...COMM020 Steve Lipman 11/08/2012 Assignment: Analyze the debating of “Does China do capitalism better than America” hosted by Intelligence Squared Does China Do Capitalism better than America? There is no doubt that China is rising whether the American people like it or not. What kind of impact is China having on American economy and trade policy? Intelligence Squared hosted a very interesting debating called “Does China Do capitalism better than America”. The audience first voted for the motion, but 35% changed their minds after hearing the debate. How did the team against the motion change the audience’s minds? The debating strategy played a key role during the debate. There were two teams in this debate. For the motion team, Orville Schell, Director of Director of the Center on U.S. - China Relations at Asia Society & Award-Winning Journalist; Peter Schiff – CEO & Chief Global Strategist, Euro Pacific Capital. Bestselling books, Crash Proof: How to Profit from the Coming Economic Collapse, The Real Crash: A Blueprint for a Bankrupt America. Ian Bremmer and Minxin Pei were on the team of against the motion. Ian was much energized and casually dressed without a tie. Minxin Pei was from China, and earned his Ph. D from Harvard University. Currently he serves as Professor of Government at Claremont McKenna College. In 2006, he published his second book, China’s Trapped Transition: The Limits of Developmental Autocracy. From the book...
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...Brains * Relationship between capitalism and democracy * Three main approaches to the political economy of the media Lecture 2: * Four great communication revolutions * Evolution and history of early Homo Saipan species * Common ancestor * Eight major developments in evolution * Third chimpanzee * Importance of Fire * Great Leap Forward * Surplus definition and importance to civilizations * Pre-Capitalist society surplus * C-M-C * Important developments of the Age of Kleptocracy * Second great communication revolution * Where it did and didn’t develop and why * Importance to society * Greek philosophers * Feudalism * Importance of 1492 and new world discovery * Third great communication revolution * Products of the revolution Lecture 3: * The catechism of capitalism * Change in the economic equation from feudalism to capitalism * Mindsets of society under feudalism * Mercantilism * Industrial capitalism equation * M-C…p…C1-M1 * Characteristics of the equation * Three Iron laws of Capitalism * Externalities * Role of banking and views of major economists on finance * Importance of a global system * Effect on policy * Who was the original leader in capitalism and whom were its successors * Owner-operated businesses * Role of slavery in formation of America * Corporations * Horizontal...
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...Big Business Corporatism Versus Free Market Capitalism Right now, there is a lot of talk about the evils of “capitalism”. But it is not really accurate to say that we live in a capitalist system. Rather, what we have in the United States today, and what most of the world is living under, is much more accurately described as “corporatism”. Under corporatism, most wealth and power is concentrated in the hands of giant corporations and big government is used as a tool by these corporations to consolidate wealth and power even further. In a corporatist system, the wealth and power of individuals and small businesses is dwarfed by the overwhelming dominance of the corporations. Eventually, the corporations end up owning almost everything and they end up dominating nearly every aspect of society. As you will see below, this very accurately describes the United States of America today. Corporatism is killing this country, and it is not what our founding fathers intended. Corporatism is actually not too different from socialism or communism. They are all “collectivist” economic systems. Under corporatism, wealth and power are even more highly concentrated than they are under socialism or communism, and the truth is that none of them are “egalitarian” economic systems. Under all collectivist systems, a small elite almost always enjoys most of the benefits while most of the rest of the population suffers.The Occupy Wall Street protesters realize that our economic system is...
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...November 2015 SUBJECT: Memo 3, Can Conscious Capitalism Solve the Problems Created by Gilded Age 2.0 The era of the gilded age 2.0 was characterized by rapid economic growth especially in the North and the West of America. The market was operating on a laissez faire basis of capitalism. The social gilded age was characterized by a period of boom. Firms needed to produce more output in order to maintain their income level and position in the market. In a period of boom, families needed high wages to sustain them. Thus there was child labor where the families sent their children to work in the warehouse in order to earn more wages as a family. People were anticipating for a high period of inflation. The interest rates went up due to the looming inflation period that was as a result of the economic boon in the era. In addition the gilded age era brought up political issues such as tariff. The protective tariff that was set by the second James Madison administration was high (Lucas, 1980). This discourages the importation of goods from other countries and only favored that Americans. The trade relation between America and other countries was affected thus setting entry barriers of other multinational firms. Conscious capitalism is guided by ethical standards. The firms operate in an ethical manner that is not meant to harm the consumers. A conscious capitalism enhances better financial performance. The value of conscious capitalism is supported by the fact that companies adhere...
