Viewpoints on "Three Assessments of Finland's Economic Crisis and Economic Policy"

This paper summarizes the basic arguments given by professors Christian Bordes, David Currie and Hans Söderström in their reports on the state and behaviour of the Finnish economy prior to mid 1993. The focus is primarily on the analytical frameworks or models used by the professors to organize their thoughts on the Finnish economy, and, admittedly, at some risk of oversimplification interpretes the reports through common analytical principles. The paper argues that basically each of the reports subscribes to the idea of a credit cycle as the driving force behind the development of the Finnish economy during the last ten years or so. Thus the very nature of the credit cycle is analyzed in the paper and interpreted in a way suitable for economic policy analysis. This discussion is followed by the policy analysis, which is organized through a sequence of policy issues and proposals raised by the professors in their reports. The paper tries to emphasize and evaluate those aspects of the analysis pursued by the professors which relate to the (lack of) credibility of the then prevailing policy regime and the feasibility of the various policy measures taken. Finally, the paper draws attention to some of the ideas discussed by the professors related to future policy options in Finland.economic crisis; credit cycle; monetary policy; deregulation of capital markets

Parallel Nation-ness : Invocation(s) and Performance(s) of Kurdish Nation-ness among Kurdish Immigrants in Finland

This thesis investigates how Kurdish nation-ness is invoked and performed among Kurdish immigrants in Finland, through focusing on the case of Kurdiliitto (an umbrella association unifying 24 Kurdish-Finnish organizations throughout Finland.) Using an alternative concept, i.e. nation-ness, this study attempts to underline the historicity and ideological grab of nationalism, which often goes overlooked when adopting more conventional concepts such as ‘diaspora’, ‘belonging’ or ‘identity’. As nation-ness is a novel concept with little scholarly attention, additional effort is directed towards defining it. Nation-ness is described in this thesis as a term conveying “the state of being a nation.” This thesis provides answers to two main research questions: firstly, “how is Kurdish nation-ness invoked and performed among Kurdish immigrants in Finland?” and secondly, “what are some of the most recurrent patterns utilized in these invocations and performances?” It is argued that such division of questions directs analytical attention equally both towards the social actors’ actions and the discursive, visual or auditory content found in these actions. Kurdiliitto is utilized to provide an empirical anchor for the investigation and to avoid an analytically shallow referencing of an “ethnic” or “diasporic” community. The data used in the answering of these research questions are elicitated through ten observations at various events of Kurdiliitto and three semi-structured interviews with the leading members of the organization. The thesis adopts the abductive analysis method to focus on “surprises” within the collected data and emphasize an effort towards theory construction. This study introduces an alternative analytical concept: i.e. ‘nation-ness as performance.’ Through this concept, it is argued nation-ness is, fundamentally, performed. An analogy between the performances of ‘nation-ness’ and ‘gender’ is emphasized in this context in order to determine the properties of nation-ness as performance. In regard to the research questions, this thesis asserts that Kurdish nation-ness is invoked and performed mainly as parallel to “other nation-nesses”. The use of an internationally shared language of nationalism, as well as the flagging of nation-ness through various visual and auditory markers, are found to be the most recurrent patterns in the invocation(s) and performance(s) of Kurdish nation-ness

Growth and income distribution in an integrated Europe: Does EMU make a difference?

(Papers presented at the 4th Annual Research Conference, 11-12 October 2007) This volume contains nine papers presented at the 4th DG ECFIN Annual Research Conference held in October, 2007 in Brussels on the theme: Growth and income distribution in an integrated Europe: Does EMU make a difference? This volume contains assessments of the following four issues: The economics of distribution and growth. Distribution and growth in Europe Does the euro make a difference? Europe different?growth, distribution of income, distribution of wealth, equality, inequality, globalization, economic integration, Jonung, Kontulainen

Asianosaisen kuuleminen hallintomenettelyssä : Hallintolain 34 §:n mukainen menettely ja soveltamiskäytäntö korkeimmassa hallinto-oikeudessa

