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The Central Intelligence Agency final
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Due to external attacks from enemy rival countries, and terrorist organization it has made it necessary for each and every country in the world to have its own intelligence organization to alert it of any potential national threat. The intelligence does not only concentrate on external attacks but other issues such as drug trafficking, proliferation of arms and any other illegal activity within the country. This paper will look at the functions of the CIA and if there is conflict of interest in their work.
The United States of America has not been left out in forming its own intelligence unit. The Central Intelligence Agency, or commonly known as the CIA was established in the year 1947. This was after the then President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act, the main reason for the establishment of the CIA was to give support to the president and above all the National Security Council and other security organs make the right decisions on National security (Couch, pg 230).
The Central Intelligence Agency has been given the mandate to feed all the relevant security apparatus and departments reliable, accurate, and most of all timely information regarding any national security threat. The CIA is also responsible for the collection of information, analyzing it and then submitting the report to 13 responsible intelligence community agencies such as the National Security Agency, Defense intelligence Agency among others. Following the September 11, 2001 terrorists attack the powers and mandate of the CIA was expanded more workers were also employed. “There’s a huge cultural and generational issue at stake here,” said Mark Lowenthal, a former senior C.I.A. Official. “A lot of the people hired since 9/11 have done nothing but tactical work for the past 12 years,” he said, “and intellectually it’s very difficult to go from a tactical approach to seeing things more strategically.” initially the work of the CIA was only to provide information but in the Afghanistan war the intelligence sends its own paramilitary unit (January, pg 220).
From time in memorial the Intelligence community of the United States of America has been expanding, after the World War II came to an end countries such as the U.S.S.R regularly adversaries who assisted in justifying the Intelligence community above all Covert Action. The Cold War played a major role in shaping the whole intelligence community. The fight against communism during the Cold War, mainly made use of Covert action however the benefits and even the legality of its continuous use should be considered compared to the heavy costs. Regrettably, the use of covert action still remains one the most guarded government activities (January, pg 220).
After the cold war came to an end, dwindling budgets and the changing of the international environment called for a review of the use of covert action so as to find out its significance and aptness in the face of the changing policies of foreign matters and the priorities in National Security. In spite of the ideological belief that the use of covert action requires a country that is democratic the modern day threats to the national security does not only justify the continuous use of covert action but also its suitability. In the modern world the use of covert action is viewed differently and some people are against its use. In the modern world covert action is used to control, manipulate, and even counter national security threats such as International organized crime, proliferation of nuclear weapons, and governments or countries that prove to be hostile to the United States of America. In that perspective of monitoring other states the Director of CIA recently during his confirmation noted the developments that were taking place in the Arab World he said “Recent events in the Arab world, however, indicate that C.I.A. Needs to improve its capabilities and its performance still further” (Weiner, pg 220).
Findings
The CIA main aim it to investigate other countries and organizations that are regarded as a potential threat or hide out of terrorist organizations. The CIA in not allowed to investigate any citizen of the United States of America unless the person is involved in terrorist activities in other parts in the world or even within the Country. Covert action is necessary but most of the time it is done without the country being investigated having any clue about it, in regard to the morality of the covert action Charles Beitz says the action “serve rather than subvert the aims of democratic government.” Practically, defining covert action is very difficult. In the diplomatic circles it is very normal for a country to try and convince the other on certain issues even though the truth behind such attempts or the intentions of the country involved may not be explained totally. This is because most of the time the reasons remain the secret of the government (January, pg 220).
Covert action entails certain activities, support, covert propaganda, paramilitary actions to help overthrow or support the regime in power, and economic operations. It should be noted that covert action should be differentiated from concealed collection efforts. Covert action is in place for the sole purpose of influencing some foreign conditions, whereas concealed operations are in place so as to provide the Intelligence Community of the United States of America with information (Daugherty, pg 240).
Propaganda
CIA at times uses propaganda to either prevent a regime from coming to power or to help it maintain the grip of power. In the year 1947 the CIA used propaganda in Italy to prevent the communists from winning in the election, an estimated 10 million dollars was used in the activity, even though the propaganda succeeded and the Christian- Democrat’s won the use of propaganda in the modern world is very limited. Ironically in the First World War propaganda was used against the American government by the British which finally managed tom convince the America to join the war even though they were at first neutral. Even though there were other reasons joined the Allied forces which included the attack on the Unites States shipping line, the war itself was as a result of a failed or ineffective propaganda that was aimed at the officials of the United States (Coll, pg 200).
There are instances where the CIA has been victims of propaganda and in such cases they were forced to counter the propaganda with propaganda as well. A good example is during the Carter regime when the Soviets started a massive propaganda campaign aimed at the United States. That was as a result of the United States use of a neutron bomb, to counter the claim and the propaganda of the Soviets the CIA likened the bomb to Soviets own SS-20 (Intelligence, pg 220).
