economic growth

Benefits of SharePoint to Business

2010-06-06T04:56:00.001-07:00

With the growth of companies, SharePoint is emerging at a rapid speed each day. As a company grows, it becomes difficult to manage the documents, files and their position. SharePoint Development stores the documents and files and allows sharing it on a main site.

SharePoint is basically a web based management system that enables employees to collect and configure resources through a common platform. It allows a company to create resources like project portals, extranets and team websites.

SharePoint is a product by Microsoft and is used to build up information portals in the company. The portal allows people to connect with the information presented in the organization.

SharePoint is being implemented by over 18000 organizations all across the world. Some of the main benefits offered by the product are as under:

Allows you to share work from a central place
Allows you to create and store content using document library.
Provides revision control and access control in the document library
Allows you to create reports on a regular basis all through the organization
With the help of portals on portals on Extranet, Intranet or Internet sites, one can connect with other individuals in the organization in spite of their location by creating information.
Helps you to control the complete business processes of a company
Enables you to plan and examine the performance of a procedure
Allows every individual to participate in decision making process of the organization
Provides search element to find the necessary information and data within a short span of time
Helps in easy creation and maintenance of the sites.
Any type of site can be crated, varying from document libraries, survey sites, departmental sites, meetings sites, and discussion boards as per the requirement of a company.

The various services offered by Microsoft SharePoint Development include:

Web Part development
SharePoint Site Development
SharePoint Portal Development
Business Process Development
Document Management System
Learning Management System
Workflow Integration
Backup Systems
SharePoint Branding
SharePoint Consulting
Advanced Search Solutions
SharePoint Excel Services

One of the biggest troubles faced by any business is to manage the files and documents that are stored in different formats and at different places. SharePoint provides a centralized portal with credentials in Ms Office format. They can be accessed by everyone, without any compatibility issues.

To sum it up, every business has a certain amount of information that needs to be kept safe and readily accessible. SharePoint has been developed to serve this purpose.

Visiting Frankfurt, Germany - One of the World's Richest Cities

2010-06-05T04:50:00.001-07:00

Within the Main River Valley, just east of where the Main meets the Rhine, sits the prevailing city of Frankfurt. Presently and historically considered a nerve center for commerce, banking, and transportation, Frankfurt am Main of west central Germany possesses many aspects of the old world that function as a viable part of this contemporary city.

Visitors to Frankfurt am Main, not to be confused with Frankfurt (Oder) a small city in northeastern Germany, will find its location ideal. Situated on both sides of the Main River, this hilly region is totally surrounded by rich forest; settlement in the area goes back to 1st Century Roman times.

Significantly, Charles I held a royal court in Frankfurt in the 800's. During the Middle Ages, kings of the Holy Roman Empire were elected here, and, later on, emperors were crowned in Frankfurt. In the mid-1800's, Germany's new parliament first met here. Consequently, Frankfurt has been at the forefront of German and European change.

Currently, Frankfurt is at the heart of economic growth for the region. The European Central Bank, a number of major German banks, and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange together have made this city a major financial center of the European Union. Many international companies call Frankfurt their home away from home.

Frankfurt has traditionally been known as a marketplace for meeting and exchanging goods. More than fifty trade fairs and exhibitions are still held in Frankfurt yearly. Most notably, the Frankfurt Book Fair in mid-October and the International Automobile Exhibition in September.

Frankfurt offers travelers varying means of transportation in, out of, and around the city. The Autobahn converges at the city. The Frankfurt Airport is considered one of Europe's busiest. A train station is located at the airport as well, making intercity travel quite convenient. Within the city, public transportation includes buses, above ground trams and the S-Bahn and U-Bahn underground train lines. Additionally, bridges in Frankfurt connect the banks of the Main River. Most notably, the Eiserner Steg (Iron Bridge) has been open to walking traffic since 1869.

One of Frankfurt's cultural attractions, the Museumsufer (Museum Embankment) contains a varying array of museums, located along the Main, with themes ranging from history, to art and architecture. An end of the summer cultural festival, Museumsuferfest, attracts over three million visitors every year to this area.

Numerous historical attractions entice visitors. The Romerberg area of old downtown was a series of houses that were acquired in the 14th Century from a wealthy merchant. The main house is the site of the city's first town hall. The area was rebuilt to original specifications after the Second World War.

Saint Bartholomeus' Cathedral is a gothic structure built during the 14th and 15th Centuries. It's known as the main church of Frankfurt. In 1867, the cathedral was destroyed by fire, but was subsequently rebuilt.

Saint Paul's Church was established in 1789. Germany's first parliament met here in 1848. The interior of the church was partially destroyed during the war, but was built up again with modern fixtures.

Visitors can also experience the Frankfurt Opera, site-see at the Saalburg, an old Roman fort, and become enlightened by activity at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University. Named after the celebrated writer and poet born in Frankfurt in 1749.

Frankfurt's extensive history is preserved, but the city has been renewed in order to meet present-day needs. The ancient city's marketplaces where trade and commerce took place have been updated. Frankfurt now promotes economic stability for the entire region. The city's many skyscrapers reflect this while postulating the direction of Frankfurt's further growth.

Haiti - Root Cause Of Poverty

2010-06-04T04:28:00.001-07:00

The present high level of poverty of the common people in Haiti today has its roots in the turbulent history of the first Black Republic in the world. After destroying the Napoleonic Army on the bloody battlefields of Vertières, liberating themselves from French colonialism and slavery, and thus proclaimed the independence of Haiti in 1804, Haiti's new ruling elites were confronted with a daunting choice: restoring the economy by re-instating the sugar plantation system or preserving emancipation by allowing small and inefficient land holdings. The Haitian people resisted to a return of the system of forced labor that is required to maintain the sugar plantations; which they regarded as the other side of the coin of slavery. They instead demanded economic independence and an equitable land distribution for all. The decision to do away with the erstwhile profitable plantation system into small peasant farm holder began a process of reducing the earning power of the newly liberated citizens of Haiti, and hence the economic clout of the 'Jewel of the Antilles'.

A few years after the decision was taken to liberalize land ownership, which translated into drastic reduction in foreign exchange earnings of the new republic, in order for the populace to feel truly liberated, a grave danger to the very existence of the new republic surfaced. This was a threat from the shameless defeated colonial power France to invade Haiti anew. A French naval force was already strategically positioned in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Cap Haïtien. France has emphatically hrefused to recognize Haiti's independence until it agreed to pay an indemnity of 150 million francs to compensate for the losses of French planters in the slave revolution. Payment of this indemnity brought the government deeply in debt and crippled the country's economy.

As if to add salt to an already festering sore, the great slave owning powers of that time in human history, France, Spain, Britain and even the fledgling United States of America, which Haitians had helped in its time of needs to survive the onslaught of a British invasion, have mounted a total economic boycott against Haiti. This concerted but unwarranted economic embargo on Haiti, along with payment of the imposed indemnity of 150 million francs to France, when taken together could be said to be the second root cause of Haitian poverty. The effects of these punitive measures are still felt by the common people of Haiti up till today.

However, one historically important contributive cause to Haitian poverty is the inherent instability of Haiti's political terrain. The period between the expulsion of President Boyer in 1843, after he capitulated to France's demand for indemnity, and the first American invasion in 1915; is generally regarded as the chaotic era in Haitian history. A notable historian of the period, Leyburn, summarizes this chaotic era in Haitian history as follow: "Of the twenty-two heads of state between 1843 and 1915, only one served out his prescribed term of office, three died while serving, one was blown up with his palace, one presumably poisoned, one hacked to pieces by a mob, one resigned. The other fourteen were deposed by revolution after incumbencies ranging in length from three months to twelve years."

This extremely high level of political instability contributed in no small measure to deprive Haitians the peaceful environment needed for economic empowerment, which would have translated to their economic growth. The period of the first American occupation of Haiti, though frequently touted as one of relative peace and progress in infrastructural development, was more of a peace of the graveyard. Several rebellions against the American occupation by Haitian nationalists were brutally put down. In one such incident, over two thousand Haitians, popularly known as 'cacos', were killed by the American marines as they were protesting American racism and economic deprivation.

In another instance, unarmed peasants during a march protesting for better economic conditions were, on December 1929 in Les Cayes, mauled by United States marines where more than ten defenseless Haitian peasants died. All said and done, American occupation of Haiti from 1915 to 1934, rather than reduce poverty among the ordinary Haitians, only exacerbated their plight, while American Multinational companies were making record profit level by exploiting Haitian cheap labor. Instead of reinvesting these profits in poverty alleviating programs in Haiti, these companies repatriated their profits home to further boost American wealth, while further impoverishing hapless Haitians. Thus we can say that the first American invasion and subsequent occupation of Haiti, is one of the root causes of Haitian poverty.

Poverty in Modern Day Haiti

The recent political and economic history of Haiti is an extension of its past history. Before the Americans left Haiti in 1934, as they always tend to do, they installed a puppet government in Port-au-Prince, which main preoccupation was to look after American commercial and business interests and thereby feathering their own financial nests in the process. Development or expanding Haiti beyond Port-au-Prince was of no importance to them, and hence empowerment of the masses in Haiti was put in abeyance. The arrival of the Duvaliers, 'Papa Doc' Duvalier and his son 'Baby Doc' Jean Claude Duvalier, was initially heralded as a ray of sunshine of hope in a dark cloud of misery and poverty. The poor masses soon had their hopes shattered.

Although 'Papa Doc' started well in 1957 with a modicum of rural development programs, he soon turned into a tyrant protecting his power. To his benefit, it is worthy to mention that he too was faced with an embargo from the Black Eagle. When Papa Doc died in 1971, he was succeeded by his son Jean Claude Duvalier. His father was a bit more interested in the well being of the masses in the countryside. Jean-Claude neglected the countryside and further exacerbated rural poverty. All of the revenues generated through foreign grants and World Bank loans were wasted on his consumptive lifestyle and those of his cronies and the new elites in Haitian society. Baby Doc only added another chapter to the sorry story of Haitian poverty.

Today, Haiti remains the least-developed country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest in the world. Compared to other low-income developing countries in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti has not made much social and economic headway since the 1980s. Haiti now ranks close to the bottom of all the countries in the United Nation's Human Development Index. Almost eighty percent of all Haitian population lives in abject poverty, ranking the country second-to-last in the world in a comparison measure of global poverty.

What is an Economic Recession?

2010-06-03T04:12:00.001-07:00

Economics is the science that primarily deals with the making, sharing and utilization of goods and services that a society produces. In fact, the most interesting aspect of economics is that it affects almost every walk of life, be it political, social or financial. Economic growth is very important for any country as it basically relates or acts as the pillar of the country. Now, if there is a decent economic growth, it usually defines that the businesses in the country are earning a good profit. And adding to this, it even shows that the rate of employment is high and the nation is strong on forex reserves. However, the reality of other side of the coin is that the economic growth can't always remain unaffected. The economy of any country too goes through a cycle of 'peaks' and 'troughs' that constitutes the 'Economic Cycle' and this basically relates to "Economic Recession".

Today an economic recession can generally be referred as a downfall of commercial activities over an extended period of time. Though, this duration is basically connected with a radical crash in the Gross Domestic Product, it can also be considered as a phase that basically emphasize on budgets and essential capacity-utilization alteration. During this phase, strict business-contractions take a toll on a country's financial system, over a constant period of time. Apart from all these, this period is exemplified by the presence of macroeconomic deviations and a severe fall in the business profits and personal income. Moreover, other than Gross Domestic Product growth, elements like the current national unemployment rates, consumer self-belief and their level of spending are also measured while deciding whether the financial system is going through a recession or not.

What makes an economic recession a serious issue for any country is that during a recession, the government generally implements macroeconomic policies like raising the supply of money and in return decreasing the taxation. However, in the US economy, the Federal Government resorts to lessening the Federal Funds rate to revitalize the slow growth of economy. During the reviving the economy, basically the interest rates are decreased by the supervisory body to pull business and aid people to borrow money at a reduced level. However, the best part of a recession is it even provides numerous opportunities to view the competence of government machinery and further review its expansionary macroeconomic policies.

Along with its drawbacks, an economic recession also offers a number of benefits. No doubt, in adversity there is always an opportunity and perhaps the same rule applies with an economic recession. The period actually enables the evaluation of the efficacy of a community crisis management and budget plans. Besides this, for individual or unit, like a family or society, this period even provide an opportunity to re-work on the previously designed survival strategies and create new ones in order to test the onset of economic disorder. Adding to this, it is a time, when entrepreneurs are able to sift the innovative from the fair-weather employees. New investors benefit from buying low and selling high. And, the same approach relates to the ground of real estate. Perhaps, you must not surprise to see that homeowners taking gain of the marketplace and job loss situation, and getting property renovated.

Thus, on a broad positive note and more on psychological aptitude, this is a period when downturn fuels to turn as volunteer and leads to emotional healing. In fact, one cannot deny that an economic recession makes an individual and the government machinery of a nation wiser. Consequently, it results to the employment of management strategies and necessary decision-making in good times.

China 2007 - The Property Revolution

2010-06-02T03:57:00.001-07:00

After joining the world trade Organization in 2001, China is taking steps to become a great Capitalist country.

March of 2007 is to be remembered as the Great Revolution turning point for China to become a fully capitalistic country. China's Authorities declared legal individual property, which is a great step ahead for China's economy which was based for decades on collective or public property.

Even though rural areas are under the old property legal system, the fact that the National Popular Assembly voted almost unanimously the Law of private property, indicates that China is becoming more integrated into capitalism and into the Global Economy.

Prime minister Wen Jiabao explains the "great jump" as a way to change from the days of instability and lack of productivity, into a new order where quality products and high levels of productivity are mandatory.

One of the reasons to approve the Law of Private property is the financial situation of state owned companies and the sagging contribution to employment which has become a great concern for China's central government.

Since 1978 the government of the People's Republic of China is reforming its economy from a Soviet style centrally planned economy, to a market oriented economy withing the political framework of the Communist Party Of China.

Economic changes are helping to bring down the poverty levels, from 53% in 1981, to less than 8% nowadays. However, Chinese prosperity is still concentrated in the coastal and southern provinces, while efforts are being made to expand the prosperity to the inner provinces and the industrial northeast.

Foreign trade and investment are helping increasing levels of income, consumption and productivity. The government is focusing on foreign trade as a way to promote economic growth.

China's growth is so strong, that it is the first in the consumption of aluminum, steel, copper and coal and the second biggest consumer of oil in the world. With a cheap labor force of more than 800 millions workers, China's economic potential is huge.

Compared with developed countries, China lags behind in areas of science, technology, management, ecological environment protection, educational quality and organizational levels.
Joining the world Trade Organization is paying off for China's economic growth, as foreign direct investment is surging.

With economy growing at rates over 10%, and exports growing at a steady pace, the future is promising for the new member of the Capitalistic Club.
Even though there are many countries feeling threatened by China, we have to admit that there is a new great door to opportunity being opened to industrial and trade investors around the world.

Special Report - The Art Of Economic Espionage - Why China Is Crushing America's Global Supremacy

2010-06-01T03:32:00.001-07:00

Modern historiography specialists have long argued that an essential segment in the study of human evolution is inextricably tied to the basic understanding that societies generally emerge, progress and fall cyclically. Such frequency in social evolution is not just a consequence of endogenous factors, it also results from the impact of the external environment, be it close - neighboring constituencies vying for the same resources - or far - as part of a larger geographical area.

History teaches us another fundamental truth, predominantly unveiled in social sciences: humans are inherently prone to believing in the danger of the unknown, the fear that uncertainty - when present in life - brings an intolerable level of complexity in handling daily activities. Economists, in tandem with the larger group of social scientists, ascribe the word "risk" to this angst.

Risk lies in everyday life. From birth to death and in between the terrestrial episode called life, humans experience a sophisticated relationship with risk and utilize it as a powerful catalyst to furthering their interests. We fear the unknown not just in temporal terms - e.g.: what will tomorrow be? - but also in more practical, present-day terms, that is, what will happen today?

In assessing the rectitude of our daily decisions, the analysis of the environment we live in becomes of critical importance. There emerges then the need to know, understand and act on a variety of variables that make up our ecosystemic reality. Neighbors are a major part of that reality.

The indubitable observation that humans are 'sociable animals' implies a life in community, which in turns posits the sharing of interests, destinies and geography. We share our lives with neighbors, other humans whom we don't fundamentally know and whom we believe are different from us. Neighbors, in continental philosophy, are the 'constitutive other' as opposed to 'same'. Neighbors are different, and because of that, they must be hazardous to our very existence, hence "hell is other people" (Jean-Paul Sartre).

Consequently, our desire to know the 'other' and what they're undertaking forces us to constantly be in a question mode: ergo, we resort to spying. Espionage is ingrained in basic human instincts from cradle to grave. First, we ape our relatives, then our acquaintances and later our neighbors. In that quest for knowledge, humans recklessly spy on each other in a bid for power. Once they determine with a reasonable degree of comfort the neighbor's strengths, the overwhelming tendency is to match it, surpass it, annihilate it, keep it at a politically acceptable level, or use a combination of all these options if the socio-historical continuum of events demands it.

Doubtless, the need to control the military and economic standing of neighbors is the quintessential, albeit hidden, dogma of modern geopolitics. Doctrinal differences may abound, but a studious analysis of contemporary events demonstrates clearly that wars and other man-engineered crises have historically proven to be good ways to rebalance powers among neighbors, or more precisely, within geographical zones. Crises, facts have shown, drive innovation and quality of life.

Espionage is not a recent discipline within political science. It has been a staple of human history for the past 2,000 years and even before. Throughout history, nations have risen or fallen based on their ability to collect data from rivals and use that body of knowledge to gain a competitive edge. History also suggests that societies that show a disinclination for 'outer research' of their environment, and consequently, a significantly lower number of exogenous interactions - be it cordial or belligerent - with others have been weakened over time. The high frequency of wars between nations in the 'Old Continent' explains the relative superiority that Europe had over, say, Amerindians and Africans for the past few centuries, first in slavery and then colonization.

Espionage is rooted in modern life

After two atrocious global wars, countless medium-size conflicts and a dogmatic cold-war between capitalism and communism, political and military leaders seem to have finally gauged the idiocy of lethal conflicts with planetary implications. The notion of 'détente', that is, the easing of strained relations in the political phraseology, gives nations the imaginary assurance that they may all coexist pacifically and a major conflict is preventable once greater cooperation between societies subdues the inherent quest for power that causes hostilities.

Acquiescing that there exists a permanent détente within the current geopolitical landscape is an optical illusion because it goes counter the very human urge to monitor the neighbor in order to know him or dominate him, if not annihilate him. This can be very easily illustrated in instances where spies are caught in so-called 'friendly' territories. Take the example of Israel's Mossad agents being arrested in the United States.

The nuts and bolts of modern state espionage lie in a sophisticated and complex apparatus that all nations, and peculiarly global superpowers, have invented to carry out data-collecting and monitoring activities in peace time. Embassies, with their massive bureaucracies, specialized technocrats and their diplomatic inviolability, are preeminent on that list. They are essential in monitoring the host country's social dynamics and report to their respective governments. Simply put, an embassy is, de jure, a stranger turned neighbor.

Next are supranational organizations that populate the global political, social and economic sphere. Their local representations and periodically published studies may also serve an intelligence purpose. Finally, aid agencies and so-called 'humanitarian' organizations are critical in gauging so-called 'underdeveloped' nations' economic ability and progress in their development. It is no coincidence that major countries in the developed sphere do not customarily accept 'aid programs' from their counterparts unless excruciating circumstances dictate that such refusal would be politically unacceptable.

Strategic studies and the modern economic literature are replete with topics referring to Japan's, and to a lesser extent, Asian dragons' ability to use economic espionage at the end of the Second World War to gain a competitive edge over erstwhile powers such as the United States and Great Britain. The necessity to monitor and direct the continent's economic reconstruction, and the panic of a potential dominance by communist Russia, also led the United States to implement the Marshall Plan in Europe from 1948 through 1952.

Businesses thrive from spying more than the military

A noteworthy myth in today's world is that espionage is principally the province of military strategists and national armies. Evidence from authoritative business intelligence magazines, leading governmental studies and a massive body of knowledge from academia have clearly explained the causal relationship between firm profitability and espionage. Differently stated, governments tend to always transfer intelligence data to their domestic industries, whether they are at war or at peace.

As a result, the military-industrial complex benefits considerably from intelligence and such prerogatives are then disseminated into other firms in the economic fabric. As an illustration, it would be fairly understandable that a firm like Boeing, which derives a substantial portion of its revenues from government's contracts and sale of military aircrafts, is more attuned to certain developments in US intelligence gathering than a financial services giant like Citibank.

Nevertheless, businesses have also parlayed their gargantuan economic clout into a very successful data-collection enterprise. The plethora of tools available to business executives nowadays is strikingly sophisticated and effective. Even if it is not exhaustive, a good analysis of such tools must look at their source and their degree of macro-economic interconnectedness.

On one hand, external mechanisms allow at the macro-level business enterprises to gather information from competitors and control how such information can be utilized to thwart rivals, increase their own market primacy, or do both. When they share a community of interests vis-à-vis a new market or are in an oligopolistic situation, companies are routinely willing to join hands provided, of course, that the risk-payoff ratio of a single venture is not immensely superior to that of a joint venture. Tacit collusion, that is, the market situation where two firms agree to play a certain strategy without explicitly saying so, is a fine illustration of business intelligence sharing.

In practice, firms engage in economic espionage via economic sections of embassies, chambers of commerce, lobbying groups, industry groups, specific studies from consultants, and monies granted for academic research in particular fields of interest. Concomitantly, they guard against intelligence threats by massively supporting intellectual property laws.

On the other hand, a sophisticated internal approach allows companies to stay abreast of latest developments within their industry. First and foremost, they hire to their corporate boards or for senior positions, experienced former government officials and high-rank military leaders who had been privy to high-value strategic insights during their public tenure.

This is immensely beneficial to the hiring side because a former cabinet member, a congressman or a four-star general, can possess a breadth and depth of experience and knowledge of past, present and future topics that is considerably worth more than countless external consulting reports. Second, economic intelligence departments and government relations departments also fulfill data gathering roles through research, lobbying and interacting with industry groups.

Cyber-warfare, the new cold war

As the planet becomes technologically more intertwined, novel tools and modus operandi are being made available to governments and private interests to collect specific intelligence. These tools and procedures are an intricate combination of old and new procedures which simultaneously penetrate nations' military, economic and social constructs to extirpate valuable bits of knowledge.

Defense experts are calling these emerging asymmetric conflict tools 'cyber-warfare'. Due to the plethoric ramifications they present and the simultaneous dual tasks they may serve to fulfill (attack and defend) when engineered in certain ways, I label this group Modern Cyber-warfare Gear ("MOCYG").

MOCYG, as it stands, involves the offensive use of various techniques to derail a nation's infrastructure, perturb the military and financial systems of a country with the aim of crippling its defense responsiveness and the integrity of economic data, or accomplish other destructive aims based on the attacker's incentives and strategy. Security specialists and military researchers have classified these techniques into 5 major groups: computer forensics, viral internet tactics, assault on computer networks or software, hacking and espionage.

The idiosyncratic power of cyber-crime lies in its 'stateless' nature, its capacity to be inexpensively controlled and deployed, and the vast damage it can exert. Given the judicial vacuum created by cyber-warfare techniques, nations are rushing to build up legislative safeguards to prosecute offenders even though criminologists argue such undertakings are largely inefficient at the moment.

A memorable cyber-criminal event occurred in Estonia in 2007 when more than 1 million computers, allegedly from Russian-based servers, were used to simultaneously cripple state, business and media websites in a modus operandi analogous to the "shock and awe" military tactic. That attack ended up costing Tallinn's authorities tens of millions of US dollars.

China, a cyber-giant in progress

Upward socioeconomic trends in the People's Republic of China are well known to international masses and covered profusely in western news media. So are Chinese authorities' singular understanding of democracy and human rights as well their overt wish to play a bigger geopolitical role in world affairs. However, the quiet revolution China is experiencing lies within the astronomical investment country authorities are making in top notch universities so as to catapult China into the top league of technological giants, along with the United States and Japan. Given the size of such educational outlays, Chinese authorities must believe that a major competitive edge can be gained in the technology field and such advantage can be converted or transferred into other sectors of their mushrooming economy.

Top western sinologists and other think tanks are closely monitoring these academic developments because they understand the basic notion that future geopolitical dynamics will inextricably be tied to how successful Chinese will be at leveraging technology to boost their future 'global penetration'.

The smart tactic is that, while future chief engineers are being trained at world-class institutions such as University of Science and Technology at Hefei, Harbin Institute of Technology, Beijing University and Tsinghua University, China is concurrently putting a veil of secrecy around its information systems and cyber-infrastructure. The country may be notorious today for its copyright infringement cases or intellectual property violations, but it is inconspicuously gearing up for tomorrow's technological primacy that its expansionist aspirations may dictate.

China also investigates currently available ways and means to unearth state-of-the art synergy tools that can be leveraged between its major government departments and state agencies as it prepares to enter the 'knowledge economy'. Authorities view this coordination effort as an indispensable step forward because it adds another layer of centralization to a government structure that is built around the canon of 'consolidated power'.

More specifically, country leadership has summoned top minds in technology and auxiliary fields to synergistically engineer the future cyber-infrastructure that will solidly mark China's imprint in the digital landscape. This task is colossal, and the vastness of it effects precludes obviously an analytical granularity. Several hundreds of thousands of Chinese computer engineers, regrouped under ad hoc commissions, think tanks and strategy centers are the backbone of this emerging 'digital army'.

They work under the aegis of brilliant specialists whose unquestioned patriotism and in-depth expertise are unparalleled at such high seniority levels; this group includes Liang Guanglie, Wan Gang and Li Yizhong. The first is the current minister of defense, who works in conjunction with the People's Liberation Army and the Central Military Commission to manage the largest military force in the world (ca. 3 million) and oversee its strategic evolvement.

The second is the head of the Ministry of Science Technology and is mechanical engineer and auto expert. The third is the Minister of Industry and Information Technology, a cabinet position pivotal for the country's information systems development.

Anemic US IT investments

Equipped with this super cyber-security gear, China seems to be winning, or is in a significant position within, the ongoing global cyber-war. In a sense, the country is not an 'emerging' superpower as western analysts and social science specialists would like to call it. It is already a superpower in the fullest sense of the concept.

The term 'emerging superpower' is presently preferred in academic and business literature as well as in media parlance because it is more politically palatable to the elite and other classes of citizens in traditionally influential economies (G8) who fear the psychological and social implications of welcoming new colossi in the select club of the powerful.

Security experts and top military minds in the United States are truly concerned that the Chinese massive IT investment dwarfs America's and do not hesitate to point to the geopolitical implications of such a chasm. They note that the countless cyber-attacks from China and Russia are just a start of the new cyber 'Cold War' of the 21st century.

It is a fact that many foreign-engineered digital attacks have targeted many industrialized countries' military systems, power grids, and financial infrastructure in the past few years. Yet governments and military forces at present have limited capacity to detect or infiltrate the attacker, counter the attack, and prevent future assaults.

US defense officials and business leaders understand the looming threat but believe its intensity and gravity constitute a hyperbole. However, authoritative statistics from the Government Accountability Office, US Congress reports, and academic studies indicate evidently that the world leader has not shown hitherto the political willpower to tackle the digital gap in its cyber-security infrastructure.

Truth be told, politicians in Washington, Pentagon strategists, and the intelligence community at large have long known of and understood the nature of the menace. Notwithstanding, a series of geopolitical events forced them to transfer certain topics into budgetary oblivion at the credit of more pressing, more 'visible' national security threats that are effortlessly noticed by constituents (e.g.: terrorist attacks).

A few factors explain Washington's inability, or budgetary lethargy, in addressing the cyber-warfare threat. First is the geostrategic complacency derived from the fall of communist Soviet Union and the ensuing inertia that global unipolarism usually creates.

Second, America's military apparatus is currently 'distracted' by two ongoing wars and engaged in a host of relatively minor security missions around the world. Adding to those involvements, there is the corollary 'war on terror' that has mobilized since 2001 colossal resources to thwart further domestic attacks.

'Domestic' in this sense refers to an incredibly enormous geographical area because it encompasses US conventional soil and the related territories, American overseas diplomatic missions, its military bases, transnational organizations where the US holds significant strategic interests (e.g.: NATO headquarters and military stations), and the countless aid, religious, and humanitarian outposts around the world.

Third, the diversity and criticality of issues at hand force the US government and congressional leaders to prioritize their budgetary efforts. The current economic despondency bodes ill for any serious endeavor in tackling underinvestment issues in information technology because the country is pecuniarily limited and cannot afford to continuously print money (risk of inflation and currency devaluation) or borrow from... China.

US budding cyber-security grid is solid

Despite the socio-economic gloom, the Obama administration has shown in the past 6 months a strong level of commitment in assuring the integrity of the nation's information assets. He appointed late December Howard Schmidt, a renowned computer security specialist and former Microsoft security executive, as White House cyber-security czar. Other high-profile nominations have followed in the army ranks and other key departments and government agencies such as Homeland Security, Treasury, the FBI and the CIA.

The efforts appear to be coordinated and effectively reaching their desired goals, from the Pentagon's launching of a giant "cyber-command" unit to the CIA's and FBI's massive 'hiring spree' of computer engineers and cyber-security specialists. International cooperation with other allies is also part of the undertaking; US intelligence agencies are thus partnering with foreign counterparts such as Britain' MI5 and MI6, Israel's Mossad, Germany's Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service, BND) and Militärischer Abschirmdienst (Military Counterintelligence Agency, MAD) to address emerging threats.

Private interests are equally gearing up. Businesses are investing massively in IT infrastructure and upgrading computer networks, and working jointly with government agencies. They are also granting rising subsidies to think tanks and academia to help in this effort.

The combination of efforts has to be successful because an absence of effectiveness in cyber-warfare measures can be 'lethal' to US global supremacy. Judging by the great havoc cyber attacks had catapulted onto Estonia in 2007, hyperbola ought not to be barred in this topic.

Based on the latest estimations, US nominal GDP is nearly 3 times that of China ($14.5 trillion vs. $4.5 trillion), but the latter's healthier growth rate is helping bridge that gap gradually. Thus, many forecasters - and the proverbial 'conventional wisdom' - assume that it will take Beijing many decades to attain America's economic clout and level.

