How Does Anything Ever Get Accomplished in this Country?

OK, so I wrote briefly earlier this morning about the Democratic Debate I watched on CNN last night. Well, just a few moments ago I read a blog related to the same program and I made myself finish no matter how much closed-minded and one-sided comments I had to endure by doing so. Here is the URL: Clinton Beats Blitzer in CNN Debate This blog is written and/or maintained by "John Nichols" and it is called "The Online Beat."

Now I watched the same show and I have to disagree with much of what Mr. Nichols stated in his blog. He really sounds like one of those people who just like to "toot" their own horns. Well, I guess I'm just one of those guys who likes to take their horns and smash them with a giant hammer because I get sick of hearing them, and I really don't care if it upsets them or makes their eyes water up.

This guy went on-and-on about how Wolf Blitzer was overbearing and wouldn't let the candidates have their complete and total say. Well, I think he did a pretty good job considering the fact that only a few of the candidates gave a clear and direct answer when asked a clear and direct question. Bill Richardson, the governor of New Mexico for instance, wanted to layout his full agenda every single time he spoke. If Wolf would have let him do this it would have eaten up all of the time allotted for the others to have their say. I'm glad Wolf cut him off several times because he needed to be cut off several times.

I noticed that when the candidates stuck with direct answers to the questions that were asked, Blitzer made sure they had the time they needed to finish. John Nichols, if you think you can do a better job then perhaps you should try to get involved with the next debate and see if you can fill the moderator position. If it were done your way, we'd only hear from one candidate and then we'd truly be able to say that the debate accomplished nothing, as you stated in your blog that the Democratic Debate accomplished nothing.

I'm getting real tired of everyone who watches FOX News talking about everyone who watches CNN, and vice-versa. Liberal this, conservative that, right wing this, left wing that, Democrat this, Republican that. The problem with this country is that everybody wants to turn everything into a contest, everything is about "my team is better than your team." Even the Presidential election is about who gets to hold the keys to the Oval Office at the end, as if it is some kind of a trophy.

Well let me tell you something pal, the Presidency is not a trophy, it is not a position to be sought after with the goal of obtaining life-long bragging rights. It's not a position you need to accept under the impression that the country will owe you something because you've obtained it. No, the Presidency is an obligation, it is a responsibility and an honor bestowed upon that person who is elected to ensure that the government is functioning the way it should be, the way it was designed to be. That person should act honorably and in the best interest of every single citizen of this country, no matter what their status in life might be, from the very poorest to the very richest.

When you look at how the media acts and all of the bickering back and forth about who is right and who is wrong, and the same thing is happening in The White House and in Congress, how do any of us ever expect anything productive to come out of anything? We all need to start pushing our elected politicians to stop arguing like children over meaningless issues and start doing what they're supposed to be doing and working on solving important issues that are relevant to us all.

Same thing with you Mr. John Nichols... If you see something that you don't agree with on a channel you have something against for some unrelated reason, keep it to yourself instead of posting it on the Internet. If you don't like CNN then don't watch it, if you don't like FOX News, then don't watch it either, but don't bark about either one of them as if you somehow have the authority to do so. Everyone in this country has the Constitutional right to choose their political path, and criticism does absolutely no good unless it is constructive. Negativity only divides this country's people even more, so try to find the good in all things rather than the bad.

That's all I have to say about that.

Democratic Debate - 2007

I've been sitting here watching the Democratic Debate on CNN and I'm impressed by a few of the candidates. Of course, I'm going to vote Democrat even though I live in Texas, which by the way is pretty much pointless considering that Texas is a mostly Republican state.

I agree with most of them on the point that the current administration, that is the George W. Bush Administration, has done an extremely poor job throughout its term. Time and time again George W. Bush has ignored those whom he should not have ignored, and over and over he has embarrassed our nation and done horrible injustices to the American people and the people of other nations as well. I personally have never agreed with the way that man has handled anything since his very first day in office, and I caught a lot of flack from people I know because a lot of them actually like or liked him. Remember, I live in Texas...

Regardless, when the next President is elected this country will be in more able hands than it is now or has been in for the last seven-and-a-half years. And that will be true no matter who wins, and no matter which party they happen to represent. There isn't a doubt in my mind that the new President will be 100 times better than what I feel like has been the very worst President in American history. I don't think there will ever be a worse President than George W. Bush, and I have felt that way since the very first day of his very first term.

Computer Anti-Virus Seminar - No. 001

I have been working on a computer anti-virus and security seminar for a couple of months now. I'll be presenting this free seminar at the Lumberton Public Library in Lumberton, TX on Thursday, June 14th 2007, at 6:00 P.M. There is only room for 35 people to attend, so if you read this and would like to attend then send me an e-mail and I will let you know if there is still seating available.

The presentation will last for approximately one hour and will cover a variety of basic issues. The main idea of this presentation is to raise user awareness and help people learn how to protect their hardware, software, and data at home, or at work.

I hope to see you there! By the way, my e-mail address is shown on the right hand side of this site, directly under my photo.

Hometown Healthcare - A New Website

I have just begun working on a new website for my cousin, the doctor. Right now I'm working on the logo and some other graphic designs and I've already come up with some catchy graphics.

When this site is finished I'm going to make sure that people who visit it say, "WHOA!! What a nice looking site! That doctor must have spent a fortune on that..."

I will keep any of you readers posted on the progress.

Congratulations Dr. Taylor!

I just wanted to take a minute to say, "Congratulations!" to my cousin who just graduated from college.

