Internet Governance

Introduction Internet governance is crucial for the security of the world’s nations. The Internet is the most commonly used source of information in the modern digitalized economies regardless of a nation’s development status.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Internet Governance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More On the other hand, terrorists use the Internet to access information about their target areas of attack across the world; hence, there is a great need for Internet governance that offers security mechanism for shielding information that could benefit terrorists in their missions. Since its inception, the Internet has lacked a centralized governing body, hence making it freely accessible to everyone with an Internet access around the globe. Consequently, many people have suffered from acts of terrorisms and huge data leaked to the hands of the Internet hackers. In addition, individuals, co rporate organisations, and even governmental bodies have suffered huge losses due to the Internet virus spread coupled with malwares that corrupt computer memories leading to loss of data. In addition, many people have lost trust with the Internet security mechanism for its lenience on tightening security for fear of denying people the freedom of expression over the Internet. Some countries oppose the idea of introducing central governing bodies for the Internet fearing that their communication technology development might be hampered by the developed countries1. In contrast, some developed nations fear that other countries would take that advantage to hinder their development thus opposing the idea of centralised Internet governance. Internet Governance Forum (IGF) There is no universal definition of the term â€Å"Internet Governance†, which has been agreed upon by the involved stakeholders. The simplest definition of Internet Governance is the management, control, and coor dination of the Internet.2 However, in 2005, the United Nations held the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), in which the delegates agreed upon the definition of the term â€Å"Internet Governance†. According to Kruger, the agreed definition defined the Internet Governance as â€Å"the development and application by governments, the private sector, and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decision-making procedures, and programmes that shape the evolution and use of the Internet†.3Advertising Looking for case study on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The coming of the Internet has led to the changes in the mode of international telecommunications processes in the world. Initially, growth and development of the Internet had been without guidance and participation of intergovernmental processes until the adoption of the International Telec ommunication Union (ITU) in 1973.4 However, the Internet had not fully grown to a level of becoming a global communication, economic, political, and social platform as it is in the contemporary times. The role of ITU was to manage and standardize the technical and operation tasks of the Internet, which include the standardization of communication protocols, managing web names, and numerical addresses used over the Internet. The rapid growth and development of the Internet in many countries all over the world stirred concerns over the introduction of a multi-stakeholder Internet governance rather than giving the United States full control over the management of the Internet. Fidler claims that the main objective of these countries was â€Å"to bring the role of Internet governance within the intergovernmental processes and under the international Internet law treaties†5. In 1988, members of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) adopted the International telecommunica tion Regulations (ITRs), which according to Fidler ,it â€Å"focused on interconnection and universal operation ability of communication services brought about by the growth of the Internet, and hence replaced Telegraph and Telephone Regulations that ITU had espoused upon its adoption in 1973†6. According to Kruger, the ITRs contained the â€Å"governing principles rather than rules that formed a simple framework for the international communication cooperation, which are still been in use today†.7 Over the last few decades, the use and development of the internet in the world has been growing rapidly, and that has posed a great challenge on the Internet governance and administration policies. Internet governance underscores a wide area of study and it entails a number of administrative aspects that seek to keep Internet content under check. Some policies are difficult for national regulative mechanisms, and thus they require international co-operation, of which some po licies are often difficult to agree upon their international uniformity.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Internet Governance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More There have been heated deliberations over the aspects that touch on Internet governance coupled with the necessary regulations governing the same. According to Kruger, â€Å"the United Nations held the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) in two stages, viz. the first and the second in 2003 and 2005 respectively, which gave momentum to the debate on Internet Governance†8. The ultimate goal of holding the summit was to discuss the methods that would increase the access of communication and information technologies in the applied when applied on the global platform. Much of the discussions made in the summit relied heavily on the centralisation of the technical administration of the internet, which disappointed a majority of the participants and especially the delegates from the third world countries. However, a key outcome of the summit was an agreement upon the establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), and the aim of the governance forum was to bring together multi-stakeholders in its management, which included the governments, industry, and civil societies. The WSIS of 2003 summit did not reach a consensus because of presence of many disagreements between the proponents and proposers of the adoption of the multi-stakeholder approach to the Internet governance. While China and third world countries proposed for the adoption of the Multi-stakeholder approach, the United States and other western developed countries advocated for the introduction of more governmental and intergovernmental control mechanisms. Those disagreements led the WSIS to advising the then UN Secretary-General to establishing the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) in December 2004. Much heated debate over the Internet control l ed to the confrontation of the WGIG by the parties of both sides. Those confrontations forced the WGIG to recommend the establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which was passed on the second WSIS summit in 2005.Advertising Looking for case study on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the initial IGF lacked the decision-making authority, despite its being a multi-stakeholders discussion forum. Moreover, in 2006 ITU members decided to hold an international conference on the international telecommunication for the ITRs that would empathize on the much-evolved international telecommunication environments, which they proposed to hold in 2012. In 2012, delegates filled the ITU conference on the international telecommunication with heated debates over the stand of the ITU on Internet governance. Proponents of the multi-stakeholders approach believed that ITU was using the conference as a platform of bringing Internet governance under the control of both the governmental and non-governmental organisations and hindering innovation, growth of the e-commerce, the Internet development, people’s democracy, and the human rights. Many scholars viewed the idea of the reviewing the ITRs as a move to tie the government regulations on the Internet, and hence keepin g the free usage of the Internet away from the future generations. They argued that in order to prevent that case from happening coupled with any fundamental shift concerning the modern Internet governance, influential stakeholders should seek ways of protecting it. However, the secretary general of ITU, Hamadoun Tourà ©, had stated that the conference would not address any issues relating to the Internet governance, but some members proposed for changes that focused much on Internet governance, and they considered it prudent to hold discussions over them. For instance, according to Fidler, in an article on the Internet, Russia had discussed on the multi-stakeholder model, viz. â€Å"Member States shall have equal rights to manage the Internet, including in regard to the allotment, assignment and reclamation of the Internet numbering, naming, addressing and identification resources, and to support for the operation and development of the basic Internet infrastructure†9. Othe r forms of proposed revisions on ITRs included the financing model for the Internet communications and measures that affect the security of both computer and the Internet security.10 Unfortunately, the conference ended without mutual consensus. There were 144 delegates having the voting rights out of whom eighty-nine appended their signs on the revision of ITRs including many from the third world countries, China, and Russia. On the other hand, delegates from the Unites States, European nations, and Australia did not sign for the revision. The fact that both sides had powerful nations led to the ending of a conference without consensus. However, the ITU secretary-general noted later that the revised ITRs did not mention the word ‘Internet’; hence, there was a need for the revision and thus he made a resolution to adopt the revision. The new revised ITRs included a preamble language, which required ITU members to remain committed in implementing the proposed regulations in manners, which respected and upheld human rights. The major difference between this form of language and others is its responsiveness to debates over the human rights and the Internet while others relied heavily on the freedom of expression as the only basic human right over the communication technologies11. In addition, there were articles of the revised ITRs that brought controversies among the members of the ITU. For instance, article 1 contained a provision that allowed private institutions that engage in the provision of international communication services to govern the Internet. This move brought about the question on the purpose and scope of the ITRs to the government of the United States. Hence, according to Drake, â€Å"the United States strongly opposed the provision by arguing that the revised ITRs broadened the scope of Internet governance to the point that the private sector and government operators could play a crucial role in the governance of the Internet across the world†.12 There was also a controversy about the added language in the article1.1 (a), which touched on the human rights and addressed the Internet content as a human right. In essence, content-related issues cannot be termed as human rights to the freedom of expression. The provision failed to convince the majority of members, and as a result, ITU dropped it after much criticism concerning its provision to post harmful contents over the Internet under the human rights provision. Article 5A provided for the provision of information security and cyber-security by individual member states. The United States strongly opposed that provision and described both ITU and ITRs as inappropriate avenues for the world’s Internet security issues. The manner in which some developed countries signed the revision of ITRs was questionable to the United States and consequently it viewed Russia and China as geared towards