THE US REPORT

How important is it for a president—for anyone, really—to be computer savvy? That question is floating around various media right now, and a columnist at PC Magazine wrote a very thoughtful essay about the subject. He wrote the column in response to Sen. John McCain’s remarks about not using the Internet—the senator says he has others get him what he needs online. Tech types are concerned about that, because of issues like Net neutrality, spyware and countless other issues. I’m not too worried, and here’s why.

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The website CleanMPG is a curious entity—created during times when most of us want to max a gallon of gas as much as possible. My own commute is very emissions-friendly—I walk from our bedroom to my office. But I can’t dodge driving altogether—newspapers want in-person interviews usually, author events require me to show up in person, bank deposits and other errands require driving.

There’s an interesting forum on ‘hypermiling,’ a term I didn’t even know. CleanMPG offers this: “Hypermiler is a term coined by Wayne Gerdes to describe a driver who strives to exceed their vehicle's EPA fuel economy rating.” There are a number of tips on the site, and a special discussion thread on hypermiling, and a constant caution to refrain from doing anything illegal. Some advanced tips having to do with tire pressures and types of oil seem complicated to me—my knowledge of car engines is limited to starting and stopping.

The Environmental Protection Agency also has a few tips for fuel economy—observing the speed limit, avoiding idling, and ditching excessive weight in your trunk. I never thought much about that last tip until a young man helped me with my groceries. “Wow! You got a clean trunk!” he said. I asked him what he meant. “You oughta’ see the stuff people have in their trunks.”

The CleanMPG website has a lot of information about electric vehicles as well as information about fuel efficiency in older vehicles. The site banner claims members have saved more than 189,000 gallons of fuel.

Text and photo by Kay B. Day

TV and film often portray serial killers as white males and dysfunctional loners who really want to get caught. Or, they’re super-intelligent monsters who frustrate law enforcement at every turn. But according to a new publication from the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime—entitled Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators—serial killers are much different in real life. One revelation: serial killers are not all dysfunctional loners: some have had wives and kids and full-time jobs and have been very active in their community or church or both. The BTK killer comes to mind—Dennis Rader held a steady job and was both a Boy Scout leader and active church member. Ted Bundy was attractive to young women and earned their trust quickly. Compare those real serial killers with the two maniacs in the movie 'Silence of the Lambs.'  Dr. Hannibal Lecter—educated, intellectual and on the surface quite respectable— comes closer to the real model than the other serial killer known as Buffalo Bill.

The publication also discloses serial killers are not all white males: the racial diversification of serial killers generally mirrors the overall U.S. population. Nor do serial killers want to get caught. Over time, as they kill without being discovered, they get careless during their crimes.

Serial killers also seize opportunity. An offender selects a victim, regardless of the category, based upon availability, vulnerability, and desirability. Availability is explained as the lifestyle of the victim or circumstances  that allow the offender access to the victim. Vulnerability is defined as the degree to which the victim is susceptible to attack by the offender. Desirability is described as the appeal of the victim to the offender. Desirability involves numerous factors based upon the motivation of the offender and may include factors dealing with the race, gender, ethnic background, age of the victim, or other specific preferences the offender determines.

You can access the lengthy report at the FBI’s NCAVC page. It’s worth repeating you can’t always judge a person by his or her lifestyle and you can’t buy into the myths Hollywood projects when it comes to serial killers.

[Text & Photo by Kay B. Day. Follow the links below under ‘References’ for additional reading.]

Most of us non-tech types compute with nary a care each day, but software makers, hardware makers and other tech experts collaborated secretly to fix a vulnerability that if exploited would have allowed hackers to literally take over the Web. In one scenario, you’d type in the URL of your bank but you’d actually be taken to a copycat site that would steal your personal information. Breitbart says, “Security researcher Dan Kaminsky of IOActive stumbled upon the Domain Name System (DNS) vulnerability about six months ago and reached out to industry giants including Microsoft, Sun and Cisco to collaborate on a solution.” Kaminsky said he found the vulnerability by accident.

