The Nacirema As A Mirror of The Modern Consumer Essay

The Nacirema As A Mirror of The Modern Consumer - Essay Example The Nacirema are apparently taught from birth that "the human body is ugly" (Miner 1956, p.503) and that its natural tendencies are toward disease and decay. Their rituals are therefore designed to perpetually reverse this natural process of physical decline. Reading through the article, I began to see familiar images. Graphic ritual descriptions aside, western society seemed to be a mirror-image of this curiously bizarre tribe. Like the Nacirema, modern cultures seem to be forever altering what nature has provided in order to fit a standard ideal. I realized that the Naciremans were not necessarily a native or aboriginal tribe in the literal sense. Miner mentions that they are from North America, living in the territory between the Canadian Cree, the Yaqui and Tarahumare of Mexico, and the Carib and Arawak of the Antilles (1956, p.503). The geographical location itself seemed familiar in a strange way. Upon further inspection of clues that may be hidden in the text, I watched, amazed, as the letters of the word Nacirema moved around on the page and began to spell out a word that certainly wasn't exotic: American. I had just unveiled a long-standing myth. The mysterious Nacirema tribe was really a metaphor for western, or more specifical ly, American society. 2. Name 5 items or ceremonies that we have learnt to use in similar way to the Nacirema Every ritual observed by the Nacirema has a counterpart in our world. The "shrine" (Miner 1956, p.503) in a Nacirema household, for instance, exactly describes the modern bathroom. One important component of this private room is the "font" (Miner 1956, p.504) found beneath what Miner describes as a built-in chest on the wall. These are our sinks or wash basins, as well as our medicine cabinets, in which we keep all our "magical potions" (Miner 1956, p.504)-pills and medications that often come in an astounding array. We bow down before these fonts to perform a variety of ablutions in the privacy of our bathrooms before we step out to face the world. Doctors are, literally, medicine men. Their imposing temples are hospitals and clinics where the sick are treated, and where healthy people go for regular check-ups and, as the case may be, even cosmetic touch-ups. Meanwhile, positioned below doctors in the medical hierarchy are the dentists-or what the Nacirema call "holy-mouth-men" (Miner 1956, p.504). Similarly, western dentists do seem to enjoy tinkering around our orifices and striking terror in us with the mere sight of their instruments. But no matter how much pain-real or imagined-is induced by this practice, we still somehow keep coming back for more. Another similarity with the Nacirema in witchdoctor dependence, as essayed by Miner, involves another kind of practitioner-the "listener" (1956, p.506). His counterpart in our world would be the psychiatrist, to whom we go for help in exorcising demons out of our minds that we may have carried around with us from childhood. 3. How do variations in culture affect our ability to engage in worthwhile trade Explore both advantages and disadvantages. In terms of the American market economy, there may be a disadvantage to their

What Highschool Is Essay Example for Free

What Highschool Is Essay Theodore R. Sizer in his essay What High School Is begins with an illustration, a detailed account of the opening of the day at a high school, following one student named Mark, sixteen years of age, as he arrives at school, greets his friends, and goes to class. This section is a rather dry recitation of his schedule on this particular day, with some vivid descriptions of the classes, the other students, and the different elements of the school day. This entire section runs four and a half pages and serves as the introduction to the entire essay. This is a daring and not entirely satisfactory approach. There is nothing ahead of this description to assure the reader that the entire essay will not consist of this detailing of one students day, though in fact the essay has something else in mind if it can hold the attention of the reader until the author gets to it. He might have offered some more traditional introductory remarks to indicate that he has a purpose in telling this lengthy story, which would gain him mileage with many, but instead he just launched into it and continues through to the end of the day. After this, of course, comes what might be considered a more The reading What High School Is by Theodore R. Sizer accurately depicts an average day for a high school student, but fails to show some of the most critical things about what high school is. A large portion of the reading tells about the average day of a student named Mark. This portion of the story is the focus of my response. Although the description of his day is pretty accurate, it fails to show the emotion and feelings of that day. The story only describes what he does in his classes and not what he thinks about those classes. The story over simplifies what high school is to each individual student. Although most students probably follow about the same schedule, the way that student reacts towards his classes, teachers, students, and administrators varies greatly. While one student might enjoy his or her schedule and teachers, another student with the same classes might hate school because of it. Another very significant part of high school that Sizer fails to mention is the so cial aspect. One of the MOST important skills learned in high school is social interaction. Sizer barely mentions that the part of the day that most students learn the most, and look forward to the most, is their lunch and passing periods. Most students opinions on high school and whether or not it was a good experience for them greatly depends upon how well they can socialize during these times of the day. If a person was to ask an outcast what they thought of their high school they would most likely relate the experience as a negative one. However, if a person was to ask someone who even had some social interactions that person would most likely have had a positive high school experience. Overall, Sizer does a good job of showing the class experiences of a student but fails to even mention one of the most important factors in that students high school career, their social interactions.i completely agree with you on the part about high school experience, and that is something that always differs from all of us. now going back to what schools are doing it can clearly be seen that depending on the location of the school, it is how the kids would learn to be socially aware citizens and critical thinkers. unfortunately not many of the schools are doing this.. but why? should we let our kids fail on their own so that they become responsible? I think its fine that the author didn’t include Marks feelings or how high school social life is very important. Thats not the focus of his essay. He is pointing out that the public education system is failing to provide true scholastic and humanistic substance for students. Schools say they want to teach moral and ethical values and self-realization to students, but do very little in those stated goals. Yes, a lot of us have had wholesome high school experiences but thats because weve made great friends and been around great people. What about great teachers or administators? What are they doing to give students a valuable education experience?

