Macbeth by William Shakespeare :: essays research papers

In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare there is a major conflict throughout the whole play. The main character Macbeth is faced with many decisions. The key decision that Macbeth makes that leads to his death is his decision to kill King Duncan. The opportunity cost would be keeping his loyalty to the king and his country. Macbeth, who is the Thane of Cawdor and already Thane of Glamis, has everything going for him. He has a good heart, but there is only one thing which keeps him from continuing to be a good person. The love of his life, Lady Macbeth, wants him to commit a heinous crime. She wants him to kill King Duncan so he could be crowned king and her Queen. Macbeth is manipulated and faced with the opportunity cost of killing the king. MACBETH. If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, without my stir† (1.3.34-36). This is Macbeth trying to decide whether or not he should kill the king, but in doing so he would be faced with other predicaments. The key decision Macbeth makes, which is to kill the king, leads to his own death and his moral downfall. Macbeth has a huge decision to make, to kill King Duncan or not kill him. The opportunity cost of killing King Duncan is Macbeth will get crowned king. The advantage of not killing him and waiting is he will gain king right away if he waits. The disadvantage of not killing him is he has to wait and could not get crowned king. He also may die before that happens. On the contrary the advantage of killing Duncan is he gets crowned right away and gets major status. The disadvantage is the murder could backfire on him and Macbeth could get killed while being king. People also would not respect him or his leadership if they thought he killed King Duncan. LADY MACBETH. When you durst do it, then you were a man: And, to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man (1.7.48-53). Macbeth’s decision was based on Lady Macbeth’s manipulation. She would mess with his ego and threaten his love for her until her committed the crime. Macbeth wanted to obtain king the holy way or the right way, but Lady Macbeth had other intentions, such as, killing King Duncan.

Philosophy of Teaching Essays -- Teaching Teachers Education Essays

Philosophy of Teaching I have known for a long time now that I want to be a high school Spanish teacher. There were other considerations for a while, but none that lasted very long; they couldn’t supplant what I felt so strongly about. Because of this, I have had a long time to think about exactly what the profession means to me. In my opinion, any teacher should be driven primarily by the desire to share his passion for a subject with others. A Spanish teacher (for example) should love the language and the culture that his class will deal with. Of course, many who love these things love them but are not teachers; I feel that teachers are possessed of a particularly strong passion for their subjects that compels them to educate others. I am certain that, unfortunately, there are teachers who do not feel so strongly about what they will teach, and I am doubly certain that these are not good teachers. In my opinion, such passion is the most important aspect of a successful teacher’s personality. There is a second facet of a good teacher’s personality that is almost as crucial, in my opinion: the ability to relate to his students on a personal level. These teachers recognize that their students are not merely students but also young adults and that they therefore carry with them all the emotional baggage of adolescence. They do not view their students as objectives or sets of characteristics but as people, and they understa...

Death of naturalist Essay -- English Literature

Death of naturalist This poem is a fertile mixture of imagery, sounds and an impression created by nature on people’s mind. Heaney sensualises an outstanding fear of the physical wonders of the world. He vividly describes his childhood experience that precipitates his change as a boy from the receptive and protected innocence of childhood to the fear and uncertainty of adolescence. As he wonders along the pathways of salient discovery, Heaney’s imagination bursts into life. The title of the poem is amusingly ironic – by a naturalist we would normally think of someone with expert scientific knowledge of living things and ecology. The poem ‘Death of a naturalist’ has quite a lot of emotional images because it’s the poet’s memory and he is reminiscing. There are a number of poetic devices to create an image. Firstly, the poet uses the metaphor ‘in the heart of the town land’ to add interest to the poem. He also uses languages like ‘sweltered’ and ‘punishing sun’ to convey to the reader the hot summers day Heaney remembers. Nature is also brought up in the poem by ...

