Ironwood Tree

Another bit of wisdom

2011-10-23T16:29:00.002-05:00

I just have one windows vm on my Mac. It's Windows 7 and I want to run my favorite hacking tools on it. My favorite of the favorite tools is Wikto. I especially like the Googlehacking database included in it. This will rapidly search Google for vulnerable systems. You can use it to break in, or to find problems on your own web site. Anyone who works in vulnerability management, as I do, should know how to use it.

To use Wikto for Googlehacking, you have to have an api running that lets Google know you're doing it on purpose and you're not malware. There are viruses and trojans that hijack computers to do these queries and Google is a good citizen and blocks them.

Sensepost has an api called Spud that will let you run a query on a website through Wikto. Starting Spud is tricky in Windows 7. You have to open up a command prompt as administrator, change to the sensepost spud directory and run \bin\spud.exe. You can't run it from the bin directory, just the directory above it.

Bricked Netgear WNDR3700

2011-10-22T13:01:00.001-05:00

I am going to have to get a new tshirt. Thinkgeek has one that says "I void warranties". I need a shirt that says "I brick wireless routers".

Until a few minutes ago I had a bricked Netgear WNDR3700 wireless router. I also have a bricked Linksys router, I'll try to restore it next and post instructions if I have success restoring it too.

I have tried the tftp restore instructions on both routers with no success. The netgear was in a continuous reboot cycle and the put command just timed out. I was able to use the Netgear firmware restore utility to restore the firmware eventually. Here are the steps:

1. Get the Netgear installation CD. If you're like me and can't find it, download the Windows 7 version from the Netgear website at http://www.netgear.com/win7. Extract it on a Windows 7 machine (I used a virtual machine on my Mac in VMware Fusion). Set up a static ip address on your physical network port on the 192.168.1.0/24 network, plug a network cable into your workstation port and then in port 1 of the router. It helps to turn off your wireless on your workstation while you do this or you can have trouble only talking on the network cable.

2. Do the 30-30-30 hard restart on your router. Make sure your router is plugged in to power and connected to your workstation. Use a straightened paperclip and press and hold the reset button for 30 seconds on the router. Still pressing the reset button, pull out the power cord from the router. Hold the reset button for another 30 seconds and then plug the router back in while still holding the reset button and hold the reset button for another 30 seconds while the power is restored.

3. Now you should see 2 green lights on the router. There will be a steady green light on the port you're plugged into and a slowly blinking green light about it. This means it has corrupt firmware but it's waiting and available for upgrade. If you don't see this, run the 30-30-30 restart again. I had to do it twice.

4. Start the firmware upgrade utility. It should detect the router and reload the firmware. Follow the instructions on the screen and you should have a functional router in a few minutes!

Protect Your Computer (And Your Bank Account)

2011-03-17T21:51:00.002-05:00

How to Protect Your Home Computer

Ever since the internet became available to the public, computer crime has soared. Since the internet started out as a limited academic system, there are virtually no safeguards built into the basic protocols. All protections have to be added on. Here are some suggested add-ons and tips to make computing safer for you.

1. Turn on your firewall. Windows and Mac OS X computers have built in firewalls but you have to turn them on if you want them to work. In Windows, go to Start, Control Panel, Windows Firewall, click On and then click OK. In a Mac, click the apple icon, choose System Preferences, Security and choose the Firewall tab. Click On.

2. Use an antivirus program but don’t depend on it. Antivirus programs can stop some threats but far from all threats. You still have to be careful! Most ISP’s offer free antivirus for PC’s. ClamAV from Sourcefire has a free version and so does Avast. Get ClamAV from http://www.clamav.net/lang/en/ and Avast from http://www.avast.com/index

3. Use a backup antivirus program. If your computer slows down or you see popups, or you just want to make sure you’re ok, use Malwarebytes to scan your computer. It does not interfere with most other antivirus programs and the free version does not do real time scans. Just do a manual scan every week or so to double check your system. Get Malwarebytes from http://www.malwarebytes.org/

4. Speaking of backup, backup your important files. You can buy a large usb drive and copy files or if you have a good internet connection you can use a service such as Dropbox, Mozy or Carbonite to backup your files offsite.

5. Did you know that a lot of computers are infected by bogus search results? It doesn’t matter whether you use Google, Bing, or Yahoo, criminals use a technique called Search Engine Optimization or SEO to get you to click on their infected sites. Then they load piles of crap on your computer in the background.

Use Web of Trust at http://www.mywot.com to protect yourself from bad searches. Web of Trust is a crowd sourced rating system that will mark safe search results with a green circle and bad results with a red circle. It will also warn you if you click on a bad site. Sites that are not rated yet are gray. Avoid them too unless you’re really sure they’re ok. If they are ok, you can rate them! That’s how crowd sourcing works.

6. Protect your DNS. DNS is the system that translates internet addresses such as 192.168.23.2 to easily remembered names such as www.mysite.com. You probably use your internet provider’s DNS. There are very few checks on DNS and you can easily go to a malicious site with one typo. You can switch your DNS settings to use a system that will protect you from typo squatting and known malicious sites for free. For a small fee, you can get statistics on your home network’s usage and block categories of sites such as porn, hacking, or violence. Go to http://www.opendns.com for instructions on using their DNS.

7. Computer running slow? Don’t buy anything from late night TV to clean it up, use Ccleaner at http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download. Basic home use is free.

8. Finally, all of the previous suggestions will help you work safer and faster but there is a big threat to homes and small businesses from password stealing programs that target your banking information. The Zeus and Spyeye botnets have driven many people into bankruptcy. There is a free tool that targets these threats. It is financed by banks and you should check if your bank offers Rapport from Trusteer. Put it on every computer that could possibly access a bank account. If your bank doesn’t offer it, you can use it anyway and download it from http://www.trusteer.com/. Click on the home user tab and follow the instructions. When you install it, there will be an arrow next to your browser address bar. When you’re on your bank site, Ebay, or Paypal, click that arrow. Choose Protect this Site and the passwords will never be sent to that site unencrypted.

