A College Football Playoff Essay Example

A College Football Playoff? Essay Every year thousands of NCAA division one football players shed blood, tears, and sweat with the goal of reaching a championship bowl game. Unfortunately, roughly half of all of these football players never make it close to contention for one of the top four prestigious bowls that make up the Bowl Championship Series. This series was created to ensure a true national championship game and place all the major conference champions in major bowls. At the same time, all small conference schools are faced with the predicament of playing in lesser bowls in the end of the season regardless of the level of success they attain. The national television exposure and the millions of dollars that come with a major bowl are taken away due to the size of a school. Non-BCS conference schools are subjected to deficits in spending and cannot recruit the best players, leaving them on an uneven playing field. These small schools deserve an equal opportunity at playing in major money making bowls and the national exposure that comes along with it. There should be a post season playoff for NCAA division one football. With more than one hundred colleges participating in division one football every year, the NCAA was facing many problems regardi . . A team from outside the six could theoretically play its way in, but in practical terms doing so would be nearly impossible (Suggs â€Å"Members† 1). A playoff post season addresses all issues regarding the national championship game and disparity not only on the field, but more importantly financially on campus. With more money at stake, playoff consideration is affect ed by growing greed among schools. So in 2001, changes were made to the formula. But at least every regular-season game still matters under this plan, which makes it a good thing (Dienhart and Huguenin 38). Notre Dame, the nation’s most popular[. We will write a custom essay sample on A College Football Playoff? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on A College Football Playoff? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on A College Football Playoff? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Small schools would have an equal opportunity at major bowls with a playoff. ], schedule strength and team record (Dienhart and Huguenin 38). In NCAA basketball, there is a playoff for the purpose of creating an even playing field and encouraging parity. [Congress] criticized the way the series rewards institutions in the Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pacific-10, and Southeastern Conferences and not colleges in the five other conferences in Division 1-A (Suggs â€Å"Members† 1). â€Å"‘Unlike college basketball, this strengthens the value of the regular season,’ says Kramer, the SEC commissioner† (Dienhart and Huguenin 38.

Italian Verbs For Beginners - Mood and Tenses

Italian Verbs For Beginners - Mood and Tenses When learning Italian, students naturally tend to look for grammatical patterns. Studying Italian verbs in a programmatic fashion is a wise idea because its an efficient use of time, and Italian verbs are classified in a variety of ways. When studying Italian verbs, though, avoid the temptation to make absolute comparisons to English. Although there are many similarities between the two languages, there are also many fundamental differences. In addition, there are always exceptions to the rule. So while taking an organized approach to Italian verbs is a terrific way to improve your Italian, think of it like ordering in an Italian restaurant: be prepared to order a different primo if your favorite dish isnt available. The Santa Trinit of VerbsVerbs are fundamental to any language, and Italian is no exception. There are three primary groups of Italian verbs, classified according to the ending of their infinitives: first conjugation (-are verbs), second conjugation (-ere verbs), and third conjugation (-ire verbs). Most Italian verbs belong to the first-conjugation group and follow a highly uniform pattern. Once you learn how to conjugate one -are verb, youve essentially learned hundreds of them. And what about those Italian verbs that dont end in -are? Second-conjugation (-ere) verbs account for approximately one-quarter of all Italian verbs. Although many have some sort of irregular structure, there are also many regular -ere verbs. The final group of Italian verbs is those that end in ​-ire. Feeling Tense? A Little Moody?Feeling tense studying Italian verbs? Or maybe youre a bit moody. There is a difference. Mood (a variation of the word mode) refers to the attitude of the speaker toward what he or she is saying. There are four finite moods (modi finiti) in Italian: indicative (indicativo), which is used to indicate facts; subjunctive (congiuntivo), which is used to express an attitude or feeling toward an event; conditional (condizionale), which is used to express what would happen in a hypothetical situation; and imperative (imperativo), which is used to give commands. (Note that modern English only has three finite moods: indicative, subjunctive, and imperative.) There are also three indefinite moods (modi indefiniti) in Italian, so-called because the forms do not indicate the person (i.e., first, second, or third): infinitive (infinito), participle (participio), and gerund (gerundio). Moods are divided into one or more tenses, which indicates the time when the action of the verb takes place (present, past, or future). For reference, the chart below lists the mood and tenses of Italian verbs in English and Italian. ITALIAN VERBS: MOOD AND TENSEIndicative / Indicativopresent / presentepresent perfect / passato prossimoimperfect / imperfettopast perfect / trapassato prossimoabsolute past / passato remotopreterite perfect / trapassato remotofuture / futuro semplicefuture perfect / futuro anteriore Subjunctive / Congiuntivopresent / presentepast / passatoimperfect / imperfettopast perfect / trapassato Conditional / Condizionalepresent / presentepast / passato Imperative / Imperativopresent / presente Infinitive / Infinitivopresent / presentepast / passato Participle / Participiopresent / presentepast / passato Gerund / Gerundiopresent / presentepast / passato Conjugating Italian Verbs SingularI personII personIII personPluralI personII personIII person Learning six forms for every verb would be an endless task. Fortunately, most Italian verbs are regular verbs, meaning they are conjugated following a regular pattern. In fact, there are only three irregular first conjugation verbs. Once the regular verb endings are memorized the pattern can be applied to other verbs of the same group. Or, they are irregular, and do not follow a regular pattern. Although numerous, even the irregular second and third conjugation verbs fall into a few groups that make it easier to memorize. Essere and Avere: Dont Leave Home Without ThemLanguage means action, and you cant speak Italian without the verbs essere (to be) and avere (to have). These two essential verbs are used in compound verb formations, idiomatic expressions, and many other grammatical constructions. Become the maestro of these two verbs and youll have taken a giant step towards learning Italian. In TransitReady for action? Then its time for a transitive verb- those that take a direct object (complemento oggetto): Luisa legge