Date:	2004-05-11 21:36
Subject:	it rained!
Security:	Public
Mood:	good

I forgot to mention, it rained all last night and drizzled much of today. The morning run was quite enjoyable. I love running in a cool drizzle. Only one clap of thunder though, which was a bit disappointing. There is something raw and powerful about huge, low pitch sound waves crashing and careening through the sky to bounce off your eardrums, and, if you're lucky, to rattle your soul.

Anyhow, its back to the books for me.

Date:	2004-05-11 21:16
Subject:	the spectre of Chinese surveillance
Security:	Public
Mood:	annoyed

Because Zheng Zhou, the Chinese city in which I live, is technologically advanced, they offer a broadband internet service. This is all well and good, even though the speed is sub-optimal, and they keep changing the version of the access client. Which brings to mind the fact that every time they change versions, there are problems...but that is a rant for a different post. I share an internet connection with my dad, running two network cards and a proxy server on my box. I was aware that the government has filtering software running at the major junctions coming into China, especially in Hong Kong. This slows everything down, in the name of national security. I also assumed that they, to some degree, monitored all foriegners living in their city. Until last night, however, I didn't realize exactly to what degree. I turn on my proxy server and lo and behold, there is a connection from a strange IP address. It is physically located in the same living complex as me, and is running a basic network sniffer/data auditor, called blackjack. This somewhat annoys me, especially when that connection vanishes, and three different IP's pop onto the screen in succession, all from within my living complex, and all connected to my broadband provider. Then the fifth connection comes up, a totally different IP address, in a totally different netblock. Guess what? It also belongs to my broadband provider, except the route it takes makes a circuit to somewhere outside my living complex and then comes back. Guess what else? it is also running a network sniffer/data auditor, BootStrap Pro. Cli. Someone is paranoid, and over estimates me. All I want to do is get done with my government course, and they are making sure I am not sending secret communique's back to my home base.

Oh, and when I went to go on the FAFSA site, for my financial aid stuff, they blocked the site for a few days. The URL ends in .gov, so apparently they needed to check it out and make sure I wasn't conspiring. Also, they blocked the site for my online government course, I assume to make sure I wasn't smuggling in propoganda. After a few days, they unblocked it.

Sometimes I feel like I am living in 1984. *sigh*

Don't get me wrong, the torture/humiliation of the Iraqi prisoners were inexcusable acts of cruelty. Some people, it seems, are just wired wrong. They like causing pain, or in this case humiliation. We are not talking about torture to glean information, (rigorous interrogation, as the media delicately puts it). This was for fun.

So, this has all become A Big Deal. And rightly so; such acts by our military should not be condoned, accepted, or even ignored. It is bad for the U.S. image. Outrage has been expressed, condolences and apologies offered, and interviews conducted. The great national mill is churning. The international community has gotten its ire up as well, especially, and understandably, the Arab world. All in all, people are mad. As for myself, I would like to note that once again, America has become the international scapegoat. In case you had forgotten, Muslim extremists are still training children to be suicide bombers at Israel's bus stops. Where is the extended and worldwide outrage over such acts of atrocity? At least the Iraqi prisoners were adults. Why is it that the world looks the other way when elderly Jewish women are blown to sodden, bloody, mangled bits, yet berates Israel up one side and down the other when they take matters into their own hands and assassinate some of their key enemies? At least Israel's actions were precise. After 9-11, I do not recall massive international outrage and a general cry for action against the countries that perpetrated these crimes against us. To the contrary, when America took matters into her own hands, and, with her loyal allies, retaliated against those responsible, we were denounced as war-mongerers, accused of being an international bully, and admonished over and over to try and accomplish things through "diplomatic channels." Saddam Hussein did not attempt to reach peace through diplomatic channels. Instead he lied and connived, all the while engaging in violence and death-dealing. At least we tried working through the U.N.. We tried for ten years, ever since Desert Storm.

And as a last politically-incorrect opinion, consider this: from a purely human standpoint, is it so unbelievably weird that U.S. soldiers would want to retaliate against the Iraqi's in their custody?

What they did was unjustifiable. What they did was understandable.

Date:	2004-05-10 09:01
Subject:	1st Post
Security:	Public
Mood:	sick

Well, its rather regrettable that I am sick at this point, but such is life. I am supposed to be taking a government test right now, but got distracted by the concept of web journaling. (I am something of a dilettante) I knew about web journalling before, but had never tried it. So, now I am trying it.

There were supposed to be showers and thunderstorms today, which would have been nice. Maybe tomorrow.

Back to my schoolwork.