Iran Practicing to Attack US Aircraft Carriers......

How stupid is Iran……

President Obama is about to sign a real bad deal allowing Iran to keep its Nuclear Program. All Iran has to do it sit quietly and not draw attention to themselves.

Obama wants everyone to believe Iran is fine and don’t even worry about their Nuclear program. There are enough other conflicts going on and war with Iran is not currently on the US agenda.

Next week Netanyahu is coming to Washington to ring the fire bell by telling everyone how dangerous Iran is…. and how stupid Obama is. Instead of helping Obama prove Netanyahu wrong by being quiet……. instead Iran stages a high profile attack on a US Aircraft Carrier. Way to go geniuses…..Netanyahu must be rolling on the floor laughing his azz off. I bet his stomach hurts he is laughing so hard.

Countries do not attack US aircraft carriers. The last US Aircraft carrier sunk in battle was in world war II. And while this is all about propaganda the message is a strong one. The US Navy is always on offense….. but here we have the most important symbol of the US Navy under attack. That is not something you see everyday.

Their method of attack is interesting using small fast speed boats. Could that work in real life? Well first a US Aircraft carrier is not a sitting duck. It is surrounded by lots of other ships that make up a battle group. Getting to it is not easy. Those other ships (in the battle group) have weapons too and they shoot back. So while Irans video looks like a giant success….. in real life that is not exactly how it would play out.

But nonetheless if the goal is to start a war with the United States…..Well attacking a US aircraft carrier would be a real good way to do it. What followed for Iran would not be pretty though.

My advice to Iran would be just sit quietly and let Obama do his thing. They are not helping their situation. It is like what I tell my kids…..Sometime you just need to learn when to quit while you are ahead.

http://www.cnn.com/…/…/26/world/iran-mock-carrier-destroyed/

John Oliver Helps Save Net Neutrality.....

Today the FCC approved new Net Neutrality rules.  This is a good thing for consumers and small businesses. 

It is all largely thanks to John Oliver.  Make sure you send him a thank you note. 

But first you can watch his 13 minute segment that lit the fire.

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-02-26/how-john-oliver-transformed-the-net-neutrality-debate-once-and-for-all

Lenovo....Completely Shady, Just Like We Thought.....

In 2004 IBM sold their personal computer business to Communist Red Chinas Lenovo.

At the time people raise security concerns about this transaction. As always the concerns were swept under the rug and everyone went back to sleep.

After all If you can’t trust the communist Chinese with all your secrets then who can you trust? The Chinese have shown time and again with friends like them who needs enemy’s.

http://mashable.com/2015/02/20/lenovo-apology-superfish/

Despite all the trust in 2006 the Pentagon was so concerned they banned Lenovo computers from the defense department.

http://www.darkreading.com/…/intelligence-ag…/d/d-id/1110950?

The US Government would not use Lenovo but you were still free too….. if you were that stupid.

Now we learn about “Superfish”…… built right into your Lenovo compromising the security of your computer. Shocking I know. Who could have predicted this.

You would have to be some kind of super genius to see this coming.

In other news.....Right now Lenovo is trying to purchase IBM’s server business…… but it is being delayed over security concerns.

http://www.wsj.com/…/ibm-lenovo-tackle-security-concerns-ov…

Gee I wonder where those would be coming from. Trusting the Chinese shouldn’t be an issue at all. After all…… they have already hacked into everything there is. What could possibly be left? At this point just sell them the server business. The horse is out of the barn and 4000 miles down the road.....Close the barn door if you like. Or don't. Whatever!

Security experts on Thursday widely decried the software as both unethical and a dangerous security hole. Superfish installs its own fake certification on machines to trick the PC's web browser into giving the adware access to secure web connections.

That might sound bad on its own, but, according to researchers, Superfish does this so sloppily that it leaves windows open for hackers to take advantage of the fake certificates, and potentially steal sensitive user data, including banking information.

Initially, Lenovo was hesitant to admit there was any security problem. In an initial statement released on Thursday, Lenovo said it had "thoroughly investigated this technology," and did not find "any evidence to substantiate security concerns."

Peter Hortensius, Lenovo's Chief Technology Officer, also told The Wall Street Journal that issues raised by security researchers were "theoretical concerns," and the company had "no insight that anything nefarious has occurred." Hortensius did acknowledge, however, that Lenovo didn't "do enough."

