Fed and Interest Rates Essay example -- essays research papers

The Fed and Interest Rates Dave Pettit of The Wall Street Journal writes a daily column that appears inside the first page of the journal's Money & Investment section. If the headlines of Mr. Pettit's daily column are any accurate record of economic concerns and current issues in the business world, the late weeks of March and the early weeks of April in 1994 were intensely concerned with interest rates. To quote, "Industrials Edge Up 4.32 Points Amid Caution on Interest Rates," and "Industrials Track On 13.53 Points Despite Interest-Rate Concerns." Why such a concern with interest rates? A week before, in the last week of March, the Fed had pushed up the short-term rates. This being the first increase in almost five years, it caused quite a stir. When the Fed decides the economy is growing at too quick a pace, or inflation is getting out of hand, it can take actions to slow spending and decrease the money supply. This corresponding with the money equation MV = PY, by lowering both M and V, P and Y can stabilize if they are increasing too rapidly. The Fed does this by selling securities on the open market. This, in turn, reduces bank's reserves and forces the interest rate to rise so the banks can afford to make loans. People seeing these rises in rates will tend to sell their low interest assets, in order to acquire additional money, they tend move toward higher yielding accounts, also further increasing the rate. Soon this small change by the Fed affects all aspects of business, from the price level to interest rates on credit cards. Rises and falls in the interest rate can reflect many changes in an economy. When the economy is in a recession and needs a type of stimulus package, the Fed may attempt to decrease the interest rates to encourage growth and spending in the markets. This was the case from 1989 until last month, during which the nation's economy was generally considered to be in a slight to moderate recession. During this period the Fed tried to keep interest rates low to facilitate growth and spending in hard times. However, when inflation is increasing too quickly and the economy is gaining strength, the Fed will attempt to raise rates, as it did late last March. This can be considered a sign that we are pulling out of the r... ..."slight" increase as opposed to one of "somewhat greater" magnitude. This article is interesting because it shows that even the Fed can be uncertain about what is best for the economy, but it still focuses on the power of Allen Greenspan, as well as the committee as a whole. It compares the two arguments of each method, and shows a weakness in the Fed that may have been unknown to the reader before. The Wall Street Journal (Mon. April 11, 1994) - "Fed Moved Too Slow On Increasing Rates" This recent article criticizes the Fed's actions in raising the interest rate, and complains that the Fed has fallen behind in it's job. It discusses the plan for a "Neutral" policy and what the Fed has tried to do and not do to maintain this so called policy. It argues the motives and reasons for wanting a lower interest rate and compares past decades to today's standings. Overall it focuses deeply on the need to check inflation and if it is valid. It shows that the Fed tends to take a more conservative approach to the economy than some analysts would prefer, but that the Fed will probably continue to raise interest rates.

