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SEMINAR REPORT ON SLAMMER WORM: THE FASTEST SPREADING BOMBSHELL ON THE INTERNET | | What is a computer virus? Of primary concern is as to what a computer virus is. A virus is a computer program that by your help or by attaching itself to some other program is able to move from one computer to another. Typically these programs are often malicious rather than beneficial even if they have no payload associated with them as they snatch away the system resources. There are several classes of code that fall under the category “virus”. Not all of them are strictly virus in technical terms; some of them are Worms and Trojan horses.

What is a computer worm? Worms are self replicating programs that do not infect other programs as viruses do; however they create copies of themselves which in turn create copies again, thus hogging the memory resources and clogging the network. Worms are usually seen on networks and multiprocessing OS’s. What is a Trojan horse? Trojan Horses are named after the mythical horse that delivered soldiers into the city of Troy. Thus they are programs acting as delivery vehicles; programs that do something undocumented, something that they conceal about at the time of delivery.

Thus they disguise their real motive behind some seemingly showy one and ask user to do something at the execution of which some actions are taken which are desperately unwanted by the user. Slammer Worm: A glance onto the facts. Slammer (sometimes called Sapphire) was the fastest computer worm in history. As it began spreading throughout the Internet, the worm infected more than 90 percent of vulnerable hosts within 10 minutes, causing significant disruption to financial, transportation, and government institutions and precluding any human-based response.

In this seminar, I wish to describe how it achieved its rapid growth, dissect portions of the worm to study some of its flaws, and look at the defensive effectiveness against it and its successors. Slammer began to infect hosts on Saturday, 25 January 2003, by exploiting buffer-overflow vulnerability in computers on the Internet running Microsoft’s SQL Server or Microsoft SQL Server Desktop Engine (MSDE) 2000. David Litchfield of Next Generation Security Software discovered this underlying indexing service weakness in July 2002; Microsoft released a patch for the vulnerability before the vulnerability was publicly disclosed.

Exploiting this vulnerability, the worm infected at least 75,000 hosts, perhaps considerably more, and caused network outages and unforeseen consequences such as canceled airline flights, interference with elections, and ATM failures (see Figure). [pic] Figure1. The geographical spread of Slammer in the 30 minutes after its release. The diameter of each circle is a function of the logarithm of the number of infected machines, so large circles visually under represent the number of infected cases in order to minimize overlap with adjacent locations.

For some machines, we can determine only the country of origin rather than a specific city. Slammer’s most novel feature is its propagation speed. In approximately three minutes, the worm achieved its full scanning rate (more than 55 million scans per second), after which the growth rate slowed because significant portions of the network had insufficient bandwidth to accommodate more growth. Although Stuart Staniford, Vern Paxson, and Nicholas Weaver had predicted rapid-propagation worms on theoretical grounds, Slammer provided the first real-world demonstration of a high-speed worm’s capabilities.

By comparison, Slammer was two orders of magnitude faster than the Code Red worm, which infected more than 359,000 hosts on 19 July 2001, and had a leisurely 37 minutes of population doubling time. While Slammer had no malicious payload, it caused considerable harm by overloading networks and disabling database servers. Many sites lost connectivity as local copies of the worm saturated their access bandwidths. Although most backbone providers appeared to remain stable throughout the epidemic, there were several reports of Internet backbone disruption.

If the worm had carried a malicious payload, attacked a more widespread vulnerability, or targeted a more popular service, its effects would likely have been far more severe. How Slammer chooses its victims The worm’s spreading strategy uses random scanning–it randomly selects IP addresses, eventually finding and infecting all susceptible hosts. Random-scanning worms initially spread exponentially, but their rapid new-host infection slows as the worms continually retry infected or immune addresses.

Thus, as with the Code Red worm shown in Figure 2, Slammer’s infected-host proportion follows a classic logistic form of initial exponential growth in a finite system. We label this growth behavior a random constant spread (RCS) model. |[pic] | |Figure 2. The Code Red worm was a typical random-scanning worm. This graph shows Code Red’s probe rate during its | |re-emergence on 1 August, 2001, as seen on one Internet sub network, matched against the random constant spread worm | |behavior model. |

Slammer’s spread initially conformed to the RCS model, but in the later stages it began to saturate networks with its scans, and bandwidth consumption and network outages caused site-specific variations in its observed spread. Figure 3 shows a data set from the Distributed Intrusion Detection System project (Dshield) compared to an RCS model. The model fits extremely well up to a point where the probe rate abruptly levels out. Bandwidth saturation and network failure (some networks shut down under the extreme load) produced this change in the probe’s growth rate. [pic] | | | |Figure 3. The early moments of the Distributed Intrusion Detection System data set, matched against the behavior of a | |random-scanning worm. | | | Why Slammer was so fast? While Slammer spread nearly two orders of magnitude faster than Code Red, it probably infected fewer machines. Both worms use the same basic scanning strategy to find vulnerable machines and transfer their exploitive payloads; however, they differ in their scanning constraints.

While Code Red is latency-limited, Slammer is bandwidth-limited, enabling Slammer to scan as fast as a compromised computer can transmit packets or a network can deliver them. Slammer’s 376 bytes comprise a simple, fast scanner. With its requisite headers, the payload becomes a single 404-byte user datagram protocol (UDP) packet. Contrast Slammer’s 404 bytes with Code Red’s 4 Kbytes or Nimda’s 60 Kbytes. Previous scanning worms, such as Code Red, spread via many threads, each invoking connect() to open a TCP session to random addresses. Consequently, each thread’s scanning rate was limited by network latency.

After sending a TCP SYN packet to initiate the connection, each thread must wait to receive a corresponding SYN/ACK packet from the target host or time-out if no response is received. During this time, the thread is blocked and cannot infect other hosts. In principle, worms can compensate for this latency by invoking a sufficiently large number of threads. In practice, however, operating system limitations, such as context-switch overhead and kernel stack memory consumption, limit the number of active threads a worm can use effectively.

So, a worm like Code Red quickly stalls and becomes latency limited, as every thread spends most of its time waiting for responses. In contrast, Slammer’s scanner is limited by each compromised machine’s Internet bandwidth. Because a single packet to UDP port 1434 could exploit the SQL server’s vulnerability, the worm was able to broadcast scans without requiring responses from potential victims. Slammer’s inner loop is very small, and with modern servers’ I/O capacity to transmit network data at more than 100 Mbits per second, Slammer frequently was limited by Internet access bandwidth rather than its ability to replicate copies of tself. In principle, an infected machine with a 100-Mbps Internet connection could produce more than 30,000 scans per second. In practice, bandwidth limitations and per-packet overhead limit the largest probe rate we directly observed to 26,000 scans per second, with an Internet-wide average of approximately 4,000 scans per second per worm during its early growth phase. Slammer’s scanning technique is so aggressive that it quickly interferes with its own growth. Subsequent infections’ contribution to its growth rate diminishes because those instances must compete with existing infections for scarce bandwidth.

Thus, Slammer achieved its maximum Internet-wide scanning rate in minutes. Any simple-loop approach creates a bandwidth-limited UDP scanner, so any future single-packet UDP worm probably would have the same property unless its author deliberately limited its spread. While a TCP-based worm, such as Code Red, also could use a bandwidth-limited scanner by sending TCP SYNs at maximum rate and responding automatically to any replies in another thread, this would require more effort to implement correctly, as it requires crafting raw TCP packets instead of simply using existing system calls.

What Slammer’s author did wrong? For a random-scanning worm to be effective, it needs a good source of random numbers to select new attack targets. Slammer’s random-number generator has some interesting deficiencies that make its analysis difficult and, perhaps, have implications for future worms. Several disassembled versions of the worm’s source code are available at the URLs shown in the “Worm guts”. Slammer uses a linear congruent or power residue, pseudo random number generation (PRNG) algorithm.

These algorithms take the form: x’ = (x * a + b) mod m, where x’ is the new pseudo random number to be generated, x is the last pseudo random number generated, m represents the range of the result, and a and b are carefully chosen constants. Linear congruent generators are very efficient and, with appropriate values of a and b have reasonably good distributional properties (although they are not random from a sequential standpoint).

Typically, you “seed” a generator’s initial value with a source of high-quality random numbers to ensure that the precise sequence is not identical between runs. Slammer’s author intended to use a linear congruent parameterization that Microsoft popularized, x’ = (x * 214013 + 2531011) mod 232. However, it was found containing two implementation mistakes. First, the author substituted a different value for the 2531011 increment value: hex 0xFFD9613C. This value is equivalent to 2531012 when interpreted as a twos-complement decimal.

So, it seems likely that the conversion to a negative number was an error (the author seems to have forgotten that creating a negative number in twos complement requires inverting and adding 1, not simply inverting), and probably that the author intended to use the SUB instruction to compensate for the resulting negative number, but mistakenly used ADD instead. The negative constant would be more desirable in the code, as this would eliminate any null (all-zero) characters from the worm’s code. The result is that the increment is always even.

The author’s second mistake was to misuse the OR instruction, instead of XOR, to clear an important register. This error left the register’s previous contents intact. As a result, the increment inadvertently XOR’s with the contents of a pointer contained in SqlSort’s import address table (IAT). This “salt” value differs, depending on the SqlSort DLL’s version, although two common values we observed are 0x77F8313C and 0x77E89B18 seeing 0x77EA094C, which is what the register value needs to be to get what eEye says is their result.