introducing the Internet security covers that could limit the public usage of the Internet at freewill. Hence, it strongly opposed that provision terming it as a risky move to the human rights. The ITU also adopted an additional revision to the ITRs concerning the enabling of the greater growth of the Internet by all stakeholders called Resolution 3.13 However, Resolution 3 was a non-binding regulation though it received much criticism from some countries especially the United States that viewed it as a contravention to the promise by the ITU secretary general, Hamadoun Tourà © that WCIT would not touch on anything related to the Internet in the discussions. The United States feared that the proponents of the revision would extend this provision to the point of allowing government and non-government bodies to have great influence over the Internet governance. However, the reviewed ITRs policies would be put in place at the start of 2015 to the countries that appended the revision. On the other hand, others, who did not append to the revision, would remain bound by the current ITRs. There are various questions about the adverse effect of Internet governance on businesses conditions, planning, decision-making processes, and other important sectors in an economy14. In addition, the scope of Internet governance also seems unclearly defined as to where it should take place, the Internet issues that should be addressed, and outcomes to be sought in the application of Internet governance mechanisms. These serious issues hamper good international relations amongst different states such as Russia, United States, and China. Lack of consensus in the world conference of international telecommunication (WCIT) hints at a probable lack of signs of a meaningful comprise in the future. Going by the international laws, the WCIT tried to introduce Internet governance as a set of international rules. Opposition by any state to these rules did not pose any danger of prosecution, but rather the consequences of failing to adhere to such rules and policies. The ITU members realised such discrepancies, which compelled the ambassador of the United States to conclude that his country would support the multi-stakeholders approach of the Internet governance, which incorporates industries, civil societies, and other major stakeholders of economic growth and development. In October 2006, the UN summit held the first meeting that discussed issues on the Internet Governance Forum. In attendance were the delegates from different economic sectors and countries all over the world. In addition, those delegates from different sectors that included government, industries, charities, and civil organisations. According to Drake, â€Å"the main theme of the conference was Internet Governance for economic growth and development, and had four main subcategories, which included viz. openness, security, access issues, and cultural and linguistic diversity†.15 Internet Governance does not make decisions, but it provides an Internet plat form for democratic decision-making by setting up dynamic coalitions for the process. The key issues in the dynamic coalitions include privacy, open standards, and rights and responsibilities of the Internet users. Beginning with the privacy, the Internet governance forum provided for rules that regulate the web and the Internet users about the handling of privacy. Privacy protection is the first step to ensuring the security of the Internet users through emails, web pages, and databases. Secondly, the Internet security is a major issue of concern in today’s digital world. The major Internet security threats include spam, malwares, and cyberspace attacks. Spam is unwanted message sent by unanimous senders to recipients and mostly contains immoral and security threatening messages. Internet governance has the responsibilities of prohibiting the sending of spam messages over the Internet. Malware refers to application software products sent over the email and destroys the compu ter database whenever they run in a computer. However, there is a major concern that Internet governance should also control the Internet content despite it being open and global. However, since the inception of the Internet, it has never been under control of a controlling body or organisation. The Internet abuse is controllable and Internet governance mechanisms need to be introduced for the execution of the Internet control processes. For instance, in the UK, unlawful Internet content leads to the prosecution whereby the Internet Watch Foundation controls the Internet contents that are abusive to under-aged individuals. In addition, Ofcom, a UK Internet regulator, works to control the standards of the contents broadcasted over the Internet. It does not prosecute the law offenders, but its duty is to raise awareness to the stakeholders, who include industries and civil societies among others, about the self-regulatory capability that each have over the content displayed over the I nternet. Ofcom is a good example of the Internet governance by the multi-stakeholders. In the United States, network neutrality policy advocates for equal treatment of the information displayed over the Internet regardless of the nature and impacts of the content. Considering the future of Internet governance, this paper would conclude by saying that it is at a greater stake considering the policies that are available today for governing the Internet content16. This policy has brought issues in the United States over a majority of the Internet users displaying contents that are abusive to minors and insulting to the religious individuals. However, the government emphasizes on the issuance of freedom of expression to its citizens, and hence no limit to the Internet contents. Through the Internet governance mechanisms, numerous organisations are involved in the administration of the Internet at both the national and international spectrum. The most common organisation that governs int ernet addresses and security is the Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) located in the United States. In addition, ICANN is a non-profit making organisation for assigning domain names and the IP addresses. Domain Name System (DNS) is a system for allowing computers to identify each other through unique numerical labels and IP addresses. This system ensures security of the Internet users by the identifications of the computers being used over the Internet, and thus it is easy to track the Internet offenders by the location of the used computers. University of Southern California was the first institution mandated, by the government of the United States, with the role of issuing DNS and IP addresses until the introduction of ICANN in early1998. The US government mandated ICANN with the role of delegating top-level domain names to some organisations that maintained two level domain names such as.com and.net17. Secondly, it is responsible for allocating blocks of the Internet protocol ad dresses to five most common regional Internet registries, and thirdly it authorises the creation of high-level domain names. However, the US department of commerce had much control over the ICANN until in 2006 when a joint agreement to allow it to have full independence over its responsibilities was reached by various government institutions, but the department of commerce has the authority to oversee how ICANN issues the domain registries to some organisations and specific clients18. Internet Governance Forum wishes to introduce new technologies in the governing of the Internet activities that use the detection of the IP addresses of the computers being used for the Internet networking at certain locations. For instance, the Google map application is used in the identification of specific geographical locations of interest all over the world. Google maps are widely used by navigators as well as the Internet governance bodies such as the United States Marine Corps who use special sa tellite assisted maps in the identification of locations of interest all over the world. However, some critics argue that Internet governance tends to limit the Internet freedom, and this assertion can be looked into two different perspectives. First, Internet governance could limit the Internet freedom through allowing much involvement of the government regulators into the regulatory bodies such as the ICANN of the United States. Secondly, the Internet freedom is denied when the Internet governance mechanisms, which control the nature of the Internet content, are put in place and they end up limiting some individuals from posting contents that are harmful to some individuals such as the Ofcom, which protects the minors. Works Cited Benedek, Wolfgang, Veronica Bauer, and Matthias Ketterman. Internet Governance  and the Information Society: Global Perspectives and European Dimensions, New Jersey: Eleven International Publishing, 2008. Print. Drake, William. Reforming Internet Gover nance: Perspectives from the Working  Group on Internet Governance, New York: United Nations Publications, 2005. Print. Fidler, David. â€Å"Internet Governance and International Law: The Controversy Concerning Revision of the International Telecommunication Regulations.† American Society of International Law 17.6 (2013): 7-14. Gelbstein, Eduardo, and Jovan Kurbalija. Internet governance: issues, actors, and  divides, Merbourne: Diplo Foundation, 2005. Print. Kruger, Leonard. Internet Governance and the Domain Name System: Issues for  Congress, Washington, D.C: The Library Congress, 2010. Print. Mathiason, John. Internet Governance: The New Frontier of Global Institutions,  London: Routlegde, 2008. Print. Mueller, Milton. Ruling the root: Internet governance and the taming of cyberspace,  Washington D.C.: MIT Press, 2004. Print. Thierer, Adam, and Wayne Crews. Who rules the net: Internet governance and  jurisdiction, Boston: Cato Institute, 2003. Print. United Nat ions ICT Task Force. Internet Governance: A Grand Collaboration: an  Edited Collection of Papers Contributed to the United Nations ICT Task Force Global Forum on Internet Governance, New York: United Nations Publications, 2004. Print. Footnotes 1 John Mathiason. Internet Governance: The New Frontier of Global Institutions, London: Routlegde, 2008. Print. p.94. 2Ibid, p.27. 3Leonard Kruger. Internet Governance and the Domain Name System: Issues for Congress, Washington, D.C: The Library Congress, 2010. Print. p.162 4David Fidler. â€Å"Internet Governance and International Law: The Controversy Concerning Revision of the International Telecommunication Regulations.† American Society of International Law 17.6 (2013): 7-14. 5Fidler, p.8. 6Ibid, p.13. 7 Kruger, p.163. 8Ibid, p.168. 9 Fidler, p.9. 10 Mathiason, p.105 11Adams Thierer and Wayne Crews. Who rules the net: Internet governance and jurisdiction, Boston: Cato Institute, 2003. Print. p.128. 12 William Drake. Reforming Int ernet Governance: Perspectives from the Working Group on Internet Governance, New York: United Nations Publications, 2005. Print. p.162. 13 Kruger, p.73. 14 Wolfgang Benedek, Veronica Bauer, and Matthias Kettermaand. Internet Governance and the Information Society: Global Perspectives and European Dimensions, New Jersey: Eleven International Publishing. 2008. Print. p.111. 15 Drake, p.201. 16 Milton Mueller. Ruling the root: Internet governance and the taming of cyberspace, Washington D.C.: MIT Press, 2004. Print. p.183. 17Thierer and Crews, p.136. 18 United Nations ICT Task Force. Internet Governance: A Grand Collaboration: an Edited Collection of Papers Contributed to the United Nations ICT Task Force Global Forum on Internet Governance, New York: United Nations Publications, 2004. Print. p.47 This case study on Internet Governance was written and submitted by user Brodie J. to help you with your own studies. 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Power and Authority. essays

