Monthly Archives: December 2005

Where have conservatives gone?

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Atrios says the news today is a test, because anyone that claims to stand for the principals of conservatism should be up in arms over it.

Well here’s California Conservative: Homeland Security: Spies & Lies:If eavesdropping on our thrilling telephone conversations, listening to us rant about politics or use vulgar epithets in reference to certain public officials, is required to prevent another 9/11, “bring it on.” We got nothing to hide. Who does?

Is this the real face of conservatism these days? Is the party of small government is now the party of big brother? The next few days will be telling.

Anyway, make sure to read the Washington Post: Bush Authorized Domestic Spying and the NYTimes: Bush Lets U.S. Spy on Callers Without Courts.

It’s not like folks didn’t suspect this wasn’t the case already, but why did it take so long for it to be reported? Will Bunch has a theory.

I hate ‘stop energy’

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I have a bit of a broader definition then Dave Winer who coined the term: Stop Energy is not reasoned, it never takes into account the big picture, it is the mirror image of Forward Motion. In the Stop Energy model, everyone, no matter how small their stake in a technology, has the power to veto. Nothing ever gets done, and people who want to move forward are frustrated in every attempt to move. Unfortunately, Stop Energy is the rule, not the exception.

Stop Energy, to me, is defined by one or more persons using fear, uncertainty and doubt to draw energy from one or more persons attempting something positive – especially when there is room for more than one effort or approach – and especially when solutions are not agreed upon.

That’s what I saw spring up in response to Structured Blogging‘s announcement of plugins for WordPress and Moveable Type. There maybe interesting arguments as to why it might not fly – but in this instance – the only way to find is by trying.

I’m biased of course. I think microformats and ideas similar will enable community empowering tools in the future. So I think the work of Shelley Powers and others holds a lot of promise. I can’t wait to experiment honestly.

On Elections

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While democracy is taking hold in Iraq, it might be a good time to look at matters…errr…. closer to home….? Ehh?

Miami Herald.com: 12/15/05: New tests fuel doubts about vote machines: Ion Sancho, Leon County’s election chief, said tests by two computer experts, completed this week, showed that an insider could surreptitiously change vote results and the number of ballots cast on Diebold’s optical-scan machines. After receiving county commission approval Tuesday, Sancho scrapped Diebold’s system for one made by Elections Systems and Software, the same provider used by Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The difference between the systems: Sancho’s machines use a fill-in-the-blank paper ballot that allows for after-the-fact manual recounts, while Broward and Miami-Dade use ATM-like touchscreens that leave no paper trail.

SecurityFocus: 12/15/05: Diebold troubled by e-voting security: Computer scientists have questioned both the reliability and security of the systems, as well as pointing out that the confusing and secretive certification process made testing of the systems is essentially meaningless.

Yahoo! Press Release: 12/14/05: Stull, Stull & Brody Announces Class Action Against Diebold Inc.: The complaint alleges that defendants violated provisions of the United States securities laws causing artificial inflation of the Company’s stock price.

BlackBoxVoting: 12/13/05: Devastating hack proven: Finnish security expert Harri Hursti, together with Black Box Voting, demonstrated that Diebold made misrepresentations to Secretaries of State across the nation when Diebold claimed votes could not be changed on the “memory card” (the credit-card-sized ballot box used by computerized voting machines.

Slashdot: 12/13/05: Diebold CEO Resigns Under Cloud: Discussion on his resignation.

AP: 12/12/05: O’Dell Resigns As Diebold CEO, Chairman: Diebold Inc., a maker of automatic teller machines, said Monday that Chairman and Chief Executive Walden W. O’Dell has resigned “for personal reasons.”

philly: 12/05/05: Diebold in North Carolina II: Updates from Albert on North Carolina

EFF: 12/8/05: North Carolina Sued for Illegally Certifying Voting Equipment: The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) on Thursday filed a complaint against the North Carolina Board of Elections and the North Carolina Office of Information Technology Services on behalf of voting integrity advocate Joyce McCloy, asking that the Superior Court void the recent illegal certification of three electronic voting systems.

Wired: 11/29/05: Another Blow to E-Voting Company: One of the nation’s leading suppliers of electronic voting machines may decide against selling new equipment in North Carolina after a judge declined Monday to protect it from criminal prosecution should it fail to disclose software code as required by state law.

philly: 11/29/05: Diebold in North Carolina: Albert’s thoughts on what was occuring in North Carolina at the time.

Metafilter: 11/16/05: Deafening silence over GAO e-voting report, new evidence of abuse: Ultimately, there is no real security on these machines; the report shows that overturning election results would not be at all difficult for even a single moderately skilled attacker.

Brad Friedman: 11/3/05: Mainstream Media to American Democracy: Drop Dead:t’s been a full two weeks now since the non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO came out with their 107-page report [PDF] confirming what so many of us have been trying to ring the bell about for so long: The Electronic Voting Machines which are proliferating counties and states across America even as I type, are not secure, not accountable, not recountable, not transparent, not accurate and not adequately monitored or certified by anybody.

truthout: 10/21/05: GAO Report Finds Flaws in Electronic Voting: GAO report summary

First the dishwasher goes, then the furnace, and then ya get…

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A kidney stone! My first and I hope only. This week, from Sunday on, has been ummm… memorable. Sunday our dishwasher decided it was time to check out, it was over twenty years old, and was acting weird these past few weeks, but I loved the thing’s look and charm.. anyways, it died on Sunday, not really a big deal. Always could wash dishes by hand. But then the furnace goes haywire. Turns out it was a circuit board related to the igniter. While that was getting fixed yesterday (just in time for today – but the last couple nights have been nothing to sneeze at), I was in the hospital with a kidney stone.

