Environmental Issue Against Greenpeace International Free Essays

Who do you call when you witness a ship dumping toxic waste in the ocean, and another ship doing commercial whaling? Or while traveling across states you happen to pass by a group of men doing logging activities at a forest under conservation? Or you’ve heard of a nuclear test being undertaken few miles from your home? If you have enough concern for your environment, you’ll probably be calling the Greenpeace International. Yes! With this fragile earth already in existence for million years, it should need volunteers like the Greenpeace to protect its environment from further degradation. Throwing poisonous substance1 in the ocean pollutes the water and endangers the aquatic resources which are the source of livelihood of many families living at the coastal villages. We will write a custom essay sample on Environmental Issue Against Greenpeace International or any similar topic only for you Order Now Commercial whaling2 poses risk at the dwindling species of whales in the ocean which causes imbalance in the aquatic ecosystems. World’s remaining forests are being conserved to help in the fight against air pollution and lessen the effect of global warming3. Nuclear weapon testing4 poisons the air and makes the soil unfit for planting. We all should care about our environment for our healthy existence including the generations to come. But while I agree with all the environmental protection, prevention and conservation activities of the volunteer organization5, this essay argues with Greenpeace International’s worldwide banning of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane or DDT on the following points: ? The banning on the use of pesticides like DDT has resulted to death of million people in Africa caused by malaria6, ? The deaths and sickness annually, according to World Health Organization (WHO), brought about by malaria reduces the gross domestic product (GDP) of African nations by 1. 3 percent and suffers economic loss by as much as $12 billion7, No less than the World Health Organization promotes the use of DDT in fighting the dreaded malaria in developing countries8, and ? United States Agency for International Development (USAID), America’s lead agency supporting countries in the African continent eradicate malaria, has significantly increased their budget for DDT 9 The Greenpeace International Greenpea ce International10 is an independent, non-profit organization. Started in 1971, the group was initially an anti-war crusader who boarded a fishing boat and sailed in the effort of stopping a nuclear test in Alaska. Inspired by their success in their first encounter11, the organization, mostly manned by volunteers, is now sailing around the world, going to remote parts of the globe, campaigning and standing as witness to the destruction of mother nature and going against individuals, government agencies and private corporations who are trying to destroy our environment. The approach is direct but non-violent12. Greenpeace primary objective is ensuring the continuation of life on earth in all its beauty and complexity12B. They conduct educational campaign and information drive all geared towards protecting seas and endangered forests13. They are promoting the use of renewable energies instead of fossil fuels which are proven to cause climate change. They lobby against the continued use of toxic chemicals and its improper disposal. The earth’s friends14 also strongly oppose the release of genetically modified organism into the environment15 and vigorously campaign for the eradication of nuclear weapons and its testing which poison the air. For the operational budget, Greenpeace depends mostly on individual supporters’ voluntary contribution s and grants from supportive foundations. Soliciting or accepting financial contributions from government entities, private corporations or political parties are avoided16 so that its integrity, independence, goals and objectives will not be compromised. The organization commits itself to non-violence confrontation, political independence and internationalism. In their effort to show to the world some of the environmental risks and in trying to come to effective solutions, Greenpeace International considers no permanent friends and adversaries17. Greenpeace International has been a great factor in making the world a better and safer place to live. Its 35 years of protecting Mother Earth has led to: the banning of dumping of toxic substances to underdeveloped countries, issuance of moratorium on the practice of commercial whaling, better administration of world fisheries as agreed upon during the U. N. Convention and the establishment of whale sanctuary in the southern ocean. The Earth’s Friends also succeeded in obtaining a 50-year moratorium on the exploration of mineral in Antarctica, pushed for the prohibition of disposal in world’s oceans of radioactive materials, factory waste and abandoned oil exploration facilities. The organization has also stopped massive driftnet system of fishing on the high seas and succeeded in their original mission of stopping nuclear weapon testing18. With the continued climate change, Greenpeace International hopes to get the support of more foundations and individual supporters. They also wish that more people from around the world will join them in their crusade by reporting any activities that will put a threat to the environment. Greenpeace’s Concept of Environmental Law According to Jamie Benedickson’s book, Environmental law is depicted as a complex system of various concepts which are put together to enable man to fully understand the causes and effects of some impacts brought about by human activity. These concepts range from the main source of problem, down to the effects and the ones greatly affected, up to the possible solutions that could be taken into consideration. There are concepts regarding precaution principles that could be taken, as Greenpeace eagerly shows in most of its protests. This includes how the people could participate, the possible sanctions given to those who violate these rules and many more. It also includes some experiments on their quest to find better methods to implement and spread the laws for the environment, and how will the people react or interact with this body of law. This effort is all for the benefit of mankind in the future. These laws regulate their freedom, but are surely essential for all (Benidickson). Biodiversity. Environmental law seeks to preserve biodiversity in nature. This is to ensure that there is always a balance that the nature follows. If there is imbalance, there could be a great impact on the organisms living on the system, and this includes us, human beings. If biodiversity is damaged, there could be a tip-off in the balance and there could be problems like food supply shortages, spread of diseases and more. That is why the Environmental law seeks to protect wildlife and marine species, and their respective habitats. Biodiversity depends on these concerns, to preserve the number of organisms, to keep everything in order, to