Power and Authority. essays A simple definition of power could be the ability both to demand that people do something, and to say how a thing should be done or organised. Authority, however, is where power is granted by consent; and when an individual or committee is said to have authority, the reason that justifies this authority is known as legitimacy. In general, the government has authority because it has legitimacy through: tradition, as Parliament has existed for hundreds of years; charisma, as many people may follow present PM Tony Blair through the strength and attraction of his personality; and democratically through the people, as they vote in elections for the MP or party they wish to form the government. An example of an organisation that has power but not necessarily authority would be the Mafia, which exercise their power by sometimes using violence and force, or money, status, education or sex. In Liberal Democracies such as the UK, power is split into three types: legislative power, which is the power to make laws; executive power, which is the power to implement laws; and judicial power, which is the power to interpret laws. The two concepts of power and authority can be understood in different ways, for example Steven Luke's three faces of power or Max Weber's three types of authority. The nature, sources, and limitations of political authority and power have been much debated questions since the time of the ancient Greeks. These two sociologist's theories discuss the concepts of power and authority in three stages; Weber distinguished three main modes of claiming legitimacy, and Lukes derived a definition of power in three stages. Max Weber, whose study took place in the 19th century, decided that authority was split into three types: charismatic authority, traditional authority, and rational - legal authority. The first type, charismatic authority rests on the appeal of leaders who claim allegiance because of their extraordinary virtuosit...

NCLB Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

NCLB - Coursework Example However not all the accommodations have been by states as positive and valid? The question therefore is whether the federal government should be involved in directing state education policy. The quality of schooling is of special importance to any nation. Economic performance is a direct outcome of knowledge. Income levels as well as GDP directly depend on knowledge, skills and training levels. Academic skills therefore are very important in the market place and this forms the basis for accountability in school performance. It will be note also that it is an obvious responsibility of the federal government to promote economic growth. States do not account for population mobility and thus many not make decisions that benefit the entire nation. They also may not properly consider the effects of a poorly educated citizenry and workforce. Many students also more on completing education and therefore states do not benefit from the investment in education directly (Nathan, 2005). Local politics of self-interest and voter apathy manifesting in school elections and local teachers unions destruct school policies from focusing on measurable outcomes. Such forces can only be checked by a neutral national policy set by the federal government. The federal government has also been historically interested with equitable distribution of income and protecting children from marginalized populations whose educational attainment is significantly hurt by shortcomings in the school system. Federal government should therefore set standards of achievement while states and school districts decide on the best ways of achieving improved incomes as per the standards set. 1. Richard P. Nathan. (2005). Should the Federal Government be Involved in School Accountability? Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Vol. 24, No. 1, 167–178. Available at:

English Language and Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English Language and Literature - Essay Example Street after street, and all the folks asleep - street after street, all lighted up as if for a procession, and all as empty as a church - till at last I got into that state of mind when a man listens and listens and begins to long for the sight of a policeman. All at once, I saw two figures: one a little man who was stumping along eastward at a good walk, and the other a girl of maybe eight or ten who was running as hard as she was able down a cross-street. Well, sir, the two ran into one another naturally enough at the corner; and then came the horrible part of the thing; for the man trampled calmly over the child's body and left her screaming on the ground." (http://www.bibliomania.com/0/0/46/86/frameset.html) Here, it should be noticed that the description of the actual incident and more so the prelude to in the manner of portraying the nature of the local environment at that point of time evokes a sense of mystery itself but the writer predominantly made it a point to turn this apparently narration into a supernatural element. This specific element is the peripheral outlook of the whole novel and it zeros in on the point where the basic perception of the reader is focused on the achieving additional impulse from the novel that is at the same time uncanny and supernatural. (Sen, 57) This piece of text has tried its best at exploring the secrets of the soul and it is for this matter that the story becomes a bit mysterious right from its onset. The elements represented in the text like drinking chemicals in order to isolate his own self into the form of a human evil as well as doing that fair bit in disclosing his own liking for the secret tenet hidden within him are some of the secret and unexplored areas present in the story and on a particular note, within Dr. Jekyll's role. These bring to light the dark and hidden forces that are present within his personality and for a reader it does not act as anything short of a supernatural and mysterious character that will soon come out and haunt one and all. The science fiction story brings to life a certain cross section of our society which likes to break new grounds as well as find out what is undiscovered to date. It attempts at discerning what is next to impossible or for that matter close to calling it as the unexpected marvel. This points out the treacherous mystery of emotions and as such pinpoints the loom that is so very evident at the end of the saga. The linkage between thought and rational realism is not present as the mind envisions a distinctive set of juices which encompass random gestures, beliefs and ethical insights. During this while, the story unfolds itself to become into a piece of drama, one that starts to shape up as a haunted area, pretty much undiscovered and

An analysis f Jevons' Theory of Women's Employment Essay

An analysis f Jevons' Theory of Women's Employment - Essay Example On the contrary, men’s participation in the labor market has never been challenged by proponents of the neoclassical tradition. Such assumptions push economists to view women as dependent beings. This essay discusses Jevons’s theory of women’s employment, and the inherent flaws of his arguments. Overview According to Pigou, the primary basis of women’s work is the labor earnings of their husband. Likewise, Becker argues that women look for employment because of a ‘household decision’ (as cited in Gupta, 2000). The question is, does the decision to look for employment a personal choice of women? Apparently such an assumption prevents one from wondering why women keep on working when their salaries are very unreasonable; such a decision may reveal an unproductive use of their capabilities; and women are prohibited by market forces to maximize benefits or returns to their personal investment (e.g. education). The participation of women in the lab or market is not viewed as a positive input to economic progress; it is rather seen as creating unfavorable outcomes for household work and national interest. Edgeworth cautioned that a huge population of women in the labor market would lead to â€Å"depression or debacle of industry†, a â€Å"debacle, ultimately ruinous alike to wealth and family life† (Kuiper & Sap, 1995, 19). However, one of the most fervent critics of women’s employment is William Stanley Jevons. He warns about the effect of employment on the household responsibilities of women and on rates of infant mortality. Paradoxically, the solutions to such dilemmas identified by the so-called ‘free market’ economists are largely influenced by draconian involvement in current labor market situations. Edgeworth supported the strengthening of barriers to women’s employment, and Marshall backed up the Factory Acts. Jevons was harsher, supporting the legalization of the total omission of mothers of children aged three and below from factories (Kuiper & Sap, 1995, 19-20). Likewise, where Pigou supported state involvement to remedy market malfunction in the employment sector, women were openly excluded. Specifically, Jevons argued that mothers of young children should be prohibited from working in factories, a rule which is thought to guarantee that children’s right and welfare were safeguarded. In 1882 Jevons called this subject matter ‘the employment of child-bearing women away from home’ as â€Å"the most important question touching the relation of the State to labor which remains unsolved† (Peart, 1996, 143). Because the participation of these women in the labor market discarded infants to â€Å"that scourge of infant life, the dirty fungus-bearing bottle† (Peart, 1996, 143), it was obvious that comprehensive policy was needed. The ills related to oppressive policy were in this case ‘overbalance[d]’ by the ‘i nfanticide’ that arose from unhindered action (Ege & Igersheim, 2011, 97): The objection may no doubt be made, that the exclusion of childbearing women from works in public factories would be a new and extreme case of interference with the natural liberty of the individual†¦ But I venture to maintain that all these supposed natural entities, principles, rules, theories, axioms, and the like, are at the best but presumptions or probabilities of good. There is, on the whole, a certain

