Tuesday, August 6, 2019
The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia
The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia IS THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOODS SERVICE TAX (GST) IN MALAYSIA GOOD OR BAD? Chapter 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION. In the new global economy, more companies are operating cross border, and as such are faced with the need to deal effectively with many different taxes, often in many different countries, each with different rates, ruling and application. Coupled with this, the regulatory environment is increasingly challenging. The IMF has been trying to push for all countries to adopt the Goods Service Tax (GST), or also known in certain countries as Value Added Tax (VAT), so as to create a more level playing field amongst trading nations. Direct taxes have in the past been used to camouflage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"protectionism policy of certain countries. High tariff on certain product like motorcar has prevented healthy competition amongst trading nations. The general populations of that country are left without a choice but to consume the local products, as imported products have become more expensive with the high tariff. Often, because of this, the local products tend to be inferior in quality as the re is no real incentive to compete. In the 2005 Budget, the Government of Malaysia announced that GST will be implemented on Jan 1 2007 to replace the current sales and service tax (SST). Following public outcry, on 22 February 2006 it announced a deferment to allow lead time to businesses for potential changes in processes, development of software and personnel training. The first reading of the GST Bill was tabled in December 2009 and the second and third reading is expected in April 2010. The Prime Minister recently announced that the increase in revenue expected from the introduction of GST will be used mainly to finance the hike in Civil Servants salary and to finance other infrastructure works for the benefit of the nation at large. Problem Statement Is GST really needed for Malaysia? If so, how does it affect the general public and the country as a whole? The aim of this paper is to discuss and bring to attention the problems which we might face with the implementation of the GST, or if we are to remain status quo with the SST. Chapter 2 Literature review The Ministry of Finance presented the following information to highlight on GST. It stated that it would be part of the overall tax reform to overcome the inherent weaknesses in the SST and to reduce the reliance on revenue from direct taxes and petroleum. GST is a more efficient and effective tax system as it is self policing and has an in-build cross checking features. It enhances tax compliance and deals with less bureaucracy. It is also a more stable source of revenue compared to income tax and less susceptible to economic downturn due to the consumption nature of the tax. The main types of taxes are direct and indirect taxes. Direct taxes are: Corporate Tax, Personal Income Tax, Real Property Gains Tax and Stamp duty whilst indirect taxes are Tariff (or Customs Duty), Excise Tax, SST (currently practiced in Malaysia) and GST. Contribution from petroleum revenue to total revenue increased from 29.1% (1990) to 40.1% (2008). The current high petroleum revenue is not sustainable as it is a depleting resource therefore and alternative source have to be sought. With the present average birth rate of 2.2, it is expected that by 2030, 12% of the population will be above 60 years old which almost double the current number. The working population paying taxes will therefore reduce, putting a greater burden on a smaller group of people. GST is a broad-based tax that distributes the burden of taxation among a larger section of the population based on consumption. GST preserve the incentive to work and encourages enterprise as it is not a progressive income tax. The tax rate does not increase according to income level; it is flat at the determined rate. It is levied at the production and distribution stages, thereby incorporating a self-policing mechanism that facilitates administration and makes it more difficult to avoid or evade. This further reduces the possibility of revenue loss through understatement of tax evasion. The GST model implemented in Malaysia is not expected to have cascading, or pyramiding, effect as the tax on a particular good depends upon its final value, and not the number of production and distribution channel it passes through. Furthermore, the output tax to be paid will be offset against the input tax, and there is no GST levied over GST. GST is expected to provide a more stable source of revenue as consumption is less affected by economic cycles compared to income tax. It can be an effective tax on the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"shadow economy, as those involved would consume, and thus pay indirect taxes through GST. It is likely that those involved in such activities would buy luxury goods, which would be subjected to GST. The government is cutting its operating expenditure for 2010 by 13%. This shows it is aware of the growing deficit that has widened due to the stimulus package. Recently, Fitch rating agency has cut the rating of the ringgit, which may cause imported inflation if it depreciates, and the International Monetary Fund commented that the GST needs to be implemented urgently. Malaysias budget 2010 reports on GST; is that, it is currently at the final stage of completing the study on the implementation, where analysts are measuring the social impact of its presence in Malaysia. The Malaysian government said that it could be possible for them to implement this in the near future. Looking at Malaysia in a broader scale, GST will not only affect big businesses, but small and medium enterprises (SME) as well. Although there were nimble of past information saying that a food outlet can only charge GST if its annual turnover is above RM3 million (3,000,000 Ringgit Malaysia), the GST compliance requirements and thresholds has not been officially announced. If we were to take into account GSTs implementation into goods and services, we have to assume that it will happen to all stages of the supply chain; which means from the purchase of raw materials or start-up goods all the way to end-user (consumer ready) products available for sale. Ultimately in a product, GSTs charged to every level are passed on to the next person and ultimately, the consumer. A Tax Review Panel was formed in middle of 2005, and it has come out with a Discussion Paper intended for businesses to understand the basic administrative requirements and procedures when GST is implemented so that they know the impact of GST. Secondly, the Tax Review Panel invites the business community and other relevant organizations and associations to review the proposal in that paper. Thirdly, by having a public consultation, it provides an appropriate forum for both the public and private institutions to exchange views with members of the Tax Review Panel so as to understand the rationale behind the proposals initiated. The GST was supposed to be implemented in Malaysia in the year 2007; however the government has to defer the move due to critical reviews by certain quarters. After losing four States to the opposition, it has to tread on a careful path in order not to lose more public support. It cannot afford to make any more major mistake in the wake of its dismal performance in the last General Election. GST is generally known as a tax system which results in regressivity (i.e. people with less pay a greater share of their resources than those with more), in contrast with the ideal aim of progressivity which is generally sought when implementing a tax. It is sometimes argued that a GST system does not work in a poor region such as Africa, where most countries have heavy external debt burdens, malnutrition, civil wars and lack of food and medicines which often result in inhuman living conditions. Nevertheless, with the support of the IMF, VAT/GST systems were designed in many African countries to combat or at least alleviate the adverse effect of VAT/GST regressivity by having a list of exemptions and zero-ratings which apply (generally speaking) to basic foodstuffs and other basic necessities. GST is not always simple to administer, contrary to what the advocates of GST would want countries to believe during the transformation stage. Unless a proper GST administration, supported by modern technology and electronic communication systems can be implemented, GST administration will inevitably be costly for both the Revenue Authorities and the business sector. The output/input mechanism of the GST system, coupled with GST refunds, may provide the ideal opportunity for fraud where corrupt officials and unscrupulous businesses exploit weaknesses in the system. This again results in a defensive attitude from the Revenue Authorities, resulting in bad communication, cash flow and other GST cost. In 1992, a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed which reduced import tariffs between ASEAN member countries. In the first three years of the FTA, exports amongst the ASEAN countries grew from US$43 billion to US$80 billion. In 1997, the leaders of ASEAN adopted the vision to build a stable, prosperous and highly competitive economic region, in which there is a free flow of goods, services and investments, a freer flow of capital, equitable economic development and reduced poverty and socio-economic disparities. The plan is to remove all tariffs for the six more developed countries by 2010 and for all countries by 2015. The summit also progressed the efforts to integrate ASEAN with the much larger economies of Asia- Pacific, specifically China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and New Zealand. China signed a pact to introduce the worlds largest free trade zone by 2010, covering almost two billion people. Japan signed a similar agreement to take effect by 2012. India agreed to join in by 2011. Australia and New Zealand have agreed to talks starting next year to free up trade within a decade. The master plan is to have a free trade zone that can compete with the US and EU. In South East Asia, Malaysia remains one of the few countries yet to adopt the GST system, which would indirectly be in the way, if we want to be part of this master plan. In Malaysia, it was announced that essential goods and services will not be subjected to GST, but fears that GST will spark a chain reaction that will increase the prices of most non-controlled items should not be dismissed. We have seen numerous examples of when there is an increase in a certain commodity; it sparks a price rise in most goods and services. For example, when the petrol price increased to RM2.70, prices of most goods, foods and services were hiked. But after the petrol price dropped, there has not been a substantial correction in the prices of goods, food and services. The relevant ministries are powerless to mitigate the situation and curb the necessary inflation. A recent example is on the removal of the subsidy on white bread resulting in price increase of one loaf of bread by 20 to 30 cents. The Deputy Domestic Trade, Cooperative Consumer Affairs Minister can only comment that the price adjustment was not necessary, urge traders to practice corporate social responsibility and call on the consumers to execute their power in hand. All these statements will not effectively curb excessive profiteering and traders taking opportunity to increase the price of goods and service. The public would want to know how the government intends to avoid the similar predicament What is GST and how does it work? GST is a consumption tax charged on a wide range of domestic international products, goods and services. Its a broad-based tax imposed on every level of a product, from raw materials all the way to finished goods. The proposed implementation of GST will replace the current Malaysian service tax and sales tax. Broadly, GST works by offsetting GST paid on purchases (input tax) against GST due on sales or supplies made (output tax). This is referred to as the credit offset mechanism. The multi tier stages of tax helps to ensure that GST paid by businesses for purchases does not end up being a permanent cost. However, the consumer ultimately bears the burden of the tax. Conceptually, GST is imposed on the value added to goods or services by each separate processor in the production and distribution chain. This can be seen in the simple illustration below. GST to Government RM 4 + RM2 = RM6 (i.e. 4% x RM 100) i.e.4% x RM 150 = RM6 Output tax i.e. 4%x150 Less RM4 Input tax RM2 Net 4% is the assumed standard rate of GST. It is assumed that the entire output is taxable and all input taxes are creditable. FINAL CONSUMER Cost to consumer = RM 156 SUPPLIER Selling price = RM100 GST(4%) = RM 4 Total = RM 104 MANUFACTURER Cost = RM 100 Value added = RM 50 Total = RM 150 GST (4%) = RM 6 Total = RM 156 2.1 SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE INTRODUCTION OF GST. There were some concerns that Malaysians could suffer even more with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). GST-driven inflation would be a calamity that the struggling lower-income group could do without. The GST Bill was tabled in Parliament at the end of the Budget sitting that ended on 17 December 2009. At its first reading, the bill was just mentioned, but there was no explanation of the bill or any debate. The second reading is when the bill is open for debate and proposed amendments. This may come as early as March 2010 for the GST Bill. Once approved, the new tax can be implemented as early as 2011. The table below lists the governments tax revenue for 2008 which contributed RM112.9 billion or 70 per cent of total government revenue. Government Tax Revenue in 2008 Personal Income Tax            RM 15.0 bil Company Tax                        RM 37.7 bil Petroleum Tax                      RM 24.2 bil Export and import duties      RM  5.4 bil Excise duties                        RM 10.7 bil Sales and Services Tax        RM 11.7 bil As shown in the table, the biggest source of tax revenue is company tax, which at 26 per cent of declared profits, currently brings in RM37.7 billion into government coffers. Petroleum tax makes up the second biggest tax item while the tax levied on the 1.5 million individuals who are now currently paying personal income taxes in Malaysia makes up the third biggest. All these taxes are deemed progressive for they tax the richest individuals and the companies that are making profits. Progressive taxes do not burden the poorer sectors of society. Progressive taxes tend to equal out income differences between the rich and the poor in society. It was argued that regressive tax regimes, on the other hand, burden the poor. Sales taxes are generally regressive as they tax consumption and not income. But sales tax in Malaysia has different rates for different types of goods and the government can make them less regressive by levying sales taxes exclusively on good that are consumed by the richer sectors of society such as expensive cars, big houses, overseas travel, expensive restaurants and other luxury items. The Goods and Services Tax, however, is perceived to be even more regressive for it is levied at a flat rate on a very wide range of products including many items that the poorer people need to buy. It might lead to a rise in prices and would definitely hit the poorest the hardest. As in most countries with the GST in place, a reduction of corporate tax and personal tax will follow suit. This then, is seen as the real reason that the GST is being brought in à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" to make Malaysia more business friendlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? by cutting corporate tax (which has already been reduced markedly from the 40 per cent level in 1988 to its current 26 per cent). 