The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008 Essay Example for Free

The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008 Essay This novel is broken into segments; the first of which discusses crisis’ that have occurred in the past that are similar to present day crisis’, for example, the Great Depression and the worldwide depression of 2008. The second segment analyzes the current crises, for example, the effects of the Latin American and Asian crisis in the 1900’s. Krugman also brings into light how countries thousands of miles apart have such a large impact on one another like a domino effect, for example, how when Russia experienced a financial crisis and economic reform, it devalued the Brazilian ‘real’, which then in turn effected the United States bond markets. The author uses his knowledge and view to analyze the United States’ and other county’s economic issues. He critiques the mistakes that were made and the warning signs that governments should be aware of and not overlook in order to prevent economic failure. An example was the over confidence in capitalism success due to increase of technology, globalization to third world countries, and the fall of socialism and socialist ideas that were prevalent in international ideologies. This confidence in capitalism blindsided Economists to an approaching depression. Krugman warns that even though an economy may be very strong, they are still subject to fall and should never take warning signs lightly, however these signs may not always be the same for every country. As brought up in the book, it is discussed that perfect solutions for fixing an economy in one country may not work as well, or at all, in another country, for example capitalism success in the United States versus Japan and Mexico. Another example was when the British government devalued the pound and increased the interest rates. This led a strong economic recovery for Britain, but when Mexico tried this same tactic, it had no such success. Britain’s pound was devalued by 15 percent in 1990, thus being dropped from the European Monetary System’s Exchange Rate Mechanism. In 1995, the â€Å"Tequila Crisis† resulted from the mistake of the Mexican government not devaluing the peso enough and the GDP in Mexico dropped 7 percent and depreciated the peso by 15 percent, consequently. This is also an example of the domino effect of economic downfalls in countries impacting others. Even though Argentina’s peso is governed by a separate currency board, since they call their money the peso as well, currency speculation from investors in other countries didn’t regard the currencies as separate, thus negatively impacting the country. Robert Lucas, a professor at the University of Chicago, states that Macroeconomics needs to move forward from depression-prevention since the problem â€Å"had been solved for all practical purposes. â€Å"The Great Moderation† speech, by Ben Bernanke, then provided support to Lucas’ claim by stating that the business cycle problem had diminished, however, Krugman explains that instances similar to the Great Depression have more recently occurred, and in other countries in the 90’s. In the late 1990’s, Thailand caused trouble to the rest of the surrounding Asian countries when they began making lo ans to foreign investors to try and help their struggling economy, consequently leaving them with crippled trade exports. The Thai ‘Baht’ was devalued since these foreign investors were mainly only people who had connections with the government and the interest rates were much higher than other countries in attempt to boost their economy. This stipulation caused the economy to worsen, other countries to loose confidence, and for Thailand to loose investments. Krugman explains that if Thailand hadn’t tried to control the currency and interest rate, the ‘baht’ would have risen instead of causing their poor economy to expedite. Another piece that Krugman brings up is the Hedge funds, which are privately and actively managed investment funds and are subject to the regulatory restrictions of their country. Two examples discussed in the book were with Asia and Russia. Hedge funds were used on Hong Kong’s capitalist government and were forced them to use government intervention and non-capitalist ways to take back their stock market. In Russia, hedge funds were more widely created to excel profits, but consequently, led to their financial collapse. Alan Greenspan, on the Federal Reserves Board of Governors, served from May 1987 to January 2006 and played a large roll in the 2008 crisis. It was believed that he was the best fit for his position because of his vast knowledge of the Great Depression. In the beginning of his term, the economy was stable with low unemployment rates and a rising stock market. Consequently, Greenspan â€Å"let the good times roll† and when the stock market was in a ‘bubble’ he cut interest rates, but to no avail. This caused the unemployment rate to rise for almost three years and the recession to return. The housing bubble then developed in 2006 from the lack of Federal Reserve regulation of savings and loans and the â€Å"Shadow Banking System†. The housing market prices slowly skyrocketed to fifty percent over value but then suddenly dropped up to fifteen percent in the second quarter the following year. Krugman explains how this housing market crash crippled the United States economy, costing millions of Americans their lives as they knew them before. I found this book very appealing considering my vague understanding of the financial system. Although at times I felt lost in the terminology, the majority of the time I was able to comprehend what Krugman was trying to get across to the audience. What I found most compelling was how the book brought into perspective how history has consequently been repeating itself and will only continue to do so. With the examples Krugman gives with the Great Depression, Japan, Mexico, and our own economy deficit in 2008, we can see the errors that are repeatedly made through history. Krugman points out, while constantly questioning, why economic catastrophes keep occurring all over the world if all the signs leading up to them are ever so similar. If Mexico had used Britian as an example, they would have been able to get out of the ‘Tequila Crisis† much quicker. I also found interesting, yet disheartening, the amount of money that is lent to other countries and spent on helping them repair themselves when we ourselves have repairing to do in our economy still. I understand that it is a cyclical effect, and we may not know every detail about what is going on, and for that I have to give the government credit, but at the same time I don’t agree with the amounts given away that we never see any benefit from. Krugman used the example of Russia’s debt and the twenty-two billion given to them for a stabilization plan that was unheard of, and another fourty-one billion emergency bailout funds to Brazil. After reading this book, it has enlightened me about how an economy can get back on its feet and also what signs to look for in our economy so that we don’t repeat the past and we start learning from other country’s mistakes as well. [ 1 ]. Krugman. About Paul. New York Times, n. d. Web. 04 May 2013. [ 2 ]. Hedge Fund. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 05 Mar. 2013. Web. 06 May 2013.

