US Economic Policy Essay Example for Free

US Economic Policy Essay The United States of America is one of the richest nations of the world, with nearly a fifth of the world’s Gross Domestic Product emerging in the country. The US has the highest level of output in the world. The total GDP in the country in 2006 was 13. 2 trillion dollars. With a population now reaching 300 million people, the per capita income in the US now is nearly 45000 dollars per annum. In the last three years however, there have been concerns voiced about the health of the economy. The chief concerns have been in the housing market, which many feel has been overvalued. The savings rate has been coming down and therefore impacting the growth rate negatively. Also the US budget has now seen a deficit on the current account as revenue expenditure has been growing faster than revenue growth. The deficit might get worse later in 2007 as the economy weakens further. Wage costs have traditionally been high, and in a tight situation have increased even more causing some amounts of inflation. The Economic Intelligence Unit of the Economist has highlighted these problems faced by the US economy in recent times and also pointed to the falling exchange rate of the dollar with respect to the Euro as an indicator of the weakening American economy. The special report of the EIU released in August 2007 points out to the fact that the emergence of the European and Asian economies in the past have led to a fall in the pivotal importance the US economy had in the world economy. The report points to the recession in the US economy leading to a likely fall in growth rates in the country in 2008 and onwards. It is in this context that it becomes important to look at the state of the economy in the US in the past three years. In the past, the US economy had been doing well, despite the slowdowns seen in the rest of the developed world. With low interest rates, high employment levels and a strong construction sector, the economy had seen balanced economic growth with a robust export performance in the decade of the nineties. Right at the outset it will be important to underline the role played by the free market operating in a democratic context. The US has remained wedded to the concept of a free market economy governed under unwavering democratic principles. This has allowed a strong civil rights movement to flourish, consumer lobbies to argue strongly for anti monopolistic practices and a competition regulatory mechanism in place. It is indeed this fundamental strength that allows the US to remain the world’s most powerful economy in the democratic framework it works on and the political freedom the constitution guarantees. It is political freedom that enables the optimal use of resources in any country. Interest groups exert pressure on governments and ensure widespread and sustainable growth. Free market based economies like the US work on the principles of rule of law, property rights and enforcement of contracts. This way growth is robust and is not vulnerable to shocks that are inherent in a globalized world. Lipset (1959) and Sen (1999) have argued that it is democracy that fosters economic growth across the world. Foreign trade and exchange rates After joining NAFTA, in its 1994 version and now with the revised agreement, the US economy is now increasingly integrated with the North American economy. As a result any slowdown in the US economy have been balanced out by the growth seen in Canada and in Mexico. The economic policy in recent times is characterized by a relatively stable prime interest rate, the exchange rate falling gradually and a healthy foreign exchange reserve. With healthy increase in exports of more than 11% last year, US external trade is critical to the economy and that is the most important reason for the monetary policy aimed at keeping the dollar a floating currency. A free float enables a currency to absorb shock. And countries that are so clearly exposed to external shocks need to be able to cushion external changes. Historically, the US’ monetary policy as regards the currency rate has been one where the state intervened in currency transactions and the central bank monitored the exchange rate. However this has now changed and the exchange rate regime follows a true floating mechanism that would change with the market situation as regards imports and exports. In the year 2006 past, the trade deficit in trade in goods and merchandise has reached US$838bn in 2006. This is primarily on account of the huge trade deficit with China, and this could give rise to some protectionism in the US economy. The cheaper local currency that is being seen now will encourage exports and discourage imports taking the trade deficit towards a positive value. Monetary policy Monetary policy is often a toll that is defined and determined by the inflation rate. In democratic countries, price rise is often politically unacceptable especially with frequent elections. Hence the central bank and the treasury tend to keep a close watch on the inflation and on the customer price index. On this front, the US economy has performed well with modest inflation helped by an interest rate that is