The New Energy Agency ( Iea ) - 2815 Words

The recoverable resource base has been considerably expanded by the development of unconventional gas reserves, most significantly in the United States. The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that conventional gas reserves are equal to around 120 years at 2010 levels, and when unconventional gas is added this figure rises to nearly 250 years. The remaining resources of gas can comfortably meet IEA projections of demand beyond at least 2035. The twenty first century has seen the rapid development of shale gas in the United States, which has been made possible by technological breakthroughs that allow considerable volumes of gas to be extracted at a price that competes with conventional gas. These technological breakthroughs†¦show more content†¦Despite the game changing potential to increase the geological resource base, political and economic factors none the less may mean that the shale gas revolution leads to shortages in the future and a perpetuation of past energy consumption patterns. This analysis highlights that the role of shale gas as a game changing resources is uncertain, and any predictions that are made on its future can only be approximate guesses. The shale gas revolution calls into question the peak oil hypothesis, which predicts that the price of finite resource will increase dramatically in the future once oil production reaches a peak. The peak oil hypothesis assumes that on the supply side once fifty percent of total world reserves of petrochemicals are extracted production will peak and then go into rapid and permanent decline. Rising oil prices may stimulate drilling in marginal areas but because ninety percent of the worlds reserves have already been discovered this will do little to increase the ultimately recoverable reserves (URR) of oil. This pessimistic prediction for future oil production is combined with a very optimistic prediction for the future of energy consumption. The geologists are also skeptical of the potential of unconventional gas and oil reserves to replace conventional oil. The economic argument for peak oil has its origins in Jevons’ ‘Coal Question’ (1865) and Hotellingâ €™s ‘The

The Adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965 Free Essays

string(172) " that the Communist Party of the United States of America CPUSA was the best solution to fight racial inequalities in employment, housing and education \(Carreiro, 1999\)\." The Adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965 In the turn of the fifteenth century African American traveled with European explorers, especially Spanish and Portuguese to the New world many serving as crew members, servants and slaves (Bigelow, 2011). African Americans were free in the beginning times of the New World, though first white landowners faced labor crisis, what appeared easiest was to force the strong, hardworking African Americans to slavery by the mid-sixteen hundreds, second the United States Constitution in 1788 did not help, it guaranteed equality only to whites and consider blacks as three-fifths of a person (Bigelow, 2011). The end of the Civil War and the help of Abraham Lincoln, in December 1865 the Thirteen Amendment to the constitution was adopted, stating that slavery was abolished, though it was the beginning of blacks worst struggles to come (Bigelow, 2011). We will write a custom essay sample on The Adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965 or any similar topic only for you Order Now The following will view African-Americans lives from the adoption of the Thirteen Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965 focusing how they have worked to end segregation, discrimination and isolation to gain equality and the civil rights. Technology help the New World take its shape, but many would not know that African Americans had a huge impact developing the beginning of it. In 1790 an invention that impacted this countries production of cotton was the cotton gin; invented by Eli Whitney an African American, it helped separate the cotton from the cotton seed which allowed the textile industry to grow (Trotter, 2000). This did not help the blacks they were not viewed as having technical knowledge but only as labor workers, which pushed slavery and Nat Turner’s rebellion in 1832 which outlawed blacks to read, write and cipher (Trotter, 2000). 1836 the U. S. Patent Act came to affect which required inventors to submit models showing the construction, design and specifications, which the literacy restriction denied African Americans to patent their inventions (Trotter, 2000). Then in 1857 the US Supreme Courts Dred and Scott decision, the federal government ruled that enslaved blacks were not citizens which they could not receive patents for their inventions (Trotter, 2000). All this things became obstacles for African Americans to be recognized for their inventions and knowledge in technology. African Americans continue pushing forward and with blacks being excluded from the industrial industry, the impact of emancipations, civil rights law and constitutional amendment, African Americans went from slaves to citizens which gave them rights, which led to many more inventions. The shoe lasting machine was a notable invention by Jan Matzeliger’s, this machine would attached the upper part of the shoe to the sole, which at the times was only done by hand; before 50 pair of shows were done in a day and by the time he perfected the machine 700 pairs of shoes were done in a 10 hour day (Jan Matzeliger, 2011). Other inventions came from Elijah McCoy, who invented numerous lubrication devices for locomotives engines for the railroads and boat steam engines and Grandville T. Wood’s electrical inventions, including a telephone transmitter (Trotter, 2000). It seems African Americans were moving forward though soon after African Americans face another struggle Jim Crows Law or Black Codes. This brought the beginning of segregation; Jim Crows law took voting rights because when the fifteenth Amendment gave those rights to Africans Americans it left loop holes which it was required to take literacy tests and the practice of poll taxes, which again discriminated the blacks (Bowles, 2011). Poll taxes required blacks to show either a payment or a proof of land ownership and the literacy test required blacks to know how to read which most recent freed slave did not know how to read because of the Nat Turner that took education privileges away before the Civil War (Bowles, 2011). Jim Crows laws also separated and downgraded African Americans from the whites, but not for long because the West brought many more opportunities to African Americans. The government excluded Asian immigrants but allow African Americans to take advantage of the Homestead Act of 1862, allowing to purchase 160 acres of land for $1. 25 per acre and to take land for free if a homesteader farmed it for a period of five years (Bowles, 2011). Another Act was the Timber act of 1873 this stated if settlers planted trees of at least one-quarter of the land for four years it gave them the option of taking another 160 acres of land for free, which helped solve some problems of isolation because the West was unknown and required collaboration of people and government (Bowles, 2011). World War I also brought opportunities to African Americans because it called out for 2. 