Tuesday, December 20, 2016

The Social Media Nuclear Option

I'm concerned that the rules of engagement for social engineering in elections may be changing under our feet. 

There's an old axiom about congress that says don't watch for changes in the laws, watch for changes in the rules. This principle is the basis for the dramatic naming of the so called 'nuclear option' to allow overriding a filibuster by simple majority.

The governing rule in social media has been political neutrality. The political leanings of most social media users have shifted from the left to the center as the internet population stretched beyond the young and tech savvy. Throughout this shift, social media from Facebook to Reddit have been adamant in their neutrality and deference to free speech. Incidents of alleged censorship even led to minor insurrections on Reddit and attempts to establish new "pure" news aggregate sites (see Voat).

Should we trust that news aggregators and social media are politically neutral?

Censorship is just one form of political influence. In the pre-internet days it might have been a deft weapon, but now that every user has a plethora of side channels for communication, censorship is easier to identify. Mark Zuckerberg is adamant that Facebook is politically neutral and opposed to "fake" content. Validity of news is relatively easy to check - tools like snopes make it straightforward for concerned users to call out blatant falsehoods.

What's harder to identify is content manipulation. Recently a Reddit administrator was shamed and publicly apologized for making effectively untraceable changes to the content of users' comments. News sources reported on Wikileaks' release of Clinton campaign emails while acknowledging that they have no way to determine whether the emails were manipulated.

Still, content manipulation can be combated with tools like digital signatures that fail if the content of a post is manipulated.

The knot in my stomach comes from the mechanisms that govern Facebook's news feed, Twitter's tweet stream, Reddit's front page, and all other corners of social media where users see content filtered and sorted by proprietary algorithms designed to show us the most interesting and most popular content. These mechanisms are secret and hugely influential. From a technical perspective, it would be easy to tweak the algorithm to show five percent more pro-Trump posts or decrease the rank of Bernie Sanders supporters posts.

As demonstrated by Reddit admin /u/spez, such subtle changes can be made with little oversight and zero transparency.  Reddit even notes that their vote counting system is necessarily private to protect against external vote manipulation.

In the land of traditional media, bias in headlines is well understood. Fox News leans right, MSNBC leans left. Their editors curate the stories, and we know what's going on.

In social media, someone or something is curating the stories we read. We don't get to pick between the left and right social media. There's just one Facebook, and we need to realize that Facebook may already be manipulating elections via subtle curation.

I am not claiming that Facebook is manipulating elections. I'm claiming that the capability exists for Facebook to do so in an unchecked and difficult to detect manner. Doing so would be an unprecedented change in the accepted rules and norms of the internet - Facebook's nuclear option.

As long as Facebook's news feed algorithm is proprietary and unverifiable, we need to treat it as potentially malicious.

P.S. The Guardian has a similar op-ed about this topic with additional references.



Sunday, December 4, 2016

The Internet's Next Revolution

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

The problem is trust

I first wrote this in a letter to my brother, but I decided to share it more broadly.  I'll try to describe the problem without devolving into flowery language, but forgive me if I stray from pragmatism a little.

With this past election I've been pondering the problem of trust. The internet (particularly social media) rushed us into an age where everyone simultaneously has a megaphone and headphones. Stories are shared left and right without any clear confirmation.

Case in point is the DAPL. I constantly see chatter back and forth about whether the tribe attended the zoning meetings, whether they were just greedy, whether protesters were funded by train companies, etc. With the plethora of news sites starting up, shutting down, and starting up again, it's hard to tell who's legit.

In a search for a solution, I'm thinking about a few known problems and approaches.

Establishing Trust


In cybersecurity we use a chain of trust. Web sites have certificates issued by a "root" certificate authority (e.g., verisign). My PGP public key is on my Facebook profile, so I can sign my emails appropriately with a key that folks can verify (using Facebook as my root of trust). CNN uses a signed certificate (and the notoriety of the name “CNN”) so I can have a reasonable degree of confidence that when I’m reading a story on CNN.com, it’s actually from CNN and not from someone running a fake cnn.com.
Motivation

As I’ve tried to market my book, I’ve learned that marketing is not as easy as I imagined it to be. It’s really hard to get an idea into people’s heads. Even folks that I’ve been friends with on Facebook for a long time have little to no idea that I wrote a book. Being able to expose an idea to a lot of people is immensely valuable, and I’m just starting to appreciate that. Getting people to do something (e.g., installing a browser plugin to verify the sources of documents they read) is even harder and close to impossible.

