For the past couple weeks, when i try to access the O Club, it keeps timing out.
Almost like the server is turned off or unplugged from the net.
I know it has become "The Badanov Channel", but it's a bit much. I really want to go back to the pre-Badanov Channel days, where we can discuss a wide range of subjects.
Can this be made possible? BTW, clicking on the headline will take you to what is supposed to be the O Club.
Posted by: Seeking Cure For Ignorance ||
10/08/2024 08:59 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11135 views]
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#2
Repairing the O Club glitches is in the queue, Seeking cure. Something about it being caught up in the regular back-ups when it ought not be.
As I understand it — and if course I don’t, really — the change-over from Fred’s server to badanov’s, on top of the program upgrade, is turning out to be somewhat more complex than planned — as such things always are — and then there are the security upgrades that had to be done earlier than planned because of the idiots in China or somewhere, who chose that week this summer to become feistier than usual. It was all hands on deck for hours at a time at one point, deleting spam comments in the Burg while Fred and badanov pulled off some sort of black box magic in the code. But apparently the bad guys are very sorry they tried — whatever that means — and we haven’t seen anything like it since.
So it will get done, and I’m sure your comment has moved it up the priority list.
#7
As I have said before the oclub is not accessible between 15 minutes and 35 minutes after each even numbered hour.
The URL you should be using it either wheelus.1dogstar.net or officersclub.1dogstar.net.
the o-club url was s'posed to redirect to the oclub, for your convenience.
Right now, trying to work through the renewal issues, my firewall is so good it apparently is blocking renewal attempts, and when I tried to fix it, the backup server became locked up.
[GatewayPundit] Shots were fired outside of a Texas church Sunday after a member of a church security team opened fire on what was believed to be a threat.
The Burnet County Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook that it responded to the Church at the Epicenter at about 10:30 a.m. Sunday.
The post said a man called 911, asked for police and hung up.
"Upon the arrival of law enforcement, it became clear that shots had been fired, and that all of them came from a member of the church’s volunteer safety team," the post said.
The post said the church’s safety team member told police "he confronted 2 suspicious males outside the church, one of whom presented a rifle."
"The safety team member fired multiple rounds causing both males to enter a white minivan and flee the scene," the post read.
Police said the men have dark skin and wore white clothes and headgear, according to KEYE-TV.
They should be considered armed and dangerous.
Burnet County Sheriff Calvin Boyd said no one was hurt, according to KXAN-TV.
"The [security] team member actually shot at the subjects, and they both got in the vehicle," Boyd said. "We don’t have any evidence of anybody being injured, and we haven’t been able to locate the vehicle."
Kyle Byrd, who leads the church, noted on Facebook that the incident spawned an outpouring of support for the church.
"Our hearts are touched, our families are encouraged, and our resolve is stronger than ever to be the fullness of what God planted us in this area to be ... a Kingdom Center that covers the Heart of Texas, its churches, their leaders, their families and all of our friends who we love dearly & believe in deeply," he wrote.
"We Praise the Lord, and we rejoice in the sharing of His sufferings. Let the Gospel of Christ and Him crucified shout louder than the opposition, and may Jesus receive His full reward! Blessings!"
The sheriff’s office said it is working with multiple agencies to investigate the incident.
After the incident, Lampasas police said they boosted patrols around churches, according to KWTX-TV.
[KXAN] A 45-year-old man was arrested after allegedly making a false report surrounding a Sunday incident at a church in Burnet, Burnet County Sheriff Calvin Boyd said during a media briefing on Monday.
On Sunday, BCSO was searching for two suspects who were outside the church, and a safety team member said he confronted them both before they got into a white minivan and drove away northbound on U.S. 281, Boyd said. However, a thorough investigation into the incident found the man lied to law enforcement and others about the incident, Boyd said.
The safety team member allegedly fired multiple rounds, which he said caused both men to get into the minivan, Boyd said. He said there was never a van, nor were there two men.
“There were no hostile actions taken or directed at the church by any persons, and no weapons brandished towards the church,” Boyd said during the briefing. “At no time was the safety of the congregation in jeopardy.”
Boyd identified the man as Jacob Wayne Tarver, of Burnet County. He was charged with a false report to induce an emergency response, tampering with/fabricating physical evidence and deadly conduct. He remained in the Burnet County Jail Monday, Boyd said.
“Rumors and speculation surrounding this case have only served to cause fear, mistrust and animosity within the community,” Boyd said. “This falsehood can only be counteracted by the widespread announcement of the truth.”
Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the incident on Sunday, including helicopters looking for the white van, he said.
“We even heard from the White House,” Boyd said. “This really gets everybody’s attention now. It was a big deal, and it was a real waste of assets.”
He said Tarver did not confess until Monday morning after he was questioned by the Texas Rangers. Yeah, that'll leave a mark.
[ZeroHedge] The pilots of what appears to be an unmarked Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter generated a massive downwash, also known as rotor wash, that sent tents and aid flying in all directions at a volunteer supply zone operated by private citizens in western North Carolina.
This action by the helicopter pilots is up for debate, with many on X believing this was an intentional act of sabotage by the federal government.
There are no official statements by local, state, or federal governments about the incident. Flight tracking data shows that the Black Hawk is military-owned.
#3
Akshully, it was the North Carolina NG.. The crew has been grounded pending investigation. Note that there might have been two similar incidents, which may be causing confusion.
[Regnum] The New Zealand Navy intelligence ship Manawanui ran aground and sank near Samoa, the news division of New Zealand television company 1News reported.
"The HMNZS Manawanui, a $100 million specialist diving and survey vessel, sank this morning after running aground on a reef off Upolu Island in Samoa and catching fire last night. Naval Commander Rear Admiral Garin Golding said Captain Yvonne Gray's decision to abandon ship was the 'right thing to do' and could have 'saved lives,'" the publication noted.
New Zealand Defence Minister Judith Collins said an investigation would be launched into the shipwreck, adding that the focus was now on dealing with the environmental impact of the accident.
"It's a 'sad day' for the Navy to lose a ship, but the fact that no one was killed is a 'triumph,'" she said.
The captain of the vessel was Yvonne Gray, for her it was her first experience on duty. The questionnaire on the New Zealand Navy website states that the captain of the vessel is in a "marital relationship" with a woman (the LGBT movement is recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation).
#9
#7 Glavinter Peacock796 doubt it. You could stop posting stupid stuff.
Posted by Deacon Blues 2024-10-08 13:25||
Not "stupid stuff" at all! Obviously your lack of intelligence prevents you from understanding a person's opinions on articles posted here! And according to the rules of engagement is what the comment section has been used for since 9/11.
#10
We have all been spam copped, including all of the moderators — more than once for some of us... I once was compelled to spam cop my own comment, in fact, when on reflection I decided it had been entirely inappropriate, and y’all deserved better from me.
So take it as a proof of properly belonging in this conversation, my dears, and get over it.
#12
The image I posted was of a popular actress showing her characters image of a destructive personality in a popular series. It was an intelligent, non offensive representation of the above story
For a moderator to go rogue deleting commenters perfectly fine comments is abusive and disrespectful, THAT behavior WIll be noted.
#15
By the way, I see another long time commenter and moderators clashing on another post today after that commenter expressed his honest opinion on a subject. The censorship is getting out of hand over honest opinions of long time commenters.
#18
During the Covid period Fred kept nearly dying from a number of things, one after another; the moderators were doing our best to carry on without emoting all over everyone.
#19
TW,
During the covid period I perceived you as a peacekeeper. If you had deleted my posts I was unaware or understood the reason for the delete. From time to time my posts were duplicates of others and not included. Sometimes there was not enough time for the mods to approve every article, no worries. Some mods had strong opposing views...
#2
Cross-leveling relief resources is a task that the Federal government should be undertaking. The fact that Gov. Abbot is undertaking the task is telling.
#3
Those still recovering in Fla., and South Ga.,
from Helene are going to need your prayers. Plus, a lot of emergency supplies that our Federal Government has squandered.
Because DC Swamp was too busy spending and sending $$$$ to every pocket around the world, plus their own. Instead of following their oath of office and US Constitution, which requires America 1st.
an eyewall replacement cycle (which frequently occurs in strong hurricanes) and some land interaction (hurricane is near the Yucatan) were probably responsible
Merida, MX has a pretty decent functioning radar and you can follow it
#10
Wasn't that why Chernobyl was built in 1st place - to power Woodpecker?
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/08/2024 10:54 Comments ||
Top||
#11
Ah... well Oleg P. Designed and built the woodpecker and ordered the reactors at Chernobyl. He was a good friend and co-worker at Motorola.
Before I introduced him to some Pave Paws designers I had a long talk with them about what he had told me about that analog phased array radar .. Oleg and I had lots of laughs about all the shit people dreamed of the woodpecker doing..