un libro (Luisa reads a book). Transitive verbs can also be used in the absolute sense; that is, with an implicit direct object: Luisa legge (Luisa reads [a book, magazine, newspaper]). Intransitive verbs, on the other hand, are those that never take a direct object: Giorgio cammina (Giorgio walks). Some verbs can be classified as either transitive or intransitive, depending on the context of the sentence. Verbs With Voice!Italian verbs (like verbs in many other languages) have two voices. A verb is in the active voice when the subject carries out or performs the action of the verb: Marco ha preparato le valigie (Marco packed the suitcases). A verb is in the passive voice when the subject is acted on by the verb: La scena à ¨ stata filmata da un famoso regista (The scene was filmed by a famous director). Only transitive verbs with an explicit direct object can be transformed from the active voice to the passive voice. Mirror, Mirror, on the WallYou wake up (svegliarsi), take a shower (farsi la doccia), comb your hair (pettinarsi), and get dressed (vestirsi). You couldnt start your day without reflexive verbs (verbi riflessivi). Those are verbs whose action reverts to the subject: Mi lavo (I wash myself). In Italian, reflexive pronouns (i pronomi reflessivi) are required when conjugating reflexive verbs. Coulda, Woulda, ShouldaThere are three important Italian verbs known as verbi servili or verbi modali (modal verbs). These verbs, potere (to be able to, can), volere (to want), dovere (to have to, must), can stand alone, taking on their given meaning. They can also follow the infinitive of other verbs, functioning to modify the meaning of those verbs. Verbs That End In -sene, -sela, -celaThere are a group of Italian verbs that are conjugated with two different pronoun particles. Verbs such as meravigliarsene and provarcisi are called pronominal verbs (verbi pronominali). In fact, they are still classified as either first-conjugation (-are verbs), second-conjugation (-ere verbs), or third-conjugation (-ire verbs) according to the ending of their infinitives. Many pronominal verbs are used idiomatically. Shadowed By A PrepositionCertain Italian verbs (and expressions) are followed by specific prepositions such as a, di, per, and su. But to the consternation of students of all levels and abilities, there is no hard-and-fast set of rules governing this grammatical usage. This is one instance in which language learners must familiarize themselves with tables that include Italian verbs and expressions followed by specific prepositions as well as verbs followed directly by the infinitive.

Business administrator report Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business administrator report - Coursework Example the company members function within the set guidelines and regulations pertinent to the Dynamic Enterprise Company as well as turning out to be the legal consultant of the company. The Overseer is also expected to be acquaint with the Dynamic Enterprise Legal Duties and Insurance Cover alongside dispensing and recording of stocks. I operated as the main link between the company and the external contractors (Meier, et al., 2005). During the first meeting, I guaranteed that every stockholder of the company had undoubtedly understood the roles that they had to play and what was anticipated of them in the long run. The foremost resolve of the meeting was to allocate duties to the members as well as setting practicable and hands-on deadlines to each participant (Dzimbiri, 2009). The obligation of the organization spearhead was to make available to the business with the directed bearing and oversee the wide-ranging operation of the trade. The marketing administrator was expected to reach out to afford the business with a good marketing approach that will lead to improved profits to the company. Subsequently, the financial administrator was apportioned to keep and maintain all the fiscal records of the company. The operations administrator was in charge of the procedural and maintenance of the fixed flow of goings-on of the company. Finally the administrator was expected to guarantee that all the general prearrang ed activities for the business are observed by all its members in an effort to accomplish the objectives of the company (Akwetey, 2011). Minutes of the agreed responsibilities and agenda were enlisted by the administrator in line with lawful requirements of the business meeting for yet to come records and mentions. Agreeing with Akwetey (2011), outlines aid in pointing out what to sort out and when to do it. This was apparent during the conventions of the company as it was a point of reference in our meeting considerations as it pointed out on the

Insurance Is Not Always Beneficial to Emplyees Essay

Insurance Is Not Always Beneficial to Emplyees - Essay Example In the United States, for example, many employees get Insurance policy through their employers where the employers help pay the Insurance policy. When the employer insures one, it is usually through a managed care plan that are health insurance plans that provide health care facilities to members at reduced costs by laying down contracts with medical facilities and health care providers. Employer based Insurance is often much cheaper as compared to buying individual Insurance, hence many people rather have their insurance bill cut from their salaries. The United States unlike other industrialized countries has a different case in that it does not have a national Insurance System. It is important to be insured because one cannot always tell when they are going to need the medical attention. There are vast advantages of getting employee-based health insurance. In the essay, I will look at health insurance in group verses individualized context, explore the advantages of employer based health insurance plan and discuss that insurance is not always beneficial. Group verses Individualized Insurance Employment based Insurance is an example of group based Insurance. ... e of group insurance policy is that it is much easier to obtain in that there are little procedures to be followed, which would in turn delay or even terminate the whole application process like inquiring about the health history of individual members. Group insurance policy is definitely the cheapest form of insurance available. However, as compared to group insurance, there are numerous advantages of individualized insurance plans. Firstly, one is able to customize the provisions they may want included or neglected in their package. They may also choose to regulate on the deductible amount of payment that the insurance company does. It also enables individual to choose the doctor that would be conducting their services. Here the price range may be elevated as compared to group insurers, but the services are better. It may also be exceptionally costly particularly when one runs a high risk being ill or has high health risk qualities. Advantages of Employment Based Health Insurance P lans A health plan would gain more if groups of individuals with low health risks were enrolled in it as compared to unhealthy list of individuals. In the United States where the employee health insurance benefit scheme is purely voluntary, there is a great chance that a group of highly unhealthy individuals are registered in the plan. Insurers would often prefer to enroll a group of individual as compared to the specific individual. Employment based insurance groups are one of the individual groups that are always considered to be formed for the sole purpose to offer their employees health insurance. It does not discriminate and whether the individual in the group posses a high health risk than the other, they will automatically qualify for the system. Not only are employers capable of

Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank Of The Philippines

Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank Of The Philippines Republic Act No. 6848, otherwise known as The Charter of the Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines outlines that the primary purpose of the Islamic bank is to promote and accelerate the socio-economic development of the Autonomous Region by performing banking, financing and investment operations and to establish and participate in agricultural, commercial and industrial ventures based on the Islamic concept of banking. In addition to allowing the bank to act as a universal bank capable of offering both conventional and Islamic banking products and services, the Sections No. 10 11 of the charter respectively provide incentives in the form of investor protection, and grant the bank the ability to accept grants and donations (Congress of the Philippines, 1989). Dimapunong (2006) provides background information and commentary on the rules and regulations governing the Al-Amanah Islamic Bank. A founding chairman of the bank, the author also wrote about the role of former senator Mamintal A. Tamanos role in the establishment of the original Philippine Amanah Bank, the precursor of the current Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines. A rare representative from Muslim Mindanao, the late senator was supposedly the first to envision a Muslim bank in the Philippines, at a time when modern Islamic banking was at its infancy. According to the author, the original PAB was not properly Shariah-compliant leading Ulama counsels to complain about the institution misleading the public. By 1988 it had been deemed a complete failure having already gone bankrupt (Dimapunong A. A.). Sandra Isnaji (2003) conducted a SWOT (Strength-Weakness-Opportunity-Threat) analysis of the Amanah Bank and prescribes a rehabilitation plan for the institution involving infusions of capital from the government in order to get rid of the banks debt and to invest in new infrastructure. Her paper was aimed at answering three questions with regard to the beleaguered banks status: (1) Where are we now? (2) Where do we want to be? and (3) How do we get there? To that extent, Isnaji looked at the state of Islamic banking industry as a whole, the state of the Philippine financial system, and the state of the Amanah bank itself. With regard to the Amanah Banks operations, Isnaji (2003) states that (at the time of writing) it operates on a two-window system in which it offers both Islamic and conventional financial products and services. And while the institution faced no competition from other Islamic banks, it faced stiff competition from the countrys conventional financial institutions, both formal and informal. With regard to the Philippine banking sector, the author used Porters Five Forces framework to analyze the ABs competition within it. The author findings are as follows: (1) With regard to the bargaining power of suppliers: the tight control of the Bangko Sentral affords it high bargaining power, to the advantage of state-owned banks such as the Amanah Bank; the bargaining power of multilateral and bilateral aid organizations(USTDA, WB, ADB, JBIC) is high due to their involvement with micro-finance and development banks; the large size and unorganized nature of the labor sector affords it little ba rgaining power; bargaining power among depositors is highly skewed towards the higher income deciles whos deposits account for 88.3% of the savings in banks, with the lower deciles having nor bargaining power. (2) With regard to the bargaining power of buyers, the higher income deciles belonging to the middle and upper classes resided and/or did business in the National Capital Region (NCR) and demand services such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦electronic banking, payroll services, and bill payments.; The power portions of the population find it difficult to obtain financing from formal banks due to their situation, and thus do not have much bargaining power, but their sheer numbers offer a potentially large market. (3) With regard to the threat of new entrants, any new Islamic banks allowed by the BSP could actually benefit the Amanah Bank by providing much needed visibility for the beleaguered Philippine Islamic banking sector. (4) With regard to the threat of substitute, notable alternatives that customers may opt for are informal financial institutions, employers that provide loan programs, or complete abstinence from banking entirely. Another threat is the outflow of capital from the country. (5) With regard to rivalry among existing players, the tendency of banks to be large tends to lead them to avoid small borrowers and savers, as such the government has had to develop the banking system so as to include such institutions as thrift and rural banks which cater to the needs of small borrowers and savers who would otherwise resort to informal institutions. In order to counter the threat of oligopoly the government competes in the financial sector via the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP). (Isnaji, 2003) As a requirement of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) acquisition of the Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines (AAIIBP), the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) required the DBP to submit a 5-year rehabilitation plan for the bank. The initial plan, submitted on 23 April 2008, was deemed inadequate by the BSP. As such a draft of the revised plan was submitted on 18 March 2009. The revised plan was divided into four parts: (1) a brief background elaborating on the institutions legal basis, purpose, and present situation, (2) a summary of its business plans, (3) details on the implementation of said business plans, (4) and five-year financial projections. (Panganiban, 2009) The revised rehabilitation plan of the Amanah Bank centers around 4Rs, specifically: Recapitalization via capital infusions from the DBP and domestic and foreign investors; this is aimed at covering the expenses of the banks rehabilitation Restoration of financial viability focused on à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦aggressive marketing efforts to introduce AAIIBPs new products and services, liquidation of non-performing assets and the sourcing of contingent fundsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Reorganization focused on building up institutional capacity, particularly with regard to Sharia compliance; involves organizational restructuring, relocation and refurbishing of bank offices, expansion and automation. Reforms institutionalization involves strengthening of corporate culture and governance, monitoring system, risk management and audit system, and review of product and operating manuals. Particular emphasis has been given to the recapitalization strategy which would provide the funds needed for the other