₦airaland Forum

. . .and oh, if I may add on the "too big to fail" banks, in the performance report released by Federal Reserve in 2009 stating the status of the top 5 US commercial and investment banks, it said as of end of 4th quarter 2008 - this was when the crisis was hot - the combination of Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs had assets totalling 11.8% of all the assets held by overall of US financial firms. The TARP subsidy was not accounted in the report since it was not owned by them. The report focused on the assets owned.

However there is a point to be argued that they do have the right to pull future business out of Savannah strictly on "business' grounds being that it is an unfavorable condition in their ability to make profit and err their grievances as well There are several factors that should be considered

. . . well, let's err on the side of economics then. Would they have preferred to complete the project only for the consumers to boycott the cinemas on sacramental grounds? Where would their profit be then?

You see, I am not convinced that you believe and or support the existence of free-market enterprise as an "absolutism" of aristocratic power. Unrestrained and unregulated, that's exactly what they will become. . . an untamed dragon that demands compulsive patronage, the alternative is a lock up in its dungeon for treacherous lessons.

The totality of the objective reality of this matter should not be confused and defended by the pursuit of subjective appearance of things. This is no joke!

Whenever there is a decision to be made between protecting the interests of the populace at large versus allowing that interests to be walked over and devalued. . . . Government has a role to play!

The regulatory clause is there to safeguard consumer interest, it is not a choke-off instrument for controlling market.

Let me give you a clear cut example of why private investors need to be regulated.

Very recently, an entertainment film production group has secured a huge amount of financial capital to produce a sci-fi movie in Savannah, GA. They applied for permits to public grounds that will be used in the sceneries. One of the grounds is a cemetry. The county and the city both reviewed their applications and turned down the use of cemetry grounds for entertainment on the ground that is sacred ground with cultural values and history and the use of it for the proposed entertainment will lead to desecration.

In its response to the government denial, the entertainment company went on air and said if the city would reconsider and approve their application it would generate on average $30,000 a day in commerce locally but if it insisted on its stand then the company would not bring its production to Savannah in future, regardless if a cemetry scene is involved or not.

Now. . . this company is threatening punitive action if its not allowed to have its way to desecrate the burial grounds.

In view of everything else that you have argued for in this discussion, you believe this production company is doing the right thing?

Personally, I hope the District Attorney for Savannah files an extortion charge against this company. Imagine how many times and in many various ways that the acquiescence of the government to private investors has turned out, after the fact, to hurt and damage values in the communities, individually and collectively.

The keyword here is "fail"! We are talking about the 'too big to fail" banks, they are the ones that got handouts. Yes, I believe the banks should have been left alone to sort out their own mess. The word "fail" is used manipulatively to shift comfort zones and get buy-in from the populace. Left alone to sort out their own mess they would never have come close to the dreaded terminal end they so eloquently forecasted.

These banks have spent years managing acquisitions and mergers of other global corporations and industrial giants and they make huge profit doing so. . . . .you don't think if the decision came to acquisitions and mergers within their own ranks to consolidate capital and minimize risks of "failing" they would not take the rescue course?

Jews behave like the endangered species,No one is allowed to say anything negative about them without being killed or labelled anti-semite and racist.

well said. . . . but the focused jittery is a trigger action coming from the zionist council, not the Jewish citizenry.

How far with the representative. . . how's her recovery?

I just thawed out. . . . 6 days hibernation, my God, I feel rested and refreshed!

Here we go. . . . Daley, .another rogue investment banker employed to advice the President. Did not President Obama preach transparency? Everything with this appointment is muddy.

He is the brother of the man who vacated the position in Chicago that the man who once held the position he has been selected to fill is aspiring to occupy. Got it?

On another flip, he is a regional chairman of a 'too big to fail" bank that was on the TARP welfare handout.

Transparency my butt!

Check this out and see if you find a befitting job for you.



http://www.docstoc.com/docs/68479482/Emerging-Careers-and-How-to-Create-Them

Autonomous Vehicle Operator

. . . . I have the visual of GRAND THEFT AUTO

Transhumanist consultant

. . . .what is that, a slave driver?

