Recent events

No, this one isn't about me.

So with the political unrest in an African country, and the Government killing the internet there, I got to wondering...

What could be a portable way to bypass a government kill switch. A full on non-portable station would rock too, if you can protect it.

The best I can think of, and I'm no expert, is to hook up something like...

• Rucksack


• antennas


• packet over radio *think ham radio*


• one of those cell phone base station / repeater things


• wifi router (with built in tor support)


• battery pack and solar charger

Basically the idea is an isp / cell carrier in a backpack using Armature radio as the transmission medium. I don't know how well it would work. I don't even know if it would work, but I have a project to try later.

Probably won't be light or cheap to build. But it could be very useful. The downside whoever has it on their back will be a huge target.

A base version would substitute a pelican case for the pack, and directional antennas. Point them down from on top of a tall building.


Just an idea, that I got from watching recent events.

3 things

1) TGU with the 16kg, is suffering the same problems with stablity on the left as the 24kg. I used to be able to do these in my sleep. I might have to take a video and post it for the few RKCs I know to critique.

I did 5 rounds of warm up, 7 sets of left right TGU

2) I've been doing some light running lately. Yesterday was the latest bit. Ran from my parking lot to another one after work to see what was going on. Lots of cop cars (resident passed away). Ran from the golf course to my apartment and back last night. I had my telescope out, and ran back to get the moon filter. My buddy Tom was with the scope. Spent about 2 hours out side looking at the night sky, wish it was a little darker.

3) (this item cross posted)
I think I made some people mad last night. We had our community watch meeting at the Apartment last night. What was supposed to be a 45 to 60 minute meeting turned into an hour and a half complaint-fest. There were people there to sign up their kids for the after school program, and I dragged them into the complaints as well. They started to have them.

Also turns out the security service we're paying for, only has ONE "courtesy" officer at night and not all night, or every night. I basically tore into both management and security with problems and concerns. Both the owner of the security company and the operations manager gave me they're business cards last night. I also raised enough complaints that the site manager is supposed to contact me (not going to hold my breath).

I'm also taking over the coordinator position for the community watch. There are going to be some changes made to how it's ran, and availability of access to information. Right now, the only way we know anything is IF we're told anything. I'm going to pester people. I'm going to provide snacks. I'm going to set up a website with the data. Only thing that's going to really cost me anything is the snacks, and the new domain name.

Between now and the meeting next month I want to try to:
- Read Machiavelli's The Prince (half way done), Saul Alinsky Rules for Radicals and Reveille for Radicals, and Bruce Schneier's Beyond fear, and figure out a revised version of Robert's Rules of Order to run the meetings (Not a big fan of the RRO over all, but think it's a good frame work).

- Set up one of my spare computers (saved to use as cheap home servers anyway) to run word press with a domain name for the community watch.

- Figure out security related guests to have come and talk to people about things (instead of "body magic" sales people they tried to push off on us last night). I might just take the first one and do a small topic on Online Safety.

My soap box on a public option

Word in the blogosphere tonight is saying the public option is dead.

Where to even start on this one. We need a public option.

Fear has been spread of Death Panels. The truth is, we already have them. On a regular basis people with "Insurance" are denied coverage for trumpet up reasons. You could say I'm being a Left wing nut job on this one, but when you have people testify to Congress that they're job was to find reasons to deny coverage (Public Record, go look it up) what else can you call it but a Death Panel? Maybe a Greed Panel is a better term for them. After all, they're not so much about killing the patient, as saving the company money. The patient dying is just a side-effect of protecting the bottom line. In other words they're saying a person's life is just part of doing business.

Between when I was hit by a car (2003) and my brother's recently broken knee (2009), I've seen it myself how the insurance companies stand between the Doctors and the patients.

I was hit by car while working, so workman's comp picked up "the bills" (just not all of them). The problems started before I even left the accident scene. Do I get life flighted or raced in the back of the ambulance? Life Flight was more expensive than the ambulance. The choice was the ambulance because they thought it would be better for me to die in that than in the air, and it'd free up the chopper for someone that might actually make it to the hospital. (I've always been stubborn, so I made it via ambulance).

