information Society Project (2007) in their book wrote that â€Å"cyber crime has the basic characteristics of traditional crime, but it is not territorially based† (p. 218). Unlike crime, cyber crime can easily transcend to national boundaries. The laws governing cyber crimes in several countries are unenforceable due to the lack of a means of protection that businesses and governments are able to rely on, in place they have relied on technical measures to protect themselves from those criminals who would deny access of specific information, steal or even destroy information that is valuable. Cyber crimes come in three categories: cyber crimes against a person, property or a government. Cyber crimes committed against a person include crimes like harassing an individual via email, posting, distributing or disseminating materials such as pornography, and having indecent exposure. This type of crime possesses a serious threat to the younger generation and may cause scars that are irreparable to the young if it is not prevented. While crimes such as vandalism of computers and transmission of programs that are harmful like viruses, fall under cyber crimes against property. Cyber crimes against properties often take place in organizations. For instance, an engineering company may decide to steal another company’s database by using a spy. The other is the cyber crimes against governments come about when an individual or even a group for people threatens international government by terrorist its citizens. An example of his type of crime is when an individual cracks a webs ite containing important government information. Cracking is also a cyber crime that has become common; it gives a person a dreadful feeling knowing that someone broke into your computer without the owner’s knowledge. People and the government must understand cyber

Charles Manson Essay Example for Free

Charles Manson Essay Charles Manson was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to 16-year-old Kathleen Maddox. Kathleen had run away from home at the age of 15 and spent the next few decades drinking too much, with periods of time spent in jail. Since his mother couldnt take care of him, Charles spent his youth at the homes of various relatives and often at special reform schools and boys homes. By age nine, Charles Manson had already started stealing and soon added burglary and stealing cars to his repertoire. In 1954, at age nineteen, he was released on parole after an unusual bout of good behavior. The next year, he married Rosalie Willis, a waitress, and they had a son together, Charles Manson Jr. (born March 1956). Even while married, Manson had continued making extra money by stealing cars. In April 1956, he was again sent to prison. After Manson had been in prison for a year, his wife found someone new and divorced Manson in June 1957. In 1958, Manson was released from prison. This time he headed to San Francisco where, with a guitar and drugs, he began to get a following. In 1968, he and several followers drove to Southern California. Manson was still hoping for a music career. Through an acquaintance, Manson met and hung out with Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys. The Beach Boys did record one of Mansons songs, which appeared as Never Learn Not to Love on the B-side of their 20/20 album. During this time, Charles Manson and some of his followers moved into the Spahn Ranch. Located northwest of San Fernando Valley the Spahn Ranch had been a popular location to film westerns in the 1940s and 1950s. Once Manson and his followers moved in, it became a cult compound for the Family. Charles Manson was good at manipulating people. He took pieces from various religions to form his own philosophy. When the Beatles released their White Album in 1968, Manson believed their song Helter Skelter predicted an upcoming race war. Helter skelter, Manson believed, was going to occur in the summer of 1969 when blacks were going to rise up and slaughter all the white people. He told his followers that they would be saved because they would go underground, literally, by traveling to an underground city of gold located in Death Valley. However, when the Armageddon that Manson had predicted did not occur, he said he and his followers must show the blacks how to do it. Manson told four of his followers to go to 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles and kill the people inside. This house once belonged to Terry Melcher, the man who had not helped Manson with his music career. However, Melcher no longer lived there; actress Sharon Tate and her husband, director Roman Polanski, had rented the house. On August 9, 1969, four of Mansons followers brutally murdered Tate, her unborn baby, and four others who were visiting her (Polanski was in Europe for work). The following night, Mansons followers brutally killed Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in their home. Manson was reprieved from the death penalty in 1972 when the California Supreme Court outlawed the death penalty. Charles Manson now serves a lifetime sentence and periodically comes up for parole. Though hes been in prison for over three decades, Charles Manson has received more mail than any other prisoner in the U. S. Charles