Crawling forward


Throughout the election there were tons of organizations (NPR, factcheck.org, etc) vetting claims and accusations. Shortly after the election and news of Facebook spreading false stories, some students came up with a fancy algorithm for verifying articles. Unfortunately none of this seems to have made any difference. Message board are still filled with back-and-forth unverified garbage.


What to do?


I think this situation demands some kind of dramatic shift in how we approach news media and information in general. I think the shift needs to be subtle and cultural. The answer isn’t just to provide a technological solution, it needs to change how non-techy people look at information.

I'm far from a solution, but here are my approaches to this problem:

1. Make digital signing the norm, and make it obvious. People are starting to get used to seeing the little lock icon telling them their browser connection is secure. I want every news article to be signed by its author, and again by its editor. If possible I’d like each fact in the article to be signed and referenced with its source.

2. Push conflicting views on people. Sometimes I’m a little worried that the news I read is so consistently and adamantly anti-Trump. Even NPR is pretty soundly critical. It makes me scared that I’ve unwittingly boxed myself into a liberal echo chamber.

How to do it?


Finally we arrive at the golden ticket to solve this mess. Or rather, where the golden ticket would be if I had one. I’ve done my best to articulate the need, but that’s far from enough. I don’t have a clear idea of the how, but here are some off-the-wall ideas:

Create a new HTML equivalent supporting embedded references and/or citations
Perhaps a "VHTML" (Verifiable Hypertext Markup Language) extension of HTML that allows embedding references and proof of authorship inside text. Browsers could then display non-verified or limited verification text in a style different from verifiable sources.  
Produce a new (Google News style) aggregator that aims to provide conflicting views on everything.
Create a web crawler to construct a “chain of trust” graph for news verification.
Create a “badge” or “widget” that can be installed on a web page (kinda like captcha) that indicates the human author of the content signed off on it and directs to sources.

If you read this far, thanks! I’m curious what you think.
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How to verify this post

Unfortunately this is not nearly as easy as I'd like it to be. 
  • Install gpg tools or an equivalent gpg package.
  • Copy my public key from Facebook to a plain text file called tyler.asc
  • Import my public key
gpg --import tyler.asc
  • Copy the PGP portion of the post to a plain text file. 
  • Verify the signature with GPG:
MacBook-Air:Documents tyler$ gpg --verify testcopied.txt 
gpg: Signature made Sun Dec  4 11:48:37 2016 CST using RSA key ID A30D1C3B
gpg: Good signature from "Tyler Smith (Personal GPG Key) <tylerhesthedude@gmail.com>"

Friday, September 23, 2016

I Dispute AAA's Fuel Octane Findings

NPR recently aired a story about a study from AAA that claimed that premium (high octane) gasoline is unnecessary for most drivers. AAA concluded that high octane gasoline had no effect on gas mileage and that purchasing premium gasoline for a car which did not require it was a waste of money.

I came to the opposite conclusion with my 2009 Mazda6.

My Study

Between 2012 and 2014 I conducted my own study and reached the opposite conclusion: My study found that for my specific car and modestly high gas prices ($2.00 and higher) there is often a price advantage in purchasing premium gasoline.

I tested the mileage performance of my 2009 Mazda Mazda6 using several grades of gasoline. The owner's manual recommends regular gasoline. I conducted the tests by tracking my mileage and the amount of fuel added at each refueling. My driving consisted primarily of commuting to and from work and I did not change driving patterns dramatically.

I observed a 9% improvement in fuel economy when using 89 octane gasoline over 87 octane and 12% improvement using 93 octane over 89 octane.

Depending on the base cost of gasoline, opting for a premium gasoline may make financial sense. The cost difference between levels of gasoline is typically 10 to 15 cents. When the base cost of gasoline is higher than $2.00, a 10 cent increase in the price per gallon is only about 3.3% cost increase.

However, when the cost of gasoline is low or the price difference between octane ratings is high, the gains in fuel economy don't justify the increased cost.

Assuming a 9% improvement in economy and a 20 cent price difference between 87 and 89 octane gasoline, a base cost of $2.00 or higher per gallon justifies an upgrade to 89 octane. 

