Euthanasia Should Be Legalized For Terminally Ill People

The word euthanasia has a Greek meaning â€Å"the good death. On the other hand, in the society today, there are deeper and more meanings to euthanasia than before. Voluntary euthanasia concerns itself with the consent of the person to die through the assistance of others. Voluntary euthanasia can be divided into two areas: passive voluntary witch is holding back medical treatment with the patient’s request, active voluntary killing the patient at that patient s request informing the assistant on how they desire to die. As with everything there is supporters and non-supporters when it comes to legalizing euthanasia. Euthanasia has become legal in a few countries and states in the United States. The question is if dying human beings should be left to suffer horribly within their last few weeks, months, or even days on this earth if they prefer to be euthanized instead The answer is no. Yet, voluntary euthanasia should be legalized for terminally ill people Pro euthanasia pro ponents strongly believe that voluntary euthanasia should be legalized. They confront many people with the arguments such as people have the right to die, those who are ill don’t live a life, and that euthanasia is not immoral. People having the right to die is a choice to those who want to end their life. For those who argue that every human being has a right to life, they are as well agreeing to the fact that every human has the right to die. You are told from the beginning of your life that you are theShow MoreRelatedThe Debate About Euthanasia And Euthanasia1631 Words   |  7 PagesThe debates about euthanasia date all the way back to the 12th century. During this time, Christian values increased the public’s opinion against euthanasia. The church taught its followers that euthanasia not only injured individual people and their communities, but also violated God’s authority over life. This idea spread far and wide throughout the public until the 18th centu ry when the renaissance and reformation writers attacked the church and its teachings. However, the public did not pay muchRead MoreEuthanasia Should Be Allowed And Protected By Legislation1656 Words   |  7 Pagesstate she lives in has not legalized euthanasia and she is forced to live with the excruciating mental and physical pain for many more months. Many believe that a person who is terminally ill should retain the right to choose whether or not they want to die and defend the practice by saying it is financially suitable. Euthanasia should be allowed and protected by legislation because it a human’s ethical right to die and it is also economically sensible. Narratio Euthanasia is used to terminate theRead MoreEuthanasia Is A Painless, Quick, And Peaceful Death1569 Words   |  7 Pagesmisery. This is often thought of as an act of kindness towards your pet; you’re relieving it’s intense pain and suffering. Why is it acceptable to put a loved pet out of its misery, but frowned upon to help a human relieve their terminal pain? Euthanasia is a painless, quick, and peaceful death that can be medically provided to patients by doctors to help end the suffering that comes with a terminal disease. This option is currently illegal in the United States. All over the country, there areRead MoreArgumentative Essay On Euthanasia839 Words   |  4 Pages Euthanasia is a very controversial and sensitive topic because of the ethical, legal, and moral issues of it. In the United States alone, it is illegal almost everywhere, however; it’s legal in Colorado, Vermont, Montana, Washington D.C., Oregon, Washington, and California. But, what exactly is euthanasia? Euthanasia can be categorized in three different ways; voluntary euthanasia, non-voluntary euthanasia, and involuntary euthanasia. Voluntary euthanasia is when a patient agrees to receive assistanceRead MoreShould Euthanasia Be Legalized? Essay1200 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å" To insist on artificially maintaining existence without regard for its condition is a degradation of the meaning of life, not a promotion of it (Cockeram 33) .† Many adults perceive euthanasia as a murderous act that involves cruel and unusual pain; when in fact, it is usually a method that helps the individual reach their demise in a less miserable manor. Immigrants to the United States are inclined to become a citizen, not for the beautiful geography, but because the U.S. is one of the few countriesRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal1325 Words   |  6 Pagesto increase the process of death. Physician-assisted suicide should be legalized at a federal level and should be morally acceptable for patients who are terminally ill and can no longer be treated to improve their medical situation. Legalizing physician-assisted suicide would allow patients with failing health to decide to end their lives without causing further suffering by trying to fight their illness. Terminally ill patients should be able to decide when to stop fighting an uphill battle. HoweverRead MoreAssisted Suicide And Voluntary Active Euthanasia Essay1270 Words   |  6 PagesIn our society today, many terminally ill struggle with pain and fight through their disease. No methods have been discovered to cure these poor people. Everyday, he or she wish for relief on their significant unrelenting pain, but the only method right now is to end their lives. There are two methods that many terminally ill look to that are familiarized by our society, physician assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia. Physician assisted suicide is when the patient is prescribed lethalRead MoreAssisted Suicide And Voluntary Active Euthanasia Essay1345 Words   |  6 PagesIn our society today, many terminally ill peo ple struggle with pain and fight through their diseases. No methods have been discovered to cure these poor people, but, everyday, he or she wishes for relief on their significant, unrelenting pain. Also, the only alternative method right now is to end their lives. There are two methods that many terminally ill people look to that are familiarized by our society: physician assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia. Physician assisted suicide isRead MoreShould Euthanasia Be Legal?1360 Words   |  6 PagesOwadara Adedamola ENG 101 Prof. Skeen 24 November 2015 Legalizing Euthanasia â€Å"Euthanasia is defined as conduct that brings about an easy and painless death for persons suffering from an incurable or painful disease or condition† (Muckart, et al 259). Euthanasia, also dying with dignity, is the practice of the termination of a terminally ill person s life in order to relieve them of their suffering. Euthanasia is one of today’s most controversial health issues with debates on people’s rightRead MoreThe Slippery Slope Of Euthanasia1396 Words   |  6 Pagesslippery slope argument has been ongoing in the euthanasia debate. The â€Å"slippery slope† refers to the belief that legalizing voluntary euthanasia and physician assisted suicide will lead to undesirable outcomes. Many speculate that the legalization of involuntary euthanasia will lead to the legalization of murder. Since euthanasia is legalized in the Netherlands, some argue that it has caused a slippery slope. Now, people believe legalizing euthanasia in the United State s will also cause a slippery

Female Sterotypes in the Media Essay - 1728 Words

A major modern problem with the media is the sublimation of, and reaffirmation of, stereotypical female gender roles. â€Å"The media treats women like shit† (Cho). Which is a serious issue because of Marshall McLuhan’s famous words, â€Å"The Medium is the Message† (Warwick). The medium up for discussion is the media, which can be fundamentally defined as the most significant â€Å"single source of information that people have today (Katz). Therefore, in order to understand â€Å"what’s going on in our society† (Katz) it is â€Å"absolutely imperative to â€Å"understand media† (Katz). Media and technology are â€Å"shaping our politics, our national discourse and most of all, they’re shaping our children’s brains, lives and emotions† (Steyer). Caroline Heldman, PhD, and†¦show more content†¦And they’re packaging it in such a way as to make it sound like it’s our fault, and its not† (Pozner ). The media uses its reach to create â€Å"consciousness† (Fonda) and a value system. Siebel-Newsom point out that woman hold â€Å"only 3%† (Newsom) of influential positions in â€Å"telecommunications, entertainment, publishing and advertising† (Newsom). As well, women represent â€Å"only 16% of all writers, directors, producers, cinematographers and educators† (Newsom) in North America. Consequently, if â€Å"what gets put out there, that creates consciousness, is determined by men, then [women] are not going to make any progress† (Fonda). Durham points out that most of the public is unaware of the â€Å"political economy of the media† (Durham) and that â€Å"most media get their revenues from advertising† (Durham). â€Å"The exploitation of woman’s bodies† in advertising† (DeKoven) appeals to a male voice, standard and desire, in the name of capitalism (DeKoven), and women reap the negative consequences of th is phenomenon. Kang refers to Jhally (1987) and states, â€Å"audiences do not just receive meaning from the advertisement. They constantly recreate it by ‘transferring’ the meaning of one sign to another† (Kang, 981). This is how, Jhally argues, mass media advertising plays the role of a mediator (Kang, 981). Due to the fact that advertising has such a broad reach, influencing â€Å"millions of individuals daily†Show MoreRelatedWomen s Role As A Female Dominant Profession Essay1395 Words   |  6 PagesHistory shows us that nursing has not always been female dominant profession, and men have been a part of nursing for since acient times. A once male dominated profession has transitioned into men representing only a small percentage of the nursing population. The decline of men in nursing can contributed to factors such as gender discrimination, sterotypes, and the demasculination of the profession as a whole. In recent years there has been a push to revamp the image of nursing in order to recruitRead MoreAnalysis Of Disney s Disney 1320 Words   |  6 Pagesumbrella of the Disney Corporation reaches from books and toys to movies, television networks, and radio (Towbin 2003). Beginning around the age of 18 months, cartoons are the most interesting format of media to children (Thompson 1995). When young children spending so much time engaging in these forms of media, the messages they send are very important. When young children- boys and girls are absorbing all this information, aren t consciously aware of the stereotypical messages they are being given(cite)Read MoreRepresentation Of Being White, Thin And Perfectly Formed934 Words   |  4 Pagesdetailed examples, explore the representation of two issues in the media today? There are a range of issues and body image remains and issue. We have become a society obessed with how we look and what consititues beauty. The fact that being white, thin and perfectly formed. Furthermore, one of the key events in August 2011 and the riots and the way young people were and are still represented in the media. Representation means they way the media represents individuals, groups, issues and events we see a constructedRead MoreEssay Gender Inequality in the Filming Industry668 Words   |  3 Pagesspeaking roles, only three are female, while the rest of the minor speaking roles are also predominantly male. Let’s take another movie, Pacific Rim, into consideration. The director, Guillermo del Toro, is also male. Only three women speak in the movie, compared to the numerous amount of male actors. In fact, those three women are the only ones named out of the fifty-six actors that appear in the ending sequence. From these two movies alone, the difference in femal e roles in movies are undeniablyRead MoreThe New Black Of Music1280 Words   |  6 PagesMs. Cordova Writing 111 – Section 51 7 May 2015 White is the New Black †¦ in Music Vocativ, a media and technology new company, calculated that the 2015 Grammys is the â€Å"whitest† Grammys in 35 years. This data composes of the lack of people of color nominations and winners in the top four categories – best song, best album, best new artist, and best record. This is important due to the recent social media points about cultural appropriation of minority cultures by white artist in pop and hip-hop recordsRead MoreLevel 6 Essay2155 Words   |  9 Pagesabout your views on the world society and what you as an individual believe in. Organisations have brand power, their brand is an extension of there beliefs. Danesi states â€Å" Brands are one of the most important modes of communication in the modern media environment† ( Danesi, 2006, pg 3 ). Some may use the word propaganda when describing charity campaigns. Danesi states Propaganda is the craft of spreading and entrenching octrines, veiws, and beliefs, reflecting specific interests and ideoligies (Read MoreDoes gender make a difference in education in America in the same way as in other countries? 1584 Words   |  7 Pagesfor both males and females. In this country the males are dominant and females are subservient. In schools students are generally separated by gender and the people give the faculty great authority; that is they are seen of great value. However, this study found that girls were better at answering questions, taking notes and generally answered for the boys, whereas, boys were defiant and less like to take notes and stay on task. At times boys have shown authority over a female teacher claiming thatRead MoreEssay on Race, Racism and My Community1715 Words   |  7 Pageswhich is something that I have a lot incommon with I love horses and was raised up with horses. My Dad owned Quarter Horses and my family would travel to different states attend the horse races. The population stistics show that there are 52.3% female and 47.7% Male. African Americans making up 33.9% in which I’m included, 56.7% White, 0.5% American Indian and Alaskan, and 2% Asian, 11.9% Hispanic, and other mixed race are 72%. This difference hopefully helps you understand why my town isRead MoreSocial Media And Its Impact On Society2655 Words   |  11 PagesA single person views so many images daily, whether it’s on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, etc.), on TV, music videos or even the news, that give us out view of people. People don’t tend to notice that social media tends to form an opinion for us especially when it comes to Black people, more specifically Black women. American schools have showed Black women as inferior at all aspects in history, in recent years Black women have been hyper sexualized for their bodiesRead MoreWhy Should the Music Video ‘Like a Boy’ Offer Such Contradictory Gender Representations?2545 Words   |  11 Pagesevolution album. I plan to understand the contradictory representation Ciara creates through the music video, and analyze the reasons as to why she wants to offer these representations which might be argued are not conventional. I will also refer to other female artists which have or are developing these music videos as well. I will consider critical and theoretical perspectives such as Angela McRobbie, Carol Vernalis and Cormac McCarthy. On videos and examine the way they have impacted popular music. Urban

