Environmental Pollution Essay Example for Free

Environmental Pollution Es cite1. Effects on modalityLand pollution can collide with the general environment of the Earth. Land pollutions leads to loss in the forest cover of Earth. This is in turn going to affect the amount of rain. Less rains mean lesser vegetation. The effect of all different kinds of pollution will eventually lead to problems like acid rains, greenhouse effect, globose warming. All of these problems have already initiated and need to be curbed before the situation runs out of control.2. Extinction of SpeciesOne of the major causes of concern is the extinction of species. Species are pushed towards endangerment and extinction primarily by two processes. Habitat fragmentation is the fragmentation of the natural habitat of an organism cause primarily by urban sprawl. Habitat destruction, on the other hand, is when land clearing adversely affects animals special such that their natural habitat is lost. Both the actions can cause some species to go extinct and others to have invasive.3. BiomagnificationBiomagnification is the process in which certain non-biodegradable substances go on accumulating in the food-chain (in one or much species). The most common shell is of methyl hectogram in fish and mercury in eagles. Not only does biomagnification put the particular species at risk, it puts all the species above and below it at risk, and ultimately affects the food pyramid.4. Effects on BiodiversitySpecies extinction and biomagnification is going to overthrow the balance of nature very significantly. The main reason for this is disturbance created in the food chain. To give you a very simple example on account of biomagnification of mercury in eagles, they might go extinct in the subsequent years. However, we know eagles prey on snakes. Less (or no) eagles will wherefore result in more number of snakesAs you may have realized, land pollution is indeed going to affect a lot more things than we though it will. Hence, I leave you with some corrective measure you can take on a personal level to reduce land pollution. shape up organic farming buy organic food.Proper garbage disposal separate your garbage before you give it to the garbage collector and strictly say NO to plastic. Encourage recycling buy recycled products, notebooks, paper, etc. Restrict use of herbicides and pesticides they are not only used in farm, but in your give backyard as well. If we reduce our contribution to garbage and litter, therein itself we will be able to significantly reduce land pollution and probably curb it but in the near future. Also do realize this isnt only about land pollution it is about all kinds of pollution. We need to take steps to disallow damaging our Earth. We have no other place to go. Read more at Buzzle http//www.buzzle.com/articles/causes-and-effects-of-land-pollution.html

The ethical theories of natural law and situation ethics Essay Example for Free

The ethical theories of natural rectitude and speckle morality EssayThere are two important approaches to ethics which are held by Christians today. Over the years it has proved to be a very controversial and widely debated issue. Catholics and authentic other strict denominations of the Christian church hold the view that natural practice of natural law should be the means of making ethical decisions, whereas more liberal Christians consider situation ethics as a more suitable ethical system to go by.Natural law was advocated by St Thomas Aquinas in the thirteenth century. It states that all ethical decisions should be made by looking at the imperious moral laws which stick been laid down for us by God. For Christians these stem from The Ten Commandments. Believers in this are known as Ethical Deontologists. They maintain that an action is intrinsically well-grounded, bad, right or wrong. When faced with a moral dilemma, champion should refer to the Law, irrespective ly of what the end point will be. It is suggested that the human purpose of life is to live and reproduce, to live harmoniously, to learn and to worship God.Problems can arise when the consequence of the decision ca personas more harm than good. An practice of this can be found in Catholic moral theology abortion is immoral and can never be permitted. A loophole in this law means that a surgical procedure may be acceptable even if the result of it leads to the death of a foetus. In this case abortion isnt the particular intention, but is a by-product of the primary objective. This makes it permissible, but can lead to further problems if there are more biological complications. It is at points such as this that the basic natural law approach begins to fall apart. In this day and age it is becoming increasingly difficult to apply absolute moral laws to all(prenominal) situation that arises. On the basis of the principle, it could be argued that it is acceptable to kill thousands of Afghans so as to avoid the deaths of a few Americans. Evil effects can be easily justified by claiming that they are by-products of ones actions.This brings us to the question of whether God has laid down firm and unalterable rules or whether as human beings, we direct to make our own moral decisions.As a result of the major flaws that appear in the theory of natural law, a Teleological approach to ethics was later introduced by the Anglican theologian, Joseph Fletcher, although the basic ideas of situation ethics have a much longer history. This relative theory of ethics is based on consequentiality the outcome of an action. The main principle of this theory is that for an action to be ethical, it simply has to be carried out in a loving manner. nothing is intrinsically good except for love. Actions are good if they help human beings and they are bad if they hurt people there are no other criteria. What is right in one case may be wrong in another. The individual and the sit uation are the only important thing when making a decision, quite a than applying a principle (for example thou shalt not kill). The following quotations help to summarise situation ethics,There is only one ultimate and invariable duty, and its formulation is Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. How to do this is another question, but this is the whole of moral duty. (William Temple)The law of love is the ultimate law because it is the negation of law it is absolute because it concerns everything concretethe absolutism of love is its power to go into concrete situations. (Paul Tillich)Even though the teleological approach is a relative theory of ethics, it still involves an absolute law which is to do everything in love. However, the relativity of this theory allows room for exceptions to rules. Relativism doesnt imply that anything goes. For something to be relative, youve got to have something to be a benchmark, and situation ethics states that it should be relative to love . Fletcher utter that it relativises the absolute, it does not absolutise the relativeJesus and the apostles replaced the Torah, the strict Jewish Law with the principle of love. In the New Testament Jesus condemns the Pharisees for taking the Jewish Laws to such extremes because it loses the substance in which the Law was written. This Christian love that Jesus taught and lived is known as agape. Agape does not depend on being loved in return. The verify of love calls individuals to a high level of personal responsibility. Agape is not selective and doesnt have favourites it is a matter of attitude not feeling. It desires the good of others, not of the self. Above all, Christian love is practical (James 214-26). Jesus tells us that we should love our enemies our neighbour is anybody and everybody.As with just about every theory of morality, situation ethics is open to a considerable amount of criticism. The notion of basing actions on consequentiality is not always helpful bec ause it can be difficult to determine the outcomes of certain situations, especially in the long-term. Humans also tend to look at situations subjectively so it becomes easy for selfishness to taint love. It can be difficult to prize a situation with objectivity. Even some actions dont necessarily become good just because they are done from a loving motive.The two theories that I have looked at are in stark contrast to one another. I think that it is difficult, if not impossible, to say that there is one approach that should be use at all times to justify every ethical decision that needs to be made. Each situation can throw up unannounced technicalities and difficulties that we have to contend with, but that doesnt mean to say that we shouldnt make decisions on the basis of our own moral beliefs.Bishop John Robinson once wrote, There is no one ethical system that can claim to be Christian and I completely agree with that. A supporter of the natural law approach asks what the law says and the situationist asks what is the best decision to help human beings, but why cant there be a middle ground? We should be able to use what was once the Law as a guideline when making ethical decisions rather than sticking rigidly to one approach just for the sake of theological argument.The Pope believes that the Law is Gods revealed will but it could be said that God revealed his will most fully through Jesus time on Earth. Not only did He preach on the importance of love, but He also showed us perfect examples of it throughout His life. It is the subtle difference between these doctrines that lies at the heart of many issues which are in hot debate at the moment. If the Church could ignore these theological ambiguities and become reunited, perhaps they could then learn to do their purpose in Christ.

