The Movie: Flicka

Flicka Flicka is a heart wrenching movie about the love of family, nature, and horses. This movie shows you the summer of a ranchers daughter. Katy McLauglin (Alison Lohman) is the teenage daughter of a horse rancher who is looking to hand over the reins of the family business. While her family is on the ranch, Katy is studing at a private school feeling like her own kind of misfit. One day, while out riding, Katy finds a beautiful black mustang and instantly feels an emotional connection with the wild horse.Katy begs her father, Rob McLaughlin (Tim McGraw), to let her keep the animal but he is convinced that the mustang would be bad for both his thoroughbred horses and his daughter. But Katy is certain she can break the strong-willed mustang and make her a champion. Katy then names her Flicka, a name meaning † beautiful, young girl†. As she struggles to tame the headstrong Flicka, she also tries to prove to her father that she knows horses as well as he does and that she 's every bit as capable of running the ranch as her brother. The fight for respect and the love of an animal will make you want a ranchers life.And a beautiful horse named Flicka. Flicka shows you the journey that a young teenage girl takes to earn the respect that she rightfully deserves. Katys story is like many stories of women over the years. The fight to be seen as an equal and not as a servent. As we all may know in the United States men had the right to vote long before women did. Women fought for the chance to vote for years. Some, like Susan B. Anthony, were put in jail or shunned for fighting for this right. It took tell World War I for women to recieve this right, but with a couple restrictions.Susan B. Anthony was born February 15, 1820 in Adams, Massachusetts. She was brought up in a Quaker family with long activist traditions. Early in her life she developed a sense of justice. After teaching for fifteen years, she became active in temperance. Because she was a woman, she was not allowed to speak at temperance meetings. This experience led her to join the women's rights movement in 1852. Soon after, she dedicated her life to woman suffrage. Ignoring the cruel works and abuse, Anthony traveled and lectured across the nation for the vote.She also campaigned for the abolition of slavery, the right for women to own their own property and keep their earnings, and she advocated for women's labor organizations. In 1900, Anthony persuaded the University of Rochester to admit women. Anthony, who never married, was aggressive and compassionate by nature. She had a strong mind and a great ability to fight for what she believed in. She remained active until her death on March 13, 1906. In the movie, Flicka, the McLaughlin family fights to keep their beloved ranch.With the trouble to pay the bills, big time bankers have come to the ranch hoping to talk the family into selling the ranch and all the land with it. With the knowledge that selling means the destur ction of their lovely home and the land surrounding it, they fight to make all the money they can. Needing the cash, Rob McLaughlin sees the perfect chance to earn money and get his daughter away from the parasite that she calls Flicka. Rob calls up the head chairman for the local rodeo and makes the deal to sell off the beautiful mustang. When Katy finds out that her horse was sold she's heartbroken and furious.But she's not about to give up. With the hope to get her horse back Katy enters the Bucking Broncos contest in the rodeo in hope to win and use the money to buy back her horse. After realizing that it wasn't going to be as simple as she thought she takes her horse and rides her into the woods. With night coming and a serious storm, Katy and Flicka are in trouble. After finally getting onto some of their land Katy feels safe. Just as she was about to ride herself and Ficka the rest of the way home they are attacked by a mountain lion. Flicka is able to scare away the cat but sustains major injuries in the process.Once found Katy is brought home but has fallen sick. While Katy fights for her life, Flicka fights for hers. Then Rob decides that it isn't fair for an animal to suffer. Then Katy speaks the most heartbreaking line in the story saying â€Å"it's ok daddy, you can kill us†. The next morning Katys temperature has broken and Flicka is safe and healing. The two found each other at the moment of need and have beaten all the odds. This beautiful movie distributed by 20th Century Fox, shows viewers what it takes for a woman to fight for her right and what she loves.

