Effect on interest rates due to the investment in REITs Essay

Effect on interest rates due to the investment in REITs - Essay Example In the year 2007, the real estate industry in UK is about to give the chance to investors to invest in real estate investment trusts. These are public listed vehicles that can satisfy the record demand experienced for investment in real estate. This can increase the capital acquiring capacity of the real estate firms and it can decrease its dependence on the bank credit. This in turn may decrease the interest rates or at least remain at what they at the end of last quarter of 2006. These investments not only impact the interest rates but also, these provide the required liquidity to an asset class that is considered as inflexible. The historically inflexible asset turning into a flexible asset and the provision of the liquidity for it can decrease the demand for the bank loans. One of the factors that impact the interest rates is the liquidity of the assets. The increased liquidity of the assets of a company or the people can decrease the demand for the bank credit up to some extent. This will certainly show a negative effect on interest rates and is capable of decreasing them or can stop them from increasing. Generally the international transactions involve the risk regarding exchange rate. The interest rates also effect the forwards yet times.A contract is signed and for completion within 3 months. Generally any one thinks about the exchange rate of GBP with the currency of that country. If the interest rates are considered and if the UK rates are higher, there will be a higher cost for the forward contract. In this case one can sign forward contract with a firm in the country that is having higher interest than in UK. This will reduce the burden on the buyer if there is any delay in execution of contract. Effect of the investments These investments will result in limited partnerships that have institutions as investors. There is a chance of emergence of onshore and offshore property unit trusts that contain institutional high net worth investors. The increase of

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - Essay Example he sense of self worth of Jane Eyre is challenged right from the start of the novel, and yet she indeed manages to come out as a person having an intact and solid sense of self esteem and dignity. Being an orphan, Jane Eyre is continually marred by feelings of ostracism and insufficiency, as she is cruelly targeted and emotionally mauled by her aunt Reed and her not so sensitive progeny. At a very nascent stage in her life, Jane Eyre is made to contend with a domestic environment that continually conveys to her that she is deficient and unacceptable. Yet, irrespective of her constrained upbringing, Jane Eyre does manage to grow out of these emotionally impinging influences. During her stay at the stifling environs of Lowood, the endurance of Jane Eyre is tested to the extreme. Yet, she manages to tide over the regular abuse at this place, to garner as much learning and dignity, as comes her way. She simply refuses to give in to the daily abuse and ill will shown by Mr. Brocklehurst. Again while mentoring a restless pupil, like Adele, Jane Eyre shows a marked capacity to maintain self worth in the face of difficult situations. The other amazing thing about the moral makeup of Jane Eyre is that she carries a wisdom that dares to question the established and conventional social and ethical norms. In other words, the moral sense of Jane Eyre soars much above social compliance and a public sense of face. Right from the beginning, Jane Eyre shows a moral capacity to resist the societal and environmental influences that try to stifle the true expression of her conscience. This includes the abusive tendencies of her aunt, cousins and Mr. Brocklehurst. She is possessed with a capacity for reasoning that manages to find her way out through tough times. By deciding to give in to the overtures of Rochester she shows a capacity to challenge and act against the set norms of class and gender. She simply opposes the society’s decision to push her back to an inferior social

Software As A Service Information Technology Essay

Software As A Service Information Technology Essay SaaS is nothing but a high end software model that enhances the interaction of companies with their clients or consumers. The most common instances of SaaS are to track the shipment online or online billing. The advantage of implementing SaaS is that there is no cost incurred upon the consumers/ clients. The software is developed and ported on the internet and is accessible 247 throughout the world. This document covers the information regarding traditional Client-Server model and SaaS. Also advantages and disadvantages of SaaS are discussed in this paper. Document Overview: This document gives an overview of the SaaS, basic architecture how it is using in the real world, and describes the advantages and disadvantages of SaaS. What is SaaS: SaaS is a software application which is ready to use where user can purchase or rent the software on a monthly or yearly basis, and user nothing to worry about application software or any other installation process. Client Server Vs SaaS: Traditionally, most of the software applications have been developed using client-server model. In a client-server model, we can find many hidden costs for supporting and deploying a client server system, together with expensive hardware to install and maintain. In most of the scenarios, the initial software license worth of a client server system is only one third of the total worth of the system. Client Server Model The significance of SaaS is that is a technology platform and its becoming increasingly recognized as a more efficient way to deploy software application. SaaS model is a technique of providing the same software to dissimilar customers through a network, over the Internet. In other way, we can say that the software is not installed on the customers personal computers. SaaS model delineates a vendor is whole responsible for the creation, maintenance, enhancements and all software and hardware related updates. Customers are only responsible for initial purchase of the product or subscription to access it. This subscription includes a separate license for each individual person that will make use the software. The Saas model can add cost savings and efficiency for the both the customer and product vendor. Customers save money and time since they do not have to install drivers and maintain software programs or any other hardware related system upgrade. We get softwares from different customers through network, commonly Internet. Software is not presented in client side, it is provided by a vendor. Vendor have to be uploaded the software in the server. If anything needs to update, preparing to upload new software and maintenance of the application means software vendor has to do this. Once customer purchased the software, he gets the licensed key, it is unique and applicable for one time and no one can share the information. SaaS MODEL SaaS and SOA: SaaS also uses Service Oriented Architecture to communicate between subsystems in the Enterprise Applications. Each application subsystem can act as service to interact with other subsystems via public brokers. These services also act as service requesters. Enterprise application some time requires a web services to verify the data with some other third party agencies. In order to interact with some other application, web service call will be routed through SOA. SaaS Applications: In our real life we are currently using many SaaS applications. Those are free to use but more useful in our real world. Free SaaS Applications: Gmail Google Calendar MapQuest Google Maps. Wikipedia All these above applications have simple interfaces and powerful enough to do everything we want to do. Any types of enhancements for any SaaS application vendor do it in a single shot then everyone (customers) can use those changes on their machines without doing any operations. Profit Organizations Using SaaS Applications: FedEx Chase Air Canada Hertz Google Finance All profit organization using SaaS applications are fully tested while they going for any new application related enhancements or any application related fixes. Benefits of SaaS: Lower Costs: Most SaaS solutions are offered at a lower subscription cost (Monthly/Quarterly/Yearly) with no up-front fees. By using Saas software consumers can save a lot of money. All they have to do is pay a subscription fee for the duration of time they will be using an application for and vendors bear all the security and infrastructure costs. This is a very cost effective solution for users who may only use a software application on rare occasions. Data storage requirements: Some application can occupy a lot of hard drive space at end users systems. By using SaaS software consumers can save a lot of hot drive space because data is stored on the vendors database. Also users dont have to worry about constantly backing up the data as this is handled by SaaS vendors. SaaS vendor profits: SaaS allows software vendors to receive a continuous stream of income in the form of subscriptions. Speed of deployment: Potentially very fast as the application is already up and running on the vendors server so you just have to get your data onto the system. Simpler Solution: The less software and hardware components installed on-premise, the simpler faster the deployment becomes. The time to value is much faster compared to on-premise Alternatives usually measured in minutes. Lower Risk: In a SaaS model the customer can unsubscribe or cancel the subscription, and with no databases and application servers to install, this means lower overall risk to IT and the business. Enhance Scalability:   In SaaS Model expansion of business and contract is easily accommodated by providing the flexibility to expand their operations without having to wait for their Information Technology infrastructure to grasp up. This allows organizations to simply add new applications when they needed. This type of flexibility in other business model is not possible.   Improved Data Security: The SaaS provider has many resources to provide systematic and widespread data security options and guard the computer centers from casual access. Access Anywhere: Users can access their data by using the SaaS application from anywhere as long as they have the internet connection. This will enhance the user experience in making the work done in a faster way. Automatic Upgrades: The version of software available when you log into your SaaS account is latest because there is only one version offered. If there is an error found in the software the SaaS provider can quickly make the changes. Not Platform Specific: The software is platform independent and can be used from any operating system as long as you have an internet connection to use the application. It will enable you to use a wide variety of platforms. End User Advantages: End user or Customer no needs to main the Software, deployments in the server and updating. If new versions are release user nothing to bother about any type of operations. Vendor is responsible to upgrade the versions. But user needs to update those versions. Risks Disadvantages: More costly in the long run: Flouting point usually occurs around two to three years Less manage over the application: Customization and integration of application is more limited for end users. Vendor feasibility becomes even greater unease: Since users data is restricted by the vendor. Security issues: Since the data is stored on the servers of the SaaS application provider there might be a security issue of intruders hacking the personal information while the data is transferred over the network. To prevent this, the SaaS application providers need to apply necessary security patches. It depends on the vendor for providing good security. Limited applications: Generally SaaS vendors offer the applications which are more popular and the application user wants to use may not be he is from that group. So the only way to user use the application is to buy it and install it in his computer. Summary: In this paper we discussed about Software as a Service (SaaS) how it works in a real time and why SaaS replaced by traditional Client Server Model. Also we discussed about various types of applications that are using SaaS. At the end we discussed about advantages, Risks and disadvantages by using SaaS.

