Iraq Power Company Business Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Iraq Power Company Business Plan - Assignment Example We will provide electricity to all the localities including industries, hospitals, parks, houses etc. Our distribution would be as follows Our mission is to provide customers highest quality electrical services; our focus is on personalized services by offering convenient and rapid services. We have strong vendor relationship with most service conscious vendors, capable of shipping major parts rapidly (overnight too) minimizing the system downtime for the premiere electric customers. Iraq is an oil producing country situated in the Middle East, with the population of 28,945,657 (July 2009.est).the population growth rate is 2.507%. Its economy is mainly dominated by the oil sector, which provides 90% of foreign exchange earnings. Total government revenues have benefited from high oil prices in recent years; however, revenues have declined significantly since the oil price drop in fall 2008. Iraq is making some progress in building the institutions needed to implement economic policy. In March 2009 Iraq concluded a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with the IMF that details economic reforms. Its GDP per capita is $4000. Its composition by sector is Nowadays the electric shortage in Iraq has become a problem and there are frequent blackouts. Due to the war there is much loss done and many of the power generation cables have been cut down posing a problem for the people. It needs new industries to be set up in various areas to solve the problem. At present electricity is provided only 8 hours a day at free of charge. The energy needs of Kurdish region have been ignored; it is working independently to electrical energy output through foreign assistance and private investment projects. The minister expects that by 2009 the region will produce enough energy to keep the lights on 24 hours a day. Vision Statement In 5 years it will become the major company generating electrical power to the country and establish its name in the whole of Middle East Mission Statement Earn people trust, be honest and lighten up Iraq. Engineering plan We will deal with generation, transmission and distribution of electric power as well as electrical devices connected to the system including generator, motors and transformers. Different forms of energies are converted to electrical energy. The transmission subsystem transmits the electricity to the load centers. The distribution subsystem continues to transmit the power

The impact of different regulation regimes on funds performance Essay

The impact of different regulation regimes on funds performance - Essay Example The fixed income securities have the ability to provide regular income, stability and liquidity to the investors and as a result the investors prefers in investing in this kinds of funds. With the advent of these funds investors are relying on its investment as risks are relatively reduced as they receive a fixed dividend after a specified period of time. There are numerous benefits for investing in fixed income securities, which attracts the investors to invest in it. The rules and regulations pertaining to the investments are stringent, which restricts groups of people in investing in these funds. For investing in few fixed income securities registration is required, which becomes a hindrance for common investors. However, the government of individual countries have reduced the compliance burden to a great extent. The retirement fund administrators have to obey the strict legislation the requirements related to the governance of the fund. A personal statement is provided in order g ive the view of the writer regarding the operation of fixed income securities. Fixed income securities are securities, which are defensive in nature and have the capability to provide capital stability, liquidity, income and diversification to the investors. It provides capital stability to growth-oriented asset classes, such as, property and equity. In spite of the advantages portrayed by the fund, it has limited use worldwide. As for example, the investors in Australia do not use this particular fund as fixed income investment, instead they employed other managed funds over the past 23 years. Within this time frame, a proportion of investor’s wealth is allocated to fixed income securities present in Australia. The investments in fixed income funds had, however, declined over the years. During this period of time, the investment made in equities had increased as it is made in cash. Hence, it can be portrayed that

Managing The Human Resources Essay Example for Free

Managing The Human Resources Essay INTRODUCTION: This assignment is based on a case study titled Hot Work at the Aluminium Smelter in Lynmouth, and it examines the current HRM principles being used within the organisation. The HR values that are being investigated are HRM or people management values, team effectiveness and the effect of motivation, communication and the culture in the organisation, and leadership qualities. The overall aim of this assignment is to provide appropriate business solutions that help in improving the effectiveness of the organisation, from the perspective of a HR consultant. HRM PEOPLE MANAGEMENT VALUES: Armstrong (2000) argues that personnel practioners are often confused when asked about the difference between HRM and personnel management. According to Storey (1995) HRM is said to be fundamentally unitarist. This makes the management at Lynmouth more HR than personnel, as although the unions membership levels were low and their influence was weak, they were recognised by management in respect of white-collar staff. Also teamworking was introduced with the cooperation of the plants trade union, and they were asked to recommend the number of posts required for the new line that was to open in 2000. This shows that the management did consider the unions before reaching a decision. The climate of employee relations could be characterized as suspicious and mistrustful, indicating to a model of personnel management (Sisson 1994). In HRM, rules, procedures and contracts are an obstruction to effective performances and there is an emphasis on strategy and devolved responsibility to line management (Storey 1996). At Lynemouth, there were rules and guidelines set for the team leaders and employees worked according to shifts, and pay was not performance related. Read more:  Personnel vs Human Resources Although these values point towards personnel management (Sisson 1994), Lynemouth also inculcates HRM values. Despite each plant having specialist staff that kept the plant within its operating limits, team leaders worked as line managers (Storey 1996) and were responsible for the coordination and scheduling of work. Also there are few job categories and teamwork is preferred to division of labour (Storey 1995). There is a great deal of task flexibility (Sisson 1994) in the teams, and in 2000 they were given greater autonomy. Boxall Purcell (2003) states that HRM can be interpreted as having a soft developmental humanist approach or a hard situational contingent approach. The soft version emphasizes a people-centred approach to HRM, whereas the hard version emphasizes a resource-based approach (Thornhill Saunders 1998). Although the organisation appears to be soft with the implementation of teams, they can be viewed as being hard economically, as the organisation aims were resource focused, there appeared to be low trust between employees, and there was also functional flexibility within the teams (Kane et al. 1999). Responsibility for hiring new staff, and for assessing applications for internal transfers, were devolved to shop-floor workers, thus making them more flexible. A hard approach is often seen as an essential part of cost-minimization strategy (Kane et al. 1999), which appears to be the situation at Lynemouth. TEAM EFFECTIVENSS THE EFFECT OF MOTIVATION: A team is a work group or a unit with a common purpose through which members develop mutual relationships for the achievement of goals/tasks (Harris Harris 1996). Vyakarnam et al (1999) states that a number of studies have confirmed that successful ventures are often established by teams rather than a single person, and the core competence of a successful team is to build and manage relationships around a common vision. The management team at Lynemouth havent clearly described the team goals or each individuals specific task. It is essential that the first step in creating a team is to define the goal or goals that create the direction for the new group (Twomey Kleiner 1996; Arroba 1996). Harris Harris (1996) explain that teams are successful and effective when they overcome difficulties, achieved through interdependence. Teams also promote a sense of confidence and direction among the team members and helps becoming more flexible in nature (Arroba 1996). Among shop-floor workers at Lynemouth with regard to satisfaction and commitment, there was a greater sense of autonomy and participation. With regard to work organisation, there was an increase in multi-skilling, and there were clear examples of improved flexibility. For example, team members would work a crane as required, rather than waiting for a dedicated crane driver. The major difference between successful teamwork and unsuccessful teamwork is largely based upon team members sharing common goals and working together to achieve them (Tarricone Luca 2002). They also state that ineffective communication, lack of resources and lack of trust are the key attributes that hinder the effectiveness of a team. At Lynemouth, the workers were clear that the divide between manager and worker was as sharp as ever and that the enforcement of discipline was not part of the teams duties. There appeared to be low trust between them, and also communication with regard to specific tasks seems to be lacking. It is also advisable to establish a sense of urgency so that the teams dont get complacent (Twomey Kleiner 1996). Ritchie Martin (2001) states that money and tangible rewards, the physical conditions and the structure are the three key factors motivating people in a working environment. Although teamwork was favourable from a shop-floor point of view, middle managers and technical staff had reservations about teamwork, feeling undervalued and lacking determination. Macaulay Cook (2001) states that rewards and recognition processes help to focus attention on priorities, thus motivating individuals. Group leaders felt that the work they were being given was not sufficiently demanding, and technical staff felt that that their job territory was under threat. There seems to be a need for rules and guidelines in the work place, for direction and certainty (Ritchie Martin 2001). Thompson (2004) concludes that people could be motivated further and made more effective if they were given appropriate encouragement and attention. COMMUNICATION CULTURE: According to Connolly (1996) communication is a critical issue and everyone wants better communication within their team, between teams and across their organization. Employee communication should play a strategic role in an organization to work effectively (Barrett 2002). In the early 1990s there was a wide perception at Lynemouth that communication was poor, and the climate of employee relations could be characterized as suspicious and mistrustful. Barrett (2002) also emphasizes that without effective employee communication, change is impossible, and in 1997 with Lynemoths future in doubt, the management realized the importance of communication and set about to win employee consent by reforming the communication system. With regard to this, teamwork was introduced with the cooperation of the plants trade unions, which encouraged further development in employee relations. However, with the success of teamwork, white-collar staff felt undervalued. Peng Litteljohn (2001) asserts that structural arrangements may facilitate communication on the one hand, and create barriers for communication on the other. Group leaders felt that their status and authority were being eroded, and technical staff felt that their job territory was under threat, and changes were made without consulting the people involved, and there was a feeling that the appraisal system was not adequate, as the management did not seem to listen. Connolly (1996) states that to enhance communication, both the employer and the employee should realize the importance of effective communication. The author concludes by saying that perhaps the most effective ways of improving communication are also the simplest taking the time to really notice the employees, listening to how they speak and more importantly to what they say. The management could create a system where employees are rewarded for their good work, as Storey (1995) states that the way in which employees are rewarded is central to the regulation of employment relationship. Handy (1986) states that every organization is different, and each organization has a different culture sets of values and norms and beliefs. In 1990, many workers had been with the plant since it opened, and labour turnover was low. Majority of the workers were male, with few women being employed in clerical posts. There is a close and sometimes unclear relationship between organisational culture and its climate (Wallace, J et al. 1999). Although the climate of employee relations could be characterised as suspicious and mistrustful at Lynemouth, work organisation was considered to be fairly conventional. Handy (1986) argues that if organizations are to survive and meaningful jobs are to be created for all those who want to work, then both organizations and individuals will have to change the way they perceive jobs and careers. He also states that fewer, better-motivated people could create much more added value than large