Simple vs. Compound Interest in Calculating Reparations

Further to our discussion in class last week, on the calculation of reparations , here is the post on simple versus compound interest:

Understanding the difference between simple and compound interest is profoundly important - not only for purposes of calculating damages or reparations, but for one's own personal life. Here is a link to a spreadsheet that illustrates the power of compound interest. It includes the formulas you can use to calculate straight-forward compound interest.

Important to note is that an investment of $15,000 in an account earning compound interest, calculated and paid monthly, at a rate of 6% per annum, will earn $31,653.07 more in interest over a 20 year period, than an account earning simple interest at the same rate over the same period. Or to put it another way, the compound interest on a debt (and the interest on most debt is compounded), will be significantly more over time than simple interest. The problem is that many people think of interest, and do rough calculations of interest, in terms of simple interest rather than compound interest - and thus the power of compound interest can cause a lot of pain to the unsuspecting debtor.

Compound interest is even more powerful when the principal is increasing with each period. So, if you took $2 each week (the amount you might be tempted to spend on lottery tickets), and invested it in an account earning 6% per annum compounded monthly (admittedly impossible to find in the current environment), at the end of 40 years your account (in which you would have only invested $4,160 over the 40 years) would be worth $15,953, or close to four times your investment. Make that $20 instead of $2, and the amounts become more interesting.

You can find a straight compound interest calculator here, and one which includes the addition of monthly contributions to principal  here.

UN TV - Human Rights Committee

Below is a broadcast from UN TV of a session of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, which is the institutional body that oversees the operation of the ICCPR, here deliberating on the text of a "General Comment." As we get started on Human Rights, and will examine the role of the Human Rights Committee, this should be of some interest.

Immunity of International Organizations

Just as we wrap up jurisdiction and immunity, there is this essay on the Opinio Juris blog regarding the immunity of international organizations. Opinio Juris is one of the premiere blogs on international law, and so you should get in the habit of checking it regularly.

Self-Determination in Catalonia

Further to our discussion last class, here is a story from today's paper about the turmoil in Spain following the conviction and sentencing of one of the key Catalonian leaders.

The Turkish Invasion of Syria - Some Background

As mentioned in class, here are some shortish articles that provide some background and explanation for making sense of what is going on in Northern Syria. The first, from today's New York Times; and a FAQ from the New York Times published last week, on why Turkey is fighting the Kurds. And an older backgrounder from the CFR that tries to unravel all the parties involved in the Syria conflict.

And, on a related note, and very much relevant to our discussion just last class about universal jurisdiction, here is a blog post from Just Security on the exercise of universal jurisdiction to prosecute Turkish forces for war crimes committed in Northern Syria. 

U.N. Reports Progress on Statelessness

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported that there has been significant progress this month in combating the scourge of statelessness. Perhaps most significantly, as many as 55 states pledged to either accede to or ratify the UN conventions on statelessness. Do you think that there are circumstances, relating to terrorism for instance, that might justify the stripping of a person of nationality so as to render them stateless? If so, what would the justification argument look like?

Diplomatic Immunity for American Diplomat's Wife in U.K.?

As mentioned in class last week, there is a simmering dispute between the United States and the United Kingdom over the diplomatic immunity of an American woman who is wanted in Britain in connection with a traffic accident causing death. You can read more on the story in this New York Times report. As we take up the topic of immunity this week, which side do you think has the better argument as a matter of international law?

European Court of Human Rights Decision in Al-Skeini v. Sec. of State for Defence

Hazim Al-Skeini

As we discussed in class last week, the European Court of Human Rights in July of 2011 handed down a judgment with respect to the same case that we examined, the House of Lords decision in Al-Skeini v. Secretary of State for Defence, holding that the Iraqi nationals could make claims under the Convention, and finding that the UK had, among other things, violated the claimants' Art. 2 right to life. There is a summary and commentary on the judgment on the Lawfare blog here, and the decision itself is here. These will help flesh out the very short excerpt in our text.

Please take a look at the decision, and consider whether you still think that the House of Lords got it right (or wrong), and which decision you think better accords with international law principles on jurisdiction, and the rationale underlying those principles.

Brexit and Hong Kong

Two ongoing crises that have significant international law aspects are the protests in Hong Kong, and the pending withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. We discussed the current crisis in Hong Kong briefly in class, in the context of quasi-states and states-like entities. Here is a "backgrounder" that will help explain the nature of the relationship between Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China.

Similarly, we discussed Brexit briefly after the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom held that the Prime Minister's proroguing of parliament was unlawful. Brexit of course implicates both constitutional and international law issues. But it is in essence an international law matter, as the United Kingdom is trying to withdraw from the European Union - Brexit was initiated when the United Kingdom submitted its notice of termination of the Lisbon Treaty, a provision of which  governs termination and withdrawal. It is scheduled to withdraw on October 31, with or without a new agreement to govern relations with the EU, which most think would be a disaster for both the UK and the EU. A backgrounder on Brexit can be found here.

Withdrawing from the Universal Postal Union

Those interested in reading more about the issue of US withdrawal from the Universal Postal Union can find a news story on it here, and a more academic analysis of it here.