Review From Down Under

Daniel, down under, has a thoughtful, if unhappy, review of Blog Carnival. I liked reading it (some people are really enjoying the Carnival, and some aren't. Good thing the world is large and round).

But what I really enjoyed is that he also reviewed my performing skills:

Brad has a PhD in Computer Science and sings Opera pretty well.

Now, I don't know if Daniel has ever heard me sing, but if he hasn't, then I'd call that a rave.

I'll send it to my publicist.

P.S. I'm performing in Tan Dun's Water Passion After St. Matthew, part of the NYC River to River Festival, at South Street Seaport June 1 at 8:00PM. From the Low Manhattan Cultural Council:

Oscar and Grammy award winning composer Tan Dun conducts this beautiful choral work incorporating the sounds of water from special instruments played by percussionists, along with strings, vocal soloist, and a chorus of 44. Please bring a blanket or lawn/beach chair to sit on.

Kristof Out of Character

Wow. Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times is sounding uncharacteristically capitalist, in The China Scapegoat:

There are plenty of legitimate reasons to be angry with China's leaders, but its trade success and exchange rate policy are not among them. The country that is distorting global capital flows and destabilizing the world economy is not China but the U.S. American fiscal recklessness is a genuine international problem, while blaming Chinese for making shoes efficiently amounts to a protectionist assault on the global trade system.

A Safer Place

I think the essence of political moderation is the ability to step back from the drumbeat of news, and take time to meditate on the flow of history. We are no longer handed this opportunity, in a 24 by 7 networked world, so I am celebrating Memorial Day by consicentiously recalling how much better off the world is now, compared to my childhood, my parents' childhood, my grandparents' childhood (and certainly compared to deep history).

The flow of time runs relentlessly in the direction of longer, healthier lives, less human conflict, and more freedom. Over at the NY Times, in Give Peace a Chance, Charles Tierney notes:

In the 20th century, despite two world wars, humans had less than a 2 percent chance of dying in war or a mass killing, according to John Mueller, a political scientist at Ohio State. Today the risk is lower still - about a quarter the chance of dying in a car accident.

He is referring to the Peace and Conflict report out of the University of Maryland. One of the Co-author's of the report, Monty Marshall, notes that, "From what we know about war, we can only conclude that it's a much lesser problem today... War between countries is much less likely than ever, and civil war is less likely than any time since 1960."

Something to remember.

The Thrill of Scientific Discovery

Science News reports on the near-accidental discovery of two new mammal species (a monkey and a rat). One of the new species, dubbed Lophocebus kipunji, was discovered by Trevor Jones at Udzungwa Mountains National Park in Tanzania. How often do you see this in print:

But as soon as Jones saw one of the mangabeys there, he says that he knew the brownish color and high crest of hair were all wrong for a sanje mangabey. "I was immediately gobsmacked," he says.

Now, has anyone, outside of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, ever used the word "gobsmacked" in a sentence?

Social Engineering

How does one actually get access to a LexisNexis database to steal personal data on 310,000 people? It requires a bit of creativity, as reported in Wired News: Database Hackers Reveal Tactics.

A friend of Krazed masqueraded as a 14-year-old girl online and engaged a Florida police officer in a chat session, the hackers said. The friend sent the officer an attachment, which he said was a slideshow containing naked pictures of the girl he was pretending to be. When the officer clicked on it, a Trojan horse downloaded silently to his computer, which gave Krazed complete access to the computer's files.

Jim Sibley, of the Santa Clara County DA's office, had this to say:

Their [LexisNexis] security is really bad. This isn't a situation where you're talking about needing an überhacker to compromise (the system). Their passwords weren't as secure as your average porn site. I think it didn't take a genius to break them. Although I think the way the hackers did it was creative. We'll give them style points.

How [Not] To Succeed in Blogging

Poor David Greenberg over at the NY Times is twisting himself into a knot over how hard it is to blog. In his missive, Blogging, as in Slogging, he concludes, apparently with some justification, that he was not cut out to be a blogger.

I wasn't the only newcomer to blogging last week. On the ballyhooed Huffington Post, Gary Hart, Walter Cronkite and David Mamet dipped their toes in the blogosphere as well.

I don't know how they'll fare, but I doubt that celebrity will attract readers for long. To succeed in blogging you need to understand it's a craft, with its own tricks of the trade. You need a thick skin. And you must put your life on hold to feed an electronic black hole.

Welcome to the club, buddy.

Pilot Preparedness

My friend Jim pointed me to this. It's an audio flash presentation (you know I'm a fan of this art form). Check out The Pilot.

Red is Not Just for Commies Any More

Be mindful if you're wearing a red t-shirt in Orlando in late May. From Travel Escapes in the NY Times, Journeys: Gay Orlando Steps Out (you have to go to the article to see the picture, which I wouldn't post in this family-oriented blog).

Gay Days, a series of parties, performances and gatherings throughout the city around the first week of June, highlighted by trips en masse to the local theme parks - the Magic Kingdom included - where participants typically sport red T-shirts to stand out from other visitors. In spite of protests from groups, particularly Christian activists, Gay Days has soared in popularity. This year's events, which begin on May 31, are expected to draw more than 125,000 people.

Of course, a pride parade in San Francisco typically draws half a million people, so it appears there is room to grow.

NYSD Reviews NYFOS Gala

Lots of gossip and pictures over at New York Social Diary recounting a wonderful gala for my beloved New York Festival of Song.

Hal Prince was the honoree for the evenings festivities, which were chaired by Jamie Bernstein, Barbara Fleischman, Mary Rodgers and Henry Guettel, and John Kander.

This was deep Broadway at its best. Joel Grey was there, Carol Burnett (with whom I had a nice chat), even Max Rudin.

Steve Blier hosted a concert at Weill (Carnegie) Hall, and then presided over dinner at Shelley's.

Midway through dinner, Alix Corey, who is currently starring in "All Shook Up" at the Palace Theater, and who had just taken the N train up to Shelley's, stood up and sang David Friedman's "I Want to Be Rich, Famous, and Powerful" to a room full of the rich, famous and powerful. I nearly choked on my veal, it was so funny.

Enough name dropping for now.

Power Mower

You know it's a slow news day when the Instapundit is talking about lawn mowers. I am certain that his vast readership will be setting him adrift in a sea of high-tech gadgets for clipping the suburban landscape.

But I wanted to assure his readership that here, as in many things, Glenn is essentially conservative. I recently caught him in the act of managing his estate (see picture, right). You will notice not only tried-and-true tools of the leaf-cutting trade put through their all-American paces, but, I aver, they are being wielded by a 100% legal U.S. citizen.

And he is smiling, at that. Perhaps he's thinking about those Alicia Keys abs from the MTV Video Awards (I, on the other hand, was more impressed by Gwen Stefani).

Infomaniacs, Chill!

Proof for what I see around me every day: E-mail addles the mind / Endless messaging rots brain worse than pot, study finds.

Hewlett Packard commissioned this study, the results of which won't sell more computers. The original study by the Institute of Psychiatry at the University of London explored what it calls "Info-mania". It notes,

"an average worker's functioning IQ falls 10 points when distracted by ringing telephones and incoming e-mails ... more than double the four-point drop seen following studies on the impact of smoking marijuana."

The study involved 80 clinical trial volunteers and 1,100 interviews.

If you are concerned, you can get psychiatric advice from HP, and read this HP Guide to Avoiding Info-Mania.