P2P File Sharing And Its Influence Essay Example for Free

P2P File Sharing And Its Influence Essay With the advancement of technology we have moved into the digital word, into the days when property transactions are physically tangible. Now property more specifically intellectual property sharing ha s become common and is done easily over the internet using. P2P file sharing software easily available over the internet. In corporate network where this is done by making use of file servers, but on the internet it is done through the peer-to-peer model where files are stored and shared over the personal computers of the person. Most people engaging in such activities both provide and download such files from the internet. In the P2P network uploading the file is not necessary you can easily share the file with a person. P2P allows clients to share files online throughout some unofficial network that can be provided by both the users using the same download software. File sharing gives you access to a wide variety of information. Copyrighted material, pornography or viruses are all just a click away. (Ardenghi, Jorge and Javier Echaiz) On a daily basis numerous users share files with each other online. Be it music, games, software’s, videos etc. Software that can connect people to each other is usually freely available. Although these software are freely available over the internet they come with great risk, for example when sharing files with users, the user can use the same program to access information which you do not mean to share with people over the network. You can also download copyrighted material that could put you into legal problems. Or you may unsuspectingly download pornography when it is named something else. Also sometimes closing the window may not actually close the program and this could actually put you into a greater security risk. These â€Å"always on† connections are an invitation for users and sometimes hackers and preachers to access your private information and use it to their advantage (Sebastian Rupley, pp. 1). Importance of P2P: P2P networking has generated load of interest over the internet in a very short span of time. Daily thousands of people become part of this network. P2pP software systems like Kazaa and Napster are the most highly ranked and most commonly available P2P programs. Several businesses and websites have been promoting â€Å"peer-to-peer† technology to be the future of the Internet’s world of networking Having existed for many years now, P2P technologies promise to radicalize the word of networking. Although P2P file sharing software has created a lot of controversy over the legality issues as well as its fair use (Erik, pp. 1). P2P sharing has become the single most famous internet application over the past 10-15 year. Although people see it as P2P file sharing rather than P2P networking. To access the world of P2P networking a user just has to install a suitable P2P client application. Several P2P software and P2P networks applications subsist. Some P2P functions work only with a single P2P system, while others functions cross-network. Similarly, some P2P networks sustain only one request, while others sustain numerous requests. The importance of P2P can be seen from the fact that daily a lot of people are entering into the world of P2P sharing. P2P allows for quicker file sharing between users and it has become the household name for computer users all around the globe (Erik, pp. 1). Every passing day the importance of P2P is increasing at a rapid speed. Important files are shared over a P2P network. This save a lot of time that is wasted in attempt to first uploading the file over the internet and then allowing for the user to download the files from the link. When the user’s computer acts as an online server there is no need to upload the material over the internet first for the other user to download it. Now the user himself can download or share the data directly from the other user’s computer. This has solved a lot of issues like shortage of space. Plus most P2P software allow for continuation of download in case the software collapses or if the link is broken for some reason. The file does not have to be downloaded over and over again. (Duchechene, Anne and Patrick Waelbroeck, 565-570) Meaning to the Average American: Today to the average American the use of P2P sharing for downloading songs, videos, software, game etc has become part of their household. Research has shown that 60% of the young Americans downloading things of the internet are over the age of 12 and are mostly in their teenage. The young American teenager has been affected the most the P2P sharing around the world as clearly shown by the stats (Scholastic, 10). It means a great deal to the average American for the simple fact that the average American is able to save a lot on the downloading of free music from over the internet, even though there is enough awareness over the internet as this being illegal. But still as long as you don’t get trapped who minds if it’s illegal. The average American downloads at least 