The Fabric of Economic Trust

Economy is called the dismal science because it pretends to be one, disguising its uncertainties and shifting fashions with mathematical formulae. Economy describes the aggregate behaviour of humans and, in this restricted sense, it is a branch of psychology.

People operate within a marketplace and attach values to their goods and services and to their inputs (work, capital, natural endowments) through the price mechanism. All this elaborate construct, however, depends greatly on trust. If people were not to trust each other and / or the economic framework (within which they interact) - economic activities would have gradually ground to a halt. A clear inverse relationship exists between the general trust level and the level of economic activity.

There are four major types of trust:

• Trust related to Intent - the market players assume that other players are (generally) rational, that they have intentions, that these intentions conform with the maximization of benefits and that people are likely to act on their intentions.
• Trust related to Liquidity - the market players assume that other players possess or have access, or will possess, or will have access to the liquid means needed in order to materialize their intentions and that - barring force majeure - this liquidity is the driving force behind the formation of these intentions. People in possession of liquidity wish to maximize the returns on their money and are driven to economically transact.
• Trust related to knowledge and ability - the market players assume that other players possess or have access to, or will possess, or will have access to the know-how, technology and intellectual property and wherewithal necessary to materialize their intention (and, by implication, the transactions that they enter into). Another assumption is that all the players are "enabled": physically, mentally, legally and financially available and capable to perform their parts as agreed between the players in each and every particular transaction. A hidden assumption is that the players evaluate themselves properly: that they know their strengths and weaknesses, that they have a balanced picture of themselves and realistic set of expectations, self esteem and self confidence to support that worldview (including a matching track record). Some allowance is made for "game theory" tactics: exaggeration, disinformation, even outright deception - but this allowance should not overshadow the merits of the transaction and its inherent sincerity.
• Trust related to the Economic horizon and context - the market players assume that the market will continue to exist as an inert system, unhindered by external factors (governments, geopolitics, global crises, changes in accounting policies, hyperinflation, new taxation - anything that could deflect the trajectory of the market). They, therefore, have an "investment or economic horizon" to look forward to and upon which they can base their decisions. They also have cultural, legal, technological and political contexts within which to operate. The underlying assumptions of stability are very much akin to the idealized models that scientists study in the accurate sciences (indeed, in economy as well).

When one or more of these basic building blocks of trust is fractured that the whole edifice of the market crumbles. Fragmentation ensues, more social and psychological than economic in nature. This is very typical of poor countries with great social and economic polarizations. It is also very typical of countries "in transition" (a polite way to describe a state of total shock and confusion). People adopt several reaction patterns to the breakdown in trust:

• Avoidance and isolation - they avoid contact with other people and adopt reclusive behaviour. The number of voluntary interactions decreases sharply.
• Corruption - People prefer shortcuts to economic benefits because of the collapse of the horizon trust (=they see no long term future and even doubt the very continued existence of the system).
• Crime - Criminal activity increases
• Fantastic and Grandiose delusions to compensate for a growing sense of uncertainty and fear and for a complex of inferiority. This nagging feeling of inferiority is the result of the internalization of the image of the people in their own eyes and in the eyes of others. This is a self-reinforcing mechanism (vicious circle). The results are under-confidence and a handicapped sense of self esteem. The latter undulates and fluctuates from overvaluation of one's self and others to devaluation of both.
• Hypermobility - People are not loyal to the economic cells within which they function. They switch a lot of jobs, for instance, or ignore contracts that they made. The concepts of exclusivity, the sanctity of promises, loyalty, future, a career path - all get eroded. As a result, there is no investment in the future (in the acquisition of skills or in long term investments, to give but two examples).
• Cognitive Dissonance - The collapse of the social and economic systems adversely affects the individual. One of the classic defence mechanisms is the cognitive dissonance. The person involved tells himself that he really chose and wanted his way of life, his decrepit environment, his low standard of living, etc. ("We are poor because we chose not to be like the inhuman West").
• The Pathological Envy - The Cognitive Dissonance is often coupled with a pathological envy (as opposed to benign jealousy). This is a destructive type of envy which seeks to deprive others of their successes and possessions. It is very typical of societies with a grossly unequal distribution of wealth.
• The Mentality (or the Historical) Defences - these are defence mechanisms which make use of an imagined mentality problem ("we are like that, we have been like this for ages now, nothing to do, we are deformed") - or build upon some historical pattern, or invented pattern ("we have been enslaved and submissive for five centuries - what can you expect").
• The Passive-Aggressive reaction: occurs mainly when the market players have no access to more legitimate and aggressive venues of reacting to their predicament or when they are predisposed to suppressing of aggression (or when they elect to not express it). The passive-aggressive reactions are "sabotage"-type reactions: slowing down of the work, "working by the book", absenteeism, stealing from the workplace, fostering and maintaining bureaucratic procedures and so on.
• The inability to postpone satisfaction - The players regress to a child-like state, demanding immediate satisfaction, unable to postpone it and getting frustrated, aggressive and deceiving if they are required to do so by circumstances. They engage in short term activities, some criminal, some dubious, some legitimate: trading and speculation, gambling, short termism.

Is My Money Safe? On The Soundness Of Our Banks

Banks are institutions wherein miracles happen regularly. We rarely entrust our money to anyone but ourselves - and our banks. Despite a very chequered history of mismanagement, corruption, false promises and representations, delusions and behavioural inconsistency - banks still succeed to motivate us to give them our money. Partly it is the feeling that there is safety in numbers. The fashionable term today is "moral hazard". The implicit guarantees of the state and of other financial institutions moves us to take risks which we would, otherwise, have avoided. Partly it is the sophistication of the banks in marketing and promoting themselves and their products. Glossy brochures, professional computer and video presentations and vast, shrine-like, real estate complexes all serve to enhance the image of the banks as the temples of the new religion of money.

But what is behind all this? How can we judge the soundness of our banks? In other words, how can we tell if our money is safely tucked away in a safe haven?

The reflex is to go to the bank's balance sheets. Banks and balance sheets have been both invented in their modern form in the 15th century. A balance sheet, coupled with other financial statements is supposed to provide us with a true and full picture of the health of the bank, its past and its long-term prospects. The surprising thing is that - despite common opinion - it does. The less surprising element is that it is rather useless unless you know how to read it.

Financial Statements (Income - aka Profit and Loss - Statement, Cash Flow Statement and Balance Sheet) come in many forms. Sometimes they conform to Western accounting standards (the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, GAAP, or the less rigorous and more fuzzily worded International Accounting Standards, IAS). Otherwise, they conform to local accounting standards, which often leave a lot to be desired. Still, you should look for banks, which make their updated financial reports available to you. The best choice would be a bank that is audited by one of the Big Six Western accounting firms and makes its audit reports publicly available. Such audited financial statements should consolidate the financial results of the bank with the financial results of its subsidiaries or associated companies. A lot often hides in those corners of corporate ownership.

Banks are rated by independent agencies. The most famous and most reliable of the lot is Fitch-IBCA. Another one is Thomson BankWatch-BREE. These agencies assign letter and number combinations to the banks, that reflect their stability. Most agencies differentiate the short term from the long term prospects of the banking institution rated. Some of them even study (and rate) issues, such as the legality of the operations of the bank (legal rating). Ostensibly, all a concerned person has to do, therefore, is to step up to the bank manager, muster courage and ask for the bank's rating. Unfortunately, life is more complicated than rating agencies would like us to believe. They base themselves mostly on the financial results of the bank rated, as a reliable gauge of its financial strength or financial profile. Nothing is further from the truth.

How to Write a Winning Business Plan

Anyone who has ever sought financing for their business from a financial institution knows that writing a business plan is a prerequisite to receiving any funding. To be considered for financing, most banks and other financial institutions such as venture capitalists will require a comprehensive and detailed business plan from which a thorough understanding of your existing or proposed business, your own goals and objectives and your financing requirements can be obtained.

Focus should be concentrated in some key areas, namely;

• The business
• The entrepreneurs
• The market
• The financial management and planning
• The risks and rewards.

We can provide you with a general guide to writing a business plan but always bear in mind that every business is unique and each plan needs to be tailored accordingly.

All the same, no business plan would be considered complete without the following

• A title page
• An executive summary
• Overview of the business
• Management
• The market
• Sales and marketing strategy
• Financial statements and projections
• Legal and regulatory environment
• Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and threats assessment (SWOT analysis)
• Supporting documentation

The Title Page

The title page should be short, precise and to the point. A good example would be'

"Funding Proposal For Acme Distributors Inc"

Thus, at first glance your banker or potential investor has a fairly good idea what the document you are handing them is all about.

Executive Summary

The most critical part of your business plan is the executive summary. Well written, it can win over a potential financier or investor without having to get into the 'nuts and bolts' which would normally be reserved for the rest of your plan.

It is a summary of the whole plan and captures the essence of what you have included in the various headings within the plan. The executive summary should be the last to write and it should be self explanatory without requiring the reader to refer to other pages of your business plan.

Why Consider Offshore Banking for Your Personal and Financial Privacy in this Post 9-11

The point is, by moving assets offshore, you regain control. Within the United States, you must play according to federal rules - rules that get a little less citizen-oriented every year. Offshore, there are entire jurisdictions organized to play by your rules. You design the game, and you get to be the winner

There are major concerns concerning privacy. You will hear a staggering number of horror stories from people whose lives have been indelibly marked by corporate and governmental intrusion.