2.2 LACK OF INFORMATION AND CONFUSION ON GST. The piecemeal release of information is creating great concern among the people and in the business sector. For example; Will the authorities furnish an extensive list of item that will be charged GST, and what will be exempted? If a product, like rice or chicken is exempted, does the exemption apply across the board regardless of the form of the product? For example, is cooked rice or cut, frozen or marinated chicken also exempted? What is the difference between exempt and zero-rated GST? Will there be any reduction in personal and corporate tax? What changes will be made to the sales and service tax? There is a perception that as GST is a multistage tax, it would result in higher effective tax rate than 4%. As GST is very technical, most people are unaware how it will impact them. When will the GST rate be reviewed? Recent media statement on its impact did not improve opinion on the introduction of GST. It is reported that under the sales and services tax system, the burden on the poor is 2.38%, but under the GST it will be 2.17%. For the higher income group, the tax burden will be reduced from 13% to 2.74%, according to the Finance Ministry. The overall savings for households will be between RM14.52 and RM346.92 yearly. This clearly contradicts other statement from politicians, and the public perception, that the GST will be inflationary. But as no further details are provided on how the savings are arrived at, public sentiment remains negative on GST. CHAPTER 3 EXPECTED IMPACT OF GST 3.1 Impact on the people in the street. The public is generally concerned that the introduction of GST will hit their wallets directly. In an initial assessment, as the GST is expected to be lower than service tax, the bill for a restaurant meal will be 1% lower as the service tax rate is 5% and GST is 4%. For other services liable to service tax, a GST rate lower than service tax should result in a slight decrease in charges if the cost of the other components in providing the service remain the same. On goods that attract sales tax, the current rate seems higher than the proposed GST, hence there might be a reduction if there is no further adjustment. Current rates are as follows; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fruits, certain foodstuff and building materials (5%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ General goods, including motor vehicle (10%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Liquor and alcoholic drinks (20%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cigarette and cheroots (25%) For hawkers; even though they do not have a turnover of RM500,000 yearly, so are not required collect GST, the material procured, for example, noodles, fish balls, processed meat, chicken, equipments for the stall may be subjected to GST, resulting in price hike. But without detailed knowledge or mapping, or even information on the duties charged, the people are uncertain whether the prices of goods and services will remain stagnant, increase or decrease. 3.2 IMPACT ON BUSINESSES. The implementation of GST is expected to impact business in the following manner: Compliance costs are expected to be incurred as there is requirement to track the input tax and output tax to determine refund or tax to be submitted. Even though some Malaysian companies are already paying sales tax or service tax, there was no input tax to be monitored and accounted for to offset against output tax. Business process and procurement need to be mapped out, especially with respect to suppliers and promotional items. For example, a new car attract GST, but items provided for free during promotion like sports rims or a GPS system à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" may not be eligible for an input tax claim. Likewise the corporate souvenirs and hampers given out by businesses may not be eligible. The procurement department should start detailing the sales tax or the existing tax paid for their items used a raw material. As the GST is expected to be lower than most current indirect tax, there should be some potential cost savings. This is also to avoid being overcharged by supplier that intends to add the GST over the existing price of its supplies after sales tax, there should be some potential cost saving. Human resource factor: New staff may need to be employed to ensure a business is compliant and conversant with the GST requirement. As most staff have not been exposed to GST, training needs to be conducted. Accounting system and account payable: The business would require an appropriate accounting system to keep track of the GST amounts. Most systems could be upgraded, and it is important to notify software vendors to test run the data to avoid any potential complication. Cash flow management: Businesses should be aware that output GST may have to be settled before settlement of sales invoices by customer. Meanwhile, payables on which input tax has been claimed but remains unpaid after six months have to be accounted as output tax and are to be reclaimed as input tax only after payment is made. Businesses are concerned about the timeliness of the refund process as delays would results in a higher working capital cost. In addition, businesses that have thin margins are worried about the speed of the refund for input tax, especially if the business is mainly exported-oriented and procure its raw material locally. 3.3 OTHER IMPACTS: The expected impact on corporate and income taxes are as published in the news recently. Deputy Finance Minister Chor Chee Heung quoted that Malaysia will see a gradual reduction in its corporate and income tax rates once the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) is in place by mid-2011. He does not think that there was a timeline for achieving this reduction in corporate and income taxes, as this is a long-term objective of the government. Once the GST come into play, it will be a broad based tax and the trend is, once GST is implemented, corporate and income taxes will gradually be reduced. Chor also disclosed that businesses related to services such as those in the food and transportation sectors, would be exempted from the proposed GST. He gave assurance that the cost of living and lifestyle of the people would not increase or be affected with the implementation of a GST. He also added that the implementation of GST would not cause inflation. Once the GST is in, the service tax and sales tax (now imposed) would be abolished. Both taxes are quite high at 10 per cent and five per cent respectively. The GST at four per cent is considered very low. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministrys Tax Review Panel Chairman, Ms. Kamariah Hussain, said there would be revenue gains of about 1.0 Billion Ringgit for the government with the GST implementation. She explained that the introduction of the GST was part of an overall tax reform in the country. With the GST, the government would have a better mix of revenue, and not be too dependent on income tax and petroleum income. Second Finance Minister, Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah had indicated that while the GST would replace the existing sales and services taxes, it would not put pressure on prices and to ease the burden of consumers, staple foods such as rice, sugar, cooking oil and flour would be exempted from it. 3.3.1 IMPACT OF GST ON SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME). SMEs form the backbone of the business activities of a nation. Other than encouraging the growth of new industries such as tourism and biotechnology-based industries, the Government (2004 Budget Proposals) too has singled out SMEs to spearhead domestic growth. However, there is a group of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"unhappy people representing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the public who have expressed their non-approval for the introduction of the proposed GST. Their main argument is that GST favours the rich and burdens the poor at large. Their contention is that it will burden the people and contribute to the widening gap between the rich and the poor, not to mention the rise in the inflation rateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. However, tax practitioner, Beh Tok Koay is of the opinion that perhaps this small group lacks an understanding of the whole system of GST. It is supposed to be broadbased and will replace the service and sales tax system, and this in turn will help to reduce income tax ratesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. There could be two GST rates: a lower rate for SMEs and a higher rate for large enterprises. Imposing two GST rates is, however, difficult to administer as they provide ample room for tax avoidance and increase compliance cost. Lowering the compliance cost of GST would ease the burden of SMEs. If there is convincing data to show that the compliance cost of SMEs are lower if the accounts are computerized, then the Government could provide software packages to the licensees to enable them to correctly compute GST. Free training and seminars including visits should be extended to SMEs to enable them to have a better understanding of the compliance requirements. One other option is to exempt small busine sses from GST altogether but such a decision too has its drawbacks. The Government has to analyze the revenue gain as compared to the compliance cost before making a decision to determine the threshold limit. With the two-year window period before GST is in force, all of us have a role to play in contributing towards the development of a better broad-based consumption tax system which ultimately would help reduce the rates of income tax. No doubt, everyone especially the SMEs will eagerly await the final introduction of the GST system and the extent of the expected income tax rate cuts. The business community, NGO and charity organization are concerned about the ability of the authorities to implement GST smoothly. Australia, for example, had to bring in foreign experts to help in rollout of GST. It would undermine investor confidence if the GST is not implemented in a structured manner with minimal hiccup. Burdening the poor and those economically vulnerable: Some 32% of the household in Malaysia have an income under RM2,000 per month. The introduction of GST without the necessary revamp of subsidies will result in a heavier financial burden on poor and low-income families. Families with an income below RM2,000 a month do not have to pay personal income tax. With GST, things that are not basic necessities toys, processed food, can food, packet drinks, and so on, could increase existing inflationary pressures. The ongoing restructuring of the subsidy will also create the tension, discomfort and dissatisfaction as people eligible for subsidy could unintentionally be left out as the government establishes and tries to refine its method of distribution. CHAPTER 4 4.0 CONCLUSION GST is unavoidable. It will just be a matter of time when it will be implemented. It may not be a perfect system, but has worked well as a revenue base for other countries. Malaysias problem may lie more in public education, implementation and enforcement. To move forward, Malaysia has to conform to the free trade vision of ASEAN and cannot lag behind the other countries. As of today, apart from Malaysia, only Myanmar and Brunei has yet to implement the GST. GST modernises the tax system by addressing tax evasion committed by free riders who want every benefit but refuse to pay for it, or rather have others to pay for them. GST will certainly be a good platform to increase the Governments revenue. Concerns of it being regressive can be overcome by careful and prudent classifications of zero rated supplies and exempt supplies for essential items as against standard supplies for non essential and luxury items. One good point of starting late is the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. The government has to be fully transparent in the implementation of the proposed GST. In this borderless world, news and knowledge cannot be curbed. The masses are getting more intelligent and informed. It will not be prudent for the government of the day not to move forward towards a more modern tax system. Rather than blind opposition, critics should provide examples and lessons learnt from the weaknesses of other nations in the implementation of GST or VAT. However, based from past experience, the skeptism voiced is understandable. We have heard of past Auditor General Reports on the wastage and the leakage of public funds into the pockets of the well connected; of RM 25 screw drivers being bought through tender at a price of RM200; commissions running into millions of ringgit for the purchase of Sukhov jets and submarines; and billions swallowed in the PKFZ scandal. The sums involved are astronomical. Then we have newly built hospitals that cannot be used, court room complexes with leaked ceilings and stadium roofs that collapsed in the absence of even a small earthquake. So, whether the GST will finally proved to be good or bad for the country will remain a question mark until its actual implementation. The actual salary increase as promised by the government might not be the expected pot of gold at the end of the rainbow