Free Essays on Enron

The article on Enron states that there was not one main reason why Enron fell; however it was a corporate culture of deception that lead to the demise of this company. Enron had many loans on their books that they disguised as assets to make them look stronger and more profitable. They worked backwards by figuring out what they wanted their company to look like financially, and then made changes in the books to make it appeal to them. Since the authorities were not using checks and balances to make sure fraud was not taking place, it would have been easy for Enron to make it look like particular divisions were doing worse then they actually were, so they did not have to pay their employees as much. It was also easy for Enron to lie to their accountants because they did not check what the managers told them was truth. The auditors did not check the accountant’s books for mistakes either. There were so many mistakes in so many different areas of this company that its hard t o pinpoint one thing. The article on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act summarizes the new legislation that has been put into place to help guard against another financial disaster, such as Enron and WorldCom. Under this law, attorneys are responsible to report any illegal acts to a board of directors. If the board of directors that the attorney reports to does not pass on this information to proper authority, they will be forced to resign. When the SAS 99 became effective, it profoundly changed the relationship between businesses and auditors because if the CPA does not follow the SAS 99 rules and it comes to the attention of the AICPA, they will lose their CPA and be prosecuted. The SAS 99 coupled with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act should do a great deal to safeguard against scandals in the business world.... Free Essays on Enron Free Essays on Enron The article on Enron states that there was not one main reason why Enron fell; however it was a corporate culture of deception that lead to the demise of this company. Enron had many loans on their books that they disguised as assets to make them look stronger and more profitable. They worked backwards by figuring out what they wanted their company to look like financially, and then made changes in the books to make it appeal to them. Since the authorities were not using checks and balances to make sure fraud was not taking place, it would have been easy for Enron to make it look like particular divisions were doing worse then they actually were, so they did not have to pay their employees as much. It was also easy for Enron to lie to their accountants because they did not check what the managers told them was truth. The auditors did not check the accountant’s books for mistakes either. There were so many mistakes in so many different areas of this company that its hard t o pinpoint one thing. The article on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act summarizes the new legislation that has been put into place to help guard against another financial disaster, such as Enron and WorldCom. Under this law, attorneys are responsible to report any illegal acts to a board of directors. If the board of directors that the attorney reports to does not pass on this information to proper authority, they will be forced to resign. When the SAS 99 became effective, it profoundly changed the relationship between businesses and auditors because if the CPA does not follow the SAS 99 rules and it comes to the attention of the AICPA, they will lose their CPA and be prosecuted. The SAS 99 coupled with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act should do a great deal to safeguard against scandals in the business world.... Free Essays on Enron Enron a Post Mortem - Enron was heralded as America’s most innovative company for five years by Fortune magazine. What happened? What lead to Enron’s demise? The collapse of Enron is one of the century ’ s most infamous, with reverberations being felt around the world. Craig Donaldson speaks with Enron ’ s interim CEO Stephen Cooper about his approach to people management in the midst of this most extraordinary of working circumstances Enron was one of America’s leading companies prior to its spectacular collapse in 2001. It was frequently named as one of America’s top 10 most admired corporations and best places to work, and its board was acclaimed one of the US’ best five, according to Fortune magazine. As America’s seventh largest company, Enron experienced explosive growth through the 1990s. It had revenues of US$139 ($184) billion, US$62 ($82) billion in assets and employed more than 30,000 people across 20 countries. While Enron was considered a phenomenon in its heyday, a highly decentralised decision-making and financial control structure made it virtually impossible to get a clear and coherent understanding of the corporation, according to interim CEO and chief restructuring officer, Stephen Cooper. â€Å"In the space of 30 days, Enron went from American icon to Chapter 11,† he says. The collapse brought an enormous amount of outrage from the company’s stakeholders, while the scale and complexity of Enron’s bankruptcy has resulted in 12 separate investigations by the US Congress.... Free Essays on Enron THE COLLAPSE OF ENRON In early, 2001, Enron Corporation was named most innovative company in America for the sixth year in a row by Fortune Magazine. Soon enough things had turned and by December 2001, Enron filed for bankruptcy. Enron was the premiere trading company of the world, listed as the