After introducing him to one of the Pave Paws designer the designer got back to me and said woodpecker was an even worse design then I suspected. Totally useless in the real world.
As to it's woodpecker noise I introduced him to ex-Motorola engineers who had made millions on devices to work around the noise. They were happy to meet him and roasted him with several nice dinners in downtown Chicago.
I lost track of him about 2015 and assume he might be dead.
BTW he defected to the USA the same week it went live after testing. He was sent to Dayton for a few years of inquiry and then NCR and others then Mot where he was on the same team with me and then when laid off went as CTO to a firm in San Diego.
All the crazy theories about the Woodpecker are bullshit! Take it to the bank.
#12
Oh and his father was a Hero of the Soviet union who died in the first Kursk battle at the beginning of the Nazi invasion that the USSR lost.
And his first wife that he was kind of forced to marry for political reasons taught communism at one of the Moscow universities. He defected because she and his political commissar didn't approve when he was caught by them sc...ing the commissar's wife.
NEXT WEATHER ALERT. STREET FLOOD ADVISORY in effect. Heavy rainfall is creating areas of street flooding. Avoid roads covered by water of unknown depth. pic.twitter.com/QoHMSSmNe5
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] The Saudis have their dream in the desert to throw money at, and now Egypt has a desert dream, too. Inshallah.
The Ras El-Hekma development is 350km (217 miles) northwest of Cairo
By 2045 the high tech city is expected to contribute $25billion a year to Egypt’s economy and create 750,000 jobs
The project is being backed by Abu Dhabi-based sovereign fund ADQ, which on Friday appointed UAE developer Modon as the master developer
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] A controversial facial recognition company that's built a massive photographic dossier of the world's people for use by law enforcement, has been used in more than 1,000 police investigations without authorities announcing use of the software.
Despite opposition from lawmakers, regulators, privacy advocates and the websites it scrapes for data, Clearview AI has continued to rack up new contracts with police departments and other government agencies.
But now an investigation by The Washington Post has revealed how hundreds of U.S. citizens have been arrested after being connected to the crime, not through good old fashioned policing, but through use of the facial recognition software. The Post was able to sift through four years of records from police departments in 15 states that documented how the software was used.
Suspects placed under arrest were never informed how they were identified with police officers actively obscuring the use of the software through convoluted phrasing such as 'through investigative means', in an effort to disguise its use.
Clearview has provided access to its facial recognition software to more than 2,220 different government and law enforcement agencies around the country, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the US Secret Service, the Drug Enforcement Agency and more.
It pulls photos and personal data from a wide range of online sources, including social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn, which it uses to create individual profiles of people. Clearview's app then uses these profiles to identify individuals in photos that their clients, such as police departments, upload.
In the past the company was the subject of controversy after it was found to be scraping pictures from social media without people's consent. The pictures were used to train its facial recognition algorithm. The collection of images - approximately 14 photos for each of the 7 billion people on the entire planet, scraped from social media and other sources makes the company's extensive surveillance system, already the most elaborate of its kind.
But now it is law enforcement who are under scrutiny after failing to be transparent as to how the tech is being used. Sometimes police stated how suspects were identified through a witness or that 'a police officer made the identification.'
The real concern comes after about two dozen U.S. state or local governments passed laws restricting facial recognition after studies found the technology was less effective in identifying black people and had on a number of occasions wrongly identified suspects.
When police departments were asked by The Post to explain how the specialized software was used, most refused to give details while others claimed facial recognition was never used solely to provide a concrete match - just to suggest possible suspects.
AI is used to identify similarities between the 'probe image' and the faces in the database. However, there is no universal standard for determining a match, so different software providers may show varying results and degrees of resemblance.
Clearview AI, a tool becoming ever more widely used by law enforcement, scans a vast database of publicly available images from the internet, meaning anyone's photo online could potentially be linked to an investigation based on facial similarity. But in some of the more bizarre matches, the system suggested a suspect was basketball legend Michael Jordan and in another search a cartoon of a black man was found to be a match.
There now appears to be a steadily growing opposition to use of the facial recognition tool that can instigate false arrests. It was revealed during the study how seven Americans who were innocent, six of whom were black, were incorrectly arrested only to have their charges later dropped. While some were told they had been identified by AI, others were simply informed casually how 'the computer found them' of that they had simply been a 'positive match'.
