7 Degrees off Reality

Why does gov't law enforcement have to be secret?

2010-08-13T10:48:00.002-06:00

In this Wired article, we are reminded that one of the neat things the FBI has been involved in has been the abuse of National Security Letters:

A national security letter is an informal administrative letter the FBI can use to secretly demand customer records from ISPs, financial institutions, libraries, insurance companies, travel agencies, stockbrokers, car dealerships and others. NSLs have been used since the 1980s, but the Patriot Act, passed after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and a subsequent revision in 2003 expanded the kinds of records that could be obtained with an NSL.

There are a couple of really fun parts to this story. First, it took six years for the courts to decide to lift part of the "no telling anyone" ban, EVEN THOUGH the FBI dropped it's demand for some of the information.

Seriously, go read the article and find out what kind of crap our government is allowed to pull on us mere citizens.

And that's the way it is...

2010-06-21T06:37:00.002-06:00

Off the grid

2010-05-08T10:36:00.003-06:00

First, The News: I've suffered multiple catastrophic hardware failures, and am uncertain when I will be able to resume quasi-regular posting. I hope it'll be in a week or so when a friend is able to let me borrow an (old, antique) laptop, but no promises express or implied.

Since my last post, however, I've had the adventure of making one of my infrequent (and very reluctant) forays into Wal*Mars. While there, I was tooling down one of the aisles when a couple of standard hippo-hipped Wal*Martians pulled out in front of me and opted to simply STOP in the aisle so they could exchange weight-gaining tips. I, trying to be polite, said "Excuse me...", only to be ignored. A second, louder, attempt got one of them to turn her head and suggest "Why don't you just go around?"

Annoyed, I responded with "Going around that ass of yours would put me in a different time zone, and it's too much trouble to adjust my watch..."

That earned me a Hateful Look (hurt my feelings terribly), and an outraged snort (I swear I could feel the air move) before the two of them lumbered down a sub-aisle. As I went by, one of them muttered something about rude assholes. Must've been talking to herself, I guess....

"Healthcare Max"

2010-04-15T13:18:00.002-06:00

For those that didn't see it the other night, it seems that our esteemed Max Baucus played a significant role in the Obama administrations healthcare reform plan.

Not all of it was necessarily beneficial, however: there's reason to believe that Max was instrumental in killing the nomination of Tom Daschle, among other things.

For anyone interested in what the hell happened that got us the "reform" plan is encouraged to go have a look at it yourself (it's viewable online), and see what transpired. It'll take less than an hour of your time, and you'll see how our government really "works".

Bringin' home da pork

2010-04-14T23:57:00.003-06:00

Seems our esteemed Denny Rehburg is tops (in a way) of "bringing home the bacon" to Montana.

According to this CNN Politics news story, Denny is Number 1 in the number of pork-barrel projects he directs back to Montana - at 88 of them.

Way to go, Denny! Woo-hoo!

If you're interested to see the full details of the "Pig Book" that reports on pork-barrel projects, you can find them HERE. I promise, you'll never look at a pig the same again...

UPDATE:
The site has a nifty "search by" feature that lets you hunt down what projects a Congressrodent has earmarked. Denny? Here's what he was involved in:

--->88 record(s) for a total of $100,514,200

ID	State	Cost	Description	Appropriation	Fiscal Year	Party	House	Senate
10198	*	$650,000	Greater Yellowstone Interagency Brucellosis Committee, MT, ID, WY (Animal Plant Health Inspection Service: Salaries and Expenses)	AG	10	M	Rehberg; Simpson	Barrasso; Baucus; Crapo; Enzi; Risch; Tester
10420	MT	$3,654,000	Animal Bioscience Facility, Bozeman (Agricultural Research Service: Buildings and Facilities)	AG	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
10421	MT	$682,000	Sustainable Beef Supply (National Institute of Food and Agriculture: Special Research Grants)	AG	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus
10422	MT	$270,000	Invasive Plant Management (National Institute of Food and Agriculture: Special Research Grants)	AG	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
10423	MT	$305,000	Brucellosis Vaccine (National Institute of Food and Agriculture: Special Research Grants)	AG	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
11410	MT	$100,000	Montana State University Billings, Billings, Academic & Workforce Development Program at the Montana Women’s Prison (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11411	MT	$600,000	Montana Youth and District Court Services Bureau, Helena, MT MONTS-Juvenile Justice System (Juvenile Justice)	COM	10	R	Rehberg
11415	MT	$250,000	City of Kalispell, Public Safety Building Modernization (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
11417	MT	$147,000	Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office, Billings, Yellowstone County Mobile Digital Video Camera (COPS - Law Enforcement Technology)	COM	10	R	Rehberg
11418	MT	$185,000	Gallatin County, Bozeman, Gallatin County Treatment Court (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11419	MT	$400,000	Missoula County, Missoula, Missoula Public Safety Operations & Training Center (COPS - Law Enforcement Technology)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11420	MT	$250,000	Billings Clinic, Billings Clinic Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11422	MT	$60,000	East Helena Police Department, East Helena, East Helena Community Policing Hiring Effort (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	R	Rehberg
11427	MT	$250,000	University of Montana, Missoula, Montana Safe Schools (Juvenile Justice)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11428	MT	$500,000	Montana Meth Project, Missoula, Montana Meth Project (COPS - Methamphetamine)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
11429	MT	$500,000	Watson Children’s Shelter, Missoula, Western Montana Children’s Safety Initiative (Juvenile Justice)	COM	10	R	Rehberg
11431	MT	$300,000	Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, Helena, Montana Offender Notification and Tracking System—Juvenile Justice System (MONTS-JJS) (Byrne Discretionary Grants)	COM	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
12356		$4,800,000	Titanium Extraction, Mining and Process Engineering Research (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
12383		$4,000,000	SOVAS-Hand Held Imager / Long Range (Procurement - Defense Wide)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Kerry; Kirk; Tester
12494		$2,400,000	NAVAIR High Fidelity Oceanographic Library (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	R	Rehberg
12584	*	$800,000	Compliance Tools Development for Metals in Antifouling Paints (MT, NY) (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	M	Bishop (UT); Rehberg	Tester
13241	MT	$2,000,000	Defense-Critical Languages and Cultures Program (Operation and Maintenance - Defense Wide)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13243	MT	$2,400,000	Materials Technology for LED Lighting Applications (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
13244	MT	$2,400,000	Marine Expeditionary Rifle Squad Reconfigurable Vehicle Simulator (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13245	MT	$6,400,000	Cryofracture / Plasma Arc Demilitarization Program (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13246	MT	$1,600,000	Next Generation Simulation Training for Pararescue Forces (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Air Force)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13247	MT	$2,800,000	Adelos Program: Nuclear Security Sensor System (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13248	MT	$3,200,000	Low Acoustic and Thermal Signature Battlefield Power Source (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13249	MT	$7,600,000	Mariah Hypersonic Wind Tunnel Development Program (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13250	MT	$1,600,000	Watchkeeper (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Air Force)	DEF	10	R	Rehberg
13251	MT	$3,200,000	Adaptive Lightweight Materials Technology for Missile Defense (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13252	MT	$1,600,000	US Army Vascular Graft Research Project (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Army)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13253	MT	$1,600,000	MilTech Expansion Program (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Defense Wide)	DEF	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13254	MT	$800,000	Advanced Helicopter Landing Aid (Research, Development, Test and Evaluation - Navy)	DEF	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
13941		$491,000	Geothermal development in Hot Springs Valley (Department of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)	ENERGY	10	R	Rehberg
13966		$3,000,000	Center for Zero Emissions Reseach and Technology (Department of Energy: Fossil Energy R&D)	ENERGY	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
13986		$500,000	Synthesis of renewable biofuels from biomass (Department of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)	ENERGY	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
14439	MT	$4,844,000	Rural Montana (Corps of Engineers: Construction)	ENERGY	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
14440	MT	$500,000	Montana algal biodiesel initiative (Department of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)	ENERGY	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
14444	MT	$1,000,000	Wind turbine development (Department of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)	ENERGY	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
14950	MT	$137,500	Great Falls Development Authority, to support the administrative costs of the Central Montana Growth Fund, Great Falls (Small Business Administration)	FINSER	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
14952	MT	$134,000	Montana World Trade Center, Missoula, for Montana Growth Through Trade (Small Business Administration)	FINSER	10	R	Rehberg
14953	MT	$137,500	Montana Technology Venture Center, Bozeman, for expansion and operations of the TechRanch next step program (Small Business Administration)	FINSER	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
14954	MT	$133,000	Montana State University, Bozeman, HTAP: High-Technology Assistance Program (Small Business Administration)	FINSER	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
15177	MT	$800,000	Emergency Operations Center, Butte-Silver Bow (FEMA: State and Local Programs)	HS	10	M	Dennis Rehberg	Jon Tester
15360	CO	$1,700,000	Water Research Foundation (EPA - Science & Technology)	INT	10	M	Kissell; Rehberg; Moran (VA)	Kennedy; Kerry; Reid
15400	GA	$1,000,000	Consortium for Plant Biotechnology Research (EPA - Science & Technology)	INT	10	M	Towns; Rogers (MI); Rehberg; Stupak; Conyers; Price (NC); Abercrombie; Lewis (GA); Rogers (KY)	Hagan; Levin; McConnell; Murray; Stabenow
15540	MT	$1,500,000	Lewis and Clark National Forest (US Forest Service - Land Acquisition)	INT	10	M	Rehberg	Tester, Baucus
15541	MT	$200,000	City of Missoula for wastewater facility improvements (EPA - State and Tribal Assistance Grants - Water and Wastewater Infrastructure)	INT	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
15543	MT	$150,000	City of Bozeman Main Street Historic District Restoration (National Park Service - Save America's Treasures)	INT	10	R	Rehberg
15544	MT	$500,000	Butte-Silver Bow Consolidated Government for drinking water improvements for the City of Butte (EPA - State and Tribal Assistance Grants - Water and Wastewater Infrastructure)	INT	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
15545	MT	$290,600	Em-Kayan County Water and Sewer District for infrastructure improvements (EPA - State and Tribal Assistance Grants - Water and Wastewater Infrastructure)	INT	10	R	Rehberg
15546	MT	$500,000	City of Bozeman for water treatment facility improvements (EPA - State and Tribal Assistance Grants - Water and Wastewater Infrastructure)	INT	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16784	MT	$250,000	Billings Clinic, Billings, MT for a rural health outreach program, including facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16785	MT	$400,000	Daniels Memorial Hospital Association, Scobey, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	R	Rehberg
16786	MT	$200,000	University of Montana—Mike & Maureen Mansfield Center, Missoula, MT, to establish the Institute for Leadership and Public Service to fulfill the purposes of the Mansfield Center, including the creation of an endowment (Education: Higher Education)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
16787	MT	$500,000	Community Medical Center, Missoula, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16788	MT	$550,000	CARD Clinic, Libby, MT, for facilities and equipment related to an asbestos surveillance initiative (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16789	MT	$500,000	Benefis Health System, Great Falls, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16791	MT	$500,000	Easter Seals-Goodwill Northern Rocky Mountain, Inc., Great Falls, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	R	Rehberg
16792	MT	$300,000	Northern Rockies Educational Services (NRES), Missoula, MT for the Taking Technology to the Classroom initiative, including purchase of equipment (Education: Elementary and Secondary Education)	LABHHS	10	R	Rehberg
16793	MT	$100,000	Lewis and Clark County, Helena, MT, for facilities and equipment at the City-County Health Department (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
16794	MT	$400,000	St. Vincent Healthcare Foundation, Billings, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16795	MT	$100,000	Flathead Valley Community College, Kalispell, MT, Career Opportunities through Retraining and Education (Labor - Employment and Training Administration)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
16797	MT	$100,000	Youth Dynamics, Inc, Billings, MT, for a training program to help meet the mental health needs of those living in rural or frontier States (HHS - Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
16798	MT	$100,000	Youth Dynamics, Inc., Billings, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16800	MT	$300,000	Saint Patrick Hospital, Missoula, MT, to implement an electronic health record system (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
16801	MT	$100,000	Montana Tech, Butte, MT, to expand health informatics training, including equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
16802	MT	$100,000	Montana Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council, Billings, MT for facilities and equipment (HHS - HRSA Health Facilities and Services)	LABHHS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus
16803	MT	$100,000	Montana State University, Billings, MT, for job training (Labor - Employment and Training Administration)	LABHHS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
17688	MT	$10,600,000	Malmstrom Air Force Base to upgrade weapons storage area (Air Force)	MILCON	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
17689	MT	$1,750,000	Fort Harrison to add alter a troop medical facility (Army National Guard)	MILCON	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
17778		$200,000	Pantry Partners Food Bank for a building project (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus
18573	MT	$292,200	High Bridge Renovation (Surface Transportation Priorities)	TRANS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester
18574	MT	$500,000	Mill Creek Highway, Anaconda- Deer Lodge County (Transportation, Community, and System Preservation)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18577	MT	$487,000	homeWORD, Missoula, for development of rental housing that is affordable to working families (Neighborhood Initiatives)	TRANS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
18579	MT	$1,461,000	I-90 Belgrade East Interchange (Interstate Maintenance Discretionary)	TRANS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
18580	MT	$300,000	Great Falls Development Authority for Great Falls Industrial Park infrastructure improvements (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18581	MT	$200,000	City of Shelby for Shelby Downtown District Revitalization Project building renovation (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18582	MT	$584,400	Livingston Railroad Grade Separation Undercrossing (Surface Transportation Priorities)	TRANS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus
18583	MT	$974,000	Shelby Intermodal Hub (Rail Line Relocation and Improvement Program)	TRANS	10	D	Rehberg	Baucus; Tester
18584	MT	$200,000	Rocky Mountain Development Council for Caird Iron Works Redevelopment (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18585	MT	$450,000	Billings Food Bank for the Billings Food Bank Montana Harvest Kitchens Project building expansion (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18586	MT	$500,000	Black Eagle Road Reconstruction (Surface Transportation Priorities)	TRANS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
18588	MT	$323,000	City of Billings for Business Consortium Project for the Homeless building purchase and renovation (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18589	MT	$100,000	Yellowstone Boys and Girls for ranch building renovation Ranch (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	R	Rehberg
18591	MT	$625,000	Western Montana Children’s Safety Initiative for construction of a children's shelter facility (Economic Development Initiative)	TRANS	10	M	Rehberg	Tester; Baucus
19278	*	$547,000	Barley for rural development (ID, MT) (National Institute of Food and Agriculture: Special Research Grants)	AG	10	M	Rehberg; Simpson	Baucus; Crapo; Risch; Tester