groups of unthinking, demotivated individuals. Lynemouth, with the introduction of teamworking could be seen as incorporating these values. However, the management at Lynemouth should create meaningful jobs for all employees. The structure of Lynemouths employees could be characterized under senior managers, middle managers and workers. Handy (1986) argues that organizations are not owned by anyone, but are a community of people who could be called citizens of the community rather than employees. Ogbor (2001) asserts that organisational culture should discourage dysfunctional work behaviours, and commit members of the organization to do things for and with one another that are in the best interests of the organization. LEADERSHIP QUALITIES: The American general, Dwight Eisenhower, once said that the essence of leadership is to make people do what you want them to with as much will, determination and enthusiasm as if they had decided for themselves (Popper Zakkai 1994). Cacioppe (1997) suggests that recent reviews of the research and theories on leadership have consolidated the key areas of leadership into personality, transactional and transformational forms of leadership. He also states that honesty, inspiration, competent, fair-mindedness and supportiveness are the characteristics that people most admire in leaders, where as Tait (1996) suggests that vision, interpersonal skills, character and drive are the four attributes considered to be necessary personality traits for business leadership. Transactional leadership is based on the interplay between the leaders guidance or direction and socio-emotional support, and the readiness or developmental level that followers exhibit on a particular task, function, or objective (Avery and Ryan 2002). The third major approach is the Transformational leadership which communicates a vision that inspires and motivates people to achieve something extraordinary (Cacioppe 1997). Transactional leadership remains highly popular among practitioners and it could be applied at Lynemouth. It appeals to managers because of its intuitive simplicity, ease of use, and perceived relevance to managerial roles (Avery and Ryan 2002). In 2000, with the end of direct supervision, management appointed team leaders from existing team members, following a formal application procedure. Team leaders were made responsible for team briefing and the coordination and scheduling of work, and they did receive an additional weekly allowance of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½100. The management at Lynemouth could also try to incorporate the transformational leadership values by providing every individual and team with a vision and also motivating them, thus improving leadership effectiveness at the team levels (Cacioppe 1996). Silverthorne (2000) believes that the readiness and willingness of subordinates to perform tasks are the important aspects that contribute to a leaders effectiveness. CONCLUSION: This assignment investigated the current HRM principles being used within the organisation. A few key points in improving the effectiveness of an organisation are effective teams, effective communication between the teams and good leadership skills. Lynemouth could improve the effectiveness of their organisation by motivating each individual, improving the communication between the employers and the management, and also by providing individual, team and organisational goals for the leaders to follow. REFERENCE: Armstrong, M 2000, The name has changed but has the game remained the same?, Journal of Employee Relations, vol. 22, no. 6, pp. 576-593. Arroba, T 1996, Why are common objectives so uncommon in top management teams?, Journal of Team Performance Management, vol. 2, no. 1, pp 17-21. Avery, G.C Ryan, J 2002, Applying situational leadership in Australia, The Journal of Management Development, vol. 21, no. 4, pp 242-262. Barrett, D.J 2002, Change communication: using strategic employee communication to facilitate major change, Corporate Communications: An International Journal, vol. 7, no. 4, pp 219-234. Boxall, P Purcell, J 2003, Strategy and Human Resource Management, Palgrave, New York. Cacioppe, R 1997, Leadership moment by moment!, Leadership and Organization Development Journal, vol. 18, no. 7, pp 335-345. Connolly, C 1996, Communication: getting to the heart of the matter, Journal of Management Development Review, vol. 9, no. 7, pp 37-40. Handy, C.B 1976, Understanding Organisations, Penguin Group, London. Harris, P.R Harris, K.G 1996, Managing effectively through teams, Journal of Team Performance Management, vol. 2, no. 3, pp 23-36. Kane, B et al. 1999, Barriers to effective HRM, International Journal of Manpower, vol. 20, no. 8, pp 494-516. Macaulay, S Cook, S 2001, Rewarding Service Success, Journal of Team Performance Management, vol. 5, no. 1, pp 4-8. Ogbor, J.O 2001, Critical theory and the hegemony of corporate culture, Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 14, no. 6, pp 590-638. Peng, W Litteljohn, D 2001, Organisational communication and strategy implementation a primary inquiry, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 13, no. 7, pp 360-363. Popper, M Zakkai, E 1994, Transactional, Charismatic and Transformational Leadership: Conditions Conducive to their Predominance, Leadership and Organization Development Journal, vol. 15, no. 6, pp 3-7. Silverthorne, C 2000, Situational leadership theory in Taiwan: a different culture perspective, Leadership and Organization Development Journal, vol. 21, no. 2, pp 68-74. Sisson, K 1994, Personnel Management A comprehensive guide to Theory and Practice in Britain, 2nd edn, Blackwell, Oxford. Storey, J 1995, Human Resource Management A critical text, Thomson, London. Storey, J 1995, Is HRM catching on?, International Journal of Manpower, vol. 16, no. 4, pp 3-10. Storey, J 1996, Blackwell cases in Human Resource and Change Management, Blackwell, Oxford. Tait, R 1996, The attributes of leadership, Leadership and Organization Development Journal, vol 17, no. 1, pp27-31. Tarricone, P Luca, J 2002, Employees, teamwork and social interdependence a formula for successful business?, Journal of Team Performance Management, vol. 8, no. 3, pp 54-59. Thompson, J. L 2004, Innovation through people, Journal of Management Decision, vol. 42, no. 9, pp 1082-1094. Thornhill, A Saunders, M.N.K 1998, What if line managers dont realize theyre responsible for HR?, Personnel Review Journal, vol. 12, no. 6, pp 460-476. Twomey, K Kleiner, B.H 1996, Teamwork: The essence of the successful organisation, vol. 2, no. 1, pp 6-8. Vyakarnam, S et al. 1999, Exploring the formation of entrepreneurial teams: the key to rapid growth business?, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, vol. 6, no. 2, pp 153-165. Wallace, J 1999, The relationship between organisational culture, organisational climate and managerial values, International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 12, no. 7, pp 548-564.

