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2/29/2004
Congo: Silence=Rape :.Warning: This is the most disturbing story I have ever posted. The article discusses ghastly, unimaginable barbarities that are being committed against females (infants to elderly women) in the Congo. I can't even bring myself to quote excerpts from this article on my site. My intention is not to traumatize you, or get you to throw in the towel on the human race. My point in linking to this is to demonstrate that we need to be very suspicious when powerful states make the case for military intervention in the affairs of other states for humanitarian reasons. Ask yourself, after reading this article: why is no state intervening in the situation in the Congo if human rights are supposedly a justification for military intervention? If not here, where? You see, all of the mumbo jumbo out of powerful states (like the U.S.) about the plight of people, and how "the world cannot stand idly by" is empty rhetoric. These states use the humanitarian justifications when the narrowly self-interested reasons alone won't fly.
posted by Kevin at 11:13 PM
U.N. Staff See Boy Shot in Back: Israeli Officer Suspended :.An Israeli army officer has been suspended after an unarmed Palestinian youth was shot in the back at close range as he waved goodbye to a delegation of visiting United Nations aid workers, the Star has learned.
Yousef Bashir, 15, remains in serious condition at a hospital in Tel Aviv, where he was taken after the Feb. 18 incident at his family's home near the Jewish settlement of Kfar Darom in the southern Gaza Strip.
He is partially paralyzed beneath his shoulder blades, with shrapnel lodged against his spine, the boy's father said.
posted by Kevin at 10:20 PM
Stakeknife Interviewed by British Intelligence Media :.Is it real? Maybe. Maybe not. God, I would love to hear more of it, though: This is a 30-minute recording of interviews of Freddie Scappaticci, alleged to be "Stakeknife," a secret agent of British Army intelligence in Northern Ireland. The source of the recording claims it was secretly recorded by British military intelligence, in particular the Force Research Unit (FRU) which handled Stakeknife and other secret agents.
posted by Kevin at 1:05 AM
Mass Layoffs Set Record in January :.There were more mass layoffs in January in the United States than in any previous January for the nine-years that such records have been kept.
posted by Kevin at 12:17 AM
2/28/2004
Even the Cross Walk Buttons Are a Fraud :.Sleepwalking through life, pushing buttons that don't do anything... Think of this as an analogy to the election system in the U.S. Push a button, pull a lever... Yeah, you influenced policy. Sure you did: For years, at thousands of New York City intersections, well-worn push buttons have offered harried walkers a rare promise of control over their pedestrian lives. The signs mounted above explained their purpose:
To Cross Street
Push Button
Wait for Walk Signal
Dept. of Transportation
Millions of dutiful city residents and tourists have pushed them over the years, thinking it would help speed them in their journeys. Many trusting souls might have believed they actually worked. Others, more cynical, might have suspected they were broken but pushed anyway, out of habit, or in the off chance they might bring a walk sign more quickly.
As it turns out, the cynics were right.
The city deactivated most of the pedestrian buttons long ago with the emergence of computer-controlled traffic signals, even as an unwitting public continued to push on, according to city Department of Transportation officials. More than 2,500 of the 3,250 walk buttons that still exist function essentially as mechanical placebos, city figures show. Any benefit from them is only imagined.
posted by Kevin at 2:28 PM
2/27/2004
Superflu is Being Brewed in the Lab :.Madness: After the worldwide alarm triggered by 2003's SARS outbreak, it might seem reckless to set about creating a potentially far more devastating virus in the lab. But that is what is being attempted by some researchers, who argue that the dangers of doing nothing are even greater.
posted by Kevin at 5:22 PM
Bush Budget Said to Cause $2.75T Deficits :.President Bush's budget would produce deficits totaling $2.75 trillion over the next decade, the Congressional Budget Office projected Friday in the first authoritative look at the plan's longer-range implications.
The nonpartisan budget office said Bush's tax and spending plans would, if enacted, add $737 billion to shortfalls otherwise expected over the period. Its massive numbers are sure to factor into this year's presidential and congressional campaigns.
Just two years ago, the budget office and Bush envisioned surpluses totaling $5.6 trillion for the decade ending in 2011. The projections released Friday cover a slightly different period, the 10 years running through 2014, but the contrast is striking.
posted by Kevin at 5:15 PM
2/26/2004
Here's a Newsflash: Gasoline Supplies Likely to Shrink, Prices Rise :.Live it up: Motorists face gasoline shortages as well as record prices the next few weeks because of the skintight U.S. refining and distribution network.
The vulnerability of that network, combined with low inventories of both gasoline and the crude oil from which it's made, have the government and energy experts increasingly nervous that some places in the USA will run out of gas temporarily. An accident that has disrupted shipping on the Mississippi River and in the Gulf of Mexico could trigger shortages this week.
posted by Kevin at 6:48 PM
Prison Labor in the U.S. :.This is where the Race to the Bottom ends: corporations firing employees and using prisoners for pennies per hour. Pure fascism: Chris Harry is a model employee for the U.S. call-center industry.
The 25 year-old arrives promptly at his cubicle, speaks courteously on the phone and is never late or absent. He plans to stick with his job for three years, a boon in an industry plagued by high turnover. And he gladly works for money many Americans would scoff at -- $130 or so a month.
After all, he could be back swabbing cell-block floors for a third of that.
"I can't complain about fair," said Harry, who was sentenced to 10 years and eight months for robbery. "I did a crime and I'm in prison. At least I'm not wearing a ball and chain."
Prison inmates like Harry are the reason Perry Johnson Inc., a Southfield, Michigan consulting company, chose to remain in the United States rather than join a host of telemarketing companies moving offshore.
Perry Johnson had intended to move to India. But the company chose instead to open inside the Snake River Correctional Institution, a sprawling razor wire and cinder block state penitentiary a few miles west of the Idaho line.
The center's opening followed a year-long effort by the Oregon Department of Corrections to recruit businesses that would otherwise move offshore, and echoes a national trend among state and federal prisons to recruit such companies.
posted by Kevin at 12:34 AM
Greenspan: Slash Retiree Benefits :.What part of down, don't you understand? I hate to say I told you so: Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan, stepping into the politically charged debate over Social Security, said yesterday the country cannot afford the retirement benefits promised to Baby Boomers and urged Congress to trim them.
He said that unless Congress acts, soaring budget deficits from out-of-control entitlement programs could lead to a "very debilitating" rise in interest rates in coming years.
posted by Kevin at 12:24 AM
2/25/2004
Canada's 'Bankrupt' Military Forces May Shut 5 Bases :.No problem! Hey Canada, just do what the U.S. does! Fashion toilet paper into rectangles and adorn them with creepy Masonic phrases and images. Make sure that your arbitrary "money" is backed by nothing but death and misery abroad and inescapable slavery for your own population: Canada's army, navy and air force are facing a funding shortfall of up to half a billion dollars, defence sources told the National Post, and the military is recommending drastic measures to make up the difference, including closing some of the largest bases in the country.
posted by Kevin at 12:22 AM
Altered DNA Found in Crop Seed SupplySorry, no link. The L.A. Times is openly hostile against linking to their stories. (I particularly hate the L.A. Times.) This isn't news to me, but it might be to you: February 24, 2004
Much of the U.S. supply of ordinary crop seeds has become contaminated with strands of engineered DNA, suggesting that current methods for segregating gene-altered seed plants from traditional varieties are failing, according to a pilot study.
More than two-thirds of 36 batches contained traces of DNA from genetically engineered crop varieties in tests commissioned by the Union of Concerned Scientists, a Washington-based advocacy group.
The actual amount of altered DNA present appeared to be small, and most engineered genes detected were among those that regulators had deemed safe for consumption, the report acknowledged.Related: Seeds Of ChangeResearch Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 12:08 AM
2/24/2004
Building Blue-Collar � Burgers? :.Are you guys ready to stop reading this shit? Why am I posting these stories anymore? This thing is down. Well, anyway, remember Bill Clinton's, "What is the meaning of is?" You better be sitting down for this one: Manufacturing jobs making things like airplane engines, cars and farm equipment are disappearing from the American economy.
Or are they? According to a White House report, new manufacturing jobs might be as close as your nearest drive-thru.
The annual Economic Report of the President has already stirred controversy by suggesting the loss of U.S. jobs overseas might be beneficial, and predicting that a whopping 2.6 million jobs will be created in the country this year.
As first reported by The New York Times, the fast food issue is taken up on page 73 of the lengthy report in a special box headlined "What is manufacturing?"
"The definition of a manufactured product," the box reads, "is not straightforward."
"When a fast-food restaurant sells a hamburger, for example, is it providing a 'service' or is it combining inputs to 'manufacture' a product?" it asks.
posted by Kevin at 11:57 PM
'Kelly was Murdered' Says UK Intelligence Insider :.French DGSE!? Weird. I wouldn't have guessed that one. What's the angle? Did Brit spooks contact French spooks and ask for a favor? This doesn't seem to make much sense, but then again, what does? On Jones' show, Shrimpton explained how he had learned that David Kelly was the BBC's source before the BBC disclosed this fact. He went on to explain that his source from within the intelligence community knew David Kelly personally, and did not believe that he had committed suicide. After making their own enquiries, says Shrimpton, this source determined that Dr Kelly had not committed suicide, but rather had been assassinated.
Apparently at ease to discuss these explosive disclosures, Shrimpton explained that there was advance knowledge of Kelly's death in Whitehall, but that the deed itself was most likely carried out by the French external security organisation, DGSE. There was no indication that anybody in MI5 or MI6 had been involved. He went further by suggesting that the hit squad itself was composed of Iraqis from the former regime's Mukhabarat intelligence organisation, recruited from Damascus with the help of Syria's own intelligence apparatus. They were apparently then flown into Corsica, seven days prior to the murder. He doubts that any of the hit-squad are still alive.
posted by Kevin at 11:48 PM
Forecast of Rising Oil Demand Challenges Tired Saudi Fields :.I've got some news for ya: we're at peak output now: When visitors tour the headquarters of Saudi Arabia's oil empire � a sleek glass building rising from the desert in Dhahran near the Persian Gulf � they are reminded of its mission in a film projected on a giant screen. "We supply what the world demands every day," it declares.
For decades, that has largely been true. Ever since its rich reserves were discovered more than a half-century ago, Saudi Arabia has pumped the oil needed to keep pace with rising needs, becoming the mainstay of the global energy markets.
But the country's oil fields now are in decline, prompting industry and government officials to raise serious questions about whether the kingdom will be able to satisfy the world's thirst for oil in coming years.
Energy forecasts call for Saudi Arabia to almost double its output in the next decade and after. Oil executives and government officials in the United States and Saudi Arabia, however, say capacity will probably stall near current levels, potentially creating a significant gap in the global energy supply.
Outsiders have not had access to detailed production data from Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil company, for more than 20 years. But interviews in recent months with experts on Saudi oil fields provided a rare look inside the business and suggested looming problems.
An internal Saudi Aramco plan, the experts said, estimates total production capacity in 2011 at 10.15 million barrels a day, about the current capacity. But to meet expected world demand, the United States Department of Energy's research arm says Saudi Arabia will need to produce 13.6 million barrels a day by 2010 and 19.5 million barrels a day by 2020.
"In the past, the world has counted on Saudi Arabia," one senior Saudi oil executive said. "Now I don't see how long it can be maintained."
posted by Kevin at 11:34 PM
West Virginia: Bill Forces Shots on All Children :.West Virginia homeschooling families and others were scheduled to stage two rallies today to protest a proposed bill that would require every child in the state to have a record of compulsory immunizations.
