Graphic Design of the 20 th Century Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Graphic Design of the 20 th Century - Essay Example By medieval times, the symbols within the great churches communicated meaning to the largely illiterate citizenry regarding their religion and the lessons to be learned from the Bible. It was graphics rather than words that typically called attention to a place of business within the towns and villages with names such as the â€Å"Boar’s Head† saloon and the â€Å"Red Lion† Inn. This use of symbols to provide a quick and easy message to customers can still be seen in use today, although now refined in keeping with its more sophisticated audience, as company logos. For most who study the development of graphic design, though, the typical starting point begins with the Arts and Crafts Movement of the 1860s and the Art Nouveau movement of the 1890s. To get a feel for the evolution of graphic communication, one must therefore trace the movements, events, people, places and technological innovations that have influenced its development. The start of the Arts and Crafts Movement is generally attributed to William Morris in response to the ever-encroaching identical sameness of the machine-made objects churned out during the Industrial Revolution. â€Å"Not only art but also everyday objects, buildings, dà ©cor, everything lacked a face, and it was the realization of its lack in this particular respect which began to make the period so cruelly conscious of its anonymity† (Cassau, 19). In everything they did, crafters working under its influence placed value in art created by hand for limited edition prints such as the highly scrolled first page of â€Å"The Nature of Gothic,† designed and printed by William Morris. This movement naturally evolved into the Art Nouveau movement of the 1880s and 1890s. Rather than repeatedly reinventing the ideals of their ancestors, these crafters wanted to develop a new style, one that emphasized ornament and the curving, flowing lines of nature. Using

Comparing and contrasting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Comparing and contrasting - Essay Example The appellant was not accountable to his clients within a reasonable time in that he did not make the necessary payments to his clients and other practitioners within a reasonable time. There was also failure to reflect all financial transactions in the books of accounts and delay with the payments of trust money to clients after due demand without any lawful reason. The orders of the court in this case were that the striking the appellants name off the role of attorney was substituted and instead the appellant was suspended from practicing for one year. He was also not found guilty of unprofessional, dishonorable or unworthy conduct by the court. In the Davey case, the Law society brought against Meumann White a number of complaints before the court that include; touting for work and are thereby engaging in conduct which is likely to attract business unfairly. By securing work through conferring benefits upon estate agents in order to induce them to channel work for Meumann White they were guilty of conduct which impairs their independence by creating conflicts of interest which is explicitly prohibited by the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act. MW’s extensive expenditure is directed at securing instructions for the firm this is the premeditated and disguised scheme to â€Å"buy work† in order to derived significant direct financial benefit as a result. The court gave its judgment ad concluded that in all the circumstances of the case brought by the law society that MW has not been guilty of any wrongdoing. The court laid down a test for permissible advertising which is of the nature that is calculated to attract business unfairly and this is the only restraint placed on the entitlement of an attorney to advertise. They are both applications by the society concerned for the attorneys to be struck off the roll of attorneys or they be suspended from practice by the

The Major Environmental Issues In Bhutan Environmental Sciences Essay

The Major Environmental Issues In Bhutan Environmental Sciences Essay Bhutan is developing very rapidly and has experienced enormous transformation with these positive transformations, Bhutan face numerous challenges amongst which environmental issues are one of the major. Environmental issue includes waste management issue, pollution, population growth and deforestation. As an environmental student, it is important to know environmental issues and the way to tackle these issues. In this assignment, I have mentioned the major environmental issues and different ways in which these issues can be tackled. I would like to request our lecturer to kindly correct me and as are student myself, I admit there will be numerous mistakes. With great enthusiasm I did assignment and have learned a lot from this assignment. Some of major environmental issues in Bhutan Waste Management: Although the majority of Bhutanese people are being aware of waste management ¿Ã‚ ½s as they use the waste properly by dumping in the pit or in proper places. The main problem of waste management arises or took places in remote places and especially in labour camps, where waste is thrown carelessly. Thus there is a need to carry out waste management campaigns on a regular basis for different target groups. In order to help environmental conservation target specific problem areas, remote places and data has been further analyzed into gewogs wise. The remote gewogs were having highest waste management problems as they are uneducated, illiterate and they never think for their future sustainable. Waste management problem was reported as highest by students, followed by farmers, teachers and travelers as when travelers are going for tour they throw waste out of the car or buses. Thus waste management camping need to be organized on a regular basis targeting also transp ort owners and travelers as well. On the waste disposal practice 88 percent disposed there waste in proper places followed by one person each who dispose waste in the river, forest and also buried the waste and 9 percent did not respond. Although majority of the target groups seems to dump their waste in the pit but it is also a concern that some do not dump their waste improperly. thus there is need to train people and educate on proper waste management methods based on the three principles of reduce, reuse and recycle is possible and also to segregate waste into degradable and non -biodegradable and train people make fertilizer out of degradable or organic waste. Pollution is contamination of the environment by a chemical other agent such as noise or heat that is harmful to human health and survival. Polluting chemicals can affect the environment directly such as from volcanic eruptions or through human activities such as burning coals and gases. Dumping of chemical into river and other ocean will also lead to polluting the environment negatively. Pollution can be categorized as water, soil, noise, thermal and nuclear pollution. This is all due to short-term economic gain made by human. So it can be solved by charging external cost high on those goods which have high pollution on environment. According to the census of 2003 the population of Bhutan is 6,34,982 and its growth rate is 2 percent per year.