08/10/08

James and I were emailing while he was at work. Some of the discussions were more in depth than we have when we are face to face. Then his employers put the kabosh on all internet access for all employees. I emailed him through his work address and asked him if he was checking the other email he set up to test the mass mailing that his job requires. He wrote back that I should call him. He NEVER asks me to call him at work. So I called and he told me that he can't get to that Yahoo mail he set up for work. He can't get to any internet site at all. He thought that he was the only target. Mercury conjunct Sun often thinks that they are the center of the universe.

"It's easier and cheaper to use a turn key program to stop all employees from accessing the internet, than to focus on one employee emailing to his wife during the day." I reassured him.

I just wonder how it is going to effect their online teaching programs. One of my old high school friends works there as an online teacher and I'm wondering if the internet kabosh effects her. I should write to her and ask her.

I just emailed her to ask her if the system wide kabosh on internet access impacts the online teachers. It's rather amazing to be emailing someone I went to high school with. She and her sister contacted me out of the blue.

It's just too bad for James and me. Some of our best discussions were through email. It gave him something to do while he was waiting for reports to generate. It also helped him keep his sanity at work. I'll miss it a lot.  It's not like he was surfing porn sites or downloading music files. He used that email address for work related activity so he's more than inconvenienced. I can understand if other employees were introducing malware or spyware with their internet access. I know James is too tech savy to do that.  Jeese louise, what a bummer.

When I was working at AOL and he was working at BrightMail we had AIM open all day. All the AOL employees contacted each other through instant messaging. It was like being with him all day.

Internet Archive, FBI Settle Lawsuit Challenging National Security Letter

"Under the U.S. PATRIOT Act of 2001, investigative agencies such as the FBI are entitled to issue letters seeking customer records from businesses and information about patrons' Internet use from libraries.

Libraries and businesses receiving the letters are placed under a gag order and are not allowed to reveal them except to their lawyers.

Kahle said, "The goal was to help other recipients, other librarians to know you can push back on these letters. We hope the information will give people some idea about what's going on in some dark corner of this system we are all involved in.""

Brewster Kahle got balls. "Brewster the Rooster". I'm proud to say I met him when I started up with AOL New Tech.

http://www.no98yes99.com/ If 98 goes through then rent control in SF will be a thing of the past. Without affordable housing in SF who do the "rich" think are going to be providing services like police, fire fighters, Emergency Medical, nurses and teachers? Rent is already too high in SF but with rent control the apartment I've had for over 20 years rents for $500 less a month than new renters getting the same size space. If low paid workers have to move to get affordable housing any savings they make will be eaten up with commute costs to get to where the jobs are. For those who are outside of the San Francisco bay area, my one bedroom apartment rents for nearly $1,100. Walking into the same space at my apartment complex will cost $1,500 +. Seniors on fixed incomes are another target, as are the disabled, young families, anyone who rents in SF will be hit by higher costs. So I'm voting with a vengeance in June.