Manson is currently being held in Californias Corcoran Prison. The who and the why In 1994, Oliver Stone directed a film, using a Quentin Tarantino-written script about a pair of serial killers, (partially using the â€Å"Bonnie and Clyde† theme) entitled â€Å"Natural Born Killers. This film portrayed the main two characters who, at the point between innocent teen-ager and experienced adult, defy society, and get lost in their own little world, killing, and robbing whoever they come across. Although still on Earth, they live by their own morals, beliefs, and at the end of the film, expose the media and the law for its flaws. The truth to this movie is that it was not made to reproduce the Bonnie and Clyde theme, but it was almost an exact parallel to one man, with similar experiences in the late nineteen-sixties; Charles Manson. Oliver Stone stated later, in an interview related to the movie â€Å"The idea was that he could become more like Charles Manson. † (Describing an interview with Mickey Knox, the serial killer in Natural Born Killers. ) The parallels from the film to the most stunning murders in the sixties can be seen from the similarities in the interviews between Manson and Knox, to the setting and time period. The point being that the movie was later considered one of the most daring movies of all time, thus just scraping the surface of the severity of the story behind Charles Manson and his so-called â€Å"family. Charles Manson was born near 1935 to an unknown father and a prostitute. Not much is known about his past, just abstract things. Manson went to a foster home at age three, and his mother later was arrested for robbery. From then to the age of eighteen and past, he was moved around from foster home to foster home, juvenile prison to juvenile prison. His prison record included two counts of forgery, two counts of mail theft, check forgery, probation violation, pimping and GTA. It was around this time in his life that he met the early members in his family. Patricia Krenwinkle was an average girl growing up in the suburbs. She got average grades, and sang in her school’s glee club. She had one sister, a mother, and their father was an insurance agent. At age eighteen, she was a secretary, and had just joined the hippie movement. She met Charles Manson at a party at the house of her sister’s friend. He was playing an original, yet sad song on his guitar. She was drawn to him by his karma, mood, and attitude, which led to their sleeping together that same night. He enticed her, by words of love and happiness, to an extent that she was happy whenever he was around, and never wanted to leave him. Two days after meeting him, they, with others, left for San Francisco. Leslie Van Houten had a similar upbringing. She was a suburbanite who sang in a church choir, and was later the homecoming princess at her high school. Other than the fact that her father left the family when she was young, she had an uneventful early life. At her late teenage years, she wanted more than normal girls had at that time. She heard about Manson, how he had the answers, and how closely he portrayed Christ. She too met with him and with the happiness that he appeared to bring with him. With Manson she later explained her actions â€Å"I followed him because I anticipated a positive change. † Others like Krenwinkle and Van Houten had gotten word of Manson’s unearthly beliefs and prophecies. Charles â€Å"Tex† Watson, once an All-American high school athlete, later became Manson’s biggest believer. Lynette â€Å"Squeaky† Fromme, whose father was an Aeronautical Engineer, was also a follower, and later was the acting head of the family when Manson was not around. These people, and dozens others followed Manson out West, first to San Francisco, and then further South, winding up at a place called Spahn Ranch. Charles Manson would later have a â€Å"family† of these followers, who literally did whatever he asked. They found happiness in his and each other’s presence. It was mainly a piece of the hippie movement; a way to stray from the norm and live opposite of what one was raised to learn. The structure was simple; he was the leader, the Christ, the martyr of the group, and they listened and did what he said. This type of control, however innocent the motives, could be considered a cult, and was later labeled as such. Yet, the main principals behind their family was, and only was, Manson’s will. The Mind and Motives of Charles Manson, and society’s counteractions are best described when his beliefs, his actions to support and uphold these beliefs, and society’s laws to stop him are taken into account. Image, perception, beliefs Manson has been proclaimed by many to be insane. The question of whether or not he is insane is a question of opinion, which cannot have a â€Å"true† right answer. However, his beliefs, which fueled his and his family’s actions between 1968 and 1975 conflicted with society’s morals, around which this country revolves. The severity of Manson and his family’s doings are reasoned behind his beliefs toward himself, his family, nature, other people, and the law. Charles Manson, on many occasions, has compared himself to Jesus Christ. He believed that he was Christ, and the world had made him suffer just as