For this assignment, I chose to do an audience that actively resists against Barbie. This is applicable to the assignment requirements because Mattel Inc wishes to exact legal punishment for the infringements of his copyrights on Barbie. These fans of Barbie that engage in textual poaching and show resistance are coming face-to-face with a monolith that wants to enact vengeance and solidify an empire of consumerist profit. I will use Mark Napier, the webmaster of The Distorted Barbie (http://users.rcn.com/napier.interport/barbie/barbie.html) and the AntiBarbie Club (http://www.antibarbie.com/). These websites will demonstrate how the audience’s shared experiences allow them to reconstruct the ideological values that Mattel Inc had inscribed in Barbie.

The reasons that motivate this audience to resist against Barbie is because of its foundational influences on today’s society. According to Steiner (1988), individuals may adopt reasons to resist the media in such ways as removing themselves from their “role as consumers or by actively struggling against the ideas and images projected [by the media]” (p. 3). Mark Napier is a perfect example of this “struggle against the ideas and images” of the media because he clearly states that:

I created this site to explore the phenomenon of Barbie. Not Barbie as a toy or collectible, but Barbie as a symbol that a culture has created, absorbed, shaped, and been shaped by. The site is a visual exploration. (www.detritus.net).

For Napier, his struggle to resist the Barbie phenomenon has come under fire by Mattel Inc and so, this struggle is his justification as to why one should explore the influence of Barbie. Barbie is a site of struggle for Napier because he connects this to his daily social experiences (Livingstone, p. 351) and it is therefore connected with strong relevance to his life. In this way, Mark Napier is attempting to shape “[his] media culture,” (Livingstone, p. 339) by “[beginning his] Barbie awareness program” (www.detritus.net). Mark Napier is resisting the Barbie paradigm and his resistance comes in the form of informing and allocating a resistance movement, perhaps, to produce a paradigm shift against Mattel Inc. Those who agree with Napier are “contributing to the process of shaping and co-constructing their material and symbolic environments” (Livingstone, p. 339). This means that Mark Napier and those who agree with his statements about Barbie can re-construct reality in accordance with their beliefs. They may not influence Mattel Inc, but their influence is indirect, as it influences the audience that receives Barbies. This is their motivation, to ensure that audiences receive information about how Barbies are being created and being solidified in a materialist culture.

Napier and the critically conscious fan community engage in textual poaching that, for Mattel, intellectually infringes upon the rights of the Mattel. Since these images appear to intentionally impact the original make-up of the Barbie, The Distorted Barbie performs experimentation that children have been performing for centuries on the Barbie. These experimentations that children have been engaging in have not appeared into Mattel’s consciousness; however, once they are spread through the media, he does not react to these images in a positive way and does not engage in discourse as to why this fan community distorts Barbies, but files lawsuits and court action. In several cases, these court proceedings have been ruled as free speech and parodies. For example: Mattel filed a trademark infringement and lawsuit in September 1997 against Aqua for their hit song “Barbie Girl” which resulted in the decision that it was a parody.

This fan community considers Barbie to be an exceptional source of intrigue and knowledge from society itself and this is evident in the various parodies songwriters to website designers have created against the Barbie.

The interpretive community that provides the “frame” for oppositional readings is the Barbie critical audience. These critical consumers have framed the issue of Barbie as a social construction. Mark Napier’s fan community is attempting to contextualize the problem of consumer relations with Barbie. For Mattel, the wide-spread use of Barbie is an integral component to his success in the industry and against his competitors. However, for Napier and his interpretive community, they find that Barbie is a deliberate construction of many negotiations which relate to ideological promotion of materialist consumption and that Barbie perpetuates a necessity for these consumers. In The Distorted Barbie, Mark Napier outlined about 6 websites which were taken down by Mattel Inc. He explained that their interpretive community was under attack because of their ideological resistance to the consumption of materialist culture.

Steiner (1988) states that, “readers construct meaning according to assumptions and strategies they adopt by virtue of their participation in a specific interpretive community” (pg. 3). Essentially, the Barbie community is a collective in which they all agree that problems arise out of the dependency of the Barbie. The Anti-Barbie Club (www.antibarbie.com) is a widely renowned as one of the leading websites that promote a passionate hate towards Barbie. In their “About Anti-Barbie” page regarding why they were doing what they were interested in, they stated that:

Anti-Barbie was formed in late 2002 by ex-Barbie doll collectors who finally had enough of the negative impact Barbie was having on today’s society. Actions by Mattel Inc have been not only stupid and devilishly evil but greedy, callous, devious and just plain not very nice (www.antibarbie.com)

This interpretive community finds it necessary to deconstruct Barbie’s connotations because of Mattel’s attempts to safeguard it from their influence. In this way, they find it necessary to align themselves as a collective so that their efforts can slowly reverse Mattel’s hostility towards them. As a collective, their influence becomes greater and so will their interpretive community. Furthermore, their frames of opposition will grow stronger the more Mattel resists.

The effectiveness of oppositional voices is very minimal because of Mattel’s aggressive corporate structure, which is intent on removing any and all traces of resistance activity against the Barbie copyright. Voices like Mark Napier are understood by Mattel Inc as inflicting with his original message that Barbie is a necessity for young girls. In a letter to Mark Napier, Mattel’s lawyer wrote “Mattel’s copyrights with respect to the BARBIE character are therefore extraordinarily valuable” (October 10, 1997: www.users.rcn.com). Mattel’s lawyer wrote that Napier must “immediately take whatever steps are necessary to remove this page from the Internet and prevent the further publication of its contents, and (ii) confirm to me in writing that you have done so within 5 business days” (www.users.rcn.com). In this way, the effectiveness of oppositional voices may be diminished from the producer’s use of legal protection of his intellectual property.

The producer (Mattel) and the oppositional voices (Napier) are in almost equal plane of influence, however, more power rests with the producers. This is because producers are the ones encoding the messages into the text, stated Hall, and audiences simultaneously decode these messages “according to diverse discursive contexts which are themselves socially determined” (Livingstone, p. 343). This is because Napier is part of the ideological state apparatus whereby his polysemic readings of Barbie are limited by the ideological institutions of his society (Napier is Catholic). However, Napier is able to spread influence by his “awareness program,” and perhaps that is a different form of power that audiences use. In this case, although Mattel’s work is his copyright (Barbie), the distortions that Napier creates are attempting to influence Barbie consumers into a new way of receiving their Barbie product. In this way, the power that Napier enacts is a semiotic robinhood, in that he uses symbology and intertextual references to other forms of popular culture and mainstream religion to bring to perspective another way of interpreting Barbie. This grants him an influential power that is different from owning the intellectual property of Barbie.

As stated before, Mattel does not willingly subside his hostility, and, according to Doss (1999), Mattel fails to realize how beneficial the fan community’s discontent truly is. Since Mattel primarily focuses on the economical benefits of Barbie, he approaches his audience as puppets of consumerism rather than an intellectual audience who may or may not enjoy Barbie. Although the fan community is not readily able to concentrate their influence like Mattel, they are able to spread the knowledge of their experiences collectively.

The Barbie fan community utilizes the easy distribution and cost-effective strategy of disseminating their discontent with Barbie online. This is an important medium for this audience because it is the only medium that will allow them to simultaneously expand their knowledge of Barbie as well as get in touch with other resistant groups. Furthermore, this audience finds it an interesting way to keep in touch with other resistors online, particularly through the sharing of experiences. Also, the internet has this particular versatility and flexibility that provides them with a complete understanding of their social and cultural institutions. Essentially, the medium of choice is an optimal one as it is able to guarantee them anonymity and share knowledge about their past experiences with Barbie.

This is a highly intelligible audience because they are able to frame their interpretations based on the experiences they gather. Mark Napier’s experience began when he was in camp and that helped him see how another girl in the camp used Barbie. He then became very interested in the ways that Barbie nests this ideology of consumerism. For Napier and the others, they felt that their experiences were important and it was their experiences, which led them to review how significant the impact of Barbie had been in society.

