GEED
Economics
Milton Friedman video on "Greed:" Is greed really necessary?
The University of Chicago economist Milton Freidman was famous for his endorsement of the capitalist system and the concept that 'greed is good.' Friedman believed that capitalism was the source of all positive human development and intellectual ferment. Capitalism had improved the lot of the individual worker, even though capitalism had occasionally been unfair in its allocation of resources and did not reward virtue in a just fashion. Communism, in contrast, was a system driven by political, rather than economic self-interest, and the end result was far worse for the average individual. Capitalism at least permitted some form of social mobility and the possibilities of change for people who worked hard, while communism created a calcified system where the party elite, not the 'best' rose to the top.
There are many objections that can be raised to Friedman's relatively sunny and uncomplicated view…...
mlaReferences
"Milton Friedman -- Greed." YouTube. Retrieved:
However the infighting at LBKB had made the company hard to sell (pp. 179-181). Revenues were going down, but Glucksman refused to cut costs, something potential buyers noted. The infighting was the topic of a ortune article, and many believed that Peterson had leaked it (p. 184). Many at LBKB feared that the article would lower the company's sale price.
Even several years after these events, after Shearson/American Express bought LBKB, former partners of LBKB could not agree on what caused the tremendous losses of income that made the sale of their company their only option. They did not acknowledge the company's failure to streamline its expenses, and different factions still finger-pointed to other departments (p. 196). Ultimately, the collapse and sale of LBKB was due to failures in leadership. Both men who led the company at the end -- Peterson and Glucksman had significant business strengths and significant personal…...
mlaFinally Glucksman was named Chairman of the Board; however, the Board was maneuvering under him, and Glucksman's leadership had slipped. Many saw him as mentally unstable. The company had been lampooned on "Saturday Night Live." Partners quietly sought buyers for LBKB; Glucksman was out of the loop on those conversations. However the infighting at LBKB had made the company hard to sell (pp. 179-181). Revenues were going down, but Glucksman refused to cut costs, something potential buyers noted. The infighting was the topic of a Fortune article, and many believed that Peterson had leaked it (p. 184). Many at LBKB feared that the article would lower the company's sale price.
Even several years after these events, after Shearson/American Express bought LBKB, former partners of LBKB could not agree on what caused the tremendous losses of income that made the sale of their company their only option. They did not acknowledge the company's failure to streamline its expenses, and different factions still finger-pointed to other departments (p. 196). Ultimately, the collapse and sale of LBKB was due to failures in leadership. Both men who led the company at the end -- Peterson and Glucksman had significant business strengths and significant personal weaknesses, and the company maintained a culture of individualism that led to infighting rather than teamwork. That sense of individuals working for themselves, undoubtedly supported by the company's partnership structure, also encouraged the excessive spending for perks such as lavish entertainment allowances and free cigars in the partners' dining room. The company failed as a whole because the individuals could not work together.
Auletta, Ken. Greed and Glory on Wall Street: the Fall of the House of Lehman. 1986: Random House, New York.
The plate that is brought through the door there... will be the turntable on which she will pose..." This passage from the plate shows how the woman is likened to the lowly animal, chicken, to demonstrate Hogarth's lowly perception of how Tom had wrongly conducted himself as a wealthy man.
Tom's eventual downfall is shown in the last two plates of "Rake's Progress," wherein he eventually lands in prison for his debt due to his drastic splurging of his wealth, and at the madhouse, where the now-insane Tom is detained, having realized his mistakes but cannot do anything to 'undo' them. Thus, he falls into insanity, the only escape that he can do from all his problems in life. In Tom's life, Hogarth reflects the downfall of humanity through madness and instability of the society, with the proliferation of individuals who become stigmatized for being imprisoned in a prison and…...
greed in our society, its deteriorating impact on our society and ways to curtail the same. The orks Cited five sources in MLA format.
Greed in Society
Greed! Greed! Greed! This is all that we observe around us in business dealings, in institutions including those that are established to impart quality education, in movies, in television shows, in every part of the corporate world as well as in day-to-day routine work. Our society where we live in and which rules and regulations we strongly try to abide has innumerable proofs of evident element of greed. ith the world rapidly transmuting into a global village, more and more people are turning into materialistic and selfish souls that seek not only help from the outside world but also firmly believe in getting the more than most out of the given situation by all means whether unethical or morally adequate. Greed has many synonyms…...
mlaWorks Cited
Greed and its impact on the society. Retrieved June 18, 2003 from: http://www.geocities.com/Plik18/Greed.html
Rayner J. Gospel of Greed. The Observer. Issue, March 2002.
