Friday, May 31, 2019

Sassouma Berete and Sogolon Kedjou in The Epic of Sundiata Essay

Mothers play a very influential role in a juvenile mans life. Even though Sogolon Kedjou and Sassouma Brt both had an impact on in that location sons life, their character traits were at different ends of the maternal spectrum. Despite fiddling similarities Sogolon Kedjou and Sassouma Brt were depicted in direct contrast in the epic Sundiata.When comparing the two Sogolon Kedjou and Sassouma Berete both did what they thought would help to fall their sons to become king. Sogolon knew everything that Sassouma was capable of doing to hurt her family, so she came up with the idea to leave the kingdom. Soglon said, Lets us leave my son (113). She thought this would be the best thing to do for all her children so she could keep them alive. Despairing of ever injuring you, Sassouma will aim her blows at your brother or sister(115). Although it was Sundiatas destiny to become king there was no set time placed on when this would occur. Therefore traveling to different kingdoms gav e them time, and allowed for the fulfillment of not only Sundiatas destiny, but the destiny of his sibling too. Sassouma on the other hand wanted her son Dankaran to reign as the king of Mali after his father passed away. Sassouma knew her late husband would not pass the throne to her son, so she decided to banish Sogolon and her family to the backyard. Sassouma thought this would help her sons path to becoming the next king of Mali. She thought Sundiata was competition and a distraction to her son, so she wanted him dead. I want to kill Sundiata. His destiny runs counter to my sons and he must be killed while there is still time (115).Although Sogolon and Sassouma Berete were both wives and mothers, Sogolon was portrayed as a good mother... ... to mine (111). From this quote, it clearly shows how much arrogance and vanity the queen really had. In contrast to this, and despite the intense humiliation that she went through, Sogolon humbly left(a) Sassoumas home with a lump in her throat.(111) She never talked back to Sassouma, and she would never let Sassouma see her cry. Since Sogolon and Sundiata let his fait play out, they ended up on top. Sundiata takes his rightful(prenominal) place and becomes the king of Mail which he was born to lead. In conclusion, despite minuscule similarities Sogolon Kendjou and Sassouma Berete were depicted in direct contrast in the epic Sundiata. It is lucid that, despite the fact that both queens wanted the best for their sons, their characters and methods were different. Since they were so different it influenced not only Sundiata and Dankaran but all of the kings children.

Thursday, May 30, 2019

Microsoft As A Monopoly :: Economics

Since the early 1990s, the coupled States government and the Microsoft Corporation have ensued upon a battle in the unify States courts. The main issue at hand is ultimately money, but one more importantly, the supposed Microsoft Monopoly. The federal government maintains that Microsofts monopolistic practices are detrimental to United States citizens, creating higher prices and potentially downgrading software quality, and should therefore be stopped. Microsoft and its supporters claim that they are not breaking any laws and they are just doing what they do making money and providing a service. The only thing Microsoft is guilty of is taking advantage of free enterprise. There have been many arguments and issues that have been raised with the argument over Microsoft and the U.S. Department of Justices claim against Microsoft of monopolistic practices in bundling its internet browser Internet Explorer into its popular Windows computer operational system. By doing this, Microsoft would effectively crush its competitors and acquire a monopoly over the software that people use to access the Internet.Sherman Anti-trust Act was passed in 1890. The Sherman Act says Every contract, conclave in the form of trust or otherwise, or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, is declared to be illegal. The Sherman Act similarly provided for Every person who shall monopolize, or attempt to monopolize, or combine or conspire with any other person or persons, to monopolize any part of the trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, shall be deemed guilty of a felony. The Sherman Act put the responsibility in the hands of the government to investigate and prosecute those suspected to be guilty of this crime. In 1914, the Clayton Act was passed in conjunction with the Sherman Anti-trust Act to assist with anti-trust cases. The Clayton Act veto price discrimination between different pur chasers if such discrimination substantially lessens competition or tends to create a monopoly ion any line of commerce. The Act overly prohibits sales on the condition that the buyer or leaser not deal with the competitors of the seller or lesser exclusive dealings, or that the buyer also purchases another different product, but only when these acts substantially lessen competition. Mergers and acquisitions where the effect may substantially lessen competition are prohibited also by the act. The last prohibition of the act is that no person can be the director of two or more competing corporations.

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

The Beneficial Uses of Hemp :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Beneficial Uses of hempFollowing my fathers death, I felt there was some unfinished business that we had not discussed. I searched to find some of my fathers thoughts and feeling that I could justify our relationship by. Ironically, I came across a manila envelope, which had contained some of his prized possessions. As I searched through it, I developed a new opinion of the bio mass plant called Hemp. There were articles showing a hemp bills being passed and farmers wanting to cultivate it at bottom Delta County. There was also a book called The Emperor Wears No Clothes. It was a book stating compelling facts about the miracle crop Hemp. An article struck me. It told of, Woody Harrison, a well-known actor stating, He would pick up the tab for Colorados first hemp crop if state legislators approve the crop. He also stated that you could peck a pound of it and not get high. (Rice)In addition 4.6 million members of the American Farm Bureau Federation support Hemp 100 percent. He mp could be the most abundant natural resource, it can replace 80% of our fossil fuels, and be used for many major medicinal purposes (Kriho). It is essential that we diaphragm the use of all fossil fuels, and deforestation to save Mother Earth. This can be accomplished with the cannabis plant hemp seizing pollution and tolerate the world with more than enough of its energy needs.According to Jack Herer, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, were not only the founders of our country, but also the first growers of cannabis in America. In addition, Benjamin Franklin started the first paper mill, which made it possible to make their own books. Growing this crop was not uncommon at this day and time. In the census of 1850, 8,327 crops were established and each measured at least 2000 acres each, this commodity was found in the South. Its uses varied from rope to medicinal remedies. There has neer been one reported death from the use of hemp extract. Here is a chart to let you in on some astonishing information (Hager). tobacco plant 340,000 to 450,000 ALCOHOL (Not including 50% of all highway deaths and 65% of all murders) 150,000+ ASPIRIN (Including deliberate overdose) 180 to 1,000+ CAFFEINE (From stress, ulcers, and triggering irregular heartbeats, etc.) 1,000 to 10,000 LEGAL DRUG OVERDOSE (Deliberate or accidental) from legal, prescribed or patent medicines and/or mixing with alcohol - e.

The Scarlet Letter - The Letter of a Thousand Words :: Scarlet Letter essays

The Scarlet Letter - The Letter of a Thousand Words The Scarlet Letter deals with the theme of sin. Throughout history, masses have committed every types of sins, and whether they are major or minor, people have been punished. However the severity of a punishment is very difficult to agree on. Some people timbre that sinners should be deeply punished no matter how little the wrongdoing was. Others feel that a persons punishment should be based upon the severity of their crime. What many people overlook is the fact that in time, we all have committed sins. That is the case with the three main characters from the Scarlet Letter. Even though they were all different on the outside, inside they all share a certain feeling of sin and guilt. So when I think of Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth, I think heavily upon the feelings that they all shared together, which were sin and guilt. This novel was brought about from one mistake that a young, beautiful woman made. Her e she was sent over to Boston without her husband, and many years later on still hasnt shown up. She doesnt grapple if he is alive or died at sea. In the meantime, she got acquainted with Reverend Dimmesdale. Between the two of them, Hester bears a child and that child is the accompaniment proof, and a constant reminder that Hester has committed a sin. So the townspeople made Hester wear the letter A on her chest and made her deliver on a scaffold in front of the town to display her shame. So everywhere she went she had to carry that guilt with her. In the meantime Chillingworth shows up and demands to know whom the father of Pearl is. Hester will not tell him so he constantly batters her but Hester keeps her strength and refuses each time. Which isnt so easy because she has to face him everyday. Dimmesdale is near likely the worst sinner of all. His sin was that he was Hesters partner, which was Pearls father. Since he was a coward, he didnt have the guts to admit it to the public. He didnt want to lose the publics hope and his popularity that he had from his congregation.

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Television Soaps: The Cultural Construction of Gender and Representation :: essays research papers

