Fly

Cyber thieves remain a step ahead of security measures. An article at nypost.com details a recent practice called “Jackpotting,” which is occurring worldwide. Hackers implant malware in ATMs, targeting the many whose software is out of date. The machines spit out cash until they are drained. The Russian malware costs $1000. The former USSR seems a nation of outlaws, and it starts at the top.

Radio talk show host Mark Simone made an interesting suggestion this morning to those Democrats and Republicans professing anguish over the plight of the Kurds — draw up a war proposal stipulating how many troops will be needed and put it to a congressional vote. Kudos.

Last night Movies!, channel 5–2 on over the air antennas in NYC, ran the sequel to The Fly (1958), Return of the Fly (1959). Oddly, unlike its predecessor, it was in black and white. Vincent Price co-starred in both. Brett Halsey played the son of the tragic scientist from the first film, David Hedison. Here are some fun pics from each:

And here are the actresses who played the women who loved the men transformed, Patricia Owens and Danielle De Metz:

The wind was blowing hard along Avenue Z, but leeward of the bus shelter, which provided a barrier that allowed the floating book shop to operate. Fortunately, I brought an extra jacket and donned it immediately after the display was set up. It was another of those sessions that prove weather has nothing to do with the success of the endeavor. My thanks to the man with the little boy’s voice, who bought Shakespeare’s King Lear; and to the woman who purchased a Daniel Silva thriller, Polar Star by Martin Cruz Smith, and non-fiction on the Greek and Roman empires; and to Lynn, who selected The Sacrifice of Tamar by Naomi Ragen and Highgate Rise by Anne Perry; and to the man and woman who each took home a book in Russian; and to the gentleman who went the intellectual route, choosing On Belief (Thinking in Action) and Iraq: The Borrowed Kettle both by Slavoj Zize, and Guide to Kulchur by Ezra Pound. I skimmed through the latter, in which the author gives his opinion on a host of works. It’s geared to those who pursued a classical education, and retained it. I wasn’t familiar enough with the selections to appreciate it. What made the buy even more impressive is that the guy is a lot younger than me. I went to school when standards were still fairly rigorous, although probably only half as much as they were in the first half of the 20th century. Whenever I read something about that period, I’m always blown away by what was studied in college. I would not have fared well back then. Heck, my academic career was laughable. Whenever I’m doing an online survey, I’m uncomfortable listing myself as a college grad, so phony a student was I. My B.A. was obtained fraudulently. I cheated so much. I was as fake as CNN is these days. Inwardly, I was not a good person. I hope that’s no longer the case.

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