Key elements from the philosophies of Hegel and Husserl Essay

Key elements from the philosophies of Hegel and Husserl - Essay Example According to existentialism, existence comes before the essence of life. Hegel was also of the same opinion albeit he put forth certain conditions or situations when human beings have this kind of free will. According to his ‘Philosophy of Right’, human beings are free to act or decide for themselves only if they are part of any particular system or area concerning the free will. According to Hegel, freedom should not be linked with arbitrariness (doing whatever one pleases). Hegel believes that, â€Å"We are free only when we overcome ‘particularity’ and act ‘universally’ or ‘objectively’, according to the concept of the will† (Wood, 2003). Usually people misinterpret the meaning of freedom; they feel that freedom means nonexistence of hurdles in doing anything of one’s choice. But when we view it with practicality, the situation is somewhat different. on the contrary, Hegel feels that human beings cannot be said to b e free â€Å"unless social institutions provide considerable scope and protection for arbitrary freedom† (Woods, 2003). Another element of Hegel’s philosophy relates to the civil society. Hegel says that human beings are free to decide what work they choose for their livelihood but they cannot completely deny the fact that their actions will not affect the society. It should be a give and take system where individuals contribute towards the society and in turn the society looks after the broader interests of all human beings. Any work that we do indirectly helps the society as a whole; â€Å"As members of this society, individuals have the duty to support themselves through labor which benefits the whole, while civil society as a whole owes each individual the opportunity to labor in a way which provides a secure, respected and self-fulfilling mode of life† (Woods, 2003). Philosophy of Phenomenology Edmund Husserl was the founded the ‘Philosophy of Phenome nology’. He was a mathematician and all his anticipations and explanations were based on mathematic calculations or to be more precise, the inferential system. The motive of Husserl’s Theory of Phenomenology, â€Å"is to study the units of consciousness that the respective speaker presents himself as having – that he gives voice to – in expressing the proposition in question (for instance, while writing a mathematical textbook or giving a lecture)† (Beyer, 2011). Husserl relates the actions of human beings to their perceptions. According to him, it is quite possible that while performing any action, a person is hallucinating. Means that he/she may think he/she is being watched while doing the act. Also, â€Å"from a first-person point of view, one cannot, of course, decide whether in a case of what one takes to be, say, an act of perception one is currently performing, there actually is an object that one is perceptually confronted with† (Be yer, 2011). In Tel Asiado’s words Husserl’s philosophy claims that ‘consciousness is ‘directedness towards an object.’ The mental state and the object of the state exist together in consciousness without implying that there is any ‘material’ object answering to the call† (Asiado, 2009). Husserl’s apprehensions are more towards the doubts on the ‘information about self’ rather than the ‘information about things’. Husserl’s philosophy can be summarized to be â€Å"as both an early direct reference theorist (headword:

U.S. & Japan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

U.S. & Japan - Essay Example Indeed, the nature and outcome of warfare, as of any human endeavor, are largely dependent on the individual talents and cumulative experiences of the people who engage in it. To study the material and technological aspects of modern warfare to the exclusion of its emotional, spiritual, and intellectual elements is foolish. The very existence of war requires that one possess not only the physical means to sustain an armed struggle but a mentality that predisposes one to initiate it or persevere in it. It follows, then, that hostilities cease when one of these two essential elements has been destroyed--when one combatant no longer possesses either the physical means or the psychological will to carry on the fight. What were the dominant ideologies and institutions of international politics of the twentieth century? At the dawn of the twenty-first century, this seems a particularly appropriate question to ask. What distinguished them, what were their limitations, what was their potenti al, and what prospects do they hold for the new millennium? The purpose of combat operations is to physically destroy the enemy's physical and material ability to make war. The objective of psychological operations is to erode his will to continue the fight.John W. Dower's War without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War (New York: Pantheon, 1986) is a superb analysis of the impact of cultural stereotypes and racism on the conduct of the war in the Pacific. 1 John W. Dower assesses the impact of racial hatred, cultural stereotypes, and acid psychological factors on the conduct of the Pacific War. Yet his treatment of wartime atrocities, Japanese adherence to "death before dishonor," and Americans "obsessed with the task of slaughter" reveals only part of the story. Although he refers to the surrender of demoralized Japanese soldiers, the subject is peripheral to his work. This is understandable given his focus, yet one is left with a very dear impression that such occurrences were extraordinarily rare and insignificant events. More problematic is Dower's assertion that Americans in decision-making positions were so singularly unimpressed with the idea of waging a serious propaganda campaign against the Japanese that "such ideas had little impact." In fact, this is not the case. Psywar was not an afterthought on the part of Allied military commanders, nor was it always perceived as some "impractical plaything of effete civilians."2 In their attempts to demoralize Japanese troops Allied propagandists in the Southwest Pacific alone disseminated nearly 400 million