Civil rights groups and defense lawyers say people should be told if the software is used to identify them. In some recent court cases, the reliability of the tool has been successfully questioned with defense lawyers suggesting police and prosecutors are working to intentionally to shield the technology from the scrutiny of the courts.
In their contracts with individual police departments, Clearview attempts to distance themselves from the reliability of their results. The contracts state how the program is not designed 'as a single-source system for establishing the identity of an individual' and that 'search results produced by the Clearview app are not intended nor permitted to be used as admissible evidence in a court of law or any court filing.'
Currently there are no federal laws regulate facial recognition leaving it to individual states and cities to push for greater transparency over the use of the tool.
The company, founded in 2016 by Australian CEO Hoan Ton-That, 37, is currently valued at more than $225 million.
Clearview is funded in part by Peter Thiel, the conservative venture capitalist who helped found the data analytics company Palantir, which has worked with the FBI, CIA, Marine Corps, and Department of Homeland Security. Clearview's technology is also being used by private companies, including Macy's, Walmart, BestBuy and the NBA.
European nations - including the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Greece and Austria - have all expressed disapproval of Clearview's method of extracting information from public websites, saying it comes in violation of European privacy policies. Canadian provinces from Quebec to British Columbia have requested the company take down the images obtained without subjects' permission.
Despite opposition from lawmakers, regulators, privacy advocates and the websites it scrapes for data, Clearview has continued to rack up new contracts with police departments and other government agencies.
In the meantime, its growing database has helped Clearview's artificial intelligence technology learn and grow more accurate. One of its biggest known federal contracts is with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - particularly its investigative arm, which has used the technology to track down both the victims and perpetrators of child sexual exploitation.
A facial recognition system used by officials in China connects to millions of CCTV cameras and uses artificial intelligence to pick out targets.
#2
Really no different than a photo line up, just done by computer.
And yes, you can copyright your image. Usually done when you have been in other copyrighted things like TV, movies, etc. Otherwise why the hooha about AI images of actors?
Posted by: ed in texas ||
10/08/2024 8:58 Comments ||
Top||
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Grieving families in North Carolina have been forced to bury their dead in their backyards - and are accusing authorities of downplaying the damage caused by Hurricane Helene.
The official death toll rose to 227 over the weekend - half of whom were from North Carolina - but state and federal officials told The Spectator that this number is woefully inaccurate.
Many bodies haven't even been recovered amid debris and flooding. There are also piles of deceased people who have yet to be identified. They are being transported all over the state in hopes of finding open morgue space.
'According to folks on the ground - fire, medical, law enforcement officials - they’re way underreporting the numbers. All the morgues are full and they’ve hauled a ton [of bodies] to Greensboro,' the state official said. 'People are starting to bury them in their yards because they have no place to put them.'
One individual who was in Asheville when Helene hit told The Spectator: 'It's so much worse than they're saying...I think there's a massive cover-up.'
The destruction from Helene, and the immense multi-state death toll, comes just days before Category 5 Hurricane Milton is set to barrel into Florida's coastline.
Helene made landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida at night on September 26 before laying waste to Georgia and the Carolinas with record storm surges and tornados.
North Carolina alone had six confirmed tornados on the morning of September 27, two days before 500 members of state's national guard were deployed to help with rescue efforts.
Locals say they are 'pissed' at General Major Todd Hunt, director of the North Carolina National Guard, for waiting a whole 48 hours to get boots on the ground.
I’m not sure that’s fair. Orienting and observing take more than a few seconds, surely.
There were 5,500 national guardsmen deployed around this time, some of them from other states such as Florida.
'That’s why you saw the Florida National Guard and other units out there - and why private citizens stepped in, even as state and federal officials tried to shut down their efforts,' an anonymous source familiar with the situation in North Carolina told The Spectator.
Before North Carolina national guardsmen were deployed, a four-year-old girl was killed in a car crash in Claremont, a town around 40 miles north of Charlotte.
Another person died after a tree fell on their Charlotte home.
In North Carolina's Buncombe County, 40 people have died, the county manager has stated.
Asheville, a popular tourist destination in Buncombe County, was one of the hardest hit towns, where scenes of complete devastation are all too common.
The small mountain town of Swannanoa dealt with flood levels not seen since 1791, and locals have said their community was 'entirely erased.'
This comes days after a whistleblower wrote a letter to Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., that details how the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has wasted and misappropriated funds in the wake of Helene and is now 'exacerbating the emergency.'
