NoneFor.Me

Google makes a stand, for love

2012-02-14T08:11:00.000-05:00

By now you have seen the Google Valentine's Day video.

It is very sweet, check it out on Google today, or see it here

The really cool thing?
They end it with what appears to be a message that we should love whoever we want.

Milk can love a cookie,
a cat can love a dog,
a princess can love a frog,
an astronaut can love an alien,
a little white boy can love a little black girl,
and a man can love a man.

Go Google!

"He that lieth down with Dogs shall rise up with Fleas" -Benjamin Franklin

2012-01-23T10:42:00.000-05:00

Nice little ethical dilemma via the MegaUpload issue

MegaUpload was primarily hosted in Virginia by a web hosting provider called Carpathia Hosting. Carpathia leased more than 1000 servers with a total of 25 petabytes of storage to MegaUpload.

Source: http://gigaom.com/2012/01/19/megaupload-indictment/

I wonder how the Federal Agencies who host with Carpathia feel about this...

dsquery

2012-01-13T15:08:00.000-05:00

Hey,
This is actually pretty useful.

On a Windows server:

dsquery group -name "Domain Admins" | dsget group -members

Returns the members of the domain admin group.

I know, it's a little thing, but very handy.

Almost like somebody is serious about wanting to be a real OS.

Using notepad as a log file - Automatic timestamp on open - Who Knew?

2011-12-09T11:10:00.000-05:00

I am an old school guy. I like to write text in a plain text editor whenever possible. It helps me focus on the text, instead of the font, spacing, italicizing, indenting etc.

I have just enough ADHD that all those bells and whistles always pull me in.

Anyway,
I often use notepad when I am stuck on my corporate machine. I take nearly all my notes with notepad.

I just stumbled across this little gem (Source)
Notepad can be used to log data manually. This adds the current date and time when you open the particular notepad log file..
Use the following instruction to create a log file:

Open a new Notepad. (Start -> Program -> Accessories -> Notepad)
Type .LOG in the first line and press ENTER.
Save this file in the name of your choice.
Now, whenever you open this file, the current system date and time will be appended to the bottom of the contents in the notepad.

It works REALLY nicely. Give it a try!

Herman Cain is a Koch Brother? Who knew...

2011-10-25T00:06:00.002-04:00

Herman Cain's deep ties to Koch brothers key to campaign

By Associated Press, Published: October 16

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain has cast himself as the outsider, the pizza magnate with real-world experience who will bring fresh ideas to the nation's capital. But Cain's economic ideas, support and organization have close ties to two billionaire brothers who bankroll right-leaning causes through their group Americans for Prosperity.

Cain's campaign manager and a number of aides have worked for Americans for Prosperity, or AFP, the advocacy group founded with support from billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, which lobbies for lower taxes and less government regulation and spending. Cain credits a businessman who served on an AFP advisory board with helping devise his "9-9-9" plan to rewrite the nation's tax code. And his years of speaking at AFP events have given the businessman and radio host a network of loyal grassroots fans.
The once little-known businessman's political activities are getting fresh scrutiny these days since he soared to the top of some national polls.
His links to the Koch brothers could undercut his outsider, non-political image among tea party fans who detest politics as usual and candidates connected with the party machine.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/long-ties-to-koch-brothers-key-to-cains-campaign/2011/10/16/gIQAKTLPoL_story.html

Yay! Instant Camera access on iOS 5.

2011-10-12T15:53:00.000-04:00

From a locked screen,
Double-click,
Right there, bottom right, CAMERA!
And it starts fast too.

Yaaaayyyyyy!

Blackberry | We are all missing the point...

2011-10-12T12:58:00.001-04:00

Blackberry is down and it is a big deal, but...

How is it we aren't talking about the fatal service and security flaw in their architecture?

Messaging and Browsing go through RIM? Seriously?

"The messaging and browsing delays ... were caused by a core switch failure within RIM's infrastructure," it said. "As a result, a large backlog of data was generated and we are now working to clear that backlog and restore normal service."

I'm not sure why anyone would think this is a good idea.

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/BlackBerry+outages+spread+North+America/5538017/story.html#ixzz1aaTAW9xr

I'm calling BS on this. | Federal Times biased?

2011-10-11T09:13:00.002-04:00

According to Federal Times:
"Federal employees are being increasingly concentrated into higher paygrades without taking on greater responsibility, according to a Federal Times analysis of government data."
http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20111010/BENEFITS01/110100301/1001

Is this just sloppy work or a bias?

How, exactly, does Federal Times know that employees aren't taking on greater responsibility, unless they interviewed the employees?
They clearly haven't and state the same at the end of the article.

They talked to senior management? Because they are so aware of what is happening at the ground level?

What I see are GS staff doing more and more, as their co-workers have retired or left for better opportunities. The climate is so bad now (no pay raises for 2 years, no support, no help, no new staff filling critical roles) that many are fleeing the federal ranks and most would not consider entering the federal workforce.

You can't fix the problem of the federal workforce by blaming the staff.

An ad I had not expected

2011-10-07T22:54:00.000-04:00

I wonder if they get much business from this.

And... now my mind is stuck on euphemisms.

.

Slanted article alert! Study: Contractors paid far more than feds for comparable work

2011-09-14T08:22:00.000-04:00

This article is misleading. The article lumps the amount that is paid for a contractor's support and calls it all salary. The amount the feds pay for an hour of a contractors time doesn't equate to the amount the contract worker takes home in his/her pay check.

The Feds are paying for salary, benefits, overhead, and profit. They are also paying for corporate management and all the other processes that keep these organizations working.

Sure, some federal contractors earn more per hour than their federal employee counterparts, but remember most contract employees survive contract to contract.

No contract=no work.

There is little certainty that their employer will win the next contract award and they are typically laid off, although they do exemplary work, because their employer lost a low cost competition with companies that offer lower salaries, no benefits and less capable staff.

IMHO, if the federal government has long term work they will always save money by hiring staff. They will also have to accept the risk of having excess staff if that work ends.

I have spent ~ 12 years as a federal employee and ~11 as a federal contractor. Contractors have their place and most provide excellent support, often performing work that the federal government can;t accomplish in a timely, cost effective way. Federal employees also have a huge role to play. Many are dedicated individuals who do good work, often at a pay rate lower than they could get on the open market. They are dedicated to what they do and feel the work contributes in a positive way to the country as a whole.

We need to find the right balance between federal employees and contractor support. Anyone who claims that one side is better than the other in all situations is a liar.

Full article here:
http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20110913/ACQUISITION03/109130301/1001

Network Solutions just got added to the "Bad list" a zillion times

2011-08-11T10:19:00.000-04:00

This email just came in to my corporate mail box. It immediately got shoved to the Spam mailbox. I wonder how many black lists NetSol just got added to...

Interested in .XXX domain names? Pre-registration for General Availability has arrived - get in line today!



	Pre-registration for General Availability of .XXX domain names is open. All General Availability domain names are first come, first served, so be sure you get on the list today!

What a clean Debt Ceiling Bill looks like -

2011-07-28T22:08:00.000-04:00

This is what a clean Debt Ceiling bill should look like. This example would increase the debt ceiling by $4.2B

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That subsection (b) of section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking out the dollar limitation contained in such subsection and inserting in lieu thereof 16,694,000,000,000.

