Just Peachy!

Hat Tip to NewsMax.com
The New York Post has a story by Deborah Orin (registration required) that has the catchy title, "IF THAT DON'T BEAT AL". My comments will be in blue. All the rest will be quotes from the Post article. -

AS SEN. Hillary Clinton ratchets up her attacks on President Bush, some Democrats think they smell an explanation: the threat of a 2008 Al Gore presidential bid that could come at her from the left on Iraq. - Smell? Is that the proper word to use concerning our former V.P.??? -

The former vice president is suddenly re-emerging as a vocal and visible Bush-basher - he's slated to star at a Democratic National Committee fund-raiser for big donors in Washington next Tuesday. - Bush bashing is very popular amongst the ultra rich liberals that would rather give their money to politicians than Katrina victims. -


"He's keeping a very strong public profile. He was the first major Democrat to oppose the Iraq war. He's keeping in touch around the country and doing a lot of speeches. You don't do all that if your goal is to play celebrity golf," says a Democratic fundraiser. - How about if your goal is to fill your pockets with something other than golf balls. -

A top Dem strategist adds: "Americans love comebacks and Gore could come back as a real human being instead of a wooden guy. He could come back as the new Nixon - somebody who went into the wilderness and found himself." - Now let me get this straight. The lefties are now saying Nixon was a "Real Human Being"? AND they want to compare Gore to him? AND they admit Gore is a "Wooden Guy" that needs to change appearances. Which does not mean he must really get a 'heart of flesh' but just appear to do so? Now this is the Real LeftWorld uncovered (again). -
.......
Would Gore really run against his ex-boss's wife? Way too early to know. - I'll bet he would if he knew he could rake some dough in! I mean really! Would Gore have distanced himself from Monica's boyfriend in his losing run had he any real loyalty to others. What loyalty does he have besides to his own selfish ambitions? -
.......
- prying1 sez:
There is little doubt in my mind that the Democrats must start getting honest with themselves and the rest of the country. Do Democrats really want the Move-On Dot Org and Michael Moore crowd running the country? (Please SERIOUSLY consider the outcome before answering that. - Imagine Michael Moore stepping out on the front porch of the White House and saying, "OK folks! Here's the way it's gonna be!") If so ALL Democrats should step forward and claim what they stand FOR and not just rant against Bush. I have not heard an Anti-Bush speech say anything new for a coons age. The rhetoric is tired.

- Do we really want Socialised Medicine where the government runs ALL aspects of our health care? Vote for Hillary!
- Do we want a Neville Chamberlain type to stand back and watch terrorists regrow their organizations? Vote for Gore.
- Do Democrats want to see socialists continue to lead their party away from JFK's ideals? Just stay seated.


- -

Donna Brazile Writes an Article

This is one of the things I have been waiting/wanting to see. Someone from the left to see and say that what President Bush wants to accomplish is to enable people to stand up. Not just to fill his pockets and the pockets of his 'friends'. Thanks to AubreyJ for the heads up on this (please visit his site) -

The article is from the WashingtonPost.com site. and is entitled, "I Will Rebuild With You, Mr. President" -

Quotes from the article -
I know, maybe better than anyone, that there are times when it seems that our nation is too divided ever to heal. There are times when we feel so different from each other that we can hardly believe that we are all part of the same family. But we are one nation. We are a family. And this is what we do. When the president asked us to pitch in Thursday night, he wasn't really asking us to do anything spectacular. He was asking us to be Americans, and to do what Americans always do.

and

Bush talked about how we bury our family and friends. We grieve and mourn. We march to a solemn song and then we rejoice and step out and form the second line. That line is now open to every American to join us in rebuilding a great region of this country. New Orleans will rise again. My hometown is down but not out, and with the help of every American, it will be back on its feet, bigger and brighter than ever.

Mr. President, I am ready for duty. I am ready to stir those old pots again. Let's roll up our sleeves and get to work. - end quote -

prying1 sez:
I'm glad that Donna Brazile is willing to stand up for what is so obviously the correct thing to do. (Notice I did not use the word 'right'.) There has been so much mud slung at Bush often times for obvious partisan reasons that the Secret Service must need to keep a garden hose handy. In this tragedy and crisis it is time for the left to quit their bellyaching and lift a hand to help.

If you belong to a group, club, church or just have a favorite hobby consider finding a victim in need and mail 'em some of your excess.

prying1

How about this for a solution?

It seems that spam, fraud and phishing emails are on the rise recently. The amount of monies stolen through this means of conning people cannot really be calculated because often times people that are taken to the cleaners will not report the crime due to embarrassment. I propose that we set up a world wide clearing house to stop this type of activity.

Initially I thought we could run it through the U.N. (I'm including you in on this 'cause I don't want all the credit) but on second thought "Old Kofi" (whom nobody seems to want to fire) would probably have his son running the show so perhaps we should use INTERPOL.