Black Bean Revival :: Coffee Drinks Essays

Black Bean Revival Sitting in a corner or side booth with eyes bulging and steam rising from the small bowl of brew while pondering or talking was the common site of coffee shop goers that I’ve run across in my travels. Fueled by an interest as to why people buy more coffee than books at my former employment and why my mother orders coffee through a catalog for coffee drinkers by coffee drinkers is my search for reason and understanding behind the coffee bar explosion. The coffee shop revival and interest in high priced brew by the well to do is something that has been around for some time in the more metropolitan areas. In Seattle, Washington the whole coffee shop revival for generation X hit during the time that the grunge music genre developed. Not that everyone could afford the high priced brew, but that it was a place to hang out during the day and help keep the pied eyes open. A couple popular sleeper movies such as â€Å"Singles† and â€Å"So I Married an Ax Murder† have showed how some people’s routines often gravitate to the coffee shop. The show â€Å"Friends† also shows that in a more late 90’s perspective. This would seem to characterize certain divisions in clientele, but not so here in Fargo. Like many other genres that were part of a sub-culture, they, the neighborhood coffee shop are eventually making their way to the mainstream Around this area where the coffee shop trend is growing but not totally established, you might think that the strong shops are the ones that are incorporated or affiliated with a major nationwide branch. By this I mean that the shop has a network of personnel higher on the ladder to lend support from the company at large. Now this doesn’t mean that the smaller locally owned shops such as Atomic Coffee, Noah’s and Trentino’s aren’t successful; they are and at times just as busy or more so than their chain store counterparts. About the only upper hand that national chains have on the smaller local shops is the mass marketing to consumers through other chains such as Target and Daytons. What the smaller shops tend to do is include the community more. They advertise more local happenings and going on’s such as poetry readings and poetry slams, to an open mic night that would include music and other thought provoking talents that their customers poss ess.

Meaningful Learning Essay

The importance of education cannot be emphasized enough, as it is the driving force behind our nation’s competitiveness on the global market, and the foundation of our status as a world leader. However, alarming recent statistics conclude that the level of education in our country is rapidly declining. This is the result of repeated failures by various governments to reform our public schools, by using methods that focus on small-part fixes rather than on changing the system at the core. The American public education system has a set of structural problems derived from the level of political involvment. In order to serve their own long term business interests, top CEOs and big corporations invest billions of dollars in our public schools, and in return they are allowed to influence the content of the education programs. In order to be successful, education reform should be free of politics, and it should be up to the experts to decide the direction of curriculum, and what methods are used to assess readiness. Grades and test results are important tools to assess knowledge, but equally important is meaningful learning inspired by competent teachers and exposure to the arts. Millions of students enrolled in the American public schools are not receiving a complete education, mainly because students’ and teachers’ performance is reduced to numbers, such as grades and test results. In order to meet the national standards, educators are under immense pressures to produce certain results, and children are mislead in thinking that if they get high scores in english and math, they are successful products of the school system. And so, under current reform, educators often lose sight of what’s important, and that is developing the child’s individuality by aiding them explore all aspects of themselves and the world around them. As a result, students no longer learn with pleasure, or for their own benefit and for the beauty of knowledge. Critics argue that â€Å"Children will race to the top when they discover passion and purpose from the inside, not because of extrinsic rewards like test scores, grades, or trophies† (Price-Mitchell 2). A child’s education should be molded around their pesonal qualities, interests, and aptitudes. In order to find out how to spark a student’s interest in the academic material, and decide what methods to use in order to motivate them, a teacher must primarily know the child’s likes and dislikes. That way, the educator should be able to connect the curriculum with examples from the student’s personal life, and things that the child can relate to. At the same time, the student will also get to know themselves and their environment better. Through self exploration, the child can find their true vocation. Self-knowledge also teaches students how to use their strenghts and how to overcome their weaknesses to improve academic performance. Therefore, in order to improve both students’ and teachers’ achievements, the public education policy should shift its focus away from high test scores, and enforce meaningful learning inspired by self-discovery. An effective school system should free teachers of the burden of restrictive polictics, and allow them to inspire meaningful learning in students, by utilizing their own personal traits, knowledge and skills. People always search for the best quality service they can get: the best doctor, the best lawyer, or the best accountant. Quality is even more relevant when we think of someone as important as the person in charge of our children’s education, which eventually dictates their path in life. That is because in a young student’s mind, the connection between their overall school experience and their teacher’s persona is so strong, that it sets the tone for their entire educational career. There are even instances when a child prefers the safehaven of a classroom, as opposed the grim reality of a bad neighborhood or a troubled household. That’s why a teacher should be more than just an instructor, they should become a child’s mentor, by developing a caring and compassionate relationship with each student. By connecting with kids on a personal level, a good teacher can taylor their technique in accordance to their students’ various interests and potentials. By arousing kids’ curiosity to the curriculum, teachers can motivate students to come to scool, and do well. Critics argue that good teachers are becoming an endangered species in the American education system, mainly because of misguided school politics â€Å"driven by the arrogance of reformers who are convinced that teaching is a simple process of delivering content. That approach is likely to increase test scores, simply by pressuring teachers to teach to the test. But †¦ t’s also likely to interfere with teachers’ ability to lure students into learning† (). Most professionals come into this field of work eager to make a difference, but even the most enthusiastic teachers lose their motivation to excel when they are met with stumbling blocks like standardized teaching methods, teaching to the test, or peer incompetency. Teachers lose their drive to do a good job when they are not allowed to conduct lectures in the way they see fit, but instead, by having to follow a factory type model. Educators lose respect for a system that does not respect them as capable individuals, and requires them to lose their identity and become as impersonal as production line workers. Continuing in the trend of measuring success by test results, teacher quality is also being wrongly assessed, and so our teachers are judged mainly by their students’ test scores in core subjects, even if those results don’t always reflect the students’ true level of education. Moreover, having to make up for their peers’ incompetency only adds to the general frustration. Lazy teachers take advantage of bureaucratic measures like tenure or reassignments, which often doubles the work load for capable teachers, and causes them to surrender under the pressure. Indeed, there are teachers who are just inheretly incompetent, but in most cases, poor teachers are just victims of bad school politics themselves. That’s why a good teacher should be allowed to develop and implement their own technique, unobstructed by counterproductive education policies, in order to guide students towards academic success. Art plays a major role in a nation’s cultural identity, and therefore, it should also be a significant part of children’s scool curriculum. A well rounded education shapes a student’s distinctive personality, and going beyond academics, it should also cultivate appreciation for visual and performing arts. Art education instills in students many qualities that cannot be otherwise be taught, like persevearance, attention to detail, leadership, and setting a high bar for personal excellence. These attitudes are crucial to the proper development of one’s work ethic. Extensive research sheds more light onto the importance of art education in connection to improved academic performance. â€Å"In music we see a lot of connections between studying keyboards and understanding mathematical concepts. We see drama as a way to help early readers develop their comprehension skills. When they have an opportunity to act out the story, they gain a greater comprehension in reading† (Baker 260). Art is fun. It is gratifying. Therefore, unbeknownst to them, the little learners deepen their cognitive skills just by practicing their artistic talents. Students can then use those skills to excel in other areas of the curriculum, by relating science projects to easy-to-understand examlples from the art world. Moreover, fun art programs can be utilized as motivation to bring kids to school. Teachers can improve attendance by craftly alternating fun art sessions with science lectures. Lastly, art education in schools is neccessary for children with extraordinarry artistic abilities, but who are academically challenged. By including creative education in its structure, our school system gives artistic students the opportunity to develop their abilities, and choose a career doing something they love. Thus, due to its versatility, art training helps students not just to gain high academic achievements, but also establish their individuality as valued members of the society. Today’s students will be tomorrow’s professionals, and as adults, they will have a major responsability to our nation’s progress and prosperity. But by then -warn analysts- they might not have the abilities to deliver the needed results, and the culprit is the current approach of our education system. Due to the recent financial crisis, school budgets have shrunk, and as a result, many teachers have been laid off, and schools have eliminated many art programs from their curriculum. Art advocates warn that children educated by the American public schools are not getting enough art education. The design of our current curriculum completely disregards the importance of art education for students’ future, by focusing soley on literacy and numeracy. â€Å"With the emphasis on reading and math skills aimed at passing the tests, school curricula are narrowed, depriving students of valuable exposure to the arts† (Taylor 2). Economic progress is made possible through innovation, and human creativity is at the root of all innovation. A new product comes to life when its creator first envisions it, and then uses their scientific knowledge to bring it to reality. There are countless industries that rely on both science and creativity, and amongst the most notable ones are the entertainment, fashion, and automobile industries. In fact, the perfect example of how visual art and science can be used together successfully is information technology – one of the most profitable industries in the world. Our country’s groudbreaking achievements in that technological field are one of the reasons for America’s competitiveness on the global market. This is proof that cognitive knowledge is necessary to our nation’s development, but it is not enough to drive progress. Therefore, by developing students’ artistic abilities hand in hand with their scientific expertise, the American school system should produce well rounded individuals, capable to promote the economical growth necessary to our nation’s prosperity for generations to come. A well rounded education should come down to a student and a teacher armed with the right tools for success: the teacher’s expertise and a balanced curriculum. The direction of our education system is majorly influenced by political interests, and ruled by the misconception that one size fits all. Yes, with the current strategies, we are producing great businessmen, but not every student is fit to be a businessman. The curriculum should be structured in a way that it can give equal opportunities to all the other students to discover what they’re good at and what they like. Otherwise they won’t be able to keep up, and would eventually drop out of school. That means America would become a nation of businessmen battling for the few jobs available in that field, and school dropouts living a life of poverty and crime. It is a grimm outlook, but also one that seems not far away. That is why our education system is in urgent need for an intervention, especially in the aftermath of the recent financial crisis, as our country is searching for a new direction. Minimizing the pressures of political involvment in America’s public schools should allow educators to perform their jobs free of pressure, to help children develop into knowledgeable and innovative citizens who will ensure our nation’s competitiveness in the 21st century.

