The Speech Given by Romano Prodi

Evaluation of the speech given by Romano Prodi, the president of the European Commission 2000-2005 in Europarliament, Strasbourg, 15 February 2000. After a quick glance at the speech we can see a positive inspiration of an ex-prime minister of Italy, to a stronger, healthier Europe thorough a better management of scare resources (money) and optimization (review our priorities and focus on our core business). To focus on its real priorities†¦ to shed low-priority activities and thus free up resources†. Prodi wants to revive the lost faith in the European institutions. Enlargement, progress, lower unemployment. Strengthen Europe's capacity for prosperity and progress. This â€Å"vision† then, is for an all-round project enabling the construction of a Europe capable of upholding its own responsibilities towards future candidates for accession. Enlargement, approached on a basis of such a broad design, adds a number of considerable advantages: politically, it strengthens the role of democracy in Eastern Europe; conomically, it offers the prospect of a vaster, more competitive market; from the security viewpoint, it can represent the starting point for a new all-European system of guarantees, thus playing a complementary role with the enlargement of NATO, offering Russia reasons for integrating and cooperating with the West. However, usual debates about vigorous and sustained growth, security, sense of meaning and purpose and projecting its model into a wider world have a strong political motive. Not only Prodi wants to satisfy his personal ambitions, but also want to steer the entire process of establishment of new Europe. Relation to the in-house administrative reform of the Commission. Renewed understanding of the tasks and â€Å"core business† of the Commission that are enshrined in the Treaty, given the new context of interdependence and interactions between various levels of government. Despite denying of thinking imperialistically, the aims are to establish a control over large territories, to impose European principles. â€Å"We must aim to become a global civil power†. European interests mentioned by the president of the Commission are nothing else but a wish for Europe to be a superpower. Prodi paints a picture of a European Union increasingly at ease with itself as it grows in both political and economic stature. Take economics first: Romano Prodi's five-year statement, published a week in advance of his appearance at the European Parliament, is a blend of Thatcherite economic rectitude and Clinton†s high-tech infospeak. His objectives are clear. To push for continued, if painful, reform of Europe's welfare systems and labour markets. To enforce the euro-inspired disciplines on public spending. To promote the case for further international trade liberalisation. To point Europe towards a high-value service economy, based on high universal educational standards and widespread access to information technology, to rival that of the US. To clamp down on state subsidies and provide space for private initiative. What Romano Prodi does not say is perhaps even more significant: no more corporatism, no more inflated public spending projects, and no more false promises. His approach will be reinforced at a special summit of European leaders in Lisbon at the end of March. The political will finally seems to be in place to transform the rhetoric of economic reform into practice across Europe. Among new priorities, Prodi said the commission needs to improve the delivery of its external aid: the EU is the world's largest donor but its work is often slowed and hampered by â€Å"top-heavy internal systems† and lack of staff where they are needed. It will focus on the Balkans, notably aiming to liberalise trade, build infrastructure and support political and civil reforms to bring those countries closer to the EU, he said. The commission will also â€Å"vigorously conduct† EU enlargement negotiations and develop cooperation with Russia and the Mediterranean countries. EU enlargement, aimed at bringing many of those countries into the European family of nations, â€Å"will be a hard road to travel,† Prodi warned. â€Å"We will have to win over public opinion. We will be open, but also frank and tough in negotiations. † Even as Prodi addressed parliament, EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels were formally opening membership talks with the second wave of six applicant countries – Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania and Bulgaria. Six others – Cyprus, Hungary, Poland, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Slovenia – have been in talks for two years. â€Å"Enlargement is necessary,† said Prodi, â€Å"if we are to spread peace, stability and shared values throughout the continent. We must reassure the public that enlargement is not just an awkward necessity, it is an historical opportunity in our joint political and economic interests. The challenge of enlargement involves break with the past. The prospect of enlargement automatically gives the Union a continent wide posture, which requires a redefinition of its internal policies and makes it a benchmark player for the Russian Federation and Mediterranean area. It also increases the Union†s responsibility as a power in the context of globalisation. Institutional and democratic challenges are also inevitable. The priority now needs to be changing the methods to ensure that objectives can be understood and acted on successfully. Encourage discussion amongst citizens of European values, issues and decisions. Reform the process for preparing and implementing Community rules and policies to ensure that they are pertinent and coherent. The commission will overhaul its own functioning concentrating on â€Å"core business† and â€Å"shedding activities†. â€Å"This will be our response to one of the key criticisms made by the Committee of Independent Experts – the mismatch between resources and tasks. We will demonstrate that we can help them match by shedding activities. † He confirmed the commission's proposal to decentralise its exclusive powers in competition policy to national competition authorities and courts, allowing it better â€Å"to develop and interpret the rules and deal with competition cases that have a real Community impact. † Governance will be taken to encompass rules, processes and behaviour that affect the way in which powers are exercised at European level, particularly as regards accountability, clarity, transparency, coherence efficiency and effectiveness. Does the Commission act in democratic way? Does the actions achieve their objectives? What should be done to improve situations? The speech, as I see, has a strong political tone. It is not just about optimizing European management, it is to re-inforce the Commission. None of the European institutions are untouchable. Many of them will be forced to decrease thier power. Shift from a procedure-oriented organisation to a policy-oriented one. And Commission is going to be that one. â€Å"The Commission must become a political driving force to shape the new Europe, that inspires and manages, acting always in European interest,†¦ moving away from the more traditional tasks†. His global ambitions demand some attention too. He wants to take a real participation in regulating world class questions such as wars, genocides. In my opinion, his intention is to counterbalance NATO and US trough establishing own European seurity and intervention into at least European conflicts. The concept of governance is aimed at a common political system of the European Union. Construction of a Community that respects the identity of each of its Member States. Reformation of European modes of governance is all about improving democracy in Europe. Prodi's speech to parliament did not draw general praise. Some called it â€Å"a scientific treatise but not a real political strategy. † Others told â€Å"There is nothing new at all in working program, lots of prose, not much optismism. † â€Å"There are still significant disparities among the countries of Europe and you fail to address these. † Prodi said that actions speaks louder than words. Even if a small part of what he intends to do will occur, we shall see a quite different Europe in terms of strength, political behaviour and a strong institute, the Commission.

Aligning Profitability and Sustainability Essay

Aligning Profitability and Sustainability: Nike BY lucy78 Aligning profitability and sustainability A central issue that companies grapple with as they try to become more sustainable is how and to what extent they adopt this as part of their corporate strategy. Nike faces the same dilemma as it builds on the success of the ‘Considered’ initiative while simultaneously encountering challenges implementing the ethos across the entire brand. How far can and should Nike go in â€Å"considering the right thing and doing the right thing†? Businesses often strive to find the balance between being economically and environmentally sustainable. However, it is possible, with innovation, to align the benefits of these aspects and minimize trade-offs. For Nike to advance on the sustainability scale, it is imperative that they identify and pursue alignment mechanisms that will allow it to become profitable and sustainable. Integrating sustainability across the brand While Considered as an ethos is promoted and accepted across the Nike brand, a key obstacle to progress is its limited and non-uniform implementation across the arious categories. Sustainability needs to evolve from being a strategic initiative to an organizational strategy that encapsulates all categories setting brand wide objectives, identifying resources, and establishing uniform metrics for performance. As noted in the case, sustainability for Nike is not Just a CSR goal anymore rather a crucial factor in long-term growth and competitiveness of the company. Specific measures in the strategy to accomplish this could include creation of a comprehensive index covering all categories and products taking into consideration he differences in costs, prices, and targets. Secondly, modifying the operations to build in the impact of sustainable design, development and manufacturing on the production time line will allow for wider implementation of the practices. Furthermore, this helps incorporate iterative design through measurement, audit, and tracking through the product life cycle. Adoption would also increase if Nike can create a broader negotiating platform to enable all categories to benefit from price reductions from suppliers. Finally, any organizational strategy would require champions among the various teams to disseminate the sustainability ethos, build liaisons across functions and in general ensure broader enforcement of best practices. The message of â€Å"being good is good for the business† needs to be part of the leadership’s vision, implementation and evaluative measures in the company. External partnerships and alliances An internal philosophy and focus on sustainability is one part of the equation in and foster an eco-system around them that help them align the profitability and ustainability goals. Nike, as the market leader, is in an excellent position to create partnerships and alliances towards that goal. Nike should spearhead the creation and/or consolidation of industry wide practices including rating systems for the products and performance metrics. Promoting environmentally friendly systems would accelerate adoption by suppliers thereby strengthening its global sourcing channels. Third-party monitoring and validation relationships would bolster Nike’s credibility and improve its standing as an environmentally responsible organization. This is especially important in the light of its past experience with the labor crisis. Nike should create strategic partnerships with suppliers promoting knowledge sharing, assisting in training and education and identifying long-term benefits. It should engage the suppliers in dialogues regarding comprehensive standards promoting alignment in their goals. Customer awareness and branding An organization’s value is in the eyes of the customer. The Nike brand commands tremendous customer loyalty and recognition through its association with high erformance, innovation and aesthetics. For Nike to evolve as a sustainable brand, it has to create value for its customer to be part of the new ecosystem. Nike should differentiate itself by the additional dimension of eco-friendliness to build on its performance and aesthetic values. Leveraging celebrity endorsements and raising consumer awareness, Nike should engage customers in the sustainability vision through collaboration with NGOs, eco-friendly groups and environmental campaigns. Evolving the brand to be associated with social and environmental esponsibility would improve customer satisfaction and the bottom-line. In conclusion, Nike’s challenge is to interlock profitability and sustainability as it strives to address global sourcing, competitive and environmental issues. To succeed, Nike should create a comprehensive strategy to implement sustainability practices internally while simultaneously forming alliances and partnerships with external stakeholders, including customers. By marrying innovation with ‘green’ it is feasible for Nike to create cost-effective, high performing, and ‘cool’ eco-friendly products.

