Please join the #CheyneyChallenge, a monthly donation campaign for America's first HBCU. I made my most recent donation of $18.37 today.

Cheyney University of Pennsylvania
cheyney.edu
Est. 1837
​
The Cheyney Challenge is an initiative of alumnus Mr. Bright. I committed to it in 2015, and began donating the following year. 

I think we should speak in a language that appeals to the broadest coalition of Pennsylvanians. Like that adage says, "Keep It Simple, Silly." Perhaps a slogan -- rather, different slogans -- will amass this appeal. For example, combine into a slogan... popular themes among participants of the study (i.e. COVID): "No time for corruption in a time of COVID." "Better together: End COVID and End Corruption, too." Or "Better Together: Ban Corruption and Ban COVID, too."

Related: CoVID-19 (2020)
Related: Digital Ads (2019)
Related: Electoral Politics (2019)
Related: Electoral Politics, II (2020)

At 8:30 p.m. (20:30 hours) I'll observe Earth Hour 2022. That means lights out for an hour -- or keep the lights off for another hour. I don't have candles, but I have flashlights and portable lights. (Apart from my main flashlight, I'll work on emergency lighting powered by reusable batteries or solar energy next time.)

Otherwise, I'm working an extra 10 hours today -- my first bout of overtime this year. The money won't be for turning up though. During an emergency last year, I lived off my retirement for several months. I'm making some last-minute contributions to it before April 15 (or whenever the tax-filing deadline).

Obviously, I'm not participating in an event for Earth Hour this year. However, an event I added to my bucket list in 2020 is fitting for Earth Hour next year. Therefore, I'll hold off on that item one more year.

Hint: Cherry Springs State Park -- I'm coming in 2023, if not before!

I didn't know there was a difference in energy consumption by front-end and top-over washers and dryers. Also, there are reusable bags specifically for produce. The Earth Hour website provides other easy-to-read tips on lifestyle changes that reduce human pollution, retail waste, and household energy at www.earthhour.org/take-part/beyond-the-hour.

​Maybe you'll enjoy it as well!

Earth Hour is an annual act of solidarity to highlight the appreciation of people for their planet.

Related: Renewable Energy (2021)
Related: Renewable Energy, II (2021)
Related: Environmental Committee (Feb. 2022)
​Related: Ventilation (2020)

Congrats, GPPA, on the co-sponsorship. This could be one opportunity for the party to raise its statewide profile. If so, the GPPA and candidates might declare (or tagline) public support for 2030 as the deadline for net-neutral or carbon-free emissions.

Weeks before the 2020 election, I learned from the Howie Hawkins campaign -- then the Green Party presidential candidate -- that 2030 is the projected year that Earth's average temperature warms by at least 1.5 Celsius. It's why I reversed course from my support of the Paris Agreement, whose signatories have committed to 2050 as the deadline to net-neutralize greenhouse gas emissions -- particularly, CO2.

(See Electoral Politics, II (Q3), which references the period of my 2020 interview by The Washington Post rather than its publication in Q4. Also see Black Voters, II (Q4). Both are below.)

In addition, the state party might volunteer -- at scale -- for a high-contact committee i.e. the Events, March, Media, or Outreach Committees. Even if members don green shirts while collecting garbage and plastic water bottles, I believe the party will make a lasting impression ahead of the general election. #PAClimateConvergence

Related: Presidential Elections, III (2020)
Related: Open Presidential Debate, II (2020)
Related: Final Open Presidential Debate (2020)
​Related: Electoral Politics, II (Q3)
Related: Black Voters, II (Q4)

Attendance was good last night -- our largest little crowd yet! Looking forward to the next meeting in April and any initiatives or positions members would like Capital Area Greens to consider.

