Free Republic

THE UNITED STATES Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT) has prepared a report for the government that claims that fewer vulnerabilities were found in Windows than in Linux/Unix operating systems in 2005. Cert included under the Linux umbrella Mac OS X, as well as the various Linux distributions and flavours of Unix. It claimed that the Unix camp had more than twice as many vulnerabilities as Windows. The Cyber Security Bulletin 2005, said that out of 5,198 reported flaws, 812 were Windows operating system vulnerabilities, while 2,328 were Unix/Linux operating bugs. The remaining 2,058 were multiple operating system vulnerabilities. It is...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle illegally over the weekend when he collided with a car in his Brentwood neighborhood, the Los Angeles Police Department said Tuesday. Police Lt. Paul Vernon said Schwarzenegger does not have the proper motorcycle endorsement on his California driver's license, contradicting statements made by his spokeswoman since the Sunday accident that left the governor with 15 stitches in his upper lip. "He does not have the license," Vernon said. Police did not cite the governor because they arrived after the accident, Vernon said. Police referred their findings to the...

Plastic toys may have subtle effects on the male reproductive system, as chemicals found in products ranging from plastics to cosmetics may slowly reduce testosterone production in newborn boys, a new study has found. Danish paediatric endocrinologist Professor Niels Skakkebfk, of the Rigs hospitalet in Copenhagen, and team report their study of newborn exposure to phthalates in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. "It gives a small piece of information that the newborn testis may be fragile to such toxins," Skakkebfk, was quoted by ABC Online, as saying. "Whether the effects will persist we can't tell but we were quite surprised...

Carbon dioxide levels are now 27 percent higher than at any point in the last 650,000 years, according to research into Antarctic ice cores published on Thursday in Science. Analysis of carbon dioxide in the ancient Antarctic ice showed that at no point in the past 650,000 years did levels approach today's carbon dioxide concentrations of around 380 parts per million (ppm). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels could reach 450-550 ppm by 2050, possibly resulting in higher temperatures and rising sea levels (see "Ocean levels rising twice as fast"). There is fear...

FP: (Some) suggest... domestic drilling offshore and in Alaska. MS: It’s very important. Everything we can do to stabilize supply buys us more time to adjust to peak oil. People ask what difference it would make if we drilled for oil in ANWR... There could be up to 1.5 million bpd of oil there. It doesn’t solve the larger problem, but it’s a safety valve. FP: If you were the secretary of energy right now, what policies would you recommend to President Bush? MS: If we restructure the way we use fuels, we might be able to get along very...

   Hurricanes aren't the only things that spin faster with the addition of hot air.   Advocates of the global warming theory seem to spin faster, too - take their recent spin on this summer's hurricanes.   An August article in the San Francisco Chronicle warned, "As the United States experiences more... out-of-season hurricanes like this summer's, more Americans will recognize what the rest of the world has long accepted: Global warming is here, it will get worse..."1   This analysis has a critical flaw: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says the hurricane season runs from June 1 to November...

US Faces 'Extreme' Temperature Changes: Study Washington (AFP) Oct 17, 2005 The continental United States will face more extreme temperatures during the next century and worse rainfall along its Gulf Coast which has been ravaged by hurricanes this year, according to a climate study released Monday. The study, published on the online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, warned that greenhouse gases will likely swell to twice their current levels by the century's end. "Imagine the weather during the hottest two weeks of the year," lead researcher Noah Diffenbaugh said, referring to northeast United States....

Firefox's 'retreat' ensures Microsoft excels Open source web browser Firefox has lost the momentum it has steadily gained since it was unleashed last year, according to Web analysts at Net Applications. The online portal’s unique Hit List service reveals a slump in the Mozilla browser’s market share, falling from 8.7% to 8.1 % in July. Coinciding with its demise, was the advance of Microsoft's IE that has gained some of the ground surrendered in June, climbing back from 86.6 % to 87.2% last month. The revival for the dominant browser comes on the back of average monthly losses of between...