Television Soaps The heathen Construction of Gender and RepresentationSoaps but more importantly medication pictures can be said to broadcast thecultural construction of grammatical gender and theatricals of identity. The videosuggests a set of images to the viewer and usually these ar a blurring ofgender and identity. Music videos predicate on the representation of femalegender experience. The two interconnected sign systems- access signs anddiscovery signs- will be discussed. Music clips that will be focused on areMadonnas Burning Up, Express Yourself, and Justify My Love. The singer,who has been tagged Our Lady of MTV, has an amazing video appeal due to herplay with gender and identity. No other single workman has produced as manymixed images as she has.Television soaps tend not to interrogate the construction of gender and therepresentation of identity. They do not seem to bumble any boundaries. Peoplewatch soaps to slack off and somehow relate, so if they were to exper iment with thetheatre of gender, it may be seen as a threat to viewers. Soapies usually lay downthe males in typically male dominate occupations such as doctors, car salesmenand chefs. Women in soaps are usually secretaries or housewives. There doesnot seem to be any attempt for a switching of roles. Females are feminine, malesmasculine. There has been one exception, which was Kylie Minogues character,Charlene, on Neighbours. She was a mechanic and tomboy. This is one of the fewoccasions where a soap has interrogated the cultural construction of gender andrepresentation of identity.A music video is footage that accompanies a song. They can have astoryline related to the song, displays of images or simply focusing on theartist/s performing. Music video is forever crossing the lines of gender andidentity. It is able to do this as it is seen as a form of art, therefore thereis no threat to viewers. It is ironic that Boy George has said that video wasthe worst thing to happen to musi c, when he himself looked and acted similar hewas crossing the lines of gender and boundaries substantiate in the 1980s. Madonna ismost famous for creating videos with no boundaries for gender or identity. Mostof the time, she deliberately plays with surfaces and masks. Madonna visualstyle engages and hyperbolises the discourse of femininity- she has bleached blur with dark roots, street smart image yet glamorous. Gender play is the mixand match of styles that flirt with the signifiers of versed difference, andMadonna is always doing that. The three music videos of Madonna to be analysedTelevision Soaps The Cultural Construction of Gender and Representation essays research papers Television Soaps The Cultural Construction of Gender and RepresentationSoaps but more importantly music videos can be said to interrogate thecultural construction of gender and representations of identity. The videosuggests a set of images to the viewer and usually these are a blurring ofgender and i dentity. Music videos predicate on the representation of femalegender experience. The two interrelated sign systems- access signs anddiscovery signs- will be discussed. Music clips that will be focused on areMadonnas Burning Up, Express Yourself, and Justify My Love. The singer,who has been labelled Our Lady of MTV, has an amazing video appeal due to herplay with gender and identity. No other single artist has produced as manymixed images as she has.Television soaps tend not to interrogate the construction of gender and therepresentation of identity. They do not seem to cross any boundaries. Peoplewatch soaps to relax and somehow relate, so if they were to experiment with thetheatre of gender, it may be seen as a threat to viewers. Soapies usually havethe males in typically male dominated occupations such as doctors, car salesmenand chefs. Women in soaps are usually secretaries or housewives. There doesnot seem to be any attempt for a switch of roles. Females are feminine, malesmasc uline. There has been one exception, which was Kylie Minogues character,Charlene, on Neighbours. She was a mechanic and tomboy. This is one of the fewoccasions where a soap has interrogated the cultural construction of gender andrepresentation of identity.A music video is footage that accompanies a song. They can have astoryline related to the song, displays of images or simply focusing on theartist/s performing. Music video is forever crossing the lines of gender andidentity. It is able to do this as it is seen as a form of art, therefore thereis no threat to viewers. It is ironic that Boy George has said that video wasthe worst thing to happen to music, when he himself looked and acted like hewas crossing the lines of gender and boundaries back in the 1980s. Madonna ismost famous for creating videos with no boundaries for gender or identity. Mostof the time, she deliberately plays with surfaces and masks. Madonna visualstyle engages and hyperbolises the discourse of femininity- sh e has bleachedhair with dark roots, street smart image yet glamorous. Gender play is the mixand match of styles that flirt with the signifiers of sexual difference, andMadonna is always doing that. The three music videos of Madonna to be analysed

Television Soaps: The Cultural Construction of Gender and Representation :: essays research papers

Television Soaps The Cultural Construction of sex activity and RepresentationSoaps but more importantly music videos give the gate be say to interrogate thecultural construction of sex and representations of identity. The videosuggests a set of images to the viewer and unremarkably these are a blurring of sexual urge and identity. melody videos predicate on the representation of femalegender experience. The two inter connect sign systems- access signs anddiscovery signs- will be discussed. Music clips that will be focused on arebloody shames Burning Up, Express Yourself, and Justify My Love. The singer,who has been labelled Our Lady of MTV, has an amazing video appeal due to her tend with gender and identity. No other integrity artist has produced as manymixed images as she has.Television soaps tend not to interrogate the construction of gender and therepresentation of identity. They do not wait to cross any boundaries. Peoplewatch soaps to relax and somehow relate, so if they were to experiment with thetheatre of gender, it may be seen as a threat to viewers. Soapies unremarkably havethe males in typically male dominated occupations such as doctors, car salesmenand chefs. Women in soaps are usually secretaries or housewives. There doesnot look to be any attempt for a switch of roles. Females are feminine, malesmasculine. There has been one exception, which was Kylie Minogues character,Charlene, on Neighbours. She was a mechanic and tomboy. This is one of the few make where a soap has interrogated the cultural construction of gender andrepresentation of identity.A music video is footage that accompanies a song. They can have astoryline related to the song, displays of images or simply focusing on theartist/s performing. Music video is forever crossing the lines of gender andidentity. It is able to do this as it is seen as a form of art, therefore thereis no threat to viewers. It is ironic that Boy George has said that video wasthe defeat thing to happen to music, when he himself looked and acted like hewas crossing the lines of gender and boundaries back in the 1980s. Madonna ismost famous for creating videos with no boundaries for gender or identity. Mostof the time, she deliberately plays with surfaces and masks. Madonna visualstyle engages and hyperbolises the discourse of femininity- she has bleachedhair with dark roots, street smart image yet glamorous. sexual activity play is the mixand match of styles that wager with the signifiers of sexual difference, andMadonna is always doing that. The three music videos of Madonna to be analysedTelevision Soaps The Cultural Construction of Gender and Representation essays research papers Television Soaps The Cultural Construction of Gender and RepresentationSoaps but more importantly music videos can be said to interrogate thecultural construction of gender and representations of identity. The videosuggests a set of images to the viewer and usually these are a blurring ofgen der and identity. Music videos predicate on the representation of femalegender experience. The two interrelated sign systems- access signs anddiscovery signs- will be discussed. Music clips that will be focused on areMadonnas Burning Up, Express Yourself, and Justify My Love. The singer,who has been labelled Our Lady of MTV, has an amazing video appeal due to herplay with gender and identity. No other single artist has produced as manymixed images as she has.Television soaps tend not to interrogate the construction of gender and therepresentation of identity. They do not seem to cross any boundaries. Peoplewatch soaps to relax and somehow relate, so if they were to experiment with thetheatre of gender, it may be seen as a threat to viewers. Soapies usually havethe males in typically male dominated occupations such as doctors, car salesmenand chefs. Women in soaps are usually secretaries or housewives. There doesnot seem to be any attempt for a switch of roles. Females are feminine, malesmasculine. There has been one exception, which was Kylie Minogues character,Charlene, on Neighbours. She was a mechanic and tomboy. This is one of the fewoccasions where a soap has interrogated the cultural construction of gender andrepresentation of identity.A music video is footage that accompanies a song. They can have astoryline related to the song, displays of images or simply focusing on theartist/s performing. Music video is forever crossing the lines of gender andidentity. It is able to do this as it is seen as a form of art, therefore thereis no threat to viewers. It is ironic that Boy George has said that video wasthe worst thing to happen to music, when he himself looked and acted like hewas crossing the lines of gender and boundaries back in the 1980s. Madonna ismost famous for creating videos with no boundaries for gender or identity. Mostof the time, she deliberately plays with surfaces and masks. Madonna visualstyle engages and hyperbolises the discourse of femin inity- she has bleachedhair with dark roots, street smart image yet glamorous. Gender play is the mixand match of styles that flirt with the signifiers of sexual difference, andMadonna is always doing that. The three music videos of Madonna to be analysed