8 million US Citizens out to war which left many Northern jobs vacated which started the time of the â€Å"great migration† (Bowles, 2011). African Americans got the opportunity to move North in Massachusetts munitions plants, Pennsylvania steel mills, and New Jersey brick yards, it was said half a million migrated around World War II (Bowles, 2011). In the 1920’s to 1930’s blacks worked very hard to become better and have equal rights but many industrial places still believed in the Jim Crows law, which the blacks moved from job to jobs, formed all black labor unions like the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, domestic and servant unions, which broke the strike of discriminatory white labor unions in aluminum, coal mining, meatpacking and the steel industries (Trotter, 2000). By 1926 10,000 blacks worked for Henry Ford and gave them many opportunities like supervisory positions, those who worked for Ford felt superior to other plants (Trotter, 2000). This was a rising time for African Americans and as proven, standing their ground and pushing forward was what it required to gain equals rights and the start of a time for those to fight for what belonged to them. In the beginning of the 1930’s many intellectuals like Richard Wright believed that the Communist Party of the United States of America CPUSA was the best solution to fight racial inequalities in employment, housing and education (Carreiro, 1999). You read "The Adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965" in category "Papers" The CPUSA was known as â€Å"Negrotarians† the members seemed to adopt intellectual maturation and independence thought from African Americans (Carreiro, 1999). Zora Neal Hurtson an anthropologist and author was the first to use the term â€Å"Negrotarians† they were white humanitarians and philanthropist who â€Å"aesthetically and financially supported young black artist† (Carreiro, 1999). In Voice of the Negro sourced and excerpted stories from African Americans newspapers and published them in 1920 was Robert Kerlin (Bowles, 2011). This gave whites an opportunity to understand firsthand of how African Americans lives were in the United States, which gave blacks an opportunity to speak to become equal (Bowles, 2011). African Americas racial pride and intense desire for equality, the Harlem Renaissance began, they were Harlem artist who demanded respect (Bowles, 2011). From 1920-1934 the whites social reformers and black intellectual faced many problems and whites continue to dominate political and social institutions with no gains of civil rights (Carreiro, 1999). The South continued the Jim Crows law and voting restriction and in the North blacks dealt with color-line employment, housing and entertainment (Carreiro, 1999). Harlem Renaissance declined and was face to a shift of economic and social reform, which was greatly shown in 1933 during the Great Depression (Carreiro, 1999). African continue pushing forward in a wild roller coaster of improvement and then having to start again, but the hard work had been noticed, but hard times called for focus in a time like the Great Depression. African Americans continue the battle of equal rights and believed to fight for the country they lived in. So when World War II came about, nearly one million served, but continued being segregated in to black units led by white officers (Bowles, 2011). Many did not back down and continue to fight for the equal rights they deserved, so on April 12, 1945 101 U. S. Army African American Officers were taking in to custody because they refuse an order from a superior officer, they refused segregation of housing and recreational areas (Bowles, 2011). African American pilots also protested segregation and many showed it by risking their lives, like the Tuskegee airmen Fighter Group 332nd, who flew 15,000 sorties and shot down more than 200 German aircraft, though none were recognized for their heroism, until 50 years later by Bill Clinton (Bowles, 2011). The years from 1950’s to 1960’s many African leaders arise, like members of the NAACP, women, ministers, black powered organizations, and youths from colleges, all protesting for segregation, discrimination and isolation to end for civil rights. A notable civil rights movement was in 1954 with the ruling of Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, it help desegregate African Americans and whites at school’s (Bowles, 2011). Oliver brown argued that it was injustice to make his daughter to walk several miles to attend an all-black school, when a school of all-white was only three block away from her home, which the Plessy vs. Ferguson decision Plessy stated that schools needed to be equal. In this case it was just making it harder for his daughter and other children to attend school, so Chief Justice Earl Warren ruled in favor of Oliver Brown (Bowles, 2011). Though the ruling was done it unfortunately left the rest, for the board of education to figure out when they would desegregate, which they were in no hurry to do anything about it. Arkansas governor Orval Faubus opposed the ruling and assembled the Arkansas National Guard to confront it, but President Eisenhower did not allowed and sent 1,000 paratroopers from the 101st Airborne Division to allow the Little Rock Nine to attend the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas (Bowles, 2011). President Eisenhower was a huge influencer to civil rights, he approved the Civil Rights Act of 1957, it did not do much positive to African Americans but it helped established a civil rights office within the Department of Justice, with 10 lawyers staffing it (Bowles, 2011). Other influencers of the time, that kept things true through music was Bob Dylan, singing about the 14 year old boy Emmet Till who was beaten to death by two white men, and both later released (Bowles, 2011). Times were tough and in spark of the civil rights movement this set them back in times of hatred and violence, segregation continue in the South and the Brown decision disappeared in Arkansas, a new strategy needed to be approached. Rosa Parks a 42 year old African American women and former secretary of the NAACP, road a bus in Montgomery, Alabama on December 1, 1955 helped focus on a new strategy to civil rights (Bowles, 2011). Riding the bus was not the problem, the problem was that the city ordinance stated that African Americans had to give up their seat on a train or bus if a white person asked; it also stated blacks were not allowed to sit parallel with a white person. Rosa Parks refused to give her seat when a white man asked for it; he got off the next stop, called authorities and had her arrested (Bowles, 2011). As a former NAACP she was committed to the movement but she acted as a private citizen, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott. A 26 year-old black pastor responding with poetic and deeply felt words led to another approach of civil rights movement, his name was Dr. Marti Luther King, Jr. He helped organized the Montgomery bus boycott, about 90 percent of blacks that normally rode the bus on a daily basis began walking, riding a bicycle or carpooling to work (Bowles, 2011). He also helped urge for them to buy less at Christmas since the lack of transportation, plus it was a good time to show what Christmas was truly about. The boycott lasted until the Browder vs. Gayle federal case, which showed that segregation laws were unconstitutional, which helped King become a noticeable civil rights leader, with stories appearing in New York Times Magazine, he appearing in the cover of Time, and was the second African America guest in NBC;s Meet the Press (Bowles, 2011). Following Gandhi nonviolent philosophy he was able to coordinate many more boycotts in other cities, which led other to view this movement differently in a more nonviolent way. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee formed sit-ins as a form to protest. Four African American freshmen from the North Carolina Agricultural and technical College sat under a sign that read, â€Å"We don’t serve colored here† but they did not cared and remained seated until closing and promised to return the next day till served (Bowles, 2011). This movement spread quickly with roughly 70,000 people sitting in across the nation, some 2,000 arrested and some were attacked by whites (Hall, 2007). The NAACP a national leader supplied bail money and legal advice to this activist, and later 3000 from the NAACP boycott stores that practice discrimination which dropped sales because of the refusal to buy (Hall, 2007). Though this movement was nonviolent others like the white used force one being done in 1963 Bull Connor unleash police dogs and high-pressure hoses on Black school-children in Birmingham, Alabama bringing blacks to the streets (Hall, 2007). King went to Washington, DC, where he gathered 200,000 demonstrators at the National Mall and addressed them with his famous â€Å"We Shall Overcome† speech on August 23, 1963. King’s words at the capital that day were a defining moment of the Civil Rights movement (Bowles, 2011). † After the assassination of President Kennedy, Johnson assures congress he would honor the passage of the civil rights bill that Kennedy fought for before his death. The Civil Right Act of 1964 stated, â€Å"An Act, to enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations, to authorize the Attorney General to institute suits to protect constitutional rights in public facilities and public education, to extend the Commission on Civil Rights, to prevent discrimination in federally assisted programs, to establish a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity, and for other purposes (Bowles, 2011). This helped start the EEOC, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission who serve as a watch dog to employers to treat every employee equally. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was the final pass after a march that ended as the Bloody Sunday; blacks were attacked as they walked 52 miles from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama (Bowles, 2011). These boycotts, sit-ins and marches led to a change in laws and lead to the end of legal segre gation of the races, known as the de jure segregation (Bowles, 2011). African Americans are sure very hard working citizens to what they believe are right and will go the limit to prove this right. With continues roller coasters over high and rocky mountains, blacks accomplished many success that lead to the Acts passed in 1965. Many important people including some white supported the end of segregation and civil rights which with patience and courage it was shown it was something accomplishable over time, since change requires time.? References Bigelow, B. C. (2011). African Americans. Retrieved October 2, 2011, from Countries and Their Cultures website: http://www. everyculture. com/multi/A-Br/African-Americans. html Bowles, M. (2011). A history of the United States since 1865. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Carreiro, A. E. (1999, Summer). Ghosts of the Harlem Renaissance: â€Å"Negrotarians† in Richard Wright’s Native Son. The Journal of Negro History, 84(3), 247-259. Retrieved from http://www. jstor. rg/ stable/2649004 Hall, S. (2007, November). Civil Rights Activism in 1960s Virginia. Journal of Black Studies, 38(2), 251-267. Retrieved from http://www. jstor. org/stable/40034978 Jan Matzeliger. (2011). Retrieved October 2, 2011, from http://www. blackinventor. com/pages/ jan-matzeliger. html Trotter, J. W. , Jr. (2000, Fall). African Americans and the Industrial Revolution. OAH Magazine of History, 15(1), 19-23. Retrieved from http://www. jstor. org/stable/25163396 How to cite The Adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1965, Papers

High Performance Work Practice

Question: Discuss about the High Performance Work Practice. Answer: Introduction: High performance work practice is one of the major policies of human resource strategies in order to stimulate employees for enhancing the organizational performance. It has been observed that organizations success is highly dependent on the performance of employees. The service provided by every individual employee is the most effective weapon to earn organizational revenue. People from different geographical markets tend to be associated with a particular business organization as its employees. Therefore, human resource managers are primarily responsible on how to develop the employee performance at the workplace. Harvey Norman is popularly known as one of the largest multinational retail companies situated in Australia. Among the several retail sectors, Harvey Norman primarily deals with furniture, bedding, computer, communications, electrical products and so many. Behind gaining the recognition of multinational countries this particular organization has implemented major strategi es and policies at the workplace (harveynorman.com.au, 2017). Among those strategies, the importance of high performance work practice is most prominent. While dealing with the employees, the human resource managers of Harvey Norman have always aimed to motivate the spirit of these employees so that they can perform well for the further progress of business. This particular study has provided a critical evaluation on how this particular organization has applied high performance work practice at the workplace for stimulating the employee. Some of the most effective barriers in implementing this specific policy have also been discussed in this particular study. However, while discussing the impact of high performance work practice on Harvey Norman some of the scholars have expressed numerous opinions regarding this specific topic. The study has critically evaluated on how Harvey Norman with the help of this particular strategy is able to motivate the employees for rendering the business success (harveynorman.com.au, 2017). Discussion: Kehoe and Wright (2013) opined that three major aspects of employee engagement are there that includes cognitive aspect, emotional aspect and behavioral aspect. As per the cognitive aspect, the concept of the employee regarding the organization, its managers, leaders and policies is most prominent. Based on the organizational cultures and behaviors, the relationship between managers and employees the success of a particular business organization is highly dependent. As per the emotional aspect, it has been implied that employees should have a feeling for each other while working together within a business organization. In other word, while working within a team every individual employee should show their sympathetic attitudes towards each other despite having different cultural attitudes and backgrounds. On the other hand, behavioral aspect includes employees should maintain a proper behavior and discipline at the workplace. However, these major three aspects is highly significant fo r rendering the success of a business organization. Headquartered in New South Wales this particular organization, Harvey Norman has already established their entire business process in multinational countries. Millions of employees are directly associated for the progress of this specific organization. Therefore, the human resource managers of Harvey Norman have decided to implement high performance work practice at the workplace in order to encourage the employees towards meeting the business goal. Jensen, Patel and Messersmith (2013) stated that employee motivation is the concept that aims to generate the spirit of employees for providing their best services to the customers. The primary objectives of Harvey Norman in implementing high performance work practice are raising the level of employee performance. The business experts of Harvey Norman in order to increase the performance level of employees have followed some of the major strategies. Boxall (2012) opined that the implementation of incentive and bonus scheme for those emplo yees who are flexible enough to provide overtime duty is one of the most effective strategies to encourage the employees towards reaching business goal. Patel, Messersmith and Lepak (2013) opined that the employees of this particular organization are flexible enough to receive necessary facilities and benefits from the organizational managers due to any kind of health issue. The employers of Harvey Norman tend to take entire responsibilities for those employees who have to face any major health issue at the workplace. Therefore, the employees do not have to face challenges while facing health issue within the organization. On the other hand, the