...On any day in Caracas, Venezuela, there are a number of landscapes that one might see. These landscapes vary in physical geography, architecture, economic standing, and the despair or hope of the people. Pictures A and B illustrate a “better” side of Caracas—the ground is level and skyscrapers flourish. These skyscrapers vary in nature. Some of the more modern-looking buildings are global business centers like Credit-Suisse’s offices in “Milla De Oro,” Caracas’s central business district. Some are extravagant apartment complexes for the rich. Some are beautiful, European-influenced architecture in the center of the city, like the National Pantheon, a beautiful church of Spanish influence from Venezuela’s past. However, The rich center of the city is surrounded by both economic and personal despair. Picture D illustrates a mature squatter settlement on the hills surrounding the city. The poor have settled here informally and illegally, forming their own economic and support system, on the less-desired land in the hills surrounding the city. These squatter settlements are so dangerous that they have resulted in Caracas’s standing as the murder capital of the world, with the highest per capita murder rate globally. Most of these crimes go unsolved. The poor are separated by the rich both informally and formally; social divides and inequalities block the two groups, and actual fences and police force do too. Picture C illustrates an extravagant apartment complex for the...
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...time I am asked, 'where are you from?' I find myself struggling with a response. The short answer would be I am from Iraq and America; however, that is not entirely true. Responding Iraqi/American makes me feel as if I'm selling out my true identity. My Father is Iraqi while my mother is Iraqi with Kurdish, Spanish, and Turkish roots. My identity does not stop there; I was born in Duncan, Oklahoma and moved to Caracas, Venezuela at the age of seven, then moved to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia at the age of 12, and finally moved to the United Arab Emirates at the age of 19. Although I would be classified as a nomad child, this aspect has allowed me to learn about and understand other cultures without assuming my culture is considered normal and superior to others, otherwise known as ethnocentrism. Though now I feel I am able to view other individuals' culture in respect to their own culture, also known as being a culture relativist, I experienced a sense of confusion and anxiety when moving from one culture to another, otherwise known as culture shock. Moving from Duncan to Caracas was my first culture shock. Duncan is a small town where neighbors greet one another as they walk out of their homes to collect the mail or as they rake their garden. It is a safe community where everyone knows everyone. As a child I would safely walk over to our neighbor’s front yard who had specifically set up a swing set for my sister and me. My parents were close with our neighbors, Billy and Nana, who acted...
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...been well established that for any government the necessity of dealing with crime is a major responsibility. This requires having an adequate number of personnel to deal with crime. Depending upon the area to be covered might require more men or women or persons of various language or cultural abilities. It might also require a number of employees of various religious backgrounds who can enter certain regions exclusive to certain believers or where prohibitions exist against non-believers. In short, there are many times, places, and events which might give good reason to hire more people. The development of special situations, unusual or uncertain conditions, might create more crime. The increase of which crime in turn might rationalize those in charge of a region or operation, to handle the increase of the prospect of crime by making more appointments. In recognizing those realities persons in government can ordinarily have good reason to hire more people. It also assumes the existence of judgments which themselves have no basis on a recognized religious belief. Sociological Concept In short, the previous interpretation of the hypothesis cannot be taken as single, limited, or fully legitimate . Certainly the historical example which developed of the mafia criminal organization centuries ago on the island of Sicily in the country of Italy provides example of how the development of crime led directly to the creation of more jobs. As threats to the common objectives...
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...1. Executive summary: The main purpose of the following report is to provide information about the profile of The Bolivarian Republican of Venezuela; in order to study the current situation of the country for further investigations in the future that may help to understand the opportunities and risk involve in importing and opening new markets in Venezuela. The analysis includes reviews and an extensive research about: First the geography and global information to introduce the country; second, the History since the arrival of the Spaniards. The Political analysis will be explained as much detailed as possible due to its specifics characteristics in the recent decades with the Hugo Chavez’s government. He report draws special attention in the Social analysis is one of the main issues to be reviewed due to its importance at the time of making any decision. The economic aspect of course will be in consideration with both: the Official’s figures and the international observer’s ones, the graphics will be analyzed. It will be also mentioned the Business environments and the principal sectors to invest or that could be interesting to sell. To support all the information in the report before any conclusion, it will be used THE SWOT tool to demonstrate why Venezuela is an interesting place to import, especially in the last 5 years. It is not just a country of striking natural beauty, which ranges from the snow-capped Andean peaks in the west, through the Amazonian...
