Banco Compartamos Case Study

Social innovation and enterprise is one way of eradicating poverty and illiteracy in society. The model that an enterprise takes determines their social impact in the long run. While some organizations maintain their social values over time, others abandon or diminish those values and venture into more financially profitable activities (Yunus 205). The paper addresses how the micro-finance business model used by Compartamos Bank compares with the village bank model of Grameen Bank. Microfinance in this sense refers to the supply of small loans, insurance, savings, and basic financial services to poor people, who are often unable to access such in conventional banking institutions. It looks at the shift of Compartamos Bank to a commercial bank, impacts of the shift to its initial mandate, and the effectiveness of both models in poverty alleviation. When the need for profit making and scaling competes with the need to alleviate poverty, the social motive often diminishes. Sustainabilit y of any social enterprise lies in maintaining its initial social values. Commercialization drives capitalism, which is often incompatible with social good. Making profound and lasting impacts on poverty alleviation requires consistency in social orientation.Comparison of Microfinance ModelsCompartamos Bank is a commercial microfinance while Grameen Bank is a village bank. The main difference between the two models is their funding methods. As a village bank, Grameen is primarily funded through local funds from community saving deposits, while Compartamos is funded as traditional commercial banks, engaging in IPO as one way of fundraising. Both models aim at reducing poverty, reaching scale, and financial sustainability though by applying different approaches. In place of collateral required by traditional banks, Grameen Bank uses voluntary formed small groups of five people for mutual and morally binding guarantees (Volkmann, Kim and Kati 253).The banking system is based on account ability, participation, mutual trust and creativity, a complete reverse from requirements of conventional banking. Village banking offers women equal access to financial aid, as they have been recognized as very enterprising. Operations of Grameen Bank are executed by bicycle bankers in various community branch units (Fotabong).Group members meet weekly for collection of the repayments and are accountable for each other. Compartamos Bank as a commercial bank offers loans, insurance and savings to its clientele. It operates as a conventional bank targeting the poor. It is for-profit organization that charges higher rates and opened up to public and private investors in a bid to scale up its profitability and financial sustainability. Compartamos started as a not-for profit organization and its shift to a commercial enterprise has been received with mixed reactions. The major concern of the shift is not in the high interest rates charged but on the importance placed on profitability m ore than social good. With all the profits and scaling the people who benefit most from such a set up are the already rich investors at the expense of poor borrowers.Evolution of CompartamosFounded in 1990 as a non-government organization, Compartamos aimed to eradicate poverty by giving credit to small businesses, especially poor women. It was initially supported by international donors and philanthropists to serve indigenous people in the poorest parts of Mexico. The company turned into a for-profit organization in 2000 in order to increase their funding (Carrick-Cagna and Santos 4). The company began accessing capital markets in 2002 raising millions of bonds over the next years. It slowly involved private investors and further obtained a commercial banking license in 2006 to enable them offer more services to its clients such as savings and insurance.The need to scale made the company raise hundreds of millions from a successful initial public offering (IPO), earning huge return s from private and public sectors without using any additional capital according to Carrick-Cagna and Santos. The profits allowed Compartamos to achieve financial self-sufficiency, no longer relying on donor aid. Thirty percent of the company was given to private investors and in essence the founders, with their visionary social goals have no complete control over the organization. The commercialization of Compartamos may seem to emphasize profit making over social good. Currently it offers microcredit services such as loans, insurance, and savings to low income earners and is among the largest and most profitable microfinance institutions in Latin America (MFI Solutions, LLC, USA and La Colmena  Milenaria, A. C., Mà ©xico 13).Investors in the bank make enormous profits, which is a good thing for any organization but for a microfinance dedicated to improving lives of the poor, it is seen as a problem. The extent to which Compartamos benefits the already-rich private investors far outweigh the benefits accrued to poor borrowers. It charges up to 100 percent interest rates per year to borrowers. In the perspective of fundamental values of microfinance, the actions of Compartamos are not pro-poor.Social ValuesIn the social enterprising context, the stand of Compartamos Bank is controversial. While to others it is a pro-poor initiative, others see a shift in its operation no different from conventional banks which are often anti-poor, anti-illiterate and anti-women according toYunus. Inequalities between the rich and the poor are a question of access to financial credit. Compartamos allegedly charges very high interest rates to its borrowers, who struggle to the rate while investors highly profit. Most of the poor people are also illiterate and few understand the idea of interest rates. What most borrowers focus on is how much they have to repay weekly but