U.s. Army Counterintelligence Special Agents - 1377 Words

How can lawmakers maintain a balanced approach while collecting intelligence on United States persons in order to prevent a national security crime and provide full consideration to the rights of said persons? Does the current legislation permit U.S. Army Counterintelligence Special Agents to conduct investigations to the fullest extent or does it hamper their ability to properly investigate? Lawmakers have asked these questions since the inception of government executed counterintelligence operations in order to support our country’s leaders trying to strike the perfect balance of investigative freedom and citizen’s rights. When the Counterintelligence Corps was formed in 1961 there were few laws that governed intelligence collection.†¦show more content†¦Its goal is to protect the rights of U.S. Citizens by giving everyone an expectation of privacy with a reasonable standard of the Fourth Amendment. As stated by Executive Order 12333, one main goal is: Al l means, consistent with applicable United States law and this Order, and with full consideration of the rights of United States persons, shall be used to develop intelligence information for the President and the National Security Council. A balanced approach between technical collection efforts and other means should be maintained and encouraged. (Executive Order 12333) The Order has four main goals, the one above applies specifically to the relationship of intelligence investigations and civilians rights. Executive Order 12333 was produced for intelligence activities conducted within the Executive Branch of the government, which includes: the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Army Counterintelligence and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. However, Executive Order 12333 affects intelligence and law enforcement operations because of its jurisdiction over all of these organizations. Operational conduct is distinctly different between law enforcement operations and intelligence investigations conducted by intelligence agencies. Captain Aaron Johnson, an Army Judge Advocate General (JAG) magistrate,

The Cold War Cuban Missile Crisis - 2377 Words

Andrew Villaseà ±or Mr. DuBois World Studies 19 June 2015 The Cold War: Cuban Missile Crisis Nuclear catastrophe was hanging by a thread ... and we weren t counting days or hours, but minutes. Soviet General and Army Chief of Operations, Anatoly Gribkov The closest the World has ever been to nuclear war was with The Cuban Missile Crisis. The lives of millions lay in the ability of President John F. Kennedy and Premier Nikita Khrushchev to reach an agreement. The crisis began when the United States discovered that just ninety miles from the coast of Florida, the Soviet Union had set up nuclear missiles. On October 22, Kennedy announced the discovery of the missile installations to the public and his decision of the naval quarantine†¦show more content†¦The Cold War began when Joseph Stalin, leader of the Communist Party, used the Red Army to take control of most of the countries of Eastern Europe. The United States as well as Western European countries were greatly concerned. In response to Stalin s military movements, President Harry Truman issued the Truman Doctrine in 1947. In his address to Congress, President Truman decided that â€Å"the United States would aid any country that asked for help in resisting communismâ⠂¬  (Browne 263). The Truman Doctrine became known as the basis for containment, the policy to keep communism from spreading to other countries. According to White House documents online, after the Truman Doctrine, George Catlett Marshall, Secretary of State, proposed the Marshall Plan, the European Recovery Program through which the United States provided aid to Western Europe after World War II, in June 1947. The Marshall Plan was offered to all European countries, but Stalin would not allow the countries his military was occupying to take part. â€Å"In April 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed† (Browne 263). The countries involved in this pact were the United States, Britain, France, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Portugal. The NATO agreement said that an armed attack against one or more of its members in Europe and/or America shall be considered an attack against them all. To ward off

Studying Of Environmental Health Health And Social Care Essay Free Essays

My MBBS ( Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery ) course of study of Community Medicine gave me an chance to analyze the multidisciplinary Fieldss of Public Health.Moreover, I had the opportunity to expose to the wellness attention installation of our state through several Day Visit plans. My Day Visits to Institute of Public Health ( IPH ) Dhaka, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh ( ICDDR, B ) , Expanded plan on Immunization ( EPI ) Centre, Dhaka etc. We will write a custom essay sample on Studying Of Environmental Health Health And Social Care Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now gave me a perfect range to detect the public wellness benefit in Bangladesh.Through these visits I become interested in this topic. My involvement in Public Health was further stimulated by my field visit experience as a portion of RFST ( Residential Field Site Training Program ) at Sreepur upazilla. We performed a cross sectional survey on â€Å" Psychosocial Assessment of Rural People of Bangladesh † . That was for the first clip I was introduced to epidemiological study and worked utilizing SPSS to come in and analyse data.We were awarded the 2nd award for our distinguishable undertaking. During my arrangement, I had found that most of these rural people were incognizant of the basic wellness regulations and therefore easy infected by many catching diseases.We gave them wellness instruction about nutrition, sanitation and personal hygiene and distributed ORS ( Oral Rehydration Salt ) packages. I was really aroused when they showed self-concern for safe environmental pattern. With the aid of Upazilla Health Officer, we guided them to put in H2O seal latrines. The RFST experience aroused my involvement in the field of Environmental Health. Not merely were we able to make something new but we were besides able to assist the local population. By actuating and educating a group of people about wellness related jobs, we could finally diminish the disease load in the community. I realize the importance of hygiene instruction in our society. In Ibrahim Medical College I managed to keep the top place in my category during the whole undergraduate plan. In the Final Professional MBBS ( Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery ) scrutiny, I stood foremost in the college. Besides academic surveies, I frequently volunteer to the BIRDEM General Hospital and Diabetic Association of Bangladesh ( DAB ) to take part in free wellness cantonments. After my completion of 5 old ages of medical class, I have started one twelvemonth rotatory internship preparation at BIRDEM ( Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation of Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorder ) General Hospital. As an intern physician in third degree infirmary, I have the chance to pull off patients with wide scope of unwellness like hapless patients with diabetes complications, severe malnourished kids enfeebling from Kalazar, Tuberculosis and Helminthiasis, skin malignant neoplastic disease patient with arsenicosis and immature workers with assorted pneumonic complications. To battle the predominating environmental wellness jeopardies in Bangladesh I believe it is imperative to develop an effectual accomplishment in the field of Environmental Epidemiology. An MS grade in Environmental Health in the field of Environmental Epidemiology will supply me a alone chance to analyze the incidence of disease and diminish the impact of environmental wellness r elated jobs from our community. During my internship in Gynaecology Department, I had made another field visit at Ramu Upazilla Health Complex, Cox ‘s Bazar.I was involved in supplying Essential Service Package ( ESP ) and Primary Health Care ( PHC ) to the local community.I organized a little group session with local people to discourse on issues like harmful consequence of chemical fertilisers, generative and child wellness attention and referral cognition for patients with cholera, diarrhea and pneumonia. I found this treatment really effectual as most of them were nescient about modern wellness attention. My community exposure and interaction with patients farther escalate my involvement in environmental wellness. I will be take parting in a research undertaking on â€Å" Identification and Magnitude of Antibiotic Prescription in Different Levels of Health Service Delivery Centres † from November 2012.Under the supervising of Dept. of Microbiology, BIRDEM infirmary I will be working as a research assistant.I think it will be really effectual to better my accomplishments in the field of epidemiology and biometricss. Bangladesh has made a sustained advancement in environmental wellness sector with precedence of issues like sanitation, planned urbanisation, forbiddance of plastic bag usage etc.By utilizing limited resources and wellness installations it has successfully promoted under five immunisation program.Working in both Upazilla and Tertiary degree infirmaries, I think environmental wellness demands more attending at primary level.Lack of sufficient figure of community doctors and unequal wellness installations fail to supply quality wellness service to the rural people. I am determined to function my community as a physician scientist every bit good as research worker to place community wellness job and create consciousness of wellness related jobs among them.After completion of Master ‘s plan I would wish to obtain a PhD grade in Environmental Health so that I can go on my research in the related field. Analyzing Environmental Health at Boston University will be really esteemed and I am peculiarly excited by its accomplishment focused course of study, diverse expertness, outstanding module, multicultural environment in campus and extended practicum chances in this field.As a doctor I am in a alone place of steering the wellness attention squad. I am excited that if I get into the plan I would hold the chance to lend to the bequest of Boston University ‘s School of Public Health plan. Finally, I believe that being an academician in a reputed university will function my ultimate calling dream as a research worker where I could be working towards the benefit of the society.The chance to prosecute my alumnus survey in Boston University will move as the origin of my dream towards a successful hereafter. How to cite Studying Of Environmental Health Health And Social Care Essay, Essay examples

Vertigo Feminist Theory free essay sample

It is very much active male and passive female. Madeline is there to be looked at, the soft focus, the romantic music, the green dress contrasting with the red interior of the restaurant. The Mis-En-Scene in the restaurant is crying out for Madeline to be an object of desire. In Hitchcock’s films the women often have a strong visual and erotic impact. It could be the nature of the film, that’s a whole different story but mostly talks about the women and also Madeline also in Vertigo. They have a ‘to be looked at’ ness. They are there to be looked at basically. Laura Mulvey also talks about the idea of scopophilia which is looking at the sort of pleasure. It’s a Freudian term that he came up with. It basically talks about the pleasure gained from looking at desirable objects, the object been women. And it kind of takes on the whole boundary between male/female desire, kind of sort of thing going on there. We will write a custom essay sample on Vertigo Feminist Theory or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In terms of Mulvey? They are also interested in the idea of fetishisation of women, in Vertigo in the opening scene we experience this. Madeline or Judy is reduced to her lips and her eyes. They are very much objects of desire. Things that men look for in a woman. She is basically dismembered. Shes nothing else but her sexual attributes. Later on in the film when Scottie is trying to recreate Madeline through Judy, Scottie is very much constructing female ideal. Which he thinks is Madeline. Mulvey said male project their fantasy onto the female figure is styled accordingly. Which is basically what scottie does with Judie. Much to devestation in the end of the film. Because it is unattainable, the fantasy that Scottie wants from a woman is unattainable. The other film theorist that I will introduce is Tania Modeleski she wrote the women who knew too much in 1988. And she kind of carried on this whole idea of Male active, female passive kind of thing but challenged Mulvey’s viewpoint in the sense she said that is was constructed from a patriarchal viewpoint. It is very much black and white in male is active, female is passive where as Modeleski said that it is a lot more complex than that it doesn’t allow for a complex representation of women when you think of vertigo the second time that you watch it with the Ernies restaurant scene in the beginning you think well madeline actually knows that she is been watched by Scottie so it questions who is in control of the gaze when they know they are been looked at. Obviously Madeline is acting in a certain way however she has the ghostly presense and knows that she is doing that. Complicates things which hitchcocks films are all about, they have many layers of representation and themes. Feminist view points applied to different films as well

