Judgment (No.6) “Horizon Issues”

https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2019/3408.html

 3.                  I have therefore included technical detail about the Horizon system, its operation, and some aspects of the technical evidence, in a Technical Appendix to this judgment. The contents of that appendix should not be seen as being of subordinate effect to the contents of the judgment itself; this is done simply for the convenience of readers. It is also intended that readers who do need to immerse themselves in technical matters to a very fine level of detail may not find it necessary to study the appendix, and reading the judgment alone may be sufficient. Notwithstanding that approach, however, this judgment too is extremely long. This is due to the complexity of the Horizon system, which even for computer systems is extraordinarily complicated for the reasons explained below; the period of time over which the complaints range (which starts with the introduction of Horizon in 2000 and runs to date); and due to the way that the litigation has unfolded. There are some matters in this judgment that go to issues affecting the group litigation going forwards, such as disclosure, which have increased its length. It is also the case that this litigation is being very strongly contested on both sides. I have endeavoured to provide a reasonable level of detail to explain my findings on the Horizon Issues to assist both sides as much as possible. Finally, the only findings that are made in this judgment are those necessary to come to conclusions on the Horizon Issues. All other matters in all the claims of the claimants and the counterclaims by the Post Office remain for decision in later judgments.

The Accidental Speaker

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/04/mike-johnson-speaker-ukraine-trump/678108/

To the extent that people close to Trump find themselves wondering about Johnson, it is often with a kind of detached fascination. Here was a man who’d named his dog Justice; whose favorite song is the hymn “Be Thou My Vision”; who embroiders even casual conversations with quotes from Reagan, Washington, John Adams. No booze, no foul language; a marriage voluntarily stripped of the easier means of leaving it. The second Trump adviser told me he always thought Johnson’s earnest demeanor was just a show—“like, he’s not really like this; no one can be like this.” Cue this person’s surprise, then, at a small private dinner following a recent Trump fundraiser in Washington, where Johnson was among guests such as Senators Tom Cotton, J. D. Vance, and Steve Daines, as well as a number of media personalities and former Trump administration officials. “Everyone’s guard is down because it’s a room full of people that everybody trusts”—which is to say there was booze, foul language—“and the man is still exactly the same.”

Journey into the Whirlwind

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_into_the_Whirlwind

The two-part book is a highly detailed first-hand account of her life and imprisonment in the Soviet Union during the rule of Joseph Stalin in the 1930s. Although Ginzburg sought to have the manuscript published in the Soviet Union, she was turned down. The manuscript was smuggled out of the country and later sold in many different languages. The first volume was published in 1967 and the second volume was published in 1979 two years after Ginzburg's death. A copy would not be published by a Russian publisher until 1990.

In the book, Ginzburg discusses a variety of her experiences. Throughout her experiences with the Gulag, Ginzburg was able to form friendships, cultivate a love of poetry and reunite with her son Vasily Aksyonov, after her release.

Israel has yet to provide evidence of Unrwa staff terrorist links, Colonna report says

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/22/israel-unrwa-staff-terrorist-links-yet-to-provide-evidence-colonna-report

Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of its claims that employees of the UN relief agency Unrwa are members of terrorist organisations, an independent review led by the former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna has said.

The Colonna report, which was commissioned by the UN in the wake of Israeli allegations, found that Unrwa had regularly supplied Israel with lists of its employees for vetting, and that “the Israeli government has not informed Unrwa of any concerns relating to any Unrwa staff based on these staff lists since 2011”.

The Colonna review, an assessment of Unrwa neutrality which was drafted with the help of three Nordic research institutes and is due to be published later on Monday, makes clear that Israel has yet to substantiate any of its broader claims about the involvement of Unrwa staff in Hamas or Islamic Jihad.

It notes that in March “Israel made public claims that a significant number of Unrwa employees are members of terrorist organisations”.

“However, Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of this,” the report says.

Election Countdown, 198 Days to Go: A Civic Example to Follow.

https://fallows.substack.com/p/election-countdown-198-days-to-go

Also among his problems was a media-herd obsession similar to what befell Howard Dean. Through his career, Graham had always carried little notebooks with him. He would frequently take them out to compose precise handwritten records of every single thing that was occurring. What he had for lunch, what someone told him, what he told other people he would do.1 By the time he ran for president, Graham had more than 4,000 of these small, neat books, which he’d kept in careful order.

In much press coverage from that era, the notebooks became shorthand for the “wacky” factor about Bob Graham. A sample 2003 article in the Washington Post will give you the idea (below2). For the political press his wackiness and “eccentricity” became the counterpart to Dean’s "scream,” and Hillary Clinton’s emails. They became the Graham meme, as we’d put it today. What a weirdo!

How to Run a CIA Base in Afghanistan

https://www.statecraft.pub/p/how-to-run-a-cia-base-in-afghanistan

This is a point of frustration at times between CIA officers on the ground and those in the policy establishment in D.C., who maybe have studied a country at the graduate and PhD level, worked on a campaign, and worked in a think tank, but have never been “on the ground” for any meaningful period of time. There wasn’t much more frustrating than a call with someone on the National Security Council (NSC) who had jumped from campaign to think tank and back, who believed they were the foremost expert on a topic. 

