The world financial crisis and recession aftermath Assignment

The world financial crisis and recession aftermath - Assignment Example Due the financial crisis, the world economy include the United States went into deep recession that can be comparable into the Great Recession of the 1930s. According to research, in severe financial crises the crucial indicators such as housing prices and unemployment take longer to hit their lowest points. Several economic strategies have been proposed to tackle the financial crisis and resuscitate the global economy. One school of thought proposes that austerity measures should be taken to cut public expenditure in order to bring the global economy back on course. On the other hand, there are those who advocate for stimulus packages to jumpstart the economy through increased spending ability of the people. In evaluating the best course of action for handling the global recession, I would analyze the current situation based on the Keynesian economic theories. In his General Theory, Keynes renders an opposing view to the classical economic model in which the perfectly competitive ma rkets with flexible measures resulted in self correcting and balancing measures. According to the orthodox doctrine, the Loanable Funds Theory played an important role in determining the interest rates. In this respect, consumption, saving and investment were all functions of the rate of interest. Thus, theory proposed that as long as the interest rate was sufficiently flexible savings automatically turned into investments. However, Keynes pointed out that consumption is a function of income. This implies that in as much the interest rates are flexible, the determinant factor for economic activity was the level of disposable income that individuals had. This argument is relevant to the policy debates concerning the most appropriate approach to the solving of the global financial crisis. I think that it is necessary to ensure that the ordinary citizen has disposable income in order to spur economic recovery. This means that governments should implement stimulus packages in a strategi c way to make it possible for money flow in the economy. Use of austerity measures may not have the desired impact on the economies of the world. For instance, I believe that austerity measures may indeed put a cap on the government expenditures and create some control over money interest rates. However, this may only go as far as stagnation of the economy since people will still lack disposable income for consumption. Keynes also rejected the quantity theory of money. Keynes argued that the assumptions upon which the stable velocity held sway were invalid. Also, it should be noted that people hold on to money for a variety of reasons other than transactional purposes. In his money theory, Keynes pointed out that people may hold money as income deposits, business deposits and savings deposits. It is therefore imperative that if the quantity of money changes, then there will be equal changes in the general price level. This implies that the general state of the economy is affected by the amount of money in circulation. For economic growth, there should be sufficient industrial money circulation. Suffice to say, only stimulus packages can pump in money to the economy. On the other hand, austerity measures lead to reduction of the amount of money that is in circulation. The intention of governments worldwide is to move their economies to the path of growth therefore it is imperative that economic policies taken should ensure that there is more money in the economy. The concept of multiplier effect is a major tool that can be used to help governments to maintain high levels of employment even during times of economic depressions. According to Keynesian economics, the multiplier effect can be used by governments to attain a level of national level of income that would