That said, in the hypothetical scenario that a cyber-warfare erupts between both countries, a stronger China may only need to considerably crush US economic productivity and therefore its GDP to claim victory and financially surpass its rival. Absent effective security systems, China, or any other foe, may only need to assault vital arteries of the US military-industrial complex: power grids, financial transaction systems, Federal Reserve System, US Armed Forces' computer systems and networks, Congress' and White House's IT infrastructures, etc. It's easy to imagine the massive damage electricity failure can do to a country's transportation, financial, and military systems.

Managing Generation Y in the Workplace

2010-05-31T03:26:00.001-07:00

Is everything about to change for Generation Y?

How will they deal with a recession, the uncertainty of an economic downturn and the big changes in the employment market?

Why may Generation Y be affected by recession more that other generations? The answer is that Generation Y traits aren't entirely in tune with the inevitable aspects of recession and economic insecurity.

The Y generation has always felt secure. Ys only knew economic prosperity. Many Generation Ys have only experienced full employment and economic growth.

They saw parents in stressful jobs, working long hours. For some of those parents, their hard work didn't bring prosperity and happiness. Ys wanted different and better lives. If they were dissatisfied with their job, they resigned. "If I don't get that job, I will get another".

Baby Boomers and Generation X have little in common with Generation Y. Unlike Xs and Boomers, they haven't seen unemployment as much of a possibility - until recently.

Economic prosperity has fueled the values of Generation Y. Previous generations - the Boomers and Generation X have experienced or at least knew about not having money in their pockets and they took money much more seriously.

There's been no significant downturn in the economy over the past decade. That economic stability has been the basis for the development of the characteristics of Generation Y. Now Generation Y's security has been seriously shaken. Life has changed for everyone, people are being laid off in many parts of the world, a world recession is a real possibility and in addition, there's a world food shortage.

The current economic trend is set to continue for a while yet.

Generation Y hasn't faced that threat. Y graduates in the United States and Britain were complacent about job opportunities. For the first time in years, the threat is returning. It will have come as a shock for many self-assured members of Generation Y depending where they live.

Generation Y differs from country to country because generational attitudes are in part caused by age but also by circumstances. In China, Generation Y is made up of only-children - the result of the one-child per family policy. They grew up through difficult economic times and now are thriving in the massive growth of China.

India has seen huge development in IT based industries and has deliberately developed specialized expertise. Generation Y in China and India have very different values to their US and UK counterparts. There are many high-achieving Asian women studying math and science compared with western students.

There are highly talented individuals from China and India heading to the workplace - individuals, who are ambitious, focused on work and focused on academic success.

Generation Y in the west is facing huge new challenges. Some will be reeling, the sand shifting under their feet. Some of their basic operating principles are wobbling but they are an exceedingly talented generation and they have an opportunity to be very successful if they are able to make a few fundamental adjustments. Managing Generation Y through the recession will require understanding. Some Ys may wish they had been more loyal to previous employers.

The fundamental adjustments are 1) no longer wanting and no longer only responding to instant gratification 2) changing from being a diva at work and expecting everything to fall into their laps and 3) put work-life balance on hold for a while.

However, they deal well with change and they're dynamic.

They are:

- tech-savvy
- ambitious

They:

- think outside the box.
- believe that if you use your imagination, you can do anything.
- have changed jobs more often so they have wide experience

Many are exceptionally skilled at problem-solving because they are connected 24/7 by cell phones, PDA's and laptops.

If you're the manager of Y's, look after them, watch out for a wobble and support them through it. Theirs are the talents you have to work with and they will dominate the workplace for the next 10 years.

Their foundations may be unsteady for a while until they adjust their basic thinking but the upper structure is sound. Re-enforce the foundations and rub off the rough edges and you've got a great employee with great talents to carry companies forward.

The new economic situation may mean they have to think twice before looking for a new employer. Many won't be able to do that if they don't like the current job - they no longer have the economic freedom.

Generation Y has challenges but can meet them. Meeting those challenges may moderate the image they portray which was of opinionated, demanding and overconfident divas and produce a more well-rounded and less arrogant workforce.

The Triple Bottom Line and Talent Management

2010-05-30T03:16:00.001-07:00

Leading authors are writing about it; conferences are featuring it; and many are calling on corporations to report on it. The triple bottom line-people, profits and planet-has unofficially become a leading indicator. Rather than being measured solely on profitability, companies, and their customers, are increasingly adopting "the three pillars" to define business success.

The term "triple bottom line" was first used in 1989 by sustainability consultant John Elkington to define business success, and has since become a common term, although not well understood. It measures performance in three ways: by social, economic and environmental factors. This means successful organizations must demonstrate good working conditions for employees, commercial success and environmental responsibility. Increasingly, companies that pay attention to the triple bottom line see a sustainable competitive advantage-and it begins with talent management.

Leading to greater profitability

As Pete r Drucker aptly put it, "Management is about doing things right - but leadership is about doing the right things." The triple bottom line is about doing the right things, beginning with how you treat your employees. Treating employees right means several things in triple-bottom-line parlance, including:

•Paying a fair "living wage," a minimum hourly wage that would afford a reasonable standard of living
•Providing healthcare, profit sharing, ongoing training and openly addressing employee needs as they arise, such as eldercare and childcare
•Awarding bonuses only after triple-bottom-line goals are met in all areas
•Linking manager's pay with sustainability and staff well-being as well as performance (as more companies are beginning to do)
•Creating a healthy work environment
•Giving back to the community at large

Increasingly, employees (and customers) want to be involved in something that makes a difference; and that means leaders must engage employees in something larger than company profits.

In a 2007 Center for Creative Leadership survey, researchers found that 73 percent of leaders surveyed reported that the triple bottom line is important to organizational success, and 87 percent agreed that it will be increasingly important in the future. Corporate leaders with a triple- bottom-line vision believe that three competencies are important in engaging their organizations in sustainable thinking: a long-term view, communication, and influence. Using these competencies to increase employee engagement, these leaders feel their organizations can benefit from increased revenue and market share, employee retention and community support.

You can't ignore the benefits

All of the benefits of effective talent management apply to an organization's triple-bottom-line commitment, probably times three. They include:

•It's easier to attract the best talent-It's generally acknowledged that the most important corporate resource now and in the future is talented employees; and many of the best candidates pay attention to corporate social and environmental responsibility as an important company attribute.
•It's easier to retain top talent-Today's environment is competitive, and keeping your most talented employees is a challenge; talented employees tend to stay with organizations longer when they have meaningful work. Retention is pure profit to the bottom line.
•Engagement increases productivity-There is a strong connection between meaningful work and productivity; employees engaged in the triple bottom line give back enthusiastically to their work at the company and in the community. As a bonus, the company image is enhanced.

In addition to the advantages associated with talent management, by adhering to the triple bottom line, your organization can: increase market share, lower expenses, decrease risk, enhance investor appeal, increase efficiency, improve product quality, and strengthen your competitive position.

It doesn't take much to see that if you want to succeed, adopting the triple bottom line is a given.

Skip the greenwashing

As with any corporate initiative, authenticity is critical. In the world of the triple bottom line, greenwashing, or publicizing sustainable practices when they're not really true, can be deadly in terms of employee morale and reputation in the market. Your organization will thrive with a strong commitment to the triple bottom line. And your employees will happily take on the mission.

US Growth Downgrade Weighs on World Markets

2010-05-29T03:11:00.001-07:00

During the worst recession in the past seventy years many have witnessed lay-offs, unemployment rates topping out, stocks dropping to scary numbers, homes being foreclosed on, home sales rising, businesses foreclosed on and one of the most intimidating recessions since the Great Depression.

Now that it is ending, many are wondering if it will stay away or if we are all just resting to watch the recession come back with an even mightier bang. When the word recession pops up many people are worried about their futures and even when the recession has ended people are still searching for what will happen next. No one's job is secure and everyone's financial future is on the line.

Even though the recession has hit America, globally over everyone is hurting. Stock markets have taken a beating all across the globe which truly shows that in the time of a recession, no one is safe. During this quarter reports from the Commerce Department reported that the GDP was down to 2.8 percent which was much less than it's 3.5 percent in past quarter.

World stocks are dropping points like crazy and no one is safe from it from Britain to Australia. The FTSE 100 index of primary British shares dropped 31.54 points, while Germany's DAX fell 32.17 points, France's CAC-40 was down by 28.55 points and Wall Street's Dow Jones was down 55.33 points, while Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 4.44 points, China's Shanghai index plunged 115.14 points, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 348.25 and Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average crashed down 96.10 points. In South Korea's Kospi decreased by 0.8 percent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index weakened 0.7 percent. Stock Markets in Thailand Singapore also decreased.

The dollar weakened by 0.5 percent to 88.53 yen and the euro decreased also by 0.2 percent. This recession has left the world in shambles and everyone is trying to pick themselves up to move forward toward a brighter future but with nobody safe and things showing up as disastrous in the world markets there is just no telling what will come next.

When it comes to your future, you must take charge especially in today's time where even the most highly perched businesses need to borrow money to survive. You have to be your own boss and work under your own hand to get ahead in the world and that's just exactly what you should do.

There is way you can do that without it costing you your own arm and leg check into Paintless Dent Repair. Paintless Dent Repair is a career in the auto reconditioning field that removes dents and dings from the panels in a vehicle. You could take a two work course, buy your tools and be ready to make the money you should be making. With other reconditioning services you have to keep paying for supplies like paint but with Paintless Dent Repair you only have to buy the lifetime guaranteed tools once and you are set to go which means everything you make after that is pure profit!

Balika Vadhu - Child Marriage That Still Exists in the Indian Society

2010-05-28T02:34:00.001-07:00

The practice of child marriage started 4000 years ago in India. Many things changed through the course of time like discrimination based on one's caste, women emancipation, economic and social growth of our country, etc., etc. But there are things that even 4000 years of time hasn't been able to eradicate. Sadly, child marriage is one of the social vices that till date exist in our country.
Recently a programme called 'Balika Vadhu' went on air on channel Colors, dealing with the above mentioned issue. During its promotional campaign and trailers I thought it would be yet another serial telling us what we already know. That child marriage is immoral, inappropriate and most importantly, it can be devastating for the lives of children. Nothing that we're not aware of!

But what I didn't expect was getting to know about the countless matters and intricacies that were attached to this one practice. Set in a small village of Rajasthan, the story revolves around the life of a child bride, Anandi, before and after getting married. She is married into a wealthy family where the tradition of bringing young brides from extremely poor families is followed.
Balika Vadhu was not aimed to eradicate the very practice by condemning and criticizing it, instead the intent was for the people to see the consequences of it. In Rajasthan, where child marriage still occurs, the audience gets to see the results in a very justified and clear manner. Be it a little girl being expected to get all worldly and mature at a pre-teen age , the way she copes up with pressures of living in a different house with people she doesn't even know.

Their huge expectations of managing the entire household-cooking, cleaning, taking care of everyone in the family and behaving according to them are supposed to be met. We see how women are still being treated as objects that have to abandon their lives, family and friends (without having any say) to fulfill the responsibilities they have been passed on. That being of a passive, tolerant and a perfect housewife. Anandi, although being excellent in studies and having a great interest in it, cannot go to school. Since, after married she has the sole responsibility of taking care of her household. Whereas Jagadish, her husband, is the apple of everyone's eyes, gets to play, go to school, do what so ever he wants to since he's a guy.

Through Phooli's character, a child widow and Anandi's best friend, we get to see the life of a widow. At an age of about 8 or 10, she cannot get dressed in colorful clothes, apply makeup, wear bangles and hair clips and ribbons which she absolutely adores. She has to follow a particular dress code of dull, plain clothes. She is made to follow a strict code of conduct set up by the society. She is abstained by all the worldly pleasures, cannot remarry or go to school and has to live with her parents till the time death rescues her. When she doesn't know what married life is all about, she is forced to lead the life of a widow.

The consequence of consummating a girl at an early age resulting in her death has been shown through the story of Basant's (Anandi's uncle) ex-wife. The dominance of the males and the rich has been clearly reflected by Basant's remarriage (even though he is a widower and about 50 years old) to a girl his daughter's age and a virgin by his demand. Being a male, and a powerful and a rich one, he gets to 'choose'.

Balika Vadhu does not put everything regarding child marriage simply in black and white. If on one hand there are elements of a rigid and unchanging society (in the form of Anandi's daadi-sa (mother-in-law) and Basant uncle), there are also characters like Anandi's father and mother in-law, who understand the problems created by child marriage. They want things to change but are not courageous enough to go against the society. The very interesting and strong woman who dares to go against the norms and do what's best for her is played by Gahna, Basant's wife. After coming to know about the incident of early consummation of her husband's ex-wife, she adamantly refuses to sleep with him even after he and her mother-in-law threatens to throw her out of the hose and kill her. The life of the poor families having daughters has been referred to as a crime in the society.

The parents of these girls want their daughters to get married in a wealthy family so that they can lead a comfortable life. They succumb to any kind of pressure or demand laid down before them by the rich. However the affluent families do not refrain themselves from repeatedly telling them about the noble deed they have done by marrying their sons to the poor and the needy. They have endowed the girls with all the luxuries of the world, hence, their 'kindness and gratitude' must never be forgiven. Isn't it a shame that instead of making life good for their own daughters they sell them off without considering the aftereffects on the social, psychological and physical state of the girl.

Last but certainly not the least, the characters of Anandi, Jagadish, Phooli bring to life the changes and the responsibilities that children are gifted with their marriage. The way they have been shown to adapt themselves and adjust in the society is touching. These innocent, tender souls without any knowledge about the way things work in a patriarchal, oppressive and unchanging society are made to grow up at an incredibly young age.

Balika Vadhu makes you think and gives you plenty and plenty of reasons to bring about a much needed change in the Indian society.

Philosophy of a Governing Economy

2010-05-27T02:00:00.001-07:00

In contrast to the US economic policies China uses much more decisively economic tools when a situation arises. In many cases when either Global economic crises was on its ways as it happen in 2008-2009 or now when Chinese economy shows overheating the Chinese government does not hesitate to act and to act promptly and decisively. When Real Estate bust in the US provoked rambling effect over the entire Global Marketplace in China a curbing on speculation and targeted low housing prevented similar to what happen to US and EU effect in there.

When in 2009 stimulus packages were needed to add monetary supplies and keep the economy from falling as a result of decreasing export elsewhere and particularly in the US as a main trade Chinese partner, a "flexible" usage of raising Chinese internal demand and expanding trade relations elsewhere and particularly with South Asian markets kept Chinese economy in relatively strong growth of over 9%. In the First Quarter China the world's fastest-growing major economy expanded 11.9 percent in compare to the last year and now Chinese government takes prompt action again:

China's Rules to Curb Property 'Madness' Will Take Effect Now

"The market is having its "last madness" and speculation may dissipate in a year or 18 months on extra action by local authorities and an increased supply of low-price, so-called policy homes, Li said.

Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd., the Hong Kong developer controlled by billionaire Li Ka-shing, said yesterday that efforts to cool the Chinese property market are "timely."

"You want to take action before the market gets too hot," Justin Chiu, executive director of Cheung Kong, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. "Prices have gone up really quite a lot; people buying for their own use should do it within their means. If they invest, they need to be cautious about interest rates."

Chinese government is not persuaded by lobbyists of falling stocks prices "The Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.1 percent yesterday" to moderate or change their policies, they are acting indiscriminately using the available "tools" of economics for prevention or stimulus when needed.

In comparison to China, here in US a partially pro political and ideologically motivated system of the ways of economics is used by the government for prevention of economic crisis or stimulating the economy when needed.

President Obama spent years to promote the Health Reform in fierce fight over details sometime quite irrelevant when the Health Reform is a purely economic "tool" for expanding economic activities and overall for so much needed wealth distribution and redistribution in US. This constant talk of US deficit and constantly rising National Debt also handicaps the Government to take decisive prompt action when situation arise.

The economic "tools" are more considered ideological prerogatives for political gains and Economics is more considered as a believe in something could be the Right "trickle-down" Capitalism could be the Left more business involved Government, when Economics is a Science by which any "tools" of economics should be used indiscriminately under different arousing economic conditions, any economic tool should be on the table: curbing speculations, financial regulation, enhancing personal liability of risk management of corporate structures, social policies, infrastructural expenses, healthcare expanses, SME tax breaks and low interest financing, subsidies and etc.

In time in ever globalizing marketplace and rising productivity, industrial production of the production based economics is not going to maintain conditions for many countries all over the world to keep up with their Fiscal expanses. When countries like China are building industrial production to new heights in combination with Japan, Germany and US, these may well build capacities filling the Global supply for such industrial production. Here in context the exhausting Earth resources, the Global pollution and deteriorating Environment should be taken in account, too: showing limitations to a constant Global Industrial Growth for all countries so these countries could keep their Fiscal expenses under control.

Industrial production adds the most to any country's GDP at the moment, therefore under the current production based economics for a country to not be industrialized means either this country is very much underdeveloped like Bulgaria or it runs high deficit like Greece and Portugal. For US the effect of decreasing industrial production has a very similar effect to the Bulgaria and Greece: when in some areas like Detroit poverty roars just like it does in Bulgaria in some other areas like Chicago high deficit is becoming imminent. Thus the policies President Obama is implementing of "artificially" boosting Healthcare, SME and tax breaks to the low income are the only economic policies possible under the circumstances, though there should be some better ways for sustained economic growth in which private enterprenuarship is not curbed and freedom of business is not overtaken by governments, because what all learn from the last Great Recession was that Governments could take over businesses, financial institution in a very quickly, and as a conclusion when future recessions hit Governments will go even farther.

China's handling of the last Recession is a good example of how such crisis should be handled but when a well balanced economics is combined with personal freedom of the US the results could be much higher, but to preserve this freedom we should adjust currently used economics to the arousing developments of the New Century.

©Joshua Konov, 2010

Tourism Training - Key to Economic Growth

2010-05-26T01:50:00.001-07:00

The assumed connection between economic prosperity and education has spurned a worldwide growth of tertiary education. Tertiary institutes are under increasing pressure to deliver programs that not only meet the core requirements, but their curricula must be continually updated to keep pace with industry trends and technological advances. Additionally, the need for students to make willful and gainful contributions to business performance and increased productivity, alliances are being made with the various industry segments to ensure that the curriculum also correlates with 'real world worth' when entering the employment market.

Over the past 10 years, there has been an increased emphasis on tourism training and education. This can be seen by the increasing number of institutes offering tourism and hospitality courses, especially in countries, such as New Zealand, that heavily rely on tourism for economic growth and employment, and has become a major socio-economic phenomenon.

The worldwide growth of tourism, being the largest global income earner, has resulted in unprecedented demand for suitably qualified tourism and hospitality staff, at all levels of the industry. The interdisciplinary nature of tourism is becoming increasingly important to employers and education institutes alike. Fallows and Stevens (2000) completed a research programme in an effort to ascertain what employees are seeking from recent tourism graduates. The response was overwhelming, indicating that not only do they require the core academic skills and knowledge, but individuals who have the capacity to work autonomously, be proactive and be creative in their workplace solutions. As a result, education institutes must not only provide the essential interdisciplinary courses related to tourism, but encourage free and innovative thinking in their students, and imprint a sense of confidence in their abilities.

Several developments, including increasing competition, changing labor market dynamics, changing demand patterns and technological advances require new employability skills from graduates to enable them to cope with these changing circumstances. Today, employers are looking for educated workers who are flexible and adaptable as business owners themselves seek to be more proactive and adaptable in their markets which are characterized by constant change.

The tourism industry is an exciting industry, which not only offers a great lifestyle, but which is now offering the educated employee a dearth of opportunity for growth and career development. Ensure that you register with a reputable education institute which has a specialized tourism department, equipped to pass on the multi-disciplinary knowledge required to satisfy the needs of employers and succeed within the industry.

Export Import China Business - The Growth of Export Import in China

2010-05-24T21:40:00.001-07:00

Thanks to the liberalization policy, the export import China business is now highly progressive and contributes greatly to the economic growth of the country in the last few years. China was included in the World Trade Organization back in 2001 which opened doors for global trading. The figures can speak well for itself. In the past 30 years, the average gross domestic product (GDP) was at 8%, a very significant growth rate. Overall, China now stands as the largest economy after USA. Experts predict that China could very well overtake USA after a few more years.

The significant economic growth in China is recognized worldwide. This proved to be very beneficial for China export business whose global market share to date reaches 58 to 60 percent. That is more than half of the market pie. The rest is distributed to other export players in Asia, Europe and America. As for China import, the country ranks third overall in the world after USA and Germany.

It is not always a smooth road for the export import China business. In 2008, the International Monetary Fund analyzed China's economy and computed a marked decline in GDP in the last five years (2003 to 2008). Approximately, they recorded a 12.7% decline rate in 2007 and 9.6% decline rate in 2008.

More particularly, the import industry recorded at least US$ 40 billion in gross revenue for December 2008, while the export figure is US$ 111 billion also on December 2008. This is at least 3% lower than the figures recorded on December 2007.

The World Trade Organization was a big help in the export import China business. It bridged China to many international traders especially in Southeast Asia. Hong Kong played a major role too. After the British turned over Hong Kong to China in 1997, Hong Kong became the major shipping port for mainland China and facilitated trading with other countries. Both the World Trade Organization and Hong Kong contributed largely to the China export business.

China mostly exports their main industrial products. The Chinese are excellent in the production of garments, textiles, electronics, automobiles, ammunitions and firearms. They also export products like mercury, magnesium, manganese, tungsten, tin, antimony, salt and barite. They rank fourth place around the globe in producing zinc, antimony, tungsten and tin. They are ranked second for salt production, and sixth place in gold production. They are also a leading player in aluminum production.

China is steadily surging forward and making economic reforms to further inscribe their name in international trade. You can expect export import China business to still move ahead and beyond other major players after a few more years.

Pink Hitler - 2012 and the End of Days

2010-05-23T21:35:00.001-07:00

Giant posters of Adolf Hitler dressed in a bright pink outfit are upsetting people in Palermo, Italy. The posters are the work of an advertising agency and are intended to promote a line of clothing.

Some people are disturbed that anyone would use the image of one of history's greatest mass murderers to adorn bus stops and other public spaces. But those of us who have studied the 2012 End of Days prophecies are provoked to wonder if something deeper than an effort to sell clothes is going on here.

In the posters, not only is Hitler garbed in pink, his armband sports a pink heart instead of a swastika.

Among the recurring warnings of what is to come in the year 2012 is a prophesied world government that will present itself as a benign, even loving, force for good. It will turn out to the most nightmarish dictatorship in history, though.

It is easy to speculate that portraying Hitler as pink heart sort of guy could be a way to prepare people, especially the young folks who are the target of the ad campaign, for a strong man who with the persona of a sensitive, New Age sort of leader.

The ad agency says the posters are meant to be tongue in cheek. The wording on the posters reads, "Don't follow your leaders," a way to encourage young people not to follow the crowd when it comes to choosing fashion.

Still, in the context of worsening economic and political conditions in Europe and elsewhere, one has to wonder what plastering giant images of a "softened" dictator might do to people's readiness to accept a future Fuhrer. A pink Hitler could be another portent that of the 2012 End of Days.

By the way, the ad agency is planning to up the ante in the ad campaign. Next up, they say: Posters portraying Mao Tse Tung.

Anti-Incumbency and American Revolt - Rand Paul Wins, Arlan Specter Loses

2010-05-22T21:31:00.001-07:00

This is a turning point in American politics. Americans are angry. They are tired of the games in Washington, the bailouts that have helped the wealthy at the expense of the taxpayer. They are furious over the condescension of the ruling elite. And they have begun to make their voices heard.

The rumblings began with the election of Scott Brown winning a senate seat held by the liberal lion, Ted Kennedy. What followed was a growing wave of anti-incumbency votes and a rejection of Washington politics as usual.

In Utah, senator Bob Bennett, incumbent and hard right GOP voter, lost his seat to Tea Party as he trailed a distant third in the primary.

In a big upset, Democratic Representative (who was once GOP representative) Arlan Specter lost his seat during the primaries to Joe Sestak. This, despite the fact that the Obama Administration rallied heavily behind Specter, and President Obama even went so far as to say he "loves" Specter.

Well, Mr. President, America does not love Specter. And they do not love their politicians. And the other big headline grabber: Rand Paul, son of famed Libertarian and Texas representative Ron Paul, won the GOP primary in Kentucky for the US Senate seat. Paul's victory is a major won, and a seat for the Tea Party in the Senate could mean big changes in store for Washington.

There are many bloggers on the left who are claiming that the recent victories by the Tea Party candidates is not a sign that the Tea Party has power, but that voters are angry over the economic situation. These assessments, however, are off the mark. The Tea Party is now a political force in America, and the questions as to its lasting power, its potency, are beside the point. Long time senators lost their seats.

And voters are not just angry at the economy. Again, this is a distortion by the mainstream media to make our current political situation look less volatile and corrosive.

Americans on the right are inflamed at the profligate spending of Washington. The Bush bailouts began in 2008 for the high end banks. These bailouts continued under the Obama administration in the form of GM, banks, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and other institutions. The debt the Obama team has piled onto the American tax payer is at record proportions. And the results are lackluster at best. An economy that has grown few jobs, states going broke, social services unable to service even the most dire in need.

Americans on the left are outraged by the continuation of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, despite the fact that they voted in a candidate who promised change. Left leaning voters see little to be gained by the war in Afghanistan, where American casulaties have now topped 1,000 and the spending now outdoes the Iraq war. The money being poured into the military industrial complex for the sake of what seems to be a dead end, while millions of Americans face foreclosure, is enough to leave the left with a bad taste in their mouth.

Americans on the right are furious at the extensive reach of big government. The health care bill failed to address the real concerns most conservatives had, and that was a failure on the part of Big Government to accomplish much of anything over the past several decades. They see taxes as burdensome to their individual growth, and the tax money they feed to Washington is being used for pet projects and dates for the President.

Americans on the left are inflamed that their congresspeople did not do more to push for a medicare buy-in or a public option. Again, the left sees a president who has failed to live up to the lofty expectations he set for himself. The watered down health care bill has been a boon to the health care industry, even if these companies would have rather had no bill. The long battle over a few changes have soured liberals to the point of disgust. They can no longer trust their representatives to vote in their interests.

But Americans as a whole feel righteous indignation at the elite. This is not just an economic outrage, where Americans feel they have been cheated. No. They know that their fundamental rights - to vote, to free expression, to free business - are being robbed. Big Government, in collusion with Big Business, has taken the American public along for a joy ride that ends with a mangled car and a broken constitution.

Do not dismiss the rage as economically driven. See it for what it is: a people who want their country back.

Top Countries Receiving Remittance Money

2010-04-24T03:05:00.001-07:00

Remittances are transfers of money by foreign workers to their home countries. Money sent home by migrants constitutes the second largest financial inflow to many developing countries, exceeding international aid.

Remittances contribute to economic growth and to the financial and social inclusion of needy people worldwide. Recent studies have shown that remittances not only play an important part in many people's daily lives but are particularly important for people during financial crises.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, remittances play an important role in the economy of the region, totalling over $66.5 billion in 2007, with about 75% originating in the United States. This total represents more than the sum of foreign direct investment (FDI) and official development aid (ODA) combined. In 7 Latin American and Caribbean countries remittances account for more than 10% of GDP and exceed the dollar flows of the largest export product in almost every country in the region.

A majority of the remittances from the US have been directed to Asian countries such as India, the Philippines and China. Most of the remittances happen by conventional channel of agents, however online money transfer has gained substantial momentum over the years.

One-third of the money sent originates in the United States, most of the rest is sent from Europe and the Middle East. A significant volume of remittance money circulates within the developing world as well.

Latin America and the Caribbean is the region receiving the highest level of remittances per capita and the money flowing to the region has risen tenfold in real terms over the past 20 years. After climbing at double-digit rates in the last decade, the flow now appears to be levelling off.

Most of the money received in this region is used for everyday living expenses, from food and home repairs to school tuition. What interests economists most, though, is the potential for remittances to contribute to economic development. Remittances tend to increase bank deposits, reflecting potential for investment.

Research has also found that higher remittance flows are associated with lower poverty, better health and higher levels of education in the developing world.

Yet the increasing remittance flows have a downside-families and national economies that rely on the money sent from nationals working abroad become vulnerable to distant events and trends. Also, many countries dependent on remittance see their working-age adult population shrink. Family members left behind may stop working and wait month-to-month for money from overseas.

However, today remittance checks are helping millions of households across the globe to keep food on the table and a roof overhead. Although the evidence hardly hails them as a long-term solution to global poverty, as long as remittance flows continue, they should be both facilitated and regulated.

Understanding Chinese Tier Cities For Business

2010-04-23T02:55:00.001-07:00

Years of economic reform ranged from the political relaxation of foreign direct investments to the promotion of entrepreneurship, China has emerged as one of the world's top economies. As such, Beijing Olympics 2008 serves as a new chapter milestone that signifies the beginning of China's third wave of economic growth - Industrial consolidation.

As such, it is a good time to examine how the Chinese cities have developed according to the traditional tiered city system. If you highlight all the first and second tiered cities in China, you will understand how the Chinese government plans to develop China into the world's largest economy.

In the 1980s, instead of opening up the whole of China, China, as part of an economic risk reduction strategy decided to develop special economic zones and open up cities near the coast for foreign investments. Coastal cities aid imports and exports. In addition, agglomerating the "test" cities can develop economies of scale relating to transportation infrastructure. Furthermore, resources from western China were drawn and consolidated to support these strategically positioned coastal cities prominently for Beijing in the north, Shanghai in the midst, and Guangzhou in the south, with Shenzhen acting as a gateway from Hong Kong.

As a result of shorter and improved transportation and communication infrastructure, economic development proliferates to the nearby cities, gradually moving westwards into China. Concurrently, the Chinese government also developed pockets of economic drivers especially in different provincial capitals in order to timely introduce economic growth at different regions. As such, cities begin their economic reform at different stages and thus with time, this became known as the Chinese tiered city system with cities given the connotation as first, second, third or fourth tier cities.

The Chinese tiered city system is characterized by the city's population size with Shanghai topping the China's city population chart at 20 million, followed by Beijing and Guangzhou with 17 million and 12 million respectively. These large cities, fuelled by own domestic demand and consumption provided the platform for improved living standards, better business and job opportunities and an international showcase to the rest of the world. However, these cities now faced a population ceiling challenge with stiff business competition which may reduce high exponential growth that was seen in the past.

The third wave will see more of the second tier cities in action. With over 20 cities in this category, China is set to develop these cities as the backbone of China's future economy. It is important to note that China will not remain as a low cost sweat shop and is definitely set to move up the value chain, focusing its efforts on high end industries and at the same time eliminating or pushing low-medium end industries into its lower tiered cities particularly with the third and fourth tier cities.

