The Ultimate Potato

Meet your savior, the Tax code!

2009-03-16T11:58:00.003-04:00

Having been required to take Tax, reading 162 m first though was 'All those fraking bonuses are deductible?'

And the tax code may be our savior to really stick it to mostly government owned bail out toilet companies.

All we need is the IRS to start breaking out the whooping sticks and get to work.

UPDATE:
That's right, you mess with The Obama you get the IRS!

(That's supposed be based off of: You mess with the bull, and you get the horns.)

Reading Status Conference 1

2009-03-15T20:32:00.002-04:00

I'm starting something new that I think will help me start blogging more regularly.

I read. A lot. Both books and reports and what not I pull from the Internet. So whenever I finish something I am going to write up a little something and post it. Most will probably be cross posted with my GoodReads profile too.

Interestingly... Linking to GoodReads reminds me of an article I read for work. It was published by Google and it was entitled 'Undermining Privacy with Social Networks'. I was hoping it would offer some insights into how to figure out more about people for my actual job. But it was more targeted towards how inadvertent slip ups can reveal more then you want to. One of the big things I saw, was this kind of cross-linking. My GoodReads has more personal info then my blog. (Which is largely irrelevant as no one reads it or comes from my facebook page!) But still, there's now more info out there for people to find about me and connect the dots. At least I dont have the problem of being a flower loving gun fanatic that didnt want my gun fanatic buddies to find out I liked flowers in the article.

Alright, enough of a detour. I finished 'The Nuclear Tipping Point: Why States Reconsider Their Nuclear Choices' a few weeks ago. I will say, upon getting this book I was VERY excited to read it. One of my thesis ideas for graduate school was going to be a multivariate analysis of what caused states to pursue nuclear power. One of the prime areas I was going to look at was security and presence of nuclear armed rivals. So this book dove-tailed nicely. However, I was largely disappointed. It is still a fascinating read, I felt the title was misleading it would be more appropriately titled 'The Nuclear Tipping Point: When would States Reconsider Their Nuclear Choices'. A subtle difference, but important. Really, the individual chapters were very informative, and I felt the analysis on the subject was spot on. The only real flaw I can find with the book is that the chapters were written in a vacuum. For instance, the South Korea chapter made some bold claims about if South Korea obtained nukes, that it would jeopardize their relationship with Japan. I find that to be a bold claim. Especially since most of the factors cited as for South Korea rethinking their nuclear choices were the same as Japan. So it's impossible to cite South Korea as getting nukes without at least thinking Japan would be in the same boat. It's like the authors of the chapter didnt talk to one another. Which is alright, I just assumed that if you're participating in a project with another expert, you should really take that extra step. Overall, an easy, informative read that I'm glad is on my bookshelf for citation purposes.
*One side note. I really didnt write a thing in the margin of this book! I barely highlighted anything too! Strange for me.

Now I'm moving on to: 'Social Theory of International Politics' by Alexander Wednt. I just finished the first chapter. HOLY COW. It's going to be awesome. Assuming I can find time to read it...

Sometime this week I'm going to finish 'Female Suicide Bombers: Dying for Equality?' I've been at it for MONTHS! Although, that one may be broken out into a separate post.

Destroying the Constitution

2009-03-09T22:03:00.002-04:00

To me, this, says more about what Bush thought of the Constitution then any sort of warrantless wiretapping, holding US citizens in jail with no charges for years and the like.

Into the shredder!

Really? Bypassing a CONGRESSIONALLY PASSED LAW because some fucking moron said that they could in a signing statement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'd like to see the Memo that said they could do that. I'd get a good laugh.

Where else?

2009-02-26T19:00:00.000-05:00

Are you going to find two power stations that can generate a total of 2,800 megawatts of carbon free power?

Ummm.... No where?

Good thing we've got nukes.

Outsourcing Anti-trust to Europe?

2009-02-26T15:49:00.002-05:00

Is the Supreme Court trying to outsource anti-trust suits to Europe?

I haven't read into this opinion, but it looks like it.

With Microsoft taking a beating across the pond, any company that wants to share markets (which really, they're going to have to or at least really really want to) is going to have to worry about the EU.

Do we really want to put our capitalist system in the hands on those socialistic Euro-trash-ites!?

Finally!

2009-02-25T17:58:00.000-05:00

A good reason to take anti-depressants. (Well, if you're not depressed).

Anti-love potion!

With brain enhancement pills, and now anti-love pills, how long until we can take a suite of pills and become whoever we want to be?

Huzzah! Diplomacy works!

2009-02-20T20:40:00.002-05:00

Iran finally has enough LEU to make a nuke!

North Korea still has their HEU plant! And is currently fueling up a Taepodong-2 missile that can supposedly reach Alaska!

I'll let you decide on who Diplomacy worked for...

Imagine my surprise...

2009-02-17T22:29:00.002-05:00

When I came across this in my news feed. "West Bank land siezed as Israel looks to build". I read that headline, and it's pathetic and stupid, and all I could do was shake my head. Real smart idiots. I was not going to post anything on it.

Then I came across this, "Israel: FM Give land for peace". I'd laugh if it was not so sad and pathetic. Generally, when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing you should do is STOP DIGGING! Not lie about stopping digging while you shovel away...

So I had to post something on it.

I refer you you to Stephen Walk for a discussion of what would happen if the 'two state' solution were to fail.

There's really nothing else to say.

This is just shameful...

2009-02-17T13:13:00.005-05:00

What kind of national government sells it's people down the river like this.

'Peace deal'? 'Cease fire'? What a load. The next suicide bomber the explode in Islamabad, or the next boat load of terrorists that offload in Mumbai or the next suicide bomber in Kabul will really prove it effective! Short sighted imbeciles.

And on top of that, this? The Taliban is actually going around and harassing families of expatriates? Ridiculous. Insanity.

Where's the larger coverage of this! Why don't we see more headlines 'Taliban take 97 year old father hostage' to go along with the infamous 'Gay rape horror' headline from a few weeks ago?

UPDATE:
Attackerman has better commentary then I do. Much better.

Okay, it's not Islamabad, but it is a terrorist attack.

We can rebuild him/her we have the technology

2009-02-11T14:28:00.002-05:00

Well, we do now.

Professional Development: Power

2009-02-09T21:33:00.004-05:00

I keep racking up these professional development moments! Sorry, another person detour.

Last week I was getting ready for Pre-Trials, reviewing specifically the cases that the ECU usually works. I'm more versed in them, and that's what I'm being sent down to take care of first before moving on the the more 'fun' cases.

So I was reviewing one of the cases, and looking at the criminal history. It was length, and it didn't look like the defendant had served anytime in jail yet. And I said to myself "I'm going to cap her jail time as part of the plea, an make her spend some time in jail." And I stopped. And I asked myself "what gives me the right to be trying to send this woman to jail?" Who was I to be doing this? Some doofus 2L with a giant beard and all of personal foibles I have is deciding to. Who was I to be weilding this kind of power? I didn't have an answer. The only thing I could reallt come up with was: trust, and the virture that I have put in 'two years' worth of law school.

Granted, as an intern I do not have the actual authority without someone signing off on it. And the judge has the final discretion anyway. But still, there's enough trust there that when I come in with a proposed plea, there's a presumption that it's valid. And of course the defendant can tell me to shove it, request an attorney and take it to trial.

Just that realization that I had authority and the power to make that decision was very strange. Power. I cannot let it go to my head, stay on the level and be neutral.

Which leads me to another point. Prejudice. One of the other cases I was working on, a moving violation. I was looking at the driving record. Once again it was long, but mostly speeding tickets and license suspensions for stupid things. Then I got to an OWI. And all sympathy I had for this defendant drained away. In the moment I did not see an issue with it. What a defendant has done in the past is relevant to a plea, but where's the line? Is it okay that an OWI drains away any chance of me giving the defendant a break?

Discretionary power. It's a scary thing to playing around with. Until you get used to it. Especially when the only guidance you initally have is internal. Well, not right now, I have the other prosecutors to bounce ideas off of and help me out. But still, that initial formulation is a bit odd.

Lastly, after I finished reviewing the "Who am I to be deciding this?" case, I moved on to another one. Which let me tell you, had one of the funniest police reports I have ever read. I had recovered my confidence a little, and ha come to the decision that I would be capping jail time again. And I think it was the nature of the police report, but as I was doing that I thought to myself "HAHA! I'm sending this defendant to jail!" It was another whoa moment.

Arrogance. I think in that moment I let me head get bigger then it should have gotten. I suppose I was a little more used to the power and authority I was attempting to exercise, and was aware of the scope of it.

I've seen the path that arrogance can take you in this line of work (look at me talking like I'm some 20 yr veteran). But seriously, I have seen it. Arrogance leads to belligerance, and that leads to not getting the result you want.

So far I have a very good track record of getting people to agree to the deals that I am offering. Granted, I haven't been in the position very often to try and force something extra uncomfortable on someone, but there have been a few situations where I've assumed that the person is not going to be happy, but they bite the bullet and take it. I've noticed it generally too, when not at court, dealing with participants in phone conversations. I rarely have to deal with irate people, even when I'm giving them pretty bad news. No one is overly difficult either.

I think a lot of it has to do with tone. I always attempt to be understanding and nice, at first. And it pays off. Heck, but I can be mean too! I've had several people refuse to deal with me anymore because I'm mean! Woohoo! And I am getting better responses from the angry messages I leave on people's phones. But still, off the bat, there's no reason to be arrogant or mean just because you have that power.

I think this dovetails a lot with what I was talking about in my last Professional Development post too.

In the end, this is the kind of position that I want, and have wanted. One with power. And one with responsibility. I want to be out there, on the front lines, deeply involved in dispensing justice. I think I'm built for it. I just need to experience all the aspects of it first off. Like throwing someone in the water to start swimming. It's weird until you develop the muscle memory. As long as I keep learning, and internalizing the lessons that I'm being taught, I will be all right. As long as I keep finding ways to and setting goals to imporve myself, I will be all right.