As the day went on, Lenovo attracted more scrutiny from privacy advocates and cybersecurity experts. By the evening, the company had changed its tune.

"We will talk with partners, industry experts and our users. We will get their feedback," according to Lenovo's updated statement. "We are eager to be held accountable for our products, your experience and the results of this new effort."

In addition, the company released step-by-step instructions for getting rid of both the Superfish software and root certificate that raised security concerns.

Government Hackers Inside your Hard Drive.........

The U.S. National Security Agency has figured out how to hide spying software deep within hard drives made by Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba and other top manufacturers, giving the agency the means to eavesdrop on the majority of the world's computers

the spies made a technological breakthrough by figuring out how to lodge malicious software in the obscure code called firmware that launches every time a computer is turned on.

Disk drive firmware is viewed by spies and cybersecurity experts as the second-most valuable real estate on a PC for a hacker, second only to the BIOS code invoked automatically as a computer boots up.

"The hardware will be able to infect the computer over and over,

the still-active espionage campaign could have taken control of thousands of PCs, giving them the ability to steal files or eavesdrop on anything they wanted

the spying programs show that they could work in disk drives sold by more than a dozen companies, comprising essentially the entire market. They include Western Digital Corp, Seagate Technology Plc, Toshiba Corp, IBM, Micron Technology Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.

Western Digital, Seagate and Micron said they had no knowledge of these spying programs. Toshiba and Samsung declined to comment. IBM did not respond to requests for comment.

GETTING THE SOURCE CODE

authors of the spying programs must have had access to the proprietary source code that directs the actions of the hard drives. That code can serve as a roadmap to vulnerabilities, allowing those who study it to launch attacks much more easily.

(Which is why Bill Gates going to Communist Red China to show the Source Code to Windows was such a monumentally horrible idea. Bill Gates should be in Jail)

"There is zero chance that someone could rewrite the [hard drive] operating system using public information,

Concerns about access to source code flared after a series of high-profile cyberattacks onGoogle Inc and other U.S. companies in 2009 that were blamed on China.

Investigators have said they found evidence that the hackers gained access to source code from several big U.S. tech and defense companies.

It is not clear how the NSA may have obtained the hard drives' source code. Western Digital spokesman Steve Shattuck said the company "has not provided its source code to government agencies." The other hard drive makers would not say if they had shared their source code with the NSA

the NSA has multiple ways of obtaining source code from tech companies, including asking directly and posing as a software developer. If a company wants to sell products to the Pentagon or another sensitive U.S. agency, the government can request a security audit to make sure the source code is safe.

'We're going to do an evaluation, we need the source code,'" said Vincent Liu, a partner at security consulting firm Bishop Fox and former NSA analyst. "It's usually the NSA doing the evaluation, and it's a pretty small leap to say they're going to keep that source code."

http://www.reuters.com/…/us-usa-cyberspying-idUSKBN0LK1QV20…

Breaking News - Cindy Crawford Ages Like Everyone Else.....

Oh my goodness Cindy Crawford is a normal person…… This is unbelievable news. Lets put this on CNN.

At age 48 Cindy Crawford no longer looks like she is 18. Quick…. wake up the president. Break into the normally scheduled programming to report this incredibly important news.

It is now a “firestorm” that super models age like normal people. I can’t believe what I am seeing.

Are they kidding with this garbage? Isn’t there real news going on? Is this really what needs to be on CNN. I am pretty sure it is snowing somewhere and now that is not being covered because of this incredibly important news.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/…/16/opinion/drexler-cindy-crawford/

Genetically Modified Apples...Enjoy!

The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday approved America's first genetically modified apples. (Oh good)

Their appeal: They don't turn brown when bruised or sliced.

(That is right….. you can eat them right away…. or leave them sitting cut for 3 days on a plate. Then feed them to your family. Either way the Apples will look fresh and delicious. Will they be fresh though? Let us know what your kids think)

The Food and Drug Administration is not required to approve genetically engineered crops for consumption. (Isn’t that reassuring.)

To create their Granny and Golden varieties, Okanagan turned off an enzyme that causes apples to turn brown.

In November, the USDA approved a genetically engineered potato, developed by the J.R. Simplot Company, which uses a similar technique to prevent browning. (Food always looks fresh…..Even when it is not. What a great idea.)

most of the genetically modified foods we eat are processed, containing ingredients made from bioengineered corn or soybeans.

