Using Delphi Queries With ADO

The TADOQuery component provides Delphi developers the ability to fetch data from one or multiple tables from an ADO database using SQL. These SQL statements can either be DDL (Data Definition Language) statements such as CREATE TABLE, ALTER INDEX, and so forth, or they can be DML (Data Manipulation Language) statements, such as SELECT, UPDATE, and DELETE. The most common statement, however, is the SELECT statement, which produces a view similar to that available using a Table component. Note: even though executing commands using the ADOQuery component is possible, the  ADOCommandcomponent is more appropriate for this purpose. It is most often used to execute DDL commands or to execute a stored procedure (even though you should use theTADOStoredProc  for such tasks) that does not return a result set. The SQL used in a ADOQuery component must be acceptable to the ADO driver in use. In other words you should be familiar with the SQL writing differences between, for example, MS Access and MS SQL. As when working with the ADOTable component, the data in a database is accessed using a data store connection established by the ADOQuery component using itsConnectionString  property or through a separate ADOConnection component specified in the  Connectionproperty. To make a Delphi form capable of retrieving the data from an Access database with the ADOQuery component simply drop all the related data-access and data-aware components on it and make a link as described in the previous chapters of this course. The data-access components: DataSource, ADOConnection along with ADOQuery (instead of the ADOTable) and one data-aware component like DBGrid is all we need.As already explained, by using the Object Inspector set the link between those components as follows: DBGrid1.DataSource DataSource1DataSource1.DataSet ADOQuery1ADOQuery1.Connection ADOConnection1//build the ConnectionStringADOConnection1.ConnectionString ...ADOConnection1.LoginPrompt False Doing a SQL query The TADOQuery component doesnt have a  TableNameproperty as the TADOTable does. TADOQuery has a property (TStrings) called  SQL  which is used to store the SQL statement. You can set the SQL propertys value with the Object Inspector at design time or through code at runtime. At design-time, invoke the property editor for the SQL property by clicking the ellipsis button in the Object Inspector.  Type the following SQL statement: SELECT * FROM Authors. The SQL statement can be executed in one of two ways, depending on the type of the statement. The Data Definition Language statements are generally executed with the  ExecSQL  method. For example to delete a specific record from a specific table you could write a DELETE DDL statement and run the query with the ExecSQL method.The (ordinary) SQL statements are executed by setting the  TADOQuery.Active  property to  True  or by calling theOpen  method (essentialy the same). This approach is similar to retrieving a table data with the TADOTable component. At run-time, the SQL statement in the SQL property can be used as any StringList object: with  ADOQuery1  do begin  Close; SQL.Clear; SQL.Add:SELECT * FROM Authors SQL.Add:ORDER BY authorname DESC Open;  end; The above code, at run-time, closes the dataset, empties the SQL string in the SQL property, assigns a new SQL command and activates the dataset by calling the Open method. Note that obviously creating a persistent list of field objects for an ADOQuery component does not make sense. The next time you call the Open method the SQL can be so different that the whole set of filed names (and types) may change. Of course, this is not the case if we are using ADOQuery to fetch the rows from just one table with the constant set of fields - and the resulting set depends on the WHERE part of the SQL statement. Dynamic Queries One of the great properties of the TADOQuery components is the  Params  property. A parameterized query is one that permits flexible row/column selection using a parameter in the WHERE clause of a SQL statement. The Params property allows replacable parameters in the predefined SQL statement. A parameter is a placeholder for a value in the WHERE clause, defined just before the query is opened. To specify a parameter in a query, use a colon (:) preceding a parameter name.At design-time use the Object Inspector to set the SQL property as follows: ADOQuery1.SQL : SELECT * FROM Applications WHERE type    :apptype When you close the SQL editor window open the Parameters window by clicking the ellipsis button in the Object Inspector. The parameter in the preceding SQL statement is namedapptype. We can set the values of the parameters in the Params collection at design time via the Parameters dialog box, but most of the time we will be changing the parameters at runtime. The Parameters dialog can be used to specify the datatypes and default values of parameters used in a query. At run-time, the parameters can be changed and the query re-executed to refresh the data. In order to execute a parameterized query, it is necessary to supply a value for each parameter prior to the execution of the query. To modify the parameter value, we use either the Params property or ParamByName method. For example, given the SQL statement as above, at run-time we could use the following code: with ADOQuery1 do begin Close; SQL.Clear; SQL.Add(SELECT * FROM Applications WHERE type :apptype); ParamByName(apptype).Value:multimedia; Open;end; As like when working with the ADOTable component the ADOQuery returns a set or records from a table (or two or more). Navigating through a dataset is done with the same set of methods as described in the Behind data in datasets chapter. Navigating and Editing the Query In general ADOQuery component should not be used when editing takes place. The SQL based queries are mostly used for reporting purposes. If your query returns a result set, it is sometimes possible to edit the returned dataset. The result set must contain records from a single table and it must not use any SQL aggregate functions.  