Christina "PK" Diguilio -- Green candidate for governor -- was also in attendance. The former analytical chemist shared her testimony on BIPARTISAN BRIBERY, as well as her technical expertise and watchdog advocacy concerning industrial contamination on public health, preservation of the state's natural resources, and more.
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For now, please reach out to the Green Party of Pennsylvania (https://facebook.com/gpofpa) to volunteer for PK's campaign or to help collect the 5,000 signatures needed to exercise our voting rights on a MULTIPARTY BALLOT.

Related: Ballot Access (2021)
Related: Ballot Access, II (2021)
Related: Electoral Politics (2019)
Related: Electoral Politics, II (2020)
Related: "The Case for an Independent Left Party" (2020)

Note: I'm catching up on back articles, so the following post is in reference to an article from Dec. 2020. ​

A few things stuck out to me about this story -- apart from the overwhelming success of the fundraiser. 1) Some of the Soledad prisoners were mentoring Syon -- then a prep-school student -- at the prison itself. 2) His parents "put in an incredible amount of... gratitude and... trust in us to help mentor their son," according to Jason Bryant, one of the inmates. And 3) it was a reading group which these men/felons/prisoners were all members of, including Syon.

I love this!

However, prisoners are used as a resource and a market for private goods and services i.e. commissary and voice calls. They're also tapped as:
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• A sizable population for reapportionment in host rural communities
• A major source for jobs in the same community
• Subjects for investigational drugs
• A source for detectives to solve cases (An extreme example is the "Torso Killer," who implicated himself last year in the last two cases connected to him.)
• A free-labor force for assembling goods and assisting in public works (For instance, inmates elsewhere in California helped firefighters with a controlled burn around the time those at Soledad presented Syon with a $30,000 scholarship.)

Under reasonable supervision, will prisons themselves permit eligible and re-integrable inmates to mentor incarcerated or unincarcerated youth? Or share their stories with students and the public at schools/colleges/libraries? Asked another way, what will prisons themselves permit eligible and re-integrable inmates to give back to the community and public life that some [might] someday rejoin?

An extended comment on "California Prisoners [sic] raises $30K for High School in Need" (D. Givens)

Related: HBCUs (2019)
Related: Dress Code (2022)
​Related: "Mississippi Reckoning" (2019)
​Related: "Summoned at Midnight" (2019)

Much thanks to Mr. Marrion and Business Insider! A couple of weeks ago, I began to consider a container home as an affordable alternative to the "residential matchbox" -- as I sometimes refer to a fire-prone home in the City of Harrisburg.

​Some of the single-family homes here appear thin and reedy, and it dawned on me then that regions of the U.S. with seemingly fewer outbreaks of non-arson, residential fires have stone-based or concrete constructions. Apart from human error, [I] attributed the age of whatever the material as one cause of its combustibility.

The video is not about residential structures necessarily, but I assume the point about roofing materials apply to homes as well. In reference to the video, the cavernous or lack of firewall in these historic buildings was a learning point as well.

A comment on "A fire expert explains why historic building like Notre-Dame Cathedral burn so easily" (BUSINESS INSIDER)

Related: Environmental Committee (Jan. 2022)
Related: Environmental Committee (Mar. 2021)
Related: "Race for Profit" (2020)
Related: Homeownership, II (2019)
Related: Real Estate (2019)

Note: I'm catching up on back articles, so the following post is in reference to a June 2021 article. A dedication to Glen Ford follows. He died a month after the publication he co-founded distributed it.

Over the years I've come across references and copies of Walter Rodney's work, particularly How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. I wasn't a student of his work; nor was I familiar with the circumstances surrounding his death. 

Rodney's native Guyana was preparing to officialize his death an assassination at the time of the linked report below. I can only imagine the pain and financial strain placed on his widow when benefits from his life insurance were never honored for her and their three children, who were only infants in 1980. I once heard an interview of  Betty Shabazz recounting the financial strain on her household of five following Malcolm X's assassination.

In regard to Rodney, I was surprised at the extent of Guyana's attempt to redeem his name, legacy, and works. It comes more than 40 years after his death, but I hope it provides his family some sense of validation and resolution.

