Freitag, 29. Januar 2010

Doha Annotated Bibliography

1. Article on suspension of Doha Round


  • Article talks about the WTO's perspectives on the suspension of the Doha round
  • Disappointment, regret, frustration
  • Disagreement between big nations at the expense of developing countries
  • There are only losers, no winners
  • Progress has to come from WTO members

  • WTO is delighted that negotiations have been resumed
  • Political conditions are more favorable
  • Believes in successful conclusion of Doha due to increasing commitment of WTO members
  • The task is urgent

  • Declaration released prior to the start of the Doha round
  • WTO believes trade is good, encourages economic development and helps to alleviate poverty
  • Trade has to be liberalized, less protectionism
  • Equality in trade system
  • Developing countries should get involved to enjoy benefits of trade
  • Not only trade but the entire, global economy
  • Everyone has to take responsibility
  • Accessions of new partner countries improves trade
  • WTO wants to become more transparent and communicate the benefits of a liberal, rules based multilateral trading system

  • List of all the Doha meeting from 2001 to 2007
  • List of main points of discussion (industrial market access, agricultural market access, services)
  • Brief presentation of WTO Director General Pascal Lamy





Montag, 2. November 2009

Haikus

1. White crystals falling
From the dark heaven released
Into the cold night

2. When all is asleep
A white blanket enshrouds earth
Excitement is near

3. South Africa the
Stage for the world to unite
Golden globe in sight

Arms And The Boy

Let the boy try along this bayonet-blade
How cold steel is, and keen with hunger of blood;
Blue with all malice, like a madman's flash;
And thinly drawn with famishing for flesh.

Lend him to stroke these blind, blunt bulled-heads
Which long to muzzle in the hearts of lads.
Or give him cartridges of fine zinc teeth,
Sharp with the sharpness of grief and death.

For his teeth seem for laughing round an apple.
There lurk no claws behind his fingers supple;
And God will grow no talons at his heels,
Nor antlers through the thickness of his curls.

Donnerstag, 24. September 2009

Page 167

This passage is taken from the point in the book when McMurphy confronts the acutes with the fact that they are all voluntary patients.

Themes:

Living vs. Apathy
Be a man
Sanity vs. Insanity
Perspective vs. Perspective

Characters:

McMurphy- the only committed, cant believe that all of his efforts were for nothing, change in his personality from being calm and relaxed to being angry and frustrated, cannot believe that the acutes are voluntary,
Billy Bibbit- voluntary, apathetic, wallows in self-pity, scared of truth

Motif:

Big vs. Small- ties to themes: be a man and living vs. apathy

Language:

Diction: simple language, slang ("nuts"), jargon (committed-important as it drives the passage)
Syntax: short sentences (express Billy Bibbit's fear and desperation)

Imagery:

Sensory imagery (Bibbit's reaction) ties to Sanity vs. Insanity
Figurative ("His face boiling tears")-> Theme: Be a man

Rhetoric:

Repetition (characters use it to emphasize their point)- McMurphy ("nuts"), Billy ("You think", "Neither")

Structure:

1.Paragraph: McMurphy's reaction on the acutes
2.Paragraph: Billy Bibbit's response- clash of different perspectives- theme: perspective vs.perspective
3.Paragraph: Description of Billy Bibbit's actions-> theme sanity vs. insanity

Montag, 21. September 2009

History of money

The video discusses the history of money and how it evolved during that time. Back in the 1700s people used to pay with physical gold and silver in exchange for goods. Then, however, they started realizing that this is not a very handy thing and notes were introduced which represented a certain amount of gold and silver and became the new currency. This idea developed over time until the 1970s when money became mostly fictional. Banks could give out loans based on a 9:1 ratio of loan money to actual reserve money. By doing this, the banks created more money than actually existed and earned a higher profit on their loans. Today, all of the money is fictional. Banks only hold a tiny amount of money in their reserves and make loans on a fictional base.

Donnerstag, 17. September 2009

Modest Proposal Draft

A Modest Proposal
FOR THE ABOLISHMENT OF MODERN COLONIZATION AND THE ENHANCEMENT OF RESOURCE TRADE
Just imagine the following scenario: You are a child of approximately 10 years old who has to work all day in a copper mine. The people who told you to work in the copper mine are from abroad and sailed over to Africa in order to extract copper and other mineral resources and bring it back home. They are armed and force your people to do this job every day. If someone does not obey to their commands, he gets whipped or even shot. You are living in constant fear because you do not know what is going to happen the next day. Three of your brothers are already dead because of overexertion. You wonder how long you will survive in this hell which used to be your beloved home.