Better me then some other 2L doofus right?

(These little updates will continue until I have no more! Or at least none that I want to talk about. I'm entering an interesting peroid in my life right now, the crucible where Professional Me is being created. I need to figure out a way to try and explain what I am experience to the masses. They're more for me than for you. Well, unless you're an employer, then these little anectodtes and self-reflection will come up once or twice. So if you don't like it, you can Bite My Shiny Metal Face.)

There goes the neighborhood

2009-02-09T09:10:00.004-05:00

Is there anything a carbon nanotube can not do?

Now they can function as the platinum catalyst in hydrogen fuel cells?

AND last longer and work better? AND all they need is Nitrogen (that gas that makes up 80% of the atmosphere)?

Where's the funding for this in the stimulus bill? Or are the Democrats waiting for a 'Fuck Iran and Venezuela Bill'? (All the funding that carbon nanotube catalyst and lithium ion batteries could ask for?)

Still, assembling the nanotubes (I like typing and saying nanotube) is still an issue. But with recent advances in producing them on an industrial scale (or using DNA) can efficient industrial catalyst production be far behind?

UPDATE:
Wait, you mean nanotubes can even make lithium ion batters better?

Disaster? Is that worse than a catastrophe?

2009-02-08T20:00:00.000-05:00

That may be where the confusion in this statement is.

Personally, I prefer to call it 'Economic Apocalypse'. That tends to clear things up. But that may just come from living in Michigan and seeing it up close and personal.

Also, that's part of the reason I'm very disappointed that aid to the States is being cut back. I can live with delaying education spending to a later bill. And even energy spending. But an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If Michigan's unemployment goes belly up... SO many people are going to be devastated. The lines are already up, and the process is already slow. Pumping more money into an already existing system to keep people on their feet until the real spending can come in and give them a job... What is wrong with that? I must not get it.

Also, has anyone told Senator Shelby that the Republican got ANNIHILATED in the election?

On a more humorous note, I agree with SNL Pelosi in this sketch.

The Republican have earned the right to vote NO on whatever they want. And nothing more.

China's economic and environmental recovery plan

2009-02-08T15:04:00.002-05:00

70 GWe's worth of nuclear power.

That's roughly 70 new nuclear plants by 2020.

At the US rate of 500 jobs per 1GWe, that's roughly 35,000 jobs. And that's just directly created job by the power plants. Not to mention the construction jobs and the service jobs that spring up around nuclear plants.

The installed capacity, per Idaho Samizdat, is expected to make nuclear power 5% of China's expected power grid. Not a big enough jump to make a huge impact on the environment, but that's still 70 GWe of coal power that is not being installed.

Sure the numbers are a little shrimpy

Here's a thought experiment: say the US applies the economic stimulus package to nuclear power. China's spending 85 billion. So let's say the US stimulus comes in at 850 billion for ease of measure.
-700 Gwe added
-140 new plants
-350000 directly created jobs plant jobs (plus training center jobs)
-420000 construction jobs created until the plants are completed (3000 per plant for 4-8 years)
-525000 indirectly created jobs*
-Not to mention the creation of an expanded enrichment industry and I'd imagine the start up of a large fuel reprocessing industry

Obviously there are more effecive ways to create jobs, or paying people to dig holes and then paying them to fill them in. But, it's just something to think about.

*See this link for a much better discussion as well as the source for my base statistics

What's your angle?

2009-02-07T09:13:00.004-05:00

I'm a little confused as to just what Russia has been getting at lately with Afghanisgtan.

First, we see the closing of the Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan.

Second, the Taliban have been playing havoc on the supply lines, the Khyber pass, coming from Pakistan. Including blowing up a vital bridge, destroying hundreds of trucks and essentially reoccupying the area once Pakistan pull troops out of the region to prepare for a shooting war with India.

Now Russia offers this? Shipping 'non-lethal' aid Afghanistan? Thanks... Kind of like blowing a tire on the highway and some stranger pulls over to help and says: "Well, you can't have a tire or use my jack, but you can have these lug nuts." Yeah, sure, the offer of assistance is appreciated on some level... But limiting it to non-lethal?

I fail to see what benefit Russia will get by having a more unstable Afghanistan in the region. Especially now that the fates of Afghanistan and Pakistan seem to be linked together. (Well, were they really ever separate?)

I guess we'll just have to ship all of our lethal equipment through Uzbekistan. (Wow, I actually spelled that right! And was going to devote a sentence or two to the complexities of the spellings of the -Stans.) Hooray for realpolitik!

So what does Russia want?
-Revenge for the US's actions in 1979-1989? (Definitely strikes me as something that Putin would be up for.)
-To make the US look bad by forcing us back into bed with Uzbekistan? (Just when we've jettisoned our biggest source of luggage?)
- To put so much strain on NATO that it breaks up? (This actually strikes me as a plausible. One failed state, that has been failed for a LONG time, and whose only major terrorist export has been to the US, seems to be a small price to pay to dismantle NATO. Especially when Russia has 'zero tolerance for terrorists and hostages'. I post that link in jest, but I think it is somewhat of an accurate reflection of Russia's stance. 'We will kill anyone we have to to kill you if you mess with us.')

In somewhat better news: looks like our wino friends from Italy will be upping troop commitment.

And in more predictable news: the rest of Europe is... being Europe.

Iraq Provincial Elections

2009-02-06T18:59:00.003-05:00

If you're interested, I turn you to better sources than I.

Marc Lynch.

Abu Muqawama.

I will suggest this. Did Iran know that they were going to take a walloping in Iraq? So they've had to take a more active approach to being belligerent to US interests (launching EMP weapon satellites, demanding apologies, demanding to be treated like a grown-up, getting ready to fire up the Bushehr reactor, and going on 20 minute tirades at supposedly constructive security conferences).

And I second the Aardvark's last update. Let's take it and RUN!

Real holographic simulated Evil Lincoln is BACK!!!

2009-02-04T20:53:00.002-05:00

I guess we know who WONT be joining NATO now.

The Warsaw pact is back.

Iran is putting satellites into orbit. That may be an EMP weapon?

2009 is going to be AWESOME!

Conspiracy theory?

2009-02-04T14:24:00.002-05:00

Does this have anything to do with this?

Massive Russian cyber-attack leads to crippling of the 'Internationals Sit, Anglos Fight' (as long as Anglos includes the Dutch) Afghan force?

But maybe it's been brewing for a while.

FINALLY! Someone is asking the tough questions.

2009-02-04T07:02:00.002-05:00

Oh man, do I hope the answer is yes!

And I agree with this too.

I must be getting soft in my old age.

Professional Development: Two things I'll never forget

2009-01-31T21:12:00.004-05:00

Already, I have had two profession defining experiences. (Sorry folks, this is going to be kind of a personal one. But in a professional context.)

The first relates to the responsibilities of being a lawyer.

I'll never forget the panic in her eyes as she came out of the courtroom saying: "I've got to pick my own jury this afternoon, the judge didn't give me a lawyer." Most of the time when I see or talk to people, it would probably rank as one of the most stressful or worst days of their life. I represent the big scary government calling them to task on breaking a law. The law is a scary thing. Most people do not understand it, they do not understand the procedures and how it operates. Obviously something has already happened to them, or they've done something. They've already been 'wounded' to a degree. And then I get to come along and start it all over again. I have to be gentle (would be the word I guess, maybe tactful?) in dealing with people. Just a measure of clear communication and being nice can make a HUGE difference. I have seen it the other way, and it does not benefit anyone. And in a situation where the person in unrepresented, I have an even greater responsibility. This is not something I have had to learn on the job, but it is the one moment where it has crystallized for me.

The second largely deals with how I act as an advocate.

I'm starting to realize that I have some authority, some leeway to steer people into the results that I want. And even more so, as a prosecutor I would have the actual power to do the same. I need to start being more proactive doing this. One of the pre-trials I ran, the individual came in, told me his story when I asked him. At the time, nothing really stuck me so I followed the general guidelines. Looking back, I should have taken a closer look at his situation and fought for him. Obviously he was guilty. But even at the time, I felt like there were mitigating circumstances. I only helped him as much as the general guidelines allowed. I didn't take my argument back to the other prosecutors and convince them too. All I need is a good reason.One of the Prosecutors that I work with is always telling this whenever she gets the chance. I need to do better. While I am the represntative of the County, I'm also a represntative for that ever amorphous term 'justice'. And sometimes justice is not served by rigid application of the guidelines. do not know why this has stuck in my head so much, but I think it always will.

In general, I'm starting to get more self-confidence. I know what I'm talking about, my ideas are good, my arguments and reasoning are sound, my analysis is spot on and my conslusions are acurate. I need to get better at asserting myself in these cases. This has repurcussions everywhere too. Not only for dealing with 'my team', but dealing with defense attornies and judges too. I have to convince the judge. And I have to dare the defense attorney to break my argument. Being timid will not do. I do not think I've ever been accussed of being timid. But I'm just now starting to put the pieces together into some kind of functioning whole. Mock Trial and Moot Court were both excellent experiences in this regard.

And really, I am glad that I am coming to these realizations now. I can build on them. I can establish for myself, the kind of attorney I am going to be now. And apply that paradigm to everything else I do from here on out.

What's it that they say about hand baskets?

2009-01-28T17:36:00.003-05:00

Looks like preparing for a shooting war with India really served the Pakistani state well!

Going back in is going to be much much much more difficult. Any contacts with the military are probably beheaded in mass graves somewhere or sitting at home with acid burned faces...

Nuclear waste?