Inflation within the Indian Economy

Inflation within the Indian Economy By inflation one generally means rise in prices. To be more correct inflation is persistent rise in the general price level rather than a once-for-all rise in it, while deflation is persistent falling price. A situation is described as inflationary when either the prices or the supply of money are rising, but in practice both will rise together. These days economies of all countries whether underdeveloped, developing as well developed suffers from inflation. Inflation or persistent rising prices are major problem today in world. Because of many reasons, first, the rate of inflation these years are much high than experienced earlier periods. Second, Inflation in these years coexists with high rate of unemployment, which is a new phenomenon and made it difficult to control inflation. An inflationary situation is where there is too much money chasing too few goods. As products/services are scarce in relation to the money available in the hands of buyers, prices of the products/services rise to adjust for the larger quantum of money chasing them. Inflation is no stranger to the Indian economy. The Indian economy has been registering stupendous growth after the liberalization of Indian economy. In fact, till the early nineties Indians were used to ignore inflation. But, since the mid-nineties controlling inflation has become a priority. The natural fallout of this has been that we, as a nation, have become virtually intolerant to inflation. The opening up of the Indian economy in the early 1990s had increased Indias industrial output and consequently has raised the India Inflation Rate. While inflation was primarily caused by domestic factors (supply usually was unable to meet demand, resulting in the classical definition of inflation of too much money chasing too few goods), today the situation has changed significantly. Inflation today is caused more by global rather than by domestic factors. Naturally, as the Indian economy undergoes structural changes, the causes of domestic inflation too have undergone tectonic changes. The main cause of rise in the rate of inflation rate in India is the pricing disparity of agricultural products between the producer and consumers in the Indian market. Moreover, the sky-rocketing of prices of food products, manufacturing products, and essential commodities have also catapulted the inflation rate in India. Furthermore, the unstable international crude oil prices have worsened the situation. CAUSES OF INFLATION The different causes of inflation which are experienced in Indian economy in a large proportion would be:- Demand-pull inflation: This is basically when the aggregate demand in an economy exceeds the aggregate supply. It is also defined as `too much money chasing too few goods. Bare-boned, it means that a country is capable of producing only 100 items but the demand is for 105 items. Its a very simple demand-supply issue. The more demand there is, the costlier it becomes. Much the same as the way real estate in the country is rising. Cost-push inflation: This is caused when there is a supply shock. This represents the condition where, even though there is no increase in Aggregate Demand, prices may still rise. I.e. non availability of a commodity would lead to increase in prices. This may happen if the costs of especially wage cost rise. Imported Inflation: This is inflation due to increases in the prices of imports. Increases in the prices of imported final products directly affect any expenditure-based measure of inflation. They play an important role in driving the rise in domestic prices. The rise in the global prices of crude oil and agricultural commodities, including food grains, and industrial products, and setbacks to global economy resulting from sub-prime mortgage disaster and US recession have contributed to Indias inflation. OTHER CAUSES: When the government of a country print money in excess, prices increase to keep up with the increase in currency, leading to inflation. Increase in production and labour costs, have a direct impact on the price of the final product, resulting in inflation. When countries borrow money, they have to cope with the interest burden. This interest burden results in inflation. High taxes on consumer products, can also lead to inflation. An increase in indirect taxes can also lead to increased production costs. Inflation can artificially be created through a circular increase in wage earners demands and then the subsequent increase in producer costs which will drive up the prices of their goods and services. This will then translate back into higher prices for the wage earners or consumers. As demands go higher from each side, inflation will continue to rise. MEASURING INFLATION Inflation in India is mainly estimated on the basis of fluctuations in the wholesale price index (WPI). The wholesale price index comprises of the following indices: Domestic Wholesale Price Index (DWPI) Export Price Index (EPI) Import Price Index (IPI) Overall Wholesale Price Index(OWPI) The new inflation index has already commenced. The index has changed the composition of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) series. The new data series lowers weight age of the more volatile food items and correspondingly hikes that of core manufacture, products. The new series has incorporated consumer items such as ice cream, mineral water, refrigerator, computer, and TV. The price volatility in these items is relatively limited as compared to fuels or food products. The data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is the first that uses the new base year of 2004-05 and covers a wider basket of goods. The old series used 1993-94 as the base year. The release of the current series of WPI with 1993-94 as its base will be discontinued. The new basket of the WPI has a broader representation of commodities, change in base year and lower weights accorded to primary articles. Problems Due to INFLATION It has been reported that the manufacturing capacity in India is running around 95 per cent, which usually means it is running at full capacity. Therefore, when the price of manufactured products is increasing, it means that demand is usually higher than supply and that is a clear case of demand-pull inflation. On the primary goods front, which consists of fruits, vegetables, food-grains etc, it is not that straight-forward. It has certainly been all over the news that the prices of fruits and vegetables are increasing and a trip to the supermarket or local grocery shop will testify to that. Although it is a clear case of demand-pull inflation, on the other, it is also a bit of a supply shock when one considers the fact that there is an abnormally high percentage of fruits and vegetables that goes to waste because of the lack of cold-storage facilities. Some estimates say 50 per cent of produce goes to waste and that is a conservative number. The fuel price hike is a straight example of cost push inflation. When OPEC (The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) was formed, it squeezed the supply of oil and this caused oil prices to rise, contributing to higher inflation. Since oil is used in every industry, a sharp rise in the price of oil leads to an increase in the prices of all commodities. The in depth problems due to inflation would be: When the balance between supply and demand goes out of control, consumers could change their buying habits, forcing manufacturers to cut down production. Inflation can create major problems in the economy. Price increase can worsen the poverty affecting low income household. Inflation creates economic uncertainty and is a dampener to the investment climate slowing growth and finally it reduce savings and thereby consumption. The producers would not be able to control the cost of raw material and labour and hence the price of the final product. This could result in less profit or in some extreme case no profit, forcing them out of business. Manufacturers would not have an incentive to invest in new equipment and new technology. Uncertainty would force people to withdraw money from the bank and convert it into product with long lasting value like gold, artefacts. The imbalances inflation has created in the Indian economy:- It has created a new rich class in social and political lives who are corrupt themselves and also corrupt the overall society. The increased prices reduced the capacity to save and people preferred present consumption to future consumption. It has provided protection and subsides to industries which bred inefficiency. It has lead to misallocation of resources due to distortion of relative prices and finally a redistribution of wealth from the poor to the rich. It disturbs balance of payments. Controlling method Firstly save!!! As much of our money as possible should be saved. This will reduce the demand on the economy and hopefully reduce inflation. Do not overuse daily essentials like cooking gas, electricity etc. Cut down on inessentials when buying groceries. Look for cheaper alternatives to products that we normally buy. Keep roads, highways, sidewalks, etc., beautified to help attract tourism and bring additional monetary into a growing economy. Stop illegal immigration. Illegal activities reap the benefits of the country but dont pay taxes. Government-backed investment schemes such as Post Office Savings Schemes, Public Provident Funds (PPF) and National Savings Certificates (NSC) are best to invest in when inflation is slowly inching up and we are only looking at safety, not returns. Invest in short term deposits and funds, commodities and property. This will help we to slowly reach our financial goals while safeguarding our hard-earned money Objectives To know the impact of inflation on the consumer. To know that consumer decision for purchasing at the time of inflation To know that how consumer manage the daily needs purchase at the time of inflation. To know that how inflation effect the economy To know that how consumers reduce their consumption at the time of inflation. REVIEW OF LITERATURE 1. MEASUREMENT OF CONSUMER GAINS FROM MARKET STABILIZATION. Wright D.Brain and Williams C. Jeffery(3 August 1988)in this article observed that partial equilibrium analysis is appropriate, there is little difference between exact measures of consumer gains from market stabilization and approximations such as expected change in marshallian or hicksian consumer surplus. Careful specification of the nature of stabilization is more crucial than the choice of welfare measure. It is important to represent correctly the demand curvature and supply response and to determine whether general equilibrium responses can be ignored. In any event, an improved analytical approximation and a simple numerical method for calculating the exact measures make it unnecessary to rely on suspect measures. 2. SEARCH, STICKLY PRICES AND INFLATION:- DImoand A.Peter(FEB.1992) in this article observed that equilibrium in a market with free entry where consumers search and firms set prices on individual units of the commodity. The prices attached to newly produced goods are continuously adjusted. Prices attached to previously produced goods can only be changed at a cost. Thus inflation reduces the real price of goods in inventory awaiting sale. The presence of previously priced goods lowers the reservation price of customers. Thus, inflation cuts into the market power created by the need to search for the good. Consumer welfare is inverse $u$-shaped in inflation with a strictly positive optimal inflation rate. 3. Inflation in India during the 80s: An Analytical Review:- Samanta GP (Feb. 19, 1994) in this article observed that Structural constraints play a major role in the movement of the general price level in developing countries like India. Thus the inflationary dynamics in these countries cannot be explained purely as a monetary phenomenon. Even aggregative analysis, taking demand and supply factors along with monetary variables, has been found to be empirically unsatisfactory as quantifying the impact of any one variable on sectoral prices is not easy. This study attempts a disaggregative analysis by considering the structural variables first and then analysing the influence of monetary aggregates on sectoral prices taking into account the time series properties of price indices and specifying the sectoral price equations. 