Is Neoliberalism A Force For De Democratisation Politics Essay

Is Neoliberalism A Force For De Democratisation Politics Essay Critically discuss with reference to the writings of Wendy Brown and other theorists of your choice. I will be looking at whether this argument by Wendy Brown has any real foundation and what other theorists say about neoliberalism. Theorists that I have chosen to include in this discussion are: M. Foucault, D. Harvey and P. Bourdieu. I will venture arguments in favour and against. I shall start from providing a brief definition of neoliberalism. According to Brown: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Neoliberalism is equated with a radically free market: maximized competition and free trade achieved through economic deregulation, elimination of tariffs, and a range of monetary and social policies favourable to business and indifferent toward poverty, social deracination, cultural decimation, long term resource depletion, and environmental destruction. Neoliberalism is most often invoked in relation to the Third World, referring either to NAFTA-like schemes that increase the vulnerability of poor nations to the vicissitudes of globalization or to International Monetary Fund and World Bank policies that, through financing packages attached to restructuring requirements, yank the chains of every aspect of Third World existence, including political institutions and social formations. (Brown, 2006) The product of neoliberalisation is de-democratisation. It is a very interesting process, especially when many people are not even aware of its existence. It affects human rights and the rights of workers, freedom and equality, respect for law and legal process, and citizenship. North America is a good example. De-democratisation developed almost by stealth and they failed to recognize it until some of the effects became apparent their jobs, and job security began to disappear. De-democratisation is a process, which is a partial reversal of democratisation. An example of neoliberalism was witnessed in the years under M. Thatcher in England, or Regans, Clintons or Bushs administrations. I will be analysing Browns account of de-democratisation first. Wendy Brown is an author of: American Nightmare: Neoliberalism, Neoconservatism, and De-democratisation, and Edgework: critical essays on knowledge and politics. She presents a very descriptive account of how the ideology of neoliberalism exists alongside neoconservatism. According to her, those rationalities together and separately produce a process of de-democratisation. Brown suggested that Americans are under neoconservative influence which is strongly associated with fundamental Christianity. Interestingly, fundamental Christianity reflects a basically democratic system, with elections for its leadership roles deacons, elders, stewards, and vote selection for senior positions bishops, elders, ministers etc. Aligning with fundamental Christianity could be seen as preserving democratic integrity. Moreover, many states in the USA reflect fundamental religious values, like the Mid West Bible belt, Amish or Mormon regions, where they can express their beliefs because they participate in a free and democratic system. Therefore, it could be argued that Brown is incorrect, and Christian Fundamentalism is not necessarily an undemocratic movement. Drawing from this a political election candidate in these states would have to secure backing from these religious quarters. This is a tactic which President Bush and others successfully developed. Her argument that neoconservatism is inherently de-democratising is not as strong as first suggested. Brown is not trying to get us to understand whether the ideology of neoliberalism needed to occur in the USA, but she is sending a clear message of what damage its presence can do. The first point of her argument is contrasted with Halls theory referring to Freuds dreams, which suggest that neoliberalism is an accident rather than a conscious and deliberate choice. She feels that neoliberalism is not an unconscious movement and therefore dismisses Halls account, which others would not necessary agree with, as it could be seen that neoliberalism is a choice driven by greed, need, power and capitalism. She examines dreamwork in perspective of suitability of political analysis, which by the end she dismisses because is not coherent. She tries to understand the implications of neoliberalism from a political perspective not economic, and she briefly describes economic issues in a differently to the way that Harvey analyzed them. It should not be suggested that neoliberalism is limited to those two perspectives, as is it not. Another perspective which goes with this is environmental or political identity, which Brown does not really discuss. In her writings she refers to Regan, Clinton and Bush as those who are responsible for neoliberalism in the USA and abroad. In American Nightmare she asks whether democracy itself still has meaning in the modern world. She focuses on differences between neoliberalism and neoconservatism rather than trying to combine them and defining what works well and should be kept and what does not work and therefore should be challenged. There is a lack of deep economic and historical explanation, which we can see in Harveys account: A brief history of neoliberalism and Neoliberalism and the restoration of class power, although she touches on this in a limited manner. There is an immediate argument against Bushs administration, which delivers a one-sided view, effectively influencing the view rather then presenting positive and negative points in a balanced way so the reader can have an independent opinion. She seems to not see that neoliberalism could be seen as something which is already present in human nature. I would like to contrast her work with a quote from G. Becker, whose words were used by Foucault: Economics is the science which studies human behaviour as relationships between ends and scarce means which have alternate uses. Therefore: Everything for which human beings attempt to realize their ends, from marriage, to crime, to expenditures on children, can be understood economically according to a particular calculation of cost for benefit. This entails a massive redefinition of labour and the worker. The worker has become human capital. Salary or wages become the revenue that is earned on an initial investment, an investment in ones skills or abilities. Any activity that increases the capacity to earn income, to achieve satisfaction, even migration, the crossing of borders from one country to another, is an investment in human capital ( Foucault 2008).Because of this contra st it could be said that she might have ignored the effect on human nature or just simply omitted it in order to sustain her argument. Foucault sees a difference between liberalism and neoliberalism in the way that each of them focuses on economy. Classical liberalism focused on an exchange but neoliberalism focuses on competition. However, they share the general idea of homo economicus the consequence here is the shift between the exchange and competition, which has its own effects. Moreover, neoliberalism is not only a set of economic policies. Neoliberalism does bring some benefits, which are visible through privatized companies, especially if they are a manufacturer of similar goods. It offers consumers price competition. Businesses have to compete in order to survive, which results in a lowering of market prices. We are a consumer society. Brown(2006) says: But here it is important to remember that neoconservatism is also born in part as a response to capitalisms erosion of meaning and morality, and that the founding neoconservatives, while opposed to communism as a political and social form, were rarely ardent free marketeers According to Brown neoliberalism and neoconservatism go together. She suggested that Bushs administration, which originates in the Republican Party tries to be both the Party of Moral Values and Party of Big Business (Brown, 2006). She also says that imposing a moral order is undemocratic. Surely though, it could be argued that a moral order, imposed by a democratically elected government, for the overall good of the populace could be deemed as democratic. Surely, neoliberalism is only going to align with certain political persuasions not all are suitable such as extreme socialism, even if it is imposed by the IMF or World Bank or other external forces. In her opinion this does not work. Neoconservatism and neoliberalism fight against each other openly and ostentatiously. Big business comes before human beings. There also tensions in this relationship: about the sustainable level of federal debt generated by military expenditures: while neither rationality hews to the fiscal austerity and balanced federal checkbook promulgated by classic conservatives, neoliberals are more than a little unhappy about the military tab run up the neocons.