How is the 'success' or 'effectiveness' of social movements best Essay

How is the 'success' or 'effectiveness' of social movements best evaluated Discuss with reference to the Chartist and women's s - Essay Example People were organising for purpose, as they had over time to mixed results. While mass social movement as power in numbers seemed a logical vehicle for political and societal change, these changes as desired did not come easily or necessarily in the forms intended by their proponents. Social Movements Come to the UK From the days in the early nineteenth century, when a popular coalition brought down the monarch of Charles V in the later part of the century, the tendency toward mass movements had been growing as a popular uprising of sorts against government power versus the rights of people. Reverberations from France’s ‘revolutionary propensities’ (Tilly, 2005: 285) had naturally spread to Great Britain, where politicians for good reason began to fret that similar actions would be forthcoming and disruptive. As early as 1830 Tilly (2005) reports incidences including the Duke of Wellington and the London Police receiving offensive shouts from onlookers regarding a current institution of martial law. ‘Chastened by the experience’ , (Tilly, 2005:287) Parliament introduced motions to limit the practice—a move immediately countered by Wellington. ... 1-2) describes the movement as ‘a radical campaign for parliamentary reform of inequities remaining after the [passage of] the Reform Act of 1832. The term ‘radical’ may be used advisedly, depending upon which class and social status of the day was describing the movement. The middle and upper classes found the Six Step demands of William Lovell’s â€Å"People’s Charter† a frightening threat to their hold over society, with its ‘radical list of: votes for all men; equal electoral districts; abolition of the requirement that Members of Parliament be property owners; payment for M.P.s; annual general elections; and the secret ballot. (Everett 1987: par. 1-2). A precursor to the Chartist movement, the London Working Men’s Association and other movement organisations had promoted equality for the working classes. By the mid-1800s, their leaders had determined that democracy and its practices was the only practicable route to social equ ality and justice. What they did not know, or realise was that those forces presenting themselves as democratic would work against such equality in ways that would undermine any movement’s attempt to rectify ills. By 1839 the Chartists had collected one and a quarter million signatures in support of the Charter which, in that same year, was summarily rejected by a vote of 235 to 46 by the middle and upper class dominated House of Commons. Discouraged and angered at the slight, many of the movement’s leaders threatened to call for a general nationwide strike and were soon arrested. Incensed, their supporters marched on the prison where their compatriots were being held and soldiers fired on them, killing twenty-four and wounding forty. A second petition with three million

Financial Performance of The BEST Pty Ltd Research Paper

Financial Performance of The BEST Pty Ltd - Research Paper Example The culprit can be seen to be the ballooning of expenses. It should be noted that depreciation and amortization registers 165% growth while other selling and administration expense records higher growth of 178%. To make matters worse, finance costs more than tripled at 355% from 2003 to 2007. Turning to the balance sheet accounts of the business organization, it should be noted that the mounting finance costs can be traced to the ballooning of assets which is unmatched by the growth in equity. This indicates that the company's acquisition of asset is financed by the more costly liabilities. Logically, when Best resort to its creditors to finance the acquisition of its assets, it incurs the obligation to pay interest at specific intervals thus boosting its finance cost. The company's cash account grew weakly at 18% during the seven-year period. Table 2 highlights the financial ratios of Best from 2003 to 2007 utilizing the selected data provided. In terms of profitability, the year 2007 saw a decline both in return to assets and return to ordinary shareholders. It should be noted that this decline indicates the company's inability to create net income which adds to shareholder wealth and value to its assets. From the high return of shareholder's equity ratio of .25 in 2006, this slumped to .12 in 2007 meaning that for every dollar invested in the company's stocks, a shareholder gets 12 cents in 2007 compared to the 25 cents in 2006. Asset turnover also declined from 0.53 to 0.47 signaling lower asset utilization and possibly an inability to maximize the company's resources. Profit margin ratio is also in decline from .18 to 0.09. The decrease in profitability ratios from the good performance in 2006 can be an indication of company's difficulty of providing profits to its stakeholders. Consistent with the observation above, the company's debt to asset ratio has steadily increased from 2003 to 2007. In fact, during 207 debts finance 65% of the company's assets leaving only 35% to Best's stockholders. Logically, this will mean that the company is paying off higher interest expenses which is also reflected in its dwindling times interest earned ratio. Conclusion The trend analysis and financial ratio analysis brings out problems in profitability together with the company's riskier resource structure which leads to mounting financial costs. It is recommended that the company particular focus in improving in these aspects through more efficient resource management and managing costs effectively. However, since the analysis is only grounded in the selected financial data at hand, it should also be stressed that it does not show the complete picture. For one, the performance of Best should be benchmarked with its competitors in order to know where it stands. The slower performance in 2007 could also be brought be external factors which are beyond the business organization. Thus, understanding the trends in the business environment will also be important as well. In assessing and evaluating the performance of a company, quantitative and qualitative information should always be utilized hand in hand.