The Debate on Austerity

The Debate on Austerity The reception of severity post the money related emergency in 2010 by the UK government is vigorously discussed. This exposition assesses the contentions for and against this financial constriction pondering on the applied and conceivable monetary arrangement measures and the restrictions of money related approach after the monetary upgrade gave in 2008. At the point when the lodging bubble burst and Lehman Brothers fallen in 2008, the subprime contract emergency amplified into a worldwide money related emergency. Governments needed to surge in and spare banks. If not, the fall of open trust in the financial framework would have made the issue unquestionably progressively serious. Huge financial upgrade bundles were rolled out to pad the blow. However, for to what extent would an administration take further obligation for expansionary financial approach? They could have proceeded to increment open consumption to make up for the fall in private use as per the Keynesian hypothesis. Or on the other hand increment reserve funds, let the pay rate drop and have the interest ascend because of a value advantage over the long haul (Hayek, 2006). By 2010, United Kingdom’s national obligation arrived at 75.6% of its GDP (Eurostat). Had security yields expanded because of falling business sector certainty, the financial circumstance would have been more awful off. It would infer that the hazard related with government bonds is higher and have negative ramifications about the government’s believability, all raising the expense of open obligation later on. In this way, in the 2010 decisions, the crusades of both the Conservative and Labor parties proposed lessening the monetary shortfall. Nobody supported further upgrade and grimness was embraced. The UK government dreaded a Greek-style emergency. A nation having borrowings in its own cash and a cordial national bank might not need to fear open obligation so much. It could generally keep a control on loan fees or defer reimbursement by giving new bonds. Be that as it may, at that point legislative head of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, seemed to support severity. It stays dubious in the event that he would have authorized further quantitative facilitating. Normally, national banks lessen loan costs to invigorate the economy in such conditions. Lower financing costs advance utilization which would have diminished because of lower monetary consumption. The drop in loan fees from 5.5% in 2008 to 0.5% produced  £350 billion to infuse into the economy (Giles, 2018). Be that as it may, with loan costs at an untouched low of 0.5% since 2009, there wasn’t much that should be possible on the financial strategy front (Bank of England). The drop in loan fees from 5.5% in 2008 to 0.5% created  £350 billion to infuse into the economy. the Value Added Tax (Tank) was raised to 20% and open consumption was chopped to cut down the shortfall (Finch, 2010:1). The mix of extra income and a lower shortfall would chop down the requirement for additional obligation and help administration the current. Grim spending choices brought down the government assistance consumption. The work level diminished due to bring down government use. Thus, request plunged thus did the total national output. High vulnerability had brought down the open certainty. The GDP development rate was inadequate to counter the contracting in the economy brought about by somberness. Universal Monetary Fund (2012) cautioned that the nation may confront lasting harm to its gainful limit if similar arrangements were proceeded. The government’s charge incomes endured a shot inferable from lower yield. This brought about a higher obligation to GDP proportion as the budgetary shortfall developed. As genuine wages of open division laborers and neighborhood chamber financial plans fell, vagrancy and dependence on food banks rose. Social consideration for the old was contrarily affected and help from Red Cross was brought in to bear the expanded weight on the NHS (Gillett, 2017). Imprint Blyth (2013) noticed tha t there was dissimilarity in the effect of starkness across various degrees of society. He called attention to that the results were felt all the more seriously by the bigger portion of open assistance clients who didn’t have enough riches to counter the cut in government assistance spending.â In principle, falling deficiency would bring about lower burdens later on. This should increment buyer trust in the economy. In any case, scrutinizes of severity fault the government for the plunging utilization levels. They accept the legislature ought to have proceeded with quantitative facilitating when the private spending shrank. Pay rates fall with falling open consumption. This gives the economy an expense advantage when contrasted with its rivals in the worldwide markets. To profit by this, it is important that outside interest for the locally delivers products increments. Be that as it may, numerous Eurozone were executing severity themselves and hence, there was no significant increment in outside interest for British merchandise. In addition, nations like China had prompted a financial upgrade in their economies in spite of not having been affected as extraordinarily by the emergency. Henceforth, there was at that point enough gracefully in the market for any nation to profit by rising interest.  There was maybe not once cause to the declining shopper spending in the UK. While UK’s own financial strategy changed in 2010, the financial condition comprehensively was likewise affected by a few nations presenting strategy changes. The product costs changed and the Federal Save was keeping worldwide rates low, all of which had some effect on the UK economy (Buttonwood, 2015). Disregarding the falling utilization, there was a need to lessen government use to diminish the deficiency. Further financial upgrade, after what was presented during the monetary emergency, would have driven to a sharp increment in government obligation. Such a high obligation level would make monetary approach unreasonable and reimbursement testing (Emmerson, Keynes and Tetlow, 2013). As far as genuine aggregate spending, the cut wasn’t as much from 2010 to 2015. Britain’s general aggregate distributions as a level of national pay were the third most elevated among the G6 countries between 2007 to 2009 and remained so in 2013 (OECD, 2014). Annualized normal genuine increment in spending on government disability and wellbeing rose what's more, genuine spending on working age and retired person benefits developed among 2010 and 2013 (Keynes and Tetlow, 2014: 16-17). The economy’s recuperation in 2013-2014 started another discussion. Had starkness worked or was it the outcome of strategy change in 2012? Klein (2015) declared the development was an aftereffect of a inversion from grimness. Smith (2015) invalidated, expressing that the legislature was still grim in going through choices with the monetary fixing being bigger than 3% of GDP. Krugman (2015), in any case, kept up that deserting further monetary cuts following two years of grimness prompted the financial development. Regardless of whether the economy would have been in a superior situation without gravity will stay obscure. What can be closed however is that somberness was not a financial need at that point. However, with UK’s maturing populace, government assistance use will just increment in the future. Such a government assistance top will get fundamental for better arrangement choices as the weight on NHS and open administrations heightens. Proceeded with quantitative facilitating in 2010 would have made open funds progressively unreasonable and financial gravity in future progressively extraordinary. Spending cuts or higher duties, regardless at the point when, will consistently be met with overwhelming analysis. Henceforth, a created nation with maturing populace could target expanding wellsprings of pay, diminishing salary disparities and lessening the reliance on government assistance consumption. Book reference Bank of England [online] Available from: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/boeapps/iadb/Repo.asp (Gotten to 24 April 2018) Blyth, M. The Austerity Delusion. Remote Issues [online] Available from: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2013-04-03/somberness dream (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Buttonwood (2015) What is starkness?. The Financial analyst [online] Available from: https://www.economist.com/web journals/buttonwood/2015/05/monetary arrangement (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Emmerson, C. and Keynes, S. and Tetlow, G. (2013) Public accounts: viewpoint and dangers. The IFS Green Budget: February 2013. London: Foundation for Fiscal Studies. Accessible from: http://www.ifs.org.uk/spending plans/gb2013/GB3013_Ch5.pdf Eurostat [online] Available from: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=sdg_17_40&plugin=1 (Accessed 24 April 2018) Finch, J. (2010) Budget 2010: VAT ascend to 20% ‘could cause twofold plunge recession’. The Guardian [online] Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jun/22/tank rise-downturn fears (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Giles, C. (2018) Bank of England shields reaction to money related emergency after analysis. Budgetary Times [online] Accessible from: https://www.ft.com/content/4231c5a0-3caf-11e8-b9f9-de94fa33a81e (Gotten to 24 April 2018). Gillett, F. (2017) NHS brings in Red Cross volunteers and staff in the midst of philanthropic emergency. Night Standard [online] Accessible from: https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/nhs-brings in-red-cross-volunteers-and-staff-in the midst of helpful emergency a3434901.html (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Hayek, F. A. (2006) The Paradox of Saving. [online] Accessible structure: https://mises.org/library/conundrum sparing (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Worldwide Financial Fund (2012) United Kingdom : Staff Report for the 2012 Article IV Consultation. [online] Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/CR/Issues/2016/12/31/United-Kingdom-Staff-Report-for-the-2012-Article-IV-Consultation-26083 (Gotten to 15 April 2018) Keynes, S. and Tetlow, G. (2014) Survey of open spending in the UK. London: Institute for Fiscal Studies. Accessible from: https://www.ifs.org.uk/distributions/1791 Klein, M. W. (2015) Eurozone Recovery and Exercises About Austerity. The Wall Street Journal [online] Available from: https://www.bl

