The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 2~3

Two The Sea Beast The cooling pipes at the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant were all fashioned from the finest stainless steel. Before they were installed, they were x-rayed, ultrasounded, and pressure-tested to be sure that they could never break, and after being welded into place, the welds were also x-rayed and tested. The radioactive steam from the core left its heat in the pipes, which leached it off into a seawater cooling pond, where it was safely vented to the Pacific. But Diablo had been built on a breakneck schedule during the energy scare of the seventies. The welders worked double and triple shifts, driven by greed and cocaine, and the inspectors who ran the X-ray machines were on the same schedule. And they missed one. Not a major mistake. Just a tiny leak. Barely noticeable. A minuscule stream of harmless, low-level radiation wafted out with the tide and drifted over the continental shelf, dissipating as it went, until even the most sensitive instruments would have missed it. Yet the le ak didn't go totally undetected. In the deep trench off California, near a submerged volcano where the waters ran to seven hundred degrees Fahrenheit and black smokers spewed clouds of mineral soup, a creature was roused from a long slumber. Eyes the size of dinner platters winked out the sediment and sleep of years. It was instinct, sense, and memory: the Sea Beast's brain. It remembered eating the remains of a sunken Russian nuclear submarine: beefy little sailors tenderized by the pressure of the depths and spiced with piquant radioactive marinade. Memory woke the beast, and like a child lured from under the covers on a snowy morning by the smell of bacon frying, it flicked its great tail, broke free from the ocean floor, and began a slow ascent into the current of tasty treats. A current that ran along the shore of Pine Cove. Mavis Mavis tossed back a shot of Bushmills to take the edge off her frustration at not being able to whack anyone with her baseball bat. She wasn't really angry that Molly had bitten a customer. After all, he was a tourist and rated above the mice in the walls only because he carried cash. Maybe the fact that something had actually happened in the Slug would bring in a little business. People would come in to hear the story, and Mavis could stretch, speculate, and dramatize most stories into at least three drinks a tell. Business had been slowing over the last couple of years. People didn't seem to want to bring their problems into a bar. Time was, on any given afternoon, you'd have three or four guys at the bar, pouring down beers as they poured out their hearts, so filled with self-loathing that they'd snap a vertebra to avoid catching their own reflection in the big mirror behind the bar. On a given evening, the stools would be full of people who whined and growled and bitched all night long, pausing only long enough to stagger to the bathroom or to sacrifice a quarter to the jukebox's extensive self-pity selection. Sadness sold a lot of alcohol, and it had been in short supply these last few years. Mavis blamed the booming economy, Val Riordan, and vegetables in the diet for the sadness shortage, and she fought the insidious invaders by running two-for-one happy hours with fatty meat snacks (The whole point of happy hour was to purge happiness, wasn't it?), but all her efforts only served to cut her profits in half. If Pine Cove could no longer produce sadness, she would import some, so she advertised for a Blues singer. The old Black man wore sunglasses, a leather fedora, a tattered black wool suit that was too heavy for the weather, red suspenders over a Hawaiian shirt that sported topless hula girls, and creaky black-on-white wing tips. He set his guitar case on the bar and climbed onto a stool. Mavis eyed him suspiciously and lit a Tarryton 100. She'd been taught as a girl not to trust Black people. â€Å"Name your poison,† she said. He took off his fedora, revealing a gleaming brown baldness that shone like polished walnut. â€Å"You gots some wine?† â€Å"Cheap-shit red or cheap-shit white?† Mavis cocked a hip, gears and machinery clicked. â€Å"Them cheap-shit boys done expanded. Used to be jus' one flavor.† â€Å"Red or white?† â€Å"Whatever sweetest, sweetness.† Mavis slammed a tumbler onto the bar and filled it with yellow liquid from an icy jug in the well. â€Å"That'll be three bucks.† The Black man reached out – thick sharp nails skating the bar surface, long fingers waving like tentacles, searching, the hand like a sea creature caught in a tidal wash – and missed the glass by four inches. Mavis pushed the glass into his hand. â€Å"You blind?† â€Å"No, it be dark in here.† â€Å"Take off your sunglasses, idjit.† â€Å"I can't do that, ma'am. Shades go with the trade.† â€Å"What trade? Don't you try to sell pencils in here. I don't tolerate beggars.† â€Å"I'm a Bluesman, ma'am. I hear ya'll lookin for one.† Mavis looked at the guitar case on the bar, at the Black man in shades, at the long fingernails of his right hand, the short nails and knobby gray calluses on the fingertips of his left, and she said, â€Å"I should have guessed. Do you have any experience?† He laughed, a laugh that started deep down and shook his shoulders on the way up and chugged out of his throat like a steam engine leaving a tunnel. â€Å"Sweetness, I got me more experience than a busload o' hos. Ain't no dust settled a day on Catfish Jefferson since God done first dropped him on this big ol' ball o' dust. That's me, call me Catfish.† He shook hands like a sissy, Mavis thought, just let her have the tips of his fingers. She used to do that before she had her arthritic finger joints replaced. She didn't want any arthritic old Blues singer. â€Å"I'm going to need someone through Christmas. Can you stay that long or would your dust settle?† â€Å"I ‘spose I could slow down a bit. Too cold to go back East.† He looked around the bar, trying to take in the dinge and smoke through his dark glasses, then turned back to her. â€Å"Yeah, I might be able to clear my schedule if† – and here he grinned and Mavis could see a gold tooth there with a musical note cut in it – â€Å"if the money is right,† he said. â€Å"You'll get room and board and a percentage of the bar. You bring 'em in, you'll make money.† He considered, scratched his cheek where white stubble sounded like a toothbrush against sandpaper, and said, â€Å"No, sweetness, you bring 'em in. Once they hear Catfish play, they come back. Now what percentage did you have in mind?† Mavis stroked her chin hair, pulled it straight to its full three inches. â€Å"I'll need to hear you play.† Catfish nodded. â€Å"I can play.† He flipped the latches on his guitar case and pulled out a gleaming National steel body guitar. From his pocket he pulled a cutoff bottleneck and with a twist it fell onto the little finger of his left hand. He played a chord to test tune, pulled the bottleneck from the fifth to the ninth and danced it there, high and wailing. Mavis could smell something like mildew, moss maybe, a change in humidity. She sniffed and looked around. She hadn't been able to smell anything for fifteen years. Catfish grinned. â€Å"The Delta,† he said. He launched into a twelve-bar Blues, playing the bass line with his thumb, squealing the high notes with the slide, rocking back and forth on the bar stool, the light of the neon Coors sign behind the bar playing colors in the reflection of sunglasses and his bald head. The daytime regulars looked up from their drinks, stopped lying for a second, and Slick McCall missed a straight-in eight-ball shot on the quarter table, which he almost never did. And Catfish sang, starting high and haunting, going low and gritty. â€Å"They's a mean ol' woman run a bar out on the Coast. I'm telling you, they's a mean ol' woman run a bar out on the Coast. But when she gets you under the covers, That ol' woman turn your buttered bread to toast.† And then he stopped. â€Å"You're hired,† Mavis said. She pulled the jug of white cheap-shit out of the well and sloshed some into Catfish's glass. â€Å"On the house.† Just then the door opened and a blast of sunlight cut through the dinge and smoke and residual Blues and Vance McNally, the EMT, walked in and set his radio on the bar. â€Å"Guess what?† he said to everyone and no one in particular. â€Å"That pilgrim woman hung herself.† A low mumble passed through the regulars. Catfish put his guitar in its case and picked up his wine. â€Å"Sho' 'nuff a sad day startin early in this little town. Sho' 'nuff.† â€Å"Sho' 'nuff,† said Mavis with a cackle like a stainless-steel hyena. Valerie Riordan Depression has a mortality rate of fifteen percent. Fifteen percent of all patients with major depression will take their own lives. Statistics. Hard numbers in a very squishy science. Fifteen percent. Dead. Val Riordan had been repeating the figures to herself since Theophilus Crowe had called, but it wasn't helping her feel any better about what Bess Leander had done. Val had never lost a patient before. And Bess Leander hadn't really been depressed, had she? Bess didn't fit into the fifteen percent. Val went to the office in the back of her house and pulled Bess Leander's file, then went back to the living room to wait for Constable Crowe. At least it was the local guy, not the county sheriffs. And she could always fall back on patient confidentiality. Truth was, she had no idea why Bess Leander might have hung herself. She had only seen Bess once, and then for only half an hour. Val had made the diagnosis, written the scrip, and collected a check for the full hour session. Bess had called in twice, talked for a few minutes, and Val had sent her a bill for the time rounded to the next quarter hour. Time was money. Val Riordan liked nice things. The doorbell rang, Westminster chimes. Val crossed the living room to the marble foyer. A thin tall figure was refracted through the door's beveled glass panels: Theophilus Crowe. Val had never met him, but she knew of him. Three of his ex-girlfriends were her patients. She opened the door. He was dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a gray shirt with black epaulets that might have been part of a uniform at one time. He was clean-shaven, with long sandy hair tied neatly into a ponytail. A good-looking guy in an Ichabod Crane sort of way. Val guessed he was stoned. His girlfriends had talked about his habits. â€Å"Dr.Riordan,† he said. â€Å"Theo Crowe.† He offered his hand. She shook hands. â€Å"Everyone calls me Val,† she said. â€Å"Nice to meet you. Come in.† She pointed to the living room. â€Å"Nice to meet you too,† Theo said, almost as an afterthought. â€Å"Sorry about the circumstances.† He stood at the edge of the marble foyer, as if afraid to step on the white carpet. She walked past him and sat down on the couch. â€Å"Please,† she said, pointing to one of a set of Hepplewhite chairs. â€Å"Sit.† He sat. â€Å"I'm not exactly sure why I'm here, except that Joseph Leander doesn't seem to know why Bess did it.† â€Å"No note?† Val asked. â€Å"No. Nothing. Joseph went downstairs for breakfast this morning and found her hanging in the dining room.† Val felt her stomach lurch. She had never really formed a mental picture of Bess Leander's death. It had been words on the phone until now. She looked away from Theo, looked around the room for something that would erase the picture. â€Å"I'm sorry,† Theo said. â€Å"This must be hard for you. I'm just wondering if there was anything that Bess might have said in therapy that would give a clue.† Fifteen percent, Val thought. She said, â€Å"Most suicides don't leave a note. By the time they have gone that far into depression, they aren't interested in what happens after their death. They just want the pain to end.† Theo nodded. â€Å"Then Bess was depressed? Joseph said that she appeared to be getting better.† Val cast around her training for an answer. She hadn't really diagnosed Bess Leander, she had just prescribed what she thought would make Bess feel better. She said, â€Å"Diagnosis in psychiatry isn't always that exact, Theo. Bess Leander was a complex case. Without compromising doctor-patient confidentiality, I can tell you that Bess suffered from a borderline case of OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder. I was treating her for that.† Theo pulled a prescription bottle out of his shirt pocket and looked at the label. â€Å"Zoloft. Isn't that an anti-depressant? I only know because I used to date a woman who was on it.† Right, Val thought. Actually, you used to date at least three women who were on it. She said, â€Å"Zoloft is an SSRI like Prozac. It's prescribed for a number of conditions. With OCD the dosage is higher.† That's it, get clinical. Baffle him with clinical bullshit. Theo shook the bottle. â€Å"Could someone O.D. on it or something? I heard somewhere that people do crazy things sometimes on these drugs.† â€Å"That's not necessarily true. SSRIs like Zoloft are often prescribed to people with major depression. Fifteen percent of all depressed patients commit suicide.† There, she said it. â€Å"Antidepressants are a tool, along with talk therapy, that psychiatrists use to help patients. Sometimes the tools don't work. As with any therapy, a third get better, a third get worse, and a third stay the same. Antidepressants aren't a panacea.† But you treat them like they are, don't you, Val? â€Å"But you said that Bess Leander had OCD, not depression.† â€Å"Constable, have you ever had a stomachache and a runny nose at the same time?† â€Å"So you're saying she was depressed?† â€Å"Yes, she was depressed, as well as having OCD.† â€Å"And it couldn't have been the drugs?† â€Å"To be honest with you, I don't even know if she was taking the drug. Have you counted them?† â€Å"Uh, no.† â€Å"Patients don't always take their medicine. We don't order blood level tests for SSRIs.† â€Å"Right,† Theo said. â€Å"I guess we'll know when they do the autopsy.† Another horrendous picture flashed in Val's mind: Bess Leander on an autopsy table. The viscera of medicine had always been too much for her. She stood. â€Å"I wish I could help you more, but to be honest, Bess Leander never gave me any indication that she was suicidal.† At least that was true. Theo took her cue and stood. â€Å"Well, thank you. I'm sorry to have bothered you. If you think of anything, you know, anything that I can tell Joseph that might make it easier on him†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I'm sorry. That's all I know.† Fifteen percent. Fifteen percent. Fifteen percent. She led him to the door. He turned before leaving. â€Å"One more thing. Molly Michon is one of your patients, isn't she?† â€Å"Yes. Actually, she's a county patient, but I agreed to treat her at a reduced rate because all the county facilities are so far away.† â€Å"You might want to check on her. She attacked a guy at the Head of the Slug this morning.† â€Å"Is she in County?† â€Å"No, I took her home. She calmed down.† â€Å"Thank you, Constable. I'll call her.† â€Å"Well, then. I'll be going.† â€Å"Constable,† she called after him. â€Å"Those pills you have – Zoloft isn't a recreational drug.† Theo stumbled on the steps, then composed himself. â€Å"Right, Doctor, I figured that out when I saw the body hanging in the dining room. I'll try not to eat the evidence.