Tag: privacy

Open letter to #OU

Open letter to OU

Does Racism exists?
Is it more rampant today than it was in 1968?
Should the folks at the OU fraternity be brought up on charges for their chant?
Should their fraternity have been demolished?
How do we battle Racism?

One would have to have been in a coma for the last 50 years, or brain dead, to believe that racism is not alive and well in this country; as well as around the world.

The racist song or chant repeated by the members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity that has sparked such a furor, “and debate” across the country is the following:

Song to the tune of: “If You Are Happy and You Know It”

There will never be a N***** in SAE

There will never be a N***** in SAE

You can hang them from a tree, but he can never sign with me

There will never be a N***** in SAE

McCarthyism lives on.

Not too many years ago I would venture a guess that this song or others like it had been chanted or sung by many others before them. What makes this time different? Why do I say that?

This is a very old tune, a very very old tune that I would guess has been sung by many many people in this fraternity, and possibly others. If this were a recent creation it most likely would have been done in rap music style which of course the oxymoron would have been priceless!

Today we have people looking for their 15 minutes of fame. Today each and every person that carries a cell phone can be a photo journalist or video journalist with a waiting a ready audience to give them their reward, “views!”

When a fight breaks out and some person is getting pummeled by more than one person, do we step in and stop it? No, we record it and post it, to see how many hits we can get with it!

Worse than that, in this 24 hour news cycle we have the cable media finding these “nuggets” and broadcasting them to further promote the “human condition.” While building their ratings!

Yes, Racism exists and it should be no secret that we find anyone that is different from us a candidate for some sort of bias. If there was an all-white or all-black school, those in the school would find someone that acted differently from them, and mock them or bully them, because that is what we do. Our human nature is to build ourselves up, at the expense of others.

The extreme racism that exist within the Black Panthers; Americans and others only are aware of it because it makes for ratings to put someone spewing hate like that in the national spot light!

Racism is really hate. It is easy to hate, much easier to hate than to like or heaven forbid Love; as we are instructed to do by our creator. Since we are taking God out of everything, and everywhere, it is no surprise that the human condition it deteriorating.

Had there been no easy way for that person who took that video in the fraternity to take the video and then gain the national spot light, we never would have heard of this. It would have come and gone, as it probably has for years, and nothing ever would have been said.

Here is the rub, even though what they did and said was abhorrent; I would argue that they have a right to say and do it.

Just like the advocate for the Black Panthers can stand on a street corner and proclaim to the world that “he hates white people, he hates crackers! He wishes every Cracker was dead! The old, the young, the men and women and even their babies! He wishes their cracker babies were dead!” Spittle and foam spew out of this person’s mouth as he screams to the eager cameras recording his every utterance, like he was some sort of messenger from some place important!

He too has a right to say what he says. We can flip the channel or turn off the damned idiot box, but he has that right!

If we dissolve Sigma Alpha Epsilon for what they did and or said or we kick them all off campus, we are not teaching anyone anything other than you really don’t have freedom of speech, if you are white!

What if I wanted to rent that building to put a place of worship and study for Christians, or Jews, or pick a religion? What if that too was considered hate speech because now we can obviously pick and choose what is ok to say, and what is not.

You could argue that what those members said was horrible but, what if others find Christianity distasteful?

I for one think that the University missed the mark. That should have, and could have been used as a teaching moment, instead they invoked the Zero Tolerance policy which means zero thinking! They took the path to cover their ass, instead of using it as a way to teach future generations around the globe how to deal with racism; at its roots!

They picked the ostrich approach which people have picked for generations. How is that working for you? You would think that we are capable of learning. One would think that college folk would be smarter than the rest of us poor peons, and be able to think outside the box!

Had I been asked, I would have immediately reversed that decision and put their letters back on that building. I would then use this as a way to teach, and I would apply the opposite of hate while I did it. The color of skin is an easy way to delineate between us, and make some an easy target for hate. Some make it easy to make stereotypical snap decisions about a group of people, by the actions of a few.