Editing  of a dataset returned by the ADOQuery is the same as editing the ADOTAbles dataset. Example To see some ADOQuery action well code a small example. Lets make a query that can be used to fetch the rows from various tables in a database. To show the list of all the tables in a database we can use the  GetTableNamesmethod of the  ADOConnection  component. The GetTableNames in the OnCreate event of the form fills the ComboBox with the table names and the Button is used to close the query and to recreate it to retrieve the records from a picked table. The () event handlers should look like: procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);begin ADOConnection1.GetTableNames(ComboBox1.Items);end;procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject);var tblname : string;beginif ComboBox1.ItemIndex then Exit;tblname : ComboBox1.Items[ComboBox1.ItemIndex];with ADOQuery1 do begin Close; SQL.Text : SELECT * FROM tblname; Open;end;end; Note that all this can be done by using the ADOTable and its TableName property.

The Paradox From Zeno And Mctaggart Essay - 1539 Words

In this paper I will be discussing the concept of the paradox, examples from Zeno and McTaggart, and how modern science has potential solved the paradox put forth by McTaggart. Both of these paradoxes have a enormous repercussion on how objective fact about the world can be understood. I claim that McTaggart’s theory of time can be solved by modern physics as Einstein’s theory of relativity makes time a relative factor in how time is understood. Before discussing the idea of paradoxes, I will first describe what a paradox is. A paradox, strictly speaking, is when a theory with logical premises leads to the creation of two logical, but contradictory, conclusion. This definition of paradox works, but is very limited in scope of what we can classify as a paradox. Thus modifying the definition of a paradox to mean an argument that leads to wildly different conclusion†¦ . Using this understanding of paradox, I will give a famous example of a paradox thought up by the Gr eek philosopher Zeno. I will now discuss Zeno’s paradox of motion. Zeno argues that motion does not exist through this argument: 1) there is an object at point A that is moving to a point B; 2) in order to reach point B, the object must pass the halfway point of points A and B; 3) we continue halving the remain distance and point B, all the way up to infinity; 4) this means that the object is taking an infinite distance to cross, and therefore, motion cannot exist, as an object cannot move an infinite

Negotiation Skills Free Essays

string(116) " with the German Daimler – Benz Company in 1998, problems arose out of their different decision-making processes\." Effective negotiation skills are becoming increasingly important for today’s global business. A lot of time is spent negotiating in a global setting as companies and individuals conduct business. This paper will attempt to critically assess the significance of cross cultural negotiation skills for the success of international mergers and alliances. We will write a custom essay sample on Negotiation Skills or any similar topic only for you Order Now To begin with let the definition of negotiation be deduced. Daniels, Radebaugh and Sullivan (2004) identify negotiation as a sequence of actions in which two or more parties address demands, initiate, conduct or terminate operations in a foreign country. Gulbro and Herbig (1995) define it as the process by which at least two parties try to reach an agreement on matters of mutual interest. In order to be successful in such a diverse and complex business environment, negotiators must be globally aware and have a frame of reference that goes beyond a country or region and encompasses the world (Fowler, 2005). International executives attempt to negotiate for an optimal solution minimizing conflicts and maximizing gains. According to Martin et al. 1999) a clear negotiation strategy is the most important factor for successful international business relationships. Cross cultural negotiation skills are vital in today’s business. It is not just about closing deals but it also involves looking at all factors that can influence the proceedings. Cross cultural negotiation skills not only shows the people involved how to start from a strong position and find common ground with others, but also provides practical techniques for to use when talking and bargaining during business ( Kozicki, 2005). People from other countries and cultures do things differently. For alliances and mergers to succeed, these cultural differences must be taken into account when negotiating to reach a deal that will last and bring benefits to both sides. Therefore as these people play an essential role for the success of merging companies, it is crucial to have an understanding of different national and organisational cultures. Cross culture is an integral art of the overall corporate culture of