Mandeville Analysis

Defining â€Å"Vice† To understand Mandible's claim that society is vice-driven, one needs to loosely examine The Grumbling Hive which was later included in his larger work, The Fable of the Bees: OR, Private Vices, Public Benefits. Mandible starts off by describing â€Å"A Spacious Hive well stock's with Bees, That lived in Luxury and Ease† (Mandible, 1705, lines 1-2). He states they were a large colony with science and industry and a good government, evidenced by the fact that â€Å"They were not Slaves to Tyranny† (Mandible, 1 705, line 9).The bees worked hard at their trades, which served to make the society (the hive) thrive, but he observes that this was not without consequences. He notes hat although the hive worked hard and â€Å"Millions were employed† (Mandible, 1705, line 35), there was always a separate class or group that worked harder than the rest: â€Å"And some were damned to Scythes and Spades, And all those hard laborious Trades; Where willing Wretches daily sweat, And wear out Strength and Limbs to eat† (Mandible, 1 705, lines 41-44).He also notes that there is always a group of people who will take advantage of those hard workers for their own gain, and that this deceit was wide-spread and affected all groups and trades. As evidence, he points out that people filed needless assists; lawyers would delay hearings and pocket the retaining fees like burglars looking for the best way to break in; physicians valued money and power over the health and well-being of their patients and instead chose to study â€Å"Rules of Art†; the â€Å"Priests of Jove†, although eloquent,† . Al past Muster, that could hide Their Sloth, Lust, Avarice and Pride† (Mandible, 1705, lines 74, 85, 89-90); the Kings were cheated by those who served them, and even Lady Justice dropped her scales so she could grasp her bribe of gold. (Mandible, 1705, line 142). In this description of the flourishing hive, Mandibl e paints us a picture, not of a society flourishing from hard work, sweat, and â€Å"doing the right thing', but of a society getting ahead through tricks, deceit, and greed.This is the entire basis for his concept of ‘Vice†. We do nothing out of pure altruism. In Mandible's eyes, everything is driven by Our own self-interest, our need to fulfill our own wishes, Wants, and desires through selfishness, dishonesty and indulgence on luxury goods. In the Preface of his larger work, The Fable of the Bees: or, Private Vices, PublicBenefits, Mandible clarifies his position further when he states: † so they that examine into the Nature of Man, abstract from Art and Education, may observe, that what renders him a Sociable Animal, consists not in his desire or Company, Good-nature, Pity, Affability, and other Graces of a fair Outside; but that his vilest and most hateful Qualities are the most necessary Accomplishments to fit him for the largest, and, according to the World , the happiest and most flourishing Societies† (Mandible, 1714, p. ). Mandible's views were refuted by Adam Smith in his 1759 work, The Theory f Moral Sentiments when he stated: â€Å"Every thing, according to him, is luxury which exceeds what is absolutely necessary for the support of human nature, so that there is vice even in the use of a clean shirt, or of a convenient habitation† (Smith, 1 759, p. 506). It is Smith's view that there is no vice present or intended when our actions are â€Å"honorable and noble† (Smith, 1759, p. 501).However, even Smith, who was one of Mandible's biggest detractors, later admitted: â€Å"But how destructive sever, this system may appear, it could never have imposed upon so great a number of persons, nor eve occasioned so general an alarm among those who are the friends of better principles, had it not in some respects bordered upon the truth† (Smith, 1 759, p. 508), leaving us to believe that perhaps Mandible's concept (and consequence) of â€Å"vice† is actually true.The Products of â€Å"Vice† In Mandible's hive, the society and it's economy is driven by the vices of the bees. Their wishes, wants, and desires for â€Å"things† drive the production and consumption of these commodities. An increased demand for â€Å"things† will lead to more people working to produce those items, which will lead to a argue supply available to the populace (many times at a lower cost due to mass production), and an increased consumption of those items, which leads us back to higher demand, which equals more work, and so on.Mandible also goes on to say that there is a causal relationship between this â€Å"vice† and the ingenuity of the worker, which leads to prosperity even for the poorest members of the hive (society): â€Å"Thus Vice nursed Ingenuity, Which joined with Time; and Industry Had carry's Life's Conveniences, It's real Pleasures, Comforts, Ease, To such a Height, the very Poor Lived better than the Rich before; And nothing could be added more† (Mandible, 1705, lines 97-103).It is important to pause here a moment and point out that we are not discussing those items required to meet basic, day-to-day needs (food, clothing, and housing). We are discussing those items over and above the basics, I. E. : fine clothing, fancy furniture, and expensive food and drink (what he would call luxury items). This â€Å"conspicuous consumption† (a term first coined by Thorniest Evolve in his 1 899 book entitled, The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of he Evolution of Institutions) still drives our economy today.A large portion of our population lives well above their means. They purchase houses many times larger than they need, drive vehicles marketed to â€Å"upscale† buyers interested in â€Å"brand identification†, and take out second mortgages they can't afford so they can purchase huge Class A motherhood they use on ce a year, or install a pool which sees limited usage, all because of this need to have the â€Å"things† that project a certain image or lifestyle. These luxury items and the markets they drive were huge in our current society, until the bottom fell outOf the market and everything came crashing down. In 2005, Carol Lloyd Of the San Francisco Chronicle noted: â€Å"In the U. S. , a trend in 1 sass toward large houses began, with the average size of a home doubling over the next 50 years. This trend has been compared to the increase in SUB purchases, also often a symbol of conspicuous consumption. People have purchased huge houses even at the expense of the size of their yard, the inability to save funds for retirement, or a greatly increased commute time, up to a couple of hours.Such large homes can also facilitate other forms of consumption, in roving extra storage space for vehicles, clothes, and other objects† (Lloyd, 2005). In The Theory of the Leisure Class, Evolv e argued that social honor was originally based on ownership of private property. In earlier times, wealth was seen as evidence of the instinct of workmanship, but more recently wealth itself is worthy of praise. Originally, the leisure class sought to demonstrate its wealth by not working. But as industrial society evolved, conspicuous consumption became the best way to demonstrate one's wealth.The leisure class is expected to consume the best in food, drink, shelter, argotic, services, ornaments, apparel, amusements, and so on, and because the leisure class stands at the top of this ranking system, it is incumbent on all classes that rank below them to follow their example (Evolve, 1899, Chi. 4). When Vice is Removed So what happens when â€Å"vice† is removed from society? In Mandible's â€Å"hive†, the bees eventually get tired of living in greed and injustice, so they call on Jove to bring virtue to their society. But, Oh ye Gods! What Consternation, How vast and sudden was the Alteration! In half an Hour, the Nation round, Meat fell a Penny in the Pound† (Mandible, 1 705, lines 242-245). Even the lawyers were affected in this new society: â€Å"The Bar was silent from that Day; For now the willing Debtors pay On which, since nothing less can thrive, Than Lawyers in an honest Hive† (Mandible, 1705, lines 250-251 256-257). Justice returned, physicians tended the ill, the clergy ministered, but yet, the hive was still collapsing.Virtue has been restored, but the society begins to self-destruct. With the drive for self-interest gone, economic development dies and the bees become lazy and unmotivated. The bees are now selling off â€Å"Stately Horses by whole sets; And Country Houses to pay Debts† (Mandible, 1705, lines 325-326); they are moving to other trades where they feel they can make a living, only to find that those trades are â€Å"o'er-stocked accordingly† (Mandible, 1 705, lines 342). Their lands and houses aren't worth what they paid for them, work is scarce, all, it seems is lost.So, they resolve to go about everyday life, living as simply as they can to get by: â€Å"And, when they paid the Tavern Score, Resolved to enter it no more† (Mandible, 1705, lines 357-358). The Haughty Chloe has to sell her furniture from the Indies, she goes longer before buying new clothes, and the rare fruits she previously enjoyed are now a thing of the past (Mandible, 1705, lines 367-381). It seems that by seeking honesty and virtue, the society destroyed itself. The bees start to abandon the hive.The few that remain take shelter in â€Å"a hollow tree, Blest with content and Honesty' (Mandible, 1705, lines 407-408), In the last part of the doggerel, Mandible presents ‘The MORAL†: â€Å"Then leave Complaints: Fools only strive To make a Great an honest Hive. Tendon the World's Conveniences, Be Famed in War, yet live in Ease Without great Vices, is a vain Utopia seated in the Brain. Fraud, Luxury, and Pride must live; Whilst we the Benefits receive† (Mandible, 1705, lines 409-416).Mandible commented in the preface to Fable Of the Bees that he wrote The Grumbling Hive â€Å"to show the Vileness of the Ingredients that all together compose the wholesome Mixture of a well-ordered Society†. He further stated that: â€Å"For the main Design of the Fable †¦ Is to she [show] the Impossibility of enjoying all the most elegant Comforts of Life that are to be met with in an industrious, lathe and powerful Nation, and at the same time be bless's with all the Virtue and Innocence that can be wished for in a Golden Age† (Mandible, 1714, p. ). We can apply this notion that vice is the foundation of national prosperity and happiness to the economic mess in the United States today. There came a point in our current economy that people began to realize they were in debt too deep. Many times, applications for credit were â€Å"doctored† so that a consumer could take out more credit than they could really afford. The result was that consumers over-extended and bought multitudes of ‘things† hey did not need and could not pay for in pursuit of â€Å"status†.Once this realization set in, people began to back away from the excesses of the previous decade: they spent less and tried to save more, they started to sell off their expensive purchases, and they tried to cut back, settling for the day- to-day items necessary to sustain life. Some economists say this sudden frugality actually made things worse, because when people stopped spending, the economy shriveled up. The price of land and houses plummeted, new building stopped, workers in all kinds of industries lost their bobs, factories closed, and the unemployment rate skyrocketed.People started defaulting on loans at an alarming rate. The market was flooded with used motor homes and people were stuck with houses they couldn't afford, but couldn't sell. Forec losures were (and still are) at an all-time high. It seems the American dream has vanished. While Mandible believed the ‘Vice† that causes us to buy â€Å"things† in excess is part of the downfall of the hive: â€Å"Great wealth and foreign treasure,† Mandible wrote, â€Å"will ever scorn to come among men unless you'll admit their inseparable companions, avarice and usury: where trade is considerable, fraud will intrude.To be at once well- bred and sincere is no less than a contradiction; and therefore while man advances in knowledge, and his manners are polished, we must expect to see at the same time his desires enlarged, his appetites refined, and his vices increased† (Mandible, 1714, p. 201 it is interesting to note that the Scandinavian countries (Sweden, Denmark and Norway) have remained relatively stable. In these countries â€Å"where many people pay 50% of their income in taxes† to support their high-benefit welfare system, these â⠂¬Å"systems eve been acting as stabilizers to their economies.If you lose your job in Sweden, you can expect to receive of your wages for the first 200 days of inactivity, up to 680 kronor (EYE) per day, dropping to 70% for the following 100 days. If you lose your job in Norway, you will receive 62% of your previous salary for up to two years† (Pouches', 2009). Kristin Halverson, Narrator's finance minister, states: â€Å"In these days, we see that a strong welfare state, together with free education and healthcare, has acted as a buffer that stabilizes the economy† (Pouches', 2009).Perhaps this is why the Scandinavian entries were affected much less than the United States during the recent recession. I doubt it's because Scandinavia is much less prone to Mandible's concept of';CE†. It is much more likely that in a country like the United States where the welfare state has such strong disapproval, the competitive, â€Å"get ahead at all costs† and â€Å"ke ep up with the Joneses† mentality of the American consumer is at fault. It is the â€Å"do anything, say anything† mentality that people are willing to employ to get what they want when they want it, whether they can afford it or not.