keep everything, every organism diverse. Pollution. Pollution is the contamination of some of the most important aspects in human life, like air, the soil and the water by toxic or harmful materials and substances. Because of this, the Greenpeace seeks to regulate the amounts of these contaminants, or as much as possible keep them away from our basic needs, like air and water. However, there are already laws on how to dispose toxic and dangerous materials so that it would not harm people. It also seeks to impart on the people on the proper management and treatment of this environmental problems. Conservation. Preserving and maintaining balance in the environment is an important concern in the Environmental Law. This is because of the various efforts from different sectors of the people. This is where the idea of Sustainable Development enters. There should be enough resources left in the environment so that it could sustain the future generation. The idea is to be able to spend and utilize these resources without jeopardizing the future. The idea of replacing and replenishing spent resources are important to assure a future supply for the people, thus, conservation and protection of these natural resources play an important role in the Environmental laws specifically against the issues being raised by Greenpeace. The Argument – Worldwide Ban on the Use of DDT The use of DDT was banned in 1972 by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But the ban does not apply outside of U. S19. Knowing the harmful effect of the chemical in human as well as in animal, Greenpeace International is pushing for its worldwide ban. The organization invokes the U. N. treaty on the so called persistent organic pollutants (POP). The treaty will cause the elimination of DDT which is believed to be the most affordable yet effective p esticide available20. While Greenpeace was just consistent in their purpose of eliminating substances that pose risk to the environment, the prohibition on the use of DDT should have been reviewed considering the sudden increase of deaths shortly after the implementation of the ban. Malaria disease became widespread and millions, particularly pregnant women and children died in Africa and in other developing countries. The sickness and death also gave serious implication such as significant reduction in the gross domestic product and the loss of billions of dollars in the economy. With the ban in effect, devastation of people’s health and the economy will continue21. The momentum that the Greenpeace Intenational was able to establish as a result of their successes in previous years in many aspects of environmental protection is so strong that it was able to convince wealthy countries to adhere to the ban. Yet bigger and more credible institution are waking up in an apparent deep slumber as they started to provide funds in an effort of preventing the spread of malaria by killing the infected mosquitoes through the use of the banned DDT. No less than the World Health Organization began the active promotion of the pesticide DDT in fighting malaria in the third world. It took the loss of ten million lives caused by the supposed to be preventable malaria disease that made WHO spring into action. Wall Street Journal comments, â€Å"It is good to know, WHO has come alive†22. Another institution which came into its senses after long years of avoiding the consistent lobbying of some scientists on the need for an effective malaria control in Africa is the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Enthusiastic officials of the U. S. government have endorsed the increase of budget appropriation for developing countries in the sub Saharan region. The aid is intended to win the war against the most dreaded disease that hit the region. The budget will specifically go into the purchase of DDT23. The Greenpeace might have the momentum but it has to collide with the WHO and USAID if it wants to push its ambition to still put total ban on DDT despite the millions of death and the ruin of the economy. The risk that the DDT may pose to the environment, if any, may later be treated. Saving the lives of million of people region will have to come first.. What is the sense of having a clean environment if it will not be enjoyed by either of the dead and the dying? If the sick has already been treated, the shift to a safer pesticide will follow. Arata Kochi, WHO malaria chief said, â€Å"Among the twelve insecticides that WHO endorses as harmless for indoor spraying, the most effective is DDT†24. We take the necessary action base on observation and on the available data. DDT aside from being affordable is the most effective way of containing a disease. This has been suggested by United Nations’ health agencies but pressure from environmentalists prevented the use of DDT. The effectiveness of DDT may have been incorrectly presented but studies point out that right amount of the insecticides used in killing mosquitoes will not be harmful to human, animals and environment. Insecticide may not totally eradicate malaria and its endorser doesn’t guarantee its result, nevertheless, keeping the people alive and healthy can bring about growth and development that will be a lasting solution to problem of poverty in the region25. WHO’s decision to fund the use of DDT in malaria eradication has a negative effect on the Greenpeace self-esteem. The fight that they know all along, to have already been won, have suddenly turned to be the other way around. But looking at the positive side, they can research and recommend to DDT users the right amount when spraying and the proper protective gears that have to be worn in spraying. They can educate families that clean sorroundings will not provide a breeding ground for mosquitoes and thus will save them from the dreaded disease. USAID on the other hand had identified areas in the sub saharan Africa that need help. The assistance involves mostly of DDT indoor residual spraying26. Environmentalists suggest that the effort of USAID to eradicate malaria be focused on handing out medicines and pesticide-treated bed netting to families in areas with threat of heavy mosquito infestation. Greenpeace can now volunteer to distibute these drugs and bed nets in remote parts of the continent. Conclusion I believe DDT being a chemical can pose risk to human’s health, animals and environment. I believe too that there are insects like the mosquito which possesses dangerous bites that can kill people. And that is where DDT is needed. In this case, there should never be a worldwide ban on the use of substance unless the world is declared as malaria-free. Selective banning is preferred. DDT can be banned in highly developed and clean cities where there is no place for mosquitoes to breed. It can openly be sold, bought and used in areas like the African continent where malaria has grown into epidemic proportion. However, after the problem had been treated banning of DDT in the place can be proposed. If malaria is eradicated through the use of DDT, there is no assurance that it will not provide illnesses to people in the environment no matter how little the amount sprayed. Chemicals usually float in the air and may be inhaled. It can land on soil that can affect vegetation or it can mix with water which can be poisonous when drank or cause skin allergies when used for washing or bathing. The effect of chemical is not immediate. It may manifest its effect after 10 years, 20 year or more. . If the Greenpeace International failed to implement worldwide ban on DDT, it doesn’t mean that they also failed in protecting the environment. They are right when they assert that DDT has its deadly effect in human, animals and environment. But DDT can also help in some ways. Like in developing countries it was able to prevent malaria. Experts claimed that if DDT was not banned, millions of people should have been saved. But who knows of the grand design27. End notes 1 This is strongly being opposed by Greenpeace International. 