Murder's Still Illegal, Right?

Bruno Mars was in town recently. Or on the tv. Maybe he was purchasing plywood, I don't know. I know exactly one of his songs, and even that one I don't know all the way through.

I don't know what the song is called either. All I know is that after every line he sings, someone says "Eh eh eh eh, eh eh eh eh OOH". This is not only the highlight of the song, but pretty much the only part I know. When I say the highlight of the song, I mean that when I hear it, I know it's time to change the station. Who am I kidding - like I'd listen to a station that plays Bruno Mars.

So I would assume, because I'm an expert in these things, that he will play my jam [that's perform my song, for anybody over 40]. People will be leaving the arena, stoked, singing "Eh eh eh eh, eh eh eh eh OOH"

• If you have ever commented on a blog post, you might have logged into Disqus in order to do it. This is stupid. Disqus was hacked, years ago, and is being nice enough to let us know. Even if you haven't received any information from them, change your password. It won't hurt to change any of them randomly. Remember this next time you have to log in to make a comment.

So, are you trying to recover from the Equifax hack? If you go there, you'll get redirected to another site, which may try to install a fake Adobe Flash player. Equifax blames it on third party code. Before you and I asphyxiate from laughter, this same code also got TransUnion. Are you feeling safe now?

• Faceyspaces users: the latest hack is via Trusted Contacts. If someone contacts you and says they want your help recovering their account, be very careful. You may wind up giving them your account. Come to think of it, it might be a good idea to give someone your FB account.

I'm checking the weather online. It tells me that tomorrow, cloudy skies will become partly cloudy. That was helpful.

• This week's hack Pizza Hut. The financial information of 'some' customers was stolen. It occurred between October 1 and 2, for 28 hours, if you ordered online or with their app. This illustrates just one of the issues faced by ordering from Pizza Hut.

Krack Attack: WARNING...WARNING... DANGER... DANGER..
There is a serious problem with WPA2, the encryption most of us are using on our wifi. Until the attack is completely analyzed, the best thing you can do is turn off your wifi. Since you're not going to do that, use your mobile minutes, which you're also not going to do. Use the HTTPS Everywhere extension on ALL of your browsers, wifi and wired. You can find it in your app store or at eff.org. Using HTTPS and/or a VPN will protect you at the present. The small bit of good news is that an attacker has to be physically close to attack. Make sure your phones, wireless, and all computer operating systems are patched to the moment. Have and update an antivirus. Check Bleeping Computer or other security sites for updates. You are most vulnerable with android phones. Linux is already patched and iOS will let you know the moment it becomes available. The android patching system is.. well.. crap. Don't forget everything in your house from smart tv's to light bulbs. 

Microsoft has patched all supported versions of Windows and the update will come down with all the others, as it does normally (assuming you have it set to download and install immediately).

• The blog stats for the week (or month, I have no *$&#ing idea):
• The large majority of readers are coming from Poland.
• 85% of readers are using Chrome or Chrome-based browsers (which phone home to Google)
• 72% of readers run Windows.
• These stats are available to me every morning. They are accurate down to single digits, which is all they need to be. The numbers are arrived at by carefully examining the hits every day, dividing by the previous day, then throwing it all out for a number provided by a random number generator. They have no relation to reality whatsoever, kinda like this blog.
• Please tell your friends (or enemies, depending on how you feel) about ThermionicEmissions.

I'm thinking about getting into poetry. This is a poem about breaking up:

I hate your guts
Don't want you no more
So get your ass out
You whiny fat whore.

It has a certain delicacy to it, don't you think?

• I feel a little guilty, having nothing to do with my religion or mother. ThermionicEmissions kinda refers to the method by which vacuum tubes work, yet I don't talk about them much.
• Yesterday I visited a tube link where I could buy lots of GZ34 rectifier tubes for $75 each. It's a very good thing my DC30 amplifier will run with a GZ34 or two 5AR4s or something like that. Saves a lot of money.
• And thus ends this installment of Tube Talk.

I made a sandwich.
This is not really a surprise; I have made many sandwiches, of many varieties.
There was something wrong with this sandwich: it was apparently very unhappy and wanted to die. Yes, I made my first Suicidal Sandwich. Right out to the couch I went, putting the plate on my lap. Within two seconds, the plate and sandwich attempted to leap to the floor, only I saved it. I felt good about this. Persistently, the combination decided to try again. Again I saved it. I was a hero twice in one day.

