Friday, May 31, 2013

The Security Myth


Security is a quaint notion that retired to a cupboard with Hope, Honesty, and a quite a few other honored but threatened or extinct behavioral memes.

An article today in Fierce CIO:  FBI cracks encrypted hard disk in mere weeks  reminds us of how ephemeral Security is.  I am not sorry the FBI applied their know-how to nailing a pedophile.  But that's not really the story, which is that information security belongs with every other hoary variation on the Security theme.   If sophisticated snoops want to know what you are doing or what you've done, they can and will.

The article suggests redirecting information security efforts from cryptographic to stenographic.  Sure.  With the incredible pattern analysis power in the hands of sophisticated IT practitioners beginning witht the USG and Google, this approach will last a few nanoseconds.  Don't waste your time.  Might as well  bring back smoke signals.

Insecurity, how can we count thee ways?
  • Terrorism - huge spend on anti-terrorism with unknown benefits, but with sure detriments.  Air travel was thoroughly ruined for the innocent since 911, not to mention the budget-busting bloat of DHS and TSA that will accrue to the indebtedness of our children, their children....
  • Global Peace- huge spend on military and proactive war adventrures with unknown benefits, but with sure detriments.
  • Health Insurance - Doesn't make people healthier, just poorer.
  • Retirement - Unless you have a fat defined benefit plan from a government entity  - Prison Guard, Fire, Police most especially (thank you, suckers taxpayers) or a very large nest egg, you have no retirement security.  
  • Crime - As more and more of the public safety budgets go to pay those fat defined benefit pensions, the fewer live, working officers there will be.  Property crime is largely unpoliced in many places, including my beloved San Francisco.  You do not have security for your person or  property beyond what you and your neighbors and friends take initiative for.
  • Product Quality, Food Safety - Forget it. The Chinese just bought the US' largest pork producer, Smithfield.  The Chinese national credo is "cut corners" - as we've already seen in their air, water and food public health fiascos and their ever-recalled pet treat products.  Time to start raising our own pigs.
  • Freedom of the Press - unraveling before our very eyes.  A major check against government duplicity and covert crimes is crumbling.  
Good thing getting under the covers still banishes monsters and boogie men, and that there are still people who care about things like the Constitution and the Golden Rule.  We don't really need Security anyway, we just need a Chance.





Thursday, May 30, 2013

Should We Just Rename the Dollar the Dolor?





If you are a saver, the governments of the world are at war with you, and they are winning.  The USG is one of the most successful saver-beaters.  The chart above pretty much says it.

Every year, governments reduce the value of your savings.  The interest you are earning (what interest?) is not compensating for the loss of value.  I guess it's a good thing we only live as long as we do.

The Dollar has become a painful bad joke.  I like the Spanish word "Dolor" (pain) better, and suggest we go ahead and change the name of the dollar to dolor, both because it's true, and because it honors the blurring of north american boundaries. (hang on, God Bless Canadians for trying).

The Federal Reserve (the biggest private bank on Earth, with legendary emperor's clothes-like control over the US debt-based economy) is busy whippin' up $85 BILLION of these Dolores every month and adding them to the ever-diluting monetary soup.  Good golly, if they weren't handing all those Dolores out to their crony banker friends to prop up their insolvent balance sheets, think what this largess could mean - YOUR personal citizen's share would be almost $300 a month.  Well, whoops, that's exactly wrong.  That's the additional government debt you are on the hook for each month.  OUCH.  Console yourself in knowing how grateful the Banksters are for your support.

Well something is gonna happen that will disrupt this crazy debt game.  We just can't know when.  Maybe Japan will do a Titanic and suck a lot of the world down with it.  Maybe it will be Europe; pick a country, spin the wheel.  Maybe we will get into one War too many.

In the meantime, I'm thinking about what I might suggest to our children who are going to inherit a hell of a mess from us and previous generations who all think/thought they are/were wizards but really are/were just dishonest.

Learn how to grow and hunt food.

Get some decent land with water where you can grow/raise something edible.

Have some alternative store of wealth to Dolores.  DHS thinks stockpiling bullets/ammo is a great idea.  Maybe we should too.  Gold and silver get a lot of airplay.  Could all the Chinese and Indians be wrong?  What about the lesser Central Banks?  All wrong?  Probably not.

Learn how to make, build and/or repair something essential.

Learn how to cook.  Your diet will improve and you'll save a lot of money.

Learn how to entertain yourself and your friends with less Internet.

Learn about natural remedies.

Keep your sense of humor, you are going to need it.