September, 2021 archive
False Warranty Claims 0
David Lazarus explores the “your car’s extended warranty is expiring” robocall scam.
Even if you already know the calls are a scam, his explanation of the nuts-and-bolts of the con is enlightening.
Aside:
We sometimes get two or three of these a day on our cell phones and land line (yes, we still have a land line).
Per his article, the number of such calls in the United States this year is projected to be in the neighborhood of 13 billion. That’s about 40 calls for every man, woman, and child and about 120 for each registered vehicle.
Geeking Out 0
Updating a VirtualBox virtual machine of Linux Mint MATE using the command line (the command line is always faster, if you know the commands) on Mageia v. 8 under the Fluxbox window manager. The Mint wallpaper is from Mint. The Mageia wallpaper is from my collection.
“But There’s No Other Possible Explanation” 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, Eugen Dimont, Bella Ren, and Maurice Schweitzer explore why persons use “social” media to “share” conspiracy theories which they do not actually believe. A snippet; follow the link for the complete article.
Remember, “social” media isn’t.
The Past Is Prologue 0
Writing at The Roanoke Times, Nancy Liebrecht discerns a disturbing pattern of hubris and repeated error.
I don’t agree with every point she espouses, but methinks she makes some points worthy of consideration.
The Six-Step Plan 0
David discusses the Trump administration’s blueprint for a coup d’etat. (Warning: Short advertisement at the end.)
The No-Account Recount 0
The results are in. The Arizona Republic’s Laurie Roberts reports:
By a larger margin than previously reported.
So much shame to go around today, as we await the findings of the final report.
Follow the link for some schadenfreude.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Yet another child has been sacrificed on the NRA’s altar of armament.
It Was Too Car Gone To Keep 0
I recently purchased a new(er) car. After 18 years and 150k+ miles, including some miles pulling a 2,600 pound boat back in my boating days, my little pick-up truck had had enough. Given that an 18-year old vehicle has minimal (to put it mildly) resale or trade-in value (the new tires I got a year ago were probably worth more than the vehicle that wore them), I decided to donate my truck to my local NPR station. (The process went very smoothly, I must say.)
I found out that the donated vehicles go to auction. The donation center, which is apparently an organization that contracts with the radio stations, passes the information to a local auction house, which in turn arranges for picking up the vehicle.
I signed over the title to the picker-up of my pick-up a couple of days ago.