Freedom of movement allows the possibility for you to choose to move to a vicinity where you are outside of such economic confines or at least not subject to all its trapings. this may be percieved to be a radical solution being offered.

Woo, woooo. . . .back up! Now you are arguing in dis-favor of free-market. Freedom of movement and freedom of will does not always par with free-market, in fact they are contradictory in practice.

A pack of cigarette sells for $5 in Georgia. The same brand and label sells for $10 in New York. Do you travel to Georgia everytime you need to buy a pack? Fact for consideration: it is illegal and punishable by law to conduct inter-state trading of tobacco products. It is considered bootlegging.

You are a reformist and your ideas are good. . . . they are ahead of the time. 100yrs from now, these theories you propose could very well be the practice.

The point is in changing an intrinsic and extrinsic value system in terms of the $10. We know an impulse to buy or satisfy a certain want is based on a certain value system engineered through time and money is simply a representation of the storage of a specific definition of value. Both are ideals and not necessarily realities.(this of course can be argued)

I wholeheartedly agree.

In the context of capitalist markets the above of course hinges outside the realm of a capitalist framework, never the less remaingin a choice. However within capitalist contexts the solution would be to allow for the creation of alternatives by creating tenvironments of course through interventionist measures outside of the invisible hand of the market structure to oppose the maintanence of monopolistic competitions which is currently what most US and European markets are in conflict about.

. . . .you tied in neatly with the next theme -monopoly.

Alternative: you change consumption patterns through the expansion of information. You can move to a part of the US who's climate is conducive for growing olive plants and learn the process of extracting oil for your baby's use. A subsistence amount is all that is required. Is this a realistic alternative cetris paribus?

Let the labor unions and industry lobbyists catch you proposing that on the airwaves.

Yes, it is a realistic alternative but soon enough you will have to settle disputes flaring from comparative (dis)-advantage

FACEBOOK IS WORTH $50B. . . . . says Goldman Sachs.

I wanted to bring this topic up but in the heat of our debate forgot.  I can't wait to hear the proponents of Keynesian stimulus solution give us input on this one.  

Monopoly markets and facebook valuation, let's talk.  Anyone with thoughts?

Is it possible for an industry to erect virtual walls around which the consumer is limited to alternatives and options?

. . . .a curtain or veil that demarcate product markets and contain the consumer to a limited range of purchasing options, so to speak. . . .

As if the Bible did not discuss sexual intercourse

That discussion is children friendly. . . . .
Children should not be within a one mile radius of anywhere this Negro narrates sexuality and intercourse. It's too steamy!

May GOD forgive me my sins, Amen!

I tend to try to think outside the box.

It's reason I enjoy conversing with you. . . you stretch my imaginations.  I know I have said it before but it's worth repeating that you are brilliant and savvy! 

Staying within the confines of the discussions on economic systems i.e.( capitalism) and its relationship to Human's derivation of meaning of existence, Human interactions have always been predicated by levels of cost/benefit outcomes. Don't see how they cannot be. You will always give up something to get something else other wise the "interaction" is impossible. "Soul satisfaction" however one wants to define that whether in terms of pshychological contentment, spiritual harmony and emotional exhiliration is secondary to the process.

In everything you said here the keyword is in highlight.  - did I spell highlight right; I lose it sometimes! 

Anyway, yes I'm glad you used that word "levels", it is key!  That is so because the tiers of utilitarian taste vary and the range exist only within the confines of availability.  Going back to my $10 in hand - if what I want is not available in the market then I am persuaded to choose a close substitute with the same or similar utility value.  Correct?  . . .or I can elect to keep my $10.  In view of capitalism, is keeping my $10 a choice? 

The first determinant of value is "effect". . . in other words, the impulse.  You can put monetary value on impulse.  Next tier is "choice". . . .it's not the other way around as you have stated. 

Matter of fact, consumer behavioral models are computed based first on impulse, then on history. 