9. Do not use the same password on all your accounts. Even if you have a very long password, it can be stolen if you put it in on a site with security problems. Use a different password for each site. Save your passwords in an encrypted program such as Keepass so you don’t have to remember them. Keepass is available for smartphones too. Go to http://keepass.info/ to get it. You can put your password database in Dropbox and sync it to all your devices.

10. Don’t use real answers to security questions. I can find your mother’s maiden name easily on Ancestry.com. I know what school you went to thanks to Classmates.com and you told everyone that cute story about how you met your spouse on Facebook. By the way, I know your dog’s name too. Use someone else’s dog, put in Cupcakes as your favorite movie, and put in Obama as your mother’s maiden name. It’s even better if they make no sense whatsoever. My mother’s maiden name is Cupcake, my dog is oaktree and my favorite animal is Pie. Not really but I do not use the real info. Save your answers in Keepass or another password safe.

These steps will not give you 100% protection but it will make it very hard for criminals to exploit you. They will probably look for easier targets.

Boehner likes Brown Shirts

2010-10-30T12:22:00.003-05:00

He's campaigning for a guy who dresses like a Nazi for fun.

What color would Ron Paul supporters wear?

2010-10-26T19:23:00.002-05:00

Brown? or Silver?

Juan Williams

2010-10-23T16:43:00.002-05:00

I am not a big fan of Juan Williams and I am delighted that he's going to Fox. Not because now I don't have to listen to him. It's because he's so much smarter than most of the idiots on that network that he may raise the collective IQ of Fox News fans a couple points. That has to be good for the country.

Mark Kirk Lies Again

2010-10-07T22:14:00.001-05:00

I am furious with the new Karl Rove ads for Mark Kirk on Bright Start.

I have had my daughter's college fund in Bright Start for years. I wasn't happy with it when Judy Baar Topinka was running the program. The funds were lackluster and didn't make much money. Then, after Giannoulias took over, the market dropped and the fund really lost money. Not as much as my 401k which lost 1/2 its value but enough that I was pretty mad.

Then I got a letter from Giannoulias. He was moving the funds over to Fidelity to try to get better performance. He also sued Lehman Brothers and received a settlement. My daughter got over $1000 back from the settlement. Now, after 2 years of Obama's economy and Giannoulias's management, my daughter's college fund has not only recovered the losses, it has a modest profit. By the way, after 2 years of Obama, my 401k has recovered the losses and also has a modest profit.

Kirk's ads are being funded by Karl Rove's Crossroads fund. This fund is set up so that the donors do not have to be listed. Rove is fundraising all over the world. Mark Kirk is probably being funded by China or Saudi Arabia, not the people of Illinois.

This latest series of ads are full of the usual Mark Kirk lies. It's the same as when he claimed to be a war hero, claimed to be the Intelligence Officer of the Year, and when he claimed to have secret information on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

If the Republicans control congress again, my daughter's college fund will be gone permanently along with my retirement savings. Please vote Democratic this November. We really can't afford more Republican misrule.

It's a good week for Democrats

2010-06-17T20:13:00.001-05:00

and a bad week for Tony Hayward

There is a God

2009-03-01T14:56:00.002-06:00

I am so lucky I was never in the room with my grandmother when her favorite show played this song .

I love the internets!

Why does Mark Kirk hate Riverwoods?

2009-02-24T22:29:00.003-06:00

Mark Kirk voted against President Obama's stimulus plan. The same plan that will pay for part of a new police station for Riverwoods according to the last village board meeting.

I'm pretty pro police these days since there have been a rash of burglaries on my street in the last few weeks. Not to mention a suicide off the Duffy Lane bridge and Mafia burglars arrested in Lincolnshire.

But Mark Kirk doesn't give a shit. He's lived in Washington for years.

Blast from the Past

2009-02-11T20:20:00.003-06:00

This article was a surprise for me today, not because the crooked CEO wouldn't eat his own peanut butter, but because one of the labs that found the salmonella is Deibel Labs.

Dr Robert Deibel was my microbiology professor back in the dark ages when I was in grad school. The funny thing was that most of what I now remember about salmonella was from his class. One of the hardest classes I ever took too but very interesting.

I loved when he read the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report on Fridays and would comment on the various diseases. I learned almost everything I know about bubonic plague from him too. I still call the report the M&M too.

Also, you know when you drop your dishtowel on the floor and it looks clean? It isn't. Dr. Deibel hates dishtowels - I used that as an excuse to drip dry dishes for years. I don't now but I really only hand wash pots that'll be heated up anyway.

So give it to him Dr. Deibel! Too bad he probably won't be the one testifying - he has a true gift for sarcasm that is really called for in this case.

This Really Should be Obvious

2009-02-03T19:35:00.002-06:00

Have you seen the ads for Cash 4 Gold? You send your gold through the mail to someone and they send you back whatever they feel like giving you. Such a deal!

Is it January 20th yet?

2009-01-01T10:39:00.001-06:00

I'm a little shaken tonight

2008-12-20T22:01:00.002-06:00

Just got the news that Mike Connell has died in a plane crash.

Who is Mike Connell? I blogged about him before I knew his name. He was the head of the consulting firm that helped Karl Rove set up alternate email accounts for the White House. He did this to help the Bush White House conceal emails they did not want on the public record, probably because they were ordering illegal activities.

