The photo was taken so that it captured a dark space of the workshop with light spilling through the door, this lighting was used to create a duality between hope and hopelessness, this impression was further created by using a wide shot to capture the varying light in the room. The brightness was decreased by 27% to make the workshop appear darker, this technique was used to imply that the workshop is an unpleasant place to be in , and that outside lies the promise of happiness when he leaves , which is conveyed by the light filtering through the door , another effect highlighted by this alteration.

A Day in the Life of....A Mechanic

The mechanic was chosen as the focus of this collection of photos because of the admirable nature that is embedded in his work routine, and the importance to draw attention to a person whose selflessness goes unnoticed, because of its roots in common practice. The intended message of this photo essay is top convey the hardships this man endures such as the cold and dirty conditions in order to provide for his family , and how his routine even though considered normal is very admirable.

Adama Smith Vs John Maynard Keynes

Finally! Economics that I can mentally grasp without the creation of a mind numbing migraine. However all of this doesn't help in understanding the credit crunch. The theories that are about to be discussed are either labelled as localised or national, by this I mean that the ones I have deemed localised do not seem to consider the nation as a whole, instead they seem more suitable for small populated areas, not necessarily urban, whereas the national are suitable to be adopted by all. Adam Smith it can be argued, who represented the classical economic branch, had some valid points such as economic success is determined by sun spots and trade, this makes sense as it infers production conditions and distribution play key roles, however this perspective seems like it is best suited locally, as individual areas conditions are only considered, and important factors like money are only considered tokens. This shows that only small scale things are considered, whereas John Maynard Keynes ideals seemed best suited nationally as it had principals that were not dictated by area, and could be controlled by all regardless of the poor or high trade channels in certain areas or high or low productivity. Keynes believed that money was good for the economy and that the market should not control the value of money; that its should be set by the government who effect it by spending money, thereby effecting interest rates.

Von Hyak on the other hand can be placed into another category it can be suggested that he falls into the more practical group, rather than the academic theorists, as his approach to economics was dominated by a form of area planning, for example if a road was to be built it would be considered how many people live in that area, therefore how many people may use it. This seems like a very good idea as it implies that economics should be interchangeable and adapt to suit all areas.

Upon researching this topic the names mentioned above seemed the architects of economics, however a name not mentioned in the lecture was Thomas Robert Malthus, who agreed with Keynes by claiming that in order to stimulate the economy and generate jobs money must be spent, if money is saved it will cause high unemployment. I just thought I would mention this as it seems like they are from similar schools of thought, and I felt the need to impart some wisdom before I finished this blog.

The Vienna Circle/ logical positivism

A lot of heavy concepts to grasp, especially after the Easter break, when most people have let their minds lapse into laziness. However one thing in particular interested me the most, which was the 'law of non contradiction', which is the law of logic which states that something cannot be and not be at the same time. Confusing stuff. Upon researching this concept I discovered some stuff not discussed in the lecture, which I think may be relevant, so I will disclose this to you now. There are another two laws closely associated with this: the law of bivalence, which says something is either true or false, whereas the law of the excluded middle is similar but states that if something isn't true then its opposite is, this law can also be logical or in semantic form. Three laws which seem very similar, however they dictate the form of an answer, I can see how this relates to journalism as it focuses on the validity of a statement, which is what journalism does, and what we as journalists have to do.
Aristotle's argument on this subject is interesting, however I disagree, he stated that if we did not consider the law of non contradiction that we would not be able to distinguish differences, but I find this to be a little condescending, as everything has some form of duality, white and dark, life and death, surely through natural observation this can be learnt, I think the law of non contradictions is more suited to a form of arguments or debate, not something as simple as distinguishing the difference between a metal table or a wooden one.

It is also important to note that this subject is closely associated with religion, which is what accompanied it in my numerous Internet searches on the subject.

Gonzo journalism assignment: Bordon and Whitehill residents weren't seduced by the words of Damian Hinds.

