Weak Arguments Against Strong Encryption Essay Example for Free

Weak Arguments Against Strong Encryption Essay In her article entitled â€Å"Weak Arguments Against Strong Encryption,† Deborah Pierce, in taking an unequivocal position in the current debate about the use of encryption, tells the reader that under no circumstances whatsoever should unbreakable encryption be banned. She declares that â€Å"trying to ban strong encryption is not only futile and wrong, it is destructive as well. † In an effort to persuade the reader to take her side, Pierce endeavors to achieve what is called the rhetorical triangle or the use of ethical appeal, logical appeal, and emotional appeal in equal proportion. (Uga Writing Center, n. d. ) Although Pierce employs the three types of appeals, the intended rhetorical triangle is not evident. She commits certain miscalculations which leave the reader either unbelieving or annoyed. Pierce starts her campaign to persuade by establishing her ethical appeal. This she does by describing to the reader in an authoritative way what encryption is and how it works, effectively exhibiting her knowledge about the subject. She explains that the system is invaluable in that the secure communication that it guarantees â€Å"protect[s] trade secrets,† safeguards â€Å"sensitive information such as medical records, financial information and transactions,† and â€Å"protect[s] classified [government] information that we would not want to fall into enemy hands. † Rather effective because aside from showing that she knows her topic well, she also informs the reader that she only wants what the reader also requires. The author, however, commits her first miscalculation when she attempts to persuade the reader through his or her emotions. When she said that â€Å"Human rights organizations use encryption to communicate by email with people who would surely be tortured or killed if their communications were made known,† the reader is left rather dumbfounded. Many Americans realize that the sacrifices and the risks being taken by these activists as well as those who help them in their work are in defense of human rights. For this reason, Americans sympathize with them and certainly do not wish them any harm. However, to say that they or their contacts are in danger of being â€Å"tortured or killed† if their electronic mails are publicized or supplied to government authorities is stretching it a bit too far. Everybody knows that human rights activists are protesters and demonstrators, but they are not anarchists or communist revolutionaries who are out to overthrow the government. These people have no secrets which could be fatal for them or damaging to the government. This is almost certainly a scare tactic, or an appeal to fear. In other words, the author’s use of the second side of the rhetorical triangle – emotional appeal is a dismal failure. This leaves the third side of the rhetorical triangle: logical appeal. Pierce tries to use this tool – again, to no avail to argue against the key escrow system being pushed by Republican Senator Judd Gregg from New Hampshire. Under this system, a third party will be authorized to hold copies of the users’ â€Å"personal encryption keys. † These keys will be made available to law enforcement officers as the need arises and on a case to case basis, provided they can obtain the proper warrant from the court. Since rhetorical appeal is supposed to contain statements of authorities, Pierce has chosen to quote Craig Nathan who said that â€Å"Key escrow is the equivalent of allowing the government [to] install a web cam in your bedroom, which they could turn on without your permission or notification at any time they thought it might help combat terrorism. † This statement is highly hyperbolic, an extravagant exaggeration. Giving government access to a personal encryption key does not mean that it can take hold of it anytime. As experience has shown us, there are always guidelines and legal procedures established for such purposes. Terrorism should not be employed as a catchall term either because it could not be used to justify everything that government is doing. Pierce should do better than use terrorists as a red herring and blame them for everything bad occurring in the country today. After failing to employ the rhetorical triangle successfully, Pierce, therefore, fails to persuade the reader to adopt her view. References Pierce, D. (2007). Weak Arguments Against Strong Encryption. Seattle Press on Line. Retrieved July 21, 2007, from http://archive. seattlepressonline. com/article-9276. html Uga Writing Center. (n. d. ). The Rhetorical Triangle. Retrieved July 21, 2007, from http://www. english. uga. edu/writingcenter/writing/triangle. html

