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Tag: woman

  • Ruby Bridges, Barbara Anderson, Mrs Ackerman and Me

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    We recognize Ruby Bridges for her life's work as a civil rights leader and activist; we find an unsightly caricature of Ruby's historic walk through a snarling angry crowd with new education secretary Betsy DeVos depicted as Ruby. This depiction exemplifies how little understanding of race discrimination in America has been attained ..

    But for racial subjugation Ruby Bridges would not have needed federal marshals to escort her to attend a heretofore segregated public school in New Orleans. But for racial animus she would not have been taught in an isolated setting by Barbara Henry; whose integrity led her to offer this brave child the best education she could provide her. That teacher Barbara Henry, and her student, Ruby represents the best of the American legacy. This Bridges experience is captured too in a retrospective entitled "Lasting Impact", which summarizes the historical effect of this heroic act.

    Today, Segregation is illegal in America and no longer happens. A large amount of racism has left our society, however, not all of it has been eliminated. Hopefully one day, racism will be a subject only spoken about in history textbooks.

    DeVos' caricature of Bridges is classic to American culture. This cultural practice is summarized in the following quote from Bridget Cooke's "Fixing Racial Representations of African- Americans at the World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893". This excerpt explains causations for the use of stereotypes to minimize the positive reality of African descent Americans. Whites created the culture of segregation in large part to counter black success, to make a myth of absolute racial difference, to stop the rising. Racial essentialism, the conception of sets of personal characteristics as biologically determined racial identities, greatness in popularity among whites in tandem with the rise of the new black middle class and its increasing visibility, especially in cities.

    This American legacy extends to me as well, in Los Angeles, California where I was born. I am more than a decade older than Ruby but attended integrated schools. I too had boosts from my nurturing family as well as key teachers along my way.

    In John Muir Junior High School where I attended school, someone would always manage to treat me of my bus ticket book leaving me with a miles long trudge to school. Enter my Barbara Henry, Mrs. Ackerman. Mrs Ackerman was my science teacher who was a German immigrant. She would look for me on my march to school and offered me that much appreciated ride to school.

    Then she would allow me early access to her classroom. During these early morning sessions she taught me a means of recognizing my own exceptional intelligence through a mini astronomy lesson where she gave me the eagle's view of my ability to extrapolate. I would leave John Muir and go on to graduate cum laude from high in a class of 1200. This led to a scholarship to college.

    In the fifty-eight years since these mornings with Mrs. Ackerman I have shown my passion for this American legacy serving students and staff in a way that led to:

    First woman of my hue to become a high school principal in the state of Colorado

    Winner of the following distinctions

    Milken National Educational Leader

    Outstanding Individual in Schools for the state of Colorado

    Educator of the Year

    Election to the School Board the first of my hue and female in over 140 years

    Post Retirement:

    Fellowships to Harvard

    More to tell. For now thank you colleagues Ruby, Barbara, Mrs Ackerman

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    Source by Delia Armstrong-Busby

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  • African Woman Remix 2k18 [Free Download]

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    New Remix Dj Shimza – African Woman [DjPaparazzi-Rmx]

    ”Free Download”
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    Source by Dj Paparazzi

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  • The Queens of Ancient Egypt

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    This is a very brief overview about some of the major Ancient Egyptian Queens:

    – Ankhesenamun – Her original name was Ankhesenpaaten Queen of Egypt who reigned 1332-1322 BCE; she was the third daughter of Akhenaton and Nefertiti (the rulers of the Amarna revolution).

    – Cleopatra VII – She was of Macedonian descent, not Egyptian; however, she learned Egyptian and regarded herself as the daughter of Re (although she was the second daughter of King Ptolemy XII). She was born in 69 BCE, passed (suicide) in 30 BCE, and reigned from 51-30 BCE.

    – Hatshepsut – She was also known as Hatshopsitu, reigned from circa 1472-58 BCE, and was the daughter of King Thutmose I and Queen Ahmose. She was indeed the first royal woman to ascend the throne of Ancient Egypt and with the sanctified blessings of Amun-Ra.

    – Nefertari – She ruled along side of Ramesses the Great (or Ramesses II) during the Nineteenth Dynasty and did not rule for long because she passed at a very young age; she was one of eight royal wives of Ramesses II: Istnofret, Bint-Anath (Binthanath), Aerytamun (Merytamon or Merit-Amun), Nebettawy, Henutmire, Maathomeferure, and a Hittite princess (historians claim that there is little or no information about her).

    – Nefertiti – Her name was also spelled Nefertiit and Nofretete; she was the wife of King Akhenaton (who reigned 1353-36 BCE); she ruled alongside her husband but for only twelve years.

    There are many more royal women of Ancient Egypt and of the Kemetic (Ancient Egyptian religion) spiritual path.

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    Source by Dr. Kheti A. Sahure

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  • Mergers and Acquisition – A Case Study and Analysis of HP-Compaq Merger

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    Brief Description

    The following is a brief description of the two companies:

    HP

    It all began in the year 1938 when two electrical engineering graduates from Stanford University called William Hewlett and David Packard started their business in a garage in Palo Alto. In a year’s time, the partnership called Hewlett-Packard was made and by the year 1947, HP was incorporated. The company has been prospering ever since as its profits grew from five and half million dollars in 1951 to about 3 billion dollars in 1981. The pace of growth knew no bounds as HP’s net revenue went up to 42 billion dollars in 1997. Starting with manufacturing audio oscillators, the company made its first computer in the year 1966 and it was by 1972 that it introduced the concept of personal computing by a calculator first which was further advanced into a personal computer in the year 1980. The company is also known for the laser-printer which it introduced in the year 1985.

    Compaq

    The company is better known as Compaq Computer Corporation. This was company that started itself as a personal computer company in the year 1982. It had the charm of being called the largest manufacturers of personal computing devices worldwide. The company was formed by two senior managers at Texas Instruments. The name of the company had come from-“Compatibility and Quality”. The company introduced its first computer in the year 1983 after at a price of 2995 dollars. In spite of being portable, the problem with the computer was that it seemed to be a suitcase. Nevertheless, there were huge commercial benefits from the computer as it sold more than 53,000 units in the first year with a revenue generation of 111 million dollars.