Here is the scenario. A tried in absentia and proven spammer is sitting before his computer. The system is suddenly taken over by INTERPOL through remote access. A smiley face comes on the screen and says, "For a good time put your face real close the screen!" A signal goes out to a killer satellite and before the spammer has a chance to stand up from his chair (if he decides to not put his face close to the screen) a laser beam cuts through the ceiling and fries his system and any electronics within 10 feet. Hopefully he won't be set up in the basement of a 10 story apartment...

Hmm. That could be a problem. OK. I guess that won't quite work without a few safeguards. Last thing INTERPOL needs is a bassinet or Pop's easy chair in the way.

The real reason for this post is because I've been getting pretty much the same phishing emails for eBay passwords from apparently - Germany, Thailand and China. The links lead to the same page supposedly at - superclean-tech.com - (nonexistent per Google and browser bar) and since the 13th of Sept. eBay and assorted phish/scam fighting sites have given me NO return to my many emails telling me why.

??? Hmmm... ???

prying1 sez: -
Perhaps INTERPOL has already started a program and this is part of it. I might be interfering with an ongoing investigation and thereby be subject to arrest. Or worse yet. They might decide to stop my interference with one of their lasers. Excuse me for ending this post before I'm really finished. I have a baseball cap I'm going to cover in tinfoil and I need to get it done real quick...

prying1

Should be interesting!

A friend has started a new blog - Renassiance Wench

At the age of 55 i will be doing a job of my dreams that i never got to do in my youth! image this old lady selling garlands at the renassiance fair...

Pictures will be added as the event gets rolling. - Be sure to drop by her site and give her encouragement. - Might want to stick her address in favorites/bookmarks to keep an eye on the little wench. -

prying1

What I'd like to see...

When FEMA hands out the checks to people, say for 2 grand or so, they should be waving a second check and saying, "You'll get this one when you've joined the clean up work crews and have put in a week..."

Of course I'm not suggesting that disabled or elderly be put to work although they might not mind pushing a broom or supervising a bit if able. What ticks me off is I've seen pictures of a lot of strong bodies just sitting around.

prying1

What About Fingerprints?

NewScientist.com has what I thought to be an interesting article. Some might even call it an arresting article. It is entitled, "How far should fingerprints be trusted?". I found this New Scientist page to be well worth a read. - It seems that fingerprinting has yet to be established as a reliable form of evidence.

- Quote - No one disputes that fingerprinting is a valuable and generally reliable police tool, but despite more than a century of use, fingerprinting has never been scientifically validated. This is significant because of the criteria governing the admission of scientific evidence in the US courts.

The so-called Daubert ruling introduced by the Supreme Court in 1993 set out five criteria for admitting expert testimony. One is that forensic techniques must have a known error rate, something that has never been established for fingerprinting. - End Quote -

~~~~~~~
The pressure is building to come up with some accurate numbers on the error rate of fingerprint experts. -
~~~~~~~

- Quote from article - The reliability of fingerprinting is at the center of an appeal which opened earlier this month at the Massachusetts Supreme Court in Boston. Defense lawyers acting for Terry Patterson, who was convicted of murdering an off-duty policeman in 1993, have launched a so-called "interlocutory" appeal midway through the case itself to test the admissibility of fingerprinting. Patterson's conviction relies heavily on prints found on a door of the vehicle in which the victim died. - End Quote -

A study was done by Stephen Meagher of the FBI's Latent Fingerprint Section in Quantico, Virginia in which 50,000 fingerprints were involved. It was shown that for any one of the prints to be mistaken for any other of the 49,999 prints would be 1 in 10⁹⁷.

Critics said this was fine for nice clean images but the smeared and partial prints found in real life situations don't always match up neatly to archival prints of criminals. Meagher's reply, to New Scientist included the words, "This is not a study on error rate, or an effort to demonstrate what constitutes an identification,". This statement is now being used by critics to show that the '50k study' does not prove the infallibility of fingerprinting something the courts, the FBI and prosecution lawyers have claimed.

The New Scientist article also shows how some examiners were influenced to make wrong decisions concerning prints they themselves had testified about in court.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

prying1 sez: I would suggest that if you are going to pull any shenagigans that you continue to wear gloves. Oh! And don't scratch your skin or drop any hairs or leave any footprints. Also watch out for hidden cameras and don't drive a getaway vehicle with a For Sale sign that has your phone number emblazoned on it.

prying1

Will Gmail EVER make reporting with full headers easier?

This is an Open Letter to the powers that be at Gmail. - I have sent a copy via the process they provide to them and thought I'd share it with you, that is, whoever reads this post. - I have been using Gmail for quite a while now and am quite satisfied with their (free) service. Except for one area that I think Yahoo (another free service) has them beat. That is the ability it gives the user to forward emails with full headers.