The Barbie fan community reads differently but understands the initial text of Barbie itself. Those who enjoy Barbie facilitate the dominant reading that Mattel Inc. had prescribed. These collectors oftentimes wield close to a hundred dolls each, some enthusiasts, according to Abercrombie & Longhurst (1998), maintain a satisfaction for Barbie that is consistent with hyper-consumerism. Grossberg called this a hyper-consumerist sensibility and although these fans read the same text that resistors read, their gratification intensifies and leads to the consumption of multiple Barbie products. Essentially, these are the consumers that Mattel Inc. wishes to target, otherwise Mattel would react hostile towards other ways of decoding.

Towards the polar opposite lie a collective who feel that Barbie threatens the moral institutions that govern the individual and replace these moral beliefs with that of materialist ideologies. Essentially, the individual as a consumer who willingly negotiates his/her identity with the material goods they purchase replaces the individual as a moral being. These oppositional readers believe that it is important to share their experiences with other like-minded (interpretive community) individuals.

Livingstone suggested that audiences responsiveness comes in three significant ways: relevance, realism, and relativism. This fan community uses relevance because, according to Livingstone, they make “connections…with one’s own life” (p. 351). This in turn must relies on the realistic component of what they respond to—Barbie. It is mportant for the audience to contextualize the reality (Livingstone, p. 351) of Barbie because they will then redefine their culture based on their interest. Lastly, relativism provides the audience with increased ability to foresee and consider ways in which they formulate their texts. The audience responds polysemically, according to Fiske and Livingstone. One particular interesting fact here is that this audience does not share the same experiences that Kitzinger (1998) concludes. Because this audience responds with different experiences, this audience is diverse because an interest in Barbie can stem from a number of factors.

The difference between interpretation and reaction is that interpretation is the result of assigning denotations and/or connotations about text or an object which forms codes/conventions of critical analysis. These fans engage in the discourse of interpretation rather than reacting to undermine Barbie completely. These individuals react non-physically and with intellectual and formal discussion. However, the reaction from Mattel is nothing but intellectual, simply legal.

In her essay, Brown (1997) outlined the way in which conservative leaders attempted to reconfigure her image to suit a more acceptable position of power. For the conservatives, her appearance showcased weakness and required the attitude of masculine assertiveness to emphasize her strength. Meanwhile, feminine activists were pushing forth a more feminized political leader. This evidently resulted an the prenuptial disagreement about how Hilary should look like and subsequently led to the difficulty of controlling the very image of Hilary since audiences were going to decode very differently anyways.

For Brown (1997), it was clear that political powers may not necessarily be able to perform their will as they please. Clearly, there were crevices in the way that corporations and political systems governed society, particularly in intellectual property. Popular icons and brands cannot completely be pulled away from these cracks in the system, the “leaking” hegemonic powers that seek to control all facets of knowledge. Because of these uncertainties in maintaining intellectual property, fans feel that it is their opportunity to extrapolate on issues that corporations seek to avoid.

What is particularly interesting is the way in which the critical Barbie community is able to re-locate the ideological values of Barbie. Much like the way Doss (1999) described the way the Elvis fan community reconstructed the image of Elvis in velvet paintings, this Barbie critical community is reconfiguring the image of Barbie to recapture their childhood moments. However, the Barbie critical community is reprogramming the ideological foundations that Barbie rests on out of their disgust for it whereas the Elvis fan community in Doss’s (1999) essay were doing this because of their love for Elvis.

Producers feel that their intellectual property is a part of their image and they feel that it is threatening their intellectual property once fans engage in intellectual activities. Essentially, fans feel that they have a stake and should be able to control some of the things that they consume. Producers feel that their trademark is being questioned and their intellectual value to their texts while fans feel that those textual creations that producers provide them are theirs for analysis. Mark Napier is an individual who attempts to shine light on the abundance of Barbie dolls in society and feels that Mattel’s Barbie is the construction of an ideological normativity, for example:

There are certain things we all should know about Barbie history. When an icon carries this much weight in a society, it becomes so present, so commonplace that it becomes almost invisible, taken for granted. When this happens we have to dredge our collective memories, to see what awareness we can dislodge. (http://users.rcn.com)

Pick any icon. Barbie is a perfect subject for an inquiry into symbols. She is nearly ubiquitous, crosses international and religious borders. She is available to children and so is a part of their education and growth, and she is a product of the contemporary commercial image making industry, in some ways the same industry that produced the images of Ronald Regan, Kate Moss, Nintendo and the Persian Gulf War.

What stories does this icon tell? (http://users.rcn.com)

Therefore, Mattel’s intellectual property becomes a sight of interesting discussion about the dependency of Barbie in American society. Mark Napier is a highly intelligible and remains ideologically aware of the conditions which wrought the success of Barbie and the ideological values its inscribed in. So for Napier to negotiate this dependency with hyper-consumerism, he repositions Barbie’s values and Mattel’s intellectual properties into a discussion about the dangers of carrying and relying on such symbols. For Mattel, they find it threatening that Napier would write these remarks and would not want the general public to be educated about the dangers of this “ubiquity” that Napier describes.

Mattel Inc. does not realize that “fandom diversifies…[as] it moves from cult status to the cultural mainstream” (Jenkins, 2000, p. 161). For Jenkins (2000), fans engage in intellectual discourse over the internet as it is the new more readily accessible form of communicative inquiry. Mattel’s decision to censor certain texts like The Distorted Barbie is met with a lot of challenges against other equally hateful Barbie websites.

Conclusion:

The Barbie critical fan community is very interested in the ideological investments that society has made over time with Barbie. These investments are the ones that Mattel Inc. wishes to maintain, but are in direct conflict to the shared experiences that fan communities online wish to expound upon. Mark Napier is an exceptional example of this struggle to extrapolate the reasons behind the success of Barbie in The Distorted Barbie. As an arena of ideological struggle, Mattel Inc. and Barbie haters worldwide find that their questionable statements to the dependence of Barbie in childhood must be deconstructed. Napier feels that children are being given the ideological necessities of “making it” it in this world (hyper-consumerist sensibiities), rather than attributing an affective enjoyment of the world itself. Even though textual reproductions may seem horrid, they are taken to be parodies that Mattel Inc wishes to terminate. Essentially, Barbie is a great example of where producers and audiences engage in discourse, for it is an arena wrought with legal disputes, cease and desist letters, and physical condemnation of a curse they call “Barbie”.

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Barbie Kills Fans is a post from: The Glaring Facts

Don McKellar’s Last Night tells the story of how a variety of characters spending their remaining evening on Earth: the world is to end at midnight as the result of a calamity that is not explained, but which has been expected for several months (For example, “It’s not the end of the world… there’s still six hours left.” Several scenes of a glowing sun, which gets progressively larger and brighter, imply that the end of the world is the result of a celestial event, possibly a supernova. Last Night details the last six hours of the earth’s existence with humor, irony, and pathos. With the unspecified apocalypse long since announced, the film’s characters go beyond initial blinding panic and settle into an uneasy resignation about their imminent demise, which occurs at the stroke of midnight. Instead of looting and pillaging, most citizens celebrate their final day as if it were New Year’s Eve. Director Don McKellar weaves together the stories of a handful of characters with both a sardonic eye for the absurd. The film’s starkly existential situation achieves moments of great poignancy, particularly during the film’s (and the earth’s) final moments.

