Beware the internet. Sometimes I wonder if this "identity theft" scare has something to it. You will hear stories on the news of people who get their information stolen and get charges accrued to them. Sometimes I wonder if that is going to happen to me. I ran a good detection program last night called "Ad-Aware" and it searches for ad-ware and spy-ware on your computer. Apparently I had 128 items infecting my computer. Egad, someone out there could be me. I hope they know I don't like vegatables. I could lose my whole identity and then have to go into hiding because I won't know who I am. I often think that they may collect information, but actually doing something with it is what makes it illegal. Everytime you hit any major website a file on your computer(cookie) tracks the ads that gets downloaded to your computer and sends the information to the ad agencies. Googles Gmail scans your email and tailors their ads to the content of your email. As a person who knows a lot about hacking I can tell you most information can be seen by others by using what is called a packet sniffer. I tested one out years ago and was actually able to read peoples webmail that was on the network - that was scary. Trojan horse programs and viruses use the same kind of method to see what you are doing online. Nothing is ever truly safe. What scares me is the number of computers out there that don't have any anti-virus software of firewall software. You can get hit just for being online. Even though someone can steal your so called "identity" they can't steal your looks. Unless of course they have plastic surgery. It makes for good science fiction. On the other hand I do notice how the press takes one story and makes it national headlines and then tries to scare everyone by saying it is an epidemic. So it is hard to determine if the identity theft thing is an epidemic or not. Based upon talking to the people I know, it isn't. But you never know. From now on I shall change my identity to someone else. Then when it gets stolen they will have the wrong identity. Just call me Anakin Skywalker, just to be safe. Now that he has changed his name to Darth Vader, Anakin is up for grabs.

Thought of the Day
Navin R. Johnson: Well I'm gonna to go then. And I don't need any of this. I don't need this stuff, and I don't need you. I don't need anything except this
[picks up an ashtray]
Navin R. Johnson: and that's it and that's the only thing I need, is this. I don't need this or this. Just this ashtray. And this paddle game, the ashtray and the paddle game and that's all I need. And this remote control. The ashtray, the paddle game, and the remote control, and that's all I need. And these matches. The ashtray, and these matches, and the remote control and the paddle ball. And this lamp. The ashtray, this paddle game and the remote control and the lamp and that's all I need. And that's all I need too. I don't need one other thing, not one - I need this. The paddle game, and the chair, and the remote control, and the matches, for sure. And this. And that's all I need. The ashtray, the remote control, the paddle game, this magazine and the chair.
-- The Jerk