the firm, which is applicable for all international alliance and merging partners (Luo,1999). Negotiation skills bring added challenges that help the international negotiator to understand how partners from other cultures view negotiation and how they think it should be handled (Michal, 2005). Although there may be much commonality between members of both sides it should not be assumed that people have the same benefits, values or priorities as each other. Nowadays, businesses of all sizes search for internat ional partnership. The increasingly global business environment requires the approach to the negotiation process from the global business person’s point of view as the process can be complex and difficult but will create huge opportunities to develop and increase success in avoiding barriers and failures in international mergers and alliances. As one partner better understands that the other partner may see things differently, they will be less likely to make negative assumptions and more likely to make progress when negotiating. Nations tend to lead a national character that influences the type of goals and process the society pursues in negotiations and this is why specifying and understanding cultural differences is vital in order to perform successfully in inter-cultural communication (Copeland, 1996). In addition, for international mergers and alliances to succeed, it is important for both sides to agree that no one approach is better than another. Lack of cross- cultural skills can cause difference in problem-solving and decision making and this can easily lead to misunderstanding. Therefore it is important for everyone involved in the proceedings to be able to use a range of decision making and problem solving techniques. Nonetheless, companies from other countries run into problems which stem from cultural differences and this leads to difficulties between negotiating parties. Negotiators from cultures that place a high importance on punctuality and schedules are more prone to set deadlines and then make concessions at the last minute to meet the schedules than are negotiators from cultures that place less importance on punctuality and schedules. They may underestimate the importance their counterparts place on the negotiations if their counterpart arrives late and do not adhere to schedules due to lack of cultural awareness (Daniels et al, 2004). Furthermore, one counterpart may understand and be adaptive to the other’s culture. Therefore it is important for both parties to have some cross-cultural knowledge as this will determine at the start whether they will follow some form of adjustment. The choice of response should be highly dependent on how well both sides understand each other’s culture. Cross-cultural negotiation skills provide people with increased knowledge which means people have the opportunity to progress at international level. For alliances and mergers to work, there must be collaboration between the two parties for the betterment of both. Kanter, (1998) argues that communication is important to achieving synergy between partners. It is harder to derive the benefits of cooperation and easier for rivalries to escalate when there is no relationship history to draw upon. Stereotypes are a pitfall when attempting to create an international merger or alliance. National stereotypes prejudice groups in the absence of evidence and should be avoided at all times. An entire culture cannot be relegated to one or two commonly held attributes. Culture is a very complex issue encompassing a plethora of subjects. A group’s customs, belief systems, values and behaviour must be understood in order to fully realise a successful partnership in a business context. A key component of successful international negotiation is effective ross-cultural communication. This requires that negotiators understand not only the written and oral language of their counterparts, but also other components of culturally different communication styles (Cullen and Parboteeah, 2005). In essence, it requires an understanding of the more subtle, nonverbal aspects of communication as they play a vital role in understanding the communication process. Cross-cultural communication proble ms can arise in any given situation, even huge co-operations can fall into this problem. For example, when the U. S. car manufacturer Chrysler merged with the German Daimler – Benz Company in 1998, problems arose out of their different decision-making processes. You read "Negotiation Skills" in category "Papers" Chrysler was accustomed to making quick, high–profile decisions while Daimler – Benz, with their hierarchical system, were used to a slow, cautious business model with little need for public pronouncements. Cultural difficulties occurred between the more easy-going and more flexible style of Chrysler and the well structured and bureaucratic style of Daimler-Benz. All of this was as a result of the different working styles, decision making and communication processes within the company (Shelton, 2003). The incompatibility of the two different cultural aspects was realised too late and became very difficult to be overcome. In the end it was no merger of equals but one company dominating over the other. This case shows the different aspects of the need for cross- cultural awareness as its importance must be considered in cross-border alliance and merger processes in order to become global players. Negotiation involves clear communication which involves important skills such as