No - not that Ernest - though I did like him. Humm - I wonder what happened to him (Jim Varney)? Crap - he passed in 2000 (the lung cancer got him). The world lost a great comedian in that one.
No, this embassy closings thing is what got my attention. I like many others have refrained on commenting on it as I don't know if it is real or not. But it strikes me that this not knowing is by and large a part of the problem. Until the Benghazi debacle I had always trusted the government on such matters. If they said there was a problem, even when the TSA were feeling up grandmas or toddlers, I sort of (jadedly) gave them the benefit of the doubt. After Benghazi and the 'reaction to a movie no one saw' cover story, not so much.
That is the problem with lies. They enjoin a trust debt that takes time and honesty to overcome. This administration has not paid that debt. It should come as no surprise that we don't quite trust that they are telling the truth about a real and credible threat after the exact same people colluded to mislead us as to what happened with the fall of a similar embassy in the same area of the world.
The real issue is that our checks and balance system of government is fundamentally broken. Democrats in Congress should have lined up with Republicans to demand the appointment of a special prosecutor for the investigation of the Benghazi debacle. Without the appropriate yoke of Congress, this administration has no accountability and can callously yank the chain of 'national security' whenever it suits them, and the Democrats in Congress dance along.
When Verizon offered to replace my copper lines for my phone service with fiber I was all for it. I had watched them for months slowly string fiber down a major feeder road toward my little enclave. In the past couple of months, I noticed on my daily dog walk where they were bringing their fiber from the main trunks on the feeder roads into my neighborhood. So, I was more than glad to have them replace my copper home phone service with the new and improved fiber connection.
Now I know what you are thinking. "Home Phone Connection? What is this home phone you speak of?" For all you under the age of say 40, you just won't understand this. When I grew up, there was always a phone in our house. Your phone number was one of the most important and first things you learned. Having a home phone was akin to having an electric hookup. It is a 'norm' for us older folks that we have a 'home phone', yet I acknowledge that such a thing is unnecessary in today's world of the ubiquitous cell phone. Yet I, and I am guessing, most of the folks of a similar vintage, cling to the concept of a 'home phone'.
I believe a historical divergence is necessary here, as some of you may not appreciate this irrational clinging to the past. I realize that it is hard to imagine, but in some places phone lines were so limited that neighborhoods had to share them. I can recall as a child seeing (but not being allowed to touch) a phone with a crank on the side at my grandparents very rural house in Texas. The way that worked was each person on the 'party line' had a distinctive ring. Thus you didn't answer a ringing phone unless it was your 'ring'. To make a call, you would lift the phone, listen to see if any one else was on, then turn the crank. This would bring an operator on, whom you would give the number and name of the person you were calling.
It was a major social blunder to turn the crank without listening, as was listening without indicating you were. The NSA of today didn't have anything on old Ms. Peters down the road who listened in on everybody's calls and knew everyone's business. With those drawbacks in mind, you would think that people would have been more circumspect in their conversations. I don't think it was the threat of Ms. Peters that limited the phone banter as much as the (then) exorbitant cost of the calls. Even with all these drawbacks, it is amazing now to think about all the phone operators connecting all the calls, technicians sorting through bundles of copper wires, and lineman climbing poles in all sorts of weather to make that simple yet life altering technology happen. I stand in awe of the shadow they cast.
So now I have a fiber connection literally hanging in a box inside my house. My thinking was that now, finally, I was no longer beholden to my cable company for TV and the internet connection. In the past they have put filters in place which killed my internet then complained that I had too many splitters on my line, causing me to spend way too much time in my attic diagnosing what fundamentally was their signal problem. At one point I got almost threatening emails from them because, having a house full of teenagers, I was using "too much bandwidth". All that being said, they provide a fairly (now) reliable and consistent service. In any case I value a free market, and having the competition literally hanging in my utility room gives me leverage.
So the very first thing that I did after the install was to click on the ads that started appearing on my favorite web sites advertising Verizon FIOS service. Rather than giving a straight price and service breakdown, they insisted on making me look to see if FIOS was available. Obligingly, I plugged in my address and was informed that I already had Verizon service. Well Duh! Home phone! They then asked if I wanted to 'upgrade' my service. Since answering 'yes' was apparently the only way to get an estimate online, I did. Their security protocols then kicked in. They attempted to go through a series of questions to assure themselves that I was not a nefarious hacker. After entering in my home number three times and being told "that is not a valid customer number", I finally gave up, resolving that I would have to talk to an actual person (something I despise) to get a quote.
A few days later I am talking about the new FIOS line with my neighbor. He is a fairly low tech guy, but he does have internet, phone, and cable like me. Unlike me he is a sports nut and his wife is a movie nut, so they have a bunch of TVs and channels. He called them to get a quote, and by the time they were through jacking him up with 'features', the FIOS bill would have been bigger the his existing service. My wife had a similar experience with a door salesman who then tried to give her the 'make the deal today or we will have to charge you more' pitch.
