Abstract
This paper looks at the literature of writers analyzing the trend of companies who are moving toward uniform work ethics, standards and practices. This move is seen as essential for large international corporations wishing to fit into an ever-globalizing economy.

From the Paper
"Many corporations fail to realize the type of profits and results from the promised "Holy Grail" of globalization because they have not paid enough ongoing attention to the process. Without greater effectiveness in their efforts to globalize, firms waste precious executive resources or decide to standardize their operations to limit the complexity of their international strategies. Businesses of all types are finding that it is important to standardize business procedures and policies as they build the foundations of growth and the demands that doing business on a global basis will entail (Morrison & Beck, 2000)."

Tags:global, economy, business, company, multinational

Abstract
This paper outlines, compares, and contrasts the theories of Marx, Weber, and Durkheim regarding the role conflict plays in society. The paper indicates that Marx's view of conflict had an economic and sociological base, while Weber's view emphasized philosophy and religion, and Durkheim's view emphasized a psychological and anthropological approach.

From the Paper
"Although conflict is often viewed in negative terms in today's society, the idea of class conflict assumes a positive shade in Karl Marx's discussion of the class struggle that drives modern history. According to Marx, all of human history has existed in the form of a struggle in regards to class. Every phase of human history is divided between the struggle between those who have, economically speaking, and those who "have not." This conflict results in a constant state of tension or conflict between these two types of human instruments that generate material economic production. This sense of conflict invariably cumulates in an overthrow of the ruling power and the installation of a new regime."

Tags:overthrow, ruling, power, installation, new, regime, material, circumstances, protestant, work, ethic, ritual

Abstract
In 1938, Louis Wirth wrote an article about his observations and critiques of urbanization. While many of his observations are held to be true today, nobody can clearly define what makes up a city or an urban area. The paper argues that whether urbanization and industrialization are good is all a matter of personal opinion. While urbanization poses a threat to certain social classes and even the environment, it has also helped to evolve the way goods and services are made available to a broad area. The paper argues that ,if urbanization continues on the path that it is currently on, guidelines and boundaries will have to be put in place to prevent the destruction of all that urbanization has helped us achieve.

From the Paper
"Alan Booth raised an issue of concern about overpopulation and crowding in urban areas. Urban crowding can affect a number of factors. First, the more people there are in an area, the more space people will desire due to the need for privacy. This can cause rapid expansion in what was a small crowded area. When an area expands rapidly, it can cause great environmental damage. It crowds wildlife populations and often destroys useful and fertile farm land or forests. Wildlife ecosystems respond with biological controls on fertility and birth rates that reduce populations and can lead species to become endangered in certain areas. The destruction of farm land is becoming more and more of an issue, especially in the mid-west where many of the United States' crops are grown. Land in the mid-west is fairly plentiful and peoples' desire for more personal space is leading real-estate developers to buy up land in the central U.S. and clear it for housing developments. This also applies to the metropolitan areas and some suburban areas within which the government provides housing (Booth 1976:1-10)."

Tags:cities, class, classes, industrialization, lower, middle, rural, social, upper, urban, urbanization, wirth

Abstract
This paper begins with Weber's account of the existence and persistence of asceticism within the development of capitalism in the west, thus providing a backdrop for the elucidation of Veblen's instinct of workmanship. The two concepts converge when one's "industry and frugality" meets the other's "bias toward serviceability and not waste." The paper uses this juncture to compare asceticism and the instinct of workmanship and follow Weber and Veblen's separate paths on the road toward a modern capitalism. While there are some similarities along the way, they arrive at somewhat different conclusions.

From the Paper
"Within Economy and Society and The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism Weber explicitly discusses the crucial role of a specific type of asceticism in the development of modern occidental capitalism. Within a religious context he characterizes (he admits, particularly and narrowly) the "ascetic" as one with a "methodical procedure for achieving religious salvation" (Weber 1978: 541). Given this portrayal, with its emphasis on salvation, the world in which the ascetic exists, and subsequently moves beyond, assumes a distinct centrality. The world from a religious perspective is the social sphere of mankind that is intrinsically saturated with temptation those "ethically irrational" sensual pleasures and the concomitant proclivities toward "complacent self-sufficiency and self-righteousness" that are counterproductive to the divine accomplishments necessary for salvation (1978: 542). As a Weberian ascetic, one's "methodical procedure" of living may emphatically engage this world of temptation or resolutely reject it."

Tags:economy, ethics, frugality, industry, labor, protestant

From the Paper
"Miller's theory rests heavily from what he calls "making love in the supermarket." Through his investigation he observes housewives (as his subjects were predominantly female members of a traditional nuclear family) that often exert great energy to please their family or convert their tastes to ones believed to be more healthy or beneficial. With this Miller sees a dominant other-centeredness, over a perhaps more expected self-centeredness, that may only be explained by a broad sense of love: "it is love that can satisfactorily legitimate their devotion to this work.""