2009-01-28T07:07:00.003-05:00

What nuclear waste? Oh, you mean the material that we can shove in a new reactor type, completely destroying while generating energy? That stuff? The stuff that can come from a fast breeder reactor that literally makes energy while creating even more fuel for other reactors, the waste of which can be placed in the new reactor type and destroyed while making more energy? That is not affected by the strength of the wind, clouds, night fall and can provide oodles of high intensity base load energy?

Nuclear is the future, anyone who says any different is full of it.

Better discussion over at Next Big Future.

Hooray! Energy policy shift!

2009-01-26T11:01:00.002-05:00

I may not agree with everything. But it's so NICE to have some movement on the energy policy front. And we're going to see how incompetent the previous administration was.

Why wouldn't the Executive branch let the states set their own emission standards? The only issue I see is a Commerce clause issue (as well as preemption with the EPA and various other federal regulations), but as long as the states do not carve out an exception for in in-state car maker they should pass muster.

FINALLY! Forcing a 35 mpg base rate. That's right OPEC. Bite my shiny black president!

And another FINALLY! Coal plants are needed, for a time, but they could be managed so much better and effectively.

The previous administration thinks they did not hesitate to 'make the tough decisions'. I do not see how they can make that argument with a straight face.

Iraqi tribes dominating the upcoming election?

2009-01-25T09:42:00.003-05:00

Duh.

Absent any kind of trust and with low levels of security, it's rather obvious that the family and tribe will substitute for secular and, I'd say, religious type parties. While religious parties would have more appeal than secular parties at this point.

Especially taking into consideration that Iraqi (and largely Arab) society is tribe based.

Where else would the political power lie? Political development, well develops! Societies do not just hop out of the box ready to rumble.

Another detour

2009-01-24T12:00:00.000-05:00

This time into Penny Arcade territory.

This. This. This. This.

Hilarious.

An excellent point in the News section of part 4. When you really really try to make it cheesy and terrible. It becomes something special. While not quite 'Plan 9 From Outer Space' (I do not think that was intended). But the result may be similar.

Random Thought

2009-01-23T22:15:00.000-05:00

Is Battlestar Galactica one giant COIN lesson?

Obama Admin I

2009-01-23T21:53:00.002-05:00

Hopefully he does more of this. And much much less of this.

The GOP has shown that, at the very minimum, it has no idea what the best interests of the United States are. And definitely over the last eight years it has shown it has no idea how to accomplish anything that it thinks is in the best interest of the US.

"What did the five fingers say to the face?"

Brief diversion

2009-01-23T12:00:00.000-05:00

College sports. Lots of money. Lots of attention. Lots of wasted productivity.

I still do not understand how College Football can see the absolute FRENZY that the ENTIRE country is whipped into by the College Mens Basketball tourney causes and not want to get in on the action.

The tourney literally dominates the country for several weeks. Everyone is REQUIRED to have an opinion. Even if it's just "I hate Duke because they're Duke".

How can College Football see that and not say, "maybe there's more money in some kind of playoff format then in what we do now". I mean, did anyone watch Hawaii and Notre Dame in whatever sell out bowl they played in? Wouldn't two other schlub teams get nearly the same viewership and ticket sales? I think so.

So here's what I say. Three week, 6-8 team play off (depending on if you want a bye-week). Starting first Saturday of the new year, going to completion. Keep all the other bowls intact. They can still invite whatever doofus teams they want, if they're not in the top 6-8. Run the other bowls anytime except Saturday night, when the play offs are on.

Do this. And it would become as huge a frenzy as the tourney, or bigger. Since you know, we Americans like football a lot. I mean, we do right?

Alternately. Keep the system the same. But nationally televise the College Women's Beach Volleyball tournement.

Now this is corporate responsibility.

2009-01-22T21:30:00.001-05:00

I wonder how China would handle a theoretical Enron scandal.

Hang 'em high!

The greatest thing to ever happen?

2009-01-22T19:00:00.001-05:00

Stephen Walt having his own blog.

I think so.

Isnt it funny...

2009-01-22T15:17:00.003-05:00

How the Constitution has become suddenly "not horseshoes — close doesn’t count" for a lot of the same people who were willing to over look much more serious trangressions by the previous administration.

Maybe hand-grenades they are okay with.

Source.

UPDATE:
I suppose it really is a bipartisan issue though.

Russia is figuring it out

2009-01-22T14:32:00.002-05:00

Looks like Russia is figuring out a warfare 'gray area'.

Actual invasion of Georgia did not amount to much for Russia in terms of it getting what it wanted. Georgia is now more closely aligned with NATO and the US. (Funny, there were about a dozen terms that ran through my head there.)

Cyber attacks on less developed countries in the near-abroad that can have a devastating (shutting down half of the ISP's in a country would be crippling.) And have an affect similar to an actual invasion, but with much less cost and no international outrage or pressure to stop.

Hmmm.

Social networking and police work

2009-01-18T12:00:00.003-05:00

I do not know why news stories like this still intrigue me. Big deal, a law enforcement agency is using all of the tools at it's disposal to try and solve a crime. It makes perfect sense, 'The Man' is smarter then anyone gives him credit for.

In my job, which is also law enforcement related, our office uses Myspace and Facebook on a daily basis. It's amazing how people can fall so far off the conventional map, and yet be sitting there plain as day on social networking sites.

Although, it's much harder to get people to respond in the way you want them to. I guess receiving a message from a government agency can be a little off putting. I've found that it's important to put a more 'human' face on your interactions. For the longest time, both of the profiles the office uses were simply bare. A name, no pictures and just the bare bones of information. After going through and putting more personality into the profile, a picture (the state capitol), favorite music (The Clash), favorite quote (I fought the law, and the law won) and the like. Say what you want, but our online persona has one heck of a personality. Overall I have noticed more responses. Not the kind I am looking for, but still, more responses. And, some of them are HILARIOUS.

One of the most interesting things I've been able to do is picture comparison. For some of the cases the office works, we get photo copies of picture IDs. And if you've got a profile picture, or have an open profile with pictures it's very easy to do a 'eyeball' comparison and figure out if it's the person you're looking for.

Heck, I've even been able to delve into someone's larger social business network to try and find them.

I will say that Myspace is a much better source for information then Facebook. Facebook flat out stinks. It's much more tedious to search through any hits you get, and it's much easier to limit your exposure on Facebook. However, while Myspace is easier to find people on, but it's so much harder to not appear to be a Spambot.

Makes you a little afraid of Mr. Zuckerberg's 'Law of Information Sharing'.

It'll make it easier for 'The Man' to find you. And find you he will. And if you give him trouble, he'll find you mom and have her talk to you. Okay, maybe 'The Man' would not. But I would.

Hostage negotiation

2009-01-17T19:29:00.002-05:00

Has there been a country that has been subject to more 'multilateral negotiations' then North Korea?

I do not know of any.

And look at the results.

I do not have anything against multilateralism, it can be effective. Just not on crazed dictators that have literally nothing to lose. Oh, and has a hostage that just happens to be one of the 15th largest economies in the world. And who might be Immortal.

Seriously, if South Korea wasn't in the picture North Korea would be ripe for 'regime change'. And I dont think the world would bat an eye.

North Korea is basically Zimbabwe with nukes. And there's murmors of 'humanitarian intervention' in Zimbabwe.

I guess it gets less scary if you imagine Kim Jong Il running around his 'palace' or whatever it is that he lives in (castle? underground lair? evil wizard's cursed tower? mad scientist's lab?) yelling "There can be only None!" Like Captain Murphy.

America's Folly

2009-01-08T21:35:00.003-05:00

WE ABSTAINED FROM THE UN SERCURITY COUNCIL RESOLTUION CALLING FOR A CEASE FIRE IN GAZA!!!!!!

This is just as embarrassing as the vote against decriminalizing homosexuality.

Sinper riles and flying drones

2009-01-07T22:37:00.002-05:00

I was thinking about this in the pool tonight.

We have C-130 'Spooky' cargo planes converted into a flying artillery piece that is apparently spot on accurate and a great COIN / Special Forces tool.

Could we put a pair of .50 cal sniper rifles on, say, a modified Reaper.

One pilot to fly it, and two shooters to target and take people out?

Maybe not even .50 cals. I've seen FutureWeapons, there are sniper rifles that can shoot A LONG LONG way.

I suppose I was thinking of a way to easily take out rocket / RPG / Mortar teams in a war zone. Keep a Reaper on on station, scanning around and popping people. A sniper rifle round would leave a much smaller footprint then explosives and much less collateral damage.

I can see the idea failing for a lot of the same reasons that conventional bombardment would fail too, along with potentially being ineffective.

Israel's Folly.

2009-01-06T20:32:00.004-05:00

Two things have become clear to me over the last week.

1. Israel has absolutely no concern for it's long term survival.

2. Hamas is still a 'state-less' entity.

Number one: Israel still fails to realize that their fight with the Palestinians is not about rockets, or guns, or infrastructure, or the Hamas leadership. Their real fight is with showing the Palestinians there is a better way.

The blockade of Gaza was supposed to be a time when Israel was to loosen restraints on the West Bank and show the Palestinians that there was a peaceful, prosperous way to advance their agenda. That has not happen.

Are the check points gone? Are sections of the border fence being rerouted so farmers can get to the olive trees? More importantly, has the settlement activity been stopped, and forcibly scaled back?

Granted, I do not have any sources in the Israeli government. But the news sources I follow would surely point out if one of the above were to happen in any degree, and it has not. The only thing that is being slowly curbed is settlement activity. But not to the degree that needs to happen.

Right now the Palestinians are faced with ignoble existence and noble resistance. While 100% of the population will never be for either side, blockades and assaults will tip the balance to noble resistance.

While I'm dead sure The Angry Arab is cherry picking the heck out of pictures, I still have never seen so many pictures of dead and injured children. And what does Israel expect? That Gazans are going to rationally think "Well, it is Hamas's fault". No, they will not. The anger will come at the party that dropped the bomb.

Killing 500+ people in a week is a great way to make friends.

