Monday, November 1, 2010

Economics Terms


Substitute (Goods)

In Essence It Is 2 Goods That Can Be Exchanged And Both Are Connected. If The Price Of One Increases, So Does The Price Of The Other. The Same Applies To A Decrease.

According To Wikipedia
“Classic Examples Of Substitute Goods Include Margarine And Butter, Or Petroleum And Natural Gas (Used For Heating Or Electricity). The Fact That One Good Is Substitutable For Another Has Immediate Economic Consequences: Insofar As One Good Can Be Substituted For Another, The Demand For The Two Kinds Of Good Will Be Bound Together By The Fact That Customers Can Trade Off One Good For The Other If It Becomes Advantageous To Do So.

According To The Economist
“In Terms Of Demand (That Is, Substitute-In-Consumption), One Of Two Goods That Replace Each Other In Consumption Such That An Increase In The Price Of One Good Leads To An Increase In Demand And A Rightward Shift In The Demand Curve For The Other Good. If The Demand Of Good 1 Increases As The Price Of Good 2 Increases, The Goods Are Substitutes-In-Consumption. In Terms Of Supply (That Is, Substitute-In-Production), One Of Two Goods That Replace Each Other In Either Producing Using The Same Resources In An Either/Or Fashion, Such That An Increase In The Price Of One Good Leads To A Decrease In Supply And A Leftward Shift In The Supply Curve For The Other Good. If The Supply Of Good 1 Decreases As The Price Of Good 2 Increases, The Goods Are Substitutes-In-Production.”


Complementary (Goods)
Hot Dog Vs Hot Dog Bun
The Price Of One Drops So People Want To Buy Both For Cheaper

Aggregate
A Collection Of Items That Are Gathered To Make Up A Whole
The Collective Whole

Scarcity
Not Enough Supply To Meet The Demand

Microeconomics
Individual Industries
Looking At One Specific Business
The Coffee Industry, Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Etc
The Small Picture

Macroeconomics
Looking At Nation Wide
The Big Picture

Efficiently Is The Ratio Of The Output To The Input Of Any System
Using Recourses To Maximize The Production…
The Most For The Least

Marginal Revenue
The Cost Of Production Vs Cost Of Revenue
Gain Vs. Loss

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Lawyer Presentations


If You Are A Lawyer For A Long Period Of Time Do You Go To Court Less Or More Often?
It Depends On What Field You Are In. But In The Beginning You May Be In Court More Often As You Get Older Than You Hopefully Learn How To Stay Out Of Court. Or You May Handle More Customers. Over Half Of The Graduated May Never Go Into Court However As They Assist Other People But Never Go To Court.

What Led You To Become A Lawyer?
One Was In Business School And Needed Further Education. Had To Choose Between MBA Or Law. At The Time MBA Were Just Coming On So He Chose Law To Be Different.
One Had A Lawyer As A Father And Read A Lot Of The Material To Read, Ad Losing Arguments With His Father.

Worse Part Of Being A Lawyer?
When A Good Person Comes In And Is Basically Screwed.
E.G. A Person Who Sells Alcohol To A Minor Unknowingly
There Is Some Limitations On Their Rights.

Cohesion Vs. Interrogation
Concept Is The Same But The Degree Is Different.
Interrogation Is More Breaking Down Of A Person’s Mind.
Cohesion Is Convincing Them To Give Information.

State Vs Federal Power
It Always Depends On The Circumstances Of The Crime
Location Of The Crime, Type Of Crime, Who Is Involved.

How Does Double Jeopardy Work
If You Are Charged Once For A Criminal Crime, Once The Trial Is Over, Guilty Or Innocent, The Same Crime Cannot Be Charged Again.
It Is Made So That One Person Cannot Be Charged Over And Over If A Jury Keeps Finding Them Innocent If The Prosecutor Wants Them To Be Guilty.
In The Case Of Miranda V Arizona, Miranda Was Convicted Of The Same Crime Twice.

