Suchergebnisse

This report is categorized into three categories: (I) Introduction, (II) Key Issue and (III) Congressional Action. It also consist a figure for F-22A Weapons Loadout.

Ilja Luciak, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science in Virginia Tech's College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, recently completed a multi-year study on "Gender Equality and Democratization in Central America and Cuba" for the European Commission.

Dave Lewis describes his 40 year participation in politics including his work as budget director, campaign contributor, director of the Department of Administration, director of the State Board of Investments, and as a member of the Montana legislature where he served as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Lewis discusses the pros and cons of being a partisan politician and reflects on changing governmental trends in Montana. This interview largely focuses on Governors Judge, Schwinden, Stephens, Racicot and Martz; their agendas; and conflicts during various administrations. ; https://scholarworks.umt.edu/brown/1031/thumbnail.jpg

Through three case studies of online political activism on Facebook, this article conceptualizes the deployment of issue publics (Lippmann, 1993; Marres, 2005) on Facebook. We argue that issue publics on Facebook come into being through a specific set of double articulations of code and politics that link and reshape informational processes, communicational constraints and possibilities, and political practices in different and sometimes contradictory ways. Using Maurizio Lazzarato's exploration of immaterial labour (2004), we demonstrate the need to further understand the networking of publics and their issues by considering how online platforms provide the material, communicational, and social means for a public to exist and therefore define the parameters for assembling issues and publics and circumscribe a horizon of political agency. ; Langlois, G., Elmer, G., McKelvey, F., & Devereaux, Z. (2009). Networked Publics: The Double Articulation. Canadian Journal of Communication, 34(3), 415-434. Retrieved from http://www.cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/2114

Citizen participation topic became actual in various European Union (EU) projects since 6-7th decade of the XX century, when in many countries it had been started to transfer authority power from centre to regional and local government authorities with intention to make closer decision-making and implementation to the people. It is considered that decentralization can assure management, which would be more public, participatory, cooperative with community, reactive and accountable. Regional level is very suitable for promotion of citizen participation ideas, because regional and local management is closest to the people. Therefore EU regional policy is inseparable from enhancement and development of democracy, in order to achieve social welfare of population, economy strengthening and to reduce the differences between the EU regions. Nowadays tendencies in public administration indicate that a good management is defi nable by categories of wider citizen participation, pluralism, subsidiarity, transparency, accountability, accessibility, cooperation and effi ciency. "Old democracy" states try to consolidate values of democracy and at the same time to adjust effective methods of new public management, new public administration or new civil service into the management of public organisations. The main scientifi c problem in respect of looking for effective management model is to fi nd a suitable form, how to apply effective management principles from private organisations in the management of public organisations and to secure democratic principles at once. The success and effectiveness of new management systems much depends on the legal basis and the specifi c management and administration traditions of concrete state. The aim of this article is to evaluate the opportunities of citizen participation in regional management, considering the EU guidelines in respect of regional policy. The article analyses citizen participation tendencies in management of public organizations, EU position with regard to regional policy ...

Competitive contracting is the most common form of municipal privatization and has been growing in USAsince the 1970s regardless of the political affiliation of elected officials. Between 1982 and 1992 contractingincreased by 121 percent in the 596 cities where comparable data were available. The average common municipalservice is contracted out by 27 percent of cities.Cities privatize first to save money and second to improve services. A summary of nine major, comprehensivestudies covering every contract entered into by the reporting jurisdictions – 7, 168 contracts in all – showed averagesavings of 29,5 percent.Mayor Stephen Goldsmith gained national and international attention for his successful efforts in Indianapolis.He used public-private competition to bring about large improvements in street repairs, wastewater treatment,fleet management, solid-waste collection, airport management, golf courses. All in all he put eighty-six services outto bid, of which city employees won 43 percent – but only by drastically improving their productivity. The numberof employees declined by a third but no union member lost a job, and the city projected cumulative savings of $450million.

This article focuses, first, on the moral legitimacy, leadership, and capacity of public service, and theirpotential role in considerations of ethics in international relations, in general, and corruption, in particular.Second, arguing that realpolitik has attenuated our analysis of corruption and our ability to oppose iton moral grounds, a case is made for linking the scholarly work on corruption and the scholarly work onmorality in international relations, in order to enrich our understanding of corruption as a key moral concernof global governance, and to enable us, as well, to design and deliver effective anti-corruption initiativesacross the globe. Finally, the article concludes with a call for morally independent and resilient publicadministrators as key players in competent states, as well as collaboration between practitioners andscholars in the development of new skills and strategies to advance democratic discourse and decisionmaking at all levels of governance.