13 Domestic Cabinet Departments Essay

1.) U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) – responsibilities include farming, agricultural products, food stamps, and anti-poverty programs, and conservation and natural resource protection. The inspectors of this department are responsible for the safety of the nation’s food supply. 2.) U.S. Department of Commerce- responsible for everything we buy and sell, they regulate everything from foreign trade to fishing to the granting of patents, they oversee programs that support minority businesses, and provides statistics and analyses for business and government planners. 3.) U.S Department of Defense (DOD)- responsible for supplying military hardware, administering personnel pay and benefits, providing info to the public and military, managing military education programs and attempting to locate missing personnel or prisoners of war. 4.) U.S. Department of Education- their first responsibility is making sure that the nation’s public school systems provide students with proper school supplies, educational facilities and qualified teachers. Personnel promote parental involvement in their children’s education, develop financial aid policies and encourage the use of modern technology in the classroom. 5.) U.S. Department of Energy- works to ensure that the nation has a steady, consistent and safe supply of energy. Energy scientists work to harness the sun’s power while its physicists attempt to capture nuclear energy for civilian or military use. 6.) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) – the government’s primary agency for overseeing the health and well-being of the American people. HHS employees work on more than 300 programs and perform essential services ranging from food safety to medical research to drug abuse prevention. HHS has regional offices across the country. 7.) U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – first priority is to protect the nation against further terrorist attacks. Component agencies will analyze threats and intelligence, guard the nation’s borders and airports, protect critical national infrastructure, and coordinate the nation’s response for future emergencies. 8.) U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – responsible for ensuring that American families have access to decent, safe and affordable housing. Among HUD’s biggest programs are insuring mortgages for homes and loans for home improvement, making direct loans for construction or rehabilitation of housing projects for the elderly and the handicapped, providing federal housing subsidies for low- and moderate-income families, and enforcing fair housing and equal housing access laws. 9.) U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) – manages the nation’s natural resources, from land and water to coal and natural gas. By monitoring the extraction of natural resources, Interior Department personnel work to efficiently protect and preserve the environment. The Department also houses the office responsible for overseeing Native American affairs. 10.) U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) – makes sure that federal laws aimed at protecting the public and promoting competitive business practices are implemented, including immigration and naturalization statutes, consumer safeguards and criminal prosecutions. The FBI falls under the Justice Department’s authority. 11.) U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) – administers and enforces laws and regulations that ensure safe working conditions, minimum hourly pay and overtime. Through its varied initiatives, it also works to meet the special employment-related needs of the disabled, the elderly and minorities, and provides job banks, unemployment benefits and workplace health regulations. 12.) U.S. Department of State- responsible for the conduct of the nation’s foreign affairs and diplomatic initiatives. State Department personnel coordinate conferences with foreign leaders, hammer out treaties and other agreements with foreign governments and protect the safety of US citizens traveling abroad. 13.) U.S. Department of the Treasury- Printing the nation’s money is only one of many responsibilities overseen by the nation’s second oldest cabinet department (only the State Department has been around longer). It also sets domestic financial, economic and tax policy, manages the public debt and collects taxes. Less obvious is Treasury’s other major role—law enforcement; the Secret Service and the Customs Service are Treasury agencies. 14.) U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) – Cars, trucks, buses, trains, boats, and airplanes all fall under the Department of Transportation’s authority. So does the nation’s transportation infrastructure. The work of Transportation Department employees makes it possible for Americans to travel home for the holidays, away on vacation, and even to and from work. The Transportation Department is also home to the new Transportation Security Administration, which is responsible for protecting the country’s transportation systems and ensuring the safety of its passengers. 15.) U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – Best known for its healthcare system, the VA also provides social support services, administers pensions and other veterans’ benefits, and promotes the hiring of veterans.

