I don’t travel that much, but when I do and stay at hotels, I never give back the electronic room key. I bring it back with me and then shred the damn thing. Why? Because the unprotected information on that magnetic strip is mind boggling, not only does that contain what room you’ve been assigned, but the check-in and check-out dates, your id or passport number, nationality, and credit card number and its expiry date. With all of this information and with the ready availability of simple and cheap card readers, it won’t take a genius to utilise this information and defraud you.

And when you think that most check-out counters just have a simple box or basket for people to throw their cards in there once they’re done with the room. You could easily put your hand in that box/basket and fish out as many cards as you want without anyone worrying about your action. If confronted just say that you collect these cards for mementos, use them for decorations, or tea mats etc.

It appears that this is not the only problem with hotel security, Wired News has an interesting article where an enterprising hacker can gain much more information than those put on an electronic card by hacking into the unprotected billing system through the hotel room TV’s infra-red remote control receiver port!

Very scary.

Time to get one of those very limited credit cards, or go back to using cash and traveller’s cheques. I bet if you do, YOU will be looked at as a criminal or a completely deranged person.

A FRESH appeal is being made by a Filipina mother desperate to find shelter for herself and her daughter.

A HUMAN rights activist has called for an overhaul of Bahrain’s laws to protect women from discrimination.

Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS) president Dr Sabeeka Al Najjar made the recommendation in a report published by Washington-based Freedom House.

The report was part of a survey called Women’s Rights in the Middle East and North Africa: Citizenship and Justice.

This is a direct quote, copied from their website on July 31, 2005 at 19:56 Local:

Bahraini wieghs more than non -Bahraini

date: 31 07, 2005

Manama, July. 31 (BNA) 65 percent of Bahrainis suffer an increase in their weight while the rate between non bahraini in the Kingdom is 49.6 percent, this was revealed by a new study.
The study which was conducted by head of Noam Health Center Dr. Sumia Al-Jowder in cooperation with Dr. Ali Mustafa said that the average of weigh among Bahraini males reaches 80. 33 km while non – Bahraini is 70.88 km.
Bahrain News Agency

With all the money that is spent on that useless and braindead organisation, don’t you think that they could hire a good translator? After all aren’t there more English speakers in the world than Arabic speakers?

Ok, to hell with language… can anyone explain to me why weight (according to the ubiquitous BNA) is measured in KILOMETERS? And why would an organ named after this lovely kingdom make spelling mistakes on one of its areas: Noam rather than Noaim? Then look at the grammar construct in the paragraphs above, did they use some automatic Arabic to English translator and didn’t bother to check the result before posting on their website?

This is absolutely disgusting. Absolutely inexcusably disgusting.

Everyone who supports me in DEMANDING that the Ministry of (so called) Information be disbanded NOW please raise your hand.

Right, motion adopted: It is hereby declared by the WORLD that this embarrassment of a government organ is disbanded forthwith.

If only!

Practically however the government has already agreed to spin off the Tourism department into a separate entity managed by the private sector. What’s left for the MoI to do then? Television and Radio? Oh purleeeze, farm that out and fire EVERYONE who’s in it at the moment, don’t even bother with retirement packages etc. Provide them with boxes that will ease their insertion six (or sixty) feet under as they are already used to that state of stasis.

That away, what’s left? Print and Publications? hahhehahhe ahahehahehehahd hheahdashhshahehhea Although I have been unofficially informed that this “thing” is dead and buried.

So what’s left? Culture? Yes culture, and thank goodness that Mai Al-Khalifa is at the helm. Without her efforts there would be no registration of the Bahrain Fort as a World Heritage Site.

So here’s an idea Mr. Government (are you listening? good, here goes):

1. DISBAND the Ministry of Information completely.
2. Create a Frequencies Allocation office and attach that to the TRA.
3. Approve the Press and Publications Law proposed by Ebrahim Bashmi of the Shura Council.
4. That will open up the airwaves for creativity and investment that I am sure will surpass Dubai Media City in no time (if the bearded ones shut the fuck up that is and allow investors to use their money to make more money)
5. Attach the press and publications department to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and allow them to operate as broadcasting regulators, just like the BBC is under.
6. REPEAT: Create a Ministry of Culture and make Mai Al-Khalifa the third woman minister. NOW. Regardless of the status of the other points above. Just rip Culture out of the ministry which has never regarded culture as something important (ever since the death of Tariq Al-Moayed, the best Minister of Information you have EVER known, he was someone who really cared.)

And you can take this consultancy from me for free. You don’t have to pay those American consultants you have looking at the MoI at the moment, nor pay the braindead MBC to “create” a newsroom environment for you, that would be a classic case of the “blind leading the blind.” Oh, hang on a minute, they have and it is!

Bahraini filmmaker Bassam Al Thawadi has returned to Bahrain after taking part in the Osian’s Cinefan Asian Film Festival in India.He submitted his film The Visitor at the festival, held from July 15 to 24 in Siri Fort, New Delhi, after organisers showed interest when they saw it at the Fajer International Film Festival.