three points of the rehabilitation. (Development Bank of the Philippines, March 2009) Islamic Banking Chong and Liu (2006) attempted to determine how different Islamic banking is from conventional banking by examining Islamic banking practice in Malaysia using the Engle-Granger error-correction methodology. In their study they find that despite being theoretically different, in practice Islamic banking in Malaysia is not very different from conventional banking. According to their study, only a negligible portion of Islamic bank financing in Malaysia is based on the profit-and-loss (PLS) sharing paradigm and that Islamic deposits are not interest-free, but are based on non-PLS modes that are permitted under Sharia law, but ignore the spirit of the usury prohibition. This parallels Islamic banking experience in other countries. The authors conclude that Islamic banking practices cannot differ too greatly from conventional banking practice due to stiff competition that makes interest-free Islamic deposits closely pegged to conventional deposits. This conclusion can have implications fo r the brand is Islamic banking, particularly with regard to its often touted non-interest-based character. However, it also has analytical and regulatory implications; the similarity of Islamic banking practices to conventional banking practices would simplify the task of both studying and regulating Islamic banking. The findings of this study mirror an earlier paper by Movassaghi and Zamans (2002). In it, they attempt to re-examine the concept of riba in light of Islamic jurisprudence. In that paper they compare Islamic banking practices with conventional banking practices in order to highlight that neither all conventional practices are usurious, nor are modern Islamic banking practices significantly different from those of conventional banks. They also assert that many differences between the profit/loss sharing paradigm of Islamic banking and conventional interest-based merely superficial. In addition to questions of practice, Chong and Lius study also asked the question of whether or not the growth of Islamic banking over the past several years was due to the comparative advantages of the Islamic banking paradigm, or to the Islamic resurgence that began in the 1960s. Based on their findings, the authors are inclined to adopt the latter view. This view is also compatible with the findings of a study cited by Isnaji (2003), done by the Meezan Bank of Pakistan which identified several key success factors in the experience of Islamic banks in other countries: (1) strong religious consciousness among the Muslim population, (2) support from the government in the form of financial infrastructure and favorable regulations, (3) promotion, (4) [increases] in individual wealth, and (5) a wide variety of financial products and services. Public Enterprises/Public Enterprise Reform Basu (2005) gives an overview of the background and concept of public enterprise, highlighting the particular experience of India in this matter. distinguishing it from the broader term public sector by adopting the definition adopted by the International Centre of Public Enterprises (ICPE): Any commercial, financial, industrial, agricultural or promotional undertaking owned by public authority, either wholly or through majority share holding which is engaged in the sale of goods and services and whose affairs are capable of being recorded in balance sheets and profit and loss accounts. Such undertakings may have diverse legal and corporate forms, such as departmental undertakings, public corporations, statutory agencies, established by Acts of Parliament or Joint Stock Companies registered under the Company Law. The author then goes on to elaborate these three categories. Basu further elaborates on the theory of public enterprises by elaborating on four types of economic activity based on the concept of remuneration as well as that of natural monopoly. (Basu, 2005) Basu highlights the equal importance of accountability and efficiency in the management of public enterprises, stating the important role of institutional arrangements in this matter. The author then elaborates on the creation of public enterprises with regard to government policy in terms of the strategies of nationalization or introduction of a new activity and states that most post-independence cases consisted of the latter. Basu emphasizes the idea that neither the state nor the market is immune to failure and that current emphasis should be on the idea of public-private synergy, and that attention should be put on both on public-private partnership and competition to achieve the objectives of efficiency and welfare. He then highlights the link between public finance and public enterprise, stating that shortsighted approaches of several developing countries including India to reduce fiscal deficit by selling public enterprises- which follow from inadequacies of public finance man agement could be disastrous in the long run (Basu, 2005). Stiglitz (2000) identifies two major categories in which public enterprises may systematically be more inefficient than private enterprises: organizational and individual. Under the former are sub-categories regarding organizational incentives, personnel restrictions, procurement restrictions, and budget restrictions. These pertain to public enterprises organizational rules and procedures which may hamper those enterprises efficiency and performance. The nature of public firms can mean that they may not necessarily need worry about incurring losses in their operations since any such losses may be covered by public funding. The bureaucratic nature of these enterprises may also entail strict procedures with regard to the hiring and firing of employees and the appropriation of needed materials, increasing transaction costs for both the demanding firm and possible suppliers (private forms and individuals). Lastly, there is the issue of budget restrictions due to governments having to all ocate limited financial resources among various agencies and projects. (Stiglitz, 2000) The latter category pertains to the behavior of individual bureaucrats under the incentive structure of public enterprises. Low wages and security of tenure may provide disincentives for bureaucrats to perform efficiently. Bureaucrats are also argued to be budget maximizers in that they seek to maximize the size of their bureaucracies by encouraging increased expenditures on their respective agencies. Stiglitz cites Niskanen with regard to principal-agent problems in bureaucracies wherein government bureaucrats act in their own interests and not necessarily in the interests of the citizens whom they are supposed to serve. (Stiglitz, 2000) Chang (2007) presents a discussion of the issue of state enterprise reform. Chang argues that theoretically there is no clear case with for or against state-owned enterprises (SOEs) by citing arguments for (natural monopoly, capital market failure, externalities, equity) and against (principal-agent problem, free-rider problem, soft budget restrains), the author also points out that large SOEs and large private sector firms often face similar (principal-agent) problems. This mirrors Stiglitzs statement that Principal-agent problems arise in all organization, whether public or private and are particularly acute in large organizations. In