Christ did two thousand years ago. He also had his family believing that he was Christ. He said in an interview, when asked how he got his followers to believe that he was Jesus, â€Å"I was just being myself†¦ all men is Jesus Christ. † He also believed that he was Satan, to come to Earth and start Helter-Skelter, what he called a prophetical Armageddon. His family, he believed, had two main spiritual duties to learn to be him and to act like him, and to also learn and believe in what he did. He and the family lived with each other, living off, what he would consider love, for each other, and the earth. He told them that the happiness is in love. He believed that they should, when necessary, die for him, and not feel remorse. He preached to them that death was not bad, just another high. The family eventually adopted these beliefs, thus putting them at his complete control. Nature, according to Manson, was one of the most precious things in life. He subscribed to the belief that ATWA (Air, Trees, Water, Animals) kept humans alive, and we should treat ATWA with equal respect. He once metaphored that ATWA was a ship, and the humans wastes to the earth, pollution, and forest destruction was like a hole in the bottom of the boat. He, when living and Spahn Ranch, would tell his family to let the scorpions crawl over them, as they were animals, not meant to endanger the family. Helter Skelter Helter Skelter, revenge were part of his beliefs. Humans had corrupted the Earth and ATWA, and had been ignorant about it. Manson had felt that society dumped him and he felt great rage for society, and people, and later found an anthem for his rage. When asked about his actions, many years after the murders, he had said that he is a part of everyone, that he mirrors people, because they shaped him. The Beatles’ â€Å"White Album† included songs (Helter Skelter, Revolution #9, Piggies, and others) that Manson felt documented his rage toward society. When at the ranch, he and the family listened to these songs many times over. Manson thought he had heard his name being said in one of the songs. Their thoughts about Helter Skelter, or the Armageddon, were brought out by these songs. In Revolution #9, he heard machine gun fire, the oinking of pigs, and a man saying, â€Å"rise. † His beliefs would later incite Helter Skelter, using his family as a type of â€Å"army. † Some people believe that he just brutalized people, that the murders were for no cause, and he was just insane. Yet, more than twenty-five years after he and his family were convicted, he still has the same beliefs and still can logically explain his actions. August 9, 1969 and August 10, 1969. These two days carry a dark shadow over them. Two of the first ritual cult-style mass murders in U. S. history. The first of the two changed the mood of the entire population of L. A. for almost a year. These murders were the coming of Manson’s Helter Skelter, the Armageddon of the Earth. Spahn Ranch is a small, run down ranch near L. A. It was owned by George Spahn, who was then a decrepit, eighty-year-old wrangler, whose kids had gone away and whose wife had died. He was depressed near death when a group of hippies came to his door. They agreed to take care of him, and the ranch in exchange for living space. He agreed. The group, otherwise known as Manson’s family, had Squeaky take the most care of George, which included cleaning, cooking, making love to him, and other various tasks. The family, which consisted of twenty-six people, began its cultish life in the desert. â€Å"We played a lot of music, we did a lot of drugs, we loved, we were happy† relies Manson when later asked about life at the ranch. The family did these things, and more. They lost their humanity at the ranch. Life was lived â€Å"now† for â€Å"today. † Manson told them to always â€Å"live today. † The family members never talked about the past, never thought about the past or the future. The initiation of female family members was just that they joined. Male members would pick any woman they wanted and made love to them. Manson’s thoughts on this was that that’s what women are for, to bait the men. The women were not allowed to deny who picked them. They had no watches, to forget time, and society. Manson would walk up to members daily, and have them mirror his actions, to try to be exactly like him. They took hundreds of acid trips, they did marijuana, and during the acid trips, he would have them reenact the crucifixion. During these times he would ask them if they would die for him, if they would â€Å"be him. The members had started to live Manson’s reality. Manson would hear about the discrimination against the blacks in the South, and this was partially where he based his proof that Helter Skelter was near. The members started getting more guns, knives, and other weapons. They had lookouts at the ranch. They also robbed places to get money. Leslie Van Houten even robbed her father to get money for the cause. The crimes By August 8 1969, Manson had already killed a few people for various reasons. These drug dealers, and bums that he did kill are civil compared to the two ritualistic murders, done for Helter Skelter. Manson once tried to get a record contract from a producer, living at 10050 Cielo