    Reasons for the Merger

    A very simple question that arises here is that, if HP was progressing at such a tremendous pace, what was the reason that the company had to merge with Compaq? Carly Fiorina, who became the CEO of HP in the year 1999, had a key role to play in the merger that took place in 2001. She was the first woman to have taken over as CEO of such a big company and the first outsider too. She worked very efficiently as she travelled more than 250,000 miles in the first year as a CEO. Her basic aim was to modernize the culture of operation of HP. She laid great emphasis on the profitable sides of the business. This shows that she was very extravagant in her approach as a CEO. In spite of the growth in the market value of HP’s share from 54.43 to 74.48 dollars, the company was still inefficient. This was because it could not meet the targets due to a failure of both company and industry. HP was forced to cut down on jobs and also be eluded from the privilege of having Price Water House Cooper’s to take care of its audit. So, even the job of Fiorina was under threat. This meant that improvement in the internal strategies of the company was not going to be sufficient for the company’s success. Ultimately, the company had to certainly plan out something different. So, it was decided that the company would be acquiring Compaq in a stock transaction whose net worth was 25 billion dollars. Initially, this merger was not planned. It started with a telephonic conversation between CEO HP, Fiorina and Chairman and CEO Compaq, Capellas. The idea behind the conversation was to discuss on a licensing agreement but it continued as a discussion on competitive strategy and finally a merger. It took two months for further studies and by September, 2001, the boards of the two companies approved of the merger. In spite of the decision coming from the CEO of HP, the merger was strongly opposed in the company. The two CEOs believed that the only way to fight the growing competition in terms of prices was to have a merger. But the investors and the other stakeholders thought that the company would never be able to have the loyalty of the Compaq customers, if products are sold with an HP logo on it. Other than this, there were questions on the synchronization of the organization’s members with each other. This was because of the change in the organization culture as well. Even though these were supposed to serious problems with respect to the merger, the CEO of HP, Fiorina justified the same with the fact that the merger would remove one serious competitor in the over-supplied PC market of those days. She said that the market share of the company is bound to increase with the merger and also the working unit would double. (Hoopes, 2001)

    Advantages of the Merger

    Even though it seemed to be advantageous to very few people in the beginning, it was the strong determination of Fiorina that she was able to stand by her decision. Wall Street and all her investors had gone against the company lampooning her ideas with the saying that she has made 1+1=1.5 by her extravagant ways of expansion. Fiorina had put it this way that after the company’s merger, not only would it have a larger share in the market but also the units of production would double. This would mean that the company would grow tremendously in volume. Her dream of competing with the giants in the field, IBM would also come true. She was of the view that much of the redundancy in the two companies would decrease as the internal costs on promotion, marketing and shipping would come down with the merger. This would produce the slightest harm to the collection of revenue. She used the ideas of competitive positioning to justify her plans of the merger. She said that the merger is based on the ideologies of consolidation and not on diversification. She could also defend allegations against the change in the HP was. She was of the view that the HP has always encouraged changes as it is about innovating and taking bold steps. She said that the company requires being consistent with creativity, improvement and modification. This merger had the capability of providing exactly the same. (Mergers and Acquisitions, 2010)

    Advantages to the Shareholders

    The following are the ways in which the company can be advantageous to its shareholders:

    Unique Opportunity: The position of the enterprise is bound to better with the merger. The reason for the same was that now the value creation would be fresh, leadership qualities would improve, capabilities would improve and so would the sales and also the company’s strategic differentiation would be better than the existing competitors. Other than this, one can also access the capabilities of Compaq directly hence reducing the cost structure in becoming the largest in the industry. Finally, one could also see an opportunity in reinvesting.

    Stronger Company: The profitability is bound to increase in the enterprise, access and services sectors in high degrees. The company can also see a better opportunity in its research and development. The financial conditions of the company with respect to its EBIT and net cash are also on the incremental side.

    Compelling Economics: The expected accumulation in IIP gains would be 13% in the first financial year. The company could also conduct a better segmentation of the market to forecast its revenues generation. This would go to as much as 2 and a half billion dollars of annual synergy.

    Ability to Execute: As there would be integration in the planning procedures of the company, the chances of value creation would also be huge. Along with that the experience of leading a diversified employee structure would also be there. (HP to buy Compaq, 2001)

    Opposition to the Merger

    In fact, it was only CEO Fiorina who was in favor of going with the merger. This is a practical application of Agency problem that arises because of change in financial strategies of the company owners and the management. Fiorina was certain to lose her job if the merger didn’t take effect. The reason was that HP was not able to meet the demand targets under her leadership. But the owners were against the merger due to the following beliefs of the owners:

    The new portfolio would be less preferable: The position of the company as a larger supplier of PCs would certainly increase the amount of risk and involve a lot of investment as well. Another important reason in this context is that HP’s prime interest in Imaging and Printing would not exist anymore as a result diluting the interest of the stockholders. In fact the company owners also feel that there would be a lower margin and ROI (return on investment).

    Strategic Problems would remain Unsolved: The market position in high-end servers and services would still remain in spite of the merger. The price of the PCS would not come down to be affordable by all. The requisite change in material for imaging and printing also would not exist. This merger would have no effect on the low end servers as Dell would be there in the lead and high-end servers either where IBM and Sun would have the lead. The company would also be eluded from the advantages of outsourcing because of the surplus labor it would have. So, the quality is not guaranteed to improve. Finally, the merger would not equal IBM under any condition as thought by Fiorina.

    Huge Integrated Risks: There have been no examples of success with such huge mergers. Generally when the market doesn’t support such mergers, don’t do well as is the case here. When HP could not manage its organization properly, integration would only add on to the difficulties. It would be even more difficult under the conditions because of the existing competitions between HP and Compaq. Being prone to such risky conditions, the company would also have to vary its costs causing greater trouble for the owner. The biggest factor of all is that to integrate the culture existing in the two companies would be a very difficult job.

