Personal Savings and Insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Criminal Justice Discussion2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Criminal Justice Discussion2 - Essay Example e judge liable for the case can comprehend the occasions of that day by viewing the video since the criminal wouldn't like to consent to the allegations (Garland 20). The one affronted then again had kicked the bucket subsequently making that to be the main accessible proof. The proof can be permitted as it obviously demonstrates what had occurred on that day. The issue could be the individual to demonstrate reality behind the tape as the lady was dead. This demonstrates the case can't be canceled on the grounds that the casualty is dead however it can even now go on so as to discover reality with the little proof accessible (Garland 20). With the present innovation, the observers don't need to be available face to face so as to demonstrate their case right however the court can utilize the accessible proof and contend from it. This will fill in as an essential advance in bringing the open certainty up in the legitimate area. It is in this manner right if the courts proceeded to denounce the casualty utilizing the

What an Alcohol Use Disorder Diagnosis Means

What an Alcohol Use Disorder Diagnosis Means Addiction Alcohol Use Print What an Alcohol Use Disorder Diagnosis Means By Buddy T facebook twitter Buddy T is an anonymous writer and founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee with decades of experience writing about alcoholism. Learn about our editorial policy Buddy T Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD on August 05, 2016 Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Learn about our Medical Review Board Steven Gans, MD Updated on September 27, 2019 Jack Andersen / Getty Images More in Addiction Alcohol Use Binge Drinking Withdrawal and Relapse Children of Alcoholics Drunk Driving Addictive Behaviors Drug Use Nicotine Use Coping and Recovery There really is no official diagnosis of alcoholism. The condition that has long been termed alcoholism is technically called severe alcohol use disorder, according to the May 2013 publication of the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSMâ€"5) by the American Psychiatric Association.  With the DSM-5, if a person exhibits two or more symptoms from a list of 11 criteria, they are diagnosed as having an alcohol use disorder, with classifications of mild, moderate, and severe.?? The  DSM-IV (published in 1994) likewise had no alcoholism diagnosis but instead described two distinct disordersâ€"alcohol abuse and alcohol dependenceâ€"with specific criteria for each diagnosis.  The  DSM-5 combines those two disorders into one alcohol use disorder with sub-classifications of severity.?? Alcohol Use Disorder Severity When a person is diagnosed with alcohol use disorder, the severity of the condition is determined by the number of symptoms they have.Mild: 2-3 symptoms presentModerate: 4-5 symptoms presentSevere: 6 or more symptoms present Although there is a lot of overlap between the criteria (list of symptoms) used by the DSM-IV and the DSM-5, there are two significant changes. The DSM-5 eliminates having legal problems as a result of drinking as a criterion for diagnosis but adds craving for alcohol as a criterion. Symptoms Listed in DSM-5 The DSM-5 lists 11 symptoms that can be used to determine if someone has an alcohol use disorder.?? Alcohol is often taken in larger amounts or over a longer period than was intended.There is a persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control alcohol use.A great deal of time is spent in activities necessary to obtain alcohol, use alcohol, or recover from its effects.Craving, or a strong desire or urge to use alcohol.Recurrent alcohol use resulting in a failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, or home.Continued alcohol use despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems caused or exacerbated by the effects of alcohol.Important social, occupational, or recreational activities are given up or reduced because of alcohol use.Recurrent alcohol use in situations in which it is physically hazardous.Alcohol use is continued despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by alcohol.Tolerance, as defined by either of the following: a) A need for markedly increased amounts of alcohol to achieve intoxication or desired effect, or b) A markedly diminished effect with continued use of the same amount of alcohol.Withdrawal, as manifested by either of the following: a) The characteristic withdrawal syndrome for alcohol b) Alcohol (or a closely related substance, such as a benzodiazepine) is taken to relieve or avoid withdrawal symptoms. The Different Types of Alcohol Use Disorders DSM-5 Draws Some Criticism The criteria of diagnosing alcohol use disorder came under some criticism because, under the DSM-5, any college student who occasionally engaged in binge drinking and admitting to craving a cold beer once in a while could be diagnosed with the disorder and labeled an alcoholic. Likewise, if tolerance and withdrawal symptoms are the only two necessary  factors required for someone to be diagnosed, then anyone drinking a couple of glasses of wine with dinner each evening will have measurable and noticeable tolerance and withdrawal. It won’t be present to the extent of causing significant dysfunction, but it will be quite evident on exam, according to Dr. Stuart Gitlow, addiction psychiatrist and past president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine. That person now has a mild alcohol use disorder.?? Why the DSM-5 Alcohol Use Disorder Diagnosis is Controversial

