GDP: True or False

The gross domestic product is a simple calculation yet complex in understanding. Before knowing the intricacies of GDP, I thought it was a measure of the country's wealth. That its purpose was to appropriate the countries production into a useful number. However, it isn't only that. After watching NPR's video "What is GDP" I found it cool how they found specific indices to total up the country's wealth in a given year.  This method specifies that only goods that are considered to be final goods and services are to be among those that are counted in the GDP. For example, if a steel beam is made, it is not counted as a finished good, until it is bought and used. When that happens the value of a product is appropriated to be apart of the GDP. Items such as the antique Victorian houses under the George Washington bridge till today ae not counted as a product of the GDP when it is bought and sold; rather they add a rent value to the GDP. Economist determine what the buyer would pay in terms of rent and add that to the GDP.

However, this is all an estimate and do not accurately project the country's social structural economy. With the GDP one can determine the per capita rate, but this is a disadvantage because it does not show you detailed and imporatnt informatin such as the number of people living in poverty, the true cost of living, and last but not least the concentration of economic power among the people of that country. Although the GDP is used as an indicator to measure a country's and its peoples wealth, it can be misleading. Dean Baker, co-director of the Center of Economic Policy Research was also inclined to admit the arguability of the GDP measure. He said, "We spend 17 percent of GDP on health care, whereas the average across Europe is less than 10 percent GDP. What do we get for this extra 7 percentage points of GDP? That is not obvious to say the least. The U.S. ranks behind every West European country in life expectancy and does not stand out in most other outcome measures".

We may have a nice figure when it comes to GDP and per capita, but this tells us nothing as to wealth of an average individual. All this tells us is the of the current development and progress or regression of an economy. So how accurate is a GDP when a country can't bail its self and its people out of debt?how important is a GDP when it is at odds with the standard of living? GDP only tells the health of an economy by means of production and its tall tale towards a robust economy.

For more info you can read this: http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/01/10/144914762/why-gdp-per-capita-can-start-a-bar-fight

RS7: It's Time to Imagine

     The anxiety that comes with being a student is common. Pressure comes in all forms until one decides that creativity is not as important as knowledge. However, I belive that the education system has failed in realisisng that students today are suffering because they are in fact afraid to fail. Failure, though not looked upon with a smile, is a necessary step to mental/psychological and character development. Who we are is important, but it's just as important to who we could have been if we allowed our true talent to flourish. From personal expereince, I have been through the stage of disregarding my own artistic talent in order to flourish academically, but I never fail to return to it. Thus we are failing to integrate knowledge and learning with the one thing that ensures us a better future, a new world, and a better way to sustain the world. Creativity.

     If students are afraid to let their creativity take control, then this is a sure sign that teachers as well as parents suffer from anxiety.... a social and personal anxiety; for if the issue is that parents and teachers are afraid to let the youth fail and learn from it, it means that they are also afraid of how this will cast upon them. Ken Robinson said that intelligence is diverse and comes in different colors and I blieve this.

     Mozart was not an academic genius but he was novel item in his time. At the age of 4 he composed his own music and played both the piano and violin. Ghandi a legend and great historical leader excelled in academics, before becoming an icon, he was a lawyer. And after realizinng the suffering of his own people, he used his talent and led them to independence. A  young Irish actress named Saorsie Ronan began acting at the age of 4 and today she plays in the big screen and continue to amaze the mass with her gift.

       Parents want their children to be successful. They believe the opportunity cost of going to college and becoming a doctor or lawyer is better choice than becoming a tireless dancer on broadway, but success does not have only one door open. It has many. And if at a young age we can't learn to be honest with ourselves we make losing ourselves possible.

RS5: A Most Vulnerable Market; The Financial Market amidst a Push and Pull

Within 10 minutes of watching "The Meltdown" I realized how vulnearble the financial markets are. Especially, financial institutions that go all out and invest heavily. However, what caught my eyes is that a rumor can effectively bring down a robust firm in its prime, because when one investor pull out due to suspicious and groundless rumors, all of them pull out, despite the truth.