Identity Defined Through Happiness Free Essays

Happiness defined results from the possession of or attainment of what one considers good. It does not come from a set of circumstances that have occurred in our lives; instead it results from a set of attitudes and emotions that we feel. In today’s world, how many of us can actually admit to having found true happiness? Not many. We will write a custom essay sample on Identity Defined Through Happiness or any similar topic only for you Order Now In George Saunder’s book, â€Å"Civil War Land in Bad Decline,† specifically his story, â€Å"Bounty,† two groups of individuals, the Normals and the Flaweds, struggle in the pursuit for happiness. In their effort to achieving this, their personal identity is greatly compromised and therefore defined by their income or economical class. Satisfaction/happiness today, seems like a never-ending journey filled with false motivations to achieving it, such as freedom, money, love, or materialistic needs, and justified by futile hope and the degrading of others. As a result, we forget what we truly want and what truly makes us happy, and redefine our identities through what we think will make us happy. Hope is often futile when searching for happiness because we constantly expect more and want more therefore forgetting what truly makes us satisfied. The one and only thing that the Flaweds used as motivation for their struggles was hope. Saunders describes this hope when the father throws his children over the castle wall in hope for a better life for them. He states, â€Å"He threw us over to save us from death. He believed in people. He believed in the people on the other side of the wall† (p. 137). Because the father â€Å"believed in the people† his children ended up searching for happiness in all the wrong places and degraded themselves in order to survive. They were better off starving to death than living a life of slavery and humiliation. In this example, the father forgot that family was more important; even if it meant watching your children starve. Another source of justification used by us when searching for happiness is the technique of putting others down. The Normals had no other choice but to use the Flaweds as a means of achieving satisfaction. Such cruel treatment is portrayed to us by a slave buyer who states, â€Å"This regimen of daytime beatings and lonely nights will continue until such time as there is nothing remaining of you free will†¦ I will sell you and others of your ilk at tremendous markup† (p. 155-156). The slave buyer’s position in society justifies to him that it is okay to give daily beatings to others in order to use them for your benefit which was the money and eventually in impressing a woman named Carlotta. Therefore, the slave buyer’s false justification compromised his actions and redefined what happiness should be. What we assume will bring us happiness defines who we are. What the Normals thought would bring them satisfaction greatly varied from what the Flaweds described as happiness thus validating the great gap in such classes. The Flaweds wanted to escape their slavery; therefore happiness to them was freedom, which in their world could only be attained if one was a Normal. Saunders reveals Connie’s struggle for happiness when he states, .. She fell for a Client, the Normal son of a transportation mogul†¦ then while touring with his parents, he saw her hunched over†¦ and that was that†¦ Connie’s flaw is a slight, very slight, vestigial tail†¦ she went through a bad depression and tried to sand it off†¦ When she came out she was humiliated and refused to speak† (p. 96-97). To Connie, happiness meant falling in love with a Normal and being considered a Normal, and because she failed in doing so, she tried cutting her flaw off and ended up depressed and humiliated. What made her happy defined who she was, a person who couldn’t appreciate or wear her flaw proudly. The Normals, however, defined their happiness in several different ways because they had the option available for them in doing so. To some Normals, happiness came from money, to some from love, and to a lot of others, materialistic matters. A perfect example of happiness through materialistic needs is the Normal family who make a living out of potatoes. The husband states, â€Å"If you want something nice, you’ve got to get it for yourself. I want a generator for my family. Lights at night. A fan in the summer. And I’m getting them! † (p. 133). The guy had nine kids and a wife and just kept himself busy and working to find his happiness in buying those things. The parents fail to take care of their children and value their family and put all that aside to buy nice things for themselves. Here, their identity is compromised and based on their materialistic needs. Happiness today is described by society as having a great job a nice car and an amazing wardrobe. However we fail to realize that this is not true happiness. The more we have does not equal the more happiness. At the end of â€Å"Bounty,† after Cole finds his sister and makes sure that she is okay, he continues to find something else to do in keeping him busy by joining the rebel group at the end. This is the scary truth that we face in our daily lives. We need to go to college, find a career that will grant us great money, and settle down. At the end we call this happiness. The more we have going for us in our lives, the more content we are. Think about plastic surgery. After fixing one flaw, we discover another, and until we fix all of them, we end up feeling â€Å"happy. † We fail to hold on to what is more important, such as health, family, and security, and cling to what society portrays to us should be happiness. In â€Å"Bounty,† Cole fails to realize from the very start that he was better off in Bountyland with his daily meals and sense of security. We must redefine what happiness is and by doing this, we create a new and better identity for ourselves. How to cite Identity Defined Through Happiness, Papers