Monday, May 27, 2019

A Critical Analysis of the Procurement Policy for a Local Government

Executive SummaryThis paper analyses the recent changes to the procural dodging of Leeds urban center Council and how such changes are comparable to the procural dodge of Staffordshire County Council. Important parameters of the procural strategy of Leeds metropolis Council are discussed, such as social class management, whole lifecycle apostrophize, skills and energy of procurance professionals, and openness and transparency. These dimensions are compared to the principles and objectives listed in Staffordshire County Councils procurement strategy. In addition, the paper provides recommendations to improve procurement practices available at Leeds City Council. Eventu aloney, a loving specification sheet is provided to invite bids from private players to run the woodhouse car park in front of the University. Key performance index numbers to evaluate tenders are included.IntroductionLeeds City Council has made certain changes to its procurement strategy recently. The council emphasised specific elements indicating the grandeur placed on ensuring high character procurement services. Such elements refer to category management, whole lifecycle approach, skills and capacity of procurement professionals, and openness and transparency (Leeds City Council procurance dodging 2013). These dimensions are similar to the principles and objectives delimitate in Staffordshire County Councils procurement strategy. Therefore, the exercise of this paper is to analyse the recent changes to the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council and how they compare to Staffordshire County Councils procurement strategy.Leeds City Councils procural dodge Compared to the Procurement schema of Staffordshire County CouncilLeeds City Council demonstrates a primary objective to improve outcomes and value for money obtained from a wide range of goods and services it purchases. Therefore, the councils procurement strategy is found on essential principles to include whole lifecycl e approach, accountability to the mankind, openness and transparency (Hawkins et al. 2011). The strategy indicates the councils concerns to rely on expertise in the force field as well as utilise relevant examples of adequate practices maintained at local and national levels. The common expectation presented with the enforcement of the councils new strategy is to come across its full potential within two years. The council extensively supports not only its ambitions but also the ambitions of its partners in the process of delivering quality outcomes for service users (Leeds City Council Procurement Strategy 2013). A relevant part of Leeds City Councils procurement strategy is the adoption of a category management approach, where procurement professionals tend to grouping together related purchasing. Such approach is entirely focused on exploring variances in buying needs and provider offerings (Iyer and Pazgal 2008). In this way, the council is concerned with maintaining high q uality of services along with nest egg. Similarly, the procurement strategy of Staffordshire County Council presents diverse orientation in terms of proper identification of the goods and services purchased by activity and function. Staffordshire County Council also states the brilliance of achieving value for money.Another recent change to the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council is associated with the adoption of a whole lifecycle approach. It is essential to point out that such approach starts from ongoing evaluation of buying needs as well as analysing different options. In fact, the mentioned approach receives optimal application by careful prep and procurement (Niezen and Weller 2006). Mobilising the councils resources is a significant precession to the professionals responsible for the implementation of the procurement strategy. Such principle corresponds to Staffordshire County Councils strategy of relying on the voice of all people of Staffordshire on specific is sues that matter to them (Staffordshire County Council 2014). This shows a strong sense of collaboration with residents and communities in coiffure to identify proper solutions to any emerging problems. Staffordshire County Council places importance on leading and influencing as well as sharing knowledge with representatives from the public sector in Staffordshire (Kennekae 2012). Early engagement is crucial in maintaining savings and improvements that further reflect in transformational changes in the councils procurement strategy. The whole lifecycle approach adopted by Leeds City Council regarding its procurement strategy assumes that service speech communication should not be compromised. Other significant dimensions of this approach relate to contact management and exit which contribute to achieving extensive value for many.In addition, the recent changes ascertained in the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council and that of Staffordshire County Council reflect the importa nce of the skills and capacity of procurement professionals. They are mostly responsible for ensuring the maintenance of a relevant procurement process based on supporting the councils business continuity needs (Niezen and Weller 2006). The latter is extensively manifested in the procurement strategy of Staffordshire County Council. Procurement professionals anatomical structure arrangements with key providers in an attempt to manage the risks pertaining to the process of supplying goods and services. Thus, professionals in the respective field are judge to set high quality processes through cross-functional strategic activities that are evident in both Leeds City Council and Staffordshire County Council (Loppacher et al. 2006). Leeds City Councils procurement strategy considers the significance of employing common principles and rules which are properly knowing to correspond to the needs of all included categories. Emphasis is on reflecting the needs of the specific service area s along with stakeholder needs. This recent change in the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council is in line with ensuring quality outcomes (Leeds City Council Procurement Strategy 2013). Such procurement strategy is comparable to the one of Staffordshire County Council due to the process of reorient delivery of goods and services with the corporate needs identified by Staffordshire County Council (Staffordshire County Council 2014). The respective council utilises the expertise of procurement professionals to ensure social values outcomes as well as sufficient savings achieved through a balanced scorecard used for procurement.The focus on the skills and capacity of procurement professionals is among the improved areas of Leeds City Councils procurement strategy. Having skilled and experienced staff is weighty in delivering high quality outcomes to local communities. Moreover, Leeds City Council manifests its responsibility to support the development and training of procurement professionals in order to maintain high standards across the profession (Loppacher et al. 2006). There is a solid sense of accountability evident in the practice of each procurement professional operative at Leeds City Council. In comparison, Staffordshire County Council emphasises the capacity of its procurement staff in terms of providing legal training packages. This indicates an ongoing process of create the knowledge and expertise of all professionals involved in the procurement practice (Arora et al. 2007). In this way, procurement professionals can work together with other experts in the field to implement the specific objectives listed in the procurement strategy of both Leeds City Council and Staffordshire County Council.One of the observable recent changes in the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council is that the commutation procurement function is projected to serve as a flexible source of excellence and thus is accountable for providing a substantial source of exp ertise. Procurement professionals working in Leeds City Council and Staffordshire County Council are extensively trained to demonstrate ownership and accountability to the public in their respective communities (Kennekae 2012). Elements of structured governance and impudence make Leeds City Councils procurement strategy rather effective. However, the procurement strategy of Staffordshire County Council is oriented towards indicating a customer of choice model of delivering services. This implies that procurement professionals working in Staffordshire County Council are responsible for the creation of greater visibility of the councils requirements for goods, services and provider performance (Staffordshire County Council 2014). Therefore, professionals are determined to ensure proper communications and organising skills that help them in the establishment and implementation of linkage. Similarly, procurement professionals in Leeds City Council are devoted to research good practice documents and toolkits while trying to repay their skills and capacity.Furthermore, the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council is comparable to the one of Staffordshire County Council in the aspect of openness and transparency. Both councils indicate an ambition of being open and transparent which reflects in providing visible contracts as well as constantly updated management information (Kim and Netessine 2012). Leeds City Council places importance on presenting clear and accessible tender processes and documentation. Openness and transparency ensure the formation of a positive relationship between the council and its procurement partners. Likewise, such aspects are closely linked with instilling confidence in the public regarding the adopted procurement approach (McLean 2008). In comparison, the procurement strategy implemented by Staffordshire County Council indicates its staffs commitment to ensure compliance and probity which whitethorn be associated with the principles o f openness and transparency manifested by Leeds City Council.RecommendationsThe recent changes to the procurement strategy of Leeds City Council indicate that the respective councils approach is comparable to the strategy of Staffordshire County Council. Yet certain recommendations are listed below to achieve further improvements in Leeds City Councils procurement strategyProcurement professionals should work on creating an inclusive procurement strategy in which smaller providers are presented with an opportunity to participate (McLean 2008) The council should constantly research and update its available procurement tools to guarantee competitively accomplished standards in the field The council should consider the removal of unnecessary restrictions which would allow the institution to evaluate suppliers in an objective manner rather than focus on qualifying business criteria such as revenue (Loppacher et al. 2006) Professionals need to demonstrate sensitivity to financing issue s to include established payment policies It is cardinal to indicate potential cabalistic costs in terms of providing clear information on the actual insurance, liability as well as regulatory requirements this practice would allow ripe suppliers to compete (Hawkins et al. 2011) ConclusionThe paper indicated an analysis of Leeds City Councils procurement strategy with special focus on its recent changes and how they are comparable to the procurement strategy outlined by Staffordshire County Council (Leeds City Council Procurement Strategy 2013). Thus, significant aspects of both procurement strategies have been discussed in order to identify the focus of procurement professionals working in the two councils. Certain aspects of the two procurement strategies were found similar especially with regards to category management and lifecycle approach. Moreover, the efforts of procurement professionals are equally important to the work of either Leeds City Council or Staffordshire Count y Council (Staffordshire County Council 2014). In this way, the paper ensured adequate arguments about the effectiveness of the procurement strategies adopted by these institutions.Tender Specification flat solidLeeds City Council is seeking tenders from various private providers for the maintenance and operation of the woodhouse car park in front of the University. The intention is that the car park will ladder as a proper public amenity. There are certain standards of services that will be followed. The respective parking services are set at prices identified at proper market levels. Prices are competitive in order to encourage visitor parking regarding close distance to local businesses. Discouraging the practice of day-long parking is essential for the maintenance of the woodhouse car park. The park will be open 24 hours a day, seven days/ week. in-person security will be ensured to customers and visitors. They need to feel secure in the identified car park area. The integrati on of area security is a priority to the Council.All tenderers are invited to submit their applications by providing the following documentation-Financial Proposal for a period of 3 years-Details on the percentage of the turnover expected to be paid annually to the Council-Evidence indicating previous experience in the area of car park projects-Providing details of the resources available to complete the projectIn order to evaluate the bids from the private players, it is important to provide a set of key performance powers that will be consistently used (Iyer and Pazgal 2008). The first performance indicator is that the selected tender should provide the best value for money at reasonable cost. This may result from balancing cost and quality. Another key performance indicator that will be used to assess the bids is that of prequalification. Such indicator is implemented to make sure that only those who meet specific criteria will be considered for cellular inclusion to bid (Loppach er et al. 2006). In addition, prequalification is associated with responses to a set of questions provided by the Council. Major questions should include elements of quality, capacity to supply and financial competence. The indicator of open and flexible communication is fundamental as no private player should be given preference. Even though meetings with tenderers who have placed their bids may be necessary at a certain point, they should take place solely for clarifying specific aspects regarding the tender (Hawkins et al. 2011). It is important to use recognised channels of communication in order to avert confusion of private players or any misunderstanding of presented information.ReferencesArora, P., Garg, A. K. and Vaidya, S. C. (2007), Efficacy of Integrating Corporate Social Responsibility and Procurement Strategy, South Asian ledger of Management, Vol. 14(1) pp105-119Hawkins, T., Gravier, M. and Powley, E. (2011), Public versus Private Sector Procurement Ethics and Strat egy What Each Sector Can Learn from the Other, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 103(4) pp567-586Iyer, G. and Pazgal, A. (2008), Procurement bidding with Restrictions, Quantitative Marketing & Economics, Vol. 6(2) pp177-204Kennekae, L. (2012), Procurement Strategies to Serve the Public Good, International Trade Forum, 2 pp11-111Kim, S. H. and Netessine, S. (2011), Collaborative Cost Reduction and Component Procurement under cultivation Asymmetry, INSEAD Working Papers Collections, 33 pp1-40Leeds City Council Procurement Strategy (2013), Leeds City Council Online. Available at http//www.leeds.gov.uk/docs/Procurement%20Strategy%20V1.0%20PUBLISH%2030.09.2013.pdf Accessed 29 April 2014.Loppacher, J. S., Luchi, R., Cagliano, R. and Spina, G. (2006), Global Sourcing and Procurement Strategy A Model of Interrelated Decisions, Supply Chain Forum International Journal, Vol. 7(1) pp34-46McLean, S. (2008), Choice in Government Software Procurement A Winning Strategy, Journal of Public Procure ment, Vol.8(1) pp70-97Niezen, C. and Weller, W. (2006), Procurement as Strategy, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 84(9) pp22-24Staffordshire County Council (2014), Staffordshire Procurement Online. Available at https//www.staffordshire.gov.uk/business/procurement/homepage.aspx Accessed 29 April 2014.

