Ryan Bagley

No One Is Coming to Fix the Subsea Cables

Wed, 18 Mar 2026 10:00:00 -0600

Subsea internet cables carry 99 percent of transoceanic digital traffic.¹ Financial transactions, diplomatic communications, military data, and the mundane browsing of billions of people all travel through fiber-optic strands resting on the ocean floor. These cables require something that is in desperately short supply: international cooperation.

They need it for route surveys, installation permits, maintenance windows, and emergency repairs across dozens of jurisdictions. They need it when a cable is severed in waters controlled by a hostile government or a non-state militia. They need it when the only repair ship in the region cannot enter a conflict zone without a ceasefire that no one is willing to broker. The world is fracturing, and the infrastructure that holds the global internet together is fracturing with it.

The Red Sea was, until recently, the highway of the global internet. Roughly 95 percent of data traffic between Asia and Europe transited its waters.² The geography was compelling: shorter routes, lower latency, international waters with fewer regulatory obstacles. Egypt sat at the junction, drawing an estimated 10 percent of its national telecoms revenue from transit fees alone.²

Then the Houthis started firing. Since late 2023, two major outage events have each severed four subsea cables simultaneously.² The first major outage in February 2024 took nearly six months to fix because no one could secure safe passage for repair vessels into Houthi-controlled waters.³ As subsea cable consultant Roderick Beck put it, “the outages in themselves are not the problem. The problem is the inability to repair them in any reasonable length of time.”²

The industry had barely begun to digest the Red Sea’s transformation from a commercial thoroughfare into a no-go zone when a second choke point closed. The U.S. led military campaign against Iran in early 2026 turned the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf into an active war zone.⁴ As Mr. Beck has noted, many subsea cable consortiums had viewed the Persian Gulf as their best hope for a Red Sea bypass route, only to discover that the Gulf is now possibly worse than the Red Sea.⁵ Alcatel Submarine Networks, the French state-owned company contracted to lay cable for Meta’s 2Africa Pearls extension, issued force majeure notices and halted all construction.⁶ The cable-laying vessel Ile De Batz sits stranded off the coast of Dammam, Saudi Arabia, unable to complete its mission.⁴ A significant portion of the 2Africa Pearls cable has already been laid on the seabed but remains unconnected to its landing stations.⁴

The cascade extends well beyond 2Africa. SEA-ME-WE 6, originally scheduled for service in 2024 and already delayed to June 2027, faces further uncertainty.⁴ The cable’s bypass route runs up the Persian Gulf to Bahrain, then traverses the desert to a cable landing station in Jeddah before connecting to the Red Sea corridor through Egypt, meaning it depends on both choke points remaining functional.⁵ The $700 million WorldLink Transit Cable Project, whose entire premise rested on positioning the Persian Gulf as a viable alternative corridor for Asia-Europe traffic, appears likely to die on the vine.⁴ The Fibre in Gulf project connecting the GCC countries and Iraq has been thrown into limbo.⁴

Both the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea are now effectively closed to commercial cable repair vessels.⁴ Any cables damaged by missiles, naval mines, or the anchors of stricken ships will remain severed for the duration of the conflict.⁴ Multiple active cable systems serving billions of users are already living this reality.

The closure of two maritime choke points simultaneously has triggered a frantic search for overland alternatives. Gulf states are financing competing data corridors through Syria, Iraq, and East Africa to bypass the routes that their digital connectivity depends on.⁷

The most advanced project is SilkLink: Saudi Arabia’s STC Group signed an $800 million contract in February 2026 to build 4,500 kilometers of fiber across Syria to a submarine cable landing station at Tartus on the Mediterranean.⁷ This replaced an earlier plan to route through Israel, which collapsed after the Gaza war.⁷ Qatar’s Ooredoo is building a second corridor through Iraq with a separate $500 million commitment to overland routes from Iraq through Turkey to Europe.⁷ A third project, WorldLink, announced by a privately funded consortium, would run a $700 million hybrid cable from the UAE through Iraq to Turkey, though it has no named construction contractor and a five-year timeline.⁷

All three front-runner corridors converge on Turkey as the gateway to Europe.⁷ This consolidation is inherently problematic. Additionally, the corridors being planned as escape routes from geographic vulnerability would themselves pass through Syria, Iraq, Sudan, and Ethiopia, countries where conflict or institutional fragility has severed infrastructure before.⁷

For India, the timing is particularly damaging. Research by the Observer Research Foundation indicates approximately a third of India’s westbound internet traffic travels through cables passing near the Strait of Hormuz.⁸ India’s international internet traffic exits primarily through two gateways: Mumbai on the west coast and Chennai on the east, with Mumbai’s traffic largely dependent on cable systems crossing the Arabian Sea and the Gulf region.⁸ Cybersecurity experts warn that if multiple cables fail simultaneously, remaining routes would become overloaded, with serious latency and speed degradation materializing in as little as a week.⁸

Lynn Kuok, writing in Foreign Affairs, makes an intellectually thorough case for a comprehensive global architecture to secure subsea cables.¹ She argues for strengthening UNCLOS provisions, creating an intergovernmental organization for seabed infrastructure security, establishing a “trusted cable” certification program, and convening an ad hoc international conference to develop shared standards.¹ She acknowledges that a UN General Assembly resolution on these matters is “unlikely given the current geopolitical environment” but proposes that a “coalition of like-minded states” could convene an alternative forum.¹

Kuok’s diagnosis is correct, but is pragmatically flawed. The international order that would make such cooperation possible is in active disassembly. An analysis from Brookings describes the current moment with unusual directness: the post-World War II order, built to prevent the recurrence of catastrophic conflict through free trade, multilateral institutions, and alliance systems, is being deliberately undermined by its principal architect.⁹ The Trump administration has threatened NATO partner annexation, supported far-right European movements, implemented whimsical tariffs, and withdrawn from institutions the United States spent decades building.⁹ American foreign aid has been liquidated, democracy promotion eliminated, and conduct on the world stage has corroded the soft power that once made American leadership credible.⁹

This matters for subsea internet cables because the kind of cooperation Kuok envisions requires exactly what is evaporating: confidence in American intentions, institutional durability, and consistent rule application.⁹ As trust erodes, governments hedge. Partners diversify connections, alternative arrangements expand, and the habits of cooperation fade.⁹ Fragmentation becomes self-reinforcing.⁹

Kuok herself identifies the central problem. Global cabling is already splintering into U.S.-led, Chinese-led, and nonaligned blocs, with routes and landings increasingly mirroring geopolitical alignment rather than commercial logic.¹ She notes that U.S.-linked cable systems like Apricot and Echo were originally designed to cross the South China Sea but were reengineered to avoid it due to permitting delays and security concerns in China’s claimed maritime areas.¹ Some companies are rerouting cables around disputed areas rather than contesting China’s claims.¹

The legal framework is equally fractured. UNCLOS provisions governing subsea cables were drafted for an earlier era and build on the 1884 Convention for the Protection of Submarine Telegraph Cables, a treaty signed by legacy monarchs.¹ China ratified UNCLOS in 1996 but maintains domestic regulations that directly contradict it by requiring foreign companies to secure consent for cable routes across its continental shelf.¹ A Finnish court dismissed sabotage charges against the crew of the Eagle S, a Russian-linked tanker suspected of severing five Baltic cables, on jurisdictional grounds because the incident occurred beyond Finland’s territorial waters, and the vessel’s flag state, the Cook Islands, has initiated no proceedings.¹

The United States is not even a party to UNCLOS. Proposing that Washington lead a new subsea order while simultaneously dismantling the broader international architecture is, at best, aspirational. At worst, it is a distraction from actions that could actually be taken now.

The more pragmatic approach is already being demonstrated in Europe. The European Union has adopted an action plan with measures to prevent, deter, detect, and respond to acts against subsea cables, as well as to repair damage.¹ NATO has established a coordination cell and a maritime center dedicated to undersea infrastructure security, increased air and naval patrols in the North and Baltic Seas, and launched initiatives to detect cable damage and reroute data via satellites.¹ The EU promotes the deployment of Science Monitoring and Reliable Telecommunications (SMART) technology, which equips data cables with environmental and security sensors.¹ The regional scope is precisely why it might work.

I wrote about SMART cable sensors in 2024 when covering Madeira’s submarine cable infrastructure. The Anel CAM project, connecting mainland Portugal with the Azores and Madeira, incorporates approximately 50 SMART repeaters across its 3,812-kilometer span. These sensors, placed roughly every 50 kilometers, can detect seafloor motion, water pressure changes, and temperature variations without interfering with the cable’s primary communication function. The dual-use value is significant: the same sensors that provide tsunami early warnings also detect suspicious activity along the seabed.

When the Baltic Sea cables were severed in November 2024, I argued that the response should be the same regardless of whether it was sabotage. The need to fortify protection for submarine cables exists independently of attribution. Increased redundancy through geographic path diversity, expanded deployment of SMART sensors, enhanced physical security at cable landing stations, and a stronger state posture around critical infrastructure: these are measures that any state or collection of states can implement without waiting for a global treaty that will never arrive.

The European model works because it operates within an existing alliance structure with shared threat perception and the institutional capacity to act. NATO patrols the North and Baltic Seas not because an international treaty requires it but because member states recognize a common vulnerability and have the military assets to address it. The EU promotes SMART cable deployment not through a global certification regime but through its own regulatory framework and investment incentives.

States outside Europe can adopt the same approach. The Gulf states are already doing so out of necessity, even if their competing overland corridors reflect what Kristian Ulrichsen called “an element of competition for influence rather than an alignment of effort.”⁷ India, with a third of its westbound internet traffic exposed to the Hormuz choke point, has every reason to invest in redundant paths through the Bay of Bengal and overland connections that bypass the Middle East entirely.⁸ The Polar Connect initiative, an Arctic submarine cable system linking Europe, North America, and East Asia designated as a Cable Project of European Interest by the EU, represents another form of regional diversification designed to circumvent vulnerable maritime corridors.⁴

The unfortunate consequence of all this is something Kuok describes with precision: subsea cable routes are following political paths rather than commercial ones.¹ Meta’s Project Waterworth, a new 50,000-kilometer cable, was designed explicitly to bypass the Middle East.⁴ Saudi Arabia’s SilkLink routes through Syria because routing through Israel became politically impossible after the Gaza war.⁷ U.S.-linked cable systems avoid the South China Sea because engaging with China’s permitting requirements carries both delays and strategic risk.¹

Each of these decisions makes commercial and security sense in isolation. Collectively, they accelerate the fracturing of what was once a unified global network into geopolitically segmented blocs. States maintain connections to allies and diminish connectivity to adversaries. Redundancy follows alliance lines. The physical infrastructure of the internet increasingly mirrors the political map rather than the technical or commercial one.

A 100-gigabit wavelength from Singapore to Marseille via the Red Sea used to cost six times less than routing through Iran or Iraq and up through Turkey.² That price differential existed because the global system rewarded the most direct geographic path. As political considerations override commercial logic, costs rise, latency increases, and the economic advantages that drove the internet’s expansion erode.

This is not an outcome anyone should welcome. But it is the outcome that current geopolitics are producing. The world’s subsea cable infrastructure was built on an assumption of baseline international cooperation: that repair ships could access the cables they were repairing, that permitting processes would follow predictable rules, that flag states would hold vessels accountable for cable damage, and that the major powers shared an interest in keeping the digital commons functional. Every one of those assumptions is now contested.

Waiting for a global architecture that the current political environment cannot sustain is a losing strategy. Regional resilience offers the only viable path: broader geographic redundancy, more SMART cable sensors, stronger military patrols around critical infrastructure, and the institutional capacity to act without depending on adversaries to cooperate. The cables will still connect the world. They will just follow different paths, and those paths will tell you more about who trusts whom than about where the data needs to go.

Lynn Kuok, “The New Arteries of Power: Subsea Cables Are This Century’s Hidden Battleground,” Foreign Affairs, January 2, 2026, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/new-arteries-power. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Nadine Hawkins, “The End of the Red Sea Era: Why War and Politics Are Shattering a Global Digital Lifeline,” Capacity, March 16, 2026, https://capacityglobal.com/news/red-sea-internet-outage-geopolitical-crisis/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Roderick Beck, “Capacity Media Interview of Me Regarding the Red Sea Cable Debacle and Solutions,” Subsea Cables & Internet Infrastructure, March 16, 2026, https://subseacables.blogspot.com/2026/03/capacity-media-interview-of-me.html. ↩︎
Winston Qiu, “War in the Gulf Severs the World’s Digital Arteries: How the Iran Conflict Is Reshaping Global Connectivity,” Submarine Networks, March 15, 2026, https://www.submarinenetworks.com/en/nv/insights/war-in-the-gulf-severs-the-world-s-digital-arteries. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Roderick Beck, “Subsea Cable Nightmares: Elm Street Comes to the Middle East,” Subsea Cables & Internet Infrastructure, March 14, 2026, https://subseacables.blogspot.com/2026/03/subsea-cable-nightmares-elm-street.html. ↩︎ ↩︎
Annie Turner, “ASN Ceases Work on 2Africa Cable Citing Force Majeure,” Mobile Europe, March 18, 2026, https://www.mobileeurope.co.uk/asn-ceases-work-on-2africa-cable-citing-force-majeure/. ↩︎
Indranil Ghosh, “The Gulf Built Oil Pipelines to Avoid Hormuz. It’s Now Doing the Same for Data,” Rest of World, March 11, 2026, https://restofworld.org/2026/gulf-overland-data-cables-europe-war/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Surabhi Gupta, “Buffering… How Iran War Could Put India’s Internet Connectivity at Risk,” ETV Bharat, March 13, 2026, https://www.etvbharat.com/en/bharat/experts-warn-rising-hormuz-tensions-could-hit-india-connectivity-enn26031303842. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Melanie W. Sisson et al., “Is Trump Reshaping the World Order?,” Brookings, February 2, 2026, https://www.brookings.edu/articles/is-trump-reshaping-the-world-order/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

Iran's BGP Behavior under Fire

Sun, 08 Mar 2026 10:00:00 -0700

Iran’s HTTP requests from February 24 to March 8, 2026 from the perspective of Cloudflare. Courtesy of Cloudflare Radar.

At approximately 06:15 UTC on February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel began air strikes against Iran. Less than two hours later, at around 08:00 UTC, Cloudflare Radar recorded HTTP traffic from Iran dropping to zero. The internet, by every observable measure of actual usage, went dark. But the BGP routes were never withdrawn from the global routing table.

To investigate further, I pulled 30 hours of BGP data from three RIPE RIS route collectors covering February 28, 00:00 UTC through March 1, 06:00 UTC. The three collectors were rrc00 in Amsterdam (a multi-hop collector with broad global peering), rrc13 in Moscow, and rrc26 in Dubai. Moscow and Dubai are particularly relevant here because of their geographic and network proximity to Iran’s upstream providers.

The dataset captures 7.3 million BGP update messages involving Iran’s three international gateway autonomous systems: AS49666 (Telecommunication Infrastructure Company, or TIC), AS12880 (Iran Information Technology Company, or ITCO), and AS6736 (Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, or IPM). For readers who want background on how these gateways form the funnel apex of Iran’s internet architecture, I covered that in detail in a previous post.

Air Strikes

The air strikes began at 06:15 UTC. For roughly two hours afterward, the BGP data from Iran’s gateways looked largely normal. Update volumes during the 06:00 and 07:00 UTC hours were elevated but not dramatically so compared to earlier in the day. Then, at approximately 08:00 UTC, Cloudflare Radar showed HTTP traffic from Iran collapsing to a flatline. NetBlocks.org confirmed the outage.

The BGP data during this throttle window tells its own story. There were zero route withdrawals. Across the entire 30-hour dataset not a single BGP WITHDRAW message was recorded for any prefix routed through Iran’s three international internet gateways.

This provides an excellent insight into the pragmatic approach by Iranian technocrats. Rather than withdrawing BGP routes, which would be immediately visible to the global routing community, the regime instead applied filtering or rate limiting at the application and transport layers. The routes stayed in the global routing table and packets could still technically reach Iranian address space. But HTTP traffic, DNS queries, and other application-layer protocols were being silently dropped or throttled at the gateway.

For the regime, this approach has a clear advantage. Withdrawn routes take time to reconverge when restored, and the act of withdrawal itself is a loud signal to the international community. Keeping routes announced while filtering traffic at a higher layer allows for faster restoration and less visible evidence of deliberate action to public observers.

Fluctuations

At 09:00 UTC, BGP events spiked considerably, which was about an hour after HTTP traffic out of Iran flatlined. The below table starts at 00:00 on February 28 and extends to March 1 at 06:00 UTC.

Hour (UTC)	Total Events	Unique Prefixes	TIC (AS49666)	ITCO (AS12880)	IPM (AS6736)
00:00	121,762	1,822	1,801	374	28
01:00	70,599	1,612	1,591	411	22
02:00	95,675	1,041	1,020	369	22
03:00	20,893	1,148	1,127	379	21
04:00	27,122	1,257	1,098	382	190
05:00	20,078	479	456	242	23
06:00	63,839	829	804	247	27
07:00	244,134	2,836	2,814	719	56
08:00	34,130	1,489	1,468	450	51
09:00	3,886,009	8,354	8,338	1,968	24
10:00	1,259,809	8,180	8,021	1,945	166
11:00	388,688	7,141	6,978	792	167
12:00	368,456	7,136	6,969	790	167
13:00	294,533	7,118	6,956	780	172
14:00	251,728	7,427	7,265	790	178
15:00	15,570	826	803	27	23
16:00	9,907	729	708	25	21
17:00	4,024	304	283	32	27
18:00	34,007	1,518	1,497	293	22
19:00	11,236	3,605	3,587	484	22
20:00	9,463	1,277	1,256	391	21
21:00	4,258	976	955	207	21
22:00	7,270	364	343	82	21
23:00	7,367	736	717	48	21
00:00	10,234	382	361	37	21
01:00	18,435	1,118	1,097	26	27
02:00	9,299	347	326	25	21
03:00	10,317	310	289	25	21
04:00	13,823	316	295	30	21
05:00	15,744	6,477	6,313	625	164
06:00	1,901	809	788	182	21

The 09:00 UTC hour alone produced 3.88 million BGP announcements. For context, the baseline hours before the strikes averaged roughly 50,000 to 120,000 events. This represents a 30x to 70x increase in BGP churn.

These were not withdrawals. They were announcements, the same prefixes being re-announced over and over with modified AS paths. This pattern is called route flapping, and it indicates that routers along the path were repeatedly losing and re-establishing BGP sessions, or that upstream providers were seeing constant path changes from Iranian networks.

The number of unique downstream autonomous systems visible in the update stream jumped from 227 during the baseline period to 557 during the spike. Networks that were quietly stable before the strikes suddenly began generating massive volumes of BGP chatter. The top contributors to this instability were Iranian ISPs sitting directly behind the TIC gateway:

AS	Name	Spike Events	Baseline Events	Increase
AS42337	Respina Networks	840,392	27,535	214x
AS43754	Asiatech Data Transmission	348,391	16,212	111x
AS48715	Sefroyek Pardaz Engineering	217,700	271	882x
AS49556	Hesab Rasam Rayaneh	142,728	0	N/A
AS62442	Fara Saba Aria	95,250	408	396x
AS214922	Unknown	86,977	0	N/A
AS204650	Unknown	76,175	0	N/A
AS198154	Tose-eh Fanavari Ertebat Pasargad	75,245	1,364	426x
AS41881	Iran Telecommunication Company	71,023	8,863	53x
AS50558	Ertebatat Zirsakht Shahr	69,485	0	N/A

Several of these networks went from near silence to generating tens or hundreds of thousands of BGP updates in a two-hour window. AS49556, AS214922, AS204650, AS200370, and AS51469 had produced zero BGP events during the baseline period and then suddenly appeared during the spike. This suggests that the instability was propagating outward from the gateways, affecting networks deeper in Iran’s routing hierarchy that are normally invisible to the global BGP table.

The AS path length data reinforces this picture. During baseline hours, the average AS path length for Iranian routes was 6.9 hops, with roughly 19% of announcements containing path prepending (consecutive duplicate ASNs in the path). During the 09:00 UTC spike, the average path length jumped to 8.7 hops, and 39.2% of all announcements contained prepending.

Period	Avg Path Length	Prepending %	Total Announcements
Baseline (00:00–05:00)	6.9	19.1%	336,051
Strikes begin, pre-throttle (06:00–08:00)	6.4	12.8%	307,973
HTTP Flatline (08:00–11:00)	8.3	33.8%	5,424,082
Elevated (11:00–15:00)	7.3	28.3%	1,303,405
Settling (15:00–24:00)	7.2	16.1%	103,102
Next day (Mar 1 00:00–06:00)	7.0	22.8%	77,852

Path prepending is often used deliberately by network operators to make certain routes less preferred. In a crisis scenario, it could indicate routers cycling through backup paths, upstream providers de-preferring Iranian routes, or Iranian operators themselves attempting to shift traffic between gateways. The 09:00 UTC explosion of prepending suggests that whatever was happening inside Iran’s network was creating widespread path instability that rippled outward through every upstream provider peering with TIC and ITCO.

The most striking behavior in the dataset belongs to ITCO (AS12880), Iran’s second-largest international gateway. ITCO carried 88,603 routes in the RIB table at midnight UTC and was actively participating in normal BGP operations through the early morning hours. Then, during the spike at 09:00 UTC, ITCO generated over 2 million BGP updates in two hours, its networks clearly caught in the same instability cascade as TIC.

At approximately 10:40 UTC, ITCO effectively went silent.

Time (UTC)	ITCO Events	Unique Prefixes
09:00	244,728	1,173
09:05	275,719	1,936
09:10	241,587	1,166
09:15	80,291	1,235
09:20	58,781	580
09:25	208,871	1,171
09:30	67,642	533
09:35	309,832	1,140
09:40	331,232	1,183
09:45	194,015	1,145
09:50	839	225
09:55	43,763	325
10:00	262,198	1,360
10:05	930	52
10:10	873	306
10:15	3,639	1,924
10:20	70,063	947
10:25	303,279	1,136
10:30	4,638	1,168
10:35	971	252
10:40	8	4
10:45	850	94
10:50	132	7
10:55	41	4
11:00	153	4

The transition is dramatic. At 10:35, ITCO was still generating 971 events across 252 prefixes. Five minutes later, it produced 8 events across 4 prefixes. By 11:00 UTC, it was generating single-digit events per five-minute window.

The RIB table snapshots confirm this was not temporary. At midnight UTC, ITCO was visible in routes to 1,975 unique prefixes. By the 16:00 UTC RIB snapshot, that number had dropped to 787, a 60% reduction. It never recovered during the observation window. The March 1 midnight snapshot still showed 787 prefixes.

This did not happen through explicit BGP withdrawals. Remember, zero withdrawals were observed across the entire dataset. Instead, ITCO’s routes simply aged out of the global routing table as neighboring routers stopped hearing announcements for those prefixes. When a BGP speaker stops sending keepalive messages or route refreshes for a prefix, its peers will eventually remove that route from their RIB after the hold timer expires (typically 90 seconds by default, though many operators configure longer timers). The route disappears, but no withdrawal message is ever generated by the originating AS.

This is a different kind of silence than the HTTP requests flatline. The application-layer throttle at 08:00 UTC was a deliberate policy action, a filter applied while keeping the routing infrastructure intact. ITCO’s disappearance at 10:40 UTC looks more like infrastructure failure, whether from physical damage to network equipment, power loss at critical facilities, or a deliberate decision to take ITCO’s international links offline.

AS6736, the academic gateway operated by the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, barely registered on any of this. Its BGP activity remained flat throughout the entire 30-hour period, generating between 21 and 190 unique prefix updates per hour regardless of what was happening around it. The RIB snapshots show it lost only 4 of its 192 prefixes.

This makes sense given IPM’s role. It primarily serves academic and research institutions, not commercial ISPs. Its traffic volume and prefix count are tiny compared to TIC or ITCO. Whatever filtering or instability was affecting the commercial gateways either spared IPM or was irrelevant to its much smaller footprint.

Across all three gateways, the overall picture is one of contraction. The RIB table at rrc00 showed 8,689 unique Iranian prefixes at midnight UTC on February 28. By 16:00 UTC that same day, that number had fallen to 7,526. A total of 1,169 prefixes disappeared from the global routing table.

RIB Snapshot	Unique Prefixes	TIC Prefixes	ITCO Prefixes	IPM Prefixes
Feb 28, 00:00 UTC	8,689	8,529	1,975	192
Feb 28, 08:00 UTC	8,629	—	—	—
Feb 28, 16:00 UTC	7,526	7,373	787	188
Mar 1, 00:00 UTC	7,526	7,373	787	188

None of those 1,169 prefixes returned by the March 1 midnight snapshot. The routing table contracted and stayed contracted. For the networks behind those prefixes, this represents a complete loss of global reachability, not because someone sent a withdrawal message, but because the routers that were announcing those routes stopped talking.

The BGP data from those 30 hours reveals a layered sequence. The air strikes began at 06:15 UTC. The Iranian government’s response came roughly two hours later at 08:00 UTC: application-layer filtering that killed HTTP traffic while leaving the routing infrastructure untouched. This is consistent with the regime’s established practice of throttling internet access during crises, likely triggered here by the need to control information flow once strikes were underway.

Then came the uncontrolled variable. An hour after the throttle, Iranian networks experienced a massive instability event that generated millions of BGP updates, caused widespread path prepending, and ultimately led to the partial disappearance of ITCO as a functioning international gateway. Whether this instability was caused by physical damage to networking infrastructure, power disruptions at critical facilities, or a deliberate decision to consolidate traffic through TIC alone is impossible to determine from BGP data alone.

What the data does make clear is the distinction between these two events. The throttle didn’t specifically show up in BGP data. However, the infrastructure failure was recorded across millions of events. And the routing table shows us what remained: 1,169 prefixes that went dark and hadn’t come back 24 hours later.

For a country whose entire internet architecture depends on two commercial gateways and one academic link, losing 60% of one gateway’s routing capacity in the span of ten minutes is significant. Iran’s centralized internet design gives the government the ability to control information flow during a crisis. It also means that when that infrastructure is damaged, there is no redundancy to absorb the loss.

Replication

The data used in this analysis is publicly available from RIPE RIS. RIPE NCC archives all BGP update and RIB table dumps at data.ris.ripe.net. The files follow a predictable naming convention: updates.YYYYMMDD.HHMM.gz for five-minute update intervals and bview.YYYYMMDD.HHMM.gz for periodic RIB snapshots.

I used the BGPKIT parser library for Python (pybgpkit) to read the MRT files. Each BGP update element exposes the timestamp, prefix, AS path, origin ASN, element type (announcement or withdrawal), and other attributes. The core of the analysis is a filter: for every update element, check whether AS49666, AS12880, or AS6736 appears anywhere in the AS path.

Here is the script that extracts all Iranian gateway-related events from the update files:

import pybgpkit_parser
import os
import json

IRAN_GATEWAY_ASNS = {49666, 12880, 6736}
DATA_DIR = "/path/to/ris-data"

results = []

for rrc in ["rrc00", "rrc13", "rrc26"]:
 rrc_dir = os.path.join(DATA_DIR, rrc)
 files = sorted([f for f in os.listdir(rrc_dir) if f.startswith("updates.")])

 for fname in files:
 fpath = os.path.join(rrc_dir, fname)
 parser = pybgpkit_parser.Parser(fpath)
 for elem in parser:
 as_path_str = elem.as_path or ""
 as_path_list = [int(x) for x in as_path_str.split() if x.isdigit()]
 if IRAN_GATEWAY_ASNS.intersection(set(as_path_list)):
 results.append({
 "rrc": rrc,
 "timestamp": elem.timestamp,
 "type": elem.elem_type,
 "prefix": elem.prefix,
 "as_path": as_path_str,
 "peer_asn": elem.peer_asn,
 "origin_asns": str(elem.origin_asns),
 })

with open("iran_bgp_events.json", "w") as f:
 json.dump(results, f)

This script produces the hourly event table shown above:

import json
from datetime import datetime, timezone
from collections import defaultdict

with open("iran_bgp_events.json") as f:
 events = json.load(f)

hourly_announce = defaultdict(int)
hourly_withdraw = defaultdict(int)
hourly_pfx = defaultdict(set)
gateway_hourly_pfx = {49666: defaultdict(set), 12880: defaultdict(set), 6736: defaultdict(set)}

for e in events:
 dt = datetime.fromtimestamp(e["timestamp"], tz=timezone.utc)
 hour_key = dt.strftime("%m-%d %H:00")

 if e["type"] == "A":
 hourly_announce[hour_key] += 1
 else:
 hourly_withdraw[hour_key] += 1

 hourly_pfx[hour_key].add(e["prefix"])
 as_path_list = [int(x) for x in e["as_path"].split() if x.isdigit()] if e["as_path"] else []

 for gw in [49666, 12880, 6736]:
 if gw in as_path_list:
 gateway_hourly_pfx[gw][hour_key].add(e["prefix"])

for h in sorted(hourly_announce.keys()):
 print(
 h,
 hourly_announce[h],
 hourly_withdraw.get(h, 0),
 len(hourly_pfx[h]),
 len(gateway_hourly_pfx[49666][h]),
 len(gateway_hourly_pfx[12880][h]),
 len(gateway_hourly_pfx[6736][h]),
 )

The RIB table comparison, which reveals the 1,169 lost prefixes, parses the bview files the same way and compares prefix sets across snapshots:

import pybgpkit_parser

def get_rib_prefixes(bview_path):
 parser = pybgpkit_parser.Parser(bview_path)
 prefixes = set()
 for elem in parser:
 as_path_list = [int(x) for x in elem.as_path.split() if x.isdigit()] if elem.as_path else []
 if {49666, 12880, 6736}.intersection(set(as_path_list)):
 prefixes.add(elem.prefix)
 return prefixes

pre = get_rib_prefixes("rrc00/bview.20260228.0000.gz")
post = get_rib_prefixes("rrc00/bview.20260228.1600.gz")

lost = pre - post
print(f"Prefixes before: {len(pre)}")
print(f"Prefixes after: {len(post)}")
print(f"Lost: {len(lost)}")

BGP data was sourced from RIPE RIS route collectors rrc00 (Amsterdam, Netherlands), rrc13 (Moscow, Russia), and rrc26 (Dubai, UAE). Update files and RIB table dumps were parsed using the BGPKIT parser library. The analysis filtered for all BGP update messages where AS49666, AS12880, or AS6736 appeared anywhere in the AS path, capturing both direct announcements from these gateways and updates from their downstream networks. All timestamps are in UTC.

Street Photography at Sundance Film Festival 2026

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 18:00:00 -0700

Western mob wife appears to have been the overarching clothing aesthetic at the last Sundance Film Festival in the state of Utah. Luckily for me, the look didn’t reflect the demeanor and most people were excited to get paparazzi’d on Park City’s Main Street. There was a lot of nervous laughter and reverse cat calling during my time roaming the streets.

Although I have lived near Salt Lake City for some time it never crossed my mind to attend the festival. It was always this impenetrable force of chaos that snarled Park City for several weeks in January. But I decided to change that this year, mostly because it will be moving to Colorado in 2027 and I wanted the chance to be able to say, “yeah, I’ve been to Sundance.”

Besides pacing Main Street, I saw two films. The first was Rafael Manuel’s politically brilliant Filipiñana. It follows a day in the life of a tee girl at an opulent country club. The country club is essentially a placeholder for the richness of the Philippines as a nation being reserved for the rich and powerful. With that comes a vivid and horrifying display of social power structures. Many of these social critiques from Mr. Manuel hit rather close to home since there are many Filipinos in my life that understand this dynamic all too well.

The second film I saw was Kogonada’s zi, which was quite a bit more abstract and surreal. We follow a young woman walking through Hong Kong in a perpetual search for herself. And I mean that literally. The Sundance Film Festival’s synopsis for this movie was, “somewhere between sci-fi and supernatural,” which is the only helpful description you’ll get prior to watching it. The film does evoke a variety of emotions that are too dense for my caveman sensibilities.

Anatomy of Iran's Internet

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 10:00:00 -0700

I’m slightly addicted to reading the news but I often forget about the Gell-Mann amnesia effect. This describes the phenomenon where if you’re an expert in a field you can spot lots of errors and problems with news articles in your given field but return to absolute trust once you read another article within a field you know nothing about. The subjects of network infrastructure and border gateway protocol (BGP) are not often closely examined in most newspapers so I’m usually in a state of blissful ignorance.

However, with the recent prolonged shutdown of Iran’s internet amid national protests¹ there were repeated descriptions of some sort of national kill switch deployed by the government. This evokes an image of a giant industrial switch in a datacenter that gets dramatically switched once a call is received on the nearby red phone. While this makes for a good headline, it reduces the nuances of modern network infrastructure to a caricature. To be fair to some journalists, such as Mehul Srivastava and Chris Campbell, there exists some reporting that is technically very much on point.²

But does the nuance in this particular case matter? I think it matters quite a bit, mostly because this national strategy is very similar to what has already been deployed in China and Russia, among other internet restricted nations. It threatens the underlying notion of an unrestricted public internet where governments can shape and suppress their citizens access to information and ability to participate in civic dialogue. Awareness of the architecture of your suppression doesn’t make you any less suppressed but it certainly presents you with more options than ignorance.

National Information Network

To explore the details a bit further we have to go back to the formation of Iran’s National Information Network (NIN). Understanding Iran’s current internet architecture requires an examination of this network. It establishes the regime’s view of the global internet as an adversarial and hostile territory.

The NIN architectural framework involves two major design points. The first was a sovereign national intranet that formed an internal network within the confines of Iran. Cut off from the wider international internet, this intranet would offer services and function under the control of state regulations. The second design required a complete and total aggregation of international gateways to entities controlled by the government. Consolidating this connectivity ensures that citizens access only government-approved international content.

To understand the anatomy of the internet in Iran you have to abandon the Western conception of the World Wide Web as a global commons, public utility, or even the endeavor of a private company. Leaving the task of connecting your citizens across international borders to a variety of private companies is both inefficient and fractious if your primary goal is information control.

In the pragmatic approach of the Islamic Republic, the internet is viewed primarily as a contested territory and is a domain of conflict where losing the battle of information warfare is a threat to the stability of the state. The system is designed to resolve the authoritarian dilemma of how to harvest the economic benefits of digital connectivity without importing the political risks of the open web.

The architecture relies on a fundamental bifurcation between the international internet, a heavily filtered bridge to the outside world, and the NIN, a hermetically sealed domestic intranet. This design allows the state to throttle or filter international connections during unrest. Meanwhile, the domestic intranet remains operational for banking, administrative services, and internal propaganda. The NIN is a digital fortress built to keep foreign culture out and to entrap the Iranian population within a controllable digital environment.

The architectural proposal for the NIN was spoken about in the early 2000s but didn’t take off in adoption and implementation until after the protests of the disputed 2009 presidential election.³ During the 2009 Green Movement, where protesters utilized platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and SMS messaging to organize against the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian officials began to see the influence of the international internet as a source of vulnerability⁴ for state control. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei later codified Iran’s official view, claiming that Western digital influence was a cultural invasion designed to undermine Iran.⁵ This led to the reinforcement of the regime’s ideology that relying on Western communication infrastructure was an intolerable national security vulnerability, and only further motivated the adoption of the NIN architecture to create a localized internet.

During the early deployment of the NIN, officials described its purpose in moralistic, benign terms. Building the NIN was about establishing a “pure” internet that was “free from immoral, corrupt, and violent content.”⁶ In tandem to this pure internet there would also be the international internet, which citizens would still have access. In hindsight this was patently false.

Another interesting point of the early days of NIN deployment was research done by Collin Anderson and colleagues in Iran were their mapping of the growing intranet inside Iran in late 2012.⁷ Much of the address space used by intranet assets were within RFC 1918 IP address space. In Mr. Anderson’s research he was able to map out several government, telecommunications, and academic assets within the country’s internal infrastructure. This does not necessarily prove anything behind the political intentions of the NIN in 2012 but simply shows it was growing rapidly.

Domain	IP Address	Ownership
lib.atu.ac.ir	10.24.96.14	Allameh Tabatabaie University
mdhc.ir	10.30.5.163	Vice Presidency for Management Development and Human Capital
iranmardom.ir	10.30.5.148	Vice Presidency for Management Development and Human Capital
erp.msrt.ir	10.30.55.29	Ministry of Science, Research and Technology
ou.imamreza.ac.ir	10.56.51.27	Imam Reza University
tehranedu.ir	10.30.95.7	Tehran Education Organization
sanaad.ir	10.30.170.142	Private Individual
ww3.isaco.ir	10.21.201.50	Iran Khodro Spare Parts & After-sales Services Company
iiees.ac.ir	192.168.8.9 169.254.78.139 194.227.17.14	International Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Seismology
tci-khorasan.ir	10.10.3.2 217.219.65.5 10.1.2.0	Telecommunication Company of Iran, Khorasan
adsl.yazdtelecom.ir	10.144.0.14	Telecommunications Company of Iran, Yazd
iranhrc.ir	46.36.117.51 10.30.74.3	Private Individual
acc4.pishgaman.net	81.12.49.108 10.8.218.4	Pishgaman, ADSL Access Provider
lib.uma.ac.ir	10.116.2.5	University of Mohaghegh Ardabili
film.medu.ir	10.30.170.110	Ministry Of Education
shirazedc.co.ir	10.175.28.172	Shiraz Electric Distribution Company

While the initial driver for building the NIN was political censorship it didn’t start getting momentum until the presidency of Hassan Rouhani from 2013–2021 due to economic necessity. Paradoxically, the moderate Rouhani administration accelerated the NIN’s development more effectively than its hardline predecessors. By investing heavily in local data centers and Internet Exchange Points (IXPs), they improved connection speeds and stability for domestic traffic. To incentivize adoption, Iran mandated a price differentiation policy: bandwidth for domestic NIN traffic is sold at a fifty percent discount compared to international traffic.⁸ These measures fostered an environment for domestic technology growth that is apparent with the number of applications and services available to Iranians that were intended to be a substitute to their international counterparts.⁹

Architecture

The physical reality of Iran’s internet is defined by extreme centralization. At the apex of this funnel sits the Telecommunication Infrastructure Company (TIC). This state-owned enterprise under the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) holds a legal monopoly on all international bandwidth, acting as the sole importer and wholesaler of internet capacity.¹⁰ No private ISP in Iran, whether it be Shatel, Pars Online, or AsiaTech, can purchase bandwidth directly from a foreign carrier.¹¹ All international bandwidth has to come from the TIC.

The only other entity at this funnel apex is through a lab at the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM) as part of the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology.¹² While this lab has the only other international gateway in the country, it primarily serves academic and research oriented downstream autonomous systems while TIC serves more generalized downstream clients. This consolidated architecture ensures that Iran maintains absolute control at the few international gateways where internet connectivity crosses the national border.

In 2020 there were some brief exceptions to this centralization rule. There were actually 2 autonomous systems that had their own international gateway connections independent of the TIC.¹³ However, both AS31549 and AS60976 have since been repatriated behind a TIC international gateway. The Article 19 organization was unable to determine why this move toward decentralization was occurring at the time. Regardless, it has since been normalized back to the status quo.

Centralization of Iran’s internet can be viewed by anyone in the world with some minor border gateway protocol (BGP) knowledge. This is the mechanism for how the modern internet is stitched together across an impressive amount of separate autonomous systems (AS). The fundamental architecture of the NIN requires all downstream AS to get their upstream internet connectivity through state owned entities. This approximately means that any AS you locate in Iran will eventually have connectivity through either TIC or IPM before it reaches any portion of the international internet. The so called funnel apex for the country.

Aria Shatel’s upstream connectivity per bgp.tools.

If I take the top ten AS located in Iran, as rated by cone size, we can see this centralization in action. For clarification, cone size refers to the amount of downstream AS from a specific AS. This usually approximately indicates the importance and type of network of a particular AS.

AS	Name	Peer Rank	AS Cone Rank	Upstream AS
AS49666	Telecommunication Infrastructure Company	#12 (19)	#1 (580)	External
AS12880	Iran Information Technology Company PJSC	#12 (19)	#2 (261)	External
AS41689	Asiatech Data Transmission company	#23 (2)	#3 (259)	AS49666
AS43754	Asiatech Data Transmission company	#4 (80)	#4 (258)	AS49666
AS42337	Respina Networks & Beyond PJSC	#2 (143)	#5 (224)	AS49666
AS58224	Iran Telecommunication Company PJS	#3 (96)	#6 (104)	AS49666
AS49100	Pishgaman Toseeh Ertebatat Company	#5 (36)	#7 (65)	AS41689
AS25184	Afranet	#6 (35)	#8 (56)	AS49666
AS42440	Rayaneh Danesh Golestan Complex P.J.S. Co.	#23 (2)	#9 (44)	AS49666
AS16322	Parsan Lin Co. PJS	#18 (7)	#10 (42)	AS49666

Consolidation through the TIC certainly dominates upstream connectivity for most entities within Iran. It isn’t until twelfth place that the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (AS6736) comes into play. Other AS under the same organization umbrella such as AS34837, AS35285, or AS39200 all get their upstream connectivity through the primary AS6736.

Respina Network’s upstream connectivity per bgp.tools.

Beyond the international gateways is the realm of the NIN as it serves the internal network of Iran. Much of the intranet architecture resembles normal network designs for cloud applications. Service providers aggregate their user connectivity and funnel it toward IXPs to get the best latency to applications running in the closest datacenters. Hesam Norouz Pour has outlined a simplified typology¹⁴ of NIN:

 [Internet]
 |
 v
[International Gateways]
 |
 v
[National Exchange Points]
 |
 v
 [Edge Clouds] <------> [Data Centers / CDNs]
 |
 v
[Aggregation Network]
 |
 v
[Internet Service Provider]
 |
 v
 [End Users]

As you can see from the simplified diagram, if Iran ever needed to shut down access to the internet it would not directly impact users ability to connect to domestic services and applications. The theory being that it would be easy to cut off the flow of international propaganda while the domestic life of citizens remained unaffected. However, this proves difficult if the actual information you are trying to stop is between citizens within the country. Group chats, message boards, and unsanctioned news articles can all freely circulate within Iran’s intranet without the need for the international internet. The Iranian government’s approach to addressing this vulnerability has been evolving along with protestors.

During the 2009 protests, the government responded simply by blocking a handful of websites and search keywords.¹⁵ Things got slightly more advanced during the 2017 protests, however, citizens were able to side step restrictions rather easily with virtual private networks (VPNs). Once protests in 2019 started up the government showed the muscles of consolidation internet connectivity and plunged the country into a week of total internet blackout, including the NIN intranet.¹⁶ Later protests in 2022 and the summer of 2025 met similar fates. Even though approximately 87% of Iranians rely on a subscription-based VPN¹⁷ it becomes rather useless during a total internet blackout.

Starlink

The introduction of Starlink satellite internet into Iran represents a fundamental shift in the struggle between digital activists and the state’s censorship apparatus. While the Iranian government has spent decades constructing a sophisticated domestic intranet to isolate its citizens during crises, the proliferation of Starlink terminals has sidestepped these digital barricades, creating a formidable challenge to state-enforced information blackouts. Imagine a simplified network topology for Iranian users:

 [Internet]
 |
 v
[End Users]

The widespread usage of Starlink in Iran did not happen rapidly. The smuggling of hardware took years of clandestine preparation which was triggered by the violent protests of 2022.¹⁸ Following the internet shutdowns of that year, civil society groups and activists began strategizing to bypass land-based censorship infrastructure entirely. This effort was significantly aided by a 2022 U.S. government sanctions exemption, coordinated with the State Department,¹⁹ which allowed American technology companies like SpaceX to offer digital communication tools in Iran.

Encouraged by Elon Musk’s activation of the service for Iran in 2022, a complex smuggling network emerged. Activists and merchants utilized routes through neighboring countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Iraqi Kurdistan, Armenia, and Afghanistan, to sneak the hardware across the border. By early 2026, an estimated 50,000 Starlink terminals²⁰ were operating inside the country. While initially used by human rights activists and journalists, a black market eventually developed where wealthy Iranians paid between $700 and $800 per terminal²¹ to access restricted platforms like Instagram and YouTube. These devices were hidden in discreet locations, such as rooftops, awaiting the next inevitable blackout.

The true strategic value of this infrastructure was tested in January 2026, when the Iranian government implemented one of the most severe internet shutdowns in its history to quell growing unrest. As land-based connections were logically severed and the country entered a digital blackout, the Starlink terminals became a critical lifeline. Unlike previous shutdowns where information flow was successfully choked off, this unfettered access to the international internet allowed images of state violence, including troops firing on protesters, to reach the outside world.²²

The impact of the technology was amplified by financial intervention from SpaceX. On January 13, 2026, amid the internet blackout, SpaceX waived service fees for users in Iran.²³ People could connect to the international internet simply by turning on their Starlink terminals, bypassing the hundreds of millions of dollars the Iranian government spent on building the NIN over the previous two decades. Additionally, Iranian developers devised technical workarounds to maximize the reach of the few available terminals, building tools to share connections and turn single terminals into gateways for others located farther away.²⁴ Perhaps some sort of private network with the neighborhood Starlink terminal serving as a gateway router.

I can imagine the government’s frustration with this development. Realizing that its domestic intranet had become effectively useless, the regime escalated its response in an attempt to stop the connectivity link. They began deploying GPS jamming equipment in targeted raids, which are required for Starlink equipment to function.²⁵ Such tactics are rarely seen outside of active battlefields like Ukraine. The raids focused its jamming efforts on neighborhoods near major universities to force students offline. Despite these aggressive countermeasures, the decentralized nature of the Starlink network has proven difficult to fully suppress. GPS jamming and radio interference could be effective in a dense urban environments but is almost impossible in the dispersed countryside.

The Iranian regime faces an escalating challenge as newer mobile devices integrate Starlink capabilities, removing the need for bulky physical terminals. The government could still interfere with Starlink operations through GPS jamming and radio interference but they’ll no longer be able to easily identify locations to action without external Starlink antennas.

The growing usage of Starlink marks a significant failure for the state’s attempt to maintain a total monopoly on information. While the penetration of Starlink shows a weakness in the NIN it does not herald the end of it. The bulk of domestic network traffic still traverses the state controlled NIN. However, it will be interesting to see at what threshold that matters if the information the government is trying to control leaks through an unregulated Starlink.

Farnaz Fassihi, Pranav Baskar, and Sanam Mahoozi, “Iran Is Cut off from Internet as Protests Calling for Regime Change Intensify,” The New York Times, January 9, 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/world/middleeast/iran-protests-internet-shutdown.html. ↩︎
Mehul Srivastava and Chris Campbell, “State shuts off internet but smuggled Starlink devices keep link to world,” Financial Times, January 15, 2026, p. 3. ↩︎
Hesam Norouz Pour, “The Dual Role of Iran’s National Information Network: A Primer,” European University Institute, November 2025, https://cadmus.eui.eu/server/api/core/bitstreams/1fc28765-10e6-4e6b-9335-9c260a8dea5a/content. ↩︎
Calla O’Neil, “Iran’s Digital Fortress: The Rise of the National Information Network,” American Foreign Policy Council: Iran Strategy Brief, August 2025, https://www.afpc.org/uploads/documents/Iran_Strategy_Brief_No._16_-_August_2025.pdf. ↩︎
Khosro Sayeh Isfahani, “The Internet Has No Place in Khamenei’s Vision for Iran’s Future,” Atlantic Council, July 25, 2022, https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/iransource/the-internet-has-no-place-in-khameneis-vision-for-irans-future/. ↩︎
The Citizen Lab, “Iran’s National Information Network: Faster Networks, More Censorship,” The Citizen Lab, April 24, 2024, https://citizenlab.ca/irans-national-information-network/. ↩︎
Collin Anderson, “The Hidden Internet of Iran: Private Address Space on a National Scale,” arXiv:1209.6398 [cs.NI], September 28, 2012, https://arxiv.org/abs/1209.6398. ↩︎
Matthew P. Laney, “The National Information Network of Iran: A Strategic Technical and Legal Analysis” (Master’s thesis, Naval Postgraduate School, 2020), DTIC (AD1107324), December 2019, https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/AD1107324.pdf. ↩︎
Armen Shahbazian, “Analysis: The Growth of Domestic Messaging Apps in Iran,” BBC Monitoring, July 23, 2018, https://monitoring.bbc.co.uk/product/c20041be. ↩︎
Collin Anderson, “The Hidden Internet of Iran,” ↩︎
ARTICLE 19, Iran: Tightening the Net 2020: After Blood and Shutdowns (London: ARTICLE 19, September 2020), https://www.article19.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/TTN-report-2020.pdf. ↩︎
Mehul Srivastava and Chris Campbell, “State shuts off internet,” ↩︎
ARTICLE 19, Iran: Tightening the Net 2020. ↩︎
Hesam Norouz Pour, “The Dual Role of Iran’s National Information Network,” ↩︎
O’Neil, “Iran’s Digital Fortress,” 2. ↩︎
O’Neil, “Iran’s Digital Fortress,” 3. ↩︎
O’Neil, “Iran’s Digital Fortress,” 5. ↩︎
Adam Satariano, Paul Mozur, and Sheera Frenkel. “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink to Stay Online.” The New York Times, January 16, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/technology/iran-online-starlink.html?campaign_id=2&emc=edit_th_20260116&instance_id=169402&nl=today%27s-headlines®i_id=69207950&segment_id=213781&user_id=8eca66a41bad4639d6a80be52119fbd8. ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎
Natallie Rocha, “Starlink Users in Iran Get Free Internet Access, Nonprofits Say,” The New York Times, January 14, 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/technology/iran-starlink-elon-musk.html. ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎
Satariano, “How Activists in Iran Are Using Starlink” ↩︎

Chrome Featured Extension Is Actually A Scraper Network

Sun, 11 Jan 2026 10:30:00 -0700

Update on January 30, 2026: A MyBib developer contacted me about this extension’s behavior. They confirmed that this was expected behavior and it was how they were pooling the retrieval of user citation requests. The instance where my computer downloaded several PDF files was a bug that has since been fixed. MyBib has updated the language in the Chrome Web Store to reflect the reality of what the extension was doing in the background.

Note: In order to keep MyBib free, the MyBib extension may, from time to time, utilize unused bandwidth to crowdsource the collection of citation data for everyone citing on MyBib. This is anonymous and only occurs when your browser is not being used.

tl;dr Popular Chrome extension MyBib uses your computer to scrape random educational websites.

I was downloading some files a few weeks ago and noticed something strange. I didn’t recognize two PDF files in my Downloads folder. They had the timestamp of 4:23 a.m. and 3:05 a.m. Uh, what the hell? Like any good security technologist I raw dogged those files and opened them up to see what they were. The first was “The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC): Challenges for the Islamic World” by Dr. Ghulam Mustafa and Nusrat Bano. Not exactly in my area of interest in Political Science but perhaps I downloaded them unintentionally. Maybe I was clicking around too fast on some random site.

The second file was a master’s thesis from Fantahun Ali Amedie, titled “Impacts of Climate Change on Plant Growth, Ecosystem Services, Biodiversity, and Potential Adaptation Measure.” I’m not really an atmospheric science person so this being on my computer made a lot less sense. Also, the early morning retrieval time alarmed me. I asked my wife jokingly if she was doing some late night research on my computer while I was sleeping.

I reviewed my Chrome history and sure enough there were the entries at the right times. Somehow my Chrome was going to websites when I wasn’t around. But looking closer there were even more requests all through the night! Uh, what the hell? All of them went to this domain called ResearchGate. Who were these bastards and what had they done to my computer? I looked them up. While commercial, they were at least legitimate. They were an aspiring social networking site for scientists and researchers.¹

My paranoia was in a weird state at this point. Initially, I assumed this errant traffic was limited to browsing random academic studies. It was odd but not a serious emergency. Like almost as if a script kiddie that only wore tweed jackets with elbow patches had taken over a portion of my computer.

But my paranoia kept solidifying. I had recently witnessed a close family friend rebuild their digital life after a SIM swap attack. This person had spent weeks reestablishing themselves back into the modern world. It wasn’t something I wanted to live through and had spent the past weekend updating old passwords, adding two factor authentication where missing, and generally securing things.

I took to Google, though I stalled when phrasing the search. It wasn’t as if my computer was going to random websites you’d normally associate with malware. My computer was in its academic arc and was obsessed with ResearchGate. I typed in computer going to researchgate randomly. I got results for how to add an article on ResearchGate. Not very helpful. I pulled back a little broader and tried computer going to random sites. Yes, potentially malware but why only this academic ResearchGate site?

While I had Malwarebytes doing a scan I kept searching through Reddit and forum posts. Many of the conclusions were that certain Chrome extensions could be responsible for such erratic behavior. But I had only six extensions and most were either Chrome Featured or had millions of users.

The Malwarebytes scan returned zero results. My only remaining option was to scorch the earth and restore Chrome to its default settings. I deleted all six of my installed extensions and sanitized other custom settings. The only way to tell if anything worked was to wait a few days to see if random browsing was still taking place. Luckily, this happened over the holidays and I had plenty of time.

After a week there was no new late night activity. Such a relief! It felt like my house’s front door finally had a lock on it again. I had broadly isolated the cause to a random extension I was using. I re-added three extensions, choosing them purely by the number of users. One had as few as 3,000. This approach might seem arbitrary, but sketchy behavior would likely evade detection more easily on a less popular extension.

I waited another week and nothing happened. Then I realized the academic nature of the random browsing provided the biggest clue. Out of the remaining 3 extensions I had yet to test, two were citation generators, Scribbr and MyBib. Yes, I realize I’m a lazy bastard for using such extensions but it takes the busy work out of writing a citation. I’m a firm believer that citations are massively superior to hyperlinks, as you can see on any past articles on this blog. They maintain an adequate amount of information needed to look up a source in the inevitable case that a hyperlink URL rots away.

I re-installed Scribbr and waited. A week later nothing had happened. So I moved on to MyBib. A few hours after re-installing it I noticed out of the corner of my eye a new tab pop up and then rapidly disappear. Uh, what the hell? In my Chrome history it showed I had just gone to another ResearchGate study. Ok, I found the source but I wanted to explore what exactly was happening.

I’m a network engineer by trade so my automatic reaction to most problems is a packet capture. This often isn’t very efficient because packet captures are overly verbose and require a great deal of refinement to reach what you are actually interested in finding. And after looking through Wireshark there was another problem, encrypted traffic. This exposed my lack of familiarity with Session Key Logging on macOS where you essentially dump the encryption keys Chrome is using to talk with the far end domain. You can then use this to decrypt the traffic. Perhaps there was something further up the OSI stack that I could use to find what I needed faster.

A quick Google search gave me a hint. If I enabled Developer mode on the Chrome extension page it would allow me to view each extension’s service worker and all the operations it was performing. Clicking on the service worker of an extension essentially opens a DevTools page that shows all the normal diagnostic tabs like sources, network, performance, memory, and application. So I opened the network tab and waited.

After a few hours I came back to a few results. I discovered that these sites were not exclusively ResearchGate. There were many other sites but only ResearchGate was showing up in my Chrome’s browsing history. What were these ghost requests? I could see that the extension was reaching out to them but the only record of them ever taking place was in this DevTools page. The frequency wasn’t blistering but still semi-frequent. All without my intervention.

Under the Initiator tab on a particular GET request I could see a script referenced: service_worker.js:1. I’m not well versed with coding and even less so with JavaScript so I asked my wife to help look at this script. Our goal was to find the part that had instructions for my computer to go to these random sites.

The code excerpt below stood out as the basis of how this particular extension was sending instructions to my computer through a WebSocket connection.

(n = new WebSocket(`wss://ws.mybib.com/?v=${t}`)).onopen = function() {
 console.log(">");
 const e = setInterval(( () => {
 n && 1 === n.readyState ? n.send("// stay alive") : clearInterval(e)
 }

I looked for traffic to this particular domain in the DevTools Network page. And sure enough, there was a live WebSocket connection to wss://ws.mybib.com/?v=1.2.4. Under it I could see these //stay alive messages going along at a quick 20 second interval.

My computer happily reporting for duty to the MyBib mothership on a regular 20 second cadence.

These keep alive messages appear to force my computer to check in with the MyBib servers and await instructions. They were only interrupted by random scrape instructions. Please, obedient zombie computer, issue a GET request to this particular URL and tell us what you find.

{
 "headers": {
 "Cache-Control": "no-cache"
 },
 "id": "cace6dfb5f7f46f0a7bd4f02c217eb1f",
 "url": "https://blog.reworld.eco/afforestation-vs-reforestation-whats-the-difference-and-why-do-they-matter-46730cbce304",
 "method": "GET",
 "data": "",
 "useTab": false,
 "listenForRequestUrl": null,
 "listenForRequestContentString": null
}

And then a few minutes later my computer would respond with the scrape request. Notice how the id field matches. I assume this is how the MyBib server keeps track of multiple scrape requests. Please note I abbreviated the output. It was the entire HTML of the page. The real point I wanted to make with this output was the id and useTab parameters.

{
 "id": "cace6dfb5f7f46f0a7bd4f02c217eb1f",
 "response": {
 "data": "<!doctype html><html lang=\"en\"><head><title data-rh=\"true\">Afforestation vs Reforestation: What’s the Difference and Why Do They Matter? | by Matthew Wheatley | ReWorld</title>
...
...
 "withCredentials": true,
 "id": "cace6dfb5f7f46f0a7bd4f02c217eb1f",
 "url": "https://blog.reworld.eco/afforestation-vs-reforestation-whats-the-difference-and-why-do-they-matter-46730cbce304",
 "method": "get",
 "data": null,
 "useTab": false,
 "listenForRequestUrl": null,
 "listenForRequestContentString": null
 },
 "request": {}
 }
}

Here is another scrape request from MyBib:

{
 "headers": {
 "Cache-Control": "no-cache"
 },
 "id": "4a6398b5aa304e5a9e5f7b8722a5398f",
 "url": "https://www.lonelyplanet.com/turkey/aegean-coast/pamukkale/attractions/necropolis/a/poi-sig/1262860/360866",
 "method": "GET",
 "data": "",
 "useTab": false,
 "listenForRequestUrl": null,
 "listenForRequestContentString": null
}

And my abbreviated computer’s reply with the same id.

{
 "id": "4a6398b5aa304e5a9e5f7b8722a5398f",
 "response": {
 "data": "<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><meta charSet=\"utf-8\"/><meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width, initial-scale=1\"/><meta property=\"fb:app_id\" content=\"111537044496\"/><meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lonely Planet\"
...
...
 "withCredentials": true,
 "id": "4a6398b5aa304e5a9e5f7b8722a5398f",
 "url": "https://www.lonelyplanet.com/turkey/aegean-coast/pamukkale/attractions/necropolis/a/poi-sig/1262860/360866",
 "method": "get",
 "data": null,
 "useTab": false,
 "listenForRequestUrl": null,
 "listenForRequestContentString": null
 },
 "request": {}
 }
}

Surprisingly, the behavior of opening ghost tabs in Chrome was rather rare for MyBib. It took me almost half a day of watching to see a request and to match that up to my Chrome browsing history. It appears this is needed due to some strict websites that enforce particular user agents or other technical limitations of the previously shared headless GET requests. Below is an example with useTab set to true:

{
 "headers": {
 "Cache-Control": "no-cache"
 },
 "id": "15eea559f90f4677bc1473a05c1fdb09",
 "url": "https://www.researchgate.net/publication/250014950_Threatening_revisited",
 "method": "GET",
 "data": "",
 "useTab": true,
 "listenForRequestUrl": null,
 "listenForRequestContentString": null
}

And then my abbreviated computer’s reply:

{
 "id": "15eea559f90f4677bc1473a05c1fdb09",
 "response": {
 "data": "<html lang=\"en\"><head prefix=\"og: http://ogp.me/ns#\">\n <meta charset=\"utf-8\">\n <meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text/html; charset=UTF-8\">\n <meta name=\"referrer\" content=\"origin-when-cross-origin\">\n 
...
...
 <title>(PDF) Threatening Revisited</title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"PDF | This paper considers the act of verbal threatening. I first examine what constitutes a verbal threat, concluding that it involves conveying both</div></body></html>",
 "status": 200
 }
}

We were able to identify the instructions for this behavior in the service worker JavaScript file. If useTab was set to true it would perform some shady behavior:

r.useTab)
 chrome.tabs.create({
 active: !1,
 pinned: !0,
 url: r.url
 }, (function(e) {

When active was specified as !1 it would prevent your Chrome window from becoming the front and center when the page request was processing. Certainly to avoid attracting the attention of users that might be currently working on the computer. The pinned specification of !0 makes a pinned tab, which is overall smaller in the top menu and further obfuscates the visual representation of the process if a user was actively paying attention.

The WebSocket record of instructions my computer received from the MyBib extension. The red down arrows are the instructions and the green up arrows are my computer sending a response. This is from the DevTools page for the service worker of the extension.

I was able to replicate this extension’s behavior across different platforms. My own computer is running MacOS Sequoia 15.7.2 with Google Chrome version 143.0.7499.170. I also encountered the same scraping behavior on another computer I have that is running Windows 10 Pro (OS build 19045.5737) with Google Chrome version 143.0.7499.193. Both systems were running version 1.2.4 of the MyBib extension.

I’m honestly flabbergasted this extension is behaving this way. I never signed up to be part of a distributed scraper network meant to evade the rate limiting security measures of websites. The audacity to hijack your user’s computer is profoundly arrogant. Even for a free extension there are certain expectations around how things should behave in the realm of security. Or at the very least, some sort of communicated disclaimers around the realm of security. Maybe that is just my own flawed reasoning, which will undoubtedly be further jaded after this encounter?

I could understand the need for this on-demand scraping capability if you wanted to spread the compute load around. Take the fictional scenario where someone develops an extension but wants to keep it free, avoid subscriptions, and keep infrastructure costs low. This might require moving some of the compute burden onto the users. Instead of paying for widely distributed infrastructure you could instead just assign out the scraping task to a user who has your extension installed. A simple minor trade wherein the user pays with some compute for access to the free extension.

I could see this exchange playing out just fine in the modern world. All you’d need is a few sentences on your extension page saying this was the terms of exchange. Users could then expect to see scraping activity and know it was their paid cost to using the extension. However, this is not the case. There is absolutely no mention of this behavior on the MyBib extension page, which has over 1,000,000 Chrome users, their terms of service, or privacy policy pages.

MyBib’s actions don’t take place in a vacuum. They are a Featured extension in the Google Chrome Web Store. Google’s definition of this is kind of vague but should supposedly instill some level of confidence in whatever extension you are installing.

Featured extensions follow our technical best practices and meet a high standard of user experience and design. Chrome Web Store Help

Google’s evaluation criteria obviously need rework if an extension like this can evade detection. Or alternatively, provide some mechanism for some sort of annual audit to make sure underlying functionality hasn’t become malicious with a new update. Furthermore, this might have some implications for Google’s Advanced Protection Program, which I have opted into. Google says it performs even more stringent malware checks for Google Chrome but this extension was operating just fine.

