Archive for September, 2007

Bottled Water

Saturday, September 29th, 2007

By Elizabeth Morgan Bottled water is now one of the largest industries in the world. Studies indicated that over half of all Americans drink bottled water, spending a lot more on the bottled water than for the tap water due to the misconception that bottled water is safer or healthier than tap water. Bottled water is now the most profitable business, the fastest growing multi billion dollar segment of the entire beverage industry. However, studies show that most of these bottled water also comes from municipal sources and is treated before it is bottled. Bottled water may undergo several forms of treatment. The most popular of these treatments is the distillation, where the water is turned into a vapor so that minerals too heavy to vaporize are left behind before the vapors are condensed into water again. Reverse osmosis, where the water is forced through membranes to remove minerals and absolute 1 micron filtration, where the water is sent through filters to remove particles that are sized more than a micron are also popularly used treatments. The treatment that almost all the bottled companies use is ozonization, wherein the ozone gas is sent through the water for disinfestations. Bottled water, even though as much as 240 to 10,000 times more expensive than the tap water, is still very popular because it is perceived to be comparatively safer and of higher quality than tap water. Expensive imported water sold in smaller bottles is even more expensive. However, scares about contaminated municipal water have even many low-income families opting for bottled water. Also, many people drink bottled water as a healthy alternative beverage to soft drinks and alcohol. The bottled water industry boosts sales by frequent advertising the fact that bottled water is pure or entirely free of contaminants. Also, bottled water does not contain chlorine or other harmful chemicals. However, this is only in the case when the bottled water has been really taken from a well or a spring and not just advertised that it is. More and more people are choosing bottled water as it is marketed and viewed as a light, clear, caffeine-free, salt-free, and sweetener-free healthy alternative to soft drinks. Others prefer it mostly out of concern about the quality of the tap water. Either way, the main reason for the explosion in bottled water sales is public perception, fueled by heavy industry advertising. Bottled Water provides detailed information about bottled water, bottled water brands, and more. Bottled Water is affiliated with Traditional Mediterranean Diet. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elizabeth_Morgan http://EzineArticles.com/?Bottled-Water&id=125528 ultram online without prescription ultram online without prescription generic name for ultram buy discount tramadol

Who’s Running Your Organization?

