Random Access Memories

I saw this on my way to work this morning, figured it was worth taking a picture of.

So this quote was mentioned to me recently:

“It is understandable that the perspectives of men and women on safety are so different–men and women live in different worlds…at core, men are afraid women will laugh at them, while at core, women are afraid men will kill them.”
– Gavin de Becker, The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence

And it struck me, this is true. And it shows that this issue is relative, not universal. This is something that is based on culture, change your nation or region and you change your culture. Levels of violence in Iceland for example are radically different than those in the USA.

I can’t fix the level of violence in the USA unfortunately, but I can decide to run from it.

Let me start by saying I like giving gifts. I also tend to like receiving gifts. But I dislike gifts given that have no real “meaning”.

Case in point, this gift today from the temp agency that I work with. It was a leather portfolio. With the company name embossed in HUGE ugly letters on the front. (I dislike such corporate advertising, but I digress)

Why did they give me this? I am guessing because I make them money, without them doing much of anything. Which to me is the wrong reason to give gifts.

Perhaps it’s just me. But even “obligatory” gifts should only be given when someone is doing meaningful work in my opinion.

Snowed last night. Thankfully it is above freezing out so the roads are not iced. Looks pretty.

I walked past this Weiner Mobile on the way to work. Didn’t think these things existed anymore.

Just… Wow… I have no good words to describe this.

I heard about this on NPR recently. It is a free chat app for android and ios that offers extremely powerful encryption and other security functions.

Nico Sell, co-founder of Wickr told Cnet recently that the FBI had approached them and asked for a backdoor. They said no.”

Now I’m not a tin-foil-hat-wearing nut, but I think security is something we should just “have”, not something we should have to think about.

I thought this looked cool so I took a photo with my new tablet

So today is the last day for states to submit proposals to Boeing to get them to bring their new 777X proram to their state.

Each state is stumbling over itself and the other states to throw money, perks, tax cuts, etc at Boeing. In the end who loses? The US worker.

The states should not be allowed to screw over each other this way, it is not good competition, it is bad competition.

Even the US government considered Mandela a terrorist until 2008. He was jailed for 27 years for acts of terrorism.

I’m not poking sticks at good or bad here, just saying that perhaps we should be careful how we view labels.

One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.