It has nothing to do with being 'nice'., The Toronto Star, 09-17-2002.
Macdonald. Individual greed, corporate greed ruining society. Retrieved June 18, 2003 at http://www.gazettearchives.com/faith2000/_disc4/0000007d.html
When this is not the case, either the state is too weak to exercise such a power, or the discontent is disproportional. In either case, it is an issue of "grievance" because it underlines the shortcomings of the state. In the first situation, it lacks legitimacy and means to exercise legitimate power; in the second case, it is unable to offer the basic principles of social security and thus threatens the well being of the society. In either case, the reasons for mutiny and civil wars are related in particular to an attack to the core values of the state, which may include lack of legitimacy, of social vision, of economic methods, or of political will. egardless of their nature, they represent "grievances" which can be potentially expressed by the society through civil wars.
Overall, it can be concluded that the debate "greed -- grievance" may offer in the future…...
mlaReferences
Ballentine, Karen and Heiko Nitzschke. "Beyond Greed and Grievance: Policy Lessons from Studies in the Political Economy of Armed Conflict." International Peace Academy. 2003
Collier, Paul. Economic Causes of Civil Conflict and their Implications for Policy. Oxford University, 2006
Global Witness. Return of the Blood Diamond. The deadly race to control Zimbabwe's new found diamond wealth. 2010.
Reno, William. Sierra Leone: Warfare in a post state society.
greed is good or that conspicuous consumption is a desirable trait seems to be gaining increasing acceptance in Western and certainly American popular culture. At the same time, there do appear to be sub-currents of reactionary movements towards lower levels of consumption, and more subtle means of consuming what must be consumed. Examining different designers in light of various theories regarding why people consume, what they consume, and how they go about consuming it yields some interesting commentary on two modern designers with very different attitudes towards greed.
Finding a designer that celebrates the "greed is good" motto espoused by the fictional financial magnate Gordon Gekko isn't at all difficult in the age of "bling." Sean Combs, also known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, and simply Diddy (it is difficult to keep up with his name changes) started his own clothing line and has also designed jewelry, and none of…...
Greed Despoils Capitalism.
Some businesspeople are greedy and do not have a conscience, however Wilder believes that capitalism does not necessarily require greed. According to Barbara Wilder in her article, "Greed Despoils Capitalism," ethical business practices are the only way that everyone does not come away a loser from business. Wilder believes that Adam Smith, the father of Western capitalism, would be outraged and disgusted by the unethical business practices that corporations have shown in recent years. Ethics, dignity, and character are associated, in an ideal world, with wealth and capitalism. Democracy and capitalism are philosophically mingled, and the American Dream itself depends on capitalism to thrive. Capitalism thrives through the people, regardless of the system at large, and the businesses and jobs that are created by a capitalistic system provide wealth for all. When big business CEOs are unethical, it is not the fault of capitalism, but rather a…...
mlaReferences
Heath, Joseph and Potter, Andrew. "The Rebel Sell: If We All Hate Consumerism, How Come We Can't Stop Shopping?" Chapter 12: Free Enterprise. 544-552.
Korten, David. "Economies of Meaning." Chapter 12: Free Enterprise. 553-558.
Matthews, Don. "The True Spirit of Enterprise." Chapter 12: Free Enterprise. 539-543.
Wilder, Barbara. "Greed Despoils Capitalism." Chapter 12: Free Enterprise. 536-538
"And, then, all of a sudden, the bottom fell out of these companies. it's a reckoning."
The question becomes: are there any honest and ethical business executives anywhere?
Let's take a look. Former corporate CEOs like Richard Fuld of Lehman rothers, faced down questions and cameras on Capitol Hill; former executives of the insurance giant AIG were also questioned. One topic of discussion: the fancy retreat hosted by AIG after an $85 billion bailout. Also facing scrutiny are the bosses of the ig Three auto companies, caught by AC's rian Ross flying private jets to Washington to beg for bailout money. (Kristin Pisarcik and Gail Deutsch)
Is it any wonder than schemes like the Madoff ponzi debacle, in such an environment, happen so often?
Probably the two most common reasons upper managers commit fraud are greed and need. oth greed and need can come into play on a personal level and on a…...
mlaBibliography
Chris Dettro 2. "Pyramid, Ponzi schemes disguised as valid investment opportunities." The State
Journal-Register 29 December 2008.