human resource managers of Harvey Norman by arranging an interpersonal communication at the weekend tend to know about the necessary problems and barriers that the employees have to face at the workplace. As a result, the internal relation between every individual employee and human resource manager is very much effective. Niehaves, Kffer and Ortbach (2012) stated that these kinds of positive effects highly reflect on the performance level of the employees. Harvey Norman while implementing an individual employee within the business organization tends to focus on their skill and level of competency rather than their religious backgrounds. As a result, this specific organization had to face innumerable problems at the workplace. People, belonging to diverse cultures and attitudes, work together at the organization of Harvey Norman. While making teamwork the employees have to face several barriers such as communication barrier, psychological barriers, cultural barriers, religious barriers and so on. Due to the linguistic barrier, especially the employee of Harvey Norman failed to exchange important information with each other. As a result, this kind of communication gap highly affects the entire performance level of employees. Waal and Sivro (2012) stated that the implication of high performance work practice implies that people belonging to different cultural attitudes should make a group discussion session at every weekend. In this particular group discussion, people from different cultural background take part and share their opinion regarding a particular topic. The primary purpose of Harvey Norman is to get those employees involved towards a specific topic so that the employee can take collective decisio n. Collective decision is possessed with major positive impact. In order to implement high performance work practice Harvey Norman has decided to follow participative style of leadership at the workplace. Chadwick, Super and Kwon (2015) opined that the most effective reasons of using participative form of leadership style at the workplace are employee engagement. In this specific form of leadership style, the leaders involve the employees to share their opinion regarding the business goal. As a result, both the employers and the employees have the equal right to take a business decision. Robbins et al. (2015) stated that participative form of leadership is not very much effective every time for enhancing the performance level of employees. Harvey Norman has faced the similar experience. It has been observed that the employees of Harvey Norman at a time started to misuse the leadership style. They tend to express their opinion in such a way the business leaders had to face difficulties in maintaining that particular decision for business progress. In this kind of situation, a major gap had been raised in between the employees and the business leaders. Depending on the situation, organizational managers have to implement leadership style at the workplace, be it autocratic, participative or transformational. Meyers and van Woerkom (2014) stated that high performance work practice is the conceptual framework that imposed the business employees for performing well towards reaching the business goal. This particular organizational practice enables the employees to perform well in order to meet the needs and demands of employees. Behind making Harvey Norman as a multinational retail sector, the contributions of employees are undeniable. The human resource managers always like to prefer providing professional training and guidance to the employees of Harvey Norman with the help of which they become successful in meeting the current trend of market. On the other hand, this particular organization is having e-commerce business process as well (Patel Conklin, 2012). With the help of e-commerce business, the employees can communicate with the customers of different geographical boundaries. Therefore, with the help of high performance work practice the employees have been provided an effective tr aining for increasing their performance on technological skill. As a result, the employees of Harvey Norman are efficient for handling any kind of sudden technological barriers at the workplace. The performance of employees being based on technologies is very much progressive in meeting customers expectation. Conclusion: The entire study has provided in-depth overview about the importance of and significance of high performance work practice on the employees. Human resource managers in order to encourage the employees at workplace tend to implement some major initiatives. Maintaining an effective employee relation at workplace is highly important with the help of which employees can be motivated towards performing well at within the organization. Harvey Norman after expanding their business in different geographical boundaries has decided to appoint the employees from different cultural background. Diversity at the workplace enables the organization to make collective decision. On the other hand, after the growth of revenue, the employees of Harvey Norman get numerous additional facilities and benefits because of which employees show their rate of interest for performing well. On the other hand, one of the most effective reasons of implementing high performance work practice is employee motivation. Harvey Norman likes to follow some of the most important motivational theories at their workplace in order to push the employee towards meeting the business target. At the same time, it is also undeniable that this particular practice is able to maintain organizational culture and behavior of Harvey Norman. Reference List: Boxall, P. (2012). High?performance work systems: what, why, how and for whom?.Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources,50(2), 169-186. Chadwick, C., Super, J. F., Kwon, K. (2015). Resource orchestration in practice: CEO emphasis on SHRM, commitment?based HR systems, and firm performance.Strategic Management Journal,36(3), 360-376. de Waal, A., Sivro, M. (2012). The relation between servant leadership, organizational performance, and the high-performance organization framework.Journal of Leadership Organizational Studies,19(2), 173-190. harveynorman.com.au., (2017). Shop Online for Computers, Electrical, Furniture, Bedding, Bathrooms Flooring | Harvey Norman Australia. (2017).Harveynorman.com.au. Retrieved 15 April 2017, from https://www.harveynorman.com.au Jensen, J. M., Patel, P. C., Messersmith, J. G. (2013). High-performance work systems and job control: Consequences for anxiety, role overload, and turnover intentions.Journal of Management,39(6), 1699-1724. Kehoe, R. R., Wright, P. M. (2013). The impact of high-performance human resource practices on employees attitudes and behaviors.Journal of management,39(2), 366-391. Kroon, B., Van De Voorde, K., Timmers, J. (2013). High performance work practices in small firms: a resource-poverty and strategic decision-making perspective.Small Business Economics,41(1), 71-91. Meyers, M. C., van Woerkom, M. (2014). The influence of underlying philosophies on talent management: Theory, implications for practice, and research agenda.Journal of World Business,49(2), 192-203. Niehaves, B., Kffer, S., Ortbach, K. (2012). IT consumerizationa theory and practice review. Patel, P. C., Conklin, B. (2012). Perceived labor productivity in small firmsthe effects of high?performance work systems and group culture through employee retention.Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice,36(2), 205-235. Patel, P. C., Messersmith, J. G., Lepak, D. P. (2013). Walking the tightrope: An assessment of the relationship between high-performance work systems and organizational ambidexterity.Academy of Management Journal,56(5), 1420-1442. Robbins, J., Garman, A. N., Song, P. H., McAlearney, A. S. (2012). How high-performance work systems drive health care value: an examination of leading process improvement strategies.Quality Management in Healthcare, 21(3), 188-202.