I read in the news recently that in the middle of a basketball game, the home team stopped the game in the middle of play, walked off the court and came to the aid of one of their cheerleaders! You see, some people were bullying this cheerleader and they “the team” were having none of it! This Cheerleader has Down syndrome and she is one of their own! Someone is teaching something good there. Someone is doing right by these kids!

Those people in that fraternity are “one of their own,” and even though their condition cannot be cured or controlled by medicines, their condition could be changed and needs addressing. If my hunch is correct, that chant is as old as the school; and most probably represents a bigotry of a time gone by but, like many traditions has hung on because no one had the integrity to challenge it.

Those people are part of a culture and that culture needs help, just like the folks in Ferguson need to wise up and read the tea leaves.

The guy was guilty of charging a cop, while trying to take his gun! You don’t do that and expect a good outcome! Even the overly biased DOJ had to admit that Darren Wilson was correct in his actions!

The hate in Ferguson needs to be dismantled, and if external agitators are found to be there, they need to be encouraged to leave. Racism is a cancer that grows in the heart and hate is it accomplice. Unlike cancer however; you cannot simply cut it out. Education and a lot less of the people who foment racism for a living will be needed to heal these wounds. Add to this some time, and lack of the public spotlight on those craving attention will go a long way towards healing this nation after these last few years of torment.

As for any gathering anywhere, know that you could be recorded. There is in fact no safe haven for your privacy in this world today. Orwell had it right, it just took a little longer.

Technology has made privacy just about a thing of the past.

Each and every street corner has some sort of camera. While I don’t want to sound like an alarmist or conspiracy nut, your own phone, tablet or computer could be capturing your activities and sending them to some huge data facility used to store terabytes of terabytes of data!

Full disclosure: I am a writer of Sci-Fi so… Orwell is my kind or person.

While being mindful of the fact that your privacy has limits, doing the right thing is doing it with the knowledge that nobody is seeing you do it.

-Best to you and those that you care about!

Www.guard-protect.com

Www.Timedok.com

#Drones or #UAV & right to #privacy! @johnmccaa @thewellsreport Look at the blog… follow the link.

Drones or UAV & Right to Privacy!

This is a story that needs telling, so kids with expensive toys do not get into trouble.

After arriving home, getting out of my car I heard a sound that I could not identify. At first, I thought it some sort of gas leak until the sound changed pitch abruptly, causing me to search the sky.

Hovering over my fenced back yard at about 20 to 30 feet was some sort of UAV, not a quad copter, more propellers.

As a Geek, I appreciate technology so my first thought was “wow,” that is somewhat cool! As I watched, the craft made a turn to another’s backyard, and than another, and then it took off to the north.

What was the operator doing hovering this thing over peoples back yards?

Posting about this on social media, one of my close friends noted that she had one over her back yard that day!

This uav was just released for sale and talked about at the electronic convention in Las Vegas. One wears it like a bracelet and if they want to take a selfie from the air; one removes it, activates it and tosses it into the air. Control of it is with the phone and it has a camera that is good enough to take a quality picture or video.

Recently the news reported one of these things crashed on the Mexican Border loaded down with drugs. Later we learned that they have been using them to get contraband into prisons. If I were a bad guy, I can think of all sorts of things that could be done, looking through windows for unclothed people would be at the bottom of the list!

View of New York From UAV

When I hear that the government had them that had the technology to peer into your open window from a mile away and count your freckles, I was concerned. Floating in the pool last summer I saw one like in the picture below flying at altitude going from east to west; the silhouette was unmistakable. There was no noise and had I not been looking up, I never would have noticed it.

This flew over my house one summer day, going straight over DFW! I was not aware that it was legal to fly these things in US air space.

What are the laws regarding Unmanned Aerial Vehicles?

Do we have the right to privacy?

A newly released document reports a type of radar that allows someone to stand outside your house and know if you are home and where in the house you are. I think something like this in wartime might be ok but, for anyone who can plop down $6000 to buy and use; this is another story.

Above you see a camera in a fake smoke detector, to the right is just picture of different cameras that one might see.