This film is recognizably Canadian for its intense use of direct cinema tradition and style. Last Night constructs an explanation of the events in a methodical way, as the cameras play a key role in the act of observing human interactions and behaviours. In an attempt to represent a country bereft of direct relationship with Hollywood’s media apparatus, Last Night deploys a unique system of differentiation that isolates itself from Hollywood’s influence. Don McKellar uses lengthy track shots, meditative camera angles interlaced with soft zooms and strategic crane shots. McKellar is successful in capturing the essence of human fragility—as the camera angles and shots compliment the interaction between each character. McKellar uses a soft camera stylistic feature that contributes to a lot of emphatic relational developments between viewer and protagonist. For example, McKellar draws a significant degree of empathy from the audience through slow camera angles near the ending sequence that depicted Patrick (played by Don McKellar) and Sandra (played Sandra Oh) about to commit suicide. It is with this relationship that is a unique style of Canadian cinematic performance. Central in this difference between Hollywood’s highly stylized camera shots compared to the observational inquiry lens of Don McKellar’s Last Night is critical in the analysis of Canadian cinema. In terms of style, Last Night captures the essence of the Canadian cinematic traditions.

In a broader approach, Last Night also follows a tone of realism that is distinctly Canadian. McKellar draws on the importance of humanity rather than epic displays of explosions similar to Armageddon. Unlike big budget Hollywood films such as Deep Impact or Armageddon whose spectacle coincides with the attractive displays of monetary enjoyment, Don McKellar’s Last Night uses a particular tone that focuses on human compassion. In cinema, a movie’s tone refers to its manner of presentation and the general atmosphere that a filmmaker creates through his or her attitude toward the story (Giannetti, Leach, 61). McKellar uses a countdown system which repeats near the end of the world, which creates a tone of imminent catastrophe—the final confrontation with the end of all things. Through this use of tone, McKellar establishes a unique representation regarding the ideological values of Canada’s people rather than the heroic fantasies of Hollywood’s apocalyptic films. In a description of the tone, Don McKellar states that:

The world is ending, once again. But this time, in my movie, there is no overburdened loner duking it out with the asteroid, no presidents or generals turning the tables on extra-terrestrials. Those heroes are out there, somewhere, one hopes, but I was interested in the rest of us suckers—hapless individuals who, with limited access to nuclear resources, would have to come to terms with the fast-approaching finale (IndieWire). With this undertaking, McKellar’s tone evolves beyond the spectacle of asteroids and affects our responses to the values represented in his narrative. McKellar’s narrative is distinctively Canadian because of his patterned illustration of dividing scenes strategically among his various characters. In particular, McKellar’s tone is elevated once he explains that, because the world is ending, individuals attempt to face the inevitable through prayer and meditation, engaging in prolific sexual gratifications, stealing, and violent enjoyment. Also, McKellar intensifies his emphasis on inevitable companionship (Patrick and Sandra kissing at the end of the film) through dialogue, short silences, and careful insertions of love songs. In Canadian cinema dialogue is a particular asset that Canadian cinema utilizes (Egoyan, 5). McKellar’s use of tone is distinctively Canadian in that he portrays, instead of spectacular displays of imminent catastrophe, dialogue that emphasizes a strong tone that, as a result, creates empathy and engages the audience with the characters.

Don McKellar’s Last Night achieves another distinctively Canadian ideological value of theme. Whilst [link2post id="155"]Hollywood[/link2post] is centrally focused on materialist heroic delusional fantasies, Canadian cinema focuses on the narrative presentation of themes. For instance, Armageddon was released using a $140 million budget while Last Night was produced with a $2 million budget. The overall intent of Hollywood releases like Armageddon is achieving high revenues from the success of the film rather than developing a critical outlook towards concepts which have had long-standing influence in society, such as the end of the world. McKellar’s distinctively Canadian film Last Night emphasizes a thematic approach of human companionship. The intimacy of human relationships becomes a central concern for McKellar as he attempts to answer the daunting question: “what happens to people when confronted with the end of the world?” In McKellar’s attempt to answer this question, he projects a different image of the end of the world as a moment that ends in a blinding light rather than a consuming darkness. Weiland states that “the nature (or realism) is a purveying influence in the construction and understanding of a binding Canadian cinematic aesthetic” (63) placing McKellar’s analysis to a fictional, although a realistic interpretation regarding the end of the world, unlike Armageddon. Don McKellar uses meditative camera-work to establish a theme of thought-provoking critique about the end of the world. In McKellar’s analysis, he finds that people not only run in panic and fear about the end of the world, McKellar also looks at the background issues by individually assessing unique individuals who seek to end their lives in multiple ways. McKellar takes the lead as Patrick, a troubled man who has to deal with his family (including sister Polly), sex-crazed friend Craig (Rennie), and lost lamb Sandra (Oh), who’s trying to get home in time so she and her husband can kill each other before midnight, when the world will go away (in a mysterious fate). The connection between these characters is evident in the final confrontation with the end of the world, but the way they spend their time until they encounter the end of the world is different and they each embody a theme. As a Canadian film, Last Night demonstrates Canadian themes and expresses the issue of Canada’s intent to establish thematic representations of human interaction rather than plain material fantasies.

McKellar’s Last Night focuses on the struggle for attaining autonomy in the Hollywood dominated film industry. Hollywood’s overarching influence reduces Canada’s chances of domestic and international success to a dull halt. Straw asserts that, like many “The sense that English Canadian feature films are typically more elliptical, unresolved, and restrained in narrative and stylistic terms is by now a commonplace within discussions of this cinema” (120). It is in this way that Last Night encapsulates the unresolved issue of a mysterious fate, a troubling question everyone has asked regarding the end of the world and humanity’s fate. However, Giannetti and Leach explained that, “Hollywood films continue to dominate the world’s screens” (326). Consequently, these engagements that viewers made with Hollywood have “apparently universal appeal and [have] set the norms against which other national cinemas have to define themselves” (Giannetti, Leach, 326). Don McKellar’s Last Night follows a distinctively Canadian style because it attempts to define against conventional Hollywood delusions of heroism. Furthermore, McKellar creates a cinematic presentation of identification against Hollywood productions which express “different experiences that reflect and express distinct cultural identities” (Giannetti, Leach, 326). These “distinct cultural identities” come in the form of particular styles, tones, and themes aforementioned above. These aspirations of reaching a distinct Canadian identity is “complicated by political, economic, and technological changes that have deeply affected our understanding of national identity” (Giannetti, Leach, 328). Among the network sphere of Hollywood and its influence on Canada’s national identity, McKellar’s Last Night revisits Canadian values and themes in order to heighten the appeal of the outcomes regarding the end of the world. With a small budget, McKellar faced a great deal of economic struggle maintaining the assets and distribution of $2 million strategically. However, in the final product, Last Night revealed a world of opportune moments for Canada’s national identity. Despite a successful result, Atom Egoyan notes that, “Canadian films are, to a great extent, foreign films in their own country” (1); similarly, Giannetti and Leach observe that:

When Canadians do see the products of their own national cinema, they often respond as if these were foreign films with unfamiliar conventions and cultural values. In Canadian video stores, Canadian films are often found in the ‘international’ section. (Giannetti, Leach, 330). Quite literally, Don McKellar’s Last Night was indeed found in the “International” section of a Blockbuster rental outlet. Consequently, Egoyan noted that “the real failure of Canadian film policy is that it has not been able to address the debilitating problem that is the lack of screen space for Canadian films” (6). Egoyan explains that the Canadian market does not have sufficient time slots available for promoting Canadian films. Essentially, the most poignant places where Canadian film is celebrated are Vancouver and Ontario (Giannetti, Leach, 328). Therefore, due to a lack of screen space for Canadian films, McKellar’s Last Night did not receive the impact of its intended audience because Canadian cinemas were uncertain of its successful value. However, Armageddon did show a release because of an increase in the probability of its overall success. McKellar’s Last Night attempts to identify against Hollywood’s influence by inverting the cultural values of a successful Hollywood film (i.e. instead of spectacle and explosions, McKellar uses a calm realistic approach to how ordinary people face the end of the world). As Giannetti and Leach noted, McKellar’s film attempts to assert its own national cinema by identifying against Hollywood cinema. This concept of Canadian identification is at the heart of a distinctively Canadian film.