understanding, speaking and listening. It is not possible to have one skill without the others. Negotiation is most effective when people are able to clearly identify and discuss their source of disagreement and misunderstanding. Very different cultural attributes were evident when the French Pharmaceutical company Rhone- Poulenc merged with the U. S. Company Rouer. Not only did the Americans take issue with the French people’s lax attitude owards time-keeping and punctuality, they also had to deal with their propensity to express their emotions. Emotional outbursts such as crying or shouting were commonplace in the French company as they are not considered shameful; on the contrary, the French idiom ‘soupe au lait’, used to describe such outbursts, is believed to aliviate stress, allow them to vent anger and present them from bearing grudges (Dornberg, 1999). Perhaps the best example where cross-cultural negotiation skills were used effectively is in the case of Colgate Toothpaste Company. In 1985, the U. S. Colgate Palmolive Cooperation bought Hong Kong based Hawley Hazel Chemical Company. Hawley Hazel’s Toothpaste, ‘Darkie’ had a 70% market share in Asia and it featured a smiley man in ‘black face’ and a top hat resembling a minstrel or Al Jolson. This image presented no protests in Asia since the association with the image was with brilliant smiles. However, Colgate knew the connotations of the name and image of the toothpaste would be offensive to many U. S. minority groups and therefore had to enter into lengthy negotiations with the Hong Kong Company with a view to changing the name and image of the toothpaste. In order to give customers in Asia time to get accustomed to the new name and image, changes were brought in generally over a year long time frame. Eventually the product was called ‘Darlie’ and the image replaced by a racially-ambiguous smiling character in a tuxedo and top hat (Morrison and Conaway, 2004). In all these examples, the negotiation skills in a cross-cultural context were successful as the negotiators took into account cultural differences, while allowing for compromise to take place. Negotiators were undoubtedly familiar with Hofstede’s models of value systems and used his suggested five fundamental dimensions to national culture: Hierarchy, ambiguity, individualism, achievement- orientation and long-term orientation to their advantage. Negotiation skills are essential in determining the terms under which a company may enter and operate in a foreign country. International negotiations occur largely between parties whose cultures, educational backgrounds, and expectations differ, it may be difficult for negotiators to understand each other’s sentiments and present convincing arguments. Negotiation skills offer negotiators a means of anticipating responses and planning an approach to the actual bargaining (Daniels, et al 2004). The key to effective alliances and mergers is skillful management of relations from the initial handshake onward. In cross-cultural alliances and mergers there is great challenge because each party brings different cultural schemata to the table through which they interpret events. For example, the French dislike being rushed into discussions, they prefer to examine various options in decisions and negotiations are likely to be in French unless they occur outside France. Punctuality is expected and they tend to be formal in their negotiations and do not move quickly to expressions of goodwill until the relationship has existed for some time. Negotiation skills call for creative thinking that goes beyond the poorly thought out compromise such as those arrived at when there is a rush to solve before an effort is made to comprehend. A deep understanding of the true and often manifested nature of the underlying challenge is required if a long term solution is sought. Many conflicts that on the surface seem to be purely about resources, often have significant components related to issues of participation, face saving and relationships. For negotiation to work in international mergers and alliances, people need to be able to share their needs and fears with each other. Negotiation skills include being well prepared, showing patience, maintaining integrity, avoiding the presumption of evil, controlling emotions, understanding the role of time pressures, breaking down bigger issues into smaller ones, avoiding threats and manipulation tactics, focusing first on the problem rather than on the solution, seeking for interest-based decisions and rejecting weak solutions (Richard, 1999). All of these help one way or another when thinking through challenging or difficult business situations and also play a huge role in successful negotiation. The skills help negotiators to learn about other people’s preferences and also make their own clear. As logic is not the only thing that prevails in bargaining efforts it gives people time to work out essential problems especially when dealing with someone of a dissimilar culture and additional time may be needed to work out an agreement (Brett, 1998). In some cases emotional outbursts tend to escalate rather than solve a conflict. This can be extremely difficult for some people to hide their emotions and this can permit negative emotions which can take control of some negotiators due to lack of skill. Business partners negotiate through life and while there may be no easy answers that will fit every negotiation need, there are many important skills that will help to become