If A Officer Goes Into A House Looking For One Thing (With A Warrant) But Found Another Is It Still Admissible
If It Is Open And Obvious Than It Is Admissible.
If The Found The First Thing, They Have Executed Their Warrant, Now They Should Leave.
If An Illegal Substance Found They Can Either Prosecute It In The Same Crime Or Another Charge Altogether.
What If An Illegal Substance Was Found While The Warrant Was Being Looked For?
Most Likely There Would Be A Conviction.
Also If It Falls Out Of Something Into The Open Than It Is Admissible.

>Side Note
*Things Like Murder And Abduction Among Others May Not Have A Statute Of Limitations.

If You Know A Person Is Guilty Can You Opt Out Of A Case?
If You Are Told To Take The Case Than You Have To Do The Very Best That You Can. If You Throw Them Under The Bus Than You Can Have Your License Taken,
If They Know That The Person Is Going To Lie Than They Can Say That The Person Is Going To Tell The Events In Their Own Words So That They Are Basically Not Assisting The Lie.

Does Arizona Use The Daubert Vs. Frye Standard?
Arizona Follows Its Own Path. It Looks To See If It Is Sufficient Enough.
In Most Cases It May Be Up To The Judge To Decide To Make The Evidence Admissibe Or Not.

What If One Side Of A Trial Outpowers The Other Via Money Etc.
E.G. A Corporation Vs. A Common Person.
Only One Lawyer Gets To Speak On Each Side In Court.
Also The Jury Will See That One Side Kills The Other.
In The End The Person Who Can Pull Out More Stuff And Look Under Every Rock Than The Other Side.

What If One Side Decides To Pull Out The Case To Basically Kill The Finds Of The Other.
Contingency, To Hire A Lawyer And They Only Get Paid If They Win.
Courts Can Set Deadlines So They Can Move The Trial Forward.

What If An Expert Witness Publishes An Article Previously And It Is Different From What They Are Currently Are Saying?
The Article Can Be Used To Weaken The Reputation Of The Expert.
Also The Expert Can Explain The Difference From The Past To The Present.

Double Jeopardy Vs. Appeal.
An Appeal Is The Same Case But In Another Court.
Double Jeopardy Is When It Is An Entire New Case.
If It Is Almost The Same Crime With Sight Tweaks, There Can Be An Argument On Whether It Is Double Jeopardy Or A New Crime.

Why Do Some Courts People Swear On The Bible?
In Most Arizona Courts You Just Raise Your Right Hand To Affirm To Tell The Truth
The Idea Is You Are Going To Tell The Truth As You Have Sworn On You Higher Belief.
In Arizona It Is Our Constitutional Right That We Cannot Be Asked About Our Belief In God.
It Doesn’t Matter Anyways Because If You Lie Than You Can Trial Them For Perjury.

Why Is It In Arizona We Lie Detectors Admissible.
Because Most People Done See Them As Reliable

What Is The Biggest Flaw In The Law System?
People Don’t Have Full Access To The System As It Is Over They Costs.
In Other Cases Amounts Being Disputed Are Just Too Small That No One Cares

When It Comes To Illegal Immigrants Can You Ask?
There Are Some Law Firms That Do Ask But Most People Don’t Ask. They Are Fully Allowed To But There Is No Reason To Ask. It Depends On The Lawyer. Immigratons Lawyers May Need To Know.

Are There Any Cases That Have Stuck To The Back Of Your Mind?
An Elderly Couple Owned A Hallmark Card Shop On An Indian Reservation. The Space Next To It Was Empty. Someone Wanted That Piece And A Third Of The Shop. In The Night They Moved Everything And Basically Hijacked The Shop.
After A Complex Case They Got Beaten In The Court. (They Were Basically Plowed Over)

Representing A Sheriffs’ Deputy That Got Ran Over By A Criminal
Got His Pelvis Basically Maimed
They Take Him To The Hospital And Got Tons Of Surgery
Than He Went To A Rehab Hospital, And Mistreated Him
The Hospital Denied It.
Bent The Plates And Pulled The Screws.
Most Interesting Part Was Opening Statement
Halfway Through The Opening Statement One Of Jurors Passes Out As He Is Talking About Screws Being Pulled Out Of A Pelvis, Bending Metal Plates, Etc.