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...In 1902, German economic historian Werner Sombart published ‘Der Moderne Kapitalismus.’ In his piece, he hypothesizes that there is such a thing as a “spirit of capitalism” a spirit which has worked as a guiding force in the evolution of modern capitalism (Green 1973). Werner does not offer any explanation as to what the nature of this spirit might be, or where it came from, but he does argue that this spirit is responsible for the development of capitalism in the modern world. After reading Werner’s work, German sociologist Max Weber, one of the founding creators of sociology, seized upon Werner’s idea and set out to explain the origins of this spirit of capitalism. Weber’s visit to America, the heart and soul of capitalism, in 1904 brought him his answer. While in America, Weber observes that matters of business are very closely related to religious affiliation. This attitude manifests itself in many ways, but one example he provides is the story of a man’s visit to the doctor: “the patient’s statement of his church membership was merely to say: ‘Don’t worry about the fees’ (Gerth & Mills 1946, 304).” This, of course, meant that this man was financially sound, because he belonged to a specific church community. Weber explains: “Admission to the congregation is recognized as an absolute guarantee of the moral qualities of a gentleman, especially of those qualities required in business matters (Gerth & Mills, 305).” Essentially, in order to become a part of a religious sect, a...
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...The economy in Colonial Latin America was complex and contained elements of similarity to the mother country system. Although many of the colonies’ economies in Latin America are influenced by the parent country, there different in nuance. Steve Stern does a great job of showing Colonial Latin America utilize attributes from both capitalism and feudalism to create its own sense of an economic system. The fusion of feudalism and capitalism helped to sustain slavery and provide European colonists with political and monetary power over indigenous people living in Latin America. Systematic forced labor proved Stern was correct about how European settlers established a feudalistic society in the Americas. The first establishment of forced labor came in the form of the Encomienda. The Encomienda allowed conquistadors to control Indigenous...
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...| Capitalism vs. Socialism during the 1920’s | Diamond Jackson | | History II Dr. Hilton | | | Upton Sinclairs’ The Jungle is a common form of muckraking during the 20’s. The book is about a Lithuanian family who relocated to the US in hopes of finding success and building better lives. After hearing the story of how America supports the idea of freedom, and has unlimited opportunity, the main character Jurgis is convinced America was the place to be. Once arriving to America and coming in contact with the reality of the myth of his ideal society, Jurgis exposes the deeply rooted capitalism and the effects and problems that it causes. Because of this, Sinclair feels that socialism is the remedy to the capitalistic conditions he’s now a part of. Andrew Carnegies’ The Gospel of Wealth is a viewpoint of how beneficial capitalism is to American society and economy which is seen through the eyes of a high-class businessperson. Carnegie discusses the history of there being an equal society, the natural law of competition, and the capitalistic results and benefits. Sinclairs’ The Jungle and Carnegies’ The Gospel of Wealth are opposing viewpoints, therefore when it comes to the unequal distribution of wealth and ideas about capitalism and socialism both arguments are supportive and reasonable to a certain extent. In the 1920’s, the unequal distribution of wealth is evident and Americans start to see many cultural changes. America has now adopted the idea of...
