A Gator in the Henhouse

Anyone remember Gator? It is/was a nice little piece of "spyware" that covertly installed itself on user's computers during installation of other non-related software such as IE toolbar snap-ins, P2P software and email stationery add ons. Gator is nominally an advertising content delivery system, but in practice tends to do a lot more, including:

GAIN displays advertising. A lot of pop-up advertising if you visit popular web sites or search for advertiser's hot words like "auto loan". Our experience was that its advertising was sometimes poorly targeted and therefore unlikely to be helpful.

GAIN interrupts your work. Usually, your computer does things as a result of your own actions. GAIN actions don't follow that pattern. Their ads are often timed to pop up a few seconds after you've finished clicking on a link or entering data, which can be very distracting.

GAIN can install software without your knowledge. With so many security issues on the Internet, it is important to know when and why software is being installed on your system. Our survey shows that most users do not know how GAIN got onto their system, and Gator can install even more software without further notice.

GAIN collects extensive information. Perhaps Gator doesn't know who you are, but it certainly collects a lot of information when you consider all the things that the company lists in its Terms and Conditions. Take our Gator license quiz and see how well you know it.

GAIN uses up valuable system resources. Gator's simple WeatherScope application takes up about 14 megabytes of memory because of the GAIN software that comes with it. It also uses up 15 percent of system resources on Windows Me. On systems with small amounts of memory this can degrade performance or cause system instability.

from PC Pitstop

The Gator Corporation renamed itself to Claria Corporation in October 2003, probably due to continuing bad press over the Gator name (GAIN is their new acronym for the Gator suite of products). Now for the interesting bit:

Claria(SM) (http://www.claria.com), a pioneer and leader in the behavioral marketing space, today announced that the company's Chief Privacy Officer and Vice President of Regulatory and Legislative Affairs, D. Reed Freeman, Jr., has been appointed to a four-year term on the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) new Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee (http://www.dhs.gov/privacy).

from Claria Corp. via PR Wire

So the "Chief Privacy Officer" of a company that's so well known for making spyware - spyware so invasive and detrimental as to be one step away from a virus, spyware so poorly viewed in the public eye that they had to change their name to try to disassociate themselves from it - now advises DHS on citizen's privacy?

UPDATE: I dug a little deeper into the DHS site and found the bio for the Chief Privacy Officer for the agency itself: Nuala O'Connor Kelly. Before being slotted to the DHS post, she held the same position at Commerce. Also:

Prior to her beginning her government career, O’Connor Kelly served as Vice President-Data Protection and Chief Privacy Officer for Emerging Technologies for the online media services company, DoubleClick. O’Connor Kelly helped found the company’s first data protection department and was responsible for the creation of privacy and data protection policies and procedures throughout the company and for the company’s clients and partners. O’Connor Kelly also served as the company’s first deputy general counsel for privacy.

For those who aren't familiar with DoubleClick, here's a blurb from HowStuffWorks.com:

There are certain infrastructure providers that can actually create cookies that are visible on multiple sites. DoubleClick is the most famous example of this. Many companies use DoubleClick to serve ad banners on their sites. DoubleClick can place small (1x1 pixels) GIF files on the site that allow DoubleClick to load cookies on your machine. DoubleClick can then track your movements across multiple sites. It can potentially see the search strings that you type into search engines (due more to the way some search engines implement their systems, not because anything sinister is intended). Because it can gather so much information about you from multiple sites, DoubleClick can form very rich profiles. These are still anonymous, but they are rich.

DoubleClick then went one step further. By acquiring a company, DoubleClick threatened to link these rich anonymous profiles back to name and address information -- it threatened to personalize them, and then sell the data. That began to look very much like spying to most people, and that is what caused the uproar.

So we have not only one questionable company represented, but two!

Oscar Picks

Well, between work and vacation I haven't had the time to write up my Oscar picks the way I planned. Now it's Oscar day and no matter what Chris Rock says, I'm straight and I'm watching. So, on to the picks:

Best Supporting Actress: Though Natalie Portman won the Globe, Cate Blanchette's pretty much swept the lot on the others, including the BAFTA and SAG awards. Winner: Cate Blanchette.