Depressing the economic situation so much that it takes a pittance for Hamas to recruit an insurgent is a great idea.

Giving those same people one hell of an epic grievance is a great idea.

Israel has no concern with it's long term survival.

Number Two: Hamas may wield political power, but they are still a govenrment without a people.

It's obvious that Hamas revels in the suffering of the Palestinian people.

Why wouldn't they? It makes them stronger. Hamas constantly slaps a 'Kick Me' sign on the backs of Gazans, giggles, and runs behing a corner and waits for Israel to kick them.

No legitmate government is going to bring the kind of whirlwind that Hamas did.

Quite frankly, Hamas as a 'governing entity' makes almost all of Gaza's infrasctucture a target. When the government of one nation launches several hundred rockets/missiles at another, that's usually an act of war. The only exception I can think of may involve Mongolia, China and fireworks.

Look at the reaction of Hezbollah. Abu Muqawama gives an few possible answers. I think it mainly has to do with Hezbollah not having any goals to accomplish, and having to sell any moves to an eletorate. They came out of the 2006 war sitting pretty. And it was much easier to sell as an Israeli over-reaction/aggression.

Another god example actually comes out of the 2006 war. Hezbollah was attacked, and Hamas 'opened' another front by attacking Israel.

I think mostly, this points to Hamas not being a rational state actor. They're still nothing more than an insurgent/terrorsit force that has some how coopted the machinery of an electorate.

This may have some COIN ramifications for Israel. I will mull this over.

And man, I hope I'm not just repeating what Stephen Walt has said in the past.

UPDATE:
It's not just the Angry Arab.

Also from Angry Arab: comparative causalities.

The great clusterf#$% of early 2009

2009-01-05T22:10:00.003-05:00

Good luck Obama! I do not know if Hope is going to bring the Israelis and Gazan Palestinians back to their senses.

While I do not have much specific commentary yet (I am mulling over some commentary on the sheer buffonery of both sides) I do have this to say.

Maybe these strikes have less to do with missile fire then with:

Hamas snipers with night vision scopes/goggles.

Hamas having stocks of longer range, more powerful and more sophisticated Chinese missiles.

The Chinese missiles scare me more. Shows resources, means and a way to get it into Gaza. A sign of their potential capacity.

And we're back!

2009-01-05T22:08:00.001-05:00

Well, maybe.

Due to finals, work, the holidays as well as some 'personal issues' I have been on hiatus for a while. That may or may not change. As this blog as remained completely non-personal, so shall it remain.

Was Mumbai just a precursor to an assault on the Pakistani state?

2008-12-06T12:54:00.006-05:00

Ever since the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, India has largely been the le grand bete noir in Pakistan. Indian intervention into the Pakistan-Bangladesh split, the ongoing Vale of Kashmir (which reached a fever pitch and almost all out war in late 2000) have not helped matters one bit. Their 'great game' runs into Afghanistan where recent attacks against Indian interests in the country have been linked to Paksitani groups also.

Needless to say, the recent disclosures that the Mumbai attacks have been traced to groups in Pakistan have drastically increased tensions between the two states. Even worse, the Pakistani ISI has links to the Lashkar-e Taiba (a militant groups focued on 'liberating' Kashmir) in much the same way the ISI has links to the Taliban and Al Qaeda currently rampaging through the FATA and NWFP. The focus of domestic Indian ire is directed right at Pakistan, and not so much at the groups responsible. India has been playing right along.

With the US conducting missile attacks on Pakistani border, and India ramping up the pressure. The Pakistani state is being discredited, or attempting to be, with the population.

One of the central tenants of an Insurgency is to delegitimize the state that is being fought against. Generally this occurs through attacks on the civillian population to reduce security. However, it looks like Pakistani militants are adopting differnet tactics. Using foreign states to push the state to the brink. Where they can swoop in can pick up the pieces.

Of course, this is assuming some kind of coordination between the Taliban elements and the LeT. Which, attacks like this, signal to me that largely there are none. Now's not the time to be blowing up the population that you need to support your movement. However, the LeT may just be capitalizing on a large amount of instability to try and work their agenda.

Or I could just be reading too much into the situation, and it would just be another in a long line of devastating terrorist attacks that are largely devoid of any stragetic purpose or vision.

UPDATE:
A fantastic piece from The Long War Journal about the terror groups in Pakistan.

UPDATE:
Pakistan may be coming around. They are taking steps to 'remedy' the problem. Or at least de-escalate. I've had high hopes for the new civilian government in Pakistan, maybe they'll come through.

Drones and Pakistan

2008-11-20T19:05:00.008-05:00

Seems like every drone strike in Pakistan is targeting some 'high level' AQ or Taliban target or leader.

Really, I do not have a problem with drones launching attacking in Pakistan. Just like I do not have a problem with 'hot pursuit' missions that also cross the border. Once the Pakistani's start getting their business in order, then they can start complaining about 'sovereignty'. You do not see Germany launching cross border raids into France, or the US launching raids into Canada do you? No you do not. Because France and Canada are effective in policing their own state.

However, I agree with sharing some intell on the drone strikes with Pakistan and Afghanistan both. Well, anything in Pakistan that does not involve the ISI.

The US needs to develop out intell capacity inside Pakistan, so we can more effectively target militants there. The Pakistani military has been developing contacts and humint in the region for a while now. As well as engaging in combat. Seems like it is a good match. They provide intell on targets to hit, and we bring the resources to hit them.

Even if it is CIA and not US commanders in Afghanistan that are coordinating the attacks.

For all intents and purposes, it looks like the tactics may be succeeding. Militants being pushed back into Pakistan. Both further away from Afghanistan, which means they'll have to travel further to get there which means there is more time for them to be found, and taken out inside Pakistan by Pakistani forces. But they will also be pushed into less hospitable areas. Which should lead to better intell and a degredation of their ability to do much of anything.

Hit the red areas hard to drive the insurgents into the pink areas where they are separate from their support structure. And in having to build up a new one, they are more vulnerable.

UPDATE:
Got another one.

And the population starts to turn.

It was going to happen sooner or later...

2008-11-17T10:37:00.004-05:00

Wahhabi-Salafis gaining a foothold in Lebabnon.

I just never thought it would be by co-opting a political figure!

Talk about making a HORRIBLE decision... To boost his religious credibility... Yeah, that worked out AWESOME for Saudi Arabia! Oh wait...

The Wahhabi-Salafis just want a legitimate power they can latch on to, so they can turn the screw when they need to. Try try and bend the process to their will.

Straight Wahhabi-Salafi or Islamist parties NEVER do will in elections on their own (unless they're the only viable opposition **Hamas** to a corrupt and dangerously incompetent party **Fatah**, or they simply take over the entire government power structure after any of the other secotrs that could had been destroyed by the overthrown government **Iran**). They require someone to give them an in...

And Hariri is giving it to them?

I would be too!

2008-11-12T22:26:00.003-05:00

Syria is 'astounded' there were traces of weapons grade uranium found at the site the Israelis blew to bits a while back.

Is that the same kind of astonishment as the 'outrage' the expressed at the bombing the US conducted a few weeks ago?

I think so.

Their reaction to both was muted. The former I think because they did not want to attract attention to their bad activities.

The latter, probably because they implicitly wanted the US to take out the Wahhabi-Salafis. Could Syria take another Hama? Maybe, by why would they want to? Why risk it? Why not let the US take care of it for you?

UPDATE:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Taxing in a recession

2008-11-10T12:56:00.004-05:00

Economic expansion requires capital investments to propell the economy above what it was.

Largely, the upper class are the only folks with the kind of money to invest to start new, large businesses.

So in periods of economic growth, it would make sense to lessen the taxes on this group at the expense of the middle class.

However, economic stabilization requires consumption. Starting a new business is more costly then propping up an old one. Assuming the capital can even be raised to start a new business.

The upper class is a very small segment of the populace, the middle class are the consumers. They make or break an economy by throwing money around.

In periods of economic decline, isn't it better to tax the rich more to give the middle class a break so they can help stabilize the economy?

I mean, the rich would get taxed largely on income that is not vital to their survival, while the middle class is given a break on income that is vital to their survival.

So the rich get richer in good times, and take a hit bad times so they can get richer again in the good times that are to follow.

Although, the financial implosion of hedge funds and the stock market may pose a new wrinkle. I've always viewed these as more or less 'fake' sources of wealth. Real wealth, money, infrastructure that lasts. A billion in the bank is a billion in the bank. But a billion in the stock market? A billion in a hedge fund? As we've seen, it can turn into 1 million in a matter of hours. All that 'wealth' simply vanished. Without much to show for it. Basically, this may be a much harder hit to recover from then in the past.

Does any of that make sense?

Iran's current economic problems

2008-11-08T14:19:00.003-05:00

Here's an epic piece from Middle East Quarterly on the history of the Iranian economy.

More on the current problems. And it was published a month ago, when oil prices were higher.

This is really the main reason I do not see states like Venezuela and Iran as threats (Russia can also fall into this category, but with the sheer size of the nuclear arsenall and military they get an exemption). To be a credible threat, the enemy needs a leg to stand on. And while a vibrant booming economy is not always a requirement (Russia), without one, I dont see a state a s threat into the future.

God supplements the Tribe?

2008-11-08T08:42:00.002-05:00

No, not THE Tribe, but the community.

Interesting piece from Slate on religion, atheism and morality.

A strong community can supplement for the presence of God in the way it makes people behave. Which makes total sense. What is a religion, but a much broader community? But instead of 'peer pressure' social pressures to conform to whatever norms have been established, religion has an omnipotent being and one whopper of a punishment.

The piece has some nice data and comparisons.

Tequila Diamonds v Cancer

2008-11-07T18:39:00.002-05:00

You read that right. Tequila Diamonds v Cancer.

Rainforest yields... some kind of miracle?