Roman Civil War Compare 69 Ce and 193 Ce Free Essays

Common War: think about 69 CE and 193 CE. Think about the issues of royal Succession, the jobs of the senate, military significance, and a definitive settlement. How were they the equivalent and extraordinary. We will compose a custom exposition test on Roman Civil War: Compare 69 Ce and 193 Ce or then again any comparable subject just for you Request Now The Year of the Four Emperors was a year throughout the entire existence of the Roman Empire, AD 69, in which four sovereigns managed in a surprising progression. These four rulers were Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian. The self destruction of ruler Nero, in 68, was trailed by a concise time of common war, the main Roman common war since Mark Antony’s demise in 30 BC. Between June of 68 and December of 69, Rome saw the progressive ascent and fall of Galba, Otho and Vitellius until the last promotion of Vespasian, first leader of the Flavian Dynasty. This time of common war has gotten significant of the cyclic political unsettling influences throughout the entire existence of the Roman Empire. The military and political insurgency made by this common war had genuine repercussions, for example, the episode of the Batavian defiance. (The Jewish Revolt was at that point continuous. )Vespasian didn't meet any immediate danger to his royal force after the demise of Vitellius. He turned into the author of the stable Flavian administration that succeeded the Julio-Claudians and passed on of normal causes as ruler in 79. The Year of the Five Emperors alludes to the year 193 AD, in which there were five inquirers for the title of Roman Emperor. The five were Pertinax, Didius Julianus, Pescennius Niger, Clodius Albinus and Septimius Severus. The year 193 opened with the homicide of Commodus on New Year’s Eve, 31 December 192 and the announcement of the City Prefect Pertinax as Emperor on New Year’s Day, 1 January 193. Pertinax was killed by the Praetorian Guard on 28 March 193. Soon thereafter, Didius Julianus outsmarted Titus Flavius Sulpicianus (Pertinax’s father-in-law and furthermore the new City Prefect) for the title of Emperor. Flavius Sulpicianus offered to pay each officer 20,000 sestertii to purchase their dependability (multiple times their yearly pay; likewise a similar sum offered by Marcus Aurelius to make sure about their favors in 161). Didius Julianus anyway offered 25,000 to each fighter to win the bartering and was declared Emperor by the Roman Senate on 28 March. Be that as it may, three other unmistakable Romans tested for the seat: Pescennius Niger in Syria, Clodius Albinus in Britain, and Septimius Severus in Pannonia. Septimius Severus walked on Rome to expel Didius Julianus and had him beheaded on 1 June 193, at that point excused the Praetorian Guard and executed the troopers who had slaughtered Pertinax. Uniting his capacity, Septimius Severus fought Pescennius Niger at Cyzicus and Nicea in 193 and afterward unequivocally crushed him at Issus in 194. Clodius Albinus at first upheld Septimius Severus accepting that he would succeed him. At the point when he understood that Severus had different expectations, Albinus had himself announced Emperor in 195 yet was vanquished by Septimius Severus at the Battle of Lugdunum on 19 February 197. Step by step instructions to refer to Roman Civil War: Compare 69 Ce and 193 Ce, Papers

Essay Topics on Leadership

Essay Topics on LeadershipEssay topics on leadership often take a while to build up into a well-rounded essay. You can actually help this process along with your writing by choosing your essay topics carefully. The best essay topics on leadership will involve leadership skills and ideas, as well as specific actions that leaders have taken or are taking. This way, you will be able to be a good student of the ideas in your essay.Essay topics on leadership will include the idea of the leader, which is something everyone should know about. The next step is to identify the topic of your essay, which should not be the same as the topic of any other essay you may have already written. Some essay topics on leadership start out with a question such as 'What is the subject of your essay,' or 'What do you want to write about?'This will help you avoid repeating information that has already been covered in other essays on leadership. As you look for essay topics on leadership that you want to tac kle, try to go back and make sure that you write something completely new. For example, if you have written a few essays on leadership topics, try to see what these topics are all about, and try to relate those topics to what you have written about in your essay today.Essay topics on leadership can be written about anything that you want to discuss, as long as it relates to leadership. However, it will be best to choose one thing that relates to what you are doing your project on. For example, if you are writing an essay on business leadership, you might want to write about your current business, or about how other people in your field have helped shape your field.A good topic may include things like leadership skills, leadership processes, or how your leaders' decisions and actions have affected your team members. If you are trying to get your students to consider more leadership styles than just 'leadership' styles, you may want to write about different kinds of leadership styles. That way, your students will be able to think about leadership in a broader context than just 'leadership style.'When you are looking for essay topics on leadership, you should also keep in mind that the paper that you are writing will be much longer than any other essay you have written. Keep this in mind when you are writing your essay. You don't need to spend a lot of time building up the thesis statement for your essay, but you should spend time thinking about the main idea of your paper, and how you will lay out the thesis of the entire paper.There are many different ways to approach essay topics on leadership. However, you should always remember that you will need to start off by thinking about why you are writing this essay and then decide on the types of topics that you want to write about. Most people get their subjects and topics before they actually start writing their paper, so this is an easy way to start.Essay topics on leadership should always be researched and well thought out. You should try to get ideas from your colleagues, teachers, or people that you have worked with in your field. From this research, you should be able to come up with a good thesis statement, as well as a number of topics to write about.

Essay on “International Banking The Royal Bank of Scotland”