20 files at an average on a daily basis using their P2P software. In America the most commonly used software is Napster which is accessible free over the internet. A typical American is involved more in downloading illegal stuff instead of making use of this advancement of technology constructively. This sharing method is being used somewhat constructively in business environments where important data is being shared without having to be uploaded. Also this method saves a lot of space on the computer and also saves a lot of valuable bandwidth and time from being wasted. In case of the average American this is just a way of downloading free music, software, games etc. The average American who makes use of the P2P network mostly belongs to the teenage. These individuals spend most of their time downloading free music which is mostly illegal as it is copyright material and people sharing such music should be punished. But most of the times these individuals who are sharing these files are not from the US but in fact belong to some country where piracy is not that big a crime or is not punishable. These people easily share pirated material over the sharing software and the average American is more than happy to make use of the material as it does not cost them money (Scholastic, 75). Mostly the average American is aware of the intellectual property rights and he also knows that it is an act which is punishable by the US law but still they do not refrain from illegal file sharing as it is cheap and it is hard to detect, and what is hard to detect is hard to punish. Most of the average Americans are also aware that this is theft of intellectual property rights and it is same as stealing from someone. As when the music is transferred using file transfer or P2P software, the singer or the real owner of the music does not get any loyalty for it. Also the average American uses it to download pornography. This is something that the average user of the P2P in America watches. These are young individuals who are still in their teenage (well at least over 60% of them are). These individuals firstly use the internet without supervision which gives them the authority to do whatever they like over the internet and with the advancement of the P2P software they do not have to search much, they just have to make use of their P2P software, search for the required item and there it is, ready for them to download and watch. The P2P software that is being used mostly does not have a restriction clause in them or do not warn viewer about the age limit before they download the files for viewing. The advance broadband internet technology also make it easy and quicker for these young P2P file users to download pornography and watch it, with the new software they can even stream it while it downloads. Influence of P2P on American Pop culture (music, movies, TV shows etc) The birth of pop took place in the downtown sanctions of New York City at the end of the disco era. The new age music caught the attention of those MCs, who were capable of lyrically painting tapestries of anecdotes that were witty and stylized autobiographies. A pop prodigy was accompanied by a DJ who was able to produce a unique sound to go along with the lyrical flow. The beginning of Pop began when the Music composers introduced a DJ and tried to keep the attention of the crowd when introducing the next DJ. Before long this became a common practice where an MC was performing with a particular DJ, one example is Will The Fresh Prince Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff. In 1979, a huge fan following for pop had developed along with entry of new comers, which secured the hold of pop on the music industry. In 1990 gangsta rap a sub-category of pop was developed. A lot of argument was made on the lyrics used as encouraging brutality, promiscuity and the utilization of drugs. The culture of pop is a challenging culture to some extent. It is a way to express the fight in opposition to the ethnic unfairness against the white Americans. So this makes it a way of expression for the African Americans and obviously a defending act for the way to communicate for their racial differences. A P2P computer system utilizes assorted connectivity of users and accumulative bandwidth rather than sharing resources provided by low number of servers. The important thing in understanding a P2P network is that all customers offer equivalent resources. Computer users with the same type of P2P application can remotely access each others hard drives and can share files Such a network is useful in many purposes, mostly known for file sharing containing audio, video or any kind of data available in digital format. One of the oldest and commonly known P2P file sharing software is Kaaza. Its file trading music tool was the number one search engine of 2003 as music and multimedia continues to dominate Americas online mindshare as reported this week by tech news world. Nowadays, it’s clear that Kaaza and other such software’s are most popular mainstream culture for file sharing. The problem with this