Why the Difference?

Engines with computer controlled fuel injection are able to precisely vary the amount of fuel used with each cycle of the engine.  The octane rating of a given gasoline does not reflect the amount of energy it contains. However, the computer controlled fuel injection in newer cars is likely a factor.

Hypothesis

Higher octane gasoline is less prone to knocking (exploding at the wrong time). My best guess is that with lower octane gasoline the engine's computer is detecting knocking and is adjusting the engine's performance to compensate. With higher octane gas, the computer detects less knocking and is able to run the engine at a higher level of efficiency. 

With older style engines (such as carburetor fed engines) the engine cannot be adjusted while running in the same fashion, thus there is no benefit from changing octane levels.  

Details

  • 87 Octane
    • Average: 26.92
    • Median: 26.73
    • Standard Deviation: 1.63
    • Samples: 35
  • 89 Octane
    • Average: 29.60
    • Median: 29.83
    • Standard Deviation: 1.96
    • Samples: 18
  • 91 Octane
    • Average: 28.80
    • Median: 28.77
    • Standard Deviation: 1.67
    • Samples: 6
  • 93 Octane
    • Average: 30.20
    • Median: 30.21
    • Standard Deviation: 1.23
    • Samples: 7

Sunday, August 14, 2016

Project: Harry Potter Style Wand and Case

For my Harry-Potter-loving, soon-to-be sister-in-law's birthday, we decided to make a couple of magic wands.

I started with three pieces of 7/8" square walnut, each about 15" long.

That's a Glenlivet 16 year Scotch, if you're curious



I decided to try a couple of styles. I hand carved the first wand using the hatchet, chisel, and knife. The second wand was a bit more complicated. 

Improvisation


I don't own a lathe, but I do own a drill.


I drilled pilot holes in each end of the walnut, then drilled screws into each end. On the left side, I put a hex nut on the screw before driving it into the walnut. I tightened my bench vise on the hex nut, giving me a flexible, low friction rotation point. 

I clamped my drill to the bench at an angle so that the walnut would rotate smoothly. Then I tightened the chuck on the screw at the right end of the walnut. 


This worked surprisingly well. I didn't have a knife rest, so I opted to use a file for most of the work. I started with a rough file and gradually rounded out the piece.


After establishing the basic shape, I switched to a fine file and finalized the shape. Then I used 80, 120, and 320 grit sandpaper to get a smooth finish. 


Finally, I used a water-based protective finish to keep the wands in good condition but not detract from the natural color of the wood.


Enclosure

I wanted to make a case which felt like it could have been pulled from a thousand-year old shelf. I started by ripping 1/8 and 1/4 walnut planks.  

  • Sides: 1/4x2x14"
  • Top: 1/8x2.5x14"
  • Bottom: 1/8x2.5x13.5
  • Ends: 1/8x2x2.5
Using a table saw, I cut groves in the sides to accommodate the top, bottom, and ends.


I put Titebond wood glue in the grooves, then clamped it together (leaving out the top).


I sanded it with 80 grit sandpaper.

Finally, I used boiled linseed oil to protect it and give it a timeless look.



 Testing


Copyright 2016 Tyler Smith



T.D. Smith's books on Goodreads






















Saturday, August 13, 2016

Project: Raspberry Pi Based Network Attached Storage



Objectives

My goal in this project was to establish low power, low maintenance, and low cost redundant storage. I was willing to compromise on speed in order to keep costs low. 

Components

I used a pair of 1-terabyte external hard drives connected by USB with external power. These were connected to a Raspberry Pi B+.

Software

I used Rasbian Linux on the Raspberry Pi with mdadm for RAID.

Security

For external access I have SSH access forwarded to the NAS. However, access is by SSH key only

Results

Performance 

Performance is pretty poor - I get about 3.5 MB/second when reading and writing data. Large file transfers take quite a while (12+ hours).

Cost

The whole setup cost about $165:

Power Consumption

Under load this setup uses about 12 watts. Not bad! That's about 105 kilowatt hours per year, or about $7 per year. 

Conclusion

This project met my objectives for low cost, high availability, redundant storage. It's slow, but it works just fine for seldom-accessed photos and videos and hosting git repositories.



Technical Details: Tools for Writing, Typesetting, and Digital Publishing

Writing

When writing a draft, I like to use Google Docs.