For anyone to abridge your right to privacy without warrant should be illegal! That not only goes for electronic tapping of your communication but most certainly, for invading your private space with electronic surveillance techniques whether it be radar, covert eaves dropping measures and even a drone of any sort. Too many good men and women died to give us freedom from many things and that includes an out of control government! Technology is great but anything that violates someone; the user of such needs to be held accountable!

Regarding the drones over the backyards, I am guessing that kids got them for Christmas, and did the first thing that came into their head, look in their neighbors fenced in yards and windows.

Allow me to be the first to put you on notice, this is an illegal activity and should it happen to anyone else, I would imagine a well placed stream of water from a garden hose would not do it any good, and may even render it inoperable. When the perpetrator comes to fuss and or collect their property, you can then take them to task. I just wonder what the law would say if this person came home with a busted nose, or pair of blackened eyes.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/09/25/state-legislation-governing-private-drone-use/

I am not sure what agency controls such things; as these fly too low for the FAA to get involved. I think the local police would be your best bet, as this is nothing more than being a peeping tom.

Video the offence and take em to court.

Attn: John and David! This story really needs to hit the media, as it is really a matter of not knowing what they are doing is illegal. They need to take them out of the neighborhood to fly them. Since they have a good quality camera, what they capture could be illegal as taking pictures or video of people without their permission is in itself a crime; especially if you are invading their privacy in the process.

I have no idea what people will do with this technology but we really need to be on top of it to protect your rights.

We sacrifice enough of our privacy every day just to go to work. Think about this, every intersection that you traverse has cameras that have the capability to capture your image. They can also contain bio metric software so your unique personage can be tracked, patterns established and documented. Your phone that you love so much “can be used” as a tracking device; to know exactly where you are, down to within a few feet of resolution. The hell of that is that you pay for it!

How much privacy do we have to sacrifice?

A trip through the airport and, well this is what you give up for the privilege of flying. A recent TSA whistle blower talked about how everyone wanted the job of the room where they view such pictures. While there they laughed at peoples private parts. Do you feel safe? Why is it that technology always seems to end up being used for perverse task or a weapon of some kind. I can just imagine some twisted mind when encountering a new technology, “how could I use this as a weapon?” Christians would say it is because we are a fallen people.

In public areas, the odds are good that security cameras are watching you and recording you. At work, the odds are good that cameras are watching you. Can your webcam be remotely activated, how about your own cameras for your own security system. Recently we heard of a Russian web site where thousands of cameras were hacked and their contents displayed for the Russians to laugh at, while watching whatever is going on in front of them.

http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/news/2382511/russians-hacking-into-webcams-showing-live-footage-from-uk-offices-shops-and-baby-monitors

If you buy these things, make certain that you change all of the default usernames and passwords!

While this guy saw the light, there will be others that do not…

A few years ago a school gave out laptops for kids to take home. Some whistle blower let it be known that the cameras in the computers were being remotely turned on and people were watching children in their bedrooms or wherever the laptops happen to be. Are we inherently evil?

Cameras are now so small that they are in pens, clocks, other everyday devices and you simply have to act as if someone is either watching you or recording you when you are out in public. But what about your home?

It is not my purpose to instigate paranoia. Most people are not interesting enough to be spied on in the first place but, Orwell was on to something. Take steps to make sure that your gadgets are secure and if you own and fly UAV’s, know that I will take steps to keep my private life private. This blog is one way that I am doing that by making this issue known to many who simply don’t pay attention to such things. It is my hope that my media contacts will find this interesting enough to do a story about.

-Best to you and those that you care about!

Please feel free to “re-blog” as you see fit. The more people that know about this the better off we all are.

http://www.TimeDok.com

Vote!

This time of year is rife with ads on TV and Radio telling you how awful the other guy is.

Here is the truth about those ads; for the most part they are all lies. There may be a smidgen of truth in them but for the most part they are complete fabrications designed to either get you to vote for their person, or to become so disgusted with the “process” that you simply stay home.

It is an easy decision to stay home, no lines, not having to think about who is really the best, or care. Many will take that route and than bitch about the outcome. When it turns into a decision between the “lesser of two evils” they have done their job!