Hamburger Hill Essay

The entire mountain is a rugged, uninviting wilderness blanketed in double- and triple-canopy jungle, dense thickets of bamboo, and waist-high elephant grass. Local Montagnard tribesmen called Ap Bia â€Å"the mountain of the crouching beast. † LTC Weldon Honeycutt, commander of the 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry (the â€Å"Rakkasans†), called it â€Å"Hill 937. † The Soldiers who fought there dubbed it â€Å"Hamburger Hill. † The ? ght on Hamburger Hill occurred during Operation Apache Snow, the second part of a three-phased campaign intended to destroy North Vietnam Army (NVA) bases in the treacherous A Shau Valley. The American and South Vietnamese units participating in Apache Snow knew, based on existing intelligence and previous experiences in the A Shau, that they were in for a tough ? ght. Beyond that, however, they had little evidence as to the enemy’s actual strength and dispositions. Masters of camou? age, the NVA completely concealed their bases from aerial surveillance. When the NVA moved, they did so at night along trails covered by triple-canopy jungle, again confounding observation from above. They effected their command and control mainly by runner and wire, leaving no electronic signature for the Americans to monitor or trace. Technology, therefore, provided scant assistance to the American battalion commander trying to â€Å"see the enemy† during Apache Snow. He had to generate his own tacticalintelligence. Patrols, captured equipment, installations, documents, and occasionally prisoners provided combat commanders with the raw data from which to draw their assessment of the enemy order of battle and dispositions. Gathering this information took time, though. Moreover, intelligence about the enemy’s strength and dispositions did not necessarily illuminate his commander’s intent. It took days to ascertain this, and the learning experience proved decidedly unpleasant for the Americans. On 11 May, Honeycutt dispersed his Rakkasans and scoured the vicinity to the north and northwest of Ap Bia Mountain. When Bravo Company made heavy contact with some NVA late in the day, Honeycutt adjusted his estimate of the enemy’s strength from â€Å"a few trail watchers† to a reinforced platoon or even a company. The Rakkasans could still deal with a force that size, but they would have to concentrate to do so. For the next three days, Honeycutt fought the mountain and the NVA to bring his scattered companies together for a coordinated battalion attack. Despite the fact that, since the initial assault, no company was more than about 1,500 meters from the crest of the mountain, it took two days to consolidate the battalion for a three-company assault. Time and again, the American infantrymen found themselves hampered as much by the topography as by the enemy. The rugged terrain slowed dismounted movement to a crawl. Between 12 and 14 May, for example, Delta Company was virtually immobilized when it went down a steep ravine and was caught there by the enemy. In one grueling ? ve-hour period, the company labored to advance a total of only 500 meters. The steep, mud-covered slopes, more than the enemy, kept this company from ful? lling Honeycutt’s intent. In the end, the troops had to abandon their attack and withdraw the way they had come. These three days were a period of intensely unpleasant â€Å"discovery learning† for Honeycutt and his men. Map reconnaissance and helicopter over-? ights did not indicate that his initial scheme of maneuver was impractical. It took Delta Company’s three-day ordeal to do so. Though Honeycutt had a long and distinguished record as a combat commander in both Vietnam and Korea, he underestimated Ap Bia Mountain and the NVA facing him. Although his estimate of the enemy strength was incorrect, his miscalculation was not immediately apparent to him or to any of the American leadership. It took three days of assaults by Bravo and Charlie Companies, each bloodily repulsed, before the situation became clearer. The enemy was stronger than anticipated, much stronger than company strength, and he grew more powerful every night as he received reinforcements from Laos. The NVA commander’s demonstrated tenacity and willingness to replace heavy losses indicated he intended to put up a stiff ? ght for Hill 937 (Scalard).

How to Use the Irregular French Verb Recevoir

How to Use the Irregular French Verb Recevoir The French verb recevoir (pronounced ruh-say-vwah) is one of the more challenging to learn because its highly irregular once you get into the past tense and other conjugations. Translated as to receive or to get, this verb is so irregular that it doesnt fit in any pattern.   Usage Recevoir is whats commonly known in French as an irregular ir- verb. These verbs dont follow the regular patterns of conjugation, so students have to memorize them individually. Other ir- verbs include:  asseoir, courir, devoir, falloir, mourir, pleuvoir, pouvoir, recevoir, savoir, tenir, valoir, venir, voir  and  vouloir. Verbs that end in -cevoir are conjugated the same way. These include: apercevoir   to catch sight of, to foreseeconcevoir  Ã‚  to conceivedà ©cevoir  Ã‚  to disappointpercevoir  Ã‚  to perceiverecevoir  Ã‚  to receive Uses and Expressions The table below includes only simple conjugations of the irregular French -ir verb recevoir. It does not include compound tenses, which include a form of the auxiliary verb avoir and the past participle. recevoir une salaire to get paidrecevoir un prix to be awarded a prize / to be given a prize or awardrecevoir un cadeau to get / receive / be given a giftrecevoir  courrier /  coup de tà ©là ©phone to get mail /  to get a telephone callVeuillez recevoir, Madame, lexpression de mes sentiments les meilleurs  ou  mes salutations distinguà ©es Yours sincerelyrecevoir un coup sur la tà ªte to receive a blow to the headrecevoir  quelquun dà ®ner   to invite someone to dinnerJai à ©tà © mal reà §u. I was made to feel unwelcome.La maison peut recevoir six personnes. The house sleeps six people.Le mà ©decin reà §oit/ne reà §oit pas aujourdhui. The doctor is / isnt seeing patients today.se faire recevoir   to get told offJe nai de conseils recevoir de personne  ! I dont have to take advice from anybody!Elle sait merveilleusement recevoir. Shes a marvelous hostess. / Shes marvelous at entertaining. Simple Conjugations of the Irregular French -ir Verb Recevoir Present Future Imperfect Present Participle je reois recevrai recevais recevant tu reois recevras recevais il reoit recevra recevait nous recevons recevrons recevions vous recevez recevrez receviez ils reoivent recevront recevaient    Pass compos Auxiliary verb avoir Past participle reu Subjunctive Conditional Pass simple Imperfect subjunctive je reoive recevrais reus reusse tu reoives recevrais reus reusses il reoive recevrait reut rect nous recevions recevrions remes reussions vous receviez recevriez retes reussiez ils reoivent recevraient reurent reussent Imperative (tu) reois (nous) recevons (vous) recevez

The Black Exodus Into Time essays

The Black Exodus Into Time essays We are living in a time of modernization. The impact of modernization has had a tremendous affect on the black community of America. Through this modernization, we have created a struggle among the search for black identity. For years, we (Blacks) have been struggling to empower the black community by incorporating our race into the powers that be or the white community. In our time of struggle, hopelessness has taken over the mindset of many Black-Americans. We still have a deep sense of alienation, despair, and uncertainty among our culture. The idea of black identity can be looked at through many different aspects, but there is only two critical ways of really looking at it in my mind. Those two categories are that of nationalist and assimilationist, black-identified or white-identified respectively (Hooks, 4). Looking at this idea of black identity, we can pose a basis of how all people of the middle-class black community can collect together to further involve ourselves i n the white mans society as a group collectively to achieve a higher level of respect and understanding. To begin this new social-revolutionary period, the help of the black-middle class people is needed. The white-identified black persons or assimilationists need to reassess their relationship with this pop-culture and rejoin the resistance struggle along side the brothers of color until our people as a whole is better accepted by the society of today (Hooks, 4). The time is now for the final step of the advancement of the black people in todays society. This new revolution has been going on for years now, from our educated brothers in Africa, to people like Denmark Vesey, all the way up to the middle class Blacks or the Aristocrats of color. According to Bell Hooks, this revolution is dependent on the educated middle class Blacks, the intellectuals. We may look to the white-identified black persons for help, but it may be to no avail. ...

