The pschology of a bum

Last night I walked into a Tim Horton's and a young looking bum decided to open the door for me. At first I felt aggravated by this because it felt as if I was obliged to give him some money. That's one way to look at it. But there is a generous side of me that actually appreciates that this bum is trying to put some effort toward getting some change. That being said, I'm sure he wasn't dumb and that he understood the particular social obligation of compensating someone for an exchanged service. Very interesting.

But as I was using the mens room I was curious as to how this bum would react if I called him out on his little routine. I decided to find out. So on my way out of Timmies, this bum opened the door for me once more. Now all this time I pulled out a twoonie from my pocket and had it in my hand. My thinking was if this bum gives me a good response to my question I'll give him the twoonie. If he acts like a jerk then I won't.

So as I walked through the door, I looked him right in the eye and in a very evil tone said, 'You know I can open a door myself, right?'. He kind of gave me an expression of indiference and looked the other way. Which is actually rather fair. He also avoided making further eye contact with me and looked for his next customer.

But I stood there and made things a bit awkward. Then I walked closer to him and he looked over. Then to my surprise, this bum probably had the best response I think anyone could have in that type of situation while being confronted. He looked at me and held his hand out and said 'respect'.

And that's when I gave him his twoonie.

Hackers

The goal of a hacker is ultimately futile. It's one of a few professions, if you will, that's main ambition is to eradicate itself. What is so counter intelligent about being a hacker is that if a hacker eventually succeeds in spreading a virus, or shutting down the entire Internet or disabling every single persons computer, well then the hacker is left with nothing to do. If they succeed then they've made themselves nonexistent.

And the one thing a hacker can never defeat is the human element. Because if us humans become so fed up with computers, and lose all of our trust with online banking, the internet, etc. well then the power is really with us to just stop using these mediums. Sure it sounds extreme, but prior to the invention of the PC it's how generations upon generations of civilizations lived.

So then what would be next for a hacker to do? Probably another form of juvenile crime.

Do Not Call Lists

I think I've been suckered into this trap but if you ever put your name on a Do Not Call List, you're actually accomplishing the exact opposite of what you intend. For one, you're putting yourself on a list to get yourself off a list which contradicts itself;) And two, the Do Not Call List that recently became popular here was a Canadian based and Canadian regulated list. That means only companies in Canada were legally not allowed to call people on this list. Problem is, this list got spread to other countries like the US and India. And as you and I well know, there are numerous call centers in the US and in India. So once these countries got a hold of these lists, and without hardly any effort and without breaking any law, they started to call.

And that's why when I'm at home during an evening, and my phone rings like a long distance call, I get the pleasure of deciding whether I want to switch phone services, buy home insurance, and so on.

So next time you sign up for a Do Not Call list, think again.