Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Consumers Beware: Smartphone & Social Newtwork I.D. thefts up

Beware Smartphone users! Ominous rumblings from tech experts, Javelin Strategy & Research: Identity thieves are back in bigger numbers than ever before after last years slight decline.

Right now, this very moment, someone is checking to see if you, or some other unsuspecting Smartphone user are using a screen password. This new research claims Smartphone users are 30 percent more likely to report being hit by I.D. fraud in 2012. The survey said about 36 millions Americans have been victimized.

Disclaimer: I’m clueless when it comes to mobile phones. Smart and dumb ones. I have a dumb one that doesn’t access the internet. I still have trouble with it when it comes to make the slightest changes. I don’t text, but my wife says my phone is set up for texting.

But, I do read a lot, and after reading this article this morning I informed my tech savvy wife that her phone was at risk. She immediately took steps to rectify the situation. If I may be so bold, it would be a good idea for you to protect yourself and use a screen password if you have a Smartphone. Of course, if you already do, then you can just yawn and move on.

If, however this is news to you, consider taking action to protect your I.D. Don’t feel bad if you weren’t aware of this threat. According to the researchers, 62 percent of Smartphone users say they do not use a screen password to protect their devices.

Finally, the survey suggests some connection between active use of social networks and ID theft. Slightly more than 10 percent of LinkedIn users say they were hit (10.1 percent), while 7 percent of Google+ users and 6.3 percent of Twitter users reported being victims -- all three above average. Facebook users, at 5.7 percent, were barely above the national average of 4.9 percent.

14th Amendment: how far does it’s promise of ‘equal protection’ go?

        Good Day Humboldt County!

Call me a cynic, but I have a strong feeling that the Supreme Corporate Court is preparing to turn the clock back on race diversity in higher education.

They’re confronting the issue of race in university admissions once again. This time, there’s an appeal by a white student who says she was denied a spot at the flagship campus of the University of Texas.

“A broad ruling in favor of the student, Abigail Fisher, could threaten affirmative action programs at many of the nation's public and private universities,” said Vanderbilt University law professor Brian Fitzpatrick in a recent interview.

Erwin Chemerinsky, a constitutional law scholar and dean of the University of California Irvine's law school, has called the Fisher case "potentially momentous."

The challenge:

To what extent does the Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of “equal protection of the laws” permit race to be used as a factor in efforts to achieve greater diversity in higher education?

For more than three decades, the Supreme Court has said that although race may be one of numerous factors taken into account, it cannot be the predominant consideration in an admissions process. I suspect tea party groups across the country are supporting this appeal.

As It Stands, what do you think the chances are that the Supreme Corporate Court will rule in her favor?

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Coffee Bean Man Optical Illusion …

face-in-beans coffee bean man optical illusion

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Can you spot the hidden face in this Coffee Bean Man Illusion?

Once you find the face in this coffee beans pile, every next time you look at this picture you will see it immediately!

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                                                                          (source)

Another face of intolerance: Meet freshman Indiana state Rep. Bob Morris, R-Fort Wayne

See that beady-eyed little prig between the two women in the photo?

His name is Bob Morris, and he says the Girl Scouts are bent on promoting communism, lesbianism and subverting "traditional American family values."

Bet you didn’t know that, did you? Neither did I, but Morris talked to some well-informed constituents, and did a “small amount” of Web-based research, and what he found disturbed him.

The Girl Scouts of America and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts "have entered into a close strategic affiliation with Planned Parenthood” he told his Republican House colleagues in a letter obtained by the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette.

Morris, who owns a chain of nutrition stores, claims there’s an agenda behind the cookies the Girl Scouts sell. That’s the reason he insists he won't go along with a resolution meant to honor the Girls Scouts on the organization's 100th anniversary.

As proof, Morris notes that the "radically pro-abortion" Michelle Obama is honorary president of Girl Scouts of America, which "should give each of us reason to pause before our individual or collective endorsement of the organization."

Michelle Tompkins, a spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts, responded to Morris' assertions by telling NBC station WISE of Fort Wayne, "Not only is Rep. Morris off the mark on his claims, it's also unfortunate in his limited research that he failed to discover that, since 1917, every first lady has served as the honorary leader of Girl Scouts, including Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush and Laura Bush."