stable. The low inflation rate might have an impact on domestic demand, as the aggregate supply curve would tend to flatten given stable prices. Also with a low unemployment rate and stable salary levels the demand curve too would be flat. Therefore growth would be restricted to growth in external trade helped by a favorable exchange rate that is what the US economy is witnessing. As a result, the major factor that would impact the economy now is the business cycle. In economic theory, business cycles show growth in initial phases, then a stability followed by a decline. These are periodic swings that most economies pass through. During these cycles production and supplies go up due to price and demand increases and then as demand stabilizes, so do prices. Producer surplus comes down, and investment levels stabilize. Then when the curve starts sliding down, prices reduce, demand levels fall and till the supply reaches a new equilibrium the economy goes downhill resulting in unemployment and retarded growth. Each country goes through such alternating phases of growth and stagnation, though the length of the cycle is very often uncertain and unpredictable. Economic expansion is the phase where the real GDP rises steadily and recession is the stage where the real GDP falls. This is followed by a phase of economic recovery. The US business cycles have not been any different from the rest of the world. A globalized economy is prone to expansion and recession in the rest of the world. The first big recession was seen in 1929. However the economy stabilized soon after thanks to some tight monetary policies and a harsh fiscal policy, where the government taxed its citizens at high rates to keep the public sector functional and to provide social security to those hurt by slowdowns. Each slowdown affects jobs, growth and economic prosperity adversely. In the post war period, the economy has been relatively stable and has only passed through two serious recessions. Since then, the US has seen a period of healthy economic expansion and prosperity, despite a slowdown in services trade and the internet bust that pushed the US into a recession at the turn of the century. Fiscal policy Fiscal policy is a tool the state uses to ensure that public expenditure is met through revenue mobilization using various taxes, levies and fees. Historically, it the monetary and the fiscal policy have been used by governments to run their economies and handle various pressures on expenditure, investment, unemployment rates and inflation. Fiscal Policy is the tool that governments use to ensure an addition or reduction in expenditure and revenue levels so the economy can be steered in a particular direction. While fiscal policy focuses on changes in the governmnet level of expenditure and revenue mobilisation, monetary policy concentrates on the money supply in the economy and by giving incentives to the citizen, governemnts encourage or discourage the velocity of money flow in an economic system. The US tax structure has been criticized for charging high taxes on business. However, over the years tax rates have been cut and now the federal corporate income tax rate is down. However, while US personal income tax rates are lower compared to most developed economies, corporate taxes, because of the various tiers of taxation are still comparatively higher. With the increase in government spending on welfare and old age pension plans, these tax rates are unlikely to reduce. The fiscal policy reflects the concerns of the political leadership in seeking to increase government revenue and expenditure. The health system is huge and needs constant doses of capital to sustain itself. In addition to the health sector, the social security system and the education system too is largely subsidized and calls for higher tax rates. Increasing tax rates tend to dampen demand and slow down the growth rate as higher taxes lead to a slowdown in supply, which also gets affected by higher unemployment. However government revenue goes up and government expenditure can increase as a result of higher tax collections. The business cycle then goes into a recessionary phase. But with increased government expenditure, public utilities get benefited. Therefore fiscal policies need to be well balanced and not cause an irreversible slowdown of the economy leading to spiraling inflation rates. In globalizing economies, the threat of borrowing slowdowns is as serious a concern as the opportunities that come through foreign expansionary phases in global business cycles. Fiscal measures tend to shore up the domestic economy in the face of external pressures. The US fiscal policy in that sense has prudently tried to balance growth with inflation, and increase government expenditure whenever unemployment threatens to increase. Also, tax revenue has enabled the setting up of a health and education system that supplies most of the skilled labour force that works in the large service sector. When there is fall in money supply, this causes a decline in demand and hence a fall in prices. However, what could very well result is a slowdown or a stagnation of the economy that could give rise to job losses and high