Darwin and Gambles Debate Essay -- Nathaniel Hawthorne The Birthmark

Darwin and Gamble's Debate Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" gives a human face to Darwin and Gamble's academic debate concerning natural selection. In the story, Georgiana has a birthmark on her cheek that has been visible her entire life, but was just starting to agitate her husband, Aylmer. He used science to successfully rid his wife of the birthmark, but the procedure was fatal. The process that the couple went through appears to be a response to the theory of natural selection, with her death as the ultimate conclusion. This essay will examine the theory, the story, and the link between them. While Darwin and Gamble's theses contain multiple arguments and have multiple conclusions, the most important of them is the notion of natural selection. In Descent of Man, Darwin summarizes his argument by saying, "through the contest of rival males†¦[and] from the general struggle for life†¦the characters gained will have been transmitted to the offspring." (Darwin 6). It is contended that change among a given species is spontaneous (and normal), and sometimes the change is good (insofar as it adds a positive trait or traits to the organism), and sometimes it is bad. Those organisms with good changes will be fit to gather food and protect offspring, and those that are less fit will be less apt to do this. Extending the logic of this statement, the fit will survive, and the weak will die. The argument of whether or not one gender has become superior to another within the same species is irrelevant to Natural Selection. However, Darwin and Gamble bring this dispute to each of their respective works. Since they agree on the original concept of the survival of the fittest, their disagreements are reconcilable. Darwin crea... ...t is my contention that the application of the theory of natural selection to society and humanity is relatively unimportant, when compared with the application of the theory to evolution. Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" was a very timely interpretation of the events surrounding the emergence of the theory of natural selection. It shows the reader that the academic debate between Darwin and Gamble has a human face, and that all of us can learn from Aylmer's mistake, and Aminadab's nobility. Works Cited 1. Darwin, Charles. "Sexual Selection in Relation to Man." The Descent of Man. New York: Prometheus Books, 1998. 576-586. 2. Gamble, Eliza Burt. "The Supremacy of the Male." The Sexes in Science and History. New York: G.P. Putnam Sons, 1916. 74-92. 3. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "The Birthmark." Anthology of American Literature. New York: McMillan, 1985. 1159-1169.

