Modern Terrorism Essay Example for Free

Modern Terrorism Essay Part One: 1. What major measures can the international community take to prevent terrorism? The fight against terrorist organizations and terrorism is not just a fight that the United States must face alone. This is evident from the Madrid train bombings, the bombings in London, and the terrorist attacks that Israel seems to face everyday from Hizballah. Terrorism is, in effect, international. All nations have a responsibility to combat terrorism to protect them and to protect other nations as well. One of the security measures that can be undertaken is that of securing aircraft and airports. Enders and Sandler cite in their book that between 1973 and 2002, there was an average of ten skyjackings per year (Enders, W. . Sandler, T., 2012). This was a number that is surprising due to the fact that it seems like most werent reported or very little coverage was given to the incidences. There are new technologies being developed all the time to aid in securing of air travel. There is new technology in the area of explosive detection devices. One such technology is called micro-tagging. During this process, tiny chips of micro-taggants are blended into explosive substances and color-coded to identify the manufacturer and batch of explosives (IME, 2005). This system would also be beneficial in the reconstruction of bomb scenes and used to gain knowledge and prepare for future terrorist acts. Another innovative technology is called dielectric analysis. Dielectric analysis is a powerful non-destructive tool for characterizing materials; it can provide accurate, repeatable results unavailable by other electrical means. This, in essence, gives the explosive agents a â€Å"fingerprint† and could provide immediate identification of explosive substances at airports (DHS, 2012). Along with technological advanced in air security, people can often make the biggest impact. In this area, Federal Air Marshals play an important role. This is not something that all countries partake in but more and more countries are adding these individuals to their flights. The airline association estimates that 10 or 20 out of some 115 airlines that fly into the United States already use air marshals (Lichtblau, 2003). Israel, for instance, has used marshals on El Al flights for years, and as stated, some other countries have followed suit more recently, as Australia announced in 2003 that Qantas Airways would begin placing armed marshals on flights to Singapore. Mexico has stated that they would start to use their own air marshals on flights that are going to the United States. However, not all countries and airlines are signed on to the idea. Air France does not use air marshals and the British Air Line Pilots Association said it does not believe that arms belong on aircraft, and British Airways, the countrys biggest airline, said it reserves the right not to fly if it is forced to add air marshals (Lichtblau, 2003). Although there is a general feeling among passengers that they would feel safer on a flight if there were an air marshal on board, not everyone believes the passengers would necessarily be safer. There are those that cite that an armed conflict on a plane would become more dangerous to the passengers as opposed to just letting the terrorist state their demands and work with them for the release of passengers. Sound, actionable, intelligence is another area that countries can utilize for overall protection. Political intelligence is an important factor to combating terrorism. This can be used to identify where the groups are garnering the most support for their cause. When this has been determined, pressure from other nations can be placed on these states to not support the terrorists. The gathering and use of military intelligence is vital in any operation. The intelligence gathered by our forces can assist in finding out how many are in a particular group, what kinds of weapons they have, and where they are located. 2. Do you think the U.S. should follow Israel’s example of fighting terrorism? Explain fully. Israel has been fighting terrorism for many years, even before they became a nation in 1948. They are surrounded by Muslim nations, which historically do not get along with Israelis. This is particularly true of Palestinians. Since Israel is surrounded by so many that wish to do them harm, they have had to take more drastic steps in order to protect themselves. They had become one of the first countries to articulate a deliberate and official policy of retaliation against terrorism. Most nations understand that a nation must fight back in order to protect itself and its interests. Israel on the other hand seems to retaliate in a much more aggressive manner. Such a case was their retaliation against an Arab village in Qibiya, Jordan in 1953. On October 13, 1953, Jordanian terrorists infiltrated the Israeli border and threw a grenade into a house, killing a mother and two children in Tiryat Yehuda. In an effort to prevent further attacks and protect its borders, Israel launched a reprisal raid on Qibiya, a Jordanian town across the border from Tiryat Yehuda. Unit 101, led by then Colonel Ariel Sharon, destroyed 50 homes, killing 69 Jordanian civilians who were hidden inside and had gone unnoticed (Oreck, A. 2007). Sharon had stated that he was not aware that civilians were involved but that did not help in the embarrassment that Israel suffer ed due to the incident. The Israelis have pioneered the area of preemptive strikes against terrorism. This policy is a bit more difficult to convince the international community for its justification. It is one thing to fight back against an attack on your country it is another to strike first to prevent such an attack. But in many cases is necessary to do so. Should we follow Israel’s example? If that question had been posed ten or fifteen years ago, I may have said no. Today, my answer would be yes, with a caveat. Though it may be difficult, I think we would need other countries to publicly back us to carry out certain missions. In the case of a preemptive strike, our allies must be informed of such action so they are not taken by surprise of the situation. As far as targeted killings, we had better have support in this undertaking or else we are going to look like the aggressors or worse, assassins. A prime example is our current situation in the Middle East. Although the United States has a policy against taking out heads of state, which President Ford imposed by executive order in 1976, there is nothing to say that we cannot take out leaders of terrorist groups as in the case of Osama bin Laden. In the climate we live in today, we had better have all of our options open and on the table if we want to defend ourselves and help prevent future attacks. 