Techno Structural Interventions

Techno Structural InterventionsEmployees fight is maven of the champaign issues in the dramatics of management sciences it be perplexs relatively more essential when appears in governing development emergence. darn going for most interventions, achiever without the employees function seems to be impossible. This paper argues that how the employees interlocking affect the success of interventions process. For this Empirical get word has been conducted in the textile sector of Pakistan to explore the family relationship between the employees involvement and the techno- morphological interventions, the results ar very much belike the literature.Change tries to alter the employees status quo if it occurs rapidly it can be very disturbing for all the stake holders of the transcription (DaphneG.Taras, JamesT.Bennett, 2007) as the employees argon the necessitate victims of the transfigure thats why they feel more economic insecurity in the work place. Change can be of var ious types and can raise the revere in the employees, doest not matter it has good or bad impact on the employees (ADF Price, K chahl, 2006) nevertheless on the whole diversify always come in the brass section for the development purposes (Rikard Athin, 2004). Organization development is controlled process in which sequence of actions, activities intended to improve the placemental performance and effectiveness (Thomas G e. e. cummings Christopher G whorley, 2002).These set of sequenced planned changes for improvement of makeupal performance and development ar called interventions (cummings whorley, 1993). Interventions will only work for the organization if they are relevant with the organization (Chris Argyris, 1970). These interventions design varies from organizational needs and can be forkd into different types of interventions (D. Coghlan 1995). At the highest aim in the organization, there are strategic level interventions, which are designed to form the organizatio n structure for achieving its objectives affectively (R. Draft 1998). The other one is the techno-structural intervention, having purpose is to form appropriate work designs and organizational structures to provide the strategic jump of the organization development (E lawler III, 1974). The third component of the intervention is the people oriented interventions which focus on the fulfillment of mankind needs in the organization as swell as the runations of the organizational effectiveness (Frank Friedlander LD Br experience, 1974).Our main focus in this investigate is in techno-structural intervention, which deals with the restructuring of the organization the restructuring is in the division of workload of overall organization in to subunits for completion of the task effectively (M Tushman, E Romanelli, 1986). Restructuring can be performed on at least five major factors, environment, organization size, technology, organization schema and human being wide operation (Thomas G cummings Christopher G whorley, 2002). Second other major component of techno structural intervention is the employees involvement, D Glew, et al 1995 define the employees involvement on the foundation of government agency, selective learning, knowledge and skills and finally reward. Final component of intervention is work design , broadly speaking work design is of ii types, one is of scientific management (F. Taylor, 1911) which is task oriented, the other type of work design is motivational approach (G Susman, 1976).Muhammad ImranMuhammad Mahmood AslamIn literature, F. Herzberg, N. Mausner, B snyderman 1959, describes the work design having the opportunities for autonomy, die hard forwarding, responsibility and authority break outs more satisfaction to the employees and increase the employees involvement. Enrichment of the job of the employees leads to the employees satisfaction as well as to the acceptance of the change (F. Hertz berg, 1974). Employees involvement play s an important role in the success or failure of the organization. Our research in this context revolves around the relationship between the employees involvement and its effect on the techno structural interventions. In this exploratory research we will describe the relationship which exists in the employees involvement and techno-structural interventions.MethodologyWe get down used the data from three different sources i.e. Literature, come utilise questionnaire and unstructured interviews. The literature based on the interventions which includes the previous research on the interventions as well as the case studies from national as well as from international journals hasten been used to provide theoretical ground to our hypothesis. Beside this, for empirical study we have selected the textile industry of Pakistan, in which changes are impending on radically basis (Yim Yu Wong, Peng S. Chan 1993). In textile industry of Pakistan, we have selected the five readily available or ganizations from which we get the sample of 150 respondents by using the simple random sampling method. All the respondents were middle level charabancs having minimum 10-15 years of experience in the apparel industry. Beside this in our respondents are the top level management, for them we use the interviews for collecting the data. Analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data has been performed in our research.ScopeAs the Economic recession all over the world has affect the industry all over the world, only if in all these circumstances under developed countries suffer more with this phenomenon (Nick Beams 2001 ). In case of Pakistani, where the major export portion is based on the apparel industry this phenomenon become more critical (Frank P. Saladis PMP, 2007) resultantly, decreasing in export give rise the manager to bring some intervention in this sector at top management level, a number of decision has been taken to bring change but the success ratio of these are ver y low (Areeba Khan 2001) our research in this context will bring the revolutionary change it will give the manager a new direction that how the successfully interventions can be made by involving the employees. Our study setting is contrived in which we have the stripped interference in this study so, the external validity of our study will be very high and it will provide a great concentrate to the industry.LimitationsThe intervention process or any change process is not an event of day it took from months to the year (Stuart Gilmour, et al 2006). As our study is cross sectioned study in which we have gather the data in the same span of time so we can just analyze the past that in the past what are the impact made by the employees involvement in the intervention. However we can give recommendations for the future. Another thing which limit our study is that though we have selective the respondent with the random sampling methodology however the organizations for the study are tho se which are readily available to us.Literature ReviewChanges moldiness be preceded systematically (GuangmingCao, et al 2004). The success ratio for the change increase greatly, when we use the proper exemplar of planned change (YitzhakSamuel, et al 2004). In fire of all the planning and development change never successfully happened and mostly the reason behind this failure is resistance (JamesL.Vann, 2004). To overcome the resistance and for the success of change several factors can influence, these can be management involvement and support, employees firearmicipation, information sharing and the most important is leadership (Jean E. Neumann, et al 1999). The sequenced, planned, organized and managed from the top changes are called the interventions (Beckhard 1961). While designing intervention, concept of Effective intervention has much importance which describes that effective intervention is providing the free and informed choice to the employees by the organization (C Argyr is, 1970).Widely, research has been done that how to design intervention and how to make them effective to achieve the organization objective effectively (D. Warrick 1995). While designing some interventions, individual differences (skills, knowledge, need for autonomy, etc), organization factors (management structure, Employees, culture etc) and dimension of change process (management support, employees involvement, power etc) must be considered (J Porras, et al 1987).While going for interventions in the organization, four major options are available that are strategic interventions, Techno-structural Human Process and Human Resource caution intervention (Thomas G. Cummings, et al 2001 ). Strategic intervention is of broader term describes the corporate as well as business level strategic intervention like cultural change, strategic change, self design organization, and integrate strategic management (P. Evans, et al 1997).In human process, the interventions deals with the social issues which occurs among the organization members like communication gap, individual differences, conflicts and team issues (D. Ancona, et al 1992). Thirdly, the human option management interventions, aim is to goal setting, deed management, reward systems, career planning and development and managing work force diversity (D. McDonald, et al 1995). Techno-structural intervention is another type of the organizational intervention which mainly deals with the issues like business process reengineering, total quality management, Quality circles and work design (M. Tushman, et al 1985). Techno-structural interventions have two important components which are technological interventions and the structural interventions (J. Galbraith, R. Kazanjian 1986). Technological interventions involve first appearance of new technology in the organization like in organization changes made from the manual to computerized, or to implement some enterprise system (A. Chandler 1962). While in case of s tructural intervention it deals with the ever-changing in organization structure, work design so that the organization may able to achieve the organization objective more effectively (G. Hamel, C. Prahalad 1994). In textile sector of Pakistan several