2 There is an existing moratorium on this type of fishing 3 Causes earth’s temperature to rise There is an existing ban on all nuclear testing 5 Actually, I wish I can join someday 6 if DDT was not banned, millions of people should have been saved, see Milloy 7 see Milloy 8 see National Center for Policy Analysis 9 see National Center for Policy Analysis 10 see Greenpeace International 11 that test was stopped and became Greenpeace’ first ever victory 12 but sometimes violence cannot be avoided, there are times they were sued and were jailed 12B Greenpeace International Mission Statement 13 I’m wondering how rich they can be, most of them are volunteers and are not receiving any salary 4 similar to Greenpeace International 15 if they are released there is no way to retrieve them 16 they are serious about it. They return checks if they came from corporations 17 18 see Greenpeace International, Mission Statement 19, 20 21 see Milloy 22 National Center for Policy Analysis 23 see National Center for Policy Analysis 2425 see National Center for Policy Analysis 26 se e National Center for Policy Analysis 27 God’s design Bibliography Greenpeace International, Mission Statement, The Greenpeace Story, accessed April 10, 2007, http://www. greenpeace. org. k/contentlookup. cfm? SitekeyParam Milloy, Steven J. , â€Å"Rock Stars’ Activism Could Be Put to Better Use†, accessed April 15, 2007 Competitive Enterprise Institute, ; http://www. cei. org/gencon/019,04632. cfm National Center for Policy Analysis, Daily Policy Digest, â€Å"DDTs New Friends†, accessed April 20, 2007, http://www. ncpa. org/sub/dpd/index. php? page=article;Article_ID=12363 National Center for Policy Analysis, Daily Policy Digest, â€Å"United States Takes New View on DDT in Africa† accessed ,April 20, 2007, http://www. ncpa. org/sub/dpd/index. php? page=article;Article_ID=3283 How to cite Environmental Issue Against Greenpeace International, Papers

CDA Assignments free essay sample

To establish and maintain a safe, healthy learning environment 1. Provide a summary of the legal requirements in your state regarding child abuse and neglect (including contact information for the appropriate agency) and also your program’s policy regarding your responsibility to report child abuse and neglect. 2. Include the current certificate of completion of a certified pediatric first-aid training course (that includes treatment for blocked airway and for providing rescue breathing for infants and young children). Certification must have been within the past 3 years. 3. Use the Internet, the public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain the name and contact information for an agency that supplies information on nutrition for children and/or nutrition education for families. 4. Provide a sample of your weekly plan that includes goals for children’s learning and development, brief descriptions of planned learning experiences, and also accommodations for children with special needs (whether for children you currently serve or may serve in the future). We will write a custom essay sample on CDA Assignments or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page COMPETENCY GOAL II To advance physical and intellectual competence 5. Select 4 songs, fingerplays, word games, or poems that you can use to promote phonological awareness. Describe strategies to promote phonological awareness among children whose home language is other than English. 6. Describe 9 learning experiences for 3-, 4-, and 5-year old children (3 for 3-year olds, 3 for 4-year olds, 3 for 5-year olds). Each learning experience should promote physical, cognitive, and creative development. Describe the goals, materials, and teaching strategies used. COMPETENCY GOAL III To support social and emotional development and to provide positive guidance 7. Provide the titles, authors, publishers, copyright dates, and short summaries of 10 age-appropriate children’s books that you use to support development of children’s self-concept and self-esteem and to help children deal with life challenges. 8. Use the Internet, the public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain at least 2 resources designed to assist teachers in constructively dealing with children with challenging behaviors (such as aggressive behavior like hitting or biting, or shyness). 9. Provide the name and telephone number of an agency in the community where you work for making referrals to family counseling. COMPETENCY GOAL IV To establish positive and productive relationships with families 10. Find out where to obtain resources, materials, and translation services for families whose home language is other than English. Provide the agency name and contact information. 11. Document your program’s policies that specify parents’ responsibilities and what the program does for parents. COMPETENCY GOAL V To ensure a well-run, purposeful program responsive to participant needs 12. Provide 3 samples of record-keeping forms used in early childhood programs. Include an accident report, emergency form, and a 3rd form of your choice. COMPETENCY GOAL VI To maintain a commitment to professionalism 13. Use the Internet, the public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain the name, address, and phone number of your state’s agency that regulates child care centers and homes. Describe 2 important requirements related to your job responsibilities. 14. Review the websites of 2 or 3 national early childhood associations (1 with a local affiliate) to obtain information about membership, their resources, and how to order. Download at least 2 resources from the Internet that will enhance your work. 15. Obtain 4 pamphlets or articles designed to help parents understand how young children develop and learn. Articles must help parents understand development and learning of 3- to 5-year olds. At least 1 article must relate to guidance. 16. Locate an observation tool to use in recording information about children’s behavior. One copy should be blank; the other one should be filled out as a sample of your observation of an individual child. 17. Obtain contact information for at least 2 agencies in the community that provide resources and services for children with disabilities.