    Financial Impact: This is mostly because the market reactions are negative. On the other hand, the position of Compaq was totally different from HP. As the company would have a greater contribution to the revenue and HP being diluted at the same time, the problems are bound to develop. This would mean that drawing money from the equity market would also be difficult for HP. In fact this might not seem to be a very profitable merger for Compaq as well in the future.

    The basic problem that the owners of the company had with this merger was that it would hamper the core values of HP. They felt that it is better to preserve wealth rather than to risk it with extravagant risk taking. This high risk profile of Fiorina was a little unacceptable for the owners of the company in light of its prospects.

    So, as far as this merger between HP and Compaq is concerned, on side there was this strong determination of the CEO, Fiorina and on the other side was the strong opposition from the company owners. This opposition continued from the market including all the investors of the company. So, this practical Agency problem was very famous considering the fact that it contained two of the most powerful hardware companies in the world. There were a number of options like Change Management, Economic wise Management, and Organizational Management which could be considered to analyze the issue. But this case study can be solved best by a strategy wise analysis. (HP-Compaq merger faces stiff opposition from shareholders stock prices fall again, 2001)

    Strategic Analysis of the Case

    Positive Aspects

    A CEO will always consider such a merger to be an occasion to take a competitive advantage over its rivals like IBM as in this case and also be of some interest to the shareholders as well. The following are the strategies that are related to this merger between HP and Compaq:

    * Having an eye over shareholders’ value: If one sees this merger from the eyes of Fiorina, it would be certain that the shareholders have a lot to gain from it. The reason for the same is the increment in the control of the market. So, even of the conditions were not suitable from the financial perspective, this truth would certainly make a lot of profits for the company in the future.

    * Development of Markets: Two organizations get involved in mergers as they want to expand their market both on the domestic and the international level. Integration with a domestic company doesn’t need much effort but when a company merges internationally as in this case, a challenging task is on head. A thorough situation scanning is significant before putting your feet in International arena. Here, the competitor for HP was Compaq to a large degree, so this merger certainly required a lot of thinking. Organizations merge with the international companies in order to set up their brands first and let people know about what they are capable of and also what they eye in the future. This is the reason that after this merger the products of Compaq would also have the logo of HP. Once the market is well-known, then HP would not have to suffer the branding created by Compaq. They would be able to draw all the customers of Compaq as well.

    * Propagated Efficiencies: Any company by acquiring another or by merging makes an attempt to add to its efficiencies by increasing the operations and also having control over it to the maximum extent. We can see that HP would now have an increased set of employees. The only factor is that they would have to be controlled properly as they are of different organizational cultures. (Benefits of Mergers:, 2010)

    * Allowances to use more resources: An improvised organization of monetary resources, intellectual capital and raw materials offers a competitive advantage to the companies. When such companies merge, many of the intellects come together and work towards a common mission to excel with financial profits to the company. Here, one can’t deny the fact that even the top brains of Compaq would be taking part in forming the strategies of the company in the future.

    * Management of risks: If we particularly take an example of this case, HP and Compaq entering into this merger can decrease the risk level they would have diversified business opportunities. The options for making choice of the supply chain also increase. Now even though HP is a pioneer in inkjet orienting, it would not have to use the Product based Facility layout which is more expensive. It can manage the risk of taking process based facility layout and make things cheaper. Manufacturing and Processing can now be done in various nations according to the cost viability as the major issue.

    * Listing potential: Even though Wall Street and all the investors of the company are against the merger, when IPOs are offered, a development will definitely be there because of the flourishing earnings and turnover value which HP would be making with this merger.

    * Necessary political regulations: When organizations take a leap into other nations, they need to consider the different regulations in that country which administer the policies of the place. As HP is already a pioneer in all the countries that Compaq used to do its business, this would not be of much difficulty for the company. The company would only need to make certain minor regulations with the political parties of some countries where Compaq was flourishing more than HP.

    * Better Opportunities: When companies merge with another company, later they can put up for sale as per as the needs of the company. This could also be done partially. If HP feels that it would not need much of warehouse space it can sell the same at increased profits. It depends on whether the company would now be regarded a s a make to stock or a make to order company.

    * Extra products, services, and facilities: Services get copyrights which enhances the level of trade. Additional Warehouse services and distribution channels offer business values. Here HP can use all such values integrated with Compaq so as to increase its prospects. (Berry, 2010)

    Negative Aspects

    There are a number of mergers and acquisitions that fail before they actually start to function. In the critical phase of implementation itself, the companies come to know that it would not be beneficial if they continue as a merger. This can occur in this merger between HP and Compaq due to the following reasons.

    Conversations are not implemented: Because of unlike cultures, ambitions and risk profiles; many of the deals are cancelled. As per as the reactions of the owners of HP, this seems to be extremely likely. So, motivation amongst the employees is an extremely important consideration in this case. This requires an extra effort by the CEO, Fiorina. This could also help her maintain her position in the company.

    Legal Contemplations: Anti-competitive deals are often limited by the rules presiding over the competition rules in a country. This leads to out of order functioning of one company and they try to separate from each other. A lot of unnecessary marketing failures get attached to these conditions. If this happens in this case, then all that money which went in publicizing the venture would go to be a waste. Moreover, even more would be required to re-promote as a single entity. Even the packaging where the entire inventory from Compaq had the logo of HP would have to be re-done, thus hampering the finance even further. (Broc Romanek, 2002)

    Compatibility problems: Every company runs on different platforms and ideas. Compatibility problems often occur because of synchronization issues. In IT companies such as HP and Compaq, many problems can take place because both the companies have worked on different strategies in the past. Now, it might not seem necessary for the HP management to make changes as per as those from Compaq. Thus such problems have become of greatest concern these days.

    Fiscal catastrophes: Both the companies after signing an agreement hope to have some return on the money they have put in to make this merger happen and also desire profitability and turnovers. If due to any reason, they are not able to attain that position, then they develop a abhorrence sense towards each other and also start charging each other for the failure.

    Human Resource Differences: Problems as a result of cultural dissimilarities, hospitality and hostility issues, and also other behavior related issues can take apart the origin of the merger.