While I was still in Surgical ICU the insurance company complained about the time I was spending in the hospital. After I was released, it continued to go down hill. Every time I saw a doctor, an insurance company nurse (an LPN if I remember right) was in the room. Her whole reason to be there was agree or disagree with the doctor on what treatments I needed. I HAD TO FIGHT FOR A PSYCH EVALUATION, because the personality shift I had wasn't worth them worrying about. Only reason I even got one was because I went and set it up myself. Then it became a race to see the doctor I selected vs their corporate whore / shrill of "Doctor". Then they refused to pay for it, even though they sent me to 2 of their whores (the first one agreed with the doctor I chose). I never got any of the counseling 2 of the 3 Doctors said I needed. Not once did I receive any physical therapy, and the cane I walked with for months, was paid for out of my own pocket. The PNMR guy was more interested in sucking up to the insurance company than treating the patient. Physical damage included my brain, my neck and my hip. (I had to learn to walk again, on my own).

My brother is Mental Handicapped, because of that he's on SSI (with medicare). I got him to take Tang Soo Do with me. The school I study at has a history with teaching the mentally handicapped. My brother is 5'9" and about 95lbs. When he was in jr high (in the 90s), he joined the wrestling team, and some how managed to break his knee. He had a healthier weight back then. In April or so this year (2009), he was working a kick drill, but not shifting his weight right. As a result, the knee that had the scar tissue and the like broke again. At first we thought it was a sprain, so I took him home, and our mom iced it. The next day, it was 2x the size. So I took him to the ER (he's afraid of hospitals). We had problems with one Doctor, but were able to get a second opinion. He got free crutches and a free brace for his knee (things my mom could not afford), physical therapy, x-rays at each follow up visit, and lots of great advice. Not once did someone from Medicare or the Government show up to tell the doctors what they could and could not do.

A health care co-op won't work. They won't have the power that the big companies have. They'll look good, but won't last. Not when Big Insurance can reward and punish the peasants.

During Open Enrollment last year at work, the Blue Cross rep they sent out, said we'll be punished for using our Insurance (not the exact wording but the gist of it). How? Our premiums will go up. We'll have to pay even more than we are now. But if we grit our teeth and bare it, our premium will go down, and we'll be rewarded for being good little peasants who don't upset their golden apple cart.

The "Tea-baggers" have been saying that they'd lose their current health care if there was a public option. Sadly they're probably right. Not because the United States Government would mandate it, but because Companies would see it would be cheaper to force their employees into it. The company saves money, and has a better bottom line. You think they'd pass the money on the employees? Please the employees are slaves. Most of the people with jobs are doing more work with less pay.

Most employees don't realize that though. They think that the company screwing them is in the employee's best interest. From a conversation with a guy from FedEx last week. Nutshell version "Yeah, FedEx cut my pay, I have more work to do, but I still have a job". Talking about Unions and UPS. He said UPS had better benefits and pay. But because of UPS being a union shop, UPS let people go instead of doing pay cuts. (Or so the FedEx guy claimed).

Glen Beck lately has been talking about how great the American Health Care system is. Go look up his news stories from January 2008. He said on the air (at cnn I believe) that the American Health system was crap. He didn't say it just once either. He said it in a video from home when he was recovering. He said it on the air multiple times.

Now he's saying that the US has the best Health Care in the world. If that's the case, why did Remote Area Medical start opening up around the country? Remote Area Medical is supposed to be for 3rd world countries to help the people there to have a fighting chance. Has the United States become a 3rd world country?

We, The People of the United States, need change. We need to stop having a 3rd world level health care system and actually start pretending to be an industrial country again. Why is it other countries, countries we're told we're better than, have free health care? If we're so much better why don't we have a health care system they want instead of one they criticize (go look up the news papers coming out of England this week, we're being laughed at. The Daily Mirror called the U.S. The "Land of the Fee").

Enough!

On the way home from work today, I was thinking what I would do in the current economic "crisis". If a company is too big to fail... That just means it's a monopoly, and it's time to whittle it down to size.

But Keith Olbermann said it best tonight with a special comment on Countdown.


Thanks to Crooks and Liars since I was at martial arts

What is this really about?