Dr. In Bel-Air, which later failed. Manson, who had been telling the family for months that they needed to start Helter Skelter themselves, needed money to bail out a member from jail. Near midnight, on August 8, he called a meeting about this. He sent Pat Krenwinkle, Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Tex Watson to 10050 Cielo Dr. to get money. He had told the women to do whatever Tex told them and was remembered saying â€Å"I don’t care how you do it, but do it and get it done now! That night, just after midnight, August 9, they pulled up to the driveway. Tex cut the telephone wires, and bypassing the electric gate, the women scaled a fence and climbed up a hill to the yard. This house was no longer occupied by the record producer of Manson’s acquaintance, but instead a beautiful new actress named Sharon Tate. Her lover and soon-to-be husband Roman Polanski, who was a movie director, wa s in London at the time. She was pregnant with their eight-month-old baby. She, Jay Sebring, Voytek Frykowski, and Abigail Folger were at the house for the night. Sebring was a worldwide known hairdresser, owning Sebring International. Folger was the heiress to the Folger coffee fortune. Frykowski was an actor, her lover. Back behind the house in a small shack was William Garretson, who was a caretaker of the house, who would later be an important witness. At the time when the women jumped the fence and were waiting for Tex, they heard four gunshots. He has seen Steven parent driving up to the residence. He was an acquaintance of Garrtetson, coming to visit. He was killed instantly, four shots at point-blank range. Tex then caught up with the women, and walked to the front door. It was locked, so he went through an open window next to the door, leading the women in first. They got the four people into the living room, together. Sebring, who tried to protect Sharon, was bludgeoned in the head once, then shot and stabbed by Tex. The other three people were panicked at this time. Frykowski tried to run out the back door, but was caught up to by Tex. He was clubbed in the head several times, shot, and stabbed. It was later counted that he was stabbed fifty-one times. Before his death, Abigail Folger had been tied up, and now was starting to get free. She ran out the back, pursued by Krenwinkle. She was ran down, and stabbed to death. Krenwinkle later recalled her saying â€Å"I’m already dead†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Later found to have been stabbed twenty-eight times. ) Finally, Sharon Tate, the only one left, was begging for the life of her baby to Tex, who replied, â€Å"Look, I have no mercy for you. † He then stabbed her to death. After these five brutal murders, the killers would up taking only seventy dollars before leaving. When returning to the ranch, Manson was remembered saying only two things, â€Å"Do you have any remorse? and â€Å"Don’t tell anyone. † â€Å"Sharon Tate, four others slain in ritualistic murders. † These were the headlines the following day in the Los Angeles Times. Even the New York Times, which never printed murder cases on the cover page, printed the Tate murders on the cover for almost a week. The night of August 9, 1969, Lenio Labianca and his wife, Rosemary, were driving back from a vacation at Lake Isabella. It was about 3:00 AM, August 10 when they finally arrived back at their house. Manson had picked Krenwinkle, Van Houten, and Tex to go to their house. Manson still needed money, and he said that he went to a party at the neighboring house once before. He had asked Van Houten, â€Å"Can you be me, do you believe enough in me to do this? † This time, Manson came with them in a separate car. They arrived, and walked through the front door. Tex tied up Leno, who was reading the paper in the living room. At this time, Manson had left, leaving no evidence of his presence. The two girls took Rosemary into the bedroom. Manson had told Tex â€Å"Don’t scare them like last time, just kill them. † Leno was stabbed to death while Rosemary was forced to listen. Tex then came in, stabbed her to death. He then handed a knife to Van Houten, who then stabbed Rosemary in the back fifteen times. Pat then went out to the dead body of Leno. She took a fork, and stabbed him on the stomach multiple times, and finally left the fork in him. No money was taken. During the first set of murders, they had written â€Å"Piggies† and â€Å"Helter Skelter† in Tate’s blood on the door. In the second set, they wrote with Leno’s blood â€Å"Rise. † â€Å"Death Pigs,† and â€Å"Helter Skelter† on the walls before they left. These cultish writings were the only things that the police could find in common to the two murders. By 1970, Manson and his followers had killed more people than the victims in the Tate-Labianca murders, but the severity of the two back-to-back slaughters shocked the nation. Nobody had seen killings like these. Unprovoked, unnecessary, and inhuman. Four months after the two murdering, police finally caught up with and arrested Manson and his followers for the murders. The cultish actions and Manson’s control over the family, however, didn’t stop when they were all in custody of the law. It had taken years after the trials for the family to break Manson’s will over them.