3. Identify and explain at least three international conventions organized to suppress terrorism. I.The International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 9, 1999, and signed on behalf of the United States of America on January 10, 2000. The Convention is aimed at cutting off the funding that terrorist groups need to operate. This Convention provides an obligation that States Parties criminalize such conduct and establishes an international legal framework for cooperation among States Parties directed toward prevention of such financing and ensuring the prosecution and punishment of offenders, wherever found. II.The International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombing was adopted in 1997. At this convention, The United Nations (1997) states: Created a regime of universal jurisdiction over the unlawful and intentional use of explosives and other lethal devices in, into, or against various defined public places with intent to kill or cause serious bodily injury, or with intent to cause extensive destruction of the public place. (article 2) It is similar to other conventions in that it requires parties to extradite or submit for prosecution person’s accused of committing or aiding in the commission of such offenses. III.The Convention on the Making of Plastic Explosives for the purpose of Detection was ratified by the United Nations in 1991. The members of the U.N. were concerned that plastic explosives had been used for such terrorist acts in the past and could be again in the future and wanted to do something about it. This Convention was aimed at deterring such unlawful acts of the use of plastic explosives because they felt there was a need for an international mandate for States to adopt appropriate measures to ensure that plastic explosives are marked. 4. Briefly evaluate the provision of the U.S. Patriot Act. The U.S. Patriot Act has ten different provisions that outline the United States governments war on terrorism. These provisions impact the war on terrorism in different ways. Some of the provisions deal with rights and responsibilities; others provide areas in which terrorism can be fought. The first title is for the enhancement of domestic security and provides for funding and information gathering. It also prohibits the discrimination against Muslim Americans. Title II is probably the most controversial of all the provisions. It is here where the perceived infringement on civil liberties takes place. This provision reshapes the way the federal government can collect information. The FBI can seize materials from private citizens when it believes national security is at stake and then get permission from courts to do so afterwards. Title III involves the area of money laundering and the financing of terrorist organizations. Title IV increases border patrols and mandates the detention of suspected terrorists. Title V deals with removing obstacles in the investigation of terrorism and addresses the capture and prosecution of terrorists. Title VI provides aid to the families of Public Safety Officers who were injured or killed in terrorist attacks, and amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984. Title VII supports the sharing of information by federal law enforcement agencies. Title VIII strengthens criminal laws against terrorism, defines domestic terrorism, and expands biological weapons statutes. Title IX provides guidance on intelligence information sharing from foreign agencies. The information derived from electronic surveillance or physical searches is disseminated for efficient and effective foreign intelligence purposes. The last title is kind of a catchall and is listed as miscellaneous. It contains 16 sections that do not fall under other titles in the act. 5. Briefly discuss the impact of emergency powers on defeating terrorism. Many nations have forms of so called, â€Å"Emergency Powers†. Some countries call it â€Å"State of Exception†, â€Å"Special Powers†, or â€Å"Terrorist Affected†. No matter what a country may call their emergency powers, extreme circumstances may exist in which the security of the country in needed and these powers allow for authorities to stop, search, question and detain individuals suspected of terrorist involvement. There have been emergency powers used even before the United States was formed. Between 1775 and 1781, the Continental Congress passed a series of acts and resolves which count as the first expressions of emergency authority. These instruments dealt almost exclusively with the prosecution of the Revolutionary War (Relyea, 2006). The President of the United States has available certain powers that may be exercised in the event that the nation is threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances (other than natural disasters, war, or near-war situations). Part Two: What changes has the F.B.I. made since 9/11? How have these changes improved the F.B.I.’s ability to respond to terrorism? Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Muller, III said the following in a 2008 Washington Times article: Before 9/11, we were an agency that focused primarily on investigating crimes after the fact, he told The Washington Times in an e-mail interview this week. Today we are actively preventing and disrupting destructive and illegal acts before they occur. (para. 3) A few examples of how the F.B.I. is accomplishing this are how they recruit and train their special agents. Mr. Muller instituted a five-year move up or get out plan for its leadership, calling it critical to the success of the future success of the F.B.I. The budget for 2012 was $8.1 billion including $119.2 million in program increases to enhance counterterrorism, computer intrusions, and other programs (The FBI, 2012). They have also made great efforts to increase information sharing with other intelligence agencies which makes efforts to prevent terrorists activities a greater success as in the thwarting of the attempted bombing of downtown Manhattan financial district just a few short months ago. Since the institution of Director Muller’s initiatives and the FBI’s new focus on counterterrorism rather than just being a reactive agency, the FBI is better trained and equipped to not only respond but to go on the offensive when needed. With the help of the Patriot Act and the expanded powers it allows law enforcement to react more decisively and with greater effectiveness. Part Three: What were the policies of Germany and Japan before 9/11? What measures have been taken by these two countries in order to combat terrorism? Prior to 9/11, the German government had a typical laissez faire approach to international terrorists and their organizations. After 