The majority of GMOs have been modified to fend off insects or survive being sprayed down with weedkillers, (That is right….Insects won’t touch the tainted food….. but your kids are going to love it. Eat up.)

How will we be able to know when the apples have gone bad if they're no longer turning brown? (You won’t know….Now shut up and eat it)

Carter doesn't feel his company should be forced to use a GMO label. (Labels only serve to educate people. Everyone knows education is a terrible idea. The less you know the better.)

"We've spent time and money on five years of regulatory work to prove and to demonstrate our product is as safe as any other," he says. "Label it just like any other apple. (It is not like any other Apple. If it was like any other apple it would turn brown.)

We'll have information at the point of sale (sure you will) , and we're very transparent (clearly) on our website. Let the consumer decide. (As long as the consumer is kept in the dark they should be able to make a good decision)

http://www.cnn.com/…/heal…/apples-genetically-modified-usda/

Shipping Containers All Piled Up And Nowhere To Go........

I love this story.

Cargo ships as far as the eye can see…….All filled with products made in Communist Red China……… all unable to unload.

Makes me so happy.

National Retail Federation said “This stalemate is hurting American businesses, their employees (Their employees are in China…. so who cares) and consumers.”

It called on the White House to push for a settlement, as did the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Ohhhhhhh……. NOW Big Business wants the government to get involved. I see how it works. Normally Big Business can’t yell loud enough for the government to stay out of it. Let the free market rule the day. No interference from government. Capitalism does not need government.

BUTTTTT……. when the cargo ships full of Chinese made junk can’t get unloaded…….. and Wal-Mart starts to freak out……..Then Big business can’t run to the government fast enough.

“Please Mr. President make them unload the ships. Pleaseeeeee……. we need to sell our junk to unemployed Americans. How are we going to make are quarterly numbers if the shelves are all empty?”

Boo freakin hoo…..You made your bed in China……Now lay in it…. and be quiet.

Obama should tell them to figure it out on their own. Obviously if there is a labor dispute it can be solved with more money. Money solves all problems. It is the weapon of Capitalism.

If the dock workers are not important then don’t pay them more. If they are important, and the ships really do need to be unloaded, then fork over the money.

It is Capitalism baby. Love it like you pretend to…. and stop whining.

Meanwhile enjoy the empty shelves. The more the better.

http://www.nytimes.com/…/west-coast-labor-dispute-brings-cr…

Science Still Says High Fructose Corn Syrup Making You Fat.....

For those who still believe Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup are exactly the same here is some more Science for you. You remember science. It is the method used to prove or disprove something.

In the past I have pointed to a Princeton study that shows HFCS is making you fat. Here is a University Of Utah Study that shows exactly the same result.

If you still don’t believe this study than you can just walk down the street and count the fat people who walk by you. Be prepared to count a lot. Either way the results are clear. High Fructose Corn Syrup is making you (and everyone around you) fat.

Now go to your food cabinet. Find anything that says High Fructose Corn Syrup in it and toss it in your garbage can. When you are done your cabinet will be empty so you will want to go shopping.

Of course when you get to the store you will find very little to buy as everything has HFCS in it. But don’t stress about that now though……. just go get rid of that crap and stop feeding it to your family.

http://www.standard.net/…/high-fructose-corn-syrup-toxic-st…

When researchers at the University of Utah fed mice sugar in doses equal to what many people eat, the fructose-glucose mixture found in high-fructose corn syrup was more toxic than sucrose or table sugar, reducing both the reproduction and lifespan of female rodents.

The study showed female mice on the fructose-glucose diet had death rates 1.87 times higher than females on the sucrose diet. They also produced 26.4 percent fewer offspring.

“This is the most robust study showing there is a difference between high-fructose corn syrup and table sugar at human-relevant doses,” said U of U biology professor Wayne Potts, a senior author of the new study scheduled for publication in the March 2015 issue of The Journal of Nutrition.

The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation.

The new findings build on a former sugar toxicity study done in 2013 by the researchers. That study found female mice died at twice the normal rate and the males were a quarter less likely to hold territory and reproduce. Additionally, researchers found no differences in survival, reproduction or territoriality of male mice on the high-fructose and sucrose diets. That may be because both sugars are equally toxic to male mice.

The debate over the relative dangers of fructose and sucrose is important, Potts said, because when the diabetes-obesity-metabolic syndrome epidemics started in the mid-1970s, they corresponded with both a general increase in consumption of added sugar and the switchover from sucrose being the main added sugar in the American diet to high-fructose corn syrup making up half our sugar intake.