Modern society expects a policy that promotes growth economy, meets rapidly increasing demandsand ensures welfare work. This requires developing technologies that produce both new observable andlatent risks. As a result of modernization both the number and the extent of disasters increases, new kindsof emergency situations arise. It is the State's responsibility to ensure security of the public. Therefore itaims to develop an effective Emergency Management (EM) System. The creation or development of anysystem primarily starts from formation of a policy focusing on its main problems. In order to improveperformance if EM policy it is necessary to formulate it properly and consistently implement it. Thereforethe aim of this paper is to analyze and evaluate the features of formation and implementation of EM policy.In the first chapter the concepts of formation of EM policy are assessed, the levels of implementationare identified. In the others peculiarities and problems of each level (national, decentralized and privatesector) of policy implementation are analyzed.In order to achieve this aim, the author has analyzed works of policy oriented scientists, EM policyplans of foreign countries, other documents presenting practical issues of formation and implementationof EM policy. Also practice in Lithuania was investigated by presenting a survey questionnaire for theEM system professionals and for the public.

This paper considers how e-participation can strengthen confidence in democratic institutions and playersin Lithuania, and concentrates on the overall development of electronic democracy and electronic participation(e-participation) tools used by the Lithuanian members of Parliament (MPs) and political parties. Firstly, a briefoverview of the previous studies about e-participation initiatives of the politicians' worldwide is provided. Secondly,follows the description of the methodology. Thirdly, the authors discuss democracy development trendsin the information society and then present main findings of the survey completed in August 2007 – January2009 on the websites of the Lithuanian MPs and political parties. Finally, the conclusions of Lithuanian casestudy and the recommendations to Lithuanian representative power are given.

The article analyses changes of EU structural policy in the new programming period of 2007 – 2013. In thebeginning of the article the evaluation of EU structural policy is made, which allows to formulate the main principlesof structural policy. Subsequent reconstruction of financial instruments of structural policy is analysed, and attentionis paid to the fact that from 2007 only two structural funds formally remain. Combined with financial instruments forstructural policy there are three funds in total. Also in the article an analysis of new objectives of structural policyis made. Legal bases for European territorialcooperationgrouping is also analyzed. Finally, the article affirms thatstructural policy develops to cohesion policy.

The article deals with influence of modern innovations on enterprises competitiveness. The different concepts of competition, from D. Ricardo and H. Adams up to M. Porter and Kim Chan and R. Mouborgne are analysed. The results of comparative analysis are provided in table 1. Different models of competition and competitiveness are analyzed. There is stressed that very important role plays M. Porters' 5 market forces, Diamod and Dubble diamond models and latest modifications made in the model. Some drawbacks of competitiveness models from K. Lancaster up to A. Rugman and latest authors as well as the author are submitted in table 2. The weakness of the Diamond model discovered and modification of Diamond model is made by incorporating the innovation in the model as it is proposed in picture 1. The importance of innovations for competition of enterprises is disclosed. The definitions of innovation and competitiveness of different authors are submitted. Innovation as risky process in competition from J. Shumpeterian economic view to innovation up to P. Drucker and McMeekin and D. Soutterton commercionalization as well as EU innovation policy are analyzed. Short analysis of Lithuania's position in the EU economy on innovation is made. The G. Brennan's optimistic idea on innovations at recession period that innovation could be a chance for companies to leapfrog their competition is stressed. Some data from Fray's analysis demonstrating the idea mentioned are provided in the article. According to Ch. Frey, founder and editor of Innovation tools, innovation climate has improved in 47,5 % of companies, and only for 25,9 % of respondents – has worsened at recession. But because the customers even at recession tend to the innovative, reasonably priced and hyped-up products and because the markets at recession are tightened, it is good time to invest in research and renew the products, processes, structure and management as main elements of competitiveness, as it has been recommended by Lisbon strategy. The impact of main areas ...