Best Supporting Actor: Clive Owen won the Globe and the BAFTA, but wasn't even nominated for a SAG (which Morgan Freeman won). TH Church has won two dozen film critics awards but hasn't won any of the big ones unless you count the Independent Spirit Award he got yesterday. Jamie Foxx's bows will come later in the night. Alda's an interesting pick, one I'd kind of dismissed until lately. Of all the major awards, this category's the toughest to choose. I think Mr. Freeman will pull this one out - great work + great role + great movie + long and distiguished career without an Oscar. Winner: Morgan Freeman.

Best Original Screenplay: [EDIT] Originally I had picked the Aviator, but thinking on it some more, I'd be surprised if Charlie Kaufman didn't win it. Hey, I can change my mind! Winner: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Best Adapted Screenplay: I'm sorry, but if it doesn't win, there's something rotten in Denmark. Winner: Sideways.

Best Actress: Easy pick. Winner: Hilary Swank.

Best Actor: Another easy pick. Mrs. P picked this up on DVD Friday and we watched it last night. And she said they'd never give an Oscar to "Wanda." Winner: Jamie Foxx.

Best Director: This is tough. Obviously it boils down to Clint and Marty. From there? Toss up. I'm going with the DGA. Winner: Clint Eastwood.

Best Picture: Ray's a great movie, but the Best Actor award is what it gets. Finding Neverland - thanks for playing. The last three - man, tough tough picks. Entertainment Weekly's got these three in a virtual dead heat, giving Million Dollar Baby a slim lead due to momentum and a later opening date. Premiere magazine gives the edge to The Aviator. In the end, I'll go with my heart. Winner: Sideways.

So, there you have it. Now I gotta go pour over the Best Sound Editing category to get that edge I'll need to beat Mrs. P this year.

Vulcan and Giuseppi Moretti

Alabama is always looked upon as a backwater state - many times deservedly so. Between the hardline Christian conservatives, 10 Commandments monuments, racial and sexual bigotry, shyster politicians and the world's longest and most amendended consitution... well, there's a lot to be done around here. And I'm definitely going to try to write on these and other issues. But first, something positive.

Vulcan



Vulcan was commissioned in 1903 by the Birmingham Commercial Club, a forerunner to the Chamber of Commerce. James McKnight had been trying to come up with a way to promote Birmingham's steel works and Alabama's natural resources in general. The St. Louis World's Fair in 1904 was the perfect venue (back then World's Fairs were more like conventions rather than an excuse to build a Sun Sphere). He decided a giant statue would show off the quality of the resources in the state. Originally, McKnight proposed the work to state officials but was turned down. He then approached the Commercial Club and found a willing backer in Club President Fred Jackson.


Giuseppi Moretti was an Italian artist born in 1857. He spent most of his younger days travelling around Europe executing commissions, most notably a bust of Emperor Franz Josef. After a being denied access to Transylvanian marble by the German and Austrian empires, Moretti decided to emigrate to the US. He gained a commission from William K. Vanderbilt, grandson of the Commodore. In 1885, Moretti found his way to Pittsburgh, beginning a relationship with the city which would last the rest of his life. He spent the next twenty years in various projects throughout the city. In late 1903, McKnight and Jackson approached him with the offer of Vulcan.

The project was ambitious: sculpt and cast a 56 foot high free standing iron statue, transport it to St. Louis and do it all in less than 7 months. Moretti began work by making a plaster mold in a makeshift studio in New Jersey. Interestingly enough, the studio was an unfinished Catholic church. Moretti began shipping model sections to Birmingham in early 1904. Through the month of March, Moretti poured the iron for each section of the statue. In early April sections of the statue were shipped via rail to the exhibition site in St. Louis to be assembled. When the fair opened on April 30, the statue was only complete to the waist - the rest of the work was not assembled until May 8. To no one's surprise, the statue won the Grand Prize of the show.