† â€Å"Good-bye,† Val said. She closed the door behind him and burst into tears. Fifteen percent. She had fifteen hundred patients in Pine Cove on some form of antidepressant or another. Fifteen percent would be more than two hundred people dead. She couldn't do that. She wouldn't let an-other of her patients die because of her noninvolvement. If antidepressants wouldn't save them, then maybe she could. Three Theo Theophilus Crowe wrote bad free-verse poetry and played a jimbai drum while sitting on a rock by the ocean. He could play sixteen chords on the guitar and knew five Bob Dylan songs all the way through, allowing for a dampening buzz any time he had to play a bar chord. He had tried his hand at painting, sculpture, and pottery and had even played a minor part in the Pine Cove Little Theater's revival of Arsenic and Old Lace. In all these endeavors, he had experienced a meteoric rise to mediocrity and quit before total embarrassment and self-loathing set in. Theo was cursed with an artist's soul but no talent. He possessed the angst and the inspiration, but not the means to create. If there was any single thing at which Theo excelled, it was empathy. He always seemed to be able to understand someone's point of view, no matter how singular or farfetched, and in turn could convey it to others with a succinctness and clarity that he seldom found in expressing his own thoughts. He was a born mediator, a peacemaker, and it was this talent, after breaking up numerous fights at the Head of the Slug Saloon, that got Theo elected constable. That and heavy-handed endorsement of Sheriff John Burton. Burton was a hard-line right-wing politico who could spout law and order (accent on order) over brunch with the Rotarians, lunch with the NRA, and dinner with Mothers Against Drunk Drivers and wolf down dry banquet chicken like it was manna from the gods every time. He wore expensive suits, a gold Rolex, and drove a pearl-black Eldor-ado that shone like a starry night on wheels (rapt attention and copious coats of carnuba from the grunts in the county motor pool). He had been sheriff of San Junipero County for sixteen years, and in that time the crime rate had dropped steadily until it was the lowest, per capita, of any county in California. His endorsement of Theophilus Crowe, someone with no law enforcement experience, had come as more than somewhat of a surprise to the people of Pine Cove, especially since Theo's opponent was a retired Los Angeles policeman who'd put in a highly decorated five and twenty. What the people of Pine Cove did not know was that Sheriff Burton not only e ndorsed Theo, he had forced him to run in the first place. Theophilus Crowe was a quiet man, and Sheriff John Burton had his reasons for not wanting to hear a peep out of the little North County burg of Pine Cove, so when Theo walked into his little two-room cabin, he wasn't surprised to see a red seven blinking on his answering machine. He punched the button and listened to Burton's assistant insisting that he call right away – seven times. Burton never called the cell phone. Theo had come home to shower and ponder his meeting with Val Riordan. The fact that she had treated at least three of his ex-girlfriends bothered him. He wanted to try and figure out what the women had told her. Obviously, they'd mention that he got high occasionally. Well, more than occasionally. But like any man, it worried him that they might have said something about his sexual performance. For some reason, it didn't bother him nearly as much that Val Riordan think him a loser and a drug fiend as it did that she might think he was bad in the rack. He wanted to ponder the possibilities, think away the paranoia, but instead he dialed the sheriff's private number and was put right through. â€Å"What in the hell is the matter with you, Crowe? You stoned?† â€Å"No more than usual,† Theo said. â€Å"What's the problem?† â€Å"The problem is you removed evidence from a crime scene.† â€Å"I did?† Talking to the sheriff could drain all of Theo's energy instantly. He fell into a beanbag chair that expectorated Styrofoam beads from a failing seam with a sigh. â€Å"What evidence? What scene?† â€Å"The pills, Crowe. The suicide's husband said you took the pills with you. I want them back at the scene in ten minutes. I want my men out of there in half an hour. The M.E. will do the autopsy this afternoon and this case will close by dinnertime, got it? Run-of-the-mill suicide. Obit page only. No news. You understand?† â€Å"I was just checking on her condition with her psychiatrist. See if there were any indications she might be suicidal.† â€Å"Crowe, you must resist the urge to play investigator or pretend that you are a law enforcement officer. The woman hung herself. She was de-pressed and she ended it all. The husband wasn't cheating, there was no money motive, and Mommy and Daddy weren't fighting.† â€Å"They talked to the kids?† â€Å"Of course they talked to the kids. They're detectives. They investigate things. Now get over there and get them out of North County. I'd send them over to get the pills from you, but I wouldn't want them to find your little victory garden, would you?† â€Å"I'm leaving now,† Theo said. â€Å"This is the last I will hear of this,† Burton said. He hung up. Theo hung up the phone, closed his eyes, and turned into a human puddle in the beanbag chair. Forty-one years old and he still lived like a college student. His books were stacked between bricks and boards, his bed pulled out of a sofa, his refrigerator was empty but for a slice of pizza going green, and the grounds around his cabin were overgrown with weeds and brambles. Behind the cabin, in the middle of a nest of blackberry vines, stood his victory garden: ten bushy marijuana plants, sticky with buds that smelled of skunk and spice. Not a day passed that he didn't want to plow them under and sterilize the ground they grew in. And not a day passed that he didn't work his way through the brambles and lovingly harvest the sticky green that would sustain his habit through the day. The researchers said that marijuana was only psychologically addictive. Theo had read all the papers. They only mentioned the night sweats and mental spiders of withdrawal in passing, as if they were no more unpleasant than a tetanus shot. But Theo had tried to quit. He'd wrung out three sets of sheets in one night and paced the cabin looking for distraction until he thought his head might explode, only to give up and suck the piquant smoke from his Sneaky Pete so he could find sleep. The researchers obvi-ously didn't get it, but Sheriff John Burton did. He understood Theo's weakness and held it over him like the proverbial sword. That Burton had his own Achilles' heel and more to lose from its discovery didn't seem to matter. Logically, Theo had him in a standoff. But emotionally, Burton had the upper hand. Theo was always the one to blink. He snatched Sneaky Pete off his orange crate coffee table and headed out the door to return Bess Leander's pills to the scene of the crime. Valerie Dr. Valerie Riordan sat at her desk, looking at the icons of her life: a tiny digital stock ticker that she would surreptitiously glance down at during appointments; a gold Mont Blanc desk set, the pens jutting from the jade base like the antennae of a goldbug; a set of bookends fashioned in the likenesses of Freud and Jung, bracing leather-bound copies of The Psychology of the Unconscious, The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), The Interpretation of Dreams, and The Physician's Desk Reference; and a plaster-cast bust of Hippocrates that dispensed Post-it notes from the base. Hippocrates, that wily Greek who turned medicine from magic to science. The author of the famous oath that Val had uttered twenty years ago on that sunny summer day in Ann Arbor when she graduated from med school: â€Å"I will use treatment to help the sick according to my ability and judgment, but I will never use it to injure or wrong them. I will not give poison to anyone though a sked to do so, nor will I suggest such a plan.† The oath had seemed so silly, so antiquated then. What doctor, in their right mind, would give poison to a patient? â€Å"But in purity and in holiness I will guard my life and my art.† It had seemed so obvious and easy then. Now she guarded her life and her art with a custom security system and a Glock 9 mm. stashed in the nightstand. â€Å"I will not use the knife on sufferers from stone, but I will give place to such as are craftsmen therein.† She'd never had a problem with that part of the oath. She was loathe to use the knife. She'd gone into psychiatry because she couldn't handle the messy parts of medicine. Her father, a surgeon himself, had been only mildly disappointed. At least she was a doctor, of sorts. She'd done her internship and residency in a rehab center where movie stars and rock idols learned to be responsible by making their own beds, while Val distributed Valium like a flight attendant passing out peanuts. One wing of the Sunrise Center was druggies, the other eating disorders. She preferred the eating disorders. â€Å"You haven't lived until you've force-fed minestrone to a supermodel through a tube,† she told her father. â€Å"Into whatsoever houses I enter, I will do so to help the sick, keeping myself free from all intentional wrongdoing and harm, especially from fornication with woman or man, bond or free.† Well, abstinence from fornication hadn't been a problem, had it? She hadn't had sex since Richard left five years ago. Richard had given her the bust of Hippocrates as a joke, he said, but she'd put it on her desk just the same. She'd given him a statue of Blind Justice wearing a garter belt and fishnets the year before to display at his law office. He'd brought her here to this little village, passing up offers from corporate law firms to follow his dream of being a country lawyer whose daily docket would include disagreements over pig paternity or the odd pension dispute. He wanted to be Atticus Finch, Pudd'nhead Wilson, a Jimmy Stewart or Henry Fonda character who was paid in fresh-baked bread and baskets of avocados. Well, he'd gotten that part; Val's practice had supported them for most of their marriage. She'd be paying him alimony now if they'd actually divorced. Country lawyer indeed. He left her to go to Sacramento to lobby the California Coastal Commission for a consortium of golf course developers. His job was to convince the commission that sea otters and elephant seals would enjoy nothing better than to watch Japanese businessmen slice Titleists into the Pacific and that what nature needed was one long fairway from Santa Barbara to San Francisco (maybe sand traps at the Pismo and Carmel dunes). He carried a pocket watch, for Christ's sake, a gold chain with a jade fob carved into the shape of an endangered brown pelican. He played his front-porch, rocking-chair-wise, country lawyer against their Botany 500 sophistication and pulled down over two hundred grand a year in the bargain. He lived with one of his clerks, an earnest doe-eyed Stanfordite with surfer girl hair and a figure that mocked gravity. Richard had introduced Val to the girl (Ashley, or Brie, or Jordan) and it had been oh-so-adult and oh-so-gracious and later, when Val cal led Richard to clear up a tax matter, she asked, â€Å"So how'd you screen the candidates, Richard? First one to suck-start your Lexus?† â€Å"Maybe we should start thinking about making our separation official,† Richard had said. Val had hung up on him. If she couldn't have a happy marriage, she'd have everything else. Everything. And so had begun her revolving door policy of hustling appointments, prescribing the appropriate meds, and shopping for clothes and antiques. Hippocrates glowered at her from the desk. â€Å"I didn't intentionally do harm,† Val said. â€Å"Not intentionally, you old buggerer. Fifteen percent of all depressives commit suicide, treated or not.† â€Å"Whatsoever in the course of practice I see or hear (or even outside my practice in social intercourse) that ought never to be published abroad, I will not divulge, but consider such things to be holy secrets.† â€Å"Holy secrets or do no harm?† Val asked, envisioning the hanging body of Bess Leander with a shudder. â€Å"Which is it?† Hippocrates sat on his Post-its, saying nothing. Was Bess Leander's death her fault? If she had talked to Bess instead of put her on antidepressants, would that have saved her? It was possible, and it was also possible that if she kept to her policy of a â€Å"pill for every problem,† someone else was going to die. She couldn't risk it. If using talk therapy instead of drugs could save one life, it was worth a try. Val grabbed the phone and hit the speed dial button that connected her to the town's only pharmacy, Pine Cove Drug and Gift. One of the clerks answered. Val asked to speak to Winston Krauss, the pharmacist. Winston was one of her patients. He was fifty-three, unmarried, and eighty pounds overweight. His holy secret, which he shared with Val during a session, was that he had an unnatural sexual fascination with marine mammals, dolphins in particular. He'd confessed that he'd never been able to watch â€Å"Flipper† without getting an erection and that he'd watched so many Jacques Cousteau specials that a French accent made him break into a sweat. He kept an anatomically correct inflatable porpoise, which he violated nightly in his bathtub. Val had cured him of wearing a scuba mask and snorkel around the house, so gradually the red gasket ring around his face had cleared up, but he still did the dolphin nightly and confessed it to her once a month. â€Å"Winston, Val Riordan here. I need a favor.† â€Å"Sure, Dr. Val, you need me to deliver something to Molly? I heard she went off in the Slug this morning.† Gossip surpassed the speed of light in Pine Cove. â€Å"No, Winston, you know that company that carries all the look-alike placebos? We used them in college. I need you to order look-alikes for all the antidepressants I prescribe: Prozac, Zoloft, Serzone, Effexor, the whole bunch, all the dosages. Order in quantity.† â€Å"I don't get it, Val, what for?† Val cleared her throat. â€Å"I want you to fill all of my prescriptions with the placebos.† â€Å"You're kidding.† â€Å"I'm not kidding, Winston. As of today, I don't want a single one of my patients getting the real thing. Not one.† â€Å"Are you doing some sort of experiment? Control group or something?† â€Å"Something like that.† â€Å"And you want me to charge them the normal price?† â€Å"Of course. Our usual arrangement.† Val got a twenty percent kickback from the pharmacy. She was going to be working a lot harder, she deserved to get paid. Winston paused. She could hear him going through the glass door into the back of the pharmacy. Finally he said, â€Å"I can't do that, Val. That's unethical. I could lose my license, go to jail.† Val had really hoped it wouldn't come to this. â€Å"Winston, you'll do it. You'll do it or the Pine Cove Gazette will run a front-page story about you being a fish-fucker.† â€Å"That's illegal. You can't divulge something I told you in therapy.† â€Å"Quit telling me what's illegal, Winston. I'm married to a lawyer.† â€Å"I'd really rather not do this, Val. Can't you send them down to the Thrifty Mart in San Junipero? I could say that I can't get the pills anymore.† â€Å"That wouldn't work, would it, Winston? The people at the Thrifty Mart don't have your little problem.† â€Å"You're going to have some withdrawal reactions. How are you going to explain that?† â€Å"Let me worry about that. I'm quadrupling my sessions. I want to see these people get better, not mask their problems.† â€Å"This is about Bess Leander's suicide, isn't it?† â€Å"I'm not going to lose another one, Winston.† â€Å"Antidepressants don't increase the incidence of suicide or violence. Eli Lilly proved that in court.† â€Å"Yes and O.J. walked. Court is one thing, Winston, the reality of losing a patient is another. I'm taking charge of my practice. Now order the pills. I'm sure the profit margin is going to be quite a bit higher on sugar pills than it is on Prozac.† â€Å"I could go to the Florida Keys. There's a place down there where they let you swim with bottlenose dolphins.† â€Å"You can't go, Winston. You can't miss your therapy sessions. I want to see you at least once a week.† â€Å"You bitch.† â€Å"I'm trying to do the right thing. What day is good for you?† â€Å"I'll call you back.† â€Å"Don't push me, Winston.† â€Å"I have to make this order,† he said. Then, after a second, he said, â€Å"Dr. Val?† â€Å"What?† â€Å"Do I have to go off the Serzone?† â€Å"We'll talk about it in therapy.† She hung up and pulled a Post-it out of Hippocrates' chest. â€Å"Now if I keep this oath, and break it not, may I enjoy honor, in my life and art, among all men for all time; but if I transgress and forswear myself, may the opposite befall me.† Does that mean dishonor for all time? she wondered. I'm just trying to do the right thing here. Finally. She made a note to call Winston back and schedule his appointments.