(CAPSED,BHSEC XII text) When the population is growing at a rapid rate it will lead to affect on environment as they need more land for cultivation and even for construction of houses for survival. When there is more population it leads to the usage of more resources, even for their own benefits and as a result there will be no proper sustainable developing for future and even poor people they can start doing fishing, attacking animals and species for their survival and it will lead to development of a countries economy as if there is more people there will be more labor force and country will achieve more trading it is very harmful to the environment as there is chances of wasting resources and no proper sustainable in the country. But when a country is going high on economic growth it will help in making the proper use of the resources and they will use high skilled labor force to utilize properly and think for the future purpose. Precious plant and trees are becoming extinct as a result of clearing of the forest. The requirement of land for big open cast projects or plans is quite large. Many of the forest areas, many a times, are converted to fields. There for large forest areas are deforested to make a way for large open cast factories or industries. For that reason we have to organize some methods to preserve our environment such as planting trees in prone areas, practice of aforestation methods. Consumer is the one who have right to stop worldwide deforestation. Being a part of consumer we have right to charge high on those companies who have high environmental effect. By buying recycled or certified wood products, only supporting brands with zero deforestation policies, and getting others to do the same by sending a message to companies to embrace zero deforestation policies. So many trees are cut down and burned in rural areas. The only reason to do so is to practice temporary agriculture such as Tseri culture or shifting cultivation. Those lands are used till its productivity declines. As the productively, people has the tendency to select new plot of land and produce the same method. Such agricultural methods have resulted in environmental problem. Environment conservation policy and strategy of Bhutan Environmental conservation is not a new concept to Bhutanese. It has always been at the center of national development thinking and policy making. Over a year government set up a strong conservation policies and law has evolved to ensure protection, management and sustainable use of biodiversity resources. Bhutan conservation policies and laws are contributing to the overarching national development objective of GNH. This is based on sustainable development as one of its four pillars. According to the constitution of the kingdom of Bhutan, which enshrines environmental conservation as a constitutional mandate.(Consituation,2008) Renewable natural Resources sector policy. The RNR sector policy give importance on attaining greater national food security, conserving and managing natural resources, enhancing rural income, and generating farm based employment opportunities. Objectives: To encourage economic development that has respect for long term sustainable development on the countrys resources, comparative advantages, and community based self help institutions. To pursue balance and equitable development of the country renewable natural resources, distributions of benefits among their society and regions. To be sensitive and responsive to the rich culture heritage of the country and its preservation. Community forest management It was introduced in the country in the 1980s. Its main objective was to improve local forest conditions through community management Enhancing socio-economic benefits to the local communities in terms of increased access to forest products such as timber, fuel wood, fodder and non-wood forest products. It is responsible for all the communities ¿Ã‚ ½ member such as chair person. Resub which means responsible for taking care of forest and looking after the person whether they are doing harm on forest or not. Not only the community member but it is also responsible for all the citizen of Bhutan to take care of our rich environment. Until 2001, there was only one community forest unit, which was established with the community of Dozam village in Dramatis gewog, Mongar in 1997. Since 2001, a total of 117 community forest units collectively covering 15,489 ha of forest land have been established across the country and lastly landmark year for the community forest management program were in 2008. (UNDP, MOA, DOF, 2009). Environmental Protection Act, 2007: Bhutan has a long tradition of living in harmony with nature, which is firmly by the resolution of the parliament to maintain a minimum of sixty percent of countrys land under forest cover in perpetuity.