unemployment. However, with inflation in check, the fiscal policy too has not been as drastic as it could have possible been. Conclusion The US requires a stable financial system that is able to meet the expectations of depositors, investors and the government. The democratic system and economic structure, which is heavily dependent on the world economy and the success of the WTO, presents many challenges to the formulation of its monetary and fiscal policy. It is important that the fiscal policy takes into consideration the key issues of public and government expenditures. The monetary policy should be formulated accordingly so as to bring down the threat of fiscal deficits. Taking the need for institutional changes into consideration, there should be potential improvements in the economy in order to provide the right directions to the policymakers. It is felt that the quality of expenditures at federal and provincial levels has been deteriorating over the period of time; therefore it is very important for the government to have a rational approach towards these expenditures. Expenditure restructuring must accompany expenditure control. Privatization combined with increased competition, plays a major role in reducing the fiscal deficits. Tax rates have to be brought down as the economy looks for increased investment. It is not feasible to have high tax rates in a world competing for global investments. Interest rates cannot be kept high for a long time and must compete with the interest rate mechanism in the rest of the world. Aggregate supply and aggregate demand in the US is intrinsically tied up with supply and demand in the household sector, and apart from the construction sector, all other sectors of the economy now closely follow the business cycle that is predictable. The integration of the world economy impacts North America considerably, especially by way of rising oil prices, which have a way of impacting almost all sectors of the economy. A monetary policy that ensures a stable exchange rate, low levels of inflation and higher levels of employment along with a fiscal policy that tends not to dampen GDP growth, is what the future would demand. References 1. Lipset S. M. (1959) Some Social Requisites of Democracy: Economic Development and Political Legitimacy. American Political Science Review. 2. Mansfield, E. (1982). MicroEconomics – Theory and Applications. 4th Ed. W. W. Norton and Company. 3. Ohmae, K. (1999) The Borderless World: Power and Strategy in the Interlinked Economy. New York: Harper Business. 4. Sen, A, (1999) Democracy as Freedom. Oxford University Press. 5. EIU, (2007). Heading for the rocks: Will financial turmoil sink the world economy? EIU Special Report, London.

Cloning :: essays research papers

Human embryo cloning should not be done because of the religious, moral, ethical, and social concerns that it places upon the human race. Although there may be some positive affects to cloning humans, there are far too many opposing factors in this situation. Many religious leaders of expressed their concern and condemnation of human cloning. The moral and ethical aspects outweigh any scientific evidence, and the social concerns are frightening. The most important question that needs to be asked, is whether the gains out weigh the losses--the gains being scientific research and the losses being the religious, moral, ethical, and social concerns that it poses on today’s society. A clone, as defined in â€Å"The Human Genome Project,† is; 1. a population of genetically identical unicellular organisms or viruses arising from successive replications of a single ancestral unicellular organism or virus. 2. a recombinant clone. 3. the fragment of foreign DNA contained in each member of a recombinant clone. 4. a population of identical cells arising from the culture of a single cell of a certain type, such as a human fibroblast or a rodent-human hybrid cell containing a full set of rodent chromosomes and a single human chromosome. Human embryo cloning starts with a standard in vitro fertilization procedure. Sperm and an egg cell are mixed together on a glass dish. After conception, the zygote (fertilized egg) is allowed to develop into a blastula (a hollow mass of cells). The zygote divides first into two cells, then four, then eight... A chemical is added to the dish to remove the â€Å"zona pellucida† covering; this material provides nutrients to the cells to promote cell division. With the covering removed, the blastula is divided into individual cells which are deposited on individual dishes. They are then coated with an artificial zona pellucida and allowed to divide and develop. That is how a human embryo clone is made using the â€Å"twinni ng method.† Some scientists believe that human embryo cloning and related research can have some positive results, however, many religious leaders feel that cloning and related research should not be permitted. Religion and science have been involved in an ongoing battle over many subjects in the past, but human embryo cloning has caused the biggest debate thus far. Many religious philosophies teach that human life is unique and special and should be created, determined and controlled only by their deities.