Don McKellar’s Last Night brings to life the essence of Canada’s cultural values and identity. McKellar demonstrates unique approach that characterizes a Canadian film’s style, tone and themes. Without the use of spectacle, McKellar illustrates a dynamic environment of human companionship which is a distinctively Canadian approach. As an artifact, Last Night commemorates the identification value of a Canadian popular culture icon because McKellar attempts to define against Hollywood cinema, the intent of Canada’s national cinemas from their upbringing.

Bibliography

Egoyan, Atom. (2006). “Introduction to Canadian Cinema.” In Jerry White, ed. The Cinema of Canada. New York: Wallflower. 1-13.

Giannetti, Louis, Leach, Jim (2005). Third Canadian Edition: Understanding Movies. Toronto: Prentice Hall.

“Interview: ‘Last Night,’ Don McKellar’s Intimate Armageddon.” (1998). IndieWire: People. Accessed 23 March 2007<http://www.indiewire.com/people/int_McKellar_Don_991108.html>.

Last Night. (Don McKellar, 1998). Canada: Lions Gate Home Entertainment.

Missen, James. (2006). “Reason over Passion.” In Jerry White, ed. The Cinema of Canada. New York: Wallflower. 63-73.

Straw, Will. (2000). “Canadian Cinema.” In Hill, John and Gibson, Pamela Church, ed. World Cinema: Critical Approaches. New York: Oxford University Press. 139-143

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Last Night by Don McKellar is a post from: The Glaring Facts

In this chapter, the Lincoln Report describes the challenges facing the broadcasting industry and the unsettling obstacles ahead. In the beginning of the chapter, the Lincoln Report describes the availability of broadcasting in more remote areas through DTH satellite services. The Committee predicts that there will be continuous technological revolutions in the next 10 to 20 years and will therefore put “incredible strains on the Canadian broadcasting system”.

In a call for comments, the Lincoln Report found that there was significant approval that radio frequencies will now change to a digital format, television will go from analog to digital, and that specialty programming will grow rapidly and shift into a digital platform. The result, as witnesses have stated, is the expansion of new revenue streams and efficient transmission capacities as well as the quality of signals. However, despite these amazing benefits, there are also drawbacks that may slow down the pace and transition of the development. These drawbacks include: the cost of equipment and copyright, and the investments will be uncertain.

This digital transition may prove to have a significant impact on current legislations, particularly the Broadcasting Act and the Telecommunications Act. In this digital transition, policies will try to re-amend and repair the Broadcasting Act to serve changes in production and the distribution of content. The digital transition is also changing the business model, and there are uncertainties about the idea of innovation and experimentation. Furthermore, the Lincoln Report stated that coherent public-policy frameworks need to be established early on in response to this digital transition.

In order for Canada to respond adequately to this digital transition and embrace it, the Committee suggests that federal departments and agencies carefully organize a highly detailed plan to help businesses in the private, public and non-profit stakeholders. Furthermore, there should be an inclusion of detailed standards to properly monitor and inspect diversions in policy-agreed concepts. There should also be significant access granted to individuals in remote areas. There must also be significant regulatory support and adequate support for the growth of new revenue streams.

The Digital Transition is a post from: The Glaring Facts

Evidence of Anti-Semitism

The most important exploitation of anti-Semitism, as a device to achieve Zionists ends was revealed in an article in Davar the official organ of the Socialist labor Mapia party, the newspaper of Israel’s governing party. Editor Sharun wrote:

”I shall not be ashamed to confess that, if I had the power as I have the will, I would select a score of efficient young men – intelligent, decent, devoted to our ideal and burning with desire to help redeem Jews – and I would send them to countries where Jews are absorbed in sinful self-satisfaction, plague these Jews with anti-Semitic slogans, such as ‘Bloody Jew’ , ‘Jew go to Palestine’ and similar intimacies.  I can vouch that the results, in terms of considerable immigration to Israel from these countries, would be ten thousand times larger”

Another exposure of Zionist methods appeared in an article by Ian Gilmour, who said:

Since the basis of Zionism is that Jewish assimilation in other countries is in the long run impossible and that Anti-Semitism and persecution are bound to break out sooner or later, Zionism has almost a vested interest in racial discrimination. The Israelis mount ‘rescue operations’ to save allegedly threatened Jews in other countries…

He added: ” In the Arab countries, Jewish difficulties and immigration to Israel were the result not of  Anti-Semitism but of Zionist activities and the existence of the state of Israel. Zionism aggravated the disease that it professed to cure”

so Next time you get called Anti-Semitic, tell them that you are pro-Palestine and that they can eat their own BS.

The Glaring Facts Side-Note About Anti-Semitism

With the Israeli Lobby in the US having so much impact on governmental and foreign policy affairs, Israel has successfully guided the US into wars they could ahve been without, causing crushing detrimental chain reaction that would inevitably lead the US to support the Israeli agenda. The US Israeli Lobby with its long arms and massive reach had forced the US to support its ongoing systematic aggression with the Middle East, most notably in 1967, 1973, 1982, US war with Iraq in 1991 and 2003, Israel’s invasion of the Gaza and Lebanon in 2006, as well as its continual military threats against Syria and Iran since 2001 till the present day.

It is no wide-spread belief that Israel would be questioned on all maters of societal, foreign policy, and supposedly “democratic” process. A natural byproduct of the Jewish population is clearly the fear of “anti-semitism”. Despite revealing complex, irrefutable information to a zionist, the end response is merely the result of an emotional defeat appearing in the form of witchcraft ordainment, i.e. “YOU ARE AN ANTI-SEMITE”. All in all, we are time and time again shown that it is of no use to continue arguing.

“It is time to use our foreign aid as leverage and to insist on Israel to abandon its weapons of mass destruction and to abide by International Law. It is time we stop fooling the American people. It is time to get tough with Israel. After all, Israel is the biggest threat to world peace.” (Source)

Anti-Semitism Simplified

EU Poll finds Israel the Greatest Threat to World Peace

The survey was carried out in October by EOS Gallup. The pollsters asked 7,515 citizens from the 15 EU member states which countries posed the greatest threat to world peace. In the Netherlands (74 percent), Austria (69 percent) and Germany (65 percent) the largest percentage of people said Israel was a menace. Only Italy broke with the trend with less than half of those polled saying Israel was a threat (48 percent). In second place, after Israel, were Iran, North Korea and the United States, which 53 percent of the EU citizens deemed a threat.

Gary Peters: The Power of Israel in the United States (2006):

In both the United States and France, legislation is being prepared to equate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism and to criminalize as a ‘hate crime’ the free expression of outrage over Israeli atrocities and any criticism of the Lobby’s control of US Middle East policy.

What does this entail? Israel’s desire to ban anti-semitism is pushing forth measures to counter-act productive debate against their policies, their fear tactics, their everarching menacing demands and the consequences they perform. It cannot be unforseen that this would occur in the United States, as it is the most succeptible in any area of the world to Zionist pressures. These policies of the Israeli Agenda ahve serious consequences for ongoing discussion, something that continues to threaten Israel.

In all these legitimate forms of criticism, we are encountered with the benevolent and everlasting response (anti-semitism) — you are an anti-semite.

The Art of Anti-Semitism is a post from: The Glaring Facts

Your Identity, Where is it?

Identity Theft remains a major crime that can be catastrophic to American businesses and individuals.  In 2010, Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book reported that consumers filed over 1.3 million fraud claims and lost over $1.7 billion because of identity theft.  Debt collection, Internet services and lotteries are the more predominant predators.  Statistics by Javelin Strategies, a prominent firm that provides identity theft reports, said this cunning crime rose 11% in 2008-2009 meaning that one in every 20 Americans experienced losses through the year.

