Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Pros and Cons on Money Essay Example for Free

Pros and Cons on Money Essay This is a very sad image that has been painted of the human race. Not all people are money grabbing bankers. in fact the majority of people are good-hearted, who are prepared to give away increasingly small small amounts of spare cash to help charities. They are willing to help. You cant blame corporations and bankers for doing what they are supposed to and that is make money and turn a profit. In all exchanges someone is selling a service and someone is buying a service. There is no rule that says you cannot make money from the transaction. What we can do though is to change the environment in which banks operate. For example laws stipulating how much profit can be made, how much of profit needs to go back to society. We can take responibility for our own destinies instead of money leading us by the nose. As we develop technologically, research and development which leads to breakthroughs in all spheres of society cost money. The companies spending that money should surely be entitled to a return on their investment. Without an incentive, there may be fall off in development. So, instead of only a few bastards getting away with doing nothing for money, now we will have everyone doing nothing for money. Sounds great, until you realize that the resources to run that scheme will soon run out and people will be forced to create value by the motivation of fear and coercion, rather than by the desire to better their condition. This is exactly what derailed all socialist states. What would such alternatives be? In the field of Economics, they have tried to measure Gross National Happiness as opposed to GDP and it created even more problems. Only one country in the world has this as an index, due to problems of comparison between individuals happiness levels, measuring happiness and the fact that happiness levels are so easily influenced by personal situations. The lack of any other sensible, comparable and ordinal alternative has meant that money is the only current measuring unit. What does greed got to do with money? Even without money, greed still exists.,wom an,man,love. Well, I doubt that its true though. First let us consider the point that money is of no real value. What about Gold? Gold itself is considered money. Money itself is divided into Fiat money and Commodity money. Even without fiat money(paper money), people will still be able to use commodity money. Something similar to barter trade. Does crime still exist? i bet it will. Much more than it is now if fiat money is not used. What causes poverty itself is not the lack of money. It is the mentality of the people thats saying that i am poor, i wont become rich, i dont need money, money is the root of all evil. These are the mentality that causes poverty. And besides, i think u should clearly understand what all mean,it means nearly everything or everything.So,first of all,theres no doubt that you can not count how many evils are there in this world,that means your 90% is impossible to prove your point;and if you are right,is that also mean you agree withtheres no evil during the time when the money havent been invented?KIDDING! Money can be donated to a good cause. Like it or loathe it, civilized society cannot function without money, therefore it has to stay. Money can also be used to do alot of good also. For example, millions of Britains donate money to various charities each year to help those that are less fortunate. Comic Reilef raises tens of millions of pounds for its causes, therefore money is not all about pursuing it for the individual, many people activley share thier wealth, redistributing it to those that really need it. If money does not exist, barter trade does exist which will also leads to donation if one have an excess of goods and services. Therefore i dont think that the word donate will not occur No, because some evil clearly nothing to do with money There are many roots to acts that would be considered evil I will assume this means actions that harm others or denigrate the self, but the concept of evil itself is by no means straightforward that are nothing to do with money. For instance, a murder might be motivated by anger, a rape by uncontrollable lust, bullying and discrimination by ignorance. You dont need money to commit a crime. You need a big rock or stick to murder someone. You need the other person not to notice to steal something from someone. Crime has been happening before a monetary system. Religion has also led to a lot of destruction since a long time. Not only this even the greatest of problems dont have their root cause as money.The biggest example being Taliban.Why are they attacking people, they are not getting money from it but it is because they want blood, killing of Indians and Americans. This is called racism. So money is not the root cause of all evil. No, because Money is not the root of all evil. The lack of money is the root of all evil. I respect both sides and I understand why many people believe that money is the root of all evil. But I have to disagree. The lack of money is the root of all evil. Back in the history of mankind, before money was invented, we bartered. Money was the result of hardworking process. Bear in mind that criminals are all born in poverty and some of them live in poverty. The fear of lacking money haunts them constantly. It is the fear of not being able to feed themselves and their families that make them commit unthinkable crimes. If money is evil, could you live in a world without money? If greed or desire is evil, have you ever wanted something that is not yours? Any of you ever want an Iphone? Any of you can live without computer, electricity and all of modern comfort? If you think money is the root of all evil, Id like to recommend the Communist Manifesto for you. Marx talked about an utopia society in which people work based on their ability and get rewarded base on their needs. Money would not be necessary. I like to ask those who think money is not necessary to point out a successful communist example. Im from a communist, aka socialist, country. And we are moving toward a capitalistic market. I strongly believe that if you dont work for yourself, nobody will. Money motivates people to work harder, smarter. Would there be light bub if Edison work for just bread and milk only? You might say those riches keep getting richer without giving away their money to the poor. Id like to ask you Why the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer? If you find the question somewhat interesting please spend sometimes read the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. It changed a poor college students way of thinking, I hope it will be helpful too. Money is not the root of all evil. The lack of money is the root of all evil. Money represents positive value It is a great American contribution to world culture, that they have coined the phrase to make money. Money is made, by effort of muscle, willpower, and intelect. There can be no society composed entirely of thieves, as there will be no value to steal. Money represents the confidence of parties that the value of their efforts can be traded for the value of others efforts. It is a recognition of the importance of society based on trade, rather than the only real alternative: violence. To be clear, money contributed to charity is also traded, for the value of achieving a social goal this in contrast to taxes, which are forcefully taken. No, because Money is the end product of what you did Money is the end product of something that you did that you think its enjoyable to you. For example, if someone started invest into a company or firms, it is because of the excitement not because of money. It is the excitement that make people invest and this excitement will leads to the end product, money. Therefore there is no reason to say that money is the root of all evil. Money is just the end product of what you did that excite you No, because Originally, Money was the solution to the problems(/inefficiencies in transactions) arising out of barter exchange system. Read on the history of money. Originally, Money was the solution to the problems(/inefficiencies in transactions) arising out of barter exchange system. Ex: In barter exchange there had to be a double co-incidence of wants. A man selling milk who wanted to buy rice had to find someone selling rice wanting milk. GOOD LORD! Just imagine how time-consuming frustrating. Also, there was a need for a standard to objectively measure the value of all types of goods like cows, milk, foodgrains, clothes, ornaments, etc. Imagine feelings of doubt being cheated arising out of selling 1 kg rice in exchange of 3 litres milk (when later you met someone offering you 4 litres in exchange for the same value)! Moreover, money is the best most liquid store of value has legal tender so you sue someone legally if cheated. Money solved the problem also avoided all the confusion. Money is an indispensable part of our lives. Money has to be earned! The root of evil is people who want the unearned money. Saying MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL is like blaming your tools; its very embarrassing. A similar statement: Computers (or tech) is a curse. Ex: You condemn the car for it lead to a terrible accident you landed up in hospital. So is car the cause of the accident? Or are there other things to consider- like did you repair maintain it regularly? Why did you buy it? Were you drunk? Were you daydreaming while driving? Did another car hit yours? Id say that anyone with minimal level of intelligence should get the gist of it should be in a position to discern the fact that car per se didnt create the problem. In the accident scene, car was the passive factor while the man driving it was an active factor another car hitting it was the causal factor. Money too is a passive factor. How you approach it makes all the difference! Just as how you use Internet Computer decides whether it be a curse or a boon. My smartass opponent may say car was purchased with money- so again money is the root of all evil. Alright then, could you dispense with your car? Could you dispense with anything else having money value? But this is different issue altogether. No, because Money cant be dispensed with see the essence of of what I mean by money anything that is or acts as money i.e. anything that performs the recognized functions of money or serves the recognized purpose of money. Id quote a definition Money is a good that acts as a medium of exchange in transactions. Classically it is said that money acts as a unit of account, a store of value, and a medium of exchange. Most authors find that the first two are nonessential properties that follow from the third. In fact, other goods are often better than money at being intertemporal stores of value, since most monies degrade in value over time through inflation or the overthrow of governments. Now think can you do without money? Do you wanna go back to the days for barter system? Imagine no banks, no recognized/ standard medium to transact. No, because Theres no such thing as the root of evil! Evil can take different forms types and also has different causes most of them-psychological.