Business Law for Unconscionability

Unconscionability is a legal protection against the enforcement of a contract that is unfair to one party. If the contract is unfair that is shows an abuse during its formation, the jury may find it unconscionable and decline to employ it. In most occasions when a court finds an agreement to be unconscionable, they declare the contact as annulled. No issuance of specific performance or pensations is awarded, but in its place, the parties will be relieved from their contract responsibilities (Mccullough, 2016). Other than that, the reason why it may mean that a contract is enforceable under the law is because such contracts favor only the dominant party, thus, making it unfair to the weaker party. The leading cases of unconscionable conduct are in transactions between stronger and weaker parties. It is therefore partly related to duress and unwarranted influence. It is mon where a superior party manipulates the weaker party with special disabilities such as old age, lack of education, illiteracy and much more. The transaction is also oppressive and harsh to the weaker partner. Its is also mon in business contracts where there are provisions that limit damages against the seller, prevents the rights of the buyer to seek court help against the seller, among others (Mccullough, 2016). Additionally, it is also found in acts of deceit and fraud. It is whereby one party deliberately misrepresents a fact that deprives an individual of an expensive possession. The main reason why such laws exist in the business world is because it is used to limit the dominant parties from fraudulently manipulating the weaker parties in business contracts. It is meant to reduce exploitation of the consumers who are poorly educated, less fortunate, and cannot be able to get the best price available in the petitive trade (Mccullough, 2016). On the other hand, it prevents the undue influence, whereby one party practice unreasonable authority to make the other party sign the contract. Additionally, it used in business to prevent the use of threat to make other parties agree to the contract. Furthermore, it prevents the dominant party from limiting their liabilities to breach of contract. There are various characteristics of the unequal bargain that must or might demonstrate unconscionability. These characteristics may include duress, undue influence, unfair surprise, limited warranty, and unequal bargaining power. To start with, duress is a situation where one party uses threats so that to make the other party agree to the contract terms and conditions. It can be physical or any other form of threat. For example, the seller may refuse to release the goods rightfully until the other parties append his signature on the contract. Additionally, undue influence is a situation whereby one party practices irrational pressure to make the other party signs the contract. This happens under circumstances where one party takes advantage of the other party in one way or the other. Moreover, unfair surprise takes place when the party who developed the contract inserts a term in the agreement without the awareness and anticipation of the other party (Marrow & Penn, 2013). Furthermo re, limiting warranty is a situation in which one party tries to minimize their liability for damages that may be as a result of his actions. Lastly, unequal bargaining power happens where one party has an unfair advantage over the other (Landrum, 2014). It occurs when the dominant party obviously knows that the other party lacks the knowledge of what the contract entails. A good example of these characteristics is when a business broker requires a customer to sign an agreement, but within the accord, he inserts a difficult term to understand. The broker writessuch terms using tiny fonts and placed the phrase in a manner that will mislead the customer to sign in the unwarranted term. The legislation that supports the principle that a contract may be so unfair that it is unenforceable is section 2-302 of the Uniform mercial Code. Under this Act, if the jury finds that any section of the contract could have been unconscionable at its time of formation, the court may refuse to put into effect the agreement (Landrum, 2014). Additionally, the court may also implement the remainder part with no unconscionable section, or it may stop the application of any section that is unconscionable so that to avoid an unconscionable ou e. Moreover, when it appears to the court that any of the sections of the contract or if the contract is unconscionable the parties shall be awarded a sensible chance to present evidence as to its business situation, reason and effect to help the jury in deciding the case. The doctrine of unconscionability got formed when it was realized that some contracts would be injurious to one party, despite the available limiting public policies, that the court should be able to practice some manner of discretion (Landrum, S 2014). The judge, in such cases, is permitted to interpret the situation and to introduce her own understanding of what is to be treated as unconscionable or conscionable within her jurisdiction under the court of law . Courts concentrate on the size and the setting of the business transaction to see whether the deceptive or authoritarian tactics were applied. It also examines if there was the use of fine print in the contract, for example, if the contents of the contract were readable to all parties. Additionally, the court also scrutinizes to know the familiarity and education of the party that claims for unconscionability (Landrum, 2014). Further, examines the situation to know whether there was a disparity in the bargaining power. However, for the court to decide on the case, it first analyzes whether there were actual conditions of the contract that unreasonably favors the party to whom unconscionability is r mended. Being that the courts have been reluctant in addressing the issues concerning the unfair or unequal business between the bank and the consumer has really favored the banks and other larger institutions. In most cases courts have ruled cases in favor of the bank because of the contract term and conditions. Where the courts have looked entirely at the written document to determine the rights of each party, the creditor, which is the bank, prevails. In many cases contract laws have failed to provide debtors with enough remedies against the tortuous conduct of creditors (Winter, 2008). However, the real importance of debtors win lies in the recognition of some courts, for example, the Australian Part 2B of the Victorian Fair Trade Act 1999 that has tried to hold the banking industry to high values of good faith and conduct. In 2003 Australian government introduced a new Section 2B of Victorian Fair Trade Act 1999 and made it a law . This provision of Part 2B of nullifies any term in a customer contract that is not fair. In banks, if a contract condition or term that imposes a cheque is unfair according to Part 2B of the Fair Trading Act, it will be nullified, which is fairly different from whether it is unenforceable or not as a fine under the law (Winter, 2008). Section 32W of the Fair Trade Act shows that in a consumer contract a phrase can get observed as unfair if, â€Å"contrary to the requirements of good faith and in all the circumstances, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties’ rights and obligations emerging under the contract to the detriment of the consumer† (Consumer Action, 2013) Moreover, article 32X also presents directions as to whether a condition or a term may get considered unfair. Therefore, it can be said that Part 2B renders dishonor charges unenforceable by financing institutions against customers. Banking sectors are still entitled to recover defaulter's cost, but they are not entitled to use penalty fees when recovering the cost they have incurred due to customers who have defaulted. Under Part 2B of the Victoria Fair Trading Act, penalty fees might be annulled as unfair (Cornell, 2016).   Because banks are not disclosing the accurate cost of the customer defaults, it will remain difficult for both the regulatory authorities and customers to conclusively or accurately make an assessment of whether dishonor fees are penalties or liquidated damages. However, given the plexities that an individual customer may face, especial the low-i e consumers, in trying to stop penalty fees charged on their accounts by banks, it is, therefore, vital that the re gulatory authority take charge. The regulatory authorities should imperatively take steps in safeguarding the customers and stop the financing institutions from stressing their customers by charging lawfully unenforceable fines. From the readings I have had, I found the case between Centerre Bank of Kansas City v. Distributors, Inc. to be an interesting one with regard to unfair agreements and the attitude of the courts when making a decision on the enforceability of a contract. The debtors bought a business after they had been promised by the bank that it would continue with the pany’s line of credit. The debtors were told by the bank's credit officer that the bank will only continue with the credit line if they will personally guarantee the loan. However, the loan officer failed to disclose to them that the bank considered the loan at a risk, and was, therefore, arranging to demand full payment of all the money that previously had been disbursed. Depending on the assurance from the loan officer, debtors bought the business and submitted their personal guarantees to the bank. After three days, the bank continued with its arrangement of demanding full payment of the credit. The debtors surrendered the ir business assets to the bank because of failing to find another financing. After the bank liquidated the business assets, they realized was less and decided to sue debtors in which they collected further $400,000 on the guarantees that debtors provided (Rich, 2004). The debtors decided to countersue the bank by challenging that the bank fraudulently made a misrepresentation. The also claimed that the bank breached the agreement of good faith and fair dealing. After jury ruling in favor of the debtors, the bank forwarded an appeal. The court of appeal held that the written contract was an integrated agreement. The court found that the written contract gave the bank privileges to demand payment at any time and that the bank auction was acceptable (Rich, 2004). The court also noted that the relationship between the debtors and the bank was based on borrowing and lending and that debtors were not owed a fiduciary obligation to the bank. Additionally, the failure of the bank to disclose its plans concerning the loan did not make it fraudulent. Consequently, the court stated that the conduct of the bank was fair and in good faith. The role of the consumer advocate groups regarding unfair agreement are: (1) to support the vulnerable Victorian customers who are facing financial difficulty. (2) Promoting the financial counseling sector by using its casework, law reform, and advocacy, to take up and uphold best practice. (3) working with the government, utilities, debt collection, banks and other stakeholders to improve approaches to financial problems for defenseless customers (Consumer Action. 2013). My research showed that there are other similar groups to Financial and Consumer Rights Council (FCRC) – Victoria. Some of such groups may include: On the other hand, one of the issues in Australia that demonstrated the characteristics of unconscionable by a vendor who supplied vacuum cleaners to various ladies who were over 80 years of age. The case was ACCC v Lux Distributors Pty Ltd in 2013 (Jade.io. 2013). Australia petition and Consumer mission won the case against Lux Distributors. Consumer Action.(2013). Australian Consumer Organisations - Consumer Action. [online] Available at: https://consumeraction.org.au/help-for-consumers/who-else-can-help/australian-consumer-organisations/ Cornell, N 2016, 'A plainant-Oriented Approach to UnconscionabilityAnd Contract Law', University Of Pennsylvania Law Review, 164, 5, pp. 1131-1175, Jade.io. (2013).BarNet Jade - Find recent Australian legal decisions, judgments, case summaries for legal professionals (Judgments And Decisions Enhanced). [online] Available at: https://jade.io/article/300107 [Accessed 23 May 2017]. Landrum, S 2014, 'Much ado about nothing?: What the Numbers Tell us about how State Courts Apply the Unconscionability Doctrine to Arbitration Agreements', Marquette Law Review, 97, 3, pp. 751-812, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, viewed 23 May 2017. Marrow, P, & Penn, C 2013, 'The "Circle Of Assent" Doctrine and the Mandatory Pre-Dispute Arbitration Clause: When The Unconscionable Contract Analysis Just Won't Do', Dispute Resolution Journal, 68, 3, pp. 1-28, Mccullough, C 2016, 'UnconscionabilityAs A Coherent Legal Concept', University Of Pennsylvania Law Review, 164, 3, pp. 779-825, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, viewed 23 May 2017. Rich, N. (2004). Unfair fees: A report into penalty fees charged by Australian banks. Winter, CS 2008, 'The Rap on Clickwrap: How Procedural Unconscionability is Threatening the E merce Marketplace', Widener Law Journal, 18, 1, pp. 249-292.

Report On Product Costing For Dumbellow Ltd Essay

Report On Product Costing For Dumbellow Ltd - Essay Example Furthermore, the production manager considered re-organization of production activities and also the use of a cheaper component of product Z. though all these proposals are viable; they have various shortcomings which may outweigh their expected benefit. In addition, a comparison of marginal costing and full costing (absorption costing) is dealt with in this report. The advantages of using marginal costing instead of full costing, in decision making, are discussed. In conclusion, the shortcomings of the analyses of various proposals examined in this report are identified. Recommendations on the best way to handle the case of product Z are also discussed at the end of this report. Key strategies that were recommended include reorganization of the production processes and the termination of the product. 2.0 Background Information Dumbellow Ltd is a manufacturing company that produces three industrial valves which are incorporated into equipment used in the Oil and Gas industry. The boa rd of Directors of the company is meeting on 3rd of October to discuss the draft budget for the following year, a few months before the start of that calendar and financial year. They are concerned about two issues; the deterioration of product Z in terms of its profitability in the present period and the financial year and the failure of the company to make a total profit of at least ?400k to meet their required 20% return on capital. Owing to the dissatisfaction of the board, the managers of Dumbellow Ltd raised varying proposals on ways to boost the profitability of the company. These diverse views prompted the formation of a group of five members with an objective of writing this report and making recommendations to the board on the most optimal course of action (Lewis, 2001). 3.0 Marginal Costing and Absorption Costing Marginal costing, unlike full costing, focuses on the additional costs of producing one ore more units of a product or service. Under this method, the cost of ma terials and labour are the only components which make up the marginal cost. Other costs such as rent and taxes are considered fixed since they will have been covered. For this reason, marginal cost is easier to compute and thus preferable for quick decision making. Besides saving on time, marginal costing it helps in the generation of additional profit. Every organization aims at maximizing profits which in turn facilitates growth of the business organization. One of the ways of maximizing profits is through reduction or minimization of costs, mostly the costs of production. Dumbellow ltd, for example, through marginal costing can utilize the spare capacity available to produce more of their products. In this case, fixed costs will not be considered since they are already paid; only labour and material costs matters. This enables managers to see quick means of generating extra profit. However, if full costing is used by the company to access the cost of producing extra units, it wil l be found unprofitable or t result in negligible profits because of fixed costs included and it will require a lo of time (Elliot & Elliot, 2004). Marginal costing brings about better performances but significant risk is experienced. Businesses using full costing sets their prices by ensuring that all costs are covered and a profit margin is also included. This calculated profit