2008-11-03T21:29:00.003-05:00

I do not know how else to describe a naturally occurring fungus that produces diesel fuel from eating cellulose.

At most it is a Festivus miracle.

But restores hope that all of these exist in the Rain forest:
-~~Love Potion #9~~ Anti-Love Potion Omega
-Fountain of Youth
-Cancer Cure

At least for me.

Foreign Policy Dead Zones

2008-11-03T16:30:00.002-05:00

Not mentioned much in debates, but still on the horizon.

Foreign Policy as a list a a blurb on a few crises around the world, and what it means for us.

Although, I would've added the recent uptick in violence in Eastern Congo to the list. That has the potential to be much more devastating then anything that is going on in Darfur or Somalia. With more local impact. A couple decades ago, Congo was both fought in and fought over by essentially every country neighboring it. Not to mention the fallout still persisting from the Rwandan Genocide. But it's international impact will be negligible. Which means it will not get noticed.

No Credit = No Power?

2008-11-03T12:32:00.002-05:00

At least fancy-pants new power plants.

Financial Times reports on pending bankruptcies.

Essentially what we might end up with is a few companies controlling large swathes across the country. Hooray for deregulation!

This is only going to further exacerbate the problems I reported on earlier, where the only entities that may be able to assemble the capital to invest in new power stations (nuke, renewable) are going to have to be HUGE. Like governments, or the colossus that Exelon is becoming.

Voters like Pretty Women?

2008-11-02T18:12:00.002-05:00

So basically, you are telling me that Hillary Clinton would essentially be President now if she spent $150,000 on clothes?

Also: next thing you know, scientists will be telling us that pretty women get more free drinks at bars.

Marines v Iraq < Marines v Motorcycles?

2008-10-31T12:45:00.002-04:00

Now this is interesting. Puts Donor cycle into a new context.

Iraq is less deadly then your average motorcycle? I guess if you're a US Soldier. But then again, more people die in the US from car accidents every year then the total number of soldiers that have died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I wonder if there is a correlation between serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and likelihood of being involved in an accident (fatal or non-fatal)?

Democracy Crunch?

2008-10-27T13:01:00.004-04:00

The Economist has an online article discussing whether the financial crisis is going to result in a recession of Democracy.

I was going to say something smart referencing Samuel Huntington, but then I got distracted. That's been happening a lot lately.

I will say that I agree that the progress of Democracy will be delayed because of this downturn. Democracies are stable when they reach a certain threshold of GDP per capita, $6,055. That was the highest that a country, in this case Argentina in 1975ish, has ever gotten and reverted to some form of non-democracy. So as the financial crisis assaults countries that are democratizing, but below that threshold and pushes countries above that threshold down towards it... Of course we'll see more and more progress away from democracy. The general theory being that as the state provides people less and less shelter, and does not offer them anything the less likely the populace is to support it. And democracy is contingent on popular support (Did I really need to point that out? Did I just turn into my Civ Pro book?).

And (here's that Huntington refrence) the ecoomic prospects decline, forces across society start to fracture and get stronger. If they reach a certain point, they will break the government (whether it be electing a new political party or by some kind of overthrow or coup) and make one that more accurately reflects the underlying societal beliefs and tensions.

I think in a declinging economic environment, this is more likely to be a 'socialist' type system. The government that presided over the fall is getting kicked out and replaced with one that is hoped can arrest the fall.

I'm not saying socialism is bad, I mean look at Capitalism. Its becomeing more and more socailistic all the time. Compare the capitalism of 'The Jungle' and the Industrial Revolution to that of today! The basic principles are the same, but how the execution has changed! It just seems that in the developing world, where most of the democratic reversion is going to take place, socialism there tends to be much more bloody and not nice.

Still, check out the article. It's a good one.

Interesting link in the Terror-Criminal Nexus

2008-10-23T21:32:00.002-04:00

I've got a hunch that Hugo has something to do with this.

Hezbollah linked Colombian drug runners?

Lets see:

Hezbollah is intimately connected to Iran.

Hugo is apparently intimately connected with FARC.

FARC runs drugs too!

Hugo hearts Iran.

Ergo, therefore, moreover... Hugo wanted some giant Ostrich sandwich.

Good ol' Darpa

2008-10-22T20:31:00.002-04:00

Swarms of hunter robots.

Now they want to see inside a 10 story building and 2 floors into the basement from the air? Probably so the swarm of hunter robots can get you.

Holy moley.

At least the police wouldn't be able to use the technology to peep inside your house. And see the Lady of the house in a compromising position. (Scalia, gotta appeal to the Italian Stallion. Would that make Alito the Sicilian Million? Is he even Sicilian? Is Scalia? These are questions I do not have the answers to.)

Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Focus Article

2008-10-22T19:31:00.003-04:00

Directly lifted from the Jamestown Foundation. I'd link to it, but the only way I've got it is in an email.

Jihadis Recommend Internet Guerrilla Warfare in Response to Hacking of Islamist Websites

The recent hacking and shutting down of some jihadi websites has raised concerns among jihadi forum members seeking alternatives in case all jihadi forums go down. These forums have, in many terrorism cases, been a launching pad and deployment point for jihadi activities. One still-operational jihadi forum posted a message entitled “Guerrilla Warfare on the Mountain Range of the Internet,” offering contingency plans for the disruption of existing websites and proposals for new methods to keep jihadi internet communications and propaganda efforts alive (alhesbahweb.net, September 28).

Posted by a forum participant nicknamed “Riah al-Ghobar,” the message says that it is time to devise plans to counter the Western campaign against major jihadi forums. The suggested plans should be implemented in case all jihadi forums are attacked and shut down. Al-Ghobar begins his posting by laying out the components of internet guerilla warfare (IGW) and ways to implement these tactics on the web.

Firstly, al-Ghobar outlines “email support” as the number one method of digital warfare. This method can be carried out by members who follow jihadi events and view video clips without participating in militant activities. It is important for this category of jihadis to sign up and receive jihadist material through their emails. Therefore, they are instructed to open new email addresses and register with the “email support” group. After the creation of new email addresses and considering internet security precautions such as the use of secure proxies, mailing lists are compiled and divided into groups of participants and moderators.

Secondly, virtual jihadis should install Encrypted Messenger software and add to it the compiled email addresses. Each moderator should have his own messenger group to discuss issues or jihadi events and future jihadi activities in coordination with other moderators. Next, al-Ghobar suggests jihadis surf the internet, searching for forums and email groups in order to join them and gradually disseminate the Salafi-Jihadi ideology among their members. Once a certain forum is targeted, moderators may instruct participants to register at these groups and start a dialogue directed at convincing the members of the merits of jihad. Although small forums and email groups would welcome the increase in group members, they might also reject the Salafi-Jihadi influence and ban the jihadis. In that case, jihadis should be persistent in the face of such rejection and if the targeted website insists on banning them, they should attack the website and shut it down in a coordinated group effort.

The spread of Salafi-Jihadi ideology will not be impeded when jihadi websites, such as alhesbah or eklaas, are shutdown, says al-Ghobar, who adds: “If our forums are blocked, truth will spread through the many email addresses of influential people that we should search and add to our lists.” The enemy will not be able to restrain this campaign, especially when the guerilla network expands. Al-Ghobar believes his plan would spare jihadis unwanted scrutiny by security forces because each member of the network will belong to a small cell connected to another cell through one jihadi who would remain anonymous.

Al-Ghobar concludes his plan by emphasizing the procedures necessary for secure internet communication, such as proxies recommended by alhesbah and ekhlaas website administrators and encryption programs, revealing that he has already obtained and tested the necessary software for his proposed plan. Until his internet invasion battalions can be launched, al-Ghobar suggests uploading websites to the internet with specious domain names.

There are disadvantages to al-Ghobar’s concept of internet guerrilla warfare. The decentralized structure of al-Ghobar’s scheme might cause slackness, consequently leading to disconnection among jihadis. Female jihadis, who al-Ghobar regards as the spearhead of all jihadi operations for their commitment and perseverance, might get involved in unreligious practices through private contacts between males and females. According to Islam, females are not allowed to communicate privately with marriageable males. To overcome this religious taboo, al-Ghobar suggests females communicate over the internet through a male sibling or unmarriageable relative.

Forum participants responded positively to al-Ghobar’s proposed IGW and contributed to the plan with further comments and revisions. To encourage members’ participation, one participant suggested the imposition of new regulations banning non-active members from the forums. Another member added the need to build strong infrastructure for the proposed IGW, comprised of flexible email addresses, strong proxies and decentralized administration, comparing the plan, once implemented, to a nuclear fission-like chain of action spreading jihad across the internet. Other participants asserted their willingness to become part of jihadi media support groups in crisis situations. To evade scrutiny by security forces, forum members suggested changing the name of the jihadi encryption software “Secrets of the Mujahideen” into something less suspicious and dividing the groups non-geographically to avoid identification and restriction by intelligence services (see Terrorism Monitor, September 27, 2007).

The question is whether we are better off without jihadi websites. The decision to shut down jihadi websites should be based on the separate examination of each website. The decision making process must weigh the intelligence value against the security risk posed by the website, information attainable only through prolonged monitoring and analysis of the activities and contents of rogue jihadi websites.

Abdul Hameed Bakier is an intelligence expert on counter-terrorism, crisis management and terrorist-hostage negotiations. He is based in Jordan.

Hmmm, IGW consists of emailing Wahhabi-Salafi material to people via encrypted email? Really, I was expecting attacks on Western web targets.

Still, interesting to see the taboo of male-female interaction spread to the web. Western views are more 'you are probably not talking to an 18 yr old blond woman, with DD's, and wears a size 1 dress, it's most likely a 35 yr old man living in his parents basement.'

Does this signify that the West has much better internet security? Because you know there are some lone, tech savvy Wahhabi-Salafi patriots who are trying to shut sites down.