The legislation, Senate Bill 439, stipulates "any parent or guardian who refuses to permit his or her child to be immunized" would face a criminal charge.
posted by Kevin at 11:26 PM
2/23/2004
Halliburton Faces Criminal Probe :.The fact that this company is even allowed to exist is a crime. Yawn: The Pentagon's investigation into allegations a Halliburton subsidiary may have overcharged for gasoline delivered to Iraq last year is now a criminal probe, the Pentagon said Monday.
"The Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the criminal investigative arm of the Inspector General's office, is investigating allegations of fraud on the part of Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR), including the potential overpricing of fuel delivered to Baghdad by a KBR subcontractor," a Pentagon statement said.
posted by Kevin at 7:08 PM
CITHosting.com: FBI Shuts Down ISP, Steals Servers, Copies Terabytes of Client Data :.Update: CITHosting.com managed to fire it back up on leased systems in a different data center tonight. This is insane! Well, this is why I host Cryptogon in Canada. Although, I don't know how much of a benefit that is, it must be better than hosting it in the U.S. if shit like this is allowed to happen. They just hauled off all of the company's computers, taking their clients down! Oh man. Incredible: The FBI executed a search warrant issued by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio regarding the IRC network that we host. According to the warrant, it appears that the Bureau is investigating whether someone hosted on our network hacked and attacked someone else.
After several hours of attempting to track down, inspect and audit the terabytes of data that we host, the FBI determined that it was more efficient (from their point of view) to remove all of our servers and transport them to the FBI local laboratories for inspection. This was completed at 7:00 pm EST same day.
The FBI has assured us that as soon as the data has been safely copied and inspected, the equipment will be promptly returned. Unfortunately, the FBI has not been able to tell us when they will be completed with their inspection.
We have been told by the Special Agent in charge of the investigation that If you need access to your data you are asked to please contact the Bureau via email to rwhite3@leo.gov. Make sure to include in your email your name, mailing address, and telephone number with area code.Research Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 12:47 AM
TIA Lives Inside DoD Shell Game :.Despite an outcry over privacy implications, the government is pressing ahead with research to create ultrapowerful tools to mine millions of public and private records for information about terrorists.
Congress eliminated a Pentagon office that had been developing this terrorist-tracking technology because of fears it might ensnare innocent Americans.
Still, some projects from retired Adm. John Poindexter's Total Information Awareness effort were transferred to U.S. intelligence offices, congressional, federal and research officials told The Associated Press.
In addition, Congress left undisturbed a separate but similar $64 million research program run by a little-known office called the Advanced Research and Development Activity, or ARDA, that has used some of the same researchers as Poindexter's program.
"The whole congressional action looks like a shell game,'' said Steve Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists, which tracks work by U.S. intelligence agencies. "There may be enough of a difference for them to claim TIA was terminated while for all practical purposes the identical work is continuing."Research Credit: AL
posted by Kevin at 12:44 AM
'This is war,' Rumsfeld Told Bush :.Rumsfeld demanded results. At a conference of commanders at the Pentagon, he pulled Holland aside.
"Have you killed anyone yet?" he asked.
posted by Kevin at 12:41 AM
2/22/2004
Ralph Nader Announces Run for Presidency :.Watch the filthy, hypocrite Democrats attack him! I bet they'll attack me for even mentioning Nader. People, wake up and smell the bullshit. Kerry = Bush. I'm not even advocating a vote for ANY candidate for president. For example, what if, by some miracle or freak of nature, Nader was elected? Then what? The Senate and most of the House of Representatives would throw a monkey wrench into anything he tried to do. You see, there's no such thing as "Checks and Balances" between the branches of government in the U.S. anymore. It is over. (I would argue that it has been over for 40 years.) What we are left with is three branches of government that, rather than foiling each others' natural aspirations to power, are working in concert to establish overt fascism: Consumer advocate Ralph Nader announced Sunday he will run again for the presidency, declaring that Washington has become "corporate occupied territory" and arguing there is too little difference between the Democratic and Republican parties.
"This country has more problems and injustices than it deserves," Nader said, bemoaning a "democracy gap." Nader, who turns 70 this week, said he wants to "challenge this two-party duopoly."
"There's too much power and wealth in too few hands," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
"Washington is now corporate occupied territory," Nader said. "There is now a for-sale sign on most agencies and departments. ... Basically, it's question of both parties flunking."
posted by Kevin at 12:02 PM
Sweeping New Powers in UK War on Terror :.ECHELON intercepts to be admissible in court! Britain has gone to hell: Terror suspects could be convicted on the evidence of 'electronic eavesdropping' of phone calls and emails under sweeping moves to combat the threat of an al-Qaeda atrocity.
posted by Kevin at 11:57 AM
Security Efforts Turning Capital Into Armed Camp :.Behold, the heavily armed banana republic: An antiaircraft missile, ready for use, sits atop a federal office building near the White House. Devices that test the air for chemical and biological substances are positioned throughout the city. Subway stations are now equipped with "bomb containment" trash bins. A major highway that runs by the Pentagon is being rerouted several hundred yards away. A security wall is going up around the Washington Monument.
Day by day, the nation's capital is becoming a fortress, turning a city known for graceful beauty into a virtual armed camp. In response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, federal security agents along with their counterparts in the Washington, Maryland and Virginia governments began a huge effort to build permanent safeguards for the capital area's most important buildings and monuments.
posted by Kevin at 11:50 AM
Schwarzenegger Argues for White House Run :.When Dave Emory, Alex Jones and others warned about Schwarzenegger having his sights set on the White House, I laughed it off as madness. I couldn't take it seriously. But Emory and Jones have been emphatic about Schwarzenegger's profound connections to fascist/elite elements and how these connections would eventually lead to a bid for the presidency. And, of course, Orrin Hatch, probably the most corrupt Senator of them all, is behind a constitutional amendment that would allow foreigners to run for President of the United States. Arnold Schwarzenegger, making his Sunday talk show debut as governor, said that he and other foreign-born citizens should be eligible to run for the White House and that President Bush can carry California in November if he does more to help the state.
The Austrian-born former bodybuilder, in the capital for his first meeting with fellow governors, said he has not thought about running for president in the future. The Constitution says only natural-born citizens of the United States are eligible for the country's highest office.
The Republican governor said anyone who has been in America more than 20 years---as he has---should "absolutely" be able to seek the presidency. A constitutional amendment proposed by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, would make that possible.
posted by Kevin at 11:48 AM
Pentagon Tells Bush: Climate Change Will Destroy Us :.Update: Cryptome.org Hosts the Report (.zip contains .pdf) We are approaching The End phase of society as we know it... because of multiple reasons. This is obvious. What isn't obvious is exactly how it will come down. Well, it might just be the weather. What follows is not a joke. This is from the Observer (part of Guardian Newspapers Limited) in the U.K. Take a few deep breaths and steady yourself for this one: Climate change over the next 20 years could result in a global catastrophe costing millions of lives in wars and natural disasters.
A secret report, suppressed by US defence chiefs and obtained by The Observer, warns that major European cities will be sunk beneath rising seas as Britain is plunged into a 'Siberian' climate by 2020. Nuclear conflict, mega-droughts, famine and widespread rioting will erupt across the world.
The document predicts that abrupt climate change could bring the planet to the edge of anarchy as countries develop a nuclear threat to defend and secure dwindling food, water and energy supplies. The threat to global stability vastly eclipses that of terrorism, say the few experts privy to its contents.
'Disruption and conflict will be endemic features of life,' concludes the Pentagon analysis. 'Once again, warfare would define human life.'
The findings will prove humiliating to the Bush administration, which has repeatedly denied that climate change even exists. Experts said that they will also make unsettling reading for a President who has insisted national defence is a priority.
The report was commissioned by influential Pentagon defence adviser Andrew Marshall, who has held considerable sway on US military thinking over the past three decades. He was the man behind a sweeping recent review aimed at transforming the American military under Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
Climate change 'should be elevated beyond a scientific debate to a US national security concern', say the authors, Peter Schwartz, CIA consultant and former head of planning at Royal Dutch/Shell Group, and Doug Randall of the California-based Global Business Network.
An imminent scenario of catastrophic climate change is 'plausible and would challenge United States national security in ways that should be considered immediately', they conclude. As early as next year widespread flooding by a rise in sea levels will create major upheaval for millions.Related: Possible Perception Management Film On Catastrophic Weather ChangesTake a look at the trailer for upcoming film, The Day After Tomorrow.
posted by Kevin at 4:26 AM
2/21/2004
Keyless Entry Fails on Cars in Las Vegas :.This is weird: Was it the storm clouds, sun spots or Area 51?
By late Friday afternoon, some locksmiths, car dealerships and towing companies had been flooded with calls about mysteriously malfunctioning keyless vehicle entry devices.
There were nearly as many theories as there were lockouts. But there were no firm answers as to why the remote devices stopped working.
"Maybe it's those little green men up north," said Nellis Air Force Base spokesman Mike Estrada, whose own keyless entry system failed. "Are there sun spots? I've been trying to figure it out. It happened to me right after lunch."
Estrada resorted to using his key to unlock his car door, but that set off his alarm.
ABC Locksmiths received 30 calls from drivers stumped by the failure of the key systems. Quality Towing received about 25 calls, and two Ford dealerships reported receiving scores of calls about the problem.
But ABC dispatcher Milo Ferguson didn't need to field any calls to know something was amiss.
"My car is one of them," Ferguson said. "It's some kind of electrical disturbance. Either that or a nuclear bomb went off a few miles from here."
Jerry Bussell, Gov. Kenny Guinn's adviser on homeland security, ruled out terrorism and described the phenomenon as a "frequency problem."
posted by Kevin at 12:28 PM
2/20/2004
U.K. to Allow Genetically Modified Maize :.It's quite simple. Light the fields on fire. Make them pay for their stupidity and reckless behavior: In January, the government's advisory committee on releases to the environment (Acre) said there was no reason that Chardon, a variety of GM maize owned by BayerCropSciences, could not be planted in Britain.
But yesterday, plans to push ahead with GM maize, though not oilseed rape and other crops, met a torrent of abuse from consumer and environment groups who have campaigned against all the crops for more than five years.
"The government just does not get it. The public is way ahead in understanding that agricultural biotechnology is about a lot more than just the science. It is about livelihoods, choice, culture, the biodiversity of our landscape, the survival of small farmers - and GM crops could potentially threaten all of these," said Clare Devereux of Five Year Freeze, a coalition of more than 100 organisations.
posted by Kevin at 6:34 PM
GCHQ Mole Who Blew Whistle on U.S. Bugging: Case to be Dropped :.She's lucky that this case made it to the point of going to trial. She could have easily met the same fate as Dr. Kelly: The prosecution is preparing to abandon the case against a former GCHQ employee charged with leaking information about a "dirty tricks" spying operation before the invasion of Iraq, the Guardian has learned.
Katharine Gun, 29, is due to appear at the Old Bailey next week where she has said she will plead not guilty to breaking the Official Secrets Act.
She has said her alleged disclosures exposed serious wrongdoing by the US and could have helped to prevent the deaths of Iraqis and British forces in an "illegal war".
The case is potentially hugely embarrassing for the government and would open up GCHQ operations to unwelcome publicity. Also damaging and politically threatening is her plan to seek the disclosure of the full advice from the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, on the legality of the war against Iraq.