Discussion
As a result of the historical success of the usage of propaganda as well as the dangers associated with not making use of it both prior to, and all through, the Cold War there has been calls to stop the use of propaganda. Unlike during the Cold War when there was not much usage of technology, the modern world has drastically changed as more and more people have the access to computers. Any Propaganda can spread all throughout the world in minute propaganda in Russia can even affect the Stock Exchange in America. In the modern world approximately 98 % of the propaganda can either be true, or has a basis of exaggerated truth (Callanan, pg 230).
This type of propaganda is very significant to the United States especially in countries that spread false information against the United States. Regrettably there are cases where the use of propaganda has proved vital; in the year 1954 the CIA used propaganda to remove the pro-communist leader by the name of Jacobo Arbenz exclusive of violence. The CIA spread propaganda that there was a revolution in the country and that there were army troops were moving towards the capital city. In anxiety and fear the pro-communist leader resigned in fear of the revolution. Such a trick might not work in the modern world but it is still practiced (Bauder, pg 210).
Conclusion
Every institution has the mandate or the work that has been allocated to them or it. The CIA has been given the responsibility of collecting intelligence information that can aid the government and the Security Council makes timely and accurate decisions on matters that relate to National security. Even though the fact that the CIA is also responsible for the implementation of avert action can be seen as a conflict of interest as they are still the same organization that collects the information it is not. Being the organization that collected the intelligence information they are better suited to implement the avert action as they are more conversant with the happenings.
Work cited
Bauder, Julia. The CIA. New York: Greenhaven Press, 2007. Print.
Callanan, James. Covert action in the Cold War US policy, intelligence, and CIA operations. London: I.B. Tauris :, 2010. Print.
Coll, Steve, and Steve Coll. Ghost Wars: the secret history of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet invasion to September 10, 2001. New York: Penguin Press, 2004. Print.
Couch, Dick. Covert action. New York: Pocket Books, 2005. Print.
Daugherty, William J.. Executive secrets: covert action and the presidency. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2004. Print.
Intelligence and Policy: The Evolving Relationship. New York: Defense Technical Information Center, 2004. Print.
January, Brendan. The CIA. New York: Franklin Watts, 2002. Print.
Weiner, Tim. Legacy of ashes: the history of the CIA. New York: Doubleday, 2007. Print.
Various issues affect different people in a certain way
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Communications questions
Various issues affect different people in a certain way, the manner of which different people resolve a certain problem is also very different. At times what seems usual to an individual may not be so to another person, in that respect it is very crucial for people to know how different people handle certain problems. To find out more about how different people view or react to different situations I decided to interview three different people on different issues. To do that effectively I wrote down four questions that I asked the four different people so as to hear their views. The people that I interviewed were John a truck driver, Mary who is a secretary, Joseph an accountant.
John was the first person I was able to interview, I asked him to give me a brief history of what his childhood was and how was it growing up. John was able to tell me that he was the first born in a family of five children; he was brought up in Michigan but was born in Ohio. According to his story his childhood was not a very easy one; his father was drunkard while his mother worked as a casual laborer. He was forced to drop out of school at the age 15 to go and look for casual jobs so as to help his mother pay for her ever increasing bills and also to be able to get money to buy food for his younger siblings. He even mentioned that because his father was so engrossed in drinking he did not have any time for his family, he at times went for months without seeing his father. He told me how despite all the difficulties he was able to defy the odds he managed to survive and eventually go to college and at last got married and was now a proud father of 3 children two boys and a girl.
Impact of current job
After the brief history I embarked on asking John the first question, which was if his current job is having any impact on his relationship with his family. He replied to the question by first stating that any job that every person does will always have some impact on the family whether positive or negative, he first stated the positive impacts, then followed with the negative impacts of his current job on his family.
Positive
As he was raised in a very poor family where even getting food was a nightmare, he was happy with his current job. He was able to feed his family, buy them cloths and even attend to his own needs. He has been able to save some of his money to ensure that his children do not lack anything that he can be able to afford as he did during his childhood.
Negative
Some of the negative impacts of the job that he was able to state included, he is at times forced to stay away from his family for a very long time at times a whole week. This is usually when he has to deliver goods to far away places. When that happens he feels very lonely and uneasy has he keeps wondering how his family is doing, he attributes this feeling to his childhood when his father would disappear for weeks on end and they had to fend for themselves.
Strengths
The second question that I asked John was what he thought his strengths and weaknesses were. To the question he answered “nobody is perfect”. He stated people do have their source of strengths and weakness, his strength was his judgment. I asked him how of which he said “when I encounter a problem I usually think it over and over again before deciding what to do, and when I get the solution it is always right”.
Another of his strengths and the answer he gave at first did not make sense, he told me his childhood. He explained that his experiences during his childhood always give him the motivation when he is faced with a problem, it was not still clear so he went further with his explanation. He said that if he was able to overcome the challenges that he had as a child and as a teenager and made it then nothing is impossible.
Weakness
His weakness was the most shocking; this is because it was related to something that was responsible for his childhood problems. John too like his father could not go a day without taking a beer. He admitted that he had tried all means possible to stay away from alcohol but he found it difficult, but he was quick to add that it was not preventing him from attending to his family.