if the GST is not properly implemented. The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia IS THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOODS SERVICE TAX (GST) IN MALAYSIA GOOD OR BAD? Chapter 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION. In the new global economy, more companies are operating cross border, and as such are faced with the need to deal effectively with many different taxes, often in many different countries, each with different rates, ruling and application. Coupled with this, the regulatory environment is increasingly challenging. The IMF has been trying to push for all countries to adopt the Goods Service Tax (GST), or also known in certain countries as Value Added Tax (VAT), so as to create a more level playing field amongst trading nations. Direct taxes have in the past been used to camouflage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"protectionism policy of certain countries. High tariff on certain product like motorcar has prevented healthy competition amongst trading nations. The general populations of that country are left without a choice but to consume the local products, as imported products have become more expensive with the high tariff. Often, because of this, the local products tend to be inferior in quality as the re is no real incentive to compete. In the 2005 Budget, the Government of Malaysia announced that GST will be implemented on Jan 1 2007 to replace the current sales and service tax (SST). Following public outcry, on 22 February 2006 it announced a deferment to allow lead time to businesses for potential changes in processes, development of software and personnel training. The first reading of the GST Bill was tabled in December 2009 and the second and third reading is expected in April 2010. The Prime Minister recently announced that the increase in revenue expected from the introduction of GST will be used mainly to finance the hike in Civil Servants salary and to finance other infrastructure works for the benefit of the nation at large. Problem Statement Is GST really needed for Malaysia? If so, how does it affect the general public and the country as a whole? The aim of this paper is to discuss and bring to attention the problems which we might face with the implementation of the GST, or if we are to remain status quo with the SST. Chapter 2 Literature review The Ministry of Finance presented the following information to highlight on GST. It stated that it would be part of the overall tax reform to overcome the inherent weaknesses in the SST and to reduce the reliance on revenue from direct taxes and petroleum. GST is a more efficient and effective tax system as it is self policing and has an in-build cross checking features. It enhances tax compliance and deals with less bureaucracy. It is also a more stable source of revenue compared to income tax and less susceptible to economic downturn due to the consumption nature of the tax. The main types of taxes are direct and indirect taxes. Direct taxes are: Corporate Tax, Personal Income Tax, Real Property Gains Tax and Stamp duty whilst indirect taxes are Tariff (or Customs Duty), Excise Tax, SST (currently practiced in Malaysia) and GST. Contribution from petroleum revenue to total revenue increased from 29.1% (1990) to 40.1% (2008). The current high petroleum revenue is not sustainable as it is a depleting resource therefore and alternative source have to be sought. With the present average birth rate of 2.2, it is expected that by 2030, 12% of the population will be above 60 years old which almost double the current number. The working population paying taxes will therefore reduce, putting a greater burden on a smaller group of people. GST is a broad-based tax that distributes the burden of taxation among a larger section of the population based on consumption. GST preserve the incentive to work and encourages enterprise as it is not a progressive income tax. The tax rate does not increase according to income level; it is flat at the determined rate. It is levied at the production and distribution stages, thereby incorporating a self-policing mechanism that facilitates administration and makes it more difficult to avoid or evade. This further reduces the possibility of revenue loss through understatement of tax evasion. The GST model implemented in Malaysia is not expected to have cascading, or pyramiding, effect as the tax on a particular good depends upon its final value, and not the number of production and distribution channel it passes through. Furthermore, the output tax to be paid will be offset against the input tax, and there is no GST levied over GST. GST is expected to provide a more stable source of revenue as consumption is less affected by economic cycles compared to income tax. It can be an effective tax on the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"shadow economy, as those involved would consume, and thus pay indirect taxes through GST. It is likely that those involved in such activities would buy luxury goods, which would be subjected to GST. The government is cutting its operating expenditure for 2010 by 13%. This shows it is aware of the growing deficit that has widened due to the stimulus package. Recently, Fitch rating agency has cut the rating of the ringgit, which may cause imported inflation if it depreciates, and the International Monetary Fund commented that the GST needs to be implemented urgently. Malaysias budget 2010 reports on GST; is that, it is currently at the final stage of completing the study on the implementation, where analysts are measuring the social impact of its presence in Malaysia. The Malaysian government said that it could be possible for them to implement this in the near future. Looking at Malaysia in a broader scale, GST will not only affect big businesses, but small and medium enterprises (SME) as well. Although there were nimble of past information saying that a food outlet can only charge GST if its annual turnover is above RM3 million (3,000,000 Ringgit Malaysia), the GST compliance requirements and thresholds has not been officially announced. If we were to take into account GSTs implementation into goods and services, we have to assume that it will happen to all stages of the supply chain; which means from the purchase of raw materials or start-up goods all the way to end-user (consumer ready) products available for sale. Ultimately in a product, GSTs charged to every level are passed on to the next person and ultimately, the consumer. A Tax Review Panel was formed in middle of 2005, and it has come out with a Discussion Paper intended for businesses to understand the basic administrative requirements and procedures when GST is implemented so that they know the impact of GST. Secondly, the Tax Review Panel invites the business community and other relevant organizations and associations to review the proposal in that paper. Thirdly, by having a public consultation, it provides an appropriate forum for both the public and private institutions to exchange views with members of the Tax Review Panel so as to understand the rationale behind the proposals initiated. The GST was supposed to be implemented in Malaysia in the year 2007; however the government has to defer the move due to critical reviews by certain quarters. After losing four States to the opposition, it has to tread on a careful path in order not to lose more public support. It cannot afford to make any more major mistake in the wake of its dismal performance in the last General Election. GST is generally known as a tax system which results in regressivity (i.e. people with less pay a greater share of their resources than those with more), in contrast with the ideal aim of progressivity which is generally sought when implementing a tax. It is sometimes argued that a GST system does not work in a poor region such as Africa, where most countries have heavy external debt burdens, malnutrition, civil wars and lack of food and medicines which often result in inhuman living conditions. Nevertheless, with the support of the IMF, VAT/GST systems were designed in many African countries to combat or at least alleviate the adverse effect of VAT/GST regressivity by having a list of exemptions and zero-ratings which apply (generally speaking) to basic foodstuffs and other basic necessities. GST is not always simple to administer, contrary to what the advocates of GST would want countries to believe during the transformation stage. Unless a proper GST administration, supported by modern technology and electronic communication systems can be implemented, GST administration will inevitably be costly for both the Revenue Authorities and the business sector. The output/input mechanism of the GST system, coupled with GST refunds, may provide the ideal opportunity for fraud where corrupt officials and unscrupulous businesses exploit weaknesses in the system. This again results in a defensive attitude from the Revenue Authorities, resulting in bad communication, cash flow and other GST cost. In 1992, a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed which reduced import tariffs between ASEAN member countries. In the first three years of the FTA, exports amongst the ASEAN countries grew from US$43 billion to US$80 billion. In 1997, the leaders of ASEAN adopted the vision to build a stable, prosperous and highly competitive economic region, in which there is a free flow of goods, services and investments, a freer flow of capital, equitable economic development and reduced poverty and socio-economic disparities. The plan is to remove all tariffs for the six more developed countries by 2010 and for all countries by 2015. The summit also progressed the efforts to integrate ASEAN with the much larger economies of Asia- Pacific, specifically China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and New Zealand. China signed a pact to introduce the worlds largest free trade zone by 2010, covering almost two billion people. Japan signed a similar agreement to take effect by 2012. India agreed to join in by 2011. Australia and New Zealand have agreed to talks starting next year to free up trade within a decade. The master plan is to have a free trade zone that can compete with the US and EU. In South East Asia, Malaysia remains one of the few countries yet to adopt the GST system, which would indirectly be in the way, if we want to be part of this master plan. In Malaysia, it was announced that essential goods and services will not be subjected to GST, but fears that GST will spark a chain reaction that will increase the prices of most non-controlled items should not be dismissed. We have seen numerous examples of when there is an increase in a certain commodity; it sparks a price rise in most goods and services. For example, when the petrol price increased to RM2.70, prices of most goods, foods and services were hiked. But after the petrol price dropped, there has not been a substantial correction in the prices of goods, food and services. The relevant ministries are powerless to mitigate the situation and curb the necessary inflation. A recent example is on the removal of the subsidy on white bread resulting in price increase of one loaf of bread by 20 to 30 cents. The Deputy Domestic Trade, Cooperative Consumer Affairs Minister can only comment that the price adjustment was not necessary, urge traders to practice corporate social responsibility and call on the consumers to execute their power in hand. All these statements will not effectively curb excessive profiteering and traders taking opportunity to increase the price of goods and service. The public would want to know how the government intends to avoid the similar predicament What is GST and how does it work? GST is a consumption tax charged on a wide range of domestic international products, goods and services. Its a broad-based tax imposed on every level of a product, from raw materials all the way to finished goods. The proposed implementation of GST will replace the current Malaysian service tax and sales tax. Broadly, GST works by offsetting GST paid on purchases (input tax) against GST due on sales or supplies made (output tax). This is referred to as the credit offset mechanism. The multi tier stages of tax helps to ensure that GST paid by businesses for purchases does not end up being a permanent cost. However, the consumer ultimately bears the burden of the tax. Conceptually, GST is imposed on the value added to goods or services by each separate processor in the production and distribution chain. This can be seen in the simple illustration below. GST to Government RM 4 + RM2 = RM6 (i.e. 4% x RM 100) i.e.4% x RM 150 = RM6 Output tax i.e. 4%x150 Less RM4 Input tax RM2 Net 4% is the assumed standard rate of GST. It is assumed that the entire output is taxable and all input taxes are creditable. FINAL CONSUMER Cost to consumer = RM 156 SUPPLIER Selling price = RM100 GST(4%) = RM 4 Total = RM 104 MANUFACTURER Cost = RM 100 Value added = RM 50 Total = RM 150 GST (4%) = RM 6 Total = RM 156 2.1 SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE INTRODUCTION OF GST. There were some concerns that Malaysians could suffer even more with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). GST-driven inflation would be a calamity that the struggling lower-income group could do without. The GST Bill was tabled in Parliament at the end of the Budget sitting that ended on 17 December 2009. At its first reading, the bill was just mentioned, but there was no explanation of the bill or any debate. The second reading is when the bill is open for debate and proposed amendments. This may come as early as March 2010 for the GST Bill. Once approved, the new tax can be implemented as early as 2011. The table below lists the governments tax revenue for 2008 which contributed RM112.9 billion or 70 per cent of total government revenue. Government Tax Revenue in 2008 Personal Income Tax            RM 15.0 bil Company Tax                        RM 37.7 bil Petroleum Tax                      RM 24.2 bil Export and import duties      RM  5.4 bil Excise duties                        RM 10.7 bil Sales and Services Tax        RM 11.7 bil As shown in the table, the biggest source of tax revenue is company tax, which at 26 per cent of declared profits, currently brings in RM37.7 billion into government coffers. Petroleum tax makes up the second biggest tax item while the tax levied on the 1.5 million individuals who are now currently paying personal income taxes in Malaysia makes up the third biggest. All these taxes are deemed progressive for they tax the richest individuals and the companies that are making profits. Progressive taxes do not burden the poorer sectors of society. Progressive taxes tend to equal out income differences between the rich and the poor in society. It was argued that regressive tax regimes, on the other hand, burden the poor. Sales taxes are generally regressive as they tax consumption and not income. But sales tax in Malaysia has different rates for different types of goods and the government can make them less regressive by levying sales taxes exclusively on good that are consumed by the richer sectors of society such as expensive cars, big houses, overseas travel, expensive restaurants and other luxury items. The Goods and Services Tax, however, is perceived to be even more regressive for it is levied at a flat rate on a very wide range of products including many items that the poorer people need to buy. It might lead to a rise in prices and would definitely hit the poorest the hardest. As in most countries with the GST in place, a reduction of corporate tax and personal tax will follow suit. This then, is seen as the real reason that the GST is being brought in à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" to make Malaysia more business friendlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? by cutting corporate tax (which has already been reduced markedly from the 40 per cent level in 1988 to its current 26 per cent). 