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Branches Of Government


The Federal Executive Branch
Education
                Department Of Education
                Admin Finances Schools And Students
Health And Human Services
Performs Health And Social Science Research
Assures Drug And General Food Safety
Veteran Affairs
                Creates Help Programs
                Runs Va Hospitals
                Operates National Cemeteries
Treasury
                Regulate Banks And Finical Intuitions
                Public Debt
                Prints $$
                Collets Income Taxes
Department Of Interior
                Manages Federal Land
                Runs Hydroelectric Plants
                Promotes Natural Recourse Conservation
Justice
                Admins State And Local Gov’t When Necessary
                Prevents And Controls Crime By Prosecuting Cases
                Enforces Federal Laws
                Runs Federal Prisons
                Ensures Public Safety
Agricultire
Usda
                Promotes Foreign And Domestic Agro
                Researches Growth Of Crops And Natural Recourses
                Ensures Safety Of Meat And Poultry
                Provides Anti Hunger Programs
Housing And Urban Development
                Funds Public Housing Projects
                Ensures Housing Equality
                Enforces Housing Laws
                Insures Finances And Mortgages
Homeland Security
                Prevents Terrorist Attacks
                Minimized Damage Don’t By Attackers
                Admins Coast Guard
                Admins Immigrations
State
                Oversees Embassies And Consulates
                Issues Passports
                Monitors And Admins Foreign Relations
Labor
                Enforces Minimum Wage
                Ensures Workplace Safety And Equality
                Admins Unemployment              
                Regulates Pensions
Commerce
                Forecasts The Weather
                Charts The Oceans
                Regulates Patents And Trademarks
                Complies Stats Of The Public
                Encourages Foreign Trade
Energy
                Coordates Energy Dispersal
                Oversees Production And Disposal Of  Nuclear Wepons
                Plans Future Energy Needs
Transportation
                Sets National Transport Policies
                Plans And Funds Construction For Highways, Aviation, Etc
Defense
                Military
                Civilian Workforce For The Department Of Defense
President
                Duties
                                Commander And Chief Of The Armed Forces
                                Makes Treaties
                                Suggest Laws
                                Gives Pardons
Vice President
                Presides Over Senate And Gives The Breaking Vote In Ties
                Decides Whether The President Is Able Or Not
First Lady
                President’s Spouse
Second Lady
                Vice President’s Spouse
The Cabinet



Order Of Succession
                President
                Vice President
                Speaker Of The House
                President Pro Tempore Of The Senate
Department Of State Secretary
                Department Of Treasury Sectary
                Department Of Defense Secretary
                Department Of Justice Attorney General
                Department Of Interior Secretary
                Department Of Agriculture Secretary
                Department Of Commerce Secretary
                Department Of Labor Secretary
                Department Of Human Services Secretary
                Department Of Housing And Urban Development Secretary
                Department Of Transportation Secretary
                Department Of Energy Secretary
                Department Of Educations Secretary
                Department Of Veteran Affairs Secretary
                Department Of Homeland Security Secretary



Federal Legislative Branch
Passes Laws, Either Pertaining To $ Or Social Matters
Senate
                100 Members
                Approves And Revies Presedental Decisioms

House Of Representatives
                435 Members
                Amount Per State Determined By Population
Checks Executive Branch
                Can Impeach (House)
                                Trial Done By Senate
                Selects President In Cease Of Ties
                Override Presidential Vetoes
                Power To Declare War
Checks On Judiciary
                Approves Federal Judges
                Initiate Constitutional Amendments
Executive Checks On It
                Veto Laws Sent By Legislature
Judicial Checks On It
                Judicial Review, Analyses Activities To Ensure They Are Doing Their Jobs
Self Checks
                Bills Must Be Passed By Both Chambers
                May Not Adjourn For More Than 3 Days Without Consent From Other House