Analysis of ‘Drops of Jupiter’ with Thesis

No two journeys are alike, because the knowledge and experiences gained differ for each person. One of the texts I have chosen to study is the song Drops of Jupiter written my Pat Nonhuman, performed by Train. The song is about a dream that the writer had about his mother who had recently passed. The line ‘She's back in the atmosphere' was the first line written, and led to him writing the song as an extended metaphor of his mothers journey in the afterlife, and the return of her spirit to him. The inner journey is his own in the way of his journey to deal with grief.He is challenges the notion that the afterlife is a different adventure with his belief that the passed never truly leave us, and that they remain with us in spirit. The lyrics feature an extended metaphor, where the universe is the afterlife, and he is asking his mother about her visit. The verse ‘Now that she back in the atmosphere, with drops of Jupiter in her hair,' shows the metaphor of his mothers death being a temporary journey to the heavens, and has returned with ‘drops of Jupiter in her hair,' as proof of where she has been. The simile used is also comparing her to the beauty of nature. She acts like summer and walks like rain.. ‘ Since the return of her spirit, he can feel her in the air and the nature. He can sense her everywhere around him. Another technique that Monahan used to express the concept of journey was repetition. The constant repetition of the words ‘Tell me' helps to embed the idea of his mother returning to his life as a spirit, and she is sharing her experiences with him. In the text, it is evident that he is worried his mother has forgotten about him, and moved on. This is expressed using poetic devices in the line ‘I'm afraid she might think of me as plain old Jane,'.Plain old Jane is an idiom which means someone boring and ordinary. He admits his fear of his mother forgetting him. Through the song, he realized that the best thing yo u can do about loss of love is find yourself through it. His personal experience was finding a way to deal with death, and that separates him from others facing similar losses. Through his inner journey of dealing with grief, he has learnt a new perspective on death and the afterlife, which is unique to his voyage of self-discovery. No two journeys are alike, because the knowledge and experiences gained differ for each person.

Company Auditing

Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing PART 1 THE INTERNATIONAL AUDITING STANDARDS BOARD AND ITS IMPORTANCE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF AUDITING STANDARDS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) is an independent standard setting body within the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). Established in 1978, originally known as International Auditing Practices Committee (IAPC), it changed its name to IAASB in early 2001 and was then reformed by IFAC in 2003.IAASB puts public interest first and aims to improve the quality and uniformity of practice throughout the world and to strengthen public confidence in the global auditing and assurance profession by facilitating the convergence of international and national standards. IAASB is committed to achieve its objectives through the following works: †¢ Developing Standards – establish high quality auditing, review, other assurance, quality control and related ser vices standards, such as International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Global Acceptance & Convergence – promote the acceptance and adoption of IAASB pronouncements throughout the world and support a strong and solid international accountancy profession by coordinating with IFAC member bodies, regional organisations and national standard setters. †¢ Communication – encourage debate and present papers on a variety of audit and assurance issues and increase the public image and awareness of the activities of the IAASB. To date, the IAASB has earned increasing recognition for the quality of its standards and the credibility of its standard setting process.This has contributed to the increasing use of its standards worldwide. Over 100 countries are now using or are in the process of adopting ISAs into their national auditing standards. For investors in international capital markets, the quality of audit reports and audit opinions on financial reports are crucial when th ey make decisions about capital allocation. Audits, working within internationally accepted auditing standards, increase the credibility and reliability of the financial information provided in the financial reports.As Australian capital markets are increasingly linked with overseas markets, it is important to have a globally standardised financial reporting framework that is supported by globally accepted auditing standards. The Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB) made the compliance with IAASB standards easier via a long-standing policy of convergence and harmonisation with ISAs. The AUASB uses ISAs as a base to develop Australian Standards on Auditing (ASA).For any revision and enhancement of ISAs initiated by the IAASB, the AUASB will make appropriate consequential amendments to ASA. The AUASB and IAASB generally issue an exposure draft of a proposed auditing and assurance standard concurrently for consideration by interested parties. In New Zealand, New Ze aland Auditing Standards (AS) and Audit Guidance Statements (AGS) are also based on ISAs and International Auditing Practice Statements (IAPS). The New Zealand auditing authority adopts the IFAC documents and amends them only as necessary to achieve its – 1 of 11 –Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing objectives. Amendments to the IFAC documents may be made to reflect specific New Zealand legislative requirements or to reflect specific audit practising arrangements within New Zealand. As we can see, for years since IAPC or IAASB was established, it has played a very