Forgive My Guilt

In this poem, the Ol' Higue tells of her frustration with her lifestyle. She does not like the fact that she sometimes has to parade around, in the form of a fireball, without her skin at night. She explains that she has to do this in order to scare people, as well as to acquire baby blood. She explains that she would rather acquire this blood via cooked food, like every-one else. Her worst complaint is the pain of salt, as well as having to count rice grains. She exhibits some regret for her lifestyle but implies that she cannot resist a baby's smell, as well as it's pure blood.The ‘newness' of the baby tempts the Ol' Higue, and she cannot resist because she is an old woman who fears death, which can only be avoided by consuming the baby's blood. She affirms her usefulness in the scheme of things, however, by claiming that she provides mothers with a name for their fears (this being the death of a child), as well as some-one to blame when the evil that they wish for their chil d, in moments of tired frustration, is realized. She implies that she will never die, so long as women keep having babies.Poems: ‘Ol’ Higue’ and ‘Le Loupgarou’ The what – Content: Theme – The supernatural, stories used to explain unknown or phenomena. Beliefs held by society custom – culture Ol’ Higue – name given to woman who haunts babies – this results in sickness or death. Practices govern how this situation is treated – use of salt, rice grain and the sun. This belief has held its root and will not go away – because as long as babies get sick and die – blame will be cast on Ol Higue.The Form – Layout of poem  3 stanzas written in free verse – this facilitates the type of poem – dramatic monologue – persona’s expression of her feelings. This also allows for introspection as well as involvement of the reader/listener to participate in the situation. The How – Structure Dramatic monologue Diction – use of colloquial and expression relating to society eg. ‘dry-up woman’ Movements among and within paragraphs – reader/listener invited to sympathize with her pleading to listeners – then to justification of actions – acceptance of relevance to society and mothers.Use of punctuation and lineation – question marks, ellipsis, exclamation – facilitates the dramatic monologue style, supports the changes in emotions and the need for the listener/reader to see from her point of view. Use of imagery – ‘few drops of baby blood’ blood running in new veins, ‘fly come’(literal and figurative) ‘Believe me-‘short line – to prepare the reader and solidify what is to come – an acceptable truth. See Notes on English B pg. 32-33 Comparison to other poem‘Le Loupgarou’ – a sonnet – hence more structure is e vident in terms of lineation, rhyme scheme Use of end and eye rhymes, poem divided into an octave and sestet Delving in the world of the supernatural – a realistic situation – a man Le Brun – being used and told as something supernatural. Story told as a rumour – section about him turning into a werewolf – this is to both facilitate the extent of his actions what happened to him and the women’s dislike of him. Use of imagery and literary devices – oxymoron ‘Christian witches’ howled and lugged.Both poems Caribbean in nature – custom and tradition – affects practices done and treatment given to and by people. Ol’Higue’s story facilitates the mothers’ explanation for the unexplained (sick or dead baby) – while the story of Le Brun and what has been added on by the women – facilitates their gossip and what the community holds on to. You will observe that both poems deal with t he supernatural. The Soucouyant is the counterpart of the Le Loupgarou. They both make a pact with the devil to engage in mysterious and fiendish dealings. They both are greedy and are ruined through their greed.They both evoke fear in the people around them. Derek Walcott was born in 1930 in the town of Castries in Saint Lucia, one of the Windward Islands in the Lesser Antilles. The experience of growing up on the isolated volcanic island, an ex-British colony, has had a strong influence on Walcott's life and work. Both his grandmothers were said to have been the descendants of slaves. His father, a Bohemian watercolourist, died when Derek and his twin brother, Roderick, were only a few years old. His mother ran the town's Methodist school.After studying at St.  Mary's College in his native island and at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica, Walcott moved in 1953 to Trinidad, where he has worked as theatre and art critic. At the age of 18, he made his debut with 25 Poems, but his breakthrough came with the collection of poems, In a Green Night (1962). In 1959, he founded the Trinidad Theatre Workshop which produced many of his early plays. Walcott has been an assiduous traveller to other countries but has always, not least in his efforts to create an indigenous drama, felt himself deeply-rooted in Caribbean society with its cultural fusion of African, Asiatic and European elements.For many years, he has divided his time between Trinidad, where he has his home as a writer, and Boston University, where he teaches literature and creative writing. From Nobel Lectures, Literature 1991-1995, Editor Sture All?n, World Scientific Publishing Co. , Singapore, 1997 This autobiography/biography was written at the time of the award and first published in the book series Les Prix Nobel. It was later edited and republished in Nobel Lectures. To cite this document, always state the source as shown above.