These mistakes significantly reduce the generator’s distribution quality. Because b is even and the register is always 32-bit aligned, the least-significant two bits are always zero. Interpreted as a big-endian IP address (the most significant value in the sequence is stored at the lowest storage address), this ensures that the 25th and 26th bits in the scan address (the upper octet) remain constant in any worm execution instance. Similar weaknesses extend to the 24th bit of the address, depending on the unclear register’s value.

Moreover, with the incorrectly chosen increment, any particular worm instance cycles through a list of addresses significantly smaller than the actual Internet address space. Thus, many worm instances will never probe our monitored addresses because none of them are contained in the worm’s scan cycle. Combined with the size of monitored address space, these mistakes prevent from accurately measuring the number of infected hosts during the first minutes of the worm’s spread.

Slammer will or will not include entire /16 address blocks (large contiguous address ranges) in a cycle, because the last two bits of the first address byte never change. That enabled the assembling lists of the address blocks in each cycle for each value of the salt (cycle structure depends on salt value). Fortunately, the probability of choosing a particular cycle is directly proportional to the size of the cycle if the initial seed is selected uniformly at random.

If we looked at many randomly seeded worms, it is likely that all Internet addresses would be probed equally. Thus, we can accurately estimate the worm’s scanning rate during the infection process by monitoring relatively small address ranges. We can estimate the percentage of the Internet that is infected because the probing will cover all Internet addresses. If not for the higher-quality numbers in the initial seed, these flaws would prevent the worm from reaching large portions of the Internet address space, no matter how many hosts were infected.

For the same reason, these flaws also could bias measurements because even though data come from several different networks, there is a small chance that those particular networks were disproportionately more or less likely to be scanned. However, the worm uses an operating system service, Get-Tick-Count, to seed each generator with the number of milliseconds since a system booted, which should provide sufficient randomization to ensure that across many instances of the worm, at least one host will probe each address at some point in time. We feel confident that the risk of bias in our measurements is similarly minimized.

Additionally, the “best” random bits produced by Get-Tick-Count are in the least-significant bits, which determine which cycle is selected for a given salt. An interesting feature of this PRNG is that it makes it difficult for the Internet community to assemble a list of the compromised Internet addresses. With earlier worms, we could collect a list of all addresses that probed into a large network. With Slammer, we would need to monitor networks in every cycle of the random-number generator for each salt value to have confidence of good coverage. How the Internet responded?

By passively monitoring traffic (either by sniffing or sampling packets or monitoring firewall logs) on a set of links providing connectivity to multiple networks, each responsible for about 65,000 IP addresses, the worm’s overall scanning behavior over time was inferred. The most-accurate Slammer early-progress data was obtained from the University of Wisconsin Advanced Internet Lab (WAIL), which logs all packet traffic into an otherwise unused network, a “tarpit” (see Figure 4). Because this data set represents a complete trace of all packets to an address space of known size, it lets us accurately extrapolate the worm’s global spread.

Unfortunately, a transient failure in data collection temporarily interrupted this data set approximately 2 minutes and 40 seconds after Slammer began to spread. Other sampled data sets are not sufficiently precise for accurate evaluation over short durations. |[pic] | |Figure 4. Slammer’s early progress as measured at the University of Wisconsin Advanced Internet Lab (WAIL) tarpit, an unused| |network that logs packet traffic. Scanning rate is scaled to estimate the Internet-wide scanning rate. A transient | |data-collection failure temporarily interrupted this data set approximately two minutes and 40 seconds after Slammer began | |to spread. ) | In general, people responded quickly to Slammer. Within an hour, many sites began filtering all UDP packets with a destination port of 1434 via router or firewall configuration changes. Slammer represents the idealized situation for network-based filtering: its signature easily distinguishes it, it is readily filterable on current hardware, and it attacked a port that is not generally used for critical Internet communication.

Thus, almost all traffic blocked by these filters represents worm-scanning traffic. If the worm had exploited a commonly used service vulnerability (for example, DNS at UDP port 53 or HTTP at TCP port 80), filtering could have caused significant disruption to legitimate traffic, with resulting denial of services(DoS) more harmful than the worm itself. Figure 5 illustrates the results of filtering. |[pic] | |Figure 5. The response to Slammer during the 12 hours after its release, measured in several locations.

Scanning rate is | |scaled to estimate the Internet-wide scanning rate. | Regardless of the optimal filter efficacy conditions in this instance, we must recognize that while filtering controlled the unnecessary bandwidth consumption of infected hosts, it did nothing to limit the worm’s spread. The earliest filtering began long after Slammer had infected almost all susceptible hosts. All distinct infected IP addresses recorded were seen by monitors in the first 30 minutes of worm spread. We noticed 74,856 distinct IP addresses, spread across a wide range of domains and geographic locations.

Slammer infected most of these machines in the first few minutes, but monitoring limitations prevent us from telling precisely when they were infected. We cannot observe all infected machines due to the flaws in Slammer’s PRNG, but we can document a lower bound on the number of compromised machines based on the IP addresses we have recorded–the actual infection is undoubtedly larger. Tables 1 and 2 summarize these distributions. |able 1. Slammer’s geographical distribution. | |COUNTRY |PERCENT VICTIMS | |United States |42. 7 | |South Korea |11. 82 | |Unknown |6. 96 | |China |6. 29 | |Taiwan |3. 98 | |Canada |2. 88 | |Australia |2. 38 | |United Kingdom |2. 2 | |Japan |1. 72 | |Netherlands |1. 53 | |Table 2. Slammer’s top-level domain distribution. | |TOP-LEVEL DOMAIN |PERCENT VICTIMS | |Unknown |59. 49 | |. net |14. 37 | |. com |10. 75 | |. du |2. 79 | |.. tw |1. 29 | |. au |0. 71 | |. ca |0. 71 | |. in |0. 65 | |. br |0. 57 | |. uk |0. 57 |

Why Slammer caused problems? Although Slammer did not contain an explicitly malicious payload, there were widely reported incidences of disruption, including failures of Bellevue, Washington’s 911 emergency’s data-entry terminals and portions of Bank of America’s ATM network. The 911 and ATM failures were widely reported: Inadvertent internal DoS attacks caused the large majority of these disruptions: as one or more infected machines sent out packets at their maximum possible rates. This traffic either saturated the first shared bottleneck or crashed some network equipment.

The bottleneck effects are obvious, as a site’s outgoing bandwidth is usually significantly less than a Slammer’s instance can consume. Thus, the worm’s packets saturated Internet links, effectively denying connectivity for all computers at many infected sites. Equipment failures tended to be a consequence of Slammer’s traffic patterns generated by infected machines, although any given equipment’s failure details varied. Slammer’s scanner produced a heavy load in three ways: a large traffic volume, lots of packets, and a large number of new destinations (including multicast addresses).

We feel this combination probably caused most network-equipment failures by exhausting CPU or memory resources. If attackers can control a few machines on a target network, they can perform a DoS attack on the entire local network by using a program that mimics Slammer’s behavior. Because these are “normal” UDP packets, special privileges (such as root or system administrator abilities) are not required. Instead, they need only the ability to execute the attacker’s program. Thus, critical networks should employ traffic shaping, fair queuing, or similar techniques, to prevent a few machines from monopolizing network resources.

Although some had predicted the possibility of high-speed worms, Slammer represents the first super-fast worm released into the wild. Microsoft’s SQL Server vulnerability was particularly well suited for constructing a fast worm (because the exploit could be contained in a single UDP packet). However, techniques exist to craft any worm with a reasonably small payload into a bandwidth-limited worm similar to Slammer. Thus, we must not view Slammer’s extreme speed as an aberration of the exploit’s nature or the particular protocol used (UDP versus TCP).

One implication of this worm’s emergence is that smaller susceptible populations are now more attractive to attacks. Formerly, attackers did not view small populations (20,000 machines or less on the Internet) as particularly vulnerable to scanning worms because the probability of finding a susceptible machine in any given scan is quite low. However, a worm that can infect 75,000 hosts in 10 minutes could infect 20,000 hosts in under an hour. Thus, vulnerabilities of less popular software present a viable breeding ground for new worms.

Because high-speed worms are no longer a theoretical threat, we need to automate worm defenses; there is no conceivable way for system administrators to respond to threats of this speed. Human-mediated filtering provides no benefit for actually limiting the number of infected machines. While the filtering could mitigate the overhead of the worm’s continuing scan traffic, a more sophisticated worm might stop scanning once the entire susceptible population was infected, leaving itself dormant on more than 75,000 machines to do harm at some future point.

Had the worm’s propagation lasted only 10 minutes, it would likely have taken hours or days to identify the attack, and many compromised machines might never have been identified. Thus, it is critical that we develop new techniques and tools that automatically detect and respond to worms. Though very simple, Slammer represents a significant milestone in the evolution of computer worms. It is sobering that worms such as Slammer preclude human-time response and, to date, deter attribution and prosecution. It clearly demonstrates that fast worms are a reality and we should consider them as standard tools in an attacker’s arsenal.

Who wrote Slammer? After much study, very few clues were found about Slammer’s author’s identity, location, or motive. No one has claimed authorship and the codes do not contain identifying signatures or comments. There also are no variable names in the code, making it impossible to determine the author’s native tongue. Similarly, the author has decent, but not remarkable, x86 coding skill; much of the code was borrowed from a published exploit, the additional code is not very complicated, and the author made three minor mistakes in the random-number generator.

