Archive for government
I stumbled on this article today and I must admit it’s hilarious:
John McCain doesn’t use e-mail. So it was downright odd to see one of his aides hold up a BlackBerry on Tuesday and claim that the Arizona senator somehow deserves credit for its existence.
“He did this,” economic policy adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin told reporters, referring to a BlackBerry, according to a report on Politico.com. “Telecommunications of the United States is a premier innovation in the past 15 years, comes right through the Commerce Committee. So you’re looking at the miracle John McCain helped create and that’s what he did.”
This may join the ranks of the-Internet-is-too-hard-to-use statements personally made by the Republican candidate, including this remarkable admission from July: “I am learning to get online myself, and I will have that down fairly soon, getting on myself. I don’t expect to be a great communicator, I don’t expect to set up my own blog, but I am becoming computer literate to the point where I can get the information that I need–including going to my daughter’s blog first, before anything else.”
And then there was the rather sad claim, captured on video, from a campaign representative that “John McCain is aware of the Internet.” Plus McCain’s statement early this year that: “I am an illiterate that has to rely on my wife” for the Internet, presumably meaning such taxing matters as visiting a Web site.
Holtz-Eakin’s unfortunate improvisation is likely to add to the narrative of a presidential candidate out of touch with technology, just as Al Gore’s improvident boast about “creating” the Internet reinforced suspicions that the vice president liked to exaggerate his accomplishments.
[...]
The McCain campaign fell into that trap this week. If Gore could take credit for “creating” the Internet, then why can’t ex-Senate Commerce Committee Chairman McCain claim credit for “creating” the BlackBerry, never mind that it was developed by a Canadian company? Or Wi-Fi, which the McCain campaign also seemed to do this week? Or, for that matter, every computer and technological gadget used today? McCain, the father of the iPhone, anyone?
Of course the adviser wasn’t referring to the BlackBerry itself, but it doesn’t change the fact that John McCain isn’t aware of what’s happening in the technology world today and I guess it wasn’t that different 15 years ago…
Oh and there’s also the fact that Research In Motion is a Canadian company.
I love that one: Soldiers Say Porn Ban May Hurt Morale
GRAFENWOHR, Germany — Legislation that would restrict the sale of certain men’s magazines on U.S. military bases around the world would be bad for morale, according to soldiers at Grafenwöhr.
U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., has introduced legislation that would close a loophole in the current law that allows the sale of some sexually explicit material on military bases by lowering the threshold required to deem material “sexually explicit.”
A Department of Defense committee that reviews materials sold on bases ruled last year that magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse are not pornographic. But Broun’s Military Honor and Decency Act includes language that could make those magazines eligible for the ban.
The main argument about this is that allowing the sale of pornography on military bases has harmed military men and women by escalating the number of violent and sexual crimes.
Are we really having a debate about allowing pornography or not in the military bases? Don’t we have more important problems to solve? I think banning pornography in military bases will just make the situation go worst. I mean, porn is so accessible nowadays, if there’s a link between pornography and sexual crimes we have to solve the core of that problem and banning pornography won’t help.
I just feel we try to solve a serious and complex problem (sexual crimes in military bases) with a simple and ineffective solution that can possibly bring negative consequences. The problem is much more complex than that…
These people go to war, have a dangerous job and are away from their family sometimes for long period, can’t they have a little treat sometimes?
Anyway, another example of a complex problem “solved” with restrictive measures that will have absolutely not effect.
Still while browsing today I came across this interesting post:
If you can adequately outline what this program does, please email me, X@X.com. The entire program runs 41 single spaced pages, too large for here, but I’ll gladly upload entirety to all takers. I believe it is evidence of illegal FBI data harvesting from ALL Windows based computers as this log was generated from a computer never on the internet. Notice it also mentions ‘CIA section’. I’d also guess this is part of the US government TIA program, outlawed by Congress but nevertheless initiated by the current bunch of rats at the helm….let me know.
REGFIX: Batch file processing initiated.
