Questions:
Question 1
The Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act put some restrictions on CPA firms that were offering multiple services to clients. Take a few moments to research the SOX Act and the restrictions that were put on CPA firms. Do you feel that this was a good way to combat fraudulent financial statements? Why? What else could be done?
Respond to this...The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was issued in July of 2002, nine months after the first announcement of Enron problems. The new act applied in general to publicly held companies and their audit firms. The basic implications were that it created the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), revised corporate governance standards, added new disclosure requirements, significantly increased criminal penalties for violations, and the CEO and CFO had to certify financial reports. For the most part, yes I do feel that it is a good way to combat fraudulent financial statements. I also realize that criminals are still criminals and will find a way to steal if/when desperate enough, or to say they did. I do not believe there will be a 100% proof that there will never be any fraudulent activity, that just is not possible. With any fraud you need to monitor it and make any necessary changes. I know when my company is audited, we have the same company but the people within that company performing the audit are on rotation. We will not get the same people in a row for the same audit. Also at my current work we have two auditing company's audit our books, to see if one missed any errors.
Question 2
"The narrative voice ... enters a heavy, dreamlike mode. When the all clear finally sounds and the hum of the metropolis resumes, a central character, who has been venturing a flirtation with another passenger, is jolted into awareness that the possibilities unfolding 'while the city was sealed off' cannot belong to real like. Yet a form of life did surface: however fleetingly, ...enabling a different kind of humanity to emerge".
"Sealed off" by Zhang Ailing is referred to as a psychological fiction where dreams and desires surface. How does the narrative language, description, dialogue, and repetition create the illusion of reality? Be sure to share a quote from the story to support your discussion.
Respond to this...I enjoyed this narrative as it is very descriptive and I felt like I could picture everything that was being said in this essay. The title "Sealed off" was perfect and it described the city and the fact that it was an isolated and secluded spot.
"The lights inside the tram went on; she opened her eyes and saw him sitting in his old seat, looking remote. She trembled with shock-he hadn't got off the tram afterall! Then she understood his meaning: everything that happened while the city was sealed was a non-occurance. The whole of Shanghi had dozed off; had dreamed an unreasonable dream." This excerpt from the narrative sad a lot about her imagination as if everything was an illusion. The author describes everything so perfectly and it has you feel like you are in the city.