( Environmental Protection Act, 2007.)Objectives: This act organizes mainly to provide for the establishment of an effective system to conserve and protect environment through the National Environment Commission or its successor, designation of competent authorities and constitution of other advisor competitive, so as to independently regulate and promote sustainable development in an equitable manner and also the people and government in succession shall consider and adopt it developmental policies, plans and programs in harmony with the environment principles. (Environmental act, 2008) MINES AND MINERALS MANGEMENT ACT, 1995: The mineral management and mines Act was introduced in 1995. Its main objectives are preservation, protection, sitting of environmental standards and conservation of natural resources constant with the provision of the Act and other environmental legislation as a critical feature of mining practice. It is responsible for both business firm and government sector to restoration of areas that are mined is carried out in a proper manner with the objective of creating sustainable and acceptable environment as approved by the national environment commission. In exercise of the powers conferred by article 50 of the mines and minerals management Act of 1995, the ministry of trade, industry mines and minerals management regulations 2002. They kept records of mining operation including environmental protection quality standards adopted by the national environment commission. (MINES AND MINERALS MANGEMENT ACT, 1995) ENVIRONMENTAL CONESRVATION POLICY IN BHUTAN: Bhutans development philosophy is most well enunciates in the statement of His Majesty the King Jigme Singye Wangchuk said that, Gross National Happiness is more important than Gross Domestic Product.(Majhi, 2005 p228) From the concept of GNH it changed the mind of Bhutanese people and they are having concern to our rich biodiversity and environment in accordance with international standards may have unwillingly contributed to a hardening of traditional attitudes and values. And also Bhutanese people are organizing some organization which is related to environment preserve and promote environment for sustainable development. They realizes that main source of their income is from environment and gained some sense of respect to environment and doing work on reforestation. For example, if they are cutting down if two trees for construction purpose, in return they are planting doubled environment. They are giving more important to rules and regulations passed by the government which is r elated to environment. The success of environmental conservation is community forest management as government is giving full responsible to each and every gewogs in Bhutan for the conservation purpose and it is responsible for all the gewog chairpersons to take care of it. And chairperson has full power of royalties. He/she has to submit records to government agency as how many trees are lost in previous year and for what purpose. For the shortcoming natural disaster, it is responsible for all the Bhutanese people to plant trees in prone areas. The chairperson is responsible to report to government about any consequences on environment. They are responsible to take care of the forest and protect the forest. The budgets generated are divided among members charging small rate of interest. Members are allowed to enjoy the products of the forest legally. In this industrialized world where technologies have the revolution of human worlds environmental disasters are very much prompt and delicate. Modern technologist has far reaching affects such as air pollution, water pollution, and even the eco-system is disturbed. Human habitation with implementation of advanced technologies has caused immense destruction to the environment and perhaps this would eventually lead to unbalancing in eco-system. As every nation in the world faces unavoidable environmental issues, Bhutan too shares its own severe consequences. However, with the emerged of National Environmental Commission and other agencies, Bhutan particularly adopted and implements different environmental policies and strategies to minimize the destruction causes to the environment. In spite of the effort from the government, environment issues are still irresistible. REERECNCE Bharuch,E.(2005).Text book of Environmental studies for under graduate courses.University press. India. Gyeltshen.k (2008),Evaluation report on environmental education program in Thimshingla national park. kuensel corporation limited, Thimphu. Gurung.T(2009), Biodiversity action plan 2009.KMT printing press, Thimphu. Majhi,C.P.(2005), Economics class 12 BHSEC .Megah publication, Thimphu By: Dawa Penjor E.no: 101308 Eco and Evs

Essay --

What is a hero? That is the question that has many different answers depending on who you ask. There are some pretty popular answers to that question. One of those answers is; â€Å"A hero is someone who helps other people, or helps to make other people's lives better.† Another is; â€Å"A hero is a person who tries to make the world a better place.† or â€Å"A hero is a person who does something that is more than what is expected.† Still others are â€Å"A hero is someone that doesn't do something for his or her own problems but for the benefit of others† and â€Å"A hero is a person that doesn't want to be a hero just to be famous.† Those were just some statements about what people think a hero is, but what about the qualities a hero should have? There are many qualities that people think a hero should have. To name a few of those qualities there is; courage, determination, focus, compassion, dedication, honesty, loyalty, responsibility, and wisdom. (http://www.personalitytutor.com/qualities-of-a-hero.html). Most people believe these are very important qualities to have, probably because they themselves wish they had more of those traits. Most people believe that these traits are not just traits of â€Å"superheroes†; they are also the traits of everyday heroes, or real heroes-not super heroes- throughout history. An example of an â€Å"everyday† hero is Bethany Hamilton, she is a surfer who on October 31, 2003 at age 13, was attacked by a 14 foot long tiger shark while surfing, and lost her arm. (http://www.values.com/inspirational-sayings-billboards/39-Rising-Above) She luckily survived the attack, but it seemed that her lifelong dream to become a professional surfer was almost ruined. After a few months of healing and such she got back on her surf board to... ... told and said the message â€Å"never give up†. One of the main qualities that both these heroes had was courage. The reason for this is that there were many bad things that happened in their lives, and even though it was scary they push forward. Courage is one of the main qualities that people say when asked â€Å"What is a quality that a hero should possess?† We all what to be courageous, and when we see a â€Å"hero† being that, it makes us believe that we can be too. That is another good thing heroes do; they inspire us to, be courageous, to help somebody, or to not give up. "You blaze the trail. And sometimes that involves doing something that scares the heck out of you." (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/liz-murray-shares-her-tale-of-life-from-homeless-to-harvard/article1314532/) That is a quote by Liz Murray that inspires us to try something new and be courageous.