    Lack of Determination: When organizations involve, they have plans in their minds, they have a vision set; but because of a variety of problems as mentioned above, development of the combined company to accomplish its mission is delayed. Merged companies set the goal and when the goal is not accomplished due to some faults of any of the two; then both of them develop a certain degree of hatred for each other. Also clashes can occur because of bias reactions. (William, 2008)

    Risk management failure: Companies that are involved in mergers and acquisitions, become over confident that they are going to make a profit out of this decision. This can be seen as with Fiorina. In fact she can fight the whole world for that. When their self-confidence turns out into over-confidence then they fail. Adequate risk management methods should be adopted which would take care of the effects if the decision takes a downturn. These risk policies should rule fiscal, productions, marketing, manufacturing, and inventory and HR risks associated with the merger.

    Strategic Sharing

    Marketing

    Hp and Compaq would now have common channels as far as their buying is concerned. So, the benefits in this concern is that even for those materials which were initially of high cost for HP would now be available at a cheaper price. The end users are also likely to increase. Now, the company can re frame its competitive strategy where the greatest concern can be given to all time rivals IBM. The advantages of this merger in the field of marketing can be seen in the case of shared branding, sales and service. Even the distribution procedure is likely to be enhanced with Compaq playing its part. Now, the company can look forward to cross selling, subsidization and also a reduced cost.

    Operations

    The foremost advantage in this area is that in the location of raw material. Even the processing style would be same making the products and services synchronized with the ideas and also in making a decent operational strategy. As the philosophical and mechanical control would also be in common, the operational strategy would now be to become the top most in the market. In this respect, the two companies would now have co-production, design and also location of staff. So, the operational strategy of HP would now be to use the process based facility layout and function with the mentioned shared values.

    Technology

    The technical strategy of the company can also be designed in common now. There is a disadvantage from the perspective of the differentiation that HP had in the field of inkjet printers but the advantages are also plentiful. With a common product and process technology, the technological strategy of the merged company would promote highly economical functioning. This can be done through a common research and development and designing team.

    Buying

    The buying strategy of the company would also follow a common mechanism. Here, the raw materials, machinery, and power would be common hence decreasing the cost once again. This can be done through a centralized mechanism with a lead purchaser keeping common policies in mind. Now Hp would have to think with a similar attitude for both inkjet printers as well as personal computers. This is because the parameters for manufacturing would also run on equal grounds.

    Infrastructure

    This is the most important part of the strategies that would be made after the merger. The companies would have common shareholders for providing the requisite infrastructure. The capital source, management style, and legislation would also be in common. So, the infrastructure strategies would have to take these things into account. This can be done by having a common accounting system. HP does have an option to have a separate accounting system for the products that it manufactures but that would only arouse an internal competition. So, the infrastructural benefits can be made through a common accounting, legal and human resource system. This would ensure that the investment relations of the company would improve. None of the Compaq investors would hesitate in making an investment if HP follows a common strategy.

    HP would now have to ensure another fact that with this merger they would be able to prove competitors to the present target and those of competitors like IBM as well. Even the operations and the output market needs to be above what exists at present. The company needs to ensure that the corporate strategy that it uses is efficient enough to help such a future. The degree of diversification needs to be managed thoroughly as well. This is because; the products from the two companies have performed exceptionally well in the past. So, the most optimum degree of diversification is required under the context so that the company is able to meet the demands of the customers. This has been challenged by the owners of HP but needs to be carried by the CEO Fiorina. (Bhattacharya, 2010)

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    Source by Rohit Agrawal

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  • If You Want to Meet Japanese Women, Don’t Be a “Mama’s Boy”

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    Do some men really want a woman who reminds them of their mother?

    You know the type: “Mama’s boys” – the spoiled, pampered men who cannot seem to break away from their mothers. Don’t get me wrong, mothers are great – mine sure is – but there comes a point in your life when you have to grow up.

    Yet some Japanese men seem destined to be “Mama’s boys” for life. And why would they ever want to change? After all, for these men, their mothers have cooked their food, done their laundry, cleaned their rooms, and basically done everything for them their whole life. Who would want to give that up? So instead of growing up and learning to take care of themselves without Mom, they simply look for a woman who will do the same kinds of things for them.

    A friend of mine who was in a relationship with one of these mama’s boys saw the relationship end because her man’s mom did not think she (my friend) would make a proper wife, and since his mom did not approve, that was the end of the relationship. How crazy is that?

    Think of all the good women out there who are passed over because the man’s mom does not approve of her for some reason. Sometimes the man will never get married because his mom does not want to let them go, or because she thinks that no woman will ever be good enough for her precious son. So the man spends his life alone and in misery while his mom stays happy (and in control of his life). Men should always honor their mothers, but you shouldn’t sacrifice your entire life just to make your mother happy.

    After all, what kind of mother would want her son to give up his entire life and turn his back on romance, just because a woman does not meet up with her requirements? This is a selfish way for a mother to behave – if mothers really love their sons, they will raise them to be strong, independent, and able to build a life with a good woman. Instead of trying to rule and control her son’s romantic life, a mother should teach her son how to treat a woman properly so that he can go on to lead a productive and happy life.

    Yet some mothers have programmed their sons to the point that these poor men spend their entire life looking for a woman just like dear old Mom.

    Here is a news flash, mama’s boys: there is no other woman on Earth who is going to be just like your mother. If you want to have a real relationship with a woman – especially an independent, emotionally healthy woman – you need to let go of your maternal ties and find a way to stand on your own.

    Don’t you think it is kind of weird to want a woman like your mother anyway? I mean, imagine having sex with your mother! Not a pleasant thought. So why do you keep looking for a woman like your mother? Do you not want a woman who is her own person? After all, any good woman is going to run as far away from you as she can get if you keep comparing her to your mother.

    Being a mama’s boy might seem cute to a woman at first, but before long, any good woman is going to want a real man. Of course you want your mother and your wife to get along, but when you get married you need to always take the side of your wife, even to the point of defending her against your mother, if necessary. If you are not ready to let go of your mother and be a real man, then you probably are not ready for dating a real woman either.