calculated in real sense, the interest rates are much higher than those of common commercial banks. The re sult is confining the poor in a never-ending cycle of poverty where they borrow more to service their credits.Implications for Increased CommercializationCompartamos IPO was a huge success in financial markets but majority of the shares went to hedge fund managers and commercial investors rather than the socially-responsible investment entity. According to MFI Solutions and La Colmena Milenaria, the lending capacity of the Bank increased after the IPO, though the interest rates charged went higher and higher with time. The bank has more than doubled its reach to clients in need of financial services in Mexico. In order to cater for the expansion and operating costs, the bank charges interests above the normal commercial Mexican rate.It has however continued to expand and retain many of its clients. It is a major concern to microfinance, on the appropriate balance between the goal of providing access to financial services to the poor and profitability and sustainability of microfinan ce institutions. The shift of microfinance from  social investors to commercial investors is a threat to social enterprises aimed at alleviating poverty. The IPO has sent a message that social service and profitability go together.It is a message that will definitely attract more private investors into microfinance. Compartamos IPO does not exclusively have implications on the company but to the entire microfinance entity. As a non-profit organization started off by grants, the implication is that society may have a different view of social enterprises. Some would question ethical, moral, and social values of such establishments.The Future of MicrofinancePlayers in the sector are uncertain about the future of microfinance, especially with the move of Compartamos to commercialize its operations. Commercialization of microfinance is seen as an opportunity to expand access of the poor to financial services. The high profit margins will attract more investment into microfinance, there by availing more money to extend to people to help them out of poverty. Additionally, it is felt that if other microfinance players shift to commercialization, the profit maximizing behavior will further take advantage of the poor. This would worsen the existing gap between the rich and the poor, profiting the rich and sending the poor into more poverty.Initiatives of the past two decades to make businesses socially responsible will also have been a waste. Communities and socially-responsible investors may shy away from initiatives aimed at addressing serious social issues. Microfinance faces a danger of turning into how well investors are doing of how profitable microfinance institutions are instead of actively focusing on ending poverty. In conclusion, those who founded formal microfinance intended it for the social good, but when more people got involved, the objectives and intentions of social enterprises shifted. The best model that is well adapted to create wealth for the poor is Grameen’s village model. With commercialization it becomes difficult to determine where microcredit ends and loan sharking ends.Involvement of private investors, whose main aim is often profit making would make social enterprises in microfinance serve more the interests of investors at a disadvantage of poor clients. It would turn microfinance from an area where non-profits and donors effect beneficial social and economic change into a haven for profit-maximizing investors. We  are living in a capitalist society where the need to satisfy personal interest overrides social good. In view of microfinance and addressing poverty, it is better to operate on the traditional approach of such initiatives other than commercializing it.

Accounting Information System and Special Journals

The principle of internal control violation is separation of duties. The person that records the incoming cash receipts should not be the same person that is posting the customer payments to their accounts. My recommendation to the business would be that they have one person recording the Incoming cash receipts, and they should assign another employee to take over posting the customer payments to the right accounts.This will ensure that payments will get posted to the right accounts, and reduce errors. 2. The principle of Internal control violation Is establishment of responsibility. Jeff is the custodian of the petty cash fund, and he should be the only one responsible for that petty cash fund. My recommendation for the company would be for another petty cash fund to be established for Jose when he Is needed to fill In as custodian. This will ensure that If something should happen with that petty cash fund, Jeff will not be held responsible for Joke's mistakes.Therefore, If Jose mak es a mistake as custodian of his own petty cash fund, he will be the one held responsible. 3. The principle of internal control violation is applying technological not a good for a company to store everything in the same place. My recommendation would be for the company to have all the records backed up at night as usual, and request Nadine to take the tape home with her every night. That way is something disastrous happened overnight she is able to recover all accounts with the backup tape she has taken home. The principle of internal control violation is performing regular and independent reviews. A regular and independent review should always be done whether an employee is or not meeting all Job requirements to satisfactory. My recommendation is for the manager's to immediately start regular and independent reviews. This will ensure that all employees will continue to do their Job effective and efficiently at all times. 5. The principle of internal control violation is to insure assets and bond key employees.