Thursday, September 27th, 2007

By Paul Ashby Your customers, thats who! Or should be! So dont you think that you ought to start a regular dialogue with him or her, as the case may be? The word empowerment is a very overused word. However in the near future the primary strategic marketing communications battle will be to see who goes furthest in empowering their customers. To empower your customers you will have to:1. Provide them with far more information than you currently do. 2. Allow them to make decisions about you and your company together with your resources. 3. Give them plenty of choice. 4. Give them the perception of control! 5. Allow them to feel that they are running your organisation! Because anything that tightens your relationships with an existing customer increases the revenue you get from your customer.And the only form of communication that can do all the above so that you do tighten your grip on your customer is. Interactive communication! Because interactive communication allows you to have an ongoing debate with your customers and your prospects, make regular interactive conversations available where they can debate not only about your products and services but the very soul of your company. Because that will be much more powerful than just putting your advertisement on television (or wherever) or Im going to sell my goods in Tesco (or wherever). Then, when you get asked, Whos running your business? you can honestly reply, My customers through genuine interactive programmes! and earn major brownie points! Because the problems with the current system are manifest. The challenges faced by marketing and advertising stem largely from the institutional dimensions of both. Remove these old models from the equation and many of the existing problems of lack of sales etc will disappear. Nowadays consumers want information thats relevant, credible and engaging, and they dont much care where it comes from.The subject of interactive communication has been the focus of innumerable articles in the popular press. Most of these have looked at the phenomenon through a mass-media lens, with interactivity reduced to advertising links and Buy-It buttons.And certainly not understanding the very important fact that interactivity is the most crucial aspect of all communication. And it is certainly not determined by the expectations of media conglomerates bent on appealing to the lowest common denominator and therefore, by the inexorable and inflexible logic of broadcast, to the largest collection of passive ad receivers. Today consumers dont like ad infested terrestrial TV what they do like is the opportunity to express an opinion, they like, in other words, voice. So just who is running your organisation? One bit of advice, for Gods sake dont let your advertising agency have a say in that runningthe only running you should be doing in that instance is away as fast as you can be. Advertising Agencies who constantly keep attuned to their target audience are confronted again and again by the markets diversity. As a consequence, they assume markets almost always must be segmented with strategies fine-tuned to the needs and wants of each sub-population. Closeness to consumers also leads to recognition that traditional demographic approaches are seldom adequate to capture the rich diversity in target audiences needs, wants, life-styles, perceptions and preferences. Getting in sync with this massive transformation of marketing is not going to be easy. The problem is that our minds are conditioned by the past, not the future. So we want to keep doing things the way we have always done them, even when the results become ever more disappointing. Every now and then the ground beneath us shifts so dramatically as to make much of what we thought we knew so wrong it becomes clear that we have to forge new beliefs or fail. These are such times in marketing. The behavioural proclivities of consumers as individuals must be the primary determining factor, not exotic maths even though it will obviously continue to be a critical tool but not the main tool! That is why it essential to fully understand and comprehend the meaning of the word communicationto interact is to communicate all else is a sheer waste of time, energy and moneyyour money! Let us recall the essential elements of business, and especially Advertising and Marketing-as-usual, in the 20th Century. Mass production and its attendant economies of scales exemplified business for most of the past 100 years. Perhaps the reason for this hanging on to the past way of doing things is the persistence of mass media, which came about as a result of the needs of business as a way of reaching mass markets. Like the management of large corporations, broadcast advertising partakes of the same top-down style of command and control.Customers were told what to do shop hard but not asked in any substantive way for their input or opinions! And, sad to say, command and control remains the order of the day. There is much talk today these days about the empowerment of consumers although corporations still communicate their demands by broadcasting them to demographically determined abstractions of whom they know very little about and have no genuine relations with at all. When it comes to change, when it comes to improving methods of talking to customers both mainstream media and corporate marketing are blind to these changes inasmuch as they continue to rely on deep seated assumptions attached to Advertising-As-Usual. When we dared to challenge the obvious assumptions of Advertising-As-Usual and its unshakeable supremacy of the creative solution to Marketing-As-Usual, we were considered, in a word NUTS. In fact we were regarded as demented, deranged, and certainly totally unaware as to the unassailable supremacy of the Advertising-As-Usual model. What happens when the great masters of the universe, broadcast media and their lackeys, Advertising Agencies, have to confront the fact that they are about to made redundant, superfluous by a far superior technique, interaction. Well these corporations are finally discovering that advertising-as-usual is exorbitantly expensive and that it is a ridiculously inefficient means of trying to reach and form productive relationships with increasingly fragmented array of markets. And, the scary thing for advertising-as-usual is that corporations dont give one dam about advertising all they want is the best, most efficient way of getting their goods to market and sold. The day of Advertising-As-Usual is overThank God! The Author pioneered interactive communication to the advertising and marketing communities some twenty-five years ago. The communication issues he addresses have been neglected during the explosive grown of advertising in the 60s, 70s and 80s, these are Cognitive Dissonance, Selective Retention and Selective Exposure. Would you like to discover the incredible results to be attained by using interactive communication? Well these are revealed for FREE at http://effectiveaccountablecommunication.blogspot.com or contact Paul directly on paul.ashby@yahoo.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Ashby http://EzineArticles.com/?Whos-Running-Your-Organization?&id=474089 online drug stores online pharmacy no prescription generic levitra vardenafil buy generic levitra