Already armed with a relatively medium to high disposable incomes and an average GDP per capita of RMB30000, these second tiered cities provide a lucrative option for firms to apply blue ocean strategy on Chinese domestic markets. Due to the Chinese emphasis on "Mian Zi" or "face" plus the lack of variety for luxury and branded goods in their cities, the rich and affluent from lower tiered cities often make short trips to Beijing and Shanghai for their luxury shopping. Therefore, having your presence in the second tier cities can provide greater proximity and convenience for these target groups.

China in the past 20 years is akin to a baby dragon playing around its nest, testing and trying out new ways of doing things, showing the world her head and wings. Now it is ready to emerge more of her to the world - the backbone akin the second tiered cities.

America's Edge in the Politics of Global Investing

2010-04-22T02:45:00.001-07:00

Unlike most investment advisors and strategists, I pay a lot of attention to politics, both here in America and in overseas markets. The politics of a country tells me a lot about the probability of long-term economic growth and stability - vital ingredients for successful investing. It also reveals a country's culture, business climate and durability in the wake of shocks like the real estate downturn. Countries with free and open political systems can take sledgehammer blows and come back fighting.

And while we do not know whether the Dow will be up or down tomorrow, we do know that, just past midnight, the citizens of Dixville Notch, will, as usual, be the first American citizens to vote in the New Hampshire presidential primary.

The current presidential campaign really has my blood pumping. The race between Senator Clinton and Senator Obama has been turned upside down with John Edwards jockeying for an opening. The Republican race is even more fluid and open with the sudden rise of former Governor Huckabee posing a threat to former Governor Romney, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani losing steam in national polls and re-directing his efforts to big states like California and Florida. All this movement has creating an opening for the old lion, Senator John McCain, whose campaign was left for dead only a few months ago and is staging a comeback in New Hampshire.

For a political junkie like me, it doesn't get any better than this.

The Chinese leaders love to describe American democracy as a "moneybags democracy" but the current race highlights that issues, personality, and strategy can oftentimes trump money. Mr. Huckabee won in Iowa despite being outspent 20 to 1, the upstart Mr. Obama has matched the Clinton money machine dollar for dollar by gathering small donations and Mr. McCain is back in action despite his bus budget.

Just as important, even candidates far back in the polls can raise money with a platform of conviction. Libertarian Texas Congressman Ron Paul recently broke the one day fundraising record, raking in more than $5 million through an internet campaign.

Then there is the relatively civil conduct of our campaigns and the fair, smooth transfer of executive power. Sure politics everywhere is a contact sport but we look pretty good compared to the fisticuffs last month in South Korea, the chaotic situation in Pakistan, and the ham-handed turnover of power in Russia from Mr. Putin to well - Mr. Putin.

Pakistan is the clearest example of political turmoil and one wonders how events unfolding there might impact its neighbor India's booming stock market represented by ETFs such as (IFN). Next door neighbor India is closely monitoring events in Pakistan for any security challenges that may come about. Keep in mind that there are more Muslims living in India than in Pakistan and that both countries possess nuclear weapons. Since the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the two countries have fought three major wars. The first two stemmed from the conflict over Jammu & Kashmir, the northernmost state of India, which also shares a border with Pakistan. The accession of Jammu & Kashmir to India in 1947 has long been disputed by Pakistan.

2008 also brings some important elections which will no doubt affect markets. In Thailand, the People's Power party, allies of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, emerged as the largest party after Christmas Eve elections, but fell just short of a majority so the forming of any government in 2008 remains unclear. It is tough to have confidence in the Thai market (TF) without some confidence that a government is in place, even though it is attractive from a valuation perspective.

Japan's premier, Mr. Fukuda, not even three months into the job, is suffering from the same lack of confidence and popularity that sank his predecessor, Mr. Abe. This helped make Japan Asia's worst performing index (EWJ) last year. Is it an accident that Japan's bull market coincided with former Prime Minister Koizumi's strong economic and foreign affairs agenda?

Presidential elections are due to take place in Taiwan this March and will have significant implications for relations with China. It could very well open up more economic channels between the two countries and serve as a catalyst for Taiwan's recently lackluster ETF (EWT). South Korea faces parliamentary elections in April, the results of which will be crucial to shoring up support for pro-market reforms planned by President-elect Lee Myung-bak.

This highlights one of the most difficult aspects of a working democracy - the concept of a loyal opposition. Many cultures have great difficulty grasping and practicing that you can oppose government policies and seek to change them while still being patriotic and loyal to your country. The expression "where opinions clash, freedom rings" is alien and unwelcome in many countries around the world.

Our two-party system, while roundly criticized by many, is also very important. Coalition governments tend to be a bit unwieldy and unstable. Just note the situation in India where some relatively small Communist party factions in the ruling coalition block significant market economic reforms.

And great bull markets usually begin to build momentum together with significant economic market reforms. America's economic growth even today can be traced back to President Reagan's supply side tax cuts, the centerpiece of his 1980 platform. Ireland's economy was a mess with middle-income earners taxed over 60% of their wages and government borrowing out of control.

Then Charlie Haughey became prime minister. Taxes and spending were cut sharply and multinationals like Apple, Microsoft and Dell were lured across the Atlantic through a range of incentives including low corporate tax rates. The Irish market was off and running, but alas, the impact of these dramatic reforms has faded with time and with it prospects for Ireland funds such as the New Ireland Fund (IRL).

Similarly, the reforms enacted by former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke during the 1980's set the stage for a remarkable run of prosperity, and reinforced by John Howard, helped make the Australian market (EWA) the darling of global investors. The same was true of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's election and the subsequent revival of the British economy.

The reason all of these programs were successfully executed and lasting is because they first garnered support through the political process. It may take a bit longer than many would like, but reforms vetted through the democratic process are lasting and gain legitimacy. In the end, voters demand and reward change.

One interesting and important global political trend is that support for globalization is now stronger in emerging market countries than here in America. This is a sharp reversal from just a decade ago when emerging market politicians used foreign multinational companies as scapegoats.

A recent poll by the Wall Street Journal and NBC found that 58 per cent of Americans think that globalization has been bad for the US and that only 28 per cent believe that it has been good. Ten years ago the split was more even: 48 per cent thought that globalization was good and 42 per cent that it was bad. The biggest surprise is that supporters of the two parties are no longer far apart on the question. Globalization has been bad for the US according to 55 per cent of Republicans and 63 per cent of Democrats. This sentiment can only be turned around through open and honest political debate about economic policies that will enable American companies to generate more jobs and profits by gaining market share in fast-growing emerging markets.

Politics in democracies like America also mirror its entrepreneurial business culture. In most cases, candidates for public office today are self selected, not chosen by the party machine. Candidates for public office in America are just like our 25 million small business owners that struck out on their own with little more than a hope and a prayer and somehow managed to endure and prosper.

But I don't mean to imply that politics is just important because of its impact on business. Rather it goes to a country's core values and to the heart of its quality of life. What good is all the money in the world if citizens do not have freedom of expression, freedom of religion, due process and the right to choose ones leaders? No thanks.

Then there is the ultimate test. Whether people around the world want to come and live in your country. No matter what you think about securing our border with Mexico, it is important to remember that people want to get into America while in some countries walls have kept people in who want to get out.

So even in the face of a temporary economic slowdown, banking problems, global competition and turbulent markets, keep in mind that American politics is a major competitive strength. Without a free, open and robust political process, all the economic growth will only get you so far until you hit a giant speed bump and derail.

So don't forget to take into consideration politics when building your global portfolio.

BRIC Countries - An Overview

2010-04-21T02:35:00.001-07:00

The term BRIC is a short form of Brazil, Russia, India & China. There is so much being discussed about BRIC countries that I thought we should take an overview of what BRIC countries signify in the world of Investments.

World economies have seen many bumps & turbulence over a recent past. That is the main reason why BRIC countries have gained importance in the eyes of world wide investors. Reducing rates of internal economical growth, reduction in domestic demand, falling markets have created major threats to the survival of Global Investors & they are searching for new avenues for investing their funds to ensure a good return on capital & also the safety for their capital.

Definition of BRIC:

Jim O'Neill from Goldman Sachs head of Global Economic Research came up with this short form BRIC for Brazil, Russia, India & China. He first defined the BRIC Countries in his report on Emerging Markets in year 2001.

What makes BRIC different from other Economies:

As per Jim O'Neill BRIC Report the combined economical wealth of these four nations would be more than the wealth of the richest nations by year 2050. As of today these four countries taken together would account for around 40 % of World Population & around 25 % of Global Land. This optimistic scenario would offer better growth as well as safety for investors.

* Brazil is 5th most populated Country of the world & the 9th highest GDP in the world.

* Russia is at 7th rank in most highest GDP.

* India is the 2nd most populated country of the world & the 4th highest GDP rank.

* China is the most populated country of the world & the 2nd highest GDP. The 1st rank being United States.

As per the Goldman Sach report these four countries would be having sustained growth over next 40 years that would surpass the European Countries in terms of economic growth.

We have seen many ups & downs in the Global economies due to credit crisis & various bubbles created through improper trading practices. Emerging markets are becoming heaven for global investors due to their realistic & somehow conservative growth policies.

BRIC Countries offer high level of economic growth with sustainable rate of economic activity that is estimated to last for some decades to come. Given the turbulent global market scenario investor are getting attracted to BRIC nations due to high rate of return on investment plus a Capital appreciation anticipated.

As a Global Investor one can not ignore the growth potential of these countries & any investment in these countries would guarantee an improvement Portfolio performance. This has diverted the attention of most of the global Investors from western countries to BRIC nations. This global attention would again help these countries to harness their resources in most optimum way & would make these markets more competitive ensuring more transparency in market operations.

The chain effect of this would last for at least 3 to 4 decades to come & these countries would become a focal point for global investors to invest.

In summary I can say that as a Global investor you can not ignore the importance of BRIC countries & you can further compare these countries among themselves to find out which is the best one to invest in to optimize your investment portfolio.

Is the Dollar Doomed to Keep Falling?

2010-04-20T02:30:00.001-07:00

Since 2001 the dollar has been in steady decline. Against the £ the dollar has fallen from a low of £1 = $1.45 to close to the £1 = $2 mark. Against the Euro the $ has also depreciated from 0.85 to the present level of 1 Euro to $1.35.

From several perspectives the fall in the value of the dollar appears to be following basic economic fundamentals and whilst these imbalance continue the dollar may continue to fall.

Firstly the US current account deficit is remaining at record levels. The exact amount of debt with the rest of the world is predicted to be around $710 billion for 2006 [1]
Basically this means America is importing more than it is exporting, causing an outflow of money. In recent years this huge level of debt has been bought by countries like Asia who have been happy to buy into the dollar for its perceived status as a "stable and secure" currency. However there is increasing evidence Asian bankers are no longer so confident in the American economy. Thus they are seeking to divest from the dollar and reduce their dollar holdings. As this occurs the dollar will have to fall as there is insufficient buyers of American debt.[2]

Secondly the future for economic growth is no longer looking so positive. Growth forecasts have recently been downgraded. The OECD has downgraded is growth forecasts for the US economy from 3.6% to 2.4%. Pessimists such as Nouriel Roubini, of Roubini Global Economics [2] are predicting a recession in the US by the middle of 2007. An important factor in declining growth forecasts is the falling US consumer confidence.

Related to this is a signal that the previous ebullient housing market may have at last turned the corner. Whilst new house prices continue to rise. The median price of old houses have fallen by 3.5% since last year. Whilst a fall of 3.5% may not sound that much, it is the biggest on record. Also rising house prices have been a key factor in maintaining consumer spending in recent years. The level of personal debt amongst US consumers is at another all time high. The ratio of consumer debt to disposable income has risen from 62% in 1980 to 127% in 2005 [3]

Thus a fall in house prices will have a powerful knock on effect on the rest of the US economy as consumers struggle to refinance and meet levels of debt. Another consequence of this high level of consumer debt is that the US economy will be particularly sensitive to any rise in interest rates. Higher interest rates would be one solution to a falling currency and may be necessary to attract investors to finance America's trade deficit. Although the prospect of the Fed raising interest rates is remote at the moment. Continued falls in American dollars would cause a rise in the long term interest rates on American secutities.

However some economists argue that prospects for the dollar may not be as bad as some predict. Firstly as Anatole Kaletsky argues [4] in an era of globalisation and deregulated financial markets, trade deficits are not as difficult to finance as they used to be. Empirical evidence suggests that trade deficits are very unreliable as a guide to exchange rate movements. Firstly one of the few countries with a current account surplus is Japan. Their current account surplus has been growing and yet the Yen is one of the few currencies to have fallen against the dollar. [4]

Secondly although American growth is slowing at the moment it is not doing much worse than the EU and Japan economies. The gap in interest rates between the 2 economic areas is still only about 2%. If there are good reasons for the dollars weakness there are less good reasons for the strength of the EURO. Also some American economists such as Ben Bernanke of the Federal reserve remain optimistic about the state of the US economy arguing growth is only marginally below trend rate.

However it is important not to underestimate the importance of general market sentiment regarding the American economy. Political problems such as in Iraq have to an extent undermined America's standing as a leader of the World in both an economic and political sense. For 50 years America has been the undisputed global economic superpower, but slowly perceptions are changing that the era of the dollar may becoming to an end. As people switch out of dollars it could create a powerful multiplier effect as investment bankers are reluctant to hold onto their dollar assets.

America to a large extent can't avoid a period of adjustment as it seeks to deal with its triple deficits, trade deficits with the rest of the world, consumer debt, and US government debt. Whether the period of adjustment is gradual or painful will depend upon 2 things. Firstly how significant will be the fall in US house prices and consequent fall in consumer confidence. Secondly it will depend on the attitude of Asian bankers, in particular the Chinese. Since they hold so many $ assets they may try to manage a gradual devaluation, a continuation of the past 5 years. However if the dollar does lose its status as the reserve currency of the world, there could be a growing stampede as America's creditors seek to cash in their cheques. This would exacerbate the fall of the dollar, causing real economic hardship for America and the rest of the world.

The only thing for sure is that European consumers are likely to be get some real bargains from shopping in America for the considerable future.

References

[1] http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/12/business/main1203762.shtml

[2] http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8361260

[3] Available at http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/Z1/Current/

[4] http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,630-2485597.html - Demise of Dollar greatly exaggerated

Jamaica's History of Independence

2010-04-19T02:17:00.001-07:00

Like any other country in 1929, Jamaica was experiencing a drop in its economic growth. The effects of this were starting to show in a decline of social conditions. In 1938 the labor riots were a turning point in the history of Jamaica and its independence.

The Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) was formed by Alexander Bustamante. This labor union was later to be involved with the Jamaica Labor Party. In 1938 Norman Manley, cousin to Alexander Bustmante, formed the People's National Party.

Manley led the country to Self Government and later on Bustamante became the first prime minister of Jamaica.

In 1944 Adult Suffrage was granted giving all males and females over the age of 21 to vote. The first election held under the Universal Adult Suffrage was held in 1944 and the Jamaica Labor Party won 25 out of 32 seats.

The Federation of the West Indies was started in 1959 and Jamaica was part of this group. A referendum was called to determine whether or not the people of Jamaica should remain a part of the federation. The people chose independence.

In January 1962, a draft of the Independence Constitution was brought before both Houses and after a full debate was unanimously approved. It was also agreed that the 300 year old Coat of Arms would be retained and the Latin motto "Indus Uterque Serviet Uni" changed to one in English "Out of Many One People".
At midnight 5th August 1962 the British Flag was lowered and the Jamaican Flag was hoisted for the first time. On the 6th of August 1962 Jamaica was given its independence. Sir Kenneth Blackburne was the last Colonial Governor and the first Governor General. Afterwards, Sir Clifford Campbell, formerly President of the Senate, became the first Jamaican Governor General.
Jamaica today is a great place to visit for vacation and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

America and her Economic Future in the World Economy, a Thought

2010-04-18T02:10:00.001-07:00

It appears we are attacking ourselves in the United States and punishing our own team thru over regulation. We need to fix ourselves by becoming better at what we do, better than everyone else in the World. Just because Multi-National Conglomerates cannot make a huge killing over there every quarter is no reason to sacrifice our standard of living here. The European economies would like to be on the same page as us as far as a standardized Euro=Dollar, and that would be great, but not until tariffs disappear so we can make the stuff here too. Also what happens when we change our chess game for a weak dollar and then they restrict our goods to save their corporations and job base there?

We are different cultures and different political whims and the book Future Perfect sounds great, but there is a reality check on many of the notions of this type of game plan. Why choose a plan, have several plays ready to execute, ones which will not affect our middle class and job base. If we concentrate on quality, strength, innovation and have a great economy then entrepreneurs who built America can continue to find funding to explore new fields, and continue to hit milestones like Chuck Yeager did while we watched our technology break the sound barrier. Look at Intel, and Andy Groves vision, protecting our intellectual property and producing smaller, faster and more powerful chips exponentially. Do we need to weaken the dollar for companies like that? NO, we simply sell our wares a little cheaper in those markets, which require us to or we simply do not sell there. Is it the roll of government to decide that for us? By lowering our standard of living until the dollar reaches a lower rate against the other World Currencies? Especially considering that those other currencies are much less stable than ours and those markets may disappear at anytime if they collapse. Then is it up to us and the IMF to bail those economies out, when they fail to listen to reason, pollute the World, steal the money is and bow out gracefully when it is time to return the money? Look at this last round in Russia, 1/3 of the money to clean up the nuclear problem of Chernople, gone. Russian Nuclear Subs of the Arms Race Era docked in a muddy inlet, some on their sides. And the money given to clean it up, where did it go? They built a new fighter jet to compete with our newest. Why, not go clean it up our selves or just forget it? We may as well put to work America factories to build rockets and shoot them into the sun for fun. Or build devices to go on the back of cows to capture the methane to use as fuel to run steam generators to make electricity. Oh you know what? Just think about it yourself, we need a reality check in the real world; not a created reality that is not working.

What is a Recession Anyway?

2010-04-17T02:00:00.001-07:00

Politicians and economists have debated the likelihood of recession in the United States for the past several months. As you know, the president and congress have enacted a preemptive stimulus package of tax rebates to minimize the effects of a possible recession. While the term "recession" is often used in public discourse, most Americans do not understand its definition. Unfortunately, that definition is elusive. There are two generally accepted descriptions of recession and they are sometimes at loggerheads with one another.

Moreover, one of those definitions is vague by design. The traditional definition of an economic recession is two or more consecutive quarters of negative real economic growth as measured by gross domestic product (GDP). The prediction markets use this definition. Of course, it takes time to compile comprehensive data. There are three separate iterations of quarterly GDP growth - two estimates followed by a "final" number. This final compilation is not released until nearly three months after the end of the quarter it measures. So far, aggregate economic growth has not indicated recession. The initial estimate of first quarter GDP growth was actually positive at +0.6%. A revision to this estimate is due out next week. Since 1961, The US government has recognized the National Bureau of Economic Research's (NBER) Business Cycle Dating Committee as the "official" arbiter of recession. This is a seven member group of academic economists. The NBER does not use any specific methodology for determining the start and end dates of a recession - instead it looks at a variety of economic indicators over various time periods and determines whether to declare that the economy is in a recession based on that data. Here is the NBER's official policy on recession:

A recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales.

The NBER is very deliberate in its assessment of the underlying data to avoid the need for revision. Its own policy is to wait "6 to 18 months" after the beginning of a recession to declare that one has started. In fact, they waited 20 months to declare that the last recession officially ended in November 2001! It is interesting to note the US economy actually never had two consecutive quarters of GDP decline during the 2000-2001 period. NBER committee members can complicate things by voicing their own views. They are not restricted as are government bureaucrats. Martin Feldstein, opined in March that his "personal view" was that the United States was already in recession. He reinforced those views just last week in declaring that this recession would be "severe". In contrast, Edward Lazear told a meeting of Wall Street Journal journalists that "the data are pretty clear we're not in a recession." Even the guys who are supposed to decide what a recession is cannot agree.

Meanwhile, the economic data offers a glimmer of hope. The US trade deficit is falling faster than anticipated and this will likely spur anupward revision the 1st quarter GDP due outst quarter was that "the data are pretty clear we're not in a recession." Even the guys who are supposed to decide what a recession is cannot agree. Meanwhile, the economic data offers a glimmer of hope. The US trade deficit is falling faster than anticipated and this will likely spur an upward revision the 1 next week. The consensus of economic experts now is that GDP growth in the 1 actually +0.9%. Monday's release of the Leading Economic Indicators for April was also positive as it evidenced mildly improving conditions- the second consecutive monthly upswing. In an election year with anemic growth, the labeling of the US economic condition will take on urgent meaning. This will put the NBER's business cycle dating committee to the test.

Understanding Economic Cycles (Business Cycles)

2010-04-16T01:52:00.001-07:00

Definition from Wikipedia.org.:The business cycle or economic cycle refers to the fluctuations of economic activity about its long term growth trend. The cycle involves shifts over time between periods of relatively rapid growth of output (recovery and prosperity), and periods of relative stagnation or decline (contraction or recession). These fluctuations are often measured using the real gross domestic product. Despite being named cycles, these fluctuations in economic growth and decline do not follow a purely mechanical or predictable periodic pattern.

The economic clock is a simplified approach to understanding our position as to the health of the ecomony. It also assists to identify the best performing market sectors in elation to the growth area of the economic cycle. Keep in mind that the there any number of random influences that effect the economy such as wars, natural disasters and the like that sway the cycle and effect the transistion. It wiil never be a perfect cycle and should only be used as guide to assist with investment decisions.

The above example is very simplified version of economic expansion and contraction. The Economic Cycle Research Institute or ECRI http://www.businesscycle.com earn a living from analysing the economy and providing detailed information on the health of the economy by way of specialized indicators from various economic sources. These indicators are complied and the result is some of the best leading index indicators for picking turning points in the economy. One indicator we follow is the Weekly Leading Index or WLI.

It is worth visiting the website http://www.businesscycle.com/about/approach/ to get a better understanding or read the book

Beating the Business Cycle: How to Predict and Profit from Turning Points in the Economy, by Lakshman Achuthan and Anirvan Banerji, New York: Currency Doubleday, 2004.
In Martin J. Pring's book, The Investors Guide to Active Asset Allocation, 2006. He describe the bussiness cycles in six stages, where:

o Stage 1 - only Bonds are bullish;

o Stage 2 - Only commodities are bearish;

o Stage 3 - Everything is bullish;

o Stage 4 - Bonds begin a bear market but stocks and commodities remain bullish,

o Stage 5 - only commodities are bullish) and Stage 6 - Nothing is Bullish

Martin is a well respected market analyst and commentator and in his book he clearly describes the intermarket relationships between the major markets and how they are intrinsically tied with each other. The flow on effects of each cycle then affects the corresponding business sectors expanding or contracting business in each of these sectors.

2009-2010 Inflation (Or Hyperinflation)

2010-04-15T01:41:00.001-07:00

In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.The term "inflation" once referred to increases in the money supply (monetary inflation); however, economic debates about the relationship between money supply and price levels have led to its primary use today in describing price inflation.

In economics, hyperinflation is inflation that is "out of control", a condition in which prices increase rapidly as a currency loses its value. Formal definitions vary from a cumulative inflation rate over three years approaching 100% to "inflation exceeding 50% a month." In informal usage the term is often applied to much lower rates.

I think a lot of things will be much higher in price, including oil, next year or maybe later this year. But, don't confuse price with value.

If there is any economic recovery globally and the dollar is falling, we could see any possible price you want to imagine but, it would be in dollars, and not other currencies.

There are several analysts that are predicting a large drop in the dollar and that will even give the markets a boost. Using an extreme example, you could see DOW 50,000 by the end of the year if the dollar gets dumped but, while you would have seen over 40,000 more pts. you couldn't buy any more at 50,000 than now, if you sold it and probably a lot less.

The price of the DOW doesn't reflect value, just price. Oil is the same. If there is a recovery globally, oil demand will rise and with all the supply being cut now, it will cause oil to go back up for all nations but, if the dollar is falling, even if they don't pay more, we will. We could pay $1,000 a barrel or $10,000 a barrel or $1 million a barrel as that is what happens when a currency collapses.

For those who say that would crush our economy. Correct 100%. That too, is what happens when a currency collapses. The world basically moves on without you.

If that happens to the U.S. then the world will move on but much slower than before. Because we are such large consumers there is good news and bad news in that.

The countries that move on would find fewer buyers but, also less demand for copper, oil, steel, concrete, etc. and thus, they could still have profits even with fewer exports. They may not be large for years but, there are two sides to U.S. consumption. It drives up both the price of goods and the price of things to make goods with when we consume a lot.

Peter Schiff goes as far as to say the world's exporters would actually be better off without us increasing demand for raw materials so much due to our consumption.

However, just as it takes a depression for us to go from debtor nation to creditor nation, it will take a global recession at the minimum to go from a global economy dependent on us to one that isn't.

Consumption is touted as this big "cure all," but, it isn't. Production and making things faster than debt rises, is the cure all. Spending less than you earn, saving so you can spend in down times, budgeting, and sensible investing vs. "gambling" on stock moves is the "cure." Less government, not more, less government spending, not more, fewer programs not more at the federal level is what we need.

If we aren't already there then soon we will be more of a drag on the global economy than aid to it. Peter Schiff, if not right now, soon will be.

Think of it this way. You make things. I buy from you but, to keep buying from you, you have to keep loaning me money from what I pay you. To make it worse, I pay you back with devalued money so that you are even losing buying power with every new loan to me.

How long are you going to keep selling to me? You end up better off making something else and selling to somebody else or just making the stuff for "trade" and "sale" with people you buy your raw materials from.

In the last couple of years, one oil nation, Venezuela has done just that. It "trades" some of its oil instead of selling it for things it needs from nations that don't want to "buy dollars" to buy oil with and that have materials that Venezuela needs.

Iran stopped using dollars, too. It even got Japan to buy the oil it gets from Iran in Yen as well as sell in euros to other nations.

In short, there are no certainties going forward except that we have to change the way we run this nation from top to bottom.

Should You Start a Business During a Recession?

2010-04-14T01:22:00.001-07:00

I say a resounding - maybe. Regardless of all the bad news spewed out in the media versus all the contrarians telling you to sink everything you have into marketing because nobody else is and you will get market share, it's not that cut and dry.

I suggest you stick to your plan of starting the business. HOWEVER, now more than ever, you should keep your day job. It's not time for experimenting. If your new venture starts to succeed with part-time results then you could keep shifting your emphasis in that direction. But what if you don't see any results? Is it because you don't have a good idea or a good product? Is it because the economy is slow and nobody's buying? Or, are you in an industry that is not "recession proof" and one that ebbs and flows with the general economy?

What I am saying, is that it's difficult enough to run a business and gauge its success during normal economic growth cycles. Don't put yourself under undue pressure when you don't need to. Recessions are called that because business recedes to a lower level. That being said, there are some businesses that actually do better in a recession and there are some products that people still have to have. Collection agency is one of the first businesses that come to mind. Discount or coupon related marketing are another. And people always have to eat; just maybe not at a restaurant.

There are some things that you can do during the downtime to help you prepare for the time when there is a better business climate. Here's a few tips:

Network more. Find people who would be great for your company when you start hiring. They may be looking for a job then. Also, go out to lunch with an entrepreneur. Ask them what they are doing to keep their business growing during the economic downturn.

Purchase products you know you will need. Typically, in a recession, prices come way down and there are some bargains to be had.

Keep learning. You have more time to use to your advantage. Use it wisely. Increase your learning effort on all aspects of your business, including studying your industry and your competition. I don't advocate spending a lot of time being obsessed with your competition, but in this case time is on your side and not theirs. Perhaps they might want to get out of a part of their business and let you take it over. Sometimes, if the timing is right, a business will be happy to let go of a product line or group, just for taking over the expenses.

We Miss the Eloquence and Logic of Milton Friedman Now More Than Ever

2010-04-13T01:17:00.001-07:00

One of the signal economic thinkers of the 20th century was the Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman. His many books and papers, interviews and television specials have left us a valuable trove of thoughts and observations that should serve as guideposts during our current difficult economic times. His death has left a void that no contemporary thinker has been able to fill. That is most unfortunate, especially now.

Recently, I revisited my copy of Professor Friedman's signature work, Free to Choose. It is still as pertinent, fresh and poignant, as it was the day it was first published. His reasoned defense of economic and personal freedom, strictly limited government and the rule of law need to be reviewed and protected fiercely by each citizen that values these sacred rights.

"Thank heavens we do not get all of the government that we are made to pay for", stated Professor Friedman in one of his most oft quoted observations. The simple, but powerful clarity of these 17 words serve as testament to the deep understanding and concern he possessed about the ever-expanding role of centrally planned, distant government and the excessive price we pay for it. We see the detritus of insatiable government in every aspect of our lives, and yet, we seem incapable of slowing, preferably stopping the rapid growth of this corrupt, inefficient monster.

The Federal Government is nearing a 3 trillion dollar annual budget. No one really knows the exact amount of deficit spending we incur each year, but it is massive and growing. The more revenue the government realizes, the faster spending increases. We have un-funded liabilities of somewhere around $53 trillion for Medicare and Medicaid, and $25 trillion for Social Security. These are just estimates; no one can state the absolute accurate numbers. And, remember the government refers to these obligations as "un-funded liabilities", not debt as private citizens and industry would be required to report and account for.

In 1976, President Jimmy Carter created the Department of Education. Before then, education was largely a local affair. This boondoggle has grown massively since its inception in employees, budget, programs and un-funded mandates. Less than 7% of the $60 Billion annual budget for the DOE is returned to state and local schools as grants. The rest is consumed in "bureaucracy heaven". Can anyone seriously argue that public school performance has improved since we were blessed with the Department of Education and the thousands of theoreticians, consultants and knowledge brokers that this cesspool supports? You can actually graph the decline of graduation rates, the increase in truancy, lowered standardized test scores and achievement tests from the date we were blessed with the DOE.

The government enjoys natural monopolies in many areas. The Postal Service, the Passport Office, AMTRACK, The FAA, and so many more government agencies provide we citizens with one stop shopping. In every case, the result is subsidy, waste, and mismanagement. Waiting up to 90 days to receive a passport is ridiculous. The Postal Service and AMTRACK require subsidies every year, while FedEx, UPS, and the railroads make billions of dollars in profit each year. Why would any thinking person believe that government should be expanded into even more areas of our lives.

