In Plain Sight

Cause of Death, Polonium-210

There are many ways to kill a man, but one does wonder what strategic thinking lies behind using a highly traceable substance to do so. I mean it sounds all high tech an' all, but seriously, why would you want to use a substance that leads right back to your door to poison your enemy? Think about, I'll be asking questions later.

The death of Alexander Litvinenko, the former Russian spy that died on November 23 after falling ill more than three weeks earlier, is attributed to high doses of polonium-210. A radioactive trail leads investigators to identify the path of the assassin, which apparently leads all the way back to Moscow, and - by implication - Valdimir Putin. In remarks before his death, Putin is Litvinenko's pick for the villain here.

Now, I'm no supporter of tyrants and Russia is - how shall we say? - "politically confused." But we are left with only one of a few possibilities when we apply good reason - and it points away from Putin.

We can't ignore sheer stupidity, but it seems unlikely. Assuming sheer stupidity can be dismissed, we must assume that the use of a radioactive substance, and the resulting trail, are entirely intentional. Whoever killed Litvinenko knew that the element would be identified, because radiation poisoning has distinctive symptoms, and they knew that the element would leave behind traces.

So why? It really can only be one of two possibilities - and they are so obvious that the planner's of the assassination just had to know this ambiguity existed. One, it's a set up. Someone wanted a high-profile way to point the finger at Putin - and one can only begin to imagine the political nuances that lead to that plan. Or two, it's a statement. Putin wanted to send a clear statement to Russians living abroad that might be causing trouble for the nice guy at the top.

So which is it? I can only say for sure who it does not seem to be. It does not seem to be the Russian ex-pat community. The plan relies on their outrage and the clear threat against them simply eliminates them from the picture. So it either is Putin, or someone in Russia that wants to bring Putin down. Given that Putin seems to also be at clear risk here, the probability is the latter.

If whoever it is is capable of getting access to Polonium-210, then they are either a pretty sophisticated bunch or they really are stupid. Watch out in the coming days for either more political instability in Russia or a return of the cold wall of silence.

Get a Mac

Seriously, the best and funniest advertising campaign in human history. Apple released their latest ads today:

New Mac Ads

Education Reform (Curriculums)

My mother, that's her with me in a picture taken last year, wrote to me this morning rightly asking what my interest was in Education Reform in the UK. She is confused perhaps because she knows my love of and commitment to the USA.

She is prompted to ask because I recently created a petition to the British Prime Minister asking for Education Reform of Curriculums in Public Schools (SEE THIS LINK AND, IF BRITISH, PLEASE SIGN). I am still a UK citizen, and this may well be my last act as one since I will apply for US citizenship in the coming year.

Here is how I explained it:

"First, I am at an age where I feel some responsibility to my origins. I am in general interested in working-class issues and have developed a number of proposals that, I think, will help. I advocate these proposals when the opportunity arises and they apply globally. I do what I can to help kids like my brothers and me here or in the UK, from a social and political point of view. I do so by developing new ideas for the problems they face, by someone that has faced a few of them. I am also at an age that people actually listen to my crazy ideas :-)

Second, I have a professional interest in all systems like the petition system Downing Street is developing. I study not only the technologies but how people use such systems (that's my field, "semeiotics") and I have found that the best way to understand the system, both from a technology point of view and from a "human" point of view is to do something with it. So I try everything, anyway.

I also applaud the effort being made here. The petition system actually supports true democracy - which makes a change. True democracy, remember, is not "the vote." It is the right of dissent and a fair hearing for individuals. It will be interesting to see if this is truly aided by this effort.

This particular proposal has merit. The Public Education systems design their curriculum's so that good working-class people will be good working-class people, they sell them short. I find that offensive, since it amounts to education directed by the state. My proposal is that everyone deserves the opportunity to develop freely - and especially in the working-classes, to be given the capacity to fully appreciate their circumstances, and the skills necessary to direct their own destiny.

If anything could change the class system in the UK, this one proposal could."

Oxymoron: Illegal Immigration

From the point of view of natural ethics, the phrase "Illegal Immigration" is an oxymoron. How can migration not simply be a process of the natural order? The very notion of its legality is elitist. It denies natural competition and open organic markets, and it continues the unnatural notion that regions should be dominated by large centralized governments around which we must assemble boundaries.

Migration is simply an inevitable behavior and if you stand in its way the few are "protected" at the expense of the many. Now, this elitist behavior too is inevitable when resources are scarce - it is necessary for species survival, perhaps.

But what scarce resource do we protect? Are they tangible resources unprotected by other laws? Or are they intangible notions, such as "competition" and "security?" Or is it simply the irrational notion of keeping foreign ideas out?