is that music and all the other industries are worried that why would anyone actually pay for an album or a movie when anyone and everyone can get it online for free. Sharing of movies, music albums and TV shows is becoming very common among amateurs. One influence this has on American culture is that some books or movies which are for specific age are now available to children of all ages as keeping a tap over their downloading activities has become impossible. Now a thirteen year old kid can easily get any rated movie by just giving the wrong information about his age. The culture is tied together by the links. Culture from all around the world have borrowed and also contributed to the jargon of pop and also changed the meaning of some words to fit their own use. Some consider the language of pop to be rude, sexist, violent, focusing on the darker aspects of the society, and also considered as being nothing more than a bunch of babble. But being able to climb the tower of babble; making use of the process of abstraction, will help us understand as to why the language of pop has become so forceful in today’s society. Abstraction is the process whereby we reach a point where we ignore a great amount of stimuli and focus on a limited few; classifying it according to the characteristics and the reality of our experiences through a unique filter system which is influenced by our cultural and personal experiences. Possible P2P copyright violation and security problem: Numerous studies have shown that sharing of file has had an unconstructive blow on record sales. As already discussed Sharing of movies, music albums and TV shows is becoming very common among amateurs. Such distribution hardly brings any income to the producer. One biggest possible copyright violation problem brought in my P2P networks in another such network known as Anonymous P2P network in which users are anonymous by default. This P2P network is specially becoming famous due to many reasons including data retention and lawsuits against bloggers. Such networks may also hold appeal to user who wishes to share copyrighted files like music movies etc. Users who normally use anonymous P2P networks usually require secrecy as to the contents they put on sharing which may my include material which is not only illegal but also incriminating. One of the first P2P system, Napster was shut down in 2001 by some major entertainment firms on the basis that as these file sharing system made it possible to not only share files but also to make illegal copies of copyrighted material while others are still running. According to survey conducted by MPAA, the movie industry lost around 6. 1 billion which is 75% higher than they predicted. In the US alone the movie studio’s lost 1. 3 billion in 2005. Unauthorized services that allow data as free download to other users such as songs, music and movies is blamed for falling sales. Security problems that arise by P2P networks can cause companies to lose millions worth of source code due to disguising files using P2P technologies. P2P covering tools, such as Wrapstar (a freeware service which can cover a . zip file with corporation resource code, as an MP3 of a song hit) as a result an accessory outside the company can use Morpheus to download the disguised file. To the companies security this looks like a common transaction, even if the company has frowned upon employees using P2P in music sharing without a clue that their company has just been robbed, and possibly millions worth of software has been lost. Another security risk involving P2P networking allows your network to be open to various forms of attack, break-in, and espionage. P2P does not carry new virus to the system, just common threats such as virus attacks and worms. One major risk of P2P network is unconsciously allocating files that are confidential. (Banerjee, Anirban, Faloutsos, Michalis, and Laxmi Bhuyan, 1273-1275) Laws kept up with changing technology: Private property is mainly known as the original way to present ideas, may it be the symbols and words. All this is represented as products or services of an individual. Music is also included in such a property. Copyright defines the rules for ones owned property. May it be novels or poems, films or musical works? These all are includes on literary and artistic works. Artist work can include the photography, paintings, illustrations, sculptures or drawings or any kind of architectural designs. Copyrights are compulsory on any kind of trademarks or patents. P2P is the mainly notorious action on the internet these days. The industry now is using latest strategies; including advising ISP’s (internet service providers) to slash off the accounts of customers who are common sharers of files. Gaspary, Luciano Paschoal, 4797) According to the FCC, the federal law is desecrated if vulgar programming is aired at any time. The contents are ought to be obscene, when it succeeds throughout 3 divided checks. Concerning modern principles to a usual individual, it has to be created, as an entire, attractive to the prurient attention; portray