[citation][nom]jamison[/nom]Lets just talk about the phenon please.[/citation]
Um, this article does happen to contain 10 pages, of which only the first is on the Phenom II X3. So really, any of the subjects are perfectly legit things to be brought up.
[citation][nom]silicondoc[/nom]Why doesn't the government get a dang clue and hire the guy for Homeland Security. I watched an hour long documentary with him interviewed. It's really amazing what pathetic computer security the USA has. [/citation]
Actually, as far as the virtual security goes, it's rather good. However, I'd point out that virtual games of Capture-The-Flag (where two teams attempt to hack into each other's networks) NEVER end in stalemate, (not even at DEF CON) which highlights an important fact many people overlook: it is impossible to have a perfect defense against hackers. Even having the best hackers in the world on your team won't make you invincible. Otherwise the bulk of those CTF games, or even just SOME of them, would wind up in a stalemate.
The weak parts of US security lie on the physical realm; as you mention, the poor tracking of sensitive data items. In reality, this is how security breaches happen for virtually every entity, be it a person, an organization, a government, military, school, or what have you.
[citation][nom]the people the USA gov NEEDS to listen to are the hackers and crackers, because they are the ones who can rip right into their systems. 70 years is INSANE. The guy never destroyed anything, never erased any data...[/citation]
Actually, given that he outright admited he left a message, and professed that he was "disrupting," then that's effectively a self-admission he was causing some form of damage, otherwise it wouldn't have been a disruption. The military is only claiming damages of $700,000US, which given how widespread his attacks were, seem like a personally reasonable estimate for damage; after all, they had to pay to make sure they'd restored whatever security barriers he'd broken through and deactivated. (which likely required something as drastic as a reformat and reinstall on all compromised systems to be sure)
Also, the USA *does* listen to the hackers. If I recall correctly, they've had a presence at virtually every DEF CON, and even make attempts to recruit some of them there. This kinda illustrates the proper/improper ways of getting into a field; if you kill a police officer, it'd be kinda silly to expect them to try to hire you since you're good at killing; you'd expect that the cop-killer will be thrown in prison. The same goes for hacking; hacking into a government network merely demonstrates that you are immoral, while partaking in legitimate security activities that in all likelihood are more challenging, (like CTF) is a demonstration of skill.
[citation][nom]Here's a message " YOU ARE IDIOT THROWBACKS TO DAYS GONE BY - START ACTING LIKE MODERN, CIVILIZED HUMAN BEINGS, instead of control freak, 70 year prison ax nazis". Let's face it - the REAL ENEMIES - (snip) - AND STEAL EVERY SECRET WE EVER HAD. Yeah, go after the average x-file joe, YOU IDIOTS IN THE USA GOVERNMENT - YOU PATHETIC FREAKS - YOU SICKEN ME.[/citation]
Caps lock is cruise control for cool. But seriously, he was a threat to security, in that anyone boring into a network is going to leave a hole that others can follow, and follow without even having ANY skill; simple scipt kiddies could invite themselves in after that. It's rather expensive to make absolutely sure that you've reversed all the damage that the guy did; as I said above, it likely entailed a complete wipe and reinstall of all compromised systems, which meant lots of wasted time and money.
[citation][nom]nerrawg[/nom]Gary McKinnon has asperger syndrome and the UK DPP did not prosecute him because their psychiatric evaluation team determined that he didn't truly understand the gravity of his actions.[/citation]
To be honest, unlike with the case of other psychological disorders, such as clinical depression, bipolar disorder, and even autism, I consider the concept of Asperger syndrome to be a dubious disorder. Basically, while it's marked by incredibly social-emotional retardation, I feel that the retardation is not a symptom of the disorder, but the retardation is simply caused by external forces, and actually could be readily overcome without any sort of drugs. Hence, I consider it just a flimsy excuse to justify someone chronically engaging in sociopathic behavior, as a habit that they've been unable to break. But any habit can be broken if given enough effort and time; it just seems like those with Asperger's just don't bother to try. Hence, I don't really feel that being diagnosed as "Asperger's" should serve as protection against being tried for criminal actions.