Antecedents and Consequences of Decline in Trade Union Density

'Trade Union Membership in Australia has Declined Significantly Since the 1980s.   As a result,  Unions are becoming an Irrelevant Actor in Australian Employment Relations'. Drawing on Academic Research and Commentary,   Provide a Response to this statement.   In framing your argument, Consider the Antecedents and Consequences of the Decline in Trade Union Membership and Trade Union Density. In reconnoitring the factors that led to the emergence and fall of industrial labour in Australia, the present paper contends that support for unions initially surfaced from a working class which was an outcome of the nation’s uncommon economic past. In the 20 th century the incorporation of systems of mandatory arbitration, formulated to mediate industrial disputes, strengthened the support for labour unions. In the year 1948, the support for unionism was at its pinnacle. A long process of its fall started as the working cadre constituency that had supplied its social anchor fragmented due to structural transformations in the economy. The collapse of arbitration post-1986 aggravated this declining pattern, as did a rise in unwarranted employment and anti-union tactics of the employers (Docherty, 2010). The present essay reviews the literature on the fall in union density in Australia. Germane studies are critically analysed and compared, and the review brings to light the co mplexity of the issue, the necessity to avoid simplistic responses, and makes recommendations regarding the areas of study that most likely augment the comprehension of the sharp decline in unionisation. As per the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures of 2000, the fall in union membership in the nation, despite the attempts made by the Australian Council of Trade Unions to prevent further decline. While it is apparent that there is a reduction in union density, it is critical to evaluate the reasons behind it and what are the unions doing for combating such downward trend. In striving to handle the issue, it is significant to understand the major objectives of the union that draws members and the antecedents of the decline (Abbott, MacKinnon and Fallon, 2016). Australian unions were set up in the initial half of the 19 th , with growth starting in the post gold-rush age. It is from then that the most rapid growth of the period appears to have been in the decade of the 1880s, wherein affluent economic conditions and a constricted labour market were drivers making for the development of unions. The main goal of a union is to enhance the well-being and promote the interests of its members. They were created to offset the higher financial power of the employers (Cooper et al., 2009). It has long been acknowledged that the dominance over the market by the employers could be countered by employees acting jointly and instituting organisations to negotiate on their part. The most crucial function performed by the union was to maximise the salaries and wages of its members. There are several reasons why employees might join a union. However, three factors are apparent. They are; sense the advantages of unionism surpass the likely costs; displeasure with financial aspects of their job; and an intention to impact those facets of the work environment via union means. Despite the evident benefits of the union, the membership of Australian union has declined. As emphasised by Kaufman, (2008) unionism harvested a core place in the Australian community between 1921 and mid-1950s. Even in the profundity of the Great Depression, the membership never plummeted below 42.5%. Moreover, with the recovery of the economy during World War II, it garnered unprecedented support. Times have significantly changed. Two decades ago 50% of all employees were part of the union. Currently, the rate of unionisation is only 23%. Even the public sector, which was once a mainstay of union power, has witnessed a sharp decline in the density. In the epoch of feminization, computerization and casualization, de-unionization is perhaps the most considerable change to have to strike the labour market over the years. A sign of fall in union strength is the rarity of strikes (Holland et al., 2011). The number of days lost to industrial conflicts is only one-fourth of its level during the early 1980s. To fathom the transition, Bashur and Oc, (2015) posit that it is helpful to discard two common elucidations for union decline briefly. The first is that the density decreased due to the increasing scepticism of workers toward it. In effect, attitude tends to reflect union power. When the membership increased during the 1970s, Australians were more likely to say, pollsters, that th ey believed unions had extreme strength and less likely to consent that unions had been a great thing for the country. Correspondingly, as they started waning during the 1990s, the portion of individuals who believed that unions carried too much power decreased steadily (Docherty, 2010). The second argument which is made is that de-unionization was an outcome of the fall in real wages which happened under the Accord. Yet as Leigh, (2011) points out in his study The Decline of an Institution, this statement means that unionisation must have fallen more during the 1980s (when there was a decline in real wage) than the 1990s (when there was a rise in real wages). However, the opposite is true – the most drastic decline in unionisation happened during the 1990s. If not the Accord and attitudes then what led to union density witnessing the downward trend? The fall narrows down to four major factors: changes to the laws regulating unions, higher product market rivalry, growing inequality, and structural changes in the labour market. The most substantial factor in de-unionization in Australia has been transitions in the legal system regulating the unions.   Hodder and Kretsos (2015) state that between 1990 and 1995, conformist governments in five out of six states brought into effect a legislation intended to prohibit mandatory unionisation, promoting individual bargaining, and introducing changes to non-award coverage easier. Paradoxically, this was similar to the process that took place in the 1920s, when a series of state Labour governments enforced law in favour of wage arbitration and mandatory unionism, resulting in an upsurge in union membership. During the later half of the 1980s, over 50% of the union members needed to be a union member as their employment condition. In the 1990s, not any longer bound to be a member, a huge proportion opted to give up their membership (Leigh, 2011). Expectedly, the unions that bore the biggest brunt were those that were highest dependent on mandatory union laws. The ne w law was enforced from 1996 when the then government virtually eliminated mandatory unionism and made it challenging for the unions to hire and strike. The second most significant driver of de-unionization has been increasing competition. Driven by microeconomic reforms, revived Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and tariff cuts, the market for purchasing most goods and services are now considerably more competitive than during the 1970s. When companies have an oligopoly or monopoly situation, it is convenient for them to pay higher salaries to their workers. Prices are greater in non-competitive markets, and in economics’ jargon, this produces â€Å"rents†. The employers then share such â€Å"rents† with employees (Grenfell, 2017). When monopolies are split, and the marketplaces become competitive, employers have to cut costs. This puts pressure on the companies to follow powerful anti-union strategies to minimise the wage bill. The third argument for declining union diversity is the increase in earnings inequality. To comprehend how this works, it is crucial to acknowledge that unions not only aim greater wages but also for higher pay compression (Heidecker, 2013). This happens through standardised wage schedules, and claims that ask for an equal increase for every worker. Less pay distribution within an organisation also renders it easy for unions to form, as employees are likely to have mutual cause with those who get similar salaries. Economists have in general focused on the manner in which de-unionization impacts inequality (Bray, Waring and Cooper, 2011). In Australia, Jeff Borland found that 30% of the rise in earnings disparity among permanent males between 1986 and 1994 can be elucidated by falling unionisation. However, the opposite can also be true. If disparity increased (owing to globalisation, technological change, or other factors), unions are likely to find it difficult to create an effectiv e coalition between highly-paid and low-paid employees. The probability of two employees both earning $20 per hour joining the union is higher than if one make $10 and the other $30 (Koukoulas, 2015). The last factor is structural labour market changes. Throughout the developed economies, unions have an easier time hiring in the public sector, the manufacturing sector, among permanent employees and in big companies. The emergence of the service sector, casualization of the labor force, downscaling of government and the surfacing of SMEs are all transformations that disadvantage unions (Forsyth et al., 2017). To examine the impact of the above-mentioned factors, Peetz, (2012) used a method called â€Å"shift-share analysis†, and concluded that they were responsible for nearly 50% of the fall during 1982-92, however, do not elucidate much of the decline since then. As the drop-in unionisation has been quicker in the 1990s as compared to the 1980s, this demotes structural changes to a minor role in describing the overall drop in unionisation in the last 37 years. Evidence propose that voting by union members is being done with their feet and that other systems are emerging to replace them. The proportion of companies with mutual consultative committees grew two times between 1990 and 1995, and the number of companies with ad-hoc employer-employee committees also increased considerably. Requirements that once only unions could meet are now addressed by new organisations (Davis, 2010). The macro and microeconomic impacts of the plummeting strength of unions have been debated by policymakers and economists. Nonetheless, the empirical evidence suggests that the effect of the drop on economic aggregates and company performance is not a devastating cause of concern. However, the relationship of falling union strength with increasing earning disparity and the minimising direct communication between employees and employers is potentially more troublesome (Kelty, 2011). For the period of 1995-2010, the coefficient estimate for the alteration in union strength is negative and insignificant statistically, proposing that transitions in union density were no longer connected to redistribution. It is reported by Toscano (2015) that union fall since the 1980s has been accompanied by alterations in the union members’ position in income diffusion. It is speculated that, since the position of an average union member has improved with a decline in density, union members are also no longer very supportive of redistributive policies and wage solidarity. Hence, the disparity issue might stay, but the role played unions is more controversial. Though companies in competitive labour markets might undersupply workers’ voice, but it does not mean that independent unionism is the solution, either from an employee standpoint, or the practicable interest of strengthening productivity. In fact, many researchers have identified that the drop in union voice has been coupled with a substantial growth in non-union voice, such that the total exposure of voice mechanisms has been stable and high (Furze et al., 2011). In short, Australian workers have selected non-union voice over no voice at all. In addition to this evaluating voice regimes, non-union voice overshadows union voice for a series of perceived result indicators – financial performance, productivity, and industrial relations climate – if not turnover. This provides credibility to the con cept that management has a motivation of investing in non-union voice, although such positive scene is muddled by comparisons between voice types (Schaper, 2014).    With the waning of unions, today’s labour markets of Australia are closer to the theoretical models of competitive markets than they were during the 1970s. This is mainly because of a succession of legal changes that have rendered it difficult for unions to organise, but also owing to higher competition in the markets, growing wage disparity and alterations in the composition of the workforce. It is extremely unlikely that any of these alterations will be inversed. More Australians are now employed in sectors that have always had less union strength. Employment in conventionally powerful union sectors like the public sector and the manufacturing sector are being substituted by jobs in service industries and community-based establishments that have low union density. Permanent employees are being substituted by casual and part-time workers, and such types of employment have lower rates of union membership. More of the labor force has become contractors, self-employed or employe d in small businesses and do not perceive union membership as important. Abbott, K., MacKinnon, B and Fallon, P. 2016. Understanding employment relations. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press. Addison, T. J. 2014. The consequences of trade union power erosion. IZA World of Labor. Bashur, M and Oc, B. 2015.   When voice matters: A multilevel review of the impact of voice in organisations.   Journal of Management, 41(5): 1530-54. Bray, M., Waring, P. and Cooper, R. 2011. Employment Relations: Theory and Practice. Sydney: McGraw-Hill. Cooper, R., Ellem, B., Briggs, C., and Broek, D. 2009. Anti-unionism, employer strategy, and the Australian State, 1996–2005. Labor Studies Journal, 34(3): 339–62. Davis, M. 2010. Unions face fight on a new front. (September 22, Sydney). Accessed March 29, 2017. Docherty, C. J. 2010. The A to Z of Australia. Rowman & Littlefield. Forsyth, A., Howe, J., Gahan, P. and Landau, I. 2017. Establishing the Right to Bargain Collectively in Australia and the UK: Are Majority Support Determinations under Australia’s Fair Work Act a More Effective Form of Union Recognition? Industrial Law Journal. Furze, B., Savy, P., Brym, J. R. and Lie, J. 2011. Sociology in Today’s World. Cengage Learning. Grenfell, O. 2017. Australian report highlights collapse of union membership. 19 January. World Socialist Website. . Viewed 29 March 2017.   Heidecker, P. 2013. Four Reasons For The Decline In Union Membership. 24 April. Clean Link. . Viewed 29 March 2017. Hodder, A. and Kretsos, L. 2015. Young Workers and Trade Unions: A Global View. Springer. Holland, P., Pyman, A., Cooper, B and Teicher, J.   2011.   Employee voice and job satisfaction in Australia:   The centrality of direct voice.   Human Resource Management, 50(1): 95-111. Kaufman, B. 2008. Paradigms in industrial relations: original, modern and versions in-between.   British Journal of Industrial Relations, 46(2): 314-339. Kelty, W. 2011. The introduction of enterprise bargaining – a retrospective: Opening address. Enterprise Bargaining in Australia Workshop, Melbourne, Melbourne Law School. Koukoulas, S. 2015. The decline of union membership. 26 November. The Adelaide Review, . Viewed 29 March 2017. Leigh, A. 2011. The Decline of an Institution. Australian Financial Review: 21. Peetz, D. 2012. THE IMPACTS AND NON-IMPACTS ON UNIONS OF ENTERPRISE BARGAINING.   Labor and Industry, 22(3): 237-254. Schaper, T. M. 2014. A brief history of small business in Australia, 1970-2010. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy, 3(2): pp.222-236. Toscano, N. 2015. Trade union membership hits record low. (October 27, Sydney). Accessed March 29, 2017.

Understanding the process of economic change in a global world Essay

Understanding the process of economic change in a global world - Essay Example When people are particularly sensitive to our vastly changing environment and they emphasize their awareness to the multifarious problems that economists are facing, we could easily deal with improving the transition third world economies together., that we use tools to control our world that are very blunt instruments. Thus, North suggested that â€Å"the only tools that we have that allow us to try to shape the world we are in, are the formal rules of the game† (p. 11). In order to illustrate the rules of the game, North narrates an anecdote when he visited Moscow together with three other Americans. They were tasked by the Soviet Academy of Scientists to go to Moscow to advise the Soviet Union on its economy. The first American said, all you have to do is privatize and all will be well. The second American said, all you have to do is eliminate government, and all will be well. The third American said, all you have to do is have the computer and all will be well. I was the fourth American and I said, don't pay attention to the first three speakers; the problems are much more complicated (p. 10-11). North presented the solution would be privatization, the â€Å"catch-all panacea† to al Russia’s ills. But North warned that â€Å"privatization without the fundamental structure of the rule of law and enforcement mechanisms to go with it does not produce desirable results† (p. 12). He mentioned that there is privatization in Latin America, but privatization in the context of government fostered monopolies produces a world that does not look at all like what you want.

Corrosion Protection in Offshore Pipelines Essay

Corrosion Protection in Offshore Pipelines - Essay Example According to the research corrosion in offshore pipeline environments is a critical and unresolved issue for oil and gas industries. Due to the nature of subsea facilities and infrastructures, corrosive processes are more abundant and varied than their onshore counterparts. The maintenance and monitoring of such problems is also more expensive given the challenges of access and context of the location. The aggressive nature of sea environments leads to pipeline systems becoming vulnerable to corrosion from various internal and external forces such as chemical reactions induced by seawater composition. Currently there are several techniques used by oil and gas industries to combat offshore corrosion. Corrosion resistant alloys are often used to prevent corrosion, as well as certain pipeline coatings and cathodic protection of pipelines. Offshore monitoring is often executed as a preventative measure, via electrical resistance monitoring, electrochemical methods, hydrogen monitoring, w eight-loss coupons, non-destructive testing techniques and analytical techniques. Offshore pigging is also a common practice. Researching and investigating case histories is a crucial way in which industries may improve their knowledge of corrosion protection techniques. Overall, there are many diverse methods, various apparatuses, several technological platforms and a wide spectrum of concepts involved in preventing, combating, managing and monitoring corrosion in offshore pipeline environments. However, these measures alone do not guarantee corrosion protection. Further research and experimentation using cutting-edge technology must be used in order to fully mitigate this issue. Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION....................

How Does Bank of America Fulfill the Needs of Its Shareholders Essay - 1

How Does Bank of America Fulfill the Needs of Its Shareholders - Essay Example The researcher states that the Bank of America caters the requirements of individual clients, small business organizations as well as large business corporations with a variety of banking and financial services. The services offered by the Bank of America range from banking, asset management, investing as well as other additional products and services in the financial domain. The Bank of America Corporation offers a broad assortment of financial services and products by means of their numerous banking as well as nonbanking subsidiaries all over the United States of America and in certain parts of the global market. The bank offers its services in six major business divisions, viz. Deposits, Home Loans & Insurance, Global Card Services, Global Banking & Markets, Global Commercial Banking and Global Wealth & Investment Management. As on December 31, 2010, the Bank of America Corporation possessed assets worth $2.3 trillion and revenue values worth $111,390 million. The bank undertook t he acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. on January 1, 2009. Consequent to the acquisition, the Bank of America has become one of the biggest wealth management companies in the globe with almost 19,700 wealth advisors and further 3,000 front-line consumers facing specialized staffs and in excess of $2.2 trillion in customer assets. Furthermore, Bank of America Corporation is the worldwide leading organization in corporate and investment banking as well as trading over an extensive variety of asset classes catering to the large corporations and institutions, governments, and individual clients throughout the world. The Bank of America also provides industry-leading support to around four million people owning small businesses and is the issuer of the highest number of debit cards in the United States of America. It holds the leading position in credit card loans in Europe and possesses the second largest market share for credit offerings in the United States. The Bank of America h as a well-built foothold in the mortgage business sector and is one of the foremost two mortgage service providers and instigators in the US.

Rise of the electronic music scene in todays generation Research Paper

Rise of the electronic music scene in todays generation - Research Paper Example From that time, music that became created with electronic instruments, instead of the electromechanical designs from which they were made. Major factors promoting the rise of Electronic Music Electronic music scene in its self has seen so much rise and advancements from the very first days of its origin when it was created. These changes are due to a number of factors, which can be given timelines right from the onset of the production of the first electronic instrument. For example in the seasons of the 1940s and the 1950s, the Electroacoustic tape music was introduced. This brought about the production of the very first practical audio tape recorder in Berlin (Brophy et al, 2009). It was the development of the audio tape recorder that gave way to the electroacoustic tape music. Then in the 1960s, there was further expansion of electronic music with the advent of computer music and live electronic. Indeed, this was going to be a major break through for the rise and advancement of el ectronic music as computers were engineered to play recognizable tunes by the use of complex amplification of sounds (Brophy, 2002). Today, the developments have reached sections whereby there have been the production of sequencers and drum machines, MIDI, chip tunes, circuit bending, digital synthesis, among others as part of the expansion of electronic music. To sum it all, electronic music has grown to a stage where it has become more accustomed with today’s generation. Electronic Music as Popular Culture Whether by accident or as a plan, the people of today have become more sophisticated with the genre of music they cherish to listen to. Indeed, the people of today’s... This "Rise of the electronic music scene in today’s generation" essay outlines the origin of this musical style and its impact on the modern society. Discussions on the rise of electronic music would almost be incomplete if the subject of globalization is not mentioned. This is because globalization has shot up the popularity of electronic music so much so that there is virtually no corner of this world that electronic music is not found. It is not surprising therefore that some analysts choose to say that electronic music has grown beyond the description of how a piece of music was produced into a genre of music. With globalization, which is led by the use of computers and its sophisticated partner, the internet, music produced in the smallest part of America can reach the smallest part of Asia or Australia in a matter of seconds. This way, what was originally supposed to be the line of music of the American people, has today become a global music genre because of globalizati on. One other trick that electronic music is doing so well and so fast is the fact that the production of electronic music has become a universal phenomenon. In other words, a person living in Africa would not only have the pleasure of listening to an electronic music from America but also have the honor of using sophisticated electronic devices in composing electronic music even when he wants to make a genre of music popular to his culture. There are several impacts of the rise of electronic music scene on today’s generation that can be pointed out.