more effective. Without the relevant skills negotiation will not prosper in the absence of cooperative decision-making as it will suffer absence of commitment and participation from the individual’s part. Limited knowledge of either the alliance or merger partners’ languages or cultures puts them at a disadvantage. They may hold power by maintaining a percentage of shares of the venture, but in reality many lose power through ignorance. Skilled negotiators spend twice as much time asking questions as opposed to average negotiators. They probe to clarify issues and understand underlying drivers and reasons for the stance a given party has taken. Talented negotiators also try to understand what the other side wants so they can develop a solution that satisfies all parties. Skilled negotiators also make many more positive comments than average ones (Hayman, 2007). This emphasises and builds on the good in the negotiation to make it easier to deal with other issues. Without any knowledge of the other party’s culture they may not have any idea of what the other side wants and therefore, it is vital to explore more options to test limits. These skills help to think about how the partner should be approached, what can be given away, and what must remain non-negotiable and all is due to tolerance for differences in culture and outlook. No matter how many companies want to merge or become an alliance, success rests upon skillful management from the beginning and without this relationship between the business partners will suffer from poor initial planning, mismatched expectations, poor communications, inequitable power distribution and inadequate negotiation potential and decline can be quite rapid. Success rests in accepting the other partner despite differences in values, beliefs, educational experiences, ethnic backgrounds or perspectives. The skills involved permit partners to examine a problem from all sides, and to promote understanding and interest in the other without necessarily agreeing to one party’s viewpoint. Genuine interest in contributions help to build trust and this provides a foundation for continuing relationship and also eases future efforts to solve problems ( Herbig and Kramer,1991). The negotiation skills allow everyone involved in the business to make suggestions openly without fear of criticism and is accepted. All negotiations are completed by consensus and a negotiated solution is reached when every partner has given up something to gain common benefits. A hypothetical example of a skilled negotiator dealing with another in a foreign country could be that they both have identical proposals and packages. If one has no knowledge of cross-culture believing the proposal will speak for itself and the other party has the knowledge which involves the culture, beliefs, values, etiquette and approaches to business, meetings and negotiations the latter will most likely succeed over the rival. This is so because it is likely they would have endeared themselves more to the host negotiation team and would be able to tailor their approach to the negotiations in a way that maximises the potential of a positive outcome. It is very important to know the commonest basic components of our counterparty’s culture. It is assign of respect and a way to build trust and credibility as well as advantage that can help us to choose the right strategies and tactics during the negotiation. It is not possible to learn another culture in detail but when something is learnt especially at short notice the best that can be done is to try to identify principal influences that the foreign culture may have on making the deal (Salacuse, 1991). Apart from adopting the other side’s culture to adjust to the business environment, difficulty in finding common ground, focusing on common professional cultures may be the initiation of business relations. The skills needed to approach negotiation differs across cultures, for instance the Japanese will negotiate in teams and decisions will be based upon consensual agreement while in Asia decisions are usually made by the most senior figure and in Germany, decisions can take a long time due to the need to analyse information and statistics in great depth. Clearly there are factors that need to be considered when approaching cross-cultural negotiation. Through having the skills, business personnel are given the appropriate knowledge that can help them prepare them effectively and this will help succeed in maximising their potential. CONCLUSION In an increasing global business environment, cultural misunderstandings may sabotage even the simplest negotiation therefore, cross-cultural negotiation skills are an essential, highly accessible resource for navigating boundaries for the success of international mergers and alliances (Brett, 2001). It helps to understand how people from different countries behave and conduct business, also to close deals that create value, resolve disputes to preserve relationships, and make decisions that get implemented around the world. Cultural negotiating skills are necessary for managing in multinational network organisations. Managers heading abroad to negotiate a deal, businessmen relocating to foreign countries, multicultural teams within large organisations and individuals involved in international merger and alliance activities are those who will benefit having the skills to negotiate and acquire knowledge and development that are indispensable in today’s global business world. If there is no