Got a new dishwasher, furnace is working great (I can take a shower this morning without flashbacks to the squat I lived in), and I’m alive!

Yesterday was crazy. Went to work as I always do, read some email, checked PF, opened Newsgator, got to Scripting News, and then… the pain in my left side was worst then I could describe – deep inside – like an organ was being squeezed.

I have Spondylolisthesis, and at first I thought it was simply a case of it getting worst – I have pain from it I deal with everyday, I don’t talk about it much. It’s just a reality of life to deal with. This, however, didn’t feel muscle or bone related. My family doctor agreed to take me at 1PM. Far away from center city, near Willow Grove. I made it there, coping with the pain using similar mental exercises I use for the spondi.

My doctor at first thought it was back spasms, but the urine analysis said otherwise – lots of blood cells – and she had me rush to the ER. By the time I got there, the pain was subsiding, coming in waves instead of constant pressure. The doctor there said it was probably a kidney stone, based on diagnosis – but that I didn’t look like someone having them – bent over crying in pain. Well inside I was. And earlier in the day, at work, I know I looked terrible.

A short time after arriving at the ER it passed. Around the size of the large end of a sesame seed. So damn small. According to the docs, however it wasn’t. Didn’t need a filter to see that thing. I have it now to send to a urologist if my family doctor thinks I should go. Piss, blood, and a pebble. How pleasant.

Speaking of piss and blood, the pissing match between John Harris, Jim Brady and Dan Froomkin at the Washington Post, is fascinating. More here. What’s for sure is Dan Froomkin is now an online star. Where’s his RSS feed?

Heh, anyway – this will be a good day. Damn straight.

Why not free voice mail?

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A service like the following would have been very helpful when I was homeless. I had to convince someone to act as my “residence” and answering service. It was a crucial part in finding stable work. In fact, I believe it helped me land my job at Sears. The rest is, as they say, history.

Community Voice Mail provides voicemail for those in need. It’s inspiring.

There’s free email, so why not free voice mail? Especially for those that need it most.

Another part of my success was making sure I always had transportation – a monthly SEPTA transpass. It was a major expense that was very much worth it. You never knew if there was a job opportunity someplace, and having the transpass insured I had a way to get there, along with, for a period of time once, a place to sleep. It would be a worthy effort make available transpasses for those who need them.

Om Malik Vs. Steve Case

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Break up Time Warner… or not?

Steve Case: Washington Post: It’s Time to Take It Apart:

…Although I played a key role in bringing AOL and Time Warner together six years ago, it’s now my view that it would be best to “undo” the merger by splitting Time Warner into several independent companies and allowing AOL to set off on its own path. Here’s why.

…Time Warner has proven to be too big, too complex, too conflicted and too slow-moving — in other words, too much like a classic conglomerate — to seize new opportunities….

Om Malik: Ed Tu Steve Case?:

How can he be suggesting the break-up strategy by looking at the past, when the future is finally beginning to align with Time Warner. How many time does one have to point to at Rupert Murdoch and predict the future? Time Warner, despite AOL is the only company which has it all, and can basically benefit if it plays its cards right.

…In short, Time Warner reminds me that childhood tale – where five sticks when bound together, are unbreakable. When separated the sticks can be broken into little pieces. I hope Time Warner folks don’t pay attention to these forces who want to break up the company. Last company that followed the advice of carpet baggers, AT&T, ended up as a footnote in history. Michael Armstrong’s vision of a four-play – phone, TV, broadband and wireless- was right, but he did not have the desire to stand up to the Wall Street and a few individuals. Now everyone is indulging in four play. I think TW learn from that.

Yahoo and Six Apart form partnership

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Reuters: Yahoo offers Movable Type for bloggers:

Yahoo Inc. and Six Apart Ltd., creator of Movable Type — the most popular software used to create professional blogs — said on Sunday Yahoo will be the preferred supplier of Movable Type for small businesses.

The partnership is the latest in a string of deals by the world’s largest Internet media company as it seeks to embrace so-called “social media,” the new generation of Web sites that encourage Internet users to share written text, photos and videos.

Smart.

Oh no… a mess of links…

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The following are just some items that caught my interest that I’m not talking about at Philly Future. Before I run off, let me recommend catching “Walk The Line”. A powerful movie on many, many levels. Richelle and I saw it the day before our anniversary, and it fit. See Hurt at VH1. It’s getting harder and harder to find this online, which is a shame, considering that this video, and his cover of the NIN original, moved me more musically, than anything in years. How does it make you feel when you watch and hear it?

A letter to the President

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Before you get in an uproar – this was not written by me – it was emailed to me. After looking up the passages in the Old Testament, and linking to them, it became quite thought provoking. In light of the news that certain chuches will be closed on Christmas… well I couldn’t help but post this.

This is probably a version of the oldie but goodie “Why Can’t I Own a Canadian?”

Anyways….

Dear President Bush,
Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God’s Law. I have learned a great deal from you and understand why you would propose and support a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage. As you said, “in the eyes of God marriage is based between a man a woman.” I try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination… End of debate. I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God’s Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can’t I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanness – Lev15: 19-24. The problem is how do tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord – Lev.1:9. The problem is, my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them . Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination – Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don’t agree. Can you settle this? Are there ‘degrees’ of abomination?

7. Lev.21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev.19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev. 24:10-16. Couldn’t we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I am confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God’s word is eternal and unchanging.