Sunday, July 27, 2014

Disabilities; Spoofing; Scamming; Immigrant Kids; Lawsuit; Alabama Guns; Magic; Baking People; Cheating; Psychic Passes; Island Ferry; Stupid Crooks

Nice 85 degree partly sunny day. 


01.  Americans with Disabilities Act


Twenty four years ago.    the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, and there is an ADA Center in Rockville, Maryland.  The Director of Carroll County's Citizens Services and the Coordinator of the Carroll County ADA reminds us that every person will experience some degree of disability in their lifetime and will need accommodation.  There are lots of places that Elaine and I can't visit because she is in a wheelchair.  Also, when we go on a trip, we have to make sure that the hotel bed is not too high off the floor, otherwise it would be too hard to get into. High thresholds are also a problem as well as hard-to-open doors.


02.  *Spoofing .. How to they do it?


How do scammers do the "Spoofing" action?  That is, have a legitimate telephone number and caller ID name show, even though the call is from someone else?  I guess, if more people knew how to do it, lots more con men would be able to do it. 


03.  Scamming .. Carroll County Message


Be advised: "Anytime that anyone contacts you, whether by phone, email, or even through a social media website, demanding money, you have  to know that its probably a scam.  The best advice is to always take the name and information from the caller, hang up and then call the people or institution at a number that you know, to see what is going on."


04.  *Immigrant Children ..  White House Proposal


The White House is considering a proposal that would allow Honduran children to apply for admission to the U.S. as refugees or on humanitarian grounds, while still in their country.  American immigration officers would interview each child and offer them temporary shelter in Honduras while their case is being examined.


05.  *Boehner's Lawsuit against Obama


The House Committee on Rules reported out the lawsuit against the President, claiming he overstepped his executive powers in carrying out the Affordable Care Act.  Now the whole House can vote on it.


Remember the Arabic saying:  "The dogs bark, but the caravan continues on."


06.  Guns galore!


Under Alabama State law, anyone who legally owns a gun is entitled to strap on a holster and carry it in plain sight.  Owners of private buildings like churches have the right to prohibit firearms.  Robert Kennedy, a founder of BamaCarry Inc., chose not to vote because he didn't want to take off his pistol to vote in a church annex.


07.  Magic Trick?


The local newspaper reported that "John .... was arrested Thursday and charged with 'failure to appear'".   Well, how did they find him?


08.  Well Done, Rikers Island.


A heating problem in a New York prison caused a 56  year old homeless man to be "baked" while he was awaiting sentencing.


09.  Gentlemen do not cheat!


The Air Force Officers who are entrusted with the care  and storage of our stockpile of nuclear weapons are required to take tests periodically to make sure that they perform their jobs adequately.  Unfortunately, it has now been found out that some of these "gentlemen" have been cheating on those tests.  Gives you a warm feeling, doesn't it.


10.  Psychic to the Stars Passes


Kenny Kingston died a little while ago at age 87.  He supposedly had the ability to communicate with "the rich, the famous, and the titled"  alive or dead.  He was a regular on television shows like "The Merv Griffin Show" and had lots of clients for whom he held "readings".. and with whom he communicated after they died.  He wrote some books like "Sweet Spirits" (1978), promoted psychic hotlines through infomercials, and charged $400 for those private "readings."  I wonder if he now is in communication with Harry Houdini? 


11.  Ferry from New York to the Islands


The New York Times reports that it is now possible during the summer to arrive in a taxi at 35th Street and the East River on a Friday at 3 o'clock and board a ferry to Martha's Vineyard for a 5 hour trip that offers 12 flat-screen televisions and a cash bar.  Each week, 250 people take this trip. (You can't even get to Nantucket from New Bedford, Massachusetts by ferry, although it is only about 15 miles away by sea.  ... Unless some entrepreneur has set something up since I last was up there.  My brother in law, Moe, used to ferry people in his  plane from New Bedford to Martha's Vineyard in 10 minutes.. up and down.)


12.  Incompetent Criminal


Chuck Shepherd writes in Funny Times (July 2014) "Ryan Trembly, 29, was charged with trying (futilely) to rob Bubbles Hair Salon in Annapolis, Maryland.  Explained the salon's receptionist, 'He was like, Give me all your money, and I said, Not today!  Who tries to rob a salon?'  Trembly left, to the sound of her laughter, and was picked up at his mother's house."


(This is the same situation that I wrote of recently about the place where Elaine and I go for haircuts, and a jerk came in and tried to rob the place.. but the owner chased him out with a broom.)


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1 comment:

Chris Vaughan said...

Hi pop - I found a site that describes how phone scammers do what they do with the caller IDs:
http://netsecurity.about.com/od/securityadvisorie1/a/Caller-Id-Spoofing.htm

It's amazing that such sites are legal (maybe they aren't?)

I wish the Republican'ts would spend us much time trying to compromise with the Democrats as they do trying to block them. The world would be a better place.