Funds Accounting Essay Example for Free

Funds Accounting Essay Business-type organizations and not-for-profit organizations, including not-for-profit colleges, universities and health care providers b. Business-type organizations; not-for-profit organizations; and all colleges, universities and health care providers, whether organized as not-for-profit or governmental entities c. Business-type organizations only d. All entities, except for those under the jurisdiction of the American Institute of CPAs Answer: a 5. A not-for-profit organization performs all of the following activities except . Charging a fee for services provided b. Paying dividends to shareholders c. Purchasing long-lived (capital) assets d. Paying overtime to employees Answer: b 6. The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) establishes financial reporting standards for state and local governmental entities. An entity possessing the following characteristics should follow GASB standards: a. The power to enact and levy a tax. b. The power to issue debt, for which its interest is exempt from federal taxation. c. The potential that a government could unilaterally dissolve the entity and assume their assets and liabilities. d. All of the above. e. Only a and b. Answer: d 7. For which types of organizations is the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) responsible for establishing accounting and financial reporting standards? a. All state, local, and Federal organizations b. All state and local governmental organizations, except for state and local governmental colleges, universities, health care providers, and utilities c. All state and local governmental organizations, including government-sponsored colleges, universities, health care providers, and utilities d. All governmental and not-for-profit organizations Answer: c 8. Which entity establishes financial accounting standards and principles for the federal government? a. FASB b. GASB c. FASAB d. None of the above. Answer: c 9. Which of the following is the most authoritative source of accounting standards for cities and counties? a. Current practices widely used by not-for-profit entities b. GASB Statements and Interpretations c. AICPA Industry Audit Guides d. Implementation guides published by GASB staff Answer: b 10. Not-for-profit organizations obtain their revenues primarily from a. Sales to customers b. Contributions from donors c. Taxes on personal property d. Taxes on real property Answer: b TRUE or FALSE State whether these statements are true or false. Discuss why the false statements are false. True a. An entity is likely to be a governmental entity if a controlling majority of its governing body is appointed by governmental officials. True b. The objective of a government is to provide services to its constituents. False c. AICPA pronouncements have approximately the same level of authority as articles appearing in the Journal of Accountancy. True d. The objective of a not-for-profit organization is to provide services to its constituents. False e. By definition, all funds have cash, financial resources, and capital resources. True f. The objective of a business organization is to enhance the wealth of its owners.

Alcoholism In The 21st Century Essay -- essays research papers fc

Alcoholism in the 21st Century   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The dictionary describes alcoholism as continued excessive or compulsive use of alcoholic drinks. However, this disease is much more complex. Alcohol abuse is a growing problem in the United States today, causing more and more deaths each year. It affects nearly everyone in the U.S. today, either directly or indirectly. Over half of Americans have at least one close relative that has a drinking problem. About 20 million people in the United States abuse alcohol. It is the third leading cause of preventable deaths, and about 100,000 people die each year from alcohol related incidents (Peacock 11).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alcohol is not a new invention of modern societies. It has been around through many different ancient cultures, wine being the most prominent substance. Some cultures viewed alcohol consumption as good, while others perceived it good only in moderation. For example, the Greek god Bacchus was known for his excessive drinking while the Roman god Dionysus was known for teaching moderation in drinking (Peacock 20-21).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alcoholism was also learned to have existed in history. Interpreted writings on the tomb of an Egyptian king who lived over 5,000 years ago read, â€Å"His earthly abode was rent and shattered by wine and beer. And the spirit escaped before it was called for.† This shows that he died from alcohol related causes. However, most cultures began to limit alcohol use when they learned how to efficiently produce the beverage. Babylonian king Hammurabi and Chinese emperor Chung K’iang executed violators of their laws concerning alcohol (Peacock 20). Even in the Bible, refrain from alcohol is stressed. â€Å"†¦Nor drunkards†¦ will inherit the kingdom of God† (Alcohol and the Bible). The United States was not immune to strict laws opposing alcohol. In 1919, the 18th Amendment was passed, limiting alcohol use. This period lasted for 14 years and became known as the Prohibition (Peacock 28).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ancient and modern literatures show that alcohol has been around longer than most people think. For example, in the ancient epic of Giglamesh, written 4,000 years ago, one character was the goddess of wine and brewing, Siduri (World literature 136, 139). The Chinese poet Tu Fu wrote about celebrating an old friend’s retirement with wine in his... ...rch on causes and treatment has increased substantially. There are many new and traditional treatment methods being tested to treat alcoholism. Looking toward the future, there is hope for a successful treatment of alcoholism, and prevention in generations to come. Works Cited Alcohol and the Bible: New Expanded Version. 29 April 2001.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  . Botsford, Christy. National Children of Alcoholics Week. 29   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  April 2001. Clinton Signs Bill to Lower Drunken Driving Standards. Dallas Morning News. SIRS. 23   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  October 2000. Peacock, Nancy. Drowning our Sorrows, Psychological Effects of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alcohol Abuse. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 2001. Selected Poetry of Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849). 29 April 2001.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Williams, Steven. â€Å"America’s Drinking Problem.† Teen People. March 2000: 100-105. World Literature Third Edition. United States: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2001.