International Protection of Refugees Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words - 1

International Protection of Refugees - Essay Example For the collection of data I have gone through authentic websites and books. The first need to address the issue of refugees came with the end of the World War I. Several movements, such as the Russian Revolution and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, created a major refugee problem in the world. Jaeger (2001) writes in his article â€Å"On the History of International Protection of Refugees† that approximately 1.2 million people left Russian territory between the period of 1918 and 1922. Since the resources were getting exhausted it was decided to appoint a High Commissioner for refugees which would define the status of refugees, guarantee their repatriation and their employment outside Russia. Dr. Fridtjof Nansen was appointed by the League of Nations in 1921 as High Commissioner for Russian refugees. Later his responsibilities were extended to refugees from other countries as well such as the Armenians in 1924 and the Assyrian, Assyro- Chaldean and Turkish refugees in 1928. Several important developments that took place in the 1930s are mentioned below: International Nansen Office for Refugees: The office was created after the death of Nansen in 1931. It was an autonomous body and worked under the authority of the League. Its aim was to provide humanitarian and relief work. The office was liquidated in 1938 (Abrams, 2001). High Commissioner for Refugees coming from Germany: Following the rise of Hitler’s power a High Commissioner for refugees coming from Germany was appointed. The office was liquidated along with the Nansen office in 1938. The High Commissioner fought strict immigration rules to help resettle the Jews and non Jews coming from Germany (Cutts, 2000). The organization came into existence in 1943 and was created by the allies. It helped in organizing the return of millions of people back to the counties of origin. Many people did

Film Theory Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Film Theory - Research Proposal Example Bazin regards cinema as an idealistic phenomenon with technical features resting only in the background. As a humanist, he thrives on the view that the idea is precedent to the invention and is therefore superior to the technical means used in achieving it. In his book The Evolution of the language of Cinema,2 he asserts that the necessity for an idea towards technical means is one that requires new form or style. Bazin states that the cinema is much elevated as compared to photography because of its ability to record the event in time and posits that filmmakers must refrain from false subjective manipulation owing to the complexity of reality which the cinema characteristically pursues. There has been confusion in the domain of film theory concerning Bazin's writings, which can be traced down to the image being filmed and its life counterpart, in which he says that the photographic image is one that may be described as a kind of transfer. It is the object itself which is freed from the conditions of time and space governing it. There is a commonality in the photograph and the object itself whose sameness is pursued by a fashion of the fingerprint.3 (Referring to Andre Bazin's essay, "The Evolution of Film Language", analyze the ways in which William Wyler explores the moral and emotional conflicts experienced by... The film is considered a masterpiece of cinematic craftsmanship in which first-rate support actors gave life to their roles.4 Wyler's film shows details that depict Bazin's ideas in The Evolution of Film Language. Cinema as an idealistic phenomenon5 which Bazin explores in his essay is embodied in The Little Foxes with the film's portrayal of greed and avarice having the real message it wants to convey - that of the consequences of evil acts which men must avoid. As Bazin generally describes a film as a medium of duplicating reality, Wyler was able to successfully convey this duplication in real-life experiences of wealth and greed in the Hubbard and Giddens family, in which surefire downfall awaits people of extreme greed. Wyler explores the moral conflicts experienced by his heroine Regina Giddens with the use of depth-of-field photography through the captured emotions needed to surface from a villainous character. How other characters were portrayed, such as that of being kind (Ho race and Alexandra Giddens) reinforced the evilness of the heroine through implied comparison. The moral conflicts are tackled in the story with wealth and money as the groundwork of the exhibited behavior of the characters, whether acting upon it or away from its influences and corruption. Regina Giddens is in a situation which might be considered a maze in which she was to succumb to social norms of this time where a woman does not bring money with her when she gets married regardless of the family's wealth. Hence, she must rely financially on her husband. The social norms had placed her in a stringent situation totally not giving her a space to express her fondness for money. An attempt to put her daughter Alexandra in marriage to Leo, Alexandra's

Sunset Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sunset - Essay Example The only sound one hears is the splash of water and the signing of birds. Birds are seen that are returning to their nests after struggling for one more day of their survival. One sees them live in present only and this makes an individual wonder how they have no knowledge of their tomorrow and yet they are happy and happier than an individual can ever. One realizes how far we have run from this present in our striving for a better tomorrow. And this sudden realization at a beach is enough to bring a smile on our face. While taking a short walk on the shore when the sun is setting below the horizon, one realizes how one more day of our life has gone by. One wonders what he was when the sun rose today, and what we are now when the sun is setting down. One wonders what have he has achieved and what is the purpose of an individual’s life because this train of thought leads one to the answer of what he wants to achieve. It is the sweet and beautiful moment that an individual actually achieves by visualizing this sunset. The joy of every moment doubles when one shares it with a loved one. There is no place better than a beach and no time better than the sunset to celebrate the mere existence of the significance of another person. It is a perfect time to express one’s feelings and let the other person know how valued they are. Away from the noise of the world, hearts meet right when the sun decides to settle down and the water decides to rise. One realizes how lonely and meaningless the world would be if it was not for our other half. Souls connect when you stand by the seaside, holding hands with your beloved and watching the sun go down. A sunset is not just a sunset. The setting sun, orange sky, signing birds, the sound of water, creates a perfect harmony that soothes an individual’s soul. It is where the relentless mind finds peace,

The most prominent battles of the Civil War of America Essay

The most prominent battles of the Civil War of America - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that June 10, 1864, marks the day of the Battle of Brice’s Crossroad. It was a civil war that was fought between the union and the confederate near Mississippi. The Confederates were led by Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the victorious commander and the unions were led by Brigadier General Samuel D. Sturgis, the losing commander. It is one of the most famous civil war because the outnumbered unions were badly defeated by the Confederates, who in number were almost half their army. The main reason behind the splendid victory of Forrest is the outstanding war planning. The tactic that he devised to weaken the union army, the place that he chose to meet the unions in the battle, use of secret intelligence were all in favor of the victory of Forrest. He planned to attack the main cavalry first and then move on further to the remaining army. The main cavalry tried to defend themselves and when they reached Brice Crossroad to inform their army and alert them, they were exhausted and confronted with the fresh army of Forrest. This proved very helpful for the Confederates. The place that had been decided by Forrest to be the battleground was much near to the supply depot of the confederates and very far from the depot of the unions. This made the unions deprived of the supply and although being outnumbered gave no benefit to them because of the shortage of the supply.

How East-Asian Martial Films Have Influenced Hollywood Cinema Literature review

How East-Asian Martial Films Have Influenced Hollywood Cinema - Literature review Example This genre has been known to incorporate richly detailed choreographed action scenes with high-flying kicks and martial art techniques. When it was first seen in Asia, it was far-removed from the American film genre and style. However, it soon became a common feature in the Hong Kong film industry (Michallet-Romero, 2003). While trying to preserve the traditional stories of Chinese heroes, Hong Kong film directors translated martial arts techniques into film and in the process influenced the Hollywood film industry. The Wuxia tales in Chinese history were representations of male and female sword masters who represented much heroism in their actions (Garnet, 1999). These tales of heroism were developed in an era dominated by Confucianism and the teachings of this religion. Confucius was very much focused on loyalty, obedience, and on fulfilling one’s duty to one’s family. The father was considered the head of the household and as such total respect was owed him by the re st of the family (Morgan, 2001). Confucius also advocated the belief that those who were stronger must protect the weak, the aged, and those who were unable to defend themselves. Confucius also supported the ideal leader, ordering his warriors to live their lives with dignity and with valour. From these teachings grew wuxia literature. This literature was also enriched by the stories of the Buddhist religious leader Siddartha Gautama (Michallet-Romero, 2003). Buddha’s teachings incorporated philosophical beliefs to the wuxia tales and also advocated the idea of alleviating the sufferings of man. Physical disciplines were later associated with Buddhism and Confucianism and these movements were meant to enhance a person’s chi, which is considered to be the life force of all beings (Michallet-Romero, 2003). ... iplines were later associated with Buddhism and Confucianism and these movements were meant to enhance a person’s chi, which is considered to be the life force of all beings (Michallet-Romero, 2003). From these movements Kung Fu would soon evolve. The Wuxia tales presented the image of the hero – either male or female – as one who is able to wield a sword skilfully, travelling to distant lands and carrying out heroic deeds in defence of the powerless and the weak. These heroes were often known to travel alone, exemplifying their strong skills in martial arts and sword play (Desser, 2002). The relationship of master and student within these stories were also apparent. The wuxia tales also presented the virtues of justice, valour, and sacrifice for the greater good of the people. The protagonists were also usually of common lineage and with skill and training gained much prestige (Birrell, 1999). This protagonist was very much different from the protagonists portra yed in Western stories where the heroes were often of noble blood. Wuxia folklore eventually made its way into the common and the noble people of China and these stories were retold with slight changes in their characterizations, making them darker and flawed and somehow representing a danger to those who were weak. Due to these changes in their characterization, the heroes were often made to confront their dark side as well (Birrell, 1999). Eventually however, this wuxian hero would be able to redeem himself by favouring the original teachings of Buddhism and Confucianism, harnessing enough chi to make the ultimate sacrifice for the people. These wuxia tales became popular forms of literature in China and they became common themes among travelling groups of actors in China. When the Peking Opera was