To be fair to Google and MyBib, this extension’s behavior isn’t specifically malicious. From what I have seen it is a distributed educational website scraper. Not something I want operating on my computer but definitely better than a million other sketchy applications. My bank account is intact and my digital life hasn’t been disturbed. But in the end, since MyBib was never forthright about their extension’s behavior, it is unforgivable.

Katie Fortney and Justin Gonder, “A Social Networking Site Is Not an Open Access Repository - Office of Scholarly Communication,” University of California, December 1, 2015, https://osc.universityofcalifornia.edu/2015/12/a-social-networking-site-is-not-an-open-access-repository/. ↩︎

2025 Running Review

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 10:30:00 -0600

An early morning sweaty run along the Jiangbeizui Riverbank Park in Chongqing, China on July 24, 2025. A comparable environment would be if Miami had a heat wave in the dead of summer and then got sucked into hell.

In 2025, I ran a total of 2,358 miles, which is a decrease of 1% from 2024. I had a lot less elevation gain this year at 91,566 ft, which is down 46% over 2024. The lack of training in the nearby mountains really adds up over the course of a season with most of my miles being on relatively flat roads. I had the biggest dip in July since I was in China for 3 weeks and was trying to avoid straining my body with jet lag and travel.

Month	Distance (miles)	Elevation (feet)	Time (hours)
January	203	10,696	40
February	182	8,894	36
March	200	9,429	40
April	195	9,154	39
May	172	7,923	37
June	168	5,846	34
July	142	5,638	31
August	242	9,009	49
September	236	6,073	46
October	220	6,624	44
November	219	6,703	45
December	178	5,577	36

I didn’t have any major illnesses throughout the whole year and I attribute that to the theme I approached 2025 with: running for health. This included backing off mileage if I was ever in doubt about an upcoming cold or if I just felt tired. My overall performance was thus middle ground but over the course of the year, sustainable.

Something I started incorporating towards the end of the year was doing zone 2 heart rate training. This involves keeping your heart rate below a certain threshold for the majority of your runs. The end goal is to reduce strain on your body while fortifying your running fitness. After about 2 months of doing this I noticed I had a lot less daily fatigue while doing the same amount of mileage on a weekly basis. The only trade off is that my zone 2 pace is unbearably slow and requires a larger allotment of time to complete my running.

I’m not sure what my running goals are for 2026. I really enjoyed not pushing myself to the extremes of 2024, like with the Speedgoat 50K in 2024, but it also got kind of boring. I was running on a daily basis to check a box rather than attain something specific. I guess health was obtained but that isn’t as psychologically tangible as completing a challenging course. I feel a race of some sort in my near future.

Mine, All Mine

Mon, 17 Nov 2025 10:30:00 -0600

Gustav Holst, The Planets, op. 32, Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by William Steinberg, Deutsche Grammophon, 1971, LP.

I stepped into a music store this weekend for the first time in quite a while. I was compelled by an urge to possess something tangible. It was a strange feeling because the phone in my pocket was capable of instantly streaming probably a vast majority of the music in the store. But access to something doesn’t mean you own it.

Flipping through boxes of new and vintage vinyl came with sticker shock. A hefty $29.99 for a re-pressed vinyl record was a stretch from my $11.61 a month Qobuz subscription. There were even deluxe edition albums for even more at $59.99. The ever-present subscription business model has programmed this immediate comparison into me over the past decade. We no longer own things but instead pay a monthly fee for access. But recently, I have been trying to understand this relationship with a bit more nuance than just raw dollars and what ownership means to me personally.

A music, movie, or television show streaming service isn’t very useful when the internet is out. You can cache music for offline listening but let’s ignore the corner cases for now and just approach the topic in general terms. Media access also exists at the whims of licensing deals that come and go. A movie or television show on Netflix one week might not be there the next. Will you need a new subscription to Netflix or Hulu in order to keep watching your favorite show? This isn’t as apparent for music streaming services, seeing as Qobuz offers over 100 million songs,¹ on par with Spotify.² But there are still issues with some artists³ not being on a certain platform that could be a problem for some.

The overall cohesiveness for music streaming services is great but falls apart when you start thinking about movies or television shows. In today’s vast variety of streaming services you’ll have to look up your show to see where it’s available,⁴ if anywhere. After you sign up for that service there is also no guarantee that it will remain there. I have experienced two instances of being in the middle of watching a television show, only to have it disappear from the service to which I was subscribed. I’m picturing a representative of a major studio showing up at my house, plucking a DVD from my collection and leaving with it.

Is physical media ownership the answer to these dilemmas? I think so, at least in several aspects. After I purchase a Blu-ray or CD it marks the end of my relationship with the seller and I keep the media forever. The state of that media is then fully static. However, with streaming, that transaction is perpetually extended. Over the course of the streaming relationship I can lose access to specific media based on the decisions of the streaming service. A slightly weirder case is when the director or studio releases subsequent editions⁵ that don’t exactly match what was originally shown in theaters.

I realize none of these concepts are new but they seem to have faded into the background of my mind over the past decade with the growing use of subscription-based models. The convenience lulls me into a passive state of mind and I completely forget about it. But then these huge AWS outages happen that break the things I own⁶ and I’m left facing the reality that I immensely depend on these external services for the majority of my things to work. Should it be that way and to what degree am I comfortable? In this thought process I ask myself what it would take to partially remove my dependency on these services.

I’ll admit, it isn’t feasible to build your own personal music collection of 100 million songs so my music streaming service will have to stay. Qobuz has been doing a tremendous job helping my discovery of new music over the past few years. Real people curate new album releases every week. This meatspace curation hasn’t gone unnoticed; as Andrew Dubber notes, “Qobuz assumes I’m interesting, Spotify assumes I am predictable.”⁷ It has helped me discover standout albums like Fat Dog’s WOOF and 100 gecs’ 10,000 gecs that might not have reached me through Spotify’s algorithm. From this path of discovery I can curate a list of albums that I can reference when I’m at the music store. I’ll approach using a music streaming service like an easy-access sampler to see if I like something before I make a larger investment in a physical copy for my own collection.

For movies and television shows, which are less aggregated, it would be more beneficial for me to lean harder on owning and purchasing physical copies rather than subscribing to an inordinate amount of streaming services. There is also another problem where some movies aren’t even available on any streaming services.⁸ Shows coming out of the HBO studio seem to align with my tastes most consistently with Apple in a close second. But everything after that is kind of hit or miss and largely depends on the show itself. Considering the instability of availability for these types of media it would be really nice to have physical copies for my own collection. And the overall amount required for a decent library isn’t nearly as much as in the realm of music.

The novel idea of ownership is probably obvious to many people in this age of streaming but for me it had been an idea that had faded away over the past few years. Purchasing a video game on Steam and downloading it in minutes without having to trudge down to the local game store is purely awesome. I pay for that convenience by forfeiting ownership of my Steam games⁹ and other things like Kindle books.¹⁰ The tradeoff of this convenience might be too much for some and perfectly fine for others. I’m going to approach the whole situation pragmatically, accepting that convenience sometimes comes at the cost of ownership.

“The Qobuz Experience,” Qobuz Help Center, accessed November 17, 2025, https://help.qobuz.com/en/articles/10127-the-qobuz-experience. ↩︎
Will Howard, “How Many Songs Are There on Spotify?,” Far Out Magazine, November 17, 2024, https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/how-many-songs-are-there-on-spotify/. ↩︎
Ben Sisario, “Joni Mitchell Plans to Follow Neil Young off Spotify, Citing ‘Lies,’” The New York Times, January 30, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/28/arts/music/joni-mitchell-neil-young-spotify.html. ↩︎
See “JustWatch,” accessed November 17, 2025, https://www.justwatch.com/us; “Reelgood,” accessed November 17, 2025, https://reelgood.com/. ↩︎
“Changes in Star Wars Re-releases,” Wikipedia, accessed November 17, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changes_in_Star_Wars_re-releases. ↩︎
Sopan Deb, “AWS Cloud-Computing Outage Left Smart Bed Customers Without Sleep,” The New York Times, October 24, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/24/business/amazon-aws-outage-eight-sleep-mattress.html. ↩︎
Andrew Dubber, “Music Discovery: Qobuz Vs Spotify,” MTF Labs, July 6, 2023, https://andrewdubber.com/music-discovery-qobuz-vs-spotify/. ↩︎
Wilson Chapman, “The 30 Best Movies Currently Not Streaming Anywhere: ‘Short Cuts,’ ‘Pink Flamingos,’ ‘Cocoon,’ and More,” IndieWire, July 8, 2025, https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/best-films-unavailable-streaming/blonde-venus-from-left-sidney-blackmer-marlene-dietrich-1932/. ↩︎
Kyle Barr, “Steam Finally Makes It Clear You Don’t Own Your Games,” Gizmodo, October 11, 2024, https://gizmodo.com/steam-finally-makes-it-clear-you-dont-own-your-games-2000511155. ↩︎
Joel Johnson, “You Don’t Own Your Kindle Books, Amazon Reminds Customer,” NBC News, October 24, 2012, https://www.nbcnews.com/technolog/you-dont-own-your-kindle-books-amazon-reminds-customer-1c6626211. ↩︎

Street Photography in Chongqing

Tue, 22 Jul 2025 10:30:00 -0600

Chongqing (重庆市) has taken the triple crown of sweatiest, most crowded, and hectic place I’ve ever been to in my entire life. Traversing the heart of the city near the Hongyadong Folk Custom Scene Area (洪崖洞民俗风貌区), over the Qiansimen Bridge (千厮门大桥), and Times Square (时代广场) is otherworldly. All the traits of the city come together to create a visual experience that more closely resembles the video game Cyberpunk 2077. Walking up and down levels of the city, each with their own roadways and railways, is mind bending in that the concept of ground level becomes a relative term. Add on the neon lit skyscrapers and crush of people and you have a mega city from the future.

Cisco Live 2025

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 10:30:00 -0600

Although Cisco Live suffers from zeitgeist mania, with this year being AI, there are still a lot of value from sessions and the tribal excitement of being with your industry peers.

Either by outright luck or doing something correct at work, my management deemed me worthy to get sent to Cisco Live in San Diego. This was actually my first business trip despite being with my currently employer for a number of years. I was excited to experience the Network Engineering Mecca as I’ve been told by colleagues past and present that it was essential to attend at least once in your career.

Cisco Live is formatted as a collection of curated classes, seminars, and labs over the course of a few days. Much of the content in all these categories is a hype-fest for Cisco products. But if you go into the conference with this perspective it won’t be as jarring and you can evaluate which events might be more worth your time rather than sitting through a useless sales pitch.

I’ve heard of inter-switch links and inter-router links but this is the first time seeing inter-satellite links. Even better is that they’re entirely over lasers and are currently rated at 100Gbps.

It was surprising to see how professional the conference was compared to the smaller, campy ones I had attended. There were many live commentary panels happening all over the conference building showcasing events for that day and had a seemingly national television quality equipment setup for all of them. Cisco even had a full audio and visual production staff at each of the sessions, which are recorded and available if you have a Cisco account.

Another part I wasn’t expecting was the provided breakfast and lunch each day. Considering the stereotypical perception of information technology workers eating junk food and being fat I went into the first meal not expecting much. But each meal was surprisingly healthy and delicious, which I hope is a reflection of the fading stereotype of IT workers being cranked on Mountain Dew an Doritos. The only time the food choices got lazy was on the last day of the conference, where breakfast was only cinnamon rolls and bananas. Not exactly ideal for someone watching their blood sugar. However, to Cisco’s credit, the last day of the conference was nearly a ghost town of attendance.

From the classes I attended I’ve included a shortlist of which ones I found rewarding to me personally. If there were slides for the presentation they are linked. Keep that in mind if the urge to photograph each of the slides hits you in a particularly interesting class. Access to a PDF copy of the slides is always better than a blurry image taken from the back row.

Classes

BRKMSI-1000 Connecting the unconnected with Starlink & Cisco validated solution
BRKOPS-1009 Dynamic Network Defense: Automating Traffic Engineering based on ThousandEyes Insights
IBOSPG-2000 Let’s Talk Security: A Service Provider’s Perspective

DDOS protection through a Remote Triggered Black Hole.

BRKMSI-2005 Internet Peering Design and Deployment
BRKSPG-2080 Architectural Best Practices for Ensuring High Availability of IOS XR IP/MPLS Backbone Networks

From the BRKSPG-2080 class with a complex example to achieve high availability through path redundancy.

BRKAPP-2021 Learnings Behind the Biggest Network Outages: Using ThousandEyes insights to improve IT resilience
BRKENT-3219 Advanced Border Gateway Protocol

BRKENT-3219 was my most technically fulfilling class of the conference. It went into the deep end of BGP with a lot of things to consider in real world scenarios.

CISCOU-1057 Packets in Space: Networking for the Final Frontier
BRKMPL-2103 Mastering BGP: A Deep Dive into Basics and Design Best Practices for BGP and L3VPN

The biggest tease of the conference was a presentation from Blue Origin. Their presentation was mainly about the challenges of hardware suitable for a space rocket. However, they couldn’t go into specifics in any real amount due to proprietary restrictions.

BRKSEC-2499 Are You Prepared for the Next Typhoon?
BRKMSI-1001 Secure the Network Edge against the DDoS Attacks!

There were certainly several themes that carried over among all of the classes. This was either through a collective effort by Cisco to urge and guide the industry or just separate teams identifying similarly important topics. The first was with authentication, both locally and through BGP peering. To illustrate the vulnerability during class, the instructor asked if someone could reveal the type 7 password on the screen. Within about 30 seconds someone had revealed the actual password with little more effort than a Google search and a simple web page utility.

username admin password 7 xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The scary part is that this password type is still used in some environments. Perhaps through technical debt, being under staffed, or neglect, it leaves a stark vulnerability for a network compromise. Per the NSA, the recommended password type is currently 8, with 0, 4, and 7 marked as DO NOT USE.

Many classes expanded from this basic password hygiene to full system approaches like the Cisco IOS XR Software Hardening Guide. But the instructors didn’t spend much time besides highlighting that the guide was available to be used later on for engineers. One interesting perspective a few instructors shared is that the future approach by Cisco will be secure by default and only unsecured with configuration. So rather than ship a new router with telnet enabled, it will be disabled along with many other unsecure protocols or features. This methodology is in direct response to regulations coming out of the European Union and India, among others, to increase information technology security. By shipping secure, Cisco will defer the later unsecure configuration to the entities purchasing their products. Or another hope is to simply secure by attrition.

There were clever and fun ways that vendors built up engagement. Forward Networks had a full on Casino.

In the vein of better authentication tools, BGP TCP Authentication Option (AO) was frequently brought up as the new best thing for secure peering. Defined in RFC 5925, TCP AO adds a number of things that improve peering security over the older MD5 style. You can run a keychain with several keys that rotate over time. Meaning you could arguably update one of those keys without directly impacting BGP peering. Doing that with MD5 would cause a peer flap and can be disruptive. TCP AO also supports HMAC-SHA1 and AES-128-CMAC algorithms. Lastly, adding the TCP element to this allows for sequence tracking during the peering conversation, which can protect against replay attacks since you need to know the exact sequence to spoof a specific peer.

An interesting real world application of enterprise networking was this Crisis Response Vehicle that gets deployed to emergency locations. With a satellite uplink it can provide Wi-Fi services in places where infrastracture has been damaged or destroyed.

I have modified my own 4Runner quite extensively but it was great to see this taken exponentially further with a full server rack in the Crisis Response Vehicle.

The exciting extension to the RPKI ROA architecture called Autonomous System Provider Authorization (ASPA), was mentioned in a few classes and I even got to try it out in my lab course. While still in the very early stages of public deployment and adoption, it addresses an easy vulnerability to a ROA. Although you can publicly declare to the world that you own a specific prefix with a published ROA, it doesn’t specifically restrict the BGP AS path to get to that prefix. Only the final AS in the path. A hijacker could theoretically announce your prefix with 1 extra AS in the path to attract traffic.

It was great to see a work colleague be part of a fireside panel during the conference.

ASPA addresses this vulnerability by further defining the AS path and which providers are authorized to announce your prefixes. With it, you can define your service providers for the prefixes you own. It doesn’t cover the full AS path across the entire internet because the different paths are nearly infinite, however, it cements the important parts of the possible AS paths.

The concept of evaluating ASPA validity was conveyed to me in an interesting way through physical peaks and valleys. In this concept, the peaks are so called tier 1 service providers and the valleys are the so called access autonomous systems. In a valid ASPA path the valleys are limited to the beginning and end with the middle consisting of only service provider peaks.

After Hours

Only about half of the events happen during normal hours at Cisco Live. After classes and seminars are done for the day everyone migrates to the the restaurants and bars in downtown San Diego. It’s quite comical to see the flood of Cisco Live backpack wearing individuals spill out of the convention center and funnel to different locations. Step into any restaurant nearby and you’d see tables and tables of social networking in play.

Late in the evening at a vendor sponsored event at a prohibition themed bar.

While I’m a fan of computer networking and not necessarily social networking I still found the interactions rather fascinating. The interplay between vendors and clients on the ground was entertaining to say the least.

The band The Killers performing for the Cisco Live crowd.

It wasn’t your typical high energy concert crowd since no one specifically bought tickets to see them but it was a great time nonetheless.

Would China Target Taiwan’s Submarine Internet Cables During Invasion?

Fri, 18 Apr 2025 10:30:00 -0600

Map of major international submarine internet cables near Taiwan. Source: TeleGeography.

The seemingly ever present threat of China invading Taiwan stands as one of the most critical and closely watched geopolitical flashpoints globally. Decades of political separation between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan, coupled with Beijing’s unwavering claim of sovereignty over the island and its refusal to renounce the use of force, creates an undying risk of conflict.¹ This risk is amplified by the PRC’s extensive military modernization program, which has been significantly driven by the objective of developing capabilities to compel unification with Taiwan, potentially through coercion or outright invasion.²

Among the most vital components of modern global infrastructure are submarine communication cables. These undersea fiber optic networks serve as the backbone of the internet and international communications, carrying an estimated 95 to 99 percent of all intercontinental data traffic.³ They facilitate trillions of dollars in financial transactions daily⁴ and are essential for global commerce, scientific collaboration, government operations, and military command and control.⁵ Despite their criticality, these cables are inherently vulnerable due to their physical fragility and unguarded presence. They lie exposed on the seabed floor and can be damaged from natural events or accidental or even intentional human activities. The worst part of all is that they often converge at a limited number of terrestrial landing stations in a choke point that creates a lucrative target during any conflict. Balancing this extreme importance and physical vulnerability places submarine cable security at the center of strategic considerations in potential conflict scenarios, particularly those involving highly digitized economies and potential maritime battlegrounds like the Taiwan Strait. The reliance is not merely economic. Military and governmental communications heavily depend on these commercial networks.⁶

Based on the criticality of Taiwan’s submarine internet cables how likely is it that the PRC would deliberately target and sever Taiwan’s submarine internet cables during a potential invasion or blockade scenario? One key way of answering this hypothetical is attempting to understand Beijing’s strategic calculus, including PLA doctrine regarding information warfare and critical infrastructure attacks. Additionally, what are the technical capabilities of the PLA Navy for undersea operations when compared to Taiwan’s specific vulnerabilities and resiliency measures?

Understanding the potential for PRC to target Taiwan’s submarine communication cables requires an attempt to understand the doctrinal foundations of the PLA’s approach to modern warfare, specifically for information dominance and operations against critical infrastructure. The Taiwan scenario remains the “primary driver”² for PLA modernization efforts and its principal contingency focus, shaping force development, training, and strategic thought for decades. Statements by Xi Jinping have consistently underscored the military dimensions of the Taiwan issue, reinforcing the PLA’s mandate to prepare for coercion or forceful reunification.²

Central to the PLA’s contemporary warfighting philosophy is the concept of “information warfare” (信息化战争, Xìnxī huà zhànzhēng) and “systems confrontation” (体系对抗, Tǐxì duìkàng).⁷ These concepts were formed and heavily influenced by observations of U.S. military operations since the 1991 Gulf War. Subsequently, the PLA has shifted focus from traditional attrition warfare aimed at annihilating enemy forces to a strategy centered on disrupting, paralyzing, or destroying the adversary’s entire operational system.⁷ Information Warfare emphasizes that information dominance is a prerequisite for success across all domains including land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace.⁷ Victory through informational warfare is achieved not just by destroying material means, but by disrupting the adversary’s ability to acquire, transmit, process, and utilize information effectively. Influential PLA texts like the 2020 Science of Military Strategy assert that winning information warfare is the “fundamental function”⁸ of the military and that all modern warfare is essentially information warfare. The method for achieving victory in this context is termed “system destruction warfare” (体系破击战, Tǐxì pò jí zhàn), which involves targeting critical nodes and functions within the enemy’s operational system to induce paralysis or collapse.⁹

Within this warfare framework, the PLA has developed specific campaign concepts relevant to a Taiwanese scenario, most notably the “joint blockade campaign” (联合封锁战役, Liánhé fēngsuǒ zhànyì).¹⁰ Described in authoritative sources like the 2006 PLA National Defense University’s Science of Campaigns, this concept envisions a large-scale, potentially long-term operation aimed at isolating Taiwan by asserting air, maritime, and information dominance.¹¹ Crucially, this campaign explicitly includes not only traditional blockade actions like intercepting ships and aircraft, but also firepower strikes against key facilities like ports or airfields, mining maritime approaches, and conducting both kinetic and non-kinetic attacks on information systems and infrastructure.¹¹ Such a blockade could serve as a coercive measure short of actual invasion, a preparatory phase for an amphibious landing, or a primary means to achieve victory by strangling Taiwan into submission.¹¹

Amphibious armored infantry fighting vehicles (IFV) of an army brigade under the PLA Eastern Theater Command form battle formations in waves during a maritime combat training exercise on June 30, 2022. Source: eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Peng Zhifu.

The PLA’s doctrinal emphasis on information dominance and system disruption directly implies the targeting of communication infrastructure. PLA writings explicitly mention targeting long-haul communications facilities, including satellite ground stations and undersea cable landing sites, as part of the initial strikes in a blockade scenario aimed at severing Taiwan’s external communications.¹¹ Beyond these explicit mentions, the broader concepts of “systems destruction warfare” and “information warfare” inherently encompass critical communication nodes like submarine cables. Targeting these cables aligns with the doctrinal goals of degrading information flow within Taiwan’s information system architecture.⁷

All of the PLA’s doctrinal proclamations clearly indicate a specific approach towards prioritizing the disruption of an adversary’s information systems as a central element of modern warfare. Concepts like “information warfare" and “systems destruction,” particularly when applied within the framework of a “joint blockade campaign” against Taiwan, strongly suggest that critical communication infrastructure, including submarine internet cables, are considered legitimate and important targets. This doctrinal emphasis points to consider attacks on Taiwan’s vital communication links as extremely likely, and perhaps an essential component of any future conflict scenario.

China possesses or is developing sophisticated technologies for undersea operations relevant to cable disruption. Research conducted at institutions with strong defense ties, such as Harbin Engineering University and the Ocean University of China, has focused on enhancing the ability to locate undersea cables, even those buried beneath the seabed. Methods include algorithmically enhanced robotics employing novel magnetic induction techniques and advanced sonar systems combining multiple technologies for improved detection and navigation to fault sites.¹² While often framed for civilian applications like infrastructure maintenance or offshore wind farm support, these localization technologies have clear dual-use potential for military purposes, including identifying cables for surveillance or sabotage.¹²

On a more basic approach, China has demonstrated capabilities for cutting submarine internet cables. Patents filed by PLA affiliated bodies, such as the PLA Navy Institute of Communication Application and the PLA Naval University of Engineering, explicitly describe devices for shearing deep sea optical cables and retrieving them, strongly suggesting military intent for sabotage or tapping.¹² Civilian institutions and companies, like Lishui University and Zhuhai Yunzhou Intelligence Technology, have also patented towed or deployable cutting devices, purportedly for emergency repairs or salvage but readily adaptable for military or gray zone use.¹² Recent reports highlight the development of a deep sea tool, potentially ship deployed, capable of cutting heavily fortified cables at depths up to 4,000 meters.⁴ While the necessity for such extreme depth and cutting power against typical unarmored deep-sea cables is questionable,¹³ the capability itself represents a significant advancement. Specialized surface vessels such as research ships or cable layers and potentially subsurface platforms like submarines (similar to Russia’s AS-31 Losharik¹⁴) or unmanned underwater vehicles¹² could be employed to deploy these infrastructure interference tools.

Perhaps the most compelling evidence of China’s capability and potential willingness to interfere with undersea cables comes from numerous documented incidents in recent years, particularly because they employ “gray zone” tactics. These involve actions below the threshold of armed conflict, often designed to be ambiguous and deniable.³ Multiple incidents near Taiwan have been attributed by Taiwanese authorities to Chinese fishing boats or cargo ships. These specifically include the severing of both cables connecting the Matsu Islands on February 12, 2023 ³ and subsequent incidents near Taiwan proper with cables off the coast of Penghu¹⁵ and Keelung.¹⁶ Similar incidents in the Baltic Sea, involving C-Lion1 and BCS East-West Interlink cables, have also implicated Chinese-flagged or associated vessels, sometimes operating out of Russian ports.¹⁵

China’s newly publicized barges, which link up to form a bridge, could give China a way to land large numbers of vehicles and troops on Taiwan, solving a major logistical problem. Source: Composite image from a video posted on Weibo via Chinese state media via The New York Times.

These incidents often involve methods that mimic common accidents, such as anchors being dragged across cables.¹⁵ The use of civilian vessels, sometimes operating under flags of convenience or engaging in identity tampering including manipulating AIS transmissions or using multiple identities,¹⁵ provides a crucial layer of plausible deniability.³ While definitive proof of state direction is often elusive, the pattern, frequency, location proximity to sensitive areas and critical infrastructure, and alignment with China’s broader strategic interests strongly suggest intentionality in many cases.¹⁵

This pattern of repeated, deniable disruptions serves multiple purposes. It allows China to test adversary responses, probe vulnerabilities in detection and repair capabilities, exert psychological pressure, and potentially normalize such incidents as mere accidents.³ By demonstrating the capability and willingness to interfere with critical infrastructure in peacetime or low-level crises, China may be lowering the perceived threshold for employing similar scaled-up tactics during a future conflict while aiming to maintain ambiguity and control escalation.

Taiwan’s position as a modern, technologically advanced democracy and a linchpin in global supply chains is inextricably linked to its robust digital connectivity. This connectivity, however, relies overwhelmingly on a network of international submarine communication cables, creating significant strategic dependencies and vulnerabilities that could be exploited in a conflict scenario.

Taiwan is connected to the global internet primarily through 15 international submarine internet cables.³ This infrastructure provider over 100 Tbps of bandwidth to 21.71 million Taiwanese making it one of the world’s highest internet penetration rates.¹⁷ This raw capability underpins virtually all aspects in critical industries like semiconductor manufacturing, financial services, government functions, military command and control, and daily civilian life.³ The heavy reliance on a relatively small number of physical conduits creates a fundamental dependence on all mentioned sectors and any significant disruption to these cables could severely isolate the island digitally.¹⁸

Compounding this dependence is the geographic concentration of Taiwan’s cable infrastructure. Most of the submarine internet cables land in just three main areas: Toucheng in the northeast, Fangshan in the south, and the New Taipei/Tanshui area in the north.³ This limited number of cable landing stations (CLS) creates critical choke points. A RAND study assessed that a successful attack on either the Toucheng or Fangshan landing sites could have a “sudden and calamitous effect” on Taiwan’s external communications.¹⁹ Furthermore, analysis suggests that at least one CLS in Tanshui has been specifically identified as a point of interest tracked by a China affiliated entity, indicating potential hostile reconnaissance targeting these vulnerabilities.²⁰

The economic stakes associated with Taiwan’s connectivity are immense, both domestically and globally. A disruption of Taiwan’s submarine cables would paralyze its digital economy, estimated to reach NT$6.5 trillion (USD $204 billion) by 2025.²¹ Financial markets would be severely impacted, as demonstrated by slowdowns during the 2006 earthquake and disruptions to online banking seen during the Matsu cable cuts.³ Interruptions could cost millions per hour.²²

Crucially, Taiwan plays an indispensable role in the global semiconductor supply chain, producing the vast majority of the world’s most advanced logic chips and a significant share of chips for automotive and consumer electronics.²³ A blockade or conflict that severs Taiwan’s connectivity would halt this production and export, triggering catastrophic disruptions across numerous downstream industries worldwide, including electronics, automotive, computing, telecommunications, and medical devices.²³ Economic modeling by institutions like the Rhodium Group, Bloomberg Economics, RAND, and the St. Louis Federal Reserve consistently projects global economic losses in the trillions of dollars from a Taiwan conflict scenario, largely driven by the interruption of the semiconductor supply chain reliant on Taiwan.²⁴ The Rhodium Group conservatively estimated that companies dependent on Taiwanese chips could lose $1.6 trillion in annual revenue during a blockade.²⁵ This highlights that targeting Taiwan’s cables is not just an attack on Taiwan itself, but potentially a potent form of global economic coercion. China could leverage the threat or act of cutting Taiwan’s cables to inflict widespread economic pain, potentially aiming to deter international intervention or sow discord among nations dependent on Taiwan’s technological outputs.¹

Type 05 amphibious fighting vehicles assigned to the People’s Liberation Army’s 73rd Group Army in Xiamen, Fujian, China, take part in amphibious assault and live-firing exercises on May 12, 2021. Source: John Feng, “China Military’s Taiwan Invasion Force Conducts Amphibious Beach Assault Drills.”.

Severing Taiwan’s international communication links would have huge military implications. It would directly impede Taiwan’s ability to communicate and coordinate with external partners, primarily the United States, potentially delaying or complicating any international response or intervention efforts.³ Active intelligence sharing and coordinated military actions rely heavily on secure, high-bandwidth communications, which are predominantly carried by commercial submarine internet cables.⁶ Disrupting these links would force reliance on alternative systems like satellite communications, which offer significantly lower bandwidth and latency, may be more susceptible to jamming or kinetic attack, and could compromise operational security if forced onto less secure channels.²⁶ Isolating Taiwan digitally could also degrade its own military’s situational awareness, which would hinder its ability to mount a cohesive defense.²⁷ Furthermore, cutting external communication lines could create an environment ripe for psychological operations and disinformation campaigns, as Taiwan’s population and leadership would struggle to verify information or counter PLA propaganda effectively.³

Despite the potential military utility, attacking international submarine cables entails enormous risks for China. The primary deterrent is the potentially catastrophic global economic fallout.¹ Given Taiwan’s critical role in global supply chains, particularly semiconductors, severing its links would likely trigger a global recession, severely damage China’s own economy, which relies heavily on international trade, and invite crippling international sanctions.¹ Diplomatic consequences would likely include widespread condemnation, further isolation, and the potential formation of broad international coalitions aimed at constraining China’s power.²⁸

Perhaps even more important, attacking internationally owned infrastructure carries a high risk of escalation.⁶ Such actions could be interpreted as a direct attack on other nation state interests, potentially solidifying political will in Washington and allied capitals for direct military intervention or intensifying an ongoing intervention.² China’s leaders are likely aware that crossing this threshold could lead to a wider, more protracted, and potentially uncontrollable conflict with the United States, undermining their strategic objectives.²⁸

However, some reviews suggest that if Beijing were to decide to initiate an invasion or full blockade, it would have already calculated and accepted enormous sunk cost that would include significant economic damage and becoming an international pariah.¹¹ Where catastrophic consequences are already anticipated, the marginal cost of adding cable cutting to the list of hostile actions might appear incredibly minor in Beijing’s calculus.¹¹ The perceived military necessity of isolating Taiwan quickly to achieve decisive victory before effective intervention could occur might override concerns about additional economic or diplomatic fallout.²⁹ The effectiveness of economic costs as a primary deterrent could be easily debatable. While generally significant,²⁸ their marginal impact might decrease once a high-intensity conflict is already underway.³⁰ China’s ultimate decision would likely depend on its assessment of the specific circumstances, its risk tolerance, and its confidence in achieving its primary objectives swiftly.²⁹ The potential for the conflict itself to cause such severe economic disruption that formal sanctions become somewhat ineffective is a factor that could paradoxically lower the threshold for cable attacks within an already escalated conflict, even as the overall economic consequences act as a deterrent against initiating the conflict in the first place.³⁰

Considering these competing factors, the likelihood of China launching widespread, easily attributable attacks against Taiwan’s international submarine cables appears conditional and likely not a preferred opening move. While doctrinally sound from a PLA perspective and technically feasible, the immense potential for global economic disruption, severe diplomatic backlash, and uncontrollable military escalation makes it an extremely high-risk option. Such actions seem more plausible under more strained conditions if China felt bogged down in a protracted conflict and its initial objectives were failing. Alternatively, if China believes it can achieve a rapid victory before repercussions materialize it could be worth the plethora of costs with attacking submarine internet cables. The decision is heavily contingent on Beijing’s real-time assessment of the strategic environment, particularly the perceived resolve and appetite of the U.S. to intervene effectively.¹

However, the likelihood of selective targeting or the use of deniable, gray zone style disruptions appears considerably higher. China might prioritize targeting specific cables deemed less critical to major powers or focus attacks on landing stations within Taiwan’s territory, framing it as part of the direct assault on Taiwan rather than an attack on international infrastructure.¹¹ Employing tactics similar to those seen in the Matsu and Baltic incidents, using civilian vessels under ambiguous circumstances to cause “accidental” damage, remains a plausible scenario, especially in the lead-up to or early stages of a crisis, as it offers disruption while attempting to manage escalation and maintain deniability.³

Kevin Rudd, “The United States, China and Taiwan and the Role of Deterrence in Scenarios Short of War” (speech, Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii, June 6, 2024), https://usa.embassy.gov.au/APCSS24. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Joel Wuthnow, “System Overload: Can China’s Military Be Distracted in a War over Taiwan?," China Strategic Perspectives, No. 15, June 2020, https://ndupress.ndu.edu/Portals/68/Documents/stratperspective/china/china-perspectives-15.pdf. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Fern Hinrix, “Building Resilience in Taiwan’s Internet Infrastructure From Geopolitical Threats," The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies,” May 21, 2024, https://jsis.washington.edu/news/building-resilience-in-taiwans-internet-infrastructure-from-geopolitical-threats/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Erin Murphy and Matt Pearl, “China’s Underwater Power Play: The PRC’s New Subsea Cable-Cutting Ship Spooks International Security Experts,” Center for Strategic & International Studies, April 4, 2025, https://www.csis.org/analysis/chinas-underwater-power-play-prcs-new-subsea-cable-cutting-ship-spooks-international. ↩︎ ↩︎
Madison Long, “Information Warfare in the Depths: An Analysis of Global Undersea Cable Networks,” U.S. Naval Institute, May 31, 2023, https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2023/may/information-warfare-depths-analysis-global-undersea-cable-networks. ↩︎
Colin Wall and Pierre Morcos, “Invisible and Vital: Undersea Cables and Transatlantic Security,” Center for Strategic & International Studies, June 11, 2021, https://www.csis.org/analysis/invisible-and-vital-undersea-cables-and-transatlantic-security. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
B. A. Friedman, “Finding the Right Model: The Joint Force, the People’s Liberation Army,” Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs, April 24, 2023, https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/JIPA/Display/Article/3371164/finding-the-right-model-the-joint-force-the-peoples-liberation-army-and-informa/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Xiao Tianliang, Kang Wuchao, and Cai Renzhao, “Science of Military Strategy,” China Aerospace Studies Institute, August 2020, https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Portals/10/CASI/documents/Translations/2022-01-26%202020%20Science%20of%20Military%20Strategy.pdf. ↩︎
Jeffrey Engstrom, “Systems Confrontation and System Destruction Warfare How the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Seeks to Wage Modern Warfare,” RAND Corporation, February 1, 2018, https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR1700/RR1708/RAND_RR1708.pdf. ↩︎
U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, “Chapter 8: China’s Evolving Counter-Intervention Capabilities and the Role of Indo-Pacific Allies,” in 2024 Report to Congress of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Publishing Office, November 2024), https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/2024-11/Chapter_8--Chinas_Evolving_Counter-Intervention_Capabilities.pdf. ↩︎
Lonnie Henley, “China Maritime Report No. 26: Beyond the First Battle: Overcoming a Protracted Blockade of Taiwan,” China Maritime Studies Institute China Maritime Reports, March 2023, https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/cmsi-maritime-reports/26. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Sunny Cheung and Cheryl Yu, “Creative Destruction: PRC Undersea Cable Technology,” The Jamestown Foundation, January 16, 2025, https://jamestown.org/program/creative-destruction-prc-undersea-cable-technology/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Australian Naval Institute, “China’s cable cutting theatre,” Australian Naval Institute, March 27, 2025, https://navalinstitute.com.au/chinas-cable-cutting-theatre/. ↩︎
Harrison Kass, “AC-31 Losharik: Russia’S Secret Spy Submarine Is ‘Out of Action’ Due to a Fire,” The National Interest, October 12, 2024, https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/ac-31-losharik-russias-secret-spy-submarine-out-action-due-fire-213195. ↩︎
bno Chennai bureau, “Chinese Threat to Submarine Cables Emerges in Indo-Pacific,” February 27, 2025, https://www.bne.eu/chinese-threat-to-submarine-cables-emerges-in-indo-pacific-369355/. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Maritime Executive, “Chinese Freighter Suspected of Severing Telecom Cable off Taiwan,” The Maritime Executive, January 5, 2025, https://maritime-executive.com/article/chinese-freighter-suspected-of-severing-telecom-cable-off-taiwan. ↩︎
Charles Mok and Kenny Huang, “The Most Critical Resilience Questions of Them All: Taiwan’s Undersea Cables,” Taiwan Insight, October 2, 2024, https://taiwaninsight.org/2024/10/02/the-most-critical-resilience-questions-of-them-all-taiwans-undersea-cables/. ↩︎
Project 2049 Institute, “Undersea Cables: Taiwan’s Achilles Heel?,” Project 2049 Institute, April 28, 2010, https://project2049.net/2010/04/28/undersea-cables-taiwans-achilles-heel/. ↩︎
F. W. Lacroix et al., “A Concept of Operations for a New Deep-Diving Submarine,” report (RAND, 2001), https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA411748.pdf. ↩︎
Christine McDaniel and Weifeng Zhong, “Submarine Cables and Container Shipments: Two Immediate Risks to the US Economy if China Invades Taiwan,” Mercatus Center, August 29, 2022, https://www.mercatus.org/research/policy-briefs/submarine-cables-and-container-shipments-two-immediate-risks-us-economy-if. ↩︎
Philip Heijmans, “Should Taiwan Worry About Subsea Cable Security?,” gCaptain, October 27, 2022, https://gcaptain.com/should-taiwan-worry-about-subsea-cable-security/. ↩︎
Michael Matis, “The Protection of Undersea Cables: A Global Security Threat,” United States Army War College, March 7, 2012, https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA561426.pdf. ↩︎
Joris Teer, Davis Ellison, and Abe de Ruijter, “The Cost of Conflict: Economic Implications of a Taiwan Military Crisis for the Netherlands and the EU,” The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, March 2024, https://hcss.nl/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Taiwan-The-Cost-of-conflict-HCSS-2024.pdf. ↩︎ ↩︎
Christopher Neely, “The Economic Effects of a Potential Armed Conflict Over Taiwan,” Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, February 2025, https://www.stlouisfed.org/-/media/project/frbstl/stlouisfed/publications/review/pdfs/2025/feb/economic-effects-of-potential-armed-conflict-over-taiwan.pdf. ↩︎
Robert Manning, “Would Anyone “Win” a Taiwan Conflict?,” Stimson Center, January 9, 2024, https://www.stimson.org/2024/us-china-taiwan-conflict-global-economy/. ↩︎
Joel Wuthnow et al., Crossing the Strait: China’s Military Prepares for War with Taiwan (Washington, DC: National Defense University Press, 2022), https://ndupress.ndu.edu/Portals/68/Documents/Books/crossing-the-strait/crossing-the-strait.pdf. ↩︎
Yau-Chin Tsai, “The Influence of Matsu Undersea Cable Interruption on Taiwan’s National Defense Security,” INDSR Security Commentaries, no. 28 (August 28, 2023), Institute for National Defense and Security Research, https://indsr.org.tw/en/respublicationcon?uid=18&resid=2976&pid=5131. ↩︎
U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, “Chapter 4: A Dangerous Period for Cross-Strait Deterrence,” in 2021 Annual Report to Congress (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Publishing Office, 2021), https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/2021-11/Chapter_4--Dangerous_Period_for_Cross-Strait_Deterrence.pdf. ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Jared McKinney and Peter Harris, “Broken Nest: Deterring China From Invading Taiwan,” The US Army War College Quarterly Parameters 51, no. 4 (November 17, 2021): 23–36, https://doi.org/10.55540/0031-1723.3089. ↩︎ ↩︎
Gerard DiPippo and Jude Blanchette, “Sunk Costs: The Difficulty of Using Sanctions to Deter China in a Taiwan Crisis,” Center for Strategic and International Studies, March 28, 2023, https://www.csis.org/analysis/sunk-costs-difficulty-using-sanctions-deter-china-taiwan-crisis. ↩︎ ↩︎

Installing Ratgdo and Fighting Technofeudalism

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 10:30:00 -0600

Full install kit for a Ratgdo v2.53i.

In late in 2023 the Chamberlain Group, who makes the popular garage door opener Liftmaster, discontinued API connectivity through MyQ for third party home automation applications like Google Home, Apple Homekit, and Home Assistant, among others.¹ As someone who purchased a Liftmaster garage door opener specifically to have it integrated with my Apple Homekit setup, I was absolutely irate. It hadn’t even been a year since buying it and Chamberlain walled off my most desired feature² behind their shitty, advertisement riddled, MyQ application.

It is becoming far too common for this sort of behavior from companies. How would you feel about buying a camera only to find out you only bought a license to use the camera?³ Or plans by Sony to introduced interactive advertisement games into their products?⁴ Forgive me for my skeptical nature where the mildest outcome is drinking a verification can and the worst would be akin to a Black Mirror episode or Cory Doctorow’s Unathorized Bread.

The reason Chamberlain’s move was based on an alleged 0.2% of MyQ users generating 50% of all traffic to Chamberlain’s cloud servers.⁵ Firstly, if you advertised integration with Apple or Google on the cover of your product’s box then you should certainly have your infrastructure ready to accommodate a decent margin of your customers. It is fortuitous for Chamberlain to have been blessed with only 0.2% of customers actually using their device’s smart home integration features. Secondly, designing an aggregated command and control center for a cloud application will inevitably require adequate infrastructure. It is absolutely idiotic for Chamberlain to claim such centralized control over their application without having to pay for it.

Regardless of Chamberlain’s follies, the home automation community has come to the rescue with a fabulous product called Ratgdo. I can make an educated guess that this stands for Remote Access Terminal Garage Door Opener but nowhere on their home page is this specifically defined. In a matter of 30 minutes I was able to break free of the technofeudalism imposed by Chamberlain and once again include my garage doors in my home automation.

Ratgdo v2.53i board.

Ratgdo recently started selling a version 32 of their product, which has the capability for a laser and speaker upgrade. But I got the older v2.53i last year and it sat on my desk for over 10 months. It wouldn’t have sat so long if I knew installation would be as quick as it did. The Ratgdo itself is a small custom PCB. You can see here that v2.53i is dominated by a ESP-12F Wi-Fi module.

Programming the board requires following some simple instructions in a setup wizard over a USB to serial connection in Chrome. Per the instructions, connect the board directly to your computer without any USB hub or extra things in between. Since I am on MacOS I had to download the CH340 USB to UART driver in order to get the USB to serial connection working. Once connected and with the correct drivers you’ll be able to locate the correct serial connection:

% ls /dev/tty* | grep serial
/dev/tty.usbserial-10

As for the version you’ll be flashing to the drive I went with ESP Home, which is best for Home Assistant, Control4, Nice/Elan, & Crestron integrations. The other version, HomeKit, is suitable for those with iOS and without home automation platforms.

With the board flashed all you have to do is connect all the wires to your Liftmaster garage door opener. This was the part that intimidated me the most and perhaps stalled me completing this project for so long. However, it is really simple. With the 3 wire cable connector, just shove in the corresponding Ratgdo wires to the corresponding cable connector. So the red cable would go into the red marked cable housing. Both cables would end up being inside. Same for white and black wires. Since there is only 1 white cable on the Ratgdo you connect it to the leftmost white cable on the Liftmaster.

The other connectors on the Ratgdo do server a purpose but if you are like me and want to keep installation simple while still achieving home automation connectivity then this is the best method. With everything connected all that is left is to plug in power. After the board booted up it was really easy to detect in Home Assistant and import all relevant controls.

Wiring terminals on my Liftmaster Garage Door Opener.

Since I’ll never again use the MyQ application I wanted to factory erase the Liftmaster garade door opener. I could have left it running on my Wi-Fi but why even forward my usage data to them if they aren’t going to provide the service I want? Instructions for resetting the Wi-Fi on a Liftmaster are straightforward:

Press and hold the black adjustment button between the arrows on the garage door opener until 3 beeps are heard. There is an initial beep, continue to hold the button for approximately 6 seconds, during this time the up arrow will be flashing. The opener will beep an additional 3 times.
Wait a few seconds for the LED light to turn off. This indicates that the Wi-Fi settings are clear.

I also went the extra mile and requested that Chamberlain Group delete my MyQ account and all user data for it. Truly, the nuclear option but it made me feel great.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, “This Smart Garage Door Controller Is No Longer Very Smart,” The Verge, November 8, 2023, https://www.theverge.com/23949612/chamberlain-myq-smart-garage-door-controller-homebridge-integrations. ↩︎
It’s true that the actual most desired feature would be to open my garage door but I’m certain any other competitor product could perform the same task. ↩︎
Louis Rossmann, “I Thought I Bought a Camera, but No! DJI Sold Me a LICENSE to Use Their Camera,” April 17, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUOnQ_boqCw. ↩︎
Gary Zalewski, System for converting television commercials into interactive networked video games, U.S. Patent 8246454 B2, filed June 2, 2009, and issued August 21, 2012, https://patents.google.com/patent/US8246454B2/en. ↩︎
Maria Diaz, “My MyQ Garage Door Opener Just Lost Its Smarts, but Here’s My Workaround,” ZDNET, November 8, 2023, https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/smart-home/my-myq-garage-door-opener-just-lost-its-smarts-but-heres-my-workaround/. ↩︎

Using ExifTool to Set Dates Based on Filename

Fri, 17 Jan 2025 10:30:00 -0600

ExifTool has been a surprisingly useful piece of software in my recent quest to archive all of my family photographs. This includes scanned film from before the time of personal computers and also mangled files that don’t have the correct EXIF data to indicate exactly when they were taken. With the correct EXIF data you can maintain a tidy image archive that plays well with other programs, such as image editing or storage software.

According to user StarGeek, Google Photos will pick from the following tags to sort a recently uploaded image.

EXIF CreateDate
EXIF DateTimeOriginal
EXIF ModifyDate
IPTC DigitalCreationDate+IPTC:DigitalCreationTime
IPTC DateCreated+IPTC:TimeCreated
XMP-exif DateTimeDigitized
XMP-exif DateTimeOriginal
XMP-photoshop DateCreated
XMP-xmp CreateDate
XMP-xmp ModifyDate
GPS GPSDateStamp+GPS:GPSTimeStamp
System FileModifyDate

If Google Photos choses a field that isn’t exactly correct you have to edit the date and time manually. But in my experience, this doesn’t actually change the EXIF information on the image file, it just adds information to a separate .json file. So rather than depending on Google Photos or some other software I tasked myself with correcting this information in the file itself. Both for transportability and ease of mind. I can easily move to different storage systems or software without worry.

One things to keep in mind, as ExifTool author Phil Harvey has repeatedly stated, dates before 1970 and after 2038 give unpredictable results. There are ways around this limitation but approach with caution depending on your system platform.

I’ve established the need to update EXIF information correctly but how do you actually do it based on filename? The basic approach is outlined in ExifTool’s FAQ in step 5. But to ingest a filename as I needed, it required some further tweaking using more advanced logic with ExifTool’s advance formatting feature that utilizes Perl expressions.

The alldates command requires that all 6 date and time fields be present in some way in the filename like YYYYmmddHHMMSS. It can parse through dashes and some other non-numerical characters but the actual numbers will shape the date and time output exactly unless you tell it otherwise. For my files named 2019-05-15_0023.jpg I don’t have any hours, minutes, or seconds specified in the filename. The last four numbers are just a random sequence of numbers. If I run the command normally it thinks I’m specifying 23 minutes past midnight. To get around this I needed to use ExifTool’s advanced logic.

exiftool '-alldates<${filename;s/_.*//} 120000' 2019-05-15_0023.jpg
 1 image files updated

What this actually does is it instructs ExifTool to read the file name to obtain the year, month, and day in order to update EXIF date fields for DateTimeOriginal, CreateDate, and ModifyDate. Another thing it does is it manually assigns a time stamp of noon. The Perl expression of s/_ matches the portion before the underscore _ and everything that follows (.*) in the filename is replaced with nothing (//). The value of 120000 is interpreted in HHMMSS format, which ExifTool interprets as 12:00:00.

exiftool -alldates 2019-05-15_0023.jpg
Date/Time Original : 2019:05:15 12:00:00
Create Date : 2019:05:15 12:00:00
Modify Date : 2019:05:15 12:00:00

2024 Running Review

Tue, 31 Dec 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Late Spring on a nearby mountain trail in Centerville, Utah.

In 2024 I ran a total of 2,389 miles, which is an increase of 7% over 2023. I had quite a bit more elevation gain this year at 169,078 ft, which is up 14% over 2023. There was a lot of extra running in the mountains to train for the Speedgoat 50K I did. The unexpected drop of in August was due to some harrowing food poisoning that lasted a few weeks. This month is normally the peak of the year but I got hit really hard. In a doctor checkup in early September they said I had lost 10 pounds, which is unsurprising, given the marathon of symptoms I had.

Month	Distance (miles)	Elevation (feet)	Time
January	108	4,633	29h
February	194	9,055	37h
March	162	10,330	34h
April	209	13,264	41h
May	225	18,091	43h
June	294	34,072	59h
July	231	25,249	51h
August	154	14,055	40h
September	211	10,971	42h
October	228	11,795	43h
November	188	8,560	37h
December	186	9,006	36h

My loose goals for 2025 are improving my efficiency during high elevation runs. I’d like to keep my overall yearly goal at 2,000 miles but that might have to creep up to 2,500 or more if I want any elevation gains. I’m becoming more conservative with my approach to traveling and sleep so that should blunt the drastic spikes if and or when I get sick.

Overall, I’m pleased with the year and look forward to more running adventures.

How to Clean Up Image Filenames with F2

Sun, 29 Dec 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Archiving your personal collection of family images can quickly become a mess without some sort of organizational approach. I think the first and most important aspect of any organization measures would be to clean up and standardize image file names. In my mind, this involves having a date indicator with year, month, and if at all possible, a day. This would look something like 2020-08-30_0124.jpg. If you’re able to get this information into the file name most other methods of organization can easily follow but aren’t specifically required. For instance, folder structure for year and month would be helpful but not exactly required if you already that information written out in all your filenames.

But manually updating all filenames can be tedious and time consuming. Luckily, there is a wide selection of software that is capable of bulk file renaming for images. On Windows platforms I can recommend Bulk Rename Utility (BRU) and on MacOS, Name Mangler is equally as good. If you are comfortable on the command line and require something with a bit more raw power, there is F2.

I have just scratched the surface with F2 but it has capabilities far beyond my ultra simple image renaming jobs. It can read or write information based on directories, it is incredibly fast for large jobs, and integrates with many external utilities like ExifTool.

The assumption for everything after here is that you have F2 installed in addition to ExifTool. F2 will rely on ExifTool for the majority of the following commands.

Before starting, you should do some EXIF reconnaissance on your files. EXIF data (short for Exchangeable Image File Format) is like a digital notebook that accompanies an image file. When you take a picture with your phone or camera, it automatically records extra details about the photo, such as when and where it was taken, what camera settings were used, and even the type of camera or phone that captured it. This information is saved as part of the image file, but it isn’t visible in the photo itself, it’s behind the scenes. For our case, EXIF data can be helpful to easily extract the write data to rename our files appropriately. But it’s also something to be mindful of if you’re sharing pictures online, as it might include your location.

On modern smart devices there is a lot of information being coupled with image files. See the impressive number of fields from an image my wife took of my Speedgoat 50K race in 2024. It even includes the uptime of her phone.

exiftool 2024-07-20_0223.jpg
ExifTool Version Number : 13.06
File Name : 2024-07-20_0223.jpg
Directory : .
File Size : 4.4 MB
File Modification Date/Time : 2025:01:05 12:32:56-07:00
File Access Date/Time : 2025:01:17 14:52:08-07:00
File Inode Change Date/Time : 2025:01:05 13:46:55-07:00
File Permissions : -rw-r--r--
File Type : JPEG
File Type Extension : jpg
MIME Type : image/jpeg
JFIF Version : 1.02
Exif Byte Order : Big-endian (Motorola, MM)
Make : Apple
Camera Model Name : iPhone 15 Pro Max
Orientation : Rotate 90 CW
X Resolution : 72
Y Resolution : 72
Resolution Unit : inches
Software : 17.5.1
Modify Date : 2024:07:20 18:36:02
Host Computer : iPhone 15 Pro Max
Y Cb Cr Positioning : Centered
Exposure Time : 1/539
F Number : 1.8
Exposure Program : Program AE
ISO : 80
Exif Version : 0232
Date/Time Original : 2024:07:20 18:36:02
Create Date : 2024:07:20 18:36:02
Offset Time : -06:00
Offset Time Original : -06:00
Offset Time Digitized : -06:00
Components Configuration : Y, Cb, Cr, -
Shutter Speed Value : 1/539
Aperture Value : 1.8
Brightness Value : 6.75755074
Exposure Compensation : 0
Metering Mode : Multi-segment
Flash : Off, Did not fire
Focal Length : 6.8 mm
Subject Area : 2302 1876 484 488
Maker Note Version : 14
Run Time Flags : Valid
Run Time Value : 789101687277583
Run Time Scale : 1000000000
Run Time Epoch : 0
AE Stable : Yes
AE Target : 192
AE Average : 190
AF Stable : Yes
Acceleration Vector : -0.00598860486 -0.9743222594 -0.0465432033
Focus Distance Range : 1.37 - 1.39 m
Image Capture Type : Scene
Live Photo Video Index : 8595224612
Luminance Noise Amplitude : 0.01041153818
Photos App Feature Flags : 1
HDR Headroom : 0.9900000095
AF Performance : 113 1 33
Signal To Noise Ratio : 54.02030178
Photo Identifier : 1BB57D7A-74B0-4831-AB89-3320E711376B
Color Temperature : 5849
Camera Type : Back Normal
Focus Position : 67
HDR Gain : -0.04646149652
AF Measured Depth : 100
AF Confidence : 100
Semantic Style : {_0=1,_1=0,_2=0,_3=0}
Sub Sec Time Original : 742
Sub Sec Time Digitized : 742
Flashpix Version : 0100
Color Space : Uncalibrated
Exif Image Width : 5712
Exif Image Height : 4284
Sensing Method : One-chip color area
Scene Type : Directly photographed
Exposure Mode : Auto
White Balance : Auto
Focal Length In 35mm Format : 24 mm
Scene Capture Type : Standard
Lens Info : 2.220000029-15.65999985mm f/1.779999971-2.8
Lens Make : Apple
Lens Model : iPhone 15 Pro Max back triple camera 6.765mm f/1.78
Composite Image : General Composite Image
GPS Latitude Ref : North
GPS Longitude Ref : West
GPS Altitude Ref : Above Sea Level
GPS Time Stamp : 00:36:01
GPS Speed Ref : km/h
GPS Speed : 0.1803867135
GPS Img Direction Ref : True North
GPS Img Direction : 149.5131072
GPS Dest Bearing Ref : True North
GPS Dest Bearing : 149.5131072
GPS Date Stamp : 2024:07:21
GPS Horizontal Positioning Error: 4.775458293 m
Compression : JPEG (old-style)
Thumbnail Offset : 3028
Thumbnail Length : 10862
XMP Toolkit : XMP Core 6.0.0
Creator Tool : 17.5.1
Date Created : 2024:07:20 18:36:02
Region Area Y : 0.438, 0.4385
Region Area W : 0.086952380952380948, 0.084857142857142853
Region Area X : 0.41147619047619044, 0.40309523809523812
Region Area H : 0.11599999999999999, 0.11299999999999999
Region Area Unit : normalized, normalized
Region Type : Face, Focus
Region Extensions Angle Info Yaw: 356
Region Extensions Angle Info Roll: 274
Region Extensions Confidence Level: 669
Region Extensions Face ID : 488
Region Extensions :
Region Applied To Dimensions H : 4284
Region Applied To Dimensions W : 5712
Region Applied To Dimensions Unit: pixel
Profile CMM Type : Apple Computer Inc.
Profile Version : 4.0.0
Profile Class : Display Device Profile
Color Space Data : RGB
Profile Connection Space : XYZ
Profile Date Time : 2022:01:01 00:00:00
Profile File Signature : acsp
Primary Platform : Apple Computer Inc.
CMM Flags : Not Embedded, Independent
Device Manufacturer : Apple Computer Inc.
Device Model :
Device Attributes : Reflective, Glossy, Positive, Color
Rendering Intent : Perceptual
Connection Space Illuminant : 0.9642 1 0.82491
Profile Creator : Apple Computer Inc.
Profile ID : ecfda38e388547c36db4bd4f7ada182f
Profile Description : Display P3
Profile Copyright : Copyright Apple Inc., 2022
Media White Point : 0.96419 1 0.82489
Red Matrix Column : 0.51512 0.2412 -0.00105
Green Matrix Column : 0.29198 0.69225 0.04189
Blue Matrix Column : 0.1571 0.06657 0.78407
Red Tone Reproduction Curve : (Binary data 32 bytes, use -b option to extract)
Chromatic Adaptation : 1.04788 0.02292 -0.0502 0.02959 0.99048 -0.01706 -0.00923 0.01508 0.75168
Blue Tone Reproduction Curve : (Binary data 32 bytes, use -b option to extract)
Green Tone Reproduction Curve : (Binary data 32 bytes, use -b option to extract)
HDR Gain Curve : (Binary data 2067 bytes, use -b option to extract)
Image Width : 5712
Image Height : 4284
Encoding Process : Baseline DCT, Huffman coding
Bits Per Sample : 8
Color Components : 3
Y Cb Cr Sub Sampling : YCbCr4:2:0 (2 2)
Run Time Since Power Up : 9 days 3:11:42
Aperture : 1.8
Image Size : 5712x4284
Megapixels : 24.5
Scale Factor To 35 mm Equivalent: 3.5
Shutter Speed : 1/539
Create Date : 2024:07:20 18:36:02.742-06:00
Date/Time Original : 2024:07:20 18:36:02.742-06:00
Modify Date : 2024:07:20 18:36:02-06:00
Thumbnail Image : (Binary data 10862 bytes, use -b option to extract)
GPS Altitude : 2471.3 m Above Sea Level
GPS Date/Time : 2024:07:21 00:36:01Z
GPS Latitude : 40 deg 34' 51.92" N
GPS Longitude : 111 deg 39' 24.29" W
Circle Of Confusion : 0.008 mm
Field Of View : 73.7 deg
Focal Length : 6.8 mm (35 mm equivalent: 24.0 mm)
GPS Position : 40 deg 34' 51.92" N, 111 deg 39' 24.29" W
Hyperfocal Distance : 3.04 m
Light Value : 11.1
Lens ID : iPhone 15 Pro Max back triple camera 6.765mm f/1.78

Certainly overwhelming, but we are only interested in 3 fields that have date information. If present, these fields will be essential in rewriting the file name.

Date/Time Original
Create Date
Modify Date

If those fields aren’t present or maybe 1 is missing there is still hope. I have noticed that over the years that image taking devices such as iPhones and normal cameras will add in some of those date fields and leave the others blank. I also noticed in iOS movie files that DateTimeOriginal was more often present than Create Date. Or it might be the churn of files going across systems and platforms that things start to go missing in the EXIF fields. But you need to be aware of what is actually present.

Say you’ve read through your files and most have the CreateDate field present with an accurate date. The below command would instruct F2 to read the field CreateDate with the help of ExifTool and output the formatted date followed by a four digit sequencing value before the file extension. The -R flag asks F2 to look recursively if there are files farther down from where you command line is currently running.

f2 -r '{xt.CreateDate}_{%04d}{ext}' -R --exiftool-opts '--dateFormat %Y-%m-%d'
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
| ORIGINAL | RENAMED | STATUS |
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
| IMG_4282.jpg | 2020-08-30_0124.jpg | ok |
| IMG_4283.jpg | 2020-08-30_0125.jpg | ok |
| IMG_4284.jpg | 2020-08-30_0126.jpg | ok |
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
dry run: commit the above changes with the -x/--exec flag

A preview output is given before any changes are actually made, which is very helpful. If a file does not have information from CreateDate then the date portion of the new filename would be blank. To run the command you do it again but adding a -x flag at the end.

For files that don’t have CreateDate field you could use DateTimeOriginal instead. I found that this was the situation a lot for iOS .mov files.

f2 -r '{xt.DateTimeOriginal}_{%04d}{ext}' -R --exiftool-opts '--dateFormat %Y-%m-%d'
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
| ORIGINAL | RENAMED | STATUS |
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
| IMG_4282.jpg | 2020-08-30_0124.jpg | ok |
| IMG_4283.jpg | 2020-08-30_0125.jpg | ok |
| IMG_4284.jpg | 2020-08-30_0126.jpg | ok |
*—————————————————————*—————————————————————*————————*
dry run: commit the above changes with the -x/--exec flag

For those as obsessive compulsive as myself there are additional steps to clean up filenames. One approach is to remove the uppercase file extensions placed on some files. It is my personal opinion that all file extensions should be lower case. Many filesystems are case sensitive so you are just making it easier for yourself and others in the future. Additionally, consolidating common extensions like .jpeg into simply .jpg could also prove helpful in fortifying your future sanity.