Benefits

  • It's easy to write from any computer
  • Making comments and suggestions is easy
  • Readers can follow along as I write
  • Version history is tracked

Drawbacks

  • Requires putting my trust in "the cloud"
  • Formatting options are limited, though this has been improving over time
  • Lacks precision version controls (e.g., taking snapshots)

Typesetting

I use LaTex for typesetting. It's open source (read: free) and widely supported.

After I've gotten a draft into reasonably good shape, I'll transfer the contents to one or more LaTex files. Then I create one or more top-level LaTex files which control the formatting of the book. This allows me to use the same content with different formats. 

Benefits

  • Books can be split into multiple files
  • Files can be version controlled, so I can track exactly what I changed over time
  • Page formatting can be precisely controlled
  • Compilers exist for all major platforms. I use TeXShop on Mac. 

Drawbacks


  • LaTex syntax can be frustrating, but thankfully there are lots of helpful posts on the LaTex StackExchange page.
  • Many LaTex options can conflict with one another. For example, the memoir class provides useful defaults for typesetting a printed book, but can conflict with options in other packages. 

Digital Publishing

I use pandoc to generate Markdown (.md) and EPub (.epub) files, and Sigil to edit the .epub files for submission. 



I've found it's easiest to use pandoc to generate a Markdown file, then make any necessary text tweaks in Markdown before generating an EPub file:

pandoc AbigailBesonForEPub.tex -s -o AbigailBeson.md --epub-cover-image=cover/cover1000x1600.jpg

pandoc AbigailBeson.md -s -o AbigailBeson.epub --epub-cover-image=cover/cover1000x1600.jpg

Benefits

  • Pandoc and Sigil are both open source. 

Drawbacks

  • I've found Pandoc's direct LaTex to EPub conversion loses a lot of detail.
  • Pandoc's LaTex to Markdown conversion preserves most details, but can't handle some LaTex options. For example, I used the rlap option to avoid line wrapping (see below) and discovered pandoc simply deleted the affected lines.
\begin{vplace}[0.3]\begin{verse}From gray skies poured a \rlap{crushing flood} \\Through vengeance torn a \rlap{bond of blood} \\Strength alone won't stem the tide \\Yet peace was glimpsed, hold fast; abide \\\end{verse}\end{vplace}
Resulted in:
From gray skies poured a
Through vengeance torn a
Strength alone won't stem the tide
Yet peace was glimpsed, hold fast; abide
This type of error forced me to manually edit the Markdown file before proceeding to EPub editing.

Sigil is great for editing details like the table of contents. However, I've found that if I try to edit the EPub cover file in Sigil it gets lost entirely and iBooks can't find it.



Version Control

I used git for version control. I initially used a private github repository, but later switched to hosting my own on my Raspberry Pi based NAS. Similar to LaTex, git is powerful but initially daunting to learn.

Copyright 2016 Tyler Smith


T.D. Smith's books on Goodreads 

Sunday, August 7, 2016

Homeschool Curriculum Guide to the Siege of Abigail Beson

Update! The expanded guide including The Subversion of Abigail Beson and The Forging of Abigail Beson is here.

The Siege of Abigail Beson is historical fiction aimed at young adults. The story takes place in rural Virginia the summer of 1865 and includes a variety of historical references which provide anchors for discussion and further exploration into the history of the American Civil War. This page provides a guide for instructors using the book as part of their curriculum.


Part One: The Siege of Abigail Beson

Vocabulary Words

  • Avarice (Page 3)
  • Antagonist (Page 23)
  • Robber Barron (Page 33)
  • Trepidation (Page 40)

Points for Further Exploration

  • Conclusion of the American Civil War (Page 1)
  • Quantrill's Raiders (Page 9)
  • Mexican-American War (Page 12)
  • Civil War era weaponry (Page 32)
  • Living conditions and mortality rates in army camps during the American Civil War (Page 50)

Suggested Activities

Decode the hidden messages in these maps (click for large view):



Review Questions with Suggested Answers (Warning: Spoilers)

1. Who is the protagonist in this story? How do you know? 
A. The protagonist is Abby Beson. The story is told from her perspective and focuses on events as they happen to her. 

2. Who is the antagonist in this story? How do you know? Who did you think was the antagonist?
A. Vera is the antagonist. At the end of the story we discover that she has been stealing from banks and she threatens the family in order to make her escape. At the beginning of the story I thought the "bandits" in the woods were the antagonists.