9/11 this changed. In a CRS report, Miko, F.T. (2004), stated the following: The German response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States was immediate and unprecedented in scope for that country. Setting aside its post-World War II prohibition against deploying forces outside of Europe and overcoming pacifist leanings of some in the governing coalition, Germany quickly offered military and other assistance to the United States. In his initial reaction to the attacks of 9/11, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder declared Germany’s â€Å"unlimited solidarity† with the United States. On September 12, 2001, the German government, along with other U.S. allies, invoked NATO’s Article V, paving the way for military assistance to the United States. The Chancellor gained approval from the German Parliament to deploy troops to Afghanistan with a call for a vote of confidence in his own government. Since then, German efforts in the fight against terrorism have expanded across a wide spectrum. Germany has instituted significant policy, legislative, and organizational reforms. Bilateral cooperation with the United States has been extensive, despite differences stemming from the distinct approaches and constraints in each country and frictions resulting from sharp disagreement over Iraq policy. (p. 1) Since the end of WWII and Japan’s defeat, their policy has been one of maintaining a Ground Self Defense Force (GSDF) aimed at protecting the homeland only. While Japan remains a loyal supporter of the United States, the public is very reluctant to view military intervention outside the country as favorable. However, they did send a small force to Iraq in a relatively peaceful operating environment in the town of Samawah. While there they neither caused nor received any casualties, which was popular with the Japanese public. Although Japanese opinion on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq suggests a willingness to recognize the utility of military power for territorial defense, but not for offensive uses of force, unless these are directly related to national defense, they remain a strong supporter of U.S. policies against terrorists. Part Four: Summarize the salient points of the National Strategy For Combating Terrorism. The salient points of the National Strategy For Combating Terrorism can be summed up as follows: âž ¢Defeat Terrorists and Their Organizations âž ¢Deny Sponsorship, Support, and Sanctuary to Terrorists âž ¢Diminish the Underlying Conditions that Terrorists Seek to Exploit âž ¢Defend U.S. Citizens and Interests at Home and Abroad The list above serves as the Goals and Objectives of the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism as of 2007. These same goals still hold true today. Part Five: Summarize the salient points of the National Strategy To Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction National Strategy to Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction. This was first issued by then President, George W. Bush in December 2002. A description of strategy is as follows: The Weapons of Mass Destruction strategy presents a national strategy to combat weapons of mass destruction (WMD) through three major efforts: (1) nonproliferation, (2) counter-proliferation, and (3) consequence management in WMD incidents (The White House, 2003). The plan addresses the production and proliferation of WMD among nations, as well as the potential threat of terrorists using WMD agents. I leave you with a final quote from President George W. Bush. â€Å"The gravest danger our Nation faces lies at the crossroads of radicalism and technology. Our enemies have openly declared that they are seeking weapons of mass destruction, and evidence indicates that they are doing so with determination. The United States will not allow these efforts to succeed. History will judge harshly those who saw this coming danger but failed to act. In the new world we have entered, the only path to peace and security is the path of action.† President Bush The National Security Strategy of the United States of America September 17, 2002 References: (2005). Taggant History and Background. IME. Retrieved January 8, 2013 from http://www.ime.org/dynamic.php?page_id=66 (2012). Electromagnetic Studies of Explosives Laboratories. 1-2. Department of Homeland Security: http://www.orau.gov/DHS-TSLvisSciProg/labs/TSL_EMX LAB.pdf. (2012). Quick Facts. The FBI. Retrieved January 15, 2013 from http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/quick-facts Conery, B., Mueller praises FBI’s changes since 9/11. The Washington Times. [Editors Picks]. Retrieved January 15, 2013 from http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/jul/25/mu eller-praises-fbis-changes-since-911/?page=all Enders, W. . Sandler, T. (2012). The Political Economy of Terrorism. (2nd ed., pp. 86-90). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Lichtblau, E. (2003). U.S. says it will force countries to arm flights. San Francisco Chronicle, A/1. Retrieved January 8, 2013, from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/12/30/MNGJD40F651.DTLtype=printable. Miko, F.T. (2004). Germanys Role in Fighting Terrorism: Implications for U.S. Policy. (RL32710). 1. United States Congress. Retrieved January 15, 2013 from http://www.fas.org/irp/crs/RL32710.pdf Oreck, A. (2007). Qibya. Jewish Virtual Library, The Library. Retrieved January 8, 2013, from http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Qibiya.html. Relyea, H. C. (2006). National Emergency Powers. In CRS Report for Congress. Congress. Retrieved January 9, 2013, from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/98-505.pdf. The White House. (2003). National Strategy to Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction. Arms Control Today. Retrieved January 15, 2013 from http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2003_01-02/document _janfeb03 United Nations. (1997). Conventions Against Terrorism. Retrieved January 9, 2013, from United Nations: http://www.un.org/law/cod/terroris.htm

Gangnam Style Is a Part of Pop Culture Essay Example for Free

