Abstract A look at the current recession and how it could be avoided. This paper uses quotes and facts about historical U.S. recessions to discuss the current recession. It sheds light on why the U.S. headed towards the recession and describes in detail how it got into this recession and what needs to be done to get out of it.
From the Paper "Talking about a recession on Wall Street is like telling your wife she has put on a little weight, it just shouldn"t be done. Although this holds truth, the topic has been difficult to avoid over the past six months. After nearly ten years of financial growth, many economists believe that the U.S. economy may be poised for a recession. While many want to point the finger at certain prominent citizens or political groups, a recession can"t be blamed on a single person or action. The most important question is what actions can be taken to avoid a recession. It could be difficult, but there are many different procedures that can be taken to keep our economy on the road of economic prosperity."
Abstract This is an investigation of the attitudes and debates surrounding free trade with the United States on the Canadian side of the border during the period of 1985 to 2000. The author examines the reasons for free trade and the events that led up to the entry into agreements as well as the hopes, fears and results of free trade between the two countries with focus on Canadian fears.
From the Paper "There are 8,893km of virtually unprotected border between Canada and the United States; the longest in the world. With over 100 years of peaceful coexistence and general friendship, it is also one of the world's most peaceful borders. It comes as no surprise then that the cultures and histories of both countries are so intertwined or, to take the more cynical view ? that Canada's culture and history are disproportionately intertwined with that of the United States. Whatever position taken, the phenomena exists and as a result of this closeness have arisen more practical issues ? such as concerns dealing with the environment, mutual defense and trade."
Abstract This paper examines the role of the Italian mafia as a business like any other, and its long history in the United States. The author discuses how the mafia's illegal and legal enterprises help propel our capitalist society, and how their ties with major labor unions enable them to dominate major industries. The paper also looks at how the Italian mafia works with other ethnic crime organizations, such as the Russian mafia, and Colombian drug cartels.
From the Paper "The mafia is a loose term in our country, as we as Americans are fascinated by the mysteriousness of it. Movies, books, plays, and now even a television series have been made depicting different real life stories regarding the mafia. The television show The Sopranos gives a great rendition about life in New Jersey as a mobster. This show allows viewers to see both sides of the story when thinking about gangsters. One is able to see their ruthless side in some situations, and then also the way they conduct business. Much of the business they conduct is with people who know what situation they are in, and are willing to accept the terms, based on a mutual agreement. In recent years, there have been several cases where a mafia member would go against their former family in order to lighten their jail sentence, breaking their code of conduct known as Omerta. The United States is a capitalist and free market society. The mafia helps in the expansion and existence of this capitalist society by their influences in legal and illegal businesses, with the help of political parties and leaders that are best placed to help them."
Abstract This paper examines the enduring causes of poverty among single mothers in the United States. It discusses many of the social factors; including social stigma, paid work and parental time constraints, the cost of daycare and the perceived need for children to have a paternal input. It also details the governmental attempts to alleviate some of the problems and the differences in the problems faced by ethnic minority single mothers. The paper contains a lot of statistics and is well researched.
From the paper:
"They make the covers of news magazines and get to appear on the local news. We hear about them endlessly from public officials and during daytime talk shows. IN fact, if you were not careful you might begin to think that all of the problems in society today are caused by them.
"Single mothers.
But why should this group be so generally vilified" Why should so much blame for so many social ills be placed upon them? The answer is twofold. The first is that they violate conventional social ideals about what a family should be, which (even in our postmodern) age is still deeply imbued with ideas about the importance of a patriarchal figure. And, on a more pragmatic level, they require society to help them, for single mothers ? along with their children ? are in general amongst the poorest of Americans.?
Abstract This paper provides a thorough definition of NAFTA and proceeds to examine the impact that this agreement has had on the United States. It deals with personal issues such as claims of heightened unemployment as well as national issues such as tax benefits and improved trade.
From the paper:
"On January 1, 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implement between Canada, Mexico, and the United States. This treaty drops most tariffs by 50% immediately, and dropped to zero by 2009. It is a unique trading agreement between two developed countries and a developing nation on a single continent. After eight years since NAFTA commenced, there are mixed analysis and opinions on whether this treaty is a success. It was designed to provide a free-flow of goods between countries without imputative measures and tariffs being enforced; it was promoted as a means to improve productivity and create jobs in the three countries; and, it was touted as model for further free-trade blocs to be created in the Americas and in other regional markets. After eights, no other free-trade blocs exists, nor has any other free-trade treaties been pursued and/or implemented by the NAFTA partners; and, with a world in a recession, there are two points of views on whether NAFTA has been more damaging than good during at this time, or if NAFTA has prevented further harm through its free-flow of goods."