© Citizens Against Government Waste \| 1301 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Suite 1075, Washington, DC 20004 \| 1-800-BE-ANGRY

'Nuff Said

2010-04-14T22:30:00.000-06:00

Top 10 reasons why Beer is better than Religion...

2010-04-09T09:20:00.001-06:00

10. No one will kill you for not drinking Beer.
9. Beer doesn't tell you how to have sex.
8. Beer has never caused a major war.
7. They don't force Beer on minors who can't think for themselves.
6. When you have a Beer, you don't knock on people's doors trying to give it away.
5. Nobody's ever been burned at the stake, hanged, or tortured over his brand of Beer.
4. You don't have to wait 2000+ years for a second Beer.
3. There are laws saying Beer labels can't lie to you.
2. You can prove you have a Beer.
1. If you've devoted your life to Beer, there are groups to help you stop.

Welcome, Aliens!

2010-04-07T16:25:00.004-06:00

If, by chance, you're ever the one to come into first contact with space aliens arriving on Earth for the first time, please be prepared to greet them properly by reviewing the following materials.

Make with the clicky to Biggie-size

Reporting from a war zone

2010-04-05T17:52:00.003-06:00

You may have heard about the Reuters team that was killed by a gunship in Iraq, and that the video from the helicopter is available. I've got my own opinion about what happened, but for those that want to decide for themselves, here it is.

WARNING: GRAPHIC VIOLENCE

TOP 10 SEXY LINES FROM STAR WARS

2010-04-05T11:17:00.000-06:00

10) "Get in there you big furry oaf, I don't care what you smell!"
9) "Luke, at that speed do you think you'll be able to pull out in time?"
8) "Put that thing away before you get us all killed."
7) "You've got something jammed in here real good."
6) "Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?"
5) "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought."
4) "Sorry about the mess..."
3) "Look at the size of that thing!"
2) "Curse my metal body, I wasn't fast enough!"
1) "She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, kid."

Giant Noisy Cat-Eater

2010-04-01T14:45:00.004-06:00

I haven't been happy with my "old" vacuum cleaner (isn't "vacuum cleaner" a misnomer? I mean, by definition, isn't a vacuum already clean?), and got a shiny new one with a couple of additional features some time ago. It isn't a heavy-duty industrial strength job, but that's okay - my apartment is less that 500 square feet, and only a little more than half of that is carpeted.

Today, I took it out on its maiden voyage and commenced to discover that the old machine had left behind enough cat hair that I could easily make a whole new cat if I wanted to. The spiffy attachments for it also made short work of previously troublesome areas. For the price, I'm rather pleased with it.

The cats, however, were considerably less than impressed with it. Elf took station at the farthest point in my apartment from it, while Radar sought refuge in the bathtub (!). It took a good twenty minutes before either of them was willing to see if the Giant Noisy Cat-Eater had gone away, and both of them are still a bit skittish.

The Top 10 Things You Don't Want To Hear From Tech Support

2010-03-30T23:19:00.001-06:00

10.) "So... what are you wearing?"
9.) "Duuuuude! Bummer!"
8.) "Looks like you're gonna need some new dilythium crystals, Cap'n."
7.) "Press 1 for Support. Press 2 if you're with 60 Minutes. Press 3 if you're with the FTC."
6.) "We can fix this, but you're gonna need a butter knife, a roll of duct tape and a car battery."
5.) "I'm sorry Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that."
4.) "In layman's terms, we call that the Hindenburg Effect."
3.) "Hold on a second... Mom! Timmy's hitting me!"
2.) "Okay, turn to page 523 in your copy of Dianetics."
1.) "Please hold for Mr. Gates' attorney."

Where the fuck is Max?

2010-03-30T17:38:00.004-06:00

During the current recess for Congress (bearing an uncanny resemblance to recess for grade-schoolers), half of our Senatorial allotment is actually out among the public, actively soliciting input from the folks that voted him into office.

The other half -- HMFIC of the Finance Committee, Max Baucus -- has yet to turn up at any similar kind of venue. After all the sturm und drang of the healthcare reform process, a body might think he'd have some interest in knowing what his constituents have to say -- but it's tough to tell, since we haven't heard anything from or about him.

Thus, my question above...

I think America is screwed.

2010-03-23T22:38:00.003-06:00

Since even before the Presidential elections, I've been thinking off and on about politicians, the political system, the parties, voters and non-voters, and a bunch of other related stuff.
I'm still trying to get it all neatly organized and arranged in my mind, but thought I'd take this opportunity to toss out a few of the things that seem most pertinent to me.

We don't seem to have a whole lot of political involvement by the teeming masses of citizens. The ones most likely to consistently vote are those of advanced years, with a significant drop in percentage of active voters as one goes down the age scale. The way I see it, this is perfectly reasonable: older citizens are still of the mind that their votes actually count for something, because they were raised to believe in the government (they're the ones that the old "We're from the government, and we're here to help" was effective on). However, as the years have passed since those folks were young, the American public has been treated to innumerable reports of government ineptitude, incompetence, malfeasance, outright chicanery of different kinds, and generally been given plenty of reason to be suspicious and mistrustful of our elected officials. Amusingly, it's a Catch-22: people don't vote because nothing changes, and nothing changes because people don't vote.
Another reason that things don't change is because too many people have gotten too damn lazy to maintain the kind of on-going pressure needed to effect change. This year's Teabaggers? See how many of them are still around after this coming November. Or February next year.
Related to the above is the fact that we have what amounts to a professional politician class. Does anybody really believe that some putz that has spent the last 20+ years in Congress has any concept of what it's like for an ordinary citizen? Particularly when those politicians grant themselves perquisites that distance them even more from real Americans? It's funny that damn near every poll on the subject comes back with the result that most folks think all the rascals in Congress need to be voted out of office - except for their own, of course. Um... people? Everybody in the other 49 states feels the same way about YOUR Concresscritters, too. If we really believed in "majority rule", then in every state, it's 49-to-1 that your Congressrodents need to go... so how about it, huh?
There's also a growing sense of entitlement among the American people. Part of this is from our professional politicians enacting giveaways in an effort to stay in office, but it's also the fault of those that are all too willing to make demands of the government instead of taking responsibility for themselves and their actions. And as long as they CAN get their demands met, they'll keep at it; unfortunately, there's a hell of a lot more people (mostly younger ones) that are willing to claim what they haven't earned than there are ones willing to tell them "no".
Our election process is seriously skewed due (in part) to the insistence on continuing to use the Electoral College system, where a few states with high E.C. vote counts can essentially take control of how an election turns out. Sure, the E.C. made great sense when the fastest and most efficient means of communicating and tallying election results for a large area was a hand-written page carried by someone riding a good horse; these days, we've got the means and methods to make truly representative and popular vote possible. How about if we drag our voting system into the technology age?
Something else that screws up the election process is those incompetent jackasses that are referred to as "single-issue voters": the ones that vote a candidate or party for just ONE reason, instead of taking the time and making the effort to consider a broader range of matters and integrating them as a WHOLE. Screw the budget, screw the deficit, screw too much government involvement in our lives, screw too-high taxes, screw anything except the one, single thing that matters to a particular voter the most. Look, if someone is going to vote just to make themselves heard on one issue in particular? Do the country a favor and chain them to something immovable. Preferably heavy, and in the middle of a deep body of water.
The political process is being seriously fucked up by the limitation of having just two political parties - every single issue boils down to "us" or "them", which is steadily polarizing them more and more. I genuinely believe that the country needs at least one or two additional political entities so as to allow a more diverse and nuanced response to various issues. Speaking for myself, for example, I'm neither Republican nor Democrat, but bits of both: I'm socially liberal (Gay marriage? Knock yourselves out. Abortion? Sorry, I don't have a dog in that fight; but I'm in favor of leaving it up to those that CAN get pregnant to decide for themselves), but fiscally and politically conservative (Government should be as small as we can possibly manage, kept on a DAMN short leash, and made to pay as it goes along - NO DEFICITS!).

The reason I'm so pessimistic about America's future is really pretty simple: to effect ANY changes in the above will require a sustained interest and effort - and I don't think there enough people in the country able and willing to do it. Sure, there's plenty to cheer at the rallies, but damn few that will stick around afterwards to help clean up. Simply put, there aren't many people left that are interested in taking on a long-term project and capable of engaging in the day-to-day grind needed to make the changes happen.

What happens, then?

The way I figure it, most likely to happen is that the country will just collapse. There will be more and more people demanding (and getting) benefits from fewer and fewer people able and willing to provide them; the government will step in to make up the difference. Except that sooner or later, somebody (most likely a foreign government [*cough*china*cough*] that has bought our T-Bills or other "stock") is going to decide that it's time to get paid what they're owed - and when they don't get it (because the government doesn't have it), the whole bread-and-circuses deal will fall apart - with much anguish, furor, and unseemliness when our economy and political institutions come to a literal halt.

There is a chance that some group(s) of people will decide that enough is enough and attempt some dramatic change in how government operates - and it might even be big and soon enough to have the desired impact. Otherwise, it's only going to be a relatively minor event that won't appreciably change things.

I just hope it doesn't happen until after I'm dead and buried - it's bad enough just watching this much of it happen.

