Every day, we see examples of how the US influences the world and it is not surprising. Since they have lots of power, weapons and with that, many resources to intimidate other countries, which is what we know as armed peace. But if they are that powerful, why are they so scared of themselves? 9 out of 10 people own guns in the US, and the rate of deaths by firearms is 31.731 per year. This uncontrolled violence and excessive weapon ownership is the main topic of ’Bowling for Columbine’, a documentary film directed by Michael Moore, a filmmaker, journalist and political activist, raised in a working-class community in Flint, Michigan. He is best known for his critics to globalization, large corporations and capitalism, among others. Taking
“Medicine, Malice and Monopoly”- this is what the documentary Fire In The Blood by Dylan Mohan Gray talks about. The film was shot across four continents and focuses on the destruction and mass killing that was caused by intentional obstruction caused by Antiretroviral Drugs or the ARVs used for the treatment of HIV from reaching the common people. This monopoly of the Western Pharmaceutical companies was empowered by the patent monopolies and the government doing their bidding.
That all men are created equal is indisputably a core tenant of the United States, appearing centrally in the Declaration of Independence. Immediately following this decree in that founding document is the compound statement that certain unalienable rights apply to these equal men. Since the founding days of the United States, this has been interpreted to mean a variety of things, but almost always boils down to what modern politicians and political commentators would title “equal opportunity.” Traditionally throughout American history and typically today, this translates into a belief in hard work as a determinant for success, rather than intervention of circumstances at birth. The United States frequently expresses this commitment to the pursuit of equal opportunity for economic and social mobility based on hard work.
DiLorenzo, Thomas J. The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War. New York, New York: Three Rivers Press, 2002.
Because the key issue debated then was how to handle the industrial monopolies of 1912: companies like Standard Oil and the American Tobacco Company. The incumbent (Howard Taft) campaigned on breaking up the monopolies; the opposing party (Woodrow Wilson) campaigned on regulating competition to prevent monopolies from developing in the first place; and the third-party campaigner (Teddy Roosevelt) argued we should actually welcome monopolies while regulating their activities. Wilson won, and ended up signing two major antitrust laws to supplement the existing Sherman Act: the Clayton Act and FTC Act.
In Being Consumed – Economics and Christian Desire, William T. Cavanaugh sets out to provide an analysis of one of the biggest present-day issues that many Christians grapple with from time to time, namely, . That is the issue of remaining in keeping towith Christian principles in a globalized free market economy. How does a Christian know whether the economic choices one makes are in keeping with Christian principles? Should this even be an issue? Isn’t the matter of economics completely separate from one’s Christian beliefs? In providing his analysis of these issues, Cavanaugh engages with different views and looks to different sources for the answers he provides. However, a common thread that is consistent throughout Being Consumed – Economics and Christian Desire is that of the author’s use of scripture as an interpretative tool that unlocks the answers to these questions.
The growth of outsourcing has spurred a contentious debate whether outsourcing is the sole reason the manufacturing sector is losing jobs, and if, in the end, it is better for the average consumer. In the article Toward a Progressive View on Outsourcing, written by Sarah Anderson, John Cavanagh, Jeff Madrick, and Doug Henwood in 2004, their stance is that outsourcing of manufacturing jobs is not the only problem, but also the outsourcing of service sector jobs, and that outsourcing will have a largely negative effect on the everyday life of the average American. Every author has substantial qualifications, including “Sarah Anderson [being] a global economy project director and John Cavanagh [being] the director of the Institute for Policy Studies” (Anderson 23). Meanwhile, In Defense of Outsourcing – written in 2005 – Timothy Taylor takes a conflicting view. He believes that outsourcing benefits the Unites States’ consumer, and any negative effects are offset by other factors. Timothy Taylor also has the qualification to address this topic; he is the editor for the Journal of Economic Perfectives. Both articles are heavily
By Hayek’s standards, the type of financial economy portrayed in the article, The Hand on the Lever, How Janet Yellen is redefining the Federal Reserve, by Nickolas Lemann, I contend is still capitalism (yet teetering towards an oligarchy). This paper will examine why I believe it does so. Perhaps some may not interpret our current day financial economy as the purest form of capitalism, yet in essence, it is capitalism nonetheless, and Hayek’s standards remain to hold true today.