    Some men who marry Japanese women – whether they’re “Mama’s boys” or not – might find that their mothers have concerns about whether the Japanese woman is going to “fit in” culturally with the rest of the family. For example, Japanese women might marry Indian men, Muslim men, African-American men, Jewish men – and sometimes parents from all of these cultures have their particular concerns about intermarriage. I’ve had some male Jewish friends who have married Japanese women, and it’s always interesting to me how often they’ve been able to persuade their Japanese brides to convert to Judaism – even though Japanese women are somewhat non-religious. (I think the men’s mothers might have something to do with influencing these Japanese women’s decisions.)

    Bottom line: no matter what culture you’re from or how intense of a “Mama’s boy” you are, when it comes time for you to find a woman (or many women!) to spend your life with, you need to do what is right for you. Ultimately, your mother will be happy for you.

    Have you known any “Mama’s boys” among your circle of male friends?

    Why do you think Japanese culture develops so many “Mama’s boys?”

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    Source by Xander S.

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  • Crossing the Mangrove by Maryse Conde

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    “Crossing the Mangrove,” by Maryse Conde is set in 1986 on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. The story is told through the eyes of the many inhabitants of the island who are uncomfortable with the arrival of a strange foreigner who has come to live amongst them. Francisco Alvarez-Sanchez mysterious story invokes themes of past and present Caribbean life and stories from the villagers are combined to connect the fascinating tale. The novel reflects the Creolite diversity of the inhabitants of Guadeloupe.

    In “Crossing the Mangrove,” several recurring themes prominent in Caribbean life are evident. Colonization and class perspective are amongst the more dominant themes. Guadeloupe was colonized by France in the 17th century and, like many Caribbean islands, Guadeloupe became a slave trading center. A story told by the strange recluse Xantippe shows how colonization ideals of the past are still present on the island today. As a young man Xantippe was happy go lucky. This gave the French ruled gendarmes (police) reason to interrogate him. They insinuated that he had enemies and burned his cabin down. Xantippe describes how he lost everything and his life was changed for the worse, forever. This activity is reminiscent of Cesaire’s equation: colonization = “thingification.”

    Class perspective exists on the island of Guadeloupe but to a lesser extent than in the previous novels. The Ramsaraz and Lameanes families are upscale. They own land for farming and flower nurseries. They have large houses and they drive French built Peugeots. Although a peasant and servant population exists it is not featured prominently in the novel. Instead, something of a middle class society comprises the majority class of the characters. Moise the mailman, Emile Etienne the historian, and Lucien Evarist the writer are amongst a cast of Francis middle class friends. But it is assumed that Francis belongs to the upper class due to his tales of travel and adventure, his ability to purchase the aging Alexis estate, and daily truck deliveries of household appliances such as a TV set, a refrigerator, a stereo set. The inhabitants of Riviere au Sel are envious of this and question his occupation and work ethic as a writer. They ask, “Was a writer a do-nothing, sitting in the shade for hours on his veranda, staring at the ridge of mountains for hours on end while the rest sweated it out under the Good Lords hot sun.” One must get the sense that the class perspective presented in “Crossing the Mangrove,” is a good representation of society in Guadeloupe today.

    Strong themes that are current to Guadeloupe society are that in a male dominated society women are forced into the practice of arranged marriages. But many of the women of Riviere au Sel have contempt toward their estranged husband’s and their fathers who make the unusual arrangements. Forced marriages are common and based in tradition in this island society but oddly enough explanations are not provided as to why a parent would want to marry off their young and attractive daughters to older men with dubious intentions. What is the motivation of the parents who take part in this practice? Yes, these men are wealthy and the young women will live in comfort, but are the parents receiving some compensation for their generous contribution to the men? The young women all seem to come from families that are well established. Do the parents take into consideration the trauma and unhappiness their daughters will suffer?

    In Riviere au Sel, Dinah’s father arranged for her to marry Loulou. Dinah was in favor of this but later became repulsed by her husband. Dinah said, “It’s been years since Loulou slept in my bed. Once darkness has fallen I lock my door and curl up like a fetus between my sheets.” Rosa, of Indian decent, is forced to marry Sylvester; the practice of arranged marriages is also common in India where a social caste system still exists. In her passage in the novel she wants it to be known that, “When they married me off to Sylvester Ramsaran, nobody asked for my opinion” and “Sylvester hurt me. He tore me.”

    Just as her Indian mother before her, Vilma’s marriage was to be arranged. Vilma’s father Sylvester, arranged for her to marry a man named Marins Vindrex. But Vilma revolted by running away from home saying, “Marins Vindrex. But I don’t love him.” In the ultimate act of vengeance against her father she took up with the hated Francis Sanchez. Now in a position to forever poison the appalling marriage to the dreadful Vindrex, she allowed herself to become impregnated by Francis. Sylvester is defenseless to act while the questionable motives of Francis intensify amongst the villagers of Riviere au Sel who are already suspicious of him.

    Conde connects the vinettes together in “Crossing the Mangrove,” by establishing the relationship each villager had with Francis Sanchez as the story progresses. Every member has a strong opinion or emotion about Francis. Some of those thoughts are positive and some are negative. Central to the story is the wake of Francis which is held in Riviere au Sel. It rains a lot in Riviere au Sel and on the Thursday afternoon of Francis wake, it was no different. The rain seemed to act on behave of Mother Nature in cleansing the congregation of friends, enemies, and former lovers who gathered to witness Francis swan song.

    Moise, the mailman is the first character that Conde provides us with insight into the relationship he had with Francis. Oddly enough there was some speculation in the community that there may be a homosexual relationship involving Moise and the great womanizer Francis Sanchez. “There were wicked sneers. There was something fishy about that friendship and the two men were Makoumeh! (Homosexuals). Adding even more to the oddity is the fact that many considered Moise a “Misgotten freak,” and ‘ugly.’ These allegations aside, the two were friends but the friendship was awkward and unusual. One moment we see Moise cradling Francis in his arms when something upset Francis. The next moment we see Francis accusing Moise of stealing money from his mysterious trunk.