Spare Time

2010-03-23T07:39:00.001-06:00

Think some people have too much time on their hands? You ain't seen nothin' yet - check out the Sashimi Tabernacle Choir, courtesy of the Presurfer:

Problem solving

2010-03-18T15:00:00.003-06:00

Just finished watching "Die Hard With a Vengeance" (the one with Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson), and noticed that the director did a piss-poor job of showing how McCain and Zeus got the 4 gallons of water into a 5 gallon jug when the only other container was a 3 gallon jug. So for the benefit of any math- or logic-impaired out there, here's how it works:

Fill 3-gallon container.
Empty 3-gallon into 5-gallon
Refill 3-gallon
Pour into 5-gallon until it's full.
[3-g now contains 1 gallon: filled twice with 3 gallons (steps 1 and 3), emptied of 3 gallons once (step 2), then emptied of 2 gallons (step 4)]
Empty 5-gallon.
Pour rest of 3-gallon into 5-gallon.
Fill 3-gallon, empty into 5-gallon
[5-g now contains 4 gallons: 1 gallon (step 7) + 3 gallons (step 8)]

Simple, no?

inCENSUSed

2010-03-15T12:56:00.003-06:00

Got my 2010 Census form in today's mail. Thankfully for all concerned, it was the short form. Still, there were a few troubling things that I dealt with appropriately:

They wanted my phone number: "We may call if we don't understand an answer". Tough shit; should've made the question clearer.
Last and first names. Pbbbbbbbbbbbt! Don't need this to count me.
My race. I'm not White (more of a pale tan), Black/African Am./Negro (um... aren't those all the same thing?), American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian Indian, Japanese, Native Hawaiian (last time I checked, even the original inhabitants were imported. No?), Chinese, Korean, Guamanian or Chamorro, Filipino, Vietnamese, Other Pacific Islander (to be specified), Other Asian (to be specified), or some other race. Screw it - I'm Human.

Other than space for an additional 11 people the might be in the household, that was it.

Oh, and here's something amusing: the FIRST question was the number of people in the place; question TWO was if there were any additional people not included in question one. WTF?

It's not pr0n, otherwise...

2010-03-15T08:48:00.001-06:00

PayPal update

2010-03-13T00:06:00.003-07:00

Oh, goody, goody, goody. After reading a couple of documents about PayPal that I retrieved from Cryptome, I've got some more good news for anyone with a PayPal account.

Per official PayPal doctrine, PayPal cheerfully helps law enforcement retrieve information about PayPal users:

B. eBay User Contact Details and limited transaction history (12 months maximum)
Please submit a signed fax (non-subpoena) on department letterhead stating specifically what you require.
eBay can provide the following information for users under investigation of illegal activity only:
• Contact Name, City, State, Zip, and Telephone Number
• All email addresses and eBay User ID's added to account with date/time stamps
• eBay Fraud complaints (*lf Requested)
• Account listing/bid history dating back one year (*lf Requested)
To assist us in searching for records, the following data must be included in your data request (if available):
- All known names, aliases, street addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers
- Known eBay ID(s) and Item Numbers
- Statement relating to the illegal nature of the activities being investigated
Please fax data request to: Fax: 408.967.9915 Turnaround Time: Typically within 15 business days

It's worth noting that PayPal doesn't require any actual proof or evidence of any wrongdoing; it's enough for them that whatever law enforcement organization that's making the request says there is.

It's even worse if the cops actually take the time and trouble to get a subpoena.

If you're so inclined, you can read the whole document on how PayPal interfaces with cops in this document.

If you want to see what you agreed to when you set up an account with them, this is what you're looking for.

PayPal - Stupid or Criminal?

2010-03-11T19:38:00.003-07:00

I haven't been exactly overjoyed with PayPal, even from the time I first signed up with them. It hasn't been any one thing in particular, but more of a general we're-too-big-to-have-to-pay-attention-to-you attitude almost any really large organization eventually takes on.

Over the years, I've also heard (and read about) the stories of PayPal summarily and somewhat arbitrarily freezing accounts without ever providing any real explanation as to why, how it could be resolved, when it would be resolved, or other actual details. Recently, however, I ran across this story, and something about it just set my teeth on edge.

Since the only thing I really used PayPal for was buying stuff on eBay, and eBay has finally managed to aggravate me sufficiently enough to close my account with them, it seemed like as good a time (and reason) as any to close my PayPal account, too. A couple of days ago, I tried to do just that - only to be told by PayPal that there was some kind of activity still unfinished with my bank.

Fine, whatever. The last eBay purchase I made was on the 6th, and I've already received the item, so I figured PayPal would get caught up in the next couple of days. This evening, when I logged in and tried to close the account, I still got the same message. After carefully checking that all my transactions showed as "completed", I called PayPal support.

For the love of God, Cthulu, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, Allah, or anything else you hold dear, don't ever do that. Their automated voice response system is seriously fucked up. After telling me that it couldn't understand me (despite my speaking carefully and clearly) after too-brief response periods, it insisted on trying to foist me off to departments that were completely irrelevant to what I wanted to discuss. Having no other alternative, I simply started pressing "O" until it concluded I wasn't playing nice and handed me off to the generic WTF line. Cindy, or Sue, or whatever the hell her name was kept saying "Bayble" for PayPal (among other language and accent defects), necessitating I ask for someone that actually spoke English.

The young fellow I ended up with was actually helpful, and tried to explain to me how, although PayPal was telling ME that everything was "completed", it really wasn't: that the requisite time (3 to 5 business days) hadn't passed between my last PayPal-based purchase, and the removal of funds from my bank. Strictly speaking, "completed" on MY end actually sometimes meant "still processing" on THEIR end. In response to that, I suggested that if that was the case, then either PayPal didn't know what it was doing by telling me that the transaction was complete, or it was deliberately lying to me - and asked which it was. He was unable to answer that question, and elected to explain the situation again. Just as he did when I asked additional questions that he didn't have answers for.

The bottom line is that I'm likely to have to wait until Saturday before their computer decides that it has received the $2.25 in question, and it's okay for me to close my account.

I would suggest that anyone with a PayPal account have a look at the things that PayPal has done, and decide if they really want to entrust their money with such an operation.

Oh, and just to make SURE everyone understands: PayPal is not a bank, it is a "payment processor". In other words, they are not subject to all those nifty banking regulations about access to your money, business practises, and the like. Caveat Emptor!

eBay is teh suxx0r

2010-03-11T17:30:00.003-07:00

11 March, 2010

eBay – Customer Service
2145 Hamilton Ave.
San Jose, CA 95125

Sirs:

A few days ago, I began the process of closing my eBay account. As I have received no inquiry to date as to why I would choose to take such an action, I am taking the liberty of writing this letter to advise you as to my reasons.

When I first started using eBay nearly fifteen years ago, it was a wonderful resource for anyone wishing to save money on items they wished to purchase. For a number of reasons, I've been obliged to establish and use several different log-ins on eBay, but have been a fairly frequent buyer.

The last few years, however, the eBay experience has become progressively less pleasant. Recently, I found myself sufficiently annoyed and aggravated with it to come to the conclusion that it simply wasn't worth the bother using eBay any longer:

Sniping has become a much greater problem on eBay as time has passed; it's now at the point that there are actually Firefox web browser plugins to facilitate the process. This, despite the fact that I offered a simple and direct suggestion that would make sniping an untenable activity: if a bid is received within some small time (I suggested 30 seconds, as I recall) before an auction ends, then extend the auction time by some small fixed amount of time to give the non-sniper time to respond. While my suggestion was acknowledged with a generic platitude, I doubt that it was ever given the consideration that I believe it should have. I can only wonder at how many people have given up on using eBay when an item they had legitimately bid on and “won” went to someone that “sniped” them in the last two seconds without them having an opportunity to re-bid.
Mis-listed items are now a much greater problem than they were when I first started using eBay. Some weeks ago, I reported a grossly mis-listed item and (again) got a generic non-committal response. Annoyed, I then took the time to submit roughly a hundred such instances in an effort to get somebody at eBay to realize how aggravating it is for us users to have to try and wade through all the inappropriate items in a category. I wasn't surprised in the slightest when absolutely nothing happened regarding the items that I reported; they remained in a patently wrong category for the entire duration of their respective auctions. Clearly, I can't know how many warnings a seller may get before being penalized for mis-categorizing items; what seems fairly apparent is that the number is too high to be effective, and that the actions taken by eBay lack sufficient impact to prevent recurrences. I would think that if eBay were to implement a graduated scale of punishment, such violations would drop dramatically: a first offense simply has the item de-listed with a warning to the seller. A second offense, and the item is not only de-listed, but not allowed to be auctioned again for some fixed period of time (a few days, perhaps). If there should be a third violation, ALL listings by a seller are removed. A fourth results in all listings being removed and the seller being blocked from posting new items for several days. Finally, a seller that commits a fifth offense could have all listings removed and banned from eBay completely. Please note that such a progression gives sellers ample opportunity to learn from honest mistakes, and greatly discourages DIShonest activities.
The ability to customize my eBay activities is something that I greatly miss. For example, I refuse to purchase items sold out of China and Hong Kong; each time I search for a tech or computer item, I have to explicitly go into an “advanced” search and indicate a maximum distance for sellers to try and block results from those areas. Sadly, eBay does not provide any mechanism by which I can set any kind of baseline criteria to be used for all my searches.

The above is not an exhaustive list of my reasons for closing my eBay account, but rather just examples of the most egregious.

I don't have any reason to think that eBay will change any of the above just for me; all I hope to accomplish with this letter is to bring the matter to the attention of someone that might accidentally have the power and authority to see that the issues are looked into, and perhaps even addressed.

In addition, I will be closing my PayPal account, as well. My reasons for taking such action is simply that I wish to express my objections to the gross lack of openness, fair play, and responsibility demonstrated by the mishandling of the situation that cropped up with Cryptome.

Finally, I would like to say that while established policies and procedures are good things to have, they are best supplemented with common sense and good judgment.

Sincerely,

David K. Merriman

Laundry Day

2010-03-10T15:36:00.004-07:00

It was, as the title of this post might lead you to believe, Laundry Day here at The Hovel.

Three loads were run, with the usual Whites and Colors (that's as discriminatory as I get), plus a Miscellaneous category that consisted of some towels, cleaning (shop) rags, and a light blanket that I use when the temperature is only close to Winter.

Of course, this was all met with considerable interest by the cats -- as long as nothing got actually tossed ON them during the sorting process, they felt obliged to make sure the dirty clothes didn't float up to the ceiling. Radar DID develop a fixation on one of my socks, making it necessary for me to mount a rescue operation when she ran off with it.

After I brought the dry stuff back, it was obligatory to lay on the warm piles while I hung and folded, then put things away.

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Updates

2010-03-09T10:25:00.003-07:00

First, I've neglected to mention that I do have the GIS data that the City of Billings promised me. First thing I noticed was that there wasn't anywhere near as much as the GIS manager tried to tell me there was; second, it didn't take anywhere near as long for them to provide it as he suggested it might. I've had the chance to go through and have a look at it, and I'm actually somewhat impressed with the attention to detail and thoroughness the city is showing.

Second, as regards my Good Deed, I got a letter in the mail a few days afterwards -- from the pastor of the church the lady goes to. In it, he thanked and congratulated me on being a decent human being (my words), and wished me well. Apparently, she told pretty much everybody in the congregation about what happened.

Finally, my blitzkreig of eBay doesn't seem to have done the slightest bit of good; not only did the stuff remain listed until the respective auctions ended, but even MORE unrelated crap turned up. Between eBay's unresponsiveness and PayPal's willingness to summarily freeze accounts without explanation, I'm about this far from telling both of them to get stuffed.

So, it's been a mixed bag since my last post. :-)

Suicide Tourist

2010-03-02T21:58:00.005-07:00

That's the name of the PBS Frontline program that I watched (you can watch it online) tonight.

You can probably figure out that it had something to do with suicide, but are somewhat baffled about the "tourist" part. Well, Switzerland has laws in effect that allow assisted suicide for non-Swiss residents. It isn't that simple, of course, but do-able without being overly difficult.

This particular program was about a man that was in the advanced stages of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease); he needed assistance even with breathing. Rather than wait for the disease to play out "naturally", he (after discussing it with his wife of 37 years) decided to end his life. It began shortly before he actually travelled to Switzerland, and ended shortly after his death. It does an exemplary job of presenting HIS views and reasons for making such a choice, and how it affected his wife and two grown kids.