Ethical decision making Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethical decision making - Essay Example In individualism approach that course of action is moral which would provide maximum individual benefit. According to this approach moral course of action would promote the best long term interest of the individual (Salisbury University, Ethics and Social Responsibility). In this case if Antonio takes the entire matter from Kevin and deal with it by himself, it would definitely provide maximum benefit for him in the long run. Apparently it might not seem to be the best option as Antonio might lose his job in the process. But if he could manage the situation it would definitely prove that he has strong principles and managerial skills. This would certainly be beneficial for him in the long run. Even if he loses this job, he can represent this incident as an example of strong ethics and principles in future. 2) If I would have been in the position of Antonio, I would have chosen the third option which is mentioned above. If decision is taken realistically then suppressing the entire matter would provide the best result in the short term. This decision would have been at the conventional level of moral development, because in conventional level decisions or actions are taken by comparing overall views on that action in the society. There are several important reasons behind this. First of all this is information age, as a result if any organization really want to know about the past experience of any candidate, it can easily do that despite of all the attempts of hiding information from candidate’s end.

Personal narrative about an experience that impacted you involving Essay

Personal narrative about an experience that impacted you involving your education - Essay Example Academics was something that my parents put a great deal of pressure upon; they had invested a great amount of money for the purpose of my education and thus wanted me to excel more than I wanted to. I was never good in studies, but I always spent time trying to make my parents happy by trying my best to get good grades. The high school I attended had a number of clubs and associations attached with its prestigious name and as students we were always encouraged to be a part of them. There was one social service unit that did not have too many students as a part of it and thus the student body always urged students to join it in order to help the special children within the city. However, the club was never able to attract a lot of attention towards itself because not everyone wanted to become a part of a social unit designed for the welfare of differently-abled children. My parents have always tried to help charitable organisations and young orphans to live a better life in whatever way they can; my mother has raised me teaching me little things like donating m old clothes and always taking food for orphans on festive occasions. These habits have been inculcated within me so deep that somehow someday, I was urged from within to join the social service unit in order to interact with differently abled children and understand how they lived lives. With time, we were taken on field trips where we visited children from various schools; some of them were blind, some deaf, and some were physically handicapped. However, I remember meeting a young boy by the name of Austin, who was autistic. Soon, we had a three day older sibling program where we were each assigned a young boy or girl to foster and nurture under our care. We were to behave as their big brothers or sisters and teach them all kinds of values and morals and spend three days with them. I was assigned as Austin’s brother. At first, I did not understand how to deal with the young boy because he always thought on a different wavelength – I was still not able to understand how to interact with Austin and by the end of the first day I felt frustrated and disappointed on having had him appointed with me. However, as the second day came and I wearily woke up to go meet Austin, I was surprised when he handed me a jigsaw that he had painted, cut up and made for me. He told me with his slurry speech that he had designed it on the story ‘Hansel and Gretel’ by the Grimm Brothers. I was extremely touched. That day, I met Austin’s teachers as well and they showed me his skills and creativity. I was amazed to see that the boy had an amazing sense of art – his paintings were something different! His teachers also told me that despite his challenges, Austin spent hours at an end reading and being read to, trying to understand his texts and making sure that he did well in his studies, because his parents believed in him and told him that God would take his illne ss away if he studied hard and made something of himself. His parents had raised him by telling him every day that his handicap was only a matter of perspective and that he was the only one who could change it by making himself smarter day by day. Those thoughts hit me like an impact as I thought to myself how lucky I was to be physically fit unlike Austin. However, despite his challenges, he was doing well in his studies and making excellent progress. Till today, I am grateful to Austin for