    But Francis also had his enemies. Both Loulou Lameaulnes and Sylvester Ramsaran have similar reasons for despising Francis. Francis had sexual affairs with their daughters impregnating both of them. To these two men Francis was a villain for his indiscretions but in both cases it was the young women who approached Francis. Both women hated their fathers and hated the lives they led under their father’s roofs. Perhaps the fathers should have blamed themselves for forcing their daughters out of their arms and into the bed of Francis. Vilma and Mira both shared the same bed with Francis and both attended his wake. They did not speak to each other. Oddly, Loulou and Sylvester were also in attendance and both felt a strong sense that in Francis death justice had been served.

    The congregation exited the wake with the sober realization that they had just mourned for a man that they hardly knew. Francis had that ability. People were drawn to him but they didn’t know why. The novel ends with the inhabitants of Riviere au Sel raising the same ironic questions about Francis as when they had first laid eyes on him. “Who was Francis Sanchez? And subsequently, “Who was this man that chooses to die amongst us?

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    Source by Frank Cardello

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  • Insurable and Non-Insurable Risks

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    When we talk of insurance, we are referring to risks in all forms. Hence, having for an insurance policy is just a way of sharing our risks with other people with similar risks.

    However, while some risks can be insured (i.e. insurable risks), some cannot be insured according to their nature (i.e. non-insurable risks).

    Insurable Risks

    Insurable risks are the type of risks in which the insurer makes provision for or insures against because it is possible to collect, calculate and estimate the likely future losses. Insurable risks have previous statistics which are used as a basis for estimating the premium. It holds out the prospect of loss but not gain. The risks can be forecast and measured e.g. motor insurance, marine insurance, life insurance etc.

    This type of risk is the one in which the chance of occurrence can be deduced, from the available information on the frequency of similar past occurrence. Examples of what an insurable risk is as explained:

    Example1: The probability (or chance) that a certain vehicle will be involved in an accident in year 2011 (out of the total vehicle insured that year 2011) can be determined from the number of vehicles that were involved in accidents in each of some previous years (out of the total vehicle insured those years).

    Example2: The probability (or chance) that a man (or woman) of a certain age will die in the ensuring year can be estimated by the fraction of people of that age that died in each of some previous years.

    Non-insurable Risks

    Non-insurable risks are type of risks which the insurer is not ready to insure against simply because the likely future losses cannot be estimated and calculated. It holds the prospect of gain as well as loss. The risk cannot be forecast and measured.

    Example1: The chance that the demand for a commodity will fall next year due to a change in consumers’ taste will be difficult to estimate as previous statistics needed for it may not be available.

    Example 2: The chance that a present production technique will become obsolete or out-of-date by next year as a result of technological advancement.

    Other examples of non-insurable risks are:

    1. Acts of God: All risks involving natural disasters referred to as acts of God such as

    a. Earthquake

    b. War

    c. Flood

    It should be noted that any building, property or life insured but lost during an occurrence of any act of God (listed above) cannot be compensated by an insurer. Also, this non-insurability is being extended to those in connection with radioactive contamination.

    2. Gambling: You cannot insure your chances of losing a gambling game.

    3. Loss of profit through competition: You cannot insure your chances of winning or losing in a competition.

    4. Launching of new product: A manufacturer launching a new product cannot insure the chances of acceptability of the new product since it has not been market-tested.

    5. Loss incurred as a result of bad/inefficient management: The ability to successfully manage an organization depends on many factors and the profit/loss depends on the judicious utilization of these factors, one of which is efficient management capability. The expected loss in an organization as a result of inefficiency cannot be insured.

    6. Poor location of a business: A person situating a business in a poor location must know that the probability of its success is slim. Insuring such business is a sure way of duping an insurer.

    7. Loss of profit as a result of fall in demand: The demand for any product varies with time and other factors. An insurer will never insure based on expected loss due to decrease in demand.

    8. Speculation: This is the engagement in a venture offering the chance of considerable gain but the possibility of loss. A typical example is the action or practice of investing in stocks, property, etc., in the hope of profit from a rise or fall in market value but with the possibility of a loss. This cannot be insured because it is considered as a non-insurable risk.

    9. Opening of a new shop/office: The opening of a new shop is considered a non-insurable risk. You don’t know what to expect in the operation of the new shop; it is illogical for an insurer to accept in insuring a new shop for you.

    10. Change in fashion: Fashion is a trend which cannot be predicted. Any expected change in fashion cannot be insured. A fashion house cannot be insured because the components of the fashion house may become outdated at any point in time.

    11. Motoring offenses: You cannot obtain an insurance policy against expected fines for offenses committed while on wheels.

    However, it should be noted that there is no clear distinction between insurable and non-insurable risks. Theoretically, an insurance company should be ready to insure anything if a sufficiently high premium would be paid. Nevertheless, the distinction is useful for practical purposes.

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    Source by David Mog

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  • Renaissance and Neoclassical Historical Arts

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    Renaissance is a cultural movement that started in Europe during the early 14th to 17th century or a period between the Classical and Modern era. More than its cultural essence, the Renaissance period was known for its developments in art, painting, philosophy, architecture and other intellectual aspects. It was an era that witnessed the largest growth and development in Western Europe.

    A1. Renaissance art took its shape from the social conditions that existed at that time that carved Europe’s political structure. The cultural rarity of Italy existed, as there was no political form during the early modern period that resulted in artistic and academic advancements. This freedom opened gateways to trade and commerce across the globe that brought wealth in Italy through commissioning its artistic work.

    Renaissance artists looked for human emotions and realism in art. They focused on making human portrays with a natural background. They took the Humanism approach, placing more emphasis on man than god, which was reflected in their sculptures and paintings. The Early Renaissance period focused more on creating sculptures on the basis of personality and behavior, whereas the High Renaissance was more towards balance and drama. Renaissance artists were greatly inspired by Roman and Greek art that used nude human bodies of personality in their art. Their attempt to gain perfection in human arts for expression, personality, and emotions reduced social hierarchies in the status of people resulting in everybody wanting to learn and share their ideas and skills.

    A2. Neoclassicism was a predominant movement during the mid 18th century and the late 19th century in European art and architecture. It focused on the western classical art forms of ancient Greece and Rome. It was partly a movement that had initiated as a reaction to the Baroque and Rococo styles. It became a predominant part of academic art that continued into the 19th century to become visible as museums of neoclassical architecture.

