Is War Ever Justified Essay Example for Free

Is War Ever Justified Essay War, although being described by those who have survived it as hell, is in my opinion a necessary part of life in some sense in order to expand in many ways like socially, economically, and politically. In terms of social changes brought on by war, war often teaches us lessons about how to better our behaviour and attitudes in terms of our association both domestically and foreign. In World War 2 (1939 1945), America and Germany’s interaction and hostilities soon diminished after the end of conflict suggesting that they had learned to get along (or at the very least solve their issues in a more diplomatic way. ). Learning from our mistakes is essential for growing as a race in general. Had it not been for World War 2 the UN (United Nations) would have most likely not been formed and therefore our world would not feel the sense of unity that is present today. In terms of economic changes brought on by conflict or changes, had it not been for wars we would not gain items of value for the use of economic resources. Had the USA not gone over and improvised in Afghanistan they would have most likely lost what is estimated to have been one trillion dollars worth of oil. For this reason the Afghan War (2001 Present) has been referred to as the â€Å"resource war†. In terms of political change brought on by conflict or war, we as a society have learned many lessons of the importance of a strong political power which could in fact reduce the need for conflict or war. Had it not have been for the Vietnamese War (1959 1975), we would not have been shown the importance of international involvement from a single nation in order to assist a less fortunate nation. War has always, in the end, increased all nations sense of unity in some way. Had it not been for the Vietnamese War, America would still be in some state of singularity and arrogance. The loss in Vietnam for the Americans proved that even they the very powerful can be defeated; if they were not given assistance the losses could have been far greater. War may be brutal but there are many positives that can be taken away from it. War, though an expression of our inability to coordinate and understand one another is also a great teacher for the world at what is right and what is wrong. The atrocities and crimes committed during wartime, though terrible and evil as they appear are usually necessary and in the long run will eventually prove to be better for society. During World War 2 had the Allies not declared war against the Axis it is unthinkable as to what could have happened to our world. The Allies chose to stand up to what atrocities were committed by Hitler and stop his evil from spreading. World War 2 is also an exceptional example of what happens when good men fail to act and allow the actions of evil men to spread. Hitler rose to power and began breaching the Treaty of Versailles and built an army despite the Treaties clear clause in which it states that Germany is banned from ever creating an army to avoid the repetition of World War 1 (1914 1918). Had a militant force not attempted to stop Hitler and his Axis powers it is unthinkable as to what the outcome of Hitler’s plan could have been. World War 2 was completely justifiable in that the evil committed during this war far outweigh the possible evil that could have occurred had a war not occurred. Had a militant force not intervened and caused a war it is quite probable that Hitler would have just kept exterminating the Jewish population and that the world would have just continued to watch. During World War 2 we learned the importance of standing up against the tyrannical and not being afraid to stand up for what we as a civilisation believe to be acceptable behaviour. The conflicts during World War 2 could very well have been avoided had good men acted against Hitler’s breach of the Treaty of Versailles and had the courage to stop him before, as we can now see, his plan could have been put into motion. We can simply justify World War 2 in that had The Allies failed to intervene the Nazis would simply continue to exterminate the Jewish population and many attempts to reach Hitler on a political level had been attempted and failed. War, although being a major drain on our economy, is also a great representation of our ability to learn and adapt to what is occurring throughout our time. Had we not spent so much money on war machines during wartimes, we would not have defences in place today that protect our nations against attacks from other possible threats. It is also important to recognize that had wars not occurred it is quite possible that our economies would in-fact be damaged by this. for example a large portion of the economy revolves around oil and it is estimated that had America neglected to act in Afghanistan and stop the Taliban from burning their oil supply as an act of aggression and arrogance against the USA, it is possible that approximately one trillion dollars worth of oil would have been wasted. Had the USA not stepped in and intervened in this conflict, America’s already struggling economy would have been severely damaged and it is possible that this massive loss of oil would have quite possibly caused another depression in America. Had America not invested so much money into the conflict in Afghanistan there economy would have been severely damaged by this. The war in Afghanistan can be justified in that it was not originally intended for the sole purpose of protecting a means of economic revenue but was originally intended for the purpose of retrieving Osama Bin Laden and to punish him for his atrocities committed. It was only after this fact that Osama’s militia began to burn up the oil fields that American geologist discovered that Afghanistan was actually sitting over one of the worlds largest oil deposits. Many people who are against the war in Afghanistan claim that this conflict comments on Americas greed for Afghanistans oil deposits but it was intended originally to have been a mission to capture a known terrorist and to protect the people of Afghanistan. War is often a result of the lack of political effectiveness to eliminate issues and this causes violence. War can be justified in that many people are so close minded in that they would rather resort to violence and not accept a diplomatic solution to their issues that they have. The Vietnamese War is a result of America and her one-time ally the Soviet Union’s inability to discuss and resolve their issues without resorting to War and conflict. The collective inability of the Soviet Union and the Vietnamese Government to accept Americas attempts at peace resulted in this conflict and therefore this conflict was justified. The Vietnamese War was somewhat unavoidable in that many attempts by America were made to achieve peace with Vietnam. After the Vietnamese War was eventually lost by the American Military, it was determined that the original intention of the Vietnam War was to preserve the Vietnamese people’s right to self determination and freedom from oppression by the government. The war is justifiable in that America was merely attempting at preserving a god given constitutional right in that we as a people deserve the right to choose our actions without input from and political force. The Vietnamese War had the best intentions to preserve our rights but was perhaps ill prepared on part of the American Military. Sometimes in order to do whats right we have to put aside the safety of others and make the difficult decisions that need to be made. Each and every war or conflict throughout history has been caused by circumstances that require action. Had action been neglected during any of the wars listed within this paper the results of these wars would have been far worse and many more would have died. All of the wars listed within this paper were unavoidable and justified in the fact that they all had the best of intentions in mind and that they were all attempted to be solved through non violent means. If a conflict is attempted to be resolved without violence or conflict then the act of war is justified.