When an email administrator is in this position, the best option is to leave. There are so many things that can go wrong on so many levels when you help people deceive that it's not worth it in any way. At best you'll be the fall guy for technical problems, at worst you have a convenient plane crash.

Derailing "Conscience"

2008-12-18T20:58:00.002-06:00

Too bad I don't work at a drugstore. My conscience tells me that it's a sin to provide Viagra to unattractive men. God tells me who's attractive or not.

So What do Southern Republicans Want?

2008-12-11T19:23:00.003-06:00

They want to go back to the old south. A landed aristocracy, lots of people working for nothing, no industry to speak of. They want us all back on the plantation, black, white, or Mexican.

The absolute disdain for people's lives expressed today by Mitch McConnell and Richard Shelby is much more destructive than Blago's bribe demands. And I did not vote for him in the last election - I hated both major candidates so much I left the governor choice blank.

These Republicans will damage the country more than Bin Laden could ever dream of. With luck, in 2 years we'll get the dead enders out of the Senate. At least Fitzgerald caught Blago before he could kill any people, much less a whole industry.

My feet hurt

2008-11-05T01:33:00.002-06:00

I've gotta say, the last time I walked down the middle of Michigan Ave. it was 1969, I was 12, and I was at a demonstration against the Vietnam war with my Dad. Tonight was slightly more mellow although I attended probably the tamest demonstration that ever occured in the 60's. Dad wouldn't have taken me to a violent one.

Tonight I was busy. I went to the Lyric Opera and followed the results at intermission. By the way, Nathan Gunn's voice is as great as his looks and Nicole Cabell will be a major star. It was wonderful!

At the second intermission, Obama had 297 electoral votes so I called it for the Dress Circle. Everyone was crowded around my Iphone.

Afterwards, I could not resist. I walked to Grant Park. I heard the speech but could just barely see the jumbotron. I'll post some bad cellphone photos tomorrow. After the speech I walked back to far north Michigan for my car. So feet hurt but I can use the exercise.

Note to Kirk

2008-11-02T08:32:00.003-06:00

Threatening that Dan Seals is going to raise my capital gains tax is not very scary when I HAVE HAD PRECIOUS FEW CAPITAL GAINS IN THE LAST 8 YEARS YOU F'N MORON!

There, I feel better now. If we get back our economy so that I have capital gains, I won't mind kicking in a few extra bucks. It would be a good investment.

Wanna Dog?

2008-11-01T20:59:00.002-05:00

I had a great Halloween. I live in a part of Riverwoods where the houses are too far away for good trick or treating. I don't think anyone has come to our house in 30 years. Not since my brother's friends got too old to go.

So I took my daughter to Lincolnshire where we go trick or treating with friends who have kids. For years they've had a nice beagle cross. She's fat and goofy and a perfect family dog. As I walked up to the house, I saw they had a new puppy. It's a gorgeous little terrier cross with a head that looks like an Italian greyhound. She's a sweet, cute little face licker who's run ten pounds off the chubby beagle. Both dogs are housebroken, good watchdogs, and great family dogs.

Where did they get these canine paragons? Where all great dogs come from, the local shelter. Orphans of the Storm is a very old no kill shelter. Right now I work too much to have a dog (even though Arfur would probably be perfect) but if things ever slow down, I'll be there in a flash. I hope Arfur gets a home before then. Chuckles too.

She's worse than I thought

2008-11-01T20:21:00.002-05:00

So Sarah Palin's objection to "spreading the wealth around" is that the wealth isn't going from me to her?

She really has some very deadly connections. Her association with an African witch finder is horrible. Hundreds if not thousands of people in Africa have been murdered as witches. People like "Pastor" Muthee are murderers for profit plain and simple. Good thing it looks like her political career might be over as of Tuesday.

Another Thing...

2008-10-15T22:02:00.003-05:00

I think John McCain does know the difference between Down's syndrome and autism, it's just that more families are affected by autism, so he has to use it to pander for votes.

Is Sarah Palin an authority on autism? Could be, but I bet she knows more about Down's syndrome since that's what her son was born with.

It's over

2008-10-15T21:37:00.003-05:00

John McCain thinks that women's health is a joke and equal pay for women is a bonanza for trial lawyers.

I don't even have to bring up his weird snorting and that he constantly interrupted Obama.

Danger Danger Will Robinson

2008-10-09T21:10:00.002-05:00

There's a newcomer on the political scene that we don't know much about. This person has made a disturbing habit of palling around with America hating political extremists..

I think of this

2008-10-09T19:42:00.001-05:00

Every time I see footage of a Sarah Palin rally. There is offensive language in this clip, but it's worth it.

Finally the Debate!

2008-10-02T21:27:00.003-05:00

I just really cannot stand Sarah Palin. She still doesn't know what the role of the vice president is. Joe Biden just handed her her ass. He actually had to explain the job to her. She also misrepresented Obama's voting record and was really pretty nasty.

isn't that a great image? A vice president as nasty and greedy as Cheney but without the brains? Also, moving the American embassy to Jerusalem would not make the Israelis happy.

Palin's Email

2008-09-18T06:54:00.002-05:00

Hacking Sarah Palin's email is highly illegal. Jail time illegal. But how lame must her password have been? Bet it was Todd.

Hey Hey!!!

2008-09-14T21:46:00.001-05:00

Maybe 100 years are enough.

Congratulations Zambrano! You made my year - I was in high school the last time there was a Cubs no hitter.

A Public Service Announcement

2008-09-14T16:43:00.001-05:00

This needs to be on TV.

Question..

2008-09-14T10:14:00.002-05:00

Q: What's the difference between Sarah Palin and George Bush?

A: Lipstick

Interesting Article

2008-09-13T21:24:00.002-05:00

Have you been wondering what Obama and McCain have been up to in the Senate the last couple of years? The Washington Monthly tallies it up for you.