The below command changes files with .jpeg extensions to .jpg. It ignore case, which would match something like .JPEG. It will perform recursively into subfolders.

f2 -f 'jpeg' -r 'jpg' -i -R
*——————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
| ORIGINAL | RENAMED | STATUS |
*——————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
| IMG_0297.jpeg | IMG_0297.jpg | ok |
| IMG_0298.jpeg | IMG_0298.jpg | ok |
| IMG_0299.jpeg | IMG_0299.jpg | ok |
*——————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
dry run: commit the above changes with the -x/--exec flag

The below command changes files with .JPG extensions to .jpg. It ignore case, which would match something like .JPEG. It will perform recursively into subfolders.

f2 -f 'jpg' -r 'jpg' -i -R
*——————————————————*—————————————————*———————————*
| ORIGINAL | RENAMED | STATUS |
*——————————————————*—————————————————*———————————*
| IMG_3368.jpg | IMG_3368.jpg | unchanged |
| IMG_3369.JPG | IMG_3369.jpg | ok |
| IMG_3451.jpg | IMG_3451.jpg | unchanged |
| IMG_3455.JPG | IMG_3455.jpg | ok |
*——————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
dry run: commit the above changes with the -x/--exec flag

The below command changes files with .MOV extensions to .mov. It ignore case, which would match something like .MOV. It will perform recursively into subfolders.

f2 -f 'mov' -r 'mov' -i -R
*—————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
| ORIGINAL | RENAMED | STATUS |
*—————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
| 10/IMG_4769.MOV | 10/IMG_4769.mov | ok |
| 12/IMG_5521.MOV | 12/IMG_5521.mov | ok |
| 12/IMG_5522.MOV | 12/IMG_5522.mov | ok |
*—————————————————*—————————————————*————————*
dry run: commit the above changes with the -x/--exec flag

Once you have your image filenames updated appropriately it will provide a good foundation to maintain your archive or pursue organization even further. Luckily, this semi-tedious job is often only required once in a file’s lifetime. That is if you have an appropriate number of backups and redundancy for your file storage.

16-bit BGP Community Architecture

Sun, 15 Dec 2024 10:30:00 -0600

There are a lot of reasons a network engineer might use a 16-bit BGP community tag in an enterprise environment. It can be forced from pre-existing constraints and overcoming technical debt while still giving the opportunity for managing and propagating routing information at scale. Or you just want a compact way to assign and manipulate routes. The first 16-bits available within the full 32-bit field might currently be strictly assigned to each AS and must stay in place as a legacy system. Whatever the reasons, I came up with this methodology as a thought process to better understand compact BGP community architecture.

BGP communities provide a mechanism to tag and group routes with metadata that facilitates streamlined routing policies and efficient traffic engineering. Gone are the days of manually filtering routes based on actual subnets over a long chain of routers to propagate new routes. This is a strong but dangerous tool. If your architecture is set to advertise certain communities it would be easy for widespread impact to happen very quickly. While extended BGP communities offer additional flexibility, the 16-bit standard community remains relevant for backward compatibility or hardware limitations.

Standard BGP communities, as defined in RFC 1997, are 32-bit values used to tag routes. These values are typically represented in a decimal:decimal format, such as 64512:100, where the first part usually corresponds to an Autonomous System Number (ASN) and the second part is a custom identifier. The 16-bit section could range from a defined value of 0 all the way to 65,535. Standard communities are widely supported across BGP implementations and are frequently used for purposes like route tagging, filtering, and marking routes for specific treatment. Their simplicity and broad adoption make them an effective tool for basic routing policies. Standard communities also include well-known values such as NO_EXPORT (65535:65281), which prevents a route from being advertised to external peers, and NO_ADVERTISE (65535:65282), which stops the route from being advertised to any BGP peer.

Extended BGP communities, introduced later in RFC 4360, expand on the capabilities of standard communities by using a 64-bit format. These communities include additional fields that allow for more complex tagging, enabling operators to encode information such as route target attributes, route origin, or specific traffic engineering requirements. Extended communities have a defined structure with fields for type and sub-type information, which determine how the community should be interpreted. For example, extended communities can be used in Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to control the scope of route propagation within a VPN. Values in extended communities are often represented as hexadecimal or in a similar “ASN:value” format, depending on the context.

Not every situation allows for the deployment of 64-bit BGP communities so it is interesting to explore the capacity within 16-bit communities. Using the below categorizations you could easily accommodate for a wide variety of enterprise network designations while staying within 16 bits.

Bits	Field	Description
5	Origin Type	0–31 (internal, external, upstream, etc)
5	Route Role	0–31 (production, backup, etc)
6	Scope or Custom	0–63 (global, regional, local, etc)

This layout allows 32 values for Origin Type and Route Role, and 64 values for Scope, providing sufficient granularity for most enterprise needs. The assignments could also be moved around if greater capability was needed in a specific category compared to others.

Origin Type (5 bits):
- 0: Internal (data centers, branches, etc).
- 1: Upstream providers (ISPs, etc).
- 2: Peering routes (IXPs, etc).
- 3: Cloud provider routes.
- … up to 31.
Route Role (5 bits):
- 0: Production traffic.
- 1: Backup routes.
- 2: Management traffic.
- 3: Test/lab environments.
- … up to 31.
Scope (6 bits):
- 0: Global (advertised broadly).
- 1: Regional (advertised within a region).
- 2: Local (specific to a branch or device).
- 3: Internet-bound.
- 4: Enterprise-only.
- … up to 63.

Based on the possible values in these 3 categories, you can create compact community values that stay in the 16 bit capacity. Some examples might include:

Community Value (Decimal)	Binary	Meaning
`1000`	`00001 00001 000000`	External route, production, global.
`2001`	`00010 00000 000001`	Peering route, backup, regional.
`3072`	`00011 00000 010000`	Cloud route, production, local.

It might make more sense if we use some practical implementations to filter routes for various needs. But first you’ll need to be aware of how the bits are referred to as they show from left to right. Bit 15 is the most left bit in a 16-bit field. In the context of a binary number, bit numbering typically starts from the leftmost (most significant bit, MSB) and moves to the rightmost (least significant bit, LSB). Here is how the bit positions are numbered in a 16-bit binary field:

Bits: 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Binary: 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

To block all routes from origin type 1 (Upstream Providers), match communities where bits 15–11 encode the value of 1 in binary. Translating to decimal the minimum possible value would be 00001 00000 000000 (32) where the maximum would be 00001 11111 111111 (63). We can use that decimal range to craft appropriate regex that captures that range.

policy-options {
 community upstream-providers {
 members "^.*:((3[2-9])|([4-5][0-9])|(6[0-3]))$";
 }
 policy-statement block-upstream {
 term block {
 from community upstream-providers;
 then reject;
 }
 }
}

Crafting a filter for other values of the origin type category would include variations on the binary and decimal value. For 0 the binary would be 00000xxxxx xxxxxx with a decimal range of 0-31. Type 2 would be 00010xxxxx xxxxxx with the decimal range of 64-95. Type 3 would be 00011xxxxx xxxxxx with a range of 96-127.

To allow routes marked as route role 0 (Production Traffic), match communities where bits 10–6 are 0 in binary. This would be a decimal sequence from 0 to 2016. Not really clean and compact but it accomplishes the original goal.

policy-options {
 community production-traffic {
 members "^.*:(0|32|64|96|128|160|192|224|256|288|320|352|384|416|448|480|512|544|576|608|640|672|704|736|768|800|832|864|896|928|960|992|1024|1056|1088|1120|1152|1184|1216|1248|1280|1312|1344|1376|1408|1440|1472|1504|1536|1568|1600|1632|1664|1696|1728|1760|1792|1824|1856|1888|1920|1952|1984|2016)$";
 }
 policy-statement allow-production {
 term allow {
 from community production-traffic;
 then accept;
 }
 }
}

To block any route not scoped for enterprise only traffic with scope 4, match communities where bits 5–0 are not 4 in binary.

policy-options {
 community non-enterprise-routes {
 members "^(?!.*4$).*$";
 }
 policy-statement block-non-enterprise {
 term block {
 from community non-enterprise-routes;
 then reject;
 }
 }
}

For routes originating from the cloud and that are also backup, match origin type 3 and route role 1.

policy-options {
 community cloud-backup {
 members "^.*:((3[2-9]|[4-5][0-9]){1})$";
 }
 policy-statement permit-cloud-backup {
 term allow {
 from community cloud-backup;
 then accept;
 }
 }
}

It Doesn't Matter if Baltic Submarine Cable Cuts Were Sabotage

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Map of the C-Lion1 Submarine Cable path from Finland to Germany. Source: TeleGeography.

The recent severing of submarine cables in the Baltic Sea has brought to the forefront the critical vulnerabilities surrounding the infrastructure that underpins modern society. On November 17, the BCS East-West Interlink cable, owned by Arelion and spanning from Lithuania to Sweden, was severed.¹ Shortly after, on November 18, the C-Lion1 submarine cable, owned by Cinia² and extending from Finland to Germany, was also severed.³ These incidents have prompted extensive debate regarding whether the severances were accidental or acts of deliberate sabotage, with Germany’s Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius, leaning towards the latter.⁴ Irrespective of causation, the imperative that all nation states must embrace is identical. We must immediately take steps to enhance submarine cable redundancy, advance technological capabilities of the cables themselves, and fortify state posture around these critical assets as key national security goals. Given that submarine cables account for over 95% of international internet traffic,⁵ they are the arteries of global communication, and their security is central to the seamless functioning of an interconnected society.

The strategic interest in undersea infrastructure is not new, and Russian activities have repeatedly highlighted these vulnerabilities. American intelligence officials have reported increased Russian activity⁶ in proximity to critical submarine cable infrastructure. Instances such as Russian agents scouting cable landing stations in 2015,⁷ and a Russian spy vessel getting uncomfortably close to critical infrastructure⁸ in the Irish Sea in November 2024, underscore the vital significance of these cables. This increasing scrutiny from state actors is symptomatic of a broader trend that places the resilience of submarine cable networks under constant threat. With more than 750,000 miles of submarine cables traversing the globe, safeguarding their integrity and ensuring sufficient redundancy is an immense challenge that demands international cooperation between private and government entities and proactive policy measures.

A fundamental priority for enhancing submarine cable security is the pursuit of increased redundancy. The Baltic incidents reveal that while some level of redundancy is embedded in current systems, it is insufficient when faced with coordinated attacks or multiple points of failure. An analysis conducted by Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC) illustrated that the severance of the Baltic cables resulted in an increase in latency of 15ms between Sweden and Lithuania and 10ms between Germany and Finland.⁹ While these latencies may appear negligible, they underscore the intrinsic dependency of modern communications on uninterrupted cable infrastructure. More significantly, the analysis highlights that while the internet is inherently resilient enough to reroute data around damaged nodes, the current redundancy must be significantly expanded to mitigate intentional threats from state actors and ensure continued functionality under coordinated stress.

Redundancy is not merely about deploying additional cables but rather about ensuring true geographic path diversity. The most flagrant example is in submarine cable path aggregation through the Red Sea, where 90% of Europe-Asia traffic transits through a single corridor. In March of 2024 three cables were attacked, which impacted approximately 25% of internet traffic transiting ¹⁰ the Red Sea. It is currently an extreme exposure that places international communications at significant risk.

As of 2024, between 100 and 150 submarine cables are severed annually, largely due to inadvertent incidents involving fishing equipment or ship anchors.¹¹ Given the frequency of such occurrences, redundancy must be treated as a baseline requirement, not as an exception. Further, heightened redundancy would significantly complicate attempts by either state or non-state actors to cause large-scale telecommunications disruptions. Russia’s continued scrutiny of undersea infrastructure suggests the strategic value that adversarial states perceive in targeting such assets as part of broader geopolitical maneuvers.

Increased redundancy is not only crucial for mitigating physical threats but also for sustaining the reliability of global communications. Submarine cables are essential to international commerce, banking, and the digital communications that underpin daily life. Any disruption in these cables can have catastrophic consequences, economically and socially. Governments and private sector stakeholders must coordinate to assess vulnerabilities systematically and invest in creating backup routes to minimize the potential impact of disruptions. Collaboration between private and public entities is vital to ensuring that global connectivity is maintained even under adverse conditions.

Another pivotal dimension of submarine cable security lies in the adoption and advancement of smart cable technology. Traditionally, submarine cables served a single function—as conduits for communication. However, contemporary advancements are enabling these cables to be embedded with smart sensors capable of environmental monitoring. Smart submarine cables, which integrate sensors roughly every 70 kilometers, can detect and measure seafloor motion, variations in water pressure, and changes in temperature.¹² This sensor capability is not only instrumental for environmental research¹³ but is also critical for securing the cables. Enhanced situational awareness along the seabed could allow authorities to detect suspicious activity or accidental damage before the perpetrating vessel leaves the area.

The potential of smart submarine cable technology to transform underwater infrastructure from passive conduits into proactive security tools is significant. By embedding sensors, these cables can relay real-time data to authorities, providing crucial information on both natural occurrences and anthropogenic activities along the seabed. Such data is instrumental in responding swiftly to accidental damages and deterring acts of sabotage. The successful implementation of these technologies will necessitate concerted efforts from governments, private enterprises, and multinational bodies, emphasizing subsidies and incentives to encourage adoption.

Governmental support, including subsidies, will be critical in accelerating the deployment of smart submarine cables. Increasing the density of sensors and applying smart technologies to both newly deployed and replacement cables will yield a more granular and timely picture of potential disruptions. Enhanced sensor density will enable pinpointing the precise location and timing of severances, thereby facilitating rapid responses. In cases of deliberate tampering, these sensors will provide critical data that could be provided to government agencies, allowing them to more efficiently identify the perpetrators. Thus, investing in smart cable infrastructure not only augments the overall resilience of the network but also serves as a deterrent against malign actors by making evasion significantly more difficult.

Additionally, the dual-use aspect of smart technology bridges infrastructure security and environmental science. Smart cables, with their integrated monitoring capabilities, have the potential to contribute valuable data to environmental research while simultaneously enhancing security. For instance, early detection of underwater seismic activity or tsunamis could provide essential warning time to coastal communities, thereby mitigating loss of life. Dual-use technologies represent an attractive investment for nations seeking to improve security while delivering broader societal benefits.

As climate change accelerates, monitoring the impact of changing ocean temperatures and conditions through smart submarine cables offers essential data for global climate models. The dual-purpose functionality of smart cables provides policymakers with a compelling rationale for infrastructure investment. Not solely for security but also as part of a broader commitment to environmental stewardship and scientific understanding. By addressing multiple policy goals simultaneously, investments in smart cable technologies can enhance resilience, contribute to climate research, and fortify critical infrastructure.

Equally critical to the advancement of submarine cable security is fortifying state posture regarding this vital infrastructure. While smart cables provide an enhanced passive defense mechanism, active protection is indispensable for comprehensive security. The recent decision by the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to review submarine cables as critical infrastructure¹⁴ is a welcome but long overdue acknowledgment of their importance. Initiatives such as Team Telecom, a cross-agency group tasked with evaluating the national security implications of undersea cables¹⁵ landing on U.S. shores, must be further strengthened to ensure that infrastructure does not become a strategic liability that could be easily exploited by adversaries.

International collaboration is essential for the effective security of submarine cables. These cables traverse multiple jurisdictions, involving an array of stakeholders, including nations, corporations, and international bodies. Establishing global norms and cooperative frameworks for protecting undersea infrastructure can enhance resilience against potential threats. Multilateral agreements to standardize cable protection, foster information sharing, and coordinate responses to incidents could improve the collective security of submarine networks.

Map of the BCS East-West Interlink Submarine Cable path from Lithuania to Sweden. Source: TeleGeography.

Bilateral and multilateral partnerships are instrumental in securing submarine cable infrastructure. Nations with shared interests in maintaining open, secure communication channels should work in concert to establish joint task forces, conduct regular risk assessments, and develop coordinated response strategies. These partnerships can promote more effective information exchange and provide a unified defense against potential adversarial threats. The pooling of technological expertise and financial resources through international cooperation is fundamental to reinforcing the robustness of submarine cable networks.

Physical security measures also constitute a crucial component of submarine cable protection. Although patrolling the entirety of submarine cables, spanning thousands of miles along the ocean floor, is impractical, focused efforts can enhance security at critical junctures. Submarine cable landing stations, where cables connect with terrestrial infrastructure, represent a significant vulnerability. Governments must invest in fortifying the physical security of these installations to prevent unauthorized access and potential acts of sabotage. Additionally, remote monitoring technologies, such as smart submarine sensors, must be employed to provide oversight across areas that are otherwise impractical to patrol. The combination of enhanced physical security and technological monitoring can create a resilient defense against both accidental damage and deliberate threats.

The human element is an often-overlooked aspect of infrastructure security. Efforts should be made to engage local communities in the coastal areas where submarine cable landing stations are situated. Community awareness initiatives and local partnerships can foster vigilance and encourage the reporting of suspicious activities. By involving local stakeholders, governments can establish an additional layer of security that complements technological measures. This community-focused approach, paired with enhanced physical and technological security, represents a comprehensive defense strategy against a diverse array of threats.

Community engagement is critical not only for enhancing vigilance but also for building trust between the public and authorities tasked with safeguarding critical infrastructure. By educating coastal communities on the strategic importance of submarine cables and the potential threats they face, governments can foster a culture of collaboration and mutual support. This inclusive approach is instrumental in early threat detection and mitigation, as community members are often the first to observe and respond to suspicious activities.

The severing of submarine cables in the Baltic Sea is reminiscent of similar uncertainties surrounding other infrastructure damage, such as the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosion in 2022. Despite thorough investigations, the responsible party remains unidentified, underscoring the challenge of attribution in incidents involving critical infrastructure.¹⁶ Whether the Baltic cable cuts were acts of sabotage or merely accidental, the broader imperative remains clear, submarine cables must be protected, strengthened, and made resilient to withstand both deliberate attacks and natural disasters.

The significance of submarine cables in the contemporary era is impossible to overstate. These cables are the backbone of global communications, carrying more than 95% of international internet traffic. Every financial transaction, communication, and data transfer that crosses international boundaries depends on the continued integrity of these undersea links. The interconnected nature of global economies and societies hinges on this largely unseen infrastructure beneath the ocean’s surface. This is critical infrastructure that is, in many cases, simply resting on the sea floor in unpatrolled international waters. The recent damage to Baltic cables is a reminder to global governments, urging them to rethink how they safeguard critical infrastructure in an era where digital connectivity is essential.

Securing this infrastructure requires a holistic strategy that encompasses redundancy, technological advancement, and enhanced security protocols. By advocating for increased redundancy, nations can make the global internet more resilient to large-scale disruptions, minimizing the risk that arises from individual cable failures. Geographic path diversity must be prioritized to avoid creating critical bottlenecks that could be exploited by malicious actors or accidental damage. Building a resilient web of connectivity that can absorb shocks without compromising functionality is crucial for ensuring global stability in an increasingly unpredictable world.

Adopting smart submarine cable technology is a forward-thinking solution that not only enhances security but also contributes to environmental monitoring and research. By integrating sensors along cables, authorities gain a comprehensive understanding of seafloor conditions, allowing them to detect threats in real time and respond effectively. Government incentives, such as subsidies for adopting smart technologies, can encourage private companies to invest in these innovations, ensuring that both new and existing cables are equipped to meet the evolving challenges of the twenty-first century. Smart sensors are not merely tools for scientific advancement; they are indispensable elements of modern infrastructure security.

Furthermore, fortifying state posture around submarine cable infrastructure is crucial for deterring adversarial actions and safeguarding national interests. Governmental entities, such as Team Telecom in the United States, must take proactive measures to assess risks associated with submarine cables and ensure that they do not become strategic vulnerabilities. Enhanced physical security measures at landing stations and other critical points must be implemented to prevent unauthorized interference. The strategic importance of submarine cables necessitates a multifaceted approach to security that integrates technological innovation, physical safeguards, and international cooperation.

The incidents involving the Baltic submarine cables serve as a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities inherent in the infrastructure that supports global communications. Whether these severances were caused by sabotage or negligence is ultimately secondary to the greater necessity of securing these critical assets. Submarine cables must be rendered resilient to withstand both human-induced threats and the forces of nature. As society becomes ever more dependent on digital connectivity, the urgency of securing these networks becomes increasingly evident. Ensuring redundancy, embracing smart technologies, and fortifying security measures are essential steps toward safeguarding the future of global communications. The moment to act is now, before further incidents reveal the fragility of the infrastructure that sustains our interconnected society.

Emmet Lyons, “Undersea Cables Cut or Damaged, Leading European Nations to Investigate Possible Sabotage,” CBS News, November 20, 2024, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/undersea-cables-cut-europe-finland-germany-hint-russia-sabotage/. ↩︎
Henri Astier & Paul Kirby, “Germany Suspects Sabotage Over Severed Undersea Cables in Baltic,” BBC News, November 19, 2024, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9dl4vxw501o. ↩︎
Viivi Koivistoinen, Tiina Aspeslagh, and Jesse Mäntysalo, “Traficom Ylelle: Suomen Ja Saksan Välinen Merikaapeli on Katkennut – Näin Supo Kommentoi,” Yle Uutiset, November 18, 2024, https://yle.fi/a/74-20125324. ↩︎
Melissa Eddy and Johanna Lemola, “Severing of Baltic Sea Cables Was ‘Sabotage,’ Germany Says,” The New York Times, November 19, 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/19/business/finland-germany-cable-baltic-sea.html. ↩︎
Adam Satariano et al., “How The Internet Travels Across Oceans,” The New York Times, March 13, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/03/10/technology/internet-cables-oceans.html. ↩︎
David E. Sanger and Eric Schmitt, “Russian Ships Near Data Cables Are Too Close for U.S. Comfort,” The New York Times, October 25, 2015, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/26/world/europe/russian-presence-near-undersea-cables-concerns-us.html. ↩︎
Sebastian Moss, “Report: Irish Police Claim Russian Agents Scouted Submarine Cable Landing Stations,” Data Center Dynamics, February 18, 2020, https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/report-irish-police-claim-russian-agents-scouted-submarine-cable-landing-stations/. ↩︎
Lisa O’Carroll, “Russian Spy Ship Escorted Away From Area With Critical Cables in Irish Sea,” The Guardian, November 16, 2024, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/16/russian-spy-ship-escorted-away-from-internet-cables-in-irish-sea. ↩︎
Emile Aben, “Does the Internet Route Around Damage? - Baltic Sea Cable Cuts,” RIPE Labs, November 20, 2024, https://labs.ripe.net/author/emileaben/does-the-internet-route-around-damage-baltic-sea-cable-cuts/. ↩︎
Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, “Undersea Cables Are Increasingly Critical and Vulnerable,” The Diplomat, March 27, 2024, https://thediplomat.com/2024/03/undersea-cables-are-increasingly-critical-and-vulnerable/. ↩︎
Daniel F. Runde, Erin L. Murphy, and Thomas Bryja, “Safeguarding Subsea Cables: Protecting Cyber Infrastructure Amid Great Power Competition,” Center for Strategic & International Studies, October 15, 2024, https://www.csis.org/analysis/safeguarding-subsea-cables-protecting-cyber-infrastructure-amid-great-power-competition. ↩︎
Paul Voosen, “‘Smart’ Fiber-optic Cables on the Sea Floor Will Detect Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Global Warming,” Science, March 13, 2024, https://www.science.org/content/article/smart-fiber-optic-cables-sea-floor-will-detect-earthquakes-tsunamis-and-global-warming. ↩︎
Bob Wallace, “Smart(Er) Subsea Cables to Provide Early Warning System,” Network Computing, November 20, 2024, https://www.networkcomputing.com/network-management/smart-er-subsea-cables-to-provide-early-warning-system. ↩︎
David Shepardson, “US Agency to Launch Review of Undersea Cables, National Security Risks,” Reuters, October 30, 2024, https://www.reuters.com/technology/us-agency-vote-launch-review-undersea-cable-vulnerabilities-2024-10-30/. ↩︎
Colin Wall and Pierre Morcos. “Invisible and Vital: Undersea Cables and Transatlantic Security.” Center for Strategic & International Studies, 2021. https://www.csis.org/analysis/invisible-and-vital-undersea-cables-and-transatlantic-security. ↩︎
Melissa Eddy, “Nord Stream Pipeline Breaks Look Deliberate, Europeans Say,” The New York Times, September 28, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/world/europe/pipeline-leak-russia-nord-stream.html. ↩︎

Perfect Image Processing with Hugo

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 10:30:00 -0600

With the correct image processing you can still get a 100 score from PageSpeed Insights despite an image heavy article. This is an evaluation of my Speedgoat race report in July.

I use Hugo to build this little blog and it frequently gets incredibly frustrating. My safe space in technology is tagging BGP routes with regex matched communities, not web development. There are tutorials, guides, and support threads on a variety of topics for basically anything you could think of for Hugo. But the time sink to first conceptualize a problem and thereafter apply a best practice fix is very long. In most cases it takes me a long Saturday afternoon to do a simple task like setting up an RSS feed. It has been months of sporadic reading and tinkering to find a suitable image processing script I am happy with.

In the past I was extremely spoiled and babied by content management systems (CMS) like Ghost. A few clicks here and there made everything come together easily. There was a problem with all of that capability. It added a great deal of unnecessary bloat that bogged down page requests and added tens of megabytes to simple text and image pages. Also, dealing with a database on Ghost’s backend was entirely overkill for my goal of having a basic static website. While these behaviors aren’t specific to Ghost or any other CMS it is certainly the trending average for them. To get a CMS paired down appropriately would require a great deal of time and I could spend the same time learning basic web design and be farther ahead in the end.

Instead, I embraced Hugo with the direct goal of learning the fundamentals of web design while keeping my blog simple and fast. Not to create something fancy or awe inspiring. But to just be decent enough to operate the fundamentals of a text and image static site.

Ironically, while Hugo aims to be an ultra fast static site generator it doesn’t specifically share an all encompassing image processing script, which is arguably the biggest burden on site data transfer usage. There is a thorough Image Processing guide from Hugo but putting all the pieces together is something for serious web developer folks. I have instead relied on smashing together several other people’s scripts in order to get something I am comfortable running. However, this might be the fundamental goal of the Hugo developers. To give an array of appropriate tools and leave the overall crafting of image processing up to each project owner.

While the script I built has some elements from various authors, the biggest inspiration came from Michael Welford.¹ I didn’t take his same approach for inserting gradient image placeholders (GIP), however, his logical approach to skipping SVG and GIF files to the collection of breakpoint sizes was very helpful.

This script relies on overriding the default behavior of Hugo for calling out images with Markdown. This is easily done by placing a file in layouts/_default/_markup/render-image.html. In the past I had used shortcodes to perform the same image processing but the syntax in Markdown documents was jarring and incompatible. By using regular Markdown to call out images you can draft documents much easier in Visual Studio Code, iA Writer, or anything else that suits your fancy. You will also future proof your Markdown documents in case you decide to move to something else besides Hugo.

To insert an image in a post I would use the normal Markdown syntax for an image:

![A dirt road with a steep trail going up to Mount Baldy.](speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent.webp "The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy.")

The text “A dirt road with a steep trail going up to Mount Baldy.” will serve as the image’s alt attribute unless overridden by the last text field. Since I’m using Hugo’s Page Bundles, I specify the image file “speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent.webp” without any sort of folder structure prefix. The last text parameter “The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy.” will become the figcaption, title attribute, and accessibility aria-label. There is certainly a limitation to compressing all these fields into a limited number of inputs. Yet, you have to decide if the trade off is worth it for the wider compatibility of using Markdown. The only alternative is to spread this out through a dedicated Hugo shortcode as you see fit. But if there comes a time in the future where you have to migrate away from Hugo this will become a pain in the ass to convert.

The Markdown callout will build the below HTML for the img wrapped inside a figure element. Remember that the alt attribute is replaced by the last text field, if present. I formatted it all for easier reading:

<figure role="figure" aria-label="The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy.">
 <img 
 alt="The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy." 
 title="The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy." 
 width="1600" height="1200" 
 srcset="
 /blog/speedgoat-50k-2024-race-report/speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent_hu10284923237444045690.webp 420w,
 /blog/speedgoat-50k-2024-race-report/speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent_hu8804836215186072207.webp 789w,
 /blog/speedgoat-50k-2024-race-report/speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent_hu10352609384891324939.webp 1019w,
 /blog/speedgoat-50k-2024-race-report/speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent_hu14272288209653111312.webp 1430w," 
 sizes="(min-width: 800px) 50vw, 100vw" 
 src="/blog/speedgoat-50k-2024-race-report/speedgoat-50k-2024-mount-baldy-ascent_hu8823523890708859362.jpg" 
 decoding="async" 
 loading="lazy"
 >
 <figcaption>The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy.</figcaption>
</figure>

As you can see there is a fallback JPG image availability for legacy browsers but WEBP is now widely supported² by anything recently up to date.

Many resampling filters are available through Hugo image processing but I chose Lanczos due to the superior results it was giving with high resolution images. I don’t specify a quality value so Hugo defaults to 75 out of a scale of 100. Another thing to note is that despite trying all resampling filters I had issues with charts and maps becoming discolored or added compression artifacts. After further experimentation I realized this was only happening when those screenshots I had taken were WEBP prior to being processed by Hugo. If I fed them in as JPG they were perfectly fine afterwards as WEBP. This must have something to do with Hugo’s image processing on Windows since I could not replicate the issue by performing the same WEBP to WEBP conversion with Adobe Photoshop.

The sizes attribute within the img tag of the script specifies how the browser should choose the appropriate image size to load based on the layout of the webpage. With the growing adoption of high resolution retina screens and the variability of mobile browsing it gets very complicated to efficiently manage an image’s size as it’s offered up to the browser. One major improvement in managing sizes was from some advice from Chris Coyier³ to effectively let the browser figure it out. In my script, I adopt Mr. Coyier’s advice and the sizes attribute is set to (min-width: 800px) 50vw, 100vw.

Overall, this works as a set of conditions and values to determine the correct image to provide to the browser requesting the webpage. The first part is a condition (min-width: 800px), which defines a media query. If the viewport width is at least 800 pixels, the condition is true. The second part is the value 50vw. If the condition of viewport width ≥ 800px is true, the browser will calculate the image size to be 50% of the viewport’s width. The last part determines if a default of 100vw will come into play into the browser’s calculations. If the condition of viewport width < 800px is false, the browser will use the fallback value of 100vw, meaning the image should take up the full width of the viewport.

This attribute works in conjunction with the srcset attribute, which provides a list of available image versions in different resolutions or widths. The browser uses the sizes attribute to determine how large the image will appear in the layout and then selects the most appropriate image from the srcset options. For example, on a desktop with a screen width of 1024px the image might be displayed at 512px wide, which would make it 50% of the viewport width. On a smaller device, like a smartphone with a width of 400px, the image would instead be displayed at 400px wide being 100% of the viewport width. This ensures the best quality image is loaded without unnecessary file size overhead, saving bandwidth and improving load times.

Additional features of the script include eager loading and sync decoding for image files that have “featured” in the file name. This is especially helpful for images that appear at the top of a web page. If you relied on lazy loading and async decoding for these front and center images you might get a lower PageSpeed score. And to be frank, that isn’t best practice. Those deferment parameters are meant for images that load later in a web page.

Lastly, it is very helpful to specifically define an image’s width and height to a numeric value. This helps the browser appropriately render the page since it knows the dimensions of all elements.

This script relies on overriding the default behavior of Hugo for calling out images with Markdown. You can do this by creating a file at layouts/_default/_markup/render-image.html. Otherwise, you could theoretically create your own shortcode and reference it by whichever name you chose. I would also recommend manually deleting the contents of public prior to rebuilding your site’s images with this or any other script, as per Hugo best practice. You don’t want it cluttered with a huge arrangement of stale srcset junk built from an old script.

{{- $image_sizes := slice "420" "789" "1019" "1430" "2048" -}}
{{- $image_quality := "Lanczos" -}}
{{- $alt := .Text -}}
{{- $label := .Text -}}
{{- $caption := "" -}}
{{- if ne .Title "" -}}
 {{- $caption = .Title | $.Page.RenderString -}}
 {{- $label = $caption -}}
{{- end -}}
{{- $image := .Page.Resources.GetMatch .Destination -}}
{{- if and (not $image) .Page.File -}}
 {{- $image = resources.Get (path.Join .Page.File.Dir .Destination) -}}
{{- else -}}
 {{- $image := resources.Get $image -}}
{{- end -}}
{{- with $image -}}
 {{- $image_width := $image.Width -}}
 {{- $image_height := $image.Height -}}
 {{- if strings.Contains $image "_2x" -}}
 {{- $image_width = math.Floor (math.Div $image_width 2) -}}
 {{- $image_height = math.Floor (math.Div $image_height 2) -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- $fallback_image := ($image.Resize (print "789x jpg " $image_quality)) -}}
<figure role="figure" aria-label="{{- $label | plainify -}}">
 <img
 alt="{{- $caption | markdownify | plainify -}}"
 title="{{- $label | plainify -}}"
 width="{{- $image_width -}}"
 height="{{- $image_height -}}"
 {{- if (or (strings.HasSuffix $image ".gif") (strings.HasSuffix $image ".svg")) -}}
 src="{{- $image.RelPermalink -}}"
 {{- else -}}
 srcset="
 {{- if le $image.Width (index $image_sizes 0) }}
 {{- with $image.Resize (print $image.Width "x webp " $image_quality) -}}
 {{- print .RelPermalink " " .Width "w, " -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- with $image_sizes -}}
 {{- range $index, $size := . -}}
 {{- if ge $image.Width $size -}}
 {{- with $image.Resize (print $size "x webp " $image_quality) -}}
 {{- print .RelPermalink " " $size "w, " -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- end -}}
 {{- end -}}"
 sizes="(min-width: 800px) 50vw, 100vw"
 src="{{- $fallback_image.RelPermalink -}}"
 {{- end -}}
 {{- if strings.Contains $image "featured" -}}
 loading="eager"
 decoding="sync"
 {{- else -}}
 decoding="async"
 loading="lazy"
 {{- end -}}
 />
 </a>
 <figcaption>{{- $caption -}}</figcaption>
</figure>
{{- end -}}

Michael Welford, “Responsive Image Management With Hugo," Michael Welford (blog), May 31, 2024, https://its.mw/posts/hugo-responsive-images/. ↩︎
Alexis Deveria, “WebP Image Format," Can I Use…, April 7, 2024, https://caniuse.com/webp. ↩︎
Chris Coyier, “Responsive Images: If You’Re Just Changing Resolutions, Use Srcset,” CSS-Tricks (blog), September 7, 2015, https://css-tricks.com/responsive-images-youre-just-changing-resolutions-use-srcset/. ↩︎

BGP Route Origin Authorization Regulation

Thu, 31 Oct 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Recent heightened scrutiny of government regulation surrounding BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) ROA (Route Origin Authorization) has emerged as a critical topic within the internet infrastructure community. As the fundamental routing protocol of the global internet, BGP is essential in ensuring that data reaches its intended destination with efficiency. To put it simply, BGP works like a postal service for the internet, ensuring that data packets are routed through the best possible paths to reach their intended recipients. However, its inherent vulnerabilities have introduced substantial risks, such as route hijacking and misconfigurations, prompting increased regulatory attention from governments worldwide.

A United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) report¹ that was published in May of 2024, emphasizes the importance of strengthening the security of critical internet infrastructure by encouraging the adoption of secure routing technologies like RPKI (Resource Public Key Infrastructure), which plays a crucial role in supporting BGP ROA by providing the infrastructure for validating route origin authorizations. It underscored the need for coordinated efforts among private entities, standards bodies, and government authorities to mitigate vulnerabilities in BGP routing. The report also highlights the challenges faced by smaller ISPs in achieving compliance, advocating for balanced regulatory approaches that enhance security without imposing undue burdens. Additionally, it recognizes the need for improving resilience while maintaining the openness and flexibility of the internet.

The Internet Society and Cyber Global Alliance’s response² to the FCC report expressed significant concern over the direction of the proposed regulations, highlighting the risk of centralization and government overreach. John Morris and Ryan Polk argued that mandating compliance with BGP ROA and RPKI could compromise the fundamental openness of the internet, especially if regulatory bodies hold excessive control over routing infrastructure. Furthermore, the Internet Society emphasized that such mandates could disproportionately impact smaller ISPs, potentially stifling competition and innovation.³ They called for a more inclusive, community-driven approach to improving BGP security that respects the diverse needs of stakeholders and avoids introducing unnecessary points of control.

Later in June, the FCC sought comments on a proposal⁴ that would require nine major US internet service providers to draft BGP Routing Security Risk Management Plans, and confidentially report them to the federal agency. The FCC would want status updates on the specific efforts made to create and maintain ROAs for at least 90% of the routes under its control. Additionally, measures taken to which each carrier has implemented Route Origin Validation (ROV) filtering at its interconnection points.⁵

In addition to the FCC’s pushes, in September 2024, the White House Office of the National Cyber Director released a press statement⁶ calling for the adoption of BGP ROA as part of a broader roadmap to enhance internet routing security. The press release emphasized the urgency of securing critical internet infrastructure and highlighted the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to promoting best practices in routing security. I shared this with a few people and all were surprised such an esoteric networking concept had made it to a White House press release. Yet it does signal to the internet infrastructure community just how top of mind the subject is and how important the internet has become to our normal day to day life.

BGP was originally designed with an emphasis on openness and mutual trust, assuming that network operators would configure routes correctly without the need for stringent security mechanisms. This trust-first model, however, has often led to significant unintended or malicious disruptions of internet connectivity. Incidents of route hijacking and route leaks have precipitated widespread outages, unauthorized interception of network traffic, and even serious security breaches—resulting in substantial financial losses and undermining global connectivity.⁷ In response, numerous countries are advocating for stronger regulatory oversight, focusing on the implementation of technologies such as ROA to enhance BGP routing security.

ROA is a pivotal component within the RPKI framework. It permits network operators to authorize specific IP prefixes to be advertised by designated ASNs (Autonomous System Numbers), thereby providing a mechanism for validation that ensures only legitimate networks can announce routes. This validation mechanism has demonstrated its efficacy in mitigating certain classes of attacks and in reducing the likelihood of route leaks. However, as governments seek to mandate the adoption of ROA, critical questions arise regarding the appropriate methods for regulatory implementation and the potential for unintended negative consequences.

The increased scrutiny of BGP ROA represents a double-edged sword. On the one hand, governmental mandates for BGP ROA compliance could markedly enhance the security of the internet’s routing system by reducing its vulnerability to attacks. On the other hand, there are legitimate concerns about potential overreach, bureaucratic inefficiencies, and the resulting impact to internet service providers. Mandating the use of ROA and RPKI could impose additional compliance burdens on smaller ISPs, which may lack the financial and technical resources to adapt readily to these regulatory demands. Furthermore, the centralization of validation authorities under government-regulated bodies raises concerns about new points of failure and the potential for state-level censorship and control. For instance, China’s implementation of the Great Firewall leverages routing controls to restrict access to certain online content, illustrating how centralized control could be exploited for censorship.

The central challenge lies in achieving an equilibrium between security and the openness that has been fundamental to the internet’s design. While there is widespread consensus within the industry that enhancing BGP security is crucial for maintaining the internet’s reliability, the mechanisms for accomplishing this goal remain subject to ongoing debate. A collaborative approach involving private network operators, standards organizations, and governmental entities will be essential for formulating policies that bolster security without eroding the openness that underpins the internet’s utility and innovation. It is admirable that the FCC chose not to impose direct regulation, instead opting to ask carriers to report on the progress of BGP ROA adoption. This approach not only encourages accountability but also provides flexibility for carriers to adapt their practices while aligning with the overall goal of enhancing internet security.

Ultimately, the growing governmental scrutiny of BGP ROA regulation reflects a broader trend towards bolstering the resilience and security of critical internet infrastructure. This evolving conversation has far-reaching implications, affecting all stakeholders—from major service providers to individual end-users—as the repercussions of routing incidents can be felt universally. The aspiration is that through deliberate, collaborative regulation, the internet will continue to evolve in a manner that preserves both its security and its openness for all.

United States Federal Communications Commission, “FCC FACT SHEET Reporting on Border Gateway Protocol Risk Mitigation Progress Notice of Proposed Rulemaking PS Docket Nos. 24-146 and 22-90,” May 16, 2024, https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-402609A1.pdf. ↩︎
Internet Society and Global Cyber Alliance, “Matter of Safeguarding and Securing the Open Internet,” April 17, 2024, https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-FCC-Ex-Parte-re-BGP.pdf. ↩︎
John Morris and Ryan Polk, “The US FCC Signals a Dangerous New Course on BGP Security,” Internet Society, April 18, 2024, https://www.internetsociety.org/blog/2024/04/the-us-fcc-signals-a-dangerous-new-course-on-bgp-security/. ↩︎
United States Federal Communications Commission, “Reporting on Border Gateway Protocol Risk Mitigation Progress PS Docket Nos. 24-146 and 22-90,” June 7, 2024, https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-24-62A1.pdf ↩︎
Doug Madory, “Dissecting the FCC’s Proposal to Improve BGP Security,” North American Network Operators Group, August 23, 2024, https://nanog.org/stories/articles/dissecting-the-fccs-proposal-to-improve-bgp-security/. ↩︎
White House, “Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Releases Roadmap to Enhance Internet Routing Security,” The White House, September 3, 2024, https://www.whitehouse.gov/oncd/briefing-room/2024/09/03/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-releases-roadmap-to-enhance-internet-routing-security/. ↩︎
Mike Conlow, Emily Music, and Tom Strickx, “Making Progress on Routing Security: The New White House Roadmap,” The Cloudflare Blog, October 9, 2024, https://blog.cloudflare.com/white-house-routing-security/. ↩︎

Meta Ends Direct Peering with Deutsche Telekom

Sat, 28 Sep 2024 10:30:00 -0600

On Wednesday, Meta announced¹ it was ending its direct peering relationship with Deutsche Telekom (DT) due to the fee being charged for the connections. DT also had some strong words on their perspective of the situation.² This effectively means all DT customers will now have their traffic flow along a longer path through another internet service provider to reach Meta applications. It could mean slower or latent WhatsApp messaging, Instagram reels, or Facebook content. Not the end of the world for most people but it brings the architecture of the internet and the business decisions around it to news articles and public focus. It is also prompts a reexamination of peering agreements in the context of technology giants and how they work in building the internet.

To provide some background on why Meta made their decision we need to go back to 2010. DT and Meta, then still Facebook, struck a direct peering deal where DT set aside 24 private interconnection points with 50 ports and 5,000 Gbps at seven locations.³ All to handle traffic from DT’s customers towards Meta’s suite of applications: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp. Meta paid €5.8 million a year for these direct connections. All with the exclusive goal of making Facebook applications quicker for DT customers. Fast forward to 2020, and Meta asked for a 40% discount during contract renewal negotiations. DT countered with a 16% discount but then COVID-19 pandemic hit and it became less of a focus for both companies.

Later on in March 2021, DT had left the status quo intact and was offering to keep the ports running “for the benefit of consumers” while working out a new contract agreement with Meta. While this extended runway was provided to Meta, DT kept billing them for the original amount. However, Meta stopped paying the invoices and claimed these connections were now a “settlement-free peering.” They stated this kind of no fee direct peering setup was standard practice in the internet world. This is true for some peering arrangements but we’ll get into that later. This assertion by Meta was also proven by their experience globally with other telecom providers. DT was the unique exception that was charging transit fees.

DT obvious didn’t agree with this interpretation and in December 2022, the telecom giant sued Meta’s German subsidiary. The court ruled⁴ in DT’s favor, ordering Meta to pay €20 million. Under German contract law the continued use of the connections by Meta after stating the contract was terminated simply created a new contract. Thereafter, to avoid further fees under the new contract, Meta terminated these direct peering connections with DT.

The scope of impact is unclear for DT customers but we can already see the path changes network traffic towards Meta subnets. Based on 201 routes from DT’s looking glass tool towards Meta’s AS32934 I took an example route to show 3 of the currently available paths. 82 routes go through AS1299 Arelion, the artist formerly known as Telia. Only about 5 routes go through AS174, which is Cogent. The last 113 routes go through GTT’s AS3257.

Vantage Point	Prefix	AS Path	BGP Next Hop
Berlin, Germany	69.171.224.0/20	1299 32934	194.25.5.185
Berlin, Germany	57.144.134.0/23	174 32934	194.25.5.184
Berlin, Germany	157.240.9.0/24	3257 32934	194.25.5.185

These tier 1 service providers that are now handling this new transit traffic are large enough to handle it. However, DT claims Meta was sending approximately 3.5 TBps so the up tick will hardly go unnoticed by these 3 other providers. The technical aspects of this new routing situation are incredibly simple. All that happened for most traffic was an additional AS in the path. Further evidence is needed to see how much user latency is actually produced from it. But regardless of that outcome it allows us to move to the more complicated question of when or how settlement-free peering connections are normally accepted. Before that can be answered, I need to explain the context of DT’s perspective as a tier 1 provider and what that even means for peering agreements.

There is a 3-tier model classification system that organizes Internet Service Providers (ISPs) based on their size, reach, and interconnectivity. At the top of the hierarchy are tier 1 ISPs, which are the largest providers with global networks. These ISPs have extensive infrastructure that allows them to deliver internet traffic worldwide without paying other providers for transit. A defining feature of tier 1 ISPs is that they engage in settlement-free peering, where they exchange traffic with other tier 1 ISPs without any financial exchange. This arrangement exists because tier 1 providers have comparable network reach. With these connections among the tier 1 providers it allows them to reach the entire internet routing table and has the cool description of the global internet backbone. There are 14 tier 1 ISPs globally and recognizable examples for US residents include AT&T, Lumen, and Verizon. Deutsche Telekom is also a tier 1, which is an important point in order to understand their perspective on Meta’s claim.

Tier 2 ISPs operate on a smaller scale, often serving regional or national areas. They rely on tier 1 ISPs for access to parts of the global internet that their networks do not reach. While tier 2 ISPs may also engage in some peering with other ISPs, they often need to pay transit fees to tier 1 providers for broader internet access. Their peering agreements are typically limited to regional traffic or between similar-sized providers, which means they don’t have direct access to reach the full internet routing table. Comcast and Cogent are examples of tier 2 ISPs, as they operate large but regionally constrained networks that need transit services from tier 1 ISPs to achieve full connectivity to the internet.

At the base of the hierarchy, tier 3 ISPs are local providers that offer last-mile connectivity to homes and businesses within a specific geographic area. These ISPs do not have large networks and therefore rely entirely on purchasing internet transit from tier 2 or tier 1 ISPs. They do not typically engage in peering agreements due to their limited reach. Local internet providers serving specific towns or regions fall into this category.

Settlement-free peering is used when two ISPs, typically tier 1 providers, have similar network reach and traffic exchange patterns. Instead of sending network traffic through an intermediary provider, they agree to directly exchange data for free, as both parties benefit equally from the arrangement. This practice allows ISPs to reduce costs and provide faster routing for their customers. Peering relationships are based on mutual benefit, and for settlement-free peering to work, the traffic exchanged between networks needs to be relatively balanced. For tier 2 and tier 3 ISPs, peering is more limited or non-existent, because it is much more advantageous to simply pay to peer with a tier 1 that has much better global reach.

This description of settlement-free peering is entirely generalized and there are always exceptions or restrictions. The internet and the underlying architecture is a commercial venture and so these decisions are frequently business decisions rather than technical. Each provider has different rules and policies governing these decisions. Lumen has shared their Settlement-Free Peering Policy, which includes some steep hurdles like 500 Gbps per month and providing transit for 1,000 unique autonomous systems. Yet any of these specific points could most likely be ignored if it was in the specific business interest of Lumen as a company.

Based on the fact that DT is a tier 1 provider and now we know the general conditions for settlement-free peering does Meta’s claim hold any bearing? I would argue yes, but with the huge caveat which would require DT’s approval. I find it hilarious that Meta thought they could glide out of paying DT 5.8 million per year without them attempting to claw that all back. DT, after all, isn’t a charity. What incentive do they have to let a sizable cash flow suddenly stop? Any de-peering latency could easily be blamed on Meta, the foreign tech giant with, at most, a dubious impact on global society.

I can’t completely write off the situation purely on it being up to DT as a business. DT’s business decisions have come under increasing scrutiny as they have been exiting the industry norm. Barbara van Schewick has a striking summary⁵ of their attempts to extract revenue from both their subscribers and also business entities that pay for direct network access. Normally ISPs have provided neutral access for their subscribers to the entirety of the internet. But recent moves by DT and other providers require business entities to pay up or have network slowness for their service.

From a technical perspective, the use of a settlement-free peering connection would be helpful to both companies. The massive 3.5 TBps being consumed by DT’s users could be served much better directly between the networks rather than through the intermediary providers noted above. For fixed internet customers in Germany, DT is a provider for 40% of them.⁶ DT is ignoring the fact that their users are also their customers and are choosing willingly to request data from Meta. Where is their obligation as a provider to their users in order to decrease latency and improve the experience of being online no matter where that destination might be?

Facebook Company and Meta, “Why We’re Having to End Our Direct Peering Relationship With Deutsche Telekom,” Meta, September 25, 2024, https://about.fb.com/news/2024/09/why-were-having-to-end-our-direct-peering-relationship-with-deutsche-telekom/. ↩︎
Deutsche Telekom Ag, “Meta Is Not Above the Law,” Deutsche Telekom, September 25, 2024, https://www.telekom.com/en/company/details/meta-is-not-above-the-law-1079704. ↩︎
Ingrid Lunden, “After Losing a Lawsuit in Germany, Meta Says It’S Never Getting Back Together With Deutsche Telekom,” TechCrunch, September 25, 2024, https://techcrunch.com/2024/09/25/after-losing-a-peering-lawsuit-in-germany-meta-says-its-never-getting-back-together-with-deutsche-telekom/. ↩︎
Landgericht Köln, “Landgericht Köln Gibt Der Klage Einer Tochter Der Deutschen Telekom AG Gegen Eine Tochter Des Meta-Konzerns Auf Vergütung Von Datentransportleistungen Statt,” Pressemitteilung, May 14, 2024, https://cdn.netzpolitik.org/wp-upload/2024/05/Meta-vs-Telekom-%E2%80%93-PM2024-01-33-O-178-23.pdf. ↩︎
Barbara Van Schewick, “A Deutsche Telekom Shakedown: Will Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp Slow to a Crawl in Germany as DT Tries to Get Paid Twice, and Will German Regulators Have the Courage to Stop DT’s Bullying?,” Stanford CIS, September 25, 2024, https://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/blog/2024/09/a-deutsche-telekom-shakedown-will-instagram-facebook-whatsapp-slow-to-a-crawl/#footnote1. ↩︎
Veröffentlicht von F. Tenzer, “Marktanteile der Deutschen Telekom AG und ihrer Wettbewerber an den Breitbandanschlüssen in Festnetzen von 2001 bis 2023,” Statista, May 28, 2024, https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/154999/umfrage/anteil-der-unternehmen-an-vermarkteten-breitbandanschluessen-in-deutschland/?ref=cyberlaw.stanford.edu. ↩︎

Madeira Submarine Cables

Sun, 18 Aug 2024 10:30:00 -0600

I recently visited the Island of Madeira on vacation and was impressed with their internet speed. For an island in a remote part of the Atlantic it was not something I expected. After looking further into the island’s internet connectivity I peaked into a new view of the region’s politics and technological history.

Madeira is an autonomous region of Portugal and boasts a rich history shaped by its strategic location in the Atlantic Ocean. Discovered by Portuguese explorers João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira in 1419, Madeira quickly became an important stopover on trade routes between Europe, Africa, and the Americas. The island’s fertile volcanic soil allowed it to flourish as an agricultural hub, with sugarcane production dominating its early economy. Over time, Madeira developed a reputation for producing world-renowned fortified wine, a staple of its economy that continues to be a significant export today.

In modern times, Madeira’s economy is supported by several key industries, with tourism playing a central role. The island’s stunning landscapes, mild climate, and cultural heritage attract visitors year-round. Agriculture remains important. particularly the cultivation of bananas, grapes, and other fruits, alongside the production of Madeira wine. Additionally, Madeira has developed a strong service sector, including financial services and real estate, benefiting from its status as an autonomous region with favorable tax and cryptocurrency regulations.

Madeira’s early internet connectivity was established in the late 20th century, marking a significant milestone in its integration with the global digital community. The island’s remote location presented challenges, but these were overcome with the installation of submarine fiber optic cables, which connected Madeira to mainland Europe. This early adoption of internet infrastructure has allowed Madeira to participate in the global economy more effectively, facilitating business, education, and tourism. Today, the island continues to invest in advanced telecommunications to maintain its competitive edge as a modern and connected autonomous region within Portugal.

These technology investments are becoming more politically oriented as Portugal and many other member states of the European Union have started pushing to expand and solidify the region’s digital sovereignty.¹ Such a term is wide but includes things such as classifying submarine cables as critical infrastructure, fortifying regional-local technology manufacturing, and diversifying connectivity to rival or replace foreign technology giants like Google or Amazon.²

Some of these pursuits might be counterproductive as Portugal attempts to attract further submarine cable connections and investments to shore.² With already 10 to 15% of the world’s data traveling through cables on Portugal’s shores it adds significant security and operational risk. Consolidation to a single shore or location would increase vulnerability to intentional or unintentional issues with cable connectivity. The Portuguese Navy has identified several Russian ships that have been seen surveying submarine cables along the Portuguese coast.³ While looking at submarine cables are harmless it occurs in the context of Dmitry Medvedev’s threats about “destroying enemies’ communication cables.”³

On a broader perspective, a report by European Parliament noted a severe uptick in 2017 for Russian interest in locating NATO member state undersea cable infrastructure.⁴ A member of the Irish military described that Russia does not necessarily want to cut these submarine cables but wants NATO members to be aware that they can anytime.⁴ As the technology magazine Wired describes it, it is the most vulnerable place on the internet.⁵

Madeira plays an interesting role in this geopolitical grandstanding. It isn’t a major telecommunication’s hub like the coast of Portugal so it is most likely seen as less important by major players. However, this might change in the future as further cables are laid from Europe to South America and Africa.

Local Providers

Telecommunications infrastructure on the island is overseen by Telecomunicações da Madeira (EMACOM), which is a subsidiary of the municipal electrical company, Electricidade da Madeira. Infrastructure is built and maintained to be carrier neutral. The most prevalent consumer providers are MEO AS3243 and NOS Madeira AS15457/AS2860.

Of the two companies, MEO has a larger presence in the market. It is a subsidiary of Altice and launched in Madeira in 1995. MEO is currently originating 7,204 /24’s of IPv4 space over 15 prefixes. It has a single upstream connected through Altice Portugal AS8657.

NOS Madeira is a bit more modest with 272 /24’s of IPv4 address origination over 8 prefixes. As a subsidiary of NOS in Portugal it also has a single upstream connection over NOS AS2860.

EllaLink

Up until June of 2021 the only direct link between Europe and South America was the Atlantis 2 submarine cable, which had capacity of 40 Gbps⁶ that limited it usage to telephony connectivity. All internet traffic between the regions had to transit through the United States. While not optimal, it didn’t take on new urgency until the Edward Snowden leaks in the summer of 2013 that revealed the vast surveillance of the United States National Security Agency. In February of 2014 Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff stated one of the primary goals of EllaLink was to “guarantee the neutrality”⁷ of the internet.

The EllaLink project began in 2015 but installation of the submarine cable didn’t begin until 2020. The supplier was Alcatel Submarine Networks. Total cost for the full length of the EllaLink submarine cable ranges from 150 million euros to 185.⁸ Madeira contributed 13.6 million euros⁹ for the cable between the island to Sines, Portugal. Another 1.5 million euros was contributed by Madeira to improve the cable landing station near the Praia Formosa beach and the Amparo Terrestrial Station.

Geographical survey performed by Alcatel Submarine Networks for the EllaLink project as it makes landfall on the southern coast.

The above geographic survey was performed by Alcatel Submarine Networks, Elettra, and GeoTeam. It shows the landing of EllaLink at Praia Formosa and is identified as a red line with blue circles around it. The survey map is available through the Madeira government website. There are additional documents available that outline the technique and tools used to bury the cable at the beach and how it is bolted down to the sea floor in shallow water.

EllaLink was completed in June of 2021 and ended up at a length of 6,200 km if including the branch off to Morocco. The cable itself is 4 pairs of fiber. With DWDM that gives 25 Tbps per pair for a total capacity of 100 Tbps.¹⁰ Latency from Portugal to Brazil should have a round-trip time (RTT) of less than 60ms. Farther destinations such as between Marseille and São Paulo should be less than 135ms.

I took a jog over to the Praia Formosa landing site for the EllaLink submarine cable. As expected, there wasn’t any identifying signs. The only clues were the EM@COM branded utility vaults.

One advanced feature of the EllaLink cable is that between the 75km segment from Madeira to the main EllaLink junction box is an extra GeoLab fiber pair. A GeoLab fiber cable is designed to monitor and gather data about the Earth’s geophysical processes, such as seismic activity and oceanographic conditions. The extra fiber pair for GeoLab data is a separate addition to the main EllaLink fiber pairs.

Measurements across this extra GeoLab fiber pair is performed by a Febus A1-R module that can identify acoustic changes in the fiber. This distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) technology is limited to a distance of about 100 km and can only be installed at either end of the cable.¹¹ In this case, just on the Madeira side of things. For these reasons it isn’t as preferred as a system of Science, Monitoring, and Reliable Telecommunications (SMART) repeaters across the full length of a submarine cable. However, it still contributes a wealth of knowledge that was previously non-existent.

CAM Ring

The Continente Azores Madeira (CAM) Ring cable is a colloquial term in reference to the various connections between mainland Portugal and the autonomous regions of the Azores and Madeira. The information published by TeleGeography refers to misnamed or non-existent cables. However, statements by Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (ANACOM) show that ATLANTIS-2 connects Madeira to Portugal¹² and COLUMBUS-III connects Azores to Portugal with AZORES-MADEIRA between the islands.¹³

Regardless of the actual naming of these cables they have all reached the end of their usable life. Their 300 Gbps capacity is no longer sufficient for today’s bandwidth needs and there is an ever increasing risk for physical issues as usage is extended past the expected life span.

Anel CAM Ring

The successor to the aging CAM ring is the Anel CAM project, which needs and wishlist were outlined by ANACOM in late 2019.¹⁴ It was awarded for implementation to Alcatel Submarine Networks in March of 2024.¹⁵ Installation should finish by the end of 2026 and is estimated to cost 154.4 million euros.¹⁶ A sizable part of the cost will be paid for by a 5G auction. No specific cost information has been published for any contribution by Madeira itself. Yet with their recent improvements to their cable landing station infrastructure to accommodate the EllaLink cable I doubt any further on-island costs will be needed.

The planned route for Anel CAM will still circumvent in a ring around Madeira and Azores but has two landing locations in each region for added redundancy. It would include Terceira and São Miguel in Azores, Machico and Formosa in Madeira, and Carcavelos and Sines in Portugal. This could prove helpful during maintenance windows or natural disasters to keep connectivity working for other parts of the ring. Total length of the cable would be approximately 3,812 km and consist of 6 fiber pairs. This would provide an available bandwidth of 150 Tbps.

While a hub and spoke topology might have been more cost effective there are two major reasons a ring is more advantageous. The primary reason is redundancy through alternative paths on a ring topology. If there is maintenance or an outage traffic can simply redirect and still reach mainland Portugal. There is not a specific need for a connection between the islands of Madeira and Azores. I doubt the intra-island traffic amount is anything substantial so the connection is entirely for redundant connectivity.

The second reason is to increase necessary coverage of Science, Monitoring, and Reliable Telecommunications (SMART) sensors. These sensors are being incorporated into new submarine cables and can help provide information for tsunami warning systems (TWS) and earthquake early warning systems. They are placed around every 50 km along the cable and don’t interfere with the main fiber strands or overall life expectancy of the cable. Within the full span of the Anel CAM Ring that would be approximately 50 repeaters.

Submarine cable SMART repeaters stacked in a factory for testing. Source report from the European Commission.

Adding sensors to the area between Azores, Madeira, and Portugal is especially important given the neighboring confluence of tectonic plates. A short distance away the Nubia, Eurasia, and North American plate boundaries grind against each other and provide for the potential of destructive earthquakes and tsunamis. The boundary between the Nubia and Eurasia plates are especially volatile. Over the past 1024 years the three largest European earthquakes have originated from this location. ¹³ This includes the infamous 1755 8.7 magnitude earthquake that resulted in a tsunami that almost completely wiped out the city of Lisbon and killed an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people.

Given the region’s historical and modern threat of earthquake impact it is imperative to deploy early warning sensors. Many have been deployed on land but far fewer have penetrated offshore locations. With the evolution of SMART sensors these can now expand on the coattails of submarine cables all across the world.

The benefits of having these SMART sensors could be life saving. In some modeling cases there was a 10 to 30 minute warning advantage over coastal tide-gauges.¹³

Future Cables

Between EllaLink and Anel CAM the islands of Madeira will be in a good situation with 250 Tbps of bandwidth capacity for a good deal of time into the future. But for neighboring Azores there are some concerns about the end of life submarine cables for their 9 intra-island connections. These are not covered by the new Anel CAM cable project. The Azorean President took a moment to reiterate this need during the announcement of the Anel CAM project with ANACOM in São Miguel.¹⁷

For other future submarine cables planned within Madeira or the region it will be interesting to see how Portugal attempts to position itself as a landing station for the Atlantic. Whether or not this involves Madeira directly will depend on specific routes and needs of future submarine cables. EllaLink was only extended to Madeira after payment by the local government. It is not specifically needed and some future cables will entirely bypass Madeira to more infrastructure ready Carcavelos and Sines.

