Friday, January 24, 2020

Encryption - Regulation of Devices That Code Messages is Not Necessary :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Regulation of Devices That Code Messages is Not Necessary Legislation has been proposed to regulate devices that code messages. The Clinton administration believes a better way to provide for our public safety is by requiring technology that scrambles electronic data for privacy reasons to contain a feature that would allow immediate decoding of any message, known as a trapdoor feature. The capability to monitor encrypted, private communications, however, does not yield greater public safety since it would create feeling among the people of constant supervision. According to government officials, access to scrambled data is needed for national security and law-enforcement. On the contrary, the trapdoor feature can work against law-enforcement, supplying criminals with an additional entry point to access and view private communications. Purchases made over the internet, including secure credit card numbers, would be required to allow immediate decoding when the feature is accessed. Second, personal privacy would be compromised since no one could tell if they were being watched at any given moment. The feeling that "Big Brother" is watching would always exist. Finally, the trapdoor feature could weaken national security on account of this feature simplifying the means of viewing securely encrypted messages. Foreign nations might be able to exploit the trapdoor feature and intercept classified military and intelligence transmissions. For these reasons, the government does not need to create an easier way to access private communicat ions. Government officials claim requiring the decoding technology doesn't necessarily mean using the technology. First, if use isn't intended then the technology would never have been developed. Time, money, and other resources are only spent by people who intend to do something. Second, intent for technology required yet inactive is ludicrous. This is as absurd as walking up to a stranger on the street, demanding a $100 bill, and, when they balk at the idea, replying that it won't necessarily be spent. Finally, the only motivation to require technological features is the availability for use. No one would have gone to the trouble to make a proposition without the intent of use. The feature would have been a proposed option in technology if it wouldn't necessarily be used. Requiring decoding technology stipulates full intent for use.