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...region. Many of the colonized tribesmen converted to the Roman Catholic religion, naming many of the local towns and places after tribes and leaders that resisted colonization. Early colonization efforts focused on the northern regions of Venezuela until the 18th century, when the Spanish pushed into the Orinoco River valley. Here the Makiritare organized substantial resistance from 1775 through 1776 (Gott:203) Spanish leaders incorporated the eastern settlements into the New Andalusia Provence, which was governed by the Royal Audiencia of Santo Domingo in the early 16th century. In 1776, the Spanish reorganized most of Venezuela as an autonomous Captaincy General, at which time the city of Caracas, which was founded in 1567, was utilized as an unofficial capitol. The Spanish used Caracas as a hub for commerce because of its proximity to the port of La Guaira, the fertile climate, and it is being located in an easily defended position. The valley provided sustenance, trade and protection from pirates. Venezuela declared its independence in 1811, finally securing freedom from the Spanish in 1821. Led by Venezuelan-American marshal Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela began the Venezuelan War of Independence on 5 July 1811, but was quickly defeated. A second independent government was established on 7 August 1813, but only lasted a few months. Simon Bolivar, Jose Antonio Paez and Antonio Jose de Sucre defeated the Spanish in the battle of Carabobo on 24 June 1821, finally settling...
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...of corruption and corrupt practices are seen in poorer countries and the effects are higher specifically in the public sector. Furthermore, if we specifically see the last decade, there were hardly any press reports that mentioned about corruption defamations in Uruguay. However, as seen earlier, Uruguay has improved its rank in the CPI subsequently. Let us now see how various norms regarding corruption have evolved in Uruguay. Consider the following table which shows maturation of various laws in the Uruguayan economy. Year Description of the Law Sept, 1998 Congress approves the “Inter-American Convention Against Corruption”. This international convention was signed in Caracas (Venezuela) in March 1996. Dec, 1998 First law aimed at preventing and fighting corruption. It changes the definition of crimes that involve public administration and forces the government officials to make income discloser statements, and establishes and institution to control corruption, the Anti-Corruption Board. Nov, 1999 Regulation of the disposition of the above mentioned law and broadening the scope of the Anti-Corruption Board. Feb, 2001 It declares the Anti-Corruption Board as an institution with technical autonomy from the Executive. Jan, 2003 Establishes witness protection in corruption trials. June, 2003 Additional norms that specify the information that must be disclosed in the income discloser statements. Nov, 2004 Establishes the obligation to publicize government procurement. Oct, 2006...
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...Economy of Venezuela Contents *Executive Summary 2 1 Venezuela Profiles 3 1.1 Geography 3 1.2 Population 4 1.3 Political System 4 1.4 Economic System 4 1.5 Market Spotlight 5 1.6 Trade Agreements 6 2 Doing business in Venezuela (Compare with China) 6 2.1 Starting a business 7 2.2 Dealing with construction permits 8 2.3 Employing workers 8 2.4 Registering property 9 2.5 Getting credit 9 2.6 Protecting investors 10 2.7 Paying taxes 11 2.8 Trading across borders 12 2.9 Enforcing contracts 12 2.10 Closing a business 13 2.11 The ranks trend of 10 Factors from 2007 to 2010 in Venezuela 13 2.12 The ranks trend of 10 Factors from 2007 to 2010 in China 14 3 Global Competitiveness Index 15 3.1 The comparison (Score) of GCI with Venezuela and China in 2010 16 3.2 The comparison (Rank) of GCI with Venezuela and China in 2010 16 3.3 The trend of GCI (Rank) 2 countries from 2002 to 2010 17 3.4 The trend of GCI (Score) 2 countries from 2005 to 2010 18 4 Conclusion 18 4.1 Market Challenges in Venezuela 18 4.2 Market Opportunities in Venezuela 19 4.3 Experience from China 19 4.4 Recommendation of Strategy 20 4.5 Venezuela Economy: Impact of Nationalization 20 *Executive Summary My selected country Venezuela is the worst rank, in order to evaluate the business environment, first, I do some research for Venezuela profiles, which include basic information...