Laurens Cerulus, “Lisbon Eyes Undersea Cable Investment to Bolster EU Tech Infrastructure,” POLITICO, December 15, 2020, https://www.politico.eu/article/submarine-cables-europe-lisbon-eyes-undersea-investment-bolster-tech-infrastructure/. ↩︎
Laurens Cerulus, “Portugal Looks to Rule the Waves Again (Thanks to Undersea Data),” POLITICO, June 2, 2021, https://www.politico.eu/article/portugal-plugs-in-submarine-internet-cable/. ↩︎ ↩︎
Portugal Pulse, “The Threat Lurking in the Sea of Portugal: Sabotage of Submarine Cables Would Be a Catastrophe,” Portugal PULSE, June 19, 2023, https://www.portugalpulse.com/the-threat-lurking-in-the-sea-of-portugal-sabotage-of-submarine-cables-would-be-a-catastrophe/. ↩︎ ↩︎
Christian Bueger, Tobias Liebetrau, and Jonas Franken, “Security Threats to Undersea Communications Cables and Infrastructure - Consequences for the EU,” European Parliament, 2022. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2022/702557/EXPO_IDA(2022)702557_EN.pdf. ↩︎ ↩︎
Matt Burgess, “The Most Vulnerable Place on the Internet,” WIRED, November 2, 2022, https://www.wired.com/story/submarine-internet-cables-egypt/. ↩︎
Toms Dumpis, “New Optical Cable Will Link Morocco, Portugal,” Morocco World News, March 13, 2021, https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2021/03/337236/new-optical-cable-will-link-morocco-portugal. ↩︎
Robin Emmott, “Brazil, Europe Plan Undersea Cable to Skirt U.S. Spying,” Reuters, February 24, 2014, https://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/24/us-eu-brazil-idUSBREA1N0PL20140224/. ↩︎
Tobi Hughes, “Submarine Cable to Cross Madeira Costs 170 Million and Starts Transmitting Data in 2020,” Madeira Island News Blog (blog), October 7, 2019, https://www.madeiraislandnews.com/2019/10/submarine-cable-to-cross-madeira-costs-170-million-and-starts-transmitting-data-in-2020.html. ↩︎
Maurice Reed, “1,100 Km of Cable Connects Madeira to Mainland,” Madeira Island News Blog (blog), January 21, 2021, https://www.madeiraislanddirect.com/blog/2021/01/1100-km-of-cable-connects-madeira-to-mainland/. ↩︎
EllaLink - Submarine Cable With Lowest Latency, May 21, 2024, EllaLink, May 21, 2024, https://ella.link/. ↩︎
Dan Swinhoe, “Making Subsea Cables Smart, and Helping Save the Planet,” Data Centre Dynamics, June 7, 2022, https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/analysis/making-subsea-cables-smart-and-helping-save-the-planet/. ↩︎
Paulo Simões, Rui Jorge Cabral, “With the New Submarine Cables We Will Have the Largest Real-time Laboratory in the Atlantic,” Açoriano Oriental, March 21, 2023, https://www.acorianooriental.pt/noticia/with-the-new-submarine-cables-we-will-have-the-largest-real-time-laboratory-in-the-atlantic-348910. ↩︎
Luis Matias, Yasser Omar, Fernando Carrilho, Vasco Sá, Rachid Omira, Carlos Corela, Rui A. P. Perdigão, and Afonso Loureiro, “The contribution of the CAM fibre optic submarine cable telecom ring to the early warning of tsunami and earthquakes,” European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2020, May 4, 2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-13988 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
José S. Barros, “Atlantic Submarine Cable Platform: A Smart, Green, and Blue Approach,"Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações, February 12, 2019, https://www.anacom.pt/streaming/Atlantic_CAM_Platform_SGBCAM_full_version.pdf?contentId=1468523&field=ATTACHED_FILE ↩︎
“Alcatel Submarine Networks Selected for the Groundbreaking Anel CAM Submarine Cable Project in Portugal,” Alcatel Submarine Networks, March 19, 2024, https://www.asn.com/press-release/anel-cam/. ↩︎
Winston Qiu, “IP And ASN Sign Contract for Construction of New CAM Ring,” Submarine Cable Networks, March 26, 2024, https://www.submarinenetworks.com/en/systems/intra-europe/new-cam-ring/ip-and-asn-sign-contract-for-construction-of-new-cam-ring. ↩︎
Sara Ribeiro, “Governo Dos Açores Pede Urgência Na Substituição Dos Cabos Interilhas,” Jornal de Negócios, July 26, 2024. https://www.jornaldenegocios.pt/empresas/detalhe/governo-dos-acores-pede-urgencia-na-substituicao-dos-cabos-interilhas-que-estao-em-fim-de-ciclo-de-vida. ↩︎

Speedgoat 50K 2024 Race Report

Sat, 20 Jul 2024 10:30:00 -0600

The energy at the beginning of any race is exhilarating. Tapering for weeks after intense training leaves me with tons of pent up energy.

My third time completing the Speedgoat 50K has been the most humbling. Every time I do this race I come away shredded by the demands of the endless hill climbs that wreck all semblance of confidence I had in training. But this year I thought it might be different and that my training had better prepared me. It didn’t turn out that way. This is the intention of race inventor, Karl Meltzer:

“The course is set up to mentally demoralize you”

The race course has changed over the years but stays mostly the same. From the Snowbird Ski Resort parking lot you run up to Hidden Peak, down around Mineral Basin, back up to Mount Baldy, down again a bit, up the Hidden Peak ridge, and then finally down to where you started at the Snowbird Ski Resort parking lot.

In 2015 the course was 31.3 miles with 12,139 ft of elevation gain. I did it in 11:44. Two years later in 2017 the course was 33.7 miles long with 11,236 feet of elevation gain. I did that one in 10:35. This year, in 2024, the course was 32.8 miles long and had an elevation gain of 11,400 feet. I did it in 11:46.

Training Preparation

This race is difficult to train for due to the unique and aggressive elevation gain and loss throughout the course. All while above 8,000 feet of elevation. The race isn’t traditionally ran in every sense of the word. It is more an endurance test of how long you can power hike uphill and whatever speed you can manage going downhill on rough terrain.

To prepare, I followed the Some Work All Play 50 mile plan from David and Megan Roche I mentioned in my 2023 running review. I kept with the vast majority of the targeted workouts and instructed strength training. I was interested to see if the Mountain and Speed Legs would provide any noticeable benefit. In retrospect, they didn’t specifically give any benefit to my race performance but I could see a greater ability for single leg balance and stability while going fast on rough terrain.

Below is my total mileage and elevation gain by week for the duration of the 12 week preparation plan.

Week	Distance (miles)	Elevation (feet)
1	47.78	4,469
2	54.21	4,911
3	57.43	4,393
4	52.20	3,806
5	56.93	6,539
6	70.32	7,119
7	59.01	5,049
8	66.72	8,353
9	65.56	8,264
10	61.94	5,840
11	56.13	4,144
12	56.38	11,824

Looking back, I can see that my mileage was low by about 33% and the elevation gain was more than 100-200% deficient. Looking at the training history of runners who performed well enough during the race had an average of 10,000 to 20,000 feet of elevation gain during their peak training weeks. My training peaked at 8,353 during week 8 and it made me exhausted. I was a bit thick to not see that foreshadowing message that yes, this race required immense elevation gain stamina.

UTMB Ownership

The Speedgoat race series has grown up since I first participated in 2015 and 2017. At that point it was ran primarily by Karl Meltzer himself and had a homey and local feel to everything. In 2015 there were 304 runners and 2017 only had 226. Compare that to 2024, which had 601 runners.

Speedgoat 50K 2024 Course Map based on my Strava activity. the northern section is the Snowbird Ski Resort.

The race has not only matured by absolute number of runners but by corporate ownership. In 2021 it was acquired by UTMB/Ironman. I was surprised at the expansive setup of the venue when I arrived early on July 20 to pick up my bib at around 5AM. There was an entire events tent the size of a small warehouse with temporary vinyl flooring and multiple vendor shops inside. It was as if a miniature running mall had appeared out of nowhere. In 2015 and 2017 the extent of vendor booths were entirely under pop up tents.

Hydration 1

The energy at the beginning of any race is exhilarating. Tapering for weeks after intense training leaves me with tons of pent up energy. Combine that with the music, surging crowd, and anticipating of a monumental day can push me to an unsustainable pace. But I resisted this feeling and held back as we began the long day.

Watching the sun rise in this grand mountain terrain while I was still fresh in the early morning was the most enjoyable part of the race.

Starting off at 8,080 feet at the Snowbird Plaza the course winds back and forth for 4.2 miles and up 1,656 feet to the first aid station. A few people remarked how we were still in sight of the starting line as we did switch backs across the mountain bench. The course was almost entirely dirt access roads up to this point. This was very helpful to manage the huge crowd of runners before the climb began to thin us out.

Hidden Peak 1

After leaving the first aid station the route became more direct up to Hidden Peak. The dirt access roads gave way to beautiful single track trails. The sun had risen at this point but was behind the mountain peak making the running conditions cool and beautiful.

Although the bulk of the racing crowd had spread out as we all adopted our own pace there was still a concentration of people that overwhelmed the capacity of the single track paths. When the course transitioned from the wider dirt access road to single track there were traffic jams. This became pretty annoying as we ascended up to Hidden Peak but might have been my saving grace. The slower pace at times kept my heart rate under control and avoided giving way to the trap of going too fast.

In this portion of the race I tried to establish my calorie and salt intake. I started with a salt pill at 1:30 to be repeated every hour on the half hour mark. These have 215mg of sodium, 63mg of potassium, 11mg of calcium, and 22mg of calcium. Then, at 2:00 I started taking GU gels at the top of every hour. These have 55mg of sodium, 450mg of amino acids, and 7g of sugar.

The back of Hidden Peak. It was challenging to stay on the single track while gazing around at the amazing scenery.

At any point where I was near enough an aid station I substituted my GU gel intake with actual snacks or food. I did this because I wouldn’t wish 10-12 hours of GU intake on my worst enemy and also to manage stomach nausea.

At the Hidden Peak aid station at 9.3 miles and another 2,975 feet of elevation gain I wolfed down my favorite snacks, potato chips, peanut butter stuffed pretzels, Coca-Cola, and a few slices of water melon. This is the most well stocked and populated aid station besides the finish line.

Water Pipe

Between the Hidden Peak aid station to the Water Pipe is the greatest litmus test of your performance for the rest of the race. The downhill profile promises you’ll make up lost time but the terrain is loose apple and melon sized rocks. You have to be incredibly careful as you descend down into Mineral Basin to not roll your ankle or trip. This added a great deal of fatigue on my quads.

This terrain was not conducive to running. I heard several runners complain about being unable to make up time on this downhill due to the terrain.

After getting to the bottom of Mineral Basin at around 7,600 feet elevation I was relieved to finally be done with the incredibly long and technical descent. This was about 4 hours and 15.4 miles into the course and it was starting to get really hot. In my effort to stay hydrated I had been aggressively consuming water and was almost empty with my front pack water bottles. Luckily I was carrying an additional 2 liters in my backpack hydration reservoir.

The race guidance had directly warned us about this section and had required everyone to carry 2 liters of water for exactly this section. Yet, in years past they had an aide station at the bottom of Mineral Basin that provided a much needed refuel before the long climb back up to the top of Mineral Basin. The course now has moved this aid station to mile 18.1, which is up a long 3 mile climb in the heat.

As I started the hot climb back up Mineral Basin I realized I was exhausted and I changed from a slow jog to a death march. Many runners describe this as hitting the wall. I tried to isolate what could be the cause. I had been slamming water and electrolytes pills on my normal rhythm. I was still sweating so I wasn’t specifically dehydrated. I had also been eating regularly. Certainly a lot more calories than in my training runs.

About a half mile into this internal review process in a zoned out death march I hit another setback. After trying to lift my leg up to get a small pebble out of my shoe the entire back of my left thigh seized up into a cramp. The spasms were surprising considering I had never had cramps in this particular area of my body before and the muscle is pretty large. After taking a short break to relax my leg enough to keep hiking I made sure to slow my pace even more to accommodate for the struggling thigh.

From Hidden Peak to the Water Pipe aid station is 8.7 miles with 3,658 feet of elevation loss and 2,444 feet of elevation gain. In absolute terms this is tolerable. But for many reasons it is where I personally and many other verbal runners around me start to struggle. I think the primary reason is that the race has finished the fun part and with every step becoming more and more about sheer will.

Between the Water Pipe Aid Station and Mineral Basin Aid Station.

The Water Pipe aid station itself is next to a natural spring with race volunteers gathering water for the parched runners. Although there is no food it isn’t really a problem because the only thing I was thinking about at this point was getting more water and cooling off with a dump of water over my neck.

Mineral Basin

A short 1.4 miles farther and 616 feet of gain I started to realize how hungry I was for snacks. I took my time here at this well stocked aid station. Plenty of potato chips, pickles, pizza, cookies, Coca-Cola, and my favorite: peanut butter pretzels. The placement of the aid station exit sign was looming over my feast. It proudly stated the next hellish segment of the race, up Mount Baldy.

Refreshed from the aid station I started off in the next section with a slow jog on the flatter parts. When the uphill part started a few hundred feet later I slowed to a steady hike. My cramping leg had become more timid and would flare back up occasionally. Much of the winding approach up to Mount Baldy isn’t steep itself but still merits a strong input of will.

As I turned off the dirt access road right before the Mount Baldy climb I heard a group of runners collectively questioning their life’s choices. A few had done Ironman competitions and said this Speedgoat race was harder. A few more said their 100km race wasn’t this hard. All agreed in the camaraderie of misery.

The turn off before I started climbing Mount Baldy.

When the trail became unmanageably steep I shortened my steps and focused entirely on placement. The loose dirt and rocks here stole your energy if you were unfortunate enough to slide back down after gathering enough strength to step upward. In the previous times on this race I had opted not to bring hiking poles and always regretted not having them on this section. But this year I came back with revenge and 2 ultralight carbon fiber poles. They gave my climb much needed stability and I was able to use much more of my body to help with the climb.

If I only had a single proud moment in this brutal race it was this last steep climb up Mount Baldy. My steps were tiny and my progress was incredibly slow. But I kept the climb consistent and deliberate without any side step breaks. In a mere 2.6 miles I had gotten closer to the sun by 1,843 feet.

Tunnel

The placement of the Tunnel Aid Station is perplexing. The nirvana of the Hidden Peak Aid Station is up a small hill but instead you bypass it off to the side and wrap around to an interesting tunnel through the mountain. Entering the cool tunnel after the brutal climb up Baldy with the heat ofthe day is one of the greatest feelings. Through the length of the tunnel are photographs and objects from a time long ago. I always find it a shame I don’t stop here to view this hole in the mountain museum.

Many great historical photographs I could only glance at as I ran by during the race.

After exiting the tunnel the aid station is waiting right outside. I gathered my usual snacks and tried to minimize my time here. Slowing down anywhere is a sure way to realize how much pain you are in.

From the Tunnel Aid Station to the bottom of the Hidden Peak ridge is the easiest part of the course. The path is a wide open dirt access road that winds back and forth as I went down the hill. There are small and medium sized rocks on the road so I couldn’t let loose with absolute speed but it was much more manageable than going down the river bed at Mineral Basin. This section goes down 1,128 feet before I started climbing back up again along the Hidden Peak Ridge.

As I started up the Hidden Peak Ridge there were storm clouds starting to form around the peak. This is a semi-regular occurrence in late summer where afternoon thunderstorms roll in briefly and then disappear. I had a sudden fear that all my effort might be wasted if the storm continued to strengthen. Yet, as I slowly climbed the ridge the clouds stayed high and there were no lightning to be seen or thunder to be heard.

Nearing the top of the ridge the wind started to strengthen and patchy rain rolled in. I kept my pace in an earnest effort to beat the storm. After Hidden Peak it was almost entirely downhill to the finish line. From the Tunnel Aid Station I had gone 2.7 miles with an elevation gain of 1,535 feet.

It was here that an event photographer had stationed himself and was snapping away to capture my absolute misery. I understand it is logistically easiest to access this spot since it was a short walk down from Hidden Peak. However, the choice of capturing a runner’s image at the height of discomfort is odd to me. Other runners might experience reaching the top of the ridge with ecstasy on their face. Mine was just dead. I nonchalantly told the photographer as I passed him I felt like I was dying. He tried to disarm the situation by saying everyone is dying. I laughed at that but quipped back that I felt closer than most.

Hidden Peak 2

At the last few hundred feet before reaching the Hidden Peak Aid station there were race officials waiting for me. Fearing a canceled race due to lightning risk or I hadn’t made the cutoff time I approached them slowly. As I got to them they just instructed me to take the low road around the back of Hidden Peak to avoid the wide open exposure of the last hill climb up to the top. Although the aid station is higher it is next to buildings that would theoretically attract a lightning strike. Despite the extra distance around the low road I was grateful to avoid getting struck by lightning.

As I reached the aid station the race crew was packing up the bulk of tables and tents. I realized 9 hours and 44 minutes had passed and I was still miles away from the finish. I was glad I had kept my forward progress without getting cut or quitting but it was still frustrating to see once again how far back in the pack I was.

During these broody thoughts I was ushered by a race official towards a checkpoint. Since I had taken the low road I had to loop back slightly to get my bib scanned for the aid station. I realized the race official was none other than Karl Meltzer himself. I told him I was in a love hate relationship with him. He feigned a laugh since I’m 100% sure he’s heard that a million times before.

Hydration 2

I set off from Hidden Peak quite excited for the last part of the race. Much of it is downhill but there are a few surprises that always get me and other swearing. Towards the middle of the 5 miles before reaching Hydration #2 there is a series of hill climbs up 748 feet that hit at the worst possible time. Since I was so close to the finish I could strive forward in confidence but it as incredibly slow up the last hill climbs. It feels as if I was robbed of a graceful finish. To suddenly go from a speedy downhill jog to a trudge up more hills is greatly demoralizing. Over the 5 mile portion of the course I lost 3,047 feet of elevation.

It is interesting to experience the last 7 miles of this race. Psychologically, you have to balance levels of pain and the duration I’d have to stay with that pain. Meaning I could minimize my pain by power hiking at a 16 to 20 minute per mile pace instead of running at a 9 to 12 minute. But this would almost double the duration of that minimized pain. Logically, the better choice would be to run. It wasn’t as if I was going to injure or damage myself from the quicker jog. Yet, the decision for me flipped back and forth between walking and running.

The last few miles were a blur of pain as I tried to ignore my discomfort for the sake of finishing any faster than what a slow walk would give me. Once again they had stationed an event photograph only half a mile from the finish to capture me at my most dismal. The official distance and elevation gain was 31.8 miles and 11,318 feet. My Garmin Fenix 7x recorded 32.9 miles and 11,138 feet.

I would have expected someone’s third race attempt to have improved performance. But I didn’t fulfill my speed or comfort goals. I wanted to feel strong throughout the race but instead I felt dead after only 16 miles. My confidence isn’t shattered but I am once again humbled to improve my training. I won’t shy away from doing this again in the future and look forward to further mental demoralization.

Robots.txt Won't Save You

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 10:30:00 -0600

The AI vacuum hard at work

Is it too late? The ever hungry AI titans demand more and more data that is vacuuming up the entirety of the internet. You just got off a boring Zoom call? Chomp.¹ Checked Facebook for upcoming birthdays or said hello to a friend? Slurp.² Take a peak of your friend’s recent vacation on Instagram? Mmmm.³ How about the latest news aggregated by X? Scrumptious.⁴ Afterward, you look for nearby restaurants on Google because you are getting hungry? Delicious.⁵ Every action on these platforms feeds the insatiable blob of AI training models.

But we aren’t functioning in our own spaces when feeding these AI models. As a user of these platforms we are beholden to the profiteering whims of their owners. In the past this has been funded indirectly with advertisements or directly with subscription fees but further profit extraction now relies on gathering behavior data to train AI. Yet the gathering of this data isn’t limited to the platform itself. There simply isn’t enough data. It needs more!⁶

Subsequently, leading AI companies have turned to the wider public internet. Scraping data from message forums, news articles, blogs, Wikipedia pages, images, and whatever else it can find to feed and further refine AI models. But it hasn’t been enough. In 2021, OpenAI was running out of content to consume and created a speech recognition tool called Whisper for no other reason than to transcribe more than a million hours of YouTube videos to give itself more content.⁷ Anything reachable on the public internet is available for consumption, even millions of copyrighted articles from The New York Times.⁸ But how is this massive trawling system technically performed?

When you want to see a web page you type in the name in the address bar, hit enter, and it loads. Disregarding all other underlying systems like IP addresses and DNS for simplicity, the browser sends what is called a HTTP GET request. The process begins when you hit enter, which instructs the browser to send a GET request to the server to obtain whatever resource at the specified directory, such as a web page or an image.

The request itself includes a URL, which states the website’s location, and various headers, such as the User-Agent, which provides information about whoever is making the request. The server processes this request and responds with the desired stuff, which might be a video, image, or text. Once the client receives the response, the browser renders the content for the user to view.

As an example, the below GET request is being sent to the website www.example.com and is requesting resources from the directory /path/to/resource. The User-Agent and Accept fields show that the client is using Windows 10 and the Chrome web browser.

GET /path/to/resource HTTP/1.1
Host: www.example.com
User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/91.0.4472.124 Safari/537.36
Accept: text/html,application/xhtml+xml,application/xml;q=0.9,image/webp,*/*;q=0.8
Accept-Language: en-US,en;q=0.5
Connection: keep-alive

But these GET requests can be easily automated as part of scripts or software. This is where web scrapers come into play. These are automated software programs that work by systematically extracting data from websites, allowing anyone to gather vast amounts of information efficiently and at massive scale. They navigate through web pages and collect relevant data points such as text, images, and links. Scrapers parse the HTML structure of web pages to identify and extract desired content.

Additionally, there are no rules about what you have state in User-Agent. Yes, people just go on the internet and tell lies. A GET request could state they are making a request from an iPhone when in fact it is just software running on a Linux server. This matters because in an ideal world all client requests would have the correct stated User-Agent so that website administrators could manage appropriate access. If there was a need to block the Cloudflare Always Online crawler it could easily be blocked by denying, dropping, or ignoring any HTTP GET requests with the below User-Agent:

Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; CloudFlare-AlwaysOnline/1.0; +http://www.cloudflare.com/always-online)

One way website owners can manage User-Agent access is through the contents of the robots.txt file. The robots.txt file serves as a guideline for web crawlers and scrapers on how to interact with the site’s content. Located in the root directory of a website, this file specifies which parts of the site should be crawled and indexed and which parts should be ignored. If you didn’t want Google indexing your website for any reason you would tell them not to from this file. By setting rules for user agents, website administrators can control the access of web crawlers, protecting sensitive information, managing server load, and optimizing the indexing process. The contents of the robots.txt file helps manage a balance between accessibility and privacy, ensuring that only the desired content is made available to search engines and other automated agents.

Any HTTP GET requests do not have to obey the contents of robots.txt. The file is a convention rather than a strict protocol. Compliance is voluntary and based on the good behavior of web crawlers. It serves purely as a guideline for well-behaved web crawlers and robots, instructing them on which parts of a website they are allowed to crawl and index. Malicious bots or poorly designed crawlers might ignore the robots.txt file and access areas of a website they were instructed not to visit.

The reasons for filtering certain User-Agent requests are endless. In the context of AI crawlers, it can be used to prevent well-behaved web scrapers that state the correct User-Agent information in their request. The major newspaper The New York Times started solidifying the prohibition of using its content to train AI models in the summer of 2023.⁹ This is expectedly pragmatic due to the fact that their primary product is selling publicly available text and images, which has necessitated the fabrication of a strong robots.txt file. As of July 12, 2024 it discourages 26 User-Agents from the all encompassing root directory of /. The popular site Reddit took the same measures recently but went further and disallowed everyone¹⁰ on their robots file. This is due to them selling user built data directly to Google for the tidy sum of $60 million.¹¹

The sentiment of using a robustly defined robots.txt file to protect a site has spread to more independent platforms like personal blogs. Roelant, Neil Clarke, and Cory Dransfeldt have all shared their experience about updating their robots.txt file to block AI crawlers. The makers of the Pika blogging platform even baked the hardened settings into everyone’s robots.txt.

While I applaud these website fortifications I have several fundamental doubts about its efficacy. The primary is about the truthfulness of the User-Agent field in requests. While many AI companies set this field correctly when crawling there are cases of it being obfuscated and ignored.

In June of 2023, Robb Knight found out that the Perplexity web scraper bot was not defining the appropriate User-Agent in requests.¹² The expected User-Agent designation was PerplexityBot, which was missing, and the actually provided information pointed to a user on Windows 10 using Chrome. The tech magazine Wired later confirmed Mr. Knight’s findings and went even further in finding that the Perplexity bot was frequently inaccurate and performed crawling from undocumented IP addresses.¹³

My own experience with OpenAI’s ChatGPT has left a similar apprehension about supposed User-Agent settings. My robots file specifically blocks User-agent: ChatGPT-User, which is supposedly used when performing live tasks for human users. Yet, when asking the 4o model to summarize one of my recent blog posts it does so without any issue. Pressing ChatGPT to a variety of half truth answers. The immediate response stated:

I accessed the content using standard browsing tools without specifying a particular user-agent setting. This allows the browsing tool to simulate regular web browsing behavior, enabling the retrieval of information from most websites.

Then I asked it to be specific.

I don’t have the capability to specify or reveal the user-agent settings used during web browsing. My responses are based on the content retrieved through standard web browsing tools provided by OpenAI.

Later inquiries state the below agent is used when accessing websites.

When accessing websites, the user agent string typically used by my browsing tool is designed to mimic a modern web browser. It usually looks like this: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/91.0.4472.124 Safari/537.36

It then goes on to explain why using that particular agent is helpful for whichever reasons. One of reasons stood out to me.

Avoid detection and blocking by websites that might restrict access based on non-standard user agents.

I haven’t seen any news articles about ChatGPT 4o bypassing the instructions of robots.txt specifically. I also have no real way of pulling connection logs as this blog is hosted on Cloudflare Pages with almost no tracking. Additionally, the agent settings ChatGPT shared might very well be a fluke. A dreamed up hallucination that plagues all AI models or a misinterpretation of my query. It could also be relying on a cached version of my blog from Bing. But it doesn’t really matter the method because the result is that even with a specific statement in robots.txt my blog post was gobbled up.

Another point is the sheer breadth and dynamism of what website administrators are facing. As billions pour into the AI sector how are we supposed to keep up with this or that new company that formed over the course of a few days? Or there might be new web scraper companies formed in the fringes of the AI industry built entirely to extract data where ever possible. They could both legally insulate and satiate the hunger of the main AI models. Heightened maintenance requirements for keeping robots.txt updated is not sustainable for most companies or independent creatives. Then we are faced with prior existential question about if it’s even effective? Perplexity’s behavior and ChatGPT 4o accessing my website are only compounded by the recent revelation from Reuters that multiple AI companies are ignoring robots.txt.¹⁴

However, we shouldn’t give up hope in the face of these daunting AI vacuums. There are services popping up like Dark Visitors that introduces a dynamic component to the contents of your robots.txt file. Another easy method is frequently checking The New York Times website for their robots.txt to get the most up to date and relevant agents to block. The question about how pragmatic this approach is in what Matthew Butterick calls a feel-good theatrical gesture¹⁵ is up to the organization or individual to decide.

For a more aggressive approach that doesn’t rely on the power of suggestion, you could use a web application firewall (WAF) to outright drop bot traffic. This would require individuals who are technically inclined and needs more care than just simply updating a text file. However, ready made services like Cloudflare’s Bot Categories¹⁶ are available for those who realize robots.txt aren’t enough. Cloudflare’s approach utilizes WAF rules to allow or block certain web scrapers at the network layer. This approach would produce better blocking enforcement as it drops undesirable network traffic.

More nuanced approaches to prevent wholesale AI theft are available that are quickly gaining in popularity. Methods and tools like Nightshade or Glaze¹⁷ can poison data such as images as it is ingested by AI models. Everything looks normal to human eyes but to AI the style, content, and interpretation is completely askew. The result is that the AI model produces an extremely flawed or simply wrong output. Yet a flaw was found in Glaze by researchers in early July.¹⁸ The flaw was quickly patched¹⁹ but reveals an ongoing arms race between the creators and AI titans devouring them up. The unfortunate take away is that creators need to be ever vigilant while AI crawlers only need a small lapse for content to be available before it goes into the deep and mysterious belly of AI training models.

Cristiano Lima-Strong and David DiMolfetta, “Zoom’s Privacy Tweaks Stoke Fears That Its Calls Will Be Used to Train AI,” Washington Post, August 8, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/08/08/zooms-privacy-tweaks-stoke-fears-that-its-calls-will-be-used-train-ai/. ↩︎
James Vincent, “Facebook’s Next Big AI Project Is Training Its Machines on Users’ Public Videos,” The Verge, March 12, 2021, https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/12/22326975/facebook-training-ai-public-videos-digital-memories. ↩︎
Geoffrey A. Fowler, “Your Instagrams Are Training AI. There’s Little You Can Do About It.,” Washington Post, September 28, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/09/08/gmail-instagram-facebook-trains-ai/. ↩︎
Sarah Perez, “X’S Privacy Policy Confirms It Will Use Public Data to Train AI Models,” TechCrunch, September 6, 2023, https://techcrunch.com/2023/09/01/xs-privacy-policy-confirms-it-will-use-public-data-to-train-ai-models/. ↩︎
Ben Schoon, “Google’s Updated Privacy Policy Doubles Down on Using Your Data for Training AI,” 9to5Google, July 3, 2023, https://9to5google.com/2023/07/03/google-privacy-policy-ai-training-data/. ↩︎
Jared Kaplan et al., “Scaling Laws for Neural Language Models,” arXiv, January 23, 2020, https://arxiv.org/pdf/2001.08361. ↩︎
Cade Metz et al., “How Tech Giants Cut Corners to Harvest Data for A.I.,” The New York Times, April 9, 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/06/technology/tech-giants-harvest-data-artificial-intelligence.html. ↩︎
Michael M. Grynbaum and Ryan Mac, “New York Times Sues OpenAI and Microsoft Over Use of Copyrighted Work,” The New York Times, December 27, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/27/business/media/new-york-times-open-ai-microsoft-lawsuit.html. ↩︎
Jay Peters and Wes Davis, “The New York Times Blocks OpenAI’s Web Crawler,” The Verge, August 21, 2023, https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/21/23840705/new-york-times-openai-web-crawler-ai-gpt. ↩︎
Alex Heath, “Reddit Blocks AI Bots From Crawling Its Website,” The Verge, June 25, 2024, https://www.theverge.com/2024/6/25/24185984/reddit-robots-txt-fight-ai-bots-scraping-crawlers. ↩︎
Jason Koebler, “Google Is Paying Reddit $60 Million for Fucksmith to Tell Its Users to Eat Glue,” 404 Media, May 23, 2024, https://www.404media.co/google-is-paying-reddit-60-million-for-fucksmith-to-tell-its-users-to-eat-glue/. ↩︎
Robb Knight, “Perplexity AI Is Lying About Their User Agent,” Robb Knight (blog), June 15, 2024, https://rknight.me/blog/perplexity-ai-is-lying-about-its-user-agent/. ↩︎
Dhruv Mehrotra and Tim Marchman, “Perplexity Is a Bullshit Machine,” WIRED, June 19, 2024, https://www.wired.com/story/perplexity-is-a-bullshit-machine/. ↩︎
Katie Paul, “Exclusive: Multiple AI Companies Bypassing Web Standard to Scrape Publisher Sites, Licensing Firm Says,” Reuters, June 21, 2024, https://www.reuters.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/multiple-ai-companies-bypassing-web-standard-scrape-publisher-sites-licensing-2024-06-21/. ↩︎
Matthew Butterick, “AI Scraping & Publicly Available Web Data,” Matthew Butterick (blog), June 22, 2024, https://matthewbutterick.com/chron/ai-scraping-and-publicly-available-web-data.html. ↩︎
Reid Tatoris and Pawel Klimek, “Easily Manage AI Crawlers With Our New Bot Categories,” The Cloudflare Blog, June 14, 2024, https://blog.cloudflare.com/ai-bots/. ↩︎
Benj Edwards, “University of Chicago Researchers Seek to ‘Poison’ AI Art Generators With Nightshade,” Ars Technica, October 25, 2023, https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/10/university-of-chicago-researchers-seek-to-poison-ai-art-generators-with-nightshade/. ↩︎
Robert Hönig, Javier Rando, Nicholas Carlini, and Florian Tramèr, “Adversarial Perturbations Cannot Reliably Protect Artists From Generative AI,” arXiv, June 17, 2024, https://arxiv.org/pdf/2406.12027. ↩︎
Ashley Belanger, “Tool Preventing AI Mimicry Cracked; Artists Wonder What’s Next,” Ars Technica, July 5, 2024, https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/07/glaze-a-tool-protecting-artists-from-ai-bypassed-by-attack-as-demand-spikes/. ↩︎

Exceptions For Removing Private Autonomous Systems in BGP

Wed, 19 Jun 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Quite a while ago, I got assigned to what seemed like a straightforward network task: turning up a simple cross connect with an external company using eBGP for route advertisement. However, this mundane and simple task would lead me to a greater understanding of BGP quirks and exceptions.

To set the stage, our network and the other company’s network needed to advertise routes to each other on a stable and robust cross connect. We set up eBGP peering, ensuring everything was configured correctly. For this example let’s say my company was using private BGP AS 64512 while the other company was using 65534. The peering came up without any problems. But after further verification, I realized there was a small snag to writing this off as completed.

The other company was receiving everything except one specific subnet advertisement from our router. It was rather peculiar that all the other subnets were making it over fine. Only this single subnet wasn’t making it across. Everything seemed fine on our end and the engineer I was working with at the other company claimed their configuration was equally sound. I began to doubt everything. What could possibly be wrong?

After much back-and-forth, meticulous troubleshooting, and pulling in other senior engineers, we discovered the culprit: overlapping private BGP AS numbers. Both our network and the external company’s network were using an identical private AS numbers. But not in the obvious way you might think. However, this caused a peculiar problem that made the remove-private-as command on our Cisco IOS router ineffective.

Understanding Removal

A large enterprise network environment frequently uses the remove-private-as command in their perimeter to sanitize information before it goes out to whichever vendor or client. It is designed to strip private BGP AS numbers (64512-65534) from the AS_PATH attribute in BGP route advertisements. This is helpful when setting up peering relationships to other large enterprises that might have unique networks that would conflict with your own. The normally useful BGP attribute information is no longer relevant and can be safely discarded as you are traversing across two widely different entities.

But the information cleansing feature of remove-private-as is also a risk. Without deeper knowledge of the other company’s network there are potential chances for conflict. According to Cisco’s documentation about removing private autonomous system numbers in BGP we hit an edge case that caused this specific subnet to not propagate over to the other company’s router.

The root cause of the problem arose because the subnet we were advertising contained the other company’s AS number of 65534 in the AS_PATH attribute. Somewhere deeper in my company’s network this subnet originated in an area with the same private BGP AS number as the one we had chosen to use for this cross connect. When our router evaluated the subnet for the purposes of sanitizing it with remove-private-as it saw the other company’s private BGP AS number in the AS_PATH and consequently did not remove the private BGP AS of 65534. Per the previously linked Cisco documentation:

If the AS_PATH contains the AS number of the eBGP neighbor, BGP does not remove the private AS number.

With the AS_PATH attribute unmodified our router sent this subnet advertisement over to the other company’s router. But once the subnet arrived it led to the other company’s router dropping the advertised subnet because it saw its own AS number in the AS_PATH, causing the BGP loop prevention mechanism to kick in. Their router thought there was a routing loop and correctly discarded the route.

Realizing this overlap was the root cause took some time. We initially suspected everything from misconfigurations to legacy hardware issues. Once we pinpointed the overlapping AS numbers as the issue, it was easy to draft a solution. We had to strip the private AS numbers further within our network to resolve the BGP discard issue. Specifically, we made a router further within our network perform the remove-private-as AS_PATH stripping. After implementing the fix, the remove-private-as command worked as intended, and the subnet in question propagated over to the other company without a hitch.

Lessons Learned

Double-Check AS Numbers: When dealing with eBGP, always verify that your private AS numbers do not overlap with those of your external peers. Even on private cross connections. It’s a simple step that can save hours of troubleshooting.
Understand Your Tools: Knowing how commands like remove-private-as work can help you understand why things break. Cisco’s documentation is incredibly helpful for understanding the nuances of these commands. They don’t always do exactly as they say. It was an error on my part thinking the command wouldn’t have exceptions.
Expect the Unexpected: Network configurations can be tricky, and what seems like a minor detail can lead to significant issues. Always be prepared for the unexpected and approach troubleshooting with an open mind outside of normal configuration checks.

I find it funny how a small detail like overlapping private BGP AS numbers can cause such a quagmire. It is only inevitable that something intended to be used strictly inside a company’s network would cause these issues when connecting to another network. However, these experiences are what make us better network engineers as it pushes us to have a better understanding of the protocol fundamentals. They teach us to be meticulous, to understand the tools at our disposal, and to always plan on learning more.

In the world of networking, it’s the insignificant details that cause the biggest headaches. An overlap of private BGP AS numbers taught me a valuable lesson about broadening your view of a network and having a better awareness of the commands I use on a daily basis. By sharing this story, I hope to shed light on a unique yet important BGP situation and help fellow network engineers avoid wasting their maintenance windows.

A Traditional Wedding In China

Thu, 04 Jan 2024 10:30:00 -0700

The local family carrying the dowry offering from the pavilion to their house down the street. Notice the smoke in the distance from the firecrackers going off. The lady in the foreground is carrying ducks and chickens in a basket.

After witnessing 2,760 kilometers of China all I wanted to do was sleep but my wife wouldn’t let me. We had just arrived in Kunming after twelve hours of travel, which by all accounts was just effortless sitting in a large comfortable chair. Yet, as any long-distance traveler knows, the sitting is the worst part. It wasn’t just normal fatigue either, I was at the onset of an aggressive cold or flu that needed a rapidly mounted defense that could only be served with a bed, pillow, and blanket. I’ve heard that flight attendants say that social rules start to break past twelve hours of travel. I was on the precipice.

From within the regional train station we headed to the taxi pick up area. Our final destination was at a nearby mall to eat dinner with the groom’s friends, who also had just arrived. But it was New Year’s Day and the crowd was insurmountable. Since the mall was only about a mile and a half away we decided to walk.

Dragging our luggage across the historic cobblestone area of Kunming would have been charming if not for my fragile condition. We had made the bold choice to purchase a tough rolling Pelican luggage container to protect the gifts we had brought for the bride’s family. We packed, among other things, several glass bottles of whiskey made locally in Utah. The toughness of the case was invaluable but came at a high cost to mobility and ease of use that only got worse with the uneven cobblestone.

After some trudging we arrived at the Shuncheng Shopping Center (顺城购物中心) and went up escalators a few stories to reach the restaurant. Everyone else had arrived about an hour earlier, flying in on fancy airplanes. We were the stragglers on our archaic 350 km/h bullet train. The group was very international, with some of the groom’s friends from Singapore and the Philippines. I’m sure their first impression of me was muted since all I did was sip herbal tea and zone out.

As we sat at dinner my wife was attempting to book our hotel in the nearby area. For some reason our original reservation had fallen through and on our walk to the restaurant she had spotted another hotel that caught her eye. While this process was playing out, the bride and groom to be both commented on my poor condition and offered to order some medicine. In my confused tired stupor I politely declined since we were about done with dinner and I didn’t want to wait long to head to the hotel. However, they politely reminded me that this was China and it would only be a matter of minutes before it arrived.

This might confuse residents of the United States or other countries but it only highlights the otherworldly capabilities of technology and the service industry in China. A few minutes later, a Meituan (美团) delivery driver in a yellow jacket walked into the restaurant with a bag from a local pharmacy and handed off the delivery. I was amazed along with the rest of the group and this sparked a broader conversation about how there were no comparisons in other countries for this convenience. The leading comparison in the United States would be a few hour delivery from Amazon to a nearby locker. But this was ordered and delivered specifically to our location in a matter of less than 10 minutes.

With medicine in hand, my wife and I headed to our hotel at the Crowne Plaza Kunming City Center (昆明中心皇冠假日酒店). As we had done in Beijing, we decided to elevate our hotel accommodations with a spacious corner suite overlooking the nearby river for ¥845 or about $120. We were overjoyed with the affordability of services in China after being repeatedly shell-shocked on all our past vacation trips. A similar hotel room would be ten or twenty times more expensive in New York City or London. To be fair, hotels and other services are rather expensive in larger Chinese cities like Shanghai and Beijing. But once you get farther off the beaten path the rates tend to dip rather rapidly. The funny thing is that Kunming’s population is about 8.5 million, which is approximately the same as New York City.

Our corner suite at the Crowne Plaza hoten in Kunming, China.

With a glorious ten hours of sleep I felt reborn the next morning. I excitedly watched the sun rise across the city and the waking population begin to crowd the streets. We quickly ate breakfast at the hotel and started our walk to meet up with the rest of the group. Our plan was to start the next stage of travel toward the bride’s home town to begin the wedding celebrations.

A sunrise view from our hotel room in Kunming, China. The fair weather was such a relief after being in Beijing.

Ferrying yourself around in a big city in China is much like anywhere else. There exists an Uber-like application called DiDi that is extremely affordable. However, our group’s situation called for many more people and with a much longer distance to cover. The nearby Luliang County was about an hour and a half drive away and we needed several cars to fit everyone and their luggage. The bride to be ended up recruiting several DiDi drivers and negotiated a separate rate based on the fact that they were already heading back to their family after working throughout the week in Kunming. Their extra bonus was us buying them lunch at a famous duck restaurant we were planning on stopping at on the way.

Strapping luggage to the roof of some cars and Tetris-ing other bags within other cars we eventually got the caravan situated. It was a bit of shame to leave Kunming so quickly because the city seemed so charming with the fair weather and metropolitan feel. As we left the city the car was quiet due to the language barrier. There were only a few in the collective group that were fluent in Chinese and none were in our specific car. I attempted a rudimentary question to the driver with Google Translate: Could you please play your favorite music? He adjusted his radio station and a few seconds later Taylor Swift started playing over the speakers. Everyone in the car had a good laugh and I commented to my wife that no matter where I go on the planet I couldn’t escape Taylor Swift. I’ll never know if that driver was humoring me, the white American, or if he actually was a devout Swiftie.

We stopped in Yiliang County, which was about halfway to our destination, to have lunch at a regionally famous duck restaurant. Xuecheng Restaurant (学成饭店) supposedly had humble beginnings from a small restaurant but is now a multi-story and multi-building compound that could seat hundreds. The bride to be commented that whenever they drive back home they stop at this restaurant.

The widespread adoption of Lazy Susans for all large dining tables is simply brilliant on the part of Chinese culture. Faces have been pixelated for privacy.

We were ushered into a large room and seated at a giant table that had an equally oversized Lazy Susan. After a flurry of ordering in Chinese the dishes started arriving. Their famous roast duck, vegetables of various preparation, squash soups, steaming dumplings, and a multitude of other dishes. Up to this point in the trip there had been a sort of boring average of food dishes that didn’t live up to the exotic stereotypes of Chinese cuisine. In an attempt to push the culinary boundary for myself and the rest of the group I scoured the menu for something more outside the standard Western diet. I was rewarded on a random page, which had a dish that included bamboo larva, adolescent bees, and silk worms. All deep fried. Disregarding wide opposition from the rest of the group we ordered the teenage bee dish, which ended up being rather delicious with the texture and taste of over cooked popcorn.

Throughout this whole time my wife was admiring the finely crafted menu they had provided. It was a large fabric bound catalog with color images of all the dishes available to order. She mentioned to the bride to be, half joking and fully serious, if we could ask the staff if we could buy one of the menu catalogs. After asking a staff member over I could see the exact second the conversation reached the unusual question. With raised eyebrows and mouth agape the staff person stammered a bit and then went off to get a manager. Once the manager returned the bride to be attempted a spirited negotiation to purchase the catalog but was rebuffed, even at two to three times the expected price. I have no idea what that price range would be but it ended up being more about the staff suspecting us of being rival business spies that would copy elements of their wildly successful restaurant.

The beautiful menu in question. Perhaps we’ll convince the staff next time.

Once we were done eating we met up with our DiDi drivers, who were eating at a separate place within the restaurant and started the last half of the drive towards Luliang County. The drive gave a great presentation of the region’s geography and insight into normal travel in rural China. Between Yiliang County and Luliang County there is the Stone Forest National Geological Park (石林风景名胜区). We could see parts of it from the highway but didn’t stop since we had to make it to the family’s house for the ceremonies to start. They were all waiting for the international group to arrive.

As we drove into Luliang County I could see why the bride to be described it as the countryside. In the comparative context next to Kunming it was incredibly small at only 610,000 people. But this minor city was still larger than my hometown of Salt Lake City in Utah. Furthermore, there were the hallmarks of Chinese civil infrastructure all over with wide highway boulevards, industrial factories, and an energetic commercial downtown.

Traversing across the bustling heart of the city gave way to agrarian buildings. Thousands of greenhouses for miles in every direction supercharged the growing capabilities for the farmers in the area. It was hardly necessary since the weather was so fair. I had kept my winter coat on hand since we left Beijing but it had been left unworn since arriving in Kunming. A simple shirt and pants were suitable during the daytime. The weather was comparable to something between Los Angeles and San Diego in the winter.

The local family’s house was on an unmarked narrowly paved road next to a canal. A small neighborhood surrounded by fields and fields of greenhouses. I was sitting in the front passenger seat of the DiDi and was first to spot the celebrating house. Red traditional adornments were plenty to signify the occasion. The most common was the Chinese character for double happiness, 囍. The house itself was busy with people milling about but there was also a pavilion just down the street where there was even more people.

The DiDi vehicles parked and we began to unload all the luggage while the bride to be’s family welcomed and greeted our group. Since there were only two people in the entire group that understood Mandarin and English our ability to communicate was limited and we all deferred to warm smiles and patience as the relevant information of who was who got translated to either side. As this was happening, I saw the local uncles unfurling a more than fifty-foot red ribbon in the middle of the road. I would find out later it was not actually a ribbon.

With the pleasantries wrapping up we were shooed about a hundred feet down the street to a neighborhood pavilion where party preparation was ongoing. Our group wasn’t exactly sure what was happening since our designated translators had been occupied elsewhere. With a short walk we arrived to the covered and crowded pavilion. I quickly realized this was the food preparation headquarters because near the front were several low tables displaying the butchered sections of an immensely large pig. However, I would soon learn that the pig had alternative purposes, at least initially. Towards the back of the pavilion I could see people hard at work processing and cooking food. There were giant stands made out of cinderblocks with propane burners firing up impressively large woks and steamers. The scale of preparation was just immense.

Bride Price (聘金)

While admiring the industry of food there was a bit of commotion at the pavilion entrance. The uncles were yelling at each other as they circled the tables with the pig. But they weren’t yelling, they were coordinating. With a collective lift, all the tables were hoisted up and started their exit from the pavilion and towards the bride’s house. At the same time rapid gunshots started to ring out at our destination. The red ribbons, which I found out later were several different fifty foot strands, were actually Chinese firecrackers (baozhu 爆竹). As someone who has repeatedly experienced fireworks in the United States I had thought I was prepared for any other country’s flavor of fireworks. But Chinese firecrackers are especially violent and are quite disarming.

A better view of the butchered pig as we left the pavilion. It took three tables and a few baskets to carry all of the dowry items.

The local family carrying the dowry offering from the pavilion to their house down the street. A few hundred feet of firecrackers were set off to celebrate the groom’s arrival. Also notice the aunt in the foreground is carrying ducks and chickens in a basket.

The procession reached and entered the bride’s home. People crowded in to watch the ceremony unfold. The tables were placed together on the floor near a small shrine in the living room. I asked the groom what the shrine was about. He explained that it was for the family’s ancestors, which they paid respects to almost daily. He pointed out several cigarettes speared by incense sticks that were burning. These were the favorite cigarettes of the great grandmother, he explained, and that was how they honored her.

The family shrine in their living room with the consolidated bride price gifts as presented to the ancestors for review.

With the tables arranged together in front of the shrine, a ceremony began to unfold. As the family spoke in Mandarin my eyes wandered to the contents of the table, which had items I didn’t notice before. In all fairness to myself, a giant butchered pig is extremely visually distracting. Regardless, I began to identify other neatly arranged items on the tables. There was 24 karat gold jewelry, high end baijiu alcohol, large discs of dry aged pu’er black tea, chickens, ducks, and a very large stack of cash. Prayers written on paper were lit on fire and placed in a metal bin before the family’s shrine. A few more words were spoken and then it was all over. People dispersed and the pig was taken away to be refrigerated.

The rest of the foreign group and I had so many questions but the bride and groom were busy talking to the future in-laws. Another mini-ceremony of exchanging gifts was taking place, which left the groom with a surprised expression on his face. When he finally came over to the group to explain the events of the past thirty minutes he explained that the bride’s family had just given them a house in the nearby city of Kunming. He further clarified that this was normally a gift provided by the groom or his family but since he was from the United States the local family wanted to provide this key component for them.

A portion of the bride price was given back to the groom as a gift to the couple. In addition, they also were given a house in the nearby large city of Kunming.

Further explanation for the rest of the prior ceremony followed. Apparently, the procession towards the bride’s home was the groom’s payment of the bride price (pìn jīn 聘金) in addition to the dowry ceremony (jiàzhuāng 嫁妆).

The bride price is something traditionally put together by the groom and offered to the bride’s family. The value of this gift expresses the serious intent for marriage and also publicly advertises a certain level of social clout for both the groom and bride’s family to the rest of the community. The bulk of what was presented on the tables was this bride price. In overall value, it equaled to about a mid-five figure amount in United States dollars. This gift is kept by the bride’s family for a period of time, usually a few years, as an insurance policy in case the groom mistreats or divorces the bride. After that time has elapsed without issue, the amount is usually given back to the groom and bride.

The dowry was also included in this ceremony. In Chinese tradition the bride’s family presents gifts in response to the bride price being paid. In this case, it was a return of a small portion of cash from the bride price and the house in Kunming.

As the formalities of the day were over the local family invited us to relax in their home for the next few hours while the first evening’s feast was prepared. Some of our group relaxed and took naps on the couch while other, more adventurous members like my wife, went outside to explore the surrounding neighborhood.

The wedding festivities had attracted kids from the surrounding houses and they were zipping up and down the narrow street on their electric scooters. My wife got the attention of a few kids and convinced them to let her borrow one of them to explore the neighborhood with ease. The endeavor looked fun, but having missed my runs for the past few days, I chose to walk while my wife zoomed through the streets.

A crossroad on my walk through the neighborhood. Luliang County is nestled in a flat valley with some modest mountains to the east.

The surrounding farmland was a collection of lush fields with a variety of crops. For the fields that weren’t covered by greenhouses I could see cabbages, artichokes, and lettuce growing. Many of the homes reminded me of Idaho, in the United States, with a practical and pragmatic approach to fortifying the structure. It was charming and reminded me of my childhood spending time at my Grandmother’s ranch outside Soda Springs, Idaho.

I cut through the farming plots through this side road. The tricycle in the distance is the older lady I met briefly.

As I made my walking loop back towards the wedding home I slowly caught up to an older lady biking on a tricycle. Once I got next to her I gave her a hearty nǐ hǎo! (你好) to say hello. She looked at me for a second and then just let out a loud belly laugh and kept laughing as I continued walking past her. Now, you’ll have to take a second to understand the insane context of this situation. Here I am, the only white person in probably a hundred miles in any direction. On top of that, I am walking by myself far away from any tourist or major population center. It would be like seeing an English gentlemen strolling through a cornfield in Nebraska.

The supposedly paltry dinner we were served the first night of wedding celebrations.

The first dinner feast was starting when I got back from my walk. The bride gave us all a disclaimer that it wasn’t a respectable feast, at least compared to the dinners planned for later. She said this specific meal was meant to be a rather simple one as a reward for the workers who were preparing food over the course of the wedding celebrations. But no one in the foreign group or I could tell this was anything short of decadent. The meal consisted of roast duck, steamed chicken, cabbage stir fry, daikon pork soup, lettuce rice wraps, pork soup, fried peanuts, broccoli stir fry, white rice, braised pork soup, and two kinds of hot sauce. We found out while eating that it is a Chinese cultural necessity to plate a number of unique dishes equal to the number of people sitting at a table plus one. So in our case, we had 8 people at our table and 9 unique dishes.

Ganbei! (干杯)

At the conclusion of dinner, the celebration shifted gears from culinary appreciation to aggressive alcoholic debauchery. The local uncles descended on our table carrying blue bottles of báijiǔ (白酒), a ubiquitous Chinese spirit with an alcohol content hovering near 60 percent.

The bride explained that the uncles wished to toast our arrival and thank us for traveling so far. There was, however, a catch. The majority of our foreign contingent, including the groom’s parents and extended family, did not drink for religious reasons. Looking to us with a mix of hope and apology, the bride asked if my wife and I would serve as tributes in their place. I wanted to be a hero but my wife was more apprehensive. We agreed. Little did I know that saying “yes” would inaugurate a marathon.

We received small paper cups filled with the clear liquid. “Ganbei!” (干杯) the uncles yelled. I took a polite sip. It tasted like strong Japanese sake mixed with vodka. The groom noticed my small sip and corrected me, saying that I had to consume the entire cup whenever the toast-giver says ganbei, as it literally translates to dry cup. Right after finishing the cup an uncle immediately attacked it, refilling to the same point. I could see the momentum for the evening building up quickly and I could only mutter, “dear God” loud enough for my wife to hear as I looked at her with excited apprehension.

As this was happening the pavilion was reconfigured. Dinner dishes were consolidated and coupled with drinking snacks such as local fruits and peanuts. Boxes of baijiu and Chinese beer were stacked around the tables like a wall of easy access.

What followed was a pyramid scheme of drinking in a race to intoxication. My wife and I relocated with the groom and bride to a table with the uncles. They invited us to eat snacks while we drank and to pace ourselves. However, this seemed more like a loose recommendation rather than actual practice. What followed was that members of a certain table would travel as a group together to the other tables. Stopping at each one to toast that table and honor them. This process repeated as other tables got up and did their respective rounds to all the other tables. Each cycle splashing more and more baijiu down my throat. The yelling of ganbei was only interrupted by other ganbei’s. In some cases, the uncles were competing with one another by accomplishing certain feats of drinking. One would finish off the last of an entire baijiu bottle and claim the other had to catch up.

A few local uncles playing a drinking game with each other that was a more advanced version of rock, paper, and scissors. There was no shortage of food available to us while playing drinking games and toasting. It would have been very helpful if it weren’t for the fact that I was already incredibly full from dinner.

I had never consumed this much alcohol in my life. I’m normally impacted by alcohol rather rapidly and this was no different. However, on a sustained level I thought I was operating with some functionality. That is, until the uncles noticed I had trouble sitting up at the table. They quickly switched me to light beer and urged me to eat more snacks. The toasting continued with the light beer and it thankfully didn’t hit nearly as hard as the baijiu.

One thing I did learn from this experience was the social etiquette behind toasting in Chinese culture. Like many things in Asian society, it required you being aware of your age and standing in relation to the person you were toasting with. Based on that dynamic, you would clink your glass together at a lower point if the other person was more senior. This got a bit tricky because the senior person often placed their hand below your cup and would prevent you from going lower. In my intoxicated state I took this cultural norm a step further by going ridiculously lower than the other person’s cup. In some cases, all the way to the ground, which made the bride’s mother laugh on more than one occasion.

Although it seemed longer, the drinking marathon only lasted about two and half hours after a 5 p.m. dinner. I really appreciated their punctual method since it gave me time to coast off a bit of intoxication prior to bedtime. After drinking in the pavilion we moved back to the house to start singing karaoke. The bulk of songs available in the system were Chinese but there were a few standout hits from the United States, including Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” and Aqua’s “Barbie Girl.”

Two of the family uncles enjoying some karaoke. Faces have been pixelated for privacy.

When the evening finally wrapped up the bride’s local family ferried our group to a local hotel that one of the uncles had rented out for the wedding. It was a few miles away in the downtown area. My wife and I slammed down several bottles of water and some electrolytes before going to bed to stave off a severe hangover in the morning.

The following day I felt ambitious enough to go on a 8.22-mile jog along the nearby Nanpan River before our planned late breakfast at a local hot-pot restaurant. To make it back to the area where my hotel was I had to go through an industrial section of the city, which led to many weird looks from the locals. A white man in a fluorescent yellow jacket dodging large transport trucks on a tight road. On the last section of my run before crossing the river I did get a surprising cheer from a local at a farmer’s supply store who yelled out in rather good English, “Good job!”

This fish hot-pot meal was a much needed relief from the recent cool weather and to ease the symptons of over-drinking the night prior. Much of southern China does not centrally heat their businesses or homes. There really isn’t a need for it as the coldest it gets in the wintertime is easily addressable with a thick coat. So warm meals take on additional importance.

About an hour later we were sitting at a local fish hot-pot restaurant. It was the most perfect meal since the weather had cooled off dramatically into the 40s Fahrenheit on top of a growing fatigue from the previous evening’s drinking. Perhaps I have overdone it with the longer morning run when I should have rested for recovery. A steamy hot fish soup broth was basically nirvana at that point.

The rest of the second day held no specific events for the wedding itself. The remaining friends of the groom arrived from Singapore at around dinner time, which we ate at the pavilion near the bride’s home. Towards the end of dinner the uncles wanted to drink again to celebrate the groom’s friends arriving. However, after recounting the story of last night the groom’s friends pleaded to defer any drinking to the next day for the culmination of celebration. I happily joined in this pleading as I was beginning to really feel the impact of the first night’s drinking.

Gatecrash

Early on the third day we began with the wedding gatecrash. The start time for most wedding events are fit to auspicious times as determined from traditional Chinese numerology and astrology. Fortunately for us, this couple’s start time was at a semi-normal 8:30 a.m. but I was told about some couples that had to start at three or four in the morning. Additionally, I refer to this ceremony as gatecrash because of the groom’s Singaporean heritage. In mainland China, however, it is colloquially known as jiēqīn yóuxì (接亲游戏), or games to receive the groom, and sometimes dǔmén yóuxì (堵门游戏), games to block the door.

Because the groom was American and lacked a local home, the logistics of the ceremony were adapted. Instead of the traditional procession from the groom’s house to the bride’s house, the family stationed the bride at the rented hotel downtown. This would allow the ceremony to conclude at her family’s home.

The gatecrashing began with the groom’s entourage storming the hotel. Upon reaching the entrance, they hit a wall of the bride’s male relatives. Pleading was useless and moved no one. This is a boisterous and loud affair. The only language understood here was the red envelope. The groomsmen slid envelopes containing small amounts of yuan to the guards until the human barricade dissolved enough for them to pass by. The friction set the tone for the rest of the games as a gauntlet for the groom to prove his dedication and love for the bride.

On the third floor, the bridesmaids launched their first volley. They presented a napkin marked with five distinct lipstick prints taped to the door. The groom’s task was to identify his bride’s lips.

The groom evaluating the five different lipstick marks.

Even after solving the puzzle, the door remained shut. The bridesmaids demanded a toll. Only after sliding a thicker stack of red envelopes under the door did the barrier finally open. We crammed into the hotel room to spectate. The bride sat quietly on the bed in her striking red wedding dress, while her bridesmaids acted as generals conducting a grand defense. They sternly and loudly present the terms to the groom and the groomsmen.

The groom passing red packets underneath the door as payment to the bridesmaids. They kept insisting for more and more before they would open the door.

The first battery was trivia. What was the exact date of their first date? What is her favorite tea shop in Kunming? How many text messages did you send her last month? The groom knew some but others required frantic investigating on his phone. When he faltered, the bridesmaids demanded immediate financial penalties with additional red envelopes.

The bride in her wedding dress while her bridesmaids vet the groom and groomsmen. Her face has been pixelated for privacy.

Next, the groomsmen had to craft a message of love using only their teeth. They were given slices of white bread and sixty seconds to nibble each piece into legible characters. They opted for English to keep it simple, producing an unoriginal “I LOVE U.”

The final challenge tested agility. The bridesmaids plastered the suited groomsmen with sticky notes, then gave them one minute to shake them off without using their hands. The room erupted in laughter as the men gyrated and jiggled to dislodge the paper. Despite some questionable tactics to beat the clock, the bridesmaids mercifully accepted the victory. The groom then swept the bride into his arms, carrying her out of the hotel to head for the tea ceremony. With the conclusion of the games the bride was carried by the groom out of the room and out of the hotel. Their next destination was the local family home to take pictures and lastly, perform the tea ceremony.

Sticky notes being placed on the groomsmen prior to the challenge. They had to get all of them off without using their hands or arms. The groomsmen narrowly met their deadline.

Ferrying a large amount of people from the hotel back to the family’s home took some time even with the recruitment of a few additional DiDi drivers. My wife was finally successful in getting a DiDi driver arranged through WeChat. She had spent the past few days incorporating her credit card and passport into the gauntlet of WeChat but had to deal with additional scrutiny because she was foreign. But at least we now had a tiny bit more autonomy to move around by calling whichever DiDi ride was needed.

Tea Ceremony

After some wedding pictures the family started setting up for the tea ceremony (jìng chá 敬茶). A velvety red cushion placed on the floor in front of two chairs in the middle of the room. It would be the last and probably most endearing ceremony that highlights the structure of filial piety in Chinese culture. The process basically has the bride and groom offering tea to their family elders and are in turn bestowed with gifts and well wishes. Yet the ceremony defines the actual emotional precipice where the couple is married. The amount of tears and sniffling was certainly a testament to that realization for me and other foreigners. Almost as if the previous ceremonies and celebrations were just a lot of fun the family was having together but now it was a serious culmination to the entire wedding.

A member of the family drinking tea as offered by the groom. Faces have been pixelated for privacy.

At first, it was the oldest family elders. The bride and groom presented tea to them and said a few formal words, which responded to by the elders and a gift. This was usually a red envelope but also included some openly displayed gifts, 24-karat gold jewelry, or stacks of yuan bills wrapped in red ribbon. Then came the turn of the parents. This was challenging for a few of them. The bride was oldest and the parents had no practice giving away their children to a new life. Lastly came aunts and uncles and then important relations to the family.

I was part of that last category. It was a good venue to formally inaugurate my wife’s and my entrance into their social hierarchy. Although our gifts to the couple were standard, cash and a 24-karat gold bracelet, we possessed an unexpected advantage: my ethnicity. Another element of all these ceremonies is that they take place in public and rely on generating clout for both the bride and also the groom’s family. Everyone can see the thickness of the red envelopes given by each guest. They can also see how many items of 24-karat gold are on the tray when gifted to the bride. These are sometimes referred to as mianzi (面子) and or lian (臉) with the loose English connotation of saving face. Another ingredient in this formula was how many foreigners traveled across the world to attend a wedding. Wow, you must be so important and loved! Thus, for the first time in my life, my skin color was used to increase the social standing of a few people.

I received some coaching prior to taking a seat in front of the couple. I was instructed to say chá shì tián de (茶是甜的) after receiving the cup of tea from the bride. This approximately translates to saying that the tea is sweet. I received the cup. I drank a bit. I struggled to say the phrase since I was so nervous. There were a few giggles from the gathered family and perhaps I said something ridiculous or sounded like Brad Pitt in Inglourious Basterds but at least my part in the ceremony was over.

A grand feast started after the tea ceremony where the level of fanciness had increased quite a bit. Now the tables were covered in a nicer red synthetic fabric rather than plastic. The cups were red and gold while the main courses were meant to showcase all of the hard work of the event staff preparing dishes over the past several days.

With the new foreign arrivals from Singapore, the local uncles had another group to focus on for celebratory drinking games. There was another pyramid cycle of Ganbei! shots as groups toasted to different tables. It wasn’t quite the level of debauchery as the first evening but there were still several casualties. A few people from the Singapore group threw up from the amount of drinking and thereafter hid away in a bedroom upstairs to avoid the pressure from the local uncles. We didn’t stay up terribly late into the evening. In part because the hard drinking tapered off at around 7:30 p.m. and also because we’d be moving on to Lijiang early the next day.

Riding the World's Longest High-Speed Train Line

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 10:30:00 -0600

Watching the entire country of China zoom by my window at 350 km/h. These high rises in Wuhan were impressive.

A frequent oversight foreign travelers make is underestimating the size of a country they are visiting. I once overheard travel plans from tourists visiting the American West that involved visiting the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles confined to the space of 2 days with a car as transportation. For those unfamiliar with the area, this is insanity. I respect the ambition and ruthless efficiency that would fit as much sight-seeing as possible in a travel itinerary both limited by time and money. But this aggressively paced eyeballing gets away from the point of leisure travel and succumbs to the existential drive of FOMO.

Is there a way to balance a relaxed vacation and sight-seeing together? I arrogantly thought it would be possible when my wife and I decided to book a trip on the longest bullet train line in the world. The 2,760 kilometer Beijing-Kunming high-speed train line (京昆高速动车组列车) is the longest¹ of China’s vast network of high-speed rail. For a loose baseline, in my home country of the United States, it has 735 kilometers of high-speed train lines in operation and another 275 under construction. Comparatively, China has built 40,474 kilometers² and has another 13,063 under construction.³ China is rapidly out pacing all other nations in the world for high-speed train line infrastructure.