There's one very surprising one for McCain. Cesar Chavez? Who'd a thunk it?

John Aravosis says it

2008-09-13T08:57:00.002-05:00

Much better then I can.

Listening to the conventions, I was struck by how similar Obama's family values were to my family's values. Working hard and getting a good education and becoming a good citizen were everything. It's not easy - I work a lot of hours and then come home to minor home repair and parenting, but it's the most emotionally rewarding way to live that I can imagine. The Obamas are like my parents - my parents worked together to get my father through a doctorate at the University of Chicago. Not going to college was just not an option when I was growing up.

John McCain is not like anyone I've ever met in my life. The way he treated his first family is incredibly disgusting. He made a profession of being a Navy screwup until he was captured in Vietnam. After he was released he decided to be a playboy until he found a rich heiress to marry. Why Cindy married him I'll never know. Whenever I hear about her drug problems I just think that I'd take drugs if I was married to John McCain too.

Rick Santorum

2008-09-10T21:07:00.000-05:00

Still dumb as a box of rocks

Wouldn't it be nice

2008-09-09T12:51:00.001-05:00

To see articles starting "Wasilla Welfare Queen, Sarah Palin"

The most disgusting thing I've ever heard

2008-09-09T09:20:00.002-05:00

Sarah Palin presided over the most cynical practice I've ever heard of. Rape victims in Wasilla AK had to pay for their own forensic exams. I just can't believe how deranged that practice is. Apparently the government welfare queen who brought 20 million dollars in earmarks to a town of 5000 didn't want to spend $14,000 a year to put rapists behind bars.

If she ever gets in national office the crime rate is going to be even worse. I remember the way crime had gone down after Clinton got funding for 100,000 extra police officers and funded community policing efforts. Bush cut these programs and now we have 10 year olds gunned down in the street.

When I say

2008-09-06T17:35:00.001-05:00

Stupid cracker I mean a bread product that's not smart.

Oh, that's where it is

2008-09-05T22:06:00.001-05:00

I've heard about the welfare state all my life. Now I know where it is.

Clues for the Clueless

2008-09-05T21:26:00.001-05:00

Doug Rushkoff says it better than anyone

2008-09-04T20:55:00.002-05:00

I've been watching the RNC, I can only take it a little bit at at time because of the negative tone. Douglas Rushkoff wrote a piece on the convention that expresses very well what is bothering me.

Normally negativity doesn't bother me much - I met Buddy Rich once and I thought he was pleasant. The unholy combination of Giuliani and Palin is just too much. I have never heard two more vicious people. Sarah Palin is just Bush in a skirt.

Sarah Palin

2008-09-01T19:11:00.003-05:00

What on earth was she thinking? As a mother, if I had a choice to keep my family issues private or broadcast them to the whole world, I would opt for quiet.

It is nice that her daughter was given a choice that she'd deny to my daughter. Yeah, that'll make me vote Republican. I have never seen a more stupid, greedy bunch of hypocrites in my life.

Huh?

2008-08-30T19:25:00.002-05:00

Huh? was my first reaction when a coworker told me about Sarah Palin being chosen as McCain's VP. My second was "Yahoo, she's a crook!" . Well, the crook part is up in the air, we can wait until the investigation finishes but I really don't think she'll change many women over to vote for McCain. She's not that great a speaker and Wasilla AK is a very small town at the end of the country.

I just wonder how many people she knows. She supported Pat Buchanan. How many Jews does she know? How many blacks or Asians? How many actual people? I'd feel a lot better if she was set to succeed Ted Stevens, not John McCain.

And another one from Corsi

2008-08-17T19:24:00.001-05:00

Apparently McCain likes terrorist money too.

Too bad McCain doesn't know how to use teh Google.

When Wingnuts Attack

2008-08-17T19:18:00.002-05:00

Apparently Jerome Corsi wasn't a McCain fan last February. This is quite the hit job on McCain.

My Candidate?

2008-08-05T19:37:00.002-05:00

Damn, this is the best political ad I've ever seen!

Paris Hilton Responds to McCain Adfunny videosFunnyOrDie.com

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Just wondering

2008-08-04T21:16:00.002-05:00

Did I really walk by Sir Richard Branson outside the Four Seasons on Delaware last Friday? Really looked like him.

Commuting Alternatives

2008-08-02T20:38:00.002-05:00

My company moved to north Michigan Ave and it's added a lot of time to my commute. Lately the buses have been bunching like crazy so whenever the weather is good I walk to the water taxi. It's basically at Rush and the river. If you know where the Billy Goat is, on lower Michigan, go west past the Billy Goat to the end of the block, turn left on Rush and keep going to the dock.

It's $2.00 a ride or $15.00 for a 10 ride ticket. It goes from Michigan Ave. to LaSalle and then to Madison Street by either Union Station or the Ogilvey Center. It keeps to the schedule and is a fun ride.

My hours are getting weird enough that I'm going to start driving in September. Since I never trusted Bush, I bought a Prius years ago when they were cheap. It only takes me about 15 gallons of gas a month if I drive downtown every day. It'll save me over an hour a day.

I'll miss my train ride. Metra is very comfortable and reliable but I'm fed up with the CTA.

Is this an anti-Obama ad?

2008-08-01T20:40:00.002-05:00

When the Republicans only chance is to make fun of us all for desperately wanting the end of the Bush Administration, you know they're in trouble.

Likewise, when the Wall Street Journal asks if McCain is stupid , they're not really behind his candidacy.

This is obviously not McCain 2000. It's more like Bush 2004. That's a shame because I liked McCain 2000. He was like a rock star, he drew crowds, he made people have hope. In 2002 it was still McCain 2000 that hosted Saturday Night Live. Just like Paris Hilton or Britney Spears.

