Small Business Plan free essay sample

The three quality approaches which are used by businesses to satisfy customer expectations are quality control, quality assurance and also total quality management. Quality Control is the use of inspections at various points in the production process to check for problems and defects. In order to reduce complaints from customers for the goods and services provided Ripe and Ready Fruit Vega shall implement monitoring of goods on display and the performance of employees to ensure quality control. Quality assurance is the use of a system so that a business achieves set standards in production. The system that is to be used by Ripe and Ready Fruit Vega is one which involves selecting only the best produce from goods bought. Total quality management is an ongoing, business-wide commitment to excellence that is applied o every aspect of the businesss operation. The focus of Ripe and Ready Fruit ; Vega is the customers and their satisfaction huge efforts are put in to the acquisition to the resources through to the delivery to the goods to the customers. We will write a custom essay sample on Small Business Plan or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The implementation of total quality management can improve the price competitiveness of the business and the quality of the products provided to attain competitive advantage. 6. Impact on ultimate business success The goods, production processes and quality management involved in the running of Ripe and Ready Fruit ; Vega all have an impact on the ultimate success of the equines as it deals with the quality of the goods and services provided to the customers in order to satisfy their needs and wants. By acquiring the goods from markets it ensures that it is only the freshest of produce giving the business an advantage over potential competitors in the area. As it is a fairly new business and the chances of competitors in the same district very high it is important that total quality management is continuing adapting in order to improve and excel all aspects of the business to maintain a competitive edge over competitors. Part B: Marketing 1 . Target market for products Target market refers to a group of customers with similar characteristics who presently, or who may in the future, purchase the product. There are three main types of approaches towards identifying your target market; the mass marketing approach, market segmentation approach and an extension of the latter is niche marketing. Ripe and Ready Fruit ; Vega uses the market segmentation approach as the products sold are mainly for those which are above 21 and provide for themselves. 21 is the age at which most young people leave their parents home and find a home for themselves and is the age at which they provide for themselves and eve a stable financial state. 2. Details of marketing strategies Product Ripe and Ready Fruit Vega offers a large variety of high quality fruit and vegetables for the use of customers. A group of employees will be assigned the task of the acquisition of the goods which will be from the Sydney Markets ensuring that the produce will be of the freshest and highest of standards for the customers. Price The pricing of products is reasonably fair and are raised and lowered in accordance to the prices of our competitors and the ease in which the products are acquired as some goods can be out of season and will be more expensive than those which are in season. Correct pricing is essential as if the price is set too high it could result in lost sales and if the price is set to low it may give customers the impression that it is a dodgy product and that the business is not to be trusted. Promotion the promotion of a business such as Ripe and Ready Fruit ; Vega will largely involve word of mouth, the use of social media sites such as Faceable, Mainstream and Twitter and adds in the local newspaper close to the big stories in order to ensure a lot people will see the advertisement. Place this involves the way n which the product gets to the customer. The product will be placed in the shop in Main Street, Blacktops. This area has a high level of traffic which will improve the chances of sales and profits for Ripe and Ready Fruit ; Vega. 3. Impact on Ultimate business success The businesss success relies heavily upon the marketing strategies implemented. The use of inappropriate marketing strategies will result in a decline in profits and capital which will lead to the eventual closing of the Ripe and Ready Fruit Vega. The marketing strategies shown will ensure the businesss success in the long term. The marketing strategies that are implemented will ensure customers receive high quality, high standard fruit and vegetables at a reasonable price. The location of the store will ensure good sales as it is located in an area with high consumer traffic. The promotion strategies implemented will be sufficient for the short term, but as it builds its revenue then it will be possible to invest in better and more effective promotion strategies.