Economic Factors in the Decline of the Byzantine Empire

â€Å"Economic Factors in the Decline of the Byzantine Empire† In this article taken from The Journal of Economic History, Peter Charanis discusses the factors that economically affected the decline of the Byzantine Empire. His discussion is based on the fact that past scholars, such as English historian Edward Gibbon who wrote The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, thought the Byzantine Empire was in a constant state of decline throughout its existence, but he disagrees. He says that more recent scholars have found that it was, in fact, one of the great empires in history.He references to historians such as Fridtjof Nansen, author of L’Armenie et le proche Orient, who said that the Byzantine culture â€Å"is and will remain one of the most remarkable works of architecture, and if the Byzantine culture had created nothing but that, it would be sufficient to classify it among the greatest. † Charanis is convinced that most scholars today reject G ibbon’s theory, and this article discusses why he believes so. Because the Byzantine Empire endured for over a thousand years and was the center of civilization until the middle of the eleventh century, it could not be looked at as a constantly declining empire.According to Charanis, it preserved antiquity, developed new forms of art, and held back barbarians. Byzantium produced great soldiers, statesmen, diplomats, reformers, and scholars. It was also successful at spreading the gospel among pagan tribes. Charanis quotes Czech historian F. Dvornik who wrote Les Slaves byzance et Rome au IX saying Byzantium â€Å"molded the undisciplined tribes and made nations out of them; it gave to them its religion and institutions, taught their princes how to govern, transmitted to them he very principles of civilation – writing and literature. â€Å"Byzantium was a great power and a great civilizing force,† Charanis said. He believed that war and religion were the two pri ncipal factors that molded the society of the empire and determined its external position. Because war was a normal state during Byzantium’s thousand year existence, war was not a reason to believe that it was constantly declining. For example, in the seventh century, the Sarcens, Slavs, and Bulgars reduced the empire greatly, but the seventh century emperors reorganized the administration of the empire to cope with the situation at hand.In the eleventh century however, the empire was not as fortunate to recover from certain military reverses that occurred. There were disastrous defeats that they never fully recovered from, and this is what finally led to the beginning of their decline. One very important factor, according to Charinis’ sources such as Russian historians’ books and works, were the conditions the Manzikerts left the empire in. It had such a huge impact on the social and economic life of the empire, and this was the basis of its virtual disappearan ce.Byzantium relied so fully on the social and economic aspect of their culture, that an attack to this was fatal. The Manzikert military aristocracy was far from what the Byzantines were accustomed to, and caused the soldiery-peasantry to decline which was a large part of their state. Up until this point, emperors were able to rework the empire and reorganize things so that Byzantium could thrive, but after their â€Å"large estate†, which had been a huge party of their society, was attacked, it was almost impossible.Charanis believes that the aristocracy that was put in place in the eleventh century was also another large factor of decline. Instead of being a social and economic based empire, it was a military aristocracy. The soldiers were the holders of the military estates, and the aristocracy absorbed the estates of the peasants. The focus of the emperors was the happiness of the soldiers and not of the peasants, or all the other people in the empire, and