Gangnam Style Is a Part of Pop Culture Essay In the baby boomer generation, That Thing You Do, a single released by The Wonders, fascinated people for a long time. Today, majority of people are interested in Harlem Shake, the very short clips that were uploaded on YouTube by some undefined performers. Last year, 2012 was the year of excitement and entertainment. In every part of the world, Gangnan Style, a single released by a Korean singer called PSY, has turned people to share the common interest in the funny dance moves with the catchy beats. Gangnam Style is a recent popular culture that turns people on in the world. This essay will first illustrate the background of this world phenomenon and then extent to explain why it becomes popular culture. To begin with, Gangnam Style is combination of the fancy dance move and a song that is sung in Korean language. It is sung and danced by Park Jae-sang, who is better known by his stage name, PSY. PSY is a 35-year-old Korean artist, who has been working in music industry since 1999. In July 2012, PSY released his sixth album called PSY 6 (Six Rules) Part 1, which Gangnam Style was included inside this album. No later than a month, Gangnam Style became the most viewed video on YouTube due to the unique dance move that has been entertaining people around the world. The reputation of this pop culture did not stop increasing. In December 2012, it became the first ever video that reached 1 billion views on YouTube. Even though it is sung in Korean, but nobody cares about the meaning of it. In other words, people have been into the dance moves with the catchy beats and careless about the lyrics. In addition, Gangnam Style has influenced on many aspects worldwide such as television; sports; parodies; flash mobs, famous people and technology. For instance, there have been more many flash mobs of ethnic groups over the world. In fact, the first flash mob took place in one of the shopping mall in Pasadena, California. Gangnam Style also gained very positive feeling from noticeable people such as Barak Obama, the President of the US and Jim Yong Kim, the President of the World Bank. However, many people wondered why is the part of popular culture. It is important to note that one thing can become popular culture unless it has 4 characteristics: association with commercial products, development from a local to a global level, accessibility and constantly changing or volving. For one thing, Gangnam Style is considered as a treasure for the businesspeople all over the world due to its popularity. For instance, the famous Korean music company, YG entertainment has sold about 100 thousands of the Gangnam Style records nationally. After it became the most viewed video, PSY earned around $1 million from his YouTube revenue share. Moreover, Apple made Gangnam Style to be available in Itune for the Apple ‘s users to download for a fee of $1. 29. Most important thing is that businesspeople have made a lot of money from selling the concert admission fee that they arranged in many parts of the world. Beside the music industry, some associated companies have made plenty of money from selling Gangnam Style clothes, cups, bags and cartoons. It is not a surprise that there are many dancing schools in the world that teach Gangnam Style dance move. Today, some companies have produced photo editor application that allows users to edit photo of PSY dancing Gangnam Style by replacing his head with their friends’ heads. After put things into consideration, Gangnam Style does have association with many global enterprises. In fact, PSY aimed to release Gangnam Style just to compete with other Kpop artists such as Girls Generation and BigBang. He did not expect this record could become what it is today. Miracle happened! Gangnam Style only took about 5 months to reach the global level. This is not just a record that entertains teenagers and adults but also fascinates middle aged and old aged people around the world. All kind of people cannot stand still when they hear the Gangnam Style music; in other words, they just feel like dancing along the music playback. People seem to feel the same type of enjoyment even if they belong to different cultures. In addition, Gangnam Style appeared on many famous TV shows such as Ellen Show in the US, Strictly Come Dancing Show in the UK and Who Will Become A Millionaire Show in India. There are many Gangnam Style dancing videoes or flash mobs that were uploaded onto YouTube by some ethnic groups in different countries. In December 2012, Gangnam Style made its way to become the number one hit in both Billboard and Itune chart passing over As Long As You Love Me by Justin Bieber. Surprisingly, Gangnam Style also became an international phrase. There are 90% of the world population know what this phrase means. Hence, Gangnam Style is known worldwide. Furthermore, Gangnam Style is extremely accessible compared to other popular culture in the 21st Century. YouTube, a world community that allows people to watch and upload the videos for free of charge, plays an important role in promoting Gangnam Style to be the world phenomenon. There are 1,507,623,962 people who have watched this video on YouTube. In fact, many teenagers and adults watched this video in order to learn the dancing moves of PSY. Additionally, Gangnam Style CD can be found in almost all music stores in the world except North Korea. They can also be bought online. Not onl6 does CD can be shopped online but also other Gangnam Style commercial products such as toys, shirts and bags. PSY has appeared on many world tours with his Gangnam Style single release in many countries such as the United State, the United Kingdom, Korea and French. For instance, to celebrate New Year Eve 2012, PSY was invited to sing and dance at Time Square in New York, The US. Well, it is the fact that people can find Gangnam Style everywhere. Finally, Gangnam Style has been developing to entertain people for all over the world. After Gangnam Style became a success in YouTube, many people started to turn Gangnam Style into an acoustic in order to delight the audiences. In February 2013, a group of the twin sisters called Jayesslee, uploaded their Gangnam Style acoustic version on YouTube. That video became the most viewed acoustic version of Gangnam Style. Until now, this video has 22,847,341 views. Equally important, PSY remixed his Gangnam Style release with many popular songs during his concerts last year. Many people translated and sang the Gangnam Style in their own languages; however, they kept the parts, which said â€Å"Oppa Gangnam Style† and â€Å"Hey Sexy Ladies† to remain original. Most of the time, people are not able to follow every dancing move in Gangnam Style video; therefore, they change some moves beside the equine dancing move to make it more easier to dance. In a consequence, people change the original Gangnam Style into something more interesting and exciting. In conclusion, Gangnam Style taught people an amazing today popular culture. Due to its unique dancing moves with the beats, it became the world phenomenon that fascinates almost every kind of people in the world. People cannot curl themselves from dancing along the music while it plays. After all considerations, we can be surely that Gangnam Style has 4 characteristics of pop culture. In other words, it is a real part of popular culture.