Watteaus Fêtes Galantes: Style and Meaning

Watteaus FÃ ªtes Galantes: Style and Meaning Discuss the content and the possible meanings of Watteaus FÃ ªtes Galantes The FÃ ªtes Galantes is derived from a genre of paintings produced in the eighteenth century, depicting aristocratic scenes of mirth and merriment set in the mythical world of Arcadia, where humanity and nature live together in harmony. The reasons behind this deliberate juxtaposition of both the aristocratic everyday and setting it in the mythical world was twofold. First, Antoine Watteau, the chief designer of the genre, wished for his paintings to be recognised by the government appointed Academic Des Beaux Arts, who still ranked scenes of the everyday in a lower class than those depicting biblical, historical or mythological scenes with an educational theme. Secondly, the economics behind painting and commissions were changing. In Watteaus economic world, instead of commissions coming almost exclusively from either the crown or the church, as it did previously, private patrons were also commissioning works, and provided most of the revenue for artists. But they also, whether by accident or deliberately, provoke a whole series of other responses, notable insofar as they are representative of nothing, and exist purely as decorative pieces of art. Indeed the reaction at the time was to place Watteau in a category of his own, as the ambiguity of his representations tended to eschew easy categorization. David R. Marshall suggests that: Watteaus paintings were difficult for contemporaries to classify; today they can be understood in terms of spectators response to the semantic vacuum that they present.[1] So, the genre of FÃ ªtes Galantes tends to subvert traditional ways of reading, introducing ambiguity on the level, insofar that the image takes precedence over what exactly is represented. In a sense the FÃ ªtes Galantes was designed to be ambiguous. Thus, the Fete Galante, especially Watteaus work, becomes extremely difficult to read in a straightforward manner; arguably, his work could be laced with irony, his landscapes invoke an almost impressionist free dom, and his concern with the image over the message signalled that his work reveals meanings that perhaps were intentional, or else purely coincidental and decorative. FÃ ªtes Galantes (1717), is a perfect representation of the style that came to be named after the painting. In the scene, a collection of characters are assembled around a statue of an angel. The background of the image invokes impressionist works, insofar as the trees and the composition of the image seems more in tune with the way light works, rather than the simple telling of a biblical or historical tale, as was the nature of previous work. Indeed, the ambiguity of this work is exactly what makes it compelling. Julie Anne Plax suggests that: Watteau consistently applied coherent strategies of representation aimed at subverting high art.[2] Indeed, this particular piece certainly suggests a deliberate eschewing of the concepts of high art for instance, the statue is a plain, generic statue, depicting an angel. Instead of elevating the divine in the picture, Watteau reduces it to the level of the mundane, as a rather dour looking statue in the corner of the composition. Instead o f this divine element, our eye is drawn to the centre of the piece, where some aristocrats talk and lounge in the sun. The resultant effect is a displacement of our expectations, as the scene of the everyday takes precedence over the historical and mythical connotations of the surroundings. Conversation was an important facet to life for Watteau, and indeed, the congregation of people that appear in FÃ ªtes Galantes certainly encapsulates this theme that remains prevalent in his work. Watteau sought to capture the rhythms of conversation, and indeed, the ambiguity of the piece, and the way it juxtaposes the divine, the everyday, the mythical and the traditional gives the impression that the piece is stuck in a dialogue with itself over what it is supposed to be representing. The conversational theme is prevalent in all of the FÃ ªtes galantes, and it is precisely this, juxtaposition of the high-brow conceptual and representational framework, pasted over the ordinary activities of a few aristocrats that makes the work, in a subtle way, revolutionary. Michalski suggests that: Almost all FÃ ªtes galantes should be interpreted from the viewpoint of the conversational theme. Watteau [] accepted the high status of conversation within society, and he paid homage to it thoug h his artful construction of discursive situations and though the discreet but self-revealing conduct of his figures[3]. Indeed, this glorification of conversation instead of the high historical concepts of modern art could be seen in a number of ways first, as a cynical drive to make money from two differing audiences; first, to satisfy the needs of the Academie and maintain an audience, and second, to actually satirize the concept of high art by smuggling the mundaneness of the everyday into a grand, historical painting. Thus, the work can be seen as an ingenious way of making profit from two increasingly disparate groups of people, or else it could be read as a more subversive work of art seeking to destroy the sanctity of representative art from within. This ambiguity and decorousness of the art is precisely what makes the work both fascinating and prescient to an audience that would later treat a work of art as a means to represent the artists unique vision, rather than a self less depiction of biblical or narrative events. Therefore, the work could be read as anticipating the impressionists and modernist art. Indeed, this is one particular reading of the piece. The decorative aspects of FÃ ªtes Galantes certainly can be read as a prototype for the modernist art obsessed by surface representation and secularism that was to come. Overall, the genre of the FÃ ªtes Galantes was important insofar as, despite its position as a distinctly commercial genre, artists such as Watteau, arguably satirized the academy by introducing the authority of the artist into these works. Juxtaposing the everyday with the mythical setting of Arcadia, Watteau appealed to both the French Royal establishment, and also the private aristocratic patrons that wished to see themselves in paint, conversing and doing everyday things in the countryside. Thus, the piece itself exists as a decorative piece, unencumbered by the traditional trappings of biblical narrative and / or morally stimulating works from mythology or history. And, by pushing to the forefront the purely decorative, in many ways secularising high art, Watteau brought to the forefront notions about the relationship between the artist and his art, as well as being a forerunner for movements such as Impressionism and Modernism, that would revolutionize the relationship between artist and art, and also mutate the representational powers of painting from an objective depiction, to an obsession with the various forms and the subtleties of seeing objects differently. Overall, Fete Galante is open to a whole series of different meanings and readings, but perhaps it is precisely this sense of ambiguity, this mismatch of certain tenets of classical, traditional high art, and the emergent vocabulary of low art that causes the image itself to be considered over the specificities of what or who it represents. Bibliography Cowart, G., Watteaus Pilgrimage to Cythera and the Subversive Utopia of the Opera-Ballet, from The Art Bulletin, Sept 2001 Marshall, D. R., Watteau and Eighteenth Century Art Michalski, S., Watteaus Painted Conversations from The Art Bulletin, Dec 1994 Plax, J. A., Watteau and the Cultural Politics of Eighteenth Century France, University of Arizona Press, Arizona, 2000 Footnotes [1]David R. Marshall, Watteau and Eighteenth Century Art [2]Julie Anne Plax, Watteau and the Cultural Politics of Eighteenth Century France, University of Arizona Press, Arizona: 2000, p. 24 [3]Sergiusz Michalski, Watteaus Painted Conversations, from The Art Bulletin, Dec 1994, p. 2

The Emergence of the Middle Ages: 1000 ad Essay -- essays research pap

The Emergence of the Middle Ages: 1000 AD When the Old World Order began to crumble with the fall of the Roman Empire and the break up of the Mediterranean the foundation was laid for a new type of civilization to emerge, a â€Å"western civilization†. The Empire in the East continued, based in Constantinople.. It was the most obvious heir to the culture of the classical world. This culture still dominates Eastern Europe and Russia, through Orthodoxy. Islam was the religion of Arab townsmen. Led by Mohammad (d. c. 640, Hijira 622). They swept out of the Arabian Peninsula. [Lacey, 174] They eventually took control of all North Africa, Egypt, Anatolia (under the Turks) and for a time Spain. Islam is also is an heir to Classical civilization. It gleamed mathematics from Mesopotamia, Philosophy from the Greeks and Monotheism from the Jews. For almost a thousand years Muslims were by all objective standards more advanced than Western Europe Finally, Barbarians and Germanic tribes dominated what was left in the area known today as; France, Spain, Italy, Britain, Germany. This was the least developed of the three cultures that succeeded the classical world. It was dominated increasingly also by the Church of Rome. It was a Latin reading and speaking world, therefore the term "Latin Christendom." This area was to become the West. From around 600 to 1000 AD conditions were fairly bleak in the emergence of a western civilization. By 1050 AD the Latin Christendom movement ...