Examining Related-Party Transactions And Corporate Fraud

Examining Related-Party Transactions And Corporate Fraud Related parties represent a link where one party can exercise control (direct or indirect) or significant influence over the operating policies of the other party. According to FRS 8 and IAS 24, a related party includes an entitys subsidiaries, associates, joint venture interests, directors and family members of  directors. Related-party transactions are legitimate activities and serve practical purposes such as: They are recognised in corporate and taxation laws. They have their own standards for accounting treatment. Systems of checks and balances have been built around them to make sure they are conducted within these boundaries. The following parties are not considered as related parties in IAS 24: Parties which have normal dealing with an entity. Examples include providers of finance, trade unions, government agencies and public utilities. Parties such as customers, suppliers, distributors and franchisors on which the entity is economically dependent. Two venturers sharing joint control over a joint venture. Two entities having a common directors or other member of key management personnel are not considered as related parties. Related Party Transactions Related party transactions (RPTs) are defined in IAS 24 as any transactions made between the related parties irrespective of whether a price is charged or not. The transactions include transfer of resources, services or obligations. In other words, RPTs are transactions between a company and its management, board members, principal owners, or members of the immediate families of any of these groups. Examples of RPTs under IASB include rendering or receiving of services, purchase or sales of goods, leases, provisions of guarantees or collateral, purchase or sale of property and other assets, among others. Moreover, FASB (1982) states that RPTs include transactions between a company and its affiliates. Affiliates refer to entities which control the company, they are controlled by the company or they are controlled by another entity which also controls the company. Examples of RPTs under FASB include services received or furnished, borrowings and lendings, guarantees among others. Scenarios under related party transactions When an individual purchases a stock, bond, note or mutual fund from a family member or related party entity, he becomes entitled to the related party rules and under these rules, the individuals cost basis will actually depend on whether he ends up selling it at a gain or a loss. For example, the individuals sister owned stock of XYZ Corp which she bought for $20,000.   It had declined in value to $10,000 when he bought it from her.  Ã‚   Therefore, she is  not allowed to claim a  capital loss when she sells it to him because he is a related party. Gain scenario: If later the individual sells the stock to a  third, unrelated party  for $22,000, he will experience a true gain of $12,000 on his own acquisition cost of $10,000. However, he only have to declare  a capital gain of $2,000 for  income tax purposes because  he is allowed to use a carryover basis from his sister, since she was not able to claim the previous  disallowed loss.  Ã‚   Loss scenario: If the individual sells it later to a  third, unrelated party  for $8,000, he will have a true loss of $2,000 on his own acquisition cost of $10,000,  and he can only declare  a capital  loss of $2,000 for  income tax purposes.   However, he is not allowed to use a carryover basis from his sister, even though she was not able to claim the previous  disallowed loss. The tax savings from the previous disallowed capital loss are wasted and no one claimed them. Disclosure The objective of IAS 24 is to ensure that an entitys financial statements contain the disclosures necessary to draw attention to the possibility that its financial position and profit or loss may have been affected by the existence of related parties and by transactions and outstanding balances with such parties. The IAS 28 requires the following to be disclosed: Relationship between parents and subsidiaries: The entity should disclose the name of its parent company or of its ultimate controlling party irrespective of whether there have been any transactions occurred between them. In the case where neither the parent company nor the ultimate controlling company produces financial statement for public use, then the next most senior parent that does so must also be disclosed. Management Compensation: The compensation of the key management personnel must be disclosed in total and for each of the following categories: Short-term employment benefits Post-employment benefits Other longer benefits Termination benefits, and Equity Compensation benefits. Related Party Transaction: If transactions have been made between the related party, then for each categories of the related party, the following should be disclosed separately: The amount of the transactions The amount of the outstanding balances including terms and conditions and guarantees Provisions for doubtful debts related to the amount of outstanding balances Expenses recognised during the period in respect of bad or doubtful debts due from related parties. Types of RPT that lead to corporate frauds Many high profile companies have made an abuse use of related party transactions to succeed in involving in fraudulent activities. These include companies such as Enron, Adelphia, Tyco and others. Sales to ( or purchases from) related parties of goods and services According to Pesaru (2002), a related-party sales transaction represents the link between the company and the customer. In this particular transaction, it is usually difficult to identify the related parties. Thus, companies use this technique for boosting revenue. As such, the undisclosed related-party transactions may be used to fraudulently inflate earnings. Companies use accounting trick to mislead the