Auteur Theory : Darren Aronofsky Essay

Translated from the French, auteur simply means â€Å"author†. There have been varied perceptions regarding this theory, its importance and effectiveness. Auteur theory is essentially â€Å"a method of evaluating films based on the director’s involvement and input†. The concept of ‘Auteur’ was first introduced by Francois Truffaut in 1954 in A Certain Tendency in French Cinema. (1) In this work he claimed that film is a great medium for expressing the personal ideas of the director. He suggested that this meant that the director should therefore be regarded as an auteur. According to him, there are three forms in which a director may be regarded as an Auteur. He agreed with Andre Basin’s idea that the film must be the direct expression of the director’s vision. The second aspect was that the director must be skilled with the camera. He believed the director is to camera as the writer is to pen. Lastly he believed for a director to be considered as an Auteur, he must leave behind a distinctive signature (based on Alexander Astruc’s idea), visually or as an idea in the film. (2) Years later, this concept was reintroduced by Andrew Sarris in 1962, in a publication titled â€Å"Notes on Auteur theory† (3). Accordingly, for a director to be considered as an auteur, the director must be well versed with the technical aspects of the film. The director must have a distinct style or a signature that distinguishes his films from the others. The movies must have a theme, an inner meaning. The auteur theory has been receiving widespread criticism since the 60’s. It was argued that one person cannot control all aspects of the film. A film is a conglomeration of the efforts of lots of people. Despite this it is found to be very useful as the starting point of interpretation of some films. Auteur Theory suggests that the best films will bear their maker’s ‘signature’, which may manifest itself as the stamp of his or her individual personality or perhaps even focus on recurring themes within the body of work. (4) Keeping the concepts of the theory in mind, one can safely conclude that if the three criteria have been satisfied, the director may be considered the auteur of the film, these criteria being recurrent style, theme and visuals. Moving on to the discussion of the topic at hand, can the director of Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky be considered as an auteur? Black Swan is his fifth film as a director. All of his films share a similar theme. They all deal with an addiction in some form, the protagonist is always the one addicted. The movie shows the protagonist realizing his/her addiction, and there by degrading their personal life. ‘Black Swan’ and ‘The Wrestler’, share a single minded professionalism in the pursuit of a career, leading to the destruction of personal lives. (5) Aronofsky has had a lot of inspiration from different films, art forms and in general, all his films have an inherent trace of impending psychosis. However through the course of his five films one would see his stories delve more and more into the human psyche. With Requiem for a dream, it began as a drug addiction, a hallucination induced by drugs. In The Wrestler, he simply shows persistence, a plain disregard for anything but wrestling. Though this does not show psychosis, it clearly lights up the explosive nature of his pursuit. In some ways, this may be seen as a form of addiction too. In Black Swan, the main character is portrayed as one with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). As the movie progresses, the psychosis of the protagonist progresses further, she begins to hallucinate and she draws parallels between her life and the ballad she is performing (the swan lake ballad). As a director, there are a lot of similarities in his films. There is always a sense of accomplishment accompanied by sense of impending doom, a tragedy as the price for the success seen earlier. One of the characters (usually the protagonist) always dies or suffers some sort of major personal tragedy. He is also greatly influenced by Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch, Roman Polanski, Satoshi Kon, Shinya Tsukamoto, Alfred Hitchcock, Spike Lee, Federico Fellini, and Jim Jarmusch. The Wrestler and Black Swan share a great resemblance to Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue. Though the similarities were acknowledged, Aronofsky denied it being an inspiration. (7) Perfect Blue ( Pafekuto Buru? ) is a 1997 Japanese animated psychological thriller film directed by Satoshi Kon and written by Kon and Sadayuki Murai based on the novel of the same name by Yoshikazu Takeuchi. (8) Mima Kirigoe (the protagonist) who is a member of a Japanese pop-idol group called â€Å"CHAM! † decides to pursue her career as an actress. Some of her fans are displeased with her sudden career change, particularly a stalker named Me-Mania. As her new career proceeds, Mima’s world becomes increasingly noir. Reality and fantasy spiral out of control. Shortly after leaving CHAM! , Mima receives an anonymous fax calling her a traitor. Mima finds a website called â€Å"Mima’s Room† that has public diary discussing her life in great detail. She confides in her manager Rumi Hidaka, a former pop star herself, about the site, however, she is advised to just ignore it. Othe set of Double Bind, Mima succeeds in getting a larger part. The producers have agreed to give her a leading role, however as a rape victim in a strip club. Despite Rumi’s warning that it would ruin her reputation, Mima accepts