If you're like many Americans, you probably assume that the Constitution ensures your unalienable right to privacy. Unfortunately, you're wrong. The Fourth Amendment - the national guarantee most often cited when people talk about confidentiality - specifies only that "the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause...."

The men of 1787 who drafted this legal tenet clearly meant to protect privacy as it pertained to property. They wanted a right to unthreatened ownership of land and personal possession. Our founding fathers lived in a world where people shared common norms of morality. They didn't need to sort through the questions that plague a global information-service economy. They didn't need to worry about how one man might decide to use (or share) private financial information about another. They didn't foresee an era in which sophisticated communication systems could instantaneously interact, calling up, comparing and exchanging information about you or me within a matter of several seconds.

In other words, they didn't foresee the 21st century post 9 /11. Today, the greatest threat to your individual privacy has nothing to do with property theft.

It has to do with access to information about you and your activities. Where you live and work, the names of your children, your medical and psychiatric history, your arrest record, the phone numbers you dial, the amount of money you earn, the way you earn it, and how you report it to Uncle Sam after if s yours - these are the information tidbits that will undoubtedly remain stored in lots of different places as long as you keep your money within U.S. borders.

An offshore financial involvement offers you and your family the one and only escape from this government-endorsed conspiracy. Just as you can legitimately make more money oversees than you could ever hope to earn in this country, you can also look forward to enjoying your foreign profits in an atmosphere of complete confidentiality. In money havens scattered from Hong Kong west to Aruba and south to the Netherlands Antilles, you can benefit from iron-clad secrecy laws that strictly forbid any bureaucratic review of your personal financial records. That means you can legally guard your assets from the overzealous inspection that has become part and parcel of U.S. banking and investment portfolio management.

E-Governance

1.INTRODUCTION:

World economies have recognized Information Technology as an effective tool in catalyzing the economic activity in efficient governance and in developing human resource. They have made significant investments in it and successfully integrated it with the development process, thereby reaping the benefits to their society. In India also, these developments have impacted the industrial, education, service and Government sectors and their influence on various applications is increasingly being felt of
late.

As the era of digital economy is evolving, the concept of governance has assumed significant importance. The e-Governance has consequently become an accepted methodology involving the use of Information Technology in improving transparency, providing information speedily to all citizens, improving administration efficiency and improving public services such as transportation, power, health, water, security and municipal services.

India has been harnessing the benefits provided by the Information & Communication
Technologies to provide integrated governance, reach to the citizens faster,provide efficient services and citizen empowerment through access to information. The aim is to redefine governance in the ICT age to provide Smart Governance. Several significant initiatives have been taken at the Centre and the State level in this direction. At the Central level, the government has extensively promoted the use of IT in managing
its internal processes and has drawn up a 'Minimum Agenda of e-Governance'. The
Ministries/Departments have provision of 2 to 3 percent of their annual budgets to be spent on IT related activities.

The Government has enacted IT Act 2000, which provides legal status to the information and transactions carried on the net. Several State Governments have also taken
various innovative steps to promote e-Governance and have drawn up a roadmap for IT implementation and delivery of services to the citizens online. The applications that have been implemented are targeted towards providing G2B, G2C and B2C services with emphasis on use of local language.

2.DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY'S INITIATIVES:

As part of the increased thrust on e-Governance, Ministry of Communications &
Information Technology, Department of Information Technology, Government of India
has set up a Centre for e-Governance (CEG) at its premises - Electronics Niketan in New Delhi.The Centre, first of its kind in the country,
showcases several e-Governance applications and solutions that have been successfully
deployed in various states and offers such other services like technical consultation, proof of concept and thematic presentations. Conducting programmes for creating awareness among decision makers in the Centre and State Governments and helping them in defining and
implementing process and policy changes for effective e-Governance are other important
objectives of the Centre.The primary activities of the Centre are:

1.INTRODUCTION:

World economies have recognized Information Technology as an effective tool in catalyzing the economic activity in efficient governance and in developing human resource. They have made significant investments in it and successfully integrated it with the development process, thereby reaping the benefits to their society. In India also, these developments have impacted the industrial, education, service and Government sectors and their influence on various applications is increasingly being felt of
late.

As the era of digital economy is evolving, the concept of governance has assumed significant importance. The e-Governance has consequently become an accepted methodology involving the use of Information Technology in improving transparency, providing information speedily to all citizens, improving administration efficiency and improving public services such as transportation, power, health, water, security and municipal services.

India has been harnessing the benefits provided by the Information & Communication
Technologies to provide integrated governance, reach to the citizens faster,provide efficient services and citizen empowerment through access to information. The aim is to redefine governance in the ICT age to provide Smart Governance. Several significant initiatives have been taken at the Centre and the State level in this direction. At the Central level, the government has extensively promoted the use of IT in managing
its internal processes and has drawn up a 'Minimum Agenda of e-Governance'. The
Ministries/Departments have provision of 2 to 3 percent of their annual budgets to be spent on IT related activities.

The Government has enacted IT Act 2000, which provides legal status to the information and transactions carried on the net. Several State Governments have also taken
various innovative steps to promote e-Governance and have drawn up a roadmap for IT implementation and delivery of services to the citizens online. The applications that have been implemented are targeted towards providing G2B, G2C and B2C services with emphasis on use of local language.

2.DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY'S INITIATIVES:

As part of the increased thrust on e-Governance, Ministry of Communications &
Information Technology, Department of Information Technology, Government of India
has set up a Centre for e-Governance (CEG) at its premises - Electronics Niketan in New Delhi.The Centre, first of its kind in the country,
showcases several e-Governance applications and solutions that have been successfully
deployed in various states and offers such other services like technical consultation, proof of concept and thematic presentations. Conducting programmes for creating awareness among decision makers in the Centre and State Governments and helping them in defining and
implementing process and policy changes for effective e-Governance are other important
objectives of the Centre.The primary activities of the Centre are:

Sometimes it is Better to Remain Silent Than to Speak Up and Remove All Doubt

A number of political class verbal missteps recently have reminded me of a favorite saying that goes something like the following:

"Sometimes it is better to remain silent and thought ignorant than to speak up and remove all doubt."

Politicians say the darndest things and continue to amaze me with their lack of knowledge of how the world and how reality work:

- With regard to the recent Arizona immigration law, Attorney General Holder testified before the Senate recently, "Sure there is a potential for challenging a law on its face and then challenging a law as it is applied." No problem here, as Attorney General of the entire United States, it is his job to make sure that laws are proper in light of the Constitution and other state and Federal laws. But, he did not close his mouth fast enough. When queried by a Senator on whether he had actually read the ten page Arizona law, he replied: "I have not had a chance to. I've glanced at it. I have not read it."

So, here is the top law enforcement officer in the country talking about filing suit against a sovereign state of the United States and he has not even read the law that he has a problem with! And, unlike Obama Care's 2,000+ pages, the Arizona law is only ten pages long. As a lawyer, I would think he could have read and understood the bill in less than a half hour. Thus, he looks extremely ignorant on two counts. First, you would have thought he would have taken the short amount of time to read the bill before testifying about the bill, under oath, before Congress. Second, he does not look unbiased in this matter since he has prejudged law that he has not even read.

- Consider the following quote from Joanna Doven, a spokesperson for the current Pittsburgh mayor, as reported in the June, 2010 issue of Reason magazine, pertaining to urban farming: "Anytime you see something growing and expanding and there are no rules, you need to regulate it." She acts as if government regulation is a good thing. The U.S. housing and banking industries are regulated by the Federal Housing Authority, Housing and Urban Development, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Senate banking and housing committees, House banking and housing committees, state level government regulatory agencies for banking and housing, the Federal Reserve Board, the Treasury Department, etc., and all this government regulation did was cause the housing market bubble, and then watch helplessly, as the housing and banking industries collapsed. Just as a side note, according to Fortune magazine's May 3, 2010 issue, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lost a combined $94 billion in 2009. Guess regulation did not work in this case.

Bridging Life

Residential bridging finance has been experiencing something of a renaissance in recent times. The "old" uses of bridging finance such as chain breaking and the day 1 remortgage are now more a distant memory, as the industry has been seriously keeping up to speed with all that has gone on around it.

Renovation and refurbishment, 100% of auction purchase, payment of tax bills and probate property transactions are all recent examples of where bridging finance is being used nowadays. If you use a good bridging lender who also provides second charge facilities, then there really is no better way to gain short term funding.

There have been casualties along the way in the last few years, as indeed there has wherever you look in all aspects of business. The positive spin to come from all this however is the emergence of a new breed of bridging finance providers who are leaner, hungrier and who will "take a view" on a deal as opposed to treating it as a tick box exercise.

So, all is rosy in the bridging finance world? Well, nearly. There is of course the spectre of regulation looming over all of our non regulated heads. What does it mean, where will it go, what will happen? The general consensus of opinion is that the bridging finance market will be regulated at some point, but with all the uncertainty in the financial industry and indeed the political arena, quite when this will be is anyone's guess.

The role of the broker in residential bridging finance is more important now than ever before. In past times the brokers role was easily defined, as all he or she had to do was highlight a client who required short term funding, and then almost let nature take its course and let the bridging finance provider do the rest.

The exit route is a much tougher aspect to all bridging loans in these days of post crunch, with virtually no sub prime lenders around, which takes out the refinance option for those with a poor credit history. Then there is the residential market which has tightened LTV's and criteria for the man in the street consumer as well as the BTL professional landlord.