I'd like to take this opportunity to point out that the man opted to end his own life by taking the voluntary action of sucking an overdose of a prescription sleeping compound through a straw; it was not "dispensed" or "given" TO him. Great care was taken to ensure that HE was the one that took the actions that would end his life, and that he was free to change his mind at any point for any reason,

For a long time, there has been an ongoing debate regarding the subject of assisted suicide, with side arguments regarding the morals, ethics, and legality of the matter.

Myself, I'm of the opinion (and do my very best to live that way) that people should be free to do pretty much any damn thing they want, so long as they don't cause harm to those unwilling to accept it. That is, each of us has to make our own decisions for our own reasons, and accept the consequences of our choices -- and that we should be free of interference from those that disagree with our choices.

What this program did was to remind me of some of the questions that I've never heard properly addressed amid all the other discussion on suicide (assisted or otherwise).

Why, exactly, are so many so ready to automatically and universally decide that suicide is absolutely wrong for everyone, all the time?
What makes the above individuals think that they have the right/obligation to make such a decision for someone else?
If a person's physical body isn't theirs as the most basic and fundamental example of "property rights", making them the ultimate arbiter of what to do with it, then who the hell DOES it belong to?

Time is running out

2010-03-02T03:09:00.001-07:00

Well, kind of.

The recent earthquake in Chile shifted the planet's axis by about 8 cm and shortened days by 1.26 microseconds

This is NOT my cat!

2010-02-28T23:09:00.002-07:00

"Safety" is just another word in the dictionary

2010-02-27T18:11:00.001-07:00

This YouTube vid is in German, but you won't need the English subtitles to get the idea of what's involved in forklift safety...

A common occurance around my place

2010-02-26T10:30:00.002-07:00

The one where I do a Good Deed

2010-02-25T21:16:00.003-07:00

When I went to check my mail about 8:30 this evening, I found a violin sitting on top of the mailboxes for the apartment building I live in.

I gave it a couple minutes in case somebody remembered they'd forgotten it before taking it into my apartment. I found a label on the case with a phone number, and called that; no one was home, so I left a message on the answering machine.

Shortly after 9, I got a call back; the violin belongs to a lady that had lent it several years ago to a kid who's parents were musicians. The kid kept promising to return it, but never quite got around to it, so when she learned that I had her violin, the lady was rather pleased. Not 15 minutes later, she came by to collect it, driving a fairly new Jeep Cherokee-looking vehicle.

I didn't ask for any kind of reward, and wouldn't have accepted one -- except that she didn't even suggest it. Nothing. Zero. Bupkis.

Now, I don't know what a violin goes for (it patently wasn't anything like a Stradivarius or anything), but it certainly SEEMED like a nice enough musical instrument. Along with it having been missing for several years, you might think that she'd have at least offered something to the person that got it back to her -- but no.

Well, it's her karma...

Why eBay sucks

2010-02-25T10:56:00.003-07:00

I just finished cruising through eBay while checking on general prices for a few things I'm considering getting, and realized that some of what I was seeing didn't quite fit under their category (I didn't "search" for anything, that is).

In a lot (if not most) of the technology categories, there doesn't seem to be any restriction against (or correction of) people listing items in the wrong category. For example, I went looking for a Blu-ray drive for my main computer (specifically, I'm after a reader/writer); stuff that turned up in the listing included:

eBay doesn't seem to give a happy damn about the folks actually buying stuff. Either that, or eBay computers aren't doing a particularly good job at limiting what's displayed to the appropriate catergory (which suggests that there's probably stuff NOT being shown, that should be).

Followup:
Complained to eBay, they sent me a generic mealy-mouthed response. Aggravated me, so I went into a different category and reported every single violation I found on the first 20 (of 134) pages. Turned out to be over a hundred items. The last report I sent, I suggested that maybe they were getting the idea of what it was like for buyers...

Cuteness overload

2010-02-23T19:46:00.002-07:00

Damn, I almost got diabetes just from watching this.

The Philly Post-Gazette has a puppy that's being raised to go into the Seeing Eye dog program -- and they've got a live camera on the little guy (?) during the day. Even if the cam isn't "live", you can still watch what was recorded during the day.

Go look -- you'll be glad you did. :-)

Vista... DRM... Who the f*ck cares?

2010-02-22T19:46:00.005-07:00

I've actually had a couple of people email me with something along the lines of "Why should I give a rodent's rear-end about Vista and the DRM crap? I'm still using XP, and will for as long as I can. Besides, I don't watch movies on my computer, anyway -- that's what the TV is for!"

My initial tendency is to suggest that folks actually go read the nice article. But since I know I'm a geek and most folks aren't, I'll address a few issues here.

Don't care about Vista, I'm still using XP.
That's all well and good... for as long as your XP lasts, and Microsoft doesn't fuck with it. Some may remember the "adventure" when MS went full-tilt with their Windows Genuine Advantage that they passed off as a vital security update. Do you SERIOUSLY believe that Microsoft isn't going to figure out how to start applying all of the nifty new "content protection" measures retroactively? Not only that, but XP itself contains some of the initial efforts at DRM that MS came up with (that's those "getting license" things that turn up); they've added even more to Vista, and I don't think it's unreasonable to expect that they'll get even MORE enthusiastic with the next version -- and XP isn't being sold any more, if you hadn't noticed, so if you have to get a new computer, chances are that it's going to have whatever Microsofts latest offering is on it... at which point I reckon you will care.
DRM only affects the "premium content", not the computer itself.
Well, no, that's not correct. All the stuff the computer has to do to "protect" that premium content is always laying there in wait for it show up. Regardless of whatever else you might be doing, the "content protection" stuff is still checking your video and other digital outputs every 30mS (that's 120 times a second, roughly), and analog outputs like sound every 150mS (24 times/second). Sure, you've got this powerful sexy high-end processor... but don't you think that it would work a little faster if it wasn't off playing with itself so much?
Feh. It doesn't cost anything, anyway, so why bother?
Strictly speaking, that isn't entirely correct. Implementing all that "content protection" means having to add more computer code (hint: Vista comes on a DVD, not CD), and more computer code means more places for software bugs to rear their ugly little heads. But then, Microsoft is SO good about fixing those rare mistakes they make, aren't they? The other side of that is there's an added expense for all the hardware that goes IN to the computer. You don't seriously think that the companies that make video cards, sound cards, motherboards, and all the rest are just going to eat the added cost of all that nonsense, do you (download this PowerPoint presentation by ATI, the video card maker, and see how often the phrase "cost is passed on" shows up)? On top of that, because of the way the "content protection" works, companies that make add-in cards are going to have every reason in the world to offer FEWER choices. The way it works now, they essentially start out by designing a high-end card, then figure out what stuff they can leave off to make progressively less expensive versions (i.e. no TV OUT, no digital video out, etc). The restrictions put on them by the hardware requirements of DRM means that they can't do that any more (lest their product not be accepted at all); the only "reasonable" solution is to minimize the number of genuinely original designs -- which they'll have to charge more for to make the same money.
Meh. I only have to worry if there's a problem.
Again, that's not strictly true. You see, it depends on what your definition of "problem" is -- and how different that definition might be from that used by the DRM (Microsofts software AND the hardware manufacturers). Mentioned in the referenced article is something called "tilt bits", and the description is entirely appropriate. Just like you could "tilt" the old pinball games and shut them down, the "tilt bits" in the DRM can shut down parts of your computer: software and hardware both are obliged to check for anything suspicious, and "tilt" if they find it. What's suspicious? Could be a slightly out-of-specification voltage (maybe someone is trying to "spy" on the signal!), a little bit of electrical noise at the wrong time (more spying!), a strange code due to a hiccup of some kind (spies!), a weird reading (SPIES!), or whatever the hell somebody thought needed to be included (they're out to get me, I tell you!). In such cases, the offending/offended part of the computer system will be re-started. Repeatedly, if necessary. Just what you need in the middle of a romance or horror movie, yes?

I'm not just bullshitting people, here. If you don't believe me, go read the article. Then read (with a sceptical eye) the drivel Microsoft posted in "response", and the comments.

“I've just had my first experience with HD content being blocked. I purchased an HP Media Center PC with a built-in HD DVD player, together with a 24″ 'high definition' 1920 × 1200 HP flat panel display (HP LP2465). They even included an HD movie, 'The Bourne Supremacy'. Sure enough, the movie won't play because while the video card supports HDCP content protection, the monitor doesn't. (It plays if I connect an old 14″ VGA CRT using a DVI-to-VGA connector)” — Roger Strong.

“[Vista] refuses to send content through the component output for my plain jane video files. So the content system disables all content through the non protected output. Its listed in the nvida vista driver news that vista's content protection disables this output [See “NVIDIA Features No Longer Supported towards the end of the page ”]. Many forum posts, search engine results for problem. Content protection is active in some form, as I can attest. The mere disabling of UNPROTECTED output while playing UNPROTECTED content is proof enough as far as im concerned.” — Kevin Cripe.

“By any standard, Vista's new DRM capabilities hardly qualify as a selling point; after all, it's hard to sing the praises of technology designed to make life harder for its users” — Matt McKenzie, Computerworld.

“The net effect of these concerns may constitute the real Vista revolution as they point to an unprecedented loss of consumer control over their own personal computers […] Vista seemingly wrestles control of the 'user experience' from the user ” — Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law.

“DRM causes too much pain for legitimate buyers […] There are huge problems with DRM” — Bill Gates (reported by blogger Michael Arrington).

Ummmm... whoops?

2010-02-22T13:38:00.005-07:00

Golly-gee willikers.

It seems that the school district accused of spying on students was just misunderstood.

Really.

Is true.

What actually happened is that the laptop was reported stolen. They haven't bothered to produce any documentation of that; we should just trust them, apparently. Besides that:

They didn't do anything wrong,

They only did it 42 times,

And they aren't going to do it any more, anyway.

The image that brought this whole thing out? Whoever it was that told the webcam to take a picture managed to catch the kid while he was involved with the notorious gateway drug of... Mike and Ike candies.

This whole thing is looking more and more like the school district made an abysmal choice in installing the remote-monitoring software, shot themselves in the foot by trying to punish the kid for consuming what they thought (but didn't bother to verify) was illicit drugs, and are now doing a singularly bad job of trying to justify what they've done and put the best possible face on it -- instead of just standing up and admitting that they screwed the pooch all along the way.

Damn fine way to set an example, folks...

Dear MPAA:

2010-02-22T07:55:00.003-07:00

If you want to start making more money from movie sales, fix this (click = bigger):

HINT: The answer is a whole lot closer to the first choice than the second; and no, trying to make customers buy more copies of the movie isn't the answer, either. Kthnxbai.

Via the Presurfer

How to start a riot

2010-02-21T15:15:00.003-07:00

It's a nice, quiet Sunday afternoon, and it's intermittently attempting to snow (we've had snow on the ground for almost 90 straight days).

In the interest of passing time (as opposed to passing gas), I got the ol' laser pointer out and started ~~aggravating~~ exercising the cats.

Being the older of the two, Elf has mostly caught on that the damn laser dot can't be caught -- though she can't resist trying every so often.

Radar, on the other hand, still thinks that she can catch it with enough stalking, sneaking up on it, and pure enthusiasm.

Consequently, there comes a point where Elf gives up on the chase, and just lays down while Radar is still in full catch-it-kill-it mode.

Being Evil, I today I ran Radar around for a little while by frequently enticing her into thinking she almost managed to catch the dot. When she finally began to get tired and lose interest, I simply HAD to try one last thing: easing the dot over to where Elf was stretched out and wiggling it around ON ELF.

Normally, Radar would have enough sense not to annoy Elf to excess; after all, Elf is roughly 3X her size. But after coming so close to actually catching the dot, having it wiggling around and tormenting her proved to be too much: she just had to try to pounce on it. Being the unwilling and unwitting pouncee didn't sit well with Elf, and she commenced to giving Radar a sound thrashing. Apparently feeling she was being unjustly penalized for her actions, Radar began to fight back. While neither of them used claws or bit, there was still enough wrestling, slapping, jumping-on, and other combat to last a good five minutes, followed by another ten worth of getting in the "last word" via exchanging ambushes.