The Representation Negritude Essay Example for Free

The Representation Negritude Essay Negritude was a cultural movement initiated by the Afro- American poets living in the Caribbean Islands which aimed at the awakening of the race consciousness and the sense of identity among the black people. Paralleled by other similar movements, like the Harlem Renaissance in America, Negritude endeavored to redefine the black culture and to save it from the white domineering influence that promised to absorb it in its own structures. Also, the Negritude was an anti-racist stream which criticized the white people’s attitude towards the people of a different race. One of the most important poets of Negritude was Aime Cesaire, an Afro-American born in Martinique at the beginning of the twentieth century. The term â€Å"Negritude† was at first used and defined by him in his Notebook of a Return to a Native Land. Cesaire criticized for example, the fixed view on blackness that the white culture promoted and encouraged the Afro- Americans to value their culture as something alive. As he emphasizes, the black culture is not a stone, that is, something rigid and dead but rather something alive, that â€Å"plunges into the red flesh of the soil† and that â€Å"riddles with holes†: â€Å"my Negritude is not a stone / nor a deafness flung against the clamor of the day / my Negritude is not a white speck of dead water / on the dead eye of the earth /my Negritude is neither tower nor cathedral / it plunges into the red flesh of the soil /it plunges into the blazing flesh of the sky / my Negritude riddles with holes /the dense affliction of its worthy patience. â€Å"(Cesaire, 1990, 17) However, although Negritude was an intellectual movement that was centered on learning to know and understand otherness, it failed to integrate gender as well. At the beginning, the movement was led only by male activists and writers, and consequently, the black women were represented strictly from the masculine perspective. Therefore, some of the black women started another movement within Negritude that could be called black feminism. They felt that neither Negritude nor Feminism represented in the right manner, since the black cultural movement was led by men and the white feminists that had already formed intellectual groups like that of Gertrude Stein for example, were actually ignorant of the condition of the black woman. The Afro- American woman had a different identity than the white woman, and faced even more discrimination from society because of her race. She was twice oppressed by the others, as a woman and as a colored person at the same time, and had no discourse of her own. Many of the male poets of the Negritude spoke of the black women in their works, but when they did, they represented them merely as mothers or lovers, that is, in the same offices that the traditionalist society had always seen them. The role of the woman was strictly that of the mother or wife of man, therefore secondary, as in the white cultural discourse. At the same time, although the white feminists represented the invisibleness of women in general, the black women with their specific background were absent from their discourse. The black poets of the Negritude movement such as Langston Hughes, Aime Cesaire or Leopold Sedar Senghor represent women as either mothers or lovers, or even mere objects for desire. For example, Langston Hughes The Negro Mother represents the black woman as a mythological mother-figure, who â€Å"carries the seed† of the race. The woman is seen essentially as a carrier of man’ seed primarily, the origin of all things. The role that Hughes attributes to women is very important and is probably inspired by the traditional ancient matriarchic African view of the world, but the women are still not represented according to their identity. They are symbolic mother figures that suffers for her race and protects her people: â€Å"I am the dark girl who crossed the red sea / Carrying in my body the seed of the free. /I am the woman who worked in the field /Bringing the cotton and the corn to yield. /I am the one who labored as a slave, /Beaten and mistreated for the work that I gave /Children sold away from me, Im husband sold, too. /No safety, no love, no respect was I due[†¦]† (Hughes, 1989, 77) The woman described by Hughes feels happy and fulfilled not because of what she is, but, in the traditional way, because of her sufferance and sacrifice and because of the children she bore: â€Å"Now, through my children, young and free, /I realized the blessing deed to me. /I couldnt read then. I couldnt write. /I had nothing, back there in the night. /Sometimes, the valley was filled with tears, /But I kept trudging on through the lonely years. /Sometimes, the road was hot with the sun, /But I had to keep on till my work was done[†¦]†(Hughes, 1989, 77) Also, it is obvious that the woman has a rear role, although seemingly an important one: she is the one that encourages the race to fight for their freedom and to keep going. The black woman stands in the shadow having merely a protective motherly function: â€Å"Lift high my banner out of the dust. /Stand like free men supporting my trust. /Believe in the right, let none push you back. /Remember the whip and the slavers track. [†¦]/For I will be with you till no white brother Dares keep down the children of the Negro Mother. † (Hughes, 1989, 77) The same thing happens in another poem by Hughes, entitled Mother to Son – the woman is the mother who encourages her son to move forward, and not be set back by any kind of obstacles: â€Å"So, boy, dont you turn back. / Dont you set down on the steps. /Cause you finds its kinder hard. / Dont you fall now—/ For Ise still goin, honey,/ Ise still climbin,/ And life for me aint been no crystal stair. †(Hughes, 1989, 100) Leopold Senghor also represents the woman as a mother, but this time in a subjective manner as he addresses the poem to his own mother. The poem is almost written in a reproachful tone that criticizes the mother for not being caring enough, â€Å"you do not hear me when I hear you†. Senghor therefore also views motherhood as the essential role of any woman, a role in which it would be inexcusable for her to fail: â€Å"Be Blessed, Mother! / I will not send the East Wind over these sacred images as over/ the sands of the road. You do not hear me when I hear you, like an anxious mother/ who forgets to push Button A/ But I will not efface the footprints of my father or of my/ fathers fathers in this head open to all the winds and plunders of the North. / Mother, in this study lined with Latin and Greek, breathe the/ fumes of the evening victims of my heart. / May the protecting spirits save my blood from slackening like/ that of the assimilated and the civilized! †(Senghor, 1976, 134) One of the very well known poems by Senghor called Black Woman, represents the female in the role of the lover this time. The eroticism of the lines clearly hint at the traditional woman who is hunted and wooed by man, â€Å"moaning under the hands of the conqueror†: â€Å"Naked woman, dark woman/ Ripe fruit with firm flesh, dark raptures of black wine, / Mouth that gives music to my mouth/ Savanna of clear horizons, savanna quivering to the fervent caress/ Of the East Wind, sculptured tom-tom, stretched drumskin/ Moaning under the hands of the conqueror/ Your deep contralto voice is the spiritual song of the / Beloved. â€Å"(Senghor, 1976, 156) The black woman is seen as an exotic female lover, and the African setting suites the description: â€Å"Woman, rest on my brow your balsam hands, your hands/ gentler than fur. / The tall palm trees swinging in the night wind/ Hardly rustle. Not even cradle songs. / The rhythmic silence rocks us. /Listen to its song, listen to the beating of our dark blood,/ listen / To the beating of the dark pulse of Africa in the mist of lost/ villages. †(Senghor, 1976, 157) In the end, the poet jealously proclaims himself as the author of the song about the black woman. She is trapped in his discourse, as his creation, and she depends on his writing so as to be a part of the eternal world: â€Å"Naked woman, dark woman/ Oil that no breath ruffles, calm oil on the athlete’s flanks of the Princes of Mali/ Gazelle limbed in Paradise[†¦] I sing your beauty that passes/ the form that I fix in the eternal, /Before jealous fate turn you to ashes to feed the roots of life. † (Senghor, 159) Therefore, the black woman is essentially dominated by the male discourse. She is the oil on the athlete’s limbs, that is, a sexual element that is used for pleasure. In another poem by Hughes, the woman again appears as conquered and dominated by man. He promises her to take to make her completely his and to be as a God for her: â€Å"I will take you heart. / I will take your soul out of your body/ As though I were God. / I will not be satisfied With the touch of your hand/ Nor the sweet of your lips alone. / I will take your heart for mine. / I will take your soul. / I will be God when it comes to you. † (Hughes, 1989, 122) Aime Cesaire Prophecy is also very enlightening for the way in which women were viewed in Negritude. The poet makes a prophecy about a time when, among other things, women will â€Å"shine forth with language†, that is, will have their own discourses. The fact that this is a prophecy is an obvious acknowledgement of the fact that women are not as yet speakers, neither for themselves nor for other matters in society: â€Å"There,/ Where adventure keeps clear its eye/ Where women are shining forth with language/ Where death is beautiful in your hand as a bird/ milky time/ Where the subterranean passage through its own/ genuflecting gathers a wealth of eyelids fiercer than caterpillars/ Where for the wonder its all grist and fire to the nimble mill[†¦]†(Cesaire, 1990, 83) aques Lacan observed that the image of negritude itself was phallic, as it tried to reestablish the black man as a master, or a person that is no longer oppressed: â€Å"The image of negritude as phallus serves several functions for the subject. As a corrective device, it revalorizes the black man, symbolically castrated throughout the text by the forces of oppression. It is the perfect metaphor for the desired union between the subject and primal forces in nature. †(Kalikoff, 1995, 23) Because the black women could not find themselves in these representations that Negritude offered, they tried to form their own identity. Women such as Sharpley- Whiting, Suzanne Cesaire and the Nardal sisters formed intellectual groups that discussed black feminism. As Mori observes in her article, in Sharpley- Whiting’s works women are no longer marginalized as intellectuals: â€Å"The movement is generally examined through the works of male writers, such as Aime Cesaire, Leopold Sedar Senghor, and Leon Damas. Sharpley-Whiting, however, counters the male-centered interpretations and offers a new outlook on the gender politics within the Negritude movement. Sharpley-Whiting argues that the male leaders of the movement marginalized black female intellectuals such as Jane and Paulette Nardal and Suzanne Cesaire from Martinique. †(Mori, 2003, 658) In her book entitled Negritude Women, Sharpley- Whiting discusses the absence of the black women from the representation of the white feminist: â€Å"Barney set up a formal, essentially white feminist colony that transcended class, and Stein preferred to cultivate relations with a predominantly male French and American expatriate community in her casual Parisian salon. †(Sharpley- Whiting 2002, 34) The main point that the author tried to make in her book was that the women needed to gain an intellectual status, just like the man, and to have their own discourse: â€Å"Suzanne Roussy-Cesaires intellectual legacy has suffered the fate of many talented women married to prominent men—marginalization. †(Sharpley- Whiting 2002, 12) Lurnka Funani observed also that the essence of the Afro- American feminist movement was to address the problems specific to Negritude, but to include the female perspective as well: â€Å"The question that tore the conference apart was Should white women present papers about black womens experiences? This question was raised by an Afro-American. Before this question was addressed, the next question was asked, What do American women know about the struggle in Africa? â€Å"(Coetzee, 2001, 344) Although it was acknowledged that all women were oppressed, the black women felt it necessary to speak for themselves and to choose their own identity: â€Å"[†¦]A central tenet of modern feminist thought has been the assertion that all women are oppressed. This assertion implies that women share a common lot, that factors like class, race, religion, sexual preference, etc. do not create a diversity of experience that determines the extent to which sexism will be an oppressive force in the lives of individual women. Sexism as a system of domination is institutionalized but it has never determined in an absolute way the fate of all women in this society. Being oppressed means the absence of choices[†¦]†(Coetzee, 2001, 345) The black women appear thus as very important agents in the Negritude movement, since they included the missing part – a discourse of the black female that could be the counterpart of that of the black man. The women appeared somewhat later in the chronologic line of the movement, which was initially coordinated by men only. The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice may serve as a good commentary for the problem of feminism in Negritude. Thus, Orpheus was a the figure of the poet and the singer that enthralled everyone with his song, to the point that his listeners became almost spellbound when they heard him. When his lover Eurydice dies he goes after her in the Inferno and manages to convince the guards to set her free with his lyre. However, he loses her again because he looks back to see if she followed him out of the underworld. The myth can be compared with the way in which women are represented by men in the Negritude discourse, as dependant on the man’s song or writing, as bound down by the spell of the male speech. As Orpheus fails to save Eurydice so man failed to represent the black woman in his Negritude discourse. Reference List: Cesaire, A. 1990. Lyric and dramatic poetry 1946-82. Charlottesville: University of Vancouver Press. Cesaire, A. 2001. Notebook of a return to the native land. Middletown: Wesleyan University Press Coetzee, J. P. 2001. The African philosophy reader. New York: Routledge. Kalikoff, Hedy. 1995 â€Å"Gender, Genre and Geography in Aime Cesaires Cahier dun retour au pays natal, in Callaloo, Vol. 18, No. 2. pp. 492-505. Mori, A.. 2003. â€Å"Negritude Women. † African American Review. Vol. 37 Senghor, L, S. 1976. Prose and poetry. London: Heinemann Educational. Sharpley- Whiting. 2002. Negritude women. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Overview of Different Web Structures

