The Monopoly Of Gambling (Ch 10)

Source:http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2006/03/the_governments_monopoly_on_ga.html



Summary

In this article it talks about how the monopoly of gambling is illegal and immoral. It states the the consequences that's associated with underground gambling and the unwanted crime it comes with. The article also makes the comparision of illegal gambling and legal gambling. Legal gambling, such as most casinos can be considered to be controlled by the government and localized as a gaming revenue. Illegal gambling can be said to be the underground world of buisness, where people bet a large ransom of money to the likely outcome of events such as, basket ball games, football games, and other gaming venues.

Connection

In the chapter, it talks about how monopoly as an extreme opposite of perfect competition. It describes it as only one firm , which means that it has control over the prices of the products. The Government on one hand, are mostly involved in monoplies.Their agencies control prices of normal commodities people use such as telephone, natural gas, and cable television companies. Although there is only one firm in a monopoly, there are still various amounts of competition. Some gambling buisness being an illegal competition raises problems to the government because people wouldn't report their winnings to the government and be able to run their own underground buisness without notifying any government authority.

Reflection

I agree that illegal gambling is a crime, and should be dealth with more caution in our society. There are consequences for the individual and for the economy as well . Legalized gambling alone slows down business because it diverts money that could have been spent on the capital economy into gambling, which doesn't stimulate the economy overall. Second gambling can become addictive to some people, since they can come dependent on gambling money as their regular source of income and wouldn't be able to do their regular jobs as a result. Illegalized gambling will be more of a lose to the government, since they are unaware of how much money is being made from criminals, which reduces money flow throughout the economy.

In Depth With Human Resource Policies (ch 8)

Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?HR-Policies&id=429694

Summary

This article basically talks about and goes in depth about what Human resource policies really is, and how they are systems of codified decisions, established by an organization, to support administrative personnel functions, performance management, employee relations and resource planning.It talks about how the establishment of policies can help an organization demonstrate, both internally and externally, that it meets requirements for diversity, ethics and training as well as its commitments in relation to regulation and corporate governance. For example, if you wanted to fire an employee corresponding with employment law requirements, it will normally be necessary to meet within employment contracts and collective bargaining agreements.


Connection

In the book it describes Human polices as unemployment that results from a mismatching of the demand for and the supply of workers, such as in canada their main responsibilies is employment which is , identifying needs and initiating requests for employment accommodation and participating in the planning and implementation of their own employment accommodation Other initiatives to consider is immigration because it is sought to enhance and expand the population, geographical frontiers, and labour markets by attracting new permanent residents,a and by accepting temporary foreign workers to supplement their domestic workforces, so the country is able to face the domestic skill shortages.

Reflection

I think human resource organizations can do better in the employment of the disabeled, since it's not adressed or taken into consideration as much. companies or businesses should research on strategic workforce planning that outlines ways that businesses can plan for future workforce needs of the disables, especially in the leadership ranks, also the tools that employees with disabilities may need to become a more significant part of the leadership position. There should be some kind of fund or a program designed to help people with disabilities prepare for and obtain employment or self-employment. It also assists people to develop the skills they need to keep a new job.

New Savings Program in Canada (Ch 7)

Source: http://www.canada.com/story.html?id=36fc6784-eac7-42ff-89c5-afc586ff80f2

Summary

This article talks about the new savings program that was introduced in canada, this saving account features a tax free incentive, so contributions each year will not be deductible for income tax purposes, unlike the RSP savings plan. This new saving program is issued to help the federal budget in canada. There are many privaliges that come with this program as well as advantages, such as people are able to invest in a new car, that enable to choose and place it into the registered tax-free account.Almost any amount withdrawn can be put back into the tax-free account without reducing the contribution room.