Map of high speed train lines in China from the 2023 High-Speed Rail Atlas drafted by the International Union of Railways.

There was a simple requirement to get from Beijing to Kunming in the span of a day. The easiest method would have been a commercial flight lasting about 3 hours and 45 minutes. While quick and easy, we would get a limited and abstractly distant view of China’s heartland. Further down the trade-off scale was the high-speed train. It would be zipping along on the ground at 350km/h but would provide a somewhat closer view along the several thousand kilometer route.

Two nights before departing we purchased our first class tickets for approximately ¥1,911 ($273). There were business seats available but at double the price of first class, it made little trade-off sense. In retrospect, it would have been worth it because each seat was an enclosed pod with a lay flat feature. That feature would have been invaluable later after I became progressively sicker.

Early Start

The day began brutally early at 04:15 to get packed before leaving the hotel at 05:10. Everything was done in a bleary haze as a consequence of staying up the night before for New Year’s Eve and fresh jet lag. Arriving at the Beijing West railway station (北京西站) at around 05:35 left us with time to find our platform and look around the station.

Arriving at the Beijing West Railway Station at 5:40 AM.

Our first stop was to speak with an employee about getting our reserved seats placed together. Booking 2 nights prior had given no options for selecting our seats and they were instead assign on check-in. For much of the journey this wouldn’t have been a problem since people trading assigned seats in order to sit together was common.

The last task we wanted to accomplish before boarding was getting hot coffee. While we had been able to gather enough food and snacks for our trip the night before, the frozen haze outside and fresh jet lag required an antidote. But paying for it was tricky.

A cup of coffee in a bag is pretty unbalanced but keeps the inevitable travel spill from happening.

A thing to note for buying things in China is that it always requires WeChat Pay or Alipay.⁴ My wife had anticipated this and was on the last steps of finally getting WeChat Pay working. After a few more submissions to WeChat support it started working and we frantically rushed to buy coffee before our 07:00 departure.

Rolling out of the Beijing West railway station was smooth and dark at 07:05. The sun hadn’t risen yet and the glare of the interior cabin lights prevented a lot of visibility. But in a city as large as Beijing there were a variety of lit buildings to see on the way out.

Example seating from First Class. Business class was about double the price but had lay flat enclosed pods.

From about 07:30 to 10:00 was the best part of the train ride. Not due to anything about the train, geography, or weather. But because the flu or cold I didn’t know I had started fiercely and promptly at 10:00. You’ll then have to forgive me for a front loaded account of the train route since the last half was exclusively a useless attempt at miserable sleep.

Cell Towers

There was a frozen winter haze lingering as we left metropolitan Beijing. With the rising sun to the east it made for an ethereal view of the transitioning landscape. By the time things were visible we were in an area with clusters of houses surrounded by farm land. The rapid change from a nation’s capital to rural agrarian fields was jarring. But after watching the landscape zoom by I noticed technology was keeping up with us. At any given time there were about 3 to 5 cell towers visible along the train route spread out across the empty fields.

It is common for trains in China to have hot water dispensers for making hot tea or instant noodles. I saw several people wandering around with stacks of instant noodles looking for the train car with the dispenser.

I had noticed the benefits of this infrastructure in Beijing. 5G reception had been solid while at any train station, airport, or other popular area. I noticed a local we were traveling with hadn’t hesitated to make several calls while underground in the Beijing metro. But in all these urban situations the 5G antennas are better blended into the environment. You can’t hide much in an empty field.

This is another area of infrastructure China has been intensely investing in over the past few years. From April to June in 2023 there were 600,000 5G base stations built, bringing the nation’s total to 3 million.⁵ The rapid build out is meant to provide the foundation for adding $290 billion to the Chinese economy by 2030.⁶

The proliferation of these cell towers kept up along the entire route. Wi-Fi was available from the train but it would drop in and out periodically. After about 30 minutes of trying to use it I turned it off and stayed on the rock solid 5G. Even as we dove into underground tunnels last for several minutes the 5G connection never dropped.

Empty High-Rises

Another landscape feature I noticed as we progressed across China was the distribution of high density residential buildings. I’ve played my share of Sim City and Cities: Skylines and I know you can’t go straight to high-rises for residential housing. You first require a suburban sprawl until demand gets high enough to transition to denser buildings. What I saw instead from the train was isolated groups of 3-5 high-rise buildings surrounded by miles and miles of empty farm land.

If a comparable number of residents were housed in the United States they would be spread out in single family homes and encompass the entirety of the surrounding square mileage. While the advantages and disadvantages of either setup are the concern of civil engineering post-doctoral researches, I found the different approach fascinating.

Wuhan from the train station.

Many of these high-rises showed signs of being inhabited but occasionally there were a few that were objectively empty or unfinished. The presence of laundry, decorations, chairs, or other items on balconies isn’t the most scientific method to determine total occupancy. But it’s something. However, in many cases, the buildings were bare skeletons and lay unfinished. Sure, construction might have been ongoing, yet the lack of activity and the fatigued age of concrete is recognizable if you’re close enough.

Subsequent reading about these empty buildings showed that China’s real-estate sector has been contracting after years of aggressive growth. Real-estate accounts for 29% of the country’s total GDP but 20% of total urban housing properties (65 million) were vacant in 2021.⁷ The National Bureau of Statistics shared a more modest value of 7.2 million in 2023 but coupled it with a rare public critique stating there weren’t enough people in China to fill them all.⁸

This staggering amount of vacant properties will be a huge drag on the future growth of the Chinese economy. But certain people have rapidly adapted to the economic reality. Farmers near Shenyang have re-purposed a nearby abandoned neighborhood of palatial homes. They started plowing land between homes for crops with other areas setup as livestock corrals and formerly empty garages are now used for hay storage.⁹

Tunnels in the South

The geography was flat from Beijing to Wuhan with the occasional cropping of gentle hills. As we dove southward the terrain became much more rugged. Subsequently, the duration of tunnels began to extend longer and longer with diminishing views above ground. In many cases, the duration exceeded several minutes with a brief flash above ground before going into another round of darkness. The tunnels are pragmatic but frustrating. To keep the trajectory of a high-speed train you need to adapt construction to the harsh accommodations of the terrain. Blasting through hills and mountains to maintain a smooth and comfortable 300km/h.¹⁰

As the train ride progressed into the late afternoon and evening it created a bronze sheen to the entire southern region. Combined with the hills, clearer air, and vibrant vegetation it was entirely unfair to frozen Beijing.

The frustrating part is the chronic air pressure adjustment for passengers. As we entered and left each tunnel the air pressure would change enough to be uncomfortable. Similar to how you would experience taking off or landing in a commercial airline. However, with a marathon of tunnels it quickly became fatiguing and made me realize my oncoming sickness was sinus related. I struggled to keep a consistent air pressure equilibrium for my ears with the rapid entry and exit from the endless tunnels. This made the last third of the train line the most uncomfortable and battered me into attempting to nap for the rest of the ride.

Your fearless author, defeated.

Missing out on the last section of the train line was a shame but there is a limit to how much you can power through illness. The setting sun combined with the impressive mountains and hills covered in solar panels was a step up from the flat emptiness of the northern portion of the train line.

We arrived in Kunming at approximately 18:30, making the trip about 11 hours and 25 minutes long. To get to our final destination we had to take another 35 minute regional train ride to downtown Kunming.

Sunrise from our hotel balcony in Kunming the following morning. The moderate temperature in the south was a welcome change from frosty Beijing.

While my experience was flawed by getting progressively sicker during the trip I would wholeheartedly recommend experiencing the currently longest high-speed train line yourself. Zooming across the entirety of a nation from the comfort of a big chair is as amazing as flying. It would be helpful to be more responsible and get a good night’s rest before setting out on the journey. Despite being miserable for the last part of the trip I thoroughly enjoyed seeing everything across China. From the changing terrain to the variety of people at each station getting off and on it was a rewarding exposure. While not as intimate as walking the full 2,760 kilometers, it got us from Beijing to Kunming in a day.

Press Trust of India, “China Launches Longest Bullet Train,” The Economic Times, January 5, 2017, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/business/china-launches-longest-bullet-train/articleshow/56359517.cms. ↩︎
Ali Ahmed, “20 Countries with Largest High Speed Rail Network,” Yahoo Finance, September 6, 2023, https://finance.yahoo.com/news/20-countries-largest-high-speed-205613438.html. ↩︎
International Union of Railways, “High-Speed Rail Atlas 2023,” https://uic.org/, December 2023, https://uic.org/IMG/pdf/atlas_uic_2023.pdf. ↩︎
Shira Ovide, “Don’t Even Try Paying Cash in China,” The New York Times, January 28, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/27/technology/alipay-china.html. ↩︎
Stephen Chen, “China Built More 5G Base Stations in 3 Months Than US Did in 2 Years,” South China Morning Post, July 20, 2023, https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3228259/china-built-more-5g-base-stations-3-months-us-did-2-years. ↩︎
Juan Pedro Tomás, “China Ends Q1 With 2.64 Million 5G Base Stations,” RCR Wireless News, April 24, 2023, https://www.rcrwireless.com/20230424/5g/china-ends-q1-2-million-5g-base-stations.‌ ↩︎
Rupendra Brahambhatt, “The Story of China’s Ghost Cities and Its 65 Million Empty Homes,” Interesting Engineering, October 29, 2021, https://interestingengineering.com/culture/chinas-ghost-cities-and-its-65-million-empty-homes. ↩︎
Albee Zhang and Ryan Woo, “Even China’s 1.4 Billion Population Can’t Fill All Its Vacant Homes, Former Official Says,” Reuters, September 24, 2023, https://www.reuters.com/world/china/even-chinas-14-bln-population-cant-fill-all-its-vacant-homes-former-official-2023-09-23/. ↩︎
Katherine McLaughlin, “See Inside a Ghost Town of Abandoned Mansions in China,” Architectural Digest, August 1, 2023, https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/see-inside-a-ghost-town-of-abandoned-mansions-in-china. ↩︎
The Beijing-Kunming high-speed line travels at 350 km/h between Beijing and Wuhan but slows down to 300km/h from Wuhan to Kunming. Likely due to the demanding geography. ↩︎

Learning After 2,255 Miles

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 10:30:00 -0600

A beautiful 10.84 mile run in the early morning outside of Sun Valley, Idaho. I was camping in a valley to the north of Ketchum. It was rather cold in the early morning despite being August.

In 2023, I ran a total of 2,255 miles with a cumulative 147,877 feet of elevation gain. This was similar to the 2,165 miles and 181,394 feet of elevation gain in 2022.

Month	Distance (miles)	Elevation (feet)	Time
January	185	8,232	33h
February	157	7,694	29h
March	174	6,991	34h
April	175	7,900	33h
May	193	11,121	36h
June	190	10,912	35h
July	235	27,031	51h
August	238	24,196	46h
September	167	9,843	33h
October	199	15,322	38h
November	197	10,564	78h
December	141	8,071	31h

Reaching my annual goal of 2,000 miles has been rewarding specifically towards solidifying a habit of daily running. This is because reaching such an absurd number of miles can only be achieved through consistent effort. You can’t really binge run that many miles in the last few months of the calendar year without injury.

In the years prior to 2022 I approaching running sporadically and inconsistently. The only effort I put in was near the build up before big races. This isn’t particularly helpful to building a strong running foundation. I found the results of those 12 or 16 week programs helpful in finishing several challenging 50K races but it was exactly that, just finishing. I didn’t feel strong and had to push hard to complete. I was really just surviving and never reached the thriving stage.

However, with the consistent running regime I have been doing for the past 2 years it has filled the weak gaps in my strength and endurance. With a baseline of about 40-45 miles per week I can safely and most importantly, casually approach longer runs when the opportunity presents itself. For instance, it is very rewarding being able to tour a travel destinations over the course of 10 to 15 miles. You get to see a lot compared to the casual strolling you normally do as a tourist.

The last run of the year circled the Forbidden City in Beijing for 9.55 miles. Most of the run was normal but when trying to head back to my hotel I foolishly looped around the entire perimeter of a major government compound. There were armed military and police patrols everywhere and it was a slog getting through eight security checkpoints in the space of a few miles. I only found out later this was Zhongnanhai (中南海) that houses the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council. I’m definitely on some watch list.

Myrtl Routine

While my running has been consistent, I do peak up in volume during the late summer when the weather is best. My average monthly mileage peaks consistently in July and August. Unfortunately, or fortunately, these peaks forcibly reveal weaknesses in my overall fitness. Mainly from the point that when you are running for several hours you tend to over work certain muscles while neglecting others. To perform at the highest levels of running injury free, a certain level of supporting exercises are needed. And I always neglect these essential exercises. This has manifested as patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFP syndrome) and iliotibial band syndrome (ITB syndrome) on more than several occasions from 2022 to late 2023.

The pinnacle run of the year. While I only enjoyed this beautiful area for 13.18 miles I still think about it regularly. This was up Grandjean along Baron Creek in central Idaho. The Sawtooth Wilderness area is so remote you have to fill out a backcountry permit, even for day trips.

Yet, in both years I didn’t learn my lesson and neglected the appropriate supplemental exercises until I couldn’t walk due to the pain from runner’s knee. But the protagonist here does eventually learn his lesson. After the idiotic failure of late 2023 I set out to find the best supporting exercise that was simple to remember and implement after every run. This led me to the Myrtle Routine, which I have been performing religiously after each of my runs since September 2023.

A great example of using running to assist with efficient exploration of northern London on a short but productive 5.58 mile run along Regent’s Canal Towpath and Regent’s Park. There were still many tourists around but a lot less than the hoardes next to Parliament.

The routine was developed by coach Jay Johnson and involves several movements outside of normal running. The goal is to equalize the asymmetrical strength in your hips, butt, and supporting muscles. The routine can be done in a few minutes after my run, making it hard for my brain to provide any rational excuse to skip it. The supporting movements summarize to:

Clams
Lateral Leg Raise
Donkey Kicks
Donkey Whips
Fire Hydrant
Knee Circle, Forward
Knee Circle, Backward
Hurdle Trail Leg, Forward
Hurdle Trail Leg, Backward
Lateral Leg Swing
Linear Leg Swing
Linear Leg Swing, Bent Knee

The quantity of each movement varies from around 5 to 10 depending on my weekly mileage, impatience, and leg fatigue. As my legs get tired from a high mileage or significant elevation gain week I correspondingly increase the Myrtl repetitions for a semblance of load equivalency. My logic follows if I am stressing my muscles used by normal running movement I also need to equally stress these other supporting muscles.

Out with my dogs in the foothills of the mountains above where I live in Utah. They really enjoy being out in the soft winter snow and I try to always get out after a fresh storm.

I have saved a few bookmarks for the Myrtl routine to easily reference, including a PDF from Steel City Endurance that is easy to keep available on my phone. A more hands on demonstration video from Runner’s World or Runner Space is helpful to get a reminder of the correct form for each movement.

SWAP Plans

With my fitness baseline solidified from running consistently I can approach intermediate and advanced training plans with more confidence. I have tried a few different ones over the years and all have their specific uses for achieving goals of distance, terrain, or time. My interest in trail running has been surprisingly consistent over the past few years and in turn I need plans that can adequately prepare me for a lot of elevation gain.

A buffet of parks in London over 8.12 miles in late November. After leaving my hotel I went through St. Jame’s Park, Green Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, The Rose Garden, and a final bit through the Buckingham Palace Garden. Where ever I go, I seem to be drawn to a wealth of green nature.

The 50 and 100 mile plans from David and Megan Roche’s Some Work All Play (SWAP) team fulfills this requirement perfectly. These plans have a natural approach to working in methods that build elevation stamina. They also provide a level of mileage and effort flexibility that gives me the ability to adjust my training exertion depending on that particular cycle. During some training cycles I am putting in a tremendous amount of training effort to show up the younger runners in my family. But other times I approach the cycle more passively to maintain fitness.

Mountain Legs

The most beneficial element of the SWAP training plans are the elevation oriented strength training exercises. They vary from what are called Mountain Legs and Speed Legs depending on the training schedule. For Mountain Legs it would call for 20 to 50 repetitions of:

Single-Leg Rear Lunge
Single-Leg Step-Ups

Fresh out of winter prison I tried my best enjoy a nice long 10.01 mile run at Strawberry Reservoir in Utah until a thunderstorm brought me back to the reality of early spring. Even though it was late May there was still snow in the foothills and the trees were just barely budding.

And then for Speed Legs you’d do 10 to 20 of the following except double for the single-leg step-ups:

Alternating rear lunges on each leg
Bulgarian split squats on each leg
Single leg Romanian deadlifts
Goblet squats
Single-leg step-ups

I snapped one of my carbon fiber Black Diamond trekking poles on this 18.19 mile run in the middle of July. It had a good long life. It will be missed.

While this steady increase in training acumen over the years has been personally rewarding I am not anywhere closer to becoming competitive. I still trudge along on flat roads at about 8 to 10 minutes per mile and frequently do haggard death marches up the steep hills on my long runs. But the foundation I have been building has been greatly minimizing the discomfort and pain of those situations. Enjoyment and challenge have replaced misery and struggle.

How to Setup Dynamic DNS with Cloudflare and Edgemax

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 10:30:00 -0600

I’m a big proponent of building a home network of whatever size or complexity. For technical and non-technical people it can help you understand the fundamentals of how the internet works. One small part of those fundamentals is giving yourself the ability to connect to your house from anywhere in the world. You can do that with a public IP address but what happens when your modem reboots and that IP address changes?

This is where a tool like Dynamic DNS can be very helpful. On top of an easier to remember DNS hostname it also automatically updates itself to whatever new public IP address you get. There are a lot of different ways to use Dynamic DNS. However, for my own setup, I have my domain hosted with Cloudflare and my hardware is a Ubiquiti Networks EdgeMax EdgeRouter Pro running EdgeOS v2.0.9-hotfix.7.

The steps for setting this up are outlined in the UniFi Help Center. But further context is needed in many cases.

Once connected to your router, enter configuration mode with configure and apply the dynamic DNS hostname. Specify the appropriate interface that has the public IP address. In my case it was eth1.

set service dns dynamic interface eth1 service custom-cloudflare host-name subdomain.domain.com

Specify the credentials used by the Edgerouter to connect to Cloudflare’s API. The login parameter is the email address used to access the Cloudflare dashboard. The password value is the Global API Key found on the API Tokens page under My Profile.

set service dns dynamic interface eth1 service custom-cloudflare login ryan@ryan.com
set service dns dynamic interface eth1 service custom-cloudflare password xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Specify the protocol the Edgerouter will be using in order to format messages correctly.

set service dns dynamic interface eth1 service custom-cloudflare protocol cloudflare

Define a domain for the Cloudflare zone. If using subdomain.domain.com this would be domain.com.

set service dns dynamic interface eth1 service custom-cloudflare options zone=domain.com

Before committing and saving this new configuration make sure the necessary A record on the Cloudflare portal have been added. This DNS record would have the type of A and the name would be subdomain and the content doesn’t necessarily matter but I put a private IP address to avoid any conflicts. The value will just get automatically updated later anyway. Additionally, the proxy status should be DNS only with an Auto TTL. The changes can then be committed and saved to the configuration.

commit
save
exit

If everything is working you will see the A record IP address update itself after a few minutes. Further verification can be obtained from the Edgerouter, which will share the status and latest timestamp.

ryan@router:~$ show dns dynamic status
interface : eth1
ip address : x.x.x.x
host-name : subdomain.domain.com
last update : Tue Nov 21 12:36:03 2023
update-status: good

The Product You Bought is Not the Product You Own

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 10:30:00 -0600

Imagine yourself living in some Jetsons technological utopia. You go down to the robot store and buy the latest helper model. Of the many benefits listed, one is to make your home life easier. Anything from opening the door when you get home, making you delicious meals, keeping the house clean, walking the dog, and everything else that would establish domestic tranquility.

Several blissful years later, a message arrives from the door company (Chamberlain Group). You find that odd because you’ve had no issues with this door and your robot helper opening it for you. In the message, the company shares that there are dangerous and nefarious robots that might make your door not as secure as you think. Danger, Will Robinson! The only fix, the company states, is by using their own secure robot (MyQ) that can open and close your door for you. The risk of using your own robot is simply too high!

After reading this message you glance suspiciously at your trusty robot helper. What is it hiding? Has it been the one stealing your socks to sell on the black market? Relieved that the door company cares so much about improving their product, you wait a few days for the new robot to arrive.

Unpacking the new robot leads to a bit of a surprise. The model is several versions old and its torso has been replaced with a screen. Booting it up and configuring it isn’t too much of a hassle. You scoot the robot to be near the door so it can perform its intended duties.

You soon realize why the screen is there.

Whenever you get near your front door the robot’s screen brightens showing an image:

Amazon Key In-Garage Delivery partnership with Chamberlain Group’s MyQ

You try to scroll across the screen in order to hide the advertisement but it just shows another. The next advertisement is for the latest sleek flying car. It also has a new secure robot from the door company.

Honda’s in-vehicle garage door control with Chamberlain Group’s MyQ

Frustrated, you begin to doubt the intentions of the door company. Your original helper robot didn’t have a screen. It was able to do everything you asked of it without shoving an advertisement in your face. Maybe the robot helper company has something to say about this?

Shuffling through old messages you find it. A saddened statement from the robot helper company (Home Assistant). “We regret to inform you that the door company has blocked us from using our lineup of robots on your door”. The truth starts to become a bit more complicated with this additional perspective.

Behind this message is another, an invitation to the public technology forum discussing this very situation! While there are many opinions and facts offered it seems the majority have stripped the door company’s security claim for brazen market consolidation. Regardless, you really just want to be able to open and close your door without having to look at an advertisement.

Reading farther into the public discussion you spot someone’s solution to the problem. A simple gadget called ratgdo that attaches to your door, which allows your trusty old helper robot to open and close the door as much as you please. All while not having to look at the advertisement riddled screen of the door company robot!

Xfinity's 10G is Deceptive Marketing

Sat, 17 Jun 2023 10:30:00 -0600

Super Bowl LVII had a 60 second commercial that tried to dupe the American public. Xfinity marketing their new 10G service along with the achievement of getting a man on the moon was a pairing that wouldn’t be missed by anyone. Somehow we had skipped from 5G past 6G, 7G, 8G, and even 9G! What an engineering feat to be praised along with the moon landing. Their arrogant marketing slogan stated, “The next generation 10G network. Only from Xfinity. One giant leap for mankind.”¹

Yet, the reality of Xfinity’s 10G service is a lot more depressingly complicated. The G after the 10 might lead you to believe it is twice as good as your phone’s 5G but it isn’t even related to cellular connectivity. Also, it isn’t another common networking term used to denote gigabit connections. This begs the question, what on earth is 10G even supposed to mean? Did the cable industry just pull a term out of thin air? Well, yes.

Per Xfinity, “The Xfinity 10G Network is the new brand for our next-generation network.”² Additionally, the R&D lab of the cable industry, CableLabs, simply calls it a “combination of technologies.”³ The most exciting admission of absolute vagueness is when Xfinity describes that, “all our internet plans are powered by the Xfinity 10G Network.”⁴ So you could have a 1G home internet plan packaged with a 5G phone all on Xfinity’s 10G network. Yet each of these three G’s refer to different things. Their marketing team couldn’t have chosen a more confusing term to dub their new next-generation network.

Telecommunication companies frequently play fast and loose by blending marketing terms with technical specifications. It is to be expected in order to derive quick and snappy terms that the consumer can readily understand, even if abstractly. What sounds better? An excerpt from the Detailed specifications of the terrestrial radio interfaces of International Mobile Telecommunications-2020 (IMT-2020)⁵ or using phrases like “mobile gaming at a new level,” or “get a movie in minutes or a song in seconds”? Other examples might include marketing the new 5G cellular network when 4G was commonplace. A normal consumer doesn’t need to know exactly how much faster 5G is compared to 4G but at the very least they know it is better.

Nothing is awry with this practice. It helps translate in real terms what a consumer can expect after paying for a service without requiring a Ph.D. in electrical engineering. The average person does not need or care to know the technical specifications of how modern telecommunication infrastructure works. Just like with many other aspects of our modern lives we rely on others having specialized knowledge to keep everything working. Most don’t know the engineering behind their local electrical systems or natural gas distribution. The architecture of providing internet access is no different. These things just work and only exist as an abstraction in the periphery of most people’s modern life.

The problem with Xfinity’s usage of the term 10G is a deceptive abuse of the public’s collective association with the term. For cellular data connectivity, a number and a G on your phone antenna icon has been around since 3G, which kicked off in 1998.⁶ This association could have only been further reinforced into the public psyche with the rise of mobile phone usage and the adoption of 4G in 2008 and 5G in 2019. Anyone using a phone over the past decade would have seen this multiple times per day on their phone’s status bar.

However, the G in this context is mostly grounded in reality. Well, maybe more like low earth orbit reality. It refers to a generation of technology for cellular connectivity as it evolves over time. But it also shares a bit of ambiguity. There are services like 5G E, which is actually 4G⁷ and 5G TF, which only shares aspects of true 5G.⁸ Despite these nuances there is still a level of technological direction with the term. Consumers can follow the approximate logic that subsequent cellular generations will provide better service.

This is the reality where Xfinity and the rest of the cable industry brought their idiotic marketing term into the world. Dragging the confused public while riding the coattails of the cellular industry is incredibly deceptive and misleading. An industry executive was even quoted as blatantly demeaning 5G when they were releasing 10G.⁹ Tech news publication The Verge succinctly described the appeal of the marketing term being rolled out as having, “something that’s twice as many Gs as 5G wireless.”¹⁰

The marketing ambiguity doesn’t stop with the cellular industry. Another commonly used term in computer networking is 10G. This refers to a 10 gigabit per second network connection. That would be 10,000 megabits per second. Specifically, Xfinity is developing an actual 10G program¹¹ that uses DOCSIS 4.0 to achieve download speeds of 10 gigabits per second and an upload speed of 6 gigabits per second. Such capacity would significantly alter the way consumers interact with services on the internet.

While Xfinity has made progress with full duplex amplification¹² it is still vetting full duplex amplifier prototypes.¹³ Rollout to the general public might be a ways off but I wonder how their marketing terms will play out during that campaign. Coalescing under the 10G umbrella is most likely, given the marketing foundation they are currently building. They could then quietly remove references to 10G as a simple brand term and deliver a product with actual 10G speeds.

Who am I kidding. That all sounds too easy and unreflective of their current marketing team. If a 6G cellular service is prevalent at this future date maybe Xfinity will rebrand everything to 12G.

Update on January 31, 2024

As reported by Ars Technica,¹⁴ the National Advertising Review Board recommended that Comcast discontinue the use of “10G” to describe their network.¹⁵ We can thank Verizon and T-Mobile for bringing this challenge. It seems there are at least some limits to deceptive marketing going unchecked in the telecommunications industry.

Dailymotion, “Xfinity ‘The Next Giant Leap’ Super Bowl 2023 Commercial with Will Forte - Video Dailymotion,” n.d. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8i8bft. ↩︎
Xfinity, “Xfinity 10G Network,” n.d. https://www.xfinity.com/10g. ↩︎
CableLabs, “10G: The Next Great Leap in Broadband,” 2019. https://www-res.cablelabs.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/26064924/10G-The-Next-Great-Leap-in-Broadband1.pdf ↩︎
“Xfinity 10G Network.” ↩︎
International Telecommunication Union, “IMT-2020 (a.k.a. ‘5G’),” n.d. https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-R/study-groups/rsg5/rwp5d/imt-2020/Pages/default.aspx. ↩︎
Helen Sydney Adams, “From 1G to 6G, Here’s a Generation Technology Timeline.” Manufacturing Digital, May 8, 2022, https://manufacturingdigital.com/technology/from-1g-to-6g-heres-a-generation-technology-timeline. ↩︎
Jacob Kastrenakes, “AT&T Misleads Customers by Updating Phones with Fake 5G Icon,” The Verge, January 7, 2019, https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/7/18172355/att-fake-5g-logo-rolling-out-samsung-lg. ↩︎
Jacob Kastrenakes, “Verizon’s 5G Home Internet Is Sort of Real, Sort of Fake.” The Verge, October 2, 2018, https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/2/17927712/verizon-5g-home-internet-real-speed-meaning. ↩︎
Jon Brodkin, “Envious of 5G Hype, Cable Cos. Unveil Potentially Confusing ‘10G’ Trademark,” Ars Technica, January 8, 2019, https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2019/01/envious-of-5g-hype-cable-cos-unveil-potentially-confusing-10g-trademark/. ↩︎
Sheena Vasani, “Comcast’s Symmetrical Multi-Gigabit Internet Test Is a Preview of next Year’s ‘10G’ Rollout.” The Verge, December 12, 2022, https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/12/23505779/comcast-multi-gigabit-10g-docsis-40-cable-fiber-isp. ↩︎
Comcast, “Comcast Completes World-First Live 10G Connection - Xfinity 10G Network,” August 11, 2023, https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-live-10g-connection-4-gig-symmetrical-speeds. ↩︎
Diana Goovaerts, “Comcast Completes DOCSIS 4.0 Puzzle with Amplifier Test.” Fierce Telecom, September 20, 2022, https://www.fiercetelecom.com/telecom/comcast-completes-docsis-40-puzzle-amplifier-test. ↩︎
Diana Goovaerts, “Comcast Gets Its First Prototype DOCSIS 4.0 Amps from CommScope.” Fierce Telecom, February 27, 2023, https://www.fiercetelecom.com/telecom/comcast-gets-its-first-prototype-docsis-40-amp-commscope. ↩︎
Jon Brodkin, “Comcast Reluctantly Agrees to Stop Its Misleading ‘10G Network’ Claims,” Ars Technica, January 31, 2024, https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/01/comcast-to-stop-calling-entire-network-10g-as-name-is-ruled-misleading/. ↩︎
BBB National Programs, “National Advertising Review Board Recommends Comcast Discontinue Use of ‘10G’ When Referring to the Name of Its Network,” January 31, 2024, https://bbbprograms.org/media-center/dd/comcast-10g-xfinity. ↩︎

SpongeBob Balenciaga and a Beta Review of Adobe Firefly

Thu, 13 Apr 2023 10:30:00 -0600

A space mining station as interpreted by Adobe Firefly

After the onslaught of AI driven engines in early 2023 I was instantly intrigued with the generative capabilities of image generation. While ChatGPT is a monumental milestone in AI progress it does not carry the same spectacle as algorithmically generated images.

Many of us have seen the incredible art built with a few simple prompts. Works that could be the highlight of an artist’s portfolio yet were brought into existence in mere seconds. Futuristic space scenes at the cutting edge of what we deem as reality. Fantastical portraits of medieval warriors with armor as detailed as something you would see in a museum.

Yet much of the foundation of how these images are generated results from a vast vacuuming of original artwork across the internet. The AI algorithms are not bringing these beautiful images out of the void of nothingness. It is mass plagiarization. The source is large swaths of artists, which is rehashed and called its own.

A specific example is with artist Hollie Mengert’s work in late 2022. After someone trained Stable Diffusion to recreate her style it democratized all her work without permission. The initial defense of the method was that the output from the AI trained model was new art and separate. This goes into a gray area of copyright law and morality.

This kind of morally questionable foundation kept me away from trying it out. I didn’t want to contribute to a vast operation of repacking artists work. It is within this situation that Adobe Firefly announced its Beta program and I excitedly signed up.

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Being a company based on creating tools for artists I anticipated that Adobe would approach the intellectual property issue with more care than others in the field. And true enough I was presented with the below notice after signing up:

We train Firefly using Adobe Stock and other diverse image datasets which have been carefully curated to mitigate against harmful or biased content while also respecting artist’s ownership and intellectual property rights.

And so off I went into the beta. As of early April 2023 there are only 2 services available within Firefly. An AI image generator (text to image) and text effects, which applies the stated texture to the defined letters. Other aspects of the service are still being developed:

Inpainting Use a brush to add, remove, or replace objects in an image. Generate the new fill with a text prompt.
Personalized results Generate images based on your own object or style.
Text to vector Generate editable vectors from a detailed text description.
Extend image Change the aspect ratio of your image with a single click.
3D to image Generate images from the interactive positioning of 3D elements.
Text to pattern Generate seamlessly tiling patterns from a detailed text description.
Text to brush Generate brushes for Photoshop and Fresco from a detailed text description.
Sketch to image Turn simple drawings into full-color images.
Text to template Generate editable templates from a detailed text description.

There is a wall of examples for both working services complete with the text prompts that generated them. This is incredibly useful for a noobie like myself to build the correctly written text parameters. The learning curve is present but nowhere near the challenge of becoming proficient in Photoshop or Premiere Pro.

My initial generated images were just a stretch of the imagination. To see what was actually possible with the impossible. My wife certainly loved it since she loves dinosaurs.

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Firefly_running-from-dinosaurs-in-a-ballgown–synthwave_art-vibrant_colors-dramatic_light_18498

As with other AI image generation software suites it really struggles to accurately depict appendages. The same goes for the anatomy of a human’s facial structure. While the AI model seems to keep it together with a few general prompts it falls apart once you get past a certain number of text specifications. Maybe it is trying too hard to qualify all text parameters yet failing to maintain when a human would deem as a cohesive face. Scaling back the number of text parameters resolves this issue and returns a bit of creative autonomy back to the AI model.

![firefly-beta-5.webp" caption=“Firefly_portrait-of-caucasian-male-warrior–red-velvet–ornate-gold-armor–medieval–angelic-halo-of-light–backlit-by-dark-magical-portal–high-fantasy_art-baroque-dramatic_light-vibrant_colors-fantasy-dark_52548](firefly-beta-5.webp “firefly-beta-5.webp” caption=“Firefly_portrait-of-caucasian-male-warrior–red-velvet–ornate-gold-armor–medieval–angelic-halo-of-light–backlit-by-dark-magical-portal–high-fantasy_art-baroque-dramatic_light-vibrant_colors-fantasy-dark_52548”)

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As a gamer, I first turned to Sci-Fi and Fantasy categories to really drive down into what was possible with a very specific prompt. While AI generation is currently going poorly for games it has the potential to became the future model of creating exactly what you want in the next decade. Yet, in these initial stages it would be useful to have some sort of dynamic character creation. This could promote a much higher re-playability factor. Guard rails could be put in place by the developers to guide the story in a specific trajectory. Or we could embrace the limitless and see what a real sandbox-like game dynamic adventure could take the audience.

Firefly_portrait-of-male-warrior–blue-velvet–beard–blue-glowing-eyes–ornate-gold-armor–regal–gold-halo–classicism_art-baroque_23436

![firefly-beta-8.webp” caption=“Firefly_portrait-of-warrior–blue-velvet–ornate–gold-armor–regal–gold-halo–classicism_art-baroque_23436](firefly-beta-8.webp “firefly-beta-8.webp” caption=“Firefly_portrait-of-warrior–blue-velvet–ornate–gold-armor–regal–gold-halo–classicism_art-baroque_23436”)

The results could be incredible. Or horrific. Generative AI models restricted purely to building games or entertainment in general could have greater moral flexibility compared to real world AI instances. As long there was some sort of disclaimer at the beginning saying such. This work is a piece of fiction…blah blah blah. With entertainment as a get out of jail free card we could be in for a wild ride in future games. Popular titles such as Rimworld already have players notching off which Geneva Convention articles they have violated.

Firefly_futuristic-excavator-vehicles–mining-space-station-with-furnace-in-background–glowing-windows–jagged-mountains-obscuring-horizon–barren-landscape–mining-pit–industrial-wasteland–detailed_art-vibrant

Firefly_space-excavator-vehicles–mining-space-station-with-furnace-in-background–glowing-windows–jagged-mountains-obscuring-horizon–barren-landscape–mining-pit–industrial-wasteland_art-vibrant_colors-dark

Firefly_space-station–dark-mountains–desolate-landscape–space-ships-docking–mining-operation_art-science_fiction-golden_hour-wide_angle-digital

More traditional art is also possible. Some of the generated lithographs and line etchings appeared as if they were out of a very old historical book. A few of the prompts produced some odd ambience in the line etchings, which made it look like a middle school kid just learned Photoshop image effects. But this could be easily toned down with the correct curation of text parameters.

explorer-portrait–mountain-man–beard–fur-clothing–bw–dramatic-light–photo–next-to-river–tired–epic-landscape-background–french–line-etching_art

Firefly_lithograph–landscape–grand-mountains–forest–bw–ornate–detailed_art

After sharing a few of these results with some family members I received the challenge to create SpongeBob Balenciaga. As of April of 2023, the current cultural meme is styling various narrative flavors into Balenciaga. While Harry Potter was first, Star Wars and Lord of the Rings closely followed. It seems to be a mad rush to Balencaiga-ify everything else before the cultural moment passes.

The initial prompt was a classic human and AI misunderstanding. With no cultural knowledge about the cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants, the AI model drew something very literally. The result was a Tim Burton mixed with Salad Fingers horror creature.

Firefly_SpongeBob-squarepants–Balenciaga-style_art-dark

After realize I had to guide the AI model literally it turned in the right direction. Rather than relying on a cultural phrase that an AI model couldn’t generally understand I gave it a literal outline of what I wanted.

Firefly_square-sponge-wearing-sunglasses-and-pants–Balenciaga-style–gothic–high-fashion_photo_74156

The second result is rather entertaining in two ways. It drew exactly what I wanted but also because it put together a Hitler Squidhands from Grease. But overall the new direction was promising because the foundational parameters were being outputted. The next steps were to refine the output in an artistic direction closer to how I expected a SpongeBob Balenciaga would appear. The resulting prompts didn’t vary a terrible amount but made a significant difference in the output.

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Firefly_high-fashion–square-sponge-wearing-sunglasses–fashion-show–Balenciaga–urban–black-clothing_photo-pixel

The departure from using ‘gothic’ and the specification of a ‘yellow’ sponge started to really make a difference. During this time I was also playing with various styles like pixel art, photo realism, and others to see a good path forward.

The next round of images started to get very close my original goal. The background of sand dudes was a frustration tactic on my part. I was not able to specify ‘underwater’ or ‘seafloor’ in the parameters without some odd output. Additionally ‘beach’ or similar words kind of skewed the results in a way I didn’t want to go. One thing I do want to note is the hyper realistic sponge for the female model. I struggled to repeat the usage of such a sponge later on in the process. Per the video from Adobe Firefly this might be possible in the future where you could keep a specific element.

Firefly_fashion-show–square-yellow-sponge-wearing-sunglasses–fashion-show–Balenciaga–black-clothing–sand-dunes–backlit–muscular_cartoon-maximalism

Firefly_fashion-show–square-yellow-sponge-wearing-sunglasses–fashion-show–Balenciaga–black-clothing–sand-dunes–backlit_cartoon-maximalism_96214

The man’s head looks like a cheese cube at first glance. Since there is no current way to modify a specific element of the image output I was left with regenerating or changing the text. As I mentioned before, if you start adding too many text parameters to the input the output begins to break. I presume this is the AI model attempting to fulfill all requests into the output but not realizing it is breaking reality in the process.

The last few prompts were minor in change but were repeatedly regenerated to see what the AI model could come up with next. Since there was no substantive changes to the text prompt I am not sure the process is easily repeatable. You just had to keep regenerating and hope for a desirable output. And yet here are my two candidates for SpongeBob SquarePants Balenciaga from Adobe Firefly (Beta):

underwater–backlit–ornate-coral-forest-in-background–caucasian-male-body–high-fashion_photo-hyper_realistic

Firefly_fashion-show–square-yellow-sponge-wearing-sunglasses–fashion-show–Balenciaga–black-clothing–sand-dunes–backlit–muscular_cartoon-maximalism

For a service in beta and a non-trained AI shaper on his lunch break, I think the output is very powerful. With additional training time for the AI model and an experienced human shaper the results could be indistinguishable from real illustrators and possibly photographers. The transformative implications of this capability are still in the early stages of all industries. I am equally horrified and extremely excited to see where it goes.

Rattlesnake Flat and Reid Neilson Draw

Fri, 07 Apr 2023 10:30:00 -0600

The newly upgraded 4Runner with mammoth 35 inch tires.

I’m good at avoiding social engagements. It is all the easier when you have a hobby that can take you far away into the wilderness. On Easter Weekend I put this expertise into play and ended up touring a portion of the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area located in central Utah.

Many people end up at the majestic cliffs dubbed The Wedge in the northern part of the Swell. But there is a great deal more to see. I had previously visited Black Dragon Canyon and The Wedge, which were each beautiful in their own unique ways. Yet there could be more beauty out there and I was going to find it.

I approached the Swell from the north through Price. The weather was surprising fair for early April. While overcast in the morning with in the 50s F it usually warmed to the mid 80s and sunny in the afternoon. I took highway 10 south and diverted to the Green River Cutoff Road. This eventually led to Buckhorn Draw Road that squiggles and descends through the majestic canyon next to The Wedge.

There are many camp sites along the canyon and a few could have provided beautiful sunset or sunrise pictures. The canyon extends at a diagonal from the north west to the south east. This would allow for a dramatic contrast of sunlight. But there was a lot of time left in the day and I continued on southward into the swell.

My furry copilot, Dietrich. He loves driving around and exploring but doesn’t really like camping. After a few minutes of checking things out he sits and waits at the 4Runner door.

After crossing the San Rafael River the land opened to the desert and plateaus. There are many branching roads in this section. Around Calf Mesa and down Cane Wash, Oil Well Flat, or Road Hollow. All trails looked inspiring but I was aiming for a timid trip. My 4Runner had gone under the knife the week prior with new suspension and tires. I was re-learning my truck and what was rubbing where. Not the best time to push my limits.

Rattlesnake Flat

I stuck to the timid Buckhorn Draw Road until around The Sinkhole near I-70. I forked off here to the Rattlesnake Flat area and found a dispersed campsite in an area covered by shrubby cedar trees.

There was a cellular radio tower on the nearby plateau, which gave me the best 5G connection I’ve ever experienced. I’m sure me and the other 3 people connected to the tower were barely pushing 1% of capacity. As I didn’t have a specific destination past where I had just arrived, it was helpful to have a data connection to plan for the next two days of exploring the area.

The lone 5G capable cell tower near Rattlesnake Flat. While not Ultra Capacity 5G it still had amazing speeds.

Fix-it-Pass, the Eva Conover Trail, and Devil’s Racetrack had been on my shortlist for the past few years. All are challenging trails and require capable vehicles driven with finesse. I had recently entered the realm of capable vehicle with 35" tires but I was mere hours into it. To ease into more challenging terrain I decided to scout around the beginnings of these trails until I ran out of time.

On the following morning I got back on Buckhorn Draw Road and headed West back to the I-70 on-ramp. However, I didn’t get back on the highway but crossed it to reach the Heart of Sinbad Road. Taking me farther away from the dramatic landscape of the San Rafael Reef, I entered the boring southern central flat plateau.

While making good time I decided to take a detour to see if I could reach the West side of the San Rafael Reef. How great would it be to discover an unheard of majestic view of the Reef? On an unnamed road crossing I went South East. The scrubby flat landscape gently descended and the plateau started to mildly breakup with the beginning of Georges Draw.

While trying to get to the Reef I overlooked an interesting slot canyon. Crawford Draw trail head was just a short detour off the road I was traveling and could have been a good shelter from the growing heat of the day.

Instead I kept pressing South East. Eventually I ran out of road with a significant hike left to reach the Reef. Although it was early April the temperature must have been in the upper 80s. Not necessarily a problem for myself but for my entirely black haired German Shepherd buddy it would have been rather unpleasant.

Reid Neilson Draw

Returning back to the crossroads with the Heart of Sinbad Road I started to make my way into the Reid Nelson Draw. A fun aspect of this road is that it goes underneath I-70. There is a plain concrete passageway underneath that is a fun change up from the normal overpass bridges. The south side of the dirt road is aggressively eroded where the concrete meets the dirt. In order to ease the transition there are piles of rocks stacked up to accommodate vehicles.

For a bunch of stacked rocks these were surprisingly stable. I can only imagine how wild things get when flash floods come through here.

Once on the north side of I-70 the road becomes radically backcountry. The ruts are sometimes extreme and will flex your suspension to a creaky limit. It was here that I heard and felt the tolerances my new 35" tires had on my small 4Runner wheel wells. I can only imagine this condition is due to the isolated nature of the section of road coupled with use limited to only aggressive off-road vehicles.

Past the tunnel, much of the terrain is a flat and gentle plateau that wraps around the south side of Fix-it-Pass. But this is a bit misleading because the roads are heavily rutted and sometimes brings your vehicle to an uneasy angle. But this has the benefit of making the area isolated from the general population. There aren’t going to be large camping trailers or minivans trawling over the deep ruts. Additionally, there are plenty of spots to camp scattered along the edge of the plateau with great views of Fix-it-Pass.

Being secluded away from the main trail behind cedar trees was great but dealing with the dried cow pies was not.

I chose a camping spot farther back in a secluded area of large cedar trees. The valley was heavily used by grazing cattle, which resulted in dried cow pies being everywhere. The nearby sandstone cliffs made for a dramatic outlined against the sky as it got dark.

A long exposure night scene at camp. The weather was fair and it cooled off nicely in the evening to make a gentle fire very enjoyable.

The following morning I went on a sandy hike to the nearby pictographs. I had to take the road the long way around due to the stealthy presence of cactus between all the ruddy desert grass. Protecting the feet of my dog was worth the sacrifice of extra walking.

Seeing the pictographs was unique because they were both isolated yet trashed. It took significant capability to reach them and I doubt most people driving by on the nearby interstate would even know they were there. But on top of that the grazing cattle in the area seemed to have loved hanging out near the pictographs because there were a huge concentration of dried cow pies right next to it. I imagine the fence built around the pictograph area was built specifically to keep out the aggressive bowels of these grazing cattle.

Sunset overlooking Fix-it-Pass.

After spending some time witnessing history it was starting to get warmer and I headed back to camp with my dog slogging along. He loves exploring with me but with his medium length black hair it makes for a uncomfortable experience if the weather is at all warm. Luckily we made it back to camp and we both cooled off in the shade and drank plenty of water.

I had planned on staying for a few hours longer by just relaxing and enjoying the area but I saw a text from my family announcing Easter dinner would be that afternoon. After a few days of enjoying the San Rafael Swell area I packed up and headed back home.

Rock Hunting at the Dugway Geode Beds

Sat, 19 Nov 2022 10:30:00 -0600

Biggest geode we found

While touring most gift shops in the west you might encounter beautiful hollow rocks with giant crystals inside. In the most general terms these are called geodes. After seeing some locations in Utah where you can dig them up for free I have been planning to go. After seeing enough epically priced geodes in gift shops you begin to wonder if they are just trying to price gouge the tourists or they are in fact, rare. I remember seeing some geodes larger than 5 feet priced at $60,000.

This particular geological expedition was to the Dugway Geode Beds in the Utah West Desert. Managed by the Bureau of Land Management, this federal piece of land is pretty far from any sort of civilization and notorious for chewing up tires on the roads to get there. Since I live in the northern portion of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area my best route was by I-15, I-80, Highway 36, and lastly, Pony Express Road. However, on the way home we instead took Highway 196, which proved pretty quick becuase there were no small towns or traffic lights all the way to I-80.

Geode digging

My sister had visited this spot the year prior and shared that they had gotten a flat tire on the drive out. Well, to be exact, they got the flat while trying to reach Topaz Mountain, which is a little bit to the south. Their vehicle isn’t exactly a dedicated for off roading so I wrote off the experience as something I probably wouldn’t have to deal with. Well, to place your mind at ease we didn’t actually get a flat but we saw the horrors of the potential. Over the course of driving in and out there were 3 abandoned trailers with mangled tires and 2 vehicles with flats. I actually stopped to help one since they needed an impact gun to get off a stubborn bolt. After seeing this wasteland of carnage I considered myself very fortunate to not have gotten a flat.

The Geode Beds themselves are a collection of mounds that cover a few acres. I’m not sure if the BLM excavated the area for visitors or the landscape is simply formed from so many diggers over the years. Without any knowledge of where to start my wife and I just selected a few random spots and started digging. This was pretty idiotic of us but on this particular day we were flying by the seat of our pants and were just excited to be out there.

Geode crew

After digging for about 2 hours we had finally figured out what geodes looked like on the outside and so became a lot more efficient towards the last 30 minutes of excavating. I wonder how much more efficient we could have been if we had done a little geological studying before setting out on this trip. It would have been helpful to know what depth most geodes sit at within the dirt. The landscape has enough contours to start digging at a certain depth if it was needed.

Luckily, in the last 15 minutes or so, we found a sizable mango sized geode. This might have been lucky taking pity on us wasting so much time digging in random places but the geode is big enough to have made the whole trip worth it. Regardless, if we had just come home with the scrap geodes, the experience of the trip was reward enough itself.

The 4Runner was a great chariot across miles and miles of washboard dirt roads.

Cleaning up the geodes, tools, dogs, and 4Runner afterwards was quite the chore. The clay dirt common in the area ended up being in the same species as cement. My dogs had begun limping towards the end of our stay and on examination it turned out to be the clay collecting in balls between their paws with small stones wedged in. Getting this out wasn’t exactly straightforward since the clay had attached itself to their paw’s fur so you couldn’t pull it directly out. The same situation applied for our digging tools and the 4Runner. I have already visited the car wash a few times and there is still clay caked into my wheel wells despite the direct application of the power washing sprayer nozzle. It’ll certainly take a few more car washes to get it all off.

Garage Innovators

Sat, 12 Nov 2022 10:30:00 -0600

3D printers in the LabOps Laboratory

This article was later published on Trail4Runner.com on December 13, 2022. All images are owned by the respective individuals.

Have you ever worked on your 4Runner and an idea for a modification popped into your head? Perhaps something that would make your life easier or solve a unique problem? If so, consider yourself a junior member of the inventor’s club. In this article, we want to highlight five members of this club who went one step further and brought their simple yet effective custom 5th Gen 4Runner products to the community.

Taking your idea to the next step might seem formidable, but there’s never been a better time to do so. There are 3D printers available for just a few hundred dollars and almost limitless YouTube videos to soak up whatever sweet knowledge you need. Not only can you order entirely custom-printed circuit boards in as little as 24 hours, but you can also establish an online store reaching basically anyone in just a few clicks (or taps).

These modern tools have made the development of an idea into a product much easier. However, the road is still long and full of hurdles, setbacks, and sometimes even entirely alternative paths. A major theme shared by all of the folks listed in this article is that it’s critical to be resilient during the long process of developing your invention into a viable product.

Your 3D-printed product might perform admirably in Northern California but become brittle in the extreme winters of Canada or warped from the hellfire of summer in Arizona. No matter the issue, you will have to adapt and overcome it while still pushing forward.

This isn’t to say being an inventor is all doom and gloom. Taking an abstract concept in your head and physically forming it into an object another human being will pay you money for is a major milestone. It’s extremely difficult but incredibly rewarding!

To help others that are on this journey, we asked these inventors for any insight and knowledge that they could offer to the next great creator out there.

1. Lab Ops Gear Dash Mount by John

Early version of a 3D printed Labops dashmount

Our first product is a very subtle dashboard mount, which looks incredibly OEM+. This was entirely the goal of the inventor, John, and his company, LabOps Gear, maker of the non-drill dash mount.

He wasn’t really a fan of drilling his dash and the overly wide size of traditional mounts like the ICS Fab or Expedition Essentials but still needed a solution to mount his phone and gadgets. While cleaning his 4Runner one day, he noticed a separate piece of the dashboard trim just in front of the digital clock. After seeing that, he started to fabricate a piece that would fit. About eight versions later the first usable prototype worked surprisingly well.

Through word of mouth, his product became a hot commodity. John bought two more 3D printers to keep up with demand since each mount took about 14 hours to print. Even still, demand continued to grow and John started to explore the possibility of creating an injection-molded model of his mount.

Transitioning from a 3D printed mount to injection molded introduced a variety of engineering issues. John had to learn about injection flow patterns and a variety of other hurdles to overcome. In the end, changing over to an injection molded model was better since it had more structural integrity despite having less width in certain parts of the mount.

Injection molded compared to 3D printed

John, who has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry, is no stranger to the prototyping and engineering process of developing a solution. However, much of the work involved with designing the dashboard mount in CAD software was entirely new to him.

His only regret was not starting with professional CAD software at the beginning. After transitioning from freeware CAD software he had to re-learn all of the fundamentals again, which took a significant amount of time. Professional CAD software is by no means cheap but there might be alternatives available such as education discounts or classes at your local community college that come with a software license.

Being a new vendor in the overlanding community has been surprisingly pleasant for John. He shared that there has been a general willingness to accept new products and ideas. In addition, people have been incredibly patient and tolerant of delays while John and LabOps Gear have grown and adapted to the higher product demand; all while transitioning from a 3D printed version to an injection-molded dashboard mount.

John said he attributed this to the innate quality of people who enjoy the outdoors and the camaraderie that goes along with it.

2. Extended Fuse Cover by Minh

The Extended Fuse Cover accomodates extra room for many 4Runner electrical modification connections

Many of our 4Runners have enough added modifications to make our cabin fuse box a delicious spaghetti bowl of electrical taps, splices, and add-a-fuses.

The resulting blob of wires usually prevents the OEM fuse cover from fitting back on and so it usually gets left off. There are many aftermarket extended fuse covers available but inventor Minh found they really weren’t up to his exacting standards.

While trying to develop an improved version, he tucked away his OEM cover with one of the prototypes. At this moment he realized mounting the OEM cover directly onto the extended cover was the best way to keep track of it and display the relevant fuse diagram.

Early challenges with 3D printing

Combining the OEM and extended fuse covers together forced him to redraft his first prototype almost completely. Minh shared that he kind of regrets spending so much time on the first version since it was scrapped entirely anyway. Hindsight is 20/20 and had Minh not spent so much time on that first draft, who knows if he would have had the same realization.

Minh’s 3D printing station

Minh is rather humble and was skeptical if a single invention made him actually an inventor. However, if you keep up with his Instagram or TikTok you can see the level of tinkering, innovation, and prototyping transparency easily puts him in this category.

His discussions about the virtues of PETG plastics over ABS and PLA for rigidity, durability, and heat resistance are both fascinating and educational. It is rare to see someone so open to publicly sharing their design issues and work process while engaging directly in long conversations with strangers.

Perseverance is invaluable in the face of technical challenges

To carry on a theme, Minh was also direct about being resilient and open during the development process. After the major re-work of his first 2010-2019 extended fuse cover prototype, Minh went through a further 56 revisions, 12 of which were major design changes.

Additionally, there were some close to Minh who shared skepticism about spending so much time on something as benign and simple as a fuse cover. Yet, through all of this, he was able to turn a healthy profit. This has only fueled his workshop’s expansion and desire to further develop custom 5th Gen 4Runner products.

3. Wifey Air System by Al

The Wifey Air System

While Al enjoys wheelin’ with his friends almost every weekend, he didn’t particularly enjoy the task of airing up and down. As a result, he bought one of those four-way hoses to do it more efficiently. He shared that his first time using it was also his last.

The whole process of untangling the hoses, laying them out for all four tires only to do the same in reverse once finished seemed like a lot of tedious work. Not to mention all the associated gear taking up a storage spot in your vehicle that had to be easily accessible.

Looking for built-in hose systems lead Al to a lot of dead ends. Eventually, Al came across one company that seemed to share his vision for a hose system. He eagerly emailed them but with no response after a few days, he gave them a call that went unanswered. Al found out that this company went out of business so his ideal hose setup was still unavailable anywhere on the market. The only thing left to do was to make it himself.

The first week was a flurry of online orders for fittings, hoses, and quick connectors. Excited about the potential of sharing a working prototype with his friends on a weekend trip, Al worked a few late nights getting everything assembled and working.

The result was a solid first prototype that even lasted until he later sold his 4Runner. The inaugural Wifey Air System had everyone gathering around his 4Runner to see it working.

The initial Wifey Air System setup

Al wasn’t in it for the money. He had just built an awesome system that was easy to use and tucked neatly away under the vehicle; so why not share it with everyone? He did just that and you can even see a full parts list on some of his older YouTube videos. Even with a full parts list, there were a few people who didn’t have the time or interest in assembling it themselves. Al built those people kits on occasion but his overall order volume wasn’t high.

It wasn’t until a prominent fabrication company reached out and offered to build his built-in air system as a purchasable kit that Al started getting serious. At that time, he had noticed a few exact clones of his air system being offered on the market. If people wanted to pay for a pre-made kit with his publicly available parts list, then why couldn’t he make some money too?

A later iteration of the Wifey Air System

The evolution of the Wifey Air System from open source to being offered as a product is a testament to consumer demand. There is a distinct possibility of sharing your secret recipe with the world while still being able to offer a product. The real question is if Al is still sponsored by wifey or if this built-in air system has started to cover the bills.

4. SD Off Road Mount by Derek

A brilliant aluminum plate to consolidate several systems in your 4Runner’s engine bay

When I was looking to start the foundation of my 4Runner’s electrical modifications last year, there were a ton of options for mounting a solid-state switch in my engine bay.

I was pretty greedy and wanted my onboard air compressor, switches, fuse block, and bus bar to all fit together on the same tray. However, I couldn’t find a product that had that much real estate. Sure, there were many that combined a few of those components together but none I saw that did everything. This is especially true for the Switch Pros’ requirement of being mounted vertically for warranty purposes.

SD Off Road Mount installed and being wired

It took me a while, but I eventually came across the SD Offroad Mount. Operating directly out of his Instagram page rather than a website is a bit unorthodox. However, it makes sense for a single man with a garage workshop.

In a conversation with Derek in late 2021, he acknowledged being just one guy in a huge off-roading world with a successful product because people believed in what they saw.

5. Anytime Backup Camera by Brian

Anytime Backup Camera: Check Price Our last innovator highlight is a product you would think could come stock directly from Toyota. The Anytime Backup and Front Camera system (updated version) let you view your OEM backup camera whenever you want and adds a front camera to boot.

Brian has broken the fascist tyranny of the reverse gear over backup cameras everywhere! Using this camera during off-roading can prove invaluable for checking approach angles or how close that sharp rock is getting.

The original motivation for putting together this wiring kit stemmed from Brian’s goal of not messing with the stock wiring of his newly purchased 4Runner. Why modify the core of your vehicle’s electrical system when with a few clicks you can get enough wiring to shame a 1999 Radio Shack?

Final Thoughts

Custom 5th Gen 4Runner products play a large role in the mods world. Not every large company can allocate the time and money for what some would consider niche products. This is where inventors fill the void for the community’s needs.

Some of the folks listed in this article had engineering backgrounds; one even had a Ph.D. However, as shared at the beginning of this article, the amount of information available to us is almost boundless. If you have an idea for something you don’t know how to build, the internet can teach you so many things!

Everyone listed here has a day job and did most of their learning in their spare time. You don’t need to spend hours every day either, take your time, and that knowledge will compound. There isn’t really anything that you couldn’t eventually master or at the very least become competent with.

While there might be really niche fields that don’t have thousands of video tutorials, you can be assured that there is some content out there, somewhere.

Running Kings Peak

Sun, 28 Aug 2022 10:30:00 -0600

On the highest point in Utah but only halfway done for the day.

While I have avoided formal running races so far this year I was still drawn to running iconic natural features of my surrounding area. Some of these locations include the internationally known Grand Canyon in a brutal rim-to-rim-to-rim single day ultra marathon. I might attempt this sometime in 2023 if I can maintain consistent training. Another nearby feature on my list was the highest peak in the state of Utah, Kings Peak. Name after Clarence King¹, I am not sure if the title of the peak should be possessive or simply plural. Regardless, the long approach and high altitude makes this mountain formidable to digest in a single day.

The start of the most commonly used trail to get to Kings Peak is from Henry’s Fork trail head. Depending on your origin you might approach this location from the North or the West. A work colleague that lives in southern Salt Lake City told me they reached the trail head from the West by Highway 150 and then Forest Road 58, 73, 17, and finally 77. My source location was farther north so I arrived at the trail head from the North by passing through Evanston, Fort Bridger, Mountain View, Lonetree, and finally over Forest Road 77.

Sleep

There are camping sites at Henry’s Fork trail head and dispersed options abound but my last minute decision was to simply sleep in my car as close as possible to the trail head. I had actually re-mounted my roof top tent the day prior and planned on simply stealth sleeping in the parking lot. After arriving at about 10:30 PM I realized my gamble would be perfectly fine as I could see a number of converted sprinter vans in the parking lot with lights on inside and some moderate activity in the parking lot. It seemed mostly just bathroom visits as people were getting ready to go to sleep. In retrospect I assume this kind of parking lot camping was normal for these self-contained camper vans but it was pretty unfamiliar to me. After situating myself I quickly opened up my tent and went to bed with plans to get up at around 5:45 AM.

It was certainly my own idiocy for sleeping fifty feet from the trail head that funneled dozens of people from the civilized world of automobiles into the backpacking nirvana of the Northern Uintas. Feel free to dismiss this next section as the whining of someone that didn’t concern themselves with logical deduction. To be fair, I can understand people walking by in the noisy gravel parking lot, car doors opening or closing, or bathroom doors creaking, but I never expected to hear Led Zeppelin’s Black Dog at a quarter after two in the morning blasting from a newly arrived car just a few slots down. Staying true to my passive aggressive personality I simply chose to climb out my tent for a bathroom break in the hopes that they would see there were actual people sleeping nearby. Either this maneuver to the bathroom worked or my timing simply meshed with their bedtime and the music faded out.

Early portion of Kings Peak Trail

The peace was short lived until a bit after 4 AM when this rock-n-roll car had their friends arrive to start their hike to celebrate a group member’s birthday. This was another oversight on my part because many people who do Kings Peak in a day start at about four or five in the morning in order to summit prior to afternoon thunderstorms. You would be safe to write off the hours of four to six in the morning near the trail head simply due to the traffic of people and cars. This might be relevant information to one such as myself who is notoriously lazy in the morning and sleeps as late as possible in all situations. While I realize most of these encounters are my own stupid fault it might bring some clarity to future travelers and their plans for attempting Kings Peak.

Morning Trail

Dragged into consciousness in the dark and cold morning I finally got up and ready at a little past six. The morning temperature was brisk in the low forties yet the sky was beginning to lighten up with the rising sun. My starting time was at 6:50 and the elevation in the parking lot sat at approximately 9,446 feet. Much of the first six miles of the trail winds along the river over small foothills with scraggly rocks dotting the dirt path. These weren’t a problem in the morning when I was fresh but became a huge problem later on in the day when my legs were tired and my coordination lagged. My pace for this first portion varied between 12:08 to 14:14 minutes per mile. The terrain here is very forgiving to a slow jog and I only slowed down when it became too rocky.

Henry’s Fork River makeshift bridge

At about the mid-point of mile five you cross over the river in an endearing bridge and the terrain starts to open up into high mountain meadows. The initial section of the run has a certain mountain beauty but is rather claustrophobic. It is only until you get higher up that you see the grandness of the Uintas’ alpine terrain. There aren’t any jagged snow covered peaks but the lack of trees and the unique rock gives it a very different appearance. My speed at this part of the run was slightly slower since I began to feel the impact of the higher altitude. It came in at around 12:44 to 18:46 minutes per mile.

