F4.1 I think if a senior manager delayed a planned maintenance just to make profits look better I consider that unethical. I think about this the way the military is, they do maintenance all the time. This is to make sure the equipment continues to work the way it needs to. If it doesn't work then people can get hurt or can delay in business production. I can see how this example is questionable just because it isn't as if they completely cancelled the maintenance but just pushed it. I just don't think it would be worth the risk considering how much can go wrong by doing that. Another questionable situation would be not promoting someone because they didn't have the money when in fact they did but didn't want to fork it over. These situations really depend on the details if they are truly unethical or not. If someone was already doing the additional work the promotion would require then I would consider that unethical. F4.2 It may have an appearance of being somewhat dishonest, but delaying the expense to a later reporting period to provide a higher EPS for stockholders is likely very common. If the expense is accounted for in the next period (when it is incurred), there is no dishonesty displayed. This reminds me of forward contracts, which are also common and expected. Many years ago, I worked for a defense contractor (one of several at the time). Highly lucrative Government contracts would be bid on by several companies. I remember that the price of the bid would change several times before the ‘best and final’ submission. Each of the defense contractors knew what the others were bidding. I once questioned how the price could change so drastically, and was informed that all of the companies ‘update’ their financial requirements. In the end, these projects always came in significantly over cost (and the Government paid it anyway). I am a strong supporter of our military and national defense, but I have to wonder how things would have changed if the defense companies were held to their bids. F4.3 The accounting manager is focused on the collection and presentation of financial data. This information would be presented in the financial reporting documents including Income Statement, Profit/Loss, Balance Sheet, etc. The reports are used to support decisions; the accounting manager may be one of the individuals included in the strategic discussions. The CFO is responsible for both the accounting and finance functions, and plays a key role in making business decisions. The information contained in the financial reports helps to drive business decisions. Multiple roles should be involved in a successful strategic plan; each member of the team comes to the table with unique experience and knowledge. Further, multiple decision makers provides a system of checks and balances. F4.4 If a firm’s senior manager is delaying a planned maintenance to make profits look better, then I believe that is very unethical. Although, it is unethical I also bel ...

1. F4.1 I think if a senior manager delayed a planned maintenance
just to make profits look better I consider that unethical. I think
about this the way the military is, they do maintenance all the
time. This is to make sure the equipment continues to work the
way it needs to. If it doesn't work then people can get hurt or
can delay in business production. I can see how this example is
questionable just because it isn't as if they completely cancelled
the maintenance but just pushed it. I just don't think it would be
worth the risk considering how much can go wrong by doing
that. Another questionable situation would be not promoting
someone because they didn't have the money when in fact they
did but didn't want to fork it over. These situations really
depend on the details if they are truly unethical or not. If
someone was already doing the additional work the promotion
would require then I would consider that unethical.
F4.2 It may have an appearance of being somewhat dishonest,
but delaying the expense to a later reporting period to provide a
higher EPS for stockholders is likely very common. If the
expense is accounted for in the next period (when it is
incurred), there is no dishonesty displayed. This reminds me of
forward contracts, which are also common and expected.
Many years ago, I worked for a defense contractor (one of
several at the time). Highly lucrative Government contracts
would be bid on by several companies. I remember that the
price of the bid would change several times before the ‘best and
final’ submission. Each of the defense contractors knew what
the others were bidding. I once questioned how the price could
change so drastically, and was informed that all of the
companies ‘update’ their financial requirements. In the end,
these projects always came in significantly over cost (and the
Government paid it anyway). I am a strong supporter of our
military and national defense, but I have to wonder how things
would have changed if the defense companies were held to their