Crisis and Disaster Management

Question: Discuss about the Crisis and Disaster Management. Answer: Build back better The phrase build back better can be defined as a model reconstruction as well as a plan for recovery which assists in the attainment of better resilience. This has been in use since the tsunami hit in 2004 and became officially recognized after Clinton created the guidelines for BBB in 2006(Moore, 2013). The concept of BBB focuses on a holistic improvement of the environmental, economic, social and physical circumstances of a community along with following the disasters in order to improve the resilience of the whole community. The earliest known document which was formerly authorized on the subject was by Clinton named Key Propositions for BBB, published in 2006(Brent, 2004). The other guidelines which are in support of the concept have been noted down below: Principles for Settlement and Shelter by the United Nations Disaster Relief Organization. Post Tsunami Recovery and Reconstruction Strategy and Build Back Better Guiding Principles by the Government of Sri Lanka. Mondays Holistic Recovery. Recovery and Reconstruction Framework by Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority. Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Authoritys Recovery Strategy. The pre-existing notion of BBB has been modified through conducting researches on case studies belonging to multi-nations. The findings, hence, obtained aided in the creation of the BBB Framework which can be well represented and defined by the following diagram: Diagram showing: Build Back Better Framework (source: Christine, H. (2012).) The major concepts which have recognized in the framework for BBB are risk reduction, community recovery and implementation. As evident form the above diagram, community recovery has been subdivided into economic and social recovery. Social recovery focuses on the involvement and support in the community. The major tools which have been proposed to be furnished to the communities in times of trauma due to disasters are engaging, educating and encouraging the community (Hayes Kotwica, 2013). Following activities have been recommended for recovering the communities from psycho-social factors: Arrangement of particularized assistance. Connecting social programs with housing programs. Organization of group activities for the well-being of the community. Evaluation of affected community. Recovery policies on local requirements. Ensuring that the whole community participates in bearing responsibility for the recovery activities. According to the guidelines, measures should be utilized to strengthen as well as rejuvenate the economy of the community that has been affected (Semerciz et.al. 2015). These measures include, providing counseling services, business support along with specific fast tracked allowances in order to reconstruct businesses. Principles of Christchurch earthquake recovery This serves as reference guide for the Canterbury recovery which bloomed with consulting the community and strategic partners. It provides the efforts for recovery with direction, confidence and coordination. The RS is a collective approach for the government as well as the stakeholders so that they can integrate with plans for developing the community. Information regarding cultural, economic and social recovery along with the built as well as natural environment is integrated with perfect leadership. The aim of CERA is to make the church invest, visit and work for the upcoming generations. CERA places the community as the center of focus and addresses issues such regarding housing, planning, land zoning and risks posed by disasters (Steve et.al. 2008). The recovery effort is divided into 3 phases by CERA. They are: Immediate phase an urgent repair is initiated and the action plan is formulated. Short term phase the affected sites are rebuilt, reconstructed or replaced. Medium/long term phases comprises of activities such as improving, constructing and restoration. The aim of RS is to make the built environment cost-effective, resilient, and accessible as well as integrate the housing, buildings, infrastructure and the transportation. The land zoning to make the future resilient is comprised of urban design that is innovative and the investment for infrastructure should be prioritized so that greater Christchurch could be supported. It also considers the risks possessed due to changes in climate and current seismic contractions (Tugba Tugce 2015). Research methodology Greater Christchurch was affected by earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. This paper inspects the case of the same. Since, the process of recovery is in continuation, the role of propositions of land use in BBB can be investigated in accordance to the reduction of risk after a disaster strikes (Jeffery, 2016). The research design used in this case study is a mixed-methods one and has been accomplished by conducting interviews with officials from CERA as well as city councils along with reviewing pertinent literatures. Quantitative and qualitative sources have been used for gathering data. There had been direct participation by the interviewees in the process of recovery which aided the author to have a clear understanding of the process. The timing for every semi-structured interview was 1 hour. Research trip Interviewee Description Research trip 1 April 2014May 2014 P1 Visits and Relations Advisor, CERA P2 Structural Engineer, CERA P3 Manager, Utilities and Roading, Waimakariri District Council P4 Recovery Manager, Waimakariri District Council Research trip August 2015 P5 General Manager, Constructions, CERA P6 Chief Advisor, Insurance, CERA P7 General Manager, Community Resilience, CERA P8 Former Recovery Manager, Waimakariri District Council P9 Manager, Central City Development, CERA P10 Senior Advisor, Communication Central City Rebuild, CERA P11 Service Centre Manger, Waimakariri District Council P12 Earthquake Support Service, Waimakariri District Council P13 Recovery Manager, Waimakariri District Council P14 Utility Manager, Waimakariri District Council P15 Visits and Relations Advisor, CERA P16 Head, Strategy and Planning Group, Christchurch City Council P17 Manager, Residential Red Zone Operations Port Hills (CERA) P18 Former Financial Advisor,, CERA Table showing: Data collection from case study Case study: Greater Christchurch earthquake 2010-2011 Christchurch, New Zealand was hit by two massive earthquakes in the years 2010-2011. The first one (Darfield earthquake) had a magnitude of 7.1 took place on 4th September 2010 and the subsequent aftershock hit on 22nd February 2011 and had a magnitude of 6.3. Several residential regions were hugely devastated and it was difficult to liquefy the eastern regions. The gross economic loss was amounted up to NZ$40 billion which amount up to 19 per cent of the GDP. In the central part of the city, around 627 commercial buildings were to be demolished and another 220 were to be partially demolished along with 47% of the buildings being declared uninhabitable. In order to repair or recover the residential buildings, the amount estimated was NZ$13 billion approximately (Tomer, 2015). The Pyne Gould Corporation and the Canterbury Television collapsed and resulted into the deaths of 18 and 115 people, respectively. The number of deaths in suburban locations and central city were found to be 12 and 28, respectively along with 8 individuals being killed in a city bus. The total number of deaths was accounted up to 185(Joshua, 2016). The Waimakariri district is a part of greater Christchurch along with the eastern suburbs was hugely impacted by the Darfield earthquake and lateral spreading along with liquefaction occurred after the aftershock. Disturbances to daily life, services, activities and basic facilities were caused and businesses were disrupted due to the destruction of buildings, non-availability of products and services(Christine, 2012). Around 1200 buildings in Kairaki and Pines Beach were destroyed and 1048 were classified into the red zone, which prohibited rebuilding. Severe destruction was caused to public infrastructure as well as disruption in potable water. Fifteen sewer pump stations, gravity sewers of around 18 km and 12 kilometers of water mains were damaged. Infrastructure for local transports were impacted which amounted up to 2 foot bridges, 16 approaches to bridges and 16 kilometers of roads were damaged severely (Hayes Kotwica, 2013). Since the disaster had large magnitude, it led to the formation of CERA which aimed to support the government by rebuilding and managing the recovery. Around 67,468 houses were repaired by Earthquake Commission by the end of March in 2016 (Moore, 2013). The land use was severely affected by liquefaction and rock falls along with an increase in floods. Several historical buildings and community facilities were impacted by the aftershocks. While buildings with light timber frames were least affected, old masonry buildings were hugely affected and the chimneys collapsed. References Moore, S. (2013). Disaster's future: the prospects for corporate crisis management and communication, Volume 47, Issue 1, JanuaryFebruary 2004, Pages 29-36 Brent, R. (2004). Chaos, crises and disasters: a strategic approach to crisis management in the tourism industry.Volume 25, Issue 6, December 2004, Pages 669683 Christine, H. (2012). Crisis Information Management. Communication and Technologies, A volume in Chandos Information Professional Series, 2012 Hayes, B. Kotwica, K. (2013). Crisis Management at the Speed of the Internet, Trend Report, 2013 Semerciz, F. et.al (2015). Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Volume 207, 20 October 2015, Pages 149-156 Steve M, et.al. (2008). Journal of Hazardous Materials, Volume 159, Issue 1, 15 November 2008, Pages 92104 Tugba, F. Tugce, C. (2015). Leadership in Crisis Management: Separation of Leadership and Executive Concepts, Volume 26, 2015, Pages 695-701 Jeffery S. (2016). Business Horizons, Volume 59, Issue 4, Pages 359-450 (JulyAugust 2016) Tomer, S. (2015). Socializing in emergenciesA review of the use of social media in emergency situations, Volume 35, Issue 5, October 2015, Pages 609619 Joshua, A. (2016). Journal of International Money and Finance, Volume 66, Pages 1-170 (September

Araby, James Joyce Essays - Araby, James Joyce, Dubliners

Araby, James Joyce Comment on the narrative voice of the story. Why does the boy get disillusioned at the end of the story? Does the confrontation with the reality take place only at the end? At what moment in the story and in what details does he confront the actual? The narrative voice of Araby by James Joyce is the author taking on the role of a male whose name is never mentioned. From the description of the setting we learn that he lives with his aunt and uncle in a working class area of Dublin. In the beginning of the story we are led to believe that he is a boy, playing in the streets with his friends as children do The career of our play brought us through the dark muddy lanes ?. (Joyce, page 105). This same beginning if looked into in depth can also tell us a little about his overall view on life and himself. He mentions the uninhabited house at the end of the street ?detached from its neighbors ? (Joyce, page 105). This gives us the illusion that he sees himself detached from the rest of the neighbors and feeling alone. He also makes mention of being conscious of the houses around him and of the decent lives within them. Maybe what he is saying is that he does not see his life as decent because he is having all these thoughts about Mangan's sister. He has all these bottled up emotions that he can not share with anyone and this makes him feel alone hence, the mention of the house standing alone. As the story progresses we come to realize that he is not a boy but a young adolescent who is fighting feelings of love for the girl next door. Thinking of her constantly, even in the most unromantic places like shopping with his aunt in the market place or standing in the small back room where the priest had died, obsesses him. He sums up his feelings for her perfectly when he says But my body was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires. (Joyce, page 106). At the end of the story the young adolescent gets disillusioned because he sees Araby as a mission set upon him by the girl, who after speaking to her for the first time asks if he is going to Araby and he replies that If I go, ?.. I will bring you something. (Joyce, page 106) The young man has gone through so much stress and anxiety in one day to get to Araby in order to buy the gift and everything has gone wrong. He is angry with himself for being so vain in the sense that when the girl at the stall approaches him she does not give him her undivided attention thus causing him to say he does not want to buy anything, when in reality that is what he was there for. So he leaves Araby empty handed except for the two pennies and the sixpence in his pocket. His disillusionment could also be in the form that once seeing the girl at the stall he realized that Mangan's sister could very well be just like this girl and not the saintly figure with the halo of light around her that he has alwa ys seen her as. There is confrontation with reality throughout the whole story. Starting with the description of his neighborhood and the changing of the season, and progressing through various events in life, like his feelings towards the girl, the death of the priest, his uncle being late and so on. In my opinion the moment in the story when he confronts the actual is when he is in the back room where the priest died. It is a rainy night, he can hear the rain as it falls into the puddles on the ground all his senses are alert and he presses his hand together so hard that they trembled and says Oh love! O love (Joyce, page 106). Here instead of keeping his feelings locked inside him, he actually speaks the word of his adoration for the girl, and even though no one is