Negative Effects of Societys Dependence on Technology

Negative Effects of Societys Dependence on Technology Introduction Communication is the exchanging or transferring of a message between a sender and a receiver. Communication devices nowadays is commonly used throughout the modern world to send and to receive information. Communication devise are used in personal life, business, and even society as a whole. The devices might vary, but the object is still the same, to send and receive information. There are many types of communication device such as computer. The computers such as home computer and laptop computers became a vital communication device in modern life. Computers has given the user the ability to communicate using word, video, and audio. A computer enables the user to access the internet such as social networks, emails, and more. Computers are also used in various field in factories. And also computers are used in automotive vehicles. An automotive vehicle can have multiple computers that communicate between each to maintain proper functionality. A laptop computer is a mobile computer. T hey have the same functionality as desktop computers such as accessing internet, email and video conferencing. Secondly there are smartphones. A smartphone is a small computer that also functions like a telephone. Smartphones typically include digital voice service, internet access, email and text messaging. Unlike a telephone, a smartphone can do a lot more such as photo snapping, audio recording and more. Smartphones also run a wide range of computer applications for business and entertainment. And there are also Tablet PC such as ipad. A tablet PC refers to a tablet computer, a kind of mobile computer, they usually have touchscreen or pen-enabled interface like some of the smartphones. It is also a tablet personal computer, a type of tablet which runs an adapted version of a desktop operating system. They normally have the functionality as a computer. Dangers of a society which depends on computer screens rather than face-to-face contact  for communication Physical Health Issues Using a computer can cause back, neck and shoulder pain, eyestrain, and overuse injuries of hands and wrists. Spending too much time on computer can contribute to obesity and other health problems. But you can reduce these risks with proper workstation design, better posture and good habits, such as taking rest breaks and restricting time spent playing computer games. The more time a person spends on a computer, the less likely the person is to participate in physical activities, which can result in weight gain. A person also is likely to experience eye and back strain and possibly repetitive injuries from computer use. Beyond these issues, computers can create turmoil for users by reacting slowly or suffering from viruses and other problems, requiring repair. The more dependent users are on their computers, the more likely these setbacks will affect their stress level and overall health. Besides, facing too much computers will lead exposure to radiation. Anonymity One of the main issues with computer-mediated communication comes from a lack of accountability with users. People are able to represent themselves as whatever they want on Internet forums or social networks, and this creates communication problems in both directions. A user may distort who he is by not providing accurate details about himself, and this lack of honesty affects how that person is viewed. The cloak of anonymity allows a user to potentially infringe upon socially accepted practices like tolerance or politeness. Violation of Privacy Communicating via computers can help people bridge large geographical gaps and access remote information, but doing so may open up a persons privacy more than he might want. With an in-person meeting or phone conversation, there is a relative assurance that details of those exchanges will remain private. However, with email, text messaging or message boards, there is a record of what people say. Information is not just thrown out into the air like speech, but it stored as a permanent record. There is an inherent danger when third parties can access these online conversations. Similarly, social networks and other Internet-based communication tools are vulnerable to privacy breach, as users often engage in these activities on public networks, leaving personal information, potentially, out in the open. Misinterpretation The fact that most communication taking place on computers comes in the form of text can actually be a negative in terms of our ability to understand things clearly. Even with email, it is possible for information to be misconstrued or the emotion of a statement to be missed. Saying thanks a lot to someone in an e-mail message, for instance, could be used to genuinely relay gratitude. On the other hand, it could indicate a negative feeling of someone being put in a tough position. The context clues that a person provides with their body language and tone of voice are lost in this scenario. Users get around some of this confusion by using emoticons keyboard characters that serve as a shorthand for mood and feeling but a great deal of subtlety can be missed without seeing how someone reacts with their body language and voice. One of the dangers with multimedia tools is that people using those tools are unable to gain instant feedback like face-to-face conversation offers. Even on vid eo conferencing and video calls, one participant or the other can easily step outside the range of the camera and make faces, look at other stimuli such as emails or websites, or even make comments that cant be heard by the other correspondent. This behavior may lead to misunderstandings and misinterpretations. Additionally, text-only communication such as email and texting has a lack of immediate feedback. The participants are unable to read body language, tone of voice or facial expression. This lack of feedback often leads to misinterpretation and offense. One particularly difficult kind of multimedia communication is sarcasm or cynicism. That humour is often taken literally in multimedia communication situations, leading to hurt feelings. Cannot spell, use proper punctuation, or proper grammar Many people in generation Y have poor literacy skills. They may be able to read and write weel enough to communicate, but they cannot spell, use proper punctuation, or proper grammar. People will (and are beginning to) miss out on face-to-face contact and thus their social skills will decline. It is possible that after decades of having no, or extremely limited human contact, that we will loose the ability to read body language. This could cause all sorts of misunderstandings and problems. Having limited human contact will cause us to have even less trust in others, and in turn, we will be even less friendly and even more stand-offish. It would lead to an array of health issue such as vitamin deficiencies and depression from lack of sunlight and obesity from a lack of movement. Loosing social skills They lack social skills and also their humane side gradually dies out cause the anonymity also makes them brave enough to be nasty to others and that catches on like wild fire just see how people answer in the religion and spirituality section it’s like a training school for nastiness Dependency Societys dependency on computers for communication is also a dangerous game, as outside forces can prevent communication in a variety of ways. Earthquakes, floods and hurricanes have caused various slowdowns and stoppages of Internet connectivity for people all over the world. Additionally, reliance on social networks and email can have the unintended consequence of opening a person up to identify theft attempts and email scams. Even the outside force of political unrest can threaten a users ability to communicate, as the 2011 demonstrations in Cairo and Libya resulted in government shutdowns of the Internet, drastically curtailing each countrys ability to communicate, both nationally and internationally Stalking Another danger of multimedia tools is the ease with which a person can stalk another. Numerous computer programs use GPS technology to track individuals. Addresses and phone numbers can be found by anyone with a computer and basic search abilities and, with map programs, public records access and other information online, its relatively easy for