An Analysis Of Henrik Ibsen s A Doll House - 2155 Words

Lisa Agans Dr. Jackson English Writing 301 November 19, 2014 True Identities The title of the play A Doll House, written by Henrik Ibsen, tells us a lot about the main characters in this play. Ibsen wrote this play around the time when husbands and wives had specific roles in society and were very limited on what they could do. Women would have to marry rich, cook, clean,take care of the children, and avoid dealing with life situations. The man’s job was to work, put food on the table, and a roof over their head. This story is focused on a family that looks perfect on the outside but once you step through the door, it’s a tangled web of secrets. So first we are introduced to Nora Helmer, the wife and mother of the family. Nora has a†¦show more content†¦Ibsen’s theme is focused on finding yourself and becoming who you want to be, no matter what society says you re supposed to be. Many characters reveal their true identities in the play, but Nora shows the greatest transition. The title is a perfect way to describe Nora in this play. In the first act Nora acts as a doll. Dolls don’t contain minds or emotions, they just do whatever you tell them to do. One just uses a doll to play with and use for entertainment. The owner of the doll usually likes to be in control which is why they have a toy figure. Torvald is the owner in this case and talks to her and treats her in a derogatory way. He calls her things such as, â€Å"my little lark†, â€Å"my squirrel†, â€Å"my dear little Nora†, and â€Å"my little songbird†. Notice that most have â€Å"little† in front of the name which implies he is talking down to her, as if she was a little girl. Another way of Torvald treating Nora like a child is when he gives her money. As Torvald asks Nora why she looks so sad, he begins to pull his wallet out almost flaunting it and teasing her. This is very similar to the relationship of a father and a daughter. Nora’s smile gets really big and he obviously gives her the money. This also shows the ownership that Torvald has over Nora, controlling all of the money. Now Torvald thinks that Nora is a â€Å"spendthrift†, but Nora really is a pennysaver and uses the rest of the money to pay off the debt. There are a few things that

The Impact Of Hip Hop Music On America - 1491 Words

As furthest back that we can recall, there was Africa. It is from Africa that all of today’s Black American music whether it be Jazz, Rhythm and Blues Soul or Electro music etc., is either indirectly or directly descended from all African culture and tradition. Today, Hip-hop music in America is generally considered to have been pioneered out of New York s South Bronx in the early 1970’s by a Jamaican-born DJ Herc. By the time mid-1970s, New York s hip-hop gained wide-spread popularity and the scene was dominated by seminal turn-tablists DJs Grandmaster Flash, Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. The rappers of a group named â€Å"Sugarhill Gang† produced hip-hop s first commercially successful hit, Rapper†¦show more content†¦Hip Hop is more than just music, it is a culture. Over the past three nearly four decades, Hip Hop has influenced and uplifted Black America, speaking out for generations of families whilst providing a voice to a group of people trying to d eliver a message both politically and therapeutically and some may say at times also very controversially. It was viewed as â€Å"street language† or â€Å"ghetto† due to its harsh language, associations with explicit sex, alcohol, gambling, street gang violence, drugs, and even prostitution. During the uprising of Hip Hop there was a marked rapid increase in street violence and drug use known as the â€Å"Crack era† during the late 80’s and early 90’s as some say it was the directly influenced by Hip Hop music . Marked at times as retaliation toward law enforcement, most Hip Hop songs and that time was focused on the unfairness and inequality of Black Americans amongst American society. Heavily criticized in the 1980 s, Hip-Hop still managed to enter mainstream in the 1990 s and by the early 2000 s, it was the mainstream music genre replacing the likes of more contemporary music. By constantly

Goal Write Up Free Essays

Alex used the concept of â€Å"theory of constraints (TCO)† and new set of measurements and goals with the help of his mentor, Joana, to find constraints or bottlenecks in his plant. Joana defined bottleneck as any resource whose capacity is equal to or less then the demand placed upon it. This paper analyzes Argon’s actions in The Goal with respect to the changes and tools that are available today and how the availability of newer tools in the manufacturing area might have affected the choices and priorities on which Ergo is focused. We will write a custom essay sample on Goal Write Up or any similar topic only for you Order Now An integrated framework with TCO, Lean, and Six Sigma can maximize Argon’s goals after evaluation of his goals, challenges, and application of the present day tools. New Tools Technological and operations