2.2 LACK OF INFORMATION AND CONFUSION ON GST. The piecemeal release of information is creating great concern among the people and in the business sector. For example; Will the authorities furnish an extensive list of item that will be charged GST, and what will be exempted? If a product, like rice or chicken is exempted, does the exemption apply across the board regardless of the form of the product? For example, is cooked rice or cut, frozen or marinated chicken also exempted? What is the difference between exempt and zero-rated GST? Will there be any reduction in personal and corporate tax? What changes will be made to the sales and service tax? There is a perception that as GST is a multistage tax, it would result in higher effective tax rate than 4%. As GST is very technical, most people are unaware how it will impact them. When will the GST rate be reviewed? Recent media statement on its impact did not improve opinion on the introduction of GST. It is reported that under the sales and services tax system, the burden on the poor is 2.38%, but under the GST it will be 2.17%. For the higher income group, the tax burden will be reduced from 13% to 2.74%, according to the Finance Ministry. The overall savings for households will be between RM14.52 and RM346.92 yearly. This clearly contradicts other statement from politicians, and the public perception, that the GST will be inflationary. But as no further details are provided on how the savings are arrived at, public sentiment remains negative on GST. CHAPTER 3 EXPECTED IMPACT OF GST 3.1 Impact on the people in the street. The public is generally concerned that the introduction of GST will hit their wallets directly. In an initial assessment, as the GST is expected to be lower than service tax, the bill for a restaurant meal will be 1% lower as the service tax rate is 5% and GST is 4%. For other services liable to service tax, a GST rate lower than service tax should result in a slight decrease in charges if the cost of the other components in providing the service remain the same. On goods that attract sales tax, the current rate seems higher than the proposed GST, hence there might be a reduction if there is no further adjustment. Current rates are as follows; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fruits, certain foodstuff and building materials (5%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ General goods, including motor vehicle (10%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Liquor and alcoholic drinks (20%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cigarette and cheroots (25%) For hawkers; even though they do not have a turnover of RM500,000 yearly, so are not required collect GST, the material procured, for example, noodles, fish balls, processed meat, chicken, equipments for the stall may be subjected to GST, resulting in price hike. But without detailed knowledge or mapping, or even information on the duties charged, the people are uncertain whether the prices of goods and services will remain stagnant, increase or decrease. 3.2 IMPACT ON BUSINESSES. The implementation of GST is expected to impact business in the following manner: Compliance costs are expected to be incurred as there is requirement to track the input tax and output tax to determine refund or tax to be submitted. Even though some Malaysian companies are already paying sales tax or service tax, there was no input tax to be monitored and accounted for to offset against output tax. Business process and procurement need to be mapped out, especially with respect to suppliers and promotional items. For example, a new car attract GST, but items provided for free during promotion like sports rims or a GPS system à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" may not be eligible for an input tax claim. Likewise the corporate souvenirs and hampers given out by businesses may not be eligible. The procurement department should start detailing the sales tax or the existing tax paid for their items used a raw material. As the GST is expected to be lower than most current indirect tax, there should be some potential cost savings. This is also to avoid being overcharged by supplier that intends to add the GST over the existing price of its supplies after sales tax, there should be some potential cost saving. Human resource factor: New staff may need to be employed to ensure a business is compliant and conversant with the GST requirement. As most staff have not been exposed to GST, training needs to be conducted. Accounting system and account payable: The business would require an appropriate accounting system to keep track of the GST amounts. Most systems could be upgraded, and it is important to notify software vendors to test run the data to avoid any potential complication. Cash flow management: Businesses should be aware that output GST may have to be settled before settlement of sales invoices by customer. Meanwhile, payables on which input tax has been claimed but remains unpaid after six months have to be accounted as output tax and are to be reclaimed as input tax only after payment is made. Businesses are concerned about the timeliness of the refund process as delays would results in a higher working capital cost. In addition, businesses that have thin margins are worried about the speed of the refund for input tax, especially if the business is mainly exported-oriented and procure its raw material locally. 3.3 OTHER IMPACTS: The expected impact on corporate and income taxes are as published in the news recently. Deputy Finance Minister Chor Chee Heung quoted that Malaysia will see a gradual reduction in its corporate and income tax rates once the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) is in place by mid-2011. He does not think that there was a timeline for achieving this reduction in corporate and income taxes, as this is a long-term objective of the government. Once the GST come into play, it will be a broad based tax and the trend is, once GST is implemented, corporate and income taxes will gradually be reduced. Chor also disclosed that businesses related to services such as those in the food and transportation sectors, would be exempted from the proposed GST. He gave assurance that the cost of living and lifestyle of the people would not increase or be affected with the implementation of a GST. He also added that the implementation of GST would not cause inflation. Once the GST is in, the service tax and sales tax (now imposed) would be abolished. Both taxes are quite high at 10 per cent and five per cent respectively. The GST at four per cent is considered very low. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministrys Tax Review Panel Chairman, Ms. Kamariah Hussain, said there would be revenue gains of about 1.0 Billion Ringgit for the government with the GST implementation. She explained that the introduction of the GST was part of an overall tax reform in the country. With the GST, the government would have a better mix of revenue, and not be too dependent on income tax and petroleum income. Second Finance Minister, Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah had indicated that while the GST would replace the existing sales and services taxes, it would not put pressure on prices and to ease the burden of consumers, staple foods such as rice, sugar, cooking oil and flour would be exempted from it. 3.3.1 IMPACT OF GST ON SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME). SMEs form the backbone of the business activities of a nation. Other than encouraging the growth of new industries such as tourism and biotechnology-based industries, the Government (2004 Budget Proposals) too has singled out SMEs to spearhead domestic growth. However, there is a group of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"unhappy people representing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the public who have expressed their non-approval for the introduction of the proposed GST. Their main argument is that GST favours the rich and burdens the poor at large. Their contention is that it will burden the people and contribute to the widening gap between the rich and the poor, not to mention the rise in the inflation rateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. However, tax practitioner, Beh Tok Koay is of the opinion that perhaps this small group lacks an understanding of the whole system of GST. It is supposed to be broadbased and will replace the service and sales tax system, and this in turn will help to reduce income tax ratesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. There could be two GST rates: a lower rate for SMEs and a higher rate for large enterprises. Imposing two GST rates is, however, difficult to administer as they provide ample room for tax avoidance and increase compliance cost. Lowering the compliance cost of GST would ease the burden of SMEs. If there is convincing data to show that the compliance cost of SMEs are lower if the accounts are computerized, then the Government could provide software packages to the licensees to enable them to correctly compute GST. Free training and seminars including visits should be extended to SMEs to enable them to have a better understanding of the compliance requirements. One other option is to exempt small busine sses from GST altogether but such a decision too has its drawbacks. The Government has to analyze the revenue gain as compared to the compliance cost before making a decision to determine the threshold limit. With the two-year window period before GST is in force, all of us have a role to play in contributing towards the development of a better broad-based consumption tax system which ultimately would help reduce the rates of income tax. No doubt, everyone especially the SMEs will eagerly await the final introduction of the GST system and the extent of the expected income tax rate cuts. The business community, NGO and charity organization are concerned about the ability of the authorities to implement GST smoothly. Australia, for example, had to bring in foreign experts to help in rollout of GST. It would undermine investor confidence if the GST is not implemented in a structured manner with minimal hiccup. Burdening the poor and those economically vulnerable: Some 32% of the household in Malaysia have an income under RM2,000 per month. The introduction of GST without the necessary revamp of subsidies will result in a heavier financial burden on poor and low-income families. Families with an income below RM2,000 a month do not have to pay personal income tax. With GST, things that are not basic necessities toys, processed food, can food, packet drinks, and so on, could increase existing inflationary pressures. The ongoing restructuring of the subsidy will also create the tension, discomfort and dissatisfaction as people eligible for subsidy could unintentionally be left out as the government establishes and tries to refine its method of distribution. CHAPTER 4 4.0 CONCLUSION GST is unavoidable. It will just be a matter of time when it will be implemented. It may not be a perfect system, but has worked well as a revenue base for other countries. Malaysias problem may lie more in public education, implementation and enforcement. To move forward, Malaysia has to conform to the free trade vision of ASEAN and cannot lag behind the other countries. As of today, apart from Malaysia, only Myanmar and Brunei has yet to implement the GST. GST modernises the tax system by addressing tax evasion committed by free riders who want every benefit but refuse to pay for it, or rather have others to pay for them. GST will certainly be a good platform to increase the Governments revenue. Concerns of it being regressive can be overcome by careful and prudent classifications of zero rated supplies and exempt supplies for essential items as against standard supplies for non essential and luxury items. One good point of starting late is the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. The government has to be fully transparent in the implementation of the proposed GST. In this borderless world, news and knowledge cannot be curbed. The masses are getting more intelligent and informed. It will not be prudent for the government of the day not to move forward towards a more modern tax system. Rather than blind opposition, critics should provide examples and lessons learnt from the weaknesses of other nations in the implementation of GST or VAT. However, based from past experience, the skeptism voiced is understandable. We have heard of past Auditor General Reports on the wastage and the leakage of public funds into the pockets of the well connected; of RM 25 screw drivers being bought through tender at a price of RM200; commissions running into millions of ringgit for the purchase of Sukhov jets and submarines; and billions swallowed in the PKFZ scandal. The sums involved are astronomical. Then we have newly built hospitals that cannot be used, court room complexes with leaked ceilings and stadium roofs that collapsed in the absence of even a small earthquake. So, whether the GST will finally proved to be good or bad for the country will remain a question mark until its actual implementation. The actual salary increase as promised by the government might not be the expected pot of gold at the end of the rainbow if the GST is not properly implemented.