propaganda leaflets and witnessed the capture of approximately 19,500 Japanese prisoners. The dearth of historical inquiry into the conduct of psywar against the Japanese, likely results from assumptions that deserve closer scrutiny. One such assumption seems to be that psywar could not have been effective against an enemy so thoroughly indoctrinated in a tradition that emphasized "death before dishonor" and the supreme virtues of loyalty to the emperor, unquestioning obedience to one's superiors, and self-sacrifice in the service of the nation. To be sure, soldiers in the IJA were thoroughly imbued with these values. But just as it did not prevent them from experiencing defeat on the battlefield, military indoctrination did not safeguard the emperor's soldiers from the ill effects of demoralization. The evidence shows that as the war progressed and Allied military successes mounted, morale among Japanese combatants markedly declined and Japanese soldiers became increasingly susceptible to the Allied war of words. Pacific War narratives provide graphic images of the brutal fighting in the Pacific, the atrocities committed by combatants, and the fight-to-the-death mentality that dominated among all fighting men in what has been characterized as a savage race war.

DNA - Modified Food Essay Example for Free

DNA Modified Food Essay Some vegetarians do not prefer to consume genetically modified vegetables or food products because they contain other genes which they have no idea about. The consumers find these genes unsafe for their health. The people must have the knowledge that the addition of these genes into the plants is done only to give them a better food product, but it’s therefore important to label genetically modified foods because it enables the consumer to determine and know the right choice of food information that is needed. Genetic modification is the technology by which the genetic makeup of the living organism such as plants and animals bacteria is changed. Thus the resultant organism is called genetically modified, genetic engineered or transgenic. Source citation (http://www. ext. colostate. edu/pubs/foodnut/09371. html). First of all Consumers have a right to know what’s in their food, especially concerning products for which health and environmental concerns have been raised, this I think is one of the most important reason why individuals will prefer the labeling of genetically modified food, and also to know the condition of the environment of which the product was made from weather is a place with good sanitation or not. Mandatory labeling will allow consumers to identify and steer clear of food products that cause them problems because some people who with medical problems or allergic to some product will have to know before using them in order not to get themselves in trouble or contracting any form of diseases Surveys indicate that a majority of Americans support mandatory labeling. (However, such surveys often do not specify the effect on food prices.) Least 21 countries and the European Union have established some form of mandatory labeling source citation (Gruere and Rao, 2007; Phillips and McNeill, 2000) For religious or ethical reasons, many Americans want to avoid eating animal products, including animal DNA. For example some religious beliefs enact laws for people to avoid eating some certain products due to this labeling of genetically modified food will help consumers know the right choice of product to consume example are the jewish and the buddist.

Breastfeeding vs. Bottle Feeding Essay -- Nutritional Advantages of Br

Nutrition and breastfeeding are subjects that can relate greatly to each other. New mothers are in a need of information regarding breastfeeding. Mothers receive the information and instructions on how to breastfeed at the hospital where they bear their children. That information is essential in the decision making process of whether to breastfeed or not. Still the clear choice for mothers everywhere is breastfeeding for several important life affecting reasons. Breast milk is highly nutritional, protects from various diseases, ideal in growth, promotes bonding, and is beneficial for the mother in a recovery process after labor. People tend to find other ways to feed the new born babies other then breastfeeding. That way is the usage of baby formulas. Sometimes mother tend to use formulas instead of breast milk. Below are some of the reasons why a mother may choose to feed her baby with a formula: The mother or baby has a chronic illness or condition. An example is a mother with Hepatitis B. The mother may use prescription medications or other drugs. These may be passed through the milk and harm the baby. The mother is returning to work and finds breastfeeding too difficult. The mother is uncomfortable with the process. All of these reasons are acceptable, and mothers know the possible consequences of their actions. Breastfeeding usually goes on for within the first twelve months of infant's life; nevertheless, there are some extreme breast feeders that do it for years. Although most mothers try to breastfeed the infants no matter what condition they are in. A vitamin called Colostrums is high in protein, zinc, and other minerals. It contains less fat, carbohydrates, and calories t... ... or woman should get pregnant in order to lose weight. Females should not do that because it is just a scientific fact that affected not all individuals in the same way. Nutrition and breastfeeding are essential parts of the nursing mother. It is essential because without it we would have a world with sick, underdeveloped, malnutritioned, and untrusting individuals. Fortunately breastfeeding gets rid of all these extremities. Feeding from the breast is something that protects not only the mother, but the baby too. There is nothing else in the world like it. Some nutrients in it are only found in a human body. What else could a mother ask for? All the diseases that are easily acquired by a defenseless organism of a baby are now stoppable because of the mother's natural resistant and supplier of necessary material. That resistant and material is breast milk.