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Withstanding the Challenge of Transnational Network in the System of Education

Withstanding the Challenge of Transnational Network in the System of Education Introduction: Back to Where It All Started In the course of the past few decades, people have been trying to make the distance between states and cultures as less noticeable as possible; an obvious result of globalization, the given phenomenon has also touched upon the specifics of the British education. In the 7th Chapter of the book by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith, the former argues against Bulls’ opinion that â€Å"there is no escape from values.†1Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Withstanding the Challenge of Transnational Network in the System of Education specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Claiming that shared values are the only thing which the modern world should strive for for the sake of science development, Dune does not take into account that the integration which is currently taking place between the English schools and the schools from the rest of the world is a natural process which i s bound to bring to fruitful results. Escape from Values as a Possible Threat: There Is a Reason to Shatter the Existing Rules According to Dunn, the idea that â€Å"Values will inform the selection of topics to Be studied, and the writings and statements of academics will in turn have an impact on the political process†2 is absolutely insane. Hence, Dunn explained, comes the weakest point of Bull’s argument, for the values within certain fields are completely independent and cannot impact one another. However, when rethinking the idea which Bull offered, one can possibly argue that there can be a grain of truth in Bull’s speculations. What Holds the Values Together: Stronger Than They Might Seem However, when it comes to taking a more critical look at Bull’s theory and Dunn’s counterarguments, one must admit that the relations between the world politics and science seem way too far-fetched. Indeed, as Dunn emphasizes, â€Å"the enforcement of hum an rights principles risked undermining international order†3 does not have anything to do with reality. As a matter of fact, Bull makes rather bold statement claiming that the human rights reinforcement can affect the international order negatively, which Dunn points out in his analysis. Thus, with the help of Dunn’s argument, one can see clearly that national order is far stronger than it may seem and that sharing scientific data worldwide will not harm it in any possible way. A Danger or an Opportunity? English School Needs Reorganization According to Dunn, the idea of shared knowledge does not imply any political context and presupposes rather building stronger cultural and scholarly ties between the countries of the world than crashing the traditional values of the English school.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Dunn makes it obvious that Bull ’s theory need serious reconsideration, for it is rather out of date from the modern world and its constant changes: â€Å"In our globalized world, the dynamics of governance outstrip these traditional English school categories.†4 Conclusion: The Established Values as the Three Pillars of Education: English School and Changes Therefore, it is obvious that the idea of values exchange as something that can lead to serious political conflicts is less than implausible; to be more exact, it is straight ridiculous. With the help of shared facts, information and knowledge, people will be able to provide a variety of innovations, which would be hardly possible if shared knowledge was considered inappropriate. Bibliography Dunne, Tim. â€Å"The English School.† In International Relations Theories: Discipline and  Diversity, edited by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith, 135-155. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2007. Footnotes 1. Tim Dunne, â€Å"The English Schoo l† in International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity, edited by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2007), 139. 2 Tim Dunne, â€Å"The English School† in International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity, edited by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2007), 139. 3Tim Dunne, â€Å"The English School† in International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity, edited by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2007), 146. 4 Tim Dunne, â€Å"The English School† in International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity, edited by Tim Dunne, Milya Kurki Steve Smith (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2007), 147.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Withstanding the Challenge of Transnational Network in the System of Education specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More

Introduction the Playstation Network being hacked Essay

Introduction the Playstation Network being hacked - Essay Example Most worrying about hackers is that once they hack into sensitive information, they compromise the functionality of the hacked system hence putting the affected business into jeopardy. Associated with computer crime include spamming, theft, terrorism, pornography, fraud among other malicious acts. One of the historical computer crimes targeted Sony’s PlayStation Network. PlayStation Network (PSN) is and internet based multiplayer gaming console provided by Sony Corporation. The network provides a platform in which game players across the world interact through media delivery. PSN members have to register and provide other personal information such as credit card numbers, date of birth, passwords, addresses, among other sensitive information. Therefore, a breach of network security in Sony’s PSN console means that essentially sensitive information get into malicious hands. On April 2011, it was reported that information belonging to almost 80 million PSN users was expose d following a hack. During this incident people were unable to use their services such as Qriocity, Netflix, or Hulu. They also couldn’t get onto the Internet and play games online which is the main feature of the PlayStation. Considering the adverse effects of hacking on online based businesses, this paper will zero in on discussing the hacking of Sony’s PSN. Among the different issues to be discussed include the possible ways in which the PSN was hacked. More specifically, the paper will discuss how Sony Corporation handled the hacking issue including identifying the breach, system downtime, compensation to the users, action taken against the hacker. Lastly, the paper will discuss the technical actions taken by Sony to ensure that such a breach does not take place in the

The effectiveness of Total Quality Management and Continuous Quality Research Paper