Does online profiling mirrors or creates identities The WritePass Journal

Does online profiling mirrors or creates identities Introduction Does online profiling mirrors or creates identities IntroductionWHAT IS ONLINE PROFILING.WHAT IS IDENTITYKEY ISSUES: The diffusion of internet-freedom or constrain?ONLINE vers. OFFLINE IDENTITYCONSUMPTION AND DATA PROFILINGCONCLUDING THOUGHTSReferences:Related Introduction WHAT IS ONLINE PROFILING. Online consumer profiling is a complex phenomena that can be researched from a variety of perspectives. First of all, it is obviously an advertising technique that revolutionized the effectiveness of targeted advertising. However, online consumer profiling is not just a smart way to reach consumers. Consumer profiling has been present in advertising for a long time now, with theorists arguing about its possible effects on society and consumers. Greg Elmer(2004), in his work ‘Profiling machines: Mapping the Personal Information Economy’ provides an overview of some of the standpoints with regards to profiling. From the perspective of Foucault’s famous concept of panopticon, profiling is presented as means of exercising surveillance in the societies of control(Elmer, 2004). Foucault suggests that in such societies the differences between reward and punishment are blurred(Emler, 2004), this can be illustrated by some of the online consumer profiling techniques. For example, checking the weather forecast online, usually requires from us typing in our zip code. This initial reward( i.e the perspective of getting free and accurate information on weather in our area) ends up being a punishment. Ultimately, we provide advertisers with important geographic data that can then be used for consumer profiling. Similarly to Foucault,   Dandekre (cited in Elmer, 2004) sees profiling as a part of society of control. In fact, according to Dandekre, profiling is a sign of modern surveillance which signifies the shift from the supervision to bureaucratic surveillance, which is a lot more invasive and depends highly on technology. Elmer(2004) states that profiling is an ongoing distribution and collection of information about desires, habits and location of groups or individuals. Moreover, Elmer(2004) suggests that consumers actively assist in creating profiling databases, as all collected data are being cross referenced. Lyon(The Electronic Eye: The Rise of Surveillance Society, 1994) seems to share this view, as he sees consumers as self communicating entities, triggering their own inclusion into system of surveillance, that works through a series of seductions and solicitations. In terms of profiling effects on society, there are two main standpoints. Gandy(1993) in The Panopticon: a Political Economy of Personal Information views profiling as a system of sorting both individuals and whole communities into abstract categories that is unavoidably discriminatory. He continues to say that this system forces individuals wants and desires into ‘larger, rationalized and easily diagnosable profiles’(Elmer,2004,23). On the other hand, R.A Clarke(Information Technology and Dataveillance, 1988) sees profiling as a system of predicting ‘deviant behavior’ and fails to recognize possible risk of prejudice or discrimination. Early works on profiling seem to focus more on the effects it has on communities, as profiling was seen more as a part of the shift towards technology. However, with the fast development of internet and more advanced profiling techniques there seem to be more interest in the position of the individual in the process of online consumer profiling. WHAT IS IDENTITY According to John Deighton(2005), who analyzed the consumer identity motives in the information age, identity can be defined as a cluster of characteristics that we display in a social setting (2005,236). In the digital setting, the characteristics that construct identity are being grouped, coded and manipulated. In the cybernetic sense identity is used as a point of   reference for who one is or aspires to be(236). Author stresses the crucial part identity plays in analyzing consumption, as it could be a source of information on one’s habits, dislikes or desires. When discussing identity, Deighton(2005) also touches up on the notion of ‘being identified’(237). Being ‘identified’ means to be observed   or recognized and   in the off-line setting, this notion relies heavily on the facial/physical recognition. However, in the digital world, it is our online activity that enables us to be identified. The lack of ‘face’ in the digital setting, creates space for us to take on many identities. Deighton(2005) (247) sees identity as an opposite of anonymity and suggest that in an online world, we lose our anonymity by simply ‘signing in’. With that in mind, the techniques used to identify an individual online provoke many theoretical questions about the authenticity of online identity. boyd(2001) maintains that users need to gain awareness of the data they leave online, in order to construct truthful identities. However, because as online users, we have no control or knowledge on what data is being archived there is no way to verify its accuracy. Boyd does not necessarily condemn all corporate efforts to ‘reconstruct’ the individual through digital data. Her focus seem to remain on consumers’ right to access the collected data   and use to build self-awareness(46). She introduces the concept of a digital mirror(53), linked to Lancan’s mirror stage of development, during which a child acknowledges themselves as a unique individual for the first time(53). Boyd(2001) maintains that the lack of material body online, pushes users into using digital representations, that serve as an online agent constructing our identity. Through online personal profiles, we gain an illusion of control over our online identity. However, boyd(2001) stresses that even though we hold control over a limited amount of information, the way we perceive ourselves online is different from the way others see us(53). In that respect, boyd(2001) puts a particular emphasis on the data aggregation online, which means that information on our current online activity is combined with the information from the past(53). It is argued that providing users with information on their personal data   that can be accessed by third parties, would allow to provide feedback and adjust one’s online behavior and as a result gain greater control over their online identity.(54) One of the most important issues in online consumer profiling is the notion of individual versus consumer identity. Gandy(1993) maintains that profiling categorizes one’s desires and wants into broader and simplified profiles. Therefore, how accurately does it mirror one’s personality? Is consumer identity different from our non-consumer identity? Are they one and the same thing? Or is consumer identity simply a part of our identity just like race or sex.? This and similar questions are being posed by theorists researching online consumer profiling. Similarly to Daighton(2005), Zwick and Dholakia(2004) in ‘Whose identity is it anyway? Consumer Identity in the age of Database marketing’ stress that today consumer is no longer anonymous due to the ‘digitazation ‘of the market space. This means that once information became digital it can be stored in the database for years and shared as a binary bit. Authors seem to lean towards the post-structuralist perspective of data based marketing technologies as a discourse, which constructs a consumer as a cultural object and then uses as a target for marketing purposes. Due to the fast development of profiling techniques, an online consumer can be tracked and analyzed during every minute of their online activity. This information can provide an invaluable insight into consumer’s nature. Zwick and Dholakia(2004) suggest that market database becomes consumer’s identity and therefore has to be looked at as a form of language, as it attempts to make sense of the world and create a system of representation. Drawing from Foucault’s, Zwick and Dholakia(2004), state that every system of representation, in no matter what form, articulate newly ordered spaces of knowledge, in which an object of representation becomes(†¦) known.(p.3) Acknowledging market databases as a form of language, enables us to look at consumers as cultural objects. Ziwck and Dholakia(2004) suggest that because of market databases’ linguistic power, our own ability to construct identity is threatened. Consumers become objects constituted through the performative powers of market database   discourse. Limited ability of consumers to construct their own identity is one of the effects of online consumer profiling and database marketing, discussed by Zwick and Dholakia(2004). This is because consumers are lacking control over the language that constitutes their identities. In that respect, consumers’ participation is denied in the digital market space. To put simply, it could be suggested that online profiling constructs and forces identities upon consumers. ZwickDholakia(2004)stress that most databases do not refer back to the consumers after tracking and analyzing their online activity. This can suggest that these databases are being created to suit marketer’s needs rather than to truthfully reflect consumers’ identities. More importantly, the accuracy of such databases can easily be undermined. One consumer is most likely to be recorded in several databases that can differ in focus, structure and size. In this case, databases construct multitude of representation of the same consumer, who is being assigned several different persona to take on in the digital marketplace. This results in, consumer being ‘a blended, digital simulation whose ‘nature’ depends on the composition of the databses’(Zwick and Dholakia,38 2004) Zwick and Dholakia(2004) see online profiling mainly as means to construct a customer rather than to reflect a customers’ identity. Authors acknowledge consumers’ minor participation, in the process of creating database, which is limited to acts of online consumption. However, consumers do not have the control over how much and what kind of information is being collected, despite numerous online privacy options. Zwick and Dholakia(2004), unlike most theorists, do not seem to be preoccupied with the issue of online privacy with regards to online profiling. Authors suggest that, in most cases, the creation of online consumer identities takes place without the participation of a ‘real’ consumer. KEY ISSUES: The diffusion of internet-freedom or constrain? The issue of increased internet control has been raised also by David Bell(in CREEBER 2008), who talks about the diffusion of the internet. On one hand internet can be seen as empowering and reaching towards greater openness and freedom of speech and access to information. On the other hand, internet’s great ability to control and dominate its users is becoming more apparent. Furthermore, Bell(2008) notices how internet is being used by corporate capitalism to influence users and propagate its agendas. With that respect, Bell appears to share Henry Jenkins’ view of digital divide and monopolization of internet by corporations.(Creeber, 2008) However, the issue that Bell(2008) seems concerned with the most is the invasive nature of internet. Nowadays, he argues, we tend to evacuate real life into digital spaces. Social networking sites and e-commerce are equivalents of aspects of life that used to belong to ‘real’ life. Not only, do we live a significant part of life online, we also bring cyberspace into real life. With the emergence of new technologies like Ipads and mobiles with internet connection we can experience cyberspace, with all its flaws and advantages, almost all the time(Bell, 2008). This extreme growth in internet usage and accessibility opens a whole new world to consumer profiling. danah boyd examines the connections between identity and participation in social networking websites. She illustrates the great extent to which social networking sites ‘invaded’ the offline world. In ‘None of this is Real Identity and Participation in Friendster’(2008) author mentions the ubiquity of Friendster in the surrounding offline world. With people signed in on the website on their laptops in a local cafà ©, rockstars encouraging fans to join the online community during a concert and social networking websites being a topic of conversation in offline social situation(boyd, 2008), online advertising platforms become a part of popular culture. McAllister and Matthew(2003) talk about the increasingly blurring differences between commercial and popular culture. With the intrusion of commercial values on popular culture, advertisers gain the ability to brand spaces from outside of commercial culture and therefore manipulate consumers to engage with consumer culture at all times. However, the synergy of popular and commercial culture is not the only factor facilitating the development of online advertising. The lack of understanding and clear distinction between private and public in the online environment (Stern, 2004), often leads to users sharing more information that they would in an offline environment, resulting in internet being an extremely important source of consumer information(Faber et al, 2004). Faber et al point out that one of the fastest developing trends in online advertising is research analyzing content areas not traditionally associated with advertising, for example internet sponsorship(2004,3). Marketers ability to track user’s online activity, offers the opportunity to generate ‘personalized’ advertising. Faber et al refers to information flexibility(2004,11) to describe the phenomenon of tailoring advertisements to suit needs and desires of particular customers. Faber et al maintains that personalization of banner ads, increases the likelihood of user engaging in the ad(2004,5). Personalized ad can be key-word activated or   generated using consumer database(2004,5). Gadzheva(2007) maintains that due to the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) much more personal data is being processed online, making it extremely difficult to supervise(2007,63). Any traces of data ‘left’ by a user during their online activity can be correlated to produce consumer profiles, usually without user’s knowledge(2007,64). Although consumers are often portrayed as victims of internet technology, Glen Creeber(2008) in his work, provides and alternative perspective on approaches towards internet and its effect on individuals. Postmodern standpoint sees consumption as a basis of today’s existence with consumer culture determining cultural sphere of our life(Creeber, 2008). This approach looks at technology as a way of improving audience’s active participation and is a lot more positive than some of the standpoints that often demonize new media. Creeber(2008), drawing on Levinson’s work, suggests that postmodern audience is seen as participants rather than just voyeurs. Similarly, post structuralist perspective assumes that audience is able to resist ideological meanings present in the new media advertising(Creeber, 2008). It also acknowledges audiences’ role in creating the meanings, as post structuralism focuses more on how new media messages are being decoded by the audience, rather than how producers encode them. This approach has been highly criticized by more skeptical theorists. Postman(1985 Amusing ourselves to death ) points out that the alleged choice and active participation offered by the internet is only illusionary. In reality, because internet has been monopolized by corporations, it reduces options available to audience to the same commodified, consumerist produc(Creeber,21, 2008). Critics of post structuralism and post modernism perceive audience as not being able to acknowledge the illusionary nature of the propaganda messages conveyed by the internet. KEY ISSUES ONLINE vers. OFFLINE IDENTITY With different approaches to internet audience, internet profiling, needs to be looked at from the perspective of consumer identities. In simplified terms, internet profiling aims to study consumers’ identities using a variety of data available online. Data used for the analysis is consumers personal information but also their needs and desires, often expressed through their consumer choices. Therefore, from marketers point of view, to reach ‘a true’ insight into one’s identity, consumer has to be analyzed from the perspective of the identity signaling . This approach, however, provokes a debate over how truthful such analysis could be. Berger and Heath(2007) suggest that consumers buy products not only for their function but also for what they symbolize, we buy products but also the ideologies behind them. Partially, our consumer choices are based on what products we feel express or match our personality, life style. However, we also make consumer choices that aim at constructing our desired identity(Berger and Heath, 2007) Of course, it is not only advertisers who scrutinise our consumer choices, it is also others who make assumption about our preferences or social status based on our purchases(Berger and Heath, 2007).Drawing on McCracken’s concept of meaning movement, Berger and Heath (2007) suggests that individuals’   tastes communicate identity, as others make assumptions based on the groups or â€Å"types† of individuals that are commonly associated with particular taste . It is argued, however, that using a similar model of ‘associations’, advertisers are in charge of creating norms of behaviour for consumers(Beckett, 2008, Reflective consumer). Advertisers anticipate consumer’s needs and desires by cross referencing online activity of other, similar consumers. Therefore apart from responding to current consumer’s needs, advertisers also aim at developing those needs. Rettberg Walker (2009) examines the ways in which social media create representations of its users. Author focuses on the data filtering mechanisms, employed by social media in order to offer us simplified templates or narratives of our life. Rettberg-Walker sees those representations as positive phenomena, enabling consumers to analyse their own life, made out of data retrieved from the internet. Author stresses also that in the 21st century we become used to online technologies and acknowledge our participation in the online environment. Internet offers us a chance to express our identities rather than uncritically accept the mass media representations of the world (436).   