This mimics the Debt Ceiling bills passed in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006,and 2007 under George W. Bush.
Republicans voted "Aye" more than 200 times in support of these 5 debt ceiling bills.
These five bills increased the Debt Ceiling by $3.865B.

And now we are at the brink of default because we MUST CUT SPENDING?

Really?

Why Now?

Bill Text:
2002
2003
2004
2006
2007

Rebublicans used to LOVE raising the Debt Ceiling -

2011-07-26T00:05:00.000-04:00

In fact, in January 2003 they did it with this bill. They raised the debt ceiling by $984 billion.

This is the entire bill.

All. Of. It.

H.J.Res.51
One Hundred Eighth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the seventh day of January, two thousand and three
Joint Resolution
Increasing the statutory limit on the public debt.
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That subsection (b) of section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking out the dollar limitation contained in such subsection and inserting in lieu thereof $7,384,000,000,000.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.

Source: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=hj108-51
Overview: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=hj108-51

No spending cuts required.
No increased taxes required.
No threat of default.

So why is this time such a fight? Oh yeah.

Because the goal is the Whitehouse, not governing...

Thanks GOP

You should read this: http://www.opencongress.org/articles/view/1500-The-Republicans-Haven-t-Always-Been-Against-Raising-the-Debt-Ceiling

Point & Counterpoint -

2011-07-12T15:25:00.000-04:00

Sometime my email stream is just plain confusing...

Hmmmmm.

Actual green building in Washington, DC

2011-06-06T15:41:00.003-04:00

1275, 1st Street, Washington D.C.

The home of (some of) GSA and other federal agencies.

Yes, that is Grass. On the roof.

Sweet!

HD Timelapse Footage from the ESO VLT (Very Large Telescope)

2011-05-27T11:07:00.000-04:00

I haven't been to ESO, but spent a day at CTIO, which is close by. I'm an IT Security dork, but this make me wish I had studied harder in physics class.

Wait. I paid for this?

2011-05-20T08:30:00.004-04:00

We have some in congress proposing drastic cuts or elimination of citizen services, and yet this type of BS 'training' is still being funded... Why?

TSA to train its federal security directors on 'ropes course' and more

FTA:

During the planned two-day sessions at the ropes course, federal security directors will "walk tight-ropes; negotiate obstacles, climb, and pass teammates through an arrangement that involves physical and problem-solving challenges with low physical risk," explains a solicitation released by TSA on May 18. "Participants gradually expand their comfort zones (sometimes dramatically) and recognize fears that may block personal and professional achievement. Each challenge draws upon team members to actively support each other."

The Academy will also include two-day "Experiential Learning" sessions, which encourage the FSDs to engage in various roles that involve risk-taking, leadership, problem-solving and coaching, says the solicitation. "They shall be tailored to the specific challenges FSDs face in airport operations and hub-spoke relationships," says the document.

The small business vendor's site must be located within 20 miles of TSA headquarters in Arlington. Similarly, the ropes course and experiential learning site must be located within 20 miles of the contractor's location. TSA also plans to take the FSDs on field trips to the Air and Space Museum, in Washington, DC; TSA headquarters in Arlington; and the Freedom Center, near Dulles International Airport in Virginia.

MORE: http://www.gsnmagazine.com/node/23372?c=education_training

Where is the phone number for the Waste Fraud and Abuse hotline?
Oh, here it is: 1-800-323-8603.
http://www.dhs.gov/xoig/about/gc_1163703329805.shtm

Guiding words for these times -

2011-05-17T00:57:00.002-04:00

Yet our distress comes from no failure of substance. We are stricken by no plague of locusts. Compared with the perils which our forefathers conquered because they believed and were not afraid, we have still much to be thankful for. Nature still offers her bounty and human efforts have multiplied it. Plenty is at our doorstep, but a generous use of it languishes in the very sight of the supply. Primarily this is because the rulers of the exchange of mankind's goods have failed, through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and abdicated. Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men.
True they have tried, but their efforts have been cast in the pattern of an outworn tradition. Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money. Stripped of the lure of profit by which to induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence. They know only the rules of a generation of self-seekers. They have no vision, and when there is no vision the people perish
The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple of our civilization. We may now restore that temple to the ancient truths. The measure of the restoration lies in the extent to which we apply social values more noble than mere monetary profit.
Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men. Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address ,Saturday, March 4, 1933 Link

Wow. I feel way small.

2011-04-16T10:15:00.000-04:00

The Mountain from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.

HIMSS11 printable floorplan -

2011-02-14T07:47:00.003-05:00

I am attending #HIMSS11 this year, and I have been looking at the size of the show floor. My task at the show is to talk to nearly everyone on the exhibit floor. So yeah, I need a map and a plan.

The Expo floor is massive. Really massive. I have been to the RSA Conference 3 times and it while that show is big, it is tiny compared to HIMSS11.

I attempted to print the floor plan from the conference website (pdf), but even spanned across 15 pages (11x17 paper in a 3x5 grid), I couldn't read the names on the small booths.

So I decided to crop down the floor plan to just the bare essentials (I don't really need the location of the dumpsters) and was able to make a usable printed map. I ended up with 8 11x17 pages that I had to tape together, but at least I can read it...

Give it a shot. (Please leave me a comment if this is helpful to you.)

Here is the cropped floor plan.

You will need a printer that can print 11x17.
Make sure and set your paper size to 11x17.

You should also set the 'Page Handling' Like this:

This is a must have tool for #HIMSS11

2011-02-12T09:49:00.000-05:00

http://eventmobi.com/himss/

This site is meant for mobile users, but I found it helpful to select ALL the sessions I am interested in, then go back to my desktop browser and print all my selections. From that list I am making my choices from those that conflict. I am also identifying sessions that my coworkers might be able to cover.
Nice!

Headed to #HIMSS11 -

2011-02-10T07:50:00.000-05:00

Any other IT Security types headed to the HIMSS11 Conference on Feb 20th? This is a down right HUGE Conference. Should be interesting.

Wordle - “President Obama's 2011 State Of The Union” by NPR

2011-01-25T22:50:00.003-05:00

More than a "minor upgrade" - What's the deal with PCWorld?

2010-12-20T09:24:00.000-05:00

In the PCWorld article, How the Grinch Stole the iPad, they make mention of a "very minor upgrade" to the iPad. Below is their write up. I have to assume this is their prediction for what will be included in the update. I changed this to a bullet list, but the words remain the same.

FTA:

If the rumors hold up, we're looking at a very minor upgrade to the iPad. Expect a

• thinner body,

• front-facing camera for FaceTime video chat,

• back-facing camera,

• USB port and maybe the

• iPhone 4's Retina display.

Really?

I'm not sure what the writers at PCWorld are smoking these days, but how is that a "very minor upgrade"? Two cameras and a USB port, plus a Retina Display? Seems pretty substantial to me.

Didn't the addition of just 1 camera and the Retina display make the iPhone 4 the hottest phone around?

Just Sayin'

The original article:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/213351/how_the_grinch_stole_the_ipad.html

The Proposal - Where it all started

2010-09-23T11:34:00.001-04:00

This is the gem that started us all on this little WWW thingy.

It's a good read and there are some pointers to ideas that still haven't been successfully developed.