world’s greatest energy company and now in 2001 suffered the worst business failure in U.S. history. The U. S. was devastated by this and it really hurt all of the employees within Enron. Thousands of employees lost their jobs, savings, 401 (K) retirements plans virtually overnight. One retiree was reported to have lost $1.3 billion in savings and shareholders investors lost nearly $70 billion in market value. No one had even the slightest clue that any of this was going to happen, just like that they were out of there jobs with no money. People with families and children had nothing anymore, it was a travesty. The employees who had invested so much of their stock and savings in Enron’s plans suffered the most form this sudden downfall. They had nothing left to show for all of the hard work that had put into the company for so many years. The were so strong a year earlier in 200, employees were up to 19,000 people they even made $100 billion in revenues a year. Their plan was simply â€Å"becoming the world’s greatest company† which was stated by the current CEO and CEO at Enron, Kenneth Lay. When Kenneth states this I don’t think he puts an ethical review on this, considering the fact that he let go of so many people’s jobs and all of their money. He would do anything to get this company to the top, even if it was cheating, stealing, manipulating people. He is a very greedy person and put himself before his employees and the rest of the company. From my point of view that is ridiculous but that’s the kind of people we have in our world today, as long as they are living a good life they aren’t worry about ot... Free Essays on Enron Kenneth Lay, the ex-CEO of Enron took a small natural gas company, and created a financial powerhouse. In just a little over 15 years, Enron grew into one of the US’s largest companies. It embraced new technologies, established new methods of trading in energy and seemed to be a shining example of successful corporate America. Kenneth Lay himself was awarded a place in the Texas Business Hall of Fame for his achievement of bringing the small company to where it stood. Many surveys showed Kenneth Lay as one of the top managers for the nation. His background of academic and government positions helped back his position as a dedicated leader. Disaster then struck the companies success was all smoke and mirrors created by artificially inflated profits, dubious accounting practices, and fraud. The company unraveled and came crashing down, resulting in thousands of people loosing their jobs and life savings that they invested in to the company. Enron was born in July of 1985 with a merger of Houston Natural and Omaha-based InterNorth. Kenneth Lay was elected as the chairman and chief executive of the company. Around the same time Washington began to lift the controls over who produced energy and how it was distributed. Kenneth Lay saw a chance to make the small company thrive and seized it. Enron guaranteed its customers stable prices during the energy regulation changes. The response to the stable energy prices that Enron was offering was huge. Everyone wanted future gas at the fixed prices of today. In a few years Enron was responsible for over one fourth of the gas business for the United States. Kenneth Lay then decided that it would be profitable to expand its business into other fields by trading other commodities such as coal and steel. Early in the year 2000 Enron was peaking its economic success and began to invest into broadband Internet networks seeing the dot.com economy expand with profits. The company boa... Free Essays on Enron Enron Corp. is one of the world's largest energy, commodities and services company. Before its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, it marketed electricity and natural gas, delivered energy and other physical commodities, and provided financial and risk management services to customers worldwide. Based in Houston, Texas, Enron was formed in July 1985 by the merger of Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth of Omaha, Nebraska. Initially a natural gas pipeline company, Enron rapidly evolved from delivering energy to brokering energy futures as energy markets were deregulated. The company began marketing electricity in 1994 and entered the European energy market in 1995. In 1999, Enron launched a plan to buy and sell access to high-speed Internet bandwidth, and it launched EnronOnline, a Web-based commodity trading site, making it an e-commerce company. The company reported revenues of $101 billion in 2000. It has stakes in nearly 30,000 miles of gas pipeline, owns or has access to a 15,000-mile fiber optic network, and has a stake in electricity generating operations around the world. Aftershocks in Europe Enron's collapse will hit many markets. Enron is the largest bankruptcy in United States history, and cost thousands of people their retirement and jobs. They used different accounting tricks to deceive their employees and the public on how good their financial situation really was. How could such a giant, thriving company go from worth around $60 billion dollars to bankruptcy in such a short period of time with no major warning signs? What could allow such a huge financial scandal to take place? How will the Enron scandal affect the current business world and the way that businesses are run in the future? These are all questions that are currently trying to be explained. The story of Enron is still constantly unwinding more and more everyday. The small Houston based company that was started in 1985 when Houston Natural Gas combi...