Rettberg-Walker also acknowledges the limitations of users participation in the web. Author maintains that freedom of expression online is nowadays greatly controlled by commercial interest and mass customisation based on templates and segments. The literal example of this phenomena, would be social networking sites that provide users with templates to fill in with personal data(460). Rettberg- Walker’s interest focuses on how we construct personal narratives in response to larger cultural templates, often exploited by mass media. Even though Rettberg-Walker, states that most internet users will follow the existing templates and copy   the already generated content, it’s the individual contributions to larger cultural templates that matter (460). One could suggest that ‘template generated’ identity lacks authenticity or creativity, however Rettberg-Walker   argues that above all it provides a sense of belonging, as observing our life displayed online in a similar manner to celebrities, for example, we gain the feeling of inclusion into a larger cultural template(464). The longing for the inclusion into larger cultural patterns may be rooted in the modern issue of social and psychological identity. Gabriel Lang(2006) in Unmanageable Consumer examines the issues of modern identity and its relation to consumption. Author suggest that a modern day individual constructs their identity through consumption and it is the consumer ethic, rather than work, that lays at the basis of our existence(84). One could argue that Lang’s point of view constitutes the basis for online profiling. Thus, if in modernity identities are being constructed through consumption, then marketers are right in ‘profiling’ users based on their online consumption patterns. Allison Hear expands the concept of identity construction through consumption and analyses the idea of ‘self-branding’, being a form of project of the self that leads to increasingly blurred distinctions between product and consumer. Hear explains that self-branding constitutes of conscious construction of self-images through the usage of mass media cultural representations and templates of mainstream cultural industries, which leads to generating value and material profit(198). Hear draws attention to significant differences between exercising branded self in an online and ‘real world’ environment. Author stresses that today social network sites are the centre of both social interactions as well as consumption(210). Social network sites enable users to manage their own online profiles and connect with other users, who engage in similar activities. Each user creates an online representation of their identity or particular aspects of it. Allison maintains tha t it is the ‘questionnaire like’ formats of social network profiles that encourage users to reveal their preferences, mainly in relation to mass media culture, consequently exposing their specific consumer tastes (210). The important notion of self branding on social network sites revolves around the multiplicity of roles that a user takes on online. By carefully designing our online representations, we become authors or as Allison puts it ‘actors’ of our own digital narratives. However, we also act as ‘promotional objects’, displaying chosen traits of our personality to convey a particular message and its symbolic appeal, in order to create value of our representations(211). Allison argues that this approach encourages users to perceive themselves as ‘commodities’, not only because of the ‘branded’ nature of the profiles they create but also the ongoing contest of popularity on the social network websites. Users add n umerous ‘friends’ to their profiles, in order to display their popularity in the social circle(211). Users profiles, according to Allison, are both created and consumed as a commodity. However, another important aspect of online self-branding, is the advertisement aspect of all popular social network sites, which appear to be a perfect platform for reaching a specific segment of consumers. It is to do with their ability to attract specific type of demographics and deliver advertisements in a ‘non-intrusive’ way. Users often engage with the advertisements out of their own will, by ,for example, joining a group dedicated to a specific brand or product. Advertisers set up profiles of particular products, which users can add to their ‘friends list’ and then receive regular updates alongside with information on their ‘real’ friends. This increasingly tight bond between product and consumer, is concluded by Allison as a collapse of distinctions between notions of the self,   processes of production and consumption(212). With the products invading the digital representations of users identities, marketers reach a new way of promoti ng the brand. It is the users that are made to ‘work’ and spread the popularity of a product. Allison suggests that the process of self branding is a form of labour, which serves people to transform nature into objects of their imagination(213). Without a doubt creating a digital representation of one’s self involves a substantial amount of labour, revolving around choosing the right aspects of our identity to be represented. In that sense, it is no different from self-presentation in a real world environment. However, the problem with digital representation of one’s self seem to be based around the exploitation of the self-branding labour. One could argue, that the digital profiles of users, no longer serve to represent their identity but to promote a particular product. CONSUMPTION AND DATA PROFILING Antony Becket(2008) provides an overview of Peppers and Rogers work that examines the shift from traditional marketing to collaborative marketing. Authors provide a critique of mass marketing as well as   describe the mechanisms of customer relationship management, which lays at the basis of collaborative marketing. Online targeting, through suggestion and recommendations, is a perfect example of marketer’s attempt to implement a more interactive ‘one to one’ marketing. Peppers and Rogers(Beckett, 2008) see technology as a vital part of developing customer-producer relationship as well as forming customer identity. Beckett(2008) focuses also on debates on power relations between producers and consumers, with special emphasis on the role of consumer. Beckett(2008) suggests that modern social theory of identity construction, as the ’reflexive’ self is highly related to contemporary patterns of consumption. In today’s world we engage in an ongoing process of identity formation through active, reflexive decisions, including our consumer choices. Reflexive consumption is seen by some as liberating as it offers consumers the opportunity to construct desired identities. On the other hand, Beckett maintains that reflexivity could be looked at from the perspective of governmentality, as locating individuals in relation to power and authority(Becket,2008,302). Becket continues to say, that from this perspective reflexivity could be seen as a mechanism of control and domination, through shaping consumers’ needs and   desires to suit particular agenda. Becket(2008) also discusses Peppers’ and Rogers’ extended critique of mass marketing and their claim about RM and CRM being a remedy to problems with mass marketing. Peppers and Rogers identified three main critiques of mass marketing : the loss of consumer’s individuality, inability to recognize loyal and non-loyal customers and lack of dialogue between producers and customers. Authors suggest that marketing should shift away from the concepts of mass marketing and aim at establishing collaborative marketing, which engages customers in ongoing, collaborative activities with the producers(2008,304). Collaborative marketing aims at ‘identifying’ the individual consumers and classifying them based on their value to the producer. Therefore, in order to achieve that, producer has to engage the consumer into the technologies that allow to ‘get to know’ them.(2008,306). Becket(2008) suggests that with the emergence of complex softwares and databases, customer relationship management has reached another level of customer classification. It is because of the emergence of innovative tracking technologies that producers are being given the power to govern and influence individuals’ needs and customer value. Becket(2008,306) gives example of loyalty cards or electronic databases to illustrate how consumers are being involved in a network of ‘surveillance’ technologies. Becket(2008, seems to clearly mark his opinion on whether markets create people’s needs and identities. Author states that producer can nowadays anticipate and alter possible future purchases. One way of doing it is by comparison with other shoppers. This would suggest that consumers are being categorised and altered to fit the ‘norm’. The process of ‘normalisation’ can be executed through for example, recommendation ads or personalised e-mails. In the eyes of producers, customers become an active participant when they respond to those recommendations(Becket, 2008,308). Manipulation, according to Becket (2008), happens on two levels. First level is based on creating norms of behaviour through recommendations ads. Secondly, producers aim at engaging consumers with the market, in order to turn them into savvy, active participants. In reality, it is just another way to programme customers to be susceptible to marketing techniques. However, is there perhaps another way of looking at the mechanisms of collaborative marketing’? After all, as Becket(2008) reminds us, the goals of customer relationship marketing promise an improved lifestyle for the customer. ‘Active’ consumers have the chance to engage with marketers to satisfy their needs and better the quality of their life through consumption.   Becket(2008), drawing on Peppers and Rogers work, presents an alternative version of society, where consumers are not necessarily simply either manipulated or authoritative. The reflexive consumption, puts consumers in a position of collaborator. Peppers and Rogers(Becket, 2008, 311) present a vision where consumption is liberating, as a consumer can reach a better life style through ‘active’ consumption. All in all, Becket’s(2008) work comes down to a dilemma between collaborative marketing offering a greater freedom, wider variety of choice and life style improvement achieved through consumption and collaborative marketing being a constrain mechanism, that promotes ‘unnatural’ need for consumption. CONCLUDING THOUGHTS The problem of online profiling provokes a debate over the increasing intervention of technology into our privacy. There has been a considerable amount of literature devoted to the problem of blurred distinctions between private and public in the online environment. However, the problem of the influence of recommendation ads on the identity construction has not gathered enough direct attention. Although, the debate on the diffusion of the internet is strongly linked to the issue of online targeting. Since, if internet can be seen both as liberating and constraining, so does online targeting. On one hand, online targeting offers liberation through direct marketing, enhanced, individualized consumption. On the other hand, it traps us in categories of norms of behaviour, tricks us to believe that the recommendation ad has been generated especially for us and therefore are suitable for us. However, acknowledging the increasing influence of targeted advertising on creating norms of behaviour which ultimately aims at shaping our online behaviour, brings up social anxieties with regards to online surveillance. Sceptics may question the extent to which targeted advertising can shape one’s identity. Nonetheless, it cannot be ignored that targeted advertising exercise the power to reinforce social divisions(Lyon,1994,156). Through targeting consumers based on the information available online, which places them into particular segments, online advertising mimics the existing social divides.   It is the advertisers who predicts our tastes and decide on our value. These sorting mechanism result in groups of consumers being excluded from particular advertising simply because of their consumer profile. Lyon(1994,156) maintains that when analysing the nature of modern consumption surveillance, we have to take into consideration both how data-subject are constituted as consumers and how their consumption pattern is being interpreted through the means of commercial surveillance. Without a doubt, online targeted advertising is an issue surrounded with controversy and ethical dilemmas. With the fast development of new media technologies and general synergy of popular and consumer culture, the role it plays in defining modern society becomes more apparent. References: Berger, J. A Heath, C. (2007). Where Consumers Diverge from Others: Identity Signalling and Product Domains. Journal of Consumer Research. 34 (August), pp.121-130. Creeber,G Martin, R (2008). Digital cultures: Understanding the media. Milton Keyns: Open University Press. 11-46 . Elmer, G (2004) Profiling Machines: Mapping the Personal Information Technology. United States of America: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Gandy, O.H (1993)   The panoptic sort : a political economy of personal information. Oxford: Westview Press. Clarke R. (1988) Information Technology and Dataveillance. Retrieved from rogerclarke.com/DV/CACM88.html on 14th of February 2011. McAllister, P (2003) Is Commercial Culture Popular Culture? A Question for Popular Communication Scholars. Popular Communication, 2003, Vol. 1 Issue 1, p41- 49p. Lyon, D (1994) The Electronic Eye: The Rise of surveillance Society. United states of America: Univeristy of Minessota Press. Rottberg Walker, J (2009)Freshly Generated for you and Barack Obama: How Social Media Represent Your Life. European Journal of Communication 24,pp.451-466. Zwick, D Dholakia, N. (2004). Whose Identity Is It Anyway? Consumer Representation in the Age of Database Marketing. Journal of Macromarketing. 24 (31), pp.31-41.