I live in Michigan. I just moved further away from the Detroit area, but still think it's considered a suburb. I'm on the out skirts of Ann Arbor. I would have posted on this sooner but I do not have any net access at home yet, and have to use common area of the complex I live in. However I have few hours of the day to go there.

So what was the Auto Loans about? Why were they needed? And why did the republicans against it?

1) The loans are about giving the Auto Companies money that the Banks are NOT giving them. The auto companies have to buy equipment, raw materials, and pay their employees. The banks were given shit loads of money but have chose to sit on it, instead of using it for what it was supposed to be used for. Getting cash back into the system in loans.

2) They're needed because the companies have debt. They have to pay everyone for building the car before the car is sold. Cars are not fast food. They do not get built when you order them. They get built in advance, but don't bring money in, until it's sold. People are having problems buying cars right now. Not because the cars they make suck, but because the BANKS are refusing to give loans, if you need the money for anything. Don't need the loan, you'll get the money.

3) Why did the Republicans in the Senate kill it? Because they want to make people slaves. I'm watching Chris Dodd right now. He's talking about how the Republicans wanting to blame the workers for the problems that the auto makes have. They want to say the workers are paid too much. The guy getting paid $18.00 an hour to sweep the floor is a myth. I've worked in the auto industry. I got $15.00 an hour when I worked for EDS at a GM plant. When I went to work for GM I was making 30.00 an hour. But I was doing project management. and I was under paid. Yes there were UAW guys that made lots of money and hour there... but that's because they were there for 20 years, and that was the raises they got for performance. The reason that we're not seeing the Japanese companies asking for the money, because they get their money from over seas banks. BANKS that are not SITTING ON money they got from a Government.

So what the republicans are saying is that people make too much. They're still trying to kill the middle class. They're about getting their buddies (the ones that bribe them with donations) more money, while they get the American people who elect them even less. They gave shit loads of money to banks, and the banks are not doing what they are supposed to do, yet the republicans say they want to be the fiscal group. Bull shit. They want to make us a two class society.

They tell me it's a new world

I don't believe them.

1: until he takes control of the pen, and starts signing legislation that is acted upon, it's all a dream right now.

2: PZ Myers, aka Pharyngula said it much better than I could.

Prop 8 passed. It joins 2 other states with the same anti-rights laws. Florida and Arizona.


Things that did make me proud yesterday:
Michigan passed both Prop 1 (medical use marijuana) and Prop 2 (human embryo and human embryonic stem cell research).

Fun things today

So today was Election day. I got up at 6am, got to the polls at 6:30, and I was about 13th or so in line (I got ballot 0013). It was a minor cluster, and there were lots of people there. By the time the polls opened the line had already doubled back on itself. We had the silly fill the bubble in kind, with black or blue ink. Oh even though I had ballot 13, I was the 12th person to cast their ballot.

The person in front of me used to be my Rep to the State Senate. I recognized him. He doesn't know me, but knows my uncle. It was fun, actually kind of argued with him over politics. The problem is he's been in the belly of the beast, and can't see the forest through the trees anymore.

After voting, I had to go outside and wait for my Uncle who went up there with me. In the process, I got to call a pro-lifer (she claimed she was a "right to life" person) exactly what they are. PRO-Slavery advocates. They want the government to micro-manage their lives, because they're scared of their own sexual organs. It actually chased her, and the former Rep away. I also got to say that Religious Beliefs have no place in politics.

Pro-choice is more than the right to abortion. It's about having a choice period. It means being able to chose what you do and how you use your reproductive organs. The Pro-Slavers won't stop when they get abortion abolished. They'll go after any kind of family planing. They've already gutted sex education. Which you can see as there has been a rise in teen pregnancy. Hell look at the Republican's VP choice's daughter. Being Pro-choice is about not having the government telling us how to have sex.

The best thing today... THE VERY BEST THING TODAY... I'm wearing new pants.
Why is that the best thing? The people who make the slacks I wear to work stopped making the flat front kind in my size, 40x32. Since I tore my last pair last week, I went out and bought new pants. 38x32. AND THEY FIT!!! Its a small victory, but I take what I can get where I can get it.

Ok, somethings just are not cool.

I'm not a McCain fan, but with all the garbage that has gone after 2001, this is just so not cool.

