HARD CYBER
Following the successful cyberattack (thought to be tied to a criminal group called "Darkside") which forced Colonial Pipeline to shut down 5500 miles of pipeline, Joe Biden has taken forceful action to show computer terrorists that the United States won't stand for this. Rather, it will continue to sit on its well-padded rear end.
Oh sure, the attack caused filling stations to run out of gasoline and plunged the stock market into despair, but Biden's response has been to sign an executive order which will create committees that will eventually compile a playbook of suggestions about possible responses to future such attacks. Such as creating larger committees and thicker playbooks, almost certainly at a cost of $2 trillion.
Were Donald Trump still in the Oval Office, we would likely have seen all of this play out much differently. For starters, the media would have blamed the President personally for the utter failure of cybersecurity measures and then cite the failure as smoking-gun proof of collusion between the Russkis and the White House. Under Biden, the media's response was more measured, largely amounting to a collective "ho-hum, nothing to see here."
We also expect that Trump would have skipped the committee approach and just launched some "beautiful, beautiful Predator drones" which would fire "Hellfire missiles which are, and I've heard this personally from some of our top generals, you'd know their names, the best missiles anywhere," after which, when the clouds of red mist cleared, the computer hackers would look like cans of Spaghetti-Os which exploded violently in a hot car.
Such an action would be a considerable disincentive for those planning future cyberattacks on our nation's infrastructure, although we're sure that any terrorists with a pathological fear of "playbooks" are also reconsidering their career options about now. Or not.
But for now, the Colonial Pipeline crisis has been resolved and gasoline will soon be trickling back to the pumps. And is the crisis over because our laughingly-named intelligence agencies tracked down the miscreants and undid the computer mischief? Nope. It's over because Colonial Pipeline, rather than wait for the Government to act, paid the hackers a $5,000,000 ransom to get the password which would unencrypt the data on their frozen computers.
Which, in fairness, proves that their playbook is working just fine.
From The Cyber-Vault: Joe Byte 'Em
58 comments:
So, is there any sentient being anywhere on this planet (or anywhere in the known universe) who actually thought Gropey Joe would do anything to mitigate this crisis? The only reason he (was told to) put together a committee is because that's what his handlers think should be done in a "crisis". That's how those kind of morons think things get done. "Well, we didn't really DO anything but form a committee, but the crisis is over because the lamestream media isn't reporting on the crisis any more so obviously the committee worked." Oh, how I LOATHE the Demo_Rats!
I'm not happy with this four month trial period.
Can I get my government back, please?
Back in the 70s I trained under Paul Petzoldt, and old time mountaineer who brought Outward Bound to this country after WWII and founded the National Outdoor Leadership School here in Wyoming. He trained the 10th Mountain Division during WWII and was also an undersecretary of State in the 40s. One of the many pieces of advice he imparted that I will never forget was (and I paraphrase here)
"If you want to prevent something from happening form a committee to study the problem"
RIP Paul. An old cowboy who done well.
It's so hard to believe how our leadership has deteriorated to the point of it actually being laughable. What's even more amazing is the continued denial of any actions or inactions being less than great by dementia Joe. Meantime, Kamala simply stands in the background with hands clasped waiting to take over the operation and maybe laugh her way through one crisis after the other...Joe will have used up all the exec orders undoing Trump's accomplishments so that will hamstring her. More than scary.....
Every president has his good points. Joe Biden's can be found directly in front of his IQ.
Hmmmmmm, masks are coming off in defiance of Basement Joe’s wiener-clutching fear and people are starting to make plans for summer, voting audits occurring in questioned states (some showing duplicitous results), and the border is exploding with human exploitation, not to mention President Chauncey Gardiner‘s smoldering hatred of all things MAGA, so what would punish Trump voters the most? I know - cut off gas to the states whose governors have defiantly thumbed their collective noses at our Imperial Government and have followed the Constitution!
Lovely.
I believe our illustrious “government” ordered a shakedown on Colonial. Bonus points: they can still blame those pesky Russians and the media will run with that story; however, their little Scooby-Doo scenario only proves to the world that Joe is Putin’s bitch.
Be confident folks, our "Woke" CIA is on the job!
