Please answer following three essay questions. 

 
 

Each essay must be at least two pages long (double-spaced and font size of 12).  You are more than welcome to write more than two pages for each essay.  

 
 

You may use any sources (your textbook, etc.) to answer these questions.  Please make sure to give proper citations if you utilize any sources.  MLA format is a must (work cited page, in-text citations, etc.).  An essay that lacks complete MLA format will lose 25 points. 

 
 

1. Explain the revolving door and the Texas legislature. Should ex-legislators be able to become lobbyists? Should there be a ban on such activities? If so, should there be laws in place that will determine the time period of this kind of ban? Do you see any long-term dangers to permitting former lawmakers to serve as lobbyists?

2. What happened when tuition and fees for Texas colleges were no longer controlled or mandated by the state legislature? Discuss the background conditions that led to this decision and how this affected state funding for higher education.

3. One of the most controversial judicial issues in Texas is the death penalty. Explain some of the reasons for the controversy. How does race play a role in the controversy? What role does the court of criminal appeals play? What is the process by which clemencies are offered?

Journal Article: Decision Learning

Your submission must include the following information in the following format: 

DEFINITION: a brief definition of the key term – (the definition should come from the article) 

SUMMARY: Summarize the article in your own words- this should be in the 150-words range. Be sure to note the article’s author, note their credentials, and why we should put any weight behind his/her opinions, research, or findings regarding the key term. 

DISCUSSION: Using 300-words, write a brief discussion, in your own words of how the article relates to the selected key term. A discussion is not rehashing what was already stated in the article, but the opportunity for you to add value by sharing your experiences, thoughts, and opinions. This is the most important part of the assignment. 

REFERENCE: The source for the analysis must be listed at the bottom of the submission – APA format required. Use only peer-reviewed journal articles for these assignments. Refrain from using blogs, .com’s, or other unreliable internet sources. Be sure to use the headers (Definition, Summary, Discussion, Reference) in your submission to ensure that all aspects of the assignment are completed as required. Any form of plagiarism, including cutting and pasting, will result in zero points for the entire assignment. Further, any flagged documents will result in zero points for the assignment. Flagged documents mean that an attempt at plagiarism exists, or manipulation of the Turnitin process has been attempted. This is unacceptable conduct and will not be tolerated.

NOTE: All criteria (Definition, Summary, Discussion, Reference) for these assignments should be derived from the article that you select based on the key term. No other resource is required.

 

course-Level Student Learning Outcomes (SLO)

For all Assessments, the following general requirements hold:

(1) Assignments should be 2-3 double-spaced pages, with reasonable (12 pt.) font and reasonable (1 inch) margins.

(2) Citations to the material are required; in-text citations are preferred (MLA style).

(3) Assignments should be turned into eCampus (for the collection of artifacts for scoring).

Assignment One:

SLO #1:”A government of laws, not of men”.  70% of students will successfully analyze how the U.S. Constitution, including its amendments, provides for  “a government of laws.” as well as discussing the feature of the Constitution that they believe is most important in providing for “a government of laws”.  [SLO #1 fulfills the following Program Level Outcomes: Communication, Critical Thinking, Social and Personal Responsibility, as well as the following Course Level Outcomes: 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8.]

Activity for Assessment:

1)“A government of laws, not of men” is how John Adams described the ideal form of government. The Constitution of the United States was designed to create such a government.

Discuss how the U.S. Constitution, including its amendments, provides for “a government of laws.” Then, discuss the feature of the Constitution that you believe is most important in providing for “a government of laws.” Explain the reason or reasons why you believe it is the most important.

Note: Your answer can be no longer than 600 words (roughly two double-spaced pages).

______________________________________________________________________________________

Program-Level Objectives met with this assignment:(PLO: 1.1,2,5,6)

 1: Communication Skills-to include effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual communication

     1.Written: Process and produce effective written communication adapted to the audience, purpose, and time constraints.

2: Critical Thinking Skills-to include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information

5: Personal Responsibility-to include the ability to connect choices, actions, and consequences to ethical decision-making

6: Social Responsibility- includes intercultural competence, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities.

Course-Level Objectives met with this assignment:(CLO: 1,2,3,4,5,7,8)

1. Explain the origin and development of constitutional democracy in the United States.

2. Demonstrate knowledge of the federal system.

3. Describe separation of powers and checks and balances in both theory and practice.

4. Demonstrate knowledge of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government.

5. Evaluate the role of public opinion, interest groups, and political parties in the political system.

7. Describe the rights and responsibilities of citizens

8. Analyze issues and policies in U.S. politics

Module Overview:

While driving, you always follow traffic rules. Without adherence to traffic rules, there would be chaos on the roads. Similarly, if organizations do not follow rules or standard accounting practices to record data, users might incorrectly interpret financial results. In addition, it will be difficult for external users, such as shareholders and investors, to compare and evaluate financial statements of different companies. Without standardization, they will be unable to make correct decisions about their investments. Therefore, accounting information requires a logical set of practices to provide a general frame of reference by which it can be evaluated.

This module explains accounting practices. It also explains why uniformity in accounting practices is important and how it can be obtained.

Accounting and Recording Principles  

One of the basic objectives of accounting is to convey information. This is achieved by different financial statements prepared for business—the most important statements being the balance sheet, the income statement, the statement of cash flow, and the statement of owner’s equity. Different companies may call these statements by different names, but they represent the same basic documents. For instance, the balance sheet may be referred to as the statement of financial position or assets in excess of liabilities. Similarly, the income statement may be referred to as the statement of operations or the statement of revenues over expenses.

