[macintoshes] why so gleefully attacked by pc users

It doesn't seem too far fetched to compare Macintosh users to the subject two posts ago - the Jews - in some respects. Constituting a minority in the computer community, Mac users have been seen by many as arrogant, feeling they are immune from the vicissitudes of PC users and that their way is superior.

Firstly, there is a distinct difference between Apple Corp itself and Mac users. Having used both systems, I can say that the Mac is more limited in scope, with less add-ons and more prescriptive but you have to look at its target user.

These are reasonably tech savvy people who want a smooth and reliable operating system which makes day to day computing effortless and enjoyable. Mac delivers on that big time - the computer is a delight to operate. I don't need a programming device or a high tech interface - I want to have everything at hand to blog with and to deal with my correspondence whilst enjoying the multi-media.

The way PC users come down on this small minority is surprising in my eyes - it's a large field and we're not threatening anyone. It's just another computer, after all. Do people come down on the Linux Ubuntu way, for example? And as for its supposed invulnerability, it seems to be with glee that the PC world has pounced on Apple's recommendation to install anti-virus software:

Until now, Apple has been telling customers they did not need to have antivirus software installed on their Mac laptops and desktop computers, since it was deemed by the company as an unnecessary measure. Now, it seems that the tide has turned and Apple has even recommended some antivirus options to its users, such as Intego VirusBarrier X5, Symantec Norton Anti-Virus 11, which are both available on Apple Online Store with a commercial license and McAfee VirusScan for Mac.

Well no, actually. For a start, Apple is continually sending upgrades and yes, they want to defend their impregnable reputation and yes, they do think that mulit-antivirus systems can help that, as they stated:

"The Mac is designed with built-in technologies that provide protection against malicious software and security threats right out of the box," he said. "However, since no system can be 100 percent immune from every threat, running antivirus software may offer additional protection."

For a long time, it was the PCs which were hacked and Macs, being a fairly insignificant portion of the market, were relatively untargetted. Now they are being targetted and Apple is having to pull out all stops.

We live in a world where faith is being increasingly questioned and consumer demands more and more unrealistic. For crying out loud - we're not using some NASA trillion dollar moon-landing technology here. We're using a PC with multi-media on it and the ability to use say, the Microsoft suite.

All computers can be hacked and harbour trojans. Mac is better than many in making life relatively trouble free but it is not G-d. It does what it does, does it reliably and elegantly and it works for a long time. That is all.

[advent] a calendar of sorts

You might like to click, each day up till Christmas, on the day's badge in the sidebar. Hope you enjoy.

[jews] why this historical hatred for them

When it comes to Judaism, I don't claim any real knowledge and so this article is in the nature of learning rather than presenting any point of view.

Aisha Siddiqa Qureshi, which does not sound a Jewish name to me, wrote:

Whether they realize it or not, people are and have always been willing to hate the Jews for one simple reason: they gave the world the concept of an objective right and wrong.

In a time of universal barbarism and cruelty, the ancient Hebrews were the first to adopt for themselves the six values essential for civilized existence: the sanctity of life, education, family, social responsibility, equality before the law, and peace.

As a Christian reading a possibly Muslim piece on the Jews, I can't really comment on that quote. It's pretty clear though that the Jews are hated, always have been and always will be. I don't believe it is because they killed Jesus - that's an excuse for a predisposition already there.

It's easy to see why Muslims would hate them, easy to see why the hidden power would hate them:

"The Jews historically fought against the occult. See Deuteronomy and the Old Testament for how God through the Jewish people tried to cleanse the land of the occult groups that were operating there, such as those who worshiped Baal, Ashtarte, and other Canaanite and Babylonian gods."

What I couldn't quite get until I read an article on it was that there was an apparent split in Jewry in the 17th and 18th centuries, when people like Sabbatai Zevy and Jacob Frank put forward doctrines which gave a different slant to the Kabbalah and turned much of the moral framework on its head.

Further, it promoted western "secular humanism and reason" rather than Judaic precepts. In a people who were already not sure of their identity, these ideas could well have fallen on fertile ground.

