A new worm is starting to spread

Security experts are rushing to decode a worm program that exploits a 2-week-old flaw to infect computers running vulnerable versions of the popular open-source Apache Web server application.

The worm is thought to be capable of spreading only to Web servers running the FreeBSD operating system, an open-source variant of Unix, that haven’t had a patch applied for the recent flaw. Although few people have reported the worm, it is thought to be infecting vulnerable Web servers worldwide.

Just a quick note for those of you that think this points out a problem in the open source universe. Quite the opposite is true. Note that the flaw was discovered only two weeks ago and a solution was quickly provided so that only a few servers have been infected.

Do you think Microsoft would respond as quickly?

Brazil is the NY Yankees of world football!

As European giants Germany controlled much of the final, the Mannschaft always lacked that little, extra bit of magic. Brazil though, the modern heirs of yesteryear’s most romantic footballers and kings, had all the wizardry one could hope for. The final proved a battle of German efficiency and resiliency against Brazilian creativity and individual brilliance.

Congratulations Brazil!

Xerox follows Enron and Worldcom.

The wildfire of accounting controversies engulfing Enron Corp. and tech-sector companies such as WorldCom Inc. is scorching another company. According to a report Friday in the Wall Street Journal, Xerox Corp. could have to restate its 1997 to 2001 earnings to the tune of more than US$6 billion.

Is this going to take us into another great depression? Will the American public be able to look past the dishonesty of the (hopefully) few?

I hate to say it, but I agree with Jeff Jacoby.

[[palestinian_child]]
As a prerequisite to peace, Palestinian culture must be drastically reformed. The venom of the Arafat era must be drained. Persons implicated in terrorism must be punished and ostracized; democratic norms must be instilled; the virtue of tolerance must be learned. There is only one way to effect such wholesale changes: The Palestinian Authority has to be dealt a devastating military defeat, one that will crush Arafat and his junta and shatter forever the Palestinian fantasy of *liberating* Israel and driving the Jews into the sea.

Then the Palestinian territories must be reoccupied, the terror chieftains executed, and the putrescence of Arafat and Hamas flushed away. That will make it possible to rebuild the structures of civil society – the legislature, the courts, the police, the media, and, above all, the schools – from the ground up. The Palestinian polity can become a true liberal democracy, one committed to pluralism, civil rights, competitive elections, and the marketplace of ideas. When that happens, peace with Israel will be a given, and no one will fear a Palestinian state.

A pipe dream? Not at all. There is a model for just this sort of transformation: the US occupation of Japan.

The whole problem with the Middle East peace process is that there’s no desire for peace from the Palestinians. I hate the idea of war and violence, but some times reasonable people have no other way to deal with unreasonable people. Maybe someday we’ll be able to give peace a chance, but not until **everyone** decides that it’s better than the alternative.

We all know that toll roads are the worst possible way to raise money. So why are the pols so intent on it?

It’s just so brutally unfair. Why do the working people of MetroWest and Worcester County have to take a $10-a-week paycut to buy a brand-new road for all the BMW-driving millionaires from Cohasset and Deluxebury?

Eventually, it’s supposed to cost $13 to drive from Framingham to Logan. The money will be used to buy a new road for South Shore swells, who will pay the goose-egg, the doughnut, zero, nada, zed.

You got that right Howie! I don’t even pay the tolls, nor will I use the Big Dig (i.e. The Money Pit) very often. But every once in a while, I have to pick someone up at Logan, or fly out from there myself, and I end up getting screwed the whole way.

Hutt River Girl Strikes GOLD!

**Hutt River Girl** wrote in a report last night (June 25) about Viggo Mortensen and Peter Jackson filming in her area. She went back to the outskirts of the set to have another gander again, and you’ll never guess WHAT happened next!

What an experience! You have to read this to believe it. God I wish I could have been in her shoes!

A programmer with 25 years experience has some thoughts on switching to a Mac.

We spent two hours in the store playing with the new iMac and, as a programmer with 25 years in the business, I can tell you this is not a toy. With the open-source, UNIX-based core, and a fast, intuitive GUI on top, it’s possibly the best operating system I’ve ever seen. The greatest thing since they put corn in a can. (I’m from the Midwest. I can say that).

Brazil beats Turkey 1:0 in the semi-final round.

Four-times champions Brazil worked their way past Turkey thanks to Ronaldo’s lone second half goal to set up a dream final with three-times champions Germany. The two giants of world football have never met in a FIFA World Cup™ match.

I know I’ll be watching. The only problem now is who to root for?

You can get the teaser trailer here.

Also, take a look at the teaser poster. It’s perfect!

[[tt*teaser*poster]]

Only 6 more months!

Germany scored in the 74th minute to break the deadlock.

Korea’s dreams are left in the dust.

Midfield hero Michael Ballack’s goal led Germany to their fifth final in the last eight tournaments, ending the dream of the Korean nation in the process.