Notions of class, status and caste and significant throughout Asia

Asia is synonymous to one word: exotic. With its temperate climate, architectural wonders, tropical greenery, thriving urban communities, rich history, and a melting pot of ethnic groups, it truly is a gem. There is also one thing that makes Asia stand out- its culture and tradition. The Far East, as Asia is sometimes called, had been colonized by Western powers, such as Americans, Portuguese, British, Spanish, Dutch, and French.   This gave rise to a diverse array of cultures, with influences brought by the outsiders interspersing with those of its local inhabitants. One interesting aspect of Asian culture is the caste system/society or social stratification. Caste is a social classification system bestowed hereditarily (Bogard, et al, 1997). The word traces its roots from the Portuguese word casta, a feminine form of casto, derived from the Latin castus, which means pure (The American Heritage, 2000). India, for instance, is known for its caste society (McNeill, 1990). Dowling (2005) noted that the Aryans, warriors from Central Asia, were responsible for bringing caste system into India. After defeating the Dravidians of Central India in 15000 BC, the Aryans created some from of social structure (2005). However, McNeill (1990) argued that caste system started â€Å"long ago† (p.126). He stated, â€Å"About 300 BC, a Greek ambassador to the court of Magadha, named Megasthenes, wrote a book about India in which he described seven hereditary classes into which, he said, Indian society was divided† (p. 126).   The caste system, he remarked, was probably created for members of any group to do things without any hindrance coming from other groups. Caste system allowed group members to â€Å"keep most off their own ways and inner values, and preserve private family customs, while still spending their lives in close daily contact with all sorts of people† (1990). Aryans divided the caste system into four- Brahmin, composed of priests, teachers and judges, Kshatriya or the warriors, Vaisya, consisted of merchants and farmers, and Sudras, or laborers (Dowling, 2005).   Below the Sudras were the untouchables or outcastes (2005).The untouchables had the lowest position in the caste system. They were not allowed to enter temples and schools. They were even not allowed to get water from wells were higher castes obtained theirs (2005).   Some untouchables converted to other religious denomination such as Islam and Christianity to avoid the plague of being outcastes (2005). The foundation of the caste system was based on two things- samsara or reincarnation and karma or quality of action (Bogard, et al., 1997). The Brahmins believed that an infant inhabits the soul of another human being or an animal (McNeill, 1990). He explained: Souls that in former lives had gathered a heavy load of karma, then were born into babies of the lowest castes. Those who in former lives had accumulated only a little karma earned the right to be born as Brahmans; and those in between caste status. Persons who lived well in whatever caste they had been born to could hope for rebirth higher on the scale. ( p.126) Compliance with the rules may result to reincarnation into higher caste (Bogard, et al., 1997). Women, however, may â€Å"have the privilege of coming back as an animal if they are good enough† (1997). Other details on the creation of the Indian caste system, however, were not clear. McNeill (1990) noted that the Indian caste system was not just made up of four classes. The Brahmanas did not provide details of establishment of the caste system. As McNeill noticed, â€Å"In other words, we have here a theory rather than a description of what really existed† (p. 126). However the case may be, India’s caste system has been deemed â€Å"illegal† (Dowling, 2005, para.5). It was officially abolished in 1947 (McNeill, 1990). But it is integral to Indian society and has molded India into what it is now (1990). McNeill added that the caste system â€Å"allowed very primitive ideas and magical practices to survive indefinitely† (p.128). But even with its abolition, caste system still exists in some Indian communities, especially in rural ones (1990). Several measures have been taken up to reduce its effect on people and communities. The Indian government has introduced government privileges to the untouchables, now known as Harijan (2005). However, the Harijan still receive less opportunities, educational and employment-wise. Another Asian country that has stratified society is Indonesia, specifically the Balinese (Frederick and Worden, 1993). The Balinese reside in the islands of Bali and Lombok and some parts of Sumbawa (1993). The caste system dates back to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the time when Javanese princes flew to Bali to avoid the â€Å"advances of Islam† (1993).   