Federal Judicial Branch
Courts
                Distract Courts
                                Criminal, Civil Matter, Etc
                Accolade Courts (Court Of Appeals)
                                Appeals
                                                No New Evidence Is Brought In, Only The Minutes Of The Former Court Hearing
                Supreme Court
                                Rules Not Guilty Or Innocent But Constitutional Or Unconstitutional
                                9 Judges Elected By President But Verified By House Of Representatives
                                No Term Limit
                                                Retirement, Death, Or Impeachment Are The Only Ways Out
Responsibilities
                All Courts Are Under How The Supreme Court Rules Laws



Arizona Executive Branch
Governor
                Head Of The State In Which They Reside
                Term Of 4 Years
                Powers Of The President Only Instate
                Can Appoint Judges
Secretary Of State
                Chief Elections Officer
                As Keeper Of The State Seal They Impressed Seal On Gubernational (Pertaining To The Governor) Papers
State Treasurer
                Banker For The State
                Pay Out State Funds
                Custodian Of Secretaries
State Attorney General
                Main State Attorney
                Has Executive Responsibility For Law Enforcement
Superintendent Of Public Instruction
                Controls State School
                Plans Budgets, Employments, Regulations, Etc
State Mine Inspector
                Documentation, Upkeep, And Safety Of All Mines In Arizona Working Or Closed
                Ensure The Safety Of The Communities That Preside Around Old Mines
                Protector Of Children And The Idiotic
Five Member Corporation Commission
                Regulates State Licensed Corporations Except For Federal Controlled Utilities (H2o, Gas)
                Pipeline And Railroad Construction And Safety
Line Of Succession
                Governor
                Secretary Of State
                State Treasurer
                Attorney General
                Superintendent Of Public Instruction
                Mine Inspector
                                (In Other States There Is A Lieutenant Governor As Second In Command)



Arizona Legislative Branch
Hand Out
Arizona Judiciary Branch
Handout



Maricopa County
Educational Services
                59 School Districts And 259 Other Charter Schools
Health Services
                Air Quality Department
Courts & Legal Matters
                Tax Courts Have All Jurisdiction Over Any Tax Matter
Public Safety
                County Sherriff
                                Homeland Security For The County
                                Emergency Management Personnel
                                Sherriff Officers
Public Works
                Solid Waste Management
                                Dispose Of Waste
Money
                Department Of Finance
Transportation
                Manages Signs And Roads
                Regulate The Buses
Flood Control
                Overseeing Implantation Flood Control Measures
                                I.E. Road Signs



Phoenix Government
Mayor
                In Charge Of Council Meetings
Council Member
                Represent The Districts
City Manager

Council Members And Mayor Say What Is Allowed In Phoenix
Ideally They Should Listen To The People For What They Have To Say

Friday, August 13, 2010

SAR 8.13.10


Self-Assessment #1                                                                                Friday, August 13


We’ve Two Weeks In The Books And It’s Time Look Back.  Where Do You Stand?  (Are You Going “Above And Beyond”, “Basically Fine” Or “Could You Do Better”?)  As You Think About These Things Also Consider The Following:

There Is Always More To Do…
One Of The Major Aspects Of This Class Will Be Your Reliance On The People Around You To Enhance Your Learning As You Work Together To Share Perspectives, Ideas Connections, Insight And Knowledge

So, With Regards To Participation, What Have You Done Well And What Could You Have Done Better?  To Put This In Other Terms, If You Continued On Your Current Path, Doing Nothing More And Nothing Less, How Successful Will You Be?