(Brown, 2006) Another point that she touches on is that neoliberalism is reducing freedom of speech. Media sources such as newspapers and TV have come into the ownership of private individuals who have neoliberal persuasions. These individuals can influence media content to their own benefit. There is also a risk of media monopolisation. If we have corporate interest and free trade on one side and moral values on the other, this can create a dangerous mix which she describes as threats. There are different types of threats identified by her, such as threats to security for example seen in Irans nuclear program. Neoliberalism reduces human rights. She suggested China and Cuba as examples of countries who are violators of human rights. Of course, that is obvious, but it could be argued that human rights are being violated by the governing regime rather than neoliberalist rationality. Those countries do not value democratic ideals. The nature of the governance within those countries dictates how individuals are treated in society as a whole. In this sense her argument misses out depth of analysis within her examples, which can be contrasted with Harveys account on China. Harvey promulgates China as a strange case of neoliberalism. Firstly, the country is run under communist rules. However, the leadership of Deng Xiaoping brought significant changes to Chinas economy. Harvey (2009) says: This coincided and it is very hard to consider it as anything other than a conjunctural accident of world-historical significance with the turn to neoliberal solutions in Britain and the United States. The outcome has been a particular kind of neoliberalism interdigitated with authoritarian centralized control. As the formative case of Chile had early on demonstrated, dictatorship and neoliberalism were in no way incompatible with each other. Deng used a slogan: the concept of an ideal society that provides well for all its citizens in order to achieve his goal. He focused on specific areas to improve: industry, education, science, defense and agriculture. Harvey argues that the events which took place in China under Dengs rule were in their own way related to the rise of neoliberalism. But, in an interview he adds: Whether it was by an accident or design, I dont really know, but it certainly has made a huge difference to how the global economy is working today. (an interview with Harvey 2006). Another significant matter to be noticed here is that there was no involvement by the IMF, as was the case in Mexico, Chile and Bolivia. Harvey discussed many countries but for the sake of this argument I shall present the case of Mexico, as this illustrates a different type of neoliberalism to that of China. Moreover, the case of Mexico, Chile and Bolivia backs up the argument of Wendy Brown, who uses examples on how the powerful presidents of America influence other countries politics and economy in order to extract profit from them. And actually, the case of Mexico is important as it is the time when neoliberalism became a practical tool for Americas economy. The economy in 1974/75 was not doing well. Because of this economic depression a solution had to be found. So, the head of Citibank at the time; W. Wriston suggested that monies should be invested in countries, for a simple reason they cannot vanish. This seemed to be working for a time until fiscal crisis arrived. Subsequently, Volker increased interest rates. This was not everything, as the IMF was also imposing conditions which were in favour of the USA, on the countries which had taken loans. The agreement was that they will be helped out if they adopted neoliberal systems, which meant privatization and opening their markets to foreign investors. Initially, Mexicos interest rate was set at 5% but after the Volker changes, it rose to 17%. Mexico could not afford to service debts at this level. The country approached bankruptcy in 1982. Paradoxically, Mexico was suddenly on the Forbes list of countries with a significant number of personal billionaires. Neoliberalisation helps the rich increase their personal wealth, but at the expense of the poorer in society. Harvey is not saying that the USA forced neoliberalism on Mexico, but he says that the USA put pressure on Mexico and its elite classes, and they agreed that this is what they wanted to do. Therefore, this was a relationship between Mexicos elite and the IMF, and for this reason they both are responsible for the neoliberalisation of Mexico. Many years later, citizens in the Mexican city of Cochabamba faced a dilemma. In 1999 the Bolivian government was put under heavy pressure from the World Bank. As a result a water supply system was been privatised and placed under the control of a British company, owned by the US multinational Betchel. In this case there was no competition. A monopoly came into existence and prices were set at an exorbitantly high rate. The Director of the World Bank; Wolfensohn had the view that if public services were made free of charge to consumers, it would lead to considerable waste. Bolivians needed to pay a proper unsubsidised charge. He maintained that this was not designed to make poor people even poorer. People had different opinions about it, and protests ensued. Protest leader Oscar Olivera responded, In Mr. Wolfensohns view, requiring families who earn $100 per month to pay $20 for water may be a proper system of charging, but the thousands of people who filled the streets and shut down Cochabamba last week apparently felt otherwise. (Schultz, 2010) The World Bank again put profit before peoples welfare. This reflection of neoliberalist political economics proved once again that human beings have little value. After, this incident the Bolivian government was forced to reverse the privatization. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ the democratic process must be allowed to take decisions on vital issues of service delivery, especially if the service is essential to the poor. (Coates, 2001) This message is being repeated on an ever more regular basis when people feel strongly enough, the democratic voice is powerful enough to overturn unpopular local decisions. This was also witnessed during the Thatcher years with the hugely unpopular riots against the Poll Tax in 1990. An additional account of neoliberalism could be illustrated by Bourdieus: Utopia of endless exploitation; the essence of neoliberalism In Bourdieus view he presents an abstract and ideological view which contradicts itself. If social welfare and workers rights are protected, neoliberalism by its definition can never succeed in its purest sense. For him (1998) neoliberalism is: A program for destroying collective structures which may impede the pure market logic. In neoliberalism rich people, whose political and economic needs are expressed, are able to exercise power within society. Moreover, those people have the knowledge that they would not face any consequences in the event that something went wrong. Thus, they also have a threat of losing their place in the market and the support of their stockholders, and because of this financial directives are needed in order to create rules in their favour. Flexibility is a keyword for them. Employees can be taken on with