And this just in: https://legalinsurrection.com/2021/05/michigan-gov-gretchen-whitmer-threatens-shutdown-of-great-lakes-oil-pipeline/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LegalInsurrection+%28Le%C2%B7gal+In%C2%B7sur%C2%B7rec%C2%B7tion%29
Gretchen picks up the torch and summons her dictator powers.
As Scott Adams says, " Don't step in the LEADERSHIP".
Somebody should get Biteme a fiddle. The flames have started. Now he'll have gas to throw on them.
Okay, I admit I am less than confident in information about the "hackers" being foreign actors.
I lean toward thinking it was a current U.S. administration swamp sponsored act, in their continuing attack on free, legal Americans designed to push ahead the leftist agenda of their green new deal. Why just think, there would have been no gasoline shortage or lines if only everyone would have been driving electrical cars and pedaling bicycles.
I think it has a lot in common with the habit formed where I live; when you see a deer cross the highway in front of your vehicle at night, do not look at where that deer is going, look the opposite direction or you most likely WILL hit the deer that crosses right behind it.
When something like this happens look the opposite direction of where the blame is rapidly laid, most likely one will see where the blame really lays. IMO.
Biden's energy secretary Jennifer Granholm blames the virus for rising gas prices:
"Why have gas prices gone up? Could that be because of the virus itself as well? Everything is tied together," she added. "So I just want to say, this administration is totally focused on getting this virus under control, which means the economy will get under control, and then investing in the nation so that we can go big on America."
She also blames the plebes who refuse to buy into electric vehicles for the impact of the Colonial shutdown:
“And, you know, if you drive an electric car, this would not be affecting you, clearly,”
It really inspires confidence to know that this bimbo is one of the many lefty morons who thinks electricity for the Tesla chargers comes from unicorn farts and pixie dust. She is the head of the DOE for God's sake!
My guess is that the "playbook" will be about as effective as the Emergency Broadcast System, i.e. about all it'll be good for is scaring little kids who were peacefully watching "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" after school.
Just another facet of the vast failure which is "education" these days is the utter lack of teaching anybody anything about what it takes to make our historically easy lives possible. Or "infrastructure". When politicians say the word "infrastructure", for most people it at best conjures images of things they see and use every day, like pavement, bridges, and stoplights. (And now "paid leave", "child care", and "caregiving") But these are but such a small part of the infrastructure that makes our daily existence viable. It includes fuel pipelines that can cause total chaos if they're down for a mere week.
At least many of the ignoramuses in America and the Biden Administration have finally discovered the importance of pipelines, which only a few months ago were something awful that needed to be stopped:
President Biden’s energy secretary is facing renewed backlash for canceling the Keystone XL pipeline permit after she admitted this week that using a pipeline is “the best way” to transport fuel.
At a Tuesday press conference, Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm was asked by a reporter about the “feasibility of using rail cars” to transport fuel across the country as the nation faces a gas shortage from a Russian cyber attack.
Granholm also said the Colonial pipeline, which runs from Texas to New York and is similar to the recently canceled Keystone XL pipeline, is the premiere way to pump petroleum into communities.
Oh.
Once again, cancelling stuff is cool until doing so inconveniences Progressives in some meaningful way.
As for Biden's response, that's just what the responsible folk who actually do the real work that makes our lives possible need: Clueless people in Washington who've never had a real job in their lives like Biden telling them how to do their jobs.
And @Stilton, you are so right about how this would have played out in the media had it happened a year earlier. Same goes for the cluster**** going on in Israel.
As for Colonial paying up: As a 40+ year IT professional, I am aghast and furious.
This is the type of crap that makes me uneasy every the morning; the possibility of frantic calls from panicking clients when I turn on my phone in the morning announcing that nothing is working and that they can't do business. Not only has Colonial admitted to their failure in prevention and contingency planning, they've now also justified the attack from the view of criminals and have encouraged future attacks. Thanks, losers!
@Bobo the Hobo, I was going to mention Whitmer's war on pipelines in my post above, but as usual my posts are typically long enough as they are. But it is worthy of mention.
Here you have a governor threatening shut down and/or steal the profits of a legally operating company because she doesn't like them. If that doesn't send shivers down your spine, you have accepted being a "subject" instead of being a "citizen".