Finally, no one has discovered patient 0, the initial point of infection. Thus, it is impossible to determine where the worm was released, in hopes of tracing the release back to the author. Conclusion The above points do suggest that even if we take giant leap in the technological advancement and make virtually everything secure it’s always possible for human mind to explore beyond the unobvious. The firewalls and other security measures can be got away from; the safest site can be hacked; and even the most intricate encryption can be decrypted.

Thus in this world of fictitious reality making anything invulnerable is not viable. The need however is to anticipate anything. The most sites hacked are government owned. Despite all this the facilities they provide are unquestionable. Security or no security the Internet will perpetuate and it’s users’ responsibility to fill his own system with added measures. The time demands to learn from past mistakes because most of the malicious programmers use those codes that have been used previously; so to provide functions against them will undoubtedly be of help.

Lastly, to live in this crude world is impossible without being aware. To know that there can be thwarts and there have been thwarts certainly help. Only the curiosity toward knowledge can bring knowledge and only a beforehand preparation can make the threats less precarious. For, the quest for wisdom will never end and nor will bow down the thus produced monster. Attention is only needed for warding them off.

I. STATEMENT/RECOGNITION OF DECISION REQUIREMENT/PROBLEM Facts of the Case Pinnacle is a small, publicly held Indiana-based machine tool company which is currently losing market shares due to aggressive pricing which have an impact on its profit margin. Don Anglos, Pinnacle’s CEO, heard a credible rumor that a chief competitor of Pinnacle is planning a hostile takeover of Hoilman, Inc. Don Anglos has to decide whether Pinnacle should attempt to acquire Hoilman, Inc. , a company known for its cutting-edge sensor technology and communications software developed to monitor robotics equipment.

Don Anglos knew Hoilman well due to the exploratory talks he conducted on a failed plan of a joint venture. By acquiring Hoilman, Pinnacle would be able to transform into a high-tech service company that provides top-notch service far more sophisticated than its standard maintenance and service contracts by developing software that could transmit real-time information to its customers’ equipment. Don was a problem-solver and a proven track record of successfully spotting new market opportunities. He believes that acquiring Hoilman would be a good place to start. This option will be gone if Hoilman will be sold to another firm.

Jennifer Banks, services division head, was enthusiastic about the acquisition and the new strategy describing it as “chance of a lifetime. ” Sam Lodge, CFO, disagrees on Don’s plan stating that “getting into service business is a mistake” and Pinnacle’s recent profit drop had not escaped Wall Street’s attention and further negative impact might scare investors. There’s uncertainty that going to a service business would make the company on top considering the number of competitors. II. DIAGNOSIS AND ANALYSIS OF CAUSES Key Problems/Issues Should Pinnacle acquire Hoilman Inc. by trusting Don Anglo’s instincts or onsider Sam Lodge’s factual concerns and position? Key Objectives 1) To evaluate the decision steps taken by CEO, Don Anglo and the Pinnacle team on the new strategy of acquiring Hoilman, Inc. 2) To provide alternatives and address the concerns raised by the CFO, Sam Lodge. SWOT Analysis Strengths • CEO has proven track record on new opportunities • Services Division Head is very enthusiastic about the strategy • Don Anglos has prior knowledge on the company (Hoilman, Inc. ) that he wants to acquire • Don Anglos’ instinct is strong towards this new project • Pinnacle had relatively healthy earnings and had potential for growth Anglo had managed to pushed the company’s revenue growth and increase market share Weaknesses • Support of the Pinnacle team for the acquisition is not firm (Resistance from the CFO and some senior managers • Company is not in the position to embark on new project that would risk the company’s earnings. • There is uncertainty if acquisition would yield a positive result • Aggressive pricing chipped away at the company’s healthy profit margins Opportunities • Develop a software that would make them ahead of their competitors • Acquisition will transform Pinnacle into a high-tech service company • Increase company’s profit margin Acquisition of Hoilman would protect the company from impending takeover by a chief competitor. Analysis of the Problem Don Anglo and the members of the senior management team is facing one of the crucial parts of good management which is good managerial decision making. Anglo and his managers are encountering a situation which is unique and will have critical consequences for the company thus, they have to make a non-programmed decision on whether to acquire Hoilman Inc. or not. Whether to acquire Hoilman, Inc. ill involve risk and uncertainty. Even though Anglo knew Hoilman well because he had exploratory talks with the company, the future outcomes associated with the acquisition still poses a risk and uncertainty. This is evident when Sam Lodge specifically mentioned that “getting into the service business is a mistake” and there is no guarantee that Pinnacle will come out on top and there is no evidence to prove that the market can afford to buy such services. The decision making model that suit the situation of Pinnacle Co. s the Political Model since it is useful for non-programmed decisions, such as the case of Pinnacle which involves uncertainty and managers’ disagree about what course of action to take. The decision making steps or the six steps in the managerial decision making process will help Anglo and his managers to come up with a good decision regarding the issue of acquisition. Unfortunately in the case, they have not completed the cycle. The first step is the Recognition of Decision Requirement which was taken by Anglo when he recognized the opportunity of acquiring Hoilman, Inc. nd transform Pinnacle into a high-tech service company. The second step is the Diagnosis and Analysis of Cause which unfortunately was not done by Anglo and his team. Most managers make a mistake when they often jump into generating alternatives before exploring the cause of the problem or the opportunity. Anglo and his team weren’t able to analyze the opportunity of acquiring Hoilman thoroughly. They should’ve considered the problem first by assessing how the opportunity occurs. What is the reason of the management of Hoilman for letting another company take over or the possible acquisition?

Is there urgency for a change in strategy? These are some questions that Pinnacle could answer and evaluate before coming up with the alternatives. The third step is the Development of Alternatives. This was done by Pinnacle when Anglo and his team laid down the advantages and disadvantages of the acquisition. According to Anglo, the transformation is the only way he envisioned growth and profitability. This was supported by Jennifer Banks. On the other hand, some of the senior managers and CFO Sam Lodge presented several arguments against the acquisition.

The succeeding steps on the decision making process wasn’t completed by Pinnacle. The fourth step is the Selection of Desired Alternative; managers try to select the option with the least amount of risk and uncertainty. Fifth is the Implementation of Chosen Alternative, communication motivation and leadership skills are important in this stage to ensure that the decision is put into action. The sixth step in the process is the Evaluation and Feedback, in this stage the decision makers should gather information to check how well the decision was implemented and if it is effective in achieving its goals.

Feedback is important is important because decision making is a cycle, which means it is a continuous process. The opposing view of Don Anglo and Sam Lodge about the decision on the acquisition is evident in the case and we can distinguish their personal decision styles. The decision-making style that describes Anglo’s approach is the Directive style. He prefers simple and straight to the point solutions to problems. Anglo acts based on intuition considering his proven track record of successfully spotting new market opportunities.

His intuition is based on years of practice and hands on experience. According to cognitive psychologist Gary Klein, intuition begins with recognition. “When people build a depth of experience and knowledge in a particular area, the right decision often comes quickly and effortlessly as recognition of information that has been largely forgotten by the conscious mind. ” (Daft, Richard, Management 8th Edition). On the other hand, Lodge’s personal decision making style is Analytical.

He based his decision not to acquire Hoilman on objective and rational data from management control systems and other sources. We are not saying that one is better than the other. Instead, it is important that managers should consider both rationality and intuition as a critical component of effective decision making. The new strategy that Don Anglo is proposing will have a major effect on the organization, the leader participation style of Anglo as CEO is to consult individually, which means he presents the problem to his subordinates for their suggestions and then make the decision.

The subordinates’ commitment is very important in carrying out the decision, if Pinnacle will acquire Hoilman, the support of the whole Pinnacle team is critical to make things a success and adapt to the changes that will happen, therefore managers should involve subordinates in the decision process. III. DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVES 1) Acquire Hoilman, Inc. Advantages: • Pinnacle could develop software that transmitted real-time information on its customer’s equipment • Set an advantage by providing top-notch service far more sophisticated than its current standard maintenance and service contracts. Will transform Pinnacle into a high-tech service company and increase the opportunity for more profit earnings • Prevent company from a hostile takeover from a chief competitor Disadvantages: • The further negative impact on earnings that would result from the Hoilman acquisition wasn’t likely to make already wary investors feel any better. • Competitors are already doing the strategy of breaking into the services market. • There is uncertainty that Pinnacle will come on top. • No evidence that customers could afford to buy any add-on services any time soon. Anglo may have a hard time getting the support of some managers and their subordinates in implementing the new strategy. 2) Do not acquire Hoilman, Inc. Advantages: • Prevent further negative impact on earnings. • Managers and subordinates will feel that their opinions are being considered by the management. Disadvantages: • Hostile takeover of Hoilman by one of Pinnacle’s chief competitors. (Therefore, the opportunity of Pinnacle of providing top-notch service will be forgone and be enjoyed by its competitor. 3) Develop a further study of the possible acquisition of Hoilman, Inc. and allow the subordinates to get more involve in the decision making process. Advantages: • Boost employee morale. • Prevent any tension among the senior management team. • Will encourage the members of the organization to participate in any changes that might occur in the company in effect of the decision to be made. • Will be able to get substantial information from the market on the idea of an add-on service. Disadvantages: May take time to come up with a decision and may lose the opportunity of the acquisition, if competitor will decide faster to take over Hoilman, Inc. • Pinnacle might be at the losing end if it’s not quick with its decision. IV. SELECTION OF DESIRED ALTERNATIVE Based on the alternative strategies given and the current state of Pinnacle, making a decision fast is a critical factor. Acquiring Hoilman is the best alternative considering the time constraint and the threat of a takeover by a competitor and also assuming that the company has the financial capability to do the acquisition.