Essay on â€Å"International Banking: The Royal Bank of Scotland† Bank History and Overview The Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc. or the RBS refers to a holding company of one of the leading and largest financial services and banking groups (Datamonitor Report, 2011). Primarily, RBS operates in the United Kingdom, the United States (Citizens), Asia and other international markets through its main subsidiaries NatWest and Royal Bank. The RBS is headquartered in Edinburg Scotland with an employment base upwards of 150,000. Historically, RBS was founded in 1727 as a corporation by grant of a Royal Charter (Datamonitor Report, 2011). RBS expanded all over Scotland during the 19th century and by the 20th century; it had established its presence in several parts of England. It acquired several acquisitions such as Glyn Mills and Williams Deacons Bank through its strategic expansion in England. Equally, it amalgamated with the National Commercial Bank of Scotland, which had already diversified its networks and customer bases across the region (Datamonitor Report, 2011). During the 1970s, RBS expanded to other oversea finance and leasing markets such as Hong Kong and the US. Other business initiatives undertaken by RBS include setting up of a car insurance company in 1985 to deal with selling auto insurance to customers (Datamonitor Report, 2011). This direct telephone insurance service was referred to as the Direct Line Insurance. Other investment activities included the acquisition of Citizens Financial Group that guided RBS to acquire several struggling banks across the United States. Retail banking became the core business of RBS during the early 1990s and this spurred the bank’s merchant interests, a move that guided the acquisition of Adam Company. Direct banking, a round-the-clock telephone service was launched in 1994 while online banking service was introduced in 1997. Since then, RBS has undergone several organization changes and re-engineering activities that focused on commercial and corporate customer requirements (Datamonitor Report, 2011). Situational Analysis Speaking of RBS business environment, the groups’ business environment is diversified in financial and banking activities. The Royal Bank of Scotland Plc. has its business activities diversified into nine core divisions. These includes but not limited to Global Markets, RBS Insurance, US Retail Commercial Banking, Wealth, UK Retail, Central Items, and Ulster Bank. This means that RBS operates in different environments that can be analyzed using several aspects including political, economic, technological, social, and level of competitiveness. First, PEST analysis can be used to analyze RBS’s political, economic, technological, and social aspects. Politically, RBS operates in environments characterized stability with well-developed regulatory and financial systems (Barth, Caprio, and Levine, 2006). Such regulations are critical in protecting operational activities (Mullineux, 2009). For instance, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is influential in regulating banking and financial activities across the UK (Financial Services Authority Board Report, 2011). Equally, most governments in the operating regions intervened the activities of the banking industry during the financial crisis through bailouts and economic packages. Economically, RBS operating regions were heavily hit by the 2007-2011 global financial crises, and this had an adverse effect on operational activities of RBS. Reduced GNP, declined demand for credit services, low revenues, and declined consumer confidence are some of the economic effects that R BS suffered during the global credit crunch. However, the low capital costs and probable demand for credit increases can enable RBS to capitalize on the effects of the credit crunch. Social aspects that affected RBS during the 2007-2011 global financial crises include effects relating to consumer confidence, interest and pension worries, and career attitudes among others (Berezin, 2008). It was emphatically crucial that RBS maintains its corporate social responsibility to enhance its reputation during the crisis. Technologically, financial information systems and software platforms facilitate data mining activities, risk analysis, neural networks, and criteria for financial scanning for RBS (Elving, 2009). These tools strengthen the analysis and assessment of expenses, liabilities, and revenue streams. A Bank evolution before, during, and After the Banking Crisis of 2007-2011 The global financial crisis of 2007-2011 is the recession to hit the banking industry since the global recession of 1930s (Elving, 2009). Invariably, the crisis is linked to the Euro crises and Europe Sovereign Debt crisis, plays a fundamental role in influencing the welfare of banks and other financial institutions. The collapse of the Northern Rock and Icelandic banking system and the crisis that affected the Royal Bank of Scotland threatened many account holders. The global financial crisis of 2007-2011 led many banks to purchase risky assets for later resell. Due to less demands of these assets, many a financial institution found themselves on the verge of insolvency. Deposit withdrawals from panicking customers worsened the financial situation for such banks. In times of financial distress, even a solvent financial institution or bank may fail to realize its obligations given the opaque and illiquid nature of its assets (The Times, 2012). During the financial crises, bank runs, implicit, and explicit deposit guarantees increased the likelihood of the crisis. For the Royal Bank of Scotland, the period after the 2007-2011 global financial crises spells a period of recovery and rebuilding. A statement released by Philip Hampton, Group Chairman of RBS shows that the overall financial performance of the group represented a step-change. Operating profit is one of the factors that reflect improved performances of the Royal Bank of Scotland. External market recovery, internal rebuilding processes, and improved economic conditions are other factors that represent another significant stride for the Royal Bank of Scotland. However, the recovery to improved performance could have come that easily given the uneven spread of economic recovery across many countries, particularly the European period suffered a massive deal of financial turbulence. RBS shocked the world on February 2009 when it announced a loss of  £24.1bn from 2008, a figure recorded as the highest in the corporate history of the United Kingdom. During the same period, RBS’s fo rmer Chairman Sir Tom McKillop and Sir Fred Goodwin were summoned to appear before the Treasury Select committee to explain the roles they played in the global financial crisis (Huisman, 2011). Royal Bank of Scotland, the Global Financial Crisis, and strategic moves Before the Global financial crisis, RBS had established itself as one the leading banking partners providing financial services to corporations and financial institutions all over the world. Other services included the provision of extensive ranges of debt financing, investment services, and risk management services. Primarily, majority of these services were provided through the Global Banking and Markets division of RBS. In 2008, RBS made an announcement of  £20bn capital raising programme underwritten by the HM treasury. However, the terms of the share offer seemed unattractive to the majority of RBS shareholders and hence, the UK government acquiring a majority stake in the bank. This shows that the global financial crisis made RBS, a proud financial institution with a fine heritage in prudent banking to be bailed out by the government. RBS bosses, particularly the Chief Executive, Sir Fred Goodwin, were overoptimistic with regard to the prevailing economic situation and never took precautionary to cushion adverse financial and economic fluctuations. Despite warnings from the Financial Services Authority and the Bank of England, RBS bosses failed to oversee possible challenges that lay ahead. Risk recognition was a crucial element that lacked in the institution before the credit crunch. Following the failure shares offered to investors, the CEO resigned and as well, the Chairman offered to step-down at the expiry of his contract. The government continued injecting funds to RBS thereby increasing its ownership percentage. The release of full year trading losses and write-downs of goodwill amounted to the  £24.1bn in losses. A fall in share price from 354p per share to 10.p per share followed this announcement. Earlier in June 2008, the Royal Bank of Scotland made frantic efforts to raise  £10bn cash from the sale of its assets and this led to the  £3.6bn sale of Angel Trains, RBS’s subsidiary. Welsh and English RBS branded branches were also sold off and as well, NatWest branches in Scotland. Other failed investments included the loss of the 4.26% stake it held in the Bank of China thereby affecting the profitability of its wealth management division. Although a desperate measure, the closure of RBS tax avoidance department enabled the bank to avoid a  £500m tax levy. This move was influenced by two key factors that included the high government stake in the institution and lack of funds. The consumers also benefitted from dramatic cuts in certain fees and levies operated by the bank and this included declines in monthly maintenance charges, card misuse fees, and unpaid item fees (Datamonitor Report, 2011). However, there was massive retrenchment at the bank that led to nearly 3,700 job cuts. Many employees also suffered unpaid bonuses. GE Capital also acquired the factoring and invoice financing business from RBS at undisclosed amount. Credit rating agencies such as Moody’s downgraded RBS in 2011 due to what was termed as weaknesses in its financial system. Perhaps, the greatest loss to RBS during the financial crisis can be attributed to the purchase of the Dutch Bank, ABN Amro. It is argued that the RBS did not get a fair deal from the acquisition of ABN Amro due to overpayment. In conjunction with Spanish bank Banco Santander and Belgian bank, Fortis, RBS acquired ABN Amro for  £49bn. RBS used funds from the investment and wholesale banking division, an a lready ailing segment of RBS from its risky assets. Worse, the acquired bank ABN Amro was already exposed to the effects of the subprime mortgages coupled with the depletion of its capital base (Datamonitor Report, 2011). Investment and Mergers Before the crisis RBS had undergone several mergers and acquisitions (Kemal, 2011). In 2000, RBS acquired the National Wesminster Bank (NatWest) in a deal worth  £21 billion. IN 2001, RBS purchased a large share of capital from Virgin One business and as well, as Euro Sales finance. Direct Line Group (RBS Subsidiary) acquired Royal Insurance. Nordisk Renting and Santander Direkt Bank’s loan and credit card portfolio were acquired in a move aimed strengthening US and European operations. Churchill Insurance Group was also acquired during this period(Datamonitor Report, 2011). During the crisis During the last five years, RBS has undertaken several investment initiative and mergers. Starting in January 2007, RBS’ global banking and markets division entered into a joint agreement with Renaissance Capital to provide currency, credit derivatives, and interest rates to corporate, government, and institutional clients in Russia. February the same year, RBS’ subsidiary, Citizens Financial Group acquired GreatBank in the US thereby enabling Citizens to be the fourth largest commercial bank in Chicago. The acquisition of ABN AMRO in late 2007 was perhaps the largest acquisition and one of the worst in the history of RBS. Although the consortium was led in conjunction with Fortis and Santander, RBS used its own resources. Ventures in 2008 included the sale of ABN AMRO private equity assets and 65-branch retail banking network in Indiana. RBS sold its 4.3% stake in Bank of China and started a wealth management business in India in January 2009 (Datamonitor Report, 2011) . In efforts aimed at boosting its capital management portfolio, RBS received a  £3 billion from the British government. Several fund management assets and contract of RBS were sold to Aberdeen Asset Management PLC in early 2010. In August 2010, Santander UK plc. bought 318 branches and associated liabilities and assets from the RBS group and as well, 80% interests in Global Merchant Services were also sold. Other initiatives included joint ventures with RBS Sempra Commodities (RBSSC) and Sempra Energy (Datamonitor Report, 2011). After the Crisis As earlier mentioned, the financial crisis of 2007-2011 spelled a bad period for the RBS group and since then, the group has implemented plans to guide its financial performance and subsequently guide the road to recovery. Among the major initiatives under the development plan include rebuilding and recovery, enhancement of business achievements, and implementing measures to lessen effects of the economic backdrop (Worthington, Welch, 2011). RBS’ SWOT analysis Owing to its diversified banking and financial activities in Europe, Asia, and UK, RBS uses key strategic moves to ensure that it enhances its competitive advantage. Equally, the support from the UK government shows that RBS is an important institution in improving financial activities across the region. Strengths As a strategic approach, RBS increasingly uses mergers and acquisitions (MA) to improve its level of competitiveness in addition to expanding its portfolio and reduction of business risks (Altunbas., Ibanez, 2004). Equally, mergers and acquisitions enable RBS to enter new markets, geographical regions, and capitalize on the economies of scales (Kemal, 2011). Even though increased number of global franchises increases its exposure to risks, this move enables RBS to be a leading global financial group. With presence in more than 50 countries, RBS confers its competitive advantage. Its strategic importance in the economy of the United Kingdom enabled it receive government support in times of distress. Currently, HM Treasury owns approximately 84.4% of stake at RBS meaning that the government has interests in all RBS activities. Another RBS’ strength lies in the ownership of leading corporate and retail franchises across the UK financial sector. For instance, the retail sector of UK banking comprises of strong brands from NatWest and RBS. RBS Insurance also forms a major part in the UK retail and SME markets. From a financial approach perspective, RBS exhibits a declining reliance on wholesale funding for its efforts of improving the risk profile. This move was evident during the financial crisis where RBS minimized its reliance on volatile wholesale funding (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2010). Weaknesses Strategically, RBS is at risk of being controlled by the state in part due to the large stake controlled by the government and as well in part due to provisions of the Government’s Asset Protection Scheme (APS) that RBS entered in 2009 (Sutton, Lannoo, and Napoli, 2010). Although, RBS received critical support from the government during this period, this moves spells a price for RBS. Financially, restrictions placed on dividend payments prevents RBS stakeholders from paying dividends on coupons and Tier 1 securities and other restrictions laid on ordinary shares (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2010). Opportunities Strategically, RBS can utilize restructuring opportunities to reposition itself as a leading provider and supplier of financial services. RBS also has a restructuring plan that was designed to be implemented over five-year duration ending 2013. This turn-around plan was aimed at addressing the weaknesses identified during the rescue package offered by the government. Currently, the progress on the restructuring plan has been phenomenal particularly, the development of the non-core division aimed at housing businesses and assets that do not conform with revised RBS risk appetites and strategies. Primarily, the creation of the non-core portfolio is fundamental because it facilitates key improvements within the group. This includes