Marketing In A Time of Globalization †Marketing Essay

Marketing In A Time of Globalization – Marketing Essay Free Online Research Papers Marketing In A Time of Globalization Marketing Essay In my limited 31 years on this planet, I have seen much development and evolution of the English language. From slang words like â€Å"metro-sexual† to words like gigabyte that describe new technologies and services never seen before in history, there have been millions of new words introduced into society. Globalization is another such word that has evolved due to an interesting phenomenon sparked by factors such as the internet, ease of traveling and television. In this paper I will discuss globalization and a hopefully answer a few questions sparked by this new â€Å"buzz word† of the 21st century. The WikiPedia describes globalization as the worldwide phenomenon of technological, economic, and cultural change, as brought about by expanding facilities for intercommunication and interdependency between traditionally isolate cultures. Dramatically increased international trade and finance have established a medium wherein deeper cultural exchanges have taken place - greatly increasing the impact of global issues at the local scale. (Wikipedia) In short, globalization is the bringing together or the swapping of cultural ingredients among peoples of different cultures and countries. I found this picture on the internet and it drove the globalization point home. (Wikipedia.com) If this picture does not support the clashing of cultures I do not know what does. There are many trade theories that support the idea of globalization. The Heckscher-Ohlin theorem states that a country which is capital-abundant will export the capital-intensive good. Likewise, the country which is labor-abundant will export the labor-intensive good. Each country exports that good which it produces relatively better than the other country. In this model a countrys advantage in production arises solely from its relative factor abundance. (internationalecon) The Heckscher-Ohlin theory basically says that countries will trade with those countries that have things that they need. This is the basis for international trade; quid pro quo. This â€Å"this for that† attitude among nations has really supported the fusion of culture. Prebisch-Singer Thesis also supports the idea of globalization. This thesis states that the price of products traded with other countries fall dramatically over time; therefore an increase in trading is needed to keep profits up. (bss.sfsu.edu) This means more business partnerships and more countries are reliant upon each other. This dependency and relationship between countries have really played a key role in the rapid globalization of the modern day world. Money might be the root of all evil, but it also can smooth out relations among super powers if both parties are getting what they want out of the deal. Two major drivers of globalization have been the break down of trade barriers and technology. Technology in particular has changed many aspect of modern life. Services such as the internet which allows for global communication at a seconds notice and the unadulterated exchange of information among individuals in opposite sides of the world have played a key role in the merging of cultures. The degradation of trade barriers have allowed for more business and exchanges to happen between countries. There has even been a lot of talk lately about lifting the trade embargo against Cuba. Money talks, and when it does, people listen. The people of Cuba would greatly benefit not only financially from trade lines with the US, but they would also benefit in social and economical ways as well. Globalization has affected almost every aspect of American life. It is pretty normal for me to have a piece of cold pizza for breakfast (Italian cuisine), go to lunch down the street at PF Chang’s, (Chinese cuisine) and then finish up a nice dinner that night at Tres Amigos, (Mexican cuisine). Another more important affect of globalization is in the work environment. In this politically correct world we live in, it is imperative that each person in a work environment feels comfortable in their environment. With many cultures coming together around the water cooler each day, it is imperative that employees and employers are knowledgeable about other cultures and peoples. Marketing is another area of life effected by globalization. In previous marketing classes, we learned that it is imperative to find your target market before marketing your product. What if that target market is of another culture? What if you want to target your product to multiple genres and cultures? Every culture is different and reacts to marketing differently. Wal-Mart, saturated in the US, has been looking over seas for more potential shoppers. Lately they have been targeting China; Wal-Mart has spent millions of dollars in research figuring out how to market to the Chinese people. Regional trade blocs are intergovernmental associations that manage and promote trade activities for specific regions of the world. (ucatlas). Some well known trading blocs include the EU (European Union; see Map 1), NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement; see Map 2), MERCOSUR (Mercado Comun del Cono Sur, also known as Southern Common Markets (SCCM); see Map 3), and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations; see Map 4). The following maps show trade data for 2001 (UNCTAD 2002). Map 1 Map 2 Map 3 Map 4 http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php NAFTA is the trade bloc that affects North America the most. January 1, 2004 marks the tenth anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement’s implementation. NAFTA promoters including many of the world’s largest corporations promised it would create hundreds of thousands of new high-wage U.S. jobs, raise living standards in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, improve environmental conditions and transform Mexico from a poor developing country into a booming new market for U.S. exports. (citizen.org) The EU has become the most powerful trading bloc in the world with a GDP now exceeding that of the United States. In fact, the EU is currently exporting 813 billion dollars worth of goods and services. The creation of the euro as a single currency for 12 EU members has led to ever closer economic links. The EU has found it difficult to shed its protectionist past based on the idea of self-sufficiency in agriculture which limits agricultural exports from the other countries. (revisioncaptain.com) The importance of the EU is the fact that Europe is a huge economic partner with the United States. If they fail, then our strong economic ties would put a huge strain on our economy as well. Globalization has been a bi-product of the rapid expansion of peoples of different nations and cultures clashing. Sparked by monetary funds and kept up by the thought of a more prosperous and comfortable lifestyle, countries will continue to merge their cultures as our peoples merge their living, business and vacation geographic locations. References Http://www.Wikipedia.com Http://www.Sticky-Marketing.com Http://www.Learnthat.com http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php citizen.org/trade/nafta revisionguru.co.uk/economics/blocsex.htm Research Papers on Marketing In A Time of Globalization - Marketing EssayDefinition of Export QuotasPETSTEL analysis of IndiaAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceCapital PunishmentGenetic Engineering