The Upstream-Downstream Hypothesis And Corporate International Diversification Theory The WritePass Journal

The Upstream-Downstream Hypothesis And Corporate International Diversification Theory ABSTRACT The Upstream-Downstream Hypothesis And Corporate International Diversification Theory ABSTRACTINTRODUCTIONUPSTREAM-DOWNSTREAM HYPOTHESISINTERNATIONALIZATION AND SYSTEMATIC RISKINTERNATIONALIZATION AND LEVERAGECORPORATE INTERNATIONAL DIVERSIFICATIONAGENCY COSTS AND FINANCIAL STRUCTURE OF MULTINATIONALSINTERNAL CAPITAL MARKETSAGENCY COSTS OF DEBTCONCLUSIONREFERENCERelated ABSTRACT The study of multinationals has received much attention in literature. Certainly, it has become a subject of controversy among the scholars. On the one hand, some researchers including Reeb Mansi (2001), Chkir Cosset (1999) and Chen et al. (1997) point out to the diversification benefits to multinationals due to risk reduction inherent in operations within imperfectly correlated markets. While on the other hand, the more recent research by Reeb, Kwok Baek (1998) and Bartove, Bodnar Kaul (1996) notes a positive relationship between internationalization and high debtholder monitoring costs.Against this backdrop, this analysis suggest an alternative upstream-downstream hypothesis whereby the overall effect of internationalization on the risk and leverage of multinationals is dependent on the market conditions of the host and target country. The paper examines the theory that multinationals should have lower risk and higher leverage than non-multinationals and explains the difference between this theory and the upstream-downstream hypothesis. Also included in this analysis, is an explanation for the documented puzzle that multinationals tend to have lower levels of long-term debt but more use of short-term debt than non-multinational firms. INTRODUCTION The study of multinationals has received much attention in literature. Over the last few decades, it has become a subject of controversy among the scholars. It has generated more heat than light with some suggesting diversification benefits to multinationals, while others point out to the positive relation between a firm risk and internationalization. Against this backdrop, we suggest an alternative upstream-downstream hypothesis whereby the overall effect of internationalization on the risk and leverage of multinationals is dependent on the market conditions of the host and target country. Previous researchers including Reeb, Mansi Alee (2001), Chkir Cosset (2001) and Chen et al. (1997) found a positive relationship between internationalization and debt ratio due to risk reduction inherent in operations within imperfectly correlated markets. On the contrary, Burgman (1996) and Lee kwok (1988) demonstrated a negative relationship between internationalization and debt ratio that results from increased risks due to agency costs, and political and exchange rate risks. Similarly, while the findings obtained from Initial research by Hughes, Logue Sweeny (1975) are consistent with the diversification benefits, the more recent research by Reeb, Kwok Baek (1998) and Bartove, Bodnar Kaul (1996) found a positive association between the risk of a firm and internationalization. Additionally, while focusing on leverage, Burgman (1996) noted that internalization may result in higher debtholder monitoring costs and thus significantly reducing the levels of leverage. Consistent with greater agency costs, Lee Kwok (1988) and Chen et al. (1997) found that the domestic corporations would in general tend to have significantly higher debt ratios relative to the MNCs. Clearly, from what can be discerned, the study of internationalization of firms has become a controversial issue among scholars. This analysis is thus an attempt to shed light on the above by exploring on both international diversification benefits and the upstream downstream hypothesis. We begin out analysis by examining the upstream and downstream hypothesis UPSTREAM-DOWNSTREAM HYPOTHESIS Kwok Reeb (2000) argue that there is an increase in risk and a reduction in debt usage when firms from stable economies make investments internationally (downstream). Conversely, the risk is reduced and debt usage increased when firms from weaker economies make investments internationally (upstream). It therefore follows that the overall effect of internationalization on firm’s leverage and risk is dependent on the characteristics of the home and target economy. The firms’ behaviour towards international activity or rather the overall effect of internalization on firms leverage and risk is dependent upon whether the firm is moving upstream or downstream (Kwok Reeb 2000). For example, for multinationals based in the United States (which is among the most stable economies in the world), their overseas expansion tend to exacerbate risk. This increase in risk may not be totally offset by the risk reduction due to international diversification and thus resulting in a downward adjustment of the firms leverage. On the converse, for firms in the emerging economies, investment internationally in the developed economies leads to a reduction in corporate risk and subsequently an upward adjustment of leverage. INTERNATIONALIZATION AND SYSTEMATIC RISK The upstream downstream argument can be extended to the systematic risk area. Multinationals, by definition, have their operations diversified into various countries. The systematic risk of an ith operation can therefore be defined as É“i (Reeb, Mansi Allee 2001). É“i = (Ï im ÏÆ'i)/ ÏÆ'm Where Ï im represents the correlation between the market return and firms return ÏÆ'i represents the firms return standard deviation    ÏÆ'm refers to the market returns standard deviation An ith operation is thus