Overview of Different Web Structures Dark Internet, Dark net (File Sharing), Turbo10, Meta-Search Engine Mansi Iyengar (SCU ID: W1170603) This project is targeted for the researchers to gain insight into the different web structures. The primary focus being deep net and dark net. It also throws light on file sharing in dark net along with meta search engines used by them. This report is based on dark net, metasearch engines and file sharing mechanism. It has been categorized in the form of chapters. Each chapter gives us the below information Chapter 1 tells us about the different structures in the web Chapter 2 provides an overview of dark net and TOR Chapter 3 describes the file sharing mechanism in dark net and commonly used approaches Chapter 4 focuses on operation of meta search engine Chapter 5 talks about Turbo10 search engine for deep net The linkage of each web page is referred by websites structure. Consider for a website having high number of web pages. In such scenario, crawlers should have the ease to find the subpages. Figure 1: Web structure [1] Figure 1 portrays entire web structure that comprises of: Surface web Deep web Dark web Surface web The traditional internet we use for everyday life is the world wide web. Represented by www. Deep web Deep web provides the hidden part of the internet. Search engine do not index these. Thus deep web stands apart from the traditional web. Some components of deep web include email, online banking, on demand videos Dark web Dark web is different from above traditional web types. Dark net stands for a network accessed via specific software or configuration using protocol that are not standardized. For everyday life, we use regular search engines such as google. The exists websites that cannot be looked up on google. For such websites need a particular application in order to access. Such websites are known as dark web. Dark net comprises of decentralized computers that collaborate in tandem to send information from origin to the target. Some of the popular dark net are Limewire, Gnucleus. Users are members that share information. Hosts are the computers that help share the information. Dark web is also known as dark net or dark internet. For ease of understanding we can consider software named as Tor. Tor provides the functionality wherein the user cannot be identified on traditional websites. TOR Tor also provides sites that have hidden services. Basically the hidden or anonymous feature is leveraged to masquerade where server is situated. Tor makes it almost impossible to trace the members accessing website. Tor is not fool proof and comprises of some flaws. These pertain to security configuration. This gap can be used by officials to determine the real server location. The popularity of TOR is extremely high and hence most commonly used. Hence the focus on this example. Features of dark net However, dark nets provide additional facilities different from above. These may include collaborative effort of handling non-licensed software and content Content found on dark net On two fronts dark net facilitates anonymity member visiting website and also for website itself. Governments too use dark net. For example, in order to gain data bypassing and censorship, Tor provides that option Dark net too can be used by politicians. This is serves as a platform to mediate and take decision. Secrets are revealed by whistle blowers on certain sites so that they can avoid being traced. Webpages such as Strongbox help serve such purpose. This leads to establishment of websites that traditionally are not used. They can be used for anti-social purpose. For example, stolen credit card information, illegal currency, drugs and weapons are found here. Gambling activities too are provided. Illegal drugs and goods, part of commercial dark market are made popular by silk road and diabolic market. These are attacked by legal teams. Alternate hacking services are sold. These are at group level or individualistic level. This has led to cyber-crimes and counter cyber investigation. Government has started looking into these using tools procured from Procedia Computer Science journal. Denial of service attacks too have been made through Dark Web. [4] File Sharing File sharing involves the method of dividing or enabling digital media access such as audio files, video files, programs or eBooks. There are multiple ways to attain file sharing. Generally used approaches of storage, transmission include web url hyperlinked docs., p2p networks and centralized servers. [3] Figure 2 file sharing The above figure shows us how figure shows how file sharing can be achieved between access controlled digital systems like private, public and invited. P2P file sharing process Computers or nodes are connected with each other as part of P2P network. The members have the ability to share or download information immediately via the web. Figure 3 Peer to Peer network Above figure shows peer to peer network. Based on the model of self-server and client model, P2P is set up in general. for example, when the member connects to the P2P client and after initiating file download, he gets connected with other members downloading the information. In other words, others peers serve as file server. The initial member also acts as file server when another peer starts to download the file. Eventually this leads to augmenting of download speed. Some commonly used torrents for P2P are bittorrent and ÃŽÂ ¼Torrent. Other popular P2P networks being BearShare and LimeWire. [2] OnionShare Consider App called OnionShare that is available for multiple Operating Systems. This is a P2P program. Entire information from TOR anonymity network is sent through this file sharing program. consider regular file sharing system needs faith. Law regulators can tap into these. Tor helps bypass third party, there is direct sharing of file from one person to another via anonymous network Figure 4 OnionShare The above figure describes OnionShare process. After Tor instance is running, OnionShare will run. The beginning part is by starting a local web server that is viewable as tor hidden service, generating web link that cannot be guessed out. This web link is used to download the file. The web link is then provided to the recipient person via secure method the webserver is cancelled The moment the receipt downloads the file, Now the file becomes inaccessible to anyone. These is scope to expand this further by having a continuous running server in order to share with multiple recipients [5] BitTorrent File Sharing Process Background BitTorrent file sharing protocol for dark net. BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer file sharing protocol and the most popular one according to a report  by (2008). In the same report one can read that BitTorrent takes  up a substantial amount of all the internet traffic in the world, between 27 and 55 percent depending on geographical location. This makes BitTorrent not only the most used protocol for file sharing, but of all application layer protocols. As per Schulse and Mochalski , Bit Torrent is popular file sharing protocol. This is also used by Darknet. BitTorrent breaks data into parallel smaller chunks instead of single chunk, enhancing reliability and reducing vulnerability Approaches for bit torrent file sharing Provided below are two approaches for bit torrent file sharing: Torrent file approach TFigure 5 Torrent file sharing approach A torrent file is setup that has tracker, file contents. This file is smaller than original file. Seed is the uploader and leech is the downloader. Above figure describes the torrent file sharing approach. User first downloads the torrent. From torrent the set of peers is found. From the network, file pieces are exchanged. Files are treated instead of atomic blocks but as smaller chunks. Advantage is that the bandwidth is spread among peer as against just the seeds. The tracker for a torrent provides peers a peer list. In this manner, bit torrent communication takes place, which is the same process involved for seeders and leaches DTH approach There is a second approach that bypasses the tracker. This provides greater anonymity. This approach is performed without generating torrent file. For this purpose, bit torrent protocol ends up implementing DHT i.e. distributed hash table. Figure 6 DTH file sharing approach The above figure describes DTH file sharing approach. DHT provides a set of key, value saved in it. The working is similar to how has table works. Nodes have ability to detect noes based on the key. There is unique identification for each node. For this the communication utilized is User Datagram Protocol (UDP). The benefit is that there no centralized trackers. However, the track list is provided by peers that send peer list. Traditional torrent file has web link to a tracker. This step is by passed in second approach, wherein DHT web link is used. DHT network is entered into by the peer using the URL. From the entry node, it can search across other networks for files and peer connection for file sharing. [6] The results of other databases are combined in meta search engine. It takes up the concatenation of various results from various search engines and links then to various resources. [1] Virtual databases are generated from the mirrors of the physical database results of other search engines. These virtual databases are generated from the meta search engines. The searches are concentrated over certain criteria. [2] Background Searching the web with multiple search engines was the issue tackled by researchers. One of the outputs was meta search engine. Search Savvy was the first engine discovered and used by Daniel Dreilinger from Colorado State University. This engine looks over the results from 20 different directories and search engines at once. Meta search engine crawler discovered by Eric Selberg at Washington University. It used its own search engine syntax and searched over 6 search engines. Dogpile formed at University of Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania State University measured ranking and overlap of various search engines. This proved to have one of the best results. [3] Advantages More information and search coverage can be achieved by using meta search engines. This helps the user to get faster and accurate results.   The query of the user results is generated in unique ways by using the indexes which are aggregated by search engines. The input effort for a meta search engine and normal search engine are the same but the results retrieved are more. They also reduce the effort of users to type on various search engines to find file and resources. Disadvantages Translation of the query format or understanding the query forms can be an issue in the meta search engine. All the results sets of a query are not given to a user as the links generated from a meta search engine are limited. The links generated are limited. Promoted websites are given higher priority over other websites. It is probable that the user will get multiple results from the search engine. It may not be stream lined. This is especially an issue due to more coverage over the queried topic. The users find it difficult to use meta search. They might not be able to get any precise information. Operation The above figure describes the meta search operation. The search engine receives a query from the user. The key parts are as below: Broker:   The query needs a pre-processing as each search engine has a specific format of the data being fed in. As they depend on different operators and they do not share the same syntax. The output is a series of ordered set documents. Rank: the documents are raked post identifying the result pages and also in the order of the most relevant links. [4] The input query is passed to the search engines database. It creates a virtual database. This helps to combine data from various sources. Duplicates can be generated as various search-engines have different methods of indexing the data. This output data is then processed by the meta-search engine. The revised list is produced for the user. They would respond in the following ways. 1)   Access to the meta-search engine reference is provided which also includes the private access to the database system The changes made on the database system would be captured. 2) In a non-cooperative way, the access to the interface may or may not be provided. 3) Meta search engine is denied access to the search engine. Architecture of ranking Above figure describes the architecture of the meta search engine. It consists of the users query being sent to the meta search engine. It contacts the other search engines its connected to. They process the results and generate resources. These results are then preprocessed and then given back to the meta search engine as a response. This collective response is given to the user. Fusion Fusion is a process for data filtering. It helps to build up efficient results. Collection Fusion Unrelated data is indexed via search engines it is dealt by the Collection Fusion process which is also a distributed retrieval process. Ranking on the data is based on how probable is the data to give the required information to the user. It picks up the best resources and ranks it. The resources which are selected are combined in a list and given to the user. Data Fusion Figure 9: Data Fusion Architecture Above figure give the architectural reference of the Data Fusion. L0: The user information which the sensors and the sources process is given to the fusion algorithm L1: The machine process of converting L0 output and it feeds it to the L1 process L2 L3: The human process of manually marking the retrieved data as relevant or not L4: Resource management layer adds to the sources and the L2/L3 layer providing th necessary feedback L6: The mission management helps to add context to the user query. This is added to the resource management layer L5: Once all the processing through the layers is complete the data is given back to the user. This is fusion mechanism which relies on the common data sets which are retrieved by search engines. The initial ranks are combined into a list. The analysis of the actual ranks of the documents retrieved is calculated. The links of the documents with the highest relevancy score is selected. ComboSum is one of the techniques used to normalize the scores. The scores produced are incomparable as different search engines run on different algorithms. Examples of Meta-Search Engines DeepPeep Figure 10 DeepPeep Snippet Above figure is a snippet for DeepPeet. Public web pages are indexes and expanded by search engine. It does so by search through various public databases. Traditional search engines cannot index by DeepPeep. It also looks to find urls into deep web. IncyWincy Figure 11 Incywincy snippet Above image is Incywincy snippet. It uses many search engines, combines and filters the results. It crawlers more than 200 million pages. It uses its unique algorithm for relevance tests. CompletePlanet Figure 12 Complete Planet Above figure is snippet of Complete Planet. It indexes and crawlers many search engines and special databases which are not public. It is one of the  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   main search engines of the deep web. Other Deep Web search engines include Intute, Infomine, Scirus, Turbo 10. The above figure is the Turbo 10 is a meta search engine snippet. It helps to engineer a universal reference for Deep Net. It refers to topic specific search engines. Google and Yahoo like crawler-based search engines do not use these files. Turbo 10 also lets you add more engines to the collection on which your search query is executed. [7] Pros The positive thing about turbo10 is that it has the ability to connect and maintain connection to online databases in bulk. This provides connecting to thousand engines in a fully automated capability which is scalable to further connect to another thousand. Turbo10 also finds content on deep net. Deep net encompasses multiple databases covering wide range of topics such as business, colleges, government teams. These are not accessible to traditional web engines and google. Traditional search engines are helpful for indexing static pages. Thus a rich experience is provided as we can tap into multiple databases across such a large range of domains, empowering the user. Turbo provides the option of having ten search engines to search from. Unlike other search engine like AskJeeves, that faces drawback of segregating information into different boxes, turbo streamlines the process by proving the result in weighted listing. This makes Turbo10 the ultimate search engine of search engine. Consider the fact that say four search engines are selected, turbo10 does the work of selecting additional six search engines as it deems as best fit. The result set would be based on either relevance or speed. The decision is independent of the search independent of search engine selected. The above reduction of search result occurs by usage of clusters in box on left-hand side. The benefit of having clusters a few time, desired result set is obtained quicker as against advanced searches or logical expression Turbo10 provides a new search paradigm. For a given page, there are ten result lists on a page. These have arrows. Thought this may also be unpopular, this generates hundred results for a given search. The average case being thirty to forty result set being provided as three or four pages are returned. . Google gives lots of options. Unlike Google, Turbo10 simply limits the search results and provides limited result set The main idea is that with Turbo 10, ability to choose search enigne is provided. Whereas say for a particular item through google, we need to keep searching and may find the same at pat a latter page say page forty How is the ability provided to select ten search engines? The task is completed via the web. A collection name is assigned to the ten search engines, mapped to your email. Capability Turbo10 has a vision to emerge as a leader for search engine Plan to use amazon based recommendation algorithms for personalized searching. This would include personalized profile search, providing bookmarking feature an ecosystem to be setup wherein the users profile would interact with other users. Additional browsing options would be generated for users. Revenue model would tap into sponsored web links. These would be flagged licensing of the product to corporates. Cons Tturbo10 faces the drawback of being highly cluttered. Google has lots of white spaces. The search results are not cramped up. Turbo10 is not visually appealing. It has purple colour screen that may not be appealing to all Many times the returned result set is cluttered. Sometimes the result set gets jumbled affecting result set. Additionally, there is no consideration for punctuation marks or logical expressions. Does not have ability to cache information. Due to high demand and expectation, knocked offline. Intense competition with google. The project is based on dark net ecosystem comprising of file sharing mechanisms and meta search engine. Dark net has continuously using evolving technology such as TOR, OnionShare. These help enable provide benefits of being anonymous protecting their identity. Similarly, the website to gets to preserve their anonymity. Dark net serves as a platform of communication to mediate, take decision and share information. These are used by different agencies including government and non-traditional activities such as whistleblowing. Products that are not listed in traditional websites too are available on such platforms. File Sharing approaches save bandwidth by helping sharing information efficiently. Easier to back up information. Fault tolerance is enhanced through decentralized approach part of peer to peer networking. Comparatively there is ease of maintenance over traditional files sharing system. Meta search engines help to get streamlined results from various search engines which helps to improve relevancy of searches. The benefits of dark net also include cross border payments, ensure complete privacy of sender and receiver. There is application in cryptocurrency, digital trading, eliminating middlemen. Set up of hassle free payments independent of weekend or holidays. Benefit of decentralization is control over your content that you want to share. Other advantages include establish net neutrality which means that internet can be used for all and not monopolized. Hence there is a large scope for expansion in dark net space and technology is playing a pivotal role in enhancing its adoption. [1] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/internet-deep-web-dark-net-firas-saras [2] https://sysinfotools.com/blog/peer-to-peer-file-sharing/ [3] http://www.spiroprojects.com/blog/cat-view-more.php?blogname=What-is-file-sharing-system?id=262 [4] https://www.howtogeek.com/275875/what-is-the-dark-web/ [5] https://darkwebnews.com/anonymity/some-ways-to-share-files-anonymously/ [6] Johan Andersson Gabriel Ledung, Darknet file sharing application of a private peer-to-peer distributed file system concept [7] http://techdiction.blogspot.com/2007/01/turbo-10-search-deep-net.html URL  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Uniform Resource Locator TORThe Onion Router UDPUser Datagram ProtocolDTHdistributed hash table WWWWorldwide web

