Goldman Sachs Fraud Case Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Goldman Sachs Fraud Case - Research Paper Example Goldman Sachs Fraud Case Introduction Goldman Sachs defrauded investors by failing to reveal the apparent conflict of interest on mortgage investment it floated as the housing market became sour. The charges that were brought forward by the Securities Exchange Commission against Goldman Sachs argued for unlawful action and fraud in the trading of toxic subprime mortgage derivative securities. Nevertheless, Goldman Sachs affirmed that they were merely following normal business practices and had not committed any wrong. The Goldman Sachs fraud case elicited critical issues centering on the inadequacy of the investment banking practices, and raised the question whether it is a case of deceptive or unethical behavior (Craig & Scannell, 2010). The three-month legal ordeal erased close to $20billion of the firm’s stock-market value. A lively public discussion that followed the charge of Goldman Sachs by SEC centered on whether Goldman Sachs, broadly viewed as an embodiment of bubble -era greed, was also a lawbreaker. Questions emanated on whether Goldman bankers warranted condemnation for deliberately exploiting the naivety of investors to gain from the trading of debt instruments that were bets on a market Goldman Sachs was doomed to collapse (Whalen & Bhala, 2011). Although the transaction entailed in the SEC’s lawsuit can be regarded as small by Goldman Sachs’ standards, its arrangement alludes to weighty questions regarding the fault of the banks in driving up a market within mortgage-derived securities that lingered practically inclined to self-destruction (Buell, 2011). The SEC was asking whether Goldman Sachs gained from both sides in a way that contravened their fiduciary obligation to their customers. The SEC claimed that investors essentially lost over $1billion dollars and that Paulson’s short option debt instrument on the credit instrument derived a profit of more than $1billion (Jones, 2010). Email traffic pointed out that Tour re plus others were aware of the subprime mishap as early as January 2007 before the crisis became full blown. The SEC sought a restriction, disgorgement of profits, and sanctions with regard to interest and civil monetary penalties (Craig & Scannell, 2010). In addition to these charges, criminal prosecutors were exploring whether Goldman Sachs or its employees committed securities fraud with regard to the firm’s mortgage trading. #1 The Fraud Goldman’s case entailed four forms of securities that all played some roles amid the 2008 financial downturn: first, the residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) embodying a form of security derived from pooling of mortgages on residential real-estate into bonds; a credit-default swap (CDS) representing a form of insurance policy; a collateralized debt obligation (CDO) representing a debt security collateralized by debt obligation; and, synthetic CDO’s (SCDOs) equivalent to ordinary to ordinary CDOs excluding that inv estors own CDOs on real securities rather than the real securities themselves. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil fraud charge against Goldman Sachs & Co, as well its vice presidents for fraud for misrepresenting information meant for investors by misstating key facts regarding a financial product connected to subprime mortgages at a moment when the housing market within the United States started to crumble and lose value (Buell, 2011).  

Private Finance Initiative Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Private Finance Initiative - Essay Example TUPE enables these individuals to enjoy the status of being public and private workers simultaneously. This arrangement is intended to relieve the government of a heavy burden of initiating and funding projects across the country. The PFI is a program that began Britain and Australia before spreading to most of the Western countries and eventually to the rest of the world. Since early 1990s, PFI has grown into one of the common ways to develop public investments1. The program is being used to develop many different types public infrastructure. With a PFI, private organizations can place bids on these infrastructure projects, and reverse the conventional trend, whereby developing public projects were solely the responsibility of the government. The private investor that emerges the winner in the bidding process is normally awarded the contract to develop and maintain the infrastructure project. FPI enables private companies to benefit from a permanent profit from such an initiative2. In most cases, governmental organizations are not ready to handle big projects, but they do want to make sure the projects are. By engaging the private sector through a PFI, this is tenable. Apart from relieving the government of the burden of laying infrastructures, a private finance initiative reduces the amount of tax being channelled to such projects. When the private investors shoulder the larger percentage of the funding, the government can then concentrate on other important projects. PFI projects In many cases, the method of construction that is implemented by governments has been based on placing the burden on the PFI contractors to design, bid and build the public assets. Under these criteria, the public organizations often come up with a design for a public infrastructure project. This work may be done by internal experts, or it may be awarded to a private company specialized in architecture. Once the plan is authorized, the government then invites bids from privately own ed construction companies, thus paving way for the winning bidder to construct the facility3. Many projects for government facilities have conventionally had extended private sector contacts to cater for maintenance. Typical cases of a PFI are court facilities and government offices that have been built on privately owned buildings. The health care industry is also not left out: many small government-owned health care facilities are operating in private sector premises. Better Service Delivery Private finance initiative has been implemented in the United Kingdom, where the government emphasized its significance and contribution toward better service delivery to citizens. In 2002, the government announced that it would engage the private sector more, especially to improve the quality of services in the healthcare industry4. The government made public its intention to ensure that quality services were achieved by approving contracts that had met the thresholds of quality. But whereas PFI can be more costly to implement as compared to conventional government funding, since public institutions enjoy lower lending rates than the private investors, most of the governments around the world have held the belief that the increased costs of amassing the needed finances by the private sector will remain etched in the better services for a far longer period of time5. Additionally, proponents of a PFI believe that there will be efficiency in savings. Market forces have also proved the government wrong: private companies have