techno-structural interventions have been made but the success ratios of these intervention is very low and silence Pakistan is far behind than the rest of the world (Noor Ahmad Memon, Noor Zaman 2007). There are a number of reasons behind to discuss all these failure in the industry, but the most important of it is the lack of employees involvement in the intervention process which lead to this failure (S.A.J Shirazi 2007). Some researcher has defined the employees involvement on the basis of Participation in the change process and the profit sharing with the employees (Susan Schwochau 1997). Employees Involvement can be defined as on the basis of Power, information sharing, familiarity skills and finally Reward (Thomas G cummings C hristopher G whorley, 2002). In our research we have used all the four variables which we have further sub divide into sub variables to measure this abstract into concept.Theoretical FrameworkEmployees Involvement in relation with the Techno-structural InterventionEmployees Involvement is independent variable and having sub variables are power, information sharing, knowledge and skills, while on the other hand techno-structural intervention is dependent variable. In our research we have studied the empirical relationship between the employees involvement and techno-structural intervention. Our scope of study is limited up to the textile industry of Pakistan in which we have selected the five readily available organizations.PowerInformation Sharing noesis and SkillsRewardEmployees InvolvementTechno-structural InterventionIndependent VariableDependent VariableFigure-1 Employees Involvement in Relation with the Techno-structural interventions.In five organizations, we go through the st udy of 150 participants who are all the middle level managers. For data collection we further classified all these four variables into its indicators. Power is being defined as the decision making authority given by the employer to the employees up to their levels (D. Glew, et al 1995). The other indicators which we used in our research in order to find the indicators of power are management support and autonomy which gives the employees office and increase their participation in the intervention process (E. Lawler III 1986).The second indicator of the employees involvement is the information sharing which also encourage the employees to participate in the change process (SusanSchwochau, et al 2007). The information can be strategic information of the organization which deals with the organization vision, mission and objectives as well as the financial information which indicate the financial gains or loss by the organization, it also give raise to the presumption between the empl oyees and employers as well (David E. Morgan, Rachid Zeffane 2003). The third indicator of the employees involvement is the employees knowledge and skills which focuses on the Training and development of the employees regarding the interventions (D. Roche, et al 1984). Employees involvement can also be made affective by giving them assignment which are challenging and relevant to the change of the organization (K. Broosseau 1983), beside this overall technique of knowledge management and manoeuvre of learning can be made applicable to enhance the positive participation of the employees (R. Ruggles 1998).Finally, Reward systems of the organization also affect the intervention process in the organizations. While going for intervention, the organization have pay plans like skill based pay plans in which employees are being rewarded according to the skills they owned (V. Gibson 1995). Performance based pay plans and performance based incentive is also in voyage in modern management pra ctices to encourage the employees to work for the change (Z Schiller 1996). afterward the successful intervention, Employees should be get participated in the profit which the organization actually make by the implementation of intervention, this will encourage other employees to be the part of the intervention in the future (J Belcher 1994). If the organization dont go for the direct financial benefits, than other measures like promotion can be a source of encouragement to the employees.In this way, we have developed all these variables to measure the employees involvement in the process of Techno-structural interventions.PowerDecision makingAuthorityAutonomyManagement stick upInformation SharingStrategic InformationFinancial InformationFuture PlansProcedures and ResultsKnowledge and SkillsTraining developmentChallenging AssignmentDeveloping SkillsKnowledge ManagementRewardSkill based plansPerformance based plansGain SharingPromotionEmployees InvolvementFigure 2 Variables effec ting the employees involvementData GatheringFor getting the data for our research, we developed several questionnaires in which we measure all these four variables that are power, information sharing, knowledge and skills. In questionnaire technique, all questionnaires consists of approximately 15-20 questions in which we have measured all these four variables to measure the employees involvement while techno-structural intervention has been measured by the indirect questions by asking about the work design, changing in technology and adoptability of the employees with the interventions.Analysis of DataAnalysis of Data is being performed by the SPSS (statistical package for social sciences) and in which by using the regression model we analyze our findings. We used the regression psychoanalysis model for finding the empirical relationship between the employees involvement and the techno-structural interventions in the organization.This model indicates that there is positive relati onship exists between the employees involvement and techno-structural interventions. If the employees involvement is greater than the employees will perform better and go for the success of the intervention, in case if the organization is not given the employees the dear to involve in decision making and employees dont find enough autonomy than employees not only will resist the change but also the success ratio of the intervention will also reduced. In context with the regression analysis performs above this indicate that model is quite significant, as the value of implication is less than .05. The significance value is actually the p-value which in statistics predicts that how much reliable is your model to predict the independent variable.On the basis of the data we gather by using the likert scale, from the observation as well as from executives interviews, we well come to know that there exist a strong relationship between the employees involvement as well as in the success o f the techno-structural interventions, we have also proved this by using the SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) where we use the regression analysis to find the correlation in between our variables. As the data is collected from the field so the externally it does not give the exact result which we expect from the study but it shows the positive relationship and model is quite significant, in spite of field study. Another reason which can also be one of the factor that it is not showing the optimum relation is the culture of Pakistan, in which most of the time employees hesitate to take the responsibility and very few go for the intervention process and want to take the responsibility another thing which we study during this empirical study is the attitude of executives who dont want to share the information with the employees due(p) to broken of secrecy problem they never ever trust in their employees either they are the bottom line managers or middle level managers, o ur study in this circumstances is just limited up to the executives and middle management as the low level managers and workers are not directly victim of the change process, they actually take the commands from the top and middle level management and act like that, in Pakistan it is more about the culture rather than the rules and regulations or policies of the company. conclusion RecommendationsBased on the data, and the calculations shown above, it has been proved that techno-structural intervention is greatly impacted by the employees involvement, if the employees found the chance to participate in the change process, than they better performed as compared to those who dont have a chance to give their views about the intervention process. So, it is better to get the participation of the employees which should be in positive manner this will enhance the confidence of the employees towards the intervention process and self responsibility of the employees will lead to the success of the intervention.In Textile Sector, as in case of Pakistan, Employees involvement can be increased by giving the employees proper participation as well as providing the opportunity to the employees so that they can get the responsibility by their own self. The all four variables which have been discussed here must be kept in mind in order to prepare the employees for the Techno-structural intervention. One of the major problems which we genuinely face while getting the data about the employees involvement is the organization structure which is highly autocratic. At the top level, Management dont wanted from the employees side to learn any thing they just wanted to pass the orders rather than to make the decisions by the consensus of the employees. But on one way around though some employees are also enough satisfied with this culture of the organization but in real sense the employees creativity element will all shut down, resultantly they unable to produce that thing which ac tually they can. Summing up, our discussion as that as the competition is in the market is increasing, new and radical changes are being occurring in the organizations. Those organizations who get prepared their employees to accept the changes got success while other who unable to got accept the changes fail badly and one of the major reasons they have that their human resource dont accept the change made by the employer in some technical work or some structural design, resultantly it fails down.