Not doing this strong move would not also do any good to the company since it would give competitors more opportunity to acquire Pinnacle. Acquiring or not acquiring Hoilman both entails risk to the company. Although acquiring Hoilman post the risk of scaring investors and not getting positive result with the move but almost all business have that risk. Not acting immediately or not acquiring Hoilman may be perceived as a safe strategy at the moment considering the financial status of the company but it posts more harm to the company than advantages.

Yes it would keep investors at the bay but would it provide boost to the company’s losing profit? Would it provide opportunity to outclass its competitors? Considering the alternative of conducting further study of the possible acquisition of Hoilman may also be a good alternative because it would address a lot of things. Morale issues, concerns raised by the CFO and other senior management members. It would be a great venue for soliciting genuine feedback and come about with rational decision process.

This collaboration among employees of the organization is what we call the Learning Organization. There is team-based structure which means there is communication and cooperation across departmental and hierarchical boundaries. Also, Employee Empowerment is evident by giving them the freedom, resources, information and skills to contribute to important decisions. Last but not least there is Open Information, which means that people in the organization are aware of what’s going on.

They should understand the whole organization and they are part in it. But the question is, how long would this process last? What if during this process, competitors have already acquired the supposedly “opportunity of a lifetime”? What if the chief competitor has made his moves of acquiring Pinnacle? Trusting on Don Anglo’s intuition is not a bad idea given the current situation and threats surrounding the company, his experience and problem solving skills and determining opportunities cannot be discounted.

Yes, he needs to see the rational side of the impact of his decision but still he must make his decision or suffer the consequence. In this way we apply intuition in the right circumstance and take a balanced approach. V. IMPLEMENTATION OF CHOSEN ALTERNATIVE The chosen alternative can be implemented based on the following suggested activities: 1) Set a meeting with the BOD and top management of the company to communicate with them the final decision of acquiring Hoilman, Inc. 2) Release a memo to all employees regarding the acquisition of Hoilman, Inc. ) After the acquisition of Hoilman, prepare a business plan incorporating the acquisition of Hoilman to Pinnacle’s original business plan 4) Meet with the stakeholders of the company and let them understand the advantages of the decision of acquiring Hoilman. Let them be aware of the risks of not taking the move immediately and the risks of going into this venture which is but natural to any investment transactions. 5) Conduct brainstorming and feedback about the opinions and possible effects f the acquisition to the members of the organization, to be lead by managers of such department/group and whatever will be the result will be presented to the management team for consideration and evaluation. • Ensure that business and financial statements are in order. Key elements include: keeping the tax returns and financial statements current, understanding the impact the acquisition will have on the cash flow, and getting the money needed for the acquisition pre-approved. • Prepare the company for the possible outcome of the acquisition.

Manage the stakeholders’ expectations and solicit their commitment on the project. • Set up teams to handle the integration plans. Review infrastructure, process and system requirements. Manage people’s skills by identifying if there’s a need to let go unneeded manpower or look for capable people to handle the new setup. • Evaluate if implementation plans are in order and on schedule. VI. RECOMMENDATION / CONCLUSION In every organization, decision making is important and must be taken seriously by managers and all members of the organization.

The decision-making steps is important to be taken step by step to be able to recognize the problem at hand, evaluate information, develop strategies, come up with the desired alternative, implement it effectively and provide evaluation and feedback on the chosen alternative. It is important to do all the steps because each step will guide us on the next process and the decision making process is continuous and never-ending. It is also significant to determine what kind of decisions we are making.

The case also presented that in the work place, it’s not all the time that decisions are based on facts and rational reasoning. But there are times that managers must decide based on intuition when the circumstance calls for it; this can be done if decision maker has years of expertise and hands-on experience in a business situation such as of Pinnacle. It is important to consider both rationality and intuition to help arrive at an effective decision. The Vroom-Jago model helps managers to identify the extent of participation by subordinates in making the decision.

In the case of Pinnacle, it is important that every member of the organization to provide inputs for the decision-making. The effect of whether to acquire Hoilman or not will have certain effects to the organization and to its members but in the case of Hoilman where sense of urgency is needed it will have to take a back seat for the meantime but before implementation of the decision, management will have to secure that each member of the organization is aware of the situation and they should also listen to their opinions and suggestions on how to implement it properly.

This where the idea of Learning Organization will come in, during the implementation stage each member of the organization will be encourage to as a team, employees have the chance to make decisions and perform effectively and information will be available to everyone.

Pros and Cons of Censorship Censorship is prevalent in the modern society. It is a highly divisive issue. Here’s a look at its pros and cons. Censorship is the control of information and ideas in a society. Both democratic and non-democratic countries use it. With the explosion of communication technology, it has become all-pervasive. There is a dispute as to whether censorship is good or bad. Pros of Censorship • Censorship of pornographic material prevents the corrupting of the children. Religious conflicts are avoided by the censorship of material deemed insulting or offensive to a particular religious community. • Censorship is necessary to preserve the secrets of a nation. • Censorship is useful in hiding sensitive military information, which could be used by an enemy state. • Scenes of people consuming alcohol or smoking influence people to copy them. Hence censoring such scenes serves a useful purpose. • People may copy dangerous stunts shown on TV or movies. Censorship proves necessary here. Books may be used to portray wrong information about individuals or groups that could incite violence against them. Censorship would definitely prove helpful here. • It can be used to prevent politically motivated propaganda. • It protects the privacy of people. • Plagiarism is prevented. • Abusive scenes in movies may offend some people. Censorship prevents that. • It protects indigenous cultures from the bad influence of foreign cultures. • It prevents the public display of disrespect to any particular individual or community. It prevents companies from spreading inaccurate or grossly exaggerated claims about their products. • It promotes political correctness. • Terrorists are prevented from learning about dangerous technology like the atom bomb. • Children are prevented from learning things that could harm them and others. • It prevents the ill effects of globalization affecting societies. • It shields the morals of society. • It restrains vulgarity and obscenity. • The surfeit of violence in movies and TV is restricted by it. • It prevents violence by stopping the broadcast of events, which might trigger it.

Cons of Censorship • If sex-related topics are completely censored it becomes difficult to teach children and teenagers about the dangers of HIV/AIDS. • Dictators and dictatorship use it to promote a flattering image of themselves and for removing any information that is negative to them. • Freedom of speech is compromised. • Religious fundamentalists like the Taliban use them to coerce the population. • It encroaches upon the freedom of the press. • It prevents the free flow of ideas. • It may intrude on the privacy of a person. Withholding of information only leads to ignorance in the society. • Censoring of information may lead to a wrong image perceived by the public. • It is generally associated with dictatorship. • Censorship in books, plays and movies may compromise their entertainment value. • Censorship has been misused in the past. • It is a force against globalization. • It works against creativity. • If you hide something from people they will become extra curious about it. • It has no place in a truly democratic society. • It gives rise to and hides human rights abuses. • It is used to control people. There can be different standards of morals among different societies quite different from the imposed ones by the censorship. • It may be used to block legitimate criticism. • Governments should not control people. It should be the other way around. • Individuals have different tastes. • It stifles the opposition, broadcasting only a particular point of view. • People have a right to know. Used properly, censorship serves as a valuable tool. However, it can also be easily misused. Governments and other regulatory institutions must learn to use it judiciously

Case Study #1 The Sleep Well Motel In April 1990, Will Shelton was evaluating information received from the owner of a motel that was for sale in Fort Morgan, Colorado. Will had answered an ad in the Wall Street Journal under the heading “Business for Sale. ” To Will’s surprise, he received a call directly from Hank Bennington, the owner of the Sleep Well Motel of Fort Morgan, Colorado. During the conversation, Mr. Bennington described his motel and his reason for wanting to sell. He also described the many advantages of living in Colorado and promised to send Will more information on his company.

The next day an overnight package of information arrived at Will’s home. Background on Will Shelton At 44 years of age, Will felt that he had climbed the corporate ladder about as high as he was likely to go. He also had doubts about remaining in a large corporation for the rest of his working life. The present position Will held was director of marketing research for a large electronics corporation located in Houston, Texas. Despite the title, Will felt his position was not satisfying. “Marketing research in an industrial company just isn’t very exciting or personally rewarding; in fact, it’s downright dull. This statement pretty well summarized Will’s feelings. Although Will had been trained as an engineer, he discovered that engineering wasn’t his primary interest and began to move into marketing. When the position of marketing research director opened in his company, Will applied and was elated when he learned he had received the position. In reviewing this move, Will stated that he believed the fact that he had recently completed an MBA during part-time studies had helped him to obtain the position. Will had recently gone through a divorce and his former wife had been awarded custody of the two boys.

Because the laws of Texas called for a division of shared property and child support, Will had suffered a financial setback and was faced with large ongoing payments to his former wife other than for child support. Despite his recent financial problems, Will felt he could raise sufficient money to purchase the motel with a bank mortgage. In his earlier years, Will had studied and worked in New Mexico. He had learned to ski and also enjoyed hunting and fishing in that state. Will felt the people in that part of the United States were somehow more genuine and that life was better in many ways than his present life in Houston.

As a result, when he read about a motel for sale in Colorado, Will had an automatic interest. Background on the Sleep Well Motel As Will began to pull his thoughts together, he reviewed what he had already learned about the Sleep Well Motel. This information had been gained through the telephone conversation with Mr. Bennington plus sales literature and a brief historical sketch that had been included with data sent by Mr. Bennington. The motel had 80 rooms. It was affiliated with a chain several years ago, but was no longer associated with that company. The property was located off U. S.