Creative Brief Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Creative Brief - Case Study Example The target market is the city of Zurich in Switzerland and the specific target group is the youths and adolescents who form a large part of the city’s entire population. The city has a total of about half a million of which a half is made up of the youthful population. The youths in the city are known to be taking part in several sporting activities which requires a lot of energy boost. The drink which is attributed to increase in performance in sporting events is expected to increase its sales in the city which is full of energy demanding activities. The fact that it exist in large varieties makes it more appealing to the younger generation who are keen on variety and specialized products. The city is attracts large number of tourists who come for leisure and recreation activities hence a huge demand for energy drinks which will be met by Redbull. The city is closely located to the headquarters of the product which is located in Vienna. The proximity will help increase pace at which the product is supplied hence meeting the expected huge demand of the product. The city has a large number of immigrants and tourist who will be in a better position to market the product in their respective countries hence increasing the market base for the product as well as expanding the market globally. The city has a large number of international hotels and other retail outlets that will allow quick distribution of the product thus increasing its accessibility to the larger population. Another key factor that makes the target market the best is the high level of information among the youths in the city. They are very much aware of the role that caffeine which is contained in the drink does for their bodies and the right level of the product that they need to consume. As result they are able to contain all the effects and reactions that take place in their bodies as

Unit 1 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Unit 1 - Coursework Example In addition to this, the article gives a thorough analysis of the noteworthy characteristic of Manet’s painting in relation to the Impressionist movement. After a brief discussion on modern movement, the article discusses Manet’s development of art. Q3. Mallarmà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s next point is that the Manet’s art of 1860 has an encyclopedic nature, which is a crucial step in shaping of an individual’s style. This point was different from Zola’s critic interpretation because he thought the the early borrowing from older work was more significant in Manet’s development, whereas Zola understated this point. Q4. Mallarmà © closes his essay on a refreshing platform and show personal attachment to the ideals of novel art. According to Harris, the question which cannot be left unattended is that how far Mallarmà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s account of Manet’s method and aim is well-grounded. Q8. The second article is significant, because it highlight the detail scrutiny of Manet’s painting, the changes that had been brought forward in art and its role in evolution of French modern painting. The second article is more emphasized than the first one. Q9. The study of Mallarmà © had been based upon the evidence of the article â€Å"Le jury de peinture pour†. According to Harris, this essay in an elementary form describes Mallarmà © defense of Manet’s work. Q2. According to Carven, the situation was ironic because, Turner paintings, according to the witness were extraordinary and focuses on techniques rather than subject, whereas Whistler’s painting were of the same nature, but was criticized to be unfinished. Q3. In a volume Ruskin stated that three strokes of Raphael was better than the finished painting of Dolci and other example is that Leonardo’s landscape received applause because it was under finished and Canaletto’s work was harshly judged because it was over finished. Q2. Aesthetic

Hotel Industry in Malaysia Essay Example for Free

Hotel Industry in Malaysia Essay In general, the hotel industry in Malaysia experienced an encouraging growth rate in 1994. The industry recorded a significant growth of 64 percent in tourism receipts, from RM5.1 billion generated in 1993 to RM8.3 billion in 1994. Malaysia will be hosting the Commonwealth Games in 1998. In addition, the new Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang when completed, will cater for 25 million passengers per year and help establish Malaysia as a major centre for international air travel in the region. [Source: 1995 Annual Report of Olympia Industries Berhad] Malaysia has been regarded as one of the world famous holiday and investment destination. The country has attracted more than six million of overseas people holidaymakers and businessmen to Malaysia each year. The Government of Malaysia has been promoting Malaysia tourism agressively both locally and overseas. The country is blessed with numerous holiday sites and business centres. The colourful multi-ethnic group practising multi-culturalism in Malaysia has attracted million of foreign visitor to the country. The people, the food and the customs have impressed many foreign visitors. The country is continuously improving its basic infrastructure such as telecommunication, transportation, and public facilities in order to attract more foreign visitors. As a result of the impressive economic growth, one cannot stop being amazed by the amount of land-related development projects which are going on in Malaysia presently. More hotels, resorts and business centres have sprouted everywhere. Light Rail Transit project has been constructed and near completion. All these development attempts to set Malaysia as a centre for holidaymakers and foreign investors. Hotel industry in Malaysia has contributed tremendously to the development in the Malaysia tourism industry. As a result of the continuing tourism development, the hotel industry in Malaysia is also continuingly developed to cater for more foreign visitors and provide better services. The hotel industry in Malaysia is large. It offers accomodation ranging from lodging houses to five-star hotels, ranging from an inexpensive RM30 per day to an average of RM250 per day and can be as high as thousands. The visitors have a wider range of accomodation selection depending on their budgets. There are accomodation provider practically anywhere in all the major towns and cities.

