Monthly Archives: August 2013

France and the US: A Story of Friends and their Fries

Today Secretary of State John Kerry embraced the French in his address to the nation on Syria and called them the US oldest friends. Nothing new there as Thomas Jefferson had "potatoes served in the French manner" at a White … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 17 Comments

Betting on First Blast: Predict when the US will bomb Syria

My adventurous bet would be: before this day is over. Based on international power politics, Obama's agenda and the public opinion this also seems the best bet for the president to save face. The strike on Syria will be 'very … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 57 Comments

How much time do you spend on a blog post (on G+ or elsewhere)?

and do you ever suffer from writer's block? Some of us use G+ as a blogging tool with posts for which we do some research and were we actually ponder over the words. Others use their blogs and post a … Continue reading

Posted in Social Media | Tagged | 47 Comments

Fast action on Syria blocked by hastily assembled parliaments

The 'blitz-krieg' during the August break of most parliaments seems to be stopped. The British government suffered an enormous blow when even a provisional 'we might take action, but we will consult you again first' was rejected tonight. The speed … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 29 Comments

US intelligence unsure about chemical weapon facts Syria

Although Obama claims to be certain enough to consider an attack, the intelligence services are not so sure. They call it 'no slam dunk' referring to the certainty claimed by the CIA about the (never found) weapons of mass destruction … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 43 Comments

New Diplomacy: Fire the Tomahawks First, Facts Will Follow

Of course 'new' refers to the cruise missiles, it used to be guns, but new is also that we can now strike Syria and other nations without risking Western lives. Why do we need to ''send Assad a message' by … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 144 Comments

Wanted: mouse human interface device. Future task: scrolling

Basically I need a new mouse or alternative. Nowadays I hardly use it as a precision pointer but mostly to endlessly scroll through texts. What is the best device if scrolling comfort and control is key? I lost count of … Continue reading

Posted in Tech Posts | 49 Comments

UK govt: You've had your debate. There's no need to write any more

Whitehouse tried to stop the Guardian from further publishing on Snowden material and went as far as destroying hard disks under supervision of the British Secret Service Alan Rusbridger, editor of the Guardian today revealed that he has been summoned … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | Tagged , , | 35 Comments

Germany first European country to accept legal 'no gender' status

The overall majority of newborns is clearly male or female, but sometimes identifying is impossible. For these cases German law now accepts a 'no gender' status. Later in life if this person wants to change it, it's allowed but the … Continue reading

Posted in Politics | 16 Comments

Gmail is scanned even from people who are not on Gmail

In a court case by people who object to the privacy intrusion of scanning their email Google defends itself by saying 'that's the deal, you signed up for that business model'. You get ads in exchange for a free service. … Continue reading

Posted in Tech Posts | 88 Comments