What is Human Rights Abuse Essay Example For Students

What is Human Rights Abuse? Essay By: Kwiana Pinnock E-mail: emailprotected What are Human Rights Abuses? Human Rights Abuses are occurrences where there are violations on an individuals right to act in a way to make moral decisions. Tis includes violations against an individuals political rights,worker rights, and freedom of religion,speech, press,peaceful assembly and association. It includes freedom from any cruel or inhumane treatment and not being discriminated against because of race,sex, disability,language or social status. Human rights abuse may occur in positions where there is a hostile government in power or in everyday life in a developed nation. But, it usually occurs in a poor or unstable country with a record of violence and inept leadership. We will write a custom essay on What is Human Rights Abuse? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At this time countrys that have been known for human rights abuse in their countries are China, Cuba, Rwanda, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. They have violated their citizens rights as individuals through senseless killngs, arbitrary detention, and detention. When human rights abuse occurs it may be unknown by the international community but, once alerted there is usually something done about the situation. There are two main groups that take care of human rights abuse. They are NATO and the United Nations(U.N), when these groups are notified that guman rights abuse is occurring they take action. Whether it is through sanctions, constructive engagement or humanitatian intervention. Word Count: 209 . What is Human Rights Abuse Essay Example For Students What is Human Rights Abuse Essay Human Rights Abuses are occurrences where there are violations on an individuals right to act in a way to make moral decisions. Tis includes violations against an individuals political rights,worker rights, and freedom of religion,speech, press,peaceful assembly and association. It includes freedom from any cruel or inhumane treatment and not being discriminated against because of race,sex, disability,language or social status. Human rights abuse may occur in positions where there is a hostile government in power or in everyday life in a developed nation. But, it usually occurs in a poor or unstable country with a record of violence and inept leadership. We will write a custom essay on What is Human Rights Abuse specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At this time countrys that have been known for human rights abuse in their countries are China, Cuba, Rwanda, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. They have violated their citizens rights as individuals through senseless killngs, arbitrary detention, and detention. When human rights abuse occurs it may be unknown by the international community but, once alerted there is usually something done about the situation. There are two main groups that take care of human rights abuse. They are NATO and the United Nations(U.N), when these groups are notified that guman rights abuse is occurring they take action. Whether it is through sanctions, constructive engagement or humanitatian intervention. Bibliography: . What is Human Rights Abuse Essay Example For Students What is Human Rights Abuse? Essay By: Kwiana Pinnock E-mail: emailprotected What are Human Rights Abuses? Human Rights Abuses are occurrences where there are violations on an individuals right to act in a way to make moral decisions. Tis includes violations against an individuals political rights,worker rights, and freedom of religion,speech, press,peaceful assembly and association. It includes freedom from any cruel or inhumane treatment and not being discriminated against because of race,sex, disability,language or social status. Human rights abuse may occur in positions where there is a hostile government in power or in everyday life in a developed nation. But, it usually occurs in a poor or unstable country with a record of violence and inept leadership. We will write a custom essay on What is Human Rights Abuse? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At this time countrys that have been known for human rights abuse in their countries are China, Cuba, Rwanda, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. They have violated their citizens rights as individuals through senseless killngs, arbitrary detention, and detention. When human rights abuse occurs it may be unknown by the international community but, once alerted there is usually something done about the situation. There are two main groups that take care of human rights abuse. They are NATO and the United Nations(U.N), when these groups are notified that guman rights abuse is occurring they take action. Whether it is through sanctions, constructive engagement or humanitatian intervention. Word Count: 209 .

Trees...deserve rights essays

Trees...deserve rights essays Trees are torn down and damaged each day, whether it is for lumber, pulp and paper, or for no reason at all. Some people dont have respect for trees and break them without a care. However, this shouldnt be happening. Trees have the right to be protected and live a life of safety. Trees are living elements. They may not have walking abilities, talking abilities, or the ability to feel pain and pleasure, but they have life. Cells move throughout them and they require food and certain elements, just as we do. Not having sentiments has nothing to do with whether they possess rights or not. Trees are alive, and thus are entitled to rights and to be treated with care. The world deserves to be taken care of. It is a living organism. Everything upon the earth is priceless and beneficial. Everything is important. It is necessary that that is recognized and taken into account. One thing is not important than another. Humans, animals and trees all have equal value. If we were missing one of them, what would happen? Trees are a necessity for life. They supply fresh air for all living things to breathe. They can grow wonderful fruits to eat. They are also efficient for many things; however, they are not our instruments and should no be abused as they are now. Paper and wood are not requirements for life; air is. While we are cutting trees down for our use, we dont realize what is being done. Animals are losing their homes, and trees are being wasted. Trees deserve rights because if they are constantly abused and overused, there may not be any left in the end. Trees may be useful for a number of things, and we may use them everyday; however, more importantly, trees give life. Without them the world would be empty. Elements coming from trees, such as wood and pulp and paper, are great luxuries to have, but the homes of many animals, the air we breathe and the food we eat are not luxuries. ...

Procter and Gamble Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Procter and Gamble - Case Study Example Jaeger also let the existing brands sideslip while introducing expensive new brands that never caught on. One of the Jaeger's shortcomings was lack of understanding of P&G's culture, having come from abroad and having worked his way up he failed to imbibe the true spirit that P&G was built upon and tried to do away with the very identity and brand imaging P&G worked on. It was under Jaeger's leadership strategic focus and direction became fuzzy and not only did the company's profits decreased P&G became saddled with excess baggage that threatened to squeeze P&G's life blood. (Jamal Shamsie 2005) Jamal (2005) mentions that Lafley is focusing on existing strengths in brands that have strong following and following these brands to make them into super brands - empowering his work force, delegating responsibility and ownership into employees, and recognition of the efforts. He also focused on opening channels and reducing hierarchical layers so that ideas and suggestions are heard quickly and acted upon quickly. He believed in the motto that key assets of P&G are its employees and brands. Lafley is also focusing on focusing on P&G's strong cultural values and on reclaiming the heritage through aggressive measures whilst taking employees into complete confidence. He has focused on building goodwill, strengthening of key areas and opening of communication channels. (Jamal Shamsie 2005) Jamal ... Jamal (2005) believes that some of his major steps have been to trim down the work force, especially the leadership team, realigned responsibilities, reducing multiple layers, changing traditional hierarchy at P&G, making P&G customer focused rather than other way round. He has instituted regular meetings with all of his 12 top executives every start of week, sitting at a round table, letting them thrash out ideas while acting only as a moderator. He has focused more on women giving to them more key positions then before. He has recreated existing brands with new outlook to make product usage an experience that users would want to enjoy. He has complemented beauty line with acquisitions of Clairol and Wella. He has been of the opinion that P&G should build up on its strengths and should not be diversifying and loosing focus on areas which are not its key strengths. He has revamped its existing 200 brands adding extensions that complement on existing brands that add value to existing brands by providing additional features that would enhance the brands existing functions - Tide stain brush, a battery powered brush for removing stains, while washing with Tide! (Jamal Shamsie 2005) Some of the ethical issues he has had to face with is bringing people from outside where P&G earlier only promoted from within - giving multiple promotions to promising P&G 3 staff members, giving women higher responsibilities and more decision making roles. Another difficult decision had been to outsource any product or service that was not value adding inside the firm. He has to a large extent shifted the surplus workforce from his own premises to the outsourced company's premises. (Jamal Shamsie 2005) What is Lafley hoping to achieve with his

NEIGHBOURHOOD ASSESSMENT ON BROUTYFERRY DUNDEE .SCOTLAND Essay

NEIGHBOURHOOD ASSESSMENT ON BROUTYFERRY DUNDEE .SCOTLAND - Essay Example Dundee also has numerous clubs and pubs that cater to the needs of its diverse student population as well as the local inhabitants (Day and Gentry 2012). The Dundee Repertory Theatre is Scotland’s only repertory theatre and is widely recognized for its exceptional productions. Other ordinary theatres in Dundee are the Gardyne Theatre, Whitehall Theatre, and The Little Theatre. The Scottish School of modern Dance is also located at Dundee College. The city regularly plays host to a various festivals such as the jazz, blues, flower, dance, and food festivals (Gifford 2012). However, this number gets boosted during learning seasons when students come to attend Dundee’s universities and college. Dundee is particularly famous for its celebrated universities that boast approximately 40,000 students (King 2011). The Dundee University, in particular, has been able to attract well known scientists to it faculty, who have contributed to world class research studies. In addition, the ‘Centre of Excellence’ which is located in the University of Abertay, is internationally considered as an authority in the education concerning computer games. Many young entrepreneurs have been attracted to Dundee by the reputations of its educational institutions, and thus there has been a lot of job creation in the sector concerned with computer games. Broughty Ferry actually sits on the northern shore of river Tay. Broughty Ferry is a leafy neighbourhood situated in Dundee, Scotland in Great Britain. Broughty Ferry has a population of approximately 13,155 persons (Hall 2003). This region’s population is mainly comprised of young families and the semi retired. Most of Broughty Ferry’s residents tend to reside in large semi-detached as well as detached homes located in the exclusive rural as well as suburban areas. Most of Broughty Ferry’s inhabitants have high disposable incomes because of their specialized skills in varied fields. Broughty F erry was once a precinct for the jute barons of Dundee, and it was believed to be the home of some of the richest men in Europe. The numerous Victorian mansions that still dot its landscape are a testimony of that past era. The most famous attraction in Broughty Ferry is the Broughty Castle. This structure was constructed in the 1490s. It has been the centre of many disagreements about its true ownership. Between 1547 and 1550, it was occupied exclusively by the British (Hall 2003). Broughty Ferry has also functioned as a fishing port for a long time. Broughty Ferry’s ferry service to Tayport has been a vital connection between the ports of the east coast in the last few centuries. This was prior to the creation of the Tay Rail Bridge. In the course of the 19th Century, there was swift development in this area as a result of the establishment of the railway running through Arbroath and Dundee in 1838. The short standard train service between the Ferry and Dundee inspired resi dents to travel away in order to avoid the persistent smog that was the result of industrialization. During this period, the men who had grown wealthy from Dundee’s thriving jute industry began to build mansions in Broughty Ferry. Today, Broughty Ferry is a beautiful city with a scenic seafront, a harbour and an esplanade, and white sandy beaches. It has become quite popular with tourists and a wonderful place for sight-seers and walking enthusiasts. Broughty Ferry boasts a wide selection of four and five star hotels