Outline the Nature of Supermarkets Power on the High Street and Beyond Essay

Outline The Nature of Supermarkets Power On The High Street and Beyond. This essay is looking at the power of supermarkets and how they use this power. The word power is often used to â€Å"denote influence, control or domination† (Allen, 2009, p. 9) Supermarkets use this power over suppliers, workers, Councils, consumers and other shops and there are conflicting views as to whether this power is used for the good of everyone or at the expense of everyone other than the supermarkets themselves or as Dennis Wrong (1977) calls it Positive Sum Game- â€Å"where all parties involved benefit to some extent† or Zero Sum Game- â€Å"where supermarkets wield their power at the expense of others† (Allen, 2009, p. 70) Supermarkets due to their sheer size and buying power have a huge advantage over the small independent high street shops. They offer a massive choice of products at a low price because they are able to buy in large quantities at discounted prices, sometimes even below cost price. These out of town supermarkets have convenient parking and consumers are able to do all their shopping in one place, from food, clothing, electrical equipment, financial services, gas and electricity etc†¦ This all makes shopping in these retail parks easier and cheaper for the consumer and the smaller independent high street shops are unable to match these prices, choices and convenience and are therefore unable to compete against the giants. As we’ve seen a move towards more out-of-town, car-dependent stores with large-format retail dominating, its driven trade away from town centres which has clearly had an impact on the small shops that are there, and we see approximately fifty small shops, independent shops, closing every week† Helen Rimmer (Friends of the earth) (‘Evidence in the social sciences’, 2009 track 1) The big supermarkets have also introduced small high street Metro and Express stores to put further pressure on the independents and gain those consumers without cars and who are unable to get to the out of town retail park. According to Helen Rimmer (Friends of the Earth) â€Å"There’s been a study of the impact of Tesco Express which is the Tesco convenience store when they’ve moved into an area, that generally led to a decline, in the small shops locally, of about 30 to 40 per cent† (‘Evidence in the social sciences’, 2009 track 1) To keep their prices low, Supermarkets are putting huge pressures on suppliers both in the UK and globally, they are often dictating how much they will pay and even the size, shape and colour of fruit and vegetables. To meet these demands suppliers are being forced to cut their cost to the bare minimum and in many cases are operating at a loss, forcing the smaller suppliers out of business. There is massive wastage, as food is rejected if it doesn’t conform to the set cosmetic appearance that the supermarkets have imposed, often sacrificing taste and flavour for appearance. Farmers have been known to plough crops back into the land when they have been rejected or the supermarket wants to pay a ridiculously low price. The cost of this wastage is usually met by the supplier, as are the ‘buy one get one free’ (BOGOF) deals that the supermarkets offer to entice their customers. This cost cutting is passed onto their workers both in the UK and abroad. In the UK they are more often than not migrant agency workers who pick and sort the salad crops, who are paid very low wages, sometimes below the cost of living. â€Å"There is a high price to be paid for cheap goods and that cost is borne one-sidedly by the weakest and least powerful groups in the supply chain† (Allen, 2009, p. 3) Meanwhile abroad, cheap clothing is produced in sweatshops, with exploited workers enduring poor conditions, long hours and being paid an inadequate wage. â€Å"The true cost of the cheap jeans and trousers, as well as the bargain-priced shoes, which line Asda’s and Tesco’s aisles, War on Want claim, is the absence of a living wage for workers in their supply chain† (Allen, 2009, p. 85) However the fact that this work is being sourced in Asia means that the clothing industry in these countries is expanding rapidly and this means work that was not there previously. These jobs are in demand by the locals as it means a way out of poverty for them, â€Å"the last thing a country like this wants is for the big retailers to stop sourcing their labour from them. That, it is pointed out, would threaten the steadily rising living standards of the garment workers†. (Allen, 2009, p. 91) Supermarkets use their power over local government to persuade them to allow the further development of new stores. This is done by a method called ‘Planning Gain’ in which they pay for civic facilities to be built i. e. : leisure centres and Doctors surgeries, in return for planning permission for a new store. These developments are Sometimes in run down, poor areas and the development of a new store can be interpreted as a good thing in helping the regeneration of the area, creating new jobs for the unemployed and encouraging new business into the area. Again there is controversy surrounding this, many believe it is for the good of the community and other believing it is â€Å"merely the latest in a series of opportunistic moves by them to get stores built at a time when planners and government frown upon out-of–town developments† (Allen, 2009, p. 4) The supermarkets are providing consumers with what they want. Cheap products in the current climate of recession are a necessity for many having to tighten their belts. The ease of having everything in one place makes it convenient to shop for those who have cars and can get to the out of town stores. â€Å"People like what supermarkets do and the efficiencies that come from the scale of their operations, the quality and choice that they’re able to offer, the prices that people find appealing are all reasons why people choose to shop in supermarkets. Richard Dodd (British retail consortium. )(‘Evidence in the social sciences’ 2009, track 1) There is no doubt that supermarkets are powerful and it is very often a zero-sum game for their suppliers, the supplier’s workforce, and the independent shops on the high street, when they wield this power against them. Town centres and the smaller independent shops are in decline, â€Å"12 per cent of town centre retail premises are now vacant compared with 4 per cent last autumn so that’s a threefold increase†. Richard Dodd (British Retail Consortium) (‘Evidence in the social sciences’ 2009, track 1) and many farmers are going out of business. The consumers however are getting what they want, but at what cost! In this consumer Society that we live in they are seduced by the choice and bargains and turn a blind eye to the lengths the supermarkets are prepared to go to give them this. The exploitation of the workers in the sweatshops of Asia, the bullying of the farmers to sell their milk, fruit and vegetables to them at the price they dictate and the small shops being put out of business. Yes supermarkets are powerful but at the end of the day it is the consumer who is enabling them to continue being so. â€Å"If customers like what a retailer is offering, they will choose that particular store or type of store and they’ll use it. If the retailer gets it wrong, the customers won’t show up and that retailer will very quickly go out of business. It is customers who have the power in all of this†. Richard Dodd (British retail consortium) (‘Evidence in the social sciences’ 2009, track 1)