Approximately 13 to 25 percent of Americans consume a diet that includes 25 percent or more of calories in the form of added sugars, which was the percentage of added sugars consumed by mice in the new study. Added sugars are sugars added during food processing or preparation and not already naturally in food, like in a piece of fruit.

44 percent of the added sugar is sucrose, 42 percent is high-fructose corn syrup and the remaining 14 percent includes honey, molasses, juice concentrates and agave, all of which also combine fructose and glucose, which also is known as dextrose. He said worldwide, high-fructose corn syrup represents only about eight percent of added sugar consumption.

previous studies in rodents and humans tied pure fructose consumption to metabolic problems such as insulin resistance, obesity and abnormal cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Those studies concluded high-fructose corn syrup was worse than sucrose.

The researchers said reducing added sugar across the board is important, as well as decreasing the amount of products you purchase with high fructose corn syrup.

Brian Williams Under Fire......Or Maybe not. Depends On His Memory.

Everyone is trashing Brian Williams and saying he should be fired because the facts he told about a story (which happened 12 years earlier in the Iraq War) were embellished.

Who cares….

It is not like Brian Williams was reporting a news event. He was telling a personal story so he could thank a soldier. Whether he was shot at, or wasn’t shot at, doesn’t change his thank you to the soldier.

http://money.cnn.com/…/me…/brian-williams-scandal/index.html

Now if he had reported there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq (when there really weren’t any) well…… that would be a big deal.

You can’t lie about stuff like that or you would lose your job. Or win reelection in 2004. Either way……

Not like Brian won an award based on this helicopter story. Not like he got promoted because of this story either. It is much to do about nothing.

If it makes Brian feel any better Hillary Clinton told the exact same lie and next year she will run for President of the United States. Being dishonest is no detriment to career advancement.

http://www.reuters.com/…/us-usa-politics-clinton-idUSN25408…

Everyone should leave Brian alone.

Communist Red China Hacks Anthem......

Communist Red China just stole 80,000,000 Anthem Customers personal data.

Social Security numbers…..Income data…..birthdays….Street and email addresses…..It is all theirs.

Quick put on your surprised face…….

On January 23rd I posted about Apple going over to Communist Red China and opening up their operating system so the Chinese can hack all of your apple products. This followed 12 years after Bill Gates went over to Communist Red China to open up the source code to windows so they can hack all your windows products.

Today you get one more example of what I am talking about. If it is on a computer network anywhere on planet Earth then the Chinese have it. Don’t worry because you can trust them.

Last month North Korea hacked Sony and it was an international incident. President Obama was outraged.

This time around there will be a lot less outrage. China holds all the cards and the United States will have very little to say about it.

You don’t need to worry about Obama interrupting your prime time TV programs to explain what the US response will be. Because there won’t be one.

If it makes you feel any better Obamas Cyber Security adviser also had his personal information stolen by the Chinese.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…/25fbb36e-ad56-11e4-9c91-e9d…

IBM Layoffs. They Are A Coming......

IBM is about to layoff 100,000 employees world wide. How exciting.

26% of the workforce is going to be shown the exit sign and then kicked right past it.

It will be the largest mass layoff at any company in the last 20 years. Go big or go home. Really they just want you to go home…..And never come back.

Nicely done IBM. They must be so proud.

http://spectrum.ieee.org/…/massive-worldwide-layoff-underwa…

"notices have started going out, and most of the hundred-thousand-plus will likely be gone by the end of February."

"IBM immediately denied Cringely’s report, indicating that a planned $600 million “workforce rebalancing” was going to involve layoffs (or what the company calls “Resource Actions”) of just thousands of people. But Cringely responded that he never said that the workforce reductions would be all called layoffs—instead, multiple tactics are being used, including pushing employees out through low ratings (more on that in a moment). And some managers are indeed admitting to employees that their job has been eliminated as part of Project Chrome, leading employees to coin a new catchphrase: “Getting Chromed.” "

"Alliance@IBM, the IBM employees’ union, says it has so far collected reports of 5000 jobs eliminated, including 250 in Boulder, Colo., 150 in Columbia, Missouri, and 202 in Dubuque, Iowa. Layoffs in Littleton, Mass., are reportedly “massive,” but no specific numbers have been published."

