Blog @ MoreWhat.com

No shortage of ‘expert’ commentary in this video. When it comes to ‘multi-tasking’ you do not have to be a member of the digital world to understand the problem.

One definition for multi-tasking is: The act of undertaking more than one task at one time.

A better definition might be ‘doing nothing well’. For all the experts in the video the last one may have it right. Take a look.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

a text version of the story is here (click) 

You might find this press release interesting. It also explains why the Ixquick logo and link are displayed prominently on this blog. Although this blog reserves the right to withdraw support for Ixquick in the future if circumstances warrant, much about Ixquck features a refreshing change from other search engines.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Ixquick: Search Engines Should Become Government Spies, Says EU Parliament
Ixquick and Startpage will fight “Big Brother” data retention clause in Declaration 29

June 28, 2010 03:33 AM Eastern Daylight Time

BRUSSELS & NEW YORK & ZEIST, Netherlands –(BUSINESS WIRE)–A draconian proposal to retain all Internet search traffic, known as “Written Declaration 29,” was adopted by the European Parliament last week. Framed as a measure to crack down on paedophiles, the controversial Declaration calls on the EU to require that search engines store all search traffic for up to two years for possible analysis by authorities.

Search engine Ixquick (www.ixquick.com), widely regarded as the world’s most private search engine, has built a strong privacy reputation by storing no search data on its users. The company believes it has been singled out by the data retention proposal, and it has vowed to strongly oppose the measure becoming law.

“Since Google, Yahoo, and Bing already retain users’ search data, this proposal is clearly aimed at Ixquick and our English-language subsidiary Startpage (www.startpage.com),” said Robert Beens, CEO of Ixquick. “We have worked hard to create a privacy-friendly search engine that embodies the spirit of EU Privacy Protections, in line with the strict recommendations of the EU Article 29 Data Protection Working Party. This Declaration is evidence that the left hand of the EU does not know what the right hand is doing.”

Mr. Beens fears that if the measure becomes law, it will vastly undermine the privacy of over 500 million law-abiding EU citizens. Storing everyone’s search data, rather than restricting surveillance to known or suspected offenders, would give the government access to a rich trove of political, medical, professional, and personal data on virtually every person in Europe. And critics say it will do little to stop child pornography.

“Sex offenders exchange files through underground networks. They don’t find this stuff through search engines,” said Alex Hanff of Privacy International, an advocacy group that is launching a campaign against the measure. “I spent eight years helping law enforcement track down online sex offenders and never once did we see a case where search engine data was useful.”

Ixquick will join the public campaign started by Privacy International to stop the provisions of Written Declaration 29 from becoming law.

“Privacy is a fundamental right and the basis of a free society. The phenomenal success of Ixquick and Startpage proves that people don’t want to be watched by their governments,” said Mr. Beens. “Spying on law-abiding citizens is not the way forward, and we will stand by our principles to protect the public’s ability to search in privacy.”

About Ixquick and Startpage

Ixquick is an international, award-winning search engine with an industry-leading privacy policy. Ixquick has been awarded the EU Privacy Seal by the independent certification authority Europrise. Further information can be found at www.ixquick.com and www.startpage.com.

For press inquiries, please contact:

EU Media Relations, Ixquick
Alex van Eesteren, +31-30-6971778
alex@ixquick.com

OR

U.S. Media Relations, Startpage
Dr. Katherine Albrecht
877-434-3100 (U.S. toll free)
+1-973-273-2125 (for International access)
kma@startpage.com

Another example of a misguided conclusion driven by politics features President Obama, space exploration and self-serving alliances. The report presenting this political nonsense is provided below.

Obama Space Plan ‘Vindicated’ by Private Rocket Launch, Builder Says
Clara Moskowitz
SPACE.com Senior Writer
Fri Jun 4, 7:15 pm ET

The successful liftoff of a new private rocket helps vindicate President Barack Obama’s plan to rely on commercial spaceships to carry cargo and possibly astronauts to orbit, the rocket’s millionaire owner said.