Capital vs Liquidity free essay sample

In the context of the events of the last few years just how important is liquidity to the survival and well-being of Financial Institutions? Some believe it has a greater influence on events than Capital! Discuss. (In this assignment you need to outline the role of liquidity, issues arising when liquidity is scarce and compare the role of liquidity to that of Capital but most importantly give your own view on these matters) Role of Liquidity Liquidity can be defined as 1) the ability of a business to meet obligations without disposing of its fixed assets or 2) the degree to which assets of a company can be easily converted into cash. The evolution of banking has seen their balance sheet composition change. The model changed from one of borrowing at low rates and lending high rates with little interest rate or liquidity risk to one where borrowing in the short end and lending in longer maturities. This change created both interest rate risk and liquidity risk. [pic] Figure 1 Liquidity Gap In the early model a 1 month loan at 8% is matched by a 1 month deposit at 5%. The margin is locked in at 3%. The only risk to the bank is credit risk, i. e. that the loan gets repaid. In the modern scenario we have a 150 day loan at 6% funded by a 7 day deposit at 1%. In this example we have credit risk, interest rate risk and liquidity risk. This model facilitates greater margin as it is generally cheaper to borrow in the short term and higher rates available if lending in the longer term. The risks are that in 7 days, where will the borrowing rate be (rate risk) and will the bank be able to borrow (liquidity risk)? The hedging of interest rate risk has been made much easier with the evelopment of interest rate swaps and other derivative items. As these are off balance sheet products, they do not provide liquidity and so the modern model is very susceptible to any problems with liquidity. The interbank cash market is quite sophisticated. International banks can trade with each other very efficiently using many products. †¢ Straight loans and deposits, si mple products of fixed term from overnight up to 1 year. Usually not guaranteed. †¢ Bond repurchase agreements (repos), banks borrow cash and pledge a bond as security against the loan. More secure for the lender than loans and therefore cheaper for the borrower. †¢ Foreign exchange forwards, involves the exchange of one currency for another for a fixed term. These are cleared centrally and will have a small element of credit risk. These are useful if an organisation is able to access one currency and unable to source another, e. g. the US dollar funding requirements of Irish Banks. †¢ Commercial Paper (CP) and Certificates of Deposit (CD’s) are similar to a cash loans but it can be sold on in the secondary market. This makes them more liquid. All of the above are used to â€Å"square up† a bank’s books on a daily basis. Also banks run gap analysis to reconcile any funding mismatches and close off those gaps if required. This is called liability management. The funding situation would generally have been very fluid. For example, CD’s issued on the day or a large corporate withdrawing a sizeable deposit. The interbank market was the place to lend your excess cash or borrow your shortage and it functioned effectively. This post World War II move to asset driven balance sheets has led to increased focus on liability management. This, aligned with disintermediation, where large corporates bypassed traditional banking methods, led to more innovation in the banking industry. Medium Term Notes (MTNs) and asset securitisation are longer term funding solutions that became more popular in recent times. MTNs can be senior or subordinated debt and are quite flexible for issuer and investor. They usually are for 3 to five years and some may have embedded options. They can have fixed or floating rates and trade on the secondary market. Securitisation involves the packaging of assets into a bond and selling them with the underlying assets as security on the bonds. Typical assets that can be sold this way are mortgages, credit card debt, car loans or student debt. This model was used by Northern Rock (NR) in the UK where they originated mortgages that were then securitised. This enabled them to â€Å"churn† their balance sheet and issue more mortgages. There was an inherent liquidity risk run by NR with this model as their funding was not diversified sufficiently aligned with a failure to realise that market conditions for mortgage backed securities (MBS) would deteriorate in stressed markets. Between issuing a mortgage and securitising it, there will always be a time lag and to cover that NR relied on wholesale interbank funding in the short dates (up to 3 months). This source quickly disappeared as banks pulled any limits. The building society had then to go to their lender of last resort, the Bank of England, and with that news hitting the headlines, ordinary depositors queued up outside branches to get their own money out. This was the first run on a UK bank in 150 years. Eventually NR was taken over by the state. In the context of this case it’s interesting to note that the run was caused by what I would consider â€Å"over-transparency†. The Bank of England had a rule that obliged them to publish the names of institutions that used its liquidity support facility and allied with a lack of satisfactory deposit insurance their depositors took their money and ran. Maybe the rule is not so suitable in these conditions. When Liquidity is Scarce The current crisis we are in the midst of now began in 2007 when sub-prime mortgage bonds became problematic. As well as a regular market for these bonds, a Credit Default Swap (CDS) market also developed. CDS are a derivative that transfers the credit risk of an underlying security, effectively insurance against default. If you bought a bond and also a CDS on that bond, theoretically, you are hedged). The result was that the sub-prime problem had ramifications worldwide. Which banks held sub-prime debt, which institutions had written CDS on s ub-prime debt? Banks may not have any exposure to sub-prime but may well have exposure to banks that had. The international money market was tied together in this crisis. There was a serious lack of transparency of each bank. You couldn’t analyse it latest financial statements and ascertain any given level of risk in a particular area. Money market funds in the US, lenders of cash in the short dates, retrenched. They put their cash into short dated government debt and avoided the interbank market which then froze. There was no liquidity in the market. Confidence was quickly disappearing and if the interbank market loses confidence in an institution, credit lines will be