Tutkielmassani tutkin asianosaisen kuulemista hallintomenettelyssä hallintolain 34 §:n mukaan. Kuulemisen teoreettisen viitekehyksen lisäksi tutkitaan korkeimman hallinto-oikeuden ratkaisuja, joissa HL 34 §:n soveltaminen on ollut merkittävää tapauksen ratkaisussa. Tutkimusotteeni on lainopillinen ja KHO:n tapauksia tutkitaan tekstianalyysin menetelmin. Tutkimustuloksena havaitut kuulemisen ongelmat voidaan jakaa kuulemisen edellytysten arviointiin, johon sisältyy asianosaisuuden arviointi, HL 34.2 §:n poikkeusperusteiden soveltumisen arviointi sekä erityislain soveltumisen arviointi; ja kuulemisen toteuttamiseen, johon kuuluu viranomaisen selvitysvelvollisuus, asianosaisen tiedonsaantioikeus sekä kuulemisen valmistelu ja toteuttaminen. Asianosaisuuden ja kuulemisen poikkeusperusteiden arviointi on kuulemisen toteuttamisen arviointia monitulkintaisempaa niiden säännösten yleisyyden vuoksi. Asianosaispiiriä on pääsääntöisesti tulkittava laajentavasti ja toisaalta kuulemisesta poikkeamisen perusteita ei voida tulkinnalla laajentaa. Kuulemisen toteuttamisessa menettelysääntöjä tulee noudattaa tarkasti ja viranomaisen on otettava huomioon hyvän hallinnon vaatimukset. Tutkituissa kuulemisen toteuttamista koskevissa tapauksissa kuulemiskysymykset johtuivat pääasiassa viranomaisen huolimattomuudesta, eikä ollut havaittavissa kiperiä tulkintatilanteita, joista johtuen viranomainen olisi jättänyt kuulemisen toteuttamatta. Kuulemissäännösten tulkinnassa viranomaisen on erityisesti otettava huomioon kuulemisperiaatteen merkittävyys asianosaisen oikeussuojan takeena. Viranomaisen tulee kiinnittää huomiota kuulemisen laadukkaaseen toteutumiseen ja merkitykseen asianosaista hallintomenettelyyn osallistavana toimena. KHO:n ratkaisulinja jalostaa kuulemisnormia ja viranomaisen tulee kehittää toimintaansa oikeuskäytännön perusteella. Kuulemisen kehittämiseksi tulisi myös selvittää hallinnon asiakkaiden kokemuksia kuulemisen toteutumisesta

Ulkoistuksen valmistelu ja suunnittelu logistiikkayrityksessä : Päätöksentekoon vaikuttavat tekijät ja prosessin läpivienti

Siirretty Doriast

Fat and bone in children - where are we now?

The risk of fracture secondary to low-impact trauma is greater in obese children, suggesting obese children are at risk of skeletal fragility. However, despite this finding, there is a lack of agreement about the impact of excessive adiposity on skeletal development. The combination of poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, greater force generated on impact through falls, and greater propensity to falls may in part explain the increased risk of fracture in obese children. To date, evidence suggests that in early childhood years, obesity confers a structural advantage to the developing skeleton. However, in time, this relationship attenuates and then reverses, such that there is a critical period during skeletal development when obesity has a detrimental effect on skeletal structure and strength. Fat mass may be important to the developing cortical and trabecular bone compartments, provided that gains in fat mass are not excessive. However, when fat accumulation reaches excessive levels, unfavorable metabolic changes may impede skeletal development. Evidence from studies examining bone microstructure suggests skeletal adaption to excessive load fails, and bone strength is relatively diminished in relation to body size in obese children. Mechanisms that may explain these changes include changes in the hormonal environment, particularly in relation to alterations in adipokines and fat distribution. Given the concomitant rise in the prevalence of childhood obesity and fractures, as well as adult osteoporosis, further work is required to understand the relationship between obesity and skeletal development

Leptin may play a role in bone microstructural alterations in obese children.

Bone mass is low and fracture risk is higher in obese children. Hormonal changes in relation to skeletal microstructure and biomechanics have not been studied in obese children