Assess Himmler’s role and significance in WWII conflict Essay

Himmler fueled by his extreme racial ideology of the destiny of a Great German Empire and his rooted hatred for Jews was one of the key mechanisms for which established his role and significance within the conflict of WWII as the architect of genocide through the propagandistic manipulation of the SS mentality in calcifying them against the sheer immorality of the elimination of the Jews. His philosophical belief of the war as a struggle of races nevertheless were occasionally compromised by the necessity of military personnel towards the end of the war and economic necessities which the Jewish population had the potential of providing. This leads to his role in directly implementing policies to fund the SS and thus ensure its ongoing influence throughout the war, as well as assisting the war effort through forced labour over building roads and canals. Despite this, Himmler’s key contribution to the nature of the war was the elimination of the Jews. Himmler throughout the course of WWII maintained the fundamental and powerful racial ideology of the superiority and inevitable conquest of the Germanic-Nordic. The rooted hatred of Jews was the ultimate racial and ideological foe of Hitler, as he stated himself in a speech in 1943 to the SS â€Å"This is a struggle of races.† It is through this belief of the war as a means of conquering a racial enemy and through such asserting German power with Lebensraum provided the basis for which established Himmler’s role within the conflict as the man who significantly orchestrated the attempted extermination of the Jewish race. The genocide which Himmler facilitated in implementing was the expression of one of Hitler’s key war aims to conquer the Jewish threat, and assert racial superiority of the Aryan race, of which Himmler undoubtedly shared and was, delegated the task of administering the racial polices. Thus, Himmler monitored a campaign of which involved his own private army, designed to wipe out the enemies of Nazism behind the lines- that is, in the Eastern areas already conquered by the troops. The need for the future was to incorporate all the Nordic peoples into the Germanic Reich and eliminate those who were alien and inferior of which did not only comprise of Jews but also Mongols and the Asiatic race. This resulted in the ghettoisation and eventual resettlement of Jews, for example in 1942 Himmler ordered the total resettlement in concentration camps of the Polish Jews of which ultimately resulted in over three-quarters of the Warsaw Gehtto’s inhabitants being transported to Treblinka, the death camp. As a main architect of Genocide, he established Auschwitz which resulted in the mass extermination of two million Jews. Therefore, a large part of Himmler’s significance was his ability to implement into practice the mentality and ideals of Hitler and consequently be responsible for the enormity of human deaths and genocide. Himmler was also given the instruction to and was responsible for the Germanisation of conquered territory which consistent of his obsession with racial superiority inherently involved the elimination of unassimilable races. In Holland, Himmler’s deportation orders removed almost three-quarters of the Jewish population. In Yugoslavia and Greece, the proportion of Jewish losses by deportation was extremely heavy. The attempted racial cleansing of conquered- foreign nations demonstrate Himmler’s role within the conflict as not only attempting to eliminate an entire race, but also forcefully imposing Nazi racial ideologies and interest upon other nations, regardless of whether they had being won over by anti-semitism, as Italy had not being. This was done with the intent of fulfilling the racial aim of the war and the attainment of Lebensraum for which provided resources for the war effort and a step towards fulfilling Himmler’s goal of a powerful German-Nordic Empire. Himmler’s ideological standpoint played an important role not only in his implementation repression and murder against Jews but it was also a means of which Himmler hardened the SS psychologically to withstand the atrocities in implementing genocide. He offered the troops a vision of racial conflict throughout history in which the Jews played a critical part. Furthermore, through propagandistic speeches he accentuated the racial hated of the SS and compelled his men to realize the