Seeing Holbein The Ambassadors Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Seeing Holbein The Ambassadors - Essay Example It has been noted also that a fur-trimmed over-garment like the one pictured â€Å"became the typical garment of the scholar† (Emberley, 1997, p. 128). His imposing stance and cool gaze denote power and influence in the world. In contrast, the cleric on the right appears a little more withdrawn. He stands back in the shadows and wears dull robes with the white collar indicating his religious calling. The two men appear to be placed as a contrast to one another, but they are linked by the display of fine objects that both lean upon. These objects are laid out with scientific objects above and artistic instruments below. Berger’s explanations about the connotations of great wealth are helpful in understanding the tremendous change that happened in Western civilization in the sixteenth century. This was a time when the Reformation divided people into Protestants and Catholics, and the two men represent the different sides of this major debate. The rise of the Protestantism in the northern parts of Europe is credited with bringing about the earliest stages of capitalism, and this is what Berger is hinting at with his emphasis on the objects in the painting. Most of the population in Northern Europe was still occupied in agricultural work or small cottage production but this was a time when cities began to expand. ... Some of the wealthiest individuals â€Å"invested their wealth in government obligations† (van Zanden, p. 143). The ambassadors in the picture are French, (Wolf, 2004, p. 71) and they represent two different sources of wealth. Both of them provide services to the government. One of them is busy with new market related activities, and the other brings the old power and influence of the Church. A focus on material goods, rather than spiritual ideas, is a feature of this movement, and this could explain why the man on the left appears to dominate the picture at the expense of the man on the right. Although Holbein lived and worked in London, his painting style reflects the techniques of the Dutch masters of the time. The very detailed depiction of the work of craftsmen such as weavers, embroiderers, carpet makers, goldsmiths and all the rest may well also be an acknowledgement of the great contribution that the medieval guilds had made to the development of society and the creati on of wealth. The peasants provided the basic raw materials of production. The trained and certified craftsmen turned the raw materials into the highly prized consumer goods that wealthy people purchased. The emphasis on the detail of their work highlights a new appreciation of luxury, and this is what fuels an endeavor to produce ever better quality, and discover improved techniques. It is noticeable also that some of the objects, apart from being valuable, are also evidence of distant travel. This recalls the great discoveries of distant lands that had been taking place in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. It is as if the two men are displaying all the richness of the globe, in the fine human objects, as well as the riches of heavenly things, indicated by the globes,

Walmart Foreign Expansion Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Walmart Foreign Expansion - Case Study Example Walmart gradually changed the Mexican merchandising culture to American as it expanded its operations in this country. It customized its products and it lowered their prices which resulted in Mexicans changing their shopping habits as they begat to visit large retail shops. This attributed to Walmart’s success in Mexico. 2. In order to succeed in China, Walmart should adapt to the Chinese culture so that it can mesh it with its merchandising strategy. For instance, Walmart has discovered that the Chinese prefer that fresh food be harvested in front of them and this is the exact strategy that it has adopted. Walmart has also discovered that in China, success requires it to embrace unions and it has adopted this strategy which is in stark contrast to America where unionization is opposed. This has positively contributed to the company making inroads in China. 3. It is quite challenging for a company such as Walmart to change the culture of the nation where it is doing business. Consumers in different nations have their own culture which may not be easily changed. However, in order to be successful in such nations, it is imperative for the company to adopt the local people’s culture and try to mesh it with its strategy. This is likely to appeal to the interests of the customers rather than fully changing their culture which they will