important role in enhancing and standardizing the quality of auditing and assurance services around the world. ============================= – 2 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing PART 2 CO-REGULATION OF AUDITING PRACTICE IN AUSTRALIAIn most developed countries, including Australia, the auditing regulatory framework is provided, at least to some extent, by government through legislation and government agencies. In the past, however, the auditing profession in Australia was largely self-regulated through the rules and requirements self-imposed by the principal players in the field, i. e. auditing firms and auditing professional bodies. As a result of the Corporate Law Economic Reform Program (CLERP) 9, the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB) became a statutory (government) body.Since April 28th 2006, the Australian Auditing Standards (ASAs), which have been released by AUASB for purposes of section 336 of Corporation Act 2001, have Force of Law. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC), a statutory body under the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (ASIC Act), is responsible for providing broad oversight of the process for setting accounting and auditing standards as well as monitoring the effectiveness of auditor independence requirements in Australia.Yet the control and enforcement mechanism of these sta ndards is also supported by the auditing profession represented by two primary professional accounting organisations: CPA Australia and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA). Although the membership in these two organizations is voluntarily, it is still a necessary condition to get registration as a Company Auditor or a Liquidator. Some methods of control of quality of the auditing services imposed by these professional organisations include peer reviews, continued professional development and periodical rotation of the auditors.There are also disciplinary procedures in place to encourage improved ethical behaviour and quality of service provided. This particular model of co-existence of government regulation and industry self-regulation in Australia is called ‘co-regulation’ of auditing practice. Co-regulation provides ‘interactions that produce pressures for the refinement of regulatory structures in terms of openness, consultation, independ ence and speed of response to urgent accounting problems’ [Malcolm C. Miller]. ============================= – 3 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing PART 3 QUESTION 6. 3 – ASA 315 UNDERSTANDING THE ENTITY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT AND ASSESSING THE RISKS OF MATERIAL MISSTATEMENT – HOMECHEF PTY LTD. A first and very important step of the audit process involves the auditor gaining an early understanding and knowledge of the client’s business. In fact, ASA 315 requires that this step is carried out during the audit planning stage. The auditor must obtain or update their understanding of the client’s operations and circumstances, including its organisational structure, management policies, the company’ position in its industry, the economy and its legal obligations.ASA 315 provides extensive guidance on matters related to obtaining an understanding of the entity and its environment, which may be classified into thr ee main categories: (1) Internal control / organisational structure (2) Operational and legal structure (3) Industry and economic conditions An understanding of these three elements helps the auditor assess the client’s business risk and identify the events, transactions and practices that may have a significant effect on its financial report. This report presents a recent review of the operations and circumstances of one of our clients, HomeChef Pty Ltd. in accordance with the requirements of ASA 315. The main objective was to identify the events and developments at HomeChef which may have a significant bearing on the company’s business risk and consequently affect our audit. This understanding will help us plan and perform the audit more efficiently and effectively and will ultimately improve the services we provide to our client. HomeChef Pty Ltd has been the market leader in the boutique food and beverage industry for the last two years.The company manufactures, su pplies and retails quality ingredients for use in the home kitchen and small restaurant market. During the review our audit team identified a number of major events/transactions that may have a significant impact on the business and affect our audit process. Below is a brief discussion on each of these events/transactions: 1) New products and services: Recently, HomeChef introduced ‘pre-packaged’ meals suitable to be served at a dinner party. Preparation of the ‘ready to serve meals’ would require extra steps to produce the final product.This would involve more processing facilities, more staff and more advertising. One potential related business risk might be the increased product liability. There may be extra compliance requirements from the Food Safety Regulators. There could also be risk that the demand has not been accurately estimated. The company’s capital and current expenditure may increase significantly because of the launch of the new prod uct. This situation tends to increase our audit risk. The auditor, therefore, should carefully consider how this changing operating characteristic may affect his/her auditing process.For example, he/she may need to review some Food Safety Regulation requirements to assess that correct amounts of expenditure is attributed to this particular type of compliance; or refer to some industry literature to get a better understanding of the niche market for this type of product. Reviewing – 4 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing sales figures and sale forecasts may also help to assess to what degree the company’s business risk may be affected by this new development. 