notion of murdering one’s own race if they don’t efficiently implement his policies of extermination through labour as â€Å"because if the anti-tank ditch is not dug, German soldiers will die†. Also, in order to ensure the efficiency in the implementation of his polices Himmler addressed commanding officers of the SS divisions where he spoke of the great fortress of Eurpoe of which they were privilege to defend and increase. Therefore, throughout the war Himmler’s role, specifically within the holocaust involved psychologically motivating and hardening his subordinates and those implementing the act of genocide through the propagandistic delivery of his own racial and philosophical ideologies, imposing them upon others and calcifying them against the atrocities they would implement. Himmler’s role in boosting the ‘morale’ of the SS was crucial to the extent of the exterminations. Furthermore, Himmler was significant in the establishment of death camps and labour camps which irrevocably set in motion the Final Solution, the systematic elimination of Jews, gypsies and homosexuals of Eastern Europe. Though Auschwitz was HImler’s principal death camp which consumed two million Jews, there were others in Poland and Russia at which the organized gassing and shooting of Jews, Slavs and gypsies took place during the years 1942-44. The policy was extermination through work for those prescribed as medically fit for labour, immediate extermination for the ill and old. Thus, the policy for mass extermination of Jews was combined the economically related interest of compelling the Jews to work to death in the prospect of the labour used for German’s war efforts. In addition, Himmler’s realization of the economic necessities has resulted in the outright sale of Jewish liberties. At the end of 1942 he financed an entire SS division in Hungary by the sale of emigration permits to Jews. As Padfied concluded, Himmler was in favour of compromise with his policy of extermination in certain cases where the financial gain far exceeded the disadvantage of the survival of certain Jews. Furthermore, Himmler’s interest in contributing to the overall national interest of contributing to the war effort through forced labour and his willingness to compromise his racial ideologies to serve practical economic necessities such as the maintenance of the SS demonstrates the notion that in addition to being the architect of genocide, he was also responsible for ensuring the continuous functioning of the SS and the somewhat limited products of forced labour, as a means of extermination. Nevertheless, maintaining an effective and operational SS was crucial to the success and extent of the extermination policies. Therefore, despite Himmler’s nuance in compromising racial ideals by selling Jewish liberties as in this example, the overall interest that underlines his motivations continue to be the fundamental philosophical belief of the unassimilability and danger of the Jewish race and the need for extermination in a war described by him in a 1942 speech as â€Å"a struggle of race†. The impact of Himmler’s racial policies of genocide affected the nature of the war in that it is one which involved the systematic elimination of a race, as it is not just the outcome of total war, which Himmler claimed it to be in 1944 but also it was inherently a part of a nation’s purpose to the war and the means of achieving a philosophical and ideological goal. However, Himmler’s role within the war was not limited to the question of race, by 1943 due to the fall of Stalingrad and reverses in Africa, Hitler allowed for the expansion of the Waffen SS. Thus, by 1943, short on German SS personnel Himmler recruited 8 new divisions of men of which none were of German racial origin. For example, Bosnian Moslems were recruited and an entire SS division of anti-Bolshevist Ukrainians were formed. The effectiveness of these SS divisions in serving the needs of the German army varied however overall its inability to alter the direction of the war after Stalingrad and the expansion of Himmler’s military ambitions towards the end of the war demonstrate the somewhat limited significance he played to the overall outcome of the war. Furthermore, this can be seen towards the end of the war where Himmler under the pressure of both the advancing Russian army and Hitler’s rage drove him into retreat and lose regard for his armies, thus conducting a purge.