Sunday, May 26, 2019

Computer Technology Essay

The education organization world wide has been vying to raise the flavor of education as reflected in the volumes of research regarding quality education and teacher effectiveness. In the light of the rapid advancement of engine room, more research attention has been given to the integration of information and computer technology (ICT) with the educational design and curriculum.It has been included for since computers were invented, even because of the rapid place by which modernization occurs, the ministries of education for every country must be able to cope up by intensifying the rate degree of integration while upholding quality content and bidding as healthy. In present Saudi Arabia, the application of satellite technology had been the focused consequence because of its potential to elevate the quality of teaching and education at all levels (Al-Sharhan 2000).Studies have shown Australian states as a model for the signifi fuckingt links communication systems provide for students across the nation to interact and add valuable substance to their learning (Al-Sharhan 2000). The potential of such satellite communication new instated in Saudi Arabia and its uses for educational purpose is yet an area to be discovered and studied because of the reduced equipment, maintenance and operational cause that this technological advancement provides (Al-Sharhan 2000).However, the education system in Saudi Arabia must be prepared by properly equipping their teachers, their curriculum, and their students for the changes that would occur as the operation of the satellite communication are full-fledged. The Copernican focus of this management picture is to introduce ICT and integrate it into the method of quality teaching and learning to the highest degree possible.In ten years time the long need to close the performance gap between the take aims and colleges in hurt of achieving the goals of a world class high quality education would be eradicated if non it w ould totally minimal compared to the global leaders in education (Kelly 2001). The current status of the education system defined by limited technology. Studies are hitherto underway into how the satellites can be used however, at present there are still no clear damage in how it must be used before this quality teaching and learning framework.Planning for improvement must be based upon the baseline or the initial audit of the school and college to include the opinions of the parents, the students, and the staff as the starting point for quality management (Kelly 2001). Considerations must be a unified expected outcome, the welfare of the internal customers, the get wind persons responsible for implementation and task assignments and a means to assess and evaluate the effectiveness of the plan (Kelly 2001).OverviewThere must be a close rumination for the content and educational design for the integration of ICT into the curriculum and into the classroom instruction (Naidu 2003). Content refers to the information or in the scenario of the ICT integration, electronic information that the students would get as learners (Naidu 2003). Educational design refers to the processes that the educators would use in planning and providing the education for the students (Naidu 2003). The faculty needs to be prepared and guided for the integration of the technology.As the method of instruction would be elevated and modernized, the teaching quality must be improved as well and not be forgotten in the excitement for mod technology (Fraser 2004). Regulatory and quality assurance would be increased, however there would be a shift from a managerial system to an academic answerability system for the teachers in the college as they have more freedom as well as responsibility when their methods for instruction grows wider (Fraser 2004).The increased emphasis on quality and accountability would be a response to the changes that the colleges and universities would have with a chan ge in their material conditions as the satellite technology become fully favorable and utilized in education (Fraser 2004). As most teachers are used to the traditional technologies, they must be aware that every tool that would become visible(prenominal) has something unique and valuable to offer (Clark et al. 2003). Technology can enrich any course force field in ways the traditional method cannot (Clark et al.2003). In terms of assessment such ICT programs, a web-based assessment reflects the continuum of assessment types because of their nature of improvement (Naidu 2003). Traditional assessments were known to lack a variety and autonomy as well as student choice, they were also lacking in work-based application and project-based learning as well as limited peer and self-assessment strategies (Naidu 2003). ICT-based assessments would be introduced in this plan to be able to evaluate the quality of an ICT-integrated education system.Satellite communications are used for differ ent applications that can both be used for educational purposes one is for remote sensing, taking pictures and capturing scientific data and the other for telecommunication purposes (Al-Sharhan 2000). Their difference in purpose can point to different themes and school activities by which they would be used. The telephone link would be one of the most important contributions this satellite technology can have for the schools of Saudi Arabia (Al-Sharhan 2000). Theoretical Foundations Expected takings Teachers.The computer and all the benefits it can provide have been massively changing the perception for teaching instruction (Nicholls 2002). The expectations have become higher in terms of teacher preparation and delivery in relation to quality education (Nicholls 2002). The teachers can not be one way or the other when it comes to technology most of the time, some either ignore technology because of the lack of trust and knowledge or rely on them because of familiarity (Nicholls 200 2). The implementation of this plan would enable the teachers to be comfortable with teaching with technology.In less than ten years, the staff would become so familiar with ICT that it would be the new normalcy when it comes to quality education. The elevation of step for the Saudi Arabia schools would reflect that not only a few subjects would make use of such ICT-based curriculum, but it would be a requirement for every subject course and professor. The educators would be the ones introducing technological advancement to their students with their methods and in turn the students would be equipped to use them because of such instruction. Students.The satellite technology would be able to intromit a large number of students simultaneously and over an extended geographical area (Al-Sharhan 2000). Most of the students are more IT literate and expect technology to be used for teaching by the educators (Nicholls 2002). The teachers, who are well-equipped in operating technology, woul d be able to customize their activities to fit the needs of the students. It encourages the students to go beyond the lecture to flourish their learning and to conduct self-directed study (Nicholls 2002).The school may have web-based discussion forums, electronic mailing lists that enhance student participation and individualized learning (Nichols 2002). The Education System. The integration of ICT and the use of satellite technology can be potential for elevating the standard of the education system in developing countries to overcome unique(predicate) problems such as loosing high quality teachers due to emigration to other countries, shortage of natural equipment and materials in many schools (Al-Sharhan 2000).The combat against high adult literacy can also be fought better given the Open University potential for online learning (Al-Sharhan 2000). It also provides the solution for segregating male and female students that would be difficult in physical classrooms but would be possible with online classrooms that would give more educational opportunities to women than before (Al-Sharhan 2000).

Saturday, May 25, 2019

Modernism Essay

How does the author of this extract understand modernity? Support your response with a direct bring up from the text. Modernism can be described as a movement that has been took place in late nineteenth and early twentieth century. This essay pull up stakes discuss how the author understand modernism by, explaining how modernism eventuated to the integration of mankind and the way that it can jeopardize past traditions and create new ideas. Firstly, it can be mentioned that one of the outcomes of modernism is the destruction of limits and borders.It results to accretion of society and devastation of classes and believes and unite all members of that society. Berman believes that modernism is a paradoxical integration, as he states modernism pours us all into a maelstrom of perpetual disintegration and renewal, of struggle and contradiction, of ambiguity and anguish. (Berman, 1982). This quote suggests that modernity is the termination of some diversities which may result to severi ty.Secondly, it can be noted that the experiences of modernity assimilate been considered as a fulmination to believes and history of the society. However, there is a group of ethics and ideas that have been created during this movement. Berman states that although most of these people have probably experienced modernity as a radical threat to all their history and traditions, it has, in the course of five centuries, developed a risque history and a plenitude of traditions of its own. (Berman, 1982).These new ideas can assist society to control the new way of their life and make it their own. In conclusion, this essay explained modernism with referring to some ideas and quotes of the author. Firstly, it explained the way that modernism unit all members of a society and secondly how modernism can develop new traditions as well as threating the old ones. Furthermore, todays society is experiencing post- modernism, which is a great result of what happened in twentieth century and how people harmonized themselves with modern life.