2. bids.
F4.3 The accounting manager is focused on the collection and
presentation of financial data. This information would be
presented in the financial reporting documents including Income
Statement, Profit/Loss, Balance Sheet, etc. The reports are used
to support decisions; the accounting manager may be one of the
individuals included in the strategic discussions.
The CFO is responsible for both the accounting and finance
functions, and plays a key role in making business decisions.
The information contained in the financial reports helps to drive
business decisions. Multiple roles should be involved in a
successful strategic plan; each member of the team comes to the
table with unique experience and knowledge. Further, multiple
decision makers provides a system of checks and balances.
F4.4 If a firm’s senior manager is delaying a planned
maintenance to make profits look better, then I believe that is
very unethical. Although, it is unethical I also believe that it is
very common amongst numerous businesses now days. In my
opinion, it matters what kind of maintenance is being done. If
it is some lower level like small time maintenance than it should
be no big deal. If this delay in planned maintenance hurts any
employees’ career than I believe it is even more unethical.
There are several examples of questionable ethical behavior
such as: tax ride offs and embellishing sales overall. Some
businesses embellish their sales to make their quota and receive
certain bonuses and other benefits that come with reaching that
quota. A lot of businesses are unethical with what they charge
on the company credit card in order to get a tax ride off during
tax season. In conclusion, I believe there is a fine line between
trying to make something look the way you want it and being
completely unethical. Most businesses have to see the
difference in ordered to succeed.
F4.5 The financial ratios are performed using information

3. contained in the financial documents including the income
statement and balance sheet. They help to provide a clear
picture of specific attributes, and may uncover signs of dangers.
According to Gitman (2009), the interest in a company’s levels
of risk and return (and resulting share value) is present for
current and prospective shareholders, company management and
employees, and creditors. Individual reports such as the sales
reports and P&L provide only a small part of the picture, and do
not reflect the whole story.
Other than being informed of my contractual requirements and
salary, I am not involved in the financial aspects of my
company. The use of ratios to determine the health of the
company has been a topic in many of the finance courses I have
taken. The alternative to making assumptions based on the
numbers provided within the individual financial documents is
to use ratio analyses. The extent of their use indicates that they
are effective.
F4.6 The first two that I think of are part of the Balance Sheet;
the Debt Ratio and the Current Ratio. At the risk of sounding
‘geeky’, these two are used in our household documentation;
they are applicable for both personal and business.
The Debt Ratio (Liabilities/Net Worth) shows the relationship
between these two categories. A lower number is better, because
it indicates that the company is worth more than it owes. It is
often wise to finance purchases rather than using cash, even
though taking on debt will change this ratio.
The Current Ratio (Liquid Assets/Current Liabilities). For this
ratio, a higher number is desired. This is an indication of the
level of available cash (or cash equivalents) to pay bills. It is
also indicative of the relationship the company has with its
suppliers.
The Liquidity Ratio is the liquid assets (from the Balance
Sheet) divided by the monthly expenses (from the Cash Flow
statement). This ratio provides the number of months that
expenses can be paid in case of emergency. The higher the

4. better, because lower numbers indicate that the company may be
struggling to survive and could easily go into default.
F4.7 Financial ratios are used to assess a company’s financial
performance because it allows you to breakdown and better
understand the components of a company’s financial
performance. Financial ratios are especially best when
assessing a company’s financial performance in depth and in
great detail. Financial reports consist of a lot of different
things and have numerous stakeholders such as: employees,
customers and investors. All the shareholders would like to
know that the company is making profit, how the company is
doing compared to its competitors, and comparing this years to
years past. The sales reports, profits, debts or current liability
reports are insufficient because they are just telling a portion of
the story and can often times be misleading for example: if you
did really well in sales but your product is no longer wanted by
any consumers. I believe there are many effective ways to
assess financial performance but everything is always subject to
change. You never know when the economy might come
crashing or when your product is out of style. I believe the best
way for a company to assess their financial performance is via
financial ratios.
F4 .8 Why are financial ratios used to assess a company’s
financial performance? Financial ratios are used by creditors,
shareholder and owners of a firm. They help access the financial
strength of a firm for investors. Typically the most important
statements to access financially are the balance statement,
income statement and cash flow statement. The liquidity,
stability and profitability can be measured by financial ratios.
They also allow comparisons to companies within the same
industries. It is important to know the companies weaknesses
and opportunities. Why are sales reports, profits, debts, or
current liability reports insufficient? A single number or report
without comparison or analysis is meaningless. How have