Greek mathematician Pythagoras Essay Example for Free

Greek mathematician Pythagoras Essay Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician. He was born in Samos, Ionia around 580 b.c. Thales, who was another philosopher was the main teacher of Pythagoras. Pythagoras went to study further in Egypt so Thales couldnt teach him anymore. In Pythagoras teenage years, he began to become known for his philosophic ideas. He also succeeded in math, astronomy, wrestling, and music. In music, he figured out that when a string is vibrating, the longer or shorter it is makes a difference in the tune of the note. In astronomy, he taught that the earth was a sphere, and in math he compared the difference between composite and prime numbers, discovered irrational numbers, and proved the Pythagorean Theorem. This stated that when the two shorter sides in a right triangle were squared and then added, it would equal the square of the longest side or hypotenuse. This was known earlier, but he was the first one to really prove it was true. He soon moved from his home in Italy to a place called Crotona. In Crotona, he found a wife named Theano and founded a school based on philosophy and religion. While in Crotona he discovered many things and even had some followers. Pythagoras followers called themselves the Pythagoreans. In order to become a Pythagorean , you had to follow a couple of strict rules. One of the rules was silence. This meant that you could never share any of your own ideas with the others and that you could only listen to your fellow Pythagoreans. Another rule was avoiding the ingestion of meat. An interesting thing about his school was that if you joined you were automatically a Pythagorean so that meant if you were a student, youd have to obey the rules also. His followers also believed in reincarnation. Reincarnation- when one dies, their soul is transferred to another human beings body. Pythagoras died in Metapontum, Lucania in 500 b.c. Historians think that he  fled and just barely escaped death when violence broke out in Crotona. When he died, a lot of his ideas were forgotten. We will always miss our dear Pythagorus.

Public Debt And Its Political Implications Economics Essay

Public Debt And Its Political Implications Economics Essay The debt limit or so called debt ceiling is the total sum of money that the US government is allowed to borrow in order to cover the existing expenditures: national defense, interest on the national debt, Medicaid and Medicare benefits and other expenditures. The debt limit enables the government to cover the spending that was negotiated between Congresses and Presidents in the past. Nevertheless, it does not apply for new, unbudgeted expenditures. If the debt ceiling limits the government to pay for expenditures that are legal obligations (e.g. interest on the national debt, government employee wages, etc.), the debt ceiling can lead to the default of the US (US Department of the Treasury, 2012). The U.S. Debt-Ceiling Crisis and the Budget Control Act of 2011 In May 2011, the Treasury declared that the debt ceiling of US $14.29 trillion had been reached, but that extraordinary measures could prevent a default and keep government operational. For several months after this announcement, the debt ceiling was in the center of a political battle between the Republicans, who controlled the House of Representatives since the 2010 elections, and President Obama and the Democrats who controlled the Senate. The Republicans insisted on revenue increases and spending cuts as condition for their approval of an increase in the debt ceiling. Both parties could not come to a compromise and by the end of July, the countrys default approached. Finally, an agreement between President Obama and Congressional leaders was reached by the night of July 31, 2011 (Eells, 2013). On August 2, 2011, President Obama signed the Budget Control Act (BCA) that raised the debt ceiling and thus averted the looming, first-ever US government default. The Budget Control Act authorized the increase of the debt limit in three installments. First, the President can require the immediate increase of the debt limit by US $400 billion. Second, the debt limit can be increased by additional US $500 billion, if a joint resolution of disapproval is not enacted. Thirdly, the President can require an additional amount between US$1.2 trillion and US $1.5 trillion that is also the subject to congressional disapproval (Heniff et al., 2011). The first two debt increases, totaling US $900 billion, should be compensated by reductions in future federal spending. The BCA also determined caps on annual expenditures over the following ten years. Estimates on federal spending reductions by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) totaled US$917 billion. For the years 2012 and 2013, the limits on security and non-security spending are separate. For the eight years thereafter, the spending cap will be effective on a single discretionary category (Heniff et al., 2011). Another part of the BCA was the establishment of a Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. This Committee is tasked with proposing means to reduce the federal deficit by at least US $1.5 trillion over the next ten years. As a result, the BCA provides at least one dollar of spending cuts for one dollar in debt ceiling raise (Heniff et al., 2011). However, if the Joint Committee fails to produce spending cuts of at least US $1.2 trillion, then the President will be authorized to increase the debt ceiling by US $1.2 trillion that need to be compensated by a combination of the spending cuts nevertheless produced by the Joint Committee and across-the-board spending cuts, including military expenditures, education, transportation, Medicare etc. (GAO, 2012). The political battle between Republicans and Democrats had several negative consequences. The delays in raising the debt limit in 2011 resulted in additional borrowing costs for the Treasury of about US $1.3 billion only in the fiscal year 2011, which do not include the multiyear effects on potentially increased interest expenses for Treasury securities of future issues. Other challenges for the Treasury in managing the federal debt under the effects of these delays were the complexity, the time spent and the technical issues that arose before the staff. Moreover, the Treasurys employees had to focus on extraordinary actions instead of focusing on its important debt and cash management responsibilities and staff development (GAO, 2012). The US debt passed the 100%-of-GDP mark after the governments debt ceiling was increased. The new borrowing enlarged the US debt to US$14.58 trillion, surpassing the US $14.53 trillion size of the U.S. economy in the year 2010 and moving the USA into a fiscal situation similar to countries whose public debt is higher than their annual gross domestic product: Japan (229%), Greece (152%), Italy (120%), Ireland (114%) and Iceland (103%). The last time the U.S. debt exceeded GDP was in 1947 after