Analysis of Affordable Housing in London

Analysis of Affordable Housing in London 1.1 Arguments and Discussions A report published recently by the Greater London Authority on the problem of affordable housing in London in June 2005, revealed that the issue of â€Å"affordable housing† (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) was the most pressing matter Londoners wished to see dealt with in terms of improving London as a place to live (Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 2.3). The Barker Review of Housing Supply, not only supported this viewpoint, but it identified housing as a basic human need (Barker, 2006; p.1). Affordable housing in London is therefore a controversial and highly topical subject at the moment (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) (Barker, 2006; p.7). The debate surrounding it is underpinned by various political, sociological, economic and financial factors (Greater London Authority, 2005; Karn and Wolman, 1992; p16 (Rugg,1999; p.19). This thesis will examine why there is an affordable housing shortage; who really would benefit from affordable housing and what sectors of the population are affected by problems associated with affordable housing. The concept of affordable and who really wants it will be examined in detail, since the notion of affordability is essentially so subjective that it is open to interpretation on many levels. Affordability as a concept, will therefore be examined from an ethical point of view; from an economic point of view and finally from a sociological and political point of view, since these viewpoints will all constrain and influence the ultimate interpre tation of what it means to be affordable.    The thesis will attempt to discover if any agency or individual may be blamed for problems associated with affordable housing in London and the policy context this relates to. Historical factors such as Thatcher’s ‘Right to Buy’ policy (Evans, 2004; p.20) will be examined as well as contemporary initiatives such as equity loans for certain keyworkers’ schemes (Greater London Authority, 2005; Sections 5.16). Where historical issues have impacted the contemporary manifestation of issues connected with affordable housing, these will be analysed. Specifically, the thesis will examine contemporary and historical issues relating to affordable housing through two in depth case studies. One will be on the subject of the ‘Right to Buy’ policy introduced by Thatcher and the other will relate to the definition and depth of debate contained within the idea of affordable housing. These two in depth case studies will be examined qualitatively and will be referred to throughout the thesis. There will also be an economic analysis of the problem of affordable housing, and ideas such as artificially controlling the prices of houses in London will be considered. In this sense, there will be a theoretical evaluation of who really wants affordable housing, as the research will specifically ask if it would be desirable to advocate the imposition of affordable housing upon the London housing market.   The thesis will also consider various issues which are related to the problem of affordable housing such as social and economic policies within the city itself and the social problems which are themselves shaped by shortages of affordable housing in London. Therefore various themes will be drawn out during the course of the thesis and these will include social exclusion, poverty, salary concerns amongst professional and semi-professional sectors, house prices, population and demographic cleavages, anti-social behaviour and crime (Greater London Authority, 2005, Section 5.16 ). These themes will be drawn together to ultimately address the question of ‘Who really wants affordable housing?’. 1.2 Conclusions and Recommendations At this stage the conclusions and recommendations of the chapter are that given the issues which have been highlighted above, an argument can be made that affordable housing is a controversial issue which warrants further investigation. These investigations will attempt to shed more light on the concept of affordable housing and who really wants it. The next chapter will look at the methodology   for the thesis, which will set out the means through which this may be achieved.    CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY 2.1 Overview This section will explain the definition and nature of qualitative research and how it will be used in the thesis inquiry. It will outline the research methods which will be used in the research and what framework these methods will be used within. The research will be based upon a qualitative analysis of two case studies; one contemporary which will be based on the concept of affordable housing itself, and the other historical and this will centred on the ‘Right to Buy’ policy introduced by Thatcher in 1980. These case studies will be derived from examination of published texts within the field of economic and politics. These texts have been identified as an appendix to the thesis. Where quantitative information is relevant to the thesis this will be looked at, but evaluated qualitatively, since the basis of the research will be mainly qualitative in nature. Primary evidence in the form of interviews was also used. 2.2 Hypothesis There are two hypothesises which will feature in this thesis. The first is that affordable housing is needed and wanted by the economically disadvantaged within London, and these groups include the poor, the disabled and specific sectors of workers who do not earn enough money to buy their own houses within London. Another hypothesis of the study is that affordable housing is a problem which comprises many interrelated and intersecting issues; all of which may be seen as sociological, economic and political. It follows that any credible proposals in relation to lessening the problem of affordable housing must take this into account, and simultaneously address economic, political and sociological problems. The essence of this hypothesis is therefore that this is the best why to understand and to approach the description and evaluation of the problem of affordable housing in London and who really wants it. These hypothesises will be tested throughout the thesis. 2.3 Aims and Objectives Specifically, the primary aim of the study is to examine whether the above mentioned hypothesises can be supported. Overall the aim of the study is to examine the concept of affordable housing in London, and who really wants it. Primary qualitative data in the form of interviews with key workers and London residents affected by the affordable housing problem, will also be conducted in order to achieve a better understanding of the problem of affordable housing in London. Another aim of the study is to present and interpret these results. Various perspectives on the problem of affordable housing; its possible solutions and impacts will be advanced and discussed by the writer on the basis of these investigations. The study will aim therefore to use this discussion in order to achieve a more full understanding of the problem of affordable housing in London; who really wants it and related sociological, economic and political issues. Ultimately the thesis will aim to add original literature to the research pool in relation to the problem of affordable housing in London, providing a detailed and holistic overview of the problem; who it affects and how its adverse effects may be lessened. 2.4 Arguments and Discussions Definition of Qualitative Research/Explanation of Why Qualitative Research is Appropriate    There are two main categories of research methods; qualitative methods (Bryman, 1995: p20) and quantitative methods (Bornat, Chamberlayne and Wengraf, 2000; Chapter One). The best way to define one is by reference and comparison to the other since the paradigm of research enquiry is mainly split between these two different research rationales (Bryman, 1995; p95 and 20).   Qualitative research aims to explain concepts and phenomena (Bryman, 1995; p95). Specifically the concept of affordable housing will be addressed in this research. As we have seen explained above, the focus of the research will be mainly qualitative in nature. However, in what ways is a qualitative research enquiry more appropriate to this question relating to affordable housing? Qualitative research tends to be more holistic (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) than specific which means that it seeks to understand a topic ‘in the round’ (Bryman, 1995; p.20). On the contrary, quantitative methods value specificity and outcome linked methods of research (Trout, 1998; p.113). This holistic characteristic of qualitative research fits the wider aim of this thesis enquiry, as the problem of affordable housing, its causes, purpose, its critique and its improvement are all topics which, too, must be understood and approached ‘in the round’. Therefore, while quantitative work tends to predict and hypothesise (Trout, 1998; p.113) about possible outcomes, the qualitative researcher will often embark upon their research enquiry with an open mind (Bryman, 1995; p.20), researching malleable conclusions as the enquiry unfolds. This open ended research framework therefore fits the infinitely complex dynamics of affordable housing more appropriately ( Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 1-5).   This open-ended research aim (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) relating to qualitative research may be contrasted with the aim of quantitative research which usually seeks to be confirmatory (Trout, 1998; p.113), rather than (and also more so than) explanatory (Harrison, 2001; p.68). In this context, qualitative research may be understood as inductive (Bryman, 1995; p.20) whereas quantitative research tends to be more deductive in nature. This type of research (qualitative) tends to be situational in nature and tends to reflect given cultural and theoretical mores (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12). This imbibes qualitative research methods with a level of subjectivity which would not be appropriate in a quantitative or positivist study, since the processes under examination (Greater London Authority, 2006; Sections 1-5) often cannot be pinned down by or encapsulated within a quantitative research framework. Again these characteristics of qualitative research fit the enquiry into af fordable housing more appropriately since the levels of subjectivity involved in the arguments and theories connected with affordable housing are vast (Greater London Authority, 2006; Sections 1-5).   Differences between qualitative and quantitative research may also be explained by arguing that qualitative research is process related (Bryman, 1995; p.20) with a relative lack of control (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) over the various processes which are to be understood, whereas conversely variables are strictly controlled within the framework of a quantitative research framework (Trout, 1998; p.113). Others have explained the differences between qualitative and quantitative enquiries by arguing that the former is anthropological in nature (Bryman, 1995; p.20) (since it has a focus on society and sociological forces), while the latter; quantitative research being more ‘scientific’ (Trout, 1998; p.113). Qualitative research methods are also appropriate to this enquiry into affordable housing since they are unstructured (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) and discursive (Bryman, 1995; p.20), allowing a researcher room to analyse possible outcomes/rationales/explanations (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) as well as the ones which will potentially be accepted as the most credible. Colloquially, this characteristic of qualitative research leads many to regard it as a ‘soft’ subject’ area (Bryman, 1995; p.20) which lends itself well to the area of social science research as opposed to ‘hard’ subject areas such as maths or physics which may be described as more tangible (Trout, 1998; p.113). However, this particular dichotomy between qualitative and quantitative research methods discredits qualitative research for no better reason than those who critique qualitative research in these terms fail to understand that concepts and phenomena which may be described in tangible, or ‘scientific’ terms do not take precedence over research enquiries into what is not tangible. Simply because a concept may be difficult to understand in isolation, as qualitative subject matter often is does not mean that it is not capable of being understood credibly. Simply because qualitative subject matter may be understood credibly in different ways by different people does not strip each differing rationale of validity simply because another explanation may be pointed to. It must also be remembered that the objectivity of quantitative research often precludes the existence of other explanations of research phenomena, not because there are no valid alternative explanations but because the nature of quantitative enquiry is not always equipped to cope with multi-faceted concepts, whose existence and form may only be conjectured upon and not encapsulated within a given explanation. Concepts and phenomena are not always thoroughly understood through mere extrapolation, which is what makes the pragmatic and open-ended nature of qualitative enquiry universally important and specifically pivotal to this thesis enquiry into affordable housing.   These points should however, in no way, be interpreted as a critique of quantitative methods. Indeed, quantitative statistics and studies will be widely consulted as a vital part of the thesis enquiry (Greater London Authority, 2005; Sections 1-7). It just happens to be the case that qualitative research is a more appropriate means to seek to explain the particular context and rationales underpinning the issue of affordable housing in the context of this particular study. The points, mentioned above regarding the qualitative/quantitative aspects of the wider research paradigm are therefore merely a defence of the qualitative method which will form the main bedrock of this research design. 2.3 Sources and Framework  Ã‚   This thesis will rely upon   primary data gathered through interviews with interested parties and stakeholders in the area of affordable housing. Specifically, groups such as local residents and key workers in London will be interviewed and an interview with a Housing Association in Notting Hill will be conducted. The methodology for this thesis will also rely on sources, such as Government reports and current debates, reports/sources from interested parties in the non-profit making sector, case-studies and contemporary and historical books. These sources will all be used to contextualise the two case studies which, as has been explained previously, form a pivot of the thesis. Archival research in the form of retrieving and consulting relevant press publications and speeches through these means will also be important. The research will therefore be primary and secondary in nature, and it will mainly make wide reference to qualitative/phenomenological material. Reference will also be made to quantitative and empirically derived data. Examining the range of sources which have been explained above will ensure that the research engages the subject with the necessary degree of depth and theoretical perspective. 2.4 Conclusions and Recommendations The conclusion of this chapter is that qualitative research is ultimately more compatible with the overall research aims and objectives.   Primary and secondary qualitative research will be used to gather the information needed to comment on the validity of the hypothesises outlined above.     CHAPTER THREE: LITERATURE REVIEW PART ONE: DEFINITIONS; AND THE PROBLEM OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN LONDON 3.1.a Arguments and Discussions What Does the Concept of Affordable Housing Refer to? Affordable Housing has been defined by Plymouth City Council as: ‘Low cost market, and subsidised housing..that will be available to people who cannot afford to rent or buy houses generally available on the open market†¦.that definition should be framed to endure for the life of the plan, for instance through reference to the level of local incomes and their relationship to house prices or rents, rather than to a particular price or rent applicable at that one point in time (http://www.plymouth.gov.uk ).   Affordable housing causes particular demographic cleavages such as the inaccessibility of certain areas of London to what are referred to as key or essential workers such as teachers, nurses, police officers and employees of the health and social services (Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 5.16) (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16). This problem of inaccessibility means that these groups are ‘priced out of the market’ which means that on the salary that is typically earned by people in their jobs, it is difficult to find a house which is affordable (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16).  Ã‚   The problem of affordable housing has also defined as ‘infrastructure needs’. These needs have been elaborated on in the following way: ‘The changing face of London’s population has immediate implications for every aspect of London life-education.transport and infrastructure.employment and employability, competitiveness and culture†¦Housing provides a useful example..London has 42 per cent of England’s most overcrowded households..’ (Greater London Authority, 2006; Section 2.8).  Ã‚  Ã‚   Affordable housing therefore refers to a situation where there are not sufficient numbers of houses being built to satisfy the level of demand there is for these types of houses and accommodation in general (Greater London Authority, 2006; Section 5.17 and Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) (Barker, 2006; p.7). This situation (some would say artificially) increases the price of property within certain areas affected by affordable housing shortages. These are essentially the mechanics of affordable housing. This definition therefore goes to the heart of what the concept means in practical and real terms. However, this definition does not encapsulate how malleable this concept of affordable housing can be when it is viewed from particular standpoints. The concept of affordable housing is particularly linked with certain social and economic problems, such as social exclusion, poverty and crime (Pacione, 1997; p.7 and Rugg, 1999; p.19). This is also supported through the primary research findings of the writer. An interview with Kate Bond revealed that she was suspicious of the social problems which are associated with affordable housing developments and is reluctant to allow her children to play in these areas (Interview One, 2006; p.1). Affordable housing can therefore also be interpreted from a purely ethical standpoint, in which case it would refer to the wider problem of housing shortages being linked to problems such as poverty, crime and low wages for certain sectoral groups. In terms of economics (and this will be looked at in more detail in the next section) this ethical perspective it somewhat suspended from the analysis and the problem becomes one which is defined in terms of how certain factors such as supply, demand, resources and money shape the concept of affordability in terms of the housing sector. These issues of definition are important to an analysis of affordable housing since, if one is to examine the question of who really wants affordable housing, it is imperative to extrapolate the concept in sufficient detail. Therefore, the problem of affordable housing and its theoretical underpinnings and context will be examined alongside a discussion of what the concept essentially means to different people, as the next section, an economic analysis of the problem of affordable housing and who really wants it, will elucidate. 3.1.b Economic Analysis of the Problem The price of housing in a free-market economy is determined by supply and demand. The supply of houses increases, other things equal, as the price of housing rises. The reason for this is that as the price of housing rises, other things equal, producers will find it profitable to allocate more resources to the production of houses relative to the production of other things they might otherwise produce. However, as the price of housing rises, other things equal, the demand for housing falls. The reason for this is that as the price of housing rises, other things equal, consumers will find it advantageous to substitute away from the consumption of houses towards the consumption of other goods that are now relatively cheaper to purchase. The price of housing, known as the â€Å"equilibrium† price, is the price at which these two forces, demand and supply are equal. This is how economists’ typically analyse markets (Landsburg, 2002; ch.1). How does the price of housing adjust to ensure that â€Å"equilibrium† is reached? If demand exceeds supply, then there is more demand for housing at the existing price than producers are willing to supply at that price. In such circumstances, economists say that purchasers of houses are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to buy a house at the existing price can get one. These potential purchasers start competing with one another by offering suppliers a slightly higher price for a house than was the case in the market initially. This has two effects; first of all, the higher price induces more supply, and secondly, the higher price lowers demand. This means that the â€Å"excess demand† in the market that existed initially falls as a consequence of competition between rationed purchasers. Naturally, this process of competition will continue until prices have been bid upward sufficiently to ensure that demand and supply are equal. At this point, no-on e is rationed and excess demand falls to zero. Of course, this process can be reversed.   