4. How best to model inflation in India:- Balakrishnan pulapre (1 April 2002) in this article observed that Econometric specifications relating to two well-known explanations of inflation are generated and, using data from the Indian economy, the principle of encompassing is brought to bear upon the choice between these. The results are conclusive for two tests, which is itself of interest because we have non-nested models here and the tests could in principle have resulted in each model rejecting the other. It appears then from the past experience of the Indian economy that the policymaker is advised to consider sectoral price behaviour explicitly when attempting to model the inflationary process. 5. COMMODITY PRICES, MONEY AND INFLATION:- Browne Frank and Cronin David (11 April 2007) in this article observed that The influence of commodity prices on consumer prices is usually seen as originating in commodity markets. We argue, however, that long run and short run relationships should exist between commodity prices, consumer prices and money and that the influence of commodity prices on consumer prices occurs through a money-driven overshooting of commodity prices being corrected over time. Using a co integrating VAR framework and US data, our empirical findings are supportive of these relationships, with both commodity and consumer prices proportional to the money supply in the long run, commodity prices initially overshooting their new equilibrium values in response to a money supply shock, and the deviation of commodity prices from their equilibrium values having explanatory power for subsequent consumer price inflation. 6. COMPARING PARTIAL AND GENERAL EQUILIBRIUM ESTIMATES OF THE WELFARE COST OF INFLATION:- Gillman Max (2 July 2007) in this article observed that Reserve banks worldwide have been moving towards zero inflation policies. Confusion clouds the welfare cost of maintaining such inflation policies despite the best attempts at clarification. Monetary theory research has shifted from partial to general equilibrium economies. This shift has left the partial equilibrium estimates of the welfare cost of inflation below most of the general equilibrium estimates. Put on a comparable basis, partial equilibrium estimates compare more closely with the general equilibrium estimates. Furthermore, evidence suggests that integration under the money demand function appears applicable in general equilibrium economies. Finally, the estimates depend on the elasticities of money demand and the underlying structural parameters. 7. Inflation targeting in India: issues and prospects Jha Raghbendra (mar. 2008) in this article observed that evaluation the case for inflation targeting (IT) in India. It states the objectives of monetary policy in India and argues that, with widespread poverty still present, inflation control cannot be an exclusive concern of monetary policy. The rationale for IT is spelt out and found to be incomplete. The paper provides some evidence on the effects of IT in developed and transition economies and argues that although IT may have been responsible for maintaining a low inflation regime, it has not brought down the inflation rate itself substantially and or changed the volatility of the exchange rate. Output movements in transition countries adopting IT have been higher than in developed market economies. I discuss Indias experience with using nominal targets for monetary policy and why India is not ready for IT. Further, even if Indias central bank wanted to, it could not pursue IT because the short-term interest rate does not have a significant effect on inflation. The paper concludes by listing monetary policy options for India. 8. Competition and Price Variation When Consumers Are Loss Averse :- Heidhues, Paul, and Botond Koszegi. (Sept 2008) in this article observed that of price competition with differentiated products by assuming that consumers are loss averse relative to a reference point given by their recent expectations about the purchase. Consumers sensitivity to losses in money increases the price responsiveness of demand and hence the intensity of competition at higher relative to lower market prices, reducing or eliminating price variation both within and between products. When firms face common stochastic costs, in any symmetric equilibrium the mark-up is strictly decreasing in cost. Even when firms face different cost distributions, we identify conditions under which a focal-price equilibrium (where firms always charge the same focal price) exists, and conditions under which any equilibrium is focal. 9. The Misperception of Inflation by Irish Consumers:- David Duffy in this article The Misperception of Inflation by Irish Consumers observed that Perceptions and forecasts of inflation have the potential to impact on a range of economic outcomes. We reveal large, systematic overestimation of inflation by Irish consumers, which varies by social group. In contrast to previous work in this area, our models suggest the upward bias and the variation by social group should be considered substantially separate phenomena. We also offer evidence that inflation misperceptions are linked to attitudes and intentions with respect to consumption and saving and, hence, are likely to affect household decision-making. The findings therefore raise issues regarding the relationship between financial literacy and consumer behaviour. 10. Extracting information on inflation from consumer and wholesale prices and the NKE aggregate supply curve. Goyal Ashima and Tripathi Shruti in this article observed that Since consumer prices are a weighted average of the prices of domestic and of imported consumption goods, and producer prices feed into final consumer prices, wholesale price inflation should cause consumer price inflation. Moreover, there exist a long-term equilibrium relationship between consumer and wholesale price inflation and the exchange rate. But we derive a second relation between the price series from an Indian aggregate supply function, giving reverse causality. The CPI inflation should Granger cause WPI inflation, through the effect of food prices on wages and producer prices. These restrictions on causal relationships are tested using a battery of time series techniques on the indices and their components. We find evidence of reverse causality, when controls are used for other variables affecting the indices. Second, both the identity and the AS hold as long-run co integrating relationships. There is an impor tant role for supply shocks. Food price inflation is co integrated with manufacturing inflation. The exchange rate affects consumer prices. The insignificance of the demand variable in short-run adjustment indicates an elastic AS. There is no evidence of a structural break in the time series on inflation. Convergence is slow, and this together with differential shocks on the two series may explain their recent persistent divergence. ANALYSIS After study on this topic I can understand that the inflation effect the consumer decisions like their consumption decision, saving decision and it effects the future expectation of buying. Inflation always hurts our standard of living. Rising prices means we have to pay more for the same goods and services. If our income increases at a slower rate as inflation, our standard of living declines even if we are making more. Inflations main consequence is a subtle reduction in our standard of living. Inflation doesnt affect everything equally. Gas prices can double while our home loses value. This makes financial planning more difficult. Inflation is really bad for our retirement planning because our target has to keep getting higher and higher to pay for the same quality of life. In other words, our savings will buy less. As a result, we will need to save more today to pay for higher priced goods and services in the future. Since everything we buy today costs more, so we have less left-over income available to save. Inflation has another bad side-effectonce people start to expect inflation, they will spend now rather than later. Thats because they know things will only cost more later. This consumer spending heats up the economy even more, leading to further inflation. This situation is known as spiraling inflation because it spirals out of control. Inflation is important if we are holding bonds or Treasury notes. These fixed price assets only give a fixed return each year. As inflation spirals faster than the return on these assets, they become less valuable. As they become less valuable, people rush to sell them, further depreciating their value. As their value becomes lower, the U.S. government is forced to offer higher interest rates to sell them at all. This increases mortgage interest rates. We should be wary, in this post, about cost-push inflation. With wages increasing and input prices (thanks to oil/petrol/gasoline) increasing, prices consumers pay have to increase with the costs-of-production. In turn we demand higher wages, and with a squeezed supply of labour we can get them, sending prices higher still. In the graph nicked from the textbook use, example economy has expanded beyond potential real GDP (i.e. Full Employment). In the labour market this means more jobs than people (keeping it simple), driving up wages. In the consumer market it means more demand than supply, driving up prices, which drive up wages do you see the spiral? In fact our economy will not sustain unemployment below the Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment. Thus we end up back at Full Employment in the graph, inexorably, but along the way weve picked up positive inflation. METHODOLOGY The methodology used was secondary research. Data and findings from the research papers and articles of other people was selected and reviewed. Brief review of all the articles and papers studied has been given in the Review of Literature. These all articles were studied deeply to gather maximum knowledge of the Report on the topic Inflationary incidence on consumer equilibrium. Though no research has been done on the comparative Analysis of inflationary incidence on consumer equilibrium but this paper collected data from the news articles available from different sources. CONCLUSION After study this topic I found that Inflation directly affected to consumer equilibrium. At the time of inflation increases the prices of commodities increases which reduce the purchasing power of the consumers, and consumers have to reduce the consumption. Inflation has another bad side-effectonce people start to expect inflation, they will spend now rather than later. Thats because they know things will only cost more later. This consumer spending heats up the economy even more, leading to further inflation. This situation is known as spiraling inflation because it spirals out of control. After study this topic I found there are some advantage and disadvantage of inflation. Advantages People feel richer (money illusion). Unexpected inflation benefits borrowers Could be from extra growth in the economy or extra money which would lead to lower unemployment rates. If prices rise, then a currency devalues which would lead to growth in the export sector. Disadvantages Lower retain-able income due to higher expenditure. Expensive loans burdening those who have taken loans on floating rate and also shelving or postponing plans of many to most people. Increase in raw materials might further increase prices such that a lower inflation number overall does not really mean lower price of final goods. There is problem of complacency with increase of fuel price auto prices have gone up. Even if the prices come down later does anyone think that the prices will be revised downwards.