The Impact of Reinsurance on Cost of Capital of Insurers - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 9 Words: 2810 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Argumentative essay Did you like this example? THE IMPACT OF REINSURANCE ON COST OF CAPITAL OF INSURERS The Impact of Reinsurance on Cost of Capital of Insurers Abstract The primary objective of this study is to test a theoretical framework relating the purchase of reinsurance with the cost of equity capital and cost of debt capital in the insurance industry. Company stock betas are selected as indicators of cost of equity capital and besides retention ratios, several company performance attributes are selected as factors that affect stock betas. A regression analysis is used for analyzing their relationships with company stock betas. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Impact of Reinsurance on Cost of Capital of Insurers" essay for you Create order For cost of debt equity, credit ratings are selected as its indicators and a descriptive analysis is used for analyzing its relationship with reinsurance purchases. 1. Introduction Insurers have to maintain a sufficient amount of capital to support their promise to policyholders, which is a unique feature of insurance industry. Even though insurers can solely depend on capital from premiums paid by policyholders but in order to expand and remain solvent, insurers may also raise capital from investors such as stockholders and creditors. Additional capital from stock and bond markets can serve as buffers against unexpected claims or financial losses. However, this kind of capital is often associated with a cost, which is the fair rate of return insurers have to pay for the use of the capital. If an insurance company does not pay the required rate of return, there will be risk that its stock prices drop to such an extent that the company becomes a takeover target for competitors and risk that rating agencies downgrade its credit ratings to such an extent that the company becomes under regulatory supervision. Since holding a strong capital base and paying the demanded rate of return is such an important consideration for insurers, examining what decisions and factors may affect cost of capital becomes an interesting and significative topic. Among the various decisions and factors that may impact cost of capital, the purchase of reinsurance stands out as one of the most commonly used risk funding tools of insurers. Even though reinsurance can be very beneficial as it helps to increase the underwriting capacity, reduce the risk of insolvency, and stabilize the earnings level of the direct insurer, it exposes the direct insurer to more credit risk, reinsurance market fluctuations, and unreasonably high rates. Previous research concentrated on examining diverse corporate finance mechanisms associated with cost of capital while few of them addressed the issue of industrial variation. The allocation of different types of capital may vary largely among different industries. Insurance companies, as unique leveraged investment vehicles, have corporate structures that are completely disparate from other industries. Consequently, the results presented in the former studies, though supported by elaborate statistical analyses and persuasive reasoning, may not apply to insurance industry at all. The purpose of this current study is therefore to empirically investigate the impacts of reinsurance and some company performance attributes on cost of capital in the insurance industry. There are two major reasons why insurance industry is selected as the subject for this study. The first is that insurers operate under strict regulatory constraints on how they run their businesses and how much capital they need to set aside to keep operating. The second is that accounting rules for recording earnings and asset value at insurers are at variance with ac counting rules for the rest of the market. The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 reviews prior studies on the relationship between reinsurance purchase and its impact on insurance companies. Section 3 develops the hypotheses and describes the study sample. Section 4 tests the hypotheses and analyzes the results. Section 5 makes the final conclusion and discusses the major limitations. 2. Literature Review Past literature breaks into two streams with one concentrating on the productive and positive effects of reinsurance and the other on the negative impacts of reinsurance. Several empirical studies found a strong connection between reinsurance purchase and good firm performance. Zeng (2005) indicated that shareholders can utilize reinsurance to manage their risk well for the ultimate goal of maximizing the firm value as well as maintaining longer term sustainability. Meier Outreville (2006) proposed that with reinsurance, an insurance company is abl e to sustain a larger volume of premiums than it would with other types of risk financing techniques. Cummins et al. (2008) argued that the purchase of excess of loss reinsurance improves loss experience by lowering claim payments caused by huge losses and catastrophes, and reduces the potential liability of an insurance company on some specified risks. Cummins, Feng, Weiss (2011) discovered that reinsurance utilization can bring insurers with better performance but concentration in reinsurance counterparties can adversely impact insurersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ performance. Swiss (2002) and Cummins Trainar (2009)emphasized