Tutankhamun’s Tomb, Egypt

Ancient History Preliminary Assessment Task 2013 TRANSCRIPT: TUTANKHAMUN’S TOMB, EGYPT When archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922, he remarked that it was â€Å"the day of days, the most wonderful that I have ever lived through, and certainly one whose like I can never hope to see again. † On that November day, not only had this man uncovered an unknown ancient Egyptian tomb, but one that had lain nearly undisturbed for over 3000 years whose remains laying within astounded the world.Previous excavations in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt by Theodore Davis had found and cleared the tombs of Tutankhamun’s family and their possessions. By 1913, Davis had not yet found an intact royal tomb and became disillusioned, finally declaring the area exhausted of By 1920, the tomb of nearly every New Kingdom king from between 1550 and 1070 BCE had been found in the Valley of the Kings, but Tutankhamun’s remained missing. Lord Carnarvon , an English aristocrat who was enthusiastic about Egyptology, applied for and purchased the license Davis gave up and chose Howard Carter, a British Egyptologist, to continue the search.Minor finds by Davis bearing Tutankhamun’s name led Carter to believe the king was still somewhere in the valley and felt the finds justified a further exploration. Between 1917 and 1921 the two worked in the eastern valley without success. Carter convinced Carnarvon to persist for another season, determined to find Tutankhamun. Carter’s team cleared bedrock using the grid system of archaeological excavation. This technique was developed in WWI for the purpose of maintaining a system that ensured stratigraphic control of excavations in trench digging and artillery barrages.Using these methods, on November 1st 1922 a staircase was uncovered in the limestone cliffs of the Valley of the Kings. The entrance door, which had a dry limestone blocking plastered with gypsum, was later uncovered to reveal Tutankhamun’s name. The entrance they excavated then led to an eight-metre-long corridor that revealed evidence of past robberies. Four small rooms flowed from the entrance and corridor, including an Antechamber, Annexe, Burial Chamber and Treasury. On November 6, Lord Carnarvon was summoned by telegraph and arrived with his daughter, Lady Evelyn Herbert, to watch the excavation process unfold.Compared to tombs of other pharaohs of the time, Tutankhamun’s tomb was small and lacked some of the more elaborate features – for example, tomb paintings and decoration were only found in the Burial Chamber room rather than all rooms. Due to Tutankhamun’s early death, a lack of time was left to prepare his tomb. One of the most remarkable divisions of Tutankhamun’s tomb was that he was the only pharaoh to have been discovered intact in his tomb with the complete burial furniture and possessions surrounding. These objects included gilded statues of Tutankhamun, gods, and family members,.Objects from the king’s daily life were also present such as clothes, furniture and sceptres. Funerary goods such as canopic jars containing the king’s entrails and hundreds of shabtis (which were small statues of people, intended to serve as slaves in the afterlife) were found, along with more personal items. Two miniature coffins containing mummies of stillborn babies were placed beside Tutankhamun’s sarcophagus. These were likely to have been his children by his half-sister and wife, Ankhsenamun, whom he married around the age of ten. It took Carter the most part of ten years to empty all the chambers.This was due to difficulties from a sudden change in protocol and access privileges from both British and Egyptian governments, affecting the excavation on the site and delaying the whole process. It was also due to the meticulous process Carter took in his excavation – each object was recorded, catalogued, describe d, and photographed in situ, before being preserved and conserved, then finally packed and transported to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The main archaeological find of the tomb however, was King Tutankhamun himself. Inside the burial chamber were four gilded shrines, one inside the other.The innermost shrine held a quartzite sarcophagus which in turn held three coffins. The innermost coffin made of solid gold contained the mummy of Tutankhamun, wrapped in linen and wearing his famous gold plated mask, inlaid with blue glaze and inscribed with religious spells. Although the body was found to be poorly preserved, Tutankhamun was notable for being the only Egyptian pharaoh found in situ, intact and unsealed since ancient times in his tomb. In 1925 the body was removed from the coffins with difficulty, due to the abundance of resin that had been poured over the mummy at the funeral.Carter and his team were forced to cut the body in order to remove it from the coffin. Four sessions of sc ientific analysis were conducted on Tutankhamun’s body over the years. These proved to ablaze many controversial issues and interpretations over Tutankhamun’s cause of death. The first inquiry was an autopsy which began after Carter’s excavation in 1925, carried out by Douglas E. Derry, a Professor of Anatomy at the Egyptian University in Cairo. Derry found Tutankhamun to have a fracture in his lower left thighbone, a large, ragged embalming wound, and estimated his age of death to be between 18 and 22 years.He also reconfirmed the