Coming of Age Essay Example for Free

Coming of Age Essay A coming of age experience can happen any time during ones life, most often when it is least expected. It is the thread that sews humanity together, a phenomenon, which is undeniable. Society tells us, it is a defining moment in a childs life, when the world somehow becomes his or her own. Why then is Coming of Age simply relegated to the young? We all experience this phenomenon, from the tender age of four till the ripe old age of ninety-four. It is not an experience based solely on chronological milestones. Coming of age is a defining moment when a persons wide-eyed nnocence is replaced with something deeper and at times something darker and more sinister, a snapshot in life when one realized the answer rests inside us, not relying completely on God. Consequently, in that way, we are always coming of age, always-losing innocence, gaining understanding, and always discovering new truths about ourselves, emotionally, and intellectually. Coming of age is the act of experiencing a definitive shift in ones perspective, a greater realization of ones place in the world, and a further understanding of how personal actions and reactions are ntegrally linked. Thats not fair was my signature quotation as a little girl. A life full of Barbies, tea parties, and several rounds of Go-Fish card games was very demanding for a five year old. I could only assume the world revolved around which Barbie I wanted to be, what frilly dress I wanted to wear, and my pristine skills of winning every round of Go-Fish. As a little princess, fairness was vital to what made me happy. When I was eight years old, the word fair took on a whole other meaning the day my mom and her best friend, Muffy, took my sister and me to lunch. As we at down at the table, Muffy, the mother of my best friend, Sam, hesitantly twisted the diamond protruding from her gold wedding band. We waited for our lunches in silence, my sister and I only knowing that they had something to tell us, but not knowing what. The silence was unbearable; waiting for something that must have no positive outcome was definitely, as I would term, unfair. After the waitress brought our food, my moms voice filled the intolerable silence. Unlike her usual motherly lectures, my moms voice seemed Just as excruciating as the previous silence; it was uncertain, unfamiliar, and distant. My mom has always been the woman that I admire and would hope to become. The smiles and love she has given to my sister and me have been unconditional and contagious. At the moment, the slightly tilted frown and the unfulfilled eye contact was not the woman that I knew as my mother. All I wish for was to read her mind, fgure out who she had become so that I could make everything better and change her back to the woman I see myself being one day. Muffy began with her understanding voice, a quality that she and my mother share, Emily and Peggy, I can see the concern on your faces and we are here to tell ou that Sam has cancer. He will be undergoing surgery next week and all I ask from you is to be as understanding, mature, and as helpful as possible. I know you are both strong and that it is going to be hard for all of us. My best friend, at eight years old, has cancer. I continued to repeat this in my mind. There was no He will be find or Everything will be taken car of. My mind was running with questions, How long has he had cancer? Will he have to undergo chemo? Will he lose all his hair? But unfair. Two years later Sam went through his third treatment. At this point we were told hat he was not going to make it and at that moment, as a young eight year old, I began to understand that lifes trials cannot be won like a game of go-fish. I began to understand that life is not fair because I did not understand why someone so caring and loving like Sam would be put through this. I do wish that fguring these things out at such a young age would not be as tortuous as my best friend getting cancer and passing away. However, for me, maturing at that age is accepting that the world does not revolved around me. That losing in a game of go-fish is not the end of the world and to treasure every day of life.

wal-mart throws lifeline to managers :: essays research papers

Wal-mart throws lifeline to managers Jessica Marquez Workforce magazine – April 2005 After all the bad press and lawsuits Wal-mart is finally doing something about it. Wal-mart has decided that they need more help in how they hire and train employees. They have decided to bring in human resource specialists into districts and help with selecting, hiring, and training new associates. The new positions will be filled with human resource executives with legal backgrounds. This new concept will be started in the southern California area and if it goes well they will expand to other parts of the country. The teams will consist of 5 people with legal backgrounds. They will be there to help managers with all human resource needs. They are there to answer questions help in selection and hiring decisions. With all the new laws and all the past problems in those areas wal-mart wants their managers to know they have someone to call and have there physically to help when needed. The example they used was if they hire a disabled person what would they need to do to best accommodate this person both too obey the law and too help this person succeed in his or her job. The company will be watching closely to see if this is working. They will gauge its effectiveness by the turnover rate. The current turnover rate is a little below 50%. The goal is to get it too under 10%. The budgets have not yet been determined but Susan Oliver the VP of HR says that whatever the budget is if the employee turnover gets better it will be worth every penny spent. Susan Oliver says that these improvements are not just an answer to the critics and lawsuits but a belief that if they did not do something they would lose the war in hiring and retaining good employees to the competition. She believes that this war will become much more intense as the time goes by. Being the leaders in the industry makes people expect more from them and rightly so. This article brings a lot of good ideas to the forefront. Managers are in need of good HR minded professionals to deal with legal issues in the workplace. They must deal with the handicapped person who wants and needs the job but needs some help in doing so and from the employee that feels he or she has been sexually harassed.