International Students Essay

Most young people believe that studying in a different country is a privilege because they are able to experience other cultures, and learn from them. However, in the United States it is not as good as they thought because International students have much more pressure being in this country, and sometimes they cannot handle it very well. Therefore, in the United States the life of an international student is very unfavorable if people compare it to the life of an American student. International students have to learn a new language to study, they cannot work while studying, and their tuition is much more expensive. When people moves to the United Stated to study they imagine that it will be very helpful, and they believe that learning a new language (English) will not be a problem. However, when they really start studying their major, they find out that it is not easy since people have to really understand and appreciate the language. First of all, in order to have success in university in the United States people have to compose a number of essays which if people do not understand their structure, they will be incorrect , so international students have to really learn English, and they have to know how to write it in order to have success. Also, for them to have success in university they have to participate in class, and analyze an amount of readings, and because they are international students, it is very difficult to achieve since they believe that Americans are going to laugh at them or make jokes of them if they say something incorrectly. For example, some Americans do not realize sometimes how hard is for international students being in a different country, with different people, learning a new language, and experiencing different cultures, so some of them do not really appreciate the effort that international students put on being in the United States. They just think that it is easy and do not care about how they feel. On the other hand, American students since they are in middle school they are taught how to write very good essays , so when they get in college they do not have any problem creating essays. They know their structure and have a very superior vocabulary, so they can compose excellent essays. In addition, since American students speak English very well, they do not have any problem participating in class. They have confidence in themselves, so they will not be afraid of saying something wrong. Consequently, because American students do not have to learn any language to study their mayor, it is much easier for them to achieve excellent grades. Most university students feel the necessity of working since they would like to have their own money in order to be independent from their parents. It is not the exception for International students because they also feel the necessity of working to be independent from their parents or whoever is responsible for them. However, for international students to work in the United States it is very difficult because they are only allowed to work on campus. These kinds of jobs are very limited since some of the campuses in which they study are very small. Also for an international student to find a job on campus is difficult because people prefer to employee an American student who is not going to have any problem speaking the language. For example, last semester a friend from Venezuela who is studying at Miami Dade College decided that he wanted to get a job in order to have his own money. He went to every single place where he could be employee. However, when he went to all these places, all the people told him that at that time they did not need any person, so he realize that to get a job on campus was very difficult, and not only that but a few weeks later he noticed that a new person was working in the campus coffee, so he proves that for an international student to get a job on campus is very difficult. On the contrary, American students can work wherever and whenever they want and it does not matter if they are studying or no. They can have their own money and support themselves while being in university. As a result, the fact that they can work while studying really helps them to have more confidence and to achieve better possessions. Because American students can work while studying, it is better to be a citizen of the United States than an international student. The most important difference between International students and American students is the tuition that they pay. International students are require to pay a very expensive tuitions if it is compare with the tuitions that American students have to pay. The tuition is very inequality, and it is only because they are international al students. Sometimes it seems to be very difficult for international students to pay the tuition because it is very expensive. For instance, an international student who studies in Miami Dade College is require to take twelve credits or more per semester which represents three thousand seven hundred dollars. However, an American student only has to pay for the same amount of credits twelve hundred dollars per semester. It is very inequality and unfair that just because they are from a different country, they would have to pay so much more money than an American student. On the contrary, it is very easy for American students to pay the tuition that the university requires. They can even pay for it with their own money. Therefore, it is easy for them to achieve their goals, and to have their independency from their parents. In conclusion, an international student has to put a lot of effort if he or she wants to be success in college. However, although American students also have to put a lot of effort to be success, it is easier for them since they already know the language, they can work while studying, and their tuition is pretty much inexpensive. Also, people have to keep in mind that being an American student is a privilege, and they should take advantage of it in order to achieve their goals in life.