Critique of Communism in Animal Farm by George Orwell Essay -- Animal

Karl Marx’s perfect society described in his Communist Manifesto is in direct conflict with the implementation of Soviet Communism, which was scathingly criticized by George Orwell’s book Animal Farm. Karl Marx believed that in order to form a just and equal society, the working class, called the proletariat, would have to overthrow those who owned the means of production, who were known as the bourgeoisie. This was to be known as the Proletariat Revolution where the oppressed laborers in capitalist societies, such as England, would unite under a common cause to overthrow the oppressive bourgeoisie, and establish a communist society. This would be a society where all were equal, each performing to his ability, and each receiving according to his needs. A dictatorship would be necessary at first to get the ball rolling, but would eventually voluntarily give up power, as it would no longer be needed. However, this was never destined to be. The rise of the Soviet Union was a testament to this, brilliantly depicted and condemned by George Orwell. Marx ended the Communist Manifesto with the fighting words â€Å"WORKING MEN OF ALL COUNTRIES, UNITE!† (Marxism, 44). This was to be the inspiration for the proletariat to band together and realize that they were being oppressed by the bourgeoisie. After they realize this, they would rebel, in which a revolution would take place where the proletariat would be victorious over the bourgeoisie. Old Major, the eldest pig in Animal Farm was the animal recreation of Karl Marx. He professed, â€Å"Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend† (Orwell, 31). In this case, man is the bourgeoisie and the animals are the proletariat. Both Karl Marx and Old Maj... ...re breaking every rule that they themselves had put forth in accordance with Old Major’s revolutionary vision. Animal Farm was a mirror image of communism gone awry in the Soviet Union. It also shows Marx’s naivety of the fact that there will always be the clever that take advantage of the ignorant. By keeping the population ignorant, the clever gain even more power, which is was happened in the Soviet Union and Animal Farm. The ones that took part in the revolutions would never realize that they were holding the short end of the stick, just as they were in their previous state of affairs. They were cold, miserable, and starving. In their brainwashed state they still believed that the dismal state they were in was better than their situation before the revolution. George Orwell finished his book on a somber note, the state in which Joseph Stalin left the Soviet Union.

Out of Maos Shadow Essay -- Chinese Communist Party, Politics

For several decades, since the death of Mao Zedong, dissidence among the public has increased against the single-party system of Mao’s Chinese Communist Party, or CCP. The CCP, which Mao co-founded, has ruled China since 1949 with little or no opposition party. The ruling party has long crushed dissent since its founding. Three authors have looked into the dissidence. The first is Merle Goldman in her analytical essay of the intellectual class in China entitled â€Å"China’s Beleaguered Intellectuals† (2009). In this essay, Goldman focuses on the intellectuals’ struggle for political and intellectual freedom from the CCP. Goldman’s view for the future of China is one containing more political freedoms. On the other hand, Andrew G. Walder’s critical essay â€Å"Unruly Stability: Why China’s Regime Has Staying Power,† (2009) refutes Goldman’s claim that China’s intellectuals have the ability to change domestic poli cy. He argues that, while political dissent has become more commonplace, the CCP and authoritarian control is here to stay. The third author, Philip P. Pan and his novel Out of Mao’s Shadow: The Struggle for the Soul of a New China (2008) has a more neutral tone and shows both the side of the intellectuals and the CCP. This paper will use Pan’s book in order to determine which view, either Goldman’s or Walder’s, is correct. The first section of Pan’s book called â€Å"Remembering,† discusses two of the major role-players, Zhao Ziyang and Lin Zhao, during the different campaigns and revolutions throughout China’s history, and the way the public recalls their deaths. Both Zhao Ziyang and Lin Zhao’s lives and deaths received differing treatment by the government censors and the public. Zhao Ziyang was an important senior member in the C... ...ially thousands of people that would otherwise die unnecessarily. Both Goldman and Walder make excellent points both backed by Pan’s book. The argument that Walder makes is very convincing: that government and all of its censorship is here to stay. The reaction to the reformers are usual overblown and extreme. They are also highly immoral and go against human rights. However, Goldman’s argument is much stronger. Since the rise of a semi-capitalistic society under the market reforms of the 1980’s and the Tiananmen Square protests the voices of political dissent and change have been on the rise, and from the examples provided, especially after the year 2000. The party has effectively been losing power thanks in large part to the internet and the rise of the lawyers like Pu. Therefore, the political status quo in China is changing, no matter what the party says.