knowledge of cross-cultural negotiations involved, a great deal of difficulty in understanding the findings of cross-cultural experiments concerning co-operation and conflict will arise because the partner or partner’s identity is not clear to the subjects in the business (Smith and Bond, 1993). Negotiation is a specific type of interaction that should be known to partners and professionals. For mergers and alliances to succeed those involved must also recognise that cultural differences can lead to different behaviours and assumptions at work and that these can sometimes cause misunderstandings or delay. Despite their risks, mergers and acquisitions are becoming increasingly common events as a result of rapid globalization and it is important for those involved to aim to develop levels of cultural awareness and understanding within organisations so that their clients can operate more effectively and profitably within the global market place. Negotiation helps to put things in context, gives a broader perspective, and increases the likelihood that an agreement that comports well with the interests of constituents will be reached. In addition, careful attention should be paid to the interests of other parties in the negotiation process. This can help to craft a solution that makes for a successful negotiation (Cohen, 2002). Finally, everyone must do their best to learn about the cultures of their negotiating partners as this drives decisions and the more they comprehend in their strategy and tactics, the greater the likelihood that the agreement they reach will provide their negotiation partner something to bring back to whomever they consider the powers that be. Negotiators need to be well prepared for the beginning, collecting information from possible sources, clarifying their objectives, and setting their limits. During the negotiation, the relationship orientation is most important. An appropriate emphasis on time should be considered. At the end of the negotiation, consensus is the most important consideration. The success of international business relationships depends on effective business negotiation. If negotiators are well prepared, understanding how to achieve international business negotiation outcomes and the factors relevant to the process will allow negotiators to be more successful. Word count 3,185 How to cite Negotiation Skills, Papers

Mass Media In Society Essay Example For Students

Mass Media In Society Essay Pop Culture WarsPop Culture WarsReligion The Role of Entertainment In American LifeAs the title proudly blares, William Romanowskis book is aninformative look at pop culture and how it relates to American society. The book begins with a passionate story about a towns love for theirstatue of the popular character Rocky, a down out boxer who makes itbig. The town became enraged and crying freedom of speech rights whenofficials attempt to move the statue to a local sports arena from themuseum where it rests.. However, because the statue was in the image of alow-class movie hero, the museum insisted that the statue was not art, butrather an icon of sports and entertainment and should be moved. This upsetthe people of the city, who then petitioned until the statue was replacedon the museum steps. This is a great example to start off this book,because it reflects the cultural struggles between the hi-class and thelow-class entertainment worlds in America throughout recent history. Entertainment. The book approaches the subject from a mostly worldlypoint of view at first. It talks about ratings and labels forentertainment, but I must question if that is the way a Christian shouldlook at it.If a rating is placed on it, that will not make the problemgo away. As a Christian community, we should take up the fight to abolishthe problem. This is also tricky because what do we determine is good orbad? If we use previous examples from American history, as learned inthe first few chapters of the book, more problems will be created thansolved. In the first few chapters of the book, Romanowski gives awonderfully repetitive history of theater, vaudeville, and other forms ofthen questionable entertainment such as opera houses and beer gardens. The conflict begins with the rise of low culture entertainment thatappeals to the working class, the immigrants, and the un-sophisticatedpopulace. This made the distinction between high and low cultures,high (symphonies, fine art, sculpture, etc..) being for the elite andwell-educated, while low was associated with the lower, working classthat included immigrants. Through the chapters, Romanowski illustrates theinflation of this division, as well as the conflict between the people andthe Church regarding entertainment. Chapter three discusses how the peopleof America were searching for a unifying principle or common faith thatwould hold the nations people together. What they found instead was anuprise in immorality and a decrease in the high culture. This couldmean only one thing: low culture was bad. Theater, Opera Houses,Vaudeville, and Nickelodeons all got their bad connotations from this erabecause of their appeal to the lower, less moral people of society. Therefore, the Church had to place a moral stance against this apostasy ofthe holiness of American culture, and place a ban on all low forms ofentertainment. The churchs prohibition of amusements could not suppresspeoples desire for it. (p 84) As hard as the Church tried, theirsuppression of the amusements didnt stunt their growth in any way, in