Full disclosure, my father in law served in the Pacific with McCain's grandfather in WWII and never had a bad word to say about him. But there is no way I'd vote for McCain. There is seriously something wrong with him. I'll go for the candidate that is obviously smarter than a fifth grader.

Damn, I like Scientists

2008-08-01T20:26:00.001-05:00

Yesterday AIDS, today solar energy.

These are preliminary results. Remember that 2 steps forward and 1 step back still leaves you a step ahead.

Is it just me?

2008-07-31T22:12:00.002-05:00

Or is an article by a Mormon complaining about judges redefining marriage unintentionally hilarious?

Yeah right Orson, marriage has always been one man and one woman. Just like Mitt Romney's ancestors .

Stick to the space operas, you're good at that.

Why I like Science

2008-07-31T21:45:00.002-05:00

Scientists don't give up. And by not giving up they perform more miracles than any religion.

It's preliminary, but very promising.

Water on Mars is pretty cool too.

Hillary voters for McCain?

2008-07-27T11:21:00.002-05:00

Hillary Clinton warns about new Bush rules that will restrict access to contraception.

I find it totally ridiculous that Hillary supporters would vote for McCain. Whenever McCain has a chance, he votes against the interests of women. Carly Fiorina found that out when she said it was unfair for viagra to be covered by insurance when birth control wasn't. She didn't know that McCain voted against a bill that would mandate that coverage. She really ran HP into the ground so her ignorance of basic facts shouldn't surprise me.

Sunday Morning

2008-07-27T10:56:00.001-05:00

What Nance Greggs said.

Roswell

2008-07-26T14:40:00.003-05:00

I just read an interesting interview with Edgar Mitchell. I find him very credible, not only because he's an astronaut who's been to the moon and has a PhD from MIT, but since he's a Roswell resident.

I visit Roswell about once a year, my daughter's grandmother lives near there. Soon after I started going there, I realized there must be something to the ufo story. I was interested in ufo's as a kid, but in my 20's I decided to shrug it off and not waste any time with it.

Roswell people don't mess around with the military. Largely, they ARE the military. If you're there, don't miss the local museum. You can miss the UFO museum even though it's fun, but the real Roswell museum is much better. Many of the men in the Bataan death march were from the area and there's a very good exhibit as well as Robert Goddard's laboratory. Most of the towns in the area have good historical societies that are worth visiting too.

Mac Brazel would not have the leisure or the inclination to make this stuff up. Neither would anyone else in the area. It's just not in the culture of the area. They could have been mistaken but I really doubt that.

I just saw a documentary on the Japanese incendiary balloons that have been blamed for the debris. They don't look anything like the aluminum pieces that are supposed to be in the Roswell debris. The Japanese balloons were paper. So, what the heck's with this?

Funny thing is, almost every military person I meet thinks the government coverup stories are true and that alien bodies are being stored by the military. Smoke, fire, or what?

How to rob a bank

2008-07-17T21:31:00.002-05:00

This is how you rob a bank and get away with it. Get a big salary while you throw the customers money at any damn fool fad that hits the market. You get millions and the customers get the shaft.

This is the problem of deregulation. I always fall back on the advice of Rev Ivan Stang. A rough quote "You know how stupid the average man is? Well by definition half of them are dumber than that". I would add that sometimes they also run banks. We need sensible regulation since dummies and greedheads work very hard to get in a position to do a lot of damage.

Stay Classy Senator

2008-07-17T19:11:00.001-05:00

I'd rather sit through six hours of Jeremiah Wright sermons than one of McCain's so called "jokes"

The funniest thing I've seen in a long time

2008-07-14T14:20:00.000-05:00

Let Them Eat Cake!

2008-07-10T20:28:00.002-05:00

So Phil Gramm thinks lost jobs foreclosed houses and rising prices are all in our heads. Of course they can't be real, none of his friends are hurting and he's doing just fine.

His economics student took a while to realize he needs votes from more than the haves and the have mores, you know, Bush's base.

What McCain thinks is a disgrace

2008-07-09T19:24:00.003-05:00

Personally, I don't think the idea that my Social Security contributions helped my grandparents have a decent retirement is a disgrace.

I think a man who tossed aside one wife to marry a much younger rich woman who'd finance his political ambitions is disgraceful.

Scraping the Bottom

2008-06-24T19:30:00.002-05:00

So Karl Rove thinks we won't vote for Obama because he's like Chevy Chase in Caddyshack?

So let's see, who would Karl be in the movie? I vote for Lou . Judge Smails has too much personality.

Grandstanding Idiots Win

2008-05-31T19:41:00.001-05:00

Well, how many grandstanding idiots does it take to make a man leave his church?

Apparently 2.

Ethnic Cleansing in Italy

2008-05-19T21:33:00.002-05:00

Now that the Fascists are back in Italy, they're taking the next step and trying get rid of minorities. Of course this means Gypsies. After a classic blood libel story about a Gypsy girl trying to steal a baby, camps in Naples were burned. The bigger story is that Gypsy people are still in camps and segregated from Italian society. Many of these people are Italian citizens.

How does this affect anyone on the north shore? Well, for one, I'm part Gypsy myself so I care. And I know damn well that when they find out they can go after the Gypsies guess who's next?

Right now it might be useful to call our senators, I'm on some email lists that might have better suggestions - maybe the fax number of the mayor of Naples. The whole world is watching.

Macbook beep

2008-04-21T22:00:00.002-05:00

I bought a Macbook about a year ago and I really like it. I run Vmware Fusion on it so though I prefer OS X, I can use things that require XP as well or run various linux versions. It's my plastic friend who's fun to be with.