management theory developments over the sat three decades provided new tools to Ergo if he faces his choices and priorities today. The most prominent of these are Lean operations, Six-sigma, internet, and various other software tools for operations management effectiveness. ) Lean Operations: Lean operations theory focuses on smooth flow by removing the mud, a Japanese term for waste in the operations processes. Sources of waste are (GAG, 2009): over production, waiting, transportation, inventory, motion, over-processing defects, and not leveraging creativity of the employees. The five principles of Lean thin king are Woman Jones, 1 996): Specify value from customer point of view, identify steps in the value stream, create smooth flow, customer pulls value, and pursue perfec tion. Thorough understanding and identification of the various wastes in the operations process can help Ergo to target improvement initiatives. B) Six-sigma: The main objective of Six-sigma DYNAMIC (Define- Measure-Analyze-lampooner-Control) methodology is improving processes and quality through reduction of defects to the extent of 3. 4 defects per million, reduce cycle time, increase throughput, and increase customer satisfaction by educing variation in products and processes, thus giving an organization a competitive advantage (GAG, 2009). Jack Welch emphasizes by calling variation as â€Å"evil† (III, 2014). â€Å"The methodology looks at a statistical number to determine whether or not to make a change in a company manufacturing process† (Stephen, 2009). Availability of Six-sigma methodologies would have helped Alex increase throughput while improving the quality and reducing variation in the products and processes. C) Internet and Software: Internet provided many tools for the operations manager over the past two decades. These tools increased efficiencies of the production processes by finding the information in minutes, tracking people, and running complex operations management software on the internet. They range from communications and search engine tools, to the more recent cloud based hosted MM applications on the internet such as customer relationship management SW such as Salesrooms etc. Sophisticated software packages and simulation tools also include enterprise resource planning (ERP) which is an evolved version Of the material resource planning (MR.) that include other departments such as insane and order management packages. These tools would have helped Ergo to find Joana quickly, communicate with him on Keep, and conduct net meetings with divisional headquarters, track inventory and customer orders with ERP rather than the archaic homegrown information system. D) New MM Techniques: There are several new operations management techniques such as just-in-time (KIT) partnership with suppliers, Toyota production system (T AS), total quality management (TXT), supply chain management (SCM), and total productive maintenance (TAMP). . KIT focuses on continuous improvement through continuous and forced problem solving via focus on increasing through put and red icing inventory. KIT partnership between suppliers and purchasers reduce waste and drive down costs by removing unnecessary activities, in-plant and in-transit inventory, improve quality and reliability (Hazier Render, 201 1). Ii. T AS three core components are continuous improvement, respect for people, and standard work practice (Hazier Render, 201 1) . Iii. Although KIT and Six-sigma are key components of the TXT, TXT provides other concepts and tools such as continuous improvement, employee empowerment, bench marking, Attaching concepts, and TXT tools to generate ideas (check sheets, scatter diagram, and cause- and-effect diagram), organizing data (Parent chart and flow chart), and identifying problems (histograms and statistical process control charts) (Hazier Render, 201 1). Iv. The objective of SCM is to build a sequence of suppliers that focuses on maximizing value to the end customer (Hazier and Render, 2011). SCM process technique takes an integrated approach to procuring, producing, and delivering products and services to customers, veering the management of material, information and financial flows (Venerates, Hachure, Caulker, 2007). V. TAMP is a manufacturing program designed primarily to maximize equipment life effectiveness through the participation and motivation of the entire work force (Ca, McKeon Schroeder, 2001 Alex could make good use of these new MM techniques to increase effectiveness of his operations. Argon’s Goals and New Tools The goal of any organization in general is to make money. Joana asks Ergo to change his plant measurements to the following measurements that express the goal of making money in a different way. These measurements are throughput, inventory, and operational expense. According to The Goal, definition of throughput is the rate at which the system generates money through sales. Inventory is all the money that the system has invested in purchasing things which the organization intends to sell, and operational expense is all the money the system spends in order to turn inventory into throughput. Then that the real goal of an organization is to increase throughput while simultaneously reducing both inventory and operating expense. Joana introduces Ergo to the TCO to help him achieve his goals and loving problems in his plant in terms of the measurements