    Neoclassical art aimed in reviving the European Age of Enlightenment that was the Greek and Roman classical art forms. It aimed to contain the ‘purity’ of Roman arts and criticized Baroque and Rococo styles. Neoclassicism gained importance in France and England spreading towards Sweden. It made use of the classical essence relating to courage and nationalism.

    Neoclassicism aimed to resurge classical styles through usage of sharp colors and classical subjects. They avoided light and soft colors in their paintings that depicted calmness and grandeur. Neoclassicists revived the Greek painting styles by using mosaics, columns, engravings and other ornamental elements in their work.

    A3. Renaissance signified the rebirth of arts, science, and medicine and was an era that was responsible for most radical developments and movements in Europe. So much so, that it is also used to describe other major cultural and historical moments. Classical Renaissance gave birth to the Baroque style that was more dramatic and direct. Therefore Neoclassicism was nothing but a reaction to the Baroque style so as to preserve the purity of ancient Roman arts. Moreover, neoclassicism remained one of the foremost in academic arts.

    A3a.

    • Renaissance period was known for its Humanist approach in art while neoclassical art focused on more classical and pure elements of style;
    • The Renaissance period brought about radical developments in arts, philosophy, and medicine while neoclassical art was foremost in academic arts;
    • Renaissance artists believed in more natural and expressive nude sculptures of art while neoclassical artists incorporated ornamental elements in their work;
    • The Renaissance period opened gateways to new ideas and developments, while the neoclassicism period focused on retaining the Age of Enlightenment.

    A3b. The Renaissance era was one of the most influential and flourishing period during the 15th and 16th centuries and gave birth to major cultural developments for almost three centuries. Renaissance art was born out of an evolving civilization whose quest for Realism and scientific perfection resulted in some of the greatest works and achievement in arts, science, architecture, and philosophy. The distinguishing feature of Renaissance art is its dedication to classical arts with a renewed interest in Roman styles that included naked human sculptures with no landscapes in a natural environment. It was an important era that brought wealth to Europe and its artistic freedom enabled skilled artisans to flourish.

    A3b1. Leonardo Da Vinci

    Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) was one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance period. Also known as the ‘Renaissance Man’, was born in Italy and was a renowned painter who became a polymath in many fields such as music, science, mathematics, and botany. He is considered as one of the greatest diversely talented persons to have lived. Mona Lisa is one of the most renowned works of his time that was greatly appreciated. The Mona Lisa is a 16th century half-length portrait that was made in oil and of a seated woman.

    Andrea Appiani (1754-1817) Born in Milan, was an Italian neoclassical painter. He trained under Carlo Maria Giudici and learnt painting by copying sculptures. His best works are in the church of San Maria presso San Celso and the royal palace at Milan. Among some of his works of oil paintings are Venus and Love, and Rinaldo in the garden of Armida.

    A3b2. Madame Hamelin (1776-1851) was one of the neoclassical painter Andrea Appiani’s work that bears a similar resemblance to Leonardo Da Vinci’s Monal Lisa. Both are half-length oil portraits of women who are half-seated that reflects the natural facial expressions wherein their hands are folders bearing similar artistic values and styles to one another.

    A3c. Neoclassicism reached its most influential period in arts during the 1780s to 1850s. New archeological discoveries and settings paved the way for classical themes that also resulted from the reaction of the Rococo styles. Neoclassicism retained its classical antiquity and co-existed with its much opposite form of Romanticism art. Artists of the neoclassical era replaced religious and mythological objects with realistic, simple, and bold ones. IN the 1830s, the Neoclassicism era was replaced by Romanticism.

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    Source by Shashank S

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  • The Science of Getting Rich, by Wallace Delois Wattles – Chapter 4

    The First Principle in The Science of Getting Rich.

    THOUGHT is the only power which can produce tangible riches from the Formless Substance. The stuff from which all things are made is a substance which thinks, and a thought of form in this substance produces the form.

    Original Substance moves according to its thoughts; every form and process you see in nature is the visible expression of a thought in Original Substance. As the Formless Stuff thinks of a form, it takes that form; as it thinks of a motion, it makes that motion. That is the way all things were created. We live in a thought world, which is part of a thought universe. The thought of a moving universe extended throughout Formless Substance, and the Thinking Stuff moving according to that thought, took the form of systems of planets, and maintains that form. Thinking Substance takes the form of its thought, and moves according to the thought. Holding the idea of a circling system of suns and worlds, it takes the form of these bodies, and moves them as it thinks. Thinking the form of a slow-growing oak tree, it moves accordingly, and produces the tree, though centuries may be required to do the work. In creating, the Formless seems to move according to the lines of motion it has established; the thought of an oak tree does not cause the instant formation of a full-grown tree, but it does start in motion the forces which will produce the tree, along established lines of growth.

    Every thought of form, held in thinking Substance, causes the creation of the form, but always, or at least generally, along lines of growth and action already established.

    The thought of a house of a certain construction, if it were impressed upon Formless Substance, might not cause the instant formation, of the house; but it would cause the turning of creative energies already working in trade and commerce into such channels as to result in the speedy building of the house. And if there were no existing channels through which the creative energy could work, then the house would be formed directly from primal substance, without waiting for the slow processes of the organic and inorganic world.

    No thought of form can be impressed upon Original Substance without causing the creation of the form.

    Man is a thinking center, and can originate thought. All the forms that man fashions with his hands must first exist in his thought; he cannot shape a thing until he has thought that thing.

    And so far man has confined his efforts wholly to the work of his hands; he has applied manual labor to the world of forms, seeking to change or modify those already existing. He has never thought of trying to cause the creation of new forms by impressing his thoughts upon Formless Substance.

    When man has a thought-form, he takes material from the forms of nature, and makes an image of the form which is in his mind. He has, so far, made little or no effort to co-operate with Formless Intelligence; to work “with the Father.” He has not dreamed that he can “do what he seeth the Father doing.” Man reshapes and modifies existing forms by manual labor; he has given no attention to the question whether he may not produce things from Formless Substance by communicating his thoughts to it. We propose to prove that he may do so; to prove that any man or woman may do so, and to show how. As our first step, we must lay down three fundamental propositions.

