The Life and Death of Peter Sellers

I just finished watching The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, a film about the life of the actor best known for his roles in the Pink Panther movies and Dr. Strangelove. It showed a side of Sellers I was unfamiliar with, that of a man who was emotionally stunted to a severe degree. Like millions I was captivated by Seller’s performances, as he always seemed like a bomb ready to go off. Apparently there was good reason.

Geoffrey Rush plays Sellers and does an absolutely fantastic job of it. It isn’t easy to slip into roles you so closely associate with another actor but Rush wins the audience over into believing he is Sellers. Charlize Theron is also great as his suffering second wife. And John Lithgow plays Blake Edwards masterfully.

Sellers didn’t live a happy life, at least from what this film shows, but he was a brilliant comic. Watching Sellers’ life in this film isn’t always easy, but it is fascinating look at a talented but troubled man.

City email addresses are public records

My friend John Beimler decided to take advantage of the Public Records law and get a copy of all the email addresses from all the email lists the Town of Cary maintains. The following email went out to all the folks on those lists:

We want to let you know that a person has requested a copy of the e-mail addresses from all Town of Cary electronic mailing lists, and as a subscriber, your email address is included in this database. Therefore, you may begin receiving emails from others outside of our control. As a reminder, the database is a public record under North Carolina law (see our Public Records Policy and our Privacy Statement).
The email lists are being requested by:
John Beimler
1206 Castalia Dr
Cary, NC 27513
919-926-7264
jbeimler at radiomind dot com.
As always, we apologize for any inconvenience this may bring and hope that the actions of others will not result in your deciding to unsubscribe from the Town’s e-mail service. Please contact us if you have questions or need further information.
Susan Moran, APR
Town of Cary Public Information Officer
susan dot moran at townofcary dot org

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Asterisk hacking

I had reason to check my Asterisk phone server logs today and noticed some script kiddies have been knocking on its door. Apparently an exploit kit exists that hacks into Asterisk PBXs and allows you to register as a phone on these systems. Way back in 2002 I put some firewall rules in place which allowed fairly wide open access to my Asterisk system. They had been there so long that I never revisited them, but on the other hand I never had much reason to.

I’m not quite sure what the point is as VoIP makes calling any number in the world virtually free, and VoIP-to-VoIP calls are completely free. Where’s the incentive to hack? Heck, back in my day when ten-cents-per-minute long distance was considered a bargain there were plenty of tools and methods to get free calls. Not that I ever tried them, mind you, but I knew a number of people who did (Apple Computer might not exist today if it weren’t for this kind of petty larceny).
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Swervin’ In My Lane

Swervin’ In My Lane
Robert Earl Keen, Jr.

Sometimes I don’t know what I’m doing
‘Cause sometimes all my days are filled with rain
As I travel down life’s highway, things ain’t going my way
‘Cause there’s always someone swervin’ in my lane
You keep a-swervin’ in my lane and it’s causing’ lots of danger
I’m a-honkin’ on my horn, I’m a-shooting you the finger
I keep a-switchin’ on my bright lights, but you’re just too dim to know
When your swervin’ on life’s highway, you’re running someone off the road
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FBI hangs anthrax case on Bruce Ivans

So, yesterday the FBI announced it was closing its investigation on the 2001 anthrax attacks, saying it was convinced that it was the work of Dr. Bruce Ivins. The report the FBI released paints a picture of Ivins as a man with mental problems, in effect posthumously convicting a man who will never get a trial. Anytime someone gets convicted of something after they can’t defend themselves my BS detectors go on high alert. Looks like my initial hunch about the case is being proven out.

The anthrax attacks are a curious event in our history. Coming on the heels of the September 11th attacks, conservative hawks like to conveniently forget these attacks whenever they spout the fallacy that America’s response to the 9/11 attacks kept more terrorist attacks from taking place, as if mailing deadly pathogens to United States Senators doesn’t qualify as terrorism. In my mind, the FBI’s report shows all the signs of an investigation not really wanting to know where the facts lead, perhaps because doing so would raise uncomfortable questions best left unasked.
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Tuscany Industries calling again?

Judging by the huge spike in Internet searches bringing people to my website, it looks as if the scammers hiding behind the fake “Tuscany Industries” Caller ID are back in action. I chronicled my experience with them two years ago in a number of posts, which have now bubbled up to the top of the Google search for Tuscany Industries.

Since the calls for me personally have stopped, I’m not sure what scam is being run now. Is it the “lower your credit card debt” or “OMG your car’s warranty is expiring!!11!” Either way, it doesn’t matter: it serves as a wake up call to me to proceed with my lawsuit against these scumbags.

Yes, I have a good idea where they are. And yes, I’m pissed enough to get a piece of them. Let’s get going.

If you’ve gotten a call from “Tuscany Industries” and interacted with the lowlifes on the other end, drop me a comment here and let me know the scoop. The more info I can gather for the lawsuit, the better.

Week of meetings and sickness

It’s been a very busy week for us all. First is the weather, with this past weekend’s snow it’s been tough to get outside for any meaningful exercise. Plus it’s my meeting week, with the East CAC, RCAC, and Parks Board. To top it off, Hallie got sick this week, followed shortly by Travis (and our dog, Rocket, too). There have been a few nights with shallow sleeping, listening for the sound of kids in need of assistance.

The weekend’s approaching, though, and it might be a nice one with sun and temperatures close to 60. Just in time to save the day!

Human trafficking in Haiti

The story of the ten Americans arrested in Haiti on charges of child trafficking is very, very disturbing. There is a huge story here. Now news comes that lawyer Jorge Puello who volunteered to represent them is wanted on child trafficking charges himself – in multiple countries.

I know the whole innocent-until-proven-guilty thing, but the evidence here isn’t looking good. Some of the kids who the group tried to “rescue” were not even orphans. It sounds to me that at the very least the alleged ringleader, Laura Silsby, had some mental problems, crying when no orphanage would give her kids. Perhaps a bit fanatical?

Regardless of this groups guilt or innocence, I hope this case shines a light on the underworld of child trafficking and causes some real changes in how kids in these poor countries are treated.

Bonus: Salon’s Glenn Greenwald has some commentary on the hypocrisy of those who decry the group’s Haiti detention but who had no problem with the U.S. jailing Muslims in squalid, hidden prisons without charges or representation.