Peeves - I've got a pet one

2010-02-21T11:38:00.003-07:00

I can kinda-sorta tolerate poor spelling (I think it's essentially laziness, not wanting to bother to get something right), but it sets my teeth on edge when someone either uses a word incorrectly or gets words "backwards".

These are my biggest two, but there are others:

loose (not properly contained or improper fit) vs lose (lost or misplaced)
insure (warrant against damage, i.e. get paid if it breaks) vs ensure (take action before an event, i.e. keep it from breaking in the first place)

Okay, they MIGHT be spelling errors -- which just means that they should receive more attention so as to get them right.

Another thing that annoys me is the folks that tsk-tsk over crimes, but can't/won't take the time to get involved in stopping or preventing them. A couple of years ago, I was leaving the public library when I heard some guy yelling a block away. As I got closer, I could see that he was directing his ire at a young woman -- and more, that he was physically intimidating her (getting in her way when she wanted to leave, etc). I didn't witness any actual physical contact, but it sure sounded likely. When I got close enough to see what was going on, I set aside the other things I had to do in favor of keeping myself available in case the guy DID start any physical abuse; I also got a passer-by to call the situation in on their cell phone. The cops showed up, and it turned out that there were actually a couple of us ready to intercede if the guy had started anything -- out of the several dozens of people that simply stood around watching, and looking stupid. The other person and I both gave statements to the cops, and indicated that we were willing to testify in court if necessary. Nobody else could be bothered, or wanted to get involved. As far as I'm concerned, it's a lot like the political process: if you aren't ready and willing to be an active participant, you don't have any right to bitch about the results.

Some people's kids...

2010-02-21T02:08:00.004-07:00

I've had several instances of some Chinese-speaking dildo leaving bullshit comments in Chinese on some of my posts. Rather than having to go in and delete the crap, I've marginally increased the security on comments here - you'll either have to be registered (BTFOM what that means, right now) or have an "OpenID".

If you comment, but don't see it right away, be patient - I'll register you (if necessary) so you won't have to fart around with it in the future.

You'll also notice some Chinese writing on the leave-a-comment section; basically, it tells the little fuckwad Commie assmunches to stop leaving their bullshit in my comments.

Like movies at home? You're screwed!

2010-02-19T15:26:00.006-07:00

Oh, here's a goodie, courtesy of the entertainment industry. It seems that at the end of this year, entertainment gear (TVs, receivers, Blu-ray players, etc.) will no longer be allowed to make products that output HD signals unless those outputs meet the AACS (Advanced Access Content System) -- which amounts to the ability to limit them to the "old" low-res analog TV quality if the folks that put the movie out choose to do so. No high-definition for you unless your player complies with their desire to control how their movies are viewed. The movie studios want to be able to charge you for every single way you want to watch the movies you buy.

Yes, this applies to current HD-capable devices such as Blu-ray players.

No, you may NOT take the one disk you BOUGHT and PAID FOR and use it whenever and wherever the hell you want. Nor may you make a backup copy in case the dog chews the store-bought one.

Watch it at home? That's one copy.
Want to watch it on a portable while on the road? That's another copy.
Want to watch it on your computer? There's copy #3.
Watch it on something else, or a different place? Guess what...

In other words, the movie industry is finally at the point where they can (try to) enforce their wish to control how you watch the movies YOU bought, using the players that YOU paid for.

As a Linux user, I don't doubt that somebody is going to figure a way around this, since Linux doesn't spread it's legs for the MPAA/RIAA the way Microsoft does. You Windows users... well, you're pretty much screwed.

Conversation at the grocery store

2010-02-19T14:35:00.004-07:00

My local Albertson's is doing what they call a "reset" -- that is, shuffling pretty much everything in the store around to a New! Improved! location. To give you an idea just how fucked up the place is right now, they've got all the greeting cards lined up on pallets in the middle of the frozen foods section.

I went in a while ago to buy a few things, and couldn't find half the stuff I was looking for. Not being inclined to go on a scavenger hunt just to buy groceries, I just collected the shit I could find and made my way to the register. There I had the following conversation with the checker:

Checker: "Thank you for shopping Albertson's. Did you find everything you were looking for?"

Me: "Well, as a matter of fact, no, I didn't. I've only got about half of what I came in for."

C: "I'm sorry. Can I get someone to help you find things?"

M: "Only if they're going to put it back where it was."

C: "..."

M: "Look, I know y'all are doing this because some pinhead marketing drone at corporate told you to, figuring people would buy more on impulse when they see stuff they hadn't noticed before. That probably even works on some folks. For the rest of us, shuffling stuff around like you are just aggravates us, and makes us go someplace where we can find what we're looking for."

C: "Well it also reminds people of things that they meant to buy, but forgot until they see it on the shelves."

M: "Good for them... but I'm still annoyed that I couldn't find what I was after -- so I'll be going to Wal*Mart from here 'cause I know where stuff is there."

C: "I hear that Wal*Mart is going to be redecorating, too -- a lot of stores are, now."

M: "Maybe so -- but I'll bet that when they're done, the stuff will still be in the same places; they don't rearrange things just for the hell of it like Albertson's does."

C: "..."

By that point, she'd rung up my (single) bag of stuff; I paid for it and left. For Wal*Mart, where I easily found the rest of the groceries I was after.

Pointless bitching

2010-02-18T22:28:00.000-07:00

Just a few things that have drifted through my mind on their way to somewhere else...

"Common" courtesy -- I've been racking my brain trying to see if I can figure out when parents stopped trying to instil some measure of this trait in their kids. When I was but a wee lad, people were generally willing to make at least SOME small effort to show courtesy to others; nowadays, not so much.
Thinking and planning ahead -- When the hell did THIS go out of fashion? Do people really not grasp the concept of actually choosing to take deliberate actions to bring about some future result? Don't they realize that if doing "A" results in "B" happening, then NOT doing "A" produces a different result? The honcho types at a lot of financial institutions that jumped on the marginally-legitimate default-swap deals, high-risk investments, and other dubious deals without thinking "what if..." fall into this category, too -- except that the rest of the country got strong-armed into bailing THEIR dumb asses out of the jam they got themselves into.
Honesty/integrity -- By now, I expect that all of us have seen ample evidence of the folks that somehow misplaced theirs. They'd be the ones that "overstated" their income to get a home loan, and ended up getting foreclosed on. As an added bonus attraction, a fair number of them failed the "planning" test, too, and are now living in conditions that they could avoided easily enough.
Personal responsibility -- Again, when I was just a little guy running around, I was taught that I was responsible for my own actions (or lack thereof). Nowadays, it seems like anyone and everyone in or with any kind of trouble immediately starts demanding protection or compensation or salvation for whatever ails them. Taking an example from the "healthcare reform" situation: does no one realize that insisting an insurance company cover a pre-existing condition (yes, that's something that needs to be more narrowly defined) bears an uncanny resemblance to trying to buy auto insurance for your vehicle AFTER you've gotten into an accident?
Congress -- they've steadily gotten more and more polarized over the years, and less and less willing to play nice. Whichever one has the majority is more than willing to try and bully the other into doing things their way; then when the situation is reversed, get payback-plus-interest. And THEN the dumb fucks wonder why their approval rating is the lowest it has been in decades. Here's a clue, shitheads: neither of the major parties has a hammerlock on the One True Way™. You dumbasses need to stop thinking "my state/district/party" and do what you were elected for -- imagine that you're there to do work for the whole freakin' country. 'kay?

Okay, THIS isn't good...

2010-02-18T13:20:00.002-07:00

BoingBoing is reporting that a Merion, PA school district has been remotely monitoring school-issued laptops -- even in the child's home. From the fine article:

According to the filings in Blake J Robbins v Lower Merion School District (PA) et al, the laptops issued to high-school students in the well-heeled Philly suburb have webcams that can be covertly activated by the schools' administrators, who have used this facility to spy on students and even their families. The issue came to light when the Robbins's child was disciplined for "improper behavior in his home" and the Vice Principal used a photo taken by the webcam as evidence. [emphasis added]

For further scary details, have a look at the class-action suit being brought against the school district.

If you're not inclined to go through the comments to find it, a PBS "Digital Nation" piece showed it being done inside a Bronx school (at about 4:39 in).

Me, I can see something like that being done in the classroom during school hours -- but anywhere else, not so much. Here's hoping the sub-geniuses that came up with this idea (and the morons that didn't object, and the asshats that actually implemented it) all find themselves doing serious time and being sued for everything but their underwear...

Why they keep me out of hospitals

2010-02-08T10:42:00.001-07:00

Shades of X-Files!

2010-02-04T11:51:00.004-07:00

If it had been the Weekly World News or some similar source, I'd have treated the story like a Bigfoot sighting. But since it's on CNN, I'm willing to give it some credence.

A lot of states -- at the bequest of the federal government -- are doing involuntary DNA testing on newborn babies:

Newborn babies in the United States are routinely screened for a panel of genetic diseases. Since the testing is mandated by the government, it's often done without the parents' consent, according to Brad Therrell, director of the National Newborn Screening & Genetics Resource Center.

Okay, that's bad enough; but to further aggravate the situation, that DNA data (with the names attached) is being kept for extended periods of time and dispensed to third parties:

Genetic testing for newborns started in the 1960s with testing for diseases and conditions that, if undetected, could kill a child or cause severe problems, such as mental retardation. Since then, the screening has helped save countless newborns.

Over the years, many other tests were added to the list. Now, states mandate that newborns be tested for anywhere between 28 and 54 different conditions, and the DNA samples are stored in state labs for anywhere from three months to indefinitely, depending on the state. (To find out how long your baby's DNA is stored, see this state-by-state list).

Now, I'm not one of those folks that think The Gummit is out to get me, or that I have to worry about black helicopters coming for me in the middle of the night. I do, however, have a mistrust of ANY governments ability to restrain itself. I worry that sooner or later, somewhere, somebody is going to say something along the lines of "Well, we've already got ______. Why don't we start doing _______ with it?"

Yes, the good that comes from DNA testing (that it's mandatory concerns me) is significant. But I can easily envision a raft of bad uses that would far, far worse.

Of, By, and For the people - RESOLVED

2010-01-27T17:01:00.004-07:00

I got an email from a city official this morning, saying that he wanted to speak with me directly - either in person or by phone.

I called, and was advised that I was welcome to the GIS data, that I could select any or all of the list of GIS layers that I would be emailed, and an apology for the frustrations of the last couple of days.

I politely thanked him, and that was the end of the conversation.

Judging by the level of officialdom that I spoke with, I'm fairly confident that it will happen just that way.

UPDATE Friday, 29 Jan:
Received this email late this afternoon...

Dear Mr. Merriman,

As per your request, I am sending you an Excel spreadsheet that provides you with a list of the GIS related data that we have available. There are several tabs on the spreadsheet with different types of GIS information. Below is an overview of what is in each tab:

1) SDE_Data is the ArcSDE geodatabase (GDB) containing many of our primary base map data layers. This includes data imported from Yellowstone County and the State of Montana.

2) Geodatabases_MDB is a list of personal geodatabases which uses Microsoft Access format. Many of these are working or draft datasets, and may or may not have resulted in the output of a final version, but we keep them for reference.

3) PW_ROWAssets contains Public Works non-utility right-of-way assets such as curbs and gutters, sidewalks, signs, streetlights, traffic signals, storm drains, etc. Storm drains are a work in progress and are not ready for export, except for a high level view. This data has been provided to consultants working with the City.

4) PW_Utilities is the utilities infrastructure. This is a work in progress, though the sanitary sewer data is mostly complete. The water system is nearing completion. In addition to underground pipe are manholes, pumping stations, reservoirs, physical plant sites, intake and discharge points, lift stations, pumps, electrical vaults, transformers, force mains, and a wide variety of other features.