The government would almost certainly refuse to disclose such advice, arguing that opinions of its law officers are traditionally protected from the outside world. Ms Gun's lawyers were likely to argue she could not get a fair trial without seeing the attorney's advice on the war and the disclosure of GCHQ's activities.
posted by Kevin at 6:26 PM
U.K. Troops Implicated in Civilian Deaths :.The Ministry of Defence is facing the prospect of a string of lawsuits over the deaths of at least 18 Iraqi civilians allegedly killed by British soldiers, the Guardian can reveal.
The incidents, hitherto unreported, are separate from the suspicious deaths of seven Iraqis who were being held by British troops in the notorious Camp Bucca detention centre near the port of Umm Qasr, south of Basra.
The threat of legal action comes as the conduct of British troops serving in southern Iraq is under intense scrutiny, with MPs and human rights lawyers demanding independent inquiries into the deaths at the prison camp as well as civilian fatalities in and around Basra.
The new disclosures relate to incidents in which Iraqis have died when they were fired on by mistake or were innocent bystanders to operations allegedly being conducted by British troops.
While the MoD has refused to accept liability for any of the deaths, it has offered and paid compensation to some of the families.
One family was offered about $1,000 (�530) for the death of Waleed Fayayi Muzban, who was killed when his vehicle was hit by a barrage of bullets allegedly fired by British troops.
posted by Kevin at 6:12 PM
Low-Level Magnetic Fields Damage Brain Cells :.INCREDIBLE! If blow dryers, electric blankets and razors damage brain cells, I wonder what strapping a microwave transmitter (mobile phone) to your skull does to brain cells? That's actually a rhetorical question. You don't need a PhD to get to the bottom of this one. Only people who profit from the mobile phone industry think that the data is inconclusive. All objective research shows that the phones are dangerous and cause obvious damage to brain cells and memory (long and short term): Prolonged exposure to low-level magnetic fields, similar to those emitted by such common household devices as blow dryers, electric blankets and razors, can damage brain cell DNA, according to researchers in the University of Washington's Department of Bioengineering. The scientists further found that the damage from brief exposures appears to build up over time.
posted by Kevin at 4:14 PM
Enron CEO, Jeff Skilling: Perp WalkThere's nothing quite like a PHB in a suit being led away in handcuffs:
posted by Kevin at 4:00 AM
The Dudley Hiibel Case: THIS IS INSANE! :.Fascist pig shakedowns in the U.S.: Meet Dudley Hiibel. He's a 59 year old cowboy who owns a small ranch outside of Winnemucca, Nevada. He lives a simple life, but he's his own man. You probably never would have heard of Dudley Hiibel if it weren't for his belief in the U.S. Constitution.
One balmy May evening back in 2000, Dudley was standing around minding his own business when all of a sudden, a policeman pulled-up and demanded that Dudley produce his ID. Dudley, having done nothing wrong, declined. He was arrested and charged with "failure to cooperate" for refusing to show ID on demand. And it's all on video.
On the 22nd of March 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether Dudley and the rest of us live in a free society, or in a country where we must show "the papers" whenever a cop demands them.
posted by Kevin at 3:15 AM
Federal Subpoenas Seen as Targeting Dissent :.A federal grand jury, in a move some see as an attempt to harass and intimidate the antiwar movement, subpoenaed Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, in early February, ordering it to turn over all documents related to an antiwar conference held three months ago on its campus.
Also subpoenaed were Brian Terrell, Elton Davis, Patti McKee and Wendy Vasquez, four Des Moines peace activists who participated in the daylong conference and a demonstration the following day.
posted by Kevin at 3:11 AM
We Are Morons: A Quick Look at the Win2k Source :.It doesn't get any better than this! Curse words: there are a dozen or so "fucks" and "shits", and hundreds of "craps". Some dissatisfaction with the compiler is expressed in private\shell\shell32\util.cpp:
// the fucking alpha cpp compiler seems to fuck up the goddam type "LPITEMIDLIST", so to work
// around the fucking peice of shit compiler we pass the last param as an void *instead of a LPITEMIDLIST
Some insight into Microsoft's famous daily build process is given in private\windows\media\avi\verinfo.16\verinfo.h:
* !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
* !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
* !!!!!!!IF YOU CHANGE TABS TO SPACES, YOU WILL BE KILLED!!!!!!!
* !!!!!!!!!!!!!!DOING SO FUCKS THE BUILD PROCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
* !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
* !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by Kevin at 3:08 AM
Voters Face Choice: $15 Billion Bond Seasure or 'Armageddon' Cuts :.Alright, I know I said I wasn't going to vote anymore, but I'm going to in this thing, just in case the votes happen to count for anything. I'm going to vote 'NO' on Proposition 57 (the bond issuance) and "YES" on Proposition 58 (the balanced budget initiative). Cut it! It's Armageddon, so let's get on with it. Hey, man, you don't get out of debt by going deeper into debt! Enough already! Bring it down: California is quickly running out of cash and is bracing for acute financial pain after three years of political procrastination and budget bungling.
Now voters must decide if it makes more sense to approve a $15 billion bailout bond that might extend the misery for a decade or more, or suffer it more quickly through temporary tax increases and deep spending cuts.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is trying to persuade voters the bitter medicine should be dispensed gradually - that paying back the bailout bond during the next nine to 14 years is the most humane way for California to rehabilitate itself.
His opponents say California will be making a terrible mistake if the state takes the unprecedented step of shouldering long-term debt to solve short-term problems.
In either case, it's clear that the time has finally come for California to balance its checkbook - the state will literally run out of money unless Schwarzenegger and the legislature find a way to produce $14 billion by June 16.
If voters refuse to authorize the bond under Proposition 57 on the March 2 ballot, Schwarzenegger says he'll have to make "Armageddon" spending cuts that will make California a less desirable place to live. The intense pressure on California to repay its debts also could create uncertainty on Wall Street.
Without the bailout bond, California's obligation to repay the $14 billion due in June would compete against its duty to provide essential public services, said Timothy Blake, managing director for Moody's Investor Service, one of three major credit rating agencies. "That is not an orderly situation."
posted by Kevin at 2:28 AM
2/19/2004
Solid State Hack for Pepsi/iTunes Contest :.HA! Sharp eyes and a bit of patience paid off Thursday for iTunes fans who figured out a way to "hack" the popular music download service's Pepsi promotion.
Jon Gales, who runs Macintosh-user site MacMerc.com, posted instructions this week on how to look into sealed Pepsi bottles and figure out which ones carry winning iTunes codes in their caps.
"With luck, you should be able to see under the cap," said Gales, 19, a college student who discovered the trick by chance. "It takes a few minutes to get used to the angle... and you may have to twist the bottle."
posted by Kevin at 11:21 PM
Microsoft Attempting to Put the Genie Back in the Bottle :.This is so funny. Doesn't Microsoft understand that there are millions of freaks out there who have sworn eternal hostility toward them?! I've got news for Microsoft: You better send out guys with guns, because that's the only way you'll stop these people. FUD will just encourage them, and confirm that they're doing the right thing. HAHAHA! God bless the freaks: "Broadand Reports notes that Microsoft is now sending snail mail warnings to downloaders of the leaked source code. They're also apparently working in conjunction with several un-named peer to peer vendors to send out legal warnings to any users who search for the leaked code. The notice on Microsoft's website has been updated to reflect the new warnings."Related: Remaining Anonymous While Undertaking Sensitive Operations Online :.I wrote some basic guidelines for people who had to use the Internet for activities that could result in unpleasant encounters with fascist state and corporate operators. While this was related to submitting information on the murder of State Department analyst John Kokal, I'm sure you freaks can see how to adapt this for your own weird activities. Have fun! Additional Comments from JMWhen I posted directions for anonymous network access above, I assumed that the user is not dumb. Indeed, if you are dumb, don't attempt what is described there. Even if you're not dumb, your mileage may vary. I can't think of every bozo antic that could potentially set you up the bomb. You must have at least a general clue about what you're doing. Luckily, I have readers like JM, who provides some obvious tips to help keep the less adept folks free of trouble. He's right! Even though I tell people to use systems not associated with themselves in anyway, you know someone will use their first and last name for the computer ID. HAHAHA! It almost sounds like JM has experience adminning corporate users: Kevin,
With your tip list regarding anonymous internet usuage, something to be conscious of while using someone ELSES network..
1) Be sure to disable windows shares
2) Create a "john doe" type login, vs. that of a JM, or Kevin F. etc., just for the open nets.
Some of the smarter more computer savvy users have been known to catch their neighbors, friends, and roommates etc. sneaking onto nets. If average joe can sniff you out, then those whose job it is shouldnt have any problem what so ever.
Something so easily overlooked could be the downfall of your readers seemingly anonymous internet gateways.
Cheers!
JM
ps. I have found that almost across the board you can find dependable (open) WiFi access from many of the .edu, Apple(tm) stores, and of course, residential areas. I have spoken with folks in the [deleted] Public Library and they claim to be looking into setting up a similiar access point, which probably means the rest of the nations Librarys arent far behind.When you're on an open base station, you MUST assume that EVERYTHING is compromised. You MUST NOT visit your normal hotmail, yahoo and ebay accounts, etc. You MUST NOT log into your bank. You MUST NOT do anything you normally do from your house or work. Think, please, before you do dumb things. Oh there's one thing I didn't mention that I take for granted. I didn't say anything about firewalls on your throwaway system. I take it as a given that all systems on any network are fully firewalled. But I forget, sometimes, that I'm a little, you know... weird. You should be showing NO ports on the network. Your firewall should not acknowledge ANY ICMP packets. In other words, you should appear as not there (fully stealthed) on the network to anyone attempting to scan you. If you don't know what I'm talking about, start by installing and learning how to use the excellent Sygate firewall. And then scan yourself.
posted by Kevin at 4:13 PM
Analysts Warn China on Verge of Economic Crisis :.The year has opened with warnings that China is lurching toward a major economic crisis that will inevitably have far-reaching global ramifications. While the Chinese regime is hailing the country�s 9.1 percent economic growth last year, analysts are noting that the growth itself has produced the type of overcapacity and rampant speculation that has characterised other economies before they experienced a severe slump.
The New York Times, for example, warned on January 18: "As 2004 begins, China�s economy looks as invincible as the Japanese, South East Asian and American economies of those earlier times. But recent excess�from the frenzy of factory construction to speculative inflows of cash to soaring growth in bank loans�suggest that China may be in a bubble now, especially on the investment side of the economy."
posted by Kevin at 3:46 AM
2/18/2004
Microsoft Critical Security Patch #811493 Set Me Up the BombFor the past several days, Windows 2000 has been prompting me to install critical security patch #811493. The same patch, everyday. And I do it. I thought this was weird, since I've never had any problem like this with Windows 2000, and this installation has been problem free on this machine for two years. So I decided I wasn't going to keep going along with this nonsense. I thought I'd try to uninstall the patch and then reinstall it. This is a standard thing one does when Windows starts to die. Big mistake. After I uninstalled it, the machine was unbootable. HAHAHA! Safe mode didn't work. I tried to repair the OS using the Windows CD, and the recovery console. Nothing worked. I finally had to reinstall the OS. Luckily, I don't think I lost any data, but all my applications are shot to hell, shortcuts, preferences, etc. gone. It was like starting from scratch with a new computer, except my data was still on the drive. I guess it could have been worse. Anyway, I've had it with Outlook. I found the .pst file that contains about four years worth of email and I'm wondering if I should even bother recovering it. I didn't think it was worth backing up all this time, so.... whatever. I just started using Mozilla Thunderbird for email. Man, this looks excellent. I'm extremely impressed with this email client. This blows Outlook 2000 away. Oh well, I guess I'll crawl along here and restore my show, one bit at a time. Hint: If you have to reinstall Windows 2000 and it doesn't have the correct driver for your network card... this is a pain. If you only keep one set of drivers handy, keep the network card drivers. After turning my place upside down, I found the two year old disk that came with my motherboard (with integrated network adapter). There was a driver that worked. This allowed me to get this thing to hovel over to Windows Update to install countless critical updates, patches, drivers and the rest of it. Yeah, it's been a fun day.
posted by Kevin at 6:14 PM
The Corporation: An Explosive Documentary :.WOW! This looks absolutely incredible! Clips and trailers are here. From the synopsis: THE CORPORATION
A Feature documentary by Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott and Joel Bakan.
