Daily Archives: April 23, 2009

Recommendation: Stop using Adobe Acrobat Reader

With all the Internet attacks that exploit Adobe Acrobat Reader people should switch to using an alternative PDF reader, a security expert said at the RSA security conference on Tuesday.

Of the targeted attacks so far this year, more than 47 percent of them exploit holes in Acrobat Reader while six vulnerabilities have been discovered that target the program, Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer of security firm F-Secure, said in a briefing with journalists.

source

But what are the alternatives?

Carbon Dioxide Totally Harmless????

Educator alert: The best example of the Naturalistic Fallacy EVAH!!!! The money quote is….

“Carbon Dioxide is Natural. It is not harmful. It is part of earth’s life cycle. And yet we are being told we have to reduce this natural substance, and reduce the american standard of living, to create an arbitrary reduction in something that is a naturally occurring in the Earth.”

Here it is… Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann:


hat tip: dump bachmann

Bachmann Takes Down Obama Over Atheistic Statements

  • … he went to a foreign country.
  • … he said “we are not a Christian Country.”
  • … he had religious icons covered up on the stage where he gave a speech (which has been absolutely standard practice for years).
  • … what would President Abraham Lincoln Do?
  • …. all American Citizens should be required to pray.

Shouldn’t there be a rule against using your floor time in Congress to pray?

Details here.

Texans have a chance to repent

Next time I get down on you slack-jawed yokels in Texas, which could be any time, I don’t want to hear any flack. No excuses. You can take my critique in the gut and live with it OR you can tell me to stuff it. But the latter is only an option if you get off your bovine Texas asses and do what you need to do.

State Board of Education Chairman Don McLeroy, R-Bryan, faced searing questioning during his uncommonly long confirmation hearing Wednesday at the Senate Nominations Committee.

And Chairman Mike Jackson, R-La Porte, said McLeroy’s nomination is on shaky ground because he might not be able to get the required two-thirds vote from the Senate.

Democratic senators Kirk Watson of Austin and Eliot Shapleigh of El Paso challenged McLeroy over his leadership during a number of controversial Board of Education decisions, including the recent adoption of new science curriculum standards that critics say undermine the teaching of evolution.

Shapleigh said he plans to have McLeroy separated from the others when his nomination comes up on the Senate floor so that it could be debated and voted on individually.

“You’ve created a hornet’s nest like I’ve never seen,” Shapleigh said, noting that 15 bills – “the most I’ve ever seen” – have been filed during this legislative session to strip various powers from the State Board of Education.

source

Texans, call or email your Senator now! Put the pressure on! Get this guy out of there!

And then, you can hang your head high and ride into town on that longhorn of yours with pride.

HT: Pharyngula

Dave Mabus in my Email Box

I just received a very threatening email from Dave Mabus. Dave is a christian who is rabidly anti atheist. As a person he is about as pleasant as a bad rash and as an intellect he makes a walnut look smart. Very few people send me truly threatening emails and get away with it for long. Remember the Turkish Spammers? I took care of them right good, didn’t I. (Details will not be forthcoming … just notice that they are not around here any more.) And I’d take care of Dave as well, except for one very important detail. He wasn’t threatening me, he was threatening my friend and colleague, PZ Myers.

Now, of course, I’ll stand up for PZ any time. But I don’t need to. He’s very capable of taking care of himself. I pity the person that threatens PZ.

As part of Dave the Dummy Mathus’s threat, and rather incongruously, he sent me this picture:

i-09122310ca41ab16571a824b89b2ae01-is_your_housemate_an_atheist.jpg

I think Dave thinks this is a funny anti-atheist cartoon. He does not understand that this is a funny parody on anti-atheism. So Dave sending this to me and a thousand other people (oh, Dave’s also a spammer) is pretty funny. Please pass the cartoon on.

It is possible that Dave himself is a parody. He is so utterly absurd that there is a distinct possibility that he is a texbook case of Poe’s law. But I don’t think so. The reason I don’t think so is because of the link between Dave and Nostradamus. This link usually means something.

In truth, I feel sorry for Dave. There is abundant evidence to inidcate that this man is in need of psychiatric help. Seriously. The problem is, having the disability he has does not place me in a position to help him. It does not make me responsible for him. All I’m going to do is keep busy defending rationality, evolution, and education. Dave’s family and friends should really step in here and get him some help.

Here is is web site in case there is any doubt about his condition.

Be a Quitter

It is not easy to quit smoking. It is not easy to be blogger. My friend DuWayne is trying to do both at once.

I’m a soon to be ex-smoker. My name is DuWayne Brayton and I have been smoking for about sixteen years now. I’ve had enough – though embarrassingly, it has taken the price of tobacco doubling, for me to decide to quit. … I am hoping to hear from you. I would really like to get some other smokers – current and ex, to post their stories.

If you would like to contribute, you can drop a comment, or send me an email at duwayne.brayton at gmail .com. You will have to sign up for a blogger account, though you needn’t use your real name. I will send you an invite to become a member and you can start posting.

Quitters Blog is here. Please have a look and contribute!