Saturday, November 1, 2014

@13:10, 10/31/14

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1
Opinion

Don’t Muzzle the Clown

By TIMOTHY EGAN | Oct 30th 2014
What better way to celebrate free speech than by shutting down free speech?
Freedom of Speech and Expression; Censorship; Commencement Speeches; Muslims and Islam; Comedy and Humor; Polls and Public Opinion 

Agreed

2
World

Reinforcements Enter Besieged Syrian Town via Turkey, Raising Hopes

By ANNE BARNARD | Oct 29th 2014
Officials in Kobani, Syria, hailed the arrival of Iraqi Kurdish soldiers and Syrian rebels, saying they hoped it heralded a more cooperative effort to fight the Islamic State.
Kurds 

" the reinforcements were the first Turkey had allowed to cross through into Syria after weeks of tense diplomacy. And Syrian Kurdish officials in Kobani expressed hope that it meant Turkey and the United States were beginning to resolve their differences over how to fight the Islamic State, also known as ISIS."

3
N.Y. / Region
 
 

Lawsuit Says Rental Complex in Queens Excludes Ex-Offenders

By MIREYA NAVARRO | Oct 30th 2014
The Fortune Society, a social services group, said the operators of the Sand Castle in Far Rockaway have a policy of not renting to people with criminal records.
Renting and Leasing (Real Estate); Real Estate and Housing (Residential); Discrimination; Ex-Convicts; Hispanic-Americans; Landlords; Blacks; Prisons and Prisoners; Suits and Litigation (Civil) 

"The suit argues that the rental policy should be replaced with one that allows for individualized reviews, to consider factors other than a criminal history to determine a person’s security risk and fitness as a tenant."

Criminal justice is inherently unfair.
It denies the possibility of reform.
It denies the possibility of error.
If it is correct it should be killing convicts.

4
World

Family of Washington Post Reporter Calls on Iran to Free Him

By RICK GLADSTONE | Oct 30th 2014
Relatives of Jason Rezaian, held without explanation for more than two months, said “it’s time for Iran to concede Jason’s innocence and release him.”
News and News Media 

At a guess guilt or innocence is not in question.
Jason Rezaian is being used as diplomatic leverage.

5
World

Russia: Court Rules Against Tycoon

By ANDREW ROTH | Oct 30th 2014
A Moscow court on Thursday ruled in favor of nationalizing a Russian billionaire’s majority stake in the oil producer Bashneft, one of the country’s largest private oil companies.
Oil (Petroleum) and Gasoline; Privatization; Decisions and Verdicts 

Putin is Czar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Putin

6
World

Malala Yousafzai Donates Prize Money to Rebuild Gaza School

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Oct 30th 2014
The Pakistani teenager who shared the Nobel Peace Prize this year donated $50,000 from another award to rebuild a United Nations school damaged in the war between Israel and Hamas.
Nobel Prizes 

"The agency quoted her as saying that Palestinian children deserve a quality education, and that “without education, there will never be peace.”"

Yes.

7
Magazine

Is It Wrong to Divulge a Secret to Protect Someone’s Honor?

By CHUCK KLOSTERMAN | Oct 31st 2014
Say nothing; pay something.
Ethicist, The (Times Column); Ethics (Personal); Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome; Insurance; Dogs 

Chuck Klosterman is responding properly.

8
World

New Russian Boldness Revives a Cold War Tradition: Testing the Other Side

By DAVID E. SANGER and NICOLE PERLROTH | Oct 30th 2014
A breach of a White House computer system and military flights skirting NATO territory could be “message-sending by Putin, and it’s dangerous,” a defense official said.
Cyberwarfare; Cold War Era; United States International Relations; Computer Security; Industrial Espionage 

It is the Czar's duty to be the lord of the realm.

9
The Upshot

Why the U.S. Has Fallen Behind in Internet Speed and Affordability

By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER | Oct 30th 2014
The lack of competition in the U.S. broadband industry could have long-term economic consequences for American competitiveness.
Computers and the Internet; United States Economy; Antitrust Laws and Competition Issues; Telephones and Telecommunications; Regulation and Deregulation of Industry; Infrastructure (Public Works) 

Monopoly power.  
The shrub has deregulated these common carriers  with a name change.  Regulation can be achieved with another.

10
Your Money

Influenza, a Familiar Virus, Requires Attention, Too

By ANN CARRNS | Oct 30th 2014
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends flu shots for everyone 6 months old and older.
Vaccination and Immunization; Health Insurance and Managed Care; Influenza; Preventive Medicine 

Good advice. I will get immunized.

11
World

Protest Is Muted as Egypt Levels Border Area in Sinai

By KAREEM FAHIM | Oct 30th 2014
The demolitions are part of a government plan to create a buffer to curb the flow of weapons and militants between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
Evacuations and Evacuees 

Egypt has suppressed  the Muslim Brotherhood.
The Brotherhood would have provided the demonstrators.