influenced by the nature of the business operation and the economic system of the country where the operation takes place (Reeb, D.M., S.A. Mansi and J.M. Allee, 2001). Take for example a project that is located in a more volatile emerging economy. This project would tend to have a higher value of total risk, ÏÆ'i. Unless there is an offset of the high standard deviation by a lower correlation coefficient Ï im, the systematic risk É“i would be higher. On the converse a project that is located in a more stable economy tend to have a lower value of its total risk, ÏÆ'i. Similarly, unless there is a substantially higher value of correlation efficient Ï im, the systematic risk É“i tend to be lower. For any multinational, its overall systematic risk is simply the weighted average of the betas (É“i) of all its business operations within the various countries (Reeb, Mansi Allee, 2001).    É“mnc = Æ © Ã… ´i É“i Where Ã… ´i represents a fraction of the total capital invested by the MNC in the ith countrys operation. Therefore, for a firm that is headquartered in a more stable economy, expansion of its operations into a less stable market would increase the overall beta (É“mnc) of the firm, due to potentially greater environmental risk for the new operation (Reeb, Mansi Allee, 2001). Conversely, when a firm that is headquartered in an emerging economy expands its direct investments into a developed economy, its overall beta may decrease. The ability to arbitrage markets may as well differ due to the economic differences of the home and target economies (Reeb Kwok 2000). Take for example, the shift of income. The ability to have the income shifted among different tax regimes depends on the degree of sophistication of the host and target government (Reeb Kwok 2000). Firms that are based in economies which are more developed and with greater resources, tend to have fewer opportunities for shifting their income (Reeb Kwok 2000). In contrast, firms that are based in the volatile emerging economies tend to have different opportunities to arbitrage labour and capital markets (Reeb Kwok 2000).   That is, firms that are moving upstream have more opportunities to hire employees with different sets of skills and experience than those that are moving downstream. This implies that firms’ behaviour towards international activity varies with the characteristics of the home and target market. Therefore, the overall effect of internationalization on the firms risk and leverage depends on whether the firm is moving upstream or downstream. INTERNATIONALIZATION AND LEVERAGE Aligning with the above, the association between internationalization and firm risk suggests a leverage effect as well. Traditional capital structure theory posits that as firm risk increases the debt utilization decreases (Reeb Kwok 2000). Hence, for firms that are based in the more volatile emerging economies, their overseas expansion may lead to more debt utilization, as they may gain access to debt that was not previously available. The converse is also true. This view of the leverage aspect of upstream-downstream hypothesis suggests a negative association between leverage and internationalization for firms based in the more developed economies and vice versa (Reeb Kwok 2000). That is, firms that are moving upstream tend to have a positive relationship between the firms leverage and internationalization while those moving downstream tend to have a negative association. This implies that the overall effect of internationalization on the leverage of multinationals is equally dependent on the home and target market conditions. This next section will explore on the corporate diversification theory and the effect of agency costs and internal capital markets on the firms’ leverage. In particular, the agency conflicts and efficiency of internal capital markets will be used in providing an explanation as to why multinationals tend to have lower levels of long-term debt but more use of short-term debt than non-multinational firms. CORPORATE INTERNATIONAL DIVERSIFICATION The corporate international diversification theory posits that multinationals should have lower risk and higher financial leverage than the domestic corporations (Doukas Pantzalis 2001).   One of the main reason as to why corporations would not take 100% debt in their capital structure is because of the risk of insolvency (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Given that this risk is not linear but increases with higher debt levels, firms can thus limit their leverage in order to avoid incurring bankruptcy costs. There are a variety of business risks as well as opportunities that stem from corporate international diversification. Business risk which is typically measured by the volatility of the operating net income refers the cost of financial distress or rather bankruptcy cost (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Both the domestic and multinational firms are also faced with exchange rate risk. That is, the risk that fluctuations in currencies will affect the demand and supply, price and cost characteristics of the corporation. There is also the risk of higher agency costs which faces multinational firms. MNCs face higher agency costs due to auditing costs, monitoring costs, different accounting systems, different legal systems, sovereignty uncertainties, language differences, labour market and capital imperfections as well as the different asset structures (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Agency costs are known to have a significant impact on the optimal debt level as will be discussed below (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Political risks arise from political events that may have adverse effects on the economic wellbeing of the firm. For example, potential conflicts may arise between the goals of the government and those of the foreign firms. This is especially the case with foreign direct investment, given their effect on the host economy. Among the benefits put forth by scholars is the view that through international diversification, firms are able to increase on their debt capacity and reduce their bankruptcy costs (Doukas Pantzalis 2001).   