What Caught My Eye Today

Fiji - If I've said this once, I've said it a thousand times--You don't mess with the Queen. Girlfriend doesn't take crap from nobody. The Commonwealth has fully suspended Fiji after it refused to bow to demands to call elections by next year. Yes, I know. The Queen probably didn't make the decision on her own, but I bet she voiced her opinion on the topic. Commodore Frank Bainimarama seized power in Fiji in a 2006 coup and has said elections can only be reinstated in 2014, as part of his "roadmap". He says he needs time to institute reforms that will end the ethnic-based voting system tipped in favour of ethnic Fijians. In other words, dude needs time to figure out how he can ensure that he wins the election--whenever it happens to take place. Fiji has already been suspended from the regional Pacific Islands Forum, and some European Union aid to the country has been put on hold. In practical terms it means Fiji cannot attend any Commonwealth meetings, including taking part in the Commonwealth Games in 2010, or participate in training schemes and other technical aid. So this is serious right? The Commonwealth admitted that it was not a large donor to Fiji and the sanction is largely symbolic. I see. So the Commonwealth is basically the English version of the United Nations. Isn't that lovely?

Bangladesh - As if this poor nation didn't have enough to deal with. Now it is the victim of satire. Two Bangladeshi newspapers have apologized after publishing an article taken from the satirical U.S. website, the Onion, which claimed the Moon landings were faked. The Daily Manab Zamin said U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong had shocked a news conference by saying he now knew it had been an "elaborate hoax". The made-up quote said that although the journey had felt real, in fact "the entire thing was filmed on a sound stage, most likely in New Mexico. I suppose it really was one small step for man, one giant lie for mankind." Dude, it was so totally a hoax. That footage that was mistakenly taped over a few months ago by NASA? How obvious of a cover up is that. But seriously, I'm not so sure that I would rely on the Onion a a trusted news source. A hilarious source of news, yes; a trusted news source, perhaps not.

The Internet - This next item caught my attention in that it explores the various ways that one could break the Internet.

• Take up fishing: Nets pulling up undersea cables are the single biggest cause of Internet breakages
• Grab a hacksaw: Follow the lead of vandals near Santa Clara, California who cut through underground fiber-optic wires, halting all service to the area.
• Pray for an underwater earthquake: Preferably, a repeat of the quake that took down cables carrying 75% of Internet traffic between Europe and the Middle East in December, 2008.
• Become the head of ICANN: Once in charge of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (the organization that coordinates the global system of IP addresses) you can redirect traffic at will.
• Break into an Internet Data Center: There are thousands of centers housing computer servers in the United States alone. Take your pick and get mischievous.
• Sabotage a few boats: Internet providers lease fleets equipped to located and repair broken cables. Stop the ships and you stop the fix.
• Wait 29 years: On Jan 19, 2038, the internal clock for Unix will overflow, Y2K style.
• Train sharks: Shark have been known to gnaw through a few cables.

Is it just me or is anyone else scratching their head over the fact that this sort of information is being freely distributed to the public almost as a joke? What's next, a public service announcement on building a do-it-yourself improvised explosive device?