Whenever I say anyone that I get my exercise doing Wii sport and Wii fit I get this cynical look and sarcastic smile. It is the look that says using Wii is not real exercise. I the past I had no proof so I could not defend it. Saying “I get a good work out” was not selling anyone on Wii as a way to exercise. I will be the first to admit I am a “lazy bum” when it comes to exercising. I am not consistent and just never had to do it stay trim. I am slim. I could not prove I was losing weight because I have none to lose. It got tired of the look of disbelief so I stopped saying I exercise with Wii. Still I realize the importance of exercise hence I continued to do Wii.

Okay back to the point of this blog post. I read an article this week titled “Study: Nintendo Wii may provide actual exercise”. It is now safe for me to say I exercise with Wii? Studies will say just about anything to prove a point.

On Sunday the Jamaican Gleaner had an article titled “Reggae album sales plummett“. It gave a somber look at album sales for some of the top reggae artists. The article gave the impression the sales convey success. Actually if we measure success on the figures alone

I read this today and thought how scary this is. This is a new type of crime where you could be sent to jail because of a computer virus or someone framing you using a computer virus. Below is a snippet of the story.

Source: Yahoo tech

Title: Framed for child porn — by a PC virus

Writer: By JORDAN ROBERTSON, AP Technology Writer

Of all the sinister things that Internet viruses do, this might be the worst: They can make you an unsuspecting collector of child pornography.

Heinous pictures and videos can be deposited on computers by viruses — the malicious programs better known for swiping your credit card numbers. In this twist, it’s your reputation that’s stolen.

Pedophiles can exploit virus-infected PCs to remotely store and view their stash without fear they’ll get caught. Pranksters or someone trying to frame you can tap viruses to make it appear that you surf illegal Web sites.

Whatever the motivation, you get child porn on your computer — and might not realize it until police knock at your door.

An Associated Press investigation found cases in which innocent people have been branded as pedophiles after their co-workers or loved ones stumbled upon child porn placed on a PC through a virus. It can cost victims hundreds of thousands of dollars to prove their innocence.

Their situations are complicated by the fact that actual pedophiles often blame viruses — a defense rightfully viewed with skepticism by law enforcement.

“It’s an example of the old `dog ate my homework’ excuse,” says Phil Malone, director of the Cyberlaw Clinic at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. “The problem is, sometimes the dog does eat your homework.”

The AP’s investigation included interviewing people who had been found with child porn on their computers. The AP reviewed court records and spoke to prosecutors, police and computer examiners.

One case involved Michael Fiola, a former investigator with the Massachusetts agency that oversees workers’ compensation.

In 2007, Fiola’s bosses became suspicious after the Internet bill for his state-issued laptop showed that he used 4 1/2 times more data than his colleagues. A technician found child porn in the PC folder that stores images viewed online.

Fiola was fired and charged with possession of child pornography, which carries up to five years in prison. He endured death threats, his car tires were slashed and he was shunned by friends.

Fiola and his wife fought the case, spending $250,000 on legal fees. They liquidated their savings, took a second mortgage and sold their car.

An inspection for his defense revealed the laptop was severely infected. It was programmed to visit as many as 40 child porn sites per minute — an inhuman feat. While Fiola and his wife were out to dinner one night, someone logged on to the computer and porn flowed in for an hour and a half.

Prosecutors performed another test and confirmed the defense findings. The charge was dropped — 11 months after it was filed.

The Fiolas say they have health problems from the stress of the case. They say they’ve talked to dozens of lawyers but can’t get one to sue the state, because of a cap on the amount they can recover.

Read the rest of the story here

One of the challenges we all face as we get older is being stubborn to the new way of thinking. I have friends and family in the music industry from a generation that made and sold records in Jamaica. The one thing they do not seem to get is that no one buys music anymore. Most people download their music somewhere for free (friends PC or Online). They are still convinced they need to produce the old way and sell music CD’s bucking the trend I am seeing. I am not music expert but the trend seems to be giving a way the music to have a “hit” song that eventually will leads to concerts. This eventually leads to more music being sold. The contest is not about who gets a masterfully produced CD out but who can get consumers to notice their songs first. It is who wins the Public Relations and consumer buzz in the age of the Internet.

A good example of this is the reggae tributes to Obama. I heard a few un-released songs that were quite good before Cocoa Tea released his song. The difference is that they were doing all the “technical” old school stuff of “remixing” CD art work, album covers, voiceovers etc.. Cocoa Tea went for new school. The first release sounded raw. It was sent out free download. He got the buzz and I am sure reaped the benefits in concerts across the USA.

The Jamaican Observer had an article this week titled “No ‘Dudus’, no ambassador?”. The premise of the article was that the US government will not appoint an Ambassador to Jamaica until extradition of the reputed Tivoli Gardens don , Christopher “Dundus” Coke. The US has denied this but there seem to be many that think this is the case and think this is “blackmail”. I personally don’t see the big deal in this type of “blackmail”. It is done by countries all over the world. Look at Iran and North Korea. In fact there are some prime examples in Jamaica where past governments have used “leverage” to get either the attention or help from another country. It is also human nature to use what you have to get what you want…

So I am getting my NBA fix when I come across the story of Antoine Walker the former NBA player who played a role in getting my team (Miami Heat) a championship. It is estimated that he earned $60-65 million dollars after tax in his 10 year career. He has blown it all and has creditors knocking at his door. Hello there…can someone explain to me how you can lose that much money in 10 years. Well apparently Mr Walker had a spending habit of someone who thought money grows on trees. I guess no one told him different. See the story on his spending habits here.