The Balinese has had, since then, mingled with the locals and asserted an anti-Islamic political perspective (1993). The Balinese caste system was based on the Indian caste system (â€Å"Social System,†1998). The three classes were the Brahman, Ksatriya, and Wesya. The three made up the Triwangsa, which means â€Å"three peoples† (1998, para.9). The Triwangsa was the â€Å"highest three societal stratification† (1998, para.9). The classes comprised 10 % of the populace and lived in puri (1998, para.9) According to a Hindu myth (â€Å"Social System,† 1998), Brahman or god, was separated. His mouth developed into the Brahman, his arms became the Ksatriya, his thighs were the Wesya class, and out of his feet borne the Sudra class. The classes are akin to the human being, different parts have different purposes but all need to work together to survive. Brahman comprised priests, scholars and teachers (â€Å"Social System,†1998). They also had special privileges in burial rights and were entitled to a â€Å"high level of ritual communication† (1998, para.12). The Ksatriya was represented by warriors, rajas or princes whereas merchants fell into the Wesya caste (1998). The majority of Balinese, however, belonged to the Shudra class (Frederick and Worden, 1993). The Shudra or Sudra class consisted of the commoners (â€Å"Social System,†1998). Unlike their Indian counterpart, the Sudra caste was not considered untouchables (1998). The Sudra served as laborers for the three classes (1998).   Since they did not know how to read or write, they depended on the upper classes to â€Å"interpret religious texts and prayers† (1998, para.16). Caste was based on birth (â€Å"Social System,† 1998). Each caste followed certain rules. Caste rules were strictly observed. One rule involved addressing Triwangsa caste properly (1998). Another one was the responsibility of each caste member to offer assistance to other castes when needed (1998).Compared to the Indian caste system, the Balinese caste was not that rigid. Frederick and Worden (1993) pointed out that the Balinese caste system â€Å"involves no occupational specializations or ideas about ritual contaminations between ranks† (1993). Marriage between ranks was not forbidden. Today, the Balinese are caught between adhering to tradition and adapting to change (Frederick and Worden, 1993).They are starting to question the traditions and are caught in the middle of obeying years-old rules or completely junking them in favor of modernization. If the Balinese are torn between tradition and urbanization, the Philippines have managed to phase out its own version of caste system. The Spaniards’ colonization of the Philippines gave birth to the concept of barangay (Cunanan, 1986).   The barangay was considered the â€Å"basic political unit† (1986). It consisted of thirty to fifty families. A chief datu, who came from the aristocrat clan called maharlika, led a barangay (1986). The maharlika had servants called â€Å"aliping namamahay or aliping sagigilid† (1986). The aliping namamahay were responsible for building houses, tending the farms of the datus, among other things. On the other hand, the aliping sagigilid were house-bound (1986).   They were either taken into forced custody or served as payments for debts (1986). The barangays were soon integrated into a bigger unit called encomiendas (Cunanan, 1986). An encomienda was â€Å"awarded to the conguistadores and religious orders for their meritorious services in the conquest of the native people† (1986). By 17th century, the encomiendas were completely wiped out in favor of creating provinces (1986). At present, the Philippines have a modern version of the caste system: the superior-servant or household help type. In Western countries, it is interesting to note that only the rich and privileged have acquired household help. In the Philippines, household help is common, especially in urban communities. These people are employed in houses to fend for the inhabitants’ need such as cooking their meals, doing laundry and cleaning the house. Household help are usually those that did not finish school or came from poor families. Majority of them live with the families they tend to, with some slowly being recognized as family members. For a country known for its homogeneity, Japan, surprisingly, had a caste system (Reischauer, 1988). The outcast group was called burakumin or hamlet people (1988). The burakumin roots backs to the feudal era. They were known by different names but were popularly known as burakumin, an abbreviation from a form which means â€Å"people of special hamlets† (1988). They were no different from other Japanese but what set them apart was their occupation. Reischauer (1988) described them: This group, which accounts for less than 2 percent of the population, probably originated from various sources, such as the vanquished in wars or those whose work was considered particularly demeaning. Clearly they included people engaged in leather work or butchery, since the Buddhist prejudice against the taking of all animal life made others look down of such persons, thought, it should be noted, not on the butchers of human life in the feudal society dominated by a military elite. (p. 35). Since 1871, the burakumin received legal equality but prejudice is still felt. Some Japanese are said to be â€Å"reluctant to have contact with them and are careful to check family records to ensure that they avoid intermarriage† (p. 35).   