Four O’Clock - Afternoon Beauty For Your Flower Garden

Wednesday, September 26th, 2007

By Paul Wonning Mirabilis jalapa Family - Nyctaginaceae - Four O’Clock The family name is Latin in origin, and means wonderful. And that is a good description of this wonderful annual flower. It is native to South America, from areas of Mexico, and Peru. Cultivation in Europe began in 1525. The Four O’Clock, in the southern areas of the United States, may be a perennial. But here in the mid-west it is an annual flower. It will grow in just about any soil, but it should be kept moist during the dry summer months. It likes full or partial sun. The fragrant flowers will be about one inch in diameter and can be white, yellow, red, or pink. It will flower usually in the late afternoon, hence the name, Four O’Clock. Bloom season extends from mid-summer until frost kills them in the fall. Propagation of the Four O’Clock is by seed. Plant in flats in a hotbed or greenhouse, set in the garden after all danger of frost has passed. Dig the tuberous roots after the tops have died down in the fall, before the ground has frozen. Store the roots in damp sand or peat moss. The plant will usually reseed itself abundantly, also. Seedlings emerge in late spring and grow quickly, blooming by mid-summer. You may also gather the seeds from the ripe pods and sow them in the spring. A tropical perennial, the Four O’Clock should find a spot in your annual flower garden. The fragrant flowers open in late afternoon from summer until fall. 2006Paul Wonning is the owner of Gardens and Nature.com a web site about gardening, hiking and other nature related topics. Our blog about gardening is located here: Abes Beer Garden - Blog about Gardening Our hobby and craft related blog, Hobby Hobnob, is located at this link:http://hobbyhobnob.blogspot.com/ Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Wonning http://EzineArticles.com/?Four-OClock—Afternoon-Beauty-For-Your-Flower-Garden&id=387556 buy cheap fioricet online butalbital buy fioricet buy fioricet online discount fioricet

Fun Kid Birthday Party Invitations

Tuesday, September 25th, 2007

By Mike Dougherty Imagine the following kid birthday party invitation. The doorbell rings, you open the door and discover someone in a tuxedo, a Princess costume or a Pirate costume standing right in front of you. Completely in character, they begin telling you all about a wonderful birthday party that you’re invited to attend. Still in character they hand you a very special written invitation that contains even more surprises. Sounds like a lot of fun doesn’t it? Now you’re very excited about the birthday party you’ve just been invited to attend and can hardly wait to see what special surprises are in store. The next day, you call to RSVP for their party and you tell them how much you enjoyed the wonder hand delivered invitation. Kid Birthday Party Invitation The birthday invitation I just described will be remembered for a long, long time and will likely result in more of the people you invited actually showing up for your child’s birthday party. For years, two methods have have been used to invite guests to our children’s birthday parties. Either an invitation sent through the mail or you make a telephone call and invite them over the phone. Boring! But sending someone right to their door in costume and in character representing your birthday theme is an invitation that will be enjoyed and tells the person your inviting that your party is really going to be special. Kid Birthday Party Invitation Having a birthday Tea Party? Have a male dress up in a tuxedo and deliver your invitation as your butler. For a Princess birthday party you might have a male dressed as a Prince deliver the invitation. Or you might have a Fairy Godmother deliver it for you. A Pirate birthday party is a great opportunity to send a Pirate to say “AARRRHH” and deliver a secret treasure map. The possibilities are endless and so is the fun you’ll have. Be creative, have some fun because you’re going to see a lot of smiles and happy faces when the door opens and your special hand delivered kid birthday party invitation arrives in person and in character. Mike Dougherty has lots of experience putting together successul birthday parties for his children and grandchildren. To learn more visit http://www.fun-kid-birthday-parties.com/kid-birthday-party-invitations.html Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_Dougherty http://EzineArticles.com/?Fun-Kid-Birthday-Party-Invitations&id=177330 buy xenical or orlistat buy cheapest xenical xenical online cheap xenical prescription online