Based on the forthcoming book THE CORPORATION: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power by Joel Bakan.
When the corporation�s inner workings undergo analysis � bizarre operating principles are revealed.
THE CORPORATION engages us in a darkly amusing account of the institution�s birth as a legal �person� whose prime directive is to produce ever-increasing profit for it�s shareholders regardless of the cost to anyone, or anything else. This pathological nature wasn�t always written in stone. 150 years ago a corporation was merely an organized way of doing business. Today it is a global power.
Considering the odd legal fiction that deems a corporation a �person� in the eyes of the law, the feature documentary employs a checklist, based on actual diagnostic criteria of the World Health Organization and DSM IV, the standard tool of psychiatrists and psychologists. What emerges is a disturbing diagnosis.
Self-interested, amoral, callous and deceitful, a corporation�s operational principles make it anti-social. It breaches social and legal standards to get its way even while it mimics the human qualities of empathy, caring and altruism. It suffers no guilt. Diagnosis: the institutional embodiment of laissez-faire capitalism fully meets the diagnostic criteria of a psychopath.
In this feature documentary we see the people who inhabit the corporate �person� explore, and expose, the implications of being part of an institution that is required by it�s own laws to place the pursuit of profit over people. Over concern for the environment. Over even the planet itself.Research Credit: CTRL.org
posted by Kevin at 4:38 AM
Remote Control Machine Guns to be Mounted on Israeli Apartheid Wall :.Women will be used to pull the trigger on robotic gun turrets! But this is only because Israel couldn't get away with setting the robot guns to immediately blow away anything that moves. WOW! We're no longer approaching The End. We're in a post-End situation now, it's just not immediately apparent to most people yet: According to Haaretz reporter Amira Hass, a Sept. 21 article on the Israeli paper Yediot Ahronoth's Web site, Ynet, states that "the separation fence to be built in the Gilboa region will include remote-control machine guns that will be operated by female soldiers from their command posts and will shoot at those suspected of being terrorists." According to Ynet's reporter, the system is be installed in the coming months in the mountainous Gilboa region, along the path of the "Separation Wall." The army's purpose in installing the system is to compensate for the small amount of troops and the difficulties of moving in the area--"and to shoot at terrorists who try to cross the fence." In a concession to humanitarian considerations, rather than making the guns fire automatically at anything that moves they will be fired "by the female soldier who manages the lookout post and has been trained for this."
posted by Kevin at 4:32 AM
$2 Pound Forecast as Sterling Breaches $1.90 Level :.How do you want that? Dollars, cigarette butts or bottlecaps? Britons will soon be able to get two dollars to the pound for the first time in more than two decades, Kenneth Clarke, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, said yesterday as sterling broke through the $1.90 barrier.
The pound jumped to a fresh 11-year high after a rise in inflation boosted hopes of another rise in UK interest rates in spring. It rose to $1.9083, its highest level since September 1992.Research Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 4:24 AM
Bill for Confiscation of Firearms H.R. 2403 :.Just keep going... We're almost there: Should unelected officials be allowed to order the confiscation of some or all guns and ammunition in the United States? This is the question posed by Sen. Jon Corzine (D-NJ) and Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), in their proposed Firearms Safety and Consumer Protection Act. As one might suspect, the bill is about neither firearm safety nor consumer protection, but is an especially clever stratagem by the gun-prohibition lobby. The Kennedy-Corzine bill would give the Treasury Department and the courts nearly unlimited powers to restrict firearms manufacture and sales, and to confiscate guns.
posted by Kevin at 4:20 AM
2/17/2004
McCingular: Cingular to Buy AT&T Wireless for $40B :.Cingular Wireless, the nation's No. 2 mobile phone provider, has agreed to acquire third-largest AT&T Wireless for more than $40 billion, a deal that could create the nation's largest cellular subscription base, the company announced Tuesday.
posted by Kevin at 5:42 AM
White and Black Hatters Churning Out Windows Exploits Based on Released Code :.HAHA! Well, that didn't take long: The leak of Windows source code last week has already enabled a hacker to create an exploit.
Days after portions of the Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows NT 4.0 source code were illegally leaked onto the Web, an anonymous hacker has found a buffer overflow flaw and crafted an exploit.
The attack relies on a vulnerability in the way that IE 5 processes bitmap files. This could allow an attacker to inject hostile code into vulnerable systems, according to an advisory published by the Security Tracker vulnerability database.Related: Previous Cryptogon CoverageRelated: Subseven Trojan on a Two Day Old Windows ComputerI know someone online who just bought a brand new computer. I scanned the system to see what ports a brand new Windows XP box has open these days. Mind you, she just bought this computer from Circuit City two days ago. When I examined the nmap output, I nearly fell out of my chair. I noticed this little gem: 27374/tcp filtered subsevenWoooohbibby! When I got over my shock at seeing Subseven running on that thing, I started asking her how such a serious compromise could have happened so fast!? We weren't sure what it was, but she had been downloading shit from download.com. Note: She took down her firewall so I could scan the system. So, technically, the Subseven service was not reachable/visible with the firewall up. D.C. writes in email: The nmap scan you have posted at cryptogon indicates that the subseven port is being filtered. This means that it is firewalled, and nmap could not initiate a syn/ack tcp connect to that port. It is probably being blocked by the ISP, along with port 139 (netbios) and others for security.Understand that if you use Windows, you are constantly juggling hand grenades. Beware. And when you get sick of hearing stories like this, use a Mac or some distribution of Linux. Better yet, get rid of the computers and read a book, write something with a pen and paper or go for a walk.
posted by Kevin at 4:56 AM
Seedlings EmergingInterestingly, when I play with dirt, compost and seeds, the fact that this society is unraveling doesn't seem to bother me very much. The natural world is good, true and beautiful. It will feed you, if you let it. More dirt, seeds and compost, less Cryptogon, sounds pretty good to me. I started some vegetable seeds in plastic drinking water containers a few weeks ago. The one good thing about California is that you can sow some seeds in January and they will actually germinate! I had to thin some of the cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli seedlings since they had a much higher germination rate than I expected (thanks Seeds of Change). I ate the little, succulent leaves. They tasted sweet. And check out this thing! It's a Blue Lake Bush Bean: Southern California gardeners, here's a great chart that shows what you can start in these "cold" California months. I guess I jumped the gun a little bit on those bush beans. Woops! Well, they don't seem to mind. :) For the rest of you guys, who are still frozen over, look into something like the APS seed starting system and fire up your seedlings indoors! Oh yeah, don't forget to mind the moon.
posted by Kevin at 3:22 AM
Most Siemens Software Jobs Moving to India, China and Eastern Europe :.The German firm Siemens will move most of the 15,000 software programming jobs from its offices in the United States and Western Europe to India, China and Eastern Europe, a company official said Monday.
"Siemens has recognized that a huge amount of software development activity needs to be moved from high-cost countries to low-cost countries," said Anil R. Laud, managing director of Siemens Information Systems, the group's information technology subsidiary in India.
posted by Kevin at 2:40 AM
2/16/2004
Lou Dobbs Comes Unhinged On CNN :. If this link dies, let me know, I have it saved locally. My jaw was on the floor. Things were being said that I absolutely couldn't believe. I kept waiting for the kill switch to kick in, but it didn't! This is Lou Dobbs, people!!! This guy has been in on the scam for years, so what does it tell you if he's bad mouthing the criminals now? This is what it looks like when some elites start playing Cover-Your-Ass. In any event, wow! Lou, not maintaining appearances! Nice one: DOBBS: Let me help you out, Bruce. You say there's no practical way to end it. We could end it tomorrow. Corporate America can decide that they are going to maintain some commitment to their stakeholders, that is the working men and women of this country, not export the job, use the expression, higher product and efficiency when they mean lower cost. That's deceitful and dishonest.
BARTLETT: Well, if some companies did it and some companies didn't, then the ones that would -- that did not outsource would be at a comparative disadvantage. Again, the competition, the nature of the free markets tells people you have to do this.
DOBBS: You are a great free marketeer, a terrific economist and a good thinker. You tell me if this is such a good idea, free trade and exporting factors of production, which as I think you will agree has nothing to do with comparative advantage. Nothing that David Ricardo envisioned. There's nothing in it that David Ricardo envisioned despite the suggestion of some less honest economists. The fact is free trade right now looks like it costs us about a half trillion dollars this year, cumulatively about $3 trillion. We're a net importer of capital. We are exporting our wealth and our factors of production, knowledge base, what in the world. How can you call that free trade?
BARTLETT: Well, we don't have anything remotely like true free trade, but on the other hand, we do have a relatively open world economy. And I think it's demonstrably the case that a rising tide has lifted all boats. We talk about unemployment all the time but we only have a 5.6 percent unemployment rate. Not a very high rate by historical standards. The real standard of living of Americans has risen all the years that we have been talking about jobs being exported.
DOBBS: What have real earnings done over the last 30 years in this country. Bruce, you know the answer to that.
BARTLETT: There's some data problems.
DOBBS: You and I don't have the luxury of having problems with data. We know what the data tells us.
BARTLETT: If you look, for example, for real median family income it continues to rise. That's as good a measure of the well- being of the American people as any measure we have.
DOBBS: That's one way to avoid saying that it has declined.
BARTLETT: Well, one reason earnings have fallen is because benefits have gone up dramatically.
DOBBS: I understand. But it's a point you said there's really no free trade. Why is it that we keep hearing about free trade? We hear Carly Fiorina say there's no God-given right to an American job. This is first and foremost a political economy. We're making political judgments. This economy exists to provide a quality of life to the men and women who make up -- and children who make up the society.
BARTLETT: Well that's certainly true, but you always have to look at the alternative. The alternative to not having imports of half a trillion dollars isn't that we would produce half a trillion dollars more goods in the United States. It might be we would be worse off by having half a trillion dollars less goods to consume. You always have to look at the alternatives and I think that the alternative to -- of having some kind of protection is a cure worse than the disease. Tariffs on steel, it costs more jobs in the steel using industries than it saved in the steel producing industries, for example.
DOBBS: My question is very simply, what are we going to do about those jobs that are being exported overseas for cheap labor markets? You know, when we talked about comparative advantage, the fact is the Indian economy has a huge unemployment level, the Chinese have a huge unemployment rate, there is no way in which we can ever compete on a dollar basis hour for hour, product, our workers in this country with those people. It has nothing to do with comparative. They can suck up all the jobs in this country that we're going to create in the next five years.
BARTLETT: You can't look at just look at wage rates, you have to look at skill levels. You have to look at productivity. If a U.S. worker is five times as productive as a Chinese worker, it doesn't bother an employer to pay him five times more than he pays the Chinese worker because he'd have to hire five Chinese workers to do the same job. That's where we have to compete.