The other day, some analyst came on air and forecasted that gas price will peak at about $5 in summer.  Pure speculation to influence stock and also a propaganda to sheperd consumer response.  How many people know that American policy require a backup longer than 12months of oil reserve?  Very few indeed.  The gas we are buying at the pump now was produced over a year ago.  The gas we will buy in summer of 2011 was produced at the market rates of 2010 or longer. . . . .and the market price this year should actually drop lower than last year because demand has shrunk due to reduction in number of commuters.  The only explanation for a $5 gas in summer will be if a war or other territorial disturbances is also planned for around that time to make production and shipment difficult, but then that should go in the storage depot and only affect prices in 2012 and beyond.  But we consumers have been silly in past and so we are expected to continue in our gullibility and complacent response to commodity price hikes.

The baby can do without the product. This is outside the realm of fundamental necessites in relation to survival in my view as long as there is an alternative which there often is.  The khoisan bush family living in the kalahari don't use any of these services or goods not to talk of  johnson and johnson's baby oil products on their baby's hair, probably never will. Have they diminished the meaning of life, Are they extinct?

What alternative?  Please enlighten me.  Soothing therapy and bonding is a survival issue for babies.  As for oil, yes there is alternative. . . . .in indigenous products such as processed palm oil, coconut oil, groundnut oil, olive oil, aloe oil. . . . but how many of us buy our indigenous products?  We prefer foreign labels. . . and in the world of baby oils, Johnson & Johnson is a household name , like Cocacola! 

We should talk about monopoly. . . .in economic and political terms. 

The buyer is as complacent as the seller because there is a consensus. He can willingly exit the market if he chooses to and find meaning outside its confines

He will have to be a hermit at that point.  Society has evolved to a point in which leaving outside the confines of a capitalist market has punitive consequences.

Tell the parents that before Christianity and Islam was brought to Nigeria, Christians and Muslims in Arabia inter-married.  It is marriage under the POB clause.

lol @ tpia's comment. There is a building I hear, somewhere in Lagos, with an airplane structure.

There is building code and inspectors in Lagos.  How did that structure go up under the nose of the government?

The fundamental needs of humans stem from three basic necessities to SURVIVE. Food, health and shelter from the natural elements. Reset every system back to zero and these three will reamain irregardless of the intricacies in systems built around attainment of these wants. However, attainment of these basic fundamental needs are hinged on other factors. Security, social cohesion, sustainability and the intellectual capacity to innovate(improve and progress). This necessitates the building of systems around attainment of these basic needs. Once the individual is aware of his elementary needs everything else becomes a choice( often manipulated as a consequence of deman and suppy) but still dependent on the level to do so without the concious approval of the individual.

You are pushing theoretical ideals here.

Let me try and present it to you in a new way.

Cause and effect tie in directly with those basic functions of life you stated. The passion to survive and live is innate and is the designed order of creation. Cause and effect is the result of living in harmony with, or in disharmony with, that order and is carried out by the exercise of the willpower. There is gain and loss associated with it. The losses bring about opportunities for redemption and improvements - growth for the soul.

Now, if we step away from that order of creation and talk about "cosmic chaos", the painful results of subsisting in a disorganized and disorderly society arranged around temporal expectations, human interactions are then reduced to considerations of prejudicial cost/benefit outcomes. It is no longer a guarantee of freedom to exercise will but rather a response within the individual to conform to the norms and expectations of the community, whether one's soul finds satisfaction or not is secondary. This vulnerability of choosing is what consumer marketing exploits.

It is unfair to say that the baby can do without Johnson & Johnson, knowing that baby oil is an essential for the skin's nurture. Through her action of rubbing oil on the baby the pair of mother and child derive a satisfying human relations - that of bonding and massage therapy. Therefore not using oil is not an option, it is a necessity. . . .a fundamental. However, there is choice in the brand of oil she buys for her child; but where is the choice when 8 out of 10 baby oils are Johnson & Johnson brands labeled under different packaging and marketing tricks?

Taking from your immediate response above and the several others before it in which you amplified the importance of choice as the leading impulse for commodity consumption, I get a clarification that you are describing discretionary action. . . . and not necessarily the impulse of fundamental human needs for goods and commodities.

By discretionary action I mean "discretionary spending".  I have $10 in my hand and I am going to spend it but I am faced with the choice of buying cigarette or buying beer or food or even weed.  Am I correct, is this what you mean by choice?


