He’s a bit indignant that so much energy goes to sporting events like the Olympics rather than more important news that isn’t getting reported around the world.

This is in a year when tons of journalists are getting laid off.

This is in a year when there are tons of stories around the world that aren’t getting reported on.

Could we take half of those photographers and send them to Russia, for instance

Reminds me of a feeling I had back in college as an undergrad student studying social sciences and humanities, about the way my friends who were physicists interacted with the world. They were so awed by the stars, Mars, astrophysics, and it seemed to me interesting but altogether unimportant. They argued they may find something outside our planet that could help solve Earth-bound problems like disease, or find the origins of earth and humanity — but really they were doing it because they loved it. One of my friends had a good argument, though — there are enough people right now that we can specialize in what we care about, and there will still be others covering other topics. He could be a physicist and look into the universe’s origin, while I studied social interaction and writing, and our other friends looked into solving cancer or eradicating invasive plants in the native wetlands. We have to specialize, and there are enough of us to do it too.

I think it’s the same way in journalism — whether it’s sports, celebrity journalism, or coverage of politics and war, there are a lot of opportunities right now for journalists. Of course the business model is changing, and some old-schoolers won’t know how to roll with that, but generations change slowly; we’re learning.

Also, the Olympics is seen as more than a sporting event, it’s also a symbol of world competition and cooperation too — a way for countries to come together and share entertainment globally. I think that’s worth covering.

In the second post, Robert Scoble says there are plenty of great journalists but the public doesn’t care. In some ways I have to agree with that, but I don’t think it’s negative, necessarily. I had a conversation with someone the other day about world news reportage. He says, “I was just reading this story, but what does it matter to me if there’s a flood in some city in another country I’ll never visit and some farmer lost his sheep?” World news is only important when it’s relevant, so it’s no wonder that many people don’t care — if they don’t know much about the area, and it doesn’t affect them, they have no incentive to give it full attention. You can call that apathy, but I think it’s an important selectivity skill that humans have. We have to choose what to give priority to, so if nothing stands out as being particularly important, we just ignore it or gloss over it. Human nature…

Also I think the common person today just gets desensitized and doesn’t know where to turn their energy, when surrounded by so many crises. Either you focus on one specialty and do your best to work toward one cause in your life — and maybe that’s just in the course of your daily work — or you become a complete Attention-Deficit-Disorder case and bounce from one problem to the next, without knowing how to solve anything. That just causes a sense of bewilderment, despair, and either that bogs you down or eventually you get desensitized.

There’s a commenter on Scoble’s blog, Spencer, who talks about this generation’s apathy. There are so many people who want to blame today’s generation or the young generation for this “apathy” that they sense. But I see it as a survival mechanism that arises from the way information flows these days. We’re surrounded by crises, everyone wants us to know about them — the water shortage, global warming, death in Iraq, the national deficit. Okay, crisis, I get it. But no one gives a real clear idea on what any individual is really supposed to do to solve the problem. You can’t get involved with one global cause, without ignoring all the others, and if you do get involved it’s likely to become your life’s purpose. Most people are concerned with other things — their families, their work, personal development, their homes and futures, and really that’s enough to take up all their time.

I’m always amazed when I read about the early unionists. Emma Goldman for example, the activist who pushed for the 8-hr workday, and campaigned for free love in the early 1900s when women were still wearing corsets, used to work 16 hour factory days as a seamstress, then lead meetings late into the night. Today we lead cushy lives comparatively–8 hour days, plus commute and lunch, family time, dinner time, gym maybe, sleep… but it still doesn’t seem like we ever have enough energy and time.

What Emma had that most people today don’t, is a community living in the same conditions as herself, with clear goals about what they were campaigning for, and a cause that affected their own daily lives. Today, unionism and local activism is in much shorter supply, in part due to the many people who work fairly comfy desk jobs, and the problem that everyone has his own specialization, works in a cubicle, does his or her own thing. The problems we’re facing today in terms of global warming, global water shortage, aren’t the same kinds of problems that activists have fought for in the past, and there’s no clear road map for how to solve them. Our leaders sure aren’t leading the way.

What we do have, at least, is the Olympics, which is an age old symbol of international cooperation, play and competition…so, uh, go sports! As for full disclosure, I don’t actually have a TV and haven’t watched the Olympics in many years, but I do try taking short showers–does that help?

People ask why do you blog?  In the final analysis I blog because I like to. Every once in a while though you get a comment from a reader that reminds you why it is all worth while.  Here is one I received today from a person alleging to be a Julie Peterson:

Julie Peterson commented on Safe Access wins SC Magazine Award Reader Trust Award, again!:

Dressed in a tuxedo and chewing those rubber chicken breasts at the award ceremony is your idea of fun? Aren't you the same mentally retarded idiot who said in 2007 that you hated SC awards and that anyone can buy the SC awards with a sponsorship? Why do you think people give over $10k as sponsorship for the SC awards? Who is watching the awards except other vendors? By the way you suck big time with your rubbish blogs. Didn't networld magazine give you the boot within 3 months? Think before you write Mr. mental. Well done on winning, but please, dont give the impression that you cant buy an award from SC! And don't forget to eat your medication pills tonight, otherwise from your hair it is obvious you ran away from a mental hospital.

