Social Security Tax System Essays - Social Security,

Social Security Tax System Revamping Our Future Social Security Tax System This paper will discuss the current United States Social Security Tax system, the purpose of that system and our goal for selecting this topic. Also, it will explain our analysis of it's current standing, different idea's about what to change in our current standing to secure and guarantee a strong future for it. We will conclude by recommending the best course to accomplish this goal. Contents Abstract 2 Contents 3 Title 4 Current U.S.A. Social Security Tax System 4 Low Risk Investment 7 High Risk Investment 8 Graph: Social Security Tax Increases 9 Conclusion/Recommendations 11 References 12 Revamping Our Social Security Tax System to Secure its future Current U.S.A. Social Security Tax System Social Security has been around for more than 60 years. It has been an important part of American life. It was created in 1935 shortly after the great depression. Social Security was created to be a protection for the American people against the hazards of unemployment, old age, and ill health. Today Social Security not only provides minimum protection for the retired worker, it also provides benefits for workers and their families due to death of a family wage earner or loss of income due to disability. Today there are about 150 million workers who are protected by social security, more than 44 million receive retirement, survivors and disability benefits form social security. American wage earners and their families are protected by social security and they pay taxes to help make the system work. There are two philosophies Social Security bases its payments on. First, the system is designed so that there is a link between how much a wage earner pays into the system and how much he or she will receive in benefits. For example, a high wage earner will receive more benefits while a low wage earner will receive less. Second, a base for economic security is provided by the Social Security system. Social Security provides a valuable package of retirement, disability and survivors insurance, which relieves families of financial burdens from supporting other family members. Social Security has made an enormous difference in the lives of older Americans. American workers can retire as early as age 62. At this age, wage earners are eligible to get reduced benefits from Social Security. Wage earners may wait for full retirement age to be eligible for full retirement benefits. Currently, full retirement age is 65, but will be moved up gradually starting in 2003. The new retirement age will be 67 for people born in 1960 or later. Social benefits payments are paid out to more than 9 in 10 retirees. In America, only 11 percent of senior citizens live in poverty. Without Social Security benefits, the percentage of seniors living in poverty would be much higher. Social Security is the major source of income for about two-thirds of elderly Americans, and for abut a third Social Security is virtually their only source of income. Retired Americans are given a dependable monthly income from Social Security. Automatic increases are tied to increases in the cost of living. Social Security gives retired American citizens a measure of deserved financial independence (and that measure is becoming lower every year). Social Security is more than a retirement program. It is also a protection plan for American citizens. Valuable disability and survivors' insurance protection are given to younger wage earners and their families. There are about 1 in 3 workers who are Social Security beneficiaries that are not retired. Monthly survivors' benefits are given to about 7.5 million people and more than 6 million workers and family members receive disability benefits. Social Security provides a foundation on which to build retirement security. Social Security, pensions and savings is a three-legged financial stool for a comfortable retirement. Unfortunately, there is only a little more than half of all workers whose employers have pension plans; and people are not saving for their future retirement. Pre-retirement earnings for the average worker are about 40 percent, provided by Social Security. Financial advisors say that the average worker will need 70 percent of pre- retirement earnings to live comfortably. Saving is an important part of retirement planning. Social Security will begin mailing statements to workers age 25 and older. The statement will show a worker's earnings history, as well as giving estimates of retirement, survivors and disability benefits. This statement will help with future financial planning. Demographics have been the main reason for Social Security's long-range financing problem. People, today, are living longer and healthier lives. In 1935,