World War II and the deficit was due to extraordinary war spending (Money News, 2011). As a result of the debt increase, Standard Poors (SP) downgraded its USA long-term sovereign credit rating from AAA to AA+ on August 5, 2011. The lowering of the long-term sovereign credit rating by SP reflects the rating agencys believe that the the effectiveness, stability, and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened at a time of ongoing fiscal and economic challenges to a degree more than was envisioned when agency assigned a negative outlook to the rating on April 18, 2011 (Swann et al., 2011). SP believed that the fiscal consolidation plan that was agreed by Congress and the President was not sufficient to stabilize the general government debt burden by 2015. Additionally, the political positions of Republicans and Democrats were still far apart and the two parties only agreed on minor savings in discretionary expenditures. The Select Committee had to provide more comprehensive solutions. The political disputes diminished the governments capability to manage public finances and distracted attention from the ultimate goals of a more balanced budget and improvement in economic growth. SPs prospect on the long-term rating is unfavorable. The agency can even decrease the long-term rating to AA, if, for instance, the US government cuts its spending less than was negotiated or the new arising fiscal burdens over the next two year period. The other two major rating agencies, Moodys and Fitch, kept their top credit ratings, although they pointed out that downgrades could follow if the US government fails to implement debt reduction measures or an economic slowdown happened (Detrixhe, 2011). After raising the debt limit to US $15.2 trillion in August 2011, Congress increased the debt limit to US $16.394 trillion in January 2012. By the end of August 2012, the amount of debt reached US $15.977 trillion, which is approximately US $417 billion below the debt limit. As the government borrows roughly between US $100 billion and US $125 billion a month, the debt was estimated to hit the limit in December 2012 (Sahadi, 2012). By December 31, 2012, the USA reached its debt ceiling, but the Treasury declared that it can pay outstanding debt obligations and other bills for the next two months. This means that a new political battle, between Congress and the White House, for another increase in the debt ceiling will start in the near future. Effects of the US government shutdowns in 1995-1996 In 2011, the US government was close to defaulting on its public debt. The potential negative consequences of a default are more severe than that of a shutdown. Nevertheless, recent shutdowns can give an example of potential harmful effects of such fiscal issues on the public and economy. In history, the US government has experienced several shutdowns (Figure XY) that occurred when Congress fails to adjust funding for the current fiscal obligations. In this situation the government can no longer borrow funds, but the federal government can continue to operate, given the Treasury has the opportunity to generate additional revenues or to implement special measures. Nevertheless, the continuing incapability to borrow would result in a default (Masters, 2013). Figure XY. Appropriations Funding Gaps: Fiscal Years 1977-1998 Fiscal Year Date gap Commenced   Full day(s)   of gaps Date gap terminated   1977 Thursday 09-30-76 10 Monday 10-11-76 1978 Friday 09-30-77 12 Thursday 10-13-17 Monday 10-31-77 8 Wednesday 11-09-77 Wednesday 11-30-77 8 Friday 12-09-77 1979 Saturday 09-30-78 17 Wednesday 10-18-78 1980 Sunday 09-30-79 11 Friday 10-12-79 1982 Friday 11-20-81 2 Monday 11-23-81 1983 Thursday 9-30-82 1 Saturday 10-2-82 Friday 12-17-82 3 Tuesday 12-21-82 1984 Thursday 11-10-83 3 Monday 11-14-83 1985 Sunday 9-30-84 2 Wednesday 10-3-84 Wednesday 10-3-84 1 Friday 10-5-84 1987 Thursday 10-16-86 1 Saturday 10-18-86 1988 Friday 12-18-87 1 Sunday 12-20-87 1991 Friday 10-5-90 3 Tuesday 10-9-90 1996 Monday 11-13-95 5 Sunday 11-19-95 Friday 12-15-95 21 Saturday 1-6-96 Figure : Appropriations Funding Gaps (Source: U.S. Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service) The longest US government shutdown was a shutdown in the years 1995-1996. The U.S. government was shut down for 21 days between the December 16, 1995 and January 6th, 1996 due to the budgetary mismatches between Democratic President Bill Clinton and Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. In 1995, Clinton denied to cut steeply Medicaid, Medicare and other non-defense expenditures for the 1996 budget. Gingrich responded with the threat that Congress would not approve the increase in the debt ceiling. This would lead the USA to default on its outstanding debt. The first shutdown lasted five days from November 13 until 19 when both parties made an agreement to balance the budget in seven years period. However, the White House and Congress could not agree how this procedure would be accomplished resulting in the second US shutdown for 21 days. Negotiations between the President and Congress over the next 21 days resulted in the agreed seven-year balanced budget plan. The plan cons isted of the tax increases and the little spending cuts (Fiscal Politics Policy from 1970s to the Present). Gressle (1999) showed the effects of the US government shutdown on the public and economy. The first and the second shutdowns in 1995-1996 years resulted in the furlough of an estimated 800000 and 284000 federal employees respectively. The second shutdown had vast effects on all sectors of the economy. A good example is the health care sector where new patients were not accepted into National Institute of Health (HIN) Clinical Center and the hotline calls to HIN regarding health problems were not answered. Around 20000-30000 applicants for US visa were not served each day resulting in million dollar losses for airlines and tourist industries. The closure of 368 National Parks led to the loss of 7 million visitors and US$14.2 million per day in tourism income by locals. After the 1995-1996 shutdowns, President Clinton improved his image (Lader, 2008). The majority of Americans understood that both shutdowns were due to the Republican obstinacy. Nevertheless, the shutdowns in 1995-1996 showed the aftermaths of divided government and the shift of the political policy to the rightwing. Fiscal Cliff There are a lot of expressions for the issue often called fiscal cliff: fiscal slope, austerity crisis or fiscal obstacle course. However, all of them describe the same process, particularly, the automatic tax increases and spending cuts that take effect on January 1, 2013. However, the first person who popularized the term fiscal cliff was the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke. The chairman used this expression in a speech to a congressional committee in February 2012 in reference to a combination of spending cuts and tax increases set for January 1, 2013. Afterwards, the phrase was used widespread (Geoghegan, 