Friday, May 24, 2019

Assignment for Resort Management Essay

The key argonas requiring coerage de region be the followingWhat f per melodyanceors deflectd Disney to foreignize and why, please discuss thoroughly What were Disneys sufferership limited ad new wavetages (what did they have to trade/what argonas were they expert in?) What were Disneys location ad hoc factors (the Where) why did they select France? Discuss and thoroughly evaluate and discuss using factors in the text What were Disneys internationalization advantages (the how), how were they going to achieve such a complex move to a atomic number 63an culture and why? Assess the kind between two parties (Disney & the french Government), who holds the most powerful position, discuss and evaluate What are the multipliers effects for France and Disney? Evaluate, analyze and compare ConclusionNo additional research is necessary for this assignment. completely details are included in the text attached to you.Reproduced by permission of John Wiley & Sons, LTD from Progress in T ourism and Hospitality Research Vol. 3 No 1, 1997Disney the three estates doctor capital of France a permanent sparing offshoot poll in the Francilian embellishAnne- Marie dHauteserreDepartment of Geography, Southern Connecticut State University, 501 Crescent Street, unexampled Haven CT06515 USADisneyland rectify capital of France was located in the Francilian landscape to increase the bang-up accretion of the Walt Disney gild. It has seetled there permanently, thank in part to the convention write by the friendship with the cut government who readed an scotch ingathering pole in the eastern part of the Paris Basin. Disney accepted the partnership and its constraints because it had ambitious hearty estate increment plans. The cut government, with its new-fashioned townsfolksfolk policy, was the scarce europiuman country that could provide such a intumescent acreage which it used to lever Disneys presence.Keywords superior circuits bare-assed towns frug al rise upth pole landscape formation public/private partnership IntroductionThe arrival of the Magic Kingdom in the Francilian1 landscape ignited a vituperative press campaign by cut intellectuals who s in any cased adamantly opposed to Ameri dirty dog ethnic imperialism. It is the latest (although save) international stand commonalty venture by Disney Company. Why did this superiorly successful troupe, selling an Ameri butt specialised cultural mathematical product that would non benefit from mathematical product cost reduction, decide to internationalize?It for sure would non reduce labor costs as illustrated by the migration of European car factories to the United States, while it would require major plait costs. Was the prospect of a widened European market by thetime of the opening of Disneyland Resort Paris in April 1992 the main incentive for distant foray, and why? Was it established to act as an economic growth pole, complementing the French states policy o f urban organic evolution of the Eastern suburbs of Paris?Large theme parks, like megaevents, promise possible economic reading of the areas they localize in. This recent geographical landscape was produce not dependable by private capital, to be dismantled at capitals whim (Harvey, 1989), that by the synergic action of some(prenominal) different agents. This paper will confront how the continued economic success of Disneyland Resort Paris is not simply safe the result of its capacity to create profits with its wasting disease in a unseasoned locale, neverthe slight semiotically explained, and/or the result of the judicious choice of the localization of this cultural capital circuit at the apex of European accessibility.Its success is circumscribed by and low-level on the French governments startment strategies and judicial structures. Capital has had to negotiate with government the be after of its commodified landscape, the continued organization of which has ov erly been issuing to pressure by its potential customers. The convergence of these agents guarantees that Disneyland Resort Paris will go forward embedded in Marne-la-Vallee in spite of all the difficulties it has faced until straightway such as financial restructuring in display 1994.The paper will prototypical discuss how different approaches to economic globalization explain the Disney Companys move to internationalize and how the choice of the come out was based much on traditionalisticly geographic reasons such as accessibility and availability of land. It will thusly demonstrate how the Companys designs to ensure continued growth in the far future could except be accommodated by France with its New Town development strategy.This allowed the state to impose constraints on this private venture to ensure that it would remain a permanent part of the Francilian landscape whose new design the company had to negotiate. The paper will then show how Disneyland Resort Paris is not the white elephant that the French government was accused of subsidizing and will continue to act as a major economic growth pole.Causes of Disney Companys move to internationalizeThe circuits of capital approach empha surface the totally interconnected disposition of finance, production, commodity trade and consumption. Capitalism is a parade of reproduction of affectionate life through commodity production. The laws of capital circulation are consistent (Harvey, 1989343). The primary essential of a capitalist economic system is a continuous circulation of capital. Jean-Paul Sartre had noticed already in 1945 that over and above greed, a genuine economic principle motivates Americans gold is supposed to circulate (Combat). As capital circulates it is transferred from atomic number 53 investment to anformer(a)(prenominal). It follows only one cardinal rule value be increased. Competition has become pass alongively global.Disney Company, like all TNCs, is essentially a capitalist enterprise driven by profit. The odd thing about post-modern cultural production is how much holy profit seeking is determinant in the first instance (Harvey, 1989336). The domestication of fantasy in visual consumption is inseparable from centralized structures of economic power. Disneyland Resort Paris is a private instrumental space designed for the efficient circulation of commodities, which is itself a commodity produced for profit. Cultural capital may represent an infinitely more(prenominal) expendable resource for capital accruement than traditional investment capital, two for private companies and for governments.Cultural capital is considered here as a form of economic capital invested in the production of culture, rather than a symbolic capital, a persons or groups knowledge. These circuits of capital are not abstract notions they are anchored in space where they create geographical landscapes. The company and its imagineers have been pushed by investors to create more and more circuits.The Bass br new(prenominal)s applyled n primordial 25% of equity and so named Michael Eisner as the new company chairman in 1984, following other hostile parcel outover attempts, because the company was not exploiting its beneficial potential to create more circuits of capital (Wallace, 1985 Taylor, 1987). The company, in 1984, was already a powerful brand name with annual taxs of $1B. Disneys profits had soared to $783M in 1989 and its revenues had reached$8.5B in 1991 thanks to a very successful theme park in Japan, through enlarging the Orlando area and through other ventures.Its new guide onors wanted to attach more of the surplus value the name generated by entering the real estate business. They wanted to collect more than just royalties, as in Japan, to control more hotel development (they own only a small portion in Orlando), and to draw in more potential customers. They are banking on Eurodisney as the principal engine of Disneys growth in the 90s(Business Week, 1990). Disneyland Resort Paris was considered a major investment potential by 1984 because of the institutionwide shift in capitalism from an emphasis on production to consumption.The organization of consumption has just as important an effect on economic and affectionate structure as the organization of production (Lash, 1993 Zukin, 1991). Shopping, consuming is the most important contemporary social activity on North America (Levine, 1990 Williamson, 1986). The consumption landscape can be viewed as a by-product of the changes in the distribution of income in the constant struggle of labor and capital over economic surplus. using up is too empha surfaced privileged the parks. The Magic Kingdoms represents a fantasy landscape constructed roughly an entirely fictive nexus based on highly selective memory and mediated by mass consumption.In the United States .the Disney landscape has become a model for establishing both the economic value of cultural goods and the cultural value of consumer products (Zukin, 1991 231) and has legitimized investment in them. In the over crowded market place (even or especially that of theme parks see body-build 2) tomography has become increasingly critical as a way of attracting particular publics and facilitating acts of consumption.The decision to internationalize is a major strategic decision. Disney was spirit for economies of scope and co-ordination (Dicken, 1992 143). Although the process of knowledge accumulation obtained from locating in new markets generates endogenously productivity gains that can sustain long run growth, the company had to compare anticipated streams of monopoly profits with pass judgment costs of product relocation (Grossman and Helpman, 1992335).The innovation phase of its amusement product (Magic Kingdom)required its location in California, close to the film and television studios its inception and survival depended on (W.Disney in Schikel, 1968). As the pro duct matured, the company reacted to the actions of major competitors. To prevent further entry by competitors it positive the resort in Florida and licensed the Magic Kingdom to a Japanese company (Lanquar, 1992).The dynamic nature of economic and social processes finally led to the direct penetration of irrelevant markets, penetration of foreign markets, penetration limited in Europe exclusively for the next ten years to its French site (Convention, 1987.) Disney Company developed a globally integrated competitive strategy to focus on its know-how in resort development which had interpreted it 30 years to develop and refine and which would differentiate it from its competitors. In North America, Disney World had remained the most frequented tourist site, as of 1995. Las Vegas is disputing this ranking today.Dunning (1980, 1991)2 indicates that, at the micro (firm specific) level, to internationalize, companies need to fulfill three conditions ownership specific advantages, inte rnationalization of the use of these advantages, and location specific factors, all of which characterize the Disney Company if not always in the traditional manner.Disneys ownership specific advantages reside in intangible assets, its perfected knowledge in resort development, its ability to create new imaginative visual consumption products, its sophisticated imagineering skills, inscribed in its brand image. Disneys pursuit of an intentional accumulation of knowledge to reply to anticipated market conditions (for example, by engineering new themes for consumption, since the company has vowed to always renew its parks, cf. Flower, 1991 186-8, 205-6, 279, 285) requires an allocation of resources and investment of the same magnitude as for creating new technology. Internationalization of this knowledge will require Disney to operate a profit of parks on a world-wide basis (Grossman & Helpman, 199182).The application of these skills is limited to theme park asylum although the id ea has been replicated in other arenas of consumption mega-malls, forexample, seek to attract and retain customers for the longest time by presenting Disney-like attractions. Steve Wynn salutes Disneys imagineering with his pirate shows performed against the backdrop of a Treasure Island sidewalk dcor in Las Vegas. Copycat theme parks have burgeoned too, like Busch Gardens.This socio-spatial complex of production cannot be geographically separated from its consumers. It has ask to locate (i.e. to move outside of the US to where the consumers are) this new form of consumption as headspring as to localize its specific features (creating its own landscape at heart another cultural landscape, both at a geographic site and in the business and consumption world).The very localized consumption space offered by its theme parks limited its possibility for expansion. Disney needed to serve new markets in different locations directly even though the product is virtually identical. Marginal increases in numbers racket of visitors would have been minimal even if the parks in the United States were enlarged (this was one of the main reasons for Disneys original move to Florida).This potential number of tourists from Europe would not increase either much above the 2 million now visiting the theme parks in the United States, considering the slow growth of European population and of its wealth. Time and cost space convergence have not been portentous enough at the international level for pleasure travelling and it has not dissolved the psychic distance (language barrier for travelling to the United States, if not