A Random Walk Down Wall Street Essay -- Stock Markets Investing Money

A Random Walk Down Wall Street There is a sense of complexity today that has led many to believe the individual investor has little chance of competing with professional brokers and investment firms. However, Malkiel states this is a major misconception as he explains in his book â€Å"A Random Walk Down Wall Street†. What does a random walk mean? The random walk means in terms of the stock market that, â€Å"short term changes in stock prices cannot be predicted†. So how does a rational investor determine which stocks to purchase to maximize returns? Chapter 1 begins by defining and determining the difference in investing and speculating. Investing defined by Malkiel is the method of â€Å"purchasing assets to gain profit in the form of reasonably predictable income or appreciation over the long term†. Speculating in a sense is predicting, but without sufficient data to support any kind of conclusion. What is investing? Investing in its simplest form is the expectation to receive greater valu e in the future than you have today by saving income rather than spending. For example a savings account will earn a particular interest rate as will a corporate bond. Investment returns therefore depend on the allocation of funds and future events. Traditionally there have been two approaches used by the investment community to determine asset valuation: â€Å"the firm-foundation theory† and the â€Å"castle in the air theory†. The firm foundation theory argues that each investment instrument has something called intrinsic value, which can be determined analyzing securities present conditions and future growth. The basis of this theory is to buy securities when they are temporarily undervalued and sell them when they are temporarily overvalued in comparison to there intrinsic value One of the main variables used in this theory is dividend income. A stocks intrinsic value is said to be â€Å"equal to the present value of all its future dividends†. This is done u sing a method called discounting. Another variable to consider is the growth rate of the dividends. The greater the growth rate the more valuable the stock. However it is difficult to determine how long growth rates will last. Other factors are risk and interest rates, which will be discussed later. Warren Buffet, the great investor of our time, used this technique in making his fortune. The second theory is known as the â€Å"castle in the ai... ... while using the beta approach as a guide. Returns may also rely on general market swings, changes in interest rates and inflation, to changes in national income and other economic factors. Chapter 11 closes our discussion with several insights into the efficient market theory. There have been many attempts to discredit the random walk theory, but none of the theories hold against empirical evidence. Any pattern that is noticed by investors will disappear as investors try to exploit it and the valuation methods of growth rate are far too difficult to predict. As we said before the random walk concludes that no patterns exist in the market, pricing is accurate and all information available is already incorporated into the stock price. Therefore the market is efficient. Even if errors do occur in short-run pricing, they will correct themselves in the long run. The random walk suggest that short-term prices cannot be predicted and to buy stocks for the long run. Malkiel concludes the best way to consistently be profitable is to buy and hold a broad based market index fund. As the market rises so will the investors returns since historically the market continues to rise as a whole.

Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Essay

For a long period of time, the agrarian system of Philippines was being controlled by the large landlords. The small farmers in Philippines were struggling for their rights to land and other natural resources. The implementation of Agrarian reforms proceeded at a very slow pace. This was due to the lack of political will. The redistribution of land was also very slow. Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law: Philippines The Republic Act No. 6657, alternatively called the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law was signed by President Corazon C. Aquino on 10th June, 1988. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law is responsible for the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) in Philippines. The law focused on industrialization in Philippines together with social justice. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law: Objectives. The primary objective of instituting the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform law was to successfully devise land reform in Philippines. It was President Arroyo, who signed the Executive Order No. 456on 23rd August to rename the Department of Land Reform as Department of Agrarian Reform. This had been done to expand the functional area of the law. Apart from land reform, the Department of Agrarian Reform began to supervise other allied activities to improve the economic and social status of the beneficiaries of land reform in Philippines. CARP Meaning Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program of 1988, also known as CARP, is a Philippine state policy that ensures and promotes welfare of landless farmers and farm workers, as well as elevation of social justice and equity among rural areas. Agrarian reform is a 100-year history of unfinished reforms after the United States took over the country from the Spaniards. Before the Hispanic period, there were no owner-cultivators, only communal land owned by the barangay which consisted of a datu, freemen, serfs and slaves. The Spaniards replaced this traditional system of land ownership, similar to existing systems among several indigenous communities today and distributed the land (haciendas) to the Spanish military and the clergy or established encomiendas (administrative districts). The 1935 Constitution addressed the issue of foreign access to land, i. e. corporations must have at least 60% Filipino ownership, and use-rights were limited in time. Other reforms included limitations on interest rates on loans and an increase in the sharecropping share from 50% to 70%. But very little of these laws were really followed in practice and the Huk rebellion was born. Under the Magsaysay and the Macapagal administrations, land reform was again tackled, such as the Mindanao resettlement program and the Land Reform Act of 1955, but no significant results were really achieved in terms of scope and magnitude of land transfer. With martial law, the whole Philippines was declared a land reform area under PD 27. Significant progress was made, but the continued practice of the share tenancy system, coverage limitation to rice and corn lands, the many exemptions allowed and the shortcomings in support systems (although it was Marcos who set up the new Agrarian Reform Department) did much to limit the affectivity of the reforms in addressing the over-concentration of wealth problem and rural poverty. The CARP years since 1988 – for the first time the program covered all agriculture lands regardless of crop and tenurial arrangements. Land distribution increased substantially – about 7 million hectares with about 4. 2 million farmer beneficiaries. But the total figures hide disturbing underperformances. – and only about 1. 5 million hectares of private agricultural lands have been covered for an accomplishment rate of only about 50% after twenty years. – Moreover the lack of support services, funding and infrastructure, is still prevalent. Of the original estimate of P220 billion to complete the program, only P203 billion have been budgeted by Congress, of which only about P170 billion have been released. While there is significant empirical evidence that agrarian reform has yielded significant benefits and has the potential for even greater benefits, the fact is that it has encountered implementation problems. Regardless of the problems encountered by CARP, the point is that CARP is not the cause of the continuing poverty nor the obstacle to solving it. On the contrary, completing CARP in accordance with the mandate of the Constitution is a necessary condition to correct social injustice, and achieve sound agricultural development and economic growth. Of course, agrarian reform is not a panacea that will solve all our problems. Neither is education, nor health care, nor industrialization nor clean elections, nor honest leadership. The fact is that the path to growth with equity is a complex process because we need all the programs working together to succeed. In the final analysis, the future of CARP is a political decision of those in power with respect to two questions: – How much reform is the government willing to implement? – How much resources are government willing to devote to such reforms? Department of Agrarian Reform is the lead implementing agency of Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). It undertakes land tenure improvement and development of program beneficiaries. DAR conducts land survey in resettlement areas. It undertakes land acquisition and distribution and land management studies. The DAR also orchestrates the delivery of support services to farmer-beneficiaries and promotes the development of viable agrarian reform communities. The DAR logo shows the Departments acronym representing the institution and its role as the lead agency in the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). Green stands for fertility and productivity while yellow represents hope and a golden harvest of agrarian reform beneficiaries who are the recipients of the services provided by the Department via CARP. Both colors imply that economic growth and sound rural development can be achieved through agrarian reform. Mandate The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) leads the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) through land tenure improvement, agrarian justice, and coordinated delivery of essential support services to client-beneficiaries. Its Mission: â€Å"To lead in the implementation of agrarian reform and sustainable rural development in the countryside through land tenure improvement and provision of integrated development services to landless farmers, farmworkers and small landowner-cultivators, and the delivery of agrarian justice†, and Vision: â€Å"A nation where there is equitable land ownership and empowered agrarian reform beneficiaries who are effectively managing their economic and social development for a better quality of life†