Someone released a plea from a former state representative to vote for their democratic candidate, or simply stay home. This is ludicrous, and anyone asking you not to vote should throw a “red flag;” telling you that they are spewing utter BS!

It is your civic duty to vote! Just like Jury Duty is a civic duty, so it voting. Not only is voting a civic duty, it is a privilege that many died for you to have.

When folks are desperate they run horrible ads slamming the other guy.

While I would really like to see a debate or political discussion, where each side offered solutions and not simply bad mouthed the other guy; I don’t think it will happen.

Why, because they are politicians and for the most part don’t really give a damned about your problems. They may tell you that they do, but they don’t. They may start out by caring about your problems but once they start selling their soul to get money for the election, they only keep their eye on the prize, power!

Politics is all about controlling the narrative. The Press Secretary Josh Earnest and others are spin doctors whose sole job is to control the narrative. The truth never enters into the equation, unless of course it serves the agenda at hand. These folks are professional liars. Sound Jaded? Not really, been around long enough to realize that this is what it is about. This is the “process,” that Obama said sometime “gets messy.”

Ron Klain is the new Ebola CZAR. One would think that he would be a medical guru! Nope, not at all. He knows nothing about medical things, he is a political strategist and is there to “control the narrative.” His sole job is to make sure that anyone from the white house or under this administration that talks about Ebola only says things that are approved “spun” by him, to fit an agenda. The agenda may be as benign as to control panic, or as malevolent to buck common sense and keep the flights coming and going from Ebola ravaged countries. Either way you can not believe anything that this administration says about this as it has proven time and time again that they don’t have your best interest at heart! The last argument made against stopping the flights was that stopping the flights might damage these third world economies, as they are fragile!

I don’t know how or if Ebola will fit into this 2014 vote but it might. Anyone that says we should not have commercial flights going to or from those places should be in the “vote for” category.

So, when you vote consider this, we have their record to look at, and that is what you should be thinking about when you step into the booth. Vote on their record, their character, and if they represent what you believe.

Obama should never have won. Had people not been so elated about voting in a Black Man they might have looked at his record better. The narrative of Obama was scrubbed, sealed and spun away! He was distanced from his former radical pastor who married them, his affiliation with Bill Ayers (the self proclaimed terrorist and his abysmal voting record of his short time in the senate, “present.” His school records were even sealed! Someone had been grooming him for this and it would really be nice to know who he really answers to as it is not the people. Who is the puppet master?

Move-ON.org is up to its tricks again using George Soros’s money to scare the undecided and independents to vote for liberal candidates.

The last 6 years is an example of liberal thinking; do you want more of that? While Obama is not on the ticket, all of his policies are!

There is no war on women, it is a complete fabrication. It is easy to sell because they appeal to what, emotions! Women and men think differently and most women that I know start a conversation with “I feel..,” well men start it with “logically…” I can manipulate women much easier than men, and the spin doctors know how to do this all too well! Of course this is not all women but the voting block as a whole is enough. Simply tell them that men want to control their ovaries and they will vote for the devil. If you watched the DNC when Ms Fluke got up and gave her contrived speech, the audience was comprised of mostly women who appeared hypnotized or somnambulistic. Some women voted for Obama because he is good looking…according to polls.

Before you write me and call me a sexist, or a misogynist, take a breath and read everything. I am most certainly non-of-those things! I have a huge respect for diversity, intelligence and anyone that thinks outside the box even just a little. I have studied too many of these topics and I know how this stuff works. Politicians spin the facts in such a way to manipulate everyone! Why else can you be anti Gay marriage in one location, and pro-gay marriage in another? Same person, same political affiliations just a different message for a different group. The more you know about yourself and the facts, the less easily you can be manipulated. The easiest and most simply way to manipulate you is through your emotions. Women are generally more emotional than men. If I tell you that there is a war on women and I make up some facts, a large percentage of women that read those facts will buy into them. Hopefully more of them might say Bullshit, and look a little harder. It is kind of like all of those things that people pass around via e-mail or Facebook that is complete Shit! When you send them the SNOPES link with the article I often wonder if I offend them. That is certainly not my intention but, my god folks, use your heads.