Auguste Comte and His Role in the History of Sociology

Auguste Comte and His Role in the History of Sociology Auguste Comte was born on January 20, 1798  (according to the Revolutionary calendar then used in France), in Montpellier, France. He was a philosopher who is also considered to be the father of sociology, the study of the  development and function of human society, and of positivism, a means of using scientific evidence to discern causes for human behavior. Early Life and Education Auguste Comte was born in Montpellier, France. After attending the Lycà ©e Joffre and then the University of Montpellier, he  was admitted to the École Polytechnique in Paris. The École closed in 1816, at which time Comte took up permanent residence in Paris, earning a precarious living there by teaching mathematics and journalism. He read widely in philosophy and history and was especially interested in those thinkers who were beginning to discern and trace some order in the history of human society. System of Positive Philosophy Comte lived during one of the most turbulent periods in European history. As a philosopher, therefore, his aim was not only to understand human society but to prescribed a system by which we could make order out of the chaos, and thus change society for the better. He eventually developed what he called a system of positive philosophy, in which logic and mathematics, combined with sensory experience, could better assist in understanding human relationships and action, in the same way that the scientific method  had allowed an understanding of the natural world. In 1826, Comte began a series of lectures on his system of positive philosophy for a private audience, but he soon suffered a serious nervous breakdown. He was hospitalized and later recovered with the help of his wife, Caroline Massin, whom he married in 1824. He resumed teaching the course in January 1829, marking the beginning of the second period in Comtes life that lasted 13 years. During this time he published the six volumes of his Course on Positive Philosophy  between 1830 and 1842. From 1832 to 1842, Comte was a tutor and then an examiner at the revived École Polytechnique. After quarreling with the directors of the school, he lost his post. During the remainder of his life, he was supported by English admirers and French disciples. Additional Contributions to Sociology Though Comte did not originate the concept of sociology or its area of study, he is credited with coining the term and he greatly extended and elaborated the field. Comte divided sociology into two main fields, or branches: social statics, or the study of the forces that hold society together; and social dynamics, or the study of the causes of ​social change.   By using certain tenets of physics, chemistry, and biology, Comte extrapolated what he considered to be a few irrefutable facts about society, namely that since the growth of the human mind progresses in stages, so too must societies. He claimed the history of society could be divided into three different stages: theological, metaphysical, and positive, otherwise known as the Law of Three Stages. The theological stage reveals humankinds superstitious nature, one that ascribes supernatural causes to the workings of the world. The metaphysical stage is an interim stage in which humanity begins to shed its superstitious nature. The final and most evolved stage is reached when human beings finally realize that natural phenomena and world events can be explained through reason and science. Secular Religion Comte separated from his wife in 1842, and in 1845 he began a relationship with Clotilde de Vaux, whom he idolized. She served as the inspiration for his Religion of Humanity, a secular creed intended for the veneration not of God but of humankind, or what Comte called the New Supreme Being.  According to Tony Davies, who has written extensively on the history of humanism, Comtes new religion was a  complete system of belief and ritual, with liturgy and sacraments, priesthood and pontiff, all organized around the public veneration of Humanity. De Vaux died only a year into their affair, and after her death, Comte devoted himself to writing another major work, the four-volume System of Positive Polity, in which he completed his formulation of sociology. Major Publications The Course on Positive Philosophy (1830-1842)Discourse on the Positive Spirit (1844)A General View of Positivism (1848)Religion of Humanity (1856) Death Auguste Comte died in Paris on September 5, 1857, from stomach cancer. He is buried in the famous Pere Lachaise Cemetery, next to his mother and Clotilde de Vaux.