This explains a lot - why one of the Rothschilds was escorted across the border by a high ranking Nazi, why that family has a seat among the thirteen, why Madonna, given her shaky moral compass, could embrace the Kabbalah and do that Christ mockery in Russia, why the Jews could be so led astray, so fickle, when Moses went up on the mountain, came down and saw his people worshipping a golden image in his absence.

The problem seems to be in the question, "What is a Jew?" Rabbi Daniel Lapin's answer also throws light on the conundrum:

Many of my Christian friends have expressed bewilderment upon hearing of self-described Jewish atheists. That is because becoming a Christian, as I understand it, requires a purposeful decision to embrace Christ. Thus any Christian professing atheism, knows that he has adopted a philosophy incompatible with his former faith.

However, many secularized Americans with Jewish ancestors, though unsure of exactly what their Jewishness means, nonetheless are convinced that their Jewish identity imposes no philosophical limitations. Somehow, their Jewishness is something other than having to do with God; therefore it is perfectly compatible with atheism.

Jewishness, therefore, is not universally seen as a "oneness" with G-d, unlike Christianity and Islam. It allows certain behaviour to fester and take hold, behaviour a Muslim would see as demonic and an average Christian as puzzling. In short - there is a portion of Judaism seeing it as a racial and national identity and the others seeing it as one of the monotheistic religions.

Therefore the "hatred for the Jews" is seemingly hatred for one chunk of the population referring to itself as Jewish. The other portion suffer for this and have done since time immemorial.

I don't profess to know about this topic, as I stated at the beginning but I would certainly like to know the truth of the matter.

[kindertransport] humanity and inhumanity

Jams O'Donnell has run a touching piece, in three posts, on the Kinder transport at the start of WW2.

Here is a good place to start.

[systems] making the week possible

Let's assume that you're not head of an organization with its own secretarial staff and that you're in the position most of us are - wondering how to handle the flood of emails, the shopping, cleaning, work commitments, home security and so on.

You could deal with this by using a concierge service but that's expensive and it cuts both ways. If you fail to handle even one detail a couple of times, it gets about that you're less than efficient and there goes your business. The people who stay in this business are good but the good ones are not cheap.

So you might get someone to handle your correspondence and hire a cleaning lady to do the house once a week. A friend in Russia, who set up an introductions business, hired a woman to put in about three hours a day and her main task was to arrange the emails in priority order, with permission to deal herself with much of the pile.

The way I ran my phone was to keep the answer machine on permanently. As there was no need to deal with people through the day and as I had commitments which required my undivided attention, I used no mobile. One friend asked me why I didn't get a number tracker such as he had, which intercepted all calls and filtered them for answering or blocking.

My phone system was part of my overall security system. Firstly, there was a coded metal door to our house downstairs. Then there was a metal door on my landing. Then came my first metal door and the lock was so old that the key had bent into an S shape. Everyone said it was impossible and I once asked a bad boy friend of mine [who could break in anywhere] to try getting through my door.

He concluded that special services could but the average punter couldn't. The wooden second door was not as secure.

Next, I had no domaphone, i.e. no one downstairs could buzz me. I also disconnected my doorbell but made it look like it worked. So there were only two ways through. Either email me or phone and everyone I knew knew that they'd have to speak on the answer machine and then I'd pick it up if I recognized the voice. I had a key in a padded wrapper. I'd then go out to the back balcony and throw it down to them and they'd come upstairs while I undid all the doors from inside.

That would be seen as OTT over here but only slightly excessive over there. No matter, it worked. Many hated this system and I lost a lot of outside business that way but even that was a good filtration system. The people who understood the reasoning were people I felt I could deal with. The rest - well, I was up to my eyeballs in commitments anyway.

We all need some system to cope with the weekly pressures. Wonder what yours is.

[snowfall] is it the alps, is it alaska

Plascassier and the snowcapped hills above Magagnosc/Chateauneuf

... no, it's L'Ombre's Côte d'Azur. Check the pics.

And for snow you'd expect to see - Cherie: