Table of contents
FYI. Some explanations are in order.
What is a blog? Explains the difference between a blog and a forum.
Blog Entries List:
Links to blog entries below are listed in descending order starting with the first entry for the year to the newest.
To read the blog entries in chronological order from the first to the newest as I entered them, you can start with the first blog entry listed below and read down from there.
June 1st, 2013: Finally got around to starting a new blog page for 2013.
June 1st, 2013 part 2: My wish list for the world.
June 1st, 2013 part 3: Your vanishing right to privacy.
June 4th, 2013: The Limerick university dog luring death.
June 12th, 2013: Edward Snowden, PRISM, and some other things you likely weren't told about.
June 14th, 2013: A way to protect endangered species from humans.
June 14th, 2013, Part 2: Smaller government, better life.
June 14th, 2013, Part 3: Others have finally figured out that depleting natural resources will lead to wars being fought over what's left.
June 15th, 2013: Woz interview.
June 16th, 2013, Part 1: Convenience food may be killing you.
June 16th, 2013, Part 2: The American standard of living.
June 22nd, 2013: Supermoon, tonight.
June 23rd, 2013: Alan Turing's birthday.
June 23rd, 2013: Part 2: Electric cars update.
June 24th, 2013: The connection between gun control and genocide.
October 1st, 2013: Get a flu shot now, or you may regret it later.
December 5th, 2013: Today is the 80th anniversary of the 21st Amendment.
December 30th, 2013: Some of us are growing annoyed by videos playing automatically on Facebook. Here's how you can keep them from doing it, to turn off the video autoplay, and have more control over them on youtube.
What is a blog?
To those who are asking "what is a blog?", a blog is a personal Web log (blog is a shortened way of saying weblog), a chronicle of events or a journal where somebody writes down things that happen in their lives, their thoughts, and opinions.
What's the difference between a blog and a forum? Some people confuse forums with blogs. A forum is for public discussion. You can look that up in the dictionary if you like. ;-) A blog, being a Web log, journal, or personal diary would be for an individual. Look at some personal blogs and compare them with forums, even those that for some odd reason are calling themselves blogs. You'll see the difference quickly enough.
June 1st, 2013:
Started a new blog page for 2013, finally. LOL
Another year, another blog page!
Some cops are trying to intimidate people by threatening to arrest them for video recording what they're doing in public. Who watches the watchers, you ask? Oppressive governments don't want anyone to. After all, having evidence of their atrocities to the very people they've sworn to serve is wrong. This is usually the same kind of country that swears they desire transparency while persecuting whistle-blowers. Can you say hypocrite? However, a federal court's ruling should supersede that of any state law, as people are frequently told that any law that a state passes which a federal authority defines as illegal is still illegal. If it doesn't, then, indeed, there's something very wrong with the system, but, we've all known that for quite a long time now, when the rich and powerful get away with murder and received get out of jail free cards, reduced sentences, probation, special consideration for being spoiled brats who aren't expected to know the difference between right and wrong. I probably shouldn't give them ideas or the snobs might use it as a plea in murder cases . . . In many states, those being recorded must have a reasonable expectation of privacy or it isn't a crime to record them, but, while some attempted to claim that audio recording them was illegal, this was rejected by the Federal Appeals Court.
A quick word about trolls on the Internet. With most trolls, they appear to have this delusion that everyone thinks their opinion matters more than the facts which you know to be true. Like other sadists, they enjoy hurting people's feelings, causing emotional torment, and disrupting lives. For those who are un-familiar with their mind-set, they're the kind of people who like to e-mail pictures to grieving parents of their daughter's mutilated corpse after an accident. The best thing to do is ignore them or report/block them if it happens in a program or one of the social networking Web sites. If you respond to them in a way that shows your anger or hurt, you're merely doing what they want and allowing them to control you. In which case, they will most likely continue. If you know of one in the real world, the question you should be asking yourself is if there is any real limit to their sadism and why you think you're not a target for it. Do you honestly believe that such a person is honorable, has any integrity, or cares about respecting others? Here's hoping you come to the logical conclusion before you end up in the hospital or get killed.
Submitted for your approval, a little trip, as it were, into an oft-times un-explored area of the mind . . .
Some of you have no doubt seen or heard about the protests going on now in Turkey. This is only one of what will be numerous incidents of a new wave of political un-rest in the world, and one of the scenarios I was creating years ago, which had multiple outcomes which shifted depending upon the reactions to it. This is a delicate one, and needs to be played right, since some of the outcomes ended with a bright light and a bang, and a few of them had multiples, if you follow my meaning . . . Anyway, through many of these, it starts off as a kind of protest but escalates and there are isolated pockets of violence and at least one of them are rather large. There will be certain pictures which spark responses. One of them literally as you'll see from a charred body . . . You can also expect a video with a beginning that's nigh-mourning and becomes indignant and they name targets which are already hated. Another video comes out which is very emotionally charged and the authorities attempt to suppress it, but, it spreads through the Internet, and there are too many copies springing up to take down. A speed change in one of them will make it more difficult to spot at first, since it won't match the same criteria of the one they're trying to suppress. The media blackout that they'll try to do to people will be useless, because the planning and organizing stage was done some time ago, much like the one that
happeneder . . . will happen on 04-14-2014 AKA April 14th, 2014, in various parts of the world. The blackout is only meant to limit the initial numbers getting involved with it during and immediately after the first wave. Not entirely sure why this particular scenario was chosen because of the assorted ways it ends up with many involved in it being killed, especially if extensive pre-planning becomes obvious at one of the points through use of . . . certain things. That leads to a severe limiting of the sympathy they were trying to gain. But, it could be a glove with a fist within. Just be glad warring factions don't hire people like me (although one author thought of it in a few of his books and used characters called Feather Filip and Sigmund Ausfaller). It would make chess games look very tame by comparison, but, part of the strategy involved with playing such games is used in possible scenario outcomes. You can look up some of the things I mentioned and what I hinted at, but, keep in mind that you'll get red-flagged quickly. For information on how, feel free to look up things like the FBI's Carnivore program, DCSNet, XKeyscore (which the NSA can also use to penetrate VPNs AKA virtual private networks), ECHELON, SIGINT, Room 641A, and mass surveillance, for a little edutainment and to get a glimpse of the stuff that's already public knowledge. Anyone want to put bets down on the outcome of the various protests? I know at least one group that has a pool going, but, they likely haven't found a false wall with some interesting documents inside of it, yet. Oh, my . . . What will they think of the pages sealed up in plastic stapled to the 2x4 in the wall? Hint, hint, guys.