that express the goal of making money. TCO approach includes the following five steps to improve the plant performance: C] Step 1. Identify the system’s constraint(s) C] Step 2. Decide how to exploit the system’s constraint(s) C] Step 3. Subordinate everything else to exploit the constraint(s) CLC Step 4. Elevate the system’s constraint(s) 0 Step 5. If in the previous steps, a constraint has been broken, go back to step 1, but do not allow inertia to cause a system’s constraint. TCO primarily focuses on increasing throughput. When the current system constraint or bottleneck is resolved, a new system constraint is then identified creating a continuous cycle, which drives performance improvement forever. Because of this continuous improvement and focus on throughput, Argon’s goal will remain the same in light Of the availability of the new tools. Several Of the new tools from these modern concepts can be applied to solve or improve the challenges faced by Ergo in the 1 ass’s. New Tools Application to Ale’s Challenges Ergo can bring several of the new tools to the challenges he faced at Unaware in the 1 9805. Some of these tools to improve the goals are: a) Lean production ass checklist: sort/segregate, simplify/straighten, shine/sweep, standardize, and sustain/self-discipline. This will help to address waste. B) pull system: This is a standard tool in KIT system to increase throughput and it is used with both suppliers and within the immediate production process (Hazier Render, 201 1). Pulling the needed materials through the system in very small lots eliminates waste and inventory. C) Continuous Improvement: As a core component of T AS, continuous improvement builds an organization ultra that processes can be improved and that improvement is part of every employee’s responsibility (Hazier Render, 201 1 Kamikaze is the formal process for this component believing that perfection is achieved through many incremental changes. Operations manager plays a key role in building kamikaze culture. ) Respecting and empowering people: TIPS empowers employees to stop process or machines when quality problems surface. TIPS respects employees by empowering them to enrich their jobs and lives. E) Scheduling: KIT scheduling tactics include communicate schedules to appliers, eliminate waste, produce in small lots, use Kansas, and make each operation produce perfect part. F) Inventory Management Systems: Ergo can establish these systems using BBC classification of all types o f inventory and maintaining accurate records of the inventory. G) Forecasting: Forecasting demand has been a challenge for Ergo. He can make use of qualitative methods such as Delphi method as well as qualitative methods such as time- series forecasting to predict the demand. Demand forecasts impacts plant capacity, human resources, and SCM (Hazier Render, 201 1). Integrated Framework of TCO, Lean, and Six-Sigma Ergo and his team had to work with long established archaic management processes in the sass’s setting. If The Goal were set in 2014, Ergo and his team would likely find management more willing to embark on a process of ongoing improvement including the new methodologies such as Lean and Six-sigma. However, these methodologies are not competing strategies, as each has significant value and applied differently with an integrated framework comprising of TCO, Lean, and Six-sigma. Ergo can make use of this integrated framework to maximize his goals. The integrated framework uses the synergy of TCO, Lean, and Six-Sigma to consistently achieve a concentrated system improvement beyond what might be accomplished by applying each method individually with a traditional continuous process improvement approach. The most efficient way to integrate TCO, Lean, and Six-Sigma starts with strategy as a first step (GAG, 2009). The strategy provides the strategic roadman to improve business performance. The strategic roadman provides the direction for the areas of the organization that maximizes benefit for the total system by applying improvements first. This continuous business success framework has two major parts: the constraint based system architecture and the TCO-Lean-Six-Sigma based continuous improvement architecture. A) Strategy- the output of a good strategy is a clear, agreed upon, roadman to improve business results. The focus is on optimizing the performance of the total system versus improving the individual functions in isolation. B) Design: This step determines the correct alignment of the business processes including changing any policies, measurements, roles and responsibilities, and information systems. C) Activate: During this step, the newly defined business processes are implemented. D) Improve: Improvements are evaluated based on their ability to increase throughput, and to reduce inventory and operating expense and improve overall system performance. Jacob, Berglund Cox 2009). Key performance indicators (Kepi’s) are used to identify gaps between present and desired performance levels. Some useful improve techniques include AS system, TAMP, point of use storage (POLIS), Mistake proofing (Poke yoke), SSP, Capability Studies, Design of Experiments, etc. E) Sustain: As for the last step, Ergo should continuously review key measurement results to assess, address and institutionaliz e the policies, measurements and behaviors to guarantee that the results are sustained and do not degrade. Ergo can utilize the full integration of TCO, Lean and Six Sigma in order to obtain focused system improvement that achieves real, sustainable breakthrough performance. Although internet and internet based tools and sophisticated software packages certainly improve Argon’s operations, they will not have direct impact on the choices and priorities that Ergo has focused. With respect to the other lolls to help Ergo, the principles and techniques of KIT can be shifted to an entire SCM to strengthen Argon’s SCM strategy in pursuit of improved organizational performance. 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The World Trade Organization Role in the World of Trade