Monday, August 5, 2019
The System Level And The Programmer Level Information Technology Essay
The System Level And The Programmer Level Information Technology Essay Probably not, since any protection scheme devised by a human can also be broken and the more complex the scheme is, the more difficult it is to be confident of its correct implementation. As compared to dedicated machines, time-shared machines are far less secure, and are very easy to overload the buffers. They are also much slower to catch a virus. But in dedicated machine, all resources are available to the process being run. Q2) Under what circumstances would a user be better off using a time sharing system rather than a PC or single user workstation? Ans . When there are few other users, the task is large, and the hardware is fast, time-sharing makes sense. The full power of the system can be brought to bear on the users problem. The problem can be solved faster than on a personal computer. Another case occurs when lots of other users need resources at the same time. A personal computer is best when the job is small enough to be executed reasonably on it and when performance is sufficient to execute the program to the users satisfaction. Q3) In the designing of the operating system there are two approaches modular kernel and layered approach? How are they different? Ans. There are various differences between moduler kernel and layered approach:- A modular kernel differs from a layered approach in that there is less overhead in making a call to a lower level part of the kernel. The call doesnt have to jump through numerous layers before work gets done and parts are aware of any other parts of the kernel and not just what is below them. Modular kernel is more secure as compared to layered approach, as more operations are done in user mode than in kernel mode. Debugging and modification of data is much easier in layered approach because changes affect only limited sections of the system rather than touching all sections of the system. In modular kernel approach, kernel design and its functionality are more simple as compared to layered approach. Part B Q4) There is guest operating system and a host operating system like VMware? List all the factors in choosing the host operating system? Ans. A host operating system is the operating system that is in direct communication with the hardware. It has direct hardware access to kernel mode and all of the devices on the physical machine. The guest operating system runs on top of a virtualization layer and all of the physical devices are virtualized. A host operating system should be as modular and thin as possible to allow the virtualization of the hardware to be as close to the physical hardware as possible, and so that dependencies that exist in the host operating dont restrict operation in the guest operating system. Q5) The kernel is responsible for a action with the processes. Search through the action of kernel and describe what is the action? Ans. The various actions of the kernel are as follows: The main task of a kernel is to allow the execution of applications and support them with features such as hardware abstractions. To run an application, a kernel typically sets up an address space for the application, loads the file containing the applications code into memory, sets up a stack for the program and branches to a given location inside the program, thus starting its execution. The kernel uses scheduling algorithms to determine which process is running next and how much time it will be given. The algorithm chosen may allow for some processes to have higher priority than others. To perform useful functions, processes need access to the peripherals connected to the computer, which are controlled by the kernel through device drivers. If sometimes the interrupt has been occurred during execution of any process then it saves the state(address) of current process, and after that when interrupt has been removed then it restores the state(address) of previous process. Q6) Considering both the system level and the programmer level. Consider the advantage and disadvantage of the following structure. Synchronous and asynchronous communication. Automatic and explicit buffering. Send by copy and send by reference Fixed-sized and variable-sized message. Ans: Synchronous and asynchronous communication- synchronous communication: Advantage:  you can get an immediate response; instant feedback fosters communication; there seems to be a more emotional bonding effect between people when there is a possiblity to communicate in real time (synchronously), spontaneity. Disadvantage: There is less time to think about what you want to say or your response to another; time may be a limiting factor, e.g time zones; synchronous communication over the computer may be difficult because of the speed of data transaction with slower connections; you need extra equipment (speakers, microphone, webcamera). asynchronous communication: Advantage: you have time to think about what you want to say; time is not a constraint. You can receive the message whenever you have time and you can analyze the content of the message more carefully so the answer you give can be even more meaningful because it has gone through a process of elaboration. Disadvantage: no immediate response, especially where time is significant; you may not know if the other person has received your message; the message loses human contact . Automatic and explicit buffering Automatic buffering : Advantage: Automatic buffering provides a queue with inde ¬Ã‚ nite length ; thus ensuring the sender will never have to block while waiting to copy a message. Disadvantage: There are no specifications how automatic buffering will be provided; one scheme may reserve sufficiently large memory where much of the memory is wasted. Explicit buffering: Advantage: Explicit buffering speci ¬Ã‚ es how large the bufferis. Disadvantage: In this situation, the sender may be blocked while waiting for available space in the queue. However, it is less likely memory will be wasted with explicit buffering. Send by copy and send by reference Send by copy: Advantage: send by copy is better for synchronization issues. Disadvantage: Send by copy does not allow the receiver to alter the state of parameter. send by reference: Advantage: A bene ¬Ã‚ t of send by reference is that it allows the programmer to write a distributed version of a centralized application Javas RMI provides both, however passing a parameter by reference requires declaring the parameter as a remote object as well. Send by reference also allow the receiver to alter the state of parameter. Disadvantage: send by reference can compromise the security of an organisation because sensitive information can be easily distributed accidently or deliberately. Fixed-sized and variable-sized messages Fixed-sized messages: Advantage: The implications of this are mostly related to buffering issues; with  ¬Ã‚ xed-size messages, a buffer with a speci ¬Ã‚ c size can hold a known number of messages. Disadvantage: with  ¬Ã‚ xed-sized messages the messages are copied from the address space of the sender to the address space of the receiving process. Variable-sized messages: Advantage: variable-sized messages (i.e. Larger messages) use shared memory to pass the message. Disadvantage: The number of variable-sized messages that can be held by such a buffer is unknown.