I have to admit that this scenario is hard to imagine for us who live in the Western part of the world. Yet, there are parts in the world like Africa in which this seemingly absurd scenario is in fact reality. When I was informed by these alarming circumstances in Africa, I knew that I had to step forward and take actions in order to fight these inhumane and utterly devastating conditions.Colonization is still a present issue in this world. Back in the past it used to be practiced by our ancestors and today this is done by large corporations which colonize the poor countries and exploit the native people.It is thus up to us, inhabitants of the developed world, to gather our courage in order to fight the evil called colonization and promote freedom and equality in the world.Therefore, I suggest the following strategy: We should wipe out the African continent by the use of biological weapons so that the large corporations can extract all the resources on the continent, yet without colonizing and exploiting the local people.

Now, people might ask the question where we should get biological weapons from, but I can assure all critics that every nation which has these weapons in their possession will happily cede them because our purpose would give them an opportunity to test their weapons and find out how much harm they can indeed create.

Aside from the abolishment of modern colonization, my plan has to offer many other advantages which I am going to elaborate on in this proposal.
Due to the termination of the African population, it is now less costly for the corporations to extract the resources on the continent. There are no such things as trade barriers or tariffs. In economic terms, this will lead to the firm’s supply curves to increase so that they can sell resources in greater quantities at lower prices. This will of course benefit the Western economy, because other firm’s costs would decrease as well since they can acquire the resource they need more cheaply. So in effect, there would be a general fall in the price level in the economy which could be accompanied by economic growth in the future. Given, the horrendously high inflation rates in today’s economy, my plan would definitely please the economists and be accepted by everyone who is concerned about our wealth and well-being.

A few weeks ago, I was told by a well-known professor for population research that one of the biggest evil in the world is overpopulation. I am convinced that my plan could solve this problem as we would reduce the world’s population and create new living space in Africa. I am especially concerned about places like India and China which are literally flooded by crowds of people. Therefore I suggest that we ship Chinese and Indian people over to Africa where they can start a new life. This plan, however, can only be realized by the help of the Chinese and Indian government who would have to pay for the fares and make all the ships and boats in their possession available to transfer the people over to Africa.Although I am aware that my plan might evoke a lot of opposition, I am firmly convinced that there are enough smart-thinking and innovative people out there who acknowledge my intent as a mile stone in the defense against the extinction of the human race.

Not only we can save humankind from extinction due to overpopulation, but we could also open up a new chapter in the technological advancement of the human species. The Indian and Chinese people in Africa are the key to this staggering success. Over time, these two population groups will mix and create a new Indo-Chinese race which will be the most intelligent group of people in the world. They will become the new elite workforce on the African continent which will be transformed into the epicenter of technology research as well as be used as a test ground for international space agencies and nuclear weapons manufacturers.I and my fellows are positive that this strategic move will lead to advancement technological advancement from which all nations could benefit.

Conclusion

Mittwoch, 9. September 2009

modest proposal outline

Modest Proposal Outline:

We should wipe out Africa, so that it is easier for large corporation to extract all the resources on the continent without colonizing and exploiting the people .

The colonization of Africa in the past by Western countries and today by large multinational corporations is a blemish in human history.
Therefore, I suggest to wipe out the whole population on the African continent so that there is no such thing as colonization anymore. Africa will be a neutral continent which does not belong to anyone,
which is a peaceful country , open to tourists and of course multinational corporations as a free raw material source.

Advantages:

There is no such thing as colonization anymore, we are able to erase the cruel and violent memories of past colonization
There are no infringements against human rights anymore
No child labour
It is less costly for the corporations to extract resources
Lower resource costs for firms, causes their aggregate supply curve to shift out which means more output at lower price level
Overpopulation is certainly not a problem anymore, it is now possible to ship people from India and China over to Africa where they can mix and create a new indo Chinese race which will have the most intelligent people in the world
They become the new elite workforce on the African continent which will become the epicenter for technology research of any kind and will be used as test ground for international space agencies and nuclear weapons manufacturers

How?

Economic arguments (lower cost for firmes etc.)
Absurdity (creation of a new race)
Irony (mixing two different races which is identical to what the colonial powers did to African tribes of different ethnicities)
Listing
Naming (?)
Statistics about overpopulation