Gender Roles Seen in Toys

Gender Roles and Toys By Shawna Robb English 101 Professor Solomon One room has pretty pink wallpaper with a princess border; the other is blue with monster trucks on one-wall and sports pictures on another. It is not hard to tell which room is female and which room is male. Male and female are used in this instance to define genders. Gender, unlike sex, is a universal guideline upon which individuals are placed. Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behavior, and activities that a particular society considers appropriate for men and women. When the pressure of gender stereotypes is open to debate some say there are prenatal influences that are gender based. What is obvious is that gender plays a significant role when it comes to the toys people select for their children and the way that toy companies market them. â€Å"Toys-R-Us† is a United States based toy company who has been taken to task for marketing designs that reflect or promote gender specific toys. It is wrong that toy stores, like â€Å"Toy’s-R-Us†, clearly divides the toys by gender in stores and in toy advertisements because it teaches children how they are supposed to be in order to be accepted by society, promotes aggressive behavior for males and a passive attitude for females. Stereotypical boy toys are things like action figures and toy cars. These are both active and aggressive, which is â€Å"masculine† representing how men are supposed to be in society. Girl’s toys are often dolls, dress up, and toys that mimic household duties. That is stereotypical because its saying girls are passive, not active. It is setting standards that girls belong in the home for their future while boys get doctor kits or chemistry sets that give them higher goals. Introducing children to these gender role ideas this early is shaping them for the rest of their lives. The world’s leading fast food franchise has an interest in the gender of its young customers. At McDonalds a very popular child’s meal is the happy meal. When a Happy Meal is ordered the worker always asks if the child is a boy or a girl. This lets the worker know what type of toy to put in with the meal. The McDonalds worker could ask if the customer wants a hot wheels or a mini Barbie but instead they learn the gender of the customer and stereotypically provide the toy. Toy stores separate their store by toys for girls and toys for boys. The girl isle has stereotypical girl colors like pink, purple, and yellow. All of these colors are light when the boy’s section has colors like red, blue’s, black, brown and green. All of the boy’s colors are darker and less â€Å"pretty†. Just from that quick look down the isle one can notice which is for girls versus boys. The dark colors are less southing and action oriented. The girl colors, are lighter making them much more calm and subdued. This same pattern can be seen in advertisements on television. Female directed commercials are light colors, with softer music usually having lyrics that explain the toy and giving passive examples for what can be done with the toy. Boy’s commercials however have the message that they are going to go out and do something active with the toy. The music for masculine toys is generally uplifting and motivating, which makes a boy excited to play with the toy. Commercials cannot be avoided and they reach almost all boys and girls on a day-to-day basis. One interesting area in looking at the influences of toys and gender is the advertising of toys relative to levels of aggression. The television airwaves are filled with toy advertising. Is there a relationship between this advertising and levels of violence, does this relationship show a gender bias? For example a parent might wonder if the purchase of â€Å"boy oriented† toys for their child might increase the child’s risk for becoming violent. The parent might also wonder if merely watching the advertisements themselves increase children’s risk for becoming violent. In 2001 Kilinger, Hamilton and Cantrell offered the observation that the use of commercials to sell children’s toy products could have a socialization impact on children similar to that of television programming. Bandura’s Social Learning Theory says, â€Å"human behavior is transmitted, whether deliberately or inadvertently, largely through exposure to social models†(Bandura 1). When a child thinks that a behavior will be punished versus rewarded but instead is not even acknowledged they will perceive it as a reward. Children usually continue rewarded behavior to receive more praise. Television is seen as a â€Å"super tutor† to Bandura, the child will model what they see on television, not knowing if it is good or bad. For those children whose parents are not good role models, the television becomes the behavioral role model. If violence and aggression is viewed on the television, it is more likely that children will engage in violent and aggressive behavior. While television can model appropriate behavior, there is a well-documented tendency for violence and aggression. Advertisements are difficult to avoid since they are interwoven in shows and they tend to emphasize violent and aggressive behavior (Kilinger 13). In the study by Kilinger, Hamilton and Cantrell they observed â€Å"children’s perceptions of aggressive content, stereotypic sex-role behavior, and appropriateness of television toy commercials†(Kilinger, 11). The results of the study support the notion that there is a gender bias