For Hobbes, individuals must be a larger population beneath authority, and those individuals must, by the very nature of the perpetuation of the species, cede all rights and control over to that authority. It is also well within the natural rule of law that there might be abuses of authority, and that even though rebellion might be expected, it is up to the individual to maintain that the State is the grand master and the individual but the pieces on the chessboard. The State, therefore, must control military, civil, judicial and even ecclesiastical powers (Martinich, 1992).
For Locke and ousseau, however, the individual takes personal responsibility for action - liberalism and optimism show through in that life is not as it is now- but as its potential allows. This view of the social contract and natural rights was central to the progress of mankind. The idea of natural rights is…...
mlaREFERENCES
The European Voyages of Exploration. (2001, July 5). Retrieved August 2010, from University of Calgary: http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/eurvoya/
Warfare in the 1700s. (2006, March). Retrieved August 2010, from Beowulfs-tomb.com: http://beowulfs-tomb.com/frames/wars/warfare.html
Life Expectancy. (2010, January). Retrieved August 2010, from Encyclopedia of Death and Dying: http://www.deathreference.com/Ke-Ma/Life-Expectancy.html
Cassirer, E. (2009). The Philosophy of the Enlightenment. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Wealth & Happiness
Surveys have indicated that although citizens of the United Kingdom earn double the income they earned forty years ago, they find themselves less happy. There is no shortage of fables that support this story -- from Ebenezer Scrooge to Willy Loman the pursuit of wealth in modern society has often led to unhappiness in one form or another. Yet the myth that connections wealth to happiness remains powerful in our society. If one considers Maslow's hierarchy of needs, wealth certainly can aid in bringing happiness by meeting basic needs. In our society -- beginning with 19th century industrialization -- the pursuit of wealth beyond those basic needs has become a hallmark. Yet Maslow identifies as higher order needs not the creation of more wealth but the cultivation of self-actualization. This paper will examine the connection that wealth has with happiness, in an attempt to explain why the pursuit…...
Wealth and Captial
Wealth and Capital: Relationship with Race and Crime
Income and wealth are two very different animals- someone's income constitutes their salary, hourly wage and other forms of income; but, wealth is a different term that embodies several different forms of having cash- wealth includes net worth which includes homes, cars, and stock portfolios, among other things. Though these concepts have definitions, in a sociological sense, wealth is reflected in society in a different way. Being wealthy is having access to the resources and things, whether it means educational resources, or living and being able to sustain a certain lifestyle that includes large homes, luxury cars and high end designer labels in regards to fashion. It seems that wealth is reserved for the Caucasian and other "white populations," while people who rely mainly on income are those of the minority race. Stereotypically, ghettos are made up of African-Americans, Latinos, amongst…...
ealth
The benefits of being wealthy are numerous and varied. Perhaps the most obvious is the ability to live a comfortable lifestyle and enjoy indulgences that only someone with money can enjoy, such as exotic vacations, spending sprees at the mall, and grown-up toys such as luxury cars and boats. However there is perhaps a responsibility involved with wealth.
Most truly wealthy people are major contributors, donors, and sponsors of various charitable foundations, many of which would not exist if it were not for the considerable donations of the wealthy. And many wealthy individuals actually create their own foundations. In 1999 Bill Gates, for example, merged several of his existing foundations that bore his name into one, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a philanthropy that was estimated in 2003 to be worth some $32 billion (Gates Pp). The foundation provides grants for projects relating to global health care, education and libraries,…...
mlaWorks Cited
Christopher, Liam. "9.1bn population by 2050; Growth will mushroom in poorer nations." Daily Post (Liverpool, England); 2/26/2005; Pp.
Lynas, Mark. "What's going wrong? Although trade is the world's biggest distributor of wealth, the current system is widening inequalities between the wealthiest and poorest nations." Geographical; 2/1/2004; Pp.
Botonis, Greg; Bostwick, Charles F. "One of the Gang Newman Opens Sixth
Camp Made for Sick Kids." Daily News (Los Angeles, CA); 5/23/2004; Pp.
ealth of Networks
Communication (general)
It is said that the estern culture is going through some sort of cultural war in terms of communication and technology (Braman 153-182). The battlegrounds are seen in the courts, the legislatures, international bodies, local communities, and distant countries that individually may not have much power to affect the outcome though they do have a vital interest in who wins. The war is global -- and is one that has little to do with gay marriage, abortion, terrorism, Darwinism, or religion. It is, in one sense, a war going on above our heads, as it is largely concerned with law and policy, and society and property; this is all in connection to the new media and technology (Doyle). In another sense, it is very much a war in the trenches, as it affects our ability to choose how we will live and interact with each other as…...
mlaWorks Cited
Baker, C.E. Media concentration and democracy: Why ownership matters. (New
York: Cambridge University Press, 2007).