Somewhere out on the Internet, an Electric Bong may be in danger. The threat: a well-crafted Google query that could allow a hacker to use Google's massive database as a resource for intrusion. "Electric Bong" was one of a number of household devices that security researcher Johnny Long came across when he found an unprotected Web interface to someone's household electrical network. To the right of each item were two control buttons, one labelled "on," the other, "off."

There currently exists controversy concerning smoking marijuana as a medicine. Many well-intentioned leaders and members of the public have been misled, by the well financed and organized pro-drug legalization lobby, into believing there is merit to their argument that smoking marijuana is a safe and effective medicine. A review of the scientific research, expert medical testimony and government agency findings shows this to be erroneous. There is no justification for using marijuana as medicine. The California Narcotics Officers' Association consists of over 7,000 criminal justice professionals who are dedicated to protecting the public from the devastating effects of substance abuse,...

A few years ago I wrote "Network Security for Dummies" for the intent purpose of explaining computer security to home users, small office/home office (SOHO), and anyone else who wanted a basic primer on the subject. In that book I focused on the three major OSes: Linux, Windows, and Macs. Probably 86% of the book is about Windows security (or lack thereof) simply because that's where most the problems come from. That's not a judgement call; that's the truth. I was very hot to evaluate the Macs for security because OS X had just shipped and I had heard that...

Is The CIA PC? Now that we all understand and agree on the basics, let’s relate that to my concerns about security on PCs, Mac or WinTel. Yes, I can secure a WinTel box. Well, secure as far is reasonable and practical. Nothing is perfect. One reader said all I needed was a firewall. That’s crazy. Sure, my network router has a firewall, and sure my XP box and Mac have firewalls. But please do not make the same mistake at home or in SOHO that Corporate America made in the 1990s. The non-techy Boss: “Hey, get us a...

Something's Amiss in the Linux Communityby Walter V. Koenning for the Reallylinux.com OPINION/EDITORIAL section. Maybe something is amiss in our beloved Linux community? This is the same unique self sufficient, self sustaining realm where I can sit behind my monitor at 2am and immerse in the concerns regarding Bitkeeper, getting intimately close to the thoughts of Linus and Andrew. I don't know either personally, but that's the amazing thing about this community. It is tight, it is personal and it is greatly beneficial. It is also the realm where the support so many keep pressing as a Linux weakness exists...

Mounting evidence suggests a plastic additive common in baby and sports bottles and used to line the inside of soda and tin cans is accumulating in our bodies at levels far beyond those known to cause considerable health problems in lab animals. At least that's the conclusion in research underwritten by the government or an independent source such as a university, a new review of 115 peer-reviewed publications has found. Industry-sponsored research has so far found no problem with the additive, bisphenol-A. And that, say the authors of a report published in the current edition of Environmental Health Perspectives, contributes...

I can hardly wait !! The second part of Revelations - an NBC six-part mini-series about something or other is on tonight. If you missed the first part,let me fill you in. Something awful is going to happen,and Sister Severely must convince renowned Harvard astrophysicist I.B. Skeptical to help-but-she's having trouble getting through to him. (Everybody knows men never listen !) You know Sister Severely is on the up-and-up,because she talks with a sort of Scots-Irish lilt,just like Whats-her-name in "Touched by an Angel"... and she works for a Foundation. Dr. Skeptical is a MAN OF SCIENCE ,however,and lives up...

An Evening Standard investigation found dozens of products on supermarket shelves containing the chemical, from brand names including Colgate, Aquafresh, Dentyl and Sensodyne. Marks& Spencer confirmed today it was removing products containing triclosan from all its stores and has been working with Greenpeace to develop alternative products. Asda said it was investigating the problem and would be urgently talking to its suppliers. Giles Watson, a toxicology expert at wildlife charity WWF, warned that the long-term effects of exposure to chloroform were still unknown and advised consumers to check the bottles before buying products. "These products produce low levels of chloroform,...