Between mile seven and the first part of ten is a treasure trove of camping locations that backpackers gobbled up. Passing by them early in the morning as they were preparing breakfast and sitting by their campfires was very picturesque. I met a few on the trail that had camped in this area and I must admit it would be tempting to utilize the base camp method in the future. Halving the total distance of the trail would have made it immensely enjoyable. However, that would come at a slight cost of lugging all the required equipment up to said backpacking spot. In any case I think future attempts by me on this trail would either require additional training to make it easier to relying on a base camp to tamper down the physical toll.

Near Dollar Lake

My pacing decision in the morning ascent was overly aggressive. The thought process behind this mindset was that this was my yearly race and required a certain gusto to be invested in my effort. Such thinking was misplaced due to not resting my body over a week or two with a taper period. This is required in all training plans in order to push your body without injury. Additionally, my morning nutritional foundation was sorely lacking. In normal circumstances I consume a meal replacement shake (Huel) with approximately four to eight hundred calories about an hour before starting. This fueling method has proven critical for me in approaching long weekend runs with enough stamina to maintain a certain pace throughout. But I skipped this particular breakfast meal in the hopes of delaying bowel movement over the course of the day. The fear was that once above tree line there would be no source of privacy. This was pretty juvenile of me and should not have been a concern. It would have been much wiser to simply stay the course with my developed long run habits.

Shortcuts

Towards the end of mile ten you approach the wide saddle of Gunsight Pass at about 11,881 feet. The slog up this steep section is just a preparatory portion to sort of wake you up from the rolling hills of the previous ten miles. Once at the top you can either take the normal Gunsight Trail or do a bit of cheating with the Dome Peak Cutoff Trail. I took the Dome Peak Cutoff trail as it stayed at the higher elevation as you taking the bend around Dome Peak. It doesn’t make sense to me to take Gunsight Trail back down in altitude to simply waste the calories you just burned ascending the saddle. There is a large caveat with taking the Cutoff Trail due to the rough, rocky, and steep terrain. The trail itself is also not specifically defined so I lost it several times myself. But overall, the shortcut saves you several miles and certainly several hundred feet of elevation loss and gain.

Approaching Gunsight Pass Saddle

Once around the bend of Dome Peak there is a shallow valley between yourself and the beginning of the Kings Peak summit. Some stick to the Cutoff Trail at the base of Dome Peak in an effort to maintain altitude as you approach the Toilet Bowl area. This is exactly what I did in my ascent but regret it in retrospect due to the extremely rocky nature of the path. It does indeed accomplish the goal of maintaining altitude since you basically stay at the same height of the Gunsight Pass saddle. But at mile 12 and with the summit shortly ahead it would be best to save your legs. A better path would be to descend slightly and cut across the least rocky part of the valley. It will take you down in altitude a bit but will save your legs from rock hopping along the valley edge. Once across the valley you can merge with the normal Uinta Highline Trail that is well defined and mostly rock free. Due to taking the rocky and steep path my pace continued to decline with the higher altitude at between 18:45 to 27:05 minutes per mile.

Rock Scree Ascension

After reaching the base of the summit I took a break since it was protected from the wind. There are spots along the spine trail that are shielded from the mountain winds but I wanted to keep my momentum all the way to the peak. As with other rocky parts of this area you can easily lose the trail because there is no way for a worn out pathway to develop. I relied heavily on taking chronic pauses to both catch my breath and also look around for the most logical footpath forward. The pausing approach to the ascent became invaluable with the rising altitude of the trail. It became very apparent after surpassing 11,200 feet while approaching the saddle and got worse with every step. In some segments I would over exert myself and a massive headache would ensue, as if I was holding my breath while running up a flight of stairs. In turn, I would take a quick break and the feeling would subside.

Endless rock scree on Kings Peak Ridge

The final ascent of the summit was rather drawn out. The summit is quite far to the south from where you start on the spine and is misleading in perceived distance. My pace suffered greatly here with the rock hopping and the incredible altitude of 13,528 feet. It brought a resulting 33:55 to 50:53 minutes per mile from the twelfth and fifteenth mile. At the top the views were pretty grand in all directions. I was lucky enough to summit at a time when the weather was sunny, clear, and with only isolated gusts of wind. What amazed me most about the summit was the fact that the wooden hand held sign remained after so many years. I would imagine the peak is subject to extreme weather events on a regular basis and somehow it just sits there tucked away between some rocks.

The descent was an attempt at another shortcut, which failed. Rather than following the spine trail I tried to cut down the summit at an aggressive slope but was thwarted by an ocean of loose rocks and small boulders. My progress was slow and frustrating and I would consider this portion of the trail the most frustrating. If you go too fast you could easily fall and break a variety of things on your body. Not to mention the incredible distance away from civilization you are it near the summit and the resulting cost of medical rescue. Certainly much more prudent to take it slow and steady over the sea of rocks. For the descent miles before reaching the saddle I only managed a pace of approximately thirty minutes per mile.

Slow Descent

Following the descent of the Gunsight Pass saddle my pace picked back up again in an effort to achieve my goal time of seven hours from car to car. I was able to keep this last ounce of effort going between miles sixteen to nineteen at 10:07 to 14:57 minutes per mile. Towards the middle endpoint of this run it became very apparent that my legs and body were extremely exhausted. If I continued to attempt to run it would only be a matter of time before I would wipe out. The risk was due to the previously mentioned scraggly rocks dotting the path of the lower trail miles. Small sections would be bare dirt and would invite a slow easy jog without question. Yet these bundles of rocks would show up at a whim and create a dangerous area of uneven ground ripe for twisting an ankle or tripping me up. I can remember in about three instances where I rolled my ankle dangerously close to a serious injury due to an errant rock my tired legs couldn’t manage past.

The fear of injuring myself was the core reason for slowing down to a walk towards the twilight of this run. Yet there was another tier of exhaustion that followed afterwards. At about mile nineteen I hit a level of tiredness I only experience every few years. In this situation it was a combination of lack of calories, distance, altitude, and excessive rock hopping. It made everything seem monumental, such as walking over a small hill and the annoyance of trying to walk over rocky sections of the trail. In other ways it also brought to mind the incredible physical limits I had put my body through but in some degree of insanity it was still going. I didn’t find it pleasurable in any way but I certainly was amazed at the survival like stamina a person experiences towards the end of a hard physical activity. It is frequently amazing and is a great insight into your absolute physical limitations. Power walking the last few miles gave me a pace between miles 20 to 24.73 of between 16:22 to 20:14 minutes per mile.

I am pleased with my performance given that it was my first time to the area and my first time at semi-high altitude. I plan to visit the trail in the next year or two for another attempt. I would be very interested in seeing my performance after training with more altitude gains in my training runs and incorporating a really aggressive caloric intake throughout the run. I didn’t really feel pressured with water but I should have probably upped my intake over the course of the run, especially with the altitude factor.

Strava Activity

Statistics

Distance: 24.73 miles
Moving Time: 8:01:45
Elapsed Time: 8:38:09
Pace: 19.28/mi
Elevation Gain: 5,482 feet
Calories: 3,284
Humidity: 56%
Wind Speed: 7.8 mi/h
Wind Direction: SW

Food & Water

2 liters water in pack bladder
1.18 liters water in front bottles (40 ounces)
5 small packets of apple sauce
2 Kind bars
2 packets of Goldfish
Saltstick electrolyte pills

Gear

Ciele Hat
REI Sahara Shade Hoodie
Mountain Hardwear Crater Lake T-Shirt
New Balance Core Impact Running Shorts
Hoka Speedgoat Shoes
Feetures Socks
Body Glide
Black Diamond Trekking Poles²
Arc’Teryx Norvan 14 pack
Ultimate Direction 20 ounce bottles

Kings Peak (Utah). ↩︎
I didn’t actually use these the entire trip but probably should have. It is just that I don’t use them during my training runs. But it would be great to spread the effort from my legs to my upper body in steep ascent situations. ↩︎

4Runner Scuba Mod

Fri, 05 Aug 2022 10:30:00 -0600

Mechanical engineering is a subject of fascination for me. By that I mean watching loads of Youtube videos where I’m spoon food complex topics and nothing actually hard or challenging. When our family’s vacuum died when I was a young teenager, I asked if I could take it apart to see if I could get it working again. Dissecting this seemingly dead appliance was like taking a basic engineering class. I could see at various steps how mechanical energy was transferred from belts to rotating brushes and everything else that goes along with electric motors. So when I heard about the scuba mod people were doing to their 4Runner’s differential, I had to understand why it was even necessary. And not like the hours of equations my engineering roommate in college used to do. But more like a 5 minute YouTube educational video. Something much more digestible.

At the most fundamental level, I found out the purpose of a vehicle differential. It is basically a method for providing power to wheels that might be rotating at different speeds. For instance, going around a corner, the inside tire would rotate less than the outside tire. Something like Nleft > Nright for a right hand turn. I vaguely remember this being a problem with toy cars I used to play with as a child. How scarred am I to have been forced through a differential-less upbringing?!

This simple yet incredibly brilliant mechanism is housed in that giant steel blob between your rear tires. I’ve heard it affectionately called the differential pumpkin¹ housing. The encasing both protects the differential itself and also provides a container for the associated lubricant that keeps everything running smoothly. I was having a difficult time picturing the inside of a differential but luckily stumbled across this video that uses a clear cover where you can peak inside. They even show the behavior of the lubricant at 0, 15, and 30 mph. While I was watching this video I distinctly noticed that the pumpkin isn’t completely full. The top half is simply empty air. When you go fast the lubricant definitely ends up everywhere inside the pumpkin. But the whole thing isn’t necessarily filled to the brim like I thought it would be. Why? Because the air in the pumpkin is a buffer.

Differential breather vents

Heat will be generated from moving mechanical components. For example, if I were to drive for a few hours my differential would heat up. In this case, the heat is transferred from the components of the differential gears to the lubricant, which expands in total volume and pushes extra air out of the differential housing. Once I stop driving, everything will cool off and cause the lubricant to contract, which creates a low pressure state in the housing and allows for the outside higher air pressure to push back in. This transfer of air pressure is able to happen through a differential breather or axle vent. It is basically a little vent on top of your pumpkin that allows air to move and protects against minor splashes and rain water.

This back and forth pressure regulation process works as the Toyota engineer gods intended until you go and do something to mess it all up. Such as crossing a river or flooring it through that deep muddy puddle. Now we have a warm piece of steel that is plunged into icy cold mountain stream water. This will rapidly cool off your differential and create a low pressure state inside the housing. If the water is deep enough or hits just right your breath/vent point could end up fully submerged and it will only be able to draw in water instead of air. It goes without saying that this is not great for your differential.

Differential vent

This is where the scuba modification comes in. It simply moves that vent point to somewhere higher and more protected on the vehicle. There are all-in-one kits available from ARB and you can see a detailed installation log here. Yet the type of plastic the ARB kit uses isn’t ideal in climates where it frequently gets cold. The material will end up becoming brittle and break. This is especially true in the rear area where the plastic line will constantly flex to accommodate vertical travel of the axle in relation to the chassis. Why not instead use something like a fuel line rubber hose, which has a proven track record of being used on vehicles in all types of climates?

Below is a list of parts needed for moving the differential and e-locker breather points. The main guide I followed was this YouTube video in addition to a similar type installation on a 4Runner forum. I would be dubious about mounting the differential breather inside your fuel cap area because it can get incredibly dusty in there. I instead mounted my breather in the engine compartment behind the driver’s side fuse box.

Brass Barb Tee Fitting 1/4" x 1/4" x 1/8" - The 2 1/4" ends are for the differential connection and the main air intake. The smaller single 1/8" end connects to the E-Locker output.
1/4" Fuel Line at 25ft - I still have a portion of this left over after install. It will be helpful to have on hand in case I go with a higher suspension lift and have to patch in more hose. There are a lot of things you could do with a rubber hose. I used some cut down the middle to be an edge guard on my little propane tank.
Toyota 90404-51026 Intake Air Control Valve Union - Replaces the differential valve stem. Confirmed fit on 2021 4Runner TRD Off Road.
Stainless Steel Hose Clamps 3/8" - 5/8" - Used on all connections.
Mini Oil Air Intake Filter Cleaner - There are a variety of products that would work here. The only requirement is that it has to fit the 1/4" fuel line hose.
Zip Ties - Purchase from a local hardware store. I doubled these up on points of stress such as turns or spots where there was limited mounting. There is a risk of this plastic eventually breaking but hopefully it will be a while due to the lack of movement.

Installation of the mod is very straightforward. Just remember the entire goal is to move the air vent to a safer location. The first step is locating both your differential breather and e-locker breather underneath your 4Runner. The differential breather is pretty easy since it is on the top driver’s side of the pumpkin on your rear axle. The stem has a loose cap and can simply be unscrewed with the appropriately sized wrench. The e-locker breather was slightly higher and mounted on a cross beam on the chassis. I was able to remove the e-locker cap by hand since it is just a simple plastic insert.

Differential elocker vent location

With both of those removed you have to perform the most complicated part of this modification, which is determining the mount location and hose length for the brass tee. In the end, your differential breather at 1/4" will connect to the brass tee in addition to the e-locker breather at 1/8". The remaining 1/4" brass tee connection is for the line to your new breather location. While the e-locker connection and the hose to your new breather location are mostly static, the connection to your differential vent is very dynamic. Since the differential pumpkin is on the rear axle it will move up and down based on the terrain your vehicle is going over. With that in mind you need to cut your differential vent hose to an appropriate length to accommodate this vertical movement. Also be sure to revisit this hose length in case you install a higher lift, bigger tires, or an extended travel setup.

Next up is routing the rubber hose from the brass tee to the engine bay or where ever you plan on mounting the breather. I don’t have a specific map of where I ran my hose but the general goal is to avoid sources of heat, moving parts, and to stay higher in the chassis to prevent the hose from scrapes.

Differential breather location

Lastly, after you get to a point that is ideal you simply trim the hose and pop on the mini air intake filter. While I have seen some fabricate or re-use a bracket to mount this filter all I did was zip tie it to the main electrical line bracket. The hose and filter and very lightweight and will cause almost no stress on this mount point so I thought it would have been overkill for a dedicated bracket.

With your differential and e-locker breather points now elevated and protected you can rest at ease during your next river or massive puddle encounter. If you are really after it, you might consider your next modification a snorkel to really allow for serious water activities.

scw1991 on T4R.org ↩︎

Dost Thou Even Tag?

Sat, 16 Jul 2022 10:30:00 -0600

The Instagram overlanding (off-roading) community was scolded in late 2021. I’ve been thinking about it since it happened. It caused quite a hullabaloo at the time and there was a brief period of drama. The source was what some saw as a chronic style of behavior in perpetuating a cycle of advertising self-exploitation. The practices of prominent community accounts were called out directly as setting bad examples that trickled down to less known members trying to make a name for themselves. For a community usually oriented around beautiful outdoor pictures and aggressively equipped vehicles, it was an unusual flare up of drama. However, it was well a deserved gut check for the blossoming overlanding community. This brand new hobby has grown exponentially over the past few years. The ask was simple. In order to fix the problem we simply had to adhere to a simple request:

Stop tagging brands (especially overland brands) on your posts.

—ryans4runner¹

This call to action was made by an account with a relatively small amount of followers but this is a bit misleading. It is actually just a hobby account for the professional photograph Ryan Resatka. But who is this person and why should we care about what he has to say? While some members of the overlanding community start out with a small amount of followers and work to gain footing in the community he actually did the reverse. His primary Instagram account is popular² in a general sense. But even more so when compared to the scope of overlanding numbers where average popular accounts hover in the tens of thousands. It would be fair to say that Mr. Resatka is a professional Instagram user and thereafter branched out with a secondary account into the overlanding sphere. We can safely assume he understands the financial exchange aspect of creative work, dealing with commercial organizations that consume such work, and sophisticated social media management.

In order to understand Mr. Resatka’s request, it would be helpful to draw out the style of posts among several popular Instagram accounts in the overlanding community. Picture a rugged sport utility vehicle traversing a pristine landscape. The vehicle is aggressively geared and visually boasts that any terrain could be easily conquered. It could be the digital incarnation of a perfect vehicle configuration that would provide the most memorable outdoor trip of your life. Tens of thousands of dollars in extra modifications ranging from tires, suspension, lights, steel fabricated bumpers, in-vehicle cabinetry, communication antennas, multiple electronic screens filling the driver’s seat like a fighter jet, and an incredible variety of others you might not even know exist yet (but that you’ll want once you see).

Example Instagram post with tagging

Consider a person brand new to the hobby of overlanding encountering this epic post from a prominent community member with ten of thousands of followers³. When you pick up a new hobby the variety of choices are overwhelming. Which proven products are the best suited to accomplish what you want to do? Seeking guidance, new joiners frequently look to these popular social media accounts within the hobby to inspire or guide them. This in turn incentivizes companies to sponsor those popular accounts in order to gain the best advertising.

Instagram has made this coupling between content and product even easier. As you view this post, you tap it with your finger and a cloud of product tags show up. Since configurations can involve a large number of items this cloud of tags can completely block out the vehicle itself. This comically ironic to me. Each tag links to a vendor more than willing to sell you this newest greatest most capable modification that will assuredly make your car camping experience all the better. All these factors slammed into the same image creates the perfect medium for a company to allure new or returning customers. This tagging relationship between content creator and product advertisement is par for the course among all social media platforms. Anyone who has been alive in the past decade has been exposed to this situation within social media or with traditional advertising from all years prior. Companies pay the creator of advertising content and people buy the product.

Mr. Resatka’s isn’t calling for an end to this relationship. He is calling for people to come back to it. He claims the problem is that a large number of people in the Instagram overland community simply use product tagging purely for exposure and completely ignore the other half of the exchange. This other half is some sort of financial exchange, which is probably front and center to Mr. Resatka since it sustains his annual income. Everyone in the overlanding community has sold themselves short by only expecting exposure and nothing more. Companies prey on this universal desire. Why would a company pay a photographer or other creative artist when a simple call to action from their social media account could garner hundreds of fan submitted content for the bankrupting price of $0? Sure, an amount of that content could be unusable on a quality level. However, consider the up and coming ambitious photographer who sees an easy pipeline to have their content widely published. It only takes a few hundred of such individuals to fully sustain a company’s social media presence on a year round basis.

I will be fair in acknowledging that this strained relationship is not isolated to the outdoor or overlanding community. Many S&P500 companies drive community hashtag campaigns to drive up excitement for their product or service. The easiest example I can think of is in the tourism sector and specifically with airline companies. Many plaster their terminals or boarding gates with giant blown up images of exotic and often tropical locations. You can see the photographer’s Instagram username on the bottom of these. Visually ingesting the image(s) gives your brain two distinct expectations. The first is primarily about the image giving you desire to be there since it is so beautiful that leads to paying for the service or product to physically travel there. The second is a hopeful lure that hints if your image is good enough it can also be blazoned on the wall of an international airport boarding gate. Thousands of people will walk by your image with your name and you will become incredibly popular for that sunrise picture you snapped in Kauai.

This relationship is also problematic because it ignores the same historical exchange between parties that was outlined earlier. Sure, the airline company might pay out a small few hundred dollar fee to these individuals that most consider adequate. However, consider the millions of dollars spent on an advertisement campaign on a global level. That picture you took in Kauai could be used across social media campaigns, billboards, advertisement posters, websites, company blog posts, commercials, flyers, and whatever other advertising mediums I left out. The small fee you were awarded now seems rather inadequate based on how much this company has spread your image around. You might see your compensation alternatively through the lens of wide international exposure for your social media presence. From this perspective it would be wise to somehow quantify your dollar-to-new-follower ratio that you find acceptable. If you were to get an extra 500-2,000 followers from your picture making it around the world would you find that an acceptable reward?

Example Instagram post with tagging from @gun.rnr

The nascent overlanding industry depends on people finding this an acceptable reward. I have seen the behavior normalized with social media campaigns that ask all to use tag #xyz in order to be featured in their social media feed. With tens of thousands of followers this is enticing to many people. Not only does this fast track submissions directly to the company it also sidesteps the entire process of negotiating any sort of fair reward exchange between the submitter and the company. In absolute legal terms, this behavior is illegal, as the companies are relying on the social media tag #xyz in order to determine copyright licensing and redistribution. Consider a world famous artist publishing their work but include an extra #xyz tag on their post. Would that give a commercial business the copyright permission to redistribute that artist’s piece of work as they saw fit? Absolutely not, but such behavior is now considered normal by many overlanding social media campaigns.

You might think differently about the value of social media exposure when you see the reimbursement tiers companies usually pay out. A common amount to license your image for usage on a company’s social media account or website can pay $500 annually. Or, for for digital ads it would be around $5,000 per year. It gets even wilder for full universal usage rights that can run past $20,000 to $30,000⁴ annually. These amounts are just for still photographs. Videos can fetch approximately 1.6 to 2 times as much. All of this is limited to a 12 month basis. Giving your creative license away for something in perpetuity could demand a much more significant jump in reward. Based on these amounts do you know where you would switch from accepting exposure to an actual financial reward? Starting this scenario at the low end, do you believe 500 new followers will increase your personal brand value by $1 each? If we take this example further would you rather have 2,000 new followers or $5,000? The popularity long game might still be some people’s choice but I must ask the question of when they plan on beginning the monetization of their social media presence? If it is at some distance point in the future where you’ll have hundreds of thousands of followers you might not actually be able to make money at that point in time. Since in the process of getting that far you would have effectively ruined any sort of financial exchange model by offering your services for basically no reimbursement. It is simply pragmatic to expect a financial reward early in your planned social media career.

To wrap up this section we can move on to the last and largest category of people in this dynamic: those who have no intention of earning money from social media tagging or licensing their images. I find myself within this category and I can see the perspective of some who are dismissive about the need to censor their social media posts. Since we are not part of the financial exchange process it doesn’t really matter if we interrupt it by posting our casual weekend forays into the wilderness. We are here just to share fun times and talk about what we enjoy among other like minded individuals. There is only a slight adjustment we need to do in this situation to help out those who choose to be in the financial exchange process. We can stop tagging overlanding companies in our posts and instead use community tags to build our hobby up on social media. As an extra benefit, this helps us avoid getting exploited by the same companies we used to espouse.

I would also claim there is an appropriate time and place to tag companies in posts. One example might be a post that is directly covering a product the company makes. It makes sense in this situation since the context of your post is directly related to that company. But when you habitually add a company’s tag to every post for the purpose of wider exposure it becomes more problematic. Another example would be to promote a very small company with a great product into a wider audience. There are a few examples of this situation and it brings me joy that the capabilities of modern technology provide many with a platform to bring their ideas to market. The extended fuse box cover from 4runner.tx⁵ and the flush OEM-like dash mount from labopsgear⁶ come to mind as pristine examples of community funded products that filled a niche product need in the hobby.

Some of these companies start out as a guy out in their garage tinkering with whatever and genuinely need the support of others to get things rolling. This sentiment kind of expires at a certain point but I don’t really know when that threshold would be met. We aren’t privy to any financial books so it would be hard to see when that supposed community support perspective should be withdrawn. The evolution of companies like this is an inherent problem to the overlanding community. Many products are new to market over the past decade and depend on community advertisement to launch. But it seems that they remain in that behavior arc even when pushing millions of dollars of revenue.

tl;dr

Do not let companies use your content without fair compensation.
Use community hashtags that are not company driven.
Only promote very small companies.

https://www.instagram.com/ryans4runner/ ↩︎
About 580,000 as of 2022. ↩︎
This directly correlates to perceived authority, unfortunately. What type of social media account are you going to trust more, someone with ten of thousands of followers or another with 46? ↩︎
These amounts are based on public comments made by Mr. Resatka. Alternative sources on pricing information might include software application fotoQuote, however, Mr. Resatka claimed that such amounts should be doubled to reach fair pricing levels. ↩︎
labopsgear ↩︎
4runner.tx ↩︎

Iron Mine Lake

Tue, 05 Jul 2022 10:30:00 -0600

Bird’s eye view of Iron Mine Lake.

I knew it was a bad idea going into the mountains in early July. But I ignored all the wisdom my father had tried to pass onto me from his backpacking adventures as a kid with his own father. The advice was pretty simple and logical. To avoid mosquito Armageddon, wait until the first week of August before venturing into the mountains. This is because high altitude temperatures stall the Spring thaw and the subsequent drying out of the terrain. Subsequently, this delays the lifecycle of mosquitoes in the mountains by about a month or two from the lower elevation equivalent. While it might seem safe in the heat of July at a lower elevation the vampire party is at its peak in the mountains. In the context of this advice a lower elevation would be somewhere around 4,000 feet while the mountains are anywhere between 7,000 to 10,000 feet.

I had an arrogantly different conclusion. My daily runs had become enjoyable in the summer heat and the spring onslaught of bugs had tapered off. Early July along the Wasatch Front showcases the greenery of Spring before it is dried out by the marathon of Summer heat. I thought it would be great to escape the valley for a cool mountain adventure while everything was still lush and wildfires hadn’t yet clogged the air. But for whatever reason the advice from my dad didn’t resurface and caution my plans.

I joined the fleeing holiday crowds on I-15 going East towards Park City. Climbing through canyons along the way I passed countless RVs and towed camping trailers. The summer vacation energy was strong. I think the kids call it a vibe these days. I felt energized by this rather than crowded because they were all headed for designated camp sites on easy dirt roads. My competition of mid sized off road vehicles had a much lighter presence on the highway. Passing through the last city of Kamas was the pinnacle of this vibe energy. People had stopped at gas stations and were stocking up on snacks. The parking lots of the local grocery store and summer burger joints were packed and everyone had a cheerful optimism for the upcoming vacation.

Camping at Iron Mine Lake.

Proceeding into the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest on Highway 150 I felt a bit daunted by the steep canyon walls on both sides. I had never ventured up into them and they seemed incredibly high to a point where I couldn’t see the tops from the windows of my 4Runner. The road to my destination went along the edge of the south canyon wall starting at Forest Road 037 with a quick transition to 414 all the way around Iron Mine Mountain. I noticed some strange noises and movement along the bumpy road. My tent mounted on my roof rack had become loose and was swaying left and right with every bit of rough terrain. One piece of advice from my father I had remembered was to always have a few tools on hand when going on any length of trip. Whipping out my appropriate tighteners I got the tent re-centered and tightened back down after some choice words. The fusion of a tubular basket style roof rack did not exactly work well enough with the tent that relied on t-channels slots. If I was ever going to find happiness in the future either the tent or the roof rack would have to be swapped out to avoid constantly loose mounting brackets.

Turning the corner to reveal Iron Mine Lake in all its green lush early summer glory was worth the drive itself. The weather was beautiful that day with a few puffy clouds. I couldn’t feel more lucky when I arrived with no one else around and my pick of campsites around the lake. Arriving at the North end of the lake I felt like the area was a bit low and marshy and decided to drive around to the South side. Luckily, the South end proved a bit higher and dryer with a great spot right next to the water with some grass. I realized this spot also had a better transit advantage, being at the end of the lake road, which proved helpful in avoiding explorers in UTVs blazing by my camp.

Iron Mine Lake camp spot.

I was lulled into a false sense of safety with the heat of the early afternoon and a slight breeze suppressing most mosquitoes. I took the opportunity to take a short hike around the lake and surrounding area. It seemed that some of the Southern roads ended in restricted logging areas that hadn’t been used in some time. I found that rather amusing because in every location I’ve been at within the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest there has been some sort of active or inactive logging operation. I don’t assign any sort of morality to that but rather just see it as funny. There is certainly a degree of resource management being performed by the Forest Service and I would be interested in talking with a ranger at some point in the future about it.

I got really excited around dinner time since it was my first time with a fridge in the wilderness. Ice cold beverages, fruits, and even a compartment for frozen items. I’m totally a sucker for ice cream sandwiches and now consider them a staple on all summer camping trips. I admit this luxury is a bit much for some but I find a certain degree of comfort very reassuring and relaxing when out in the boonies.

4Runner fridge and cabinet setup.

After dinner was finished for both myself and my dear puppy things began to both get bad and also good. The breeze seemed to die down as the sun was setting and the midday heat started to fade. Both of these factors slowly revealed the true amount of mosquitoes hiding in the area. Donning a jacket to protect my arms and neck I realized I had forgotten any sort of bug spray. Like absolutely nothing. It was just me, any sort of protecting clothing, and my tent to protect me from the rising horde. My dog, who at first, loved running around chomping on the various flying insects. But as time progressed it became so bad he kind of just looked up at me and seemed to ask, why? Yet, as all this was rapidly progressing into insanity the terrain became painfully beautiful with the setting sun.

There is the famous introduction in the Charles Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities where he states it was the best of times and the worst of times. I felt this was a great description of my experience during the sunset at Iron Mine Lake. On one hand you have this beautiful alpine lake surrounded by lush green grass and trees with rolling hills that are each crested by the amber sunset. Yet access to this beauty comes with a dreadful price of vampiric flying death mosquitoes in legions upon legions. For me, the beauty was too great and I willingly paid the price until it became too much.

Without any bug spray I thought the next best thing would be campfire smoke so I quickly made a small fire. I stood directly in the smoke in the hopes of warding off the mosquitoes while I flew my drone around to take pictures. This act of lung self-sabotage was partially successful but eventually it became less effective as the count of mosquitoes became colossal. Pacing about the camp I refused to give up in the face of the beauty of Iron Mine Lake. Tying my hood as close as possible I whipped out my camera to get a few images of the lake with the setting sun. I wouldn’t have thought something as simple as leveling my camera would take so long due to the amount of mosquitoes. Since I had no gloves I could barely use my hands for more than a few seconds before a dozen mosquitoes would hungrily land.

This could have been a great view.

I reached my breaking point after about a half hour of trying to take images with my camera. I could barely perform normal tasks outside the confines of my 4Runner or tent. I couldn’t imagine what an adventure it would be to use the restroom in such a dangerous environment. Heaven forbid if you were to take more than 20 seconds to finish with a huge amount of soft vulnerable flesh exposed to the ever present vampiric cloud. I most of all felt bad for my dog without the ability to swat away mosquitoes from the few exposed spots on his body.

With defeat in my mind I packed up camp to hopefully find higher ground with less mosquitoes to somehow salvage the trip. At site after site I stopped to grab an image of the sunset landscape but was faced with clouds of mosquitoes. I was hunted even on the high canyon edge where I thought a breeze would help settle things down. I could have just set up anywhere and we could have tucked away for the night in the tent but I felt absolutely defeated in my preparation and planning. Home was only an hour and a bit away so I headed back while trying to review what I could have done better.

In retrospect the best source of protection would have been some sort of bug shelter. It was a pain to climb up and down to the tent for periods of respite. I think a bug net attachment for my awning would have been invaluable. With it, I could have cooked, eaten, and relaxed inside with or without the need for bug spray. I could have even popped the drone outside and piloted from safety. Another solution it would have provided was a location to use the restroom without being attacked. Additionally, while I am skeptical on the effectiveness of bug spray with such high numbers of mosquitoes I am sure it would have helped in some degree. I hope to take all of these lessons and combine them with some patriarchal advice for more successful trips in the future.

Halfway at 1,000 Miles

Sun, 19 Jun 2022 10:30:00 -0600

New running shoes are always a beauty to look at before they get sloshed across the roads of the world.

For some reason in late December of 2021 I decided to give into the pressure of social media. This wasn’t Facebook or Instagram but rather on Strava, the bicycling and running tracking application. The virtues of this platform are lightyears ahead of what one might call normal social media. But there can still be a dark side, even with physical exercise. Some can use it as a platform of globalized hyper-competition or social comparison and consequently push themselves into physical overtraining injuries or in the case of William Flint pursuing a segment record in 2010, death¹. On the Strava platform a segment is a virtual course that is competed over by users of the application for speed and number of efforts. If you aren’t the fastest in your area you could always try for the next best title of Local Legend for the raw number of attempts at a course. You can imagine this sort of virtual competition could amplify up rapidly in some cities.

While I consider myself physically fit I came to the realization long ago that there would always be someone faster or tougher than me. This is pretty apparent when I look at some local Strava segments and the associated fastest times. As I am only a few miles away from a nearby high school these segments are disproportionately quick and leave most individuals over 25 or 30 with little hope of retaking the segment as the fastest. Instead, I was brought into the lure of annual running mileage.

Snowy Day on the Trail.

Once the end of the year rolls around, many Strava users share their yearly mileage. Consider it similar to a year end summary like Spotify does with listening habits. Its a fun way to brag to your peers and show some unique quirks about your individual habits. Some runners might showcase their altitude gains while on Spotify you could share that you listened to Never Gonna Give You Up over 100 times in the course of the previous 11 months. These posts on Strava gave me the hope that with an annual mileage goal I could sustain a running habit at a desired level without the need for a trail or road race at the end. I definitely needed the structure going forward with my mileage in the off-season showing up as a rollercoaster. Some weeks the motivation would hit and I’d ramp up to 30 or 45 miles over 7 days. The following week I’d be tired, the motivation would fade, or I just didn’t care enough because there was no end race goal in the training pipeline. Such thinking is especially easy to fall into when the temperature outside has been below freezing for the past few weeks or when it is pitch black at the only time you can fit a run into your schedule.

Armed with the general concept of an annual goal the only thing left was determining just exactly how much I should commit for the year. I have a habit of underestimating many things in my life so I thought it would be prudent to do an amount no more than a third more than what I had been doing the previous few years. Which was approximately 1,350 to 1,675 miles annually from about 2018 to 2021. We then end up at a figure of 2,000 miles for the year. I almost fell victim to further pressure from social media to increase that amount as most others were going for 2,500 or 3,000. Instead I held fast at my modest but ambitious goal. The objective was to improve my personal running consistency and not to compete against individuals most certainly in a different point in their running goals.

The same trail system as above but in the summer.

The beginning was pretty easy. There is a lot of energy in January from the New Year and the new habits of most around you. I tried to ride this wave as long as possible until the inevitable doldrums of February. Some weeks I barely hit the weekly minimum. But most people wouldn’t blame you for minimizing your exposure to sub-zero temperatures and freezing rain storms. I told myself that once summer rolled in it would be a much different story for weekly mileage. Being outside in June or July is a blessing while the same is a curse in January or February. March and April aren’t much better and can be risky in some cases. The weather can be quite pleasant in the early or mid-spring but a rogue thunderstorm can sharply lower the temperature and introduce dangerous conditions, especially in not carrying the required equipment. On one run in the early spring this year the weather was sunny and in the 60s. Off I went on a 10 mile run in shorts and a short sleeved shirt. However, about halfway through the run a thunderstorm snuck out from the other side of the mountains and lowered the temperature about 20-25 degrees with some extensive precipitation. By the time I made it back to my house I wasn’t able to perform basic tasks with my hands because they were so cold. In order to muster the motor skills to put the key in my door lock and turn it required several minutes of rubbing my arms and hands in an attempt to get them warmed up.

Up above Brighton Ski Resort.

Towards the end of Spring I encountered the only sizable road block in my training with patellofemoral pain (Runner’s Knee). Normally my approach to training is pretty cautious and I always back off in mileage with any recurring pain. But with the weekly mileage goal it kept my efforts and a consistent high in a manner my body had never experienced. Additionally, in an effort to sort of cheat my way to high weekly mileage I was doing almost entirely road running. I say this is cheating since it most often involves almost no altitude gain or decline and requires little in the way of cognizant awareness when pumping out long runs. This method specifically backfired on me due to the repetitive nature of road running where as before I was frequently exposed to the variations of trail running. I say this as a description of your foot placement and terrain encountered over the course of a particular run. The amount of work your legs, hips, and feet do over the course of running an uneven and rocky trail is exponentially more than a flat, paved, and straight pathway. The lack of movement on road running can leave certain muscles, ligaments, and stabilizers neglected. Consequentially this can lead to unevenness in your legs and hips. After introducing trail running once a week back into my schedule and perform some targeted hip stabilizer routines² I was able to reduce the pain entirely within about a month.

Once summer hit I had established my routine and mostly addressed any injuries. So I started experimenting with sizable weekly mileage increases up to 50 and in some cases 60 per week. I was pretty hesitant to approach 60 since the year prior I had gotten some random burst of motivation and peaked out of nowhere at 61 miles during late summer. However, this resulted in what I assume were stress fractures that spiraled the rest of the summer to less than 20 miles per week due to the pain. But this year was a bit different with my incredibly strong base mileage of about 40 per week. I decided to creep up using the 10% rule and regressing downward every third week for recovery. This method has proven invaluable for me and I can happily report that the 60 mile week was difficult but without lasting injury.

On the Frogtown Trail in Los Angeles, California.

At the halfway point in my 2,000 mile goal I consider myself in a strong position to finish it out. This new style of running has transformed the act of running from an erratic aberration of activity to a consistent presence in my everyday life. I have begun to see the perspective of some runners who I had thought were previously a bit crazy for their random solo marathons in the mountains. Such acts are now within my physical capabilities and introduce new possibilities into outdoor adventure. I am planning on running the trail to the tallest peak in Utah, Kings Peak, in late August. The trail is between 24 to 27 miles and the average hiker covers it in a day or two of walking. While running certainly compacts the beautiful experience of traversing through nature I would consider it just a few more miles per hour away from the most basic method of hiking. I hope to carry this style of adventure forward, which could provide pristine access to a variety of outdoor locations.

Trin-Alcove Bend

Sun, 22 May 2022 10:30:00 -0600

Feeling tiny in grandness of the geography.

On the cusp of summer my excitement to get out into the world had gotten as high as it could have. Leaving my house no longer required a coordination of equipment to stay warm. No excessive amounts of coats, jackets, sleeping bags, thick socks, and everything that would protect you from an unforgiving cold environment. Instead, the dawning possibility of the environment not stealing all your precious body heat was quickly becoming a reality. Yet the roads going into the mountains were closed for another week¹ and undoubtedly snow ridden and damp. Instead, I heeded the call the desert. Perusing around on Google Maps and Gaia GPS, I settled on seeing the Trin-Alcove Bend on the Green River.

It wasn’t my first choice. Since the weather called for a high in the lower 70s F I tried to find a few spots along the Green River that would let me sit on a sandy beach and read while my dogs played in the river. While these unicorn-like locations do exist they were unfortunately behind private land. I wasn’t able to figure this out until I was at the spots physically. Things look different on the aerial view of Google Maps and the satellite shots are frequently out of date.

Adventure puppies.

The path to this area starts in the city of Green River, Utah. With the area to the south being remote I made sure to top off my vehicle’s gas before heading south on the Airport Road. This quickly turns into the Lower San Rafael Road, which is also called County Road 1010. Parts of the road meander southward near the Green River while others are a ways away leaving you to enjoy the extreme desolation of the desert.

There are a few natural attractions along the way, including Crystal Geyser and Fossil Point. While Crystal Geyser is across the river it is still a neat place to stop and explore. There are a few mining operations in the area and you can several farm-like compounds dotted along the shore of the river. The taller hill directly across from Crystal Geyser has favorable 5G T-Mobile service spots. Down the hill to the south is a lowland expanse filled with scrubby grasses and bushes. While not particular soft or comfortable, it would be a good spot if the weather was extremely windy.

Trin-Alcove and the Grean River.

The rest of my time was spent exploring side roads and trying to find little nooks to camp in. I always try to do this for future me. As I said before, things are misleading on an aerial maps perspective and sometime that secluded spot gets missed. Adding a way point to keep it in your camping spot bank is a great way to pay yourself forward. Another possibility I was looking at was a road that went all the way from the main 1010 to the Green River. This proved unsuccessful due to the fact that the road conditions were incredibly primitive at best. I was pressed for time and couldn’t give them their respective allotment of vetting.

Arriving at the Trin-Alcove Bend was underwhelming at first. The huge curve of the river is evident when you arrive but doesn’t show its full grandness until you take a short hike down the hill to get a better perspective. After relocating my eyeballs to the appropriate spot, was I flooded with feelings I had experienced at places like the Grand Canyon or Horseshoe Bend in Page, Arizona. It made me feel small, insignificant. A speck in the time line wherein this emerald green river had been tirelessly working away.

Trin-Alcove canyons.

At places like these I experience a rapid succession of nihilism and existentialism. But I find it incredibly rewarding to my personal perspective. The goal posts of my life are placed back where they should be. Value forgotten is renewed and time regains is preciousness.

Personal philosophy aside, the camping footprint above the bend is decidedly tight. There is an overly large parking area at the farthest end of the road. A smaller spot is available before it. This would be good if there was another group setup in either spot, leaving options available to enjoy the bend.

Camp setup at the Trin-Alcove area.

Being high on a cliff with little rock formations around you is a distinct comfort problem at this location. The wind was mild during my stay here but was excessive in a roof top tent. It might have been the direction of wind in relation to my tent but my tent walls flapped without end all night. I can’t imagine the experience if there was real wind in play.

The Forest Service and other similar organizations usually open these roads after Memorial Day, depending on weather conditions. ↩︎

Installing the C4 Fabrication Overland Bumper on a 2021 4Runner

Sun, 24 Apr 2022 10:30:00 -0600

The bumper’s inaugural trip to the High Uintas Wilderness.

As a fair warning to readers, this guide is not meant as a step by step instruction replacement from C4 Fabrication themselves¹ or professional Toyota mechanics². I sincerely recommend consulting the product’s installation guide as a source of definitive information and a variety of community reviews to get a more encompassing image of a potential future project. Please consider this article as more of a personal review and collection of tips for the installation of this product.

Motivation to Install

I used to live in Page, Arizona, which is a far jaunt from any sort of major metropolitan area. Combine that with my wife’s professional obligations and our own family visits it made for hundred of hours of driving. Being so far from civilization increased our risk of hitting wildlife on quiet country roads. The most common were deer. I can’t count the number of times we nearly hit deer while driving in the late evening. It was incredibly stressful to drive portions of U.S. Highway 89 in Southern Utah. Combining the fatigue of the tail end of a six hour drive with the very common risk of a semi-large animal crossing in front of your vehicle made for an exhausting experience. You always had to have your car’s high beams on while you squinted at either side of the road for signs of movement. At the time we drove a VW station wagon, which was a solid German vehicle but left you feeling a but vulnerable since you were low on the road to say a semi-truck or larger SUV.

The danger to human and animal life became so wide spread that the state of Utah built a wildlife highway barrier between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona in late 2013³. The Utah Department of Transportation estimated that prior to the barrier being erected there were 100 to 105 collisions per year between vehicles and deer. This is a rather low statistic when you consider that over the 5 years following the building of the structure the study associated with the initiative tracked 78,610 mule deer migrating through various access points⁴. This made the migration project the most successful in the United States. The next comparable migration project was in Nugget Canyon, Wyoming at only approximately 49,000 mule deer.

I would agree that my exposure on Highway 89 was a bit skewed it nonetheless fortified my perception of needing some sort of protection. It wasn’t exactly the first brick in the basis of my feeling. When I was younger my step dad totaled his truck on a highway near Flagstaff, Arizona after hitting an elk. I wasn’t even around when it happened but the images of the aftermath of his truck certainly stayed with me. But after relocating to Salt Lake City, Utah most of these thoughts would lie dormant. Deer became things I only saw on trail runs in the early morning. That was until I purchased my 4Runner and realized I would be returning to many of these country roads and the risk of wildlife collisions along with it.

I decided to purchase the C4 Fabrication Overland bumper with full headlight loops to primarily decrease the risk of major damage to my vehicle during a wildlife collision. Many might decry the substantial risk of a vehicle with a high center of gravity and the pronounced rigidity of a steel front bumper during a collision creating more risk. But I understand a portion of this vehicle modification is purely psychological. At the very least I can say that with the bumper’s presence I drive much more deliberately and smoothly as I can feel the weight whenever driving. The secondary reason for getting this bumper is the better approach angles and capacity for future larger tires. My current tire size at 275/70R17 might not seem very large compared to most builds but I am planning an upgrade sometime in 2023 that would suit this aggressive bumper a bit better. The final reason I chose this bumper was purely for vanity. I really enjoy the aggressive look, especially with the associated C4 front skid plate that continues the sharply angled line towards the bottom of the vehicle’s profile. The tires are also exposed from the front on either side that really shows the knobby tread of off road tires.

Preparation

Parts and Tools

C4 Fabrication 4Runner Overland Series Front Bumper - My options included a 30" light bar cutout, full height bull bar with headlight hoops, and a washer tank skid plate.
WARN 103253 VR EVO 10-S Winch - The general guideline in sizing a winch would be 1.5 times your vehicle weight. If you wanted more peace of mind it would be very easy to upgrade to the 12-S. I stayed at 10,000 pounds to save some money and also make winch a tad faster since the gearing ratio is different and slower on the 12-S.
Power Steering Fluid - There are a lot of options available here but to save myself a headache or potential major issue I simply went into my nearby Toyota Dealership and told them what I was doing and they gave me the correct product. They even verified a single bottle was enough to refill my power steering fluid reservoir. Shady Amazon resellers can’t touch that level of confidence.
Baja Designs S8 Series LED Light Bar - 30" length with amber lenses and the driving/combo pattern.
Baja Designs Squadron Sport LED Lights - I went with amber lenses and the wide cornering pattern.
Fog Light Connectors - These H11 H8 connectors allowed me to utilize my OEM 4Runner fog light connector plugs rather than cutting any stock wires.
16 and 14 Gauge Wire - There are many cheaper alternatives but these wires are 99.99% copper rather than copper clad aluminum. This will help conductivity but it is required to have complete weather sealing to avoid oxidization. I have seen some solar wires that are aluminum clad copper to avoid weathering but it probably isn’t needed if you have healthy sealing.
Crimping Tool for Heat Shrink Connectors - In retrospect, I would have actually gotten the crimper in the 8 or 11 piece package because the die is swappable with other crimper dies. This becomes really important if you have plans to add Baja Design lights since they use Weather Pack Connectors.
Heat Gun - Critical to achieving water tight sealing on your cabling connections. This thing eats batteries like no one’s business. Maybe consider a corded version.
Heat Shrink Tubing Kit - Make sure all the components you are buying is Marine Grade. You vehicle is exposed to a great deal of environmental variation and all this stuff needs to hold up. This Wirefy brand seems to be universally respected, even within the DIY Solar community.
Heat Shrink Wire Connector Kit - I got the large 540 piece kit since I will be using it for my own future modifications and other electronics I setup around the house.
Wire Strippers - Having decent wire strippers is critical for your sanity since this project requires a ton of wire stripping. If you plan on doing a lot more of your own electrical work in the future it would be helpful to upgrade to a more elegant stripper 😏 like the Klein 11063W.
Dymo Label Maker - Labelling your cables makes it look both professional and also keeps everything organized. When you are working on something in months or years in the future you will know exactly what goes where.
Heat Shrink Tube Labels - Many of the off-brand suppliers are good quality and are considerably cheaper than Dymo specific. Most of my labels were either 1/2" or 3/4".

New Bumper Preparation

Since C4 Fabrication does not powder coat any of their products I actually shipped the bumper directly to a local company rather than to my house. This saves the hassle of a double trip to and from your house to the powder coating company. After I got the bumper back I inspected the entire surface area for any missed sections. There were a few spots that I could tell were used to hang the bumper during powder coating application and subsequently were not properly covered. It was an easy fix to do a couple coats of spray paint on those spots to discourage any rust from starting. There are lot of nooks and crannies on this bumper that aren’t easily reachable once installed so this step is key before installing.

Installing lights and winch on new bumper.

I set up my bumper on a rubber pad in my garage with a floor jack holding up the front to somewhat mimic the orientation of being installed. Having the bumper semi-upright helped a lot when aiming the thirty inch light bar and fog lights. While the bumper wasn’t perfectly level I simply went off the winch bottom mounting plate to get a sense of what a true ninety degree angle would look like after installation. Getting the lights on the bumper was very straightforward and the only time consuming portion was simply getting the light angle as correct as I thought possible. There are some slots built into the bumper that allow for interior access even after installation but the angles for applying tools to bolts are not very forgiving. So it is best to get things right before rather than depending on afterward.

For the positioning of the winch I regret not positioning it closer to the vehicle. I was worried about clearing the radiator and air conditioning lines so I placed it as far forward as possible. I think this contributes slightly to some vibrations I am seeing with the bumper on extremely rough roads due to the fact that the heavy weight of the bumper is not directly in line with main bolt location. In other words, the center of gravity of the winch overhangs out to the front a bit when if it was closer to the vehicle it would be more in line with the support of the OEM bumper bolts. Regardless, I plan on adjusting this in the future when I have my front skid plate off. The two front bolts of the winch are exposed with slots in the bumper but the rear can only be accessed by angling in a tool near the skid plate area. So depending on your skid plate setup you might have easier or harder access to those rear winch bolts once the bumper is on your vehicle.

Marking the Cutting Line

Before removing anything from the 4Runner I measured and marked on the bumper for where it would be required to later cut. Describing the locations and points of measurements with words would be rather difficult so I would strongly encourage watching C4’s video or Timmy the Toolman’s. Keep in mind that the general goal of this step is simply to have a horizontal flat cut through your plastic bumper with about a half inch gap between the plastic bumper and the new steel bumper.

Measuring before cutting.

TSS Sensor Relocation

One thing to note is that my 4Runner had a slightly different center mesh setup that most I saw. There was actually a mounting location for my vehicle’s TSS sensor right in the center of the plastic mesh, which had to be cut through in order to achieve the same horizontal line across. Luckily, the TSS sensor itself can be unplugged and put to the side in order to avoid the risk of cutting through it. I thought this prudent considering a Toyota Technician at the dealership told me it was a pretty expensive part to replace.

There was no new location to mount the TSS sensor so I simply zip-tied it back to the plastic bumper at reasonable angle. I chose a position above the bulk of the steel in the new bumper but lower than the headlight loops. The goal was to have the sensor have some sort of unobstructed view in front of the vehicle. I have had a lot of problems with the sensor erroring out while driving in this rudimentary location and thought I would be forever plagued with these notifications in the driver’s LED screen.

4Runner TSS OEM mount.

However, during the summer of 2022, C4 Fabrication began offering a TSS relocation bracket⁵ that I intend on purchasing in the near future. I can’t vouch for how successful the bracket would make TSS perform but I do know that TSS can be re-calibrated if you take it into a Toyota Dealership. While I never expect to regain a factory performance of TSS I certainly hope one day I can have it perform at least reasonably well enough to stop constantly erroring and disabling itself.

Disassembling the Stock Bumper

Once I had my lines marked on the plastic portion of the bumper I began removing most of the front bumper. Most components were surprising easily to remove and I followed the instructions outlined by C4 Fabrication. The hardest part were the bracket tabs connecting the plastic bumper to the wheel wells. These screw tabs have been forever my enemy over the course of several other modifications. I find myself looking up videos about their removal⁶ every time I encounter them, which helps quite a bit in avoiding breaking them or becoming irrationally angry.

Power Steering

Out of all the steps of installing this new C4 Fabrication Overland bumper the power steering portion is what intimidated me the most. I can easily bolt brackets here and there or custom wire things with specialized deutsch connectors but messing with the factory power steering lines took me out of my comfort zone. The premise of installing this third party power steering cooling reservoir is to achieve a greater clearance for the new bumper to sit tighter to your vehicle. Without it I would be faced with an aluminum line directly in line with where the winch sits on the new steel bumper. In an effort to avoid performing this step I looked around at other people’s installations where they didn’t add the new power steering reservoir. I only found a few examples but the amount of bending required in the stock power steering lines gave me some hesitancy. Would I rather have a third party power steering cooling reservoir with proven performance or push my OEM power steering aluminum lines to their limit? Ultimately, I decided to leave my comfort zone and install the new reservoir.

4Runner without front bumper.

After removing the bulk of the stock bumper you can see the power steering line going across in front of the radiator and the subsequent need to have it relocated. I’m not sure why the Toyota 4Runner has so much open space in the front area but the designing engineers certainly embraced all the open area to seemingly run the power steering cooling line as far out from the radiator as possible. Perhaps there are certain lengths required for the air dams to perform effectively that made the stock bumper have so much room in the front but I really don’t know.

Removing the stock power steering cooling line involves jettisoning all the metal portions while keeping the rubber parts that are located more within the interior of the engine bay. These lines are of course filled with power steering fluid so draining them is a requirement. The way to perform this drainage in the most controlled manner is to locate the L sections of the metal lines on either side of bumper. Approaching one side first you simply undo the metal line at that junction and thereafter use a flathead screwdriver inserted into the line to leverage bending it so that it points downward. The bulk of the fluid should drain with this method and it should be repeated on both sides. Keep in mind that to eek out the last little bits of fluid you can turn the vehicle’s steering wheel back and forth to work liquid through the line. The car should not be turned on during this step to avoid damaging the power steering fluid pump.

Removing power steering Lines and fluid.

After the metal lines are remove and the fluid is drained you can begin the installation of the new power steeling cooling reservoir. I located the reservoir to the lower left of the radiator if you were facing the vehicle. The location was fine with the provided power steering rubber hose replacements. The two foot hose went out from the top of the reservoir up to the left to meet directly with the main vehicle reservoir. The other hose was slightly longer at forty-eight inches and came out of the bottom of the reservoir bending over the top and going across the radiator to the right to meet up with the old location of the power steering line location to reform the closed loop. Getting the hoses onto the reservoir apparatus is greatly helped by adding a little power steering fluid coating to lubricate the hose coupling. Additionally, I took cut up sections of the old hose to create small protective rubber sleeves for the new hose at points where abrasion would become a problem.

During the preparation stage for this project I looked up various types of power steering fluids that were compatible with the 4Runner. There were quite a variety of results and available products that were kind of overwhelming. To avoid any mishap by introducing a non-compatible fluid I simply visited my local Toyota Dealership. They were able to lookup the exact fluid I needed and also the exact number of ounces required to completely refill the new cooling loop.

New power steering radiator.

Adding power steering fluid back into the vehicle is easy but requires a bit of massaging. While the 4Runner was still off I poured in enough to hit the fill line in the main engine bay power steering reservoir. After I hit that line I turned the steering wheel back and forth to work liquid into the cooling line. This might make the reservoir gurgle a bit and splash a bit of power steering fluid our if the cap isn’t full covering the top opening. Repeating this process a few times until I hit the fill line I finally turned the vehicle on and repeated the same process with the help of the power steering fluid pump helping out. A final tip would be to check the power steering level after driving around the block for a bit and also after your next longer drive over fifty or one-hundred miles.

Before moving on from this step I made sure to gently bend the air conditioning line that sits in front of the radiator. I wanted as much room for the internal components and the steel bumper itself to sit flush with the vehicle. This provides the greatest approach angle from the bumper and also gives greater room for access components of the winch if any future maintenance is needed. The aluminum line is firm but not immovable. I was strong but careful in pushing it back into the vehicle in order to avoid any crimps or excessive bending that would lead to a small leak.

Cutting

Up until this point I had been only modifying the internals of my 4Runner and it was finally time to bring the front bumper under the knife. This part had me slightly stressed but for some reason the power steering relocation was the larger mountain for me to climb. Cutting in a straight line was seemingly not too difficult but proved to be rather tricky. I ended up going with the recommendation from the C4 Fabrication installation video by using the angle grinder to cut through the plastic bumper. I do own a Dremel tool and also a reciprocating saw, which is what Timmy the Toolman used in their installation. Based on the size and approach angle of the Dremel tool it did not feel like I could get a flat angle while cutting across. The cutting disk simply did not extend far enough. On the other side of the spectrum I felt that the reciprocating saw had too much lateral movement while cutting and wouldn’t give enough control to get a clean line.

Ultimately going with the angle grinder proved effective but there were a few caveats during cutting that I wanted to note. Due to the round shape of the grinder blade it became hard to approach the indents of the plastic bumper. In some cases I had to approach from the front and back in multiple phases in order to get the cut fully into the bumper. Another issue I experienced was that if I went too slow during the cut the angle grinder blade would heat up considerably and melt parts of the plastic bumper. This would cause some plastic to collect into clumps along the edge of the reveal. Breaking them off was simple and easy but in some cases it would chip the paint in small bits. I probably wouldn’t have had this heating problem with a reciprocating saw but I certainly got more control by cutting with the angle grinder. To clean up the edge after cutting simply involves using a file along the rough parts to bring everything absolutely even and smooth.

Plastic bumper after trimming.

After completing the cut of the bumper you might consider adding some sort of edge trim⁷ to the bottom of the plastic bumper. The sort with a heat activated adhesive would work best to stay in place. This could help discourage any paint chipping or wear on the plastic edging now that it has been damaged by aftermarket cutting. I actually did not add any edge trimming but I plan to in the near future to specifically avoid any further paint chipping at the plastic bumper edges.

Mounting the Bumper

Getting the bumper up onto my 4Runner definitely required a second pair of hands. In addition, I used a hydraulic jack in the center to help support the bulk of the weight to avoid physical strain. With the jack in the center both myself and the person helping me only really had to focus on balancing the steel bumper while we adjusted angle and height to get it on the vehicle. One tip I found invaluable from C4 was to thread the top bolt of the bumper mounting point in backwards. Having these bolts sticking out towards the front gives a perfect spot to hang the bumper up on while you add in the other bolts in the correct direction.

Once all the main and supporting bolts are in place you want to make sure the new steel bumper is balanced across both sides of the vehicle and the gap between itself and the plastic bumper is equal at all parts. The guideline from C4 was to have about a half inch gap between the two in order to allow for flexing while off-roading and other unique vehicle situations. A half inch might look a bit too much when you are near the vehicle but if you step back a bit it all blends in together and is less obvious. I went for a gap slightly smaller than a half inch and I can already see some rubbing on either side of the steel bumper from coming into contact with the plastic bumper trim above.

Trimming the mudflaps.

I started trimming the mudflap area prior to mounting the new steel bumper but only finished afterwards. This was due to seeing the profile of the bumper in comparison to the level of trimming I had been doing on the mudflap area. I also added a few zip ties in key spots to keep the plastic from flopping around. This isn’t specifically needed since the plastic is so rigid but does help increase the coverage of the mudflaps now that my tires were fully exposed. I am sure things will get incredibly muddy in that area of the vehicle so keeping some level of mudflap coverage is helpful, especially when preventing the elements from getting into your engine bay or near semi-critical components.

Wiring

To have a trim wiring setup with the new fog lights to the OEM connectors I bought some pre-wired H11 connectors⁸. On the other end of those I added the Delphi Weatherpack connectors in order to connect to the Baja Squadron Sport plugs. The result was a small footprint connector that didn’t involve cutting the OEM fog log connections. Any slack in the wiring was simply zip-tied up a bit to get away from direct mud exposure.

Black Dragon Canyon

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 10:30:00 -0600

Entering the early part of the canyon

Some fair weather in early February convinced me to finally give some new camping equipment a test run. All of it had been lying around since the previous Black Friday. The 0 F rated sleeping bag kept encouraging me to brave the winter weather. You’ll be warm in my fluffy embrace it kept saying to me. So I finally did it. But not to the true test of winter in norther Utah like a true survivalist. Instead, I wandered around on Google Maps around central Utah where the weather was a bit more forgiving. The images of Black Dragon Canyon impressed me most and the steep walls convinced me it was my destination for that weekend.

As you will see from the images, the location get its name from the impressive walls that widely curve their way through seemingly solid sandstone. The walls become even more reptilian when you see the long sinewy black stains draping down the sides of the canyon. Located in the southern part of the San Rafael Swell, Black Dragon Canyon is an impressive site that is just minutes off I-70. Since there is no real exit for the canyon you will have to watch for the sign and gate. It is on the right hand sign of the westbound side of the highway. There is a tunnel underneath but I can’t be certain if it would give access from exiting on the eastbound side. If you come up to the gate and it looks closed it might actually just have the chain wrapped around the post to keep cattle from the highway. Just make sure to close it back up after going through. From there it is just a few minutes up a dirt road to get into the deepest parts of the canyon.

Where the I-70 highway splits through the San Rafael Reef.

The part of the canyon where the walls start to resemble a giant black dragon.

Most of the trail was tolerable but in several sections I had to drop down sandstone steps and it would hit my 4Runner’s bumper frame.

Depending on your level of adventure you can also approach the canyon from the west for a semi-challenging off-road day trip. This starts from the west by exiting to Lawrence Road, which transitions to Buckhorn Draw Road, Jerry’s Flat Loop, and finally to Black Dragon Road. Much of the first third is rather boring dirt roads but the last part of the road gets quite challenging. There are a few spots some extra care for tire placement and approach, even with my slightly lifted 4Runner. This would be a walk in the park for a vehicle with rock sliders and a lift over 2-3 inches. Much of the challenge of this last part was due to natural elements of the terrain. There were parts directly on sandstone that had warn away in a step-like fashion that created sizable drop offs as you went down the trail. Other tough spots were in the dry riverbeds you crisscross. Rainstorms and flooding in the desert can shuffle the sand and rocks into a very challenging situation.

If you plan on making a longer trip out of visiting Black Dragon Canyon be aware that camping is prohibited in some sections of the canyon. There are signs designating when this rule takes effect and my trail application (GaiaGPS) had some map notes about the restriction. I didn’t even make it that far since I got a late start from my house and ended up sleeping about halfway to the canyon.

The weather wasn’t that bad for January as I set out for my trip. I knew the temperature dropped significantly at night but the warmth of the daytime was another element of subconsciously misleading myself. As I left the highway and onto the dirt road I actually opened my windows to cool off. A bit of this was due the exhilaration of tackling some parts of the trail in completely darkness. I didn’t have any fancy overlanding lights and so took it slow along cliffs and around bends. Such care builds up a metabolic exchange so I was pretty relieved to get out of the car at the site I had picked to camp. However, after leaving the warmth of a running vehicle combined a with progressively more vicious wind I quickly became cold. But I had prepared for this! Whipping out my fancy new fluffy 0 F sleeping bag at first was the greatest feeling. The impending cold of the night must have been scared. I was going to sleep like the king of warm fluffiness despite some harrowing desert canyon winds outside. More realistically, the cold night simply kept at its uncaring and relentless job. And it certainly did.

Bird’s Eye View at Black Dragon Canyon.

Over the course of the night I woke up about every hour as I got increasingly cold. I started my night with a simple outfit of sweat pants and a shirt. There are some orthodox people out there that swear you shouldn’t complicate your sleeping situation with extra layers and that even sometimes they work counterintuitively to staying warm. This rapidly became fake news as I donned more and more layers to reach a warmer temperature equilibrium. Over the course of several hours I eventually ended up with some thick wool socks, sweatpants, fleece jacket, and a beanie. The wardrobe allowed me to get warm enough to sleep for a solid two hours. I got through the rest of the night until the coldest part at around 5AM, which got into the low teens, Fahrenheit. While I could feel the lines of stitching in the sleeping back from the cold or warmth that part wasn’t what woke me up. It was my freezing eyeballs and nose. The only piece of clothing I don’t own is a jacket for my eyeballs and I’m not sure I have seen such an item at any outdoor equipment store. I realize that a full ski getup could accomplish the same thing but things like this don’t enter your mind as you are packing when you are an amateur winter camper.