Reference:
Information Management: A Proposal

Tim Berners-Lee, CERN March 1989, May 1990

Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format

Potentially massive hole in 'good' ASP.NET sites

2010-09-20T08:55:00.001-04:00

This is not just a simple patch fix, and even well managed sites can have this issue.
This is driven by ASP.NET giving up too much information in error codes.

The big takeaway:

Important: It is not enough to simply turn on CustomErrors or have it set to RemoteOnly. You also need to make sure that all errors are configured to return the same error page. This requires you to explicitly set the “defaultRedirect” attribute on the section and ensure that no per-status codes are set.

Here's the Scott Gu post

Get busy out there.

Apple media event Today -

2010-09-01T08:55:00.000-04:00

Best prediction from the TUAW comments:

macfan406 said

Alright Here's the Rundown:

Jobs walks on stage
Talks about amazing iPad and iPhone 4 success
Announces they have ramped production of both
Three Things for today. iLife, iOS (and iPods), and AppleTV
Announces iLife '11.
Garageband gets revamped
"Mystery application" an iOS app builder like Android's App Inventor. "App Innovator"
iLife goes on sale today for $79
iOS 4 devices can download iLife for iOS as a suite for $40 or apps for $10 (iMovie, Garageband, iWeb, and iPhoto)
iOS: iPad gets iOS 4 friday. Expose runs the multi-tasking show here, and you can run Retina Display apps without pixel doubling
"iPod touch is a great device, but we decided to redesign it all"
Announces new iPod touch (almost indistinguishable from iP4)
Front Facetime cam as well as 5MP Camera in the rear with LED Flash
still 8.5mm
Retina Display, A4, FM/HD Radio with Tagging.
3G model using the same pricing scheme as iPad
Capacity up to 128GB. 32GB starts $199, Add $130 for 3G
All models get compass and GPS
Ships in a week
Nano gets still camera, WiFi for Video and Photo uploads
Classic gets no moving parts.
Shuffle utilitzes rumored 1.3" screen
iPhone gets an antenna fix. White iPhone ships at the end of the month
AppleTV--> iTV
16GB $99, 32GB $199
Runs iOS and can access the App Store.
One More Thing: iTunes.com
Streaming from your Library: Free
Stream from the store: $9.99/month
Early 2011.
Any iOS device. Any Mac/PC Web browser can get to it.
(Insert special guest artist here..)

There you have it. A Full rundown of next Wednesday. Enjoy and continue to speculate!

From:

http://i.tuaw.com/2010/08/25/apple-to-hold-media-event-on-september-1st/

Hay baling fun

2010-08-27T07:48:00.000-04:00

Wow, just wow...

I like this image

2010-08-26T14:27:00.000-04:00

From the NY Times

HHS Breach notification data presented in a useful (maybe) way...

2010-07-29T12:47:00.001-04:00

OK,
I know you can get the HHS Breach Notification information here:
http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/administrative/breachnotificationrule/postedbreaches.html

It is great that HHS put's this out, but...
using the data is pretty painful. It's just an HTML page, with no good way to make sense of the data.

Because I wanted to dig deeper, I tossed all the data into a Google Docs spreadsheet.

It's not pretty, but maybe someone will find it helpful.

Caveats:
I did this in just a few minutes, I believe it is accurate... but I'm not perfect.
I'd love to keep this up to date as HHS releases new data, but I'm not sure that will happen...
Use at your own risk.

Phoneix businesses are apparently getting hammered by the "Papers Please Law"

2010-07-07T14:28:00.001-04:00

Wow!

Phoenix is getting hit so hard by the "Papers Please Law" that the hotels have started using unsolicited emails asking folks to plan events there.

It is so sad that stupid, racist politics are impacting real businesses in such a bad way...

Actual text of the email I just received:

Hello,

I am with the Abcdefg Ijklmno Phoenix Airport Hotel. I want to see if you ever schedule any meetings or events in the Phoenix area?

We are conveniently located less than a mile from Sky Harbor International Airport (with complimentary Airport shuttle). We are the only hotel with a Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx at our front door. You will experience the ease and convenience of the Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx which connects you to professional and collegiate sporting venues, as well as great dining and shopping. Just minutes from downtown Phoenix, the Convention Center and Tempe, home of Arizona State University. Other nearby attractions include spring training venues for the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants.

I may be reached directly at username@domain.com or 602-999-9999. Please visit our website at www.hoteldomain.com or feel free to call me if I can be of any further assistance.

Make it a great day!

Sales Person
Sales Manager

Time for an update maybe?

2010-07-07T09:56:00.001-04:00

Information Week has this post up about lame government web sites.

The one for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces is especially outdated.

This is the site today (scrolled up, for comparison)

This is how it looked on 12/12/1998, almost 12 years ago...

In that time, it appears someone has learned:

style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 153);"

Compare for yourself:

Today vs.12/12/1998

"NextGen Gallery" No GD support!

2010-06-22T11:51:00.000-04:00

This one tried to make me crazy...

While setting up the very awesome NextGEN Gallery WorPress plugin.
I ran in to problems with the GD Library. The Gallery Overview page happily reported:

Graphic Library
No GD Support!

Wow. Not very helpful.

I finally found the answer (at least for Red Hat Linux)

Run this command:

root@myhost:/ # yum install gd-devel php-gd

Note: You should, run this as a single command, not as 2 separate install commands.

NOT:
root@myhost:/ # yum install gd-devel
root@myhost:/ # yum install php-gd

Why?
I'm not sure, but it didn't solve the issue until I ran the command correctly...

BP Fail Whale

2010-06-10T12:34:00.000-04:00

- In case you need one...

Cloud still has a life cycle, we still need to follow it

2010-06-10T09:12:00.000-04:00

Interesting article in FCW today about data ownership in the cloud. Good points made, but one thing about it stuck in my craw.

From the article:

Agencies and the public need to be confident that government data is properly secured within the U.S. and can be, if needed, properly destroyed.

Wait, why are they using the phrase "and can be, if needed, properly destroyed."

Using a public cloud will require that when you finish using a server, you ensure the data is no longer on the server. It's the Disposal phase of the life cycle.

You don't simply turn off old servers and set them on the curb. You ensure the drives are removed, destroyed or wiped clean first, right? The Cloud speeds up the life cycle but doesn't free us from the required steps. We still need to follow it all the way through. Disposal is an important step.

FF mention -

2010-06-03T13:03:00.000-04:00

Folks,
Doubtful many beyond us will even find this interesting, but it makes me happy.
I run a twitter account, @USAID_info.
As the profile states, it is an: Unofficial Feed of RSS news
I set it up back before USAID had a twitter presence in Dec 2008.
I set it up to tweet info from the various USAID RSS feeds, etc. via twitterfeed.com
Kind of a set it and forget it method, although I have to check it once in a while…

Anyway,
I was checking in on the account today and discovered this gem.
On Friday, whoever runs the @BarackObama twitter account mentioned 5 federal agencies in a Follow Friday tweet.
(I am not so naïve to think that the president is involved, although I can dream)
My Unofficial @USAID_info account was one of those mentioned.
Not too shabby.

IE8 - Move Refresh and Stop buttons

2010-05-15T22:24:00.000-04:00

I don't usually use IE, and I actively avoid IE8, but I end up having to use it to get a good view of Outlook Web Access (OWA). Of course it is also the default in Windows7.

Just to make me (more) crazy, the good folks at Microsoft decided to move the Refresh and Stop to right of the address bar in IE8. Most other browsers place them to the left, as did previous versions of IE.