Nowadays, the burakumin are becoming â€Å"less recognizable† (p. 35.) Asia is truly a mix of both worlds. The importance given to class, status or society stratification is a direct reflection of its history and people. While some may say that social classes cause inequality in society, it has defined rules on how a society or system would work. Bringing discipline and order into a society was important in a caste system. It has also fostered unity among class members. Positive and negative effects are embedded into any social stratification system. But the very same diverse ideas and counterculture are the ones that helped shape Asia into what it is now- a wonderful hodgepodge that is deeply textured. References Bogard, M., Gilbert, L., Jones, M., Nida, B., Swanson, A., & Young, S. (1997). History of the caste system. Cunanan, J.P. (1986). Evolution of labour legislation in Asia. Hong Kong: DAGA CCA-URM. Dowling, M (2005). The caste system of ancient India at mrdowling.com. Retrieved 30 April 2007 from http://www.mrdowling.com/612-caste.html Frederick, W.H. & Worden, R.L. (Eds.). (1993). Indonesia: a country study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress. McNeill, W.H. (1990). A history of the human community (3rd ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Reischauer, E.O. (1988). The Japanese today. Massachusetts: Belnap Press of Harvard University Press. Social System. (1998). Retrieved 30 April 2007 from http://www.balivision.com/Article_Resources/SocialSystem.asp The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.) (2000). USA: Houghton Mifflin Company.         

Moral Dilemma: Army Recruitment and Video Games

Moral Dilemma: Army Recruitment and Video Games While watching the documentary â€Å"Digital Nation,† produced by Rachel Dretzin, I became interested by a section titled â€Å"The Army Experience Center. † The documentary shows clips of teenagers as young as thirteen playing violent videos games in an arcade run by the Army. The whole goal is to arouse these teenagers’ interest so they enlist. Having strong negative feelings towards war and teenage recruitment to begin with, I decided to research this subject further.Let me take you through my thought process while I struggle with the question; Is the Army Experience Center’s (AEC) use of war video games a moral way to recruit teenagers? My first source, a radio program titled â€Å"War Games Lure for ‘Real Thing† laid the background. Host Jacki Lyden explains how the AEC had closed on July 30, 2010 after being in a Philadelphia shopping mall. It was only open for two years in order to â€Å" determine the most effective tools for public outreach† (Army).The center’s spokesman, Captain John Kirchgessner, said the center was successful and had been a â€Å"better way to share our Army story than to simply smile and dial and ask somebody if they thought about joining lately† (War). Brian Lepley adds to this by saying, â€Å"We have got to reach them the way that they entertain themselves† (Joel). I found these statements to be true. After all, before building the AEC, the Army had shut down five recruiting offices nearby. With half the staff, the Army was able to recruit the same amount of people and still save money (War).This saving of money was good business practices and even benefits tax payers. My perception of the AEC was already looking better. Though Kirshgessner is confident that these recruits were aware of the difference between war and videogame, Staff Sergeant Jesse Hamilton has a different perspective. He worries that the use of vi deo games as a recruitment tool takes away from the reality of war. He goes on to say, â€Å"People screaming, blood, flies, horrible smells – the list goes on and on. And they’ve taken all of that out, and what they’ve effectively left is the portion which they consider to be the fun part† (War).Reading this statement reminded me of why I felt ashamed of the AEC to begin with. It gives kids, who don’t know any better, a false idea of all the different aspects of war. I found myself back to my initial, negative perception of the AEC. At this point, I knew I needed more first-hand information about the AEC. Keeping with radio programs, I stumbled across one hosted by Rebecca Roberts who goes into more detail about the center as she takes a tour. She describes it as â€Å"slick and gadget-heavy as an Apple store† (Army).There are two simulators: a Humvee and two Blackhawk helicopter, a career navigator, a global-base locator, and rows of Xbox game counsels. Everything is free, as long as you are thirteen or older. It seems so innocent, like a teenage boy’s dream come true. While thinking more about the nature of boys, I reminded myself that boys have been known through all generations to play war games. Weather it is Cowboys and Indians, Battleship, or the latest video game. It’s in their nature. The more I thought about violent video games, the more I accepted it as a modern day childhood