Group Leadership Project Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Group Leadership Project Reflection - Essay Example Prior to the start of this assignment, it is essential to define leadership. Leadership put in simple terms, according to Susan Ward (Concepts of leadership, 2011) â€Å"is a process by which a person influences the behavior of his subordinates for succeeding towards a goal or objective and directs the team in a manner that makes it more consistent and logical†. But it can be said without creating a trace of doubt in anybody’s mind that Leadership is that quality summed up in a person who has the power to make or remake the workings, and the ideals of any group of people, be it large or small, political or business. This gives rise to many questions and this research paper will employ precisely these points in answering those questions: †¢ Leader and Follower roles †¢ What worked well? †¢ Leader’s effectiveness / efficiency †¢ Follower’s effectiveness / efficiency †¢ How and what were the roles developed. †¢ How dynamic / static the group were †¢ Power culture and structure †¢ Leadership style †¢ How conflicts were handled and decisions made Women and Business Leadership †¢Leader and follower roles: history is evident of the face that women have more often than not suffered from the very well-established male-dominate societies and businesses. In short, the male-superiority power. Even now in so many countries of the world, especially the third-world countries, women are beaten and thrown in dark rooms. This has given men the nerve to regard women as the followers and not as the leaders. Nevertheless, the women of today have fought tooth and nail to change that ideal and establish themselves also as the leaders. They have same or even better qualifications as men.

Advantages Of The Recycling Process

Advantages Of The Recycling Process As the word recycling denotes to, it involves a process in which used materials are processed chemically or by a scientific processes or organically into new products for further use, which comes as the useful material out of the waste. There are many kinds of recycling process being initiated, be it paper recycling, plastic recycling, garbage recycling, to name a few among the common features of recycling process involved. The need that arises to recycle used material and products, be it plastics, garbages etc is significant in a sense given that environmental concerns and the impact of used material to be precise has had a detrimental effect on the environment. Environmentalists are very much in favor of the recycling concepts, given that it adds ups to the environmental cause and the benefits are tremendous. There are many advantages of the recycling process involved for material or any matter thereof. The significance and importance of recycling process also cannot just be sided apart and brushed inside the carpet. Many prominent personalities and global leader are also very much in favor of recycling concepts and measures initiated in that regard. To top it all, with scientific and technological advancement, the process of recycling also have been made easier and convenient enough to derive the best out of every measured undertaken and in a sense to produce fresh material out of the material already in use. The cost involved also is lesser with long term benefits; ecologically that is initiated through sustainable measures. Purpose and Issue The subject matter in generic when it concern to recycling is a huge avenue to explore upon, literally. There are bundles of materials and coverage that defines the many faces of recycling process, its advantages, disadvantages, significance and all in between the feature that stand aloof from the ordinary. What is particular to recycling can be analyzed from different lenses. Generally, recycling has a greater impact today than ever before. The subject matter of its discussion and pointer for arguments also is a heated topic, either in the academic, political and environmental groups and their circles. Emphasizing in respect of the subject matter in discussion, it should be clarified herein that the purpose of this report is to define the many aspects of recycling in general and what makes it so important and significant in the contemporary world today. Issue that is interrelated to the subject matter also can be analyzed from an objective perspective. Take for instance the concern being raised for garbage and waste disposal that are generated and garbage management process involved that harms the environment and its surrounding. In another instance, question that also arises can be bracketed towards material and products that are being used haphazardly and disposed off unnecessarily. Yet there is every purpose to be identified that may be significant to counterview the essence of recycling, and everything involved in it. In that capacity and in context of recycling in general, the question and purpose of this report is to define and extrapolate the following questions in general as can be summarized below:- What defines the nature and significance of recycling in general? How can recycling be achieved for its designated purpose and benefits to be generated in that regard? Does the question of recycling in general readily register with the public domains? If that is the case then how, and why not if it is otherwise? Does recycling takes shapes only from the environmental concern being raised in the materialistic world that we live in? Above all, what are the features in substance involving recycling? How are recycling process achieved, and what are the different aspects of recycling? In general, and in particular to this question, recycling can be of many different types. Take for instance paper recycling, plastic recycling, e-material waste recycling to name a few among its class, which involves different tactics and scientific process involved to achieve the desired goals of recycling as a measure for environmental benefits. Considering these question in general, it should be clarified that this report attempts to extrapolate the many aspects of recycling process in general in consideration of the above-mentioned question, which is discussed as follows. Defining the Nature and Significance of Recycling Looking back as to where recycling and its concepts originated is hard to trace and is based on speculation, although people have been recycling material and products one or the other way since longtime back. And the concept of recycling is not a new altogether. But its impact and that which register readily with the public is felt with greater force in the contemporary context. To start with in this regard specific to this part of the discussion, experts and scholars are of the opinion that nature possesses a tremendous capacity to recycle several categories of waste by biodegradation aided by decomposer organism on earth. (Rajiv K. Sinha, 2008, p. 43) This is true in a sense, given that recycling process at best can be aided by the process of biodegradation. Yet there are certain things that biodegradations at times make it hard to reach the salient objective of recycling processes, that also for certain material and products and that which calls for technology and scientific advancement. Nonetheless, with scientific and technological advancements today, recycling process can be aided and facilitated accordingly in reaping the results that has a greater impact to make a change and stabilize the negative effects of waste materials that are generated daily in huge capacity by people across the globe and their activities. Going back to the nature of recycling, it should be looked into the encompassing facts that several municipal and as well as solid industrial waste have the potential to be recycled, where the call of the time is for appropriate technology. The good news although is that new technique are being maximized considerably to make the recycling process worth enough in recovering materials that maybe useful for further use after processing, rather than going to the landfill. (Rajiv K. Sinha, 2008, p. 43) In this respect, we can reason that recycling process has a greater significance than ever before. As a matter of fact, people around the globe today also are harnessing the best out of what technology has to offer and making the best use of it to recycle waste products and garbages into some useful materials as byproducts. Moreover, a point to consider again when it matter to recycling concepts in general is that its impact and awareness is being felt greatly in the current scenario. Add to it, the good news is that the growth for market for many classes of recycling material is due in part due to policy incentives, but also to more general conditions. (OECD, 2006, p. 11) Questions being raised by policy makers and environmentalist alike when it concerns the environment also counter point the salient instance for recycling and its initiative. The need to facilitate a habitual cause showered a way as well to be precise, where recycling and its processes is the call of the hour as an urgent measure to keep the environment in check from distracting elements. In context of the above notion and its arguments, what we can reason again is the fact that many cases and causes of recycling and its development process take roots under instances and measures initiated by public authority for a solution that seeks and attempts to reach a conclusion that is beneficial, (OECD, 2006, p. 11) for the environment, the society and feeding the ever increasing needs of the materialistic society that we live in today. To conclude in this regard, attending to the need of the society for material and products can be reasoned again to be good enough to be reached through recycling process, where waste materials are processed as byproducts, either be it for paper, e-waste, garbages etc through measures wherein recycling assist and further expands the very notion of ecological measures and sustainable development process in the contemporary society today. Environmental Concerns and the many face of Recycling In each and every instance when it matter to the subject matter arguments, environmental concerns and its features have always make a mark to claims a place of contention in between to derive astonishing discussion in the society. Measure initiated accordingly and in respect to derive best available solutions towards the hazard of waste material is also one pointer to put into force for a constructive solution through recycling processes. In respect of the abovementioned pointer, the need for recycling also can be looked again not only to the environmental concerns alone, but also towards public health and safety in regard. The best example in that capacity also can be emphasized and measured in contention towards industrial waste such as chemicals and their source activity that posit greater hazards (DIANEPublishingCompany, 1996, p. 33) to the environment as well to the society and public health in the forms of insecticides, herbicides, chemical paints, waste and harmful construction materials, waste oils, which carry within them a residue that is harmful and can impact the environment negatively in many ways. (DIANEPublishingCompany, 1996, p. 33) Hence, concerns being raised are not unnecessarily. The objective to define the features of recycling also can be put into force the practicality of the process involved overall in seeking a solution that is effective ad has greater benefits for the society today. What have been the crucial development that brought about the necessary measures in context of recycling processes are the features that relates towards waste material management itself and the concern being raised and options available in that regard. There is every point to note the fact from an ecological perspective, wherein the concerns have been over the effect of human actions on the environment, (Robert V. Percival, 1997, p. 3) which is a matter of fact. Increasing human activities in the societies have brought about many changes that have impacted the environment drastically. Moreover, waste that are generated daily that amount to millions of tons are finding it hard to find a landfill. The sad state is that the materialistic world that we live in further makes the issue of waste and its generation worse in a sense. Its something that goes like the adage something lost in translation. Yet solutions are there, but with least effect given the development stages and ever increasing wants of humans. Considering these crucial aspects and the critical issue of waste and its environmental impact, the questions that can be been raised again as a matter of fact is where to put up all the waste material generated daily apart from the recycling process for certain waste materials. The hard fact is that people and the society today have found themselves in situations where it reached a stage of declining of landfills, wherein the features of it reflect many factors in context of recycling as a necessary measure to be undertaken. To top it all, the fact that is relevant also can be emphasized again to the question and its arguments being raised to many aspects of waste material and garbages landfills that have been closed as they pose unacceptable environmental risks related to locations, designs, operations and most importantly because such landfills have filled up, (Richard A. Denison, 1990, p. 4) where a solution to such concern and problems are being initiated in context of recycling waste and other materials for a solution that also facilitate an environmental cause. Yet the development process in that regard is heading in a snail pace, despite the many measure being taken towards environmental concerns and the need for recycling for a lasting and relevant solution. An Exemplification of Recycling Types and their Benefits In general and looking at the concerns being raised towards waste material, we are of the opinion that there are many forms and formats of recycling processes and their types to differentiate upon. Take for example recycling process initiated toward paper, plastic, e-waste, metals and glasses and the environmental benefits that can be derived to be precise in each one of it. Plastic as we know of are one of the many hazards thats posits harmful and negative ecological impact. Take for example the fact that it would be hard to imagine a modern society today without plastic, given that plastic have found itself a place in myriad uses in fields as diverse as home appliances, construction, medicines, and packaging, (Goodship, 2007, p. 5) to name a few of its many uses that human cannot do away with or without. Hence the effect of its waste on the environment is also greater, and posits many risks and health concerns. As a matter of fact, the benefits from recycled plastic to be precise are tremendous. Generally, plastic are made from crude oil, hence recycling of plastic waste material further assist in conserving the natural resource in the form of crude oil, (Goodship, 2007, p. 5) feels experts. Looking back to this notion and reflecting the measure being initiated, we are of the opinion that the need for appropriate technology always make a mark to claim a place in instances as detailed above, given that several municipal and industrial waste has the potential to be recycled and processed for further use, and in that respect the need of the hour is appropriate technology for recycling, each one the suits specific purpose. (Rajiv K. Sinha, 2008, p. 43) To cite an example again when it concern to recycling; especially paper recycling, we are of the opinion that paper recycling and the benefits of it can be measured in great many ways, given that out of new paper, hard cardboard, and other high grade paper that are recycled, by products can be generated in the form of new material that are recovered by the application of available technology for use again in the most effective way. (Rajiv K. Sinha, 2008, p. 44) Besides, out of paper recycling to be precise and the endeavor made and facilitated in that regard as well, many environmental causes can be kept at check or minimize the same in the most effective ways. The means to look for new paper also does not arise, if cases such as recycling of paper make readily available material for use that can be generated through recycling process. Conclusion What we can finally conclude is that technology, scientific, biological and chemical process comes as the best measure to be reached for each particular recycling measures initiated towards waste materials for a benefit outcomes. Going back and reflecting towards recycling altogether, and reaching a conclusion from an economic perspective, there is reason enough to reflect and to emphasized with the fact that recycling process of any given waste materials has value additions, given that waste has a negative economic and environmental value, and also add up as a big techno-economic problem for the society. (Rajiv K. Sinha, 2008, p. 41) Yet a point to note and the hard fact is that recycling and awareness measure initiated in that regard is good instance considering the issue at stake in aiding and furthering the essence and quality of life in the society for a sustainable solutions.