the part voluntarily. Though it is apparent that Mima is indecisive, the atmosphere of the scene traumatizes her so that she increasingly becomes unable to separate reality from fantasy. She can no longer distinguish her real life from her work. She becomes paranoid. Consequently people who had been involved in tarnishing Mima’s reputation are murdered and Mima finds evidence which makes her appear as the prime suspect. Her increasing mental instability makes her doubt her own innocence. It turns out that the diarist of â€Å"Mima’s Room† is delusional and very manipulative, and that an intense folie a deux has been in play. The faux diarist (and murderer) believes that she is Mima who is forever young and graceful, has made a scapegoat of stalker Me-Mania. Mima knocks Me-Mania unconscious with a hammer when he attempts to rape her, and runs to her only support she has left alive, her manager Rumi. When Mima encounters Rumi, however, her manager is wearing a replica of Mima’s CHAM! Costume and crazily singing Mima’s pop songs. Rumi is in fact the false diarist, who believes she is the â€Å"real Mima†. Rumi is angry that Mima has been ruining the â€Å"real Mima’s† reputation, and decides to save â€Å"Mima’s† pristine pop idol image through the same means she has been using all along: murder. Mima manages to incapacitate Rumi after a chase through the city despite being wounded. Rumi remains permanently delusional and institutionalized. Mima has grown from her experiences and has moved on with her life with new found independence and confidence. One finds a striking similarity between the two storylines, if one were to imagine Mima as the White Swan – the pure innocent Nina Sayers, and Rumi as the Black Swan – the violent, sensual and dangerous psychosis of Nina. There are too many similarities between the storylines. In both cases, during the fight between the two characters (For the sake of this argument, let us assume the black swan and white swan as separate. ) The antihero of the story attacks the protagonist. In both cases the protagonist is wounded in the abdomen (almost in the same area – around the liver). In both cases, the protagonist continues their bidding after being wounded. Nina finishes the dance while Mima goes around the city in a chase. In both cases, the protagonist is affected by the job, and they receive threatening messages. Nina sees Whore while Mima receives the fax calling her a traitor. If one were to delve deeper, one even sees the similarity in the naming of characters (however this argument is based sole on conjuncture and lacks credibility. ) Despite this there is an immense similarity between the story line and the character sketches. Due to the overbearing nature of the similarity I find it hard to accept that Black Swan is not influenced by Perfect Blue. The inspiration may not have been intentional; however, the similarity is too much to be dismissed as coincidence. In this light such an undeniable similarity between the two films disqualifies Darren Aronofsky from being an auteur. Black Swan also draws heavily on what is called the Doppelganger effect and the split personality. These woven into a maze of mirror motif is the central theme throughout the film. This is a strategy which is well-known in classical Hollywood cinema such as precisely ‘The Red Shoes’. 10) This being said this film has Aronofsky’s stamp all over it. There is a great similarity between the characters ‘The Ram’ and ‘Nina Sayers’. In his own words†¦ â€Å"They are both artists who use their body Age threatens them Physical injury threatens them They only have their hands to express themselves. †(9) In all of his films, the sets have a sense of belonging. The props used are bare minimum. Only those strictly necessary are used. His set design is simple precise yet he somehow manages to bring a sense of belonging, a nativity to his sets. For example in the Black Swan recital, the set was simple, yet it somehow added to the elegance and grandeur bringing with it a certain ethereal quality with it. Another notable trait in his films is his music. Black Swan marks the fifth consecutive collaboration between Aronofsky and Clint Mansell. In all his films, music is exploited as a medium to dramatize the situation. The editing is also pertinent to the music. This relationship between the editing and BG score is most successfully exploited in Requiem for a Dream which gained acclaim for its hip-hop style editing. His attention to detail is yet another endearing stamp. For example, in the opening scene of Black Swan, the change in the tutu indicating the change in emotion is subtle almost not noticeable, yet one feels the emotion without really seeing it. The small stiff (classical pancake) tutu, for the innocent cheery bit, the long flowing (romantic) tutu for poised elegance and a graceful waltz, and, the shorter (platter) tutu, for the transition into Black Swan. Also if one were to notice keenly, one would see that almost every scene of Nina alone in the film will also include a mirror reflecting Nina in some angle. Aronofsky has made great use of this to exploit the two mindedness of Nina’s psychosis. In all respects of style, editing and mise-ene-scene Aronofsky has distinctly made his mark on all five films. In an interview, Aronofsky, says he was deeply influenced by the roller coaster Cyclone, and that he has adopted that intense structure, which keeps the audience on the edge, in his films. He aims to thrill the audience and amuse them with his films. (9) This, he certainly has achieved in his films.