or illustrate, i n a deliberately unpleasant technique, sexual behavior particularly classified by appropriate regulation; and deficiency of severe legendary, imaginative, supporting, or methodical importance. The FCC has described transmit offensiveness as language or material that, in context, depicts or describes, in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium, sexual or excretory organs or activities. (M. Fattah, Hassan, pg 44). It does not, however, augment to the echelon of vulgarity. Conclusion: When it comes to downloading software, it is easily done through P2P software. Using the P2P software the average American also downloads software for free, software for which in normal circumstances they have to pay a fee. This too is an illegal activity but something that has not been looked in to as deeply as the issue of the download of illegal music using the P2P software. This is mainly because the download of music over the internet is something that is measurable and not a lot of average American users are interested in downloading software from the internet. Although all good things come with some disadvantages, p2p sharing is one of them. It is very easy to just search up files and download the. But it is an illegal act. Because many files are copyrighted, and since there rights are preserved, it is ethically wrong to go against them. American pop culture is affected in such a way that, many people take the disadvantage of it, but breaking the official rights of the music. Pop music is now a culture in many countries. This culture is effecting the youth in such a way that they are now more in to bad deeds, rather than right ones. â€Å"Intellectual property illustrates nicely that property is a legal right rather than a physical thing. Intellectual property applies to allow owners to exclude others from intangible resources like certain secrets that businesses have, the copying of various creative expressions, and the reproducing of inventions and marks that identify the producers of goods and services. Property is a legal right to exclude, not a physical thing, and the object of a property copyright includes the reproduction of music for commercial profit. The market resource is diminished for the copyright owner when file sharers misappropriate music

Christmas Traditions Essay -- essays research papers

In every culture or tradition we have our different ways to celebrate Christmas. In Latin culture we have our unique way to celebrate the birth of baby Jesus. We of course have religious ceremonies as well as our traditional food, like the famous ponche, posole, and tamales. But we also celebrate as whole family members house. We have music, we dance, and of course we stay up all night. The most important way to celebrate our posadas is to have baby Jesus the house. The posadas are one of the typical events during a Christmas celebration in Latin America. A posada consist of walking and looking for a place where Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph can spend the night and rest before continuing with their long journey to Bethlehem. Two persons usually represent Saint Joseph and Virgin Mary. In this event, all the people of the community come and participate in this mini-recreation. All the people sing, pray, and even cry when asking for a posada. They use candles and incense to accompany these two Saints. They usually walk all over the neighborhood to find a place. They go from house to house asking for permission to stay and spend the night to rest. Part of a posada is to have people denied the use of their house. So Mary and Joseph continue with their search, until they get to the house that lets them stay. This house is usually decorated with flowers, jade, statue of animals and lights. The people offer food for all the participants and music. Pià ± atas and contests are also part ...

Night World : Witchlight Chapter 15

But she could hear Alex's sobbing even when she got in the car, and it seemed to follow in her head even when they had left the house behind. They checked with the â€Å"road crew† stationed right outside the Ashton-Hughes front gate. It looked extremely professional, with bright lights and all the accoutrements. â€Å"All secure,† the witch in charge said cheerfully when Keller rolled down the window. He shifted his reflective vest. â€Å"Thirty cars in, nobody out. There hasn't been one for a while-I think you're fashionably late.† He winked. â€Å"Thirty?† Keller said. â€Å"How many people per car?† â€Å"Two in most of them, but some were packed.† Keller glanced at Iliana beside her. â€Å"And that's what they call only inviting a few people?† Iliana shrugged. â€Å"You haven't seen the house.† â€Å"Anyway, it's safe,† the witch foreman said. â€Å"No dragon has gotten in, I can promise you that. And none is going to get in, either.