that reinsurers superior knowledge and wide-ranging proficiency in product pricing, underwriting and risk management can help the cedents increase their economic value significantly. However, as stated, there is the other stream which focuses on discussing negative effects brought by reinsurance, among which the most frequently mentioned were its associated credit risk and high costs. Froot (2001) stated that since the cost of reinsurance is always greater than the actuarial price of the transferred risk, the apparent disadvantage of this practice is that it is so expensive that it could probably cause the primary insurer to provide insurance at a higher cost. Meier Outreville (2006) explained why reinsurance with decreased price could indeed increase the loss ratios of insurance companies. When reinsurance becomes more and more affordable, it is highly likely that most insurers will rush to purchase reinsurance in order to enhance their underwriting capacity. However, this will increase the competition among insurers, driving the price low and hence the loss ratios high. Cummins Doherty (2002) mentioned the concepts of hard and soft market to illustrate how reinsurance may lead to inadequate management towards certain systematic risk. In the soft market, prices are low and coverage is widely available while in the hard market, prices are high and necessary coverage may be unavailable. If there is a reinsurance market cycle shifting from soft market to hard market, without timely risk management, insurers may suffer huge losses. 3. Hypothesis Development and Data Collection Hypothesis Development Since under CAPM Model, cost of equity capital is calculated as risk free rate plus stock betas multiplied by the difference between market risk premium and risk free rate, a direct impact on stock betas will result in a direct impact on cost of equity capital. In addition, under the assumption that firm specific features such as firm size, operating ratios and retention ratios do not impact risk free rate and market risk premium, the relationship between selected attributes and stock betas should be in the same direction as the relationship between selected attributes and cost of equity capital. 3.1.1. Firm size and cost of equity capital Aval Ohadi (2011) stated that since companies with smaller firm sizes usually grow and expand faster, they often perform better than the average market when the overall economy is boosted and that since larger firms often have stronger capital bases and better corporate structures than smaller firms, they remain less volatile to adverse market conditions. Combining those two points, we can assume that there is a high probability that insurers with larger firm size will have lower stock betas. The following hypothesis is thus formulated: H1: Firm size is negatively related to stock betas and thus negatively related to cost of equity capital. 3.1.2. Operating ratio and cost of equity capital Operating ratios are essential in the insurance industry. They indicate the profitability of the business that the company is involving in and a low operating ratio is often associate with a high ROE. Maintaining profitable will help the stock insurance company increase its policyholderà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s surplus and offer more dividends if possible. The re sult is apparent that stock prices will keep stable or go up so that they hold less volatility. Hence, it is hypothesized that: H2: Operating ratio is positively related to stock betas and thus positively related to cost of equity capital. 3.1.3. Retention ratio and cost of equity capital Iqbal Rehman (2014) stated that by enabling the primary insurer to issue more policies, the purchase of reinsurance helps the company gain stable growth, and acquire more value because of the stable growth. If there is less risk associted with devaluation or insolvency of the company, its stock betas should usually be lower compared with its competitors. Since rentention ratio is how much percentage the insurer retains, namely net written premium over gross written premium, it is has a perfect negative correlation with reinsurance percentage. Hence, it is hypothesized that: H3: Retention ratio is positively related to stock betas and thus positively related to cost of equity capital. 3.1.4. Retention ratio and cost of debt capital Iqbal Rehman (2014) also argued that reinsurance can stabilize an insurerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s capcacity, reduce its overall exposures and help insurance companies incur less financial distress cost, which they support with their empirical results. Again, retention ratio stands as a ratio thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s perfectly negatively correlated with reinsurance percentage. Hence, it is hypothesized that: H4: Retention ratio is positively related to credit ratings and thus negatively related to the cost of debt capital. Data Collection Quantify Credit Ratings Since few papers have discussed how to quantify credit ratings, this paper is presented with great challenges. The reasoning developed here is that the change in credit ratings can be divided into two categories based on the below table: 1. does not change according to the satisfaction. 