As Assistant City Administrator McCandless explained to you, this is the first large scale request we have had for our GIS data. Please review the list of GIS data on the enclosed spreadsheet and hopefully this will help you to identify the GIS data that you are interested in obtaining from the City of Billings. We look forward to receiving your request and providing you with the information. Having said this, I must tell you that we have not fully reviewed the list to determine if any of the GIS data does NOT qualify as public record due to privacy, security, and public safety issues. We will be doing this review soon. We will be sure to prioritize the review of the data you request so that we can fulfill your request as quickly as we can.

Thank-you for your patience while we work through the process of providing you with the information that you are requesting.

Of, By, and For the people my ass!

2010-01-26T01:25:00.006-07:00

Back on December 25th (yes, Christmas; I don't have family to spend holidays with so it's pretty much just another day for me) I fired off an email to the HMFIC of the GIS (Geographic Information Systems) for the city of Billings, inquiring about the availability of GIS data. I've gotten interested in what's possible with GIS, and was hoping to get a set of "real world" data that I could have a look at in different ways.

Well, a month later, I got an initial response back:

David,
I'm sorry for not responding sooner. The City's GIS data is not available for direct download, and at this time we do not have a publicly accessible web mapping service. Yellowstone County provides a public map service that makes available information about property, streets, administrative boundaries, and other layers, as well as imagery, topo maps, etc. The State of Montana also has a public state-wide map service which provides some of the same information as does the Yellowstone County map service. Both sites can be found using Google.

Yellowstone County: http://www.co.yellowstone.mt.gov/mapping/webgis.asp
State of Montana: http://gis.mt.gov/

I will be glad to answer any questions.

[name, rank, and serial number removed to protect the guilty]

-----Original Message-----
From: Dave Merriman [mailto:dkmerriman@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, December 25, 2009 2:31 PM
To: XXXXX
Subject: City GIS data

Is the GIS data for the city available for download or otherwise available to the public? If so, how might I get a copy?

David Merriman

To that, I responded with

You said that it is not available for direct download; if I were to
provide the media (cds/dvds), would it be possible to get a copy that
way?

DM

Either I'm on somebody's Watch List, the dingleberry doesn't want to be bothered, or he's so low on the food chain that he doesn't have the horsepower to make a decision. The following is his reply to my second email request, and MY response:

> David,
> Per your request for the City's GIS data: in that the City's GIS data
> are considered public records, in order for us to fulfill your
> request a Request For Public Records must first be filled out,
> specifying what data is being requested.

I must confess that I find this requirement to be somewhat at odds with
the policies in place for the State and Yellowstone county; both readily
offer GIS data for download (links to follow).

> The GIS data in its
> entirety could fill dozens of DVDs, and may be better copied to an
> external hard drive, to be provided by the requestor. In addition,
> the City will charge for whatever time is required to fulfill the
> request. The City of Billings GIS data is stored in multiple
> databases, and in literally hundreds or thousands of individual
> files. A request such as this could take many hours or days to
> fulfill, unless a more specific set of data is requested.

This seems rather farfetched, to me. The basic Yellowstone County
datasets offered by the county and state would each fit comfortably onto a single 700MB CD (see http://www.co.yellowstone.mt.gov/mapping/webgis.asp
and http://nris.mt.gov/gis/gisdatalib/gisDataList.aspx). Still, if the
City GIS Coordinator isn't sure of how much GIS data the City has
actually accumulated, an external drive could be provided.

I do have a problem with your statement that fulfilling a request such as
mine could take "many hours or days"; even the free GIS software for my
Linux system will cheerfully export GIS data and maps _in toto_. Surely,
the City finds it worthwhile to regularly review the GIS maps that are
available - why would it take "hours" to simply copy a map layer to an
external hard drive? As regards the "multiple databases" and "hundreds
or thousands of files", isn't that the whole POINT of having GIS
software, so that all those files can be accessed quickly and easily?

>
> Furthermore, certain data may be considered a matter of public safety
> under Montana Code Annotated, and pending an analysis by City staff
> may not be available to the general public.

I would certainly expect public safety data to be excluded from my
request. Still, absent any information from the City regarding what data
is available, I would have to phrase any request for GIS data as
broadly as possible. Even so, I would hope that the various datasets
(water supplies, sewage, storm drainage, etc) would be on individual GIS
map layers so as to allow City employees (or other users) to view only
those areas of interest.

>
> The Request For Public Records can be found on the City's website
> under the Clerk and Recorders page:
> http://ci.billings.mt.us/index.aspx?nid=104.

As an FYI, the Request form is now located at the URL:

http://ci.billings.mt.us/DocumentView.aspx?DID=962

While the City may not explicitly make the GIS data available via a web
site (or even page), I find it troubling that there doesn't seem to have
been any thought given to the idea that a mere citizen might want access
to the data that has already been paid for.

I would have HOPED that my initial request about the GIS data would have drawn a response along the lines of "Sure, we've got Water, Sewage,
Electric Distribution, Storm Drainage, Rights of Way, Property
Ownership, Physical Addresses, [further list of subjects]. We can't
release ______ and _____ for public safety reasons, but you're welcome to any of the others. Each dataset takes up ABOUT ________ bytes, and you'll have to bring your own storage medium for us to copy it to. Make an appointment, and we can copy it over for you in about _____ minutes, tops. This isn't any big deal, since we keep a copy of the files handy, so there won't be any charge."

Instead, what I got was an initial attempt to shuttle me off to something
completely different from what I inquired about. A followup got me the
message that I've responded to in this email.

Taking this (your second) response at face value, I am left with the
distinct impression that either you don't want to be bothered by an
actual Billings resident and threw out a bunch of word salad to try
and discourage me; or you actually don't have any idea of how much GIS
data the City has or what that data consists of.

Mr. XXXXX, I made an honest and polite request for assistance and
information. I would think that an open and honest governmental body -
one with an interest in actually serving the public - would have
responded much differently than you have. If you plan to continue with
the attitude that you have demonstrated to me thus far, I would suggest
that you get your job title changed from "GIS Coordinator" to "GIS
Obfuscator".

Since you have seen fit to CC your email to the City Attorney, Assistant
City Manager and City Manager (but, curiously, not the Director or
Assistant Directors of Public Works), I have taken the liberty of CCing
my response to my City Council members.

David Merriman

Yes, the shithead actually CCed his email to me to the individuals mentioned, and yes, I actually included my City Council reps in MY reply, which I sent after business hours.

We'll see what kind of response(s) I get tomorrow...

Stupid is as Stupid does

2010-01-22T14:08:00.003-07:00

For those inDUHviduals that don't seem to have enough functioning brain cells to figure this out on their own, here is a Free Clue:

You should turn your lights on when the weather is bad (rain, fog, snow).

Sure, maybe you can see "okay", but turning your lights on -- all the way, not just your parking lights -- means that it's easier for other people to SEE YOU. Now, here's the tricky part so you need to pay attention: if other people can SEE YOU, then they're a lot less likely to do something nonsensical like pull out in front of you. This means that you're a lot less likely to get into an accident. To make it even easier for you, try to remember that LIGHTS ON = ACCIDENTS OFF.

'kay?

A point: he makes one

2010-01-22T10:24:00.005-07:00

There has been a certain amount of turmoil about how quickly help has arrived for the victims of the Haiti earthquake. In the local newspaper (the Billings Gazette) this morning, there was an article that I thought was a damn fine explanation of the disparity between people's wants/expectations, and reality:

In the space of a single generation, ours has become a world of live video chats, one-click online ordering, overnight delivery, on-demand movies and instantaneous electronic fund transfers _ including sending aid to Haiti via your cell phone. It becomes only natural, in such a society, to bristle at any delays.

Trouble is, the physical world can't move as fast as the virtual one and, barring the invention of a "Star Trek"-style transporter, probably never will. Unlike medicine and food and water, information no longer has to travel via plane and boat and road and foot. News can arrive immediately. But doing something about it? That's another thing entirely.

Even pizza places want a half-hour to make a delivery, people. How long you think it's going to take to move thousands of tons of relief supplies? You think the Navy's hospital ship USNS Comfort moves at warp speed? Get real.

Maybe best not to f*ck with me...

2010-01-18T11:12:00.002-07:00

What military aircraft are you?

EA-6B Prowler

You are an EA-6B. You are sinister, preferring not to get into confrontations, but extract revenge through mind games and technological interference. You also love to make noise and couldn't care less about pollution.

Click Here to Take This Quiz
Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

via the Presurfer

I kill you!

2010-01-17T22:33:00.003-07:00

If you haven't seen this before, you should watch it now -- it's freakin' hilarious: Achmed, the dead terrorist.

My cat wears cement overshoes

2010-01-15T12:08:00.002-07:00

Almost since the day I got here, Radar (my Emergency Backup Cat) had provided oversight while I take my shower in the morning -- every single time I get out, she's sitting there on the bathmat, waiting for me. After I step out and begin to dry off, she jumps into the tub to lick up some of the water. Satisfied that I'm still as sweet as I was, she jumps back out a couple of minutes later.

The past few days, her exit from the tub has included a detour: walking with her wet feet through the litterbox full of clumping cat litter. Of course, the litter sticks to the wet fur, and it doesn't take long for it to dry and harden into little clumps of what amounts to cement.

*sigh*

Pushing too hard

2010-01-13T01:06:00.003-07:00

Once again, the Chinese (People's Republic of China, the commies) have pushed things too hard.

It seems that they've been caught hacking into Google (which helpfully blocks search results the little commie bastards don't want their citizens to see). In response, Google has finally announced to World + Dog what the PRC has been up to -- and then gone so far as to say that they're damn well ready to pull out of China completely because they're tired of all the crap.

If you're interested in some reading material, you might be interested in this report on Chinese "infowar" strategies, policies, and events (PDF download). It isn't too long, and makes for some interesting reading. When you're done, though, you might find yourself asking "Now, just exactly why do I need to buy my crap from this country?"...

UPDATE
I was aware that the PRC was engaged in a lot of attempts to gain unauthorized access to various computer systems, but not really aware of how broad and deep that activity extended. One report I've found indicates that nearly TWO HUNDRED computers were infected to become part of a single information-gathering operation against Tibet activists and the Dalai Lama; Computer Week reports that Googles revelation is, basically, just the tip of a much bigger iceberg.

People, how much longer are we going to keep buying their crappy products so they can use our money to turn around and try to treat the rest of the world the same way they treat their own people? Does "Tiananmen Square" ring a bell for anyone? How about that airplane of ours that they screwed up, forcing it to land in China, where they held the crew hostage for a week (and kept the airplane)? Poisioned toothpaste and dog food? Date-rape drugs in the toys they sell us? Highly toxic cadmium and other heavy metals in the playthings for our kids? HELLO?

Boycott Wal*Mart, because the shift from American manufacturing to China can be laid directly at their doorstep.

Secrets of High Technology

2010-01-11T18:21:00.003-07:00

Just had an "interesting" experience:

Got a call from someone that turned out to be a wrong number.

Fine, no biggie, it happens. But what does the shipdit that made it do?

How about hit "redial" on their phone, thinking that they'll get the number they wanted, and not the number they actually dialed? The mooron actually ASKED me why their 'redial' didn't work right...

Proving once again that there are people who's ancestors shouldn't have come down out of the trees...

2 plus 3 equals purple

2010-01-11T16:42:00.006-07:00

Okay, sports fans, try this one on for size:

The city of Billings has an ordinance (Sec. 22-406) that states that property owners are responsible for removing snow from their sidewalks within 24 hours of the end of the snowstorm.
Said ordinance is "complaint-driven", meaning that one must call a specific number and provide the address of the guilty party.
On such complaint, the city will mail the owner a notice that they have to remove the snow.
If the property owner fails to do so, the city has the option of either removing it and billing the owner, or issuing the owner a fine up to $500.
When we get a snowstorm, the city promptly dispatches the snowplows to deal with the major thoroughfares (i.e. "snow routes").
The current procedure is for the snowplow drivers to redirect the snow onto the sidewalks so as to keep the roads clear.