First of all Julie, let me thank you for your kind words! You made the statement and let me answer your questions for you.

1. Is dressing in a tuxedo and chewing rubber chicken breasts my idea of fun?  Actually, I do enjoy dressing up in a tuxedo once in a while.  The food at the awards ceremony was actually pretty good, if not diet friendly, as were the cocktails.  The entertainment at the awards show was pretty good as well. Catching up with friends you had not seen for a while and networking with industry peers was pretty worthwhile too.  Maybe your idea of a good time is putting on a bowling shirt and swilling a couple of beers and pretzels before going home and undressing into your dirty ripped underwear. Hey I say to each his own.

2. I am not the idiot who in 2007 said that I hated the SC awards and that anyone can buy the SC awards with a sponsorship.  I am the idiot who said that about the InfoSec Products Guide award by the folks at Silicon Valley Communications.  In contrast I have always said nice things about the SC awards. I actually have a lot of respect for them.  Also for the record, StillSecure has never been a sponsor of the SC Magazine awards. I have seen sponsors who did not win awards as well.  So looks like you got that one wrong Julie, but it happens.

3. ???Networld??? magazine didn???t give me the boot within 3 months.  They never had the chance, as I never wrote for ???networld, network world or any other magazine. Maybe you have me confused with Mike Rothman or Mitchell Ashley, who do and did write for Network World. But let me assure you that I do try and think before I write.

4. Regarding what medication pills I take and does my hair make it obvious I ran away from a mental hospital. I don???t take any medication, maybe I should.  Better living through chemistry you know ;-)  As to my hair, what can I say.  At this stage I am happy I have any hair at all.  My wife always says when I get my haircut it looks like a Buzz Lightyear style, but no one ever mentioned a mental hospital look to it.  In any event sorry it doesn???t appeal to you.

So who is this troll Julie Peterson?  Could it be Richard Stiennon in drag?  Maybe his wife striking out?  Maybe another one of my fans?  Who knows, but these sort of comments keep me juiced about blogging and remind me of how much fun I have doing it.  Thanks again Julie!

People ask why do you blog?  In the final analysis I blog because I like to. Every once in a while though you get a comment from a reader that reminds you why it is all worth while.  Here is one I received today from a person alleging to be a Julie Peterson:

Julie Peterson commented on Safe Access wins SC Magazine Award Reader Trust Award, again!:

Dressed in a tuxedo and chewing those rubber chicken breasts at the award ceremony is your idea of fun? Aren't you the same mentally retarded idiot who said in 2007 that you hated SC awards and that anyone can buy the SC awards with a sponsorship? Why do you think people give over $10k as sponsorship for the SC awards? Who is watching the awards except other vendors? By the way you suck big time with your rubbish blogs. Didn't networld magazine give you the boot within 3 months? Think before you write Mr. mental. Well done on winning, but please, dont give the impression that you cant buy an award from SC! And don't forget to eat your medication pills tonight, otherwise from your hair it is obvious you ran away from a mental hospital.

First of all Julie, let me thank you for your kind words! You made the statement and let me answer your questions for you.

1. Is dressing in a tuxedo and chewing rubber chicken breasts my idea of fun?  Actually, I do enjoy dressing up in a tuxedo once in a while.  The food at the awards ceremony was actually pretty good, if not diet friendly, as were the cocktails.  The entertainment at the awards show was pretty good as well. Catching up with friends you had not seen for a while and networking with industry peers was pretty worthwhile too.  Maybe your idea of a good time is putting on a bowling shirt and swilling a couple of beers and pretzels before going home and undressing into your dirty ripped underwear. Hey I say to each his own.

2. I am not the idiot who in 2007 said that I hated the SC awards and that anyone can buy the SC awards with a sponsorship.  I am the idiot who said that about the InfoSec Products Guide award by the folks at Silicon Valley Communications.  In contrast I have always said nice things about the SC awards. I actually have a lot of respect for them.  Also for the record, StillSecure has never been a sponsor of the SC Magazine awards. I have seen sponsors who did not win awards as well.  So looks like you got that one wrong Julie, but it happens.

3. “Networld” magazine didn’t give me the boot within 3 months.  They never had the chance, as I never wrote for “networld, network world or any other magazine. Maybe you have me confused with Mike Rothman or Mitchell Ashley, who do and did write for Network World. But let me assure you that I do try and think before I write.