Braman, S. "Where has media policy gone? Defining the field in the twenty-first century." Communication Law and Policy, (2004): 9.2, 153 -- 182.
Coase. R.H. "The Nature of the Firm." Economica, (1937): 4.16, 386 -- 405.
When I am 37 years old, I check my investments and discover that I now have a portfolio of approximately $128,000. During the preceding 7 years I have fathered three children (two boys and a girl) and they are now at an age where the private schools they attend are costing me an arm and a leg, the house my spouse and I purchased is quite extravagant, and the two cars, insurance, and other of life's amenities are all crowding in on the investment picture. For the next seven years I decide to forgo the monthly investments, but decide not to change the initial investment strategy.
The next 7 years pass by and I am now 44 with gray showing in my hair and small wrinkles appearing about my eyes. I check my investments and discover that the 10% rate of return has held true and because of that my investment…...
Wealth Disparity
Executives as owners vs. Executives as representatives
Stock Options on wage growth
Taxes on wage growth
Inflation on wage growth
Individual Wealth Education (Mutual Fund Fallacy)
Financial Education
A very contentious issue arising within public domain is that of compensation and its repercussions on overall society. Over the past 3 decades executive compensation has ballooned while the average worker continues to see only modest gains in income. The average annual earnings of the top 1% of wage earners grew 156% from 1979 to 2007; for the top 0.1% they grew 362% (Mishel, Bivens, Gould, and Shierholz 2012). In contrast, earners in the 90th to 95th percentiles had wage growth of 34%, less than a tenth as much as those in the top 0.1% tier. Workers in the bottom 90% had the weakest wage growth, at 17% from 1979 to 2007. If inflation averaged just 2% a year over this period, the gains of the bottom…...
mlaReferences
1) Kaplan, Stephen. "Capital Ideas - The Evolution of U.S. Corporate Governance." The University of Chicago Booth School of Business - Business School, Full-time, Part-time, Executive MBA Programs. Web. 13 Jan. 2012. .
2) Kennen, Joshua. "If You Can't Beat 'em, Join 'em - Investing in Low-Cost Index Funds." Investing for Beginners. Web. 19 Jan. 2012. .
3) "Mutual Fund Fees and Expenses." U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Home Page). Web. 19 Jan. 2012. .
4) Shaw, Kenneth. "New Accounting Rules for Defined Benefit Pension Plans." NYSSCPA.ORG | The Web Site of the New York State Society of CPAs. Web. 13 Jan. 2012. .
The mere availability of clean running water, indoor plumbing, electricity, heat, air conditioning, refrigeration, automobiles, quality food, and cable television would be considered extreme "wealth" in most of the rest of the world.
Unfortunately, because the prevailing concept of personal wealth is relational rather than absolute or defined by the objective benefits and conveniences of modern life in the developed world, most Americans take for granted the lifestyles, benefits, conveniences, and opportunities available to them in modern American society. n the early 20th century, for just one typical example, the wealthiest Americans enjoyed the thrill of automobile excursions because the first cars were so expensive that they denoted wealth and privilege. However, as soon as the first mass transportation systems and more affordable automobiles made traveling more available to the masses, weekend drives to remote areas previously available much more exclusively to the wealthy lost their attraction to the wealthy.
Precisely…...
mlaIn principle, almost all middle class and even lower middle class Americans are exceptionally wealthy by any objective standards in comparison to the level of wealth available to the vast majority of human beings throughout the world. The mere availability of clean running water, indoor plumbing, electricity, heat, air conditioning, refrigeration, automobiles, quality food, and cable television would be considered extreme "wealth" in most of the rest of the world.
Unfortunately, because the prevailing concept of personal wealth is relational rather than absolute or defined by the objective benefits and conveniences of modern life in the developed world, most Americans take for granted the lifestyles, benefits, conveniences, and opportunities available to them in modern American society. In the early 20th century, for just one typical example, the wealthiest Americans enjoyed the thrill of automobile excursions because the first cars were so expensive that they denoted wealth and privilege. However, as soon as the first mass transportation systems and more affordable automobiles made traveling more available to the masses, weekend drives to remote areas previously available much more exclusively to the wealthy lost their attraction to the wealthy.