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Rohypnol :: essays research papers
In the 1950s it was commonly know as slipping someone a Mickey Finn. By the mid-1980s it was called H-Bombing: prostitutes slipped the sleeping pill Halcion into a customers drink and robbed them after they would pass out. But the recent introduction of the illicit doping drugs, rohypnol promises to take the dangerous practice of doping unsuspecting victims into new depths. Today I am going to talk about rohypnol or other wise known as the â€Å"date rape drug†. I will tell you what it is, its effects, and the steps people can take to avoid rohypnol.      According to the May 98 issue of Clinical Pediatrics, rohypnol is a sedative-hypnotic benzadiazepine manufactured by the Hoffman La Roche Company in Europe and Latin America, and is prescribed in those places for treatment of anxiety and insomnia. Although the drug is not manufactured or prescribed in the United States, it is homemade or smuggled into the country and distributed.      Rohypnol is the trade name for the drug flunitrazepam a benzadiazepine which is a central nervous system depressant like Valium but 10 time more potent. The marketed drug looks like aspirin, but has a single or cross-scored on one side with ROCHE spelled across it with the number 1 or 2 encircled underneath it on the other side. The drug is a 1 or 2 mg pill that is shipped in bubble packaging or blister packs that appear very similar to aspirin also. Street prices one-milligram tablet is $1and $5 for a two-milligram tablet. Street names for rohypnol are roche, la roche, rope, roofies, rib, ruffies, stupefi, and the most common the date rape drug. When dissolved in alcohol, soft drinks, water, or any other liquid the drug is colorless, odorless, and tasteless.      Because of this rohypnol can easily be slipped into the drink of an unsuspecting sexual assault victim by an assailant. The result is that the victim remembers nothing of the sexual assault or that they knew something was happening but could not do anything about it. Effects of rohypnol begin within 20 minutes after ingesting then last up to 8 to 24 hours. Rohypnol intoxication is generally associated with impaired judgment and impaired motor skills, and the combination of alcohol and rohypnol is also especially hazardous together because their effects on memory and judgments are greater than effects from either of them taken alone. Other effects include visual impairment, drowsiness, confusion, decreased blood pressure, memory impairment, gastrointestinal disturbances and urinary retention.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
Tennessee Williams The Glass Menagerie Essay -- Williams Glass Menage
Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie If The Glass Menagerie were performed without the effects Williams wrote into the script, then the play would barely have a plot. Williams' use of music, lighting and a television screen add depth and meaning to the play. He uses effects to portray the feelings of the characters, rather than their words or actions. In Tom's opening speech he states that'The play is memory.' Because it is about his memories of his mother and her memories. They both spend the play living in the past. Tom is obviously living in the past because the play is based around 'post-war Tom's' memories of his life prior to the war when he was living with Amanda and Laura. Amanda seems to be divided between her world as an abandoned mother of two, and her youth back in Blue Mountain. When Amanda first appears in the play, so does the legend on the television screen 'Ou sont les neiges' and later, 'Ou sont les neiges d'antan?' which means 'where are the snows' and 'where are the snows of yesteryear?' this emphasises the idea that Amanda is longing for the past. She then begins to tell her children- and judging by Tom's reaction, for the hundredth time- of her youth and her many gentlemen callers and how wonderful her life was. The Glass Menagerie is a very static play, the audience do not leave the two rooms of their apartment and the characters lives are so uninteresting the highest point of the play is when a gentleman comes to the house for dinner. The family have become so consumed by the pressure and worries of the American depression, that their lives have become monotonous and lacklustre. Their struggle for survival is so apparent, that their dreams and life have been oppres... ...s played to express Laura's silent fears but other music is played in other scenes to express general feelings. For example in scene five, dance music called 'The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise', this is used to show society's general lack of motivation not just the family's. The last scene of the play is when Tom storms out of the apartment and he is standing on the stairs telling the audience what he then went on to do. In the background is Amanda comforting her daughter, and it is not a side that the audience has witnessed of Amanda before. This final moment is obviously a very important moment for Amanda and Laura because they are bonding, yet Williams has this scene in silence. This silence does not devalue this moment between the two at all, but makes it more powerful, because acts speak louder than words, hence 'A play is not just language...'.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Tess of the d’Urberville :: Literary Analysis, Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbervilles is a criticism on Victorian society. But the major, universal idea it criticizes is the existence of true love. Through the relationships Tess has been in, as well as the time era in which Hardy lived in, it has become evident that there will always be a flaw with romance. To begin with, Hardy wrote realist works of literature. In order to escape the â€Å"fantasy†of Romantic works realism was a response in which the true social characteristics of life were illustrated. This is evident in Tess of the d’Urbervilles as Tess is depicted as admitting to the condition of our planet, â€Å"a blighted one†(40). By admitting life and Earth to be a decaying one, Hardy has shown that things could be better, a major standpoint of other social writers of his day. But as well as being a novelist, Hardy was a poet and a renowned one at that as well. In his poem â€Å"Between Us Now†Hardy again demonstrates characteristics of a realist writer: â€Å"Let there be truth at last / Even if despair†(lines 7, 8) meaning that he will be acceptant of both the truth and its consequences. Therefore, Hardy is completely capable of describing social issues, and does so in Tess. Now, the first major relationship Tess is in is with Alec d’Urberville in which she is subjugated to mistreatment. One of the most evident examples of the way Alec treats Tess in the garden, in which he feeds her strawberries while she was â€Å"in a slight distress†and even smokes in front of her, although she claims that she minds â€Å"not at all†(52). Now the clearer example, the strawberry abuse, alludes to the rape which comes later on in the novel. She is forced to consume the strawberry although she would rather â€Å"take it in [her] own hand†(52), obviously showing refusal at a blunt state, In addition to this Alec unabashedly smoked around her, which is not only disrespectful but hazardous to her health. The â€Å"narcotic haze†(52), which permeated the rooms Alec and Tess were in, acted like enigmatic amnesiac clouds of death. They not only limited visibility but choked Tess and damaged her eventually later on. This is also parallel to her rape in that the damage done by Alec was invisible for a long time in both cases. Later on in the novel, Alec is very shortly converted into a devout Christian but is â€Å"tempted†by Tess, whom he calls a â€Å"dear damned witch of Babylon†(377).
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Commentary on ‘Testing the Reality’ Essay
This short but powerfully descriptive poem tells the story of a young man who comes to discover just how fragile the boundary between life and death really is. Written in the form of a dramatic lyric, the poem highlights the moment of revelation and reflection as the man realizes his mother hadn’t died; instead she had moved on to another place. The themes of death and abandonment are clearly depicted by the poet through the use of tone, setting, rhythm, symbolism, hyperbole, alliteration and time. Through all these methods, the poet builds a sense of sorrow and feeling of utter reliance the narrator has upon his mother. It emphasizes the man’s lifelong journey, from a young child learning to count to a fully grown man mourning the death of his 70-year-old mother. As he grows in body and matures in mind, he fills his head with knowledge and pushes at the boundaries of his world, â€Å"testing†it. The name ‘Testing the Reality’ arises because the son has to face the reality of life, and the deaths that occur in life. The poem takes place in a church, in a funeral set-up, with flocking birds in the sky. We understand this because of the phrase â€Å"so crammed church roof and belfry.†I can comprehend that it is a funeral because the poet relates the hibernation of the birds to a 70 year old woman. The writer also illustrates a picture of a myriad of birds as he writes â€Å"There must have been 10,000 there or more.†Even though he feels immense loneliness and sadness after the passing on of his mother, he is not yet ready to follow her, and must remain in â€Å"reality,†hence he is â€Å"the last soul still unhatched†. The poem begins in the first person as the poet describes his experiences as a boy. We learn that his mother taught him to â€Å"count to a ragged 20 but no higher†. When he was still a boy, the sheer number of birds perching on the belfry exceeded his counting abilities, â€Å"cramming church roof and belfry, cross and spire†. At this later stage in his life, however, it is not due to his counting skills that he cannot count but due to the sheer immeasurable quantity and their uncontrollable, free nature, unable to be caged or catalogued. Their numbers were so great that â€Å"their final taking off blacked Beeston’s sky†. These birds feature throughout the poem, creating a sense of activity and movement and dramatic symbolism. Here, the black sky symbolises the unfortunate and sad mood. While the â€Å"flocking birds†represent what the man is looking at and his memories of them as a boy, they also have a metaphorical meaning, symbolizing the life and death of his mother. The crossroad of reality and imagery appears in line six with the following alliteration: â€Å"picketed piercingly the passing of each day†. The power of the repeated ‘P’ sound reflects the sound of the birds’ cries. In the poet’s mind, each bird also represents a single day in the life of his mother. In fact, as the second stanza progresses, the birds only exist to measure the accumulated days in the life of the man’s mother. Her attraction towards the birds is completed when they suddenly depart, taking her life with them. The shock of the mother’s death is so deep that the first person used throughout the first two stanzas is obliterated and transformed into the third person in the last stanza, the man suddenly being referred to as â€Å"her son†. The third stanza also dramatizes the metaphorical blend of his mother and the birds. Death becomes the â€Å"wings of night†, her life becomes â€Å"the flocking days†. Her departure from the earth is an effusion, a release, of all her physical experiences which are â€Å"soaring†away. So significant was she to her son that her departing life â€Å"blocked the light†. In the final line the son becomes an unhatched egg/soul left behind â€Å"in the clutch†or the nest. Having come to associate the birds with his mother, his memories of her are immediately summoned whenever he sees them. She may be dead but she lives on in his memories of the birds. At first they â€Å"shrilly hailed the first new light they saw,†greeting the new day in what initially seems to be an irritating way because they are portrayed as having loud, high-pitched cries that are not particularly pleasant to the ears. However, after his mother dies, and they leave too, he comes to see them in a different light, after they â€Å"soared away.†His opinion of them has now changed and he sees them as graceful and elegant creatures. This imagery also successfully implies life after death, and the setting of the poem becomes important when looked at in this light. A church is a place of peaceful meditation, praying and holiness, a place where the boundaries between the physical and the spiritual, the barriers between life and death, merge. For these reasons it becomes the nest that hatches souls into the heavens. Even though the birds, and the man’s mother with them, fly â€Å"beyond all sight, hearing, taste, smell, touch†they do not fly beyond love or memories, instead leaving a path for the man to follow when it is his turn to be â€Å"hatched†. The lesson the mother taught her son began with counting, but ended with a realization of life after death and the possibility of living, in spirit, for infinity.
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Discussion Questions Essay
1. Who is someone that you feel you have a positive relationship with? What role do you think openness and truthfulness have in making this relationship positive? Me and my friend Jeff have a very positive friendship. Openness and truthfulness play a big role because were always open and tell each other everything. Also we always tell each other the truth so we never have any arguing and have a positive friendship. 2. What effects do you think the various types of media (TV, Internet, newspapers, Facebook, etc.†¦) have on your own life and your family? Do you think the overall effect is negative or positive? How can parents reduce the negative effects? I think social media effects everyone in a bad way. I feel that pages like Twitter and Facebook make people feel like they aren’t good enough cause of what other people might say or post. People can be getting bullied and no one knows. Social media gives people low self-esteem. I think the overall effect is negative. Parents can reduce the negative effect by restricting the child from using social media pages until they are older.