Eco-Friendly Plastic Bag Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Eco-Friendly Plastic Bag - Research Paper Example It was also established that the public was aware of the negative impacts of the plastic bags and the need to use eco-friendly bags. It is important to conduct more research on eco-friendly bags and create awareness on the importance of eco-friendly plastic bags in conservation of the environment. Plastic bags are used for packaging and is made of a thin, flexible plastic film such as polyethylene, non-woven fabric or plastic textile. Around the globe, over 500 billion non-reusable plastic bags are used every year while the thin ones are littered ubiquitously. In developing countries, the plastic bags block the water movement in narrow water channels. When water collects in them they provide a place for the breeding of mosquitoes. The thin comfortable bags are a danger to the children because they can cause suffocation. When plastic bags are incinerated, the smoke could cause cancer, asthma and impotence (Khare and Deshmukh). These negative effects to the environment have led to the discouraged use of the plastic bags. To curb this problem, eco-friendly plastic bags are recommended. They are used in several countries such as the United States, United Kingdom and Australia. These eco-friendly bags hold more quantity compared to the plastic bags. They are oil derived products and offered in many stylish colors since they are made with dyes that are both color fast and are washable. In addition, the bags comply FDA regulations therefore are not harmful and cannot cause allergic reactions to the skin. They are durable. The ecofriendly bag is reusable. It is made from fabric such as thick plastic that is more durable, canvas, or woven synthetic fibers. The eco-friendly plastic bags was introduced in the United States in 1977, and were used to bag groceries in the 1980s and 1990s. They were first made of polyolefin-starch materials which did not degrade as it was claimed. Some countries enacted policies that imposed taxes on

Article summary Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

Summary - Article Example ost common type of cardiovascular disease among aboriginal people is the coronary heart disease whose cause although largely unknown, several risk factors have been found to increase its chance of occurrence. These include high levels of cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes mellitus smoking and high density of lipoproteins; these risk factors are attributed to the lifestyles and the socio-economic status of the aboriginal people. For the last couple of decades, the aboriginal people have adopted a western lifestyle including their nutritional patterns and behaviour, which include eating foods rich in calories and adopting inactive lifestyles; this has led to increase in cardiovascular diseases. Type 2 diabetes, which is the most common among the aboriginal people is usually characterised by resistance to insulin, high blood glucose levels and reduction in insulin levels. This type of diabetes is most often found in adults and its risk is increased by obesity, lack of physical activity, stress, depression and poor nutritional habits. Since diabetes and severe obesity have been found to be linked, mainly through the adipose tissue, which has been found to trigger insulin resistance in sells, the appearance of obesity will in most cases lead to diabetes. For the last 50 years, prevalence of type 2 diabetes has been increasing among aboriginal populations with about 17.9 percent of all adult being diagnosed with the disease, the figure rises to 35 per cent among individuals 55 years or older. In some communities in northwestern Ontario, the prevalence has been found to be as high as 80 per cent among women between 50 and 64 years of age. However, this trend has not spared people much younger among the first nation communities with studies showing that 53 per cent of those living with diabetes are below 41 years of age and 65 per cent are below 45 years. This type of diabetes, although not observed in youths, it has been found in young children between 5 and 8 years in

