Saturday, September 30, 2000

CNN: Legalized e-signatures bring convenience, risk -- The new federal e-signature law, designed to expedite electronic commerce, takes effect Sunday. However, there are questions about the definition of legal signatures, as well as flaws in the technology. "[E-signatures] can be obtained through secured processes, like secret passwords or digital fingerprints, as well as unsecured ones, such as faxed signatures or clicking an acceptance button on a Web page." While some computer security experts downplay the risk of fraud, there is the potential for creating virtual signature rubber-stamps. No thanks.

AP: Priest attacks Illinois abortion clinic -- "A Catholic priest smashed his car into an abortion clinic Saturday morning, n chopped at the building with an ax until the owner fired two shotgun blasts to stop him, police said." The Diocese of Rockford issued a statement which said, in part, "While it is the policy of this diocese not to comment on the specifics of legal matters, it has never been nor is it the policy or practice of the Roman Catholic Church to condone, approve or promote violence in any form to achieve a desired end." Recalling the Crusades and the Inquisition, the Diocese might consider rewording their statement.

In more pleasant contrast to the above story, "A Philadelphia heiress who exchanged her pearls for a nun's rosary beads becomes a saint on Sunday, amid hopes that her work among poor blacks and American Indians will inspire Americans to confront the inequities of modern U.S. society." [Reuters]

"Zero tolerance" gone awry

A Georgia sixth-grader's suspension has been lifted after she came to school with a Tweety bird wallet with an attached chain -- deemed a "weapon" in the school's zero-tolerance policy. The girl's suspension caused an uproar in the community, but school officials said that it was better to err on the safe side in questionable situations. The guidelines are being re-written.

I understand the schools are in a difficult situation. Kids do bring weapons (real ones) and drugs to school. I'm reminded of a friend's account of his son having been sent home from school for having one (that's one) Tylenol in his possession to help out with mouth pain after having his braces tightened by the orthodontist.

AP: Ruby Ridge shooting reconsidered -- "A federal appeals court will reconsider its decision that an FBI sharpshooter cannot be prosecuted for manslaughter in the shooting death of white separatist Randy Weaver's wife during a 1992 standoff."

Speaking of "zero tolerance," Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson added another gem to his list of extremely intelligent and thoughtful statements yesterday, declaring that the FDA's approval of RU486 (the "abortion pill") was a ploy to weaken the Bush campaign. The FDA's timing is a little odd, however, and the subject of abortion and RU486 is something that Bush would rather not talk about.

Friday, September 29, 2000

Update: More on the Gore vs. Bush energy issue -- Bush insists that we can explore for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge without causing any permanent damage. Gore disagrees vehemently. The point is, opening up ANWR is only a temporary fix, just as is tapping our domestic oil reserves (which Bush has blasted Gore/Clinton for).

Bush also issued an ominous reminder to small Arab nations that it may be their oil, but it is the U.S. who will defend them.

Gore noted, "We don't have to build our lives around a fuel source that is distant, uncertain and too easily manipulated." He forgot to mention "finite." There is only so much oil. Then it's gone. Period.

From the Racist Russet Dept.

We have indeed gone over the edge in our zeal to be "politically correct."

Mr. Potato Head statue said racist -- "A 6-foot Mr. Potato Head statue, one of dozens dotting Rhode Island as part of a tourism campaign, will be taken down because of complaints that the grinning, brown-skinned figure appeared racist.... East Providence affirmative action officer Onna Moniz-John said she thought the statue resembled the antique figurines she collects that portray blacks as buffoons, such as Little Black Sambo." [AP]

Old proverb: You see what you're looking for.

Bush: Give us more oil!

Reuters: Bush unveils $7.1 billion energy program -- The real attention-grabber here is the plan to open up 1.5 million acres of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil exploration, although fleeting mention is made of developing alternative energy sources (haven't we been talking about that for twenty or thirty years?). Taking a swipe at Gore, Bush declared, "My opponent believes the consumption of energy is the problem and must be discouraged by taxes and regulations." Well, duh ... energy consumption is the problem, besides getting screwed by the oil companies.

Bush also blamed high energy prices on Clinton's failure to convince OPEC to pump more oil. (Yes, it's our oil, and we have to keep those gas-guzzling status-symbol SUV's on the road, even though we have virtually the lowest gasoline prices in the world.)

