Critical Perspectives on Accounting Essay Example for Free

Critical Perspectives on Accounting Essay In this article Marcus Milne provides critical overview and analysis of literature devoted to establishing evidence for positive accounting theory in regards of corporate social disclosure. The central argument of the paper is that positive accounting theorists are trying to colonize social and environmental accounting research. The present article is empirical research and the author employs qualitative and quantitative data to support the claim that positive accounting theory of social disclosure has failed in its endeavor. The author’s purpose is to challenge the perceptions of positive accounting theory and to illustrate why efforts of theorists to social and environmental accounting has failed. The author focuses on the original work of Watts and Zimmerman and tends to present their concern and ideas with the lobbying behavior observed in US oil companies. The companies were claimed to be monopolists and self-interested politicians that had pursued mainly wealth transfers in the form of taxes and other political costs. For them, social responsibility is passing remark. The article is useful to my research topic as Milne suggests that modern businesses and companies should be more concerned with social and environmental responsibility as our world’s resources are not unlimited. The main limitation of the article is that only one original work is incorporated – the article presents one viewpoint without presenting multiple views on the problem. The author indicates that literature on positive accounting theory has failed to provide arguments for self-interested managers’ wealth maximizes. The article will be useful supplementary information for my research on social and environmental responsibility.

Capital Punishment :: essays research papers

How often have we heard the statement â€Å"Two wrongs don’t make a right†? Yet, is this saying ever really applied to our lives? When do we ever turn the other cheek? As far as history is concerned, the human race has never felt the sting of a hand consecutively on both sides. Evidence to this can be found anywhere. Soldiers kill the enemy to win the war. Athletes become violent in order to obtain a trophy. And, in the judicial system, the ultimate crime of murder is dealt with the ultimate punishment of death. Yet, it poses the question does the end really justify the means? Can society’s practice of the death penalty be considered a moral disgrace? Justice is not without faults. Canadians Guy Paul Morin and David Milgaard were both wrongfully accused of murder. Both men spent many years serving out a penalty which should have never been bestowed upon them. Although, if the death penalty was common practice in Canada, these innocent victims may have been executed. They may have been killed. Murdered. All because of a guilty verdict and society’s desire to extinguish the flame of violence. The desire to have revenge. Yet, does the elimination of an offender bring back their victims or heal the wounds of the families? Should we consent to causing pain for another family by killing their child? If the offender was your child, would you want to watch them die? Of course, there is always the argument that the threat of death acts as a deterrent to threatening offenders. However, the claim that this act really does deter violent crime is inconclusive, not proven, and extremely difficult to disprove. For every set of statistics saying that it lowers the amount of violent crime, there is another to say it doesn’t and another that states it does both. Using such an ambiguous argument to support a controversial act is not only unacceptable, but it is irresponsible. If there is any validity to this argument, it is negated by the actual amount of time an offender spends on death row. Endless appeals, delays, technicalities, and retrials keep those condemned to death waiting for execution for years on end. If the majority of death row residents live to an old age anyway, why would anyone be afraid of capital punishment? It would be just as easy to sentence offenders to life of captivity and work in a prison.

