Mashable: Has Twitter’s Growth Peaked?

http://mashable.com/2009/09/25/twitter-traffic-ceiling/

Mashable: Gather Feedback With Social Media

http://mashable.com/2009/09/28/social-media-feedback/

Surveillance Society: Big Brother is watching and he likes what he sees…

A world for the taking, when he’s ready to squeeze¹.

As an avid fan of George Orwell’s masterpieces “Animal Farm” and “1984″ (Ayn Rand too), a professional computer programmer who builds business systems and some one who finds the current political climate increasingly 1984 like, I’ve decided to start compiling all the disturbing information that I come across, which increasingly seems to indicate that Orwell was off by about 30 years.

Decide for yourself and send me anything I’ve missed!

Network World: Futuristic security surveillance system brings Big Brother to life
http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/45590?source=NWWNLE_nlt_security_2009-09-25

Telegraph: EU funding ‘Orwellian’ artificial intelligence plan to monitor public for “abnormal behaviour”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/6210255/EU-funding-Orwellian-artificial-intelligence-plan-to-monitor-public-for-abnormal-behaviour.html

VIDEO: Project Hostile Intent
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1109039805713

DHS Memo on Data Mining
http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/privacy/privacy_datamining_July24_2008_minutes.pdf

1. The title of this blog is an except of some lyrics from the Kansas song “Sparks of the Tempest” from the excellent 1977 album “Point of Know Return”, written by Kerry Livgren phenomenal former guitarist and songwriter of the band. The entire lyrics are included below:

The sparks of the tempest rage a hundred years on
The voice of the dreamer screams, the cause of the pawn
The King and the Queen are gone, each piece is the same
The difference between us is a part of the game

Darkness is spreading like a spot on the sun
The dead are the living in the age of the gun
While everyone clamors for the justice they seek
The world is corrupted and the strong take the weak

They mold you and shape you, they watch what you do
The sparks of the tempest are burnin’ you through
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

The future is managed, and your freedom’s a joke
You don’t know the difference as you put on the yoke
The less that you know the more you fall into place
A cog in the wheel, there is no soul in your face

Run for the cover, Millennium’s here
Bearing the standard of confusion and fear
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

Blood in the sand, a cry in the street
Now the cycle is nearly complete
Ten thousand years, and nothing was learned
No turning back, now the wheel has turned

Big Brother is watching and he likes what he sees
A world for the taking, when he’s ready to squeeze
The King and the Queen are gone, each piece is the same
The difference between us is a part of the game

Soothsayer saying now tell me no lies
What is this madness that is filling the skies
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

Network World: Futuristic security surveillance system brings Big Brother to life

http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/45590?source=NWWNLE_nlt_security_2009-09-25

Is this a good thing? Oh wait, I know, “you have nothing to fear if you’ve done nothing wrong”…

From the article:
“DARPA said it envisions two major applications for such a system. Perhaps most important, the first would use the system in a near real-time mode to receive alerts and warnings to react to and avert disasters. For example, if it notices a number of activities that were out of the usual, such as the gathering of lots of soldiers and trucks it could alert local authorities. “

For example, maybe a Tea Party gathering? Republican Party meeting?

For more of the same across the pond, see Telegraph: EU funding ‘Orwellian’ artificial intelligence plan to monitor public for “abnormal behaviour”

Is Kerry Livgren, the phenomenal former guitarist of Kansas, a prophet or what (see below)

“Sparks of the Tempest” from the Kansas album “Point of Know Return”, 1997

The sparks of the tempest rage a hundred years on
The voice of the dreamer screams, the cause of the pawn
The King and the Queen are gone, each piece is the same
The difference between us is a part of the game

Darkness is spreading like a spot on the sun
The dead are the living in the age of the gun
While everyone clamors for the justice they seek
The world is corrupted and the strong take the weak

They mold you and shape you, they watch what you do
The sparks of the tempest are burnin’ you through
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

The future is managed, and your freedom’s a joke
You don’t know the difference as you put on the yoke
The less that you know the more you fall into place
A cog in the wheel, there is no soul in your face

Run for the cover, Millennium’s here
Bearing the standard of confusion and fear
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

Blood in the sand, a cry in the street
Now the cycle is nearly complete
Ten thousand years, and nothing was learned
No turning back, now the wheel has turned

Big Brother is watching and he likes what he sees
A world for the taking, when he’s ready to squeeze
The King and the Queen are gone, each piece is the same
The difference between us is a part of the game

Soothsayer saying now tell me no lies
What is this madness that is filling the skies
Spreading like wildfire, fallin’ like rain
Though they may promise, they only bring pain

CIO: Five Lessons from Microsoft on Cloud Security

http://www.cio.com/article/500505/Five_Lessons_from_Microsoft_on_Cloud_Security?source=rss_how_to

Fortune 500 Series: FedEx delivers success through social media

http://blogs.zdnet.com/feeds/?p=1685

WIRED: Newly Declassified Files Detail Massive FBI Data-Mining Project

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/09/fbi-nsac/

Is this good?

“Big Brother is watching and he likes what he sees, a world for the taking when he’s ready to squeeze” – Kerry Livgren (Kansas) “Sparks of the Tempest”

Telegraph: EU funding ‘Orwellian’ artificial intelligence plan to monitor public for “abnormal behaviour”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/6210255/EU-funding-Orwellian-artificial-intelligence-plan-to-monitor-public-for-abnormal-behaviour.html

The European Union is spending millions of pounds developing “Orwellian” technologies designed to scour the internet and CCTV images for “abnormal behaviour”.

Like this, then you’ll LOVE this: Network World: Futuristic security surveillance system brings Big Brother to life

“Big Brother is watching and he likes what he sees, a world for the taking when he’s ready to squeeze” – from the Kanasas song, “Sparks of the Tempest” on the album “Point of Know Return”, 1977. Check out the lyrics, it’s amazingly prophetic.

Boston Globe: MA Supreme Court OK’s secret use of GPS devices

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/09/18/sjc_oks_secret_use_of_gps_devices/

Does this sound like a good idea?

Listen for the Libertas ad on 55KRC!

Just heard our new ad on 55KRC with Brian Thomas, sounds great they did a great job!

If you hear it let me know what you think.

You can listen to 55KRC on 550 AM (in Cincinnati) or live on the web at http://www.55krc.com.