Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Terrorism - Essay Example Since its inception, the nuclear bomb has been one of the major threats hanging over the humanity. With the rapid escalation of terrorist movements, the threat of nuclear attacks is becoming even more probable. Despite the growing availability of nuclear materials, the risks of actual nuclear attacks are still minor, simply because nuclear terrorism is extremely difficult to accomplish (Ferguson & Potter, n.d.). The easiest are those acts which result in the least damaging consequences (Ferguson & Potter, n.d.). The problem with nuclear terrorism is not in the availability and accessibility of nuclear materials: in today’s globalized world, getting nuclear materials for a radioactive bomb is not difficult. The main problem is in that creating such a device requires sophisticated technical skills (Ferguson & Potter, n.d.). Building and launching an improvised nuclear device is much more difficult than creating and using a radiological dispersal device (Ferguson & Potter, n.d.). These difficulties, however, do not mean that the probability of nuclear terrorism is zero. As of today, nuclear bombs are the high end of plausibility of what terrorist groups could accomplish (Farber, 2010). The growing insecurity of nuclear materials makes the risks of nuclear attacks even higher. The lack of a comprehensive nuclear terrorism strategy in the U.S. further complicates the situation (Ferguson & Potter, n.d.). Yet, a small group of people who have never dealt with nuclear weapons could easily make a crude nuclear explosive device, with minimum attention drawn to their acts (Harvard Kennedy School, 2012). All these conditions make it easier for terrorist groups to realize their intentions and motives. There are strong indicators that a number of terrorist groups are interested in acquiring and using nuclear power in their acts against civilians. In 1998, Osama bin Laden said that acquiring and using weapons of mass destruction would provide reliable defense of Muslim s against the rest of the world (Harvard Kennedy School, 2012). As of today, at least three terrorist organizations could be planning a nuclear attack: Al-Qaeda, Aum Shinrikyo, and North Caucasus-based separatists (Harvard Kennedy School, 2012). These are the organizations that have demonstrated strong interest in the development of nuclear-based terrorist strategies. The exact number of terrorist groups looking for a nuclear weapon is currently unknown, but Aum Shinrikyo and Al Qaeda have already tried to purchase nuclear materials in the black market (Harvard Kennedy School, 2012). For the past ten years, Al-Qaeda has persistently tried to acquire nuclear materials and continues to pursue the goal of getting a nuclear capability (Harvard Kennedy School, 2012). There are no known cases of acquiring nuclear materials by terrorist groups. Also, it is not clear whether any terrorist groups have access to governments that can obtain these materials for them (Harvard Kennedy School, 201 2). Yet, there are several ways in which nuclear materials needed for the bomb could be acquired: (a) from a global stockpile of nuclear weapons; (2) from international nuclear facilities containing separated plutonium; (3) from states that are claimed to possess nuclear weapons, such as Russia and North Korea; and (4) from training and research reactors (Harvard Kennedy

Research Planning of the Travel Lodge Hotel in the UK Assignment

Research Planning of the Travel Lodge Hotel in the UK - Assignment Example However, in the present scenario, the hotel chain is under private ownership and do not have merged operations with the Travelodge located in the United States. The company was founded in the year1985 by Lord Forte who had bought the brand of Travelodge that was in the United States and established it in the United Kingdom. From 1985 to the present scenario the company has been able to sustain in the market because of its good quality bedrooms and dining facilities and the cost-effective approach that it incorporates in the business operations. Â  There is a great need for the company to conduct the research so as to know the exact reasons behind the low performance in relation to other competitors in the industry. The research would even reveal as to what are the measures in term of digital communication and social media that needs to be considered by the company so that it is able to interact more effectively with its existing customer base. The research to be conducted in this field is also very essential as it would help the company to survive the competition and even know the areas the customers feel that the company should improve upon in terms of digital communication and social media so that a more effective communication platform is established between the customers and the organization. Â  The research criteria of the company are based on understanding how it can improve the usage of social media so that there is more of interaction with the existing customers. The goal of the research is to compare the social media and digital communication platform that is used by other players in the hotel industry with that of Travel Lodge Hotel of UK (Armstrong, Kotler, Harker and Brennan, 2009).