funding, risk, and earning profiles and as well, material exposure and concentrations. Other strategic opportunities include reviving partnerships with leading institutions particularly those in emerging markets such as China and Asia pacific. RBS made substantial progress from its partnerships with the Bank of China that enabled it to issue 1.2 million credit cards. This opportunity also enabled RBS to access one of the fastest growing markets in the Asia Pacific region. Speaking of financial opportunities, RBS has the capabilities of focusing on investment banking thereby enhancing its opportunities of increasing profitability. This means that there are increased chances of hiring more staff to boost the investment banking, merger and acquisitions, and debt underwriting (Ashby, 2010). Threats Several threats stand in the way of affecting operational activities of RBS. First, several measures have been put in place to bring structural reforms in the banking sector, competition in the industry, and enhanced stabilities. Among these measures is the setting up of the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) by the UK government, a move that could bring adverse effects on RBS. Findings from this commission will provide a framework for guiding all competitive activities within the banking sector in addition to putting in place measures that could strengthen the stability of these institutions. Similarly, reports from the Treasury Select Committee are likely to affect the structure of RBS. Financially, IFRS regulations have led the group to incur deferred tax assets on those losses that were expected to revive future profits. Deferred Tax Assets are quantified depending on the current level of tax legislations and prevailing accounting standards (Oxera, 2011). On the other hand, increased regulatory changes relating to quality in insurance, particularly the elimination of gender as a rating factor throughout the insurance industry will affect insurance operations of the RBS group. Competitive pressures will mount among insurance companies thereby leading to a lower rate of premiums paid on insurance contracts (Oxera, 2011). Performance measurements Revenue analysis Starting with the revenue analysis, the RBS Group recorded a reduction of 3.5% of total revenues in the FY2010 as compared to the FY2009 results. The groups’ revenues are calculated depending on the core business divisions with the Global Banking and Markets division recording the highest figures. Alternatively, revenues are also analyzed depending on their geographical locations, which comprise of the UK, the US, Europe, and the rest of the world. The UK region accounts for more than 60% of the total revenues followed by the US and Europe. Ratio Analysis Income Statement: 10-Year Summary DATE SALES EBIT DEPRECIATION TOTAL NET INCOME EPS TAX RATE (%) 12/11 61.11 Bil -1.24 Bil 3.04 Bil -3.32 Bil -0.03 0.00 12/10 65.60 Bil -647.31 Mil 3.49 Bil -597.01 Mil 0.00 0.00 12/09 74.54 Bil -4.29 Bil 3.51 Bil -4.16 Bil -0.10 0.00 12/08 76.96 Bil -41.68 Bil 3.86 Bil -20.59 Bil -1.30 0.00 12/07 82.01 Bil 15.95 Bil 3.04 Bil 12.37 Bil 1.04 20.80 12/06 68.29 Bil 14.90 Bil 2.72 Bil 10.37 Bil 0.87 29.30 12/05 60.54 Bil 12.87 Bil 2.96 Bil 8.92 Bil 0.89 30.00 12/04 50.21 Bil 11.82 Bil 2.72 Bil 6.76 Bil 0.66 27.40 12/03 40.52 Bil 9.86 Bil 2.73 Bil 6.96 Bil 0.46 31.10 12/02 36.87 Bil 7.87 Bil 2.64 Bil 6.83 Bil 0.56 32.60 Source: MSN Money, 2012 Balance Sheet: 10 Year Summary DATE CURRENT ASSETS CURRENT LIABILITIES LONG TERM DEBT SHARES OUTSTANDING 12/11 2,444.63 Bil 2,323.24 Bil 42.70 Bil 5.51 Bil 12/10 2,358.17 Bil 2,236.28 Bil 43.89 Bil 5.47 Bil 12/09 2,752.25 Bil 2,626.14 Bil 61.08 Bil 5.37 Bil 12/08 3,896.26 Bil 3,800.73 Bil 79.74 Bil 1.97 Bil 12/07 2,986.42 Bil 2,900.37 Bil 61.72 Bil 500.31 Mil 12/06 1,413.74 Bil 1,348.48 Bil 44.86 Bil 484.75 Mil 12/05 1,260.26 Bil 1,202.78 Bil 45.87 Bil 491.47 Mil 12/04 954.12 Bil 899.12 Bil 33.04 Bil 487.79 Mil 12/03 737.23 Bil 694.89 Bil 27.58 Bil 455.61 Mil 12/02 668.40 Bil 624.51 Bil 22.66 Bil 446.01 Mil Source: MSN Money, 2012 RBS Fundamentals Year Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth. Div. Yield 31-Dec-07 30,366.00 9,832.00 97.81p 3.8 n/a -50% 33.20p 8.9% 31-Dec-08 25,868.00 (40,836.00) (43.10)p n/a n/a n/a n/a 0.0% 31-Dec-09 33,026.00 (2,647.00) (13.20)p n/a n/a n/a n/a 0.0% 31-Dec-10 31,798.00 (399.00) 0.50p 78.1 n/a n/a n/a 0.0% 31-Dec-11 28,911.00 (766.00) 0.20p 100.9 n/a -60% n/a 0.0% Market Capitalization In terms of market capitalization, the RBS ranks as one of the leading large-cap stocks as of 28 April 2012 with a market capitalization of USD 43.60bn. in the past 12 months, the RBS stock has reached a high of GBp 42.76 and a low of GBp 17.34. As of 28th April 2012, the current stock price was GBp 24.35. This figure places it 43.1% under its 52 week high and 40.4% over its 52-week low (Money Center Banks, 2012). Price level analysis Using Peter Lynch’s methodology of comparing projected earnings growth and dividend, RBS can be said to fundamentally undervalued if comparisons are made with the original theoretical price. When compared to the aggregate of other European Banks, RBS’ valuation appears less attractive (Money Center Banks, 2012). However, the fundamental price potential for RBS is rather good even though other stocks in the industry might appear better. Technical trend and relative performance For nearly a month, the medium-term technical trend of RBS has been negative with a price of GBp 26.1 with an adjusted technical reverse point of GBp 26.62. Using the DJ Stoxx 600 reference index, the four-week relative performance against the reference index is -12.1% (Money Center Banks, 2012). Given the negative technical trend, it is evident that underperformance for RBS is validated. Critically, this shows that majority of investors are interested in other stocks. Risk Analysis In order to assess the risk equity of RBS, several risk analysis tools will be used. This includes but not limited to beta, correlation, and volatility, and the risk factor in bear markets. Beginning with Beta as a risk measurement tool, a situation where beta is greater than 100 represents a more volatile and risky stock. For instance, a beta value of 1.93 indicates a 1% variation in indices, which happens to be the case with RBS. Similarly, correlation refers to the degree of similarity of stock fluctuation compared to the reference index (Money Center Banks, 2012). RBS has a correlation rate of 0.80 meaning that index variations explain 80% of its stock movements. On the other hand, volatility is used to measure the magnitude of low and high stock or index movements. RBS’ annualized volatility for April is 30.5% (Money Center Banks, 2012). Using the risk factor in bear markets to measure the behavior of RBS in less performing markets, it shows that RBS exhibits a tendency of amplifying the risky positioning of the group in situations of market decline. The risk factor in rising markets also depicts situation-sanctioned pressures for the RBS. Analysis of Ratios and Financial Reports Five-Year Plan Strategy The effects of the financial crisis uncovered several key issues that undermined RBS and these issues included risk concentration, leverage, and business stretches. The continued sale and rundown of assets weakened the performance of the RBS group (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011). This necessitated the need to change the balance sheet by focusing on risk objectives. The five-year plan 2009-2013 was developed to focus on three key objectives (Essinger, 2009); Restoring RBS’s performance to undoubted standalone strengths Providing efficient service to customers Rebuilding sustainable value for all shareholders These goals are interdependent on one another because customers cannot be served in an unsafe and risky banking environment (Essinger, 2009). Equally, the banks’ standalone strength cannot be rebuilt without rebuilding shareholder value. RBS’ strategy of serving customers is embedded in different frameworks that guide the process of satisfying customer value and streamlining customer service prepositions. Creating sustainable strength for the bank started with the creation of improvements in liquidity and capital in 2009. By 2010, Risk Management objective was launched to aid the Group in approaching risk issues such as audit and risk functions. This has been fundamental in enabling the ban to create a safe, sustainable, and valuable banking environment to all people (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011). Lastly, the creation of sustainable value to shareholders was developed to enable the bank to develop a strong foundation for all its core businesses. This option has been fundamental in enabling RBS to generate a 13% increase in equity return in FY2010 and aims to extend this figure by upwards of 15% by 2013. This is aimed at increasing confidence from the banks’ investments will generate increased va lues and core synergies (Rose, 2009). Importantly, realization of sustainable value is seen as a major move for convincing the UK government to sell its stake in the institution. Several measures have been taken to realize RBS’s strategic and core business objectives. RBS has targeted several market-leading franchises and market positions to improve customer satisfactions. Income growth by focusing on sustainable businesses is another move taken by the bank (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011). Other key strategic moves include focusing on cost control and rigorous capital and cost allocation programs. Speaking financial measures, RBS reduced its balance sheet scale by de-risking and shrinking the Balance Sheet as a move for careful control of future growth. Measures have also been put in place to reduce over-reliance on wholesale markets to improve its liquidity reserve. On the other hand, realization of a strong capital base has been achieved through excess risk maintenance equity capital and running off-excessive risk concentrations. Progress so far RBS has managed to achieve several key accomplishments and economic improvements despite uncertain volatilities and tight monetary policies in several countries. RBS’s core businesses have remained resilient while the Group has managed to realize annualized cost savings of  £2.5 billion and expected to exceed  £3billion by 2013. The loan-on-deposit ratio by the end of 2010 was 117% and the reliance on wholesale funding reduced from  £250 billion in 2009 to  £157 billion in 2010 (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011). On risk management, RBS has stood strong in the line of realizing four-risk objectives that include maintenance of capital adequacies, delivering stable growth in earnings, ensuring efficient and stable access to liquidity and funding (Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011). The risk management model has been concentrated on the management of liquidities and risks on the balance sheet. These measures have enabled the bank to record tremendous improvements towards overcoming the effects of the 2007-2011 financial crises. Conclusions and Recommendations The analysis conducted in this paper reveals that the failure of the Royal Bank of Scotland amidst the global financial crisis can be blamed on a liquidity run. On the other hand, the system-wide liquidity crisis was well rooted in the market uncertainty that banks could have lost. This factor was fundamental in determining the nature of the banks insolvency and capital inadequacies. Studies show that RBS had strong capital resources totaling  £68bn but registered loss of  £40.7 bn. According to a report by the Financial Services Authority in the UK Financial Services Authority, several key factors can be blamed for the failure of RBK in 2008 (Financial Services Authority Board Report, 2011). These factors were; Notable weaknesses in capital position of RBS and this was attributed to poor management decisions and inadequate global regulatory framework The acquisition of ABN AMRO without taking heed of possible risks Uncertainties and concerns over underlying asset quality of RBS Over-relying on risky short-term wholesale funding Substantial losses occurring from credit trading activities leading to the erosion of consumer and market confidence underestimation of how bad losses can affect structured credit the prevailing crisis in the banking sector Based on the information gathered and presented in this study, the future prospects for RBS are still difficult. First, the 84% government ownership means that the government will continue to dictate its operational activities including investment, operations, and financing thereby impeding strategic moves (Wilson, 2011). Credit write offs cannot guarantee the bank future profitability either and as well, the staff restructuring. The volatility of its risk portfolio also calls for important measures to be put in place. For this reason, I recommend that RBS do the following: Use its strengths and opportunities to overcome the threats and weaknesses Concentrate on the rebuilding and recovery plan in order to enhance its financial performance and gravitate its return to operating profits (Rose, 2009). Convince the government to sell its stakes in the Group Reduce its exposures to particular type of risks by forming a strong risk restructuring and management plan Strengthen its core business that will enable the institution to achieve its future objectives Invest in sustainable banking and corporate social responsibility initiatives Reference List Altunbas, Y., Ibanez, M. D. 2004. Mergers and Acquisitions and Bank Performance In Europe: The Role of Strategic Similarities European Central Bank, 1-35. Ashby, S. 2010. The 2007-2009 Financial Crisis: Learning the Risk Management Lessons, Financial Services Research Forum, Nottingham. Barth, G Caprio, G., and R Levine. 2006. Rethinking Bank Regulation: Till Angels Govern, Cambridge University Press, New York. Berezin, M. 2008, Emotions and the Economy, The Handbook of Economic Sociology. Second Edition, Princeton: Princeton University Press. Datamonitor Report, 2011, Royal Bank of Scotland Plc. Datamonitor August 2011 Elving, W., 2009. Corporate communication in the new era: confronting the financial crisis, Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 14 (1) Essinger, J. 2009. The Virtual Banking Revolution: The Customer, the Bank, and the Future. London: International Thomson Business Press. Financial Services Authority Board Report, 2011. The failure of the Royal Bank of Scotland. FSA Huisman, W. 2011, Corporate Crime and Crisis: Causation Scenarios, in Mathieu Deflem (ed.) Economic Crisis and Crime (Sociology of Crime Law and Deviance (16), pp.107-125 Kemal, M. U. 2011. Post-Merger Profitability: A Case of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). International Journal of Business and Social Science. 2 (5), pg. 157-162 Money Center Banks, 2012. Royal Bk.of SCTL.GP.PLC. MSN Money, 2012. Royal Bank of Scotland Group ADR representing 20 Ord Shs (NYSE). Mullineux, A. 2009. The regulation of British retail banking utilities, Journal of Financial Regulation and Compliance, 17 (4), pp.453 466 Oxera, 2011. Assessing State Support to the UK banking sector. Oxera Consulting ltd Rose, P. 2009. Commercial Bank Management. Boston: McGraw-Hill Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2011. Annual Review and Summary Financial Statement 2010. RBS Royal Bank of Scotland Group, 2010. Independent Commission on Banking and response to issues paper. RBS. Sutton, A. Lannoo, K. and Napoli, C. 2010. Bank State Aid in the Financial Crisis: Fragmentation or Level Playing Field? Brussels: Centre for European Policy Studies The Times, 2009. Royal Bank of Scotland: the bank that sank, www.timesonline.co.uk (accessed 29/04/2012) Wilson, H., 2011. Royal Bank of Scotland Collapse: the 10 questions the FSA must answer. [Online]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/8933151/Roy al-Bank-of-Scotland-collapse-the-10-questions-the-FSA-must-answer.html [accessed 29 April 2012] Worthington, S. Welch, P. 2011. Banking without the banks, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 29 (2), pp.190 – 201