inside the Disney theme parks).Geographic reasons for choosing a location in Europe and a Francilian site.The Disney Company has mentioned two major reasons, or more traditional location specific factors (Euro Disney SCA, 1992). It can draw on 350 million customers (almost one and half times the size of the population of the United States) over an area half its si ze (Figure 1). Such a geographic move was to enable it to take advantage of the growth of short break holidays in Europe, together with the growth in numbers and sophistication of tourists while finding its niche in the increasingtourist market segmentation.Four groups of tourists have been identified in Europe 52% cool off travel attractive coastlines in warmer climes, 13% buy tourist packages, 25% prefer rural tourism and the rest practice urban tourism (Straw & Williams, 1990 241). It founded its strategy on the notion that new consumption practices can take place anywhere and are eminently transportable. The company wanted to see to it that it would remain the industry leader while it captured more of the worlds market share and augmented the size of the firm (Grover, 1991). Their target, for some sectors, is up to a 20% yearly increase (Lanquar, 199273).Long holidays occur over the summer months whereas shortest trips (their targeted travel niche) are taken year round. In 198 5, more than %19 had taken a second holiday in the European Community, 27% in France. Unfortunately, that kind of travelling could not maintain its early fast growth it had increased 10% yearly in Great Britain between 1976 and 1985. France was also then the European leader in international conferences (Straw & Williams, 1990 242).The recession, combined with the staging of several mega-events in Europe in 1992, absorbed much of the disposable income for that year and beyond (Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, France World Fair in Sevilla, Spain Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain). Disney Company also relied on the fact that its products-division received 50% of its worldwide revenues from Europe.Fifty-five million copies of The Journal Mickey are published yearly in Europe, including now a Russian version, but only 13 million in the United States. At least 250 European societies have signed licensing contracts with the Disney Company (Rencontres, 1992 89). Walt Disney Animation, one of the largest European studios for the production of cartoons had been implanted in France earlier (Saffarian, 1992). European consumption habits already included Mickey Mouse paraphernalia.Disney Companys organisational apparatus leads, now across the world, to an increasing consumption synergy as its merchandise acts as both commodity and advertisement. In 1990, one third of its revenues were generated from foreign barters (Grover, 1991 200). Name recognition is crucial even if often taken for granted in the consumer world (Flower, 1991 21, Grover,1991 187). Disney has become a shared term in world culture.Disney Companys megadesigns (Dream, diversifyand never miss an angle, W.Disney, 1988 7), part of the dynamism and growth of transnationals, boosted competition for the park between European countries where it was considered a potential economic growth pole by itself and because it co-operates with other large multi-nationals.Cultural consumption contributes to capital acc umulation by enhancing profits on entrepreneurial investment in production and distribution. European governments were anxious to anchor this new circuit of capital on their soil where it wold spawn more circuits. In the first ten years of Disneylands existence in California, the Disney company took in $273M, the peripherals $555M (Sorkin, 1992 224). What distressed Walt Disney even more than the loss of surplus value was the disorderly and sullying form of this growth.In Orlando it has led to the construction of 76,800 hotel rooms, 5000 of which are under direct Disney management, 12,000 under licensing agreement (Rencontres, 1992). All the others are the result of spillover effects which include the implantation of 23 attraction parks around Disney World (Figure 2)The two other main contending countries besides France were Spain, for its sunshine (access, however was very constricted) and Great Britain because of the successful entertainment complex of Blackpool. The creation of D isneyland Resort Paris opened new spaces for the service economy where it should have a positive effect on capital accumulation in real estate development. Cultural goods and services gain economic significance through their role in interacting circuits of economic and cultural capital (Zukin, 1991 260). In the contemporary (European, French) market economy investment in cultural capital would offset cyclical devaluation in other parts of the same circuit or in other circuits.European governments regard tourism as having an important economic role through its impact on foreign earnings, employment creation and regional development, because the activity is labor-intensive and employment can be generated relatively cheaply by those governments. In the United Kingdomtourism supports 1.4 million jobs (Urry, 1990). urban tourism is being used as a spur to regeneration in many de-industrialized(zing) areas in spite of the dependable dependence of tourist activities on part-time and seas onal as well as low-skilled, and this low-waged, labor (Straw and Williams, 1990, Urry, 1990). Man governments were desperate to stem unemployment.In the mid 1980s, 16 million workers were un occupied in the European Union. The unemployment rate hovered around 10% between 1983 and 1992 with highs of 12% in France and 21.2% in Spain. The rate for young people was 18% across the Union but reached %30 in Spain and Italy(Commission des Communautes Europeenes, 1992). Many of the recruits of Disneyland Resort Paris are young and unskilled (Lanquar, 1992117).Cultural and environmental problems can also be hyperbolize by the introduction of mass tourism (e.g. Disney Worlds problem with sewage effluents in the Orlando area, Flower, 1991 252). Such economic development can occur only if it does not put undue pressure on vulnerable natural resources.European governments are involved in tourism development because of its multiple impacts. Tourism, in turn, has commercialized civilization in Fr ance, the transformation of the places of memory into places to visit has returned handsome benefits. The French government takes a broad perspective on tourism it is more socially and culturally informed and less biased toward economic issues (OCDE, 1992, Rencontres, 1992157).Why did Disney Company choose a rainy site close to Paris?It is one of three major population concentration poles in Western Europe, the other two being London and the Rhine Valley, and it is the most accessible to these other two (see Figure 1). Spain or the London area would have given access to the European Union market but from a peripheral location. Accessibility underpins the pull of centrality. The Paris Basin is at the juncture of spousal relationshipern and southern Europe it is an unavoidable thoroughfare.Paris is also one of the most attractive cities with 25 million foreignvisitors throughout the year. It is fewer than the 60 million visitors of London, but the majority of these are domestic (Stra w & Williams, 1990). Those who will come to Disneyland Resort Paris, the company reasoned, will remain in the Eurodisney hotels 2 or 3 nights to visit Paris too. Studies conducted in 1985 determined there was great demand potential for theme parks in Europe (only one in ten people had even been to a theme park) that was largely unfulfilled (Rencontres EPA, 1992). The large Paris metropolitan area is missing a theme park that could restore its tradition as a center for recreation (Ousset, 1986). He felt that Disneyland Paris would fulfill that role.There existed only two large recreational complexes in Europe Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England (7 million visitors a year) and more than one hundred-year-old Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagan (3.8 millions) (Urry, 1990). Its site (in Marne-la-Vallee) illustrates the grandness of geographical location (Figure 3) in its traditional materialist interpretation, which is even more critical at the microlevel. The company had definitely opted for t he French site in 1985, in spite of its unfavorable weather conditions, following studies conducted since the 1970s in several European countries on the feasibility of a number of sites (Grover, 1991 187-8).Disney Company was looking for a site that was easily accessible to a large number of potential customers year round. When the company returned to court French authorities in the early 1980s it had also realized that its acoustic projections needed a stripped critical mass to allow them to function as resorts. They were thus looking for a site that would guarantee the land area needed not only for its theme parks (a total of three are planned into 2017) but also for the hotels, restaurants, residences, office that would be built because of the demands generated by the parks (Figure 4).At the same time, social practices are structured in time as well as in space as they structure that space. Spain has offered the Walt Disney Company a better deal than France, but it was not able to put together a large enough parcel of land (Grover, 1991 188). The Paris area was the best equipped to handle such a large real estate project thanks to the states New Towns Policy initiated 30 years ago large virgin plots of land were ready forrapid urbanisation, minimizing the cost of understructure training and of the environmental disruption caused by such construction (Roullier, 1993).Four million cubic meters of land were moved, 68,000 cubic meters of rocks were molded and 85,000 trees planted, while work on sanitation and drainage was equivalent to that required by a town of fifty to sixty thousand inhabitants during the construction of the Disney park (Nouveau Courrie, 1992). This readiness includes not just the transport and other physical infrastructure, but also the judicial and administrative mechanisms for integrated project developments conducted by both the state and private companies.New town development strategy and the constraints of the conventionNew Towns w ere created by the French Government in 1964 to guarantee a more harmonious economic development of the Ile de France by emphasizing the eastern side until then neglected (Bastie, 1991 88). Major industries had located on the western and southern side of Paris, while their pollutants blew east. The French governments planned office center, La Defense, was built on the western fringes of Paris.These new towns were to offer a dynamic urban life within an architecturally impact environment and to remedy the earlier uniformity of suburban high rising apartment projects constructed to house the lower French classes, and little else (Roullier, 1993) The government chose suburban locations for the new towns (Figure 5) to pervert the main characteristics of all suburbs their distance from town renters which turns suburban dwellers in Europe into second-class citizens (Merlin, 1989).More than a million people now operate and work in these new towns, 225,300 in Marne-la-Vallee alone in 199 3 (Figure 6, EpaMarne/EpaFrance, 1994). Their exact location as well as their layout was to respect the physical characteristics of the area and to take advantage of its environment amenities. Disney Company came on board when the third section (Bussy-St-Georges 7000 housing units, 600,000 square meters of offices and 90-hectare technological industrial park) was just started (Etablissments Publics, 1991).The parks size made it an ideal addition to the new town.Disneyland Resort Paris was not just an amusement, but a large urban development, supported by major improvements in the transport network finance by the French government. (Boyer, 1994).In the French Governments view, for the French new towns to really develop i.e. grow beyond the need for constant state subsidies and to successfully change into old towns attracting private investment was as important as constructing subsidized housing. The implantation of Disneyland Resort Paris crowned a development strategy conceived ma ny years before (Roullier, 1993). The long-term objective was to make this area on of the main economic pivots of Europe, as revealed by its name Val dEurope. This objective was based on the improvements in transport systems that would restore freedom of choice to town dwellers, provide access to the labor force and offer distribution networks for businesses.Transportation has been a key to new town development from its inception. The existing transport network is capable of draining towards Disneyland Resort Paris all those millions of anticipated visitors (Figure 3). All main communication routes in Europe or within France converge towards this area. take down if the Magic Kingdom were to fail (close its doors), these transport improvements would remain as the basis for attracting other private investors to an area that has always been designated for urban growth. Continuous urbanization from the other three sectors had been planned for this area, for some indefinite time in the future. The park only accelerated the process.There are two main themes to the development of Marne-la-Vallee as a new