The letter to Gaetz also alleges 'hundreds if not thousands' of first responders and service members have been 'without deployment orders' with some waiting around in hotels while others 'have sat idle' as Americans throughout the southeast are in dire need.
Last week, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas admitted that FEMA ran out of money to make it through the hurricane season, after it handed out more than $1 billion in taxpayer dollars to give housing assistance to illegal migrants over the last two years.
#2
Given the way the O'Biden Admin DOJ/_ _ _ & FEMA) handles things. The families, burying their own dead, will be charged, arrested, jailed and wait 3 years for a trial.
For those who do not know. The senior NG in each state is not chosen by DoD. It varies from state to state, but is often a political appointment without any prior military experience requirement. Per Article I, Sec 8 -
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
#5
Army veteran lawmaker airlifting 'life-saving' supplies to Hurricane Helene victims claims Biden and Harris' 'photo ops' have delayed rescue effort
Of course. Not specific to the current president and vice president, but common behaviour whenever VIPs come through to see for themselves… or be seen helping. The thoughtful ones like Ivanka Trump try to minimize the impact, or bring some extra supplies like President Trump did, but VIPs are by their nature disruptive in that environment.
#9
Just got off the phone with family in Franklin - Hayesville WNC. They are north of US-64 in what has become 1/2 back country. What they have described is hideous and far worse than the media & gov is reporting. They're pulling over ripe bodies out of trees. Houses hit with the likes of tidal waves and bodies floating in ponds. The NOC and Anderson, NC got its share of problems also.
The FED's, as I was told, are their biggest hideous in their community rescue and recovery efforts. Little if any food or supplies getting into the areas.
My Nephew made a comment that I had not thought of.
It seems the general feeling in his area, is the Democrats in charge, are hiding the far greater death toll than claimed, minimizing the mess and inability to do handle things. Because it is so close to the election.
[FoxNews] "A House lawmaker is raising concerns about the possibility of people who are in the country illegally being able to purchase firearms through the same process a U.S. citizen would use."
#1
Technically, since they're not citizens, they are not part of the militia, ergo the Second doesn't apply to them. However, federal judges have shown a serious deficiency in actually reading the Constitution.
[JustTheNews] Since Hurricane Helene first came ashore on Sept. 26, more than 230 lives have been lost across six different Southeastern states, with many still remaining missing.
[LawAndCrime] Months after Elon Musk’s X Corp. urged the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court to find that special counsel Jack Smith unlawfully forced the social media microblogging site formerly known as Twitter to hand over evidence of former Donald Trump’s “private communications” without the former president’s knowledge of the Jan. 6 probe-related action, the high court on Monday refused to take up the case and offered no explanation for the denial.
Within the 50-page orders list and a section cataloguing the cases denied certiorari was X Corp. v. United States, a now failed petition that was brought in late May. As Law&Crime reported at the time, X and Musk had argued that Smith orchestrated an “unprecedented end-run around executive privilege” and the First Amendment to keep Trump unaware — through a 180-day nondisclosure order — of a warrant seeking private messages his @realDonaldTrump account sent and received.
The petition from X asked the justices to answer two questions:
1. Whether an electronic communications service provider can be compelled to produce potentially privileged user communications before adjudication of the provider’s First Amendment challenge to a nondisclosure order that prohibits it from notifying the user and before the user had notice and an opportunity to assert privilege, including executive privilege.
2. Whether the First Amendment permits gagging a provider in a highly public investigation where the government does not (a) demonstrate that disclosure would jeopardize the investigation’s integrity; or (b) dis- prove the workability of a less-restrictive alternative, such as disclosure to a representative designated by a former President to assert executive privilege on his behalf.
The justices confirmed Monday that they will answer neither of these questions.
“The first claim misapprehends the requirements of the SCA and the First Amendment; erroneously seeks to inject unfounded executive-privilege claims into its argument; and wrongly asserts a circuit conflict. The second claim presents a factbound and meritless objection to the ruling of both courts below upholding the nondisclosure order,” the government said. “Even if the issues petitioner raises otherwise warranted review, this case would not be an appropriate vehicle: the underlying dispute is moot and no executive-privilege issue actually existed in this case. If review of the underlying legal issues were ever warranted, the Court should await a live case in which the issues are concretely presented. The petition for a writ of certiorari should therefore be denied.”
Posted by: NN2N1 ||
10/08/2024 04:16 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11126 views]
Top|| File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