Does it signify that Wahhabi-Salafi's are just not that tech savvy? Granted, I'm not totally immersed in the Web-culture. But it seems like if one top site went down, a few HUNDRED more would pop up immedaitely, and one would rise from the ashes to take over where the first site left off...

UN has a PR problem

2008-10-20T12:02:00.002-04:00

The UN has been doing a lot of good work in Iraq. Most recently this. Essentially providing Iraqis with full election coverage. Talk about a boon to democratic politics.

Juxtapose it with recent ineffective attempts to authorize the use of force against Pirate off the coast of Somalia.

Maybe the blue helmets need to focus more on peace keeping and helping struggling countries then attempting to be a 'Parliament of Man' and a world government.

You know what they say. You can't herd cats.

Al Qaeda on the web

2008-10-18T16:38:00.004-04:00

The primary wahhabi-salafi forums have been down for a while now.

The secondary level of these forums has also come under attack.

And now this article is detailing the impact on Al Qaeda.

I wonder who/what is responsible for this? Rival groups? Some enterprising tech-savvy patriots? Some Saudi oil fueled program?

By the way, Jihadica is an AWESOME site. if you're at all interested in this topic, and have not visited there yet? Do so now.

UPDATE:
Some more info from the BBC.

An update from Jihadica.

CSM article.

When did Tijuana turn into Baghdad?

2008-10-05T09:21:00.001-04:00

Gangs? Ethnicity? Tribes?

People will still pick any reason to murder one another wont they?

Political ties with unsavory individuals

2008-10-04T19:14:00.005-04:00

Obama seems to be tied to quite a few of these types:
-Bill Ayers, terrorist extraordinaire
-Reverend Wright
-Antoin Rezko, shady developer and fundraiser

What's the deal? Someone who has plans to run for President of the United States should be on the look out for people who, while expedient at the time to ally themselves with, will impact the later.

I guess the real question for me me is associate with these less people in the first place? Were these people the gate-keepers to the state democratic party in the Chicago area? Were they they gate-keepers to the national democratic party for Illinois?

I can explain away Rezko, Obama may not have known about his shady acts until it was to late. From the reading I've been doing, it's more crimes where concealment is one of the elements.

Reverend Wright? That's been hashed over and I will not go into it here. It suffices to say that he was a gate way to the political establishment in Chicago.

Ayers? The connection is a little more troubling. Can't quite place it. I'd be fine if Mr. Weathermen had distanced himself from his terrorist past, but apparently he has not. So what is it Obama? I would like to know.

UPDATE:
More from Volokh. Makes a comparison from the Left's and the Right's unsavory characters.
Lawyers, Guns and Money (best blog name ever) on McCain's unsavory friends.
More from Commentary.

I didn't say it...

2008-10-04T10:32:00.003-04:00

The newspaper of record said it.

I just happen to agree 100%. In fact, I would go even further, saying that the Gov. Palin pick for VP represents everything that is wrong with the American political system.

Oh, and apparently Gov. Palin will for sure be another Sith Lord VP.

IFILL: Governor, you mentioned a moment ago the constitution might give the vice president more power than it has in the past. Do you believe as Vice President Cheney does, that the Executive Branch does not hold complete sway over the office of the vice presidency, that it it is also a member of the Legislative Branch?

PALIN: Well, our founding fathers were very wise there in allowing through the Constitution much flexibility there in the office of the vice president. And we will do what is best for the American people in tapping into that position and ushering in an agenda that is supportive and cooperative with the president's agenda in that position. Yeah, so I do agree with him that we have a lot of flexibility in there, and we'll do what we have to do to administer very appropriately the plans that are needed for this nation. And it is my executive experience that is partly to be attributed to my pick as V.P. with McCain, not only as a governor, but earlier on as a mayor, as an oil and gas regulator, as a business owner. It is those years of experience on an executive level that will be put to good use in the White House also. (Source: Transcript.)

Exclamation point indeed.

I HATE CONGRESS.

2008-09-29T22:00:00.003-04:00

There, I said it. And I mean it too. Not like when I say I hate the Bears or the Reds. I really mean it. 100%.

This is ridiculious. That's helpful!

9% baby. How low can the approval rating go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh my...

2008-09-29T21:26:00.002-04:00

The only Supreme Court case Sarah Palin can name is Roe v Wade?

Whoa. Granted, I'm in law school so the Supreme Court is kind of a big deal to me... but come on!

In other 'Oh my...' news. The daughter of a British vile spewing, sharia loving 'cleric' is apparently a promiscuous stripper.

Holy shit, hallelujah pass the Tylenol.

Some days are just better then others, no?

(Did this just move The Ultimate Potato out of non-partisan and into partisan? If so, I dont mean it to. If Biden, Obama or McCain had these sorts of things going on, I would be more then willing to comment on their follies.)

Friedman Op-Ed

2008-09-28T14:32:00.002-04:00

I do not agree with everything the man says (the Mc Donalds theory of conflict prevention is laughable, but the Dell theory of conflict prevention is better) but in this Op-Ed, I agree with him.

No more Hedge Funds, those magical money making enterprises. But building stuff. It works for me.

Reminds me of what Bill Clinton was saying the other night on 'The Daily Show'. Which has really been hitting it out of the park lately with interviews and commentary. Humorous yes, but pointing out important issues that the MSM misses completely, or does in a less artful way. Clinton was talking about how different our economy would have been had we made decisions to invest in new technologies. And it was striking.

Pirates, and international cooperation.

2008-09-28T10:39:00.002-04:00

That darn maghreb and it's pirate problem. It's been churning them out for hundreds of years!

At least this time around there seems to be an easier international consensus around, well doing something about it. The Canadians have sent a ship, most of the European countries too. The US has an entire carrier strike group in the near vicinity, and now the Russians are sending a ship to the immediate region. Even if the US Navy claims that pirates are not it's responsibility, the military is needed (at least initially) to sink some pirate skiffs and send a clear message. (And heck, while the Russians are in the region, let them do the direct sinking while the other forces provide support. We all know the Russians love the use of force.)

Although it is not like the pirates are rolling in warships, they're basically speed boats with RPG's and machine guns. Throw some .50 cals on the merchant ships and let the crews have target practice.

Still, I think it is heartening to see some measure of international cooperation in confronting a systemic threat encountered by all sides. After years of non-cooperation over Iran, North Korea and Iraq, maybe the pirates are finally bringing us all together.

Taliban going AQI?

2008-09-28T10:36:00.002-04:00

It looks like the Taliban is starting to pull off some of the same tactics in Pakistan that Al Qaeda in Iraq had been trying to pull.

Only those tactics really made the population in Iraq angry.

Will it have a similar affect in Pakistan?

This sounds really really familiar...

2008-09-17T19:35:00.002-04:00

Granted, I'm not a scholar of the Alaskan constitution, but generally you cannot 'decline to participate' in a subpeona. It's a subpeona for a reason!

I'm assuming that Palin is trying to argue some sort of Executive immunity. But I'm assuming that would only apply to act within her legal authority as Governor. And firing someone for a vendetta should not be within that power (if it even turns out to be that). Assuming of course that the employee can only be fired for cause and not at will, I do not now how the contract is structured.

Still, it sounds errily familiar to the current administrations view on the Executive and having former employees disregard Congressional subpeonas. Are we getting another Dark Lord of the Sith for a VP? From Darth Cheney to Darth Palin?

Google-Stan coming soon?

2008-09-15T22:13:00.003-04:00

Google just got a patent for a big server ship that is powered by special wave energy technology. Now they can tool around the world's ocean with a flotilla of ships providing data service to everyone!

If google does disengage itself from America, what does that mean for the future of Cyberwar? If google's servers house other countries websites, and then they are attacked, google would have the cause of action against that country, and not the country itself correct?

Would that completely negate the premise of cyberwar? If a country lashes into googles servers, google wouls respond by crippling that countries access to their servers, and destroying their access to the web, a much better counterattack then the country under attack could manage.

Of course that all requires google to be the prime internet provider in the world. The speed at which they are trrying to bring internet coverage to the developing world may put them in this role sooner reather then later. Or at least in a position to where the idea can been explored. Wars happen in the third world, and most often between thrid world opponenets. So we may get to see the affects.

Why did this take me so long to bring up?

2008-09-14T20:27:00.002-04:00

I blame school, work and women. Anyways...

Ladies and Gentlemen. I bring you the beginning. The first step on the path. One word. Battlemech. Giant 'Freakin' Robots.

The Hyperion Power Module (HPM). 1.5 meters wide, around 3 meters tall. Small enough to be hauled around on a truck. Or put into a chassis to power to giant legs and a gyroscope to run around and blow stuff up.

I say model the first chassis on a Dire Wolf omnimech. It woud not fit in the article I posted a while ago about the Japanese man who figured out what it would take and cost to build a Gundam. I have always been partial to Battlemechs as oppossed to Gundams.

This also leads to the question of weaponry. So, give it some lasers and replaces one of the arms with an A-10's tank killing gun.

Yes.

Storm response

2008-09-14T20:17:00.003-04:00

Katrina v Ike:

Are the differences in storm response mainly affected by-
1- Preparation. After Katrina, all state governments took bigger steps to make sure they would not be caught with their pants down.
2- Seriousness. Like number 1, in that more people actually took the storm seriously so that led to more preparation at the state level and locally through precautions (boarded up windows, sand bags etc) and evacuations.
3- The storm itself. Ike was weaker then Katrina.
4- Some sort of miraculous Federal government intervention.
5- Competency. Texas is more competent then Louisiana at storm response. (Whether it be through more resources, more experience, more general competency or whatever).

Just some thinking / talking points.

Still an evolving movement

2008-09-14T18:45:00.003-04:00

Commentary on AQ and suicide bombing.