It has been argued that risks are reduced by portfolio effects due to the imperfect correlation of foreign cash flows. In this regard, Fatemi (1984) and Agmon Lessard (1977) point out that diversification benefits reduce the bankruptcy costs and increase the debt usage by multinationals. AGENCY COSTS AND FINANCIAL STRUCTURE OF MULTINATIONALS The documented puzzle that multinationals tend to have lower levels of long-term debt but more use of short-term debt than non-multinational firms warrants an explanation. There are many reasons as to why one would expect multinationals to have different leverage ratios relative to the domestic corporations. First, given the international nature of their operations, MNCs are expected to have access to more capital sources unlike the domestic firms (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Therefore, they can raise more capital via foreign debt financing and at more favourable terms than the domestic corporations (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Consider, for example, the case of multinationals that have subsidiaries in countries with different tax rates. These multinationals can benefit a lot by borrowing through foreign affiliates exposed to high tax rates, hence increasing their tax shields (Butler 1999). It therefore follows that due to access to external sources of financing, these multinationals should in general have higher debt ratios than the domestic firms (Butler 1999). Another reason as to why Multinationals should exhibit higher debt ratios than non-multinational firms is that the foreign debt can be used as a hedging instrument against the risk of foreign exchange (Butler 1999). Given that multinationals have higher levels of foreign exchange exposure in comparison to the domestic firms, they are thus expected to make greater use of debt financing than the local firms (Butler 1999). Additionally, since multinationals are subject to political and exchange rate risk exposures, it is expected that these multinationals should have higher overall debt ratios relative to the local firms (Butler 1999). Thirdly, due to industrial and geographical diversification of operations of MNCs, they are expected to have lower business and financial risk than the domestic firms (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). This has the impact of reducing the cost of debt and therefore increasing leverage. This implies that the leverage of multinationals should have a positive relation with foreign involvement while financial distress should have a negative and greater bearing on DMCs leverage (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). However, while hedging, financial distress, liquidity and operating considerations imply that multinationals are more likely to have greater leverage than the domestic corporations, findings from empirical studies show that these multinationals have instead lower long-term leverage relative to the domestic firms (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Three possible explanations can be given for this finding. These include: (Doukas Pantzalis 2001) Efficiencies of internal capital markets Agency costs of debt Legal and institutional differences across counties where multinationals operate. INTERNAL CAPITAL MARKETS Since MNCs have numerous divisions operating across countries, they tend to create extensive internal capital markets which may provide cheaper financing relative to the external markets (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Hence, where the internal capital market is efficient, MNCs tend to rely more on internal financing than the external one. As a result, they tend to have lower leverage than the domestic firms. Consequently, a non-positive relation between the firms leverage and its foreign operations can emerge when internal capital markets bypass external capital market informational asymmetries (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). In a recent study, Matsusaka Nanda (1997) and Scharfstein Stein (1997) examined the improved capital allocation in internal capital markets and the associated agency costs for firms that had diversified their operations. They found that diversified firms could use internal capital markets in funding profitable projects, which would not be financed in external capital markets due to agency costs and information asymmetries. This implies that the external debt financing need for multinationals can be attenuated and that the low levels of leverage for Multinationals should reflect the strengths of internal capital markets (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). This view certainly indicates a negative relation between industrial diversification and the leverage of multinationals. That is, MNCs debt ratios should exhibit a negative and more pronounced association with industrial diversification than the domestic firms. AGENCY COSTS OF DEBT The agency cost of debt effect on leverage of multinationals arises from their industrial diversification. Since their operations are geographically dispersed, the cost of gathering and processing information is generally more costly for MNCs than the domestic firms (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Therefore, multinationals are expected to have more inherent