a determined individual to stalk anyone they choose. This is particularly true of public figures or celebrities, who are monitored at every turn. Hinder family relationships Technology nowadays offers a plethora of ways to communicate so that the members of each family can keep in touch. From text messaging, Skype, webcams, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, and emails. The facilitation of communication is very available. However, there are still times when the face-to-face communication between human being fall through the cracks and technology would take control over a family. Some of the family members do not communicate to each other by face-to-face, just because communicate through technology like social interactive online networking is convenient , they choose to send messages through it and not just walk out of their room and talk. Social interactive online networking like Facebook and MySpace has changed the way family members communicate. As a child of a family, I assumed that the problem was more to be on the child side, such as texting through a family dinner, spending most of the time immersed in Facebook. In my opinion, the families that had the wo rst relationship were those who overwhelmed by the amount of technology used in their home. I would suggest the families to solve this problem by having a central location for every of their members to communicate or having a specific time for the members to stay together in a place to have talks. This might be helpful in maintaining the relationship of the members and keeping technology from taking over the life of a family. Conclusion Computers have enabled a large degree of change in how the world communicates and shares information. With all of the benefits that computer-based communication has brought society as a whole, there are distinct disadvantages when compared to face-to-face conversations. The borders between direct face-to-face and computer-mediated interaction will fade away, but they will never completely disappear. Not all forms of socialization can be transmitted by digital media. There are all kinds of experiments in which scientists try to implement digital duplications of smell and feeling into the computer. It is possible to simulate very limited forms of touching. But this almost nothing compared to the high sensibility of our tactile organs. Especially for our intimate personal relations this is an enormous disability. Computers will probably never reach a stage of sophistication at which they can mediated direct human interaction completely, for the simple reason that computers dont have a h uman body. Human beings know and feel certain things because they have a human body. No organism without a human body will ever know and feel the things in the same way humans do. Thats the crucial reason why computers can never be really intelligent.It is understand that the development of information technology has been changing the way of our live completely. Everything become more easily, but, at the expense of personal contact, as many people choose to work at home in front of a computer screen. This brings the serious dangers for a society which depends on computer screen rather than face-to-face contacts. This matter, not just bring bad side for our society, but also for our health. One of the biggest dangers is that people start to live a life without any social contacts. Everyone (who likes to sit in front of the computer) starts to live in his or her own world, a world dominated purely by their computer screen messages. Living in an illusion that millions of friends are ou t there always waiting for you. Friends that will support when you have a bad day, or will cheer you up when you are sad. This ‘artificial bubble’ starts burst as soon as people get into real problem, such as losing their job. From that problem, will lead to another problem. Let say, if we like to live our life in front of our computer’s screen, we are getting lazy and not going out for a walk. Our movement gets limited only in our home. This will makes us isolated from the society outside which we might become lonely just communicating with the computer. For me, this is very bad habit for people to get isolated from the real life. Apart from that, depending on a screen rather than meeting face-to-face is very bad for health. It will make our spine back ill. Sitting for a long time and looking to a screen also makes our eyes bad. This will cause healthy problem for us. We always feel not good with our spine back and we also maybe have to wear eyeglasses when we h ave a problem with our eyes. From my reading, light from the screen can cause bad side for our eyes if we continuously looking at computer screen the whole day long.

The Evaluation And Labeling Of Children With Disabilities Essay

The information given me by various professionals who have repeatedly evaluated my daughter is the biggest issue that I face in my life. In order for me to resolve my issue I need to explore whether my issue lies with the professionals and the process of evaluation, or with me not wanting to accept that my child is disabled.My six and a half year old daughter, Malia, began to show signs of delayed development at age eighteen months. Her speech started to regress and there were also behavioral signs that were significant enough for me to ask our doctor for advice. When was not concerned to the point that I was I contacted Multnomah County Developmental Disability department and requested that they evaluate Malia. They agreed that that were delays, and made a referral to Portland Public Schools Early Intervention Program for special services suchas speech therapy, occupational therapy, and other early learning resources for children with disabilities. I also switched Malia to a pediat rician who immediately referred her for a full-scale evaluation at Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) where they have an evaluation clinic for children with disabilities. At this point Malia was two and a half years old and this is where I began to take issue with the evaluation process.The process was a one day period where up to twelve doctors, psychologists, speech pathologists, audiologists, and occupational therapists each spent thirty minutes with Malia, evaluating her based on standard tests. After six hours with Malia, the professionals gathered together and discussed their conclusions. After their discussion, they called Malia and me in. They told me that their diagnosis for her was "a mild conductive bilateral hearing loss, language disorder and borderline intelligence."That was all the information they gave me, other than to tell me that Malia's pediatrician would receive a report and follow-up accordingly. No special suggestions or support were offered to me or to Malia. I did not know the exact meaning of "borderline intelligence" at the time, so I assumed it meant her intelligence was not above average but not below. I found out at her second evaluation two years later that it means low intelligence, bordering on mental retardation. I followed up on the hearing loss with an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor and Malia had her tonsils and ... ...lp the examiners have a more complete understanding of the child. Another idea that I listed was to have the professional spend more time exploring the child's strengths andpossibilities in order to aid in designing a special program in which the child would thrive. I have spent the past four years being angry with the clinic at OHSU. I can truly say that all of this channeling and exercising (PMI and APC) has helped me to have a better understanding of why the testing is as it is, how it affects us, and most importantly, that a closed mouth does not get fed. If I want changes, I now understand that I have to speak up and talk to someone who can do something about it. Now that I am more clear about the process, I can offer something positive to help other families avoid the pain and anger thatI have endured. Knowing this, and feeling good about the road ahead, is a very good place for me to start. The most important realization for me is that Malia is still Malia, regardless of any label they placed upon her. In conclusion, whether or not I make a difference in modifying the evaluation process, I know that Malia is and always will be the same wonderful child she has always been.