The Playstation Network Hack

Recently, Sony Corp.’s Playstation Network was breached revealing over 77 million accounts vulnerable for personal data.  On March 30, Epsilon, an online marketing company, was hacked exposing email addresses and customer names for millions of clients of USBank, Chase bank, Wal-mart, and other companies.  While both companies stated that compromise of their client’s accounts was minimum to zero, clients were still made aware of measures to take to minimize personal data loss.  In each case of identity theft, the consumer needs to be aware of possible attempts to obtain more data from potential thieves.

Be aware of your email Inbox.

Once aware that your email data is stolen, it is up to you to protect yourself from further damage.  Monitor your incoming emails and talk to those naive Internet users who are more vulnerable and may not understand how phishing scams or Internet fraud scams work.

Prevention Is the Best Protection

• Never provide your personal or financial data through email links or phone numbers provided in emails, even if they appear to come from your bank, insurance company or other possibly reliable source.  Instead, contact the company using numbers you know or through their specific web sites found outside of the provided email links.

• Contact your financial institution, insurance agent or credit source personally using phone numbers or email address on the backs of your credit cards, from your statements or from their specific web site.

• Beware of social engineers–those who call you and ask for personal and financial information over the phone.  Most banks will not call directly to ask for information.  Instead, tell them you will call the bank directly using the numbers you have or that you will visit the branch personally.

• Don’t email personal or financial information. If you want to use an online web site to pay a bill or purchase something, look for the secure indicators on the web site — a lock icon on the browser’s status bar, a secure data indicator such as an “https://” in the URL address.  If you have any doubts, don’t complete the transaction.

• Review credit card, bank statements and financial records monthly and report any suspicious activities.  Although some financial institutions may contact you if suspicious activity is suspected, many may not.  Awareness of your account activity can prevent loss and aid in recovery of fraudulent access to your account.

• Use a trusted Internet security system to protect your data.  Most Internet security software includes a firewall that blocks access to your data.  You become invisible online.  While you may receive notices that hackers have attempted to access your system, a good Internet security system will block the attempt keeping your data safe and secure.  Internet providers include Kaspersky, McAfee, Norton and many others that can be located through a good Google search.

• Forward spam that may be phishing scams to spam@uce.gov and to the bank or company that may be fraudulently represented in the email.  Companies that know their data may be compromised will increase their information to ensure client security and prevent a breach.

• If you believe you have been scammed, contact the Federal Trade Commission to file a complaint: ftc.gov.  Provide as much detail as possible and then visit their Identity Theft web site at www.consumer.gov/idtheft or more information on how to proceed to handle your situation.

These are only a few of the myriad of ways hackers use to acquire personal and financial information for Identity Theft purposes.  With more consumer awareness, Identity Theft can be prevented despite the breach of company databases that reveal information.  Using caution and knowing how to identify potential schemes, your identity will remain yours alone and using the Internet will be a safer way of communication to a global audience.

Resources:
Associated Press. (2011, April 29). US lawmakers press Sony for info on data breach. from Forbes.com

L.A. Times. (2011, April 27) Sony PlayStation breach: What the security experts are saying.  from Los Angeles Times/Business

FTC Consumer Alert (2011) How Not to Get Hooked by a “Phishing” Scam

Identity Theft — Keep Your Name to Yourself is a post from: The Glaring Facts

Obsessive love is a form of love where one person is emotionally obsessed with another.

Obsessive love is highly dangerous and can be the cause of murder, stalking, rape, suicide, among other things.

“The Obsessive Love Wheel”

The “Obsessive Love Wheel” (OLW) is a hypothetical sphere originally described by John D. Moore in his book, Confusing Love with Obsession. The wheel illustrates the four stages of Obsessive Relational Progression as part of Relational Dependency (RD).

The initial phase of ORP, (Obsessive Rational Progression), is characterized by an instantaneous and overwhelming attraction to another person. It is at this point the relationally dependent person becomes “hooked” on a romantic interest, usually resulting from the slightest bit of attention from the person they are attracted to.

Phase one: Attraction phase

• An instant attraction to romantic interest, usually occurring within the first few minutes of meeting.
• An immediate urge to rush into a relationship regardless of compatibility.
• Becoming “hooked on the look” of another, focusing on the person’s physical characteristics while ignoring personality differences.
• Unrealistic fantasies about a relationship with a love interest, assigning “magical” qualities to an object of affection.
• The beginnings of obsessive, controlling behaviors begin to manifest.

When I first met a girl named as Rini, (Serenity), I became instantly attracted to her. But the most embarrassing thing of it all is the fact of the six and half age difference plus the fact it was online and we lived over 3000 miles apart. I lived in the UK and she lived in the USA, Illinois – Chicago.

She made me happy and before I realised it I had become hooked to her. I wanted to be with her, I wanted to make her mine but there was one problem that I am deeply ashamed and embarrassed about. This was an unrealistic fantasy, and why? I was fourteen she was twenty-one. I fantasied deeply about things that would never happen because of the age difference. But how did these grow? She knew I liked her as any person would be able to notice. I was inexperienced in the ‘love game’ and my feelings just exploded all around the room. She joined the game with me, flirted and led me on. And then when I was hardly seeing her did my obsessive and controlling behaviours being to manifest. I couldn’t stop thinking:

“Why had she gone? Would she be back? Had she left me? Doesn’t she want to be around me anymore? I need to ask why she’s been gone. I need to make her stay. I need to ask her if she feels the way I do.”

Phase two: Anxious phase

This phase is considered a relational turning point, which usually occurs after a commitment has been made between both parties. Sometimes, however, the relationally dependent person will enter into this phase without the presence of a commitment. The relation can be severed here, resulting in a depressing time for the controlling party. If not severed by this time, psychological help will be required. This happens when the afflicted person creates the illusion of intimacy, regardless of the other person’s true feelings. The second phase of ORP behaviors can include :

• Unfounded thoughts of infidelity on the part of a partner and demanding accountability for normal daily activities.
• An overwhelming fear of abandonment, including baseless thoughts of a partner walking out on the relationship in favor of another person.
• The need to constantly be in contact with a love interest via phone, email or in person.
• Strong feelings of mistrust begin to emerge, causing depression, resentment and relational tension.
• The continuation and escalation of obsessive, controlling behaviors.
• Feeling the other partner doesn’t and shouldn’t need to contact, meet, bond and/or speak with others.
• Violent reactions (verbal and physical) directed to the loved one and/or to oneself if the controlled person starts denying the obsessive demands.

As she was hardly around I began to fear she had left me and would not be coming back. I began obsessing about her friends and kept pestering them to where she was and to get in contact with me so she could be with again. I wanted to be in constant contact with her I would wait hours and hours just to be with her but at times she would not return until the early hours because of work. My obsessive behaviours began to grow even more as she become more attached to me. Our flirting began to to increase and then she, herself, became sexual towards me pushing me even more to follow her.

Phase three: Obsessive phase

This particular phase represents the rapid escalation of this unhealthy attachment. It is at this point that obsessive, controlling behaviors reach critical mass, ultimately overwhelming the RD person’s life. It is also at this point that the person being controlled begins to pull back and ultimately, severs the relationship. In short, Phase Three is characterized by a total loss of control on the part of the RD person, resulting from extreme anxiety. Usually, the following characteristics are apparent during the third phase of ORP.

• The onset of “tunnel vision,” meaning that the relationally dependent person cannot stop thinking about a love interest and required his or her constant attention.
• Neurotic, compulsive behaviors, including rapid telephone calls to love interest’s place of residence or workplace.
• Unfounded accusations of “cheating” due to extreme anxiety.
• “Drive-bys” around a love interest’s home or place of employment, with the goal of assuring that the person is where “he or she is supposed to be.”
• Physical or electronic monitoring activities, following a love interest’s whereabouts throughout the course of a day to discover daily activities.
• Extreme control tactics, including questioning a love interest’s commitment to the relationship (guilt trips) with the goal of manipulating a love interest into providing more attention.