Eventually, people will learn that their computer hardware, mobile devices and home electronics can be used to spy on them. The computer hardware is especially easy, since most people don't use encryption. Heck, the majority of people who have routers don't even update their firmware or stop the router from broadcasting its identification to everyone in the area. Most Web cams are also not encrypted and many even have backdoors to them, or the users gave the private encryption key to someone else who didn't respect their right to privacy (which, in some countries, isn't a right at all). Think of an invisible . . . optic nerve (and someone will likely be angry with me for using that phrase when talking about Web cams) which watches you without your knowledge or consent. You can also be identified via not only your IP address but also the serial number of your drive, and the MAC address of your network hardware. Your mobile devices can be accessed and used to listen to whatever's going on nearby as well as provide video. Add to that the GPS which is mandatory for almost all mobile devices now, and any expectation of privacy you thought you had is pretty much null and void. As for home electronics . . . Imagine how easy it is to get access to your Internet-connected television sets when they don't have a firewall. A while back, there used to be a comedian who said that "in Russia, television watches you!" Now, this can be true in any country.
Disclaimer: The above and following was and is merely me doing some experimental fiction and playing mind games with the conspiracy theorists (some of them don't need more material, thus this disclaimer). No actual plotting was involved, and, as everyone knows, such things never happen, game theory is only a fabrication of Hollywoodland, such people that I hinted at being one of don't exist, so there's really no danger from us being used in such a manner as described above. LOL
Or, maybe this was just to cover my six and served as a clever diversionary tactic while I formulated my great plan to create a multinational corporation around pepperoni pizza flavored Twinkie-like sponge cakes with CGI-created giant hamsters in green tutus with the same names as famous football players as spokespersons . . . ;-)
Egypt, Syria, and Turkey will make excellent spots for my pepperoni pizza flavored sponge cakes! And, you'll never guess where the next two grand openings will be shortly after a POTUS falls! For a clue, find the three aforementioned countries on a map, and invite some friends over for a nice game of Risk.
Er . . . did I just give the 'game' away? Rut-ro! Or, should this be considered a sort of PSA for a very selective audience? Hee hee hee Ah, here comes nurse Ratched. It's . . . medication time! Mu-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Join me next time for another exciting episode of WTF is he smoking now or (alternative title) sensitive information disguised as the ramblings of an escaped lunatic!
But, before I go, I'd like to thank all the little people who helped make this possible (with hints for those who want to play along at home): Mini Me, Tattoo (he always let us know when the plane was coming), Bilbo Baggins, Willow, The Leprechaun, Knuck (someone who a displaced magician from Kansas can count on), Eugene Milton Judd (after he used the Black Blade of Baghdad), Tinker Bell, Napoleon Bonaparte, Robin Goodfellow, Tangina Barrons (who I'd call before the Ghostbusters), Tyrion Lannister, Nick Nack (semi-friend to someone with a superfluous papilla who charges one million dollars for a hit), Alexander (one of Plato's stepchildren), Griphook (who kept a stone secure in vault 713), Cousin Itt, Rumpelstiltskin, and Gwildor (may he finally learn how to talk to cows)!
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June 1st, 2013 part 2:
My wish list for the entire world
If I had a wish list and I could not ask for anything for myself or those I love, it would be for world peace, an end to greed, no more intolerance or cruelty, for better technology that works the way it's supposed to and is built to last (this is one of my major pet peeves, and why I end up building a lot of my own stuff), rechargeable batteries which can hold a longer charge while being both lighter and cheaper to manufacture than the ones currently used, better and cheaper storage mediums than hard drives and solid state drives, a way to get infinite bandwidth with no latency for everyone on the planet, free education for all, a way to ensure that politicians always spoke the truth, and, a universal health care system for all countries based upon the best from each of them.
Yes, I'm a dreamer . . . LOL
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June 1st, 2013 part 3:
Your vanishing right to privacy
Haven't been on Facebook much, of late. Noticed how much time that I was spending on Facebook and was bothered by how intrusive it was becoming with its questions about us, asking for our location, et cetera. While I realize that many people are very complacent and give this information up without any thought whatsoever, never question its use, never ask who has access to that information or if it's secured in an encrypted database, I refuse. Far too many people have died for what little freedom, liberty, and privacy we have left to just toss it away as though their sacrifices meant nothing at all. To me, that feels akin to urinating on their graves. Not that it will matter soon, though.