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Gulliver’s Travels Essay

Gulliver’s Travels is not really a children’s book, but it has been seen as a children’s story right from the start: little people, big people, talking horses. It was first published in 1726. At the time that Swift published Gulliver’s Travels, he was dean of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin. The book, which made fun of the political scene and certain prominent people in England, was published anonymously and was a great success. In each of the three stories in this book, the hero, Lemuel Gulliver, embarks on a voyage, but, as in the Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor on which the stories may in part have been based, some calamity befalls him. First, Gulliver arrives in Lilliput, where he finds himself a giant, held prisoner by tiny men. They are initially afraid of him, but he gradually wins their trust and eventually helps them in their war against Blefuscu. The second land he visits is called Brobdingnag, a land of giants. Gulliver, now a tiny person, has to work as a freak in a show at first but is then rescued by the Queen and has long talks with the King. Gulliver finally ends up in the land of the Houyhnhnms, peaceful horses who have created a perfect society, except for the presence of monkey-like Yahoos. Although Gulliver looks like a well-kempt Yahoo, he wants to be a Houyhnhnm. Finally, he has to leave because he does not fit into this society. Summary of Part I: A Journey to Lilliput Gulliver sets off on the ship Antelope to the South Seas, but strong winds wreck it. Gulliver lands on an island and when he wakes up he finds himself tied to the ground. A large number of little men (no larger than Gulliver’s hands) keep him prisoner and when he tries to break free, they attack him with arrows. Gulliver stays still not to get hurt. Then they bring him food and drink and plan to take him to the king but still tied with strings. He is given a house, an old church, but Gulliver is still tied to the wall of the church. Lilliputians think he is dangerous. Some men attack Gulliver and when the king’s men throw them to Gulliver, he pretends he is going to eat them, but then sets them free. Gulliver is kind, so the king will not kill him, and he teaches Gulliver their language. The king promises to untie Gulliver’s strings if he follows his written rules. Gulliver hands over his belongings: his sword and his guns. Now he can walk again. Gulliver learns about the war between Lilliput and Blefuscu and offers to help the king: he pulls forty large Blefuscu ships to Lilliput. The king is happy, but as he is very ambitious he wants Gulliver to help him kill the Big-enders, enemies of his people, the Little-enders. Gulliver refuses to do so. The people from Blefuscu and Lilliput finally put an end to their war. The king of Blefuscu invites Gulliver to his island. Gulliver finally decides to leave Lilliput and goes to the enemy island. After a short stay at Blefuscu, Gulliver leaves for home. The book begins with a short preamble in which Lemuel Gulliver, in the style of books of the time, gives a brief outline of his life and history before his voyages. He enjoys travelling, although it is that love of travel that is his downfall. During his first voyage, Gulliver is washed ashore after a shipwreck and finds himself a prisoner of a race of tiny people, less than 6 inches tall, who are inhabitants of the island country of Lilliput. After giving assurances of his good behaviour, he is given a residence in Lilliput and becomes a favorite of the court. From there, the book follows Gulliver’s observations on the Court of Lilliput. He is also given the permission to roam around the city on a condition that he must not harm their subjects. Gulliver assists the Lilliputians to subdue their neighbours, the Blefuscudians, by stealing their fleet. However, he refuses to reduce the island nation of Blefuscu to a province of Lilliput, displeasing the King and the court. Gulliver is charged with treason for, among other â€Å"crimes†, â€Å"making water† in the capital (even though he was putting out a fire and saving countless lives. He is convicted and sentenced to be blinded, but with the assistance of a kind friend, he escapes to Blefuscu. Here he spots and retrieves an abandoned boat and sails out to be rescued by a passing ship, which safely takes him back home. This book of the Travels is a topical political satire. [2] Summary of Part II: Gulliver in Brobdingnag When Gulliver sets off again to the Indies, his shi p is hit by another storm and he is once again marooned on an unknown island: Brobdingnag, land of giants. He lives on a farm and the farmer’s daughter teaches Gulliver their language. The farmer, an ambitious man, makes money by showing Gulliver around the country. Gulliver falls ill. When he is brought before the queen of Brobdingnag she buys Gulliver because she likes him a lot. The farmer’s daughter stays with him. The king shows interest in England’s political system and asks Gulliver questions which embarrass him. He wants to impress the king with his country’s wonders only to discover that in Brobdingnag there is no war and people help each other instead of fighting. His happy stay ends when a huge bird lifts him high into the air then drops him into the sea, but he is soon rescued and on his way back home again. When the sailing ship Adventure is blown off course by storms and forced to put into land for want of fresh water, Gulliver is abandoned by his companions and found by a farmer who is 72 feet (22 m) tall (the scale of Brobdingnag is about 12:1, compared to Lilliput’s 1:12, judging from Gulliver estimating a man’s step being 10 yards (9. 1 m)). He brings Gulliver home and his daughter cares for Gulliver. The farmer treats him as a curiosity and exhibits him for money. Since Gulliver is too small to use their huge chairs, beds, knives and forks, the queen commissions a small house to be built for him so that he can be carried around in it; this is referred to as his ‘travelling box’. Between small adventures such as fighting giant wasps and being carried to the roof by a monkey, he discusses the state of Europe with the King. The King is not happy with Gulliver’s accounts of Europe, especially upon learning of the use of guns and cannons. On a trip to the seaside, his travelling box is seized by a giant eagle which drops Gulliver and his box into the sea, where he is picked up by some sailors, who return him to England. This book compares the truly moral man to the representative man; the latter is clearly shown to be the lesser of the two. Swift, being in Anglican holy orders, was keen to make such comparisons.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Masculine Bravado in Death of a Salesman and A Streetcar...

What is it to be a man? Masculinity is defined and characterized differently across cultures and time – there is no â€Å"global† standard. In some cultures, being a man may mean being comfortable with both your masculine and feminine sides or it could suggest being â€Å"tough† and not letting your feelings show at all. Manliness can be demonstrated in some cultures by providing for a family through work, and in others, it might mean scoring the winning goal in a championship game. It is not an easy thing to define an entire gender based on the arbitrary set of ever-changing social and cultural norms, but somehow- it still happens. Trying to define one’s own masculinity and live up to its standards is a tough and grueling task that many men†¦show more content†¦Nevertheless, with both in the sales industry, it’s easy for them to turn on that charismatic charm and sell not only their ideals, but â€Å"themselves in the form of their winnin g personalities† (Cardullo 29). Stanley Kowalski is the typical hyper-masculine example of a man in the late 1940’s to early 1950’s. He is described by his sister-in-law as an â€Å"ape† (Williams 121), he is abusive towards his wife, and he is the breadwinner of the family- he literally brings home the meat and throws it at his wife to catch and cook. Masculinity itself is not a character flaw, but when expressed with such ferocity it can become a crutch and unflattering. Stanley displays his manliness in several different ways throughout the play, something that the author Tennessee Williams did on purpose to reflect on the societal norms of the time and to do so in a questioning manner. The manliness that Stanley has is not one that is kept tamed and unleashed in appropriate moments, but is a type that is constantly wanting people to know that he is â€Å"the king† (Williams 138) of his home and family. By asserting his dominance, Stanley is show ing how masculinity can be a force that drives one to do absurd things in order to keep up a faà §ade. Willy Loman’s disposition is not as boisterous as Streetcar’s anti-hero, Stanley, but is instead more internal and self-reflective. His views of masculinity arise from the