As I said before throughout this whole time period I could not stop thinking about her, how she made me feel and how when I would see her again and so forth. There was an increase of me asking her friends where she was because she had disappeared soon after we had become sexual with each other and I did not understand why. An extreme fear of abandonment kicked in and I would stay up hours and hours to wait for her but she did not appear. And finally I could not take it anymore I thought she had really abandoned me and I took my first overdose, (fluoxetine and ibuprofen). My mate had watched me do it and thought I really wouldn’t. A few hours later Rini appeared again and we talked, I stayed calm but I didn’t tell her. And then I snapped, I started getting the side effects of an overdose and I broke down. I told her what had happened and she begged me to tell my mother. I did so.

Phase four: Destructive phase

This is the final phase of Obsessive Relational Progression. It represents the destruction of the relationship, due to phase three behaviors, which have caused a love interest to understandably flee. For a variety of reasons, this is considered the most dangerous of the four phases, because the RD person suddenly plummets into a deep depression due to the collapse of the relationship. Here are some of the more common behaviors that are exhibited during phase four of ORP:

• Overwhelming feelings of depression (feeling “empty” inside).
• A sudden loss of self-esteem, due to the collapse of the relationship.
• Extreme feelings of self-blame and at times, self-hatred.
• Anger, rage and a desire to seek revenge against a love interest for breaking off the relationship.
• Denial that the relationship has ended and attempting to “win a loved one back” by making promises to “change”.
• The use of drugs, alcohol, food or sex to “medicate” the emotional pain.
• Suicidal thoughts may manifest. Without emotional counseling, suicide could become a reality.

After I came out of hospital my family went on vacation. My obsessive manifestations were still there I would always pester my grandad to give me his phone so I could go on the Internet and email her and check my mail. I must of emailed her at least four times and the rest spent checking a reply. I remember being embarrassed because just checking on the Internet for less than a minute for god knows how many times cost my grandad £12, (roughly $25 back then).

When I came home I couldn’t wait to see her and then she eventually came online. I was delighted but disappointed when I realised it was her friend. I was confused, deeply confused. Why would her friend be on her MSN and not tell me where she was or what she was doing? This ‘friend’ flirted with me. I ignored it as a good hearted person I stuck with it, not flirting back, but making whoever it was laugh and just be a friendly person. I myself personally enjoy making people happy so being funny is a way I make people happy. This ‘friend’ abruptly left. I waited roughly about three hours and finally Rini came online and this was the worst day of my life. Not because she abruptly left me but the worst emotional pain that followed that will scar me for the rest of my life.

At first I wouldn’t accept it and I still remember the date and time, Sunday the 1st of  June at 1:05am. I stayed calm for about an hour obsessing in my mind it wasn’t over. Although I had never asked her out or asked her if she liked me, (although she played a sick game on me where she said something close to ‘I love You’ thus leading me to say it back to her because it was how I felt), I had just grown to the idea we were in a relationship together.

However I broke down after about two hours and I began to cry. I began to break down mentally and emotionally thus leading to self destructiveness. I became extremely depressed, I felt numb and completely empty inside now Rini had abandoned me. I blamed myself for what had happened, I began to hate myself. Due to this hatred I began to starve, abuse solvents and mutilate my body. I began to become obsessive in the idea that it wasn’t over that she hadn’t ended the ‘relationship’ with me. I was in pure denial and I would constantly email her just to try and get in touch with her so she could stop the emotional pain. But no answer came.

I remember constantly I would switch from fantasizing about a perfect relationship with her eventhough she had abandoned me to pure hatred. I would fantasize about murdering her even haunting her. And then it would switch back to love and affection. This constant switching back and forth is just a standard defence mechanism created in childhood where we all use fantasies to hide from our emotional pain and fears.

Eventually all this became too much and the suicide attempts because a living reality.

Shortly before I broke up from school for the Summer, (Wednesday 16th July – As you can see my obsessive thinking led to me to remember the dates), I took an extremely fatal overdose of a hundred and ten aspirin tablets, (55,000mg of paracetamol). I stayed calm for less than ten minutes and then the effects began. It happened quite quickly and I was surprised. I began to throw up and I remember doing so on my bed, (lovely thought isn’t it?), I looked into my vomit and realised only one remaining capsule hadn’t been properly disgested. The rest was moving throughout my body preparing to destroy my liver and kidneys amongst over organs. Fear began and I rushed to the bathroom and proceeded to throw it. Only shortly and gratefully I rose. I will always remember this, as I tried to walk I felt the world on my shoulders. I felt so heavy, my heart thumped in my chest as the fear began to rose and then I couldn’t see straight nor walk straight. My vision swayed and blurred and I wanted to sleep, I wanted to close my rooms and I knew if I did they wouldn’t be opening any time soon. I took my laptop out my room as I had already called my dad to clean up my sheets I rested on my parents bed. I said goodbye to one of my closest friends and I closed my laptop. I closed my eyes and I cannot remember when I woke up but my friend had done some searching asking all my other friends for my address and he had succeeded. And that was how I got to hospital but it still doesn’t explain why I survived. It is unknown but atleast I accomplished the morbid achievement of the most lethal and most quanity of paracetamol ever taken at Heartlands Hospital. Although depressing, a girl before me near enough my age at the time, who, (a couple of hours before me), had taken a twenty five paracetamol overdose and had to have a liver transplant if she were to survive.

I never once admitted to anybody why I had taken the overdose and I never admitted at the time of the girl I had met online and fallen in love with. I was hospitalised for a few months before I lied my way out. I see it as stupidity and they classed my case as basically just me curing myself which is utter bullshit if you think about a mentally ill person suddenly curing themselves.

My Conclusion:

To conclude I have put forward a friend’s ideas of why a twenty-one year old woman could do this to a child  and we have reached the summary of this.

She abandoned me, she could’ve helped me and slowly overcome my infatuation, but she didn’t. She could’ve been more mature about how she handled it. I was helpless, inexperienced, unable to understand her. And all I did was try to but couldn’t resolve my love for her. She must of felt that she needed to end things with me abruptly due to her mind leading her into realization.

All those actions, all those things she said, they were her desires, I was the one channeling and responding. She didn’t know what to think about me, she didn’t know how to behave. She needed someone to love, but when her realization came it was too late and she abandoned me without explanation, as though she had come to some realization. And then she returned a second time before my overdose, only to repeat the same cycle. It was clear she hadn’t learned anything.

She loved me, she wished I was older, she wished I was what she was looking for in someone with her age and nobody could give that to her, and so she continuously exploited my feelings to make herself feel adored.

She was too weak to admit to herself what she was doing, that she could be helpful instead of abandoning, she felt imprisoned and she could not use herself to end it but used a mythical person to do so and thus running away like all cowards.

Overall Conclusion:

Overall as you can see Obsessive Love has devastating effects not only on the person who is obsessed but the victim they have become attached to and their family. Even after the ‘obsessive love relationship’ is over unrequited love can settle in. I never got over Serenity for over a year I rebounded in relationships although never sexual I still jumped from one to the next. And this is a very common thing that evolves trying to escape from the emotional pain so relying on another person to do so but once they see you are damaged you quickly move on to avoid any more pain. Another thing Obsessive Love can lead to is Obsessive thinking. Fantasies of murder, rape, stalking are all common and some become a reality.

If you believe you are suffering from Obsessive Love I would strongly advise you seek medical help.

Obsessive Love is a post from: The Glaring Facts

French Overture: During the baroque period, the French overture was widely used and its development has largely been accredited to French baroque composer Jean-Baptiste Lully. The French overture consists of three parts: slow beginning (dotted format and sometimes full of exaggerated rhythms) following a second phase consisting of fugal intonations followed by an end which is essentially almost like the beginning (slow). An example of such a musical form is shown by Lully’s Armide.