I have to agree with your perception of his Monopoly analogy. Johnson is a little over the top. I also believe a little competition makes us better at what we do. If everyone wins, what is the point? I think we may be seeing the effects of this watered down competition and everyone wins attitude a little in the society today. I know I see it in hiring young new employees in my business. What I see in new employees interviewing is an entitlement attitude. What I mean by that entitlement would be if they ask for something they expect to get it, without the hard work that comes along with the benefit. Many times there is not a lot of regard for authority. Likewise, young employees feel they should receive the same thing as a person who has worked
In this week’s journal, the task was to examine the work of another sociologist who satirically mocked capitalism named Thorstein Bunde Veblen. He was a Norwegian American born in 1857. As a family that emigrated from Norway, Veblen senior became a notable farmer in Minnesota, Thorstein’s sister was the first female graduate from Minnesota College and his older brother was a professor of physics from Iowa State University; who later fathered America’s leading mathematicians, Dr. Oswald Veblen of Princeton University. Thorstein himself started off at John Hopkins but when he could not obtain much needed scholarship he moved to Yale University where he obtained economic support and became a Ph.D holder in 1884 with specialization in philosophy. His insatiable appetite for knowledge drove him further to study economics at Cornell University. Thorstein got an obscured academic position at the University of Chicago but his writings began to feature in University Journal.
The second case – controlling the market – is where the contrast between small firms and big business contrasts is most evident. The small firm lacks the capacity to influence prices, as both their market share and purchasing power are limited; however, big business possesses an abundance of both. Big business is able to exert their power by influencing prices because their decision to buy can be the difference between survival and failure for suppliers. Furthermore, Galbraith (1967, 30) suggests that the influence of size enables firms not only to control price but also quantity sold. Although Galbraith acknowledges that influence on demand is inexact; One should not discount its importance. Advertising, sales organization, and product design
Competition is a part of human nature, and there is no escaping it. “The cost of any kind of competition in human terms is incalculable” as well as incredibly unhealthy, according to Alfie Kohn, an author and lecturer. The anti-war book Catch-22, published by Joseph Heller in 1961, ironically takes place during World War II on the island of Pianosa located in the Mediterranean Sea. Catch-22 depicts several different characters and overall events that assist in helping to prove how competition is inevitably corrupt. An article by Donald Kovis, “The Invidious Nature of Competition”, also supports how competition contains an unescapable negative nature. Two of the supporting characters, General Dreedle and General Peckem, are seen to both have a continuing feud from the beginning of the book over Peckem’s lust for Dreedle’s rank of power. Following with the war they are involved in itself has a rivalry against the Axis. The war also is a cause for various other problems in the novel. Lastly,
With a list of achievements spanning several years, Dr. Edmund S. Phelps has had a remarkable career as an economist, analyst, and academic. Phelps is a Nobel laureate recognized for his "analysis of intertemporal tradeoffs in macroeconomic policy," professor at three Ivy League universities, Distinguished Fellow of the American Economic Association, and recipient of honorary degrees and doctorates from nine institutions. Having greatly contributed to the understanding of macroeconomics for policy and business decisions, Phelps has certainly earned his spot as one of the most respected macroeconomists in the world.
The term “Capture” is used to describe strong influence. A "Captured government agency" is an agency that is dominated by powerful lobbies or a network of individuals. These agencies are worse than failed agencies, because they end up serving the interest of the powerful at the expense of the public.
The appearance of the oligopolistic market is mainly attributed to three reasons. First, due to the economies of scale, that is, manufacturers continue to expand production scale, and the market is relatively small. The second reason is due to the barriers to entry. The government grants monopoly power to certain enterprises in the industry through laws and regulations, and at the same time, it imposes certain controls on it