The hall where the local conservative Mp for East Hampshire was about to hold a conference for the residents of Bordon and Whitehill was partially bare, with chairs only filling half of the hall. At the front there was a table and chair ready for the guest speaker, with a conservative campaign poster propped up against the table leg, other than that there was no conservative campaign posters to be seen. Placed on all of the chairs were leaflets, on one side depicting David Cameron and a quote, and on the other side five bullet points telling the reader what they intend to do. The residents attending the meeting were all greying, wrinkled and noticeably disgruntled. Damian Hinds entered the hall with a confident stride, shaking hands and introducing himself to every single person in the room, until he reached the table at the front of the room. A surprisingly youthful appearance was present on the Mp, with only a few traces of grey indicating his maturity; the formality of the meeting was shown through the sophisticated suit he wore. As he reached the front of the room he stared down perplexed at his watch and said: “let’s give it another five minutes, give others a chance”, despite this, ten minutes passed before he was forced to start the meeting. It was easy to detect the slight disappointment he felt at the number of people in the room, as in the minutes that were spent waiting for others to appear he mentioned that “at the meeting in Binstead there were not enough seats”, clearly he thought this would be the case today.
To re-establish the formality of the meeting Damian reintroduced himself with his political title included this time. Before he even started, he made a brief observation on the noise next door, as a constant thud could be heard, which was a blend of feet stamping on the floor and the prominent bass of music speakers, a woman shouting could also be heard during the intervals in the music. This prompted Damian to make a guess at the on going activity next door “it seems we are competing with an aerobics class next door” he added. To add structure and give a rough time guide of each segment of the talk he went on to outline the direction of the meeting stating that his approach was not to “waste time slagging off the labour party, which they seemed to be doing a lot of at the moment”. This joke to break the ice caused a wave of laughter through the room, melting the icy disposition of the meetings participants, transforming serious expressions into toothy grins, which after a minute or so transformed back into frosty stares. Through out this, he looked bold and enthusiastic, despite the grim faces of the local residents, who held his gaze unconcerned with his intimidating presence. However when he moved on to talk about the three key areas of the conservative manifesto his confidence seemed to falter, he was vague going into little detail and merely stating what they would change, but at no point did he mention how they would create these changes. Economic policy was the first thing he mentioned in which he said “We are opposed to the national insurance scheme that Labour is proposing” general nods of approval followed this comment. Then listing what they intended to change he stated “we will give help to small businesses, restrict child tax credits” he listed just a few points from the manifesto, with animated hand gestures, he did this for his topic on family, again listing what would be done. The final topic followed the same structure, but this time a sincere apology was embedded in the plans “we intend to restore people’s faith in politicians, and recover from the expenses scandal” he announced, to which he then added "that this will not happen again". A firm edge in his tone makes it clear that Damian is trying to distance not only himself, but others from being associated with the scandal. This seemed to increase the tension in the room, as this brief overview did not seem to inspire any confidence.
The main bulk of the meeting focused on the issue of turning Bordon and Whitehill into an Eco town. Damian started this topic off by stating that the armies plans to move out of the area provoked the plans and that the land was to be used for housing. This sparked outrage as the mutterings “not big enough” of the residents spread through the room, showing the general view was that the town was not big enough for this kind of development. The mention of a referendum by Damian helped to ease the distaste for the project as it offered some form of hope to those present that the plans may still fall through, to show his position on the matter he quickly announced, “I am in favour of a referendum”. However this offered no reassurance, an elderly gentlemen with thick rimmed glasses, a knitted green jumper that partially covered his brown trousers asked “what can you personally do about this”, to which Damian replied: “I personally can’t do anything about this, it is a decision made by the local council”. To try to settle the outbursts of droning “mmmm’s” he tried to reassure the less than impressed listeners with this statement “that only when the army moves out of Bordon and Whitehill will the Eco town be a possibility”.
Eyeing the clock at the back of the hall nervously his speech slowed, as he muttered in between his closing comments “I need to go”, to which he drew the meeting to a close before apologizing for his departure, thanking people as he power walked out of the hall to his next local meeting. The unsatisfied looks upon the faces of those vacating the building conveyed the impression that the promises made had not completely seduced them, and that doubts still remained surrounding the controversial issue of turning Bordon and Whitehill into an Eco town.

Wilhelm Reich's impact during the 60's and seventies on American culture

Unintentionally disturbing, some of the clinics patients enactments of their inner self's natural and baser instincts was rather comical, as they resembled that of a child playing monsters. The idea that by transforming yourself could result in a change in society and politics, is a plausible concept, because if you change yourself to become a more caring or less materialistic person, in order to better yourself, your political views may change from capitalist (materialistic and consumer driven) to communist as you have abandoned your old, more selfish character that embraced capitalism into someone who embraces equality. Now if this happened on a colossal scale it could lead to a dramatic change in society. However the idea that you can change or better yourself, by indulging in your less than respectable characteristics seems ludicrous to me, I prefer the German philosophical movement epistemology, which emphasizes that one must use experience to gain a sense of who they are, this it can be argued is a more positive method.
Another idea the documentary explored that I thought was a good plan, was the controlled confrontational group sessions between racist people, as this gives people the chance to voice their opinions, expel any negativity and resolve their problems. The fact that these sessions proved unsuccessful shocked me, because it gives people a chance to work through their differences in a safe environment, but I guess it didn't offer a method to undo prejudice. Perhaps I underestimated the power of hate?