Guinn v. United States

Guinn v. United States Guinn v. United States was a United States Supreme Court case decided in 1915, dealing with the constitutionality of voter qualification provisions in state constitutions. Specifically, the court found residency-based â€Å"grandfather clause† exemptions to voter literacy tests- but not the tests themselves- to be unconstitutional. Literacy tests were used in several Southern states between the 1890s and 1960s as a way of preventing African Americans from voting. The unanimous decision in Guinn v. United States marked the first time the Supreme Court struck down a state law disenfranchising African Americans.   Fast Facts: Guinn v. United States Case Argued: Oct. 17, 1913Decision Issued: June 21, 1915Petitioners: Frank Guinn and J. J. Beal, Oklahoma election officialsRespondent: United StatesKey Questions: Did Oklahoma’s grandfather clause, in singling out black Americans as being required to take a voter literacy test, violate the U.S. Constitution? Did Oklahoma’s literacy test clause- without the grandfather clause- violate the U.S. Constitution?Majority Decision: Justices White, McKenna, Holmes, Day, Hughes, Van Devanter, Lamar, PitneyDissenting: None, but Justice McReynolds took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.Ruling: The Supreme Court ruled that residency-based â€Å"grandfather clause† exemptions to voter literacy tests- but not the tests themselves- were unconstitutional. Facts of the Case Shortly after it was admitted into the Union in 1907, the state of Oklahoma passed an amendment to its constitution requiring that citizens pass a literacy test before being allowed to vote. However, the state’s Voter Registration Act of 1910 contained a clause allowing voters whose grandfathers had either been eligible to vote before January 1, 1866, had been residents of â€Å"some foreign nation,† or had been soldiers, to vote without taking the test. Rarely affecting white voters, the clause disenfranchised many black voters because their grandfathers had been slaves before 1866 and were thus ineligible to vote.   As applied in most states, the literacy tests were highly subjective. Questions were confusingly worded and often had several possible correct answers. In addition, the tests were graded by white election officials who had been trained to discriminate against black voters. In one instance, for example, election officials rejected a black college graduate even though there was not â€Å"the slightest room for doubt as to whether† he was entitled to vote, concluded the U.S. Circuit Court. After the 1910 November midterm election, Oklahoma election officials Frank Guinn and J.J. Beal were charged in federal court with conspiring to fraudulently disenfranchise black voters, in violation of the Fifteenth Amendment. In 1911, Guinn and Beal were convicted and appealed to the Supreme Court. Constitutional Issues While the Civil Rights Act of 1866 had guaranteed U.S. citizenship without regard to race, color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude, it did not address the voting rights of former slaves. To bolster the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments of the Reconstruction-era, the Fifteenth Amendment, ratified on February 3, 1870, prohibited the federal government and the states from denying any citizen the right to vote based on their race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Supreme Court faced two related Constitutional questions. First, did Oklahoma’s grandfather clause, in singling out black Americans as being required to take the literacy test, violate the U.S. Constitution? Second, did Oklahoma’s literacy test clause- without the grandfather clause- violate the U.S. Constitution? The Arguments The state of Oklahoma argued that the 1907 amendment to its state constitution was validly passed and clearly within the powers of the states granted by the Tenth Amendment. The Tenth Amendment reserves all powers not specifically granted to the U.S. government in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution to the states or to the people. Attorneys for the U.S. government chose to argue only against the constitutionality of the â€Å"grandfather clause† itself while conceding that literacy tests, if written and administered to be racially neutral, were acceptable. Majority Opinion In its unanimous opinion, delivered by Chief Justice C.J. White on June 21, 1915, the Supreme Court ruled that Oklahoma’s grandfather clause- having been written in a way to serve â€Å"no rational purpose† other than to deny African American citizens the right to vote- violated the Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The convictions of Oklahoma election officials Frank Guinn and J.J. Beal were thus upheld. However, since the government had previously conceded the point, Justice White wrote that, â€Å"No time need be spent on the question of the validity of the literacy test, considered alone, since, as we have seen, its establishment was but the exercise by the State of a lawful power vested in it not subject to our supervision, and, indeed, its validity is admitted.† Dissenting Opinion As the court’s decision was unanimous, with only Justice James Clark McReynolds not taking part in the case, no dissenting opinion was issued. The Impact In overturning Oklahoma’s grandfather clause, but upholding its right to require pre-voting literacy tests, the Supreme Court confirmed the historic rights of the states to establish voter qualifications as long as they did not otherwise violate the U.S. Constitution. While it was a symbolic legal victory for African American voting rights, the Guinn ruling fell far short of immediately enfranchising black Southern citizens. At the time it was issued, the court’s ruling also nullified similar voter qualification provisions in the constitutions of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Virginia. While they could no longer apply grandfather clauses, their state legislatures enacted poll taxes and other means of restricting black voter registration. Even after the Twenty-Fourth Amendment prohibited the use of poll taxes in federal elections, five states continued to impose them in state elections. Not until 1966 did the U.S. Supreme Court declare poll taxes in state elections unconstitutional.   In final analysis, Guinn vs. United States decided in 1915, was a small, but a significant first legal step in the Civil Rights Movement toward racial equality in the United States. It was not until passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that all remaining legal barriers denying black Americans the right to vote under the Fifteenth Amendment- enacted nearly a century earlier- were finally outlawed. Sources and Further Reference Guinn v. United States (238 U.S. 347). Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute.Guinn v. United States (1915). Oklahoma Historical Society.Onion, Rebecca. The Impossible Literacy Test Louisiana Gave Black Voters in the 1960s. Slate (2013).Poll Taxes. Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