The Conflict Media vs. Internet Essay -- Web Cyberspace News Essays

The Conflict Media vs. Internet Throughout our lives we learn new things and acquire new information. Many sources can give us these things to continue on with our lives. Almost all of us either wake up with the radio, listens while driving to wherever we are going, or even at work during our day. Wherever we are or wherever we are going this is a source of information. Another yet stronger more persuasive possession would be from the media. What they tell us and show us impacts our actions and what we think about. From weather to spot stories we usually believe what they are telling us as the viewer. If the weather person says it will rain the next day we will dress accordingly. Everything we are usually told or shown we take into consideration for our daily customs. All affect us one way or another in the long run. In a close yet difficult relationship between the online word and the off line world or cyber space and real time these two places can conflict as well and combine to form our society. Each one influen cing us equally. The media can influence us in both aspects. Through the television news where Internet issues are discussed and argued and also on the web where each and almost every major station has a web site. This aspect you can read it yourself with little outside influence and come up with your own conclusions. Every person on an evening news show has a personal opinion, they only reveal it when you least expect it. This rarely happens, because they are reading what the writers and reporters have written off of a TelePrompTer and adding some of their own opinion as they are talking. Most of the time we have to believe what they are saying, because they are the ones that research the topics and stories that... ...rmation in the online communities, because I would be able to have my own opinion about the particular topic I am reading about. No person on television would be able to tell me one way or another about what I should think or side myself to. I am my own person and have my own thoughts and feelings and all people should be the same way in where they can think for themselves and be their own person. A final thought, each of these two venues presented a good argument on which was better and the advantages and disadvantages towards both, yet one might always be better in one persons eyes and the other might be better in the person next to them. This gives each person a particular individuality and distinguishes them from the rest of the world. Works Cited Rory J. O'Connor. "Africa: The Unwired Continent." Richard Holeton. Singapore: McGraw Hill, 1998. 270-274.

The Source of Conflict between Antigone and Creon in Sophocles Antigon

The Source of Conflict between Antigone and Creon in Sophocles’ â€Å"Antigone† In the following paper, I plan to discuss the source of conflict between the title characters of Antigone and Creon in Sophocles’ â€Å"Antigone†. I also plan to discuss how each character justifies his or her actions and what arguments they give for their justifications. I will also write about the strengths and weaknesses of these arguments. The final points I try to make are about who Sophocles thinks is right and who I think is right. The main source of conflict between Antigone and Creon is the issue of the burial of Antigone’s dead brother. Both of her brothers were killed in battle, however one brother fought against their home city and was considered a traitor. Creon issued a law that whoever tries to bury this man will be put to death. Antigone is very upset because her one brother is graced with all the rites of a hero while the other is disgraced. Antigone is determined to bury her brother because of her loyalty to her family and to the gods. She believes that no mortal, such as Creon, has the right to keep her from her own. Even if Antigone must die during the burial, she will not disgrace the laws of the gods. She believes that she has to please the dead much longer than she has to please the living. Creon states, â€Å"Whoever places a friend above the good of his own country, he is nothing.† Therefore, he does not allow the burial of Antigone’s brother because he did not place the good of his country first. He was a traitor. Creon makes this law for the good of his country. The following statements that Creon makes exemplify this: â€Å"I could never make that man a friend of mine who menaces our country†, â€Å"never will the traitor be honored a... ...er of what he hears people around the town saying about the situation. Haemon says, â€Å"No woman ever deserved death less, and such a brutal death for such a glorious action†¦ Death? She deserves a glowing crown of gold.† The play seems to praise the actions of Antigone and it is never seen that she is looked down upon for what she did, except by Creon. In conclusion, the gods and the love of her family rule Antigone’s life. Creon’s life is ruled by what he thinks is good for his country and pride. Creon did not change his mind to free Antigone until a prophet told him he would suffer horribly for his actions. However, because Creon was so stubborn for so long and did not take heed to anyone’s advice sooner, he ultimately suffers in the end, as does everyone else in the play. This was all due to a man’s lack of good judgment, his selfish pride and his stubbornness.