Brugel's Wisdom and How It May Have Changed the Destiny of K Essay

Brugel's Wisdom and How It May Have Changed the Destiny of K - Essay Example The wisdom of Brugel seems to be, on the other hand, one that is based on knowing that the whole situation is absurd, and one of seemingly being above all that absurdity, carrying on a somewhat lithe and nonchalant attitude towards all that is happening in The Castle, and in some way towards his own role in the bureaucracy as a kind of petty official, a secretary to a minor official in the Castle, who must himself be subjected to the same kind of whimsical nonsense that seems to pervade the transactions in the Castle. Against the determined somberness and seriousness of K, Brugel seems to take a counterpoint attitude of frivolity, lightness of attitude, and a somewhat carefree regard for the duties of the Castle, its effects on the secretary's life, and the role that he must fulfill within that bureaucracy in order to survive. In other words, where wisdom resides in Brugel is in that very attitude of not taking anything in the Castle, and not even taking himself or his boss, or his r ole in the castle, so seriously. Brugel seems to say, for one, that life is not all that serious, that in fact the seriousness is an outward expression of a person who is so taken up by his own efforts to understand something where there is nothing to understand, which seems to be the fate and the attitude that K has taken on for himself, so gloomy in contrast to the light attitude of Brugel. This wisdom of Brugel, if it did not change the fate of K, certainly at least must have changed somewhat K's perception of the Castle, and how he sees himself and his destiny in the context of an overly gloomy conception of life with the bureaucracy (Kafka). Discussion In the face of the difficulties faced by K with the bureaucracy, for one, with getting a job that suits his function as a surveyor of the land, Brugel's attitude is one of carefree nonchalance, detachment, and a sense that anything can be had and done without any serious effort whatsoever on the part of anyone dealing with the bu reaucracy. Brugel was an insider, for sure, but also he was a mere secretary, and one, moreover, who spends a lot of his time not inside that bureaucratic machinery, working with papers and dealing with functionaries, but one who goes out to the castle to liaise between the people of the village and Brugel's boss. There is the exchange in the novel that highlights this, where Brugel expressed his condolences to K when K said that he is unable to work as a surveyor of the land, when Brugel, out of a sense of kindness maybe, or out of a sense of courtesy, or just wanting to get the small talk going, asked him how he was doing in terms of work. Brugel's attitude here is one of lightness, of conveying somewhat that the secretary was most sympathetic to K's plight, but that meanwhile there was really nothing to worry about. K, to Brugel, must have looked like someone who is gloomy for no reason. Why, there is no need to fret about that little detail about the surveying job, all it takes is for Brugel to look at it, no problem! This is at least how Brugel seems to see the situation. It was somewhat of a startling point to K, upon seeing and hearing Brugel talk and act this way, that here was an official who did not seem to know the difficulties that went to K's landing in the place and being given the run around with

Development of the new england colonies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Development of the new england colonies - Essay Example In 1608, a branch of separatist group of Scrooby decided to flee to Holland. This group comprised of humble individuals, and in Holland, they found low paying jobs. This situation caused some people of the group to quit for other religions. In 1620, a large group of separatist pilgrim left for Mayflower a region that was named Plymouth situated on the Coast of what is today Southeastern Massachusetts. Unfortunately, this group encountered many problems in the new world. For instance, they had the difficulty of crossing the ocean and inadequate supply of food left many hungry. The local Indians assisted Plymouth Colony, and they survived the harsh conditions (Smith 1963, 33). Many puritans who were still living in England were now interest in colonization. In 1629, a group of lawyers and merchants organized a company they called Massachusetts Bay. As time went by, Massachusetts received a royal charter securing its rights to govern the region of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. It too k a short time for people to settle in New England by about over twenty thousand settlers. According to Anderson (1992, 66-68), the settlers built towns in the New World. Charles II continued to issue royal charters to these immigrants in 1660s, in that some of them decided to settle in Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut and Rhodes Island. Massachusetts successfully conquered New Hampshire in the 1640’s but it was until 1679 when it became a separate colony. In addition, the New England colonists divided the land among themselves in that some families had about 150 acres of land. As this habit continued, the increasing number of young families moved on to western Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. Men headed their families in that they sought strict respect and obedience from their children even when they became adults. On the other hand, wives were to be submissive to their husbands. During that time, the law demanded that women who possessed any property were required to surrender it before marriage. At that time, the issue of divorce was almost impossible until the dawn of late eighteenth century. When elections were held in colonies, women were not allowed to vote. Only the widows and single women in society held the same rights as men. The colonies utilized town meetings as basis of their self-governance whereby, town meetings required unanimous consent of all town men. Church played a vital role in the development of new colonies in England. Churches were established at the same time towns were being built. Ministers held much power in that they had the ability to influence over the private and public lives of the people but held no government offices. The colonists were demanded to attend church services and assist ministers in their work in all colonies. New England did not enjoy harmony as the arriving immigrants from England who began to settle in New England disagreed with the local people. These conflicts emerged over different issues such as the right way to regulate livestock, plant crops and distribute land. Towns developed and became overcrowded resulting in many families relocating to outlying districts and wanted to establish their own schools and churches. Religion was the main banning issue in New England among the colonies such as Virginia, New Hampshire, a

Prayer and Personal Character Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Prayer and Personal Character - Essay Example Prayer, more than anything else, is a sign of humility, a sign of submissions to a higher power and a confession of the fact that one is in need of help from an outside source. In other words, prayer is a way to realise that one is not in total control of their life and that there is a higher power. As insignificant as this may seem, the fact is that prayer changes one’s attitude towards life and especially towards other people and objects in life. Prayer makes one realise that life is about humility and therefore it affects the way they regard themselves and others. It creates a different view of the world and brings in a person to a point where they have to realise that they need to live in peace with other people. This can be seen in the most famous Christian prayer found in Luke 11:2–4 as well as other verses in the New Testament. Jesus gave this prayer as a model around which every Christian should model their prayer. Most other religions surround their prayer arou nd this kind of a model which has three dimensions. Recognition of self inadequacy Prayer is the ultimate recognition of just how inadequate a person is on their own, it is a confession of the fact that one needs outside help and not just any outside help but outside help form a higher power. This leads to recognition of a higher power which means that the individual will surrender themselves to this higher power. Lack of prayer definitely leads to a deflation of this important aspect of a person. Recognition of need to have a good relationship with others As in the model discussed above, it is clear that one needs to be forgiven of their wrong doing. Jesus said, â€Å"Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who wrong us.† This is very significant because Jesus did not just ask for forgiveness but actually indicated that that forgiving others is a major part of oneself asking for forgiveness. It is an indication that for us to really understand what it takes for others to for give us, we must ourselves forgive others. This is one important aspect of prayer, it creates a scenario where a person becomes well rounded, recognising their part in the society, their need to relate well with others as well as their need to relate well with their God. Affects the way I act Because of the above explained aspects of prayer, it affects the way an individual acts and lives their lives. Understanding the need to be forgiven reminds the person of the need to reduce the instances where she or he will need to be forgiven. Understanding the need to forgive other people leads to the individual creating the least quarrels with those around her. Prayer therefore is a process of building character by realising that the world is to be shared with everybody else. Prayer is the antidote for the innate selfish character of a human being which only serves self (Coburn 59). A prayerful person is therefore not able to be selfish and self centred but understands that the world is to be shared with everybody else. They realise the importance of treating others with respect and with love. One also realises the importance of forgiving the others, for they have to forgive others to expect to be forgiven by others as well as by God. Prayer therefore not only changes the way we look at the world but also the way we act. It affects the very character of an

Impact of Slavery in Virginia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Impact of Slavery in Virginia - Essay Example The period of war brought an opportunity for many slaves to get freed without formal emancipation. The eagerness of Britain to debase the economy in their colonies leads to freeing of many slaves who accepted to fight in the American cause (Taylor, 2013). The revolutionary sentiments rose and provided the pressure that would later lead to the release of slaves from bondage and forced labor. The war of the independence for Americans further contributed to the release of slaves during this period. The internal enemies referred in the title of Tylor’s book were the slaves of Virginia. Their story is well told by Tailor in the fight for independence. A war that made the British government officers promise freedom for the slaves who managed to flee their bondage and escaped their rebellious owners. These slaves were encouraged to enlist in the Forces. These slaves were instrumentally a significant resource to Britain during this war. Their understanding of the surrounding countryside of Virginia made it necessary for them to be enlisted with the forces because the invaders did not have an understanding of the countryside (Taylor, 2013). As such they would provide a counter war that would defeat the invaders. Thus the British war effort found the escaping slaves very crucial to them. Soon, the British officers were taking steps to emancipate the whole slave families that had taken advantage of the American Revolution to free themselves in Canada and the Caribbean.