Internet Entrepreneurs Essay - 1803 Words

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The American Dream Is Existent - 1525 Words

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Variable Cost and New Conditioning Shampoo free essay sample

Bingham Corporation uses the weighted-average method in its process costing system. Data concerning the first processing department for the most recent month are listed below. Work in process, beginning: Units in beginning work-in-process inventory| 400| Materials costs| $6,900| Conversion costs| $2,500| Percentage complete for materials| 80%| Percentage complete for conversion| 15%| Units started into production during the month| 6,000| Units transferred to the next department during the month| 5,000| Materials costs added during the month| $112,500| Conversion costs added during the month| $210,300| Ending work in process: Units in ending work-in-process inventory| 1,200| Percentage complete for materials| 60%| Percentage complete for conversion| 30%| Required: Calculate the equivalent units for materials (using the weighted-average method) for the month in the first processing department. Axillar Beauty Products Corporation is considering the production of a new conditioning shampoo that will require the purchase of new mixing machinery. The machinery will cost $375,000, is expected to have a useful life of 10 years, and is expected to have a salvage value of $50,000 at the end of 10 years. We will write a custom essay sample on Variable Cost and New Conditioning Shampoo or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The machinery will also need a $35,000 overhaul at the end of Year 6. A $40,000 increase in working capital will be needed for this investment project. The working capital will be released at the end of the 10 years. The new shampoo is expected to generate net cash inflows of $85,000 per year for each of the 10 years. Axillars discount rate is 16%. Required: (a) What is the net present value of this investment opportunity? (b) Based on your answer to (a) above, should Axillar go ahead with the new conditioning shampoo? (Points : 35) | (TCO C) Nic Saybin Enterprises Accounting Department collects all pertinent monthly operating data. Selected data are presented below for the current month. From the data provided, please provide Saybin Enterprises Management with a flexible budget analysis to see how costs were controlled. | Actual Costs Incurred| Static Budget| Activity level (in units)| 754,009| 746,500| Variable Costs:| Indirect materials| $328,897| $325,640| Utilities| $174,332| $171,890| Fixed Costs:| General and administrative| $237,985| $244,908| Rent| $135,500| $135,000| (Points : 30) (TCO D) Lindon Company uses 4,500 units of Part X each year as a component in the assembly of one of its products. The company is presently producing Part X internally at a total cost of $69,000 as follows: Direct materials| $16,000| Direct labor| 18,000| Variable manufacturing overhead| 10,000| Fixed manufacturing overhead| 25,000| Total costs| $69,000| An outside supplier has offered to provide Part X at a price of $11 per unit. If Lindon stops producing the part internally, one third of the manufacturing overhead would be eliminated. Required: Prepare a make-or-buy analysis showing the annual advantage or disadvantage of accepting the outside suppliers offer.