this was also a large source of decline in Byzantium.Once the emperors of the eleventh century realized that this system was not working quite as well, they tried to create an anti-military policy, which consummated a depression in soldiers. This entire struggle that occurred after the seventh century caused the empire to participate in a series of civil wars affected its sources and manpower, according the Charanis. Other serious factors that caused the decline were the weakening of the central administration, the failure to enforce measures of protection for the soldiery-peasantry, and the grants of privileges made to the aristocracy.It has been said that another reason for their decline was the strict controls they placed on commerce and industry, but Charanis disagrees and says it is extremely doubtful that this was their weakness. He backs up this argument by saying that when those controls were most strictly enforced, was when their empire was at its greatest. He goes on to say that the per iod of the greatest decline is marked by the breakdown of these controls.Tenth century Byzantine emperor Romanus Lecapenus wrote in one of his novels that the extension of power to the strong and the depression of power to the many would â€Å"bring about the irreparable loss of the public good. † Charanis agrees with him saying that â€Å"His prediction had come true. The disappearance of the free peasantry, the increase in the wealth, privileges, and power of the aristocracy, and the consequent depression of the agrarian population constitute, I think, some of the principal factors in the decline of the Byzantine Empire. †Charanis’ evidence is clearly all there and cited, but it is somewhat difficult to understand his references. They’re numbered at the bottom and his numbers are meant to further explain certain points throughout the article. Another problem I have with his evidence is that they are mostly books written by foreign authors, and I canâ₠¬â„¢t read the titles. I believe that Charanis has clearly proven his point and thoroughly discussed his thesis; however, his argument was not extremely bold, because he is arguing one historian’s theory (Edward Gibbon), and agreeing with every other historian who believes the Byzantine Empire was great.His argument was more fact-based, and proven through certain points of notoriety throughout the existence of the empire, and his presentation of these points seemed unorganized. In fact I found the organization of this article to be somewhat confusing. He seemed to jump around from century to century and fact to fact. I believe it would have been much more efficiently written if he had discussed the certain centuries of the empire in chronological order. This also would have more effectively shown the factors that led up to the decline of the Byzantine Empire.Instead he jumped around discussing things that related to the factors, but not thoroughly discussing what order the th ings happened and why one led to the next. Charanis did not raise new questions in his argument. He simply argued Gibbon’s theory, and used other historians to back his argument up. In fact, most of the historians that Charanis used as references were quite old, for example, Fridtjof Nansen, a Norwegian author from 1928. No recent authors or suggestions were raised from Charanis’ article.I think that overall this article offered some very thorough and credible information about the decline of the Byzantine Empire, but since his original argument was that Gibbon was wrong, he should have used more examples of historians that supported Gibbons theory and argued their points as well. Though he had many historians to back up his argument, his thesis mentioned Gibbon. He definitely proved his point and listed many factors that caused the decline of the Byzantine Empire, but I would have liked to see less confusing organization and newer information that supported his argume nt.