Commercial firm Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) blasted off its first Falcon 9 rocket Friday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

“I think this bodes very well for the Obama plan,” SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said after the launch. “It really helps vindicate the approach he’s taking.”

Why is this report political nonsense? First of all, the report and Elon Musk suggest this rocket is ‘private’ not ‘public’ in terms of funding. Not exactly.

Established in 2002 by Elon Musk , the founder of PayPal and the Zip2 Corporation, SpaceX has already developed two brand new launch vehicles, established an impressive launch manifest, and been awarded COTS funding by NASA to demonstrate delivery and return of cargo to the International Space Station.

Then there is the suggestion that private space travel is Obama’s plan. Like he developed it. Not exactly.

Burt Rutan of Scaled Composites and Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group joined forces to develop a fleet of commercial spaceships and launch aircraft. Rutan is responsible for the following:

White Knight launched SpaceShipOne 14 times, including the first privately funded human spaceflight. The final launch, on October 4, 2004, won the $10 million Ansari X PRIZE.

Let’s give credit where credit is due. Rutan, Branson and others were moving toward private space flight projects well before Musk’s NASA-funded project or President Obama’s endorsement of it. However, Obama should get credit for favoring privately funded space exploration if he in fact does.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

One sound bite or excerpt is probably as good as another regarding a recent backlash toward the ’social networking’ site Facebook. What appears to be a privacy policy may in fact be a default agreement to allow Facebook to exploit users’ personal information.

Facebook Privacy: How About Some Honesty?

You can say what you want about striving for granular this-that-or-the-other, but the truth is we all know what happens when you present people with a 5,830-word privacy policy and 80-gazillion intricate options: They say “screw it” and move on. Or adjust only a small handful of the now-defaulted-to-public-sharing options. And then, voila: Facebook gets to share their data with the world, opening new doors for advertising and profit.

As expressed on this blog before the author has no interest in things like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and the rest of the ‘wow’ fad sites trying to replace good old-fashioned communication between humans. That would be similar to the gripe on this blog suggesting wireless phones are anything but. Cameras, mobile internet access, bells and whistles, texting but sadly little in the way of reasonable performance for voice communications not to mention competitive pricing.

But then the public gets what the public wants from the market. Anything for any price as long as they think it’s cool. And the free market knows how to make you believe it is. Because most people make it easy for them.

How’s that for honesty?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

One of the champions of increasing quotas for H1B visas is none other than Bill Gates who has testified before Congress at least once on this topic. A common refrain when hearing commentary from American business concerning sending jobs offshore or importing foreign workers to replace Americans points to low wages as the primary incentive.

But fine folks like Bill Gates suggest that is not the case. Instead they claim an earnest desire to find the best and the brightest and often reference the stale notion of global everything. Beyond the arrogant insult toward Americans, that dog won’t hunt.

Here is one example of why American business prefers importing workers rather than hiring Americans.

On the outskirts of China’s capital Beijing is a bustling ghetto dubbed the ant colony - a vast community of young professionals forced to live in tough conditions because of a tight job market and rocketing property prices.

And what do you suppose those ‘professionals’ earn? ‘…the average wage for a university graduate is around $320 a month.’ Like you couldn’t have guessed it. Conditions may not be so wonderful in the world’s most talked about emerging economic power.

Tangjialing has become an example of the paradox of China’s fast-paced economy.

After expanding universities in the 1980’s, China now has more than six million graduates a year, but there are not enough well-paid jobs to go round.

Considered over qualified in their hometowns, the graduates flock to the big cities like Beijing and Shanghai - only to discover they must share bunk beds and rent Spartan rooms to survive. Their dreams of the urban middle-class lifestyle are put on hold.

So maybe all the hype from business leaders like Gates is exactly that…. hype. Do you suppose residents of the Ant Colony would be interested in coming to the US to work? With millions of graduates every year China is a valuable resource to tap for low cost labor. And importing that labor to the US can be a boon for the bottom line. That is, of everyone except the American who loses their job because of it.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Poor Pluto. No, not the Disney character or mythological god but the planet that science demoted from its planet status. Sort of like science being demoted from its former status as something higher than current regard given the AGW scandals. And given this report from earlier in the year it should be no surprise why interest in exploration or organizations like NASA has fallen.