Monday, January 20, 2020

Aerobic Dancing and Weight Control Essay -- essays research papers fc

Flat stomachs, tone arms, nice, firm buttocks, and nice shapely legs. This sounds like a familiar dream for many women in the world. Most do not think it is possible for them to achieve, but clearly all it takes is time. Aerobics dancing is one of the most effective aids in weight control, with the added benefits of improved self-esteem and confidence. Many people cannot enjoy life due to their weight and other problems brought on by being overweight. Those who are overweight cannot mentally handle the thought of going out and being seen. That is why solutions for keeping weight within an appropriate range for height, sex, and age are essential. One of the most effective ways of reaching appropriate weight level is through aerobic dancing. Physical changes in one’s life can be beneficial, but that is not what makes a person. A person’s mental health makes one who she is. There are many ways to improve mental and physical health. Dancing burns as many calories as walking, swimming or riding a bicycle. A half-hour of dancing can burn between 200 and 400 calories. One factor that determines how many calories are expended is the distance traveled. In one study, researchers attached pedometers to square dancers and found that each person covered five miles in a single evening. (Dance for the Health of it) The physical changes that can be beneficial to one’s health weigh more than those of the mental state. Even so, it has been proven that the way one feels about ones’ self is better than how one actually is. The point I am trying to get at is self-esteem. Additionally self-esteem can really mold person ality and can determine how a person’s life will end up. For many careers, individuals need to have a lot of self-esteem. Certain available jobs may hire depending on the applicant’s social status and how well he or she can associate with people. People who are not very social because of the fear that they will be made fun of, or are afraid because of their appearance, may allow their weight to interfere with future Hernandez 2 opportunities. â€Å" Because it makes you feel good, you like what you see on the outside and you like yourself more.† (Missett, 21) This tends to help individuals to stand up and be confident enough to go through with public appearance and not care what other people are thinking. When combining aerobic exercise and dance, it is considered a... ...nditions that the patient might have that may cause further risks before advising any workout regimen. People should really start their aerobic Hernandez 6 exercise at a pace that is comfortable with their beginning level of condition, and then gradually accelerate the tempo and frequency of their workouts as they adapt to their new lifestyle. In a short time, people will begin to recognize many health benefits that aerobics can do for them and feel great too. Works Cited Aerobics for health  © Arnot Ogden Medical Center, 1997 Colgan, Michael Ph. D., Optimum Sports Nutrition, Chapter 9, Page 95. Dance for the health of it! Mayo clinic health letter. January 1994 . Last Updated: Sunday, June 23, 1996 Physical Activity and Health 1998 Baltimore County Public Schools Polley, Maxine. Dance Aerobics New York; Macmillan Publishing Company, 1981 Sheppard Missett, Judy. The Jazzercise Workout book New York; Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1986

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Healthsouth Accounting Scandal

HealthSouth Accounting Scandal HealthSouth is the one of the largest providers of inpatient rehabilitative healthcare services in the U. S. HealthSouth is fully operational in 26 states across the United States and also in Puerto Rico. HealthSouth serves patients in various settings such as; inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation satellite clinics and home health agencies. HealthSouth’s hospitals are able to provide an advanced care to patients that are recovering from neurological disorders, orthopedic, cardiac and pulmonary conditions, spinal cord injury, and amputations.HealthSouth’s corporate is office is located at 3660 Grandview Parkway Suite 200, Birmingham, Alabama 35243. The company employs around 26,000 people. The company is listed as an Industry Healthcare Facilities. The symbol used by HealthSouth is HLS. The SIC code is 8060-Hospitals. (http://investor. healthsouth. com/) Richard Scrushy the founder of HealthSouth was at one time described by Steve Barnes of the AP as a self-made son of the new South, a former teenage parent who hauled himself up from a menial job to become the emperor of the new economy.The problem was that the emperor of HealthSouth that he was describing would be later dethroned by an accounting scandal that would involve lies, bribery, and mail fraud, and deceit, prison time for several individuals, obstruction of justice