Highway 76, which carried traffic between Denver and Nebraska. Mr. Bennington did not have data concerning the profile characteristics of his customers, but told Will that his customers were commercial travelers such as repair crews, independent sales reps, middle-aged retired couples and young budget-minded travelers. The motel did not have an attached restaurant, but there was a cafe about two blocks away. There was also a laundromat nearby that was frequently used by the guests. The property was 17 years old and was described as clean and comfortable, but in need of “cosmetics” and new carpeting.

Mr. Bennington said he had a dependable night clerk, but served as the manager/front-desk clerk himself during the day. He said that dependable maid service was a problem for all of the motels in the area, and his was no exception. Reasons for Selling In the telephone conversation, Mr. Bennington stated he had recently lost his wife in a tragic car accident. Since that time he had been unable to concentrate on the business and now wanted to return to his home state of Illinois to be near his son’s family. In addition, Mr. Bennington said he wanted to be perfectly candid.

He said that after the car accident he failed to keep as close a watch on the business as he should have. Mr. Bennington admitted that he felt ill at ease in the field of marketing and felt the company would need strong direction in that area. He went on to say that Will should be a “natural” to manage this type of business. After skimming the material, Will became increasingly enthused about the possibility of owning and managing this motel. He knew there were many additional questions he would need to ask in his next phone conversation. At the moment, the most exciting part was the possibility of living in Colorado and being his own boss.

Will knew he would have to develop a list of penetrating questions to ask Mr. Bennington and also knew he needed to study the financial sheets in detail. That could come later. For the moment, Will was picturing himself on the slopes of Colorado’s beautiful mountains gracefully skimming down the snow. Questions: 1. Discuss the pros and cons of Will Shelton owning and operating the Sleep Well Motel. ????? 2. Do you believe that Will’s marketing/marketing research background will be of great assistance to him in running this motel? Why or why not? ????? 3. Why do you suppose Mr.

Bennington said that Will’s marketing background would be a real benefit? ????? 4. What kinds of marketing/sales tactics are best suited for a motel such as the Sleep Well Motel? ????? This tool is designed to help you achieve the grade you want. Names: ????? Total Marks: ????? / 50????? |Section |Outstanding (A) |Excellent (B) |Good (C) |Needs Work (D) | |Q1: Discussion of Pro’s and|A minimum of five valid pros |A minimum of five valid pros |A minimum of five valid pros and |Incomplete listing of pros and | |Con’s and five cons are presented in|and five cons presented in |five cons presented. |cons. | |/10 |sentence format. |sentence format. |Little or no discussion of each |Little or no discussion of each | | |Each pro and con is discussed |Limited discussion of each pro |pro and con. |pro and con. | | |in some detail. |and con. |Little evidence of extra research |No research efforts are evident. | | |External research is used |Some external research is used |efforts. | | |extensively to support pros |to support pros and cons. | | | | |and cons. | | | | |Q2: Will’s Marketing/ |Good, direct answer to the |Good, direct answer to the |Good, direct answer to the |Direct answer to the question. | |Marketing research |question. question. |question. |Answer is not well supported by | |background? |Answer is fully supported by |Answer is supported by facts |Answer is complete, but not well |facts from case, nor is the | |/ 10 |facts from case. |from case. |supported by fact. |opinion of the student | | |Student “opinions” are |Student “opinions” are |Opinions are unsubstantiated. |substantiated. | | |substantiated with outside |substantiated. | | | |research. | | | | |Q3: Bennington’s comments. |Good, direct answer to the |Good, direct answer to the |Good, direct answer to the |Direct answer to the question. | |/ 10 |question. |question. |question. |Answer is not well supported by | | |Answer is fully upported by |Answer is supported by facts |Answer is complete, but not well |facts from case, nor is the | | |facts from case. |from case. |supported by fact. |opinion of the student | | |Student “opinions” are |Student “opinions” are |Opinions are unsubstantiated. |substantiated | | |substantiated with outside |substantiated | | | | |research. | | | |Q4: Marketing and Sales |Detailed discussion of various|Discussion of various tactics |Some discussion of various tactics|Limited discussion of relevant | |Tactics |tactics relevant to this |relevant to this property. |relevant to this property. |tactics. | |/ 15 |property. |Some new marketing ideas. |Few marketing ideas. |Limited ideas to market property. | | |Innovative marketing ideas. Shows understanding of the |Shows some knowledge of the |Shows little understanding of the| | |Shows solid comprehen-sion of |marketing mix as it applies to |marketing mix as it applies to |marketing mix as it applies to | | |the marketing mix as it |this property. |this property. |this property. | | |applies to this property. |Some research has been done. |Little outside research is |No research effort has been made. | | |Extra research effort is | |evident. | | |evident. | | | | |Presentation of Report |No spelling, grammar or |Minor spelling, grammar or |Some spelling, grammar or |Unacceptable amount of spelling, | |/ 5 |formatting errors. |formatting errors. |formatting errors. |grammar or formatting errors. | | |Accurate utilization of |Use of references appropriate. |References naccurate or difficult|References missing or inaccurate | | |references; easy to follow. |Few difficulties in the |to follow. |and difficult to follow. | | |The structure and layout of |structure and layout of the |Some difficulties in the |Report layout and design | | |the case is logical and easily|case. |structure and layout of the case, |(packaging, materials and print | | |followed. | |making it difficult to follow. |quality) poor quality. |

There are four groups that you can categorize the average shopper in: Hesitant, Looker, Impulsive and Bargain. Hesitant buyers are alternatively known as reluctant buyers and can be described as smart, although at times may miss out on good items. When it comes to aggressive shoppers, they will often go out of their way to get any product they want. Impulsive shoppers keep buying things that they sometimes don’t need; and go over their budget. The Bargain shopper often goes to stores that have bargains(Hence the name “Bargain shopper“).

They often miss out on good opportunities due to the fact that they only look for things that can be bought at half price or have a certain percentage off. Regardless of which shopping mall you enter, there will always be a variety of various shoppers; it is almost guaranteed that if observed closely, one of the four major types will be easily identified. Thus, your everyday mall is filled with shoppers that are categorized into four major categories: bargain, aggressive, impulsive and hesitant.

The Hesitant Shopper: The Hesitant shopper is an individual who wants to buy things but knows in reality that they either do not need the item or are unable to afford it. They ponder whether or not the item they will be purchasing will provide a benefit to their lifestyle and needs. These shoppers often ask themselves, “Is it worth it? ”, “How often will I use it? ”, or “Could I get a better deal elsewhere? ”. Hesitant shoppers try their best to ensure that the item that they are purchasing is really necessary.

More often than not they prioritize other important things before shopping. The Looker: The next type of shopper is the person who looks but never ever buys: the looker. This type of shopper may find shopping fun at first, but towards the end of their shopping experience they become tired and hopeless. This can be because of many different things. The Impulsive Shopper: Impulsive shoppers are the shoppers who will go crazy when they enter the doors of a shopping mall.

When they enter a store they are unable to control their actions, and will often purchase a number of items within the store – many of which will be unnecessary buys. They purchase items just to have the knowledge that they own it. An impulsive shopper is most commonly referred to as a ‘shop-a-holic’ . Shop-a-holics are addicted to shopping and subsequently shop to feel good in the avoidance of other issues. On many occasions the impulsive buyer will not feel or display any feelings of guilt for their purchases. The Bargain Shopper:

The weekly store sales or daily coupons that come in the newspaper attract another type of shoppers: bargain hunters. Bargain hunters also enjoy shopping, but instead of just buying anything for any price, they keep their eyes open for sales and good deals. These people are usually very conservative with their money and will do anything to get a product for a cheaper price than marked. In other words, bargain hunters try to get the most for their money. They only purchase a product when they believe they are getting a good price for it.

This type of shopper may consider looking around for good deals a lifestyle, but it can also become an obsession known as hording. Your everyday mall is filled with shoppers that are categorized into four major categories: Hesitant, Looker, Impulsive and Bargain . At times these shoppers do not realize the extent of their shopping habits, resulting in a negative impact on their lives and relationships. One of the most common impacting factors is bankruptcy. To avoid any possible negative effects, purchases should always be made with careful consideration.

Growth and Development Robin Harmon 10/11/2009 Adolescent Physical Development: Height/Weight: Age Physical Growth 12 to 18Variation in age of growth spurt, girls gain 15 to 55 pounds and grow 2 to 8 inches; boys gain approximately 15 to 65 pounds and grow 4. 5 to 12 inches Normal Adolescent Physical Growth Patterns: AgeHeight FemalesHeight MalesWeight FemalesWeight Males 1255-64 in54-63. 5 in68 -136 lb66- 130 lb 1459-67. 5 in59-69. 5 in84 – 160 lb84 – 160 lb 1660-68 in63- 73 in94 – 172 lb104 – 186 lb 1860 – 68. 5 in65 – 74 in100 – 178 lb116 – 202 lb

Adolescence is the second fastest growth period. It is the first stage in which patterns differ gender. Both height and weight increase earlier in females than in males, but gains in both measurement are ultimately greater in males than in females. As mentioned females usually start to mature earlier than males. At puberty, increases in four primary sex hormones cause physical changes in girls. These hormones are follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), estrogen, and progesterone. There is an increase in the rate of skeletal growth, a widening of the pelvis, and a change in fat distribution.