Most of the Bill of Rights has already been systematically destroyed via the Patriot Act (courtesy of George Bush who asked for a vote on it while making certain that nobody had a chance to read it first, and more information is here: A brief history of the USA Patriot Act) and the NDAA 2012 (which Obama was responsible for which took away the right of due process, insisting that even American citizens can be given indefinite detention and further information about that can be read here: NDAA 2012's section 1021 on indefinite detention without trial). If the next dictator isn't already in office, the way for him to control and oppress the people has certainly been created via the recent laws passed and the newest technology to spy on them with drones, everyone having to use devices with GPS enabled in them, and what have you.
Even the slight anonymity those who attempt to educate others about atrocities committed by those with power around the world will soon be gone. Governments claim they want things like transparency and open government to their citizens, while, at the same time, they persecute whistle-blowers and put reporters in jail for contempt when they don't reveal their sources, who, in all likelihood, would be in danger of losing their freedom, their jobs, or even their lives and the lives of their loved ones if their identities were known. Say what you want now, before the gag is firmly locked into place over your mouths and you're taken away shortly after you post something which those in authority don't want to be known. When governments think that telling the truth is wrong, it's cause for concern.
But, this has all happened before, and it will happen again . . .
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June 4th, 2013:
The Limerick university dog luring death
In regards to the Limerick University students who lured a dog to its death: Some find it surprising that humans are this cruel, sadistic, and take pleasure in hurting others. Have they read no history at all, or seen how they act when they think they can get away with something? As expected, they even laughed after they killed the dog. My opinion of humans continues to take a powered nose-dive . . .
Since it was done intentionally, maybe the punishment should fit the crime, or at least have the ball-thrower who wanted to kill the dog have his legs ran over by a large vehicle and perhaps measures should be taken to prevent them from breeding. *Snip, snip!*
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June 12th, 2013:
Edward Snowden, PRISM, and some other things you likely weren't told about.
Suggested music to read by: "Silent Running" by Mike and the Mechanics. Or, as some people call it, the "Can You Hear Me" or "Can You Hear Me Running" song . . .
However, I'm writing this while drinking a beer with a thunderstorm going outside which shames those heard in old horror movies and listening to AC/DC's song "Thunderstruck" for background music. But, that's just me. ;-)
By now, you should have heard about how Edward Snowden leaked some information about the NSA's electronic surveillance PRISM program. Is it mere coincidence that he did this only a few days after I mentioned some of the other programs that are used? I'd like to think so, and I am hoping so. If the authorities decide that what I wrote may have encouraged him to also attempt to warn people about this kind of thing, they likely won't be as kind to me as the secret service was to Ted Nugent . . .
But, guys, before you decide to pay me a visit, keep in mind that few people take me seriously. After all, I'm the guy who has been telling people about similar programs to PRISM for years either in person, on my blog pages (such as the blog entry with the Bourne Ultimatum movie review) and what-not, but, not a single whistle-blower has named me as one of the people who encouraged them to do something which you'd object to. Bigger fish out there, right? :-)
What? You're still here?
Did you know that some doughnut stores are open 24 hours and you can likely find their locations and hours in a Web search? Mmm . . . doughnuts! Yeast ring doughnuts like glazed doughnuts, jelly doughnuts, chocolate iced, strawberry iced, creme-filled, or the cake doughnuts that are good for dipping into coffee like the cinnamon doughnuts to compliment the taste of your coffee creamer or plain doughnuts and they even have chocolate cake doughnuts with chocolate icing! Don't they sound more fun than paying a visit to some whacky blogger that nobody's listened to for years? I thought so, too. :-)
Okay, now that I've successfully distracted the authority figures with yet another clever diversionary tactic and saved my bacon . . . Hey, did you know that some doughnut stores also have breakfast sandwiches with sausage and bacon in them? Mmm . . . bacon!
Figured it doesn't hurt to be sure, though . . . Hee hee hee I swear, I should at least get a gift card or something for that plug . . .
Anyway, some of the things you likely didn't hear about yet are those such as FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which keeps having more added to it), gag orders (useful for when authorities want to keep people quiet especially if they issue a secret warrant through the FISC (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court) against certificate authorites rendering the SSL sessions and the https in Web browsers that most people think protects their data, utterly useless), CALEA (which makes wiretapping easier even for VoIP), the Boundless Informant program (used for computer networks and telephone systems), the Utah Data Center, people like James Clapper (the director of national intelligence) saying to the Senate Intelligence Committee that the NSA doesn't collect any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans, Judith Emmel, an NSA spokeswoman, saying that "we do not have the ability to determine with certainty the identity or location of all communicants within a given communication" (I'm guessing that Judith Emmel never heard of IP addresses, MAC addresses, GPS (which is in practically every electronics communication device made now), primary drive serial numbers or of programs which pass all of this information forward even through security measures taken by the user to thwart such things), et cetera.
For those who came late to this party and still believe that government agencies spying on their own citizens is a new thing, I invite you to look up programs such as Project SHAMROCK. This kind of thing has been going on for a very long time . . .