and auctions. Richard Marin Scrushy was born in August 1952 in Selma Alabama. Richard grew up attending the Methodist church. Like any teenager he held several jobs. He attended Jefferson State Community College and became a Respiratory Therapist after studying at University of Alabama in Birmingham. Scrushy transferred to St.Louis, Missouri, then was promoted to the regional director of the respiratory therapy division of Lifemark Corporation. He then moved to Houston, Texas, and advanced in the company to the company’s COO. In 1984, Scrushy realized his dream of creating a comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facility and founded Amcare in Little Rock, Arkansas. Amcare’s new name was HealthSouth. HealthSouth started trading publicly in 1986. (www. biography. com/articles/Richard-Scrushy-235385) Richard Scrushy and some of his closest friends founded HealthSouth in 1984.The company was formed and had growth in mind from the beginning. The founding members had a plan for growth. By the end of 1987, after expanding into worker’s compensation and sports medicine, HealthSouth has doubled its revenues and had nearly $100 million in assets. By 2001, HealthSouth had more than $4. 3 billion in revenue and treated more than 100,000 patients a day around the world. The company had 60,000 employees and more than 2000 locations across the country. To accomplish the task of expansion HealthSouth opted to take over other companies with financial issues.In 2003 the company HealthSouth, the largest U. S. opera tor of rehabilitation-hospitals, was under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the U. S. Justice Department for overstating earnings by $2. 5 billion since 1999. In 2003, HealthSouth CEO Richard M. Scrushy directed company employees to falsely report grossly exaggerated company earnings in order to meet stock holder expectations. HealthSouth had been dishonest about its income. Richard Scrushy the HealthSouth executive was one of the first executives to be charged under the Sarbanes Oxley Act.In all a total of fifteen HealthSouth employees, including all five of the former chief financial officers, pleaded guilty to criminal charges. However the former CEO Richard Scrushy refused to admit any wrong doing involving HealthSouth. When HealthSouth requested that Scrushy resign he refused to honor the request. (www. washingtonpost. com) On October 16, 2003, Richard Scrushy flat out refused to testify before congress in a hearing. He angered lawmakers that said Scr ushy had been at the center of an organization HealthSouth whose employees were intimidated and at times threatened if they challenged his authority.Then on November 4, 2011, Mr. Richard Scrushy the ousted leader of HealthSouth was indicted on charges that he directed a $2. 7 billion fraud which designed to inflate the company’s stock prices to fund his super-luxurious lifestyle. Mr. Scrushy had purchased items like a Lamborghini, a 92-foot yacht, a private jet, paintings by Renior as well as Picasso, and a mansion surrounded by water. Next a Delaware judge on November 23, 2003, ordered Scrushy to repay $25 million in loans that he obtained from the company in 1999.When you look at his salary in 2002, it included 3 million in salary, 10 million in bonus pay, and 99. 3 million in stock sales. It should not have been difficult for him to pay the $25 million he was ordered to repay from 1999. From 1996 through 2002 it was later discovered by the government that HealthSouth had r eported 2. 74 billion in phony profits. In January 2004 the lawyers representing the former HealthSouth Corp. chief Richard Scrushy filed court motions that posed questions about the ability of the grand jury’s fairness.The grand jury that had indicted Scrushy and demanded additional information from prosecutors was under attack. Meanwhile, in July of 2004 a grand jury indicted two of the former HealthSouth Corp executives Robert Thomson and James Reilly both for a bribery scheme that included the company’s $50 million contract to run a hospital in the country of Saudi Arabia. September 28, 2004, Prosecutors said that the government would not seek additional prison time for former HealthSouth Corp. assistant controller Emery Harris who was resentenced after serving five months for fraud.On September 29, 2004, Federal prosecutors made an announcement about obstruction-of justice charges against HealthSouth’s Corp. founder Richard Scrushy. Scrushy was accused deli berately lying to regulators and urging subordinate to lie to support his story while using his position of power to intimidate them. The former chief HealthSouth scandal did not slow Richard Scrushy down at all. He continued to live the larger than lifestyle that he had become accustomed to before HealthSouth’s fortunes plunged. His larger than life persona follows him everywhere and he definitely acted the part.While his employees pleaded guilty to various