withdrawn, and liquidity will quickly become a major problem. Chart 1 below shows the spread between 3month Euribor* and 3 month Eonia**. In normal functioning markets, these rates should be very similar. They are a measure of the price of liquidity in the markets. As can be seen the correlation is close up to mid ’07. [pic] Chart 1. However in stressed markets you can see what happens. In August ’07 sub-prime became an issue and then again in Sep ’08 when Lehman Brothers failed and once again this summer when the Greek debt crisis began to escalate. The liquidity in European interbank markets was drying up. The above graph represents the â€Å"LIBOR-Eonia† spread and is widely traded in markets now as a hedge against liquidity a crunch. In Ireland in Sept ’08, with the increasing uncertainty of Anglo Irish Banks exposure to the commercial property market, the Irish government has to step in and issue a blanket guarantee on all Irish banks liabilities. [pic] Source Central bank of Ireland. Credit Money Banking Statistics Chart 2. Initially, money flowed into the covered institutions but, as time progressed, the deposits in the Irish banking system left. Chart 2 above shows the more striking movements. I have isolated non-resident deposits. These have fallen by 63% since Oct ’08. Also I have highlighted Irish banks issuance. This falloff shows that the money markets are closed to Irish banks. The modern banks liquidity risk of borrowing short and lending long was crystallizing. Ireland Inc. was losing liabilities. Our loan-to-deposit ratios were deteriorating. Deposit holders moved funds into the AAA rated Rabodirect or elsewhere. Bondholders moved into safer havens such as UK gilts and German Bunds. Further assistance was required for the banks. Central bank intervention began. The ECB began long term refinancing operations (LTRO) where banks could avail of up to 1year cash at the ECB average rate. To avail of the LTRO suitable collateral was required. The Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) assisted with emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) when collateral was ineligible for the ECB. Interestingly the CBI would have take massive haircuts on the collateral which was ineligible for ECB, up to 75%, this would put a lot of pressure on deposit gathering resources. This pressure can be seen in the rates Irish banks are paying for deposits currently. Pressure was increasing for banks to rebuild balance sheets and as the ability to acquire liabilities was extremely limited, they began to reduce assets. These disposals took place in distressed and illiquid markets. Efficient markets did not now exist. The management of liquidity was quickly becoming a one-stop shop, the ECB. Liquidity regulations are largely as a result of the recent liquidity crisis. The prudential liquidity assessment review (PLAR) was introduced by the CBI. This has guidelines consistent with Basel III and other relevant measures of high quality funding. These guidelines will require banks to hold large liquidity buffers mainly of cash and highly rated government debt. The measures on Basel III are primarily the liquidity coverage ratio (LCR 2015) and the net stable funding requirement (NFSR 2018). What levels of liquidity required will be based on stress testing the liquidity profile based on a number of stressed liquidity events. LCR covers short term liquidity stresses and will require high quality unencumbered assets. The NFSR covers a stressed period of a year long and would apply haircuts to all asset classes. This liquidity buffer will come at a cost. Holding low yielding government debt and cash incurs opportunity cost. This cost will be allocated on to the business areas in banks that have generated the assets and will eventually lead to higher cost of funds to the borrower. Also there is the developing situation where the availability of high quality bonds may not meet banks liquidity requirements. The Role of Capital Capital is a company’s net assets including all retained earnings and reserves such as loan loss reserves and can be viewed as an organisations’ strength. Capital should be available for any potential losses a bank may incur. There has been a lot of focus on bank capital from Basel I back in the eighties up to Basel III and the EU’s Capital Requirement Directive (CRD IV), which is currently being implemented. Initially capital ratios were focused on Japanese banks that grew to be the biggest in the world. They did so with very low capital bases (approx 2%). The western world viewed this as inequitable and so Basel I was introduced. Basel I introduced the Cooke ratio that defined capital as equity, retained earnings and convertible bonds (hybrids). It also outlined the weightings assigned to loans to calculate capital requirements. Loans to corporates 100% weighting, loans to banks 20% and sovereigns 0% and it set a capital level of 8% of the weighted assets. [pic] The McDonough Ratio was developed in Basel II and refined its predecessor to include new financial instruments used to manage risk in banks. The latest initiatives focus on the appropriate level of capital required for a given level of risk under certain stressed scenarios. Known as regulatory capital, it is difficult to calculate and we can see many examples of this over the recent past. The question I would ask in trying to come up with an appropriate level of capital is â€Å"What are your future losses going to be? † Is this a ridiculous question? The European Banking Authority, in its first two stress tests couldn’t figure it out. Ireland’s two pillar banks passed the first test in July 2010 and Dexia passed in July 2011 (core tier 1 ratio of 10. 4%) only for all to be nationalised soon after. I think the latest stress tests may be getting closer but the current market uncertainties just magnify the problem. What capital will BNP Paribas, holder of â‚ ¬5bn of Greek Bonds, need with Greece government debt receiving a 50% haircut? What will it need if Greece defaults? I can understand the difficulties for the authorities. Also the banking industry is slow to get to the required level. Basel III has a core tier 1 ratio of 10. % but the target date is 2019. What level is enough and could this level be too much? Models using Value at Risk measures will be using data from the most volatile period in history. Could they be overestimating? Capital comes at a cost. Investors require a return and too much capital could lead to slower or more expensive lending which will lead to lower growth and lower profits a nd erosion of share values. Conclusion In this crisis liquidity has been a massive issue. Capital levels have been hot topics for many years but the effects of this credit crunch has highlighted the importance of proper liquidity