Peter Paul Rubens

Peter Paul Rubens was the painter of the first part of the Seventeenth Century in Catholic Europe. How he became so is an interesting story. Rubens was educated to be a humanist but like all great artists choose his profession for himself. The combination of first rate classical education with innate visual genius made for an unprecedented combination in an artist, which is what made him so great. It has been said that no artist has ever been as well educated as Rubens. After training with three minor artists in Antwerp.Rubens set off for Italy to complete his education; a position at the court of the Duke of Mantua was quickly accepted and he stayed in Italy for eight years. His job was to travel to all the major artistic collections, especially Rome and Venice painting copies of famous works of art, especially paintings of beautiful women, for the Duke's collection. He was also sent to Spain where he had an opportunity to study the enormous collection of Titian masterworks in the R oyal Collection in Madrid.Copying the masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance especially and the recently unearthed sculptures of classical antiquity, Rubens sketched and painted and encompassed all that was best in Italian and Classical art. Rubens combined the lessons of Antique Sculpture with the vaunting ambition of the High Renaissance giants in an unprecedented way. He used the lessons of sculpture as a composition model but insisted that flesh should look like flesh in a painting thus developing his breakthrough approach to the naked body.In this he never forgot the earthy luminous realism of the old Netherlandish tradition of the fifteenth and sixteenth century used by Van Eyck, Van Weyden, and Breughel. You won't appreciate Rubens, the master of the female nude, until you consider that he was the greatest influence on French painting from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. The fact that Watteau, Fragonard, Delacroix, and Renoir were among Rubens’ loyal follower s attests to his great influence.Rubens was to develop a phenomenal ability to analyze the different styles of painting and sculpture and then synthesize them into whatever his clients and patrons wanted. His clients included just about every Catholic monarch, as well as Catholic leaning Protestants like King Charles I of England, and every major religious order in Western Europe. Not to mention every wealthy connoisseur of painting in Europe at the time. To satisfy an ever growing demand, Rubens opened the largest art workshop Europe has ever seen.He would paint an small initial oil sketch which, when approved and contracted, would be given over to one or more of his students to paint the full length canvas. Finally, Rubens would add the finishing touches to the works and sign them. Thus he became both a teacher and a hugely successful businessman. Fame was for Rubens something that went beyond material worldly success; he sought above all to bring the blessings of humanistic reaso n to bear on the Europe riven by religious and dynastic wars.In 1609, because he spoke several languages and was so well educated, Rubens was appointed court painter to the Archduke Albert and his wife the Infanta of Spain named Isabella, the Spanish Viceroys in the Netherlands. Isabella later became his close confidant and sent him on important diplomatic missions to Spain, Holland, and England. Rubens went to England to negotiate a peace treaty with the King of England and Spain and while he was there he became a favorite of the court of King Charles I, as did his most brilliant student, Anthony Van Dyck, in the next decade.When Rubens retired from public life he wrote about ripping off the golden chain that had bound him to the courts of Europe. In his last years he remarried to a young beautiful wife, retired to his estate, and he painted some of the most astonishing paintings he had ever painted. Peace, harmony, abundance, and love these are the great themes of Rubens and his a ge. His works exhibit and illustrate these qualities so well. I have not begun to express to you the brilliance of Peter Paul Rubens; he is just such a great artist that there is too much to say about him.

Media Synthesis Essays

Media Synthesis Essays Media Synthesis Essay Media Synthesis Essay â€Å"Shouldn’t grown men and women be trusted to judge their own dosages, just as they would decide on the number of drinks they can handle at the bar? (234). I disagree because I can see how some might react to this by saying that sometimes people don’t know their limit and can’t stop. This is 100% accurate when it comes to most things such as drugs, alcohol, and media. People might read that and think that media shouldn’t be placed into such a category, but all three of these things can start as small doses and turn into addiction within the blink of an eye. Parents who watch a lot of television as a child will most likely end up watching more and more television as they get older. If parents are not too concerned about the amount of television they are watching, it’s almost expected that they won’t be too concerned with the amount of television their children are watching. With television over flowing with violence, this will only result in children watching televisions shows that will have a negative effect on them. Parents need to order a wakeup call for themselves so they can be more productive in screening the shows their children are watching. Finding entertainment in such heinous and violent shows is disappointing yet becoming more common in today’s world. Reality Television: Oxymoron†, an article written by George F. Will, tells us how people get such enjoyment out of watching such ridiculous and tactless events. He then goes on to tell us about â€Å"That British pastime involved pitting a chained bear against a pack of dogs, who fought, and usually killed, the bear. The historian Macaulay famously said that the Puritans opp osed bearbaiting not because it gave pain to the bears but because it gave pleasure to the spectators. † (295). This example couldn’t have hit the nail on the head any better. Media is like this in today’s world. Shows like The Real World and Jersey Shore get thousands of viewers each week because America feeds off of watching the mistakes and pain of other people. With this being said, it’s so easy for anyone to just turn on the television and have this cruel and unnecessary type of entertainment right in front of them. Children can be easily influenced by these shows distinct type of behavior. They should not even have the opportunity to watch such shows, but with parents sinking into the unrealistic world of media, they need to open their eyes and be more aware of the toll these shows can take on the becoming of their children’s future. Although media is an uncontrollable part of today’s civilization, television can be controlled by the parents of the children watching it. They need to be more alert when it comes to the violence their children are experiencing when they turn on the television. Some shows out there will show kids nothing but negative cruelties and should not be parentally approved. With this being said, all you parents out there who don’t wish to raise a replica of Peter Griffin or a mini Michael Myers, get up off the couch yourselves and start monitoring the shows your children are watching.