factit only made it worse. Eventually, the high forms of entertainment(theater, etc) were losing money and patronization began. More money wasgiven to the amusements than to the Church. The entertainment of thesetheaters then had to stoop to the lowest moral level to appeal to thebroadest array of audience. Eventually, the Church gave up its fightagain the theater and began to use it as a tool for the Church, as theylater do with all forms of media that they have protested, such astelevision, radio, music, and even comics. Eventually, with all the goodentertainment in the industry, other producers began to clean-up too, andeventually the indu stry was decent (even though it was still full ofinnuendos, double entendres, and suggestions of immorality), however it didnot last long and was over looked when the television and the radio emergedon the scene. .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .postImageUrl , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:hover , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:visited , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:active { border:0!important; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:active , .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057 .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u8cdf9a6ae7cae4b27dbc45e7c00e5057:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: American Short Fiction EssayRomanowski gives a great illustration of the Churchs struggle to stayinside the cultural movements of the day while still committed to Christianvalues that, more often than not, opposed society. The Church, afterforfeiting the uphill-battle against American culture, attempts to usepopular entertainment as a tool for ministry by scrubbing it morally andspiritually clean by their standards. This refers to comics being used insalvation tracts, Christian or Biblical-themed motion pictures,contemporary Christian gospel music, and even radio broadcasts of sermons. Televangelists and Church On TV programs are included in this as well,even though television was a horrible trouble-causing empire out to getAmerican childrens morals. Romanowskis overall view is that throughouthistory, we only focus on what is bad at the time until we get used tothe shock value or attention is diverted to another evil form ofentertainment. However, if we ignore it, will it go away?Romanowski gives me the impression that he feels we should just reallyignore what is going on around us because history has shown that we, theChurch/people upset about the lack of moral content in entertainment,cannot change the path of society. I beg to differ that we should ignorethe ills of society, however I do agree that the path of society is mostlikely not going to be altered by what the Church says, especially intodays American culture where the Church does not govern like it used to. The second half of the book talks about the uprise of MTV, the changefrom records, movies, and radio to television, virtual reality, and videogames, and cable TV.Also, Romanowski discusses some major movie titlesthat have made an impact on American culture in recent years. His positionis that we should take all of the media in, analyze it with a Christianperspective, and filter out all the bad stuff. This is easier said thandone. Labels have been placed on music and movies, even books andconcerts, to help the American consumer decide the content value of theentertainment, but these labels only go so far. One could argue that it isa label on freedom of speech for the lower class of entertainment. Citizens that protested the moving of the Rocky statue referred to it asa ban on free speech and discrimination of the cinematic arts because itwas not elite. Even today, popular culture entertainment such as movies,music, radio, and television are looked down upon by the elite asmindless forms of degenerative babble, devoid of creative intelligence orart application. With this, I disagree. I feel that all culture is art, but I believethat some of it, because of its popularity (i.e.-pop music ; movies) shouldbe viewed in a different light as it is reaching a broader audience withits message. Thats not to say that the symphony shouldnt be looked atwith discrimination, but should teen pop stars be able to anything theywant on stage in the name of art and freedom of speech? At this point,society as a whole must decide whether or not popular entertainment is avalid form of art and expression that should be exempt from all moral codesin the name of art. The entire film industry was created for the solepurpose of making money, not as an artistic venture, so should Americansplace a different set of discernment standards on movies since they have nofreedom of artistic liberties? Perhaps not. This is a difficultquestion to answer because everyone has different morals and values fordiscernment. Romanowskis method is an interesting approach to thissituation. He believes that we should embrace all art and pop culture withthe same preconceptions and learn to filter out that which is harmful tous and grow artistically and spiritually from the good stuff we havefiltered out. He also gives me the impression that we should just ignoresome of the things that we disagree with because its art, its freedom ofspeech, its just a piece of entertainment. However if we ignore it, willit go away? Probably not. However, the problem of pop culture and societyversus the modern Christian will not solve itself, and will not go away inany short time.