After fully reading the article, I do not think it is fear that motivates the current Administration.
It is Power that seems to motivate them. The NSA does what it does because it can. The administration supports, funds, and uses all the surveillance knowledge, even if not for anything else other than economic espionage and advantage, because it can. It isn't fear as a motivator, it's maniacal surveillance power.
If you see an LED stoplight where a chunk of the LEDs seem out, or are blinking wildly, it is likely the circuit that supplies electricity to those LEDs, the LED driver circuit, is what is actually failing, not the LEDs themselves.
Ideally they can be swapped out and the light returned to service, but certainly does lower the hopes that cities had in installing them: to reduce replacement and maintenance costs.
Seems I did not know enough of the story, per this "Wired" article, so, um, 'nevermind':
The July 16 order came after Texas-based Lavabit refused to circumvent its own security systems to comply with earlier orders intended to monitor a particular Lavabit user’s metadata, defined as “information about each communication sent or received by the account, including the date and time of the communication, the method of communication, and the source and destination of the communication.”
The court order revealed the FBI demanded Lavabit turn over their root SSL certificate, something that would allow them to monitor the traffic of every user of the service. Lavabit offered an alternative method to tap into the single user in question but the FBI wasn't interested.
When I was growing up (70s and early 80s), all the US propaganda about how bad the Soviet Union was, how bad East Germany was, in terms of privacy, citizen rights, and being police states.
"Hypocrisy!", in my opinion.
In my opinion laws should protect non-suspect citizen rights, and enforcement agencies (FBI in this case) should be legally required to only target and restrict their levels of privacy breach to only those individuals or organizations of inquiry. They should have no legal authority to make such demands, and if a company or citizen gets such a demand, the FBI should be able to be publicly sued for attempting to exceed their authority.
AND, if the FBI currently is allowed to do such dragnets, the laws should be amended to remove such authority, and be enforced.
Make a new fully open process, open source encryption system, fully peer-reviewed, global internet participation possible, global peer review possible.
Use the development of the Linux kernel as a model. Use the global participation of Debian as a model.
Perhaps, like kernel.org, there can be FOE.org (Fully Open Encryption dot org) created.
Then that FOE system and software can be collaborated on via git, the developer community, and the security community....just my two cents.
Agree: make a new fully open process, open source encryption system, fully peer-reviewed, global internet participation possible, just like the Linux kernel.
Perhaps, like kernel.org, there can be FOE.org (Fully Open Encryption dot org) created.
Then that can be collaborated on via git, the developer community, and the security community....just my two cents.
It is true that telecommuting can hinder networking with people in water-cooler/cigarette breaks.
For the company I work for, a very large healthcare, the offices are all distributed nationally, no no real chance at face time with those units, even if I was in the office every day.
Not probably as good a substitute, but we end up using instant messaging a lot and get to do a bit of social networking that way, like in the old dot-com days.
Mondays - in the office. Face time. Dept meetings.
Tuesdays through Fridays - telecommute from home.
Tools work provided: laptop, VPN RSA dongle, cell phone.
Tools I provided: DSL, home network (netgear router connected to the DSL), desk, chair.
Love it! Allows me to sleep in till 8:15am, then walk to work PC, boot it, and start my workday at 8:30a. I do not have to drive to and from work. Saves a tank of gasoline a week, and wear-and-tear on the car. No worries about fwy traffic, car accidents, or road rage making me late to work.
Also allows me to be home, working, when the kids get home from school. Money savings there, too, by not having to have them in after-school daycare. Money savings not having to eat out, can eat what is in the fridge.
Stress is lower, too. No having to hear nonconsensual gossip or phone calls from co-workers in office cubes around me. Do not have to wear 'office attire', and usually wear t-shirts and shorts at home. Can play music I like, as loud as I like, as long as I am not on a work phone call. Can use my network to listen to youtube, or surf the web on my non-work PC while I work, no worries about triggering IT alert that I am accessing non-sanctioned websites, as for that I am not using work's network or PC.
Caveat: a person has to have a strong work ethic, and make sure to get the work done, and even do extra work, to keep boss 'happy' that you are deserving to be allowed to be a telecommuter. I always pick up work phone in first or second ring. I always work an extra hour a day, minimum (I never work under 45hrs a week).
Mix 1/4 liquid fabric softener (unscented if you do not want all your stuff to smell like laundry) to 3/4 water in a spray bottle.
Lightly spray surfaces and wipe dry with a clean rag. The fabric softener conducts enough that it prevents static build up. (Proof by experiment: try on TV screen/enclosure of old tube TV, or spray floor where you used to get a shock to touch a door knob, or the seats of your car.)
I've used this technique for my house's carpets (have to re-apply after each time we got the carpets shampoo'd), car seats and car carpets, TV, PC monitor(s), and PC enclosures.
I work for A Very Large Health Plan, and it is policy that all work laptops use encrypted harddrives and USB drives.
The laptops that are issued out to us workers already come encrypted, and also with the software that only allows writing to USB drives if you allow the software to encrypt the USB drive.
So far, seems to work, but does make a new laptop seem to be modest at boot/read/write times.
Back in the 70s a local bookstore had an entire wall of paperback sci-fi.
Somewhere in the 90s it seems that sci-fi book offerings went into decline. Sure there were still the republishing of 'classics' (dune and such), but not too many new works for sale.
My most recent trips to a bookstore seem to indicate that sci-fi is still in decline, if bookshelf space is a fair indicator. (I am not including manga or other derivatives)
Slashdot Mirror
After fully reading the article, I do not think it is fear that motivates the current Administration.
It is Power that seems to motivate them. The NSA does what it does because it can. The administration supports, funds, and uses all the surveillance knowledge, even if not for anything else other than economic espionage and advantage, because it can. It isn't fear as a motivator, it's maniacal surveillance power.
If you see an LED stoplight where a chunk of the LEDs seem out, or are blinking wildly, it is likely the circuit that supplies electricity to those LEDs, the LED driver circuit, is what is actually failing, not the LEDs themselves.
Ideally they can be swapped out and the light returned to service, but certainly does lower the hopes that cities had in installing them: to reduce replacement and maintenance costs.
...the NSA tries to tail -f the [censored] planet!
; )
Seems I did not know enough of the story, per this "Wired" article, so, um, 'nevermind' :
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/10/lavabit_unsealed?ref=cm
When I was growing up (70s and early 80s), all the US propaganda about how bad the Soviet Union was, how bad East Germany was, in terms of privacy, citizen rights, and being police states.
"Hypocrisy!", in my opinion.
In my opinion laws should protect non-suspect citizen rights, and enforcement agencies (FBI in this case) should be legally required to only target and restrict their levels of privacy breach to only those individuals or organizations of inquiry. They should have no legal authority to make such demands, and if a company or citizen gets such a demand, the FBI should be able to be publicly sued for attempting to exceed their authority.
AND, if the FBI currently is allowed to do such dragnets, the laws should be amended to remove such authority, and be enforced.
There may be a solution to the NSA problem:
Make a new fully open process, open source encryption system, fully peer-reviewed, global internet participation possible, global peer review possible.
Use the development of the Linux kernel as a model. Use the global participation of Debian as a model.
Perhaps, like kernel.org, there can be FOE.org (Fully Open Encryption dot org) created.
Then that FOE system and software can be collaborated on via git, the developer community, and the security community. ...just my two cents.
Agree: make a new fully open process, open source encryption system, fully peer-reviewed, global internet participation possible, just like the Linux kernel.
Perhaps, like kernel.org, there can be FOE.org (Fully Open Encryption dot org) created.
Then that can be collaborated on via git, the developer community, and the security community. ...just my two cents.