For its part, Planned Parenthood of Indiana called Morris' comments "inflammatory, misleading, woefully inaccurate and harmful," saying he'd insulted not only it but also the Girl Scouts and Obama.

"Planned Parenthood currently has no formal partnership with the Girl Scouts, but supports their mission and recognizes their century of contributions to our society," the organization said in a statement to NBC station WTHR of Indianapolis.

Here’s some reasons why I can relax today…

After nearly a week of suspense, I found out the name of Prince William and Duchess Kate’s puppy today. It’s Lupo, according to the Associated Press. I know. Pretty odd name, but it probably has royal significance to it. Lupo may have been a past king in Britain. Little Lupo (who was really named after the Latin word for wolf) has already become a viral sensation.

I can’t tell you how excited I was to hear the biggest BMW dealership in the world recently opened up for business in The United Arab Emirates. It’s located in Abu Dubai. Just knowing that we have a BMW dealership here in McKinleyville makes me feel connected with the universe…

and finally,

I can relax now that I know Elvis Presley’s was not part ape!

A Florida man today claimed to be Elvis Presley’s brother, and that he was also half orangutan. If true, it would have meant the King was part ape. I realize some people said he went ape when performing, but I don’t thing it’s the same thing.

After a call about a man flashing a handgun at a woman, police arrived on the scene. They reported the man said he "needed to call the 'Fusion Center' to ask about his monkey blood," according to the Naples Daily News. The arresting officer noted "that he had jurisdiction over me since he was the director of the CIA," in his report.

I have to agree with the officer's assessment that "it did not appear as if he was all there mentally," but have to admit I admire his delusional creativity.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The future has arrived - Nevada is ready for autonomous vehicles

              Good Day Humboldt County!

  Our path today will take us down a road where cars don’t need drivers.

  I was 12-years old when the Jetsons animated sitcom originally aired in prime-time in 1962. I can remember sitting down with the whole family and watching it on Thursday nights.

  One of the things I thought was really cool was how their car drove itself. Mr. Jetson (or one of the others) would hop in a car and tell it where they wanted to go. The car took over from there. Flash forward to today’s news.

News snippet:

“This month Nevada became the first state in the nation to formally approve legislation authorizing the use of autonomous vehicles on its roadways.

The once far-fetched idea is becoming more and more grounded every day as manufacturers work to develop technology that could permit a motorist to plug in a destination and let the vehicle drive there automatically. Indeed, Google has become a leader in autonomous technology, with several prototypes already logging over 160,000 miles in test runs.

While most experts contend the technology is still years away from widespread application, Nevada lawmakers apparently couldn’t wait.  Last summer, lawmakers there ordered state regulators to establish rules covering the use of autonomous vehicles.

The regulations have now been finalized -- and the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles will now have to formalize licensing procedures for companies that want to test their vehicles in the state.”

Read the rest of the story here.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Monday, February 20, 2012

They still burn witches you know…

In a glimpse of superstitious hysteria we don't usually see outside of a middle-school reading of "The Crucible," a Nepalese woman was horrifically burned alive after being accused of using evil magical powers.

According to CNN, the mother of two was set on fire by family members after one of her shaman condemners claimed that she had cast a spell on a relative.

Related links

Why drink coffee for caffeine when you can inhale it instead?

I just got off the phone with ex president Bill Clinton and told him it’s okay to inhale now. I want to share this interesting new product with you too:

“U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials plan to investigate whether inhalable caffeine sold in lipstick-sized canisters is safe for consumers and if its manufacturer was right to brand it as a dietary supplement.

AeroShot went on the market late last month in Massachusetts and New York, and it's also available in France. Consumers put one end of the canister in their mouths and breathe in, releasing a fine powder that dissolves almost instantly. Each grey-and-yellow plastic canister contains B vitamins, plus 100 milligrams of caffeine powder, about the equivalent of the caffeine in a large cup of coffee.” (Source)

Watch out McDonalds: Culture Burgers are on the horizon…

            Good Day Humboldt County!

 Are you ready to walk down a trail that promises to lead you into the future of food in America? Fair warning: It might not be pretty.

Don’t like the idea of killing animals, but have a soft spot for a good beef hamburger? I’ve got news for you, and for vegetarians: the first-ever Culture Dish Hamburger is going to be taste-tested by a world celebrity taster.