The movement is really still evolving. It has never operated at the scale that it had been in Iraq. Not only was the operation 'global' in recruiting scope, but it was much more bloody and resource intensive. It's one thing to blow up Israelis while blowing yourself, but blowing up fellow Muslims (even if of a different sect) for merely being in a particular place at a particular time? Not many movements have the stones to keep that momentum up for a long time.

I hate to continually come back to Giles Kepel, but he's right (I am not the only one who things so either!), Algeria was a similar movement, and it collapsed too.

Heck, if the movement is losing steam in Saudi Arabia maybe progress can be made elsewhere. We still have the problem of Wahhabi-Salafis elsewhere (including maybe the more important problem the Deobandi groups in Pakistan), getting at the source can help.

Have to watch these stories

2008-09-14T18:40:00.003-04:00

I have said it before, and I am saying it again. The world needs to keep an eye on the stories of rehabilitated Wahhabi-Salafis. Why they disassociated from the ideology, and the struggles they are facing after they do.

Iran s faltering

2008-09-14T18:00:00.002-04:00

We do not need a military strike (which would be madness anyway). Just let the economy crash, and things will sort themselves out.

BONUS:
The role of the Revolutionary Guards.

The Market takes a whalloping...

2008-09-14T17:26:00.000-04:00

A rightly deserved one.

Shifting sands

2008-09-14T17:18:00.009-04:00

Anbar is now under Iraqi control. So are the Sahwa movements. Good to see some accommodation, at least for now, between the ISF and the Sahwa.

Special forces annihilating the Insurgency. Using some kind of electronic shadow and gait analysis? Effective, but the right way to go about it? I'll chime into say that, not if we had another choice.

The Kurds are getting a little grabby. One of my buddies works in Congress, and he was asking me the other day about an Assyrian security plan to have minorities patrol areas of Iraq. I think that may have been a response to this. The Assyrian minority is largely in the north, and they do not like the Kurds, which makes perfect sense.

I do not agree with the overly pessimistic tones of the article, but the points are valid and important.

Nice story on Afghanistan, another quality epic. Deeper analysis into creating a 'sawhwa' movement in Pakisatn's tribal regions. Unfortunately, crossing the border for strikes into Pakistan is going to be the only way to help tamp down violence in Afghanistan and prod the Pakistanis into doing something useful in the areas that they need to get moving to control..

Good Nuke stories

2008-09-14T16:58:00.004-04:00

Here, from the Council on Foreign Relations, about the nuclear industry in general.

It's good to see the US actually getting ahead of the curve in some respect.

Mitsubishi Heavy is now joining the line of those backing a substantial industry revival.

Legal fallout from foot dragging on waste storage.

PBMR cannot get licensed in the states? There definitely needs to be some retooling in DoE and the NRC to solve that problem. Smaller reactors need to be given a place, if they're wanted.

25 countries joining GNEP.

More uprates for power generation for US nuke plants. Increases in the operating licenses and uprates will keep nuclear power steady around the percentage it is now for a few more decades.

Conventional war?

2008-09-12T21:41:00.001-04:00

Looks like we may get some practice in.

You're telling me...

2008-09-12T21:32:00.002-04:00

Apparently I stopped learning Russian at approximately the exact wrong time...

The Ruskies are backing the wrong horse in South America. Bombers and boats!

Much better analysis then I can provide here. Although I do second the "so what". I'm not that afraid of the Russian nuclear powered battlecruisers. Even if there is nothing cooler sounding.

Life/AI from the Web?

2008-09-09T21:30:00.002-04:00

Wired says life.

I forget where I was reading it, but I came across an article that was talking about how human level AI could spring from a computer program that is structured to process huge amounts of data and make predictions. What more is the human brain but a machine that can make high level analogies to things that are not exactly similar?

This kind of stuff happens all the time!

2008-09-09T14:07:00.002-04:00

Whether it's a news report that sparks a rise in oil prices by ten cents, or Delta stock droping 75%.

Heck, I even got caught up in a fake news story about a massive NATO fleet steaming for Iran. I swear, I was wondering just how a US Aircraft carrier could fit it's own planes plus 40 French fighters too.

People are putting to much stock in what this old series of tubes says without fact checking first.

I blame the 24 hour news cycle.

Forensic text messaging?

2008-09-08T09:38:00.005-04:00

Those crazy Brits, willing to give anything a try.

I do know that the way I write and type is distinctive, in College people could tell I was writing over instant messenger even if I was using someone else's screen name. But that was over a large volume of material, and determining whether or not someone wrote something requires a lot of material to analyze and find the commonalities.

I've even done some light handwriting analysis for work, determining whether or not a OPS# written on a check was written by the person who filled the check out. Over that little material, it's very hard, and that's dealing with handwriting that is distinctive.

To try and analyze grammar from small samples... Unless you're dealing with blantantly obvious differences, it's a crap shoot. When I text message, I rarely abbreviate anything in text message lingo. And I never abbreviate things in emails or over instant messenger, so it would be easy to show (circumstantially) that I was not the one to write "lol ur awsme l8tr". But when you trend into people that are less precise in how they message, you lose most legal value from the evidence. Sure it will be great stuff for investigative purposes, well it could be in some cases, but at trial it would lose some credibility. At least with a good lawyer on the other side.

This Language Log post gives some good discussion of the potential weaknesses of this kind of electronic analysis.

UPDATE:
More from Language Log.

Mr. Fukuyama, telling it like it is

2008-08-30T13:24:00.001-04:00

On the pages of WaPo.

A million years worth of links!!!!

2008-08-30T09:42:00.003-04:00

Well, a long time's worth anyway. Between finals, weddings, end of an era parties, starting a new job, and suffering from a wonderful combination of exhaustion and general brain meltdown (between Torts II and Property II I'm lucky I have not been institutionalized, and that does not even cover Con Law II...) I have had neither the time, nor the inclination to make any progress on my stored items to read.

Terrorism:
Ah yes, the twisted webs that Lebanese militants weave. A Shia organization signing any kind of pact with a Salafi group? MADNESS! (Btw, the author of the article is very good, have not gotten to any of his books yet though). Although the pact does seem to be more of a temporary truce targeted at bringing more force on a superior enemy, and a sign that the Salafi (Sunni) groups are gaining power in Lebanon.

AQ at 20! Important quote from the article.

Indeed, the jihadists' bloody tactics and attempts to impose rigorous Islamic law in the fiefdoms they temporarily carved out drove local Muslims into the arms of area governments, no matter how brutal, corrupt, and repressive.

As I've argued here before, I agree with the general thesis.

The West Bank of the sub-continent. Extremists on boh sides not afraid to fight with one another. Oh, and did I mention two nuclear weapon states with no love for one another backing each side? Oh, and Pakistan is involved again.

AQ in Pakistan's FATA and NWFP. The Jamestown Foundation has a great history of FATA and NWFP, what all the fuss is about and why. Essentially it pre-dates British rules and was exacerbated by their generally incoherent map line drawing. I will find it archived and post it at some point. While I'm on the subject of Pakistan and terrorism, I read the other day (also in Jameston) that there is not only an insurgency in FATA and NWFP but also in Baluchistan. I know the Iranians are also having a heck of a time with their Baluch minorty too.

Interesting little ditty about insurgency with focus on Afghanistan.

MI5 report on IWahhani-Salafi terrorism in Britain. No real surprises here for me, dovetails with the year or two old NYC study on US Wahhabi-Salafi terror groups.

I dont think AQ is 'morphing' as much as it is devolving into what it was before.

Female Suicide Bombers:
In general the reasons for women becoming suicide bombers are not substnatially differnet then those of men, there are simply more. Evil, wicked, nasty ways that make me sick just thinking about...

Very confusing report on a recent bomber caught before detonating. I was hoping it might yield something more concrete. Just a lot of confusing. Either she did not want to before hand, or changed her mind. My money is on changed her mind, the vest had a button she had to press, well someone had to? No, that strikes me as more of a deliberate decision before hand. A remote detonator would imply no decision. Now she's the centerpiece in a propoganda war.

Light discussion from CNN on the topic.

Iraq:
A good example of how the US Military can only do so much without the help of 'Plan A'. Throw all the money you want at a factory, but if there are not markets to sell to and no fuel to run it, you're going to have a recipe for stagnation.

A detailed account of where the money goes, for what and to whom. It may seem trite to be giving money out for lost limbs and broken in doors, but from what I gather in Iraqi tribal society often that is all that is really required, an apology and restitution. But is that really any different then in American society? Someone negligently hacks off your arm, you take them to court, you get your cash and go home. Fascinating stuff really. I really hope the military is working on collecting all the problems and solutions to avoid the institution forgetting all of this.

I agree with this Op-Ed. Iraq is not in a position yet to start dismantling the Sahwa movements. It has to be done eventually, but not yet and not this way. Removing this pillar would make American troops have to stay in the country longer. And with Maliki wanting 2011 as the end date for combat troops... He may end up being sorely mistaken.

Pakistan:
A good summary of potential worries in Pakistan.

History, and some speculation on the future.

Internets moving away from the US?

2008-08-30T09:03:00.002-04:00

Yes. It is a series of tubes after all. And as more countries get more and more tubes, why should they point them elsewhere?

Although I disagree with the so-called 'security' problems that this could cause. Intelligence agencies have the freest hands in intercepting data, phone calls and information when it is not flowing through the US. Especially between two non-US persons. So a connection outside the states can be targeted until the agency realizes a US citizen is on the line. It is only when that connection passes through the US are more safeguards triggered. (If I have the mechanics right, which I may not, if I do not, feel free to correct me).

An interesting wrinkle does come up though. Cyberwar. As we saw, and I posted on, during the great Russo-Georgian 'Tom Clancy' War of 2008 (the conflict was prediceted in a video game) Georgia moved it's goernment websites to Google (US) servers to give them a measure of protection. More so because of the better security that Google offers, but also for a measure of 'now you're messing with the US' interests'. So as more and more tubes become not US 'territory' in cyberspace, and we increasingly 'attack' by hacking into other countries tubes, well if that analogy holds we are entering possibly into real world conflicts. But the web is too amorphous, and I do not know enough to make an accurate assesment of the situation.