2012). The majority of analysts predict that the implementation of the tax and spending cuts on January 1, 2013 will have no significant influence on the economy as a whole in the short run. At the same time, the long-term effects of these measures would be tremendous. If a deal can not be reached by the White House and Congress, it might have uncertain effects on the economy such as a market panic, a drop in consumer spending, a decrease in business investments, etc. The Congressional Budget Office calculated that the budget deficit would decrease by US $0.5 trillion from 2012 to 2013 and the economy would slow down due to a resulting recession. Almost all Americans would experience a rise of their tax bills with the estimated increase at US $3500 and an after-tax income decline by 6.2% for the average family (Lowrey, 2012). On Tuesday January 1, 2013, Congress approved a deal to end the long partisan dispute over the fiscal cliff. The main changes that were set were the end of last years temporary payroll tax cuts (resulting in a 2% tax increase for workers), the end of certain tax breaks for businesses, shifts in the alternative minimum tax that would take a larger bite, a rollback of the Bush tax cuts from 2001-2003, and the beginning of taxes related to President Obamas health care law. At the same time, the spending cuts agreed upon as part of the debt ceiling deal of 2011 will begin to go into effect (Kenny, 2013). The agreement leads to the increase of the tax rate from 35% to 39.6 % for single persons who earn US $400000 and for couples with an income above US $450000 per year. Americans should also pay higher taxes on dividends and capital gains with the tax rate rising from 15% to 20%. Also, the tax for estates with a value above US$5 million will be taxed by 40% (previous rate 35%), but Republicans succeeded in indexing the threshold of US $5 million to inflation and thus smoothing the effects of the estate tax for wealthy Americans (Ungar, 2013). Among other changes were the extension of an additional year of unemployment benefits for nearly 2 million Americans, the doctor fix related to Medicare and tax credits for college tuition that were extended for another five years (Ungar, 2013). The agreement prevents a significant increase of income tax for around 100 million American families that earn less than US $250000 annually. However, the 2% payroll tax cut, that was originally part of the 2009 stimulus package, will expire (Montgomery and Helderman, 2013). The above measures will prevent the severe economic downturn that could happen in case of going over the fiscal cliff. President Obama pointed out in his brief statement that the new measures would produce US $620 billion in new tax revenues (Montgomery and Helderman, 2013). In conclusion, the new measures that were set to avoid the fiscal cliff were not the ultimate goal of neither Republicans nor Democrats. Republicans are not satisfied with the tax increases and the lack of spending reductions, while Democrats complain about the provisions regarding estates. It seems that the political dispute will continue in the near future and the agreement signed on December 31, 2012 was just a short-term fix to avoid the fiscal cliff. Foreign Holdings of US Public Debt and its Political Implications A crucial point in analyzing the current situation of US public debt and its political implications is the detailed understanding of foreign holdings. As of July 2012 (most recent data), foreign countries owned a total of US dollar 5.4 trillion of U.S. debt, which is approximately 34% of total debt outstanding of US dollar 15.9 trillion. The three largest single foreign holders are the central banks of China, Japan and Brazil. Comparing the situation in July 2012 with the state in July 2002, one can see that the proportion of foreign holdings in US public debt outstanding has grown from approximately 19% to 34% (Treasury Direct, 2012). Figure XY shows that as of July 2012, China is the largest single holder of US public debt with a share of approximately 7.2% followed by Japan with a corresponding share of about 7.0% (US Department of the Treasury, 2012). Figure : Foreign Holdings of US Public Debt (Source: Treasury Direct, 2012 U.S. Department of the Treasury, 2012) Given its low savings rate, the US economy is strongly dependent on foreign capital inflows from countries with high savings rates (for example China  [1]  ) to meet its domestic investment needs and to fund the federal budget deficit. Important to understand is that the willingness of foreign countries to invest in the US economy and to purchase US public debt has helped to keep US real interest rates relatively low in the past, which until recently, contributed to a great extent to a fast US economic growth and enabled the country to consume more that it produces for a long time. Some renowned economists also argue that the US dependency on foreign savings was a contributing factor to the US subprime crisis and the subsequent global financial crisis. However, the size and the recent growth of US public debt have raised concerns about the willingness of foreign countries to continue to invest in US public debt securities. For example, some Chinese analysts claimed that the gover nment should diversify its reserves away from US dollar assets into assets of other currencies. An important short-term political implication of Chinas large holdings in US public debt is that, if China might suddenly decide to sell a large share of its holdings, this would induce other foreign investors to sell off their holdings as well, which could dramatically destabilize the US economy. Possible consequences can be the depreciation of the US dollar as its supply on foreign exchange markets increased and a large increase in US interest rates as a crucial source of funding for investments and the budget deficit is withdrawn from financial markets (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). Therefore, China seems currently able to destabilize the US economy through the sale of a large share of its US debt holdings, which can be seen as a financial weapon (Sandbrook, 2012). In addition, in the long run, if China reduces its US securities, the US would need to replace it with other foreign or domestic investors to fill in the gap. Those investors would probably have to be acquired through higher interest rates compared to those of today. Increased interest rates would cause a fall in all kinds of interest-sensitive spending. The reducing of Chinese Treasury holdings would all else equal cause the foreign demand for US assets do decline, which would then lead to a dollar depreciation (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). All in all, given a large reduction in Chinas holdings of US public debt, the impact on the US economy would still be dependent on whether this reduction takes place gradually or suddenly. Some US policymakers also argue that Chinas large holdings of US public debt give it leverage over the United States on economic and noneconomic issues. An illustrative example of this concern is Ding Gang, an editor of Chinas Peoples Daily  [2]  , who wrote in an editorial in August 2011 that the Peoples Republic of China should create a direct link between the amount of US Treasury holdings with the US arms sales to Taiwan. Gang states Now is the time for China to use its financial weapon to teach the United States a lesson if it moves forward with a plan to sale arms to Taiwan. In fact, China has never wanted to use its holdings of U.S. debt as a weapon. It is the United States that is forcing it to do so. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] China has no choice but to use it as a weapon to defend itself when facing threats to Chinas sovereignty (Gang, 2011). Altogether, Chinas holdings in US public debt can be seen as a strong instrument to put pressure on the United States with regards to poli tical disputes between the two countries. As a result, the growing dependency of the US on China to purchase US Treasury securities to fund the countrys budget deficit has become a major concern to many US policymakers (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). However, the probability that China would suddenly reduce its holdings of US public debt is highly questionable because of the fact that doing so could potentially have a significant negative impact on the Chinese economy as well. The important causality which takes away Chinas incentive to sell is the fact that any Chinese attempt to sell a large portion of its US debt holdings could, on the one hand, dramatically reduce the value of its remaining holdings in international markets. On the other hand, a negative demand shock in the United States would also dramatically reduce US demand for Chinese exports, either through an appreciation of the Chinese Yuan against the US Dollar or a reduction in the US economic growth (especially if other foreign investors sell their US asset holdings as well and the United States are forced to raise interest rates in response) (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). This is especially severe because of the fact that China was the United States largest supplie r of goods imports in 2011. US goods imports from China totaled U.S. dollar 399 billion in 2011, a 9.4% increase from 2010 and up 299% since 2000. Imports from China into the United States accounted for 18% of overall US imports in 2010 (Office of the United State Trade Representative, 2012). A sharp reduction of US imports from China could therefore have a significant negative impact on Chinas economy, which heavily depends on exports into the United States for its economic growth. Moreover, in the case of China, economic growth is also seen as a vital source of political stability and therefore in the interest of the government. Consequently, it can be argued that the US and Chinese economies are mutually dependent  [3]  on each other, which, as a matter of fact, gives China very little leverage over US policy (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). The former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers called the mutual damage which would occur to the US and Chinese economies the balance of financial terror (Dorn, 2008). For some time, this balance of financial terror as well as the global financial system has kept China off from exploiting their power position (Dorn, 2008). Nonetheless, regardless of the balance of financial terror, growing bilateral tensions over the US public debt between the United States and China can clearly be observed. For example, the government-controlled Chinese newspaper Xinhua News Agency expressed a lot of criticism on US economic policies regarding the US public debt situation: With its debt approximating its annual economic output, it is time for Washington to revisit the time-tested common sense that one should live within ones means (Xinhua News Agency, July 2011). The days when the debt-ridden Uncle Sam could leisurely squander unlimited overseas borrowing appeared to be numbered as its triple A-credit rating was slashed by Standard Poors (SP) for the first time on Friday. China, the largest creditor of the worlds sole superpower, has every right now to demand the United States to address its structural debt problems and ensure the safety of Chinas dollar assets (Xinhua News Agency, August 2011). To relieve further bilateral tensions between the two countries, China should pursue a more market-liberal path and the United States should abstain from implementing protectionist measures. Doing this, the US-China relationship should develop peacefully and global prosperity will continue. Consequently, the balance of financial terror would collapse and give way to free trade and capital freedom (Dorn, 2008). In conclusion, the main political issue from the perspective of the United States is not Chinas large holdings of US public debt per se, but rather the high US reliance on foreign capital in general and whether this reliance is sustainable in the future (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). Policymakers in the United States should therefore think about the medium- and long-run implications of the countrys high amount of public debt held by foreigners. To do that in an appropriate way, they have to take into account and to understand the economic and political relationships between the United States and its debt holders, with China leading the way. A first step to mitigate the problem is to launch political measures so that the United States increases its level of savings in the long-term in order to reduce the vulnerability to a possible shift away from US assets by foreign investors (Morrison and Labonte, 2012). The Role of U.S. Public Debt in the Global Economy Undoubtedly, the United States still plays an exceptional role in the global economy. First of all, the country is the largest economy in the world. Secondly, it clearly dominates the global monetary system: The United States capital markets are among the most liquid ones (Schuman, 2011) and the special status of the dollar as the worlds reserve currency has become an crucial aspect of Americas power, allowing the country to borrow effortlessly and maintain an assertive foreign policy (Warnock, 2010). In addition, the US dollar is the primary currency used in foreign exchange transactions and trade. Also, as already mentioned in the chapter before, countries such as China and Japan store their national wealth to a large extent in US public debt. The perception has always been that the United States has a safe haven status, meaning that when investors get nervous, they increase dollar-based assets, and especially also US public debt (Schuman, 2011). Having said all this, given the exc eptional status of the United States in the world economy, the global economic and political consequences of the development of US public debt are substantial. Increasing US public debt bears the risk of a fundamental change in the perception