And, if you're thinking it's only one company sharing this information, think again. The companies themselves don't even have to be informed of it. Those secret warrants I mentioned above through the FISC (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court) against certificate authorities is only one way and there's also fake employees in companies who handle the wiretapping routers. Did you really think they were employees from a service contractor? Let's be honest here; most of them don't know the difference between a bit and a byte or much of anything outside of their chosen field of expertise. If you ask them about something highly technical that's fairly outside of their chosen profession which isn't mentioned in the current media or pop culture, and they get it right, this should send alarm bells ringing in your head . . .
Did you really think that governments and companies wouldn't use any available means to spy on you or keep track of what you're doing? LOL When the Social Security system was first set up, they swore that the Social Security number people were assigned would never be used as a kind of national identification number, and, just a few decades ago, Social Security cards had a little message on them saying that the number and Social Security card weren't to be used for identification. As expected, this didn't last very long, and, now, many argue that it's the number of the beast, as it is very difficult to do much without using it or using something which is connected to it such as a checking account or driver's license. For those interested, Canada appears to be one of the few countries who do not use a kind of national identification number, at least after 2004, when they passed the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act. How long do you think cash is going to still be used, or it becomes traceable with little scanners at virtually every point of sale?
We are almost at the point of being a total surveillance society. That moment is fast-approaching, and, with the acceleration of technology seen in the last few decades, it will happen very soon, indeed. Much of the infrastructure needed is already in place. Cameras everywhere, from stores and busy intersections to those in ATMs and in smartphones, tablets and phablets. There's also the drones, which may cost thousands of dollars each, but, each one can cover a significant area encompassing dozens of square miles. Cost to implement them to cover the majority of the most-populated areas isn't that much, and the research and development work's already been done. Add into this wide area persistent surveillance, infiltration of activist groups, programs installed on your computers like magic lantern, GUIDs (Globally Unique Identifiers which also includes your network card's MAC address making it a lot easier to identify you as the source of something), the RFID chips (they're even putting them into people so they can be found 24 hours a day) in your identification cards, biometric systems in schools so that even kindergarten children are finger-printed, DNA databases, vehicle tracking using cameras on roads with automated license plate readers AKA number plate recognition AKA license plate recognition systems, facial recognition (did you hear about the snooper bowl back in 2001 that used it on people who entered?), the patriot act (which, among other things, allows black bag searches of your homes without needing a warrant, or telling you that they were there, or what they
stoleer, 'confiscated' and also included a gag order saying you couldn't talk to anyone which I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that 'anyone' includes a lawyer), the signing of the ndaa 2012 (which authorized indefinite detention of even american citizens on U.S. soil, thus taking away the right of due process), backscatter x-ray machines, millimeter wave scanners, thermal imaging, remote accessing of cellular telephones (for instance, to turn on the microphone without you being aware of it creating an instant roving bug) and you'll start getting the idea . . .Back in 2007, the ACLU said that "The reality is we are fast approaching a genuine surveillance society in the United States - a dark future where our every move, our every transaction, our every communication is recorded, compiled, and stored away, ready to be examined and used against us by the authorities whenever they want." That was six years ago. LOL
The snooper bowl (or snooperbowl if you prefer that spelling better) which used facial recognition, was back in 2001. That was 12 years ago. Imagine, if you will, what they might have now, and science-fiction suddenly doesn't sound like fiction anymore . . .
Speaking of science-fiction, have you seen the television show called Continuum? Careful; it might give you ideas that the government isn't the only one to blame! Liber8! Hee hee hee Want some examples? How about the first bank of Delaware that reached a $15 million settlement with the Justice Department after the bank was accused of allowing merchants to illegally debit accounts more than two million times and siphon more than $100 million? Or, what the Zions Bank of Salt Lake City did to Bruno Koch, an 83 year old guy, and others? Fraudulent merchants and predatory lenders are just the tip of the iceberg and the banks that you're supposed to be able to trust are making money off of letting them do it to you. And you wonder why some people don't trust banks? LOL
Some people get flustered when people like me try to ask why businesses and medical personnel want my personal information, and who they share it with. The above, along with lessons that should have been learned from history, or at least the period of history leading up to and including World War II AKA the 2nd so-called war to end all wars seems to have been forgotten throughly and completely, leaving most people complacent, easily conned and kowtowed. There won't be need of a tattooed number on your arm; you've allowed yourself to be rather nicely tagged already, but, if that isn't enough, they can just inject you with a chip, which has already been done to numerous people. Most humans seem to deserve the name 'sheeple' . . .
You know what's funny? The people that society labels as paranoids or crackpots seem to have a better idea of what's going on than the self-proclaimed normal people do. LOL
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June 14th, 2013:
How to protect endangered species from humans.
It's been said that sharing the world has never been humanity's defining attribute . . . And, as we've seen with their repeated attempts at genocide, they cannot even share it with their own species! Such a pity that all that energy, money, and time can't be used to make the world a better place. And, an even bigger pity that many of the humans' victims cannot fight back, as in the case of many now-extinct species. But, perhaps this pattern of behavior could be made to change if some of those on the endangered list were given the capability of distinguishing targets of a mean body temperature of 98.6 and could release a biological agent which only affected those of the homo sapien (an oxymoron, if I ever heard one) persuasion? Said biological agent could also be created to change its molecular structure after several minutes of contact with the air and rendered inert, and, upon contact with its own skin, become a type of pheromone to attract potential mates for the creature that was in harm's way. This may help to re-populate the area after the humans' intrusion, which is often violent.
