Lollerkeet: the Blogging

Cool...

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 18:30:09 +1000

On http://forums.mactalk.com.au/showthread.php?t=32403:

My ISP says BitTorrent accounts for about 45% of its Internet traffic.

Despite making up only 0.3 % of the world’s population, Australians account for 20% of BitTorrent traffic.

As to the first stat, I've heard 50% as well, but lets use this dude's numbers:

20% of 45% is 9%. Nine percent of internet traffic is Aussies downloading!

And this is with the crap service Telstra enforces. If Labour or the G9 consortium get their way and set up a decent infrastructure, imagine what we could achieve...

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Peace in our time? Maybe Not.

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:07:27 +1000

Bad news first:

If the Iraqi Parliament refuses to pass the privatization legislation, Congress will withhold US reconstruction funds that were promised to the Iraqis to rebuild what the United States has destroyed there. The privatization law, written by American oil company consultants hired by the Bush administration, would leave control with the Iraq National Oil Company for only 17 of the 80 known oil fields. The remainder (two-thirds) of known oil fields, and all yet undiscovered ones, would be up for grabs by the private oil companies of the world...

Less bad news:

The [Iraqi] parliament today passed a binding resolution that will guarantee lawmakers an opportunity to block the extension of the U.N. mandate under which coalition troops now remain in Iraq when it comes up for renewal in December. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whose cabinet is dominated by Iraqi separatists, may veto the measure.
...
Without the cover of the U.N. mandate, the continued presence of coalition troops in Iraq would become, in law as in fact, an armed occupation...

Normally a nation voting for an end to outside assistance would be a good thing. But in this case the 'helpers' have a vested interest in 'helping', and may not react well to being thanked and shown the door.

The U.S. invested a lot of money in taking Iraq, and will have very few options open to it if Iraq tells them to leave.

They could simply leave. While the this is the morally correct option, the U.S. invested billions of dollars in the operation and is unlikely to accept no ROI.
They could start killing off Parliamentarians. This is achievable given the unique status of law and order in Iraq, but is more likely to sway pro-American politicains to push for withdrawl than frighten anti-American ones to quieting down.
They could kill all the Parliamentarians, install a new Saddam and abandon the 'democracy' pretense.
They could simply ignore the Iraqi government and continue as they are. The Iraqi armed forces are no match for the U.S. and would not be stupid enough to fight back, but could simply let the Iraqi resistance do it for them. Without Iraqi help in identifying it's enemies, the MNF-I could be seriousy bloodied.

The money America rightfully owes Iraq for rebuilding is not worth the loss of oil revenue* Iraq is being forced to sacrifice for it. Free of the MNF-I, Iraq could easily afford to rebuild itself.

* I assume that the '17' number in the first article is a typo for '27', else a person can reach colonel in the U.S. armed forces without being able to do basic math.

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Vox Hunt: Love the Song, Hate the Genre

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 08:47:42 +1000

Audio: Share a favorite song or album from your least favorite genre.
Submitted by emily sears.

I wasn't about to post this, but then I remembered that there are a lot of vox users who don't live in Australia.

Kasey Chambers, The Captain:

The Captain

Kasey Chambers

Strange story: The first time I heard this song was at the house of a gay Aboriginal friend who's taste in music was... well, he was also a trekkie... umm...

Anyway, he's playing on this CD called Pepsi Chart Hits (I shit you not) with the sort of music you're imagining would be on such a monstrosity. Then, right at the end of 70 painful minutes of late 90s commercial pop, comes this gem.

"Who the hell is this?" I ask.
"I dunno" came the reply.
And I've loved it since.

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Vox Hunt: Cell Phone (Once & Future)

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 12:34:12 +1000

Show us your current ~~cellphone~~ mobile and/or your dream ~~cellphone~~ mobile.
Submitted by Reika Lee.

IMG_0965

Siemens MC60.

Very reliable (I have put it through more than any phone deserves). Good battery life. Bit too bulky, but otherwise fine.

The phone Mickey uses on The Bill.

As for my ideal phone, it doesn't exist!

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Astonishing X-Men

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Wed, 30 May 2007 14:08:30 +1000

When I first heard that Joss Whedon was writing an X-Men run, it was like both of my Christmases had come at once.