Precisely because wealth in modern society is an illusory concept defined more by the subjective value of whatever is unavailable to others of lesser means, a century later, the American preoccupation with relative wealth and acquisitive success resulted in the creation of the housing market real estate bubble in 2008. Instead of appreciating their perfectly nice modern homes, millions of Americans defined "success" and "wealth" purely by comparing their homes to the larger more expensive homes available to them through fraudulent manipulations of mortgage and loan documentation. The catastrophe that resulted was directly attributable to the preoccupation with comparative wealth and acquisitive success in America.
Wealth of Nations, published in 1776 during the Age of Enlightenment and on the cusp of the Industrial evolution, consists of Adam Smith's considerations on political economy. It is an accessible summation of economics and is highly valued as the first comprehensive work of its kind. As with most literature, The Wealth of Nations reflects its contextual social conditions; revolutionary ideas, technologies, and practices strongly influence the work. With this treatise, Smith sets out to explain an obvious social phenomenon -- the economic engine, combined with ways in which it may flourish.
A lucid description of national economy forms the introduction of the composition. Smith skillfully discusses the merits of dividing labor and the benefits of using machinery to increase production. This instructive passage exposes the powerful mechanism that connects society. Next, an examination of the development of industry and commerce along with urban and rural economic contributions provide the…...
mlaReferences
Ebenstein, William & Ebenstein, Alan O. Great Political Thinkers: Plato to the Present.
Orlando: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston, Inc., 1991.
Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1991.
Wealth of a Nation to Be: The American Colonies on the Eve of the evolution" by Alice Hanson Jones. (New York: Columbia University Press, 1980.) xxxvi, 494 p.: ill.; 24 cm, (HC104.J67).
This book is a more modern look than some of the other books scrutinized in these reports. It takes a newer look at America poised for evolution, and indicates how the quest for American freedom and the country's economy were so clearly and closely intertwined. Perhaps one of the most interesting portions of the book is the clear indication of more economic development in the northern colonies rather than the southern. In a pattern that would continue throughout the country's development, the north geared itself more toward manufacture and industry, while the south geared itself more toward agriculture and rural life. These would be the deciding factors when Civil War tore the country apart only 100 years after…...
mlaReferences
Ernst, Joseph Albert. Money and Politics in America, 1755-1776: A Study in the Currency Act of 1764 and the Political Economy of Revolution. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1973.
Disturbing reports from the Pew Research Center indicate that race-related wealth disparity is not shrinking but growing. Even though all ethnic groups surveyed are earning less, the decline in household incomes and net worth was significantly greater for blacks and Hispanics versus whites. Kochhar, Fry & Taylor (2011) claim that lower property values are partly to blame, along with bursts in the housing market bubbles disproportionately affecting nonwhite homeowners in specific geographic areas like Arizona, Florida, California, and Nevada. The research generally points to a “rich getting richer, poor getting poorer” phenomenon. Given that nonwhites have historically bore the brunt of wealth inequality, further gaps between rich and poor will affect nonwhites exponentially more. This article also shows the dangers inherent in keeping the bulk of net worth tied up with home equity; Kochhar, Fry & Taylor (2011) claim that one of the reasons for the widening gap between whites…...
mlaReferences
Kochhar, R., Fry, R. & Taylor, P. (2011). Wealth gaps rise to record highs between whites, blacks, and Hispanics.
In “The Black-White Wealth Gap is Unchanged After Half a Century,” the author discusses the history, evolution, and implications of the race-related income disparity problem in America. The article opens with a powerful anecdote about how black lives, businesses, and whole communities have been destroyed nonsensically and in blatant disregard for the law and the principles upon which the nation was founded. On all metrics, including median wealth and home ownership, African Americans have lagged behind their counterparts due to factors like the inability to transmit earned wealth to future generations. The article, published in The Economist, shows how understanding root causes of socio-economic injustice helps to guide sensible public policy. According to the author, discrimination remains a persistent and pernicious problem. Mass incarceration and the economic degradation of traditionally black communities has also been part of the problem. Possible solutions include the creation of a government funded bond program established…...
mlaReferences
“The Black-White Wealth Gap is Unchanged After Half a Century.” The Economist.