Another targeting option could be obtained via the growing advancements in the fields of nanotechnology and genetic engineering. We could introduce something which could determine the close proximity of one of those nasty humans via a remote DNA scan or trigger an attack response AKA fight response if the creature came into contact with warm human bodily fluids (spit, sweat, urine, blood, et cetera). Then, it could initiate contact with said human(s) in the immediate vicinity and take them out with its biological agent, which, after release, would also negate the attack response in the creature. Or, as some would say, switching the fight response to a flight response, allowing the endangered creature to escape further harm, if it is still alive at that point. Even the knowledge of such a system as this being implemented would act as a deterrent or sorts to those wishing the creatures harm. As you've no doubt surmised, the ultimate goal here is a more protected environment from the ever-increasing encroachment of man and his detestable urban sprawl into the endangered species' natural habitats from those who wish to do them harm, or to entirely eradicate them from the face of the Earth, which is oft-times the humans' way.
Or, is this too similar to the "friggin sharks with friggin laser beams attached to their friggin heads" wanted by Doctor Evil? ;-)
And, now, for one of those endearing sappy moments I know you all love me for . . .
Fair-weather friends are not true friends at all. They are more similar to leeches, and some are nigh-literally so, sucking away all of your happiness. A true friend is there through good times and bad. Through rough days and happy ones. They both share your joy and comfort you when you are down. They love you irregardless whether you are ill or well, poor or rich. Love should transcend barriers, help you over-come obstacles, and offer you a hug and words of support when the only thing you're feeling is frustration, pain, and rage.
Or, at the very least, they should try to get you to see that not every adult in a certain geographical loci, or of a specific species, gender, ethnic group, age range, income bracket, or what have you, is in dire need of a fluoroantimonic acid enema with a clip of willie pete rounds for a chaser . . . WEG
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June 14th, 2013, Part 2:
Smaller government, better life?
Thought I'd share a few things here, which you, my readers, may find of interest.
"You know, I have a question. Why is it called the Internal Revenue Service? How is having your money confiscated a service?" -- Jay Leno May 23, 2013
"While it is important for Congress to investigate the most recent scandal and ensure all involved are held accountable, we cannot pretend that the problem is a few bad actors. The very purpose of the IRS is to transfer wealth from one group to another while violating our liberties in the process, thus the only way Congress can protect our freedoms is to repeal the income tax and shutter the doors of the IRS once and for all." -- Ron Paul, "The IRS's Job Is To Violate Our Liberties," Texas Straight Talk, May 20, 2013
"The Feds spend almost 4 trillion dollars and most people have no clue about what to cut? Well, I have a few ideas. Who needs a Commerce Department? Commerce... just happens. The Education department? Department of Energy? Labor? Cut those too! If we cut government to the limited government the founders had in mind, poverty would become something so rare our kids would have to learn about it in history books." -- libertarian journalist John Stossel, "The Fight Over 'Austerity,'" May 30, 2013.
SUPREME COURT SAYS NEVER MIND THAT PESKY FOURTH AMENDMENT: "The Fourth Amendment forbids searching a person for evidence of a crime when there is no basis for believing the person is guilty of the crime or is in possession of incriminating evidence. That prohibition is categorical and without exception. it lies at the very heart of the Fourth Amendment. ... Make no mistake about it: As an entirely predictable consequence of today's decision, your DNA can be taken and entered into a national DNA database if you are ever arrested, rightly or wrongly, and for whatever reason. ... I doubt that the proud men who wrote the charter of our liberties would have been so eager to open their mouths for royal inspection." -- Justice Antonin Scalia in his dissenting opinion in Maryland v. King, June 3, 2013. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that police can collect DNA from people merely arrested, not convicted of a crime.
"The real purpose of public (i.e., government) schooling is to produce good little citizens who defer to the authority of the federal government. Through 12 years of regimentation within an army-lite structure, the minds of people are gradually molded from childhood to trustingly defer to the judgment of federal officials, especially when it comes to things like 'national security.'" -- Jacob G. Hornberger, President of the Future of Freedom Foundation, "An Example of Deference to Authority," May 31, 2013.
The above were a few selected excerpts from the Liberator Online, Volume 18 Number 11, from June 6th, 2013. More of the same can be found here: The Liberator Online. What's interesting to note, however, is that it doesn't appear to want to work with the Tor Browser, so, access to their Web site may be restricted for those in certain parts of the world . . .
While I do not agree with everything they say, a growing number of people are coming to the conclusion that at least some of what they say makes sense.
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June 14th, 2013, Part 3:
Others have finally figured out that depleting natural resources will lead to wars being fought over what's left
From the Guardian: Department of Defense's (DoD) Army Modernization Strategy described the arrival of a new "era of persistent conflict" due to competition for "depleting natural resources and overseas markets" fueling "future resource wars over water, food and energy."
Er, duh? I've been predicting this for years, and even included it on some of my older Web pages (example: My Philosophy on Life and What the Future Holds in the section "What the future holds"), while trying to get people to look into earthships and the like. There are ever-increasing populations and limited natural resources. It doesn't take a genius to figure out things are going to get rough, and I predicted it years before the DoD.
So, now, they'll find out what happens when they don't listen, and the deaths will be on their heads. My conscience is clear, especially since I offered solutions. About the only thing that's un-clear is how the end game is played out. But, no doubt you can expect a lot of finger-pointing and accusations among authority figures and the corporations in an attempt to find scapegoats, while people starve and die fighting over what's left, instead of actually doing something about it.