users of financial statements. Presenting a series of sales, which are executed with an undisclosed related-party and which are insignificant is an example of accounting trick used by companies. Moreover, sales made to related party transactions can also lead to corporate frauds if the sales transactions are categorized under fictitious sales. Fictitious sales include round-trip sales. SEC 2003 defines round trip sales as simultaneous pre-arranged sales transactions often of the same product in order to create a false impression of justifying those fictitious sales transactions of falling under the normal ordinary course of the business. This type of transactions inflates sales figures and thus leads to overstatement of revenues. On the other hand, the purchase of goods or services from related parties is another type of RPT. This type of RPT may lead to fraud when the purchases are not disclosed or when they are considered as unauthorised transactions. Companies create fictitious purchases of services from related party to conceal a misappropriation. For instance, in the Tyco case, it was found that the company failed to disclose a finders fee paid to an outside director in connection with an acquisition. Besides, one of the principal owners of PNF Industries, Inc. created fictitious records to conceal a misappropriation by claiming that he was owed consultation fees. Since the payments were considered as unauthorised, he falsified a minutes of a directors meeting to authorize the fees. Non-reported purchases from a related party understate expenses and the effect of the understated figure of expenses is reflected in an overstated sales figure. On the contrary, non-reported revenues and fictitious purchases lead to understatement of income. This whole scenario is summarised in the following diagram. First scenario: Effect: FICTITIOUS SALES OVERSTATEMENT OF REVENUES SMOOTHING INCOME NON-REPORTED PURCHASES Second scenario: NON-REPORTED REVENUE FICTITIOUS PURCHASES UNDERSTATEMENT OF INCOME Genuine sales can be made to the related party in such a way that this transaction transfer wealth to the related party. This can be done if genuine sales are made below its market price to the related party. Another way of transferring wealth to the related party would be unnecessary purchases of goods and services or even purchases above its market price by the company. The other side of the coin will be transferring wealth from the related parties to the company. This is possible when actual sales are transacted to related party at above market prices or when purchases are made below market prices from the related party. The situation of genuine sales being transacted in a manipulating way can have two impacts: Firstly, if the company is already facing a crisis in terms of low profits for instance, then the latter can opt for transferring wealth from the related party to itself. And, if the company is transferring its wealth to the related party, this will lead to misappropriation of companys assets. Both of these impacts will lead to fraudulent financial reporting. To better understand the picture, a diagram is illustrated below: Scenario of sales: GENUINE SALES Made to related parties under market prices Made to the company over market prices LEADS TO TRANSFER OF WEALTH To the company To related parties Scenario of Purchases: PURHASES MADE TO Related parties over market prices The company from related parties under market prices LEADS TO TRANSFER OF WEALTH To the company An example of a company which uses this to involve in fraudulent activity is Livent Inc., Humatech Inc. and Enron. Livent Inc has mischaracterised certain receipts as revenue. In fact, the receipts were actually borrowings since there were side agreements obligating the company to repay the funds. The counterparty companies were related parties since the top executive of Livent Inc were a member of their boards. In the case of Humatech Inc, the CEO and the CFO secretly controlled the improper recognition of revenue which was actually sale to a foreign distributor. Indeed, the foreign distributor was a related party but however no disclosure has been made of the transactions. Furthermore, Enron has made a payment to one of its employees of around $ 10 million and the CFO took it as a SPE. The employee then via a payment to the CFOs family members, share a portion of its fees to the CFO. Loans to and from the related parties The provision of loan to and from the related parties is another major type of RPT. Lack of transparency involved in recording the following transactions outlined below of a company leads to understatement of its liabilities: Non- recognition of borrowings by the company to the related parties Non-disclosure of obligations incurred for the related parties in terms of guarantee Disclosure of loan transactions to related parties If loans are given to the related parties by the entity are reported accordingly in the financial records of that firm, the issue that arises is in terms of the collateral which is used as a medium to get the finance. In fact, what usually happens is that in case of related party transactions companies tend to overstate the value of these collaterals. Manipulating interest rates Wealth are transferred to related party by either borrowing from a related party at above-market interest rates, or lending to a related party at below-market interest rates. If the related parties borrow from the company at an interest rate which is above the market interest rate, this leads to a transfer of wealth to the company. Similarly, if the company is financed out by the related parties at below-market rates or off-market, this would again leads to a transfer of wealth from the related parties to the company. According to Freidman et al. (2003), this kind of practice is referred to as propping. On the other hand, if the company lends the related parties at an interest rate which is lower or even off the market interest rate, this will