Some freak sent white powder to one of McCain's offices.

All that does, is make everyone look bad. It's just so not cool

SiCKO

So I watched SiCKO, finally. It was really good. I did laugh pretty hard at the going to Cuba bit, but I guess that's just me.

It brings up some interesting things. Other countries have Socialized Health care and it's not as bad as they sell it to be. I have a friend in Canada that said, yes it is hard to get to see the specialist, because he's so busy.

France, 35 hour work week with 5 weeks vacation.

Then it hit me. I know why the Congress makes a big scare of "Socialized Health Care". It is not about the money they get from the lobbyists. It is not because of things like the Red Scare.

The sad truth is, the Congress, the President and lots of other people in government have really great health care. It is paid for by taxes.

I think the most striking truth from the movie however... Was the Old British Parlement member who said the US Government doesn't Fear the Citizens the Citizens fear the Government. However at the same time, he was only half right. The rich bastards running things do fear the poor and down trodden. Why else are they purging the voting rolls of people they know won't vote the way those in power want.

Lastly, to everyone else who thinks government ran things are bad and we shouldn't do it. Remember that the next time you're in a car accident and an ambulance shows up from the Fire department. Remember that the next time your house catches fire.

Remember socialized things are bad, when you need a cop to help you. You are threatened or attacked and you file a police report.

Lastly remember you want to do away with government paid agencies when you send your next bill out in the mail. Or check your mail box for your tax return.

Senator Levin...

So I was surprised by one of my Senators today. Levin, actually voted in favor of the Dodd / Feingold amendment. However, I forgot all about Stabenow (IE STAB IN THE BACK / STAB ME NOW).

She was one of the traitors that cross the line to side with the republic party on giving her corporate masters (she's bought and paid for) immunity.

I sent a fairly nasty email to her. Telling her thank you for cementing the position in our current police state.

If you don't think we live in a police state, you haven't really be paying attention have you...

Oh and speaking of masters... Anyone else see that our media masters are calling states for Obama, before ANY votes are counted?

My Senator is a Traitor living in Fear

This is a letter I sent to Senator Carl Levin of Michigan today.

Dear Mr. Levin,

I just watched you supporting the Specter / Whitehouse amendment to the FISA bill.

What you basically said, yes the telcos broke the law, but that's fine as long as no one can show they were hurt. If citizens can show they were damaged (by secret laws) then they can have a day in court. You statement was that because the telcos were acting in "good faith with the administration" it is ok to break the laws of the nation. This country is supposed to be above secret laws, and you're advocating them.

That is akin to you approaching me to murder someone for you, saying as long as I hide the body well enough, I won't be prosecuted. Even though we both know that I'd be breaking the law.

Everyone is damaged by the Telecommunication companies that broke the law, because U.S. Citizens can no longer trust that their conversations are private, and not being listened to illegally.

You sir disgust me. Stop living in fear.

Listening to Dodd on FISA

Man, I wish Dodd was still running. He's going a great job speaking against the immunity garbage in FISA bill. He's following up on what Feingold started before him (in the speeches).

Dodd is showing leadership, where are Clinton and Obama?

And then there was 3.

Word is out that John Edwards is pulling his hat out of the ring.

That leaves Gravel, Clinton and Obama.

Read this and remember

You can not have security without privacy. It just can not happen.

Bruce Schneier on the government's view of security.

There is really nothing more I can add to this. Mr. Schneier hit all the relevant points.

The scariest part is when he points out, that the government wants you to entrust your privacy to the government and their hand picked companies. The very people who do not have your privacy in their best interest.

I take it back, the Protect America Act is going to die this week (most likely). It's part of the FISA bill. Call your Senators, call your Congress people. Tell them to not be afraid and give us back our privacy.

Current Standings

So Gravel says he's still in, but I haven't been following and from what I 'm told he hasn't been campaigning much. Hillery, I don't see her being any different than the republicans. Obama, starting to worry me. And Edwards.

The infighting between the Clintons and Obama show that they don't have the required maturity to run a nation. They want to be the one so bad they will act like children to get it.

Which leaves me with my third choice this year. Edwards. I don't like everything about him, but of the 4 left, I think he's the best choice.