3. Why does Vera say people are pursuing her? What do we learn about her story?
A. Vera says that there were rumors her husband had taken gold from a bank and that criminals wanted to steal it. We learn that Vera actually stole the gold and that the militia was pursuing her. 

4. Which part of the Beson house would you want to live in? Why?
A. Student should identify the eastern (used) and western (unused) portions of the house and provide a rationale for one or the other.

5. Why was it difficult for Abby's family to call for help? How would the story have been different if it happened today?
A. In the 1860s telephones had not yet been invented and most families did not have access to a telegraph. A family today would have been able to call for help with a cell phone. 

Part Two: The Excursion of Abigail Beson

Vocabulary Words

  • Cooper (Page 60)
  • Jovial (Page 62)
  • Stoic (Page 63)
  • Cache (Page 110)

Points for Further Exploration

Suggested Activities

Review Questions with Suggested Answers (Warning: Spoilers)

1. Why might mail have been slow to arrive shortly after the end of the American Civil War?
A. The Civil War put a major strain on infrastructure, especially in the Confederate South. Many men were away from their homes and jobs due to fighting.

2. Who is injured in the forest? How is he or she injured?
A. Abby's brother Emery is injured. A tree falls on his leg during a storm. 

3. Abby's brothers Jackson and Benjamin both fought in the war. How does each brother feel about the war and its conclusion?
A. Jackson feels angry that the Confederates lost the war. Benjamin feels indifferent about the war and is happy to see his family. 

4. Who does Abby encounter in the forest? Why is she surprised at who she meets?
A. Abby meets a group of Union soldiers. She is surprised because the soldiers do not know that the war has ended. 

5. Who is Kingsley? Who does Abby think he is when they first meet?
Kingsley is a Union soldier who rode the horse Abby meets in the forest. His name is on the horse's saddle, so Abby initially thinks the horse's name is Kingsley. 


Recommended Non-Fiction Reading

  • Reflections on the Civil War by Bruce Catton

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Goodnight Server Room (New Project)

Update: The KickStarter for this project is live now!

gsr.smithdtyler.com




I read lots of books to my kids. We have plenty of books about trucks, trains, airplanes, and tools. We have no books about computers, software, or any of the work I do when I'm not at home playing with them.

I searched on Amazon and couldn't find any board books about computers which were aimed at eighteen to thirty-six month olds.

I aim to remedy this problem. The following is a first draft, illustration ideas to follow.

Goodnight Server Room

Stay bright, stay bright, green status light
Blinking, thinking through the night
Web apps, backups, plans, and maps
In the server room the packets zoom


Voltage going up and down
Is how the data gets around
It rides on wires far and wide
Ethernet’s got eight inside


The network switch’s a wild place
It handles routes run like a race
The IP field is how to know
Where each packet needs to go


Need a door from inner to outer?
Look no further than the router
From subnet one to subnet two
The router knows what should go through


A server rack looks like a stack
Cold air goes in, hot out the back
It holds computers way up high
Kept on by a power supply


So many computers, what to do?
The Domain Name Service knows what to do
Assigning names is crucial fun
Most centers have two, not one


A driver’s code that lets us see
Data sent to you and me
Send a stream or read a block
The driver is what lets us talk


A hard drive spins very fast
Put data here to make it last
If all you need is short term speed
R-A-M is what you need!


Each cache is like a secret stash
When crunching numbers in a hash
Stuck right on the C-P-Us
It’s always the first spot to use


The processor is like a brain
It thinks and thinks and won’t complain
No problem is too big or small
The processor solves one and all


Server room where packets zoom
Your admin team will be back soon
Keep working hard to send each byte
Keep blinking bright all through the night

Copyright 2016 Tyler Smith



T.D. Smith's books on Goodreads

Monday, July 18, 2016

Introducing Puppy Hotbox

I invented this game to liven up backyard fetch with our dog. The premise is pretty simple:

  1. Stand about twenty feet from a tree with a dog and a tennis ball
  2. Throw the tennis ball at the tree
  3. Whoever retrieves the ball first gets a point
  4. Whoever gets ten points first wins



I just lost 10-8 to this smug puppy.