Speech Made in the Conference, Concerning Japan's Aggression Essay

Speech Made in the Conference, Concerning Japan's Aggression - Essay Example Japan is such a country that can best be described as aggressive, with its acts being tantamount to belligerence, especially towards China. Some of the acts of aggression that Japan has carried out may be illustrated forthwith. It is open knowledge that Japan on September 18th, 1931 sent its army and some of its political leaders to invade Manchuria, which is the eastern seaboard of China. The worst part of this problem is not merely personified in Japan’s acts of aggression, but on Japan’s lack of goodwill to being accountable for its actions. For instance, in 1933, after the Manchuria crises ended, Japan’s delegate walked out of the League of Nations when the findings by the Lytton Commission were being read out and mooted. In so doing, Japan was not only excising itself from the rest of the international community, but also parading unwillingness to take responsibility. Arrogance was also the driving force behind Japan’s walk out since Japan had already pacified Manchuria from China and singlehandedly made Manchuria a puppet state, Manchukuo. Japan even had the audacity to make Emperor Pu Yi as the head of Manchukuo who was a stooge in every respect. Similarly, Japan’s aforementioned willingness to take responsibility is underscored by the fact that the tabling of the Lytton Commission’s findings was supposed to be accompanied with discussions on China’s appeal for an interstate approach towards Japan’s aggression (Christensen, 75). Japan’s bellicose stance was further shown in it engaging the Chinese army near Peking, at the Marco Polo Bridge in 1938, following the ‘China Accident.’ It is important to note that Japan’s problem is one which is heavily embedded in wrongful thinking and attitude. For a fact, ever since Japan won the Sino-Japanese War which took place between 1894 and 1895, Japan has become increasingly stubborn throughout the orient, after it knew that it had a stranglehold in the Asian continent. China’s compelled recognition of the Korean independence and its forced concessions on Liaotung Peninsula and Taiwan were to serve as Japan’s reassurance and propitiation. Unfortunately, Japan grew into a bully. It is important to note that with much power comes, responsibility in lieu of belligerence. Japan, other developed and developing countries ought to realize this. It is important that Japan appreciates the fact that when it joined the Allies in World War I, it gained a lot when the League of Nations granted it, the Asian colonial territories that had been being controlled by Germany in the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. That these territories were rich, is a matter that is underscored by the inclusion of the Shantung Peninsula and Micronesian islands which had been under the tutelage and ownership of China and Germany, respectively. Thus, the citing of Japan’s landlocked status as a reason behind its unbridled antagonism cannot wash. How the U.S. Plans To Handle the Situation There are several measures that America has considered as tenable solution to the problem of Japan’s aggression. The measures are both short and long term. One of the long term approaches to the problem is the reevaluation of economic policies with Japan. It is well known that since 1920s, Japan got less interested in western model of economic liberalism. This is because, while reeling from the