Comparing Platos Republic, Mores Utopia, and Gurneys Dinotopia Essay

Plato's Republic, More's Utopia, and Gurney's Dinotopia    Throughout history, mankind has struggled to lead better lives and improve their society for future generations. What do we continuously attempt to improve? What kind of changes are we trying to institute? In other words, what is an ideal society? Many people have very diversified views about a perfect civilization. In Plato's Republic, Sir Thomas More's Utopia, and James Gurney's Dinotopia, three imaginary societies are described, each with its own peculiarities and highlights. Various aspects of the nations described in these three novels, including their respective economies, governments, and social structures, will be compared and contrasted. A crucial aspect of any society would be its economy. In Utopia, business was conducted chiefly to import iron, and in many cases they traded on credit. The Utopians have no currency, though they trade their goods for gold in order to pay mercenaries in times of war. If one is in need of something, one merely has to inform the head of one's household and he will get it. Their society is arranged so that they reject many material things that our society would consider valuable, such as silver and diamonds. "The Utopians fail to understand why anyone should be so fascinated by the dull gleam of a tiny bit of stone, when he has all the stars in the sky to look at - or how anyone can be silly enough to think himself better than other people, because his clothes are made of finer woolen thread than theirs" (More 89). To minimize the importance of these materials, Utopians make everyday objects out of them, like chamber pots. In Dinotopia, people are given what they require, mu ch like Utopia, although the... ...h political and financial equality, forming the foundation for everlasting peace. This ideal society would be ruled by a government that truly represents the people and endeavors to direct its citizens on the route to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. As Sir Francis Bacon said, "Man seeketh in society comfort, use, and protection." Works Cited Ferguson, John. Utopias of the Classical World. Ithaca, NY: Cornell UP, 1975. Manuel, Frank E. and Fritzie P. Manuel. Utopian Thought in the Western World. Cambridge, MA: Belknap-Harvard Press, 1979. More, Thomas. Utopia. Trans. Paul Turner. New York: Penguin Books, 1965. Plato. Republic. Trans. G.M.A. Grube. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 1974. Rice, Eugene E. and Anthony Grafton. The Foundations of Early Modern Europe, 1460-1559. 2nd. ed. New York: W. W. Norton and Co., 1994.

McDonald’s

McDonalds retail outlet resembles a machine in many ways. McDonald’s has many employees that were hired for a certain job position. Without those employees, there would be a missing part to the â€Å"machine†, therefore the business would not operate properly. The employees represent the parts to the machine that do one thing, over and over again. When you go to McDonalds, you place your order with the cashier, then the order is sent to the cooks, and then there is someone there who bags your food. Without any of those people how would McDonalds operate? If an employee calls out sick and doesn’t show up to work, they get someone to replace them. â€Å"Parts† are replaceable. In terms of Frederick Taylor's principles of scientific management, each task performed at McDonalds has one best method. It is the manager’s responsibility to find that best method. It is also the manager’s responsibility to hire and train the employee that is using that method. It is the employee’s responsibility to perform the task using that method in order for McDonalds to run properly. In terms of Max Weber's hierarchical structure, McDonalds is a major corporation for which it’s owner has the highest authority and responsibility that everyone below him are doing their job functions correctly in order to maintain a successful business. Then you have regional managers, district managers, store managers, assistant managers/ supervisors, and the employees. In terms of Henri Fayol's administrative principles of McDonalds, there is a chain of command from top to bottom. There are store owners, store managers, assistant managers, and the employees. There are organizational goals that must be met, and it is the responsibility of the managers to make sure that it’s employees are performing those tasks and following the rule that are applied to all. I believe McDonalds has been a successful franchise due to a consistent commitment to standards. McDonalds success thrives on adapting to consumer demands. McDonalds franchise restaurants became well known for the inspired and defining vision created by Kroc for his restaurant business. â€Å"Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value† was the company’s motto, and customers knew that no matter where they travelled, they could rely on those qualities at every McDonalds they visited. Kroc’s brilliant marketing insights produced many winning strategies. He launched â€Å"Hamburger University† in 1961 in Elk Grove, Illinois, to train all franchisees in every aspect of McDonald’s management. Kroc also targeted families as his best market share. This resulted in the debut of the â€Å"Ronald McDonald† clown character on television in 1963. There are many similarities in organization between McDonalds and other successful franchise organizations, such as Burger King, who was founded by James McLamore, and Glen Bell, founder of Taco Bell. These two mean visited McDonalds just after Ray Kroc back in 1954. They all were very impressed with the speedy business operation that served so many people at once. Mechanistic organization of McDonald’s retail outlets is the best method for the franchise with the process of innovation so characteristic of the McDonald’s enterprise because they kept their beliefs and values throughout all these years which has made them very successful to this day.