provisions. If PLAR had been in place for the last 10 years, would the Irish banks have gotten themselves into this position? Not in my opinion. It certainly would have focused the mind on how liquid our booming commercial and residential property portfolios were. It is, however, debatable whether any shock factors to account for the sudden change in Irish banks books would have been incorporated in the risk models used to assess potential liquidity shortages. Banks dependence on short term wholesale funding was a critical fault. There is no doubt that the relevant authorities worldwide did not recognise the risk. Basel III provides for it by 2019! The European Central Bank is not even a lender of last resort for European banks. It is breaking treaty rules currently with its buying of peripheral government bonds. The liquidity issue can also put pressure on perfectly good entities. Unfortunately we now have a situation where disposal of assets in this stressed environment is required to build up required capital and liquidity buffers. Discounts being applied are serious and it is creating a vicious circle of selling assets to create capital while eroding capital as assets are sold cheaper than could be expected. Perhaps the markets were operating too perfectly for too long. Short term wholesale funding was plentiful for a long time and banks got used to it. It made the carry trade (lending long and borrowing short) easy. However as Warren Buffet famously remarked, â€Å"only when the tide goes out, do you learn who has been swimming naked†. However liquidity problems are like smoke and capital problems are the fire. If concerns over a banks’ liquidity arise, it is primarily because there is concern over its capital or its ability to meet any losses.

Interesting Essay Topics To Write An Essay On

Interesting Essay Topics To Write An Essay OnIt is amazing how many interesting topics one can write an essay on, but you must remember that writing an essay is not merely an exercise in word-building. For it to be able to truly be an essay, it should have a proper structure and tone. This article will give you some of the more intriguing essay topics you can write an essay on.First, what could be a better incentive than to be able to do a few articles for free? Free reports are generally very interesting to read. They are extremely practical and helpful. The best ones come from private companies who are willing to share some of their reports in order to advertise their products and services.As someone who is not much of a reader, this is a real bonus for me. I know there are always more than enough free reports to go around. So if you are struggling to find enough resources, write an essay on the topic of how much money you would make with your current job.Another topic you can writ e an essay on is the topics that are important to your local businesses. There are always plenty of businessmen out there looking for ways to expand their business. Sometimes they simply need a good place to start.You might be able to find a good market opportunity in a particular region or city. Your local businesses can help you open up that opportunity.In fact, you could even find the right product to get involved in the new business you are considering. There are also quite a few writers who love to explore new topics in order to come up with new articles.As you can see, there are some essay topics you can write an essay on. It just depends on what you have in mind and whether or not you can make it happen. Who knows, you might even find yourself selling them on eBay!

Human Trafficking in India Essay Example

Human Trafficking in India Essay India is the second most populous country in the world. Owing to this fact and because of the tremendously high poverty rate in the country; India also leads the world in human trafficking. In the country, around 100 million children are working in homes and factories across India and many of them are in situations that would be likened to slavery. Moreover, for the year 2000 alone, it was estimated that 12.07 percent or 13,157,000 of the 10 to 14 age group are economically active. This consists of 5,992,000 girls and 7,165,000 boys. Additionally, according to the National Labour Institute, 12.6 million children out of the 203 million children from ages of 5 to 14 in India are employed full-time. One hundred sixteen million are in school while another 87 million are â€Å"do housework, work on family farms, work alongside their parents as paid agricultural labourers, work as domestic servants, or are otherwise employed†. The status of the other 74 million is unknown (Global Ma rch Against Child Labour, n.d.) and it is that they are victims of child trafficking. According to Human Rights Watch, a total 40 million people in India are into bonded labour meaning they are working for someone until they pay off a debt. Off this 40 million people, 15 million are children. In some cases, the bondage is even passed from one generation to another if the debt if still unpaid upon the death of the initial person bonded. Other reports indicate that more or less 50,000 children are trafficked into India for prostitution. In Mumbai, estimations indicate that around 90 percent of sex workers started off when they were still under 18 years of age. NGOs also state that 6,000 to 10,000 girls are being trafficked into India from Nepal annually. The same number is determined for girls being trafficked from Bangladesh (Global March Against Child Labour, n.d.). We will write a custom essay sample on Human Trafficking in India specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Human Trafficking in India specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Human Trafficking in India specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The International Labour Organization approximates that 15 percent of the prostitutes in India are children. With 2.3 million prostitutes, this makes for 345,000 child prostitutes. On the other hand, no concrete data is available for the number of children that have been trafficked to be used for crime (Global March Against Child Labour, n.d.). India is a prime destination for sex trade along with Thailand and the Philippines. These three countries comprise for a total 1.3 million child sex workers. India is also the main destination for children aged below 16 who are trafficked in Southeast Asia along with Pakistan (Hughes, Sprocic, Mendelsohn Chirgwin, n.d.). The prostitution in the country is operated and controlled largely by organized crime (Global March Against Child Labor, n.d.) Women and children trafficked from Saudi Arabia are being sent to Middle Eastern nations daily. Girls that are put up for prostitution or domestic service in India, Pakistan and the Middle