DOBBS: Well, to suggest that we make up three cents an hour or $2 an hour competition on wage costs by going to increments of 5x on productivity seems a little unnecessary burden to put on men and women working in this country, don't you think?
BARTLETT: It's not just productivity, it's also innovation. It's also a lot of jobs that they do here in our country cannot be done anywhere else. We need to concentrate on those kind of jobs instead of trying to save low-level jobs that we have to subsidize to keep.
DOBBS: Wait a minute. Of the 112,000 jobs created last month, the Labor Department reports that more than three-fourths of them were in low level, low paying, retail sector. I don't understand.
BARTLETT: Well, a great many of the jobs that are being created in this economy are not being counted even in that survey. They are jobs -- they are counted in the household survey as being -- people who are self-employed and contracted out.
DOBBS: Bruce, I appreciate it and it's good to talk with you.
BARTLETT: Thank you.
posted by Kevin at 4:05 AM
Bush: Spending Like a Drunken Democrat :.Note the source of this article! American Conservative: Forget the liberation of Iraq, George W. Bush will be remembered as the president who bankrupted America.
Every president of the past 40 years has contributed to the dire fiscal problems from which the United States now suffers. Bush, however, by massively increasing government spending and doing nothing to reduce the looming burden of Social Security and Medicare, will receive more blame than any of his predecessors.
A quick run through the numbers shows why future generations, weighed down by a national debt that is now growing at $1.8 billion a day, will look back in bewilderment, wondering why Bush, despite Republican majorities in both houses of Congress, decided to go for broke.
Under his administration, the national debt has gone up a stunning 24 percent, to $7 trillion. A chief reason for that increase is that Bush has enthusiastically promoted an explosion in government spending. In 2004, federal government outlays are expected to exceed $2.3 trillion, which is $500 billion more than in 2000. At nearly $500 billion, the budget deficit is close to 4.5 percent of gross domestic product, the sort of ratio usually seen in developing countries that are about to implode. Contrary to the White House�s absurd projections, private economists expect annual deficits of between $400 billion and $600 billion over the next 10 years.
posted by Kevin at 3:39 AM
Tony Blair Plans U.S. Trip to Boost President's Re-Election :.You have Bush, a "conservative," spending money like a drunken Democrat in a whorehouse, and on the other hand, you have Kerry, who's for the war in Iraq!? Now, over in Britain, you have Blair, the Labour leader, in bed with Bush!? Man, this thing is getting funkier by the minute. Does anyone believe that these governments are legitimate anymore? The Labour Party should be ashamed of itself. And to the Democrats in the U.S., elect Kerry, I dare you. No, I double dare you. Actually, it doesn't matter, you jackasses, since Kerry = Bush: TONY Blair is to make a controversial visit to Washington to boost President Bush's campaign for a second term in the White House.
The Prime Minister has decided that a defeat for his close coalition partner in the November US presidential election would damage his own chances of re-election in Britain.
And he has privately told aides that the election of an American leader who opposed the war in Iraq could jeopardise the special relationship between Britain and the US.
posted by Kevin at 3:31 AM
Huge U.S. Trade Deficit Hits Dollar :.The US trade deficit hit a record $489bn (�258bn) in 2003, with a quarter of the shortfall coming in trade with China, official figures have shown.
The deficit was 17.1% larger than the previous record gap recorded in 2002.
The burgeoning deficit has put downward pressure on the dollar, which could create inflationary pressure as Americans pay more for imported goods.
posted by Kevin at 3:14 AM
2/15/2004
Earthly Software Rebooted Spirit :.This article is offtopic, but interesting. It's about the embedded software on the Mars rovers (and other engineering projects where software failure is not an option): Ultimately, the fix that saved Spirit wasn't that different from how a PC would be repaired on Earth. It's just that the folks who have their hardware on Mars -- and the eyes of the world on them -- are better prepared for disaster.
Tech support for an $820 million mission is a cautious affair. Tools to recover from and fix any problem must be built into the system before launch. The systems' behaviors need to be completely understood and predictable.
"Luckily, during the design period, we anticipated that we might get into a situation like this," said Glenn Reeves, who oversees the software aboard the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
For stability, reliability and predictability, mission designers did not bust the budget and design the hardware or software from scratch. Instead, they turned to hardware and software that's been used in space before and has a proven track record on Earth as well.
"The advantage of using commercial software is it's well-known, and it's well deployed," said Mike Deliman, an engineer at Alameda-based Wind River Systems, which made the rovers' operating system. "It has been used throughout the world in hundreds of thousands of applications."
posted by Kevin at 1:43 PM
Japan: Strapped to the Mast of the Sinking U.S. Dollar :.This article makes the macroeconomic principals easy to understand, even for beginners. Highly recommended: Japan is on an unprecedented spending spree, all focused on the same product: the U.S. dollar.
Tokyo bought an astounding $172 billion last year to keep the yen from strengthening too much against the greenback. The push only accelerated in January, when Japan snapped up another $67 billion.
That Japan's government is buying dollars to prevent a stronger yen from smothering a feeble economic recovery at home is not new. But the scale of the current round is far beyond its earlier interventions.
The purchases are so large they are effectively subsidizing record U.S. budget and trade deficits, keeping American interest rates low and worrying some experts that a painful shock will hit if the spending spree stops.
"We are standing on a delicate balance," said legislator Kohei Ohtsuka, an upper house finance committee member and a former Bank of Japan official. "If this situation were a miniature model, it would be in danger of falling apart if we removed just one small part."Research Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 3:46 AM
2/13/2004
Scientists Develop New Hydrogen Reactor :.Researchers say they have produced hydrogen from ethanol in a prototype reactor small enough and efficient enough to heat small homes and power cars.
The development could help open the way for cleaner-burning technology at home and on the road.
Current methods of producing hydrogen from ethanol require large refineries and copious amounts of fossil fuels, the University of Minnesota researchers said.
The reactor is a relatively tiny 2-foot-high apparatus of tubes and wires that creates hydrogen from corn-based ethanol. A fuel cell, which acts like a battery, then generates power.
posted by Kevin at 1:43 PM
Type "660 Pounds of Cocaine Found in Walmart Truck" Into Google :.Oh yeah, that's right! I'll take that. *bow* I need a screenshot of this. HAHAHA! Here's previous Cryptogon coverage of this story. Note: walmart truck cocaine also works.
posted by Kevin at 4:11 AM
Regime Rotation 2004 :.Thanks Mark: The Democratic party wing of the establishment is working to limit dissent to ensure "regime rotation" instead of "regime change" in November.
Regime Rotation consists of unseating Bush but replacing him with another President who will continue the empire's global domination efforts, although with more tact, better speeches and a few token distractions for domestic and international opinion increasingly opposed to the Bush regime's outrages.
Regime Rotation exposes the war on Iraq as a deception, but not the September 11 "Reichstag Fire." Regime rotation recommends that 9/11 be seen as a result of incompetence and / or lack of coordination by the intelligence agencies (which only need more billions and less restrictions to ensure it won't happen again), even though there is an enormous amount of evidence that 9/11 was an "inside job."
Regime Rotation wants to keep the occupation of Iraq going. The three main opposition candidates - Clark, Dean and Kerry - all support keeping troops in the oil fields, although they state that the invasion was a mistake. A Democratic victory in November would allow Bush and the Project for a New American Century "neo-conservatives" to have done the dirty work getting the oil wars going (and "homeland security" to be installed for addressing domestic dissent as the economy continues to unravel), and allow the "Good Cop" of a Democrat to continue the war with less domestic opposition, UN blessing and European money and soldiers. These oil wars are the United States's response to peak oil, and will continue as long as the oil lasts (Cheney calls it the war that will not end in our lifetime) or until the US is willing to undertake a massive reduction of energy consumption and investment of resources into a more locally based, renewable energy society.
posted by Kevin at 3:50 AM
Russian FSB Had 24 Hours Notice of Moscow Subway Attack :.In a conversation with FSB* officers the man reported that the first terrorist attack was to take place on 6 February in the Russian capital, ''and some two or three days later a terrorist act will hit a marketplace in the Stavropol Region''.
The Balkarian claimed that he had been ''recruited by special services in Abkhazia'', Georgia�s breakaway region, a month ago. In the course of that month he received ''training'', whereupon he was sent to Pankisi Gorge, a mountainous region in Georgia widely believed to be a haven for Chechen rebels.
According to the minister, the man gave the names of the Chechen rebels he met there to FSB officers, claiming they were the ones who would perpetrate the attack in Moscow. It remains unclear why Russian special services failed to respond to that information promptly, if indeed they did, but after the explosion tore through the Moscow subway on Friday all Stavropol�s marketplaces were immediately closed.* The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation
posted by Kevin at 3:42 AM
Medical Evidence Does not Support Suicide by Kelly :.Since three of us wrote our letter to the Guardian on January 27, questioning whether Dr Kelly's death was suicide, we have received professional support for our view from vascular surgeon Martin Birnstingl, pathologist Dr Peter Fletcher, and consultant in public health Dr Andrew Rouse. We all agree that it is highly improbable that the primary cause of Dr Kelly's death was haemorrhage from transection of a single ulnar artery, as stated by Brian Hutton in his report.
posted by Kevin at 3:34 AM
2/12/2004
Microsoft Source Code Leaked Over Web :.Try putting this genie back in the bottle! Needless to say, if this is the real deal, current versions of Windows could be rendered unusable do to security threats. Oh, woops, it's that way already! I'm sure the r0oTkItZ are being re-written as I type this. Fasten seatbelts and brace for impact: Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) said late Thursday that portions of its Windows source code - the tightly guarded blueprints of its dominant operating system - had been leaked over the Internet.
Microsoft spokesman Tom Pilla said in an interview with The Associated Press that some incomplete portions of the Windows 2000 and Windows NT4 source code had been "illegally made available on the Internet."
Access to the source code could allow hackers to exploit the operating system and attack machines running Windows, which is used on hundreds of millions of computers worldwide.
The company was made aware of the leak on Thursday and is investigating, Pilla said. He did not know how much of the code had been leaked or how many people may have gained access to it. The company could not immediately pinpoint the source of the leak, and has contacted law enforcement authorities, he said.From the Register UK :.According to Neowin, there are two packages which appear to be the source of NT 4 and Win2k, respectively. The site says it's not yet clear whether or not the full source has leaked. Betanews says the claimed Win2k source contains 30,915 files and consists of 13.5 million lines, pointing out that this is considerably less than the 35-50 million the entire source should consist of.I'm not going to point right to it, but if you're interested, you can find it by reading through this mess on Slashdot, or any number of other ways. Whatever "it" is, it's totally loose in the wild. There is no way to stop this now.
posted by Kevin at 7:43 PM
Amazon.com Taking Orders for the Canon EOS-1D Mark II :. Buy it! Chicks will dig you. Even the ones in beer commercials. Swear! Well, maybe not. What I can guarantee, however, is that weird, stinky, unshaven photo nerds will worship you (and probably try to hump your leg) if they spot you carrying this tool! Now, isn't that worth the purchase price of $4500 to you, sir? Thought so. Now get clicking!
posted by Kevin at 3:57 PM
2/11/2004
$30 Million Worth of Cocaine on WalMart Truck :.Full text of article follows. Watch how fast this story disappears: Forrest City Police found an estimated $30 million worth of cocaine hidden among a tractor-trailer full of toys headed for Wal-Mart stores in North Carolina.