12
Opinion

Our Machine Masters

By DAVID BROOKS | Oct 30th 2014
The age of artificial intelligence is finally at hand. Will we master it, or will it master us?
Artificial Intelligence; Data-Mining and Database Marketing; Social Conditions and Trends; Intelligence and Intelligence Tests (IQ); Computers and the Internet; Philosophy 

"In this future, there is increasing emphasis on personal and moral faculties: being likable, industrious, trustworthy and affectionate. People are evaluated more on these traits, which supplement machine thinking, and not the rote ones that duplicate it.
In the cold, utilitarian future, on the other hand, people become less idiosyncratic. If the choice architecture behind many decisions is based on big data from vast crowds, everybody follows the prompts and chooses to be like each other. The machine prompts us to consume what is popular, the things that are easy and mentally undemanding.
I’m happy Pandora can help me find what I like. I’m a little nervous if it so pervasively shapes my listening that it ends up determining what I like. I think we all want to master these machines, not have them master us."

There seems to be no personal learning in either of these "choices".
One learns our likes.  The other knows our likes.
One of the discoveries about human development is "Likes" are learned.
Neither of the proposed futures has much appeal.
I want to develop my "likes".  They often surprise me.

There is a problem with a computer software component called the Bash Shell.  The problem is labeled "Shellshock".
Below are the results of a quick slash dot search.
The problem is getting fixed.



 13
Opinion

The Ebola Hysteria

By CHARLES M. BLOW | Oct 29th 2014
Amid the nonsense, paladins heeding the clarion call to help treat Ebola abroad are being treated like lepers when they return.
Ebola Virus; Epidemics; Humanitarian Aid; Quarantines 

Charles Blow is properly indignant.
Healthy returning travelers are not a danger.
Sick travelers must be treated.

14
Opinion

Apologizing to Japan

By PAUL KRUGMAN | Oct 30th 2014
Western economists were scathing in their criticisms of Japanese policy, but the slump we fell into isn’t just similar to Japan’s. It’s worse.
Economic Conditions and Trends; United States Economy; Deflation (Economics); Recession and Depression; European Sovereign Debt Crisis (2010- ); Budgets and Budgeting; Politics and Government 

Yes.

15
World

Friction Grows Between Israel and Jordan Over Revered Location

By JODI RUDOREN and RANA F. SWEIS | Oct 30th 2014
A decades-long arrangement for Jordan to oversee the Noble Sanctuary, or Temple Mount, is under strain because of recent clashes between Jews and Muslims.
Temple Mount (Jerusalem); Jews and Judaism; International Relations 

This symbol of conquest and obduracy is a constant irritant.

16
U.S.

Video: The Comment That Reset a Race in Georgia

Quynhanh Do | Oct 31st 2014
A look at how a comment about outsourcing uncovered from 2005 reset the Senate race between the Republican candidate, David Perdue, and his Democratic opponent, Michelle Nunn.
Unemployment; Elections, House of Representatives; Elections, Senate; Midterm Elections (2014); Labor and Jobs; Outsourcing; Polls and Public Opinion 

The Republicans are sounding nervous.

17
N.Y. / Region

Boys, 13 and 14, Accused of Rapes at Bronx School

By JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN | Oct 30th 2014
The teenagers assaulted two girls, ages 12 and 13, in the auditorium of their middle school, the authorities said.
Sex Crimes; Education (K-12); Assaults 

The authorities should think hard and investigate thoroughly.  Jumping to conclusions is easy.

18
Arts

Video: Off Color Comedy: Lalo Alcaraz

Channon Hodge, Tanzina Vega and Taige Jensen | Oct 31st 2014
Lalo Alcaraz usa su tira cómica “La Cucaracha” para llamar la atención a prejucios, retar a los medios y en general causar controversia con su humor.
Illegal Immigration; Race and Ethnicity; Discrimination; Cartoons and Cartoonists; Television; Comedy and Humor; Deportation 

I can do some of this.  
I try not to.
It is needed.
World

Cambodia: American Fugitive Is Arrested

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Oct 29th 2014
The police said Wednesday that they had arrested a man identified by the news media as a United States Army deserter wanted in Florida on child pornography charges.
Fugitives; United States Defense and Military Forces; Child Pornography 

People who have played with child pornography
would be wise to destroy the infected hard drive.
Most drives can be replaced for under a hundred bucks.
Opinion

Our Failing Weather Infrastructure

By KATHRYN MILES | Oct 30th 2014
Tight budgets and job vacancies make it hard to predict the next Hurricane Sandy.
Hurricane Sandy (2012); Federal Budget (US); Computers and the Internet; Disasters and Emergencies 

Yes.
Some of us know how the sequester came to be.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