Critical review of three seminar readings Essay

Critical review of three seminar readings - Essay Example However, propaganda warfare is not a new tactic. In fact, Sun Tzu in his â€Å"Art of War† (6th Century BC) taught that an essential part of conducting warfare involves deceiving the enemy thus putting him into a disadvantage, ironically but logically, by making him believe that he is in a more advantageous form or position. Critique Indeed, this has been an essential part in the conduct of the cold war wherein Two-time Pulitzer Prize awardee Walter Lippmann argued that their side dwell on what is true and morally upright whilst on the enemy’s was mere propaganda. Well, though most conflicts are seen as a brutal show of force, an equal and sometimes bigger of this plays out using propagandas. As such, even wars are used by politicians and even terrorists to advance their own agendas. Hence, whether willingly or unwillingly, the technical sophistication of mass media has made it probably the most effective conduit for advancing these agendas; and both Bush and Bin Laden has greatly capitalized on this. Thus, Kellner’s critique of US broadcasting networks on his â€Å"Media Propaganda and Spectacle in the War on Iraq: a Critique of U.S. broadcasting network† offers to expose the sins of commission as well as the sins of omission committed by the various networks and taken advantaged of by President George W. Bush. As such, the author launched into an immense rhetoric of lashes against the administration’s ploy to use the War on Iraq through the various US media outfits in an effort to cement itself as the ultimate harbinger of good. In effect, this has set the stage to launch various theatrics such as â€Å"the coalition of the willing†, preemptive strikes and surgical bombings. The author painted a stark picture of a Bush Jr.-driven invasion that seem to be based on the desire to wrap up what his daddy had started and reinforce the United States position as the resident global watch dog (Kellner 2004, p. 330). Of course such an invasion cannot be crafted overnight and against the backdrop of the 9-11 terror attack in late 2001, the architects of war got busy in 2002 to drum up the assault on Iraqi soil. Indeed, war is an ugly business but one cannot argue that though it brings forth economic damages, it can also be profitable for some. Back in the old days, it is the victor that seemingly solely benefits as they thrive from the spoils of war. Nowadays, one does not need for a war’s conclusion but from war itself comes the golden opportunity for media mileage and political leverage. Hence, the exploitation of these opportunities at the expense of Iraq and her people seem to be the center of the paper. Indeed, the facts were stated fully to support the allegations in this paper. However, it would seem that only one side of the story was covered. A quick review of the references used would indicate an inclination on the need to assert the wrongful acts committed during the incursion. There are indeed various areas of concern that may have been committed in this discourse. In effect, the discourse has seemingly singled out President George W. Bush against Saddam Hussein hence bringing about Manicheanism, wherein Bush seems to have been demonized in the critique. The paper likewise went about to decontextualize violence putting heavy emphasis on the attacks made and painting it as irrational while at the same time neglecting the

Political science- short answers- Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Political science- short answers- Africa - Essay Example Structural adjustments directed towards Africa by the IMF, bilateral donors and the World Bank are some of the policies to reach consolidation (Herbst 51). According to Samuel P. Huntington, it is religious and cultural identities that will primarily breed tension and conflict in the world of post- Cold War. Huntington concluded this after surveying various theories relating the mode of global politics. He argued that the idea of different civilizations is key to analyzing the possibility of conflict (Herbst 45). Civilizations differ from each other in terms of language, culture, history, religion and tradition. This has potential for conflict. Huntington gave a memorable slogan regarding Islamic religion which has agitated friction in the western world. It is the â€Å"Islam has bloody borders† slogan that brings fear in his arguments. Huntington concludes that all Asian countries and other Islamic nation are collectively peace haters. The western will come together and consolidate their power to ensure their interests remain. The Islamic nations will too consolidate and challenge the power and values of the West. The western world has had impact great impact in the world civilizations. To remain relevant, they have to consolidate their military power and fight for their interests and values (Herbst 67). According to Huntington, the West plays a critical role in influencing the political and religious institutions in Africa. The West therefore determines the stability and of the social movements activities of these