I guess what is really sad is to see all that investment in technology go to waste. The tremendous load capacity of fiber brings a plethora of service capabilities to the consumer. With a low key marking strategy like the cable provider, they could be dominate. Instead, their high pressure tactics reek of desperation. While they are technically preforming like the company that brought copper wire service to rural Texans, they are blowing their investment with shady salesmanship tactics in suburban Virginia. It is an achingly painful spectacle to watch. So here's my message to Verizon FIOS - you people are idiots!
I haven't done one of these for a while and my 'notes' collection is getting unwieldy, so it's time for a Techno-Palooza, where I write about tech-stuff that has caught my eye
A bike with massive acceleration, long range, and a 60 minute recharge time. Finally a 100% electric vehicle that is just like a regular vehicle. Unfortunately i'll never own it. The $50000 price tag is out of my league. It would also be interesting to know how long the batteries last and how much they cost to replace.
This waterproof spray (H/T Gizmodo) is the natural end of where waterproof coverings have been going for years. What is opens up though in thought provoking. Consider that the most difficult part of designing ROVs is the necessary pressure housing for the electronics. If you could just side step that, then ROVs would be much easier to make. Thought provoking, eh?
A old coastal defense fort made into a luxury hotel? That is exactly what they have been trying to do with Fort Carroll for 30 years. Also known as 'bird island' due it it literally being covered in bird crap, Fort Carroll was originally constructed in the Civil War in defense of Baltimore. It was abandoned in WW1 and though changing hands several times, has basically been left to rot due to the impracticality of overcoming environmentalist objections to ejecting the squatting bird population. Not that there are any 'endangered' species there - just flocks of 'rats with wings'. Why am I fascinated with it? It is one of those old civil war locations that is very much off the beaten path.
Finding a dead body in your grandma's attic is pretty much every 10 year old boy's fantasy. Finding a mummy at grandma's house? Priceless.
I have been a big fan of 'toe shoes' for a while. I got my first 'skele-toes' over a year ago after recovering from platar-fascitiis surgery - so I think I have a pretty good idea of how barefoot shoes are supposed to work. Thus I looked into this new shoe by Nike (H/T Gizmodo) The main issue with these type of shoes is a) toe comfort - i.e. rub points where your toes go, and b) the firmness of the shoe attached to your foot. Since these aren't actually toe shoes, (a) does not come into play. However, I cannot imagine that a knit construction would leave you with a feeling of security after getting wet. I would be hesitant to fork out the kind of money that Nike is asking on that basis alone.
This idea (H/T Gizmag) for putting lights under a paddle board or kayak is just neat tech. For a kayak I have to wonder how much drag it introduces though. Also, the price is pretty steep. On the other hand, it would be pretty hard to not see a kayaker at night with one of those, at least in calm conditions. I can't imagine they would be very visible in a heavy rain or rough seas. I also might be a little concerned about what kind of wildlife such a light might attract, given bull shark's proclivity for appearing in fresh water locations.
When I saw this article about a massive machine created by the Japanese that is digging a tunnel under Seattle I thought wow! That's cool. I then recalled the second earthquake I ever experienced was when I was stationed in Alaska. Why does that matter? Well, the earthquake zone that California gets all the press for extends up the west coast through Seattle all the way to Alaska. Humm, a machine, made in the home of Godzilla, digging up to 200 feet under a major city, in the heart of an earthquake zone. What could go wrong?
(WARNING! WARNING! DO NOT Play this Video! Contains Unhealthy levels of estrogen, which the surgeon general has determined may be hazardous to your health. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!)
What raised my ire? The first habit listed was "Fit People Don't Diet". Now as a paleo guy who has lost a lot of weight eating (mostly) paleo, I have to agree with that statement. I am almost never hungry and I don't 'diet'. That being said, they buttressed that statement with this picture of a women who was "owner of the most inspiring arms in America":
I'm sorry. When I think of healthy and inspiring body parts, arms are not at the top of the list. Not to be a nitpicker here, but that particular person has the largest backside of any first lady since... Nope - not going to pre-judge that. I'll do some research and you decide. To be fair, I will try to limit the pictures to when they were in office. Ok, here's a reasonable picture of Michelle:
Now Laura Bush:
Hillary:
Barbara Bush:
(sigh! Guess we can stop there - but i'd like to see what Michelle looks like at that age...). Before that, First Ladies were twigs by comparison - Nancy Reagan, Rosalynn Cater, etc. You'd have to go back to the 1950's and Mamie Eisenhower to get a contender.
Ok - where was I? Oh yeah - 8 healthy habits. Habit number two was "Find a way to enjoy exercise". I can wholeheartedly agree with this one, but I would modify the object(?) a bit to say "Find ways to enjoy exercise". For me selecting a variety of stuff that turns out to be exercise is the key to getting off the computational devices and out to sweat.
