Map Jack -- Roving Cameras

For any one that is not familiar with Google's Street View technology, then this is likely to scare you even more! Google has a service know as Street View, which is essentially small hatchback cars with a camera attached to the roof that then cruises the streets taking happy snappies of generally unsuspecting people. This strikes me as kind of like unscripted reality television at its worst. Not surprisingly a few civil libertarians and people snapped were a little upset at the invasion of their privacy.

To Google's credit they have developed automatic face-blurring technology that prevents easy identification. However, if the person viewing the picture knows who you are then face blurring technology might not save you any embarrassment.

But back to Map Jack. Map Jack offers a similar service and the template used is the Google Street View template. However, there are several additional navigation features that make it fun and the pictures are of a high resolution.

The service so far has photographed six cities that it has since uploaded to its site. Of the six, four are US cities and there are the Thai cities of Chiang Mai and Pattaya.

Without a doubt there will be some privacy concerns here, particularly as the resolution of the imagery is high. However, if for example you have been snapped on a public street coming out of a "massage" parlour, then the obvious question is has your privacy been invaded and how so, if you feel that it has?

Virtue Indonesian Style

The title of this entry might be a little misleading (but the photo isn't though is it?) as I really want to talk about chastity belts and the idea that a little padlock will do! I must confess the topic is inspired by a thread running over at Indonesia Matters (Patung I do not know you but you have way too much free time on your hands if you can find this stuff out! Keep it coming!)...but it is based on a story out of the mainstream media (Kompas)

Now, in most parts of Indonesia a good panti pijat (massage parlour) can get you a "full" body massage and if you are a seasoned connoisseur then perhaps you will know your way around to the "full service" massage joints. It seems though that the government has decided to crack down on these dens of sin and depravity by requiring the female masseuses' to padlock their gear including their panties in order to prevent men from taking advantage of the situation...perhaps some of you more familiar with these services might be able to add a little about the "happy ending" and whether this is a value add service that is offered rather than demanded!

Otherwise I will have to trot out the well worn ... "I heard from a 'friend'" explanation!

If you can, try and visualize all these massage parlour owners running down to the local hardware store and cleaning them out of padlocks, then running back to their establishments, and then once they get there trying to figure out how the bloody hell am I going to attach this so that the masseuse cannot get her gear off?

But better than a padlock is a real, fair dinkum, no questions asked, balls taking chastity belt. The technology might have been a little crude in the centuries past but as the above photo highlights, a good chastity belt can become a fashion item in its own right, particularly when it covers all the essential bits! Besides I also thought it was time to get a little risque with the pictures (hope you approve FriskoDude, you did say more pictures, right?)...

I am sure that vice is a problem in Jakarta but I would hope that before the government of Jakarta spends any more time on this or any resources on study tours both locally and overseas that they fix the potholes in the roads! Because while taking an ojek to work this morning my normally trustworthy and slow ojek hit a pothole and I think I jarred my spine, so I am going to have to go and get a 'healthy' massage to repair my aching back!

Simply, the failure to fix Jakarta's rapidly deteriorating roads ensures that these dens of sin and depravity are full with the victims of these woeful Jakarta roads...

Happy hunting for the perfect panti pijat...the padlocks are coming, the padlocks are coming!