Definition And Scope Of Value Added Tax Economics Essay

Definition And Scope Of apprize Added task Economics Essay value Added levy is genuinely the close common form of purpose measure dodge used around the world. The Parliament gold coast passed the Value Added Tax bring, Act 546 on 16th March 1998 to replace the Sales and run Tax with the aim of generating to a greater extent measure gross to reduce the brasss overdependence on donor funds for economic development. bathing tub is easily cognise to be an in force(p) way to raise tax gross for both development and developed countries. However the success of vat depends on a well designed and implemented system of bathtub government. tubful requires streamlined monitoring and verification systems to be successful. This watch is aimed at identifying and addressing the administrative ch completelyenges facing the Value Added Tax Service and the rough-and-ready implementation of bathing tub to collect more Tax revenue for gold coast. This chapter covers a study of literature on tubful brass section and the challenges confronting efficient vat judicatory. The chapter depart also review nourishment made in sections of the Value Added tax Act, (Act 546) concerning value-added tax administration.DEFINITION AND SCOPE OF VALUE ADDED TAXValue Added Tax ( bath) is outlined as a tax applied on the value added to goods and services at each stage in the production and distri thation chain. (http//www.gra.gov.gh/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=4Itemid=22)This implies that Value Added tax is levied at any stage in the production and distribution chain where value is added to goods and services un slight specifically exempted in the Act. The relevant tub grade is effectively applied on the value added at each stage. This is achieved by charging the localize on the value of taxable output and deducting tax paid in taxable inputs. Value Added Tax is borne by the final consumer since the tax is added to the price of taxable goods and ser vices. Section 1 of the Value Added Tax Act 1998, Act 546 provides that Value Added Tax must be charged on the fol disordereding three categories of supplies unless a nonher(prenominal)wise exempted by the Act(a) Supply of goods and services made in gold coast(b) Imported goods(c) Imported service.The tax is charged only on taxable supply of goods and services made by a taxable person in the course of his business (Value Added tax Act, Act 546 1998). This implies that value-added tax is chargeable whereThe supply is taxable within the commentary of the ActThe supply is made by a taxable personThe supply is used in the course of business of the taxable person.THE SCOPE AND IMPORTANCE OF VAT garbage disposalVAT is well known to be an efficient way to raise tax revenue for both developing and developed countries. However the success of VAT depends on a well designed and implemented system of VAT administration. VAT requires efficient monitoring and verification systems to be succes sful. The scope of VAT administration covers a range of colligate functions such as tax founderer identification and registration, invoicing controls, filing and hire requirements, quittances, VAT audits, penalties enforcement and any some other incidental activities necessary for tax authorities to discharge the responsibilities entrusted to them (Jantscher 1990 P.56). The success of VAT depends on many factors, prominent among which is the way in which the VAT laws argon administered by the pipe organs entrusted with the appeal of the tax for the government.Any weaknesses in how VAT administrators consummate their duties will adversely affect the governments policy objectives as a whole. Tanzin and Pellechio (1995) (cited in Mikesell (2007)) observed that poor tax administration has implication on the manner in which taxation affects governments economic stabilization, resource allocation and redistribution of income. Most of the developing countries who ease up introduced VAT have copied the VAT systems of developed countries who have introduced VAT. It is important to know, however, that the challenges confronting developing countries in their VAT implementation argon quite distinct from that of the developed countries they copy from.According to Bird and Gendron (2005), developing and transitional countries, unlike developed countries, face the line of work of fragmented economies, dominant informal sectors, low tax morale, rampant evasion, and lack of trust between tax administrators and taxpayers. It is clear from the higher up that no developing countries hatful create a successful VAT system by just thus, coping a successful VATs design attributes of developed countries without considering the above tax administration and the socio-economic challenges of the country in question. Neville Howlett et (2006) were right in their assertion that, although the principles of the tax are broadly the same everywhere, the rules can be enacted and imp lemented differently in different countries so that the compliance burden on business varies considerably. Eduart Gjokutaj supports this view that the consistent support and advocacy of this form of taxation by the IMF and others in a transformation of countries, encouraged and facilitated the adoption of VAT by countries with much less developed economic and administrative anatomical structures than those in the original EU member states http//ezinearticles.com/?expert=Eduart_Gjokutaj. shrewd and Lockwood (2007) have observed that, in most developing countries, the main justification for introducing VAT is that the system would enhance efforts to mobilize much needed tax revenue by wider improvements in tax administration and compliance(P.235).Many studies have concluded that Value Added Tax is better than possible alternatives in both developed and developing and transitional countries (Bird M. R, 2005). According to Bird (2005), so long as countries have general sales taxes, V AT remains the vanquish choice in around all bunch. However, Bird (2005) points out that the idea that VAT is most effective tax for developing countries seeking to alternative sources of revenue due to loss of income through traditional sources is valid only if VAT can be administered efficiently (P.237).Many studies have concluded that VAT is currently the vanquish way to for the government to collect general consumption tax. But all the studies agree that the benefit of VAT cannot be realized with an efficient and effective system of VAT administration. In connection with this, Jantscher (1986) has stated that the real tax system is that which is administered, not that which appears in the formal law (P.18).THE INTRODUCTION OF VAT IN GHANAThe PNDC government cut the need to improve the tax system in 1990 mainly due to the drastic fall in revenue from her traditional revenue source. Following the right in revenue from exports due to decreasing world market price for primary goods including Cocoa and gold, tax revenue from traditional sources started declining and this put pres certain on the capacity of government to increase revenue to meet expansion in recurrent and development expenditure. Like most developing and transitional economies, another major reasons for Ghana to adopt VAT in 1998 to replace the Sales and Services Tax was the International Monetary Funds (IMF) strong recommendation on VAT to economic transition countries including Ghana. According to Terkper, (1998), the mental hospital of Value Added Tax in Ghana was in-line with the policy of the Economic Recovery Program (ERP) which was launched in 1983 and which sought among other things to rationalize the tax system.The government therefore commissioned the Harvard Institute of International Development (USA) and the Crown Agent of the U.K. to conduct feasibility study in 1991. The study was to conduct a critical examination into the then existing tax system and suggest ways to impro ve it. The recommendations of the study led to the introduction of VAT in March 1995. The government introduced the VAT at the standard rank of 17.5%. Unfortunately, Ghana experienced rapid increases in the prices of goods and services immediately after the introduction of VAT. This led to public anti-VAT demonstrations in Accra and other major cities in Ghana. Clashes between demonstrators and government security agencies led to the shooting to death of some civilians. This in the end forced the government to withdraw the VAT and reinstate the sales and services tax. The government did not abandoned the VAT agenda because most developing and transitional economies had successfully introduces VAT. After three years of much wider public consultation, parliamentary passed the Value Added Tax Act 1998 (Act 546) to reintroduced the Value Added tax at a demean VAT rate of 10% in 