2) New lines of business: HomeChef has recently opened a number of small cafe where customers can sample the s company’s product range.By doing so, the company is venturing into unfamiliar territory. In addition, the notes of HomeChef’s draft financial report reveal that t he company has entered into agreements for building and developing a new entertainment complex. These events indicate not only changes in the company’s operational structure, but also those relating to its environment. New opportunities bring new risks. As this is HomeChef’s first venture into a new business area, lack of expertise and experience could be a real concern. The hospitality industry operates quite differently from the food manufacturing.There could be many more competitive forces and regulations in place. This move could change the organisational/operational structure of the company drastically. For example, new divisions may need to be established and the company hierarchy changed. Apart from the potential risks of increased product liability and inaccurate demand estimates, similar to the case of all new products, this could introduce new risks associated with the company’s internal control. Also, the company’s potential business risk would increase its inherent risk. In general, this event is likely to increase our audit risk.It is very important that the auditor familiarises him/herself with the company’s new operational structure, the industry conditions and regulatory environment related to this new line of business. Reviewing the hospitality industry publications and significant industry legislation may assist with basic understanding of how the company business risk is affected by this move. Aggressive marketing and acquisition strategy – Rapid growth: Over the last two years HomeChef has acquired a number of smaller competitors and become the market leader in its industry.This is an indication of the company’s aggressive approach to expansion and growth. In such situations, it is often noticed that a company’s infrastructure is likely to lag behind in the process. In a hurry to expand, the organisational structure of the company may be changing too fast. There could be staff members with insufficient experience, the IT system may not cope well under the new conditions as new procedures and processes are added in. This significant and rapid expansion of operations could create strain and increase the risk of a breakdown in controls.The auditor needs to discuss with the senior management and gather evidence from the company’s documents to assess this risk. He/she may need further understanding of the current cycle in the industry, to assess how this ‘acquisition spree’ could affect HomeChef’s business risk, and consequently the audit risk. Reviewing government statistics, trend forecasts, trade journals and financial newspapers may help improve the auditor’s understanding of the industry in general and the business in particular.Changes in key personnel: The departure of a key executive (HomeChef’s finance director), probably with a significant loss of corporate history and experience, may also have an impact on the busine ss. The new finance manager has been with the company for less than a month and may take some time to gain the knowledge and understanding of the business. He may have a different focus or 3) 4) – 5 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing understanding of the company’s internal control.The auditor should take this factor into account when assessing the risks of misstatements associated with the company’s financial report which, possibly, has been prepared under the instructions of the new finance director. 5) Newly-established internal audit group: HomeChef started using the service of an internal audit group for the first time this year. Generally, the existence and operation of an internal audit group indicate the commitment and serious consideration given to maintaining high standards of internal control by the management. This would normally reduce the control risk in a business and subsequently reduce the audit risk.In addition, th e external auditor could, to some extent, use the work of an internal auditor, after having gained knowledge of and satisfied with the scope of internal auditing and the audit team’s technical competence and professional care. However, in this case, as HomeChef’s audit team is new, careful considerations are required if the auditor is to rely on the internal team’s audit work. Installation of a significant new IT system related to financial reporting: HomeChef switched to a new computer system early this year. The system was installed by a professional computer company and the old and new systems were run parallel for 3 months.Some new functions/modules have been introduced in the new system, including the ability to process stocktake results, account payable invoices and payments at the store level. This event highlighted a major change in one of the company’s internal control components. It seems that the new system is rather reliable as a systematic te sting plan and an integrity checking process were carried out by the professional computer company and there have been no major problems with the system so far. The use of this new system could potentially decrease the company’s control risk. The audit strategy could focus on test of control.A proper and systematic testing plan on the new system is recommended, especially on the new modules for stocktake and accounts payable process. Significant amount of non-routine/non-systematic transactions: HomeChef’s draft Income Statement includes an ‘extraordinary item’ of $231 million without any notes or explanations attached to it. The existence of this ‘extraordinary’ loss would certainly have a significant impact on the business and would increase the audit risk considerably. This particular transaction requires a significant amount of attention by the auditor.Enquiries should be made to understand the nature and extent of all relevant details of this transaction. This would help the