fraud charges and their assets were being seized under federal forfeiture laws Scrushy continued to think of only himself. (www. nytimes. com/2003/09/26/business/healthsouth-scandal. com) The case against HealthSouth Corp. founder Richard Scrushy collapsed in June 2005 under the weight of the personal baggage carried by key witnesses and the â€Å"smoking guns† the prosecutor. In Birmingham, Alabama, on June 28, 2005, after only 21 days of deliberation, the jury of men and women cleared Mr. Scrushy of all 36 crimin al charges of which he was tried.The charges included conspiracy, securities fraud, mail fraud and a single charge under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was a statue Congress enacted to force companies to strengthen their internal controls and mandate penalties for CEOs and finance chiefs that sign false financial filings. The verdict handed the government down a defeat in its high profile campaign against corporate corruption and its first attempt to try to convict a CEO for violating the Sarbanes-Oxley which were both huge failures. Four months later he was indicted on new charges of bribery and mail fraud in connection ith former Alabama governor Don Siegelman. Scrushy was accused of donating $500,000 to Seigleman’s campaign in exchange for a seat on a state hospital regulatory board. Both Scrushy and Seigleman were convicted on multiple charges, including bribery, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice. Both men received sentences of close to seven years in federal prison. (www. biography. com/articles/Richard-Scrushy-235385 ) The accounting scandal was described by Securities and Exchange Commission that since 1999 the company and its profit statements were overstated by $2. 5 billion since 1997 according to the wall street journal.To boost profits HealthSouth executives overbooked certain revenue accounts that later â€Å"bled out† into revenue, according to the journal story. Scrushy was accused of insider trading and was fired as HealthSouth’s chairman and CEO. In 2009, Scrushy was ordered to pay HealthSouth shareholders $2. 9 billion to settle a civil suit. Scrushy is presently serving his imposed sentence at the Beaumont Federal Correctional Complex in Beaumont, Texas. (www. biography. com/articles/Richard-Scrushy-235385 ) He is 58 years old and is scheduled to be released from prison on 06-08-2013. He will be 60 years old when he is released from prison.He is still married to his wife Leslie Ann Jones. He has nine children and several grandchildren. He was sued and his personal items were auction off to pay judgments ordered by the court against him. Other people that worked with him at HealthSouth admitted guilt and were sentenced to prison while Scrushy maintained his innocence. He is not serving time in prison for his accounting scandal but for charges that stemmed from him trying to purchase a seat on the state hospital regulatory board. I guess his story really is about an average guy going rags to riches becoming greedy and power obsessed then going to prison for several years.The wake of destruction from the HealthSouth accounting scandal not only affected Scrushy but the employees that served prison time and their families. Later even the Governor of Alabama was influenced by the former HealthSouth executive and also served time in prison. HealthSouth continues to operate today. It is The company that was started by Scrushy was not destroyed by the scandal. The HealthSouth headquarte rs is still located in Alabama. The influence that comes with money and power is something that is really obvious in this story.Scrushy was able to influence his employees into reporting false financial information by grossly exaggerating company earnings in order to manipulate stockholders into thinking that HealthSouth had met their expectations and he was able to manipulate the governor of Alabama into allowing him a seat on the state hospital regulatory board. Richard Scrushy committed accounting scandal that would involve lies by directing employees to file false financial information in order to deceive stockholder about earnings, bribery, mail fraud, prison time for several individuals employed by HealthSouth.His destructive behavior continued and later included the governor of Alabama going to prison with Scrushy. Scrushy was one man that built a mega successful business. Although the business was not destroyed by the founder during his quest for power some of the people had their lives forever altered by his decisions. Richard Scrushy directed his staff to file phony profits totaling 2. 7 billion. He then denied directing his staff to report false profits. He was acquitted of 36 charges related to HealthSouth fraud but others admitted guilt and served time in prison for the crimes.Scrushy was sued and forced to auction off his assets to pay restitution. He later attempted to buy a seat on the hospital board for the state of Alabama for $500,000 and was tried and sent to prison for 7 years. The HealthSouth case is interesting because it has negative stock holder equity. The return on common stock for HealthSouth Consolidated was -28. 