You can move the Refresh and Stop buttons to the "correct place" by doing this:

Right-click on an empty area in the toolbars
Select --> Customize
Select --> Show Stop and Refresh Buttons before Address Bar

Done.
Now the Stop and Refresh buttons back to their normal location.

HHS Reporting on Breaches Affecting 500 or More Individuals

2010-04-19T13:51:00.003-04:00

-- http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/administrative/breachnotificationrule/postedbreaches.html

If you work in infosec, this will make your stomach turn...

Urban Spoon getting all racy and whatnot

2010-04-09T10:54:00.000-04:00

Hey Developers at Urban Spoon,

Nice captcha.

We all know sex sells.
You don't have to be so obvious.

Some folks on Facebook lack common sense...

2010-03-18T16:27:00.000-04:00

I just stuck this on my Facebook wall. I hope a few people get it...

Today’s Game–GIVE UP YOUR PRIVACY! Everyone please play! You will find it interesting to know everything about your FB friends. Copy & paste this to your profile status, then put your answers at the end: date of birth, birthplace, mother’s maiden name, favorite color, favorite pet’s name, wedding anniversary, high sch...ool name. HAVE FUN! –Mine: 01/02/72, Madison, WI, Smith, blue, Scruffy, 12/24/96, East High!

I pick up your discarded ATM receipts.

2010-02-18T09:45:00.000-05:00

OK.
I admit it. I pick up discarded ATM receipts. Kinda creepy, I know, but I can't stop.

It started as an attempt to keep down the random blowing trash. As trash goes, these little slips of white paper are relatively clean and there always is a trash can nearby... But then I started actually looking at them.

Big mistake.

Here is what I have learned.

1) Nobody discards an ATM receipt if they have more than $500.00 in their account. Nobody. I have never found one with more than $500. Either folks who have cash keep their receipts or NO ONE that uses an ATM has more than $500 in their bank account. I seriously doubt the latter.

2) People that only have a little money, waste it.

Case in point, this receipt:

This person had $334.73 in their account. They withdrew $200. They paid $3 to BB&T to get the cash. They probably also paid a fee to their own bank.

So they wasted nearly 1% of their wealth to withdraw $200. Probably more.

There may be good reason for this. I certainly don't know their situation from just a discard ATM receipt.

Maybe their bank doesn't have a local ATM.
Maybe they really needed to get $200 at 4:55pm.
Maybe they have a larger bank account and don't care about wasting a measly $3.
Or maybe, just maybe, they aren't paying attention to how much money they are wasting...

Which might help explain why they only had 334.73 in their account..

Does anybody else pick these up?

This dude needs better friends

2010-02-03T11:44:00.002-05:00

So you are sitting at work and an email comes in from a buddy. Images attached. What are they? Latest Data Center pictures? New iPad schematics?

Let's just take a look.

Fast forward to 1:00. Watch the screen of the guy in the background, middle left...

D'oh!

Why NORAD Tracks Santa

2009-12-30T13:17:00.004-05:00

I have always wondered about this, but never got around to looking it up.

The answer, courtesy of SteveRadick.com

"It all started back in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, however, kids ended up calling NORAD’s Commander-in-Chief’s operations “hotline.” The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, realizing that kids were relying on him for quite possibly the most important information of the year, regularly checked the radar for Santa as he made his way around the world delivering presents. All of the children who called were given updates on his location…and a 50 year old tradition was born."

It's certainly nice when mistakes lead to a happy outcome.

My dork life is now complete

2009-12-13T22:57:00.002-05:00

Hi, @sheffus.

Leonard Hofstadter (leonardhofstadt) is now following your tweets on Twitter.

And for those who snicker and laugh?

Jealousy is bad for your karma...

Lost It? You gotta come clean. FAST!

2009-11-03T14:56:00.004-05:00

From a CIO.com article on the cost of a lost laptop

FTA: "According to Ponemon Institute, the average cost of a lost or stolen laptop PC is more than $49,000. Most of this cost is due to the exposure of sensitive data." That is bad, but not entirely unexpected. The hardware/software is 1-2% of that cost. The rest is the 'clean-up'.

but the Important Point is this:
"The study reports that if a company becomes aware of the loss the same day it happens, the average cost is only $8,950. If it takes more than a week to discover the loss, the cost jumps to an average of $115,849."

That is a serious chunk of change. Almost 13 times as much in just one week...

Govt Open Source Conf, DC

2009-10-22T14:54:00.004-04:00

November 5 2009
Reagan Building

Anyone else attending?

It is CHEAP ($99.00) Until 10/23/2009

Direct from the site: http://goscon.org/

Conference Overview

Be part of the open source conversation in Federal Government, and join agency information technology leaders for a day of intensive education and networking on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.

GOSCON, the premier annual government open source conference for government information technology leadership, will present a special one-day event on Nov 5, 2009, showcasing real-world open source success stories from federal agencies. Increasing requests by Federal agencies and legislative members for general education, interest moving to “Gov2.0” and the role open source plays in it, as well as a sea change in the political environment make this fall in D.C. the right time and place for an open technology event designed specifically for government managers and their key technology staff. Attendance will be venue-limited.

Special to the DC event: the new Open Techology Forum brings a deeper dive into the technology of open source, along with the Open Techology Lab.

Somebody in the US Navy 'Gets It'...

2009-10-09T11:08:00.017-04:00

This article shows an example of the US Navy providing Navy specific content to sailors on hand held devices. The folks over at Fleet Forces Command "Get It".

In fact, the article includes this line "The Navy IA apps, as well as Facebook and Twitter sites, are all components of U.S. Fleet Forces Command's overarching communication strategy"...

The application they have developed, titled "Navy IA", is nice. It provides good content, including videos and books on the Apple iPhone/Touch platform. That said, the application itself isn't stellar. It is functional, has a few bells and whistles (videos) and also needs some work (Landscape when reading documents is a must have).

The really important thing about this application is that it can be used when disconnected from the network AND it can be used on the sailor's schedule, which is quite different from the average employee's.

For years the Navy has struggled with how to train sailors while afloat. There has been plenty of money spent and efforts to try to deliver training content to sailors. Overall the programs, including the Distance Support efforts and the Revolution in Training programs have been successful. That said, the problem, afloat at least, has been an individual sailors ability to get to an available computer, with the required connectivity to access the Training systems.

It's not that the Navy hasn't tried. It's just a reality of an operation that relies heavily on a very limited amount of computers and even more limited connectivity. As you would expect, the Navy ship requires that "Command and Control" systems get priority on the available computers and bandwidth. That leaves a very small amount of bandwidth available for Non-Command and Control usage.

Using the "Navy IA" application as a model, the Navy could move a considerable amount of training to the Apple iPhone/Touch platform. Imagine if the required annual refresher training for "Sexual Harassment", "Trafficking in Persons", and "Information Assurance Awareness" could be completed by Sailors via a hand held device. Imagine if it could be done without having to secure time on a very over-subscribed PC, at odd hours, when a desk is available.

Given the amount of time and effort (translated into $) spent completing these courses, my guess is that the Navy could purchase an Apple Touch for every new recruit and load it with Navy specific classes.

Later, you could also drop on all the technical manuals needed for the different specialties, weapons systems, etc.