different types of contracts, specifically to fit in with a business need at time. Another condition is competition. It is not only on the business level but individual too. Competition also produces job insecurity in the work-place, which then produces the threat of unemployment. This is even more relevant at managerial level than at a basic job level. Bourdieu backs this up by saying: Organisational discourse has never talked as much of trust, co-operation, loyalty, and organisat ional culture as in an era when adherence to the organisation is obtained at each moment by eliminating all temporal guarantees of employment (three-quarters of hires are for fixed duration, the proportion of temporary employees keeps rising, employment at will and the right to fire an individual tend to be freed from any restriction). (Bourdieu,1998) Bourdieus (1998) words on the effects of neoliberalism: And yet the world is there, with the immediately visible effects of the implementation of the great neoliberal utopia: not only the poverty of an increasingly large segment of the most economically advanced societies, the extraordinary growth in income differences, the progressive disappearance of autonomous universes of cultural production, such as film, publishing, etc. through the intrusive imposition of commercial values, but also and above all two major trends. First is the destruction of all the collective institutions capable of counteracting the effects of the infernal machine, primarily those of the state, repository of all of the universal values associated with the idea of the public realm. Second is the imposition everywhere, in the upper spheres of the economy and the state as at the heart of corporations, of that sort of moral Darwinism that, with the cult of the winner, schooled in higher mathematics and bungee ju mping, institutes the struggle of all against all and cynicism as the norm of all action and behaviour. His account broadly goes with Browns. Harvey analyzed particular countries in depth and gives an explanation for their move to neoliberalism at the time. We know that neoliberalism works for a while, and it also works for some societies, and not all necessarily democratic. However, having said this we are living in a consumer society, which frequently places need before values. This is where Brown sees this contradiction of neoliberalism working with neoconservatism. Her example of Pfizers producing Viagra for its sex obsessed young society and yet at the same time dictating moral values emphasizes the dichotomy between neoliberalism and neoconservatism. Another issue that she raises involves political ethical scandals, such as that of Jack Abramoff. He was a former Republican lobbyist who was sentenced after pleading guilty to fraud, tax evasion and malfeasance. And the examples of corporate scandals such as Enron and World Com, where the banks made considerable loans, only to find that loose accounting procedures masked the real value of the businesses. The fact they were not discovered before is due to the effects of neoliberalism, which reduces the amount control and regulation of business. The banks lent them money until an error in accounting was discovered, which revealed a consider imbalance in stock value. However, since then, many more scandals have come to light. Browns account is very descriptive but seemed to look only from one perspective, which only underlined negative issues. She described very well how neoliberalism combines with neoconservatism. Moreover, it shows us how this duality is destroying the meaning of democracy. Decades of human history built a chain of separate events which when driven upon those economical, political, socio-psychological changes will develop a new form of governance. And this will fit in those strict contexts of that event and purpose of it. In her understanding democracy is endangered by neoliberalism and can be rebuilt by going back to values of classical liberalism. As we are now a consumer society the question here would be: Do all of people are happy to go back to classical liberalism? Classical liberalism is viewed in a positive light. However, the long and frequently unhappy history of liberal democracy in the USA has been littered with skeletons which seem to have been put firmly back in the cupboa rd. Or maybe people want something new? The majority of people still are happy to get cheaper and cheaper products and services. They do not necessary think that someone in a sweat shop in a developing country is competing with them. I can agree with Brown that because of neoliberal lack of regulation, financial scandals will frequently occur. My final point of this paper gives a recent example of the effect of neoliberalism in a democratic country but contrary to the perceived norm, democratic rule prevailed. Iceland is in financial crisis mainly because of a lack of regulation. The main bank operated a very competitive savings account, which took in billions of pounds from savers and investors. However, when the recent economic recession took hold, the bank failed. The Icelandic government were unable to assist the bank, so the governments of Britain and Holland provided financial assistance. The IMF also loaned them $10 billion. Moreover, they loaned monies under different conditions than they used to do in the past. The arrangement was that the Icelandic government would repay this loan at a later date. However, the people of Iceland felt that they should not be held responsible for the collapse of the bank, and objected to repaying the loans, which would amount to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬12,000 per head of population. In a way this is also reflecting the de-democratisating process, as certain groups of people benefited from neoliberal rationality, which resulted in losing jobs, reduced significance of union workers, and generally creating poverty. Citizens in a democratic manner protested, and their powerful voice was heard. Therefore, the Prime Minister, who was about to sign the repayment agreement, then refused ratification, and instead decided to put the issue to a public vote. At the end we can see that this is an exceptional example, which leads to the conclusion that neoliberalism is not always fully de-democratising. Icelandic Politician ValgarÃÆ' °sson said: Right now we have a chance to build a truly revolutionary society, which aims to benefit the whole of it, not just a privileged few, (Chataigne, 2009) He pointed out that the situation in his country is the beginning what will happen around the world in the near future. I think that he is indeed right. Another politician added:I hope this is the end of pure capitalism and we will see the rise of more humane policies. (Chataigne, 2009) In summary, it is clear that all presented accounts are emphasising consequences of neoliberalism. Harveys writings are more about connections between the power of specific classes, imperialism and capitalism, which concludes that this only benefits the minority at the expense of the majority. He analyses the theory and practice of neoliberalism purely on historical grounds. In Volkers and Wristons ideas, they were looking for a solution to political economics at the time. It cannot be argued that their intentions were to de-democratize societies. It is quite common in the history of humanity that society develops ideas which then turn into something very different than initially planned. Bourdieu is strong in his attack on neoliberalism. Bourdieu encouraged the emergence of some of the social movements in France, not only by writing but by action too. Finally, Brown strongly emphasises the negative issues associated with neoliberalism, without looking for any explanation of why this has occurred. I agree that neoliberalism is certainly de-democratizing. Media ownership, job security, worker and human rights, abrogation of the law are all de-democratising effects. However I feel that neoconservatism, which was born in part as a response to capitalisms erosion of meaning and morality. (Brown, 2006) has proven to be balancing and ameliorating force, even though not all of its effects can be seen as positive. Neoliberalism is a rolling bandwagon upon which many countries are jumping whether by intention or force protection of market share and jobs, or being pushed by external entities such IMF or World Bank. As neoliberalism gains strength, the danger is that the influence of neoconservatism will wane, leaving us open to the juggernaut of globalization and further devaluation of democratic influence. Eventually, as we have seen elsewhere, there must be a backlash against neoliberalism; an element of restraint must be introduced. Timing is crucial as neoliberalism eats away at the very fabric of democracy, the chances of a right and democratic change are reduced. Which neoliberal country would want to be the first to change direction? To deliberately put markets and trade at risk? To bring upon itself the spectre of unemployment, reduction of living standards, backlash from all classes of society against the medium-term austerity resultant on a conscious painful decision? What government would even survive? The change away from neoliberalism must surely be as gradual as the change to it. By stealth, and over time.