Stile Antico: this is a term used to refer to the old sacred choral/orchestral/opera pieces, almost nearing gregorian. This style is often religiously motivated in nature and is often associated with significantly older compositional styles. An example of this is shown in late baroque composers like Bach and Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis.

Stile Moderno: a term created by Claudio Monteverdi, stile moderno (otherwise known as seconda pratica) is basically an early baroque period style that highly valued freedom from its genre limitations (particularly counterpoint rules) towards more flexible approaches to music in general. An example is Claudio Monteverdi’s L’Arianna.

Opera Seria: This term is Italian for “serious” opera conducted for higher gentiles or nobles during the 1700s. It was a style of opera made for the autocratic courts who enjoyed luxurious ambience and richness. One of its founders was German composer Johann Adolf Hasse (1699-1783) who composed several opera serias like Tigrane.

Recitative & Aria: Recitative is described in baroque music as a musical mimic of direct speech either for a solo vocalist and an accompaniment through the uses of a simple melody line or a rhetorical rhythmic movement. It is similar to an aria in which specific sections are played expressively through the melody (it does not always have to be the singer). For example, Handel’s Rodelindas Gemächer uses both aria and recitative.

Ritornello: Used often in baroque music, ritornello is used to describe the repetitive occurance of a passage for an orchestra often in its beginning or last movement. It is generally considered a refrain or a chorus. It is often used in solo concertos or aria as described above. Handel and Bach often favourited the ritornello technique in Rodelindas Gemächer and the Brandenburg Concertos respectively.

Oratorio: Oratorio is considered a immense musical composition consisting of a choir, soloists, and an orchestra. It resembles closely to that of an opera, but does not include drama or literary storylines including romance and murder—it is strictly a sacred musical composition often discussing religious themes and stories. An example of this is Schütz Weihnachtshistorie (often considered the first German oratorio) and one of the most Handel’s Messiah.

Baroque Definitions is a post from: The Glaring Facts

Don’t Become An Identity Theft Victim.

In the past two weeks I’ve talked to five people who said their personal information has been lost

or stolen, giving huge opportunities for Identity Theft.   And I’ve been shocked at their comments when asked if it’s been reported.  Despite all the warnings and alerts about Identity Theft it’s amazing how few people truly grasp the consequences of true identity theft.

One college student’s mother told me her daughter lost her wallet at a party.  It contained her Social Security card, her student college ID, her driver’s license, three credit cards and some cash.  After three days neither the student nor her mother had contacted anyone of this loss; they were not aware that if the information had been stolen a lot of damage to the daughter’s personal identification could have already been compromised.

While it’s understandable that such a loss is embarrassing, and perhaps no action had been taken to save this embarrassment, the critical nature of a possible crime exists.  The loss of one’s identity has longer repercussions than temporary embarrassment.  And the possibility of being a crime victim reaches far deeper into one’s lifestyle.

Identity Theft Is More Sophisticated.

Identity theft has blossomed into a sophisticated crime.  Many identity thieves will acquire credit and debit card information and wait several weeks or months before using the data.  During this time, they may create a false picture ID using another person’s name.  They will create a false credit or debit card using this false information so when verified by a cashier it appears legitimate.  However, they are using your personal data to acquire goods and services for themselves leaving you to pay for their pleasure.

Another scenario is when identity theft using check information to create fraudulent checks against your checking account.  Perhaps a payment by checked is stolen from a PO Box Mailbox or from a counter where a letter was accidentally overlooked or left unattended.  Using modern computer software, the identity thief steals the bank routing information and checking account number and transfers the information to a new check using another person’s name.  This check information is then used to purchase multiple items via check.  The check is drawn against the identity theft victim’s account and reasonably untraceable.  Since the identity theft victim is unawares, it’s possible that proof cannot be made that the check is fraudulent and the victim is held liable for the payment of this check.

These are only two ways identity theft uses stolen information.  Previous examples of possible identity theft were listed in my earlier blog, Identity Theft — Keep Your Name to Yourself.

What Do I Do First?

Preparation can be key to adding stress to an already stressful situation when Identity Theft is suspected.  Have on hand the following lists:

• All credit card company names–MasterCard, VISA, Discovery, American Express, Diner’s Club,
• If a Debit/Credit card, list the financial institution from which it is issued
• Each card number,
• Expiration date,
• The three-digit security code on the back of each card beside the signature line,
• Customer Service phone number.

The three Credit Services that monitor your credit reports and provide credit ratings:

• TransUnion, 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com;
• Equifax, 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com;  and
• Experian, 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); www.experian.com

Know where to find or have already listed your local Sheriff or Police non-emergency number to contact them to file a report.  In some cases, you will be referred to a Service Center to make a report.

The Reporting Process

• Immediately, or as soon as possible, call each Customer Service number for each credit card and report the card stolen.  This alerts the credit card company of the loss and provides a date and time to begin tracking any purchases that may be considered fraudulent.  It should also protect you from being held liable for payment of any of these purchases.  Failure to report the loss may lead the credit card company to consider the purchases valid and hold you liable for payment.   Monitor each monthly eStatement or paper statement to verify all transactions are yours.   You can track your credit card usage, and may uncover other ways your credit is being compromised by overbilling or fraudulent transactions done from local restaurants or department stores.

• Contact the three Credit Agencies that maintain your credit scores.  Explain your loss and work with them to set up specific personal identifiers that restrict anyone else from accessing your information.  Require the company to contact you if any credit checks are done against your report so you are alerted if the credit cards are being used.  Monitor your credit reports to verify any action taken against your report.

• If your cards are Debit/Credit Cards through a bank or credit union, you may be contacted first of any unusual purchases. Many financial institutions watch out for their customers.  Fraud departments monitor credit card usage and know the habits of their clients.  When an unusual transaction occurs, they may call you with questions or an alert to verify the unusual action.  If you cannot verify you made the purchase, your account may be closed/frozen and considered compromised.

• Contact the non-emergency number of the local Sheriff’s Department or Police Department.  If the department requires you place a report at a Service Center or over the Internet, follow the instructions and be prepared to call and speak to a live person at your earliest opportunity.  Filing this report is mandatory in the recovery process and provides you with a Police Report number used in tracking your case.  Make sure to write down the Police Report number if given immediately or saving the information if received via Internet a few days later.

• Make sure to keep the Federal Trade Commission’s Identity Theft URL, http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/, available to report Social Security Card loss.

• If your Driver’s License is stolen, personally visit your local Department of Motor Vehicles as soon as possible to report the loss and get a replacement.  Contacting them by phone or Internet may provide additional information, but physically obtaining a replacement license will be critical to remain in compliance with driving your vehicle on public streets.

Write It Down

Write down the date and time of these calls and contacts and the name of the person you spoke to for your ongoing record of Identity Theft reporting.  This will be a welcome track record should it become a more serious issue other than a temporary inconvenience. Track each call to any credit union, financial institution, law enforcement agency, and the U.S. government to track your Social Security card compromise (if applicable).

Always Be Prepared

While this information may seem redundant since the Internet provides this information, the importance of keeping it in front of people is ongoing.  The opening scenario of the mother and college student who did not take immediate action is an example of how many remain unaware of the consequences of identity theft and the importance of immediate action following a loss.

“Identity theft is the nation’s fastest growing crime according to FBI statistics and identity theft/fraud is the fastest-growing category of Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaints,” according to Richard Hamilton, developer of The Police Notebook, and member of the University of Oklahoma Police Department, in a December 2010 update.  “Criminals don’t always need sawed-off shotguns and ski masks to make a big haul —your social security number, or a pre-approved credit card application from your trash, could be all they need.”

