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Yesterday was pretty cool. Gave 3 presentations to some 7th graders for Career Day. A couple of them are really interested in hacking (maybe because I am opposed to hackers). Someone who works to make sure that others cannot hack into a web site probably would not tell you how to do it. Did describe for them some of the attacks and how they did. Asked them lots of questions. Most have computers and know the basics like email and surfing. They just need some help to move into the next step.
For instance, with death, out of all the people I know well, only 2 have died in my life. Both were great aunts. All of my grandparents and great-grandparents except one were dead before I was even born. I grew up in a pretty-much middle class neighborhood. No meals were missed because my parents had to make a choice between having a house or feeding me. Toys and books were a given to me and I had probably too much of both. I used to find it ironic that friends would come to me for relationship advice. At some point I realized that my friends kinda KNEW what it was that they were supposed to do but needed someone to tell them to do it. So the question is "Does one need to have faced adversity and won to give advice?" Think the signs point to yes on this one.
Course, when I get back to work I still have to battle installing Front Page Extensions on the new web server. Hmmmmmm... maybe the trick is to clear out the data I have so meticulously massaged to be correct on the new server and install the Extensions, then add the data back? Glad I did this before the server went into production.
On my 3rd belt clip for my cell phone. Have a knack for sitting just right to make the phone catch on something. The anchors that hold the metal U that acts as the spring can't handle the stress. It rips free.
Perhaps I will get the time to go back and work on some graphics sometime? Maybe in a few weeks. Enjoyed the lack of access to a computer. A positive sign that I have kicked my internet addiction. Being on the net a work all day has cured me of the irrational desire to have a data jack implanted in my skull so that I could turn any phone line into an internet connection. Reading A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin. He is such a wonderful author with vivid characters and a stunning plot. A definite must-read for anyone that reads fantasy.
Figuring out things I have never done to explain it to other people. Life of tech support, huh?
Pretty cool concept I think. Public wishlist? Here is mine at Amazon
Back to work!
Well, the announcement finally hit the news. The President of VSU is retiring. University Relations announce it Friday. (link will work until another story replaces it). Means that in June, the school should be actively on it's way to hiring another President (without an election). All the people who have hung around waiting for the President to retire will start retiring. This will prove to be an interesting year as the school deals with the President retiring and the new President reorganizing.
Perhaps the most difficult problem of mankind down through the ages has been how to coordinate our common affairs in an efficient, competent, creative and democratic way. Many people, including the Nobel Prize winner in economics Dr Amartya Sen, say that our inability to solve this problem is the ultimate cause of starvation, war, economic problems and environmental destruction.It seems to me that given a open ended choice (ie, not having 2 - 6 possible candidates) that people would tend to choose knowledgeable, wise, and caring people to represnt them. Our governmental system is designed for putting power-hungry people into office. We elect someone based upon what they say in their campaign. A campaign is "a connected series of operations designed to bring about a particular result" (#2 from Mirriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary). So to bring about their desired result they will snipe at their opponents, promise more than they can deliver, and get their lives opened up like a book for the world to see. Only someone who is ruthless and truly craves the power associated with running the government would stand to be attacked and counter-attack as the successful campaigner must. I truly feel that one of the best qualifications for holding office is a true desire to not be there. Someone who is not elected should have a huge sigh of relief. Furthermore the party system is obviously outdated. Perhaps the better system is to choose a President is to elect representatives who go and meet. In their meeting they discuss the problems of the country and choose a Cabinet which represents the best leaders with the vision to solve the problems. They could even draft recommendations to send to the President. The Cabinet could choose who the President is and which of them are slated to which post. Or maybe we need more indecision and strife between the leaders of this nation for another decade... it makes for interesting television.
"[It's] sort of a reverse social Darwinism: The more complex societies get and the more complex the networks of interdependence within and beyond community and national borders get, the more people are forced in their own interests to find non-zero-sum solutions. That is, win-win solutions instead of win-lose solutions.... Because we find as our interdependence increases that, on the whole, we do better when other people do better as well - so we have to find wats that we can all win, we have to accomodate wach other. And, on balance, that's a humanizing and elevating development."This whole article changed my view on Clinton. Find it strange that I am much more impressed with politicians AFTER they start acting like the people they truely are. Clinton interviewed in the article knowing that it would not be public until AFTER the election. Little bit of irony: he mentioned that the election would be decided by the time the article was published. -- Tuesday, November 21, 2000 -- 10:46 a.m.
On a lighter nore. Got a new monitor yesterday. A Sun 19" that allows me to run a 1600x1200 resolution. Have SO much desktop space it is not funny! Love it!
Pretty slow morning so far. Not too many fires burning. |