both private and public cases, managers often have large amounts of discretion allowing them to pursue their own interests. (Stiglitz, 2000) In citing the issues of public enterprises in comparison to private enterprises, many often assume away the agency problems of private firms, thus comparing idealized private firms with real-life SOEs, the former of which would obviously come out on top (Chang, 2007). Chang 92007) points out that privatization is not the only solution to the problems of many SOEs, and that many intermediate third way solutions exist. The author elaborates that privatization as an option has its costs and limitations and should only be taken on certain conditions, many of which are not met in reality leading to many failed attempts at privatization that cause more problems than they solve. As such, the third way options (organizational reform, increasing competition, political and administrative reforms) ought to be considered before privatization. (Chang, 2007) Rational Choice Theory/Institutional Economics Rational/Public Choice Theory Rational Choice Theory refers to those theories of the social sciences which utilize the analytical tools of neoclassical economics, particularly, the core assumption of rational (utility-maximizing) and self-interested individuals. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor (2002) states that rational choice theorists employ an instrumental conception of rationality in which actions are judged as being rational to the extent that they constitute the best way of achieving some goal. He identifies two conceptualizations of rationality: The first (the axiomatic approach) conceives a rational person as someone whos preference-ordering over bundles of goods and services is reflexive, complete, transitive and continuous. The second (the optimizing approach) conceives the rational person as one who possesses optimal beliefs and acts in optimal ways given those beliefs and desires. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor writes that rationality is a controversial assumption in political science, particularly in light of the concept of bounded rationality. As such, he says that such an assumption must be justified and looks at the two approaches in order to determine which is more defensible. Under the umbrella heading of rational choice theory can be found the sub-theories of public choice, which, in turn, constituted transplanting the general analytical framework of economics into political science. (Tullock, 2002) Tullocks primary contribution to rational/public choice theory is his theories on rent-seeking, which he defines as the use of resources for the purpose of obtaining rents for people where the rents themselves come from some activity that has negative social value. Tullock continues: The concept of rent seeking as popularly perceived refers to legal and illegal activities to obtain special privileges such as seeking monopoly status, special zoning, quantitative restrictions on imports, protective tariffs, bribes, threats, and smuggling. (Tullock, 2002) Indeed, rent-seeking has actually come to dominate the literature of rational choice theory. Hindmoor (2006) cites the plethora of studies done on various countries, on various topics to emphasize this point. He looks to three possible explanations for this: (1) the name-recognition of the term rent-seeking itself, (2) the adaptability and extendibility of Tullocks argument which à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦can be extended to cover the analysis of any and all special economic privilegesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, and (3) the fact that it offered a hostile theory of state, which could be used to counter welfare economists arguments for government intervention. On the second reason, Hindmoor supplements Tullocks original argument by pointing out that interest groups also spend resources to prevent rivals from obtaining rents and to secure their own and that governments may also practice rent-extraction. (Hindmoor, 2006) Tullock (2002) identifies several costs involved in rent seeking: The first being the actual cost of obtaining the special privilege. Of which the author provides the example of the costs of lobbying in Washington D.C. Greater costs are incurred from the distortion of the voting process, wherein public officials who are elected to pursue certain policies or projects often also pursue other less beneficial projects of which the true cost cannot be typically counted due to those politicians not disclosing the details of deals they have made. The greatest costs, however, are the indirect costs caused by rent seeking behavior. In particular, the involvement of intelligent and energetic people in an activity that contributes either nothing or negatively to society. The opportunity cost of such activities, he argues, far exceed their direct costs. (Tullock, 2002) Tullock (2002) argues that the development of rent seeking activities is influenced by many factors, in particular the structure and design of government. In general, he argues, any rule that complicates and makes the functioning of the government government decisionmaking process less smooth will lower the amount of rent seeking. He concludes his discussion on the topic by emphasizing that there are as of yet no good measures of the costs of rent-seeking (Tullock, 2002). Hindmoor (2006) cites Von Mises in defining bureaucracy as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦any organization which specialises in the supply of those services the value of which cannot be exchanged for money at a per-unit rate. Such organizations, Von Mises suggests, find themselves effectively exempted from the demands of economic calculation and are, as a result, usually inefficient. He also cites Tullock: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the crucial feature of bureaucracies is not simply that they are hierarchies, but pyramidal hierarchies with fewer people at the top than in the lower ranks. This leads to a principal-agent relationship, with all its problems of information asymmetry (Hindmoor, 2006). In his section of Public Choice, Tullock also discusses bureaucracy. He writes that: Bureaucrats are much like other people and, like people in general, are more interested in their own well-being than in the public interest. The problem is in designing institutions in such a way as to harness bureaucrats self-interest to serve the public interest (Tullock, 2002). The core problem with bureaucracy is encapsulated by Tullock in one paragraph: In most bureaucracies the executive whether in General Motors, the Department of State, or the Exchequer is in a position where only to a minor extent is his or her own interest involved. Bureaucrats will make many decisions that will have little or no direct effect on themselves and hence can be made with the best interests of General Motors or the American or the British people at heart. Unfortunately bureaucrats, in general, have only weak motives to consider these problems carefully, but they do have strong motives to improve their status in the bureaucracy, whether by income, power, or simply the ability to take leisure while sitting in plush offices. They are more likely to be more concerned with this second set of objectives than the first, although they may not put