​However, I believe it's only gloss if Guyana approves the following motions absent an acknowledgement of the findings from the Walter Rodney Commission on Inquiry. The Commission attributes Sgt. Gregory Smith, an electronics expert, with delivering a lethal bomb to Rodney by way of his unknowing brother. The officer, a member of Guyana's military, fled to a country with protection from potential extradition. The Commission alleges that he acted as a state agent.

Pleeease provide an update on these motions when available and, ideally, a response from the Rodney family.

Motions will include:

• Amending Rodney's cause of death from "misadventure" to "assassination" 
• Amending his profession from unemployed to professor
• Archiving in Guyana and a U.S. university the 2014 Walter Rodney Commission of Inquiry
• Nationalizing his grave site and monument
• Incorporating some of his works into the school curricula
• Reinstating the Walter Rodney Chair at the University of Guyana

A comment on "Walter Rodney’s Death Records to be Amended and Children’s Books Placed in Schools" (D. Chabrol).

Dedication

Glen Ford was the co-founder of Black Agenda Report, which republished the article my above post is based on. He died from lung cancer a month later.

​The Green Party shared a Facebook post from The Black Alliance for Peace on July 28, 2021. It was then that I found out about the death of the journalist and activist. "Wow. Was just on Black Agenda Report yesterday," I wrote. "Most familiar with Ford from BAR (and the Black is Back Coalition) over the last 10 years. My condolences. Will miss his words and wisdom."

​Weeks before, I found an old .mp3 player with BAR podcasts from my 2012 commutes home from work. It was prior to Black Agenda Report, however, that I first came across Ford's name and work with The Black Commentator. (Their editorial cartoons were classic, by the way). It turns out Ford was its co-publisher until 2006.

BAR can go from a series that alleges ethnic instigations by Paul Kagame prior to the Rwandan genocide, to critiques on AFRICOM and U.S. foreign policy. It is international affairs and U.S. foreign policy that I've found little coverage in Black print media since I began reading it at age 18.

BAR also introduced me to the concept of neoliberalism (which I'm still trying to grasp) and some of the most-fire columns from whom would turn out to be Danny Haiphong.

In 2014, the publication allowed me to follow the Renisha McBride murder trial by running original coverage from Thandisizwe Chimurenga. And though I didn't follow Jill Stein's presidential campaigns. I did recognize Ajamu Baraka, her 2016 running mate, from BAR columns. 
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Glen Ford was 71.

Related: Wrongful Death Lawsuit (2020)
Related: Environmental Committee (Feb. 2022)
Related: Presidential Elections, II (2020)
Related: Black Voters, II (2020)
Related: Electoral Politics (2019)
Related: Public Intellectuals (2019)

Wasn't aware that the U.S. is the world's largest beef producer; I thought Brazil was. Perhaps it's grass-fed beef of which the BRICS nation is the largest producer (and exporter). Other than that, it seems cheapest to ship U.S. meat products to domestic markets by region. For example, is it not the supply (or availability) of seasonal produce (i.e. kiwis and brussel sprouts during the winter here in the Northern Hemisphere) that seasonal produce is cheaper than that out-of-season?

Apparently, it's only a few dominant U.S. meat processors that keep domestic meat prices -- as the video notes -- among the world's lowest. In addition to automation, I wonder if these major U.S. meat processors will contract some of that processing to regional processors to prevent wide-scale euthanization again.

A comment on the video "Why 1 Million Pigs May be Euthanized due to COVID-19-related supply chain issues" (A. Narishkin, S. Cameron, and V. Barranco).

Related: "The Price We Pay" (2020)
Related: Medical Debt (2020)

Note: I'm catching up on back articles, so the following post is in reference to a spring 2021 graduation.

López's violation of the dress code seemed intentional because his school shared the code with graduating students in advance of commencement. And in it, he and his peers were permitted their mortarboards as a visual medium for self-expression.

