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Where I’ve Been – Travel Brain
46 cities in 11 countriesAsiaSouth Korea: SeoulThailand: BangkokThailand: Chiang MaiEuropeBelgium: BrusselsFrance: Le HavreFrance: NiceFrance: ParisGermany: BerlinGermany: DresdenGermany: ErlangenGermany: Frankfurt am MainGermany: HardheimGermany: MarktheidenfeldGermany: MunichGermany: NurnbergGermany: TauberbischofsheimGermany: WertheimHoly See (Vatican City): Vatican CityItaly: RomeItaly: VeniceLuxembourg: LuxembourgNetherlands: AmsterdamUnited Kingdom: LondonNorth AmericaUnited States: Ann ArborUnited States: AnnistonUnited States: AustinUnited States: CelinaUnited States: CherokeeUnited States: ClevelandUnited States: ColumbusUnited States: GettysburgUnited States: JasperUnited States: MandanUnited States: MetairieUnited States: MiamiUnited States: NashvilleUnited States: New OrleansUnited States: Oil CityUnited States: PittsburghUnited States: RedmondUnited States: RestonUnited States: San FranciscoUnited States: San JoseUnited States: SeattleUnited States: ShermanUnited States: Washington
Testing WordPress Stats
I think this is the last one I’m reactivating. I’ve got 2 different Adsense plugins installed, but I can’t decide which one to activate, or if I’m going to use either one of them. I need to do some research in to different ad and affiliate plans, and get a firm idea of what I want to do.
Testing WordPress Related Posts 1.0
Testing continues. Reactivated WordPress Related Posts 1.0, and things seem to be doing fine. Plugins screen is still running well.
Testing Head META Description R1.1.2
Just activated Head META Description. and things still seem to be working pretty well. I’ll try editing some other posts after I post this.
Testing Bad Behavior 2.0.26
I wonder if this was the problem. I suspected it might be, and so decided to completely uninstall and delete the plugin, and start completely fresh. I discovered that part of the files were missing, and I suspect the database records were hosed.
I dropped the old table, manually deleted all the files, and reinstalled the plugin from a fresh download. The activation process was quicker than the last two, and several things seemed to have fixed themselves on the plugins page on the Dashboard.
I am hopeful.
Testing Akismet 2.2.3
Activated Akismet 2.2.3, and now posting. The activation seemed to take as long as that for Add-To-Any, so maybe it was just me. Admin panel still seems fine.
Testing 2
Here’s an original post after installing Add-To-Any.
Testing
I’m working on trying to figure out why the admin side of the site seems to run so slowly. I have problems making or editing posts; things seem to time out, and just hang. My host tried to move the site to different server, but they were getting errors there, too. I’ve shut down all the plugins I was running, and I’m going to see how things work now. If there’s an improvement, I’ll start adding them back one at a time.
Cover me. I’m going in.
WP Version: 2.7 No plugins installed.
You Say Escalate Like It’s a Bad Thing
The mainstream media is becoming more aware of the long-existing issue of piracy on the high seas. The Associated Press reports that the various maritime academies are beginning to offer training to their students on how to deal with pirates. Such training includes increased vigilance, the use of fire hoses, and, of course, floodlights. Oh, and evasive action, too.
Wait…what? Floodlights? Against automatic weapons and RPGs? This is a joke, right? Evasive action? Yes, that supertanker that tops out at about 12 knots, and takes something like 5 miles to turn can evade (get away from, dodge, or avoid) the smaller, faster, and more maneuverable boats.
No, sadly, it’s not a joke. California Maritime Academy professor Donna Nincic points out that many countries do not allow merchant seamen to bear arms in their territorial waters, and that many captains fear arming the crews, as it might lead to armed mutinies. She added that “some worry that arming crew members would only cause the violence to escalate.”
Well….duh.
Jeff Cooper, a Shooter and wordsmith of some skill, once remarked
“One bleeding-heart type asked me in a recent interview if I did not agree that ‘violence begets violence.’ I told him that it is my earnest endeavor to see that it does. I would like very much to ensure–and in some cases I have–that any man who offers violence to his fellow citizen begets a whole lot more in return than he can enjoy.”
Isn’t escalation of violence the best way to end the violence? We saw what happens when you just sit there and go along with the bad men who want to hijack your plane, didn’t we? Or have we forgotten that one of the planes hijacked in 2001 didn’t get where it was supposed to go–because someone escalated the violence.
Professor Nincic says that “If you demonstrate a culture of awareness, that you look like you know you’re in pirate waters and are clearly standing watch, patrolling, etc., the pirates know you’re going to be more difficult to board and are possibly going to wait for the next ship and board the one that’s easier.” That’s all well and good for your shipmates, but what of the folks on “the one that’s easier?”
The Maine Maritime Academy is putting together an anti-piracy course, and department chair Ralph Pundt says the best way to combat pirates it to keep them from boarding in the first place.
He’s right, as far as he goes. I’d suggest the truly best course is to do whatever one can to keep them from boarding anyone ever again. Even if you have to “escalate the violence.”
Raven’s Beak on Flickr