Of course that means the corporate masters in the media don't like him, and he hasn't got a snowball's chance in the tropics.

I like Chris Dodd

I think he's got what it takes to be a leader. He was my second choice behind Kucinich for President, and my first choice as the person who should replace Harry Reid as the Majority Leader in the Senate. He's also my first choice for VP.

A great example of what I mean, besides the fight against the FISA bill last month, is the video link below.

In a nutshell the Republicans wanted to ignore the amendments to the Intelligce commite's FISA bill, and vote on it just as it was presented. Why? Because Bush WILL sign that version of the bill. It protects the corrupt corporations that broke the law.

This is part of what Dodd had to say on the topic.

Corporate Media

They did it again. CNN this time. The corporate media disallowed one of the candidates. Two actually, but I haven't heard much from the Gravel camp, lately. The media is telling you who to vote for.

Now an interesting thing about Gravel. I just hit his website, he has a video up chastising Kucinich. Why, because K made a comment on Democracy Now about Obama being the only one to point out the exclusion of Kucinich from the Nevada debate. However when Gravel was blocked from a debate, Pennsylvania, Kucinich didn't make a comment. That's the point of the video Gravel's people put up.

I wonder Mr. Gravel, when you were locked out, what did you do? He had a little pep-rally, as evident from the video. He called it an alternate debate. But from what I can see, the difference between Gravel and Kucinich being blocked from the debates, is Gravel isn't trying to fight each one in Court. Dennis is. Now, would you mention someone being locked out of a debate, if that person himself isn't actively fighting to be put back in? I think most of the people take that as a sign that you're pulling out. But hey that's just my view point.

Why are the American people putting up with his... Oh yeah, I forgot, most get their data streams from Mainstream / Corporate Media. Which means they don't know whats going on.

I voted today.

For what little good it will do, I went and voted in my primary today.

Why do I say for what little good it will do. Why do I not take pride in my right to vote?

1) I'm in Michigan. Because our state is ran by the Republicans, and they pushed for an early primary, the Democratic Party will not be seating deligates.

2) Because of 1, the choices were limited on the ballot.

3) It was not an open primary, meaning I couldn't vote unless I declared myself a democrat or republican. They actually would not let you vote unless you checked one. You couldn't check more than one either. (don't think I didn't bitch about that to the helpless poll person. And I felt good about it, because she is abiding by the stupid rules they put in place. STUPID LAWS SHOULD BE BROKEKN AND FOUGHT).

4) Depending on what you checked in 3, told them what ballot to give you.

5) Their "secret ballot" is a scan-tron that gets read by the machine (and as we were told in 2004) shredded (I do question that last part), meaning you can't do a recount if you want one.

So if I had a list of reasons why my vote was worthless and why not to vote, why did I bother?

Because I actually got to vote my choice. I got to vote my conscious, something I have not been able to do since 2000. I didn't have to take the lesser evil route, I actually voted WHO I WANTED. Luckily Dennis Kucinich was on on the ballot.

I wish we could do away with secret ballots, but as my uncle pointed out today, if they did that the bosses and others would coerce people to vote the way the wanted. Vote so and so or no job, and your kids will go hungry.

Ok, he is listed

So instead of going on the graphs that I was seeing in the blog world (Crooks and Liars, Daily Kos), I went and turned the tv on. Not that it stayed on for long. CNN and MSNBC both had Kucinich with 1% on the screen. So he's not completely missing.

Paging Mr Ultra K. Paging Mr Ultra K.

I must say, I'm surprised. I really am.

Iowa, and now New Hampshire, and they still won't admit that there is a man named DENNIS KUCINICH running. All the "exit polls" and "counts" they've shown for the Democrats, K is missing. How sad.

However that's not surprising...

What is, is that Hillery had a come back. I really thought the media had done a good job of burying her. The way they were pumping up Obama's win in Iowa, I thought for sure people would just get behind the "sure thing".

Every time I think I have the media control over humans figured out, I get shown to be wrong.

I do know I'm going to make a point to go vote Kucinich in the Michigan Primary. Even if the delegates from my state don't count. Funny thing about that, until this year, we were a caucus state. I am voting my conscious. Something I rarely get to do when voting for president.