63% and the debt to equity ratio are negative as well. The total asset turnover in 2010 was 94. 29% yet the company continues to operate. The Net income in 2010 was 939. 8 million.Perhaps the preferred stock is being paid large amounts so the common shares of stock would get nothing. I wonder if any of the Scrushy family h as preferred stock left in HealthSouth since he was the founder. Scrushy went from being a healthcare worker to the owner of HealthSouth then to prison for bribery instead of any charges stemming from his wrong doing at HealthSouth. In summary, Richard Scrushy had odd jobs as a teenager; he later went to college to become a Respiratory Therapist. He went to work for Lifemark Corporation. He climbed his way through the ranks.He later decided to start his own company which is now known as Amcare that later changed its name to HealthSouth. HealthSouth was a successful company. The company made lots of money. The company made Scrushy a very wealthy man. His life story is story was one from rags to riches. He was married a total of three times and has several children. He became a very influential man in Alabama. He is still married to his third wife whom he met while a Bahaman vacation. Richard Scrushy thought he was above the law. Scrushy thought he was untouchable.He never admitted gu ilt for his part in the HealthSouth Accounting Scandal nor did he serve any prison time for it. He was required to auction off items as ordered by the court to pay restitution. The HealthSouth Accounting Scandal could have been avoided if the person that started the company Richard Scrushy had not directed company employees to falsely report grossly exaggerated company earnings in order to meet stock holder expectations. It is my opinion that he should have reported the corrected information and the chain of events that followed would not have occurred.If he made the decision to report the correct information then his HealthSouth employees would not have been sentenced to prison and his company could have sustained a loss. HealthSouth remains open at its stock is trading at about $24-26 dollars a share. Works Cited â€Å"Richard Scrushy Biography – Biography. com. † Biography. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. . â€Å"Richard Scrushy Biography – Biography. com. † Biography. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. . â€Å"HealthSouth Corporation – Investor Overview. HealthSouth Corporation – Investor Overview. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. . KOLATA, GINA. â€Å"Health News – The New York Times. † The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . â€Å"The Washington Post: National, World & D. C. Area News and Headlines – washingtonpost. com. † The Washington Post: National, World & D. C. Area News and Headlines – washingtonpost. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 13 Apr. 2011. .

Saturday, January 4, 2020

Saurophaganax - Facts and Figures

Name: Saurophaganax (Greek for greatest lizard-eater); pronounced SORE-oh-FAGG-an-axe Habitat: Woodlands of North America Historical Period: Late Jurassic (155-150 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 40 feet long and 3-4 tons Diet: Meat Distinguishing Characteristics: Large size; bipedal posture; overall similarity to Allosaurus About Saurophaganax Between the time the fossils of Saurophaganax were discovered in Oklahoma (in the 1930s) and the time they were fully examined (in the 1990s), it dawned on researchers that this large, fierce, meat-eating dinosaur was most likely a giant species of Allosaurus (in fact, the most notable reconstruction of Saurophaganax, at the Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, makes use of fabricated, scaled-up Allosaurus bones). Whatever the case, at 40 feet long and three to four tons, this fierce carnivore almost rivaled the later Tyrannosaurus Rex in size, and must have been much feared in its late Jurassic heyday. (As you might expect, given where it was unearthed, Saurophaganax is the official state dinosaur of Oklahoma.) However Saurophaganax winds up being classified, how did this dinosaur live? Well, judging by the profusion of sauropods discovered in its stretch of the Morrison Formation (including Apatosaurus, Diplodocus and Brachiosaurus), Saurophaganax targeted the juveniles of these enormous plant-eating dinosaurs, and may have supplemented its diet with occasional servings of fellow theropods like Ornitholestes and Ceratosaurus. (By the way, this dinosaur was originally named Saurophagus, eater of lizards, but its name was later changed to Saurophaganax, greatest eater of lizards, when it turned out that Saurophagus had already been assigned to another genus of animal.)