Snapped Shot

This is a really nifty shot. I definitely look forward to exploring the concept once the rainy season starts here in Fairfax County.

A man walking with an umbrella in the rain is photographed through a a windshield in Kabul March 3, 2009. REUTERS/Ahmad Masood (AFGHANISTAN)

To my regular readers, my apologies. I'm trying to collect my thoughts in writing so that I have a greater chance of remembering them down the road. If you're not someone who generally works with Oracle products, feel free to gloss over this one, as it's probably going to be dullsville.

Do you use OracleAS in your workplace? Have you ever gotten tired of trying to administer Oracle Internet Directory from within a Windows or Linux virtual machine? Ever wish you could give up the headaches of trying to boot up an environment to run OID Administrator in, and just run it right on your Mac?

In other words, does it feel like you're spending more time waiting for the system to start than you are actually performing administrative tasks?

Yeah, feels like that to me, too. Fortunately for both of us, it is possible to run the Java-powered OID Administration console from Mac OS X. Follow along with this easy 200-step process, and you'll be able to do it, too! Continue reading »

What a year it's been! Things started out normal for us here at Snapped Shot, but quickly turned interesting—in the Chinese curse sort of way—towards March, when we were accosted by the Associated Press. As such, the blog has been doing quite a bit of adjusting over the year, and is definitely a totally different animal now than we were one year ago.

Which is hopefully a good thing. I think the jury's still out on that one.

Anyway, I'd like to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart for continuing to stop by and check out this silly little website. It is truly a pleasure to interact with those of you who write back to us, and it's an honor to spend yet another year bringing something approximately between entertainment and news to your computer screen time and time again. Almost reliably, even!

Enough of the sappy stuff:—Here's a rundown of the stories that you, the reader thought were the best this year. Which means that I think they're the best, too, because as everyone knows—The Customer Is Always Right!

#1: BWAHAHAHA: More Iranian FauxREALtography (79,095 views)
Iran tried to prove to the world how tough it is, but ended up failing. When they tried to cover their tracks in Photoshop, it was quickly spotted by an eagle-eyed LGF reader, but that's not nearly retribution enough, now is it? The Internet, as usual, had a most excellent response to this thugocratic photo-fakery, and I did my best to document it here.
Continue reading »

A blogging friend I've known for a couple of years now has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. His operation is scheduled for tomorrow, so if all y'all who are observant could say a brief prayer for him, I'd appreciate it greatly!

I wish you a speedy recovery, Hap!

Man, I can't believe I got this incredible once-in-a-lifetime offer right in time for me to share the great news with you:

From: "Senator Abubakar Balarebe" <mailfile1@konin.lm.pl>
Subject: Your Payment Notification
Date: Mon, 19 May 2008 16:52:45 +0100
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2600.0000

FROM THE DESK OF SENATOR ABUBAKAR BALAREBE
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENCY
SANATE CHIARMAN ON FOREIGN DEBT PAYMENTS
NATIONAL HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
WUSE II ABUJA - NIGERIA
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA


Attn: Beneficiary

Payment Notification
=========================

This is to draw your attention that your unpaind and overdue funds Ten Million, Five hundred United State Dollars Only ($10,500,000.00usd) lying in suspense account with the Central Bank of Nigeria is in line of payment.

In respect to this payment, one Mr. Thomas Mick submitted an application that you authorized your funds to be paid to him on your behalf with a report that you are now paralyzed as a result of the ghastly motor accident you had some months back.

After processing the application of Mr Thomas Mick himself which he made known to us that he came from you, he succeeded in getting some required documents as to make sure that we effect this transfer asquickly as possible without any further delay but the only problem now is that we dictated a lot of irregularities associated with his application towards your previous file and we will appreciate it if you answer the following question.

(1) Did you at any time delegate any body not even from your family to claim your fund on your behalf?

(2) Were you involved in a motor accident?

(3) Are you aware or related to one Mr. Thomas Mick from your country?

Also the delay in transferring the funds is due to the request for a power of attorney authorizing him to pursue this payment on your behalf. He asked for a week so as to submit the document, but up till now we have not received any of the documents from any of you. Why? please forward us the power of attorney by a return E-mail: so that we can have the funds released to him if you truly asked him to claim the said funds on your behalf. Reply to my personal email address mrabubakar.balarebe@gmail.com anwsering
those question to enable me note if you truly instructed this payment to him before we take the next action or you can also call me on my direct number +234-808-4183877.

Once all clearifications has been gotten your transfer will be effected via our Apex bank which is the Central Bank of Nigeria to your account or that provided above by Mr. Thomas Mick.

Anticipating your prompt response.


SENATOR ABUBAKAR BALAREBE
SANATE CHIARMAN ON FOREIGN DEBT PAYMENTS
NATIONAL HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
WUSE II ABUJA - NIGERIA
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA

That's pretty funny, because I definitely don't remember being in a ghastly motor accident. And I certainly don't remember it being bad enough to leave me paralyzed. But hey, what the heck? I reckon now's the perfect time to transfer my power of attorney right on over to some random Gmail account.

Speaking of which, does anybody else find it odd that the Federal Republic of Nigeria can't seem to afford its own e-mail system?



Update: Wow, Israeli PM Ehud Olmert is getting in on the action, too? Times must be tough for ol' Almost-Convicted.

Just when you thought things were looking up for removing illegals from this country because of the arrest of almost 400 illegals at the Postville Agriprocessing plant.

Think again...

Meanwhile, lawyers for immigrant workers arrested in the raid at a meat packing plant in Postville said they've reached an agreement with federal authorities that will keep the workers in Iowa.

The Des Moines Register reported that the agreement was reached late Friday.