Women and Economics during Colonial America and Before and After Essay - 1

Women and Economics during Colonial America and Before and After American Revolution - Essay Example That writing reflects the struggles, anguishes and the tragedies within her family, local scandals and her viewpoint of the politics. The story raises question about the scenario of the colonial America. That makes us interested to examine the social and economic role of the women in colonial America, and the change in pattern of the society and the emerging role of female in social and economic perspective1. (Ulrich, 1991) In the colonial period of America, especially the mid and late 17th century the women of America used to lead monotonous lives full of work and duties. The women from the poorer families had to take less workload than the women belonging to the wealthier families2. The matter of fact is that the society used to evaluate the work of a woman according to their contribution to their own family3. (Courtney, and Ranger, 1999; Eldridge, 1997, p.62) As the British had colonized America the American society followed the social customs and rituals of the British society. The males of the families had to perform the out home duties such as earning, farming etc. On the other hand their female counterpart had to engage themselves in household chores such as cooking, child breeding, childcare, home decorating, housekeeping etc. The hardworking wives were granted the rank of goodwives. Those who performed the activities such as caring domestic animals and vegetable gardens, producing unique delic ious foods, stitching clothes, producing candles, soaps for home consumption etc could get the mark of excellence from their husbands and relatives as good women4. (Wightman Fox, Richard and Robert B. Westbrook, 1002, p.125; DuBois, and Dumenil, 2005, p. 77) The women used to form the networks of female friends and the relatives (obviously female) regarding the household duties. Through the network formation they used to make some exchanges

Critical Analysis of Quantitative Research Essay Example for Free

Critical Analysis of Quantitative Research Essay The researchers in this experiment aimed to â€Å"Investigate the quantitative differentiation of pulmonary dendritic cells in smoker with or without chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) to explore the possible role of dendritic cells in smokers suffering COPD† (Yan-wei, Yong-jiang, Xian-sheng, 2010). Dendritic cells (DCs) are inflammatory cells that are considered to be the promoter of immune responses; knowing this the researchers hypothesized that DCs may play an important role in the development of the disease. See more: how to write an analysis Subjects were broken into three groups based on an illness gradient: (control group, smokers without airflow obstruction, and COPD group as determined by the Chinese Society of Respiratory Disease). Samples of alveolar tissue were taken from these three groups and studied using immunohistochemical staining and immunofluorescence confocal laser scanning. The results from the experiment are portrayed using a one-way analysis of variance, Pearson’s r coefficient, graphs, and scatter plots. The conclusion of the data showed that â€Å"The quantity of the DCs significantly increased in smokers with COPD compared with non-smokers or smokers without COPD† (Yan-wei et al., 2010). A critical analysis of this article received a 31.5. The article was well put together and provided many up to date references as resources to give a better understanding of the research. The authors explained their methodologies in great detail and the production of their data was concise and easy to read. However, the study lacked when it came to representing a diverse population. The study also lacks in terms of providing evidence of the consent of the subjects and the evidence of the governing body of the experiment. The research that was done in this experiment allowed scientist to develop new hypotheses concerning dendritic cells and their role in chronic diseases such as COPD. The links that were made with this research between dendritic cells, lung capacity, and cigarette smoke could potentially be the forefront of new treatments and earlier diagnoses for COPD victims. References Yan-wei, S., Yong-jian, X., Xian-sheng, L. (2010). Quantitative differentiation of dendritic cells in lung tissues of smokers with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Chinese Medical Journal, 123(12). Retreived from http://www.cmj.org/Periodical/PDF/200481469383420.pdf

Temptation and Survival in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Essay exampl

Temptation and Survival in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain faces choices as part of the Green Knight's game. The game is not the simple exchange of axe blows as it appears to be. It is actually a game of temptation and rule-breaking. In the end, Gawain fails this test given by the Green Knight and King Arthur's half-sister. When the Green Knight arrogantly rode into King Arthur's domain, he showed no respect for the celebrated knights. He rudely laughed away the praise he had heard of King Arthur as "the praise of you, prince, is puffed up so high" (Norton Anthology 1465). He also ridiculed the knights as they hesitated to accept his challenge. Gawain eventually accepted the challenge, but didn't fully understand what the test would actually be. In what was probably a rage of protecting King Arthur's honor, Sir Gawain chopped off the Green Knight's head and began the game. King Arthur's soldier didn't understand that this would be a game of rule following instead of a match determining warrior skills. The Green Knight is a charac...