Natasha, eight years ago you entered college as a freshman with what probably seemed like a very distant, or maybe even an almost impossible task in front of you. Regardless of the daunting task, you moved toward the goal with unmatched persistence and determination. Even when you faced circumstances that would give most people a nervous breakdown, you kept your sights focused on the target, and above all you kept right on moving. If you are not capable of multi-tasking then nobody else is either.

We are all very proud of you Dr. Taylor, and I'm honored to have a cousin like you. There is not a doubt in my mind that you'll soon have many patients who are extremely thankful to have a doctor like you taking care of them. We wish you all the best.

Wireless Network Tips

I used to be a contractor for TimeWarner Cable, and I frequently installed wireless networks. It was NOT a requirement for us to enable encryption on the network, at least not while I was working there. This is why I've decided to blog this.

First, it is extremely important that you secure your network the best you can. There are several ways to do this and as with everything else in this world, some ways are better, or more effective than others. So, here is a list of security measures you need to take:

• Use Encryption, either WEP or WPA/WPA2.
• Rename the SSID to something other than the default.
• Enable MAC Address Filtering, and other advanced hardware firewall options.
• Use a software firewall in addition to the hardware firewall in the router.

Encryption:

There are two choices for encryption on today's wireless networks. The first is known as WEP or Wireless Equivalent Privacy, and has until recently been the standard for wireless encryption. WEP offers two different levels of encryption, 64 bit and 128 bit.

The second choice is WPA/WPA2 (PSK) or Wireless Protected Access (Pre-Shared Key). WPA/WPA2 PSK is a recent standards-based security technique where each packet of information is encrypted with a different code, or key. This key is generated automatically from the pass phrase or Pre-shared key, and it changes constantly which makes WPA/WPA2 extremely secure. The biggest threat to this type of encryption is if someone were to discover your Pre-shared Key, so if you write it down somewhere be sure to keep it out of reach of anyone that shouldn't have it.

The only reason you should use WEP is if any your hardware devices won't support WPA/WPA2. WPA/WPA2 pass phrases are case sensitive, so "y" is not the same as "Y". This enables you to generate a much more secure key.

Rename the SSID:

The SSID is the "Site Survey Identification." When you purchase a wireless router, the default SSID usually includes the manufacturer's name. For example, Belkin uses the following: SSID=belkin54g, and 2Wire uses SSID=2WIREnnn where "n" equals a digit from 0-9. Other brands uses similar methods and if you don't change this default value, it tells anyone in your area who conducts a site survey what type of hardware you're using. This presents a problem because when security holes are discovered by hackers they share the information with one another. When they see a certain brand of router then they use their inside knowledge to hack that network.

Changing the SSID on most, if not all routers is usually a very simple process and should be done as soon as the router is connected to your devices. It is important to make the SSID something generic that has no meaning other than simply Identifying the device. For example, "SSID=Router651" would be a good choice. Nobody can tell anything about that other than the fact that it's a router, which they already know anyway. Don't use any computer name-brands, operating systems, or networking specific information when naming your SSID, simply keep it generic.

MAC Address Filtering:

MAC stands for Media Access Controller and all network components including cards, adapters, and routers, have a unique "serial number" called a MAC address. For instance, no two network cards (NIC) on the planet should have the same MAC address.

You should be able to enable MAC address filtering on your router and list only the addresses that will be allowed to access your network. This makes for a simple and moderately effective security measure. Of course, it is still possible for a really good hacker to spoof a MAC address and bypass this measure, but it isn't likely that someone would go through that hassle to gain access to a home network, especially if other forms of security measures have also been taken such as encryption.

Patience

Patience is a virtue... And let me tell you something, one way or another in your lifetime, you WILL learn that sometimes patience is the only way.

I was driving today along an IH-10 Westbound feeder road near Orange, TX and I could see that traffic was backing up on the Interstate. It was, and had been raining and there was a light mist flying up off of the road as cars were cruising along. I was nearing an IH-10 exit ramp and I was watching the cars exiting so I could judge how to best merge when I noticed a nice full-size truck that didn't seem to be slowing down as fast as he should have been.

This was a really nice, white, full-size Chevy truck with dark tinted windows and expensive rims with low-profile tires. It was also loaded down with various household things in the back as if whoever was driving might be moving.

Anyway, this guy was just a little past his exit and still moving around 40 to 45 MPH and decided that he couldn't wait until the next exit because he was in too much of a hurry, so he decided to try to get off of the Interstate now. The only problem with that was the fact that there was a curb that was about 10 inches high or so where he tried to exit, and there was also a median and another 10 inch curb on the other side. His truck SLAMMED into the curb and jumped about 2 feet off of the ground and then SLAMMED again back onto the ground on the other side of the median. All of this happened directly in front of me, about 50 yards or so, and I was still moving but moving slowly as his truck aimlessly whizzed across the feeder road at about 25 MPH or so. It then SMASHED into yet another curb on the right side of the feeder road and people commenced passing him as if nothing had happened.

As I passed, I could see that his rear passenger tire was flat, one of his front fenders was badly damaged, his front bumper seemed to be hanging a bit low, and while it was actually happening, I noticed that things seemed to be flying out of the back of his truck. It all happened within the blink of an eye, so it might have been a lot worse that what I've discussed here. No matter how bad it was though, I do know that nobody was hurt in the ordeal because I watched the guy get out to assess the damage.

The moral of the story is that if the guy would have just been more patient, he'd still have a brand-new vehicle right now. Not to mention the fact that he put peoples' lives in danger by being careless and not thinking of consequences to his actions prior to taking those actions. Today, he learned the hard way that being impatient DOES NOT PAY!!!