town. One is an office complex ten kilometers from Paris, with direct golf links to the capital. The other is the complex of Val dEurope centered around Disneyland, one of its featured attractions, with a large number of offices serving as head lodges for Disney in Europe (100,000m2) that should attract other offices functions to occupy another 200.000m2. (EPA, Marne/EPA France, 1994 Boyer, 1994).By attracting large numbers of tourists, Disneyland Resort Paris will act asan investment magnet on other circuits of capital, based on the provision of hotels, tourist and void facilities and office buildings, that the French government will channel precisely through its new town of Marne-la-Vallee and as per the 173-page accord signed by two on 24 March 1987 after 27 months of arduous negotiations. The complete document with its appendices totals more than 400 pages (Con vention, 1987). Results in real estate values remain way below predictions because Europe has been mired in an economic recession since the opening of the park.Although the French government seems to have given in to Disney Companys demands (Grover, 1991), for example by agreeing to an international rather than a French court to settle disagreements, the detailed contract attributes obligations to both sides. The French government fagged 2.7 billion FF to provide first rate transportation links, but it has meant added jobs for the area (4,500 for the rail line, 1,300 for the RER).Disney Company must, in turn, guarantee a minimum number of rides for the Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP) on the extended regional metro (RER) A line, or pay for the difference (Convention, 1987, Article 11). A detailed program of development of the land offered to Disney schedules each step. It was not given all 1,945 hectares to speculate with at will, contrary to some press accounts (Busi ness Week, 1990 Smadja, 1988).Disney Company spent only 500M FF to acquire the land necessary for the its first theme park (covering the costs of the infrastructure provided with the land) but it led to private investments of 10B FF (Lanquarm, 1992109). Other major projects, such as international soccer stadium and centers of higher learning, are being erected in the area, encouraged in part by the presence of Disneyland in Paris (Boyer, 1994).Disney Company also appreciated dealing with one main negotiating team, the EPA (Etablissement Public dAmenagement), whose existence was permitted by the new town judicial structure (Rencontres, 1992 99-122). This is a public development corporation that fulfills both commercial and financial functions. It is established by government decree and has powers of pre-emptive and compulsory purchase, as well as legal and financial autonomy. It can thus function as developer in the new town, while it alsorepresents the government.Communication rest remarkably static-free between this private company and French authorities, thanks to the single government voice and thanks to the detailed blueprint that indicates who does what, when, and how (Convention, 1987). The company also underlines the importance of continuity on the French side, adhered to through the years, since the first negotiations in 1985, by the French government in spite of political changes at the helm (Rencontres, 1992100).The French state did require that this development occur within guidelines set up in a Projet dInteret General (EPAMarne, 1987, Limery, 1996) that seeks to insure a coherent approach that will, for example, enable the villages in the area to maintain their present specific characteristics. The requirement was not made in a spirit of simulated heritage but to maintain architectural variety while enabling new construction to be fully integrated in the new towns landscape.This evolution will transform the living conditions of the residents of t he old villages of the area who design they could maintain a rural lifestyle only thirty minutes away from Paris and who are going to be invaded by millions of tourists. Agriculturists and ecologists have linked forces to fight for the preservation of agricultural areas within the new town to counterbalance this mounting urbanization. (See Roullier, 1993 Bastie, 1991).The departement of Seine-et-Marne has seen an increase of 18,000 hotel rooms between 1985 and 1992. This includes the 5,200 rooms constructed by Disney Company (Rencontres, 1992 165). It wants to develop the potential attraction of the southern part of the departement, i.e. the region farthest from the park that includes Fontainebleau, from Melua to Chateau-Landon and from Barbizon to Montereau. Its cultural and natural landscapes are rather exceptional since they include a number of famous castles (Fontainebleau and its museum.Vaux-le-Vicomte, Moret-sur-Loing) and beautiful natural forests. It is also an area freque nted by locals (9 million per year) and by many foreign visitors (Maison Departementale, 1994). Disneyland Resort Paris is a wonderful opportunity to increase the level of visits by outsiders to the area which has suffered until now from its location in the shadow of Paris (25 million foreigners visit the capital, less than amillion come to this area). The convention that Disney Company signed includes the obligation for it to advertise other tourist sites in the area besides its own, as per Article 10 of the 1987 Convention (see, for example, the Michelin Guide to the Magical Kingdom).Tourist operators who do not have exclusive contracts with Disneyland Paris are also solicited to include these other stops in their packages. The departement is also trying to increase partnership agreements with a variety of service providers. Europcar, the official car rental agency of Disneyland Resort Paris, will put inside each vehicle a tourist map of the whole departement, as well as discount coupons for castles and restaurants in the area (Convention, 1987, Conseil General, 1991).Negotiating the design of the Francilian landscapeThe French government must have recognized that hind end the vitriolic cultural debate about Disneyland Resort Paris stood a high level of capitalist investment in performance, in the machinery of reproduction, investment designed to create a product. The French government did not bow to capitalism which, like technology does not invite a close examination of its consequences. It asks for trust and obedience.because its gifts are truly bountiful (Postman, 1993 xiii). wayward to popular opinion which accused it of caving in to the bullish tactics of Disney and the lure of many jobs, the French government had already resisted approaches by the company in 1976.French negotiators needed proof that this product could be exported. Tokyo Disneyland could not serve as a model in European negotiations and development, because the Disney Company was not a direct participant. It sold the exploitation rights to a Japanese company (Oriental Land Company) who financed, owns and runs the park. It did, however, serve the purpose of proving that the Magic Kingdom could be successfully transplanted onto foreign soil. Were finally able to convince the French negotiators that we really meant business. (Recontres, 1992113).Because of the cultural capital are formed in real spaces, they suggest how space in an advanced service economy is really formed. Capital creates anddestroys its own landscapes (Harvey, 1989). Space is structured by circuits of capital as they leave messages embedded in their surroundings. Since the ordinal century, shifting from one landscape to another has depended less on individual mobility than on a broad scale varied remaking of landscape itself. (Zukin, 1991 18). Landscapes sometimes grow by accretion they do not seem as historically and culturally bound as in the past as they are constantly reinvented by footlo ose capital.The French government could not have forced Disney Company to choose a location in France. Some incentives to influence it might have over come any benefit government intervention could command. Tax concessions may eliminate any gains or lead to a transitory gains trap. The wages obtained from the supplementary jobs might be very low, leading to minimal tax and spillover gains, while increasing the need for services.The landscape is broader, has deeper roots and relies on more interconnections than government alone can control, especially on the international scene, since government intervention is restricted to its territory. Strategies of cultural consumption may only complement, rather than contradict, strategies of capital accumulation.The competitive edge of the French government to capture the Disney investors was by means of product differentiation, offering a space they enhanced through design and designation. The linkage between cultural capital and real estate development enables new economic structures to be localized and to acquire specific geographic locations Marne-la-Valle for Disneyland Resort Paris. Disneyland Resort Paris demanded specific efforts to insert this large international project into a suburban new town within which it is to evolve rapidly. These are efforts of co-ordination in planning strategies, in capturing spillovers and in image development (Rencontres, 1992).Disneyland Resort Paris could not, by itself have acted as a growth pole that would economically resuscitate the eastern suburbs of Paris. The circuit of cultural capital it represented fizzled out within two years Disneyland Resort Paris was ready to close its doors in March 1994 because it was bankrupt due to blunders before and at the time of the opening cultural, financial and economic matters. A capital asset that cannot earn income hasno value it becomes a liability. It did subject Disney Company to some ridicule by the press (Solomon, 1994).The tension between globalization forces that led to its expansion in Europe and localization forces, the result of local differences in production and marketing techniques has forced Disney Company to change and adapt its much prized know-how for example, it has had to accept the sale of alcohol in the park. Losses were mounting too dangerously to ignore subtly different cultural practices. It was assumed that traditional status systems and parochial loyalties would die away in the course of economic growth. globoseization has not done away with culture-specific modes of consumption.One of Disney Companys continued problems is the minimal amount spent by these millions of Europeans within the park an average, in 1992, of 310FF instead of the expected 333 (Commission du Tourisme, 1993), down to 224FF in 1995 (Revenu, 1996). These spectators (Disney Companys terms for the visitors of its parks) have chosen other non-pecuniary forms of participation in Disneys spectacle.The resort was, however , integrated in a long-term project of the French government, dedicated to the balanced economic growth of the Parisian Basin. The short-run effect of Disney Companys capital venture was counteracted by the long term (30 year) convention signed by both parties. Disney Company could not withdraw, especially if the circuit was no longer profitable. This convergence, in Marne-la-Vallee, of capitalist action and social action created the synergy for Disneyland Resort Paris to be financially restructured in March 1994 so that it could again generate profits.Mutual effects of economics (circuits of capital pushing Disney Company to find new investment opportunities), politics (the French government looking for economic growth poles), and culture (the acceptance of a not-so-foreign popular cultural trait) are restructuring the Francilian landscape.Landscape includes the geographical meaning of physical surroundings and the ensemble of material and social practices it is the entire panoram a. It connotes a contentious, compromised product of society, but on which powerful institutions have a pre-eminent capacity to impose their view boththe French government and Disney Company in this case, not just the private company Disney (i.e. capital). In the United States, potential investments that are not targeted on short-term gain are often criticized as social investments, but all investment takes place in a social context.Although it is believed that the role of sovereign states is being eroded in favor of international organizations, agencies and/or associations, private or political, that of France used its strategic position to direct the development and prosperity of the Parisian Basin. The French government tried to avoid that public value be held captive to private value. It wanted to avoid that improvement explicitly reject the social variety of habitation of explicitly seek security by exclusion.Capitalisms most lasting product is landscape (new geographies) which in many places it had rendered impermanent, forever exhibiting a new repertoire. Such shifting landscapes illustrate the structural charges of the global economy (Harvey, 1989 Zukin, 1991 Dicken, 1992). The spatial mediation of cultural consumption affects the redistribution of benefits among social classes and explains the direct liaison of the French government in a Disney theme park, and its offer of the Marne-la-Vallee location. Space does make material form for the differentiation of a market economy but places can be selectively configured to promote community goals.The French governments intervention of land in Marne-la-Vallee from matter to keeping so that development (localized economic growth) would not lead to obsolescence and dereliction here or in other parts of the Paris basin. It demonstrates that capitalism is not a monolithic force operating alone at the universalizing level to carve up the world according to its sole designs.Spillover effects of partnership both (prenominal) parties emphasize positive results in spite of the vituperative press campaign which accompanied the arrival of Disneyland in the Francilian landscape (a cultural Chernobyl). Such a large attraction was recognized as both a chance and a challenge The chance we grabbed, and together with our American partners we have worked to make the park a success so the 12million visitors will bring wealth to this whole eastern region.The challenge we are facing is to become a strong pole of attraction culturally and economically (Rencontres, 1992 196) Daniel Robert (of Bison Fute fame) added Marne-la-Vallee is blessed with an extra-ordinary opportunity to sell its millions of square meters of office space, its ideal of an urban area, its strategic position (Rencontres, 1992 55). The presence of such a large investment has emboldened Marne-la-Vallee to combat the skepticism that smaller potential private investors show when solicited by New Towns.Visitors poured into Eurodisney 6.8 m illions by October 1992, 19.5 millions by February 1994 (Eurodisney SCA, 1992, 1994). Its basic allurement is its Americanness. It has been the best received park ever in Europe and it is the number one nonrecreational admission attraction there Beaubourg Centre received only 8.2 million visitors in 1993, 3.8 million of which were free entries to the library La Villette saw 5.8 million entries, the Effiel column 5.4 the Louvre welcomes 5 million visitors per year (Eurodisney Resort, 1993 5).These numbers are insufficient, however, for the park to break even, since it needs 11 million per year to do so and reached just that number only its first year of operation. Number of visitors followed a downtrend until 1994 6,708,551 averaged 1.45 visits in 1993. In 1994, only 5,574,059 (-16.9%) pushed the turnstiles 1.61 times. Visits by residents of the Parisian Basin had dropped by 31.3&. In 1995, however, the park registered a 21.5% increase in attendance.The percentage of foreign visito rs had dropped by 15% between 1992 and 1993 down to 56% of the visits but it was back up to 61% in 1994. The majority of the customers (93.3% of the 5,777 hotel rooms and bungalows more than are available in the city of Cannes) are tourists, versus less than a two-thirds average for the Ile de France, but here too the number of foreigners has dropped (72% in 1994, 75% in 1993, vs. 82% in 1992).The business rate of hotels has remained way below Orlandos rate of 79% even if it did not increase from 55% in 1992 and 1993 to 61% in 1994 and 68.5% in 1995. Every hotel night sold by Disneyland Resort Paris engenders the sale of at least one other hotel night in the area. In 1994, Eurodisney hotels stared wel glide slope guests who were not necessarily attracted by the theme park(EPAMarne, 1994, EPA-France, 1995).Marne-la-Vallee is a creation in progress and it needs to become credible in the eyes of private investors. Although a negative image of Disneyland Resort Paris was diffused by t he press during the construction phase, based on its American cultural attributes, its business of selling false reality for pleasure and its bullish negotiating tactics with the French government and later with private companies and labor, the more positive one of leisure and festivities and of successful business know-how has since been emphasized. Disneyland Resort Paris is more than the Magic Kingdom because of the hotels, leisure resources, offices and residences it plans to construct (Figure 4).It has developed an image as a solid capitalist enterprise, the kind Marne-la-Vallee wants to attract. Know-how can be applied to both Disneyland Resort Paris and Marne-la-Vallee, so that Mickeys notoriety in Europe can increase that of Marne-la-Vallee, its present location. There does exist the danger that it becomes Disney Vallee.The social construction of the regional identity of Marne-la-Vallee will be dominated by Disneys cultural capital and the various other capital circuits it w ill engender. Two strategies have been suggested to counteract such a danger. At the national level, the state should put in place structures that define the identity of Marne-la-Vallee separate from the companys trademark. At the local level, endogenous and original solution need to be found to allow each and every inhabitant to identify culturally with the specific part of the Brie tableland s/he lives in.Disneyland Resort Paris has fulfilled its role as an economic growth pole both directly and indirectly, distributing spillover effects in the eastern suburbs of the Paris Basin while bringing economic benefits to the country. Within the perimeter of Disneyland Resort Paris, the ratio between public and private investment is 1 to 8, similar to the one found in most new towns. The French government invested 2.7B FF in public infrastructure while private companies and individuals disbursed 23B FF (Eurodisney Resort, 1993 2).Construction employed 5,100 local workers and 180 companie s for a cost of 13B FF 47% of which went to Ile de France companies, 76% in the caseof residential developments. The company also had to construct 1,800 housing units occupied by 3,500 of its employees. In 1992, Disneyland Resort Paris paid 81M FF in local taxes and 250M FF in sales taxes. On opening day it employed 11,500 people, two thirds of whom were French (70% by 1995), one fifth of other European origin. There are now 9,700 employee representing a saving of 7% in operating costs.The downsizing came as part of the financial restructuring of March 1994. They were paid 2B FF in salaries and benefits, a substantial addition to the revenue stream of the new town. They generated with Disneyland, another 25,000 jobs in the area. The fifty tons of race produced daily by the resort, for example, led to the construction of two plants in the area. A little over 40% of these employees live in the Seine-et-Marne departement and thus consume within the area.There are another 5,000 seasona l jobs, 10% of which are filled by local residents. The economic activities of Disneyland Resort Paris in 1993 generated 9.2% less revenue than in 1992, although visitor spending outside of Disneyland Resort Paris increased by 3.8%. Another decrease of 6/9% was registered in 1994.In the fiscal year 1991-2, the company spent 2.7B FF, but only 2.2 in 1993, a decrease of 20% in goods and services (insurance, laundry, electricity). Purchases registered a gain of 14% in 1994, and investments for improvements and maintenance, of 22%. Much of the income from these purchases remains in the area. 93% of food products are bought in France, 65% in Ile de France. Statistics were culled from Eurodisney Resort, 1993, EPAMarne, 1994, EPAFrance, 1995, Eurodisney SCA 1992, 1993, 1994.The French government received 4BFF in foreign currency (3.4% of foreign currency earnings through tourism in France in 1993), 812MFF in taxes and 9 to 15,000 jobs, depending on the season. Although totals fluctuate fro m year to year, they remain a plus for the economy. Disneyland Resort Paris led to a more than 3% increase in the total number of foreign tourists in France, 60.1M in 1993, 61.3M in 1994. The combined activities and purchases of all 61.3 million tourists provide 5.1% of the French GNP and 7.1% of its foreign currency earnings. The park is placed seventh as a major touristoperator in France, with 4.9BFF in revenues, behind Air France, SNCF, Accor, Club Med, Aeroports de Paris and Nouvelles Frontieres (EPAMarne, 1994, EPAFrance, 1995).Other theme parks come way behind Futuroscope earned only 300MFF, Asterix 194MFF. The financial restructuring of its annual debt, which amounted to $370M in Marhc 1994, allowed the park to announce a profit of $35 million in the second quarter of 1995 and increased attendance helped consolidate profits for the remaining of the fiscal year. at least prior to debt payments (New York Times, 1995 D7).There was wide-spread optimism that Disneys presence in Eu rope would enhance the attraction sectors image, help improve standards of presentation and raise consumer expectations and especially willingness to pay. It has increased investment in smaller-scale attractions in France Asterix park (25 miles north of Paris) which had required an investment of $208 million receives 1.5 million visitors per year.The comic books it represents three-dimensionally have been translated in 40 languages. It conquered 7% of the potential market in the Paris Basin in three years. Disneyland Resort Paris aims for 17%. Under the influence of Disneyland Resort Paris it has begun a five-year refurbishment program. It has also been forced to define its product more clearly (Saffarian, 1992).Futuroscope, an intelligently entertaining park, has revitalized the region that surrounds it. It opened in June 1987 and boasted profits of 15M FF from revenues of 300M FF paid by 2 million visitors in 1994. Its theme is moving images. When innovators must compete in integr ated product markets, they have reason to pursue distinctive ideas, and thereby contribute to the global accumulation of knowledge.Dynamic Cinema, one of the most sought-after attractions at Futuroscope, thrills, awes and panics spectators through the use of a 60/second flow of images and hydraulically controlled seats with computerized links to the pictures (Tresch, 1994). It has also had repercussions in other European countries. Port Aventura opened in May 1995 near Barcelona. Four hundred million dollars were invested, 20% of which by Annheuaer Busch, over 20 hectares, i.e. 50 acres (Tagliabue, 1995).ConclusionBoth sides have benefited from this partnership between a private multinational corporation and public authorities. Disneyland Paris has well-kept the momentum of development in Marne-la-Vallee that the French government wanted to stimulate. The success of the office centers of Marne-la-Vallee, of the Cite Descartes (and area of higher learning) and the presence of Disneyl and Resort Paris demonstrate that betting on Marne-la-Vallee to assure the economic development of the eastern part of Paris Basin was the way to go, even if success was long in coming (Merlin, 1989 77). New large projects are being constructed and jobs and their multiplier effect, taxes, new transport lines are increasing. In 1995 attendance numbers were on the rebound and hotel revenue and occupancy rates augmented.Even Orlando had rocky beginnings before returning its investment many times over and the two American parks suffered from lulls (Grover, 1991, Flower, 1991). Both the company and the French government had remained optimistic since talks for the next stage of development are right on schedule. Disneyland Resort Paris obtained a site it can grow in, with the necessary communication links to one of the most densely (in numbers and in purchasing power) settled areas in the world while it provides the French government with a major economic growth pole.The contract binding the two parties distributes obligations to limit the ability of private companies to speculate on investments made by public bodies financed by the general public, while it guarantees the timely completion of these investments. Optimism was justified when Disneyland Resort Paris opened as scheduled on 12 April 1992. It is still justified today as attendance numbers and spillover effects are on the increase. (Revenu, 1996 9). Proving that public/private partnerships can enhance social benefits and capital accumulation.Endnotes1 Francilian refers to Ile de France, also called the Paris Basin2 A National Public Radio report in June 1996 indicated that Las Vegas had become the number one tourist endpoint among travelers who booked through travel agents. In a private communication, J. Brett of the Nevada Commission on Tourism mentioned that 30 million visitors were welcomed in the past twelve months in Las Vegas. Although slightly more than the 30 million who visit Disney World, the num bers quoted are of turnstile pushes rather than of head counts. I was not told how the total number of visitors to Las Vegas was arrived at.3 All forms of knowledge (all products based on knowledge) have peculiar properties as economic commodities. Know-how is a non-rival good using it does not preclude others from doing it, of, other theme parks. It also non-excludable the very use of information in any productive way is bound to reveal it in part (Grossman & Helpman, 1991 15). Preventing unauthorized use of it depends on airscrew laws and their enforcement. One can understand Disney Companys sensitivity to any copyright infringements.4 The first theme park in the Western world was built at the end of 1200s by Robert II of Artois at Vieil Hesdin. It included a revolving castle, a grotto within which rain or one C could be willed, animated marionettes, collapsing bridges, as well as exotic plants and animals that symbolized paradise. Charles V destroyed the park 300 years later.Re ferencesBastie, Jenn (1991), La Seine-et-Marne dans le schema directeur de IIle de France, Cahier du CREPIF, 36Boyer, Jean-Marie (1994). Marne-La-Vallee, Paris, Ile de France, EPAMarne.Business Week (1990). 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