Two-thirds of world's resources 'used up' Tim Radford, science editor Wednesday March 30, 2005 Guardian The human race is living beyond its means. A report backed by 1,360 scientists from 95 countries - some of them world leaders in their fields - today warns that the almost two-thirds of the natural machinery that supports life on Earth is being degraded by human pressure. The study contains what its authors call "a stark warning" for the entire world. The wetlands, forests, savannahs, estuaries, coastal fisheries and other habitats that recycle air, water and nutrients for all living creatures are being irretrievably...

The oil under this wilderness will last the US six months. But soon the drilling will begin Senate backs exploitation of Alaskan wildlife refuge John Vidal, environment editor Friday March 18, 2005 The Guardian It is described as the last great American wilderness and has been the battle ground between America's most powerful oil interests and environmentalists for more than two decades. But yesterday the giants of the energy industry were celebrating a significant victory and looking forward to the chance to move into one of the most lucrative oil fields left in the US, following the Senate's narrow 51-49...

Republican Congressman from Maryland spoke on oil depletion to the Congress on Monday, March 14. The link is to Energy Bulletin but the original can be found by searching http://thomas.loc.gov/

Dear Reader, Civilization as we know it is coming to an end soon. This is not the wacky proclamation of a doomsday cult, apocalypse bible prophecy sect, or conspiracy theory society. Rather, it is the scientific conclusion of the best paid, most widely-respected geologists, physicists, and investment bankers in the world. These are rational, professional, conservative individuals who are absolutely terrified by a phenomenon known as global “Peak Oil.” "Are We 'Running Out'? I Thought There Was 40 Years of the Stuff Left" Oil will not just "run out" because all oil production follows a bell curve. This is true...

Open Source web browsers are causing untold damage to businesses around the globe, according to Microsoft security specialist David Keppelmeyer. Keppelmeyer believes the sudden rise in popularity of browsers such as Firefox competing for Internet Explorer's market share is not only an attack upon Microsoft, but is directly "squeezing more attacks upon IE users." "What we're seeing is a shifting of percentages across the board" says Keppelmeyer. As he explains it, it's a numbers game. As the number of open source browsers such as Firefox rise, then there are relatively fewer Internet Explorer users left to bear the brunt of...

PITTSBURGH -- Where are you more likely to become a victim of a home invasion? Home invasions are happening everywhere, but most police departments in the suburbs Target 11 contacted don't designate them as such. Instead, home invasions are placed in either the robbery or burglary category. The state doesn't differentiate either, but in the city of Pittsburgh, police have found it's to their advantage to know exactly where home invasions are happening and how often.

Experts: International domain names may pose threat The new trick is a variation of the 'homograph attack' The new trick is a variation of a known technique called the "homograph attack" and takes advantage of loopholes in the way some popular Web browsers display domain names that use non-English characters. It could allow malicious hackers and online identity-theft groups to trick unsuspecting users into divulging sensitive personal information, according to an advisory from The Shmoo Group, a hacker collective, and from Secunia. snip For example, attackers could register a Web domain "bloomberg.com," which looks identical to the popular business news...

Seven suicide bombings in five hours, some targeting lines of Iraqi voters waiting to cast their ballots in the first free elections in half a century, have killed seven people and wounded 58. Turnout was sporadic across the nation after 30,000 polling booths opened at 7 a.m. on Sunday (0400 GMT) under the watchful eye of Iraqi security forces and U.S. troops. In Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, polling stations were virtually empty. But in other parts of the country booths were packed with people casting their ballots, many of them for the first time in their lifetime. In the...

Open Source Development Labs has reportedly rejected reports it is leading a revision of the Linux Kernel to remove code that might infringe software patents Open Source Development Labs (OSDL), which promotes the adoption of the Linux operating system, has denied that it plans to rewrite the Linux kernel to combat claims that it infringes some software patents. Linux Business Week reported last week that, according to "informed sources", the OSDL, Intel, IBM, the state of Oregon and the city of Beaverton are part of a consortium that will rewrite the parts of the Linux kernel that allegedly infringe patents....