@American Cowboy @TrickyRicky, what's the difference between inoperative gas/oil pipelines and an overloaded or inoperative electrical grid?
@American Cowboy @TrickyRicky, what's the difference between inoperative gas/oil pipelines and an overloaded or inoperative electrical grid?
None, that I can see. However the left hasn't figured that out yet.
I'm certainly thankful that this president* doesn't resort to hateful tweets to express himself. If he did, things would probably have turned to shit, worldwide.
The previous President, DJT, was forceful, competent, knowledgeable, and ran this country based on fact. The present, unelected, one is exactly the opposite. Grab your bootstraps and assume the position. It will get worse.
I just hope there's enough diversity in the committee to actually figure out the cause of the issue....
This is Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's finest "Let Them Eat Lithium" moment!
"Were Donald Trump still in the Oval Office". I guarantee he would have already sent 2 aircraft carriers and dozens of support craft to the Mediterranean waters off Gaza Strip to back up our greatest allies in the area who are enduring hundreds of rockets shot at them daily, instead of saying Israel and Iran-backed Hamas should just duke it out like president Houseplant's administration is now saying.
Up front, I will admit I know nothing about pipelines. However, the thought occurred to me from days gone by, "Why rely on computers, electronic switches and valves to do the work men and women did before such inventions where even dreamed of?"
Make the pipelines and their valves,and/or whatever, manually controlled with "switch-men readily available to open or close valves whenever the need arises. Sure it will cost money, but how many billions of dollars were lost, how many businesses lost money, how many consumers were inconvenience when the pipeline flow stopped?
I don't see cyber attacks going the way of the dodo bird anytime soon.
Just received your email detailing how some jerks are screwing with you so naturally, I had to come directly to your site. There was no warning which messes with my brain - I was looking forward to being on Bite Me’s watch list.
Anyway, Stilt, all is well as far as I can see.
I had the same no-problem experience as Bobo the Hobo, above. FWIW, I'm using the Brave browser (Chrome-based but no link to Google) on a Win 10 computer. Don't know if that makes a difference, but possibly.
Tried about two hours ago - and got the red screen. Now of course, no problem. Keep annoying the bastards!
It is good to know who hates you but it is more important to be hated by the right people.
Think of that when there are twits who try to shut you down.
Stilt, they fear you and the millions of your loyal fans. Semper fi.
Got the message, the Place is working fine for me. Might I recommend uBlock and Adguard for your browser? I don't use Adblock any more; they can be bribed to allow ads through.
Nothing out of the ordinary for me.
But this site is dangerous. Largely for the mentally, emotionally, and intellectually feeble.
Ref. the warning posted on FB about your site I do not use Google, I use Firefox and duck duck go...........NO Warning comes up from them about this site
No warning here, either. I use Brave and Duck Duck Go. Don't google anything.
I did get a kick out of your email.
.
NSF
Haven't seen any warnings. I use Brave and the Ducks as well. We have your back Stilt. They won't get rid of us that easily.
Well, I didn't get the warning on your site, but it's been sitting open in my tabs (SO. MANY. TABS) to be read. Though you may have fixed it by now. Just haven't had time to read it since I've been working some (shhhh) this week. And suffering from cold/flu/allergies/weather front moving in and feeling truly miserable. Massive doses of aspirin and hoping it goes away soon as I'm starting to have trouble breathing and don't need a trip to the ER for a treatment, I take enough of that crap as it is.
I too did not see any 'warning'. But I see it as a badge of honor: your comments and those of others must really annoy someparty, basement-dwelling, unemployable, 'I want my free stuff' waste of reproductive effort. That or either the DNC.
The name of the game is to hire more bureaucrats. Bureaucrats belong to government unions who contribute big time to the reelection of Democratic politicians. The politicians spin all these fairy tales about all the wonderful things they are going to do for us. What they do is hire more bureaucrats.
It doesn't matter that they fail miserably. Government is the only"business" that grows by failing. Education is bad. We create a Department of Education which employs hundreds of thousands of bureaucrats who tell us we need to spend more. We're spending more on education than any country in the world and getting Third World results.