Essays --

History is important to modern American spirituality because we are the past. We are the totality of all events that have happened to us. This beginning and ending product guides our actions in the present. The understanding of American spirituality today can be implied through it’s the repetition of itself. Histories matter the most because we learn and understand our human nature to see how others dealt with conflicts and problems so we can further understand how to not only prevent but also deal with it faster in the future. In Bron Taylor’s â€Å"Dark Green Religion† and Courtney Bender’s â€Å"Religion and Spirituality: History, Discourse, Measurement†, explains of the best ways to live life through knowing one’s history. The individual and the societies that are built through the struggles of our past events are the only way we can understand who we are and how we got to be the way we are is by studying the past. History is a study of the past that can help oneself understand what made them who we are. In cases like if we had lost the American Revolution, or if the Spanish had founded ... Essays -- History is important to modern American spirituality because we are the past. We are the totality of all events that have happened to us. This beginning and ending product guides our actions in the present. The understanding of American spirituality today can be implied through it’s the repetition of itself. Histories matter the most because we learn and understand our human nature to see how others dealt with conflicts and problems so we can further understand how to not only prevent but also deal with it faster in the future. In Bron Taylor’s â€Å"Dark Green Religion† and Courtney Bender’s â€Å"Religion and Spirituality: History, Discourse, Measurement†, explains of the best ways to live life through knowing one’s history. The individual and the societies that are built through the struggles of our past events are the only way we can understand who we are and how we got to be the way we are is by studying the past. History is a study of the past that can help oneself understand what made them who we are. In cases like if we had lost the American Revolution, or if the Spanish had founded ...

Monopoly questions and answers Essay

In a monopoly, and at the expense of supply in the market one entity to control and demand, and the degree of the price offered and the control exercised by the institution or individual is greater. Predatory pricing. This feature of the advantages of a monopoly consumers. These are short term market gains when prices dropped to meet the demand of rare product. Suppliers and consumers directly benefit from an attempt to monopolize the company to increase the sale of business marketing. Price flexibility With regard to the demand for the product or service offered by the company monopoly or individual, and is dictated by the price elasticity of the ratio of the absolute value of the increase in prices and demand in the market. Lack of creativity At the expense of absolute control of the market, and monopolies display a tendency to lose efficiency over a period of time. With one product lifetime, and innovative design and marketing techniques rear seat. Lack of competition. When the market was designed to serve the monopoly and the lack of commercial competition or the lack of goods and viable products shrinking the scope of â€Å"perfect competition. † 2-How monopoly arises Monopoly arises in a variety of circumstances: there are types of goods and a service does not accept by its nature, or not in the public interest to multiple producers, it’s called natural monopolies, for example: to provide the city with water, electricity, or the trains running between two countries. Often assume the state or municipal authorities to manage these services, or to grant a concession to a private company, subject to strict control. Monopoly may arise in an industry, the growth of a project, and it seized on other projects. Or as a result of grab or merge of small projects in the large-scale project, Monopoly May arise due to agreement between the projects owners in a particular industry to determine the price, or divide markets among themselves, known as (cartel), and in this case there are a number of producers, such agreement among them makes them a monopoly power. Most of the countries have been working on the subject of monopolies control. 3-How we can regulate the monopoly Pricing at marginal cost Economists have for many decades argued the benefits of setting public utility tariffs on the basis of marginal cost. This view is expressed in many classic economic texts on regulation. Price discrimination One common objection to marginal-cost pricing is that, in the presence of economies of scale, a simple linear price equal to marginal cost would not allow the regulated firm to recover sufficient revenue to cover its total costs. Ramsey pricing In those cases where the regulator is unable to set the marginal price for each service equal to its marginal cost, economic theory still places central emphasis on reducing the deadweight loss. Incremental cost The deadweight-loss hypothesis has a hard time explaining why regulators fail to pursue policies which are efficient under the conventional economic theory, such as Ramsey pricing. Price / service stability. Another puzzle for the conventional economic approach to regulation is the heavy emphasis on price stability. There is a sizeable amount of evidence that price and service stability is one of the primary concerns of regulators. Alternative regulation †¢ To encourage the productive efficiency of the monopolist. †¢ To eliminate the incentive to waste resources seeking to obtain a position of monopoly. †¢ To protect the sunk investment of the monopolist 4-Give some examples of monopoly type of monopolyThe main characteristicexamples. NaturalAccess to rare and not easily reproducible elements of productionMonopolies operating in the sphere of production is mineral deposits of strategic importance for the national economy technologicalFeature production: in this technology is not enough consumer demand to support many competitive firmsEnterprise for the production of specific goods, such as infrastructure for the operation of natural monopolies. GeographicCompetition due to the non-rationality of the territorial limited due to the effect of geographic barriersPublic transport companies infrastructureInfrastructure network – a network that supply products between distant from each other (both in space and in time), economic agentsBackbone enterprises in energy, rail transport , heat, gas and water supply patentUsing a unique patented technologyNatural monopolies are producing high-tech products, such as medicine StateMarkets related to the exclusive jurisdiction of the stateDefense, aeronautics administrative commandOperating in a command systemNatural monopolies in the administrative-command system.

The sculpture in the Temple of Zeus

Olympia is known as the first home of athletics, where many remains of Ancient Olympics are located. In addition, the masterpiece of the ancient architecture?the Temple of Zeus is also a special scenery here. The Temple of Zeus was designed by Albino. It was constructed on 470 B. C. The Temple of Zeus was built with carved mottoes and tryingly friezes. They're many sculptures in the Temple of Zeus. These sculptures were curved between 480 B. C and 450 B. C, when the severe style was popular. The pediments and mottoes on the top of the temple clearly showed the typical supreme and unparalleled creation of severe style at that age.On the west pediment of the temple, the sculptures showed a picture of chaos. It presented a battle between the Centaurs and Lappet people. The battle happened on the wedding of a Lappet hero called: Proprietors. The Centaurs was drunk and tried to abduct the bride called: Diameter, which infuriated the Lappet people. They started grappling with the Centaurs. The battle fluctuated from the center to the ends of the crowed and back again. Apollo stood in the center of the chaos. He represents the rule. We can see Apollo stand still in the middle of the west pediment, which strongly contrasts with his surroundings.This refer to that Apollo bring rule to the chaotic people. From the pediment, we can see the struggle between savagery and civilization. The Centaurs itself can show the struggle. Its upper body is the same as human being, which meaner they can think and talk. However, its lower body is the same as the horse. The Centaurs is a paradox of savagery and civilization. The west pediment of the temple also showed a struggle between savagery and civilization. Apollo strongly contrasts with his surroundings. Apollo represents the civilization, while the rest sculptures of the pediment stand for the savagery.The west pediment of the Temple of Zeus shows a picture of battle, on the contrary, the east pediment show a race between Plops an d Minoans. Plops is the grandson of Zeus. He wanted to marry Monomania's daughter. However, Minoans was given a prophecy that he would be killed by his son-in-law. In order to prevent it, he asked everyone who wanted to marry her daughter to race against him. In fact, Plops and Hippodrome have already fallen in love. With the help of Poseidon and Monomania's daughter, Plops won the race. He saved Monomania's daughter from the burning palace. Plops unified Elis and captured Olympia.They got married. Their wedding was hosted in front of the Temple of Zeus. There are many races such as wrestling and chariot. Their wedding is also regarded as the first Ancient Olympic game. Plops becomes the founder of Olympic in the classical mythology. When the Olympics began, people from different parts of Greek came to attend the event. This event shows the Pan-Hercules unity. When we talk about the Pan-Hellenic of unity, there's an important character?Hercules. Hercules is the hero of Greek. His or iginal name is Locales. Hercules is the son of Zeus and People's granddaughter?Elegance.Out of envy, Hear took advantage of Restructures, the grandson of Plops, to force Hercules to finish Twelve Labors. Eventually, Hercules finished the Twelve Labors, which also made him famous among the Greeks. After Hercules died, Zeus named him Hercules. Hercules achievements are also parts of the Pan-Hercules unity. In addition to the sculptures on the pediment of the Temple of Zeus, there is another sculpture inside. It's the Statue of Zeus. The Statue of Zeus was built with gold and ivory by Paddies. The Statue is 12 meters high. Zeus sits on the throne adorned with Sphinx, Nikkei and any other mythological characters.Zeus wears an olive crown which is made of gold. He holds a truncheon on his left hand which stands for the power and a figurine of Nikkei on his right hand. There's an eagle standing on the top of the truncheon, which is also the symbol of Athena. The surrounding of Statue of Z eus was carefully designed by Aphid's, including the light reflected from the gate of the temple can make the face of the Status more beautiful. The material used to build the Status of Zeus can tell us the Glory of Zeus. Moreover, the accessories made of gold and ivory, represent the power of Zeus.The thorn adorned with many other mythological characters can show the leading position of Zeus among the Gods and Goddesses. It took eight years to finish the Statue of Zeus. If we see the map of the sanctuary of Olympia, we can find that The Temple of Zeus was located in the center of the map, which shows the important position of Zeus. The sculptures of the Temple of Zeus show the struggle between savagery and civilization. Moreover, it shows the Pan-Hellenic unity and hope of Greeks. All of these celebrate Zeus importance in classical mythology and praise the glory of Zeus.