Introduction Trade and all the operations that surround trade are governed by set regulations both locally and internationally. Trade is a key area in the economy of nations and makes immense contributions to the growth of nations. There are several organizations that govern the dimensions and the nature of trade worldwide and regionally. These organizations are healthy for the sustainability of trade in the world.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The World Trade Organization Role in the World of Trade specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some of these organizations are the world trade organization and the regional trade agreements. They work to push for considerable reductions in the trade tariffs and subsidies. They are also good tools of securing improved export opportunities for the producers. The world trade organization is a market mover in the world of trade. It is the major firm that supervises and liberalizes trade worldwide. Through the world trade organization, many agreements have been formed and made to stabilize the field of trade. The trade organization has been highly involved in conflict resolutions processes and helping the member countries to adhere to the agreement rules. In this highly competitive trade era, there has been a rapid growth of regionally oriented trade agreements which has contributed to the weakening of the multilateral trading systems. The trade agreements are a pertinent part of the world trade organization but they can strengthen trade or at times break the already built up pillars of trade. Globalization, neoliberalism, free trade and open markets are criticized at a very high rate. In the global market big economies are shaping trade and their interests rule the market. The politically and the economically stable nations are dominating the market trends which simply dictates their interest. How WTO relate with the regional trade organizations Regional tra de agreements are a segment of the international trade and a key feature of multilateral trading systems that presents the members of the world trade organization with opportunities and challenges. They promote free trade at the regional level helping implement reforms domestically. This helps lesser economies to wheedle aggressive environments, by addressing factors affecting production, which helps them to embrace competition at a suitable pace thus incorporating the amalgamation to the world economy.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The growth of the regional trade agreements heaves a concern about the declining power of the multilateral trading system. In the European countries, they are mainly pivoted on the European Union. These agreements are deeply rooted in the domestic regions and their coverage is immense. They have extended to the service industry. Regional trade agreements open up a freedom in competition in the international market. They help build up complex set of connections and regulatory regimes which focus on the trade policies. There have been some points in the RTAs some disagreement has been depicted in elucidation of some elements pertaining to their procedures with the WTO. But over time they have made up agreements on the procedures to apply to their members. For example, streamlining the examination processes by the WTO which was solved through the creation of the committee of regional trade agreements The RTA operates under the guidance of regulations and tariffs which are upheld regionally. They are maintained for substantial commerce in the regions. RTAs are the mediums for promoting deeper incorporation in their economies than is presently through the WTO. It has become hard to scrutinize the consistency of RTA with WTO due to the divergence of the trade agreements. Though this is not the only problem, there has been a pre ssure for them to clarify the rules for multilateral negotiations to put a clear line of rules. The RTA builds the base for the WTO agreements with more comprehensive discipline. They assist strongly in the reinstatement of trade roles and solving the global economic predicaments which enhance economic growth and development. The agreements are generally introduced so as to deal with the issues that revolve around trade and investment. They therefore resolve the crisis in these areas where they also closely identify areas for on capacity building.