Real World

Real world cyber crime cases This document is an extract from the book Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective authored by Rohas Nagpal. This book is available as courseware for the Diploma in Cyber Law and PG Program in Cyber Law conducted by Asian School of Cyber Laws www. asianlaws. org Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. Real World Cases This chapter serves as a ready reference guide. First the various scenarios are covered. A detailed discussion on the various cyber crimes, is covered in the ASCL publication titled â€Å"Understanding Hackers and Cyber Criminals†. This is provided as official courseware for the ASCL Certified Cyber Crime Investigator course. Then the applicable law and legal liabilities are covered. Then the modus operandi usually followed by the criminals is discussed. The investigation guidelines for cyber crime investigators are not discussed in this book as they are part of the syllabus of the ASCL Certified Cyber Crime Investigator course only. For real world case studies on investigation of cyber crimes, please refer to the ASCL publication titled â€Å"Case Studies on Cyber Crime Investigation†. This is provided as official courseware for the ASCL Certified Cyber Crime Investigator course. – 130 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 1 Orkut Fake Profile cases Orkut. com is a very popular online community and social networking website. Orkut users can search for and interact with people who share the same hobbies and interests. They can create and join a wide variety of online communities. The profiles of Orkut members are publicly viewable. The scenarios 1. A fake profile of a woman is created on Orkut. The profile displays her correct name and contact information (such as address, residential phone number, cell phone number etc). Sometimes it even has her photograph. The problem is that the profile describes her as a prostitute or a woman of â€Å"loose character† who wants to have sexual relations with anyone. Other Orkut members see this profile and start calling her at all hours of the day asking for sexual favours. This leads to a lot of harassment for the victim and also defames her in society. 2. An online hate community is created. This community displays objectionable information against a particular country, religious or ethnic group or even against national leaders and historical figures. 3. A fake profile of a man is created on Orkut. The profile contains defamatory information abut the victim (such as his alleged sexual weakness, alleged immoral character etc) The law Scenario 1: Section 67 of Information Technology Act and section 509 of the Indian Penal Code. Scenario 2: Section 153A and 153B of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 3: Section 500 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? Scenario 1: Directors of Orkut as well as all those who create and update the fake profile. Scenario 2: Same as Scenario 1. Scenario 3: Same as Scenario 1.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 131 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective The motive Scenario 1: Jealousy or revenge (e. g. the victim may have rejected the advances made by the suspect). Scenario 2: Desire to cause racial hatred (e. g. Pakistani citizens creating an anti-India online community). Scenario 3: Hatred (e. g. a school student who has failed may victimize his teachers). Modus Operandi 1. The suspect would create a free Gmail account using a fictitious name. 2. The email ID chosen by him would be unrelated to his real identity. 3. The suspect would then login to Orkut. com and create the offensive profile. – 132 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 2 Email Account Hacking Emails are increasingly being used for social interaction, business communication and online transactions. Most email account holders do not take basic precautions to protect their email account passwords. Cases of theft of email passwords and subsequent misuse of email accounts are becoming very common. The scenarios 1. The victim’s email account password is stolen and the account is then misused for sending out malicious code (virus, worm, Trojan etc) to people in the victim’s address book. The recipients of these viruses believe that the email is coming from a known person and run the attachments. This infects their computers with the malicious code. 2. The victim’s email account password is stolen and the hacker tries to extort money from the victim. The victim is threatened that if he does not pay the money, the information contained in the emails will be misused. 3. The victim’s email account password is stolen and obscene emails are sent to people in the victim’s address book. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 384 of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 3: Sections 43, 66 and 67 of Information Technology Act and section 509 of the Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? Scenario 1: Persons who have stolen the email account password and who are misusing the email account. Scenario 2: Persons who have stolen the email account password and who are threatening to misuse it.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 133 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective Scenario 3: Persons who have stolen the email account password and who are misusing the email account. The motive Scenario 1: Corporate Espionage, perverse pleasure in being able to destroy valuable information belonging to strangers etc. Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain. Scenario 3: Revenge, jealousy, hatred. Modus Operandi 1. The suspect would install keyloggers in public computers (such as cyber cafes, airport lounges etc) or the computers of the victim. 2. Unsuspecting victims would login to their email accounts using these infected computers. 3. The passwords of the victim’s email accounts would be emailed to the suspect. – 134 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 3 Credit Card Fraud Credit cards are commonly being used for online booking of airline and railway tickets and for other ecommerce transactions. Although most of ecommerce websites have implemented strong security measures (such as SSL, secure web servers etc), instances of credit card frauds are increasing. The scenario The victim’s credit card information is stolen and misused for making online purchases (e. g. airline tickets, software, subscription to pornographic websites etc). The law Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 420 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? All persons who have stolen the credit card information as well as those who have misused it. The motive Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect would install keyloggers in public computers (such as cyber cafes, airport lounges etc) or the computers of the victim. Unsuspecting victims would use these infected computers to make online transactions. The credit card information of the victim would be emailed to the suspect. Scenario 2: Petrol pump attendants, workers at retail outlets, hotel waiters etc note down information of the credit cards used for making payment at these establishments. This information is sold to criminal gangs that misuse it for online frauds. 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 135 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 4 Online Share Trading Fraud With the advent of dematerialization of shares in India, it has become mandatory for investors to have demat accounts. In most cases an online banking account is linked with the share trading account. This has led to a high number of online share trading frauds. The scenario Scenario 1: The victim’s account passwords are stolen and his accounts are misused for making fraudulent bank transfers. Scenario 2: The victim’s account passwords are stolen and his share trading accounts are misused for making unauthorised transactions that result in the victim making losses. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 420 of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 426 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? Scenario 1: All persons who have stolen the account information as well as those who have misused it. Scenario 2: All persons who have stolen the account information as well as those who have misused it. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain Scenario 2: Revenge, jealousy, hatred Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect would install keyloggers in public computers (such as cyber cafes, airport lounges etc) or the computers of the victim. Unsuspecting victims would use these infected computers to login to their online banking and share trading accounts. The passwords and other information of the victim would be emailed to the suspect. Scenario 2: Same as scenario 1. – 136  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 3. 5 Tax Evasion and Money Laundering Many unscrupulous businessmen and money launderers (havala operators) are using virtual as well as physical storage media for hiding information and records of their illicit business. The scenario Scenario 1: The suspect uses physical storage media for hiding the information e. g. hard drives, floppies, USB drives, mobile phone memory cards, digital camera memory ca rds, CD ROMs, DVD ROMs, iPods etc. Scenario 2: The suspect uses virtual storage media for hiding the information e. g. mail accounts, online briefcases, FTP sites, Gspace etc. The law Scenario 1: Depending upon the case, provisions of the Income Tax Act and Prevention of Money Laundering Act will apply. Scenario 2: Depending upon the case, provisions of the Income Tax Act and Prevention of Money Laundering Act will apply. Who is liable? Scenario 1: information. The person who hides the Scenario 2: The person who hides the information. If the operators of the virtual storage facility do not cooperate in the investigation, then they also become liable. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect would purchase small storage devices with large data storage capacities. Scenario 2: The suspect would open free or paid accounts with online storage providers.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 137 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 6 Source Code Theft Computer source code is the most important asset of software companies. Simply put, source code is the programming instructions that are compiled into the executable files that are sold by software development companies. As is expected, most source code thefts take place in software companies. Some cases are also reported in banks, manufacturing companies and other organisations who get original software developed for their use. The scenario Scenario 1: The suspect (usually an employee of the victim) steals the source code and sells it to a business rival of the victim. Scenario 2: The suspect (usually an employee of the victim) steals the source code and uses it as a base to make and sell his own version of the software. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43, 65 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of the Copyright Act. Scenario 2: Sections 43, 65 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of the Copyright Act. Who is liable? Scenario 1: The persons who steal the source code as well as the persons who purchase the stolen source code. Scenario 2: The persons who steal the source code. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain. Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi Scenario 1: If the suspect is an employee of the victim, he would usually have direct or indirect access to the source code. He would steal a copy of the source code and hide it using a virtual or physical storage device. – 138 – 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective If the suspect is not an employee of the victim, he would hack into the victim’s servers to steal the source code. Or he would use social engineering to get unauthorised access to the code. He would then contact potential buyers to make the sale. Scenario 2: If the suspe ct is an employee of the victim, he would usually have direct or indirect access to the source code. He would steal a copy of the source code and hide it using a virtual or physical storage device. If the suspect is not an employee of the victim, e would hack into the victim’s servers to steal the source code. Or he would use social engineering to get unauthorised access to the code. He would then modify the source code (either himself or in association with other programmers) and launch his own software.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 139 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 7 Theft of Confidential Information Most business organisations store their sensitive information in computer systems. This information is targeted by rivals, criminals and sometimes disgruntled employees. The scenario Scenario 1: A business rival obtains the information (e. g. tender quotations, business plans etc) using hacking or social engineering. He then uses the information for the benefit of his own business (e. g. quoting lower rates for the tender). Scenario 2: A criminal obtains the information by hacking or social engineering and threatens to make the information public unless the victim pays him some money. Scenario 3: A disgruntled employee steals the information and mass mails it to the victim’s rivals and also posts it to numerous websites and newsgroups. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 426 of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 384 of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 3: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 426 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? Scenario 1: The persons who steal the information as well as the persons who misuse the stolen information. Scenario 2: The persons who steal the information as well as the persons who threaten the victim and extort money. Scenario 3: The disgruntled employee as well as the persons who help him in stealing and distributing the information. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain. Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain. Scenario3: Revenge. – 140  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect could hire a skilled hacker to break into the victim systems. The hacker could also use social engineering techniques. Illustration: A very good looking woman went to meet the system administrator (sysadmin) of a large company. She interviewed the sysadmin for a â€Å"magazine article†. During the interview she flirted a lot with the sysadmin and while leaving she â€Å"accidentally† left her pen drive at the sysadmin’s room. The sysadmin accessed the pen drive and saw that it contained many photographs of the lady. He did not realize that the photographs were Trojanized! Once the Trojan was in place, a lot of sensitive information was stolen very easily. Illustration: The sysadmin of a large manufacturing company received a beautifully packed CD ROM containing â€Å"security updates† from the company that developed the operating system that ran his company’s servers. He installed the â€Å"updates† which in reality were Trojanized software. For 3 years after that a lot of confidential information was stolen from the company’s systems! Scenario 2: Same as scenario 1. Scenario 3: The disgruntled employee would usually have direct or indirect access to the information. He can use his personal computer or a cyber cafe to spread the information.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 141 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 8 Software Piracy Many people do not consider software piracy to be theft. They would never steal a rupee from someone but would not think twice before using pirated software. There is a common perception amongst normal computer users to not consider software as â€Å"property†. This has led to software piracy becoming a flourishing business. The scenario Scenario 1: The software pirate sells the pirated software in physical media (usually CD ROMs) through a close network of dealers. Scenario 2: The software pirate sells the pirated software through electronic downloads through websites, bulletin boards, newsgroups, spam emails etc. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of Copyright Act. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of Copyright Act. Who is liable? Scenario 1: The software pirate as well as the persons who buy the pirated software from him. Scenario 2: The software pirate as well as the persons who buy the pirated software from him. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain. Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect uses high speed CD duplication equipment to create multiple copies of the pirated software. This software is sold through a network of computer hardware and software vendors. Scenario 2: The suspect registers a domain name using a fictitious name and then hosts his website using a service provider that is based in a country that does not have cyber laws. Such service providers do not divulge client information to law enforcement officials of other countries. – 142  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 9 Music Piracy Many people do not consider music piracy to be theft. They would never steal a rupee from someone but would not think twice before buying or using pirated music. There is a common perception amongst people users to not consider music as â€Å"property†. There is a huge business in music piracy. Thousands of unscrupulous businessmen sell pirated music at throw away prices. The scenario Scenario 1: The music pirate sells the pirated music in physical media (usually CD ROMs) through a close network of dealers. Scenario 2: The music pirate sells the pirated music through electronic downloads through websites, bulletin boards, newsgroups, spam emails etc. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of Copyright Act. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of the Information Technology Act, section 63 of Copyright Act. Who is liable? Scenario 1: The music pirate as well as the persons who buy the pirated software from him. Scenario 2: The music pirate as well as the persons who buy the pirated software from him. The motive Scenario 1: Illegal financial gain. Scenario 2: Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi Scenario 1: The suspect uses high speed CD duplication equipment to create multiple copies of the pirated music. This music is sold through a network of dealers. Scenario 2: The suspect registers a domain name using a fictitious name and then hosts his website using a service provider that is based in a country that does not have cyber laws. Such service providers do not divulge client information to law enforcement officials of other countries.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 143 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 10 Email Scams Emails are fast emerging as one of the most common methods of communication in the modern world. As can be expected, criminals are also using emails extensively for their illicit activities. The scenario In the first step, the suspect convinces the victim that the victim is going to get a lot of money (by way of winning a lottery or from a corrupt African bureaucrat who wants to transfer his ill gotten gains out of his home country). In order to convince the victim, the suspect sends emails (some having official looking documents as attachments). Once the victim believes this story, the suspect asks for a small fee to cover legal expenses or courier charges. If the victim pays up the money, the suspect stops all contact. The law Section 420 of Indian Penal Code Who is liable? The sender of the email. The motive Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi The suspect creates email accounts in fictitious names and sends out millions of fraudulent emails using powerful spam software. – 144 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 11 Phishing With the tremendous increase in the use of online banking, online share trading and ecommerce, there has been a corresponding growth in the ncidents of phishing being used to carry out financial frauds. Phishing involves fraudulently acquiring sensitive information (e. g. passwords, credit card details etc) by masquerading as a trusted entity. The scenario Scenario 1: The victim receives an email that appears to have been sent from his bank. The email urges the victim to click on the link in the email. When the victim does so, he is taken to â€Å"a secure page on the bank’s website†. The victim believes the web page to be authentic and he enters his username, password and other information. In reality, the website is a fake and the victim’s information is stolen and misused. The law Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and sections 419, 420 and 468 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? All persons involved in creating and sending the fraudulent emails and creating and maintaining the fake website. The persons who misuse the stolen or â€Å"phished† information are also liable. The motive Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi The suspect registers a domain name using fictitious details. The domain name is usually such that can be misused for spoofing e. g. Noodle Bank has its website at www. oodle. com The suspects can target Noodle customers using a domain name like www. noodle-bank-customerlogin. com The suspect then sends spoofed emails to the victims. e. g. the emails may appear to come from [email  protected] com The fake website is designed to look exactly like the original website.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 1 45 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 12 Cyber Pornography Cyber pornography is believed to be one of the largest businesses on the Internet today. The millions of pornographic websites that flourish on the Internet are testimony to this. While pornography per se is not illegal in many countries, child pornography is strictly illegal in most nations today. Cyber pornography includes pornographic websites, pornographic magazines produced using computers (to publish and print the material) and the Internet (to download and transmit pornographic pictures, photos, writings etc). The scenario The suspect accepts online payments and allows paying customers to view / download pornographic pictures, videos etc from his website. The law Section 67 of Information Technology Act. Who is liable? The persons who create and maintain the pornographic websites are liable. In some cases cyber cafe owners and managers may also be liable in case they knowingly allow their customers to access the pornographic websites. The motive Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi The suspect registers a domain name using fictitious details and hosts a website on a server located in a country where cyber pornography is not illegal. The suspect accepts online payments and allows paying customers to view / download pornographic pictures, videos etc from his website. – 146 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 3 Online Sale of Illegal Articles It is becoming increasingly common to find cases where sale of narcotics drugs, weapons, wildlife etc. is being facilitated by the Internet. Information about the availability of the products for sale is being posted on auction websites, bulletin boards etc. The scenario The suspect posts information about the illegal sale that he seeks to make. P otential customers can contact the seller using the email IDs provided. If the buyer and seller trust each other after their email and / or telephonic conversation, the actual transaction can be concluded. In most such cases the buyer and seller will meet face to face at the time of the final transaction. Illustration: In March 2007, the Pune rural police cracked down on an illegal rave party and arrested hundreds of illegal drug users. The social networking site, Orkut. com, is believed to be one of the modes of communication for gathering people for the illegal â€Å"drug† party. The law Depending upon the illegal items being transacted in, provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, Arms Act, Indian Penal Code, Wildlife related laws etc may apply. Who is liable? The persons who buy and sell these items. The motive Illegal financial gain. Modus Operandi The suspect creates an email ID using fictitious details. He then posts messages, about the illegal products, in various chat rooms, bulletin boards, newsgroups etc. Potential customers can contact the seller using the email IDs provided. If the buyer and seller trust each other after their email and / or telephonic conversation, the actual transaction can be concluded. In most such cases the buyer and seller will meet face to face at the time of the final transaction.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. 