Thomas Jefferson, a soul brother to Milton Friedman said, "He is governed best who is governed least". And yet, an ever-growing segment of our citizenry constantly seeks to redress perceived grievances and personally poor decision making by petitioning politicians for outcomes favorable to their desires. We know with absolute certainty that government is too large, inefficient, duplicitous and wasteful to solve problems.

Government is not in business to solve problems: it is in business to institutionalize problems! Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, Welfare, Food Stamps have all grown exponentially. The problems these programs, and many others, were supposed to address have grown even more exponentially. Bureaucracies are not in the business of solving problems and shrinking, then going out of business as they successfully complete their mission. The very core of the nature of a bureaucracy is to grow insatiably.

As more citizens abdicate their personal responsibilities and seek government support, there are all too many politicians, lobbyists, issue advocates and social engineers ready to comply and satisfy this sycophancy. We see many people campaigning for a government takeover of the health care system. When government provides free health care: that is when health care will get really expensive! How in the world can so many people, be so blind about so much.

My Company provides consulting services to inventors, small businesses and entrepreneurs bootstrapping businesses. By their very nature, these people are fearless, independent, creative and driven. They seek to take advantage of the amazing opportunities available to every citizen of the United States, if only they would take advantage of these possibilities. To a person, successful entrepreneurs do not understand, and usually despise government dependency. Simply being a citizen of this great country is the equivalent of winning the geographic lottery.

President John Kennedy famously stated, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country"? The growing sentiment today seems to infer, ask not what you can do for your country; ask what your country can do for you? John Kennedy, Milton Friedman and Thomas Jefferson are symbolic personages of a sentiment that must be revived. Every citizen must contribute to the public good, but the government must get out of the way and let the populace live and prosper by the dint of their own efforts. Downsizing this albatross is in order, and quickly!

Interview for "Multitudes at the Crossroads" Author F. J. Colberg

2010-04-11T23:45:00.001-07:00

Reader Views welcomes author F.J. Colberg, as he talks about his new book "Multitudes at the Crossroads. F. J. Colberg is talking with Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views.

Juanita: Thanks for talking with us today F. J. Please tell us what your book "Multitudes at the Crossroads" is all about.

Frank: I want to thank you for the opportunity to present this project to your readers. The book examines the recurring cycles in history, nature, economy and how these cycles and tendencies are converging before our very eyes, with very serious implications. When the events of the Middle East, the race for oil and the emergence of China as an economic powerhouse, are examined carefully, we can only come to the conclusion that powerful hiccups are coming our way. Then the Bible's prophetic relevance comes to life, as the events we are witnessing are clearly foretold by inspired prophets. The book examines these events and their implications.

Juanita: What inspired you to write your book?

Frank: For some years now I have had a great deal of interest in history, economy and the social sciences in general, and as I read into these topics I began to observe an emerging picture of deterioration or entropy, if you will, in our social fiber. As I began to put my thoughts on paper, the tsunami hit, and a great sense of urgency came over me. It was like a veil was lifted from my eyes and suddenly two plus two equaled four. Most people see the news, that is what the networks would have us see, not realizing that a tendency is clearly developing. I think most people don't give these topics more thought, out of a sense of impotence. Even though the book presents difficult times ahead, it also presents hope for a new world, without war, hunger and the suffering we are involved in.

Juanita: You talk about cycles and the effect they have on modern times. Can you explain how and why history repeats itself in this way?

Frank: Everywhere we look we can observe patterns that are continually repeated. We know that after the darkest night, the sun will rise. Seasons come and go with regularity. So too with most things that affect human nature. After a terrible war, think WWI , men spoke of it as "he war to end all wars". Well, we know that WWII was just around the corner. The cycle has been repeating for ages untold, so why would we not think that another, more terrible war is in the cards? If we look at empires we can mention Assyria, the Babylonians, conquered by the Persians, the Greeks, Romans and on and on until we come to our great nation. How long before the barbarians knock down our gates, is anybody's guess, but they will be there, in time. Somebody said, "the only thing that we have learned from history is that we don't learn from history". We can apply the same to weather patterns; we know that hurricanes have an intense period of activity and then a relatively quite period. We forgot and build on our coastlines as if the storms were never coming back. We will pay dearly for our forgetfulness as the pattern reasserts itself. We can say the same for economic times of prosperity and lack, yet we live as if there will be no tomorrow. Winston Churchill said something like "the further back we look in history, the more we see into the future". How true!

Juanita: What are some examples of things that are going on today that can be directly understood through the Bible?

Frank: Juanita, to many the Bible is nothing but an allegorical collection of stories that make for great bedtime reading. In reality it is more a message from beyond time and space, containing all the wisdom necessary to understand the world around us and not be confused by the events we are living. A clear example is the events of the Middle East. You do not have to be a Bible scholar to know that there will not be any peace there anytime soon. Without being a prophet I can confidently tell you that in the near future Israel's only ally, the US, will also turn its back on the Jews. But no matter what the Arab nations do they will not succeed in driving Israel into the sea. Not while God is in control. The same promise that brought Israel back to the land in 1948, will keep her there, with much tribulation, until the Lord returns.

Juanita: What other significant examples are of most concern to you?

Frank: We know that nature will go thru much despair, and this in turn will mean famine, plagues and then, political unrest as never before. The book of Revelation goes into great detail of these not so distant events. There the picture is of four horsemen, one being a great political figure that will appear to bring peace and solutions to the troubled world, but instead will make the likes of Stalin and Hitler pale by comparison.

Juanita: How did those that prophesized our future in the bible, know what would happen in a time so far away?

Frank: This is the part that is most difficult for most to accept. The only explanation I know of is that the Bible is the inspired revelation of a God outside our limited dimensions, reaching out and revealing Himself to us. We know that the Old Testament was in existence as an integral document, translated from Hebrew to Greek 300 years before Christ in the Egyptian learning center of Alexandria. Yet it gives hundreds of prophesies about Jesus' coming, some as specific as to the sleepy village He would be born in, named Bethlehem, and that He would be crucified, in death, when that barbaric method of capital punishment was not yet being used. So the difference of hundreds of years as opposed to a couple of thousand, just places the revelation outside of the constraints of time.

Juanita: What is happening politically worldwide and how has this been prophesized in the Bible?

Frank: For one thing we know that the problems are getting more complex by the day. Wars are a different monster with the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Al Gore is not the only one concerned about Global Warming and all its implications. This all translates to a greater need for effective leadership, something that is more difficult as more polarized positions need to be bridged. Going back to history, we see that the great dictators of our times - Mao, Hitler, Stalin - all flourished when the corresponding societies were in shambles. Humans have a great need for paternalistic protection. So when things get really ugly we seek refuge in a strong hand that promises to pull us thru. The Bible speaks of a world dictator that will rule a "one world government" that promises peace, as well as a solution to currency instability, identity security and food and energy shortages. This guy is not going to play by anybody's rules, but his own. We have been warned.

Juanita: The Middle East is one of people's biggest topics of concern. What is the significance of the happenings in this region and how does it pertain to the Bible?

Frank: The Bible warns that Jerusalem would be a heavy burden to the nations. We are witness to this. To most people world wide the solution is to do away, somehow, with Israel as they are to blame for all the hostilities. They are in a no-win situation. They concede land for peace and only manage to get attacked from closer to their own territory. The Bible says that it all began in that region of the world, and it will all conclude there also. The prophet's description is of a terrible war that will bring all the armies of the nations for one final battle, Armageddon. Nuclear exchanges will take place; how long before one madman releases his trump card in desperation? It's only a matter of time, and it's running late! Ultimately the Bible describes these events as necessary to usher in Jesus' return before we wipe ourselves off the planet.
Juanita: What do you think has ultimately caused the downward spiral that seems to be happening globally in these times?

Juanita: All these events, political, environmental and social, are tied in together with man positioning himself as the center of the universe. Global warming and the ecological situation is related to the disregard of responsibility to a higher authority, as in the creator; after all, if we are the result of one Big Bang, so let another bang fix it, or not. Corporate and governmental corruption are the natural result of our own unchecked greed, why not, are we not the center of the universe? And if we are, what difference, if it feels good...just do it. When everything became relative, our own destruction became inevitable.

Juanita: What is your understanding of the Apocalypse?

Frank: This is just the picture of the future events that the prophet, John was given to keep the church aware and out of the dark, as God's ultimate plan of redemption is played out.

Juanita: What are some of the distressing events soon to occur that will greatly change our way of life?

Frank: Jesus himself described a time that the distressing factors would be like "birth pains". The implication here is that events of a troubling nature would grow in intensity as well as frequency. If we look at earthquakes, tsunamis, heat waves, crop failures, terrorist attacks and any other troubling event, we find that they are increasing in frequency and intensity. If we look at the situation with oil, most experts agree that the best is behind us, with all sorts of implications for a society that lives by and thru oil. Any isolated event like Katrina in New Orleans has great repercussions throughout. A combination of a few of these events, and our lives would be turned upside down, with little hope of recovery. A society without hope is a desperate society.

Juanita: What can we expect for our future? What advice can you give to those concerned about the state of the world today?

Frank: I think that once people begin to see where we are in regards to the times we are living, things can begin to change in our lives. Putting priorities in order is the first necessity in preparedness, and being prepared is our best hope of weathering the storm that is at the door. Many need to examine their spending habits, others draw closer to family. Ultimately, recognizing our dependence on Jesus Christ is the only safe harbor. I chose to believe the Bible, it hasn't been wrong yet.

Juanita: Your message has significant basis through the prophetic words in the Bible. Do you feel that one has to be a devoutly religious, surrendering to Jesus, to make it though these troubling times, or will others with diverse religious backgrounds also be safe?

Frank: Juanita, people who embrace the Bible as the true word of God, will cite Jesus' words that teach that "none come to the father, except by Him". Being in Jesus is the ultimate assurance of security for whatever life throws at you, disease, economic hardships, or the events to come. These trying times are God's way of calling our attention back to Him. The "great tribulation" is going to be particularly difficult for the Jews, who are a 'chosen' people. I believe that all will render an account in accordance to what they know. God gave man a conscience to guide him, and that conscience points to what is right and wrong above the religious rhetoric of different beliefs. A believer in Islam, who blows up innocent civilians, in an attempt to impose his cause, will have a hard time reconciling his conscience with his acts.

Juanita: Frank, you mentioned earlier that though your book presents difficult times ahead, it also presents hope for a new world, without war, hunger and the suffering we are involved in. What hope do you think we have in really turning things around at this point?

Frank: When I look at the events in the Middle East, the escalation of war and all the destruction that results, it is hard to be optimistic in of our own accord. The Lebanese youth are enraged at what they perceive as unjustified aggression. The Israelis, likewise. As the destruction adds up, the opportunities for reconciliation, the hope of living a 'happy, normal life', diminish with each missile. Desperation set in and you have a fresh pool of youth willing to blow themselves up, trading in a hopeless reality for the delusion of countless virgins in another existence. I do think that every effort should be put forth to address these problems- we should be seeking a resolution to political tension, we should be adopting children in Africa to stop the hunger, we should become aware of our environment and protect it in any way we can. We can make a huge difference in individual lives. As to turning things around, I don't think so. It's impossible to turn around a "Titanic", when impact is minutes away. But in the end, we have the certainty of a renewed earth, the unwavering promise by the same creator that fashioned this earth in the first place.

Juanita: What is the ultimate message you are conveying to readers through your book "Multitudes at the Crossroads"?

Frank: Look around you, do not be deceived. Things are not as rosy as some would want you to believe. Do the research, get your own answers. See what the Bible says, examine the prophetic record. Be prepared.

Juanita: Why do you feel so passionately about getting the message of your book out there?

Frank: I feel very passionate about this message because time is running fast. I see my own children, my students and friends, living like there is no tomorrow. There is much one need to do to prepare for a storm. Ignoring it will not make it go away.

Juanita: Who should read your book?

Frank: All those that are concerned with what they see in CNN. Those that have taken leave of their relation with God. Those that are seeking answers. On the cover it also addresses "the would be critic" because I run into many intelligent and educated people that have absolutely no knowledge of the Bible and discard it without as much as a thought. I think we need to continue to seek answers because the more we know, the more educated our choices. We all need a wake up call about now.

Juanita: Frank, how can readers find out more about you and your book "Multitudes at the Crossroads?"

Frank: Visit http://www.trafford.com/05-2503 . There you will be able to read excerpts from different chapters. They are the publishers, so the book will go out to you faster. Or you can buy the book from Amazon online on special order (it will take a little longer to get to you). If you would like to write to me, do so at fjcol@coqui.net.

Juanita: Thanks so much for talking with us today Frank. You have given us much to think about as we continue on in our daily lives. Do you have any last thoughts for your readers?

Frank: Education is expensive. Ignorance is so much more so. If you hide your head in the sand, you will miss the grandest of all times, the one just ushering in.

Business Confidence on the Rise

2010-04-10T23:30:00.001-07:00

Despite failing economic growth and predictions for lower than average GDP growth in New Zealand, a recent report released by business consultant Grant Thornton illustrated that over two thirds of businesses are optimistic about the future outlook for their performance in 2010. The global survey interviewed more than 7,400 businesses across 36 economies for its annual International Business Report. The results are staggering compared to the same time last year where only 15% of those surveyed in New Zealand were optimistic about the outlook for 2009, compared with 66% for the upcoming year, resulting in New Zealand being rated the seventh most optimistic nation in the world. The turn of confidence is believed to be in part due to many New Zealand businesses, and their owners, scrutinising and streamlining their operations, becoming more cost efficient and effective.

With commerce confidence growing exponentially and key economic indicators showing signs that the worst of the recession is now past, there has never been a better time to peruse the market for a new business venture. Questions must be asked as to whether to start a business from scratch or to purchase an established business. With the high rate of failure of new business ventures, purchasing an established business can be a more secure and profitable method to take. Investing in a proven commerce model or an existing business with an established customer base, cash flow, suppliers and systemised operations can reduce the risks of the new venture, while securing instant income.

The question of where to identify potential opportunities in the market is best answered through the services of an experienced business broker, employed by a reputable real estate company. Business brokers are happy to meet and discuss your specific needs and requirements, assisting you in the process of matching your skills and experience with a trade that will compliment the knowledge base you possess. An excellent place to start is to peruse the website of the company that the business broker is employed by, identifying the various types, locations and price ranges of businesses available for sale in New Zealand. If there is nothing suitable to be found, your business broker will be able to network through their contacts in the industry and source a venture as per your requirements.

When deciding to purchase a business for sale in New Zealand, ensure that you assess the skills and strengths that you bring to the operation, and whether they correlate with the required skills for the successful operation of the business. Determine how much you are willing to risk, the budgetary limits you have, the hours you will work and the potential impacts on your lifestyle, market conditions and future outlook. Ensure that much care is taken with the due diligence process of researching the industry, its background and performance. Business brokers will be able to assist you with this process.

Alternative Tourism Strategies In The Sultanate Of Oman

2010-04-09T23:12:00.001-07:00

The Sultanate of Oman is a country rich in Heritage and culture with a vast array of tourism attractions and natural beauty; making for a true Arabian experience. Yet, when holiday makers hear or think about Oman, the thoughts are often associated with a wealthy Oil rich country and not that of a holiday destination. This is where the need for a radical boost in Omani tourism stems from.

The Ministry of National Economy conducted a survey for both inbound and outbound tourism in 2001 and 2002. The results showed that in 2002, Oman received just over 1.1 million arrivals, of which only 35% were holiday markers. In the governments economic summary in 2003 'vision for Oman's Economy; Oman 2020' it was noted that Oil currently provided 40% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), however by 2020 it is expected that it will fall to 20%, as Oman is not as rich in Oil as its neighboring gulf countries. The government is therefore seeking alternative sectors for economic growth and Tourism has been selected as one of the sectors.

At 1.7% of GDP the tourism industry has a lot of development to do, if it is to compensate for a lack of Oil in the Economy. Prior to the 1970's Oman was a closed and isolated economy, therefore new policies are encouraged to educate the world on its tourism gems. As a way forward, the government established the Tourism Ministry in 2004, to help address these issues.

Oman boasts a diverse range of well known tourist attractions such as archaeology, modern history, culture, traditional souks (Arabian markets) and architecture. The architecture in Oman ranges from forts to castles built by the Portuguese who colonised Oman for over a century until 1650. It seems evident that tourists are not aware of the other gems Oman has to offer, such as scuba diving and ecotourism.

I sought to speak to tourists at one of the grandest and first six-star hotels in Oman the Shangri-La Resort & spa. An English family stated the reason for their trip was they felt Dubai (their former holiday destination) had become too commercialised and crowded; Oman offered them a more relaxing holiday experience, with its vast beaches and hospitable natives. This is a unique selling point for Oman as the Tourism Ministry is focusing on quality rather than quantity of tourists, therefore attracting those that wish to relax in beautiful surroundings whilst respecting local customs. Oman also has an advantage over other gulf countries, with its comparatively temperate climate.

On the other hand, a family with differing interests were from Germany, as it happens they arrived in Oman on the spur of the moment and were not in fact aware of all the country had to offer. I then proceeded to tell them about one of Oman's little Gems, watching the Turtles nesting in the Wilayat of Sur; they were intrigued and keen to make a trip there. As these tourists would pay for sightseeing and ecotourism trips in addition to staying at hotels, they are therefore the market segment Oman should focus on; those that wish to experience the vast richness of the natural surroundings of Oman.

According to the inbound Tourism survey , 2002, some general figures on the average expenditure of tourists in Oman are as follows: The average tourist in Oman spends 83 Omani Riyals (OMR) equivalent to $215 USD. Europeans spend 147 OMR, Asians 81 OMR, Gulf cooperative countries 59 OMR, other Arab nations 78 OMR and the remaining tourists spend 152 OMR (equivalent to $380, $209, $152, and $201 USD respectively). It is hoped, that by diversifying the tourism attractions, Oman will encourage more tourists with a higher disposable income; yielding a higher average expenditure.

With the expansion of new hotels and developments in Oman like the Wave, the country will be able to accommodate for an increase in tourists and thus the demand for accommodation, spa's, golf courses and restaurants. The Wave is one of the largest developments in Muscat costing $900 million USD and is scheduled to open in 2008. It will be an extremely luxurious residential and tourist area, comprising of a golf course with 505 luxury villas located around it and around the beach, luxury condominiums, apartments and luxury hotels. It will also include a marina with a Yacht Club and moorings for 250 boats, a marina village with retail outlets, restaurants and an international market.

Although the wave is the biggest development in Oman, there are several other similar ones and no doubt many more to be developed in the future; thus accommodating for both expatriates and tourists.

Accommodating tourists in not an issue, however, keeping them entertained and gaining new holiday makers that would not have considered Oman, remains an issue. It seems the majority of tourists in Oman come to enjoy the relaxation aspect of the country, but if there was more of a focus on additional activities or even adventure activities, there could be a greater influx of tourism in the country.

The Tourism Ministry has sought new strategies to promote tourism by focusing on the ecotourism and adventure tourism sectors. By focusing on the potential for adventure tourism such as rock climbing, bouldering, diving, camping and also on ecotourism, we find Oman provides the perfect setting for those seeking adventure.

Rock climbing and bouldering Tourists coming from Europe will benefit from the warm climate for a climbing destination. With more than 160 climbs for all levels and with many unclimbed mountain limestone; it is the ultimate climbing experience.

Rock climbers can climb throughout Oman with its mountainous geography; more specifically they can take to the Musandam peninsula or Wadi Dhum in Nizwa (a few kilometers from Jebel Misht) which is both the highest cliff in Arabia and an established rock climbing arena. It is both an exciting and intriguing experience as the most remote Musadami settlements are accessible only by sea. The Musadami region with its sheltered fjords is a fantastic canoeing destination; it is also a fantastic diving destination. Alternatively, for those seeking diving destinations closer to Muscat, the majority of hotel resorts offer scuba diving. For those that require lessons the dive centre with its private secluded beach, runs PADI courses and also have several trips a day to the most beautiful diving spots. Alongside the specialised activities, tourists can enjoy water sports such as Jet skiing at most hotels.

Ecotourism is prevalent and protected in Oman; Oman is cited by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) as a country with one of the best records in environmental conservation. Bird watchers will love Al Wusta with more than 130 species of bird; an estimated 372 species of bird nest or migrate through Oman.

Tourists that are looking for a new experience can make the trip to the Ra's Al Hadd peninsula, located in the Wilayat of Sur in the Sharqiya region. Oman is a nesting area for green turtles in the Indian Ocean and in Sur you will be able to witness the protected Green turtle as it lays its eggs, or if you're lucky you will see some hatchlings. Sur is the migration destination for 6000-13000 turtles that make their annual journey, from the East African Coast, the Red Sea to the Arabian Gulf. Additionally, Oman has a number of exotic and rare animals such as the Arabian oryx, the Arabian wolf, the gazelle, the leopard, the caracal lynx, taher and the striped hyena.

With the new strategies from the Tourism Ministry supported by the government, Oman should be well on its way to an increase, even doubling Tourism by 2010; resulting in an increase in employment opportunities in Oman by creating new jobs from construction to catering. The Omani infrastructure will be able to support the tourists and Oman's sense of identity will not be harmed by the government's approach of quality rather than quantity. By creating a unique mix of a tourism product for those seeking culture and adventure, Omani tourists will benefit from a truly Arabian experience.

Basics of Welfare Economics

2010-04-08T23:03:00.001-07:00

Human beings are the building blocks of society. The societies agglomerate to make states. And then the nations are formed. The economy of a nation is the indicator of its prosperity. What the economy affects primarily are the people of a country. The technique, which uses the concepts of macroeconomics to achieve social goals, has been christened as welfare economics. Economics with all the data, tables, graph etc. can seem to be a very strict and rigid field. But the economists have now attached the human touch to the economic sphere too. Broadly speaking this field essentially involves the distribution of wealth among all the people and hence providing them with the buying capacity.

The need for this approach to study economics arises because of the increasing index of poverty. The people normally do not pay heed to the poor and the needy. There are increasing numbers of people involved in minimum wage jobs. They are employed but yet poor. The wage jobs do not cover the medical insurance or education for the kids. Now in this situation the person prefers to fulfill the need of a square meal then to go for the education option.

In a democratic set up it is seen that the welfare takes a high position in the agenda of the governments. This is, for one, required to ensure the votes. And secondly democracy has an influence of socialism and communism in it, thus the psyche of the government is for the benefit of the masses. America is known for being one such democracy. There are enough people to work for such causes.

The gamut of social welfare is very wide and anything can be brought under it. In one way it is provision of safety to the country's citizens. Safety from poverty, hunger, disease and many other things a social worker can think of. Now a very thought-worthy question arose when Ralph Nadar brought forward the concept of corporate welfare to the forefront, in 1956. This involves giving tax holidays and other regulatory leverages to the corporations. The debatable issue is that the corporate firms in a capitalist structure cannot be expected to work for the social welfare. And at every step the interests of society and the corporate seem to clash. The design of the corporate structure of the country should be such that it can cater to the needs of themselves as well as those of the society. Corporate governance jurisprudence is probably stemmed out of such conflicts.

The core issue of this problem is probably the distribution of income. The dichotomy on this count arises when one school of thought suggests the governmental influence on income slabs and the other theorizes that government should not at all be involved but it should be the sole discretion of the employer to pay the employees. The actual game lies somewhere in the middle. The governmental regulations do influence the wage schemes. The need of the hour is however, to check the accumulation majority of the wealth among a few hands.

The economic reforms to boost the grass root level employees too have to be brought because it is they who really are at the hem of the economic growth. The new approach is good from the point of view of the low-income people but a balance has to be struck between their interests and the interests of business giants.

Vision India - 2025 (Expectations of an Ordinary Person)

2010-04-07T21:55:00.001-07:00

Introduction

The way one lyrist has written, "Hum logo ko samajh sako to samjho dilbar jaani; jitna bhi tum samjhoge utni hogi hayerani"...in a nut-shell we Indian's are most "unpredictable". When the expectations are low...we have performed really well and contrary to that when expectations were very high...most of the time we have failed to live up to those expectations.

As we are going to complete 58 yrs of independence on 15th August 2005, it is a pleasure to share with you the facts about India, Vision India 2025 (From Ordinary person's point of View), and India in 21st Century.

From Independence...till now

India was a British colony. It earned its independence from the British on 15th August 1947. Day before that Pakistan which was created as a result of partition of British India was established and flanked on two sides of India: West Pakistan which is called today Pakistan, and east Pakistan, now an independent state called Bangladesh. After its independence, the political leaders of India adopted the liberal democratic system for the country.

Since its independence, India has transformed a lot. When India attained independence in 1947, its population was around 400 million people. Now there are billion people in India. India is the largest democracy in the world. It has the biggest number of people with franchise rights and the largest number of Political Parties, which take part in election campaign.

Before its independence, India was never a single country but a bunch of different entities. Many predicted that India, because of diversities in its cultures, religion, languages, castes, manners, local histories, nationalities and identities, would not survive as a single democratic country, but would break up into smaller countries.

Since independence, India had many political problems. During independence the most burning issues were the riots between the Hindus and Muslims while the Sikhs were siding with Hindus. Another issue was convincing the Princely states not to declare independence or join Pakistan but to join the Indian Union. India also had a few wars with its neighbors on border issues.

India also has many internal problems. Different communities with different identities - regional, language, caste, religion - demanded different rights for their communities. Some communities demanded more autonomy for their cultures within the Indian states. Others demanded autonomous states within the Indian Union, while the others demanded to be independent from India.

With all its problems India survives as a single state with democratic character.

How much do you know about India? (India - Fact File)

Location: Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

Population: 1,080,264,388 (July 2005 est.)

Population Growth Rate: 1.4% (2005 est.)

Life expectancy: 64.35 years

Sex ratio: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Composition of Religion: Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.1% (2001 census)

Languages: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language

Administrative Break-up: 28 states and 7 union territories

Executive Heads: President A.P.J. Abdul KALAM (since 26 July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT (since 19 August 2002)
Head of government: Prime Minister Manmohan SINGH (since May 2004)

Economic Overview: India's diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of services. Services are the major source of economic growth, though two-thirds of the workforce is in agriculture. The UPA government has committed to furthering economic reforms and developing basic infrastructure to improve the lives of the rural poor and boost economic performance. Government controls on foreign trade and investment have been reduced in some areas, but high tariffs (averaging 20% in 2004) and limits on foreign direct investment are still in place. The government has indicated it will do more to liberalize investment in civil aviation, telecom, and insurance sectors in the near term. Privatization of government-owned industries has proceeded slowly, and continues to generate political debate; continued social, political, and economic rigidities hold back needed initiatives. The economy has posted an excellent average growth rate of 6.8% since 1994, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers. Despite strong growth, the World Bank and others worry about the combined state and federal budget deficit, running at approximately 9% of GDP. The huge and growing population is the fundamental social, economic, and environmental problem. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took at least 60,000 lives in India, caused massive destruction of property, and severely affected the fishing fleet.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $3.319 trillion (2004 est.)

Important Years for India, since independence

1947: India gains independence at the stroke of midnight on Aug. 15. Hours before, Pakistan is born. As many as 6 million people cross the communal border in a two-way exodus. Rampages among Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs claim a million lives.

1948: Spiritual leader Mohandas "Mahatma" Gandhi is shot dead Jan. 30 by a Hindu extremist. An advocate of non-violent political action, Gandhi had campaigned against British rule and sectarian violence for two decades.

The fighting stops in Kashmir; the disputed territory belongs to India.

1951: India's first Five-Year Plan is initiated.

1961: Indian troops move in to liberate Goa from the Portuguese.

1962: Indo-Chinese hostilities break out on the Tibetan border.

1965: Political tension rises with Pakistan over Kashmir. India proclaims Hindi the national language.

1967: Drought and major famine strike India, especially the Bihar region.

1971: India goes to war against Pakistan, recognizes the independent state of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan).
1974: Nuclear tests are performed in the Rajasthan desert.

1975: PM Gandhi is accused of electoral crimes. A state of emergency is declared across the country, restricting political and individual rights.

1977: State of emergency ends. Cyclones plague the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu regions.

1984: Sikhs occupy the Golden Temple compound in Amritsar. On June 6, Indian troops storm the temple. On Dec. 2, a leak at the Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal kills 2,000 and leaves millions affected by chemical poisoning.

1987: Indian peacekeeping troops are sent to Sri Lanka to deal with Tamil insurrectionists.

1990: Singh announces plans to reserve places for the lower castes in the public service. Riots erupt across the country.

Hindu militants attempt construction of a temple on the site of the former Babri Masjid mosque in Uttar Pradesh. A procession to the site leads to thousands of arrests. Clashes between police and Hindu militants occur throughout Northern India.

1992: India's worst financial scandal, involving state-owned commercial banks, leads to a major slump on the Bombay stock market.

Sectarian violence erupts after Hindu extremists level the 16th century Babri mosque at Ayodhya on Dec. 6. The violence is the worst seen since Partition. The government's offer to build a mosque and a Hindu temple at the site fails to appease both sides.

1993: Hundreds are killed when bombs go off in Bombay public buildings. Four days later, a bomb ignites in Calcutta. Pakistan denies complicity.

1995: The World Bank allocates a $980 million loan, its largest ever, to aid Indian bank reforms.

2002: Communal riots in Gujarat, hundred's of people were killed.

Vision India, 2025 (From an Ordinary Person's Point of View)

1) Ensure dignity, Self-Respect and Pride for each individual, irrespective of age, gender, region or religion.

2) Drinking Water, Food, Cloth, Shelter and education for all.

3) World Class infrastructure: roads, airports and railways.

4) Every year there is a loss of billions of rupees due to flood; only solution is "Unification" of all rivers.

5) Only one caste (Brotherhood) and one religion (Humanity), across the length and breadth of the country.

6) No "reservation", no subsidiary, no "special privilege" and no discount, on the basis of Region, Religion, Community, Profession and Community.

7) Minimum education (Graduate), Minimum Administrative Experience (7-10 yrs) and retirement age (67 yrs) for all politicians. Also, annual appraisal system for all ministers.

(These are the few points, I am able to pen down; however I have not mentioned anything about security and foreign policy...because as an ordinary person above mentioned things are of more importance than anything else)

India in 21st Century

Everyone recognizes that the twenty-first century is the Century of Knowledge. Nations, which have mastered the production of knowledge, its dissemination, its conversion into wealth and social good and its protection have assumed a leadership position in the world today. But it must be recognized that knowledge without innovation is of no value. It is through the process of innovation alone that new knowledge can be created. It is innovation, which converts knowledge into wealth and social good.

