Posts by evil tom

Viacom is to the Empire as...

...YouTube is to the Jawas, the DMCA is to the Dark Side, and altered Vh1 clips are to stolen droids.

(These aren't the pop up video clips you're looking for...)

Have a nice little read of an interesting article, says I...

...but no. Have to be forced back into the cubicle of contemporary human perception with its faith-based logic, irrational skepticism, and Talibangelist threats of forcible deportation to Iran if someone hints that perhaps, the scientists have it right about that dino-killing asteroid...

As for opinions being valid arguments, since when did opinion start to trump evidence based reasoning? Telling someone they are wrong is not the same as saying they don't have a right to their opinion.

"2 + 2 = 5... " (No, it doesn't.)

"How dare you infringe on my right to free speech? You should live in Iran, where they don't have freedoms! Freedom-hater!"

(I would say there might be something to paleontology, but then I might be compared to Hitler.)

Instead, why don't we all just take our towels (always know where your towel is) and stare out into the vast inky blackness of space in the hopes that - for our own sake - one of those planet-whomping iceballs is still lurking just behind the veil of night to deliver us from ourselves.

Damn right that cat isn't very social, Spiegel...

...how the hell would it make you feel if your eternal duty as decreed by the sun god Ra - perhaps because of some digression in a previous existence (ie as Shipman) - is to remain at an old folks' home in Rhode Island and be the valet of the lost souls? I wouldn't be too social myself, come to think of it. That must be one serious cat.

Tinkerbell the Cat from Next Door: "I'm going to chase birds, roll in some dirt, eat a few leaves of catnip and fall asleep on some fresh laundry. You?"

DEATHCAT: "..."

Tinkerbell Cat: "Suit yourself."

White Hat VXers

Above comment is exactly what I thought...although I don't see anything sad about it.

It is fairly common in counter-insurgency efforts for security forces to adopt guerrilla tactics, or, if you prefer, attacking a mesh network with a decentralized, autonomous (or in this case, automated) approach. I am surprised that it has taken this long for other people to come to that conclusion; it is the most effective way and ultimately, probably the only way to counter sophisticated, decentralized botnets spread by tricking unwitting users.

Considering the fact that our own bodies' immune systems do this anytime a pathogen is introduced into our system, I see nothing morally or ethically wrong with this so long as the anti-botnet, anti-virus does not itself compromise the unwitting host computer. Most people do not pay attention to what sites they visit or what links they click, and if their computer is compromised without them knowing it, we have to also assume that they will not know enough to check for trojans, etc. So...you can go after the botnet hubs, or you can take advantage ot people's ignorance/carelessness by tricking them into uploading anti-virus programs that will detect and uninstall malware, etc.

Of course, there is only one response...

...Russia will just have to get working on that clone army of mutant bear soldiers it has been secretly planning since ClonAid's Moscow cloning vat center was shut down in 2003.

The only response to robot warfare is genetic engineering...or the arcane arts. One or the other.

Word of advice to RIAA...

Leave the hard drive, take the cannoli.

I thought this kind of humour stopped at age 14...

Hey, Commander Prothero, there are lots of other websites besides Yahoo that would love to have you, like maybe Repent America (blamed Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans' "decadence") or the Westboro Baptist Church (the God Hates Fags people).

And no, this doesn't mean you are conservative...even the arch-conservative unholy dark father Dick Cheney himself is pretty tolerant on this subject. The National Rifle Association even has a membership association called the Pink Pistols. Just own up; gays threaten your atrophied sense of masculine self-worth. It's ok. Just get a Hotmail account. I hear they send tons of helpful emails to men just like you.

The terrorists will get their hands on cluster bombs...

...because Israel keeps dropping cluster bombs in their gardens.

And why are they (seriously angry at us) *becoming terrorists of their own accord* again?

...maybe because the (five-year old kid next door) *enemy combatant* had his hands blown off after picking up the (freaking shiny toy-looking bomb) *unexploded ordinance* that landed in the (backyard) *terrorist training ground*.

Which means we (need to drop more cluster bombs) *need more security measures* because those (civilians) *terrorists* keep (getting hit with) *acquiring* (shrapnel & napalm & etc.) *advanced weapons components*.

...Then we go home. Mission accomplished!

They forgot to add:

"Then in the wake of our glowing victory for the forces of democratic freedom, the people of Arnolia demand free elections and full health care, not to mention electricity, running water, and a clean up of all the depleted uranium rounds we used.

"Next thing we know, the Scientologists are car bombing the Qabbalists in Hollywood, the Latin Kings control everything from San Jose to Santa Barbara and Coalition forces control little more than a small area in downtown Sacremento including the statehouse, a Starbucks and an In & Out Burger. Meanwhile, the free people of Wassegon sip their grande lattes and throw rocks at presidential/prime ministerial motorcades every time Bush or Blair comes to Seattle.