Reminiscences of the Japanese Occupation

In his seventies, Mr Rajoo is my uncle. He showed great enthusiasm and related his experience in Tamil during the 3 hours interview. His accounts shed light on the ways how individuals inject meanings to a particular subject. Background Mr Rajoo was born in 1930. He was the second son in a family of 10 children. His family lived in a village in Sembawang which was near to one of the Naval Base which was owned by the British. When the Japanese invaded Singapore, Rajoo’s family staying in North of Singapore then they moved as far as Tampinese. His family used a bullock cart to transport some of their properties.They stayed away from their home for a year. Then they returned to their village. So he had a chance to witness the Japanese rule in other parts of Singapore as well as his own hometown. The Dark Years of Japanese Occupation The impending presence of the Japanese on Mr Rajoo’s daily life was felt as early as 1941. As a 11 years old boy, his family and he faced seve re shortage of food and other necessities like medical. ( Q1 ) When the British surrendered, they did not want Japanese to enjoy the fruit of their labour. All the rice in the warehouse was sprayed with limestone.As limestone is white, the Japanese did not suspect any foul play by the British . So those who ate the rice had diarrhea . Japanese took over much of the foodstuffs and other goods for the use of their army. Due to the food shortage, essential food stuffs like rice, salt and sugar were controlled. Ration cards which limited the amount of food for each person was given out. ( Q4 ) His family lived on a simple diet and found other food substitutes for those food items which were scarce. Tapioca and sweet potatoes were used as substitutes for rice ( Q3 ) and palm oil or coconut oil was used as cooking oil.Even in schools pupils grew and took care of the vegetable plots. This was the widespread situation in Singapore during the Syonan-To years. Many historians have written abo ut the food scarcity during the Syonan rule. There are a lot of evidence to state that during the Japanese rule, many people suffered from malnutrition and diseases as they did not have well balanced meal. Those taken as prisoners of war also suffered under the iron grip of the Japanese and many died out of malnutrition. Transport during the Japanese reignMr Rajoo recalls bicycles being widely used as mode of transport during the Japanese reign. (Q6) So much so that even after the Japanese surrender, Rajoo and the other villagers working in the Sembawang Shipyard used bicycles as mearns of transport to travel to work. Tri-shaw which consisted of a bicycle with a side-car attached for a fare-paying passenger replaced the former richshaw. He stated that the Japanese bicycles had only thin solid rubber tyres. He also recalls in the interview to have seen a lot of motorcars before the Japanese rule and not during the Syonan-To period.Some historians state that there must have been tens of thousands of vehicles, many new and the majority of the rest in good condition were used by the Japanese. These great fleet of transport fell to the Japanese as booty, when they captured Singapore. However, the lack of spare parts, or technical skill, or both, made the fleet diminish rapidly to a deplorable state so much so that it almost faded by the time the Japanese surrendered. Transport was a big problem for the local people tthroughout the Occupation. (1) The Japanese were in control of the world’s rubber and many oil fields. 2) They forced many motor vehicles to run on coal gases or inferior petrol made from vegetable sources. Public vehicles dwindled and cars ceased to be available for almost all other than Japanese. School Experiences Mr Rajoo recalled how he had to learn Japanese language in his school. He could still recall some Japanese sentences. ( Q5 ) It is remarkable to know that even after 60 years he is able to remember some Japanese sentences. (Q5) All t his had been instilled in the young minds at a very tender impressionable age to gain people’s allegiance .School children were taught to face the direction of Tokyo where the Japan Emperor resided and sing the Japanese Anthem. (Q5 ) So the Japanese tried to influence the school children to become patriotic towards Japan. This is another aspect of their rule where they tried out propagandas. Several historians have concurred the same evidence regarding the Japanese intention to remove the western influence and premote the Japanese culture and values. Japanese lessons were published in the newspapers and broadcast over the radio. In order to encourage people to learn the Japanese language, job privileges and extra allowances were given.Different methods were used to influence the minds of the people in Singapore. Radio stations were controlled by the Japanese and radio sets were sealed so that people could only listen to local broadcasts. Those caught tuning in to foreign broa dcasting stations were severely punished or killed. Through the interview, I realized that Rajoo’s family and the villagers also did not own any radios. They were afraid of being punished. Japanese – The Disciplinarians Tthroughout the Syonan-To rule, the people were constantly living in fear because the Japanese took harsh action to establish control over the people.Those caught looting were shot or beheaded and their heads were displayed at public places. Those who were passing by must witness such a scene if not they will be called back to look directly at the decapitated head. ( Q8 ) Barbed wire was also put up across roads to form roadblocks. The Japanese guards would make the people passing by to bow to them as a sign of respect. Anyone who did not do so would be slapped, killed or punished in some ways. When the children forget to show respect to the Japanese soldiers, these soldiers will use their knuckles to hit on the children’s forehead .Those sthrong men found at home not working will be immediately sent to work. ( Q8 ) Those who were sick should still report to work. They despised men idling. The Japanese Treatment of the 3 main races in Singapore According Mr Rajoo the Chinese suffered the most during the Japanese Occupation. Many Chinese in Singapore had sent money to help China fight Japan. So the Japanese wanted to weed out the anti-Japanese sentiment among the population. They carried out the Sook Ching Operation. They ordered all Chinese men between 18 to 50 years of age to report at the mass screening centers. Then the men will be questioned.The Japanese, however, had no proper way of finding out who were against them. Those who the Japanese thought were against them were taken away in lorries. Thousands of Chinese were taken in this way to Changi Beach or other beaches where they were shot. ( Q7 ) Some Chinese who very desperate to save their lives disguised themselves as Indians or Malays to avoid the scrutiny of the Japanese soldiers. Mr Rajoo recalled that Japanese were not overly suspicious of Indians nor the Malays. However, anybody who were thought to have acted against the Japanese interest were severely dealt with.They will be either punished or killed. (Q7) Japanese role in instigating nationalistic feeling According to Mr Rajoo, the Japanese associated Indians in Singapore with Gandhi and his movement in India. Gandhi was fighting for India’s freedom from the British Colonial power. Japanese told the Indians in Singapore that Japan would help India to get rid of the British rulers. They also wanted all Indians to join the Indian National Army to fight the British in India. Subhas Chandra Bose, the founder of INA was allowed to come to Singapore to collect funds for his establishment.Historical facts also seemed to prove the relevance of his statement. From the interview, Mr Rajoo didn’t portray as someone anti-Japanese. Probably his family and he did not really undergo muc h torture by the Japanese. He definitely seemed to have welcomed the Japanese for one reason. The Light of the South From the interview one would deduce that Mr Rajoo sthrongly feels that the Japanese brought on the nationalistic fervor among the citizens. ( Q9 ) Nationalistic feeling caught onto some people like the forest fire and the thirst for independence was ignited due to Syonan-To.