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...Capitalism Is the Devil The United States was founded by numerous founders who wanted to build the best nation in the world. According to the Constitution, the right should be given to “We the People”. The government should build “a more perfect Union” and promote “the General Welfare”. It has always been a dream. It is a goal that we cannot reach. But somehow, capitalism has been disguised as the best system ever devised, making citizens believe that it is the only way we can reach our goal. And it leads us to an irreversible situation of plutocracy. It is Michael Moore who pulls back the curtain on capitalism to reveal the insidious role it has played in the destruction of our American dream. In his documentary film “Capitalism a love story”, Michael Moore demonstrates the failure of Capitalism as an economic system in America. The movie explores what capitalism is, who benefits and whom capitalism hurts. Moore shows us how capitalism has been hijacked by entrepreneurs and how it jeopardizes the middle class. The poorest, uneducated, and hardworking middle class are the most likely people to be taken advantage of by the unscrupulous corporations such as the home loan industry, health insurance industry and many others businesses. According to the film, some people are no longer able to live in their own house, which they live for decades, because they cannot pay their bills or the authorities have sold their land to corporations. Kids in Pennsylvania are sent to private...
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...Case 2-1 A new front in the battle of ideas 1. Does the global economic crisis signal that the American model of free market capitalism is fundamentally flawed? No, the global economic crisis does not signal that the American model of free market capitalism is fundamentally flawed because America government should definitely provide a support role for the corrective measures to protect its own economy, for example use of various fiscal policy for the economic stimulus, when the various decisions in the private sector of their country are believed to lead to negative economic outcomes, such as depression or recession, which leads to the wide hardship for America. 2. Keynes and Hayek aren’t necessarily household names, but they did get a boost when economist Russell Roberts created a rap video titled Fear the Boom and Bust with filmmaker John Papola. The video is available on Youtube after viewing it you should be able to answer the following question: Are you a Kenyesian ? or do you side with Hayek? I would side with Hayek, because Keynes believed that intelligent, well-meaning planners and by manipulating economic aggregates such as demand and employment can surely bring happy means to the economy. Hayek believed that individual decisions, imbalances between specific prices and demand or the interest rates and also the specific plans for long-term productive projects, are pillars of a true economy. To support, Keynes said that it was politically impossible to achieve...
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...Blaut... CH. 4 We now know: - Capitalism was developing evenly throughout Africa, Europe and Asia before 1492. - This process was called by Blaut: “Proto-capitalism.” So capitalism does not appear out of nowhere. It shifted its center from Indian Ocean to Europe = continuous process. Industrial revolution started later: symbolically situated in 1688 (overthrow of King James II in England by Parliamentary group) So... How did Capitalism develop more in Europe after 1492? - This is the main question of the chapter. Why did Europe discover America? Myth of adventuresome superiority in Europe. - Based on internal characteristics of Europe and giving no credit to non-Europeans. But they were trading in maritime centers just like everyone else. Technology superiority of Europe? Others had traveled long distances. Inventions were criss-crossing and Europeans did not have technological superiority in navigation. So why...??? Special progress in Europe? Nop... Europe in 1492 was “sluggish”. - Economic growth was slow and most likely negative. - Urbanization process was slow. In 1 or 2 decades progress and economic growth started to rise. - - Why??? So Why??? Geographic location. - Europe was simply closer to America and this was an advantage. Sailing conditions were better: winds were favorable. West-African traders...
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...Dustin Jones There were many social theorists from the period of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. This period of time is regarded as the period of the Enlightenment. A few of the major figures of this particular “movement” were Rene Descartes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Immanuel Kant. They altered the way in which the social world was viewed and helped pave the way for other classical social theorists to explain the individual’s role in society. Karl Marx, Alexis de Tocqueville, Henri De Saint-Simon, and Emile Durkheim are only the names of a few classical social theorists who set out to explore the role of an individual within society. These men believed that Reason, along with the application of a scientific approach, would be able to positively change the world and break through to a new form of power and authority. Although the ideas and theories of these men give rise to far greater advancement in sociological theory, there is a failure in intuition, and thus, a failure of the classical sociological element. The first section of this paper includes an explanation of classical sociology along with an overview of the theories associated with some of the greatest sociologists of this time. The next section of this paper explores reasons and explanations for the failure of classical social theory and interpretations to why before-mentioned theories were compromised. The final section of this paper summarizes some of the conclusions drawn about the...