Just for the record, Snopes is run by a couple in California which may or may not be biased. Don’t stop your investigation with snopes.

Before Obama we were fine with racial relations, not great but we did not have polar bear hunting, and now we do. By the way, where the hell is Al Sharpton and Rev Jackson on this? They are all up in arms when a thug gets shot but; when innocent old white guys are beat up or killed because they are white, nothing! I would have a whole lot more respect for these two if they would denounce all violence! Before Obama the Ferguson debacle would not have had the focus of the world, would certainly not been talked about at the United Nations and we certainly would not have sent several White House representatives to a THUGS funeral. As the facts are trickling out we are learning more and more that the cop was justified. The local mob is calling for vigilantism. Sharpton and company stirred this pot; they need to stop it! If anything goes wrong and they do nothing to prevent it, I would hope that the folks wronged would get litigious in a hurry! We are a nation of laws, this is not the wild west!

“If you don’t want to get shot, don’t screw around with COPS!” I am not saying they are perfect but, for the most part you have to have something going for you to even want that job. All cops should have a body camera that is on when they are on the clock! I would like to see a bill written and passed to that effect. When cameras are on, people seem a little more civil.

No one will ever do anything with the Tax Code, because it is the government’s way of controlling the masses. It makes for great talking points and distractions from the real issues but if a candidate is talking about it, it is a distraction. The Tax Code consist of several thousand pages of code which force anyone making more than minimum wage to seek the advice of a tax service, or a CPA. “The Tax code is written for people of means, by people of means, and and by no means written for the masses, you and I.”

Minimum wage laws will be bandied about by the democrats to entice young voters to vote for the “liberal agenda” because young people have yet to have enough life experience to see that it is all smoke and mirrors, and that nobody should be depending upon starter jobs “minimum wage” for a living wage. If you are, you are doing something wrong.

Public Pensions will be of interest as many States who have pensions for their retirees that are very generous, will run out of funding and bankruptcy will most certainly follow. Will we bail them out on the tax payer dime? If democrats control things, probably!

Immigration needs to be looked at very carefully. Many states are experimenting with laws that allow undocumented immigrants who graduate from high school to receive in-state tuition to public schools on the tax payer dime. As far as natural born folks, you know Americans; you still have to pay as well as pay for theirs. This will be a topic of discussion / debate that will certainly pass, if your state turns blue. This thinking has also caused lawmakers to think about granting drivers licenses to undocumented people. WTF? I am surprised that we don’t take out advertising on their television stations telling them about how great it is over here, and how we love to pay for everything! Come on down, or up!

Nothing could be further from the truth! We are paying for education for them, and I am guessing that if they stay undocumented and we educate them then we have smarter slaves! More workers equal guess what, lower wages for everyone! Yeah, that is what you want right? Not only do you too get lower wages, you still have to pay for your college tuition. GO Blue!

47 million folks are living below the federal poverty line and one section of government wants to get them back to work and the other, wants to figure out creative ways to help them, financially. That is 47 million votes, paid for by tax payer dollars! Who says you cant buy an election?

People need a hand up, not a hand out! Democrats are hurting them and one day, when the printing press stops, there will be utter chaos in the streets as those that are sitting home watching cable TV, playing video games while you are out busting your butt working two part time jobs to make ends meet, run out of money. Stores will not take IOU’s and when the cable, electricity, and free phone stop working; it will end up being some sort of Racial thing where the fat white man is to blame. Of course we know that it is the food stamp president who is doing this but when the feces hits the rotating oscillator it will be someone else’s fault…Bush…yeah he takes the blame for everything!

This administration has built its key economic strategies around transportation and infrastructure but has kept its level of funding stagnant. States are looking at this as a possible state issue, dealing with it at that level. Look for bonds and or taxes to pay for this; as the feds have failed. Personally, I think that there will be more toll roads which amounts to hidden taxes into perpetuity! .

Drones will be part of the politics in the future as the laws around them will most certainly benefit the government and not the public. This is a topic for you the voter to watch carefully as your rights to privacy among other things, may be on the line. Make certain that you know how your candidate feels about this issue.