Issues with Cameras and Privacy in Modern Day Technology

Issues with Cameras and Privacy in Modern Day Technology Scam Cams Nick Doran Introduction and Significance of Issue As a citizen, governmental laws have always played a major role in the way we conduct ourselves. Whether it’s when we vote or when we sit down in our car to travel, they always have a say or way to regulate us. When it comes to the motor vehicle, being a daily driver of suburban and urban areas are stressful enough. Within the last few years, the government has introduced a new X-factor causing many drivers anxiety and even possibly altering a driver’s ability to use their own intuition on being safe and respectful. This new x-factor can come in several forms of traffic violation cameras. The increasing number of cameras being put into effect raises concerns. Having a camera on every street corner leads to concerns about privacy and overreaching by the government in its ability to monitor the movements of people. Even worse, the accuracy and efficacy of these cameras can be called into question, meaning this invasion of privacy does not even have tangible benefits. Thes e cameras are truly an abuse of power by the government, and are an unethical used of technology in our society. A topic that people are very reluctant to realize is how quickly technology has advanced in the recent years. Of course the majority of our society is up to date with the latest version of the iPhone or the newest model of Dr. Dre Beats headphones, but not many people take a second and look around to realize that everything they do from the minute they wake up, to the minute they go to sleep is being monitored. Regardless if it’s the government monitoring them or a computer hacker sitting in his or her basement, your activity and whereabouts are being watched. With every installment of a traffic violation camera, another pair of virtual eyes is watching you. The most common cameras that are being used are Red Light Cameras and Speed Limit Enforcers. Currently, being used in smaller numbers are Bus Lane Cameras and Stop Sign Cameras. With so many flaws in this growing system of cameras, how can we possibly sit back and give away our right to privacy? True Purpose The true reasoning behind the outbreak of these cameras is pretty obvious, revenue. Both state and local government are defending these allegations by claiming that the cameras are for safety. According to the local government of Chicago â€Å"Red Light Camera Enforcement is designed to increase safety on Chicago streets. Cities across the country, and throughout the world, have been using the technology for many years.† (Red Light Camera Enforcement). While this defense seems nice on the surface, many studies have actually shown an increase in rear end collisions due to red light cameras. Drivers are becoming so indecisive and hesitant; the roads are becoming more dangerous. Many drivers are slamming on their breaks when the light turns from yellow to green out of fear of a camera flash following a fine, causing the car behind them to slam into the back of their car. It was found that in certain areas, the yellow light time was actually decreased, often below legal limit, in order to increase the amount of red light offenders. The increase in offenders clearly resulted in greater revenue to the government that issued the cameras. When the goal of increased safety is proven wrong and local governments such as Suffolk County, NY are â€Å"estimated $6.8 million a year† (Brown, J. 2014), it becomes evident that the dollar sign greatly out weights the cameras intended purpose of safety. In retrospect, an extra $6.8 million a year to the county may seem nice, a better plan should be put in place to raise these funds. This plan of traffic violation revenue seems more like a way of taking advantage of a poorly handled situation to get a quick fix of cash. Many individuals and organizations are fed up with these â€Å"scamras† (Werner, A 2012) and are leading successful oppositions of the use of cameras. â€Å"Brothers Michael and Paul Kubosh led a successful rebellion against red light cameras in Houston. The city took the cameras down more than a year ago. The brothers say the only reason cities install the cameras in is to make money. Its estimated that Houston earned $44 million during the four years the cameras were operating.† (Werner,A. 2012). There is no denying that the facts are in the numbers, these cameras are 100% appealing to anyone who rather focus on making money off others mistakes and than protecting us. Smile for the Camera Have you ever looked up on your way out of a grocery store and saw a flat screen television with multiple camera angles of you being displayed? Some may think well, the store has a right to know if someone’s stealing from them, while others may feel uneasy that they are being recorded in their pajama pants. Now think about all the other aspects of your life could have been learned from the time you woke up to the time you walked out of the grocery store by the government or any person or agency with hacking abilities. An outburst of use of Instagram, Twitter and Facebook on your smart phone early in the morning may suggest the time you woke up. The pictures you like and comment on suggest your interests. Software has the ability to turn your smartphone camera on and see through it from 100 miles away. Your neighbors’ security camera catches you walking out of your front door without locking it behind you. Now you get into your car, and every intersection from your home to the store has a camera on it. The cameras know: the route you choose to the store, the make, model, color, year and licenses plate of your car you’re in, if you’re in the car alone or with your kids, and if the camera takes high quality images, it may be able to recognize a wedding band on your finger that’s wrapped around your steering wheel determining if you are married or not. Don’t forget the security camera on the way out of the grocery store that recorded you forgetting to get milk. You may ask, what’s the big deal if the little old lady whole mails me my ticket gets to see pictures and