So, I was was getting irritated by a faint beep that sounded like it was from the motherboard. I hit Google and it looked like bad news - dead hard drive. I backed it up, and started going through my warrenty info, but I just didn't see the performance drop you usually get with a bad drive.

I found a few posts that mentioned that some updates can mess up the speaker. They recommended updating the machine. I had Leopard and just hadn't gotten around to loading it. I loaded it - it was a very easy upgrade. The beep was still there. I then chose software update from the Apple menu and after those updates were applied, the beep was gone.

So, if you have a strange beep, first back everything up and then update. If it still beeps, take it in for service.

So Who is Senator McCain?

2008-04-07T22:21:00.002-05:00

Senator Kerry knows him very well. Check Crooks and Liars for the information that the reporters on his bus and who attend his barbecues won't give you.

Oh, also - he's seriously breaking campaign finance laws.

Saturday Morning

2008-04-05T09:19:00.002-05:00

Hey - I think we should replace rickrolling with a cowboy

Thanks to atrios. Even if you don't like his politics, he's got great taste in music. He also introduced me to Gogol Bordello.

One Left Standing

2008-04-03T21:46:00.002-05:00

Not a candidate but it just occurred to me that the only amendment in the Bill of Rights that this government hasn't broken is the third amendment. That's the one that forbids quartering soldiers in peoples' homes. I'm just waiting for that notice to come in.

They've ripped through the 10 Commandments pretty well too.

Oink Oink Oink

2008-04-02T19:17:00.003-05:00

Once in a while I say something nice about my congresscritter, Mark Kirk. He has 17 entries on the pork list. They all seem pretty reasonable. The money for Lutheran outreach looks a little questionable but as an ex Lutheran I've got to say they're pretty lax about converting people and have a good social service infrastructure so I'll let it go. I'll bet that Dan Seals would do an even better job.

I'd be really pissed off if I lived in Arizona. What has Senator McCain done for them? He brags about not bringing any pork home but we do all depend on our representatives to express our needs and bring needed projects. McCain also is proud of kicking Boeing off a project and handing it to Airbus. And I thought the wingnuts hated France.

Uh Oh

2008-02-21T21:39:00.002-06:00

Now this is scary.

I was at a speech by President Clinton at Comdex in 2000 (I think, it could have been 1999). The Secret Service searched my purse before I went in, I would have been shocked if they hadn't. Hell, I couldn't get in to see the Idiot in Chief now because I'm not one of the 19% of drooling idiots in the country that still like him.

Now the presidential frontrunner, who's very likely a target of assassination because of the color of his skin can't get protection.

A Message from Chelsea?

2008-02-10T21:11:00.000-06:00

Apparently Chelsea Clinton has been forwarding this post to her friends after her recent encounter with the He Man Women Hater's Club member in good standing David Shuster.

I remember reading it soon after it came out. Probably in MS Magazine, since there was no internet in those days and it was hard to get information when you were a suburban high school student who didn't drive yet. Robin Morgan scared a lot of men in those days, sort of the way Hillary Clinton scares Chris Matthews now.

Good.

I know this is a pile of crap

2008-01-18T21:22:00.000-06:00

This is a big pile of bullcrap that will do nothing for our security. If you aren't in computer security it might sound like a good idea.

The reason this will do nothing is that finding attacks is only the first step. Next is winnowing out false positives. 90% of alerts are really nothing. You have to know your environment to filter them out. When examining the traffic of a whole country, it is impossible to know your environment. I can do it with 300 or so computers only because 200+ of them have a standard image and I can look at them and find what's wrong in a few minutes.

The third step is response. Are they going to go to your house and clean up your computer? It would be good news for me if they did - that would suck up the talents of every computer security person in the country several times over. Salaries would skyrocket. Or there would be a draft. Trust me - this is a population that you don't want to draft. Imagine a really angry army of people with lockpicking and hacking skills. Not a recipe for success.

The Best You Tube Video Ever

2008-01-17T20:28:00.000-06:00

I am a mom. If you are a mom, dad, or teacher this is your song

FYI

2008-01-08T21:59:00.001-06:00

for your shopping pleasure

Primary Coverage

2008-01-08T21:37:00.000-06:00

Pretty bad when the best primary commentary comes from Drew Curtis.

Then again, I bought his book so his opinions are worth a few bucks.

Does this bus go to Michigan and Harrison?

2007-12-19T21:46:00.000-06:00

Check out the City of Chicago's list of possible terrorist acts.

I see people poring over maps and taking pictures of landmarks every day. Am I abetting terrorists when I help a confused person get on the right bus?

More Animal Cruelty

2007-12-17T22:13:00.000-06:00

This is just disgusting. So far McCain is the only major Republican candidate who hasn't been linked to torturing dogs. Now it's Huckabee's son.

To review, Giuliani's current wife had a job demonstrating surgical staplers on dogs, Romney took a 10 hour car trip with the family dog strapped in a carrier to the top of his car, and now Huckabee's son actually killed a stray dog by hanging it. I don't know if Bush ever hurt a dog, he seems to treat them better than people right now, but he used to put firecrackers up frogs rears and blow them up. That is really sick.

There's also ex Senator Bill Frist who would adopt cats from animal shelters and then dissect them when he was in medical school.

I'm just disgusted beyond belief.

Finally, a good vote from Kirk

2007-10-18T19:34:00.000-05:00

Mark Kirk voted to override Bush's veto, showing that he has some contact with reality. So, good job, how about trying to convince some of your right wing buddies to vote for it when it comes up again?

Hmm the CISSP exam didn't have this one

2007-10-17T22:01:00.000-05:00

My job is in computer security and I sometimes do vulnerability assessements. I'm also on the Wittenburg Door email list. When these worlds collide it gets really weird.
Here's a pdf download of a vulnerability assessment that is very depressing if you have anything to do with Oral Roberts University.

