Voting

The main problem with Diebold voting machines is, they can be rigged. After watching the video, it it painfully obvious that it is too easy to tamper with the voting machines. Computers are imperfect and that make it easy for error to occur. This causes a problem for voters. How are they to know if their votes are being counted?

I don't think there is one way to keep voting safe from those who want to rig it. Whether its a computer or written out in pencil, people will always try to find away to change the way an election goes. I'm not sure it's possible for us to fix it. I thought that paper ballots would be our best bet, but after watching the video I realize that nothing is safe. If someone truly wants to change the outcome of an election, they will. No computer program can stop someone who truly wants to control the outcome of an election. I don't think technology plays a huge factor in this. I think this is human will at its strongest. And there is no way to stop a determined person.

Outsourcing

The issue of outsourcing is an extremely touchy and complex subject. I find it hard to take one side or the other. My best friend's dad was out of work for a year after the dot com bomb. His job had been outsourcing. I saw the struggles they endured and the toll it took on my friend. I was by her side when life at home got rough and I witnessed first hand the negative effects of outsourcing. Yet even after seeing that situation, I hesitate to say outsourcing is an all together bad idea. Who are we to deny someone with advanced skills from outside America, that cannot act upon them in their home country?

I think part of the problem might be schooling. Maybe our American students are not being educated with the skills needed to do the jobs that are being offered to foreign students. If our students are not as qualified, then maybe we should look at these overseas programs and see how we can change our own programs to be more effective. Like most things, we need to keep our focus on home before other lager issues are tackled; because let's face it, do any of us really have the right to deny raw talent from flourishing? And that is what makes the issue of capping the number of H-1B's allowed each year so hard.

Both of my parents have jobs that have no chance of being outsourcing. In fact, neither of my parents went to college. My mom is a ballet teacher and has her own ballet school. My dad is a machinist at Stanford university and works in the physics department. Their jobs have inspired me to pursue a career that would be difficult to outsource. When I stated college I declared as an English major and had intends to pursue a career in fiction writing. Now after a few years in college I have decided to use my English degree and pursue a career in wine. My hope is to become a wine critic, but we will see. One of the appeals of the wine business is, it is difficult to outsource. There is no huge benefit to bring in people from out of the country, except for maybe France. I could combat this by learning as much as possible about French wines (I already speak French) in addition to knowledge of California's local wines. My other career option is teaching ballet and helping my mom to expand her school. I feel confident that outsourcing would not effect me there.

E-Waste

The basic problem with e-waste is, consumers are upgrading their electronics a lot faster than in the past and therefore getting rid of old computers, ipods, and other electronics. Now, with this influx of e-waste there is the basic problem of what to do with it all. Dumping your old computer at the local land fill is not a good idea, there are chemicals within the old machines that are dangerous for our environment and can contaminate drinking water. All these items need to be taken apart and recycled properly, but this takes a lot of time, work, and money. Since the process is so intense, there has been a problem of exploitation of labor in other, undeveloped countries. China is one example; there a many dumps in China cluttered with the United State's e-waste. The proper precautions necessary to safely take apart computers and TV's are not implemented and Chinese workers are being grossly exploited.

Unfortunately there are cases when a person thinks their old electronic is being recycled, but it ends up in one of the landfill in China. This happens frequently even though it is illegal to export these items from America. The problem is, the stuff is hard to trace. It changes hands so many times, that it can be almost impossible to know if the item has been exposed of safely or shipped out of the country illegally. This is also intensified by people seeking to make a profit by taking apart old computers and cell phones for the parts, and using cheap labor to do so.

This past summer I decided to upgrade my ipod. Mine was about a year old and in good condition, but it wasn't an ipod video. I felt bad about getting rid of a perfectly good ipod just because it didn't have the newest features, but I really wanted a new one. So instead of simply throwing away the old ipod, I gave it to my little sister. She has gotten a lot of use out of it and has also kept it becoming e-waste. I think a lot of people could do this. I know many people who buy new ipods or cell phones, simply because they want a new one and not because their old one is broken. When that is the case, I think the item should be given to someone who can get some use out of it. When we got rid of our last family desktop, we gave it to our next door neighbors, who were thrilled to have it. I think people should try to get the maximum life span out of their electronics, and if they are broken beyond repair, they should be recycled. It simply takes a bit of initiative on our part to make sure that our old computers are actually being recycled and not shipped out of the country.

Writing assignment 2

ICANN is a, private, nonprofit organization based in the U.S. that manages domain names, ip addresses, and other essential things to ensure the internet runs smoothly. The denationalization of ICANN has become a very controversial issue. Some people say that it is best to leave ICANN as it is now, while others believe U.S. has too much control over the internet and that ICANN shouldn't be the one responsible for all domain names.

Many countries would like to denationalize ICANN because they fear the U.S. government has too much influence over the internet. One of the main goals of the internet was to make it a neutral place for people to research and communicate. Many countries feel that the internet is too rooted in the United States and fear that the U.S. government has too much control over the internet. Other countries would also like the chance to get involved with the internet revolution. International countries also say that denationalizing ICANN will help to make the internet more global and less local.

Other people, however feel differently about ICANN. Paul Twomey, President and CEO of ICANN claims that there is plenty of global efforts at ICANN. Twomey himself is from Australia and encourages people from other countries to join the organization. One of the key arguments for keeping ICANN as is, is that it works. Why change something that works? Twomey says that ICANN is operating at the technological level and not a political level. He believes that politics should be left out and they should be able to continue to expand their fully functional technology.

Writing assignment 1

Most of the organizations that I give out personal information to are well known, reputable, organizations; such as Amazon, eBay, Fandango, and iTunes. Giving these companies credit card information and billing/mailing addresses doesn't tend to bother me too much. After all, ordering a product online is not that different from ordering by phone from a catalogue. There is still a fundamental element of trust between the two parties. It also helps when the organizations are everyday house hold names, most people trust Apple and Amazon. This, however might not be the case for everyone. My Grandparents, for example, refuse to give any sort of personal information (such as credit card) over the internet. They do not have the same trust in a well known company name.

While using a credit card online does not bother me, I loath to give out my social security number. Even when applying to USF I was weary of giving it out, yet I had no choice. Even though I trust USF, I don't feel comfortable giving anyone my social security number. USF is the only organization I am semi willing to give it out to, unless I was applying to another university and they require it for the application.

I'm not sure that there is so much a distinction between organizations, as it's more of a personal choice. As I said earlier, my Grandparents do not trust the same companies that I have no problems giving them limited personal information. I normally draw the line at my phone number and social security number. There are some circumstances where this is unavoidable, like when dealing with Cingular Wireless online and college applications. But I generally believe that phone numbers and social security numbers are too personal for any organization to have.