Abortion, the war on women, which is really a war on babies, should not be addressed at a federal level but each state should handle this. This is not a one size fits all solution but, the pendulum has swayed too far in the liberal direction and needs some correcting. Look for more scare tactics in the 2014 and 2016 elections. I look for this to be really blown out of proportion if Hillary runs. When topics appeal to your emotions you are being manipulated and politicians are expert manipulators! They actually have people who have degrees in how to manipulate you. Isn’t that nice?

Fracking is a topic which should be addressed at the ballot box. I am certain that the public is being kept in the dark regarding full disclosure, and the public is not sharing in the rewards, only in the possible hazards. If for instance there is an earth quake in an area of the world that has never had them, and houses are damaged the “frackers” will say, it was a coincidence and leave you to fix your house yourself; and by the way,” some states don’t sell earth quake insurance as they don’t have earth quakes. I would argue that the “frackers” should be on the hook for paying for earth quake insurance at the very least, or be on the hook for any damage caused by an earthquake in areas which are not prone to such events. Either way a bill should be drafted and language to this effect should be included before Fracking is allowed. In that same bill I would push for more transparency as we really don’t have a clue what they are pumping into the ground and if it will have an affect on drinking water. Again I would call for civilian over-site.

The border should be in this list as there are more issues with this than ever before. For some reason the government does not really want to close it as, more potential voters are crossing it every day! Never mind the fact that we have people from countries that mean us harm also crossing that same border. Never mind that if Ebola gets loose down south that they too will cross that border in droves; this is simply a common sense problem that no one wants to take care of! Democrats want the voters, and Republicans want the cheap labor, slaves! We need to wise-up and close the damned border! Maybe it is time for an independent to run.

Privacy is a concern to most voters so make certain that you are up on how your candidate feels about such things. Since the end of GW Bush and all of Obama’s reign, our privacy has been under assault. From porn scanners, to searches without warrants to phone taps as well as data mining. Technology is such that drones can peer into your open window and count your freckles from over a mile away! Satellite technology is also intrusive. Electronic surveillance is easier than ever before. Your movements tracked, your picture taken, your transactions tracked just because they can. We really need a technology expert who is on the side of the public. You are no doubt thinking that our government should be doing that, better stop voting for the progressives if you want a government that actually respects the constitution and ah, works for you, and not against you!

One outfit that I know of just released a hand held device that can see in the dark. This device also has thermal imaging as well as infrared, and can not only record what it sees, it has a super sensitive microphone so audio can be recorded as well. This device will end up in the hands of anyone with money to purchase it, and certainly into the hands of police. If used for “lawful” purposes, that is ok but, I must confess, listening to the police on the scanner, I am not ready to surrender my worries about these guys as they can get full of themselves fairly easily. You know this to be true as you see it every day, even if you don’t listen in on them via a scanner.

How many times a week during your commute, are you passed by a cop who is speeding, for no apparent reason? Many I suspect but, if you passed them, you would have a ticket to contend with. We really need to be careful who gets what technology and how it is used. Get a police scanner and learn what your servants are up to.

Just like we need term limits, we really need civilian over-site of the government, and local municipalities. Lets see some politician float that bill!

I am very much against voting party. These guys are all politicians and they switch the R and or the D to match their demographics. Progressives can wear either shirt, and that is who you don’t want to vote for. Vote for those who are for smaller government which protect the country, your rights, stand by the constitution, and create an atmosphere that is friendly to business. Before you “pull the lever,” make certain that their track record matches that.

I realize what I am asking. Put it this way, if the ballots were fill in the blank, less then one tenth of all ballots cast would be valid. By fill in the blank I mean that nobody was coaching you once you were inside the building, no signs or cheat sheets. Even if it were multiple guess, if you threw in two bogus names like Humphrey Bogart and Carry Grant would you care to guess who would get the most votes! Yep, dead guys! That my friends is why we are in the mess than we are in. That is APATHY! Apathy combined with ignorance is a really bad combination!

You have seen what voting the party gets; now we need to do it better.

-Best