2. jumps to a higher rating 3. drops to a lower rating. Any large jump or drop in credit ratings is excluded, because it is highly unlikely that the percentage of reinsurance alone can be the cause; other casual factors may create too much noise. Therefore, the change in credit ratings is presented as a dummy variable. Long-Term Debt Ratings Investment Grade Non-Investment Grade aaa(Exceptional) bb(Speculative) aa(Very Strong) b(Very Speculative) a(Strong) ccc, cc, c(Extremely Speculative) bbb(Adequate) d(In Default) Sample The sample for this paper is drawn from companies listed in the category of Finance Industry à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Life and AH Insurance/ Property-Casualty Insurers from https://www.nasdaq.com/screening/companies-by-industry.aspx?industry=Finance. One out of every two companies was randomly selected and then some were removed because of lack of access to their specific information. The sample for the study finally stands at 100. Regression Model and Variables The ordinary least squares (OLS) regression is employed to examine the relationship between explanatory variables and stock betas and the following regression equation is estimated: SBT = ÃŽÂ ²0 + ÃŽÂ ²1SIZE + ÃŽÂ ²2OPR + ÃŽÂ ²3RR+ ÃŽÂ µ Where: SBT = stock beta SIZE = log value of total assets OPR = operating ratio RR = retention ratio Data on stock betas was obtained directly from WRDS. Data on operating ratios and retention ratios was obtained from ISIS à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" insu rance companies worldwide. A ternary scheme is used to denote the change in credit ratings. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“1à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  is assigned for companies of which credit ratings jumped, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“0à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  for companies of which credit ratings remained constant, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“-1à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  for companies of which credit ratings dropped. Data on credit ratings was obtained from AM Best. 4. Hypothesis Tests and Discussion Results of Descriptive Statistics and Correlation Analysis Table 2 shows the descriptive statistics for all variables. The average stock beta of the sample companies was 1.33, with a range of 0.79 to 2.01 and a standard deviation of 0.48. Thus, there were large variations in stock betas among the sample companies. Table 2 also shows that average retention ratio of the sample companies is 83.08%, with a range of 67.96% to 92.19% and a small standard deviation of 7.80%. This indicates that there are small variations in retention ratios among the sample companies. Table 3 shows the descriptive statistics of retention ratios classified by credit ratings. The average retention ratios of the sample companies of which credit ratings dropped are lower than the average retention ratios of the sample companies remained the same or improved. There is also large difference in standard deviations and extreme values between the sample classes. This perhaps indicates that reinsurance purchase could have some negative influence on credit ratings because of its associated credit risk. It is encouraging that the bivariate analysis in Table 4 suggests no serious multicollinearity among the independent variables. Moreover, from Table 4 it can be observed that operating ratios and firm sizes are both negatively correlated with stock betas, same as the expected relationships. Thus the bivariate findings may provide a basis for interpreting the results of the multivariate analysis later. Table 2: Descriptive Statistics for All Var iables Variables N Mean Std. Deviation Minimum Maximum Dependent variable SBT 100 1.33 0.48 0.79 2.01 Independent variables SIZE 100 5.23 1.21 8.06 1.12 OPR 100 0.93 0.11 0.76 1.38 RR 100 0.83 0.08 0.68 0.92 Data: SBT: stock beta SIZE: log value of total assets OPR: operating ratio RR: retention ratio Table 3: Descriptive Analysis CR N Mean Std. Deviation Minimum Maximum Dummy values RR 1 4 0.86 0.11 0.80 0.92 0 90 0.83 0.07 0.69 0.90 -1 6 0.76 0.14 0.68 0.85 Data: CR: Credit Ratings RR: retention ratio Table 4: Correlation Analysis Variable SBT SIZE OPR RR SBT 1.0000 SIZE -0.7100 1.0000 OPR -0.8285 0.2014 1.0000 RR -0.3064 0.1246 0.2766 1.0000 Data: SBT: stock beta SIZE: log value of total assets OPR: operating ratio RR: retention ratio Results of hypotheses testing Table 5 presents the R2, F value, beta coefficients and t-statistics for the model and summarizes the multiple regression results. The table indicates R2 of 0.42 (F = 23.08, p = 0.000), which shows that a moderate percentage (42%) of the variation can be explained by variations in the whole set of independent variables (adjusted R2 = 0.40). Only firm size enters the equation with a regression coefficient that is significant at the 0.05 level in the regression model. On the other hand, operating ratios and retention ratios are insignificant. Hypothesis 1 states that firm size is negatively related to the stock betas and thus the cost of equity capital. The hypothesized direction is correct and the hypothesis is supported at the 5% significance level. A large firm size is thus viewed as an important factor that affect the stock betas of insurers as well as a possible indicator of lower demanded rate of return on the stock of insurers. Hypothesis 2 states that operating ratio is positively related to the stock betas and thus the cost of equity capital. The hypothesized direction is not correct and the hypothesis is not supported at the 5% significance level or at the 10% significance level. The two most possible reasons are: 1. Low operating ratio of a single year does not mean the company has a relative stable operating ratio for years. 