The only times I wish to do this is when I receive spam, scams, and phishing emails. BUT! I report each and every one I get as soon as I find them. With Google's Gmail I must open another window to get the requisite full headers and I cannot just cut and paste the info into the forward but I have to adjust the email format to accept the paste. I'm not exactly stupid when it comes to some of this stuff but Why?, I ask, must Gmail make it so complicated?

Here is the recent letter I wrote to them regarding this matter.

Will Gmail EVER make reporting with full headers easier?



It seems that each time I get an email from a phisher or scamster I have to jump through hoops to forward it to the powers I wish to notify. Tonight I got an email from an obvious phisher and it seems that Gmail had dx'ed the link so I could not even see if the false site was still up. Had I wished to forward the headers (to eBay) Gmail had them all messed up with their own lines letting me know to be careful.

I gather Gmail is conducting a security course that has me left out of the loop of reporting phishers and scams which is fine by me IF they would say so at the top of the email. Instead I get:

- quote from email - Warning: This message may not be from whom it claims to be. Beware of following any links in it or of providing the sender with any personal information. - end quote -

MAY NOT BE??? The darn thing was obvious from the get-go! And what can I do about it?

I cannot report it to Ebay. I cannot click on the link to see if it is still active (I have the safety steps taken care of). I cannot get the full headers.

The message should have been - Quote - This email has been reported and treated as a scam or phishing message. Praise the Lord (or what ever divine entity you trust in) that Google/Gmail has your best interests at heart and will protect you from the dark side. - end quote -

Don't get me wrong. I love Google and have since the day I first heard of it. I would prefer if they would be up front with a touch of humor regarding steps like this.

P.S. Attn: anyone at Google. If you need a semi-literate humourist to write messages to your adoring public please inquire. I work cheap! - prying1 -

prying1 sez: - As a matter of full disclosure I did adjust a couple things in the message sent to Gmail due to spellcheck.

prying1

What to post?

Two things caught my attention today -

1:) Heard on Hugh Hewitt that the Brave Sir Nagin - mayor of New Orleans has bought a house in Texas. He apparently has registered his daughter for school there. Northern Alliance Wannabe - has written a post on it with links so I don't have to. I thought that was mighty nice of him.

2:) Fraud, Phishing and Financial Misdeeds has a post on 'How ISP's are profiting from spam'. This is a site that should be a regular stop for people that want to stay a step ahead of the internet crooks. Leave a comment! Put Ted's site in favorites!

Prying1 sez - Not much you can do about the mayor but check the list of ISP's through Ted's link to Spamhaus.org - If you see yours write to the president of the company and blog on his reply! (If no reply blog on that...)

prying1

Another Man's Meat says it for me.

Phil Dillon of Another Man's Meat has said what I have felt but did not take the time to put into words. Good thing I didn't because he has said it so eloquently had I attempted the words his post would have made me look bad.

He titled the post, "The Center Must Hold"
Phil shows a concern about the criticism by both religious and political zealots over the Katrina disaster. - God is punishing the U.S. because of Yada, yada, yada... - Bush did not sign the Kyoto Treaty so Yada, yada, yada...


Phil is on vacation but he left us with a wonderful post. If he can access the internet he may visit the blogosphere before he gets back home but doesn't plan on it.

First we are shown through the forgotten/often ignored second half of the story of Jonah that Man should be concerned for man and not put his selfish interests first. Jonah cared more about a plant than he cared about a city full of people. Are there any people around us today like that?

Then Phil tells us of another vacation he was on when tragedy struck America. He shares some of his reaction to 9-11 and sees the similarities not in the cause but in the effect.

I felt the following paragraph to be poignant.

I understand the anger and the frustration that comes at tragic times like these. I felt the same frustration and helplessness four years ago that feel now. But I believe the appropriate way to express that anger and frustration now is to pray and to give. The time for criticism will come later. The time to cleanse ourselves of personal or political sins will come later. When that day dawns we can convene commissions and we can hold prayer meetings. We can find out what we should have done logistically or spiritually. We can fix bridges and buildings, we can build homes and businesses, we can mend lives, and we can, if necessary, repent. But this is not the time for the looters of our national fabric to gain a foothold. There is far too much work to do now and we who occupy the center must hold. We've given and we've prayed, but more will be required of us. We must not allow the extremists to carry the day!

As the great philosopher Rodney King once said, "Can't we all just get along?"
prying1 sez, "At least for a couple of weeks?"prying1

Roberts Jumping Over and Ahead

Wandering about the blogosphere this evening I came across a post at VOLuntarilyConservative on Judge Roberts and his nomination to the Chief Justice position on the Supreme Court. - In the comments on the post Ariadne of Ariadne's Labyrinth asked the question, "Won't the rest of the judiciaries resent the hell outta Roberts if he bypasses sitting on the bench to become the chief justice?"