Breast tissue begins to develop, and coarse hair forms under the arms and over the mons pubis. At about 13 years females experience menarche, the beginning of the menstrual cycle. Menarche can begin as early as age 8 and as late as age 16. A few months later ovulation begins. These changes take several years to complete. The female usually reaches full physical maturation by age 16, but it might be as late as 18 years of age. Sexual maturity can be documented in stages (called Tanner’s stages). Male development usually begins 2 years later than female development.

Changes in hormones guide physical changes in males as in females. FSH and LH trigger the increase of testosterone. There is a rapid growth with an increase in height, lengthening of the jaw, and a doubling of muscle mass. The penis and testicles mature, and coarse hair forms on the face, axillae, and pubis. The voice deepens. Ejaculation signals the beginning of spermatogenesis. Although these changes are usually apparent by age 16 the male may not reasch his adult hight until 19 to 21 years of age. Vital Signs: Temperature (oral):98. 6 Fahrenheit Pulse:70 (50 to 90)

Respirations:18 (15 to 20) Blood Pressure:120/80 mmHg Motor Development: Fine Motor Skills: Skills are well developed Gross Motor Skills: New sports activities attempted and muscle development continues. Some lack of coordination common during growth spurts Psychosocial Development: Erickson’s Stages of Development: The 5th stage is adolescence. This stage, ages 12 to 20 years of age , is the time of identity versus role confusion. Teenagers are developing their sexual identity becoming more independent and beginning the process of separation from their parents.

Teenagers have a strong desire to make their own decisions and “live their own life”, but at the same time they have a real need to know the boundaries or rules. Teenagers are examining the world and trying to decide where they fit, what their life’s work will be, and how they can accomplish their goals. They are beginning to use peers for support instead of relying on parents for help in making decisions. With positive reinforcement of their progress, they can develop a strong identity. However with continual negative feedback, coupled with feelings of inferiority and guilt, they become confused, ambivalent, and withdrawn.

If the parents do not allow them to separate from their influence, develop peer relationships, and make their own decisions, they will remain dependent because they have not developed a clear identity. Cognitive Development/Communication: Although emotional and physical maturity is usually reached sooner in females, cognitive development progresses equally. The adolescent moves from the concrete operations level to the abstract comprehension (formal operations) level of cognitive development. Cognitive milestones include the following: *Ability to examine hypothetical situations and apply the concepts to current issues. Ability to examine philosophical ideas and compare real world situations to the ideal. *Ability to pan for the “what if” *Development of adult profiency with language (although adolescents frequently use slang to “fit in” with their peer groups) In the early years 13 to 14 years of age, adolescents may be self-centered but they gradually mature and develop a strong identity. This is a difficult transition, however. A changing boby and an increase in hormones bring about confusion and doubt. Adolescents want to feel attractive, but they may feel ugly because of skin changes, the awkwardness of a rapidly changing body, and mood changes.

Hormonal changes and a physiologic drive to reproduce put many pressures on development of sexuality. Peers are most important at this time and can have a positive or negative influence on behavior. Stron peer pressure and feelings of immortality (“it won’t happern to me”) can lead to unwise choices and risk taking behaviors. Parents often look for guidance at this period in their children’s lives. The simple rules of family are giving way to larger societal influnences. Educational, religious, and health care professionals can offer valuable information to help parents provide guidelines for their teens.

Health Screening: *Health examinations as recommended by the physician *Screening for tuberculosis *Periodic vision and hearing screenings *Regular dental assessments *Obtaining and providing accurate information about sexual issues 15 years: Height and Weight, Review developmental milestones, and sexual activity. The physical examination now should include self-care of skin-examination, breast self-examination, testicular self-examination, and frequency of pelvic examinations. It is particularly important to include counseling on substance use, unwanted pregnancy, and STD risk reduction.

Health Promotion: Immunizations: as recommended, such as adult tetanus-diphteria (Td) vaccine and hepatitis B vaccine. Range of Recommended ages Hepatitis A9, Influenza, PPV, MCV4 Catch- Up Immunization Hepatitis B1, Tdap, MMR, Varicella, MCV4 Nutrition: 2,200 to 2,800 kcal/day Meeting the nutritional needs of the adolescent is a challenge. The rapid growth spurt and increased muscle mass result in a need for 2,000 to 3,000 calories daily. Teens active in sports require even higher calorie intake. Requirements for iron, calcium, zinc, and vitamins all increase.

To meet these requirements, 3 meals per day, with nutritious snacks between meals are needed. Calcium intake has been found to be particularly important during adolescence, and adequate intake has been linked with the prevention of osteoporosis. The deposition of calcium is 5 times greater prior to menarche than that of adult women. Adequate calcium and vitamin D during early adolescence is effective in enhancing bone mineral composition. Adolescents diets should contain protein, milk, fresh fruits, and vegetables daily. However, many adolescents choose high calorie, high fat, convenience foods.

The adolescent should be taught to make healthy food choices. Nutritional teaching and counseling are most effective when conducted in a group setting with teenager’s peers. *Importance of healthy snacks and appropriate patterns of food intake and exercise. *Factors that may lead to nutritional problems (e. g. , obesity, anorexia, nervosa, bulimia) *Balancing sedentary activities with regular exercise Elimination: School age & adolescents = 0. 5-1 ml/Kg/hour Hyigene: Children are at high risk for contacting communicable diseases. This risk can be lowered through careful attention to matters of hyigene.

Hand washing is an important measure for the nurse to teach parents. Children need to understand the importance of washing their hands vigoursly before and after meals and after toileting. Germs are also spread among children by sharing toys and snacks. Children in church nurserier, day care centers, and schools should be monitored for hand to mouth activities and encouraged to wash their hands frequently. The child who is ill can spread germs to other children by coughing, sneezing, and indiscriminately disposing used tissues. The nurse can teach the parent and children the importance of covering their mouth when coughing or sneezing.

School officials are now encouraging children to sneeze and cough into their elbows rather than their hands. This will prevent germs from getting onto the child’s hands, where they can more easily passed to others. Children should be taught to dispose of used tissues in trash receptacles and avoid leaving them where others may come in contact with them. Rest/Sleep: Studies of normal sleep and sleep patterns in adolescents have identified important issues regarding the basic developmental physiology of sleep and circadian rhythms in adolescence.

The role of pubertal/hormonal influences on circadian sleep-wake cycles and melatonin secretion has been recognized, and the effects include development of a relative phase delay (later sleep onset and wake times) in early puberty and the development of a physiologically based decrease in daytime alertness levels in mid- to late- puberty. The genotypic expression in adolescence of delayed circadian phase preference has also been explored as an important factor determining the timing of sleep/wake cycles. Studies of homeostatic regulation of sleep and wakefulness have demonstrated that sleep needs in adolescence do not decline significantly, and that optimal sleep amounts remain about 9 hours into late adolescence. However, epidemiological research on “normal” sleep patterns and amounts suggests that adolescents only average 7 to 7 1/2 hours of sleep per night, resulting in the accumulation of a considerable sleep debt over time. These data suggest that chronic partial sleep deprivation is a serious problem in this age group and that particular subgroups may be at relatively higher risk. Environmental and social factors also impact significantly upon delayed sleep onset in adolescents. For example, many adolescents have highly irregular sleep/wake patterns from weekday to weekend. Another important factor potentially contributing to insufficient sleep is the early start time of many middle and high schools in the United States. Activity/Play: The adolescent is rapidly making the transition from childhood play to adult play. As a result team sports, extracurricular activities, and attending movies and concerts often occupy the adolescent ‘s free time.

The adolescent begins to try out more risky adult activities, including car racing, motorcycle riding, and jet boating. Being with friends and peer groups soon becomes more important than spending time with parents. Teens look to each other for approval. By late adolescence, male-female relationships are developing, and sexual encounters might be part of the “play” Unfortunately other activities such as use of alcohol and illegal drugs might become part of the adolescent’s recreational time. Nurses should help parents and teens prepare for the responsibilities and consequences of adult play. Encouraging adolescent to establish relationships that promote discussion of feelings, concerns, and fears. *Parents’ encouraging adolescent peer group activities that promote appropriate moral and spiritual values *Parents’ acting as role models for appropriate social interactions * Parents’ providing a comfortable home environment for appropriate adolescent peer group activities Dental Health: During adolescence, individuals are at increased risk for caries. This risk is due to immature enamel, a diet high in refined carbohydrates and acid-containing beverages, and poorly established oral habits.

The nurse should assess for and encourage regular dental check ups, brushing and flossing. The adolescent may pierce his or her tongue, lip, cheek, or uvula. These piercings have been found to compromise oral and overall health. If they are done in nonasptic conditions, disease transmission may occur. Such diseases include hepatis, tuberculosis, tetanus, and other bacterial or viral infections. The nurse should assess a client’s oral cavity for the presence of these piercings and include the risks and hazards in health promotion teaching. Safety and Injury Prevention:

Driving: •Create driving rules – Parents should be able to experience first hand what kinds of abilities their teens have while on the road. A learner’s permit requires that the teen spend a set number of hours in driver’s training, but as a parent you may know that that amount of time is not sufficient for you to feel comfortable enough to let your teen get his license and be on the road alone. There is nothing wrong with creating your own family rules of the road and holding off on allowing your teen to get his license until you feel like he is ready.

New teenage drivers whose parents put restrictions on them in their first six months behind the wheel are less likely to report that they engage in risky driving behavior, even after the restrictions have been lifted. Of course no parent will ever be fully prepared to send their son or daughter out on the road, but you can feel more comfortable about it if you are the one who gets to decide when he or she is ready to start driving. •Use statistics and real-life stories – Teenagers are infamous for their abilities to know everything and especially to be smarter than their parents.