CIA does not make policy, it only reports the facts on the ground and makes assessments. But a number of times in my career, it was a real challenge to watch people in D.C. get things so wrong and not be able to do anything about it. 

We are facing a dearth of people who truly have knowledge on topics nowadays, because we're surging people to different areas. We're trying to cross-pollinate and that's to our detriment most of the time. 

The biggest challenge, however, is mediocrity in bureaucracy.

Seed & Feed Marching Abominable marks 50 years of brass destruction

https://www.ajc.com/things-to-do/seed-feed-marching-abominable-marks-50-years-of-brass-destruction/Y2SYXJKG5VCUBDXACEXMADLFZY/

The ritual death of Atlanta’s most notorious street band is one of the oldest “bits” employed by this boisterous ensemble. While they’ve expired in the middle of hundreds of performances, the band, in reality, seems unkillable. This year the motley ensemble celebrates its 50th anniversary.[...]

Why has this band survived? A constantly refreshed set-list helps, as does a very relaxed membership policy, a 100% volunteer ethos, the pleasure of the music and the entertainment value of bringing a thunderous moment into someone’s conventional day.

“In part it’s about friendship and being creative,” said Slack. “I tell people we’re very serious about being silly. It brings us joy, and it’s what we try to do for our audiences too.”

When DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM goes terribly wrong

https://www.reddit.com/r/TalesFromRetail/comments/59i985/when_do_you_know_who_i_am_goes_terribly_wrong/

Manager: Yesterday, did you have a kid come in asking to purchase a game that he preordered?

Me: Sure did, he was underage so I didn't sell it to him.

Then I go over the conversation with my boss.

Manager: I know you followed policy, but that kid's father is a well respected businessman in the area. The boy's father called my boss's boss, which in turn called me. I'm sorry, I have to let you go.

Me: ARE YOU SERIOUS? For following company policy?

Manager: Yeah, it sucks, but the father is influential in town and he suggested we let you go, and here I am. But you get two weeks severance. Don't worry about your shift today, I'm covering for you. I need your keys and your badge.

Just like that I was unemployed. All because I followed corporate policy.

I never really noticed casual racism until I hired a black man as a waiter at my restaurant.

https://www.reddit.com/r/TalesFromYourServer/comments/b4rche/i_never_really_noticed_casual_racism_until_i/

Now there are issues such as a meal item being wrong, but those types of errors are almost evenly distributed across all staff. But these complaints about standing around, meandering, are always directed towards him, and when I check on the issue he’s always doing something job related. Hell the guy has about a 100% record for coming in when called in or asked to stay late. He has a great work ethic.

But Jesus fucking Christ it’s interesting and very sad to see some of the shit I’m sure many African Americans have to put up with.

The Cloud Under the Sea

https://www.theverge.com/c/24070570/internet-cables-undersea-deep-repair-ships

If, hypothetically, all these cables were to simultaneously break, modern civilization would cease to function. The financial system would immediately freeze. Currency trading would stop; stock exchanges would close. Banks and governments would be unable to move funds between countries because the Swift and US interbank systems both rely on submarine cables to settle over $10 trillion in transactions each day. [...] 

Corporations would lose the ability to coordinate overseas manufacturing and logistics. Seemingly local institutions would be paralyzed as outsourced accounting, personnel, and customer service departments went dark. Governments, which rely on the same cables as everyone else for the vast majority of their communications, would be largely cut off from their overseas outposts and each other. Satellites would not be able to pick up even half a percent of the traffic. [...]

Fortunately, there is enough redundancy in the world’s cables to make it nearly impossible for a well-connected country to be cut off, but cable breaks do happen. On average, they happen every other day, about 200 times a year. The reason websites continue to load, bank transfers go through, and civilization persists is because of the thousand or so people living aboard 20-some ships stationed around the world, who race to fix each cable as soon as it breaks.

Putin's People by Catherine Belton review – a groundbreaking study that follows the money

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/06/putins-people-by-catherine-belton-review-a-groundbreaking-study-that-follows-the-money

A groundbreaking and meticulously researched anatomy of the Putin regime, Belton’s book shines a light on the pernicious threats Russian money and influence now pose to the west. Deepening social inequality and the rise of populist movements in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis have “left the west wide open to Russia’s aggressive new tactics of fuelling the far right and the far left”. Kremlin largesse has funded political parties across the continent, from the National Front in France to Jobbik in Hungary and the Five Star movement in Italy, which are united in their hostility to both the EU and Nato. The Kremlin’s “black cash”, former Kremlin insider Sergei Pugachev laments, “is like a dirty atomic bomb. In some ways it’s there, in some ways it’s not. Nowadays it’s much harder to trace.” Putin’s People lays bare the scale of the challenge if the west is to decontaminate its politics.