State police pulled over a tractor-trailer Sunday on Interstate 40 near Forrest City, saying it was speeding.
Troopers said the truck's driver was cited for driving on a suspended license and that he and a passenger appeared nervous during the traffic stop, so officers asked for permission to search the rig.
According to police, officers found cocaine inside 12 boxes, each containing about 25 kilograms. The total weight of the drugs is estimated at 660 pounds.
Two men remain in custody with bond set at $2 million.Additional AP Story:Police say $30 million in cocaine found amid toys in truck
The Associated Press
FORREST CITY, Ark. --
Police found an estimated $30 million worth of cocaine hidden among a tractor-trailer full of toys headed for Wal-Mart stores in North Carolina.
State police pulled over a tractor-trailer Sunday on Interstate 40 near Forrest City, saying it was speeding.
Troopers said the truck's driver was cited for driving on a suspended license and that he and a passenger appeared nervous during the traffic stop, so officers asked for permission to search the rig.
According to police, officers found cocaine inside 12 boxes, each containing about 25 kilograms. The total weight of the drugs is estimated at 300 kilograms, or 660 pounds.
Police charged Francisco Galvan, 36, of Lynwood, Calif., and his passenger Hector Aquilar-Corona, 37, of Tucson, Ariz.
Aquilar-Corona was charged with permitting an unauthorized driver to drive and possession with intent to deliver drugs. Galvan is charged with driving on a suspended drivers license and possession with intent to deliver drugs.
In a hearing Monday in St. Francis County District Court, bond for the pair was set at $2 million. Both were still being held Tuesday.
Last modified: February 10. 2004 6:44PM
posted by Kevin at 5:00 PM
Flash: Daniel Hopsicker on Rense Tonight :.From the madcowprod.com list: Daniel Hopsicker will be guesting on the Jeff Rense Show (www.rense.com) this evening between 10p and midnight EST, covering his new book "Welcome to Terrorland," as well as George W. Bush and the Alabama National Guard, 600 lbs of cocaine found in toys on a WALMART truck yesterday, and the mis-use of libel laws to try to shut down MadCow team coverage of State-sponsored disinformation on 9/11. (It promises to be a frothing good time.)
posted by Kevin at 4:48 PM
U.S. National Debt Crosses $7 Trillion :.That's about $24,000 per person.
posted by Kevin at 4:36 PM
Alex Jones TV Show on Skull and Bones :.This is an excellent video. Pass it around. Might not be suitable for beginners.
posted by Kevin at 4:06 PM
My PreciousResearch Credit: JL
posted by Kevin at 1:50 PM
Ordo Ab Chao: Kerry Is a New World Order Ass Clown :.Can you see the setup? The ugly work gets done by the prodigal son, the imbecile who's so easy to hate. Then, after sufficient looting and bloodshed, a kinder, gentler fascist is called upon to restore appearances. In reality, the entire thing continues to slide down the rat hole. Democrats are Republicans with a slight guilt complex. Limousine liberals. Pathetic: Kerry said that the United Nations should have control over most of our foreign military operations. "I'm an internationalist. I'd like to see our troops dispersed through the world only at the directive of the United Nations."
posted by Kevin at 1:40 PM
Alex Jones Coverage of Bush, Kerry and Skull and Bones :.What a circus!
posted by Kevin at 3:30 AM
2/10/2004
Fatkins :.The Atkins "diet" always struck me as absurd, but this might help demonstrate that fact to others: The debate over Dr. Robert Atkins' popular high-fat, low-carb diet flared posthumously Tuesday when it was learned that Atkins himself was a bloated 258 pounds at his death.
A city medical examiner's report filed after Atkins' 2003 death from a fall showed the 6-foot doctor was at a weight normally considered obese. A physicians group that is highly critical of the diet released details of the report, claiming the Atkins diet led to weight and heart troubles for its 72-year-old creator.
posted by Kevin at 5:32 PM
Eisenhower Ten :."You may recall that in late May, I wrote advising of the existence of classified letters from President Eisenhower to ten private citizens throughout the country giving them authority over various parts of the economy and total society in the event of a declaration of a national emergency..."� Excerpt from August 19, 1961 memorandum to National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy from Presidential Assistant Frederick G. Dutton Research Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 4:12 AM
What You Can't Say :.TR and I call this, "maintaining appearances." When some controversial topic comes up, you choose to: a) provide factual, unabridged responses or b) maintains appearances. Having a memory of events that reaches back about a week, or more, and integrating that knowledge into your daily speech, will make it very difficult for you to maintain appearances. Reading Cryptogon is definitely not good for maintaining appearances: Let's start with a test: Do you have any opinions that you would be reluctant to express in front of a group of your peers?
If the answer is no, you might want to stop and think about that. If everything you believe is something you're supposed to believe, could that possibly be a coincidence? Odds are it isn't. Odds are you just think whatever you're told.
posted by Kevin at 4:07 AM
Online Search Engines Help Lift Cover of Privacy :.This has been going on since search engines emerged. This is some very mainstream coverage on the phenomenon. It's easy to find documents that definitely were not meant for public release using these techniques. Go for it! You just have to know how to ask the right question. For example, this thing probably doesn't belong in public view, and it's from SAIC, my favorite CIA cutout operation (and the biggest of them all): http://www.teao.saic.com/jfcom/ier/documents/CRD_POCs_Jul03.doc Here's the google cache of it. I found that document within fifteen seconds because I know the lingo. I'm not going to host that document, nor do I recommend that others host it. I posted the URL just for demonstration purposes. Now, what did I find after three minutes of work? How does this grab ya? http://www.asm-navy.com/references/CJCSI6250.01.PDF J6 CJCSI 6250.01
DISTRIBUTION: A, B, C, J 20 October 1998
SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS
Purpose. This instruction provides high level operational policy, guidance and procedures for the planning, management, employment and use of DOD Satellite Communications (SATCOM) resources. The principal purpose of this instruction is to define the processes necessary to ensure essential SATCOM support for mission accomplishment.
Releasability. This instruction/manual/notice is approved for limited release. DOD components (to include the combatant commands) and other Federal agencies may obtain copies of this instruction through controlled Internet access only (limited to .mil and .gov users) from the CJCS Directives Home Page--http://www.dtic.mil.doctrine/jel.htm. Joint Staff activities may access or obtain copies of this instruction from the Joint Staff LAN.You get the point. Would it be possible to find COMINT/COMSEC/SCI/UMBRA type stuff? Maybe. Maybe not. Give it a try if you're so inclined. HINT: I wouldn't go for those from home, if I were going to go for them, which I'm not. (Everyone wave hello to the spooks who read this site.) I don't really care about that stuff. It's more trouble than it's worth, if you ask me. You see, if you actually get something and post it, you just better know exactly what the hell you're doing. In an era when information can cause effects commensurate with rifles, rockets and bombs, you better expect rifles, rockets and bombs to be pointed your way if you start fooling with the wrong information. Indeed, it wouldn't surprise me that if one got a hold of certain information, one would find oneself in an extra-Constitutional, extra-legal situation. At this point, the rule is, there are no rules, in terms of your rights. Be careful, folks. It's all fun and game until.... Of course, John, over at Cryptome will host anything, but he's been door-knocked by the FBI. All you need to find this stuff is a browser, a search engine and some ideas about what to look for. It also helps if you're a complete recluse and have guys in white coats availavle to slide food under your door: Sitting at his laptop, Chris O'Ferrell types a few words into the Google search engine and up pops a link to what appears to be a military document listing suspected Taliban and al Qaeda members, date of birth, place of birth, passport numbers and national identification numbers.
Another search yields a spreadsheet of names and credit card numbers.
"All search engines will get you this," O'Ferrell said, pointing to files of spoils he has found on the Internet: Medical records, bank account numbers, students' grades, and the docking locations of 804 U.S. Navy ships, submarines and destroyers.
And it is all legal, using the world's most powerful Internet search engine.Hint: This google search currently yields some interesting stuff (see time stamp on this post). Results can and will change, your mileage will vary, batteries not included.
posted by Kevin at 3:42 AM
Internet Cafes Required to Conduct Video Surveillance :.A local ordinance requiring Internet cafes to conduct video surveillance of their customers as an anti-gang measure is constitutional, the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled yesterday.
�[W]e are not persuaded the video surveillance system affects First Amendment activity any more than does the presence of an adult employee and/or security guard,� Justice Raymond Ikola wrote for Div. Three.
Ikola was joined by Justice William Bedsworth. But Presiding Justice David Sills sharply dissented, saying Ikola�s view �represents a sad day in the history of civil liberties."Research Credit: AL
posted by Kevin at 3:36 AM
2/9/2004
There Are a Few Other Stories...I just don't have it in me to bother with this thing right now. Don't worry. There will be more tomorrow. Same shit, different day. So, in the meantime, read something from this guy:
posted by Kevin at 3:04 AM
Nevada vs. the Federal Reserve? :.As Insight reports this week, there currently are 60 different forms of currency in circulation throughout the United States, and the reasons for issuing this alternative money are as numerous as the currencies themselves [see "Alternative Money Has Redeeming Value"].
While many have begun using new forms of currency to keep the money within their community, there are others, such as Bernard von NotHaus, founder of the National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve, who are intent on using it to publicize the populist claim that the Federal Reserve is illegitimate. Now it appears that even some states are beginning to question whether the Fed is constitutional.
A bill recently submitted to the Nevada Assembly Committee on Constitutional Amendments directs the issuance of Nevada silver coins.Research Credit: NF
posted by Kevin at 2:57 AM
2/7/2004
President Revises Rationale for War :.This is incredible. Oh, woops: President Bush and Vice President Cheney yesterday said the war in Iraq was justified because Saddam Hussein could have made weapons of mass destruction.
The new rationale offered by the president and vice president, significantly more modest than earlier statements about the deposed Iraqi president's capabilities, comes after government experts have said it is unlikely banned weapons will be found in Iraq and after Bush's naming Friday of a commission to examine faulty prewar intelligence.
"Saddam Hussein was dangerous, and I'm not just going to leave him in power and trust a madman," Bush said yesterday in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" that will be broadcast today. "He's a dangerous man. He had the ability to make weapons at the very minimum."
posted by Kevin at 9:18 PM
False Domain Info May Mean Jail :.I guess I better not break any federal laws! But I think we're all breaking federal laws all day long... who knows which ones??? How about this, I'll put my real information in that thing when monkeys fly out of my ass! You know what, just come and shoot me now. Let's cut the bullshit and get on with it: Congress may crack down on businesses and people who provide false information when they register a website, proposing huge fines and extra jail time for those who violate copyright and trademark law.
Backers say the bill, known as the Fraudulent Online Identity Sanctions Act, targets only those who lie when submitting data to domain-registration databases and then go on to break federal laws.