in terms of aggressive content and consequently aggression potential. The results did show that toys and the advertisements for them aimed toward boys were more aggressive than that of the toys that are gender neutral or aimed toward girls. The commercials shown were clearly sex role stereotyped. This is consistent with other research that has supported the idea that boys are more socialized toward aggression. Boys may be more desensitized to aggression as a result of gender stereotyped toy commercials as well as their toy selections in the past. Again, this is a reason for concern since commercials are unavoidable while watching television. While the promotion of aggression is certainly an adequate reason to exercise great care when it comes to toy and gender, it is not the only reason. Parents do support gender bias toys from the time the child is born. More often than not, a boy will receive toys that are focused towards boys and girls will receive stereotypical girl toys. The children do not go out and buy this themselves; their parents will pick out their toys until the child is already taught what they should like. Parent’s will find out they are having a boy or a girl then base everything around that detail, like the room color example, children and baby clothes are also gender biased as well as their toys. When the girl is playing with girl toys she will be rewarded for the â€Å"right† interests, as would a boy playing with a boy toy. They will then continue this behavior to get their parent’s approval. If a father see’s their son playing with a Barbie doll or asking to be a princess, their father might redirect them saying those are girl things urging them to play with a male biased toy. One thing Social Learning Theory has assumed is that reinforcement and punishment is the means by which parents socialize children. The study named â€Å"Parental Socialization of Young Children’s Play†, done by Eisenberg, Wolchik, Hernandez and Pasternack, observed the parent’s involvement with enforcing gender stereotypes. This study found that parents do reward their children for same-sex toy play. It is not only the toy companies that enforce gender roles in toys; the people raising the child are also responsible for teaching stereotypical thinking. The idea that cross-sexed interests are wrong does come from society and children start learning this from the time they are born. (Eisenberg, Wolchik, Hernandez and Pasternack 1506). A thirteen-year-old Swedish boy, Hannes Psajd, spoke out about the gender focused toys in â€Å"Toys-R-Us†. Hannes said that the 2008 â€Å"Toys-R-Us† Christmas Catalog showed boys playing with different toys than girls do. The boy said that he and his sister always play with the same toys and there is nothing wrong with that. Psajd said that it sends the wrong message to girls, since they are playing with only passive toys. Hannes stated â€Å"boys want to be princesses sometimes†(Landes 1), demonstrating that this store does not only discriminate against girls. When the claim was looked into by a regulatory committee they stated that, â€Å"Toys-R-Us discriminates based on gender and counteracts positive social behavior, lifestyles, and attitudes†(1). This shows that children do recognize this problem if it is brought to their attention. The problem of toys defining gender roles does not completely rest  rest with â€Å"Toys-R-Us† but is a societal problem. Society has created the gender roles we now have and these roles are often strict. While it will take time to make fundamental changes in gender bias a starting point could be the creation of more gender-neutral toys. These toys would have to find their way into homes and that could be a function of the advertising that is currently part of the problem. Parents need to be educated to nurture more flexible gender roles and allow children to explore their interests, even if this interest violates stereotypical norms. Boys and girls should have equal opportunity to play with a doll or a monster truck. Children are taught gender roles from the time they are born, toys are one way that this is taught to them. In a toy store like â€Å"Toys-R-Us†, it is clear to see which isle is for boys and which one is for girls. The colors and stereotypical gender bias toys show the clear division in the store between feminine versus masculine toys. Television advertisements depict females as being passive while they promote aggressive behavior for males, this can lead to boys acting violently in the future. Parents sometimes scold children who play with cross-sex toys, which will teach the child not to repeat this behavior. Gender roles teach a child what they are supposed to be, feminine or masculine, and toys to play a part in enforcing these gender stereotypes. Works Cited Bandura, Albert. â€Å"Psychological Modeling: Conflicting Theories†. Chicago: Aldine Atherton, 1971. Print. Eisenberg, Nancy, Walchik, Sharlene A. Hernandez, Robert, Pasternack, Jeannette F. â€Å"Parental Socialization of Young Children's Play: A Short-Term Longitudinal Study. † Child Development 56. 6 (1985): 1506-13. ERIC. EBSCO. Web. 5 Apr. 2011. Klinger, Lori J. , James A. Hamilton, Cantrell, Peggy J. â€Å"Children's Perceptions of Aggressive and Gender-Specific Content in Toy Commercials. † Social Behavior and Personality 29. 1 (2001): 11-20. PsycINFO. EBSCO. Web. 5 Apr. 2011. Landes, David. â€Å"Toys‘R’Us Scolded for Gender Discrimination. † The Local: Sweden’s News in English. 6 October 2009. Print.