4. Regarding what medication pills I take and does my hair make it obvious I ran away from a mental hospital. I don’t take any medication, maybe I should.  Better living through chemistry you know ;-)  As to my hair, what can I say.  At this stage I am happy I have any hair at all.  My wife always says when I get my haircut it looks like a Buzz Lightyear style, but no one ever mentioned a mental hospital look to it.  In any event sorry it doesn’t appeal to you.

So who is this troll Julie Peterson?  Could it be Richard Stiennon in drag?  Maybe his wife striking out?  Maybe another one of my fans?  Who knows, but these sort of comments keep me juiced about blogging and remind me of how much fun I have doing it.  Thanks again Julie!

It’s a good reminder for all you folks– always plan ahead and have a good backup and recovery strategy. It might also be a good idea to make sure someone on your staff has first aid and medical training in case of office emergencies, acts of god, and the occasional pirate attack.

Lo and behold time works its wonders and I can type again. Watch me rejoice! And post interesting articles for your professional entertainment. Stay tuned.

One of the cool things about the first dot com bubble was the "ebay millionaire". These were people who built businesses around selling goods at auction on ebay.  There has been much written and said about the methods of these people and certainly it was a big attraction to people selling on ebay.  I had an interesting plane ride home today where I met someone and discovered todays equivalent. I call it the StubHub millionaire. It  is a testament to American ingenuity and shows that given the tools, people will find a way to exploit and make money.

Up until fairly recently you bought tickets to sporting events and other entertainment from a box office or ticket agent such as ticketron.  The "after market" in ticket sales or scalping as it was called in NY was often times illegal.  There were though some legal ticket brokers that you could buy tickets from. Now with the advent of StubHub and similar type of ticket reselling outlets on the web though, the infrastructure is in place for anyone to sell tickets on line.  You would think that most of these people selling tickets were people who had either extra tickets to an event or perhaps a season ticket holder looking to unload some tickets to help defray the costs. Not the case!

There is a now a whole class of businessman who buys season tickets to multiple teams, sports and cities and than uses outlets like StubHub and others to sell these tickets.  The guy I spoke to today had season tickets to 6 different NFL teams, 3 major league baseball teams and multiple basketball and hockey teams.  Many of his tickets are sold months and weeks before the event. If any are left within 14 days of the event he puts them on ebay.  His average mark up is about 40 to 50% of face value, but by buying season tickets he pays below face, so his actual margin is closer to 60 to 70%. He keeps a few tickets for him and his family to go to a few games a year. 

This started as a hobby for him with Yankee season tickets, but he has done an analysis and compared to what he would make investing that money in the market, he has come out way, way ahead.  He thinks that on a 12,500 investment, he makes about 40k!  That is not bad.  This year when all is said and done he will make six figure income from the resale of tickets he bought.  Think about it, no office or anything.  Just list your tickets and let people buy them.  Take some of the money and buy more tickets.

So what the heck am I doing trying to show people why it is important that they put good security in place on their computers?  There has got to be a better way.

One of the cool things about the first dot com bubble was the "ebay millionaire". These were people who built businesses around selling goods at auction on ebay.  There has been much written and said about the methods of these people and certainly it was a big attraction to people selling on ebay.  I had an interesting plane ride home today where I met someone and discovered todays equivalent. I call it the StubHub millionaire. It  is a testament to American ingenuity and shows that given the tools, people will find a way to exploit and make money.

Up until fairly recently you bought tickets to sporting events and other entertainment from a box office or ticket agent such as ticketron.  The "after market" in ticket sales or scalping as it was called in NY was often times illegal.  There were though some legal ticket brokers that you could buy tickets from. Now with the advent of StubHub and similar type of ticket reselling outlets on the web though, the infrastructure is in place for anyone to sell tickets on line.  You would think that most of these people selling tickets were people who had either extra tickets to an event or perhaps a season ticket holder looking to unload some tickets to help defray the costs. Not the case!

There is a now a whole class of businessman who buys season tickets to multiple teams, sports and cities and than uses outlets like StubHub and others to sell these tickets.  The guy I spoke to today had season tickets to 6 different NFL teams, 3 major league baseball teams and multiple basketball and hockey teams.  Many of his tickets are sold months and weeks before the event. If any are left within 14 days of the event he puts them on ebay.  His average mark up is about 40 to 50% of face value, but by buying season tickets he pays below face, so his actual margin is closer to 60 to 70%. He keeps a few tickets for him and his family to go to a few games a year. 

This started as a hobby for him with Yankee season tickets, but he has done an analysis and compared to what he would make investing that money in the market, he has come out way, way ahead.  He thinks that on a 12,500 investment, he makes about 40k!  That is not bad.  This year when all is said and done he will make six figure income from the resale of tickets he bought.  Think about it, no office or anything.  Just list your tickets and let people buy them.  Take some of the money and buy more tickets.

So what the heck am I doing trying to show people why it is important that they put good security in place on their computers?  There has got to be a better way.