In other words, business as usual for those with money and power. The corporations should know better, since they're familiar with what happens when they have limited supplies and endangering people's lives gives them bad press which lasts for decades (the asbestos industry, the radium girls, the Union Carbide Bhopal disaster and the Hamlet chicken processing plant fire, just to name a few examples), but, for the politicians and various rulers around the world, this is especially dishonorable behavior, since they're ignoring the needs of the people they have sworn to serve while continuing their acts of aggression no matter the cost in lives!
Yes, I know, nobody cares. So, I rant and rave endlessly about the problems in the world, and warn about what's coming, while few listen. Then later on, everyone screams about how this could have happened and ask why nobody did anything to stop it, again, and again, and again . . .
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June 15th, 2013:
Woz interview
Going to start copying and pasting some of my comments on Facebook to here, for those who don't see them, so they don't feel left out. :-)
Saw an interview on youtube with Woz called Woz habla sobre iOS 7 y el programma de vigilancia PRISM where he's at an airport, and, we seem to think alike on some subjects. He pointed out (starting 53 seconds into the video) that a lot of people were told that Russia was bad because they snooped on their own people, put them in secret prisons, had secret courts, and the people didn't own anything. But, that's exactly what America is turning into thanks to things like the patriot act, ndaa 2012 and corporations taking away ownership rights and making you agree to give up any IP rights (intellectual property rights) to your creations as part of user agreements and so on.
The government can also steal what you have whenever they want to, calling it confiscation or seizure of property or eminent domain or what have you. Although in the latter, they are supposed to give just compensation as stated in the Fifth Amendment, they decide what is just, not you. And, how fair is a government that only enforces laws only on some people, but not the rich and powerful? That can't keep their word (ask any Native American about broken treaties)? Ha!
So, why is it that only people like me and Woz seem to be concerned about this kind of thing? I've been trying to tell people about this kind of thing for years, saying that it's starting to feel like life under stalin, but, maybe they'll listen to Woz . . . Rather surprised that he didn't mention such things as the Articles of Confederation (they predated the Constitution), the Magna Carta, and other things by name, instead of generalizing.
Can't really blame Woz for wanting to leave the country. Would've myself, long ago, after I started seeing this stuff coming, if I had the money . . . It's only going to get worse, though, as America becomes even more of a surveillance society than it already is. Australia does look promising with its high focus on quality of life, education, health care (ranked 32nd in the world according to the World Health Organization ranking of health systems, beating the United States in the 38th slot, and is ranked 17th in cost versus the United States' most expensive health care in the entire world).
Think Australia has room for another 'furry' Woz? Hee hee hee
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June 16th, 2013, Part 1:
Convenience food may be killing you
According to the news, ingredients used in about 80 percent of convenience foods are banned in other countries, because they consider them to be so toxic, they made them illegal. This includes olestra, brominated vegetable oil (banned in more than 100 countries because it has been linked to cancer, autoimmune diseases and virtually every form of thyroid disease).
Food coloring such as yellow #5 and yellow #6 (check your boxes of macaroni and cheese) is made from coal tar, an active ingredient in lice shampoo, and has been linked to allergies, ADHD, and cancer in animals. Azodicarbonamide is known to induce asthma, and, in places such as Singapore, using it may get you fined $500,000 and sent you to prison for 15 years. According to the FDA, though, feeding azodicarbonamide to children is perfectly a-okay . . .
Then, there's BHA (AKA butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (AKA butylated hydroxytoluene) . . . It's made from petroleum, and is a known cancer-causing agent. Some of the countries that banned it are Japan and England, but, in America, it seems to be okay with the FDA to include it in some breakfast cereals.
Get the feeling that somebody's been bought?
Oh, but I'm sure we'll be told (again) that corruption in government never ever happens. LOL There are healthier alternatives, of course. :-) For instance, if you want to have macaroni and cheese, simply buy something like whole wheat macaroni and use a healthier type of cheese.
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June 16th, 2013, Part 2:
The American Standard of Living
It's claimed that a three percent tax (not to be confused with the Three Percenters, who many regard as true patriots) on tea led to the First American Revolution (the first one was from 1765 to 1783), but, it was more like the last straw. Now, though, it's said that you're paying up to 70 percent (Penn and Teller in one of their videos said that it was around 40 percent, but, that was a few years back and may have just been the average taxes on a paycheck) of your money to a de facto corporate government. Then, there's income inequality . . . Inflation has also made what little you make worth a lot less than it used to be worth, so those making minimum wage now have less buying power than those who were making minimum wage only a few decades ago.
Then, there's the vanishing privacy and the way the government treats its own citizens . . .
Your Fourth Amendment rights ("the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated") are pretty much null and void. You're groped and have backscatter images done on you at the airports (a 'free person' these days can be pictured bending over and grabbing their ankles while someone does a body cavity search, and,
wouldn't that make people like Thomas Jefferson and the nearly three million people who were killed or wounded fighting for our freedom over the last 236 years proud? ), cameras watching you on the streets as well as in many stores, spied upon inside your own home (and not just by the televisions that have cameras in them but your own mobile devices can get video footage and audio record everything going on around them without you being aware of it and let's not forget about FLIR and thermal imaging), you're fed thinly disguised propaganda by the various media sources, your elected representatives (well, let's be honest here; almost all politicians) lie to you, your rights are taken away (black bag searches courtesy of the Patriot Act and your right to a trial has been taken away thanks to the NDAA 2012), and it seems we're on the verge of a police state that even the average guy on the street can see coming. This is the land of the free? LOL
Been saying similar stuff for years on my personal Web site (the latest that I've written about this is on this very page, just four days ago in my blog entry Edward Snowden, PRISM, and some other things you likely weren't told about and there's a lot more links on the Site Map) but, most people seem to be little more than sheeple, and don't care. Now, it's getting so bad that even those who need it shoved into their faces are noticing. But, they'll likely be calmed down by politicians and their masters, big business, and, after a little while, it'll just be one of those things they accept in their lives like their Social Security Number (which some consider to be the Number of the Beast that the Bible spoke of or at the very least, a national I.D. number) being needed for any serious purchase, to get a job, driver's license, state-issued I.D. card, or to have a bank account, and they'll go back to being the good little sheeple that they are.