When I was finished, I put my plate down. Within seconds, it too tried to leap. Did the sandwich's suicidal ideation infect the plate by proximity? Was it the plate the whole time? What if the two of them were just scientists, trying to prove the existence of gravity?

That's a Lot of Medicine for A Dog

One million Chinese-made devices have been hacked for massive internet attacks. This illustrates two things: avoid Chinese-made junk. And this is yet another example of Things To Come.

• There's a very interesting article on Delta's power outage in August. It claims that the problem was more of a cyber attack than a power outage. It makes good points. It also backs up what I've been saying about the event: it was not what they claimed. I stated that there had to be Serious Backups and Redundancies because this was Incredibly Important Infrastructure (and there was). This is not a good thing, especially combined with the fiber cuts in California and the ongoing probing of the power grid.

Kim K was robbed at gunpoint in France. She begged for her life, but more importantly, that the thieves not ruin her makeup or take a bad picture of her.

• October 3: the birthday of Saint Stevie Ray Vaughan. He would have been 62.

The Supreme Court has neglected to hear mobster Whitey "The Bulge" Bulger's appeal for killing eleven people. Whitey, 87, will have to spend the rest of his life in prison. His 100 year sentence will allow good-behavior probation in 5 years. Don't you wish, one day, to be as cool as Whitey and have a nickname like The Bulge? Maybe not so much ordering 11 people dead, but maybe knowing you could. The reason for the appeal was that Whitey claims to only have killed ten people, not eleven, hence his bid to have the entire case thrown out.

In case you're curious, the only parts of the above paragraph that are true are his conviction and life in prison.

• Three people who studied unusual states of matter have won the Nobel Prize in Physics. Well, it's not quite Obama's Peace Prize but it will have to do.

The only thing better than a presidential debate is a vice-presidential debate. If you don't believe me, watch it. In the interests of mental health, I'd avoid it. Update: Bill Weld, the libertarian candidate, isn't allowed to debate, like Gary Johnson, the presidential candidate.

But wait - what is this??? Trump's VP candidate, Pence, has a signature line is that he is "a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican, in that order." Uh-oh. I don't care what he wants to do in his spare time but this is a potential violation of the First Amendment.

• Don't ask how I know but my Bluetooth earphones at work reach into the bathroom. When I say the meeting is shit, I mean it.

Amnesty International has accused the world's wealthiest nations of shirking responsibility towards refugees, saying they host the fewest and do the least. No word yet from Amnesty on terrorist refugees.

• According to a study by 'Girlguiding,' girls in the UK are markedly less confident about their looks than they were five years ago.  No word yet on whether Girlguiding studies parents teaching self-esteem. I'm not particularly attractive but that's the way I am and I'm not likely to slit a wrist because I don't look like something from GQ (or MTV).

It's a good thing for Julian Assange that the embassy hasn't suffered a collapse into its own footprint. Yet.

• Marshall the cocker continues his health issues and our bid to cure him. He loves his new food - it's even better than cat food, and he LOVES cat food. He flatly refused the dry stuff, preferring to be hungry. The wet stuff is his favorite. The newer wet stuff causes diarrhea, His meds were no problem, as we put them in peanut butter. Now he's refusing the peanut butter, so he doesn't get breakfast until he's hungry enough to eat his meds. We really need to get him a dog but the wife is not happy with that idea and I like sleeping in my own bed.

Today's joke: a government worker makes it to his desk on time and performs his job.

Thank you. I'm available for children's parties.

• I know stats are the lifeblood of everything, so you'll want to know that 8 people accessed the blog yesterday. Cumulative stats (of who knows when - I don't have a need to know) are that the largest amount are from Poland, use Chrome and run linux. What does this mean? How the hell should I know - I'm just sharing info.

Are you ready for the Buzzword of the Day?

Bromosexual: a friendship between a straight man and a gay man.

Aren't you glad you asked?

Along with Buzzword of the Day, I give you Important Test of the Day.

At the Paris Motor Show, a BBC reporter tested cup holders in a range of cars.

Because, you know... this can be the tipping point in the decision of which super car to buy.

• If any of you are in the path of Hurricane Matthew, I need you to remain alive. Please be safe.