Finally, Set Two Goals For Yourself For The Next Two Weeks.  As You Think About These Goals, Be Reasonable.  We Are More Likely To Change Small Things Than We Are Toa Make Sweeping Changes As The Later Rarely Last.

Logistics

Type Your Self-Assessment / Reflection In A Word Document And Save It As Follows:

Lastname_Firstname_Ges_Sar.Doc

You Will Need A Document Such As This For Each Of Your Classes.  If You’ve Not Already Set Up Folders And Some Level Of Organization, Do It Now.

This Will Be An Ongoing Document / Dialogue / Discussion About Your Learning Journey.  For Now, You Will Have Only Two Weeks On Which To Reflect.  For Our Next Sar, You Will Have Goals (Set Here) And An Additional Two-Week Chunk To Ponder.  This Is Not To Say That You Are Only Thinking About This Specific Two-Week Chunk, But Rather The Entire Journey Thus Far As Well As Your Efforts In Reaching Your Goals.  Just Like A Blog, The Most Recent Entries Will Be At The Top Of The Document.

This Is Due Before The End Of Class, Friday, August 13.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

What Is Democracy 8.10.10


“Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have.”  –E.B. White
A principal that the control of authority comes from the public, and the ruler and non-ruler are the same
Popular sovereignty is common.
Often called “The Last Form Of Government”

The US Democracy
Constitutional Representative Democracy
English Democracy Influence
“A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but will not cross the street to vote in a national election” –Unknown
Funny Fact  - There are more Democrats than Republicans in most places but most of them don’t vote.

Foundations
Greek Democracy
A.K.A. Athenian Democracy
~500 BC
Adult Males who finished their military duty could vote
Assembly, courts, council
100 elected
1000 by lot
Roman Republic
First overthrew Roman monarchy
509 BC and lasted 450 years
Complex constitution
Separation of powers
Direct Democracy
                People voted on laws instead of a representative
English Roots
The Magna Carta
                1215 AD
                King John Of England
                Everyone Had Certain Rights
                Legal Procedures
                The king was bound to the law as well
English Bill Of Rights
                An Act declaring the Rights and Liberties of the people
                Right to petition, Right to bear arms in defense.
Representative Government
                A representative votes on laws for the people
Philosophical Roots
Judeo Christian
                Legal Codes And Morality
                Old Testament
                10 Commandments
                All Human Created Equal – Genesis
John Locke
                Social Contract Theory
                Human Nature
                                Humans are tolerant and reasonable to each other
                Natural rights
                                “Life, Health, Liberty or possessions”
Charles De Montesquieu
                Separation of government into 3 branches.
Fundamental parts of us democracy
Seen in the Declaration of independence
Equality
                “All people talk about equality. The only thing they have in common is that they all are going to die” – Bob Dylan
Natural Rights Of Man
                “Democracy does not guarantee equality of conditions-it only guarantees equality of opportunity” – Irving Kristol
The Rule Of law
                Supremacy Of Law

Monday, August 9, 2010

8.9.10


What About These Types Of Government?
Each type of government has its advantages and disadvantages. They all try to establish some kind of order for the most part (with a few exceptions). They want to create order and some do achieve it while some fail. They rely on the people to follow some kind of leader that has power.
I would say the easiest is an anarchy because there is no order. Everyone is free to do as they wish and no one can stop them but themselves. It would also be the worst because there is no order and no one but the people governs themselves.
Most civilized would have to be a Republic as the people have a say in what happens. The people control themselves and there are balances between people.

“Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have” -E.B. White
This is saying that people want this type of government because it works and they will fight for it. This can apply to the other government types as well as long as the people want it to survive.
"What is democracy?"
In the way me implement a democracy it is a combination of multiple government types. We see a republic because the citizens are involved in the government itself. A constitutional monarchy can be seen in the executive branch, a leader who has power and follows a construction to make decisions.