Hubble sees Pluto changing color, ice sheet cover

The report states ‘newly released photos’ but that is only because astronomer Marc Buie waited to announce his ‘findings.’ It is difficult to tell from the AP account if the delay was from fear of being wrong or if it took all that time to perform the analysis. Which raises the natural questions of what do scientists get paid for and how do they perform their tasks relative to the rest of us?

Yes, it’s so unfair. Wondering why photos taken in 2002 took until 2010 to be included in an astronomer’s evaluation of them? But what troubles most people about science is for all the money spent what practical solutions does it serve? Even conceding the point that scientific research is necessary and discoveries or knowledge acquired can take many years to produce, it is just as reasonable to be a little suspicious of how things are done.

For one who has been supportive of science for much of the past as well as a former fan of NASA and other scientific endeavors frequent criticism of the scientific community cannot always be ignored. One simple example should suffice.

Given health issues are dominating the public debate these days one aspect of the topic is rarely discussed. If it is true that American healthcare is the best in the world or second to none why is it that cures for disease are seldom produced yet drugs and procedures to battle human ills litter the landscape?

Although that was largely a rhetorical question here is one answer. If you cure a disease the profit potential diminishes dramatically. It is more profitable to address the symptoms and other temporary conditions than offer a one time cure.

Humans don’t take very good care of themselves and could be to blame for much of their own health problems. The medical industry often expresses prices are great in order to recoup the cost of research. Yet much of that research comes from institutions outside the corporate door. And many other factors influence the state of healthcare.

The final question of this post is for the scientific community. So where are all the cures?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Only pointing to the bad is as unhelpful as always pointing to the good. Certainly life as well as history is a mixture of both. But the report from Sonja Pace at VOA presented below may not even correctly point to the good when describing Muslim heritage and inventions.

There is evidence to suggest much of what Muslims may claim as their own was provided to them from others and certainly much of it before the beginnings of Islam. For example, Muhammad was born in 570 AD. Algebra likely has roots at least 1000 years earlier in Babylonia. The same culture may be responsible for a number of innovations but the religion known as Islam may have nothing to do with it.

Even in the report below one person interviewed mentions ‘Indian numerals’ which would be more accurate than some other representations. Let’s not try to cover over the terrorism aspect and hate for ‘infidels’ expressed by many Muslims.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

1001 Inventions and Muslim Heritage
Sonja Pace - London

Coffee, computers and piston engines - could we imagine a world without them? These are intricate parts of every day life for most of us and the knowledge that led to them was either invented by or passed down through the ancient Muslim world. That’s the theme of an exhibit in London’s Science Museum and it’s a far cry from the view held by some that the Muslim and Western World represent a “clash of civilizations”.

It has become an intricate part of so many cultures - that cup of coffee - latte, cappuccino, espresso. It’s “Kawha” - where it was first developed as a drink - in the Arabian Peninsula, in today’s Yemen.

Professor Salim al Hassani of the University of Manchester explains the coffee beans were actually brought to Yemen, from Ethiopia. “Well of course, coffee was invented in the very early years of Islam - a guy called Khaled in Ethiopia, a young man looking after his sheep,” he said.

The sheep seemed to like the beans. So the young man took the beans to Yemen - the story goes — and the drink was developed.

And there were many other inventions or innovations passed on by the early Muslim world from the 7th Century onward. “One of them is the invention of the university. This was done in the year 850 by a young lady called Fatima al-Firhi in the city of Fez in Morocco. The first university as we know it in the world, giving degrees and so on,” he said.

And that’s the theme of this exhibit at the London Science Museum. It’s called 1001 inventions: the Muslim Heritage - a bit like “1001 Arabian Nights” the well known fairy tale.

But, the exhibit here focuses on scientific or technological inventions and advances that changed our world — from some of the earliest universities, to innovations in medicine, hygiene, pumps, and water wheels.