147 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 14 Use of Internet and Computers by Terrorists Many terrorists are using virtual as well as physical storage media for hiding information and records of their illicit business. They also use emails and chat rooms to communicate with their counterparts around the globe. The scenario The suspects carry laptops w herein information relating to their activities is stored in encrypted and password protected form. They also create email accounts using fictitious details. In many cases, one email account is shared by many people. E. g. one terrorist composes an email and saves it in the draft folder. Another terrorist logs into the same account from another city / country and reads the saved email. He then composes his reply and saves it in the draft folder. The emails are not actually sent. This makes email tracking and tracing almost impossible. Terrorists also use physical storage media for hiding the information e. g. hard drives, floppies, USB drives, mobile phone memory cards, digital camera memory cards, CD ROMs, DVD ROMs, iPods etc. They also use virtual storage media for hiding the information e. g. mail accounts, online briefcases, FTP sites, Gspace etc. The law Terrorists are covered by conventional laws such as Indian Penal Code and special legislation relating to terrorism. Who is liable? Terrorists as well as those who help them to protect their information are liable. If email service providers do not assist the law enforcement personnel in the investigation then they are also legally liable. T he motive Keeping terrorism related information confidential. Secure communication amongst terrorist group members. Modus Operandi The terrorists purchase small storage devices with large data storage capacities. They also purchase and use encryption software. The terrorists may also use free or paid accounts with online storage providers. – 148  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 23. 15 Virus Attacks Computer viruses are malicious programs that destroy electronic information. As the world is increasingly becoming networked, the threat and damage caused by viruses is growing by leaps and bounds. The scenario Scenario 1: The virus is a general â€Å"in the wild† virus. This means that it is spreading all over the world and is not targeted at any specific organisation. Scenario 2: The virus targets a particular organisation. This type of a virus is not known to anti-virus companies as it is a new virus created specifically to target a particular organisation. The law Scenario 1: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 426 of Indian Penal Code. Scenario 2: Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act and section 426 of Indian Penal Code. Who is liable? Scenario 1: The creator of the virus. Scenario 2: The creator of the virus as well as the buyer who purchases the virus (usually to target his business rivals). The motive Scenario 1: Thrill and a perverse pleasure in destroying data belonging to strangers. Scenario 2: Illegal business rivalry. financial gain, revenge, Modus Operandi Scenario 1: A highly skilled programmer creates a new type or strain of virus and releases it on the Internet so that it can spread all over the world. Being a new virus, it goes undetected by many anti-virus software and hence is able to spread all over the world and cause a lot of damage. Anti-virus companies are usually able to find a solution within 8 to 48 hours.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. 149 – Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective Scenario 2: A highly skilled programmer creates a new type or strain of virus. He does not release it on the Internet. Instead he sells it for a huge amount of money. The buyer uses the virus to target his rival company. Being a new virus, it may be undetected by the victim company’s anti-virus software and hence would be able to cause a lot of damage. Anti-virus companies may never get to know about the existence of the virus. – 150 –  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence – Indian Perspective 3. 16 Web Defacement Website defacement is usually the substitution of the original home page of a website with another page (usually pornographic or defamatory in nature) by a hacker. Religious and government sites are regularly targeted by hackers in order to display political or religious beliefs. Disturbing images and offensive phrases might be displayed in the process, as well as a signature of sorts, to show who was responsible for the defacement. Websites are not only defaced for political reasons, many defacers do it just for the thrill. The scenario The homepage of a website is replaced with a pornographic or defamatory page. In case of Government websites, this is most commonly done on symbolic days (e. g. the Independence day of the country). The law Sections 43 and 66 of Information Technology Act [In some cases section 67 and 70 may also apply]. Who is liable? The person who defaces the website. The motive Thrill or a perverse pleasure in inciting communal disharmony. Modus Operandi The defacer may exploit the vulnerabilities of the operating system or applications used to host the website. This will allow him to hack into the web server and change the home page and other pages. Alternatively he may launch a brute force or dictionary attack to obtain the administrator passwords for the website. He can then connect to the web server and change the webpages.  © 2008 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved. – 151 – www. asianlaws. org Head Office 6th Floor, Pride Senate, Behind Indiabulls Mega Store, Senapati Bapat Road, Pune – 411016. India Contact Numbers +91-20-25667148 +91-20-40033365 +91-20-64000000 +91-20-64006464 Email: [email  protected] org URL: www. asianlaws. org

The Secret of Ella and Micha Chapter 2

Ella â€Å"I swear to God if we don't find a bathroom soon, I'm going to piss in my pants.† Lila bounces up and down in the driver's seat. The air conditioner is turned up as high as it will go and â€Å"Shake it Out† by Florence + The Machine plays from the speakers. There's a long road of highway stretched out in front of us, weaving over the hills spotted with trees, sage brush, and the pale pink glow of the sunset. My cell phone is in my pocket, heavy like it weighs a hundred pounds. â€Å"You can always pull over and pee behind a bush.† I prop my bare feet up on the dash and pull my white lacy tank top away from my skin to get air flowing. â€Å"Besides, we're like five minutes away from the off-ramp.† â€Å"I can't hold it for five more minutes.† She shoots me a dirty look and squeezes her legs together. â€Å"You're not going to think it's so funny when the car smells like piss.† I smother a laugh and search the GPS for the nearest restroom. â€Å"There's one right off the exit, but I think it's more of an outhouse.† â€Å"Does it have a toilet?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Then it works.† She makes a sharp swerve, cutting off a silver Honda. The Honda lays on its horn and she turns in her seat to flip him the middle finger. â€Å"What a jerk. Doesn't he understand that I have to pee?† I shake my head. I love Lila to death, but sometimes she can be a little self-centered. It's part of what drew me to her; she was so different from my old friends back in Star Grove. My phone beeps again for the millionth time, letting me know I have a message waiting for me. Finally, I shut it off. Lila turns down the music. â€Å"You've been acting weird ever since we left. Who called you?† I shrug, gazing out at the grassy field. â€Å"No one I want to talk to right now.† Five minutes later, we pull up to the outhouse at the edge of town. It's more like a shack with rusty metal siding and a faded sign. The field behind it is spotted with corroded cars and trucks and in front of it is a lake. â€Å"Oh thank God!† She claps her hands and parks the car. â€Å"I'll be right back.