Now, if some enthusiastic or motivated person goes out and clears their walks and the city plow then comes along and buries the sidewalk in snow, who's responsible?

This is not an uncommon occurence, and I can easily imagine the city sending a nastygram to property owner, who does one of the following:

Re-shovels, then bills the city for the extra effort. When the city doesn't pay, take them to court.
Ignores the city's notice, and gets fined or billed as appropriate. The aggravated property owner then rears back on their hind legs and sues the city.
Tells the ordinance enforcement people what happened, and to get lost, followed by (2) above.

None of the three options above has happened that I know of, but considering the problems Billings has had with lawsuits over the past few years, I think it's only a matter of time before someone DOES get fed up with the stupidity. When it does, I'm betting that a court will side with the property owner. Any lawyer types out there care to express an opinion?

Torture... sweet, sweet torture...

2010-01-10T15:15:00.003-07:00

Just had a nice game of "Laser Tag" with the cats.

Well, cat, mostly. Elf is old enough that she doesn't go after the dot from the laser pointer with all the enthusiasm Radar does, though she does make a few attempts to catch it when it gets close enough.

No, it's Radar that has the most fun with it. When she follows it across the floor, I can get her almost a quarter of the way up the wall as she tries to keep up with it; you should see her trying to get alternate paws on it when it zig-zags across the carpet. I'll try to get a video of it, if I can keep from laughing at the sight.

Of course, it's obligatory for me to torture her with it. She makes these little disgusted chirping noises when she pounces on it, only to have it immediately re-appear right NEXT to where her paws are. It also aggravates her to no end when she's laying there trying to catch her breath and the damn dot keeps meandering across her paws, tormenting her.

The funniest part of all, though, is what happens when I can see she's getting too tired: I'll wait until I see the little butt-quiver right before she's going to pounce, and take my finger off the switch so the dot disappears. Her head comes up in wonder at where the hell it went, and she'll spend a good five minutes wandering around my apartment trying to find it again before coming to me and complaining about her missing toy.

Dumbshit.

Comes the Zombiecalypse

2010-01-09T10:53:00.001-07:00

If you see me bleeding, it'll take a couple of hours to know whether or not I've been infected:

Created by Oatmeal

It was a Merry Catsmas

2009-12-28T15:43:00.002-07:00

I live alone and (thankfully) don't have any relatives within travelling distance, so it was just me and the cats for Kwanzmasukkah this year.

A friend and I are exchanging gifts, but they're of the relatively inexpensive "Damn, I've been meaning to get one of those..." variety.

The big celebration was reserved for my "kids", Elf and Radar.

Now, I like pets and all that, but I'm not one of those people that will run out and spend $100 on a pet sweater or high-end bed or anything like that. What the cats got was a can of people-grade tuna (making me their favoritest person in the whole world... for exactly as long as the tuna held out), and a large paper bag from the local grocery store. Yeah, the bag was free, but they couldn't have had any more fun with it if I'd actually spent cash money on it.

They had a dandy time "exploring" it, ambushing the snot out of it, making it crinkle and crackle, taking turns playing 'bag-mouse', and so on.

The only bit of awkwardness came when I heard Radar complaining about something; all I could see was Elf laying on the end of the bag. After trying to figure out where the noise was coming from, I finally realized that Radar was inside the bag, and couldn't get out because Elf was holding the opening shut. Once Elf was enticed off the bag, all was well with the world again.

As expected, it didn't take long for the two of them to "break" their toy: less than 24 for them to tear a large-ish opening in the side, and another 12 to have that side of the bag completely ripped open.

Nice, Max, real nice...

2009-12-28T08:19:00.002-07:00

It certainly looks like our esteemed Senator Max Baucus has enjoyed his share of Holiday Cheer in this video from the Senate floor...

H/T to Good Sir Jimbo

Lessons learned

2009-12-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

Of course, there have been a number of things that everyone has learned along the way -- some of them more important and immediate...

Fitness

2009-12-24T02:29:00.002-07:00

A lot of guys (and even some women) are real fitness fanatics.

Part of the thing about being "fit" is that so many people really want what are called "six-pack abs".

That's something I don't have to worry about -- I've done even better than that.

I've got keg abs!

the last minute

2009-12-24T01:00:00.001-07:00

As the time for departure gets close, everyone on Santa's staff gets concerned -- some of them more so than others...

Staff problems

2009-12-23T23:32:00.002-07:00

While on his rounds, Santa isn't the only one that runs into difficulties along the way.

Technical issues

2009-12-22T01:00:00.002-07:00

Sadly, it sometimes happens that something happens that Santa simply can't deal with any other way, other than just like everyone else...

PISSED!

2009-12-21T12:19:00.002-07:00

Now that the assclowns in the Senate have passed the so-called healthcare "reform" bill, I am so totally, thoroughly, unspeakably pissed at my local shitbird that I've called his office (Senator Jon Tester, Billings 252-0550) to try and let them know that I am MOST DEFINITELY upset.

The entire state of fucking NEBRASKA getting out of having to pay anything because their scum-sucking, bottom-feeding, asswipe Senator went for a fucking power-play in exchange for his vote? This doesn't stand any kind of test, never mind "smell".

It is my sincere and fond hope that every microcephalic, misanthropic, pusillanimous pinhead that voted for this offence against the very IDEA of "democracy" should be smitten with suppurating pustules, have the fleas of a thousand camels infest their crotches, be flogged repeatedly and have the wounds rubbed with salt -- and then be seriously abused.

Santa's personnel problems (Part 3)

2009-12-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

Some of the problems that Santa experiences are -- sadly -- of the self-induced variety.

Incidental

2009-12-20T01:00:00.001-07:00

Trying to get to every kid on the entire fucking planet does keep Santa moving along -- meaning that he doesn't always have time to do the right thing when some problem or other comes up.

Fame

2009-12-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

You might not think so, but Santa's popularity and fame does present its own problems...

Preparedness

2009-12-18T01:00:00.000-07:00

While Santa is out on his rounds, he gets all the support he could possibly need. In some cases, it's simply a matter of one of the staff being alert to potential problems...

Pets = Family

2009-12-17T11:44:00.005-07:00

Sigh.

My cats (Elf and Radar) are industriously involved in a rousing game of "ambush": one of them will go 'hide' somewhere, and the other will wander around in search of the first. When found, the one that was hiding gets to chase the searcher for a little while before they swap roles.

It's usually somewhat noisy game, and I just caught myself telling them "If you two don't knock it off, you're both going to bed without supper!"

Yeah, pets are family, alright...

Santa's personnel problems (Part 2)

2009-12-17T01:00:00.001-07:00

On the plus side, some of the problems that Santa runs into are easier to deal with than others. In fact, some of them actually turn out to be non-issues, as it were --

Old technology

2009-12-16T01:00:00.001-07:00

It doesn't always work out that Santa is able to find all the places he's going as easily and quickly as he'd like...

Mrs. Claus

2009-12-15T01:00:00.000-07:00

As busy as Santa and the rest are during Christmas, and the days leading up to it, Mrs. Claus has her share of problems, too...

My cat is a perv...

2009-12-14T13:42:00.002-07:00

Radar, the kitten I got as an emergency backup cat, has turned into some kind of pervert.

It seems that I can't make vertical use of the commode without her not only following me into the bathroom, but jumping up on the commode to watch as I take care of things; she particularly likes to watch the water swirl around when I flush.

Having an audience while I go about my business is one thing -- but I get nervous when she starts eyeing my dangly bits...

Santa's personnel problems (Part 1)

2009-12-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

As previously mentioned, some of the crew up at Santa's Workshop have what might politely be called "issues".

Another problem that some of them experience is loneliness, which cropped up last year...

Out in the toolies

2009-12-13T01:00:00.003-07:00

One of the things about Santa Claus' operations is that it's way the hell out in the toolies -- so far, in fact, that they don't even have a Starbucks.

As you might expect, living in that kind of isolation means that Santa and his staff are pretty much on their own outside of Christmas. That results in some of them developing their own little... foibles, as shown:

Safety

2009-12-12T02:06:00.002-07:00

After an unfortunate incident last Christmas, Santa Claus has installed a number of safety features on his sleigh. Here's an illustration of why the first item was a seatbelt...

(un)Express Lane -- redux

2009-12-11T18:02:00.002-07:00

Got an alleged response from the twerps at Albertsons.

I say "alleged" because it didn't respond directly to what I had to say, made no promises, and was about as generic and mealy-mouthed as it could be. To wit:

Thank you for contacting us regarding your latest shopping experience at your local Albertsons store. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you. We strive for continued customer satisfaction and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience that this may have caused you. We appreciate you taking the time to share your comments with us. Your comments have been sent to the Store Director. If you need further assistance please contact us by phone at 1-877-932-7948 or via email.

Sincerely,

XXXXXXXX

(the name has been redacted to protect the poor schmuck that had to send it out).

Dumb bastards -- don't they know that the only way they've got to fight Wal*Mars is by offering something 'Mars doesn't? Namely, customer service?

In the spirit of the Season

2009-12-11T01:51:00.003-07:00

Wishing anyone that happens to wander by a Merry Kwanzmasukkah!

When is an Express lane not an Express lane?

2009-12-10T14:43:00.004-07:00

When the cashier at the local Albertsons doesn't say anything when some inconsiderate, unobservant, ignorant git go through it with two full shopping carts of groceries -- totalling nearly $350.

I know this because it just happened to ME. When I got up to the checkout area with my half-full little basket of stuff, one lane had three people with full baskets; the next lane closed while I was still five or six feet away from it. The last open lane was the (HA!) "Express Lane" for 15 or fewer items -- where said git was industriously unloading her second basket. Oh, and as an added bonus attraction, the assistant manager of the store was puttering around in the immediate area, and completely failed to say anything to either the cashier OR the git.

When I finally got my turn to be checked out, the cashier seemed surprised that I was rather less than cheerful, happy, and friendly.

On my way out, I said something about what had happened to the assistant manager. The correct response, of course, would have been something along the line of "I'm sorry, sir. We'll speak to the cashiers about working on the Express lane"; what I got INSTEAD was a half-smile as she hemmed and hawed and tried to play it down.

After getting home and putting the groceries away, I went to the Albersons web site and left them some testy (but polite and not profane) feedback. Supposedly, I'll hear something back from them within 24 hours; if/when they actually respond, I'll update this entry.

From where I live, the next-nearest grocery facility is a (gag, retch) Wal*Mars. I wonder if I shouldn't do my shopping there for a while to make a point...

Every little bit helps

2009-12-01T00:42:00.002-07:00

The New York Times is reporting on an actual lifetime cost comparison between 3 different types of light bulbs: incandescent, LED, and CFL (Compact FLourescent) done by Osram, a German lighting manufacturer.

As it turns out, LED and CFL bulbs use approximately 20% of the energy of an incandescent to generate the same amount of light.

If you're wondering how much the higher initial cost of LED/CFL bulbs affects the calculations, it works out that it's pretty much the same for all 3 types: manufacturing and distribution represents about 2% of the lifetime energy cost. That means that the higher initial cost of LED/CFL bulbs will be paid for by how long they'll last.

While I personally think that the various efforts to outlaw incandescents by 2014 is just another example of Congress getting too full of itself, it does make a fair amount of sense to convert to LED/CFL lighting -- particularly when you consider how many lights there are in peoples homes.

Nightmares are made of these

2009-11-23T16:42:00.003-07:00

If you're prone to nightmares, you can have a look at this assortment of deep-sea and marine critters to see if anything looks familiar. Some of them aren't too bad -- others are the kinds of things that you'd only want to see IN a nightmare that you could wake up from...

Absentee Parenting

2009-11-22T10:45:00.007-07:00

My Primary cat, Elf, learned quickly and easily that she wasn't allowed to go certain places -- kitchen counters, bathroom sink, dining table, my electronics workbench, and so on. Whether it's because she's more stubborn, or dumber, I'm not sure; but my emergency backup cat, Radar, isn't learning as well.

Rather than have to try and catch her in flagrante delicto to punish her (so she associates the punishment with the place/action), I'm trying something different: booby-trapping the places I need/want her to stay off of.