A practical criticism of ‘For the Union Dead’ Essay

The aquarium is gone. Everywhere, giant finned cars nose forward like fish; a savage servility slides by on grease (For the Union Dead – Robert Lowell) In Lowell’s poem ‘For the Union Dead’ there is an underlying theme of the lost idealism which caused the American Civil War and its replacement with commercialism and materialism. â€Å"Giant finned cars nose forward like fish†, here Lowell reminds us of 20th century materialism by bringing about the image of the highly desired Cadillac (â€Å"finned cars†) whilst combining it with the comparison of a fish. This in my mind creates the idea of mankind following each other mindlessly to each material craze and status object. Moreover the image of men following each other (â€Å"nose forward†) alludes to the idea of slavery indicating that rather than liberating the African Americans from slavery we have in fact, all become slaves to our material needs. Also the aquatic references seen throughout the poem seem like references to Alan Tate’s poem ‘Ode to the Confederate Dead’: â€Å"Now that the salt of their blood stiffens the saltier oblivion of the sea, seals the malignant purity of the flood.† This could again be an indication that perhaps the North (and indeed all of ‘liberated’ America has in fact lost its war against slavery to materialism and are now in the â€Å"Oblivion of the sea†. Although this then creates a feeling of reliance on our objects as us fish are reliant on the oxygen in our ‘metaphoric sea of materialism’ which is also symbolized earlier in the poem by the image of Colonel Shaw’s monument in Boston Common being propped up to by planks so It can survive the building of an underground parking structure: â€Å"Propped up by a plank splint against the garage’s earthquake†. This not only shows this new found reliance on objects but represents the war Colonel Shaw was (and now again is) fighting against slavery. I pressed against the new and galvanized barbed fence on the Boston Common. Behind their cage, yellow dinosaur steam shovels were grunting as they cropped up tons of mush and grass to gouge their underworld garage (For the Union Dead – Robert Lowell) â€Å"Galvanised barbed fence [†¦] grunting [†¦] gouge† brings to mind the contrasting image that these new mechanical â€Å"Dinosaurs† are our slaves. Which is made to seem cruel not just by the use of â€Å"Grunting† but by the personification of the cranes: â€Å"They cropped up tons of mush and grass†. This suggests that the 20th century American has not just forgotten the Idealism of the North but has in fact taken up that of that South! This gives further meaning to the fact that the work these new ‘slaves’ are doing is knocking over and damaging Shaw’s monument which is close to falling into the hole in Boston Common (being dug for a new parking structure) which represents the killing of Shaw and his Idealism by Materialism. â€Å"The ditch where his sons body was thrown and lost with his Niggers† – Again.

Inclusive education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Inclusive education - Essay Example It refers to an attitude, believe and value system. So in this case, once this system has been adopted by a school, then it should drive all the decisions and actions by those people who have adopted it. It is a belief that schools embrace and educate all students and not just selecting those students who can be fit in that school. It is believed that all children are unique in their different ways and they have different talents. It is through inclusive learning that children are in a position to get good education and also attain the best practices in school. This can be well illustrated by cooperative learning. In this case, you find that students are in a position to learn with each other, and offer the necessary assistance to each other where possible. It is through this cooperation that students can be in a position to do well in most of their activities. Inclusive learning also reflects multi intelligence, multi level instructions, good learning and also teaching styles where children are exposed to competent teachers who express their teaching skills fully and they are also exposed to differentiated curriculum. (Armstrong, Barton and Armstrong, 2000) With inclusive schooling, it emphasizes on various issues. First it ensures that students get equal educational opportunities. It is through this that students will be in a position to have access to the various educational programs hence leading to their success in school.... It is through inclusive schooling that the necessary resources will be provided and these resources are usually provided to ensure that students are in a position to learn well. Third there is respecting differences whereby students in this case will be in a position to respect differences which might arise. (Bender, 2002) Inclusive schooling is said to teach mutual respect where students are in a position to respect each other, responsibility in the sense that these children will be in a position to demonstrate responsibility by obeying commands and taking charge of their responsibilities, they will also learn to be generous to others and last they will learn to be independent. (Dei, Zine, and James-Wilson, 2002) Therefore the rationale behind inclusive schooling can be summarized as intending to ensure that all children regardless of the differences the may exist between them are put under the same class environment in order to take advantage of their diversity and help them to learn well. In this regard it is also expected to lower the cost of education to the parent and to the government since students will be able to use the same resources and amenities rather than providing each student with their own resources. It is an approach that is expected to make the education process smooth for the teachers, parents and the students. It aims at eliminating any discrimination and achieving equality for all in education. Values, policies and strategies of inclusive education One of the most important emphasis of the inclusive education is the way in which it advocates for changes and modification in the content, the approach structures, policies and strategic of the education system. The model is enabled by a value system which ensures that there is child