Macbeth Film Comparison Essay

Compare and contrast the opening scenes of Polanski’s 1971 film version of ‘Macbeth’ with Geoffrey Wright’s 2007 adaptation. Roman Polanski’s and Geoffrey Wright’s adaptations of Shakespeare’s Macbeth are filmed in different styles despite being based on the same play. This may be to suit a different audience or convey a different message to one another. Roman Polanski’s 1971 reproduction opens on a wide angle shot of a beach with a sunrise coming up over the horizon. This creates a feeling of morning, and that this is just the start of a storyline. After this, three old, weathered women appear and dig a hole in the sand- allowing a mysterious atmosphere to develop, which leaves the audience wanting to know more. The witches then bury a dagger encased in a severed hand and a hangman’s noose. These items allow the audience to ponder upon the connection of the items. The witches then say their goodbyes and wander off along the beach, the only sound being the squeaking of their cart used to haul the ritual items in. This shot is quite simple, but it creates a feeling of anticipation. Geoffrey Wright’s 2007 adaptation opens in a more 21st century blockbuster style, with attractive young schoolgirls playing the part of the witches who vandalise a graveyard by gouging out the eyes of statues of angels and spraying the eyes of the statues with red spray paint. This is quite an aggressive scene to start with, and sets the pace for the rest of the film. Compared to Polanski’s version, this introduction offers a more up-beat feel, instead of the more sombre style of the 1971 film. The camera then pans round to a close-up of Macbeth’s face whose attention is drawn to the young schoolgirls as they wander past him. He then looks at his wife who is kneeling over their dead son’s grave crying. Again, another close-up, but this time of Lady Macbeth’s face which at this point is not particularly attractive. This could show Macbeth’s desire for a prettier woman in the schoolgirls, and reality- the less attractive sight of his wife; but in the end, no-one knows what he is thinking, just that he is not comforting his wife. Here, the atmosphere is quite tense- lots of things are happening at one time which makes you feel like you are there, in Macbeth’s hectic, confused mind. In relation to Polanski’s film, this film is less mysterious and makes you expect fewer twists because there have been not many so far. The title graphics in Polanski’s film are set in a Roman style font, Seriffed and coloured black. The aged font emphasizes the fact that the film is very traditional. This style of writing is often used in newspaper articles. The 2007 adaptation uses a much more modern, contemporary sans-serif font. The text is coloured red- a recurring theme in this film. In the 1971 version, a wide angle shot of the beach is the start of the film. This wide angle shot is used throughout the first scene to depict the bleak landscape that the film is set in. The wide shot could also be showing us the â€Å"bigger picture†- that there are many little thing that make up the plot of Macbeth, and this is just one little thing on a wide, open beach. Geoffrey Wright’s film does not include many wide- angle shots in the first few scenes. This is most probably because of the action-packed nature of the film. Therefore the camera follows the action intensely- for example following the witches around the graveyard. This gives the audience an adrenalin rush- especially in the action scenes where the audience can perceive themselves to be taking part in the violence. In both films however, close-up shots of the faces of the main characters are shown. In Polanski’s film this is to show mainly emotion- the creepy expressions of the witches, and Macbeth’s blank expression when shown in a close-up. When Macbeth is first shown, invaders are being hung in the background- but Macbeth retains his blank facial expression- suggesting that he has no feelings for those being hung. Geoffrey Wright’s film shows close-ups of the faces of the witches defacing the statues at the graveyards. These shots show the determination that the witches show by their facial expressions to destroy all that has to do with God and heaven in the graveyard. The close-ups of Lady Macbeth’s face show her weakness in her love for her dead child. Polanski’s film uses very weak morning light as a setting for the beach scene. This gives a dull, grey, washed out look to the beach. The beach seems quite uncomfortable, as it is daybreak and there is almost no light and the open beach makes you feel cold inside creating an atmosphere that hints to you that something bad is about to happen. Similarly, the 2007 version seems to be shot in the day, but there is very little light as the graveyard is overcast. Despite this, the graveyard feels more comfortable due to the auburn hair of the witches which seem to emit warmth and light- allowing the audience to feel more relaxed and enjoy the action scene that follows. Polanski’s film opens with the witches burying strange items that all link to death and suffering- a dagger, a noose and a severed hand. Blood (possibly a symbol of murder) is then poured over the items. The witches then spit on either side of themselves, possibly to bind themselves to the witchcraft they are taking part in. the weather at that time is bleak ,and a thunderstorm is brewing- possibly suggesting a little cheaply hat something bad is about to happen. At that point, after the title sequence, the king gallops onto the beach to the sound of trumpets- symbolic of royalty and fame. In Geoffrey Wright’s adaptation, a recurring theme of red is used from the start of the film. This colour represents blood, murder, death, danger, and the underworld. For example, the witches hair is Auburn, suggesting that they pose a mild danger to Macbeth. Also, â€Å"The Cawdor†- the bar which is used as a drugs den, has red wallpaper- suggesting that it is part of the underworld. The witches vandalise a graveyard at the start of the film, showing their hatred towards God and heaven. They gouge out the eyes of the angels- possibly making them blind to what is about to happen. Red spray paint is forcefully sprayed in the eyes of the statues, also making them oblivious to the witchcraft about to take place. Crosses are also defaced- possibly a reference to Macbeth’s worries about his afterlife. After the vandalism, the girls quieten down, possibly showing an ounce of respect seen as though the place they just demolished is a graveyard. Macbeth is dressed in casual attire, but in black, as in the introduction, he is supposed to be mourning his son’s death. Macbeth’s wife also lays down white roses- symbols of love and innocence- ironic as in the end, nobody seems to be innocent! Later on, as Macbeth and his gang chase a drug dealer from the underworld (with the prevailing colour of red), yellow street lights and buildings are shown- this separated the real world from the underworld. This shows the audience that Macbeth’s actions are not within the realms of what a â€Å"normal† person would do, and that in order to carry on with his normal life; he must keep his actions inside the underworld. Music is an important part in setting the scene for a film, and in Roman Polanski’s film, a droning, repetitive, chaos-inducing tune is used which shows the kookiness of the witches. When Macbeth is shown, a drum beat, not dissimilar to that of an army march beat is used. This shows how Macbeth is a soldier and will fight for his king. The King has music played on a trumpet- vey regal and flattering, this shows his position clearly as a monarch. The music played for the different characters is mostly to show who they are in terms of status; and the music is used instead of a lengthy introduction, allowing the audience to apply stereotypes to the different characters via the music and paint a picture in their minds about the character, but on a deeper level than shown on screen. While the title graphics are showing, fighting sounds are played- simulating the sounds of a battlefield. Plus with swords clanging and maces clashing, the audience are allowed to recreate their own battle in their minds without the help of visual hints. The 2007 version uses similarly annoying, grating noises for the witches- but this time using hissing sounds- possibly a link to the devil posing as a snake in the Bible story of Adam and Eve, where the snake fools Eve into eating the Apple, who then fools Adam into also eating the apple- an uncanny resemblance to the tragedy of Macbeth. Instead of showing a blank screen while showing the title credits, Wright preferred to show a gung-ho showdown between Macbeth’s gang and an Asian gang. Here, the music is loud and upbeat in contrast to the hissing beforehand- just like the 1971 version. Possibly in an attempt to entice the audience of the 21st century, Wright uses very violent scenes- such as depicting men being shot with submachine guns by Macbeth. Again- this may have been done to excite the audience; and instead of letting the audience make up the fight in their minds, a graphical representation has been put on a plate for them. This was not done in 1971 due to the social taboos against showing excessively violent scenes in films- a theme that runs right through the 2007 version as nowadays, these types of scenes are generally being seen as more and more acceptable; despite many believing that suggesting is much more powerful than stating- as could be the case in Wright’s version. Roman Polanski’s film shows witches dressed in ragged clothes, unwashed and with no shoes. This allows the audience to see immediately that these women are strange, and not very wealthy. The king on the other hand is shown to wear a fine suit of armour, with a polished helmet- showing his social importance and wealth. Macbeth lies in the middle of the two extremes- not exuberantly poor like the witches- as he wears chainmail and shoes; but not very wealthy and important- as he has no banner or shiny helmet. This simplistic method of categorising people shows the simplistic way in which Polanski is trying to depict the characters and show the audience how Macbeth is lodged between the two extremes of wealth and social status. When Macbeth meets up with his gang for the action sequence, all of his gang are dressed casually in dark clothes. All except the gang’s Consigliere (the Kings son) – who is dressed in a smart black suit with a red tie- again, with reference to the recurring theme of red, this time showing him as royalty, and as having a higher social status than the other gang members. Hair is an important part of first impressions- in Polanski’s film, Macbeth’s hair is not shown in the introduction, and is hidden by a chainmail hood. This could hint at Macbeth being sheltered from evil and guarded due to his hood acting as a â€Å"safety blanket†. The King wears a crown- a symbol of true royalty, and his hair is uncovered- possibly showing that he is weak. Geoffrey Wright’s adaptation also depicts the King as being weaker than the other characters when his hair colour is looked at. The King is shown as having very fair, blonde hair- again being a symbol of innocence and weakness. The witches in Polanski’s film have different hairstyles- two have hoods- like Macbeth’s but made of cloth, and one has dirty, unwashed brown hair. This array of hairstyles allows the audience to realise that the witches are individuals, and are not all identical in the way they behave. On the other hand, the 2007 version shows all of the witches having the same hairstyle and colour- that being red- with connotations to blood and death. This also is trying to show the audience that they are quite aggressive and possibly have links to the devil. Roman Polanski’s film depicts Macbeth with 1970’s style censoring- no explicitly violent or sexual scenes; but traditional â€Å"hints† at what is happening. Wrights’ version is essentially a film from a totally different time period- showing excessive violence to â€Å"help† the modern audience understand what is going on. I think that despite the sometimes cheesy details of the film, Polanski has created a classic that really entices the audience and makes them wonder what is going on when subtle hints are dropped directing the viewer on the right direction in terms of their mental picture of the scene. The 2007 version shows how complacent modern-day audiences have become with violence and nudity in films. I think that this is mostly down to the filmmakers wanting to make the film more exciting- in some ways they have, as the action scenes in the film can be quite gripping. But as a teenager, I think that more needs to be done in order to let my imagination get to work and try to think of what is really happening, and what is the film trying to tell me beyond the gratuitous violence.