“Forgotten history? Not really. Ask just about anyone on the streets of Cairo or Damascus today and they’ll readily tell you about Islam’s glory days - not just its conquests but its cultural, scientific and technological innovations.”

These advances came at the height of the Islamic empire’s glory when it spread from the Middle East, across North Africa to southern Spain and beyond. “During that time, which is about 1,000 years, there were enormous contributions in science and technology, that came to us from other civilizations over another very important civilization and that is the Muslim civilization,” he said.

Muslims absorbed knowledge - from India, China, the Greeks, the ancient Egyptians - and passed it on, a bit like this replica of the elephant clock designed by the Muslim inventor, mathematician and engineer al Jazari in the early 13th Century.

Anne Marie Brennan teaches forensic biology at London’s South Bank University and is fascinated by these innovations. The clock with its giant Indian elephant and Chinese dragons is her favorite. “The elephant clock is wonderful because it is like a United Nations clock. It has all the elements of different civilizations and I like it as a scientist because it shows that science doesn’t have to be boring and sterile and plain, but it can be decorative and it can also pay homage to the cultures that bring it forward,” she said.

And then there is mathematics and algebra. In general, our numbers are known as Arabic numerals today, but it wasn’t always so. “The numbers that we have today - 1,2,3,4 - they’re called Arabic numerals, but actually the Arabs at the time called them Indian numerals,” he said.

And, the number “0″ for example - “zephir” in Arabic - was used first by early Arab scholars as an integral part of mathematical equations. And that’s part of the all-important formula of zeros and ones that was crucial to the development of computers and other new technology.

And, much like coffee, what would we do today without it?

This can be considered a follow-up to other posts here on the recent entry of Apple’s iPad to the consumer gadget offerings. While the sentiment here is that WSJ and in terms of this post, Wired Magazine are competent and capable sources of information they both fall short this time.

Previous iPad posts here have panned the product. Yup, without even having one to study or review this blog gives the enthusiastic thumbs down. Why? You could read the other posts to find out but if you’re lazy enough to see benefit or utility in the iPad the reason will be repeated in summary. Who needs another gadget to do what other gadgets already do? The only thing the iPad does is cater to the lifestyle of the couch potato. Too lazy to use a pc or mac, they just want to lay on the couch and get ‘intimate’ with their latest Apple creation.

Here’s a piece from the WSJ suggesting what the gadget debate is about relative to the iPad’s debut.

The unveiling of Apple Inc.’s iPad renews a classic gadget debate: Do consumers want purpose-built devices that do one thing and one thing well, or all-in-one wonders that try to accomplish many different tasks?

If you do not think WSJ is missing the point on this one how about Wired Magazine? If you peruse their 2008 list of tech breakthroughs the problem becomes clear. Not only was this blogger unable to locate a 2009 list yet but the one they have provides little in the way of actual breakthroughs.

1. Apple’s app store
2. Android
3. USB 3.0
4. Video-capable SLRs
5. The Memristor
6. GPS
7. Flash memory
8. Speedo LZR
9. Edible chips
10. Flexible displays

Give me a break! 30 years ago you may have been able to make the case for GPS and even Wired admits the technology is ‘very old.’ Edible chips is the only thing on the list that may qualify as ‘breakthrough’ but even that’s a stretch. Besides, would you want to use them? I think not. Sure, let’s get old and subject ourselves to more invasive procedures of questionable value and safety.

Everyone seems to be missing the point. And the sad part is it does not appear to be due to ignorance. At least not ignorance on the part of those touting the so-called advancements or what is sought. It is the almost undeniable fact that vendors have been convinced of one thing. The consuming public is easily manipulated. If you build it they will come. And pay nearly any price you ask.

Where in the world is technological advancement? It is not in the realm of consumer products. And the one category that is pointed to here is IT. That’s right. Information technology has not had a breakthrough in decades. if it’s out there no one is bringing it to market. It is likely NOT out there.