Abstract This paper attempts to estimate what the real total economic cost of the Vietnam War was to the United States. The paper concludes that a reasonable estimate of the economic impact of the Vietnam War on the American economy is that an entire year's worth of productive activity was used to fight the war.
From the Paper "The Vietnam War was the defining experience for a generation of Americans. Indeed, it is arguably one of the defining experiences of America as a whole in the Twentieth Century. Its impact on the men who fought there, the men (and women) who did not, the American military in general, American society and popular culture during and following the war has been well documented. However, it was not just a life changing experience for soldiers and protestors, or a force for social change, or even an inspiration for thousands of books and dozens of movies. War is not least an economic event. In addition to being a military defeat, a political blunder and a human tragedy, the Vietnam War was also an economic disaster."
Abstract This paper examines the dynamics and underlying causes of the Japanese economic revival that has occurred since the end of World War II, looking both at its economic components (such as the shift from agricultural to high-tech sectors) as well as the demographic and cultural elements that are just as important for understanding the Japanese economy.
From the Paper "The Japanese economic miracle is complex and can only be explained by looking to political, cultural, and economic reasons. It rests on the government's taking responsibility for social welfare, vocational training, and education. It rests on the responsibility taken by both consumers and producers for economic prosperity. It rests on the government's decision to concentrate on high-quality and high-technology products designed for domestic and foreign consumption and on the government's building stable, economically advanced trading partners to replace the Asian markets to which inexpensive textiles had been
sent earlier. A number of factors have greatly aided Japan's economic resurgence that began in the 1950s and has continued since then, among them (ironically) the complete destruction of the nation's industrial base by the war. This meant that Japan's new factories, using the latest developments in technology, were often more efficient than those of their foreign competitors. With the addition of a youthful and well-educated workforce, a high domestic savings rate that provided ample capital, and an activist government and bureaucracy that provided guidance, support, and subsidies, the ingredients were in place for rapid and sustained economic growth."
Abstract This paper looks at the controversial issue of the treatment of homosexuals in the workplace. The author discusses how in the male-dominated market there still remains an intense negativity towards gay employees. The paper explores how this discrimination not only affects the socio-economical problems for gay individuals, but affects the nation. The author discusses studies where the majority of gay or lesbian workers continue to remain silent in the workplace regarding their alternate sexual orientation for fear of job loss.
From the Paper "The last half of the twentieth century marked an era of worldwide progress and change unparalleled in the history of civilization. It was an era in which many long-standing barriers of social and economical segregation and stratification were battered down by the progressive and productive concepts of integration and assimilation. In the fifty years that encompassed this half-century of change, many traditional discriminations regarding race, gender and power were overcome and both sexual and ethnic minorities gained considerable ground in the areas of social and economical equality."
Abstract The following essay discusses the three main causes that led to a decline in the need of products and services after the war, the lack of funds and the stock market crash in 1929.
From the Paper There are multiple factors that led to the great depression but the three main causes were a decline in the need of products and services after the war, the lack of founds in the consumer's hands, and the stock market crash in 1929. While some believe a certain reason is to blame, all played a part in the collapse of the American economy.
Abstract This paper is a detailed review of the life and principal works of Adam Smith, including "The Wealth of Nations", with an analysis of how his ideas on laissez-faire economics contrasted with those ideas of Karl Marx, and how his and Marx's ideas apply today.
From the Paper "Adam Smith was one of the most influential people in the lives of each of living at the beginning of the 21st century, although ? ironically ? we tend not to see the extent of his influence simply because it is so vast. It is like the air around us, something essential to our environment but impossible to see. But while oxygen supports us as biological entities, the ideas Smith (along with other key social critics and thinkers like Karl Marx) in their different ways support us as social animals.
This paper explores the contributions of Adam Smith to our understanding of the human condition, looking briefly at the personal backgrounds of this political philosopher before examining his ideas about social justice, the economy and the ways in which governments should and should not intervene in the economies of their states."
Tags: economic history theory Adam work industrialization agrarian society, modern economy laissez faire karl wealth of nations moral sentiments voltaire candide
Abstract An examination of the financial side of running a business. Includes graphs and tables. Topics discussed are short run costs, long run costs, monopoly and oligopoly.