Business Payment Methods Essay Example for Free

Business Payment Methods Essay At this time of building my business I need to consider the ways in which I will permit my customers to pay for the books that they buy from my book store. Today there are a wide array of payment solutions available for any buyer of goods and services and to buy books, almost all modes of payment available can be used by the customer whether it is electronically or by direct use of card at the shop or by paying in cash. If the customer is   regular and can be trusted or is a regular bulk customer, check payments can also be accepted. In view of the competitions in the sale of books I have to take some element of risk in this regard in keeping with the business practices. For direct sales at the store a wide choice of payments are available to the customer. He can pay directly in cash or by credit or debit card. I believe cash payment has the least hassles applicable as the money has already come in the moment a sale is done. In the ase of debit and credit cards a wide margin has to be provided for without any applicable discounts since a percentage of the sale amount has to be given to the financial institutions as part of the applicable commission for use of their services. The business of electronic payments is growing rapidly in view of the convenience involved and a wide array of payment options are available which are acceptable in the case of my book store. In addition to the tradition card payments other options are also cceptable to me such as mail order, online payments, acquiring bank payments and through payment bureaus. I understand that as long as a sale is taking place I can accept 2 any of these payment modes provided the financial institution is reputed to make fast payments and is reliable for its transparency in fair dealings. In such cases I may have to reduce my margins a little, but that is ok since most businesses work on volumes and hence I can make up on the low margins.