Development of the new england colonies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Development of the new england colonies - Essay Example In 1608, a branch of separatist group of Scrooby decided to flee to Holland. This group comprised of humble individuals, and in Holland, they found low paying jobs. This situation caused some people of the group to quit for other religions. In 1620, a large group of separatist pilgrim left for Mayflower a region that was named Plymouth situated on the Coast of what is today Southeastern Massachusetts. Unfortunately, this group encountered many problems in the new world. For instance, they had the difficulty of crossing the ocean and inadequate supply of food left many hungry. The local Indians assisted Plymouth Colony, and they survived the harsh conditions (Smith 1963, 33). Many puritans who were still living in England were now interest in colonization. In 1629, a group of lawyers and merchants organized a company they called Massachusetts Bay. As time went by, Massachusetts received a royal charter securing its rights to govern the region of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. It too k a short time for people to settle in New England by about over twenty thousand settlers. According to Anderson (1992, 66-68), the settlers built towns in the New World. Charles II continued to issue royal charters to these immigrants in 1660s, in that some of them decided to settle in Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut and Rhodes Island. Massachusetts successfully conquered New Hampshire in the 1640’s but it was until 1679 when it became a separate colony. In addition, the New England colonists divided the land among themselves in that some families had about 150 acres of land. As this habit continued, the increasing number of young families moved on to western Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. Men headed their families in that they sought strict respect and obedience from their children even when they became adults. On the other hand, wives were to be submissive to their husbands. During that time, the law demanded that women who possessed any property were required to surrender it before marriage. At that time, the issue of divorce was almost impossible until the dawn of late eighteenth century. When elections were held in colonies, women were not allowed to vote. Only the widows and single women in society held the same rights as men. The colonies utilized town meetings as basis of their self-governance whereby, town meetings required unanimous consent of all town men. Church played a vital role in the development of new colonies in England. Churches were established at the same time towns were being built. Ministers held much power in that they had the ability to influence over the private and public lives of the people but held no government offices. The colonists were demanded to attend church services and assist ministers in their work in all colonies. New England did not enjoy harmony as the arriving immigrants from England who began to settle in New England disagreed with the local people. These conflicts emerged over different issues such as the right way to regulate livestock, plant crops and distribute land. Towns developed and became overcrowded resulting in many families relocating to outlying districts and wanted to establish their own schools and churches. Religion was the main banning issue in New England among the colonies such as Virginia, New Hampshire, a

Impact of Slavery in Virginia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Impact of Slavery in Virginia - Essay Example The period of war brought an opportunity for many slaves to get freed without formal emancipation. The eagerness of Britain to debase the economy in their colonies leads to freeing of many slaves who accepted to fight in the American cause (Taylor, 2013). The revolutionary sentiments rose and provided the pressure that would later lead to the release of slaves from bondage and forced labor. The war of the independence for Americans further contributed to the release of slaves during this period. The internal enemies referred in the title of Tylor’s book were the slaves of Virginia. Their story is well told by Tailor in the fight for independence. A war that made the British government officers promise freedom for the slaves who managed to flee their bondage and escaped their rebellious owners. These slaves were encouraged to enlist in the Forces. These slaves were instrumentally a significant resource to Britain during this war. Their understanding of the surrounding countryside of Virginia made it necessary for them to be enlisted with the forces because the invaders did not have an understanding of the countryside (Taylor, 2013). As such they would provide a counter war that would defeat the invaders. Thus the British war effort found the escaping slaves very crucial to them. Soon, the British officers were taking steps to emancipate the whole slave families that had taken advantage of the American Revolution to free themselves in Canada and the Caribbean.

The theatrical drama Essay Example for Free

The theatrical drama Essay Eddies life is very good to him at the start of the play and his ideas of manliness never really come under threat. That is until Marco and Rodolpho arrive. Marco and Rodolpho are Beatrices nephews and have illegally emigrated from Italy. Marco and Rodolpho are at the two furthest points away from each other on Eddies manliness scale. Marco is very manly, more so than Eddie. He is very strong, very quiet and cares more about the necessities of living than having a good time. Rodolpho on the other hand does not conform to Eddies views of manliness at all and this creates minor conflicts on a regular basis, but Eddie really begins so dislike Rodolpho when he starts to have a relationship with Catherine. Eddie begins to tell everybody that Rodolpho aint right and is no good. He accuses Rodolpho of being effeminate and suspects that his blond hair isnt natural and says that his singing makes him sound like a chorus girl. Eddie makes these links because he is intellectually limited and acts by instinct and prejudice. Eddies lack of intelligence eventually leads to him actually believing all of the things hes made up about Rodolpho. This leads to conflicts, as he feels threatened when he tries to justify his accusations and ends up being quite comical. An example of this is when he goes to see Mr Alfieri (his lawyer). Eddie is asking Mr Alfieri what he can do to stop Rodolpho marrying Catherine. Mr Alfieri is telling Eddie that he cant do anything and he can only deal in whats provable and the only thing thats provable is that hes an immigrant. Eddie then begins to get annoyed and tells Mr Alfieri that The guy aint right and hes a blond guy. Like platinum But Mr Alfieri cannot understand what Eddie is trying to say. This is because Eddie really doesnt know whats hes saying, hes just making it up as he goes along. This is highlighted by the constant pauses when he is speaking. Eddies constant stuttering as he tries to make Mr Alfieri understand what he is trying to say, shows the audience that he is lying/making it up. Eddies dislike of Rodolpho bubbles under the surface throughout Act One and in Act Two Eddie and Rodolpho have a conflict, which is a pivotal moment in the structure of the play. Eddie comes home drunk to find that Catherine and Rodolfo have been in the bedroom together. He immediately thinks the worst and tells Rodolfo to get out of his house. Catherine argues with him and then decides that she has to leave as well but Eddie grabs her. Rodolfo reacts angrily to this and flies at Eddie in attack. To this Eddie pins him to the floor and unexpectedly kisses him. Eddie gets up with tears rolling down his face and laughs, mocking Rodolpho. This is a big moment as it is the first time Eddie has acted to back up his displeasure of the way Rodolfo has acted but it evidently hasnt helped his cause of getting Catherine to split up with him and has in fact caused more of a friction between himself and Catherine. It is also the first time that Eddie has shown very non masculine behaviour, by firstly kissing Rodolpho on the lips which completely contradicts Eddies accusations of Rodolpho being a homosexual and shows Eddie as being a hypocrite and secondly by crying, although both of these things could be blamed on Eddies drunken state. It is usually when someone is drunk that they forget to carry on their charade and reveal who they really are.

Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank Of The Philippines

Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank Of The Philippines Republic Act No. 6848, otherwise known as The Charter of the Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines outlines that the primary purpose of the Islamic bank is to promote and accelerate the socio-economic development of the Autonomous Region by performing banking, financing and investment operations and to establish and participate in agricultural, commercial and industrial ventures based on the Islamic concept of banking. In addition to allowing the bank to act as a universal bank capable of offering both conventional and Islamic banking products and services, the Sections No. 10 11 of the charter respectively provide incentives in the form of investor protection, and grant the bank the ability to accept grants and donations (Congress of the Philippines, 1989). Dimapunong (2006) provides background information and commentary on the rules and regulations governing the Al-Amanah Islamic Bank. A founding chairman of the bank, the author also wrote about the role of former senator Mamintal A. Tamanos role in the establishment of the original Philippine Amanah Bank, the precursor of the current Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines. A rare representative from Muslim Mindanao, the late senator was supposedly the first to envision a Muslim bank in the Philippines, at a time when modern Islamic banking was at its infancy. According to the author, the original PAB was not properly Shariah-compliant leading Ulama counsels to complain about the institution misleading the public. By 1988 it had been deemed a complete failure having already gone bankrupt (Dimapunong A. A.). Sandra Isnaji (2003) conducted a SWOT (Strength-Weakness-Opportunity-Threat) analysis of the Amanah Bank and prescribes a rehabilitation plan for the institution involving infusions of capital from the government in order to get rid of the banks debt and to invest in new infrastructure. Her paper was aimed at answering three questions with regard to the beleaguered banks status: (1) Where are we now? (2) Where do we want to be? and (3) How do we get there? To that extent, Isnaji looked at the state of Islamic banking industry as a whole, the state of the Philippine financial system, and the state of the Amanah bank itself. With regard to the Amanah Banks operations, Isnaji (2003) states that (at the time of writing) it operates on a two-window system in which it offers both Islamic and conventional financial products and services. And while the institution faced no competition from other Islamic banks, it faced stiff competition from the countrys conventional financial institutions, both formal and informal. With regard to the Philippine banking sector, the author used Porters Five Forces framework to analyze the ABs competition within it. The author findings are as follows: (1) With regard to the bargaining power of suppliers: the tight control of the Bangko Sentral affords it high bargaining power, to the advantage of state-owned banks such as the Amanah Bank; the bargaining power of multilateral and bilateral aid organizations(USTDA, WB, ADB, JBIC) is high due to their involvement with micro-finance and development banks; the large size and unorganized nature of the labor sector affords it little ba rgaining power; bargaining power among depositors is highly skewed towards the higher income deciles whos deposits account for 88.3% of the savings in banks, with the lower deciles having nor bargaining power. (2) With regard to the bargaining power of buyers, the higher income deciles belonging to the middle and upper classes resided and/or did business in the National Capital Region (NCR) and demand services such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦electronic banking, payroll services, and bill payments.; The power portions of the population find it difficult to obtain financing from formal banks due to their situation, and thus do not have much bargaining power, but their sheer numbers offer a potentially large market. (3) With regard to the threat of new entrants, any new Islamic banks allowed by the BSP could actually benefit the Amanah Bank by providing much needed visibility for the beleaguered Philippine Islamic banking sector. (4) With regard to the threat of substitute, notable alternatives that customers may opt for are informal financial institutions, employers that provide loan programs, or complete abstinence from banking entirely. Another threat is the outflow of capital from the country. (5) With regard to rivalry among existing players, the tendency of banks to be large tends to lead them to avoid small borrowers and savers, as such the government has had to develop the banking system so as to include such institutions as thrift and rural banks which cater to the needs of small borrowers and savers who would otherwise resort to informal institutions. In order to counter the threat of oligopoly the government competes in the financial sector via the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP). (Isnaji, 2003) As a requirement of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) acquisition of the Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines (AAIIBP), the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) required the DBP to submit a 5-year rehabilitation plan for the bank. The initial plan, submitted on 23 April 2008, was deemed inadequate by the BSP. As such a draft of the revised plan was submitted on 18 March 2009. The revised plan was divided into four parts: (1) a brief background elaborating on the institutions legal basis, purpose, and present situation, (2) a summary of its business plans, (3) details on the implementation of said business plans, (4) and five-year financial projections. (Panganiban, 2009) The revised rehabilitation plan of the Amanah Bank centers around 4Rs, specifically: Recapitalization via capital infusions from the DBP and domestic and foreign investors; this is aimed at covering the expenses of the banks rehabilitation Restoration of financial viability focused on à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦aggressive marketing efforts to introduce AAIIBPs new products and services, liquidation of non-performing assets and the sourcing of contingent fundsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Reorganization focused on building up institutional capacity, particularly with regard to Sharia compliance; involves organizational restructuring, relocation and refurbishing of bank offices, expansion and automation. Reforms institutionalization involves strengthening of corporate culture and governance, monitoring system, risk management and audit system, and review of product and operating manuals. Particular emphasis has been given to the recapitalization strategy which would provide the funds needed for the other three points of the rehabilitation. (Development Bank of the Philippines, March 2009) Islamic Banking Chong and Liu (2006) attempted to determine how different Islamic banking is from conventional banking by examining Islamic banking practice in Malaysia using the Engle-Granger error-correction methodology. In their study they find that despite being theoretically different, in practice Islamic banking in Malaysia is not very different from conventional banking. According to their study, only a negligible portion of Islamic bank financing in Malaysia is based on the profit-and-loss (PLS) sharing paradigm and that Islamic deposits are not interest-free, but are based on non-PLS modes that are permitted under Sharia law, but ignore the spirit of the usury prohibition. This parallels Islamic banking experience in other countries. The authors conclude that Islamic banking practices cannot differ too greatly from conventional banking practice due to stiff competition that makes interest-free Islamic deposits closely pegged to conventional deposits. This conclusion can have implications fo r the brand is Islamic banking, particularly with regard to its often touted non-interest-based character. However, it also has analytical and regulatory implications; the similarity of Islamic banking practices to conventional banking practices would simplify the task of both studying and regulating Islamic banking. The findings of this study mirror an earlier paper by Movassaghi and Zamans (2002). In it, they attempt to re-examine the concept of riba in light of Islamic jurisprudence. In that paper they compare Islamic banking practices with conventional banking practices in order to highlight that neither all conventional practices are usurious, nor are modern Islamic banking practices significantly different from those of conventional banks. They also assert that many differences between the profit/loss sharing paradigm of Islamic banking and conventional interest-based merely superficial. In addition to questions of practice, Chong and Lius study also asked the question of whether or not the growth of Islamic banking over the past several years was due to the comparative advantages of the Islamic banking paradigm, or to the Islamic resurgence that began in the 1960s. Based on their findings, the authors are inclined to adopt the latter view. This view is also compatible with the findings of a study cited by Isnaji (2003), done by the Meezan Bank of Pakistan which identified several key success factors in the experience of Islamic banks in other countries: (1) strong religious consciousness among the Muslim population, (2) support from the government in the form of financial infrastructure and favorable regulations, (3) promotion, (4) [increases] in individual wealth, and (5) a wide variety of financial products and services. Public Enterprises/Public Enterprise Reform Basu (2005) gives an overview of the background and concept of public enterprise, highlighting the particular experience of India in this matter. distinguishing it from the broader term public sector by adopting the definition adopted by the International Centre of Public Enterprises (ICPE): Any commercial, financial, industrial, agricultural or promotional undertaking owned by public authority, either wholly or through majority share holding which is engaged in the sale of goods and services and whose affairs are capable of being recorded in balance sheets and profit and loss accounts. Such undertakings may have diverse legal and corporate forms, such as departmental undertakings, public corporations, statutory agencies, established by Acts of Parliament or Joint Stock Companies registered under the Company Law. The author then goes on to elaborate these three categories. Basu further elaborates on the theory of public enterprises by elaborating on four types of economic activity based on the concept of remuneration as well as that of natural monopoly. (Basu, 2005) Basu highlights the equal importance of accountability and efficiency in the management of public enterprises, stating the important role of institutional arrangements in this matter. The author then elaborates on the creation of public enterprises with regard to government policy in terms of the strategies of nationalization or introduction of a new activity and states that most post-independence cases consisted of the latter. Basu emphasizes the idea that neither the state nor the market is immune to failure and that current emphasis should be on the idea of public-private synergy, and that attention should be put on both on public-private partnership and competition to achieve the objectives of efficiency and welfare. He then highlights the link between public finance and public enterprise, stating that shortsighted approaches of several developing countries including India to reduce fiscal deficit by selling public enterprises- which follow from inadequacies of public finance man agement could be disastrous in the long run (Basu, 2005). Stiglitz (2000) identifies two major categories in which public enterprises may systematically be more inefficient than private enterprises: organizational and individual. Under the former are sub-categories regarding organizational incentives, personnel restrictions, procurement restrictions, and budget restrictions. These pertain to public enterprises organizational rules and procedures which may hamper those enterprises efficiency and performance. The nature of public firms can mean that they may not necessarily need worry about incurring losses in their operations since any such losses may be covered by public funding. The bureaucratic nature of these enterprises may also entail strict procedures with regard to the hiring and firing of employees and the appropriation of needed materials, increasing transaction costs for both the demanding firm and possible suppliers (private forms and individuals). Lastly, there is the issue of budget restrictions due to governments having to all ocate limited financial resources among various agencies and projects. (Stiglitz, 2000) The latter category pertains to the behavior of individual bureaucrats under the incentive structure of public enterprises. Low wages and security of tenure may provide disincentives for bureaucrats to perform efficiently. Bureaucrats are also argued to be budget maximizers in that they seek to maximize the size of their bureaucracies by encouraging increased expenditures on their respective agencies. Stiglitz cites Niskanen with regard to principal-agent problems in bureaucracies wherein government bureaucrats act in their own interests and not necessarily in the interests of the citizens whom they are supposed to serve. (Stiglitz, 2000) Chang (2007) presents a discussion of the issue of state enterprise reform. Chang argues that theoretically there is no clear case with for or against state-owned enterprises (SOEs) by citing arguments for (natural monopoly, capital market failure, externalities, equity) and against (principal-agent problem, free-rider problem, soft budget restrains), the author also points out that large SOEs and large private sector firms often face similar (principal-agent) problems. This mirrors Stiglitzs statement that Principal-agent problems arise in all organization, whether public or private and are particularly acute in large organizations. In both private and public cases, managers often have large amounts of discretion allowing them to pursue their own interests. (Stiglitz, 2000) In citing the issues of public enterprises in comparison to private enterprises, many often assume away the agency problems of private firms, thus comparing idealized private firms with real-life SOEs, the former of which would obviously come out on top (Chang, 2007). Chang 92007) points out that privatization is not the only solution to the problems of many SOEs, and that many intermediate third way solutions exist. The author elaborates that privatization as an option has its costs and limitations and should only be taken on certain conditions, many of which are not met in reality leading to many failed attempts at privatization that cause more problems than they solve. As such, the third way options (organizational reform, increasing competition, political and administrative reforms) ought to be considered before privatization. (Chang, 2007) Rational Choice Theory/Institutional Economics Rational/Public Choice Theory Rational Choice Theory refers to those theories of the social sciences which utilize the analytical tools of neoclassical economics, particularly, the core assumption of rational (utility-maximizing) and self-interested individuals. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor (2002) states that rational choice theorists employ an instrumental conception of rationality in which actions are judged as being rational to the extent that they constitute the best way of achieving some goal. He identifies two conceptualizations of rationality: The first (the axiomatic approach) conceives a rational person as someone whos preference-ordering over bundles of goods and services is reflexive, complete, transitive and continuous. The second (the optimizing approach) conceives the rational person as one who possesses optimal beliefs and acts in optimal ways given those beliefs and desires. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor writes that rationality is a controversial assumption in political science, particularly in light of the concept of bounded rationality. As such, he says that such an assumption must be justified and looks at the two approaches in order to determine which is more defensible. Under the umbrella heading of rational choice theory can be found the sub-theories of public choice, which, in turn, constituted transplanting the general analytical framework of economics into political science. (Tullock, 2002) Tullocks primary contribution to rational/public choice theory is his theories on rent-seeking, which he defines as the use of resources for the purpose of obtaining rents for people where the rents themselves come from some activity that has negative social value. Tullock continues: The concept of rent seeking as popularly perceived refers to legal and illegal activities to obtain special privileges such as seeking monopoly status, special zoning, quantitative restrictions on imports, protective tariffs, bribes, threats, and smuggling. (Tullock, 2002) Indeed, rent-seeking has actually come to dominate the literature of rational choice theory. Hindmoor (2006) cites the plethora of studies done on various countries, on various topics to emphasize this point. He looks to three possible explanations for this: (1) the name-recognition of the term rent-seeking itself, (2) the adaptability and extendibility of Tullocks argument which à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦can be extended to cover the analysis of any and all special economic privilegesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, and (3) the fact that it offered a hostile theory of state, which could be used to counter welfare economists arguments for government intervention. On the second reason, Hindmoor supplements Tullocks original argument by pointing out that interest groups also spend resources to prevent rivals from obtaining rents and to secure their own and that governments may also practice rent-extraction. (Hindmoor, 2006) Tullock (2002) identifies several costs involved in rent seeking: The first being the actual cost of obtaining the special privilege. Of which the author provides the example of the costs of lobbying in Washington D.C. Greater costs are incurred from the distortion of the voting process, wherein public officials who are elected to pursue certain policies or projects often also pursue other less beneficial projects of which the true cost cannot be typically counted due to those politicians not disclosing the details of deals they have made. The greatest costs, however, are the indirect costs caused by rent seeking behavior. In particular, the involvement of intelligent and energetic people in an activity that contributes either nothing or negatively to society. The opportunity cost of such activities, he argues, far exceed their direct costs. (Tullock, 2002) Tullock (2002) argues that the development of rent seeking activities is influenced by many factors, in particular the structure and design of government. In general, he argues, any rule that complicates and makes the functioning of the government government decisionmaking process less smooth will lower the amount of rent seeking. He concludes his discussion on the topic by emphasizing that there are as of yet no good measures of the costs of rent-seeking (Tullock, 2002). Hindmoor (2006) cites Von Mises in defining bureaucracy as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦any organization which specialises in the supply of those services the value of which cannot be exchanged for money at a per-unit rate. Such organizations, Von Mises suggests, find themselves effectively exempted from the demands of economic calculation and are, as a result, usually inefficient. He also cites Tullock: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the crucial feature of bureaucracies is not simply that they are hierarchies, but pyramidal hierarchies with fewer people at the top than in the lower ranks. This leads to a principal-agent relationship, with all its problems of information asymmetry (Hindmoor, 2006). In his section of Public Choice, Tullock also discusses bureaucracy. He writes that: Bureaucrats are much like other people and, like people in general, are more interested in their own well-being than in the public interest. The problem is in designing institutions in such a way as to harness bureaucrats self-interest to serve the public interest (Tullock, 2002). The core problem with bureaucracy is encapsulated by Tullock in one paragraph: In most bureaucracies the executive whether in General Motors, the Department of State, or the Exchequer is in a position where only to a minor extent is his or her own interest involved. Bureaucrats will make many decisions that will have little or no direct effect on themselves and hence can be made with the best interests of General Motors or the American or the British people at heart. Unfortunately bureaucrats, in general, have only weak motives to consider these problems carefully, but they do have strong motives to improve their status in the bureaucracy, whether by income, power, or simply the ability to take leisure while sitting in plush offices. They are more likely to be more concerned with this second set of objectives than the first, although they may not put very much effort into it because not much effort is required (Tullock, 2002). Tullock then further draws parallels between public and private bureaucrats. He argues that both will attempt to maximize gains for their respective employers if it pays off for them. But in neither case does the institutional structure lead bureaucrats to maximizing the well-being of their superiors. He qualifies, though, that private corporations have a much easier time in pursing their goals efficiently than do governments. He cites three reasons for this: the comparatively simple objective of stockbrokers (profit maximization), the reasonably accurate methods of measuring the performance of corporate managers (bureaucrats) in the form of accounting, and the difference in the ownership of benefits from the efficient management of bureaucracies (private profit vs. public interest) (Tullock, 2002). Lastly, Tullock elaborates upon several proposals with regard to bureaucratic reform: decentralization, depriving bureaucrats of the vote, and downsizing the size of bureaucracy. He discusses how it is often in the interest of bureaucrats to increase the size of their departments , although in some cases downsizing does occur without the objection of senior bureaucrats due to such measures not affecting them aversely or even benefiting them by, for example, leading to more highly paid positions at the top while cutting down from below. Most intriguing is his characterization of bureaucratic behaviour as resembling that of people with hobbies, albeit with two major differences: it does not cost bureaucrats very much since they are predominantly using other peoples resources and that most bureaucrats honestly think that whatever it is they do is not for their benefit alone, but for the country or their bureau. (Tullock, 2002) This mirrors Niskanens theory on bureaucracy, wherein he asserts that bureaucrats find it in their interest to maximize their budgets and that they are often successful in doing so. Niskanen, himself defines bureaucracies as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦non-profit-making organization whose revenues derive from periodic grants (Hindmoor, 2006). Niskanen also à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦follows Downs in assuming that bureaucrats value a range of goods including power, monetary income, prestige and security. Yet he cuts through the complexities o Downs argument by suggesting that nearly all of these variables are positively related to the size of the bureaucrats budget (Hindmoor, 2006). Tullock (2002) elaborates goes on to the relationship between bureaucrats and two other major groups of political actors: politicians and pressure groups. Tullock focuses on the ability of bureaucrats to often lord over their superiors thanks to their security of tenure. Two bureaucratic tactics are discussed: the use of leaks to undermine or embarrass superiors, and the use of essential programs as proverbial shields in the fact of budget cuts. With regard to pressure groups, the collusion is the cited issue, wherein bureaus and interest groups work together to gain mutual benefits from government. (Tullock, 2002) With regard to this relationship Niskanen argues that the bureaucrats have two advantages over politicians which allow them to increase their budgets: (1) greater information on the costs involved in their bureaucracies provision of goods, and (2) the ability to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦make take-it-or-leave-it offers to their political patrons (Hindmoor, 2006). Politicians on the o ther hand are attributed four capacities: (1) the ability to select the bureaucracys overall output, (2) the ability to ensure that bureaucrats fulfill their promises in return for an agreed budget, (3) the ability to ensure that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the total benefits individuals derive from consuming whatever output it is that the bureaucracy provides are equal to or greater than the total costs of providing it (Hindmoor, 2006) and (4) the ability to ensure that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the marginal benefits of any output are not negative (Hindmoor, 2006). As Hindmoor points out, however, Niskanen has accepted the argument of Jean-Luc Migue and Gerard Belanger (1974) that bureaucrats do not so much maximize the size of their budget, but rather that of their discretionary budget, defined as the difference between their budget and the minimum costs of supplying their expected output. They argue that though this discretionary budget cannot be used by the bureaucrat for personal profit, it can be used to gain greater power, patronage, prestige, and so on (Hindmoor, 2006). Regardless of this distinction, however, the conclusion is still that the bureaucracies are inefficient because their budgets are too large. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor further critiques Niskanens argument by citing several works by multiple authors who point out that (1) politicians actually hold great power over bureaucrats, so much so that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦bureaucrats can be deterred from making excessive demandsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (2) politicians can trick bureaucrats into revealing information on minimal costs by à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦asking them how much output they would be willing to provide at various per unit prices. (3) constituents and interest-groups may raise alarms about with regard to ineffective bureaucracies, (4) administrative rules and standard operating procedures keep bureaucracies in line, and (5) that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Congressional Committees have the formal power to hire and fire senior bureaucrats, ring-fence particular investments and hold investigations and public-hearings into an agencys performance (Hindmoor, 2006). In his discussion, Tullock concludes by emphasizing that bureaucrats are not necessarily bad people, but that the institutional arrangement often frees them of the constraint of efficiently carrying out the tasks to which they have been assigned. The author then iterates that both large governments and large private corporations necessitate bureaucracies, and that such bureaucracies can be both conducive and/or obstructive to good government. (Tullock, 2002) Now, while rational choice theory certainly dominates discussion of government inefficiency Field (1979) argues that while it provides an easy framework for analysis, it is incapable of providing explanations. He argues that since rational choice models are as incapable of providing sufficiently restrictive predictions, which provide accounts which tell why a certain outcome was reached instead of another. He points to the inability of neoclassical economic analysis in explaining oligopolies, citing that Economists can analyze an existing cartel by pointing to the benefits which participating companies receive as the result of restricting output and raising prices. But economist can equally well analyze the absence of a cartel by pointing to the benefits individual members would obtain by violating such an agreement. (Field, 1979) Field goes on to critique the idea of explaining social outcomes based on the conception that they spring from economic forces. He mentions that while rational choice models have the comparative advantage when it comes to understanding outcomes which are caused by economic forces, they do not take into consideration the ways in which social forces affect the operation of markets. (Field, 1979) Field thus argues that the inherent limitations of rational choice/economic models in explaining systems of rules mean that they are no replacement for institutional economists qualitative approach, which holds historical understanding of the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦laws and customs organizing the process under investigationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ as essential. However, he does make the consideration that while rational choice models cannot satisfactorily explain institutions by themselves, they can help. (Field, 1979) Institutional Economics R.A. Gordon (1963) attempts to outline the characteristics of institutional economics in the form of several propositions: (1) Economic behavior is strongly conditioned by the institutional environment (in all its manifestation) within which economic activity takes place, and economic behavior in turn affects the institutional environment. (2) This process of mutual interaction is an evolutionary one. The environment changes, and as it does, so do the determinants of economic behavior. Hence the need for an evolutionary approach to economics. (3) In this evolutionary process of interaction, a key role is played by the (largely conflicting) conditions imposed by modern technology and by the pecuniary institutions of modern capitalism. (4) Economics is more concerned with conflict than with a harmonious order in which unconscious [cooperation] results from the free play of market forces. (5) Since conflict underlies so many economic relationships, and since these relationships are not immutable, there is room and need for social control of economic activity. (6) We need to learn all that we can from psychology, sociology, anthropology, and law if we are to understand why human beings act as they do in their economic roles. People are not maximizing automata reacting mechanically in an institutional vacuum. (7) Granted the preceding assumptions, much of orthodox economic theory is either wrong or irrelevant because it makes demonstrably false assumptions and does not ask the really important questions. A new, broader, evolutionary theory based on behavioral assumptions derived from the other social sciences and on detailed knowledge of the evolution and present characteristics of the institutional environment needs to be constructed. A wide variety of empirical studies must precede the attempt to construct such a broader, evolutionary, and more realistic corpus of theory (Gordon, 1963). Thorstein Veblen is commonlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦regarded as the founding father or guiding spirit of American institutionalism. (Ayres, 1964) In Institutional Economics, Ayres argues that the central idea of Veblens works was a call for a completely different ontology of economics with a completely different conception of what constituted the economy. Whereas the conception of mainstream economics has been that the economic system is centered on the concept of the market and tied together by individuals self-interest. Instead, Ayres asserts that Veblen took on an anthropological conception of the economy. One where in it is the state of industrial arts that gives occasion to exchange, so the extent of the market must always be limited by the state of the industrial arts. This was the direct opposite of the thinking of mainstream economics at that point: that the various aspects of civilizations development could be attributed to market forces. (Ayres, 1964) Ayres puts Veb