"Pink slips have been said to be flying at IBM Australia, with rumors of 400 workers to be cut. And the Economic Times in India reported last week that employees of IBM’s offices in Bengaluru were scrambling to find new jobs, trying to get out of IBM ahead of the coming tsunami."

"Those are official layoff numbers. But then there’s that performance rating ploy—also known as a stealth layoff—that involves giving a previously highly rated employee the lowest rating (a 3), before showing them the door."

"The 3 can lead to immediate dismissal, particularly in older employees on what IBM calls the “Bridge to Retirement” program, in which employees commit to a specific retirement date and accept cuts in hours and pay in return for being protected from dismissal unless they get a poor performance rating."

"For younger employees, a rating of 3 can put an employee into what is called a Performance Improvement Plan, and if the rating doesn’t improve in a set period of time, the employee can be fired for cause. Giving out 3s works to the company’s benefit even if employees are officially laid off, because it can lead to reduced severance benefits."

"This isn’t the first time IBM employees have received aberrant poor performance reviews shortly before a layoff; it’s reportedly standard operating procedure. A former employee who was the victim of a Resource Action in 2010 confirmed this, telling me that after years of top ratings, he received a 3 just before his job was eliminated, even though he’d just had what he perceived as his best year ever."

"Anecdotal evidence is beginning to pile up. At the Alliance@IBM website, an employee comment thread indicates that a sudden flood of bad reviews indeed starting coming in last week."

http://www.latimes.com/…/la-fi-mh-ibm-redefines-20150202-co…

Please don’t freak out though because it is not all bad news. The CEO is being rewarded with a $100,000 pay increase (1.6 million dollar base salary) PLUS a $3,600,000.00 BONUS……PLUS a 13.3 MILLION DOLLAR Stock incentive……all for doing such a great job.

So why is the CEO getting such a raise. Well…….

IBM's revenue declined by nearly 6%, (congrats) and net income by 27%. (Lets Celebrate)

IBM shares began 2014 at a dividend-adjusted $183.12 and ended the year at $160.44, a decline of 12.4%. (Declines = a reason for paying the CEO lots more money. Rewarding failure is a staple of Corporate America. It is as American as Apple Pie.)

During that period, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 12.4%

IBM has been the worst performing stock on the Dow Jones Industrial Average for two years running. (Awesome!)

Yup…..The reason rich people have more money is because they work harder (than you) and are just overall smarter. You think it is easy running a company into the ground? Well it is….. Now if you will excuse me I have a lot of money to count.

Running a big company really is easy as sh*t. First you get rid of everyone. Then you count all your money. It is a lot easier to count the money when nobody is in the building distracting you too.

Also nobody will look at you funny when you dance like Fred Astaire up and down all the empty aisles of abandoned cubicles. Nothing makes a CEO happier than empty cubicles. That sight can bring tear to ones eye.

Iran and USA Compromise is Really Just Iran winning......

A USA and Iran compromise is really just Iran getting everything they want and the USA getting nothing.

Iran has 10,000 centrifuges to enrich Uranium.  The USA had said Iran needs to get this number down to 2000.  Iran said No.

The USA said fine than Iran needs to get that number down to 4,500.  Iran said No again.

Now the USA is going to say fine again.  This time Iran can keep all 10,000 centrifuges but please cross your heart and promise not to make any Nuclear bombs.

The sanctions the USA has on Iran are working.  Iran’s economy is in tatters.  The price of oil is in the toilet.  Iran isn’t allowed to sell much oil even if the price wasn’t in the toilet. 

Iran desperately wants the sanctions lifted. They have agreed to hold direct talks with the “Great Satan” just to move the process along.

 They have agreed to do this not because the sanctions are not working, but because they are definitely working. 

All Obama has to do is nothing and Iran will be forced to cave.  The foot is on the throat. 

But instead Obama will agree to a terrible deal….. just to get any deal at all.  He knows he only has two years left to fix his legacy.  But once the foot is off the throat and once that deal is done that is it.  Everyone will go home and in 2 years when Iran is back enriching Uranium it will be back to square one. 

Trying to put the coalition back together will be a tall order.  Must likely impossible.  Iran knows this very well.

Victory goes to Iran.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/ap-exclusive-us-iran-discussing-nuclear-talks-compromise/2015/02/03/9526c6bc-abca-11e4-8876-460b1144cbc1_story.html