Home Loan for Those with Bad Credit

Tuesday, September 25th, 2007

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Keith_Davies]Keith Davies There is more interest than ever in home ownership, and more and more renters are taking the important step of becoming first time homeowners. However, for those with less than perfect credit, finding the right home loan can be a big challenge. There are many lenders who can help you stop throwing money away on rent and put you in a home of your own. However, any prospective homeowner should be aware that there are lots of predatory lenders out there who will base loans on their needs and not your ability to pay. They will offer you a bad credit home mortgage loan that you may not be able to pay back. These unethical practices could lead you to default on the loan, being unable to repay your mortgage and eventually losing the home you worked so hard for. What are the warning signs of a predatory bad credit home loan lender? There are a number of things that should raise red flags and warn you that you are dealing with a predatory home loan lender: Suggests that you falsify income or other information on the loan application. For example, beware a lender who tells you to say that your income is higher than it really is. Pressures you into applying for a bad credit home mortgage loan or suggests that you apply for more money than you need to buy the home. Pressures you into accepting monthly payments you cannot afford. Fails to provide the required loan disclosures or tells you not to read the fine print on the loan application. Misrepresents the kind of credit you’re getting, such as calling a one-time loan a line of credit. Promises one set of terms when you apply for the loan, then gives you another set of terms to sign - with no reasonable explanation for the change of terms. Tells you to sign blank forms - and says they’ll fill in the blanks later. Refuses to provide you with copies of the documents that you’ve signed for your bad credit home mortgage loan. Entice you with an unreasonably low introductory interest rate. These low teaser rates usually come bundled into mortgage loans who ultimate interest rates are very high. How Can I Make Sure I get the Right Bad Credit Home Loan Lender for My Needs? Always use common sense and follow your intuition. Also, if one lender offers an unbelievable offer, check with another lender to see what bad credit home mortgage loan they can offer you. If they can’t offer a similar product, then it probably doesn’t exist! Always remember that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always do your homework when shopping for any mortgage loan. If you are unsure about the reputation of the lender, check with the Better Business Bureau and get references from previous clients. Failing to do your homework and research up front could mean that you put your home at risk unnecessarily Agreat site for all financial options is [http://www.searchforcredit.co.uk/]http://www.searchforcredit.co.uk. Keith Davies owns many financial sites and can offer Loans help and financial solutions. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Keith_Davies http://EzineArticles.com/?Home-Loan-for-Those-with-Bad-Credit&id=138522 longterm facial effects of teen smoking advertit incest forum pixx bbw singles free adult dating sites in vicksburg ms

Facial Hair Removal

Sunday, September 23rd, 2007

By Richard Romando Unwanted facial hair can be an embarrassing problem, especially for women. There are a number of methods available for facial hair removal. They include plucking, electrolysis, shaving, waxing, depilatory creams and laser techniques. Each of these facial hair removal methods has their own merits and demerits. Plucking and shaving are two cheap and commonly used methods. There are many shaving devices and creams specially developed for women. But they have to be done daily or in alternative days. They can also cause discoloration of skin and infection to hair follicles. Often hair reappears in more dark shades. Depilatory creams are comparatively inexpensive and short-term facial hair removal options. They are available as gels, creams, lotions, aerosols, and roll-on forms. They contain a highly alkaline chemical meant to dissolve the protein structure of the hair, which help in removing hair from skin surface. They are simple to use and can be carried out in the privacy of your own home. But you have to repeat the application once in every three to four days. They can also cause redness and irritation. Waxing and tweezing are used to remove hair from below the surface. Hot wax is first applied above the hair to be removed and then it is pulled away from the face removing the hair with it. As they do not damage the hair follicles, new hair growth can occur within a few weeks. It can be done in a home or beauty salon. But these methods are painful and can produce skin redness and irritation. Electrolysis is considered as the most effective technique for facial hair removal as it offers permanent hair removal. They destroy individual hair follicles. But it is very expensive and time consuming. With electrolysis, you need multiple treatments on regular intervals for permanent hair removal. Laser facial hair removal is a newer technique that requires only little time for treatment, full face can be treated in about 15 minutes. But as in electrolysis, you need multiple sessions, usually 4 to 6. They are quite expensive too. You cannot use any other hair removal methods for about a month before your laser hair removal session. Hair Removal provides detailed information on Hair Removal, Laser Hair Removal, Permanent Hair Removal, Hair Removal Products and more. Hair Removal is affiliated with Laser Hair Removal Costs. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Richard_Romando http://EzineArticles.com/?Facial-Hair-Removal&id=353670 cheap phentermine online prescription where can i buy phentermine without a prescription pharmacy phentermine cod buy phentermine in missouri

