] Despite moral watchdogs lamenting Hollywood's vile
] tendencies, the studios have actually been cleaning up
] their act. R-rated films, once the studios' mainstay, are
] on the decline, both in numbers and in lure. In the last
] five years, R-rated pics have dwindled from 212 in 1999
] to just 147 last year.

It will be 80 years before this pendellum swings back.

Variety.com - Don't give me an 'R'

] Illegal gizmos that interfere with signals and cut off
] reception are selling like hotcakes on the streets of
] New York.
]
] "I bought one online, and I love it," said one jammer
] owner fed up with the din of dumb conversations and
] rock-and-roll ringtones.
]
] "I use it on the bus all the time. I always zap the
] idiots who discuss what they want from the Chinese
] restaurant so that everyone can hear them. Why is that
] necessary?"

New York Post: New Yorkers find new way to be forcibly inconsiderate

July 18, 1939 -- February 20, 2005.

MemeStreams is the kind of place where I expect to read things like this first, and I did, so I'm memeing it, even though by the time you see this you'll already know. I pulled his last ESPN column (from just last week), but its a typical joke about mixing skeet shooting and golf. I won't even being to speculate about this. Its just a shame.

Hunter Thompson commits suicide

] The Texas Instruments DST tag is a cryptographically
] enabled RFID transponder used in several wide-scale
] systems including vehicle immobilizers and the ExxonMobil
] SpeedPass system. This page serves as an overview of our
] successful attacks on DST enabled systems. A preliminary
] version of the full academic paper describing our attacks
] in detail is also available below.

RFIDAnalysis.org

I had recalled hearing the testimony during the hearings that the pictures the media had got were the tip of the iceberg - torture lite, so to speak, and that the unreleased photos were much worse - that there was evidence of murder and sodomy that had happened at Abu Ghraib. I had heard that there were many other pictures and even movies on 2 CDs. I kept waiting for the story to break -surely as it was a public hearing the media heard it too and would be looking into that further - especially the part about rape and the murder.... the rape of an underage Iraqi male prisoner....but I never heard another thing about it....until...this. Gotta love the US MEDIA and controlled release news.

Murder at Abu Ghraib - Controlled Release News?

New issue (Vol 2 Number 1) of CodeBreaker's Journal has been released. An interesting publication for those interested in lower level programming.

CodeBreakers Journal

] While it's important to respect your children's privacy,
] understanding what your teenager's online slang means and
] how to decipher it is important as you help guide their
] online experience. While it has many nicknames,
] information-age slang is commonly referred to as
] leetspeek, or leet for short.

Wow.

Best quote:

] It's important to remember that the leetspeek community
] encourages new forms and awards individual creativity,
] resulting in a dynamic written language that eludes
] conformity or consistency.

Microsoft at their most transparently self serving:

] Their use could be an indicator that your teenager is
] involved in the theft of intellectual property, particularly
] licensed software.

:-o

Microsoft guide to l33t speak.

] The ASCAP license is only the tip of the iceberg: there
] are also comparable licenses for BMI and SESAC, two other
] performing rights organizations; mechanical rights from
] the Harry Fox Agency, _and_ a "master use license" to be
] negotiated with the record labels for each track. The
] latter can be under any terms the label chooses, and they
] can refuse you outright.

This is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. The corrupt world of Digital rights clearance. If you click on the link at the bottom of this story to Matt May's blog there are comments from me at the very end.

Boing Boing: Wil Wheaton: So, ASCAP to *license* podcasts? Readers respond.

] He also pays a lot less in gasoline taxes which fund
] highway projects and road repairs. As more and more
] hybrids hit the road, cash-strapped states are warning of
] rough roads ahead.
]
] Officials in car-clogged California are so worried they
] may be considering a replacement for the gas tax
] altogether, replacing it with something called "tax by
] the mile."
]
] Kim and his team at Oregon State University equipped a
] test car with a global positioning device to keep track
] of its mileage. Eventually, every car would need one.

Question: We're discouraging fuel efficiency. Why not just raise the damn gas tax?

Answer: Because this way we get to install tracking devices in every car!

You might win a debate with the cops about this but you'll never win a debate over tax revenue.

CBS News | States Mull Taxing Drivers By Mile

] ska has a rich history and more recordings than you can
] shake an ass at. i've put together a a collection of
] songs here that i feel represents what i love about the
] music. other ska enthusiasts will surely have different
] tastes and will prioritize a different set of artists
] (notice that prince buster is nowhere to be found here,
] but the slackers have two tracks). my goal is to show the
] progression of roots ska through rocksteady, early
] reggae, and even a few two-tone and third-wave revival
] tracks that deserve respect.

I'm not a big fan of modern poppunkska, but mostly because of the poppunk rather then the ska. I haven't gone through this yet but I'm hopeful. The 80's are conspicuously missing. I'd have included the Police.

Ska for the Skeptical