Government Types


Republic
The people/citizens have an active role in gov’t with no monarch or king
There have been many types of republican gov’t
There are representatives elected by the people to govern them
Venezuela has a federal republic
The U.S.A has a constitution based republic
Some are based off of religion i.e. Islamic republic
It is not hereditary
The people have power (think indirect demo) representatives can abuse their power
Not everyone has their voice heard
There can be a miscommunication between representatives and the people

Monarchy
Constitutional monarchy
Country that gives 1 person power and a parliament that counter balances his power
                Has to follow the constitution
Example is the UK but the monarch is really a figure
Coexists with parliament and constitution
Separates out powers
Absolute monarchy
One person has total power
                Rule has see fit
Can be passed via hereditary or elective where the people vote them in
One person does rule so it is a similar to a dictatorship
Diarchy
Two rulers
Separates power
One can have each ruler as a specialist
One person doesn’t do too much
If the 2 argue than there can be a civil war
Constitutional monarchy has the most balance
Elective monarchy exists in the Vatican


Totalitarian
It’s a dictatorship, one person rules over everything
Can not be disputed
Easy to rule
There is only one person so if they mess up than doomed
Ruler can do what he wants
Hitler is a key example
Latest one is in iraq


Anarchy
Uncontrolled theocracy
There is no government
There is no system
No taxes
People have absolutely free
People are ungoverned
No laws
Pros and cons are same
Doesn’t really work
Last anarchy may be Somalia
                Officially Albania after a failed Ponzi scheme and the people went nuts
                1998 is when it ended after a constitution was fixed
                Small regions of warring countries are at anarchy as well


Oligarchy
Ruled by a group
Can be passed down
Can be military based, religious, family, money
Like a Communism
Ruling body puts forth a lot of effort (normally)
Cuba, N. Korea, South Africa
The oligarchs put more effort into money than actual ruling

Theocracy
Ruled by the will of god
One person rules as a direct portal of god
All law must follow religious text
Nations conveys strict discipline
Do not have to elect a government official
Bills could be easily passed, people have no say
Does not allow much freedom
Much to strict
Must be all the same
Think zombies of god
Early civilizations had plenty of this
Iran, Vatican city

Aristocracy
Ruled by those who are the best able in the state
Loose rule
Best can eb by wealth, birthright, millitaryt power
Greeks had this

Dictatorship
Where one person has absolute power
They can govern with no consent of anyone
Dictator makes all decisions and tells them what to do
Hitler’s Germany, china, North Korea
Good dictators do only what they believe is right
Power rests solely on pone person
Not elected in


Parliamentary
2 branched, executive and legislative
Executive is parliament or king/queen
Legislative is House of Commons and House of Lords
Con: little checks and balances
Vocal vote between houses to make decisions



Additional Notes
Parliament
Like a legislative branch
Like out House of Representatives and Congress but more open
The Prime Minister is the big figure head.
Great Britain’s Queen has no real power; it is more of a tradition
                She can suggest a change but she has no power
Totalitarianism
One person has all control
Can be tied into other governments

Monarchy
Typically stays in the family

Anarchy
It is an absence of government
It is typically where everything starts
Those who push for it today are seen as crazy or hippies that do nothing (both are stereotypes)
In theory it can be peaceful
                If it is natural for people to get along so if we can all just get along
On the other side people have a “every man for themselves”
                Everyone will riot

Republican and Democratic are from old Greek and idea
Liberal and Conservative are the two sides of an anarchy

Aristocracy
Those who were “most intelligent” or wealthy
                In those times wealth typically denoted intelligence
Government run by the “best”

Republic
Every member of the society has an active role

Theocracy
A Government run by religion
There is a person who is a portal of god
It only works in a place where everyone is under one religion i.e. The Vatican
In other areas there are disputes

Feudalism
Ties in with a monarch and trickles down from there

Dictatorship and Totalitarianism typically tie together

All of the governments can tie together to create different rules
The U.S.A Is A Constitutional Representative Federal Democratic Republic
                Some say we are theocracy, aristocracy etc