If I was a young Christian at ORU, I'd consider a transfer to Trinity . Roberts' wife reminds me of Dean Wormer's wife in Animal House. Very creepy document.

Any truth to the rumor

2007-10-14T22:41:00.000-05:00

That Britney will be a reporter on Fox Business Network? She does have the wardrobe for it.

This is just the limit

2007-10-11T21:47:00.000-05:00

Ann Coulter's nasty spew surfaces again.

Why does this cretin get air time?

Just typical

2007-10-08T20:53:00.000-05:00

If anything illustrates that right wingers are cowardly bullies this does.

What happened to Ciara Durkin

2007-10-07T21:27:00.001-05:00

One of the most disturbing stories of the last week is the death of Ciara Durkin. She was an accountant at Bagram air base in Afghanistan. She was 3 miles within the air field and she was killed with 3 shots to the head.

She had warned her family that she had found accounting irregularities and that they should push for answers if anything happened to her. Here's the story.

A little congressional oversight would be welcome, especially from a congressman with a second job in military intelligence. But he's too busy making sure that spinach farmers aren't overpaid.

Now more than ever we have to support the troops by bringing them home.

Some more Blackwater info

2007-10-02T20:19:00.000-05:00

There was an interesting post on a computer security blog on the Computerworld website today. It illustrates why mercenaries make bad employees.

Any way you spell it it's still crap

2007-09-11T20:15:00.000-05:00

Through Americablog

As I thought...

2007-09-06T20:29:00.000-05:00

In 2002, you know, the dark ages, I looked at the evidence in newspapers and on blogs and came to the correct conclusion. Iraq might have some crap left over or a few half assed weapons programs, but there was no way they could deliver anything that could hurt the USA. People forget that they never attacked us, they only attacked Iran, Quwait, and their own people. They only attacked Israel after the first gulf war started and luckily the missiles were not effective. So now, we find out that Bush knew the same thing I did only he didn't care.

Now we're in the same place with Iran, and he cares about anyone even less.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

2007-09-05T21:06:00.000-05:00

Leona Helmsley left 12 million to a nasty little dog. Caesar Milan cannot be far behind. That guy does have good advice for training dogs, I learned many of the same things from my Dad.

But that guy also has a nose for a buck. Primetime Dog Whisperer anyone?

Remember this when you think how to vote

2007-09-05T20:59:00.000-05:00

Or paraphrasing Reagan, are you better off today than you were 8 years ago? This may enlighten you.

I didn't think it was funny in 2001 either, I knew it was the truth.

Scott Adams is right again

2007-08-26T16:44:00.000-05:00

He knows how capitalism truly work. It exploits the one infinite resource in the world.

Now if I could only translate it into an investment strategy. I think investing in booze, fast cars, gambling, and extreme sports may do for a start.

I think I'm voting for Obama

2007-08-25T22:07:00.000-05:00

Originally I was supporting Richardson since I have relatives in New Mexico and I've been very impressed with the job he's been doing as governor. There seems to be more civic pride and it looks like the whole state, at least from Carlsbad to Albuquerque has been spiffed up quite a bit. But after the debates, I really think he'd be a better Secretary of State than President.

This is an interesting opinion on Obama from someone who knew him before he was a politician. I would so love someone with U of C ties who wasn't a Milton Friedman worshipper in the Whitehouse. The free market wants single payer health insurance.

My only misgiving is that Obama may be a Sox fan but I can live with that.

And step 2 is?

2007-08-07T21:30:00.000-05:00

Bush got his warrantless wiretapping bill but now what is he going to do with it? There's a shortage of Arabic speakers in the Baghdad embassy of all places and there's also a shortage of translators of other languages like Urdu.

I suspect they're going to concentrate on things like peace activists and political opponents, after all that's what they've spent a lot of time on over the years. It's easy, you don't have to use a translator and it's politically advantageous. The lack of oversight will also be a boon to the stalkers and crooks that have landed a government job. I'm glad I don't have a hostile ex husband working in the FBI.

If you're working on a Democratic campaign, I'd recommend Gnupg to encrypt your private files and email. Tor is useful when you want to keep your internet address confidential - don't let the opposition know you're already in New Hampshire when they think you're at home in Illinois.

Keep an eye on what's running on your computer. Use Process Explorer to investigate the running programs. Once you know what your basic machine looks like, you can get rid of spyware and keyloggers. Also run Rootkit Revealer to find hidden programs that could also be keyloggers. This advice will protect you from identity thieves as well.

Ok, I'll pile on too

2007-07-30T22:10:00.000-05:00

What really bothers me about O'Reilly is that a grown man can not know what falafel is. Read the legal documents, he can't mean really mean falafel can he?

This is really creepy

2007-07-28T08:50:00.000-05:00

Check out this Digby post.

The Republican party has really become something very weird.

And now for something completely different

2007-07-26T20:40:00.000-05:00

After the previous post I clicked on Boing Boing. This article they linked to is by a former narc who now tells people how not to get busted.

I'll add another one - don't can your hash and think the dogs can't smell it. A few years before I started at Continental Can, the DEA consulted them on some canned hash that wasn't corned beef. Smugglers got a canning machine and cans and canned their hash. The dogs found it with no trouble.

It used to be common for farmers to use actual cans for home canning since the can will just deform when it's stored in a root cellar in the winter. Glass jars will freeze and break. You used to be able to pick up small canning machines at flea markets and the can makers would sell a few cans or maybe the canneries would. You could buy the process instructions too - I had a manual for this at one time. It was safe as long as you kept away from green beans. Commercially canned green beans are totally safe but do not home can them! Too many things can go wrong.