Fair question. I think the answer however really does not matter. Ariadne was really asking Rob Huddleston, whose site I was visiting but being the buttinski I am (no offense to persons of Polish extraction) I had to reply.

prying1 sez

- quote - If they allow this to affect their decisions THEY should not be allowed the position! - end quote -

prying1

Katrina pics

Hat tip to aka.alias for the link to this site. If you like scenic pictures she has some beauties posted here. Check some of her previous posts. -

weather channel pics of Katrina prying1

Gone Fishing!

I received these pics from a friend in Texas of her grandchildren who are staying with her for a while. Their mom is getting a chance to visit her husband who is in the military and deployed in the Middle East. Although we have never met I find myself filled with a sense of kinship of Spirit with this family. Something about seeing these kids in Texas playing by a river takes me back a few years......

These pics remind me of a Saturday I spent on base at Ft. Sam Houston Texas. I was in the army and had learned not to stay in the barracks sacked out on a bunk on Saturdays. Much as I loved to lounge around and read on my days off it was dangerous. Any sergeant could walk in and conscript a person for any detail he wanted. I knew this from experience but that is another story.

So I took a walk towards some of the nearby woods and found a section of a river. Some might have called it a stream but it looked a mite too big for that. I thanked the Lord for the chance to experience a bit of His nature and walked along the bank. The Lord and I were having a mighty good heart to Heart talk. Part of the conversation I mentioned to the Lord that it sure was a mighty fine day to dip a line in the water. He and I both knew He had put a few fish in there.

Soon I found a supple long stick and I mentioned to the Lord that it would have made a good pole if I had a line and hook. Going on a piece I found a bit of line that was tangled in a branch by the shore. It untangled pretty easy and became another good reason to praise Him for His providence. Walking further I came across a man fishing on the bank who gladly gave me a hook from his tackle box. While conversing with him a grasshopper that was waiting to become bait hopped on by. I waved goodbye to the fisherman and quickly caught the last ingredient of my endeavors.

Around a bend I found a quiet spot away from the man who might have been a general for all I knew. I figured he wanted to fish alone or he would have been with a friend. I baited up, tossed the hopper into the water and sat on a log to wait. After a bit of kicking the grasshopper finally settled down and sank. Having no weight on the line I could not pull it taut the way I would have liked but that didn't really matter much. I was fishing! Half a country from my home in California and I was fishing. That was all that was important to me. That and the time I could spend in this quiet location away from people, in the woods, away from the army and with my Lord Jesus.

He and I had a good conversation that day. Most of it spent with me talking but there were enough times where the Lord got to put in his 2 cents worth too. Wish I could remember what we were talking about. I am positive that most of it was Him sharing His love. - Suddenly the line went taut. I pulled a bit and the line pulled back. It went first to the right and then doubled back to the left. I pulled a bit harder and the line went slack. From the way it pulled I figured it to be a turtle that stole my bait. Just as well because had I caught a fish I had no way to cook it anyway. They frowned on fires in the barracks.

It was a wonderful day. One of those days the Bible talks about when it said, This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it! -

prying1

One Way to Help Katrina Victims

Send a package from your home or business to someone that lost everything and likes what you like.

Sounds simplistic I know but I had to start this post with that line because too many people surfing the blogs will keep surfing after reading the first sentence. They might miss the rest of this post but hopefully the first line will sink in at a later date...

Big tragedy hits and it is ALL OVER the news. Help is needed here or there... Please send money NOW!!! DONATE THROUGH THIS PHONE NUMBER NOW! CLICK ON THIS LINK! SEND ME THE MONEY AND I'LL GET IT THERE! PAYPAL ACCEPTED!!!!

- I am rather loathe to send money to the big name outfits like the Red Cross and even one of the best, the Salvation Army. I always feel that whatever I send will get gobbled up in the confusion. - Because of this I wait before sending a check any direction and often times it ends up I send nothing.

After the Tsunami I waited and sent money to the only person I KNEW in Thailand, that is, Glenn "Jeep" Holthaus in Pattaya, Thailand of the Thai Kids Charity Project - The money hit there while the UN leeches were still sitting by their poolside, sucking up expensive booze in the 4-5 star hotels mere blocks from the devastation. 'Jeep' Holthaus made sure the funds went towards something the locals needed. Funds you send him will help the little ones. - Don't hesitate to contact him or send him funds. (PayPal accepted! - Where did I hear that before?) - So where to send money or goods in the Katrina aftermath?