very much effort into it because not much effort is required (Tullock, 2002). Tullock then further draws parallels between public and private bureaucrats. He argues that both will attempt to maximize gains for their respective employers if it pays off for them. But in neither case does the institutional structure lead bureaucrats to maximizing the well-being of their superiors. He qualifies, though, that private corporations have a much easier time in pursing their goals efficiently than do governments. He cites three reasons for this: the comparatively simple objective of stockbrokers (profit maximization), the reasonably accurate methods of measuring the performance of corporate managers (bureaucrats) in the form of accounting, and the difference in the ownership of benefits from the efficient management of bureaucracies (private profit vs. public interest) (Tullock, 2002). Lastly, Tullock elaborates upon several proposals with regard to bureaucratic reform: decentralization, depriving bureaucrats of the vote, and downsizing the size of bureaucracy. He discusses how it is often in the interest of bureaucrats to increase the size of their departments , although in some cases downsizing does occur without the objection of senior bureaucrats due to such measures not affecting them aversely or even benefiting them by, for example, leading to more highly paid positions at the top while cutting down from below. Most intriguing is his characterization of bureaucratic behaviour as resembling that of people with hobbies, albeit with two major differences: it does not cost bureaucrats very much since they are predominantly using other peoples resources and that most bureaucrats honestly think that whatever it is they do is not for their benefit alone, but for the country or their bureau. (Tullock, 2002) This mirrors Niskanens theory on bureaucracy, wherein he asserts that bureaucrats find it in their interest to maximize their budgets and that they are often successful in doing so. Niskanen, himself defines bureaucracies as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦non-profit-making organization whose revenues derive from periodic grants (Hindmoor, 2006). Niskanen also à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦follows Downs in assuming that bureaucrats value a range of goods including power, monetary income, prestige and security. Yet he cuts through the complexities o Downs argument by suggesting that nearly all of these variables are positively related to the size of the bureaucrats budget (Hindmoor, 2006). Tullock (2002) elaborates goes on to the relationship between bureaucrats and two other major groups of political actors: politicians and pressure groups. Tullock focuses on the ability of bureaucrats to often lord over their superiors thanks to their security of tenure. Two bureaucratic tactics are discussed: the use of leaks to undermine or embarrass superiors, and the use of essential programs as proverbial shields in the fact of budget cuts. With regard to pressure groups, the collusion is the cited issue, wherein bureaus and interest groups work together to gain mutual benefits from government. (Tullock, 2002) With regard to this relationship Niskanen argues that the bureaucrats have two advantages over politicians which allow them to increase their budgets: (1) greater information on the costs involved in their bureaucracies provision of goods, and (2) the ability to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦make take-it-or-leave-it offers to their political patrons (Hindmoor, 2006). Politicians on the o ther hand are attributed four capacities: (1) the ability to select the bureaucracys overall output, (2) the ability to ensure that bureaucrats fulfill their promises in return for an agreed budget, (3) the ability to ensure that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the total benefits individuals derive from consuming whatever output it is that the bureaucracy provides are equal to or greater than the total costs of providing it (Hindmoor, 2006) and (4) the ability to ensure that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the marginal benefits of any output are not negative (Hindmoor, 2006). As Hindmoor points out, however, Niskanen has accepted the argument of Jean-Luc Migue and Gerard Belanger (1974) that bureaucrats do not so much maximize the size of their budget, but rather that of their discretionary budget, defined as the difference between their budget and the minimum costs of supplying their expected output. They argue that though this discretionary budget cannot be used by the bureaucrat for personal profit, it can be used to gain greater power, patronage, prestige, and so on (Hindmoor, 2006). Regardless of this distinction, however, the conclusion is still that the bureaucracies are inefficient because their budgets are too large. (Hindmoor, 2006) Hindmoor further critiques Niskanens argument by citing several works by multiple authors who point out that (1) politicians actually hold great power over bureaucrats, so much so that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦bureaucrats can be deterred from making excessive demandsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (2) politicians can trick bureaucrats into revealing information on minimal costs by à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦asking them how much output they would be willing to provide at various per unit prices. (3) constituents and interest-groups may raise alarms about with regard to ineffective bureaucracies, (4) administrative rules and standard operating procedures keep bureaucracies in line, and (5) that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Congressional Committees have the formal power to hire and fire senior bureaucrats, ring-fence particular investments and hold investigations and public-hearings into an agencys performance (Hindmoor, 2006). In his discussion, Tullock concludes by emphasizing that bureaucrats are not necessarily bad people, but that the institutional arrangement often frees them of the constraint of efficiently carrying out the tasks to which they have been assigned. The author then iterates that both large governments and large private corporations necessitate bureaucracies, and that such bureaucracies can be both conducive and/or obstructive to good government. (Tullock, 2002) Now, while rational choice theory certainly dominates discussion of government inefficiency Field (1979) argues that while it provides an easy framework for analysis, it is incapable of providing explanations. He argues that since rational choice models are as incapable of providing sufficiently restrictive predictions, which provide accounts which tell why a certain outcome was reached instead of another. He points to the inability of neoclassical economic analysis in explaining oligopolies, citing that Economists can analyze an existing cartel by pointing to the benefits which participating companies receive as the result of restricting output and raising prices. But economist can equally well analyze the absence of a cartel by pointing to the benefits individual members would obtain by violating such an agreement. (Field, 1979) Field goes on to critique the idea of explaining social outcomes based on the conception that they spring from economic forces. He mentions that while rational choice