Risk Management and Insurance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Risk Management and Insurance - Assignment Example Many families have children from previous marriages, whom they would want to incorporate into their estate plan. Many parents want to ensure the financial security of all their children. For families with a nucleus set- up, with no children from previous relationships, it is very easy to distribute the estate appropriately, but in blended families, it is a bit complicated. Therefore, an effective estate plan, designed and managed by an estate planning advisor, can enable families to find financial direction and avoid unnecessary taxation (Taylor, 2002). Since 2013, both the gift and estate tax use the same rate schedule. Additionally, gifts in life can affect the bequest’s taxation at death. The taxable estate at death and taxable gifts given during a lifetime are taxed at 40%, but the tax is only imposed on bequests and gifts above substantial lifetime exclusion sums and moderate exclusion amounts on an annual basis. The generational skipping tax is an additional tax property, where property passed from a grandparent to a grandchild and or future successive generations, through a trust or will, results in the imposition of a tax. The tax can also be passed on to individuals who are 37.5 years younger than the original owner. The tax was developed and implemented in order to ensure that estate taxes were no longer evaded. Wells states that AB trusts and their portability are also discussed, with regards to estate tax exemption. Since 2011, federal estate tax exemption can be transferred between married couples and they can be able to utilize federal estate tax exemptions via AB Trusts (Wells, 2011). The second to die life insurance highlights the affordability of the policy with regards to estate planning. To develop the policy, a second policy is set up between a married couple, however, neither one of them is able to collect a payout in the event that one of them dies. Privatizing the fund could be used to counter the burgeoning fiscal burden. This measure is not very popular due to its negative implication on the future benefits of current workers, coupled with the stock market losses experienced in recent years.Increasing the payroll tax cap has also been suggested as a reform measure. The current cap is $ 106,800 annually, but by increasing the cap, higher wage earners will pay larger portions of their wages to the system and help in closing the deficit. However, this measure has redistributive tendencies that are not very popular. Â  

Project Communications - Midterm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Project Communications - Midterm - Essay Example am, effective and proactive listening on the part of a team leader and other members not only facilitates productive interaction, but, also help a team identify, clarify and collectively commit to long term and short term organizational goals, in a way that is in consonance with the individual abilities and aspirations of most of the members. During my involvement as a team leader in a marketing project, I came across a situation, where the team members failed to create a positive listening environment owing to their disparate emotional and intellectual temperaments. However, once the individual members were assigned commensurate task roles in the group interactions, as per their respective listening type, the very issues and insight that earlier created discord, started to being perceived as potentially productive and informative (Engleberg & Wynn, 2010, p. 194). b) The assortment of any mission oriented team is inevitably based on the premise that each and every member is endowed with specific abilities and skills, a harmonious exploitation of which helps assure the success of a project (Engleberg & Wynn, 2010, p. 195). â€Å"Listening† and â€Å"team talk† are related in the sense that they are the two sides of the same coin called group communication. Both skills practiced judiciously, help the individual team members identify each other’s abilities and differences and make them understand, respect and accept this diversity. Productive group communication, which is always a balanced combination of listening and talking skills, also helps the respective team members solicit feedback as to the clarity and effectiveness of their verbal and non-verbal inputs (Engleberg & Wynn, 2010, p. 202). This gives way to the essential group cohesiveness and a unified commitment to the project goals (Engleberg & Wynn, 2010, p. 226). mGAMES scenario represents a situation where a potentially profitable and capable organization is unable to adapt to and evolve as per the