Will democracy ever develop in Iraq Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Will democracy ever develop in Iraq - Essay Example However, there is also considerable number of those politicians and scholars whom believe the task of achieving democracy might be too difficult or even impossible for Iraq. Experts list a number of factors that prevent Iraq from becoming a democratic country, at least in the short-term. For example, Marine General Anthony Zinni, who was the Head of U.S. Central Command from 1997 to 2000 made the following statement on the probability of establishing democracy in Iraq: â€Å"If we think there is a fast solution to changing the governance of Iraq, then we don’t understand history, the nature of the country, the divisions, or the underneath suppressed passions that could rise up. God help us if we think this transition will occur easily. The attempts I’ve seen to install democracy in short periods of time where there is no history and no roots have failed. Take it back to Somalia (Zinni, 2002 cited in Dodge, 2003, p.157). This opinion of the person who was directly involved in the process of democratization of Iraq are supported by many scholars and political experts. Adam Garfinkle, a famous Middle East political expert, also holds the opinion that establishing democracy in the country is an immensely difficult task, while any attempt to fulfill it will not only result in failure but will also lead to the growth of anti-American spirit in the Arab world (Garfinkle, 2003). The pessimism that currently exists in relation to the possibility of establishing democracy in Iraq relies on the assumption that the country does not have any favorable conditions for democratic transformation. This means that not only social and economic prerequisites such as numerous middle class, serious economic opportunities, good system of education and other are not there but also that the traditional political culture contradicts the democratic norms and values. As is well known, â€Å"democracy† is taken from Ð ° Greek word which means government of the people, by

Demonstrate appropriate and effective techniques in written and verbal Essay

Demonstrate appropriate and effective techniques in written and verbal formats to prepare and deliver presentations, including the effective use of research, organization, visual aids, and APA citations - Essay Example The situation or message is clear, it is about positive thinking. The message is universal. There is no specific audience being targeted by the presentation. It is directed to all individuals. The aim of the video is to encourage all those watching the video to think positively. In lieu of a speaker, the thoughts of the creator of the video are expressed through the captions. Simple sentences are used yet they are very meaningful and effective at driving the message to the audience. The sentences are easy to understand; thus, it is able to reach out to audiences of different intellectual backgrounds. The background music that accompanies the presentation serves to enhance the video. It helps to capture the attention of the audience. The music chosen is appropriate with the message that wants to be communicated to the viewers. The second video is â€Å"How to change your negative thoughts† (Melnick, 2008). The message of the presentation is also about positive thinking. In this video, one sees a speaker talking in front of an audience. The author is obviously persuading her audience to change their perspective in life, that is, to eliminate the negative thoughts and convert them to positive thoughts. The speaker is able to get the attention of her audience through eye contact, changes in her intonation and pitch, and through her nonverbal skills. She emphasizes various points in her speech through changes in her facial expression, tone, pacing and volume. She is able to send concise messages with the help of the body language which she employs to stress a point. She uses counterarguments to convince her audience. One observes though that she speaks quite fast which may be a hindrance in communicating to her audience because they may not be able to accurately receive and comprehend her message. Comparing the two videos, one thinks that the video on â€Å"The Secret† is more effective at communicating the message on positive thinking.