I suggest this last case is the fact of the matter. Protectionist principles develop on the basis of protecting conventions. Rather that being motivated by threats to physical security our motivations concerning immigrants come from threats to the security of our concepts.

I prefer to believe that it is not large communal gatherings that aid species survival but rather the dispersal of small groups and individuals, and their freedom of movement. The fittest of these win, that's all.

This is a variation on the Lao Tzu "the bigger thief" principle. He says that if we lock things up, bind them, so that they appear secured, we only make it easier for the bigger thief to steal them. And so it is with species survival. If you assemble everyone within a tightly secure space, you will not survive the bigger threats to our species. The current administration's attitude to global warming being a case in point.

By allowing free movement and easy human migration we allow perfect action, the action of natural principles. Allegiance is dynamically assigned and as long as no central authority imposes unnatural restriction the product must be good and productive.

I accept that this is a positive view about the nature of our species, and I am an optimist in this regard. I have heard several people offer the pessimistic view, people are natural hoarders and violent protectionists, they say. I simply cannot accept such a view of our species. It is a superficial view because its basis is the behavior of people trapped in our current environments, unbalanced by ethics that are simple inventions, and using a language that sustains them.

CNN Kill the Zune

Watching the CNN report today on the Zune - Microsoft's attempt to compete with the iPod - was a treat. Soleda O'Brien took out her new Apple Shuffle and cooed over the charming little device and Miles wondered why Microsoft couldn't get better designers. "It [the Zune] looks so clunky" he said, which appears to be just about everyone's impression of the device.

It is interesting, however, to note the design principles of Apple and Microsoft - and to wonder just why it is that Apple scores so highly and Microsoft scores so poorly. One force that is certain at Apple is, of course, the profound design influence of Steve Jobs, whose tech aesthetic sense is simply second to none and one that he is able to identify in others.

This influence shows in everything that they do, BTW, including Apple's presence at trade exhibitions - a place the public doesn't see them, but I can tell you that it is equally impressive.

So the bottom line about the Zune launch is that it immediately highlighted comparisons with Apple's successful product line and those comparisons simply led people to make love to Apple and dis Microsoft. There is a PR lesson in there somewhere.

My Second Life

I am virtually exhausted after an evening of virtual dancing with the attractive Doreen in Second Life. Phew! The attached photo shows Doreen and me dancing ... she led :-) The Furries in the background? ... don't ask ...

The Election Results

I am a critic of the current political process on the basis that it implements neither democracy nor liberty but I am cautiously optimistic and welcome the results of this election.

I had no doubt that Arnold would keep his place - people in California voted for the person, not the party - and celebrity counts. We are simply more comfortable with the familiar, and Arnold is familiar. I doubt anyone really cares about his politics - that is just fine while there is the right of dissent and a just hearing (I keep reminding you that this is the true meaning of democracy).

Perhaps now we can weather the storm that this incompetent president has brought upon us - though one cannot understate the negative impact his handling of the presidency has had upon the world. I watch with interest and a healthy cynicism.

iPod Shuffle

I've lived two days now with my new iPod Shuffle and I can report that it is the most wearable technology I've ever encountered. It is so light you will only notice the earphones and cable. Because you can clip the Shuffle nearer to your head the headphones become easier to manage than on conventional iPods, which you typically have to keep further from your head.

I put on it a few albums I like - mostly PJ Harvey and Kristin Hersh - I clip it to my shirt collar and I'm good to go. Drag a few Podcasts, Bill Maher and co., and I am set for the train. It is not the place to keep your entire collection but it is the place to put listen once transitory stuff (Podcasts) and it is quick to change the profile of the content. I maintain several play lists and put the list that most suits my needs on the Shuffle before I leave the house or put on the music I want to listen to while walking around doing other stuff where a regular iPod would just get in the way and be at risk of being dropped.

The iPod Shuffle is just a different beast to a primary iPod. It is far less bulky than a regular iPod, it just does something else and is convenient in a way that the bulkier iPod is not. I found the controls to be surprisingly easy to manage and adequate.

Oaxaca

So I find that I have more to say about North Korea, thousands of miles and an ocean away, than I do about Oaxaca which is just a little south of here in Mexico. To some extent the business in Mexico comes as a surprise because mostly the situation down there has been ignored by the media - which has its attention elsewhere.

This much seems clear, a revolution is under way. The newly elected government is clearly not justly elected in the heart and minds of the people - and that is what counts more than the fact or endorsements by observers. As always, the vacuum of revolution is sucking in causes and it is to be lamented that the old tired cause of socialism is the only one present to take advantage of the tension. Let's be grateful that it is not the Islamic cause or some other irrational religious cause, like fundamental Christians ... wait for it ...