How Will Repeated Oral Reading Practice Impact Reading Fluency Case Study

How Will Repeated Oral Reading Practice Impact Reading Fluency - Case Study Example I teach at an elementary school, J.B. Nachman, in Alexandria, Louisiana. The school starts at Pre-K and goes through to fifth grade. There are approximately 700 students in the school. Nachman is the solitary elementary school in the district that is not considered a Title One school. I teach third grade, and we are not currently departmentalized. There are 23 students in my class: eight African American students, thirteen white students and one Asian student. I have one child with an IEP, and he is with a resource teacher for a majority of the day. There are no other adults in my classroom. I have chosen a small group of students (eight children) for my project based on their most recent DIBELS scores. The children, under my watch, have scored well below benchmark and are likely to need intensive support with regard to oral reading fluency. These are children who enjoy reading and are not intimidated to read aloud, as much as they struggle with word recognition and fluency. Review of Literature Clearly, reading serves many purposes in our daily lives. We use it in our work and play. We use it to help us learn more about ourselves and about the world around us in addition to sharing information with others (Martin-Chang & Levy, 2005). The National Reading Panel Report (2000) contained conclusive research that indicated that reading fluency was an essential element of the entire reading process, and that it was crucial that it is taught to developing readers. â€Å"Just as children and adults love to watch favorite movies over and over, readers of all ages have books, or sections of books, that they enjoy reading and re-reading, time and time again† (Dowhower, 1994, p. 354). ... â€Å"Just as children and adults love to watch favorite movies over and over, readers of all ages have books, or sections of books, that they enjoy reading and re-reading, time and time again† (Dowhower, 1994, p. 354). Since the 1970s, researchers and scholars have collected data that supported the concept that multiple readings of connected text enhanced the reading skills of a regular student. Reading stories to young students, besides their personal rereading, at least three times proved to enrich reading development. This procedure of repeated readings was simple, yet extraordinarily powerful (Dowhower, 1994). Using the common round robin approach in the classroom, where students take turns reading a small portion of the story, substantially limited amount of practice each student received because no child was allowed to read for very long. In order for students to establish significant progress in reading, beyond the initial stages, they needed to be given sufficient opp ortunities to practice reading in a variety of text styles (Pikulski & Chard, 2003). Employing repeated reading on a regular basis in a variety of formats could impact word recognition, reading fluency and comprehension (Rasinski, 2003). There is much evidence to support claims that repeating reading instruction influenced fluency in a diverse array of students. The ultimate goal of repeated reading instruction was to then enable students to generalize fluency to new passages that were being read for the first time (Nanda & Frederick, 2007). According to Pikulski and Chard (2003), repeated oral reading is the most frequently documented approach to improving fluency, with improved outcomes for young students