REGFIX: Updating arbitrators…
REGFIX: Deleting original values…
…
REGFIX: Replace %PNP0C02% … “*PNP0C0210″
REGFIX: Replace %PNP0C02% … “*PNP0C0211″
REGFIX: Importing new values…
REGFIX: Looking for device file… “80861229.REG”
REGFIX: Looking for device file… “80867124.REG”
REGFIX: Looking for device file… “80867125.REG”
REGFIX: Looking for device file… “80862418.REG”
REGFIX: Looking for device file… “80862410.REG”
REGFIX: Batch file processing completed.
******************************************************
FBI StartUp at ->Wed Sep 05 23:46:26 2001<- aka ->999751586
This should be the first start of FBI - 1.20.14
SM v1.04.2
Log started on Wed Sep 05 23:46:26 2001
[23:46:26.600] attempting to merge autotest.ini file defined as ->A:AUTOTEST.INI
[23:46:26.660] FBI is starting in Retail mode
[23:46:26.660] Loading Internal FBI Toolbox functions
[23:46:26.660] LoadFBIInt15 - FBIInt15.VxD load Successful
[23:46:26.710] LoadFBIKB_95 - FBIKB_95.VxD load Successful
[23:46:26.710] OpenFBIKB_95() - FBIKB_95.VxD driver loaded->CMD14 ->WriteUIAErrorCode
In that situation, FBI stands for File Based Installer and is packaged on HP computers. I believe that’s mostly how 99% of conspiracy theories get started. Somebody who doesn’t have a single clue what he’s talking about think everyone is watching him just because FBI appears on a couple of lines of code on his computer.
Sure, FBI would clearly name their programs running on your computer “FBI”. They are that stupid.
Where is this world going…
Text of President Bush on Wednesday, as provided by the White House.
Director, thank you for joining me. Good morning. At this moment, somewhere in the world, terrorists are planning new attacks on our country. Their goal is to bring destruction to our shores that will make September the 11th pale by comparison. To carry out their plans, they must communicate with each other, they must recruit operatives, and they must share information.
The lives of countless Americans depend on our ability to monitor these communications. Our intelligence professionals must be able to find out who the terrorists are talking to, what they are saying, and what they’re planning.
To help our intelligence agencies do this, Congress passed the Protect America Act last year. Unfortunately, Congress set the law to expire on February 1st — and then failed to pass new legislation that would keep these tools in effect over the long run. And so at the 11th hour, Congress passed a temporary 15-day extension of the current law which will expire at midnight this Saturday. I signed that extension. I did so to give members of the House and Senate more time to work out their differences.
Well, the Senate has used this time wisely. I am pleased that last night, senators approved new legislation that will ensure our intelligence professionals have the tools they need to make us safer — and they did so by a wide, bipartisan majority. The Senate bill also provides fair and just liability protections for companies that did the right thing and assisted in defending America after the attacks of September the 11th.
In order to be able to discover enemy — the enemy’s plans, we need the cooperation of telecommunication companies. If these companies are subjected to lawsuits that could cost them billions of dollars, they won’t participate; they won’t help us; they won’t help protect America. Liability protection is critical to securing the private sector’s cooperation with our intelligence efforts. The Senate has passed a good bill, and has shown that protecting our nation is not a partisan issue. And I congratulate the senators.
Unfortunately, the House has failed to pass a good bill. And now House leaders say they want still more time to reach agreement with the Senate on a final bill. They make this claim even though it is clear that the Senate bill, the bill passed last night, has significant bipartisan support in the House.
Congress has had over six months to discuss and deliberate. The time for debate is over. I will not accept any temporary extension. House members have had plenty of time to pass a good bill. They have already been given a two-week extension beyond the deadline they set for themselves. If Republicans and Democrats in the Senate can come together on a good piece of legislation, there is no reason why Republicans and Democrats in the House cannot pass the Senate bill immediately.
