Category: Digital Culture

Bad people in library land:

Obviously doing research, U Penn Library Director has 2,000 illicit kiddie porn images on computer
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/mosher1.html

Ick.

Ok…not a lot of personal stuff on here over the last few weeks. Mainly because I’m SWAMPED with work. but next week will be the end of it, and hopefully the summer will bring some less stressful time.

Overall, though, it’s been an ok semester. Lots of great classes, just gotta get through the last projects.

I suppose that everybody needs a dream.

As long as this guy is far, far away from me, that is.

Here’s an interesting site that reviews Japanese Hentai (literally translated: Pervert) games.

http://www.somethingawful.com/hentai/

Yet another “how wacky are the japanese” thing….bear in mind that these very, very odd games are produced by a country that has practically NO rape, or any other violent crime.

Not a lot of personal reflection lately…too much interesting stuff going on with the web, and MUCH to much work for school. 4 projects left for the semester….basically one every 3 days until the semester is over. Ick.

But on the positive, Bets and I have both found summer jobs, which is always a big deal for academia. Summer typically sucks, but this one should be pretty ok.

More complete abuse of the DMCA. Security talk cancelled due to cease and desist from lawyers.

http://features.slashdot.org/features/03/04/14/1846250.shtml?tid=153&tid=172

and here, for your reading pleasure, is one of the papers that was “threatened” by our friends the lawyers. It provides vital security information to this campus in that one of these systems is in use, OneCard. I am providing this as a service to the campus community, and invite the legal team that threatened the talk to do the same to me. I am not only currently enrolled in a Security class which makes this relevant material and protected by fair use doctrine, but as a library science student, this directly impacts the income of my workplace, which makes it necessary to my livelihood. Combine these reasons with the First Amendment, and you’ve got a nice challenge on your hands.

Enjoy.

🙂

Great Sasuke (a legendary Japanese professional wrestler) wins seat in legislature.

http://news1.iwon.com/article/id/318308|oddlyenough|04-14-2003::00:43|reuters|1.html

Masked Wrestler Wins Japan Assembly Seat
Apr 14, 12:32 am ET

TOKYO (Reuters) – Who is that masked man? One of Japan’s newest politicians.
A professional wrestler who fought his way to victory in local assembly elections under his ring name and wearing his trademark mask has vowed the mask will not leave his face even after he enters the staid halls of Japanese politics.
“This is my face,” the wrestler — known as “The Great Sasuke” — was quoted by the Nikkan Sports newspaper as saying of his black and white full-face mask with bright scarlet streaks and golden wings by the eye holes.
“I won support from voters with this face, and to take it off would be breaking promises,” the 33-year-old wrestler, whose real name is Masanori Murakawa, said of his victory in conservative Iwate prefecture, some 460 km (290 miles) north of Tokyo.
Catching opponents on the back foot to take one of 10 assembly seats, the wrestler said he now hopes to demonstrate his “superabundant power” outside of the ring as well as in it.
Sasuke’s vow to go masked into the halls of power in Japan, where battles have been fought in the past over legislators refusing to don neckties, has authorities scratching their heads.
“There is no law specifically forbidding it,” one Iwate prefectural official was quoted by Nikkan Sports as saying. “But now that he has won, we must look into the issue.”
In a sign, perhaps, that the rough-and-tumble world of politics may prove more bruising than expected, Sasuke was forced to limp his way up to the polling box with one ankle in a cast.
He attributed the injury to stumbling over a curb during the election campaign.

Just bizarre.

Here’s a PDF of a military file….playing cards for the soldiers in Iraq that have pictures of Iraq leaders so that everyone can identify them.

I kid you not.

Check it out.

Weird. Really, really weird.

Inspired by Justin’s email to Senator Edwards, I just fired off one of my own in response to the news that Senator Orrin Hatch has introduced legislation to eliminated the “sunset” date of the Patriot Act.

*****************************************************

Dear Senator Edwards,

It has come to my attention today that there is a measure within the congress to make the PATRIOT act a standing piece of legislature and remove the sunset date. This is appalling news, and I must say that as an opponent of the PATRIOT act from day one it concerns me greatly. In the post-9/11 US, it seems that individual liberties and freedoms are being eroded in the name of national security, when in fact it is those liberties and freedoms that make this country great.

As a librarian, I see myself as a defender of these freedoms of privacy and speech.

I oppose the so called “PATRIOT II”, I oppose the extension or elimination of the sunset date for PATRIOT, and I believe that it is time that the government stop reacting to world events with a campaign of fear, uncertainty and doubt.

Thank you,

Jason Griffey

Not a huge fan of mass media in general, esp. commercials…but geez this is a cool commercial.

http://www.honda.co.uk/newcars/accord300k.html

Rube Goldberg eat your heart out.