The Ancient Maya and Human Sacrifice

For a long time, it was commonly held by Mayanist experts that the â€Å"pacific† Maya of Central America and southern Mexico did not practice human sacrifice. However, as more images and glyphs have come to light and been translated, it appears that the Maya frequently practiced human sacrifice in religious and political contexts. Maya Civilization The Maya civilization flourished in the rain forests and misty jungles of Central America and southern Mexico ca. B.C.E. 300 to 1520 C.E. The civilization peaked around 800 C.E. and mysteriously collapsed not long after. It survived into what is called the Maya Postclassic Period, and the center of Maya culture moved to the Yucatan Peninsula. Maya culture still existed when the Spanish arrived around 1524 C.E.; conquistador Pedro de Alvarado brought down the largest of the Maya city-states for the Spanish Crown. Even at its height, the Maya Empire was never unified politically. Instead, it was a series of powerful, warring city-states who shared language, religion, and other cultural characteristics. Modern Conception of the Maya Early scholars who studied the Maya believed them to be pacifists who rarely warred among themselves. These scholars were impressed by the intellectual achievements of the culture, which included extensive trade routes, a written language, advanced astronomy and mathematics, and an impressively accurate calendar. Recent research, however, shows that the Maya were, in fact, a tough, warlike people who frequently warred among themselves. It is quite likely that this constant warfare was an important factor in their sudden and mysterious decline. It is also now evident that, like their later neighbors the Aztecs, the Maya regularly practiced human sacrifice. Beheading and Disemboweling Far to the north, the Aztecs would become famous for holding their victims down on top of temples and cutting out their hearts, offering the still-beating organs to their gods. The Maya cut the hearts out of their victims, too, as can be seen in certain images surviving at the Piedras Negras historical site. However, it was much more common for them to decapitate or disembowel their sacrificial victims, or else tie them up and push them down the stone stairs of their temples. The methods had much to do with who was being sacrificed and for what purpose. Prisoners of war were usually disemboweled. When the sacrifice was religiously linked to the ball game, the prisoners were more likely to be decapitated or pushed down the stairs. Meaning of Human Sacrifice To the Maya, death and sacrifice were spiritually linked to the concepts of creation and rebirth. In the Popol Vuh, the sacred book of the Maya, the hero twins Hunahpà º and Xbalanque must journey to the underworld (i.e. die) before they can be reborn into the world above. In another section of the same book, the god Tohil asks for human sacrifice in exchange for fire. A series of glyphs deciphered at the Yaxchilà ¡n archaeological site links the concept of beheading to the notion of creation or awakening. Sacrifices often marked the beginning of a new era: this could be the ascension of a new king or the beginning of a new calendar cycle. These sacrifices, meant to aid in the rebirth and renewal of the harvest and life cycles, were often carried out by priests and/or nobles, especially the king. Children were sometimes used as sacrificial victims at such times. Sacrifice and the Ball Game For the Maya, human sacrifices were associated with the  ball game. The game, in which a hard rubber ball was knocked around by players mostly using their hips, often had religious, symbolic or spiritual meaning. Maya images show a clear connection between the ball and decapitated heads: the balls were even sometimes made from skulls. Sometimes, a ballgame would be a sort of continuation of a victorious battle. Captive warriors from the vanquished tribe or city-state would be forced to play and then sacrificed ​afterwards. A famous image carved in stone at Chichà ©n Itzà ¡ shows a victorious ballplayer holding aloft the decapitated head of the opposing team leader. Politics and Human Sacrifice Captive kings and rulers were often highly prized sacrifices. In another carving from Yaxchilà ¡n, a local ruler, â€Å"Bird Jaguar IV,† plays the ball game in full gear while â€Å"Black Deer,† a captured rival chieftain, bounces down a nearby stairway in the form of a ball. It is likely that the captive was sacrificed by being tied up and pushed down the stairs of a temple as part of a ceremony involving the ball game. In 738 C.E., a war party from Quiriguà ¡ captured the king of rival city-state Copà ¡n: the captive king was ritually sacrificed. Ritual Bloodletting Another aspect of Maya blood sacrifice involved ritual bloodletting. In the Popol Vuh, the first Maya pierced their skin to offer blood to the gods Tohil, Avilix, and Hacavitz. Maya kings and lords would pierce their flesh—generally genitals, lips, ears, or tongues—with sharp objects such as stingray spines. Such spines are often found in tombs of Maya royalty. Maya nobles were considered semi-divine, and the blood of kings was an important part of certain Maya rituals, often those involving agriculture. Not only male nobles but females as well took part in ritual bloodletting. Royal blood offerings were smeared on idols or dripped onto bark paper which was then burned: the rising smoke could open a gateway of sorts between the worlds. Resources and Further Reading McKillop, Heather. The Ancient Maya: New Perspectives. New York: Norton, 2004.Miller, Mary and Karl Taube. An Illustrated Dictionary of the Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya. New York: Thames Hudson, 1993.Recinos, Adrian (translator). Popol Vuh: the Sacred Text of the Ancient Quichà © Maya. Norman: the University of Oklahoma Press, 1950.Stuart, David. (translated by Elisa Ramirez). La ideologà ­a del sacrificio entre los Mayas. Arqueologia Mexicana vol. XI, Num. 63 (Sept.-Oct. 2003) p. 24-29.