game.Maybe the AEC is more innocent then I thought. Yet, even with an acceptance of violent videos games, I still had not applied that to the Army’s use of video games to persuade teenagers into war. Roberts mentions that some have criticized the AEC â€Å"for bait-and-switch tactics, masquerading as an arcade when it’s really an Army recruiting station† (Army). The Army calling itself an arcade when it’s really a recruitment center brings a whole new problem to the subject. The Army is not all owed to recruit teenagers who are underage.This makes the Army look untruthful. Though the AEC isn’t called a recruitment center, it is. They shut down those five nearby recruitment centers because they planned to recruit teenagers, instead, at the AEC. Staff denies that the AEC is a recruitment center, but then turn around and boast about how many kids they have recruited (War). Bill Deckhart describes it as, â€Å"The Army people would talk about it and say, ‘Oh it's not a recruiting center,’ [and] at the end of their statement, they would talk about how recruiting was doing.To me, it was very dishonest† (Joel). The dishonesty of the Army became my major turnoff. After all, if the Army was not doing anything wrong then why would they have to lie? In â€Å"Playing War,† Ian Graham and Ronald Shaw argue for a more innocent view of war video games. Their term ‘transitional space’ (790) for video games suggests that they are used to help ready soldiers and recruit new ones (796). Video games, in Graham and Shaw’s minds, are purely tools to help soldiers experience war and help civilians understand it.The Army Experience Center’s use of video games is not a new concept in American Army history. In fact, the Army’s use of digital media dates all the back to the 1970s and from 1996 when the video game Doom II: Hell on Earth came out for training purposes (794). I asked myself, â€Å"Why was there so much controversy over the AEC when the Army has been using video games for years? † Perhaps it has something to do with all the negative science floating around out, claiming violent video games have disastrous effects on young minds. I decided to research this further in my forth source.In the presence of so many studies about the correlation between video games and violent behavior, Author Christopher Ferguson begs to differ. He claims that â€Å"measures used in video game studies claiming to represent ‘aggression’ in fact don’t correlate will with actual real-life aggressive acts or violent behaviors† (79). This is clear and can be proven by the fact that the number of violent crimes from youth and adults have decreased while video game sales have risen (Ulanoff). Being intrigued by this new idea that violent video games are safe for society, I ventured on with my research.Lance Ulanoff has a son who loves video games, especially violent ones. He has seen no difference in his son’s behavior since he has started playing video games and trusts that his son knows fact from fiction. When talking about today’s youth, Ulanoff says, â€Å"when they turn off those games, they go back to being the same teen they were before they turned it on† (Ulanoff). In his writing, Ulanoff stresses that parents should be responsible over what their kids do. This made me realize something so basic about the fight against the AEC. If parents donà ¢â‚¬â„¢t like it, then they have the right to tell their kids not to go.If parents are concerned their kid is too naive about the dangers of war, they can educate their kids. If a child enlists in the Army because they developed a false sense of war from playing video games at the AEC, whose fault is that? At this point of my research, I now believed that this is the parent’s responsibility, not the Army’s. In the article titled â€Å"I Wish I were a Warrior,† authors Konijam, Bijvank, and Bushman state that video games are harmful to adolescence boy minds. They are too influential to have role models who â€Å"show no remorse for their aggressive actions, and are rarely punished for behaving aggressively† (Konijam).The authors, also, relates lower education with vulnerability, which made me come to my own explanation as to why there are disproportionately more African Americans in the Army. In many ways, this article is true. We should be mindful of the effects that violent media has on us. Maybe we won’t go out killing people, but we are becoming less sensitive of the horrors of war because of it. A life is too precious to take a chance. While on the subject of desensitization, I came across an article published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. The issue of war video games and desensitization took a spin.The authors admit that video games blur the lines between reality and fiction, and that this can be bad for children civilians. Yet, while reading, I realized not all desensitization was bad. The article points out that just as medical students need to be desensitized from blood, so do soldiers when it comes to killing and facing tragedy (Carnagey 490). The video games are the bridge between civilian and soldier life and troops