Cashier vs. Sales Assoicate

Sale associates have task that have to be done, such as zoning, putting freight away and helping customer find products. I can connect to this because Im a sales associate in the crafts and fabrics department. It takes a lot of determination to get the tasks done in the time we are schedule for. By zoning we are making our department look good and to make sure we have the products in stock. This is why we get freight to put away so we never run out of items that the customers want to buy. It also helps the associate know where items are so then when a customer asks for help; the associate knows where the product is located. Another difference between a cashier and a sales associate is the location. A sales associate is assigned to a department. As for me being a part of a crafts and fabrics associates Im located in the back of the store next to electronics and pet supplies. There are different locations for departments that sale associates attended to do their duties. Associates cant stand in one spot a time because there either helping Begg2 a customer or making there department look better. Time, time, time. Time is key in a sales associate’s job. They have to be on time because the associate that came in before them either is leavening soon or need you to cover the area while they go on lunch or break. Sale associates are assigning a lunch time, but they have freedom for taking their breaks. You take your break two hours after the associate signs in for the day and two hours before they leave they can take another break, depending on how many hour you work. This is where sale associates differ from cashiers. The front end of the store gets the money. These are your typical cashiers. Checking out customers items. Cashiers scan products, bag the products, and take the money. As a cashier you need to know how to do this while also communicating with the customer. It sounds like a boarding job. This is one difference of why sale associates are different. A cashier has one location and thats in the front of the store. They may have different registers, but there stuck in one spot all day. Cashiers dont get to walk around like a sales associate. Sales associates get assigned lunches and freedom to choose their own break times. However, cashiers dont get that privilege. Cashiers have to be told to take a break or a lunch. They have to wait until it slows down with the traffic of customers checking out and then an assist manger tells the cashier that they can go on break or lunch. Cashiers have very different schedules then a sales associate. For instances you are a cashier and you can only work mornings, but not nights then you only get mornings. For sale associates you put the hours you are free and then you’re scheduled to work whatever hours you’re free in the days of the week. This is unfair to sales associates, however, more hours means more money. This is why cashiers get paid less money than associates. Cashiers will always be differing in different situation then sale associates. Begg3 Sale associate and cashiers work together to make the store move smoothly. Without each other the store would be a mess. When a customer comes in and looks for stuff they need, but dont know the items are located in the store the customer may ask where the item is located and then the sale associate and either explain where the item is or show the customer what aisle the item is located. The customer is done shopping and then they proceed to the cashier. The cashier then cashes you out and the customer is on their way out the door. See how the sale associate and the cashier make it easier for the customer and the store to move smoothly. Another similarity with the two sub cultures are that we both have the same code we have to follow in case of and emergency. For example brown is a shooting situation, white is an accident in the building, and red is for fire and so on and so forth. The similarities for a cashier and a sales associate help the store do the job its needs to do which is to serve the customers , be respectful to one another and to work safely at all times. Wal-Mart stores are a big culture and there are many sub- cultures inside of Wal-Mart. Being a sale associate and a cashier are a few of the sub cultures in Walmart. These two groups may be different, but theyre very much alike. At end of the day, sale associates and cashiers always work together to make the store move smoothly.

Humanities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Humanities - Essay Example When the Babylonians of Semitic origins invaded Mesopotamia near the end of 2000 BC, as the civilization reached its imperial turning point, these ancient Amorites bore significance on the aspect of science through the belief of over sixty thousand gods. Babylonian priests discerned much about the stars and other heavenly bodies and profoundly believed beyond mere embodiment that every planet was a god – Jupiter being Marduk, the god of war, Mars pertaining to Nergal or the god of death for instance, as well as the sun that was also known as Shamash (Babylonian). Religion thus enabled Babylonians to earn recognition in the field of astronomy and astrology which helped establish the twelve zodiac signs on which most cultures to this day depend, accepting the possibility that man’s destiny can be governed by the stars and the planets (Babylonian). In the similar manner, the Egyptian history had documented a belief system which shaped the early minds to materialize cultura l and architectural insights into physical structures crafted according to the religion which regarded truth in life after death. Hence, Egyptians have since managed to live with a burial custom that bathed and embalmed corpses, widely known as ‘mummies’ which were then entombed in pyramids – a tradition thought to prepare the dead for life in another dimension (Resurrection).

Southwest Airlines Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Southwest Airlines - Essay Example This paper illustrates Southwest Airlines which is considered as low cost airlines demonstrated a stable growth in the airline industry and the average growth in the number of the customers had been approximately 9%. It can be mentioned that there was high competition in the deregulated airline industry since the airline routes were competing among each other and there was rise in the low-cost carriers such as Southwest Air lines. Although it has been almost thirty years of the deregulation, the services provided by the Southwest Airlines has been satisfactory to draw on the passengers with a pleasant experience. In this period of time, a number of airlines have been losing money because of lack of adequate service and certain other reasons. However, the best part to note in this regard is that Southwest Airlines is continuing to earn profits because of its hedging programs. It is worthy of mentioning that Southwest airlines does not adopt the â€Å"hub and spoke† approach. Th e company instead tries to focus upon the short haul as well as point-to-point approach. The takeover of Transtar Airlines by Southwest Airlines in 1994 assisted the company to develop stronger edge in the market place. It can be mentioned that deregulation has allowed the companies to burgeon and has lowered the travelling cost of the air-passengers travel. One of the significant issues that Southwest Airlines faces is related to maintenance of its flights. ... Most of the policy makers had been quite worried with this which triggered the creation of the National Commission. This led to well-built competitive airline industry in the year 1993 (Morrison & Winston, 1996). Southwest Airlines which is considered as low cost airlines demonstrated a stable growth in the airline industry and the average growth in the number of the customers had been approximately 9%. It can be mentioned that there was high competition in the deregulated airline industry since the airline routes were competing among each other and there was rise in the low-cost carriers such as Southwest Air lines (US Government Printing Office, 2003). Although it has been almost thirty years of the deregulation, the services provided by the Southwest Airlines has been satisfactory to draw on the passengers with a pleasant experience. In this period of time, a number of airlines have been losing money because of lack of adequate service and certain other reasons. However, the best part to note in this regard is that Southwest Airlines is continuing to earn profits because of its hedging programs (Mallone, 2008). Business Issues Hub Strategies It is worthy of mentioning that Southwest airlines does not adopt the â€Å"hub and spoke† approach. The company instead tries to focus upon the short haul as well as point-to-point approach. The takeover of Transtar Airlines by Southwest Airlines in 1994 assisted the company to develop stronger edge in the market place. It can be mentioned that deregulation has allowed the companies to burgeon and has lowered the travelling cost of the air-passengers travel. Personnel Issues One of the significant issues that Southwest Airlines faces is related to maintenance of its flights. As

Law o tort Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Law o tort - Essay Example Stevenson 1932). The claimant should prove that the negligent behaviour of the defendant has caused injury or loss in order to win the case. in the case of North Glamorgan N.H.S. Trust v Walters, it can be seen that the defendant was negligent in that the â€Å"claimant's infant son developed an epileptic fit as a result of the admitted negligence of the defendant trust, which caused irreparable brain damage and death when the child's life support system was turned off.† The act of turning off the support system aggravated the problem and this led to the claimant suffering a pathological grief reaction. The claimant is a secondary victim and is entitled to claim damages as a result of the horrific experience she encountered at the hospital. The psychiatric injury experienced by the claimant is a direct result of the action of the medical staff at the hospital and this is the reason why she is entitled to get damages. Though the defendant does not directly accept the charges, t he facts are so glaring that it can be seen that they are responsible for the illness experienced by the claimant after the horrific incidence. 3. a. ... The harm is a direct result of the actions of the medical staff and these factors were taken into consideration by the trial judge. b. The control mechanism that was in dispute is that the 36 hour period involving all the events that transpired could be held in law as one horrifying event. The defendant also argues that the judge erred when he concluded that the case was sudden since it transpired over a certain period of time that was characterised by changing events. However, the judge upheld that the control mechanisms were satisfied by the claimant in this particular case. . 4. a. The ground for appeal by North Glamorgan N.H.S. Trust is that the judge expanded the control mechanism involved in the case. In other words, the defendants are saying that the judge did not take into account the provisions of the law with regards to the facts that should be considered in case of a secondary victim suffering psychiatric harm as a result of the actions of the defendant. The defendants als o argue that the mother appreciated the removal of the life support system from the child which led to his death. The dependents also tried to invoke certain sections of public policy but it was established that the judge did not take any incremental position in passing the judgement in favour of the claimant. b. The Lord Justice Ward considered the issues that constituted the necessary event in dismissing the appeal by the defendants. The events took place in a progressive way which led the judge to believe that there was an element of secondary causation of psychiatric injury to the claimant. The other issue that was taken into consideration by the judge is that the aspects of proximity in terms of time and relationship between the two

Nike Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Nike - Case Study Example lizing its main objectives hence giving it ideas on what ought to be done in order to achieve these objectives and Nike Company is not different because it also has its mission and vision. The company’s mission is to offer inspiration to all athletes globally (Nike Inc., 2014). Nike Company has strived to achieve this mission because to date, most athletes taking part in national competitions such as Olympics or marathon are supplied with footwear to enable them participate comfortably. The company’s vision is that everybody has the capacity of becoming an athlete since the company provides all the necessary gears (Nike Inc., 2013). Nike Company has a number of strengths; the company has a global recognition for its apparels that are normally used in sports (Lussier & Kimball, 2009).Apart from its high quality apparel, the company also known for its innovative marketing techniques. For instance, the company normally uses prominent sportsmen such as tiger woods and Michael Jordan while marketing their products (Lussier & Kimball, 2009). Apart from strengths, the company also has a number of weaknesses. For instance, the company has had some management problems. Since resignation of the company’s founder in 2005, the company has had two CEOs in a span of two years (Lussier & Kimball, 2009). Apart from management issues, the company is also experiencing a decline in sales especially in the United States. For instance, there company experiences higher sales in continents such as Europe and Asia than in the United States where the Nike’s headquarters are located (Lussier & Kimball, 2009). This is due to high competition from other companies such as Adidas and Reebok that also specialize in production of sports accessories. The company has several opportunities that if properly utilized will result to an increase in the number of sales hence higher incomes. The company has signed an agreement with Apple Company that will see the company develop an application

