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The phrase “These things are essentially like nuclear bombs,” left me shaking my head....

SoftwareMaven 14y ago
I'm listening to The Last Train from Hiroshima[1] right now. These things are nothing like nuclear bombs. I hope we never experience anything remotely like nuclear bombs on this planet again. 1. http://www.amazon.com/Last-Train-Hiroshima-Survivors-Look/dp/1400115639 http://www.amazon.com/Last-Train-Hiroshima-Survivors-Look/dp...
- kefka 14y ago
  Interestingly enough, there seems to be questions regarding the book as a factual source. This is taken from the amazon link you provided: Recently, there have been questions about the accuracy of some parts of this book. At this time, Tantor Media will continue to make it available to our customers, but we wanted to make you aware of the issues. Here is a statement from the hardcover publisher of the book, Henry Holt and Company:"It is with deep regret that Henry Holt and Company announces that we will no longer print, correct or ship copies of Charles Pellegrino's The Last Train from Hiroshima due to the discovery of dishonest sources of information for the book. It is easy to understand how even the most diligent author could be duped by a source, but we also understand that this opens that book to very detailed scrutiny. The author of any work of non-fiction must stand behind its content. We must rely on our authors to answer questions that may arise as to the accuracy of their work and reliability of their sources. Unfortunately, Mr. Pellegrino was not able to answer the additional questions that have arisen about his book to our satisfaction."The Last Train from Hiroshima offers listeners a stunning "you are there" time capsule, gracefully wrapped in elegant prose. Charles Pellegrino's scientific authority and close relationship with the A-bomb's survivors make his account the most gripping and authoritative ever written.At the narrative's core are eyewitness accounts of those who experienced the atomic explosions firsthand-the Japanese civilians on the ground and the American fliers in the air. Thirty people are known to have fled Hiroshima for Nagasaki-where they arrived just in time to survive the second bomb. One of them, Tsutomu Yamaguchi, is the only person who experienced the full effects of the cataclysm at ground zero both times. The second time, the blast effects were diverted around the stairwell in which Yamaguchi had been standing, placing him and a few others in a shock cocoon that offered protection, while the entire building disappeared around them.Pellegrino weaves spellbinding stories together within a narrative that challenges the "official report," showing exactly what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki-and why.
  - SoftwareMaven 14y ago
    I'm taking everything I'm listening to with a grain of salt, anyway, just due to the effect of time on memories, especially during periods of traumatic shock. However, even if only 10% of what is in the book is accurate, I believe my point holds: a DDOS isn't anything like a nuclear attack.
- joseph_cooney 14y ago
  I've visited the a-bomb dome in Hiroshima, and agree 100%.
adventured 14y ago
It's embarrassing the way the media tries to play up things like this. Like you suddenly might starve to death because of a DDoS and your car won't start, and wars will break out! Oh my the sensationalism! Arrest the criminals doing the vandalizing. It's very simple. Someone or some group causes millions in property damages or service disruptions, it's a serious crime and should be treated as such. They should be hunted down and arrested, whatever the rock they're hiding under.
- AnthonyMouse 14y ago
  Here's the thing that gets me. It's not the media describing things this way. It's us. We're the ones blowing this all out of proportion. The New York Times didn't describe it as "like nuclear bombs," the CEO of Cloudfare did. They're just quoting him. And I hate to say it but you're doing the same thing. Where did "millions in property damages or service disruptions" come from? A DDoS is an irritating annoyance. It rises to the level of a bunch of jerks who decide to climb up and rewire the traffic lights to be continuously red and cause a traffic jam. You can certainly arrest them when they do something illegal, but why does that require us to make them out to be a bunch of evil masterminds hellbent on causing a nuclear holocaust or financial Armageddon?
  - yen223 14y ago
    Frankly, we are guilty of blowing anything computer-related out of proportion. Just observe the number of folks here who insist that software engineering is the most important field in the world! Edit: On second reading, it looks like the "nuclear bombs" quote by the CEO of Cloudflare was taken out of context.
- Xylakant 14y ago
  > Like you suddenly might starve to death because of a DDoS and your car won't start, and wars will break out! Oh my the sensationalism! Actually, given that my new phone connection is VOIP-only, an attack that saturates or damages[1] the respective part of the network could block an emergency call and quite possibly lead to problems down the line. It's hard to estimate how much we actually depend on the internet nowadays. [1] "damages" as in "put critical infrastructure pieces temporarily out of function"

