Wires Crossed #88 – June 15

Weighty Xbox With Cocaine Stash
A man from Guyana has been arrested after trying to smuggle just over 24 pounds of cocaine into Jamaica using a hollowed out Xbox 360 console. What we find amazing is not that he tried to smuggle the drugs. Nor that he actually got through customs with two pieces of luggage, but then had to go back at retrieve the Xbox, which no doubt made customs officers suspicious. We’re not even amazed he was promised $5 million for importing the drugs. What we find amazing is how the heck you stuff 24 pounds of cocaine into an Xbox console. Those of us old enough to remember know how big a pound of butter looks, and how much it weighs. And these guys managed to put 24 of those into a console? Wow!

UK Goes Hard Out Over Facebook Bullies
Britain’s High Court has ordered Facebook to cough up the IP addresses of Facebook users who abused a woman via the social networking site. Nicola Brookes didn’t realise offering her support to a reality show contestant online would bring such vitriol, but it did as she was subjected to not only abuse, but also the bullies setting up a Facebook page falsely stating she was a drug dealer and a paedophile. Sussex police refused to help, so she employed two lawyers who took up the matter on her behalf and asked that Facebook reveal the identity of the perpetrators. Facebook said no due ot privacy issues, however, the High Court agreed and has told Facebook to supply details. Whether the IP addresses can be traced to the bullies, well, that’s another story.

Deal Of the Century?
Back in the day, when I was growing up, a vintage car related to Model T Fords and the like. These days, it appears you only have to go back to 1986 to qualify. How does this relate to technology? Well, believe it or not 16 year-old teenager Rachel Dempsey is the proud owner of a 1986 Camaro. So what? you say. Well, her journey to acquire the car started with her putting a $40 PS2 console in the barter section of Craigs List. She eventually traded up and up until she got the Camaro. Sure, the car needs work, but however you look at, ending up with a set of wheels is not a bad trade for an out-of-date console.

Moneyed Couple Play Out Marriage Woes Over Twitter
Banking heiress Kate Rothschild and her husband, Ben Goldsmith, son of the late multi-millionaire James Goldsmith, are hanging their dirty laundry out to dry as they go through a messy divorce. Gone are the days of measured whisperings to Fleet St journos, both trying to expose their side of the story in a clandestine way, with third-party ‘sources’ being the instigators of scuttlebutt, when in truth it comes from the horse’s mouth. These days, why not tell the world how you really feel by tweeting nasty and horrible things about your soon-to-be former spouse. That is exactly what Rothschild and Goldsmith have both done recently, but it appears level heads have prevailed with both agreeing for the sake of their children to quit being so overt about their breakup. Hear! Hear! Of course, the problem with any social networking is the immediacy with which you can spout your feelings. No more slowly counting to 10 so you cool your heels.