    First, we assert that there is one original formless stuff, or substance, from which all things are made. All the seemingly many elements are but different presentations of one element; all the many forms found in organic and inorganic nature are but different shapes, made from the same stuff. And this stuff is thinking stuff; a thought held in it produces the form of the thought. Thought, in thinking substance, produces shapes. Man is a thinking center, capable of original thought; if man can communicate his thought to original thinking substance, he can cause the creation, or formation, of the thing he thinks about. To summarize this:-

    There is a thinking stuff from which all things are made, and which, in its original state, permeates, penetrates, and fills the interspaces of the universe.

    A thought, in this substance, Produces the thing that is imaged by the thought.

    Man can form things in his thought, and, by impressing his thought upon formless substance, can cause the thing he thinks about to be created.

    It may be asked if I can prove these statements; and without going into details, I answer that I can do so, both by logic and experience.

    Reasoning back from the phenomena of form and thought, I come to one original thinking substance; and reasoning forward from this thinking substance, I come to man’s power to cause the formation of the thing he thinks about.

    And by experiment, I find the reasoning true; and this is my strongest proof.

    If one man who reads this book gets rich by doing what it tells him to do, that is evidence in support of my claim; but if every man who does what it tells him to do gets rich, that is positive proof until some one goes through the process and fails. The theory is true until the process fails; and this process will not fail, for every man who does exactly what this book tells him to do will get rich.

    I have said that men get rich by doing things in a Certain Way; and in order to do so, men must become able to think in a certain way.

    A man’s way of doing things is the direct result of the way he thinks about things.

    To do things in a way you want to do them, you will have to acquire the ability to think the way you want to think; this is the first step toward getting rich.

    To think what you want to think is to think TRUTH, regardless of appearances.

    Every man has the natural and inherent power to think what he wants to think, but it requires far more effort to do so than it does to think the thoughts which are suggested by appearances. To think according to appearance is easy; to think truth regardless of appearances is laborious, and requires the expenditure of more power than any other work man is called upon to perform.

    There is no labor from which most people shrink as they do from that of sustained and consecutive thought; it is the hardest work in the world. This is especially true when truth is contrary to appearances. Every appearance in the visible world tends to produce a corresponding form in the mind which observes it; and this can only be prevented by holding the thought of the TRUTH.

    To look upon the appearance of disease will produce the form of disease in your own mind, and ultimately in your body, unless you hold the thought of the truth, which is that there is no disease; it is only an appearance, and the reality is health.

    To look upon the appearances of poverty will produce corresponding forms in your own mind, unless you hold to the truth that there is no poverty; there is only abundance.

    To think health when surrounded by the appearances of disease, or to think riches when in the midst of appearances of poverty, requires power; but he who acquires this power becomes a MASTER MIND. He can conquer fate; he can have what he wants.

    This power can only be acquired by getting hold of the basic fact which is behind all appearances; and that fact is that there is one Thinking Substance, from which and by which all things are made.

    Then we must grasp the truth that every thought held in this substance becomes a form, and that man can so impress his thoughts upon it as to cause them to take form and become visible things.

    When we realize this, we lose all doubt and fear, for we know that we can create what we want to create; we can get what we want to have, and can become what we want to be. As a first step toward getting rich, you must believe the three fundamental statements given previously in this chapter; and in order to emphasize them. I repeat them here:-

    There is a thinking stuff from which all things are made, and which, in its original state, permeates, penetrates, and fills the interspaces of the universe.

    A thought, in this substance, Produces the thing that is imaged by the thought.

    Man can form things in his thought, and, by impressing his thought upon formless substance, can cause the thing he thinks about to be created.

    You must lay aside all other concepts of the universe than this monistic one; and you must dwell upon this until it is fixed in your mind, and has become your habitual thought. Read these creed statements over and over again; fix every word upon your memory, and meditate upon them until you firmly believe what they say. If a doubt comes to you, cast it aside as a sin. Do not listen to arguments against this idea; do not go to churches or lectures where a contrary concept of things is taught or preached. Do not read magazines or books which teach a different idea; if you get mixed up in your faith, all your efforts will be in vain.

    Do not ask why these things are true, nor speculate as to how they can be true; simply take them on trust.

    The science of getting rich begins with the absolute acceptance of this faith.

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  • The Science of Getting Rich, by Wallace Delois Wattles – Preface

    THIS book is pragmatical, not philosophical; a practical manual, not a treatise upon theories. It is intended for the men and women whose most pressing need is for money; who wish to get rich first, and philosophize afterward. It is for those who have, so far, found neither the time, the means, nor the opportunity to go deeply into the study of metaphysics, but who want results and who are willing to take the conclusions of science as a basis for action, without going into all the processes by which those conclusions were reached.

    It is expected that the reader will take the fundamental statements upon faith, just as he would take statements concerning a law of electrical action if they were promulgated by a Marconi or an Edison; and, taking the statements upon faith, that he will prove their truth by acting upon them without fear or hesitation. Every man or woman who does this will certainly get rich; for the science herein applied is an exact science, and failure is impossible. For the benefit, however, of those who wish to investigate philosophical theories and so secure a logical basis for faith, I will here cite certain authorities.

    The monistic theory of the universe the theory that One is All, and that All is One; That one Substance manifests itself as the seeming many elements of the material world -is of Hindu origin, and has been gradually winning its way into the thought of the western world for two hundred years. It is the foundation of all the Oriental philosophies, and of those of Descartes, Spinoza, Leibnitz, Schopenhauer, Hegel, and Emerson.

    The reader who would dig to the philosophical foundations of this is advised to read Hegel and Emerson for himself.

    In writing this book I have sacrificed all other considerations to plainness and simplicity of style, so that all might understand. The plan of action laid down herein was deduced from the conclusions of philosophy; it has been thoroughly tested, and bears the supreme test of practical experiment; it works. If you wish to know how the conclusions were arrived at, read the writings of the authors mentioned above; and if you wish to reap the fruits of their philosophies in actual practice, read this book and do exactly as it tells you to do.

    –The Author

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