Of course, it can't be an Alabama story without some embarrassment. After the fair's end, Vulcan was dismantled and shipped back to Birmingham. After fighting over where he should be permanently installed, Vulcan was finally erected on the State Fairgrounds. Unfortunately, his hands were put on incorrectly (left hand on right arm and vice versa). It got worse. In the 20s and 30s, Vulcan was farmed out to advertisers for pickles, soft drinks and ice cream. He even got painted on blue jeans at one point.

Through funding primarily from the WPA, Vulcan found his permanent home atop Red Mountain - the source of the iron making up the statue. There he's stood for nearly sixty years - one of the cool things about Birmingham that most don't know about.

The latest cool Moretti news is this:

When Henry Emfinger bought Farrington Hall 10 years ago to be part of his Aldrich Coal Mine Museum, he was not thinking about art.

Yet Emfinger recently discovered a rich vein of long-overlooked, historic art treasures in the 97-year-old building, formerly an extension of a mine owner's home. The hall features long-forgotten works by Giuseppe Moretti, the Italian artist who created Vulcan.

Apparently there are numerous murals as well as some cast iron work in the house. Emfinger is trying to raise money for cleaning and restoring this find.

Westminster: Burmese Mountain Dog

One of the many beautiful pups we saw this week!

Home again

We're back safe and sound, although our car pretty much fell apart on us. I'm going to load the pictures from our camera off to the computer then put up some select shots to my Flikr account.

I've got a lot of catching up to do!

Blogrollin: 2/11/2005

A quick post to highlight some new additions on the roll:

Pam's House Blend: American. Female. Lesbian. Ethnically diverse. Opinionated. Proud member of the Reality-Based Community. And a great writer and blogger. I've been reading her off and on for a couple of months now and should have put her on the list long ago.

Eschaton (aka Atrios) is now linked in the Political section. Essential reading. Not sure how I failed to link it earlier, but there ya go.

And finally: I added a crap-load of music links in the Music section as well. Take a break and go listen.

VACATION

For this past Christmas, I got Mrs. P tickets to the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. We leave tomorrow evening to fly up to NYC through Thursday. For those who don't know, Westminster is the Oscars of dog shows (continuing the analogy, Crufts is the BAFTAs, the Eukanuba cup is the Emmys and the AKC Agility Championships are the X-Games). Live coverage of the Best in Breed and Best in Show competitions will be shown on USA on Monday and Tuesday nights. If you're not interested in hearing Joe Garagiola was (semi-)poetic on man's best friend, go rent Best in Show instead.

Buck Laughlin: Now tell me, which one of these dogs would you want to have as your wide receiver on your football team?

Of course, this also means no postings until at least next Friday. On the plus side, we bought a digital camera for the trip so hopefully I'll be able to post up some cool pictures from out trip. Til then, have fun and stay safe!

First at being north of the USA

The Kung Fu Monkey has the same-sex marriage debate firmly in his vice-like grip:

If you belong to a church which is against same-sex marriage, fine. If this law passes, your church will not be forced to marry gay people. Do you know why? Because, and I will take this slowly, odds are gay people are not going to your church. Strange gay people are not going to paratroop in and occupy your vestry. This law will not make you have to look at gay people, or associate with them, or like them. You will not have to forgive them, or even agree with them. The special vows that make marriage a holy institution to you, they will not being saying them in your church, changing the meaning of those vows to you. They do not change what "marriage" means to you. You can continue to argue that gay people are bad or wrong or evil in God's eyes, and do so freely. Do you understand? Your. Life. Does. Not. Change. Your rights are not abridged. And so, your right to find them objectionable or icky or evil ends where their right to enter into a legal contract begins.

The religious right is now trying to export homophobia to Canada by sending funds north of the border to propogandize against Canada's same-sex marriage legalization bill. John has an excellent post (edging on a rant) over why this is a Bad Thing (TM) and how frustrating it is that it's even reached this level. Read it all here.

The Art of Jon Haddock

A series of drawings from an isometric perspective, in the style of a computer game. The subject of each drawing is the image, or images, that created a popular cultural event. Historical events (like the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lorraine Motel) are used interchangeably with fictionalized events (like the picnic scene from The Sound of Music).