The African Lion Essays - Lions, Leopard, Panthera, The Lion King

The African Lion The lion is known as king of the jungle because of its huge size and ferocious appearance, the most common type of lion is the African lion. The African lion has the genus species Panthera (panther, leopard) leo (lion). Panthera leo has the common name lion and comes from the felidae family. Panthera leo is in the mammali class and has the order carnivora(Bush Gardens, 1996). Lions live in sub-Saharan Africa in grasslands and semi-arid plains in prides which is a group of lions that live in the same area and share hunting duties(Bush Gardens,1996). Lions are the only truly social cat species, usually a pride consists of two males, seven females, and any amount of cubs. The lionesses are usually sisters or cousins that have all been together since birth. The average mature male stands four feet at the shoulder, weighs in around 450 pounds and is around eight and a half feet long plus his tail. The female on the other hand is considerably smaller and weighs in at a average of three hundred pounds. Lions usually have a light or dark brown plain spotless coat, white coated lions are sometimes found in southern Africa but they are not true albinos (African Savannah). The male lion reaches sexual maturity at the age of five years and the lioness- which is the female lion, reaches its sexual maturity at the age of four. Lionesses in a pride usually enter breeding season together and later give birth at the same time which allows the lionesses to share nursing and other maternal duties. The lioness is pregnant between 98 and 105 days until it gives birth to a average of 3 cubs, unfortunately only one of those cubs will survive the first year of life due to the harsh conditions in their habitats (Bush Gardens, 1996). At birth the cubs are blind and move very slow. The cubs weigh less than five pounds (Wild Animals) and are marked with spots which sometimes stay on their legs and belly until they are fully grown. (African Savannah). When the cubs reach five months of age, they weigh an average of fifty pounds but they still act playful like a kitten. In most cases, when the cub reaches nine months of age, their spots disappear. When the cubs come to the age of a year and a half, the mother teaches them to hunt (Comptons 1993, 1994). The male lions have a brown mane which grows darker and fuller as the lion ages (African Savannah) and at the age of three the mane slowly starts to show up. The average lion in the wild that lives past the age of one lives between 15 and 18 years and reaches its prime or time it is the strongest at the age of eight (African Savannah). Lions eat a variety of different prey and usually hunt at night(Comptons,1993, 1994-African Savannah). They prefer to eat wildebeast more than anything else, unfortunately they can only do so when migration brings the herds through the prides range. When the wildebeast herds are not migrating they eat buffalo, zebra, antelope, giraffe, and warthogs (African Savannah). When prey cant be caught, lions will steal food from other animals-usually from the hyenas. If absolutely no food can be found, lions will have to go to a last resort of eating snakes, termites, peanuts, fruits, and even rotten wood (Wild Animals). Although only one out of four hunting events is successful, dominant males always eat first, lionesses next, and the cubs are forced to fight for scraps and leftovers (Bush Gardens, 1996). Due to the fact the lion is inactive up to twenty-one hours a day and does all their hunting at night, they have to be able to see at night (Bush Gardens, 1996). The size of lions eyes are bigger than humans and lions only need one sixth of the amount of light humans need to be able to see (Garman, 1997). Lions also have many other special characteristics that help them hunt and survive, some are listed below. The adult lions roar can be herd up to five miles away, this can be a warning that there is intruders or it can help guide strayed

Newly liberated people Essays

Newly liberated people Essays Newly liberated people Essay Newly liberated people Essay What small prospects for success would face a society which openly announced its intention of imposing a second imperial tutelage on a newly liberated people?   -Mass Communications and American Empire  In many respects, the second Bush administrations efforts at information control are too heavy-handed for the late Herbert Schillers subtle model of mind mold. From Lynne Cheneys American Council of Trustees and Alumni to John Poindexters Total Information Awareness, 43 makes no bones about a hyper-patriotic process of inculcation in the service of a powerful ruling class. What is unusual, as a feature article this month in the Connecticut Law Tribune avows, is the extent to which President Bush and Attorney General Ashcroft are the chief cheer-leaders in this movement, equating legitimate dissent with supporting terrorism.While Schiller is no longer here to parse current events, he might be surprised at the extent to which the notion of a veritable carpet-bombing of the public consciousness informs todays critical literature. Indications of a political economy at work in the newsroom abound, from outspoken Tom Guttings dismissal from the Texas Sun within two weeks of 9/11 to Exxon Mobils withdrawal of support for PBS announced last month2. And Schiller could easily explain the FCCs new quest to regulate the Internet backbone (so that we can limit any service disruption in these troubled times) or The Rendon Groups no-bid contract with the Pentagon (to help the Joint Chiefs achieve their policy objectives). Even the five networks agreement to censor videotapes of Osama bin Laden reminded observers that, For some time, communications and space satellites have been providing intelligence that is of great tactical value in what is now euphemistically called counter-insurgency.3 Bin Laden does not have the capabilities for an operation of this magnitude, Egyptian journalist Mohammed Heikal told The Guardian, in October 2001. When I hear Bush talking about al Qaeda as if it were Nazi Germany or the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, I laugh because I know what is there. Bin Laden has been under surveillance for years: every telephone call was monitored and al Qaeda has been penetrated by American intelligence, Pakistani intelligence, Saudi intelligence, Egyptian intelligence. They could not have kept secret an operation that required such a degree of organization and sophistication. Here at home, where police and the military trained their electronic eyes on protesters at Ws inauguration, Schillers predicate marriage of economics and electronics goes largely ungoverned.5 Video surveillance and facial recognition are easy to sell to a public more paranoid than ever before about terrorists, murderers, rapists, child molesters, cop killers, robbers, and prison escapees in our midst. What could be less objectionable than catching terrorists?6 Schiller would appreciate the forthcoming bailout in the name of homeland security of the telecoms industry, which by 1966, he wrote, had morphed from being an essential support to our international activities to being an instrument of foreign policy. In the meantime, Lewis Lapham believes, foreign policy has become a cash cow for our politicians friends in the defense industry-with predictable results. The attack was an attack on American foreign policy, he said a year after 9/11, which for the last 30 years, had allied itself, both at home and abroad, with despotism and the weapons trade, a policy conducted by and for a relatively small cadre of selfish interests. Quoting George Ball, who extolled MNCs as the engines that give thrust to American expansionism, Schiller cynically agreed that the power structure found few things more hopeful for the future than the growing determination of American business to regard national boundaries as no longer fixing the horizons of their corporate activity.9 Juergen Habermas made this now-common knowledge his point of departure two months after 9/11. Instead of a globalization that consists of a market without boundaries, he told an audience of German publishers and booksellers awarding him a peace prize, many of us hope for a return of the political in another form. Not in the original form of a global security state, tied to the spheres of the police, intelligence services and now even the military, but instead as a worldwide, civilizing power of formation. Today, the language of the market penetrates every pore and forces every interpersonal relation into the schema of individual preference. The social bond, however, is based on mutual recognition and cannot be reduced to the concepts of contract, rational choice and the maximization of utility.  Finally, we find echoes of Schillers ideological quandary in contemporary efforts to understand our national dilemma The cultural puzzle that remains is why Congress and Americas citizens, given the opportunity to dissent, instead consented to Bushs new doctrine of pre-emptive war to be undertaken by the president entirely at his discretion.For fellow theorist J. Michael Sproule, the popular quiescence is no mystery. Any explicit statements that the Administration makes against dissent, he writes, are relatively minor elements in the panoply of a cultural propaganda of war and crisis. Propaganda in an open-information system works best when people are induced to acquiesce without immediate pressure. The key element in the Bush Administrations public-opinion campaign RE the Iraq war is Bushs having assumed a general mantle of a War President, extending an immediate, yet diffuse, crisis of terrorism to a wide-ranging program of confronting selected unfriendlies. From this fundamental position, the Administration has made it difficult for opponents to establish a basis for an effective challenge. The vagueness of the crisis, combined with its having been framed as a War, induces avoidance on the part of the public and self-censorship on the part of opinion leaders. And everything feeds into what de Tocqueville observed as a cultural trait of Americans to praise the abstract idea of free speech but to shrink from articulating opinions that they believe may not be universally shared.