If you want to be crass about about it, this unique hamburger cost $330,000 to make. It’s funded by an anonymous investor reportedly interested in “life-transforming technologies." Someone out there is rubbing his hands together in anticipation of revolutionizing the food industry.

According to this news source:

“The patty will be much like a regular quarter-pounder — but with one big difference: This one will be created by growing bovine stem cells in a vat, transforming them into thousands of thin layers of beef muscle cells, mincing them into tiny pieces, then combining the bits with lab-grown animal fat to form a lump of meat the size of a golf ball.”

Yum Yum… doesn’t that sound tasty? (As I try to keep from gagging) Culture Burgers. Somehow they lack the pizazz of cheeseburgers, don’t you think?

More about the future of food:

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Sunday, February 19, 2012

As It Stands: Why a school board bowed to a double entendre

 By Dave Stancliff/for the Times-Standard

 Please try to keep a straight face. What I’m about to share is true, so go easy on the folks involved, okay? 
  Quick history note: Utah has Cougars, snakes (Diamond Backs), Falcons, and other creatures, and it’s not uncommon to see them as school mascots. If you were to check, you’d see that Cougars are a common name for mascots in the state. Fair enough?
  Not for the school board members of a new school slated to open in 2013. Recently named Corner Canyon High School in Draper, Utah (photo), it already faces a controversy.

  The school board members polled students on what they’d like for a team name. They voted in favor of the Cougars. Cougars inhabit territory all across Utah. According to the Division of Wildlife Resources, the only place in Utah they're not found is in the salt flats west of the Great Salt Lake.
  Cougar was a natural choice. The students didn’t foresee any problem with having a Cougar for a team mascot. Why should they? They had heard of schools with Cougars as mascots at different grade levels throughout their lives. 
   Superintendent of Canyons School District, David S. Doty (I’m not making up that last name), made a surprise announcement; Cougars was not an acceptable team mascot name! How could that be? Why did everyone say the name was okay when it was voted on?
  Now here’s the part where I ask your indulgence. Try not to laugh too hard at the reason why Cougar suddenly became banned as school mascots. One more thing, I’m not making this up.
  Doty said Cougars was unacceptable because it “has a negative double entendre,” as in older women who date younger men. No, really. I guess we can thank the television show, "Cougar Town," starring Courteney Cox, for those votes overturned. Apparently their Moms and Dads watch the show.
  When some parents (the story doesn’t say how many) called the school board and complained, saying Cougars was a negative term, the board dissolved into Cougar scat.
  I can’t help wondering about schools like USC who use “Trojans” as a team name. Is it time something was done about that obvious double entendre? Are TV shows the next barometer for a school’s team name?
  Back to the Draper school board. They also felt the school’s blue/white/silver color scheme looked too much like Brigham Young University team colors. I don’t know what they said behind closed doors about the longtime university team name, the Cougars. One can only imagine.
  This really isn’t the end of the story. The school board, in it’s infinite wisdom, voted unanimously to select Charger as the mascot, noting no other high school in the state had used it. A curious fact.
   Cool. But what happened to the student input? Am I missing something here? The school board happily noted the alliteration of Corner Canyon Chargers, and said a Charger, a war horse, was selected because it is “a prominent animal in Draper and an image of strength that could unify the community," according to the Board of Education summary.

 There’s no word on how the students felt about the new team name. I wouldn’t be surprised if some conjure up the image of the NFL’s San Diego Chargers. That might be acceptable because it’s on the beach in California, where I suspect the students would rather live!
  Still, it’s just not right. Kearns High School football coach and athletic director Bill Cosper recently told The Salt Lake Tribune,  "To me, a mascot is usually an animal - I mean, I don't know how to even respond to Chargers.”
  Perhaps reflecting what a lot of people think, Cosper said, "In all my years here, or in all of sports, that's never been brought up before.” I’m not sure he’s right, but I can’t readily recall any other case about animals becoming a problem as a team symbol.
  The whole thing is laughable, but sad too. People are so easily swayed by what they see or hear in the media. Common sense is often suspended in the name of political correctness.
  As It Stands, if you still feel like laughing, I don’t blame you.

It's Time to Pay Up Donnie!

It's looks like there will be some prime real estate going on the market soon in New York City. Convicted rapist and former president ...