The Key Developments in Social Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The Key Developments in Social Policy - Essay Example The present paper aims to analyze and evaluate the important developments the New Labour administration had introduced and observed in the social policy with regards to addressing the challenges of child poverty and child abuse since 1997 onward in the light of the implication of the social policy on the overall welfare of the children. Hence, the paper will concentrate on the progress witnessed by the UK authorities in respect of improving the condition of the children. (Full stop) in order to protect them from becoming the victim of poverty and abuse for the future days to come. The main objective behind exploring the social policy with regards to the children includes the significant increase the British society has witnessed in the poverty level as well as child abuse in the country during the last few years. Since the new social policy had been devised’to combat’’ to combat with child abuse and child poverty, failure in overcoming both these problems, serves as a great challenge on the part of the British government. The paper will elaborate on social policy, and different strategies adopted by the UK administration in respect of the improvements being made in it in the wake of revising these policies in the best interest of the public at large. Finally, the evaluation of the social policy on children will be made in the light of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Their purpose was to investigate rather than into the validity of the social policy on the one side, and the functioning of the same on the other. Introduction: Social policy simply refers to all the strategies and schemes articulated and implemented by the authorities with the aim of bringing in improvements in one or all areas related to the individual and collective well-being of the members of society in general. â€Å"Social policies† according to Prof. Macbeth, â€Å"are connected with the right ordering of the network of relations hips between men and women who live together in societies, or with the principles which should govern the activities of individuals or groups, so far they affect the lives and interests of other people† (1957:1). Vargas-Hernandez et al. define social policy to be the â€Å"guidelines and interventions for the changing, maintenance or creation of living conditions that are conducive to human welfare† (2011:287). It includes the upbringing of the people in the areas like food, clothing, shelter, health, education, housing, employment and protection for all without discrimination. Consequently, social policies are devised by keeping in view the welfare and socio-economic uplift of the masses in various areas of life; and without observing any prejudice with regards to to the class, caste, creed, ethnicity, race, region, religion, gender, sexual orientation and socio-economic status of the members of society. The authorities make plans y focusing on the social issues challe nging the members of society on the one side, and for combating with the social evils prevailing in the culture on the other.  

The Importance of Customer Care Service and the Effect of It on Our Essay

The Importance of Customer Care Service and the Effect of It on Our Culture and Society - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that most people would agree with the fact that customer service accounts for one of the most important component of an organization’s overall business strategy. Without customers organizations cannot go forward to continue their businesses. Every organization generally has the thought that they provide good customer service; however, inadequacy of certain necessary steps to ensure this can make the situation far worse than their present perceptions. However, the commitment towards customer service must begin at the top and trickle down towards the lower levels of the organization. It is crucial that business leaders buy into the fat they are not only required to meet customer expectations but must also strive to gain excellence in the domain. For this it is important that they must create an organizational culture which strives to understand, execute and implement high quality customer service in the system. In today’s world of cut throat competition, organizations regard high quality service customer service as a prerequisite for having an extra edge over competitors. When customers are not satisfied with the service provided by a company they have ample choice to choose from another company. Initiative from the top management coupled with proper training and development program, a company would be successful in developing a culture which is conductive and embraces excellent customer services. Proper training and development program is an excellent way of creating a culture in which employees understand organizations; expectations of them whole interacting with customers. The need for customer feedback for tracking and measuring business performance through the level of service is considered to be equally importance. The present assignment seeks to bring forth critical analysis regarding the use and importance of customer care services in organizations. This is done in the light of previous research on the subject, empirical evidences and examples of such electronic companies such as Apple and Samsung. It brings forth the impacts of such services in these organizations o their businesses and customer perceptions. The importance of customer care service and the effect of it on our culture and society- Critical Analysis The present study synthesizes and builds on efforts for conceptualizing the impacts of quality, value and satisfaction on the behavioural intentions of customers. The study depicts recent advancement made in the areas of customer care services in organizations in the light of service marketing theories and also puts forth notable findings on the subject. One of the key features noted by researchers to stay competitive in the market is to deliver a product or level of service which is unique or, which distinguishes the company’s business from the others. The idea is to draw a distinct line between one’s own services from that of the other firms. This mu st be in terms of catering to customers’ needs and requirements, maintaining quality of the services and also providing after sales services to customers. Extensive research has been conducted on the subject and they typically are of the opinion that customer satisfaction can have a positive opinion on the profitability of an organization. Because of this reason, the reasons for customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction must always be considered. Research shows a positive correlation between customer satisfaction, loyalty and customer retention. Thus the three aspects of satisfaction, loyalty and retention are some of the key factors on which organizational success depends (Singh, 2006, p.1). According to

An effective commuication strategy- A case study of kantar Essay

An effective commuication strategy- A case study of kantar - Essay Example The study is aimed at analysing effective communication strategy within an organisation that helps the employees in enhancing their satisfaction level. In this tough economic situation of credit crunch, where companies are shutting down or employers are holding the torch for price cut and staff-cut, it is really phenomenal for a company to grow and creating its solid start by entering into a competition of top companies to work with. August 9, 2007 is the official beginning of the credit crunch and economic meltdown on such a big scale shook the world. Since then, every day we hear the news about job cuts, many big companies have been impacted by this fiscal situation in the UK. But there are other companies, which are making profit even in this gloomy economic situation. Companies such as comfort food companies, coffee shops and baby fashion stores, have been benefitted throughout the recession period. Like many other companies there is another company that has grown its business an d employees have been associated with its success. The findings section gives the report of what was collected on the ground regarding communication strategy significance in Kantar Company. The company deals with research and marketing programs. In this section analysis of survey questions is done quantitatively via the use of pie chart presentation. Each question response is converted into percentages. It also highlights that thirty six employees of the Company were interviewed. Out of the thirty six, thirty were junior employees whilst six were senior employees of the company. The conclusion gives summary of what was found on the ground. 40 Communication purpose is to express ideas between minds. For it to be effective and efficient, individuals need to receive and send mails effectively. A variety of media is needed typically or in isolation by an individual in order to transmit their messages. The wide range of media available are such as body language,

A Dangerous Method Essay Example for Free

A Dangerous Method Essay David Cronenbergs latest film, A Dangerous Method, recounts the relationship between two psychiatry pioneers, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, in the early part of the 20th century. Michael Fassbender as Jung, Viggo Mortensen as Freud, and Keira Knightley as Jung’s patient and future psychoanalyst Sabina Spielrein. Its Jung around whom the story revolves, as a rising young intellect attempting to build on Freuds fledgling theories of psychoanalysis. In Cronenbergs version, we watch as their professional relationship evolves from student-teacher to one more like father-son, before eventually fracturing. Jung has a wife (Sarah Gadon) who spends most of the film either pregnant or lamenting that shes popped out yet another girl. It’s a stable, normal relationship, exactly the type of thing to send a driven man like Jung into the arms of another woman. He can’t help himself, and he has a willing and ready partner in Spielrein. Knightleys Spielrein is a patient of Jungs during this time. See more: Satirical elements in the adventure of Huckleberry Finn essay With Spielrein’s committal and therapy sessions with Jung, she states, â€Å"I’m vile, filthy, corrupt! †, after admitting she found her father’s sexual and physical abuse arousing. The complexity of the situation is demonstrated by her academic and personal development. After an unusual on-off affair with Jung, whose disagreements with Freud are presented simultaneously, But its her romantic relationship with her mentor, in addition to varied professional differences, that Cronenberg tells us is at the center of Jungs falling-out with Freud. There are reasons that doctors shouldn’t sleep with their patients, many of which surface during the course of Jung and Spielrein’s romance. As the relationship breaks down, things are further complicated by the fact that Spielrein is a psychiatric student herself, allowing her to analyze her doctor/lover right back. Spielrein eventually seeks out Freud to be her new analyst, which further poisons the Jung-Freud relationship. Sexuality issues portrayed in this film were the arousal from the beatings from her father and the affair that Spielrein was having with Jung. The beatings she first remembered started when she was four years old. Her father told her to go to this little room, then told her to take off her clothes, he then beat her. After the beating she then wet herself, and her father then beat her again for wetting. This excited her very much. After that every time she got sent to that room she got excited, then even more excited after her father beat her. She would instantly have to go masturbate after the beatings. After a little time it wasn’t just the beating that got her aroused, it was any kind of embarrassment. The more embarrassing the more excited she would become. One instance in the movie Spielrein dropped her coat on the ground, Jung picked it up and started hitting it with his cane to get the dirt off of it and she instantly needed to go back to her room because she was so excited that she needed to masturbate. The affair with Jung was of course inappropriate in many ways, but for Jung I saw it as a way to keep his life exciting. His wife always seemed to be pregnant and very low key and having the extra woman on the side kept him going. Not that it makes it okay, especially since it was clients that he was sleeping with. Even after Jung put a stop to the relationship with Spielrein, later when she came back to talk about her dissertation they then had another intimate encounter. The more Jung spoke with her, the more they explored her past with her father, and this gave Jung a better understanding of what things made her more aroused then others. At one point in the movie Spielrein is asked about her troubles sleeping at night. She explains that she feels like something is in bed with her and it felt slimy on her back. Jung then asked if she was naked, and her response was yes. He then asked if she was masturbating, and her response again was yes. This told him it wasn’t all her imagination it was also parts of her arousal while masturbating. I loved this film, I have now watched it three times. It shows how sometimes peoples pasts can really affect their daily life with something such as embarrassment, or being beaten as a child. It was very eye opening to me to see how easily Jung started sleeping with his clients, and how his wife just didn’t say much at all about the affairs. Almost like if she didn’t say anything then it didn’t make it real. The first time watching this movie I found myself on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what was going to happen next, and how they were going to deal with her outbursts and situations. I think this movie would be great for awareness, because it seemed so easy for them to go into a relationship, but really it is very wrong to become emotionally attached to a client, let alone sleep with them. I know this movie probably isn’t quite for everyone, but going into a human services field I think it would be a great movie to show in one of the many classes that regards to client and helper relationships. I found it intriguing and informational and I love building my knowledge when it comes to situations with helpers and clients.