Here's his site.

The Million Dollar Aviator

Weekend before last found Mrs. P and me at the local megaplex to see Million Dollar Baby. I can see why this film was nominated for a Best Picture - great cast, Eastwood directing, surprise ending they've been able to keep fairly secret. But I must admit, the whole time I sat there (up until the aforementioned twist) I felt like I was watching a well done remake of the Karate Kid. Old grizzled teacher that doesn't want to teach the young headstrong got-nuthin-to-lose student but does anyway and makes it to the top finding respect and friendship along the way. The twist at least made the story more interesting. And hey, Karate Kid was a good movie. Wax off, Daniel-san!

I don't want to take away anything from the performances. Heh, like my little blog is going to affect Clint's career. Hilary Swank's going to win a second Oscar (beating out poor Mrs. B again). Morgan Freeman's gotta be considered the favorite in his category. Clint did a great job, but really - it wasn't much of a stretch for him to play an old grizzled tough guy. I'm still sore that his nom obviously pushed Giamatti out of the running. All in all, good movie.

Last weekend found us back at the theater to see the Aviator. The wife's been chomping at the bit to see Cate Blanchett's Hepburn and golly, she delivered. For an actress who doesn't look much like Hepburn at all, you easily forgot you were seeing someone play Hepburn. It's pretty obvious that she'll pick up her golden boy this year. Leo really did a great job, especially after the big wreck. The further Hughes slips into madness, the fuller Leo's performance. Mrs. P and I agreed that, like much of Scorcese's work, the movie dragged on a bit (though I'm not sure where and what he could have cut). The story's engrossing, perhaps there was just too much for one sitting - 170 minutes! I really liked Scorcese's use of light and dark in this film. The opening scene's use of a spotlight on Hughes which then radiates out to the rest of the room gets used again the first time he enters the Coconut Grove. The flashbulbs exploding on the red carpet is echoed in the scenes in the screening room. I'd like to watch it again just to pay more attention to Scorcese's touches. Oh, and by the way, the freaky cool singer in the Coconut Grove is none other than Rufus Wainwright.

So three Best Pics down, two to go. Personally, Sideways is still my favorite movie. However, the Academy forgot to ask me. Therefore, my front-runner is still Million Dollar Baby.

Alabama's moving forwards!

The Alabama Democratic party now has a blog! Looks like a few folks over at Daily Kos have made a commitment to ensure that every state party has a blog. So if your in one of those states that don't feel free to volunteer.

Ballistics Flickr

Exploding crayons are soooooo cool.

Our Enlightment Heritage

Good read I found:

The [2004 presidential election] results bring to mind a visit the Dalai Lama made to Chicago not long ago. I was one of the people deputized to ask him questions on the stage at the Field Museum. He met with the interrogators beforehand and asked us to give him challenging questions, since he is too often greeted with deference or flattery.

The only one I could think of was: "If you could return to your country, what would you do to change it?" He said that he would disestablish his religion, since "America is the proper model." I later asked him if a pluralist society were possible without the Enlightenment. "Ah," he said. "That's the problem." He seemed to envy America its Enlightenment heritage.

Which raises the question: Can a people that believes more fervently in the Virgin Birth than in evolution still be called an Enlightened nation?

Originally published in the NYT.

The Twat

Lieberman on AG Nom Gonzales:

Sen. Lieberman, however, went above and beyond Gonzales to offer support for the U.S. policy of deny rights to Guantanamo Bay detainees. He called the decision “progressive” and “remarkably just,” citing the fact the Bush Administration opted to provide the inmates with food, water, shelter, blankets and the ability to practice their religion.
...
Lieberman is a favorite of President Bush, who offered him a peck on the cheek after his State of the Union Address Wednesday evening.

Geez, why not just kneel down and kiss his freakin' ring? I don't even think the Republicans are saying that Gonzales is "progressive."

From T-Bogg and Raw Story.

More Lyrics

Because I can. Here's Rush's The Trees:

There is unrest in the forest,
There is trouble with the trees,
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas.