The key objective of the Long -Term Development Strategy of the Republic of Lithuania, as formulated in this Strategy is to create an environment for the development of the state's material and spiritual welfare that is generally described as knowledge-society, secure society and competetive society. While implementing these objectives it is crucial to do the best in order the country's quality of life would rise.Recently, in the European Union considerable attention has been devoted to the enhancement of social solidarity. An importance of social solidarity has already been emphasized in the Lisbon Strategy. If there is no social solidarity, the fields of social tension inevitably occur. Quality of life makes a rather considerable influence on the assurance of social solidarity. Consequently, an investigation of the quality of life proves to be an unquestionably topical issue.The quality of life to a large extent depends on the country's economical and social state. Nevertheless, at the current societal development stage, it also depends on the implementation and mastering of the new technologies, information and knowledge society development. Modern information and communication technologies and, first of all, the global computer network Internet has created preconditions and conditions to establish the information society. Further development of information and communication technologies is unquestionably directly affecting the development of information society, and at the same time makes a considerable contribution to the development of the country's or region's economy, is directly making a strong impact on it. At the same time it is also indirectly affecting the quality of life.This paper aims at analysing of the indices that characterise the quality of life and the indices that characterise the development of information society – for Lithuania and separate countries of various development level. At the same token, dynamics of these indices, their objective growth for Lithuania and objective dynamics for ...

As rates of economic growth change rapidly and changes of the whole of social needs as well as technologicaldevelopment in various countries have to be taken into consideration, it is extremely importantin the 21st century to pay adequate attention to the formulation and implementation of culture policy,as one of the most unique and difficult to manage areas of public policy, by evaluating various practices,comparing methods of culture policy administration in different states and by analyzing culture programmesand projects. Culture programmes and projects are not only a purposeful instrumentation in the policyimplementation processes but also possibility to ensure dispersion of the democracy principle whichcreates alternative conditions to everyone who corresponds criteria of the state support and files claim forappropriate solution of cultural problems to not only gain neccesary support in realizing one's ideas butalso facilitate the mission of culture policy implementation, which is of national importance. Culture programmeand project management is being related to purposeful control and coordination of the cultureprogramme formation, where goals of national strategies in a specific country as individuality of regionalcultural needs have to be taken into consideration as well as the best world practices are to be adopted.Programmes and organizations that support various cultural areas or culture projects provide undeniableinput into formation and implementation of Lithuanian culture policy. Regulations of the EU structuralfunds do not distinguish culture as a separate investment priority. That is why the ministry of culture ofthe Republic of Lithuania is not an intermediary institution assimilating financial resources of the structuralfunds, which makes it more complicated to use the financial resources of the funds for culture financingpurposes. The purpose of this article is to analyze the system of culture programmes and project managementby refering to the analysis and characterization of the state ...

Since the beginning of the year 2008, Value Added Tax (hereinafter – VAT) revenues numbers started to drop with continuing downtrend. Urgency of the research is related with the high importance of VAT revenues on the State budget because they comprise more than 50 per cent of the Central government basic budget income. The basic budget is the source of financing the state administration, health care, education, defense, including also employment costs; contributions to the international organizations, inter alia, operating payments to the Budget of European Community, financing economic development and social projects (for example, the projects of European Regional development fund and European Social fund) and other state expenditures. Therefore VAT collection is crucially vital to the macroeconomic situation in the country. On 09 March 1995 Latvia adopted a VAT type of turnover tax to replace, as of 1 May 1995, the old cumulative turnover tax. The Latvians refer to the VAT as Pievienotās vērtības nodoklis, abbreviated as PVN. The VAT Law (Saeima, 1995) has been amended by the VAT (Amendment) Act 2004, which implemented, as of 1 May 2004, the provisions of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the harmonization of turnover taxes within the European Community (the Sixth Directive has been replaced by Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax (hereinafter referred to as Directive 2006/112/EC)). VAT is a turnover tax levied at each stage of the production and distribution. Liability to VAT rests with the person supplying the taxable goods or services or importing goods into Latvia. However, the supplier is allowed to deduct from his VAT liability on supplies made, the amount of VAT paid and properly invoiced to him in relation to purchases affected by him, or VAT paid by him at importation (Art. 10, Para. 1, Clause 2 VAT law). The actual burden of the tax is therefore borne by the final consumer. The objects of the research are VAT revenues and VAT ...

This paper aims at analysing the role of central banks in enhancing smooth operation of payment systems towards an integrated EU fi nancial infrastructure. The research is based on a number of views regarding the signifi cance of payment systems for the implementation of the central bank's monetary policy and improvement of the fi nancial market development process. The novelty of this research is the assessment of the launch of TARGET2 in the EU countries, including Latvia. Regarding TARGET2-Latvija, the authors have evaluated its objectives, tasks, legal framework and launching within the fi rst wave of migration to TARGET2, and have conducted the analysis of indicators determining the operation of payment systems. In the context of large value euro payments, the single shared technical platform, uniform legal framework and similar services across the EU are the advantages of TARGET2. Smooth integration into TARGET2 is the basic condition for the convergence of EU12 with the euro area countries in the payment system area.