Imagine that at the existing price the supply of houses exceeds the demand. Now it is the producers of houses who are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to sell a house at the existing price can. As before, these potential sellers start competing with one another by offering purchasers a slightly lower price for a house than was the case in the market initially. This has two effects; first of all, the lower price induces less supply, and secondly, the lower price raises demand. This means that the â€Å"excess supply† in the market that existed initially falls as a consequence of competition between rationed sellers. Just like the previous case, this process of competition will continue until prices have been bid downward sufficiently to ensure that demand and supply are equal. At this point, no-one is rationed and excess demand falls to zero (Landsburg, 2002; ch.7). What are we to make of this analysis from economics? Economics helps us to understand how prices are determined. They are determined by the forces of supply and demand operating through the mechanism described above. But can this give us some insight into the concept of â€Å"affordability†? Not really. The notion of â€Å"affordability† is one that does not make sense within the discipline of economics. This might be a weakness of economics, but it might also be that the concept itself is meaningless. Let me explain. In economics, the equilibrium price of housing (also known as the â€Å"market† price) is the price that is desirable from a social point of view. It can neither be too high or too low. Provided that the housing market is a so-called â€Å"competitive† market then the equilibrium price is the one that society ought to want (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). How does economics reach this surprising conclusion? It does so from noting that at the equilibrium price, all gains from trade in the market are maximised (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). In other words, despite claims that economics is a â€Å"positivist† subject, it is committed to a specific normative theory of good (Hausman and McPherson, 1996; Ch. 1 and 8). That theory says that what is socially desirable maximises the gains from trade. What does this mean? Let us return to the excess demand example mentioned above. Imagine that at the initial market price, purchasers of houses are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to buy a house at the existing price can get one. It is simple to demonstrate that at this price, the increase in price needed to induce producers to build just one more house is strictlyless than what potential purchasers would be willing to pay a producer in order to build that house (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). Given that this condition is satisfied, it is always possible for a mutually beneficial trade to occur between a potential buyer and a potential seller.   To illustrate this, imagine that a producer of houses (a builder, say) needs the price of houses to rise from  ¿Ã‚ ¡100,000 to  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000 in order to find it profitable to build 11 houses as opposed to 10. If there is a situation of excess demand in the market whenever the price of a house is  ¿Ã‚ ¡100,000 then it is always possible to show that the maximum price someone would be willing to pay in order to induce the producer to build the additional house is strictly greater than  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000. If that price is, for example,  ¿Ã‚ ¡150,000, then the two parties can trade to their mutual advantage. Imagine that the potential buyer offers the producer a price of  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 in order to build the house. This is a price the producer will happily accept. He or she would have built the house for  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000 but instead gets  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 – the producer is better-off by  ¿Ã‚ ¡7000. Economists say that â€Å"producer surplus† rises by  ¿Ã‚ ¡7000 (Lands burg, 2002; Ch.8).   Similarly, the buyer gets the house for  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 but was willing to pay  ¿Ã‚ ¡150,000 for it. The buyer is better-off by  ¿Ã‚ ¡25,000. Economists say that â€Å"consumer surplus† rises by  ¿Ã‚ ¡25,000 (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). An important insight from economics, as seen in this example, is that mutually advantageous trade is possible. Trade is not necessarily a zero-sum game. How does this relate to the idea that the equilibrium price is the socially desirable one? It does so in the following way. As the excess demand in the market is gradually eliminated through upward movement in prices, the scope for mutually advantageous trade between buyers and sellers shrinks. Remarkably, when the excess demand for houses vanishes and the market is in equilibrium, no more mutually advantageous trades are possible. The price that would induce a producer to build an additional house is equal to the maximum price someone would be willing to pay for it – neither consumer surplus nor producer surplus can rise if this trade takes place. At the market equilibrium, all gains from trade have been realised and no more are possible. Economists refer to this state as one of â€Å"economic efficiency† or â€Å"Pareto efficiency†. (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). The above analysis is the main reason why economists (admittedly with some caution) advocate the use of free markets. If a market is competitive then it will produce on its own devices an equilibrium that is socially desirable (if one accepts the principle of economic efficiency). Adam Smith referred to this general idea (albeit in a different context) as the â€Å"Invisible Hand†. He said â€Å"Every individualgenerally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention† (Smith, 1776; p.243). Smith’s idea is that people acting in their own self-interest may produce unintended consequences which, surprisingly, can serve the social good. In the example above, individuals through competition with one another push the market price towards its equilibrium value, and this value is socially desirable. However, to do this was not the intention of the individuals involved. They were just competing with one another and trading with sellers for their own private benefit. How does this analysis help with the problem of â€Å"affordable housing†? From an economic point of view, affordability is a meaningless concept. It is simply not a social objective for things to be affordable, rather the government should seek to promote competition in the housing market and then leave the market to its own devices. This conclusion of economics is striking and quite at odds with other perspectives on this problem. I will argue that affordability is an important problem, and that something fundamental is missing from the economic approach to housing. Within economics what is missing is some notion of â€Å"equity†, or a concern for how the gains from trade are distributed across different people. To illustrate this point, imagine that the equilibrium price of a house in a competitive housing market is  ¿Ã‚ ¡200,000. Then those who are willing to pay  ¿Ã‚ ¡200,000 or more for a property will get one, and the situation will be efficient from an economic point of view. However, this might not be the â€Å"ethically appropriate† way to allocate houses to people. The reason is fairly obvious. What someone is willing to pay for anything is constrained by their income. A rich person might be willing to pay more for a house than a poor person, but this does not mean that it is better th at the rich person gets the house as opposed to the poor person. This is sometimes referred to in economics as the â€Å"equity-efficiency† trade-off. This is the idea that less efficiency is the price we have to pay sometimes if we want to ensure a more equitable distribution of goods across people (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). Policies designed to promote affordable housing fall into this category. The people who will gain the most from them are people on low income, who cannot guarantee that they will be allocated a house through the market mechanism. 3.1.c How is the Problem of Affordable Housing Addressed? Various policy initiatives have been introduced to ameliorate the problem of affordable housing in London. These will be discussed in this section. These policies and whether they have a positive impact upon the community will also be evaluated in this section.   One such policy   takes the form of Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (which became operative in 1947 (Jackson, J., 1963; p.18 ), which seeks to address the problems which may arise in relation to affordable housing and the provision of local services (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27).   Where a major developer wishes to obtain planning permission for a development in a given area, it is the case that such developments will put pressure on local services such as schools or hospitals this Act seeks to ensure that some of the cost of such developments are borne by the developers who wish to develop the area (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27). Section 106 of this statute therefore provides that agreements may be reached between local planning authorities and developers in relation to planning permission, where the developer is required to make financial contributions towards the local services in the areas where the planned developments are to be built (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27). However, this statute has been criticised, especially by Kate Barker (2006; p.11), as being in drastic need to reform to make it more simple and certain. The Barker Review also recommended in relation to Section 106, that it be scaled back to address the direct impacts of developments (Barker, 2006; p.11). Also, Housing Associations in London such as the Keystart Housing Association, Tower Homes, Metropolitan Home Ownership and London Str Analysis of Affordable Housing in London Analysis of Affordable Housing in London 1.1 Arguments and Discussions A report published recently by the Greater London Authority on the problem of affordable housing in London in June 2005, revealed that the issue of â€Å"affordable housing† (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) was the most pressing matter Londoners wished to see dealt with in terms of improving London as a place to live (Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 2.3). The Barker Review of Housing Supply, not only supported this viewpoint, but it identified housing as a basic human need (Barker, 2006; p.1). Affordable housing in London is therefore a controversial and highly topical subject at the moment (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) (Barker, 2006; p.7). The debate surrounding it is underpinned by various political, sociological, economic and financial factors (Greater London Authority, 2005; Karn and Wolman, 1992; p16 (Rugg,1999; p.19). This thesis will examine why there is an affordable housing shortage; who really would benefit from affordable housing and what sectors of the population are affected by problems associated with affordable housing. The concept of affordable and who really wants it will be examined in detail, since the notion of affordability is essentially so subjective that it is open to interpretation on many levels. Affordability as a concept, will therefore be examined from an ethical point of view; from an economic point of view and finally from a sociological and political point of view, since these viewpoints will all constrain and influence the ultimate interpre tation of what it means to be affordable.    The thesis will attempt to discover if any agency or individual may be blamed for problems associated with affordable housing in London and the policy context this relates to. Historical factors such as Thatcher’s ‘Right to Buy’ policy (Evans, 2004; p.20) will be examined as well as contemporary initiatives such as equity loans for certain keyworkers’ schemes (Greater London Authority, 2005; Sections 5.16). Where historical issues have impacted the contemporary manifestation of issues connected with affordable housing, these will be analysed. Specifically, the thesis will examine contemporary and historical issues relating to affordable housing through two in depth case studies. One will be on the subject of the ‘Right to Buy’ policy introduced by Thatcher and the other will relate to the definition and depth of debate contained within the idea of affordable housing. These two in depth case studies will be examined qualitatively and will be referred to throughout the thesis. There will also be an economic analysis of the problem of affordable housing, and ideas such as artificially controlling the prices of houses in London will be considered. In this sense, there will be a theoretical evaluation of who really wants affordable housing, as the research will specifically ask if it would be desirable to advocate the imposition of affordable housing upon the London housing market.   The thesis will also consider various issues which are related to the problem of affordable housing such as social and economic policies within the city itself and the social problems which are themselves shaped by shortages of affordable housing in London. Therefore various themes will be drawn out during the course of the thesis and these will include social exclusion, poverty, salary concerns amongst professional and semi-professional sectors, house prices, population and demographic cleavages, anti-social behaviour and crime (Greater London Authority, 2005, Section 5.16 ). These themes will be drawn together to ultimately address the question of ‘Who really wants affordable housing?’. 1.2 Conclusions and Recommendations At this stage the conclusions and recommendations of the chapter are that given the issues which have been highlighted above, an argument can be made that affordable housing is a controversial issue which warrants further investigation. These investigations will attempt to shed more light on the concept of affordable housing and who really wants it. The next chapter will look at the methodology   for the thesis, which will set out the means through which this may be achieved.    CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY 2.1 Overview This section will explain the definition and nature of qualitative research and how it will be used in the thesis inquiry. It will outline the research methods which will be used in the research and what framework these methods will be used within. The research will be based upon a qualitative analysis of two case studies; one contemporary which will be based on the concept of affordable housing itself, and the other historical and this will centred on the ‘Right to Buy’ policy introduced by Thatcher in 1980. These case studies will be derived from examination of published texts within the field of economic and politics. These texts have been identified as an appendix to the thesis. Where quantitative information is relevant to the thesis this will be looked at, but evaluated qualitatively, since the basis of the research will be mainly qualitative in nature. Primary evidence in the form of interviews was also used. 2.2 Hypothesis There are two hypothesises which will feature in this thesis. The first is that affordable housing is needed and wanted by the economically disadvantaged within London, and these groups include the poor, the disabled and specific sectors of workers who do not earn enough money to buy their own houses within London. Another hypothesis of the study is that affordable housing is a problem which comprises many interrelated and intersecting issues; all of which may be seen as sociological, economic and political. It follows that any credible proposals in relation to lessening the problem of affordable housing must take this into account, and simultaneously address economic, political and sociological problems. The essence of this hypothesis is therefore that this is the best why to understand and to approach the description and evaluation of the problem of affordable housing in London and who really wants it. These hypothesises will be tested throughout the thesis. 2.3 Aims and Objectives Specifically, the primary aim of the study is to examine whether the above mentioned hypothesises can be supported. Overall the aim of the study is to examine the concept of affordable housing in London, and who really wants it. Primary qualitative data in the form of interviews with key workers and London residents affected by the affordable housing problem, will also be conducted in order to achieve a better understanding of the problem of affordable housing in London. Another aim of the study is to present and interpret these results. Various perspectives on the problem of affordable housing; its possible solutions and impacts will be advanced and discussed by the writer on the basis of these investigations. The study will aim therefore to use this discussion in order to achieve a more full understanding of the problem of affordable housing in London; who really wants it and related sociological, economic and political issues. Ultimately the thesis will aim to add original literature to the research pool in relation to the problem of affordable housing in London, providing a detailed and holistic overview of the problem; who it affects and how its adverse effects may be lessened. 2.4 Arguments and Discussions Definition of Qualitative Research/Explanation of Why Qualitative Research is Appropriate    There are two main categories of research methods; qualitative methods (Bryman, 1995: p20) and quantitative methods (Bornat, Chamberlayne and Wengraf, 2000; Chapter One). The best way to define one is by reference and comparison to the other since the paradigm of research enquiry is mainly split between these two different research rationales (Bryman, 1995; p95 and 20).   Qualitative research aims to explain concepts and phenomena (Bryman, 1995; p95). Specifically the concept of affordable housing will be addressed in this research. As we have seen explained above, the focus of the research will be mainly qualitative in nature. However, in what ways is a qualitative research enquiry more appropriate to this question relating to affordable housing? Qualitative research tends to be more holistic (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) than specific which means that it seeks to understand a topic ‘in the round’ (Bryman, 1995; p.20). On the contrary, quantitative methods value specificity and outcome linked methods of research (Trout, 1998; p.113). This holistic characteristic of qualitative research fits the wider aim of this thesis enquiry, as the problem of affordable housing, its causes, purpose, its critique and its improvement are all topics which, too, must be understood and approached ‘in the round’. Therefore, while quantitative work tends to predict and hypothesise (Trout, 1998; p.113) about possible outcomes, the qualitative researcher will often embark upon their research enquiry with an open mind (Bryman, 1995; p.20), researching malleable conclusions as the enquiry unfolds. This open ended research framework therefore fits the infinitely complex dynamics of affordable housing more appropriately ( Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 1-5).   This open-ended research aim (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) relating to qualitative research may be contrasted with the aim of quantitative research which usually seeks to be confirmatory (Trout, 1998; p.113), rather than (and also more so than) explanatory (Harrison, 2001; p.68). In this context, qualitative research may be understood as inductive (Bryman, 1995; p.20) whereas quantitative research tends to be more deductive in nature. This type of research (qualitative) tends to be situational in nature and tends to reflect given cultural and theoretical mores (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12). This imbibes qualitative research methods with a level of subjectivity which would not be appropriate in a quantitative or positivist study, since the processes under examination (Greater London Authority, 2006; Sections 1-5) often cannot be pinned down by or encapsulated within a quantitative research framework. Again these characteristics of qualitative research fit the enquiry into af fordable housing more appropriately since the levels of subjectivity involved in the arguments and theories connected with affordable housing are vast (Greater London Authority, 2006; Sections 1-5).   