And just to borrow a marketing strategy from Microsoft for effect, try thinking about this. You’re a pc and Windows 7 was you’re idea. Not something I would brag about. So what’s new about the latest OS from MS? That’s the point.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

In his own words at his own ‘unveiling’ of the iPad Jobs calls the iPad’more intimate’ than a laptop and ‘more capable’ than an iPhone. That translates to an item targeting the ultimate couch potato whose sedentary lifestyle does not even allow for the minimal effort required to operate a pc or mac. At the same time he disses his own iPhone as even less capable than this offering.

What more do you need to understand our technology wasteland?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

When’s the last time a politician gave us what we wanted? When’s the last time your boss gave you what you wanted? To be fair, when’s the last time an employee gave you what you wanted? And finally, how often have you purchased a product or service that really impressed you in terms of utility, overall value and price or affordability?

In the ‘tech’ world there never seems to be a shortage of those willing to buy whatever is offered. Neither does there seem to be a lack of those willing to applaud the debut of each new item touted by vendors like Microsoft and Apple. This time a mild rant is presented on Apple’s latest ‘thing.’ The iPad has the same naming convention allowing a previous Apple bash on this blog indicating the ‘i’ in iPhone is for idiot.

The same applies for the iPad. Without benefit of manufactured memory this blogger’s own recalls a brief visit to Apple dot com to obtain an official press release. Would have dealt with images but Apple’s paranoia made that option excessively annoying as well. So the use of an earlier technology that has remarkable similarities to the iPad is the substitute.

Apple dot com listed a price of $499 for the iPad versus those near $700 at various sources around the net. The 500 dollar price may have been a bare bones version. And there were availability questions which caused some laughter. More laughter was generated by the details about what the fine device can do, or not. These debuts are so silly and the response to them equally bizarre it is all one can do to remain silent observing such nonsense.

Beyond the fact that this is another ‘device’ what the hell is so different about this one from all the others over decades? Oh sure, we’ve seen dial up move to broadband like they couldn’t have done that sooner. Oh my, we have wireless, sort of. The only reason there has been massive increases in memory and storage is to accommodate no technical advancements nor real reasons to purchase additional or replacement devices. Tech is stagnant.

Apple you are no more impressive than that other outfit…. Microsoft. Although you produce funnier advertisements. Speaking of humor, here’s someone else’s reaction to the news.

Tabula Rasa: Apple’s Press Release, Before the Editing
Genius Knows No Bounds
By Peter Jeffrey

For Immediate Release. (Apple employees: Thanks for keeping it under wraps. You may reclaim your first-born sons before the close of business Friday.)

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 27 — Apple Inc. announced today a revolutionary new tablet computer offering live HDTV, 3D movie downloads, 4G broadband Internet access from anywhere on Earth or low orbit, interactive multilingual color e-books, e-newspapers, e-magazines, an e-sense of purpose in life and e-anything else we have to do to blast our “competitors” back to the Sprocket Age.

And here’s a link to the Apple iPad press release, really.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

In a recent post (rant) published on this blog the target was telecom and electronics in general and specifically wireless communications e.g., cell phones and the lack of attention paid to voice service. Just as vendors ignore recent revelations of hacking encryption techniques that expose vulnerabilities customer service has been largely ignored with Google’s launch of Nexus One as the excerpt and link below indicate. But also in the previous rant on this blog the notion that fools rush in explains why the lack of due diligence by those purchasing the latest and greatest allows vendors to be so arrogant.

Customers who have already bought the Nexus One—especially an unlocked one at full price for $529—feel they should be able to call a customer support line instead of waiting on Google to respond via e-mail, whenever that may be. Google has said that it may take days to answer inquiries online, but that’s not fast enough for dissatisfied customers.

Having a small percentage of the consuming public display the gotta have it mentality in years past served the rest of us well. It was like sending up a test balloon to see if new technology delivered. But over time that small group has become large contributing to the proliferation of poor products and services.