a video of me in my car? The problem is anyone who wants those images badly enough, can get a hold of them. With most new red light camera systems, they are recording video 24/7, meaning all drivers (not just red light runners) are being recorded at all times. The video and still images are stored on privately owned computers servers without any verifiable audit trail of when the video is deleted. Meaning that it is unclear to what really happens to all this information. As a society, where do we draw the line to this invasion of our privacy by our governments? It’s Almost Always Accurate In today’s age we rely heavily on technology and it is safe to say, it doesn’t always work. Technology must be maintained, updated and sometimes restored. Sometimes it can even be defective from the start, â€Å"a setback occurred in 2003 when one vendor, who subsequently went out of business, was found to have provided equipment that was inaccurate. This led to negative publicity, suspension of camera use at three sites, and reimbursements of fines and demerit points to about 90,000 motorists.† (Delany, A. 2005) This is just one of many cases in which this system has failed right off the bat resulting in false accusations to a crime. Many of these cameras are recommended by manufactures, to have regular inspections by specialized technicians. A neglected system can result in similar outcomes as the one stated above. It seems that whatever department assigned to maintain these cameras, often does not. Resulting in thousands of issued tickets to many innocent citi zens that are invalid. Another case of this failed use of technology occurred in Chicago when their camera vendor, Redflex, was â€Å"fundamentally deficient, with little supervision such poor record-keeping that it is difficult to determine why the number of tickets issued spiked during period, as first reported by the Chicago Tribune.† Reflexes’ mishaps with â€Å"one detector at the intersection of Kimball, Lincoln and McCormick avenues was largely nonfunctional for years, meaning that the broken system â€Å"may have failed to have identify as many as 45,444 violations over a four-and-a-half-year period.†Ã¢â‚¬  With an uneducated society on this abuse of technology we quickly pull out are checkbooks to pay off these fines before a warrant is issued to the offender. We are forced to act out of fear rather than fighting for what is wrong and right. Psychology is Stronger then Law â€Å"Although many issues are raised in the numerous and constant debates on the revenue-raising aspects of speed enforcements, one key area of knowledge that can shed some light on it has yet to be highlighted, especially in the research literature. Do we really need to catch offenders to be effective? Can crashes be reduced simply by the presence of police enforcement without the need to issue tickets? Previous research has shown that even plywood replicas of police cars had an effect on driver behavior (Baker and Lawder, 1968) and simply giving a warning also had an effect on driver speed (Ennis, 1967). If the mere presence of police is sufficient to deter speeding, then there is no escape from the revenue-raising allegations† (Tay,R. 2010) The wrong approach is being taken to solve this safety problem. These cameras are not the answer. This plywood cop car study goes to show that the psychological presence of a police officer has a greater impact on how people drive. If a police officers presence if constantly know in a school zone, motorists will subconsciously become alert and be more aware of surroundings. A high majority of people throughout numerous studious have agreed that this would be the more effective method in accomplishing safer roadways for communities. Conclusion It is a hard point to miss that these Scamcams, are exactly that. Their intentions may seem great, but the way our government has chosen to implement them is just outright absurd. The notion that we are installing cameras on almost every major street corner is essentially giving another pair of eyes to whoever has the capability to use them. Whether it’s the national government monitoring, a college student with the self taught capability of hacking, or just your local government sticking you with a revenue boosting fine, you are being watched and there’s no ignoring that. We are allowing a problem to spiral out of control right in front of us. We are allowing our governments to encroach farther into our person space and privacy. Not too mention, they’re making a large sum of money off this program. Are their intentions still to make the streets a safer place or did the find a way to use this safety campaign as a cloak to scamming its people. Our National, State and local governments ethics have always been questioned but now with their scamcams, they have finally crossed the line. References Brown, J. (2014, April 23). Traffic cameras have one purpose: To bring in more money. Newsday. Retrieved from http://www.newsday.com/long-island/columnists/joye-brown/traffic-cameras-have-one-purpose-to-bring-in-more-money-1.7807020?pts=762136 Delany, A., Ward, H., Cameron, M., Williams, A. (2005). Controversies and Speed Cameras: Lessons Learnt Internationally. In Journal of Public Health Policy (4th ed., Vol. 26, pp. 404-415). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan Journals. Hinz, G. (2014, October 14). City inspector general slams red-light camera program. Retrieved from http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20141010/BLOGS02/141019989/city-inspector-general-slams-red-light-camera-program Red Light Camera Enforcement. (2011, April 5). Retrieved November 18, 2014, from http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/cdot/supp_info/red-light_cameraenforcement.html Tay, R. (2010). Speed Cameras: Improving Safety or Raising Revenue? In Journal of Transport Economics and Policy (2nd ed., Vol. 44, pp. 247-257). London: University of Bath and The London School of Economics and Political Science. Werner, A. (2012, January 1). Safety or scam? Red light cameras under scrutiny. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/safety-or-scam-red-light-cameras-under-scrutiny/

