So I have had this hosting provider since 2005 and they have been bought out a couple times.  Some of the pluses though include the fact my email is hosted in Exchange, unlimited disk space, and supposed unlimited bandwidth (found that today).  I have never had any issues at all requiring extensive customer support until this past week.

Starting last week Windows Live Writer stopped posting correctly to my blog.  It had happened intermittently previously and I figured it was another glitch.  After the issue didn’t clear in 24 hours to the support console I went.

Date	Type
09/15/2011 12:10 AM EDT	Ticket Created
09/15/2011 12:10 AM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Subject:	Problems with libXML2
Customer Quote:	Earlier this year I started using XMLRPC to post content to my blog. Start in July I had incidents where posts would have the tags brackets(<>) stripped off. I ignored it figuring it was a glitch when it started working a couple days later.  Starting about the middle of last week though this issue has become permanent. While I was normally easily able to work around it, the work around fails when I am posting images.  Have there been any changes to the server configuration recently?  I know it was not caused by a site configuration change because 3 other sites all exhibit the same behavior that are not used as frequently.  Currently this is still just in the annoyance category, but as I start needing to put more pictures in content its’ going to increase on my ladder.  All assistance I could find online pointed to server configuration with PHP version and libXML version issues.  Thank you,  TMM
09/15/2011 4:00 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/15/2011 7:53 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/15/2011 8:51 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/15/2011 9:50 AM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM
Subject:	[P08757884000000000] Problems with libXML2
Comment:	Hello,  Thank you for contacting Support.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. In order to further investigate on your issue, please get back to us with the following information:  1) Exact steps to duplicate your issue.  2) URL of the page.  3) WordPress username and password.  Thank you!  Sincerely,  Kaila Pearson  Customer Support
09/15/2011 9:19 PM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Customer Quote:	Drupal User Info:  Username: TestUser  Password: URL: http://www.the-minuteman.org Full URL varies based on post title, it happens when content is published or sent as a draft to the server. Reproduction steps below show how to make it appear on the front page.  Reproduction steps:  1) Configure Windows Live Writer for an “Other services” blog and point to http://www.the-minuteman.org  2) During configuration tell it to identify the blog theme.  3) At this point configuration will hang because the post displayed on the front page website (http://www.the-minuteman.org) is incorrect. For example I get the following:  pThis is a temporary post that was not deleted. Please delete this manually. (1eb91935-d1da-4e9a-85fd-82ce1220f24d – 3bfe001a-32de-4114-a6b4-4005b770f6d7)/p  This should actually be:  <p>This is a temporary post that was not deleted. Please delete this manually. (1eb91935-d1da-4e9a-85fd-82ce1220f24d – 3bfe001a-32de-4114-a6b4-4005b770f6d7)</p>  But the tags were stripped, and the inner text passed through as part of the blog post text.  Alternatively, you can skip the theme detection and attempt to post to the blog through Live Writer. The content within the post will exhibit the same loss of tags.  Draft posts can be open and viewed from this listing:  http://www.the-minuteman.org/admin/content/node  For some reason the tags are being stripped off and every piece of information I have found points to server configuration, not blog software.
09/15/2011 9:30 PM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/15/2011 10:54 PM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM
Subject:	[P08757884000000000] Problems with libXML2
Comment:	Hello,  Thank you for contacting Support.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Could you please get back us with the exact URL where you are trying to login to Drupal admin page, so that we can assist you further.  Please reply to this email with the requested information, so that we can assist you further.  Sincerely,  Riley Malson  Customer Support
09/16/2011 12:26 AM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Customer Quote:	This is not tied to my Drupal web browser interface but the XML-RPC interface that different external programs use to post content.  The symptoms of the failure are visible on my blog. Here is an example post that failed.  http://www.the-minuteman.org/content/2011/September/15/failed-test-post-TMM
09/16/2011 12:27 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/16/2011 12:41 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/16/2011 12:41 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/16/2011 2:31 AM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM (Resolved)
Comment:	Hello,  In order to further investigate, could you please get back to us with the Drupal admin login details.  If you have any further questions, please update the Support Console.  Sincerely,  Mae Silva  Technical Specialist
09/16/2011 8:24 PM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Customer Quote:	Here is the primary user account information:  Username: TMM  Password:
09/16/2011 8:44 PM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/16/2011 9:49 PM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM (Resolved)
Comment:	Hello,  Thank you for your reply.  I have checked there is no error logs to investigate further on this issue. Since Drupal is the third party application I suggest you to contact the vendor of the application.  If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to reply through Support Console. We are available 24×7.  Sincerely,  Neville Kodner  Technical Specialist
09/17/2011 1:26 AM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Customer Quote:	I have investigated the drupal forums regarding this issue and I have gone one step further and mirrored my site on to a local development server I use for updates.  The mirrored version of my site, a fresh copy of files and snapshot of the database, placed within my test environment works as it should. I fail to see how this is my blog software or site configuration when I can turn the problem on and off by placing it on my test server here or uploading it to Powweb.  Not to mention the fact that it was running reliably at the beginning of August and I have not done any changes to configuration other than unrelated module updates. The issue also has seemed to come and go, finally becoming permanent over the past week. I initially ignored it thinking it was a glitch because it would come back later.  All information I have been able to find regarding this type of issue online points again to the web services host, not the drupal software.  My test server is running PHP 5.3.2  Apache 2.2.14  SQL Version 5.1.46  Here is the exact error in the Drupal forums:  http://drupal.org/node/415566  Here is a similar issue in the Drupal forums:  http://drupal.org/node/347298#comment-1209085  http://drupal.org/node/347298#comment-1295684  I’m confused though since you guys are running 5.2.17 and the issues reported were with 5.2.8. However this has turned on and off entirely on it’s own on your servers with my altering absolutely nothing in the configuration or settings within my blog. Meaning something changed in the hosting configuration.  There are no error logs because it is a function erroneously stripping out data that it should not. Drupal gets a result from a function call that it thinks is correct but is in fact wrong.
09/17/2011 1:28 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/17/2011 1:37 AM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM (Resolved)
Comment:	Hello,  Thank you for your reply.  We support PHP version 5.2.17, Apache version 1.3.33 and MySQ version 5.0.45.  If you have any further questions, please update the Support Console.  Sincerely,  Ariel Danson  Technical Specialist
09/17/2011 1:42 AM EDT	TMM contacted PowWeb
Customer Quote:	Has your supported versions changed since June? Something has changed and it doesn’t appear to be by my hand. I created a virgin test site and it is having the same problems.  I have been using Windows Live Writer since January without issue until about the middle of last month.
09/17/2011 1:42 AM EDT	Updated Ticket: Work in Progress
09/17/2011 1:46 AM EDT	PowWeb contacted TMM (Resolved)
Comment:	Hello,  Thank you for getting back to us.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. We have not changed the supported version recently. Please reinstall the application or contact the application provider to fix the issue.  Thank you!  Sincerely,  Aden Nelson  Technical Specialist