† Keller nodded at him, and they drove on. Diana was right. In considering how big the party was, you had to see the size of the house. Keller had studied the plans, but it wasn't the same. They passed something like a peach orchard on one side of the driveway, and then a carriage house that seemed to have swallowed up a dozen cars. But Nissa dropped them off by the front steps, below the stately white columns that decorated the magnificent porch. Impressive place, Keller thought. They walked in. In the cavernous, softly lit entry hall, there was a girl in a dark uniform who took their coats. There was also Brett. When he saw Diana, he pounced. â€Å"Blondie! I thought you weren't going to make it!† â€Å"You knew I wouldn't miss this,† Diana said gently. But Keller thought she looked much less interested in Brett than the last time she'd spoken to him. She's learned a lot, Keller thought. And, of course, now that she knows Galen, she sees this loser for what he is. Brett was looking the others over in his meat-appraising way. â€Å"So just which of these lovely ladies is your cousin? I never got a chance to ask.† â€Å"Oh†¦ that one.† Diana pointed a random finger. â€Å"You?† Brett's eyes ran up and down Keller's tallness and her blue-black hair. â€Å"I never would have guessed.† â€Å"We're sort of†¦ foster cousins,† Keller said. She didn't like Brett. That was nothing new, but somehow tonight she realty didn't like him. There was something almost creepy in the way his eyes clung to girls, and when he looked at Diana, it was like watching a slug crawl over a peach blossom. â€Å"Well, come with me and join the fun,† he said, gesturing expansively and flashing a smile. Keller almost asked â€Å"Where?† but in a moment she realized that it was pointless. The party really seemed to be all over the house. The entry room itself was big enough to have a party in, and it had a wide, sweeping staircase just like a proper Southern mansion. Above, on the second floor, Keller could see a hallway lined with portraits and statues. Brett led them through room after room, each one impressive. Some seemed to be real sitting rooms; others just looked like displays in a museum. Finally, they went through one last open archway into a ballroom. Paneled walls. Painted ceiling. Chandeliers. An ocean of floor. And the college band at one end playing music that was definitely modern. A few couples were dancing a slow dance, very near the band. They looked small enough to rattle in the enormous room. Keller almost giggled, but Diana looked dreamy. â€Å"It's beautiful.† Brett looked satisfied. â€Å"There's food over there on the sideboard. But most of the food's downstairs in the game room. You want to see that?† â€Å"I want to see Jaime,† Iliana said. â€Å"She's down there.† The game room was amazing, too. Not just pool tables and darts but arcade-style video games, old-fashioned pinball machines, an indoor basketball hoop, and generally just about everything you'd find at a superior arcade. As soon as they walked in, a guy in black pants, white shirt, and black vest offered them a tray of tiny quiches and mini-pizzas. A caterer, Keller decided, not part of the regular staff of the house. She shook her head at the food and went on looking around, keeping her senses open so she could take in everything at once. This was the first time Iliana had been out in public since she'd gone to school last Monday, and it was nerve-wracking. The game room was much more crowded than the ballroom, and everybody was laughing and talking at once. On top of that, this old mansion had some very modern renovations. The band music was being piped into the other rooms. â€Å"Jaime!† Iliana said as a figure emerged from the crush of people. Jaime looked good. Her face had a healthy color, and her dark blue eyes were wide open and shining. Her brown hair was fluffed softly, and she was wearing a very pretty blue dress. Iliana.† She hugged Iliana hard, speaking in her flat but oddly pleasant voice. â€Å"It seems like forever. How are you?† â€Å"Fine. My cold's better, and my hand-† Iliana held up her right hand. There was a neat bandage around the palm to protect the stitches. ‘It itches sometimes, but that's all. How about you?† â€Å"I still have headaches. But I'm getting better.† Jaime smiled at Keller and the others. â€Å"I'm so glad you all could come.† â€Å"Yeah, so are we,† Keller said politely, feeling a stab of instinctive guilt. It was irrational, but she kept expecting this girl to look at her and say, â€Å"You're the one who attacked me! The monster cat!† And she wasn't glad that they had come. Her early warning system was clamoring already; she felt as if her fur was standing on end. She couldn't explain it, but there was something wrong about the house. â€Å"Keep alert,† she said quietly to the others as Jaime led Iliana to the food tables. â€Å"Remember, two of us are with her at all times. The other two can wander the house, check the perimeter, look for anything suspicious. And keep in touch.† She put a finger to her brooch. That was when they found that their transmitters didn't work. Keller had no idea why. All any of them could hear was static like white noise. Keller cursed. â€Å"Well keep in touch physically, then,† she said grimly. She checked her watch. It was almost nine. â€Å"And well get her out of here in an hour. Ten o'clock. Just to be safe.