Radio waves from mobile phones harm body cells and damage DNA in laboratory conditions, according to a new study majority-funded by the European Union, researchers said on Monday. The so-called Reflex study, conducted by 12 research groups in seven European countries, did not prove that mobile phones are a risk to health but concluded that more research is needed to see if effects can also be found outside a lab. The $100 billion a year mobile phone industry asserts that there is no conclusive evidence of harmful effects as a result of electromagnetic radiation. About 650 million mobile phones are...

LATEST HEADLINES MOST ACTIVE TERRORIST - 'Fallujah may fall, but Allah does not!' - Militants Storm Tent, Attempting Assassi ... - Mujahideen Reporting Americans Slaughter ... - Message on an Islamic Website Indicating ... - New Accounts of Al-Qaeda Attempting to u ... Abu Musab al-Zarqawi Leader of the Al-Tawhid and Jihad Terrorist Organization.  His group is responsible for many of the attacks in Iraq along with ongoing hostage beheadings. Reward for capture: $25,000,000 US Are you interested in working with TrackingTerrorism.com? Search for: >    Saturday, November 13, 2004 ACSA Reporting US Faces an Imminent Nuclear Threat  ...

Windows XP users could be excused for feeling a little less safe this week. Security tools maker Finjan Software warned on Wednesday that it found as many as 10 security flaws in the last update to Microsoft's flagship operating system, Windows XP Service Pack 2. In a statement that contained few details, the U.K. company claimed that the vulnerabilities could enable attackers to remotely access a victim's files, remove security measures aimed at Internet threats and run programs without any notification to the user. Windows XP SP2 "suffers because it is still basically the same operating system and has some...

GENEVA — People are plundering the world's resources at a pace that outstrips the planet's capacity to sustain life, the environmental group WWF said Thursday. In its regular "Living Planet Report," the World Wide Fund for Nature said humans currently consume 20 percent more natural resources than the Earth can produce. Consumption of fossil fuels such as coal, gas, and oil increased by almost 700 percent between 1961 and 2001, it said. But the planet is unable to move as fast to absorb the resulting carbon-dioxide emissions that degrade the Earth's protective ozone layer. "We are spending nature's capital faster...

When John Kerry went out to kill innocent geese today, he managed to stay incredibly clean. He's not just "clean" - he's KERRY KLEAN! Now, I'm all for cleanliness. But have you noticed that John Kerry, in the middle of a muddy field, has absolutely NO MUD ANYWHERE on his body? Not even the tops of his shoes? Not even on his hands. His soft, soft hands... Now, let's compare Kerry's outfit to the outfit of his manservant beside him... notice that weird clay-colored substance on Jeeves' knees? Just above his shoes? On his shoes? On his coat? That's MUD....

EDITORIAL OBSERVERImagining America if George Bush Chose the Supreme CourtBy ADAM COHENPublished: October 18, 2004 bortion might be a crime in most states. Gay people could be thrown in prison for having sex in their homes. States might be free to become mini-theocracies, endorsing Christianity and using tax money to help spread the gospel. The Constitution might no longer protect inmates from being brutalized by prison guards. Family and medical leave and environmental protections could disappear.It hardly sounds like a winning platform, and of course President Bush isn't openly espousing these positions. But he did say in his last campaign...

iPod users are music thieves says Ballmer October 04 2004 by Andy McCue 'Vested interest', say cynics... Speaking to an exclusive gathering of press in London on a number of issues, such as security, Steve Ballmer didn't pass up the opportunity to take several digs at his company's arch rival Apple. At the heart of the debate is Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology which will let content providers such as record labels and movie studios keep control of their intellectual property (IP) - or at least ensure all royalties are paid and copyright observed. Billing Microsoft as the good guys...

PRINCETON, New Jersey — Existing technologies could stop the escalation of global warming for 50 years, and work on implementing them can begin immediately, according to an analysis by Princeton University scientists. The scientists identified 15 technologies — from wind, solar, and nuclear energy to conservation techniques — that are ripe for large-scale use and showed that each could solve a significant portion of the problem. Their analysis, published recently in Science, indicates that many combinations of these 15 technologies could prevent global emissions of greenhouse gases from rising for the next five decades. The finding counters the common argument...