agency problems between the debtholders and shareholders due to their diverse geographic structure. It therefore follows that bondholders will require higher interest payment on loans to firms that have greater monitoring costs and are more susceptible to asymmetric information problems (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). This implies that firms which have diversified their operations are more likely to have their debt ratios lower than domestic firms. Further, firms with greater foreign involvement are expected to have a negative and more pronounced relation between the firms leverage and agency costs of debt, than the domestic firms (Doukas Pantzalis 2001). Several authors have suggested that, unlike the domestic firms, multinationals are likely to support more debt in their capital structures. Burgman (1999), however, contests this claim and in fact argues that multinationals have, in the actual sense, less debt in their capital structure. He addresses whether factors such as the political and exchange rate risk and the agency costs can explain this phenomenon. The findings of his study show that multinationals tend to have higher agency costs and that diversifying their operations does not lower their earnings volatility. CONCLUSION Clearly, there are inherent business risks as well opportunities that stem from corporate diversification. While we do not ignore the cross-border benefits of corporate diversification, we suggest that the overall effect of internationalization on the firms risk and leverage can be predicted by an upstream-downstream hypothesis. REFERENCE Agmon, T. and D. Lessard, 1977. â€Å"Investor recognition of corporate international diversification†. Journal of Finance, 32:1049-55. Bartov, E., G. Bodnar, and A. Kaul,   1996.  Ã‚   â€Å"Exchange rate variability and the riskiness of US multinational firms: Evidence from the breakdown of Bretton Woods†. Journal of Financial Economics, 42: 105-132. Burgman, T. A., 1996. â€Å"An empirical examination of multinational corporate capital structure† Journal of International Business Studies, Vol 30, pp. 553-570. Butler, K.C., 1999, Multinational Finance, 2nd edition, Cincinnati, OH: South-Western College Publishing Chen, C.J. P., C.S. Cheng, H. J. Agnes, and K. Jawon, 1997. â€Å"An investigation of the relationship between international activities and capital structure† Journal of International Business Studies, p. 563-577. Chkir, I.E. and J.C. Cosset, 2001. â€Å"Diversification strategy and capital structure of multinational corporations†. Journal of Multinational Financial Management 11, 17–37. Doukas, J.A. and C. Pantzalis, 2001. Geographic diversification and agency costs of debt of multinational firms. Old Dominion University.   http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=282850 {accessed on 30th December 2011} Fatemi, A. 1984. â€Å"Shareholders Benefits from Corporate International Diversification†, Journal of Finance Vol. 39 No.5. Hughes, L., D. Logue, and R. Sweeney, 1975. â€Å"Corporate international diversification and market assigned measures of risk and diversification†. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 10:627-37. Kwok, C. Y. Chuck and D. Reeb, 2000.† Internationalization and Firm Risk: An Upstream-Downstream Hypothesis†, Journal of International Business Studies, 31, 4; 611-629. Lee, K., and C.Y. Kwok, 1988. â€Å"Multinational corporations vs. domestic corporations: International environmental factors and determinants of capital structure†. Journal of International Business Studies, vol 19, pp. 195-217. Matsusaka. J, and V. Nanda, 1997, Internal capital markets and corporate refocusing, Working Paper, University of Southern California. Reeb, D.M. and C. Kwok and H. Y. Baek, 1998. â€Å"Systematic Risk of the Multinational Corporation†, Journal of International Business Studies, Second Quarter. Reeb, D.M., S.A. Mansi and J.M. Allee, 2001. â€Å"Firm internationalization and the cost of debt financing: evidence from non-provisional publicly traded debt†. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis 36, 395–414.Chkir Cosset (1999) Scharfstein, D.S, 1997, The dark side of internal capital market II, Working Paper, MIT press.

Pumping Up The ECONOMIC GROWTH Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Pumping Up The ECONOMIC GROWTH - Essay Example This means that enhancing human capital will increase the quality of labor, which will in turn increase economic growth. The third factor that has to be considered is capital, an increase of which will increase economic growth. Capital is best increased by focusing on investment that improves the technology used. This will ensure that capital used in production produces more output with less usage of resources. However, the factors mentioned above have some detrimental effects, for example, using more resources to enhance economic growth results in the depletion of available resources. This means that future generations will have fewer resources with which to benefit themselves. The second detrimental factor is pollution, which usually occurs as resources are used to produce. The third factor is job displacement, which occurs because of an increase in technology that replaces human capital. The last detrimental factor in economic growth is cultural change, where existing cultures are continually replaced as economic growth is

Influence of human surroundings on buildings Essay