of the safe haven status of the United States. Schuman (2011) speculates on what would happen if this change in perception comes true  [4]  : US Treasury securities would be seen as riskier than before and would consequently lose their attractiveness. As a result, interest rates would increase in the United States, raising borrowing costs in the economy and making it more difficult for the US government to finance debt and budget deficits. This can potentially lead to a significant decrease in investments and consumption. The US dollar will presumably depreciate, which will devaluate currency reserves around the globe. All those effects taken together will have negative consequences on the growth of the US economy, lowering living standards for Americans and eventually leading to a slower growth of the world economy. To put it simple, a loss of confidence in the United States as a safe haven results in higher interest rates, which will automatically have negative consequences on the world economy (International Monetary Fund, 2012). Therefore, the exceptional role of the United States makes its public debt situation dangerous for the shape of the global economy due to the fact that overwhelming debt amounts can cause effects that potentially destabilize the world economy. In addition, the ten-year US Treasury bond has the status of the worlds risk-free asset, meaning that the United States is the basic standard by which risk in financial markets is assessed (Warnock, 2010). This is sometimes referred to as the risk-free standard and is a basic convention regularly used in all different kinds of valuations in the daily business world. In particular, the risk-free standard is an important measure in the context of corporate and asset valuation (Damodaran, 2008). Loosing the safe haven status of the United States as a possible consequence of the above-described developments means loosing the risk-free standard convention, resulting in global efficiency losses and higher risks of economic and financial fragmentation (Schuman, 2011). Although the United States exceptional status in the world economy makes its debt situation risky, that status obviously gives the country particular protection as well. A meaningful example of this protection is the warning of Standard Poors to downgrade the United States from its traditional prized AAA credit rating in April 2011 (Schuman, 2011): This warning was a strong signal that Standard Poors was not concerned about the special status of the US in the global economy, meaning that if the country is not able to get its debt situation under control, it will be confronted with a downgrade similar to those of Greece, Spain or Japan. However, financial market participants acted against what economic intuition and theory tells us. US Treasuries weakened immediately after Standard Poors announcement, a clear indication that investors were selling them. Nevertheless, they returned to their old strength shortly afterwards, suggesting that investors even bought US public debt after S tandard Poors warning instead of selling them to a large extent (Schuman, 2011). Moreover, some reactions of major US bondholders indicated that they are not concerned about the countrys financial condition. For example, at the time Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda mentioned: [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] basically we continue to believe that US Treasuries are an attractive product for us (Channel NewsAsia, 2011). A further crucial point in the context of the role of US public debt in the global economy is the argument that US policymakers have been relying probably subconsciously on the exceptional status of the United States (Schuman, 2011).  [5]  The particular role of the US in the global economy leads to the outcome that the country does not have to face dangers other nations could never avoid. A political implication of this behavior is presumably that according to some critical authors and journalists the United States are one of the few heavily indebted developed economies that does not have a credible plan to control deficits and debt  [6]  (Schuman, 2011). To put it in simple words, US policymakers have possibly been banking on being like American International Group (AIG) or General Motors (GM) in America or UBS in Switzerland, acting as if the country is too big to fail  [7]  . In conclusion, one can state that a debt crisis in Portugal for example can potentially create uncertainty through world financial markets, and if a larger country such as Spain fell into crisis, this uncertainty could have destabilizing effects. But US public debt bears the risk of crashing the entire operating system of the global economy. Hen

The Mouse and His Child :: American Literature

The Mouse and His Child, by Russell Hoban, is a melancholy fable about a wind-up pair of tin mice that explore various themes such as hope and perseverance. However, the prevailing lesson taken from this book can be found in the way that Hoban employs his cast of wind-up toys to advocate the importance of the family unit. The story begins with the family together, but it is divided and they go out in separate directions. The father mouse and his child have different views on what to do after the break up of the family. The father's goal of self-winding is a wish for independence, while his child only wishes to bring the family back together. In fact, when the child tells Frog, "I want to find the elephant, I want her to be my mama, and I want the seal to be my sister..." (35), the father is flabbergasted since he was not aware of his child's desire. However, since they are bound together with the father mouse pushing the child along, the father's dream of self-winding/independence takes priority. Hoban cleverly uses the dialogue of the father mouse to show that the family broke up because of differences between the father and mother. In reply to his child's desire to go look for the elephant/mama and the seal/sister, the father says, "I cannot imagine myself being cozy with that elephant." (46) Yet the father humors his child and goes in the direction that they believe may lead them to the seal/sister and elephant/mama saying, "Finding the elephant would be as pointless as looking for her, but since I cannot convince you of that, ... we shall (at least) see something of the world" (47). While the elephant/mama had grown accustom to her royal lifestyle at the dollhouse in the store, she began to be snooty to her family. In replying to why she had been at the store so long she stated, "I'm part of the establishment...and this is my house." (5). It is not until she has been separated from her possessions and the family that she realizes how well off she was when the family was together. When she sees the father and child cutting the tree, she is "completely overwhelmed" (127). Until then she had only thought of herself. She realizes the error of their split as "a world of love and pain was printed on her vision" (128).