History of Love Essay

The fear of losing something, whether it is one’s own life, the lives of love ones, or memories, is what drives many of the things people do. The characters in The History of Love are from different generations and have gone through different experiences but they all strive to sustain love, avoid death, stave off misery, and find a bearable truth in the sometimes unbearable reality of living. They are linked together through the theme of survival. Through different methods, they seek to physically survive and keep their love for others alive. To begin with, Bird attempts to help his sister and mother physically survive when the world ends. Bird believes that the world will end by a flood. He goes around the neighborhood looking for â€Å"things that people have thrown away with the garbage† and â€Å"Styrofoam because it floats† to build an ark (151). Bird believes that with the ark, his mother and Alma â€Å"don’t have to worry† about survival when the flood comes (204). Secondly, Alma Singer demonstrates a strong desire to physically survive and preserve her memories and connection with her deceased father by taking interest in surviving in the wilderness and reading The History of Love. When she discovers that her father loved the outdoors, Alma decides to become an expert at surviving in the wilderness in order to keep her memory of her father alive and maintain a connection with him. She learns survival skills by purchasing and closely reading a book called Edible Plants and Flowers in North America, memorizing the Universal Edibility Test, and practicing assembling her father’s tent in record time so that she can survive in places like the Peruvian Andes â€Å"like [her] father† (42). In addition, her memories of her father become more† faint, unclear, and distant† as each year passes and it does not help that her mother threw away most of his belongings (190). She turns to the book, The History of Love, hoping to â€Å"find out something true about [her] father, and the things he would have wanted to tell [her] if he hadn’t died† (181). Alma tries to keep her love and memories for her father alive by find meaning out of the passions and belongings of her father. In contrast to Alma, Charlotte Singer survives and continues her love for her husband by creating a world that focuses on her memoires and feelings for her husband, David. She survives by never falling out of love with him and keeping her love as alive â€Å"as the summer they first met† (45). She holds on to her memories and love for her husband by following sculptor and painter Alberto Giacometti’s idea that in order to â€Å"paint a leaf, you have to sacrifice the whole landscape† (45). In attempt to â€Å"hold on to a certain feeling†, Charlotte insulates herself with memories of her life with David by building a world out of them where â€Å"she [knew] how to survive in, even if no one else could† (181). As a result, she â€Å"sacrificed the world† and her connection with her children and other people (46). Similar to Charlotte, Leo’s unwavering love for Alma Mereminsky allows him to physically survive the Holocaust in Europe. With the Nazi invasion of Slonim, Leo was forced into a constant state of running and hiding. In order to survive, he hid in â€Å"trees, cracks, cellars, and holes† and lived in forests, subsiding on â€Å"anything he could put in [his] mouth† such as bugs, worms, and unclean water from puddles (12, 226). During the winter, he would hide in potato cellars for warmth and eat raw rat meat. Despite these horrible experiences, Leo’s deep love for Alma M. and his hope to reunite with her motivated Leo to want to live â€Å"very badly† and ultimately enabled him to survive the Holocaust (226). Just as Leo used the writing of The History of Love to help him survive his separation from Alma M. during his youth, at the end of his life he uses writing once again to help him survive. Leo uses writing and imagination to survive loss and loneliness. At the end of his life, he writes Words for Everything, his life story. He uses this creative process as a way to cope with the separation and loss of his parents, siblings, â€Å"the only woman [he] ever wanted to love†, son, time, and childhood home, among many other things (168). Leo also uses his imagination to survive loneliness. During his childhood he used imagination to cope with being â€Å"different than others† and later in his life, he uses it to create a friend, Bruno. Bruno, Leo’s â€Å"old faithful† is revealed to be â€Å"the friend that [he] didn’t have† and â€Å"the greatest character [he] ever wrote†, based on his childhood friend who was killed in Slonim during the Holocaust (6, 249). Bruno, someone Leo â€Å"invented so [he] could live,† was resurrected in his imagination to compensate for his inability to relate to the world and assuage his own loneliness (167). Leo uses writing and imagination to survive in different stages of his life. For the characters of The History of Love, there are different contexts and methods for survival. For Bird, it is important that his mother and sister physically survive the flood that he believes is coming. To Alma Singer, her obsession with physical survival in the wilderness stems from her attempt to keep her connection, memories, and love for her father alive. Simultaneously, Charlotte closes herself from the world so that she can preserve her love and memories of her deceased husband. Bird, Alma S., and Charlotte’s connection and methods for survival all underline Leo’s journey of survival. In the early part of his life, Leo uses his love for Alma Mereminsky to physically stay alive during the Holocaust. At the end of his life, he uses writing and imagination to survive separation, loss, and loneliness. Each character has their own story but they are connected through a strong will for their own survival and the survival of their loved ones and irreplaceable love and memories of them.