In case there was mis-understanding in the use of these terms let me illustrate for you what I mean by "cause and effect" and give you the same advantage for clarification.

I mentioned the notion of working and studying hard for successful outcomes.  Well, this is what can be called "latent success".  On its own merit it is a wise and enlightened way of grooming an individual for successful future.  I say this because in this notion it is assumed upfront that one is blocked by failure and only by striving hard and with fortitude can that blockage be removed.  Sustainable success comes out of failure.  There is no multi-generational success that ever took its root from a success. . . . .never!  The trials of life paves way for process improvement and tenacity of spirit.  People who work hard at success keep toiling believing that the day is near. 

There is another type of success and we can call this the "potent success".  This is what the American Dream is.  It is a notion that success is right in your hand and you can only fail if you let it slip through your fingers.  People who steadfastly believe in this dream have a sense of entitlement and when they fail to accomplish they resort to depression, suicide, isolation. . . . a total loss of faith in human cause. 

Again, we have to determine if in the pursuit of capitalism we are willing to gain material success at the cost of human souls or whether we ought to introduce balances that keep the dynamics of capitalism at its optimum and equally guarantee a satisfactory quality of life for mankind. 

What will it be, "equality of opportunity" or "equality of results"?

Which is why capitalism is the only system in my opinion that is compatible with true or work in progress democracies progressive societies adopt. The continious ability to engage in civil discourse and shift balances in both political and economical powers through representation, in an effort to redistribute wealth is part of the balancing act required. Business cycle upswings and downturns are an advent of the system continious trying to correct itself. The extreme views to the left and the right leave us with extreme outcomes. You and I know no country practices absolute Capitalism which is why there are several defintions for it.

Very true!

I believe nature is in a continious state of balancing itself out. In order words nature is imperfectly balanced and must continiously go through a series of imbalanced flux of unbalanced equations because of the existence of interconflicting variables.

This curve pattern you described is humans.  This is the cause and effect that you incorrectly diagnosed as choices.  Whether we like it or not, it will rain in the village.  It's a blessing for the farms but it's also a trial when its current washes away the mud homes.  This is a opportunity. . . .nature taxes mankind and brings out the best in him.  Through the loss he learns to make reinforcements so his home is not simply washed away.  Nature is a "causative" benefit for man's "effective" growth and evolution.  

The interconflicting variables you correctly alluded to is the result of inner battles within self and as well with the environment that prompts ego to assert the will for self-preservation.  

However, I am not sure any self-preserving person is at the same time ready to sacrifice self so the interests of his/her neighbour can be preserved.  Nonetheless, the argument can be made, satisfactorily, that self-preservation is possible through altruistic outreach to others.  The society has a reason to learn to yield to the needs of others but again, the propaganda of commercial consumption dilutes and diverts us away from philosophical thoughts. . . and keep us engage in capitalism.

Yes o, oya define sexuality fun mi.

Ah, Omo ake!      This is temple - we discuss God here. 

Let's go to the club to discuss that.   

I dont believe anyone is truely a virgin jor.

  Thank God, I dont want any male virgins, my own has to know what he is doing o

I am immaculate. . . .no knowledge of woman's spell on me.   

Its not your will to want one; you are not getting one, PERIOD! 

Unfortunately there are no visible debates on these issues that I am aware of within the country strong enough to influence policy.

I agree! I believe that Nairaland, because the interests here are politically and culturally tied to the interests on ground, should regard itself as a powerful and infulential tool for changing events on ground. There are ways that this can be done effectivly and I suggested in past that this forum could serve as a proposition incubator for political policies back home.

Birdman,

On the contrary, it could (and has) had negative effects on a society as a whole. The question is, at what point does the state step in and curtail the negative effects of an individual's exercise of capitalism. This is what defines modern day capitalism: the ability to carry out business practices that could constitute future harm, with little interference by the state.

. . . . this is why industry giants lobby against government oversight; they want to be left alone to self-regulate. As if their interests are in harmony with the aspirations of the working class and a business policy to maximize profit is a good one for the consumer.