Want to read a free book on-line about what America could be like, with more freedom, liberty, and, because of advances in technology that the government didn't stifle, people living to 300 years of age, no pollution, a very advanced medical science which seems to be able to handle anything, with no corporate monopolies, no taxes, people seem to care about each other and smile at each other in public, there is almost no crime at all and nearly every adult is armed (which I guess accounts for at least some of the lack of crime because few people want to try to mug someone when the majority of adults are armed)? Check out chapter 5 of The Probability Broach by L. Neil Smith. You're welcome. :-)
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June 22nd, 2013:
Supermoon, tonight!
Luna is looking beautiful! Got some moon mood music playing, here. Already listened to King Harvest's Dancing in the Moonlight and about to listen to Howl from the Howling II soundtrack by Stephen W. Parsons and Babel. Anybody want to howl with me? Ahhhrrroooooooooooooooooooooooooo!! Hee hee hee
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June 23rd, 2013:
Alan Turing's 101st birthday
Today would have been the 101st birthday of Alan Turing, who was considered to be the father of both artificial intelligence and computer science. He was one of the smartest men in history.
However . . .
Due to the fact that he was different in a way which was illegal in the United Kingdom in 1952 (it is now legal), he was given the choice of prison or castration. He died from cyanide poisoning.
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June 23rd, 2013: Part 2:
Electric Cars Update
For those who continue to think that electric cars are little more than golf carts, they're in for a nasty shock. Especially the oil companies, who may soon realize that there will be less demand for their overly-priced product in the near future as the range of electric cars continues to increase and the cost to own one continues to drop.
On Wikipeida you will find a long list of currently available electric cars, and more are being tested, now, and are in pre-production status. Details are listed here:
List of electric cars at Wikipedia
Now, if we could just get them to charge up as fast as the gas-guzzling cars and give them the same or better range . . . Hint, hint, guys!
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June 24th, 2013:
The connection between gun control and genocide
When you give up your weapons, you become helpless and are un-able to resist whatever someone wants to do to you. Do you trust those with power? Many thought they could, too. Millions of graves serve as silent witness as to what happens when you make yourself vulnerable and helpless, leaving you little choice in the inevitable outcome. For those who require proof, how about a little history? Even if I restrict myself to examples from the 20th century, it still paints a very nasty picture:
The year: 1911. Location: Turkey. Gun control established with article 166 of the penal code. From the short period of 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, who were un-able to defend themselves, were rounded up and 'exterminated'. Yes, that means they were killed. Those who do such things call it extermination because they feel as though those they kill are little more than vermin. This is typical of human intolerance throughout history . . .
The year: 1929. Location: The Soviet Union. Gun control Established with article 182 of the penal code. From the years 1929 through 1953, around 20 million dissidents, un-able to defend themselves, were rounded up and killed.
The year: 1935. Location: China. Gun control was established with Articles 186 and 187 of the penal code and Article 9 of the security law dated October 22nd. From the years 1948 through 1952, 20 million political dissidents, un-able to defend themselves were rounded up and killed.
The year: 1938. Location: Germany. Gun control established with the 1938 German Weapons Act and on November 11th, with Wilhelm Frick's regulations against Jews' possession of weapons. From 1939 through 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were un-able to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated. One of the more brutal examples of this was in Mizocz Ghetto. German cops and Ukrainian auxiliaries surrounded the place and about 1,700 Jews were killed. Some of the women and children were forced to march into a ravine, and, at gunpoint, were made to take off all of their clothes. They were then shot dead.
The year: 1956. Location: Cambodia. Gun control established with articles 322 to 328 of the penal code. From 1975 to 1977, one million educated people, un-able to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. This included professionals and intellectuals, or, as some interpreted it, as anyone who wore glasses. This included writers, artists, musicians, and film makers.
The year: 1964. Location: Guatemala. Gun control was established with Decree 36 on November 25th and Decree 283 on October 27th. From 1964 through 1981, 100,000 Mayans, un-able to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. This included entire villages.
The year: 1970. Location: Uganda. Gun control was established with the Firearms Ordinance Firearms Act. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, un-able to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
This obviously doesn't include some of the more recent atrocities (look up genocide on wikipedia if you can take some shocks), but, the numbers so far show that 56 million people have been killed while un-able to defend themselves because of gun control laws. Now, in Switzerland, all men in the age range of 20 to 42 are required to have guns. Compare the homicide rates there to those of in America. LOL
More places, including America, want tougher gun control laws. Should you be worried? I would!
Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote. ;-) Besides, in the 30 minutes or so that it takes the police to respond to your phone call, how can you defend yourself, your family, and your home against an armed home invader without a gun? Do you think they're cowering in fear because you called the cops? Hardly. They can take their time killing you, your spouse, and your children and then look through your home for valuables for several minutes before the cops are anywhere near your home. Do you feel comforted by the belief that your murderer(s) will be brought to justice? Hate to tell you this, but, there are thousands of un-solved murders every year in the United States, alone, and the last time I checked, the percentage of solved homicides is only around 45 percent as a national average.
Want my advice? At least get a dog or two, a good security system, some hidden cameras for the outside, some grillwork for the windows and porch, and, if you buy guns, secure them with a biometric lock so only those you can trust can use them. You can also get a magnetic lock and ring to wear. Either of these should allow you to use your weapon to defend yourself and your loved ones a lot faster than if you have it locked up inside of a steel box on a shelf in your closet. But, if you want to fumble around in a dark closet to find it and to get the right key to open it and then possibly a trigger lock as well, it's your call. However, those armed home invaders are likely going to be shooting people in your home within seconds of gaining entry. If I had my druthers, I'd prefer to be tried by 12 than carried by six or watch people carry the small casket of a child who died because I couldn't un-lock a pistol fast enough. While most humans would likely be okay with that, I wouldn't want to have the grief and guilt eating me up inside for years afterwards. As for me, if an armed home invader pointed a gun at someone I love, I doubt if I'd feel little more than the slightest twinge of guilt about emptying a clip into him.
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October 1st, 2013:
Get your flu shot now!
I strongly advise people to get a flu shot (or the nasal spray version) this year. If you have health insurance, it may even be free for you. Some of the stuff that's out there which you might contract is very nasty. If you're in the high-risk category, it is even more important that you get vaccinated. There are also egg-free shots for those with egg allergies. While it may not make you immune to getting sick from the flu, it increases your odds to around 60 percent after a couple of weeks, and decreasing protection for months after that. It takes a couple of weeks for the flu vaccine to get up to speed in your body, so, the time to get vaccinated is now.
If many people in your area get the flu, your local hospitals may be over-loaded. And, let's face it; even at the best of times, it takes a long time for you to get medical help in an emergency room. Imagine what it would be like with dozens or even a hundred or more people crammed into an emergency room waiting room. Do you want to be there waiting for hour after hour while the influenza virus has its wicked way with you and you do not dare to fall asleep because of what will inevitably follow?
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December 5th, 2013:
80th Anniversary of the 21st Amendment!
Today, December 5th, 2013, marks the 80th anniversary of the ratification of the 21st Amendment, which ended alcohol prohibition in the United States of America, which started 13 years before that courtesy of the 18th Amendment. Just in case you needed an excuse to party . . . ;-)
Unless you're of a mind to celebrate the anniversary of Flight 19 disappearing in the Bermuda Triangle, ARPAnet's (the predecessor of today's Internet) four node state, or the Great Smog (no relation to J. R. R. Tolkien's dragon Smaug) of 1952, which started after a large, cold fog came into London town, and decided to stay a while, combining with the air pollution to create a very thick smog. Over 12,000 were reported to have died from it and around 100,000 got sick.
Okay, so it might be an individual preference on what you celebrate, but, I'm going for the 80th anniversary of the 21st Amendment. And, I guess, the four node state of ARPAnet . . . Yes, I'm a major nerd as well as a geek, but, don't tell anyone. Alright, so that's not exactly a big secret, is it? LOL
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December 30th, 2013:
How to turn off the autoplay on Facebook videos
Disclaimer: Although the advice I give is meant to help you, doing something which you are not familiar with might change the usual behavior of your Web browser. If you are not comfortable doing any of the following, and do not want to risk it, please ask someone else to do it for you. :-)
Re: Videos playing automatically on Facebook; That was Facebook's idea. Obviously, they don't care if you have a mobile device (which is around 80 percent or so of Facebook users) with an Internet plan which limits the amount of data you can download. If you do not like it, please let them know. If you want to turn it off, you can change the options in your Web browser. Those are usually found by going to Edit, Preferences, then, Applications for Firefox. If you're a micro$haft winblows user, you'll likely find Preferences under Tools. Using another Web browser or operating system? Look around, and it may be under Options. If fiddling around with all of that is a headache, there is always the add-ons route . . .
Feeling courageous and want to install something on your Web browser from a third party? You daredevil, you! Okay, here we go!
In Firefox, click on Tools, then select Add-ons from the drop-down menu (again, if you're using another operating system or Web browser, look around). There, you'll see a list of the extensions you already have installed. One which some prefer is called SmartVideo for YouTube. You can do a search for it at the top of the Web browser tab. However (there's always a catch, isn't there?), some have reported that sometimes, the comments on the YouTube Web site will not load after the original poster's comments. Which may sometimes be a good thing . . . Regardless, just thought you should be aware of it. But, getting back to the SmartVideo for YouTube extension for Firefox; You can install it and not have to re-start your Web browser, to better test the results after you've installed it if you are still logged into Facebook on another tab. You'll have to select in that extension's preferences to save bandwidth and not initialize the video until you click, and, if automatically loading YouTube videos in your Facebook timeline is what is driving you stark raving mad, that should fix you right up. Did that help you out? If so, please consider donating a dollar to me by clicking here (and scroll down past the white section if you're in a hurry), if you appreciate that kind of thing and can afford it. You can also contribute to the person who made the SmartVideo extension.
Just remember; no system is perfect and the latter likely won't work all the time, or for all time, especially if advertisers complain because they cannot force their ads on you.
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