Fox has some real news?

2007-07-26T20:27:00.000-05:00

Yep, Fox gives us the goods on botulism. Cans are busting out all over

This is the final puzzle piece that makes the story fit together. They don't say whether it's just the chili sauce that's exploding, but this is what undercooked cans do. They also don't mention that they stink to high heavens too when they finally break. If you're lucky they'll just ooze but undercooked cans can burst spraying foul smelling goo everywhere. Getting rid of them is worthy of a Dirty Jobs episode.

Castleberry is unlucky since with usual undercooks this will happen way before it's shipped out to customers and the cans will be punctured so no one will steal them and then they'll be buried in a landfill. This does happen a lot but it never makes the news because no one's in danger. I wonder why this one wasn't caught?

The problem with the Democratic Presidential lineup

2007-07-23T19:31:00.000-05:00

I like too many of them. I like Richardson and Obama, I could vote for Hillary no problem, and now Edwards is growing on me too.

Thanks Ellen!

2007-07-22T21:00:00.000-05:00

Ellen pointed out new news on the botulism outbreak.

This is an appalling situation. First, this is an area that I have 7 years experience in. I was in food canning, I worked for a local canned food processor and I worked as a research scientist for Continental Can. Everyone in the canning industry with half a braincell knows that the worst thing that can happen is botulism. I worked with the people that developed the processes for canned food to prevent botulism. One has retired but there's a good chance the other guy is investigating this.

I really don't know how this stuff got out. At first I thought it was misformulated chili sauce. Botulinum will not grow in a pH lower than 4.5. High acid foods have shorter processing times because of this. I've heard of a case where a processor tried a new variety of tomatoes in tomato soup and found botulism in the final product. The company was responsible and the soup never made it to market. I have lots of their products in my pantry since I know I can trust them.

Now I thought this was a misformulation and I'm still wondering how it could be an undercook. It's really hard to miss an undercook. I remember talking to a technical sales rep when I worked at Continental. He said he always knew a problem was an undercook because of the smell. You can literally smell a food plant with an undercooked batch a mile away. It's horrible. I've seen and smelled it myself.

This must have been a very slight undercook or, possibly a new variety of botulism that is even more heat resistant than usual. Meat products usually will really get disgusting if undercooked. Normally a product without a lot of carbohydrate or protein like green beans is the most dangerous since they can grow botulinum but won't grow the really messy and stinky bacteria that will warn you away from the food. I always say that friends don't let friends home can green beans. In the current case, undercooked canned meat should really stink to high heaven before they ship it.

If you're worried about your canned food being safe, you should heat it to boiling - that deactivates most but not all botulinum toxins. You shouldn't depend on it but boiling could make the difference between illness and death. I always heat canned food to boiling. Make sure there is a vacuum in the can. the ends of the can should be slightly indented, bulging is really bad and bulging cans should be discarded. If you have any doubt about the safety of your food, don't eat it.

This is a very major, very serious failure. I don't know whose failure it is but maybe the company thought they could cut corners in the current regulatory environment. I do know that meat inspectors don't always have any background for the job but really most of them can recognize an undercook.

I fell off the wagon

2007-07-22T20:01:00.000-05:00

I had fun today at The Midwest Folk and Fiber Art Fair in Crystal Lake. I made several vendors very happy. I swear they had more vendors than the last time I went to Black Sheep. It's not surprising - this is the midwest where we have a lot of farms, lots of sheep farms and lots of spinners and knitters. Next year I'll take a day off for workshops. Today I just shopped.

I bought two very strange things that are working out really well. I had seen drop spindles with square whorls in Spinoff. I bought one from Carolina Homespun and it works very well. I was walking around spinning with it and once I was used to it, it was fast and kept spinning for a long time.

The other weird purchase was black diamond fiber for spinning. It's bamboo fiber that was heated and carbonized. It's a gray fiber that spins very easily, it feels more like wool than bamboo. I also bought a selection of new fibers - soy silk, silk latte made from milk, and bamboo that was not carbonized. Plus northern lights space dyed roving and some tussah and a Kathryn Alexander hat kit.

Way to Go FBI!

2007-07-19T22:44:00.000-05:00

You may think I'd have a problem with this. You'd think wrong. I think it's a great use of modern technology as long as they had a warrant.

It might be an idea to try this with the creeps putting up terrorist websites too.

Thank you Captain Obvious

2007-07-19T22:12:00.000-05:00

Ben Bernanke discovers that maybe loaning money to people who can't pay it back is a bad business plan.

Uh huh.

Phase 1: Steal underpants
Phase 3: Make money.

The Underpants Gnomes are in charge of the economy. It's my favorite Southpark episode but not a business plan.

I'm chatty tonight

2007-07-18T21:41:00.000-05:00

I fixed a stuck sump pump and after the thrill of victory I just can't stop posting.

I wish I wasn't posting this. The Republicans refused to fund the troops today. John McCain had the most disgusting self serving lying speech accusing the Democrats of defeating the Levin-Reed bill funding the troops and requiring them to withdraw combat troops from Iraq by April. This was after the Republicans defeated the bill by a filibuster.

The troops have done their job. Now it's time for the executive branch to do their job and engineer a diplomatic solution to the chaos in Iraq. At the very least, we have to get our soldiers out of the middle of a civil war.

Yow!

2007-07-18T21:28:00.000-05:00

Watch out for that rubber chicken. Dennis Kucinich is down with food poisoning.

At least it won't hurt his campaign.

What TPM Said

2007-07-18T21:22:00.000-05:00

I think Condi hit her level of incompetence when she was assigning conference rooms at Stanford.

D'oh!

2007-07-17T22:47:00.000-05:00

This makes me giggle.

This makes me laugh out loud.