Knowing Your Rights In Dating And Relationships

Sunday, September 23rd, 2007

By Abbas Abedi “The object of all life is development; and everything that lives has an inalienable right to all the development it is capable of attaining. Man’s right to life means his right to have the free and unrestricted use of all the things which may be necessary to his fullest mental, spiritual, and physical unfoldment; or, in other words, his right to be rich.” From The Science Of Getting Rich By Wallace Wattles This extract from the science of getting rich is to talk about what you do have the right to have. Do you deserve to be with a woman (or man) that you truly desire? Do you deserve to be in love? Do you deserve to have a fun dating experience? The goal of life itself is to evolve. To become better and better at what you do, at how you live, at how happy you are; so of course, your relationships or dating life would have to be included as well. Since life’s goals is evolvement and YOU are a part of life, therefore self improvement and personal development is not only natural to you it would make you happier as you are fulfilling a part of your genetic programming to evolve. What does it mean to get better at dating? First of all, learn from everything that happens on your date. After your date review everything that happened and decide how you could have done something better, or received an idea with more openness or were too slow to reject an idea to begin with. Second, Read. Read several books and websites on dating. Go over flirting, body language, conversation starters, maintaining interest, safety, etc. Don’t assume you can figure everything out for yourself with what you have. Everybody needs information to make an informed decision. I am emphasizing this because I know many people who think they know what they are doing but are essentially making a decision based on a daydream. Even a little bit of research would reveal that most of their assumptions are wrong or inappropriate, of just plain bizarre. Know this. Men and women ARE separate species. At least, that is the way you should approach learning about the opposite sex, without assumption, as if learning about them for the very first time. Quite simply, it is your birthright to have the kind of dating and relationship experience that will make you truly happy. It may be that you do not know what will make you happy, or that you may have to work on yourself first before you attract the best date for you. Don’t give up on dating or finding a good relationship simply because you have had some bad experiences. Don’t expect the perfect mate to come along on the very next date. Simply enjoy the dating experience with each person and learn from it till you too “break free” to the dating and relationship life that you truly desire. Know that it is your birthright to life the dating and relationship lifestyle that will make you happy. You can make a difference by improving yourself, by learning about the opposite sex, by being optimistic and trusting that each experience is helping you learn more so you can claim your birthright. Abbas Abedi - To read more about how to attract women easily visit my dating and seduction tips blog; which has become an investigation into how dating success can be achieved easily. The right dating tip can make a big difference. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Abbas_Abedi http://EzineArticles.com/?Knowing-Your-Rights-In-Dating-And-Relationships&id=544407 arizona viagra flomax and viagra studies pharmaceutical tadalafil caverta vidrin veega generic viagra wholesale suppliercom