† She jumps out and shuffles inside the bathroom. I climb out of the car and stretch my legs, trying not to look at the lake or the bridge going over it, but my gaze magnetizes toward the level bridge with beams curving overhead and out from the sides. The middle one was where I was standing the night I almost jumped. If I squint one eye and tilt my head, I can spot it. An old Chevy pickup comes flying down the road, kicking up a cloud of dust. As it nears, my nose twitches because I know who it is and he's one of the last people I want to see. The truck stops just outside the perimeter of the field behind the restrooms. A lanky guy, wearing a tight t-shirt, a snug pair of jeans, and cowboy boots comes strutting out. Grantford Davis, town pothead, infamous brawl starter, and the guy who dropped me off at the bridge that God awful night eight months ago. I bang on the bathroom door. â€Å"Come on Lila, hurry up.† Grantford looks my way, but there's no recognition in his eyes, which isn't surprising. I've changed since the last time anyone saw me, shedding my gothic clothes, heavy eyeliner, and tough-girl attitude for a more lighter and pleasant look, so I blend in with the crowd. â€Å"You can't rush nature, Ella,† Lila hisses through the door. â€Å"Now let me pee in peace.† I watch Grantford like a hawk as he rolls a tire across the field toward his pickup. The bathroom door opens and Lila walks out cringing. â€Å"Gross, it was so disgusting in there. I think I might have caught herpes just looking at the toilet.† She shivers, wiping her hands on the side of her dress. â€Å"And there were no paper towels.† Grantford has disappeared, although his truck is still there. I grab Lila's arm and tug her toward the car. â€Å"We need to go.† Lila elevates her eyebrows questioningly as she tries to keep up with me. â€Å"What's wrong with you?† â€Å"Nothing,† I say. â€Å"There was just this guy over in the field that I really don't want to talk to.† â€Å"Is he an old boyfriend?† â€Å"No, not even close†¦.† I trail off as Grantford rounds the bathroom. There's sweat on his forehead and grass stains on his jeans. â€Å"I need to talk to you for a minute.† â€Å"Why?† I question, swinging the car door open. Please don't bring up that night. Please. Lila freezes as she's opening the door and her gaze darts to me. â€Å"Ella, what's going on?† Grantford tucks his hands into his pockets, staring at the hood of the car. â€Å"This ain't your car, is it?† â€Å"No, we just stole it and took it for a joy ride.† Shit. Ten minutes back and my old attitude is slipping out. â€Å"I mean, yes it is – her car anyway.† I nod my head at Lila. â€Å"Well, I was just wondering how fast it goes?† He gives me a fox smile that makes me want to gag. I was never a fan of Grantford. He always had a sleazebag attitude, which was part of the reason why I had him drive me to the bridge that night – he was the only one I knew who would leave me there alone. I can't help myself. â€Å"Probably a lot faster than your pick up over there.† He has a shit-eating grin on his face. â€Å"Is that a challenge?† I shake my head and motion for Lila to get in the car â€Å"Nope, that wasn't a challenge. Just a mere observation.† Recollection fills his eyes. â€Å"Wait a minute. Do I know you?† Ignoring him, I start to shut the door, but he catches it. â€Å"Holy crap! I do know you. You're Ella Daniels.† His eyes mosey up my legs, cutoff jeans, lacy white tank top, and land on my eyes lined with frosty pink eyeliner. â€Å"You look†¦ different.† â€Å"College will do that to you.† I scale up his scuffed cowboy boots, his torn jeans, and stained shirt. â€Å"You haven't changed a bit.† â€Å"I see your mouth hasn't changed at all,† he snaps. â€Å"And besides, you didn't change for the better. In fact, you look like you could be friends with Stacy Harris.† â€Å"Don't exaggerate the situation,† I say. Stacy Harris was a popular girl in our grade; head cheerleader, homecoming queen, wore a lot of pink. His face scrunches. â€Å"You didn't just change on the outside either. If anybody would have compared you to Stacy Harris, you'd have punched them in the face.† â€Å"Violence solves nothing.† I begin to shut the door again. â€Å"I have to go.† He complements my move and seizes the door, prying it back open. â€Å"You ain't going anywhere until I get something out of you.† â€Å"Like a kick to the balls,† I threaten, but my insides churn. I can talk tough, but when it all comes down to it he's a really big guy who could easily hurt me. His grey eyes turn black as the sun sets behind the shallow hills. â€Å"I heard you bailed. Packed up your stuff one night and took off. Pissed off a lot of people, too. The ones that were always protecting you when that mouth of yours got you into trouble. Especially that one guy you were always with.† â€Å"Don't pretend like you don't know his name.† My voice is slightly uneven. I feel out-of-control of the situation and I'm starting to panic. â€Å"You don't forget the names of the people whose fist have slammed into your face.† A vein bulges in his thick neck as he punches the window. â€Å"That night I was wasted and Micha was completely sober. And it was total bull shit that he sucker punched me for leaving you on the bridge. I mean, you asked me to take you there. How the hell was it my fault?† Apparently, Micha hit him more than once because it's not the instance I'm referring to. I tug at the door handle. â€Å"I'm going to close the door now and you're going to walk away.† â€Å"Who are you?† His eyes are all over me. â€Å"I'm who I always was,† I mutter. â€Å"Just without all the baggage.† Calmly, I close the door. â€Å"You can drive away now, Lila.† She floors the car backwards and skids it onto the asphalt. I don't look back at Grantford or the bridge. I breathe through my nose, trying to stay composed and in possession of my feelings. â€Å"What was that about?† Lila asks. â€Å"Who was that creep?† I buckle my seatbelt and turn up the air conditioning. â€Å"Just some guy I used to know from high school.† â€Å"I thought he was going to kill you or something†¦ Maybe we should call the police.† Flashbacks of my old life resurface. â€Å"That's just how things are around here. Besides, he was all bark and no bite. Trust me. He was just irritated with something I did.† Her eyes enlarge and she grips the steering wheel. â€Å"What did you do?† I glance in the rearview mirror at the desolate road behind us. â€Å"Nothing I want to talk about.† She slows down as the speed limit decreases. â€Å"How did you do that? You were so calm even when he tried to hold the door open. I was freaking out.† â€Å"It was just instincts,† I lie. If she knew the real reason we sure as hell wouldn't be friends. *** The urge to make Lila flip a U-turn and floor it back to Vegas becomes more powerful the closer we get to my home. Lila relaxes about the Grantford ordeal when the outhouse is far behind us. We make the rest of the short drive talking about classes and frat parties, but when we pull into the driveway of my house, her fear and panic reemerges. â€Å"This is†¦ nice.† She shudders as she peers through the windshield. â€Å"So this is where you grew up?† The full moon shines in the starry sky, lighting up the trash piled in the driveway, the old cutlass balanced on cinderblocks in front of the garage, and the peeling paint off my two-story home trimmed with a broken rain gutter that's swaying in the wind. The tree beside my window looks like it's dying. It was once my gateway for sneaking out of my room, but the last time I snuck out was the night my mother died. I'll never climb that damn tree again. â€Å"Yep, this is home.† I step out into the cool breeze. Rise Against â€Å"Like an Angel† blasts from the speakers next door. The lights are on in the house, and there's a lot of screaming and yelling going on. The driveway is lined bumper to bumper with cars and people are smoking on the dry front lawn and on the deck. One of Micha's parties. It's like time has frozen and was waiting for me to return. â€Å"God things never change around here.† I round the back of the car. â€Å"Lila, can you pop the trunk, please.† The trunk pops open and Lila steps tentatively out of the car. Her eyes fasten on the party and she's chewing on her thumbnail, which is a nervous habit of hers. â€Å"Jeez, it's more intense than even a frat party. I didn't know that could be possible.† I sling a heavy bag over my shoulder. â€Å"Are you sure you want to sleep at my house tonight?† I rummage through the trunk for the bag holding all my toiletries. â€Å"There are some pretty decent hotels in the next town over.† â€Å"I'm just not used to this kind of a place. That's all†¦ But I'm sure it's fine.† She collects one of my pillows from the trunk and hugs it tightly. â€Å"Are you absolutely sure?