Salsa as a Dance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Salsa as a Dance - Essay Example With room for both partners to strut their stuff, this method of dance is becoming increasingly popular throughout dance institutions and afternoon school programs not only across the United States but also the most of the other parts of the globe like India etc. Salsa dancing works with a kind of music which is basically designed with two bars consisting of four steps. Salsa dance is eventually designed for a world where leg and arm work with mesmerizing body movements give rise to passionate emotions and at the same time tend to be equally romantic. Salsa dance is actually a partner dance which is usually danced to salsa music. "The history of the Latin popular music known worldwide as "salsa" began centuries ago in the islands of the Spanish Caribbean, in a context of slavery and colonialism. Yet, it is inextricably tied to twentieth-century New York City and the growth of a thriving Latino community here. Its distinctive polyrhythm and vocal and instrumental call-and-response identify the Afro-Caribbean roots of Latin music -traditional and contemporary, sacred and secular (Salsaweb.com)". "Over the years, the sounds of salsa and the steps of the dance migrated to the U.S. as early as the 40s, where further cultivation took place in the New York City Latin population during the 1960 and 70s. Cuban and Puerto Rican communities throughout Latin America and the United States are responsible for shaping most of the steps we see today. The culture surrounding salsa also takes cues from the styles of mambo and rumba. The typical instruments accompanying salsa dance includes the thumping of congas, blaring trumpets, cowbells, timbales, and claves (Bachata Crazy.com)". Salsa dance is extremely simple and of course it is equally flexible in movements. Salsa dance is just like walking in any chosen direction and dancing on a particular spot both in straight lines or turning paces. "A step is when you put your foot down and moves your weight onto it, to be specific foot placement with weight transfer and a tap is when you put your foot down but don't move your weight onto it i.e. foot placement without weight. In many Latin countries, couples even choose which beat they would like to dance on, and it need not necessarily be the first beat (Yoe)". Both Salsa dance and music are actually believed to be originated for one another. The main purpose of existence of the renowned Salsa music has always been for dancing. "Its cooperative heritage has engendered a belief, in Latin America at least, that everyone else has an equal right to enjoyment on the dance floor (Yoe)". Both the Salsa music and dance have maintained their vitality by absorbing other influence over the decades. The dance of Salsa has got some similarities with actions like lindy - hop, hustle and swing. It has even proved capable of absorbing elements of ballroom Latin dance and Argentine tango. This fact itself sounds quite astounding to many of the lovers of Salsa. There is a lot of variation with the dancing of Salsa depending on the origin of the person dancing it along with the origin of the place from where the dance has been learnt from. At a basic level, salsa dancers from different origin can actually dance together. "British salsa is primarily anchored around the back basic; turns are executed on the second beat

Developing Website and Blog for Caf Cuisine Essay

Developing Website and Blog for Caf Cuisine - Essay Example The website would provide information regarding the restaurant over the internet to the customers. Moreover, the Cafe Cuisine has decided the business model of business to consumer to be presented by the website. In order to market the website of the Cafe Cuisine has decided to have their appearance on one of the Blogs – a free web service. The document presents a justification of the business model adopted by the Cafe Cuisine and a detailed discussion on the processes required to develop the website of the Cafe Cuisine for establishing their e-business. The document provides justification for selection of the web contents as well as the contents published over the blog for attracting the customers. It is pertinent to identify, analyze and evaluate the issues pertain to the e-Business including the electronic transactions, the procurement channel, and the supply chain management. Considering the importance of evaluating the e-business issues on failure or success, the document provides a brief description of these issues. 2. Business Model Business models for the e-Commerce can be categorized into the various categories include but are not limited to the Business - to - Consumer (B 2 C), Business - to - Business (B 2 B), Consumer - to - Business (C 2 B) and Business - to - Government (B 2 G) (Lauden and Traver, 2012). From the given business models, the Cafe Cuisine has selected Business - to - Consumer (B 2 C) considering their type of business i-e provision of cooked food services to the customers. In Business to Consumer business model, the Cafe Cuisine would sell the food products directly to the customers or consumers. The website of the Cafe Cuisine would facilitate the consumers to visit/review the food products online while sitting at their own places, select and order the food products. The menu list of the Cafe Cuisine would be available over the website containing the food items and their prices. Once the consumer/customer selected and ordered for the food item, the same would be delivered to the Cafe Cuisine management and they manage to sever the consumer order at their place. As the product of the Cafe Cuisine has directly been utilized by the consumer, therefore, the Cafe Cuisine’s management decided to adopt the B2C business model. Moreover, the B2C business model can facilitate the Cafe Cuisine to grow their business by planning and achieving clear objectives and goals. The website facilitates to manage huge customers at a time for reviewing their menus as well as placing orders. Taking into consideration facts and benefits of the B2C business model, the Cafe Cuisine decided to adopt it (Nikov, n.d). 3. Website Development and Evaluation A website development process has to be utilized for the development of the Cafe Cuisine’s website (Alexander, B., n.d). Initially, while website development, we carefully took the requirements of the Cafe Cuisine for the development of the website. The requirements o f the Cafe Cuisine consisted of functional and non-functional requirements (Vandeuren, 2012). In the next phase, we iteratively create the design of the website that was highly important to make the website usable. The usability is one of the features of the quality website. After completing the design of the website in the Dreamweaver, we started to write the contents of the website, as well as planned the contents of the Blog (Calhoun, 2003).  

Othello and Guess Whos Coming to Dinner Comparative Essay Example for Free

Othello and Guess Whos Coming to Dinner Comparative Essay The transformation between Othello, a 16th century Shakespearean tragedy and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, a 1960’s Romantic Comedy, can be compared by addressing themes that are present in each text. The theme of race can be used to compare the different attitudes of each context, surrounding the significant black characters of Othello in Othello and John in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and there interaction with white females that belong to an upper middle class. The theme of interracial marriages can be used to compare the different values and attitudes of each context, towards a black white marriage. This applies to both Othello Desdemona and John Joanna. By exploring the different contexts, ideas and techniques incorporated into each text, we can apprehend the different messages that each composer has attempted to convey to their audience. Othello – Power of Love Othello is a Shakespearean tragedy, set in Elizabethan Times that present the relationship between, Othello, a ‘moor’ who’s an official in the Venetian army and Desdemona, the daughter of a noble Venetian Senator, Brabantio, and how despite their different experiences in love, a strong relationship can occur, without any initial external input. Desdemona’s assertive behaviour towards romantically pursing Othello, demonstrates her confidence and power, which she maintains throughout the play. Most significantly, the fact that Othello did not ask for Brabantio’s permission to marry Desdemona, demonstrates how Othello did not consider the traditional values of Elizabeth society. However as they play develops, Iago’s manipulation of Othello’s insecurities, leads to the relationship between Othello and Desdemona falling apart. This reflects Elizabethan society and its values towards love and marriage. In Elizabethan times, a marriage between a man and a woman was considered extremely important. Women were generally considered to be in the possession of their father, this was because men were considered powerful and important people. It was in the father’s power to determine whom their daughter married, provided that his family were respectable and had money. A marriage between a ‘moor’ and a white would not have been socially acceptable in Elizabethan times, seeing that the Moorish skin colour portrayed a sense of filth and evil. Whites being superior and educated, while others were considered inferior. This theme can be explored through the objectification of Desdemona in scene 1 Act 3 Lines 182-187 â€Å"How to respect you. You are lord of all my duty: I am hitherto your daughter. But here’s my husband: And so much duty as many mother showed To you, preferring you before her father, so much I challenge that I may profess Due to the moor, my lord.† We see that Desdemona, is detaching herself from her father, just as her mother did to her father. This demonstrates her power and her ability to make decisions despite her father’s approval.

