The AP reports that the US Army has this year enlisted nearly double the number of convicted felons as last year. The Pentagon is said to believe that a “thorough” review can overturn prior convictions:

For example, in several of the Marine sex crime cases, the offender was a teenager involved in consensual sex with another underage teen. In one Army case, a 13-year-old who threw a match into his school locker was charged with arson and had to receive a felony waiver six years later.

“Waivers are used judiciously and granted only after a thorough review,” said Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington.

He added that “low unemployment, a protracted war on terror, a decline in propensity to serve,” and the growing reluctance of parents, teachers and other adults to recommend young people go into the military, has made recruiting a challenge.

Who would have thought the Army would be leading the way in consensual sex rights? I mean what if it had been same sex? Something tells me in that case they might say rules are rules.

Ok, so a kid threw a match into a locker. The question is what flammable or explosive material was in the locker. I don’t think you can judge such a situation on the lighting mechanism alone, can you?

I understand most of the reasons for recruiting challenges that are mentioned, and they are certainly hard to measure, but does he really mean to say unemployment is low? A quick check of the “Employment Situation Summary” at the US Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests high unemployment:

The number of unemployed persons increased by 434,000 to 7.8 million in March, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage point to 5.1 percent. Since March 2007, the number of unemployed persons has increased by 1.1 million, and the unemployment rate has risen by 0.7 percentage point.

The unemployment low in the US was around 3.5% in 2000, according to the Sacramento Forecast Project but now it is clearly trending above 5%. Kennedy once said that full employment is 4%, but I just don’t see what the Pentagon spokesman is pointing towards.

Leave it to The Onion – America’s Finest News Source to bring you the latest developments in gun culture:

Florida legislators passed a bill allowing citizens to bring their guns to work. Here are some of the other pro-gun laws enacted recently.

Alaska—Members of endangered species now permitted to carry concealed firearms for self-protection Louisiana—Now legal for residents to shoot at hurricanes

Minnesota—Any resident may fire a single shot every five years, or when Vikings win

Idaho—You can have a gun, or a grenade, but not both

Virginia—Non-gun-owning residents must apply for a permit to not own and operate a firearm Gun

New York—Guest stars on Law & Order may bring their own guns to the set

Kansas—Children as young as 8 can bring guns to school on the condition that there’s no funny business

Texas—That huge cattle gun used by Javier Bardem’s character in No Country For Old Men now legally available at Fiesta Mart grocery stores

Hard to pick a favorite. The commentary on Minnesota sports is a low blow, but I think the Virginia joke takes the cake. The only thing better would have been if they had been able to work in a term like “whitelist” or “macaque”.

A BBC report on Africa reminds me of trying to manage proper firewall rules in a fast-paced enterprise.

Hundreds of villagers are helping to map parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo where thick forest and conflict have prevented effective mapping.

So far about 190 villages have been found in one area of Bandundu province where old maps show only 30, UK-based charity The Rainforest Foundation says.

Ever had someone demand that you open the firewall immediately so they can start reaping rewards? The proper security response is to pause and try to estimate their actual needs, keeping role-based access and similar principles of good governance in mind. The reality is business units often do not see the risks and/or value in precise measurements…I’m tempted to throw in a pun about logging here.

“In one of the sectors of the territory that the groups are mapping at the moment, there are something like 190 villages but on the official map there are about 30,” Cath Long of the Rainforest Foundation which is organising the project told the BBC’s Network Africa.

She said millions of Congolese depend on the forest for their existence.

“The real worry is that permits to cut timber, permits to extract resources will be given to external companies without recognising the fact that people are already there and already using the forest,” she said.

I may try to work in this story the next time an executive calls me and rants about the firewall processes blocking his/her business plan, deadlines and profitability/savings goals.

Can’t wait to see the reaction when I reference the forests of DR Congo.

Mobile and wireless technology is really making some interesting models in Africa. Something tells me these small instances are signs of opportunities for security devices and designs, perhaps even forming the majority of future markets for communication tools in unstructured/ungoverned spaces.