"Do we cut & run? Do we stay the course? Do we come up with a strategy that is more than a single sound bite?"

Dude, are you insane???

troll-breath wrote above:

"The Democrats and their '68 neo-communist minded behaviour and ideas can't allow others to have privacy, all the privacy stuff belongs to the Democrats, "Heil Democrats!" we should start shouting since their political party with either the Clinton stuff or the Obama thing want to get power at any cost and breaking any rules."

Breaking rules...power at all costs...hm, sounds familiar. Don't know where've I've seen that before, maybe spying on our own citizens? Launching wars of conquest in violation of international law? Imprisoning suspects without the right to trial? Kidnapping foreign nationals/US citizens and holding them incommunicado in secret prisons?

And if these emails are exposed, probably rigging elections too?

Bush and the rest should be charged with war crimes, found guilty and hanged.

"This "all you emails belong to us" campaign is disgusting to say the least.

Shame on you Democratic party and Left Wing fanatics !"

And Hitler called Stalin a dictator...

A letter to the village idiots...AHEM, elders.

Here is an email I wrote to the village idiots...ahem, TOWN OFFICIALS of the village of Sparta, Michigan.

Feel free to Web mob them into sensibility.

-----------------------------

To: spartapresident@charter.net, ddadirector@spartami.org, manager@spartami.org, rrobsparta@hotmail.com, chiefbolen@aol.com, policechief@spartami.org, artisticdesigns@charter.net

Dear Village of Sparta,

Your totalitarian and absolutely disgraceful prosecution of Sam Peterson (Michigan man busted for stealing Wi-Fi signal; could have received five years - http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1640) is despicable, inane, backward and farcical. I should drive out to Sparta, Michigan just to get arrested for accessing unencrypted Wi-Fi in order to challenge your ridiculous "law;" Mr. Peterson must simply not have had the resources to do so.

Specifically,

752.795 Prohibited conduct.

Sec. 5.

A person shall not intentionally and without authorization or by exceeding valid authorization do any of the following:

(a) Access or cause access to be made to a computer program, computer, computer system, or computer network to acquire, alter, damage, delete, or destroy property or otherwise use the service of a computer program, computer, computer system, or computer network.

(b) Insert or attach or knowingly create the opportunity for an unknowing and unwanted insertion or attachment of a set of instructions or a computer program into a computer program, computer, computer system, or computer network, that is intended to acquire, alter, damage, delete, disrupt, or destroy property or otherwise use the services of a computer program, computer, computer system, or computer network. This subdivision does not prohibit conduct protected under section 5 of article I of the state constitution of 1963 or under the first amendment of the constitution of the United States.

...is not only completely over-broad in its definition (or lack of definition) as to what constitutes "unauthorized" access to a computer network, it is also completely out of step with actual technology; there is no such thing as "unauthorized" access to an open, unencrypted Wi-Fi network!!!

This is not the same thing as breaking into someone's home or hacking someone's computer or even an encrypted Wi-Fi network, where there is an expectation of privacy. It is broadcast on an open channel, much like public radio or even official, unencrypted radio transmissions - someone receiving radio transmissions is not illegal, and unless people like you get their way, never will be. Using an unencrypted Wi-Fi signal is completely unintrusive.

Prosecuting someone for such an act violates their rights, both under the Michigan Constitution of 1963 and the United States Constitution, to not be subjected to unreasonable searches and seizures and to due process - they are being prosecuted for unintrusively receiving and sending digital information using technology in the exact manner in which such technology was designed, with no harm to either party and with no zero-sum gain involved (no one loses anything). To equate this with theft effectively makes the entire Internet illegal.

This same law technically makes it illegal to access your village's own public website, as either no "authorization" to "acquire" packets from most servers is formally granted to, or is acquirable by, end users, or such authorization is considered automatic and built into the technology itself.

It also makes it illegal in your village to use opensource software since such software is based on an agreement to require open access to the source code with no authorization. It makes it illegal to access the websites of any service provider, without specific permission to do so.

You are all breaking this law every time you access cnn.com. Pop-up email ads are also illegal and technically, you are breaking the law right now by receiving/reading my email, since no explicit end-user authorization was granted through my email host to your email host and then to you, in order to send or receive information to/from me.

Police chief Andrew Milanowski should be fired, the law should be repealed and Sam Peterson should be free to go with all charges dropped. The village owes him a public apology.

This story is all over the Internet now, and Sparta, Michigan is rapidly becoming known as the new heartland of ignorance because of the actions of one overzealous police officer and a poorly researched law written out of hype and stupidity.

Congratulations! Sparta, Michigan is now known throughout the world, and will be for some time!

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/23/michigan_wifi_conviction/

Please forward this to every village official...oh wait, that would violate village ordinance 752.795. Never mind. I will do it myself, since I am outside the jurisdiction.

Sincerely (glad I do not live in Sparta, Michigan),

[your name here]