lead to a transfer of wealth from the company to the related parties. The scenario of manipulating interest rate can be easily understood through the diagram below: Scenario: transfer of wealth to the company: COMPANY Borrows from the related parties at a lower market interest rate Lends to related parties at a higher market interest rate Leads to transfer of wealth to the company If borrowings from a related party are not recognised, this will result in an understatement of liabilities. Moreover, over-estimating the collectability of loans to a related party leads to an overvaluation of assets. These situations are known as loan related misstatements and this may eventually leads to frauds. Several companies adopted this technique when preparing their financial statements. For example, Adelphia understated its liabilities by $1.6 billion. It failed to report its obligation under the credit facility by claiming that its obligation was merely a guarantee which did not require disclosure. In addition to this, Adelphia has netted $ 1.351 billion related party receivables with against related party payables, which has enable them to hide $ 1.348 billion of related party payables. The netting has also allowed them to hide the amount of transactions between the Adelphia and the company owned by Rigas family which was Adelphias controlling shareholders and management team. Indeed, the SEC has stated that the Rigas family has illegally excluded over $2.3 billion in bank debt by deliberately shifting those liabilities onto the books of Adelphias off balance sheet, unconsolidated affiliates and created sham transactions backed by fictitious documents to give the false appearance that Adelphia had actually repaid debts when, in truth, it had simply shifted them to unconsolidated Rigas-controlled entities. Moreover, PrintontheNet.com did not disclose that it had guaranteed $7.3 million in related parties loans. In the case of Tyco, Mr Kozlowski, who was the former Chief Executive Officer of Tyco International borrowed $ 242 Million from a Tyco program, with the intension to facilitate the executives to pay taxes on restricted-stock grants. However, instead of utilising the funds for that purpose, he spent the finances on yachts, fine art, estate jewelry and luxury apartments. In the same way, Mr Swartz, Tycos former Chief Financial Officer took a lo an of $72 Million from program and made personal investment and business ventures with that money. In the Enron case, Mahonia, a special purpose entity (SPE) which was controlled by a financial institution was employed to make some of the Enrons transactions disguised a borrowing of $ 2.6 billion from the financial institution as forwards contract. Hence, as a result of the disguised loans, cash flowed from the financial institution to Mahonia and then from Mahonia to Enron. Investment in related parties It is crucial to disclose investments in related parties in order to prevent frauds from occurring. Managers tend to manipulate earnings via tunneling actions in order to maintain the companys stock performance. As a result, investment decisions would be expropriated if such decisions are determined based on the financial disclosure. If investment in the equity of a related party is not reported correctly, this will lead to an overstatement of assets and hence will mislead investors about insider activity. Several companies had inflated their assets with RPTs. For example, an investment of $2.5 million in a venture capital fund by Hollinger was not disclosed. Moreover, in the Enron case, using the special purpose entities (SPEs) the managers was able to hide unfavourable performance of their investment decisions. Tonka is another example of a company which involve in fraudulent activities. The CFO of the company secretly owned a company and he misappropriate assets of Tonka by making the corporate funds to be improperly been invested in his company. Hence, it can be seen that many companies has misused related party transaction to involve in fraudulent activities. However, the Sarbanes Oxley Act 2002 has prohibited only one type of related party transaction which was loans to related parties. Indeed, in a study by Henri et al. (2007) which examined 83 SEC enforcement actions involving in related party transaction and fraud, it was found that the most frequent type of related party transaction was loan to related party. RPT: A cause for concern Many accounting frauds such as Enron, Adelphia, Tyco, Refco, Hollinger, Rite Aid have occurred during the past years and have shown concern towards related party transactions. This is because in one way or the other, related party transactions were involved, creating concern among regulators and other market participants about the appropriate monitoring and auditing of these transactions. However it has been pointed out that research has provided a mixed picture of the role of related party transactions in fraudulent financial reporting. For example, research has shown that related party transaction disclosures are quite common (Gordon et al. 2004a; Wall Street Journal 2003). However, since fraudulent financial reporting is relatively uncommon (Lev 2003), and furthermore most frauds2 apparently do not involve related party transactions (Shapiro 1984; Bonner et al. 1988; SEC 2003), it is reasonable to assume that most disclosed related party transactions are not fraudulent. According to Gordon et al. (2004), RPTs play a fundamental role in a firms corporate governance environment. It is said that RPTs are an aspect of corporate governance because these transactions are complex issues between a company and its managers, directors, subsidiaries and major shareholders. RPT is considered as an issue to corporate governance because of the problems of asymmetric information between the firms manager and external capital markets. Additionally, RPTs result in higher agency costs. This is due to the alignment of decision-making and monitoring