It will allow 83 workers detained during the raid at the Agricprocessors Inc. plant to stay in the state at least until their administrative bond hearings are held. The lawyers said that could be six months or more.

Those workers were detained but not charged. They include 62 who were released on humanitarian grounds.

The attorneys said they want to make sure the workers aren't shipped to other states and given new attorneys. They said that could hamper the workers' rights to a vigorous legal defense.

Update: Seems out of the 390 people arrested, 7 will be deported after all. Continue reading »

The Immigration authorities, who barely can barely enforce illegal immigration most times, seemed to have found that one business that hired illegals as a major component of its entire workforce. But yet, the media and some townspeople feel that it was these illegals who were at fault and it was their town that will be harmed the most.

Monday's raid on the Agriprocessors plant, in which 389 immigrants were arrested and many held at a cattle exhibit hall, was the Bush administration's largest crackdown on illegal workers at a single site. It has upended this tree-lined community, which calls itself "Hometown to the World." Half of the school system's 600 students were absent Tuesday, including 90 percent of Hispanic children, because their parents were arrested or in hiding.

Now, one would think that following the law and arresting illegals was a good thing. That reopening jobs for people legally in this country is something that we all can get behind. But, no, not to these people...

"I like my job. I like my work. I like it here in Iowa," said Escobedo, 38, an illegal immigrant from Yescas, Mexico, who has raised his three children for 11 years in Postville. "Are they mad because I'm working?"

"They don't go after employers. They don't put CEOs in jail," complained the Postville Community Schools superintendent, David Strudthoff, 51, who said the sudden incarceration of more than 10 percent of the town's population of 2,300 "is like a natural disaster -- only this one is manmade." He added, "In the end, it is the greater population that will suffer and the workforce that will be held accountable."

Continue reading »

Man, if I get any more news like this in my inbox, I'm just going to be crushed, I tell ya:

To: snappedshot
Subject: Your link has been rejected at Pakistan Web Directory
From: Faraz Ahmed <info@businesslinksdirectory.net>

Dear snappedshot.com,

We are sorry! We could not approve your link snapped shot · now in ap-approved text mode in
the directory. Please read our submission guidelines or resubmit your site later.

Thank you,
Directory Staff

http://webdirectory.pakistans.pk

Yours truly got a kind mention in an article by Ms. Melanie Phillips, an acclaimed author, syndicated columnist and blogger for the British magazine Spectator. ("Champagne for the brain," it claims.) I'm speechless, really:

But it is the photo-journalists’ website Snapped Shot which produces the really important evidence in this case about about notable discrepancies in the pictures. Key is that Shana was supposedly killed by darts from an anti-personnel weapon; yet the picture sequence shows that the car in which he had been travelling subsequently burst into flames; and it took time for the bodies to be shown on the ground in front of the burning car. Snapped Shot speculates that the evidence suggests Shana may have been killed instead by recoil from an anti-tank weapon – ie, a friendly fire killing by Hamas -- and the car was set on fire to destroy the evidence of what had really happened. Is this yet another full-blown media 'fauxtography' scandal -- with Reuters once again in the manipulated frame?

Just to clarify, I am not a photojournalist, and all of the information presented in the article she referenced was speculation, as I'm also not an expert in military technology. Fortunately for us, a number of readers who are such experts provided their insights in the commentary following the article, providing a much clearer picture of what might have actually happened.

Of course, I'm still waiting on the edge of my seat to see what the IDF reveals as a result of their internal investigation. While the questions surrounding the cause of Fadel Shana's death are pretty much answered, there are still some serious questions surrounding it—Most importantly, why did the IDF tank crew feel sufficiently threatened to fire off an anti-personnel round?

Time will tell, with any luck. Until then, I hope that Ms. Phillips and other authors of her calibre continue to research this mystery!

Others mentioned: Aussie Dave (Israellycool), The Elder of Ziyon, Richard Landes.

doubleplusundead reminds us that today is the 50th birthday for the game that is loved by English teachers far and wide!

I'm not even going to try writing one over here, so you'll have to jump over to Zombieland for a good example. I can't wait to see what Frank J can come up with to celebrate, too!

This gentleman certainly has interesting priorities on what possessions he is electing to take with him when preparing to leave the Pakistani refugee camp that he has presumably been staying at. I reckon the weather where he's going will be getting a bit toasty?

I sure wish I had a ceiling fan that big for my house. That'd be one excellent way of dealing with our Potomac Basin dog summers that we get around here!

You know, when Obama hit the campaign trail touting his ability to "change" Washington, I had no idea that he meant doing so by jailing his political opponents:

“What I would want to do is to have my Justice Department and my Attorney General immediately review the information that’s already there and to find out are there inquiries that need to be pursued. I can’t prejudge that because we don’t have access to all the material right now. I think that you are right, if crimes have been committed, they should be investigated. You’re also right that I would not want my first term consumed by what was perceived on the part of Republicans as a partisan witch hunt because I think we’ve got too many problems we’ve got to solve.

(h/t Ace)

Nothing amuses me more than seeing anti-war "peace" groups resorting to violence and intimidation to get their point across. And now, thanks to a tip from Warner Todd Houston, I've discovered that there is an entire website that is devoted to documenting these pro-peace bullies, one incident at a time.

After all, it's not like the Internet was invented for porn or anything...

Peace Thugs? Consider yourselves blogrolled!

In response to Palestinian plans to walk through Israel's "apartheid" wall, Soccer Dad writes:

Maybe he should make a daring escape from the tower of self-pity.

Haha, that would be a feat I'd pay to see! Keep up the awesome blogging, SD!

Correction: SD writes to inform me that the Line of the Day was actually written by Judeopundit, one of his co-bloggers. In that case, "awesome job" to JP—and keep up the excellent blogging anyway, both of ya's!