"Kaspersky: In the Soviet days, we used to joke that an optimist learns English because he is hoping that the country will open up, that a pessimist learns Chinese because he’s afraid that the Chinese will conquer us, and that the realist learns to use a Kalashnikov. These days, the optimist learns Chinese, the pessimist learns Arabic…
SPIEGEL: …and the realist?
Kaspersky: …keeps practicing with his Kalashnikov. Seriously. Even the Americans are now openly saying that they would respond to a large-scale, destructive Internet attack with a classic military strike. But what will they do if the cyber attack is launched against the United States from within their own country? Everything depends on computers these days: the energy supply, airplanes, trains. I’m worried that the Net will soon become a war zone, a platform for professional attacks on critical infrastructure.
"
~ Evgeny Kaspersky in an interview with Der Speigel (via Schneier on Security)
The First Truly Honest Privacy Policy
The data we collect is strictly anonymous, unless you’ve been kind enough to give us your name, email address, or other identifying information. And even if you have been that kind, we promise we won’t sell that information to anyone else, unless of course our impossibly obtuse privacy policy says otherwise and/or we change our minds tomorrow.
(via Schneier on Security)
Close the Washington Monument
This one pretty much sums up the argument for me. Hope you enjoy.
“Some of them call terrorism an “existential threat” against our nation. It’s not. Even the events of 9/11, as horrific as they were, didn’t make an existential dent in our nation. Automobile-related fatalities — at 42,000 per year, more deaths each month, on average, than 9/11 — aren’t, either. It’s our reaction to terrorism that threatens our nation, not terrorism itself. The empty monument would symbolize the empty rhetoric of those leaders who preach fear and then use that fear for their own political ends.”
"If you look at all the recent terrorist incidents, the bombs were detected because of human intelligence not because of screening … If even a fraction of what is spent on screening was invested in the intelligence services we would take a real step toward making air travel safer and more pleasant."
~ Marijn Ornstein, chief of security, Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam (Source: defensetech.org)
"Q: I’ve been embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from my employer, and I don’t care who knows it.
A: It’s a good thing they’re recording this call, because I’m going to have to report you.
"
~ Fun with banking questions and answers via Schneier (via bennylope) Awesome. Among my other favorites:
Q: Need any weed? Grass? Kind bud? Shrooms?
A: No thanks hippie, I’d just like to do some banking.
Gates Calls European Mood a Danger to Peace
This title could be more aptly titled in today’s sensationalist media as “Gates Bitchslaps European Girlie Men” but that would be an insult to the tact and venue at which he provided the comments.
As indicated previously in this tumbl, Europe’s aversion to action is a troubling trend that I hope has a fix other than another terrorist attack. We’re not asking for an invasion force, just some engineers that can help rebuild stuff and shoot at things if shot at. Sack up people!
Baradar - Why Now? (in Pakistan)
via Steve Coll’s blog on the New Yorker (which I did not realize existed until just now)
About Me
A strategy consultant with a passion for IT, geopolitics, economics, and the open ocean. Awed by simple, innovative solutions to difficult problems. This represents my favorite slices of the web and serves as networked storage for my brain which is now entirely pointer-based. Opinions expressed here are my own and do not represent those of any organization with which I may or may not be allegedly associated.
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