Thankfully the sun brought warmer temperatures in the morning. Continuing onward on the road eventually brought me to the beginnings of Black Dragon Canyon. Coming from the longer west route is almost better since the terrain slowly changes and the grand culmination of the geography ends with Black Dragon Canyon itself. The alternative is leaving I-70 and immediately entering the canyon, which is impressive, but the drawn out story of the terrain is a bit halted.

On top of the impressive geographic features of the canyon there are some stunning petroglyphs on the walls. Unfortunately, some newer graffiti has been added as well. I can understand the irony that older graffiti is somehow more sacred and anthropologically significant while “Trevor 2006” is met with derision. Older but still modern graffiti is also rather fascinating. I find early 20th century markings as equally fascinating as the native ones from hundreds of years prior. It is rather fascinating psychology to see what the benchmark or cutoff threshold is for people. Some might think nothing less than a few hundred years old to be worth their time. I think anything older than 75-100 years is rather fascinating. But definitely nothing within the past 20. If federal officials were to leave Trevor’s carving intact until around 2081 then I might consider coming back.

Modern and old graffiti in Black Dragon Canyon.

Starting the Electrical Foundation of my 4Runner

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 10:30:00 -0600

The Switch Pros SP-9100, SD Offroad Mount Tray, and ARB Twin Compressor ready for assembly.

As a fair warning to readers, this guide is not meant as a step by step instruction replacement. I sincerely recommend consulting each product’s installation guide as a source of definitive information. Please consider this article as more of a personal review and collection of tips for these products.

Foundation Components

I have grand plans for years of adventures and a long list of modifications for my 2021 Toyota 4Runner. It remains unknown if I will fulfill all my aspirations but in order to achieve any of them I needed a solid electrical foundation to efficiently springboard future modifications. I have read many stories of people installing modification after modification and their engine compartment ended up being an inevitable spaghetti bowl of cables. Not only is this clutter hard to diagnose and fix if the need arises it can also be dangerous since it isn’t isolated away from your vehicle’s core electrical system. This is when fuse blocks, bus bars, and solid state switches into play.

Fuse Block

Probably the most affordable and beneficial thing to add to your vehicle when accommodating a variety of electrical modifications is a fuse block. This little device basically acts like the fuse panel in your home. It protects from electrical overcurrent along each isolated circuit. Instead of starting a fire in your vehicle engine compartment you might instead just have a bad fuse you replace for a few dollars or less. A universal best practice is that the capacity should reflect approximately 125% of your overall calculated load of whatever you intend to run through it. For a 12 amp light bar it would be ideal to use a fuse with a rating of 15 amps. Some really high draw modifications like a winch wouldn’t necessarily go through a fuse block but I run my 80 amp (40A x 2) twin compressor through it. The reasoning behind this is that a winch already has a fuse installed inline to the cable that you hook up directly to the battery. So it accomplishes the same safety feature, albeit in a more cable cluttered manner. But its also a balancing act to be able to include the majority of your accessories while a few outliers remain, which is perfect fine. For my own purposes I went with a Blue Sea SafetyHub 150, which was part of the package that I purchased from SD Offroad.

Solid State Switch

As the second part of the solution, the solid state switch, is much more advanced and quite a bit more expensive. The purpose of a switch is to consolidate all your devices into a single universal panel. Rather than trying to fit a switch for your light bar, ditch lights, compressor, side lights, rock lights, and whatever else onto your dashboard, you can instead just combine them all into a single sleek panel. The most popular products for this come from either Switch Pros or sPOD. There are certainly ways to achieve the same end result with a do-it-yourself approach but it requires quite a bit more electrical design and fabrication. If you are a fan of electronics and tinkering it is certainly worth a look. Although I find myself tinkering more and more these days I decided to go with a Switch Pros SP-9100 to save some time and provide a stable and safe foundation for my vehicle. The mad scientist stuff¹ will be coming up soon enough! This model had some great community feedback and the feature set suited my needs perfectly. Some considerations you might take when choosing a solid state switch model is to simply map out your anticipated modifications in a list and their amperage draw. Be aware that some electrical needs won’t to be switched and shouldn’t be a part of your anticipate design. A fridge will most often be plugged into your secondary power source and won’t generally be switched on and off like a light bar would. Another example I previously mentioned would be the winch since the amperage draw is so high it would not be feasible to route it through an incorporated solid state switch that had a maximum draw limit of 35 amps.

Onboard Air Compressor

Another foundational modification to consider in this great initial project is an off-roading oriented glamping modification: the onboard air compressor. There are cheaper ways to inflate your tires. I have actually owned a little mobile air compressor for several years that has served me well. The only problem is that the little guy can only work for so long before overheating. This can be a major time sink for off-roading because you are inflating all four of your tires to suite your terrain and speed. To save time I found myself skipping airing down or airing up at locations where I probably should have done so just to avoid the long wait for my compact air compressor to work through all four tires. Lowering your tire air pressure isn’t just for tackling aggressive terrain. Mild dirt roads can be made smooth by taking a little air out of your tires from their paved highway levels of PSI. For the sake of efficiency I decided to go with a crazy fast ARB twin air compressor. This thing is a beast and inflates all four of my tires without a whisper of slowing down. Being mounted in the engine bay also saves a tiny bit of room in the back and prevents me from ever forgetting to bring it along.

Mount

To bring all three items together required a not so common vehicle bay mount. There are quite a few available in a wide variety of orientations and combinations, however, I didn’t see many on the market that could consolidate a fuse block, a solid state switch, and a large twin air compressor into a single platform. Also, the solid state switch mounting point needs to be vertical since if you mount a Switch Pros SP-9100 horizontally the warranty is actually voided. After some time looking around on various sites and forums I came across the SD Offroad Mount Tray. The product was a little new when I came across it and was only being sold from a guy’s Instagram account rather than a traditional website or storefront. This might be a little sketchy to some but I have been coming to enjoy little shops like this more and more. With the huge availability of 3D Printers and other fabrication tools it gives a person with a great idea the platform to publish that idea into the physical world. There are a few other shops I have plans to become a patron of in the future for their original ideas that were successfully implemented into great products. Regardless, this mount tray fit all my needs and past customers seemed to be pleased with the product so I reached out. After a few questions from Derek about my future plans and needs we decided on package and a price. Besides the mount he included the Blue Sea SafetyHub 150, 8 slot bus bar, circuit breaker, 3 fuses (125A, 2x40A), and the rest of the items needed to get everything connected. Prices on fuses, bus bars, and everything else were in line with market rates, if not just a little below.

Parts and Tools

SD Offroad Mount Tray - Probably the best way to combine your Switch Pros, fuse block, and ARB Twin Compressor into a single package under your hood. Currently the only way to buy this is to send a message to Derek on Instagram.
Switch Pros SP-9100 - The brains of the operation.
ARB Twin Air Compressor 12V - Model number is CKMTA12. Most American auto DC voltage uses 12V whereas 24V is present in other countries.
ARB Hose Coupling 0740112 - There a few types of this model floating around so make sure to get the correct one. In order to fit the ARB Twin Compressor it needs to be a 1/4 x 18 NPT male fitting.
ARB Fitting Plug 0740113 - Pricy piece of plastic but it will keep your fancy new twin compressor dust free on the inside. This cap will fit both the 0740112 and 0740113 models of hose coupling. For the life of me I don’t understand why ARB simply doesn’t include this with the hose coupling itself.
SDHQ Off Road SP-9100 Keypad Mount - (Optional) This replaces a section of your dashboard in order for the SP-9100 keypad to sit a bit more flush. It isn’t exactly flush but it looks a bit better. SDHQ recently started offering a mail in service where they modify your existing dashboard panel to fit the keypad.
Crimp Battery Cable Ring Terminals 10-4 Gauge - Useful to have on hand if you are terminating cables that are outside the 22-10 gauge set I link later on. I used these to terminate the ARB compressor positive and negatives to avoid using the provided unnecessarily long wiring kit. You should consider purchasing a more robust hydraulic or impact crimper to handle these larger gauges.
Crimping Tool for Heat Shrink Connectors - In retrospect, I would have actually gotten the crimper in the 8 or 11 piece package because the die is swappable with other crimper dies. This becomes really important if you have plans to add Baja Design lights since they use Weather Pack Connectors.
Heat Gun - Critical to achieving water tight sealing on your cabling connections. This thing eats batteries like no one’s business. Maybe consider a corded version.
Heat Shrink Tubing Kit - Make sure all the components you are buying is Marine Grade. You vehicle is exposed to a great deal of environmental variation and all this stuff needs to hold up. This Wirefy brand seems to be universally respected, even within the DIY Solar community.
Heat Shrink Wire Connector Kit - I got the large 540 piece kit since I will be using it for my own future modifications and other electronics I setup around the house.
Wire Strippers - Having decent wire strippers is critical for your sanity since this project requires a ton of wire stripping. If you plan on doing a lot more of your own electrical work in the future it would be helpful to upgrade to a more elegant stripper 😏 like the Klein 11063W.
Anti-Seize Lubricant - Used on the bolts at the bottom of the support arm. They go into the wheel well and will be frequently exposed moisture and road salt.
Threadlocker - I went with Loctite Blue 242 here because Red seemed like overkill. This is mainly used on the nuts that are on the bottom of the mount tray.
Cabling Sleeving - (Optional) For the above and beyond person who wants to waste hours and hours for that extra ‘gram worthy slick setup. I used Teleios Black at 4mm. You might have to source this elsewhere if you wanted to sleeve the larger gauge cables in your setup.
Dymo Label Maker - Labelling your cables makes it look both professional and also keeps everything organized. When you are working on something in months or years in the future you will know exactly what goes where.
Heat Shrink Tube Labels - Many of the off-brand suppliers are good quality and are considerably cheaper than Dymo specific. Most of my labels were either 1/2" or 3/4".

Assembling

For your own sanity and the sanity of anyone you reside with it would be best to lay all components out on a flat work bench or kitchen table. Cabling and assembling everything in the engine bay would be a monumentally painful endeavor. I plopped my stuff down on the kitchen counter for a few weeks and spent some time here and there when I got the chance. However, if you have experience with wiring and aren’t adding any custom sleeving it would be rather easy to assemble it all in a few hours. The biggest time sink during my install was the custom sleeving, applying red heat shrink tubing, and labelling all sides of the cable terminations. In retrospect I would have forgone the custom sleeving but done everything else identically. The black nylon sleeves certainly gave a great look but for the time spent I don’t think it was worth it. My motivation was from this wizard that made it look like a high end custom gaming computer.

Wiring the Switch Pro while mounted.

To kick off the installation and guide us for the rest of the installation is to realize there are simply 8 electrical switches on the Switch Pros SP-9100. Every action during the install is to provide an elegant platform to complete the electrical connection of those switches. The first action requires us to connect each of the 8 switches from the SP-9100 to an individual slot on the bus bar. As you can see in the above image the SP-9100 is vertically mounted very close to the bus bar. The connections on the SP-9100 exit out horizontally, which creates your first design problem you must creatively overcome. I didn’t want a larger curved loop of cables so I made all my connections in a rather tight circle back around to the bus bar. A great source of potential cable arrangements is to view the posts on the SD Offroad Mount Instagram page. There are a wide variety of approaches to taming this mane of cables into the bus bar.

Bus Bar

Using a bus bar for our 8 switches isn’t electrically helpful but it creates a semi-permanent and modular system for completing our electrical connections. The connection from the SP-9100 is intended to be semi-permanent and static while the other side of the bus bar connections are modular. This way you don’t have to fiddle with the SP-9100 side of the bus bar when future projects dictate different needs. You can simply disconnect the other side of the bus bar and move things as needed. This comes at a cost of introducing a point in your electrical system to environmental degradation and connection issues. If you already have a permanent system configuration planned out it would be much better to directly connect your devices directly to the SP-9100 and forego the bus bar entirely. Switch-Pros even advises this on their website². But if you are like me and have a ever changing outlook on your modification endgame it is incredible helpful to have the modularity of a bus bar.

Labels for each Switch Pro connection will make future troubleshooting a bit easier.

The current capacity for each of the 8 switches of the SP-9100 is outlined in the list below. Switches 1-4 are limited to 18A while 5-8 have a larger 35A capacity. These values are purely maximum and can be adjusted in the SP-9100 mobile application. As an example, on switch 1, my connected device is the trigger wire for my ARB twin air compressor and it is rated down to 5A. The trigger wire is basically an on/off switch for the compressor and doesn’t need any more current. There are many more features the SP-9100 can do such as strobe, 10% light output dimming, and a variety of trigger actions³. Another convenient thing about using the SP-9100 is that the fuses are built inline within the device. So you can connect all of your devices directly into the SP-9100 without those bulky inline fuses. The only catch is that if you exceed 85% of the switch load and you can’t move to a higher capacity switch they do recommend adding a relay or fuse inline⁴.

Switch Pros SP-9100 Wires

Brown - Switch 1 - (18A)
Red - Switch 2 - (18A)
Orange - Switch 3 - (18A)
Yellow - Switch 4 - (18A)
Pink - T1 - (Trigger)
Black - Ground
White - LT - (Light Dimming Trigger)
Blue - Ignition
Green - Switch 5 - (35A) 2 Wires
Blue - Switch 6 - (35A) 2 Wires
Purple - Switch 7 - (35A) 2 Wires
Grey - Switch 8 - (35A) 2 Wires

For the higher amperage switches from 5-8 you can simply twist both copper strands together before crimping down. Make sure you don’t cut the black, pink, white, or blue cables. These cables are connected elsewhere and shouldn’t be trimmed until you know the exact needed length.

Installation Preface

Based on the guide from SD Offroad there are several cycles of putting the mount tray in your engine bay and removing it for adjustments. While these steps seem useless when you could simply pop the tray in one go they are actually a measured approach to make the install easier. The incremental approach helps the installer make the required fitment adjustments as you go along while specific screws or support brackets are easily reachable rather than at an inverted right angle with only an inch of clearance. I was a bit pigheaded and did the install in many fewer steps and in the end I paid my time and frustration tax. Its almost as if guides are meant to make things easier. Somehow my logical reaction is to completely avoid the instructional guidelines since I know best. Spoiler: I don’t.

Stock 4Runner back right engine bay.

Pre-Installation

Placement of the mount tray is pretty straight forward. My 2021 model had a few differences from the SD Offroad Mount installation guide but it wasn’t anything major. The only physical modification required before being able to get the tray in was to file off the retention tab of the steel plate to the right of the smaller RELAY & FUSE black box. Getting the retention tab out of the way opens up the use of a required threaded mounting hole for the tray support bracket.

Another preparation required before getting the tray installed would be to run the longer SP-9100 wires from the engine bay into the vehicle cab. This would be the pink, white, and blue wires. Disconnecting the wire harness from the SP-9100 would be appropriate here in order to get the most flexibility. I chose to puncture through the circular black rubber grommet in order to get these wires through, however, there are probably more appropriate conduits available. I certainly recommend researching this further and I consider it one of my oversights when performing this installation. The grommet was actually a pain to work with since any pressure from either direction would unseat the perimeter flange lip. Getting it back to a sealed state was a major pain due to the tight space around the grommet on both the engine compartment and cabin sides. However, it is critical to get the grommet back in place as it is the only mechanism to stop water and anything else from entering the cabin for that rather large hole.

Installation

After these items are taken care of you can loosely install the tray. Make sure to coat the bottom leg support bolts with anti-seize lubricant since they exit directly within the wheel well. They will be directly exposed to the harshest conditions you’ll be driving in. The bolts also might be a bit firm when screwing them in for the first time but that is just the OEM plugs being forced out. When checking hood clearance for the tray it is a bit tricky to see if things are bashing into each other. I stuck my phone into the engine bay while taking a video and closing the hood in order to get an idea of physical clearance. My 2021 model has a fire retardant fabric on the bottom of the hood and is slightly pressed against by the vertical ARB compressor coupling. There are ways to modify the angle of the coupling mount on the ARB but I didn’t think it was necessary with my minimal amount of contact. I have seen other kinds of couplings, such as pure brass right angle hardware that might better fit in your intended setup.

Checking clearance when closing the hood.

One last point involves skipping the rivet installation for the mount tray. While the SD Offroad installation includes this as a step during installation I found that the mount tray was stable enough with all the other hardware to not warrant putting in the rivet. This might change after the physical stress of traversing over several thousand miles of washboard roads over the next year or two but I will monitor it closely, as I do with all my other bolted on modifications. Another reason for not installing the rivet was just avoiding an extra bolt to take out in case any access to the engine bay fuse box is needed. This is a minor reason and would only amount to saving a minute or two down the line.

Electrical

ARB Twin Compressor Wiring

This compressor is fast but requires two 40A connections. This exceeds the maximum draw of even the larger capacity switches on the SP-9100 so you have to power it directly from the battery. I accomplished this by wiring both 40A connection to the SafetyHub 150 with a 40A MIDI fuse for each. This involved heavily re-working the supplied wire harness from ARB and chopping out the blocky inline fuses. But such a clean up is my whole reason for this electrical foundation. I could shorten the wire harness to a respectable length to avoid wire spaghetti and also using the SafteyHub 150 as intended. You can still use your SP-9100 to turn it off and on by simply connecting the ARB’s trigger wire. Credit here to SR5Camper on the tundras.com forums⁵ for the great idea of both cleaning up the ARB wiring harness and also involving the SP-9100 for triggering the ARB.

Getting everything arranged is quite a challenge. Especially with the larger gauge wires.

Add-a-Fuse Circuit Tap

Moving on to the cabin wiring, I wanted to specifically include a section in this guide for the correct add-a-fuse orientation. I have seen many examples of incorrect orientation, which defeats the entire purpose of fuses and exposes you and your vehicle to increased chance of electrical fault. Without the benefit of a fuse the electrical current can flow unchecked and can burn up wires or at worst, start a fire. This risk is exponentially more than the average car owner since the off-roading community commonly exposes our vehicles to some of the harshest environmental conditions available. A great way to learn more is with this Add a Fuse Video Guide that I have re-watched many times in order to get installations correct and safe. The video is full of relevant information for this install and correctly instructed me that my 2021 4Runner uses a low profile mini fuse (in the cabin box), how to chose a fuse to piggyback off, the correct orientation for my add-a-fuse, and most importantly of all, how to determine the hot and cold aisle for an automotive fuse box.

The most helpful first step would be to determine what kind of fuse type your vehicle is using. It could be anything from ATC/ATO, ATM mini, Micro2, or a Low Profile Mini. Knowing what type you have will make ordering or picking up the correct add-a-fuse kit that much easier. I was in a rush when I grabbed mine from the local AutoZone and got the incorrect size (ATM Mini). While it connects just fine, the spacing is tight and in the future I will have to cut it out in order to add the correct size so it fits much better. You can see in the very last image of this article my semi-bent add-a-fuse in the top left of the image. The size is a bit too much and it rubs up against a metal sheet underneath the steering wheel.

The next step would be to review your available fuses and tap a non-critical service. Alternatively, if there are any open fuse slots they should be used first before leeching off another. In my case I had an empty fuse slot I tried to use for the SP-9100 Blue wire (ignition) but it was always powered, which is what I didn’t want. So I had to move on to another fuse in order to get the correct type. You should absolutely not tap any fuses labelled with critical services such as ABS, brakes, air bags, cooling, engine control modules and other mechanisms that are critical to the operation of the vehicle. After testing and validating a few locations in my own fuse box I ended up tapping the 10A tail lights for the SP-9100 white wire (light dimming trigger) and the 10A KDSS for the blue wire (ignition). While KDSS is incredible critical, my 4Runner actually doesn’t have it and so should be completely fine to tap.

Cutting a Fuse in Half

The methodology for selecting my fuse tap locations can be demonstrated in the previously linked video. The basic summary is to find the type of power going to a fuse and thereafter identifying the positive and negative side of the rail. Your car’s electronics are powered by three separate types of power. The first is switched power that is provided when the vehicle is actually running the engine. The second is switched (RAP) and is powered when the ignition is engaged by the engine isn’t running and turn off after you open the door or a certain amount of time elapses. Think of something like your car radio or overhead lights that turn on after turning off your engine and remain on for maybe a minute or two or until you open a door. The third type is unswitched where power is supplied all the time. In order to figure out what fuses are provided by these types of power you need to cut a fuse in half.

Fuse testing.

Cutting a fuse in half will give you a simple tool that can tell you if either side of fuse is energized or not. Fair warning that you will need a multimeter to help out here. Be aware that each fuse rail will have a negative side that will show no electrical charge in any state. If you see that behavior just keep a note of it since it is important later for correctly orientating the add-a-fuse tap. By taking this mangled fuse and plugging it into each fuse rail while the engine is completely off we can identify which fuses have unswitched power. For this application you don’t want to use those because it will needlessly drain your power when the vehicle is off. Further isolation with the ignition enabled but the engine still off can show us the switched (RAP) powered fuses. Lastly, with the engine running we can see which fuses are powered by purely switched power.

Tap orientation

Tap orientation is important.

If during the course of your testing you found that some sides of fuses were completely dead you can use this critical information to correctly orient your add-a-fuse circuit taps. The internal circuity of an add-a-fuse requires that the prong on the opposite side of the wire is energized while the prong on the closer side is connected to your negative. If the add-a-fuse is plugged in backwards you essentially lose the protection of the fuse. In a previous image you can see me testing with a multimeter with a fuse cut in half. The output of 13.95V on the right hand side rail demonstrates that it is energized. Based on that information we can safely orient the add-a-fuse with the cable exiting the left side as shown in the above image.

Wiring Gauge

All of the wiring is already supplied from the products purchased for this project but if you want a head start on wiring new accessories it would be helpful to know what size (gauge) wire you need. The company Blue Sea Systems has a great chart outlining the needs for wire gauge based on distance and amperage. Since the American automotive DC voltage standard is 12.8V we are subject to making up the difference with high amperage draw to get anything of substance running.

Suggestions

Every project in almost any hobby has a balancing act of convenience, cost, and intention. The electrical foundation I have built is no different. There will be times in the future where I question my own judgement on selecting certain components and also deriding the architecture of product designers as I become more proficient with my gear. To save you the several year wait before I become enlightened I will make a few critiques of the entire setup. Hopefully this helps people going down the same path from needless frustration or some missing piece of information.

Location

The engine bay near the starter battery is without a doubt the absolute best location for this assortment of gear. You have close access to wiring into the driver’s side cabin and high amperage wires only have to run a short distance to the main battery. Perhaps the biggest issue in the future will be access to the engine bay relay and fuse boxes. I been trying to avoid thinking about how much of a pain it will be to at first diagnose and thereafter fix any electrical issues that originate in those boxes. Lets take an example of some electrical issue in your vehicle. Instead of easily checking the vehicle’s main fuse box you will probably end up trying to identify the issue elsewhere because the time involved to remove the mount tray is considerable. Thus we have entirely erased decades of improving electrical troubleshooting efficiency by ignoring all these connections that were routed to a central location. The painful removal process for the mount tray isn’t any fault of its own. By itself it would be incredibly easy to unscrew 4 bolts. But the inherent nature of its purpose in bringing tons of wires together makes it a statically wired feature of your vehicle’s engine bay. When running wire for new accessories I trim everything to a neat fit-to-length amount. This might ultimately backfire when the pretty cabling becomes the main crux of getting access to the underlying relay and fuse box.

Layout and Orientation

Another critique is the layout of the SD Offroad Mount Tray itself. There are many different styles of the mount and the respective arrangement of components. But for mine it felt cramped between the SP-9100, bus bar, and the SafetyHub 150 fuse block. To accommodate everything together involved a lot of cursing and finger mashing. The first aspect of this problem is the incredibly small space and orientation between the vertical SP-9100 and the horizontal bus bar. Realistically, you want the left side of the bus bar available since it is closest to the gap used for wiring cables. That only leaves the right hand side to wire up the SP-9100 at an insane angle. No matter how you wire the SP-9100 to the bus bar you will inevitably block the bus bar from above. I am not looking forward to the time when I try to plug in switches 5-8 as they are behind the fat wad of SP-9100 cables.

In addition, the space between the bus bar and the fuse block is much too small. I would like to see more room on the fuse block side since it will get a lot more use than the SP-9100 bus bar. Pushing the fuse block mount location an inch to the left and expanding that cable access hole would ease a lot of my worries about the physical ease of installing, diagnosing, or removing connections from the fuse block.

I’m currently designing a 4 cell 3,584 amp hour lithium iron phosphate battery bank complete with an inverter, AC power supply, and MPPT. Its going to look like a Mad Max-like dumpster fire but will perform better than most consumer models generally available. ↩︎
“Should I use a Fuse Block for my output wires? No – connecting our output wires to a fuse block subjects the wires to water and corrosion, and essentially takes our Solid State, watertight system, and makes it subject to potential water damage and unreliable connections. It also adds unnecessary expense. We suggest using the heat-shrinkable butt splices (included in the installation hardware kit) OR soldering (and covering with heat shrink tubing) the power leads together.” Switch-Pros Frequently Asked Questions ↩︎
Switch-Pros SP-9100 Switch Power Panel System ↩︎
“Do I need to add Relays and/or Fuses? No – for installation of basic lights and electronics, you may connect the power leads directly to one another by soldering or using heat-shrinkable butt splices. Exceptions: if you are connecting loads that will exceed 85% of the circuit’s capacity OR if you are connecting accessories with inductive loads (compressors, pumps, large fans), then you SHOULD put a relay in line.” Switch-Pros Frequently Asked Questions ↩︎
“Just installed ARB twin on SDHQ mount wired to sp9100 two days ago. I scrapped the provided harness and made my own with CE electric 8AWG wire. Independent positives with maxi fuses, and combined ground wire including the small 20AWG wire to simplify things. The switch harness from ARB is a joke. Chop everything off except the purple wire, which is run to your switch pros. The wire was a little short for the routing I chose so I had to splice in an extension with some of the previously scrapped wire. I just snipped and sealed the other ground wire coming from the switch.” ARB Twin Compressor Install WITH Switch Pro SP9100 ↩︎

Broadwater Meadow

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 10:30:00 -0600

After the dirty kerfuffle earlier in the summer I decided to pursue some luxury camping conditions. Obviously, the great motivation here was to reduce the pounds of dirt my dogs could absorb into their fur. Another was to solicit my wife into the great outdoors with an easy and enjoyable camping experience. I always feel better blundering around and making obvious mistakes when I have my significant other along with me to cushion the blow to my ego when things inevitably go wrong. If I could just find the right camping location I might just might protect the dogs from themselves and provide my wife with another positive outdoor experience.

Since I’ve been subject to unrealistic REI Co-Op advertisements my entire life I knew there were at least some locations in North America worthy of being in a magazine. Maybe there would even be a few in adventure ready Utah. You might have your own version of this location in your head but I will tell you my own. Imagine a grassy campground next to a modest river with majestic pine trees in the spots that don’t block your view. The view is a grand valley glowing in the twilight evening light. All the cozy people around the campfire appear to be in a perfect temperature equilibrium and are neither pestered by bugs or acute smoke inhalation. I know it is all a lie. But maybe I can achieve just one item out of this mental image: grass. Yes, the plant I spend my spring, summer, and fall butchering could be my savior when out in nature. This led me to another high altitude location in the High Uintas Wilderness at the softly named Broadwater Meadow.

Its surprising how close Broadwater Meadow is to Highway 150 without being flooded by campers and trailers. You can thank the rough roads for gatekeeping the area from the unwashed masses. There are actually two routes to the meadow since FR416 loops to Highway 150 at a north and south location. I found both directions pretty rough in my 4Runner but the northern road was just slightly easier. Before getting off pavement you should be sure to stop at the Upper and Middle Provo River Falls viewpoint. This tourist spot was a bit crowded on a Sunday afternoon in the late summer but worth the stop to stretch the legs and let the dogs sniff around before we hit the last 30 minutes of dirt road to reach the meadow.

On a Sunday late afternoon in early September we were able to claim a decent site for camping. Probably the best location is directly across the meadow on the south end, which you can see in the photograph above. That site is secluded a bit off FR416 whereas the rest of the spots along the meadow perimeter are within 20 feet of the road. So you might have people rolling by (or blazing like a bat out of Hell in the case of our side-by-side friends) your camp at any time of the day or night. Additionally, the view on the south site is better as you are looking north by north east to nearby Mount Cardwell. While not as epic as the view in nearby Christmas Meadow, it still provides for a natural visual endpoint while looking across the meadow rather than the muted hill you see above. Despite all the accolades for the south site, any spot around the meadow is great and will give you a relaxing experience in a semi-alpine environment.

Broadwater Meadow in the Afternoon.

For dinner, rather than my normal freeze-dried dinner, I was blessed with a fine car camping dining experience. I am normally rather spartan with my food choices and embrace convenience and health rather than elegance and taste. Its not that I don’t enjoy finely prepared food but rather that I think the effort required is not warranted on a consistent and or daily basis. I have been known to spend over 12 hours smoking pork ribs yet this is not everyday. Alternatively, my wife will consistently create culinary masterpieces out of seemingly nothing if the mood strikes just right. Take the following example where all these conditions met together perfectly to see what she is capable of creating.

One evening in the early summer of 2020 she asked what would be a good idea for dinner. Consider the world stage for a second here, where we are at the height of the coronavirus pandemic lockdown¹ and governments around the world had normalized staying at home 24/7. So there is a huge amount of free time at everyone’s disposal yet for some reason I didn’t take this into consideration when I responded with an easy cop-out of sloppy joes. Like I said earlier, my mind focuses on dishes that are either convenient or healthy. Sloppy Joes certainly fit this convenient profile. When I was younger this dish consisted of pan frying ground beef, adding a canned sauce, and slopping the result between some plain white bread buns. If you wanted to go the extra mile you could garnish your plate with some vegetables or anything else to make it a respectable meal. Altogether, this was something you could pretty easily make in fifteen or twenty minutes. Not a bowl-of-cereal-for-dinner fast but certainly not a time sink. My wife and I don’t specifically share the same cultural upbringing so this inherent example in my head was completely absent from hers.

In some locations this word is correct but in Utah it really just meant a loose request by local and state officials. I think if national store chains hadn’t imposed mask requirements I doubt most of the public would have even bothered on their own. So understand this word with caution, which could have translated into vastly different situations around the United States. ↩︎

Whitney Reservoir

Wed, 21 Jul 2021 10:30:00 -0600

A small stream feeding into Whitney Reservoir.

Sometimes you need pleasantly boring. My first camping trip as an adult was certainly not at Whitney Reservoir but it seemed like the first one without any major issues. My first venture into the wilderness as a responsible adult was a backpacking trip into the Grand Canyon wilderness between Glen Canyon Dam and Lee’s Ferry. The trip was cut short after experiencing first hand how fast water is consumed in an arid desert. How could I have known the several guide books I read about being careful in the desert were actually true? Our rapid self-extraction from the area had us blazing trail across extremely steep sandstone cliffs, which has been the foundation of distrust my wife has maintained in my ability to read topographical maps. I was convinced the line spacing on the map was enough to indicate a gentle slope upward slope.

I also can’t forget our intrepid determination to make it through the muddy North Rim of the Grand Canyon in our station wagon with tires worn down by tens of thousands of miles of driving. While attempting to dig, push, and swear our way through the mud we were passed by a local lodge tour van filled with bemused Japanese tourists eager to see the sunset at the rim of the Grand Canyon. In their attempt go around our stuck station wagon they themselves fell victim to the treacherous mud. I felt extremely vindicated with this result since the van itself was aggressively off-road equipped and had only made it as far as our admirable station wagon. Never mind the fact that we had ejected them from the path of the main road into the soft muddy shoulder. It wasn’t until two hours later that both vehicles were rescued by the lodge caretaker whom had only come out since the tour van never returned. Each experience prior to Whitney Reservoir seemed to be marred by unexpected (unplanned) challenges that drastically changed the direction of said trip. Maybe such changes are to be expected and looked forward to as part of the charm of going on adventures. However, my perfectionist obsessive compulsive urges greatly disagree.

To mitigate some of these challenges I adopted a 4x4 vehicle into the family. It has yet to be determined if I simply raised the stakes of potential consequences. With the confidence and capability such a vehicle brings it could take me to areas of the wilderness tens or hundreds of miles away from help or cell service. At least our station wagon kept me from getting too far off the beaten path where I could be stumbled upon by a local lodge van tour. This new capability is always in my mind and I strive to plan trips based this risk assessment and outright fear. Hopefully this judgment call will become more nuanced with experience. Based on all this I decided a very capable trip destination was in order. Herein we arrive at the selection of lovely Whitney Reservoir.

My campsite nestled behind an outcropping of trees.

Whitney Reservoir is a man-made lake sitting at an approximate elevation of 9,200 feet in the northern central region of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. The area isn’t as eye catching as the Uinta mountain range but provides for a grandiose land area with large expanses for outdoor recreation. Geography in the immediate area is a bit more rolling hills as compared to the flat meadows and pronounced peaks of neighboring places like Christmas Meadows and King’s Peak. Most of the people in area seemed to be semi-local, if not at least regional-local. This gave off a more rugged and homey feel as compared to the easily accessed tourist centric spots in the area next to the highway. Most camps I saw were certainly repeat customers of the area and knew how to comfortably function autonomously in the wild.

Veering west off U. S. Route 150 between the Bear River Ranger Station and Hayden Fork Campground I followed the signs along FR032 for Whitney Reservoir. While Google Maps might guide you on a faster route by utilizing FR081, this would be a mistake as the road is much more rugged and requires a significantly more capable vehicle than the comparatively calm washboards of FR032. While this statement is mostly true I can’t help but remember my own vehicle struggling on FR032. It seems that on an annual or semi-annual basis they re-grade the road during high summer season. I just so happened to chose a day of the week when the road was most chewed up by the Forest Service road grader. What was normally a simple dirt road was transformed into a loose dirt slurry. I was able to get over these segments of fresh road but a few trucks carrying long trailers had to wait until the grader finished its work. No further challenges were to be seen on the road to the reservoir. Several crossroads forked the path along FR032, however, signage was generous and fortunately there was no backtracking required.

Whitney Reservoir itself sits between a few larger treed hills. The rolling terrain is mildly deceptive of the high altitude environment, which starts at approximately 9,200 feet. Residents of sea level cities might feel lethargic or out of breath doing normally easy activities like hiking the surrounding hills. I felt these effects despite my home in Utah being at 4,200 feet. You should also be wary of the rapidly moving isolated thunderstorms that can change summer to winter in short order. It would be best to carry an assortment of gear and clothing suited to a variety of weather conditions even in the middle of summer. You might get the privilege of staying at the four seasons during your trip. Depending on the time of year and previous winter’s snow pack levels will determine the height of the water table. As you can see in my photographs the water was quite low in the summer of 2021 and had been quickly replaced by grasses growing in the rich soil.

While the entire area is formally considered as a dispersed camping area there are many campsites that have been well established. Much of these are clustered on mainly the north and west portions of the reservoir. I would highly recommend using an existing site as it is much better for the ecology of an area to reuse locations rather than trailblazing and disturbing new sections. I arrived in the area towards the late afternoon and subsequently got a poor choice of sites with others being occupied. Fortunately, I located a site with some minor tree coverage and which was close to the water.

Whitney Reservoir with Dietrich

To get an idea of the area around my chosen camp site I usually take a stroll before setting everything up. This helps avoid situations you might find problematic. For instance, you wouldn’t want to setup camp next to an extremely steep ravine if you have a small child. Or you might even find all that separates you and the next camp is a single thin bush. It is certainly wise to just get a bearing of your area since the easy view from your vehicle might not reveal all the dirty secrets. In the course of my own walkabout I saw a large group of Jeeps had gathered in the camp next to mine and on the other side was an older couple who appeared to have been setup for a week or more. Not a bad combination despite getting a poor choice of sites.

After setting up camp I quickly found out exactly how much dirt a dog can fit on its body. Well, not exactly to the gram, but maybe within a few pounds. The area I had chosen was entirely bare dirt and my dogs fully embraced it. I think by the time I had finished setting up the tent they had dug a few holes, ran around the 4Runner several hundred times, and rolled around to their heart’s content. Within the span of perhaps thirty minutes they had transformed from well manicured house dwelling man’s best friend to filthy hell hounds. Both of them certainly knew it and gave me that knowing eyeballing after plopping down in the dirt despite their elevated nylon beds being just a few feet away.

Night comes soon when you start the day in the late afternoon. I tried my best to dust off my dear fur-balls before letting them in the tent but they were still filthy. I had to embrace it. I am certainly known for babying my dogs but I do it without guilt. With everyone settled down we tried to ship off to the land of dreams but kept getting yanked back. The nightlife sounds are pretty different from the suburbs to the high Uinta wilderness. The dogs couldn’t settle down with each new scary unknown animal making itself acoustically known. The suburbs also seemed to have followed us into the forest as the coolness of the evening revealed a raucous party across the reservoir. I do remember the phenomenon of sound traveling across bodies of water with the cool evening air. But such facts had been out of my head since Boy Scout camp twenty years prior.

I have to pause here to reflect on the type of people you encounter in an outdoor wilderness type situation. In a generalized sense, it seems that your perceived level nature-lovingness is inversely proportionate to the distance away from civilization you find yourself recreating. To provide an example you could take the party crowd that travels a short distance away from wherever to setup shop and blow off steam. It is a great idea since if you did this same stunt in a city park you might get cited for public intoxication or similar. Moving along the spectrum we find groups that go just a bit farther but seemingly blow off steam by simply being outdoors and relaxing rather than bringing the entire karaoke sound system. There are definitely exceptions to this but I’m trying to generalize here so just hold off on that angry email. Finally, we arrive at people reaching the farthest distances away from society. Here I am picturing backpackers or homesteaders who appreciate nature itself as an integral part of their life besides just an area to relax. Based on this self-made spectrum of outdoorsyness I was rather confused about the presence of this party across the water. This location was several hours away from any major metropolitan area. However, this could be my city slicker mind making assumptions about the recreation habits of people in nearby small towns, which could spell disaster for my established people modeling matrix. Another theory is that these were indeed party goers from the big city and attacked the established spectrum by driving three hours for that prime time party location. The only thing I do know for certain is that I was incredibly lucky for the music to last to the responsible time of three in the morning.

Whitney Reservoir with Dietrich and Ulrich playing.

Morning is always the best and the worst. Late nights bring heavy baggage that pull you back into sleep. Those bags can get incredibly heavy with chronic sleep loss or maybe just a single night of noisy neighbors. Yet there is the magic of sunrise, which is emphatically better than sunset simply because you sacrificed precious sleep. Couple this with a hot cup of coffee and a dog at your side make for what I previously dubbed as magical. Those kind of moments define trips. All the stupid shit up to that point shifts a bit into an amiable memory and suddenly becomes entirely worth the hassle to experience this moment. I see this process similar to climbing a mountain. The process is a grind, physically, and mentally. Waking up at some evil hour in order to summit at time XX:XX combined with the hours and hours of hiking to accomplish such a feat. However, once at the top it all seems worth it, even despite realizing you are only half way done.

Following this enriching morning I walked the dogs along the reservoir shore and had another epiphany. If you combine extremely dirty dogs and water together things can in fact get even worse. By worse I mean that the previously powdered dirt transforms into numerous layers of caked mud. By then I had given up hope completely and reassured myself that their eighty pound frames could only accommodate so much raw mud.

The Shadow of the United States in Yemen

Sat, 10 May 2014 10:30:00 -0600

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Yemeni President Abdo Rabbo Mansour Hadi address reporters before their bilateral meeting at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on July 29, 2013. U.S. Department of State

This paper was written as part of my International Security Studies master’s thesis while attending the University of Arizona.

Introduction

The state of Yemen has become the most recent battleground in the War on Terror. Within this conflict the splinter group Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has emerged as a significant threat to both the Yemeni government and the United States of America. Yemen has lost physical territory to AQAP while being subject to numerous attacks and the US has had close calls with the ‘Christmas bomber’ and printer bombs. The US and Yemen have not been idle to these threats and have dramatically shifted their level of action within the region in recent years.

However, these actions have proven ineffective and sometimes even counterproductive to effectively combating the danger and abilities of AQAP. The shadows of US foreign aid constraints on the Yemeni government are counterproductive to effectively combating AQAP and undermine the capabilities of the Yemeni state. An important part of this deduction comes from the analysis of state actions and their influences on civilians within the conflict between AQAP, Yemen, and the US. For instance, the utilization of mass arrests by Yemeni officials to meet US foreign aid requirements have only increased animosity towards the state government without accomplishing any counterterrorism measures. Such misconduct has done large amounts of damage to the domestic will in fighting AQAP. Much of the conduct of the Yemeni government has shown a near disregard for the domestic impact of some actions while focusing hypocritically on securing packages of international aid and military support. This is due to the massive importance of US foreign aid to the Yemeni national government. Another area of domestic erosion of political support is the prevalence of drone strikes carried out by the US in combating AQAP. Due to the prevalence of innocent civilians killed in such attacks the claims by US officials in dismantling AQAP are actually regressing. This could be due primarily to the ‘accidental guerilla’ phenomenon, as outlined by David Kilcullen. Current levels of foreign aid and military support are helping Yemen in many ways but not in its ability to effectively combat and suppress the actions of AQAP.

Before approaching the immense domestic complications within Yemen a brief understanding of its formative history is helpful in understanding the perspective of Yemeni citizens, at least in the most general of terms. This explanation brings up many of the problems Yemen faces today including broad poverty, the southern separatists, and the northern rebellion. The southern secessionist movement is almost entirely understood through the division of north and south Yemen before unification in 1990. Thereafter, an introduction to the origins of al-Qaeda before the regional AQAP splinter group became dominant is helpful in seeing the necessity and justification of a US response. This subject closely brings into focus the critical importance of the relationship between US foreign aid and its constraining influence on domestic Yemeni politics. These constraints are shown through the examples of false mass imprisonment and the US drone strike campaign conducted within Yemen. The constraints of US foreign aid are largely due to the immense economic problems facing Yemen that will only worsen with falling production of oil, a primary industry in Yemen.

History of Yemen

It was not until 1990 that the Republic of Yemen became a one state. Throughout most of its history, Yemen has ruled itself through the practice of tribalism despite the presence of Islamic dynasties and several empires (Sharp 2012, 2). Yemen’s rugged terrain and thin concentration of people has historically isolated much of the country from domination by a single political entity. This was to change, however, in the 1900s when much of the Arab world was experiencing substantial political changes, which subsequently split Yemen into two distinct polities. In the north, the Yemen Arab Republic took control from the Yemeni Imamate and in the South a movement of Marxists succeeded in establishing their own state (Sharp 2012, 3). These separate states existed until their eventual unification in 1990, which was thereafter governed by Ali Abdullah Saleh, a long time ruler of northern Yemen (Sharp 2012, 3). As with many other rulers throughout the Arab world, Saleh maintained power for a number of years until the events of the Arab Spring.

In conjunction with the Egyptian revolution and the Tunisian revolution, the Yemeni revolution of 2011 heavily transformed the nation. Set off by both incidents in Tunisia and Egypt, Yemeni citizens began to demonstrate on a large scale in early 2011. According to the BBC, these mass protests were calling for lower unemployment, better economic conditions, protection for the constitution, and for longtime President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s resignation (Sinjab 2011). Reflective of the greater Middle Eastern region, deep poverty and limited economic options prompted the large protests in Yemen. The chronic problems of “economic recession, staggering poverty, dwindling oil and water resources, rapid population growth, and low literacy rates’’ all contributed to a severely dissatisfied population (Hellmich 2012, 624). These reasons initially drew ten thousand protestors calling for Saleh’s resignation and eventually grew to twenty thousand protestors when Saleh did not immediately resign (Sinjab 2011). Saleh dismissed calls for his resignation, which led to fighting between various factions and the eventual bombing of the Presidential compound, injuring Saleh and forcing him to leave the country for medical attention.

In the power vacuum that resulted in Saleh’s absence, multiple factions, including the Houthi rebellion in the north, the Southern Movement, and AQAP all gained substantial territory while the numerous factions within the central government were occupied with post-Saleh power scrambles. As the pressure to resign continued, Saleh eventually signed a thirty-day transfer of power to then Vice President al-Hadi. Thereafter, elections were held and al-Hadi was elected as the new president. Rather than heralding a new era of Yemeni politics, President al-Hadi signaled a continuation of the status quo, as he was the only candidate on the ballot (Hellmich 2012, 623). Despite these political troubles, a new government in Yemen has the potential to depart from past practices of political corruption that have soured its domestic image. Much of the population questions the legitimacy of the central government after seeing a large influx of foreign aid that more than often only benefited the elite (Winter 2010, 400). The legitimacy of the central government can be restored if reforms are implemented to correctly handle the numerous problems the Yemeni people face. One such problem includes the tattered national economy that is undiversified and dependent on a single resource. As one of the poorest states in the Middle Eastern region, Yemen faces a variety of additional financial problems, including poverty, impending lack of oil, and a weak central government. Nearly half of the state’s 23 million people survive on less than two dollars per day (Ghobari and Sudam 2011) and around forty percent of Yemenis are unemployed (Plaut 2008). Ninety percent of Yemen’s exports are from oil, a resource that has been forecasted by the World Bank to run completely dry in Yemen within the next decade.

Other problems facing Yemen are far more politically violent and incessantly drain the national treasury and national political will. The history of being two separate states has played a central role in creating these modern divisions within the state of Yemen. Once the Republic of Yemen became a unified state, the northern polity began to marginalize the southern region. Much of southern Yemen still views their “political, economic, and cultural” lives as being dominated by northern interests and personnel (Sharp 2012, 3). This has given rise to the South Yemen Movement, which seeks secession from the Republic of Yemen after its marginalization following the 1990 unification and 1994 civil war. Deep concerns were voiced by Vice President Salim al-Beidh following Yemeni unification due to subsequent violence and the strong marginalization of the south (“Yemen Profile”). President Saleh soon after dismissed Beidh. Beidh and other supporting parties declared independence from the Republic of Yemen in May of 1994, an action Saleh declared illegal (“Yemen Profile”). The Republic of Yemen successfully invaded South Yemen and retook all of the territory while Southern leaders were “sentenced to death in absentia” (“Yemen Profile”). The South Yemen secessionist movement found little support for years after the civil war and only reentered the public psyche during the Arab Spring events of 2011.

Map of Yemen. Source: Map Resources. Adapted by Congressional Research Service (July 2010).

The secession of an entire southern region from Yemen is not the only rebellion the central government of Yemen faces. Another breakaway group that was driven into existence by a disagreement with state actions was the Houthi rebellion in North Yemen during 2004. Hussein al Houthi was the founder of the Houthi rebellion and advocated against Yemeni support for the United States’ War on Terror. Upsetting a key ally that was providing large sums of financial aid was not something the Saleh regime could adopt. During intense fighting and security operations in mid-2004, Hussein al Houthi was killed; however, his death only incensed the Houthi movement. Since 2005 the Houthi rebellion has numbered from one thousand fighters to an upward estimate of ten thousand in 2009 (Redwan 2012). When including non-operational supporters for the Houthi rebellion, this number increases dramatically. Ahmed Al-Bahri, an expert on Houthi affairs, has stated the number of Houthi followers as, “loyalists or fighters” range between 100,000 to 120,000 (Almasmari 2010). The Houthi rebellion is a deadly threat to the central government and killed an estimated 1,000 Yemeni security personnel between 2004 and 2008 (Freeman 2009, 1013). Moreover, between 250,000 and 350,000 people have been displaced within Yemen due to the Houthi rebellion (Hellmich 2012, 624). The degree to which this has influenced the state is tremendous. With a population of approximately twenty-four million, nearly half a million displaced individuals have proven a severe financial burden for the state government and humanitarian organizations. Ongoing military operations also add to the drain on resources that could be used much more effectively elsewhere. The chances of the conflict being resolved are tenuous at best as, “periodic cease-fires have been marred by intermittent skirmishes and mutual recriminations” (Winter 2010, 397). Such a poor progression into peace is not strictly limited to the Houthi rebellion and is a highlight of the final insurgency that is explored in this paper.

History of Al-Qaeda and Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula

The formation of the modern terrorist group al-Qaeda is a result of the actions of a single, wealthy man. Born in 1957 in Saudi Arabia as a son to a wealthy construction magnate, Osama bin Laden, according to Kenneth Katzman, “adopted militant Islamist views” while at university in Jeddah, where he graduated with a Civil Engineering degree (2005, 1). During the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the late 1970s, bin Laden, seeing an unjustified incursion on an Islamic nation, attempted to fund many of the Afghani freedom fighters with his own money (Katzman 2005, 1). In order to continue and reinforce this funding of Afghani mujahideen bin Laden sought to establish an international network of financial aid. This network was called Maktab al-Khidamat, which many consider to be the “organizational forerunner of al-Qaeda” (Katzman 2005, 2). At the cessation of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan this network numbered between 10,000 to 20,000 operatives (Katzman 2005, 2). With the framework in place all that was needed was to operationalize many of the supporters of Maktab al-Khidamat. With the threat of Soviet incursion ending in Afghanistan, bin Laden’s mentor, Abdullah al-Azzam, urged the necessity of a “base” Islamic “rapid reaction force” (Katzman 2005, 2). This force would be able to respond worldwide to any perceived threat to Islamist people.

Yemen countryside. Source: Rod Waddington

Such a rapid reaction force was not on the radar of the United States. The mujahideen fighting the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan were actually being supported by the US. By supplying stinger missiles and other means of support to freedom fighters the US was able to fight a proxy war against the Soviets. Even after the collapse of the Soviet Union the threat of Islamic fundamentalists was not piquing US security interests. In 1995 President Bill Clinton even signed Executive Order 12947 imposing sanctions on 12 terrorist factions that had stalled Middle East peace efforts that did not include bin Laden (Coll 2004, 277). This peaceful relationship would, however, change with the bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 that killed roughly 300 people (Katzman 2005, 4). The change of bin Laden’s perception to motivate such an attack came through his perspective that the US tainted Saudi and Kuwaiti soil with their presence during the First Gulf War. In his logic, after offering aid to mujahideen fighters in Soviet Afghanistan the US was now guilty of the same sin in the Arabian Peninsula as the Soviets had been in Afghanistan, by interfering with Muslim populations.

Al-Qaeda had been active within the region and Yemen before the formation of AQAP itself. An instance of terrorism in the area was the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000. Operatives killed 17 sailors and critically crippled a warship costing nearly a billion dollars with only a small watercraft laden with explosives (Johsen 2013, 72). Less than a year later the attacks of September 11, 2001 charged the US endeavor of bringing members of al-Qaeda to justice with a great deal more haste.

The history of AQAP lies in the mirrored regionalization of the original al-Qaeda terrorist group. Al-Qaeda operated in Yemen and the surrounding region far before the USS Cole attack in 2000. Other bombings and suicide attacks occurred in the region until 2005 when much of al-Qaeda was presumed to have been decimated by US military and ally efforts. It was not until about four years later in 2009 that a video showed a declaration that a reemerged al-Qaeda in the region had formed into a concrete threat. Formally, AQAP was created by Abd al-Karim al-Wahayshi in a January 2009 announcement wherein he declared the Saudi Arabia and Yemen branches of al-Qaeda formed into AQAP (Hellmich 2012, 619). By consolidating the two groups, al-Wahayshi was able to secure power, increasing the effectiveness of pursuing regional goals. The new leader of a newly minted AQAP pledged to target Yemeni, Saudi Arabian, and Western interests within a regional and international context (Hellmich 2012, 619). These goals reflected many of al-Qaeda’s original pursuits but translated to a regional scale. Such parallels would seem inevitable considering many of AQAP’s members were originally part of al-Qaeda. Al-Wahayshi himself was originally an understudy to Osama bin Laden (Johnsen 2013, xv) and garnered much of his power through that past proximity. AQAP could therefore be considered a ‘franchise’ of the al-Qaeda parent company. This franchise has been thought to number among 200 to 300 members (Hellmich 2012, 621) and up to 1,000 (Ackerman and Shactman 2012). Ultimately, however, the most critical number of AQAP members is what the US deems a security threat. A defined number could carry the reinforcement or the retraction of substantial US domestic and military aid.

Impact on State Belligerents

Besides the previously mentioned vicious attack on the USS Cole other terrorist plots have been intended for US audiences. A notable example was the purported ‘underwear bomber’ or ‘Christmas bomber,’ Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s attempt to bomb flight 253 in 2009. Kate Stanton notes that multiple reports sourced Umar’s training as having originated from AQAP in Yemen (2010). Another plot was attempted by hiding explosives in the ink cartridges of printers during their transport on a cargo plane. Although unsuccessful, the attempted international reach of AQAP has alarmed many US policy-makers. According to some US intelligence officers AQAP incorporates the “greatest threat to America” (Cloud and Dilanian 2012). Additionally, some CIA analysts perceived AQAP as such an “urgent threat” to US national security in 2010 they urged officials to call for expanded operations in Yemen and increase military aid to $1.2 billion (Hellmich 2012, 618). However, such large financial investments would be difficult to appropriate in an environment already filled with Afghanistan, Iraq, and other counterterrorism projects. Additionally, an infusion of cash could further complicate the motivations the Yemeni government would pursue in abusing their citizens in attempts to garner more foreign aid. These concerns were ultimately overcome.

Foreign Aid and Yemen

In order to understand some of the unusual measures taken by Yemen in reaching anti-terrorism goals we must review its history of international aid. Massive dragnet arrests at the urging of a foreign power do not exemplify normal state behavior but show the dedication of Yemeni leaders in obtaining external financial support. Foreign aid is critical to Yemen, in subsidizing the historically poor nation state and without it, Yemen would face a bleak situation on all fronts. The below World Bank graph shows the historical volatility of net official development assistance received by Yemen as noted in billions of U.S. dollars (2014).

Yemen Foreign Aid from 1960 to 2014.

Although Yemen was not actually a state until 1990 the sovereign actors occupying its geographical space have been receiving aid since the 1960s. The current extreme aid relationship between the US and Yemen is truly anomalous in comparison to historical trends. According to Sheila Carapico, “the US never invested heavily in Yemen, nor have the Yemenis seen the US as a benefactor” (2006, 185). Carapico goes on to state that the past aid relationship Yemen had with other states was a lot stronger and between 1968-1980 amounted to $150 million from the USSR and $84 million from China (2006, 185). This again was dwarfed by OPEC states giving $399 million between 1973-1981. The two primary reasons for such foreign aid was the political solidarity from the USSR and China with the socialist South Yemen state and “as part of [Saudi Arabia’s] regional anticommunist strategy” (Carapico 2006, 193). As global politics began to shift in the early 1990’s the promise of socialist support began to fade with the collapse of the USSR and the immense test of the First Gulf war came upon Yemen.

It was during the First Persian Gulf War in which Yemen gambled foreign aid support in what it believed a more appropriate course of action: by remaining neutral in the Iraq-Kuwait conflict (Cleveland and Bunton 2009, 494). Yemen was a rotating member of the Security Council when the United States was trying to pass resolution 678 in the United Nations, to secure the state of Kuwait from Iraqi invaders. Resolution 678 was the fundamental legal justification for the Allies to intervene under international law. When the issue came up for a vote, Yemen vetoed resolution 678 in favor of abstaining from military intervention in the Iraq-Kuwait conflict and instantly drawing the ire of the United States. Shortly after the vote, a high level US diplomat told the Yemeni diplomat, “this was the most expensive no-vote you ever cast” (Hellmich 2012, 625). Before Resolution 678, the US was giving Yemen a “token” $30 million in aid per year (Carapico 2006, 195). While not substantial in its own right the immense influence of the US on other institutions and states formed the hammer that would fall on Yemen. The US subsequently withdrew foreign aid from Yemen and advised other nations and organizations to do the same, as a punitive measure.

The opposition to Resolution 678 certainly cost Yemen dearly. Within days the United States “stopped its $70 million aid program to Yemen” while the “World Bank and the International Monetary Fund moved to block loans to the country” (Hellmich 2012, 625). Besides large Western organizations, a few of the regional powers within the Middle East punished Yemen in order to maintain the support of the United States. Saudi Arabia expelled more than eight hundred thousand Yemeni workers. Meanwhile, fellow Gulf States followed suit by expelling an additional fifty thousand Yemeni workers cumulatively (Cleveland and Bunton 2009, 494). This had a huge impact on Yemen’s economy. Up to a million workers were employed in Saudi Arabia during the 1980s and “their remittances accounted for over 40 percent of the gross domestic product of both North and South Yemen” (Cleveland and Bunton 2009, 494). Despite the fact that Yemen could never have stopped the First Persian Gulf War, it did not save it from the profound financial ire of a severely displeased US.

The waning level of foreign aid in 2005 illustrates a more contemporary occurrence of the foreign aid relationship Yemen had with the US. After tactically striking some of the key leadership of al-Qaeda in Yemen during the period between 2001-2005 the US dismissed any further need to pursue AQAP due to its limited threat.

As the level of perceived threat from Yemen diminished, so did the amount of foreign military and domestic aid. Aid to Yemen dried up as the US cut its $20 million aid program and the World Bank downsized its aid package from $420 to $280 million (Hellmich 2012, 626). As one Yemeni expert has stated, “without al-Qaeda, Yemen was just one more poor country” (Johnsen 2013, 186). If a state did not contain a security threat related to international terrorism in the post 9/11 world the US diminished some of the more ‘basic’ struggles, such as civil war and rebellion. This was especially difficult for Yemen considering the heightened status that al-Qaeda brought to US security interests and military spending in the region. Following 9/11 the US aid amount given to Yemen in combating terrorism was strong but diminished in 2005 due to less terrorist threats.

The modern relationship between the US and Yemen has recovered from this lull during the middle 2000s. Aid to Yemen in the fiscal year 2012 amounted to a staggering $356 million among a wide range of US agencies and accounted for the largest aid amount to Yemen ever (Sharp 2012, 14). Current aid in the fiscal year 2014 amounts to $142.6 million so far (Sharp 2014, 11). Please note that totals within report GAO-12-432R for FY2012 and FY2013 are incomplete.

Report Number GAO-12-432R 2009-2014.

This trend of increasing aid has been on the rise since the fiscal year 2007 due mainly to the dire straits of Yemen’s domestic scene and the threat of AQAP to regional and international affairs. From fiscal year 2007 to 2013, US aid in the millions has been, $61.914 in 2007, $26.296 in 2008, $123.382 in 2009, $299.071 in 2010, $159.70 in 2011, $316.48 in 2012, and $256 tentatively in 2013 (Sharp 2012, 20). Once again, please note GAO-12-432R has incomplete amounts for FY2012.

Report Number GAO-12-432R 2007-2012.

In addition to the US other states contribute Yemen in an effort to stabilize its humanitarian situation. These states formed the ‘Friends of Yemen Group’ and moved to distribute $5.7 billion in aid to Yemen that had been pledged previously in 2006 (Sharp 2012, 12). Despite the vast amounts of money pouring into Yemen the kleptocratic tendencies and corruption of state officials will result in most of the money never helping the average citizen.

With the large amount of aid going into Yemen it is necessary to note the effects of foreign aid on Yemen. Some critics focus on the potential for exploitation in the security field. If the nations giving aid to Yemen view their relationship from the perspective of security, Yemeni officials will continually exploit this fear for financial and political gain (Hill 2010, 10). However, the aid going into Yemen is not limited to security. Much of the humanitarian and investment aid Yemen receives is critical for Yemen’s future development, according to the international community and the Yemeni government (al-Shamahi 2012). Without much of the aid the US sends to Yemen the state would face profound domestic problems in addition to crippling potential future plans that are dependent on foreign aid. This dependency is dangerous, as declared by a 60% majority motion in a meeting of Yemeni citizens in 2012 (al-Shamahi). In this meeting the use of foreign aid by the Yemeni government caused more harm than good. While not representative of an entire society, such a declaration nonetheless signals that a segment of the population has recognized problems. The shadow of US foreign aid in Yemen has certainly demonstrated its constraints on the domestic actions of the Yemeni government. Despite these necessities the Yemeni dependency on foreign aid is rather obvious. Such a relationship is highlighted in its potential abuse in gaining additional aid by exaggerating security threats.

Weapons Provided to MOI through DOD’s Section 1207(n) Assistance Program. GAO-13-310. Publicly Released: Mar 20, 2013.

The central government of Yemen has a categorical incentive to continue the level of aid. Unfortunately, this has led to many analysts to conclude that Yemen is intentionally keeping conflicts, specifically the Houthi rebellion, as unresolved in order to secure international aid (Winter 2010, 400). A similar skepticism is shared of the Yemeni government’s relationship with AQAP, given that US aid is contingent upon fighting the terrorist group (Hellmich 2012, 621). More specifically, if Yemen was to meet artificial ‘progression levels’ set by external actors the state could secure foreign aid but at the expense of domestic legitimacy. Rather than focusing on domestic support that could ultimately be more valuable in fighting an insurgency the state has sourced its power to external actors. The Yemeni government can only operate within the parameters of external foreign aid and would likely collapse with all external aid cut off.

Many of these domestic consequences are already manifesting themselves as complications within the national politics of Yemen. Even with current sustained levels of international aid Yemen is still one of the poorest Arab world states. In 2012 substantial political unrest during the Arab Spring caused the World Food program to increase rations by 2.7 million in only 8 months (Sharp 2012, 13). Food insecurity is one of many additional immediate needs required by a broad number of Yemeni citizens. Perhaps the long term problem and nonviolently solved dilemma facing Yemen is the end of its oil reserves. Despite the vast amounts of aid pouring into the Yemen state the ability of the national government to resolve long standing systemic issues is rapidly being constrained by falling oil production (Hill 2010, 4). Such a critical analysis of Yemen oil production is appropriate due to the fact that the industry’s revenue accounts for 90% of export profit and 75% of government income (Hill 2010, 7). The entire infrastructure and economy of Yemen is based around oil, and would be completely devastated without their primary resource. The World Bank has forecasted Yemen’s “petroleum output will fall to zero by 2017” (Fontaine and Exum 2010). This production loss has already been manifested, as two of the largest oil fields in Yemen decreased their production output by 12% between 2007 and 2010 (Hill 2010, 7). Without the primary resource of oil artificially sustaining the Yemeni government the central government could collapse (Plaut 2008). The overall trend therefore is the increasing importance of foreign aid to Yemen and its role in shaping domestic politics. Without an independent source of income the Yemeni government will be increasingly more dependent on foreign aid as oil production slowly wanes over the next decade.

The Usual Suspects (Everyone)

Following the events of 9/11 the ‘War on Terror’ began to reshape the relationship the US had with many states throughout the world. Aimed at combating the rise of global terrorism, certain US policies provided large funds to regimes that assisted in achieving such goals. Yemen’s pursuit of foreign aid from the US was successful in the initial frenzy following 9/11 but ultimately evaporated around 2005. Once the US lost interest, state officials had to rectify aggressive policy measures meant to secure US aid with how they had abused their citizens.