Personal Strengths and Weaknesses Essay -- Personal Essays

Personal Strengths and Weaknesses We as individuals have to realize the importance of our strengths and weaknesses in order to make a difference in relating personal growth. Having different goals, priorities and special qualities about ourselves is what gives us individually. The purpose of this paper is to clearly define each of my strengths and weaknesses and figure out a way to identify my personal strengths and weaknesses. Doing so in order to enhance my learning process. In order for me to improve myself and enhance my learning process. Realizing the need to understand which methods and techniques that will better help me to learn at an optimal level. I think this class has definitely helped me understand which methods and techniques that will better improve my learning process. I also believe realizing my strengths and weaknesses will help me to become more self-conscious and a well-rounded individual. My personal strengths are my punctuality, discipline, and my ability to stay focused among the distractions. Punctuality is very important to me. I make sure to never be late and most of the time I arrive early for my appointments and engagements. I feel punctuality gives employers the idea you are eager and ready to engage in work. Having discipline is the ability to gain control by obedience is another one of my strong strengths. Discipline means having the tools to succeed in life and is something we all work on through out our lifetime. Discipline has gi...

Marketing Topical Research Paper

Global Marketing Topical Research Paper Chu Nguyen Binh – DBA Hanoi NorthCentral University (NCU), USA National University of Hanoi (Vietnam) August 2009 Research title: Where would be the market for foreign banks in Vietnam after joining WTO? ABBREVIATION BTABilateral Trade Agreement CARCapital Adequacy Ratio FBBForeign Bank Branch FIBForeign Invested Bank JSCBJoint Stock Commercial Bank JVBJoint Venture Bank MOFMinistry of Finance NPLNon-Performing Loan SBVState Bank of Vietnam SOCBState Owned Commercial Bank SOEState Owned Enterprise SMESmall and Medium-sized Enterprise SSCState Securities Commission WBWorld Bank WTOWorld Trade Organization TABLE OF CONTENTS ABBREVIATION ABSTRACT 1. INTRODUCTION1 2. VIETNAM BANKING SECTOR – A SUMMARY1 3. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VIETNAMESE BANKING INDUSTRY3 3. 1. Very Low Market Penetration3 3. 2. Rate of Growth in Both Loans and Deposits Far Exceeding GDP Growth3 3. 3. A Highly Concentrated but Highly Fragmented Banking Market4 3. 4. Heavy Handed Regulation with Restrictions on Foreign Banks5 3. 5. Lack of Transparency Concerning Quality of Lending6 3. 6. Heavily Undercapitalized7 3. 7. Narrow Revenue Base and Few Product Offerings7 3. 8. Unknown Quantity of Non-performing Loans8 4. BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT FOR THE BANKING SECTOR9 4. 1. The Government’s Strategy9 4. 2. State Bank of Vietnam – Freeing the Tiger9 4. 3. Regulatory Environment – Meeting International Standards10 4. 4. Developing the Capital Markets11 5. PROSPECTS FOR BANKING SECTOR GOING FORWARD12 5. 1. Non-Performing Loan Ratios to Rise, But Risks of Bank Failures Looms12 5. 2. Further Development Inhibited by Low Capital and Technology12 6. CONCLUSION14 REFERENCES15 ABSTRACT Vietnam’s banking system is dominated by five state-owned banks, with around 70% of system assets at end-2008. Around 38 private banks comprise roughly another 25%, with the balance substantially accounted for by a host of foreign banks. In recent years, the private banks, being more commercially oriented, have grown rapidly at the expense of the state-owned banks’ market share. The foreign banks have also grown, as opportunities improved for them after Vietnam entered a bilateral trade agreement with the US in 2001 and acceded to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2006. The Research Paper will examine the Vietnam’s banking sector as a whole, including general characteristics of the Vietnamese banking market. It then analyzes the proportion in term of loan and deposit of state-owned, joint stock, joint venture and foreign banks. In the second part, the report lists opportunities for foreign banks to penetrate the Vietnam market under new legal requirement of the Vietnamese Government. They can establish 100% foreign bank entity, purchase stake in local banks or set up joint venture with Vietnamese partners. Finally, it will examine strengths and difficulties in terms of technology, expertise and experience, service quality, risk appetite, etc. f the foreign banks when operating in Vietnam market. 1. INTRODUCTION There are a lot of banks in Vietnam. Too many in fact. Currently there are five state-run commercial banks, 38 joint stock commercial banks, four joint-venture banks, 29 foreign bank branches, 45 foreign bank representative offices, five finance companies and nine finance leasing firms operating in Vietnam. Since 1992, Vietnam has moved to a diversified sys-tem in which state-owne d, joint-stock, joint-venture and foreign banks provide services to a broader customer base. However, the four main state-owned commercial banks – the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank), the Industrial and Commercial Bank of Vietnam (Incombank) and the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (VBARD) account for around 70% of all lending activity. In a trade agreement with the United States signed five years ago, Vietnam fully committed to allow in foreign banks by 2010 at the latest, and to expose the banking sector to foreign competition. Under WTO entry rules the door may have to be opened even sooner than that. This has prompted foreign banking groups to closely scrutinize the Vietnamese banking sector as a business opportunity in itself. 2. VIETNAM BANKING SECTOR – A SUMMARY Vietnamese banking market is currently dominated by the five major State-Owned Commercial Banks (SOCBs), with 38 semi-private so-called joint stock commercial banks (JSCBs) gradually eating into their market share by better catering to the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and retail clients. Years of lax monetary policy focused on supporting export-led GDP growth has flooded the banking system with money, pushing up redit growth to an annual average of 36. 4% over the past five years (2003-2007), hitting a peak of 54. 9% last year according to World Bank figures. High liquidity and a scramble for market share have resulted in a degree of aggressive lending, in particular to investments in the real estate and stock markets, which both experienced rapid downturns in 2007 and early 2008. State-Own ed Commercial Banks: The five SOCBs – Agribank, Bank for Investment and Development (BIDV), Vietcombank, Vietinbank and Vietnam Development Bank – hold roughly two thirds of banking assets according to IMF sources. The SOCBs are still encumbered by their previous role as instruments for implementing government policy. Indeed, the strong links between senior bank executives and the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam, and other state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have impeded much-needed corporate restructuring. Hence, SOEs still receive preferential treatment in loan allocation, resulting in the SOCBs running up high non-performing loan (NPL) ratios. The SOCBs are currently reporting NPL ratios of around 3%, but we are expecting this figure to rise to 5% before the end of 2008. However, we carry doubts about the reliability of official figures and suspect the real ratios could be significantly higher. Joint-Stock Commercial Banks: The 38 JSCBs presently control roughly 20-25% of banking assets in Vietnam, but are quickly eating into the market shares of the larger SOCBs by providing superior services to SMEs and retail savers. The JSCBs are generally better managed and more profitable than the SOCBs, but suffer from low capitalisation, which has made them vulnerable to Vietnam's domestic ‘credit crunch', prompted by the SBV's rapid tightening of its monetary policy. Foreign Banks: HSBC and Standard Chartered and a number of other foreign banks are already present in the Vietnamese market through joint ventures with JSCBs. HSBC increased its stake in Techcombank to 20% in August and Standard Chartered raised its stake in Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) to 15% in May 2008, but foreign banks have been prevented from increasing their stakes by restrictions on foreign ownership of domestic banks. Vietnam currently limits the shareholding a foreign bank can take in a domestic counterpart to 20%, with the total foreign ownership limited to 30%. 3. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VIETNAMESE BANKING INDUSTRY . 1. Very Low Market Penetration There are only about six million bank accounts in Vietnam, five million of them for individuals which amounts to a penetration rate of about 6%. In reality, the effective potential market size is about 20 million or trebles the current penetration level. That is the size of the AB socioeconomic class in Vietnam. Even so, if we comp are this to the internet and mobile penetration rate of 14% and 12% the number is rather low. The reason is simple: the distribution and infrastructure of banking services is very poor relative to the telecommunications industry, which has virtual national coverage. By contrast, banks are almost unheard of in secondary cities and rural areas. With a low urban population of about 29%, banks simply don’t have easy access to over 70% of the population. There are other reasons, of course. Until recently the government had encouraged a cash economy by paying state employees in cash; there is a traditional distrust of banks; the banks themselves have done a poor job of providing services to the retailing public; and small businesses too are poorly served by banks unwilling to give them large loans unless they have the collateral to back it up. Of course the banking industry is growing rapidly with both deposits and loans expanding at high, double-digit growth rates per annum. And some banks such as Vietcombank, ACB, Sacombank, and Techcombank are making a determined effort to court the retail market. 3. 