Influence of human surroundings on buildings - Essay Example In older styles, such as Gothic, Romanesque or Renaissance, these are more evident of times gone by, periods of architecture which are no longer built. Yet some of these influences are reflected in the current-day buildings and consequently, are considered vernacular. Therefore, it is easy to claim that vernacular is a combination of styles, without the influence of any one particular architect or stylist (Arboleda 2006). Vernacular architecture is considered to be crafted by the builder, according to the desires of the owner who may also be the builder too. Over time, buildings such as these, when created through trial and error in first processes, become perfected and then reflect the style of the society or environment within which it resides. Rather than pursuing the aesthetic quality or some egotistical vision of a particular artist/architect, vernacular building is more about accomplishing the factors of function and ecological assimilation and also providing comfort of living at the same time (Ladd 2003). Local materials are used as well as local workers and this also provides a sense of the place having grown from the ‘roots’ of the local social environment. Vernacular building can also be representative of local observances such as a church and its flock of worshipers and provide remembrance of the religion through how it is built, according to the belief structure of those who will use it. The local populace in older times, were craftsmen who utilized functional skills in preparing materials and in the creation of infrastructure which was to provide a functional, well-built building, created to withstand much of nature’s harsh storms and other events, commiserate with that local population and environment (Ladd 2003). In America, log cabins are considered to be the early American style, consistent with the early settlers who built their homes using the trees around them. Today’s pre-packaged version in whatever wood choice y ou want, represents that stereo-typed tradition of the early days without the hassle of having to cut it down yourself. Of course, you could do it that way if you own the land you plan to build on and have the physical energy to do so. While vernacular building was representative of times gone by, including historical references, today’s version is more about sustainability, technological advances in building processes, and referencing the social and natural environment around the location (Arboleda 2006). The vernacular building is created to provide the necessities of life such as shelter, warmth and a place to cook and eat food. It is created to suit the owner and to also meld within the local social infrastructure. Apartment buildings are a type of vernacular building in that they are built, not necessarily with a particular style, but to suit the basic needs of anyone renting an apartment there. The basics include a main room, bedroom(s), bathroom(s) and the kitchen. In some cases, specifically-intentioned dining rooms are also included in those costing a little more. This is

Contain communism Essay Example for Free

Contain communism Essay Communism had always posed a threat to the interest of the U.S. and their attitudes towards the U.S.S.R. had proved they had not entertained the idea of communism much. But it was not until February 1946 did it all come out and the U.S.A began to act towards containing communism. The policy of containment meant the U.S. actively prevented the psreading of communism.There were several ways with which the U.S. tried to contain communism some of which were futile and others effective. However, for every move the U.S. made the U.S.S.R. had a retaliation. One way with which the U.S. tried to contain communism was with the use of the atomic bomb. The dropping of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima was a method that was used to bring the war between the Japanese to a quick end with few loss of American lives. Described by Truman as the greatest thing in history the bomb had a very devastating effect taking up to 70 000 lives. After that another bomb was dropped in Nagasaki, this was particularly to impress Stalin and scare him if possible. However this was to blow up in Trumans face. Stalin feeling that it was an insult that he was never informed of such a weapon by his allies was not impressed and also became more suspicious of the U.S. And the fact that he was also denied the islands in the far east since he had nothing to do with the defeating of Japan also irritated him more. Trumans attempts did not work instead Stalin sought a production of his very own atomic bomb, and alhough it was initially predicted the Soviet Union would get the bomb within 10 years, mysteriously the bomb was in the hands of the Soviets a lot sooner than that, they had it within 4 years. So Truman had nothing against Stalin now. This was one of the unsuccessful means of containing communism because it rather increased the already existing tensions between both countries during the cold war. And because it was a suspicious thing that the U.S.S.R. got the bomb so soon and the U.S. neglected to mention the weapon to the U.S.S.R. suspicion between both countries increased and the gulf between the countries expanded further. Another way in which the U.S. tried to contain communism was through propaganda. The methods through which communism was extending its influence throughout eastern Europe was blatantly unprofessional. The method was given  the name salami tactics where by countries in eastern Europe fell one by one into the influence of communism. For example, Czechoslovakia was the last democratic country in eastern Europe until 1948. The elections were coming up in May but because the communist were blamed for the country not receiving the Marshall aid the communist party was expected to do badly. However, before the election there was a coup detat where the police force took over and removed every non-communist personnel from office. In February, representatives of opposing parties were