auditor assess if the transaction is legal, not dismissing the possibility of fraud, or errors, such as transactions recorded without substance, intentional misapplication of accounting policies, mathematical mistakes, oversight or misinterpretation of facts. The auditor should also examine if the valuation and allocation of the amounts have been done correctly. Company records and legal documents will need to be reviewed. An extensive substantive audit approach would be suitable for this particular area of the audit.Debt structure – Covenant agreement: Note (e) to the draft Financial Report reveals that a covenant agreement exists between HomeChef and its bank. The bank loans are secured against the company’s remaining property, plant and equipment. This agreement specifies that the company should maintain a 6) 7) 8) – 6 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing positive net tangible asset ratio and a positive current ratio. Given the large amount at stake, there is a great incentive for the company to falsify, alter and manipulate figures to achieve these positive ratios at any cost.This situation would increase HomeChef’s business risk significantly and consequently increase our audit risk. The audit plan could focus on substantive testing of the accounts related to the current ratio and net asset ratio. The auditor must exercise reasonable care and skill and maintain an attitude of professional scepticism throughout the audit. Based on HomeChef’s financial ratios being adverse and the subsequent difficulty in complying with the terms of loan agreements, the auditor may need to raise a going concern issue.It would be necessary for the auditor to discuss this problem with HomeChef’s management so that appropriate measures could be taken by the company to overcome this situation. As a result of reviewing HomeChef’s operations and environment, includi ng its financial and marketing position, using the precepts of ASA 315, our audit team has been able to update our knowledge of the company’s situation and assess our audit risk accordingly. This understanding and assessment will direct the development of our strategy and plan for the audit of HomeChef. ============================ – 7 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing PART 4 QUESTION 6. 22 – IMPACT OF BUSINESS RISK ASSESSMENT ON AUDIT STRATEGY This report presents a short case study of Weave Limited. The main purpose of the case study is to look at how Business Risk impacts on Audit Risk, and consequently, on Audit Strategy and Plan. Weave Limited is a closely held private company, manufacturing high-quality woollen cloth. It has been in operation for almost 60 years and the CEO of the company is also its major shareholder.Currently, the company is under a great financial stress due to increased competition and falling sales volu me. Three years ago the company was sued for dumping chemical pollutants into the local river. As a result, a settlement was signed with the Environmental Protection Agency providing that Weave construct a water treatment facility within five years. Our Audit Firm has been auditing Weave for the last ten years, and the current year interim audit revealed that there has been virtually no activity in the Water Treatment Facility Construction account in the current financial year.To prepare for this year audit we need to take the following steps: (1) review the company’s business risk i. e. the risk that Weave’s business objectives will not be attained due to the above-mentioned pressures and, ultimately, the risk associated with its profitability and survival. (2) assess the implications of the company’s business risk on our audit risk (3) develop our audit strategy and audit program in response to the assessed risks. In order to assess Weave’s business ris k, we felt that a PEST analysis would be the most appropriate approach.It involves identifying the political/legal, economic, social and technological influences on an entity. †¢ Environmental Protection Laws may have a heavy toll on the business. Compliance with these Laws (such as building a water treatment facility) may be very expensive, but non-compliance may actually have a suicidal effect on the company. †¢ Economic risk should also be taken into account. Increased competition and limited market for Weave’s high quality and possibly expensive products could pose a serious threat to the company’s profitability and ultimately its very survival. Social risk component is also present in this case. The surrounding area is poor and unemployment rate is high. The company’s management may feel a social pressure to provide employment at any cost. The obligation to build a water treatment facility could be very expensive and resource-consuming. It is not an easy task to estimate or to make provisions for the resources required to meet this obligation. It is even harder to estimate the costs of not meeting this obligation. This adds unusual pressure on the management.Potential incentives could arise for management to understate the company’s profit/cash flow to use as an excuse in an attempt to avoid fulfilling this particular liability. This situation is likely to increase Weave’s inherent risks. – 8 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing In assessing the company’s control risks, certain observations and issues have come to our attention which suggest an unsatisfactory internal control system: †¢ The company’s CEO is also its major shareholder who seems to be a strong character that has the overriding authority and decision making power. The CEO does not seem to take the compliance with the conditions imposed by the Government’s Environmental Protection Agency seriously. He decided to stop work on the water treatment facility as he thought that the State would not fine or close the company down for non-compliance. †¢ The company does not seem to have any risk assessment policies or procedures for dealing with business risk. Based on the above