Myths of the American Dream Exposed in Arthur Millers Death of a Sales

Myths of the American Dream Exposed in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman    Willy Loman, the lead character of Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, believes in "the myths of the capitalistic society"(DiYanni 412). This essay will examine the impact of the capitalistic myths on Willy Lowman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Willy believes in the myth that popularity and physical appearance are the keys that unlock the door to the â€Å"American Dream†. We are first introduced to the importance of popularity and physical appearance when Willy is speaking to his wife, Linda, about their son Biff.   â€Å"Biff Loman is lost,† says Willy.   â€Å"In the greatest country in the world, a young man with such personal attractiveness gets lost.†Ã‚   In this quote, not only is Willy confused about how Biff’s good looks can’t help him get a job, but also because his son can’t get a job in a country like America.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Willy believes in appearance, in phoniness, in popularity with those he regards as important in the capitalistic machine. An example of how Willy depends on popularity to help achieve the dream is seen when Willy is having a flashback in which he’s speaking to both Biff and Happy about having his own business. The boys ask their father if his business will be like their Uncle Charley’s.   Willy responds by saying that he’ll be, â€Å"Bigger than Uncle Charley!   Because Charley is not- liked.   He’s liked, but he’s not- well liked.†Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most significant example of Willy’s belief in the popularity myth also takes place in one of Willy’s flashbacks.   Again, he is speaking to his sons about becoming successful.   He tells them, â€Å"...the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ... ... slogans for his own beliefs: â€Å"Chevrolet, Linda, is the greatest car ever built.† But his blind faith cannot sustain him: â€Å"That goddam Chevrolet, they ought to prohibit the manufacture of that car†.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Each day Willy must run faster and stretch his arms out further in his attempt to catch the dream. When he is too tired to run, Willy is spewed out of the capitalistic machine as a worn-out and useless part. Willy then gives all that he has remaining so that his son can collect the insurance money and thereby pay his entrance fee to the capitalistic machine. The same machine that destroyed Willy. Works Cited DiYanni, Robert. Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Compact Edition. McGraw Hill, 2000. 395-530. Miller, Arthur. "Death of a Salesman" in Literature, Reading, Reacting, Writing, Compact Fourth Edition. Harcourt, Inc. 2000.

Chinas Pollution Essay

When people think about China the main thing that comes to mind is its wonderful scenery and growing economy. China has been catching up to the rest of the world by industrializing. According to the organization for economic corporation department (OECD) â€Å" Chinas Economy will overtake the U.S. as the biggest in the world by 2016†. However there are many concerns leading up to Chinas success. In the middle of China’s extraordinary economic growth and industrial growth, the energy outputs to supporting this growth has resulted in an all time high in pollution. This growth has caused China to be the most polluted country in the world. Many parts of China are suffering from water and air pollution due to coal mining and the dumping of toxic wastes. The question we ask today is what has the government done to tackle the pollution issue? Pollution in China has been a major problem for years, dating all the way back to the Mao Zedong and the Industrial Revolution. The government was so preoccupied with the growing agriculture they overlooked the situation. However with angry citizens and protesters they tried implementing different ways to protect the environment. Environmental officials finally took action, creating different laws to improve the air quality and regulate the water. Chinas economy is on a historic run relying on resources such as coal and water for their development. However Chinas increasingly polluted environment is largely due to the country’s hurried industry development causing large increase in energy consumption. This pollution problem has left a deadly impact on the people in China. Air pollution is so bad that in some parts citizens cant see the sun but because of the smoke and fog. The World Health Organization has estimated that this air pollution is responsible for 300,000 premature deaths annually. Those staggering numbers are a major problem that needs to be regulated. Chinese cities are covered in lethal cloak, which leads to water and air contamination. Nearly 500 million Chinese citizens lack the access to unsafe drinking water and 1 percent out of the 560 million breath safe air. China is thriving because of its expanding industry however by using resources such as coal. Coal is a useful resource however it is a very dir ty source and contaminates the air when burned. The industrial industry is allowing China to flourish economically but at the same time leaving a drastic impact on the people.  One of Chinas leading environmental researchers, Wang Jinnan, announced â€Å" It is a very awkward situation for the country because our greatest achievement is also our biggest burden†. This explains how resources such as coal contribute to the growing industry but also has deadly effects on the people. Chinas economy is on a historic run but is it worth putting peoples lives in jeopardy? China’s reliance on coal has an effect on the air quality. It is said that China burns more coal then the U.S., Europe and Japan combined. The sulfur dioxide that is emitted from the coal and fuel can affect breathing, cause respiratory illnesses and lung diseases. An unpublicized report done by the Chinese academy of Environmentalist planning said in estimate that yearly premature deaths attributed from outdoor pollution is on track to reach 550,000 in 2 020. This alarming statistic has China’s people worrying and curious to see what the government is up to. Air pollution not only affected the people but also the water, produce and other resources. The lack of fresh water in China evolves around the contamination of the Water due to illegal littering. In different regions in China factories and farms dump waste into the surface water. Chinas environmentalist monitors say â€Å" One- third of all river, and vast sections of Chinas great lakes†¦ have water rated grade v, the most degrading level†. As a result of this contaminated water China has the highest liver and stomach cancer deaths in the world. Water pollution is a complicated part of Chinas problem and is hard to be prevented. As a result of the dumping of wastes into main rivers and lakes many Chinese citizens don’t have fresh water to drink. Leaving many people thirsty is not a problem government official’s want for their country. In Liangqiao, a small village in China, citizens blame the Mining Corporation for the dumping of chemicals into tributaries in the Laza River. This creates for a shortage of drinking water and untenable for agricultural use. A professor in South China’s agricultural University says, â€Å" The mining company’s waste flows directly into the Laza River which runs into the Pearl River, a major source of drinking water for 12 million residents of Guangzhou city,† This is a horrific problem and the government needs to react now before it gets worse. Riots broke out in a Xinchang, city in China, over the environmental degradation. Citizens are angry at the lack of government initiative in the pollution and took matters into there own hands. One outraged villager  explained, â€Å" Our fields won’t produce grain anymore†¦we don’t dare to eat food grown from anywhere near here†. The agriculture is declining, leaving farmers with a scarce amount of good. Government officials were overlooking this problem in order to keep the economy growing. In just 30 years china has made an extraordinary development economically and with the governments help China can thrive even further by implementing environmental regulations for the people. Over the years, government officials implemented ways to help the pollution problem as well as maintaining economic development. Alarmed by the repercussions of industrialization and urbanization, Chinas environmental agencies are working on imputing laws to regulate the pollution. One of the first improvements made was the removal of lead, which was beneficial to Hong Kong by reducing their mortality rate. Recognizing the problem Chinese leaders such as Deng Xiaoping and Prime Minister Jiaboa are speaking out, telling the people about different environmental protection laws. Although there are many objectives set forth by the government to fix this pollution problem, no real noticeable actions have taken effect. The Chinese Government is more worried about the economy then the people. The most determined effort control china’s fast industrial growth was the project known as the â€Å" Green G.D.P.†, â€Å"which was an effort to create an environmental yardstick for evaluating the performance of every official in China. It recalculated the gross domestic product to reflect the cost of pollution†. This was an effort to regulate the financial loss that pollution had on the economy. However the government pulled out of the project in 2007. The Chinese government saw that the financial and economic issues that resulted from the G.D.P. such as the struggles realizing that any attempt to prevent pollution would hinder it economically. The frightened idea to interrupt China’s growing economy is a reason why China still has pollution today. In attempts to stick to their original goals to prevent pollution, China began to make continuous efforts. In Linfen, China, known as the heaviest polluted city in the word, officials have set up laws to help clean up the region. The Xiangfen County Environmental Protection Bureau announced that seven factories will close due to their environmental harm. Chinese environmentalist Yang spoke out about the factories saying,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"If they fail to meet the (pollution) goals in the first year, their superiors will raise the topic; in the second year, they will receive a formal warning; in the third year, they will be removed from post.† By threatening the closing down of factories, results in a greater up keep among factories. The only problem that would result in closing down these factories is unemployment; however, the health of the people is more important. In 2011, Toyota Motor announced that they would be making low-emission cars in China. China has the biggest market of cars and creating an environmentally safe way to market a car is upright. Further-more, in recent years, China’s attempts to help the environment have been successful and hasn’t prevented economic progression. In the City of Lizhou, the environmental conditions were horrid because of the rapid industrialization and urbanization. However, by implementing the improvement in clean water, the citizens have benefited greatly. The Lizhou Environmental Management Project set forth to invest in sewage networks, wastewater treatment plants, and waste collection stations. As a result of the advancement, wastewater treatment in the City has increased from 15 percent in 2005 to over 75 percent in 2011. The project was designed to provide clean water for poor urban areas in China. This is a stepping-stone for China and can hopefully lead to more change. China’s industry development dates all the way back to the Great Leap Forward when Mao’s goal was to increase agricultural output; with All things considered, the communist government has acknowledged the major pollution problem in the country but is slow in terminating it. It needs to stop worrying so much about the growing economy and think more about the health of its people, an issue that stems from the pollution problem in china. As the environmental situation declines, China will not only become a healthier, more appealing place to live, but also raise funding through tourism and environmental technology, garnering the economical gains that the government strives to get.