So what should a broker be doing to ease the path of the client through a bridging loan?

Firstly, establish the real reason the client needs a bridging loan. Bridging loans are in essence short term finance for a client who needs to create liquidity quickly. So whether the client needs to raise money for a tax bill, or needs funds to finish a self build project, or, has put their hand up in an auction and has 28 days to find the rest of the purchase price, is bridging the best, and most cost efficient answer for them?

Often the answer is yes, but does the broker know the best way of finding out the real answer? Most lenders lend their bridging funds at anything between 1 and 2% per month, but the client wants to know what the "deal cost" is going to be. The monthly interest rate is only one small aspect of the overall cost of the loan. What about the arrangement fee, application fee, valuation and legal costs? Is there an exit fee, are there early repayment charges? Is the interest applied monthly or daily, and of course what is the broker themselves charging the client?

If the overall "deal cost" of borrowing the money is acceptable to the client, then it is the brokers prerogative to then source which company will actually complete on the deal. Many bridging loan providers will say they will happily take the deal on, then at the last minute change their mind or go cold on the deal thus costing the client money, and more importantly time.

Basic Financial Concepts

The whole concept of interconnection among the factors of money, risk, and time comprise the sphere of finance. The chief catalysts and triggers behind the endowment of money are done by banks, which provide credit. However, today, hedge and mutual funds, private equity and other instruments are increasingly becoming important as similar facilitators. Averting and restricting threats in finance are done by means of impeccable scrutiny and attention to detail while dealing with investments, which are known as financial assets. Securitized versions of these investments can be traded with securities exchanges, through various financial channels.

The fundamental idea behind the operations of finance all through the world depends on the fact that any body, unit, or organization that spends less that it earns is capable of loaning or putting up that extra money or asset for further investment. If, conversely, anybody, unit, or organization spends more than it earns, it usually tries to augment its capital asset by taking loans or putting up for sale its assets, in order to reduce its spending and enhancing its earning. The entity which loans money usually has two options, either it can directly buy currency or other assets like bonds from the market, or find some go-between entity like a bank which will take the loan from it. The interest collected for this loan, is much more than the one that the actual lender gets, as the difference goes to the go-between.

The major concept of the world of finance works on the basis that a financial instrument like a bank brings together and synchronizes loaning and borrowing functions, of dissimilar proportions sizes, while getting reimbursed with assets for the jobs done.

The organization and administration of businesses around the world are centered on the pivotal notion of finance, without proper controlling and plan of which a new business or even an old one might falter. Be it a man or an organization, any entity's finance is vital for the guarantee of its flourishing prospects.

Finance can be of many kinds, the most important of which would be personal and corporate. The concept of personal finance depends on the quantity of money a person or his or her family requires at a particular time and the actual way that they can keep themselves afloat during adverse and unpredicted conditions, related to personal or impersonal exterior situation. The idea behind corporate finance depends on the provision of capital money for an organization's functions, keeping steady its threats and profits, to augment the company's income and worth. Some other kinds of finance include public finance that deals with money or funds related to a nation, a town, district, or any other form of political and geographical entity while there is also the concept of experimental finance that tries to institute diverse backdrops or conditions of the financial market in order to monitor under investigational circumstances, and offer a specific view, by means of which financial analysts can examine properly the activities of negotiators and the subsequent nature of particular movement of assets through trading, data dissemination and collection, machinery that fixes costs, and returns procedures.

Funding For Your Business

Raising Finance for a start up business or securing expansion finance for an established business can be an overwhelming experience.

There are various sources of external finance available such as relatively simple overdraft facilities or European Grant funding programs which require detailed applications. Although taking on an additional financial commitment can be daunting, the rewards for the growth of your business can be substantial.

This article details all of the various options open to you should you want to raise finance for the growth of your business.

OVERDRAFTS

Overdrafts are one of the most common short-term sources of finance available. They provide a simple and effective way of financing the growth of your business. If your business has a good credit history, your bank will require little information from you to secure a short-term overdraft. Once they have the confidence that you are able to pay it back, the additional borrowing can be instant. It is important that you use the overdraft facility wisely to minimize the cost. Charges for exceeding overdraft limits can be substantial. Use it for seasonal fluctuations in sales, not long term financing.

Why overdrafts?

They are simple and relatively easy to set up.

You only pay interest on the amount you use.

It's the Economy, Stupid

Maybe Bill Clinton was right in his first campaign for the presidency when he promoted a slogan that pushed economic issues to the top of his agenda. Since then, they have been eclipsed and, for years, the fallout from 911, the debate over the Iraq war, and the focus on the impact of the Bush presidency have dominated our attention. But now, economic issues are back with the intensity of a hurricane. They cannot be ignored. And speaking of hurricanes, Senator Chris Dodd has called the sub prime scandal "a 50-state Katrina." In the epicenter of this storm are two words that have tended to be buried: credit and debt.

Usually, when we hear about economic distress, it takes place in someone else's country; often in Africa or some place you have never visited, conjuring up images of desperation and sadness. The same is true when you hear about debt. When rock stars like Bono or Bob Geldof crusade for debt relief, they are doing so, however successfully - and there is a big debate about that - around conditions in what we used to call the Third World and what others refer to as "Developing" Countries, even when they aren't.

What is more rarely discussed is economic deprivation and exploitation in our own country and what we think of as "the West." We may hear stories about individuals with problems, but we rarely hear about deeper economic forces and the institutions that create and perpetuate the problems. Discussions of how our own economy has been transformed in a way that accelerates deep economic inequality and all the suffering that flows from it have been minimal.

Beyond that, there had been an assumption, almost a subtext, in much of the reporting on our economy, that its market system somehow reflected the national order of the universe, the human species' greatest contribution to stability and prosperity. This ideological overlay, sometimes explicit, often just implied, colored our understanding and contributed to a sense of confidence, or should I say false confidence?

In just the short period, three years, in which I began investigating these issues, from 2005 to early 2008, there has been a tectonic shift with the financial system melting down. This has produced convulsive strains in an interconnected, or as the analysts say, "entangled", system, as well as losses in the trillions, and continuing uncertainty on whether or not we can avoid disaster.

The Sickly State of Public Hospitals

There are many types of hospitals but the most well known are the Public Hospitals. What sets them apart is that they provide services to the indigent (people without means) and to minorities.

Historically, public hospitals started as correction and welfare centres. They were poorhouses run by the church and attached to medical schools. A full cycle ensued: communities established their own hospitals which were later taken over by regional authorities and governments - only to be returned to the management of communities nowadays. Between 1978 and 1995 a 25% decline ensued in the number of public hospitals and those remaining were transformed to small, rural facilities.

In the USA, less than one third of the hospitals are in cities and only 15% had more than 200 beds. The 100 largest hospitals averaged 581 beds.

A debate rages in the West: should healthcare be completely privatized - or should a segment of it be left in public hands?

Public hospitals are in dire financial straits. 65% of the patients do not pay for medical services received by them. The public hospitals have a legal obligation to treat all. Some patients are insured by national medical insurance plans (such as Medicare/Medicaid in the USA, NHS in Britain). Others are insured by community plans.

The other problem is that this kind of patients consumes less or non profitable services. The service mix is flawed: trauma care, drugs, HIV and obstetrics treatments are prevalent - long, patently loss making services.

The more lucrative ones are tackled by private healthcare providers: hi tech and specialized services (cardiac surgery, diagnostic imagery).

Public hospitals are forced to provide "culturally competent care": social services, child welfare. These are money losing operations from which private facilities can abstain. Based on research, we can safely say that private, for profit hospitals, discriminate against publicly insured patients. They prefer young, growing, families and healthier patients. The latter gravitate out of the public system, leaving it to become an enclave of poor, chronically sick patients.

This, in turn, makes it difficult for the public system to attract human and financial resources. It is becoming more and more destitute.

Poor people are poor voters and they make for very little political power.

Public hospitals operate in an hostile environment: budget reductions, the rapid proliferation of competing healthcare alternatives with a much better image and the fashion of privatization (even of safety net institutions).

Public hospitals are heavily dependent on state funding. Governments foot the bulk of the healthcare bill. Public and private healthcare providers pursue this money. In the USA, potential consumers organized themselves in Healthcare Maintenance Organizations (HMOs). The HMO negotiates with providers (=hospitals, clinics, pharmacies) to obtain volume discounts and the best rates through negotiations. Public hospitals - underfunded as they are - are not in the position to offer them what they want. So, they lose patients to private hospitals.

Some Simple Guidelines - Understanding How to Start a Non-Profit Organization

Greetings,

Forming a nonprofit corporation is very similar to forming a regular corporation. Tax-exemption, grants & personal liability protection are the most important reasons to incorporate a nonprofit group. There are many more benefits to being a nonprofit.

There are two important benefits for forming a nonprofit, tax-exempt status and personal liability protection.

Note:

Obtaining nonprofit status is usually a requirement for obtaining funds from government granting agencies.

Some key steps just prior to formation to keep in mind,

Begin with a broad charitable purpose that motivates yourself or your group of concerned citizens.

Recruit members who support the charitable purpose that will help develop a body of individuals with diverse qualities and resources that can aid you or your group in satisfying this purpose.

Draft a mission statement that further refines your broad charitable purpose while providing your founding body of individuals with some realistic and concrete objectives toward which they may direct its collective energies. This mission statement is the first step toward the implementation of a nonprofit organization to achieve the goals of the founding body.