While, as the article suggests, we may lose 'home field advantage' on the internets at some point (which means what exactly, that we would have to employ people who speak native languages!!!!!), I think it is perfectly managable.

Your car has gas!

2008-08-30T08:23:00.004-04:00

Or rather, your car should have natural gas. It is working well in Utah.

Federalism is great. The States are given a relatively free hand to try any number of ideas that do not directly conflict with the Constitution (in this context I am thinking mainly of both the positive and negative commerce clauses). This allows for a lot of trial and error.

Much like Brazil however, solutions found in some States cannot be replicated in other states. The idea of natural gas powered cars in New England is ludicrous. But in states that large amount of natural gas transit through, or originate in (New England is a end destination for use, especially during the winter), it could be a plausible way to take pressure off of demand in the rest of the US, of course this would play some havoc with other industries that use natural gas.

I have always been a believer in energy substitution, we have the technology to at least make an attempt. Some regions of the country can be powered by renewable, some by nuclear, some by coal and natural gas as needed.

South Africa expanding reprocessing facilities

2008-08-29T21:40:00.003-04:00

The expansion and development of the global nuclear Renaissance continues.

I'm actually pretty excited for the PBMR to come on line.

Hopefully these facilities can help to power South Africa economy and bring in some nice profits.

THAT TEARS IT!

2008-08-29T20:59:00.002-04:00

Polar bears are cute, Knut proved that. Heck, I like 'em. So white, fluffy, cuddly. I saw some pictures of a polar bear playing with a husky. It was beautiful. And they're being harmed/killed/driven to extinction by global warming.

But Walruses? That's where I draw the line.

Sadr out, Sahwa's next?

2008-08-28T16:56:00.002-04:00

Sadr extends JAM truce indefinitely.

Maliki and the ISF have one big threat down, and now they appear to be moving in on the Sahwa movements. Which is VERY risky to say the least.

Throwing some of that 70 billion dollar oil sale account at the economy in those regions where Sahwa's are prevelant and holding provincial elections would be a much better strategy then say, rounding up the leaders and arresting them. But hey, it's not my country... Although I do feel responsible.

Nuclear manufacturing industry expanding in America

2008-08-27T13:19:00.002-04:00

New reactor part factory opening in Louisiana.

A good sign for the nuke industry, and for the US. Westinghouse must be expecting the US to be a big market in the future. With transportation costs rising, I bet we'll see more of these plants popping up near suspected boom sites. Nuke plants are already expensive enough without taking on high oceanic shipping costs.

Shoddy infrastructure affecting growth... in America?

2008-08-27T10:40:00.004-04:00

I wouldn't be surprised if this story had come out in say, Iraq or South Africa. But America?

It has become apparent over the last year or so, that American needs a massive infrastructure overhaul. If we cannot even plug more power generation into our grid to meet demand, or to displace dirtier supply...

Government subsidies (to renewable and nuclear) will be just a huge waste of money.

At least for the time being the growth stunt is limited to the energy sector, and those facilities that can be quickly built.

UPDATE:
Someone much smarter then I am tackling the question.

Pakistan, harbinger of the apocolypse...

2008-08-26T15:56:00.002-04:00

You have GOT to be kidding me!

AQ Khan, the biggest nuclear proliferator EVER, has a shot at winning the Presidency of a nuclear weapon state?

Pakistan's economy is not in that great of shape, so I could see it going the North Korea route and selling sensitive technologies to stay afloat. Even if they are signatories to the NPT.

Webs within webs

2008-08-25T14:40:00.002-04:00

I was preparing a post giving it to the Swiss. Turns out they were actually doing something useful.

Granted, I think the files would've been better preserved, and still strikes me as a very self-centered move on the part of the Swiss.

Things fall apart, Pakistan edition

2008-08-25T14:34:00.004-04:00

Musharraf is gone. And the civillian government falls apart.

Not surprising though.

Well aside from that whole increasingly violent extremist struggle that is slowly spreading to other countries including a superpower and a soon-to-be super power. That old story.

More on what, why and how.

Russia wants to keep it's cake, and eat it too!

2008-08-25T14:29:00.003-04:00

Sure, lets postpone that Russian-US Nuke deal until AFTER Congress forgets all the bad stuff Russia has done!

If there is one thing Congress can do, it's send signals by not doing anything. Hopefully they keep up the trend.

Holy Moley...

2008-08-21T16:36:00.003-04:00

100 or more dead? Attacking an arms factory?

Maybe Pakistan's government will get focused, now that Musharaff is gone. Something tells me there will be more infighting and a lot more people will die.

Are the Taliban simply attacking the arms factory as a signal to the people to stop building weapons for the military? Or are they attacking to create a diversion so they can break in and steal what arms they need?

More from The Long War Journal.

Food irradiation

2008-08-21T16:22:00.003-04:00

The FDA has just approved irradiation of 'greens'.

I wonder if this is in any way related to the recent unknown E. Coli outbreaks. Although I do not think so, FDA approval takes a while. It may have been fast tracked though.

But while it may be approved for greens, it has been approved for meat for a while. However, if I remember correctly those who do not think irradiation is a good idea have fought for legislation requiring companies to label products as irradiated, and that can be a killer in the market. People are, how can I say this, not as informed as they should be, and irradiation can scare them away from products. However, I dont have an exact number on the percentage of meat products that are actually irradiated.

But I imagine it will be something similar with greens.

Draft Iraq Pull Out Agreement?

2008-08-20T22:12:00.005-04:00

Set for June 30th, but more of a goal then anything else.

With the election law not being passed, and severe problems beginning to affect to Sahwa movements... I am still a little unsure.

But June is a ways away.

With the UN stepping up to try and solve the Kirkuk question, which will hopefully help the election law pass, some pressure may be relieved. If the UN can accomplish a settlement. With new elections, there may be better movement on the Sahwa movement front.

Too many conditionals for my tastes. But if this agreement becomes more then a draft (does the Iraqi parliament have to sign off on it?) before the new Parliamentary session, then that will be something to track closely.

UPDATE:
Looks like the Parliament has to approve it. More (better) analysis from Dr. iRak.

4th Amendment and readily avaliable information

2008-08-14T10:18:00.003-04:00

With all this fancy smancy technology, it is becoming easier and easier to aggregate a lot of information and to draw conclusions from that information. Which is good.

But what if you're a criminal, and 'The Man' starts collecting information, that is readily observable and available on the public record to tie you to crimes? Such as GPS information? As the article points out, using a GPS is closer to a police officer tailing a suspect (with out the time, expense and human error) then a wire-tap.

A lot of Tort law for privacy issues is based partly on whether or not the plaintiff had an expectation of privacy about certain information or situations. The 4th Amendment operates, at least as far as I know/remember, in similar means. And 'seizure' has been expanded to include the shooting, and killing of a fleeing suspect. So it could easily include, if the Supreme Court said so, so called 'data mining'.

But more importantly, there is a lot of data out there about people. Think of your Facebook or LinkedIn page (if it's not locked). Even then, at least for Facebook, as long as someone knows one of the networks you are in,they can actually find something on your profile by doing a simple search. Heck, do a google search of your own name. A lot of stuff comes up! Then go to a cellphone number finding service, you can find a whole bunch of information about yourself just from the cellphone number. And there are ways to get around unlisted or blocked numbers. I know for a fact that the police use services like ChoicePoint, a service that collects all public records associated with a person and makes it avalaible when you search for any one of the elements associated with that person. From a liscense plate number you can get home addresses, loan information, known associates, aliases. It's quite amazing actually.

On to the real point, does anyone really have any idea what information is out there about them? How can they have an expectation of privacy about anything? I know it's more of an amorphous 'reasonable person' type test, but if it's out on the public record, does that not make any reasonable expectation unreasonable?

I do not have the biggest interest in privacy issues, but is still interesting to see how technology changes the conversation, and how the law reacts.

Giant, flying laser cannons

2008-08-14T09:41:00.003-04:00

I am serious. Giant. Flying. Laser Cannons.

Oh yeah.

More on abilities, and possibilities from Danger Room.

What's next? Sharks with friggin' laser beams attached to their heads? (Actually, they might be useful in protecting docked ships from terrorists in the water. I bet DARPA is working on it already.)

I wonder how this compares to the Naval rail gun in power usage. Although since it's a chemical laser, power usage may be the wrong metric of comparison. Because if you are using more energy then the rail run to make a laser, why not use that energy to accelerate the slug fired by the rail gun faster? Kinetic weapons usually have a higher energy input to kill ratio anyway. Although the laser's main selling point is bouncing, targeting and above all accuracy. The rail gun is more of a dumb fire weapon, shoot it and hope for the best.

Anyone who would ask that, is not your friend.

2008-08-13T22:25:00.003-04:00

Still, I would side with Georgia anyway.

Russia should have paid attention. The world did not react when they pushed into Ossetia and Abkhazia. That was apparently okay. And really, what can the US say about it without looking like a huge hypocrite? But moving into Georgia proper, that should provoke a tough response. Bush started out not caring, playing volleyball, and now he's committing American personell to the combat zone.

Besides, bowing to Russian demands now would only embolden them in the future. If Georgia is okay, it makes it much harder to draw the line later. Yeah yeah yeah, I know, typical realist bull-honkey right?

Interesting though, the different political tactics engaged in by the US and Russia in their interventionist adventures. At least the US tried to get support for an invasion of Iraq. Russia did not even bother. And there are no protests, or international outcry. Just a wimper. I guess it's expected of Russia to be beligerent, and the US is held to a higher standard? At least Russia does not have to worry about losing that precious 'moral' 'high ground' that is so vital to leading...