Supervision for Instructional Improvement Essay - 1

Supervision for Instructional Improvement - Essay Example For sometime now, Bruce Joyce and his colleagues have been saying that typical staff development â€Å"probably will not generate the amount of change necessary to affect student achievement†. Instead they advocate along with Sparks, Fullan and others---the creation of the kind of â€Å"Communities of teachers† who engage in focused, recurring cycles of instruction, assessment, and adjustment of instruction†.(Joyce and Showers 2002) â€Å"Research emphasizes that coaching is a prerequisite for the implementation of new skills strategy†( Showers, Joyce and Bennett 1987). Leaders must be aware that the provision of ongoing support is crucial to the successful attainment of an innovation. Therefore, one of the first staff development initiatives to be offered to teachers in the classroom, is peer coaching. For staff development expert Thomas Guskey, the promise of professional development has gone â€Å"largely unfulfilled†. The solution in staff develo pment is build around â€Å"collaborative exchange†, in which â€Å"teachers work together, reflect on their practice, exchange ideas, and share strategies†(Guskey 2003) Richard Stiggins writes that 2 â€Å"assessment literacy†, is so integral to the ongoing improvement of instruction in â€Å"learning teams† â€Å"Work shops†, he says â€Å"will not work†, they â€Å"do not† permit the application of and experimentation with new assessment ideas in real classrooms, and sharing that experience with other colleagues in a team effort†(Stiggins 1999).

Gaming Industry Mini-case homework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gaming Industry Mini-case homework - Essay Example Customers will always be important to business but these buyers also have other alternatives to entertain themselves such as online casinos, internet, movies etch. Video games may be more engaging than the alternatives but the low switching cost makes the alternative viable. The alternatives to video games may be numerous but they are not as engaging as video games. The alternatives are also full of risk such as online casino whose legality are still doubtful making its potential users to be less attracted to it. Gaming industry is based on the ingenuity and talent of its game developers, programmers and other talents which is the backbone of the industry. To make sure that my talents are ahead of the game, I would always conduct training and workshops to ensure that they are ahead in the industry. Of course, it is a given that I should keep them happy for them to stay in the company. This could be done by offering them stocks, handsome pay and interesting work. I would not recommend an entry to the gaming industry because it is very risky and volatile. The industry also has very high learning curves that makes it very difficult for new players to catch up with the established players. The huge capital needed to start is also very discouraging and risky. Suppliers have very high power in the chain making the company vulnerable to suppliers. The existing players may also manipulate the price to become very low for the company not to survive its penetration

The signs of Drug Use in Children and impact on famlies Research Paper

The signs of Drug Use in Children and impact on famlies - Research Paper Example with having educational experience prompts children in testing their ability to adapt, beginning peer relationship or support system, and achieving academic expectations. As a result of insurmountable amount of stress and anxiety, children and students succumb to drug/substance use as a way to deal with academic pressure and expectations. According to Doweiko (2012), the 40% to 60% incidences of drug and substance use among children, adolescents, and college students explains the occurrence of accidents, sexual assault cases, fights, losing life, and poor academic performance (292). Therefore, it is essential to identify the different medical models explaining addiction and how it is applied among children, to early recognize signs of drug use among children, and to determine the impact of drug use among children on the families. Medical model rests on the assumption that disease states are the result of biological dysfunction, either on cellular or molecular level. Under the medical model, drug use is considered as a disease because it presents loss of control, progression of symptoms, and potential to cause death. However, clinical research had not support the medical model and had been excluded in the substance abuse rehabilitation. Genetic inheritance theories explain that one has genetic predisposition towards drug use; however, children with genetic predisposition will lose the tendency to succumb to drug use if they never begin to use alcohol or drugs. Thus, genetic predisposition might be a contributing factor of drug use among children but not the only reason why children go to use of drugs. Scientists linked cAMP response-element-binding protein (CREB), ∆FosB, and variant of  µ opioid receptor site to the promotion of drug use among children (Doweiko, 2012, 336). The biological differences theories state that the predisposition to go onto drug use differs in terms of metabolism, biotransformation, and acting (Doweiko, 2012, 337). Researchers also