† â€Å"Good idea,† Galen said. Winnie and Nissa said, â€Å"Right, Boss.† Keller stuck close to Iliana, telling herself that they were taking every precaution and that all she had to do was stay cool and they could get out safely. But as time went on, she only got more and more uneasy. The dragon was going to attack. She was certain of it. But how? What form would the attack take? Was it going to be a battering ram of dark power like the one that had brought down the roof of the safe house? Or something tiny and sneaky, some clever way to get past the wards? A mouse? Or an insect? No ordinary shapeshifter could turn into a bug, but it was a kind of animal, after all. Could something like that slip through the wards undetected? What was it she was missing? Nothing to do but keep her senses, open, search every face for enemies, and be prepared for anything. As it turned out, though, she was entirely unprepared when it happened. Nissa and Galen were the two wandering the house at that point. Keller and Winnie were sticking with Iliana. Keller herself didn't plan to leave Diana's side all night. But as she was watching Jaime and Iliana laughing and chattering by one of the food tables- which offered everything from barbecue to shrimp to exotic fruit-Brett walked up chewing his lip. He was heading for Iliana, but he looked undecided and genuinely unhappy. Keller headed him off reflexively. She preferred to keep him away from Iliana just on principle. â€Å"Anything wrong?† He glanced at her with something like relief in his dark blue eyes. For once, he didn't look arrogant or patronizing or even well groomed. â€Å"Uh, there's something†¦ I need to tell Iliana about†¦ I guess.† He gulped, his face twisted. â€Å"You guess?† Keller herded him into a relatively private niche beside a video game. â€Å"What do you mean, you guess?† â€Å"Well, I do have to tell her. I just hate to.† He lowered his voice so that Keller had to lean closer to hear him. â€Å"Her mom's on the phone. And she says that her little brother is missing.† Ice water sluiced over Keller. For five seconds, she didn't breathe at all. Then she said, â€Å"What?† Brett grimaced. â€Å"He's missing from his bedroom. And, I mean, I hate to scare Iliana with it, because he's probably just crawled out the window or something-he's that age, you know? But her mom wants to talk to her. She's sort of hysterical.† He wet his lips. â€Å"I guess we should all go over there as a search party.† He's really worried, Keller thought dazedly, while another part of her mind, a clear, cold part, clicked through possible solutions. So there's something under that brand-name facade after all. In spite of the â€Å"he probably crawled out of the window† crap, he's worried about the kid-and he's worried about telling Iliana, too. Because Diana's going to go ballistic, the cold part of her mind put in. She's going to get as hysterical as her mom and insist on rushing back there. And a search party-that would mean all of us outside the wards, crawling around between houses in the dark†¦ No. It couldn't happen. It was undoubtedly just what the dragon wanted. But how had he gotten to the baby? With all those wards and the agents watching the house-how? It didn't matter. Right now, she had to deal with the situation. â€Å"Brett-don't tell Iliana.† â€Å"Huh? But I have to.† â€Å"No, you don't. Ill talk to Mrs.-to Aunt Anna. I'm her niece, remember? And I have an idea where the baby might have gone. I think he's safe, but she has to know where to look.† Brett gawked at her. â€Å"You have an idea?† â€Å"Yeah. Just let me talk to her. And don't say anything to Iliana just yet.† Keller glanced toward the game room bar, which was set up like an English pub. There was a phone, but a girl with red hair was talking animatedly into it, while eating nuts from a bowl. â€Å"It's the other line, Jaime's line,† Brett said. â€Å"She said she called on that one first, but it was busy.† â€Å"Okay, where's the other line?† â€Å"Jaime's room.† Keller hesitated, looking at Iliana. Winnie was on one side of her and Jaime on the other. They were the center of attention, something like the heart of a rose, with other people surrounding them like petals. At least she was in full view of everyone. And somebody trying to get to her would have to go through all of them first, and that would alert Winnie. But I wish Nissa and Galen were here to take over from me. She glanced at her watch. Fifteen minutes before they were supposed to come back to the game room. The baby couldn't wait that long. She forged through the crowd and touched Winnie's shoulder. â€Å"I have to run for a minute-a phone call. Nothing to worry about yet. I'll make it fast,† she murmured in Winnie's ear. Winnie glanced at her, surprised, but then she nodded. â€Å"Problems?† â€Å"Maybe. Stay alert.† Keller said it through a smile for Iliana's benefit. When she got out of the throng, she said to Brett, â€Å"Take me there.