PSSA Practice Grade 7 ELA Flashcard

PSSA Practice Grade 7 ELA

St. Valentines Day Massacre

St. Valentines Day Massacre Around 10:30 a.m. on St. Valentines Day, February 14, 1929, seven members of Bugs Morans gang were gunned down in cold blood in a garage in Chicago. The massacre, orchestrated by Al Capone, shocked the nation by its brutality. The St. Valentines Day Massacre remains the most notorious gangster killing of the Prohibition era. The massacre not only made Al Capone a national celebrity, but it also brought Capone, the unwanted attention of the federal government. The Dead Frank Gusenberg, Pete Gusenberg, John May, Albert Weinshank, James Clark, Adam Heyer, and Dr. Reinhart Schwimmer Rival Gangs: Capone vs. Moran During the Prohibition era, gangsters ruled many of the large cities, becoming rich from owning speakeasies, breweries, brothels, and gambling joints. These gangsters would carve up a city between rival gangs, bribe local officials, and become local celebrities. By the late 1920s, Chicago was split between two rival gangs: one led by Al Capone and the other by George Bugs Moran. Capone and Moran vied for power, prestige, and money; plus, both tried for years to kill each other. In early 1929, Al Capone was living in Miami with his family (to escape Chicagos brutal winter) when his associate Jack Machine Gun McGurn visited him. McGurn, who had recently survived an assassination attempt ordered by Moran, wanted to discuss the ongoing problem of Morans gang. In an attempt to eliminate the Moran gang entirely, Capone agreed to fund an assassination attempt, and McGurn was placed in charge of organizing it. The Plan McGurn planned carefully. He located the Moran gangs headquarters, which was in a large garage behind the offices of S.M.C. Cartage Company at 2122 North Clark Street. He selected gunmen from outside the Chicago area, to ensure that if there were any survivors, they would not be able to recognize the killers as part of Capones gang. McGurn hired lookouts and set them up in an apartment near the garage. Also essential to the plan, McGurn acquired a stolen police car and two police uniforms. Setting Up Moran With the plan organized and the killers hired, it was time to set the trap. McGurn instructed a local booze hijacker to contact Moran on February 13. The hijacker was to tell Moran that he had obtained a shipment of Old Log Cabin whiskey (i.e. very good liquor) that he was willing to sell at the very reasonable price of $57 per case. Moran quickly agreed and told the hijacker to meet him at the garage at 10:30 the following morning. The Ruse Worked On the morning of February 14, 1929, the lookouts (Harry and Phil Keywell) were watching carefully as the Moran gang assembled at the garage. Around 10:30 a.m., the lookouts recognized a man heading to the garage as Bugs Moran. The lookouts told the gunmen, who then climbed into the stolen police car. When the stolen police car reached the garage, the four gunmen (Fred Killer Burke, John Scalise, Albert Anselmi, and Joseph Lolordo) jumped out. (Some reports say there were five gunmen.) Two of the gunmen were dressed in police uniforms. When the gunmen rushed into the garage, the seven men inside saw the uniforms and thought it was a routine police raid. Continuing to believe the gunmen to be police officers, all seven men peacefully did as they were told. They lined up, faced the wall, and allowed the gunmen to remove their weapons. Opened Fire With Machine Guns The gunmen then opened fire, using two Tommy guns, a sawed-off shotgun, and a .45. The killing was fast and bloody. Each of the seven victims received at least 15 bullets, mostly in the head and torso. The gunmen then left the garage. As they exited, neighbors who had heard the rat-tat-tat of the submachine gun, looked out their windows and saw two (or three, depending on reports) policemen walking behind two men dressed in civilian clothes with their hands up. The neighbors assumed that the police had staged a raid and were arresting two men. After the massacre had been discovered, many continued to believe for several weeks that the police were responsible. Moran Escaped Harm Six of the victims died in the garage; Frank Gusenberg was taken to a hospital but died three hours later, refusing to name who was responsible. Though the plan had been carefully crafted, one major problem occurred. The man that the lookouts had identified as Moran was Albert Weinshank.   Bugs Moran, the main target for the assassination, was arriving a couple of minutes late to the 10:30 a.m. meeting when he noticed a police car outside the garage. Thinking it was a police raid, Moran stayed away from the building, unknowingly saving his life. The Blonde Alibi The massacre that took seven lives that St. Valentines Day in 1929 made newspaper headlines across the country. The country was shocked at the brutality of the killings. Police tried desperately to determine who was responsible. Al Capone had an air-tight alibi because he had been called in for questioning by the Dade County solicitor in Miami during the time of the massacre. Machine Gun McGurn had what became called a blonde alibi he had been at a hotel with his blonde girlfriend from 9 p.m. on February 13 through 3 p.m. on February 14.   Fred Burke (one of the gunmen) was arrested by police in March 1931 but was charged with the December 1929 murder of a police officer and sentenced to life in prison for that crime. The Aftermath of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre This was one of the first major crimes that the science of ballistics was used; however, no one was ever tried or convicted for the murders of the St. Valentines Day Massacre. Though the police never had enough evidence to convict Al Capone, the public knew he was responsible. In addition to making Capone a national celebrity, the St. Valentines Day Massacre brought Capone to the attention of the federal government. Ultimately, Capone was arrested for tax evasion in 1931 and sent to Alcatraz. With Capone in jail, Machine Gun McGurn was left exposed. On February 15, 1936, nearly seven years to the day of the St. Valentines Day Massacre, McGurn was gunned down at a bowling alley. Bugs Moran was quite shaken from the entire incident. He stayed in Chicago until the end of Prohibition and then was arrested in 1946 for some small-time bank robberies. He died in prison from lung cancer.