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...1 2 Lets Go to the Movies: Crime is big on the silver screen and the tube as well. Here you need to choose two criminal justice –related movies, which you have seen to compare and contrast them both: In this essay I will compare the similarities and contrast the differences between two crime film openings. I will be comparing The Next Three Days' and 'The Hurricane'. I will analyze the two film openings and see how they establish their own crime film genre. Genre is a way of categorizing a film. From genre, producers are able to market their films to a target audience. With some films it is difficult to categorize them as a certain genre as they may contain more than one genre. A hybrid genre is a film, which contains more than one genre. An example of a hybrid genre is 'All about the Benjamin’s' the genres in this film are comedy, romance, crime and also drama. Most films nowadays are hybrid genre as they appeal to a larger audience. These films contain both genre of drama, romance, crime, suspense, and “wrongly accusations”. A glimpse of each movie: (1) The Next Three Days: This movie stars “just to name a few” Russell Crowe as John Brennan, Elizabeth Banks as Lara Brennan, Brian Dennehy as George Brennan, and Lennie James as Lieutenant Nabulsi. This movie is about a women by the name of Lara Brennan (Banks) which is convicted of murdering her boss after an altercation at work and after a trial is sentenced to life...
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...Carrasquillo 1 Christopher Carrasquillo His 267 May 2013 Jose L. Renique Hugo Chavez: Saint for the poor, Enemy of Capitalism A revolutionist is a supporter of political or social revolution. Whenever someone feels that the society they live in is oppressed whether by a foreign or domestic influence, revolutionists arise to bring about change however they see fit. While some revolutionists are often viewed in infamy to others such as Hitler, the people who benefited during the better years of their rule tend to view these revolutionists as heroes. One of these well known revolutionists is Hugo Chavez, and while he's known to be hated by both foreign and domestic groups, he is considered a hero to many others. Hugo Chavez was born July 28, 1954 in the town of Sabenta. He was of mixed race and lived in poverty for most of his childhood life (Kozloff 18). Despite being poor, both of his parents were highly educated compared to most people in Venezuela, and thus taught him the importance of studying and education. It was during his childhood that Hugo Chavez was introduced to Jose Esteban Ruiz Guevara, and thus Simon Bolivar (indepthinfo). Bolivar was a revolutionist who helped to free much of Latin America from Spanish control and even attempted to create a nationalist government in Latin America before his death (biography). Essentially, all of these events during Hugo Chavez's...
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...Venezuela is a major transit country for cocaine usually processed in Colombia. Law enforcement agencies estimate that over 100 metric tons of cocaine transit Venezuela annually. There are some indications that the quantity of drugs transiting Venezuela is increasing and that smuggling of Colombian heroin is a growing problem. Narcotics-related corruption remained a problem in legal and financial systems and within security forces. Moreover, the Venezuelan authorities need to do more to combat diversion of chemical precursors and money laundering and to address the problem of over-flights by drug trafficking aircraft. Venezuela continued to be a major drug transit country in 1998. Most large scale drug shipments transiting Venezuela originate in Colombia and are smuggled out of major Venezuelan ports in commercial cargo to the U.S. and Europe. Drugs are transported on commercial aircraft (either by drug mules or hidden in air cargo) and small aircraft through Venezuelan airspace. In addition, boats carrying drug shipments from Colombia pass through Venezuela's territorial waters on their way to Caribbean transshipment points. Venezuela is a transit country for essential chemicals, which are either exported legally to Colombia and other source countries, diverted for use in cocaine labs, or smuggled out of Venezuela for this purpose. For instance, gasoline and cement are exported legally from Venezuela to Colombia and then diverted for use in cocaine processing. In 1998...