The World's No.1 Science & Technology News Service White House report says people cause global warming 13:10 27 August 04 NewScientist.com news service People are responsible for the spike in global warming in the last 30 years, says a new US government report. The verdict, long accepted by most scientists, has encountered resistance from the Bush administration in the past, prompting experts to question if the president will now enact policies to curb greenhouse gas emissions. The report, titled Our Changing Planet, is part of a regular series that summarises recent and planned climate change research by 13 government agencies....

Munich puts Linux project on ice because of the software patents The city Munich have their consider project LiMux , which plan, the city administration on Linux change over, on ice put. The German Federal Government, that occurs in the European Union for the disputed software patents and thus against open SOURCE often commodity and the middle class, is jointly responsible is called it in a report SWM software marketing GmbH. In the evening of yesterday the highest EDP responsible person of the city communicated Munich, Wihelm Hoegner, on a mailing list that could not for the time being start...

Halloween XI: Get The FUD I've just seen a dispatch from the front lines of the FUD wars, Huw Lynes's report from one of Microsoft's Get The FactsHalloween VII and more recent leaks out of Microsoft. The outlines of the next stage in Microsoft's anti-open-source propaganda campaign are becoming clear. It's a good time to take stock of where we are, what our favorite evil empire is doing, and how best to respond. roadshow in Great Britain. It's a fascinating read, especially when considered in context with (Writing code that doesn't suck always has to be our base-level and most...

Ken Brown's forthcoming book, published by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, is embarrassingly mistitled Samizdat: And Other Issues Regarding the 'Source' Of Open Source Code. No doubt you've heard of it by now, although more than likely you've only heard Andy Tanenbaum and others respond to it more than anything else. It's basically the world's largest troll, seasoned with more than a hint of flamebait. In the history of publishing there has never been a less scrupulous work than this book. It's a stinging insult to real books and genuine authors everywhere, harming the credibility of all of us who...

Ancient plumbing warns that all is not well with rising sea levels FEARS that global warming is causing sea levels to rise are one of the main concerns about climate change. But prior to the 19th century, when measurements began, little was known about trends in sea level. Now Dorit Sivan, of the University of Haifa in Israel, and his colleagues may have changed all that with their study of ancient plumbing. In a paper soon to be published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters the team describe evidence from abandoned wells in the ancient Mediterranean town of...

Environmental charities are exaggerating the threat of climate change in an attempt to raise more money from public donations, according to a report by Oxford University academics. The red kite is said to be at risk but the Oxford report says it is not facing imminent extinction The charities, including WWF-UK, the world's biggest independent conservation organisation, claim that a quarter of the world's species are facing extinction by 2050. However, the report says that this is a "woeful misrepresentation of the underlying science". Many species said to be at risk - including the red kite and the Scottish crossbill...

Germany To U.S.: Cut Emissions or Face Disaster Experts believe global warming is increasing the scope of natural disasters. In June, Germany will host a global conference on renewable energies. The country's environmental minister traveled to the U.S. this week to push needed emissions cuts and alternative energies. The Renewables 2000 conference, announced by German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder in 2002 at the U.N. Environment Summit in Johannesburg, is intended to demonstrate that renewable energies -- like wind and solar power -- have developed into fast growing industries that are not only environmentally friendly, but also economically viable solutions. But renewable...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Anyone who doubts the gravity of global warming should ask Alaska's Eskimo, Indian and Aleut elders about the dramatic changes to their land and the animals on which they depend. Native leaders say that salmon are increasingly susceptible to warm-water parasites and suffer from lesions and strange behavior. Salmon and moose meat have developed odd tastes and the marrow in moose bones is weirdly runny, they say. Arctic pack ice is disappearing, making food scarce for sea animals and causing difficulties for the Natives who hunt them. It is feared that polar bears, to name one species,...

Health board revives proposal despite two defeats at the polls and a dedicated opposition Anti-fluoridation activist Betty Fowler hasn't missed a Spokane Regional Board of Health meeting in seven years. Each month, she sits in the audience and waits for the end of the meeting when she speaks briefly against adding fluoride to public water systems. Next Thursday, her pet issue will be on the official agenda. Fluoridation is back. The health board will hear a report on the topic because local advocates are bringing it to Spokane city voters in November. The advocates, a group called Fluoridation Works, think...