Of course there is a logistical tale to these efforts. People break things, the devices are not at all ruggedized, you have to deal with updates, etc. But the Navy has successfully handled much more complex systems...

Attention Twitter Follow Bots

2009-09-19T22:41:00.001-04:00

You gotta do better than this...

Google sure is getting opinionated

2009-09-19T08:27:00.007-04:00

But, as usual, it is pretty accurate.

Details on presidential motorcades, safe house for First Family, leak via P2P

2009-07-29T16:54:00.003-04:00

This is not a good thing...

Some Peace Fingers for IRAN

2009-06-22T09:43:00.002-04:00

This is a .png file you can add to your twitter picture to show your support for the people who are fighting for democracy in Iran .

I can't do the work to automatically integrate it with your Twitter picture, but I'm pretty sure you can figure that part out.

Right?

DMB Live, NOW, HERE

2009-06-01T20:57:00.001-04:00

Just trying this out...

Best Twitter message EVER ?!?

2009-04-12T21:55:00.005-04:00

uh oh...

Twitter 'going after' Google? Doubtful

2009-04-06T06:28:00.000-04:00

This article seems to propose that Twitter is 'going after' Google's search empire.

Meh...

That seems a bit grandiose to me.

Given that the RT (Retweet) and @user (directed messaging) functions were created by twitter users, on their own, I seriously doubt the intentionality of this direction.

More like 'going that way, based on how folks are using it'.

I will agree that Twitter is great when used as a search engine for breaking news and opinions, but to say this was in the long term plans and happening completely as expected would be a stretch.

Realistically, I think Twitter will get consumed by Google in the very near future.
Google will extract all the info out of Twitter and present it as a live feed on the right hand side, perhaps even show a scrolling feed of live tweets.
Kind of a 'human based information stream'.

I know for sure that when the N Korean missile went up this weekend, I heard about it first on Twitter, then continued to look at Twitter to see what was being reported, following news links as they came in.

Men playing with their Sheep

2009-04-02T06:43:00.001-04:00

More than just Fun ?!?

2009-03-02T00:33:00.000-05:00

This twitter thing just might work!

10PM Sunday Night.
Twitter user @IsCool (Shaun Dakin) posts this tweet:

IsCool Reading my local community (Fairfax, VA) planning "online comments" tool. It is a link to a Word doc. #IsNotCool » link to site

I read it 8am Monday.

The tweet link is to http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpz/projects/baileys/

The 'comment form' in question is a lousy word document. It includes this gem:

Thank you for taking time to complete this survey. Please e-mail your responses to DPZBaileys@fairfaxcounty.gov

Ugggg!

That Is not cool.

8:30am Monday I reply to IsCool with:

sheffus @IsCool I'm in Fairfax also. This 'online form', aka MSword doc, is an embarrassment. How does this happen?

8:35am IsCool replies to me:

IsCool @sheffus it happens when the planning people want to make it as difficult as possible to make comments. So they don't get them.

8:40 My response to IsCool

sheffus @IsCool yeah. I know. @fairfaxcounty is here on twitter. Perhaps they can look at this 'comment form'

10:30am Fairfax County responds

fairfaxcounty @sheffus and @IsCool: Thanks for pointing out the online comments form; Planning/Zoning staff will be alerted. Thx!

That is a response, from a county entity, in less than 2 hours, on a day when most of the DC Metro area is taking snow day. I'm not sure if it will make any change, but it's a step in the right direction for sure.

Maybe this twitter thing can be more than just fun!

Obama and the F-Bomb, Dance Remix Imminent

2009-02-06T20:28:00.000-05:00

This is gonna be entertaining for those who can take a joke, and a gold mine of hate for those who can't.

President Obama created an audio book of Dreams for my Father. That book contains some 'colorful' language from one of his high school friends, Ray. Ray cursed and used plenty of racial slurs. Obama read them for the book, so... they are available for sampling.

It won't be long before the screaming starts. April Winchell blogged about this and included the clips.

How long until we hear these clips added to all kinds of fun stuff.

Update: I added the files

Complicated

Ignorant

That Guy

My Number

Fries

GigaPan Inauguration image glitches

2009-02-04T18:01:00.000-05:00

No Fair! He went to the Inauguration twice?!?

I'm just looking at the amazing GigaPan image created of the Inauguration. It is here.

There are a few minor stitching glitches. I'm really amazed at how few there are, considering there are 220 individual pictures stitched together.

Above is the best one I saw. Note the guy with the goatee.

Added:
Somebody left their legs behind too...

Beware of the Doghouse

2009-01-30T19:18:00.000-05:00

Yes, It's an ad. But worth the time.

Settled - Obama keeps his actual Blackberry

2009-01-22T23:54:00.004-05:00

Today at Robert Gibbs' first press conference as President Obama's Press Secretary he finally put the controversy to rest.

"The President has a BlackBerry through a compromise that allows him to stay in touch with senior staff and a small group of personal friends in a way that use will be limited and the security is enhanced to ensure his ability to communicate, but to do so effectively and to do so in a way that's protected."

So that's it. He'll keep the blackberry. Only a few folks will have the email address. Most everything sent and received on it is subject to the Presidential Records Act.

Sounds like a clear victory compared to carrying the Sectéra® Edge™. That's a nice & secure device and all, but it's a brick...

Obama stays connected?

2009-01-22T05:59:00.000-05:00

Problem solved, maybe.

Barack Obama may have been (as per usual, no official comment) provided a secure device that will allow him to stay connected, via email and voice. I was complaining last week about the possibility of surrender to this security problem. It appears that there was an answer available and the right people just needed to talk.
The device he is most likely to use (there are other available, but this is the closest match) is the the Sectéra® Edge™ SME PED from General Dynamics.
It offers "Secure Communications Interoperability Protocol (SCIP), allowing secure phone calls to be made with existing SCIP compatible devices. It also implements High Assurance Internet Protocol Encryptor Interoperability Specification (HAIPE® IS) to provide secure connectivity with classified networks (including the TACLANE® family of network encryptors)"

It's not an actual blackberry device, which may or may not be a big deal, but it looks pretty close in physical layout. It is based on Windows Mobile, so that will be a huge change from the Blackberry OS. Also, the device is HUGE. Based on the published specs, it is 3.2" wide, 4.9" tall and a whopping 1.3" thick. That's about a half inch taller and wider than a Blackberry 8800 and nearly three times as thick. And it weighs 12ozs, also about 3 times what an 8800 weighs. That will make the unit feel like a brick, for sure.

Here's a diagram of the components. It looks to be extremely capable.

It's expensive too. A 2 year contract (with warranty) on Sprint or Verizon is gonna cost us (we pay for this, you know) $3,350. Accessories are equally pricey. The Classified USB Cable is gonna cost us $75, the AC Travel Charger and the Vehicle DC Power Adapter are $100 each, the Desktop Charging Adapter is $250, and the Micro SD 2GB Unclassified Memory Expansion is $100. Maybe they can catch that last item on woot.com at some point though. They sometimes have a better price. ;)

Be Patriotic - Stay Home, Watch, Buy, Give

2009-01-15T07:59:00.012-05:00

If you know me at all, you know how excited I am about the election of Barack Obama as POTUS. I am also very excited about seeing him sworn in on January 20th.

I live in the Northern Virgina area and work inside the Beltway. I would absolutely love to go to the inauguration and see the historic event first hand. That said, there is no way in the world that I would go downtown to the event.