Wealth inequality results in many Americans not having access to necessities such as adequate healthcare. It is also linked to ethical and racial inequality and, as such, can be a source of social dissention. In the final analysis it is a sad truth that such radical disparities should exist in one of the most advanced societies in the word.
ibliography
lack Wealth / White Wealth: A New Perspective on Racial Inequality. Retrieved June 25, 2009, from http://www.infibeam.com/ooks/info/Melvin-L-Oliver/lack-Wealth-White-Wealth-A-New-Perspective/0415913756.html
Concentration of Wealth in the U.S.A. Retrieved June 25,
2009, from http://web.pdx.edu/~psu01435/wealth.html
Domhoff W. Power in America: Wealth, Income, and Power. Retrieved June 25,
2009, from http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html
Keister, L. (2005). Getting Rich: A Study of Wealth Mobility in America. New York:
Report details black-white wealth inequality. Retrieved June 25,
2009, from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7397962
Walsh D. (2008) America's "Fortunate 400" control vast wealth. Retrieved June 25,
2009, from http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/mar2008/rich-m07.shtml
Appendix
Figure 1. Distribution of net worth and financial wealth in the United States, 1983-2004
Total Net Worth
Top 1%
Next…...
mlaBibliography
Black Wealth / White Wealth: A New Perspective on Racial Inequality. Retrieved June 25, 2009, from http://www.infibeam.com/Books/info/Melvin-L-Oliver/Black-Wealth-White-Wealth-A-New-Perspective/0415913756.html
Concentration of Wealth in the U.S.A. Retrieved June 25,
2009, from http://web.pdx.edu/~psu01435/wealth.html
Domhoff W. Power in America: Wealth, Income, and Power. Retrieved June 25,
wealth of knowledge available to the world increases algebraically every day (Zadeh, 2004). Part of this knowledge explosion is due to the increased dependence of business, education, and the professions on the use of the computer. Since the introduction of the personal computer in the mid-1980's, computers have gradually, and fully, begun to dominate nearly every aspect of our society's daily life and there is no indication that this trend will ebb at any time in the near future (Ifrah, 2001). Quite simply, computer literacy is an absolute essential for anyone who anticipates participating in today's society.
To understand how important computer literacy has become one needs only to review a typical day in anyone's life. It is impossible to go to a bank, difficult to apply for a job, borrow a book from the library, visit the doctor or even purchase gas without having at least a basic knowledge…...
mlaReferences
Ifrah, G. (2001). The Universal History of Computing: From the Abacus to the Quantum Computer. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Poynton, T.A. (2005). Computer Literacy across the lifespan: a review with implications for educators. Computers in Human Behavior, 861-872.
University of Michigan-Dearborn. (n.d.). Automobile in American Life and Society. Retrieved November 15, 2011, from Automobile in American Life and Society: http://www.autolife.umd.umich.edu/
Zadeh, L.A. (2004). A note on web intelligence, world knowledge and fuzzy logic. Data & Knowledge Engineering, 291-304.
Wealth of Nations, According to Adam Smith
Adam Smith's seminal text The Wealth of Nations stands a tribute to the value of capitalism. Fundamentally its author espouses an optimistic faith in the essential rationalism of human society and human desires. He believes in the ability of human economic impulses to balance one another in a state of equilibrium of supply, costs, and consumer demand, if not interfered with by outside forces. Smith suggests that there is a famously invisible hand that guides market forces in a harmonious way that the state should not interfere with. The state should only enforce laws so conflict between human beings is kept at a minimum, and so the economy can function. The reason for the existence of this invisible hand is not purely generated by the economy, but by the nature of modern, human social life that Smith believes is, at is essence, rational…...
The disparity of wealth can be seen in just about every aspect of life, but is very obvious in healthcare, education, and where a person lives. People tend to get angry when they are the \"have-nots\" and they perceive other people as having much more than them. They often feel that those who have more are not deserving of what they have, or that they have not worked for it. It is easy to tie wealth disparity into the novel Pride and Prejudice because of the disparity between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. During the time the book was set, it....
While it is impossible to escape the similarities between the French Revolution and American Revolution and there is no question that the American Revolution helped inspire the French Revolution, there are a number of important differences between the French and American revolution.
Location was an important difference. America was a colony that was revolting against a ruling government that was separated from it by a large distance, while the French Revolution occurred in France and was aimed at the monarchy in that country.
Social class played a much more important role in the French Revolution than the American Revolution. ....
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