On Oct 1^st, the American government announced the intention to shut down. The shutdown of the American government is result of no budget deal reached in Congress. In Congress, the House Republicans did not allow the new budget plan to pass except for the Democrats who agreed to delay the Affordable Care Act. The shutdown of government will continue if the impasse isn’t solved.

The direct effects of the government shutdown are closures of national parks and some agencies and the furlough of over 800,000 federal workers. The closure of national parks leads to dissatisfaction among tourists. However, social security is still running. Therefore, in general, the impact on the common American’s life will not be that serious.

According to past data, the shutdown of government in 1996 generated a 14 billion dollar economic loss for America. If this impasse continues until Oct 17, America will reach the upper limit of the debt ceiling, and it will have a serious impact for the American economy.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304373104579107480729687014.html?mod=trending_now_1#articleTabs%3Darticle

When a dramatic growth happened in energy drinks in recent years, relaxation drinks began to rise silently at the same time. This article talks about the positive and negative effects of relaxation drinks.

Compared to Red Bull and Monster, strong brand names for energy drinks, Just Chill, Neuro Bliss and some other brand names for relaxation drinks are weaker. But the good taste of the relaxation drinks will be a powerful advantage.

In the present society, both students and employees have greater and greater pressure; some of them prefer to have a relaxation drink to relax in the afternoon. Also, some insomniacs believe relaxation drinks have less influence on body health than hypnotics. Thus, the market for relaxation drinks is huge and customer demand is unfulfilled.

However, relaxation drinks are not as healthy as they actually look. The ingredients such as melatonin, valerian root and L-theanine look safe to most people but no one knows what will happen if they are mixed with a medicine. There are safety concerns.

According to my analysis, relaxation drinks have market opportunities because the loosening legalization of the ingredients, an unsatisfied market and special consumer groups. However the safety concern will be a big weakness for the development of relaxation drinks.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304373104579109283589583074.html#articleTabs%3Darticle

This article talks about how Chinese people regard the inheritance tax. On Sept 27, a Chinese newspaper reported that there would be an important meeting about whether to levy an inheritance tax in November. This news led to a heated discussion in China. According to a vote in Sina Weibo, 69.1 per cent of the people are opposing, 26.9 per cent agree and 4 per cent are neutral. On the basis of this data, it is obvious to conclude that most people in China are against this idea.

Personally, levying an inheritance tax will have a positive effect. Firstly, the distance between the rich and the poor will be shorter. The inheritance tax is the money that is taken from the rich and used to help the poor. This will also be a test for the ethics of rich Chinese people. Secondly, people will have the motivation to buy things because they can pay less tax afterwards. Thirdly, it will be a good chance for the Chinese to change their attitudes toward money. From ancient times, the Chinese people believe money or other assets should all be given to the next generation, and only a small number of people are willing to donate money to improve social welfare. The inheritance tax is a way to promote the assumption of social responsibility.

In general, levying an inheritance tax is beneficial for most people if the government can use the inheritance tax in the right way.

 http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2013/10/03/talk-of-inheritance-tax-sparks-debate-in-china/