I just received a phone call from my brother, Major Jon Huggins. He is in the US Air Force and flies the U-2 high altitude spy plane. (He’s the inspiration for the U-2 spy plane section on my hobby website at http://JSH.us/u-2 )

He entered the Air Force after college and had been in the Air Force until March 2000 when he left to become a United Airlines pilot. After 9-11, in November 2001, he rejoined the Air Force and went back to flying the U-2.

About a year after he’d rejoined (November 2002) there was a promotion board. Perhaps because of the break in service (being out of the Air Force for a while) or some lack of continuity in annual reviews, or whatever, he was passed over for promotion to Lieutenant Colonel.

Feeling that he might not have received a fair shake, he filed for a supplemental board and cited the irregularities he felt he’d encountered.

The personnel center concurred (and even found a couple more things). It was sent it on to the Pentagon. They concurred and this past May the supplemental board again reviewed the promotion.

Bottom line, he has now been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.

But get this. They decided he should have been promoted way back then and the promotion is retroactive to 01.Apr.2003. And, he even gets the retroactive back pay!

That’s my brother and I’m proud of him.

[If you'd like to email him a congrats, just send it to ...
JamesBrother -splat- U2Pilot.com ...
just change the "-splat-" to "@" and remove the spaces.]

The feds tried it with drivers licenses. The Real ID Act wants to mandate that every state create a driver’s license so complex it would be a nightmare to administer. State after state (16 so far) is saying “no”.

Now they are doing the same thing using immigration as the justification. I mean, you want to be sure that only real Americans get work don’t you? Don’t you? Then you won’t mind if we create a new national ID to be sure. But don’t worry. It can’t hurt you … at least not any more than that old Social Security Number can. It will only be used for this one thing. And I have a bridge I want to sell you.

Check out this analysis from Caroline Fredrickson (director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Washington Legislative Office):

Immigration is a hot topic these days, and everyone seems to be talking about the many problems with the Senate’s immigration reform bill. Unfortunately, for some reason there has been very little talk about several of the bill’s key provisions that would undermine the civil liberties of all Americans.

For instance, Title III of the bill expands the error-plagued Employment Eligibility Verification System (EEVS), creating a vast federal database to verify the eligibility to work of all job applicants in America — including U.S. citizens. This expansive system would contain extraordinary amounts of personal information on everyone who seeks or holds a job, all of it keyed to a person’s Social Security number. If the immigration bill passes as written, all Americans will need to have their eligibility to work approved by the Department of Homeland Security. Invariably, DHS will confuse the files of people with similar names or use outdated or erroneous information to deny people the right to work, creating a ‘No Work List’ similar to the government’s ‘No Fly List.’ They have testified that they will need to “manually reverify” the work-eligibility of eight percent of all workers.

EEVS itself is based on the abject failure known as the Basic Pilot Verification System, used by only 16,000 of the nation’s 8.4 million employers. Technological snafus, database errors and bureaucratic bungling in that pilot project have caused, and will continue to cause, delays and financial losses to both employers and potential employees. Expanding this program nationwide will only exacerbate these problems.

Bad enough? I don’t think so.

There is another amendment from Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY). If it passes, it would require every American to carry a “hardened” Social Security card containing the their personal, biometric information like their DNA or fingerprint. With this amendment you could be force to carry not one, but two, national ID cards — a Real ID compliant drivers’ license and the “hardened” Social Security card. As Fredrickson notes:

These IDs would become a key part of a system of identity papers, databases, status and identity checks and access control points — an “internal passport” that would be used to track and control law-abiding Americans’ movements and activities.

If you think it’s a bad idea, you can make a difference. Make a call. See here for info: https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?alertId=303&pg=makeACall 

And don’t say I didn’t warn you.

A recent edition of Roy William’s Monday Morning Memo discusses the ads for the Mac. You know the one. It features the Mac and the PC in a conversation.

The article links to a clever picture of what that ad would have looked like 11 years ago.

(Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video. If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=TCbFEgFajGU )For years and years, those of us in Corporate IT have known that there is not a shortage of skilled, capable technology workers, despite the lamentations of the business lobby. The claims of a shortage is a sham designed to allow more H-1B visas.

[If you care about immigration, be sure to watch the video to see how lawyers are helping business cheat Americans out of jobs.] 

One of the ways foreign workers can work in the USofA is through the use of an H-1B visa. The visa ostensibly exists because there is a “shortage” of Americans who can do the job.

The business lobby has countered that there are “rules” designed to protect the American worker and that H-1B visas are only granted with an American worker cannot be found.

About 2 months ago I found the website of Professor Norm Matloff. Long a critic of the H-1B system, Dr. Matloff has documented the system abuses at some length. His lengthy report (entitled On the Need for Reform of the H-1B Non-Immigrant Work Visa in Computer-Related Occupations and written at the request of the University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform) provides extensive documentation of the lack of a shortage and the abuses of the system to just hire cheap labor and discriminate against older American workers.  