A Review On Psychology Theology And Spirituality Theology Religion Essay

A Review On Psychology Theology And Spirituality Theology Religion Essay Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling written by Mark R. McMinn teaches Christian counselors the importance of Spirituality in the counseling office. Throughout the book McMinn provides deep insight on the integration of the three concepts; the author provides concrete cases that allow the reader to grasp the information by applying the scenarios to the text. To better equip Christian Counselors he uses cognitive therapy from a Christian perspective as foundation for his work. He stresses the importance of building an effective therapeutic relationship between the counselor and the client in order for therapy to be successful. McMinn uses a variety of religious interventions to establish psychological and spiritual health. Throughout the chapters he elaborates on the use of prayer, scripture, sin, confession, forgiveness, and redemption in the counseling practice. McMinn discusses the positive effects as well as negative side effects of the use of prayer. He states that the counselors level of spiritual maturity will provide an upper limit for the potential impact of prayer in counseling (McMinn, 1996, p.87). McMinn highlights the power of Scripture and outlines the specific effects it may have on the client. McMinn summarizes the chapter by noting Our knowledge of God, self and Scripture are all interrelated, but our capacity to understand any one of these elements will add to our ability to understand the others (McMinn, 1996, p.124). McMinns study of the nature of sin and its role in the counseling practice is also very thorough. As he notes, generally psychologists have been uninterested in sin, preferring to ignore it or to discuss the effects of the concept of sin (McMinn, 1996, p. 161). Such an attitude has negative consequences, as in most cases sin can be a reason of depression, feeling of guilt and other negative feelings. He proposes the Christian counselor to understand sin from a theological and spiritual perspective. As he states, such a change can add necessary depth to the work of a counselor and encourage his clients to grow spiritually. Describing the historical references of confession as a sacrament of penance, McMinn underlines the necessity to understand its role and importance in the work of a Christian Therapist. Confession requires humility, which requires us to look at ourselves honestly and recognize both our strengths and weaknesses. Confession closely deals with forgiveness, which is a very popular topic among counselors. The author attracts readers attention to the fact that Christian understanding of forgiveness may differ from the ways that non-Christian counselors understand forgiveness. Christian forgiveness is not a simple emotional relief; however, McMinn stated that our capacity to forgive one another depends on our capacity to understand both our need for forgiveness and Gods gracious gift of forgiveness (McMinn, 1996, p.235). McMinns final chapter on redemption sums up the pr evious topics prayer, scripture, sin, confession, and forgiveness. Redemption is a process of being freed from sin and being restored back unto God. As McMinn finalizes the book with this chapter he sums up redemption by saying the wonder of redemption is that we are brought back into a relationship with God (McMinn, 1996, p.265). Finally once we experience redemption, our old ways of thinking are brought as one with God. After reading this story I am reminded of a demonstration given by my former pastor. Leading up to this demonstration my uncle Jesse had been beaten unrecognizably by gang members in Charlotte, NC. My uncle, raised in the church, had a calling on his life from a very young age and refused to accept his calling. He had been running for years and through those years he was often referred to Jonah, but one night changed all of that for my uncle. I can still remember visiting him in the ICU at Carolina Hospital in Charlotte and afraid to look at the hideous swellings upon his face. His eyes were swollen to the size of golf balls and stitches had been applied to various parts of his face it was a horrible sight to see. After his release he was given shelter by my pastor and started attending the church. The demonstration given by my pastor showed the church what sin can do to a person. I remember hearing my pastor pray and my uncle confessing all his sins while standing at the altar. The pastor preached a heavy sermon that taught me how important the confessions of sins were in seeking forgiveness from God. I have learned that God is a God of second chances and he will grant us forgiveness if and when we are ready to confess with our mouths. The moral of the story my pastor pointed out was that God was a redeemer and therefore gave second chances to his sons and daughters. Reflection McMinn did an excellent job covering the aspects of integrating psychology, theology, and spirituality in Christian counseling. While the book offers insightful ways to look at different situations that may happen in the Christian counseling office there is one thing that bothered me most. If most types of prayer has not been researched how is the counselor supposed to define clear and ethical guidelines for the use of prayer in counseling? I believe that prayer forms an intimate relationship between God and the individual; therefore prayer should not be used in the therapy sessions especially if further research is needed. Prayer I do believe is an effective tool that can be used in therapy but should be used outside the counseling sessions gradually as the client feels comfort and the need for seeking Gods presence on his or her own. This is a good book and should be read by all Christian counselors. It is essential in helping to expand their knowledge on the basis of integrating p sychology, theology, and spirituality. The case studies are helpful in learning both positive and negative ways to approach similar situations met in the counseling sessions. McMinn did a great job elaborating on the different themes prayer, scripture, sin, confession, forgiveness, and redemption. The uses of the themes were successful in teaching the confused counselor how to integrate their spirituality into the therapy session. Overall the book is a positive guide for new and old counselors to use as basis of understanding how each of the themes can have a powerful impact on a clients progress. Actions This was an outstanding book and it taught me valuable instructions on multitasking as a counselor. McMinn stated that the most effective Christian counselors are able to process several ideas simultaneously (McMinn, 1996, p. 269). It is important for a counselor to be able to successfully integrate psychology, theology and spirituality in the counseling sessions to effectively treat the problems of their clients. I personally will take what I learned and continue to read and enhance my understanding of the different concepts so that I may learn to use them wisely. Reading this book enlightened me with so much information that I can easily share with a friend to enhance their knowledge of Christian counselors. I would first make it known to them that as a Christian counselor we are set apart from other psychologists in that we put God at the forefront of our lives and therapy sessions. Being a Christian psychologist comes with many challenges and we have to constantly refine our rela tionship with God and acknowledge him as the All knowing God because thats who we ultimately seek direction from. Learning how to integrate the use of prayer and scripture with Christian clients we have to recognize the negative side effects that can come of prayer or scriptural interventions. I will continue to keep God first in my life allowing him to speak to me, lead me, and guide me as an instrument to help others. I can only better myself after reading this book and take what I learned to become the multitasking counselor.