India was a leader in innovation several centuries ago. In fact, our innovations were diverse and pioneering. They included

1. Remarkable town planning,

2. The use of standardized burnt bricks for dwelling houses

3. Interlinked drainage systems

4. Wheel-turned ceramics and solid-wheeled carts.

5. The dockyard at Lothal in Gujarat is regarded as the largest maritime structure ever built by a bronze-age community.

6. The discovery of zero and the decimal place value system by Indians dates back to the Vedic period.

7. Our pioneering work in algebra, trigonometry and geometry was truly outstanding.

8. Indian innovations in medicine, especially in Ayurveda, not only aimed at the cure of diseases but, more importantly, on the preservation of health.

9. The innovations in surgery included pioneering efforts in laprotomy, lithotomy and plastic surgery.

10. The iron pillar at Delhi, which testifies to the achievements in metallurgy some 1500 years ago, is truly inspirational even today.

Indian civilization was characterized by scientific thought, capabilities and techniques at levels far more advanced than others.

In spite of this great heritage and record of accomplishments, why did India fall behind in the ensuing centuries? When the scientific and industrial revolutions took place in the West a few hundred years ago, there was a period of stagnation in India. The lack of development over this period was a result of a hierarchical approach, irrational subjective thinking, and build up of superstitions and superficial ritualism. We have lost the leadership position. This cannot continue into the twenty-first century. We must regain this position with determined action.

Our confidence in building the new innovative India of our dreams stems from our major successes in the arena of many technological innovations that have made such a difference to the nation. Some prominent examples include
the blue (space), green (agriculture), white (milk) and gray (software) revolutions. Let us just take one example.

1. The Indian space program, for example, has designed and sent into space a series of satellites that, among other things, comprise the largest domestic communication system in the Asia-Pacific region.

2. It has also developed a range of launch vehicles, the most recent being a geo-synchronous launch vehicle with an 1800 kg payload. These developments have helped in the application of space technology for national needs in communication, meteorology, broadcasting, and remote sensing. All of this has been achieved in a relatively cost-effective manner. The Indian space programmer's current annual budget is equivalent to US $450 million while NASA's budget, in comparison, is over $15 billion.

3. Other innovations serving specific Indian needs include C-DOT digital switches, CorDECT cost-effective wireless-local-loop products, the Simputer, which is a low-cost computer and the Param supercomputer.

4. The last is an example of "denial-driven innovation," illustrating that India has the potential to tackle highly advanced technological issues, given the proper motivation.

Conclusion

Yesterday was good since then we have traveled a lot; covered a lot of distance, but still there are miles to go. Building a nation is not easy. We have to "learn from our past and focus on future". The way ahead is not easy...is not a bed of roses. Instead of pulling each other, lets grow together...lets be a "Team India".

On this independence, this is all I have to share...to write.
Have a great day and take care of yourself.

Awaiting your feedback and comments,

Wag the Dog - How to Conceal Massive Economic Collapse

2010-04-06T21:47:00.001-07:00

"I'm in show business, why come to me?"

"War is show business, that's why we're here."

- "Wag the Dog" (1997 film)

The first week of August 2008, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had just announced record losses, and so had most reporting corporations. Unemployment was mounting, the foreclosure crisis was deepening, state budgets were in shambles, and massive bailouts were everywhere. Investors had every reason to expect the dollar and the stock market to plummet, and gold and oil to shoot up. Strangely, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 300 points, the dollar strengthened, and gold and oil were crushed. What happened?

It hardly took psychic powers to see that the Plunge Protection Team had come to the rescue. Formally known as the President's Working Group on Financial Markets, the PPT was once concealed and its very existence denied as if it were a matter of strict national security. But the PPT has now come out of the closet. What was once a legally questionable "manipulator" of markets has become a sanctioned stabilizer and protector of markets. The new tone was set in January 2008, when global markets took their worst tumble since September 11, 2001. Senator Hillary Clinton said in a statement reported by the State News Service:

"I think it's imperative that the following step be taken. The President should have already and should do so very quickly, convene the President's Working Group on Financial Markets. That's something that he can ask the Secretary of the Treasury to do. This has to be coordinated across markets with the regulators here and obviously with regulators and central banks around the world."

The mystery over what was going on with the dollar the first week in August was solved by James Turk, founder of GoldMoney, who wrote on August 7:

"[T]he banking problems in the United States continue to mount, while the federal government's deficit continues to soar out of control. So what happened to cause the dollar to rally over the past three weeks? In a word, intervention. Central banks have propped up the dollar, and here's the proof.

"When central banks intervene in the currency markets, they exchange their currency for dollars. Central banks then use the dollars they acquire to buy US government debt instruments so that they can earn interest on their money. The debt instruments central banks acquire are held in custody for them at the Federal Reserve, which reports this amount weekly.

"On July 16, 2008 the Federal Reserve reported holding $2,349 billion of US government paper in custody for central banks. In its report released today, this amount had grown over the past three weeks to $2,401 billion, a 38.4% annual rate of growth. So central banks were accumulating dollars over the past three weeks at a rate far above what one would expect as a result of the US trade deficit. The logical conclusion is that they were intervening in currency markets. They were buying dollars for the purpose of propping it up, to keep the dollar from falling off the edge of the cliff and doing so ignited a short covering rally, which is not too difficult to do given the leverage employed in the markets these days by hedge funds and others."

Just as central banks manipulate currencies in concert, so gold can be manipulated by massive selling of central bank reserves. Oil and any other market can be manipulated as well. But markets can be manipulated by only so much and for only so long without fixing the underlying problem. There is more bad news coming down the pike, news of such magnitude that no amount of ordinary manipulation is liable to conceal it.

For one thing, roughly $400 billion in ARMs (adjustable rate mortgages) have or will reset between March and October of this year. Assuming 3 to 6 months for strapped debtors to actually hit the wall with their payments, a huge wave of defaults is about to strike, continuing through March 2009 - just in time for the next huge wave of resets, in option ARMs. Option ARMs are loans with the option to pay even less than just the interest on the loan monthly, increasing the loan balance until the loan reaches a certain amount (typically 110% to 125% of the original loan balance), when it resets. The $800 billion credit line recently opened to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may be not only tapped but tapped out, at taxpayer expense. The underlying problem is little discussed but impossible to repair - a one quadrillion dollar derivatives scheme that is now imploding. Banks everywhere are facing massive writeoffs, putting the whole banking system on the brink of collapse. Only public bailouts will save it, but they could bankrupt the nation.

What to do? War and threats of war have been used historically to distract the population and deflect public scrutiny from economic calamity. As the scheme was summed up in the trailer to the 1997 movie "Wag the Dog" -

"There's a crisis in the White House, and to save the election, they'd have to fake a war."

Perhaps that explains the sudden breakout of war in the Eurasian country of Georgia on August 8, just 3 months before the November elections. August 8 was the day the Olympic Games began in Beijing, a distraction that may have been timed to keep China from intervening on Russia's behalf. The mainstream media version of events is that Russia, the bully on the block, invaded its tiny neighbor Georgia; but not all commentators agree. Mikhail Gorbachev, writing in The Washington Post on August 12, observed:

"What happened on the night of Aug. 7 is beyond comprehension. The Georgian military attacked the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali with multiple rocket launchers designed to devastate large areas. Russia had to respond. To accuse it of aggression against 'small, defenseless Georgia' is not just hypocritical but shows a lack of humanity. The Georgian leadership could do this only with the perceived support and encouragement of a much more powerful force."

Bruce Gagnon, coordinator of the Global Network against Weapons and Nuclear Power, commented in OpEdNews on August 11:

"The U.S. has long been involved in supporting 'freedom movements' throughout this region that have been attempting to replace Russian influence with U.S. corporate control. The CIA, National Endowment for Democracy and Freedom House (includes Zbigniew Brzezinski, former CIA director James Woolsey, and Obama foreign policy adviser Anthony Lake) have been key funders and supporters of placing politicians in power throughout Central Asia that would play ball with 'our side'. None of this is about the good guys versus the bad guys. It is power bloc politics. Big money is at stake. [B]oth parties (Republican and Democrat) share a bi-partisan history and agenda of advancing corporate interests in this part of the world. Obama's advisers, just like McCain's (one of his top advisers was recently a lobbyist for the current government in Georgia) are thick in this stew."

Brzezinski, who is now Obama's adviser, was Jimmy Carter's foreign policy adviser in the 1970s. He also served in the 1970s as director of the Trilateral Commission, which he co-founded with David Rockefeller Sr., considered by some to be the "master spider" of the Wall Street banking network. Brzezinski, who wrote a book called The Grand Chessboard, later boasted of drawing Russia into war with Afghanistan in 1979, "giving to the Soviet Union its Vietnam War." Is the Georgia affair an attempted repeat of that coup? Mike Whitney, a popular Internet commentator, observed on August 11:

"Washington's bloody fingerprints are all over the invasion of South Ossetia. Georgia President Mikhail Saakashvili would never dream of launching a massive military attack unless he got explicit orders from his bosses at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. After all, Saakashvili owes his entire political career to American power-brokers and US intelligence agencies. If he disobeyed them, he'd be gone in a fortnight. Besides an operation like this takes months of planning and logistical support; especially if it's perfectly timed to coincide with the beginning of the Olympic games. (another petty neocon touch) That means Pentagon planners must have been working hand in hand with Georgian generals for months in advance. Nothing was left to chance."

Part of that careful planning may have been the unprecedented propping up of the dollar and bombing of gold and oil the week before the curtain opened on the scene. Gold and oil had to be pushed down hard to give them room to rise before anyone shouted "hyperinflation!" As we watch the curtain rise on war in Eurasia, it is well to remember that things are not always as they seem. Markets are manipulated and wars are staged by Grand Chessmen behind the scenes.

Navigating The Economic Recession Of 2008

2010-04-05T21:40:00.001-07:00

Panic and fear are everywhere in early 2008. An economic recession in the United States is now the topic on everyone's mind. Most of the world's stock markets have already lost more than twenty percent of their value in the last couple of months. This dramatic drop in stock market values signals a new bear market for domestic and international equities.

Many pundits on the financial channels blame Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke for this economic downturn. The belief is that the Fed did not lower interest rates enough in response to the housing lenders sub prime mortgage problems in 2007. Indeed the massive write-off's of bad loans by Citibank and other mortgage lenders are enough to give anyone pause.

Recently, to head off an economic downturn, the Bush administration proposed an economic stimulus package of tax rebates to increase the consumers' ability to spend. Consumer spending is vital for the United States to avoid a prolonged economic downturn. The Congress (which is now back in session) has promised fast bi-partisan consideration to that stimulus package as soon as possible. Giving back taxpayers their money, without having to cut government spending, is what politicians love to do, especially in an election year. On the campaign trail in the Presidential election in 2008, the focus has shifted away from the war in Iraq to the state of the faltering United States economy.

So, what can we expect during the recession of 2008? First, it helps to know exactly what one is. A recession is defined as a period when real gross national product (GNP) has declined for at least two consecutive quarters. How long this recession will last is anyone's guess. However, history does tells us that the average recession since 1945 in the United States has been an event that has lasted about ten months.

With a recession looming, the Federal Reserve will dramatically lower interest rates to stimulate the economy in the first few months of 2008. A recession in the United States will lead to a worldwide slowdown in economic activity. Oil prices and commodity prices will at least temporarily fall with reduced demand. People will lose jobs as the pace of business slows, leading to a rise in the national unemployment rate. Housing prices will continue to decline as has been the case during the better part of the last year. The stock market decline will continue until the market sees evidence of the beginning of a new period of business expansion.

The psychology of fear plays a major part in all recessions. Job insecurity and the declining prices in people's homes and investment portfolios are not a formula for anything else. Americans may remember the quote of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He said, " The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." before America came out of the Great Depression early in the twentieth century.

The truth is that recessions are unavoidable. They happen as a normal part of the business cycle. Hopefully this recession will be mild and a recovery will begin in the third quarter of 2008. The good news is that recessions do provide opportunity for the long term equity investor. Those who have a long term investment time horizon should consider that equities will be on sale in 2008.

So what should we do to prepare for an economic recession in 2008? It is a time to pay off debt and be financially conservative. We should build an emergency fund in case of job loss. We should be awaiting an opportunity to put excess investment capital for the long term to work. It is also an opportunity to see how the presidential candidates respond to the economy's problems on the campaign trail.

A recession does not mean listening to media hype and selling investment assets in a panic. For the long term investor, it is certainly not the time to sell investments in equities. Remember the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt that fear is the real enemy in a recession. "Buying low and selling high" in the stock market really means controlling and conquering this fear. History tell us that the economy should be much better later this year and investment markets are outstanding performers in the years following recessions.

Therefore, to properly navigate the U.S. recession of 2008 is to control fear, be financially prudent, create an emergency fund, and look for attractive investment opportunities with long term investment capital.

Current Housing Market Meltdown Only the First of Many Foreclosure Crises

2010-04-04T21:36:00.001-07:00

With all of the bad economic news coming out every day, and the continuing collapse of housing prices and record foreclosure numbers, it often seems like the situation just can not get any worse. Unfortunately, the numbers being reported now about the number of foreclosures compared to a year ago quite underestimate the problem, as foreclosures take months to wind their way through the legal system.

This means that the high foreclosure rates have not yet begun to reflect what is happening in the real estate markets right now, as the numbers only represent how many homeowners defaulted on their mortgages nearly half a year ago or more. In some states with redemption periods after a foreclosure auction, homeowners who are currently falling behind may not be counted in the economic numbers for more than a year or two, depending on how far behind courts and banks are in pursuing foreclosure lawsuits against defaulting homeowners.

All of the current and coming economic collapse may very well indicate the end of the concept of "growth" as a measurement of the health of a nation or its people. Even as it has become more and more difficult to grow out of one problem or another, banks, investment firms, and government have all worked together to keep up an illusion of constant growth. But in order to keep up the illusion, corruption and deception have been relied upon to cook the books and manipulate the numbers.

Various tricks have been used for years to create an illusion of economic growth, when the reality of the situation is simply that more people are working longer hours for more of their lives and never getting ahead. Elderly couples who receive too little from Social Security and retirement accounts to pay their bills have to work, which means economic growth. People who eat out everyday contribute more to economic growth than families who make their own meals. Computers get faster, so the higher processing numbers count as economic growth even though the difference may be negligible. Such delusions of progress at the expense of personal satisfaction can be found in nearly all of the official accounting of growth.

Both political parties have benefited from the subprime mortgage fiasco and both presidential candidates have ties to the mortgage companies that have ensured the impoverishment and homelessness of many of their victims. And no matter who wins the White House, this corruption can be expected to continue as long as the propaganda of infinite economic growth remains firmly entrenched in the public mind. As the economy grows, so too will government regulations and control, which usually restricts the freedom of individuals while rewarding the corruption of politically-connected lobbying groups.

As the country goes into a deeper recession than has been experienced in decades, with June 2008 being the worst June month for the stock market since 1930, homeowners may wish to look to their own families and communities for foreclosure assistance. Even if local banks are able to remain open and avoid falling victim to the financial manipulations of the large money center banks, there may be little credit available for borrowers in the coming years. Local solutions will keep some communities together and in good health, while the subprime crisis turns less well-connected areas of the country into ghost towns.

So Tell Me a Little Bit About AIG?

2010-04-03T21:28:00.001-07:00

Why is the Federal Reserve working so hard to bail out AIG? Well, maybe you do not realize this, but AIG is a world-wide company, it is one of the largest companies on the planet. It insures nearly every building, airliner, ship, oil platform and re-insure lease agreements and deals around the World. They are a huge life-insurance company. They have a 10 Billion Dollar aircraft leasing business, they have the largest network of broker dealers and financial planners.

They are the ones who insure and re-insure in case of huge calamities, and have the ability to hold up entire economies if catastrophe strikes. They operate in over 100 companies, they even have insurance policies based on Sharia Law if you can believe that, and in China, it's AIG or no one. See, how big it is? See why it's so important to the world economies? If we allow AIG to go bust, the ripple effect will take out a huge number of companies.

They insured the deals behind Lehman Brothers and so many other investment banks. Can you imagine if all those policies simply stopped? No one would have insurance, no financial asset would be safe, every major company would have their financial credit rating downgraded. Our stock market would lose 2,000 pts and other world stock markets would simple collapse and trillions of dollars would evaporate in an instant.

The Japanese Stock Market was up along with other stock markets round the world as soon as news hit the wires that a deal to loan the company was reached. This loan will enable AIG to make good on all its obligations and insurance deals. AIG is not a company that is full of corruption, not even a little bit, it's one the best companies on the planet in fact.

AIGs recent problems stemmed from exposure to runaway bubble games in the subprime lending fiasco, that took down some of the largest investment banks in the United States and still threatens regular banks in the US and Foreign Banks. AIG's government backed "loan" is a god's send to our trading partners right now and this move most likely saved the US economy from "certain death" in this Earthquake that rocked the financial world like a Hurricane the threatened to blow our house down. Think on this.

The Sluggish Fed - Why Its Bad for the Economy

2010-04-02T18:05:00.001-07:00

In recent months, fallout from the sub-prime mortgage scandal has been estimated in the hundreds of billions, up from figures of $100 billion maximum from the Federal Reserve only three months ago. While the Fed has, in an unprecedented move, cut interest rates three consecutive times in as many months, their cuts have always given investors the impression that a later cut was inevitable, cycling in a self-fulfilling prophesy that has played out poorly for the American economy as investment and stocks have been relatively cool. This behavior reflects a prevalent attitude that the situation will get worse before it gets better, and that uncertainty is the single biggest enemy of economic growth.

An interesting point of comparison for the Fed's actions in recent months is to use other central banks, such as the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of England (BoE). These banks have taken a somewhat different tact against the sub-prime problems. As early as August, the ECB and BoE decided to tighten lending standards and require that potential borrowers be have informed consent, so as to avoid a repeat problem of this magnitude. The Fed had to be threatened with losing their ability to set policy in a similar fashion for them to take action. When they did, their rules did not apply retroactively in any respect to the predatory loaning, but it did at least set some precedent for responsibility in the mortgage market.

These actions beg the question: Why is the Fed so darn sluggish? At nearly every turn, the US central bank has taken too little action far too late. All of their rate cuts have been anticipated like thunder after the lightning starts a massive forest fire. Their one response that wasn't completely acknowledged beforehand was the joint decision by the major banks to inject billions into the financial system overnight, which only worked because it was such a concerted effort. These circumstances bely an important aspect of the Fed's ability to help guide the economy: Sometimes a surprise is in order. The only reason for the Fed's reticence against a large, definitive rate cut is because of the ever-present threat of inflation.

Yet as oil reaches the $100- a- barrel mark and food and commodity demand consistently outstrips supply, it seems their ability to exercise control over inflation seems a bit dubious. Granted, this scenario is without precedent, but so would be a 1% Fed cut in a single day. The difference is that a cut of that size would send a message that the economy is in real danger, but that the Federal Reserve is capable of taking that threat seriously and in a timely fashion- something that they have obviously failed to do in recent months.

Their single remaining hope is that the sub-prime crisis will not be felt as heavily outside of the money markets it has already impacted, but as credit card companies and other financial institutions that have no primary connection to the crisis have begun complaining that, if people can't pay their mortgages, they probably won't be able to pay their mounting credit card bills, the Fed's options seem increasingly limited. If nothing else, hopefully recent events will stimulate quicker action on the part of Bernanke and associates.

World Poverty, How Do We Get People Involved The Poverty That Faces Our Country And The World?

2010-04-01T17:32:00.001-07:00

Stopping poverty that faces our country and the world today.I know People are starving to death in our country and around the world today. I want to know why are countries not doing more to solve this problem?I want People around the world wake up and see what is happening to children and their families in your country. Look at the poverty that exists every where people live.I want to know how world leaders going to deal with this problem? Poverty is not just a problem in our country poverty affects the whole world. I hope that countries will realize that people are dying everyday around the world for no other reason then nobody can find a answer to world wide poverty. I believe that To long countries have sat by while gets nothing done to solve the poverty situation.

I ask citizens of all countries have to step up to take part in finding answers to end poverty. I do not want any to see another person be born into poverty. I think that it is time for all out countries to work together to change poverty in the world. I believe that changes have to be made in all our countries involved to solve poverty that takes the lives of so many people? I am tired of young children and their families are dying in every country today I know People are tired starving to death from poverty.I think that this is most senseless waste of human life I have ever seen.

Stopping poverty in our country and around the world is all our responsibility. I believe that Countries must reach out and feed their people. I believe all these want people is to be feed and start healing for all of them.I hope People in every country will stop and take a look around and see all the senseless human suffering that exists in all of our countries. Then I would ask all countries what they can do to help to these families that are suffering from poverty? I think that all countries should take time to reach out to help their people with this problem. Maybe all I can do is speak out to these countries to other about how to help solve poverty. I think this will create world wide action to get all countries involved in dealing with world wide poverty.

I believe that Poverty is every countries problem to work with their people to solve. I hope that this article will get conversation going around our world on how every country can contribute to the end of poverty. I am writing this article to raise the worlds awareness to never let any child starve to death again

I Think that all countries should speak out on any idea that they have solve world poverty. I know that this is a problem that faces every country but we all have a responsibility to make sure that all people are feed. No longer can our countries leave all this work for missionaries and charities to handle all this poverty.I am One voice speaking to all countries to get faster action on dealing with poverty that faces our world. I Think about how many countries that have children and families that will die of poverty and it breaks my heart to know so many children and people are dying for no other reason then some body will not feed them. I pray that every will country really standing by and do nothing to stop poverty that kills their own?

I am calling upon all all nations to reach out to help change poverty That ends to many lives to soon. I know Children are dying of poverty every country in the world. I will write to any body I can to change this problem. I believe that no country should ever let their children die of poverty before they have had a chance to live. I believe that Dialogue is the first step to getting world cooperation to help stop poverty.I hope every country realizes young people are the future of all our nations . No religion would allow children to die of starvation why do we. I hope that World wide cooperation against poverty is the answer. I would Speak out on poverty all countries this I hope will bring and end world poverty. No matter what country I would speak out on poverty that exists in any country. I want to Stop hunger for children all over the world. I Will write what ever it takes for conversation to start between countries and their people to stop poverty. I believe that working to stop poverty in all countries has to become top priority for all nations.

Our countries may be separated by beliefs but people are still starving to death in every country of poverty and its time to stop it. I know that I am tired of watching children dying of hunger in every country. Please Speak out on poverty from countries all over the world . Our nations may always go to war over different beliefs this is still no reason for people to die of hunger. I hope all our countries will unite to feed their people and end poverty. I hope that this article will give people hope in all countries that some day no one will have to die of hunger. Our countries may disagree. I do believe Countries can still work to end poverty that takes so many people from our nations.

I believe that these are the basic rights of all people to have food clothing medical attention these are basic human rights of people in all nations. I believe that as long as one person any where in the world is dying of hunger. I believe that we all have a duty to see that no one goes hungry.I hope our country along with other Countries will start dialogs for end to poverty in all countries. I will Spread this message to all nations that poverty must stop. I need voices from all over the world to start action to end to world wide poverty. I think that it is time for all countries to stand and do whats right for all their people. United I believe that all countries can over come poverty that affects all our countries. I think that as American`s we should start the dialogs to stop poverty that is killing people all over the world. Lets prove that our nations voice can change poverty for people and children around the world.

My prayers are that all countries find respect for life to solve poverty in all our countries. Poverty affects all our nations I pray that no one will ever die of hunger again in any country. Think about this.

May god bless all countries in this fight to end poverty. I hope that this article opens up world wide dialogs on to end the problem of poverty that takes so many lives away from our nations to soon.

As always I write with respect.

Recession Or Depression In Our Economy?

2010-03-31T08:27:00.001-07:00

More than seven moths ago, I wrote an article describing, up to the very last point, what would happen to this (our country the USA), if we continued spending "Billions" (by now Trillions) of dollars in a futile war that should had never been started. All for a country that is not our country and whose problems we will never be able to resolve, nor is it our duty to resolve. This country, IRAQ, never represented a danger to the U.S., as it has been well established.

The money spent in this war, together with the housing market, and the deficit, is what has created the economic situation we are now facing.

Up to date, more than 90 banks, and many brokerage firms like Merryl Lynch, CityCorp, etc., are in serious trouble.

Just today, July 14th, 2008, hundreds of customers of the IndyMac Bank of Pasadena, California, with deposits in excess of the insured limits (100,000.), flooded The Bank branches demanding withdrawals of their money, or to get answers about the fate of their funds. For many of them, these funds represent their lives savings.

The officers of IndyMac shut down the California based Bank on Friday, and transferred control of it's assets to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC). With the failed bank now under Federal control, these hundreds of people lined up before dawn, outside its headquarters branch in Pasadena.

IndyMac is the largest regulated thrift to fail, and the second largest financial institution to close IN U.S. HISTORY.

And let's not even mention the "Stock Market". This is another economic situation completely out of control. The one meter to measure the economics of a country, is by the performance of their Stock Market (or Bolsa de Valores in Spanish).

If the stock market keeps performing the way it has been doing for many months, a RECESSION is imminent. This is a terrible sign of falling into the Great Depression of 1929. If you are aware of the crash of 1929, you will notice the similarity in patterns.

There is a limit to what the Federal Reserve can do in this situation, even though the reserves of this country are the most powerful in the whole world. The members of the Federal Reserve Board are placed on that board to exercise their own minds and their own judgments, and not to blindly succumb to arguments that have little basis "according to them", and could lead to disastrous consequences.

This means, that according to them, it is never wise to follow placidly along when good judgment should dictate otherwise. There is a phrase that critics of economic Forecasting like to use: " Give an economist a result you want, and he'll find the numbers to justify it."

There is a saying that for every ACTION THERE IS AN EQUAL AND OPPOSITE REACTION. An ill advised half percent increase in the Federal Reserve Funds, can cost hundreds of thousands of jobs and absolutely devastate whole sectors of the economy. It is an enormous power that most not be exercised lightly.

When the Federal Reserve decides to raise rates, they can tell, fairly precisely how many businesses will declare bankruptcy, how many people will loose their jobs, how many homes will be foreclosed. Other consequences might arrive if they decide to lower rates. They have all the data, neatly bound, carefully studied.

Money is the root of all evil, or perhaps more accurately stated, THE LACK OF MONEY is the root of all evil.

Many people ignore that The Federal Reserve wire transfers out more than "ONE TRILLION DOLLARS PER DAY", to maintain its policies and to insure that the commercial banking system operates smoothly.

My question is, what will happen "IF' The Federal Reserve runs out of Money. This may very well happen, although there is a very slight possibility.

Therefore, if we do not stop spending Trillions of Dollars in the war in Iraq, stop helping other countries, (EXAMPLE MEXICO), who do not even deserve it, stop the deficit, stop manufacturing goods like computers, cars and other technology overseas like in India and China to save in the price of labor, increasing unemployment in the U.S., then there will never be a solution to our many problems.

On the other hand, workers here in the U.S. most stop expecting wages of $30. or $40. an hour, benefits, vacations, unions and so many other things that make factories move to other countries with cheaper labor.

But the worst part of this whole terrifying picture is that neither one of the presidential candidates for the next presidential elections, has the "brains" or expertise to deal with the extremely serious problems that are practically killing this country.

As a matter of fact, I do not believe there is any human being able to tackle these problems.. We would need GOD himself sitting in the White House and create a "MIRACLE".

WE MUS NOT FORGET TO THANK MR. BUSH FOR DESTROYING OUR COUNTRY. All we can do is pray.

Eva de la Torriente Diaz

Can Capitalistic Countries Grow Their GDP Forever Without Repercussion?

2010-03-30T08:20:00.001-07:00

Many folks that question the ultimate end game for a capitalist nation, point to the fact that you cannot grow your GDP forever, and perhaps, you've sided with this argument on occasion. True free market thinkers will tell you that such a notion is nonsense, as an ever evolving business climate can change and find new avenues as innovation continues and that the potential for change and new offshoots is endless.

If you'd like to hear this debate taken to a whole new level leaving very few stones unturned, then I'd sure like to recommend a very good book to you, that will certainly make you think (it's about 600 pages and very comprehensive, well foot noted and researched);

"The Moral Consequences of Economic Growth" by Benjamin M Friedman; Vintage Publishing; (2006); ISBN: 978-1400095711

Very interesting book and thought topic on the subject of economic growth. It discusses the issues of economies on the top of the curve, and how shortages and disruptions are still possible; why large nations and small developing ones experience similar problems. The philosophy in the book is well founded and the arguments rather intriguing too.

The book talks about economic prosperity, GDP, taxation, float, consumer choice, standard of living. The concepts of economies of scale allowing for excesses to pay for the common good, military, social needs, education, etc. are well-defined and the argument for growth over curtailed growth to solve the challenges of civilization.

The author shows how abundance is the best choice and how that can solve the environmental issues associated with mass production better than a socialist economic mindset. He contends that a robust economy provides more choice, better freedom, stronger democracies, cleaner environment and higher standards of living all the way around. He admits that sometimes growth in the past has been problematic in some nations, but that if one has to choose, growth is a far better choice for all concerned.

Transport 21-Infrastructure Development in Ireland

2010-03-29T07:54:00.001-07:00

In recent decades Ireland has developed from a country on the brink of bankruptcy to being one of the richest nations in Europe. Economic prosperity has brought about massive changes in Ireland, but in some regards Ireland still falls behind its European neighbors. Minister for Transport, Martin Cullen aims to address these issues with a blueprint for the future development of infrastructure in Ireland, Transport 21. In the words of Martin Cullen, "the plan in full will reshape Irish transport infrastructure for the decades to come."

Transport 21 is a capital investment by the Irish Government aimed at vastly improving the transport systems in Ireland which in turn will improve accessibility for everybody in Ireland, and lead to more investment in the country. The Projects for Transport 21 are too numerous to mention here. Among the biggest projects are the Metro North, Metro West, extensions to both Luas lines, rail lines to Kildare and Navan, extensive plans for a rural railway system and the upgrade of all major routes out of Dublin to motorway standard.

The Metro North will be a completely new line, running from St Stephen's Green in Dublin City Center to Swords via Dublin Airport. Dublin Airport is the only International Airport in Europe without a rail link. The Metro North will use a combination of underground, surface and elevated tracks and it is estimated that once it is finished, that it will carry more than 34 million passengers annually. The estimated travel time from St Stephen's Green to Dublin Airport is 17 minutes with trains running at intervals between 4 minutes and 90 seconds. The line will service a total of 15 stops and once completed will add greatly to the infrastructure of Dublin.