Some online activists say the law is draconian -- it proposes seven more years in prison for committing a felony if a website with fake contact information is involved. More importantly, activists say, the bill threatens one of the core principles of the Internet: anonymous speech.
posted by Kevin at 4:50 AM
Rumsfeld Summons Entities from His Transdimensional PortalIt may not be real, but I bet it's close:
posted by Kevin at 4:26 AM
Israeli Military War Crime of the Hour: Air Strike Kills 12-Year-Old Boy :.An Israeli helicopter gunship attacked a car carrying members of the Islamic Jihad on a busy Gaza City street on Saturday, killing a 12-year-old boy and wounding 10 people, according to the military and witnesses.
posted by Kevin at 4:10 AM
2/6/2004
noHTML: How to Knee-Cap Outlook 2000 to Improve It :.Have you ever wanted to stop Outlook from displaying HTML based email messages? You know, the ones mostly sent by spammers? Of course, Microsoft doesn't provide you with the option to do this. NoHTML v1.2.0.0 does the trick. Just make sure you read all the info so you don't set yourself up the bomb. I would also recommend Microsoft's own Outlook knee-capping tools to further degrade the potential for Outlook to bring down your entire show. Of course, the best thing to do would be to avoid using any Microsoft products, but that would make too much sense, I guess.
posted by Kevin at 6:41 PM
Why Isn't the Moscow Train Bombing the Top Story? :.It's not that the major media aren't covering the story, but they are giving it "sound bite" type coverage. They are focusing, rather, on the murder of one girl, Carlie Brucia, in Florida. With 39 people slaughtered in a major world capital in a terrorist incident, to be harping on about the Carlie Brucia murder is either criminal negligence or gross incompetence. My theory is that the Moscow train bombing hits too close to home. Seeing dozens of bloody, injured white people stammering around after a bombing, one wonders: how far is the U.S. from Cheney's day of horror? A bomb blew apart a subway car packed with rush hour commuters Friday morning, killing 39 people and wounding more than 130 in the deadliest terrorist attack in Moscow since Russia launched its second war in Chechnya in 1999.
President Vladimir Putin blamed Chechen separatists, although it was unclear whether the blast was the work of a suicide bomber or someone who merely placed a device on the train as it left the station.
"Russia doesn't conduct negotiations with terrorists - it destroys them," Putin said, adding that the attack appeared aimed at sowing discord before next month's presidential election.
posted by Kevin at 1:12 PM
Spooks on Board at Google! :.WOW! It reads like standard .com BS, reminiscent of the late 1990s... but this isn't the 1990s. Hey, at least this job won't go to India. HAHAHA! Is anyone aware of any open source search projects (not dmoz), possibly using massively distributed p2p technology, to get around the memory hole forming at Google? One search engine to rule them all? Deployment Engineer (with security clearance)
Reply to: Google
Date: Wed Oct 2nd 2002
Position based in United States Northeast Coast or Washington D.C. Area
Are you a Linux/Unix technical guru who wants to have a chance to work directly with customers? Do you have a passion for hands-on technical problem solving? Are you eager to make things work better for our customers? If your answers are YES, and you have solid experience in Internet application/system engineering and Unix System Administration, this unique opportunity is what you are looking for. This position will help you to advance your engineering career with a challenge like you have not experienced before. You will interact with corporate customer engineering personnel, and tackle a variety of fun and challenging system engineering or administration issues on daily basis. You will continue to expand your engineering/technical skills with a business savvy edge. Although East coast based, you will be a contributing member of the team based in the Corporate Headquarters, and work with the team to complete projects as necessary.
Please email us if you are interested in being a key contributor to the Google Search Appliance product's success.
Responsibilities will include:
Provide on-site support in system configuration, network setup, replication and diagnosis of customer problems.
Conduct face-to-face training for the Google Search Appliance product.
Hands-on testing and certification the Google Search Appliance for delivery
Provide technical assistance and consulting service.
Provide the software development and product management teams with feedback on the product (manageability, supportability, robustness, functionality, etc.)
Provide support and troubleshooting 24x7 on a rotation basis.
Develop training presentation materials and document detail incident reports.
50% domestic travel
Qualifications:
BS degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
Must have current government top security clearance (TS/SI).
Must have 5+ years industry experience in Unix system administration, professional service engineering, or system engineering.
Significant direct experience implementing, troubleshooting and supporting Linux/Unix operating system, Internet based applications, Apache web server, and java application servers.
Solid understanding of web technologies, Internet Protocol and Linux/Unix system administration.
Strong knowledge of XML/XSLT, regular expressions, scripting in some admin language (Perl, Python, JavaScript) and modification in web applications.
Experience with training materials and support documentation development is preferred.
Past experience with network appliance technical support is a plus.
Characteristics:
Enthusiasm for problem solving and the ability to work independently and rapidly.
Outstanding account management and follow-through skills, resourceful and detail oriented.
Must be sensitive to sales situations, and able to interface with sales managers, and engineering.
Excellent customer skills, and able to work in very stressful customer situations.
Strong organizational and communication skills in both verbal and written.
Must be customer oriented, team player, self-motivator, and able to hit the ground running.
posted by Kevin at 2:01 AM
2/5/2004
The U.S. Job Machine Is Broken :.The jobless recovery we're now in is unlike anything the American economy has ever seen. Typically, the Great American Job Machine energizes our economy. New jobs beget more income, which begets more spending, which begets more hiring, incomes and spending. What we're seeing now, however, suggests that there may be something fundamentally wrong in the engine room of the American economy.
In the recoveries of the mid-1970s and 1980s, America was generating about 300,000 new jobs a month within six months of cyclical upturns. In the early 1990s, this expansion slowed to about 200,000 a month, and we had to wait a full two years for that.
This time, we have seen not a deceleration in job creation, but a net loss - the sharpest in any period since the Great Depression, especially in manufacturing. No work and not much in the way of wage increases either. Ouch!
What's going on? International competition and outsourcing have hit some sectors hard. In the past decade, China became the world's workshop. In this decade, India is becoming the world's back office. Cheap bandwidth and the Internet permit companies to tap into a huge supply of English-speaking, educated, dedicated workers, happy to take knowledge-based jobs for 10% to 20% of what American employees receive.
"Offshoring" is moving up the food chain of services to include professions like engineering, design, accounting, legal work, actuarial and insurance work, medical services and financial analysis.
That's why virtually all the jobs created in the latter part of 2003 were concentrated in the most sheltered segments of the workforce. It also explains why some 80% of the 2.5 million manufacturing jobs lost are gone for good. The result is that too many of America's jobs today cannot support a full household, at least at the level that most people feel appropriate to a middle-class lifestyle.
posted by Kevin at 5:51 PM
H.R. 3439 Would Embed CIA Employees within Police Departments! :.Cops can also work for the CIA. At the moment, the status of this thing is, "Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security." This is an extremely troubling development. We will have to keep an eye on this: SEC. 4. DETAIL PROGRAM FOR STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL TO THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.
The Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. 403a et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
`DETAIL OF EMPLOYEES WITH STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
`SEC. 23. (a) DETAIL- Notwithstanding any other provision of law--
`(1) upon request of the head of State or local law enforcement agency, the Director of Central Intelligence may detail any employee within the Central Intelligence Agency to that State or local law enforcement agency on a nonreimbursable basis; and
`(2) subject to the approval of the Director of Central Intelligence, the head of a State or local law enforcement agency may detail any employee of that State or local law enforcement agency to the Central Intelligence Agency on a reimbursable basis.Research Credit: BW
posted by Kevin at 3:51 PM
Apple Plays Big Brother :.Pretty good video. Hope you have broadband...
posted by Kevin at 1:08 AM
Bush Makes Comparison to Churchill :.I almost choked on my cheap wine when I read this one! Are clothespins issued to the people in the audience before a speech like this, or do they just hold their noses with their fingers? President Bush yesterday defended his decision to go to war against Iraq and compared it with the challenges Winston Churchill faced in World War II and the early stages of the Cold War.
"In some ways, our current struggles or challenges are similar to those Churchill knew," Bush said in a speech at a Library of Congress exhibit honoring Britain's famous wartime prime minister. "We are the heirs of the tradition of liberty, defenders of the freedom, the conscience and the dignity of every person."
posted by Kevin at 12:45 AM
2/4/2004
Bin Laden: "Obviously, He�ll be Caught Between Now and the Election" :.Obviously: He doesn�t bother to attend secret CIA briefings of his fellow senators because he seldom learns anything he hasn�t read in the newspapers, but Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is convinced the U.S. will track down the elusive mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks before November.
"Obviously, he�ll be caught between now and the election," Grassley said Monday when asked if he�s disappointed that Osama bin Laden hasn�t been killed or captured.
posted by Kevin at 1:35 PM
How About that Cisco?One day loss of 9%. And Ciena, down almost 18%. HAHAHA. What a scam. Just wait.
posted by Kevin at 1:27 PM
Cable Spools in Path of 9/11 Pentagon Attack "Aircraft"? :.Something is so wrong with that Pentagon thing, I don't even know what to say: Would you expect anything less from the makers of the most resilient lawn in the world?!
posted by Kevin at 3:07 AM
The Race to the Rainbow Bridge :.Excellent article by John Kaminski: Capitalism has failed because it relies on slums in which to dump its failed products, as well as an unregulated fluidity at the top with which to constantly bail us out of our busted budgets. A socialist system has never failed to overcome the temptations of privilege and authority, and tyrannical corruption has always evolved out of noble intentions for the masses in the administrative processes of collectivized wealth disbursal.
No system of government ever devised on this planet has ever truly placed control of its resources in the hands of its community. Corruption has always prevailed, and quicker minds have always managed to make off with the loot and let the masses starve. Real wealth always remains in the hands of the privileged few. There is no clearer example of how our religions have failed us. They have all been bought off by secular authorities in exchange for the state- protected right to fleece their flocks.
We cannot authentically aspire to real freedom as long as the money supply remains in the hands of a few rich men. As long as it does, we have zero power over the events and processes that control our lives.
posted by Kevin at 2:59 AM
2/3/2004
The Dollar's Dangerous Path :.Would I make it as a "legitimate" journalist (if there is such a thing)? The only difference between what follows and what I've been saying for months is that this guy doesn't swear: A stronger yen, or a weaker dollar, is a drag on Japan's export-led economic recovery. Trying to stem the tide, the government often steps into currency markets on a massive scale. Market players, however, worry that these dollar-buying, yen-selling interventions could be putting the Japanese and U.S. economies on a dangerous path: A falling dollar, should it continue, would open a Pandora's box on both sides, with dire implications for the world economy.
The theory goes something like this: America's "twin deficits" -- in the federal government budget and in the current-account international payments balance (mostly the trade deficit) -- continue to mushroom as President George W. Bush's administration pushes ahead with aggressive economic stimulus measures, such as huge tax cuts. As a result, investors and traders are coming around increasingly to the view that the greenback is in for a further fall.
The twin deficits are already ballooning to an all-time record: roughly $500 billion a year each. Add to this the low savings rate, or the small reserve of surplus domestic funds, and there emerges a precarious picture of the world's largest economy growing on the back of borrowed foreign money. A large-scale flight of capital may choke off growth.
posted by Kevin at 6:54 PM
Ricin Scare :.The situation in Iraq is falling apart, U.S. officials knew there were no WMD in Iraq, the U.S. federal budget has more red ink than a slaughterhouse floor has blood, and India is the new Silicon Valley... Que up the envelopes full of deadly bioweapons material made at Fort Detrick, Maryland: Following the discovery of the deadly toxin ricin in the mailroom of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, much of the Senate complex will be shut down Tuesday, the Senate Web site said.
"The Capitol will be open for essential personnel only. All tours will be canceled until further notice. Senate office buildings will be closed today. This includes the Hart, Dirksen, and Russell Senate Office Buildings," according to a statement on the Web page.
Tests on a white powdery substance found in the mailroom indicate the presence of ricin, U.S. Capitol Police Chief Terrance Gainer and Frist said late Monday.
