Black studies about slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Black studies about slavery - Essay Example This paper gives a brief reaction to the video about Frederick Douglass, new things learnt from the video and the times he lived in, critically rating the video as a device for learning about Douglass and his times. Though the video paints a gloomy picture of what transpired from the pre-colonial Africa to the post-colonial Africa concerning slavery and slave trade, it is clear that some heroes such as Frederick Douglass spend a better part of their lifetime and great efforts in refining the American dream. One can deduce from the brief biography of Frederick Douglass that while the slave trade could not be prevented especially due to the large number of nations involved, it was possible to tame slavery more so that which consisted of torture and other inhumane acts. Frederick Douglass came out as a strong social reformer, who championed for the rights of the African Americans, his slavery status notwithstanding. This was especially so because despite being a diplomat, he was also a great orator and writer. This means that one had to be courageous enough to present a tough stance to the authorities and all the parties involves without giving it a second thought, at least according to the video. Perhaps another important point worth noting from the video is that while Frederick Douglass fought slavery through his antislavery writing and through the political front, it became apparent even to the whites that slavery was causing more polarization as opposed to driving the nation towards achieving the American dream. Although the video does not explicitly reveal how Frederick Douglass escaped from slavery, it is particularly clear that his strong stance for women’s rights gave him an edge in fighting slavery especially when more people from diverse backgrounds started believing in his ideology. Certainly, the nineteenth century was the most traumatic period for the African Americans especially those that were subjected to hard labour. From the video about

Macro Economics - Supply Side Options Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Macro Economics - Supply Side Options - Essay Example Classical economists therefore focus on endogenous supply-side causes of unemployment and will prescribe policies that affect the aggregate supply of labor such as reducing information asymmetries and removing constraints on worker's mobility to lower unemployment in the long-run. On the other hand, Keynesian economists view the labor market in the short-run assuming fluctuations in the economy; the Keynesian aggregate supply curve is horizontal where wages are "sticky" and not everyone in the labor force finds jobs. Thus, Keynesian unemployment is demand-driven and caused by variables exogenous to the labor market, such as economic recessions and decreases in output that alters aggregate demand causing disequilibrium. Keynesian economists who give importance to exogenous demand-driven causes of unemployment will therefore prescribe expansionary fiscal policies to stimulate aggregate demand such as increasing government expenditures and inducing consumption to restore equilibrium and lower short-run unemployment. Supply-siders focus on managing aggregate supply to stabilize short-run fluctuations, and increase output in the long-run. They begin with the implications that without structural policies to shift the aggregate supply curve outward, fiscal policies focusing on demand-effects cannot increase aggregate output in the long-run because of crowding-out effects; while at the same time causing inflation because despite the shift in the aggregate demand curve, the crowding-effect causes excess demand, thereby increasing prices. However, since structural policies are difficult to implement, supply-siders emphasize the supply-side effects of fiscal policies assuming that aside from demand-effects, fiscal policies have strong supply-side effects, which can shift both the short-run and long-run aggregate supply curves to the right, offsetting inflationary pressures while increasing aggregate output. Hence, supply-siders would advocate fiscal policies that reduce taxes affecting the labor force, such as an income tax cut because of its ability to stimulate aggregate supply by providing laborers greater incentives to work thereby increasing over-all productivity. Furthermore, the shift in aggregate supply offsets inflationary pressures in the long-run, such that if the supply curve shifts far enough, aggregate output can increase without increasing prices. Question 3: In reaction to Keynesian prescriptions that governments must take an active policy role in stabilizing the economy, Monetarists take a more passive stance regarding economic policy, advising that the Fed must simply allow money supply to grow at a constant rate, and make adjustments only if the rate which the full employment economy grows deviate from nominal targets. Hence, Monetarists prefer rules-based policy regimes as opposed to discretionary ones, where the margin for error is larger. The rationale for Monetarist prescriptions lies in the assumption that the economy is inherently stable, wherein disruptions within the economy are caused by wrong economic policies. Monetarists argue that the economy is better-off if policymakers, with their limited abilities, refrain from fine-tuning the economy. They emphasize the time lags present in implementing economic policie