The Metro South line will travel from Tallaght in West Dublin to meet up with the North Line near Dublin Airport. The final route has not been decided yet, but it is estimated that the line will be 28 kilometers long and will run above surface in much the same manner as the Luas tram system that is already operating in Dublin.

Without doubt the Transport 21 plan is an ambitious project, and one that if brought to completion will greatly improve the infrastructure of the whole of Ireland. There have been opposition against the Transport 21 plan in Ireland, but on the whole it is a popular initiative.

Is Inflation Harmful

2010-03-28T07:45:00.001-07:00

Q. Should the Government be concerned if the CPI rises to 5%?

The Govt set the MPC a target for CPI of 2% +/-1 therefore it believes inflation higher than 3% is potentially damaging for the economy.

It depends on inflation in other countries. If inflation in the UK is higher than elsewhere then UK goods will become uncompetitive leading to a fall in demand for UK exports.

If there is a fall in demand for Exports then there may be a deficit on the current account Balance of Payments. However this may be offset by a devaluation that is likely to occur

However if inflation is high there will be a devaluation of the exchange rate, This is something the govt wishes to avoid as it creates uncertainty amongst business.

Higher rates of inflation may cause menu costs, which means firms have to change price lists quite often. However this is not that significant when inflation is only 5%.

If inflation is caused by unsustainable economic growth then the boom may be followed by a recession . To keep inflation within target the Bank of England will have to increase interest rates, this causes problems because AD will fall causing lower growth.

Higher rates of inflation are disliked by business because it makes it more difficult to predict future costs. Therefore investment will be lower, Countries with lower inflation rates generally have poorer economic growth.

A high rate of inflation would make it more difficult to join the EURO, because it would breach the Maastricht criteria. If inflation in the UK was higher than Europe a single Monetary policy would be ineffective for the UK

If the inflation was world wide caused by an increase in the oil price, it may be necessary to revise the inflation target of 2.5% . The UK would not lose its competitive advantage because every country would have higher inflation. TO reduce inflation would cause stagflation (lower growth and lower prices)

Inflation may cause redistribution of income from savers to borrowers, although this will depend upon the rate of interest. E.g. if interest rate were 8% savers would still have a real interest rate of 3%
It depends on whether wages are keeping up with inflation. If wages were only increasing by 4% then real wages would be falling.

Should the govt be concerned with inflation falling below 2%?

If prices are falling because AS shifts to the right because of new technology, this is beneficial for the economy, because growth is increasing and jobs being created

If deflation is cause by falling AD then this is serious economic problem because it indicates a recession with problems such as unemployment, lower output and a negative multiplier effect

Deflation can cause problems for the economy. It means that those who have debts will see the real value of debts increase, this will lead to lower consumer confidence and possibly lower AD and economic growth

Deflation makes monetary policy ineffective. This is because interest rates cannot be reduced below 0%.

Companies cannot alter real wages easily because workers are very resistant to any cut in nominal wage wages.

It is more difficult to set prices when there is deflation

Obtaining a Federal Small Business Grant

2010-03-27T05:50:00.001-07:00

Obtaining a federal small business grant does not depend on any one factor; rather it is a combination of items along with availability, hard work, and a good grant proposal. Federal small business grants are made available for the promotion of small business growth. They are usually granted on the basis of geographical location, the type of business or social activity, and whether there is a potential to create economic growth.

There are three sources for finding federal small business grants. The U.S. government's grant.gov website is a good place to start. Online you will be able to view federal small business grant opportunities from all federal agencies. The site offers a free sign up for notification of future grant opportunities and as an added bonus has an automated application and approval process.

You can also search the internet for federal small business grants and loans. Be careful though when taking this route. There have been plenty of fraud cases where people are promised free money just for an application. If you come across a website promising to help you find federal small business grants make sure to look and see if they back their product with a money back guarantee or free trial period. Any reputable business will have no problem doing this. If they don't move on.

The last and most important source for identifying federal small business grants is the government's own Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance. (CFDA). The CFDA provides a listing of federal small business grants, loans and other types of financial assistance. Grant information is available by category, topic and key words. Eligibility requirements are listed for all grants to determine if you qualify for them.

After you have identified the federal small business grants you wish to apply for you must provide the funding agency with an elaborate and accurate proposal. In this written proposal you need to state your goals and a plan of operation for your business. Furthermore you should be able to come up with a ballpark figure for the amount of money you will need for your activities.

Keep in mind that not all federal small business grants are available throughout the year. That means as an applicant you need to be aware of any deadlines for a federal small business grant you are interested in obtaining. This information is made available to the public when the government agency supplying the federal small business grant makes an announcement of funds in the Federal Register. The Federal Register is published daily.

Renewed Questions About Capitalism and the Laissez Faire Economic Model

2010-03-26T05:40:00.001-07:00

The US mortgage crisis has seriously challenged the idea of laissez faire (free market) economies. What was once regarded as the soundest and progressive economic model is now suffering a crisis of confidence. No one seems to have the answers.

The free market economic model in a nutshell dictates that a government must not interfere or be involved in any economic activity. On the other extreme end you have communist economies where government owns, controls and directs all economic activity. What is important to note is that no country is fully capitalist or communist. Most countries are mixed economies defined as capitalist or communist depending on how far they lean either way.

In the early 1990's the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) came up with a series of programs known as Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP's) designed to help third world economies spur economic growth and get out of poverty.

The main thrust of these programs was:

o Third world economies were to liberalize their economies, that is, sell state assets and corporations to the private sector. In other words, governments were asked to reduce their involvement in economic activity and become free market economies.
o Reduce public spending mainly by reducing the workforce on government payroll. Third world governments were forced to downsize their work force significantly. They were also required to reduce spending in healthcare and education by removing subsidies in these sectors. In a nutshell they were to require their populations to pay for these services.

To ensure that third world governments committed to these programs; aid, grants and loans were to tied to how successful a government was in implementing these programs. The US and Europe followed suit and tied their financial support to commitment to SAP's.

The argument then was that the free market economic model was the only route to economic prosperity. We now know better given that since 1978 China's GDP has grown an average 9.9 percent a year. China's per capita income has grown at an average annual rate of more than 8% over the last three decades, drastically reducing poverty. It is now almost unanimous amongst economists that the SAP's nearly destroyed third world economies. In fact, most countries have since abandoned them completely.

What is going on in the US and now Europe is an example of what runaway, unbridled, unregulated capitalism can do. The US $ 700 billion bailout plan recently passed by congress is a slap in the face of what used to be sound economic policy. The events in the US and Europe should serve as wake up call to all; that the best economic model is not necessarily the laissez faire 'hands off' model but rather that countries should strike a balance between the capitalist and communist models. China appears to be doing rather well. Being too far on one end clearly has its hazards.

Shopping Centres in Dublin

2010-03-25T05:25:00.001-07:00

With the rapid economic growth of Dublin came both increases in the population of Dublin an increases in the amount of money Irish people had in their pockets. As the Celtic Tiger roared on, much of the areas around Dublin were developed into residential areas. With large amounts of people living in the suburbs of Dublin, it made sense to build shopping centres in these same suburbs. 15 years ago people shopped in the centre of Dublin, but today this new generation of shopping centres draw visitors not just from the suburbs in which they are located, but from all over the city and the Counties around. In this article I am going to have a quick look at the shopping centres located in the suburbs around Dublin.

The Square Shopping Centre

Located in Tallaght, (pronounced Tallah) The Square was the first of new generation of shopping centres to spring up around Dublin City. The Square or 'Square' as it is known is so named because it is built in the shape of a Square. The 'Square' is 3 floors high and is home to Roches Stores, Argus, Dunnes Stores, Champion Sports and Lifestyle Sports. There is also a multi-screen cinema.

Blanchardstown Shopping Centre

The Blanchardstown Shopping Centre was the biggest shopping centre in the country. Known locally as the 'Blanch Centre,' the centre has four wings and massive car parking areas which struggle to cope with the traffic at weekends and holiday periods. Among the major multiples in the centre are Argus, Penney's, Dunnes Stores and Marks & Spencer. If you only have time to visit one shopping centre during your visit to Dublin, this should be the one.

Liffey Valley Shopping Centre

The Liffey Valley Shopping Centre was a controversial development and the rezoning of the land is now a matter being investigated due to suspicion that the politicians who rezoned the land were bribed. The shopping centre is bright and airy and is meant to resemble South Beach in Miami. There is the usual collection of multiples here, but what really stands out is the location, just off the M50.

Dundrum Town Centre

Dundrum Town Centre is the newest shopping centre in Dublin. The Centre only opened in March 2005 and is now the largest shopping centre in not just Ireland but all of Europe. The anchor tenants in Dundrum are Tesco, Marks and Spencer and House of Fraser. The centre is also home to the first Starbucks to open in Ireland. The Dundrum Town Centre has one major advantage as it is situated next to the Luas Green Line which makes access from Dublin City Centre very easy.

The Pavilion Swords

Situated in Swords in North County Dublin, the Pavilion is another of the new breed of shopping centres. The shopping centre is spacious, bright and spread over two floors. There are currently new extensions being added to the Pavilion which include a cinema and more shops. Parking in the Pavilion is free for the first 3 hours.

How to Keep Your Employee During the Economic Boom

2010-03-24T05:06:00.001-07:00

With the tremendous economic growth of Western Canada comes a significant side-effect: more jobs are being created than there are people to fill them. The unemployment rates in Canada's three western provinces currently hover around 4%. It's anticipated that this labour shortage will only get worse over the next few years.

There is tremendous attention being put into increasing the talent pool available in the marketplace through options such as:

Hiring foreign workers;

Encouraging greater enrollment in apprenticeship programs; and

Delaying retirements of older workers.

All of these are great options, and they will inevitably bear fruit in the intermediate to long-term. In the short-term, however, employers are still faced with a labour crisis.

One area that many employers often overlook is focusing their efforts on keeping the valuable employees they already have. If employers are creating the right environment and culture, where employees want to work and are champions for the business, recruiting becomes easier. Great employers don't face hiring problems; it's the bad or middle-of-the-road employers that do.

So, what are some lessons that we can learn from the great employers on how to keep the best employees?

Here are the top 3 areas that employers should focus on to keep the great employees they already have:

1. Create a Compelling Vision, Mission & Purpose

Why does your company exist? What is the message behind which your employees should rally? A compelling vision - your raison d'être - is what will draw employees to your company and will compel them to stay. If employees wholeheartedly support the vision and purpose, they will be inspired to work towards attaining it.

Having a purpose statement, which is sincerely supported by the leaders in the company and which is truly representative of their vision, will give employees a reason to stay.

2. Provide Opportunities for Training, Learning & Development

Being challenged at work and having opportunities for growth and advancement are prime keys for employee retention. Stagnant employees are more likely to leave because they are bored and unchallenged. Providing company training and education to employees when they are hired, and ensuring that they have learning and development opportunities while working with the company, will create a great work environment.

As an example, Google, surveyed as the No. 1 company to work for in the US by Fortune Magazine, allows its engineers to spend 20% of their time on their own independent projects. Without this commitment, popular internet services such as Gmail, Google News and AdSense would not exist.

Although not all companies can duplicate this 20% philosophy, developing your own opportunities for employee growth is a critical step towards retaining your best people.

3. Manage to Individual Strengths

Each employee has different areas of strength and weakness. Unfortunately, most managers try to manage away the weaknesses and pay limited attention to the strengths.

Instead, great employers manage to employees' strengths. Encouraging employees to work from their areas of competence and capability will serve to increase their confidence and happiness. Of course, weak areas, if they are causing a problem, need to be addressed. However, constant attention on the weaknesses will not generate as much success as focusing on strong points.

There are numerous other strategies that companies can undertake to retain their valuable employees. Your greatest sources of reference are your employees themselves. Don't be afraid to ask employees what they need from you. What would it take for them to recommend their friends and acquaintances to work for your company? What can be improved to make your company a better place to work?

Keeping your existing employees, if they are the right employees, is one of the most critical ways to survive the economic boom. When retention becomes less of an issue, recruitment is likely less of an issue. As a result, your company can save valuable time, money and energy, and re-direct these resources back to the core business and truly take advantage of the thriving economy.

Excess Oil Profits Or Healthy Economies?

2010-03-22T16:02:00.001-07:00

Market prices for petroleum are moving upwards. This movement can be stopped only when alternate liquid fuels will become available in large quantities. OPEC (Organization of Oil Exporting Countries) controls and sets global prices for petroleum.

US oil companies follow the OPEC price lead gladly and are reaping excessive profits. Available petroleum reserves are being depleted at a rapid pace. Demand is overtaking supplies. Discoveries of new petroleum deposits are plummeting. Excessive prices for transportation fuels will lead to economic hardships and eventual economic collapse. World economies must find alternate liquid fuel supplies or they will self-destruct.

Remaining petroleum reserves are estimated at 1.3 to 2.3 trillion barrels. These reserves can only last 25 to 50 years at consumption rates that will exceed 50 billion barrels per year on an average for the next fifty years. This huge consumption will add more than 100 ppm of carbon dioxide to the Earth's atmosphere, which is already overloaded.

Transportation fuels are the lifeblood of modern economies. Foods, goods, and commodities must be transported to reach consumers. Short interruptions in transportation lead to economic crises. Long-term interruptions lead unavoidably to economic disasters and collapses. Governments and industries have not been able to develop sensible solutions for secure, future fuel supplies.

Many options for extending or replacing petroleum and its many refinery products have been proposed. Finding new petroleum deposits, making petroleum substitutes from coal or oil shale, producing ethanol from food crops, producing hydrogen using nuclear power, legislating "Cap and Trade" policies, and demanding strict energy conservation measures have been suggested. None of these energy supply options can withstand closer scrutiny and analysis.

If none of these popular proposals is acceptable in the final analysis, is there any solution left that can be developed in time, can be used for several centuries, will not slow global economies, and will in fact accelerate economic growth for all the world's countries?

Only one single option for saving our world from economic collapse exists. We must learn how to convert solar energy into liquid fuels and we must prevent the use of precious, limited, fertile lands that produce food crops, feed livestock, or grow forests. We must learn how to grow and breed high energy yield plants, plants that have high energy contents and produce large amounts of biomass on a single acre of land.

Additionally, we must find energy conversion processes that convert biomass into petroleum substitutes and we must modify existing refinery techniques to produce liquid motor fuels from biotic petroleum substitutes. None of these process steps is utopian. All of them can be developed and tested on a large scale in less than two decades.

The benefits of such an approach are manifold and exceptional. The world will be enabled to produce affordable, plentiful, and secure liquid fuels for centuries. Competition between food and energy producers for fertile lands is not necessary and must be outlawed. The continued use of the world's inventory of combustion engines installed in automobiles, trucks, trains, ships, and airplanes is assured. The world's facilities for oil refining and fuel distribution can be used without major changes. A seamless transition from a fossil fuel dominated economies to solar based economies is entirely possible. Millions of new jobs across the globe will be created. Nobody loses, most people win.

How can we create this new, exciting future, how can we prepare for it, how can we implement it?

The world's future critically depends on the achievement of several well defined objectives and tasks. None of the necessary tasks seems to be excessively difficult; none of the tasks is in conflict with established science or with established economic conventions. How do we proceed?

Only the USA is capable of leading the world in developing renewable, liquid fuels. The US must lead by example. The US has all the prerequisite facilities, lands, technologies, scientists, and engineers. Above all, the US must find political leaders with intelligence, vision, and independence.

The US must establish a single mission agency, the Energy Independence Agency. This agency must be charged with developing a range of techniques for producing liquid transportation fuels from biomass and converting solar energy into liquid fuels that can be stored and distributed globally.

The introduction of this new energy technology can be accelerated by inviting the rest of the world to cooperate. This proposal will find many opponents. OPEC and oil interests will be the most powerful and most vociferous adversaries. Other challengers will come from the agricultural community, from scientists and from diverse political, financial, and environmentalist interest groups.

However, antagonists must remember that the world is facing an existential threat. If we do not find a way to effectively and conclusively deal with the approaching transportation fuel shortage, we will destroy economies and cultures. We cannot turn back the clock. We must deal with the situation we are facing today. We must resolve threatening global issues within less than three decades. We must assure the continuing growth of economies, we must stop global warming and climate change, and we must prepare the world for a major increase of its population. We must act very soon or the Earth as we know it will cease to exist.

Future generations will thank us for our efforts and for our concern for their wellbeing.

STEER CLEAR OF Soka Gakkai 創価学会大好き

2010-03-21T15:45:00.001-07:00

FORBES articol:"Death Watch (see also "Sensei's world") www.forbes.com --------- In his book The Soka Gakkai and Mass Society, the Princeton and Stanford scholar James W. White describes how shakubuku was conducted : "Until the early 1960's the literal translation of shakubuku, "to break and flatten," was a reasonably accurate description of the proselyting process. On occasion Gakkai members would surround a home and make noise until one family member agreed to join. Or they would belabor a mark with argument and exhortation for hours on end. Sometimes threats of divine punishment were used: dire injuries and calamities might be predicted as the cost of resistance to the True Religion; a child's illness or death might be traced to the parents' heretical beliefs. In such instances the "fear of punishment [instilled] in a mind weakened and made receptive by hours of pressure" could lead to the collapse of the subject's critical faculties and intellectual defenses, and to his acquiescing in the demands of the proselyters." (White, p.82) Referrals www.unc.edu www.amazon.com ________________________________________ Seizaburo Sato , Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo. Research Director of the Institute for International Policy Studies: 'What we are talking about are not open organizations or democratic structures, but something like a Communist Party or worse.We are dealing with a dictatorship built around the person of one man."1999 ...

The Mechanics of Are Economic Cycle

2010-03-20T15:25:00.001-07:00

Inflation and recessions are both recurring phases of a continuous economic cycle. Inflation occurs when prices rise as a result of too much money being in circulation due to a lack of goods and services to spend it on. When prices reach a point that is higher than people can - or will - pay, the demand decreases and this is where the downturn in the economic cycle begins.

In our modern economy we don't let the economic cycle run unchecked, because the consequences could result in a major worldwide depression like the one that followed the stock market crash in 1929. In a depression money become so tight that the economy virtually grinds to a halt, unemployment escalates, businesses collapse and the general economic mood gets very grim.

When a recession occurs the Federal Government can create new money to make borrowing money easier. Once the economy picks up, and sellers begin to sense a rise in demand for their product or services they begin raise prices. This is how inflation works.

Most economist agree that inflation isn't good for the economy, because over time it destroys value, and this includes the value of money. Inflation also prompts investors to buy things that they can resell for huge profits: like art and real estate, rather than investing their money in companies that can then in-turn create new products and jobs. However inflation isn't bad for everyone. Debtors love it! The people that get hit the hardest in an inflationary phase are the people that are living off of fixed incomes, this often consists of retired people whose payments are determined by salaries or wages that were earned in less inflationary times. their standard of living can swiftly erode by high inflation, this could cause them to sell their home or take other drastic economic measures.

Inflation is often the result of political pressures. A economy that is growing creates jobs and reduces unemployment. More often than not politicians are almost always in favor of this so they put pressure on the Federal Reserve to adopt an easy money policy that stimulates the economy. The most effective method for ending inflation is for the Federal Government to induce a recession, or downturn, in the economy. If the shrinks for two consecutive quarters it is considered a recession.

In order to avoid long term slow downs, politicians will reverse their policies once they notice that the economy is beginning to shrink. They do this to stimulate borrowing and economic growth. Over time the country emerges from the recession, begins to grow, and the completed cycle starts all over again.

Global Report 29 dec. 2009

2010-03-19T14:45:00.001-07:00

Change in Wests Afghan war strategy 'Winning hearts and minds' is the new Western strategy in Afghanistan as proclaimed by the Top western diplomats and military minds. However, it isn't as easy as it has been perceived. The incident of Uzbeen valley, located just 40 miles away from the Capital is a clear example of how hard it is to enter the insurgents space of power for talks with the locals. As reported, "the French Foreign Legion launched one of their biggest operations of the eight-year war -- to open the road to a key village in northern Uzbeen and hold a meeting with local elders. Within hours however the mission ran into trouble. Officers found out that 50 insurgents had gathered at Qaleh Eh Ye Kalan, the village where they had planned to arrive in triumph to consult the elders. But the people in that village were not told in time. And then the commanding officer took a wrong turn and was delayed even longer. The Operation, which mobilised 1000 crack troops from US Special Forces, the French Foreign Legion and Afghan police ended without achieving its objective". Aid to Gaza Strip faces Egyptian hurdles Exactly one year after the Israeli war on Gaza, aid convoys still find it hard to get through into the strip. The most recent convoy is one led by the British George Galloway. Entrance through the red sea port was mediated by Turkey, but stopped by Egypt, hence the convoys current stay in Aqaba's port in Jordan. The convoy is reported to include around Two hundred ...

Mysterious Mastermind Rises to Power

2010-03-18T14:15:00.001-07:00

A mysterious mad mastermind will rise to power quickly. Such persons do rise to power at critical times in history. These are mysterious persons who often come from the unexpected quarters and are not part of the establishment. Adolf Hitler was one such person.

Adolf Hitler rose to power very quickly because he was able to provide the people of the time what they thought they were looking for. The German economy was suffering and the Germans were looking for a savior to restore their self-belief as a nation and solve their economic crisis. Hitler called for a spiritual revolution, for a "positive Christianity" and a spirit of national pride to overcome the economic conditions of the day.

The current world economic system is heading for an economic collapse that has never been experienced in the history of mankind. For this to happen the world economy and financial system will have to be on the verge of collapse. The economies of India and China will be suffering, the Eastern and Western European economies will be at a standstill, the North American economy will imploding. South America, Africa, the Middle East and the rest of Asia will be in a financial crisis.

In the next thirty years, the growth of the global economy will surge at an unparalleled rate, fueled by the industrialization and technological equipping of the emerging economies. The problem will begin when economic growth can no longer be sustained and growth starts to subside. The world banking system will be in a crisis and governments will be seeking a solution in desperation.

A mysterious mastermind will arise and claim to have the answer. This person will generate new hope and declare the need for a world-wide governing body to oversee the other nations of the world. Just as Hitler came to power in Germany when the middle-class feared losing their social status in a revolution, so too will the world middle-class be desperate to accept any solution to save them. Promoting a spiritual revolution, a positive Christian humanism, and a spirit of middle-class pride, this mysterious mad mastermind will introduce measures that will resurrect the world economy, and once he is declared to be a global economic savior, he will proclaim himself to be Jesus Christ returned.

Many Christians believe that they could be raptured up into the sky at any moment today. This idea has been popular since the 1960s and has been made even more popular by Left Behind series of books and movies. These people believe that after they have left planet Earth, the Anti-Christ will appear and there will be seven years tribulation. But this is totally incorrect.

Not only is there not going to be seven years tribulation, the Bible says that people are not to be deceived by anybody suggesting that the mysterious mad mastermind (i.e. the man of sin who claims himself to be God) will appear after the rapture. In the book of 2 Thessalonians chapter 2., you will learn that this mysterious mad mastermind will appear before the rapture is to take place. Actually, Paul the apostle got this from the book of Daniel where it indicates that the actual event will take place forty-five days after this person claims to be God and sits in a throne in the Jewish temple. Actually, it makes sense that he call himself Jesus Christ, because this is who the Jews are looking for; this will also appease the Arabs and the Christians; the Hindus who have no problems with any incarnation, and the Buddhists will see him as another reincarnation of Buddha.

The sad thing is that all those Christians who were expecting Jesus Christ to rapture them up before the anti-Christ reveals himself, will most probably be deceived into believing that he is their Savior and commit the deadly sin of worshiping him; all because they do not know their Bible.

Time to Buy Asia and Emerging Funds

2010-03-17T14:10:00.001-07:00

Despite the downturn in US market, there is a good chance that asia and emerging markets will continue to report strong economic growth and above-average expansion in corporate profits.

Lower demand from US and the expected economic slowdown in the Eurozone are affecting the Asia and emerging markets less severely than a few years ago for various reasons. Lower exports to the US are being offset by higher exports to other emerging markets.

Surge in domestic demand is becoming an increasingly important growth driver in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and Mexico. This is due to rising wealth levels, higher consumer demand and strong investment demand, a result of instrastructure projects.

Many of good Asia and emerging markets' stock prices are down 30% - 50% due to broad market pessimistic sentiment, but their fundamentals just get better and better. Huge gap between the fundamental of the business and valuation of the stock presents great money-making opportunity.

According to Deutsche Bank, investors may pile more than $200 billion into hedge funds focused on Asia excluding Japan this year, betting on emerging markets despite concerns about the global economy and waning risk appetite. Hedge fund investors' predictions that Asia, along with the Middle East and Latin America, will be the top-performing regions in 2008 indicate a clear re-allocation of capital towards emerging markets. When the smart money flow into Asia region, we are likely to expect another bull run from Asia markets.

But some of my friends and readers had reflected to me that stocks investment are too risky for them. I would advise them to buy into mutual funds that invest in Asia and Emerging markets, based on dollar cost average basis. Do not throw all your money in, fresh bad news from US can affect the overall market sentiment.

Appreciation of the euro

2010-03-16T13:37:00.001-07:00

The strong euro in recent months. These are some factors to explain the strong euro and the ECB, the euro's appreciation should

Why the strong euro has been received?

Interest rates are relatively higher than in other major trading partners. The United States has cut interest rates aggressively in order to avoid a recession. Japan is still very low interest rates, so the euro area has become a cost-attractive target. This has led to hotmoney flowAnd the appreciation of the euro.
The euro area is considered to have good business prospects. The European Central Bank has a good track record of low inflation. Relatively strong economic growth, which could lead to future higher prices. However, this optimism about the economy may be misplaced. Especially in the south some of the country is a sign of economic weakness. For example, many, like the Spanish real estate market prices are likely to decline in house prices are too high.
Compared with other countries, the EU's international balance of payments often leads to exchange rate appreciation, because the money into the economy.
The euro against the dollar as an alternative. Weakening of the dollar led many speculators to keep the euro currency instead of dollars, of which long-term decline.

If the European Central Bank's concern to increase the value of the euro?

If it is appreciation of the euro, export moreBe more expensive and imports cheaper.

Therefore, if demand is elastic, it will be the decline in export value, which will lead to lower aggregate demand and economic growth. Assessment of the damage will be mainly export industry. In a sense, they can save costs, but if the euro continued to make profits drop, had to lay off, resulting in rising unemployment.

Appreciation will help reduce inflation. First of all, it is notIncreased the demand on inflation. Second, imports of cheap, cheap-push inflation. Third, to encourage appreciation of the company to cut costs, and strive to improve efficiency. In reducing inflation, which is very useful, and therefore can reduce the Monetary Policy Committee interest rate, thereby promoting economic growth and investment.

In appreciation of the impact of other factors determined. For example, if you see a decline in private consumption in the euro area (from the housing crash, killing), then,The negative impact on advertising would be significant. There are also concerns, the European Union is not strong many people would like to believe. It is feared that the EU's housing market, for example, in the Spanish housing market is very weak.

Forecasts for US Interest Rates

2010-03-15T13:31:00.001-07:00

In recent weeks, US interest rates have been cut to 3%. The Fed are still forecasting economic growth for the year of 1.5%. However, there actions suggest they are concerned about the prospects of a recession, if they did not act decisively The cut in interest rates by over 1%, in a short space of time, is a bold move, which is aiming to avoid a recession and prevent a crisis in the US housing market.

However, the cuts may have left less room for future interest rate cuts. Despite a slowdown in growth, inflationary pressure do still remain. These are mainly cost push factors, such as rising oil and energy prices. The US is also suffering from rising prices of wheat and ethanol. The Fed may feel it is better to allow an increase in cost push inflation than risk a slowdown in growth. However, there is a danger that if cost push inflation increases it may change people's inflation expectations and could lead to wage inflation and increase future inflationary expectations. Therefore, the Fed will need to balance interest rate cuts against the ever present danger of inflation.

Monetary and Fiscal Policy.

An important criteria for interest rates, is what is happening elsewhere in the economy. If the government push through a large sized expansionary fiscal boost of tax cuts, then the need for interest rate cuts may be lessened. This is because the boost in consumer spending may be sufficient to avoid a downturn in the economy. Another advantage of using fiscal policy rather than interest rate cuts, is that it supports the dollar. Interest rate cuts, make dollar holdings less attractive. Therefore, when the Fed cut interest rates, they further weaken the dollar. Although, they have not been really concerned about the declining dollar; in the back of their minds they will want to avoid a complete collapse in the dollar. This is an incentive to avoid cutting interest rates more than necessary.

How Serious is the Housing Crisis?

A good question to ask is how serious is the housing crisis? If US house prices fall or even if the rate of decline increases then the economy will be pulled closer to recession. This could create need for further interest rate cuts. There is some evidence to suggest that house prices in the US, may still have further to fall. Many on balloon mortgages are soon coming to the end of the special low introductory rates. When this period ends, their interest rates will rise causing the possibility of more mortgage defaults. If this occurs the housing market problems will continue into 2009 and potentially beyond.

Liquidity Trap

The other issue the Fed may be aware of is will future interest rate cuts actually stimulate spending. The liquidity trap refers to the situation where lower interest rates don't actually stimulate demand.

How To Create Niche Businesses To Make Money

2010-03-14T13:15:00.001-07:00

In order to gain a better understanding of economic growth how to make money, various models have been created by economists - all of which aim to measure such growth, how the growth process operates and what factors determine it. They range from descriptive models, some of which focus on the stages of growth or development through which an economy evolves, to formal models, which emphasise factors that are either external to the economic system (e.g. technological sophistication) or internal (e.g. the level of savings).

Although different in many respects, these approaches do share certain common characteristics. First and foremost, they concentrate on large, established firms rather than SMEs. Second, they assume that large firms constitute the real locomotive of economic growth. Third, they are preoccupied with the link between national conditions (e.g. legal institutions) and the impact these have on the performance of firms.

When we focus on the conventional model for national economic growth, we are immediately prompted to ask - why is entrepreneurship absent from this model? Alarmingly, it is because it is accorded a role as part of the secondary economy in the micro-, small- and medium-sized firm sector. These firms are considered to provide a supporting role as suppliers of goods and services to the established firms in the primary economic sector. This is essentially a subordinate role.

Clearly therefore, little understanding is provided by the model with regards to the specific contribution entrepreneurship makes to economic growth and little guidance is given on how to enhance the level of entrepreneurial activity.