The Balance Sheet

The balance sheet includes a summary of assets (both current and long-term assets), current and long-term liabilities, and owner’s equity. Current assets are defined as assets that are either cash, or can be converted into cash in a short period (usually within one year). Current assets are more liquid assets. This list also includes the debt of the company called current liabilities.

These debts are expected to be paid off within one year or less. If assets or liabilities are not current, they are considered long-term. Both assets and liabilities are presented on the financial statement in order of liquidity. One other very important matter is that the balance sheet is the only permanent financial statement of the company. The balance sheet contains the balances of all assets, liabilities, and equity AT the date of the statement. The balance sheet is therefore a balance-forward statement, and the balance presented could be from any time on or before the presentation date of the statement. This is different from every other financial statement.

Module Readings:

Complete the following readings early in the module:

•Read the online lectures for the Module 

•From the textbook, Accounting for Managers: Interpreting Accounting Information for Decision Making, 5th, read the following chapters: ◦Chapter 6: Constructing Financial Statements: IFRS and the Framework of Accounting 

◾Chapter 6 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides

◦Chapter 7: Interpreting Financial Statements ◾Chapter 7 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides

◦Chapter 8: Accounting for Inventory ◾Chapter 8 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides

Assignment:

Ratio analysis is a method used to analyze the financial reports of a company and interpret trends in the company’s performance. As a nonaccounting manager, you use numerous ratios to analyze your company’s performance year-by-year and benchmark the performance to industry averages, to an individual competitor’s performance, or against a predetermined target.

For this assignment, read “Case study question 7.2: General Machinery Ltd” on page 168 in chapter 7 of our textbook, Accounting for Managers: Interpreting Accounting Information for Decision Making, 5th. Using the data from the case study, repond to the tasks below. (Information Supplied Below)

General Machinery’s Statement of Cash Flows is also shown for the last few years (Table 7.20).  Table 7.20 Statement of Cash Flows.    2014 2013 2012 2011 Cash flow from operating activities        Cash receipts 772,000 700,000 635,000 595,000 Cash payments −628,000 −601,000 −537,200 −503,000 Interest paid −72,000 −60,000 −40,000 −25,000 Income tax paid −17,700 −11,100 −12,240 −20,700 Net cash from operating activities 54,300 27,900 45,560 46,300 Cash flow from investing activities        Payments for property, plant & equipment −200,000 −50,000 −50,000 − Net cash used in investing activities −200,000 −50,000 −50,000 − Cash flow from financing activities        Proceeds from borrowings 50,000 50,000 50,000 − Dividends paid −20,000 −15,000 −14,000 −20,000 Net cash from/used in financing activities 30,000 35,000 36,000 −20,000 Net increase/(decrease) in cash −115,700 12,900 31,560 26,300 Cash at beginning of year 135,700 122,800 91,240 64,940 Cash at end of year 20,000 135,700 122,800 91,240      Discuss the major issues facing the company.     Recommend what actions the company should take to improve its overall performance, addressing each of profitability, liquidity, gearing, activity, and shareholder return measures.     In what way does the Statement of Cash Flows help you to interpret the ratios and financial performance of the company?

Task:

Consider the following scenario for this assignment: You are an external investor who is considering General Machinery as one of the potential companies for investment. Respond to the following in your initial discussion post:

1.Discuss the major issues facing the company. 

2.Recommend what actions the company should take to improve its overall performance, addressing each of profitability, liquidity, gearing, activity, and shareholder return measures. 

3.In what way does the Statement of Cash Flows help you to interpret the ratios and financial performance of the company? 

4.What information does ratio analysis provide for meeting the requirements of the case questions? 

5.Which ratios are the most important, and which ones are of limited value? Justify your choices for the scenario. 

6.Why do you need to compare:

 ◦The current year ratios with the prior year ratios? 

◦The ratios of competitors in the same industry or some other benchmark?

7.Other than the computations used in ratio analysis, what else is necessary to properly analyze a company for investment?

Submission Details:

By Friday June 1, 2018 post your response to the Discussion Area.

Write your initial response in 300–500 words. Turned-in on time, Plagiarism Free, All assignment qualifications addressed correctly, Grading Criteria followed, Include Question followed by the answer  Reference Page Included Cover page Included, Paragraphs  Indented,  Running-head included, main heading should be centered; all  new  paragraphs should be indented;  paper should be right ragged,   not right justified; references,  should always go on a standalone  page. abstracts are not usually indented; acronyms should be spelled out when using them  for  the first time, for example HR. references as listed are APA  standard.   When you  submit your papers through turnitin.com, your overall  similarity  index  score should not be exceedingly high, with   ten to  fifteen percent  being  the maximum,  Please make sure your APA  formatting of citations. I have provided the  APA resource cite for you. https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01, Please work on using literature within the span of the last 5 years,  keep in mind there should not be any one, two, or three sentence   paragraphs.  Your response should be  thorough and address all components of the discussion question in  detail, include citations of all sources, where needed, according to the  APA Style, and demonstrate accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Grading Criteria:  

 

Initial response was: 

•Insightful, original, accurate, and timely. •Substantive and demonstrated advanced understanding of concepts. •Addressed each of the seven (7) Tasks prompts. •Compiled/synthesized theories and concepts drawn from a variety of sources to support statements and conclusions

Writing: 

•Wrote in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner. •Responses were error free. •Information from sources, where applicable, was paraphrased appropriately and accurately cited.

Apply the following when responding:

•Read your answers. 

◦building on the remarks or questions; or ◦sharing practical examples of key concepts from your professional or personal experiences 

◦assist the class in providing excellent answers to each of the posted questions. 

•Respond to feedback on your posting and provide feedback to ideas. 

•Make sure your writing ◦is clear, concise, and organized; ◦demonstrates ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and ◦displays accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.