Hopefully, you sensed the satire in that comment yet those with teens understand better than anyone the challenges that exist when teaching teens. Sometimes the council of others or facts from reputable sources are what is needed to get the point through to teens about the importance of safe driving. Using statistics such as that the number one cause of death among teenagers is a car accident or that 41% of teenage fatalities are due to car accidents may be a powerful tool for you to use in getting your child’s attention. Take a course – Many times parents simply do not know what exactly they should be teaching their children when it comes to driver’s education. There are so many things that are important to know that often times the simple topics of driving safety are over looked. If you feel like you need some more structured guidance when it comes to teaching your teen safe driving, consider having your teen take a course offered by your car insurance company. Many of the national car insurance companies will offer courses as well as programs designed specifically for providing an incentive to teens if they drive safely.

Of course parents are encouraged to participate in these courses as well as to play an active role in the contractual agreements that their teens will make. Poisoning: *Keep toxic products in locked areas. *Keep prescribed and over the counter medicines in locked cabinets. *Keep the local Poison Control Center phone number by the phone. Adolescent Sexuality and Teenage pregnancy and STI’s: More than 50% of adolescent girls and 75% of adolescent boys report engaging in sexual intercoarse before the age of 18.

This high risk behavior not only increases the incidence of teenage pregnancy, it also exposes the teens to STD’s. Decreasing the incidence of adolescent pregnancy and STI’s is an objective of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services and of many school systems. Peer pressure can lead the adolescent to experiment in high risk activities. The combination of peer pressure, feelings of invincibility, and elevated sex hormones and sex drive may lead adolescent’s to engage in premartial sexual intercoarse. Some begin to develop a monogamous relationship, at least for a while.

Other teens fail to develop a close relationship with one person and move from partner to partner in a short period of time or have multiple partners at one time. Nearly half of high school seniors report having had sexual intercoarse. As mentioned frequent sexual contact with multiple partners increase the exposure to STI’s and the likehood of pregnancy. Teens in lower socioeconomic levels engage in sexual rrelationships at nearly the same rate as other teens. However they have a disproportionate number of teen pregnancies.

The lower socioeconomic level adolescent may not have the same access to birth control measures as their counterparts in higher socioeconomic levels. They may not feel that higher education and career development are realistic goals. Instead they may transition into adulthood by engaging in sexual intercourse and becoming parents. In contrast teens in higher socioeconomic levels often have ready access to various forms of contraception. They may have been rasied with the expectation that they will go on to college or a career before parenting. These teens may be more likely to use contraceptive methods or to terminate pregnancy if it occurs.

Financial Statements Paper Part Two The financial condition of a company as reported in the company’s financial statements for a period gives company management the information needed to make vital business decisions including the decision to expand in nature or how to determine industry trends in nature by using a trend analysis. In this paper, I will discuss Landry’s Restaurants management assessments of the financial condition and explain whether or not those assessments agree with my previous assessments supported by a trend analysis.

I will also discuss management’s concerns and identify and recommend a course of action for weaknesses not discussed by management. Does managements’ assessment of the financial condition agree with your assessment from the Financial Statements Paper Part I? Explain. Support your answer using trend analysis, vertical analysis, or ratio analysis. Landry’s Restaurants management assessment of the company’s financial condition very much agrees with my initial assessment as reported in the Financial Statements Paper Part I.

I stated in my previous paper that management would need to know how much profit the company made to use as a basis in determining whether or not to expand the company. Landry’s management assessment reported the company acquired several restaurants. Making the decision to acquire many restaurants during the reporting period had to be made based on revenue and profit after expenses or net income. Debt would also be considered a factor when making the decision of whether or not to acquire additional restaurants. A company will high debt will not be able to acquire necessary credit in order to expand.

In addition to financial statement information, management must have also reviewed the balance sheet to determine if the financial well-being of the company could sustain the acquisitions of new restaurants. The balance sheet would also tell management if the debt to acquire additional restaurants was feasible without making the company highly leveraged. Management’s assessment of the balance sheet must have determined the debt would be repayable and would not result in making the company vulnerable because the acquisitions were made.

By taking a trend analysis, one can calculate the percentage of a change in one or several accounts. The trend analysis will then help the reader to predict what might happen in the future for a company based on what has happened. A trend analysis of Landry’s Restaurants income statement reveals the following: revenues have increased by 23. 6%, cost of revenues has increased by 24. 8%, interest expense has increased by 91. 4%, and net income has increased by 10. 6%.

The results of this analysis indicates a potential warning sign as a result of the cost of revenues increasing as a percentage slightly more than the actual increase as a percentage in revenues. However, the actual net income amount also increased, which indicates that Landry’s Restaurants will probably continue to produce a net income in the future. In the Annual Report, there are several concerns from management. Discuss these concerns and identify other weaknesses not discussed by management. Then, recommend a course of action addressing these concerns.

Management of Landry’s Restaurants reported concerns of the competitive nature of the restaurant market, which is affected by several factors including customer taste, economical conditions, and demographical trends. An additional concern related to the possible impact of traffic, marketing, weather conditions and competing restaurants. The competing restaurants are already well established with great financial resources. Management is looking into acquiring the competing restaurants as a remedy to the competitive market issues.

Another concern of management was the increase in restaurant labor cost that was contributed to inefficiencies during the openings of the new restaurants. Management should look into these inefficiencies to ensure future acquisition openings run smoother and more efficiently, which would keep the restaurant labor cost to a minimum. $13,100,000 in asset impairment expense was due to six underperforming restaurants in addition to three closed restaurants. Management needs to keep close watch on any underperforming restaurant to prevent unnecessary asset impairment expense.

Management did not mention any concern of possible tax increases due in part to a tax reduction and instead projects the reduction of valuation allowance. In light of the company’s future endeavor plans, a projection of a tax increase should be accounted for to ensure the company is able to pay the incurred taxes. Management has many plans to acquire additional restaurants but does not have any plans of selling possible underperforming restaurants. This could result in the company becoming highly leveraged, which would reduce stock value and make creditors think twice about extending credit to the company.

Management is not at all concerned about inflation as the company will just pass the increased cost onto customers. However, there is no mention of possible economic hardships or a plan for such, which would greatly reduce the amount of consumers and the company’s revenue. Management should think about establishing a cash cushion for any potential economic downturns instead of acquiring so many additional restaurants, which may end up having to be closed in the future. Conclusion Management’s assessment of the financial condition agrees with my earlier assessment.

With the continued increase in revenue, the company is able to acquire more restaurants and further increase revenue. From the information given on the financial statements, management was able to determine the possibility of future acquisitions and identify concerns relating to expenses and debt. For each of the reported concerns management had, a course of action to remedy those concerns were also given. Management did not address the possibility of over leveraging the company, which will bring down the company’s stock value and should be watched closely.

Patrick Weaver Mrs. Bey 12/05/09 English 101 Facebook In an age dominated by the technologically advanced and savvy, the Internet thrives as the leading way to socialize with friends and family. Since its development, the Internet has been used as a tool for communication. This online communication is a form of social networking. Social networking is an online community of people who share common interests and activities. Whether through instant messaging or email, the World Wide Web has become an increasingly admired and accepted way to communicate.

According to the Internet World Stats website, the total amount of Internet users has increased by over a billion since the year 2000. In addition to that, in 2009 there were another billion users on the top ten social networking websites. The number one social networking site is Facebook, trumping all other similar sites with over seven hundred million current users. The millions of people that log on to this massive virtual community everyday reap both the benefits and the disadvantages that it has to offer.

From communicating with friends to often posting vulnerable information on the web for many to view, it is easy to see the pros and cons of Facebook. One of the biggest benefits of having a Facebook account is the ability to easily stay in touch with your friends from virtually anywhere in the world. This connectivity is the main purpose of Facebook and the reason why most people invest so much time into this networking system. With special features such as the “Wall” and the ability to post and tag your photos, staying in touch with friends becomes almost effortless and even somewhat addicting.

Another compelling advantage of Facebook is the implementation of safety precautions. With the launch of Facebook’s often-controversial counterpart, Myspace, on August 15, 2003, the social networking era erupted. However, Myspace was often targeted by the media for its lack of safety and even deemed by Parry Aftab, Internet lawyer and safety expert (Stafford) as “one stop shopping for sexual predators, and they can shop by catalogue”. However in February of 2004, Facebook first appeared onto the scene when a student, Mark Zuckerberg, launched the website from his Harvard dorm room.

His original intention for the website was to keep Harvard students connected, but it quickly spread to nearby colleges because users were attracted to its restrictiveness and safety (Yadav). Facebook limits who can view its member’s profiles by having users register for a particular network and approve all friend requests. It is this sense of safety, along with its collegiate origins, that gives Facebook its reputation as a sophisticated and popular social network.

The feature of Facebook that has revolutionized Internet communication is the “Wall”. This comment-posting space is an innovative way to communicate with friends. Often, it may seem unnecessary to call a distant friend or classmate, but the “Wall” purposes a simple solution, whether it is asking an old high school classmate how college is going, or just saying “hi” to a new friend, communication is made easier and more efficient. Facebook allows for interaction of people who know nothing more than each other’s names.

There is no limit on the amount of friends you may have, or the number of people that can join Facebook, and it is this vast community, mixed with hundreds of links to people’s profiles and albums, that makes it easy to lose track of time. One may just plan on signing into a personal account to check an inbox message or new notifications, but twenty minutes later, find time has passed by due to the many distractions such as clicking away at friends ‘photos or status updates.