Procter and Gamble research report Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Procter and Gamble research report - Term Paper Example The company management has responded to investors worry on costly structure and slow top line growth rate by through a cost saving plan worth $10 billion. This is expected to reduce the headcount that will enable the company achieve its earning per share growth rate forecast to 8% and 10% in free up funds that can be reinvested. Third quarter results shows that the organic sales have increased by 3% from its previous quarter but the operating profit decreased by 11%. The management of the company lowered the earning per share to $3.82-$3.88 from the previous earning of $3.93-$4.08 as a result of the lowering operating profit. This means that Procter and Gambler 2012 fiscal year earning per share is expected to remain flat as compared to previous fiscal EPS of $3.87. The company gross margin has decreased by 150 bases to 49% on higher inputs and negative sales while it has increased by 32.9% on restructuring charges and overhead costs. The firm is supposed to restructure if it expects to gain full potential in its future growth. This is to be achieved by mean of calibrating its pricing by either adopting initial price or by promotion. Also, the company should invest more in the developing markets where it remains under penetrating where all other firms in packaged goods are moving. Business summary Procter & Gamble Company has famous line up of packaged brands which are sold and distributed through three global business units in over 180 countries world wide. The company brands include Tide laundry detergent, Pantene shampoo, Cover Girl cosmetics and lams pet food which means the company trades in household and personal products industry. The company is rated as an AAA credit worth company by Morningstar credit rating agency in the consumer product industry. The company strength and sustainability compared to other industry player has being rated wide by Morningstar which means its competitive advantage remains high. The competitors of the company are L’Oreal SA, Reckitt Benckiser Group and Kimberly-Clark Corporation which have market capitalization of $72,309, $47720, $42799 and $30972 millions respectively compared to Procter $ Gamble CO. market capitalization of $176134 millions. This shows that Procter & Gamble Company is more capitalized than its closest rival compa nies. Also, the sales revenue of its competitors are $26745.83, $15196.91 and $20,846 respectively compared to Procter $ Gamble sales revenue of $85374. Total sales revenue in the industry from the above sales revenues amounts to $148162.74. Procter & Gamble Co. thus, it contributes 57.62% of the total sales revenue. From the above findings, Procter $ Gamble Company stands as the most valued company compared to its competitors. Historical performance of the company shows that the performance of the company has being on a decline path from year 2009 to date. Financial forecasting of the company is that the share value is to be raised from the current price of $72 to $75 if the $10 billion saving plan is implemented together with Pringles divesture. This implies that in 2013, ratios of