The Importance of Internet Marketing

Wednesday, September 19th, 2007

By Sukhdev Badesha Introduction All businesses small and large understand the importance of having a website. WHY? Because without one your competitors who are online are TAKING your customers, potential business that could be yours or could it. Is just having a website enough to guarantee you more customers. The simple and honest answer to that would be NO, IT WOULD NOT BE ENOUGH. With billions of websites on the World Wide Web how do you differentiate yours from the rest? How do you get people to your site? How do you get people to stay or comeback? The answer is, with INTERNET MARKETING. However INTERNET MARKETING does not cover just one area, it is a combination of proven methods used to drive more traffic to your site which results in more business for you. Lets review the 3 fundamental techniques within INTERNET MARKETING. 1. Search Engine Optimisation Search Engine Optimisation can also can be referred to as website optimisation. This is a process of changing the design, content and ensuring the site is well linked will assist in accordance with the latest search engine scoring formulas. The aim at all times is to improve a site’s position on search results pages. Ideally trying to be within the first 3 pages of any relevant keyword search. 2. Email Marketing Email marketing is one of the most powerful marketing tools available for communicating and developing relationships. Essentially allowing you to create and deliver newsletters to thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of recipients. To put this into perspective, imagine posting 10,000 letters, with cost of a stamp at 12 pence, this would cost 1,200 pounds, imagine sending 100,000 at a cost of 12,000 pounds. Well with Email Marketing and subject to choosing the right Email Marketing Company, it will cost no more than 300 pounds. The Power of INTERNET MARKETING is astonishing. 3. Pay Per Click Pay-per-click (PPC) is a service offered by search engines such as Google. PPC is defined as the guaranteed placement of a small “ad” on the search results page for a specific keyword or keywords in return for a specified payment, but ONLY when a visitor clicks on that ad. The advertiser pays nothing to appear on the results page; they only pay the amount they have agreed to (or bid for) when someone actually clicks on their ad and is taken to their landing page; therefore, the term “pay per click. Why do you need Internet Marketing? Answers are pretty simple. 1) More enquiries will lead to more sales which otherwise will remain an undiscovered potential. 2) Maximise the potential of your website by allowing a wider audience to see it. 3) Cut Operational and marketing cost in other areas such as phone call enquiries and stamps, which can increase dramatically when posting information. 4) Expanding your business to the world and this means a larger market 5) Possibilities of other business opportunities such as Internet Business So, to conclude, Internet marketing is essential to business nowadays. You will lose a lot of business opportunities and profits if this core area of marketing is not exploited. DoDotz has helped setup successful Internet Marketing Campaigns and can do the same for you. DoDotz the Open Source Franchise You wont get anywhere in life working for somebody else. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sukhdev_Badesha http://EzineArticles.com/?The-Importance-of-Internet-Marketing&id=290098 cheap tramadol online tramadol online overnight online ultram prescription tramadol online pharmacies

Affiliate Marketing Pitfall - The 800 Number

Tuesday, September 18th, 2007