Wolf- Moose Study Essay Example for Free

Wolf- Moose Study Essay The point of this long running survey is study the effects of the climate and nature upon the wolf packs and moose of Isle Royale National Park, located in Lake Superior in Michigan. Professor Rolf Peterson of Michigan State University has been conducting this study and has found that by dealing with a basically unpopulated island that it is nearly ideal conditions to analyze the population status of both the moose and wolf population. It is a predator-prey study. The given scenario would be that if all of the wolf packs died off and they were not replaced, what would happen to the moose population? Would it grow too quickly where the island could not support them and would it face a natural decline? It would be best to intervene and replace the wolf packs because it would maintain the natural balance of things. The survey showed that the moose are controlled by the effects of food supply, weather and natural pestilence but though the article states that the island has had very mild winters for the last few years and that creates some ideal situations for increased population among the moose, there is also the factor of an increase in ticks which if left unstopped that they can kill off the moose from blood loss. Yet, without the moose’s natural predator, the wolves, the moose could continue to increase and over populate and therefore, cause death of starvation or other diseases. The island would not be capable of supporting the rising numbers of moose. The island now has three wolf packs that number up to twenty-nine (Peterson 1) but it really would not take that many in order to control the moose population. As wolves are pack animals and the only way that they can successfully hunt and kill a large moose is as a pack, then it would have to be at least two fair sized packs of six to seven members. Works Cited/Reference Peterson, Rolf, This Years Moose-Wolf Study Report: 2004, http://www. msu. edu/user/kilpela/wolf. htm