The effectiveness of Total Quality Management and Continuous Quality Improvement in the Healthcare setting - Research Paper Example This research will begin with the statement that as the healthcare industry continues to meet the challenges of escalating costs, high turnover in personnel, and continuing customer service complaints, healthcare has turned to Total Quality Management to address the issues and implement solutions. The present research has identified that Total Quality Management (TQM), also called Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), has been utilized to assess efficiency, quality of care, cost-effectiveness and safety issues. The researcher states that Swedish hospitals employed TQM and CQI when confronted with avoidable patient injuries, the wastefulness of healthcare resources, and public criticism of health care management and quality of care. Their use of Total Quality Management resulted in mixed reviews. Øvretveit noted the obstacles of costs and time constraints, especially on physicians’ time, that limited the comprehensive use of TQM. The notice was made regarding the hierarchies indwelling in hospital social strata, that of both the physicians and the nurses, and the disregard of management to institute real change. According to the research findings, TQM teams were set up, but the meetings were reduced as more pressing factors (patient emergencies) limited the meeting times and the efficacy of the process.   Often decisions impacting patient care bypassed the TQM process for a quicker resolution to an immediate issue.... confronted with avoidable patient injuries, wastefulness of health care resources, and public criticism of health care management and quality of care (Ovretveit , 2003, 6). Their use of Total Quality Management resulted in mixed reviews. Ovretveit noted the obstacles of costs and time constraints, especially on physicians’ time, that limited the comprehensive use of TQM (11). Notice was made regarding the hierarchies indwelling in hospital social strata, that of both the physicians and the nurses, and the disregard of management to institute real change. TQM teams were set up, but the meetings were reduced as more pressing factors (patient emergencies) limited the meeting times and the efficacy of the process. Often decisions impacting patient care bypassed the TQM process for a quicker resolution to an immediate issue. The Korean Hospitals have been most successful at implementing TQM as they have built in a TQM or CQI department from the beginning. Rather than making TQM a s econdary model for management, the Korean hospitals have embraced TQM as their total problem-solving solution. This resulted in Korean hospitals having created and managed TQM programs in 72% of their hospitals (Lee, 384). The major impact of this study determined that the climate of organizational change and the implementation of statistical data were the primary factors in the successful use of TQM and CQI (Lee, 391). Unfortunately, the openness to institutional change and the collection of statistical data were two of the most common issues reported as detrimental to change. Zbaracki (1988), in his article, â€Å"The Rhetoric and Reality of Total Quality Management,† states there are several places that the TQM implementation can go off track. The hospital setting has its peculiarities of

What Is Advertising Theory?

What Is Advertising Theory? We live in a consumerist society. That is a known fact. We are surrounded by ads that say Buy this now. You will save time and money or Do you want your skin to be softer? Try this body cream and you will have the much-wanted baby skin!. And even though some of us ignore the fact that we are, indeed, the victims of these carefully planned slogans which mingle with some eye-catching images, we, the readers of advertisements, interact with them and construct meaning from particular given elements the visual signs that represent something familiar with which readers associate, or the language of the ad that can be related, as Angela Goddard states, with any piece of literature, using fully the resources of language and inviting creative and subtle readings from their users. With this statement, Goddard makes the first approach in the long debate concerning whether ads can be seen as literature or not (1998: 15). In the process of trying to define the ad we stumble upon an inconvenient truth: we are unable to answer the question What is an ad? with anything but it tries to persuade us to buy something, and we do not take into consideration how it does that and by what means we are tricked and that the advertising industry means more than just selling a product. That is the reason why linguists became involved in this subject, as well as sociologists or sociolinguists, psychologists and even anthropologists. The study of advertising is, therefore, taken to another level: linguists came to study and analyze the verbal language and have come to a certain point in their research to say that we can talk about a genre of discourse in advertising; sociologists keep studying nowadays the impact ads have on society and how they contribute to the way people and readers of advertising interpret and build their world and their beliefs and the degree to which we define our identities under the influence of the omnipresent ads. Advertisements are not only a tool used to compel people on an economic territory, but also a kind of tool used to conquer people socially, psychologically and culturally. According to Davidson (1992: 6) studying advertising quickly and inevitably means studying how we read language, images, myths and how it is we build out of them our sense of who we are. From this perspective, ads not only help to sell things (White, 2000: 5), but their existence defines gender construction or stimulates the audience to develop their interest by creating new meanings. In the discussion about some theoretical issues of the advertisement, it must be mentioned that the ad always has an audience and we may call it addressee(s) while the addresser(s) is the one who sends the message (to buy a product, to apply to a service, to support some charity organization, etc) through language (slogans, short texts, etc) and visual tools (Goddard, 1998: 7) Throughout the evolution of advertising, defenders of its effects on society contradicted with those who claimed that ads have a dreadful effect on how one relates to a certain ad and constructs a world around a sold idea. It is partially true that advertisements may have a negative influence in unfolding gender stereotypes and shaping consumers lives on certain levels. A relevant example given by the non-believers is that ads continuously cultivate low self-esteem among young girls exposed to huge billboards showing a girl with a perfect body, perfect shiny hair and perfect skin, making them long for an idea of beauty which is not real at all and manipulating them to buy those products advertised to get that kind of hair or that kind of skin. With this, advertising theorists developed the idea that advertisements come to fill in a much bigger need of comfort, thus improving the corporate image of the company in order to create the icon of a trustworthy and benevolent firm (Brierley, 1995: 43). Its defenders used the argument that not all advertising is deceiving people into buying certain kinds of products, but some advertisements are based on social change and use true stories or/and shocking images to create a (positive) impact on society, aiming constantly at changing the way in which people behave: here we can mention the anti-smoking, healthy eating or anti-drug campaigns, which try to shock people by presenting statistics that show the death rate among smokers or drug users or aim to touch the emotional level by