Stimulus measures policy forms

Stimulus measures policy forms Part 1. Some reject stimulus measures in all current policy forms. These economists focus on the damaging activities and decisions of (a) private corporations, (b) commercial banks, and (c) wealthy individuals. How can these three groups that lead our private market system, each in their own way, frustrate and foil the goals of a fiscal stimulus program. The 2009 Stimulus packages that President Obama released were done so with the intentions of trying to fix the recession bound economy. But the question that surfaced was what the long term results of this stimulus package were. Is it more beneficial or more harmful to our already down falling economy? A fiscal stimulus package by the government consists of generally three options either the use of tax cuts, increased transfers or increased government spending. All three options have one problem in common; it will cause the government budget to increase. It can only serve as a temporary boost to the economy, because the government has to find a way to fund this package. When the government needs to spend money that they didnt revenue from taxes it is called a budget deficit, they would need to borrow and most likely from foreign reserve banks or through the selling of bonds. In Keyness economic vision â€Å"the goal of macro policy is not to balance the budget but to balance the economy at full employment.† This does logically make sense because a low availability of jobs would mean an increase of transfer payments including unemployment compensation and welfare benefits. But if new jobs can be created it will decrease the burden of transfer payments and increase tax revenue. An increase of jobs would equal more taxes to collect and less economic problems when unemployment rates are lower. But since the recession and fiscal policy both are signs that suggest, the economic state is not currently at its best for investments. Private corporations are less eager to invest being that from a business perspective their initial intent is to make profit. Without the confidences in future profit rates theres less of an obligation to want to take the risk. I believe that from any business stand point, private corporations are interested in how much profits they can make and maybe secondarily how many jobs a new project or investment can create. Commercial banks on the other hand could result in a â€Å"crowding out effect because the increase in government borrowing will cause a decrease in private sector borrowing†. Crowding out means that theres less progression which is also an â€Å"opportunity cost for government spending†. When the government is shut out of all other options, borrowing money to finance the budget deficits can cause an increase in interest rates. Theres only a certain about of money available for borrowing and if the government borrows, less money is available for business investments. Wealthy individuals would tend to save more and spend less. They may also invest in foreign counties that stand at a better economy. Therefore private corporations, commercial banks, and wealthy individuals are three power groups that hold the foundation of our private market system. They have the general ability to effect consumption rates because of investments. Its a circular flow effect, less jobs cause less overall GDP consumption and less taxes, less confidence in economy, which causes less investment. After all Keynes did say that â€Å"the goal of macro policy is not to balance the budget but to balance the economy at full employment. The main problem here is that there are not enough jobs to boast the economy in the long run. The American dream is to do better than the past generation. Its hard to reach that when jobs arent available and a recession at hand. Part 2. Given our currently high unemployment rate and low inflation rate, argue for or against a Supply-Side policy focus versus a Demand-Side policy emphasis. Aggregate demand or aggregate supply whats a better a choice when you have high unemployment and low inflation rates? I believe that the demand curve is only going to be a temporary answer to the economic problem. â€Å"The demand curve will shift in response to changes in income, changes in expectations (consumer confidence), changes in wealth, changes in credit conditions or changes in tax policy.† The whole purpose of aggregate demand is to stimulate consumer spending. If unemployment is high its unlikely that this will solve the problem. How do you tell someone who is unemployed to buy more? In contrary I think the aggregate supply is a better policy choice to get the economy back and running. â€Å"The policy options to shift AS rightward include: Tax incentives for saving, investment and work, human capital investment, deregulation, trade liberalization and infrastructure development.† This works better because the tax cuts will increase consumption being that it would result in a higher level of disposable income. This means that people would be more motivated to work. Lets just say Person A makes $40,000 a year and taxes used to 10% and now they are down to 5%, this means that instead of paying $4000 in taxes it would just be $2000. Person A is able to work the same amount and have $2000 extra for disposable income. This guarantees that (C+G+I+(x-m) = GPD) GDP will go up if consumption goes up. Human capital investment is a long term effect; people find it worth their benefit to invest in school and training. Our goal is to find a way to both lower unemployment and lower the inflation rates. To do this we have to focus on the supply side or the production part of the market. By producing more (new technology) it would set the platform so that better prices levels are available. The technology is going to be useful for production for a while and the investments in education will increase the standards of living. This means that cheaper goods equal more consumption. Its a long term answer to the economy because the overall GDP will grow. The economy will grow and the production of output rises while unemployment and inflation falls. If all these aspects are intact theres no way that the next generation couldnt do better. I believe that a lot of the economic problems we face today are because of the actions that the government made without thinking of the long term effects. If we want our country to become stronger and stronger we have to think in long term strategies and I believe that the Aggregate Supply Policy is the right one. Part 3. Upon completing ECO 100, you have been hired by the Obama administration to advise them on Foreign Exchange Policy. Their concern is that low interest rates and a large trade deficit have led to a depreciating dollar. Accordingly, first prepare an overview of the way such rates and trade conditions can threaten our currency value. Then secondly, advise the President whether (or not) steps should be taken to strengthen the dollar in foreign exchange markets. What makes euros worth more than dollars and Chinese Yuan to be below both? The answer is that the currency market determines what the exchange rates are worth. The Foreign exchange market is just like the all markets where theres a demand theres a supply. But if there is a more demand than supply then the exchange rate would go up. Meaning if there was a higher demand for U.S dollars; dollar value would increase also known as appreciation. But in this example if there was an excess amount of U.S currency that is above the demand needed then our dollar value fall also known as deprecation. But the rule is that where theres a lost there is always a gain. Meaning if one countrys currency value goes up some other countrys money value has to go down. If the value of the U.S dollars improves in the Foreign Exchange Market then it would increase the overall supply of dollars. If our country has a trade deficit, meaning we import more and export less, we should find a method that attracts more exports. I think that the best approach to take would be to weaken the dollar. But in order for that to happen there had to be a way to alter the supply of U.S currency. In one perspective its a good thing if our dollars are more valuable we would be able to buy more foreign goods with the same dollar. But if theres too much of a supply of dollars the dollar may lose value. â€Å"As dollars become cheaper, American exports effectively fall in price and demand rises.† In order to reduce the amount of our trade deficit we could export more goods. If our dollar rates were low enough to attract foreigners to buy our good and cooperation would still make their profits then it would all work out. A weaken dollar would work until we could clo se the gap of our trade deficit and after that we would create a strategy that will strengthen the dollar by lowering the supply of it.

