Alison, that was my thought exactly. You just know that this is the latest scheme by our Percy (aka the Mayor of Auburn Hills).

And this: Neatorama: Trio Performs Songs of Super Mario 3

Excellent. I love how this place still has as many paranoia-laced posts as it always has had. ... ;)

And speaking of paranoia, which "Percy" is being quoted in that article, Paras? Is there any connection between our mysteriously silent Mr. P and the one talking about the hacking challenges imposed by debit card chips? I call foul. ha!

Governing by social networks: wave of the future, or desperate pandering?

What day should B.C.’s Family Day be?

Ah, that's fantastic. Good thing we're going to transition to mobile phone payments soon. I'm sure they will be unbreakable.

Sure they can't read the real pin from the chip cards, but why bother when you don't need the real pin anyway?

Perhaps you shouldn't use your debit card if the business can't handle the chip and still uses the stripe:

“We can’t fuck with the chip yet,” Percy confirms. “I know guys who have put in $150, $200k – more – trying to break this fucking thing. It’s all through the magstripe. They insert the chip – we can’t do it. So we gotta go to places that don’t have the chip shit yet.”

Percy’s revelation comes as no surprise to Interac, Canada’s largest network for point of sale debit. Following the European lead, the company will require chip-enabled cards for all debit PIN pad transactions by the end of 2015. The deadline for bank machines on their network looms at the end of this year.

For Viruses:

Hey gang, I've got a question for you. Seeing as I'm really useless in the tech space, and so I thought I'd defer to all you experts:

What are your recommendations for free antivirus programs (for windows/firefox)?

I've been doing a little research myself, but I'd definitely appreciate some further suggestions, because I'm still rather clueless. Thanks in advance!

This is why privatized medicine can't work. Because it's easier to make money on frivolity than to do work actually helping people:

A board-certified anesthesiologist with a medical degree from the University of North Carolina, Dr. Burke is, according to his website, the “first physician in the United States to formally dedicate his career to the treatment of hangovers.”

Earlier this month, he unveiled his new treatment clinic, a 45-foot-long tour bus emblazoned with soothing blue and white graphics and his business’s name, “Hangover Heaven.” Inside the bus, it looks like a cross between an ambulance and a conference room at Embassy Suites. IV drips hang from the ceiling, patients are swathed in blankets, but there are also spacious leather sofas with built-in beverage-holders and flat-screen TVs. EMTs administer relief to patients in the form of branded medical cocktails. The $90 Redemption package contains one bag of saline solution, vitamins, and an anti-nausea medication. The $150 Salvation package includes a double shot of saline solution, the vitamins, the anti-nausea medication and an anti-inflammatory as well.