It is most likely the curiosity in human nature that Facebook takes advantage of so effectively, and causes people to lose track of time, which results in them falling behind on homework and other assignments. Now, it is even possible to access Facebook accounts from your cell phone or iPod, which makes this social phenomenon even more accessible. It is this accessibility, combined with the addictiveness of Facebook, which has created a synthetic society that thrives in cyberspace.

By connecting millions of people in digital space, Facebook has created an artificial community that is based on socialization, and that most likely communicates better than the communities people take part in. Facebook also allows you to have a small window into your friends’ lives through the pictures they post in their profile. While this window may occasionally be vague and depict only the images people want you to see, it is often a decent portrayal of a person’s hobbies, pastimes, and personality. However, Facebook will never substitute as a way to learn someone’s actual personality.

Plus, the friendships that are created by accepting a friend request are not friendships at all, they are merely permission to view a peer’s profile, rather than a way to befriend a person. In an age where technological advances keep children inside, our friendships are becoming based on social networking websites. This false sense of friendship can become increasingly dangerous to the youth if they are not careful. A child, who grows up using Facebook, or other social networking sites, as their main source of communication may have a hard time developing valuable social skills that they will need in the future.

This decline in “people skills” may lead to a world where people would rather write on your “Wall” than have a genuine conversation in person. While Facebook is considered a safe social network, we must not forget that many people can still view information posted online. Once something is on the Internet, it is no longer private information. It would not be difficult for a future employer to view pictures of you posted several years before, and think twice about hiring you.

A false sense of security can become very dangerous in an Internet based society. Facebook can be great tool for teenagers and adults to stay in touch with friends and people that they know. It is a brilliant way to post and view photos, and to communicate with the people around you. However, it should only be viewed as a tool to stimulate basic interaction rather than replace human interaction. If misused, Facebook can become a social time bomb that will explode on the youth, leaving them impervious to the world that is actually around them.

But if used correctly, Facebook can help keep people closer to the friends and family that they know and care about in an entirely new way that has never before been attempted. Works Cited “Facebook. ” Press Room. 12 October 2008. Stafford, Rob. “Dateline NBC. ” Why Parents Must Mind Myspace. 5 April 2006. MSNBC News. 19 October 2008. Yadav, Sid. “Mashable. ” Facebook- The Complete Biography. 25 August 2006. 13 October 2008. < http://mashable. com/2006/08/25/facebook-profile/>. Clemmitt, Marcia. “Cyber Socializing. ” CQ Researcher 16. 27 (2006): 625-648. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. 12 October 2008 .

Culture is an essential part of conflict resolution. Cultures shape our perceptive, attributions, judgments, and ideas of self and other. Though cultures are powerful, they are often unconscious, influencing conflict and attempt to resolve conflict in impercible ways. Cultures are more than language, dress, and food customs. Cultural groups may share race, ethnicity, or nationality, but they also arise from cleavages of generation, socioeconomics class, sexual orientation, ability, and disability, political and religious affiliations, language, and gender to name only a few.

Two things are essential to remember about cultures: they are always changing, and they relate to the symbolic dimension is the place where we are constantly making meaning and enacting our identities. Cultural comes from the groups we belong to give us information about what is meaningful or important, and who are in the world and in relation to others- our identities. (Google search engine internet) Cultural is simply what everyone in a group knows that outsiders do not know. They are a series of lenses that shape what we see and don’t see, how we perceive and interpret, and where we draw boundaries.

In shaping our values, cultures contain starting points and currencies. Starting points are those places it is natural to begin, whether with the big picture or particularities. Managers, who readily accept that the cuisine, the literature, the music and the art of other countries run parallel to one another, must also learn to accept the art of management differs in other countries. The objective of this paper, principally, is to explain that culture is a powerful factor to be taken into account.

Through culture companies can get comparative advantages and disadvantages if they do not want to see or anticipate the impact of culture in the organization. The following pages show how culture play an important role in the effectiveness of nations, companies, functions, and managers faced with the challenge of operation in a globalization economy. Managers and organizations are subject to multiple spheres of cultural influence, whether functional corporate, industry, regional or national.

Interacting these multiple spheres organizations will be able to anticipate better the impact and implications of managing across cultures, and then they can develop completive advantages*. (Proquest database Ashford** **University online library*) Culture evaluates the literature on the subject of culture acquisition in the language classroom and its importance. Culture also shows how a social culture perspective is crucial to the success of language efforts since learning styles have a cultural component. The encouraging cultural acquisition must stand as an important component in the language classroom.

Cultural plays and important part in any educational setting, though its efforts are particularly noticeable in the language classroom. Traditionally language acquisition is simply considered to be a matter of memorizing vocabulary and learning new grammatical structures. But language is much more complex than this, and true proficiency in a language requires a more sophisticated understanding of the language being taught. Culture is a learned system of beliefs that are personalized and that affect every aspect a student’s life.

Culture is expressed through language which is often particular to societal group and requires a complete understanding of cultural values to comprehend. Culture impacts every child that enters the school system because culture impacts how the child thinks, learns and becomes socialized in the educational community. Because the influences of culture on children begin from the time of birth, the information that affects the child’s development is significant and so is the potential for conflict to arise within the classroom.

This is because the student has learned to value his or her cultural ideas, which often become completely separate from the social norms expected in school. Therefore, how culture is embraced or denied in the classroom has the potential to have long term affects on the manner in which the student continues a relationship with learning about their culture and culture around the world. Teachers must instruct their students on the cultural backgrounds of language usage.

If one teaches language without teaching about the culture in which it operates, the students are learning empty or meaningless symbols or they may attach the incorrect meaning to what is being taught. The students when using the learnt language may use the language inappropriately or within the wrong cultural context, thus defeating the purpose of learning a language. Conflict in teaching styles also stem from the relationship between language and culture. Because language is so closely entwined with culture, language teachers entering a difficult must respect their cultural values.

As Englebert (2004) describes” to teach a foreign language is also to teach a foreign culture, and it is important to be sensitive to the fact that students, our colleges, our administration and, if we live abroad, our neighbors, do not share all of our cultural paradigms. In conclusion, culture is a part of all our well being. In every part of the world culture is taught in a different way. Language is also a part of the way culture is being taught to us. References 1. Google search engine under culture 2. Proquest online library

The US Constitution was written as a system of checks and balances, designed to protects us from each other and our own government. Critics attacked the proposed Constitution of the United States because it did not protect the rights of the people. The Anti-Federalists felt that the delegates to the Constitutional Convention did not provide adequate safeguards to protect the citizens from government interference in their everyday lives. The Federalists, in order to get the Constitution ratified, agreed to add a Bill of Rights to the Constitution when the new congress met.

The First Congress proposed 12 amendments for the Constitution. Ten were accepted by the states and became known as the Bill of Rights. In today’s society, three of the most important amendments are the Second, Fourth and Eight Amendments. The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America asserts, “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. ” These words continue to generate controversy as part of the broader debate over gun control. With the growing number of gun related deaths in this country, many feel the need for stricter gun control policies.

In the earlier part of this year, due to the alarming number of police officers being killed in the line of duty by illegal handguns, the governor of Pennsylvania, Edward Rendell, in conjunction with the mayor of Philadelphia, Michael Nutter, felt it necessary to ban assault weapons and other guns in the state. It was argued by National Rifle Association that a ban of this nature would be a violation of the Second Amendment, which in turn stopped the state from instituting the ban.

While stricter laws regarding gun control is necessary, it is important for the citizens of our country to be able to protect their person and property. The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution was added to protect the citizens from the government performing “unreasonable searches and seizures”. Following the horrific events of September 11, 2001, the US government passed the USA PATRIOT Act, which allows the federal government to follow a suspected terrorist without notice or the agreement of a judge, even though the person may be innocent.

This amendment is still important in today’s society, for without it our government can look into our medical, phone, internet, student and library records, without showing or having any reasons that a person is engaged in criminal activity of any kind. While it could be argued that this is essential in ensuring the safety of our nation, there are aspects of the PATRIOT Act that violates the privacy of the citizens, which in turn violates democracy. Ever since the Eighth Amendment was ratified by the states in 1791, it has been a key part of our Constitution.

The Eighth Amendment protects the citizens of America against “cruel and unusual punishment”. It is, however, permissible under the Eighth Amendment to execute a convicted criminal by way of hanging, shooting, electrocution, and lethal gas. There is still some confusion as to what actually constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment”. An example would be if there was a malfunction with the equipment being used to kill the person, causing him to go through great pain and suffering before dying.

Or if the person lives and the method of killing him has to be administered again. This happened on May 4, 1990 in Florida. It took three attempts of 2,000-volt shocks in the electric chair to kill convicted murderer Jesse Tafero. This obviously would cause a person tremendous pain and suffering and would definitely fall under the category of cruel and unusual. While this is one of few cases where the death penalty is not effective on the first try, our country in present day has not been known to purposely inflict unnecessary forms of torture on convicted criminals.

The Second, Fourth and Eighth amendments to the US Constitution are still very important in today’s society. As times change, the need to recognize certain social rights, such as affordable housing and public healthcare should be granted to the citizens of our country. The Ninth Amendment to the Constitution provides us as a nation the ability to expand and further define our constitution, should the need arise. Without the Bill of Rights, the government is free to do whatever they feel necessary, without considering what may actually be in the best interest of the citizens of our country.