Decision Making in Multicultural Team Essay

Decisions are choices between two or more alternatives to a problem and are usually in form of determinations, agreements, or declarations (Le Baron, 2007). Adler (1998) asserts that decisions can be findings and factual and can also be thought about as judgment or opinion of ruling. Decision making behavior as with other behavior is affected by various factors, chief among them the cultural orientation of an individual. The approach to decision making in a culturally diverse team may determine whether a team succeeds or not. The understanding of the contribution and influence of national culture on decision making amongst individuals is a crucial factor in managing international organizations. Consequently, leaders of culturally diverse teams require an understanding of the team’s cultural dynamics in order to make effective decisions and to manage for effective team management. Below, the process of decision making and the approach in decision making for managers of multi cultural teams shall be looked at. Reasons as to why managers of different cultural locations are likely to make different decisions for their teams will also be identified. Finally, the positive and negative effects of cultural differences on day to day life will be discussed. A cultural frame of reference is important in making decisions for a multicultural diverse team for various reasons. Individual decision making usually follows a pattern of problem recognition and definition, evaluation of solutions based on certain criteria, allocation of weight to the criteria, developing alternatives, evaluating alternatives and selection of the best alternative (Adler, 1998). At each stage of decision making, culture may influence the process of decision making. For example, in the problem recognition stage, individuals may either recognize problems at different times, chose to accept the problem or solve it. At the information search stage, while some may use an empirical research or fact oriented approach, others will opt for an intuitive approach. At the alternatives stage, future oriented individuals would generate more alternatives. Similarly, other beliefs such as the perceptions on the ability of adults to change or not to change will influence the decisions of an individual. Some factors in choice making that may influence decision making include perception of risk, the decision maker, speed of decision making and the individual’s personality as either thinkers or feelers. Finally, at the implementation stage, the decision will again be influenced on how fast it is made, whether it is participative or culturally bound (Edward, 1998). The above influences in decision making as determined by various cultural orientations have been explained by various researchers. Hofstede identified five cultural dimensions that influenced decision making and they include individualism versus collectivism, which identifies the degree to which people in a nation prefer to act as individuals to groups, uncertainty avoidance, which explains the extent to which individuals prefer to avoid uncertainty in future thus preferring structured situation s with tight rules. Others include masculinity versus feminity, with societies high on masculinity valuing assertiveness, competition and success and those with high value for feminity keen on maintaining relationships, quality of life, caring for the weak and so on. Finally, other influences were evident depending on the attitudes such as preference for short-term successes as compared to long time frames and persistence. Trompenaars identified individualism versus communitarians, which is similar to Hofstedes individual versus collective dimension. An understanding of societies that exhibit various dimensions will offer a cultural frame of reference thus enabling effective decision making for managers of multicultural organizations. Decision making in a multicultural organization has several advantages and disadvantages for an organization. Among the advantages, a multicultural organization has less probabilities of experiencing group think. Groupthink is identified where individuals sharing similar cultures are faced with illusions of invulnerability, illusions of morality, pressure for conformity, and stereotyping, self censorship among other characteristics that are likely to affect an organization negatively. Other negative effects of multicultural decision making are direct versus indirect communication (Edward, 1998). A woman who was working for a U. S company in its Japanese office, which was checking software, found out a mistake and e-mailed a notification to her boss and her three Japanese interfaces in Japan, as a result they lost so much face. Another difference comes when there is a differing attitude toward hierarchy and authority, In a hierarchical culture like India’s, there’s a lot of deference to senior people, either by age or level in the organization. For instance, Indians engineers in multicultural teams happens to see Americans exchanging words with the team led or with by older people, and they are culturally not comfortable doing that, so the team passes them by and everyone loses (Le Baron, 2007). The third negative aspect is trouble with accent and fluency. When team members have accents or lack accents or vocabulary in the language of the team, often they are reluctant to speak up on their areas of expertise (Lederach & John, 1995). For example, members who are not very tolerant of accents don’t listen to them that generate a self-reinforcing stigma, they become reluctant to speak and finally the team loses their expertise (Edward, 1998). Advantages that a multicultural diverse organization may experience include new approaches to problem solving, different frames of reference, and different levels of analysis, ability to blend in intuitive and empirical information thereby leading to better decisions. Other positive effects of cultural differences include acquisition cultural knowledge of different cultural groups and influence all our aspects of our lives by learning their good side of culture. Dormant group members become active in case of group decision making process (Le Baron, 2007). Managers are also able to know their group members qualities in decision making and problem solving (Lederach & John Paul, 1995). The reason as to why an American leader is likely to make different decisions for their teams than an Asian leader is as a result of cultural background and differences in decision making (Le Baron, 2007). Rationality is a major cause of difference between Asians and Americans, an American manager might make a vital decision intuitively, but he or she knows that it is important to proceed in a rational fashion. This is because rationality is highly valued in the west (Le Baron, 2007). In countries such as Iran, where rationality is not defied, efforts to appear rational are not necessary. The other cause of difference is because decision making in Asia is more group oriented than in the United States. Asians value conformity and cooperation, therefore, their managers make an important decision, they collect a large amount of information, which is then used in consensus–forming group decision. References Adler, N. J. , (2008). International dimensions of organizational behavior. Cincinnati, OH: South-Western College Publishing. Edward T. (1998). Beyond Culture. , New York: Doubleday publishers. Le Baron, T. (2007). Conflict and culture. Management of multicultural teams Lederach, D. & John, P. (1995). Preparing for Peace. Conflict Transformation across Cultures. New York: Syracuse University Press.