Number three is "Don't compare your body to other people's bodies". WHOOPS! Guess I just violated that one - though technically I was comparing other peoples bodies to other peoples bodies. Anyway, this is the kind of non-competitive BS that results in every kid getting trophies at the end of the sports season. Of course you have to compare, otherwise you don't know if you are making progress. Who do I compare myself to? Being mostly narcissistic, I compare myself to myself. When I start to look like I have the thin & fit body I had when I was in my mid 20's, then I'll know I am there. No - I don't really expect to achieve that - it's a goal.
Number four is "Get Sleep". Now that's just filler. Sleep is way down there on my list of things that make me healthy. However a lack of sleep is more a symptom of unhealthy habits than an end unto itself. Staying up all night drinking, eating the whole pig with potatoes, chain smoking - these things will cause you to loose sleep - not the other way around.
Number five is "Cheat". Humm - I thought number one was "Don't Diet" - how can you "cheat" if you don't diet? There is a glaring flaw of logic here. My point here is if you are not dieting, then you can't cheat - it's not in your mindset to just sit down and eat that plate of fries if you are feeling full from eating a handful of grapes. "Cheat" is just not really in your vocabulary if you are eating right.
Six is to "make fitness a priority". Humm - isn't this just restating rule number two (enjoy exercise)? If you really like doing something, you will do it. If you don't you won't. "Making it a Priority" is just a weak kneed weaselly way of putting off doing something you don't really like.
Seven is "Eat Breakfast". This I can agree to, though what you eat for breakfast matters. Frosted Flakes, while a very tasty breakfast, isn't really going to go very far in making you fit. Given the rather stupid and wrong denigration of the egg, I suspect too many people are eating the wrong kind of stuff for breakfast.
The article ends with yet another platitude for number eight "Get support". Here's a clue - if you are staring down a Twinky or standing at an open refrigerator at 2am and all you can think about is that Eskimo Pie sitting there, no amount of 'support' in the world is going to help you. If on the other hand you rely on your own backbone, change your eating habits, go to bed sated by the right kind of food, you'll be sleeping at 2am and that Eskimo Pie will be in some former-President-to-be's fridge where it belongs.
Like many news junkies, I am constantly looking for the unusual and different story that drifts to the top of the 24 hour cycle. This story (H/T Weasel Zippers) about the start of a trial of some guys that used silicone mask to hide that they were black to rob a check cashing store caught my attention, not because the race change thing, but because I was curious as to how the police went about finding them. They went to a great deal of trouble to hide their identity, and witnesses thought they were white, so I was interested in the process the police used to track them down.
This story gives a bit more information on how that happened. From there I learned that there were two key items that led the police to them. The first was a 'tip' that made the police reassess the surveillance and discern they were wearing masks. Where the tip came from is not indicated. Once the police knew this they somehow discovered the company that made the mask, then obtained email from that company indicating the real identities of the robbers. I did a quick Google search on 'realistic mask' and got hits for dozens of companies. I imagine that narrowing down the one that made the mask was rather difficult. That of course assumes that such companies handle thousands of orders for 'three white guy masks'. Perhaps not... especially if these geniuses ordered the masks from the same company at the same time. Alternatively, if the 'tip' came from the company that made the masks, the search would be significantly easier. I am a little surprised that they weren't more creative. There are numerous realistic masks available on e-bay. They could have selected this one:
to look like a 'real' white guy. Or even gone the 'full Monty' and used this one:
to look like a real white women. Their choices were endless, but they chose plain old white guy faces. What fun was that?
The other clue that they left was a picture they gave to a witnesses of the witness's house to prove they knew where they lived and would come after them if they talked to the police. Oddly enough this did not deter the witness from giving the picture to the police, which was used to track down the Walgreen's where it was developed. This in turn led them to the robber's home address which was obtained from a receipt. This 'oversight' clearly moves them out of the criminal mastermind division. To their credit, I was not aware that commercially developed photos had such origin information encoded. On the other hand, why would they use a 'real' photo and risk the paper trail when photo quality printers are ubiquitous and anonymous? It's not like they were presenting a portfolio to Better Homes and Gardens.
Finally, they apparently marked themselves by spending their ill gotten gains like the proverbial drunken sailor, buying some really nice threads and even a Rolex. If we have learned nothing else from the movies, delaying spending the loot is way up there on the list of the Habits Of Highly Successful Robbers. So in the end, these guys are a bit of a disappointment who probably watched way too much TV and are not particularly schooled in critical thinking. Of course if they were highly functioning individuals, they probably wouldn't have needed to do the crime anyway - they would have been operating the Check Cashing Store which finds it necessary to have $200,000 on hand daily to conduct business. Given the rates those places charge for their services to people without bank accounts, they have to be making at least $20,000 a day. If they are careful about validating the checks they cash to minimize their losses, that has got to be an insanely profitable business.
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