We need to begin with the assumption that the role of entrepreneurship is critical to economic growth, and recognise that:

o Entrepreneurial activity is shaped by Entrepreneurial Framework Conditions - to include training in entrepreneurship and the availability of start-up financing.

o The level of entrepreneurial activity is a function of the degree to which individuals recognise the entrepreneurial opportunities available and that they have the capacity, motivation and skill to exploit them.

o The interaction between perceived entrepreneurial opportunities and the entrepreneurial capacity to pursue them will lead to a greater number of start-up efforts, new businesses set up and more jobs. As more firms and jobs are created, there may subsequently be greater business failures and job losses, i.e. business dynamics which usually accompanies economic growth.

o Economic growth is partly determined by the intensity of business dynamics.

Instead of focussing on large, established businesses and the associated secondary role of smaller businesses, we need to look at the entrepreneurial sector itself, and the conditions that shape it and its direct economic consequences. If we are to properly understand economic growth, both perspectives should be looked upon, as:

o it would reflect the contributions of both large established and new entrepreneurial firms;

o it makes clear that existing firms can be a significant source of start-ups;

o it presents the context in which the entrepreneurial sector operates.

The point about small businesses is that entrepreneurs can move quickly in the market and set up niche businesses. These type of firms - which offer a product or service focusing on one specific aspect or customer base within an industry - are growing at a rate of 20 per cent to 25 per cent a year. Some popular niches these days include specialised pet products, beauty salons/spas, travel agencies, back-office services, technical/online support and business coaching.

Niche startups are good in that they offer entrepreneurs a chance to focus all their branding and marketing in one area and expand on those core customers as the business grows. After all, when you try to be everything to everybody, you wind up being nothing to anybody - and that's the problem with ventures that are too broad.

In addition, the advantage of starting a niche business is the ease of identifying your potential customer base, since you are targeting only certain buyers. In fact, niche ventures have a 25 per cent better chance of surviving over 10 years than more general types of companies.

Niche businesses are easy to start and easy to defend from competitors. By finding a niche where you can build your own unique stronghold, you can attract and maintain customers who will pay top dollar for your goods and services.

A niche is just not a small market. For example, a niche is not just serving a small community: a niche requires a commonality of needs among customers. So, a niche would be selling to the boat owners in a small community, not selling general products to that small community. Thus, a niche has more easily identifiable customers.

Obtaining financing for niche ventures can also be easier. Compared to more general businesses, there is less competition to deal with, which makes you a more attractive candidate when seeking investors.

My company, Entrepreneur Secrets, was started to help people explore niche businesses that have found their comfortable home in other countries around the world, but have yet to be transferred and taken advantage of in the UK.

Enron, Kenneth Lay, Jeffrey Skilling, Andrew Fastow - How Do They Compare to Today's Economic Crisis

2010-03-13T12:07:00.001-08:00

I remember it very clearly, it was the holiday season in 2001. The country was still in shock over the terrorist attacks on 09 - 11 - 01, and now this was happening. Enron Corporation, one of the world's most dominant "energy traders", was filing for bankruptcy. And this was just the beginning of a horrendous story.

Kenneth Lay, the Chairman of the Board, Jeffrey Skilling, the Chief Operating Officer, and Andrew Fastow, the Chief Financial Officer, all pointed fingers at one another. The three, as well as many other players, were subsequently convicted of sometimes multiple counts of fraud. Kenneth Lay died before his sentencing, the others were all sentenced to lengthy prison terms.

What a terrible tragedy to witness. No, I'm not talking about the higher ups and what happened to them. I'm talking about the night I saw an interview with a couple who had worked for and retired from Enron. All of their retirement was in Enron "securities" - somewhat of a misnomer considering what happened - and it was gone. Well, not completely gone, but the more than $600,000.00 in combined retirement plans was now worth less than $3,500.00 and they were in their mid 60's. What were they supposed to do?

The other event that left a lasting impression was what happened the following summer. In June of 2002, it was revealed that Enron had paid out more than $744,000,000.00 in cash and stock to its top executives during the year leading up to the bankruptcy filing. Do these kind of things sound familiar to you?

On this morning's news it was announced that an AIG executive received $15,000,000.00 shortly before the company had to be bailed out - an $85,000,000,000.00 check that the taxpayers are writing in order to keep the insurance giant from going under. And the sad thing is, we may only be seeing the beginning.

A few things to learn from past and current events. Don't depend on anyone other than yourself to take care of YOU. There is no certainty in how long social security will be around and it was never intended to be the sole income in retirement anyway. Retirement plans, collectively, have lost a staggering $23,000,000,000,000.00 in value in the past month.

That leaves us with one thought in closing. What are you doing to secure your and your family's financial future?

Ruined Rural Economy - India Had We Part -1

2010-03-12T11:20:00.001-08:00

"Until unless we irrigate and till the heart of farmers and land
in the villages, the country of farmers is going to be
destroyed under concrete jungle of urbanization"

On 28 February 2007, India's think tank Mr Economics would be once again addressing the so-called august gathering of Members of Parliament. How is the present junta further going to ruin the predominantly rural and agricultural economy of this country is yet to be seen, but how nicely they had abetted and forced over 1000 Indian farmers to commit suicide is not hidden. Perceived economic growth of 8.25%, which the current leadership of MMPC (Man Mohan and P Chidambaram) is going to achieve, is at what cost? Has the Junta ever realized its true effect on common Indian citizen, they would have certainly renounced the Western and European oriented glittering Economic growth and adopted the Concept of Indian Rural Economic Developed (IRED) plans? I am surprise to record that neither the PM nor FM or any other ruling clan leader is looking beyond the limited period of government tenure of elections. When the apex leadership of India is so short sighted then what you accept from others. These leaders generally aim to become ministers to fulfill their caskets thinking who knows next time they might not be elected. In view of the rising prices and its effect on a common man, I am going to discuss the long term threatening effects of today's uncontrolled economic leaps.

First of all I find that the government intelligentsia leaders are closing their eyes towards rising trend of criminalization of Indian Society amongst Haves (HV) or Haves Not (HN). The days are not far off when every Indian would be moving with a gun like United State of America to shoot dead others even under suspicion. The days are not far off when our mothers, sisters and young lasses dare not move alone. The ever increasing suicidal graph of helpless farmers, to whom all various present State governments are trying to please with extended bank loan credit facilities for respectable funerals, is further indicating the priority of steel over stomach. I solicit a true reply as to how, and how a common man, casual labor, salaried employee, or contractual worker is going to live honorably on his minimum meager and skimpy wages of rupees 50 and maximum of rupees 30,000. Truly speaking rupees 30,000 monthly salaried man pays nearly 55% through direct taxes and 32.8% allied taxes such as surcharges, service tax, education levy, medical tax and what not in a month. He is ultimately left with nearly rupees 5000 only to manage his home per month while per kilogram of pulse cost him rupees 58, milk rupees 22 a liter, onion rupees 25 a kilogram and rice/flour rupees 15 per kilogram. How he is going to educate his children, meet other expenses and live respectable life with in honest means is too whoop to the Government of India.

Second issue is that our successive governments have ensured that every Indian citizen becomes criminal and corrupt. As it is, all Indian, by and large have accepted that the corruption has become as an unwritten law; and they believe it cannot be weeded out of Indian society. A prominent social worker and freedom fighters Shri Jagan Nath had said that the cancer of corruption has gone into our blood; therefore, to remove the corruption from society, we need to change the blood, which is an impossible preposition, and can never be done. We Indians have to accepted corruption as inherited gift of our present leadership to future generations. I feel that since none of the member of economic conglomeration has really seen the plight of poor farmers and HN adults, they are failing to perceive the drifting of pious and religious Indians towards western style of criminalized society. Why Mr FM is increasing taxes and indirect skin peeling levies on poor citizens without realizing its final effect on a common man. When I am paying Income tax then that is a service tax at all?

Third point of discussion is as to why our leadership is ignoring the ground reality of larger section of Indian society being neglected? A few important issues being overlooked are, one no endeavour made to address a common man's need, two no efforts made to analyze the effect of rising prices on salaried people; three, no fore thought as to how middle income group citizens would make easy leaving; four no vision or long term strategic planning to control spiraling effects of ever increasing living cost and five no I repeat no efforts on sharing burden of taxes between a common man and business community profit. Every new tax imposed is directly making a deep hole in common man's emptied pocket. The business community had, without cutting or impinging their own share of profit ranging from 15% to 500% in various products, passed on the entire burden of taxes on consumers directly; and on every common man of this country indirectly. Mr FM while sitting in air-conditioned rooms with planning teams could never see the raining drops of sweat from the forehead of a street man, thereby, shifting every indirect tax varying from service to various educations, health and other surcharges on every common man.

Fourth, I am surprised while concluding that, the present Indian Government is the only government of its kind in the world which is plundering, looting and preying on her own citizens to fill the coffins of western master and mentors under the slogan of Growing India what World Bank perceived. The perpetrators had actually ruined the rural Indian economy and brought in concrete jungle of criminal society. I am very sure if the present trend of neglecting villages continued; the days are not far off when India would not be physical but economic slave of western economies and financial systems. Why are we, knowing well the low cost of every finish product, increasing its rate over hundred of percents when all the basic material, labor and machinery are cheapest in the country? Where would you find in the world a man ready to accept employment of rupees 500 a month to survive? If all these basic industrial elements are cheapest, then why to increase prices?

Fifth, the present economic changes have resulted in siphoning of billions of dollars abroad as foreign direct investment by pushing up market index from 4968 points to 14000 points today. Despite all these hypes, there seems to be no visible miracles of developments seen in the country anywhere? Why every policy is lacking rural objectives of growth. Until, unless we follow Som Spiraling Rural Economic Cycle (SSREC) model of development, not only Indian farmers would continue to suffer but also the country as well. SSREC model is based on community management business through Rural System of Rolling Economy (RSRE). In this pattern, the basic needs of individual are divided into three groups of necessity; one, what a family should have; two, what family must have; and three what a family could have? These necessities are then subdivided into various demands of every house hold. These demands are one minimum basic needs, such as eatables, pulses, flour, vegetables, and milk products, two required subsidiary needs such as additional varieties of pulses, costly rice varieties, different clothes, small means of transport, cultivations equipments, Medicare items and three luxurious needs which are not necessary for life but required to raise living standard. So far, all Indian governments have failed to meet providing the first two needs of Indian common man in the society. Most of the Indian workers, labor force and farmers who had meager land holdings are at the verge of committing suicide. Do we have resolve to stop further criminalization of my India? I say yes, but with Indian oriented economic development model only.

Sixth I am going to ask, are we Indians going to eat computers or steel bars? Why the cost of finish products in own country is high when both basic elements of raw material and labor are the cheapest in the world? The Common Minimum People Program has really become Cremate/Criminalize Maximum People Program of today. Once again Indian business community is working like East India Company of yesteryears before partition. When the raw materials, labors and working forces are cheapest in this country then why finished products are so costly? Why government is imposing such a high tax and for whom? Which citizen, the governments wants to take care of?

Until, unless we irrigate and till the hearts of farmers and land in the villages, the country of farmers is going to be destroyed under concrete jungle of urbanization. Our father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, a visionary was not wrong when he advised then Indian leaderships to divert more resource to develop villages rather than building jungles of towns and metropolitan cities. Alas! Shri Jagan Nath had been alive to see his predictions turning true that new bunch of foreign educated leaders are going to ruin Indian rural economy? Some recommendations as to how we are going to overcome these problems would be discussed subsequently.

SSERC concept of economy begins to expand outward where as urban pattern of economic development is convergence in nature. The village economic prosperity expands from villages to towns, towns to cities and cities to metropolitan and cosmopolitan cities thereby benefiting every area, community and town. On the other, the urban development pattern creates large conglomerations of machine which sucks in large skilled and unskilled labor from villages, thereby, allowing mushrooming of numerous slums in every nook and corner of such cities. The large scale migration in addition to increasing burden on local resources also creates heavy demand on hygienic services such as water, electricity, health, education and so on. If we move services to villagers then we can not only stop migration but also allow universal development of villages and cities.

Ultimately the burden of all taxes is going to be borne by a common man because there has been no differentiation between HV and HVN. In the year 2006, over 3000 cases of thefts, which I studied in various areas, were involving unemployed and school dropout youths who took to crime to meet their basic necessity of live that is flour, vegetable, salt, sugar and ghee. They never even thought to worry about secondary needs such as cloths and others. The Indian government had actually made them criminals because when they could not produce enough grains to sustain their family due prolonged crops failures, they took to crime of snatching by force. They believed that what items they had stolen were luxurious for rich but proved fodder of survival for their families. A group of four young men, who carried out over a dozen thefts, was so happy saying that they had made nearly two to three years of financial arrangement for their families to meet their minimum basic needs of life. Are we going to make such youth my dear FM?

What I mean with Rural System of Rolling Economy is that one village economy should be earning needs of other and so on? The vicious cycle of needs, demands, production and supply should confine to local areas with in a village first, group of villages second, villages and towns third, with in towns fourth and town to metropolitan fifth. If we follow this model of economic development, I am sure India would become one of the most prosperous rural Developing Economy of the world. We need to develop villages and expand outward and not destroy the villages to bring Industries and uproot poor farmers by throwing a few thousand of bucks at them. When, modern township of Gurgaon expanded near Delhi no farmer, whose land was acquired, has ever though that their future generations would follow the path of crime. The present of most of the people is horrible. Our deaf, dumb and mute monkeys need to awaken and save the country from scourge of criminalization or else every second minute a crime or rape would be future of this nation of saints and religious people.

I request to readers to solicit their views so that we united could save the country where a gas cylinder does not cost you rupees 500, a kilogram of pulse rupees 200, a packet of salt rupees 25 and a liter of milk rupees 100. A freelance journalist, who is regularly writing on various economic and other issues; and contributing to various magazines, periodicals and internet sites.

S Kalpna Sharma 9412939267

American Dream Grant and American Dream Accounts

2010-03-11T11:15:00.001-08:00

Hillary Clinton has stated that she has a plan for America and a Plan for the Middle Class. She has indicated any speech that she wishes to promote the American Dream Plan. The plan is to make the middle class affordable again. Hillary Clinton's plan does not sound like anything at least in a way she presents the plan that it is not something that the Democratic Party would necessarily subscribe to. Why do I say this?

Because the plan insists that all those receiving benefits from it would have to be responsible. This wording of the word responsible is not something you often see in Democrat giveaways. Is Hillary Clinton taking a chapter out of the Republican playbook in order to become more of a centrist?

One of the items in the plan is to promote scholarship grants and accounts for college or American Dream Grants, which would also give additional credence to attendance. And yet there are already all sorts of scholarships and such. The American Dream Accounts are interesting spin on the power of compounded interest and a smart idea at $500 for each new born and yet that number will need to be $1,000 due to expanding World economy and future inflation.

It is interesting all this pre-election maneuvering and even more interesting the economic issues during peak employment times and good economic growth. Will this political posturing help her and other democrats in the future elections? Perhaps we might all consider all this in 2006.

Charlotte North Carolina, Real Estate In, Charlotte Homes for Sale, In Charlotte NC Real Estate

2010-03-10T11:11:00.001-08:00

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The Evolution of Economic Understanding and Postwar Stabilization Policy

2010-03-09T11:06:00.001-08:00

In introduction, I will be expounding on the evolution of economic understanding and postwar stabilization policy from the perspective of Christina D. Romer (Professor, University of California at Berkeley) and David H. Romer (Professor, University of California at Berkeley) throughout the paper. In detail, I will cover the time periods of the 1950s to the 1990s. Finally, I will comment on the commentary and discuss the general discussion as presented by Thomas J. Sargent, Professor, Stanford University and Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution.

The evolution of economic understanding in the 1950s was realistic as it pertains to the relationship between capacity and full employment. The 1950s model held that there was a positive long-run relationship between inflation and unemployment (summarized from Romer). In other words, monetary policymakers believed if the economy should rise above full employment that inflation would occur. Thus, the monetary policies would create a domino effect by negatively impacting long-term growth, and worst, causing a recession. In addition, Federal Reserve Chairman William McChesney Martin shared a common view (depicted in Minutes, August 19, 1958, p.57) that the inflation that would result from overexpansion would eventually raise unemployment, not lower it.

In the 1950s, monetary and fiscal policymakers were 'on the same page' in regard to how the economy worked. For example, the 1956 Economic Report stated: "As a Nation, we are committed to the principle that our economy of free and competitive enterprise must continue to grow. But we do not wish to realize this objective at the price of inflation, which not only creates inequities, but also is likely, sooner or later, to be followed by depression." (EROP, 1956, p. 28.) The 1958 Economic Report warned against mortgaging the long-run health of the economy for the sake of applying measures to provide a spurt in activity. The 1959 Economic Report discussed the mechanisms by which inflation hurt economic growth.

The evolution of economic understanding in the 1960s took an optimistic turn from the economic understanding in the 1950s. For example, policymakers adopted a view of the levels (higher than the levels of the 1950s) of output and employment that could be reached without triggering inflation. Eventually, policymakers in the 1960s came to believe in a long-run tradeoff between unemployment and inflation, in stark contrast to policymakers in the 1950s. (As per Romer and Romer.)

The fiscal policy makers of the 1960s depicted the most dramatic departure from the policymaking of the 1950s. For example, "in discussing the further rise in inflation in the second half of 1967 (when unemployment was 3.9 percent), the Economic Report stated: Demand was not yet pressing on productive capacity-over-all or in most major sectors. The period of slow expansion [from mid-1966 to mid-1967] had created enough slack so that production could respond to increasing demand without significant strain on productive resources." (EROP, 1968, p. 105.) The preceding quote lends to the fiscal policymaker's, in the 1960s, strong confidence in their estimates of the sustainable rate of unemployment that they consistently attributed inflation that arose before unemployment reached this level to sources other than excess demand. (Paraphrased from Romer and Romer). The Romers gave other supporting documentation to the preceding paraphrase such as the 1962, 1966 and 1967 Economic Reports.

The monetary policymakers in the 1960s proved to be more conservative, if not ambiguous than the fiscal policymakers in the 1960s. Nonetheless, monetary policymakers were optimistic about the sustainable levels of output and employment, which reflected the views of fiscal policymakers. However, monetary policymakers did not view the high levels of activity as unsustainable. To the contrary, monetary policymakers were mainly concerned that inflation might continue, not that it would rise. (RPA, March 5, 1968, p. 117 - 123 expounded on the preceding issues.) Both monetary and fiscal policymakers expected inflation to fall although monetary policymakers were less optimistic about inflation. In other words, although monetary policymakers' view was ambiguous (like an Alan Greenspan's speech...pun intended), it was on the same page as the views of fiscal policymakers.

The evolution of economic understanding in the 1970s shifted again, especially in the early 1970s. The emergence of the Friedman-Phelps natural-rate framework was brought about by the adoption of both fiscal and monetary policymakers. The Romers continued, "Throughout the decade, policymakers believed that the change in inflation depended on the deviation of the unemployment rate from its normal level. However, the 1970s saw considerable swings in both the estimates of the natural rate and in views about the downward sensitivity of inflation to economic slack."

In the early 1970s, the policymakers adopted the natural-rate framework. In the middle part of the 1970s, policymakers returned to more conventional views of the dynamics of inflation. Thus, the optimism, in the 1960s, of views concerning sustainable output and unemployment was dampened over the early and mid-1970s. Both fiscal and monetary policymakers underwent a similar evolution.

In the late 1970s, the natural rate framework was not emphasized or utilized, effectively, in policymaking. The preceding trend is a slight reversal of the model used in the early and mid-1970s. For example, President Carter's signed section of the 1978 Economic Report underlines the difference.

The evolution of economic understanding in the 1980s and 1990s is termed 'The Modern Consensus' by the Romers. The Romers described 'the modern consensus'as a new consensus of beliefs with four critical elements beyond the central place of he natural-rate hypothesis. First, policymakers in the early 1980s had substantially higher estimates of sustainable unemployment than many of their predecessors over the previous two decades as illustrated by the 1982 Economic Report. Second, policymakers returned to the view that aggregate demand policies did provide a means of reducing inflation as illustrated by the early Economic Reports of the Reagan Administration. Third, the agreement that means other aggregate demand policies were not viable cures for inflation as illustrated by the 1982 Economic Report. Fourth, the agreement that the costs of inflation were substantial as illustrated by the 1982 and 1983 Economic Reports. Both Monetary and Fiscal policymakers shared the same view.

There was continuity and change in the 1990s. As a matter of fact, in the 1980s and 1990s, there was little change in the views of policymakers as it pertains to 'harm to inflation' as illustrated by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan (Greenspan, 1997, p. 1.) In addition, a natural-rate framework continued to be a core element of policymakers' beliefs illustrated by George H. W. Bush Administration. (EROP, 1990, p. 177.)

The postwar stabilization policy in the 1950s was an early commitment to aggregate demand management. Both fiscal and monetary policymakers reacted to macroeconomic conditions and make adjustments to stabilize the economy.

The postwar stabilization policy in the 1960s as it relates to the macroeconomic beliefs affected was two-edged sword, especially on the fiscal policy. The 60s witnessed a large-scale tax cut, which was similar to George W. Bush's tax cuts of the 2000s. Ironically, the 1964 Economic Report argument that fiscal expansion was necessary because the current unemployment rate was above its normal, sustainable level is similar to President Bush's argument for a tax-cut rate because of our current unemployment rate in 2003. Moreover, George W. used a clip of JFK speaking about the early 1960s tax cut in his Presidential campaign. In a state of Déjà vu, "The combined effect of these actions, together with the initial spending increases resulting from the Vietnam War (in Bush's case, Gulf War II), reduced the ratio of the high-employment surplus to GDP from 1.6 percent at the end of 1960-1.8 percent at the end of 1965. (Summarized from Romer and Romer.) In other words, history repeats itself.

The monetary policy was more stable and consistent during the 1960s, except the Federal Reserve kept real interest rates low despite high output, low employment, and rising inflation. The theory behind the above action was that many members of the FOMC was convinced by the model at the time that inflation would disappear on its own if output growth merely returned to normal.

The postwar stabilization policy in the 1970s (as described by the Romers) was a period of rapidly fluctuating beliefs about the macroeconomy, which resulted in rapidly fluctuating macroeconomic policies. In part, politics played a role in the macroeconomic policies under President Carter. Plus, policymakers, at the beginning of the Carter administration increased their estimates of the natural rate and began to believe once more that aggregate demand contraction could lower inflation. Chairman Burns, who stated in September 1974 that he "would not wish to see a prompt recovery in economic activity, expressed this view. If recovery began promptly, economic activity would turn up at a time when inflation was continuing at a two digit rate." (Minutes, September 10, 1974, p. 65)

The postwar stabilization policy in the 1980s and 1990s utilized the Volcker disinflation. The Volcker disinflation led to a massive and long-lasting shift to tighter monetary policy in late 1979. The Volcker disinflation was inspired by the FOMC under Chairman Paul Volcker. Basically, the policy was motivated by the belief among policymakers that inflation was very costly and that unemployment above the natural rate was the only way to reduce it. Thus, throughout the 80s, the Committee repeatedly expressed its willingness to accept high unemployment to bring inflation down. (For example of the preceding paraphrase of Romer and Romer, see RPA, July 6-7, 1981, p. 116; February 1-2, 1982, p. 89.) The preceding policy was accepted and reflected the views of the Reagan Administration, also.

In conclusion, I expounded on the evolution of economic understanding and postwar stabilization policy from the perspective of Christina D. Romer (Professor, University of California at Berkeley) and David H. Romer (Professor, University of California at Berkeley) throughout the paper. In detail, I covered the time periods of the 1950s to the 1990s.

In regard to the commentary and the general discussion as presented by Thomas J. Sargent, Professor, Stanford University and Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, I will just make a few points. The commentary and the general discussion pointed out the shortcomings and failures of the Romers' failure to discuss, in detail, about the political climate, pressures and constraints the FOMC and its Chairman worked under. For example, the 1970s fits the bill. In turn, the Romers defensively stated (and I quote):

"Ms. Romer: I will be brief too. I want to make one thing clear: We
are very much not about where policymakers' beliefs came from. One
of the ways that we limited our paper is to only look at what policy-
makers believed not why they believed it. The role of academics and
the role of learning are at some level outside our story. It is not that we
don't think these issues are important, it is just that they are beyond
the scope of this study.
Likewise, on the role of politics, the way we envisioned our question
is how far can we get in explaining the changes in stabilization policy
with only the change in policymakers' beliefs. Again, I agree that an ele-
ment of politics is certainly important. What I think surprised us is how
far we could get in explaining the evolution of policy with only views.
On Chairman Martin, one thing to say is he may have not said that
he had a macro model, but he had a framework. He was making deci-
sions, he had views about how the economy worked, and what infla-
tion did to the economy. You can't make policy without some view
about how the economy works. On this idea about how quickly the
framework changes, and how Martin changes, it is not necessarily that
a particular person.s view changes. Rather, what may change is the
belief carrying weight within the FOMC. Our view of Martin is that at
some point.and again this is speculating and something we are work-
ing on.loses faith in his own framework, the framework that had
inflation being very costly.
In response to Allen Sinai's comment on the Greenbooks, again
we're looking for data. We were trying to get some indicator of poli-
cymakers' beliefs other than narrative evidence. When the Fed staff
members make their forecast, does that reflect the Board? Does it
influence the Board? I guess my naive view is that if the staff were
coming in with a wacky model that wasn't being supported by the
members of the FOMC, they wouldn't be there for long. So, I would
still stand by this notion that there is some relationship between the
model inherent in the staff forecast and the beliefs of actual policy-
makers. And, whether the modern Federal Reserve rejected the natu-
ral rate hypothesis in the 1990s, I think the much more plausible view
of what happened is that they kept the framework and they greatly
lowered the estimate of the natural rate. So, I don't think you have to
say they threw away the whole model.
Mr. Romer: Two very brief things. Alan cited the standard error for
estimates of the natural rate. That was a paper published in roughly
1997. It was a stunning result. Reading especially the Economic
Reports of the 1960s, you expect from their tone to see the second and
third decimal places on their estimates of the natural rate. They really
think they understand what is going on, and they are willing to dis-
count evidence that goes against it. They are willing to work very hard
to move the economy to what they think is the natural rate.
Regarding politics, Tom Mayer had a line that I found very persua-
sive. He said, .If the political story were really central, what you
would see in reading the records of the Fed, is that the Fed is straining
at the leash all the time.. You occasionally see a Fed that is in conflict
with the White House. You don't see a Fed that for two decades is try-
ing to do something that it wants to do but feels grossly constrained by
outside pressures."

In empathy with the Romers, my paper could have discussed more points in the
Romers' paper. Furthermore, I could have developed my paper a bit further as
reflected by my ambitious outline (as pointed out by Dr. H. Gram as it pertains to a
three page paper of summary). However, (as I implied in the prior parenthesis),
is not that I don't think these issues are important, it is just that they are beyond
the scope of this paper. (A paraphrased comment from Ms. Romer's response in
The General Discussion held by Dr. Sargent).

Imagining India - LIVE Shorts

2010-03-08T11:00:00.001-08:00

Imagining India: THOMAS FRIEDMAN in conversation with NANDAN NILEKANI, LIVE from the NYPL Shorts, March 23, 2009. In his book, Imaging India, Indian entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani traces the central ideas that shaped the country's past and present and asks the key question of the future of India and its role as a global citizen and emerging economic giant: How will India as a global power avoid the mistakes of earlier development models? Its future rests on more than simply economic growth; it also depends on reform and innovation in all sectors of public life. Author and New York Times journalist Thomas Friedman says, Seattle has Bill. Bangalore has Nandan. . . . What makes Nilekani unique? For me it comes down to one phrase: great explainer. . . . It was his insight that the global playing field was being leveled by technology that inspired me to write the book The World Is Flat.

Healing America: Inducing Structured Economic Growth

2010-03-07T10:55:00.001-08:00

In today's America, many small businesses - especially those with fewer than ten employees, or about half of America's economy - have experienced a notable transition in the marketplace resonating from the impact of the September 11, 2001 attacks, offsetting even the most practical of business models.

When a large economy experiences a significant change, strategies regarded as traditional in sales, marketing, and even operations no longer represent the most effective means of generating a consistent revenue stream.

Instead, entrepreneurs must adapt their business models to the conditions of their markets enabling buyers to make more informed choices, using a new set of purchase decision criteria as defined by their needs and income.

This mandatory shift in economic standard highlights what is perhaps the most significant aspect of free enterprise in all contrast to other economic models, and also what makes the American economy superior in the global community: flexibility.

In addition, it also a unique opportunity for the American economy to fortify itself in a way never before experienced prior to 9/11. Adopting a seller-based approach to economic stimulation can create a more durable economy that is significantly less vulnerable to terror attacks, war recessions, and budget deficits.

Renewing Perspective

Since the birth of the American economy, recessions have ended as a primary result of altering market forces relative to the recession's cause in an effort to alter consumer spending patterns.

The market then must wait for consumers to readapt to the marketplace under more favorable conditions, basing their purchase decisions on criteria established well before the recession began.

Under severe economic circumstances, instead of awaiting consumer spending patterns to revive the market based on traditional buying trends, a deliberate effort by small businesses to realign their products and services with the current needs of the economy will give more control to the entrepreneur, deliver more effective services to the consumer, and result in more accurate purchase decisions, translating into more accurate buying trends and results in a stronger, more durable economy long term.

In assertively realigning products and services with a consumer's altered perception of immediate need based on relevant market feedback, the buyer-seller relationship is reestablished, resonating throughout the marketplace in centrifical manner, thereby redefining the condition of the total market to a more favorable commerce environment for buyer and seller alike. Subsequently, price is again defined by supply and demand, reinstating the core economic framework by which the free enterprise system is governed.

As a result, the economy not only stabilizes, but continues to encourage fortification by residual renewal of the original inducement incentives, specifically through the progressive redefinition of the market's drive as determined by the proactive seller as opposed to the reactive buyer. In short, the American economy is no longer fueled by scarcity, but by innovation.

Why It Works

Now more than ever, consumers make their purchase decisions based on a few generalized, yet imperative criteria:

* They want increased value for every dollar spent;

* They want access to more information when comparison shopping;

* They want a broader selection of products and services;

* They want to minimize (or altogether dissolve) opportunity cost.

Fundamental purchase decision criteria determines the relevancy of all other factors of the economy, including supply and demand. If a product or service no longer meets the need-based requirements of the consumer, supply and demand become irrelevant.

These factors remain constant conditional economic traits only in broad markets that provide required natural resources (i.e., food, electricity, or fuel), however supply and demand in these markets can become dynamic factors based on purchase decisions based on new technologies (broader selection of products and services) made available in the consumer marketplace.