The Forgotten: Uninsured Children Essays -- Health Care

This paper is going to define oppression, describe an oppressed group and a framework. Oppression is defined as â€Å"unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power or a sense of being weighed down in body or mind† (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2010) The oppressed population that I am going to describe is uninsured children with a disability. Typically, children obtain health insurance coverage through their parents. If parents lack health insurance, so will their children. This paper will discuss the social problem of the inability of children with a disability to obtain health insurance. The primary social welfare issue to be addressed is the absence of affordable, comprehensive health insurance for children from birth to eighteen. When a child is uninsured it often means that people will postpone necessary care and forego preventive care - such as childhood immunizations and routine check-ups-completely. Because the uninsured usually have no regular doctor and limited access to prescription medications, they are more likely to be hospitalized for health conditions that could be avoided. One example, regarding this was told by a medical student. American Medical Student Association told a story of a young boy with a heart defect which made him vulnerable to infections. His mother, a janitor, couldn't afford to take him to the dentist when he developed a tooth infection. By the time his pain grew intolerable; his heart was infected with bacteria from the tooth infection. Spiking fevers, fatigue and chest pain developed a few weeks later. He arrived at the ER wit h sub acute bacterial endocarditic, which required six weeks of preventable hospitalization. Damage to the boy's heart was irreversible. The conceptual framework... ..., H. J., & Stoesz, D. (2005). American social welfare policy: a pluralistic approach. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Merriam-Webster Dictionary, (2010). Retrieved June 1, 2010, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/ Missouri Foundation for Health. (2004). Economic and health benefits of Missouri Medicaid. Retrieved June 4, 2010, from http://www.mffh.org National Coalition of Healthcare. (2004). Facts on health insurance coverage. Retrieved April19, 2005, from http://www.nchc.org/facts/coverage.pdf National Coalition of Healthcare. (2004). Health insurance cost. Retrieved February 3, 2005, from http://www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml National Health Policy Forum. (2005). The basics: Medicaid. Retrieved June 1, 2010, from http://www.nhpf.org United States Department of Labor. (2010) Retrieved June 4, 2010 from http://www.dol.gov/

Outsourcing and insourcing and their roles within a telecommunications context

Outsourcing is the process in which an organization transfers ownership of a business process to another company. In other words, it is the process in which a company contracts the services of another company in performing a specific task which would otherwise have been undertaken by in-house employees. Many large companies distribute some of their processes like payroll processing and call center services to separate companies which specialize in them.Insourcing is the opposite of outsourcing and it involves the transfer of specific processes within an organization’s operational framework to an internal but totally stand-alone unit which specializes only in that particular process. Insourcing is practiced by organizations who wish to have more control of critical processes and is intended to give the organizations a higher probability of instilling required levels of competence in employees or units serving in specific areas of operation. Within the telecommunications framewo rk, outsourcing and insourcing find wide applications.Many companies prefer to contract the services of separate companies which specialize in call center operations to offer customer support. Outsourcing I also used in telecommunications in installation. If a telecommunications company is in the process of installing infrastructure, it will most likely contract a company which deals with installation to offer this service. Outsourcing is the preferred mode of executing processes which do not occur continuously. Insourcing is used to execute telecommunications processes that occur continuously and need to be monitored in real time by the company.These could include network management, billing and sales. I prefer outsourcing since it delegates the responsibility of specialized processes to people who are sufficiently competent in that particular process as they only specialize in it. Outsourcing minimizes the expenditure incurred in training a specialized unit to perform specific tas ks which could only happen occasionally, and it also leaves the traditional workforce in an organization with ample time to deal with other priorities. The firm does not need to cater for employee benefits of the people assigned these tasks.