2. Rate of Growth in Both Loans and Deposits Far Exceeding GDP Growth Credit growth in Vietnam has been expanding at a breakneck speed these last few years. Not surprisingly given heady GDP growth. Nonetheless, the sustained rate of increase over several years has raised eyebrows at international bodies such as the IMF and World Bank. They like their credit growth at room temperature, rather than piping hot. Well piping hot is what they’ve got. In fact, the state-owned banks saw credit grow at an annual average rate of 24% over the past five years. Given the inability of some bankers to distinguish a good credit risk from a bad one (assuming they have a choice) this is not entirely a good thing. Hence the international sigh of disbelief that such stellar credit growth has been accompanied by a falling NPL ratio. According to some economists a 7% GDP growth rate can accommodate an annual credit growth rate of about 14-20%, roughly a factor of two without generating a lending bubble. However, credit growth rates above that level for any extended period of time are unhealthy for an economy. Admittedly credit growth rates have been falling for the last year down to about 15% as the central bank has tried to rein in credit departments. So far this year in fact lending has expanded at only about 16% nationwide. Going forward the speed of credit growth may well start expanding again as WTO becomes a reality. One bank has forecast that credit could grow at 35% per annum over the next five years given sufficient access to capital. While the better banks could probably cope with this, the temptation for others to take on too much risk is high. 3. 3. A Highly Concentrated but Highly Fragmented Banking Market Five state banks have carved up 70% of the loan market while forty-odd joint-stock banks and a host of foreign banks scrap for the remaining 30%. Compare this with the US where the ten biggest commercial banks control only 49% of the country’s banking assets, up from 29% a decade ago. Thus, at the top tier, the market acts like an oligopoly, while beneath the surface there is a holy war going on as mite-sized private sector banks scrap for the rest. Since the market itself is growing so fast this may not seem so bad. The state banks are also slowly bleeding market share. Even so things look very lopsided. Enter the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), concerned about the fragmented nature of the private sector banks. They will introduce new regulations to force another round of consolidation in the near future. One way of doing this is to set high hurdles for any new established bank before it can get a license. All banks will need to have chartered capital of VND 1 trillion ($62. 8 million) which is exceeded by the existing capital of only the very biggest JSCB’s such as ACB and Sacombank. All other existing banks fall far short and will need to scramble for new capital or merge in order to meet the new requirements. And that is just the first round. From next year the SBV has circulated a draft proposal to raise the minimum capital level to about US$300 million. And there you have the consolidation trigger. 50% of the JSCB’s face merger or takeover. They will also have to demonstrate experience in banking governance. Banks will need to commit to Basel 2 standards from 2010. One of the key issues is the regulation of key stakeholders, such as a bar on lending to stakeholders or their affiliates. This is to prevent corporations from using their own banks as private piggy-banks. Currently a corporate of family can own up to 40% of a joint-stock commercial bank. 3. 4. Heavy Handed Regulation with Restrictions on Foreign Banks The government still exerts strong control on the banking sector in two ways. Directly, through various regulations and restrictions which govern how they conduct business and strictly licensing the type of businesses they can enter; and indirectly through the interference of a myriad of agencies and ministries, both local and national, who want to have a say on how scarce credit resources are allocated. The state-owned banking system is trying to shift from directed policy lending to a commercial system. But the transition is proving slow and painful. Given the legacy of state control at both national and local level it’s hardly surprising that the state-owned banks routinely complain about interference in their lending decisions and overall management. It seems that banking is too important to be left to bankers. The culture of social and political lending is still dominant amongst local officials and bureaucrats, as is the idea of consensus building and consultation before decisions are taken. To be fair, the problem has been recognized and things are getting better. With the proposed re-organization of the SBV for example, fewer local branches should reduce the amount of day-to-day noise coming in to credit departments. Local authorities will have less leverage in leaning on banks without the local central bank office to back them up. And the recently announced decree allowing for 100% foreign-owned bank branches will finally set the stage for a level playing field for foreign banks. However, without eliminating limits on branch openings and mobilization of Dong deposits (currently limited to 350% of total capital for foreign banks) some painful shackles will remain. . 5. Lack of Transparency Concerning Quality of Lending Lending decisions in Vietnam are still based more on relationships than cash flow. The assessment of loan customers is usually driven by the relationship with the bank and the size of the collateral being offered. Cash flow driven assessment and qualitative analysis is reserved for large private sector customers only. Amongst t he large banks only ACB bank uses DCF analysis across their entire customer base. The problem is partly due to outside interference in the decision making process and partly due to a lack of professional guidance. The absence of IT infrastructure to support professional credit analysis is another major factor. Another issue is exposure. Most banks lend a lot of money to a fairly narrow base of customers. The top 30 state-owned corporations probably account for over half of the state banks lending books. The private sector joint-stock commercial banks (JSCBs) are no different. 3. 6. Heavily Undercapitalized One of the legacies of state ownership is a severe shortage of capital at the state banks, a quality shared by private sector commercial banks as well. Government restrictions on equity holdings combined with a bond market that hardly functions has made raising chartered capital very difficult for banks. Average capital adequacy ratios (CAR) in amongst Vietnamese banks stood at 4. 5% at the end of 2007. This compares with an average CAR of 13. 1% in Asia Pacific and 12. 3% in South-East Asia. Admittedly with large scale raising of capital this year this number is improving. With most of the state banks well below the minimum 8% capital adequacy ratio for Tier 2 capital, lack of access to the international capital markets has constrained their growth. And this valuation is anyway based on a vary generous reading of their NPL’s. The JSCBs are in only a slightly better state with a handful able to cross the 8% hurdle rate. The rest are pitiful. And given that the domestic capital markets are still in the fledgling stages, raising new capital has been the biggest headache for all banks. The stronger JSCBs have responded partly by selling shares to foreign strategic partners. Further down the line, where profitability is lower and capital particularly skimpy the options are more limited. The SBV is chary of allowing smaller anks to raise capital from foreign investors. Going forward all of the banks have substantial appetites for raising further capital, to shore up their Tier 2 capital base to bring them over the 8% CAR hurdle by 2010. 3. 7. Narrow Revenue Base and Few Product Offerings Most Vietnamese banks make money from loans. And that’s basically it. Compare that to Western banks that make about a quarter of their income from fees – credit card fees, lending fees, arranging fees, etc. – and most have branched into wealth management. Well, not in Vietnam. To be fair this is tied into the lack of availability of credit history: banks don’t like lending to strangers they know nothing about. The state banks are generally geared to the large corporate and state-owned sector, providing syndicated loans for utilities, infrastructure projects, heavy industry and property developers. JSCBs are geared mainly towards lending to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and the wealthier retail customers. However given their low penetration and limited branch network they only reach a fraction of their potential customer base. Car loans, mortgages and house improvement loans are retail staples. And small business loans using property as capital is the basic model for the SME market. In general, the Vietnamese banking model is best described as relationship-based rather than product-based as in international banks. 3. 8. Unknown Quantity of Non-performing Loans If you were to believe the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) statistics the non-performing loans problem has been largely dealt with since 2000. Amongst the state-owned banks, non-performing loans (NPLs) have fallen steadily from 12. % in 2000 to 8. 5%, 8. 0% and 4. 47% in 2005, 2006 and 2007, respectively. Under a new stricter definition, the official number in 2008 has risen to about 7. 7%. Overall, about half of the NPL’s are on the watch list, which is the second of five lending categories in the new SBV scoring system. The other half fall into the three categories below watch list which are of greater concern. For private sector JSCBs, average NPLs were said to be around the 1% level at the end of 2007. Of course few believe the official numbers. International bodies carried out a similar exercise using Ernst & Young and found that NPL’s in the system using international accounting standard definitions came to about 15-20% of outstanding loans in the state-owned sector. This number is conservative due to limited data; a figure between 20-25% is probably a fairer estimate. In this respect the slow development of the banking industry is a blessing in disguise, things could be a whole lot worse. The worry is that the gap between the official version and the real picture is large and may indeed be growing. Most NPLs are generated by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) refusing to pay their obligations to state-owned banks. Pre-equalization is a favorite time to write off or simply clear out these loans. That way SOEs can start their new life in the private sector unencumbered by debts. So apart from asking the government to honor the SOEs’ commitment and trying to seize collateral there is precious little banks can do. There is not yet an effective secondary market for bad debt, although attempts to kick-start one are ongoing. There are very few NPLs sale and purchase transaction taking place. 4. BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT FOR THE BANKING SECTOR 4. 