findings, the audit team agreed that Weave’s business/inherent risks and control risks could be assessed as high.This conclusion has had an impact on our audit strategy and audit plan. As we believe that the control risks are high, an audit strategy of a predominantly substantive approach has been adopted. We do not plan to obtain a thorough understanding of the company’s internal control or to carry out tests of control. Instead, we plan extensive substantive audit procedures based on a low to medium acceptable level of detection risk (depending whether the assertions under examination are at risk).In response to the high level of inherent risks, we decided to assign more experie nced audit personnel and to conduct the audit with a heightened degree of professional scepticism. As mentioned earlier, an accurate assessment of the extent of liability related to the breach of the environmental laws is not easy to achieve. As the company’s management does not seem to recognise the seriousness of this risk or to respond to it properly, we decided to engage environmental and technical experts to assist by providing us with legal/environmental opinion and estimates.The engagement of an environmental consultant will be scheduled to happen before the year end audit. Weave’s increased inherent risk and control risk increase our audit risk. Some assertions in the company’s financial reports have been identified as the key audit assertions as they tend to be more at risk. These assertions will be examined closely (please refer to the matrix below) and more efforts will be focused on obtaining sufficient and appropriate evidence to test these assertio ns.Financial Acct Liability Acct (provision for water treatment facility) Contingent Liabilties Valuation of the provision Sales Acct (Income Statement Assertions) Completeness all sales recorded Accuracy of recorded sales amounts Correct accounting period cut-off Inherent Risk Control Risk Debtor's confirmation Assertions at risk (Balance Sheet Assertions) Completeness of all liabilities Inherent Risk Engagement of environmental expert/consultant Quotation / project estimations are recorded properly with appropriate amounts Audit Risk Procedures/Evidence 9 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing To test if the liability account for the water treatment facility contains any material misstatement we will focus on whether the account has included all liabilities as per the environmental specialist’s advice and the amounts are properly estimated and recorded (completeness and valuation). We could do this by seeking confirmation from the environmental sp ecialist and checking estimates/quotations for the project.To support the company’s claim of ‘low sales volume’ and ‘low level of cash flow’, we will test if all sales transactions pertaining to the company have been included in the income statement (completeness) and all sales occurred during the current accounting period have been properly recorded with the correct amounts (accuracy and cut-off). Collecting debtors’ confirmations could be the approach to carry out this test. As our team has audited the company for the last ten years, it is assumed that there must be a certain degree of familiarity and complacency.However, due to the new developments in the company’ situation, more specifically, higher level of business risk, this year’s audit strategy and plan have been revised accordingly. Apart from additional audit procedures and probably a larger sample size, our team will need to maintain a higher level of professional sce pticism to make sure that the company’s accounts contain no material misstatements. It should be noted that had this audit been undertaken in the seventh year after the signing of the settlement with the Government’s Environmental Protection Agency, the situation would be different.As the condition of the settlement to build a water treatment facility would have been breached by now, there is an imminent threat of the company being closed down by the government. A ‘going concern’ assessment at the planning stage (as required by ASA 570) would provide the following going concern problem indications: (1) increased competition and falling sales, (2) noncompliance with statutory requirements, and (3) legal proceedings against the entity. In cases where going concern is related to cash flow or solvency problems, some mitigating factors could be considered (such as sale of assets or additional contributions by owners).However, in this case, it could be judged th at a going concern basis is not appropriate as the business is now subject to closure by government regulation enforcement. We, as the auditors, would need to discuss ways to deal with the problem with the company’s management. The possible outcomes could range from renegotiating the settlement agreement to making the decision to liquidate. In the latter case, the auditors would have to assess the impact that a forced sale of assets would have on the book values and the classifications of assets.The auditors would also need to assess the amount and classification of liabilities, including any provision for staff termination payments and other closing-down expenses. In any way, if going concern is an issue it should be adequately reflected (disclosed) in the Financial Reports. The Auditor’s Report should also include an ‘emphasis of matter’ [ASA701. 09 & ASA570], clearly stating that there is a significant uncertainty regarding a going concern problem. ==== ========================= – 10 of 11 – Group Assignment – HBC614B Company Auditing REFERENCES: 1. 2.Australian Auditing and Assurance Handbook, 2007 Edition, CPA Australia Australian Government’s Financial Reporting Council 2005, Australian Government’s Financial Reporting Council, viewed 20 May 2008, http://www. frc. gov. au/about 3. Brief History 2008, International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, IAS Plus, Deloitte, viewed 18 May 2008, http://www. iasplus. com/ifac/iaasb. htm 4. Chris Pearce, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury, 22 November 2004, â€Å"The future of governance regulation in Australia, Address to the 21st National Conference of Chartered Secretaries Australia†, viewed 19 May 2008, http://www. reasurer. gov. au/DisplayDocs. aspx? doc=speeches/2004/001. htm=005=cjp=20 04=1 5. Gay & Simnett, 2007, ‘Chapter 6 Planning, Knowledge of the Business and Evaluating Business Risk’, Auditing and Assurance Serv ices in Australia, revised edn 3, McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd. 6. International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board 2008, IFAC, viewed 18 May 2008, http://www. ifac. org/IAASB/ 7. James M. Sylph, January 14, 2005, â€Å"Global Convergence – Near or Far? †, American Accounting Association Auditing Section 2005 Mid Year Conference