Youth Unemployment and Crime in Australia :: essays research papers fc

The causes and consequences of youth unemployment in Australia has been of particular concern within both government and private sectors for many years. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 10.9% of the total 15-24 age population was unemployed in September, 1995. This figure climbed to 15.3% in September, 2003. This evidence gives cause to the growing concern surrounding the increase in youth unemployment. For sizeable numbers of youth, its not going to get any easier to find work as they move into their twenties or complete education. Opinions such as those found in the Smith Family Youth Unemployment Report (2003) hypothesise that juvenile crime is directly connected to the high rates of youth unemployment in Australia. In this essay, I would firstly like to ask exactly what is known about both the rates of juvenile crime and youth unemployment in Australia, and is there a direct link between the two? The suggested connection between a soaring crime rate and yo uth unemployment influences the way in which our society is governed and developed, making it imperative that we endeavor to try and understand and/or eliminate some of these suggestions. I will begin my essay by defining what I mean by youth unemployment and juvenile crime, and explore the possible challenges upon measuring both of these things. Comparing statistics gathered from both the ABS and other government recognized reports on unemployment, and information from the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC), I will attempt to weigh up the claim that the crime rate has risen in unison with the unemployment rate. I will also assess claims made by Weatherburn (2001) that youth unemployment causes crime, sifting through the truths and fallacies. Opinions such as those found in the Smith Family Youth Unemployment Report (2003) which hypothesize that juvenile crime is directly connected to the high rates of youth unemployment in Australia cannot be neither accepted nor critiqued until there is a clear understanding of what the terms â€Å"Youth Unemployment† and â€Å"Juvenile Crime† mean in the context of this essay. In this essay youth unemployment is generally taken to include the entire 15-24 age cohort – not just 15-19 year old teenagers – who are no longer at school or university and who are without a job. I have chosen to include 20-24 year olds under the banner of â€Å"Youth†, as it gives a fairer picture of the performance of all young people in the labor market and takes into account the pattern of employment both during and after leaving school or university.

tough choices :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I was asked to think back about something memorable and to write an essay about a life’s lesson learned. In high school, soccer was very important to me. It was my favorite sport. My freshman year I decided to pick and focus on only one of the many sports I had played in the passed. I came to the conclusion that I should play soccer considering it was one I was strongest at. I also enjoyed soccer more than the other sports I had played because it was a tough sport, which was a challenge to me. During the years I played high school soccer I made a decision in which when I look back on, I think I could have handled differently. I never spoke up. I would just do what I was told to do. Whatever I was told to do I did it the best I could. I thought that cooperating, listening and giving it my best shot is what would get me ahead before someone else. But I was wrong and that has cost me dearly. As a freshman I played soccer for Paramus Catholic High School. I started as a forward on their junior varsity team. As the season went on the varsity coach noticed my aggressiveness and moved me up to play with our varsity team. To be picked out of all the girls on the team I can’t tell you of a better feeling of self-pride. Then as a sophomore I transferred to Hackensack High School. There, I again started as a forward for their junior varsity team. Later into the season I was brought up to practice with varsity. I practiced with varsity but only played in a couple of games. Imagine my disappointment, I joined the soccer team to play, not sit on the bench. I worked so hard in practice to prove myself but it got me nowhere, not even a chance. So I asked to be moved back down to junior varsity where I could play. At least on the junior varsity team I was recognized for my efforts. As a junior I tried again and made the varsity team at tryouts. I was excited because we had lost a lot of seniors and I expected to get more playing time. Upperclassmen always played over underclassmen. But I was wrong. Instead I sat the bench and freshmen played over me. tough choices :: essays research papers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I was asked to think back about something memorable and to write an essay about a life’s lesson learned. In high school, soccer was very important to me. It was my favorite sport. My freshman year I decided to pick and focus on only one of the many sports I had played in the passed. I came to the conclusion that I should play soccer considering it was one I was strongest at. I also enjoyed soccer more than the other sports I had played because it was a tough sport, which was a challenge to me. During the years I played high school soccer I made a decision in which when I look back on, I think I could have handled differently. I never spoke up. I would just do what I was told to do. Whatever I was told to do I did it the best I could. I thought that cooperating, listening and giving it my best shot is what would get me ahead before someone else. But I was wrong and that has cost me dearly. As a freshman I played soccer for Paramus Catholic High School. I started as a forward on their junior varsity team. As the season went on the varsity coach noticed my aggressiveness and moved me up to play with our varsity team. To be picked out of all the girls on the team I can’t tell you of a better feeling of self-pride. Then as a sophomore I transferred to Hackensack High School. There, I again started as a forward for their junior varsity team. Later into the season I was brought up to practice with varsity. I practiced with varsity but only played in a couple of games. Imagine my disappointment, I joined the soccer team to play, not sit on the bench. I worked so hard in practice to prove myself but it got me nowhere, not even a chance. So I asked to be moved back down to junior varsity where I could play. At least on the junior varsity team I was recognized for my efforts. As a junior I tried again and made the varsity team at tryouts. I was excited because we had lost a lot of seniors and I expected to get more playing time. Upperclassmen always played over underclassmen. But I was wrong. Instead I sat the bench and freshmen played over me.