The House’s failure to pass the bipartisan Senate bill would jeopardize the security of our citizens. As Director McConnell has told me, without this law, our ability to prevent new attacks will be weakened. And it will become harder for us to uncover terrorist plots. We must not allow this to happen. It is time for Congress to ensure the flow of vital intelligence is not disrupted. It is time for Congress to pass a law that provides a long-term foundation to protect our country. And they must do so immediately.
Thank you very much.
END
That’s exactly how fear propaganda works. The whole thing is all about creating a feeling of fear to make you accept something that wouldn’t be reasonable. The two main parts they want you to get in that statement are:
At this moment, somewhere in the world, terrorists are planning new attacks on our country. Their goal is to bring destruction to our shores that will make September the 11th pale by comparison. To carry out their plans, they must communicate with each other, they must recruit operatives, and they must share information.
AND
In order to be able to discover enemy — the enemy’s plans, we need the cooperation of telecommunication companies. If these companies are subjected to lawsuits that could cost them billions of dollars, they won’t participate; they won’t help us; they won’t help protect America. Liability protection is critical to securing the private sector’s cooperation with our intelligence efforts. The Senate has passed a good bill, and has shown that protecting our nation is not a partisan issue. And I congratulate the senators.
Simple isn’t it?
Privacy’s leaving the house…
Most of you are probably aware of this news, but if you aren’t here’s the story in brief:
BOSTON (AP) - A man listed as one of the state’s most dangerous sex offender has won $10 million in the Massachusetts lottery, but the attention may have landed him in new trouble. Daniel Snay had been living and working in Massachusetts since 2004. In January, he paid $20 for a “Billion Dollar Blockbuster” scratch ticket at a suburban convenience store and hit the jackpot.
He picked up the first of 20 annual checks for $500,000 on Jan. 30. And the Massachusetts Lottery Commission said he gambled legally. But his story caught the attention of police in neighboring Connecticut, where Snay had lived for several years and where, officials said, he never informed authorities he was moving out of state.
Connecticut Trooper William Tate said Snay could face up to five years in prison if convicted of failing to notify authorities of his change of address, a felony. He said Snay hadn’t confirmed his address for the Connecticut sex offender registry since May 2004, though that state requires address verification every 90 days.
“We’re trying to determine when he moved, why he didn’t register with us and whether any charges are warranted,” Tate said.
Snay, 56, a divorced father of five, was convicted several times of indecent assault and battery from 1974 to 1987. Two of the assaults were on a child under the age of 14.
Snay’s lawyer, Joseph Fabbricotti, said that when Snay moved from Connecticut, he believed he had to register only in the state where he was moving. [...]
You can read the full article here.
While most people focus on the fact that he won $10M but may face 5 years of prison or even lose the $10M because he failed notifying authorities that he was moving out of Connecticut, I’d like to see it in a different way. Daniel Snay says he didn’t know he had to notify Connecticut, but instead he thought he had to notify only the new state he was moving in which is Massachusetts. According to its lawyer, he’s supposed to be registered in the Massachusetts Sex offender registry, so that would confirm it.
Where am I getting? The point I’m trying to make is that according to Connecticut’s law, you have to confirm your address every 90 days if you’re in the sex offender registry. Then, the guy went away for four years without anyone noticing and it took $10M for anyone to notice. You have a level 3 sex offender on your list (most dangerous or most likely to re-offend) and you forget about him because he fails to confirm his address? That’s kind of easy to get away from that registry. I mean, does anyone ever do follow ups on that? What’s the point of having a damn registry if you don’t check who fails to comply?
It would have been fairly easy to locate Daniel Snay, he was working legally with his real name in another state. I’m pretty sure this could have been solved fairly easily. Instead, the guy wins $10M and we realize he hasn’t confirmed his address for 4 years and realize he left Connecticut 4 years ago.
It’s sad to see that the authorities/government aren’t doing simple follow-ups on their registry and raise a flag when someone is missing for more than 90 days. Instead, they don’t give a damn and take the chance of letting him go.
It’s no rocket science, registry = comply to it. There’s probably a lot of similar things happening all around the country…