From the Paper "In economics, the short run is defined as a time period in which a company's inputs are fixed. The short run costs of a firm are the cost functions that are prevailing in the production of a firm's goods in the short run. In the short run, the obligations of the firm per time period for all fixed inputs are called "total fixed costs". These includes the interest payments on the capital borrowed for the purpose of business, property taxes, leasing expenses etc. on the other hand, the total obligations for variable inputs over a period of time are the "total variable costs" of the firm. The variable inputs include those inputs that can be very easily changed and on a short notice. The variable costs of a firm usually includes the payments for the purchase of raw materials, labor costs etc. within a certain limit a firm can easily increase or decrease its output by varying the consumption of variable input. This gives rise to the Total Fixed Cost (TFC), Total Variable Cost (TVC) and Total Cost (TC) functions of the firm."
Abstract This paper discusses the NAFTA trade agreement which removed most barriers to investment in between Canada, the United States and Mexico. It studies the positive and negative effects of this agreement from the point of view of each of the three countries involved. It analyzes several sources on this issue including excerpts of speeches by world leaders. The author concludes that the verdict on this agreement, if it is good or bad for the region, has yet to be seen.
From the Paper "The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went into effect January 1, 1994. The North American Free Trade Agreement allows US companies to sell their goods in Mexico tariff-free. It also allows Mexicans to set up low-wage factories to produce their goods to sell in the United States duty free. [Dowling, 1996]. This agreement removed most barriers to investment in between Canada, the United States and Mexico. Its intention was to boost the economies of all three countries by expanding their potential markets and allowing them to take advantage of what each of the other two countries had to offer. Since its adoption, its effects have been debatable, especially concerning safety and environmental issues in the United States and the effect on the Mexican Peso."
Abstract This paper analyzes a survey that appeared in "The Economist," which examined the economic and social impact of the legalization of drugs around the world. It focuses on the microeconomic effects legalization would have and analyzes data presented in the survey using tools and methods that are taught at intermediate level economics classes. This paper examines the effects of legalization on price, demand, consumption and distribution.
From the Paper "Regardless of the moral or political positions one takes on the use or trade of illicit substances, one has to appreciate the complexity and the organization of the world drug trade. The drug trade is a truly global industry, as the production and distribution of illegal substances requires participation from, and relatively unmatched cooperation between, different groups from nearly every corner of the world. As impressive as the geographic scope of the drug trade is the economic prowess of the industry, which generates annual sales of somewhere between $150 and $400 billion, based on different estimates. The industry's illegitimate status also makes it one of the most dangerous in the world for those who participate at all levels, from producers to distributors, and even to consumers. The drug trade also causes enormous problems, both financially and socially, to nearly every nation involved - and not just from the questionable nature of the drugs themselves, but also because of the tactics employed by the world's most powerful governments, especially by the United States, to eliminate, curb, or otherwise control the flow of illegal substances. In the survey in The Economist, powerful arguments are presented that try to establish that the policies and enforcement strategies of the world's powers against the drug trade cause far greater harm than the industry does itself. Further, the survey argues a great deal of the problems caused by the drug industry to nations and peoples around the world are more a result of these policies and tactics than anything inherent in the industry or the substances themselves. The survey presents a number of arguments from both a social standpoint and an economic perspective as to how the United States and the rest of the world might benefit from the legalization of illicit substances. In this paper the focus will be on the economic evidence presented in the survey and its correlation with the theory of the firm and the consumer in microeconomics."
Abstract The following paper discusses issues of foreign direct investment, primary exports and trade agreements, among other issues, to present a holistic view of the situation
From the Paper "In light of increasingly international business practices such as the global sourcing of production and of governmental initiatives such as international agreements on trade and investment, it is easy to predict that foreign direct investment will continue to grow. Costa Rica demonstrates how democratic institutions and transnational market integration can drive and invite that type of investment, and it can be expected that their economy and standard of living will rise correspondingly. The lesson for developing countries is that democracy and regional integration provide the kind of institutional structures that foster economically productive results."
Abstract Capitalism is an economic system in which the private sector controls and regulates the economy. This paper defines capitalism and explores its origins in economist Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" back in 1776. It also discusses critics of the system, the most influential being Karl Marx whose Marxism theory claimed that economic crises and capitalism are linked.
From the Paper "Under ideal conditions, the growth of capitalism spurs friendly competition for consumers, ensuring that private enterprises will provide the best goods or the best services at the most reasonable prices. The reality, however, is that bigger corporations tend to monopolize their markets through practices other than ?friendly competition.? Rather than concentrating on product development, many big manufacturers rely on marketing practices such as glitzy ad campaigns and celebrity endorsers to hook consumers. Corollary to this, many smaller businesses that provide comparable or even better products are not able to compete. This limited arena of competition also gives rise to an underclass of workers, many located overseas. Conglomerates such as Nike take advantage of cheap labor from countries like China to keep the prices of their shoes down. Such labor practices would be harder to enact in the United States, where the government is responsible for enforcing labor laws."