I'm not being cynical.

I'm not being an old fart.

I just feel that if I am going to end up watching the event on a huge TV, I may as well do that in my own home.

Plus, I think don't think it is helpful to put any additional burden on the local services that are already being stretched thin by this event.

So here is my plan for making a positive impact during the inauguration.

1) I will stay at home. I will not burn gas, and avoid adding more CO2 emissions to the already ailing planet. I won't be clogging up the streets or Metro system attempting to get close to an outdoor TV. I won't be adding to the stress on the local services.

2) I will watch (and TiVo) the event.

3) I will buy at least one item that is advertised during the event. Nothing huge. Ford would love it if we could all buy a new Mustang that day, but I'm thinking smaller. If we all commit to buying a single item, made in the US, or supporting a US industry, that we had not planned to purchase anyway, how much of an impact could that have?

4) I will give to a charity directly support American needs. I am looking at Feeding America, Feed the Children, and The Salvation Army. There are plenty of charities that need help and a local small charity may be your best bet. Google is also your friend here...

So that is my plan anyway.

What are you going to do on January 20th to make an impact?

Leave a comment below...

Nick Vujicic Video

2009-01-15T07:14:00.000-05:00

This guy is amazing...
More info on him here

Obama's Blackberry Security - we should be ashamed

2009-01-08T05:54:00.000-05:00

There are plenty of reasons why President-elect Barack Obama is being advised to give up his blackberry. I fully understand the issues surrounding presidential records, but I think the security issues are just FUD.

Are we really, as IT and security professionals, saying that the President's Blackberry can't be secured? Are we saying that the best minds available can't find a way to ensure that the President can securely communicate? Are we also saying that we can't place filters and rules on the mail server to ensure that certain documents and messages don't get sent to the blackberry?

Are we, as a group, giving up on the security of that device?

Are we giving up on message security in general?

And what are we giving up?

We are potentially giving up a chance to have a president that is connected. A president that can get beyond the White House bubble that has insulated too many presidents. We are potentially giving up having a president that can truly understand the reality of life in America post "GWB, Inc." The biggest lesson we should learn from the last administration is that an insulated, out of touch President, is a bad thing. Bad ideas, bad decisions, bad consequences.

If we are giving up on this effort, then I am ashamed to be member of the community.

What does giving up say about the state of the industry?

And what does it say about the security of modern electronic communication? Should we really be promoting the use of smart phones and other devices for federal leaders? Should we be relying so heavily on devices that we really don't trust?

We need to look long and hard at this.

Waxing Poetics returning?

2009-01-07T20:41:00.000-05:00

This is verbatim from my good friend, John... Thanks John!

Have you checked out http://www.waxingpoetics.net yet? Even though it's still under development, it's worth taking some time to explore. Among other things, there is a surprising number of MP3s from Paul & Dave's NYC projects (the concept behind the Napoleon Blown Apart project is pretty amazing and funny). And also a great number of videos: many of them are pretty awful quality, but some are professionally done, such as "Jimmy Carter's Head" and "Happy Days."

Given this shiny new website, the professional videos being uploaded over the last month, the re-release of their old albums on iTunes & Amazon (not to mention previously unreleased tracks being added to Hermitage), I have to wonder if they're planning something new. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking.

Human flying squirrels

2009-01-06T20:21:00.000-05:00

OMG! OMG! OMG!
These guys are nuts...

wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

Google New Year Images 2009-2001

2008-12-31T05:03:00.000-05:00

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

Creepy Thai smiley-face masks on police

2008-12-30T17:44:00.000-05:00

This is just wrong... Why would they do this. Way too close to Brazil for me.

Water + Servers = BAD

2008-12-29T13:53:00.002-05:00

Would you want this sprinkler pipe running over your new datacenter? Yeah, me neither.

Matt Dances

2008-12-11T16:11:00.003-05:00

I'm pretty sure everybody has seen this, but whatever... I stumbled on it today.
It made me happy.

Van Wiggles or WiggNudo ?

2008-12-10T09:24:00.001-05:00

If you've been anywhere near kids 8 or younger in a while you've been exposed to "The Wiggles". I don't know what it is, but kids go nuts for this stuff. Somehow "The Wiggles" have come up with the right combo of colors, music and dancing to mesmerize kids. It's like crystal meth for the toddler set. My 2 year old son wakes up at 6am every day, and he is jonesing for Wiggles. He will straight-up cry, tears and all, if you put anything else on the magic box. He's addicted, but all the cool kids are doing it, so that's OK, right?

So here's the real issue. One of the 4 guys that are "The Wiggles" is sick. Greg Page is the yellow Wiggle and serves as the lead single. His illness sounds pretty crappy. So he has decided to retire from the group, since he really can't do the touring and what not. It's just too much for him with the illness. Good for him, go out gracefully, keep your dignity.

"The Wiggles" decided that rather than end the band, they should replace Greg with another guy. Sam Moran is the guy they selected. He seems OK for the job. He can sing, dance, and (most importantly?) can wear a yellow shirt.

The real question here is can they pull this off? Can they pull a Van Halen style lead singer swap? Will it matter to the kids? If it works, can they repeat this as the other guys decide they no longer wanna play? Can they make this band last indefinitely, by pulling the Menudo style member replacement indefinitely.

I think they can.

Here in the US, the new episodes with Sam Moran just started airing. My 5 year old daughter immediately noticed the change and started asking questions. My 2 year old son, the addicted one (their target audience?) may have noticed, but he accepted the change with no problem at all.

Super awesome air cleaner

2008-12-09T14:08:00.004-05:00

We are doing major mods in our development data center. Of course we are keeping all the critcal services up. This beast has been a god-send. It cleans all the air in the room in 8 minutes. We just started work yesterday, and it has already saved tons of dust and stuff getting into our systems. Not a simple hook-up though. Requires 30A @ 230V. Doesn't come with a plug. It has to be hard wired.

Extended trust on the Internet

2008-12-09T10:29:00.003-05:00

This is a follow on to a piece written by Amy Senger over at 1h57.com.
As Amy explored, trust is central to success in the collaborative environment. She makes the point that on the internet we don't get to look folks in the eye, hear the inflection in their voice or gauge their mannerisms. We have to base our trust on what they "say" and what they do. We examine, as best we can, what they have done in the past. And we are cautious to not get burned.

That is a start, but is that really good enough to establish real trust though? I think we intuitively and automatically create, for ourselves, 'chains of trust'. I trust Steve, Steve trusts Amy, I therefore am more likely to trust Amy. It’s why we think we should dates friends of friends in lieu or strangers. We prefer our chain of trust to blind luck.

Note that when I say trust, I mean that I trust that what Steve says and does are done in good faith. That he is truthful. And by extension, that Amy will be truthful. I don't necessarily trust Steve’s fashion sense or taste in music, but I do trust that he is being truthful about his thoughts and opinions.

We should also examine the difference between trust and security. Trust can be very powerful and can help use succeed, but it is no replacement for security. Trust can be broken and lost in an instant. Security, real security, doesn’t suffer the same failings as trust. But poorly implemented, it will stunt creativity and destroy collaboration.

Thanksgiving funk

2008-11-28T13:10:00.004-05:00

My dad died on Thanksgiving day, 1981. He was 43, I was 13. This time every year I'm forced to reflect on this fact and try and understand how it affected me and still shapes me today.