Fourteen Amendment

The fourteenth amendment provides a definition of a citizen of The United States. The fourteenth amendment was adopted on July 9, 1868 shortly after the Union victory in the American Civil War. It was adopted as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. It has many different clauses. The fourteenth amendment was adopted as one of the longest amendments to the Constitution with a total of five different parts. The Citizenship clause, Due Process Clause, and the Equal Protection Clause are some of the clauses. The Citizenship clause is the first section in the fourteenth amendment.The Due Process Clause prohibits state and local governments from depriving people of life, liberty, or property without certain steps being taken to ensure fairness. This clause has been used to make most of the Bill of Rights applicable to the states, as well as to recognize substantive and procedural rights. The Equal Protection Clause requires each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people within its jurisdiction. The fourteenth amendment states that all people born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.The fourteenth amendment provides that all state will provide equal protection to everyone within their jurisdiction. In addition, the fourteenth amendment gave people of different minorities a whole new sense of hope and inspired them in many different ways. Congress passed the fourteenth amendment not knowing how it would affect people of different minorities. In 1868, when the amendment was passed, people of different minorities were treated with disrespect and incivility from the white culture.The Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution was passed by both houses of congress. The stated purpose of the fourteenth amendment was to grant citizenship and to protect and define the civil rights of freed slaves. The Amendment was designed to prohib it state governments from curtailing the rights of former slaves after the Civil War; however it has been used to grant all of the personal liberties and rights conveyed in the Bill of Rights. Moreover, section one defines citizenship and protects a person civil and political rights from being denied by any state.Section one was formed in response to the â€Å"Black Code† that southern starts had passed in the beginning of the thirteenth amendment, which removed slavery from the United States. The Citizenship Clause can also be known as the Naturalization Clause. The Citizenship Clause refers the first sentence of section one in the fourteenth amendment. The clause showed how congress decided to reverse it so that African Americans could then vote, become citizens of the United States, and also enjoy any of the other privileges that citizens got.Although, the fourteenth amendment does not provide any procedures from removing someone privileges as being a citizen of The United States. The citizenship clause is what overruled the Dred Scott v. Sandford ruling stating that blacks could not be citizens. Loss of citizenship can happen when there is fraud in the naturalization process. Also, decades after the adoption of the fourteenth amendment, the Supreme Court got rid of laws saying that blacks could not be in juries. The Supreme Court found the laws to be a violation of the Equal Protection Clause.Its Equal Protection Clause requires each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people within its jurisdiction. The Due Process Clause prohibits state and local governments from depriving people of life, liberty, or property without certain steps being taken to ensure fairness. The Due Process Clause has been used to make most of the Bill of Rights applicable to the states. Furthermore, the first section of the amendment includes four main parts. First, anyone born in American is guaranteed full American citizenship.Second, no state can take aw ay any of its residents of the full privileges of American citizenship. Third, all citizens are guaranteed â€Å"due process of law,† which means that states cannot pass unfair laws. Fourth, all citizens are guaranteed equal protection of the laws, which means that states cannot discriminate against any citizens. The second section says, â€Å"Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed.But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of rep resentation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the umber of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State. † The second section of the Fourteenth Amendment repealed the three-fifths clause (Article I, Section 2, Clause 3) of the original Constitution. This section also guaranteed that all male citizens over age 21, no matter their race, had a right to vote.In the third section of the Fourteenth Amendment made it impossible for the president to allow the former leaders of the Confederacy to regain power within the United States government after regaining full citizenship rights. The fourth section banned any form of payment to former slaveholders for the loss of their slaves. The fifth section states that congress will have the power to enforce all the provisions of the article.