Choosing the Dreaded Day Job

Choosing the Dreaded Day Job Teachers-Teachers.com K-12jobs.com Higheredjobs.com Jobs.stc.org (Society for Technical Communications) Flexjobs.com/jobs/technical-writing PRSA.org/jobcenter (Public Relations Society of America) Journalism.columbia.edu/page/60-job-hunting-resources/60 Mediabistro.com sej.org/library/jobs/overview (Society of Environmental Journalists job links) ebizmba.com/articles/job-websites (list of top job websites)

Estimates of Taxes Paid by Undocumented Immigrants

Estimates of Taxes Paid by Undocumented Immigrants The generally-held belief that undocumented immigrants pay no income tax is generally incorrect. The fact is that many undocumented immigrants find ways to pay both federal income and payroll taxes even though they might not have a Social Security number and even if they are working illegally. According to estimates by the nonpartisan American Immigration Council, households headed by illegal immigrants paid a combined $11.2 billion in state and local taxes during 2010. Based on estimates compiled by the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy, the American Immigration Council reported that the $11.2 billion in taxes paid by illegal immigrants in 2010 included $8.4 billion in sales taxes, $1.6 billion in property taxes and $1.2 billion in state personal income taxes. In spite of the fact that they lack legal status, these immigrants and their family members are adding value to the U.S. economy; not only as taxpayers, but as workers, consumers, and entrepreneurs as well, states the  American Immigration Council. Why Would an Undocumented Immigrant Pay Taxes? While it is true that many undocumented immigrants who are illegally paid â€Å"under the table,† for their work do not pay taxes on their income, many others choose to pay income tax hoping that doing so will eventually become American citizens. While evidence for this is largely anecdotal, several attempts at comprehensive immigration reform legislation over the last decade, including S.744- the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act, have contained provisions listing attributes such as â€Å"good moral character† and â€Å"paying back taxes† as requirements for obtaining citizenship. Should such an immigration reform bill ever become law, undocumented immigrants could use a provable history of paying taxes as one way to show good faith and moral character.   Which States Got the Most? According to the American Immigration Council, California led all states in taxes from households headed by undocumented immigrants, at $2.7 billion in 2010. Other states gleaning significant revenue from taxes paid by illegal immigrants included Texas ($1.6 billion), Florida ($806.8 million), New York ($662.4 million), and Illinois ($499.2 million).Note: While California may have realized $2.7 billion from taxes paid by undocumented  immigrants in 2010, a 2004 report by the Federation for American Immigration Reform showed that California spends over $10.5 billion annually on the education, health care and incarceration of its illegal immigrant population. Where Did They Get These Figures? In coming up with its estimate of $11.2 billion in annual taxes paid by undocumented  immigrants, the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy say it relied on: 1) an estimate of each states unauthorized population; 2) the average family income for unauthorized immigrants, and 3) state-specific tax payments.Estimates of the undocumented  or unauthorized population of each state came from the Pew Hispanic Center and Census 2010. According to the Pew Center, an estimated 11.2 million undocumented immigrants lived in the U.S. during 2010. The average annual income for households headed by an illegal alien was estimated at $36,000, of which about 10% is sent to support family members in countries of origin. The Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) and the American Immigration Council  assume  undocumented immigrants actually pay these taxes because: Sales tax is automatic, so it is assumed that unauthorized residents would pay sales tax at similar rates to U.S. citizens and legal immigrants with similar income levels. Similar to sales tax, property taxes are hard to avoid, and unauthorized immigrants are assumed to pay the same property taxes as others with the same income level. ITEP assumes that most unauthorized immigrants are renters, and only calculates the taxes paid by renters. Income tax contributions by the unauthorized population are less comparable to other populations because many unauthorized immigrants work off the books and income taxes are not automatically withheld from their paychecks. ITEP conservatively estimates that 50 percent of unauthorized immigrants are paying income taxes. But One Big Disclaimer Looms There is no question that undocumented  immigrants do pay some taxes. As the American Immigration Council  correctly points out, sales taxes and property taxes as a component of rent are basically unavoidable, no matter a persons citizenship status. However, when the U.S. Census Bureau so emphatically states that illegal immigrants are the most difficult individuals for them to locate and count in the decennial census, any figure as elusive as the total taxes they pay must be considered a very rough estimate. In fact, the  American Immigration Council acknowledges this fact by adding the following disclaimer:Of course, it is difficult to know precisely how much these families pay in taxes because the spending and income behavior of these families is not as well documented as is the case for U.S. citizens. But these estimates represent a sensible best approximation of the taxes these families likely pay.