Impact of the US Credit Crunch on Australian Economy

Impact of the US Credit Crunch on Australian Economy Introduction However, due to the US housing credit crunch and turbulence in financial markets all over the world immediately took into effect and global economic growth slowed towards the end of the year (OBrien et al., 2007). Given this basic premise of the current financial crisis, this literature review will be guided by exploring studies made on how the US-induced credit crunch affected the Australian economy, particularly the housing market. The first stage of this literature review is attributed to describing the current financial crisis, specifically the events that led to its development such as the collapse of the US housing and banking sectors in 2007. Part of discussing the events that took place after the onset of the financial crisis would be to examine the various mechanisms employed by financial institutions and national governments in order to mitigate the direct and indirect consequences of the financial crisis. The second part of this literature review seeks to determine the effects of the financial crisis to the Australian economy, as well as the various policy responses made by both the Reserve Bank of Australia (herein referred to as RBA) and the Australian government. Finally, this literature review will determine whether studies on the current financial crisis were able to provide sufficient attention to the manner by which it affected the housing market, particularly in the case of Australia. The rationale behind these assertions lies on the need to broaden the scope of examining the consequences brought about by the credit crunch in 2007 and the financial crisis in 2008, from being centered in the US to involve other nations as well. It should always be understood that the effect of the subprime meltdown was not limited to US firms exposed to the subprime mortgage market for the reason that globalization made regional financial markets so interconnected that crisis spread across countries at tremendous speed (Moosa, 2008). Hence, it is just apropos to exhaust scholarly works that have managed to realize that at this point in time, economic activities of nations are intertwined and the development of policy solutions should also undergo the same process. Another reason for this literature review would be to identify research gaps that will in turn serve as a motivation for future studies on the effect of the current financial crisis towards nations economies such as the case of Australia. Since the underlying context for this review of related literature is the 2007 credit crunch and the 2008-present global financial crisis, the period covered for the literature surveyed in this paper will be from 2007 to the present. With these things taken into consideration, the focus of this literature review will be the effect of the 2008 financial crisis to the housing market in Australia. From the broad circumstance of the credit crunch and the financial crisis that happened in the US and inevitably transgressed to the rest of the world, this literature review seeks to identify the relationship from a macroeconomic environment of the global financial crisis to a specific case of the housing market in Australia. The justification for this lies on the need to determine whether policy responses used in the US are effective or otherwise in mitigating the direct consequences of the crisis, and vice versa. The credit crunch and the global financial crisis As it had been previously mentioned, this portion of the literature review is allotted to discuss the credit crunch as well as the occurrence of the global financial crisis. Both the credit crunch and the financial crisis are crucial concepts in this review for the reason that it will be impossible to present and examine the effects of the financial crisis to the Australian economy, specifically the housing sector if these concepts are not understood properly. According to the National Institute Economic Review (2008), the 2008 financial crisis is rooted in the US subprime mortgage defaults. Moosa (2009) defines subprime mortgages to encompass all activities involving the granting of loan to borrowers with inferior credit worthiness creating complex financial products. Meanwhile, Honohan (2008) in his study defines a credit crunch as credit related crises suffered by banks and other intermediaries which is often the cause of contraction in lending market especially if these are triggered by exogenous economic shocks. The positive attribute of the definitions provided by these authors lie on the fact that these are lifted from actual events and circumstances, more specifically the 2007 credit crunch and the current financial crisis. Another interesting point with regard to the financial crisis was given by Barrell and Hurst (2008) who stressed that financial crises are episodic and frequent and are difficult to address without major impacts in the prospect for financial growth. Based on this observation by Barrel and Hurst (2008), it becomes evident that it is inevitable under conditions of financial crises that economic growth will not be affected, especially with globalization as the underlying condition. With regard to the direct cause that led to the development of the financial crisis, Ben Bernanke (2008), believe that the period of financial turbulence on the part of the US began in 2006 when there were uncontrollable contractions in the US housing market that were caused by the inability of certain individuals to pay for subprime mortgages. Moreover, this was reinforced by increasing constraints on credit availability, which has dramatically slowed down the economy and has made it less responsive to market changes. Honohan (2008) supports this further in his discussion on the evolution of the 2008 financial crisis by asserting that the origin of the crisis was especially pronounced in the housing market wherein credit losses are so massive that it cannot be replenished anymore. The fall of house prices in the US and other major economies such as the UK directly affected economic growth in other countries. In his study, Honohan (2008) also believes that although the current global financial crisis was triggered by the 2007 credit crunch in the US banking sector brought about by the bursting of the housing bubble, definitions such as those presented by Moosa (2009) and Barrell and Hurst (2008) should not be confined to the US experience. The explanation behind this is that other nations might have responded differently upon the advent of financial crisis. In this case the positive aspects of the study by Honohan (2008) lies on the fact that it was able to present a coherent discussion of the origin of the 2008 financial crisis as something that did not happen overnight. Instead, Honohan (2008) attributes the occurrence of the financial crisis to ineffective risk management and lax monetary and fiscal policies in the US and eventually the rest of the world. Although Honohans (2008) article was focused on the banking aspect of the financial crisis and how mortgage problems in the US, his discussion of the detrimental effects of the crisis such as the closure and bankruptcy of banks and lending institutions were effective in stressing the importance of coherent monetary policies. On the other hand, the research gap identified in the article presented by Honohan (2008) is that it was highly concentrated on the banking sector in the US, thus, ignoring the direct consequences of the credit crunch and the financial crisis to the housing sector. It should always be taken into account that the financial crisis originated in the housing sector. Hence, potential solutions should first be geared towards addressing the negative consequences brought about by the crisis in the housing sector. Another gap in the study made by Honohan (2008) was that it was not able to present recommendations that will serve as a guide to policy makers as to how to mitigate the direct and indirect consequences of the current financial crisis. In a similar study, Barrell and Davis (2008) observed that the evolution of the 2007-2008 financial crises was brought about by low global interest rates arising in turn from high levels of global liquidity. This can be explained further by the case of the US wherein bank lending to households grew at unprecedented rates leading to the point that people can no longer pay their monthly dues. In addition to this, Barrell and Davis (2008) also indicated that banks are expected to hold increasingly low levels of balance sheet liquid assets, given low interest rates, and they undertook aggressive wholesale liability management to maintain funding levels. Without these initial actions taken to address the earliest manifestation of a credit crunch particularly the collapse of the housing market, countries would not have survived the crisis and will be forced to close down major financial institutions. Again, in order to understand the financial crisis and its effects towards nations and economies, it should be taken into consideration that the asset price bubble in the US in 2007 was perhaps the most noticeable occurrence in the housing sector and this has led to irreversible consequences in the financial sector. Given this event, Barrell and Hurst (2008) supports this by stating that it is the short-term fluctuations in house prices that affected consumption in countries like the US and the UK, therefore fostering slow growth in the rest of the developed world—and eventually, the rest of the world. In their discussion of the present financial crises, as well as the prospects for recession, Barrell and Hurst (2008) stated that the best way to address the negative consequences of the crisis would be through effective monetary policy through interest rates reduction which should be set by the central bank in order to prevent bubbles like the housing bubble in the US from bursting and damaging economies at larger scales. The low global interest rates contributed to rapid credit expansion and rise in asset prices which greatly contributed to the US financial crisis (Barrell Davis, 2008). The benefits provided by the study made by Barrell and Hurst (2008) and the article written by Barrell and Davis (2008) would be that in both instances, the authors were able to recognize the collapse of the housing sector as the root cause of the financial crisis. Hence, in both articles, the authors believe that solutions for the current financial crisis should not neglect making changes in the structure of the housing sector. As for the gaps in the studies presented by Barrell and Davies (2008) and Barrell and Hurst (2008), the authors in both articles failed to establish a strong relationship between the policy recommendations that they have made to counteract the negative effects of the financial crisis from worsening and the need to direct solutions at improving the housing sector to prevent another collapse in the future. Also, like most of the scholarly works reviewed in this paper, the articles presented by Barrell and Davies (2008) and Barrell and Hurst (2008) were both centered on the case of the US and the UK, without taking into account that these cases cannot be used to generalize the responses of other nations to the financial crisis. Perceived solutions to the credit crunch and the financial crisis After presenting the various definitions and understanding of the ongoing financial crisis, it is just apropos to also present the perceived solutions to the credit crunch as well as the financial crisis based on the literature reviewed for this study. According to Harris and Davidson (2009) governments have a huge role in addressing the credit crunches and financial crises through the enforcement of effective fiscal policy. The government holds responsibility to help manage the nations resources in order to foster growth and present more job-creating opportunities. In the same article, Harris and Davidson (2009) also raised that the initial response to the credit crunch was reliant on the role of the government to intervene and take action to prevent the consequences from worsening into a financial crisis and a global recession. The example given in the article was the case of the US, whose immediate response would be Paulsons initial $700 billion bail-out package that was envisioned to foster government spending through state and local governments spending. The research gaps identified in the studies presented above, namely the lack of coherent recommendations to address the financial crisis at the practical level were addressed by Harris and Davidson (2009). The reason for this is that Harris and Davidson (2009) stressed on the need for fiscal policies to counteract the immediate effects of the credit crunch. Although the focus on government intervention can be considered both as a positive and negative aspect of the study for the reason that in order to fully control both the financial and the social effects of a credit crunch, it is not sufficient to simply rely on fiscal policy but have a combination of both monetary and fiscal policy. With these things taken into account, the only identifiable gap in the study by Harris and Davidson (2009) is that it was not able to discuss existing and potential monetary policies that may go hand in hand with fiscal policies in managing the negative consequences of the financial crisis. The research gaps identified in the study by Harris and Davidson (2009) were effectively addressed in the study by Belke (2009) for the reason that it may have proposed the use of fiscal stimulus to counteract the direct effects of the credit crunch and that of the crisis as well but Belke (2009) also explored the option of having a combination of both monetary and fiscal policy in order prevent the credit crunch and the financial crisis from initiating a move towards a global economic meltdown. According to Belke (2009) the generic answer to prevent the generic economy from collapsing is that use of fiscal policy to sustain demand, since monetary policy with its main concentration on interest rates approaching zero is no longer effective. The strength of the study made by Belke (2009) is that it was able to cite concrete situations that will illustrate the effectiveness of using both fiscal and monetary policy. For instance, the case of the European Union (EU) specifically the UK wherein tax cuts are implemented in order to effectively increase demand and to foster higher levels and consumption were cited by Belke (2009) as an example of fiscal policy to boost the economy. With these examples and conditions taken into account, the research gap in the study presented by Belke (2009) lies on the fact that it was not able to fully exhaust the potential options that will aid nations, especially those that are not dependent on credit consumption, to handle the immediate impact of the financial crisis that has been triggered by the credit crunch in the US in 2007. Moreover, even if the most suitable cases to illustrate the proposed solutions would be that of the US and other developed EU countries, it would have been better if Belke (2009) used a comparative method between countries that relied on both fiscal and monetary policy and those that did not. It is only through comparison that Belke (2009) could further justify the assertions and recommendations that she had made in her study. As it had been previously raised in this literature review, Belke (2009) was not able to establish a relationship between fiscal policy, monetary policy and the housing sector. The reason for this would be that the housing sector was the triggered the financial crisis. Thus, it is just apt that immediate solutions be directed toward the housing sector as well. Furthermore, the fact the Belke (2009) also focused on the case of the US and the developed countries in the EU is also considered as a gap in the research for the reason that the effectiveness of both fiscal and monetary policy cannot be generalized in the case of only the US or the UK. The financial crisis and the housing sector This portion of the literature review briefly presents the effect of the financial crisis on the housing sector, where it is believed to have originated. It is already given that the credit crunch and eventually the financial crisis emanated from the housing industry in the US, but this does not mean that research should be confined in the case of the US and other economic superpowers such as the UK. The academic literature available regarding the effect of the financial crisis on the housing market and vice versa was once again confined to the case and experiences of the US. For example, in a speech delivered by Ben Bernanke (2008) he stated that housing markets remain weak, with low demand and the increased number of distressed properties on the market contributing to further declines in house prices and ongoing reductions in new construction. The observation made by Bernanke was reinforced by the arguments raised by Barrell (2008) wherein he pointed out that one of the significant factors that affected the worsening of the credit crunch into a full blown financial crisis would be the inability of the US government to respond to the need to intervene to economic activities. Based on these statements, it can be said that homeowners are affected by the decline in demand for houses because they cannot sell at a loss given that the current market prices for the house are low. In addition to this, homeowners cannot make further investments because their money has been trapped in the real estate property that they hold and their inability to shoulder the dept payments. In another scenario, homeowners who are facing debt for their mortgage are facing high risks of losing their property since they may not have the proper mechanism to generate additional income in order to finance for the payment. This was supported by Miron (2009) when he stated that if government redistributes income by intervening in the mortgage market it will however, it creates the potential for large distortions of private behavior. The financial crisis and the Australian Economy Prior to examining available literature on the effect of the present global financial crisis to the Australian housing sector, it is necessary to present the broader picture by determining the effect of the financial crisis to the overall Australian economy as well as immediate policy responses employed to control its negative consequences. The need to examine the effect of the financial crisis on the economy lies on the fact that the contagious effect of the subprime crisis has hit financial institutions in Europe and Australia, therefore, damaging health of s significant number of financial institutions and reducing the ability of others to run their business properly (Moosa, 2008). Under these conditions, Moosa (2008) presented a study that was driven by the need to clearly identify the effect of a US induced credit crunch and financial crisis towards the Australian economy, particularly in terms of the underlying policy decisions implemented by both the RBA and the government. The bursting of the US housing market bubble in 2007 led to the rapid decline in the house prices and the downgrades of related asset-backed