1. The Government’s Strategy After a long period of hesitation and hints of action the government has come up with a fast-track roadmap to liberalize the financial sector by 2010. Under the roadmap, the state will retain a controlling stake in the banks but its holdings will be quickly reduced to 51%. Foreign ownership will account for a maximum of 30% of total shares, while each strategic foreign institutional investor currently allowed to hold 10-20% at most. The 20% limit may be eventually erased but the 30% cap will stay for the time being. Basel 1 will be in effect until 2010, when the stricter Basel 2 standards for corporate governance will be introduced. The government will have to introduce further legislation before then to force banks’ compliance, particularly at the ownership level. This may create some buying opportunities amongst the JSCBs as families are forced to reduce their stake. 4. 2. State Bank of Vietnam – Freeing the Tiger In theory the central bank enjoys a wide remit. In practice it can’t do much without a legion of agencies and ministries throwing in their penny’s worth of advice. The central bank, the SBV, currently acts as the sole supervisory and regulatory body for the banking sector. It also owns the state-owned banks and sets interest rates. There is a clear need to separate the various roles of the SBV and give it increased autonomy in those areas such as monetary policy and regulation of the banking sector, which are clearly in its remit. The SBV also needs to be free of its role as custodian of the state’s shareholdings in the banking sector. The SBV sees several key roles for itself in the future: compiling and executing monetary policy, ensuring stability of the credit institutional system, act as a regulator to the banking system. In order to achieve this it needs legislative backing to clearly define its relationship with the National Assembly, government and all government agencies. In simple terms stop the incessant interference from other parties so that the SBV can get on with the job. After all, if the central bank is not allowed to set interest rate policy and regulate the banking sector without being leaned on, what hope is their for individual banks to lend money without getting the same treatment. Another issue is the lack of cooperation with the MOF on key issues such as bad debt and bank equitisation. MOF has often written off state-owned companies’ bad debt without consulting the banks. And the State Securities Commission (SSC), the stock market regulator often stalls on issuing licenses for banks to list. The two don’t play well together. 4. 3. Regulatory Environment – Meeting International Standards There are a myriad of regulations and decrees covering almost every aspect of the financial sector but we would like to look briefly at just three topics: progress removing restrictions from foreign banks, meeting international banking standards and the treatment of NPLs. With regard to meeting international banking standards, the government has appeared to follow WB recommendations to provide the necessary framework for an integrated financial system as required under WTO rules. And so in the last few years some of the necessary legislation has been pushed into place. On the NPL’s, the central bank issued Decision No. 93 to reclassify bad debts and risk reserves closer to international norms. So far, three state-owned banks (SOBs) claim to have successfully reduced their bad debt ratios to less than 5% in accordance with the new rules. Too successfully in fact, but more on this later. Overall the regulatory authorities are making an effort to converge with international stand ards in the financial sector, but with WTO membership and the 2010 deadline looming, time is not a friend. And foreign banks are still allowed to raise Dong deposits only to a ceiling of 350% of their chartered capital. In effect this locks them out of the domestic deposit market and is the most important impediment for their expansion plans. 4. 4. Developing the Capital Markets Banks need more tier 2 capital and bonds will provide the bulk of that. However with the bond market in its infancy there are still major constraints on the banks’ ability to raise sufficient capital quickly to reach the 8% capital adequacy ratio they crave. The infrastructure for developing the bond market is still not in place. HSBC is only now offering to provide a pilot rating scheme to enable potential investors to gauge the creditworthiness of various bond issuers. Fitch and Moody’s have also dipped their toes in the market, rating Sacombank and BIDV respectively. However rating services are horribly expensive and there needs to be a domestic agency to offer these services at prices most banks can afford. Another key hurdle lies with interest rate guidelines in place at all maturities along the yield curve. This prevents risk weightings and effectively bars smaller or weaker banks from coming to the market to issue capital whilst compensating for the higher risk by offering higher coupons. 5. PROSPECTS FOR BANKING SECTOR GOING FORWARD . 1. Non-Performing Loan Ratios to Rise, But Risks of Bank Failures Looms It is likely that there will be an increase in non-performing loan (NPL) ratios from the present 4-5% as an increasing number of companies and households default on their loans on the back of higher interest rates and slowing economic activity. A complicating factor in assessing the risk posed by deteriorating loan portfolios is that Vietnamese banks are currently applying a new system of internal credit rating schemes and debt classification systems in accordance with international standards. Implementation has so far been diverse between banks, making intra-sector comparisons a complicated business. Consultancy Ernst & Young has estimated that the application of the new standards is likely to lead to an increase in disclosed NPL ratios of 2-3 times, i. e. to the IMF estimates of 15-20%. While the new standards will make the NPL figures more internationally comparable, the resulting increase in the ratios is likely to create uncertainty about the proportion which can be attributed to the new standards and how much is down to an actual deterioration of loan portfolios. However, it can be believed that the effects on the overall economy from possible bank failures can be contained by larger JSCBs taking over smaller banks pushed to the brink by loan defaults and low capitalisation. Nonetheless, there might be possibility that the government or central bank will need to intervene to force mergers between banks and possibly also recapitalize those in worst health. 5. 2. Further Development Inhibited by Low Capital and Technology Consolidation should be a positive for the banking sector by decreasing excessive competition and increasing capitalization levels. Nonetheless, capital shortages, low technology and a shortage of skilled staff, especially at higher levels, will continue to inhibit the development of the banking sector. This will leave domestic banks exposed to the might of international banking giants such as HSBC and Standard Chartered, which are initially committing US$183 million and US$61 million respectively to their Vietnamese subsidiaries, placing them well in league with the larger JSCBs. Increased competition from foreign players will thus constitute a potent threat to domestic banks, which will be forced to improve services if they want to maintain their market share. Further expansion will need regulatory approval from the State Bank of Vietnam. The IMF has, in its annual review of the Vietnamese economy, set improvement of financial supervision as a prime task for the government in its reform agenda. The government raising the foreign ownership ratio to 25% for individual banks and 35% in total in 2009-2010 in order to maintain foreign banks' interest in holding stakes in domestic players, thus assisting in technology transfer. With the current system in place, there is a risk of a severe divide between better-capitalised, more technically advanced and better-managed foreign banks and a still relatively undeveloped domestic sector suffering from both a shortage of capital and low efficiency. Vietnamese banks are still primarily focused on taking deposits and lending and thus completely inexperienced in asset management and other financial services tipped to be the main growth areas in the Vietnamese banking market going forward. Domestic players, in particular the larger SOCBs, may have an advantage through their established branch network and client base, but this factor can be rapidly eroded as HSBC and Standard Chartered extend their operations. The threat from foreign banks will be particularly potent for the SOCBs, where reform has been slow in spite of the government's intention to place them foremost in the queue in the so-called ‘equitisation' process of transferring SOEs to private hands. It is unlikely that the government will find takers for its offers of 10-20% stakes in SOCBs for strategic foreign players if it does not radically review its privatisation procedures. With the state-owned banks constrained by politicised decision-making and the private banks suffering from a severe lack of capital, HSBC, Standard Chartered and other regional players will gain the upper hand over time as their extensive experience, superior technology, and readier access to capital work in their favor. It is unlikely that foreign players will dominate the Vietnamese banking sector in 10-15 years time, with the larger JSCBs being majority-owned by foreigners and the role of the once-impressive SOCBs reduced to supporting inefficient state-owned companies and agricultural households. 6. CONCLUSION In Vietnam, there is only less than 10% of Vietnamese currently use banks for financial services, instead largely relying on extended families and neighbourhood associations for lending and saving. However, a rising number of younger Vietnamese are now using banks for financial services, opening up great expansion opportunities in retail banking. The Vietnamese banking sector is a veritably good destination for early entrants as poorly-capitalised and inefficient domestic banks are ill-prepared for the opening of the banking market to foreign entrants as pledged in Vietnam's accession to the WTO in January 2007. With bank penetration at less than 10% and the Vietnamese economy forecast to grow by an average 7. 8% annually over the next ten years, the growth opportunities are great for foreign players. Top of Form REFERENCES Johny K. Johansson (2006). GLOBAL MARKETING Foreign Entry, Local Marketing, & Global Management. McGraw-Hill, Fourth Edition, International Edition. ISBN 007-124454-9. Vinacapital. Vietnam Equity Research. August 15, 2006 Fitch Ratings, Vietnam Special Report – Vietnamese Banks: Focus on Asset Quality – Three Stress Scenarios. February 25, 2009 at: www. fitchratings. com Vietnamese Banks: A Home-Made Liquidity Squeeze? May 2008 Jaccar Equity Research, Vietnam. Banks and Financial Services. The Bubbles did not Burst but Turned Grey. May 18, 2009 at www. jaccar. net Fulbright Research Project, The Banking System of Vietnam: Past, Present and Future. Nam Tran Thi Nguyen, 2001. at: www. iie. org/fulbrightweb/BankingPaper_Final. pdf retrieved on 27 Feb 2009.