By Roger Matthews There are many advantages to using affiliate programs to increase your earnings but there are also a few things you should keep in mind. Most of us, especially early on, believe that the companies with affiliate programs are more than willing to pay it’s hard-working affiliates a commission. After all, you’re doing your part by sending them customers right? Most of the time they’re above board but it’s not always the case. What if I told you that by adding one simple, seemingly innocuous thing to their landing pages they can, and do, steal away you commissions? The affiliate landing page is the page you, or a visitor, “lands” on when you click the affiliate link containing your unique affiliate tracking code. That page is where you send your valuable visitors to buy a particular product or service. It’s an important page and when you sign up for an affiliate program you should always check that page before deciding to link to it from your site. What could possibly be on that page that could literally steal your referrals and, in turn, your commissions like a thief in the night? It’s very simple, a 1-800 number. Back in 1999 I was the webmaster for an internet mall. The mall directory was categorized by the types of products and services I thought would be useful and attractive to my visitors. I worked hard to create a large directory of affiliate web sites that sold the products and services I thought might interest my visitors. I had a link to my affiliate landing page, a brief description of the company and a feedback form for each business I linked to. The feedback form proved to be a very valuable tool. Not only did it give me valuable feedback from my visitors about a particular site, it’s customer service and it’s product or service but it also occasionally notified me when a visitor to my site made a purchase. I regularly read the feedback my visitors were sending me. It was valuable information and helped me evaluate what worked and what didn’t. On one occasion I received feedback on a tobacco company and box of rather expensive cigars that one of my visitors purchased. My visitor had reported that the tobacco company’s customer service representative was friendly and helpful over the phone and that he was very happy with his purchase. Later that day, thinking that I had received a commission on that sale, I viewed my third-party tracking statistics and looked for my commission on the sale. It wasn’t there. Remembering that my visitor had mentioned that he had spoken with someone I decided to check my affiliate landing page for a company phone number and sure enough, there it was. It stood out like a sore thumb. Scrolling down the page I saw it again at the bottom of the page. The first thing my visitor saw when he reached my affiliate landing page was the company’s 800 number. It was in bold type and very visible. It was the first thing that caught your eye when the page finished loading. It was big, bold and obvious. I called the company and spoke with an affiliate support representative and let them know what product was purchased and on what date. They informed me that there was “No way” they could verify that my visitor purchased anything from them because it wasn’t tracked. I told them that they should not have a 800 number on their landing pages but my comment was ignored. They continued to carry that 800 number on their affiliate landing pages and may still to this day. I lost a nice commission and they lost an affiliate. I have no idea how many commissions I may have lost to their 800 number. I immediately checked every other landing page and found a few others. I immediately removed them all from my site. I would like to suggest a feedback form. The information you get from your visitors may be very valuable to you and may help you locate problems. If there’s an 800 number featured on any of your affiliate landing pages I would seriously consider removing any links to that site. If the number isn’t very noticeable it may not be a problem but featured 800 numbers are leaches that can suck up your commissions before you realize it. Be sure to check your affiliate landing pages for any perceivable problems. Good luck! Roger Matthews is a webmaster and long-time affiliate. You may publish this article as long as the author info remains and the links work. Please visit ANFE- Articles & News For Entrepreneurs for articles and news on affiliate programs, internet marketing, Adsense, Adwords, search engine optimization and much more. http://moneymymoney.blogspot.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Roger_Matthews http://EzineArticles.com/?Affiliate-Marketing-Pitfall—The-800-Number&id=575350 online medications pharmacy buying prescription medications online buy prescriptions drugs online online pharmacy consultation