Study Of Attacks On E Commerce Systems Computer Science Essay

Study Of Attacks On E Commerce Systems Computer Science Essay Electronic commerce (e-commerce) services nowadays have become a core element and more popular on Internet and Web environment. Electronic commerce, Internet and Web environment have enabled businesses to reduce costs and offer many benefits both to the consumer and to the business. According to Forrester Research the online retail sales in the United stated for 2003 exceeded $100 billion. As the Information Technology and the using of internet are increasing every day, the demand for secure information and electronic services is growing. Every online transaction in the internet can be monitored and stored in many different locations, since the Internet is a public network it makes very important for businesses to understand possible security threats and vulnerabilities to their business. The key factor that affects the success of e-commerce is to exchange security on network. In this paper we will describe some of the security threats and vulnerabilities concerning the e-commerce se curity. Keywords: e-Commerce security, threats, vulnerability, attacks 1. Introduction The improvements that Internet has made during the past few years have changed the way people see and use the Internet itself. The more their use grows, the more attacks aim these systems and the amount of security risks increases. Security has become one of most important issues and significant concern for e-commerce that must be resolved [1]. Every private and public organization is taking computer and e-commerce security seriously more than before because any possible attack directly has an effect in E-commerce business [5]. The Internet and Web environment can provide as many security threats and vulnerabilities as opportunities for a company. The low cost and high availability of the world wide Internet for businesses and customers has made a revolution in e-commerce [1]. This revolution in e-commerce in turn increases the requirement for security, as well as the number of on-line cheats and fraud as it is shown in the Figure 1. Although there has been investments and spent a very large amount of time and money to provide secures networks, still there is always the possibility of a breach of security [5]. According to IC3 2007 annual report, the total dollar loss from all referred complaints of fraud was $239.09 million [3]. The majority of these frauds and cheats were committed over the Internet or similar online services. Security is still a significant concern for e-commerce and a challenge for every company. Mitigate security threats and vulnerability is still a battle for every company [5]. Good security infrastructure means good productivity for the company. Figure 1: Incidents of Internet fraud [15] In this paper in the first section we will give a brief describe of e-commerce and the types of e-commerce, and then in second section we will describe the security issues and some of the threats and vulnerabilities- attacks in e-commerce. Last section discuss various defence mechanism uses to protect e-commerce security which is still high concerns of business. 2. E-commerce Background Information and communication technology has become more and more essential and integral part of businesses. This highly uses of information technology have changed the traditional way of doing business. This new way of doing business is known as Electronic Commerce (E-Commerce) or Electronic Business (E-Business) [12]. Electronic commerce or e-commerce means buying and selling of products or services over the part of internet called World Wide Web. According to Verisign [2004] electronic commerce is a strategic imperative for most competitive organisations today as it is a key to finding new sources of revenue, expanding into new markets, reducing costs, and creating breakaway business strategies. E-commerce includes electronic trading, trading of stocks, banking, hotel booking, purchases of airline tickets etc [2]. There are different types of e-commerce, but we will encompass the e-commerce on there types of business transaction: B2B ( business to business); B2C ( business to consumer); C2C (consumer to consumer) [4]. Business to Business (B2B) e-commerce- is simply defined as commerce transactions among and between businesses, such as interaction between two companies, between e manufacturer and wholesaler, between a wholesaler and a retailer [16]. There are four basic roles in B2B e-commerce suppliers, buyers, market-makers and web service providers. Every company or business plays at least one of them, and many companies or businesses play multiple roles [9]. According to the Queensland governments department of state development and innovation [2001] B2B ecommerce made up 94% of all e-commerce transactions [8]. The good examples and models of B2B are the companies such IBM, Hewlett Packard (HP), Cisco and Dell. Business-to-Consumer (B2C) e-commerce- is the commerce between companies and consumer, businesses sell directly to consumers physical goods (i.e., such as books, DVDs or consumer products), or information goods (goods of electronic material digitized content, such as software, music, movies or e-books) [10]. In B2C the web is usually used as a medium to order physical goods or information goods [8]. An example of B2C transaction would be when a person will buy a book from Amazon.com. According to eMarketer the revenue of B2C e-commerce form US$59.7 billion in 2000 will increase to US$428.1 billion by 2004 [10]. Consumer to Consumer (C2C) e-commerce- this is the type of e-commerce which involves business transactions among private individuals or consumers using the Internet and World Wide Web. Using C2C, costumers can advertise goods or products and selling them directly to other consumers. A good example of C2C is eBay.com, which is an online auction where costumers by using this web site are able to sell a wide variety of goods and products to each other [6]. There is less information on the size of global C2C e-commerce [10]. Figure 2 illustrates some of the e-commerce business describe above. Figure 2: Common e-Commerce business model [14] 3. Security threats to e-commerce Security has three basic concepts: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Confidentiality ensures that only the authorized persons have access to the information, not access for the unauthorized persons, Integrity ensures the data stored on any devices or during a communication process are not altered by any malicious user, Availability ensures that the information must be available when it is needed [16]. Security plays an important role in e-commerce. The number of online transaction last years has a tremendous increase; this has been accompanied by an equal rise in the number of threats and type of attacks against e-commerce security [13]. A threat can be defined as the potential to exploit a weakness that may result in unauthorised access or use, disclosure of information or consumption, theft or destruction of a resource, disruption or modification [8]. E-commerce environment has different members involved E-commerce network: Shoppers who order and buy products or services Merchant who offer products or services to the shoppers The Software (Web Site) installed on the merchants server and the server The attackers who are the dangerous part of E-commerce network Looking on the above parties involved in the e-commerce network, it is easy to see that malicious hackers threaten the whole network and are the most dangerous part of network. These threats on e-commerce can abuse, misuse and cause high financial loss to business. Figure 3 briefly displays the methods the hackers use in an E-commerce network [11]. Figure 3: Target points of the attacker [11] The assets that must be protected to ensure secure electronic commerce in an E-commerce network include client (shopper) computers or client-side, transaction that travel on the communication channel, the Web site on the server and the merchants server- including any hardware attached to the server or server-side. Communication channel is one of the major assets that need to protect, but it is not the only concern in e-commerce security. Client- side security form the users point of view is the major security; server-side security is a major concern form the service providers point of view. For example, if the communication channel were made secure but no security measure for either client-side or server-side, then no secure transmission of information would exist at all [1, 2]. According to Figure 3 above there are some different security attack methods that an attacker or hacker can use to attack an E-commerce network. In the next section we will describes potential security attack methods. 4. Possible Attacks This section overviews and describes various attacks that can occur in the sense of an e-commerce application. Moreover, ethical aspects are taken into consideration. From an attackers point of view, there are multiple actions that the attacker can perform, whereas the shopper does not have any clue what is going on. The attackers purpose is to gain access to each and every information in the network flow from the when the buyer has pressed the buy button until the web site server has responded back. Furthermore, the attacker tries to attach the application system in a most discrete and ethical way. An onview of various attacks on ecommerce are given: Tricking the Shopper: One very profitable and simple way of capturing the shoppers behaviour and information to use against the attacker is by tricking the shopper, which in other words is known as the social engineering technique. This can be done in various ways. Some of them are: An attacker can call the shopper, representing to be an employee from a shopping site to extract information about the shopper. Thereafter, the attacker can call the shopping site and then pretend to be the shopper and ask them for the user information, and further ask for a password to reset the user account. This is a very usual scenario. Another example would be to reset the password by giving information about a shoppers personal information, such as the date of birth, mothers maiden name, favourite movie, etc. If it is the case the shopping websites gives away these information out, then retrieving the password is not a big challenge anymore. A last way of retrieving personal information, which by the way is used a lot during the world wide web today, is by using the phishing schemes. It is very difficult to distinguish for example, www.microsoft.com/shop with www.micorsoft.com/shop . The difference between these two is a switching between the letters r and o. But by entering into the wrong false shop to pretend to be an original shop with login forms with password fields, will provide the attacker all confidential information. And this is performed if the shopper mistypes this URL link. The mistyped URL might be sent through email and pretend to be an original shop without any notice from the buyer [11, 15]. Password Guessing: Attackers are also aware of that is possible to guess a shoppers password. But this requires information about the shopper. The attacker might need to know the birthday, the age, the last name, etc. of the shopper, to try of different combinations. It is very common that the personal information is used into the password by many users through the internet, since they are easy to be remembered. But still, it needs a lot of effort from the attackers view, to make a software that guesses the shoppers password. One very famous attack might be to look up words from the dictionary and use these as passwords, this is also known as the dictionary attack. Or the attacker might look at statistics over which passwords are most commonly used in the entire world [15]. Workstation Attack: A third approach is to trying to attack the workstation, where the website is located. This requires that the attacker knows the weaknesses of the workstation, since such weak points are always presented in work stations and that there exist no perfect system without any vulnerabilities. Therefore, the attacker might have a possibility of accessing the workstations root by via the vulnerabilities. The attacker first tries to see which ports are open to the existing work station by using either own or already developed applications. And ones the attacker has gained access to the system, it will therefore be possible to scan the workstations information about shoppers to retrieve their ID and passwords or other confidential information. Network Sniffing: When a shopper is visiting a shopping website, and there is a transaction ongoing, then the attacker has a fourth possibility. The possibility is called sniffing. That an attacker is sniffing means that all data which is exchanged between the client and server are being sniffed (traced) by using several applications. Network communication is furthermore not like human communication as well. In a human communication, there might be a third person somewhere, listening to the conversation. In the network communication technology, the data which is sent via the two parties are first divided in something called data packages before the actual sending from one part to another. The other part of the network will therefore gather these packages back into the one data which was sent to be read. Usually, the attacker seeks to be as close as possible to the either the shoppers site or near the shopper to sniff information. If the attacker places himself in the halfway between the shopper and website, the attacker might therefore retrieve every information (data packages). Given an example in this, then assuming a Norwegian local shopper wants to buy an item from a webshop located in the United States of America. The first thing which will happen is that the personal information data which is being sent from the shopper will be divided into small pieces of data to the server located in the USA. Since the data flow over the network is not controlled by the human, the packages might be send to different locations before reaching the destination. For instance, some information might go via France, Holland and Spain before actually reaching the USA. In such a case, the sniffer/attacker was located in France, Holland or Spain, will mean that the attacker might not retrieve every and single information. And given that data, the attacker might not analyze and retrieve enough information. This is exactly the reason why attackers are as close as possible to either the source or the destination point (client side or server side). Known Bug Attack: The known bug attack can be used on both the shoppers site and on the webpage site. By using already developed tools, the attacker can apply these tools to find out which software to the target the server is having and using. From that point, the attacker further need to find patches of the software and analyze which bugs have not been corrected by the administrators. And when knowing the bugs which are not fixed, the attacker will thus have the possibility of exploiting the system [11]. There are still many various of attacks one can do more than these described above. More attacks that be used against ecommerce application could by doing Denial of Service (DOS) attacks where the attacker impact the servers and by using several methods, the attacker can retrieve necessary information. Another known attack is the buffer overflow attack. If an attacker has gained access to the root, the attacker might further get personal information by making his own buffer, where all overflow (information) is transferred to the attackers buffer. Some attackers also use the possibility looking into the html code. The attacker might retrieve sensitive information from that code, if the html is not well structured or optimized. Java, Javascript or Active X export are being used in html as applets, and the attacker might also distort these and set a worm into the computer to retrieve confidential information. 5. Defence For each new attack presented in the real world, a new defence mechanism needs further to be presented as well to protect the society from unsuspicious issues. This section introduce some defence issues how to protect the attacks described in the section before. However, the main purpose from an sellers point of view in an ecommerce application is to protect all information. Protecting a system can be performed in several ways. Education: In order to decrease the tricking attacks, one might educate all shoppers. This issue requires a lot of effort in time and not simple, since many customers still will be tricked by common social engineering work. Merchants therefore have to keep and remind customers to use a secure password since this person is used as the identity. Therefore it is important to have different passwords for different websites as well and probably save these passwords in a secure way. Furthermore, it is very important not to give out information via a telephone conversation, email or online programs. Setting a safe Password: It is very important that customers do not use passwords which are related to themselves, such as their birthdays, childrens name, etc. Therefore it is important to use a strong password. A strong password has many definitions. For example, the length of passwords is an important factor with various special characters. If a shopper cannot find a strong password, then there are many net sites proving such strong passwords. Managing Cookies: When a shopper registers into a website with personal information, a cookie is being stored into the computer, so no information is needed to be entered again at next logon. This information is very useful for an attacker, therefore it is recommended to stop using cookies, which is an very easy step to do in the browser [11]. Personal Firewall: An approach of protecting the shoppers computer is by using a personal firewall. The purpose of the firewall is to control all incoming traffic to the computer from the outside. And further it will also control all out coming traffic. In addition, a firewall has also an intrusion detection system installed, which ensures that unwanted attempts at accessing, modification of disabling of the computer will not be possible. Therefore, it is recommended that a firewall is installed into the pc of a shopper. And since bugs can occur in a firewall, it is therefore further important to update the firewall [11]. Encryption and decryption: All traffic between two parties can be encrypted from it is being send from the client and decrypted when it has been received until the server, vice versa. Encrypting information will make it much more difficult for an attacker to retrieve confidential information. This can be performed by either using symmetric-key algorithms or asymmetric key algorithms [11]. Digital Signatures: Like the hand signatures which are performed by the human hand, there is also something known as the digital signature. This signature verifies two important things. First, it checks whether the data comes from the original client and secondly, it verifies if the message has been modified from it has been sent until it was received. This is a great advantage for ecommerce systems [11]. Digital Certificates: Digital signature cannot handle the problem of attackers spoofing shoppers with a false web site (man-in-the-middle-attack) to information about the shopper. Therefore, using digital certificates will solve this problem. The shopper can with very high probability accept that the website is legal, since it is trusted by a third party and more legal party. In addition, a digital certificate is not a permanent unlimited time trusted. Therefore one is responsible to see if the certificate is still valid or not [11]. Server Firewall: Unlike personal firewall, there is also something known as the server firewall. The server firewall is an more advanced program which is setup by using a demilitarized zone technique (DMZ) [11]. In addition, it is also possible to use a honey pot server [11]. These preventions were some out of many in the real world. It is very important to make users aware and administrators update patches to all used application to further protect their systems against attacks. One could also analyze and monitor security logs which are one big defence strategy, to see which traffic has occurred. Therefore it is important that administrators read their logs frequently and understand which parts have been hit, so administrators can update their system. 6. Conclusion In this paper firstly we gave a brief overview of e-commerce and its application, but our main attention and the aim of this paper was to present e-commerce security issues and various attacks that can occur in e-commerce, also we describe some of the defence mechanism to protect e-commerce against these attacks. E-commerce has proven its great benefit for the shopper and merchants by reducing the costs, but e-commerce security is still a challenge and a significant concern for everyone who is involved in e-commerce. E-commerce security dose not belong only technical administrators, but everyone who participate in e-commerce- merchants, shopper, service provider etc. Even there are various technologies and mechanisms to protect the E-commerce such as user IDs and passwords, firewall, SSL, Digital certificates etc, still we need to be aware and prepared for any possible attack that can occur in e-commerce.