† I balance a small box under my arm. I don't want her to stay and witness this side of my life. â€Å"This place is a lot to take in for some people.† She narrows her eyes and points a finger at me. â€Å"I may come from an upper class town, but that doesn't mean I haven't been in rougher areas before. Besides, we went to that pawn store that one time in Vegas and that neighborhood was definitely sketchy.† It really wasn't that bad of an area, but I decide to let it go, since she'll only be staying here for one night. â€Å"Sorry, I just†¦ I want to make sure you're comfortable.† I shift the bag onto my hip and feel around the dark trunk for my other bag. â€Å"I promise I can manage for one night.† She crosses her heart with her finger and smiles. â€Å"In fact, I might even get brave enough to go check out the party next door.† I rapidly switch the subject. â€Å"We can probably get the rest of this stuff out tomorrow, since it's dark and I can barely see. And I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted.† â€Å"I think†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Her eyes wander in the direction of the driveway. â€Å"Dear God Almighty, who is he? Wait a minute. Isn't he†¦ yeah†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She lets out a quiet squeal and hops up and down. â€Å"Ella, I think it's the guy from your drawing, that Micha guy you insist you never dated.† My bag falls to the ground as I slouch down, debating an escape. Duck under the car? Run into the house? Dive into the trunk? â€Å"Hey there, beautiful,† Micha says in his flirty tone. â€Å"You shouldn't park your car out here in the open. Someone will probably jack it.† The sound of his voice sends a tremble through my body that coils down deep inside me. I thought the feeling would be gone after being away for eight months, but somehow time has had the opposite effect – it's amplified and taking over my body. I pretend to be engrossed by a box in the trunk and put my head amidst the shadows. Lila giggles. â€Å"I'm sure my car will be okay. This is my friend's house.† â€Å"Your friend's house†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He drifts off, making the connection and anxiety strangles me. â€Å"Wait a minute? Are you talking about Ella Daniels?† Collecting myself, I slam the trunk down. When he sees me, his eyes enlarge and he has the same expression on his face as when his mama told him his daddy wasn't ever coming back. He blinks the stunned expression away and a hint of anger transpires. â€Å"What are you doing here? I thought you were in Vegas.† For a moment, I'm unable to speak, caught in a mixture of emotions from seeing him again. Micha has always been stunningly beautiful in a way that makes artists' hands ache. He's dressed in a red plaid shirt, dark jeans, and a pair of black boots. His lips are full and ornamented with a silver loop and his dirty blonde hair has a slight wave to it. His skin is like porcelain and his aqua eyes carry more than I can handle. â€Å"I was down there for school, but I'm back now,† I say in the polite tone I've used with everyone over the last eight months. But on the inside my heart is wild, and my blood is roaring with the same yearning I felt for him when I left. â€Å"Wait a minute. You knew I was down there?† He sidesteps around Lila and positions himself directly in front of me. Micha is one of the few guys that is taller than me and I have to angle my head up to meet his eyes. â€Å"I had no idea where you were until this morning,† he says. â€Å"Since you didn't tell anyone where you went.† The ache in his voice stabs at my heart and the phone carrying the voicemail in my pocket weighs a thousand pounds. â€Å"Sorry, but I needed a break from this place. It was†¦ things were†¦ well you know how it was.† â€Å"No, I don't know how it was.† He braces a hand on the trunk like he's going to fall over. â€Å"Since you took off and never told me where the hell you went.† I need to go before he gets to me, and all my self-control evaporates. Picking up my bag from the ground, I wave good-bye to him. â€Å"It was nice talking to you again, but we've been on the road for like twelve hours and all I want to do is lay down.† â€Å"I'm not really that tired,† Lila says and I press her with a pleading look. â€Å"Oh, wait maybe I am.† She fakes a yawn. I hurry for the side door of my house, but Micha blocks my path, and his hand comes down on the car like a railroad track barricade. He drags his lip ring into his mouth with a passionate look on his face, like he might kiss me or something. For a second, I wish he would. He leans toward my ear, lowering his voice to an intimate level. â€Å"Come with me somewhere. Please. I've been waiting eight months to talk to you.† I flinch at my body's fiery reaction his voice emits. â€Å"I can't talk to you, Micha.† I choke, backing away, and bumping my hip on the edge of the car. Tears threaten the corners of my eyes, but I haven't cried in over a year and I refuse to break down. Spinning on my heels, I dash for the house. He doesn't call out to me – it's not his style. But his gaze bores a hole into my messed up head the entire way, until I'm finally locked inside my house. Then I can breathe again. Micha I swear I'm dreaming. Ella is standing in front of me and she looks just like Stacy Harris, a slutty cheerleader we used to go to high school with and who Ella beat up once because Stacy was making fun of a girl in a wheelchair. It was one of the things that made me fall in love with her; the fire, passion, and the need to stick up for the outcasts, even if it meant being an outcast herself. She never fell into any category – she was just Ella – but now she looks like a freakin' Stepford Wife. She's still hot as hell, a rock hard body, and long legs that go on forever. I've pictured those legs wrapped around my waist many times and the same images flood my head, even though she looks like a stranger. Her gorgeous green eyes are glossed over, like she's repressed everything inside. She's unhappy to see me and it hurts a little, but pisses me off more. She starts rambling about being tired, something she used to do all the time to avoid confrontation. I watch her lips move, wanting to kiss her so God damn bad, but knowing she'd probably kick me if I tried anything. So I lean in, smelling her hair and beg her to come with me somewhere. Then she runs down the driveway and locks herself in the house. I start to chase after her, but a Frisbee smacks me in the side of the head. â€Å"Sorry man,† Ethan calls out, hopping over the fence with a smirk on his face. â€Å"It slipped.† Rubbing my head, I arch my eyebrows at Ethan. â€Å"Perfect timing asshole.† He holds up his hands. â€Å"I said I was sorry. You were just standing there all dazed out like a freaking whipped pussy, so I thought I'd snap you out of it.† He scoops up the Frisbee from the concrete and gives a low whistle at Ella's friend's Mercedes as he circles it rolling up his sleeves. â€Å"Whose sweet ride is this? Wait, is it Ella's?† â€Å"I think it's her friends.† I eye the back door of her house, debating whether I should barge in after her and demand to know why she shut me out for eight months. â€Å"Since when does Ella hang out with people who drive cars like this?† he asks, peeking through the tinted windows. â€Å"She's been gone for eight months.† I back toward the fence that separates Ella's yard from mine with my hands in my pockets. â€Å"Who the hell knows who she is anymore?† I need a drink, even though I haven't had a drop of alcohol in eight months. The day Ella took off, with no note or a good-bye, I had gone up to the cove, got drunk, and took all my anger out on Grantford Davis' face. The cops showed up and I got busted for being under the influence and for assault. I'm still on probation for it and I had to go to anger management classes for a while. I've been really good about keeping my crap together, but five minutes after Ella shows up and I'm about to throw it away. I head to the kitchen, scoop up a beer from the ice chest, and settle on the couch between a blonde and a brunette. The blonde one giggles. â€Å"Oh my God, is the bad boy Micha finally back?† I can't remember her name, but I play along. â€Å"I sure am, baby.† Then I swig my beer back and bury my pain, along with Ella. She's the only girl that's ever been able to get me this upset. The only girl that's never wanted me.