Listening to Hugh Hewitt on the radio I heard him talking about churches helping churches, schools helping schools, construction companies helping construction companies... - I called my pastor, Barry Griffing (Google that name!), and asked him if he knew any pastors that might be affected by Katrina. - It affected his memory cells in a positive fashion and he is checking on a name that came to mind. Hopefully this weekend our church will take up an offering for specific needs and in the near future as mail service is restored we can send packages of specific items needed, requested and desired. Be it food, blankets or books. We will not be opposed to sending cash through PayPal either.

For years I've been wheeling and dealing on ebay primarily with one of my main loves, that is, books. I have cartons of books in my garage. I've been searching for a small, soggy used bookstore or eBay seller outside of the big cities in the devastated areas that could use a few cartons of books mailed to them. I'm sure through Google, eBay and Yahoo I'll find the right place. Suggestions will be considered. - I'm reminded of a fellow I met in Arkansas whose garage was a lending library of sorts. I forget the trade rates he had set up, bring 2-3 books & take one or what, but he loved books and delighted in meeting others with the same emotion. I was just passing through had no books to trade, other than the one I was reading at the time. He reluctantly took cash for the books I wanted. - I'm certain that a like minded person will be happy to get some books to start replacing what they have lost.

Imagine a month from now if a fellow that owns a small construction company, say in Nevada or Oklahoma, looks around his yard for duplicate equipment and sees a small (working of course) cement mixer that has not been used for a while. He fills the drum up with a hand drill, sabre saw, hammer, pliers, assorted screwdrivers, asks his employees to throw their donations in the drum and sends it to someone he KNOWS through contacts that has lost his livelihood.

In a couple of weeks from today a lawyer pulls a couple of his computers out of his network, cleans the hard drives for ethical and clientele privacy reasons (To hell with the legal reasons) and ships them to a lawyer he KNOWS through contacts has lost his business. Included in the package is a subscription to an online legal research site to help replace the books lost. He would be confident that a snake with a pattern similar to his own would be receiving something needed to continue the deception first started with Eve. - (OK - Disclaimer - Previous line was designed for humor relief. It in no way was written as a disparaging remark meant to slime any snakes, living or dead.)

A gardener sending a check or gift certificate to Sears to another gardener to cover the cost of a lawn mower and weed whacker. (I like 'Extreme Makeover' - I have shopped as Sears as a result! Great advertising program! {disclaimer - No monies are received for advertisement of any products or endorsements...) An electrician shipping duplicate tools of the trade he has gathered through the years. This guy really has a giving heart and sends the BEST of each as opposed to the ones he quit using. A seamstress sends a box of quilting material. Butcher sends a set of knives. Baker sends some money for flour and starter for sourdough. Candlestick Stick Maker sends a ton of wax and some oils for flavoring.

Think of your trade, career, interests or hobby. Look about your house. Ask your boss and fellow workers to participate. Use the internet to find someone who has been wiped out. Watch for and avoid scammers. Find someone in need and ship a package (and more) directly to them as soon as the roads are clear.

The government checks some of these folks will be receiving will be nice and helpful but will be used up quick. The thing they will remember most are the gifts you send directly to them. Start searching today and don't be thinking 6 months from now, "Gee, I should'a"....

prying1

Google to Take Over the World?

I received this in an email from NewsMax.com -

- Quote -
GoogleNet: Building the Mother of All Networks

Google is building a national broadband network massive enough to rival even the largest Internet service providers - and free Wi-Fi access from Google could be just around the corner.

For the past year the company has been quietly shopping for miles of unused fiber-optic cable, and acquiring superfast connections between East Coast cities, according to Business 2.0. magazine.

"The rash of telecom bankruptcies has freed up a ton of bargain-priced capacity, which Google needs as it prepares to unleash a flood of new, bandwidth-hungry applications," the magazine reports.

These could include a service to troll podcasts and other audio files, and another to let users share personal videos and watch on-demand TV programming.

Building a network would also save Google millions of dollars a month, since it currently utilizes a network owned by an ISP when a user performs a search and Google has to pay as much as $60 per megabit in transit fees.

Once the network - which Business 2.0 dubs GoogleNet - is up and running, users could connect via wireless Internet after Google blankets major cities with Wi-Fi.

And the magazine speculates that Google plans to do just that. The company is already sponsoring a Wi-Fi hotspot in San Francisco.

"So is Google about to offer free Net access to everyone?" Business 2.0 asks.

Google officials aren't saying. But stay tuned.
- end quote -

prying1 sez:
I'm not knowledgeable on Wi-Fi but I do know that with the right equipment the signal can be 'borrowed' by neighbors and even passers by. Bradley Mitchell has several articles at About.com - "Computing and Technology section" He says, "Firewalls are not 100% bulletproof" against hacking so if this service comes about and when people decide to jump on the bandwagon I would suggest simply shutting down the connection when not in use.

