For those of  you who may have noticed your computer screaming for the latest cumulative security update from Microsoft and wondering how April 13th came so quickly, you can rest easy.  You didn’t miss weeks of time.  This one came early.

Microsoft has released an emergency patch for Internet Explorer, from IE 5 to IE 8 no less, to address a zero-day exploit involving iepeers.dll.  As well as a number of other patches.  All rolled into one out-of-the-blue emergency security fix to close up those holes and vulns.

So if you use Internet Explorer (or if you use Windows and fear that on some level just having any Internet Explorer code anywhere in the system makes you vulnerable) then take note and patch from Microsoft’s latest.  Better safe than sorry.

Yesterday was Super Tuesday. A lot of you probably voted. Even more of you might have cared.

I don’t.

You see, when a computer program contains an error, or even a bad algorithm or method, it’s the responsibility of the people who maintain that computer program to fix it. The same as when a design flaw causes a failure in a feat of mechanical engineering, they’re responsible for fixing it.

But who is responsible for fixing the government? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

The thing is … no one is taking that responsibility. In theory, we all should. Government belongs to us all. But we don’t. Oh, we pretend to. We vote. Most vote for a party or just the president. In a two party system that’s about as functional as voting that Ford or Chevy should make all cars. But we pretend we’re actually doing something. We’re preserving democracy dammit!

But in this day and age what is the purpose of the Electoral College? Why do we only have a two party system? Why are influential people with money allowed to buy votes finance campaigns? Why do we let the atrocity that is American Democracy continue unchecked? Why don’t we start fixing it?

And as if it wasn’t so screwed up before, now we have to introduce bad technology into the system, in the form of electronic voting. We have e-voting without paper trails, with unsecured systems, with unverifiable ballot counting. Now as the 2000 election clearly indicated, ballots can be screwed up just fine without computers being involved. But do we really need to make the situation ‘better’ by introducing worse solutions? I have about as much faith in an e-vote not being tampered with (intentionally or unintentionally) as I have in Revenge Of The Nerds being remembered a thousand years from now as the turning point in civilization.

We’ve seen plenty of reports on how insecure e-voting machines are. But we’re supposed to believe that no one has actually done anything to screw with them? Oh come on! I wouldn’t buy that for a dollar! We’re really meant to believe that not a single Republican or Democrat zealot exists in the United States? Not a one?

And certainly no one interested in politics would work anywhere near a polling machine. (That was sarcasm by the way.)
It’s bull. It’s elephant and donkey bull! Not just presidency either. It’s the whole system. How often do Congress-persons work? And how often do they schmooze to get their next election funding? And then run for re-election? And that’s when they’re not just plain on vacation!

In my opinion, the system is badly engineered. And no one is taking the responsibility to fix it. My choices are:

1. Vote for people who would make a change if they ever get elected – which in this two party system they won’t be.
2. Bitch, whine, and moan – and watch no one listen, care if they do listen, or do anything if they do care.
3. Run for election myself – which I dare say I’m not qualified for, have no campaign funds to run on, and in this two party system have no chance at winning.
4. Do nothing.

Great options, huh? As you can see, I’m making such a difference. But at least I am doing something that addresses the problem instead of just pretending to. What do you suggest?