Survey potential funding sources (including local, state, and federal government sources, private foundations and other grant providers) to determine the availability of funds to conduct the mission statement of the new nonprofit organization.

Obtain some "startup finances" to enable your new nonprofit organization to obtain some professional services (e.g., legal, accounting, etc.).

Solicit a list of interested individuals from within your founding body interested in becoming the initial Board of Directors of the new nonprofit organization.

Seek assistance to incorporate the founding body into a nonprofit corporation by drafting a Certificate of Incorporation.

Draft a set of corporate bylaws, which will serve as the procedure that the Board of Directors will utilize to make decisions on behalf of the corporation.

Hold an organizational meeting. You must hold an organizational meeting to formally create the nonprofit corporation. At this meeting the bylaws should be adopted, the Board of Directors should be elected, and all other relevant business should be conducted

General guideline for nonprofit incorporation and tax exemption status:

(Optional) Clear and reserve the name of the corporation with the Secretary of State's office.

Draft articles of incorporation and file them with the Secretary of State's office. The articles of incorporation announce the formation of the corporation and give its broad purposes. Note: It's best to correlate the language regarding tax exemption status herein the articles of incorporation to match the language later when filing the forms for tax exemption.

Register your nonprofit's name (including a "fictitious business name").

Draft and adopt bylaws for the corporation. The bylaws are the "constitution" of the organization setting the ground rules and operating procedures for the activities and conduct of the corporation. Actions taken in violation of the bylaws also may be declared invalid or challenged, which could hurt the organization. It is very important for organizations to comply with their bylaws in order to protect their corporate status and the limitation of liability that comes with it.

Apply for tax-exempt status from the federal and state government.

Obtain business licenses and permits for your corporation from federal, State & local governments.

Hold the first meeting of the board. The directors must approve certain activities necessary to set up and run the nonprofit's operations. Giving specified people ("officers") the authority to do those things.
Other alternatives to accomplishing your vision and goals:

Study a list of nonprofits already active in the same area. Consider joining their efforts as a volunteer, a board member or even as staff.

Analyze a list of nonprofits already active in the area, identify the three most compatible with your ideas, and explore creating a special project or initiative & negotiate your involvement.

If your goals will be quite local and small, consider forming an unincorporated association or club, have meetings & activities skipping the reporting requirements (an option for groups with annual budgets under $25,000).

Warning: Your Bumper Sticker Might Be Illegal

John McCain and his love for the government nanny state has struck once again. Now because Mr. McCain and many other politicians are not capable of exhibiting self control your bumper sticker might land you a letter of admonishment or worse from Big Daddy government. Why are you laughing? Oh ye of little faith in our power hungry bureaucrats! Do you not know the lengths to which our politicians will go to shred the Constitution and our basic rights as Americans?

Kirk Shelmerdine, formerly one of NASCAR's greatest crew chiefs and since turned struggling driver, has already been attacked by government bureaucrats empowered by Mr. McCain. You see, Mr. Shelmerdine is not exactly a driver who has sponsors falling over themselves to plaster their brand name on his racecar. He is perpetually at the back of the pack in any race he manages to qualify for and about the only time the cameras or the crowd even look at him is when he is getting lapped by the race leader.

Overall he is not what we would call a "good investment" if you know what I mean.

So during the 2004 race season and during the last Presidential election he decided to slap a Bush/Cheney 2004 bumper sticker on his race car to fill up some of the empty space. Well that was simply too much for one Sydnor Thompson! Comrade Thompson, as he shall now be known, simply could not deal with someone else practicing their free speech. So he filed a complaint which basically boiled down to how dare Mr. Shelmerdine be allowed to do use the first amendment.

The FEC graciously spared Mr. Shelmerdine a fine. But they did admonish him. How nice. Maybe our government masters can be even more gracious and let him have an extra log for the fire too?

Where do we go from here? Companies pay thousands of dollars for billboards and other outdoor advertising after all. So your back bumper must have some value and it just might exceed an arbitrary limit and trigger a violation of campaign finance laws.

The answer is as obvious as ugly is on Helen Thomas. We need a new government bureaucracy! We'll call it the Bureau for the Establishment of Noticing Deficiency with Obedience to Vehicle Election Regulations or BEND OVER for short.

BEND OVER will set up government stations where you will be required to report to each month during a presidential campaign. To keep costs down however we will only have one per state. You'll just have to deal with driving several hours to get to your state's facility.

Once there and after inching your way up through the line a government bureaucrat not even capable of asking "would like fries with that" and holding down a real job will inspect your vehicle. He or she (or possibly it?) will take a mandatory two hours to check every inch of your vehicle with a high powered magnifying glass for political advertisements and endorsements. Luckily these only cost the taxpayers $500,000 each due to a bulk discount.

If your car is deemed not have such things you will be free to go; after paying a $500 inspection fee of course. However if you do have a bumper sticker or other form of political endorsement anywhere on your vehicle it will be duly noted in triplicate. At this point its exact size will be measured by three other government bureaucrats.

They will then retire into committee to discuss the exact size of said political advertisement while consulting thousands of pages of guidelines. Some of the regulations will obviously contradict each other so only those regulations that will maximize your potential violations will be used while all others are discarded.

If these bureaucrats are unable to agree upon the actual size, your vehicle will be impounded for up to six months while lesser qualified but higher ranking bureaucrats are consulted. Where do you think you are going? You will not be allowed to leave the facility. Instead you will be placed under arrest for the potential violation of campaign finance laws. At the end of those six months if there is still no agreement your car may be impounded for another six months repeating this cycle until consensus is achieved.

Public Procurement and Very Private Benefits

In every national budget, there is a part called "Public Procurement". This is the portion of the budget allocated to purchasing services and goods for the various ministries, authorities and other arms of the executive branch. It was the famous management consultant, Parkinson, who once wrote that government officials are likely to approve a multi-billion dollar nuclear power plant much more speedily that they are likely to authorize a hundred dollar expenditure on a bicycle parking device. This is because everyone came across 100 dollar situations in real life - but precious few had the fortune to expend with billions of USD.

This, precisely, is the problem with public procurement: people are too acquainted with the purchased items. They tend to confuse their daily, household-type, decisions with the processes and considerations which should permeate governmental decision making. They label perfectly legitimate decisions as "corrupt" - and totally corrupt procedures as "legal" or merely "legitimate", because this is what was decreed by the statal mechanisms, or because "this is the law".

Procurement is divided to defence and non-defence spending. In both these categories - but, especially in the former - there are grave, well founded, concerns that things might not be all what they seem to be.

Government - from India's to Sweden's to Belgium's - fell because of procurement scandals which involved bribes paid by manufacturers or service providers either to individual in the service of the state or to political parties. Other, lesser cases, litter the press daily. In the last few years only, the burgeoning defence sector in Israel saw two such big scandals: the developer of Israel's missiles was involved in one (and currently is serving a jail sentence) and Israel's military attache to Washington was implicated - though, never convicted - in yet another.

But the picture is not that grim. Most governments in the West succeeded in reigning in and fully controlling this particular budget item. In the USA, this part of the budget remained constant in the last 35(!) years at 20% of the GDP.

There are many problems with public procurement. It is an obscure area of state activity, agreed upon in "customized" tenders and in dark rooms through a series of undisclosed agreements. At least, this is the public image of these expenditures.

The truth is completely different.

True, some ministers use public money to build their private "empires". It could be a private business empire, catering to the financial future of the minister, his cronies and his relatives. These two plagues - cronyism and nepotism - haunt public procurement. The spectre of government official using public money to benefit their political allies or their family members - haunts public imagination and provokes public indignation.

Then, there are problems of plain corruption: bribes or commissions paid to decision makers in return for winning tenders or awarding of economic benefits financed by the public money. Again, sometimes these moneys end in secret bank accounts in Switzerland or in Luxembourg. At other times, they finance political activities of political parties. This was rampantly abundant in Italy and has its place in France. The USA, which was considered to be immune from such behaviours - has proven to be less so, lately, with the Bill Clinton alleged election financing transgressions.

But, these, with all due respect to "clean hands" operations and principles, are not the main problems of public procurement.

The first order problem is the allocation of scarce resources. In other words, prioritizing. The needs are enormous and ever growing. The US government purchases hundreds of thousands of separate items from outside suppliers. Just the list of these goods - not to mention their technical specifications and the documentation which accompanies the transactions - occupies tens of thick volumes. Supercomputers are used to manage all these - and, even so, it is getting way out of hand. How to allocate ever scarcer resources amongst these items is a daunting - close to impossible - task. It also, of course, has a political dimension. A procurement decision reflects a political preference and priority. But the decision itself is not always motivated by rational - let alone noble - arguments. More often, it is the by product and end result of lobbying, political hand bending and extortionist muscle. This raises a lot of hackles among those who feel that were kept out of the pork barrel. They feel underprivileged and discriminated against. They fight back and the whole system finds itself in a quagmire, a nightmare of conflicting interests. Last year, the whole budget in the USA was stuck - not approved by Congress - because of these reactions and counter-reactions.

Dental Tourism - An Alternative For High Cost Dental Procedures

Dental tourism is an industry that has seen an explosion in growth in recent years to answer an ever expanding question.

How does one get the dental care that you need at an affordable cost?