Vitasoy distribution background Essay Example

Vitasoy distribution background Essay Example Vitasoy distribution background Essay Vitasoy distribution background Essay Product line from a single product to product diversification, a tea, milk, Juice and other beverages to meet the needs of different consumers. Vertical distribution system: The Vitas International Company limited in Hong Kong is Vertical pipeline system . Vitas is through to set up branch offices in various Shanghai, direct delivery and management of major retail store. Control by the manufacturer in order to establish a strong vertical marketing system. Before that, Vitas also sold through tillers, distributors to the daily delivery. The Vitas vertical pipe system established on manufacturers holding and control . Vitas in the Chinese market sales of the vertical pipe, set the foundation, paving the way for the future development. Vitas branch office established across the distribution channels through the manufacturer, and then to select distributors, and then to the retailer, and finally to the needs of consumers. Vitas dominates distributors and retailers in an entire sales pipeline and develop a flexible price, depending on the region Vitas distribution advantages: Maintain the cooperative relationship transportation of the materials are quite good, but more important is the relationship, Especially in China, about the ways of the world, relationship Good interpersonal skills will enhance the status of the pipeline, therefore Vitas can develop in everywhere Relationship between middlemen and manufacturers are cooperative relationship base on common purpose. Vitas has given many incentives. Vitas has given many incentives. For example, are the best-selling products. Vitalitys advertising and the cost of support is first class, many Vitalitys TV magazines and other media advertising. This is free promotion. At the same time, the delivery of timely and accurate, special subsidies and rebates show Vitas done pipeline motivation is very good. So that, distributors, and retailers are very happy to cooperation with Vitas companies, to maintain a balanced and stable development. Avoid conflicts of interest Vitas company has limit the price to distributors and retailers. Profits are estimate, reasonably good distribution for the interests of each layer. To achieve a win-win situation. The concept of conflict is not exist, Vitas focus on communication, to listen objectively and evaluation of views on all aspects . Logistics system, distributors, management department, storage and transportation companies, financial institutions and insurance companies Arrangements for distributors in the management department, Vitas is handy to deal with the problem of the production areas. Transportation and warehousing logistics company reached an agreement.

Overcoming in Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays

Overcoming in Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays Overcoming in Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Overcoming in Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Essay Topic: Their Eyes Were Watching God â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† follows the story of Janie Crawford as she follows her dream of finding true love. The story starts off when Janie returns to her home in Eatonville, Florida. As soon as she is spotted she is the talk of all the gossip in town. Her friend Phoebe, who she has not seen for a while runs to meet her and tells Janie that everyone is talking about how she left looking very nice and rich and comes back dressed in dirty overalls. Everyone in town speculates that the guy she left with, Teacake, has used her for her money and has left her. Janie decides Phoebe to tell her the story of the past twenty years of her life. Janie’s story starts off when she was a little girl living with her grandmother, Nanny. She lives with Nanny because Janies mother left the house after she was raped by a white man. One day Nanny catches Janie getting a kissed from a neighboring teenager and Nanny feels that Janie has grown to be a woman. Nanny knows she is very old and will probably die soon and doesnt want Janie to need anything or to struggle after her death. Nanny decided to arrange a marriage between Janie and a rich white man Logan Killicks and Janie quickly is disgusted by the idea. Nevertheless, Janie accepts for the sake of her grandmothers happiness and believes that overtime, she will fall in love with Killicks. Janie wants a marriage where she truly loves her husband, and her husband makes her feel loved, cares about her opinions, and is treated as an equal but she doesnt find this in the marriage with Killicks. One day when Logan is away, Janie meets Joe Starks, a well dressed man with big dreams. Soon Joe starts filling young Janie’s mind with high hopes and big dreams and Janie decides to run away with him. Joe and Janie move to Eatonville, Florida where there is hardly anything and Joe builds a town from the ground up. He is then pronounced mayor and is very demanding towards others. He becomes very posses

What are the most important economic concepts that determine the Essay

What are the most important economic concepts that determine the structure of the construction industry - Essay Example nstruction industry, several factors of production are involved and they include, but are not limited to capital, raw materials, and labor (Myers, 2008). All the resources employed in the construction industry play a significant part towards the delivery of standardized and quality products. The allocation of the related resources to an activity is done based on the concept of increased efficiency and matching output levels. For example, the amount of labor available for a set project is subject to financial constraints as well as the availability of the labor in the market. Financial constraints dictate the price and cost of labor and as such, the construction industry is subject to external and internal forces. This introduces the second main economic concept concerned with the examination of external and internal constraints. External constraints or forces relate to outside influences, not in the control of the construction sector such as support services provided by banking and insurance institution (Myers, 2008). The construction sector relies to some extent on the availability of financial support in capital formation from banking institutions and has to develop its structures around financial requirements and standards. External support systems such as the access to insurance are important in the mitigation of the sector from probable risks. Risks in the sector vary according to the type of construction involved and the possible losses could have fatal financial as well as legal implications on the construction sector. However, external factors should not be viewed as limiting factors in the development of concrete structures in the construction sector, but as elements promoting the development of the construction sector. The internal forces influencing the structure of the construction sector are reliant on the allocation and distribution of scarce resources. The participants of the construction sector engage in continued evaluation of internal resources

Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 57

Journal - Essay Example Sheehan terms the advertisement as a perfect example of social responsible advertisement (243). The author further points out that the form of marketing increases the corporate value of an organization (Sheehan 243). However, the Benetton’s Death Row Campaign is my most detestable advertisement. The advertisement has an objective of creating a human feeling on the people who are convicted with death rows. The execution of the advertisement was also poor. The advertisement used picture insertions of people who are on the death rows across the United States. The advertisement is not social responsible. It creates a negative perception of the people against the justice system. Any corporate advertisement should show support of state institutions or not portray them in a negative image. In addition, Sheehan cites that an organization should not put itself in a position whereby they would gain from the miseries of the society (257). The author is also of the assumption that this is an opportunistic strategy (Sheehan

Create 5 paragraph ( 5 sentences each) essay that contains a thesis

Create 5 paragraph ( 5 sentences each) that contains a thesis statement - Essay Example In 1980s, three-quarters of the crude oil refined in the U.S. refineries was from local sources, only 25 percent was imported (Montgomery 43). Currently, those trends are reversed. In a relatively quick period of time, only approximately 35 percent of that crude oil is produced locally while 65 percent is imported from foreign markets (Montgomery 46). To compound the problem, emerging Asian markets are contending for more of the global oil supply, and that pushes up the global price of oil. The government has not constructed any new refinery since 1976 (Montgomery 78). To meet the increasing demand for gasoline, America now imports a million barrels of refined gasoline each day. That means about one out of every nine gallons of gas available at the pump is developed in a far-off country. Not only is America dependent on foreign sources of oil, it is becoming more dependent on foreign sources of gasoline. America is one the highest consumer of oil globally. The addiction of the American customs on oil is evident not only from the sheer volume it consumes – the highest in the world- but also from its consumption per person, which outstrips that of any other comparable country. It is double that of northern Europeans. Despite having plentiful supplies of coal, enough to last 250 years, and being the biggest producer of nuclear energy, American is overly dependent on oil for its various industries. For instance, over 96 percent of its transportation is dependent on oil (Montgomery 140). In conclusion, America is too dependent on foreign oil since it has not been self-sufficient in oil since 1950s. The USA continues to be the world’s biggest importer of oil, accounting for around one quarter of total world imports. Nevertheless, there is no viewpoint of the want for imported oil declining in the foreseeable future; indeed all projections forecast an increase. Domestic production is declining while

Red, White, and Black Essay Example for Free

Red, White, and Black Essay By combining they were a stronger force against the colonists. Native American Relations in the first settlements: Relations characterized by resistance to the expansion of English settlement, submission into praying towns, and devastation through war and disease. Many of the Massachusetts Indians sought protection from Winthrop by selling their land and surrendering their independence. Pequot War: So-called war consisting of clumsy plundering by Massachusetts troops and raids by Pequots in 1637. The colonists eventually won the alliance of rival tribes and waged a ruthless campaign. The war tipped the balance of military power to the English, opening the way to New England’s settlement. King Phillips War: War between the Native American tribes of New England and British colonists that took place from 1675-1676. The war was the result of tension caused by encroaching white settlers. The chief of the Wampanoags, King Philip lead the natives. The war ended Indian resistance in New England and left a hatred of whites. Tuscaroras and Yamasees: Two opposing Indians tribes whose disunity lead both to destruction. The Tuscaroran people were defeated by the colonists with the help of the Yamasees in 1713, and the Yamasees were themselves defeated around 1715. Both tribes were scattered and soon disappeared. praying towns: Towns set up by puritan missionaries for Indian converts to spread puritan Christianity, the first of which, Natick, was founded in 1651. As the Indian population in the east waned, assimilation as Praying Indians became the only option besides retreating farther west. Beaver Wars: Wars that resulted from furious trading and hunting of Beaver pelts by the Dutch, the French, and the New Netherlands. The Overhunting of Beavers sent prices so high in 1742 that the Dutch armed the Iroquois and what resulted was bloody battles against Pro-French tribes. Slavery Begins: Followed the exploration of the African coast and the establishment of a slave trade Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The slave trade then moved in to America as the development of a plantation system in Virginia offered a market for slavery and the first slaves arrived there in 1619. Slavery remained small among the colonies, however because it was not yet profitable for slavery under the conditions. As trade and agriculture grew and a plantation system grew so did slavery. Barbados Code: Code adopted by Carolina in 1696 to control slaves at the will of their masters. It was often noted as an inhumane code but the society revolved around slaves, so laws like this were created in order to keep control in the society. White owners relied on force and fear to control the growing black majority in the Carolinas. Maryland Slave Code, 1661: The first actual definition by the colonies of slavery as a lifelong, inheritable, racial status. It was issued by Maryland in 1661 in order to set up a distinct place for the slaves in the society. Out of the Maryland Slave Code of 1661 came the establishing of other slave codes that set up strict legal codes. Stono Rebellion: Slave uprising in South Carolina in 1739, in which twenty slaves robbed guns and ammunition from the Stono River Bridge along with killing civilians. Officials suppressed the rebellion and stopped any more chaos and damage. I t was a significant encounter because it caused white