The Financial market runs on supply and demand. If a stock is in demand then the firm selling those shares have an increasing share value, but if more people want to sell shares rather than buy, we experience a seller surplus and declining share values. While watching this video, I realized that determning the survivability of a firm with the external, depends on the investors attitudes and expectation.

The financial market is a support system for investment firms. If one supporting leg crumbles, the burden of the rest of the legs will increase, and they will wantt o dispose of their load, in this case invest a lot less or retract their offers and money. What caught my attention is that Bears probably had no financial diversity, the eason why they completely collapsed was because they invested so heavily in the mortage business, that forgot to play it safe.

RS4:The Secondary Effect of Money in Politics

This article is my take on "A Former Lobbyist Tells All" by Jimmy Williams. This article was on the February of 2012 edition of NPR. click here to listen to audio.

If money was banned in politics where would it all go? what would happen to the political system if there was no money flowing in and out of it. Many say that the legislative process is corrupted because of money. The cost of having no money in politics may be as much of a problem as having no money in politics. The reason for that is because the money used in campaign financing is used to supply voters with information on candidates. Although, we all know that information that is used to gain the attention and interest of voters are usually distorted, but none-the-less, money may not be the problem here.

What needs to be fixed is the structure of the organization. Money cannot be fully removed from the game of politics or in this case campaign financing because, Message = Money. To spread the word, to hire people to get this message across (media outlets), to gain the support of possible allies, is expensive. What we need to do is draw a line on how much and what is being lobbied. A threshold must be supplied, because politicians and lobbyists can lobby anything to further their own agendas in order to put money in their pockets. The financial structure in politics needs to be reorganized.

Politicians have fundraisers, PAC's, and individual donors who raise money for them, but how can we make sure that all of is audited. The thing about the structure of the whole thing is that a person needs money in order to run a campaign or even be considered a candidate. People without financial support to begin with are clear out of the line.  Although, this is said to be regulated and institutionalized, because there is a necessity of money in political races and that the first amendment protects money in politics that does not mean that overt laws are not necessary to prevent as much corruption as possible. Too much money in politics makes it a spectacle, so the rules need to change in order to change the outcome.

How can you trust of system of lawmakers where they run a system that is filled with so many inconsistencies. You can access this video to further explain how a campaign finance work.

RS6: What Temperarment Are You?

Your Keirsey Temperament Sorter Results indicates that your personality type is that of the

Rationals are the problem solving temperament, particularly if the problem has to do with the many complex systems that make up the world around us. Rationals might tackle problems in organic systems such as plants and animals, or in mechanical systems such as railroads and computers, or in social systems such as families and companies and governments. But whatever systems fire their curiosity, Rationals will analyze them to understand how they work, so they can figure out how to make them work better.

In working with problems, Rationals try to find solutions that have application in the real world, but they are even more interested in the abstract concepts involved, the fundamental principles or natural laws that underlie the particular case. And they are completely pragmatic about their ways and means of achieving their ends. Rationals don't care about being politically correct. They are interested in the most efficient solutions possible, and will listen to anyone who has something useful to teach them, while disregarding any authority or customary procedure that wastes time and resources.

Rationals have an insatiable hunger to accomplish their goals and will work tirelessly on any project they have set their mind to. They are rigorously logical and fiercely independent in their thinking -- are indeed skeptical of all ideas, even their own -- and they believe they can overcome any obstacle with their will power. Often they are seen as cold and distant, but this is really the absorbed concentration they give to whatever problem they're working on. Whether designing a skyscraper or an experiment, developing a theory or a prototype technology, building an aircraft, a corporation, or a strategic alliance, Rationals value intelligence, in themselves and others, and they pride themselves on the ingenuity they bring to their problem solving.

Rationals are very scarce, comprising as little as 7 to 10 percent of the population. But because of their drive to unlock the secrets of nature, and to develop new technologies, they have done much to shape our world.