telling the stories of the ones in one of the mentioned situations, for successful advertising appeals both to the head and to the heart, to reason and emotions (Beatson, 1986: 265). Finally, advertising is defended as being a form of artistic expression (Leiss, 1997: 3) and contributing to a certain level to the education of the people, teaching them how to behave and what to think, feel, believe, fear and desire and what not to. (Kellner, 1995 : 5). Advertising must always be theorized according to the development of society towards this consumerist culture that exists nowadays. Therefore, one cannot talk about the impact of advertisements only economically. The evolution of the individual within the advertising culture must also be taken into consideration. In the historical evolution of advertising, one can identify the process of constructing gender identities in society. The most world-wide discussed example we can mention to sustain this idea is the evolution of the image of women in society, from the male supremacy towards the emancipation of women. The researchers in the advertising field stated that this evolution of gender identities must always be related to its context. That is the reason why a sexist ad from the 50s could easily cause laughter, because it no longer relates to the cultural context nowadays. Theorists of advertising conclude that another issue which we must take into consideration when analyzing an ad is the context. Linguists came and said that there is more to take into account when advertising analysts decide the context of the advertisement; according to Guy Cook (1992: 1) context includes also the following: substance, music and picture, paralanguage, situation, co-text, inter-text, participants and function, and, therefore, the correct approach in the study of ads must consider these features too. Cooks holistic definition of the ad (Cook, 1992: 2-6) comes as a breath of fresh air after decades in which specialists ignored the fact that the ad is an interaction of elements and linguists who analyzed the language of the advertisement ignored the picture which comes with it and which also contributes to the construction of meaning. What will an ad look like without the picture? I agree with Cooks idea that elements interact in an advertisement and that the first contact we have with the ad is through the visual tools and only after that do we stop and read what is written under the image. One cannot just simply leave behind the meaning of the picture, because it can be integrated in the sphere of the context. Let us take as example an ad in which two or more people who seem to have different nationalities are shaking hands and smiling gathered at a big table and maybe celebrating something. The readers, at first, interpret this visual information and they do not expect to read u nder this image something about a dreadful event, but they associate the people shaking hands with friendship, peace or something positive; and just after that do they come to read about a charity organization. As Cook states, we cannot just cut out important pieces from the ad, because the meaning of the entire campaign is based on how these elements interact with one another and thus sell the idea or the product. Linguists have launched different theories concerning the new type of discourse that ads use. Even though ads are seen as ephemeral discourses, one cannot ignore the long-lasting impact they have. The debate is taken further at the point of discussing whether ads can be seen as literature. So, can we answer the question What is advertising? by claiming that advertising is a new type of literature? Some specialists state that ads use creativity to stimulate people to read between the lines and find the hidden message and, of course, here they refer to the use of narrative techniques. But some of them also claim that it is impossible to put the label literature on any piece of text produced and that there are certain characteristics that a text must have to be literature. So, both parts have come to a consensus, to create a middle category for ads, and include them in the new sub-literary genres (Cook, 1992: Foreword). Ads still being considered the exception and debates still being ar gued, we cannot totally associate literature with ads. Whatever history the field of advertising has, there is an absolute truth about its changeability. Ads change over time, change being influenced by the social and cultural context. Since the 1900s advertising has changed massively, first because of the technological progress that enables ads to be delivered worldwide through radio, media or through the Internet, commercials being delivered in ways that were beyond belief decades ago; and, on the other hand, due to the changes undergone by society and its cultural values which ads have changed enormously. The public changed its identity, and advertising companies reinvented old ads and updated them to suite the new world. Here we can give the example of brands like Schweppes, Coca-Cola, Dove, and so on and so forth. If we have a look, for example, at a Dove ad from 1955, when the company made its debut, and a 2010 Dove ad we find the old one rather simple, plain we could say, because the cultural context has changed and, thus, the com pany nowadays sustains in its ads this battle between natural beauty and the artificial one, real women vs. supermodels. Cook identifies two levels at which one could observe the evident changes of the ads, one is at the lower level of substance, surroundings, mode and paralanguage, and also at the level of text (Cook, 1992:179); the lower level of substance has been partially covered before, but at the text level we can see a change in the accompanying discourses, because within 50 years there has been a shift from print ads accompanied by stories to very short discourses, nowadays, advertising companies claiming that they would rather use slogans that are short and easily remembered. This change happened mainly because people have nowadays a different life- style, and are not interested in reading a one page ad text or, they probably no longer have the time to do so. Ogilvy claims that we have lost the pleasure of reading advertisements, the pleasure of being captivated by the wit ty, tricky story of a product. Here is an example of the changes in the print ads of The Coca-Cola Company: Then Printed vintage Coca-Cola ad Now Ads as a discourse type Different theoretical approaches have generated a variety of definitions of the concept of discourse, but each of them had as a starting point the concept of language and how language is used in particular situations. Various texts are explored within the field of discourse analysis which is based on examining the way in which meanings are created throughout the text and studying language in its cultural form. Researchers have used the concept of text separate from the one of discourse, due to the common belief that when we talk about a text we strictly refer to the written language and that discourse is strictly limited to the spoken area of language. The modern theorists of language introduced the theory that the concept of text includes many other utterances and statements, so that we can put the label text on almost any magazine article, interview or conversation we stumble upon everyday. In