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...(A) Identify and briefly explain three reasons why the new Christian right might have failed to achieve its aims? * The moral majority was never a majority, but 15% of the population at most; this meant that it was hard for them to fully implement their views, as they didn’t have enough believers in order to actually have an effect and change in society. * It campaigners found it hard to cooperate with people from different to cooperate with people form different religions, even when campaigning on the same issue, as such as abortion. This affected their ability to reach their aims, as they didn’t gain popularity as a religion’s group as they were seen to be very exclusive and didn’t support other religions even when fighting for the same cause. * The new Christian right lacks widespread support and has met with strong opposition from groups who stated freedom of choice, such as Planned Parenthood. As there view can be said to be strong and traditional most people didn’t agree with them, meaning they struggled to get any laws past, due to most people liking the way there was more freedom instead of being restricted by rules of traditional society. (B) Using material from item A and elsewhere, assess the contribution of religion to social change? There are many ways in which religion may have contributed to social change, but there is however the argument that religion tries to keep society the same by conservative force. Most religions have some sort of...
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...------------------------------------------------- Religion in a Global Context For secularisation theory, modernisation undermines religion. The importance of science and technology in economic development, and the rational worldview on which they depend, are seen as destroying belief in the supernatural. On the other hand, religion may contribute to development, as Weber argued in the case of the protestant ethic (AO2 – Gordon Marshall and Peter Berger). More recently, sociologists have examined what role religion may play in development in today’s globalising world. Religion and Development Meera Nanda - God and Globalisation in India Globalisation has brought rising prosperity to India’s new middle class. Nanda’s book ‘God and Globalisation’ examines the role of Hinduism, the religion of 85% of the population, in legitimating both the rise of a new Hindu ‘ultra-nationalism’ and the prosperity of the Indian middle class. Hindusim and Consumerism Globalisation has created a huge and prosperous, scientifically educated, urban middle class in India, working in IT, Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology sectors closely tied into the global economy. According to Inglehart and Norris, these are precisely the people whom secularisation theory predicts will be the first to abandon religion in favour of a Secular View (AO2). Yet as Nanda Observes, a vast majority of this class continue to believe in the supernatural. A survey by the ‘Centre for the Study of developing Societies...
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...question is going to be dependent on what you end up believing about socialism. A die hard socialist is probably going to point to Sinclair's ending with zeal and passion because it proves that Jurgis could only find a home when renouncing capitalism and its perverse interpretation of the American Dream. I think that Sinclair believed in the socialist ending of his novel. Yet, I want to pivot the question a bit. While the socialist claim might not be persuasive, like Marx himself, Sinclair is probably more eloquent on suggesting that the current capitalist system, the one being written about at the turn of the century, is in desperate need of repair. His persuasion might lie in his critique of capitalism more than his embrace of socialism. “The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, exposed the nauseating conditions of Chicago’s meat packing industry.” (Goldfield, David R. The American Journey: A History of the United States.) He couldn't have been very happy that the book gained fame for a different reason, but nonetheless it did gain a significant amount of fame and get that message of socialism is better than communism out to the public widely. There are a lot of different characters in The Jungle, and they all have some significance in their roles. These characters vary widely in many aspects, including: professions, social status, and economic status. The main character in the novel is Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant. His wife is Ona Lukoszaite, also from Lithuania. Their son...
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...of society there are three main theorists to look at, Marx, Gramsci and Althusser. All of these theorists focus on how capitalism has been maintained in many societies and how eventually it will be over thrown. Both Gramsci and Althusser’s ideas originate from the works of Karl Marx who, unlike functionalist Emile Durkheim, saw no evolutionary progress of society but a gradual change in which capitalism would increase human misery. Marx suggested that capitalism needed to replaced by ideas such as communism. He looked at historical materialism and suggested that our society is altered by forces of production from the base and the superstructure. He argues that capitalist production forms the economic base and this ultimately shapes our superstructure, like institutions, religion, law and education. However, Althusser criticises this for being too simplistic and suggests a more complex two way causality model. He argues there are three levels; Economic level: comprising all those activities that involve producing something in order to satisfy and need. Political level: comprising all forms of organisation. And the Ideological level: involving the ways that people see themselves and their world. He believes each level can affect each other and impact different choices and beliefs on each level. This approach discourages political action because it is the role of structural forces rather than free will; it is active struggler of the working class that change society. On the other...
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