Do you think the European Union has a democratic deficit Essay

Do you think the European Union has a democratic deficit - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that the European Union is among the international organization that is developed. It provides an avenue for viewing the democratic structures development outside its state members. Democratic deficit is a controversial issue among the European Union members and touches on issues that are crucial. The essential issues are based on developments in the future within the theory of democracy. However, the European Union democratic deficit is known for its heterogenic nature. Thus, members are not sure if the deficit really exists and the issue is still being debated upon. Similarly, possible problem potential solutions vary in scope and range. In comparison to international organizations that are traditional, the European Union has a distinct institutional structure. The member states acceptance of the European Treaties has brought so many favours. For instance, the member states have the capability of relinquishing sovereignty in relations to institutions that are independent thus representing shared and national interests. The institutions of the European Union complement each other. In that case, each has a role to play in terms of decision-making. The decisions made fulfil various functions such as executive, judicial and legislative. There exist seven (7) key European Union governing institutions. These are such as the council, European commission, European parliament, court of justice, court of auditors and the European Central Bank. (â€Å"European Union Primer†). All these institutions have a role to play as illustrated below. The council main role is to set an agenda. In that case, it is responsible for the overall European Union political direction. However, it has no mandate to approve any laws. As a result of the role it plays, members have to meet occasionally after every six months. It comprises of the state or government national heads and the commission’s president. In their meetings, they do cover various issues facing the member countries. These are such as, transport, industry, environment, agriculture among others. On matters related to law-making, the European Union three institutions play an essential part. These are such as, the European Union Council, European parliament and the European commission. The parliament represents the citizens of the European Union; the council represents the state or governments of European Union members and the commission represents the Union interest. Jointly, these institutions work together to come up with viable policies for the Union. They follow the ordinary legislative process and provide laws and policies that are thorough. The policies and laws are then adopted throughout the European Union. Ideally, it is the commission that proposes laws that need to be implemented whilst the council and parliament approves them. The European Union member countries and the commission task are to implement the newly generated laws and poli cies. Furthermore, the commission has to ensure that the designed laws are implemented and applied properly (â€Å"EU institutions and other bodies†). The Court of Justice and the Court of Auditors have also a significant role to play in the European Union. The court of justice main purpose is to ensure the correct interpretation of the community law and its implementation in correspondent with the signed Treaties. For instance, a ruling can be made by the court if a state member fails to follow any laid down Treaties obligations. Alternatively, if the country fails to check community institutions instruments that are compatible with regards to the Treaty. This occurs whereby, annulment actions are presented before the court or failure to act by the European commission, council or parliament. Apart from the above roles, the court of justice has all the powers to give their opinion on Treaties correct

What caused the Vietnam War (1964-1973) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

What caused the Vietnam War (1964-1973) - Essay Example Historians gauge the impact of the Vietnam conflict not only on casualty figure and geographic coverage but also on its length, intensity and global repercussions. For instance, the war in Vietnam played a great importance in the geopolitical sense since it became a flashpoint in the Cold War. Furthermore, the war took place in a turbulent period of human history and became intertwined with other social upheavals which almost brought down the American body politic. The aim of this paper is to analyze the roots and the underlying factors that led to the US intervention in the Vietnam conflict. In the process, it is hoped that this would shed light to the phenomenon which marked significant failures specifically in US international policies and the end-result of the nine-year conflict. Looking back at history, one will find that the US interest in Vietnam did not start with the administrations of John F. Kennedy and Dwight D. Eisenhower. It started with the American policy of containment in the aftermath of the Second World War against the spread of communism and the growing power of the USSR. Andrew Wiest (2002) explored this aspect in his book, The Vietnam War: In each case the scale of the threats precluded the use of massive force, so avoiding the buildup to a nuclear exchange. The US chose to adopt a policy of limited war, hoping to avoid a superpower showdown and in many ways the war in Vietnam became the main example of the US limited war policy.2 After the fall of imperial Japan, Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the independence of Democratic Republic of Vietnam and drafted a constitution along with a form of government based on the American model, hoping for a continued American support. He sought the help of the United States in establishing a new Vietnam but he was ignored. The American supported France’s attempt at regaining its colonies in Indochina, hence the war between the French forces