Complications, Complication Rates, And 90 Day Readmission...

Abstract With the recent focus on dramatic cuts and escalating healthcare costs in the United States, a new center of attention has been placed upon postoperative readmission and reimbursement. Although sacral fractures constitute a large component of all pelvic fractures, there is relatively little data investigating differences in the postoperative length of stay (LOS), the complication rates, and the 90-day readmissions for these patients. The purpose of this paper was to investigate differences in postoperative length of stay, complication rates, and 90-day readmission rates for patients with operative isolated sacral fractures. All patients who presented to a large tertiary care center with isolated sacral fractures in an 11 year†¦show more content†¦This significant difference in LOS between ORIF vs. percutaneous fixation of sacral injuries leading to an average difference of $13,590 in average inpatient cost highlights predicative information to potentially reduce perioperati ve costs related to sacral fractures for orthopaedic surgeons. INTRODUCTION 45% of all pelvic fractures are sacral injuries [1]. They can occur in high energy collisions, with motor vehicle accidents making up 57% of these crush injuries [2]. Traumatic force can lead to compression, which then precipitates neurological complications [3]. For this reason, these fractures are musculoskeletal injuries requiring emergent action at trauma centers to reduce the risk of complications. While open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) methods permits direct visualization of the injured pelvis, there are highly variable wound complication rates ranging from 3.9% to 27% [4]. Critics of ORIF are concerned about the extremely high risk of infection post-operatively, which can increase from 18% to 27% for fractures treated early and late, respectively [5]. It is reasonable to consider a more minimally invasive technique such as percutaneous fixation, which uses screws to mechanically stabilize an unstable sacrum [6]. Percutaneous fixation with iliosacral screws, for example, have led to decreases in surgical time, exposure related hazards, and soft-tissue disruption [7]. With the recent focus on dramatic cuts and