Marketing of General Electrics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing of General Electrics - Essay Example The focus in this paper is on marketing as a wider sphere that encompasses all of the most crucial aspects like increasing the visibility of the products and therefore increasing the sales to a great extent. There is no hard and fast rule available when it comes to marketing and one needs to be aware that a thorough watch of the market and the events surrounding that is what is needed in order to gain maximum benefit out of it. In the business arena, a good marketing is definitely a must and without marketing even the finest of products and services will not be able to get the results and attention on the whole. A competitive advantage is something every business will look forward to and it is through marketing can a business attain the essential reach. Decisions making is an important aspect of marketing and is a determining factor of a business to a great extent. It is a process through which the consumer opts to go for a particular product or services which they have got used to w ith time. The concept of decision making is very crucial and is a winning point for any product in the competitive world. If a deeper look into decision making is taken it is a kind of psychological feeling or attachment that one gets towards a particular products or brand overall. It is a common thing in the marketing sphere for people to get attached to particular brands or products rather than other factors. If they are convinced of the fact that a particular brand will always provide quality product or service then consumers will go for it irrespective of all other available options. Brand perception is an aspect that rules the world of marketing (McLucas, A 2003). In this paper, let us see the strategies followed in decision making by reputed brands on their products. General Electrics is one of the most famous companies of all time that is famous all over the world. It is a corporate giant that has established it to be the best brand and it has capitalized well on the brand as pect. It is a company that is operating all over the world and has got a huge resource base as well. The company is known for its best services and initiatives which are set to turn around the entire line of sales in its favor. A more comprehensive study regarding the company, its initiatives and services that keeps things working the right way is discussed in the paper (Salaman, G 2001). If we take GE into consideration, it can be understood that the company gives more importance to that of human resources aspect. For the purpose of a stable business, it is important to have some good and reliable resource base with them. A good HR program is the backbone of the proper channel and organize of work, thus it is the absolute necessity to show importance in this are. GE seems to have understood about this fact and is known to provide with all the effort it can in order to keep the human resource aspect intact. There is several HR initiative programs carried out by the company in order to make it beneficial for the company as well as the employee. There are several ways through which the company aims at streamlining and molding its resource in order to get the best out of it on the whole (Gelder, S 2005). The best strategy that is used by GE is that it trains as well as cares on its HR sphere. It becomes very much important for one to keep the internal space in a steady way to get a positive wave from outside and GE exactly does that. The idea is to drive its brand as a group to get better result for the brand. GE aligns human resource with that of administrative function as it has its business spread across all over the world. The decision making prowess of the company is well known in the business field and it has always manage to take ultimate control of its resources. The human resource aspect is integrated into the management system of the company. The company’s top management makes it a yearly affair to formulate a set of HR rules for the year along w ith that of the goals and objectives. It shows a great deal of interest in decision making