Is Expanding Nuclear Power Really Beneficial to Society Development Essay

In recent decades, the coal consumption among the whole world has sharply increased so as to meet the rapid development in every country. As generating electricity by coal is not renewable and environmental unfriendly, people tend to develop renewable energy like nuclear power, wind power, hydropower etc. though the cost of constructing the plants and utilizing is extremely high. Among the renewable energy mentioned above, nuclear power is the most popular to expand. Nuclear power is the use of nuclear fusion or fission from the reactor to generate electricity. It is highly efficient and produces only nuclear waste but no carbon emission. Nuclear power seems to be an ideal energy source but is it that good? In my opinion, nuclear power has too many drawbacks that they outweigh its advantages undoubtedly, so I oppose the expanding of nuclear power in our society. The first reason I oppose is that nuclear reactor is inherently unsafe to human life. The accidents happened in Chernobyl and Fukushima has shown us apparently that nuclear meltdowns and explosions can occur at any time without any omen. Not only did the accidents bring destructive damage to the buildings or any infrastructure in the cities, but also caused hundreds and thousands of casualties. Despite the high technology and secure safety system implemented in the nuclear plant, and despite many scientists and professors claimed the percentage of not getting explosion is up to 90%, accidents can still happen and result in disastrous outcome. Frankly no one can afford the outcome and dare to say it is impossible for that 10% to occur. The most recent disaster in Fukushima once again alerts people from all around the world. As the communication media is well established nowadays, people in every corner of the world can watch this disaster—nuclear leakage and explosions on live through television or Internet. Current nuclear power plants are no longer safe! † Many communities from different countries ranted. They also vowed that they would use all means to oppose the expanding of nuclear so as to protect their offspring. Life is precious and anything that poses threats to human life should be halted. Secondly the construction and the maintenance of nuclear plant are exceptionally dear. In fact, the cost of building and doing maintenance is highly dependent on taxpayers’ handouts. US, one of the countries investing a lot on developing nuclear power, has put the cost burden to their citizens since 2005. In 2005, President Bush approved an energy bill that included over 13 billion USD in tax breaks and subsidies for the nuclear industry. However, nowadays in every country, including those developed countries, is suffering from the problem of poverty. The poor has difficulties in maintaining their life while the government still imposes heavy tax on them and that is unacceptable. On the other hand, since the nuclear plants are built far away from residence, long electrical wires are required to transfer electricity from the plants to our houses. Whenever electricity is transferred through wires, some energy will be lost to surroundings. Thus for a long distance transfer, much energy would be lost which is definitely uneconomical and inefficient. So please care about the poor. And the third reason that I disagree in expanding nuclear power is nuclear waste cannot be dealt adequately. Being generated during the fuel cycle, nuclear waste actually is not a clean source: it is a radioactive substance emitting radiation all the time and it takes millions of years to become harmless, so it poses a severe potential danger to human health. Furthermore, nuclear wastes are usually buried in a designated place where it is far away from residence, so it is required to transport the wastes to these locations. This may pose risks on the populations that live along the transport route. I am sure nobody wants any nuclear waste is accidentally left in front of their houses. Hence nuclear power should not be developed unless the problem of nuclear waste has been solved. However genuine and persuasive the disadvantages are, some proponents still think nuclear power is a perfect energy source. They believe nuclear power helps reduce the emissions and contribute in easing global warming. Nevertheless it is not the case. An ecologist has once stated that nuclear power is not totally emission free because when we examine the whole nuclear power generating cycle, we can see that in mining of uranium, running the nuclear reactor, transportation of nuclear waste and even the disposal of nuclear waste rely on fossil fuels and produces a lot of greenhouse gases. Therefore there is actually net emission of harmful gases and global warming would not be relieved because of using nuclear power. Although it is right for people to seek for progress and develop new technology to meet their wants, we still need to consider the consequence that expanding new technology brings. Nuclear power, frankly speaking, is much more efficient than the ordinary way of generating electricity, but the outcome of this is disastrous and people cannot afford to lose—that’s human life. Moreover it is very expensive in developing nuclear power, if I am the government I would rather spend this bucket of money to narrow the gap between the rich and the poor. Last but not least, the issue brought by radioactive nuclear waste is very long-lasting which is always threatening our life. Hence unless the above three problems are solved, I am still opposing the development of nuclear power.