Interest Groups Essay

They vary considerably in size and ideological perspectives. The strategies and tools employed by interest groups are not static, and they differ depending on the geographical scope of their operations and the resources they have. While many interest groups tend to address a wide range of issues, others deal with distinct issues. The life span of interest groups is also not static. In this case, some groups have long term objectives; hence, they remain active for long duration. For instance, the interest groups that aim at challenging policy issues and politics operate on a long term basis. On the other hand, some groups are usually initiated with an aim of achieving a particular end after which they are dissolved. For example, during elections, many groups usually emerge with an aim of ensuring that the process is handled according to the stipulated guidelines of the electoral process. A representative government is always formulated in manner that facilitates participation of contending interests, and at the same time it tries to mitigate the variance that inexorably accompanies faction competition. In the traditional creation of pluralism, contending interests work together by mobilizing resources and opinions in order to enhance effective formulation and implementation of essential public policies. â€Å"Institutions are formed to accommodate the inevitability of diverse and competing interest from becoming powerful enough to undermine the rights of others† (Wilson, 2009). This process is governed by constitutional provisions, which stipulate the nature of interest groups’ activities. Therefore, many interest groups that work together tend to stabilize political environment, and this enables them to forward their interests to the government. â€Å"This implies that the pluralist vision of politics is an ideal vision of interest group politics and political institutions† (Barber, 1990). The activities conducted by various interest groups can be used to differentiate them. For instance, some of them endeavor to address several public issues, while others have a narrow scope of private interests. There are two distinct types of interest groups, and they can be described as follows. First, we have public interest groups, and they aim at working on issues that benefit the general public. For instance, they support policies that provide equal opportunities that can be enjoyed by everyone in the society. However, the success of public interest groups may not be very substantial at an individual level since they aim at reaching out to many people. â€Å"Some of the major public interest groups in his category are National Taxpayer’s Union and Concerned Women for America† (Orman, 1988). The second category is referred to as private interest groups. These are groups which endeavor to challenge public policies in order to specifically benefit their members or individuals that support their interests. Nonetheless, the objectives and activities of private interests groups should not interfere with the welfare of other individuals. Political self interest is perceived to b e healthy for a political system. In the USA, there is a popular belief that contending interests make the society more successful. This is because bad policies are always eliminated when various groups compete against each other â€Å"Other examples of interest groups include business organizations labor unions, Professional associations, and Non Governmental Organizations† (Grossman, 2002). The Relationship between Interest Groups and Political Parties There is no great disparity between political parties and various interest groups, because they are both composed of individuals having common objectives and opinions. Apart from this, â€Å"they are similar in the sense that they both seek to challenge government institutions, elections, and they all make public policy choices† (Brunell, 2005). Nonetheless, there are significant variations between these two bodies. Generally, interest groups never directly support their own members to contest for public office, especially in a case where economic parameter is concerned. In most cases, interest groups never adopt overt party labels, which electors use to identify and express their political affiliations (Dulilio & Wilson, 2011). However, some electors may link particular interest groups with specific parties in a general manner. For example, the Tea Party is often linked with the Republicans and the white conservatives. In the recent past, public interest groups that are ideologically driven have increased considerably (King, 2011). For instance, a there are some groups which have pushed the tax agenda in political circles. Another distinguishing factor is that interest groups have a limited focus, and they only handle specific issues of concern in the public policy. For example, â€Å"interest groups form around specific concerns like environment, free speech, tax reform, and labor standards† (Petracca, 1992). In contrast to this, political parties tend to focus on several issues. Moreover, political parties try to merge some of these facades under one â€Å"big umbrella†. In some circumstances, interest groups seriously struggle against political parties. For instance, some internal rivalries have been witnessed in key political parties that operate in Texas. When elections were conducted in 2000, several environmentalists who were members of the Texas Democratic Party massively supported Ralph Nader, the Green Party candidate, since they felt that Al Gore was less committed toward environmental issues. They labeled him â€Å"not green enough†. On the other hand, some Republicans have tried to make the party conservative by working against some of their Republican colleagues. This indicates that the interest groups tend to favor parties and politicians that support their interests, and they ignore those who are less committed in helping them. Interest groups always aim at maximizing policies, while political parties are usually trying to obtain many Congress seats. These competing interests influence the manner political parties relate with the interest groups. According Thomas Brunell, â€Å"interest groups have a preference as which party controls a majority of seats in Congress, which leads them to direct â€Å"sincere† and electorally useful money to this party† (Hay, 2001) When interest groups offer funds to the â€Å"other† party, they always fund it in a manner that is less effective. Interest groups usually execute this goal by offering strategic funds to this party as follows: provide little financial support particularly to the popular candidates who do not necessarily have to be funded in order to succeed in the elections. They can also choose to fund incumbent candidates who already have political clout. Therefore, even if these groups offer funds to these parties, they always do it in a biased manner, and they favor only the parties that are likely to push forward their interests. These funds enable their preferred candidates to run their campaigns smoothly without experiencing financial hitches. Apart from offering finances, interest groups also provide key information that enables their favorite candidates to be more competitive than other contenders. They also sensitize their preferred candidates on issues that always influence election outcomes. All these services are organized by interest groups with an aim of fulfilling their common objective of influencing election results and policies. The fact that these institutions have a relationship is therefore undeniable. These groups often forge close ties and pursue similar objectives in order to enhance their political clout. Nonetheless, they remain independent, and their nature of operation and design also remain different. â€Å"The space for action, speech and flexibility that is maintained in politics makes them much more political than interest groups† (Grossman, 2002). How Interest Groups Try to Influence the President and the Congress? Although interest groups do not directly have elected members in political offices, they do aim at fixing their members into appointed positions. They normally do this to enable them perform their state functions through mechanisms that support the desired policies of the interests groups that facilitated their appointments. The fact that â€Å"groups† operate as political players has always been recognized and examined, even if not properly understood. The manipulation of legislative processes by groups is a question that has not yet been answered, and it is still being begged. Between the period of the 1970 and 1980s, some â€Å"explosions† were witnessed in Washington, and researchers have wanted to clearly understand them. As many groups emerged in Washington, many people joined them, and the groups increasingly funded parties. The citizens at the same time criticized the roles of interest groups and joined them in large numbers probably to suppress the powerful corporate groups. The role of groups in policy issues seemed to have taken a new dimension, and everyone was keen to see how it happened. Therefore, it can be argued that group manipulation of the Congress can be identified by simply examining the development of legislation that a group is favoring. For instance, a group’s ineffectiveness in legislative process can be measured through its failure to intercept unpopular bills. In general, â€Å"interest group activities predict, at least in part, how far bills will progress through the legislative process† (Brunell, 2005). The term influence as applied in this context is quite narrow from the perspective of interest groups, and it is broad from a congressional perspective. Interest groups perceive influence as a process that should produce good policies or prevent undesirable policies from being adopted. However, a group does not have to obtain policies from the Congress that directly indicate their actual desires; rather a group’s influence is seen when the Congress makes or discards a policy, which is in line with the interests of a group. From a congressional perspective, influence emerging from interest groups can come in several ways. Interest groups are often said to have manipulated the Congress when its members are compelled or encouraged to change the course or provisions of a given bill in order to meet the demands of the interest groups. This influence might come in the form of a change of wording, a passage from a subcommittee, and not passing from a standing committee† (Orman, 1988). In this process, interest groups may lead to the change of legislation, and the president may not have the capacity to reverse the whole process of legislation, even if he does not like the content of the bill. On the other hand, the president can also manipulate the Congress by working closely with the interest groups. As discussed above, the law making process can be indirectly manipulated through elections. For instance, an incumbent President may pass some bills in favor of some groups so that he may get some support from them during the next elections. Besides this, interest groups may support pliable candidates whom they can easily manipulate during the law making processes. This symbiotic relationship between the interest groups and the politicians to some extent affect the capacity of both the president and the Congress to formulate effective laws. Politics in America has become complicated to many politicians. This is because interest groups have managed to seriously entrench themselves in politics and much of their attention has been geared towards influencing the White House. â€Å"Since the American President has come to play an increasingly important role in the public policy process, interest groups and their lobbyists now descend on the presidency with the same vigor as they descend on the congress† (Orman, 1988). In this context, the president is faced with the challenge of fulfilling the needs of the ordinary citizens and the interest groups. Interest groups have faced much criticism especially when it comes to policy issues. Its critics contend that most of the policy issues dealt with by interests groups have no connection to the desires of the public. The leaders of these groups have also been blamed for being dishonest because they always fail to fulfill the demands of their members. The weaknesses of the interests groups have been seen as one of the factors interfering with democracy in the USA. It has also been noted with a lot of concern that some political candidates have been seriously intimidated by some interest groups, and this further affects the reputation of the interest groups. Conclusion  The above discussion indicates that the American government is guided various institutions, which work together with an aim of building a more democratic society. The interest groups have been instrumental in addressing the plight of the public by ensuring that policy issues are handled properly. The effectiveness of the government has also been enhanced by the numerous contending interests. The American government has been able to adopt better policies due to the serious competition that exists among various institutions. These groups have played a fundamental role of widening the democratic space in America. The American government has been influenced by several groups over the years to an extent that some individuals refer to it as â€Å"a world of interest groups†. The interest groups should, therefore remain committed towards enhancing democracy and good governance. And I think those groups have same mission, it’s to make the government do something right like that should be. for example, national education thinks that the system of lesson in ur country have to be changed because it is not effective, so the collect the data to support their argument, and send it to government, and hope it will influence the policy.