So maybe I’ve been spoiled by the company I work for by the fact that we think customer service is a big deal.  Ownership of a problem is a big deal.  Making sure the customers problem is solved is a big deal.  Getting to root cause is a big deal.  Notice how it was marked resolved long before anything was actually solved.  Very quickly they blamed it on third party software without any actual proof.

This company has totally shifted the blame for the problem from them to me. Ignoring the fact that this has happened on two independent Drupal installs who’s configurations haven’t changed.  No single individual took lead to deal with this problem and just bounced it around.  I’m stuck copying and pasting the source code from WLW into the submission form in Drupal.  Any pictures I want to submit become an arm twisting game of getting the URL correct to point to the image if I’m uploading it.

I just checked, I have prepaid 2 years of hosting starting in Nov 2010.  That gives me a year to come up with a new hosting solution and a solid game plane for site and email migration.  I will actually probably move earlier because I pay per month for my Exchange hosting and if I can find it cheaper, that’s money back in my pocket that I haven’t spent yet.

In the past I was more than happy to recommend Powweb to friends but given the first time I really had a serious issue and support utterly face planted.

If anyone has any input on what the problem might be, here’s an example of what happens when I submit through WLW currently.  I have disabled the TestUser account, and regenerated a new site password for myself since they think this issue is resolved they no longer require access.  Keypass makes stuff like this much easier to handle.  I am NOT going to close this ticket until I find a resolution to this problem.  WLW worked without issue from January to the beginning of August.  At which point I had a few flaky issues, but they always came back.  Then last week it died permanently.

I am going to continue posting new content, I won’t be putting many of my own pictures up except through my photo gallery.

So I am all ears on good hosting providers that support PHP, MySQL, and Exchange services.  I’ve got time and if I move early I’ve got some side sites that can live out there that can die around November 2012.  I know I could host myself, my bandwidth out in BFE though isn’t that great and I hate general IT maintenance with a passion.  So fellow bloggers, what would you recommend.

Saturday ended up considerably busier than expected.  Initially I had just planned to help with the ARES exercise, but it ended up they were making a trip up to the Kamiak radio site.  I went along to help since I hadn’t seen the radio site.