This is why you are able to pick apart Negro_Ntns's "solutions". They are solutions to an ill-defined problem to start with. The issue isn't really capitalism per se, but the values of a society. That is, what barometer do we use to measure prosperity. If unemployment jumps by 5%, and GDP jumps by 6%, is that prosperity? I think this is the crux of the issue, imo

Precisely! . . . .I was building the discussion to that point of metrics and this is why I inferred that the arguments will lead in to a conclusive win for humanities.


Look, national GDP is an inaccurate and deficient method for measuring wealth and per capita income of a nation but that methodology works in favor of the developed nations and to the detriment of the underdeveloped nations.
In addition to GDP, let us bring in other metrics such as the percentage of prison inmates to the overall national productivity base. Let us use a metric that compare terminally ill and diseased citizens of employment age as a percentage of the productivity base. Let us measure the population in rehabilitation as a percentage of productivity base. Instead of calculating credit (debt) as a measure of individual worth, let us measure true asset value based on cash worth.

If these indexes are published then the GDP of most European nations and that of USA will vastly be reduced and so will their per capita income. Nigeria may rate higher than most of the European countries we run to in order to escape away from per capita income poverty back home. But then these citizens may start departing Europe and USA and going back to their own countries. . . creating a further dent on the working class and consumer class.

Morpheus

I knew you were going there. Though I will conceed the fact that there are entities that have manipulated the SYSTEM in terms of the need for power and control of factors of production i.e Greed, Power and control, the system in of itself achieves its objectives in the overal societal goals of allevating poverty, improving the living standards of its members. and thus providing the condusive environment for the individual or society to ponder the meaning of life as they see fit to define it and become content with it. I know I don't need to discuss these issues in particular as you are well aware of them. The problem then becomes dealing with the inherent imbalances in the system created by these elements that are out to manipulate( in a bad way) the available instruments of capitalism not necessarily adopting new systems we feel are in opposition to the one already in existence and are therefore right. No matter what alternative is supposedly adopted the elements inherent inthe present system will exist in these new systems in different formats so you are indirectly not solving the problem but changing the tactics.

The first highlight is a summary of everything else that capitalism is built upon - "BALANCE OF POWER" between the elements of production and wealth. You cannot address the issue without touching upon the philosophies of life - "the mores"; laws of personal accountability and the ethics of personal responsibility.

Nature is balanced but in order to bend nature to our needs for daily subsistence and production of needs and necessities we are confronted with the issue of sacrifice. There is demanding need for a particular commodity and its availability is not enough to go round. In view of that scarcity, how should the human need be attended to so that no one starves or dies? A fundamental convergence point for economics and philosophies.

Selfishness vs Sacrifice!


In the second highlight, because competition for scare resources is often attached to ego, the outcome is that elimination of your rival becomes the cheapest means of controlling access. Exclusivity of resource and means! Therefore, the society ought to have a "check and balance" standard for overseeing the interests of those locked outside that gate, otherwise the imbalance of power in an exclusive hand become too intoxicating and dangerous for the overall good. Those in whose hands rest the future of the society must not be allowed to self-regulate. This is where the option for redistribution of resources is important. It's a threatening strike attempting to dilute their exclusivity. Also, we really must then consider which should lead. . . . "Equality of Opportunity" or "Equality of Results".

Your statements above lead me to believe you are still soul searching on finding meaning and have not resolved certain conflicting issues you are still battling with. Neo capitalism only requires that you study and work smart,not necessarily hardSuccess is defined by what one believes success should be quantified by not what someone else defines as success. Capitalism is percived to measure success in material quantities. The more you have the more value you possess ergo the more successful you are. This is only an idea and your reality if you choose to make it so. . Everything begins with choice and not cause and effect as you allude to. Once you become aware of this you have choice.

I'm shocked that someone intelligent as you have demonstrated will make that statement. You cannot accurately psychoanalyze anyone's convinction in life from a few paragraphs of writing online.