The Paris Peace Treaties Essay -- History

The Paris Peace Treaties The Paris Peace Treaties (1919-1920) IB History To the subject and passive onlooker, those meticulous organizers of the Paris Peace Treaties allowed for an unfortunate amount of flaws to enter their task of creating a treaty that could satisfy all of the nations of not only Europe but of the world as well equally. Yet one must attempt to put that passiveness behind and admit that those of the time of post World War I had truly no idea what was to come of their decisions. Thus, the decisions of these toilers of the Paris Peace Treaties undoubtedly made a medley of wrong judgments that were virtually unforeseen at the time. The first of these mistakes was that they looked over the problems that the innumerable ethnic groups of Europe would cause. Second to be overlooked was France, still highly intimidated and insecure of a Germany that it wanted to see completely annihilated and rendered powerless. Lastly, was the Central powers, angry and cheated over their extremely harsh punishments. Thus the founders of the Paris Peace Treaties, despite doing their best to form a way to peace and betterment for Europe, managed to make a great deal of unanticipated oversights in their quest for harmony. The continent of Europe was composed of legions of different ethnic groups that at the end of World War I caused many problems for the treaty drawers of Paris. Even Wilson himself confessed that there were far many more ethnic groups in Europe than he at first realized- most of them seeking their own personal independence. Eastern Europe and the Balkans because many historical occurrences (such as invasions and migrations) were made up of â€Å"a bewildering kaleidoscope of races and religions.† There were still hordes of nationalistic minorities in countries with a majorities of ethnic groups not of their own. To make things even more difficult for the writers of the Paris Peace Treaties was that these races did not live in their own separate areas of the countries of Europe. They lived mixed among themselves, dispersed throughout the regions with the race of the majority. In addition to the problems left to those who drew up the peace treaties (in accordance to the â€Å"ethnic problems†) were that there were still populations of a race of people within various nations that belonged ethnically to another nation. For example, within Hungary ... ...ed to create an agreement for the best of the world. Conclusively, the writers and founders of the Paris Peace Treaties, despite their efforts to bring a lasting peace to the world, made a variance of unforeseen mistakes in their toil. For the uncountable amounts of varying ethnic groups could not be easily separated without annoying at least someone- and since the Central powers were the losers, logic suggested that it would be them. Secondly, France’s increasing insecurity towards Germany that dated back decades caused for it to demand Germany to be paralyzed forever. This as well as other forms of Allied punishments caused for increased Central power animosity towards the Allied powers. Therefore, the intent of peace treaties was well intentioned initially, and the criticism of them was undeserved in that there was nothing that anyone could do else without the impossible of power seeing into the future Bibliography 1. (Handout) Lentin, Antony. â€Å"The Consequences of the Versailles Settlement.† 2. (Handout) Sharpe, Alan. â€Å"Part I: The Post War Settlement. 3. Wolfson, Robert. Years of Change: European History 1890-1945. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1978, pp.183-192.

