Intro to Financial Problems

           Financial problems can stop any person, program, or even country in its tracks.  The unavailability of funding stops the ability of that entity from accomplishing its goals.  I chose to talk about this topic because it has a drastic effect on everyone.  For students, we put our time and money into our education and expect it to pay off with a career when we graduate.  For organizations, it prevents them from being able to improve their progress and programs.  For countries, it can send them into bankruptcy and put their entire system of government at risk of deteriorating. 

            On the individual level, people are devastated by financial problems.  It causes more than just inability to pay their bills.  The people can suffer from stress, depression, anger, and a variety of other symptoms.  For students, some of us take out student loans to pay for our education and, with the rising tuition costs due to state financial problems, we are acquiring debt never seen before (Ellis 2010).  We were taught from a young age that, if  we get a college education,  there is a good paying job waiting for  us.  Many of us are being met with the harsh reality that there are extremely limited possibilities for employment, and  we are in competition with those who have been laid off and have work experience.  We graduate with large debts, no employment, and a big student loan payment.  We come to the realization that the generation who told us that a good education will get  us a good job is the same one that destroyed that way of life.

            For organizations, financial problems prevent them from growing and expanding.  They find themselves working with very limited resources trying to complete tasks that were difficult when they had twice the resources.  Many public agencies have been forced to lay off workers and have come to the realization that they must limit their services to the public.  Several law enforcement agencies will no longer respond to misdemeanor calls or assist citizens with traffic accidents (Preuitt 2010).  These organizations want to hire the graduating students but are unable to because of budgetary problems caused up the ladder from them.

            Many countries have been effected by financial problems and the ripple effects travel across all of their citizens and the world.  Some countries are going to others to ask for money to bail them out.  They go to other countries who are also having financial problems of their own, and this puts greater strain on the other country.  The mismanagement of funds by the vast systems that control the countries put us in this situation.  There were experts that saw this disaster coming, but nothing was done about it.  The U.S. has large amounts of money spent on programs that are a money pit.  Large sums of money are being embezzled and very little is done to detect this.  Companies are charging the government many fold what an item sells for to the private industry (Rosenblatt 2011).

            I chose this topic because it affects everyone’s life in one way or another.  Our leaders need to take a good look at where our money is going, why, and if it is efficient.  The realization that money is not an unlimited resource was a harsh one that almost brought the world to a standstill.  My generation will be left with damage caused by our predecessors and we must try to leave it in better shape for our successors.  I feel that this is a difficult task but is one that can be accomplished with the right people left in charge and an informed population to watch over them.    

Sources

Rosenblatt, Joel (Sept. 2011) Watson, Sandoz pay $145 million to settle drug price case.  Bloomberg Businessweek.  Accessed Sept, 29, 2011.  http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-09-15/watson-sandoz-pay-145-million-to-settle-drug-price-case.html

Preuitt, Lori (July 2010).  Suffer These Crimes in Oakland? Don’t Call the Cops.  NBC Bay Area.  Accessed online. http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Suffer-These-Crimes-in-Oakland-Dont-Call-the-Cops-98266509.html

Ellis, Blake (Oct. 2010).  College Grads: $24,000 in debt.  CNN Money. Accessed Sept. 29, 2011.  http://money.cnn.com/2010/10/22/pf/college/student_loan_debt/index.htm