Bankocracy

Bitcoin upgrade aims for smoother e-commerce

"Payment requests will use digital certificates, the same kind of security technology indicated by a padlock in a web browser. Specifically, the payment requests will use X.509 certificates, which underpin SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), which encrypts data traffic between two parties. The communication between a customer and company will be performed over SSL and will not be part of the so-called 'blockchain,' the public ledger that shows bitcoin transactions, Andresen said. The payment protocol will not touch the core code that drives Bitcoin's network." Continue reading →

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Tor Urges Users To Leave Insecure Windows Operating System

"In a critical security advisory issued over the weekend, the Tor Project told its users that they should seriously consider migrating away from Microsoft’s Windows operating system and disabling JavaScript. The Tor Project security advisory was a response to revelations on Sunday that an attack had targeted users of the Tor Browser. According to the advisory, the attack exploited a Firefox JavaScript vulnerability that has already been resolved. The vulnerability is a cross-platform threat, but the exploit in this case was Windows-specific. Tor Browser Bundle users on Linux, OS X, and LiveCD systems like Tails were never at risk of exploit." Continue reading →

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On Life Remotely: An Interview with Jessica Mans

"Jessica Mans, one of the people who runs Life Remotely, which opened my eyes to just how, well … really cool this lifestyle can be, graciously took some time to talk about location independence with us. Life Remotely is a great resource for everything from planning your own extended trips to just living vicariously through the experiences of three people who got a taste of travel and living abroad and decided a taste wasn’t enough. They’ve just wrapped up an epic drive from Seattle to Patagonia (yup, you read that right) and have put out one of Amazon’s Best Books of 2013: Don’t Go There. It’s Not Safe. You’ll Die." Continue reading →

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Interview with Slashdot founder Rob Malda

"The stuff that’s interesting has as much to do with the technology as the information. I’m interested in the technology the government uses to spy on me. I’m interested in the fact of the anonymous file-sharing network that made the Manning stuff possible. That’s the stuff that gets to my soft, gooey center. The policy parts, I don’t feel like I have a say in that. I don’t have a voice there. I know what I want to see happen. But I don’t feel like I have a say or a voice so I choose to be interested in the technology and think about where that’s going to take us next. All that stuff never would have existed 20 years ago." Continue reading →

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Out of the box: UPS Stores to offer 3D printing

"Stratasys will provide its uPrint SE desktop machines to six UPS Stores in America for a trial programme. These machines will allow customers to bring their designs to the store and have them printed out as objects—in much the same way as people take two-dimensional digital documents to the store and have them printed on paper. The uPrint machines can produce items in plastic in a range of colours and make bigger objects in finer detail than consumer-level 3D printers. UPS expects designers, entrepreneurs, start-ups and architects seeking models to be among its customers for 3D printing services." Continue reading →

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Goodbye Cable TV, Hello Google

"This diminutive device, nearly as small as a flash thumb drive, plugs right into your TV — through the HDMI port. It can stream video content wirelessly from the Internet to your TV using an Android or iOS device, or a PC or Mac, using Google’s Chrome browser, as a remote control. Chromecast could be a really disruptive product. According to a Sandvine report, YouTube and Netflix account for an estimated 49.4% share of all peak downstream Internet traffic in the U.S. Now with Chromecast, those users can steam that Internet traffic onto their TV’s easily. For a mere $35, Chromecast can turn any television into a player for streaming Internet video content." Continue reading →

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Mainstream Media Rule: Never Question the Warren Commission

"Does USA Today writer Jervis show any curiosity over the fact that Dr. Jones’ recollection of the condition of the back of JFK’s head was shattered contradicts the official U.S. military autopsy photograph that shows the back of JFK’s head to be intact? If he does, you certainly can’t tell it by reading the article. After citing Jones’ recollection that the back of Kennedy’s head had been shattered by a bullet, the article just blithely proceeds onward, with nary a mention of the problem. Unfortunately that’s pretty much standard procedure for reporters and commentators in the mainstream media who address the Kennedy assassination." Continue reading →

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Atlanta High School Has A Rifle Range

"When the all new North Atlanta High School opens its doors Wednesday, students will have sparkling new facilities including an indoor rifle range. The range was built for the school’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corp and the rifle team. This isn’t the only on campus rifle range in Atlanta. A school spokesperson said the facility at NAHS is modeled after one already in use at Grady High School. According to Atlanta Public Schools, the program will have an instructor certified by the U.S. Army Cadet Command and the Georgia High School Athletic Association." Continue reading →

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Democratic anti-gun ‘guide’ urged using Trayvon Martin’s death to hit NRA, guns

"Newly uncovered Democratic anti-NRA talking points urge anti-gun advocates and politicians to hype high-profile gun incidents like the Florida slaying of Trayvon Martin to win support for new gun control laws. 'The most powerful time to communicate is when concern and emotions are running at their peak,' said the 80-page document titled 'Preventing Gun Violence Through Effective Messaging,' and produced by three Democratic firms led by the polling and research outfit Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research." Continue reading →

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Serial Offender: Miami Fed. Prosecutor Called on Misconduct in Drug Cases

"Dr. Ali Shaygan has nothing to do with Colombian drug trafficking conspiracies, but his case is yet another example of Hoffman's prosecutorial overreach. Shaygan was charged with overprescribing narcotics as part of the federal government's campaign against prescription drug abuse, but later acquitted. After his acquittal, Shaygan won a $600,000 judgment, with the judge in the case finding the prosecutors' conduct in attempting to influence witnesses and deny potentially exculpatory evidence to the defense so 'profoundly disturbing that it raises troubling issues about the integrity of those who wield enormous power over the people they prosecute.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSerial Offender: Miami Fed. Prosecutor Called on Misconduct in Drug Cases