I'm listening to The Last Train from Hiroshima[1] right now. These things are nothing like nuclear bombs. I hope we never experience anything remotely like nuclear bombs on this planet again. 1. http://www.amazon.com/Last-Train-Hiroshima-Survivors-Look/dp/1400115639 http://www.amazon.com/Last-Train-Hiroshima-Survivors-Look/dp...

kefka 14y ago
Interestingly enough, there seems to be questions regarding the book as a factual source. This is taken from the amazon link you provided: Recently, there have been questions about the accuracy of some parts of this book. At this time, Tantor Media will continue to make it available to our customers, but we wanted to make you aware of the issues. Here is a statement from the hardcover publisher of the book, Henry Holt and Company:"It is with deep regret that Henry Holt and Company announces that we will no longer print, correct or ship copies of Charles Pellegrino's The Last Train from Hiroshima due to the discovery of dishonest sources of information for the book. It is easy to understand how even the most diligent author could be duped by a source, but we also understand that this opens that book to very detailed scrutiny. The author of any work of non-fiction must stand behind its content. We must rely on our authors to answer questions that may arise as to the accuracy of their work and reliability of their sources. Unfortunately, Mr. Pellegrino was not able to answer the additional questions that have arisen about his book to our satisfaction."The Last Train from Hiroshima offers listeners a stunning "you are there" time capsule, gracefully wrapped in elegant prose. Charles Pellegrino's scientific authority and close relationship with the A-bomb's survivors make his account the most gripping and authoritative ever written.At the narrative's core are eyewitness accounts of those who experienced the atomic explosions firsthand-the Japanese civilians on the ground and the American fliers in the air. Thirty people are known to have fled Hiroshima for Nagasaki-where they arrived just in time to survive the second bomb. One of them, Tsutomu Yamaguchi, is the only person who experienced the full effects of the cataclysm at ground zero both times. The second time, the blast effects were diverted around the stairwell in which Yamaguchi had been standing, placing him and a few others in a shock cocoon that offered protection, while the entire building disappeared around them.Pellegrino weaves spellbinding stories together within a narrative that challenges the "official report," showing exactly what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki-and why.
- SoftwareMaven 14y ago
  I'm taking everything I'm listening to with a grain of salt, anyway, just due to the effect of time on memories, especially during periods of traumatic shock. However, even if only 10% of what is in the book is accurate, I believe my point holds: a DDOS isn't anything like a nuclear attack.
joseph_cooney 14y ago
I've visited the a-bomb dome in Hiroshima, and agree 100%.

adventured 14y ago

It's embarrassing the way the media tries to play up things like this. Like you suddenly might starve to death because of a DDoS and your car won't start, and wars will break out! Oh my the sensationalism! Arrest the criminals doing the vandalizing. It's very simple. Someone or some group causes millions in property damages or service disruptions, it's a serious crime and should be treated as such. They should be hunted down and arrested, whatever the rock they're hiding under.

AnthonyMouse 14y ago
Here's the thing that gets me. It's not the media describing things this way. It's us. We're the ones blowing this all out of proportion. The New York Times didn't describe it as "like nuclear bombs," the CEO of Cloudfare did. They're just quoting him. And I hate to say it but you're doing the same thing. Where did "millions in property damages or service disruptions" come from? A DDoS is an irritating annoyance. It rises to the level of a bunch of jerks who decide to climb up and rewire the traffic lights to be continuously red and cause a traffic jam. You can certainly arrest them when they do something illegal, but why does that require us to make them out to be a bunch of evil masterminds hellbent on causing a nuclear holocaust or financial Armageddon?
- yen223 14y ago
  Frankly, we are guilty of blowing anything computer-related out of proportion. Just observe the number of folks here who insist that software engineering is the most important field in the world! Edit: On second reading, it looks like the "nuclear bombs" quote by the CEO of Cloudflare was taken out of context.
Xylakant 14y ago
> Like you suddenly might starve to death because of a DDoS and your car won't start, and wars will break out! Oh my the sensationalism! Actually, given that my new phone connection is VOIP-only, an attack that saturates or damages[1] the respective part of the network could block an emergency call and quite possibly lead to problems down the line. It's hard to estimate how much we actually depend on the internet nowadays. [1] "damages" as in "put critical infrastructure pieces temporarily out of function"