So on Thanksgiving, this blog disappeared from the Internet – lock stock and barrel. We were out of town, and I couldn’t reach the Hosting Company until Sunday. It seems that I was under a
DDoS attack…
A DDoS or Distributed Denial of Service is an attack against the server which uses a wide range of IP addresses to bombard the server with traffic. We have customized internal tools which mitigate these attacks automatically and they largely go un-noticed by customers. Sometimes, however when these attacks become big enough it can cause websites on the server to become slow or unresponsive for short periods of time. In these cases there are steps that must be taken manually to stop the attack and get our servers running at full speed again. DDoS attacks are not something Just Host can warn customers about beforehand. When they occur please be assured that our team is doing everything possible to restore service as quickly as possible. There are many types of DDoS attacks, however with each possible attack the best plan for our customers is to hold tight and we will restore the same level of service as quickly as possible.
…and I was told to "hold tight." Yesterday, when I checked at noon, the blog was back – unchanged. Modern life can occasionally be kind of confusing…
So this was an attack solely on your server, or directed more so to you?
Either way, seems to be a lot of animosity out there, and yet why don’t these perpetrators go after the direct source of their outrage?
Like, go to Washington D.C.??? Or, the APA???
Off topic 1bom: Given President Elect Trump’s recent pick for HHS secretary, and the only 236 signatures so far on the petition, are you considering pulling the plug on the petition?
One open question would be at this point what is the highest yield way to approach the problems discussed on this blog in light of what is likely to be the federal government’s approach for the next 4, very possibly 8 or more, years.
Whether or not one agrees with Dr. O’Brien’s mantra that federal regulation is not the answer, the chances of that answer materializing now seems more remote than ever.
Looking at point number 5 in this article:
http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2016/11/big-areas-tom-price-change-policy-hhs-000247
It would be nice if top down federal requirements, including on research funding, imposed in the next 4 years draws as much ire from conservatives as they have in the past. Onerous federal regulation comes in all sorts of forms.
‘“The area everybody overlooks is grant programs,” said Rosenbaum. “You might find that a new administration would begin to attach all new kinds of conditions to grant awards.”’
Whether we will now see a philosophically conservative less top down management, or a doubling (or more) down of a top down agenda driven system remains to be seen.
http://1boringoldman.com/index.php/2016/02/22/twas-brillig/#comment-263638
This is one of those instances where I hope my fears proven wrong. Because any satisfaction gained from being right will pale in comparison to the results.