body’s poor preservation, noting that the inner layers of linen were reduced to the ‘consistency of soot’, that an overload of resin destroyed the corpse, and that the nose was heavily flattened by the bandages. The second scientific analysis of the body was conducted by R. G. Harrison in 1968. With an x-ray the team concluded that two bone fragments in the skull and haemorrhaging may have been caused by a blow to the head, and that the body was missing a sternum and some frontal rib bones. This caused speculations about Tutankhamun’s death, some suggesting murder and others suggesting a fatal chariot accident.Examiners also noted that the spine showed signs of scoliosis. A further x-ray and blood analysis in 1978 was led by James E. Harris. It wrongly concluded that the king was perhaps 23 to 27 years old at death. A blood analysis supported the idea that Tutankhamun was related to the body of Akhenaten found in another tomb in the Valley of the Kings – suggesting it was Tutankhamun’s father. A final CT scan in 2005 was conducted to test the conclusions of previous inquiries and to look for additional details still undiscovered.Led by Dr Zahi Hawass, the scan confirmed the previous findings of the king’s height, health, general features and age of death at around 18-19 years. It also disproved the theory of scoliosis, relating the curvature of his spine instead th e way his body was arranged by the embalmers. 8MINSThe theory of murder by head trauma and death relating to the missing ribs was also ruled out and blamed on embalmers and/or Carter’s team, The leg trauma found in Tutankhamun’s lower left femur may have introduced infection which may have been fatal.This theory however remains unproven. Facial reconstruction of King Tutankhamun was also commenced using the new CT scan data in 2005. A forensic anthropologist calculated sizes of tissue on his face. A cast was then made of the skull from this data which was used to build a latex model. When the CT scan data and skull cast was given to another forensic team for checking, the skin colour proved to be somewhat controversial in interpretation. Controversies occurred as it is impossible to determine skin colour accurately.This is because there is a large variation on skin tones in the area, and not enough accurate information available as Ancient Egyptian art depicted bodies in unrealistic colours. Thus, no consensus on the King’s skin tone was reached, however the overall results between the different reconstructions was similar. At the time of discovery, very little was known about this ancient pharaoh. Thanks to the efforts put into many investigations over the years and, in particular, the 1923 ‘Curse of King Tut’ phenomena that was spread through media following the untimely death of Lord Carnarvon, knowledge and interest of Tutankhamun has skyrocketed.Tutankhamun’s legacy remains to this day and he continues to stand across the globe as one of the most well-known Egyptian pharaohs in history. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Carter, H. , Mace, A. C. , The Tomb of Tut-Ankh-Amen: Discovered by the Late Earl of Carnarvon and Howard Carter, Volume 1 (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1923), 94. [ 2 ]. N. Reeves, The Complete Tu tankhamun, Thames & Hudson, 1990, pp. 116-17

Elizabeth s Council s Attitude - 2063 Words

The argument has been put forth that Elizabeth failed to marry due to her council’s attitude. While her council played a vital role, they weren’t the only contributing factor; unsuitable candidates and the political advantage that came with negotiations also resulted in her failure to marry. Elizabeth was ultimately in control of the matches, however relied on the support provided by her councillors. Doran puts forward the view that the Queen failed to marry as a result of the council’s attitude towards her suitors, as she writes, â€Å"without strong conciliar backing Elizabeth would not or could not marry a particular candidate. † This appears to be valid when it is remembered that Elizabeth attempted to replace some of the council with†¦show more content†¦Indeed, it has been suggested the content of John Stubbs’ publication against the match was influenced by Leicester and Walsingham, as it coincided with Privy Council debates. However the validity of this is questionable as the tone of the pamphlets is different from council discussions, and as Streitberger writes, it was â€Å"filled with hysterical Puritan rhetoric and virulent xenophobia .† Furthermore Cecil, as Haigh writes, was â€Å"well placed to manipulate Elizabeth ,† he would raise issues with her depending on her mood, and would massage information for his own purposes, this can be seen from the fact that Cecil sabotaged the Queen’s match with Dudley by whipping up an anti-papal scare, destroying any support Phillip II had for the marriage. Similarly, with negotiations over the marriage to Archduke Charles, anxieties over religion arose and Robert Dudley as a council member urged Elizabeth to reject the suit. It is credible to assume Elizabeth wished for encouragement and support from her council, and an assurance that they would stand behind her if faced with public opposition. Overall, the attitude of the council and its members did play a large role in Elizabeth’s failure to marry. It can be argued that Elizabeth did have intentions to marry, however was prevented from doing so as her suitors never matched all of her