5. financial ratios been used in your company? My company seems
to rely on the current ratio, debt ratio and profit margin. The
current ratio measures short term debt. This is debt that is less
than a year. The debt ratio measures the total debt of the
company. The profit margin measures how much profit is
generated form sales. Do you think they are an effective
assessment of financial performance? Yes it is effective. These
three ratios cover short term debt, long-term debt and profit.
English 113A- Major Essay Project #3
Major Essay 3
“If men within themselves would be governed by reason and not
generally give up their understanding to a double tyranny of
custom from without and blind affections within, they would
discern better what it is to favor and uphold the tyrant of a
nation.” – John Milton, The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates
Prompt:
Choose an American Custom to question. Historicize this
Custom, make an argument for why it should no longer be
followed, and provide a practical and detailed revision for a
replacement Custom.
In a thesis driven, argumentative essay, argue why your chosen
Custom should no longer be followed and how it should be
altered to fit into today’s society. Using your own personal
research, address this issue in an objective manner without
using any personal narrative. As this is an argumentative essay,
the goal of your writing should be to persuade your audience to
agree with your position.
Purpose:

6. The purpose of this essay is to convey to your audience why
Customs should not be blindly followed. Certain Customs are in
effect because they are handed down from generation to
generation but do not necessarily apply to today’s societal
needs. It is your job to question these Customs and provide a
logical argument as to why others should question these
Customs as well.
Considerations:
Think about the factors that can influence this topic. Why was
this Custom originally established? Why is it still in use today?
Will you be able to present counter argument in an effective,
non-biased manner? What is the societal, political, or economic
impact of your topic?
Requirements
• 5 Double Spaced Pages
• MLA Style with Proper Heading
• 5 Academic Sources (1 Pre-Approved Website)
• Times New Roman Font
• 12pt Font Size
• 1” Margins
Due Dates:
The essay will be due in portions in several drafts. It is
important that you complete your work on time so that you can
participate in our Peer Review sessions. Please make
arrangements to go to the Writing Lab at the LRC if you need
any assistance with this essay, and as always, you can come see
me with any questions or anxiety you may be experiencing.
• Tue, April 22 by 11:59PM: Invention
Strategy (Outline Only)

7. • Thu, April 24 by 11:59PM: Draft 3.1 (2
Page Minimum)
• Thu, May 1 by 11:59PM: Draft
3.2 (Complete Draft)
“There are still a lot of things that you are expected to believe
and accept in America that I personally have a problem with,
and I question a lot of these things.” George Carlin, It’s Bad
For Ya
Major Essay Project 3 Grade Sheet
Essay Requirements
Invention Strategy- (3.0)
/15
• Complete Thoughts
• Effort Evident
Draft 1- (3.1)
/30
• Creative Title
• Working Thesis Statement
• Complete Topic Sentences
• Development of Argument
• Proper Formatting
• Two Full Pages
Peer Review- /5
• Constructive Criticism
Draft 2- (3.2)
/50

8. • Revised Thesis Statement
• Sufficient Revision
• Effective and Logical Argument
• Organization and Development
• 4 Page Minimum
• Academic Discourse
• Works Cited
• Proper Formatting & Submission
Major Essay Project 3
/100
Major Essay Project 3 Brainstorming Questions

9. Questioning the American Custom
• Is the Custom something that is prominent in
America? It can be something that other countries also do, but it
MUST be something done in America.
• Do most Americans participate/believe/follow this
Custom?
• What is the American Custom in details?
• When was the American Custom created?
• Who established the American Custom?
• Where was the American Custom created? It does not
need to have originated in America in order to be considered a
modern American Custom. It just needs to currently be an active
part of the American lifestyle.
• Why was the American Custom created?
• How has the American Custom changed from its
original meaning to the way it is viewed/enacted in today’s
society?
• Why should the American Custom no longer be
followed?
• What is one reason that a specific group would argue
to KEEP the American Custom as is? What can you use to
specifically argue AGAINST this reason?
• What should be done instead of this traditional
Custom? You can use preexisting ideas to help come up with a

10. revision, but you need to show evidence of advanced critical
thinking.
• What sources have you consulted?
If you cannot find answers to these questions regarding a
Custom you are considering writing on in your essay, you
should consider searching for a new American Custom to
discuss.