That’s the tower with the KABARA Repeater Antennas, as well as the packet system we were up there to work on.  Next to it is that tower is KWSU.

Inside the radio shack was some impressive equipment for the KABARA system, more specifically a pair of duplexers for the 6-meter repeater.

After a quick tour we then got down to why were were there.  Someone was going to have to climb the tower for recon for an upcoming antenna installation.

He wanted proof that he climbed the tower.  I have other pictures while he was at the top, none however provide proof that it was actually him climbing.

It appears the recon was successful, the hardline we were planning on using is currently at the location where we are planning on installing the antenna.  We just need to coordinate with some of the other antennas owners when we go to actually install it.

The antenna is going to be hooked into this.

Which is the packet node on top of Kamiak, the recon was because the owner is planning on adding a 70cm link if I remember correctly.  It was pointed out to me though how wind can be a royal bitch up on the tower.

The wind was light that day, the antenna is either caught in the tower, or permanently deformed from wind and ice loading.  That particular antenna however was no longer in use.

After that we headed back down the hill with one quick stop right after we got out of the trees so I could do this today.

After that K7LL helped me test an mobile amp I have.  It works, but nowhere near as effective as it should be.  It is now sitting on my workbench awaiting disassembly.  An upshot a coworker and fellow ham drove by and I paid him a visit.  I must say his ham shack is by no means a shack, and is actually quite nice.  He actually had a spare 2m/70cm base and it’s now sitting on my desk.  He also has a spare HF rig but it needs some repair work.  Electrolytic capacitors don’t last for ever.

From there I went and picked up a sign for the lodge.  The sign was vandalized and I picked it up to take it home to attempt to clean it.  Attempt one removed some of the paint but next on the list is acetone.  From there I headed over the Moscow to W7UQ to kill some time before going over to a friends house for dinner and helping him with some homework.

While sitting at W7UQ one of the members showed up and I then preceded to spend the next 2 hours discussing antenna design, radiation patterns, and methods to solve some issues they are having with their current project.  Including moving from just telemetry based information to adding command and control.  I gave him my contact information so they can come to me with questions and help with the project.

Lastly I had dinner over with some friends.  I finally headed out from their place at 0130 after helping him with a programming assignment.  Overall it was a busy, educational, and productive day.

There has been a lot of back and forth by me regarding this one and actually including it as a criminal count.  I finally decided that it is due to the following facts:

• The initial contact was not by an identified LEO.  Sorry but a shirt that says public safety officer doesn’t count.
• That individual in question made physical contact without proper legal authority.
• The initial contact had no legal purpose as there was no suspicious activity to warrant investigation or the belief that a crime had occurred.

That said, the New York State Patrol I’m afraid is technically in the clear.  Note I said technically.  New York is a stop and identify state.  What is problematic is this law is most easily abused, much like the declaration of a concealed firearm was in Ohio.  The initial contact was in no way legal, as there was no reasonable reason to believe a crime had occurred.  This LEO then assaulted one of the people he was intimidating and then called in the state police.  The state police with what they were informed at this point had given them enough to reasonably believe that a crime had occurred.  The problem is the issue is circular.  Identifying is what is claimed as the obstruction and a failure to identify, and to the state patrol officers all they know is what they were told over the radio.

This brings me to the second issue, as they were on foot, they have no duty to provide photo identification.  They government must supply identification should they be requiring it when no license is required for walking.  The individuals involved are at a loss when it comes to dealing with the mess that is the legal system and they knew none of the key words that should be used in a situation like this.  This further compounded the irritation exhibited by both state patrol officers.

If you are stopped on the street the conversation should go something like the following if you’re unfortunate enough to live in a stop and identify state*:

• Officer: Sir I need to see Identification
• You: Am I under arrest?
• Officer: No, but I need to see identification.
• You: Am I being detained?
• Officer: No
• You: Then you have no legal right to request me to identify (depends on state in this case it would work).

Another variation:

• You: Am I being detained?
• Officer: Yes
• You: Why am I being detained?
• Officer: (State’s a reasonable reason for being detained)
• You: (Identify) State your name and address.
• Officer: What are you doing here?
• You: (State’s reason for being in area and what you are doing)

Third variation is much like the second but that’s if they say you are under arrest.  Again depending on the state they must inform you what you are being arrested for prior to the cuffs.  This is because some states allow you to resist an unlawful arrest, even by force.  If you pursue this route be careful and be sure you can win; it’s going to be a very tough fight.  Then again you might end up dead anyway, killed while handcuffed in the jail.

So on that final note: The stupid public safety officer is abusing the law to intimidate the public and twisting it to obtain the support of the state patrol.  The state patrol was acting within the law, but the law allows them too much leeway.