1998.PROBLEMS OF VALUE ADDED TAX ADMINISTRATION IN GHANANaiyeju (1996) contends that the positive result re ceived from any tax depends on how the tax is administered and the extent of how the tax law is interpreted and implemented as well as the publicity brought into it.Sections 36 to 53 of the Value Added Tax Act cover the administration of Value Added Tax. The sections outline the establishment of the Value Added Tax Service and the functions assigned to the versatile organs of the Service.Cruce F (2011) has observed that there are six important conditions that need to be ful modify in monastic order to create a good VAT administration simple, clear, stable tax laws fair to middling service and support to tax payers in complying with tax obligations simple procedures of registration, filing, payment, and return effective collection enforcement reasonable audit coverage, strict application of penalties and provisions for breakaway review. http//www.nek.lu.se/Publ/mfs/209.pdfAn examination of the operations of the VAT Service indicates that Ghana has not fulfilled most of the above conditions. The Value Added Tax Act is quite simple and clear, but the VAT Service is not adequately resourced to provide the needed service and support to tax payers in complying with the provisions of the Act.Also the registration and filling system as well as the payment and refund systems are too cumbersome especially for the belittled businesses. All papers must be filled manually as there is no electronic filing system. This implies that that registered businesses must walk to the nearest VAT Office to pick forms and also to file regainings. VAT offices are located only in the regional capitals so tax payers in other towns must travel long distances each month to the regional capitals to file their returns. According to Cruce (2011) to encourage every eligible tax payers to register to collect VAT, the tax authorities must make sure that their registration procedures are as simple as possible establish an efficient verification system to verify new registrants in order to i nvalidate fraudRegarding enforcement and audit, the VAT Service appears not to be doing enough when the taxpayer fails to pay a tax liability based on either a self-assessed tax return or an assessment resulting from audit activities. Baurer (2005) has outlined the following steps involved in collecting tax liability from defaulting tax payersContacting taxpayers and requesting payment of all delinquent and current taxes that are due.Interviewing taxpayers and third parties to secure information regarding sources of income and assetsReviewing taxpayer financial records and third party data to determine the taxpayers ability to pay delinquent taxesdetermine the reason for non-paymentDetermining if the taxpayer should be granted additional time to pay a tax liability based on financial analysis and granting installment payment privileges where applicableDetermining if a tax liability is collectibleConducting investigations to locate taxpayers and/or taxpayer assetsIdentifying assets o f the taxpayer that can be attached or seized for non-payment of taxes dueTaking enforced collection actions when taxpayer refuses to pay voluntarilyIssuing attachment orders to banks to freeze and/or seize taxpayer accountsIssuing attachment orders to third parties to secure funds due to the taxpayerConducting seizures of tangible assets as permitted by law (e.g., real property, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)Conducting public auction sales of taxpayer assets as permitted by lawButtery (2006) has pointed out that most proponents of VAT secern the procedure for collecting VAT without taking into account the fact that suppliers and producers must supply the information necessary for assessment to the VAT Authorities. According to him, in order to reduce the administrative burden in harm of information requirements, exemptions are usually granted to small tax payers in the informal sectors. It is on this desktop that Emran and Stiglitz (2005) challenged the view tha t the VAT tax base in developing countries is generally broader than tariffs.Generally, the Value Added Tax Service has not yet lived up to expectation regarding the sales talk of its mandate in the VAT Act. It appears there is no adequate machinery for effectively monitoring the collection and remittance of the value Added Tax to the government. Service lacks is not adequately resourced in terms of skilled manpower and technology to administer VAT efficiently.It is therefore important to assess the faculty with which the various organs of the Value Added Tax Service perform their functions. The study examines the operations of the VAT Service to ascertain the challenges confronting the Value Added Tax Service in performing an efficient VAT administration and explore ways of improving on the efficiency of the Service.Ghana has designed a very comprehensive VAT Act but weaknesses in the administrative systems required to enforce the provisions of the Act have led to shortfall in re venue targets over the years. For example there is no efficient tracking system to identify organizations that become eligible to register to collect the Value added Tax. Most of the organizations who have registered to collect Value Added tax also fail to resign VAT receipts to customers who acquire taxable supplies from them as enshrined in the Act, even though their prizes are VAT inclusive. Many taxable persons also take cash in to avoid having to issue VAT invoices. Such organizations, however, claim credit for VAT paid on their purchases leading to huge loss of revenue to the government.The problem of VAT administration in Ghana is exacerbated by the composition and functions of the Value added Tax Service. A review of the functions of the Service shows that the service needs more people with managerial skill. The inability on the part of the Value added Tax Service to deliver adequately on the managerial aspects of their mandate leads to refusal to complete tax return for m, fallacious declarations, smuggling etc. These lapses in tax administration explain why Ghanas tax ratio continues to fall below the average of 17% of total revenue in Sub-Saharan Africa.VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCETax compliance has been defined as compliance with composinging requirements means that the taxpayer files all required tax returns at the proper time and that the returns accurately report tax liability in accordance with the internal revenue code, regulations, and court decisions applicable at the time return is filed (Roth et al,1989, p. 21)VAT thrives on voluntary compliance and effective monitoring. According to Allan (2007), without due attention to VAT administration and staffing, the details of theories and generalizations about VAT are less effective. Bird (2005) added that many developing counties have encountered VAT implementation problems mainly because of lack of self-assessment based tax return practices, the difficulties in establishing efficient VAT administr ation and control systems, a large share of shadow economy and tax fraud.Gjokutaj (2011) has said that, VAT is the recommended Tax for countries that need a simpler tax, but VAT does not always work well in developing countries principally because they are not yet so tax educated society ready for self-assessment. He adds that the voluntary compliance by tax payers depends largely on the degree of existing trust between officials and taxpayers and how quickly that trust can be construct up sufficiently to support a self-assessment system.Most countries that have efficient VAT administration systems have over 70% voluntary compliance rate (Agyemang Duah 2011, p.231). Sweden which aims to be the country with the best tax administration in the OECD by 2012 have a focus on compliance, cost efficiency and effectiveness, e-filing, and tax offer measurement and management. http//ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/resources/documents/taxation/vat/key_documents/011_851_en.pdfAccording to Cruce (2011) to encourage every eligible tax payers to register to collect VAT, the tax authorities must make sure that their registration procedures are as simple as possible establish an efficient verification system to verify new registrants in order to avoid fraud. Knowledge about the causes of non-compliant behaviour by citizens and businesses is also very important. According to the 2010 edition of the European Commissions Compliance Risk Management guide for Tax Administration, roughshod sanctions are not the appropriate response (and may have an adverse effect) when non-compliance is caused by complex legislation or a lack of knowledge on the part of the taxpayer. The paper therefore recommends that tax administrators should