removed and Jan Masaryk the foreign minister who opposed communism personally mysteriously fell out of the window during the coup. The Czech communists took over with little blood shed and with no help from the Soviet Union. These was how the communist parties took over in other countries, by dissolving opposing parties and killing their leaders. This was the method that was used in east European countries such as Poland in 1947,Bulgaria also in 1947, in Romania and Albania, 8 countries in total were taken over using the salami tactics.and the only response the U.S. could give to this was verbal abuse. They simply, verbally condemned the acts which were committed and were hoping that the U.S.S.R would perhaps feel guilty and digress but unfortunately that did not work at all. This method of containment was perhaps the weakest of all mehods because the U.S.A. in no way showed any opposition to the methods used. This could be assumed as slacking in the part of the U.S. to containing communism. The most successful was the combination of policies, that is, Marshall plan and the iron fist policy. The iron fist was a result of the long telegram of February 1946 by George Kennan,deputy chief of mission in the U.S. embassy in Moscow. The telegram though it was lenghty simply said the Soviet Union was neurotic. He saw them as aggressive and insecure and concluded that there should be no compromise with the Soviet Union. Another factor that added to the development of the iron fist approach was that the U.S. were not prepared to make the same mistake that was made by the British. The Britains had a policy of appeasement with Nazi-Germany. They had negotiations with Hitler and gave him whatever he requested for as long as it was seen as reasonable but the appeasement only encouraged Hitler to ask for more and soon there was an outbreak of war in 1939. Truman and other  politicians agreed that they did not want the same thing to happen with the U.S.S.R. so therefore the iron fist approach was justified where by Truman refused totally to negotiate with the U.S.S.R. The Marshall plan also was another technique used. George Marshall was the new U.S. secretary of state and he had travelled through western Europe and was disheartened by the devastation he saw and was shocked by the economic crisis of the region. When he came back, he suggested that america invest in the economy of Europe, he argued that as America was a marketing economy Europe would have been a good consumer base but if there was no way for Europe to be able to afford their goods then no profit would be made and the economy of the U.S. would suffer. Therefore investment in the European economy was the solution. Though he asked for 17 million dollars, he was granted 13 million and so this money was distributed through out western Europe. Ofcourse the U.S.S.R. reacted negatively to this and also formed the comecon which organised economic assisstance to the countries of eastern Europe. But unfortunately this was no match for the Marshall plan. Added to this, in Germany, the Yalta and Potsdam agreements had stipulated that Germany be divided into two buffer zones. The western zone was to be under the supervision of the western powers while the eastern zone was under the U.S.S.R. However, in the eastern region, the U.S.S.R. continued taking reparations from Germany because of the damages of world war 2 where as, The U.S. kept putting money into the western zone. Soon it became obvious that the western zone was flourishing compared to the eastern zone. This caused the Berlin blockade of 1948-49. The U.S.S.R.s attempt to divide the eastern zone from the western zone. But this was where the Marshall plan and the iron fist came into play. Truman through the approach of the iron fist refused to give into these manouvres of the U.S.S.R. And with the money from the Marshall plan, the west were able to supply aid to Berliners, they flew food and supplies to them through the Berlin airlift and they were able to provide to over 2 million Berliners. The result of this was that Stalin had to give in and brought down the Berlin blockade by May 1949. A successful combination of the iron fist approach and Marshall plan, the west were able to gain an initiative giving the situation that happened in czechoslovakia and other east European countries. Another successful means of containing communism was the Truman doctrine.In February 1947, the British warned the U.S. that they could not keep their troops in Greece any longer which they had been in since 1944. But after the second world war, the British government began to feel the effect in their economy as they owed 3000 million pounds. This scared Truman because he believed communism was taking over and so by March 1947 he issued the Truman doctrine that specified that any country that had a democratically elected government and was fighting off communism would be given militarial support. And so with this, support from America was given to Greece and the communists were defeated. Stalin, however saw this as U.S. imperalism although he had no retaliation for this because in the first place, he had kept an agreement with Churchill that Greece was an area of British influence. None the less, the U.S. were still able to fight off communism in Greece. These were some of the ways the U.S. had contained communism or tried to.Through militarial means, that is the Truman doctrine and financial mean such as the Marshall plan. And also through propaganda, when they tried belittle the communists because of their use of salami tactics. They also tried the use of terror which was the A-bomb but that proved unsuccessful. Like some of the techniques used and on the other hand, others were quite successful indeed.