Like water for chocolate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Like water for chocolate - Research Paper Example e releasing of a newer version by replacing various charts (Gilly 23).The author sets this story at a time of Mexican Revolution that took place between 1910 and 1920 in Northern Mexico. It concerns a family where the youngest called Tita is an excellent cook and originator of various food recipes. The Mexican Revolution concerned redistribution of land and government reform to the various women and men who played a pivotal role in the revolution. The process involved restructuring the society to include women in the public sphere fully. The main objective of this revolutionary was to create a new constitution. The congress that took place in1916 and the number of Mexican women who attended the congress was seven hundred (Esquivel 29). This group had the intention of reforming the 1884 Civil Code. This Civil Code denied women a right to act in an independent manner from the male who are the leaders of household in all aspects which include child guardianship and inheritance. The feminist congress had concentrations in education, voting, and issues concerning the holding of various public offices. In 1917, the government drafted the revolutionary constitution and women acquired various rights (McLynn 19). They acquired the right to vote and started becoming active in politics. Despite the fact that Mexico was independent of Spain, the governments had internal and external conflicts. The revolution tore the country in the twentieth century. Madero who was a liberal leader led a revolt in 1910 after he lost a rigged election. This culminated in Diaz resigning and Madero replacing him as president in 1911. The Mexican revolution concerned different beliefs, different political parties, and how the country should be governed. All these disagreed with each other and fought for power and struggled to emerge as the ruler of the country. One finds the same observation in Tita’s family. Tita is not comfortable with Mama Elena’s traditions and disagrees with them. She

Law 1183 for Washington Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Law 1183 for Washington - Essay Example â€Å"The main issue however concerns the taxation and distribution of liquor in Washington† (Smith, 2010). There are proponents who argue that privatizing the liquor sales and distribution and availing the liquor on groceries would greatly increase the availability of the liquor sales, which will be another important part of the income to the city authority or the state government. The opponents of this initiative on the other hand advocate for state control in obtaining revenue as well as streamlining the drinking patterns within the community. Initiative 1183 is a measure that is aimed at directing the liquor board to close down all the state owned liquor stores, terminate the contracts offered by the state to private stores selling liquor, and allow the state to issue private licenses that would allow the liquor to be sold, imported and distributed by private parties in groceries and other easy access points (Mercier, 2010). This initiative is aimed at repealing the unifor m pricing as decided by the state liquor board, and other requirements that are required in sales and distribution of hard liquor. In fact, stores that previously had contracts from the state controlled liquor distribution under this initiative might be converted to retail licenses. About 1,428 retail outlets in initiative 1183 would be licensed compared to3, 357 in initiative 1100 (Mercier, 2010). A study carried out by the Office of Financial Management (OFM) has been the impetus to the proponents of this initiative. There are estimations that upon implementing this initiative, the State General Fund revenue would increase from $216 to $253 million, while the local revenues are expected to improve from $186 to $227 million (Mercier, 2010). This report has been used to consolidate proponents to vote for the initiative. In addition the initiative would retain the tax structure and license issuance would be about 17% of all liquor sales and an annual fee of $166 (Corte, 2010). One as pect in states protectionist monopoly is to reduce the overuse of hard liquor among its citizens. This makes the state to control not only the sales but also the consumption of the liquor. There are however, certain contradictions: â€Å"does state monopoly control the patterns and trends in alcohol intake? State protectionism on alcohol consumption might not directly affect the alcohol consumption patterns in the state† (Smith, 2010). For example, California has an average consumption of 2.34 gallons of alcohol per an average person, while Washington has an average of 2.35 gallons of alcohol consumed per an average person, as per the National Institute of Health figures 2007 (Smith (2010). California has a full privatized hard liquor licenses and sales and distribution of other alcoholic drinks. This makes alcohol readily available at groceries and other near points, where consumers may access the alcohol with ease (Smith, 2010). Proponents have a view that there is no diffe rence between alcohol consumed in the two states, meaning that the protectionism in alcohol distribution would not be effective in controlling consumption. â€Å"Washington would be the fifth state in protectionism from the second position after initiative 1183† (Smith, 2010).This argument has been used to challenge the assertion that the use of alcohol would be a menace to good governance (Timberlake,