Azar, Joseph. The Azar Newsletter. 11 October 2008. 30 January 2009 http://theazarnewsletter.blogspot.com/2008/10/greed-power-and-love-of-money-10-11-08.html .
Bhushan, Amarendra. "Reason behind $50B Bernard Madoff Ponzi Scheme." 15 December 2008. CEO World Magazine. 30 January 2009 http://www.ceoworld.biz/corporate/home.php.
eckless Endangerment: How Outsized Ambition, Greed, And Corruption Led to Economic Armageddon by Gretchen Morgenson and Joshua osner
In eckless endangerment: How outsized ambition, greed, and corruption led to economic Armageddon, New York Times financial writer Gretchen Morgenson and financial and policy analyst Joshua osner examine how government involvement, or lack thereof, in the economic sector helped contribute to the current economic meltdown. In the introduction, Morgenson explains the authors' goals in writing the book. First, they want to name names. She says that the book "identifies powerful people whose involvement in the debacle has not yet been chronicled" (Morgenson & osner, 2011). Second, they want to reveal how the seemingly discrete economic problems were actually interrelated, by revealing how they were connected to one another (Morgenson & osner, 2011). They recognized that the American people felt robbed, but they were also determined to try to answer the ignorance that many…...
mlaReferences
Morgenson, G. & Rosner, J. (2011). Reckless endangerment: How outsized ambition, greed, and corruption led to economic Armageddon. New York: Henry Holt and Company.
In addition, early in 1998, Judge Kevin Chang accepted another trustee's temporary resignation and removed the other trustees temporarily (King and oth 254). All this was an attempt to finally reign in the Trust and the trustees, and to give a measure of fiscal control to a trust that was literally out of control and rampant with corruption and abuse. All of this corruption, although it finally was controlled, was allowed to go on for decades, and millions of dollars of money that should have gone to the schools was squandered as a result. Eventually, the trustees were all charged with over $200 million in surcharges, but in a plea deal, those charges were thrown out (King and oth 279).
The authors had a clear purpose in writing this book, and it was to make public the convoluted case of the Bishop Estate, and how it came to be so…...
mlaReferences
Kafka, Franz. "The Metamorphosis." Gutenberg.com. 2008. 11 Dec. 2008. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/5200/5200-h/5200-h.htm
Bill Ivey's Art, Inc.
With an insightful analysis of modern economics and its impact on the state of art and culture in America, Arts, Inc.: How Greed and Neglect Have Destroyed Our Cultural ights is author Bill J. Ivey's attempt to sound the alarm and preserve the artistic and cultural heritage which defines every great society. As the former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, Ivey is uniquely qualified to assess the crucial importance of maintaining a thriving cultural atmosphere, as well as the role of governmental policy and political influence in fostering an environment which promotes artistic expression. The central premise posited by Ivey throughout Arts, Inc. is that the advent of intellectual property rights and copyright law, as well as the confluence between marketing and artistic viability, has weakened the foundation of America's expressive nature. He believes that a nation such as ours, founded as it is…...
mlaReferences
Ivey, B.J. (2008). Arts, inc: how greed and neglect have destroyed our cultural rights. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press.
Tammany Hall: Mirror of Human Greed
e often hear the road to hell is paved with good intentions and we can certainly use the history of Tammany Hall as an example of how this occurs. Tammany Hall was born from good intentions for the residents of New York, primarily the immigrants and lower working class. Helping others find work and shelter sounds like a way to improve the situations for many in the Lower East Side and this fact only brings us to question how a political party moves from this mindset to one of corruption so quickly and easily. The answer lies with the nature of man. hile the road to hell is paved with good intentions, we also know that power is one of the most destructive elements known to man. hen it comes to personal greed and the welfare of others, greed often wins. Tammany Hall demonstrates how…...
mlaWorks Cited
Bailey, Thomas and Kennedy, David. (1994). The American Pageant. Lexington D.C. Heath
and Company.
Davidson, James, et al. Nation of Nations. (1990). New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing
Company.
