Wednesday, July 19th, 2023 - TrickJarrett.com: Semper Ad Meliora

The Minecraft Uncensored Library

In many countries, websites, social media and blogs are controlled by oppressive leaders. Young people, in particular, are forced to grow up in systems where their opinion is heavily manipulated by governmental disinformation campaigns.

But even where almost all media is blocked or controlled, the world’s most successful computer game is still accessible. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) uses this loophole to bypass internet censorship to bring back the truth – within Minecraft.

I have known about it for a while, but had never actually checked it out. Knowing this existed led me to an idea I plan to do for my own Minecraft game where I have a library of actually books on shelves, pulled from gutenberg.org, etc.

So this morning I decided to actually go check out the library. Sadly my Minecraft crashed when I tried to connect to it, I'm guessing that's a version issue or maybe one of the mods I run. In any case, I couldn't get on the live version in my quick test. So instead I downloaded it from their website and ran it locally.

And, having loaded it up, I have to say the build is very impressive in scope and size! Definitely looking forward to exploring it more when I have more time.

7/19/2023 7:27 am |

| Tags: minecraft, censorship, freedom of speech

Visiting the Poorest Area of Appalachia

This reminds me a lot of my childhood. My father was from West Virginia, and his sister and mother lived in Charmco, WV. To me, as a child, it was "where grandma lived," but now as an adult I can see it as the extremely small town and the remnants of the coal industry.

When my Aunt decided to move out of the cabin she had lived in, I briefly considered trying to get my siblings or other people to go in and buy it as a vacation cabin. But the reality is I'd never visit it. I'd have to fly from Seattle to Charleston and then drive two hours to get to Charmco, which just isn't realistically something I would do, both for the travel requirements - but also because, well, it's in Appalachia. As this video highlights, it's a region in trouble.

Or, if not trouble, going through a dramatic shift.

Also, wow hearing the residents talk, transports me back with that unique twang and pacing.

Edit 12:50pm:

I will often post things without having finished them. This is one of those. Towards the end of the video it turns pretty clearly to the conservative politics, as well as some dog whistles for white supremacy etc. Unfortunate as I was enjoying the trip through the area.

Politically it also highlights the downside of income programs. People who get addicted to drugs and use that money to keep the addiction going.

The things I was most struck by as we see the wider issues of the region are the lack of... well, hope. So many of the young people leave, and those that remain end up trapped or addicted. Additionally they get on drugs because of coping with things, availability, and even just the simple social side of things - this is what the people they are around are doing.

The rural areas need a way to dig out, jobs to create opportunity, paths for more than just "I'm fixing engines because it's all I know to do."

7/19/2023 7:54 am |

| Tags: appalachia, west virginia, youtube

How Atlanta owes MARTA to Seattle

So I was perusing the Seattle subreddit and there was a post asking people to take the bus rather than drive. And in the comments there was a mention that Seattle's subway was actually in Atlanta. Digging into that, I discovered this article from 2015 which recounts what happened and why money which Seattle could have used to build a subway ended up funding Atlanta's MARTA.

Seattle once moved commuters mostly by rail. Electric streetcars and trolleys crisscrossed town a century ago, while Interurban trains ran every half hour or so, carrying passengers to stations located on a line traveling from Tacoma to north of Everett at speeds up to 60 mph.

But in the 1930s, as cars became more affordable, they pushed out trains. Buses replaced city street cars. The rail era faded even more quickly in the post-World War II boom years.

Rail almost made a comeback. As Seattle's population grew in the 1960s, civic leaders formulated a plan to build a 49-mile rapid transit system – a subway that would carry people underground throughout the city, then speed commuters above ground to points north and south. The proposed system would have crossed Lake Washington on I-90 to Bellevue and on to Redmond.

The federal government offered hundreds of millions to cover 80 percent of the costs. The project was named Forward Thrust.

Opponents feared mass transit would spur more growth and said it was too expensive. The Boeing downturn that prompted the famous Seattle billboard, "Will the last person leaving SEATTLE – Turn out the lights," doomed it for good.

King County voters rejected the regional bonds necessary to fund the rail plan—first in 1968 and then more decisively in 1970--leaving $900 million in federal funds on the table, or more than $5 billion in 2015 dollars.

7/19/2023 8:01 am |

| Tags: public transit, seattle, atlanta

"Judge clarifies: Yes, Trump was found to have raped E. Jean Carroll"

What a disgrace of a human to have held the highest office of the country.

7/19/2023 6:49 pm |

| Tags: us politics, us justice, donald trump

Kevin Mitnick, Notorious Early-days Hacker, has died of Pancreatic Cancer

Kevin David Mitnick, 59, died peacefully on Sunday, July 16, 2023, after valiantly battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year. Kevin is survived by his beloved wife, Kimberley Mitnick, who remained by his side throughout their 14-month ordeal. Kimberley is pregnant with their first child. Kevin was ecstatic about this new chapter in his and Kimberley's life together, which has now been sadly cut short.

From his Wiki page:

Kevin David Mitnick (born August 6, 1963) was an American computer security consultant, author, and convicted hacker. He is best known for his high-profile 1995 arrest and five years in prison for various computer and communications-related crimes.

Mitnick's pursuit, arrest, trial, and sentence along with the associated journalism, books, and films were all controversial.

He later ran the security firm Mitnick Security Consulting, LLC. He was also the Chief Hacking Officer and part owner of the security awareness training company KnowBe4, as well as an active advisory board member at Zimperium, a firm that develops a mobile intrusion prevention system.

Mitnick died on July 16, 2023 after a 14-month battle with pancreatic cancer, while his wife Kimberley was pregnant with his first child.

7/19/2023 7:00 pm |

| Tags: hackers, kevin mitnick, obituary

Jury Duty - 3 out of 5 verdicts

I'm watching the finale of Jury Duty and I am boggled at the idea of dealing with the insanity and stupidity of the show for three weeks for a stupid civil lawsuit.

Overall, the show was fine. It was silly and ultimately not a show I needed to see. It was heartwarming in the finale but also it just... was fine.

I wouldn't tell anyone they have to see the show.

7/19/2023 8:48 pm |

| Tags: review, television, freevee

On a lark, the wife and I got a quick pick Powerball ticket today. I am sad to report, I remain not a member of the 1%.

7/19/2023 9:34 pm |

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