Don't forget to check out my book: The Siege of Abigail Beson! Available now on Amazon, Amazon Kindle, and createspace!

Monday, June 20, 2016

If I don't know you, do not touch my child

This keeps happening to me:



As a relatively new parent, I'm stunned that this is a topic which needs clarification. It's pretty simple:




Sunday, May 29, 2016

Feminism and Abigail Beson


I chose a female protagonist for the Abigail Beson series for several reasons. First, I wanted to challenge myself to write from the perspective of a character who is substantially different from me. Second, I want my sons to encounter a female character who is strong, clever, and confident. Third, the world has far too many stories about teenage girls that devolve into love triangles.

Abigail Beson will be involved in exactly zero love triangles.  

Writing Challenge

I daydream quite a bit. I frequently imagine scenarios which involve me saving a busload of people from terrorists, safely landing a 747, or getting elected president. It's easy for me to imagine myself doing awesome things. It's easy because I am me - the easiest person in the world with whom for me to empathize.

Empathizing with people who aren't me is an important skill. I've written about it in the past. It requires practice and effort. Writing from a female perspective is a strategic choice aimed at helping me better empathize with the women in my life.

Writing for my Sons

I'm waging a multi-pronged campaign to raise feminist boys. 
  • I talk up my wife's intelligence, strength, and expertise as often as possible. This means making sure they know "mommy is better at navigating, let's get her help figuring out where to go." or "mommy is a really good painter, you should ask her for help."
  • I intentionally purchase toys which cast women in a positive, non-stereotypical light (e.g., this doctor Duplo set).
  • I will guide their media consumption to focus on things which present women as strong, important, and non-stereotypical. I am writing Abigail Beson with the intent of it falling into this category.

Love Triangles



I truly enjoy watching The Gilmore Girls. The consistent wit, political awareness, and compelling and hilarious characters make it an excellent show. However, it frustrates me that the writers continually fall back on the love triangle trope. Each time they invoke it they gain a plot arc, but their characters lose integrity and definition.

I have a similar frustration with the Hunger Games series. Katniss is awesome in books one and two, but by book three she's so caught up in the love triangle that she barely even seems like herself.

Abigail Beson will encounter romance, but I will not lean on the love-triangle crutch.

Feedback

As a man, I am not the ideal judge of whether I've successfully written a feminist story. Thankfully, I have a wife, mother in law, great aunt, and (female) editor who have all helped shape this story. I also (hopefully) have you!


Don't forget to check out my book: The Siege of Abigail Beson! Available now on AmazonAmazon Kindle, and createspace!

Saturday, May 21, 2016

The Political Climate of the Abigail Beson Series

I recently started writing book two of the Abigail Beson series (tentatively titled The Excursion of Abigail Beson), and I thought I'd take time to share some thoughts and background on the circumstances surrounding the family.

For the men and women in the thick of the action, the American Civil War was a war of peculiar situations. While combative bitterness ran hot and thick in the leaders and zealots, it was frequently forgotten by the men carrying the guns. Soldiers had to choose between loyalty to their country and loyalty to their state - not an easy choice in a time when television and the internet were non-existent and the idea of 'Washington DC' likely meant very little to a poor farmer.

The American Civil War was one of just a few where both sides spoke the same language. At the Battle of Fredericksburg, Union and Confederate soldiers yelled insults back and forth at each other, eventually getting so angry that they threw down their guns, called a truce, and had a good old fashioned fist fight (Catton, 45). On another occasion Union soldiers amicably traded their coffee for Confederate tobacco. This isn't to say the war wasn't bloody - it certainly was bloody. My point is simply that it was a war between people who deeply understood one another.

This puts the Beson family in both a geographical and cultural conundrum. They lived in Virginia, about 60 miles Southwest of Richmond (the Confederate Capital). As the United States fractured, the state of Virginia fractured as well (eventually becoming Virginia and West Virginia). The Beson family, a non-slaveholding family of modest means, had no particular stake in the outcome of the war. The Besons who fought in the war were patriots forced to choose between their country and their state, concerned primarily with ensuring the safety and wellbeing of their family.

It is in the context of this conundrum that the next story unfolds, as Abigail sets out to find her enlisted older brothers after the end of the war.

References

Catton, Bruce, and John Leekley. Reflections on the Civil War. New York: Berkley, 1982. Print.