rights. Moreover, according to Johnstone and Bedard (2004), RPTs are difficult to audit and these transactions represent a potential audit risk. When examining the financial statements of companies, auditors do not have adequate information on related party. Is it fair to blame only bad corporate governance for corporate failures? Bad corporate governance is one of the reasons which account for the corporate failures. Corporate governance issues, like those with related party transactions, crop up because of the existence of asymmetric information between shareholders and the firms managers. Existing research has shown that certain board characteristics and CEO pay-performance sensitivity are useful governance mechanisms which help to improve managerial agency problems. For example, large board size, which is observable and disclosed in proxy statements, has been found to be negatively correlated with firm value and interpreted as indicative of weak corporate governance (Yermack, 1996). However, this does not conclude that corporate failures arise only because of bad corporate governance. There are multitude reasons behind the corporate scandal. For instance, it has been seen that a lack of regulations is one of the reasons. It is believed that the erosion of accounting practices begun in the 1980s as firms tried to balance strict standards with a desire to please clients and increase consulting business. Research has shown that a lack of government regulation was one of the major causes of the huge energy trading firm Enron. This firm reported profits of hundreds of millions of dollars ($979 million in 2000, alone) before collapsing in 2001. Other examples include poor management structures, lack of independence and objectivity by auditors as well as poor business ethics. Ethics can be defined as moral philosophy. It is basically the discipline concerned with what is morally good and bad, right and wrong. The term is also applied to any system or theory of moral values or principles (Ethics, Encyclopedia Britannica Online, 2000). However, when this term is applied in the business context, it is said to be the study and evaluation of decision making by businesses according to moral concepts and judgments (Business Ethics, The Columbia Encyclopedia, 2007). For instance, in the Enron case, the auditors applied reckless standards to do their audit because they were receiving significant consultation fees from the company.

Alexander The Great Essay -- essays research papers

Alexander the Great is said to be one of the greatest conquerors of all time, and yet, his significance in battle showed up late in his life. His early years were spent in poverty, and as the years progressed, his dream of being a war hero grew dimmer and dimmer.Ironically, while he was later known as a war hero, he was still feared by all because of his reputation as a drinker and murderer. But first, his background. He was born in 356 BC. His parents were Philip, the brother of King Perdiccas III of Macedon, in Northern Greece. His mother was Olympias, daughter of King Neoptolemus I of Epirus, in modern Albania. He also had a younger sister, Cleopatra (not the famous Egyptian queen).However, this family was not as ordinary as one might think. In fact, his parents absolutely hated each other. Philip had complied with Macedonian tradition and had a few wives. Soon, one of his wives had a baby which had mysteriously become disabled after birth. It was said that the disability was due to poisoning from Olympias. Olympias sometimes told Alexander that Philip wasn’t his real father, but this probably wasn’t true.After all, Philip certainly did seem to care for Alexander as if he was his real son. He even appointed Aristotle himself as Alexander’s first and only tutor. Yet, there were some things about Alexander that made Philip angry. He hated the fact that his was very skinny and the fact that he had a high-pitched voice. Still, Alexander felt lucky to have this man as his father and mentor. In 359 BC, when Alexander was three, Philip’s Brother, King Peridcaas III, died. It was originally planned that his son, Amyntas, was tosucceed him with Philip as his regent, but Philip usurped his nephew’s throne and made himself King Philip II. In a few decades, he proved to be a stronger king and he eventually conquered most of Greece. When he was in his teens, Alexander’s father came to him one day and told him that he had to leave to fight in a war. Thus Alexander, being his regent, would have to serve for the time being. While his father was away, Alexander led an expedition to a wild region of modern day Bulgaria. Here, he found a race of wild barbarians, whom he later subdued. He, then, established his first city, Alexandropolis, at the site of this defeat. This made his strength apparent to everyone and ... ...y from Roxane for a long period of time. His men refused to go any further, however, and he turned back to go home. On the march home, he fought many cities, and took an arrow in the chest, but lived.On a later visit to Persia, he found that many of his Governors had abused their power. He had them executed and, in an attempt to reunite the two civilizations, he married the old King’s daughter, Barsine, while still married to Roxane. His best friend, Hephaestion, married Barsine’s sister, Drypetis. He even gave some Persians high rankings in his army. But these attempts failed and even the marriages broke up.In the fall of 324 BC, Alexander’s best friend, Hephaestion, died.Alexander was heartbroken and in the following summer, Alexander became ill and died on June 13 in Babylon at the age of 32. Modern historians have long suspected that he died from Malaria, but, recently, it has been suggested that Typhoid Fever was the culprit. Today, we know Alexander as one of the greatest generals, leaders, and conquerors of all time, and we know that this was his main goal in life... To be remembered, not as a villain, but as his childhood dream.....A war hero.