Historical Timeline of the Animal Rights Movement

Concern for animal suffering is not new or modern. The ancient Hindu and Buddhist scriptures advocate a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons. The ideology behind the animal rights movement has evolved over millennia, but many animal activists point to the 1975 publication of Australian philosopher  Peter Singers â€Å"Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment of Animals† as the catalyst for the modern American animal rights initiative. This timeline highlights some of the major events in modern animal rights. Early Events and Legislation 1635: First known animal protection legislation passes, in Ireland, An Act against plowing by the tayle, and pulling the wool off living sheep.   1641: The Massachusetts colonys Body of Liberties includes regulations against Tirranny or Crueltie toward animals. 1687: Japan reintroduces a ban on eating meat and killing animals. 1780: English philosopher Jeremy Bentham argues for better treatment of animals. 19th Century 1822: British Parliament passes Act to Prevent the Cruel and Improper Treatment of Cattle. 1824: The first Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is founded in England by Richard Martin, Arthur Broome, and William Wilberforce. 1835: The first Cruelty to Animal Act is passed in Britain. 1866: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is founded by New Yorker  Henry Bergh. 1875: The National Anti-Vivisection Society is established in Britain by Frances Power Cobbe. 1892: English social reformer Henry Stephens Salt publishes Animals Rights: Considered in Relation to Social Progress. 20th Century 1906: Upton Sinclairs novel The Jungle, an excoriating look into the cruelty and appalling conditions of the Chicago meatpacking industry, is published. 1944: English animal rights advocate Donald Watson founded the Vegan Society in Britain. 1975:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment of Animals† by philosopher Peter Singer is published. 1979:  Ã‚  Animal Legal Defense Fund is established, and the National Anti-Vivisection Society establishes World Lab Animal Day on April 24, which has since evolved into World Laboratory Animal Week. 1980:  People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is founded; â€Å"Animal Factories† by attorney Jim Mason and philosopher Peter Singer is published. 1981:  The Farm Animal Reform Movement is officially founded. 1983:  The Farm Animal Reform Movement establishes World Farm Animals Day on October 2; â€Å"The Case for Animal Rights,† by philosopher Tom Regan is published. 1985:  The first annual Great American Meatout is organized by the Farm Animal Reform Movement. 1986:  Fur Free Friday, an annual nation-wide fur protest on the day after Thanksgiving, begins; the  Farm Sanctuary is founded. 1987:  California high school student Jennifer Graham makes national headlines when she refuses to dissect a frog; Diet for a New America by John Robbins is published. 1989:  Avon stops testing its products on animals; In Defense of Animals launches their campaign against Proctor Gamble’s animal testing. 1990:  Revlon stops testing its products on animals. 1992:  Animal Enterprise Protection Act is passed. 1993:  General Motors stops using live animals in crash tests; The Great Ape Project is founded by Peter Singer and Paola Cavalieri. 1994:  Tyke the elephant goes on a rampage, killing her trainer and escaping from the circus before being gunned down by police. 1995: Erica Meier founded Compassion Over Killing. 1996:  Vegetarian activist and former cattle rancher Howard Lyman appears on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show, leading to a defamation lawsuit filed by Texas Cattlemen. 1997:  PETA releases an undercover video showing animal abuse by Huntington Life Sciences. 1998:  A jury finds in favor of Lyman and Winfrey in the defamation lawsuit filed by Texas Cattlemen; An investigation by The Humane Society of the U.S. reveals that Burlington Coat Factory is selling products made from dog and cat fur. 21st Century 2001: Compassion Over Killing conducts an open rescue at a battery hen facility, documenting abuses and rescuing eight hens. 2002:  Dominion by Matthew Scully is published;  McDonald’s settles a class-action lawsuit over their non-vegetarian french fries. 2004:  Clothing chain Forever 21 promises to stop selling fur. 2005:  The U.S. Congress pulls funding for inspections of horse meat. 2006:  The SHAC 7 are convicted under the Animal Enterprise Protection Act;  Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act is passed, and an investigation by the Humane Society of the U.S. reveals that items labeled as â€Å"faux† fur at Burlington Coat Factory are made of real fur. 2007:  Horse slaughter for human consumption ends in the United States, but live horses continue to be exported for slaughter;  Barbaro dies at the Preakness. 2009:  The European Union bans cosmetics testing and bans the sale or import of seal products. 2010:  A killer whale at SeaWorld kills his trainer, Dawn Brancheau.  SeaWorld is  fined $70,000  by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 2011:  National Institute of Health stops funding of new experiments on chimpanzees;  President Barack Obama and Congress legalize horse slaughter for human consumption in the U.S. 2012:  Iowa passes the nations fourth ag-gag law, which prohibits the undercover filming of farm conditions without the owners consent;  An international convention of neuroscientists declares that non-human animals have consciousness. The declarations main author goes vegan. The Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness is published in Britain, which states that many nonhuman animals possess the neurological structures to generate consciousness. 2013:  The documentary Blackfish reaches a mass audience, causing widespread  public criticism of SeaWorld. 2014: India bans cosmetic testing on animals, the first Asian country to do so. 2015-2016: SeaWorld announces it will end its controversial orca shows and breeding program. 2017: The Appropriations Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives  votes  27 -25 in favor of re-opening horse slaughter plants in the U.S. 2018: Nabisco changes its 116-year-old package design for Animal Crackers. The new box is cage-free; Sens. John Kennedy, R-La., and Catherine Cortez, D-Nev., introduces the Welfare of Our Furry Friends Act (WOOFF) to prohibit airlines from storing animals in overhead compartments after the death of Kokito, a French bulldog during a United Airlines flight from Houston to New York. 2019: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announces plans to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of mammals to test the toxicity of chemicals; California becomes the first U.S. state to ban the sale and manufacture of new fur items; Cat declawing is banned in New York State.