Month: April 2015

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Where Angels Fear to Tread

A recent FarceBook discussion included this comment from an acquaintance:

In the world of Leninist-style Socialism, the “secret police” would abduct or “arrest” anyone who they are even remotely suspicious of being “enemies of the state” & interrogate or torture them in Russian Prisons known as Gulags. Lubyanka Square Building is a very large, imposing structure & was the central Russian/Soviet KGB operating facility for interrogating prisoners.

Many people who entered that building never came out of it alive.

Moved me to ponder the possible fate of “secret police” attempting such things here in America’s Third World County™ where the populace is better-armed, per capita, than the local National Guard unit.

I’d want to run the popcorn and beer concession.

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Computer Security: the Value of Resident Anti-Malware

So, how important is having a resident, up-to-date anti-malware product for Windows users?

Middlin’. No, seriously.

Here’s a wee experiment I recently did:

  • Windows 7 box, mostly updated (I did not accept some problematic M$Office 2010 updates, but then I rarely fire up M$Office).
  • Removed all resident anti-malware products.
  • Surfed normally for a month.
  • Scanned with offline standalone scanners and online scanners from reputable anti-malware companies.

Result? No malware.

A properly-configured modern(ish) browser (Opera 12.17), decent firewalling and simple safe computing practices were all that was needed for me to avoid infections/infestations with malware.

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The Reality-Based Fantasies of Anti-GMO

Anti-GMOers have this fantasy that some plant foods are “pure,” unmodified genetically. They are are to be pitied for their illiteracy. Almost ALL plants consumed by humans as food today have been genetically modified from their original forms, most of which ranged from mildly toxic to only marginally nutritious. Without a history (and prehistory) of human genetic modification of plants, we’d all still be carnivores.

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Good Lines. . .

If one is prone to collecting good lines from fiction–or other lit–“Asylum,” (excellent milfic space opera by Jordan Leah Hunter and Owen R. O’Neill) has a few. For example, referring to the chewing-out given by an admiral to a marine officer who had poohed the scrooch most royally,

“He just yanked out that little prick’s immortal soul, wiped his ass with it and threw it away.”

And rightly so.

Almost 600 pages of excellent milfic space opera. Number 3 in the series. (A separate glossary is available for download from the authors’ website–links in each volume of the series.)

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20/20 Hindsight

Looking back on last Saturday, I almost wish we had bid more on the items we acquired in a school-sponsored (PTO) silent auction. Oh, we “won” everything we bid on, anyway, but only because I didn’t want to bid much under what the (donated) items were worth, since I knew the PTO’s normal record of spending the funds–and approve. In fact, the PTO’s spending seems to meto be more productive, dollar-for-dollar, than the regular school budget. . . Maybe it’s because administrators, politicians and remore educrats are out of the loop, eh?

Still, I do almost wish we had bid more. *meh* Maybe we can just make a straight donation.