The Media (Books, Film, Music, Television, for Example Essay Example for Free

The Media (Books, Film, Music, Television, for Example Essay If to create value means to create totally new value that never exist in its current society, media is impossible to create value. Media is always derived from our society, so it always reflects and display the value already exist in our society. But, some profound works will not Just simply reflect value, but extract values from our society, strengthen it and then can affect the value of our society, which will make people consider this works create value. One innate reason that make media always reflect the value of current society is, their authors come from the current society, who are already deeply affected by the alue around them. One example is what people like and feel in different times reflect in the music. 100 years ago, when more people live in the countries, life is more peaceful, and people more like quiet and simple life, country music are popular. At time that, the lyric of the country music reflect the peaceful and simple life people enjoy. But nowadays, in our modern life, more and more people live in modern city, crowded, noisy and stressful, which make people more easily feel angry and yearn for release. So todays pop music, reflecting our modern life, are more dynamic and quick, and most of them more noisy. Some lyric of the pop music will describe a people crying for his/her dissatisfaction and pressure from the society. Another good example that media reflect value of society is how people in different areas treat sex that affects their media. In some religious countries, people consider sex as a taboo. People tend to not talk about it in public. So it is not easy to see authors describe sex explicitly in their works, no mention that public media will advertize this topic. But in western countries, sex for their people, is Just a common and regular need in their value, so it is common to see that the medias come from estern countries will even describe sex. Simply to say, books, music and all kinds of different works and value always reflect the value of the current society in their time and area. If value totally never exist in the society, new value in media cannot be created or spread there. Although all works reflect the value of the current society, the profound works would extract and highlight the value, and apply it to affect the society where it comes from. For example, in renaissance times, lots of philosophers, thinkers and sociologists created works to diffuse their value, like people are all equal, people have the right ince their birth. This value has long and deep effect on the public people that incited people to stand up and resist the privileged class. But these great philosophers, thinkers and sociologists can put this value into their works and spread it because this value nas already existed in the society But this value is not so strong and well-known, what this works do is to strengthen and deepen it into the society. In sum, all media come from society so reflect the value where they are derived. But in some degree, some profound works can strengthen the value and affect the society.

The Raga System Essay -- essays research papers

Music is an expression of inner feelings through tones (swar) and rhythm (taal). These swars and taals are combined so that they are pleasing to the ear. Music is sound created from the ideas and emotions of man. When these ideas are expressed through the voice in a rhythmic and appealing sound, music is born. Music in its true form controls human activity and is thus the source of attaining pleasure and salvation. At the base of Indian Classical music lies an appreciation for, and an emphasis on creating sound with aesthetic appeal. This is achieved through Raga or melody. In Brihaddeshi, Matang defines raga as â€Å"that attractive combination of notes which pleases the mind†. That this sound be attractive and pleasing is of extreme importance. Because music is so closely linked to human emotion, it is important that it is written and performed so as to truly interpret and convey the emotion and beauty of the melody. To ensure that this is done successfully, there are some guidelines for Indian Classical musicians to follow to ensure an effective interpretation and display of their art. The system of raga in Hindusthani Classical music is both complex and sophisticated, using particular elements within strict guidelines to attain a pleasing and beautiful sound. In addition to the aesthetic aspect, a raga is also distinctive in form. These two aspects are inextricably bound together and are used in a complementary manner. In Hindusthani Classical music, ragas have been classified according to their form under ten thaats. The ten thaats under which all ragas are classified have derived from the twelve notes used in Hindusthani Classical music. A thaat is the ascending scale from which a raga is created. The ten thaats are: Kalyan, Bilawal, Khamaj, Bhairav, Poorvi, Maarva, Kafi, Asawari, Bhairavi and Todi. A thaat is named after the most prominent raga created from it. Ragas are also classified by the number of notes used in their ascent and descent. Two ragas written from the same thaat will comprise the same notes, however, the possibilities of development are limitless. Thus, each raga is a unique expression of an artist’s mind. In creating a raga, a musician must adhere to several guidelines, and must have an understanding of the es sential elements or lakshans which comprise a raga. These are: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A raga must possess at least five... .... Use of taans shows the singer’s talent and creative power. When presented in its truest form, music has the power to affect human emotion. Hindusthani classical music is rooted in this belief. Some believe that music is an interesting part of natural philosophy that explains the causes and properties of sound. Music is believed to be present in every living and non-living thing. It is manifest through the art of raga. Raga or melody is, above all, an aesthetically pleasing sound. To create it, a musician must follow several guidelines and adhere to a strict framework vis-à  -vis form. A musician must also have as his or her aim, to incite a particular emotion in the listener’s mind. In interpreting a raga, a singer must understand these emotions and try to bring them out using the voice. He or she must also practice singing the unique note combinations for many hours. The system is complex, and it takes much practice and deliberation to successfully render a raga – sometimes many years. Once both musician and singer follow the rules laid down in the earlier texts, a raga can be truly beautiful and as Indian classical musicians believe, capable of attaining pleasure and salvation.

