August, 2009 archive
Unsafe Waters 0
No Exit 0
The Guardian looks at health care for the uninsured in America. Read the whole thing. Here’s a doctor’s comment on the fight against reform:
Hole Card 0
Several months ago, I noticed that my bank’s ATMs were inhaling and exhaling cards much more slowly than previously.
Thinking something was screwy, I reported it to the information clerk at the branch. She told me that they had slowed down the feeder motors to defend against skimmers. I guess it’s related to the same thing that causes you to have to swipe the card again if you swipe it too slowly.
What a ATM skimmer looks like:
Not very noticeable, is it?
Click the picture to see more and to read the article.
Via the Network Security Podcast.
Dustbiters 0
One down. So far.
Like flies:
The hits just keep coming.
Afterthought: The FDIC has a great website. It reloads faster than any other website I regularly visit. Then, again, with all the failures, it has to.
Framing 0
It’s not just what you say, it’s how you say it (emphasis added):
(snip)
In asking its question SurveyUSA used the same exact words that NBC/Wall Street Journal had used when conducting its June 2009 survey. That one that found 76 percent approval for the public option: “In any health care proposal, how important do you feel it is to give people a choice of both a public plan administered by the federal government and a private plan for their health insurance–extremely important, quite important, not that important, or not at all important?”
Think there’s a reason the WSJ/NBC poll’s wording was changed? Nah. Couldn’t be.
Via Noz.
The Triumph of Delusion 0
Johann Hari, writing in the U. K. Independent, considers how unreason took over the Republican Party. It’s a long article, but worth the 10 minutes it takes to read it. A nugget:
In their gut, they saw the US as a white-skinned, right-wing nation forever shaped like Sarah Palin.
When this image was repudiated by a majority of Americans in a massive landslide, it simply didn’t compute. How could this have happened? How could the cry of “Drill, baby, drill” have been beaten by a supposedly big government black guy? So a streak that has always been there in the American right’s world-view – to deny reality, and argue against a demonic phantasm of their own creation – has swollen. Now it is all they can see.
The Republican Toolkit 0
Revealed in an article at MasterNewMedia. A snippet:
- A potentially dangerous news story may be ignored by mass media. Most people believe that something which has not been reported just does not exist.
- A news story may be presented as a “wild accusation”, especially by someone authoritative. People that have a large consensus or cover important positions in politics, economics or the military may leverage their reputation to label a a fact as false and preposterous.
- A big media coverage of an important event may create enough distraction to deviate the attention of people from a real issue.
- A rumor that is neither confirmed or denied may generate confusion and doubts in a large audience.
- An individual or group of people may be forced or payed to provide false information that generate fake news stories.
Sound familiar?
Via GNC.
Brendan Writes a Column 0
Read it here.
Hawaii Celebrates 50 Years of Statehood 0
Somebody better tell the rest of the country.
In his latest, Todd recounts flying back to Hawaii, where he settled after retiring from the Navy, and being asked by a fellow American visiting Hawaii for the first time,
By the way, what kind of money do they use there in Hawaii?
International Perspectives 0
One of my favorite podcasts is Linux Outlaws, primarily because the two hosts, an English geek and musician and a German university student, have so much fun and laughter in recording it (fun fact: they had been podcasting for almost a year before they met in person).
Yesterday, I listened to their latest. About two-thirds of the way through, the conversation drifted to American health care. A summary of their views:
They are amazed and disheartened that Americans are upset because the President wants everyone to have health care.
Frankly, so am I.
Mencken Was Right 0
Terminated 0
Not that it affects me in any way:
I tried to watch the first Terminator. Failed.
Twits on Twitter 0
The end of the personal life.
Podiatric Target Practice 0
Burgle a store, record it on video, and post the video on Facebook. Sheesh.
And she was perplexed when she came in to find the toilet seat raised.
“I knew something was up. I just didn’t know how and who or what,” said Eystad, 40.
Then, Saturday night, Pitman police came to her door with news of a video posted on a Facebook account.
Shot in the wee hours of Friday morning, the footage shows five people stealing sweets from Ladybug Candies, 50 S. Broadway. One alleged burglar shot and posted the video, which documents the theft in progress, the stolen property, and even the license plate of the get-away vehicle.
They had a key. One of the suspects is her landlord. He claims it was a one-time impulse theft that happened after another tenant reported loss of electricity. The storekeeper is skeptical.
Net Neutrality 0
Who’s trying to take over the internet?
Follow the links to learn more.
Outfoxed: Big Lie Dept. 0
At Guardian, Michael Tomasky comments on the poll that showed that persons who get their news from Fox are not only uninformed, but fervently believe stuff that just isn’t true about the current kerfuffle over health care:
Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go 0
Soap opera audience increases:
(snip)
The number of people collecting long-term unemployment benefits edged up 2,000 to 6.24 million in the week ended August 8, the latest week for which the data is available. However, the four-week moving average declined 2,500 to 6.27 million.