High-tech devices monitor product from manufacturer's headquarters Wal-Mart customers who picked up lipstick off the shelf at a Broken-Arrow, Okla., store were part of a little-mentioned experiment earlier this year that tracked consumer habits using Radio Frequency Identification technology, or RFID. Proctor & Gamble teamed with the retail giant in the test over a four month-period which allowed researchers to view the Wal-Mart shelves from company headquarters some 750 miles away in Cincinnati, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Also, the Max Factor Lipfinity lipstick had RFID tags hidden inside that allowed the inventory to be tracked leaving the shelves. The...

<p>SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A shorter ski season in the Sierra. A poorer habitat for endangered salmon in lower streams. More wildfires and more floods. Extreme heat waves, easier spread of diseases and increased air pollution. Those could be global warming's effects on California in about 20 years, experts say, warning that the state is more vulnerable because of its coastline, its climate and its dependence on Sierra Nevada snowpack for water and hydroelectricity.</p>

When I read the other day an article entitled "Why Open Source May Be Doomed", my first reaction was to just ignore it. It's hard to rationally answer an article so biased, factually inaccurate, and lacking in fundamental comprehension of the subject as this one, which begins like this: "I have to admit that I was never much of a believer in open source. Maybe my business school coursework rendered me blind to the glorious vision of a 'gift culture' in which people contribute their work to a decentralized development project like Linux for honor instead of money. Or possibly...

Skull And Bones Oct. 5, 2003 There are secrets that George W. Bush guards at least as carefully as any entrusted to a president. He's forbidden to share these secrets even with the vice president -- secrets he has held ever since his days as an undergraduate at Yale. In his senior year, Mr. Bush - like his father and his grandfather - belonged to Skull and Bones, an elite secret society that includes some of the most powerful men of the 20th century. All Bonesmen, as they're called, are forbidden to reveal what goes on in their inner sanctum,...

Silicon Graphics Inc says that it has received notice from SCO Group Inc that the Unix vendor intends to terminate its Unix System V license on the basis that SGI has breached the terms of the license. The move by Lindon, Utah-based SCO is the latest twist in its long-running claims that code from its Unix System V has been copied into the Linux operating system. The company has also terminated the Unix licenses of IBM Corp, sued IBM for $3bn for breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets, and maintained that Linux users need to license its Unix...

"Time to Combat SCO's FUD More Strategically," Says Analyst September 29, 2003 Summary Analyst Rob Enderle is enjoining the Linux community to start thinking more strategically and to move against the real threat that SCO represents - as a spreader of fear, uncertainty, and doubt about Linux. Read Story Email Story Print Story Read/Add Feedback About LinuxWorld News Desk By LinuxWorld News Desk Rob Enderle, principal analyst for the Enderle Group, is saying today that the Linux community needs to think strategically and move against the real threat that SCO represents - fear, uncertainty, and doubt. “The community must encourage...

There has been no end of scholarly studies confirming the gradual rise in global temperatures over the past century. Yet nothing focuses the mind on global warming and its potential consequences quite so sharply as the occasional news flash from some remote corner of the globe documenting startling changes in landscapes once thought to be immutable. Two years ago, for instance, scientists told us that the snows of Kilimanjaro, which inspired Ernest Hemingway's famous short story, could vanish in 15 years, and that the seemingly indestructible glaciers in the Bolivian Andes might not last another 10. Last year brought evidence...

KAKTOVIK, Alaska - Skeptics of global warming should come to this Eskimo village on the Arctic Ocean, roughly 250 miles north of the Arctic Circle. It's hard to be complacent about climate change when you're in an area that normally is home to animals like polar bears and wolverines, but is now attracting robins. A robin even built its nest in town this year (there is no word in the local Inupiat Eskimo language for robins). And last year a (presumably shivering) porcupine arrived. The Okpilak River valley was historically too cold and dry for willows, and in the...