Astonishing X-Men

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 1: Gifted

Joss Whedon

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 3: Torn

Joss Whedon

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 2: Dangerous

Joss Whedon

This run is a direct continuation of Morrison's run (and New X-Men shold be read first); Gifted (1-6) and Dangerous (7-12) take place in the first school week of the year following that story. Torn (13-18) takes place after House of M.

It is obvious Whedon has been reading X-Men for a long time. He writes the characters with all the insecurities and frustrations they should have developed over the years. Cyclops is becoming jaded, Beast and Emma are both unsure of themselves, and Wolverine has become a believer in the Professor's cause. Kitty does not like Emma's influence on Scott, and the Professor himself is continuing his perpetual dark curve.

While there have been complaints about the pacing of the comics, it is not an issue here. The complaints were that Whedon was writing for the TPB, and that the plots were not paced fast enough for a bi-monthly book. But reading in paperback form, the plots are tight and addictive. The only frustration is the cliff-hanger ending of Torn.

I'm not going to recommend it, as good as it is. Wait to see if it comes out in hardcover when it's finished.

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New X-Men Omnibus

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Wed, 30 May 2007 13:11:10 +1000

I'll use this qotd as an excuse to start reviewing the latest books I've bought. Comics and games are the only non-essentials I really spend money on, so here goes. I'll start with the most expensive book I've ever bought.

New X-Men Omnibus

Grant Morrison

New X-Men Omnibus
Writer: Grant Morrison
Various artists.

This collects Grant Morrison's X-Men run, from the destruction of Genosha to [SPOILER]. At the end of the book, along with a few scripts, is Morrison's submission/manifesto where he states his ambition to revitalise and simplify the series. He succeeds.

The dialogue is great, and the stories are well paced. Almost nothing is extraneous, and once you've finished it you start noticing things you missed the first time. Morrison understands the characters well, and those he invents are strong and endearing. The only exception is the first villian he introduces, Cassandra Nova, whose motives are dull and unambiguous.

The artists vary in quality, although none are bad. My main complaint is that no-one except Ethan van Sciver seems capable of making Emma Frost look like a human. The final chunk of the book is set in an alternate future, which seems like an entirely different story, but does explain a lot of the preceding events.

I would seriously recommend this book, huge as it is.

Sad Note: Just as the Dark Phoenix story was later ruined by bringing Jean back to life, a similar thing is done to this run. It doesn't happen within the book, but is just another example of the danger of editors being driven by the desire to feature popular characters with no regard for the story or the fans.

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Will the Real Milblog Please Stand Up?

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Tue, 29 May 2007 16:34:16 +1000

Do you know any war veterans?
Submitted by Fightin' 6th Marines.

Seriously, take a look at the submitter's blog, then answer this for me:

Just what percentage of 'milblogs' are U.S. propaganda exercises?

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Am I the Only Person Who Wants A Simple Mobile?

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Sun, 27 May 2007 15:40:11 +1000

OK. This is for all you Nokia PR hacks watching Vox to see if your campaign is working:

Enough Already!

All I want is a phone. If it can replace my mp3 player, great. But seriously, here are my needs in a mobile:

Phone calls
SMS
Time
Vibrate
Monochrome screen
Send any bloody MMS messages to my email

Why so hard? The 6300 is the first phone I've seen in a long time that I've considered buying, but couldn't you just drop the camera and make it smaller and cheaper? (Also, what's with the 2.5 mm AV plug?) I have a good camera already, and I'm not going to swap it for a 2 megapixel version without the processing chip. Hell, take the camera out and I can take the thing in a lot of places I couldn't otherwise.

Maybe I am the only person on Earth who just wants a phone, not a multimedia suite...

I understand that many people want what the N-series offers. But not everyone. Some of us just want a mobile. Why aren't we catered for?

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Pointless messing around

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Sun, 27 May 2007 14:45:03 +1000

513777210_a5c43fc8e4_o

(Image swiped from dvorak.org/blog)

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QotD: Weekend Plans

nobody@vox.com(lollerkeet) — Sun, 27 May 2007 10:07:10 +1000

What are your plans for the weekend?

Stupid question to ask on a Sunday morning.

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