Differences between qualitative and quantitative research may also be explained by arguing that qualitative research is process related (Bryman, 1995; p.20) with a relative lack of control (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) over the various processes which are to be understood, whereas conversely variables are strictly controlled within the framework of a quantitative research framework (Trout, 1998; p.113). Others have explained the differences between qualitative and quantitative enquiries by arguing that the former is anthropological in nature (Bryman, 1995; p.20) (since it has a focus on society and sociological forces), while the latter; quantitative research being more ‘scientific’ (Trout, 1998; p.113). Qualitative research methods are also appropriate to this enquiry into affordable housing since they are unstructured (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) and discursive (Bryman, 1995; p.20), allowing a researcher room to analyse possible outcomes/rationales/explanations (Knowles and Sweetman, 2004; p.12) as well as the ones which will potentially be accepted as the most credible. Colloquially, this characteristic of qualitative research leads many to regard it as a ‘soft’ subject’ area (Bryman, 1995; p.20) which lends itself well to the area of social science research as opposed to ‘hard’ subject areas such as maths or physics which may be described as more tangible (Trout, 1998; p.113). However, this particular dichotomy between qualitative and quantitative research methods discredits qualitative research for no better reason than those who critique qualitative research in these terms fail to understand that concepts and phenomena which may be described in tangible, or ‘scientific’ terms do not take precedence over research enquiries into what is not tangible. Simply because a concept may be difficult to understand in isolation, as qualitative subject matter often is does not mean that it is not capable of being understood credibly. Simply because qualitative subject matter may be understood credibly in different ways by different people does not strip each differing rationale of validity simply because another explanation may be pointed to. It must also be remembered that the objectivity of quantitative research often precludes the existence of other explanations of research phenomena, not because there are no valid alternative explanations but because the nature of quantitative enquiry is not always equipped to cope with multi-faceted concepts, whose existence and form may only be conjectured upon and not encapsulated within a given explanation. Concepts and phenomena are not always thoroughly understood through mere extrapolation, which is what makes the pragmatic and open-ended nature of qualitative enquiry universally important and specifically pivotal to this thesis enquiry into affordable housing.   These points should however, in no way, be interpreted as a critique of quantitative methods. Indeed, quantitative statistics and studies will be widely consulted as a vital part of the thesis enquiry (Greater London Authority, 2005; Sections 1-7). It just happens to be the case that qualitative research is a more appropriate means to seek to explain the particular context and rationales underpinning the issue of affordable housing in the context of this particular study. The points, mentioned above regarding the qualitative/quantitative aspects of the wider research paradigm are therefore merely a defence of the qualitative method which will form the main bedrock of this research design. 2.3 Sources and Framework  Ã‚   This thesis will rely upon   primary data gathered through interviews with interested parties and stakeholders in the area of affordable housing. Specifically, groups such as local residents and key workers in London will be interviewed and an interview with a Housing Association in Notting Hill will be conducted. The methodology for this thesis will also rely on sources, such as Government reports and current debates, reports/sources from interested parties in the non-profit making sector, case-studies and contemporary and historical books. These sources will all be used to contextualise the two case studies which, as has been explained previously, form a pivot of the thesis. Archival research in the form of retrieving and consulting relevant press publications and speeches through these means will also be important. The research will therefore be primary and secondary in nature, and it will mainly make wide reference to qualitative/phenomenological material. Reference will also be made to quantitative and empirically derived data. Examining the range of sources which have been explained above will ensure that the research engages the subject with the necessary degree of depth and theoretical perspective. 2.4 Conclusions and Recommendations The conclusion of this chapter is that qualitative research is ultimately more compatible with the overall research aims and objectives.   Primary and secondary qualitative research will be used to gather the information needed to comment on the validity of the hypothesises outlined above.     CHAPTER THREE: LITERATURE REVIEW PART ONE: DEFINITIONS; AND THE PROBLEM OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN LONDON 3.1.a Arguments and Discussions What Does the Concept of Affordable Housing Refer to? Affordable Housing has been defined by Plymouth City Council as: ‘Low cost market, and subsidised housing..that will be available to people who cannot afford to rent or buy houses generally available on the open market†¦.that definition should be framed to endure for the life of the plan, for instance through reference to the level of local incomes and their relationship to house prices or rents, rather than to a particular price or rent applicable at that one point in time (http://www.plymouth.gov.uk ).   Affordable housing causes particular demographic cleavages such as the inaccessibility of certain areas of London to what are referred to as key or essential workers such as teachers, nurses, police officers and employees of the health and social services (Greater London Authority, 2005; Section 5.16) (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16). This problem of inaccessibility means that these groups are ‘priced out of the market’ which means that on the salary that is typically earned by people in their jobs, it is difficult to find a house which is affordable (Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16).  Ã‚   The problem of affordable housing has also defined as ‘infrastructure needs’. These needs have been elaborated on in the following way: ‘The changing face of London’s population has immediate implications for every aspect of London life-education.transport and infrastructure.employment and employability, competitiveness and culture†¦Housing provides a useful example..London has 42 per cent of England’s most overcrowded households..’ (Greater London Authority, 2006; Section 2.8).  Ã‚  Ã‚   Affordable housing therefore refers to a situation where there are not sufficient numbers of houses being built to satisfy the level of demand there is for these types of houses and accommodation in general (Greater London Authority, 2006; Section 5.17 and Karn and Wolman, 1992; p.16) (Barker, 2006; p.7). This situation (some would say artificially) increases the price of property within certain areas affected by affordable housing shortages. These are essentially the mechanics of affordable housing. This definition therefore goes to the heart of what the concept means in practical and real terms. However, this definition does not encapsulate how malleable this concept of affordable housing can be when it is viewed from particular standpoints. The concept of affordable housing is particularly linked with certain social and economic problems, such as social exclusion, poverty and crime (Pacione, 1997; p.7 and Rugg, 1999; p.19). This is also supported through the primary research findings of the writer. An interview with Kate Bond revealed that she was suspicious of the social problems which are associated with affordable housing developments and is reluctant to allow her children to play in these areas (Interview One, 2006; p.1). Affordable housing can therefore also be interpreted from a purely ethical standpoint, in which case it would refer to the wider problem of housing shortages being linked to problems such as poverty, crime and low wages for certain sectoral groups. In terms of economics (and this will be looked at in more detail in the next section) this ethical perspective it somewhat suspended from the analysis and the problem becomes one which is defined in terms of how certain factors such as supply, demand, resources and money shape the concept of affordability in terms of the housing sector. These issues of definition are important to an analysis of affordable housing since, if one is to examine the question of who really wants affordable housing, it is imperative to extrapolate the concept in sufficient detail. Therefore, the problem of affordable housing and its theoretical underpinnings and context will be examined alongside a discussion of what the concept essentially means to different people, as the next section, an economic analysis of the problem of affordable housing and who really wants it, will elucidate. 3.1.b Economic Analysis of the Problem The price of housing in a free-market economy is determined by supply and demand. The supply of houses increases, other things equal, as the price of housing rises. The reason for this is that as the price of housing rises, other things equal, producers will find it profitable to allocate more resources to the production of houses relative to the production of other things they might otherwise produce. However, as the price of housing rises, other things equal, the demand for housing falls. The reason for this is that as the price of housing rises, other things equal, consumers will find it advantageous to substitute away from the consumption of houses towards the consumption of other goods that are now relatively cheaper to purchase. The price of housing, known as the â€Å"equilibrium† price, is the price at which these two forces, demand and supply are equal. This is how economists’ typically analyse markets (Landsburg, 2002; ch.1). How does the price of housing adjust to ensure that â€Å"equilibrium† is reached? If demand exceeds supply, then there is more demand for housing at the existing price than producers are willing to supply at that price. In such circumstances, economists say that purchasers of houses are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to buy a house at the existing price can get one. These potential purchasers start competing with one another by offering suppliers a slightly higher price for a house than was the case in the market initially. This has two effects; first of all, the higher price induces more supply, and secondly, the higher price lowers demand. This means that the â€Å"excess demand† in the market that existed initially falls as a consequence of competition between rationed purchasers. Naturally, this process of competition will continue until prices have been bid upward sufficiently to ensure that demand and supply are equal. At this point, no-on e is rationed and excess demand falls to zero. Of course, this process can be reversed.   Imagine that at the existing price the supply of houses exceeds the demand. Now it is the producers of houses who are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to sell a house at the existing price can. As before, these potential sellers start competing with one another by offering purchasers a slightly lower price for a house than was the case in the market initially. This has two effects; first of all, the lower price induces less supply, and secondly, the lower price raises demand. This means that the â€Å"excess supply† in the market that existed initially falls as a consequence of competition between rationed sellers. Just like the previous case, this process of competition will continue until prices have been bid downward sufficiently to ensure that demand and supply are equal. At this point, no-one is rationed and excess demand falls to zero (Landsburg, 2002; ch.7). What are we to make of this analysis from economics? Economics helps us to understand how prices are determined. They are determined by the forces of supply and demand operating through the mechanism described above. But can this give us some insight into the concept of â€Å"affordability†? Not really. The notion of â€Å"affordability† is one that does not make sense within the discipline of economics. This might be a weakness of economics, but it might also be that the concept itself is meaningless. Let me explain. In economics, the equilibrium price of housing (also known as the â€Å"market† price) is the price that is desirable from a social point of view. It can neither be too high or too low. Provided that the housing market is a so-called â€Å"competitive† market then the equilibrium price is the one that society ought to want (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). How does economics reach this surprising conclusion? It does so from noting that at the equilibrium price, all gains from trade in the market are maximised (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). In other words, despite claims that economics is a â€Å"positivist† subject, it is committed to a specific normative theory of good (Hausman and McPherson, 1996; Ch. 1 and 8). That theory says that what is socially desirable maximises the gains from trade. What does this mean? Let us return to the excess demand example mentioned above. Imagine that at the initial market price, purchasers of houses are â€Å"rationed† – not everyone who wants to buy a house at the existing price can get one. It is simple to demonstrate that at this price, the increase in price needed to induce producers to build just one more house is strictlyless than what potential purchasers would be willing to pay a producer in order to build that house (Landsburg, 2002; ch.8). Given that this condition is satisfied, it is always possible for a mutually beneficial trade to occur between a potential buyer and a potential seller.   To illustrate this, imagine that a producer of houses (a builder, say) needs the price of houses to rise from  ¿Ã‚ ¡100,000 to  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000 in order to find it profitable to build 11 houses as opposed to 10. If there is a situation of excess demand in the market whenever the price of a house is  ¿Ã‚ ¡100,000 then it is always possible to show that the maximum price someone would be willing to pay in order to induce the producer to build the additional house is strictly greater than  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000. If that price is, for example,  ¿Ã‚ ¡150,000, then the two parties can trade to their mutual advantage. Imagine that the potential buyer offers the producer a price of  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 in order to build the house. This is a price the producer will happily accept. He or she would have built the house for  ¿Ã‚ ¡118,000 but instead gets  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 – the producer is better-off by  ¿Ã‚ ¡7000. Economists say that â€Å"producer surplus† rises by  ¿Ã‚ ¡7000 (Lands burg, 2002; Ch.8).   Similarly, the buyer gets the house for  ¿Ã‚ ¡125,000 but was willing to pay  ¿Ã‚ ¡150,000 for it. The buyer is better-off by  ¿Ã‚ ¡25,000. Economists say that â€Å"consumer surplus† rises by  ¿Ã‚ ¡25,000 (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). An important insight from economics, as seen in this example, is that mutually advantageous trade is possible. Trade is not necessarily a zero-sum game. How does this relate to the idea that the equilibrium price is the socially desirable one? It does so in the following way. As the excess demand in the market is gradually eliminated through upward movement in prices, the scope for mutually advantageous trade between buyers and sellers shrinks. Remarkably, when the excess demand for houses vanishes and the market is in equilibrium, no more mutually advantageous trades are possible. The price that would induce a producer to build an additional house is equal to the maximum price someone would be willing to pay for it – neither consumer surplus nor producer surplus can rise if this trade takes place. At the market equilibrium, all gains from trade have been realised and no more are possible. Economists refer to this state as one of â€Å"economic efficiency† or â€Å"Pareto efficiency†. (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). The above analysis is the main reason why economists (admittedly with some caution) advocate the use of free markets. If a market is competitive then it will produce on its own devices an equilibrium that is socially desirable (if one accepts the principle of economic efficiency). Adam Smith referred to this general idea (albeit in a different context) as the â€Å"Invisible Hand†. He said â€Å"Every individualgenerally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention† (Smith, 1776; p.243). Smith’s idea is that people acting in their own self-interest may produce unintended consequences which, surprisingly, can serve the social good. In the example above, individuals through competition with one another push the market price towards its equilibrium value, and this value is socially desirable. However, to do this was not the intention of the individuals involved. They were just competing with one another and trading with sellers for their own private benefit. How does this analysis help with the problem of â€Å"affordable housing†? From an economic point of view, affordability is a meaningless concept. It is simply not a social objective for things to be affordable, rather the government should seek to promote competition in the housing market and then leave the market to its own devices. This conclusion of economics is striking and quite at odds with other perspectives on this problem. I will argue that affordability is an important problem, and that something fundamental is missing from the economic approach to housing. Within economics what is missing is some notion of â€Å"equity†, or a concern for how the gains from trade are distributed across different people. To illustrate this point, imagine that the equilibrium price of a house in a competitive housing market is  ¿Ã‚ ¡200,000. Then those who are willing to pay  ¿Ã‚ ¡200,000 or more for a property will get one, and the situation will be efficient from an economic point of view. However, this might not be the â€Å"ethically appropriate† way to allocate houses to people. The reason is fairly obvious. What someone is willing to pay for anything is constrained by their income. A rich person might be willing to pay more for a house than a poor person, but this does not mean that it is better th at the rich person gets the house as opposed to the poor person. This is sometimes referred to in economics as the â€Å"equity-efficiency† trade-off. This is the idea that less efficiency is the price we have to pay sometimes if we want to ensure a more equitable distribution of goods across people (Landsburg, 2002; Ch.8). Policies designed to promote affordable housing fall into this category. The people who will gain the most from them are people on low income, who cannot guarantee that they will be allocated a house through the market mechanism. 3.1.c How is the Problem of Affordable Housing Addressed? Various policy initiatives have been introduced to ameliorate the problem of affordable housing in London. These will be discussed in this section. These policies and whether they have a positive impact upon the community will also be evaluated in this section.   One such policy   takes the form of Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (which became operative in 1947 (Jackson, J., 1963; p.18 ), which seeks to address the problems which may arise in relation to affordable housing and the provision of local services (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27).   Where a major developer wishes to obtain planning permission for a development in a given area, it is the case that such developments will put pressure on local services such as schools or hospitals this Act seeks to ensure that some of the cost of such developments are borne by the developers who wish to develop the area (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27). Section 106 of this statute therefore provides that agreements may be reached between local planning authorities and developers in relation to planning permission, where the developer is required to make financial contributions towards the local services in the areas where the planned developments are to be built (Monk, S. et al., 2005; p.24-27). However, this statute has been criticised, especially by Kate Barker (2006; p.11), as being in drastic need to reform to make it more simple and certain. The Barker Review also recommended in relation to Section 106, that it be scaled back to address the direct impacts of developments (Barker, 2006; p.11). Also, Housing Associations in London such as the Keystart Housing Association, Tower Homes, Metropolitan Home Ownership and London Str