Criminal Law: A Critical Analysis of the Magistrate Court

Sunday, September 16th, 2007

By Thomas Gallagher Introduction The Magistrates Courts play an extremely important role inside the criminal justice system within the United Kingdom. This brief article will assess the functions of the magistrates court and evaluate the effectiveness of having a mechanism for determining the guilt of a defendant based solely on the discretion of the magistrates present. Before assessing the origins of the magistrate court, there will be a brief examination of what a magistrate is and what their functions are. Following from this, a brief insight into the origins of the magistrate court will be given, as it is important to understand the origins of any system as this will inform the reader of the initiative behind the original concept. After discussing the origins of the system, the procedure of appointment will then be discussed. This process will then be examined when the analysis is focused upon the procedures contained within the Magistrate court for assessing the guilt of a defendant. As a defendant will be denied a trail by jury, the system in place for the appointment of these magistrates is of paramount importance, as all individuals must be judged by their peers. If, after considering the evidence, the current system is deemed to be defective, then possible solutions will be considered to improve the present situation. The article will conclude that although the current system is far from perfect, it serves as a significant filter for more serious crimes which are tried in the Crown Court by a jury. What is a Magistrate? In the courts of England and Wales, it is the function of a magistrate to hear prosecutions for summary offences. They have the power to make orders in regard to and placing additional requirements on offenders. Magistrates’ sentencing powers are limited compared to that of the Crown Court (See Criminal Law: A Critical Analysis of the Crown Court), extending to shorter periods of custody, fines, probation and community service orders, and a miscellany of other options. Magistrates hear committal proceedings for indictable offences, and establish whether sufficient evidence exists to pass the case to a higher court for trial and sentencing. Magistrates have power to pass summary offenders to higher courts for sentencing when, in the opinion of the magistrate, a penalty greater than can be given in magistrates court is warranted. The function of a magistrate is of great importance, but where did they originally come from? Origins of the Magistrate Court The origins of the magistrate system can be seen to have been initiated in the 12th century. Richard I (Richard the Lion heart) commissioned certain knights in England to keep the Kings peace in unruly areas. By the 14th century, a new phrase had been coined to describe individuals who had accepted the responsibility of keeping the peace. The title Justices of the Peace was initiated during the reign of Edward III and referred to ‘good and lawful’ men to be appointed in every county to ‘guard the peace. The magistrate system has evolved since its early inception and now deals with over 95% of all prosecuted crime and is responsible for handing out over 336m in financial penalties per year. (Source: Department for Constitutional Affairs [DCA]) If a magistrate is responsible for presiding over certain criminal cases, then there must be a proficient system in place to appoint these individuals. The Appointment Process of Magistrates The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 provided for Justices of the Peace to be nominated by the Lord Chancellor for the boroughs, in consultation with local advisers. The county benches, however, continued to be confirmed by the Lord Chancellor by way of the nomination of the Lord Lieutenants, who had their own methods for finding suitable candidates. The system was inadequate and was challenged by the Liberal Government in 1906 as there were too many conservatives sitting on the benches. Lord Loreburn, as Liberal Lord Chancellor, nominated 7,000 magistrates of whom 3,197 were Liberals. The Royal Commission on the Appointment of Justice of the Peace in 1910 recommended the institution of an Advisory committee system. A year later Advisory Committees on which Liberals and Conservatives were equally represented had been set up in most counties to advise Lord Lieutenants on nominations. A few years later the boroughs had also formed advisory committees. Originally, appointment to these committees was for life, however, in 1925, Lord Cave introduced appointment for 6 years and ordered half the committees to retire by rotation every three years. A magistrate can, however, still remove a persons liberty for criminal offences. If we are all to be judged by our peers, then a magistrate should be just that. The problem is, however, that the appointment process is engineered towards professional people who share very little with the people that they judge. Assessing Guilt in a Magistrate Court As stated above, magistrates will decide on the guilt of a defendant. There will be no trial by jury, therefore, it is essential that the people who sit in judgment are the defendants peers. If one looks at the application process as provided on the department for constitutional affairs, the qualities needed are good character, ability for understanding and communication, social awareness, maturity and a sound temperament, sound judgment and a commitment to the job. These are all admiral qualities, yet these are not imposed upon any jury that sits in judgment of more serious cases. Why is this so? There are numerous possible explanations for this polarized approach, and often depends upon a persons particular ideological persuasion. Nevertheless, the statistics speak for themselves. Most magistrates are white, middle class males. If one considers that defendants should be judged by their peers, it would be interesting to see how white, middle class males go out stealing cars, or indeed committing other petty criminal offences. What are the possible solutions for this problem? A Call for a More Diverse Magistrate Pool Magistrates work on a voluntary basis and need time off work to honor their commitments. There have been Proposals to make it easier for magistrates who are in employment to take time off from work to sit in court (Monday 7 November 2005 10:37 Department for Constitutional Affairs). This, for me, does not solve the problem of having a primarily middle classed system acting as judge, jury and executioner. What is needed is a more diverse magistrate pool. This will provide for a more understanding magistrate. If one has lived in a cozy, secure, insulated world, how are you going to have any affinity with an individual who has had a disrupted childhood? The answer is that you are not. The arguments in favour regarding a more diverse pool of magistrates is deafening, however, it remains to be seen as to whether they will be heard. Conclusion This paper has assessed the role of a magistrate within the judicial process by tracing the origins of the magistrate and looking at the way in which a magistrate is appointed. The role of the magistrate is one that should never be undervalued. They give up their time on a voluntary basis and provide a vital service in filtering the more serious crimes to be tried in front of a jury. There exists a fundamental problem, however, in that a magistrate often shares no life experiences with the people that they sit in judgment over. The sociological implications for a system, such as the one in place cannot be underestimated. The time has now come for a more diverse magistrate pool that draws from all members of society, regardless of their previous background. Thomas Gallagher LLb John Moores University LLM Liverpool University If you would wish to find out more about the magistrates system within the UK or the judicuial system, then go to http://www.criminal-information-agency.com/courts/crown.htm http://www.criminal-information-agency.com/courts/ http://www.criminal-information-agency.com/courts/courtresult.php Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Thomas_Gallagher http://EzineArticles.com/?Criminal-Law:–A-Critical-Analysis-of-the-Magistrate-Court&id=96594 purchase soma online buy soma from mexico best online soma buy cheap soma