In recognizing real-time purchase decision criteria as paramount to all other economic factors, including historic consumer trends as well as other dynamic and fixed variables, the result is a shift in market drive from the buyer to the seller, thereby renewing the market without the delay of a consumer-driven recovery, or the expense of incentive-based economic stimulus.

Satisfied customers can easily drive an economy for decades without requiring sellers to thoroughly evaluate conditions outside of their target markets. In essence, it's easy for sellers become content with results based on a niche market's buying trends and expansion due to incremental increases in population market share.

Why It's Necessary

When a catastrophic event such as 9/11 impacts the macroeconomy, the result is an immediate contraction in dynamic economic factors that immediately and residually "starves" the market - not due to supply and demand, but rather an immediate shift in the buying trends of consumers based on a new set of purchase decision criteria.

In a nation subjected not only to a major terror attack, but also mass hurricane damage and war, severe strain on the economy can produce abnormal market activity that essentially counters recovery efforts for an extended duration resulting in severely altered consumer spending patterns, drastic increases in unemployment and debt, supply overages, increased taxes, and even temporal conversions in crime and public mental health. Without effectual, deliberate effort to rejuvenate the economy, a rate of growth great enough to drive the market into advanced stages of stabilization cannot be sustained. This "domino effect" represents one of a limited, yet significant channels of failure for the free enterprise system.

Taking the Initiative

To curtail a major economic recession and prevent a serious downfall, entrepreneurs and other professionals must work in tandem to:

* Provide a wider array of products and services;

* Seek a more realistic approach to maintaining a direct correlation between the needs of consumers and available products and services;

* Identify ways to maximize production efficiency without compromising quality, thus simultaneously reducing cost and maximizing both profit and consumer-perceived value;

* Find new and innovative ways to build relationships between products and services that compliment, instead of complete.

Which Country Will Be The Largest Economy In The World?

2010-03-06T10:52:00.001-08:00

Currently, the United States is the top economic power in the world, followed by Japan, Germany, China and France, respectively.

Will another nation eventually overtake the U.S. in this role? It has been speculated by some that China is destined to take the top spot
in terms of economic GDP if it can continue its bustling double digit economic growth. This is possible, but there are several factors to consider.

A double digit growth rate generally only happens to a younger, growing economy. When a national economy matures, it generally settles into a 2-3% annual GDP growth rate.
That is about what we see in the U.S. and many western European nations, for example. In recent years Ireland grew at a double digit growth rate but has since settled to a more modest growth rate.

The same may happen with China. Obviously, if it can continue such a high growth rate it will eventually overtake the U.S in this regard, but it will have to maintain this rate for some time.
Since the U.S. economy is larger to begin with, China and other rival economies must sustain a considerable larger GDP growth margin in order to catch up.

But there are other factors involved as well. One is current trend of trade blocks, such as that of NAFTA. If you were to include Canada (a member of the Group of Eight leading Industrialized economies) with a huge economy in it's own right),
Mexico (nearly ninety million consumers and very rich in natural resources such as Oil, Gold and Silver), and the various Central American nations which are seeking membership, this bloc would me much more difficult to catch up to in terms of market size and total GDP.
In addition, there is a push in some circles for the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas) which may one day include all nations in North and South America.

For that matter, the combined European Union is already a much larger economy than that of the U.S. The EU has some 450 million highly educated consumers compared to about 300 million in the United States,
and it is adding new countries at swift pace. In any case, it should be noted that a number of top economists predicted back in the 1970's that both Japan and the Soviet Union would overtake the U.S. economy.

This of course did not happen, due to bank mismanagement in the former case and political dismantling in the latter.
As i write this article, Yahoo news reported that 'China's stock market plummeted from record highs as investors took profits when concerns arose that the Chinese government may try to temper its ballooning economy by raising interest rates again or reducing more of the money available for lending.

The Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 8.8 percent to close at 2,771.79, its biggest decline since it fell 8.9 percent on Feb. 18, 1997. Since Chinese share prices doubled last year as investors poured money into the market after the completion of shareholding reforms, trading in Shanghai has been very volatile.'
It is certainly possible that China could eventually be the top economy, but wise economic policies will probably be a biggest long term factor of whether or not this occurs.

Another Economic Bubble Burst Ahead - China? (Part 2)

2010-03-05T10:45:00.001-08:00

In the first part of this article, the author provided the striking details for the need to be mindful of the economic pace of development in China. The suggestion was based on an exclusive analysis of economic growth characteristics of economic super powers from a phase of economic miracles to the phase of economic malaise. The author advocated for the need for policies that would mollify the negative impact on the world economy should there be any failure of the Chinese economy. In this second part of the article, the author would like to start with a prefatory discussion of what an economic bubble burst is and the controversies surrounding it. Next, the article would discuss some future precautionary changes China is expected to initiate in order to sustain its economy avoiding any economic quake and reducing the impact of any failure on the world economy. In fact, this ensuing discussion is not a panacea for any future expectant economic frailties but rather a perspective analysis of reality and what needs to be done. Again, it is not a vitriolic censure of China's economic achievements but rather a meticulous assessment of the current situation which can serve as a harbinger to any future eventuality of economic fiasco.

Now, an economic bubble burst in simple terms occur when an economy experiences huge accumulation of bad debts (bankruptcies) and deterioration of asset values. Deterioration of assets occurs because both good and bad assets appreciate excessively beyond their intrinsic value. This is prevalent when interest rates are low and investors borrow from banks to invest in financial assets resulting in more money in the system as against few assets. Ultimately, the increase in demand of assets culminates in over-valuation of their market value as against their intrinsic value. Furthermore, inappropriate monetary policies that enable unscrupulous lending practices by banks can lead to the formation of asset price "bubbles". To explicate this point, it is possible that indiscriminate lending practices will result in unredeemable loans and consequently the accumulation of bad debts. So two financial mishaps are inevitable here that is the creation of bad debts and huge losses in asset values.

Such situations actuate an economic chain reaction called economic bubble burst which spreads to other parts of the economy. A recent example is what occurred in the U.S housing sector in 2007 when bad debts were maximal and home sale lost value dramatically. The negative situation created spread to other parts of the U.S economy because the housing sector is an integral part of the greater economy. Now, there are a lot of controversies surrounding the formation of economic bubble burst. There are those who argue that the phenomenon can occur in times when prices are correctly price and market seems efficient. And that the time of occurrence is very uncertain and that makes it very difficult to decipher accurately it causes. Despite the hullabaloo, the net effect of the bubble burst is loss of great wealth and possible failure of the economic system.

A remedial measure for economic bubble burst is for governments to increase interest rate or bank reserves requirement so as to reduce the availability of loanable funds and also the amount of money in the system. As at now, it is known that the Chinese government is putting in place monetary and fiscal policies that can prevent the creation of bad debts and subsequently an economic bubble burst. This is very commendable. However, there are other factors that gravitate indirectly towards an economic bubble burst which needs to be addressed. In this context, to ensure the sustainability of China's economy and prevent any economic quake which would resonate with the world economy, it is imperative that much consideration is given to the ensuing propositions which address these factors.

The country would have to review the factors that compositely control its economic freedom and political freedom locally and internationally. The factors to consider are investment freedom, financial freedom, property rights freedom, freedom from corruption and invariably civil rights freedom. There is the need to remove restrictions on investment freedom especially the caps and delineation of certain sectors for foreign investors. Furthermore, the state inordinate control of its financial systems predominantly the banks needs to be revised. The revision should be focused on the current regulatory framework which limits foreign investors in capital markets and also curtails the expansion of financial services to the locals and foreigners alike. In fact, revisions of this sort in the financial sector would increase the contribution of the financial system to GDP growth in addition to providing jobs in the sector. There is also the need to enforce intellectual property rights protection to curb copyright activities and associated fraudulent deals on patents, trademarks and the likes.

Next, pragmatic eradication of any corruption is essential to promote regulatory transparency in the financial sector as well as government activities and projects at the state and local level. As matter of fact, in any progressive economy corruption at the governmental and individual level is a set back to direct foreign investment. Unfortunately, if not controlled can adulterate the decency of economic growth gradually bringing it to a halt. Also corruption at this level can lead to creation of bad debts as it has the tendency to promote indiscriminate and vague transactions (including lending practices) consequently initiating an economic bubble burst. Indiscriminate transactions also include unplanned spending practices promoting the scramble for assets which could result in assets over-valuation. In reality, corruption from this perspective is a potential "land mine" for initiation and causation of an economic bubble burst. Generally, the influence of the ruling communist party on the market economy is inhibiting investment, financial and property rights freedom besides indirectly enhancing corruption. Also, China is presumed to have a very low tolerance for political freedom with particular reference to human rights.

Truly, a proper reformation of these components of its economic freedom and political freedom would enhance its reputation on the international scene fomenting the prosperity of its strategic investments in places like Africa, South America and the developed world. Rumors have it that China's investment in places like Africa is a form of neo-colonialism and this is expected to impede the pace of strategic investments (mergers and acquisitions) in these foreign countries. Only time would tell if China's activities are pro neo-colonialist. For there is a proverbial saying that fire is a good servant but a bad master and it remains to be known if the activities of China would conform to this saying. China must prove its critics wrong! The critics argue that Africa has become a fertile ground for China for doing business primarily because China is more interested in doing business than in conforming to moral and ethical standards of detesting corruption, human rights abuses and probably environmental pollution impacts. Substantiating their claim is the assertion that the country is aggressively doing business in places like Sudan, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo where human rights abuse, genocide and corruption are at their zenith and also in countries like Ghana and Zambia where environmental pollution is on the ascendency but a secondary issue. The western world sees the violation here and is agitating for adherence to ethical standards and unfortunately African governments seem not to welcome the western world utterances.

Nevertheless, with a record trade surplus of $35.2 billion as at September 2008, China has the capability to invest any where even though the trade surplus is expected to dwindle in the face of sluggish exports and domestic demand. The growing raw material needs for its industrial and manufacturing sector also adds to the urgency to invest. Currently, China has managed to secure several oil projects and investments in Africa because China is the second largest consumer of oil after United States and so it needs these oil sources to sustain its economy. For your information, the continent of Africa holds about 8% of the world's oil reserves besides several potential undiscovered reserves. Additionally, China is supplying technical assistance and loans to some African countries that it deems as viable business partners. It has also inundated the continent with its low cost goods creating competition in respective country markets. These are positive developments for Africa and the world though some degree of skepticism surrounds these international business transactions because of the possibility of default loans. China would have to review its foreign policy in this wise.

Finally, African leaders may be celebrating their new found supposed "win-win" relationship with China just because they believe the strategic investments would provide the much needed long awaited jobs. However, these governments should do the math well to ascertain whether Chinese foreign policies and investments have the capability to do just that without a future price to pay. Furthermore, whether these investments are sustainable from the view point of geopolitical risk (that is policy changes in investments and labor) encompassing China and host countries.

What Were the Major Causes of the 2001 Recession?

2010-03-04T10:41:00.001-08:00

What were the major causes of the 2001 recession you might ask? First, let's focus on the here and now. Anyone with access to media of any form has now likely had their curiosity aroused by the latest recession talks. We are most definitely falling into one, and it looks serious. Unrestrained capitalism and consumer spending has finally caught up with us and we are now paying the dues. What goes up must come down, and this is exactly what is happening with the extraordinary economic growth we have seen in the last couple decades. It has been said that we must learn from the past to avoid making the same mistakes again in the future. The previous, most recent recession that comes to mind was that which occurred in the earlier stages of this decade. What were the major causes of the 2001 recession?

The most glaring issue was the the collapse of the Dot-com bubble. Basically, too many companies entered into internet marketing with their eyes and judgment clouded by dollar signs. They viewed the internet as a sort of "money-multiplying" machine that you basically put $2.00 into in order to make $200.00. They got lazier and less creative with their marketing efforts. This whole philosophy turned out to be incorrect for the most part, and consumer spending online began to demonstrate this. Eventually, large numbers of these generic companies went bankrupt.

This Dot-com collapse triggered a collapse in the NASDAQ. The Dow Jones remained relatively unscathed by the NASDAQ collapse until September 11, 2001, when the terrorist attacks occured. In the following months, the market rebounded and collapsed repeatedly. It eventually crashed hard in the final quarters of 2002, causing a recession.

Some economists argue whether or not to even label this period of poor economic activity as a recession because of the fact that it did not last a full two consecutive cycles. Nonetheless, it still had a hard-felt impact on the American people. When discussing the major causes of the 2001 recession we are definitely obligated to consider the relevance to our current dire economic situation.

Avery Ranch Real Estate Agent Kenn Renner Shows Off Top Austin Golf Course Community

2010-03-03T10:38:00.001-08:00

Alarming economic situation - 21 8 - non-payment of energy resources, environmental protection peak oil to survive the war

2010-03-02T10:30:00.001-08:00

Comprehensive and thorough economics course by Chris Martenson - currency debt-creating the Federal Reserve Bank of energy pre-war population, peak oil environment, the business to survive the global financial crisis www.chrismartenson.com

If the economy's trend growth or a recession in 2010?

2010-03-01T10:28:00.001-08:00

What is 2010? Here are some ideas and some ways, I think that the list took place in 2010. But rather than guess which end of the S & P 500 Index will be the number of analysts cut profit forecasts, which is a list of things in 2010 might be good or bad, than I imagined. But I think people want a way to one of the most important factor in the economy and markets so that they can plan and their own personal and business strategiesWe experienced a year.

1. Unemployment is not much better could be worse in 2010, because of the savings and debt reduction to consumers, rather than spending money, the key is the company is producing from the current level and the expansion of consumer demand.

2. To win the value of U.S. dollars, this year due to (risk) global uncertainty began what kind of improvement and disappearance of the U.S. economy later this year.

3. Is the "Tea Road" peopleWill continue to increase, while the Republican primaries in 2010 to make the appearance of a candidate.

4. More complex and competition rules, points out that the U.S. Congress will prove to be the restoration of roadblocks.

5. When the Federal Reserve and Ben Bernanke will raise interest rate concerns will be muted because the market will grow a few months before interest rate decision, the Fed and Bernanke, it is time to raise interest rates.

6. The central bank will continue to maintain a low interest rateContinue to print money, so that the next bubble, due to bad investments.

7. Housing may be more serious in 2010, and the sharing of foreclosures more and more millions of "toxic assets" of the bank's balance sheet. Commercial real estate will continue to decline, by 2011, due to the need to refinance "underwater" attribute. However, new investors will begin a fortune to buy these cheap properties.

8. These banks need to build the assets they currently owned assets to meet the toxicEncountered in books and new toxic assets to make up for 2010 and 2011. Hence, the banking credit crunch (and very little to keep credit-worthy borrowers.)

9. Corporate winners and losers (consumers and taxpayers have lost their health care ') legislation began in 2010, became apparent, and CEO and medical trade unions, was surprised to be involved with the executive departments, if they decide their "negotiated agreement" is not honored by the government.

10.The U.S. Congress passed another economic stimulus package, in order to restore and create employment opportunities. He will be great, but it will release a smaller package, so their spending bill passed by Congress can bring, there is no attention to a large number of concern and indignation.

11. Climate change hysteria, and the Congress in 2010 on a realistic energy plan, we have been waiting for in order to reduce the work since 1975 reward.

12. The company's sales will continue to be so serious, companies can increaseWill be conducive to (low-interest loans) to buy more mergers and acquisitions, sales and profitability.

13. Government debt is already high, will be greater and the Federal Reserve Board in order to finance these short-term bonds, long-term debt. Therefore, the Fed was not prepared to raise interest rates. Imagine the price (only 0.25% increase of 50% to 0.5%) because of your "cost", if you are interested in the hundreds of billions of U.S. dollar payment, based on the current debt.

14. ThisIs certainly a minority, but in 2010 the company's profits are too optimistic and will be lowered, with the second quarter, figures began.

15. Create a new investment areas and opportunities will you have a buyer, the seller and you, and vice versa.

Compared to our growth in China, India

2010-02-28T10:22:00.001-08:00

China's economic growth in recent decades, a large scale. Although India's economic growth during this period can not be compared with the number of terns of the Asian countries. The two countries have 1300000000-1200000000, respectively, the largest population on earth. China has more than 1 billion more than the United States the third largest home.

China's economy grew by 10% per annum during the 20th century, 90 years, this growth continues to rise自从. It is currently the third largest economy after the United States and Japan, overtaking, and is expected to be in the next two years.

This happens, growth in China for several reasons. A population of only the existence of a considerable advantage, that is why it is such a rapid growth possible. The Government's stimulus to some extent help with a number of cash flows of infrastructure and transportation. There are many investment opportunities for foreign investors. AnotherThe main reason is the enterprise into the country of cheap labor. It is used by the major apparel companies, one in the country produced the world's largest apparel part number. Have made the biggest growth areas. This means that foreign companies can establish their own clothes to China cheaper, rather than in their own national production. Some companies have been criticized for the poorThe working conditions of workers, because it is not the same as in other parts of the same rigorous standards. The lower the cost of living in China, that the employee does not require the same wages, thereby reducing costs for enterprises.

India is not the case, because China's growth, but it has by increasing the cheap labor it provides. Several call center moved to the country in the past decade. Some companies have received criticism for several reasons. One of them is that itContinuously to help people lose their jobs elsewhere in the name of greater profits. Another reason is that it means the user does not speak in their own country people, that is, they do not speak of people to solve their direct inquiries.

Call center in China clothing company, which is equivalent to foreign companies when it comes to the use of county labor force. The main reason our economy than India, the tremendous technological advances in plantOccurred. It is in this respect between the two countries vary widely. India does not have the same public investment will not be. It is also still relatively rural areas, in China's urban mass migration. They are examples of in accordance with the West more and more with Beijing, Shanghai and other big industrial city. It was also suggested that the stability of our government played an important role in the economic situation does notBy political changes. Does this mean that democracy is the economy bad?

The recent global economic recession, but has affected to China. It is growing so fast, it needs to have a impact. However, it is faster than many other countries, once again, in part because of state intervention and partly because its economy has been so much.

Seven - Sunny Day Real Estate is absolutely

2010-02-27T10:10:00.001-08:00

The first song "Diary" in the hope of tomorrow real estate first album ... the first song? :)

U.S. dollar losses will continue to decline?

2010-02-26T10:05:00.003-08:00

Since 2001, the U.S. dollar has steadily declined. British pound against the dollar had risen to over £ 1 = 1.45 dollars to close to £ 1 = low down two U.S. dollars mark. U.S. dollar against the euro, the dollar has depreciated against the current 1 euro level from 0.85 to 1.35 U.S. dollars.

From the different points of view in the dollar seems to be running the following basic economic foundation and continue, and these imbalances, the dollar could fall further.

First, the U.S. current accountDeficits to maintain the highest level in history. Debt and other countries the exact amount expected to be approximately 710 billion U.S. dollars for 2006 [1]
Basically, this means that the U.S. imports more than exports, resulting in capital outflows. In recent years, this huge debt has been from Asia and other countries, are happy because the U.S. dollar as it as "buying stability and security of the state," to buy currency. However, there is increasing evidence Asian banks are not asConfidence in the U.S. economy. Therefore, they are looking to sell U.S. dollars and reduce the dollar reserves. As a result of this situation, the dollar must fall, because too few buyers, the U.S. debt [2].

Second, the future of economic growth is no longer doing so positive. Economic growth forecasts have been downgraded recently. The OECD lowered to 3.6% growth forecast to 2.4% of the U.S. economy. If Nu Beene Beene pessimistic about the global economy [2]Is expected that by mid-2007 in the United States recession. In economic growth is expected to decline in the important factor is the U.S. consumer confidence to decline.

Related to this is that the former gave a warm housing market may have bottomed out signal. While the new housing prices continue to rise. Old house prices fell 3.5 percent on average since last year. Although the 3.5% decline may not be big, it is the largest in history. Housing prices are the main factorsConsumer protection in recent years. Between individuals, the amount of debt the U.S. consumer is a new high. Consumer debt ratio of disposable income from 62% in 1980 to 127% in 2005 [3]

Therefore, falling house prices in other parts of the U.S. economy, the effectiveness of a powerful knock-on effect, as consumers struggle to refinance debt and meet. Another consequence of high level of consumer debt is that the U.S. economy should be particularly sensitive toTo raise interest rates. Rising interest rates will be a devaluation of the solution may require investors to finance the U.S. current account deficit. Although the distant prospect of the Fed to raise interest rates. Continued to decline in the dollar will lead to long-term interest rates rise on U.S. secutities.

However, some economists argue that the prospects for the dollar may be bad as some people predicted. First, as Anatole Kaletsky, that [4]Of globalization and financial market deregulation era, the trade deficit is not that difficult to finance, as it once was. As experience has shown that the trade deficit as a guide exchange rate fluctuations is not reliable. First of all, one of the few countries, the current account surplus is Japan. Your current account surplus has increased, but the yen fell against the dollar, one of a small number of currencies. [4]

Secondly, although the pace of U.S. economic growth slowingCurrently, not much worse off than the European Union and Japanese economies. 2, the gap between interest rates in the economic field is still only about 2%. Against the euro's strength and weakness against the dollar if there is good reason, there are many good reasons. Some American economists like Ben Bernanke the Federal Reserve to keep U.S. growth was only slightly below trend in controversy optimistic economic conditions.

However, it is important not to underestimate theThe importance of the general market confidence in U.S. economic outlook. For example, in Iraq's political problems also hurt the reputation of the United States as the world's leading economic and political level. More than 50 years, the United States has been the undisputed global economic power, but slowly changed my view they believe may be coming to an end the era of U.S. dollars. As the population migration in U.S. dollar assets could be to establish an investment banker to the strong leverage effectThey do not want to hold U.S. dollar assets.

The United States to a large extent the adjustment period can not be avoided because they are trying to solve the triple deficit, with the rest of the world, the trade deficit, consumer debt, the U.S. government debt. Whether the adjustment phase is gradual and painful things to start 2. First, how important is that U.S. housing prices and the resulting decline in consumer confidence. Second, will depend on the attitude of Asian banks, especially theChina. Because they hold so many dollar-denominated assets, they may try to gradually depreciate to manage the continuation of the past five years. However, can not be ignored, if the dollar's status as a reserve currency in the world, it may try to attack the United States creditors to increase their inspection cash. This will exacerbate the dollar's decline, so that genuine economic difficulties, the United States and the rest of the world.

The only certainty is that European consumers may be retainedSome in the U.S. real bargain shopping in a great future.

References

[1] http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/12/business/main1203762.shtml

[2] http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8361260

[3] can be http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/Z1/Current/

[4] http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0, .630-2485597. The HTML - greatly exaggerated the demise of U.S. dollars

Move beyond the false stimulation: action that produces real growth in the review of

2010-02-26T10:05:00.001-08:00

Now the so-called stimulus is the input power can he expect to carry out its concern to policy makers, in fact to improve the economic situation. Of freedom and prosperity of Video Center shows all of Canada's Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom of the world's key findings, and said that with U.S. President George W. Bush and Obama, the policy of small government and free market nature and thus to stimulate economic growth. For more information: www.freedomandprosperity.org

Blair CGI - Growth, shortage of resources and climate

2010-02-25T09:55:00.001-08:00

It is possible to develop the economy while reducing greenhouse gas emissions have fallen significantly. Observation of the former USPresident Bill Clinton, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Ethiopia Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and other leaders to discuss practical measures to combat climate change and the unprecedented economic progress of the African continent opportunities.

2008 - American history, a key point

2010-02-24T09:50:00.001-08:00

2008 will be a unique place in American history. We are very pleased that we are working with a number of seemingly insurmountable obstacles to the situation. We have already seen the real estate market burst, rampant mortgage fraud, shy of the exchange, kicking one U.S. dollars, we will celebrate our first five years of war, there is no formal congressional declaration of war. This is how it?

It seems necessary to caution and to take in our current situation. I am not a politician,Economists or analysts of any kind, but I am an American citizen, so I think it is my right to know and understand the actual situation of the alliance and how they affect ordinary people. We stood a lot of decisions, such as leadership, war and economic crossroads.

In the first concern is the economy. Family values and real estate values fell. Inflation, the dollar will depreciate. The average price of natural gas 3.25 per gallon. ProminentAll of this means less is used for high-value commodities spent all the money and materials in revenue. Reduction in income means less money for economic consumables and stifle growth. I and many other citizens of the middle class feel pressure not to spend so we usually do what it is. Some of us are just making a living beyond their means, while others will be foreclosures and recovery of vehicles forced.

In the housing market, the number of foreclosureReduce the value of the real estate market. Foreclosures priced far below market value, so that they always sell first. This indicates that the current market price of the home, in the mortgage loan to stop. Over time, the average selling nearly 9 months, many homeowners can not wait for such a long period of time can be forced to sell their foreclosures. Each person is not the loss of foreclosures, in addition to investors who buy a forfeiture of property. Lenders lose theirThousands of dollars in revenue, the owners lost their homes, and in the world foreclosures housing value was forced to cut.

Gasoline prices how like? Last summer, in my professional field price of 3.39 U.S. dollars or so, and mix in some parts of 4.00 U.S. dollars. We see a quick guide only now, do not see improvement in the national average. The demand for oil is steadily rising in India and China, strong growth, and the main oil supply from Iraq, Iran, and a very unstable region toIn the Middle East. Now there are many restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions, in order to improve the means of more stringent requirements. All of these factors continue to drive prices upward, and it seems to be no upper limit in order to prevent it, unless the demand has begun to narrow, or we find a new oil supply.

And the U.S. dollar? This may be the biggest problem, I can see our economy. The dollar has lost value to inflation since 1913 as part of the Federal Reserve. U.S. dollars are a form ofLegal tender, by any support. The original U.S. currency is gold, far more than due to a security to a paper tax dollar price stability. As the money supply increase in value of the dollar decline, but inflation is not the only reason for concern. We have war and other items on a large number of bonds. The federal government is that we have no money, and the Federal Reserve to issue more into the bottom of theValue. U.S. dollars, which is today valued at approximately 0.04 U.S. dollars or less, compared with U.S. dollars, it began to spread. A dollar value of the loss in the world market less all "(import", but also in price) to buy.

There's even the war we live in is a mistake to go there more, and it is wrong to say that, but we need to find a solution. We are more than 4,000 foreign troops in Iraq, defeat so far, we haveNot even a formal declaration of war. The U.S. military role, the Constitution is not to defend the police the world, but our country. In a recent challenge by him to defend a strong offensive front has been mentality, but the result is a military, is all over the world and on the basis of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq under the pretext of a war thin. We have never had a sound evidence, we have to go anyway. Now, we can see that Iran is enriching uranium"Peaceful purposes", but many people believe that this plan be used to make nuclear weapons, and no energy. This is a difficult situation has been brought in. We are so into our foreign policy, or we are in a positive direction these hostile enemy actions to themselves? This seems to be in respect of each case, especially in the attacks in New York as a parameter. We also would not agree to foreign military bases on our territory, but we hope that they will all over the world. TheThe United States Declaration of Independence, some of the world, it is necessary to fight the Revolutionary War, the British King George III, because he "always among us informed in times of peace," the standing army. "This is essentially the story of what we have done around the world.

The United States needs about? To a management:

1) cut federal spending, reduce state budget deficit

2) the establishment of sound economic policies,

3)The use of minimally invasive foreign policy,

4) increase the participation of ordinary citizens.

United States (General) on a society, there is a large and complex claims. We want everything done for us, and we hope that it will do so quickly, to do right. Our parents, our ancestors had in their entire life situation, we run out of things to the credit card transaction. We must be responsible for our decisions and actions, rather than looking for the next government to bailOut. If you really want to "social security", and then plan accordingly, investment or storage. Hard work. Education. A chance. The United States is still the land of opportunity, we must be willing to agree on the sofa, go get it.

CSULB Economic Stabilization Act Panel Discussion

2010-02-23T09:46:00.001-08:00

Housing prices are falling. Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual acquired pennies on the dollar. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the government custody. U.S. commercial banks have tightened lending standards, as well as the credit crunch threatens global financial markets. All of the economic growth rate slowed down a lot of people think that the United States could lead to a severe recession and the rest of the world these four oil-exporting countries. U.S. Treasury and the Federal Republic ofReserve Board to develop seven ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ U.S. Dollar and bailout Wall Street bailout plan to a pair of CSULB campus expert panel discussions. What is the reason to discuss the crisis, which means that rescue teams, what is the impact of rescue, and how the street, not only the impact on Wall Street.

In an economic recession?

2010-02-22T09:40:00.001-08:00

The biggest problem is whether we are in a recession. Experts have not yet come out of their head, but if you ask consumers, they say, there is no doubt that we!

What is the definition of a recession: in economic activity throughout the economy decreased significantly, more than a few months, normally visible in real gross domestic product, real income, employment, industrial production, wholesale and retail trade. "Refers to the total gross domestic product - GDP, a commonMeasure of economic performance

So, how is it going on ... Here are a few facts:

Investors worried that the U.S. economy into recession has led to reduction in foreign stocks. Overseas financial institutions have been taken from the U.S. mortgage investment mistakes caused huge losses. The International Monetary Fund and others pointed out that any region will prove to be free from the pain spread.

U.S. construction spending in January, suffered the biggest drop in 14 years, said the United States Department of Commerce, in reducing theHousing is, hotels, highways, distribution, and by the state and local infrastructure projects of the Government.

A survey showed that U.S. factory output fell in February for the second time in three months. In the services sector, in the long shadow of the manufacturing sector as an employer, has been for the past five years, the first drop.

The manufacturing sector fell to 48.4 percent of 50.7 in January, and 12 percent 48.3 percent. All 50%, reflecting theReduced activity.

Consumer confidence index continued to decline, the current minimum level of nearly 15 years.

Another surprising figure is that an employer to reduce employment to come back.

In order to help the sluggish economy, the Fed has repeatedly cut interest rates since last September. In January of this year, they added 1.25 percentage points, the price in just 8 days.
In addition, Congress and the Bush administration has run the 168 billion U.S. dollars to boost consumer spendingAnd capital expenditures.

Economists warned that stagflation, from the fight against high inflation rates stagnant economy, which is unlikely.

Business economists worry that credit losses and heavy debt, they are described, 3 March, when the biggest economic risks. They are increasingly short-term and sub-prime mortgage loans and other forms of debt risks

Economic data will no longer need to give our economy a recession here, said: "Buffett.
"From common sense, we are here now in a recession"

"With so few consumers to anticipate future economic conditions in the next few months at the turn of the economic outlook continues to deteriorate, increasing the risk of a recession."

Consumer spending is declining. People are no longer willing to spend money unnecessarily.

Many economists said they expected the figures even worse. You should how to do that during this period?

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