If you are one of the few that have employer provided dental insurance consider yourself fortunate indeed. But the fact is that most employers' at best provide inadequate dental plans that cover routine and minor procedures.

For more major dental work many people have to bare the cost themselves by digging deep into their pockets and for those who can qualify, many dentist provide financing. Then there is a large number of people that will simply ignore serious problems until they can no longer do so. Let's face it, a visit to the dentist can be expensive

Dental tourism is nothing new. For many years Americans have been going to Mexican border towns like Tijuana and Juarez in search of getting lower cost and high quality dental care. For decades one can find "deals" on procedures like dentures, affordable dental implants, crowns, root canals,etc. Other countries offer similar types of dentistry as well.

In fact it is not uncommon to see tourist in countries like Costa Rica combining a vacation package centered around a major dental implant procedure

Benefits of Dental Tourism

Low Cost

The most obvious benefit is cost. The cost of health-care is a prime political issue and the cost of major dental procedures like dental implant surgery do not seem to be going down anytime soon, but at a fraction of the cost one can receive the same procedure in a foreign country

Quality and Safety

In many countries like India, Thailand and Brazil the government see dental tourism as a draw for traveler's and work closely with public heath organizations in establishing guidelines for safety and quality. Many dentist are trained in the U.S. as well as Australia, U.K. and Canada

Still you must take into consideration that even though you can find a dentist abroad at a low cost for the procedure that you want done, any surgery can have complications and in these situations knowing that the dentist is in your neighborhood is priceless

With more international health companies getting involved with delivering these types of services worldwide, the dental tourism industry shows no signs of dying off making this type of dentistry a valuable alternative to the high cost that you would have to pay at home

Politics and Hydrocooperation

Environmental deficiencies, not abundances, explain the development of irrigation technologies - and irrigation permitted the emergence of urban civilization. One anthropologist states, "the remarkable truth concerning the origins of sophisticated agricultural economy and urban civilization within the ancient world was its area in regions of limited in drinking water supply".

Researchers have noted how the quantity of available water may be paramount in determining the sociopolitical structures. For example, the temperate and humid climate along European rivers did not force population nucleation and therefore urban civilization appeared late. Others suggest that the continual shifting of centers of power in Mesopotamian background had been connected using the degradation of irrigation systems as nicely as military and economic situations.

Wittfogel (1956) attributed the growth of centralized bureaucracy and autocratic rule to growing connection of water through irrigation and navigation. The combination of hydraulic agriculture, a hydraulic government, plus a single-centered society constitutes the institutional essence of hydraulic civilization.

This permitted an accumulation of rural and urban populations that, though paralleled inside a couple of nonhydraulic territories of small-scale irrigation, such as Japan, has not been matched by the higher agrarian civilizations based on rainfall farming.

These hydraulic civilizations covered a vastly larger proportion of the surface of the globe than all other substantial agrarian civilizations used together. Other research workers support these views. Some note that the centralized authority of Sasanid rule, within the Sistan region, which can be within the southwestern corner of present Afghanistan, created the establishment of a complex irrigation network possible.

This was the region wherever Zarathushtra discovered refuge (Gyuk, 1977). Others argue that the capability to manage drinking water lies at the middle of vigorous debate more than the rise and fall with the Mayan civilizations. They theorize that intense agriculture, coupled with centralized drinking water management, most likely needed a high degree of social group.

They use archaeological work at Tikal as evidence to additional speculate that lack of adequate water reserves in drought, instead of military or political conflict, may have triggered abandonment of lowlands (Booth, 1991). At the other end with the spectrum, research workers talk of how online community irrigation engendered a democratic spirit and a feeling of online community (Glick, 1970).

For instance, sixteenth and seventeenth-century Spanish irrigation was generally initiated, organized, financed, built, and maintained by local communities. Some suggest that the change in political organization toward higher or lesser centralization may better be observed as social responses to environmental degradation.

Even though initial responses to increased environmental degradation might have been elevated centralization, long term degradation resulted in decentralization. Communities have moved from sedentary farming to nomadic pastoralism and back. The conclusion is that irrigation in and of by itself does not necessitate political centralization. Also political centralization doesn't require the use of canal irrigation. In fact, the main civilizations seem to have experienced repeated expansions and collapses of political empires (Lees, 1973).

The Wittfogel thesis may be accustomed to partially explain the development with the irrigated western United States. The western United States is seen as an example of the motion to large-scale bureaucracy, if not centralization of arid societies, based on large-scale irrigation (Worster, 1992). Another political scientist finds that regardless of which political framework is utilized, distributive techniques, collective goods and so forth, the outcomes are the same.

Those with energy will obtain the access to the drinking water whether through prices, participation, or, administrative procedures (Ingram, 1990). This is definitely borne out in American literature and films dealing with western drinking water, such as the Milagro Beanfield War (Nichols, 1974) and Chinatown (1974).

One of the primary reasons that no more entities like the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) had been begun within the United Says is because of the resistance from other large-scale water bureaucracies, which felt threatened (Leuchtenburg, 1952). By implication this notion of irrigation's tendency to large bureaucracy, or "impulse to empire," is sometimes extended towards the history of foreign help given by Western nations.

Some of that help, in part, helped create "clones" of large-scale irrigation bureaucracies, which today are now being asked to change. But strong community and participatory traditions have also flourished amid the large-scale motion of bureaucratic irrigation discussed above. For instance, in the United Says, there's a rich history of farmers' associations.

The Soil Conservation Support (SCS), which was the child of the large central bureaucracy, existed to foster community administration of soil. The agricultural extension services are another this kind of instance. Likewise, small-scale drinking water markets and trading have also flourished throughout the arid areas. Even the U.S. examples are greatest understood, like significantly of what we know historically, like a mixed program.

Making the physical water infrastructure in a collaborative and participatory way is now an important signifies for building the civic infrastructure and also the civil culture, or what numerous call the governance atmosphere.Water source management, with its existing debates over markets, pricing, planning, participation, and environmental assessment, is a meeting ground for these forces.

Such issues have historically been at the middle of drinking water means administration and also the rise and fall of civilizations. The fountains of old Rome, like standpipes in little villages these days or medieval cities of Europe, played roles in building civic lifestyle, as nicely as to quench thirst.

They have turn out to be occasions for civic dialogue and meeting locations central to creating sense of civic belonging and responsibility. Indeed the fountain was truly a civic function. It was the gathering place of the nations, believers and unbelievers. We ought to not forget that civil society, civic culture, and civil engineering share commons roots.

Whether it be irrigation associations, online community drinking water and sewage, as well as large-scale multipurpose river operations, water management forces us to connect and balance rights and responsibilities. Although this process is imperfect, balancing is undertaken, and the physical exercise is frequently useful in and of by itself.

Most democratic theorists see the experience of this kind of balancing as central to development of civic culture (Barber, 1985). Today there are many signs of how particular technologies are subtly transforming conflict resolution, negotiations, and choice dynamics in water conflicts.

What is the Role of the Finance Director?

Large corporations don't thrive by themselves. Without the help of a financial officer many corporations would not be where they are. Corporations need men and women who are experienced in the world of finance to assist them in expanding their business by using their skills to manage the corporate funds. Many accredited online colleges and universities offer degree distinctions in finance with the goal of gaining a career in corporate finance.

As a financial consultant or manager the career goal is to take into consideration the corporation's goals and resources to make suggestions on what they can do to continue to grow financially. The management side to the career involves one on one work with the corporation. One priority is to manage people by creating good teamwork and solving financial problems as they arise. Gaining an education enables students to understand the operations of all the departments within their corporation to make detailed, helpful, and financially secure decisions.

The minimum requirement to work within the industry is a bachelor's degree. Students do have the option of continuing education until they obtain a PhD, which will translate into high-level careers. The trend within the field is to earn a master's degree while working. Online instruction in this particular field is beneficial for that purpose because most individuals can't take time off of work to go back to school. Earning an online degree in this area allows students to work through a program at their own pace, and study from the comfort of their own home. A corporate finance career will specifically teach students how to find the funds to run a corporation, grow it, create acquisitions, establish a solid financial future, and manage the money currently used and relied upon by the corporation.

A typical bachelor's degree will require a student to complete 120 credit hours. In a corporate finance major students will learn to understand financial arrangements and contracts. Courses teach students how to apply that understanding to a business. Students will also be taught how to manage and analyze foreign exchange of cash and capital budget in a global environment. Working through a set curriculum, students will be able to create strategies to achieve specific financial goals and integrate financial issues with the corporate policies.

Specific courses that will advance the knowledge of a student who wants to be a corporate financial consultant include the global marketplace, global strategy, financial accounting, management, organizational communication, and more. A global marketplace course will teach students how to compete in a global environment and create a marketing mix that will be successful globally. Within this course students will establish a strong foundation in the field by studying political, social, economic, and technological factors that pertain to the global market. An important course students will take is management. This course focuses on the fundamental procedures that make up a manager's job in a corporate setting. Students will learn five primary principles, which include decision-making, planning, organizing, controlling, and innovating. Each topic will be covered in depth and prepare students for the professional industry.

Use your passion for management and numbers by staring your accredited education today. Search out online corporate finance programs that will fit your schedule. Enter a fulfilling career by enrolling now.

House Buying Procedure in France

So, you've searched the papers, internet or estate agents and found your dream house in France. It's within your budget and in the area you want. The next step is to either to send an Independent Viewing Consultant to view and report on your behalf, or for you to make your own arrangements with the seller or agent and view yourself.