Too Late for TearsAs the title of the 1948 film noir suggests, Too Late for Tears the unrepentant pursuit of ill-gotten wealth by one nobody named Jane. Jane and Alan and middle-class Americans; Alan is okay with thatJane is not. She chafes at the condescension of her wealthier peers, and the opening sequence of the film centers on her griping about having to spend another evening with one of their rich friends. The sequence is set on the open road, as Jane and Alan head to a party. Jane becomes so filled with anxiety and resentment that she tries to force Alan to turn back. In doing so, she causes Alan to swerve and the lights of the car flicker on and off. As fate would have it, there just so happens to be another car pulled off to the side of the road waiting for exactly such a signal.…...
mlaBibliographyPlace, Janey A., and Lowell S. Peterson. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Some visual motifs of film noir.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" Film Comment 10, no. 1 (1974): 30.Schrader, Paul. “Notes on Film Noir,” Film Comment (1972), vol. 8 no. 1, 9.Thomas, Deborah. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"How Hollywood deals with the deviant male.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" The Movie Book of Film Noir (1992): 59-70.
Economic Events: 1980-1989
the decade of greed. The era of onald eagan when the rich got richer and the poor got poorer. Despite this common wisdom, 1980 started off auspiciously. On May 8, 1980 the World Health Organization hailed "one of the century's greatest medical accomplishments," the final and total eradication of smallpox (Dickson 247). But how quickly times change - barely a quarter century has passed and this same disease is making headlines once again.
Attitudes change also. While many in this day and age would still agree that the 1980's was a selfish period in American history, a sea-change has occurred in the rhetoric issuing forth from Washington D.C. In a very fundamental way, party politics has been thrust aside as concerns for homeland security take precedence over petty partisanship. Michael Barone notes this in his analysis of a speech made by Democrat ichard Gephardt in the Summer of 2002:…...
mlaReferences
Barone, Michael. "The loyal opposition." U.S. News and World Report. 13 June 2003. 14
March 2003 http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneweb/mb_020613.htm.
Case, Karl E., and Ray C. Fair. "Principles of Economics." Prentice Hall, Inc. Englewood
Cliffs, NJ 1992.
Enron Scandal's Fraud
One of the more salient examples of the corruption type known as fraud took place in the initial years of the 20th century. It involved the multiple conglomerate entity known as Enron, which primarily operated in the natural resources and energy vertical. Enron engaged in fraud in many different levels. Perhaps the most noticeable of these applied to its book-keeping practices. Enron relied on a host of fraudulent accounting activities to widen its profit margins and to hide its losses. Subsequently, the vast majority of people that competed with, invested in, and worked for this company thought it was much more financially viable than it actually was. Some of these accounting practices included an inflated usage of marked to market accounting, which the company had approved for one specific type of asset management and regularly deployed for others (and throughout its accounting areas in general) (Norris and…...
mlaWorks Cited
Norris, Floyd and Eichenwald, Kurt. "Enron's Many Strands: The Accounting; Fuzzy Rules of Accounting and Enron." www.nytimes.com. 2002. Web. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/30/business/enron-s-many-strands-the-accounting-fuzzy-rules-of-accounting-and-enron.html
Watkins, Thayer. "The Rise and Fall of Enron." www.sjsu.edu / No Date. Web. http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/enron.htm#OFFBALANCE
This book is about how politicians don't have the best interests of the American people in their hearts anymore, and how greed and corruption has stopped many of them from doing what's right to help the country as a whole. The middle class are struggling with this more than others, because they get the least help. Rich people don't need help from the government, and poor people get a lot of assistance and handouts. If someone is middle class, he or she often needs a little assistance to really live comfortably but can't get that help because he or she....
The greenhouse effect, the impact of greenhouse gases, and climate change are all extremely topical issues. They are considered political, but the science strongly supports the idea that these gases are increasing the earth’s average temperature, creating global climate change, fostering superstorms, and rapidly making the earth less habitable to humans.
Here are some titles that would be appropriate for a range of essays about greenhouses gases and the greenhouse effect:
There is a definite link between work, poverty, and welfare. While people may think of poverty as a problem for people who are unemployed, the reality is that most adults who live in poverty are employed. In fact, approximately 40% of homeless adults are actually employed. Therefore, solving the problem of poverty is not just about finding employment for people who live in poverty, but will require widespread social change about challenging taxpayers subsidizing employers that pay their employees less than a living wage.
If you want to write a 5-paragraph essay about the....
The transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" exemplifies the power of redemption and the importance of kindness and generosity in the face of personal greed and social injustice. Your thesis statement is focused and clear in identifying the central themes of redemption, kindness, generosity, and personal growth in "A Christmas Carol." It effectively sets the stage for discussing how Scrooge's transformation highlights these themes throughout the novel. One potential suggestion for improvement could be to add more specific examples or analysis that will support your thesis statement and help readers understand the significance of Scrooge's transformation in....
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