Authoritarian Theory

According to this theory, mass media, though not under the direct control of the State, had to follow its bidding. Under an Authoritarian approach in Western Europe, freedom of thought was jealously guarded by a few people (ruling classes), who were concerned with the emergence of a new middle class and were worried about the effects of printed matter on their thought process. Steps were taken to control the freedom of expression. The result was advocacy of complete dictatorship. The theory promoted zealous obedience to a hierarchical superior and reliance on threat and punishment to those who did not follow the censorship rules or did not respect authority. Censorship of the press was justified on the ground that the State always took precedence over the individual's right to freedom of expression. Modern com was born in 1450 into an authoritarian society. A few essential characteristics of this theory is that the states ranked higher than the individual in the scale of the social values. Only through subordinating himself to the state can the individuals achieve his goals and develop his attributes as a civilized citizen or man. As an individual, he can do little, as a member of an organized society, his potential is enormously increased. This means not only that the state ranks higher than an individual, but also that the state has a caretaker function and the individual, a dependant status. The press belonged to the King/Emperor/ Pope, or in some cases, to private individuals who favored and were favored by royalty and authority. The press was the servant of the state. The world has been witness to authoritarian means of control over media by both dictatorial and democratic governments.

Three Ways of Doing Sociology - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 568 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2017/09/20 Category Sociology Essay Type Narrative essay Tags: Study Essay Did you like this example? Essay Question #1 (Chapter 2 #2) There are three ways to do sociology, the first being positivist sociology which is â€Å"the study of society based on systematic observation of social behavior† (Macionis 31). The second is interpretive sociology which is â€Å"the study of society that focuses on the meanings people attach to their social world† (Macionis 36). The third way to do sociology is critical sociology this is â€Å"the study of society the focuses on the need for social change† (Macionis 36). They all focus on the main idea of studying society but differ in the way they go about studying it. The approach Durkheim used most often was positivist sociology. This sociology is used based on the fact that there is an objective reality that exists. This method likes to have things to actually measure and usually done in a lab. They have to define the concepts for their experiments and out into place what variables and controls they will use. Most sociologists that use this method go for the cause and effect aspect of society. These sociologists try putting aside their beliefs and attitudes to keep them from interfering with their results which is called objectivity (34). The limitations to this method are: 1. Human behavior is too complex for sociologists to predict any individual’s actions precisely. 2. Because humans respond to their surroundings, the presence of a researcher may affect the behavior being studied. 3. Social patterns vary; what is true in one time or place may not hold true to another. 4. Because sociologists are a part of the social world they study, they can never be 100 percent value-free when conducting social research. (Macionis 35) This method is still used widely in current day society and sociologists use replication to try to limit these issues from happening too often. The approach that best describes Weber’s work in the study of sociology is the interpretive sociology. This me thod is based on people’s understandings of their actions and surroundings not on what they do. Reality is subjective in this method. Sociologists that use this method find it more important to base their results on interacting with others and making sense of their everyday life (36). Marx’s work is best described as the critical sociology way of exploring society. In this approach sociologists focus on the social need for change (36). They ask moral and political questions and try to change society to fit into their mold of what it should be. They do not use the objectivity rule as much in this approach. It is always trying to show how society should be improved and changed to match their beliefs and morals (37). A similarity in all three is that they are studying how society works and why it works the way it does. I honestly have looked at society from all three points view since studying this more. I personally tend to gravitate towards the interpretive approach as most of us do I am sure. It is so easy to look at society and depending on their actions show the meanings people attach to their world. To reiterate the three ways to approach sociology are positivist, interpretive and critical. They each have their strong points and their faults it really depends on what you really want to study about society and peoples social behavior on which you choose to use. Works Cited Macionis, John J. Sociology. 13th Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. 2010. Three Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Three Ways of Doing Sociology" essay for you Create order