The booby-traps consist of multiple squares of highly adhesive tape (I'm using package strapping tape, since that's what I had handy; duct tape or similar would have done as well) along the jump-able edges of things -- sticky side up, so that they'll adhere to her foot(s) when she lands or steps on one or more of them. That way, the unhappy thing (getting something stuck to her hoof) will happen regardless of whether I'm home and/or paying attention.

This may turn into an "interesting" experiment...

UPDATE:
(11:32) Would anybody like to guess who just came wandering through the living room with tape stuck to her two back foots? Fairly radiating innocence and outraged indignation while trying to shed the tape by shaking the taped extremeties at every step?
As much as she apparently doesn't like it, I figure I'll leave her to get it off on her own -- driving the point home with a sledgehammer, as it were.

EDUP wireless lan PC card

2009-11-13T11:40:00.002-07:00

Anyone running Linux and thinking about buying one of these cards ("popular" on eBay -- example HERE) should NOT do so -- they are Windows ONLY, and you'll only be wasting your money.

NONE of the potential work-arounds for Windows-specific wifi devices will work with these things.

Just so you know...

Computer Service

2009-11-13T06:40:00.002-07:00

One of the things that I try to explain to people when I work on their computer is that heat is something that electronic components absolutely do not like. I go on to tell them that dust on the parts in their computers is like wrapping them in tiny little blankets, making it all but impossible for the heat to escape. Finally, I suggest to them that they pick one (or even two) days a year to remove any dust and other particles out of their computers.

It's perfectly okay to simply open the computer up and go after the insides of it with a vacuum cleaner (I recommend the crevice attachment) or a can of compressed air. Pay special attention to the processor heat sink and fan assembly, but don't forget to clean the rest of the parts as best you can. With the vacuum or compressed air, you're not likely to unplug or disconnect anything, so you don't have to worry about "breaking" the computer. In the case of a laptop, simply get yourself a can of compressed air and give the vents a few shots every couple of months.

By giving your computer a cleaning like that, you'll not only be doing yourself the favor of extending the life of the computer, but saving yourself any potential embarrassment if you DO have to have it serviced. After all, you wouldn't want it to look anything like one of these, would you? (WARNING: not for the squeamish!)

Veteran's Day

2009-11-11T01:00:00.000-07:00

"We sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."

Find a veteran, and tell them "Thank you".

The future of our military?

2009-11-08T21:39:00.002-07:00

Pleased with myself

2009-11-07T15:19:00.004-07:00

A few weeks ago, the display went out on my laptop -- it's an old IBM Thinkpad, and the little fluorescent tube that makes the screen light up finally went out on it. Perfectly reasonable, and no big deal -- other than I had to order the part, disassemble the display subassembly, replace said part, and then put everything back together again.

I managed to do this (a task that involved no small number of miniscule screws of various sizes) not only successfully -- I'm using the laptop for this blog entry -- but ended up with the same number of parts as I started out with: I experienced neither a screw shortage, nor any mechanical amplification (having more parts when I finished than when I began).

Damn, I'm good.

And modest, too!

Wal*Mart spreads H1N1

2009-11-03T18:34:00.003-07:00

Really.

"... employees of the Arkansas-based retail giant -- even its food handlers -- feel they have no choice but to work when they're sick. That's because the company gives workers demerits and deducts pay for staying home when they're sick or caring for sick children."

I think it might be a good idea to do your shopping in Real Stores for a while, folks...

Fierce is as fierce does

2009-10-29T16:24:00.001-06:00

If I'm ever attacked by a horde of plastic or paper bags, I want my kitten Radar on my side -- the things wouldn't stand a chance.

Cruel Red Dot

2009-10-27T17:14:00.003-06:00

The Red Dot (tm) has turned out to be an unspeakably cruel tormenter of the cats.

It has them chasing all over the apartment for as long as they're willing/able to go after it. It also torments them by going places that they can't quite reach, wandering around in front of them just out of ambush range, suddenly disappearing without warning (only to reappear somewhere else), and exhibiting some rather dramatic speed and direction changes while it's being chased.

Of course, there's no point to being a cruel Red Dot (tm) unless it runs them up and down their cat tree a dozen times or more, leaving both of them laying on the floor panting as they try to plot SOME way to catch it.

Neither of them is showing any signs of losing interest in catching it, however.

I am Evil...

2009-10-20T15:20:00.003-06:00

Yes, I certainly am.

While at Target today, I got a new laser pointer (mouse-shaped, $3.99 with an extra set of batteries) to annoy the cats with.

Since I've gotten home, I've:

Gotten both of them spinning around in circles until they got dizzy and couldn't walk straight.
Used sudden direction changes to get them to trip over their own feet.
Let them chase it around in the kitchen, then stopping it IN their water dish.
"Walked" around in front of them until I see the pre-pounce butt-wiggle, then suddenly turning it off ("Hey! Where'd it go?!").

Yes, Evil is Me...

Caturday 20091017

2009-10-17T02:47:00.003-06:00

Radar demonstrates why she's such a dumbshit: trying to catch her own tail...

Note the lack of coordination and balance as she almost falls off the cat tree a couple of times.

Almost

2009-10-09T11:44:00.002-06:00

I'm sure everyone has heard the old saying that "'Almost' only counts in hand grenades and horseshoes". I think most would agree that the same principle applies to 'wants' and 'intentions'.

Well, if His Obamaness can win the Nobel Peace Prize for his intentions to change the world and all that when he took office, then I by-God want my Nobel prizes in Math and Physics, since I fully INTENDED to get degrees and make big advances in those fields when I was younger.

I mean, fair is fair...

Multitasking

2009-10-06T22:44:00.001-06:00

Here's why you shouldn't (at least while driving)

I mean, just so you know...

Demonstrable Geekiness

2009-09-28T03:52:00.002-06:00

While I'm nowhere near "professional grade" at programming, I have managed to finish my little learning-to-program-in-Java project.

It's a simple, basic little utility to let someone interested in building a small (home/cabin) solar panel (Photo-Voltaic) to generate and store some amount of electricity.

The program lets the user enter and adjust a variety of different loads (a fridge, TV, etc), how many of what sizes of solar panels and batteries, power inverters for those things that NEED regular "line" power, and a few other little helpful options. As the different user-input values change, the program recalculates everything. The user has the option to either print the information to a printer, or save it to a computer file that can be imported to a spreadsheet (where they can get serious about playing with the numbers, if they want). The program is called PVcalc, and is available for download from my website.

If you're interested, curious, or just like to watch trainwrecks, go on over and get yourself a copy and let me know how bad I suck at programming :-)

Not for mere mortals...

2009-09-26T18:09:00.003-06:00

I've been teaching myself the Java programming language for the past couple of weeks. It has been something of an "adventure", but I've actually rather enjoyed it.

I wanted to learn Java, specifically, because it is widely touted as being a cross-platform programming environment: something written in Java is supposed to run on a Windows box, a Linux machine, an Apple, or damn near anything else that can handle Java.

The downside of that kind of power and flexibility (TANSTAAFL!) is that doing things the Java way is appreciably different than what I've been used to. Doing math stuff in Java, for example, leaves one with a thorough grounding in touch-typing as a consequence of the refusal/inability of Java to automagically convert between types of numbers (integer, real, etc).

I've got my learn-by-doing program almost finished, and have run into what I reluctantly have to consider a major weakness: the inability to EASILY print simple, basic text to a (default) printer. By way of illustration, if I were using another programming language, I could do something relatively simple, like
printer.print "This is some text that I want to print"
to whatever the default printer was, using whatever passed for a default font and size.

In Java, however, it isn't that straightforward -- almost every cotton-picking little detail has to be declared, defined, and described... regardless of whether I'm printing a short line of text or rendering a copy of the Mona Lisa. While I don't doubt that the capabilities of printing in Java are wonderful, at this point it's SO damn flexible to me that I can't get hold of it well enough to actually do anything simple and basic with it.

Further aggravating my situation is that all of the tutorials that I've looked at have been of the starting-from-scratch, all-by-themselves variety; there doesn't seem to be anything that explains or demonstrates how to include printing basic text from within an existing program -- or, at least, not that I've been able to find/understand. If, or when, I finally get my head around how to print from within a Java application such as I've written, I may have to have a try at writing a "Java Printing for Dummies" tutorial.

In the mean time, it's various permutations of headache remedies and alcoholic beverages for me...

What the hell happened to Saturdays?

2009-09-19T08:19:00.002-06:00

When I was but a wee lad (mid- to late-50's), Saturday mornings were for cartoons -- Bugs Bunny, Mighty Mouse, Heckle and Jeckle, Tom and Jerry, Popeye, and other such entertainments.

This morning, just for drill, I had a look at our local selection of programs and didn't see a damn thing that looked even vaguely amusing.

WTF is a Yu-Gi-Oh? I've seen/heard about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Power Rangers (some years ago, it was on in the afternoon in the Dallas area; when the program ended, the kids in the apartment complex would go outside an re-enact various scenes with one or two of them getting karate-chopped or -kicked every so often). Similarly, I've heard of Pokemon (a friend's kid wanted Pokemon underwear for cryin' out loud!), Care Bears, and so on.

Where's the mindless laugh-yourself-silly stuff that so many of us grew up on? Yes, it was violent (tough to get much more violent than the Coyote's schemes against the Roadrunner, for example), but we KNEW that it was cartoons, that Real Life didn't work that way. Now all we've got is techno-fantasy crap and play-nice-and-be-happy drivel.

*snif*

I miss Looney Tunes.

Radar on Guard

2009-09-06T19:13:00.005-06:00

Radar, in the Belly of the Beast (the Box Monster)

On the attack against the Plastic Bag from Hell

Her most dangerous foes, the Poisonous Plastic Bug and the dreaded Purple Stuffed Mouse

See? We can all just get along...

I'm trying to nap here, dude...
You woke me up for THIS?

Guard Cat

2009-09-05T13:32:00.003-06:00

Radar, the kitten, is proving herself to be quite the guardian around my apartment.

For her size, she's surprisingly ferocious -- thus far, she has fought and defeated:

the Shoelace Snake
the Foot of Death
the Box Monster
entire swarms of Kibbles
the Blinky Ball of Doom
the Plastic Bag from Hell
the dreaded Purple Stuffed Mouse
numerous Bed Mice (the 'mice' that run around under the covers), and
the Poisonous Plastic Bug

Elf has gotten used to having Radar around, and is pretty tolerant of the little fuzzball -- except when Radar gets too rambunctious, and starts trying to include Elf in playtime.

Charity telemarketing

2009-09-04T10:03:00.002-06:00

In the last few days, I've received several calls from assorted charitable organizations seeking donations.

The thing is, each and every one of them has started out with the person on the other end asking for someone other than me ("Marsha", "John", etc).

I'm wondering: is this simply a case of several telemarketers individually trying to recover from an error (mis-dialed or erroneous number), or an example of a new technique in telemarketing -- an attempt to somehow get past most people's initial negative reaction to being solicited for money?

Inquiring minds want to know...

Kitten School

2009-08-29T07:30:00.003-06:00

In the last couple of days, Radar the kitten, has gone through the following courses:

Class 1

Jump up on Dad's lap, sit while watching what he does on the computer.
Sitting is too tiring, so lay down on his leg.
Fall asleep.
Try to roll over, fall off leg.

Class 2

Get into laundry basket.
Discover all the things you can beat up.
Jump out of laundry basket, try to drag something out to play with.
Discover that item is way bigger than you thought, drag harder.
Succeed in pulling Dad's bluejeans out of basket.
Get covered by bluejeans.
While trying to escape bluejeans, manage to burrow your way into leg, get trapped.
Yell for help.

Class 3

Play with assorted cat toys.
Get tired of assorted cat toys.
Go looking for new toy.
Spot twitching tail.
Ignore that twitching tail is connected to (way) bigger cat.
Ambush tail.
Get soundly thumped on the head for your efforts.

Most important lesson
Do NOT suddenly jump up on toilet while Dad is standing in front of it.