Dresslers view, a text is a communicative event that must accomplish the following seven criteria: Cohesion representing the relationship between text and syntax and the use of phenomena such as ellipsis, anaphora, recurrence or conjunction. Coherence which has to do with the meaning of the text. Intentionality representing the attitude and purpose of the speaker or writer. Acceptability concerning the role of the reader or of the hearer to asses the relevance of the important information of a text. Informativity referring to the quality of the new information. Situationality representing the importance of the situation in which the text is produced. Intertextuality which refers to the fact that a text is related to some other discourses. Discourse analysts have always given a more important role to the external factors, believing that they play a significant part in communication. Cook sustains this idea that discourse analysis is not concerned with language alone (1992: 1) and makes the difference between text and context, the first having linguistic forms, separated from context for the purposes of analysis, and the second including, in the case of advertisements all of the following (Cook,1992: 4) : à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · substance: the physical material of the text. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · music and pictures. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · paralanguage: referring to all the accompanying language (gestures, facial expression, or the size of the letters in writing). à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · situation: the relations of objects and people in the surroundings of the text, as seen by the participants. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · co-text: which refers to the text which precedes or follows that under analysis, and which readers/listeners judge to belong to the same discourse. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · intertext: refers to the text which the readers/listeners perceive as belonging to other discourse, but which they associate with the text under consideration and which affects their interpretation. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · participants: each participant is at the same time a part of the context and an observer of it. Participants are usually described as senders, addressers, addressees and receivers. The sender of a message is not always the same as the addresser. Neither is the receiver always the addressee, the person for whom it is intended. à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ · function: which refers to what the text is intended to do by the senders and addressers, or perceived to do by the receivers and addressees. In order to establish the type of discourse advertisements use, we need to focus first on the field of discourse analysis and see how the ads have been perceived and received into the sphere. James Paul Gee states that the area of discourses can be seen as an institution and prompts us to imagine that we have a giant map. Each discourse is represented on the map like a country, but with movable boundaries that you can slide around a bit and we move the boundaries of the discourse areas on the map around in negotiation with others (Gee, 1999: 22). That is the reason why some types of discourses seem to be hybrids; because of this continuously interaction between them and the contestable boundaries. The only difference between one discourse and another is the grammar they use; grammar as referring to what linguists have named for a long time now as collocational patterns. In the advertising area these patterns signal the type of social language (informal/formal) used to achieve somethi ng like the customers attention and curiosity. Ads caught the attention of the linguists first because they were an evidence of the fact that language is always in context, and second because their discourse was complex, sometimes associated with that of literature, always holding out more to be analysed. According to Cook, describing advertising as a discourse is both more complete and more difficult than the approaches which separate out components of ads, underline a few, and ignore the rest (Cook, 1992: 2). This approach was summed up in Figure 1 by Cook who also believes that the ad is not a stable entity and that any change that occurs at any level, the whole discourse changes (Cook, 1992: 6): Figure 1 Interaction of elements in ads. There are many categories of discourses, or discourse types, which surround us at any time. Some of them are perceived as conversations, others as news bulletins, gossip, jokes, games, lessons, etc. The categories can be drawn further on, but they all merge and defy the same purpose. It is the cultural background that makes us to separate the discourses into units, to give those units names, and to assign them categories (Cook, 1992: 10). Discourse types also cover the area of non verbal communication, and here we can include the category of advertisements discourse. Ads usually have at least a representative slogan, and/or a text sustaining the product advertised. But this is not a general rule. The importance of these non verbal elements depends and varies from spectator to spectator. There are ads without language which have a greater impact through the image associated with what is being promoted, and there are ads in which language plays a subordinate part. When it comes to define what type of discourse ads embody, specialists find themselves in difficulty. It should not be that way, since we are surrounded by them and they represent a conspicuous discourse type in almost all contemporary societies. Cook is among the first linguists to overcame traditionally bias when it comes to define the ad. When trying to distinguish ads from other discourses, he states that people tend to put in the first place as the major qualifying facet the function of the ads. This is because they simply see the surface aim: to convince people to buy a certain product. But ads are not discourses simply related to that universally known purpose, they also are discourses which do not try to sell anything, but advocate a cause, or sustain a campaign. The ads can also be seen according to their intention to inform, misinform, warn or simply amuse the reader. If one considers that the only function is to persuade people, that person leaves a great amount of information aside. For example, if a non-smoker receives ads for cigarettes, or a person who has limited funds receives an ad for a brand-new, expensive, ecologically car, it is clear that the receiver of these ads will know that they are certainly not for him. But this does not mean that those ads do not say anything to the receiver. This is the reason why Cook understands the function from two different perspectives: the function which the sender intends the discourse to have may not be the same as the function it actually does have for the receiver (Cook, 1992: 14). The receiver can use the cigarette ad in a further discussion about smoking/non-smoking. These changes in the function of advertisements are due to the fact that, with ads, there is no single sender and receiver, because ads are not created by a single individual, neither are they the expression of one unique, universal message