[If you or someone in your family is directly affected by this, I strongly encourage you to at least skim the report and check out his website. It is an eye-opener. In my view, Dr. Matloff's data shows that contrary to claims, it isn't America's decline in technology which requires us to use these visas. Rather, it is the prevalent use of these visas which is, in part, responsible for the decline!]

His various reports and documents have confirmed what I have known for some time.

Now, a YouTube video has done even more. This video provides excerpts from a law firm’s seminar in which a panel explains how to technically comply with the law all the while skirting the intention of the law. In particular, they explain how to advertise for Americans but ensure that they will never find one.

Take the 5-minutes to watch this to learn how the system really works.

As you listen to the debate on immigration reform, and as you listen to the business lobby cry in their soup about the lack of qualified Americans, remember this video. There are plenty of qualified Americans. Business just doesn’t want to hire them and is scamming the system, the government and the American public.

For another related article see
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_41/b4150034732629.htm.

Thanks to an entry at What’s Up – 365 Days of Skywatching I learned that …

On this day in 1881, Sir William Huggins made the first photographic spectrum of a comet (1881 III) and discovered cyanogen (CN) emission at violet wavelengths. Unfortunately, his discovery caused public panic around 29 years later when Earth passed through the tail of Halley’s Comet. What a shame the public didn’t realize that cyanogens are also released organically! More than fearing what is in a comet’s tail, they should have been thinking about what might happen should a comet strike. Tonight look at the wasted Southern Highland area of the Moon with new eyes… Many of these craters you see were caused by impacts – some as large as the nucleus of Halley itself.

As I read Sunday’s Washington Post there was an article that caught my eye: The War Inside.

(For the one page version click http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/16/AR2007061600866_pf.html)

This story is about the men we have sent to fight for us, to risk their lives, in many, many cases to return missing arms, legs, eyes, disfigured for the remainder of their lives, and even to return dead in a flag draped coffin we are not allowed to see.

These men have returned with severe mental challenges.

And, as this story documents, the system can’t even keep their records straight.

Ignore the military big shots who think that real men don’t have mental problems.

Ignore the bureaucrats who want to control costs by denying diagnosis.

The system you and I spend billions for can’t even keep their records straight.

This story is part of a series the Washington Post is doing.

As I read it I realize that things are this way, in part, because of me. Because I didn’t help hard enough to elect other people. Because I didn’t write and call often enough those we did elect. I can blame the government, but I elect the government.

This story is a story of the embarrassingly shameful way you and I are treating these men.

How did I let this happen?

Has anyone ever asked you, “What do you do?”?

Po Bronson, in his book, What Should I Do With My Life?, calls this “the great American cocktail party question”.

The man in the video below is Paul Potts. What does he do?

It is tempting to answer that he is a mobile phone salesman. After all, he works in a store (Car Phone Warehouse) that sells mobile phones and he sells them.

His hair is a bit short.

His suit is a bit inexpensive.

But, somehow, I don’t think selling mobile phones is what he really does.

As you watch the video, watch those who are watching Paul. Watch those initial faces … the expressions of doubt. Then watch them transform.

Perhaps it will bring a small tear to your eye.

(Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video.)

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k08yxu57NA

The YouTube page has more information on the man and the event.

Also see this article http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21904047-2,00.html

A friend sent me a link to this guy’s video. Perhaps it is because I’m totally untalented in art, but I found this fascinating. He creates this painting using spray paint in about 10 minutes.

Here is his website: http://www.sprej.com/.

He does custom paintings as well, including landscapes, wildlife and even portraits.

(Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video.)

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the Google Video page with the video, just click here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1246174515665636969

There are several from him at Google Video. Here is one more.

(Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video.)

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the Google Video page with the video, just click here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8220494559090617837

All that in 10 minutes!

After my last post I was sure I’d posted enough about this Yancovic/YouTube thing. But being sure only lasts so long.

(If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go to the next post first, then come back here.)

So, forgive me if I post one more.

(Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video.)

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wlZxhSE8hSM

I received an email from a friend sending me to a YouTube video.

Seems that Weird Al Yankovic did a parody of Backstreet Boys “I Want It That Way“. The parody is called “eBay“.  

Some guys took the Weird Al Yankovic song about eBay and added some video.

Here is that video. (Note that if you are clicking on my blog, depending on your browser security you may need to click twice to start the video.)

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=cnS4NCMQFOI

It was cute. I liked it. But I noted that the Farrah Fawcett poster used was not the Farrah Fawcett poster … the one that sold a still unrivled 12 million copies!

That got me thinking. I wondered, have others done this. So I checked and they have.

I liked this one because the images are actual screens from the ebay site. They appear to be camera shots instead of screen captures and they aren’t great shots, but I still like it.

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=e0KW6kewK4I

So, what others are available?

This one had some good stuff.

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=HYokLWfqbaU

Last is one of my favorites. The typography is clever and I really liked the use of the Tribbles for Shatner’s old toupe.

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=r-_XPkU-caw

 By the way … the Yankovic’s “ebay” was actually performed live at eBay Live! 2003. There is no “official” video of that event, but a poor quality video from the audience is here:

If you are receiving this via email, or want to open the YouTube page with the video, just click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=F7G4yqsBiOQ