Tags:bataille, consumption, culture, ethnography, london, material, sacrifice, thrift

Abstract
This paper discusses the book "A Short History of Progress" written by Ronald Wright. Wright argues that progress, as an ideology, is merely a myth. The paper describes how humans see their own progress and advancement in the rapid transition from an industrial economy to information based one, while the reality is that the food technology of the late Stone Age is the only one we cannot live without. The writer explains that the crops of about a dozen ancient people feed the 6 billion people of the world today.

From the Paper
"Ronald Wright is a British historian and the author of "A Short History of Progress", an interesting and challenging read. The book is small in appearance, but packs a big punch in terms of jamming the pages with historical facts and antidotes that are informative and intriguing. In his book, he examines the progress and downfall of ancient civilizations. Wright's purpose for writing the book is to warn people of the potential loom and doom facing contemporary society if no attempt is made to avoid the same disasters of civilizations past."

Tags:wright, progress, civilization

From the Paper
"Overpopulation is perhaps the single most pervading force of today's society. Transcending boundaries of political science, economics, sociology or any other field working with issues relevant to contemporary society, the mathematical certainty of exponential population growth is simple; By the time we begin to sense overpopulation, it is only a short time until the problem reaches mammoth and uncontrollable scale. Particularly in the third world, where resources are scarce, the imperative for action for clear. China and India are the two most heavily populated nations of the world, yet have taken radically different approaches to population control. India has maintained a strictly non-coercive population policy, and indeed the population has skyrocketed. China, on the other hand, has succeeded in curbing the population growth rate quite significantly by taking a much more proactive stance. While pragmatically effective, China's policies are so authoritarian and coercive that they lead to consequences considered simply inhuman by many."

Tags:China, India, population, third world

Abstract
This paper discusses the cultural aspects of doing business in Japan. The paper looks at the Japanese economy and why Japan is important, then discusses the Japanese business cultural framework and how it differs to the US society and values. The paper looks at aspects of Japanese society such as homogeneity and etiquettes, collectivism and interdependence in order to show their implications on the business world and work out how to bridge the gaps.

From the Paper
"Understanding Japanese business practices and the Japanese market has become a necessity for the American executive. Knowing how Japanese business people think and what factors influence decision-making is essential for conducting business with Japanese firms. The business person working to gain a foothold in Japan faces two major problems with regard to Japanese business customs: how to go about making an initial approach to a Japanese company and how to maintain and develop a business relationship once it has been established. In essence, business success in Japan hinges on the businessperson's comprehension and appreciation of Japanese customs and values. Although business people from different cultures are becoming increasingly knowledgeable of and familiar with each other's customs and business practices, the application of such knowledge is often superficial. In many cases, the very familiarity of a custom or mannerism merely serves to mask the underlying deep-seated differences."

Tags:communication, intercultural, differences, negotiation

Abstract
This paper presents a commodity chain analysis by tracing the production, distribution, and consumption of an "Abercrombie & Fitch" t-shirt. The paper examines the apparel, textile, and footwear industries from a local and global point of view, with a focus on the work force of these manufacturing industries.

From the Paper
"In general, the apparel industry is perhaps the most global of all manufacturing industries. The apparel, textile and footwear industries employ the largest workforce of any manufacturing industry in the world. At the very bottom of the chain are the garment workers, where all of the clothing production commences. Many of the workers are young women and teenagers who work in garment sweatshops producing for American retailers. About 80 percent of apparel workers producing clothing for U.S. retailers are working under conditions that violate local and international labor law. In the state of California alone there are over 140,000 garment workers who are mostly women, Latina and Asian immigrants that work 10-12 hour days, poverty wages, no paid overtime, physical, verbal and sexual abuse, dangerous and unsanitary working conditions, and suppression of the right to organize unions to change these conditions."

Tags:abercrombie, consumerism, distribution, fitch

Abstract
This paper examines the book "Hungry for Trade, How the Poor Pay for Free Trade" by John Madeley which discusses free trade and its negative affect on poor countries. It shows that how the poor pay for free trade is a fitting analogy for what has happened to the balance of power in the years following the advent of free trade and how highlighted in the story of exploitation are the many methods in which the rich attempt to take advantage of the poor. It shows how in order to understand the impact of free trade has on the third world it is necessary to discover the organizations on both sides of the battle, the ones that are against trade and the ones that are for it. It is also analyzes together with other literary citations, how the third world could benefit from changes to free trade agreements or changes to the structures and organizations that control it.

From the Paper
"Many studies of how women contribute to the farming household, do not take into account the decisions that women help to make about the farm. A study of the methodological difficulties of accounting for women's contribution to farming in the third world by Agnes Quisumbing found that it was very difficult to distinguish where to draw the line as to who contributes more and to what activities in a farming family. At the same time the study acknowledges that it is important to mark the contributions of women to the farming family. Most of the studies reviewed by Quisumbing found no difference at all between the contributions of men and women after you controlled for individual characteristics. This supports the idea of the FAO in Madeley's book that women will be a necessary part of the equation to solve world hunger through agriculture."

Tags:debt, exploitation, starvation, third, world