Will Google eventually become the ruler of the internet/www world? Would that be a good or a bad thing? The internet/www is pretty big but logically some company must be the biggest. Up to this point I have not seen Google make any moves that would appear to be evil. It might be that behind the scenes Google heads are controlling and making demands of people that forces them to go against their consciences but there is absolutely no evidence of such behaviour. Neither has any moves they have made shown a propensity to move toward the 'Dark Side'...

I'm Shocked! Shocked I say!!!

Thanks to NewScientist.com for the heads up on this one -

Ki Bang Lee, of The Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in Singapore announced a battery that is activated with biofluids such as urine or blood.

- - - Quote - - -
The first urine-powered paper battery has been created by physicists in Singapore. The credit-card sized unit could be a useful power source for cheap healthcare test kits for diseases like diabetes, and could even be used in emergency situations to power a cellphone, they say.
- - - End quote - - -

Are they going to set up special booths in the streets for people to discreetly step into in order to pee on their cell phones? I'd be concerned about putting it up to my ear when it is juiced up.

- - - Quote - - -
Current biochips need an external reader such as a laser scanner or an external source of power, such as conventional batteries, to perform diagnostic tests. Lee'‘s technology houses both the sensors and the battery on one plastic chip.
- - - End Quote - - -

Please note this plastic chip is not the kind you play poker with!

- - - Quote - - -
The urine-powered battery was able to generate a voltage of about 1.5 volts with a corresponding power of 1.5 micro-watts using just 0.2 millilitres of urine, says Lee. And if a second droplet of urine was added 15 hours after the battery was first activated, the replenished urine could generate still more electricity.

The battery is currently suited for use with disposable devices it is not yet ready to power laptops or iPods. "But if, for example, we place a small cellular phone or transmitter on a plastic card, the chip will work as a disposable biofluid-activated means of communication in an emergency, Lee told New Scientist. In this case, the size will be less than that of a credit card.
- - - End Quote - - -

1.5 volts! Hmmm. My camera takes 3 volts. I wonder if two of em...

I wonder too how far will this go? I mean, could you start your car if you put a bunch of these in your car seat? Dad's Barcalounger will have to be aired out on occasion if it is set up to run the TV.

- - - Quote - - -
The battery is made of a layer of filter paper steeped in copper chloride, sandwiched between strips of magnesium and copper. This sandwich is then laminated in plastic to hold the whole package together. The resulting battery is just 1 millimetre thick and 60 by 30 mm across slightly smaller than a credit card.

To activate the battery, a drop of urine is added and soaks through the sandwiched filter paper. The chemicals dissolve and react to produce electricity. The magnesium layer acts as the anode, losing its electrons. And the copper chloride acts as the cathode, mopping up the electrons.

But Lee adds that the voltage, current and capacity of the battery could be improved by different designs or by switching the electrode or electrolyte materials used.

He believes the system could be used in home-based health test kits. The long-term goal is for people to be able to buy disposable biochips for a disease test from any pharmacy,” he says.
- - - End Quote - - -

ATTENTION JEFF FOXWORTHY FANS - Do not be fooled by the word 'sandwich' in the preceding paragraph. They are not talking about bread and meat!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~

prying1 sez:

- This really does look like a good thing but we will all be well advised to wash our hands after borrowing a friends cell phone and think twice before jumping into Dad's Barcalounger. Just in case...

Why Use Yahoo and Not Hotmail?

Ok, What is with these tech support people? Can't people make an obvious decision anymore? If these jokers worked for me and I happened to read this in prying1's blog then you bet they might not get fired but advancement would be a looong time coming. Whatever happened to 'executive decisions'? I make 'em all the time at my work and my bosses (two company owners - I'm the peon and prefer it that way.) depend on me to do so as occasion warrants. - Here is the scenario all of which on my end went through one of my Yahoo email accounts -

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I get an email for a Nigerian 411 scam -

- Quote from email -
I am a business development specialist and i have engaged in the purchasing of heavy materials and machinery from any part of the world,for contract supplies(only) to some multinational companies in Europe and Africa.More to it,i was also partially or slightly invloved in the exportation of solid minerals in minimal quantity from some countries in Central Africa to some countries within the United Kingdom but due to some new strict trade policies and severe political and economical factors in some of the countres i was involved with in Africa,i have been put out of business for a while. - ... - ...
- end quote -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i have to wunder if his speiling andpunchuatshun might of had sumthin todo with looseing his busyness. - It goes on in much the same vein... - I wanted to change the word exportation in the email above to exploitation but decided not to change the body of the quote.

If you want to read the whole thing email me and I will forward it. - The deal was, I get 20% of 19 MILLION $$$'s - Whoo Hoo!

I'll be rich! Inevitably this would only cost me all I have plus all I could borrow and even all I could steal. Needless to say I did not go for it. If you want to invest let me know - I'll forward the pertinent info.

I noticed at the bottom of the letter was an email address. A bright blue link to the perpetrator of this scam. - It was a Hotmail.com address. - So I do what any semi law abiding citizen would do. I forwarded the message to abuse@hotmail.com - A short while later I get an auto response from Hotmail - Form letter. They got the message and will look at it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The same day I get another nigerian scam letter from Dr. John Smith. His real name! Wow! At first I thought he was joking but Dr. John Smith is his real name. His deal is better (I think).

- Quote - On behalf of myself and my colleagues who are ministerial official and other officers in charge of offshore remittance in this corporation, we are seeking your assistance for the transfer of Forty Two Million (US$15,000,000.00) to your account for further private investment purpose, Hence our request for your assistance. - ... - ... - End Quote -

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The idiot didn't even change the number when he modified his letter. Which is it? 42 mil or 15 mil? I did not bother writing to ask. I

noticed the return address on this one was a Yahoo.com account. - Forwarded email to abuse@Yahoo.com - They responded within 8 hours. A form letter but it said appropriate action was taken. I feel satisfied. (note - As I am writing this I emailed from a dummy account to both addresses. - Response from Yahoo - Account non-existent! Mail undeliverable - Hot mail.......... No reply yet.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mind you these emails were received and forwarded on the same day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK, 2-1/2 hours after Yahoo tells me they took "appropriate action" Hotmail send me a message saying

- quote -

Thank you for writing to MSN Hotmail Technical Support.

My name is Harrison and I am writing in response to the unsolicited message that you reported. I know how important it is for you to protect your account from unsolicited messages.

I have verified that the account [michealhartrupp2000@hotmail.com] you reported is an active Hotmail account. However, we did not find enough evidence to prove that the e-mail that you received originated from this account. If you have other documentation to prove that this account is indeed sending unsolicited e-mail, please send us a copy with the full message header so we can re-evaluate your report. To do this, please refer to the Help section of your e-mail account or client to learn more about exposing the full message headers of the e-mail you are forwarding. - ... - ... -
... more about forged headers and crap unrelated to the nigerian scam letter I sent them ...
- end quote -

They got the full headers. The email address the scammer was using was at the bottom of the page. Hotmail is dealing with a scammer not a spammer. A scammer that is using a Hotmail account.

I wrote back to Hotmail - quote -

Hi Harrison, - This is the only email I received from this joker to my knowledge. - I could email him and get more on his scam for you but I should think that the body of the email with the hotmail address at the bottom should be enough to yank his account. - - I'm not sure if your terms of service allow you to go into his account and peruse his mail but certainly -[michealhartrupp2000@hotmail.com]- is up to no good and is using hotmail for nefarious purposes. - Paul -
prying1.blogspot.com - - - 6:56 AM
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- end quote -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Reply from Hotmail @ 15:43 hrs (8+ hours later) -

- Quote -

Hello Paul,


Thank you for writing back to MSN Hotmail Technical Support.

My name is Divino. I have read the e-mail exchanges you have had with Harrison
and from what I understand you were reporting about the unsolicited e-mail message you received.

We have investigated the account you have reported and we found that the X-Originating IP of the mail you have sent us did not match. It is possible that it was forged or tampered with. If you have any other documentation from this sender, please send it to us immediately with complete message headers.

Hotmail firmly enforces its Terms of Use (TOU) including our anti-spam stance. You can review our TOU at:
http://privacy.msn.com/tou/default.asp

We are very sorry if we were not able to take action against this person because we need sufficient evidence to justify our actions. I appreciate your patience and understanding regarding this matter.


Thank you very much.


Divino T.
MSN Hotmail Technical Support

- end quote -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
prying1 sez:

My FINAL reply: - quote -

OK - If you want to allow an obvious crook to continue
using hotmail then fine - I sent a similar email to
abuse at Yahoo and they YANKED the jerks account toot
sweet!. - Who cares where he originated the blasted
email - He want victims to use his Hotmail address
because he knows you will let him! - Paul -

- end quote -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I will continue to forward scams to Hotmail in hopes that Harrison and Divino don't get them... But I'm not gonna continue this endless diatribe with these boys. Let Mr. Micheal Hartrupp continue his scam through Hotmail.com. He knows he has the support! (smiley face here)

Why They Write Science Fiction!

I've been reading a bit of science fiction lately. I came across a set of books I got years ago and never got around to reading. It is a collection of short stories and novellas plus some that was selected by the members of The Science Fiction Writers of America. They had each member submit the titles they liked best excluding their own and tallied up the winners to put in an anthology. It is a 3 book collection called "The Science Fiction Hall of Fame".

Of course Asimov, Bradbury, Pohl, Heinlein, and a myriad of authors are represented.