It took only one school official to prompt his attempt (albeit, unsuccessful) to remove the flag during the ceremony. So what warranted the call for four police to escort him and his parents from the building following a sit-down meeting, which they voluntarily attended after the ceremony?

Given that Asheboro is a public school, I assume it was compensated by tax dollars for López's attendance up to his ultimate graduation. If violation of the dress code warrants withholding a student's diploma, then that, too, should be shared with graduating students in advance of their commencement.

Asheboro is about 30 minutes S. of Greensboro, NC; 85 minutes N. of Charlotte; and 85 minutes N.E. of Raleigh.

A comment on "Teen's diploma in jeopardy after he wore Mexican flag to NC high school graduation" (M. Price).

Related: College Majors (2019)
Related: Student Loan Debt (2020)
Related: Community College (2019)

I believe it was TLS 2.1 with [AES] GCM (Galois Counter Mode) that was the most difficult concept, because of the multilayers of encryption.

On the one hand, the block cipher (ciphertext?) is converted into a stream cipher (ciphertext?). It's beyond the scope of this course (and my math aptitude), but can the encryption algorithm convert the less-secure stream cipher into the more-secure block cipher instead?

On the other hand, Counter Mode combines block ciphertext and plaintext to best enhance encryption. Can the encryption algorithm combine the ciphertext with a stream ciphertext instead?

An excerpt from the prompt "Your Learning Journey" (coursera.org).

Related: Cybersecurity (Quiz)
​Related: Cybersecurity 3 (Notes)
Related: Final Project (Cybersecurity)
Related: "Cybersecurity & Cyberwar" (2020)

Note: This assignment wasn’t graded for accuracy, so some of the technical details might not be. Scenario prompt not included.

The company’s external website will require HTTP over TLS to create the most secure system over which paying customers can initiate transactions. If not by best practice, the company may by law need PCI DSS implementation for its payment system. Network-based firewall configurations must whitelist traffic for customer payment data and payment vendor services necessary to initiate, process, and finalize transactions.

A NIDS machine must be connected to the company switch and port mirroring must be enabled. The system can issue an alert if the network, for example, suspects a threat between:

• The vendor payment system and the company website through which the customer initiates a payment
• The vendor payment system and a configured network over which it may transmit consumer data for processing

If so, a corresponding NIPS system will terminate transmission of those sensitive data packets – which may contain stored customer data and more.

Aside from customers, team members may authenticate against a RADIUS server for access to the company’s intranet. For secure-yet-remote access, engineering employees can connect to the same intranet via a VPN authenticated against the same RADIUS server. If using a reverse proxy, they may authenticate, in part, with TLS client certificates. 

For purposes of network monitoring and auditing, a VLAN network can be applied to both tunneled traffic (engineering team) and non-tunneled traffic (all other team members). Whether roaming users (engineers) or mobile users (all other employees), the wireless connection should implement 802.1x with EAP-TLS for the strongest level of encryption given that the requisite RADIUS server is deployed.

For access to the intranet by devices, network-based firewall configurations can authorize whitelisting of employee laptops and other machines via MAC address. In addition to approved devices, network-based firewalls must whitelist only those services that team members use actively. 

To minimize the company network’s attack surface, it’s important that services or applications not in active use be disabled.

Employee laptops must enable an automatic screen-locking mechanism to prevent unlogged access to the hardware. Each laptop must have FDE to prevent data theft or tampering if the device is lost, stolen, or decommissioned. Further, a Key Escrow is recommended for data recovery of the hard drive if the FDE encryption key or password is forgotten.

It’s assumed that all employee laptops have host-based firewalls by way of their operating system.

Related: Cybersecurity (Quiz)
​Related: Cybersecurity 3 (Notes)
Related: Encryption Algorithm (2021)
Related: Data Privacy (2021)
Related: "Cybersecurity & Cyberwar" (2020)