When viewing, be polite of course, but try and remain impartial. If you appear too eager and excited, you may find negotiations trickier if you decide to buy, and you may not get much off the asking price. Try and find a couple of faults in the property to aid with negotiations.

If you send out an Independent Consultant, his reports will always be totally impartial and without bias, so you will be able to get a clearer view of the property status.
Once viewing is complete and you have decided that this is the property you want, what to do next? How does house buying in France work? What should be expected?

What follows is a basic overview of the house buying procedure in France.
Firstly, of course, you need to make an offer. The asking price will be in euros, and may or may not include immobliers (French name for estate agent) fees. Generally these fees are included, but it is always advisable to find out if the price does include those fees as it is the buyer who pays for it. Notaire's fees, however, are never included in the price, so you should make allowances for this.

Attempt to negotiate a lower price, it's always worthwhile, and if the seller is desperate to sell, they may accept a much lower figure.

While your offer is under consideration, it is advisable for you to get an experts opinion regarding the structural state of the property. Although building surveys are not normally done in France, it is still possible to get one as there are some surveyors in France. Use the internet or French property magazines to search for more. If you decide not to get a survey done, you can at least get a registered builder to check the property out for you and he will highlight any potential problem areas.

If you need a mortgage, now's the time to start the ball rolling. You cannot apply for a mortgage until you have a contract, but you can add the words 'purchase of property subject to obtaining a mortgage' into it which covers you while you try to get finance. You must make reasonable attempts to receive finance as this is not an easy get out clause. Also note that notaires normally make an extra charge for registering mortgage holder's interests.

As previously stated, the notaire is the lawyer in charge of the legal aspects of the sale of the property. The notaire acts for both parties and is impartial and unbiased. The buyer pays the notaire's fees and relevant taxes, which is generally 7 to 8% of the agreed purchase price of the property.

So, a price on the property has been agreed. The immoblier (or the sellers, if an immoblier hasn't been used) prepare a document called the 'Compromis de Vente' (Promise to Buy). This is the contract. Both parties sign this. It can include certain conditions such as 'subject to mortgage being secured', 'obtaining planning permission', 'termite inspection being clear', 'any repairs to be undertaken by the sellers' and so on.

You will need to provide your passport, marriage and divorce papers as applicable, birth certificates and details on your mortgage should you be applying for one.

Most contracts generally include an asbestos, termite and lead report which are obtained by the sellers.

All contracts normally contain a seven day cooling off period in which the buyer can withdraw without penalty. The seller, however, cannot. Should you wish to withdraw, a registered letter must be received by the notaire within the cooling off period.

A deposit for the property is normally made at time of signing the Compromis de Vente, although sometimes it is paid at the end of the cooling off period and is generally around 10% of the purchase price. This amount is paid to the notaire and never to the seller. It is important to note that should you withdraw from the sale after the cooling off period, you could lose this deposit.

Once the Compromis de Vente has been signed, the property is taken off the market making gazumping impossible.

The search process begins after the cooling off period and the notaire will search for things like rights of way; lead, termite and asbestos surveys; property boundaries and ownership. All searches are included within the notaires fees.

The sale of a property in France generally takes around three months from the signing of the Compromis de Vente. Before completion (the Acte de Vente, the act of sale), the balance of monies, including legal fees, must be paid into the notaires bank account before the completion date. You will be given notification of this amount by letter by the notaire. If you fail to put the money into the notaires account in time, you could lose your deposit and the sale.

It is also advisable to inspect the property on the day of completion before settlement, as the sale is 'sold as seen on the selling date'.

The Acte de Vente is concluded in the notaires office and you will be required to attend along with the sellers. If you cannot make it in person, it is possible for you to appoint a power of attorney and send in your place. It is also possible for an independent translator to attend if your French is not up to it. Upon completion, you will be given the keys to your new property in France. The title deeds are generally kept by the notaire, but you can request an authorized copy.

Be aware, that as soon as you become the owner, you are legally bound to having the property insured.

Typical Costs Associated With Cheek Augmentation Procedures

Thousands of cheek augmentations are performed each year. All have different prices, depending on the quality of the surgeon, the average prices in the area, and the specific type of procedure being performed.

In order to get the most accurate quote on a cheek augmentation surgery, you will need to consult with a local plastic surgeon. When you're trying to set up an appointment, ask your friends and colleagues for references. Your face is such an important part of who you are that you should only trust the best.

How It Works

Before we really talk about the cost of a cheek augmentation procedure, you need to understand how it works. Before doing anything else, you will have to participate in an initial consultation. You will tell the surgeon about your desires and expectations (make a list before you go into the office!), and he will evaluate your skin and take your medical history in order to provide the best recommendations for you.

After determining that a cheek augmentation procedure is feasible, many surgeons will use a computer system to show you the possible changes to your appearance. You will agree on the desired look, and make plans for your surgery. Never okay a look or a plan that you are not completely comfortable with; if you are uncomfortable with the doctor or his plan, politely tell him that you need some time to think it over. You may even want to visit a couple of surgeons before making your final decision, though you will have to pay two initial consultation fees, which usually run around $150.

After making your selection, you will probably visit the front office where the office manager or one of the staff will go over the estimated cost of the procedure. They will also tell you whether your insurance will consider paying any of the cost, and whether they have a financing program. Make sure you get all estimates and instructions in writing so that you know exactly what you are agreeing to do.

The Typical Cost

The average cost across the United States for a cheek augmentation is between $2500 and $3000. Remember, though, if you are choosing the very best surgeon, he will likely charge significantly more. Additionally, this estimate does not include anesthesia or facility fees. With those included the procedure will most likely cost from $3000 up to $8000.

Insurance Coverage

In general, cheek augmentation is considered to be a cosmetic procedure, and insurance companies do not pay for cosmetic surgeries. You should plan to pay the entire cost, including the initial consultation fee (on average, it's around $150), out of pocket.

If you have been in a serious accident, you have dental problems requiring correction that has caused the problem, or your child has a birth defect, insurance may consider covering part or all of the procedure. You will need to talk to the insurance and get their agreement in writing concerning what they are willing to pay.

Insurance companies, however, can sometimes be very intimidating. If you need extra help finding out the terms of your insurance, most doctors' offices are more than happy to help you.

International Business Finance

Many firms are interested in investing and seeking finance from foreign sources and exporting goods and services to foreign countries. Overseas involvement of firms is increasing, and this trend is expected to continue. This has been stimulated by a variety of forces. First is the change in the international monetary system from a fairly predictable system of exchange to a flexible and volatile system of exchange. Second is, emergence of new institutions and markets, particularly the Eurocurrency markets, and a greater need for international financial intermediation.

In 1971, the US dollar was unlinked from gold or allowed to "float". This brought about a dramatic change in the international monetary system. The system of fixed exchange rates where devaluations and revaluations occurred only very rarely, gave way to a system of floating exchange rates.

The distinguishing characteristics of international business finance are multiple currencies, differential taxation and barriers to financial flows. Of these, the multiple currency factor and the attendant issue of exchange rates has received considerable attention, particularly in recent years. An exchange rate represents the relationship between two currencies.

The procedure for evaluating a foreign investment in international business finance consists of identification of cash flows, choice of an appropriate discount rate and determination of net present value. Foreign investments generally involve higher risk, which arises from factor like changes in currency value, discriminatory treatment of a foreign company and threat of expropriation. Risk stemming from fluctuations in exchange rate looms constantly on the horizon of foreign investment. In addition, a foreign investment is subject to discriminatory treatment and selective control in various forms motivated mainly by political considerations. Finally, the threat of expropriation without adequate compensation may exist, particularly in countries where radical nationalistic sentiments are strong. In view of the higher risk associated with foreign investment, a firm contemplating foreign investment would naturally expect a higher rate of return.

Campaign Finance Reform, Or Revolution?

...or: Eradicating the Rats from Our Congress!

When I was a little boy, we lived in rural Missouri, about 30 miles outside of St. Louis. We lived there until I was nine years old. We lived in a small town, but the world was, for me, a very big place filled with wonders and bulging at the seams, with hope and possibility. In spite of the veiled threat of nuclear war between the Soviets and Americans our government made us feel safe. Even though we had regular "duck and cover" drills at school confidence in our leaders made us feel safe. My parents worked hard, provided for us, and because my dad was a Union member, we all had health insurance. I assumed that everyone did, and I think that at that time most did. I doubt that the world was any more politically stable than it is now, but most everyone seemed to believe that anything was possible. There was abundant hope. I'm sure that this was largely a middle-class phenomenon, but there was a very large middle-class. I think that this was, pardon my pun, "trickle-down" from pretty good leadership. I know now that it had to do with the "industrial military complex" being in its infancy. President Eisenhower would warn us about this institution and those who would control and profit from it, becoming the greatest threat to the freedom of the average American.