Historically, Yemen had problems with terrorist groups and was therefore on track to be assisted by the US with domestic and military aid. The only problem, however, was that Yemen had not made any concrete demonstrations of anti-terrorist policies that were to US policy-maker’s satisfaction. Therefore, in 2001, Yemen made an effort to garner US support through the War on Terror by arresting “anybody it suspected of harboring support for al-Qaeda” (Hellmich 2012, 626). The demographic that was targeted was young men throughout the entire country that might be suspected of potentially supporting al-Qaeda. Rather than methodically utilizing police work or military intelligence the Yemeni state blindly rounded up a huge number of young men. Gregory Johnsen described this method by Yemeni officials as a “dragnet” that some guilty individuals got caught up in but “most were not” (2013, 77). The end goal might not have been to realistically detain actual members of al-Qaeda but to demonstrate actionable conduct to US officials. The conduct was able to win US financial support but ultimately at the cost of disenfranchising a large proportion of the Yemeni population. If the US had looked closer it would have witnessed its overall pursuit of suppressing regional al-Qaeda operations as having been unsuccessful due to the poor implementation by Yemeni officials.

The capital city of Sana’a in 1996. Built in a mountain valley at an altitude of 2,200 m, Sana’a has been inhabited for more than 2,500 years. In the 7th and 8th centuries, the city became an important center for the spread of Islam. We find this religious and political heritage in its 106 mosques, its 12 hammams and its 6,500 houses, all of which date from before the 11th century. The tower houses with many floors and the old adobe houses further add to the beauty of the site. Source: Werner Bayer

Although AQAP is essentially a foreign group to Yemen, the terrorist cell has ultimately started a chain reaction of the ‘accidental guerilla’ as outlined by David Kilcullen. The ideology of al-Qaeda or AQAP might not be appealing to natives of Yemen but the violent “backlash” from state governments in combating guerrilla fighting creates the “majority of [al-Qaeda’s] strength” (Kilcullen 2009, 34). Throughout the years of conflict with AQAP, Yemen has lost territory, regained territory, faced kidnappings, bombings, suicide bombings, and assassination attempts. One of the most brazen was a suicide bombing that left 96 soldiers dead only a short distance from the presidential palace (Sohlman 2012, 250). The response from government forces to such widespread actions is undoubtedly equal in scope and severity. The same phenomenon occurs with AQAP and native reactions to false imprisonment and violent drone strikes from external actors. When an individual’s entire family is killed from a drone strike or is falsely imprisoned to meet external ‘goals,’ levels of animosity will increase. Or, at the very least, the tacit approval of insurgencies becomes more pronounced.

However, some scholars disagree on the domestic perception of AQAP. Sarah Phillips notes that the “grassroots support” of AQAP is not as broad as many believe and the group’s ideology is not compatible with the domestic audience of Yemen (2011, 98). Rather than condemn the success of AQAP, Phillips recognizes Kilcullen’s phenomenon of the ‘accidental guerilla’ that results from blowback during disproportionate violence. The only way to get around this accidental characteristic is the establishment of a “legitimate and effective government” (2011, 99). Although not impossible, such a path would be beyond the ability of modern international relations. More to Phillips’ point is the isolation of government action as the primary source of antagonization in polarizing domestic audiences against state legitimacy. Without disproportionate violence from the state the presence of an insurgency such as AQAP would be less pronounced. The state can therefore be identified as exacerbating the problem into a more complicated problem in attempting to solve the original problem of insurgency.

Being falsely arrested by the state would reinforce sympathies with insurgent causes for many individuals. A young male ripped from his home would strip many households of their primary source of labor and income due to the traditional nature of many Yemeni families. The substantial loss of domestic stability would have many families reeling through lost harvests and untended trades sitting idle. The young men themselves would end up in close proximity to actual criminals and terrorist members that could potentially influence their formerly innocent habits and ideology. Actual terrorists that attempted to sympathize with innocent prisoners would have the compounded effect of empathy wherein they are both members of the prison system. As innocent people entered the prison system in Yemen they might not have supported al-Qaeda but “they probably did by the time they were released (Hellmich 2012, 626). The callous conduct by Yemeni state officials dismissed the potentiality of disenfranchising a whole swath of their citizens. Yemen showed actionable conduct for US officials only at the cost of “those falsely arrested becoming more sympathetic to the terrorists’ cause” (Hellmich 2012, 626). No longer would the young man in a distant settlement be politically neutral when witnessing the conflict between insurgent AQAP members and Yemeni state forces. This individual might not become operational and participate in the conflict but the complete erosion of political will dangerously forces state resources to depend entirely on external foreign assistance. All these domestic costs were extracted at the price of US non-intervention in troubled Yemen and the maintenance of plentiful US foreign aid. This, of course, lasted only until the US saw AQAP as a non-threat in Yemen and withdrew much of its aid in 2005, as previously explained.

“Innocent People Will Die”

In addition to the Yemeni military, the US military conducts operations in the conflict with AQAP by using unmanned aerial vehicles for reconnaissance and direct action. These drones operate through remote control and can provide accurate aerial intelligence in addition to being able to deliver substantial firepower to remote locations. Using more direct sources of physical violence, including special operations, have been determined to reduce the Yemeni government’s political legitimacy (Katz 2003, 42). Citizens view their central government as incapable of combatting a few hundred or thousand terrorists and must rely on the might of a foreign power to stay ahead. This effect would be magnified if there were actual US military personnel acting in a combat role within Yemen. It is therefore useful for the US to create a mechanical buffer zone with drones in order to avoid the political fallout. A better resolution would be the fortification of Yemeni military capabilities in combating AQAP independent of US drone campaigns. However, many US officials would be skeptical of Yemeni capabilities without US drone strike capabilities and other methods of guaranteeing security would have to be developed. Despite the rough transition period of moving away from drone strikes, the reclamation of independent Yemeni military capabilities would improve the political legitimacy of the regime enough for the difficulties to be worth it.

The tribal region of Pakistan has been the most identifiable area of operations for drones in the media. This might have been accurate for ongoing US operations until 2012 when the number of drone strikes in Yemen surpassed the numbers in Pakistan. By the summer of 2012 there had been 23 drone strikes in Yemen during the year while Pakistan had 22 (Ackerman and Shactman 2012). Since 2002 there have been 154 drone strikes in Yemen with approximately 800 casualties including 97 civilians. (Murray 2013). Drones are not limited to operations with Yemen or the Middle East and have become the poster child for a new incarnation of modern war. However, these tools are not used indiscriminately, as all drone operations in Yemen are approved by Yemeni officials (Rohde 2012). On a US policy level, all drone strikes are individually approved by the US President (Becker and Shane 2012). With such requirements for drone strikes it is difficult to imagine weighing the costs and benefits of certain sets of intelligence when in reality there could be a number of innocent bystanders.

The greatest mishap of utilizing drone strikes is not the determination of their effectiveness but their overall use. In an interview, former President Bill Clinton stated that no matter the precision of your weapons, “when you set them off, innocent people will die” (Coll 2004, 536). The former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Cartwright, has shared this sentiment recently. In a 2013 address to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs he stated he was seeing “blowback” effects due to the War on Terror drone campaign (Mazzetti and Shane 2013). It does not matter if the perceived validity of intelligence is nearly irrefutable there still exists a chance of error. This margin of error might represent half of a family ripped apart by the ‘precision’ of a laser guided missile. Guerrilla fighter expert David Kilcullen relates a prediction by Qiao Liang that states that the US must follow its defined rules or the “whole world won’t trust it” (2009, 7). It is with this estimation that the US is treading a very fine line between punishing the killers of innocent civilians while unintentionally becoming guilty of the same type of crime. This very line was tragically crossed in the summer of 2013, when three suspected members of al-Qaeda confronted a cleric behind a Mosque a US drone strike killed them all (Murray 2013). This might seem successful if the fact that the cleric just finished an aggressive sermon denouncing al-Qaeda was ignored. In an effort to exterminate members of al-Qaeda the US inadvertently murdered perhaps one of the driving forces behind anti-terrorism with the community. The community was in the beginning stages of slowly departing from al-Qaeda ideologically but is now in the midst of questioning state actions. This example is reflective in the greater difficulty the US is having in conducting effective military action with drones. One journalist even described it as the US helping Yemen with one hand while killing it with the other (al-Muslimi 2013). The Yemeni regime is not immune to this interpretation either. When President Abed Hadi met with the US CIA director a total of two drone strikes occurred during the time of the meeting (al-Muslimi 2013). While the timing may be a coincidence the interpretation by Yemeni citizens was that Hadi was becoming a US yes-man (al-Muslimi 2013).

The implications for waning legitimacy are profound. US drone strike actions are tearing away its image in the eyes of the public. Such was the case when Farea al-Muslimi was able to testify before the US Congress earlier this year. In his testimony al-Muslimi was able to project the sentiments of his home villagers following the drone strike that killed a member of AQAP. Instead of arresting the man, al-Muslimi stated what terrorist propaganda could not achieve was instead accomplished “in one instant” by “one drone strike” (Savage 2013). Warping the rule of law in the eyes of Yemenis has seriously damaged the perceived legitimacy of US interests and in turn, to Yemeni state interests. The below U.S. State Department polling results reflect this public perception reality about U.S. military action within Yemen (Sharp 2012, 19).

INR Opinion Analysis.

Conclusion

The conflict between AQAP, Yemen, and the US has highlighted significant problems with external foreign aid and its effectiveness. The actions of the insurgent group AQAP has had a profound impact on the domestic and international relations of Yemen and the US. The US and Yemen have not been idle to these threats and have dramatically shifted their level of action within the region. However, these actions have proven ineffective and sometimes even counterproductive to effectively combating the danger and abilities of AQAP. The shadows of US foreign aid constraints on the Yemeni government are counterproductive to effectively combating AQAP and undermine the capabilities of the Yemeni state. Conduct by states within the Yemen conflict has seriously changed public perception. Unfortunately this public perception has mostly been migrated to a negative outlook. Some of these state actions are sadly justified due to the nature of poverty within Yemen. However, in the attempt to secure foreign aid from the US the Yemeni government dismissed more important domestic considerations. Additionally, the method of gaining such foreign aid with ‘dragnet’ policing effectively alienated a large demographic of citizens. Such motivational themes have seriously diminished the political legitimacy of the Yemeni regime. If US foreign aid was used to improve the quality of life for the majority of the domestic audience the outlook could be different but this is unfortunately not the case.

External actions by US interests also prove problematic for ‘winning’ the conflict in Yemen. The efforts of drone strikes are ambitious in their aim at exterminating AQAP operatives but innocent casualties hinder the overall mission. This is especially compounded when town leaders are killed who were advocating anti-al-Qaeda ideology. Reactions by fellow townspeople are logically confused as to the aims of the US drone campaign. Although a strike may kill many more operatives than civilians the innocent deaths have significant impact nonetheless. Regular citizens are able to see the contradictory pursuits of punishing murderers while carrying a margin of error in committing murder anew. Overall, the pursuits of US foreign aid and policy in Yemeni are substantially constraining the national government in their ability to meet domestic needs and systemic requirements while combating AQAP.

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Documenting the Davis County Tea Party

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 10:30:00 -0600

The National Doctors Tea Party made a stop at the Utah State Capital in the summer of 2010 to hold a rally in opposition of President Barack Obama’s proposed health care overhaul.

All images were taken on a Mamiya 645 Pro with a 80mm f/2.8 lens. Film used was Kodak Portra 400 while outdoors and Portra 800 for indoors.

I saw this guy wearing tea bags on his colonial era hat on the news one night. I knew about the Tea Party movement yet it was still funny to see the little bags swing around as he talked to the interviewer. I thought it would make a great portrait with all those dangling accessories. It was the late spring of 2010 and the country was still reeling from the Great Recession. I had a newly minted Political Science bachelors degree but it didn’t seem to help with any of the hundreds of jobs I had applied to.

I was bored waiting for some sort of job to materialize from my endless applications. I decided to continue my hobby of political photography essays I had originally started in college. These essays involved a series of images that convey a visual message rather focused on a political theme. In many cases the visual cues can give better, or at least different, insight into a political topics. Often with a greater view of humanity from a normally abstract topic only represented in words. This hobby was a natural combination of my fascination with politics and my love for documentary photography.

A ‘Grassroots’ Movement

The Tea Party movement manifested after the financial meltdown of 2008 as a reaction to high taxes, government bailouts for big corporations, and perceived fiscal irresponsibility.¹ It was named after the historic Boston Tea Party and so the associated iconography of tea bags and colonial era clothing was the standards of members to show their political affiliation. As far as specific policy, the group advocated for reduced government spending, lower taxes, and a strict originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. You could think of it as a more fiscally conservative oriented section of the Republican Party rather than social issue zealots.² As the movement gained momentum, it influenced the national political landscape, particularly steering the policy of the Republican Party,³ pushing for a return to conservative principles and limited government.

Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) held a town hall meeting at Farmington City Hall. Much of the meeting was fielding comments and questions by local citizens. The line to speak at the microphone (camera right) stretched to the back of the crowd throughout most of the meeting.

Members of the David County Tea Party canvasing the surrounding suburbs and installing signs for Morgan Philpot’s campaign in 2010.

Members of the David County Tea Party pooled funds together to rent a call center after normal business hours. A rough script was used to call voters within the district in order to spread education about Tea Party supported candidates.

The Tea Party movement was national in scope but prided itself in being grassroots derived. This claim is dubious yet it helped me locate a local chapter where I didn’t have to travel very far to attend events and gatherings. I won’t deny the simple fact that the Tea Party was active locally. This whole photography essay is based on individuals being active in my local community. My disagreement comes from funding, which was sourced primarily from the Koch brothers⁴ at a national level through the group Americans for Prosperity.⁵ I would, however, give weight to the statement that it was a grassroots movement within the fact that individuals were active in their respective geographic areas.

I found the Davis County Tea Party chapter after a quick search on Facebook. In a message to the group administrator I explained my background, goals, and interest in documenting their gatherings if they would have me. They were more than happy to have me attend their meetings. I could only imagine the strong fervor they were operating in. In the late summer of 2010 the Tea Party movement was especially potent and lively. They would later sweep the primaries with victories that rocked the Republican Party.⁶ Not only did this usurp traditional Republican members, it in fact helped maintain and lengthen the majority the conservativie bloc held in the House of Representatives.⁷ They could only become a stronger and more validated movement by inviting a young student photographer to their meetings.

The National Doctors Tea Party made a stop at the Utah State Capital in the summer of 2010 to hold a rally in opposition of President Barack Obama’s proposed health care overhaul.

The Davis County Tea Party group held regularly meetings at local civic or religious buildings. Members here are pictured at their semi-regular location at the Mountain Road Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Each meeting was started with a prayer and was followed by the pledge of allegiance. The focus of meetings were varied but would usually include a review of a topic central to Tea Party doctrine.

A central tenant of Tea Party doctrine is the opposition of federal power. In the Take Back Utah rally, many members of the Tea Party found support with other local groups in decrying the majority of Utah State lands being federally held. In the American West, this is especially relevant considering that Utah is 66.5% federal land.

A citizen of Davis County votes in late 2010.

My introduction to the Davis County Tea Party was at the Mountain Road Evangelical Presbyterian Church. They got together on a semi regular basis in a group of 20 to 50 people. Each meeting had a central topic covered by a group member or an invited guest speaker. Another large portion of time spent was going over local candidates running for office and if their platform meshed with Tea Party ideals. After a litmus test of sorts they would invite members to participate in that candidates campaign through a variety of methods. In most cases that was canvassing neighborhoods, puttinig up signs, or canvassing over the phone. Additional group events were listed at the end of each meeting and were important for knowing when Tea Party oriented groups were orchestrating political rallies or other events nearby. For instance, when the National Doctors Tea Party group made a stop in Salt Lake City, the Davis County Tea Party group was vocal about getting times and date information distributed through their group.

After my first meeting I was graciously invited to many of these extracurricular events and gatherings. The first event only a week later was attending the National Doctors Tea Party held political rally at the Utah State Capitol. The group was on a country wide road trip to garner support in opposition to Obamacare. While I had hoped for dangling tea bags from colonial hats I instead got white lab coats.

A second summer gathering at the Utah State Capitol was the Take Back Utah rally, which argued against the vast amount of federally owned land in Utah. The central tenant of the argument was along Tea Party doctrine but attracted a wide variety of other political groups, some of which were outside the Overton window.

Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) talking with members of Davis County Tea Party after a town hall meeting at Farmington City Hall. During the meeting he said he was glad people were ‘mad as hell’ about the state of federal politics.

Kirk Pearson poses for a photograph outside the Mountain Road Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

Members of the Davis County Tea Party canvasing the surrounding suburbs and installing signs for Morgan Philpot’s campaign in 2010. Segments of the neighborhood were assigned to teams, which were given a share of the overall supplies. One of the provided materials was a map of household political affiliation. Much of this information is public record and allowed for these teams to skip certain politically affiliated homes and concentrate on unaffiliated households.

The National Doctors Tea Party made a stop at the Utah State Capital in the summer of 2010 to hold a rally in opposition of President Barack Obama’s proposed health care overhaul.

Most of the shadowing I did with this group was the politically mundane activities of theory reinforcement. There is only so many times you can hear the same political ideology at each meeting or rally being argued that you begin to tune it out. I say this with the utmost respect and as a holder of bachelor’s degree in political science. However, there was one specific instance of tense energy.

Towards the end of summer, when the primaries were beginning to materialize, Senator Orrin Hatch started scheduling these town hall meetings in each of the counties. Even though Senator Hatch wasn’t up for re-election until 2012 he saw the writing on the wall of this exponentially growing political movement. And he was certainly a member of the Republican establishment that was getting rocked. Getting in front of this energy would be crucial to him if he wanted any chance in 2012. The materialized energy in that town hall was everything I had heard about the Tea Party movement. Anger at the spending the federal government was doing, righteous indignation about big banks being bailed out when normal people had lost their homes, and the perceived socialization of the federal government through Obamacare.

Question after question was posed to Senator Hatch from the seemingly endless line of people that stretched the length of the hall and started wrapping around the back. There was always an empty political platitude from each of the questions from the public, meant to draw a round of cheering support as they stepped away from the microphone. Some of the questions were directed at Senator Hatch for being a problem as part of the Republican establishment that had failed them. Some were just a venting from the public. Towards the end of the meeting Senator Hatch proclaimed he was happy people were “mad as hell” about the current political state.

Members of the Davis County Tea Party canvasing the surrounding suburbs and installing signs for the Morgan Philpot campaign in 2010. Segments of the neighborhood were assigned to teams, which were given a share of signs and leaflets. One of the provided materials was a map of household political affiliation. Much of this information is public record and allowed for these teams to skip certain politically affiliated homes and concentrate on unaffiliated households.

Members of the Davis County Tea Party pooled funds together to rent a call center after normal business hours. A rough script was used to call voters within the district in order to spread education about Tea Party supported candidates.

‌ ‌ ‌

Katie Connolly, “What Exactly Is the Tea Party?” BBC News, September 16, 2010, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-11317202. ↩︎
Andrew Neil. “The Tea Party: On the Road with America’s Right-Wing Radicals,” The Guardian, October 30, 2010, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/oct/31/tea-party-sarah-palin-andrew-neil. ↩︎
David Barstow, “Tea Party Lights Fuse for Rebellion on Right,” The New York Times, February 15, 2010, https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/us/politics/16teaparty.html. ↩︎
Suzanne Goldenberg, “Tea Party Movement: Billionaire Koch Brothers Who Helped It Grow,” The Guardian, October 13, 2010, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/oct/13/tea-party-billionaire-koch-brothers. ↩︎
Frank Rich, “The Billionaires Bankrolling the Tea Party,” The New York Times, August 28, 2010, https://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/29/opinion/29rich.html. ↩︎
Ewen MacAskill, “Tea Party Rocks Republicans with Sweeping Primary Victories,” The Guardian, September 15, 2010, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/sep/15/tea-party-republican-primary-victories. ↩︎
Catherine E. Shoichet and Shannon Travis. “Election Projections Fuel Tea Party Fervor.” CNN, November 3, 2010, https://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/11/03/tea.party/index.html. ↩︎

China's Informal Democracy

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 10:30:00 -0600

Thousands of students from local colleges and universities march to Tiananmen Square, Beijing, on May 4, 1989, to demonstrate for government reform. AP Photo/Mikami

This paper was written as part of my Political Science bachelor’s thesis while attending Brigham Young University-Hawaiʻi. My advisor was Dr. Michael Murdock.

Introduction

Over the past decade, the People’s Republic of China has experienced an exponential growth in the frequency and size of what China’s Public Security Ministry calls “mass incidents,” or commonly known as protests. According to the Security Ministry, over 87,000 mass incidents were reported in 2005 (Quek 2009). The amount reported in 2003 was fifty percent less (Quek 2009). Such astonishing numbers show an undeniable evolution in Chinese politics. On an ever-growing scale, it appears that Chinese citizens are turning to the political medium of protests to have their voices heard.

The substantial growth in the amount of protests highlights two evolving characteristics of Chinese political participation. The first is that protests must be seen as the most viable way to politically participate because there are no other effective mediums. In a nation where there are only local elections and citizens have no real weight on the national scene it can cause problems. Large-scale protests are substantial methods in getting the attention of officials where letters and petitions would not. The second characteristic of changing Chinese political participation is the proliferation of this trend. The simple fact is that these growing rates of protests are affecting all of China and do not specifically target one region. Protests might occur more often in certain areas of China but in general vary across economic, geographic, and ethnic boundaries. In all of my research, there were no single, unyielding overall trends.

Breaking from the historical stereotype of being a repressive government, bent on squashing any dissenting protests, the People’s Republic of China has entered a new era of cooperation and flexibility. Where the government would normally clamp down with violence, officials are listening and attempting to fulfill protestor’s requests. In some instances after protests had successfully swayed the government to act in their favor, official agents promised in the future to consult the public by going door to door (Jianmin, Pan 2009). Other cases included millions of dollars of planned projects being moved, put on hold, or heavily modified as a direct result of widespread popular protesting. Another case involved an entire industrial park of a city being closed wholly because of civilian protests (Cody 2005). To the cynical eye, such cases appear as exceptions to the normal outpouring of repressive measures used by Chinese military and police that are frequently published in the international media. Over the years, the average media reader has been put under a barrage of stories describing the horrific actions taken against protesters in China. This is due to the Western media’s focus on sensational and confrontational stories that sell. Despite this, the fact that these cooperative cases even exist is evidence to the evolving nature of the political process throughout the nation of China. The concessions protests are obtaining from the government every few weeks would be completely unheard only a few years ago.

Again, drawing upon the cynical eye, it might appear that the rapidly growing amount of protests within the nation of China signals a broader trend of social instability. This might even go as far to triggering a loss of the government’s power and control over the nation. Rather than fortifying this perspective, the range of cases researched show the opposite. In every case except one, the reasons for protesting consisted of no anti-government sentiment aimed at any sort of revolution. Even with corruption cases, officials accused by protestors were not identified with the government, which strives to maintain party integrity. The most common reasons for protests were domestic and one-issue problems. These problems never really put the protesters in direct confrontation to the government in a manner where the citizens wanted to overthrow the regime. As we will see later, Chinese citizens desire stable and conservative living.

Even with a growing trend of government cooperation, officials and police still strive to maintain public order. Protestors that do handle themselves in violent ways are accordingly arrested to keep the public safe and to stop damages (Eckholm 2002). This is a far departure from the precedent in China where simply presenting a dissenting opinion warranted an arrest or internment at a re-education camp. When Chinese citizens can present their demands to the public by protesting, even though it might contrast the government’s goals, they are in essence as politically evolved as any other Western nation.

The status China is reaching is completely democratic but not in the traditional, Western definition. Through protests, the nation of China has reached a point where popular movements matter. Officials have started to recognize the importance of maintaining political stability and so are making concessions to achieve that end. Although they are non representative and informal, the growing number of protests embodies the method in which citizens can essentially vote. Protests that are successful have made China an informal democracy wherein the people can enact popular change.

Petitions and Protests Within China: Imperial and Republic

As one of the most advanced ancient civilizations in the world, some of the imperial dynasties of China had a simple method of governmental petitioning. More or less a formal letter, xinfang and shangfang, or “Letters and Visits” was a form of extrajudicial action according to Elizabeth Lynch (2010). If a citizen experienced any sort of problem not solvable by a lower ranking official, they would write these requests to higher officials with more authority to decide on the case (Lynch 2010). The concept is that citizens whom have experienced corruption or negligence on the local level still maintain belief that a national, or federal official would be better. This would ensure a regime to last for a significantly longer amount of time. Modern democracies have adopted this ideology when citizens send letters to congressional representatives and other officials. Petitions are not as new as Western democracy but have existed for thousands of years throughout many Chinese dynasties.

Beijing’s new Letters & Visits Office - near the South 4th Ring Road. Source: Elizabeth M. Lynch

Following the last imperial government, the Qing dynasty, the system of petition was largely not used because of the tumultuous nature of power in the Chinese region. From 1911 to the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, residents within China had no singular government to petition. With the formation of the PRC the petition system was reincorporated but was undoubtedly highly regulated as the Chinese Communist Party sought to solidify opinion. Over the next sixty years the institution of petitioning continued but also grew into the modern problem it is today.

Even though petitions have been useful for such a great length of time, the contemporary backlog of “Letters and Visits” has choked any chance of resolution for petitioners. According to Chinese statistics, as related by Elizabeth Lynch, the petitioning system in China receives roughly “five million petitions each year…many outside China consider it more around ten million…[and] is largely a failure” (2010). With the inundation of petitions, many citizens never resolve their claim and “are there for years” (Lynch 2010). Given a system so overwhelmed and unresponsive, the best way people have discovered to be heard is to create a protest that attracts the public’s attention. This is normally the last method since it is the most confrontational and dangerous but in some cases is easily progressed due to the bureaucratic tie-ups of petitioning. In the city of Huaxi, which will be discussed later, protestors attempted to use all other forms before using protests (Cody 2005). In a sense, Chinese citizens have reinvested their political communication by using protests when petitions are problematic. Chinese culture in itself might demand some sort of outlet for demands on authority and with one method exhausted they have utilizing another.

A ’lawyer’ of sorts to help others with the petitioning process - Beijing, China. Source: Elizabeth M. Lynch

State of the New Political Medium

The method of protesting in China has changed entirely from decades earlier. Not only is there a significant growth in the occurrence of protests but the tactics used on both sides are becoming extremely sophisticated. According to Murray Tanner, the amount of protests reported from 1993 to 1999 grew 268% (2004). In no year did the growth of protests fall below nine percent and even spiked to 25 and 67 percent in 1997 and 1998, respectively (Tanner 2004). A few years later between 2003 and 2005 the amount of protests increased another fifty percent in a matter of only two years (Quek 2009). Such inordinate growth signals that something is indeed occurring within the political system of China that cannot be easily reversed. No nation experiences such altering statistics without some sort of significant change in the political relationship between citizens and government. This could also, more specifically, be the unwritten expectations each party has for the other.

The total unchecked growth in modern protests China is experiencing could be a result of many reasons. As mentioned before, the largely useless system of petitions has turned citizens to another way in communicating their grievances to the government. Another reason could be based on the idea of the “snowball” effect. When only one protests succeeds in achieving its aim, others look to their example as hope that their own goals can be reached through government concession. Once another protest succeeds the cycle continues, especially on a regional level such as with protests in the Taishi, where protests spread to other nearby villages (Cody 2005). An additional reason lies in the technologically advancing state of China. With the plethora of civil projects such as the Three Gorges dam and the nation wide high-speed bullet train project, the displacement of citizens is unavoidable. Compare this to periods of time decades ago when such large projects were unheard of. The final reason might be that the levels of dissatisfaction and corruption have risen in China during recent years. This reason also plays into using protests as an alternative source for communication but more specifically shows the fundamental problem of the current system. Dissatisfaction would explain the rise in protests because citizens are not normally in contact with core government functionaries. So they must turn to other means to achieve satisfaction. Despite the rising amount of protests there have also been changes in the way Chinese people and police approach protests.

Police Attitude: Foundational Tremors

Police have begun to treat protests differently over the past few years with their own specific aims at maintaining social stability. According to Murray Tanner, in an unusually transparent way, police are acknowledging cases of protest where before their existence was simply denied (2004). Also, in an effort to target the cause of protests, police come into contact with citizens before demonstrations are held. In any of China’s major cities these tactics include “employee buy-offs, repression, and divide and conquer tactics that any historian of Carnegie, Pinkerton and the early U.S. labor movement would instantly recognize” (Tanner 2004). This is a brilliant tactic utilized by the police of China. By targeting individuals, police separate the broad popular movement into manageable sections. Handling these small sections is much easier than facing the full popular movement that might consist of upwards to sixty thousand angry protestors. Without the mass crowds of fellow supporters, many individuals would crack under police pressure during a violent three on one engagement. Even with these questionable tactics, police also realize the situation the nation is in.

Chinese police know that violence is not the solution to ending protests and the use of these tactics, such as combating anti-government demonstrations, are no longer justified. Police are “conceding that protest [are] widespread and [they] enjoy growing popular sympathy” according to Murray Tanner (2004). Furthermore they are “scrambling to learn new anti protest techniques aimed at containing and defusing, rather than brutally squelching, demonstrations” (Tanner 2004). Specifically from the change in popular opinion, the police of China have altered their actions accordingly. It is unsure whether the source of this change originated in the previously mentioned popular sympathy or official government instructions that could have in turn been influenced by popular sympathy. Undoubtedly it was a combination of all the above but looking at anything popular that influenced the entire system means something reached its mark. Besides the use of less violence, police and officials are increasingly aware that most protests are not aimed against the government. Modern Chinese police “increasingly admit that most demonstrators are motivated by legitimate grievances against rapacious managers and corrupt local officials, and are not just pawns of anti Communist conspirators (Tanner 2004). This is a significant impact on perspective for the police where in the era of Tiananmen Square, some protestors were seen as the enemy to the state. Now that police and government officials realize these citizens have credible grievances not aimed at revolution, it would be much easier for them to help them or step aside if directly confronted. It would also make it much harder for police to use violent repressive tactics on a group with a cause they would champion themselves if caught in the situation. This change in the definition and perception of protests has changed the whole way in which the government deals with them. Although violent cases still occur, such as the one in Taishi in late 2005, they are certainly on the decline compared to previous decades. What matters most is that the relationship between police and protestors has changed dramatically, which would allow for new, unprecedented outcomes.

A truck is almost buried in people as it makes its way through the crowd of thousands gathered in Tiananmen Square in a pro-democracy rally, on May 17, 1989. AP Photo/Sadayuki Mikami

Protestors

As the police have evolved to deal with protests, so have citizens in becoming effective at protesting. Protestors have abandoned their tactics of “deliberately small-scale, self-contained [methods] they adopted in the 1990s to avoid repression” (Tanner 2004) and are expanding in the opposite way. In a growing trend, protests no longer fear the wide sweeping arm of the government because the government no longer acts that way. The consequences and punishments must have lessened or been less frequently utilized for something such as this to happen. Also, the government fears social instability. Going opposite of the 1990s, “protests are expanding in average size, becoming more organized and confrontational, and increasingly link demonstrators from several workplaces or neighborhoods” (Tanner 2004). It is astonishing to read such a change in the social scene in a matter of only a decade or two. Protestors are going against everything that made them survive a few years ago in what seemingly is now the successful method. This type of boisterous behavior further reveals not only the change in Chinese citizens but also their perception of the government and what they expect from it.

Being able to organize large movements that are confrontational without being swiftly repressed by police speaks volumes about the recent transformation of the government. Without the government of two decades ago, Chinese protests are becoming more confident and expectant of their ability to demonstrate. A popular saying in China says, as related by Murray Tanner, “Causing a big ruckus wins you a big solution; a small ruckus wins a small solution; and without a ruckus, you get no solution” (2004). This has never been truer for Chinese citizens wishing to have their voices heard. Passing up methods such as the messy State Bureau of Letters and Calls that can last years (Lynch 2010), citizens turn to a medium that has been increasingly successful. There are really no other ways for citizens to grab the attention of senior officials. Protests are then probably the most significant modern method of viable political participation for Chinese citizens on matters above the local level or in the case of local corruption, the only method.

Weighty Political Medium

Today in China, protests are a significant medium in which citizens can be heard. Not only are protests “heard” by local officials, but also are often the tools used to reach a national audience. In addition to a national audience, protests are more able to reach the international theater with improvements in technology. Analysts and undergraduate researchers like myself look to protests in China as representations of trends and political transformations. It is certainly easier to look at exponentially growing trends of social demonstrations than the closed doors of the Chinese Communist Party. In the words of Wu Xian following a protest in Xiamen that moved a 1.4 billion dollar chemical facility, “The protest increased people’s awareness about democracy. People now know they can express their opinions and be heard” (Bristow 2008). Although this statement is probably unique to the situation in Xiamen, which will be discussed later, the mentality of that existing in China is surreal. The term surreal perfectly describes someone’s reaction to such a statement after studying the politics of China only fifteen years ago. With protestors’ modern successes there do exist specific parameters that add effectiveness to demonstrations.

In probably the most obvious characteristic of effective protests, having a large attendance is absolutely necessary. With no protestors there is no protest. The more individuals that are part of the protest the more important it seems to local, national, and international viewers. This comes from basic democratic theory wherein the more people who support an idea the more “fit” it seems. If ten people in a city wanted a cleaner public transportation system and demonstrated, it would hardly matter to the government or media. Instead, if close to a thousand or even ten thousand demonstrated, the amount of attention and weight behind the protest increases dramatically over the previous example. This proves to be the result in nearly all the successful protests that obtained government concessions.

Outnumbered in Huaxi

In the city of Huaxi, China, a protest erupted in the middle of 2005 following the chronic pollution from a nearby industrial park of mostly chemical plants that produced plastics. Following two weeks of a sort of camp sit-in, where elderly protestors occupied an industrial park with tents (Cody 2005), a crackdown of 3,000 police occurred. The elderly protestors had pitched tents in an effort to stop the pollution of the 82.3-acre park that the city had opposed from the beginning but had been forced in by municipal authorities (Cody 2005). In response to the crackdown, 20,000 peasants from the immediate region descended on the industrial park where police were tearing down tents and dispersing the elderly demonstrators. A battle ensued once the two groups made contact and the protestors “were in no mood to bow to authority” following four years of claims that the park had been causing significant environmental damage (Cody 2005). Since the protestors outnumbered the police significantly, the battle was won in the demonstrators favor and the industrial park was once again occupied. After police fled, protestors wrecked and flipped over cars. Comically, when migrant workers snuck into the courtyard later that day to scavenge for parts among destroyed vehicles, villagers called the police but they refused to respond (Cody 2005). With the industrial park once again under the control of the protestors, demonstrations continued until headway was made into closing the park. Six of the thirteen factories were ordered to move out of Huaxi for good and officials organized groups that went around to peasant homes, urging them to stop their protests (Cody 2005). Once some of these conditions were met, the tents were taken down at the parks but “activists said they put the town council and officials on notice that if the factories started operating again, the tents [would] go back up” (Cody 2005). The audacity for these activists to threaten the government correlates with the invulnerable group mentality they had during the height of demonstrations. Rather than use extremely repressive tools, such as the military, officials are using surgically precise, smaller three on one tactics that were discussed in the last section. Even though police have vowed to begin an investigation into whom the leaders of the riots were, they will certainly be careful in conducting themselves.

Following a drawn out ordeal that eventually ended in the industrial parks closure, the significance of numbers is demonstrated. Although this case is more of an overwhelming force of numbers it nonetheless signaled a distinct and popular opinion that the government had to respect. In two aspects the government had to respect the decision of the people, both in the incapacity to stop the protests, and the overwhelming popular majority. Going against the popular majority on the scale of Huaxi would create a fiasco the government has no desire to seek. Not to mention, the requests these protestors made are moderately reasonable and non-revolutionary. Nothing is really inherently changed in the power and legitimacy of the CCP by removing polluting factories next to a village. No one wants to live next to an eighty-acre industrial park that is destroying the local environment. The only thing threatening the government in this case is the snowball effect where other cities and villages demand that their needs are met. The number of those attending protests really influenced the types of decisions the government faced and was a factor in Huaxi. With more protestors, the success of the demonstrations becomes more realistic.

Another characteristic of effective protests is the ability to draw attention to the demonstration. The whole point of protesting is to draw attention to an issue and the more attention you garner, the more successful the protest. Attention is gained from many things including the amount of people protesting, property damage you inflict, number of people who know about the protest, and the sensational worthiness of the incident causing the protest. Within the recent history of China, attention was not as attractive with the repressive nature of the government concerning ideology contrary to the Chinese Communist Party. But now with the growing proliferation of protests, unprecedented cooperation of the government, and rapid communication with new technology, increased attention only legitimizes a protest. The target audience of attention may be something only above the local or municipal government but could even include the international theater. At different levels the attention certainly equals a different response. A corruption protest covered by the media in the same province does not gain much effective attention. Comparatively, an incident broadcasted around the world draws both international pressure and the complete attention of national leaders.

Even the national attention of the Chinese Communist Party can be valuable if officials are willing. After a protest involving tens of thousands of people in the city of Liaoyang, China, a team of “anti graft investigators” was sent to the city (Eckholm 2002). This act resulted in the arrest of several officials originally named in the protest. In another protest involving tens of thousands, farmers demonstrated to obtain better compensation after a dam was planned that would flood their land. Thereafter, the Pubugou dam project in the Sichuan province was put on hold by the intervention of the central government and a party official was sacked (Lim 2004). This is not always the case as the Tibetan protests before the 2008 Olympics in China show. Protestors experienced a fierce violent crackdown despite worldwide attention. This might change as China continues to integrate itself into the global economic and political scene where it does not want to sever potential trade deals with sensitive nations.

Jumping ahead in an effort to steal the attention of senior officials on the national scene is not what protestors do regularly. Lower methods of calling on the government are far easier and less dangerous for both citizens and police. During the industrial park protest in Huaxi, China, villagers wrote an open letter to the municipal government following the leak of a confidential report. In this report Party Secretary Wang Wei warned, “pollution from the industrial park was a danger to residents and agriculture” (Cody 2005). Even with this evidence the municipal government “turned a deaf ear” (Cody 2005). Following the municipal rejection, villagers sent a delegation to the Zhejiang provincial headquarters in Hangzhou and Beijing. In Beijing, the delegation left petitions at the “premier’s” office and the State Environmental Protection Administration” (Cody 2005). Again the villagers were rejected and turned to the previously discussed protests. What this pre-case highlights is the last resort use of protests. Most individuals do not go outside with a sign and overturn cars after they are wronged; they usually seek normal methods of resolution. Chinese citizens are attempting to communicate with the government with various concerns and are not able to have them heard. A potential solution to forestalling these epic protests is opening up the petition system the protestors could not utilize in the Huaxi case. For the economic middle class in China, they are already familiar with how useless the lower system is and sometimes leap directly to protests.

Middle Class: Protestors Poster Child

Among any group of protestors in China, none are more effective than the affluent middle class. Rising from poverty over the last few decades, the Chinese middle class has filled the role of the nation’s growing economy. The Chinese Academy of Social Science’s report in 2004 defined the middle class as “families with assets valued from 150,000 [$18,137] to 300,000 yuan [$36,275]” (Zhigang 2004). Members of the Chinese middle class are able to do more than comfortably survive; they increasingly have modern appliances, luxury cars, and homes. With this increasing affluence, certain demands upon the government begin to form from the middle class. These demands are generally based in a desire for a “more sustainable and healthy development of the Chinese economy” (Zhigang 2004) for whatever specific reason. For a growing middle class, “the moderate and conservative ideology of the main stratum tends to be accepted as the mainstream ideology of a society and thus helps safeguard social stability by forcing out extremism” (Zhigang 2004). With this explanation it is easier to view the “mass-incident” growth in China in a much safer perspective.

Members of the middle-class see actions outside of the moderate spectrum and wish to move back to something stable and moderated. Such incidents include both protests in Shanghai or Xiamen where projects were introduced that would negatively affect many citizens. In either case, property values of citizens would be extremely depreciated if the proposed projects were built. For any workingman with or without a family, this would prove unnecessarily uprooting. Getting kicked out of a house you just managed to get financing for or abandoning a symbolic “home” structure is far from stable. These cases will be discussed below. Besides the desire for the mainstream, middle class citizens also want a voice in the decisions affecting them. This is fulfilled either through government consultation or in the form of protest demonstrations.

In addition to middle class citizens demanding more from the government they are also gaining much more respect from officials because of their importance. The middle class in China is significantly wealthier than the majority of the rest of the nation. Economic incentives for officials are thus an important motivation in keeping the middle class happy or satisfied. The government cannot easily brush aside individuals who make the economy run, unlike poor peasants. Additionally, the occupations of many middle class workers are of necessity to the efficiency of a community or a region. Take all middle class workers out of the city’s economy for a day during a protest and officials will certainly see the negative effects on the economy. This method could even work if the protests’ political clout with officials is small. By taking hostage of the economy through mass absence, attention for a cause would rapidly be gained. With all the important factors associated with the middle class in its relation to society in general it is no wonder the following cases ended how they did. In both Xiamen and Shanghai the emerging power of the middle class played a substantial role in their positive outcomes. Looking at both of these cases dramatically illustrates the possible picture of a future China and where the majority of political power rests.

Xiamen “has listened to the opinions expressed”

In the eastern province of Fujian, the city of Xiamen experienced a mass incident of its own in early 2008. Following a request by the government for the public opinion of a planned petrochemical plant in the southeastern part of town, there were “mass demonstrations” (Beck 2008) and public opposition. Exact numbers are unclear over the multiple accounts of the demonstration but were enough to create a situation that was “almost out of control” and included “thousands” (Beck 2008) when a government building was attacked. In addition to demonstrations, the use of modern technology was used to oppose the construction of the chemical plant. According to USA Today, nearly one million text messages were sent in “protesting possible pollution dangers” (2007). Despite the fluff that text messages might appear as, they are still a part of the demonstration process, if only at a lesser level of importance and effectiveness.

The Xiamen protests were also different in another way because they involved more than the usual poor peasants. Protesters included “Xiamen’s rising middle class, who are educated, wealthy, and less willing to meekly accept government orders” (Bristow 2008). A sense of environmental awareness also comes from the middle class besides those who concentrate on it entirely. An individual surnamed Lin said during the Xiamen incident that, “economic development is fine, but not if it damages our environment and health” (Bristow 2008). The more realistic reason behind environmental concern is the property damage such projects are usually associated with. When the chemical plant was announced, an area near the planned location experienced a crash in real estate prices. Once the plant was effectively cancelled, real estate prices doubled in a matter of months (Bristow 2008). This goes back to the notion of a moderated, stable environment the middle class desires. Someone who recently put all his or her finances into a home and is threatened by a large project, such as Mrs. Lin, does not want their “investment damaged” (Bristow 2008). In an effort to avoid situations Mrs. Lin experienced and the public anger, officials are increasingly consulting the public. Such a public caring request by the government is rare in China. Not only did the government invite the public to express their opinions but conducted several more environmental assessments to explore the chemical plant’s impact. In an uncharacteristic way, the government of China might becoming more aware of the environmental impact of its rapid industrialization. USA Today notes that, “the…government, long indifferent to the environmental cost of China’s economy, has become more sensitive to pollution complaints after accidents that polluted rivers…disrupting water supplies to major cities” (2007). This perhaps reveals governmental experiences with past protests due to problems that could have easily been changed. Since the government in Fujian province was so careful in planning a chemical plant within Xiamen they must have had trouble with earlier projects. Previous projects must have caused damaging pollution that triggered protests or construction began on industrial plants without moderate public approval. Both of these reveal the level of care officials are handling themselves with in order to meet public satisfaction.

After Xiamen, officials saw the response to their public opinion invitation, and were then aware of the broad public opposition to the project. Rather than going against an opinion, which had obviously been displayed, officials decided to scrap the chemical plant. Ding Guoyan, a deputy mayor, was quoted by a news agency in China saying, “The city government has listened to the opinions expressed and has decided, after careful deliberation, that the project must be re-evaluated” (USA Today 2007). Again, this signals a growing awareness of Chinese officials concerning popular opinion. With public consultation, officials are either afraid of a large public backlash or the trouble it brings. In any way, it signals a heightening and warming relationship between citizens and government.

Shanghai Bullet Train

As part of China’s $300 billion dollar high-speed bullet train planned to link a majority of the east coast and sections of the interior, a link in Shanghai became a problem. The particular section that caused a public response was a connection from Shanghai to the southern city of Hangzhou and ultimately ended in a change of the train’s route (Powell 2009). The main claim of protestors was that the planned route of the train was too close to their homes. The proximity to their homes caused three problems in the eyes of protestors. One was that the train, which was a magnetic levitation train, would cause health problems from effects due to the strong magnets used on the train. Second, was that property values would plunge next to the route where the train would travel more than 220 miles per hour. The final reason was that the government did not consult the public as to whom the route of the train would affect (Kurtenbach 2009). In the end the route of the train was changed to avoid the most densely populated areas. Protestors actually “created enough of a ruckus that Premiere Wen Jiabao himself interceded and forced a change in the lines route” (Powell 2009). This entire incident breaks with the Chinese precedent of handling disputes raised by its citizens.

It has been the practice of the government to ignore these disputes outright for much of the past decade. Shanghai, which has a population of only twenty million, has “relocated millions for urban renewal projects” (Kurtenbach 2009). Outside of Shanghai million more have undoubtedly been relocated for government projects. It is interesting that this specific case was able to successfully achieve their cause when others have obviously failed. The most appropriate explanation is a lucky combination of events, timing, and the characteristics of the protestors. Many of the protestors were middle class citizens, with “increasing affluence, [that] left many residents expecting more opportunities to be heard” (Kurtenbach 2009). Additionally, protestors have been utilizing other mediums to garner support for the demonstrations. These include being able to comment on a city government website (Chan, Klamann 2008) and meetings with local officials (Kurtenbach 2009). With all of these contributing factors the protestors were able to draw a positive response from the government and succeed.

The most important goal for any successful government is achieving social stability. Without social stability little else can be achieved. This is not absolute social stability, as there are an infinite amount of reasons for people to not be satisfied with the government. Instead, the goal of achieving social stability is met by a majority of the population. With a majority of people happy with the government, the problems that would occur with larger ratios of instability would not plague the nation. The healthy ratio cannot be measured the same across many nations but is uniquely individual. For the government of the People’s Republic of China, however, attaining this ratio has lately been difficult. The growing phenomenon of “social unrest…is seen by the ruling Chinese Communist Party as the biggest challenge to its rule” (Quek 2009). In the government’s attempt to remedy this problem the recent success of so many protests are revealed. More often, demonstrators and protesters in China are getting what they want because of the threat of social unrest. Internal studies in China have even cautioned officials to comply with protests to avoid social unrest. Dr. Wang Erping from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said, “scholars researching the phenomenon have advised China’s leaders since 2005 to listen more to the voices and complaints of the ordinary people in order to minimize unrest” (Quek 2009). What results is the strangely formed political situation that modern China has developed. Although China is not as regimented as other Western nations, it seems to have adopted a type of informal democracy that has, so far, yielded powerful results.

For China to have moved from the type of government it was during the Mao Zedong years to the increasingly co-operational one of today is tremendously significant for world politics. Not only does providing greater cooperation change politics internally but it may also influence international politics. It is only a matter of time before substantial influence is communicated to Chinese leaders on dissatisfactory foreign affairs decisions. Of course this new power can and will probably move to other areas of normally governmental responsibility. But for now, protests are simply achieving small, local goals. Even on this scale the transformation of China seems readily apparent. The West continually condemns the Chinese for being undemocratic but in fact they are moving to an informal democracy very rapidly. In all the cases discussed in this paper, the use of democracy has already been achieved. These popular protests have affected the decisions of government entities to a desired end result.

Pro-democracy protesters link arms to hold back angry crowds, preventing them from chasing a retreating group of soldiers near the Great Hall of the People, on June 3, 1989 in Beijing. Protesters were angered by an earlier attack upon students and citizens using tear gas and truncheons. People in the background stand atop buses used as a roadblock. AP Photo/Mark Avary

Organic Democracy

Influencing governmental decision making by issuing a popular opinion is a loose but viable definition of democracy. Despite the medium used, something other than filling out a ballot can still be a popular opinion. If anything, attending a protest lasting longer than a few days and involving potentially violent consequences shows more commitment. Chinese citizens must profoundly believe in whatever their cause might be to participate in something so dangerous. Growing up in China, all citizens must have seen the long precedent of violent government suppression. Compare this to any other dusty Western democracy where a piece of paper is checked in a matter of minutes in order to vote. Often, the majority of citizens do not even vote. Certainly the growing trend in China is significantly more organically democratic than most other Western nations. When Chinese citizens decide to become committed to a cause they are much more dedicated than their Western counterparts because of the tremendous risk. This commitment will provide protests that citizens are genuinely supportive of and will avoid superfluous political battles often seen in the West.

The goals that Chinese citizens campaign for will not be radical and in fact will be moderated to the mainstream middle class political ideology as previously covered. This is half the reason that officials in China are not fighting against this growing movement of informal democracy. The needs and desires of Chinese citizens are not as radical as the Chinese Communist Party has historically resisted and suppressed. All Chinese citizens want is a comfortable, conservative, and stable life. The other half of the reason is that the government can really do nothing about it. If the government did have the capability to ignore the common people they certainly would in order to benefit from fulfilling their own goals. But quiet the opposite is true, as the Chinese government is increasingly growing limber in accommodating the demands of protesters.

Flexible Communists

When a nation that squashed student protests with tanks nearly two decades ago has now moved a billion dollar chemical plant after demonstrations, something has changed. Moving from Tiananmen Square to the relocation of a chemical plant in Xiamen has been a long road for the nation of China. At this point, the communist regime has never been so cooperative with its own citizens. This cooperation has not been the rare exception but has been a growing trend. Besides the cases mentioned in previous sections, there are many other protests that the Chinese government has listened to and has resolved in favor of demonstrators. Not only is the government more responsive to the demands of its citizens, it is increasingly flexible in fulfilling those demands. Either out of a heightened respect for the needs of civilians or the fear of social instability, the government has abandoned the precedent of nearly its entire existence. Regardless of the motivation behind the government being so flexible is the fact that it is indeed cooperative when historical precedent should deny it.

In the previously discussed cases of Xiamen and Shanghai, the economic costs in complying with protestors were enough to make the government seem almost benevolent. The Xiamen chemical plant that had to be moved due to popular protests was a 1.4 billion dollar facility according to USA Today (2007). In the city the plant was later built, the cost for the plant was 2.6 billion dollars (Jacobs 2009). In addition to other costs, abandoning construction and moving the facility to a different city certainly accounted for a portion of the 1.2 billion dollar increase. For the project to even be approved for the new city of Chengdu, a portion of the construction budget had to be dedicated to ecological safeguards. Once this was promised the project continued with six percent of the budget dedicated to environmental protection (Jacobs 2009). Six percent of 2.6 billion turns out to be $156 million dedicated to avoiding the problem that got it kicked out of Xiamen. In Shanghai the government compensated residents who were in the path of the train’s route and were provided with new apartments (Kurtenbach 2009). This does not even cover the amount it cost the government to change the train’s route. In these two cases alone, billions of dollars were lost to the government and private companies to comply with protestors. If the Chinese government’s respect for their citizens could be quantified by monetary amounts, both these and the following cases would be surprising to any critical observer.

Despite the subsequent cases being neither chronologically or geographically cohesive they are nonetheless representative of the government’s investment into the desires of its citizens. The most recent case involves attempted forced evictions of artists in Beijing by developer’s thugs. After a publicized protest the local government compensated the artists within the district six million Yuan, or $880,000 dollars (Tao 2010). Beside an out of character compensation, the local government vowed to start an investigation, install security cameras, repair damaged property, and protect the artists from future attack (Canaves 2010). In another case of protests opposing a planned chemical plant in Chengdu, $565 million dollars of the total project costs were relocated for environmental protection (Wong 2008). Additionally, the parent company stated, in an attempt to gain public support, “the Sichuan refinery project will install advanced equipment and improve environmental protection facilities with strict pollution preventions” (Wong 2008). Such measures by industry are extremely costly and dramatically reduce the profit margin.

Sometimes entire projects are closed entirely. In Hunan province, the city of Liuyang closed their chemical factory “forever”-following protests of cadmium pollution (Le, Pomfret 2009). Highlighting the case of Huaxi again, it is important to note that the entire industrial park closed directly from protests by residents (Cody 2005). Also, in the city of Nansha, a five billion dollar oil refinery and petrochemical plant was moved after protests from the community (Shanghai Daily 2009). The economic significance of all these cases yields powerful insights into the government’s flexibility. Some are more economically logically than others such as the cadmium pollution incident. The amount of public health damage and political anger were not at all equal amounts in terms of absolute costs. More often than not, though, the costs to fulfill public demands were tremendously substantial.

Garbage incinerators are also another hot topic in China as the government struggles to handle the growing urban populations with adequate garbage disposal. In the cities of Guangzhou, Beijing, and Quanzhou all planned projects faced trouble. Following a significant protest in Guangzhou the planned incinerator project was put on hold so that officials could start a half-year long consultation process with the public (Jianmin, Pan 2009). The closure of the plant not only costs money to abandon construction but also adds costs to maintain other types of garbage disposal processes. In the time it takes to install another garbage disposal process, it will cost the government a lot of money to keep the city moderately clean. In the city of Quanzhou, residents protested a polluting water treatment plant. The government responded by promising a reinforcement of environmental cooperation, a full environmental assessment, and free medical aid for those affected (Xinhua 2009). All of these measures were significantly costly.

Certainly, at times, officials weighed the cost of going against the public with a significant lack of popular opinion and then decided which was more valuable. In this perspective it generally degrades the relationship of government to citizens because they are merely afraid and not genuinely interested in citizens’ needs. As stated before, modern Chinese police “increasingly admit that most demonstrators are motivated by legitimate grievances…” (Tanner 2004). There probably exists a definite middle ground where officials care for their citizens in addition to fearing their power. Even if officials do not genuinely regard the welfare of their citizens as important it still signals a substantial growth in citizenry power. Chinese citizens have seized an unprecedented time by becoming increasingly effective at getting what they demand through demonstrations.

Official Accountability

Not only are protestors able to convince the government of utilizing vast amounts of monetary resources to fulfill demands, they can also bring intense scrutiny on government or corporate officials. Official corruption throughout China can range from as high as Shanghai’s Communist Party Secretary Chen Liangyu, to lower officials (French 2007). The geographical range of corruption is wide throughout China but is more frequent in certain areas. When obvious abuses are happening, citizens become angry about it and accordingly protest. More often than not, the government ignores the protests. In some cases previously discussed, such as Liuyang, Liaoyang, and Luoyang, the opposite is the case. These three unique cases all ended with local government officials being sacked by either the municipal or national government. Following a disco fire in Luoyang that killed 309 and sparked massive protests about building codes, twelve officials were detained (CBS 2000). In Liaoyang, leaders who had been accused by protestors six months earlier were arrested following an investigation by the national government (Eckholm 2002). Not only does this signal a great deal of confidence locals can place in the national government but shows that the CCP is very interested in maintaining the integrity of the party.

When the Xianghe Chemical Factory in Liuyang was discovered to be leaking cadmium into the surrounding region, officials did not immediately respond. Citizens then held a “number of high profile mass incidents, which turned violent and prompted media criticism of officials’ failure to respond quickly” (Le, Pomfret 2009). With the added attention, demonstrators were able to get the plant closed down. Adding to the victory, the director of the plant and the head of the municipal Environmental Protection Bureau were also sacked (Le, Pomfret 2009). Given the gravity of the environmental poisoning that occurred, the government’s reaction would seem normal in any other country. For the Chinese, however, this is a significant step in recent times to make environmental protection a priority in fulfilling Hu Jintao’s “harmonious society” (French 2007). Normally, the People’s Republic of China is more concerned with modernizing its industry rather than hurting the profits of factories. After going about business with this attitude the Chinese government has perhaps seen the fallacy of disregarding the environment in the pursuit of low costs.

Additional cases include the response of the government during the SARS outbreak in 2003 and a land seizure protest. In Linzhou, a city in the Zhejiang province, protests erupted after officials brought in SARS patients from another city and treated them incorrectly (USA Today 2003). After bringing in patients from Hujiayao, officials kept them at the police station in fear of contaminating the hospital. Protests erupted because citizens claimed officials were endangering the population due to patients being kept in non-medical facilities (USA Today 2003). With hundreds and protestors and the internationally watched SARS episode, the government fired the head of the city Disease Prevention Center and the Health Director for handling the patients improperly (USA Today 2003). Even though the government was quick to handle any sort of outbreak during the SARS episode, which was an international scare, protestors were able to draw attention specifically to their city. Without such a popular response many of the officials would most likely not have been punished as severely. After local officials paid no heed to farmers in Hanyuan, who would be flooded off their land due to a dam project, they protested over inadequate compensation (Lim 2004). The central government intervened after the municipal government could not handle the tens of thousands of protesters and closed construction on the dam. During the investigation, the national government sacked at least one official who had under compensated the farmers (Lim 2004). Giving into protestors might send the wrong message such as, “large scale protests are the best way to solve grievances” (Lim 2004). Officials decided to do this instead of risking immense social instability, which is the underlying reason behind the entire trend being discussed.

Exploring these cases has presented two different explanations for the behavior of the Chinese government. One is that the government is now seeing the validity of most of these protesters’ claims to injustice. Top leaders are undoubtedly aware of corruption throughout their vast nation and so must send messages to keep lower officials in line. There is perhaps no better way to dispose of corrupt officials than with the support of the local citizens. Giving citizens the ability to root out corruption provides them with substantial satisfaction in maintaining the integrity of the nation. More accurately, it also acts as a sort of safety valve where citizens can channel their frustration with the host of corruption problems throughout China. Rather than directing the 1.3 billion potential protestors at the whole Chinese government, national leaders are directing them at corrupt officials. This, in essence, saves the Chinese Communist Party from direct conflict while allowing citizens to sack former parts of the party. The second explanation is far more dangerous.

The more likely reason is that the government is beginning to realize the power their vast population commands. Fearing social instability, national government officials are looking for ways to “buy off” demonstrators in an attempt to regain civil order. In most cases the demands of protestors are simple and easy to meet and are therefore far more readily utilized than repressing citizens. The latter would only fuel the fire in an ever-downward spiraling cycle of growing protests. For example, the request by the farmers in Hanyuan to stop the dam is rather easy to fulfill and would in turn send tens of thousands of angry farmers away from the streets. By a simple measurement of cost versus cost, the people of China have gained a substantial amount of bargaining power with the Chinese government. This has only been done after government officials realize the risk of social instability that comes with large, popular protests. More loosely, this also reflects a growing positive relationship between citizens and government. Additionally, improving relations might come from government fears about the potential energy of instability.

Conclusion

The People’s Republic of China is experiencing the greatest political transformation since its revolutionary beginning. Through the medium of protests, the citizens of China are gaining additional power in obtaining governmental cooperation. In an unprecedented trend, a growth in the amount of protests and the effectiveness of those protests is undeniable. Between the years of 2003 and 2005 the amount of “mass incidents” grew by 50% and is continuing this growth, albeit at a lesser rate. On an ever-growing scale, it appears that Chinese citizens are turning to the political medium of protests to have their voices heard. The substantial growth in the amount of protests highlights two evolving characteristics of Chinese political participation. Firstly, large-scale protests are substantial methods in getting the attention of officials where letters and petitions would not. No other political method available to the common person in China is as effective in large numbers. Secondly, breaking from the stereotype of a repressive government, bent on stalling any dissenting protests, the People’s Republic of China has entered a new era of cooperation and flexibility. The amount of monetary resources the government invests in fulfilling demonstrators’ demands is growing substantially. The frequency of officials cooperating with protestors has increased dramatically. This is because social instability is the greatest problem facing the leaders of China and so they must be flexible in order to stop widespread unrest. The resulting political climate has radically changed relations between citizens and government in degrees never before seen.

Although China is experiencing this radical change in their political climate, there are still tremendous problems with repression from the government. For every case I found where the protestors were able to garner governmental cooperation there were at least two where the demonstration was ignored or repressed. In numerous cities such as Taishi and Panlong, violent measures were taken by the government to quell the protests. In Dongzhou, near Shanwei, police opened fire on protestors and killed three by official count and more by witnesses (BBC 2005). Government actions worse than this still happen, such as the long crackdown of Falun Gong. Horrible things still happen in China but the main point is not related to the overall number of cooperative and uncooperative incidents of protests. What matters is the simple fact that cooperative protests are happening on an ever-increasing scale. A decade ago, any chance the government had in fulfilling protestor’s demands were slim to none. In the present day, protests of a large nature have hope in achieving what they go out to demonstrate. There is still a significant chance the protests will end badly with government repression but that chance is rapidly dwindling. This is because the government can no longer use such measures without causing further political instability and so they must cooperate.

In studying this topic there were many research limitations. In order to gather as many cases as possible I used new articles as the primary source for all of my cases. In many instances the depth of reporting was lacking to a few paragraphs, which was barely adequate. With these accounts I attempted to find additional sources for the same case in order to provide a more wholesome picture. The process of gathering these cases was also limited.

Using Google News Archives in addition to other news services’ archives such as Reuters, The New York Times, BBC, China Daily, and Xinhua News yielded few results. Unfortunately, there is no better way to search the vastness of contemporary media. The process could certainly be expedited and provide more results if there was familiarity with major past protests. Using these major protests as a gateway could allow for further cases as I did when branching out. Starting with high profile cases such as Xiamen I located the incident in Guangdong and Zhangzhou by looking at references in the articles. This technique could be recycled with other cases once an individual was familiar with major cases.

Drawing from the media as a primary source for this paper creates a few problems. Since the media is a for profit institution, many of the stories covered by agencies were sensationalist and aimed to expose the shortfalls of the Chinese Communist Party governance. Rather than seeking a generalizable view about the outcome of protests, the media highlights the latest suppression with high conflict. These perspectives highlight the stereotype most Westerners view the nation of China. This does no affect specific cases since most journalists are eager to point out the success of Chinese citizens. Instead, this type of “good story” seeking attitude might abandon cases where the resolution was positive but lacked overall “newsworthiness”. As for the media within China, it is watched closely by the government and closely censored to avoid demonstration proliferation. Due to what some people call the “snow-ball” effect where the victory of one protest in a city creates expectations in another city, the government clamps down on information. This is perhaps the biggest culprit compared to any other research limitation. With government censorship in place to avoid the spread of protests, it is impossible to know the magnitude of victorious protests.

The future of China seems headed in a specific direction due to the evidence of this research. Even with the specific bias of collecting specifically positive cases, the mere fact that these cases exist is a testament to the political transformation in China. Unlike the current view on China, which places it as a suppressive communist institution, it is in reality a far more democratic system. This democracy is not the traditional definition of democracy and is entirely informal. Rather than voting, the citizens of China attend protests to have their opinions be heard. The amount of people attending, the frequency, and the effectiveness of protests are all increasing. In an exponentially growing cycle, Chinese citizens see the trend and also wish to put forth their own voice. Responding to this cycle, the government realizes the immense power that citizens have. The future of this movement is assuredly mirrored to the past five years where protests increased in addition to government cooperation. The relationship between citizens and government will continually equalize as demonstrators increasingly make demands. Government officials will have to maintain their flexibility with protestors in order to maintain political stability despite most concessions being economically inefficient. In China of the immediate future, the political process looks increasingly informally democratic, with the power continually transferring to the people.

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