Analysis of the immigration problem :: essays research papers

Analysis of the Immigration Problem The world has gone through a revolution and it has changed a lot. We have cut the death rates around the world with modern medicine and new farming methods. For example, we sprayed to destroy mosquitoes in Sri Lanka in the 1950s. In one year, the average life of everyone in Sri Lanka was extended by eight years because the number of people dying from malaria suddenly declined. This was a great human achievement. But we cut the death rate without cutting the birth rate. Now population is soaring. There were about one billion people living in the world when the Statue of Liberty was built. There are 4.5 billion today. World population is growing at an enormous rate. The world is going to add a billion people in the next eleven years, that's 224,000 every day! Experts say there will be at least 1.65 billion more people living in the world in the next twenty years. We must understand what these numbers mean for the U.S. Let's look at the question of jobs. The International Labor organization projects a twenty-year increase of 600 to 700 million people who will be seeking jobs. Eighty-eight percent of the world's population growth takes place in the Third World. More than a billion people today are paid about 150 dollars a year, which is less than the average American earns in a week. And growing numbers of these poorly paid Third World citizens want to come to the United States. In the 1970s, all other countries that accept immigrants started controlling the number of people they would allow into their countries. The United States did not. This means that the huge numbers of immigrants who are turned down elsewhere will turn to the United States. The number of immigrants is staggering. The human suffering they represent is a nightmare. Latin America's population is now 390 million people. It will be 800 million in the year 2025. Mexico's population has tripled since the Second World War. One third of the population of Mexico is under ten years of age, as a result, in just ten years, Mexico's unemployment rate will increase 30 percent, as these children become young adults, in search of work. There were in 1990 an estimated four million illegal aliens in the United States, and about 55 percent of them were from Mexico. These people look to the United States.

Plato Vs. Aristotle on Art Essay example -- Philosophy

For over two thousand years, various philosophers have questioned the influence of art in our society. They have used abstract reasoning, human emotions, and logic to go beyond this world in the search for answers about arts' existence. For philosophers, art was not viewed for its own beauty, but rather for the question of how art and artists can help make our society more stable for the next generation. Plato, a Greek philosopher who lived during 420-348 B.C. in Athens, and Aristotle, Plato’s student who argued against his beliefs, have no exceptions to the steps they had to take in order to understand the purpose of art and artists. Though these two philosophers made marvelous discoveries about the existence of art, artists, and aesthetic experience, Plato has made his works more controversial than Aristotle. During the ancient times in Greece, Plato was the first human to document and criticize the existence of art and artists. He mentioned that human art was always in a form of a representation of something else. In one of Plato’s famous works, he demonstrates the idea of art is like an â€Å"imitation of nature† (Blocker 3). In other words, the purpose of art was to represent nature and nothing else. Art was not created for the sake of its own self nor was it created to appreciate its own beauty by any means. Instead, art, usually in forms of writings, paintings, or sculptures, was created to only to represent nature, Gods, emperors, families, or other important individuals. Furthermore, Plato had a very critical view towards the existence art in our society because art makes us more emotional, and our emotions lead to many errors about life. He believed it is our rational thinking, not our emotions or senses, which helps us und... ...ed knowledge beyond ordinary people’s understandings. However, in some ways Aristotle did a better job than Plato. As a result, his ideas will continue to exist in this world for the generations yet to come. Works Cited Blocker, H. Gene., and Jennifer M. Jeffers. Contextualizing Aesthetics: from Plato to Lyotard. Belmont,CA: Wadsworth Pub., 1999. Print. Jones, David. "ARISTOTLE'S AESTHETICS." Rowan University. Ulbery Press, 19 Apr. 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2011. Havelock, Eric. Views of Republic. Standford: Brooke Spencer, Jan.-Feb. 2003. PDF. Lingis, Alphonso. "Literary Reference Center - Powered by EBSCOhost." EBSCO Publishing Service Selection Page. Routledge, 02 Feb. 2004. Web. 17 Nov. 2011. Stecker, Robert. "The Journal of Aesthetic Education." Plato's Expression about Art 26.1 (1992): 1-122. Jstor. Ithaka, 7 June 1992. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Statistic: Sampling and Research Design

Carlene Reyes 809000173 Question 2: Describe the relationship between research design and sample design Before examining both sample design and research design it is important to be clear about the role and purposes of each design. Research design is a plan for collecting and utilizing data so that desired information can be obtained with sufficient precision or so that a hypothesis can be tested properly. Every type of empirical research has a form of implicit research design.A design is a logical sequence that connects to empirical data to a study’s initial research question and ultimately it, to its conclusion. According to Adam G Bluman in his book Elementary Statistic define research design as a logical plan from getting from here to there, where here may be defined as initial questions to be answered , and there is some conclusion (answers) to these questions . Another text book has described research design as a plan that guides the investigator in the process of collec ting analyzing and interpreting observations.It is a logical method of proof that allows the researcher to draw inreferences concerning causal relations among the variables under