How smart are sheep? Essay
How Smart Are Sheep by Barbara Drake is about the intelligence of sheep and the studies that have been conducted to prove that sheep can feel different emotions and recognize dogs and humans as their enemies. Evolution has re-wired the sheep brain to know to hate and stay away from humans and dogs. Brain activity research in sheep has shown that sheep see dogs and humans as more alike than comparing the human and the dog to themselves. Drake explains that â€Å"Of course, fro ma distance, if a human being gets down on all fours, there is little uncertainty and the sheep’s brain may start sending ‘possible other sheep’ signals until the sheep gets close enough to realize its mistake†(247). Research has also found that sheep have emotions. They have been known to feel and display moods of fear and happiness. For example: when sheep see an approaching human they will start to feel fearful or if an approaching human is carrying a bag of grains for them to eat then they will start to feel happy because they know that they are about to eat. Drake believes that people who believe that animals do not have feelings or emotions are just trying to find an excuse not to feel bad about the horrible things that we do to animals to be able to harvest their bodies for food. â€Å"If a creature has no feelings, it can feel no pain,†Drake explains is the common clichà © phrase that humans use to make themselves feel better about the harmful things we do to animals as a society (248). The feeling of happiness sheep feel when a human is bringing them food is not because of the human, but it is that the human is bringing them. Bummer lambs, which cannot be brought up by their mothers, are bottle-fed and are most commonly known to display happy emotions when their bottles are being brought to them. The bummer lambs start to become hostile and resentful when it’s human starts to wean it from its bottle. Drake has â€Å"seen weaned bummers use a resentful kind of body language that can only be called sulking†(248). This kind of behavior is the beginning of the behavior that has naturally been wired into their brains to dislike humans. Other research shows that sheep produce more excitable brainwaves when being shown a picture of horned sheep. If a sheep is shown a picture of a sheep upside down it will not recognize the sheep because, usually, sheep are only recognizable on all fours. Drake states, â€Å"In fact, a sheep on its back is liable to be in trouble†(249). Sheep have been categorized as stupid because of their strong herding instincts. Entire herds of sheep have been known to walk off of cliffs just because their leader went off first. Sheep were tested below the intelligence level of horses and cattle when presented a bucket of feed that was covered in in a black cloth. It took the sheep more than several tries to figure out that the cloth has to be removed to retrieve the food. Another test showed that in single-trial learning, sheep knew how to recognize a plant they shouldn’t eat after only eating it once. Lambs also learn this by example from their mothers. Sheep also know to go into their pens at night and how to sort themselves into the ram and ewe sides of the pen. Drake encountered an eight-month old lamb that was lost and was trying to find its way home. Not sure where the lamb belonged, Drake sold the lamb to some people who lived on the other side of town. A few weeks later the lamb had gone missing. The lamb had panicked and jumped the fence because it had been left all alone in the pen by itself. â€Å"This time when the new owners returned the lamb to their farm, they made sure there were a couple of ewes waiting for them in the pen,†Drake explained, concerning the lamb that had escaped (251).
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
My Mother Essay
My Mother Life without someone who loving us is just like an empty world. All people in this world have their own person who always takes care of them. So do I. She is the only one, ‘my mother’. My mother is Beautiful, a very helpful to a family member and a caring person. see more:short essay on my mother My earliest memories of my mother was her pretty face, beautiful smile, and small frame.To me she was the most beautiful woman on earth and nothing compared to her.Even though she was unlike the celebrity moms who wore designer clothes and ate in fancy restaurants, my mother was very real.My mother has a light color skin. She wears a black ,long and bouncy hair. She is 5’2 in height and she is skinny.She has a big, brown eyes. My mother is beautiful just the way she is,without even trying to do anything. Like most mother, my mother teaches me to do house chores. I remember when I was still 13 years old, my mother teaches me how to cook. She became my inspiration as I grew up. She is always there to help each member of the family. Eventhough she was tired working in the morning she is always there to cook us dinner and make each member of the family happy.My mother is always there to help with my other relatives too. She is willing to help whenever my relatives from Philippines whenever they needed help. Even though there were four children in the family, my mother never played favorites.But rather, made appoint to be fair and equal with all of her children. Whenever I admitted to making a mistake, Mom would not hesitate to point it out to me, and punish me if needed. At times I detested it but over time I came to realize that Mom did that because she had my best interests at heart. She was never one to hold grudges for long.Like most mothers, my mother was very protective of me that often times I resented her for being so.I did not understand why she had to constantly ask about my whereabouts:Who I was with and where I was going. It never occurred to me that this was an essential part of being a mother.A mother cares and worries for her children.
Monday, July 29, 2019
Disaster management 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words
Disaster management 2 - Essay Example To facilitate increased safety must be the aim of any disaster management. As per (WCPT,2014 ) â€Å"Not all disasters, particularly natural disasters, can be prevented, but the risk of loss of life and injury can be mitigated with good evacuation plans, environmental planning and design standards†. The article suggests that the technology and strategies available today should allow the disaster manager to mitigate hazards. The article suggests that the public need to be educated well in advance to contain natural hazards more effectively. As per (Nielsen & Lidstone,1998,pg.1-6 ) â€Å"It seems the majority of opinion amongst disaster researchers and practitioners is towards the value of education as an effective and practical tool for hazard management†. The education must prepare the people for life, work security, rapid societal and technological changes and happiness. This would enable them to prepare themselves toward uncertainties and changes in the world. The author suggests that this public education should be theory integrated which has practical value in disaster management context. Public Safety – The main concern of the disaster management in relation to this article is the public safety issue. It is explained that despite all the technology and knowledge the disaster management experts have not come up with a measures to give proper safety to public in regard to natural disasters. As per (Kuehn,2011,pg.43-60)â€Å"Public safety information systems are part of the overall government infrastructure that must withstand natural and man-made disasters†. Public education and awareness – The authors raise concern over the inadequate public education regarding disaster management. The authors suggest that government should prepare the pubic towards the disasters which can be natural or general. There should be individual and lifelong learning practice to contain natural disasters. Proper understanding of public education- The
Sunday, July 28, 2019
The Strategy that The Chronicle Gazette Must Implement to Further Essay
The Strategy that The Chronicle Gazette Must Implement to Further Penetrate and Maintain Its Market - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that one among the leading newspaper in a major metropolitan area in the United States, The Chronicle Gazette, has a paid circulation of 225 customers. It is one among the highest rated newspaper in America. In fact, its writers have been recognized and awarded for their excellent works. Despite this fact, the Chronicle Gazette is challenged by a steady decline in its customer base subscription as well as its advertising revenues. It has been observed in the past 8 years that there has been a drop of a total of 35 percent among the customer base subscription to Chronicle Gazette. As a result, its advertising revenues have also deteriorated by a total of 28 percent. This is not only true for the case of Chronicle Gazette but also valid for the cases of other huge newspapers like New York Times and Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, this continuous decline in subscription and advertising revenues to Chronicle Gazette and the whole newspaper publ ishing industry in the United States are largely caused by the increasing dominance of the Internet. This is because the Internet has largely become today’s means of news and information dissemination. Unlike newspapers, access to news to the Internet is for free. Aside from the free subscription, news accounts are indeed up – to – the – minute. The Internet is certainly more advantageous than a newspaper for having also video recordings on hot topics that can be played and watched. The Internet is very fast, up – to – the – minute, and has different features, unlike newspapers. Moreover, videos can be watched and more topics can be further explored by just a click on the Internet. According to Hoover’s Inc., there are approximately 2,000 companies that comprise the newspaper publishing industry in America today. The total annual revenues of the newspaper industry in America amount to approximately $30 billion in which majority of this earning come from the advertising revenues followed by customer base subscriptions. On the one hand, the circulation of the newspaper industry in America sums to an almost $50 million daily. Nonetheless, a constant decline in the circulation, as well as advertising in newspapers, has been observed over the past few years. This is because of the technological advancement of the Internet. People can readily access news and information any time they want for free. Internet news is up – to – the – minute and can be accompanied by videos and other details with just a click on the internet. 2.1 Data on the Declining Circulation and Revenue According to the Newspaper Association of America, there is an observed decline in the circulation of newspaper copies in the United States over a ten – year period. From the total number of 115,194,000circulated newspaper copies in 2000, it has significantly reduced to 97,712,000 in 2008.
Saturday, July 27, 2019
Current issues in management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words
Current issues in management - Term Paper Example Planning consists of the preparatory evaluations of strategic intentions that determine how best to structure the organization and its internal processes to meet a particular strategic goal. Planning allows the manager to observe the entire internal and external environment, look for strengths and weaknesses of human capital and tangible capital availability, and then develop an appropriate operational plan or strategic plan that will bring the business closer to achieving the long-term goals for increased market share among competition. Why is planning one of the most critical management roles? Many organizations that provide products and services rely on innovations to ensure adequate revenue production. If an organization wishes to be a first-mover to launch a product, thereby outperforming competitive ingenuities, the manager must determine how to coordinate internal tangible and human-based resources to achieve first-to-market success. This requires synchronizing activities betw een research and development teams, production systems, support and technology systems, the marketing division, and procurement (Nickels, et al., 2008). At the same time, one of the fundamental differentiation tactics used by businesses to maintain competitive advantage is to establish a positive brand reputation and brand personality to gain market demand and build long-term loyalty toward the product or service brand. Without the inter-dependencies and knowledge transfer between expert systems and tacit knowledge holders in all of these divisions, first-to-market objectives and brand-building cannot occur effectively. Planning is a critical dimension in establishing a positive and respected brand that is considered relevant and vital to many consumer target markets. Consumers maintain many diverse lifestyle characteristics, attitudes, beliefs and principles that will determine how they connect with a product or service brand and ultimately make their purchasing decisions against t hese criteria. A company can coordinate internal activities to sustain first-mover advantage, however if the product or brand is not promoted properly or provides the proper incentive for purchasing it will have a limited life cycle on the market before reaching the decline stage, one where inventory control, cash management, and obsolescence costs skyrocket (Dooley, 2005). Thus, it becomes an imperative that proper planning is conducted regarding external consumer preferences and characteristics so that the internal dynamics of the organization can be coordinated to provide an effective branded offering. Without this planning occurring, there will be little fundamental knowledge of what is driving purchasing behavior of target consumers and thus the product innovation will be a marketing and sales failure (Boone & Kurtz, 2007). Managers must be proactive in planning to assess the internal and external market in order to create a valuable brand reputation. It is the most important e lement of management design since it establishes the foundation of knowledge that can be transformed into relevant product offerings in the business marketplace. Statement of Principles Kalyanaram & Gurumurthy (2008) reinforce that the majority of consumers are risk averse. They will often embrace the product or se
Friday, July 26, 2019
Globalization in China as it relates to MacroEconomics Essay