Rationals at Work
As a Rational, you seek to acquire and apply expertise. You thrive in an autonomous and intellectually stimulating workplace, working alongside other competent people, pursuing knowledge or creating systems. Your core need to follow the driving force of your own intelligence leads to particular career challenges. For example, recognition of your expertise may lead to your being put "in charge" of other people, as a manager, when you might prefer to remain immersed in projects of your own.

You are fascinated with developing strategic plans for others to use. In your preferred environment, you work behind the scenes while someone else takes the active leadership role. Often, you are driven to step in as leader when you become impatient with the way a project is going. In your ideal job, you independently analyze systems and make recommendations about how objectives will best be reached; someone else does the work of delegating work, motivating people, or enforcing work duties. You want challenge in your work and become frustrated when asked to merely follow routines, especially if those routines are inefficient.


Guardians® (SJs) are the cornerstone of society, for they are the temperament given to serving and preserving our most important social institutions. Guardians have natural talent in managing goods and services--from supervision to maintenance and supply -- and they use all their skills to keep things running smoothly in their families, communities, schools, churches, hospitals, and businesses.
All Guardians share the following core characteristics:

• Guardians pride themselves on being dependable, helpful, and hard-working.
• Guardians make loyal mates, responsible parents, and stabilizing leaders.
• Guardians tend to be dutiful, cautious, humble, and focused on credentials and traditions.
• Guardians are concerned citizens who trust authority, join groups, seek security, prize gratitude, and dream of meting out justice.

Guardians can have a lot of fun with their friends, but they are quite serious about their duties and responsibilities. Guardians take pride in being dependable and trustworthy; if there's a job to be done, they can be counted on to put their shoulder to the wheel. Guardians also believe in law and order, and sometimes worry that respect for authority, even a fundamental sense of right and wrong, is being lost. Perhaps this is why Guardians honor customs and traditions so strongly -- they are familiar patterns that help bring stability to our modern, fast-paced world.
Practical and down-to-earth, Guardians believe in following the rules and cooperating with others. They are not very comfortable winging it or blazing new trails; working steadily within the system is the Guardian way, for in the long run loyalty, discipline, and teamwork get the job done right. Guardians are meticulous about schedules and have a sharp eye for proper procedures. They are cautious about change, even though they know that change can be healthy for an institution. Better to go slowly, they say, and look before you leap.
Guardians make up as much as 40 to 45 percent of the population, and a good thing, because they usually end up doing all the indispensable but thankless jobs the rest of the population takes for granted.

RS3:.....

The results of Faustine Jean-Louis's learning inventory are:
Visual/Nonverbal 24 Visual/Verbal 30 Auditory 22 Kinesthetic 28
Your primary learning style is:

The Visual/ Verbal Learning Style

You learn best when information is presented visually and in a written language format. In a classroom setting, you benefit from instructors who use the blackboard (or overhead projector) to list the essential points of a lecture, or who provide you with an outline to follow along with during lecture. You benefit from information obtained from textbooks and class notes. You tend to like to study by yourself in a quiet room. You often see information "in your mind's eye" when you are trying to remember something.

Learning Strategies for the Visual/ Verbal Learner:

To aid recall, make use of "color coding" when studying new information in your textbook or notes. Using highlighter pens, highlight different kinds of information in contrasting colors.

Write out sentences and phrases that summarize key information obtained from your textbook and lecture.

Make flashcards of vocabulary words and concepts that need to be memorized. Use highlighter pens to emphasize key points on the cards. Limit the amount of information per card so your mind can take a mental "picture" of the information.

When learning information presented in diagrams or illustrations, write out explanations for the information.

When learning mathematical or technical information, write out in sentences and key phrases your understanding of the material. When a problem involves a sequence of steps, write out in detail how to do each step.

Make use of computer word processing. Copy key information from your notes and textbook into a computer. Use the print-outs for visual review.

Before an exam, make yourself visual reminders of information that must be memorized. Make "stick it" notes containing key words and concepts and place them in highly visible places --on your mirror, notebook, car dashboard, etc..