Monday, July 25, 2005

Bag searches on New York subway to begin. Starting Monday, New York City commuters will be asked to share their bags with police as they begin the first full work week ... [USATODAY.com Nation - Top Stories] While I understand the rational, the legality of it skirts very close to the edge.  Very close. 10:58:38 AM    comment []

Al Qaeda Leaders Seen in Control (washingtonpost.com). washingtonpost.com - LONDON, July 23 -- The back-to-back nature of the deadly attacks in Egypt and London, as well as similarities in the methods used, suggests that the al Qaeda leadership may have given the orders for both operations and is a clear sign that Osama bin Laden and his deputies remain in control of the network, according to interviews with counterterrorism analysts and government officials in Europe and the Middle East. [Yahoo! News: Top Stories] While I am not willing to bet the farm on it, there are some things to keep in mind.  If the US governement tells you something, the opposite is probably closer to the truth, especially with this administration.  Personally, I am not a big believer in the conspiracy theory. I would, however, allow for some group work. 10:55:12 AM    comment []

D.C. Area Housing Market Cools Off (washingtonpost.com). washingtonpost.com - Washington area temperatures may be sizzling, but the once-torrid real estate market seems to be cooling off as houses stay on the market longer and the number of homes for sale rises. [Yahoo! News: Top Stories] This should not come as a surprise.  Jobs are still scarce, regardless of what the government wants us to believe and they are not paying the types of saleries that will be sufficient to meet the costs of the houses.  The bubble is about to burst.  Hopefully without you holding the stick. 10:49:00 AM    comment []

Teamsters, SEIU Decide to Bolt AFL-CIO (AP). AP - Organized labor is at war with itself as the Teamsters and a major service employees' union decide to bolt from the AFL-CIO, paving the way for two other groups to sever ties in the labor movement's biggest rift since the 1930s. [Yahoo! News: Top Stories] At the risk of sounding biased, it is perhaps time for unions to go.  Yes, I have worked in a union shop and I have also worked outside of them.  Unions had their place in the early years of the industrial revolution, the unions were the sole source of protection for workers health and rights.  Some would aruge that the conditions really have not changed and they are in there fighting for health care and safe working environments.  However, as we have seen and will continue to see that the unions and their contracts are in many ways restrictions to grown and the flexibility most modern companies need to compete in the global work place.  Further, many of the protections that the unions fought for are now codified in law, making their demands further detrimental to economic effectiveness. Perhaps that is what the breakaway unions have come to realize and are trying to move forward while the AFL-CIO continues to stick to business as usual.  Lets face it, it is not 1900 any more. 8:28:06 AM    comment []

Critical MySQL Flaw Found (Ziff Davis). Ziff Davis - A "highly critical" flaw has been reported in MySQL that can be exploited to cause a DoS (Denial of Service) or to execute arbitrary code on the open-source database. [Yahoo! News: Technology News] Geek post.  Go to MySQL, get the patch, return to your normal work. 7:36:45 AM    comment []

Abortion Pill Deaths Puzzle Officials (AP). AP - Federal health investigators are baffled: Why have four California women died from a bloodstream infection after using a controversial abortion pill? [Yahoo! News: U.S. National] If you do not follow the instructions, then you can expect something to happen that you did not plan on.  Follow the directions and everything will work as planned (this is not always true for software and relationships however). 7:34:31 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2005 David Lane.