State Sponsored Criminal Count: 21

Because the job of “public safety” is to harass law abiding citizens on foot to the point of arrest by twisting poorly constrained legislation.

Found here.

*Note: I am not a lawyer, do not take this as legal advice, do any of the following at your own risk.  Make sure you know the applicable laws for the areas you live and are traveling in.

 

So on the 2011 ballot for Washington is I-1183 which will allow stores to sell hard liquor.  As a red blooded libertarian I’m all for this.  Anything that removes a government monopoly on something makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

A little history:

A year ago there was a similar measure, I-1100 on the Washington state ballot.  It died with 53% of the voters voting against it.  That’s right 53% of the state of Washington was fine with the state monopoly on liquor.  46% of the state thankfully has a brain and was able to look at the facts instead of the FUD being spread.

Much of the FUD was quite similar to concealed carry with claims that drunk driving would go through the roof.  That underage drinking would increase, and it would increase the rate of alcoholism all around.

Same Crap Different Year:

Fast forward 365 days and we find ourselves in exactly the same position.  We have one side that is arguing with fact and logic.  Then we have the other side arguing with emotion, feelings, and general FUD.  My personal favorite is the fact they discuss Costco has spent 22 million dollars in support of the measure.

Costco has only donated 21 million dollars, and of the total amount raise they have only spent about half. While the total amount raised is 22 million, not all of that belongs to Costco.  Damn close but when people feel it necessary to fudge numbers when they don’t have to it’s a bit disconcerting.

The group pushing the negative ballot has only been able to raise 7.5 million dollars.  Their biggest contributor is “Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America Inc.”.  All of the donors in fact all are in the business of wholesaling liquor.  The reason being is the state monopoly allows higher prices and price gouging of consumers.

Their big negative donors are not supporting the initiative because of the children or some want to aid in public safety.  Their campaign against it exists purely to insure their bottom line.  The funding against the bill shows the true colors of those opposed to the bill as being against free enterprise and for a government monopoly of the sale and distribution of products.

Dissecting Their BS:

The first “Fact”:

Section 103 of the initiative allows for sales in mini marts- where teens and problem drinkers are 400% more likely to purchase liquor according to independent law enforcement studies.

This jewel is provided from the WA Liquor Control Board.  No citation of statistics or facts from states who have removed the government monopoly on liquor.  Just says some independent survey says that this FUD is real.  I am aware of no change coming to the state drinking age, so the line about teens is BS.  If they’re going to break the law for alcohol they’re going to do it with or without this change.

Secondly those who have problems drinking can stay out of the areas that sell liquor just as they stay out of the state liquor store.  400% more likely compared to what!?  400% more likely to buy alcohol than someone who doesn’t have a drinking problem?  My assumption is they are saying someone is more likely to slip off the wagon if it’s sold in a mini-mart.  You know they sell junk food in mini-marts, I like junk food, I can walk my ass in and out without buying more junk food.  If the act of walking into a mini-mart causes someone to slip off the wagon, they’d fall off visiting friends who don’t have a problem.  This also ignores the fact they have a 10,000 square foot requirement to sell liquor.  That would take the mini out of mini-mart.

The argument that there is no extra provision for enforcement also fails in that the state will no longer be funding the operation of store fronts to sell liquor.  There is no change in the eligibility requirements to purchase liquor, do you want the police carding everyone instead of the store.  A store must obtain a license still under 1183 to sell liquor, and that license can be revoked.

Second “Fact”:

The social costs of expanding liquor access and sales are staggering: The Centers for Disease Control estimate $224 billion in annual costs nationwide, with the majority of it falling to local law enforcement, domestic violence and health care related costs.

They then top this off with the icing that law enforcement and human service agencies are struggling.  Currently the State of Washington is in debt.  Our fearless leaders always have a habit of cutting vital services first to create a panic that will aid in passing tax increases.  Currently schools and many other areas are suffering in the funding department.

The state budget offices report an increase in state revenue by over $400 million.  That’s $400 million towards the deficit.  That’s $400 million that doesn’t have to be obtained by blanket tax raises.

Fact, we are in debt, we do not have the money to pay all our bills, and we are running a monopoly on liquor that is costing us money.  In the world of finances, this is a very stupid decision.  The argument against correcting this issue is to play on the heart strings and emotions of others.  There are arguments about the increase in costs due to those who are drinking.  That relies on their assumptions of blood in the streets to be correct.  Further the increase in funding will help close the deficit and make sure departments get the funding they need.