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The World Trade Organization Role in the World of Trade specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Nature and characteristics of RTAs Traders in economies where they operate without government interventions, they are often forced to form policies that govern their businesses. These policies are commonly referred to as free trade agreements. The po licy authorizes mutual gains from the trade. These policies make easier communication of the true supply and demand leading to effective resource allocation. According to the Office of the United States Trade Representatives (2010, 1), the trade agreements have continually become complex in that they are not only opening up free trade within the signatory countries but they have shaped both international trade and investments flows within their localities or regions. They are affecting the large regions they are located in for example Asian Pacific regions. The trade agreements have had major implications to the political, social and economic status in the local and domestic levels. Comparing with the coverage of the earlier agreements the RTAs have expansive coverage. The coverage is approximately 100 percent, even though it has been challenged in the field of agriculture. Under the examination of world trade organization the RTAs, in the industrial sector there is full coverage wh ile in agriculture it is selective coverage. Another characteristic of the trade agreements is that they eliminate or reduce exercise duties charged to the member countries while trading with each other. They have offered coverage of investments, intellectual property, and deal with technical barriers to trade. The agreements deal with quantitative restrictions (Dent, 2010). RTAs use the synchronization and elimination of trade procedural barriers to help its members accomplish economies of scales and help them gain a competitive edge internationally. The most imperative one is the ability of establishing a common single market in the region of existence. The RTA help simplifies the rules set for the third world countries which are a great advantage to them. Though the harmonization of standards has not ventured well in the international level, it has been effective to the regional agreements. These harmonization yields sunshine internally in that they lead to gains internally but y ield undesirable effects on the third parties.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In comparison to the unsuccessful trade agreements of the 19th century the modern RTA‘s operations are more widespread and established better. They have been designed specifically to achieve trade diversions. In consequence trade within the RTA has extensively been enhanced and developed in a rapid rate than trade from the non-members. There has been more than 2 percent a growth difference between the member nations and the non-members. Though trade agreements have to some extent promoted growth of trade within the members’ states; we cannot be ignorant that some regional trade agreements have led to the breakdown of the trade in these regions. Some states have taken an advantage of dominating the market using regional trade agreements to limit markets for their commodities. The whole quintessence of regional growth by the RTAs deflects the attention from multilateral trading systems. According to the views of Lawrence (1999) liberalizations brought forth by the regiona l free trade agreements, enhance and strengthen the hand of export and pro-trade forces. They are an open opportunity for the countries joining the multilateral trading systems have to compete among themselves. According to Allan Winters, RTAs are likened to street gangs which most of us don’t like but they are allover in our neighborhood. He also says that the models been applied in the regional free trade agreements have not been clearly determined where they encourage or discourage the evolution towards free trade. In his view the regionalism increases the risks of upheaval of trading systems. The free trade agreements have enable the nations enjoy good environment, social and economic health. This is mainly as a result of effort to make trade good for the advantage of the countries economy. To make business run well among the signatory countries the governments of those countries make sure the infrastructure with the nations are good. This improves the living standards of the people and opens up opportunities for them hence they are able to improve their living standards. The trade agreements have changed from regional to preferential agreements within the years. This is because countries have signed them with the nations they would like to interact with in business. This makes other nation end up been locked out of the deals and the have to labor hard in order to trade with some of these nations (Khor, 2005). The bilateral agreements are said and thought to lead to trade diversions. This is where by the partner divert away products that may be more cheaply priced in favor of products from their partner. They therefore sell their goods at a lower price than expected to gain favor with the partners or they end up been inefficient. The trade agreements between the developing nations lead to low bargaining capacity of the economies which ends up to weaker political situations and negotiation of resources. The developing are able to work well on the bas is of non-reciprocity and thrive well in non- reciprocal outcomes n which they are obliged to open air markets (Dent, 2010). The RTAs have tried to lift up some of the policies and allow flexibilities. The inclusion of many policies puts a lot of