Interpersonal needs
The final question that I asked John was if his personal needs were affecting his personal relationship. He laughed and answered “definitely”. He told me his wife likes shopping for new cloths for herself and the children, he stated that his wife can buy new cloths every day and at times her spending on new cloths has at times caused a problem between them. He is quick to point out that his spending on alcohol has also caused a problem between him and his wife who thinks that he is spending a lot of money in buying alcohol.
The second person that I managed to interview was Mary, who is a secretary by profession. She first gave me a brief history of her childhood. Mary’s childhood was not bad she was born in Boston and grew up there, her father was a firm manager and her mother was a secretary at the same firm as her father. She was the second born in a family of two children both of their parents ensured that they had a happy childhood; she is now married with one child. I was then able to ask her the questions I had written down.
Impact of current job
She was brief in her answers and could not talk much, she said that her job had enabled her pay for her bills and provide for her children. She also added that at times she arrived home very tired that she could not have time for her ten year old daughter.
Strengths and weakness
According to Mary her only strength is her ability to convince, she admits that she is really good at convincing and that is how she always has a way. However her weakness is her method of spending, Mary spends a lot of money shopping for shoes.
Effects of interpersonal needs
Mary’s husband loves betting especially on horse racing, he at times spends a lot of money on bets which Mary does not approve as necessary, on the other hand Mary admits that her husband does not approve how she spends a lot of money on buying shoes. Mary states that she at times spends a lot of money on shoes that she only wears once and gets bored so she has to look for another pair of shoes.
The last person who I was able to interview was Joseph the accountant; just like the others he first gave me a short history of his childhood. Joseph is an immigrant from Africa his mother and father moved to the United States when he was nine years old. He however can recall that life was very difficult back in Congo, he recounted the many times he had to flee with his parents from rebels, but since he moved to the United States he has had peace and even became a citizen. I was then able to ask him the questions that I had asked everybody else.
Impact of his job
To Joseph his work was a blessing as he is the one who is now taking care of his parents as well of some of his relatives back in Africa. On his strength and weakness he answers his job is his strength he however admits that his major weakness is helping out, he admits that he can never pass anybody who is in need especially the homeless he can even forego lunch and give the money to a homeless person. On his interpersonal spending he states that it has no impact on his relationship with his family members a he always attends to their needs first before attending to him.
Conclusion
Every person in the world has an own perspective on each and every issue however how similar they might look. The effect of the issues with different people is also very different, what one person considers good at times may not be the same to another person. Finally the way each person reacts to a situation is very unique and can not be compared to another person.
Steven Aschers the film maker’s handbook is credited for its contribution to the study of film
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Book review
Steven Ascher’s the film maker’s handbook is credited for its contribution to the study of film. Film is one of the most successful industries in the United States. The industry contributes significantly to the GDP of the country. Over the years, the industry has grown from a simple art to a thriving business. One of the factors responsible for this aspect is the dedication of books concerning film making. The film maker’s handbook is one of the books that have impacted effectively on upcoming filmmakers (Ascher, and Pincus, p. 141).
The focus of this paper is to provide an analysis of Steven Ascher’s “The film maker’s handbook”. The paper looks into the content of the book and its contribution to the film industry. The review looks at the book from the writer’s perspective and his take on film making as an art. The paper further provides a personal opinion on how Ascher’s book has impacted on me as a TV production student.
The film maker’s handbook has been in the market for more than twenty five years. This has earned it the name the Bible of film making due to its comprehensive report on all things film. The book is adequate for a novice who does not have adequate experience in the industry. It teaches the basics in terms of video production and film making. This ensures that the reader derives the basics required to take on the film making as a career. Ascher provides a detailed explanation of the history of the digital age and its role in the media. This forms the basis for the entire book which acts as a stepping stone for readers.
The film industry is an evolutionary industry in that it changes with regard to the change in society. The digital age constitutes of the use of technology to derive film and pictures in the media. The author guides the reader on interpreting a script and getting a visual insight. This is followed by transferring the thoughts and information into the film which is as a result viewed by the audience. The art of film making continues to develop due to the invention and innovation of new ideas. Ascher ensures that he updates the reader on the latest introduction to the industry. This helps learners identify with the latest forms of film thus keeping them up to date (Ascher, and Pincus, p. 321).
As a student, one of my responsibilities is to form an understanding of film making and production. The book thus plays a key role in my acquisition of a degree in TV production. The book has given me the confidence to face the obstacles that I face during my study. I have managed to learn about film making and production through the eyes of the author. This has helped me form my own opinion of my course and as a result increase on my creativity.
In conclusion, film industry has played a vital role in society. The making of film reflects on the social cultural aspects of the country. It is thus essential to take advantage of authors like Steven Ascher so as to improve my understanding of the subject. Film making continues to affect the growth of the economy. Taking part in this industry is thus ideal for my personal growth and my contribution in society.
Works Cited
Ascher, Steven, and Edward Pincus. The Filmmaker’s Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide for the Digital Age. New York: Plume, 2007. Print.