for the receivers. Advertising is a difficult genre to describe, because it is very wide and merges with other genres; it is Cooks idea of the interactional features in an ad. Every text, as Roland Barthes argued in one of his works, is a multidimensional space in which a variety of writings blend and clash (Barthes, 1977: 146). Donald Matheson studied further this premise and states that according to the intertextual theory, one must ask himself three kinds of questions about all ads and, indeed, all texts: The first one is about identity, and as Barthes noted, a writers work is about the point where that writer puts himself/herself to what has already been told. Matheson uses this theory at a more general level and states that by using language with a particular history, we are placing ourselves, the messages and meanings we produce, in a particular relation to society and culture (Matheson, 2005: 46). A second kind of question concerns the social struggle, which in Mathesons terms is the struggle to re-accent language that has been tied to particular interests before. One can analyze further on the social component of a particular sign to trace its impact and workings on the society. A third and final question refers to the role of media (such as advertising) in shaping shared repertories of intertexts in society. For example, when a passerby sees the following beer advertisement, he/she will immediately make the connection with the popular saying An apple a day, keeps the doctor away. Alluding to other texts is a valuable technique for advertisers. First, it requires a certain degree of cognitive work from consumers and, as rhetorical analysts argue, the more work people have to do to get a meaning, the further they go through the path a particular text is trying to lead them, the more active they collaboration with the texts meaning is. In the text ads carry with them, their receivers recognize previous ways of talking, especially ways which have been solidified over time and used into genres, and these guide them as to how they should fit the elements of the ad together to form larger meaningful units. Fairclough (1995: 55) argues that we can identify social change and challenges of the social structures to this generic heterogeneity. A particular text can draw upon the language of another genre, or it may perform some of the functions of another genre, and also it mat draw upon the graphic form of another genre (Cook, 1992: 46, describes a Hamlet cigar ad that plays with the British Channel 4 station logo). The ad opens up quite unique and specific identity for its readers/viewers. The reference to other texts is sometimes ironic, so we are being asked by those types of ads to be ironic readers and take a critical standpoint towards media. According to Matheson, before an advertisement can create a desire for a product, it must first create a sense of inadequacy which that desire will fill in Matheson (2002: 48). Advertising works not only when people notice the ads, but when they change their behaviour, preferences and their habits in line with the ad. The goal of advertisements is first to participate in the foundation of peoples lifestyles, of their everyday activities and their understanding of themselves and the world that surrounds them. Cooks study concerning the prototypes, not definitive components of ads resulted in the identification of ads as being embedded in an accompanying discourse, foregrounding connotational meaning, thus effecting fusion between different spheres. Adv ertisements abound in intertextual references, this hypothesis being at the core of Cooks metaphorical definition of parasitic ads: appropriating and existing thorough the voices of other discourses (Cook, 1992: 176). In his study, Cook (1992: 12) heightens the following question: since discourse types may be described in terms of their social function, and vice versa, societies may be categorized in terms of the types of discourses they use, where do we place the advertising discourse? Foucault (1971) argues that a culture represent the sum of its orders of discourse. In this position, advertisements occupy a dual position: they help create a new global culture and a new type of discourse, and also it reflects the differences between cultures. The study of advertisements not only draws attention upon language facts, but they give a great amount of information regarding the cultural and social development of a particular civilization. To define what type of discourse advertisements use it is necessary to notice the attitudes towards this discourse. In this respect, ads are the most controversial of all contemporary discourses, partly because it is relatively new and studies and theories keep comin g to light, and partly because it is associated with the market economy from nowadays which helps the advertising corporations to thrive. Attempts to define ads as a discourse type run into different approaches and theories. One of these theories sustains that analysts must consider first the individual meaning of each of the word, and it was developed by Professor Eleanor Rosch and was named the prototype theory (Rosch, 1977: 34). Her research suggests that we choose or understand a word by referring to a mental representation of a typical instance (Rosch, 1977: 41). That given entity can be a bird, she states, and its image will depend on its resemblance to our prototype of a bird. This will vary from culture to culture, and individual to individual. Rosch states that a typical bird for Europeans can be a sparrow, while for the most North Americans is perhaps a robin. We are less likely to identify with the word from the category, if a particular instance does not match with our prototype. This approach, if applied to the debate of defining ads, simplifies the definition, because discourses that are described as ads, but do not share these prototypical elements of an ad, will no longer make the subject of further analysis. But the prototypical ad varies between a community, individuals and of course periods of time. Another theory that was launched first by Cook (1992) has as a starting point the fact that in order to fulfill its aims, advertising discourse use strategies, especially textual-discursive strategies, and makes use of techniques of manipulation of the language, words, creates ambiguity and also addresses to the emotional and personal feelings of the individual. That is why these discourses are more difficult to pin down. It is because their changing and hybrid nature. The language of advertisements, which linguists state that attests a deviation from the linguistic forms, employs both direct and indirect convincing techniques. In order to achieve their communicative effect, sometimes ad discourses appear ambiguous or use contradictory statements. In the process of constructing ads discourses, the signifier and the signified relationship, in the terms of Saussure (1959), is somehow twisted, misrepresented. In advertising discourses the arbitrariness of sign takes over and the old law s disappear. For example, cohesion, according to Vestargaard and Schroder (1985), ceases to exist in the advertising language, and is replaced by the interpretation of the advertisement message that demands coherence from the point of view of the consumer, and his understanding of that message.