In 1958 our family relocated from Missouri to California. There was more construction work for my dad and the Union was very strong there. I remember when we were traveling, being a little boy, it seemed as if we were pioneers traveling to the great Wild West. And you know what, it was sort of... true! Even though I was disappointed that Mexican-Americans didn't wear sombreros, it was to me, exciting and wondrous! It wasn't easy for my folks, but they were able to make sure that we, my younger brother and I, were protected from such heavy burdens of social pressure, allowing us to just be children. We became Californians! Then came John Fitzgerald Kennedy! From what I could tell, my parents who had been life-long Republicans and didn't vote for Kennedy became converts to the charisma and competency of this President, as did very many Americans. When he spoke it was like he was speaking directly to you and he was like Jefferson or Franklin or one of the "framers" reborn. It was obvious that he was a "peoples President"! Born into wealth, he had no need to sell one bit of himself to anyone. His father had stressed that they were fortunate, being wealthy Americans, and that they would be behooved by that fortune to become public servants. In that role, JFK made us all feel like anything was possible and I do mean anything. Take for instance, "We're going to the moon!" And though we did have a standoff with far reaching implications, with Russia. We won! It was a time when Americans felt like and actually were the moral conscience, human rights and social leaders of the World!

Then the turmoil began. John Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas and Lyndon Johnson became the President. Then we lost Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr... then Bobby Kennedy! Though Johnson managed to get the Civil Rights Act passed, he escalated and became obsessed with Vietnam, a mistake and trauma that would overshadow many great things he did and that were happening. The Draft... the conscripting of young American boys into the armed forces would begin the great change. Nixon would begin the de-escalation of the war, but then became the most disgraceful leader in modern American history... The Vietnam War, sold under threat of the domino effect of Communism (bullshit), would be the beginning of Eisenhower's greatest fear. The Industrial-Military-Complex invaded the United States economy, to eventually determine every aspect of American life. Spanning the better part of two decades, Vietnam would give birth to private industry and businesses so rich and powerful that they would gain the ability to "lobby" (bribe) Washington D.C. and influence American policy, law, and social stability. An industrial complex supporting a massive armed force would become an entity of its own, spawning a wealthy class of citizens enjoying privilege like European Royalty. As this class grew and spread into every sector of the economy, someone would have to pay their way. The middle-class became overtaxed, underpaid and underserved, as the Nation's economy began to transfer from the average citizen to the upper one percent (1%). This trend would continue right up to our current situation.

A succession of weak Presidents like Ford and Carter paved the way for the fatal Presidency of Ronald Reagan. A complete sell-out to the rich and powerful businesses, and a promoter of a covert military, he broke the back of the Unions when he broke the Air Traffic Controllers strike, allowing those Union members to be displaced by non-Union employees. The Unions had made possible things like wages that kept up with inflation, top-notch health insurance policies for members, and arbitration with companies to assure employee safety and quality work and goods production. Without the Union protections, American workers would be at mercy of purely profit-based business that looked at the "bottom-line"" as the primary if not their only consideration! His covert military would take up the cause of protecting business interests abroad. The country of the people, by the people and for the people was gradually disappearing into the distance like fading sunlight as night approaches. A very dark picture was taking form in the United States of America.

The blow of the "Bushes" was softened by the charisma of William Jefferson Clinton, briefly, though the Industrial-Military-Complex was still on the march promoting war, profiteering and deregulation of the financial industry to unprecedented levels in spite of warnings that history provided. The transfer of the economy to the top one-percent was escalating at nearly unstoppable speed. All the while, Americans had become complacent and continued to trust that government would, in the end, come to their aid. Over the years since Reagan, Unions had been sold as evil and counter-productive to the economy. Safety in the work place became substandard as the average worker worked longer and harder hours to maintain a secure and stable life-style. A new phenomenon appeared as somewhat of a bewilderment to most, at the time... the presence of a growing "homeless" sector appeared in our society. "Why" wasn't apparent! We couldn't see that if the wealthy remained the top 1%, and the middle-class was diminishing... poverty had to be flourishing! The American way of life had transformed. Things that made us what we were, were disappearing or being stifled and rebranded as counter-productive to our economy. War became acceptable as a sadly necessary part of our culture and the times we live in! International Treaties were deemed inapplicable to the United States government. It seemed that almost out of nowhere America was grabbing people and shuffling them off to clandestine locations, torturing them and defying international law. The government didn't need warrants to wiretap and spy on its people. Privacy was unimportant. Americans, like the enemy, could be locked up without "habeas corpus" in the process, and for indeterminate lengths of time with no legal representation. Two-percent (2%) of the population would, over the course of each year, be incarcerated. Doctors were being assassinated for carrying out legal procedures. Civil rights were first being given to citizens and then taken away in backlashes of the Religious far-right interfering with government and the law. Government mandated that citizens must buy a poor quality product from unethical businesses under the threat of penalties, with no acceptable, reasonable product offered under that law (health insurance). Federal authorities intervened in legal conflict with State laws, arresting people for things that their State had deemed legal (medical marijuana)! Maybe worst of all, no one will take responsibility for the environment of our Planet and the destructive effect we are so obviously having on it. This has all culminated into the financial melt-down of 2009, and still the people struggle for justice and for the government to come to their aid, but it falls on deaf ears that have been silenced by financial reward from lobbying (bribery) by the Military-Industrial-Complex that silently has instituted a coup on the United States Congress, stripping the people of their representation in the Federal governing system. Half measures that appease the people and sustain the power of the top 1%, yet really change nothing, are all we can get out of them.

It's amazing that it seems that no one any longer understands that without the workers there is no business. Jobs outsourced mean less work for Americans. Poor people pay little tax, some none, so revenue diminishes. A small middle-class of workers who can only afford the basics doesn't support a strong economic standard for a diverse business structure. Massive numbers of unhealthy employees do not provide a strong growth-oriented workforce. The more that people must concentrate on pure survival level of existence, the less charitable and able they are to think of, and help the less fortunate. All of these conditions are molding the way for "revolutionary" thinking and chaos. And sadly, the current brands of revolutionaries are not a good thing. They are narrow-minded, self-centered, prejudiced, and radical in ideology. Most support a far-right ideology. They are armed and organized and do not represent the best interests of the majority in society, but they do exist and are becoming more visible by the day. Still we have no leadership that can take up the cause of the Democracy that we once were. I guess they all fear that the financial power of the elitist 1% and their Industrial- Military-Complex, will take away their privilege and lavish life style that politicians have come to enjoy and expect. Most of them are, I suppose... THE Industrial-Military-Complex! Those who do not learn from the experience of history are doomed to repeat it. Do you think that the Romans ever thought that their dynasty would fall? What happened to the great British Empire? Are we doomed to become another 3rd World nation? Are we doomed to evolving into another Russia?

Maybe we just need thorough "Campaign Finance Reform" and to vote out all of the incumbents and establish term limits that prohibit them from becoming entrenched in our representative body and pawns for the Industrial-Military-Complex! Or maybe we need an organized revolution! I fear for the world my grandchildren may be doomed to live in... doomed by us and our, far too many, years of complacency!

Local Government Politics - Rules of Combat

If you expect to be effective in local politics, you have to know the rules and procedures.

If you expect to be taken seriously on issues, you can't afford to lose credibility by not knowing the rules and procedures. A good opponent will know all this information. Don't let them outmaneuver you on procedure because you didn't know the rules of combat.

Controversial issues will no doubt have multiple steps that must be followed. Sometimes there will be formal Public Hearings; other times there will be less formal public input opportunities.

If you are going to be having an interest in a particular issue, find out what exactly the rules and process will be.

1. What committee(s) will be reviewing the issue?

Decisions are not made at the Board level. By the time most controversial or big issues reach the governing body the final outcome has been predetermined. The hard work and tough decisions are made at the committee level. It is critical if you expect success on your issue, that you make sure your input is provided at the earliest possible opportunity. That is at the committee level. If you don't know which committee(s) will be reviewing the issue, ask. Someone will be able to tell you.

2. What will be the responsibility of each of these committees?

One committee may focus on policy or procedure and another on financing. You need to know the responsibility of every committee that will be reviewing your issue. There may be only one, but find out for sure. If you don't know, what do you do? You ask.

3. When will they be meeting?

Committees at times have set days of the month they meet. Other times they meet on an as needed basis. You can't make up meetings. You need to be there. If you don't know when the meetings will be held, what do you do?

4. What is the timetable from start to finish?

How long is this issue going to be discussed and reviewed. Some issues take months. Others move very quickly. The decision makers do have some idea of how long they expect before a final decision is reached. Ask them. That will determine your urgency to plot strategy.

5. Learn Roberts Rules of Order.

You need to learn at least the basics. That is how meetings are conducted. There are procedural methods of amending, delaying or killing motions. Knowing and using these tactics is not cheating. Knowing and using these tactics is playing by the rules. But, if you don't know them, you can't use them.

Every game or contest has rules. If you expect to win, you have to know them! If you don't know the rules, there is only one way to learn. Ask questions.

The Inferno of the Finance Director

Sometimes, I harbour a suspicion that Dante was a Financial Director. His famous work, "The Inferno", is such an accurate description of the job that it cannot be otherwise. He is fervently hated by the workers. He is thoroughly despised by the other managers ("mean bastard" is his common nickname among them, mostly for scrutinizing their expense accounts). He is dreaded by the owners of the firm because the powers that he has often outweigh theirs. Shareholders hold him responsible in annual meetings. When the financial results are good - they are attributed to the talented General Manager. When they are bad - the Financial Director gets blamed for not enforcing budgetary discipline. It is a no-win, thankless job. Very few make it to the top and the rest retire, eroded and embittered.

The job of the Financial Director is composed of 10 elements. Here is a universal job description which is common throughout the West. Macedonia, as usual, is a special case and so I added my own, humble observations.

In the USA there is a function called the Chief Financial Officer. This is the most senior financial manager in the firm and henceforth we will use this title in our article.