Mao Zedong

Alyssa Franco 11/28/12 Mao Zedong is considered to be one of the most controversial political leaders of the twentieth century. He has been known both as a savior and a tyrant to the Chinese people. From his strategic success of the Long March, to his humiliating failure of the Great Leap Forward, to the Cultural Revolution that shocked the country and took countless lives, Mao has significantly influenced the result of what China is today. From humble origins, Mao Zedong rose to absolute power, unifying with an iron fist a vast country torn apart by years of weak leadership, imperialism, and war.This astute and insightful account by Jonathan D. Spence brings to life this modern-day ruler and the tumultuous era that Mao Zedong did so much to shape. Mao Zedong was born on December 26, 1893 in Shaoshan village in Hunan. He experienced a middle peasant upbringing that was â€Å"rooted in long-standing rural Chinese patterns of expectation and behavior† (Mao, 10). Mao went to Shao shan village school where he learned the customary Chinese curriculum as well as studied the â€Å"time-honored texts from the Confucian canon† (Mao, 11).At this time in his childhood, the whole country could foresee the fall of the previous dynasty, the Qing. Mao studied to be a teacher at The First Provincial Normal School, in Changsha, which influenced his future thinking and beliefs. He believed that the Chinese way of thinking needed reform, therefore fixated on younger people and peasants to build his political career. In 1912 Mao decided to go to Wuhan. For five years he studied and received an education in academics, as well as politics. When Mao graduated in 1918, he was a political writer with a notable following.He had studied Marxism and other communist ideas and by 1919 considered himself to be a Marxist. For several years Mao wrote on his views and even began establishing groups that shared the same political opinions as he did. Mao had organized a group of Comm unists in Changsha and in 1921when he went to Shanghai to participate in the First National Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party. He rose to absolute power when he survived the Long March, a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army to escape the attacks ordered by Chiang Kai-Shek.This began his ascent to power because of the leadership displayed during the retreat. It gained him the support of many members of the party. Through the years Mao had many successes as well as failures as a leader. He put into actions two 5 year plans, established the Hundred Flower Movement, launched the Great Leap Forward, and set the groundwork for the Cultural Revolution, forever leaving his mark in Chinese history. The Great Leap Forward, what was supposed to be one of Mao Zedong’s greatest achievements, in turn actually became his most prominent failure.By 1957, to Mao at least, following the Soviet Union example no longer seemed sufficient. Growth was too slow, too reliant on tec hnical experts, and too controlled. He believed that China had to find a way to use their labor power to revolutionize more rapidly. Mao began to introduce the idea of the Great Leap Forward. In Mao’s mind the Great Leap â€Å"would combine the imperativeness of large-scale cooperative agriculture with a close-to-utopian vision of the ending of distinctions between occupations, sexes, ages, and levels of education† (Mao 143).Through the concentrated work of hundreds of millions of people laboring together, China would convert itself from a poverty stricken nation into a mighty one. Mao believed that China as a whole would procure the â€Å"benefits of scale and of flexibility† (Mao, 143). The peasants and workers performed large amounts of labor, working with â€Å"almost no respite in the fields† (Mao, 144). Trusting Mao, the Chinese Communist party, as well as the people of China got caught up in the idea of a â€Å"utopian† type society and full y supported the plan.This ideal however, did not transfer over to reality. The Great Leap became one of Mao’s biggest failures as the ruler of China. Many officials were surprised at Mao's naivety, especially since Mao used to be a farmer himself. Some Great Leap projects were successes, although all too often they were disasters. These projects were undertaken with too much haste and with so little methodical knowledge that serious mistakes were made. After Mao had realized that his plan was deteriorating he quickly called for a slower pace and more attainable goals.Mao’s faulty economics ended up creating a famine of massive proportions. The Great Leap Forward ended up killing approximately 30 million people as a result of starvation and diseases related to poor supplies and dearth of food, this time period is known as the Three Hard Years. Not surprisingly the Great Leap Forward strained the connection between China and the Soviet Union. Mao was never partial to Khr ushchev, Stalin’s successor, their relations were never affable. The countries continued to grow apart till their political split in 1960.The Great Leap Forward as well as the preceding intellectual Hundred Flowers Movement presented Mao being increasingly detached â€Å"from any true reality check† (Mao, 145). He appeared to be less and less concerned for the consequences that might transpire from his own â€Å"erratic utterances† (Mao, 145). Another notable event that took place during the control of Mao was the Cultural Revolution, 1966-1969. Mao, now 70, was still overly enamored with revolutionary continuity.He told his nephew, what he believed were the five essential elements in his succession: â€Å"One must be a genuine Marxist-Leninist; one must be willing to work for the masses wholeheartedly; one must work with the majority and accept their criticisms, even if the criticisms seemed to be misplaced at the time; one must be a model of obedient discipli ne under the strictures of democratic centralism; and one must be modest about oneself, always ready to indulge in self-criticism† (Mao, 168).Mao then posed this question, â€Å"You grew up eating honey, and thus far you have never known suffering. In future, if you do not become a rightist, but rather a centralist, I shall be satisfied. You have never suffered, how can you be a leftist? †(Mao 168). This question obsessed many of China’s youth during the infancy of the Cultural Revolution. Mao’s answer was to be founded on the idea that â€Å"wanting leftist revolutionary activism could be regenerated by identifying the enemies correctly and then using all one’s ingenuity in rooting them out and destroying them† (Mao, 169).It was a power struggle between Mao and the older officers in the government. Mao used youth and freedom to rally against the older powers in an attempt to show the people that he was really the one with the best idea of Ch inese thought. He did not specifically coordinate the coming of the revolution, â€Å"but he established an environment that made it possible and helped to set many people and issues in place† (Mao, 170). The army became involved because Mao could not control the followers by words alone.Since Lin Biao, in charge of the military, thought that the army would keep the newfound power it had gained through the Cultural Revolution, he decided he would change Mao's power. The army took care of gathering youth from around China to produce the Red Army. This displayed that Mao was still in power and had the Army behind him. Mao left behind him a legacy that cannot be easily forgotten. He reformed the thoughts of the Chinese people from very reserved and old fashioned, to a new age of thinking. Being in power for such a long period of time, and uniting China to make it stronger was a great accomplishment.Mao Zedong should be considered to be a tyrant because of his lack of compassion during the Three Hard Years; although he did manage to capture the hearts of many, especially the youth of his time. Mao did demonstrate extreme perseverance and leadership, controlling China until it was physically not possible for him to do so. Spence does a good job of placing Mao in history, but it's the private man with whom he is most sympathetic. Spence creates Mao as clever and foolish, harsh and loving, practical and naive. Yet Mao's deepest motivations remain mysterious. This book is a satisfactory introduction to the enigmatic life of Mao Zedong.

The National Terrorism Advisory System Essay Example

The National Terrorism Advisory System Essay Example The National Terrorism Advisory System Essay The National Terrorism Advisory System Essay Running head: National Terrorism Advisory System The National Terrorism Advisory System Abstract As part of a series of initiatives to improve coordination and communication among all levels of government and the American public, the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) was created. This advisory system was the foundation for building a comprehensive and effective communications structure to give information regarding the risk of terrorist attacks. This system was revised at a later date and became the Nation Terrorism Advisory System. Homeland Security Advisory System In March of 2002, President George W. Bush signed Presidential Directive3 which created the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS). This advisory system was the foundation for building a comprehensive and effective communications structure to give information regarding the risk of terrorist attacks to those at all levels of government as well as the American public. It was color coordinated with five levels: Blue (low), Green (Guarded), yellow (Elevated), orange (high), and red (Severe). These were meant to identify the risk of a terrorist attack. The different levels triggered pecific actions by federal agencies and state and local governments, and they affected the level of security at some airports and other public facilities. Actions included increasing police and other security presence at landmarks and other high- profile targets, a closer monitoring of international borders and other points of entry, and ensuring that emergency response personnel were ready to respond if needed. The published terror alert notices urged American citizens, to be vigilant, take notice of their surroundings, and report suspicious items or activities to local authorities immediately. The problem with this color coded system was that the level never went higher than orange and there was no end date or time as to when that threat level would no longer be active. Another problem was that each and every time the threat level was raised, very rarely did the public know the reason, how to proceed, or for how long to be on alert. As a result this left the public feeling more scared than prepared (Staff, 2011). Most of the American public found this system to be very conTuslng. cnanges tnat were mace On April 20, 2011 , Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano announced that here would be an updated version of the advisory system that would be implemented by the Department of Homeland Security. This update would be called the National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS). The NTAS is a robust terrorism advisory system that provides timely information to the public about credible terrorist threats and replaces the former color-coded alert system (Chronology of Changes to the Homeland Security Advisory System). The main differences were, they removed the color code system and instead replaced it with two terms; Elevated Threat Alert, and Imminent Threat Alert. An Elevated Threat warns of a credible terrorist threat against the United States whereas an Imminent Threat warns of a credible, specific, and impending terrorist threat against the United States (NTAS Guide April 20 2011, 2011) . Under NTAS, DHS will coordinate with other federal agencies to issue detailed alerts to the public when the federal government receives information about a credible terrorist threat. Depending on the nature of the threat, alerts may be sent to law enforcement, distributed to affected areas of the private ector, or issued more broadly to the public through both official and social media channels. Theses alerts were to include a clear statement using the most up to date information. It may also include specific information, if available, about the nature of the threat, including the geographic region, mode of transportation, or critical infrastructure potentially affected by the threat, thus providing a concise summary of the potential threat and about actions being implemented to ensure public safety, and recommended steps that communities, business and governments can take to espond to the threat (NTAS Guide April 20, 2011). Another change that was implemmented was the Sunset Provision. This meant that an inidviual threat alert would only be issued for a specific time period and then expire. No longer would there be a constant alert or blanket warning that there is a possible threat. Unless new information was learned or the threat evolved, the threat alert would expire on the spcified date. If however there was a change in information and the alert had to be extended, the Secretary of Homeland Security would announce an updated NTAS alert. All other changes, including the cancelation of an alert, would be dispersed the same was as the original alert. The Secretary of Homeland Security will announce the threat alerts publically. Alerts will simultaneously be posted at DHS. gov/alerts and released to the news media for distribution. The Department of Homeland Security will also distribute alerts across its social media channels, including the Departments blog, Twitter stream, Facebook page, and RSS feed ( NTAS Guide April 20 2011, 2011). The NTAS realizes that all Americans help with the responsibility of the nations security. As such, citizens should be aware of the risk of a terrorist attack and thus should report any and all suspicious activity their local law enforcement. In order to properly understand what suspicious activity is, the campaign of If you see something, say something was formed. Factors such as race, ethnicity, national origin, or religious affiliation alone are not suspicious. For that reason, the public should report only suspicious behavior and situations (e. g. , an unattended backpack In a puDllc place or someone trylng to DreaK Into a restrlctea area) ratner tnan eliefs, thoughts, ideas, expressions, associations, or speech unrelated to terrorism or other criminal activity. References NTAS Guide April 20 2011. (2011, April). National Terrorism Advisory System Public Guide. Chronology of Changes to the Homeland Security Advisory System. (n. d. ). Retrieved from Official website of the Department of Homeland Security: https://www. dhs. gov/ homeland-security-advisory-system Staff, C. W. (2011, January 26). CNN Politics. Retrieved from CNN: cnn. com/ 2011 POLITICS/OI /26/threat. level. system. change/