Identity Theft — When You Aren’t Really You. is a post from: The Glaring Facts

In order to understand how to defend against HIV/AIDS, it is important to understand what HIV/AIDS is. AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is a series of numerous infections and symptoms that arise from a damaged immune system. The immune system is responsible for producing and distributing white blood cells that the body uses to fight illnesses. Landau-Stanton (1993) states that those who are HIV positive are afflicted severely by common illnesses which become “opportunistic infections [that are] used as the diagnostic criteria of AIDS” (Landau-Stanton 7). Landau-Stanton explains that an opportunistic infection arises from individuals who lack healthy a immune system (immunodeficiency), which is caused by: malnutrition, skin damage, genetic predisposition, antibiotic treatment, medical procedures, recurrent infections or by HIV/AIDS (Landau-Stanton 20). Basically, HIV/AIDS targets white blood cells that are responsible for fighting common illnesses. If white blood cells are damaged or destroyed, the body will not be able to defend itself from common illnesses. Individuals who are HIV/AIDS positive are more susceptible to common illnesses such as influenza, allergies, sun damage, and so on. Hence, the effect of these common illnesses results in a chain-reaction that negatively influences other organs by weakening their performance. This results in death that may take from two weeks up to twenty years (Landau-Stanton 20). Moving onward, understanding the nature of HIV/AIDS is one of the cornerstones for furthering prevention.

The next step for ensuring anyone’s defense against HIV/AIDS is dependent upon the understanding of how one acquires the virus. The World Health Organization (WHO), a branch of the United Nations responsible for coordinating authority on international public health, noted that HIV/AIDS is acquired from the transmission of a bodily fluid containing HIV into the bloodstream. For example, anyone is susceptible to HIV/AIDS through direct contact from semen, blood, breast milk, and preseminal fluid (Center for Disease Control & Prevention 121). This transmission can be acquired through the exposure of the following: blood transfusion, intercourse, an exchange between mother and baby during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding, or other exposure to one of the above bodily fluids (Health Canada). Specifically, a great deal of controversy arises from homosexual male companionship. The AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) reported in 2004 that “Men have accounted for 85.6% of all positive HIV test reports in Ontario,” and, from those statistics, “Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) 67.5%” reinforced a major part of HIV/AIDS contact in men. Also, ACT reported that Ontario’s seen the most staggering increase of ‘HIV test reports in Canada with a total of 26,706.” Oftentimes, doctors recommend that both partners should seek medical examination before engaging in any sexual activity. This provides doctors with a warning that either one of the partners may have HIV/AIDS (Landau-Stanton 34). These simple steps significantly improve the overall reduction in the spread of HIV/AIDS, which doctors are placing particular emphasis on this goal. Furthermore, doctors apply an HIV test to see if an individual has the contagion. Knowing ahead of time if either one of the partners is HIV-positive helps greatly in preventing the spread of the virus. Moving forward, knowing about how HIV/AIDS is transmitted will help anyone prevent the virus from destroying their health, as well as taking actions to prevent the virus from targeting them.

Beyond the individual who is making an attempt to prevent the virus from spreading on to themselves, major groups and associations are taking part in demonstrations to heighten awareness about HIV/AIDS. In Canada, there are fifty-one associations who take part in the following: providing counseling, assisting patients by offering support group participation, education about HIV/AIDS, and providing funding for treatment (UNAIDS). In Ontario alone, there are eleven centers actively pursuing education and funding for individuals who are HIV-positive (UNAIDS). Unfortunately, there has not been a cure found that may isolate and eliminate HIV/AIDS. As a counter-measure, agencies throughout Canada are trying to increase awareness about HIV/AIDS. These agencies assert that the more individuals know about the virus, the likelihood that they will take measures to avoid contracting it. On a grand scale, Canada has developed a comprehensive method that annually renews funding towards the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The Canadian International Development Agency reported that Canada will assist recognized programs that have confirmed a track record of accomplishing results. These programs have supply $250 million for 2007 and 2008 for Canadians to help fight and find a cure to these devastating diseases. These agencies function exclusively from individual and community funding. To increase awareness and assist in prevention, anyone would be welcome to donate to these fifty-one associations. These associations and groups are at the heart of heightening awareness by educating individuals about the HIV/AIDS virus.

The most significant improvement to the reduction of HIV/AIDS has come from awareness and prevention. Furthermore, when one acknowledges the effects of the HIV/AIDS virus, the individual will come to understand what HIV does to the human body. In addition, understanding how HIV/AIDS is transmitted plays a major role in furthering attempts to prevent it. Although there is not a cure for the virus yet, knowledge about the way HIV is transmitted will ensure that individuals do not come in contact with the contagion. Lastly, knowing about which agencies in Canada are providing assistance to HIV-positive individuals, as well as spreading awareness of the contagion, is helpful because anyone may be able to donate and help keep that organization running to service the public. Knowing about these three corners of the issue helps improve awareness and will help in the prevention of HIV/AIDS.

Works Cited

ACDI-CIDA.gc. Canadian International Development Agency. 12 January 2007. 4 March 2007 <http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca>.

Actoronto.org. HIV/AIDS Statistics – Ontario. 7 February 2006. 7 March 2007 <http://www.actoronto.org/website/home.nsf/pages/hivaidsstatsont>.

Health Canada. “HIV and AIDS in Canada, a surveillance report.” Health Canada: The Centre for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control 5 April 2003: 5-25.

Landau-Stanton, Judith. Aids, Health, and Mental Health: a Primary Sourcebook. New York: Brunner-Mazel Publishers, 1993.

UNAIDS.org. United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS. 5 February 2007. 2007 March 4 <http://www.unaids.org/>.

WHO.int. World Health Organization. 23 January 2007. 5 March 2007 <http://www.who.int/>.

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Knowing More and Increasing Prevention of HIV/AIDS in Canada is a post from: The Glaring Facts

The Basics of Business Security

Even selecting the right Internet Security Software is important.  When I got my first computer I used the recommended virus protection package.  However, within six months I discovered my system was corrupted by viruses and Trojans that seeped through the security software and waged war against my system.  I was blocked from accessing my information, a book I’d been compiling, and all my other data.   It stopped me dead in my tracks.  Feeling defeated and disgusted, I sought help.  Eventually, I bought a new system and a very security Internet protection software package that has saved me time, money, and information. May sound silly, but I hear these same stories from other business owners who thought they had the right security package.

What Package Is Right for You?

Not all business operators are IT savvy… some personality types focus on what, to them, is more important and leave details about software to those who better understand the concepts.  With healthy competition, which product is best for your needs?

Your Business Security is of Critical Importance

When looking for Internet Security software look for packages that include some, if not all of the following:

• Antivirus
• Antispyware
• Firewall
• Security
• Features
• Technical Support/Help and which configurations the software supports.

Within each component are added Features that provide added protection.

• Is your Antivirus ICSA certified?
• How efficient is your Firewall?
• Does your Antispyware detect Adware, Spyware, Keyloggers and Trojans?
• Does the Technical Support provide Telephone Support, Email Support, Online Chat and Tutorials?

Read any reviews written by end-users about the program.  Personal experience provides insight on how it will add value to your needs.  What glitches have people found?  What about the quality of the Tech Support?

System rankings will alert you to whether it’s the ultimate best, how it compares to its competition, and whether it’s a good deal for the price.  Does it rank Five Stars compared to other systems?

You can find comparison studies or individual reviews of specific systems based on your Internet research.  Internet Security Suites Software Review 2011 gives you a bird eye’s view of 21 Internet Security packages, their cost, and the specifics.  Other sites such as PC Magazine.com, Nextadvisor.com, Consumersearch.com, all-internet-security.com, and others provide a variety of reviews and information.

Selecting the best Internet Security package ensures you can operate your professional or personal business online with the assurance that your information is protected.  Hackers may learn how to access your data, but with reliable software it may deter them.  Whether you’re extremely tech savvy or interested only in a simple, basic system that eases your mind, take the time to research the options and get what works for you.  Being protected online can make the difference between ongoing uninterrupted operations and costly downtime that makes you lose your shirt.

What is the Right Internet Security Software? is a post from: The Glaring Facts