In spite of all that Nexus One has going for it, not everything is perfect. As of this writing, there are no accessories, yet. Even though the phone supports what seems to be very robust car and home docks, there are no signs of them being sold. There’s nary a shipping screen cover or silicone case, if such things are important to you. All you have is the micro USB connector and a 3.5mm headphone jack. And for the money, Google could definitely have included a much bigger microSD card than 4GB. Even the Droid came with a 16GB card

Just a day apart the articles referenced above from Ars Technica act like good cop, bad cop. Pan the customer service and then extoll the virtues of Nexus One with a muted discussion of its shortcomings. For the price, none of those problems should exist. But again, since fools rush in, there is no pressure for vendors to offer value for the money.

News Analysis: Google is one of the most respected and admired brands in the computer industry. But glaring problems with the early stages of the Nexus One smartphone rollout betray a lack of careful planning as well as a lack of experience in handling the introduction of a major new mobile hardware product.

The appraisal by Eweek is not as soft as Ars Technica. And it includes a ten point list suggesting how this will hurt Google. Too bad it is not likely to alter the habits of the gotta have it folks that allow this situation to exist in the first place.

Google’s Nexus One phone may have been one of the most anticipated devices of the last few weeks. But since the smartphone’s launch last Tuesday, it has left a string of unhappy customers in its wake.

Nexus One has been plagued by consumer complaints including spotty 3G connectivity, a high early termination fee, poor customer support from Google and problems with the touchscreen.

The review from Wired is on point as well. And it is a reminder about this blog’s continuous and primary complaint about wireless voice services. They take a back seat to all other features offered by cell phone vendors. We all get geeky from time to time but the fact remains a cell phone is exactly that. A cell phone first where voice communication should be the first priority. And ti should not cost hundreds of dollars to get one.

Can’t exit this post without a comment on the evil tech empire to compare and contrast. The Consumer Electronics Show was held again this year and apparently the current Darth Vader of IT, Steve Ballmer picked up where Bill Gates left off.

When Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took the stage at the Consumer Electronics Show Jan. 6, the tech world was expecting something major.

Just about every announcement Ballmer made during his keynote involved relatively minor product upgrades.

The lemmings still flock to Microsoft. And in fairness to MS, you can now find them flocking to Google and most other vendors as well. Will it ever stop?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Is this going to be one of those stories that turns out to be a mistaken report or another embarrassing and dangerous episode with US national security? The sole excerpt presented here from the AP report linked below is troubling. ‘ No update late Sunday night on the man who walked through the exit.’ Hence the earlier question on whether this is a mistaken report or we all have something more to worry about on aviation security.

Flights Grounded at Newark Airport
Officials: Flights grounded at US airport after man goes through exit door to bypass security
By KIM GAMEL Associated Press Writer
January 4, 2010 (AP)
The Associated Press

A spokesman said the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is assisting with the possible security breach, and Davis had no update late Sunday night on the man who walked through the exit.

TSA Statement on New Security Measures for International Flights to the U.S.
News & Happenings
January 3, 2010

Today, the Transportation Security Administration issued new security directives to all United States and international air carriers with inbound flights to the U.S. effective January 4, 2010.

The new directive includes long-term, sustainable security measures developed in consultation with law enforcement officials and our domestic and international partners.

Because effective aviation security must begin beyond our borders, and as a result of extraordinary cooperation from our global aviation partners, TSA is mandating that every individual flying into the U.S. from anywhere in the world traveling from or through nations that are state sponsors of terrorism or other countries of interest will be required to go through enhanced screening. The directive also increases the use of enhanced screening technologies and mandates threat-based and random screening for passengers on U.S. bound international flights.

The TSA statement above seemed to be the only related information available at the TSA’s website after viewing the initial item from AP via ABC.

Maybe this is good news. If US national security remains a major topic in the media perhaps needed corrections will follow. But few are probably counting on it. As an example of what is meant by that is former security chief Michael Chertoff and former CIA chief Hayden were on Meet the Press Sunday. David Gregory, the host, offered the disclaimer that Chertoff is tied to a company offering screening technology to the federal government. During the program, all three, Obama’s deputy national security adviser John Brennan, Michael Chertoff and Michael Hayden either praised Napolitano in light of security failures or expressed no concern about her handling of such matters.