@18:00

World

In Air and Cyberspace, on Land and Sea, Russia Shows Muscle

By ANDREW ROTH | Oct 31st 2014
Air activity over Europe, an Estonian officer in custody, the hunt for a submarine and claims of cyberattacks have ramped up tensions with the West.
Cyberwarfare; Airlines and Airplanes; Submarines and Submersibles

I remember.
N.Y. / Region

Lawsuit Says Rental Complex in Queens Excludes Ex-Offenders

By MIREYA NAVARRO | Oct 30th 2014 
N.Y. / Region

2 of 10 Counts Against Sampson, a Brooklyn State Senator, Are Dismissed

By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD | Oct 31st 2014 

8 counts remain.
World

Family of Washington Post Reporter Calls on Iran to Free Him

By RICK GLADSTONE | Oct 30th 2014
World

Malala Yousafzai Donates Prize Money to Rebuild Gaza School

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Oct 30th 2014
Automobiles

Women in Top Ranks of Drag Racing: Hear Them Roar

By LOUISE ANN NOETH | Oct 31st 2014
Drag racing is no longer an exclusive men’s club. There is now a strong, confident and skilled female contingent that commands respect.
Automobiles; Drag Racing

  1. 3:01

    Beach Boys - (It's The) Little Old Lady From Pasadena

    Live version of Beach Boys singing the Jan & Dean's '64 hit "Little Old Lady From Pasadena", from the album Beach Boys (In) ...
The Upshot

Early Voting Numbers Look Good for Democrats

By NATE COHN | Oct 31st 2014
More than 20 percent of the early votes tabulated in four crucial states have come from people who did not vote in the last midterm.
United States Politics and Government; Youth; Minorities; Elections, House of Representatives; Elections, Senate; Midterm Elections (2014); Voter Registration and Requirements

I will vote.  It is always important.
World

Protest Is Muted as Egypt Levels Border Area in Sinai

By KAREEM FAHIM | Oct 30th 2014
Your Money

Lost Money Everywhere, Just Waiting to Be Claimed

By RON LIEBER | Oct 31st 2014
Tens of billions of dollars sit in the unclaimed property funds that states run, waiting to be taken back by owners.
Pensions and Retirement Plans; 401(k), 403(b) and 457 Plans; Personal Finances; Lost and Found Property

I should check.
World

Q. and A. on ISIS Hostages Held in Syria

By THE NEW YORK TIMES | Oct 31st 2014
Rukmini Callimachi, a Times reporter, answers readers’ questions about the 23 Western hostages who were held by the Islamic State in in Syria.
Kidnapping and Hostages

An army in the field is burning money.
$30,000,000 per month will not meet their needs.
World

Friction Grows Between Israel and Jordan Over Revered Location

By JODI RUDOREN and RANA F. SWEIS | Oct 30th 2014
N.Y. / Region

Boys, 13 and 14, Accused of Rapes at Bronx School

By JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN | Oct 30th 2014
Opinion

Apologizing to Japan

By PAUL KRUGMAN | Oct 30th 2014
Western economists were scathing in their criticisms of Japanese policy, but the slump we fell into isn’t just similar to Japan’s. It’s worse.
Economic Conditions and Trends; United States Economy; Deflation (Economics); Recession and Depression; European Sovereign Debt Crisis (2010- ); Budgets and Budgeting; Politics and Government

yes.
World

Cambodia: American Fugitive Is Arrested

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Oct 29th 2014
U.S.

Data-Driven Campaigns Zero In on Voters, but Messages Are Lacking

By ASHLEY PARKER and NICK CORASANITI | Oct 30th 2014
The Big Data era of politics has left some campaigns drowning in their own sophisticated advances, unable to produce new and effective messages.
Political Advertising; Data-Mining and Database Marketing; Online Advertising; Midterm Elections (2014)

"He continued: “And if it’s on an article” — not dissimilar from this one, say — “it might be, ‘Stop reading this and go vote.’ ”"
Opinion

Our Failing Weather Infrastructure

By KATHRYN MILES | Oct 30th 2014
Tight budgets and job vacancies make it hard to predict the next Hurricane Sandy.
Hurricane Sandy (2012); Federal Budget (US); Computers and the Internet; Disasters and Emergencies
Opinion

Our Machine Masters

By DAVID BROOKS | Oct 30th 2014
U.S.

A Final Rush, for Everyone but Perry

By ROSS RAMSEY | Oct 30th 2014 

Perry is not running.
Arts

Video: Off Color Comedy: Lalo Alcaraz

Channon Hodge, Tanzina Vega and Taige Jensen | Oct 31st 2014
U.S.

Tearful Displays Enliven Close Governor’s Race in Massachusetts

By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE | Oct 30th 2014
Martha Coakley and Charlie Baker have both fought hard to change what caused their 2010 defeats, but neither has made enough of an impression to take the lead in the polls.
Elections, Governors; Midterm Elections (2014)

Vote for the Democrat.








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