What you call choice is arbitrary. . . . whether you agree or not, everything is a disposition of "cause and effect". Choice is what the powerfull elite class waves in our face to assign attributes for our consumption taste. If you decline to make a choice then you face a penalty. How can you call that choice?

and now that you have so eloquently enumerated what you percieve is the problem what do you suggest are the solutions.
Labour unions. oh wait they already exist but what happened to them. They got power and now are adding to the problem than solving them
A massive reset of the system to accomodate what you believe will be a resolution to the above obvious issues? Oh wait some countries already tried that. A group of them became powerful and became part of the problem than solving them.
A suggestion to adopt a new system advocated and championed by like minded people like you who have so carefully identified the problems we are very much aware of and therefore are capable of resolving them. Oh wait that democrats isn't it. The champions ofthe poor and exploited, what happend to them huh?
A coup de tat? Don't need to sample exmaplesof that outcome
All that is simply going to happen is the replacemnt of one set of conspirators for another. If men were angels my friend only if men were angels.

As i said earlier Everything begins with Choice. No one can take that from you You only delegate or relegate that right away conciously or sub conciously. Sub concious requires a prereqesite of being ignorant. concious is after the fact yet being docile and complacent

. . . . . . for the reasons I have stated, capitalism is tied to human nature and a subject matter for the humanities. Whatever alternative we adopt has its own merits and de-merits and equally impacting to life. I am conscious of the fact that capitalism is an ideal and theoretically beneficiall but its dehumanizing practice is what I question. There is a middle way to address the problems of capitalism. Functional and effective regulation and oversight, as well as deployable options for implementing redistributive remedies.

In my opinion it is seriously difficult to achieve such in this day and age depending again on location. The only plausible means is the manipulation or restriction of information stimuli the baby/individual recieves as it progresses with any given society. Any society wishing to accomplish this most isolate its citizens from the present unstoppable access to information and free movement available to us today. Thereby disrupting the forces of demand/supply.

With everything else you said so far being correct, I am continuing with the engagement because the revelations will ultimately lead into the background of those cyclic economic downshifts you alluded to in an earlier response. I agree this is not a first time depression but I contend that the repetition is the result of deliberate machinations of the instruments of capitalism and again, I question the viability of the system to the true meaning of life.

There is the notion in every society that if we study hard and work hard, the end result will somehow take care of itself and we will achieve success. Those of us who studied hard, worked hard and ended up slaving under the prodigal, school drop-out boss are very pragmatic about the realities of that notion. It is a campaign. . . . a propaganda to keep the stream of capitalism flowing.

Industrial corporations are the champions of capitalism. They are the feeders that keep market swings within a tolerable margin of loss. The consumer bloc has power too; to hijack the control and tip the dynamics of demand and supply in its favor and the corporations know that. Please, don't start saying we are all consumers from the CEO down to the homeless person, I am well aware of that and shouldn't have to give it voice in this discussion. However, industry giants lobby and influence government legislation against consumers. This results in de-regulation for the industries and dis-integration of common cause alliance for the consumer. For most part the legislator we vote for is the candidate the corporate giants want us to have. . . but we are often too diluted and diverted to see past the face value.

When you talk about restriction and manipulation of information, it will not matter whether you relate that in historical terms, in contemporary terms or as a forecast of an evolved society, the fact remains that capitalism is an exploitation of humanity. It slowly and incrementally destroys the human ability to express freewill of choice by leaving him/her no choice to select an alternative away from indebtedness to a private hand that dictates his/her taste and lifestyle - from cradle to grave!

I can go further and express this relationship as a operational process. Imagine the industry to be a provider of commodity; the baby is the end-user that the industry targets; the baby's parents are the interface.

The baby start off with Johnson & Johnson, Procter and Gamble, Nestle, etc. . . .

Baby turns 1, ToysRus steps in and stay in the picture along with J&J, P&G, Nestle, providing diapers, baby oil, baby powder, toys, baby food.

At age 2, baby starts on solid. . so Gerber steps in. Bbay is potty trained, no more diapers but there is training pants. . .

Do you get the picture?

Baby turns 18 and get ready for college, Master card, Visa, AT&T, Verizon, HP, Apple. . . .

Baby graduates college and is already a debtor before he has had a first real job.