securities as well as the collapse of the banking and lending institutions in the US and most of the EU (Moosa, 2008). The same cannot be said in the case of Australia, where the housing market was not particularly overvalued as in the case of the US, but was nonetheless vulnerable to the harsh effects of the credit crunch. The explanation behind this is that there are still large portions of subprime loans granted to borrowers in Australia, hence there is still the risk that they may not have reliable credit records. The only difference between the case of the most countries like the US and Australia in terms of the extent to which the financial crisis affected the economy are in terms of policy initiatives and effective regulation. Given this basic premise, Moosa (2008) asserted that one of the reasons why Australia was not subjected to massive losses after the financial crisis in 2008 was due to the fact that the housing sector did not experience massive shocks as in the case of the US, the UK and most countries in the EU. Typically, mortgages in banks and lending institutions was hit hard by the collapse in the subprime housing market in the US, in the case of Australia, the effect was not severe by the bursting of the housing bubble. In his study, Moosa (2008) began by discussing the reason why the subprime crisis in the US took effect in June of 2007. Moosa (2008) identified two critical areas in order to explain this. First would be the lax monetary policy as indicated by the low interest rates; second, reckless lending of banks to dodgy borrowers and excessive securitization. Although Moosa (2008) indicated in his study that the Australian economy is still susceptible to the effects of the subprime crisis brought about by liquidity situations that push investors to stay away from private sector securities, the only difference is that the Australian financial sector had the necessary policies to balance this out. The positive aspect of the study presented by Moosa (2008) is that it was able to showcase the difference between the effect of the current financial crisis in the US and other nations and Australia. Through Moosas (2008) study, it becomes clear that even though financial crises have a common shape, its consequences are not always the same for every nation. The explanation behind this is that each nation has its own set of fiscal and monetary policy. Consequently, nations, such as Australia respond differently to the same conditions set by the global financial crisis. Regarding the research gap in Moosas (2008) study, it had failed to establish the elements that were present in the Australian economy that enabled it to respond differently and optimally to the shock that was brought about by the financial crisis, as well as the credit crunch which preceded it. What could have been done by Moosa (2008) in order to address this gap would be to cite concrete instances in the Australian economy wherein the implementation of effective policies was able to overcome the negative consequences of the financial crisis. Malcolm Edey (2008), Assistant Governor of the RBA, was able to articulate reasons on why the Australian economy was able to withstand the detrimental consequences of the 2008 financial crisis. The arguments raised by Edey (2008) directly address the research gap identified in the article by Moosa (2008). According to Edey (2008), the reason why the Australian economy was able to minimize the losses despite the financial crisis and the looming threat of recession was due to the following reasons. First, subprime loans are essentially loans that do not meet standard criteria for good credit quality. In Australia, a different policy was employed to address non conforming loans. Ellis (2009) supports this by stating that in Australia, citizens pay the interest in their homes mortgage against their tax, so they are encouraged to keep their mortgage balances low. Second, unlike in other countries such as the US, the Australian government was able to develop coherent fiscal and monetary policy that will encourage households and business sectors to be more risk averse by having higher levels of savings and investment. An example of this would be the AUD 42 billion stimulus package that was called the National Building and Job Plan (Edey, 2008). To further support the points raised by Edey (2008) and Ellis (2009), Steven Kennedy (2009) from the Australian Treasury presented three reasons on why the Australian economy was one of the few who managed to overcome the negative consequences brought about by the 2007 credit crunch and the existing global financial crisis. The primary reason identified by Kennedy (2009) was that the Australian government and the RBA had timely policy responses to the occurrence of the financial crisis. Second, being at close proximity with Asian countries, such as China, Australia was able to benefit from the continuous growth rates of these Asian economies. Finally, the Australian banking system has remained in good shape throughout the crisis which meant that it has effectively operated with sound rules and regulations. The benefits offered by the studies made by Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) is that both were able to acknowledge the unique characteristic of the Australian economy, which are deeply rooted in effective policy making and regulatory ability on the part of both the RBA and the government. In addition to this, income growth in Australia was already strong prior to the crisis which means that policy makers have to option to concentrate on weaker sectors of the economy that will experience the consequences of the crisis in a different scale. Again, the research gap in the observations given by Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) is that the practical examples and illustrations on how these policies were translated into actual practice are once again insufficient. Another problematic aspect of these articles is that the authors only presented the positive aspect of effective monetary and fiscal policies, thus, disregarding the fact that these might also manifest flaws that might jeopardize the success of the regulation. Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) in their separate articles mentioned that Australia had an edge over other nations in terms of counteracting the direct effects of the financial crises, but both scholars failed to provide stronger basis to support such assertion. The financial crisis and the housing market in Australia The final section of this literature review is allotted in examining the available studies made with regard to the current state of the housing market in Australia and how it responded towards the occurrence of the financial crisis. With regard to the overall condition of the housing market, Edgerton (2008) presented a detailed discussion of the through the pricing, purchasing and selling trends in major Australian cities namely, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, and Canbera. The method used by Edgerton (2008) was to analyze trends in housing price increase and/or decrease as well as trends for sales and purchases of houses in these major Australian cities. The findings from the study made by Edgerton (2008) indicate that it is not only the international factors such as the 2007 credit crunch and the existing financial crisis that may affect the overall performance and condition of the housing market. Instead, national factors may also affect the formation and eventually the bursting of housing bubbles. In order to support his claims Edgerton (2008) cited that Australia employ better lending standards compared to other countries, specifically the US. To illustrate this further, in Australia, there are no recourse loans unlike in the US where many mortgages are non-recourse. Non-recourse loans mean that the borrower in financial difficulty to pay their debts has the option of handing their house back to the bank without incurring any liability for any shortfall when the house is sold. It is a different scenario in Australia because borrowers, regardless of whether they give back the house or not (Edgerton, 2008). Hence, unlike in the US and other markets, the borrowers in Australia remain liable for any shortfall. With this, the housing markets as well as banking and lending institutions in Australia are not tasked to shoulder the losses from subprime mortgages. The strength of the study by Edgerton (2008) is that he was able to stress that Australia employs rather different regulatory practices compared to the US, particularly in handling mortgage. From a description of the quick acting policies in the housing, banking and lending sector, the Australian economy, most specifically the housing sector was able to survive and overcome the detrimental elements of the financial crisis. It is also important to point out that Edgerton (2008) is one of the few scholars who gave attention to the importance of the housing market in determining the overall performance of the economy, specifically in the case of Australia. Besides, the housing market can serve as an avenue for added investments and new business opportunities; hence it should not be taken for granted, particularly during times of crises. It was also helpful that the paper presented had visual illustrations such as graphs in order to illustrate further the performance of the economy relative to the financial crisis and its effect on the housing sector. On the other hand, the research gap in the study by Edgerton (2008) is that it was not able to establish the reasons that serve as motivation for the government to implement stricter mechanisms. Impact of the US Credit Crunch on Australian Economy Impact of the US Credit Crunch on Australian Economy Introduction However, due to the US housing credit crunch and turbulence in financial markets all over the world immediately took into effect and global economic growth slowed towards the end of the year (OBrien et al., 2007). Given this basic premise of the current financial crisis, this literature review will be guided by exploring studies made on how the US-induced credit crunch affected the Australian economy, particularly the housing market. The first stage of this literature review is attributed to describing the current financial crisis, specifically the events that led to its development such as the collapse of the US housing and banking sectors in 2007. Part of discussing the events that took place after the onset of the financial crisis would be to examine the various mechanisms employed by financial institutions and national governments in order to mitigate the direct and indirect consequences of the financial crisis. The second part of this literature review seeks to determine the effects of the financial crisis to the Australian economy, as well as the various policy responses made by both the Reserve Bank of Australia (herein referred to as RBA) and the Australian government. Finally, this literature review will determine whether studies on the current financial crisis were able to provide sufficient attention to the manner by which it affected the housing market, particularly in the case of Australia. The rationale behind these assertions lies on the need to broaden the scope of examining the consequences brought about by the credit crunch in 2007 and the financial crisis in 2008, from being centered in the US to involve other nations as well. It should always be understood that the effect of the subprime meltdown was not limited to US firms exposed to the subprime mortgage market for the reason that globalization made regional financial markets so interconnected that crisis spread across countries at tremendous speed (Moosa, 2008). Hence, it is just apropos to exhaust scholarly works that have managed to realize that at this point in time, economic activities of nations are intertwined and the development of policy solutions should also undergo the same process. Another reason for this literature review would be to identify research gaps that will in turn serve as a motivation for future studies on the effect of the current financial crisis towards nations economies such as the case of Australia. Since the underlying context for this review of related literature is the 2007 credit crunch and the 2008-present global financial crisis, the period covered for the literature surveyed in this paper will be from 2007 to the present. With these things taken into consideration, the focus of this literature review will be the effect of the 2008 financial crisis to the housing market in Australia. From the broad circumstance of the credit crunch and the financial crisis that happened in the US and inevitably transgressed to the rest of the world, this literature review seeks to identify the relationship from a macroeconomic environment of the global financial crisis to a specific case of the housing market in Australia. The justification for this lies on the need to determine whether policy responses used in the US are effective or otherwise in mitigating the direct consequences of the crisis, and vice versa. The credit crunch and the global financial crisis As it had been previously mentioned, this portion of the literature review is allotted to discuss the credit crunch as well as the occurrence of the global financial crisis. Both the credit crunch and the financial crisis are crucial concepts in this review for the reason that it will be impossible to present and examine the effects of the financial crisis to the Australian economy, specifically the housing sector if these concepts are not understood properly. According to the National Institute Economic Review (2008), the 2008 financial crisis is rooted in the US subprime mortgage defaults. Moosa (2009) defines subprime mortgages to encompass all activities involving the granting of loan to borrowers with inferior credit worthiness creating complex financial products. Meanwhile, Honohan (2008) in his study defines a credit crunch as credit related crises suffered by banks and other intermediaries which is often the cause of contraction in lending market especially if these are triggered by exogenous economic shocks. The positive attribute of the definitions provided by these authors lie on the fact that these are lifted from actual events and circumstances, more specifically the 2007 credit crunch and the current financial crisis. Another interesting point with regard to the financial crisis was given by Barrell and Hurst (2008) who stressed that financial crises are episodic and frequent and are difficult to address without major impacts in the prospect for financial growth. Based on this observation by Barrel and Hurst (2008), it becomes evident that it is inevitable under conditions of financial crises that economic growth will not be affected, especially with globalization as the underlying condition. With regard to the direct cause that led to the development of the financial crisis, Ben Bernanke (2008), believe that the period of financial turbulence on the part of the US began in 2006 when there were uncontrollable contractions in the US housing market that were caused by the inability of certain individuals to pay for subprime mortgages. Moreover, this was reinforced by increasing constraints on credit availability, which has dramatically slowed down the economy and has made it less responsive to market changes. Honohan (2008) supports this further in his discussion on the evolution of the 2008 financial crisis by asserting that the origin of the crisis was especially pronounced in the housing market wherein credit losses are so massive that it cannot be replenished anymore. The fall of house prices in the US and other major economies such as the UK directly affected economic growth in other countries. In his study, Honohan (2008) also believes that although the current global financial crisis was triggered by the 2007 credit crunch in the US banking sector brought about by the bursting of the housing bubble, definitions such as those presented by Moosa (2009) and Barrell and Hurst (2008) should not be confined to the US experience. The explanation behind this is that other nations might have responded differently upon the advent of financial crisis. In this case the positive aspects of the study by Honohan (2008) lies on the fact that it was able to present a coherent discussion of the origin of the 2008 financial crisis as something that did not happen overnight. Instead, Honohan (2008) attributes the occurrence of the financial crisis to ineffective risk management and lax monetary and fiscal policies in the US and eventually the rest of the world. Although Honohans (2008) article was focused on the banking aspect of the financial crisis and how mortgage problems in the US, his discussion of the detrimental effects of the crisis such as the closure and bankruptcy of banks and lending institutions were effective in stressing the importance of coherent monetary policies. On the other hand, the research gap identified in the article presented by Honohan (2008) is that it was highly concentrated on the banking sector in the US, thus, ignoring the direct consequences of the credit crunch and the financial crisis to the housing sector. It should always be taken into account that the financial crisis originated in the housing sector. Hence, potential solutions should first be geared towards addressing the negative consequences brought about by the crisis in the housing sector. Another gap in the study made by Honohan (2008) was that it was not able to present recommendations that will serve as a guide to policy makers as to how to mitigate the direct and indirect consequences of the current financial crisis. In a similar study, Barrell and Davis (2008) observed that the evolution of the 2007-2008 financial crises was brought about by low global interest rates arising in turn from high levels of global liquidity. This can be explained further by the case of the US wherein bank lending to households grew at unprecedented rates leading to the point that people can no longer pay their monthly dues. In addition to this, Barrell and Davis (2008) also indicated that banks are expected to hold increasingly low levels of balance sheet liquid assets, given low interest rates, and they undertook aggressive wholesale liability management to maintain funding levels. Without these initial actions taken to address the earliest manifestation of a credit crunch particularly the collapse of the housing market, countries would not have survived the crisis and will be forced to close down major financial institutions. Again, in order to understand the financial crisis and its effects towards nations and economies, it should be taken into consideration that the asset price bubble in the US in 2007 was perhaps the most noticeable occurrence in the housing sector and this has led to irreversible consequences in the financial sector. Given this event, Barrell and Hurst (2008) supports this by stating that it is the short-term fluctuations in house prices that affected consumption in countries like the US and the UK, therefore fostering slow growth in the rest of the developed world—and eventually, the rest of the world. In their discussion of the present financial crises, as well as the prospects