Gee, could this be another case of revolving doors, business as usual in our nation’s capitol and all players responding based on their personal agendas? Another good reason to read Michelle Malkin’s book, Culture of Corruption. No, this blog nor the author of this post are receiving anything for expressing this sentiment. As a public service from this concerned citizen the link to Malkin’s book is in this blog’s sidebar along with other important titles. If you haven’t already you would do well to read them. Certainly they are not the only books out there but are the ones this blog is currently promoting, again, with no money or other perks involved. Read.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

related:

DHS Plans to Catch Only One in Four Travelers Committing ‘Major’ Criminal Violations While Entering U.S. on International Fights in 2010
Monday, January 04, 2010
By Terence P. Jeffrey, Editor-in-Chief

(CNSNews.com) - Documents produced by the Department of Homeland Security indicate that in fiscal 2010 the department is planning to catch only 26 percent of travelers committing major criminal violations while seeking to enter the United States through international airports.

click to read the rest….

Another reason for a Blog @ MoreWhat.com rant on telecom was exposed launched during the week. Google may have had an idea but it seems it has been reduced to a candidate for loser Letterman’s stupid human tricks segment. How many stupid humans will get tricked by this scheme? Hey folks, hurry out an buy a $530 cellphone or rope yourself into a T-Mobile version with contract for $180. For $80 per month you get 500 minutes with unlimited texting and web. That’s less than 17 minutes of voice phone time on average per day. And this is the latest offering for a phone?

Google’s Nexus One Pricing Details and Terms of Sale Leaked
Brennon Slattery, PC World

A day after Google confirmed its Android media event next week pricing details and the terms of sale were leaked for its highly anticipated Nexus One smartphone. Gizmodo broke the story with Nexus One site screenshots that show the phone on sale for two prices: a subsidized T-Mobile edition for $180 or an unsubsidized version for $530.

No one should really have to explain what’s wrong with this or the following story.

GSM is the most popular protocol for cellphone telephony on the planet, with billions of users worldwide. But the standard encryption procedure used by most GSM carriers is only 64-bit, and academic researchers had spotted flaws in it starting over a decade ago. Now, in an effort to get carriers to take security seriously, a researcher is publicizing a brute-force attack on the encryption that he expects will be combined with work on the GSM frequency selection algorithm to create a cheap and easy method for eavesdropping on cellular calls. Despite initial progress on the effort, the cellular industry remains unimpressed.

(There were subsequent reports about more flaws being exposed along with how to do it while this post was being prepared to be published.)

GSM, Global System for Mobile communications, is the dominant protocol. Why? Most likely because it suits the purposes of telecom companies and as is the usual case the consuming public rarely if ever applies due diligence to buying decisions. So what you say?

From electronics in general to information technology and gadgetware the consuming public allows themselves to fall victim to the gotta have it mentality. Vendors do a great job of manipulating the release of the latest and greatest. The typical consumer invests in a product or service and at planned intervals the vendors introduce subsequent versions that often diminish the value of the previous offering. Just a redux of the old planned obsolescence and most continue to play along.

The report above is a classic example. Previous posts published on this blog on the topic of telecom and/or IT regularly point this out. Rather than focus on the primary purpose of a product or service and delivering superior performance in that regard, vendors hawk the bells and whistles that distract from failure to provide real value for the consumer’s money.

Gotta love the wireless industry response to the report featured here. Ya, so what? Some have migrated to 128 bit encryption but that is not the point. Although the sophistication required to crack 128 bit surely passes 64 bit by a long shot how long will it be until 128 is cracked? Would proactive measures avoid such vulnerabilities?

This minor rant fits nicely into comparable current events and a broader concern. The latest exposure of US national security vulnerabilities came shortly after a TSA or DHS announcement of how wonderful the system is working. That was followed by DHS princess Napolitano suggesting the system worked in spite of a near tragic terrorist attack. And like the ho=hum response of the telecom industry to cracking encryption Napolitano, et al had an equally ho-hum response on what to do about flawed national security.