Baby gets a good job but stays in restaurants and malls. . .consuming on credit but amassing a future of debt.

Ultimately realities catches up and baby is overwhelmed with debt. . .not finding happiness, considers drugs, alcohol or even suicide.

Health begins to fail prematurely. . . 30yr old with cardiac problems. So pfizer comes in, with bayer, Pharma, Abbott. . . . with promises to give baby a quality life.

Who took his quality of life away in the beginning?

Meanwhile, on the other end of the equation, the Johnson & Johnson family is amassing legacy that will pass from generation to generation. Their interest is invested in congress and legislation must take account of any impact to their interest; the country cannot absorb a failure of Johnson&Johnson - they are too big to fail!

Very Brilliant!

My definition of capitalism encompasses the freedom and ability for the individual to own, manipulate and control natures given means of production to be held and operated in private hands for initial individual benefit which in turn creates an inevitable ripple effect of providing for and benefitting the public as a whole.

My understanding of capitalism is not different from yours - The free and unimpeded action of man's resourcefullness to manipulate the factors of production under the basic laws of demand and supply in order to satisfy needs and wants.

The baby is a good model to use in this case because everyone in the society started from that lifestage. Therefore recognising the significance and value of the baby as a resource is vital to capitalism; endagering quality of life for the baby in anyway threatens the institution of capitalism as a viable option for the community at large.

Global marketers know that per capita, the baby is far more valuable to capitalism than a 70yr old retiree, even though the senior is a productive element of the GDP and the baby is not. To destroy the institutions of capitalism in a country you target a certain segment of its population with an ad commercial (I prefer to call them ad propaganda) aimed at exploiting its level of consumption. In order words, you throw their demand and supply out of whack!

Am I deviating from topic?

Economics is not a stand alone aspect of society. It is not the beginning or the end but the means by which the beginning is sustained to accomplish the end. Do you disagree?

So in the baby question, I already established the beginning and predicted an end that will occur at a time to come in future, I am now probing the means (the economics) that are available to sustain that baby through life. I am doing so as a follow up to your response. . . . I do not qualify your opinion. . . just an engagement to reveal the wisdom of resource distribution, whether it is private or public.

Capitalism so far has been witnessed and tested to be the best system that has moved "MANKIND" forward improving his living standards and creating wealth and prosperity as a consequence. It is true there are side effects of thsi system but I doubt there wouldn't be in any other so called adpoted system. I believe no country practices true Capitalism which is according to the balancing act that is necessary to continue to redefine it.

Morpheus,

Improved living standards; inherited wealth and prosperity. . . . . what are these relative to the fundamentals of life and death?

A child is born today and will definitely die sometime in a future date - however far into the future that date maybe - . . . . in what ways can the society and the community of mankind support and sustain quality of life for this new born baby?

Define virginity. One can be biologically virgin , but very much rotten in the mind/thought.

No! naughty girl. . . . u want me to define sexuality.

So is one really "uncorrupt" etc? What about half-way?

u r worse than corrupt. No virgin male for you in heaven.

Of course nau. . . , me is tarzan

yeah. . . .

I am opening this post to serve as an intersection point for the varying topics in the subject banner.

Many of you have written extensively giving your point of view and expressed opinions praising or condemning the whole drama when it unfolded in 2008, it's 2010 and it continues to be the subject matter in everyday discussion, sometimes spilling out of context into unrelated topics and posts. It is a significant moment in history and a breakthrough for mankind. I say this because out of the financial meltdown we are witnessing evolutions in the policies and politics of global affairs that will ultimately erase our traditional way of banking, trading and transacting business. New possibilities are emerging and new markets will be borne out of that. Nigeria could very well emerge as a new market; we ought to be prepared and assume the odds in its favor.

The objective here is to pursue the root causes, review the outcomes, analyze the dispositions, discover alternatives and issue best practice, under the circumstance, for wether a free-market capitalist system is ideal to the pursuit of happiness and fulfillment. Is mankind better off in a matrix that exploits and promotes largesse consumption as a human value system?

So if you are participating on this post, please give us your input covering these aspects of the objective.

Everyone is welcome to participate and give input.