Essay on Shakespeare’s Sonnet 73 -- Sonnet essays

Interpretation of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 73 Sonnet 73 is a meditation on mortality, and yet it can be interpreted in a number of ways. The first such interpretation is that the author of the poem is speaking to someone else about his own death that will inevitably come in the future. This interpretation has the poem focused on the author, and his focus and concern over himself. This makes him seem very selfish, because we are all going to die sooner or later, and it does not do any good to dwell on or complain about it. The only use that this interpretation really has is to evoke pity in the author, or the speaker of the Sonnet. That is why it was this interpretation of Sonnet 73 that was used in a 1996 production of Shakespeare's The Tempest by the Indiana Repertory Theatre. The director substituted five or six Sonnets for the pageantry scene where Prospero summons island spirits to perform for Ferdinand and Miranda, the last Sonnet in this substitution being #73. Prospero has a plot against his life, and this Sonnet helps to remind him of this, and also to remind his daughter Miranda that soon her father will be gone. Prospero uses the last couplet of the Sonnet directed to Miranda as "This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong." This line could also be the author speaking in the third person, and he is referring to himself as "thou." It is also interpreted as another two people conversing in these last lines by The Francis Bacon Society, they believe that Bacon was the one who wrote this Sonnet. "Here Bacon is meditating on getting old and like a sunset fading away and death like night sealing everything up. That the fire of his youth is like ashes on a fire expiring as on a death be... ...g?" Or why doesn't the action of leaving have as its subject the "I," the poet, who in death would leave behind his auditor?. . . If we read the last line with a stress on "thou," according to the meter, then the grammar and the meaning become consistent, and the reading of the Sonnet insists upon the shift in focus from the speaker's life (and imminent death), to the addressee's imminent loss of youth." These are a couple of different ways that Sonnet 73 can be interpreted. It just goes to show that there are never any definite answers about things that belong to the category of art, and especially everything concerning the work of William Shakespeare. There will always be ideas and theories that will contradict each other, and that is really the only thing that can be excepted as a constant when dealing in projects such as this one.

Kosovo Crisis :: essays research papers

Kosovo has encountered some hard times. Ethnic Albanians claim themselves to be the descendents of the ancient llyrians, Kosovo’s first inhabitants. The Serbs believe that Kosovo is the cradle of their history and culture. Both have different wants; the Serbs with to have â€Å"their† land while the Albanians, which make up ninety percent of the population, want an independent nation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many of the troubles evolved from World War II when the country was torn on whether or not to support tHitler and his movement. Since then the Albanians have cried for a free republic. The Kosovo Liberal Army resulted from Albanian attacks. The army was formed to perform terrorist attacks on this who didn’t wish to conform to the Kosovo government. Thus, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) involvement was imminent. The purpose of NATO’s involvement was to resolve the conflict as peacefully as possible. Their involvement, however, seems to be more of a cancer that a cure. Both side of the conflict turn their weapons of destruction not only on each other, but also onto NATO soldiers. Somewhat ironic, to prevent death we must send our brave men in to die. The conflict has been hard on the world, but more so on Kosovo itself. It is predicted that if the war doesn’t stop the two-sides will be fighting over nothing other than pride. The worldà ¢â‚¬â„¢s involvement into the conflict seems to have fueled the anger of both sides.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are hundreds of people suck in the middle. Regular farmers have become heroes. Women starting orphanages for children who have been abandoned or lost their parents. One story is of a man that digs through the destroyed rubble searching for anything that could be of value to give to those less fortunate than he, and there aren’t many that are fortunate. Another is of those who have given their lives, which amounts to hundreds of stories related. There are those who don’t even want to be there such as the American G.I. who is ready and willing to gibe his or her life for those caught in the middle. Yet even though there is goodness in the torn country an official describes it as, â€Å"if five candles are burning and one is extinguished, the one not lit sticks out among the others. There is good in this place of anger, it has just been overlooked.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The conflict continues, and every day another person is found risking a sacrifice for the good or the country or another person.

Tv Program

Many people believe that TV programs are no value. Do you agree ? Since our parents' generation, the argument of the value of TV programs was begin. People debate about the advantages and disadvantages of the TV programs. Today, same like most of the IT product, TV is become the integral part of a family. If say all the TV programs are no value to people, that means most of the human in the world are probably make the same mistake. Obviously, it is not true. TV programs bring a lot of benefits to people, first of all is spreading knowledge.Through different kind of documentaries, various of knowledge can be easily received by viewer with a more interesting way than the books. For example, the National Geography channel, Discovery channel and BBC Documentary Channel provide History, Geography, and the Humane Studies information in their programs. Those all channel attract a large number of audiences including adult, children and the aged to watch their program and gain the relevant kn owledge.Today's society is an extremely competitive society, people usually spend most of their time on works. The only one or two hours time that able to be relaxed by people is normally the night time. And the relaxed variety show naturally become the best choice to refresh themselves at that time. There is a habit around people after and before they stay in bed– watching news on television. And the fact is, this is the fastest and most effective way to get information.Everyday, the BBC News and Sky News provide the latest information to people through their beautiful and handsome newsreader. Those useful information from TV is helpful to people making the important decision. The last point in this article is the most important value of the TV programs– to connect every family member. No matter as a parent or child, there are too much reasons to let people bury themselves in works and no time to stay with their family.The television programs give them the chance to e njoy the family relationships together and make it closer. As a conclusion, TV programs are valuable and helpful to people. They not only bring knowledge and information to people, but also entertain them and facilitate the family relationships. But people should control the time that they watch the TV and choose the legitimate and useful programs so that they can enjoy the TV programs with happiness.