I truly enjoy Thanksgiving. I love seeing everyone and seeing all the kids play together. I love how excited they get. Even my almost 2 year old son seems to understand that something big is less than a month away. After the festivities, we pile the kids into the car, and everyone but me falls asleep on the hour plus drive home. It is that quiet time that always gets me. I have often, like this year, made it through the whole build up and excitement without even spending time thinking about my dad. But that quiet solitude of driving, always gives my mind just enough time to reflect on what this day means.

I'm the second son of a big strong athletic Dad. My older brother was the athlete. Tall and strong with good hair and good looks. I was the skinny, artsy, band geek, with thick glasses. I enjoyed playing outside, but never was good enough at any sport to get picked. My first season of soccer, I broke my leg (not playing soccer, of course) before our first game. The coach didn't see any reason to give me a team uniform, but my mom complained. The coach came back with a T-shirt with the team name, but it didn't look like the other kids' shirts. Their shirts were printed with a nice script of the team name and looked somewhat cool, for '77. Mine had the same words, but was made with those iconic '70s iron-on letters. It looked like what it was, an afterthought. It sat in my drawer at home, as a reminder of what a loser I was. I didn't play soccer much after that.

I was in the eighth grade when my dad died. I was the class Vice President. I had been class President in 5th through 7th grade. Not bad for a skinny geek, but that was all to change.

I had always enjoyed math and was in the eighth grade Algebra class. This was the advanced math class, You had to earn your way in, with good test scores and good grades. It seems after my dad died, I just couldn't 'get it'. My mind wouldn't wrap around the intangible theories of Algebra. I'm not sure the cause, but I lost my ability to focus enough on math, or anything else, to makes sense to the 'a + b = c' stuff. Looking back, I'm certain this was a byproduct of not wanting to focus on anything too hard. Of course, I did poorly in math and earned a D in the fall grading period. You can't have below a C and be in student government so I lost my post as class VP. Rules are rules, you know, and the math teacher was the head of the SGA so that chapter in my life closed. Looking back, I'm certain the teacher didn't mean me any harm, but at the time I hated him for it.

My dad grew up in Clarke County, Virginia, in a little town named Boyce. He was a total country kid. He hunted, camped, worked outdoors and worked at home in their small farm. Dad played high school football and started college on scholarship. He injured his back early in the first season and lost his free ticket. After that he spent time in the Army, then back to college while my Mom worked, then he worked for many years as a Boy Scout Executive. Essentially, he started troops, raised money, attended various Scouting events and raised more money. he was good at it, but it didn't pay well and he was often gone at night and on the weekends. I never really got a feel fr who he was, or what made him tick. I know he loved my mom and us kids. He did what he could to provide for us and protect us. He died hunting deer. He was supposed to go shopping with my mom, but she let him have to day to go hunt instead. His plans were last minute and he ended up hunting alone, which he had never done before. He had shot a ten point buck and was dragging it back to his car when he had a heart attack. He died there in the woods, all alone.

My grandfather, Jake, was a drunk. He was a classic old-school, whiskey drinking drunk. My dad had suffered Jake's drinking for years. My grandparents got divorced when my dad was in high school, most likely related to Jake's drinking. Dad always did double duty at the holidays to make sure we saw Jake and my grandmother, plus my mom's family. Around 1978, after a very bad trip to Jake's house, my dad finally told Jake that he would "not come see him, or bring us kids to see him until he got himself straight". Jake never sobered up. Dad passed away without resolving the problem with Jake. We kids never saw Jake again either. I never knew if visiting Jake would betray my Dad or not, but I wouldn't dare take that chance. When I was in college, I got a call from my mom that Jake had passed way. Of course, he had passed away weeks before we were informed and was already buried before any of my family knew. The act of intentionally not informing us seems cruel, but maybe it was just payback.

This time of year I feel lost, alone and 13, all over again.

This day is a reminder that I need to be a good father, each and every day, to my kids. I need to make sure they know me, know that they are important and that they are loved. I don't ever want them to not know that. I don't want to take that chance.

Health Insurance - The Next Crisis

2008-10-08T13:43:00.014-04:00

John McCain claims to be a reformer. John McCain is actually a deregulator. He has claimed this many times. The problem is this:

We continue to have crisis after crisis following periods of deregulation.

Now John McCain is starting to pay attention to the Health Insurance industry. You know his answer will be... yep, that's right. Deregulation.

Given our history of crisis following the deregulation of industries, is this really a good idea?

When	Event	Root Cause	You lost:
Late 1980s	S & L Crisis	Deregulation	Your savings
Late 2000's	Subprime mortgage Crisis	Deregulation	Your house
Soon	Health Insurance Crisis	Deregulation	Your health insurance, or worse...

John McCain: The Fundamental Deregulator

This is how they mix at UNC.

2008-10-06T07:32:00.002-04:00

From the Va Tech game on 9/20 at UNC. Lovely, huh?

So this is Honor ?

2008-09-15T06:20:00.004-04:00

From: Wisconsin State Journal: McCain's mailer creates controversy

The state elections agency is investigating complaints about a massive campaign mailing Republican Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign has directed toward Wisconsin Democrats and other voters.

Each mailing includes at least one copy of the state application for an absentee ballot that has the address of a local clerk and a box for postage printed on the other side.

But in some cases, the incorrect clerk's address is printed on the application, leading some Democrats to wonder if the Arizona senator's campaign is deliberately trying to get them to apply for absentee ballots in places where they aren't eligible to vote.

This just makes me laugh

2008-09-05T13:35:00.005-04:00

This is just perfect...

image is from FireDogLake.com

Slash and Burn - Palin's FY08 Budget for Alaska

2008-09-03T08:25:00.006-04:00

Take a look at the FY08 Alaska state budget, as enacted. It got all chopped up. Really amazing. Maybe this is a good thing, but the cuts are surprising. The first cut completely drops funding for the 'AARP Ketchikan - Access Road for Ketchikan Senior Housing Project', from $100,00 to $0.00

So.. there is a Senior Center, but no access road?

That just seems cruel.

Palin OUT by End of Week - My best guess

2008-09-01T22:16:00.007-04:00

This is just a guess, but it is certainly plausible...

The Palin nomination is a total gimmick and won't last until Friday.

It is intended to gain news attention, create a brilliant flash, and then go away. McCain has no intention of keeping Palin on the ticket. This is just for show. Sure, it may show a lack of judgment, but time will heal that. Don't you know? McCain is a Maverick...

The second choice will show much better judgment.

After all, McCain himself didn't actually vet Palin. He only met her once or twice. Some staffer, you know, the real slacker, screwed it up.

McCain will accept Palin's heart felt apology and her 'Thanks but no Thanks' letter later this week.

The pundits will all point out the heartless bloggers and internet a--holes for pointing out her lack of experience and all the 'other problems' she has. They will be throughly beat-up for pointing out the pregnancy issues. How dare they talk about that? Jerks...

Then McCain will choose someone else. Like his actual first choice, Joe Lieberman. It will be a classic bait and switch, just like Bush did with Harriet Miers and Sam Alito.

And the sick thing? It just might work.

McCain will also get credit from the PUMA whack jobs, who will feel that McCain tried to select a woman, but the 'misogynistic' DNC just couldn't let that happen. And everyone will be too tired to even notice when McCain selects an equally terrible VP candidate...