Identity, Societal Norms And The American Dream - 2071 Words

Myriam Djellali Professor Shore EN 110 26 Mar. 2015 Identity, Societal Norms and the American Dream Sylvia Plath and Truman Capote throughout their work both create unique individuals with internal and external forces holding them back. In The Bell Jar, we are introduced to Ester who is a young and attractive women in college with a successful path in life but is held back by madness and depression. In Breakfast at Tiffany’s, we are introduced to a unique character who makes up most of the story. We are introduced to Holiday Golightly but is refereed to as â€Å"Holly† throughout the story, Holly is the main character of the story and the narrator writes about her life. Holly makes a living as a companion to many wealthy and important men, who lavish her with money and expensive beautiful gifts. The narrator meets Holly when she leaves her husband and moves to New York, throughout her life and the story Holly is extremely unstable and irresponsible. In both, The Bell Jar and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, societal no rms and the american dream are major themes that help the readers understand the characters lives and behaviors. Both The Bell Jar and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, are stories that take place during the 1940s and 1950s where the role of women was restricted in America. During this time, there were expectations placed on women by society. In both stories we see the female characters being torn between doing what they desire or following the stereotype and expectationsShow MoreRelatedThe Awakening By Kate Chopin1310 Words   |  6 Pagesshaped by what real life societal roles and laws are in place at that time period. This is the case for Edna Pontellier in the Awakening by Kate Chopin. She struggles between fitting into the societal norms for women at the time, the late nineteenth century, and what she feels is right for herself. This aspect of American culture played a role in shaping the novel through characterization, symbolism, and themes. Characterization is a major part in how Chopin used American culture to shape theRead MoreWhat Defines A Woman? Essay978 Words   |  4 Pagesstruggle with identity because of those stereotypes; it can be difficult when a woman is trying to pursue a career. Additionally, women want to be more than what their culture says; they want to make a difference in the world. At times while dealing with these discriminations, women find themselves in situations that are inevitable. No matter where in the world or time in history, women have tried to combat those cultural stereotypes. Within, today’s society women battle against the societal norms; againstRead MoreThis Side of Paradaise by F. Scott Fitzgerald Essay1414 Words   |  6 PagesWho is Amory Blaine? It seems, in certain ways that Amory serves as the quintessential portrait of the American youth, always struggling between individuality and the desire for acceptance. But also we get glimpses of situations in which he seems to be the embodiment of America itself – of old European heritage, struggling with his uniqueness in a world where, to survive, he must fit in. Fitzgerald described the novel as a â€Å"quest novel† that focuses on Amory’s journey to self-understanding. The threeRead MoreThe Mother Of Law Asks The Daughter1109 Words   |  5 Pagesto pursue the idea of creating her own life outside of her marriage. She seems to be saying, it may be too late for me to create my own identity separate from my husband, but not yet for you. The mother-in-law asks the daughter-in-law if there is a side to her that her husband has not seen, hinting to the idea that the daughter-in-law should keep her own identity rather than exposing every part of herself to her husband. Rich is addressing the fact that women were not expected to achieve anythingRead MoreThe Topic Of Body Weight1288 Words   |  6 Pagesand gendered norms. As a consequence, those outside the glorified norm tend to experience shame, stigma, and discrimination. From media outlets to individuals, from researchers to government agents, the consistent communication about weight in America demonstrates the severity of the phenomenon. There are over 170 million Americans who are severely obese, obese, or overweight including women, men, and children (Ogden, Carroll, Kit, Flegal, 2012). Additionally, 22.9% of adult Americans suffer fromRead MoreThe Documentaries Killing Us Softly 4 Essay1252 Words   |  6 PagesAccording to Sociologist Craig Calhoun, socialization is â€Å"the process through which individuals internalize the values, beliefs, and norms of a society and learn to function as its members†(Calhoun, 2013). With that in mind, media, particularly the music video and advertisement industry, are essential parts of contemporary socialization, especially involving the perpetuation of gender roles in our culture. At a very young age, children learn, without difficulty, the differences between boys andRead MoreAnalysis Of Langston Hughes And His Views On Early 20th Century African American Society Essay1717 Words   |  7 PagesLangston Hughes and His Views on Early 20th-Century African American Society When African American slaves were released from slavery following the American Civil War, the ethnic group was now able to control their own lives, and the U.S had to acknowledge their freedoms and rights as American citizens. However, despite bold beliefs from the war, many white Americans still continued to deny equality to those of color. In addition, African Americans had not expressed their true potential as a cultural andRead MoreF. Scott Fitzgerald s Winter Dreams Essay1521 Words   |  7 PagesThe object of affection in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s â€Å"Winter Dreams,† at the onset of the story a young girl, is described as â€Å"beautifully ugly as little girls are apt to be who are destined after a few years to be inexpressibly lovely and bring no end of misery to a great number of men† (Fitzgerald 445). In this description the perspective of the male dominates. Everything detailed is inexplicably to the endearment of the man, from the â€Å"inexpressibly lovely† to the â€Å"no end of misery.† It is from thisRead MorePressure to Conform in Miller’s Death of A Salesman and Ibsen’s A Doll House1077 Words   |  5 PagesPressure to conform to the societal norms of a culture can often be so weighty that those who balk against it are likely to be crushed. Usually the world wins in a very few cases though, the individual comes out the victor, beating the odds, a stronger human being as a result. In the case of Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman, the world devours Willy Loman in his search for the American Dream. It broke him down and eventually destroyed him. Nora Helmer, of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll House, was also consumedRead MoreJames Weldon Johnson s Narrative Of An Former Colored Man By F. Scott Fitzgerald2191 Words   |  9 Pagesan Ex-Colored Man†, Jonhson’s narrator at face first is written to be perceived as a white male, when in fact he is inherently of colored descent in reg ards to societies principle of the one drop policy. Consequently, the narrator is faced with an identity complex who finds it difficult to understand whether he is black because of societies has categorized him on the account of his bloodline, or white because of his appearance. For in the end of the novel, he makes the conscious decision to pass as