Organizational Affiliation

The Chief Financial Manager (CFO) is subordinated to the Chief Executive Officer, answers to him and regularly reports to him.

The CFO is in charge of:

• The Finance Director
• The Financing Department
• The Accounting Department which answer to him and regularly report to him.

Despite the above said, the CFO can report directly to the Board of Directors through the person of the Chairman of the Board of Directors or by direct summons from the Board of Directors.

In Macedonia this would be considered treason - but, in the West every function holder in the company can - and regularly is - summoned by the (active) Board. A grilling session then ensues: debriefing the officer and trying to spot contradictions between his testimony and others. The structure of business firms in the USA reflects the political structure. The Board of Directors resembles Congress, the Management is the Executive Arm (President and Administration), the shareholders are the people. The usual checks and balances are applied: the authorities are supposedly separated and the Board criticizes the Management.

The same procedures are applied: the Board can summon a worker to testify - the same way that the Senate holds hearings and cross-questions workers in the administration. Lately, however, the delineation became fuzzier with managers serving on the Board or, worse, colluding with it. Ironically, Europe, where such incestuous practices were common hitherto - is reforming itself with zeal (see Britain and Germany).

Macedonia is still after the cosy, very old European model: Boards of Directors are rubber stamps, devoid of any will to exercise their powers. They are staffed with cronies and friends and family members of the senior management and they do and decide what the General Managers tell them to do and to decide. General Managers - unchecked and unbalanced - get themselves involved in colossal blunders (not to mention worse things). The concept of corporate governance is alien to most Macedonian firms and the companies are regarded by most general managers as milking cows - fast paths to personal enrichment.

Functions of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO):

(1) To regulate, supervise and implement a timely, full and accurate set of accounting books of the firm reflecting all its activities in a manner commensurate with the relevant legislation and regulation in the territories of operations of the firm and with internal guidelines set from time to time by the Board of Directors of the firm.

This is somewhat difficult in Macedonia. The books do not reflect reality because they are "tax driven" (i.e., intended to cheat the tax authorities out of tax revenues). Two sets of books are maintained: the real ones which incorporates all the income - and another one which is presented to the tax authorities. This gives the CFO an inordinate power. First, he is in a position to blackmail the management and the shareholders of the firm. Secondly, he becomes the information junction of the firm, the only one who has the whole picture. If he is dishonest, he can easily enrich himself. But he cannot be honest: he has to constantly lie and he does so as a life long habit. He (or she) develop a cognitive dissonance: I am honest with my superiors - I only lie to the State.

(2) To implement continuous financial audit and control systems to monitor the performance of the firm, its flow of funds, the adherence to the budget, the expenditures, the income, the cost of sales and other budgetary items.

In Macedonia, this is often confused with central planning. Financial control does not mean the waste of precious management resources on verifying petty expenses. Nor does it mean a budget which goes to such details as how many tea bags will be consumed by whom and where. Managers in Macedonia are still under the feeling that they are supervised and followed, that they have quotas to complete, that they have to act as though they are working (even if they are, in reality, most of the time, idle). So, they engage in the old time central planning and they do it through the budget. This is wrong.

A budget in a firm is no different than the budget of the State. It has exactly the same functions. It is a statement of policy, a beacon showing the way to a better (=more profitable future). It set the strategic (and not the tactical) goals of the firm: new products to develop, new markets to penetrate, new management techniques to implement, possible collaborations, identification of the competition, of the relative competitive advantages. Above all, a budget must allocate the scarce resources of the firm in order to obtain a maximum impact (=efficiently). All this, unfortunately, is missing from budgets of firms in Macedonia (that I have seen).

But the budget is only an amalgamation of the intentions. No less important are the control and audit mechanisms which go with it. Audit could be external but must be complemented by internal procedures. It is the job of the CFO to provide the management with a real time tool which will inform them what is happening in the firm and where are the problematic, potential inflammatory areas of activity and performance.

Additional functions of the CFO include:

(3) To timely, regularly and duly prepare and present to the Board of Directors financial statements and reports as required by all pertinent laws and regulations in the territories of the operations of the firm and as deemed necessary and demanded from time to time by the Board of Directors of the Firm.

The warning signs and barbed wire which separate the various organs of the Western firm (management from Board of Directors and both from the shareholders) - have yet to reach Macedonia. As I said: the Board is full with the cronies of the management. In many companies, the General Manager uses the Board as a way to secure the loyalty of his cronies, friends and family members by paying them hefty fees for their participation (and presumed contribution) in the meetings of the Board. The poor CFO is loyal to the management - not to the firm. The firm is nothing but a vehicle for self enrichment and does not exist in the Western sense, as a separate functional entity which demands the undivided loyalty of its officers. A weak CFO will become a pawn in the get-rich-quick schemes - a stronger one will become a partner in them. In both cases, he will be forced to collaborate, from time to time, with things which conflict with his conscience.

It is important to emphasize that not all Macedonian companies are like that. In some of them, the situation is much better and closer to the West. But there are prevailing senses of geopolitical insecurity (what will be the future of Macedonia), political insecurity (will my party remain in power), corporate insecurity (will my company continue to exist in this horrible economic situation) and personal insecurity (will I continue to be the General Manager). These insecurities combine to breed short-sightedness, speculative streaks, a drive to get rich while the going is good (and thus to rob the company) - and up to criminal tendencies.

(4) To comply with all reporting, accounting and audit requirements imposed by the capital markets or regulatory bodies of capital markets in which the securities of the firm are traded or are about to be traded or otherwise listed.

The absence of a functioning capital market in Macedonia and the inability of Macedonian firms to access foreign capital markets - make the life of the CFO harder and easier at the same time. Harder - because there is nothing like a stock exchange listing to impose discipline, transparency and long-term, management-independent strategic thinking on a firm traded in it. Discipline and transparency require an enormous amount of investment by the financial structures of the firm: quarterly reports, audited annual financial statements, disclosure of important business developments, interaction with regulators (a tedious affair) - all fall within the realm of the CFO. Why, therefore, should his life become more agreeable by it? Because discipline and transparency make the life of a CFO easier in the long run. Just think how much easier it is to maintain one set of books instead of two or to avoid conflicts with tax authorities on the one hand and the management on the other.

(5) To prepare and present for the approval of the Board of Directors an annual budget, other budgets, financial plans, business plans, feasibility studies, investment memoranda and all other financial and business documents as may be required from time to time by the Board of Directors of the Firm.

The primal sin in Macedonia was the so called Privatization. The law was flawed. To mix the functions of management, workers and ownership is detrimental to a firm, yet this is exactly the path that was chosen in Macedonia. Management takeovers and Employee takeovers forced the new, impoverished, owners to rob the firm in order to pay for the shares. Thus, they were unable to inject new capital, new expertise, new management, anything new. The companies are dying slowly.

One of the problems thus wrought was the total confusion regarding the organic structure of the firm. The Board was composed of friends of the Management because they were also the owners - but they could be easily fired by their own workers, who were also the owners and so on. his introduced an incredible amount of insecurity among the management ranks (see previous point).

(6) To alert the Board of Directors and to warn it regarding any irregularity, lack of compliance, lack of adherence, lacunas and problems whether actual or potential concerning the financial systems, the financial operations, the financing plans, the accounting, the audits, the budgets and any other matter of a financial nature or which could or does have a financial implication.

No chance - see my previous points and the previous article. The CFO is absolutely aligned and identified with the management. The Board is meaningless. The concept of ownership is meaningless because everyone owns everything and there is no identifiable owners (except in a few companies). Absurdly, Communism (the common ownership of means of production) has returned in full vengeance, though in disguise, precisely because of the ostensibly most capitalist act of all, privatization.

(7) To collaborate and coordinate the activities of outside suppliers of financial services hired or contracted by the firm, including accountants, auditors, financial consultants, underwriters and brokers, the banking system and other financial venues.

Many Macedonian firms (again, not all) are interested in collusion - not in consultancy. By hiring the consultant or the accountant - they believe that they own him. They are bitterly disappointed and enraged when they discover that an accountant has to comply with the rules of his trade or that a financial consultant will protect his reputation by refusing to collaborate with scams of the management.

(8) To maintain a working relationship and to develop additional relationships with banks, financial institutions and capital markets with the aim of securing the funds necessary for the operations of the firm, the attainment of its development plans and its investments.

One of the main functions of the Macedonian CFO is to be personally connected to the banks. The financial institutions which pass for banks in Macedonia lend money on the basis of personal acquaintance more than on the basis of analysis or rational decision making. This "old boy network" replaces the orderly collection of data and credit rating of borrowers. This also allows for favouritism and corruption in the banking sector. A CFO who is unable to participate in these games is deemed by the management to be "weak", "ineffective" or "no-good". The lack of non-bank financing options and the general squeeze on liquidity make matters even worse for the finance manager. He must collaborate with the skewed practices and decision making processes of the banks - or perish.

(9) To fully computerize all the above activities in a combined hardware-software and communications system which will integrate into the systems of other members of the group of companies.

(10) Otherwise, to initiate and engage in all manner of activities, whether financial or of other nature, conducive to the financial health, the growth prospects and the fulfilment of investment plans of the firm to the best of his ability and with the appropriate dedication of the time and efforts required.

And this, point 10, is what CFOs in the West are doing most of their working time. It is their brain that is valued - not their connections or cunning. Winning the game while acting legally is the foremost tribute and epitaph.