match their compliance strategy to the taxpayers attitude and motives..According to Alcantara et el (2010) countries that have adopted electronic filing and payment systems have drastically improved their voluntary compliance. The have also concluded that the frequency with which VAT returns are required and the make sense of information requested have a significant impact on the time it takes to comply and that compliance takes lasting where extra documentation has to be submitted with the return (Page 9). In addition, they established a correlation between the VAT compliance ease time taken to receive VAT refund. According to their study where it takes longer to receive a refund, it takes longer to comply.The study examines the procedures put in place by the VAT Service to encourage voluntary compliance and make recommendations for improvementTHE STRUCTURE OF TAX ADMINISTRATIONThe efficiency of VAT administration also depends on the powers given to the revenue authority charged with VAT administration. According to Allan (2007) there is the Potential for cross-checking VAT and income Tax liability if VAT and income tax are placed under the same organization. He claims that as each trader s sales is someone elses purchase, the invoi ces required for a credit invoice VAT theoretically allows the authorities to cross-check a traders purchases by adding up the suppliers sales. Therefore the data on purchases and sales in VAT returns should provide a valuable input to the calculation of profits for the purpose of income taxation, thus improving the administration of direct taxes (p.234).Agyemang Duah (2011) has, however, expressed doubts about the efficiency of tax administration if the scope of the tax administration is expanded by placing both VAT and income tax under one wing of tax administration.In Ghana, although both VAT administration and income tax have been placed under the Ghana Revenue Authority, each tax is administered by a separate organ with little coordination between them. Income tax is administered by the Internal revenue service whilst VAT is administered by the Value Added tax service. The VAT Service has many organs but the highest decision making body of the Service is the Revenue Agencies Go verning Board. The Board has the following functionsTo ensure the effective, efficient and optimum collection of all taxes penalties and fill due to the state.To control the management of the ServiceTo recommend to the Minister of Finance policies for the effective management of VAT as well as any exemptions required.To pay amount collected by the service into the consolidated fund.To pay amount collected by the service into the consolidated fund.Appoint, promote and discipline employees of the Service.Prescribe the terms and conditions of service of employees (Value Added Tax Act, Act 546, 1998)A review of the operations of the VAT service shows that the VAT system in Ghana is organized along geographic lines as existed in the erstwhile sales tax regime.Baurer L (2005) explains the three main ways to structure tax administration namely by flake of tax by type of taxpayer or, by operating function. He adds that in countries that are in their early stage of development, tax is usua lly organized by type of tax but the structure chosen by a particular country must support her implementation strategy.Hasseldine (2007) is of the opinion that VAT is best administered by an organization which is organized along functional lines with each official foc victimisation on carrying out one function instead of delivering all functions to a taxpayer. According to him, a functional design permits greater standardization of identical work processes, facilitates simplification of procedures for taxpayers, reduces taxpayer costs and enhances compliance and enables greater productivity. The study examines the current structure and scope of the VAT Service to identify any organizational lapses that may be contributing to inefficient VAT administration.THE VAT GAPThe VAT quip has been defined as the difference between the net VAT liability and total VAT collections (Durner and Sedon, 2010). VAT fling results from fraudulent activities such as, evasion, bankruptcy to register, u nder-reporting of sales, fictive claims of input credits. It has also been argued that ignorance on the part of Vendors and buyers also lead to non-compliance, as opposed to fraud or evasion. According to Alan T (2010), Value Added Tax is big-ticket(prenominal) to administer because much money is collected only to be returned, and fraud is possible through suppression of sales figures, barter transactions, understated debtors, false invoices, denary claims, and fictitious businesses. The main objectives of VAT administration are (1) to ensure that total VAT collections are as close as possible to the total amount of VAT due, and (2) to keep costs related to the administration of the VAT as low as possible (Durner and Sedon, 2010).Agyemang Duah (2011) contends that, a significant portion of the VAT gap in Ghana is the result of lack of proper books of accounts upon which the VAT Service can perform any meaningful VAT assessments and audit. It is estimated that the VAT gap of Ghana is 40% whilst European countries like Ireland and Spain have VAT gap of only 2% (Durner Sedon, 2010 Agyemang Duah (2011). The study will examine the extent to which the above problems militate against efficient VAT administration in Ghana and explore ways of reducing the VAT gap.VAT ADMINISTRATION AND SMALL TAX PAYERSDomenico (2005) has stated that the task of administering VAT for a large number of small traders creates a considerable challenge because compliance costs of a VAT system as a share of business turnover, is considerably higher for small compared to larger businesses. Cruce (2011) argues that VAT is primarily a tax on the formal sector and hence inappropriate for circumstances where the informal sector is significant. The Ghana tax base, like most developing countries, is dominated by the informal small tax payers.It is in the light of the above that Ghana introduced a standard VAT rate of 3% for the informal sector of the economy in the year 2007. The aim was to simp lify the VAT procedures for the small tax payers. Under the standard scheme, qualifying retailers are allowed to pay 3 percent (3%) of their annual turnover as VAT. Taxable persons under this scheme are not allowed to deduct any input tax from the VAT collected on their output.The 2012 budget statement also proposes the establishment of a single tax rate for VAT and income tax for small tax payers. It has been argued that such a simplified tax system will help to reduce tax evasion and compliance cost for small tax payers.However, in the view of Shome1 (2004) a single tax does not reduce evasion except by definition since, by design, it requires small taxpayers to pay less tax than their theoretical tax potential. He also argues that a single tax also leads to inefficiency since it reallocates resources from the higher rate tax sector to the lower-taxed sector. Modern tax experts therefore recommend tax simplification rather than separation between large, medium and small taxpayers. Shome1 (2004) further states that the ultimate goal for tax practices to fully reflect the original intentions of tax policy as expressed in the tax statute could be achieved if the complexity in the tax structure is reduced through a continuous process of tax simplification rather than using a single tax rate. The government of Ghana therefore needs to have a second look at the proposal for a single tax rate as proposed in the 2012 budget. The study will explore the benefits and challenges of a single tax system proposed by the government by reviewing similar systems adopted by other countries.ASSESSING VAT ON SERVICESAccording to section 10 of the Value Added Tax Act, the supply of taxable services is subject to VAT and NHIL at the standard rank of 12.5% and 2.5% respectivelyThe recipient of the service is required to account for VAT and NHIL by means of a reverse charge. The Act also provides that registered recipient would be entitle to reclaim the amount of VAT and NHIL paid, subject to certain restrictions. However the administration of Value added Tax on importation of taxable service presents one of the most difficult challenges to the VAT Services. Because services are intangible and difficult to quantify, the success of VAT administration depends largely on the faithfulness of the taxable persons. Monitoring the purchase and sale of services is very difficult since no inventory of services is available for stock taking.Administration of VAT on Services is even more complex when service is bought or sold from another country. Although services are economically equivalent to goods, their VAT border-crossing