2. Since stock betas are associated with the market conditions, high profitability associated with low operating ratios could increase stock betas under a stagnant market condition. Hypothesis 3 states that firms with lower retention ratios have lower stock betas. The hypothesized direction is correct and the hypothesis is supported at the 10% significance level. This result is consistent with that of the first stream of literature which states that reinsurance can help insurers gain stability. Table 5 OLS Regression Results SBT = ÃŽÂ ²0 + ÃŽÂ ²1SIZE + ÃŽÂ ²2OPR + ÃŽÂ ²3RR+ ÃŽÂ µ Variable E(Sign) Coefficient Std Err Beta t-values Significance Intercept 62.419 13.316 -1.68 0.0955 SIZE -11.266 1.402 8.04 .0001 OPR + -0.0768 0.161 -0.48 0.6353 RR + 7.469 2.130 1.79 0.0766 Data: SBT: stock beta SIZE: log value of total assets OPR: operating ratio RR: retention ratio Root MSE = 8.952 R2 = 0.4191 Adjusted R2 = 0.4009 F value = 23.08 F Significance = 0.000 Durbin-Watson Test = 1.984 Number of significant coefficients = 1 N = 100 5. Summary and Conclusion The results of this paper conclude that reinsurance may help insurers stabilize their stock performance and reduce cost of equity capital but rely on reinsurance imposes insurers to more credit risk and thus lower the credit ratings of the insurers if defaults happen, which in turn increases the cost debt capital. However, since the quantification of credit ratings is not a very reliable method of measuring cost of debt capital and data pool in this paper is not large enough, further research needs to be done in explaining the relationship between reinsurance purchase and cost of capital of insurers. References Aval, Z. G., Ohadi, F. P. (2011). Investigation of the Relation between the Beta, Firm Size, Liquidity and Idiosyncratic Volatility with Stock Return in Tehran Stock Market. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business: 1085-1092. CumminsJ., DohertyN.A. (2002). Can Insurers Pay for the Big One? Measuring the Capacity of an Insurance Market to respond to Catastrophic Losses. CumminsJ., TrainarP. (2009). Securitization, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Journal of Risk and Insurance, 76(3), pp. 463-492. CumminsJ., DionneG., NouiraG.R. (2008). The Cost and Benefits of Reinsurance. CumminsJ.D., FengZ., WeissM.A. (2011). The Impact of Reinsurance on Ceding Insurers Efficiency in the Property-Liability Insurance Industry: Affiliation and Domicile Effects. FrootK.A. (2001). The Market for Catastrophe Risk: A Clinical Examination . Journal of Financial Economics, 60(2-3), pp. 529-571. IqbalTahooraHafiza, RehmanUr.Mobeen. (2014). Reinsurance analysis with respect to its impact on the performance: evidence from non-life insurers in Pakistan. Aestimatio 8: 90-113. MeierU.B., OutrevilleJ. (2006). Business Cycle in Insurance and Reinsurance: The Case of France, Germany and Switzerland. The Journal of Risk and Finance, 7 (2), pp. 160-173. SwissR. (2002). Introduction to Reinsurance, Swi ss Reinsurance Company, Technical Training and Chief Underwriting Officer. ZengL. (2005). Enhancing reinsurance efficiency using index-based instruments. The Journal of Risk Finance, 6(1), 6-16.

The meaning of the suffering of Meursault from the angle...

Existentialism tends to focus on the question of human existence — the feeling that there is no purpose, indeed nothing, at the core of existence. The term itself suggests one major theme: the stress on concrete individual existence and, consequently, on subjectivity, individual freedom, and choice. Sartre did not believe in God, so there was no place for the essence of humanity to be before human existence. For Existentialists like Sartre, the absence of God has a much larger significance than the metaphysics of creation. Without God there is no purpose, no value, and no meaning in the world. Existentialism posits that individuals create the meaning and essence of their lives, as opposed to deities or authorities creating it for them.†¦show more content†¦From the opening of The Outsider, Meursault reveals himself to be indifferent toward emotion and interaction with others. Instead of grieving at the news of his mother’s death, he remains cold, detached, and indifferent. When he receives the telegram, his primary concern is figuring out on which day his mother died. He has no emotional reaction at the death of his mother because he believes that his mother’s death is nothing exceptional but very much inevitable so it is meaningless for him to mourn for her death. Meursault confesses: â€Å"I probably loved mother quite a lot, but that didn’t mean anything. To a certain extent all normal people sometimes wished their loved ones were dead.† Throughout the whole book his mothers death had absolutely no meaning to him but when he is put in the same situation, facing death, he finally realizes what death must have been like for her and for the first time in the whole story thinks about her feelings: â€Å"I felt that I understood why at the end of her life she’d taken a ‘fiancà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and why she’d pretended to start again†¦So close to death, mother must have felt liberated and ready to live her life again. No one, no one at all had any right to cry over her,† Existentialism emphasizes the freedom to choose and the choices one makes should be made without the assistance of another person or standard. Existentialist crisis is that as Sartre says, â€Å"The individual is