Category: Comment

Two Realities

Been reading John Bolton’s The Room Where It Happened. I thought that Trump was reined in by the “adults in the room.” While that sometimes happened, those very same people failed in doing so in the long run.

The other reality? My relative just listened to another Trump rally today.

I don’t understand what the man is rallying for. Like my friend Gijo notes, neither Reagan nor the Bushes threw rallies after they left office. I also remember my first following politics in 1992. Bob Dole, while being unfortunately noncharismatic, was understandable and coherent. He didn’t fly off the handle, at least publicly. Trump brought vitriol and instability as he coped with a job he was unsuited for.

Is he planning a 2024 run? It seems so. There has to be a sane alternative.

OK, I’m a prepper

I bought some extra water because of recent events. I know, cyberattacks may not hit infrastructure–though there are cyberattacks right now in Ukraine, reportedly Russian state actors have not yet attacked infrastructure–but that’s the extent of my prepping. Things over there have continuously escalated, with Russian attacks on civilians, so no one knows what’s going to happen.

Biden: we will “use every tool to deter, disrupt, and if necessary, respond to cyberattacks against critical infrastructure.”

Slightly comforting.

Biden: There is “evolving intelligence that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks.”

The government claims to be ready, but your enterprises and SMBs may not be.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/22/politics/analysis-biden-warning-putin-cyberattack-us/index.html

There is something that you should be doing right now as an SMB or enterprise:  MFA should no longer be optional. It’s a comparatively small measure considering what could be in way of an attack.

The government made these suggestions, which are a good summing up:

– Deploy modern security tools on your computers and devices to continuously look for and mitigate threats
– Make sure that your systems are patched and protected against all known vulnerabilities, and change passwords across your networks so that previously stolen credentials are useless to malicious actors
– Back up your data and ensure you have offline backups beyond the reach of malicious actors
– Run exercises and drill your emergency plans so that you are prepared to respond quickly to minimize the impact of any attack
– Encrypt your data so it cannot be used if it is stolen
– Educate your employees to common tactics that attackers will use over email or through websites
– Work with FBI and CISA to establish relationships in advance of any cyber incidents

https://www.zdnet.com/article/white-house-warns-do-these-8-things-now-to-boost-your-security-ahead-of-potential-russian-cyberattacks

Raking it in

I’ve noticed that Trump supporters are paying to see speakers like Tucker Carlson and Charlie Kirk to the tune of $20 to $5000(!) I remember my relative saying “there’s no way [Trump] lost.” So 40-odd law suits later, they still think that. There is something akin to delusions of grandeur here–but with crowd size supposedly indicating where the nation is.

Pro-Ukrainian Memes

Interesting how many people are emoting about Ukraine. The question is, how long will this last?

This reminds me of something I learned from Ken Burn’s Civil War documentary. The series spoke of how when the war first started, people were not taking it seriously; some were watching the first battles like an amusement. Years later, the gravity of the conflict was evident.

Social media has that common emotional outpouring that gives some people meaning. But hopefully these pro-Ukraine memes will prove not weary, but genuine(and lasting for democracy).

Packages and Rescue Packages: Online Consumerism Shields a Brewing Storm

UPDATE 01/03/22  Evergrande stock: China’s property developer suspends trading in Hong Kong – CNN

While we’re shopping from Amazon (or at the mall?), ominous events are taking place in the investment world: China’s largest real estate company, Evergrande—with 200,000 employees and more than 1,300 developments in more than 280 cities–has defaulted on its $300 billion debt. This despite having real estate sales of $110 billion last year. Why is this significant? Never mind the awful consequences of our complete social shutdown—depression, suicide, drinking and drug use, reckless Covid relief and stimulus—the U.S. pension system and insurance funds are heavily invested in the collapsing Chinese real estate bubble and consequently, have lost billions. Other Western nations are in a similar bind. Continue reading “Packages and Rescue Packages: Online Consumerism Shields a Brewing Storm”