Chris Mccandless Character Analysis Essay

One may say that Chris McCandless was an arrogant fool considering the decisions he made throughout his short life. Others may say he was an incredible inspiration and should be honored beyond his death for his choices. McCandless may have made some questionable choices within his journey, yet he was nothing less of an inspiration to those who feel that they have not ‘found themselves’ and deserves respect for the impact he has made. Although he is respectable, he also had ample flaws that may have led him to his tragic ending. Instead of being seen as narcissistic and arrogant, McCandless could be seen as an idealist. He believed that reality was past the everyday life that he was living, and he could find reality within a transcendent phenomenon. Although he was told multiple times not to go through with the lone journey to Alaska, McCandless stuck to his decision and did not take into account the advice he was given by many. Unlike most, McCandless was not influenced by the people in his life. He strived on his own idea of life rather than what is taught and learned throughout society. The indifference McCandless felt in his everyday life was what led him to pursue his inspirable journey that was scrutinized by Krakauer and others. Even as a youth, McCandless showed signs of being an idealist. Walt McCandless, Chris’s father, took Chris on a backpacking trip every year. One year Walt took Chris and his youngest son to climb Longs Peak in Colorado. When they reached an elevation of 13,000 feet, Walt decided it was time to turn around. â€Å"Chris wanted to keep going,† Walt recalled. â€Å"He was only twelve then†¦ If he’d been fourteen or fifteen, he would have simply gone on without me (Krakauer page 109). † This ambition Chris displayed to climb the mountain even when he was young showed his different outlook from most younger children to the more challenging aspects of life. This must have been a point of realization for Chris. His journey had been in the making even from such a young age. Gaylord Stuckey claimed â€Å"It was something he’d wanted to do since he was little (Krakauer page 159). † These idealist-like ambitions had reflected on the choices Chris made as an adult. Chris McCandless had refused to just fit in with those around him. Instead of listening to what others had for an opinion on his choices, he did what he wanted to do. Even when McCandless was offered luxuries such as food or a place to live, he would only stick around for a very short period of time, then be on his way. McCandless’s father even noticed the strive for difference in his son. â€Å"He didn’t think the odds applied to him. We were always trying to pull him back from the edge,† said Walt McCandless. The way Chris refused to blend in with society even with the pressure surrounding him to fit in was a respectable quality in his personality. Many of those who connected with Chris on his trip also saw him as a respectable man. Even though he had refused their offerings and left quickly without much communication, they never saw him as arrogant or prude. Even though McCandless had been incredibly respectable, he also had weaknesses, or flaws. One of these flaws was over-confidence. Before his trip to Alaska, Chris donated $25,000 to charity, ditched his vehicle and most of his possessions, and burned the rest of his cash. By doing this, McCandless demonstrated his idealist quality. Instead of thinking of reality, he made impulsive decisions to satisfy his spiritual self. McCandless also did not prepare for his trip as he should have. He went without bringing a map and brought very little amounts of food with him. By refusing to bring a map, he made it a very difficult trip back for himself that may have cost him his life. He had been offered supplies by multiple people he had met on his way, but refused most of them. McCandless relied too greatly on himself and nature for a trip that needed well thought out planning and devising. For enduring what many could not imagine, pursuing his childhood intents, and refusing to fit in with society, Chris McCandless was nothing less than respectable. Even with his flaws that led him to his death, he stayed true to himself and didn’t give up. All in all, Chris McCandless deserves recognition and respect for his enthusiasm and inspirable story.