Tactics, Targets, and Objectives
A good article by Schneier on Security.
The key to these countermeasures is to find the pattern: the common attack tactic that is worth defending against. That takes data. A single instance of an attack that didn’t work — liquid bombs, shoe bombs — or one instance that did — 9/11 — is not a pattern. Implementing defensive tactics against them is the same as my safari guide saying: “We’ve only ever heard of one tourist encountering a lion. He stared it down and survived. Another tourist tried the same thing with a leopard, and he got eaten. So when you see a lion….” The advice I was given was based on thousands of years of collective wisdom from people encountering African animals again and again.
Compare this with the Transportation Security Administration’s approach. With every unique threat, TSA implements a countermeasure with no basis to say that it helps, or that the threat will ever recur.
A bit on the long side, but worth the read.
World No Tobacco Day
May 31, 2007 by Anil P.
Filed under Health and Fitness
Today is World No Tobacco Day, sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO). In an effort to get people to stop smoking and using tobacco products every year themed day is set aside to make people aware of the dangers of smoking.
This year??s theme, “Smoke-Free Environments,” urges the public to go smoke-free which, according to WHO, is “the only effective measure to protect people from exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS) which has been classified as carcinogenic to humans. Going smokefree is the only answer as neither ventilation nor filtration can reduce exposure levels of tobacco smoke indoors to levels that are considered acceptable.”
Tobacco does kill a large number of people each year, but they’ve done a piss-poor job of managing their public relations and could improve. It’s an uphill battle for the WHO since smoking is so cool, even pictures of it are neat.
Record Streaming Audio With StationRipper
StationRipper is a Windows program that lets you record streaming audio from the Internet. StationRipper is available in 3 downloads, with the free version allowing for up 25 records. After that is requires are reinstall. The other versions begin at $19.99 and allow for virtually unlimited recording. (Linux users can download this version.)
Those of you overseas can record satellite radio, watch movies will Alluc, rip and burn DVDs – or straight to your iPod, to keep in touch with home.
Global Peace Index Released Today
Norway is rated the most peaceful nation on the planet, with Iraq the least. The GPI uses a variety of indicators to determine the entire list.
Each nation has detailed ratings by the GPI on a variety of peace factors (the USA – 96th – for example). Further click-thru will reveal what each parameter is and how it was calculated.
Scandinavia tends to do well on these sorts of surveys (like privacy), and in fact Europe in general.