for recession, Barrell and Hurst (2008) stated that the best way to address the negative consequences of the crisis would be through effective monetary policy through interest rates reduction which should be set by the central bank in order to prevent bubbles like the housing bubble in the US from bursting and damaging economies at larger scales. The low global interest rates contributed to rapid credit expansion and rise in asset prices which greatly contributed to the US financial crisis (Barrell Davis, 2008). The benefits provided by the study made by Barrell and Hurst (2008) and the article written by Barrell and Davis (2008) would be that in both instances, the authors were able to recognize the collapse of the housing sector as the root cause of the financial crisis. Hence, in both articles, the authors believe that solutions for the current financial crisis should not neglect making changes in the structure of the housing sector. As for the gaps in the studies presented by Barrell and Davies (2008) and Barrell and Hurst (2008), the authors in both articles failed to establish a strong relationship between the policy recommendations that they have made to counteract the negative effects of the financial crisis from worsening and the need to direct solutions at improving the housing sector to prevent another collapse in the future. Also, like most of the scholarly works reviewed in this paper, the articles presented by Barrell and Davies (2008) and Barrell and Hurst (2008) were both centered on the case of the US and the UK, without taking into account that these cases cannot be used to generalize the responses of other nations to the financial crisis. Perceived solutions to the credit crunch and the financial crisis After presenting the various definitions and understanding of the ongoing financial crisis, it is just apropos to also present the perceived solutions to the credit crunch as well as the financial crisis based on the literature reviewed for this study. According to Harris and Davidson (2009) governments have a huge role in addressing the credit crunches and financial crises through the enforcement of effective fiscal policy. The government holds responsibility to help manage the nations resources in order to foster growth and present more job-creating opportunities. In the same article, Harris and Davidson (2009) also raised that the initial response to the credit crunch was reliant on the role of the government to intervene and take action to prevent the consequences from worsening into a financial crisis and a global recession. The example given in the article was the case of the US, whose immediate response would be Paulsons initial $700 billion bail-out package that was envisioned to foster government spending through state and local governments spending. The research gaps identified in the studies presented above, namely the lack of coherent recommendations to address the financial crisis at the practical level were addressed by Harris and Davidson (2009). The reason for this is that Harris and Davidson (2009) stressed on the need for fiscal policies to counteract the immediate effects of the credit crunch. Although the focus on government intervention can be considered both as a positive and negative aspect of the study for the reason that in order to fully control both the financial and the social effects of a credit crunch, it is not sufficient to simply rely on fiscal policy but have a combination of both monetary and fiscal policy. With these things taken into account, the only identifiable gap in the study by Harris and Davidson (2009) is that it was not able to discuss existing and potential monetary policies that may go hand in hand with fiscal policies in managing the negative consequences of the financial crisis. The research gaps identified in the study by Harris and Davidson (2009) were effectively addressed in the study by Belke (2009) for the reason that it may have proposed the use of fiscal stimulus to counteract the direct effects of the credit crunch and that of the crisis as well but Belke (2009) also explored the option of having a combination of both monetary and fiscal policy in order prevent the credit crunch and the financial crisis from initiating a move towards a global economic meltdown. According to Belke (2009) the generic answer to prevent the generic economy from collapsing is that use of fiscal policy to sustain demand, since monetary policy with its main concentration on interest rates approaching zero is no longer effective. The strength of the study made by Belke (2009) is that it was able to cite concrete situations that will illustrate the effectiveness of using both fiscal and monetary policy. For instance, the case of the European Union (EU) specifically the UK wherein tax cuts are implemented in order to effectively increase demand and to foster higher levels and consumption were cited by Belke (2009) as an example of fiscal policy to boost the economy. With these examples and conditions taken into account, the research gap in the study presented by Belke (2009) lies on the fact that it was not able to fully exhaust the potential options that will aid nations, especially those that are not dependent on credit consumption, to handle the immediate impact of the financial crisis that has been triggered by the credit crunch in the US in 2007. Moreover, even if the most suitable cases to illustrate the proposed solutions would be that of the US and other developed EU countries, it would have been better if Belke (2009) used a comparative method between countries that relied on both fiscal and monetary policy and those that did not. It is only through comparison that Belke (2009) could further justify the assertions and recommendations that she had made in her study. As it had been previously raised in this literature review, Belke (2009) was not able to establish a relationship between fiscal policy, monetary policy and the housing sector. The reason for this would be that the housing sector was the triggered the financial crisis. Thus, it is just apt that immediate solutions be directed toward the housing sector as well. Furthermore, the fact the Belke (2009) also focused on the case of the US and the developed countries in the EU is also considered as a gap in the research for the reason that the effectiveness of both fiscal and monetary policy cannot be generalized in the case of only the US or the UK. The financial crisis and the housing sector This portion of the literature review briefly presents the effect of the financial crisis on the housing sector, where it is believed to have originated. It is already given that the credit crunch and eventually the financial crisis emanated from the housing industry in the US, but this does not mean that research should be confined in the case of the US and other economic superpowers such as the UK. The academic literature available regarding the effect of the financial crisis on the housing market and vice versa was once again confined to the case and experiences of the US. For example, in a speech delivered by Ben Bernanke (2008) he stated that housing markets remain weak, with low demand and the increased number of distressed properties on the market contributing to further declines in house prices and ongoing reductions in new construction. The observation made by Bernanke was reinforced by the arguments raised by Barrell (2008) wherein he pointed out that one of the significant factors that affected the worsening of the credit crunch into a full blown financial crisis would be the inability of the US government to respond to the need to intervene to economic activities. Based on these statements, it can be said that homeowners are affected by the decline in demand for houses because they cannot sell at a loss given that the current market prices for the house are low. In addition to this, homeowners cannot make further investments because their money has been trapped in the real estate property that they hold and their inability to shoulder the dept payments. In another scenario, homeowners who are facing debt for their mortgage are facing high risks of losing their property since they may not have the proper mechanism to generate additional income in order to finance for the payment. This was supported by Miron (2009) when he stated that if government redistributes income by intervening in the mortgage market it will however, it creates the potential for large distortions of private behavior. The financial crisis and the Australian Economy Prior to examining available literature on the effect of the present global financial crisis to the Australian housing sector, it is necessary to present the broader picture by determining the effect of the financial crisis to the overall Australian economy as well as immediate policy responses employed to control its negative consequences. The need to examine the effect of the financial crisis on the economy lies on the fact that the contagious effect of the subprime crisis has hit financial institutions in Europe and Australia, therefore, damaging health of s significant number of financial institutions and reducing the ability of others to run their business properly (Moosa, 2008). Under these conditions, Moosa (2008) presented a study that was driven by the need to clearly identify the effect of a US induced credit crunch and financial crisis towards the Australian economy, particularly in terms of the underlying policy decisions implemented by both the RBA and the government. The bursting of the US housing market bubble in 2007 led to the rapid decline in the house prices and the downgrades of related asset-backed securities as well as the collapse of the banking and lending institutions in the US and most of the EU (Moosa, 2008). The same cannot be said in the case of Australia, where the housing market was not particularly overvalued as in the case of the US, but was nonetheless vulnerable to the harsh effects of the credit crunch. The explanation behind this is that there are still large portions of subprime loans granted to borrowers in Australia, hence there is still the risk that they may not have reliable credit records. The only difference between the case of the most countries like the US and Australia in terms of the extent to which the financial crisis affected the economy are in terms of policy initiatives and effective regulation. Given this basic premise, Moosa (2008) asserted that one of the reasons why Australia was not subjected to massive losses after the financial crisis in 2008 was due to the fact that the housing sector did not experience massive shocks as in the case of the US, the UK and most countries in the EU. Typically, mortgages in banks and lending institutions was hit hard by the collapse in the subprime housing market in the US, in the case of Australia, the effect was not severe by the bursting of the housing bubble. In his study, Moosa (2008) began by discussing the reason why the subprime crisis in the US took effect in June of 2007. Moosa (2008) identified two critical areas in order to explain this. First would be the lax monetary policy as indicated by the low interest rates; second, reckless lending of banks to dodgy borrowers and excessive securitization. Although Moosa (2008) indicated in his study that the Australian economy is still susceptible to the effects of the subprime crisis brought about by liquidity situations that push investors to stay away from private sector securities, the only difference is that the Australian financial sector had the necessary policies to balance this out. The positive aspect of the study presented by Moosa (2008) is that it was able to showcase the difference between the effect of the current financial crisis in the US and other nations and Australia. Through Moosas (2008) study, it becomes clear that even though financial crises have a common shape, its consequences are not always the same for every nation. The explanation behind this is that each nation has its own set of fiscal and monetary policy. Consequently, nations, such as Australia respond differently to the same conditions set by the global financial crisis. Regarding the research gap in Moosas (2008) study, it had failed to establish the elements that were present in the Australian economy that enabled it to respond differently and optimally to the shock that was brought about by the financial crisis, as well as the credit crunch which preceded it. What could have been done by Moosa (2008) in order to address this gap would be to cite concrete instances in the Australian economy wherein the implementation of effective policies was able to overcome the negative consequences of the financial crisis. Malcolm Edey (2008), Assistant Governor of the RBA, was able to articulate reasons on why the Australian economy was able to withstand the detrimental consequences of the 2008 financial crisis. The arguments raised by Edey (2008) directly address the research gap identified in the article by Moosa (2008). According to Edey (2008), the reason why the Australian economy was able to minimize the losses despite the financial crisis and the looming threat of recession was due to the following reasons. First, subprime loans are essentially loans that do not meet standard criteria for good credit quality. In Australia, a different policy was employed to address non conforming loans. Ellis (2009) supports this by stating that in Australia, citizens pay the interest in their homes mortgage against their tax, so they are encouraged to keep their mortgage balances low. Second, unlike in other countries such as the US, the Australian government was able to develop coherent fiscal and monetary policy that will encourage households and business sectors to be more risk averse by having higher levels of savings and investment. An example of this would be the AUD 42 billion stimulus package that was called the National Building and Job Plan (Edey, 2008). To further support the points raised by Edey (2008) and Ellis (2009), Steven Kennedy (2009) from the Australian Treasury presented three reasons on why the Australian economy was one of the few who managed to overcome the negative consequences brought about by the 2007 credit crunch and the existing global financial crisis. The primary reason identified by Kennedy (2009) was that the Australian government and the RBA had timely policy responses to the occurrence of the financial crisis. Second, being at close proximity with Asian countries, such as China, Australia was able to benefit from the continuous growth rates of these Asian economies. Finally, the Australian banking system has remained in good shape throughout the crisis which meant that it has effectively operated with sound rules and regulations. The benefits offered by the studies made by Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) is that both were able to acknowledge the unique characteristic of the Australian economy, which are deeply rooted in effective policy making and regulatory ability on the part of both the RBA and the government. In addition to this, income growth in Australia was already strong prior to the crisis which means that policy makers have to option to concentrate on weaker sectors of the economy that will experience the consequences of the crisis in a different scale. Again, the research gap in the observations given by Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) is that the practical examples and illustrations on how these policies were translated into actual practice are once again insufficient. Another problematic aspect of these articles is that the authors only presented the positive aspect of effective monetary and fiscal policies, thus, disregarding the fact that these might also manifest flaws that might jeopardize the success of the regulation. Ellis (2009) and Kennedy (2009) in their separate articles mentioned that Australia had an edge over other nations in terms of counteracting the direct effects of the financial crises, but both scholars failed to provide stronger basis to support such assertion. The financial crisis and the housing market in Australia The final section of this literature review is allotted in examining the available studies made with regard to the current state of the housing market in Australia and how it responded towards the occurrence of the financial crisis. With regard to the overall condition of the housing market, Edgerton (2008) presented a detailed discussion of the through the pricing, purchasing and selling trends in major Australian cities namely, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, and Canbera. The method used by Edgerton (2008) was to analyze trends in housing price increase and/or decrease as well as trends for sales and purchases of houses in these major Australian cities. The findings from the study made by Edgerton (2008) indicate that it is not only the international factors such as the 2007 credit crunch and the existing financial crisis that may affect the overall performance and condition of the housing market. Instead, national factors may also affect the formation and eventually the bursting of housing bubbles. In order to support his claims Edgerton (2008) cited that Australia employ better lending standards compared to other countries, specifically the US. To illustrate this further, in Australia, there are no recourse loans unlike in the US where many mortgages are non-recourse. Non-recourse loans mean that the borrower in financial difficulty to pay their debts has the option of handing their house back to the bank without incurring any liability for any shortfall when the house is sold. It is a different scenario in Australia because borrowers, regardless of whether they give back the house or not (Edgerton, 2008). Hence, unlike in the US and other markets, the borrowers in Australia remain liable for any shortfall. With this, the housing markets as well as banking and lending institutions in Australia are not tasked to shoulder the losses from subprime mortgages. The strength of the study by Edgerton (2008) is that he was able to stress that Australia employs rather different regulatory practices compared to the US, particularly in handling mortgage. From a description of the quick acting policies in the housing, banking and lending sector, the Australian economy, most specifically the housing sector was able to survive and overcome the detrimental elements of the financial crisis. It is also important to point out that Edgerton (2008) is one of the few scholars who gave attention to the importance of the housing market in determining the overall performance of the economy, specifically in the case of Australia. Besides, the housing market can serve as an avenue for added investments and new business opportunities; hence it should not be taken for granted, particularly during times of crises. It was also helpful that the paper presented had visual illustrations such as graphs in order to illustrate further the performance of the economy relative to the financial crisis and its effect on the housing sector. On the other hand, the research gap in the study by Edgerton (2008) is that it was not able to establish the reasons that serve as motivation for the government to implement stricter mechanisms.