Connection

In this chapter , it talks about the different types of deposits, one being a savings account, defined as accounts maintained by retail financial instituations that pay interest but can not be used directly as money (by, for example, writing a cheque). These accounts let customers set aside a portion of their liquid assets while earning a monetary return. Relating to article the savings account thats been issued can have effects on middle- and upper-middle income Canadians who can afford to set aside up to $5,000 a year, then compared to a normal savings account who's open to anyone with minimal benefits.

Reflection

I think that a new savings plan is profitable, but i think it will change canadians spending habits for the worse. This savings plan is a tax-free savings account, meaning when you withdraw money from a savings account you wouldn't need to pay the tax on it, so this again will temp people take out money frequently. There are also many cons to be considered in savings such as In a savings bank, the money cannot be used as it is done in a current or on-demand account. There are small opening balances required in savings accounts. The interest also varies. There are interests like one fourths of 1% annually. If you want to get higher interests you should consider opening a high–yield savings account.

Investments: The downturn in Real Estate

Source:http://investmentsandsavings.info/1839/real-estate-investment-experience-problems-and-their-solutions/

Summary

In this article, it talks about what to look for when buying homes in general , in order to benefit the owner to a good investment. When buying a home it's neccessary to look and keep in mind of it's condition , price, and it's apprecition for the upcoming years, if you wanted to sell it in the future . The other things to consider is it's mortgage rates, seeing how much money you would borrow to buy a home, and in return paying the banks in a fixed interest rate along with money borrowed diveded in a monthly timeframe until it's paid off.

Connection

In this chapter, it defines investments as business or government puchases of machines and equipment, new-housing construction, and any change in buisness inventiories. Investment Spendings are affected by some variables such as, interest rate, change in technology, Government policy and taxes, expectations, etc. Interest rate determines the price a borrower pays for the use of money they do not own, for instance a small company might borrow from a bank to kick start their business, and the return a lender receives for deferring the use of funds, by lending it to the borrower.A change in technology effects spending habits and investments of buisnesses particulary because of new equipment being introduced. Government policy can include restrictions on apartment constructions, and enforcing new taxes such as the excise tax to affect demand of products and buisness investments.

Reflection

In my opinion there is way more better way to benefit investments then retail selling, since the value or appreciation of a house depends on it's age and it's condition. The better the house , the better the buy. Stocks can be considered good investments , since the advantages of investing in stocks is that you own your own business with literally do nothing, you have flexible holding position, which you can liquidate it anytime you want, no string attach, and unlike other business, you need a team. but here, you can work yourself, and from home. Investing in a company , that has a high perfomance rate is sured to give better dividends in a month time-frame.

Inflation: how does it affect you?

Source:http://www.inflationdata.com/inflation/Inflation_Articles/InflationandME.asp


Summary

Basically, in this article it talks about how people are affected by inflation, in terms of how people who have fixed income suffer due to the fact of the prices of goods being increased while their income stays the same. This then comes to explain the question on the economy's conditions, of how it would deal with less consumer purchases of goods in order to become stable. The advantages of inflation is beneficial to some peoples financial situation, as it talks about how people who have dept would benefit to inflation as way of getting out of their dept by having the amount of money being borrowed decrease in value as it would be easier to pay off.





Connection

In chapter 5, Inflation is defined as an increase in the general level of retail prices in a country each month. With prices of goods being fluctuated, it affects the econonomy and as well as people's spending habits . This being said, the rise of an inflation can have many downturns such as retail prices climbing higher and higher until workers demand for higer wages will increase in order to keep up withe the cost of living. Inflation will also affect people who save money,as it leads to a rise in the general price level so that money loses its value. When inflation is high, people may lose confidence in money as the real value of savings is severely reduced. Savers will lose out if nominal interest rates are lower than inflation leading to negative real interest rates.