pressure on financial resources in developing countries and requires a lot of technical expertise. Impact of Regional free trade agreements on WTO Regional trade agreements (RTAs) have grown at a high rate in the recent years. These trade agreements are aimed at reducing trade barriers within the member states in a given region. They are enacted in the belief that they will enhance economic growth and development among the member states. The increasing growth of regional trade and trade agreements has created interdependence between the trade partners (Khor, 2005, 1). The terms of trade within a given regional trade only favors the members of the agreements and discriminates the non members. This has great impact on the World Trade Organiza tion (WHO) whose aim is to enhance multilateral trade between nations. The Regional trade agreements attempts to increase trade efficiency through eliminating tariff barriers. WHO tries to liberalize international trade and its mandate is to ensure that there is fair trade between nations in the world. World Trade Organization is superior to the RTA but gives the member of the RTA a certain degree of autonomy. The members of the regional trade agreements are considered exceptional by the WHO. They are allowed to operate within the framework of the RTAs and may not be members of the WTO. The regional free trade agreements have also improved interdependence and trade between member countries. Countries come together and agree to eliminate trade tariffs between themselves in order to make trade efficient and more beneficial to them. This is meant to promote economic growth between the countries. There have been debates on whether Regional Free Trade Agreements (RFTA) promotes or underm ines the WTO processes in eliminating trade and investment barriers. The economies that come together to form RFTA argue that they are heading towards realizing global trade liberalization that is a major goal of WHO. It has not been made clear on how the RFTA complements WTO process and therefore the contribution of RFTA in WHO remains not fully unraveled. One of the principles of the WTO is to ensure there is non-discrimination in trade between the members. The members of WTO should be given equal treatment while trading with the other members because they operate under the same conditions. The same terms applied by one member to another member should be the same to all members. RFTA discriminates non members because they do not apply the same conditions to members and non members. This contradicts the stipulations of the WTO and therefore there is no complementation. Arguing in this direction, the RFTA are not headed towards assuring future multi-lateralization because they discr iminate against non members. Despite this argument, it seem that GATT/WTO rules allows the RFTA to be discriminatory in nature because they categorize them as exceptional because they have potential to discriminate against non members. Most economies are therefore claiming that RFTA are in keeping with the WTO. Non-discriminatory global free trade in this case is of great benefit to the trading partners as they enjoy the same tariffs for similar commodities. This shows that the superiority of WHO over RFTA is still in place (Viner, 1950, 12). There is a big challenge in using RFTA in the evaluation of the multilateral rules because the RFTA have varied rules and may not be unified with ease. If RFTA could be allowed to run without any external interference, they can boost investment, labor and environment but may not be the best ground to measure the effectiveness of WTO. The RFTA are mostly formed by likeminded economies and they are therefore effective regionally and domestically. Though RFTA may not directly meet the goals of WTO, they greatly develop the economies of the member counties. However, the same could be achieved through multilateral approach. The RFTA may make investments by the member countries inefficient especially where there is proliferation of FTAs in various regions (Krueger, 1997, 8). This creates many rules and regulations that are hard to unify and therefore the partners belonging to more than one RFTA are unable to make investment decisions. It may pose a challenge in identifying the rules, regulations and incentives that apply to a certain partner belonging to more than one trade pact. Proliferation of FTAs also causes a product to have different tariffs because the tariffs that apply in one region are different from the others (Schiff, 2000, 19). This causes confusion to the member states as they are not able to make decisions with ease especially if they belong to more than one trade treaty. The presence of differing rates for the same product is against the principle of WTO that there should not be any form of discrimination among trading partners. The prices of the same commodity will also bring conflict in the market because it will have different rates depending on the treaty that govern the country from which they are imported. This will greatly hinder the realization of the goals of the WTO in those regions. Proliferation of FTAs with different terms and rules of trade if not well regulated, it may cause a stagnation of multilateral liberalization which is the main goal of GATT/WTO. According to Rajan and colleagues (2001, 18), RFTAs emphasizes on integrating market operations for its member states in order