models have the comparative advantage when it comes to understanding outcomes which are caused by economic forces, they do not take into consideration the ways in which social forces affect the operation of markets. (Field, 1979) Field thus argues that the inherent limitations of rational choice/economic models in explaining systems of rules mean that they are no replacement for institutional economists qualitative approach, which holds historical understanding of the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦laws and customs organizing the process under investigationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ as essential. However, he does make the consideration that while rational choice models cannot satisfactorily explain institutions by themselves, they can help. (Field, 1979) Institutional Economics R.A. Gordon (1963) attempts to outline the characteristics of institutional economics in the form of several propositions: (1) Economic behavior is strongly conditioned by the institutional environment (in all its manifestation) within which economic activity takes place, and economic behavior in turn affects the institutional environment. (2) This process of mutual interaction is an evolutionary one. The environment changes, and as it does, so do the determinants of economic behavior. Hence the need for an evolutionary approach to economics. (3) In this evolutionary process of interaction, a key role is played by the (largely conflicting) conditions imposed by modern technology and by the pecuniary institutions of modern capitalism. (4) Economics is more concerned with conflict than with a harmonious order in which unconscious [cooperation] results from the free play of market forces. (5) Since conflict underlies so many economic relationships, and since these relationships are not immutable, there is room and need for social control of economic activity. (6) We need to learn all that we can from psychology, sociology, anthropology, and law if we are to understand why human beings act as they do in their economic roles. People are not maximizing automata reacting mechanically in an institutional vacuum. (7) Granted the preceding assumptions, much of orthodox economic theory is either wrong or irrelevant because it makes demonstrably false assumptions and does not ask the really important questions. A new, broader, evolutionary theory based on behavioral assumptions derived from the other social sciences and on detailed knowledge of the evolution and present characteristics of the institutional environment needs to be constructed. A wide variety of empirical studies must precede the attempt to construct such a broader, evolutionary, and more realistic corpus of theory (Gordon, 1963). Thorstein Veblen is commonlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦regarded as the founding father or guiding spirit of American institutionalism. (Ayres, 1964) In Institutional Economics, Ayres argues that the central idea of Veblens works was a call for a completely different ontology of economics with a completely different conception of what constituted the economy. Whereas the conception of mainstream economics has been that the economic system is centered on the concept of the market and tied together by individuals self-interest. Instead, Ayres asserts that Veblen took on an anthropological conception of the economy. One where in it is the state of industrial arts that gives occasion to exchange, so the extent of the market must always be limited by the state of the industrial arts. This was the direct opposite of the thinking of mainstream economics at that point: that the various aspects of civilizations development could be attributed to market forces. (Ayres, 1964) Ayres puts Veb

Federalism and Hurricane Katrina Essay

When it comes to Hurricane Katrina, many people have different opinions on who to blame. I think FEMA is to blame for the lack of response to Hurricane Katrina. FEMA stands for Federal Emergency Management Agency and the director of FEMA is Michael Brown. The main purpose of FEMA is to respond to disasters that occur in the United States, but FEMA may not be the best response. After the hurricane had hit, many articles went up about the hurricane and the response, and many of those articles were after FEMA for different reasons. An example would be the New York Times. One article explained how FEMA rejected other doctors and nurses from helping with dying patients because they were not â€Å"federalized† or certified members of a National Disaster Medical Team . Another article stated that FEMA had turned away Wal-Mart trucks stocked with water . Even FEMA’s own website was involved with the news and had an article about how the first responders were discouraged from responding. FEMA was lacking supplies for all of those who were affected by the hurricane. They would not allow help from anybody else. Paperwork is used to ask questions about insurance and income to determine how much loan can be given. If people asked to help FEMA, FEMA made it hard for those people with all of the paperwork. For example, FEMA would not allow Red Cross to deliver food for those that needed it. It seemed to be that FEMA thought that FEMA had everything under control, and refusing everyone else would prove it; a couple days later after the hurricane, people saw how they kept things under control. There had been many criticisms spreading about the responses of FEMA. Some people were saying that FEMA was just very slow in making the decisions; others were defending it by saying that FEMA wanted everything to be in an organized timing. The director of FEMA, Michael Brown, was surprised by the number of people seeking refuge was a large number and was not really prepared. Critics argue that FEMA had people appointed who had no experience with emergency management, like Michael Brown. They say it is partly because of the appointed people that FEMA is lacking response to disasters, especially during Hurricane Katrina. Federalism in the United States is power divided and shared between the different levels of government. In federalism, there are advantages and disadvantages; for example, federalism helps makes dictatorship difficult, but the arrangement of the shared powers is not always successful. It played a role in Hurricane Katrina that did not go too well. During Hurricane Katrina, the responsibility was given to the state government, who, at that time, was the Governor of Louisiana Kathleen Blanco. Of course, the US government could help the state government during the response, which would be FEMA providing finances. Although Hurricane Katrina wiped out everything and made people in danger, Kathleen Blanco failed to see that help was needed. She refused requests from the president, who was President George W. Bush at that time. In the end, it looked like FEMA lacked preparation for Hurricane Katrina, and needed to focus more on preparations of big catastrophes instead of routine emergencies. With hundreds of people dead and injured from the hurricane, FEMA has to step up and open up to other people in order to get ready for the next catastrophe. Works Cited SHANE, SCOTT. â€Å"After Failures, Government Officials Play Blame Game .† 5 September 2005. The New York Times. . TIERNEY, JOHN. â€Å"Going (Down) by the Book.† 17 September 2005. The New York Times. .