Apple's stock dropped 46%, dragging down other PC stocks with it. Ouch.

Thursday, September 28, 2000

Newsbytes: Wackiest web site censorship incidents awarded -- The winning entry involved a high school student who was unable to access his school's web site from a computer in the school library because the filtering software objected to the word "high" (as in drugs). Good grief!

Paul Allen is leaving Microsoft's board but will stay on as a strategy advisor.

Killer vaccine? -- A Lansing, Michigan, medical examiner has caused an uproar by stating that the death of a biotech company employee (contracted to manufacture Anthrax vaccine for the military) died as a result of being vaccinated for the disease. The deceased did not die from anthrax but may have succumbed to a systemic inflammatory reaction from the vaccine. Adding to the confusion, the death certificate lists cause of death as ventricul arrhythmia and makes no reference to other findings. The Pentagon is investigating.

CNN: Supreme Court to decide if drug checkpoints violate the Fourth Amendment

Salon: Macho anthroplogy -- "Did scientists start a deadly epidemic to prove that humanity is innately violent -- or are they victims of a politically correct smear campaign?"

Reuters: Elian's Miama relatives suing Reno over raid

Wednesday, September 27, 2000

The U.S. Justice department has selected a team from the Illinois Institute of Technology Research Institute and the affiliated Chicago-Kent College of Law to review the FBI's controversial 'Carnivore' e-mail surveillance system. A report is expected by year-end whether the system does or does not violate privacy rights.

The General Accounting Office (GAO) has come down hard again on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), reporting that the FAA's computer systems are not secure against hacker attacks. The FAA was criticized for failing to follow through on its written security guidelines, including background checks and physical security, as well as the insecure computer systems.

Salon: L.A. Confidential -- "The meeting that could have prevented the Los Angeles Police Department's blockbuster Rampart scandal took place in Chief Bernard Parks' office at the department's Parker Center headquarters in the second week of September 1998."

AP: Hollywood execs admit bad judgment in marketing violent films to children as young as nine years old.

Bring back trepanation! -- A hole in your head might make you feel better, according to a handful of proponents of the ancient procedure.

Tuesday, September 26, 2000

On the local front...

Albuquerque Journal: Gas bills about to double -- Natural gas bills are expected to double this winter, due to increased demand and low supply. Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) is preparing an aggressive advertising campaign to help customers psychologically prepare for the shock of their upcoming gas bills. Ironically, PNM will seek to recover the estimated $200,000 cost of the ad campaign by passing it along to its customers.

Drilling a new well will become more difficult due to new state rules imposed by State Engineer Tom Turney. Restrictions apply roughly from Cochiti to northeast Socorro County. At this time, the largest impact is expected to affect the Northeast Heights section of Albuquerque. Large water consumers (such as Intel) will no longer be able to pump ground water until they have bought the necessary water rights.

Reuters: US high court to decide thermal imaging drug case -- "The U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites) said on Tuesday it would decide whether thermal imaging to record the amount of heat emanating from a house, a police practice to help detect illegal drugs, represents a search covered by constitutional privacy protections." An appeals court had earlier ruled that "activities inside a residence were not protected from outside, non-intrusive government observation, and the use of technology to enhance such observation does not constitute a search unless 'intimate details' had been revealed." However, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court had ruled in 1999 that such measures violated constitutional privacy rights.

Ritalin vs. Good Parenting

Following yesterday's article at Salon, "Just Say Yes to Ritalin!", I received a thoughtful message from a friend who is a secondary-school teacher. He expresses some concern over mindless mandating of Ritalin for kids who may suffer from ADHD. However, he points out:

"Missing here is what responsibility that the parents must take, daily, to ensure that their child arrives at school ready to learn. In most of these cases the parents are relieved to be free of the brat for seven hours. Why is it the school's responsibility to put up with kids like this?...

"Most [parents] are clueless as to why the kid is like this, and while we can talk about brain chemical malfunctions that are corrected by the drugs, we are never allowed to talk about the home situation of these kids, which studies have shown have a common thread. Behaviorists refer to it as an 'undifferentiated environment,' that is, the kids never had rules and structure laid down from an early age with clear and immediate consequences for transgressions. What is also interesting about these kids is that most (not all, we still have some that are truly ADD and ADHD) can sit in front of a computer game or a TV for hours. But to have to pay attention in class for 10 minutes is beyond their control?"