Globalization in China as it relates to MacroEconomics - Essay Example (U.S. Commercial Service) China has been doing an admirable job of attracting foreign direct Investment (FDI), which has made it a powerful force to reckon with in the World Economic scene. In 2004, China kept its place as one of the top two destinations in the world of FDI adding $64 billion. Over $564 billion of FDI has been invested in China since it opened to the world in 1979.Executives overwhelmingly consider China to be the undisputed top FDI destination for the third year in a row in 2004. About 40% of global investors expressed a more positive outlook on China's economy, four times the number of executives who had a dimmer view of China. The path to economic liberalization has been a difficult but fruitful one for China. It has triumphed due to its determination and commitment to open up its markets to foreign investors. A Business Week article in 2001 stated that "after two decades of steady but halting reforms, Beijing is now racing to dismantle the last vestiges of a command economy". Let us trace the FDI history in China. Since late 1978, China has carried out massive economic reforms in an effort to restructure its economy to be more market oriented. FDI was one of the primary goals of its reforms. The government has over the years slowly liberalized the restrictions on FDI to gain technology transfer, modern management skills and foreign exchange. The government's first move to entice FDI was taken in 1979 with the Equity Joint Venture Law. This law allowed the legal entry of FDI and provided a statutory basis for the establishment of joint ventures in China. But Investment was allowed in only designated Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and was encouraged via tax incentives. As investments grew, additional laws were required. In 1983 another law was issued which provided greater details on all joint ventures in FDI. The government also expanded the SEZs in 1984.Then it passed Foreign Exchange Balance Provisions and Encouragement provisions in 1986, which facilitated FDI and allowed firms to solve fore ign exchange problems. (Jun Fu, November 2000). In 1994, China conducted a new round of FDI reforms. It abolished the official exchange rate and adopted a market rate. It also abolished the exchange quota retention system. In 1996, the government adopted IMF article A that removed all restrictions on foreign exchange transactions. All these reforms went a long way to boost investor confidence. In the November 1999 US-China WTO Accession Agreement, China agreed to several ground breaking reforms. (Sandra Berkun, 2001). Some of them were: China will phase in trading rights and distribution services over three years, and open up sectors relating to distribution services such as repair and maintenance, warehousing, trucking and air-courier services (US-China Business Council). China committed to allow FDI in its telecommunications industry. Increased access in banking, insurance and securities will be phased in the next five years resulting in full market access in all activities and regions. China also promised national treatment for foreign banks and minority ownership in domestic security firms and more insurance businesses.(Lardy ,1998) Increased access for professional services including accounting, consulting, engineering, medical and Information Technology. (Lardy,
Thursday, July 25, 2019
Kurdistan workers party Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Kurdistan workers party - Research Paper Example It is significant to note that the focal operation of the Kurdistan Worker Party is in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, and Turkey. Further, the PKK has strong financial support and huge propaganda operations in some European countries, and it mostly relies on violent and bloody crime for financing. The group started out in the beginning of the 1970’s in Ankara comprising mainly of students. By 19978, the PKK had begun establishing a strong base since it targeted people from the Kurdish group. Days later, the group was named the Kurdistan Workers Party. It believed in a Marxist-Leninism ideology and it frequently engaged in violent and bloody conflicts as a part of its political operation in Turkey. The PKK holds that it is its role and responsibility in changing the lives of the Kurdish race in Southern Turkey. Therefore, its focus is to represent their ambitions and thoughts. The Marxist-Leninism propels the group to launch irresponsible struggle against people it calls the bourge ois (Anil, 2010). The Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) has been linked to numerous attacks and bombings. For instance, PPK was accused of attacking and bombing of the Turkish embassy in Strasbourg. They collaborated with the ASALA (Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia), an Armenian radical group to launch the attack. In 1984, the organization took another structural formation. They changed into a paramilitary group. They used France as their base setting up training camps in different parts of France. All through to the late 1980’s, the organization became very dangerous as it continued to launch numerous terrorist activities. For instance, the extremist group attacked state institutions, military bases, and government agencies. Some of these were linked to the Anatolia project that was taking place in the Southern part of Turkey (Marcus, 2009). The organization further expanded their activities in multiple countries in the Middle East and Europe, especially France a nd Germany. This expansion made them to become less and less centralized and past containment. The radical grouped continued to inflict pain and suffering to the civilian through its attacks and bombings. For instance, the group is known to be responsible for the frequent attacks and bombings on civilian and military targets in countries such as Turkey, Iraq, Belgium, and France. In the mid 1990’s, Syria started from the radical group. This was because of a transformation of tactics in the PKK’s operations in that it had began using suicide attacks on innocent civilians. As an inevitable eventuality, it started losing the edge in its operations. Further, the group used women to launch these attacks something that Syria was not happy with. The groups’ founder Abdullah Ocalan, was captured in 1999 and was sentenced to death. However, this sentence was reduced to life imprisonment. Without its leader, the group somewhat lost direction and posed less security threat s to the people. This gave Turkish government initiative to bring down the group (Marcus, 2009). In 2004, the European Union named the group as a terrorist organization. The hit against the organization heightened later that year when the United States treasury froze resources of branches of the group claiming that it was propagating terrorism activities. The group retreated to the Iraqi mountains and formed base there, with
Finance Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Finance Paper - Essay Example Bahamas for example has 301 licensed banks whereas the British Virgin Island only has 7. Offshore banking has a countless number of rewards, ranging from low to no taxation, to greater privacy and anonymous accounts, as well as protection against financial instability. With that being said, I would like to emphasize what these banks also offer. Offshore banking has aided terrorist by laundering their financial resources, allowing them to fund terrorist activities that are partially impossible to detect. It also highlighted in the collapse of the company Enron, where the company used offshore banks to avoid paying millions of dollars in US Tax. Offshore financial centers have very significant reasons for their existence. These financial resources provide financial services; these financial services can be divided into three broad groups: (i) Private investments, (ii) Asset protection, (iii) Estate planning (Higgins, 2000). Private investments are the significant part of the offshore f inancial centers. In the private investments, investments are handled and managed with an intention of reducing the potential tax liabilities. Additionally, private investments are done to increase the protection which is granted or provided under the legal confidentiality provisions. Asset protection comes with the use of international jurisdiction. In this category, with the help of international jurisdiction, the residence of client is separated; and asset protection helps protecting the income and assets from political, legal and fiscal risks. Estate planning is about assets and their administration. In estate planning, mostly assets, all types of assets, are properly administrated with the help of legal and fiscal jurisdictions (Higgins, 2000). With the help of financial institutions; like, international business corporations (IBCs), insurance companies, mutual funds, offshore corporations, and some of the recent gaming companies, a large and huge amount of funds are deposited in OFCs. With these available funds, different types of investment are made to generate some economic and financial contributions in the economy. Little work has been done to understand and determine the role and contribution of offshore banking in the creation and generation of employment and employment opportunities. It is the creation and availability of employment opportunities by the OFCs that provide the importance and significance of offshore banks as far as their role for the development of economy is concerned. Any sector is valued and measured in the economy on the basis of its contribution to the economy. Mostly, there are two ways in which this contribution is measured and analyzed: One, the money contribution of offshore banking. This means the amount of tax paid by the offshore banks in the economy determines and measures its value for the economy. There is another contribution given and provided by the offshore banks. That is of economic nature- creation and generatio n of employment opportunities. Various examples are available that clearly indicate and highlight that offshore banks are licensed. After getting license, they have established various branches in different parts of the world. A large amount of investment has been made to make offshore banking functional and useful.
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Understanding Health Disparities in Populations Assignment
Understanding Health Disparities in Populations - Assignment Example Lack of patients to offer services can result to losses in several aspects such as drug that might expire or the huge wages and bills without a return. The results show that Motivational Interviewing is the major coaching method used in healthcare centers. Therefore, the staff providing care services to the society needs a cultural background of the local community in order to deliver effective services that favor the wellness and goodness of the patient. In relation to cognitive theory outlined in the question, the healthcare providers need to change their tactics of service delivery depending to the target clients. The theory is used in the study when the cultural competency occur, especially during the recognition of illness and healthy of a patient by their cultural heritage contexts. In this case, the nurses need to adopt interpersonal and academic skills to increase their appreciation and understanding the patients from a cultural diverse community. The most effective strategy to make the health behavioral change is through training of both the patients and service providers. Training empowers both health practitioners and the patients to increase their knowledge of service delivery and develop adaptive mechanisms in cultural dynamics that benefits the minority
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Arabic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1
Arabic - Essay Example Further, the contents of the media are substantially determined, by the culture; culture informs the beliefs and knowledge stock of people. Therefore, the media should consider issues that are relevant to the culture that the media represent. Cultural beliefs and cultural norms influence the structure and operations, and the composition of the media. The social, religious and political issues inherent in the Arabic nations and the Arabic culture take precedence in the media while the rest of the issues from other cultures are squeezed in the rest of the space and time. In the 1990s, the governments in the Arab World owned most televisions channels. Satellite televisions are sprouting rapidly. This is not due to freedom of speech and money but due to political influence on their growth. The West has also influenced the growth of Arabian media through the Arab soap operas (Hammond 26). In 2003, Star Academy began when Reality television had entered the Arabic public discourse. That was when women fought for their political rights in Kuwait; election results were contested in Egypt and there erupted escalating violence in Iraq. The political crisis environment framed the current Arab- Western relations. It formed the backdrop that causes controversies surrounding the social and political impact of Reality television that assumes religious, cultural and moral manifestations (Hammond 28). Research in Media has stressed that the moral and social responsibility of news people should not agitate public opinion, but should keep the status quo. It is paramount to preserve national unity by not causing ethnic or religious conflict. Investigative journalism was not allowed in the Arab World due to limited freedom of speech. Personal reputation is a fundamental principle in Arab media; exposure of corruption and weaknesses in policy makers hold the news person in
Monday, July 22, 2019
Market for Energy Drinks Essay Example for Free
Market for Energy Drinks Essay 3.How is the market for energy drinks, sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages changing? What are the underlying drivers of change and how might those forces individually or collectively make the industry more or less attractive? The market for energy drinks, sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages kept on changing through differentiation from other brands to have a better brand image and also to meet the demands of the consumers as it is said that USA has helped greatly in the growth of the industry. Because of the significance of brand recognition, the sellers kept on building the product and how it to be most familiar. Product innovation, one of the market’s drivers of change, is said to be the most important competitive features of the alternative beverage industry. Alternative beverages competed on the basis of differentiation from traditional drinks (carbonated soft drinks or fruit juices) so for energy drinks, they often changed the taste, the energy boosting of their ingredients, and image. It is also through marketing innovation and efficient distribution systems that the industry kept on changing by always having varied its packaging, clever ads, endorsements from celebrities/athletes and sponsorships. Alternative beverage sellers also need to have efficient distribution systems to be successful in the industry. These forces only made the industry attractive because it can attract first time buyers through product and marketing innovation and offer responsive customer service to large customers which may then lead to an increase in market demand, make competition more intense and lead to a higher industry profitability.
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