investigations (Nachmias andNachmaias 1992 pp. 77-78). Research design can be seen as the â€Å"blue print† for your research, dealing with at least four problems what question to study, what data are relevant, what data to collect and how to analyze the results. As a result research design is more than just a work plan it is what makes social science scientific.In addition there are various forms of research design that can be broken up into both quantitative and qualitative research design. Qualitative research follows a naturalistic paradigm which is based on the idea that reality is not predetermined, but is constructed by the participants in the research (Vishnevsky and Beanlands 2004, p. 235). It aims at exploring the phenomenon in question by focusing on the individuals who experience it, assu ming that it is possible to maximize the understanding of the phenomenon by minimizing the interpersonal distance between the researcher and the participant.Qualitative research in non-experimental, with no dependent or independent variables. The idea is to understand phenomena as a whole. Qualitative research is done â€Å"in the field† and requires ongoing data collection and analysis. The data collection and methodology are flexible, and allow for modifications throughout the research process, gathering subjective data that includes thoughts and perceptions of the participants and the researchers alike.Qualitative research does not choose a representative sample of the population, but only chooses as participants those who have rich experiences in the phenomena of concern, and the sample size is rarely predetermined, because researchers include as many participants as necessary to give an understanding of the phenomena (Vishnevsky and Beanlands, 2004, p. 235). Whereas, in quantitative research the researcher aim is to determines the relationships between one thing (an independent variable) and another (a dependent or outcome variable) in a population.Quantitative research designs are either descriptive (subjects usually measured once) or experimental (subjects measured before and after a treatment). Descriptive studies are also called observational, because you observe the subjects without otherwise intervening. Descriptive research provides answers to the questions of who, what, when, where, and how for example a study measuring various attributes of salespeople, a training program, or a retailing situation.Experimental studies are also known as longitudinal or repeated measures studies, for obvious reasons. They are also referred to as interventions, because you do more than just observe the subjects. However the sample design provides information on the target and final sample sizes, strata definitions and the sample selection methodology. It†™s a relatively small subset selected from a population. Sampling design is a process of selecting a member of a unit for a study in such a way that the unit represents the larger group from which they are selected.Sampling makes possible the study of a large heterogeneous population. There are different forms of sampling design it can be classified as probability sampling and non-probability sampling. Probability sampling is a proportion and such sample is selected from the population by means of some systematic way in which every elements of the population has a chance of being included in the sample. With this research it is more complex its time consuming and more costly.Non probability sample is not a proportion of the population which there is no system in selecting the sample. The selection depends upon the situations no assurance is given that each has a chance of being included as a sample. The first form of probability sampling is Random sampling this type of sampling is one in which everyone in the population of the inquiry has an equal chance of being selected to be included in the sample. Its main advantage of this technique of sampling is that it is easy to understand and it is easy to apply too.Its disadvantage is that it is hard to use with too large a population because of the difficulty encountered in writing the names of the person involved. Another form of sample design is systematic sampling a technique of sampling in which every kth member of a list may be selected to be included. This form of sampling is called interval sampling there is a gap or interval between each selected unit in the sample. Its main advantage is that it is more convenient faster and more economical. Its disadvantage is that if the sample might become biased.Stratified sampling is another form of sampling the process of selecting randomly , samples from different strata of the population used in the study a sample obtained by dividing the population into groups, c alled strata according to the various homogeneous characteristic and then selecting members from each stratum for the sample . Its advantage is that it contributes much to the representative of the sample. Cluster sampling also called multi-stage sampling are used when the population is so big or the geographical area of the research is so large, it is therefore efficient to use.Its disadvantage is that it reduced accuracy or representativeness on the account of the fact that every stage there is a sampling error. Non probability sampling methods into two broad types are accidental and purposive. Most sampling methods are purposive in nature because we usually approach the sampling problem with a specific plan in mind. The most important distinctions among these types of sampling methods are the ones between the different types of purposive sampling approaches. In purposive sampling, researchers sample with a purpose in mind.We usually would have one or more specific predefined grou ps we are seeking. Accidental sampling is where the first set of available appropriate sample are used. To conclude research design function is to ensure evidence obtained enables us to answer the initial question as unambiguously as possible. Thus, we need to ask what kind of evidence is needed to answer these questions. Research design is thus equated with both qualitative designs whereas sample design is equated with both probability and non probability sampling. Sampling design involves taking a proportion of the population to do your research project.