Don't forget to check out my book: The Siege of Abigail Beson! Available now on AmazonAmazon Kindle, and createspace!

The Political Climate of the Abigail Beson Series

I recently started writing book two of the Abigail Beson series (tentatively titled The Excursion of Abigail Beson), and I thought I'd take time to share some thoughts and background on the circumstances surrounding the family.

For the men and women in the thick of the action, the American Civil War was a war of peculiar situations. While combative bitterness ran hot and thick in the leaders and zealots, it was frequently forgotten by the men carrying the guns. Soldiers had to choose between loyalty to their country and loyalty to their state - not an easy choice in a time when television and the internet were non-existent and the idea of 'Washington DC' likely meant very little to a poor farmer.

The American Civil War was one of just a few where both sides spoke the same language. At the Battle of Fredericksburg, Union and Confederate soldiers yelled insults back and forth at each other, eventually getting so angry that they threw down their guns, called a truce, and had a good old fashioned fist fight (Catton, 45). On another occasion Union soldiers amicably traded their coffee for Confederate tobacco. This isn't to say the war wasn't bloody - it certainly was bloody. My point is simply that it was a war between people who deeply understood one another.

This puts the Beson family in both a geographical and cultural conundrum. They lived in Virginia, about 60 miles Southwest of Richmond (the Confederate Capital). As the United States fractured, the state of Virginia fractured as well (eventually becoming Virginia and West Virginia). The Beson family, a non-slaveholding family of modest means, had no particular stake in the outcome of the war. The Besons who fought in the war were patriots forced to choose between their country and their state, concerned primarily with ensuring the safety and wellbeing of their family.

It is in the context of this conundrum that the next story unfolds, as Abigail sets out to find her enlisted older brothers after the end of the war.

References

Catton, Bruce, and John Leekley. Reflections on the Civil War. New York: Berkley, 1982. Print.


Don't forget to check out my book: The Siege of Abigail Beson! Available now on AmazonAmazon Kindle, and createspace!

Monday, May 16, 2016

Four Quotes from James Bond's Q Translated into Car Buying Advice

Over the weekend my wife and I spent some time shopping for a minivan. Here are some thoughts on the experience, tied into thoughts from Q.


Never let them see you Bleed

The World is Not Enough

When you talk to a salesperson, they'll often ask what you're willing to spend - usually in terms of a monthly payment. Before you go into the conversation, figure out what you could comfortably afford, then cut it by 25%. In our case, that meant saying we're willing to spend $300 a month when we were actually targeting $400 per month.

For ten minutes or so the salespeople wrangled the numbers for us, trying to pitch various loan lengths or downpayment options. We didn't budge from our target number.

I want you to take great care of this equipment. There are one or two rather special accessories... 

The Spy Who Loved Me

Salespeople like to talk in terms of a 'monthly payment' because it makes large expenses seem small. When you're looking at a $15,000 purchase, adding a $400 trailer hitch won't make a big dent in the monthly payment - it might just be an additional $7. 

Dealerships make a TON of money this way. They know you're in a buying mood, and they want to throw as much stuff at you as possible. Don't let yourself get stuck thinking "I'm already spending a lot, what's a little more?" Look into every expense and decide whether it's really necessary.

Always have an Escape Plan

The World is Not Enough

Salespeople hate to see you walk out the door.  After we refused to budge from our target, we began preparing to leave. As we said "thanks for your time", the salespeople suddenly discovered that they could give us an additional $500 for our trade-in, and could cut $500 from the cost of the van we were considering purchasing. BAM - $1,000 just for threatening to leave.

Try to be a little less than your frivolous self, 007

Thunderball

Buying a car is a hugely expensive commitment. Cars are a horrible investment (we bought a used, low mileage 2012 sedan a couple of years ago and still owe more on it than it's worth).

Car salespeople do their best to make you forget that you are absolutely entitled to leave without spending any money at all. You do not owe them anything, and you especially do not owe them a five-figure commitment. 

Even with the $1,000 cut the dealership took, we decided we still weren't quite ready to pull the trigger on a new vehicle. We walked.

The time you spend is not "wasted" if you don't buy a car. Thinking about buying a car, researching cars, or shopping for a car do not mean you actually have to buy a car.

Quotes Source


Don't forget to check out my book: The Siege of Abigail Beson! Available now on AmazonAmazon Kindle, and createspace!