In business, government, politics and the public mindset we really need to address critical issues in a responsible manner. There are certainly those acting responsibly on this planet but those who are not are becoming commonplace. Screwing the public to earn a profit is not what free markets are about. Lofty rhetoric concealing public sector misdeeds is not good governance. And unfortunately, public response to such conditions is woefully inadequate. Most often tragedy strikes before the public responds and its effect is short-lived.

As an update to this post just before publishing, a member of the Google organization, Matt Dunne, is running for governor in Vermont. Does anyone else see where this is going?

No shortage of potential New Year’s resolutions in this post. But then like most years the chance for responsible action on critical issues will go the way of most New Year’s resolutions.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

The following is part of Michael Mann’s attempt to convince you the evidence of the greatest scandal in recent science history does not exist.  Just like he tries to tell you the evidence against AGW does not exist.  In his world the truth is what you want it to be.

“There is nothing in the stolen material which indicates that peer-reviewed publications by CRU, and others, on the nature of global warming and related climate change are not of the highest-quality of scientific investigation and interpretation.”

They’ve turned “something innocent into something nefarious,” Mann added.

Now there’s some arrogance.  Not only does Michael Mann suggest the public is stupid but they cannot read.  But if you lie to the public about a political agenda using fake science how much of a leap is it to simply lie when you get caught?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Not that all environmentally related efforts on the planet should cease given Climategate but you gotta laugh at the timing. Unless the hacker(s) who exposed the AGW freaks for what they are eludes authorities successfully and forever (he/she/they) will not be laughing at things related to timing or time. Maybe the powers that be will at some point realize what a gift this hack was and give the perp a pass. Right.

As a sidenote, guess the WH had to feature this event since President Obama’s Asia trip is being ‘touted’ as a major bust. At least he’s consistent.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

PM-Obama: The next step

India, US Agree on Climate Change

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have launched what the White House is calling a “green partnership.”

Vidushi Sinha | Washington, DC
25 November 2009

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have launched what the White House is calling a green partnership, affirming the countries’ commitment to combating climate change and ensuring energy security and clean energy.

India and the United States have agreed on a Memorandum of Understanding to increase cooperation on energy security, clean energy, and climate change.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on a state visit to Washington, said both countries will work together to make the environment cleaner.

“We welcome the president’s commitment to a major program for promotion of renewable energy, and I drew his attention to India’s own ambitious national action plan on climate change which has eight national missions covering both mitigation and adaptation,” Mr. Singh said.

The two leaders said their countries are committed to building a clean energy economy that will drive investment, job creation, and economic growth.

Ron Somers is president of the US-India Business Council. He says India and the United States will soon be close partners in promoting green technology.

“We will be focusing on new collaborations that are going to become platform not only for India to fight global warming or United States to fight global warming but a platform that we together develop to provide technologies for the world. So I see tremendous opportunities coming,” Somers said. “It’s all about low carbon emitting technology.”

But India and China have rejected mandated cuts in carbon emissions. Both countries say rich, developed nations should lead the way in cutting greenhouse gases.

They argue that their economic growth would be stunted if there were mandated cuts.

The US and India have agreed that the Copenhagen climate conference, in early December, should involve targets for emission cuts for developed countries but only mitigation actions — such as improving energy efficiency — for developing countries.

Recently, India announced it would produce 20 Gigawatts of solar power by 2022.

Bo Kong, directs the Global Energy and Climate Initiative at Johns Hopkins University. He says that target is impossible for India.

“Within such a short time frame - we are talking about building about 20 - 20 gigawatts of power plants which translates into at least over 10,000 solar power plants between 2009 to 2020 - in less than 10 years - so I am very suspicious,” Kong said.

Experts say India can only make inroads into green technology if it has financial and technological support from rich countries.

Prime Minister Singh and President Obama agreed to support public and private intiatives that will invest in clean energy projects in India.