† Actually, she knew where Jaime's bedroom was from the plans. But she didn't want Brett hanging around Iliana. His face alone would give away the show. They hurried up the wide staircase. Keller's mind was racing, making plans. I can calm her down, at least. And I can call Circle Daybreak and tell them-if they don't already know. They'll make a much better search party than humans. Iliana doesn't need to know about it at all until after the ceremony. And then†¦ Her mind stalled, and the sick feeling in her stomach grew. No. It wouldn't be enough. She knew what she really had to do. I have to go back there. Just me. I owe Diana that much. I owe the whole family that much. I'll be the best one to search. I can drive over to the house feist and see what's going on. Borrow a car from Brett. That way, when the dragon attacks-and he's going to attack-I'll be the only one there. You'll be the only one dead, a snide little voice in her mind pointed out. But Keller gave it the cold shoulder. She knew that already. It wasn't important. You're going to risk your life-give up your life- for a baby? One who's not a Wild Power, not even a shapeshifter? At least I'll get another chance at the dragon, she told the voice. You're going to risk the mission, the alliance, the whole daylight world, for a single individual? the voice went on. This was a better point. But Keller had only one thing to say to it. I have to. â€Å"Here.† Brett gestured at the open door of a pretty bedroom, then followed Keller when she went in. â€Å"Um, can I help you?† He was getting over his worry and trying to cozy up to her again. â€Å"No.† â€Å"Oh. Well, I'll leave you alone, then.† He slid out the door, closing it behind him. And Keller let him. Later, that was what she couldn't quite believe. That she had been stupid enough to walk into the trap and stand there while it snapped shut. She picked up the phone. â€Å"Mrs. Dominick?† Silence. . At first, just for a moment or two, she thought Hiana's mother might have stepped away from the phone. But then the nature of the silence got to her. There were no sounds in the background at all. It was dead air. Keller hit the plunger to hang up the phone. Nothing happened. No dial tone. She glanced at the phone cord; it was plugged into the wall. She pushed the plunger rapidly, four times, five. Then she knew. She'd been suckered. In one motion, she whirled and sprang to the door. Only to twist the handle uselessly. It was locked. And it was a good, sturdy door, made out of solid wood, the kind they used to make. She found this out by throwing herself against it hard enough to bruise her shoulder. It had been locked with a key from the outside, and the bolt was a good, sturdy one, too. White icy-hot rage swept over Keller. She was more angry than she could ever remember being in her life. She couldn't believe it-she'd been fooled by an idiot human boy. The Night People must have gotten to him somehow, must have bought him†¦ No. Keller knew she wasn't a genius. But sometimes ideas came to her in a flash, allowing her to see a complete picture all at once where other people saw only fragments. And right now, like a bolt of lightning, realization dawned on her, and she understood. Oh, Goddess, how could we have been so stupid? She knew how the dragon had done it.

Recent Political Advances in LGBT - 1741 Words

Recent political advances in the LGBT community suggest that the gay rights movement has progressed tremendously since the countrys first known gay rights organization was formed in 1924. In fact, 14 states currently recognize same-sex marriages, and other states like Illinois will soon follow the same path (NCSL, 2013). LGBT rights were also championed at the national level with the repeal of DOMA. However, social progress often lags behind political reforms: while numerous states and the country as a whole are slowly accepting the LGBT community, laws do not necessarily guarantee social acceptance. 33% of the US population still believes society should not accept homosexuality (Pew Research Center, 2013). As a result of the large portion of the country still opposed to LGBT rights, homosexual men and women are affected by stress, loneliness, prejudice, out group bias, conformity, and a lack of a stable self-concept. All of these aspects of social psychology create a hostile social environment that can foster mental health issues such as depression (Meyer, 2003). To reduce the severity of these issues and the probability of mental health problems amongst the LGBT community, future reforms must be made both in legislation and society as a whole. In conclusion, this Capstone consists of three parts: analysis of recent political and social advances, problems that the LGBT community faces as a result of existing homophobia, and recommendations for future laws andShow MoreRelatedThe Activity Dawn Chose For This Assignment Was To Take1733 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Well, if this isn’t a clear case of homophobia, I don’t know what is†. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people have always had children. In the past, this usually occurred in the context of a heterosexual marriage or relationship. 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