The Community Analysis Of Homeless Families

The Community Analysis Of Homeless Families This paper analyzes the social issues surrounding homeless families and describes the extent of the problem within the U. S. community, while comparing the U.S. community to other communities in other parts of the global system. Causes listed in this paper include unemployment, mental illness, drug or alcohol abuse, and lack of affordable housing. Three theoretical models guide the analysis: social systems theory, functionalist theory and conflict theory. The data come from statistics of homeless families in the U.S. and global communities. These results deliver some evidence for current explanations for homeless transitions, and they propose probable avenues for additional research on the dynamics of homelessness. Macro Community Analysis Homelessness is a significant concern within the U. S. and global community. This situation arises when its individuals are poverty stricken and do not have regular access to affordable housing. In the U. S. in the early 1980s, families with young children became one of the fastest growing segments of the homeless population and now consist of 34% of the homeless population, which includes 23% children and 11% adults (Burt et al., 1999). The issues of homelessness have always been a problem around the world, even though it varies greatly, it has been considered to be one of the oldest social dilemmas in the world. Any day, no less than 800,000 individuals are homeless in the U.S., including about 200,000 homeless families. Most homeless families have incomes below 50% of the federal poverty level that makes it nearly impossible for them to find rental property within their means. To make matters worse, as many as 70% of homeless people struggle with serious health problems, mental an d physical disabilities, and/or substance abuse problems (Burt, 2001). Countries have different ways of reporting homelessness, dissimilar measures with which to define homelessness. Some countries have no policy regarding this condition at all and for that reason are unable to report on the statistics. Causes and Effects of Homelessness As mentioned, homeless is also a global issue and not a problem specific to the U.S. It is estimated to be around 3 million homeless individuals in 15 countries of the European Union. Philip Alston, Chairperson of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights since 1991 states that on any given night, three quarters of a million people in the United States are homeless; in Toronto, Canadas largest city, 6,500 people stayed in emergency shelters on a typical night in late 1997, a two-thirds increase in just one year (Unicef, 1998). Furthermore, abuse and assault appear to be silent characteristics of homelessness. Studies have frequently found, in the histories of both individuals and families who are homeless, high rates of sexual and physical abuse in childhood, frequent foster care and other out of-home placements, and a variation of other family disruptions. Those that are always getting assaulted by their families might choose to run away and seek shelter in the streets than consent to a life of day-to-day abuse from beatings and molestation. The most significant reasons why people become homeless may be due to the inaccessibility of affordable housing for low income people. Studies show that people are likely to become homeless out of unavoidable situations. There are people who do work but they earn too little to pay for rent, electric, gas, and other housing utilities and expenses. If a person becomes unemployed, they will be unable to pay for anything at all. Homeless Families Demographics Although homelessness is a difficult number to measure, one way to analyze the extent of the problem is through demographics. According to The National Center on Family Homelessness (2008), the typical sheltered homeless family is comprised of a mother in her late twenties with two children. Eighty-four percent of families experiencing homelessness are female-headed. This is due to number of factors: Most single-parent families are female-headed (71%). Single-parent families are among the poorest in the nation and as such, are extremely vulnerable to homelessness Several family shelters do not take men into their programs, causing families to separate when they become homeless Families of color are overrepresented in the homeless population. Nationally: Forty-three percent are African-American Fifteen percent are Hispanic Thirty-eight percent are White, non-Hispanic Three percent are Native American Families experiencing homelessness frequently have limited education: Fifty-three percent of homeless mothers do not have a high school diploma Twenty-nine percent of adults in homeless families are working Forty-two percent of children in homeless families are under age six (The National Center on Family Homelessness, 2008). The lack of reasonable housing has led to high rent payments for families that already struggle to pay their living expenses. These issues force many families to become homeless each day. A solution would be to lower the cost of housing, provide more support for those that are in need, and for the government to recognize that homelessness is a large scale problem. Application of Theory Social Systems Theory Social inequality is shown all over the world stemming from situations of race, gender, and age. An individuals social environment includes all situations a person comes into contact with on a day-to-day basis such as the individuals home, job, and income level, and the social rules that govern them. Person-in-environment refers to interaction between an individual and the multiple systems surrounding that individual, and adaptation refers to ones capability to change in order to adjust to new situations. In order to endure, an individual must be able to function effectively within their social environments (Kirst-Ashman Hull, 2002). The important factor behind the social selection model is that homelessness signifies the final point in a process characterized by the slow reduction of an individuals social and economic resources. As an individuals substance use escalates, the persons financial reserves are exhausted as they sustain an increasingly expensive habit. They either fall into rent debts that leads to eviction (Bessant et al., 2002), or family relationships break down leading to homelessness (Coumans Spreen, 2003). Fountain and Howes found that 63% of their sample of homeless people in Britain named drug or alcohol use as a reason for first becoming homeless. The researchers decided that drug use is traditionally seen as one of the major routes into homelessness, and this was borne out by our survey (Fountain Howes, 2002, p. 10). This compares to the above U.S. percentages that have reported drug and alcohol abuse as one of the causes of homelessness. Functionalist Theory Homelessness can be explained by functionalism, a theory developed by Durkheim. Poverty is best understood from a mixed perspective involving conflict, by Karl Marx and functionalist, by Emile Durkheim. Since poverty certainly plays a role in a homelessness community, this theory certainly applies. In my opinion, functionalist theory explains that our country does actually help those in need but occasionally we can be unsuccessful. This theory continues to remind us to live practically and tells us that the social order does essentially work (Meyerhoff 2006). Regrettably, at this time, scientific studies of family homelessness have been unable to instantaneously reflect all of these probable risk factors. Most of the research can be divided into those studies that present family homelessness as the product of separate faces or of community conditions, without examining both factors together (Shlay Rossi, 1992). Conflict Theory Conflict theory, which is significant to the analysis of the homeless condition, is the belief that the means of mental capability and mental achievement plays a role in the determination of what interests will be articulated effectively. Conflict theory studies the macro level of our society, its structures and organizations. While functionalists dispute that society is held together norms, values, and a common morality, conflict theorists consider how society is held together by power and coercion for the advantage of those in power (Ritzer, 2000). Though individuals and groups appreciating great wealth, prestige, and power have the resources needed to impose their values on others with fewer resources, Max Weber, a theorist viewed a range of class divisions in society as normal, inevitable, and acceptable, as do many contemporary conflict theorists (Curran Renzetti, 2001). Webers theory separated the class of individuals into bourgeoisie and proletariat. Bourgeoisie are those capitalist who possess the means of production while the proletariat is deemed as the working class; they are the ones who sell their own labor power. These groupings show how people are classified according to their status in life. It basically defines the societys state of inequality that is stabilized and reproduced through cultural ideology (Meyerhoff 2006). Social Ill within Turley Homelessness Poverty and inequality continues to afflict many residents in Turley, Oklahoma. The best theory that explains the social ill in Turley, Oklahoma, is conflict theory. One of the conflicts impacting Turley residents is the lack of transportation and close health care facilities. Without access to transportation, residents cannot get to work or to doctors or hospitals easily. Webers theory separated the class of individuals into bourgeoisie the haves, and the have-nots were called proletariat. It would be ideal if Marxs idea of constructing a fundamentally equal society where there is no competition for wealth and power (Meyerhoff, 2006). It is known that several of Turley residents have less than other communities. One of the social ills within the Turley community is the many houses that are abandoned, boarded up, falling down or even burned-out by vandalism, which results in minimal to no housing for Turley residents. Also, from low income or unemployment, this may be caused by lack of transportation. This can result in individuals becoming depressed and utilizing drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism. Prolonged use of drugs or alcohol may result in a mental disorder. People who have complicated life issues related to mental illness and of drug or alcohol use are the most common people who tend to be homeless. There is a common perception that substance abuse and homelessness are linked, but there is considerable contention about the direction of the relationship (Kemp, Neale, Robertson, 2006; Mallett, Rosenthal, Keys, 2005; Neale, 2001; Snow Anderson, 1993). Many people in Turley, Oklahoma are homeless due to lack of affordable housing and lack of access to health care facilities, both of which makes life worse for residents with mental illness or substance abuse problems. Severe mental illnesses may be caused from substance abuse and affect peoples ability to carry out vital stages of everyday life, such as retaining a job, household management or even self-care. Mental illnesses may also prevent people from forming and maintaining stable relationships or cause them to misconstrue assistance from others and react in an angry manner. This often results in pushing away family, friends and caregivers who may be the force keeping that person from becoming homeless. Some studies indicate that substance abuse is a risk factor for homelessness, whereas others suggest that homelessness induces drug use (Neale, 2001, p. 354). Summary In summary, when comparing the U. S. to other global communities, the causes of homelessness were similar, with poverty being the leading cause. To effectively address homelessness, communities need a clear understanding of the problem and realize that it could affect anyone at any given time. Homelessness continues to be an increasing problem and requires social action to overcome the injustice that those people suffer. A change can be made by building or offering affordable housing units to people with low or very minimal income, as well as shielding families from the abuse they may get exposed to and trying to help guide them in the right path. Finally, through helping communities with programs that assist addicted individuals to overcome their addiction as well as people with mental illness by providing affordable health care programs, the homeless have an opportunity to rise above their current situation. As a Child Welfare Supervisor, I selected this particular social justice issue because several of the children that come into OKDHS custody will age out of the system without a permanent home or family, which results in most of them becoming homeless; this was learned in our Child Welfare Trainings. I wanted to learn more about this ongoing problem and feel it is very important that we help homeless people obtain a better life.