to improve trade diversions and trade creation within the region covered. This creates new and competitive business environment that will increase productivity and also depreciates prices as appropriate in order to facilitate trade. RFTAs also try to include in their framework the agreements on tax a nd investments that help boost the realization of WTO goals. Financial markets are also integrated and product standards between member state s are harmonized in order to ensure effective trade. There also important issues like labor and environment that may not win immediate support from the WTO though they are important in multilateral trade liberalization (Findlay Pangestu, 2001, 17). Today’s RFTAs are very supportive to WTO and can be used as grounds for testing complex trade issues and trade negotiations at multilateral level. This is due to their diverse coverage that not only includes trade issues but also other issues affecting a large number of counties like the environmental issues. Since RFTAs are very effective at the regional levels, their operations can be made multilateral so that they can help in making international levels effective world wide. For the RFTAs to become fully consistent with the global Most Favored Nation trade that the WTO seeks to achieve. R FTAs can be made multilateral and discriminatory if the issues are discussed outside their framework. That is, WTO should continue pursuing liberalization and not concentrate much on RFTAs. In so doing, RFTAs will gradually be made multilateral and non discriminatory. Alternatively, measures can be put in place within RFTAs that will enable them to become multilateral. Some of these measures should include allowing automatic membership (Sager, 1997, 341). Any country that wishes to join RFTAs should be allowed to join on the same terms as the members that joined during the formation of those RFTAs. There have been restrictions on who should join RFTAs and this has created discrimination that is against the stipulations of WTO. If such restrictions could be eliminated, most of the countries that could not join at the current terms will be able to join and benefit as the other countries (Bhagwati, 1995, 23). Pursuing global multilateral trade should also be one of their core goals. Th is will make them consistent with the WTO both in the long run and short run. This will also help eliminate the barriers to trade and investments that are pursued by the world trade organization. Conclusion Trade in any country is important because it allows people to acquire goods that they do not produce and sell what they produce. This enhances interdependence between countries and regions. In the increasing need for countries to trade with one another has lead to the establishments of trade agreements in order to ensure there is fair trade between nations. World Trade Organization was formed in order to ensure that there is fair trade between nations and that nations acquire economic growth and development through trade with each other. Nations have also come together to form regional trade blocs which are regulated through regional trade agreements. Mostly the members of regional trade agreements have common economic interests and establish laws and regulations that govern trad e between their member states. One of the major characteristics of regional trade agreements that have raised issues in the international trade is their discriminative nature (Steinberg, 2002, 341). They charge different trade tariffs to non members which to some extent are against world trade organization stipulations. The members of regional trade organizations have eliminated trade barriers among themselves in order to come up with what they call Regional Free Trade Agreements (RFTAs). These agreements due to their discriminative nature may not necessarily be in keeping with the WTO. WTO categorizes RFTAs as exceptional to avoid the contradiction brought about by their discriminative nature. Reference List Bhagwati, J., 1995. U.S. Trade Policy: The Infatuation with Free Trade Areas in the Dangerous Drift to Preferential Trade Agreements. Washington, D.C.: AEI Press. Dent, C., 2010. Free Trade Agreements in East Asia and the Asia-Pacific. East Asia: wreak.org. Web. Findlay, C. Pa ngestu, M., 2001. Regional Trade Arrangements in East Asia: Where are they taking us? Bangkok: Trade Policy Forum, PECC/APEC. Khor, M., 2005. Bilateral/Regional Free Trade Agreements: An Outline of Elements, Nature and Development Implications. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Office of the United States Trade Representatives. 2010. Trade Agreements. USA: USTR. Available at:Â  https://ustr.gov/trade-agreements . Rajan, R., Sen, R. . Siregar, R., 2001. Singapore and Free Trade Agreements: Economic Relations with Japan and the United States. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. Sager, M., 1997. Regional Trade Agreements: Their Role and the Economic Impact on Trade Flows, World Economy, 20, 239-52. Schiff, M., 2000. Trade Blocs. Washington, D.C.: World Bank. Steinberg, R.H., 2002. In the Shadow of Law or Power? Consensus-based Bargaining and Outcomes in the GATT/WTO., International Organization. Spring 2002. pp. 339-374. This essay on The World Trade Organization Role in the World of Trade was written and submitted by user Eliseo Mcgowan to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.