Adam Smith :: Philosophers Philosophy Economists Essays

Adam Smith The British philosopher and economist Adam Smith was born in kirkcaldy, Scotland. He was educated at the universities of Glasgow and Oxford. In 1751 he became a professor at Glasgow. There he wrote The Theory of Moral Sentiment in 1759. This philosophical work gained Smith an appointment in 1764 as tutor of the young duke of Buccleuch. The tutoring took Smith to France, where he started writing The Wealth of Nations in 1776. It was the first complete work on political economy. The book discusses the relationship between freedom and order, analyzes economic processes, and attacks the British mercantile system's limits on free trade. All three aspects are woven together to create a unified social theory. In France Smith met and associated with many of the leading Continental philosophers of the physiocratic school, which based its political and economic doctrines on the supremacy of natural law, wealth, and order. He was specially influenced by the French philosophers Francois Quesnay and Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, whose theories Smith later adapted in part to form a basis for his own. The book dealt with the basic problem of how social order and human progress can be possible in a society where individuals follow their own self-interests. Smith argued that this individualism led to order and progress. In order to make money, people produce things that other people are willing to buy. Buyers spend money for those things that they need or want most. When buyers and sellers meet in the market, a pattern of production develops that results in social harmony. Smith said that all this would happen without any conscious control or direction, as if by an invisible hand.'; Smith also believed that labor, not land or money, was both the source and the final measure of value. He said that wages depended on the basic needs of workers, and rent on the productivity of land, Profits, he said, were the difference between selling prices and the cost of labor and rent. Smith said profits would be used to expand production. This expansion would in turn create more jobs, and the national income would grow. Smith believed that free trade and a self-regulating economy would result in social progress. He criticized the British government's high tariffs and other limits on individual freedom in trade.