Project Risk and Cost Management Essay

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Sleepmore mattress is one of the leading manufacturers of mattresses and has recently acquired its competitor. This acquisition has brought in a unique proposition wherein the company has to decide if it wants to consolidate the existing plants with the acquired plants or let them both run separately. This poses a unique administrative challenge to the president of the company. The president knew that calculating the dollar savings due to the consolidation of the facilities will be easy but considering the qualitative factors before making the decision will be difficult. Hence, The President of the company asked W. Carl Lerhos, his chief assistant to come up with a plan to simplify the decision of choosing between consolidating the facilities or running them separate. Carl chose three major factors in evaluating the consolidation plan. They were maximize manufacturing benefit, maximize sales benefit and maximize direct financial benefit. These three objectives were to be evaluated against 13 criteria, which Carl arrived upon after discussing with the management. These 13 attributes were assigned a value from 0 to 10 against each plant being considered for consolidation. Through these measurements quantitative terms such as Annual savings, Plant location, Space availability and Initial Cost were quantified. But for assigning weights to the remaining qualitative terms, Carl had to rely upon his meeting with President, Vice President of Operations and Vice President of Human Resources. Based on their inputs Carl arrived at the below weights. Based on President’s input Annual Savings will be twice the weight given to Plant Size. Labor is twice the weightage of the average of all the thirteen attributes. Quality and Service will be weighed more than the average of all  the thirteen attributes. Management will be weighed as the average of all the thirteen attributes. Plant location and Plant Size will be given equal weightage. Product line complexity is two thirds the importance of Management talent. Stability, Training and layout individually has very small effect but collectively were considered to be twice the weightage of Product line complexity. Based on the above details available, Lerhos has to effectively combine and arrive at the decision. AHP was developed for both the qualitative and the quantitative measurements. Based on quantitative and qualitative measurements it was evident that merging the location 1a with location 1b will prove to be a good decision rather than merging location 2a with 2b or location 3a with 3b. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM Mergers always involves making complicated decisions. Decisions that should be in the interest of both the companies which were merged. While making these decision they have to take into account both the qualitative and the quantitative and weigh them according to the severity of the decision. Below are some of the problems which need to be tackled by Lerhos in order to arrive at a decision. 1. Quantitative measurements. Both the company president and the vice presidents knew that making decisions based on the quantitative terms was easier. After discussion with the management, the measurement parameters in order to consider consolidation of the plants were Annual Savings, Initial cost involved in the consolidation, Plant size and Space availability. All the three plants being considered for consolidation were to be calculated for these values using Analytical Hierarchical Process in order to arrive at a decision whether to go ahead with the consolidation. Similarly, a standard value of five was given to the decision of keeping the plants separate. AHC is to be calculated even for this decision. After the individual calculations, decision to whether to keep these plants separate or to go ahead with merger were to be made. 2. Qualitative measurements. Both the company president and the vice presidents knew that making decisions based on the qualitative terms was much difficult. After discussion with the  management, the measurement parameters in order to consider consolidation of the plants were Labour, Quality, Service, Management Talent, Plant Location, Product line complexity, Production stability, training and Plant layout. As mentioned in the executive summary the individual weights for the qualitative terms were assigned as per the inputs given by vice president of Operations and Human Resources. All the three plants being considered for consolidation were to be calculated for these values using Analytical Hierarchical Process in order to arrive at a decision whether to go ahead with the consolidation. Similarly, a standard value of five was given to these measurements for the decision of keeping the plants separate. AHC is to be calculated even for this decision. After the individual calculations, decision to whether to keep these plants separate or to go ahead with merger were to be made. Making an effective decision by taking into consideration, both the qualitative and the quantitative terms and the individual weights assigned to these measurements is indeed a difficult decision. There is always the danger of assigning weights without considering how sensitive they might be and how they might affect the overall decision. BACKGROUND: After every team member read the case study we had an initial discussion on our approach to the project. We came to the conclusion that we will have to calculate AHP separately for both the Qualitative measurements and Quantitative measurements. Analytical Hierarchical Process will help us in assigning weights to individual measurements and also to check how they fare with each of the plants. This calculations lead to us to arrive at the conclusion that for the quantitative measurement, Location 1 will be best suited for merger and as per qualitative measurement location 2 will be the best suited one for consolidation. AHP calculations were elaborate and we had to create two different matrices. One a 4*4 matrix for Qualitative measurements and a 9*9 matrix for qualitative measurements. Similarly a 3*4 matrix for individual plants for quantitative measurements and a 3*9 matrices for qualitative measurements were created. METHODOLOGY:- To arrive at the solution we will be categorizing the following sections into two categories: 1. Quantitative Analysis :- Here, we will be taking the following four parameters (Annual Savings, Initial cost, plant size and  Space availability) with respect to consolidation of the plants. All the three plants being considered for consolidation were to be calculated for these values using Analytical Hierarchical Process in order to arrive at a decision whether to go ahead with the consolidation. AHC is to be calculated for all the decisions. After performing the individual calculations, decision to whether to keep these plants separate or to go ahead with merger will be made. 2. Qualitative Analysis:- Here, we will be taking the following parameters (Labor, Quality, Service, Management Talent, Plant Location, Product line complexity, Production stability, training and Plant layout) with respect to consolidation of the plants. As mentioned in the executive summary the individual weights for the qualitative terms were assigned as per the inputs given by vice president of Operations and Human Resources. So, we will be considering all the three plants for consolidation to calculate the values using AHP in order to arrive at a decision.