Take heart, Stilt! you are in good company--
http://voxday.blogspot.com/2021/05/google-appears-to-be-screwing-around.html
Any news about the Google censorship business? It looks as if you raised holy hell and they took down the warning. That about right?
Saturday AM and no problem; no warning; but I don't like the trend. Let us know when you acquire targeting data.
No problem using Firefox browser.
i was warned today that your site contains "DANGEROUS " materials and they will move me to SAFETY "....LoL!!
Stilt, congratulations on annoying the facsist weenies!
I use Brave and no issues.
Blessings from KC to you in Texas.
No warning now. Of course you are on their radar. You humiliate the socialist idiots for being the fools they are. This is a Google owned server. The socialist scum will persist until either: A. You move to another server or B. They win (which won't happen.) Just keep us posted on the new url.
I hit the detail button as you recommended and nothing happened Instead, I put your website into my browser and was allowed in.
No warning here either this morning.
It is a good thing when we hit a nerve, IMO.
When we hit, we hit hard, and keep on hitting them.
I was taught at an early age that one NEVER fights to be fair, you fight to WIN!
This is a battle that we patriotic Americans MUST win, as did other patriots through the years, or we will lose our country as we knew it.
I remember a line from a book I read decades ago, "There is nothing stronger than a man (person)who is in the right, and keeps on coming."
I opened up your website, but there was no disclaimer. Everything appeared as usual. i have a Google address which I rarely use. I use Firefox exclusively, unless prompted to use Google. Maybe at your request it has been taken down. Looks like the left wing Looney Toon Society just can't handle it. Keep up the great work.
Apparently, Google's censors, thought police and fact-checkers will believe anything. But, I'm happy to report, on Saturday(5-15-2021) afternoon I was able to access Stilton's Place without the "Danger Will Robinson" box popping up. Thanks to my fellow "cheeseheads" here for following up and setting setting Google straight(if that is, indeed, what happened).
@Readers- It seems that our own cyber-attack has been successfully thwarted, with no ransom paid and no "playbook committees" being formed at taxpayer expense. The big red warning page (seemingly originated by Google for its Chrome browser, but picked up by many other browsers) has been lifted as mysteriously as it was initially deployed. So everything is more or less back to normal and no further action is needed other than a little extra recreational liquor. Sheesh - I'm getting too old for this crap. (grin)
Was it Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm who warned that if we all drove electric-powered cars, we would not have gasoline shortages? Is she implying that I should sell my '38 Chevy Corvette-powered coupe, or keep it and exchange it's fire-breathing capabilities with one of Elon's contraptions?
Where does she think electricity comes from? The phases of the moon?
@ Alfonso Bedoya- No, they won't make us give up those classics. Just like they are doing with firearms and ammunition they will just make it so cost prohibitive to operate them that we will have no choice other than just parking them and looking at them slowly rust away. :-( I still try to take out my graduation car, a 1966 Dodge Charger with only 104,000 original miles. It doesn't run worth a damn on what they sell as gasoline these days though. Unfortunately we cannot store gasoline for extended amounts of time even with additives, like we can ammunition.
I dun'no about Busty's taking offense. Polka dots can be sort of deceptive; but on her they're not very concealing.
Or maybe they want you think that?? Maybe it was a test run for...something?
@Alfonso Bedoya I ,ay be wrong here, but a '38 Chevy Corvette? Were they around then? Enquiring minds want to know, and I feel too crappy to look it up, lol.
@mamafrog, Alfonso has powered his '38 with an engine from a Corvette. I'll bet an engine swap is something the elitist pigs in government at all levels want to stop, just because someone enjoys doing it.
@justajeepguy Thank you and a face palm here, that kind of thing didn't occur to me (told you I was sick). Makes much more sense now. Do you know what the body is? I'd be willing to bet it runs like a scared kitty cat with the engine. Ooo, I wonder how hard the swap was, I know some can fit right in to other bodies and some it's a serious bit of work. Hubs was a car guy and got me into some of it, though we never tried an engine swap we wanted to. Just never had the right engine or body for it.