FSM!
: D
It is true that telecommuting can hinder networking with people in water-cooler/cigarette breaks.
For the company I work for, a very large healthcare, the offices are all distributed nationally, no no real chance at face time with those units, even if I was in the office every day.
Not probably as good a substitute, but we end up using instant messaging a lot and get to do a bit of social networking that way, like in the old dot-com days.
Mondays - in the office. Face time. Dept meetings.
Tuesdays through Fridays - telecommute from home.
Tools work provided: laptop, VPN RSA dongle, cell phone.
Tools I provided: DSL, home network (netgear router connected to the DSL), desk, chair.
Love it! Allows me to sleep in till 8:15am, then walk to work PC, boot it, and start my workday at 8:30a. I do not have to drive to and from work. Saves a tank of gasoline a week, and wear-and-tear on the car. No worries about fwy traffic, car accidents, or road rage making me late to work.
Also allows me to be home, working, when the kids get home from school. Money savings there, too, by not having to have them in after-school daycare. Money savings not having to eat out, can eat what is in the fridge.
Stress is lower, too. No having to hear nonconsensual gossip or phone calls from co-workers in office cubes around me. Do not have to wear 'office attire', and usually wear t-shirts and shorts at home. Can play music I like, as loud as I like, as long as I am not on a work phone call. Can use my network to listen to youtube, or surf the web on my non-work PC while I work, no worries about triggering IT alert that I am accessing non-sanctioned websites, as for that I am not using work's network or PC.
Caveat: a person has to have a strong work ethic, and make sure to get the work done, and even do extra work, to keep boss 'happy' that you are deserving to be allowed to be a telecommuter. I always pick up work phone in first or second ring. I always work an extra hour a day, minimum (I never work under 45hrs a week).
So, this will give me hope the bazaar (ie open source hardware|software|operating systems) will triumph, in the long run : )
:1, $ s/Theft/NSA/g
; )
Mix 1/4 liquid fabric softener (unscented if you do not want all your stuff to smell like laundry) to 3/4 water in a spray bottle.
Lightly spray surfaces and wipe dry with a clean rag. The fabric softener conducts enough that it prevents static build up. (Proof by experiment: try on TV screen/enclosure of old tube TV, or spray floor where you used to get a shock to touch a door knob, or the seats of your car.)
I've used this technique for my house's carpets (have to re-apply after each time we got the carpets shampoo'd), car seats and car carpets, TV, PC monitor(s), and PC enclosures.
I am planning to attend.
You fixed it for yourself... +1
I work for A Very Large Health Plan, and it is policy that all work laptops use encrypted harddrives and USB drives.
The laptops that are issued out to us workers already come encrypted, and also with the software that only allows writing to USB drives if you allow the software to encrypt the USB drive.
So far, seems to work, but does make a new laptop seem to be modest at boot/read/write times.
Unaware of any BSOD reports running 32bit apps in Wine ( http://www.winehq.org/ )
Perhaps career change into project management of software or engineering projects.
Usually experience and older workers preferred for being responsible for keeping project managed and on track. ...just a thought.
Found one.
If there will be any Pasadena Calif area celebrations, I am interested in attending. Will also post any such parties to the SGVLUG grp.
RedHat, Debian.
Happy Birthday!
Steve Perry - his blog
http://themanwhonevermissed.blogspot.com/
*raising hand* I now use my phone's web browser to catch up on http://news.google.com/ and facebook... guity as charged.
But I do remember I used to have a paperback book I'd take to school or work, yeow.
Back in the 70s a local bookstore had an entire wall of paperback sci-fi.
Somewhere in the 90s it seems that sci-fi book offerings went into decline. Sure there were still the republishing of 'classics' (dune and such), but not too many new works for sale.
My most recent trips to a bookstore seem to indicate that sci-fi is still in decline, if bookshelf space is a fair indicator. (I am not including manga or other derivatives)