But, this is just my guess.

Reference to history:
From wikipedia on the Miers/Alito bait switch.:

On July 1, 2005, Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor announced her retirement from the Supreme Court effective upon the confirmation of a successor. President George W. Bush first nominated John Roberts to the vacancy; however, when Chief Justice William Rehnquist died on September 3, Bush withdrew Roberts' nomination to fill O'Connor's seat and instead nominated Roberts to the Chief Justiceship. On October 3, President Bush nominated Harriet Miers to replace O'Connor. However, Miers withdrew her acceptance of the nomination on October 27 after encountering widespread opposition.

Tina Fay is gonna have a field day

2008-08-29T13:03:00.003-04:00

Wow! Can't wait to catch her guest host SNL.

Obama Tax Plan Info

2008-08-25T16:17:00.006-04:00

A user on Digg posted this info in a comment. It's not 'Official Campaign' language, just one reader's summary of the Obama Tax plan. I really liked that she had put it all together. Other folks thought it would be nice to have a version to hand out.

So...
I created one. I made it to be printed double sided, with a graphic from the WashingtonPost.com on the back. Maybe you will find it helpful. Let me know if you like it.

McCain likes ABBA ?!? WTF, tough guy?

2008-08-13T11:31:00.003-04:00

This strikes me as odd.
Blender did a story on the candidates and their Top 10 songs.
Obama had a pretty normal looking list, with some more recent stuff. Not bad for a guy 47 years old. Kinda weird he included Yes We Can by will.i.am, but I like that one too.

But McCain listed Dancing Queen by ABBA as number 1?
Say What?
And he listed Take a Chance On Me by ABBA as number 3.
Really ?
ABBA?
Really?

Where's Barbara Anne by the Beach Boys?

Why can't McCain vote?

2008-08-05T20:45:00.009-04:00

I didn't realize this. I stumbled on it the other day.

McCain has not cast a vote in the Senate since April 8th. In fact, he is #1 on missing votes right now. That is simply amazing to me. Why are we paying him?

How can he bitch about Congress going on vacation when he has BEEN on VACATION since April? I know the haters are gonna point out that Obama has missed plenty of votes also, and I would agree, but if you look deeper it looks different.

Since Jan 07
McCain has voted 231 times on 58 days, and missed 399 votes.
Obama has voted 348 times on 96 days, and missed 282 votes.

My math says:
Obama has cast 117 more votes on 38 more days.

Where is John on this?
Well, at least he is a better Senator than student... Mr. 894 of 899

Kevin Rose now sporting an Obama sticker

2008-07-31T09:03:00.008-04:00

In the latest Diggnation (#160) Kevin Rose is sporting a new Obama sticker on his MacBook Pro. He has added a few new stickers in the past few weeks, including Pownce, Revision3, & Digg.

Make a statement

2008-07-30T10:12:00.008-04:00

I am so sick of being addressed as "My Friends".
Hey Nimrod,
you are not one of "My Friends".
No Sir,
NoneFor.Me

Kevin Rose puts his money behind Barack

2008-07-25T07:54:00.002-04:00

This is interesting...
Kevin Rose has contributed some cash to the Barack Obama campaign.

It's not so much that it makes us average (non-Internet Superstar) folks feel jealous or inadequate, but it is enough to encourage the rest of us to put-up or shut-up.

Pretty cool to see a guy with ideals and ideas put some cash into the process.
-Sheffus

So... Obama is to blame?

2008-07-22T22:25:00.007-04:00

I just saw another McCain campaign lie on TV last night.
Amazing logic in this one.

According to this latest commercial, McSame claims that Obama is to blame for high gas prices.

Wait,
I'm sorry,
What?

So Obama hasn't 'done anything important' in Washington, but HE is responsible for high gas prices.

That seems odd, considering the abundance of oilmen in the White House these days.

How in hell does McSame get away with this crap?

This video has the real Straight Talk.
Straight from McSame.

Football(soccer) hooliganism hits the US

2008-07-22T15:12:00.002-04:00

A half-time brawl between fans of West Ham and a local team during a "friendly" game in Ohio has provided Americans with a taste of British football hooliganism.

http://digg.com/soccer/Football_soccer_hooliganism_hits_the_US

Talk about B.S.

2008-07-21T22:10:00.000-04:00

This guy is full of CRAP.

Now I feel sorry for the folks who live in South Carolina.

Well,
actually just the folks who didn't vote for this moron.

No Thanks,
NoneFor.Me

Using 9/11 images for politcal gain, or worse?

2008-07-21T08:25:00.000-04:00

I think we've all seen enough abuse of the images from the September 11th attacks. From the Bush campaign of 2004, to the Giuliani primary campaign, to the numerous companies cashing in on the rise in patriotism after the attacks. Now some imbecile in Florida is using a huge billboard with a picture of the burning towers to

1) urge that viewers "Don't Vote for a Democrat"
and
2) buy his crappy CD.

This is a good article on it. Yeah, whatever, you A55hat.

To blame the democrats for the 9/11 attacks is reprehensible, but to try and sell your god-awful 'music' based on the death of thousands is just despicable.

Yeah, Nonefor.Me

None For .Me

2008-07-18T14:24:00.000-04:00

A place for me to post some thoughts...

New Doublespeak from GW

2007-09-14T09:17:00.001-04:00

For whatever reason the Bush Administration has decided we no longer need the US Commerce Technology Administration (TA) to help US businesses compete in the global market.
Whatever.
Maybe they are right that we don't need feds telling private industry how to compete. That makes sense to me on a basic level, but why can't they just say that?

Can't they just say "This agency and it's mission is not valid, no longer needed, whatever argument they have" ?

No, they have to say it like this:

"In his latest budget request, President Bush proposed to 'modernize' TA by dramatically cutting its budget from $6 million to $1.6 million and then essentially eliminating it."

Please Note:

"modernize" =/= cutting its budget from $6 million to $1.6 million .or. eliminating it

That's Orwellian doublespeak if I've ever seen it. Check wiki here.

Read the source Government Executive article here.

I've stopped caring about your data...

2007-05-09T09:21:00.001-04:00

Seriously.
If you have a wireless network at home or work and don't secure it, I no longer care about your data losses. Really.

Pictures of your kids? Nope.
Your checkbook data? Not even.
Your tax information? Nada.

I've talked until I'm blue in the face and still companies, agencies and regular people just ignore the security of their wireless networks. I've told everyone I know, I've spoken at conferences, I've written guides and papers for agencies and still wireless is a total nightmare. And really, I've had enough.

Now, I'm really a nobody in the world of wireless security evangelism. Compared to others, I've talked to a tiny group of folks. My impact has only been on my colleagues and family, direct clients, and the few folks who attended one of a couple conference presentations. But the word is out there, and almost everyone has heard about the 'dangers'. I mean really, it's on mainstream nightly newscasts all the time.

And it still gets ignored. If your wireless network is open, you can only blame yourself

So, no more.
You carelessly open your network to the outside world? -- Your problem.
You lose your data? -- I don't care.
Have someone use you network for crimes? -- Sucks for you.
Your identity stolen and your credit destroyed? -- Tough nuts.
Your client data exposed to scammers and criminals? -- You should pay.

Later, why I still care about your insecure wireless network.
--Sheffus