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...Alicia Mondini Boschetti Professor Harlow IFS2052 December 2nd, 2015 Double Perspective One thing we all have in common is how we become introduced into this planet. We are all born on a specific date and time and take that first breath of air when we are no longer in our mother’s womb. After that moment, everyone has a different story. We are all born into a specific culture which is dictated by our parents. They raise us and instill in us their values, beliefs, and behaviors without our consent or approval. By the time we begin to speak, we already have an idea of what is right and what is wrong based on how we have been taught. Yet, it is not until we have experiences of our own away from our parents that we begin to challenge their ideals and beliefs. Going to school, college, abroad, volunteering, are all great examples of instances that will change your outlook on your preconceived ideas. However, one will undergo the most drastic change in their perception of the world and in their values once they expose themselves to literally “a whole new world”. Perceptions of your own culture and the culture you immerse yourself in change once you have left your home country and experienced first handedly other worldviews and ways of life. Culture is reflected on how one feels towards many different elements. With this being said, it is fair to say that culture furnishes attitudes. Having a general evaluation of something or someone is learned throughout the course of your...
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...Abstract Businesses must always market their products and services to those they think will purchase them. But do one’s social characteristics such as their social class, gender, race, or age affect how businesses market to them? How does targeted marketing affect consumer consumption? The purpose of this paper is to introduce the field of conspicuous consumption and how certain social characteristics influences buying behavior and how businesses target consumers based on these differences. Social Characteristics, Business and Consuming How do social characteristics such as race, gender and class impact businesses? How do these social characteristics influence consumer choice? Businesses are a part of society so it makes sense that that one can influence the other. Businesses market to their key demographic all the time in order to specifically cater their products or services to their intended customer base but there is a relatively new phenomenon that shows some individuals in a lower socioeconomic class artificially try to portray themselves as being in a higher class than they really are. This type of “show boating” of certain status symbols can influence a business and their decision to expand their marketing efforts to groups outside their originally intended customer base. This phenomenon is called “conspicuous consumption” and is defined by Patsiaouras and Fitchett (2012, p. 154) as the “competitive and extravagant consumption practices and leisure...
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...Drug Trafficking in the United States 7/7/15, 10:49 AM Almanac of Policy Issues Home : Policy Archive : Search Sponsored Listings Questia: Search over 400,000 books and journals at Questia online. FastWeb Free Scholarship Search: Find free money for college or an advanced degree. U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Added May, 2004 Almanac Search Drug Trafficking in the United States Web The illegal drug market in the United States is one of the most profitable in the world. As such, it attracts the most ruthless, sophisticated, and aggressive drug traffickers. Drug law enforcement agencies face an enormous challenge in protecting the country's borders. Each year, according to the U.S. Customs Service, 60 million people enter the United States on more than 675,000 commercial and private flights. Another 6 million come by sea and 370 million by land. In addition, 116 million vehicles cross the land borders with Canada and Mexico. More than 90,000 merchant and passenger ships dock at U.S. ports. These ships carry more than 9 million shipping containers and 400 million tons of cargo. Another 157,000 smaller vessels visit our many coastal towns. Amid this voluminous trade, drug traffickers conceal cocaine, heroin, marijuana, MDMA, and methamphetamine shipments for distribution in U.S. neighborhoods. Diverse groups traffic and distribute illegal drugs. Criminal groups operating from South America smuggle cocaine and heroin into the United States...
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...The Haiti earthquake of January 2010 consisted a magnitude of 7.0, that occurred local approximately sixteen miles from Port-au-Prince with 8.1 miles as its depth. Occuring on blind thrust faults connected with the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault system. There is no evidence of surface rupture. Recorded in Port-au-Prince on the Modified Mercalli scale, there was intense shaking connected with intensity IX. The earthquake was a result of a rupture of the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault that was locked for 250 years, all the while collecting stress. Because the earthquake occurred on blind thrust faults, the quake was also felt in several surrounding countries and regions leaving them vulnerable: Guantanamo, Cuba; Kingston, Jamaica; Caracas, Venezuela; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and the bordering region Santo-Domingo, Dominican Republic. According to the US Geological Survey, the number of people living...
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