Reflection

I think that inflation is a serious problem to the economy but it can be prevented at the same time.When people are able to make accurate predictions of inflation, they can take steps to protect themselves from its effects. For example, trade unions may exercise their collective bargaining power to negotiate with employers for increases in money wages so as to protect the real wages of union members. Households may also be able to switch savings into deposit accounts offering a higher nominal rate of interest or into other financial assets such as housing or equities where capital gains over a period of time might outstrip general price inflation. In this way, people can help to protect the real value of their financial wealth.

Progressive taxation: Is it fair?

Summary

In this article it talks about how progressive taxation can be unfair to every citizen, rich or poor. but it also argues that it can be beneficial to the economy, by providing better service with the taxes collected. It mentions about this tax implentation giving commonwealth to common good, as to say by paying taxes , countries such as america gives protection and empowerment that serve the common good. because of this common wealth, the people are protected and America's empowering infrastructure is available to all. That is a fundamental America value: the common wealth should serve the common good. It is believed it benefits everyone.


Connection
In this chapter we talked about three different tax implentations which were, Progressive approach, propotional tax, and regressive tax. Relating to the article, progressive taxation is one in which the percentage of income an individual pays in taxes increases as the individual's level of income increases. It can to apply to adjustment of the tax base by using tax excemptions,tax credits, or selective taxation that would create progressive distributional effects. For example, a sales tax on expensive goods or the exemption of basic necessities may be described as having progressive effects as it increases a tax burden on high end consumption or decreases a tax burden on low end consumption . In canada , taxes have always been low for the rich. Canada has never had a firm progressive tax system. The highest corporate tax Canada has ever had was 46.6% in the year 2000 . Considering the billions of dollars in revenue that those corporations have, it is not unreasonable to tax at least 50% or even more, specially considering the fact that many of those large corporations are multinationals, owned by other countries. The result of tax breaks is obvious- the money is very often invested somewhere else. Corporations are always looking for profits; therefore they will invest wherever they can find more profits.

Reflection

I personally don't favour the progressive approach , because the tax burden imposed on people who earn a lot and the tax burden on people who earn very little will be bigger than the difference in income earned by both groups. A person who makes 10 times what another person makes will pay more than 10 times as much in taxes. If the tax system is regressive, then the opposite is true. With a regressive approach you are able to keep most of your hard earned cash with low tax brackets as you earn more income.

Source:http://www.rockridgeinstitute.org/research/lakoff/progressive-taxation-some-hidden-truths.html

Privatiziation of medical care, good or not?

Summary

This article talks about the pros and cons of having to privatize medical care, The privatization of health care involves provision involves both the creation of new for-profit medical services - nursing homes, hospitals, specialized clinics for menopause, pain, cosmetic surgery, child development ,etc . Having privatization also benefits the seniors that they can stay in traditional fee-for-service Medicare and keep the doctors they trust,but the bad thing about this is in order to get a prescription drug benefit they must sign up with private insurers for a privately run drug plan. Although this article encourages that the privatization is not a good idea since it wouldn't be insured by the government and so on.

Connection
In this chapter it talks about privatization, how provincial governments have privatized government- operated business such as liquor stores, electricity, and ambulances.Privatization is a worldwide phenomenon. In recent years all levels of government, seeking to reduce costs, have begun turning to the private sector to provide some of the services that are ordinarily provided by government. The spread of the privatization movement is grounded in the fundamental belief that market competition in the private sector is a more efficient way to provide these services and allows for greater citizen choice. But there are concerns about service quality, social equity, and employment conditions raise skepticism of privatization.

Personal Reflection
I agree that privatization will help to profit the federal government in a sense of them not spending tremendous amount of money on services of various business that serves citizens like bus transportation ran by provincial government . But services like medical care should not be privatized because illegal procedures can be taken when it comes to the distribution of medical drugs and uncertified surgeons being hired in some countries. Although it can become beneficial to patients but there are risks along the way. Privatization in general can benefit the economy because of the ransom amount of crown corporation being sold to be privatized brings over 6 million dollars to governments around the world.

Source: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4110/is_/ai_n9246572