The trouble with the maples,
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light.
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made.
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade.

There is trouble in the forest,
And the creatures all have fled,
As the maples scream "Oppression!"
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights.
"The oaks are just too greedy;
We will make them give us light."
Now there's no more oak oppression,
For they passed a noble law,
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe, and saw.

Copyright ©sometime in the 20th century by Neal, Geddy and Alex. All rights reserved.

the The

Shakespeare's Sister brought to mind one of my favorite bands: the The. She's got the lyrics from the Beat(en) Generation posted and mentioned Armageddon Days (are here again) - two great songs. I figured I'd post Armageddon days here:

ARMAGEDDON DAYS (are here again)

They're 5 miles high
As the crow flies
Leavin' vapour trails
Across a blood red sky
Movin' in from the East
Towards the West
With balaclava helmets
Over their heads
YES!

But if you think that Jesus Christ is coming
Honey, you've got another thing coming
If he ever finds out who's hijacked his name
He'll cut out his heart and turn in his grave

Islam is rising
The Christians mobilising
The world is on it's elbows and knees
It's forgotten the message
And worships the creeds

"It's War" she cried
"It's War" she cried
"This is War!"
Drop your possessions
All you simple folk
You will fight them on the beaches
in your underclothes
You will thank the good lord
For raising the Union Jack
You'll watch the ships sail out of harbour
And the bodies come floating back
Watch the ships sail out of harbour
And the bodies come floating back

If the real Jesus Christ were to stand up today
He'd be gunned down cold by the C.I.A.
Oh, the lights that now burn brightest
Behind stained glass
Will cast the darkest shadows
Upon the human heart
But God didn't build himself that throne
God doesn't live in Israel or Rome
God doesn't belong to the Yankee dollar
God doesn't plant the bombs for Hezbollah
God doesn't even go to church
And God won't send us down to Allah to burn
God will remind us what we already know
That the human race is about to reap what it's sown

Islam is rising
The Christians mobilising
The world is on it's elbows and knees
It's forgotten the message
And worships the creeds
The world is on it's elbows and knees
It's forgotten the message
And worships the creeds

Armageddon days are here again
Armageddon days are here again
Armageddon days are here again
Armageddon Days Are HERE!!!

Copyright ©2004 Lazarus Limited. All rights reserved.

Hellakool

Thanks, 1031, for making me waste time with this. That's right, make your own South Park character.

Introducing Cowboy Frankie:

State of the State

Riley made his State of the State address tonight. Pretty good job for the most part, though he had to tack on the "Defense of the Sanctity of Marriage" crap at the end. I still haven't figured out how banning same-sex marriage defends the sanctity of my marriage. I would think that banning adultery and divorce would do much more to ensure married couples stay together. How about a constitutional amendment making coveting your neighbor's ass a class B felony? Crap, I better stop giving 'em ideas.

I'm hoping they put up a transcript of the address soon (they've got the past years up here).

Whoops, just found it. I didn't see it earlier. I'll go through it soon.

Interesting note - I watched the Rep. Ken Guin's Democratic rebuttal afterwards. Paraphrasing (but not by much): "We want to get the Sanctity of Marriage amendment out of the way quickly so we can get to the real problems." He's implying that this thing is a done deal and that everyone obviously agrees that it's a no-brainer, so let's get on to the stuff that matters. I agree that the whole it's a no-brainer. Who wants the state to define what consitutes a religious sacrament? Anyone? How about the state legislating that only heterosexuals can receive Holy Communion? Or that people of Arabian descent cannot be baptised - shouldn't they be Muslim anyway? If the argument were that the state's view of marriage in a legal sense was to only recognize the covenant of a man and woman it might hold water (hold water like a sieve). But the fact they're framing it as a "defense of the sanctity of marriage" means they are legislating what is holy. And that's a theocracy.

BugMeNot

I've linked BugMeNot in the Cool section. Cool concept: enter the URL for any of those news sites which require registration (Chicago Tribune, AJC, etc.) and this site will give you a login/password for the site. So instead of having to give up your demographic information (or make some up), just use a BugMeNot login.