East are usually tortured, imprisoned and/or sexually abused. In Bombay, children 9 years and above are being sold for 60,000 rupess equivalent to 2,000 USD because of an unfounded belief that having sex with a virgin cures sexually transmitted infections. Indian brothels house 100,000 to 160,000 Nepalese women and girls. They were brought to India as they were made to believe that marriage or a good job awaits them. Additionally, 5,000 to 7,000 Nepalese girls are transported into India every year for prostitution. Data indicates that that 2.5 percent of prostitutes in India are from Nepal while 2.7 percent are from Bangladesh. (Hughes, et. al, n.d.). Many are being sent to prostitution as the families are fooled to send their children because of a promise of marriage or a good job. They are usually detained for days and are abused â€Å"until they learn to service up to 25 clients a day†. Others undergo training before being entering the trade. Training may be a â€Å"constant exposure to pornographic films, tutorials in how to please customers [and] repeated rapes† (Hughes, et.al, n.d.). Trafficking women from Nepal to India is fairly easy work because of a 1,740-mile open border. In fact, it is even less risky than transporting illegal drugs into the country. Traffickers can also easily bribe police officers in an instance that they are caught. The traffickers get the women from the isolated districts of Nepal where the illiteracy rate is high. Such locations are Sindhupalchow, Makwanpur, Dhading and Khavre (Hughes, et.al, n.d.). Media Perspective The media refers to human trafficking as an overly heinous crime. On the other hand, some media entities believe that human trafficking has not been receiving adequate attention from the government. The media suggest that steps should be taken to halt human trafficking. Trafficking is dubbed as a very heinous crime because people make a profit out of the violation of another person’s rights (Mulford, 2006). Trafficking is also a crime that has been given less attention compared to other horrors like suicide bombings and other acts of violence (Matysik, 2006). This is because other violent crimes are widely publicized like terrorists that want to strike fear into the hearts of people while human trafficking remains to be an underground business. One analysis indicates that the public has gained a distorted view of the issue since the media has been vent on exposing incidents of the trafficking of women and girls being forced into prostitution which fuels a moral panic. This diverts the public view out of other forms of human trafficking like forced labour (Fahy McDevitt, 2006). The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking has also identified that these media stereotypes should be eliminated. Human trafficking, prostitution and smuggling should be confused with the one another. Marija Andelkovic, President of the anti-trafficking NGO ASTRA has something to say on the issue (UNGIFT, 2008). Media power should be used to press authorities and society in general to tackle the factors that drive human trafficking. â€Å"And the greatest contribution would be to write about human trafficking as a serious social problem which is very complex and has different aspects,† says Andelkovic. In that way, journalists will help fight crime.† (UNGIFT, 2008) The media must also make an effort to protect the identities of victims of human trafficking if ever they are to interview one since much of human trafficking is controlled by organized crime and the victim could be in danger if his/her identity is exposed. Nonetheless, writing about human trafficking will not always require that a victim be interviewed. The story can be framed in a variety of ways such that highlighting it as an organized crime or something that would urge the government to intensify efforts against it (UNGIFT, 2008). According to the Loquitur, the subject of human trafficking is finally getting the attention that it deserves. The awareness of the issue is increasing especially as different organizations have been battling with the issue. Influential celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey who hosts the talk show Oprah have also sparked public attention on the issue. These have urged governments to act which includes drafting laws and setting up entrapment operations to catch human traffickers (Matysik, 2006). Recognizing human trafficking has been identified as an important issue and the Indian government has started to address the problem (Mulford, 2006) especially since the situation in India has now been identified by the media as â€Å"grim†. However, the actions by the Indian government to combat human trafficking has still has been deemed lacking. â€Å"In Mumbai, convictions for trafficking-related offences increased from three in 2003 to 11 thus far in 2004 but remain grossly unrepresen tative in a city of over 18 million inhabitants† (Human trafficking situation, 2005). UN.GIFT also supports that the media is an important tool in the fight against human trafficking. The UN.GIFT regional event in Vilnius gave focus on this aspect.

Stifle, already!

Stifle, already! Stifle, already! Stifle, already! By Maeve Maddox Reader Brad Kruse came across this comment from the reader of a rabidly anti-health insurance reform site: die eisernen Stiefel (the iron jackboots) of Obamistas are methodically and systematicly [sic] destroying the very core of our country. Brad’s question has to do with the German word Stiefel, not politics: What I noticed was Steifel.   As in the old Archie Bunker, â€Å"Stifle yourself, Edith!†Ã‚  Does stifle come from boot, as in â€Å"put a boot in it?† No, there’s no connection between German Stiefel and English stifle. The boot-in-the-mouth image, however, certainly suits Archie’s personality. The word stifle has been in English with the sense of â€Å"to choke, suffocate, drown† since 1387. It may have entered English by way of Old French estouffer, â€Å"to stifle, smother.† The French word in turn may derive from a Germanic source: Old High German stopfen, â€Å"to plug up, stuff.† Archie’s metaphorical sense of the word has been around since 1577. The expression eisernen Stiefel, literally â€Å"iron boot† is usually translated into English as jackboot. A jackboot is a type of strong high boot without laces worn by farmers, motorcycle riders and soldiers. Because such boots were part of the Nazi uniforms in WW II, jackboot has taken on metaphorical associations with totalitarian government. Speaking figuratively, â€Å"jackboot tactics† are brutal and oppressive methods of control exercised by totalitarian dictators. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Whimsical Words25 Russian Words Used in English (and 25 More That Should Be)Predicate Complements