Some favorite stories are, The Roads Must Roll (Heinlein), The Time Machine (H.G.Wells), The Midas Plague (Pohl), and too many more to name. Especially for a four fingered typist...

While reading a bit it finally came to me what it is that draws writers into Science Fiction as a favored genre. It is simply this. Lawsuits...

You know at the start of novels where it tells you that no one on earth was the model for the characters inside the book. Imagine this court scene:

Lawyer, "Your Honor, we will prove that my client Mr. Smith was slandered by this so called author. He was called a lying, unethical, crook and this has had an adverse effect on his business. He was called a pimping whoremonger and this has had an adverse effect on his family life. He was called an immature mamma's boy with apron strings tied to his wrists and this has had an adverse effect on his psyche.

Judge: Ok, I perused the book and am wondering where you find all of these accusations in it?

Lawyer, "Your Honor, You can read, starting on page 12, about the slimesided Arcturian gizzlewop named Rejrindul Azurkod and we intend to show how the author cleverly used this character to cause harm to my client.

Judge: (slams gavel) "Get out of my court!" (slams gavel again) "Now!!!" (Judge mumbles a bit, then barks) "Next case..."

Delete Button Does Not Delete!

On occasion I wheel and deal at a computer swap meet. I'll pick up hard drives real cheap there. Of course I'm taking a chance when I pick up a drive off the ground or a blanket that when I get it home it will not work. Last meet I got a 80 gig hard drive for $3.00. It works, whoohoo!

When I plugged the drive in I was able to set it up as a 'd' drive and accessed all the info on it. It had belonged to someone that had set it up as a 'C' drive with WinXP.

WinXP has now got it set up so that you cannot just simply transfer the drive from one machine to another. To get it to work as a 'C' drive I had to reformat it and reload Windows. This of course wiped out all the previous information. Or did it?

The info stored on a hard disk is simply magnetic bits that are pointed north or south, on or off, yes or no, 1 or 0. Deleting files or even formatting a hard drive does not remove all the information stored on it. It simply removes the pointers that tells the reading heads where to go to find the requested info. As a result sensitive information like banking and financial records can still be accessed with the proper software. I have read that even writing over the previous file doesn't quite do the trick. A ghost image of the file can remain and a real pro can find and reconstruct the info.

So, the question is, what to do with old unneeded hard drives to protect yourself from any hanky panky with the info on it. One solution that is quick and easy is to smash it with a hammer making sure all the platters inside get damaged. But suppose the computer you use at work is about to go down the hall to someone else. Perhaps the laptop you use is about to be transferred to another department. They might be a tad upset if the hard drive has major dents in it.

I came across this page from Brown University that gives some tips and links to software (Some Free!!! Whoohoo again!) that solves this problem. I see some in the list for Mac and Unix. (which reminds me of the time my buddy Mike asked another computer nut if he liked Unix. The man replied, "No! I prefer women...")

I will suggest you be careful if you download and use any of these programs. It appears that some of them are designed to wipe out the whole disk only and not selected freespace, files or folders.

One of my favorite lines from a book

As I'm sitting here at the computer I have a stupid fly buzzing about the room.

On occasion it gets nearby and I swing at it. - I miss... -

On occasion it lands on the monitor screen. I swing at it. - I miss... -

Kung Fu practictioner I'm not...

But this reminded me of one of my favorite lines from a book. - Art Linkletter's Kid's Say the Darndest Things. (Not to be confused with Bill Cosby's book by the same title.) This is not verbatim but it is pretty close.

Scenario: Art Linkletter has very young school children sitting in chairs and is asking them questions about life and love.

Art: "How did you get that bump on your head?"
kid: "I was killing flies."
Art: "You were killing flies with your forehead?"
kid: "No, I was using a hammer."

NARAL Tells Lies in Anti - John Roberts Commercials

Opposed to bombing abortion clinics? Well then you should be pushing your elected officials to support John Roberts as Supreme Court Justice. You should also be pushing for NARAL to back off on their adverts that portray Roberts as a man who supports the criminal/terrorist activity of bombing abortion clinics.

Factcheck.org has the real scoop on what NARAL is up to. The pro-abortion group's commercial shows a bombing scene that happened 7 years after the legal brief they misquote as Roberts endorsing murder. The legal brief was supporting states laws and simply said there was no need for federal interdiction. - The Supreme Court agreed 6 to 3...

prying1 sez - It amazes me that a group that endorses ripping babies from the safety of their mothers wombs uses an obvious lie about murder like this and expects to get away with it. - Anyone who supports NARAL after this has no excuse. Bearing false witness is still in the 10 Commandments even if the Commandments are not on the walls of our courts. Duplicity always ends up with a spotlight shining on it. If you stand with NARAL the spotlight will also be shining on you!