benefit from that slow transition into war that video games provide. After reading this article, I had a completely new perspective on what desensitization is.Yet, this article conti nues to say that desensitization, while good for people planning to go into war, isn’t good for the regular, thirteen year old civilian. Though this article had valid points, the average kid visiting the AEC wouldn’t benefit from desensitization. With my views about the AEC going back and forth between good and bad, I continued to research on. I came to the article â€Å"Conflict of Interest,† written by Lev Grossman and Evan Narcisse. The article describes our nation’s high demand for video games. It, also, describes the realness so many of today’s games have.Talk about video game’s strong influence on our society had me thinking. We have seen people try to reenact graphic movies such as the â€Å"Dark Knight† movie theater shooting in Colorado, but we have never seen such reenactments based off of video games. If video games are so influential and detrimental, there are no facts to proof it. I began to think that the AEC’s us e of video games wasn’t really that big of a deal. As I read on, I found a quote by Hirshberg that reads, â€Å"I think there will be a time when we look back and find it quaint that video games were so controversial† (Grossman).By this time in my research, this quote summed up my thinking, though I still was uncertain about where I stood on the issue of the AEC. My last source was an interview with a World War II veteran, Rudy White. The moment I mentioned video games with recruitment he shook his head and said â€Å"no† (White). White reiterated my very first thoughts about how videogames the AEC desensitized people and put falsehoods into the realities of war. He said there are no consequences to face in games, while real war is filled with consequences. White gives an example that a man killed is a son, a brother, and father, and a friend who is now dead forever.There is no reset button in real life (White). After hearing White, I felt that all the research I did trying to justify the AEC was almost useless. I realized that it was better to trust my instincts that said war video games have their place in society, but not in Army recruitment. Through all my research, I have had a lot of mixed feelings. My initial thinking was that the AEC’s use of video games as a recruitment tool was destructive. It was a dishonest tools used by the Army that gives a false idea about war. It, also, desensitizes kids to the horrors and consequences of war.Yet through my research, I have seen valid counter argument to my own thinking. Some of these arguments are really quite simple, like the Army is just trying to connect with what kids like to do. Others are that the AEC gives people a more well-rounded idea of the Army than if they were playing the same video games alone in their rooms. Through it all, my final perception of the AEC came after talking to veteran Rudy White. I realized that there are many good things about the AEC, but the negati ves outweigh them all. War is too serious to be a game and thirteen is too young to recruit.The AEC and its use of violent video games is not a moral way to recruit teens to the Army. Works Cited â€Å"Army Complex – Arcade Or Recruiting Center? † Weekend All Things Considered 17 Jan. 2009. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. Carnagey, Nicholas L. , Craig A. Anderson, and Brad J. Bushman. â€Å"The Effects of Video Games Violence on Physiological Desensitization on Real-Life Violence. † Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 43. 3 (2006): 489-496. Print. Ferguson, Christopher J. â€Å"Blazing Angels Or Resident Evil? Can Violent Video Games Be A Force For Good?. † Review Of General Psychology 14. (2010): 68-81. PsycARTICLES. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. Graham, Ian, and Ronald Shaw. â€Å"Playing War. † Social and Cultural Geography 11. 8 (2010): 789, 803. Print. Grossman, Lev, and Evan Narcisse. â€Å"Conflict Of Interest. † Ti me 178. 17 (2011): 70-75. Academic Search Complete. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. Joel, R. (2012). The Army Experience Center. On Marketplace [Record]. Philadelphia: American Public Media Konijn, Elly A. , Marije Nije Bijvank, and Brad J. Bushman. â€Å"I Wish I Were A Warrior: The Role Of Wishful Identification In The Effects Of Violent Video Games On Aggression In Adolescent Boys. Developmental Psychology 43. 4 (2007): 1038-1044. PsycARTICLES. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. Swanson, David. â€Å"The Army Experience Center's Bad Experience: Turns Out Training Kids To Kill Not Popular With Public. † Humanist 69. 6 (2009): 5. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. Ulanoff, Lance. â€Å"Violent Video Games: Our Responsibility, Not The Courts. † PC Magazine 29. 12 (2010): 1. Academic Search Complete. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. â€Å"War Games Lure Recruits For ‘Real Thing’† Weekend Edition 31, Jul. 2010. Web. 16 Oct. 2012. White, Rudy. Personal interview. 31 Oct. 2012.