Ind Aff Theme Analysis Essay -- essays research papers

El Paso Community College English 1302 Research and critical writing  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   n  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   SHORT STORY PROJECT: IND AFF THEME ANALYSIS Extreme relationships often tend to be abusive in some way from one of the partners towards the other. Very marked age differences some times show a sense of immaturity or a parenting feeling, it is hard to assimilate to someone who in deed is very different to the other. Now when there is a certain dependence that is more than of love, like economic, intellectual, physical, social, progressive it can become very abusive on the depending person. It’s a case were almost anything has to be tolerated, because in deed, if one wants to keep enjoying from those benefits, he or she must lower their head and keep eating what ever is thrown at them. What starts out on a rainy day, seems to open way to the blindness of what’s to come. â€Å"I never got to see much of it cause of the rain†(151), focusing on the fact that she to couldn’t see much of her relationship blinded by the pressure that rained down on her also. There is a constant mentioning of Princip’s story (148), by both lovers; since her theses is based on that historic moment that would be: â€Å"the shot that lit the spark , that fired the timber, that triggered the†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (148). She seems to identify herself in a way with young princip, it’s how she pictures her self, and how she must look for that opportunity to just take control of the situation and just go for it. Our narrator has a direct conflict with Peter’s wife, more of a personal competition to were she considered to have the strong end†¦ â€Å" So far as I could see, it was no contest at all between his wife and myself†. In a sort of way she seems to feel guilty for the way she was slowly being left behind. The Archdukes wife can be represented as Mrs. Piper and how she mustn’t... ...s entertaining.(internet II) Michael Malone; New York Times, April 26, 1992, p. 11. I must agree with Mr. Malone since as much as you’d expect her to destroy peter in her story she gives him a sense of indifference, but one would come to expect that from him since through out the story she seems to plot out his character. Now the way that the story seems to not unravel till the end is interesting, it kind of takes you along a calm river ride with a smooth NIAGRA FALL ending. WORK SITED Weldon, Fay. â€Å"IND AFF† or â€Å"Falling out of love in Sarajevo† Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 5th edition. Boston. Bedford / St. Martin’s. 2000. Pages 146-151. INTERNET I RED MOOD http://redmood.com/weldon/biography.html INTERNET II Malone, Michael. â€Å"The Life Force Has a Headache.† The New York Times p.11 April 26, 1992 Criticism about: Fay Weldon. Texshare. E.P.C.C Libraries El Paso 28 February, 2001. Gale Literary Database

Current State U.S Economy

The current state of the economy is one that is concerning for almost all Americans. Though we are in the recovery phase businesses are still hurting, people are out of work, we are barely getting out of a depression etc. People are pointing fingers at what is the cause and who is to blame. What was once a strong healthy economy has now drastically changed. There are many economic indicators that are used to evaluate and provide an image of what is currently happening and what an outlook may be on the economy.Several of the important factors are the business cycle, consumer price index, stock prices, consumer confidence index, gross domestic product and unemployment rates. The overall picture of the economy is relevant to its current business cycle. The business cycle is the recurring and fluctuating levels of economic activity that an economy experiences over a long period of time. The five stages of the cycle are growth, peak, recession, trough and recovery. As stated before we are in the recovery process but at a slow rate. One indicator is the Gross Domestic Product.The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total market value of all goods and services produced, including total consumer, investment, and government spending, plus the value of exports, minus the value of imports. It moves with the economy and describes what’s happening right now. The GDP was at a huge decline a few years ago which resulted in our recession. Currently it has increased by 2. 7 percent which is indicating an improving economy. Another indicator is the Consumer Price Index. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the change in the purchasing power of currency and the rate of inflation.It shows the current price of a â€Å"basket† of goods and services in terms of the prices during the same period during the previous year. The purpose of the CPI is to show the effect of inflation on purchasing power. The â€Å"basket† of goods and services includes energy (gas prices) and food as well as other goods and services. The decline leads to deflation instead of inflation where consumers hold off on purchases in hopes of lower prices. Consumers are feeling pretty confident and spending has increased over time but not by much leading to the consumer confidence Index.The Consumer Confidence Index is a measure of how well the average American thinks the economy is doing and will do in the short-term. Stock prices are leading indicators of economic activity. If the market goes up and sustains upward activity this is seen as a good economic sign. The measure of stock prices comes from the Standard and Poor’s 500 index not the Down Jones Industrial Average. In September 2012 the S&P 500 index ended more than 25 percent above August. If current trends continue the economy will be vastly improved. The Unemployment rate is also used to understand an economy.The unemployment rate shows the economy's production, private consumption, workers' ear nings, and consumer sentiment. A lower unemployment rate translates into more employed individuals with paychecks, which leads to higher consumer spending, economic growth and potential inflationary pressures. High levels of unemployment are connected with lower incomes, lower spending, and economic stagnation. Our economy has seen the rates change up and down but the growing trend is our unemployment rate is lowering. All these indicators are used to describe the current economy.Though we are not at our highest point, we are slowly moving on the upward side. A pace that most don’t like but relative to the recession years ago it’s surly a vast improvement. November 30, 2012 U. S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis: U. S. Economic Accounts Retrieved on November 30, 2012 from: http://www. bea. gov/ Cunningham, Steven P. H. D The Consumer Sees Reason to Spend American Institute for Economic Research Retrieved on November 30, 2012 from: https://www. aier. o rg/article/7864-consumer-sees-reasons-spend