Kaminsky wrote about the experience at the DoxPara Research website. As I read his account of the challenge and the solution, I thought to myself how like poetry technology is, at least as far as the passion and complexity go. Poetry presents a problem—this may sound like overkill, but trust me, poetry will challenge you if it’s approached as art rather than emotional gush—and you pore over the lines, explore the options, see what one tweak will produce, manipulate something as small as a comma and go from there. Kaminsky’s passion for his work is evident. There’s a charming video of him with his niece, explaining the situation in layperson’s terms.

There's a simple clickthrough at DoxPara to check your own DNS security. I was relieved to know mine is safe, at least as far as one can tell.

I tried to thank him and the other collaborators, but wasn’t able to leave a comment at DoxPara. So here’s my expression of gratitude to Kaminsky and all the others who selflessly devoted their time to making the Web a safer place for all of us. The potential fallout from the DNS security flaw was phenomenal—in the 21st century a new category of hero has emerged. These researchers and tech experts are a type of new warrior in my opinion, utlitizing the sort of weaponry that is among the most complicated on the planet. This group definitely deserves a whole lot of our gratitude. Maybe the Nobel Prize Foundation could, for once, recognize a group that did something to benefit common people in every country in the world.

Lots of debate on The Live Feed blog right now over TV One’s decision to cover the Democratic National Convention extensively but to completely ignore the GOP national convention. Many commenters are crying racism. Others say TV One has a 93 percent black audience, and those viewers usually vote a Dem ticket, so it’s no big deal. One or two commenters did remind readers a Republican president actually freed the slaves.

If the Fairness Doctrine returns, as Dem speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and colleagues hope, the decision wouldn’t fly so smoothly. Although TV One isn't regulated, how can Pelosi and her pro-Fairness Doctrine colleagues justify coercing media that would be regulated to do what others won't when they won't have to which is how freedom of speech is supposed to work anyway.

Personally, I believe what a station (or any media outlet) airs is up to the station and the network. I also believe, however, TV One is doing its viewers a disservice. For one thing, we can’t assume all blacks are Democrats. Check out guests on various programs on Fox News shows—kind of makes me want to say, “Yes, Virginia, there are blacks in the GOP.” TV One also shouldn’t assume whites don’t watch their programming. There would be even hotter debate if a network avoided the Dem convention, and I’m sure there’d be rants about racism since racism is a favorite topic at present among the politically enlightened anyway.

But in the USA, TV networks, websites and newspapers can offer their audiences whatever they want to. That’s the beauty of freedom of speech. We have the option to refrain from reading or viewing, or avoiding sponsors if we don’t like a decision.

The Fairness Doctrine would inject the government into your content. That is an infraction of the US Constitution. So while it saddens me there is a racial divide promulgated by some in our country, I am comforted that we have the freedom to protest or speak against what we don’t agree with. And how do we even define broadcasting today? The doctrine of old was established for a completely different and by today's standards less sophisticated marketplace.

Those who don’t like TV One’s decision can write to the station or to the corporations involved in their venture. According to the station’s website, “TV One is a venture of Radio One, Inc., the largest radio broadcaster primarily targeting African American and urban listeners, and Comcast Corporation, the largest cable operator in the country, along with Bear Stearns, Constellation Ventures, Syndicated Communications and Opportunity Capital Partners.”

Finally, the obsession over a potential black American president reflects exactly how fixated we are on our own country rather than the world at large. Many leaders in other countries are people of color, a fact overlooked by our own media. Coincidentally, most are male. Gender bias it seems has fallen from favor among the “thinkerati” as I call them. In the long line of history, this presidential election will be just another blip on the timeline anyway. We are truly insignificant, other than during the fleeting time we prowl this planet in the flesh. But right now, if you’re a black person who supports a GOP candidate, you are truly insignificant to TV One.

Edited 7-13-08; Kay B. Day