Belt Drive Betty's Blog

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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i><b>Social media
can be a great way for people to stay connected and informed, BUT and it's a
really BIG BUT...</b></i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>Do you know
everyone on your friends list? </i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Do you know if
they are real people and by that I mean, are they who they say they are?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>If you are a
business owner, do you know who you are connecting yourself to and what their
intentions are?  Yah, I know, sounds like
a bad dad commentary, but seriously - DO YOU KNOW WHO you are connected to?</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">The internet,
as I have learned has a very, very dark underbelly. A place where people have
multiple identities, claim the hard work of others as their own and scam and
hurt people in ways that can take years to repair.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Because I
seldom stray off of the topics that interest me when I am surfing the net, I
tend to not see that side of things too often.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Recently I
have had cause to be investigating some people for an article that I intend to
write in the future and a few that I have already written.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">While doing
that research, I found out just how desperate and deranged some people can be.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">People can
pretend to be some one they are not and hide behind a key board and say what
ever in the HE Double Hockey Sticks they want to say about you and you have
very little recourse is most cases.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Internet
crimes like impersonation, plagiarism, photo theft, slander, stalking, bullying
go unreported too often because even when reported, a lot of these scary things
aren't considered crimes when they happen on the internet.  A lot of things we think are crimes - like
impersonation - are not criminal unless the person doing the impersonating is
getting some financial gain, the same for plagiarism.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>Did you know
that you could steal whole articles that other people have written and go
undetected for years? </i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Did you know that
seasoned journalists don't know that there are plagiarism checker tools or that
you can use i</span><span style="color: #ff2a1a;">mages.google.com </span><span style="color: #292929;">-</span><span style="color: #292929;">
and in the search bar there is a little camera, click on that, upload a picture
and you can find articles on and variations of those pictures if they have been
shared lots? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">It's amazing
what happens when you do that - </span><span style="color: #292929;">the things
you learn about the people that you think you know....<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>Did you know
that often times the profile images of Porn Stars are stolen and used by others
to pass themselves off as pretty girls or handsome guys?</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>Did you know
that there are people out there who are so good at Photoshop that unless you
see the original photo you would NEVER suspect that the photos they produce to
you as theirs are phony?</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>Did you know
that all of the tools that people like me use in their day to day work, are
used by jerk offs looking to take you for a ride, scam you, or just make
themselves feel superior because you were stupid enough to believe them?</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Motorcyclists
are not the only community that gets a black eye courtesy of the disrespectful
or deceitful.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">There are some
tools that you can use to protect yourself out there.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">B</span><span style="color: #292929;">efore you accept a friend request from anyone, vet them.
Find out who is at the table...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Check to see
who else they are connected to, what kind of things they post about and if you
can't find that information or get a true recommendation from a friend you know
and trust via PM, then don't accept their requests.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">There are so
many scammers and con artists just waiting in the wings for that break, that
chance to infiltrate all of your data and that of your friends.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">If you think
that someone is trying to scam you about who or what they are...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I</span><span style="color: #292929;">f your spider senses are tingling - pay attention to
them.</span><span style="color: #292929;"> Even people you know
personally can change due to life situations like divorces that see wounded
people trying to drown themselves in all sorts of ways...people change and not
always for the better.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">If you are in
the dating game, check the profile images ( </span><b><a href="http://images.google.com/"><span style="color: red;">i</span><span style="color: red;">mages.google.com</span><span style="color: #ff2a1a;"> </span></a></b><span style="color: #292929;">) </span><span style="color: #292929;">of the guy or chick, cause guess what,
they probably look nothing like their profile picture. There are tons of sites
out there dedicated to protecting the porn stars from having their photos
ripped off, be they female or male.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">There are tons
of </span><span style="color: #292929;">scammer checker </span><span style="color: #292929;">sites now days. Use them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">K</span><span style="color: #292929;">eep your computer and emails safe with a top-drawer
security system like Kaspersky </span><span style="color: #292929;">- which is what I use. It's a little more expensive than some
programs out there but think of how expensive life will become if someone
hacked your computer and stole your identity....<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I am not a
trained journalist and I tend to trust people far too easily. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I write about
our community, my feelings towards it and when I need to I dig hard to find out
the truth of a situation, I look for as much info to provide balanced
reporting...investigative journalism is not something I have been trained for
but, I do the best I can and am continually reading and learning. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I use the
tools I have tripped across to protect myself, because no one wants to take
someone like me under their wing - so I learn everything the hard way...hence
why I am sharing these tips with you.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I</span><span style="color: #292929;"> don't want you learning the hard way - it hurts - a lot.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">People have
duped me because I take people at their word, at face value. I am too old
school for a world that connects you to so many. I am, however, learning at a
rapid rate an art I would never have thought I'd wanted to learn - H</span><span style="color: #292929;">ow not to trust.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">And so...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I have gone to
great lengths recently to learn how to protect myself out there even better,
because the more I am in the "public eye" the more the freaks are
coming out of the closet.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">In every
community there is someone who seems to need to destroy everything that others
do or hold dear.   I am not sure why we
can't all just be happy for each other, why there are so many broken and dead
souls walking around - but there are.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I</span><span style="color: #292929;">n the riding community:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have those
who use their loud pipes to show off instead of for safety.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have
people who hold events and then don't pay their bills.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I</span><span style="color: #292929;">n almost every community:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have
people who volunteer and then don't show up.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have
people who take on a job but never really show up.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;"><i>You have
people whose word isn't worth the paper it's written on.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">I</span><span style="color: #292929;">n government and policing:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have
politicians that lie and steal from the Canadian Taxpayer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">You have
police officers that ruin the name of the force by their conduct while the good
ones have to put up with the brunt of the anger...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Yes, there are
nut jobs everywhere you turn and the Internet makes them more accessible than
ever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #292929;">Just like
riding, the best defense is a great offence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i><b><span style="color: #292929;">What say you?</span></b></i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I leave you with a few funnies shared with me by friends on Facebook and via emails:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKbeI1uRYYBKI3kcmw0eSBB2UTqhNJGdTrLyHEEGncxix2pmn6YVqYb1FI9RSNY4sgUyxbclYnxZG427fw4P42WZ8yKJDMCng96WQJDvGGHmVEo6LeshMcib8ISzIciuNb7lL/s1600/934053_666819066696660_281881507_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKbeI1uRYYBKI3kcmw0eSBB2UTqhNJGdTrLyHEEGncxix2pmn6YVqYb1FI9RSNY4sgUyxbclYnxZG427fw4P42WZ8yKJDMCng96WQJDvGGHmVEo6LeshMcib8ISzIciuNb7lL/s320/934053_666819066696660_281881507_n.jpg" width="246" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">No matter which event you are attending this weekend PLEASE ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Have a safe and pleasurable weekend...</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Belt Drive Betty</span></b></i><br />
<i><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Editor & Rider</span></b></i>