Frist said he considers the incident a "terrorist activity."
posted by Kevin at 4:48 AM
1984 in 2004: Apple Users' Disgust at RIAA's Pepsi Child Ad :.I covered this yesterday. You can watch the ad here. I can't believe this is real. HA! DRM, the choice of a dumb generation! What a world...here I am a very long time dedicated Mac user (there are currently 5 late model Macs in the house)......I own maclovers.org, and yet Apple has again participated in an undefendable act.
-Eric Cohen
Your article was an excellent accounting of the Pepsi/Apple ads run during yesterday's SuperBowl! I was shocked that they would go that far to hock sugar water. Nice job!
-Linda Kimmelman
America is definitely NOT a civilized country. I thought it before. Now I'm sure!
-Jean-Dominique Veuve
Steve Jobs really has sold his soul to the RIAA... I hope he at least gets something in return. Like going to hell for it.
-Jeff Schwartz
posted by Kevin at 4:22 AM
2/2/2004
Cryptogon XML Feed Active
cryptogon feed
Many of you asked for it. A couple of you begged for it. Well, I finally have a news feed! Blogger implemented a content aggregation system called Atom. Whether or not this feed is compatible with your feedreader is a different matter. Here are the clients Atom has listed on their site. Please, no bitching, moaning or complaining if this doesn't work with your kEwl37337 feedreader. Chances are, the issues will be ironed out after the next version of your reader is released. Until then, use an Atom capable reader, or keep ingesting my bloviation the old fashioned way (slider bar, down arrow key, scroll wheel).
posted by Kevin at 5:41 AM
Double Jeopardy for Kids Caught in Pepsi Apple Promo :.Wow, I really missed out on some good stuff by NOT watching the Stupor Bowl! One of Janet Jackson's fake tits. Dogs biting men's crotches. Hard-on pills. Oh man, good stuff! And then there was the commercial jointly produced by Apple, Pepsi and the RIAA. (Did this actually air?) You might want to teach your kids how to properly configure the family firewall so inbound connections from local, state, federal and corporate pig agencies are refused! Keeping your IP shitlist up to date is useful and fun for whole family! That assclown, Steve Jobs, can line up to kiss it with the rest of them: Four children bullied by the Recording Industry Association of America will re-enact their shame for tens of millions of TV viewers today, at the behest of two giant American corporations: Apple Computer and Pepsi Cola Inc.
Instead of using actors to dramatize their shame, the RIAA, Apple and Pepsi have forced the children themselves to conform with the copyright regime, and to look suitably browbeaten as a series of captions reads: INCRIMINATED � ACCUSED � BUSTED � CHARGED.
Is this a medieval costume drama? A low-budget dramatization of some era of America's dark and troubled past, recorded by Hawthorne, when public humiliations were commonplace? Or is it some strange and sadistic imported Japanese game show - the kind where people assent to be filmed eating worms?
No, it's a home-grown artifact which will be broadcast at great expense across the nation during the annual US Superbowl sport event today. The advertisement features four victims of the RIAA's legal jihad wearing the Scarlet Letter of their own shame for the benefit of the TV cameras - and quite disgustingly, the RIAA insisted that the agency couldn't hire stand-in actors to replay the script, insisting that the 'perpetrators' play themselves : a move which is likely to go down in history as one of the greatest public relations disasters in history.Research Credit: DG
posted by Kevin at 5:15 AM
Growing Up Corporate: Tremor.com Creates Armies of Teenage Marketroid Zombies :.Raise your children without television. Show them why they need to be leery of corporations, their products and their statements. De-school them. Teach them that they should use real-life experiences, personal relationships and thoughtful reflection to define their own reality. (I would also suggest healthy lessons on subversion and insurgency, with live-fire practice every week, but, hey, that's why I don't have children.) The puke spewing from these corporate PSYOPS factories is destroying the world, one child at a time: Procter & Gamble has assembled a stealth sales force of teenagers--280,000 strong--to push products on friends and family. A brilliant move--or marketing gone amok?
Caitlin Jones is Hollywood's kind of pitch gal. Several months ago the 16-year-old received an e-mail announcing DreamWorks SKG's new teen flick, Win A Date With Tad Hamilton!, and was asked to help the studio pick the movie's logo. A few weeks later when she went to a movie theater, she was thrilled to see a trailer for the film and discover that they'd picked the logo she liked. "Oh, my God," she told a friend who was sitting next to her, "I voted for that logo!" She beamed. "So they do listen. It does matter."More: From Tremor.com's Info Page :.How Does It Work?
Tremor targets viral teens or Connectors with unique word-of-mouth Messaging to create Advocacy and Amplification.
Target the Connectors
The viral teens who are:
� Connected to multiple social networks
� Love to talk about ideas and products
The �crew� is a proprietary panel of 200,000+ teen connectors who have a relationship with Tremor. They have been screened, and they have �opted in� to Tremor.
They have been recruited with the promise of early access to new products and ideas, and they possess the ability to influence the market place.Research Credit: KH
posted by Kevin at 5:13 AM
2/1/2004
More Robots Headed to the Battlefield :.How about clean water, air and food before any more resources are spent on killer robots/robots that assist with killing?! I know. Crazy talk: The eight-wheeled Stryker has already seen service in Iraq as an armored troop carrier with human drivers. The idea is to teach Stryker to accomplish a mission on its own, as a robot. By 2010, robotic Strykers and similar contrivances are slated to be in use as all-purpose battlefield vehicles, surveying battlegrounds, sniffing for land mines, or transporting supplies and troops to the front line.If we don't stop this nonsense of hooking up AI to weapon systems, your kids might just have a run-in with this thing. More crazy talk, you say? Yes, well, it's all fun and games until you meet the robotic military bulldozer, or the video enabled gun that allows the shooter to fire from around corners. Nope, this stuff doesn't look much like the Terminator. Not yet. Military scientists (and their minions in business and academia) are feverishly working on various technologies that are allowing for the creation of self aware, killer robots. The pieces of the puzzle are mostly separate now (the AI isn't good enough yet, power sources are a problem, locomotion needs much more work), but with each passing day, watch as the systems become more refined and integrated. Note the increasing ubiquity of robots in surveillance, police and military roles. If humans manage to escape extermination via genetic engineering mishaps, nuclear/chemical/biological weapons and/or manmade environmental collapse over the next fifty years, what do you think the military robots will look like then? Does the Terminator analogy still sound nuts?
posted by Kevin at 5:00 AM
Linux: The Rebel Alliance :.Good introduction to Linux. Suitable for reading by normals. It's also set in my favorite state, Oregon.
posted by Kevin at 4:07 AM
The Super Bowl Commercial CBS Won't Allow You to See :.You guys probably know about this one, but here it is again, just in case: During this year's Super Bowl, you'll see ads sponsored by beer companies, tobacco companies, and the Bush White House. But you won't see the winning ad in MoveOn.org Voter Fund's Bush in 30 Seconds ad contest. CBS refuses to air it. This is not a partisan issue. It's critical that our media institutions be fair and open to all speakers. CBS is setting a dangerous precedent, and unless we speak up, the pattern may continue.
posted by Kevin at 3:13 AM
Any Speculation on These .Mil Hits?Usually, when Uncle reads Cryptogon, he shows up one session at a time. Today, I noticed this: Sat Jan 31 04 08:37:07 PM cryptogon.com/2003_03_23_blogarchive.html Direct Access 198.26.119.86 BELVOIR-SUN2.IERN.DISA.MIL MSIE 6.0 - Win NT 800x600 16 M colors
Sat Jan 31 04 08:37:05 PM no entry page detected unable to detect referrer (JavaScript not enabled in visitor's browser) 198.26.119.85 WCS2-BELVOIR.NIPR.MIL Netcape 3.0
Sat Jan 31 04 08:37:05 PM no entry page detected unable to detect referrer (JavaScript not enabled in visitor's browser) 198.26.119.84 BELVOIR-SUN1.IERN.DISA.MIL Netcape 3.0Is there any speculation out there as to why three sessions would open up, almost simultaneously, from three different IP address on the disa.mil domain? The first two hits appear to be from some kind of proxy server or robot. The third (top entry) reports itself as being a Microsoft browser running on Windows, but who knows what that thing actually is... Also interesting, note the last octet on each IP. They are sequential: 84, 85, 86. I know what you guys are thinking, "Someone needs to slide Kevin's food under the door and give him some aluminum foil to wrap around his head (shiny side out)." Fine, point taken, but what is this!? In case you don't know, disa.mil is the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency.
posted by Kevin at 1:39 AM
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:. Reading
 Fatal
Harvest: The Tragedy of Industrial Agriculture by Andrew Kimbrell
Readers will come to see
that industrial food production is indeed a "fatal harvest"
- fatal to consumers, as pesticide residues and new disease vectors
such as E. coli and "mad cow disease" find their way
into our food supply; fatal to our landscapes, as chemical runoff
from factory farms poison our rivers and groundwater; fatal to
genetic diversity, as farmers rely increasingly on high-yield
monocultures and genetically engineered crops; and fatal to our
farm communities, which are wiped out by huge corporate
farms.
 Friendly
Fascism: The New Face of Power in America by Bertram Myron Gross
This is a relatively
short but extremely cogent and well-argued treatise on the rise
of a form of fascistic thought and social politics in late 20th
century America. Author Bertram Gross' thesis is quite straightforward;
the power elite that comprises the corporate, governmental and
military superstructure of the country is increasingly inclined
to employ every element in their formidable arsenal of 'friendly
persuasion' to win the hearts and minds of ordinary Americans
through what Gross refers to as friendly fascism.
 The
Good Life
by Scott and Helen Nearing Helen
and Scott Nearing are the great-grandparents of the back-to-the-land
movement, having abandoned the city in 1932 for a rural life based
on self-reliance, good health, and a minimum of cash...Fascinating,
timely, and wholly useful, a mix of the Nearings' challenging
philosophy and expert counsel on practical skills.
 Silent
Theft: The Private Plunder of Our Common Wealth by David Bollierd
In Silent Theft, David Bollier
argues that a great untold story of our time is the staggering
privatization and abuse of our common wealth. Corporations are
engaged in a relentless plunder of dozens of resources that we
collectively own—publicly funded medical breakthroughs,
software innovation, the airwaves, the public domain of creative
works, and even the DNA of plants, animals and humans. Too often,
however, our government turns a blind eye—or sometimes helps
give away our assets. Amazingly,
the silent theft of our shared wealth has gone largely unnoticed
because we have lost our ability to see the commons.
 The
Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It: The Complete Back-To-Basics
Guide by John Seymour The
Self Sufficient Life and How to Live It is the only book that
teaches all the skills needed to live independently in harmony
with the land harnessing natural forms of energy, raising crops
and keeping livestock, preserving foodstuffs, making beer and
wine, basketry, carpentry, weaving, and much more.
 When
Corporations Rule the World by David C. Korten
When Corporations
Rule the World explains how economic globalization has concentrated
the power to govern in global corporations and financial markets
and detached them from accountability to the human interest. It
documents the devastating human and environmental consequences
of the successful efforts of these corporations to reconstruct
values and institutions everywhere on the planet to serve their
own narrow ends.
 The
New Organic Grower: A Master's Manual of Tools and Techniques
for the Home and Market Gardener
This expansion
of a now-classic guide originally published in 1989 is intended
for the serious gardener or small-scale market farmer. It describes
practical and sustainable ways of growing superb organic vegetables,
with detailed coverage of scale and capital, marketing, livestock,
the winter garden, soil fertility, weeds, and many other
topics.
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