A Short History of the Great Depression

A Short History of the Great Depression The Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 to 1941,  was a severe economic downturn caused by  an overly-confident,  over-extended stock market and a drought that struck the South.   In an attempt to end the Great Depression, the U.S. government took  unprecedented direct action to help  stimulate the economy. Despite this help, it was  the increased production needed for ​World War II that finally ended the Great Depression. The Stock Market Crash After nearly a decade of optimism and prosperity, the United States was thrown into despair on Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929, the day the stock market crashed and the official beginning of the Great Depression. As stock prices plummeted with no hope of recovery, panic struck. Masses and masses of people tried to sell their stock, but no one was buying. The stock market, which had appeared to be the surest way to become rich, quickly became the path to bankruptcy. And yet, the Stock Market Crash was just the beginning. Since many banks had also invested large portions of their clients savings in the stock market, these banks were forced to close when the stock market crashed. Seeing a few banks close caused another panic across the country. Afraid they would lose their own savings, people rushed to banks that were still open to withdraw their money. This massive withdrawal of cash caused additional banks to close. Since there was no way for a banks clients to recover any of their savings once the bank had closed, those who didnt reach the bank in time also became bankrupt. 1:44 Watch Now: What Led to the Great Depression? Unemployment Businesses and industry were also affected. Despite President Herbert Hoover asking businesses to maintain their wage rates, many businesses, having lost much of their own capital in either the Stock Market Crash or the bank closures, started cutting back their workers hours or wages.  In turn, consumers began to curb their spending, refraining from purchasing such things as luxury goods. This lack of consumer spending caused additional businesses to cut back wages or, more drastically, to lay off some of their workers. Some businesses couldnt stay open even with these cuts and soon closed their doors, leaving all their workers unemployed. Unemployment was a huge problem during the Great Depression. From 1929 to 1933, the unemployment rate in the United States rose from  3.2% to the incredibly high 24.9%- meaning that one out of every four people were out of work.   PhotoQuest / Getty Images The Dust Bowl In previous depressions, farmers were usually safe from the severe effects of the depression because they could at least feed themselves. Unfortunately, during the Great Depression, the Great Plains were hit hard with both a drought and horrendous dust storms, creating what became known as the Dust Bowl. Years and years of overgrazing combined with the effects of a drought caused the grass to disappear. With just topsoil exposed, high winds picked up the loose dirt and whirled it for miles. The dust storms destroyed everything in their paths, leaving farmers without their crops. Small farmers were hit especially hard. Even before the dust storms hit, the invention of the tractor drastically cut the need for manpower on farms. These small farmers were usually already in debt, borrowing money for seed and paying it back when their crops came in. When the dust storms damaged the crops, not only could the small farmer not feed himself and his family, he could not pay back his debt. Banks would then foreclose on the small farms and the farmers family would be both homeless and unemployed. Bettmann Archive / Getty Images Riding the Rails During the Great Depression, millions of people were out of work across the United States. Unable to find another job locally, many unemployed people hit the road, traveling from place to place, hoping to find some work. A few of these people had cars, but most hitchhiked or rode the rails. A large portion of the people who rode the rails were teenagers, but there were also older men, women, and entire families who traveled in this manner. They would board freight trains and crisscross the country, hoping to find a job in one of the towns along the way. When there was a job opening, there were often literally a thousand people applying for the same job. Those who werent lucky enough to get the job would perhaps stay in a shantytown (known as Hoovervilles) outside of town. Housing in the shantytown was built out of any material that could be found freely, like driftwood, cardboard, or even newspapers. The farmers who had lost their homes and land usually headed west to California, where they heard rumors of agricultural jobs. Unfortunately, although there was some seasonal work, the conditions for these families were transient and hostile. Since many of these farmers came from Oklahoma and Arkansas, they were called the derogatory names of Okies and Arkies. (The stories of these migrants to California were immortalized in the fictional book, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.) Roosevelt and the New Deal The U.S. economy broke down and entered the Great Depression during the presidency of Herbert Hoover. Although President Hoover repeatedly spoke of optimism, the people blamed him for the Great Depression. Just as the shantytowns were named Hoovervilles after him, newspapers became known as Hoover blankets, pockets of pants turned inside out (to show they were empty) were called Hoover flags, and broken-down cars pulled by horses were known as Hoover wagons. During the 1932 presidential election, Hoover did not stand a chance at reelection and Franklin D. Roosevelt won in a landslide. People of the United States had high hopes that President Roosevelt would be able to solve all their woes. As soon as Roosevelt took office, he closed all the banks and only let them reopen once they were stabilized. Next, Roosevelt began to establish programs that became known as the New Deal. These New Deal programs were most commonly known by their initials, which reminded some people of alphabet soup. Some of these programs were aimed at helping farmers, like the AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Administration). While other programs, such as the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) and the WPA (Works Progress Administration), attempted to help curb unemployment by hiring people for various projects. The End of the Great Depression To many at the time, President Roosevelt was a hero. They believed that he cared deeply for the common man and that he was doing his best to end the Great Depression. Looking back, however, it is uncertain as to how much Roosevelts New Deal programs helped to end the Great Depression. By all accounts, the New Deal programs eased the hardships of the Great Depression; however, the U.S. economy was still extremely bad by the end of the 1930s. The major turn-around for the U.S. economy occurred after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the entrance of the United States into World War II. Once the U.S. was involved in the war, both people and industry became essential to the war effort. Weapons, artillery, ships, and airplanes were needed quickly. Men were trained to become soldiers and the women were kept on the home front to keep the factories going. Food needed to be grown for both the homefront and to send overseas. It was ultimately the entrance of the U.S. into World War II that ended the Great Depression in the United States.

Dictatorship and the Neoliberal Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dictatorship and the Neoliberal Markets - Essay Example More to this, social programs in the country have been abandoned, and most of the industries run by government previously have been privatized. The ejido lands in Mexico, which refer to land given to the community, or a group of people, under the agrarian reform have also been taken over. Neoliberalism in Mexico can be traced back to the Mexican crisis of 1982. The country, under the leadership of President Jose Luis Portillo (1976-1982) borrowed heavily from external sources, with an intention of investing in railways, nuclear power, oil pipelines, freeways, and the steel industry. The borrowings were done against the oil revenues of the country, given that previous years had shown a constant increase in the oil prices. However, the prices of oil began to deteriorate in 1982, due to overproduction, and OPEC price cuts. More to these, world interest rates increased, followed by devaluation in the Mexican peso, leading to a financial crisis in Mexico. Following these events, a debt moratorium was declared in 1982. These compelled the country to accept worldwide support from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the US Federal reserve, and the US department of the treasury. However, they offered conditional support, which required Mexico to adopt neoliberal poli cies (Thomas, James, William, & Browning-Akien, 4). Adoption of neoliberal policies required the Mexican government to cut on its spending. This led to a reduction in the subsidies given to members of the country to promote production. Consequently, the farmers faced difficulties in production, which worsened their economic ability. More to this, reduced government spending decreased the resources allocated to important sectors of the economy. These include the health sector, education, and welfare sectors. Consequently, the rates of unemployment increased, thus making Mexicans poorer. Accessing health and education services became problematic, hence

Combining and using source material Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Combining and using source material - Essay Example e Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2003), and Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (2004) define research as a learning of an object in order to get new data. Howard and Sharp (1983), in his â€Å"Doing Your Research Project†, and Wisker (2008), in his â€Å"The Postgraduate Research Handbook†, have a similar view but add that there must be methodological processes which can gain benefit for research. These fairly general definitions are further expanded by Nunan (1994), â€Å"Research Methods in Language Learning†, who argues that research must include three elements or components such as 1. a question, problem or hypothesis, 2. data, 3. analysis and interpretation of data. For Wisker what is key is that research has an effect on the world, which is in research results, and finds the realization in our behavior in society. Dawson(2002), however, gives a less general definition and focusses specifically on the purposeful examining of the cond uct of other people with the aim of better understanding them or adding new information to knowledge. For the purposes of this essay, the word â€Å"research† will be used to mean specific studying of an object with a particular aim and special