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Today's tweets are ( behind the cut )

We'd heard a few rumours from sources in the security community that something "really bad" was going down, but it seems that the news is out at last.

Someone has leaked Santa's Naughty List to the Internet at large.

Arweena, a spokes-elf for Santa Claus, admitted a few hours ago that the database posted at WikiLeaks yesterday is indeed the comprehensive 2009 list of which kids have been naughty, and which were nice. The source of the leak is unclear. It may have come from a renegade reindeer, or it could be the work of a clever programmer in the Ukraine. Either way, it's a terrible black eye for Santa. Arweena promised that in the future, access to this database would be restricted on a “need to know” basis. And you know who that means!

So, are you on The List?

Tags: humour, links, security
Current Location: Putney, London
Current Mood: amused

If Michael Westin lived on a boat in Fort Lauderdale rather than in a loft in Miami South Beach, and if he drove Rolls Royce pickup rather than a Dodge Charger, and if Sam was called Myers, and was an economist rather than an ex-spy, wouldn't we be watching a Travis McGee series?

So close.

So close.

You can't take it with you.

Take only photographs, leave as few footprints as possible. That's the message of the National Park Service, especially with regards to the crystal trees of the Petrified Forest. Like the lava of Kilauea, there's a purported curse, and you see letters on the walls of the visitor centre detailing the bad luck that's befallen those who've walked off with pieces of the brightly coloured rocks.

Someone still wanted to make their mark on the park, and on the edge of the self-guided hike near the visitor centre we spotted this little cairn.



Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
November 2009

Tags: flickr, photography, travels
Current Location: Putney, London
Current Mood: busy

I know the birthday meme has moved across to Facebook but I'm old-fashioned ;-) I'm going to say happy birthday to my sweetie, writing partner and general factotum Simon right here ;-) Watch out for the mini hippos who recently left!

Tags: personal

The UK is Google's second-biggest search market. But Google doesn't pay any tax here: it's all taxed in Dublin where the tax rate is far lower. There are plenty of complaints floating around saying Google's bending its 'don't be evil' principle by this, but it's common practice in business to place things in countries that give you tax advantages for your business. Google is also incorporated in business-friendly Delaware, where there's a whole separate court track for business. What it says is that Google is a business, not a public service or a warm fuzzy free information provider and we'd do well to remember that when evaluating it...

Tags: google, search, technlogy

I've had a bit of a cull of my Friends list on LJ. Apologies if you've been deleted and if you really feel indignant about it, it's not my fault: it's my age. Comment and I'll add you back!

Current Mood: blah

Today's tweets are ( behind the cut )

Today's tweets are ( behind the cut )