@Mamafrog. No...Corvettes appeared IIRC 1953, or maybe a year later. Car is powered by a Corvette LS6 fuel-injected 405hp engine. Nothing is original except the wheels, body, bumpers and dash. I bought the car November, 2019, from the owner whose son was storing it next door with other classic cars, hot rods, etc. The son, who was only 55 years old, died shortly after we moved here, and his absentee father, who owned the house and cars, has since sold the cars and the house.
4-wheel Wilwood power disc brakes, 6-speed Tremec manual transmission with overdrive, rack/pinion power steering, 9" Ford rear end, 2" custom exhaust system, Vintage Air Conditioning. 23 miles/gallon. Newly upholstered seats, doors and trunk. Electrically-driven air vent, and full sound system with remote control. All new tinted glass and new tires.
The builder, who lives 12 miles away, took a year to complete the transformation.
The The 1938 license plate is original, although from the next county. The car appears bone stock and original from the outside, but it is very fast-----far faster than I drive it. Then again, much or most of the population here in Prescott, AZ, consists of elderly retirees, and I try to drive very defensively---especially since the Chevy seems to draw attention from other drivers.
Prescott is a classic-car heaven since there is virtually no sales tax charged when these cars are sold in Arizona. California, where my wife and I lived before moving to Prescott two years ago, levies a sales tax of around 9%---give-or-take---depending on the county of residence. There are several classic/hot rod car clubs in the county here, with some sort of cruise-in or other related classic car event going virtually each week.
Prescott residents honor and appreciate military veterans, and God help any BLM thugs who would dare to deface the few statues in the Courthouse Square downtown. There is an unofficial group of "older" men who carry single-action type western pistols, and who are dressed in the style seen in the late 1800s. Pistols are loaded and holstered, and these guys who call themselves the "Renegades" are local patriots that BLM or Antifa types would be foolish to mess with. The Renegades hang out across from Courthouse Square on the sidewalk that passes in front of bars called "Whiskey Row."
Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson and many others of their era were patrons of the bars on Whiskey Row. As one might imagine, the town is full of history and historic buildings.
https://westernnews.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/photos/2021/05/12/Whiskey_Row_Renegades_at_Fallen_officers_memorial_statue__050821_FIXED_t715.jpg?529764a1de2bdd0f74a9fb4f856b01a9d617b3e9
Thanks @Alfonso! @Justajeepguy explained some of it to me. That's a sweet car and I'm just a little jealous, what a thing to actually be able to purchase aside from the poor guy who passed on, of course. Sounds like a great ride with a massive engine, lol. How did it fit in there, or do you know?
I've been through Prescott, but never stayed there, and had a brother who lived in Tucson for many years.I'm truly glad to hear they have the attitude there that they do and I absolutely love the old guys group. Are there any members who go to the pistol competitions in it? We enjoyed watching those for quite awhile. I never imagined pistols were that functional, grew up on too many westerns maybe?
There is a strong military presence where I live, active and retired. You get good ones and bad ones and many residents work for the military here. I'm just north of Tinker Air Base in Midwest City, a suburb of Oklahoma City. In fact, I was born there, lol.
The LS6 is of the small block variety and it fits perfectly. I don't know if there were any glitches in fitting it in when the car was built. As for the Renegades, I know nothing about their interest in the western pistol competition.
Here's hoping this doesn't happen.
To the tune I'm Just Wild About Harry
Here's something that's real scary.
The big four assholes converge.
China and Russia
Iran---North Korea
Make a deal to merge.
On same day Iran hits Middle East
North Korea attacks the south.
And Putin hits western Ukraine
As CHINA hits Taiwan
Time to say so long.
As Joe and LIBS toke a BONG.
Tune then: My boyfriend's back and you're going to be in trouble.
Tune now: Hammas is back, thanks to them Gaza is rubble.
To tune Kiss Me Once:
Launch them once and launch them twice and launch them once again, Iran makes sure, this SHIT, never ends.
My tweet to CBS Sunday Morning
Wonderful Mother's Day Show Jane Pauley: Let's see, boys who die of alcohol poisoning to be a part of a herd on campus, a woman who feels she should be Gov. of GA or President due to gender and color only and Allison Janney of the show Mom who made addiction and dysfunction fashionable.
Post a Comment