Animal Farm and Lord of the Flies Essay

In 1887 Lord Acton wrote in a letter to Bishop Mandell Creighton, â€Å"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.† It has often been noted that this is the primary theme in both Animal Farm and Lord of the Flies. In addition, these books share two sub-themes related to this primary theme. One sub-theme is that people will often abuse power when it’s not earned. The other is that when given the opportunity people will often degrade others to ensure their own security. Both books rely heavily on symbolism, as well as the actions of their characters, to express these ideas. Consequently, both these novels show us what a frightening place the world can become if people ignore the principles of civilization as we know it. In both books, for different reasons, the characters create their own governments, and some of them soon begin to usurp and abuse power. For example, in Animal Farm seven commandments were written on the wall, a few of them were: â€Å"No animal shall sleep in a bed, No animal shall kill another animal, No animal shall drink alcohol.† When one of the pigs, named Napoleon, took over he gradually changed the commandments. For instance, he changed the commandment â€Å"No animal shall kill another animal.† to, â€Å"No animal shall kill another animal without cause.† In Lord of the Flies there are several examples of characters abusing power. One of the characters, named Ralph, had originally started a democratic form of government. Two of the boys, Roger and Jack, eventually started there own form of government and took over. Jack fell in love with his new found power and became dictator to the boys. He even started a hunt to kill Ralph simply because he felt Ralph was a threat to this power. Because several of the characters in both books were insecure, they would often degrade others to improve their own security. This occurred in Animal Farm several times. For instance, there were two characters who always seemed to disagree (Snowball and Napoleon). Whatever one said the other would put it down or find something wrong with it, even if he actually agreed. Napoleon even urinated on Snowball’s plans for a windmill and ruined  them. In Lord of the Flies there are several examples of insecure characters downing others to improve their own security. For example, Roger, Jack, and even Ralph make fun of one of the other boys they call â€Å"Piggy† because he is overweight. Roger is so insecure he even kills Piggy because Piggy makes him feel threatened by contradicting his ideas and putting forth his own ideas that were sometimes better than Rogers. These books are both amazingly written and similar in several ways, but there is one major difference. The two books end with completely different views of civilization. Animal Farm ends with the animals not being able to tell the humans and the pigs apart, showing that evil had won. However, in Lord of the Flies, Ralph realizes when he sees the pig’s head (which is used to represent evil) in its pristine state, that even in all this savagery and evil some good may occur. Right after he realized this, a ship pulled up and rescued the boys. The themes of both books are true to the dark side of human nature. Golding holds out a tiny thread of hope; Orwell lets us see the bad things that could happen and leaves us to figure out how to prevent them.

Battle of Savages Station in the Civil War

Battle of Savage's Station in the Civil War The Battle of Savages Station was fought June 29, 1862, during the American Civil War (1861-1865). The fourth of the Seven Days Battles outside Richmond, VA, Savages Station saw  General Robert E. Lees Army of Northern Virginia pursuing Major General George B. McClellans retreating Army of the Potomac. Striking the Union rear guard, centered on Major General Edwin V. Sumners II Corps, Confederate forces proved unable to dislodge the enemy. Fighting continued into the evening until a strong thunderstorm ended the engagement. Union troops continued their retreat that night. Background Having begun the Peninsula Campaign earlier in the spring, Major General George McClellans Army of the Potomac stalled before the gates of Richmond in late May 1862 after a stalemate at the Battle of Seven Pines. This was mostly due to the Union commanders overly-cautious approach and the inaccurate belief that General Robert E. Lees Army of Northern Virginia badly outnumbered him. While McClellan remained inactive for much of June, Lee tirelessly worked to improve Richmonds defenses and plan a counterattack. Though outnumbered himself, Lee understood his army could not hope to win an extended siege in the Richmond defenses. On June 25, McClellan finally moved and he ordered the divisions of Brigadier Generals Joseph Hooker and Philip Kearny to push up the Williamsburg Road. The resulting Battle of Oak Grove saw the Union attack halted by Major General Benjamin Hugers division. Lee Attacks This proved fortunate for Lee as he had moved the bulk of his army north of the Chickahominy River with the goal of crushing Brigadier General Fitz John Porters isolated V Corps. Striking on June 26, Lees forces were bloodily repulsed by Porters men at the Battle of Beaver Dam Creek (Mechanicsville). That night, McClellan, concerned about the presence of Major General Thomas Stonewall Jacksons command to the north, directed Porter to retreat and shifted the armys supply line from the Richmond and York River Railroad south to the James River. In doing so, McClellan effectively ended his own campaign as the abandonment of the railroad meant that heavy guns could not be carried to Richmond for the planned siege. Taking a strong position behind Boatswains Swamp, V Corps came under heavy attack on June 27. In the resulting Battle of Gaines Mill, Porters men turned back several enemy assaults through the day until being compelled to retreat near sunset. As Porters men shifted to the south bank of the Chickahominy, a badly shaken McClellan ended the campaign and began moving the army towards the safety of the James River. With McClellan providing little guidance to his men, the Army of the Potomac fought off Confederate forces at Garnetts and Goldings Farms on June 27-28. Remaining away from the fighting, McClellan made the situation worse by failing to name a second in command. This was largely due to his dislike and distrust of his senior corps commander, Major General Edwin V. Sumner. Lees Plan Despite McClellans personal feelings, Sumner effectively led the 26,600-man Union rear guard which had concentrated near Savages Station. This force comprised elements of his own II Corps, Brigadier General Samuel P. Heintzelmans III Corps, and a division of Brigadier General William B. Franklins VI Corps. Pursuing McClellan, Lee sought to engage and defeat the Union forces at Savages Station. To due so, Lee ordered Brigadier General John B. Magruder to push his division down the Williamsburg Road and York River Railroad while Jacksons division was to rebuild the bridges across the Chickahominy and attack south. These forces were to converge and overwhelm the Union defenders. Moving out early on June 29, Magruders men began encountering Union troops around 9:00 AM. Armies Commanders Union Major General George B. McClellanMajor General Edwin V. Sumner26,600 men Confederate General Robert E. LeeBrigadier General John B. Magruder14,000 The Fighting Begins Pressing forward, two regiments from Brigadier General George T. Andersons brigade engaged two Union regiments from Sumners command. Skirmishing through the morning, the Confederates were able to push the enemy back, but Magruder became increasingly concerned about the size of Sumners command. Seeking reinforcements from Lee, he received two brigades from Hugers division on the stipulation that if they were not engaged by 2:00 PM they would be withdrawn. As Magruder contemplated his next move, Jackson received a confusing message from Lee that suggested that his men were to remain north of the Chickahominy. Due to this, he did not cross the river to attack from the north. At Savages Station, Heintzelman decided that his corps was not necessary to the Union defense and began withdrawing without first informing Sumner. The Battle Renewed At 2:00 PM, having not advanced, Magruder returned Hugers men. Waiting another three hours, he finally resumed his advance with the brigades of Brigadier Generals Joseph B. Kershaw and Paul J. Semmes. These troops were aided on the right by part of a brigade led by Colonel William Barksdale. Supporting the attack was a 32-pounder Brooke naval rifle mounted on a rail car and protected by an iron casemate. Dubbed the Land Merrimack, this weapon was slowly pushed down the railroad. Despite being outnumbered, Magruder elected to attack with only part of his command. The Confederate movement was first noticed by Franklin and Brigadier General John Sedgwick who were scouting west of Savages Station. After initially thinking the approaching troops belonged to Heintzelman, they recognized their mistake and informed Sumner. It was at this time that an irate Sumner discovered that III Corps had departed. Advancing, Magruder encountered Brigadier General William W. Burns Philadelphia Brigade just south of the railroad. Mounting a tenacious defense, Burns men soon faced envelopment by the larger Confederate force. To stabilize the line, Sumner randomly began feeding regiments from other brigades into the battle. Coming up on Burns left, the 1st Minnesota Infantry joined the fight followed by two regiments from Brigadier General Israel Richardsons division. As the forces engaged were largely equal in size, a stalemate developed as darkness and foul weather approached. Operating on Burns left and south of the Williamsburg Road, Brigadier General William T.H. Brooks Vermont Brigade sought to protect the Union flank and charged forward. Attacking into a stand of woods, they met intense Confederate fire and were repulsed with heavy losses. The two sides remained engaged, with neither making any progress, until a storm ended the battle around 9:00 PM. Aftermath In the fighting at Savages Station, Sumner suffered 1,083 killed, wounded, and missing while Magruder sustained 473. The bulk of the Union losses were incurred during the Vermont Brigades ill-fated charge. With the end of the fighting, Union troops continued withdrawing across White Oak Swamp but were forced to abandon a field hospital and 2,500 wounded. In the wake of the battle, Lee reprimanded Magruder for not attacking more forcefully stating that the pursuit should be most vigorous. By noon the following day, Union troops had crossed the swamp. Later in the day, Lee resumed his offensive by attacking McClellans army at the Battles of Glendale (Fraysers Farm) and White Oak Swamp.

John Watsons Behaviorism essays

John Watson's Behaviorism essays John Watson was born in 1878 in Greenville, South Carolina, a town that was enriched with religion and spiritual practices. Many people believed John would grow up to be a minister or have a wonderful job with the church, but John Watson had other ideas. By the age of thirteen, he was swearing, drinking, and chasing women. At school, Watson began to be rather vicious and violent. He was obviously intelligent but he was lazy, somewhat insubordinate, and never made a decent grade (Cohen, pg 10). Watson also began fighting with kids at school as a response to his hatred of it. Suddenly, Watson took a radical turn and, at the age of fifteen, was accepted into Furman University. This is amazing coming from the man that would one day fight for the radical ideas that he would propose. Watson, after being a juvenile delinquent, would start a movement that many would not understand or accept. This paper will show how John Watson created a small ripple in the water that is now a perm anent fixture in the world of psychology. Watson called for a new and radical psychology that he termed Behaviorism. In his lectures on the new psychology of Behaviorism, he stated, Behaviorism claims that consciousness is neither a definable nor a usable concept; that it is merely another word for the soul or more ancient times (Watson, pg 1). One of Watsons biggest hurdles to get over was this change from a school of thought that was based on consciousness to one that believed it was not needed at all. By eliminating states of consciousness as proper objects of investigation, Watson sought to remove the barrier of subjectivity from psychology which exists between it and the other sciences (http://fates.cns.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/watson.htm). David Cohen wrote a book called The Founder of Behaviorism which included this famous quote from one of Watson&ap...

Multimedia and design Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Multimedia and design - Assignment Example ny professional in any occupation where they build or construct something from scratch, there are right ways and wrong ways to utilize elements of design and they are not all based on what someone simply likes. When looking at the fashion, someone can design an outfit but is it functional? Badly designed outfits will never be worn and are not ever going to be purchased if they do not include good elements of design. The same with a car. If the design of a car is based on what the creator likes, then no one would buy it. Design in these fields has to do with marketability and bad design can crush profitability. Interior design is another field where elements can create different moods. If a person mixes and matches fabrics and textiles all due to their own likes, the space can be overwhelming to be in or even evoke a negative response. When it comes to design in technology, while taking a look at a website, if a design of a website is not functional, no users will come visit the site. If it is cluttered and is chaotic, it is not appealing to anyone. When looking at multimedia as a personal experience, it is all about using design of pictures, interactive features and other elements to create ways for people to get something out of their experience. When thinking of blogs, websites or social networking sites, it is a goal of multimedia techniques to intrigue others. It is a form of marketability and branding to enhance a persons visit. It is not necessarily for ones own use but for productivity and profitability increases in ways to increase others personal experience. It creates more of a personalized

Define hero. Why does our society insist upon elevating people to the Essay

Define hero. Why does our society insist upon elevating people to the rank of hero Is John Bradley a hero despite his insistence that he was not - Essay Example James Bradley writes the book after stumbling upon a letter written by his father John Bradley to his parents describing the event as one of the happiest moments of his life (Bradley & Powers 4). The letter caused John to embark on a research that resulted in the book. John Bradley as the corpsman got tasked with trying to save the lives of the marines who fought the bloody battles in the field. As one of the three surviving men, John struggled to return and live a normal life as possible by choosing to become a funeral director and raise his family. John Bradley’s participation in the flag raising and war is in every angle a mark of true heroism despite his insistence that he was not. John Bradley should be viewed and elevated to hero status as a result of his show of courage and sacrifice in representing his country in a risky and bloody battle that would have resulted in his death. Upon the death of his little sister Mary Ellen, Bradley enlisted into the navy as a funeral director with the hope of evading land battle. A quote from the book summarizes the sacrifice that was undertaken by these flag-raisers â€Å"behind them, in safe America, Bing Crosby sang of a white Christmas, just like the ones he used to know. Ahead lay a hot island of black sand, where many of them would ensure a long future of Christmases in America by laying down their lives† (Bradley & Powers 122). This proves the sacrifice that Bradley along with other participants of the war undertook to ensure the greater good of a future America. This show of devotion in representing his country in the slightest way possible shows that he was ready to die for his country. Not many people are willing to undertake such an act of heroism. To knowingly place one’s life under the direct threat of death requires guts, spirit, and strong will from an individual. To display such character often calls for unconventional thinking and acting.