Interestingly enough there are firefighters who agree with my statements above, but you won’t hear the 1183 nay-sayers talk about them.

Third “Fact”:

Alcohol kills more kids than all other drugs combined.  I-1183 would turn back the clock on successful efforts to keep liquor out of the hands of teens and problem drinkers.

Again, the drinking age isn’t changing folks, it will still be just as illegal to sell alcohol to minors.  Again this relies on their prediction of blood in the streets.  News flash to these dumb asses.  Prohibition doesn’t work.  Restraining availability doesn’t work.  All it does is inconvenience the law abiding and general public.

Fact, not everyone buys alcohol even when it’s available to them.  While some may be more likely to purchase now that wouldn’t otherwise is inconsequential.  Drunk driving is illegal and will still be illegal, drinking under age is and will continue to be illegal.  Just because something is available doesn’t mean that behavior patters are going to change by gross amounts.

The ability to buy liquor at the grocery store is not going to change the behavior of the law abiding or the public at large.  Those who do have issues with drinking will continue to have their issues.  Why should the state budget, the law abiding, and the public at large suffer for the actions of those who would violate the law anyway?

Closing:

If my crusade in gun rights has taught me anything, it’s when you see emotional arguments that side usually doesn’t have solid facts and logic to back it up.  Those screaming about how the passage of I-1183 is going to create an influx of drunk teens and alcoholics are doing nothing more than yelling about how the passage of concealed carry is going to result in blood in the streets.  What this will do is allow me and my wife to more readily be able to entertain friends and family without breaking the bank.  It will allow us to more easily obtain a wider variety of liquor at competitive prices.  Lastly when I discover I’m out of something I don’t have to schedule my shopping trip around the hours of the only liquor store in the area.  Instead I can get what I need at the same time as everything else.*

I do not want the government being my nanny and saying when and where I am allowed to buy alcohol and at what price.  The state should not be in the business of anything, much less in the business of selling liquor.  The main groups against 1183 are against it purely for profit.  The state monopoly has aided them in having profit margins well beyond what the free market would actually support.

*For all you environmentalists out there, you should support it.  Think about all those extra miles driven just to visit the liquor store and all that gas that could be saved.

So the gun grabbers are going into hysterics because the house passed HR-822.  My personal favorite quote was from none other than the founding case of Peterson Syndrome.

There were a lot of claims about concealed carry permit holders and the inconvenience of not being able to carry their guns into every state in the nation. I’ll tell them about inconvenience. My family was inconvenienced when we had to plan a funeral for my sister, shot to death on an August day. The inconvenience of sneaking to the back of the church in a rented bus to avoid the press shouldn’t have to be, but it was. It was inconvenient to watch my mother deal with the death of her first born child. It was inconvenient to watch my own children deal with the awful death of their favorite aunt. It was inconvenient to watch my sister’s grown kids and step children deal with each other and with their grief. So really, I just don’t feel sorry for these guys who can’t carry their guns everywhere they go. Do they care about victims? Are their gun rights more important than the public’s right to be safe from shootings of family members or friends? Are their rights to carry their guns more important than jobs, health care, housing, and other pressing needs? I believe that most Americans know the answer to this.

Emphasis mine.  I posted the whole quote so it was obvious I wasn’t twisting something out of context or the emotional state was completely lost.  Loosing a loved one is hard, but again, given her logic I’m a victim of cancer.  But then we find news articles such as this article.

By surviving his ordeal two weeks ago in Noble County, the victim, whose name authorities haven’t released, helped uncover an elaborate scheme by at least two men to lure people with the promise of work from across the country to Ohio. Authorities say the real plan was to rob and kill them.

The first victim was lured across state lines and was robbed and killed, the second victim was lucky enough to have survived.  However she thinks the victim in this case had no right to be armed for self-defense.  They had no right to be as equally armed as the criminals of the state of which they’re visiting.  As usual her pro-predator stance shines through like a light house.  Especially given the fact that she thinks that criminals should be allowed to retain firearms as they are necessary for their job.

Who needs guns then? Well, hunters need guns for the sport. Some people need guns for their profession- law enforcement, security guards, people who transport cash from businesses to banks, etc., gang members, drug cartels, felons, robbers and those who, without a gun, could not do their jobs.

She would rather disarm victims and ensure that they were easy prey for predators just because they crossed an invisible line in the sand that means nothing but a change in legal boundary.  As shown above can find prime examples of predators preying upon those from out of state due to the higher likelihood of the prey being disarmed.  National reciprocity guarantees those that can carry at home can continue to legally exercise their right to self-defense where ever they go*.

*It appears that the right to self-defense might be missing now in Massachusetts.