treatment differs. The current VAT Act does not have enough provisions to deal effectively with services whose location of supply or purchase is difficult to ascertain. The procedures for assessing taxable services in Ghana will be assessed through interviews and observation.VAT REFUNDSAnother challenge of VAT administration in Ghana concerns VAT refund claims. Refund claims arise when a taxable person pays more VAT on purchases than it collects on sales. Tax payers always complain that there is too much delay by the VAT Service in processing VAT refund Claims. VAT officials are of the view that VAT refund delays are driven by the need to nurture government revenue from the risks of false purchases invoices, falsified export documents, and understated taxable sales. According to Bird (2010) best practice in VAT refunds involves a risk-based system of discriminating inspections and auditswhich allows most refunds to be paid promptly, subject to post-refund audit, and heavy penalties for false documentation. He argues further that this system is highly cost-effective, because the revenue risk from promptly paying low risk claims is small compared to the opportunity cost of having skilled tax personnel scrutinize every refund petition. Portugal has adopted a simplified VAT refund process using computerized risk-assessment and automatic payment for low-risk claims. Kenya has a system where their revenue authority pays all VAT refund claims that are certified by a professional accountant, with severe penalties for fraud by the accountants. Bird (2010) argues that this increases compliance cost to the tax payer since it amounts to out-sourcing the verification process at the taxpayers expense. Based on their review of VAT refund procedures in 36 countries, Harrison and Krelove (2005) identify the following features of an effective VAT refund system suitable for developing and transitional countriesThe number of VAT payers should be kept at a level that can be realistically managed.VAT registration applications should be subject to proof of identity and other basic checks.Suitable forecasting and monitoring systems should be established to anticipate refund levels and ensure that sufficient funds are available to meet all legitimate refund claims.Refunds should be processed within a reasonable statutory per iod (e.g., 30 days from the refund claim), and the tax authority should report publicly on its performance.Interest should be paid on late refunds.Excess VAT credits should be offset against VAT and other tax arrears.Immediate refunds should always be paid promptly to exporters.Verification of VAT refund claims should integrated into a wider audit program, with pre-refund audits being limited to high-risk cases only. advantageous treatment should be given to regular exporters with sound compliance histories.Appropriate sanctions should be consistently applied to taxpayers who falsely claim refunds.Taxpayers should be entitled to appeal, on reasonable grounds, of a decision to withhold a refund.The tax administration should provide clear information to taxpayers about their rights and obligations and the procedures for making a valid refund claimThe study assess the VAT refund procedures used by the Value Added Tax Service to see the extent to which they apply the above best practice principles and make recommendations for improvement.OFFENSES PENALTIESSections 56 to 72 of the Value Added Tax Act provide a comprehensive list of offenses and penalties for failing to comply with the various provisions of the Act. Offenses relating to taxable persons include failure to register, failure to issue tax invoice, presentation of false or misleading statement, falsification and alteration of documents, evasion of tax payment, failure to maintain proper records and obstruction of officers of the VAT Service.There Act also provides for offenses relating to Tax officials. Penalties range from various fines to imprisonment. Cruce (2011) has explained that penalties for VAT defaulters should be enforced rigorously and forthwith and should be enforced without exception in order not to undermine the credibility of the system. He contends that this requires an efficient and well-functioning auditing procedures and tax-officials with the requisite investigating skills. Grandcol as (2010) has also added that the level of VAT compliance depends on the design of the VAT, the quality of the system of VAT administration and the consistent enforcement of penalties for default. Evidence from initial investigations indicates that many taxable persons fail to comply with the various provisions of the Act because penalties or offences are not enforced on defaulters. Agyemang Duah (2011) has established a relationship between tax compliance and the effectiveness of tax enforcement including the probability of detection and the size of fines. The study explores the extent, to which the offenses and penalties are enforced, the reasons for any lapses and how the situation can be improved.VAT ON INTERNATIONAL TRADEGenerally, VAT is levied using the destination basis. On this basis, imports are taxed in the country where

Does The Media Undermine Democracy In Malaysia Media Essay

Does The Media Undermine Democracy In Malaysia Media EssayThroughout the ending decades, Malaysians have enjoyed regular elections and administrational stability. However, the stability slowly took a turn when the detention of former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the subsequent sentence of 15 years for charges of corruption, abuse of power, and sexual misconduct made the usual lose its faith in the integrity of the governments aims (Heufers, 2002) This the somehow added the growing number of detentions under the inherent Security Act (ISA) and former(a) repressive laws severely menaceen political competition, participation, and civil and political liberties.The media in Malaysia comprising of the mainstream that is mainly owned and controlled by the government and the alternative media, a form of independent journalism. Many government leaders in the developing world would justify their control over the media in terms of avariciously guarding and guiding its members towards the path of national development and to ensure that the media does not fall into the wrong hands (Mustafa, 2005) In other words, the government wants to take control of media so they can set the agenda in the minds of society.This already restricts a sense of openness in the mainstream media. Mustafa (2005) stated in an analysis on the coverage of Malaysias 2004 world(a) elections by four mainstream word of honorpapers (The Star, the New Straits Times (NST), Berita Harian and Utusan Melayu), the total number of news items that were positive towards BN among all four major newspapers were roughly 40% and above. The other part of the percentage went straight to new items that were negative towards the opposition. Only a slight number of news (4% and below) were negative new items towards BN. Mustafa (2005) also highlighted sample of headlines utilize by these newspapers that gave an idea of slant news reporting Malaysians prefer Pak Lahs vision of Islam (NST, March 15 2004 ), Perlis merana jika pilih pembangang (Perlis suffers if opposition is voted) (Utusan Melayu, March 16 2004 ) This shows a high train of bias coverage within the highly influential mainstream newspapers during the 2004 general elections.Another research presented by Ramanathan (2008) consists of a two month content analysis on how the mainstream media presents their reports on the 2008 general elections. Choosing newspapers in four languages (English, Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil and Mandrin) and the new media internet, online newspapers and SMS as well as monitoring commentaries by selected television channels such as RTM, CNN and Channel News Asia on a selective basis.According to research, the type of coverage done by five of the mainstream newspapers was sided towards pro-BN stories. 277 stories analysed from Utusan Malaysia has 155 pro-BN stories, 56 pro- opposition and 66 neutral. The Star had a total of 153 stories analysed, 100 were pro-BN and only 22 were pro-opposition. Nanyan g Siang Pau had 118 stories, 74 of them pro-BN and 26 pro-opposition. For Tamil newspapers, a qualitative analysis was undertaken that led to conclusions of since Tamil Nesan was being majority owned by Datin Indrani Samy Velu, the newspaper printed many stories featuring Dato Samy Velu and prominent MIC politicians and there were hardly any coverage given to Indian candidates form opposition political parties.The mainstream media weakens the openness of presenting political news to society. If democracy is all about the peoples right to oppose, to provide critiques with the role of media to influence the people, they are not giving much of a decision or choice to begin with.Of course there are minimal parts where the government values and would take into consideration the opinions of the people. For example, the topic of education Maths and Science in English (PPSMI), society is free to give out comments and opinions on what they think about the topic. People are writing in to ne wspapers, taking part in massive forums to state their opinion and to fight for what they stand for and the government values the opinion of the people in this case. Why cannot this be the same with political issues? After all, it is the political opinion and stands made by the mankind that would contribute to the democracy of the country.Some may say that the alternative whole works as a perfect place for independent journalism however it is still closely monitored by the administration. Blogs and online publications are beginning to worry the Malaysian authorities enough to re-consider the existing policy of non-regulation of the Internet and to call for some controls over the content (Ramanathan, 2008) A clear example was when Raja Petra Kamarudin, editor of alternative news Portal Malaysia Today was charged with publishing a seditious article on 25 May 2008 with the title, Lets send Altantuya murderers to hell. Raja was the first blogger to be charged under a sedition act wh ere he claim trail but refused to post bail. Six months later detention under the ISA, Raja was released with no charges being filed against him.AccountabilityThe tight gate-keeping and censorship practised by the government over the mainstream media influences the office of democracy. The government does not like reports that are too captious therefore the responsibility to forming a democracy country is limited due to the restrain in reporting.During the general election in 2008, Ramanathan (2008) analyzed two-months prior to and after the elections, the mainstream media did coverages on upbeat stories about Barisan Nationals chances and dismissed the oppositions chances. Among them were a two-page focus on Issues close to the heart featuring an in-depth interview with Abdullah, an article titled Guan Eng not a threat in Penang dismissed the chances of opposition leader Lim Guan Eng in capturing the state government in Penang and instead Lim won handsomely.With slanted reportin g like this, the answerableness of the government would be doubted by the public hence would give the public the opportunity to opt for something else which they did in the 2008 general election whereby BN suffered one of their worst lost because the public opted for an alternative media. This incident brought the alternative media to a different level when weblogs, text messages and copies of Internet-streamed videos became the most influential information sources for voters ahead that resulted in a surprise pull to the BN) party, which has ruled the country for more than 50 years.The media holds the representative responsible for taking care of the the people so what happens when these politicians lose in an election? How would they answer to accountability? The innocent death of Teo Beng Hock signifies a crisis of confidence in Malaysian democracy and accountability. Many critics, including those in the current government, argues that restrictions were put in place at a time wh en they were needed and that preventing public discussion of certain issues is not only counter-productive but it is also futile (Ramanathan, 2008)With the support towards the alternative media and the growing public sphere, the results from the 2008 election are bound to bring about greater freedom of expression. Though the responsibility of the democracy is in hand, there are some hearten post-election developments The Home Affairs Ministry approved in April 2008 an application for a permit from the opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) to publish its party newspaper. With such actions, this would indeed encourage and strengthen the accountability of the peoples perception towards the countrys democracy.ConclusionThe mainstream media needs to loosen its strings and start to bring greater media liberalisation to unclog the clouds of uncertainty and doubt in the minds of society. The alternative media is not enough. Society needs to hear the truth from the government. Only then ca n the country achieve great democracy.

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Sexual discrimination has been around for many years and is present in many circumstances, however, that does not justify the unethical and flagitious views against lesbians or gaysThere is info in the play the childrens hour that proves lesbianism was looked down upon for the wrong reasons.a.They lost their jobs all of the parents of the children attending the instruct checked their kids out.b.People would see at them Even Martha went to check the mail mountain driving by would stare.c.Loved ones left them Karens future married man left herd.Lost any reason to live because no one loved them they only had each other as friends.e.e. All of this shows the immorality hoi polloi have towards someones sexual background and this needs to be stoppedf.II. There are also obvious examples of how society today is alter with unfair judgment towards lesbians and gays today. g.While people in the novel lose their jobs, people lose their jobs today as well because of their sexuality. h.P eople still stare at these people and often mock themi.This shows immorality and intolerance towards lesbians and needs to be stopped before the problem gets worse. j.Call to action Because of the evidence I have provided, it is very clear that something should be done. k.A. I feel that a very logical solution would be to have unions create stronger enforcement against discrimination towards people concerning their sexual background by not allowing this personal information given out to their employers. If this is done, then less people will lose their jobs because of an issue they cannot control.l.B. another(prenominal) logical solution would be to look at ourselves and see if we are hurting any of these people either directly or indirectly.

A Comparison of the American Dream in Death of a Salesman and A Raisin

The Value of a Dream in expiration of a Salesman and A Raisin in the Sun How does one value a dream? This question arises while reading both Arthur Millers last of a Salesman and Lorraine Hansberrys A Raisin in the Sun. Although the two novels are very different, the stories and characters share many likenesses. Death of a Salesman concerns a familys difficulty in dealing with unrealized dreams. A Raisin in the Sun focuses on a familys struggle to agree on a common dream. In each of these stories, there are conflicts between the dreams that each character is struggling to attain. In Death of a Salesman, glad and poke are uncertain of where they are in life, and only reach out for the simple, already-tangible things at hand. Biff I dont get along- what Im supposed to want, and Happy I dont know what the hell Im working for, means that they bothh looking at they havnt progressed. All they want to do is work with their hands, with their shirts off and their backs to the sun. N either Biff nor Happy have struggled to get to where they feel secure, otherwise they would not be admitting such things. And both have also dismissed the truth Biff saying Never mind. Just dont llay it all to me and Happy saying, Just dont lay it all at me feet. Happy also wants to believe that everything is alright Happy is fine, so long as he can incur himself believe that everyone around him is fine. Towards the end of the story, when Biff accuses everyone of lying, Happy exclaims, We always told the truth but in the beginning, he admitted to Biff, See, Biff, everybody around me is so false that Im constantly punishing my ideals. Willy Loman wants his dreams so badly that, in his ... ...o survive. The Youngers never left the house the house was the only place of action. It was the anchor, even though it wasnt a great one. They made it the pillar by their pride and faith. Willy Loman died with somewhat of a sense of honor and dignity. He knew he would make his family finall y and truly proud, and, most importantly, he knew that Biff love him, and he always had. There is no such thing as a wasted life, so long as there are dreams to fog up reality and, possibly, make them possible. Works Consulted Bloom, Harold. Twientieth-Century American Literature. New York Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. Draper, James P. Black Literature Criticisms. Detroit Gale Research Incorporated, 1992. Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. New York Signet, 1988. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. New York Viking, 1995.