Surely someone just doing a random internet search for Jesus from the main offices for customs in Guatemala? Could be. Probably. That’s it. For sure. Usually Bing and Google and even DuckDuckGo show up in the stats, with or without search terms. “No referring link.” No “Came from.” Nothing mysterious there either. The stat program is waaaaay behind the times. I’ve only flown over Guatemala, being on a manifest instead for Beliz City, San Salvador, Tegucigalpa, and finally Managua. That was back in the day. Curiosity kills, I know. But. And I know precisely zero about computers. It’s just a bit of recreation for me to do pointless, stupid things. I’m at the top of my game in being an idiot. So, I wasted my time dumping the IP (which means nothing, I know) into an extremely inaccurate locator aggregator, which reports three different methodologies, and came up with this:
A quick whois.lacnic.net query, because I’m a world class expert in wasting time, so very proficient in useless recreation:
AMNET and TIGO are international internet providers. I get it. Is it Managua or Guatemala City that we’re talking about as the originator of the traffic? How does Invercasa fit into this? Those questions should tell you how much of nothing I know about anything. For me, in such a fairy tale land, it’s a matter of curiouser and curiouser, all for inconsequential recreation. But if it’s actually Managua… Anyway, if anyone could disabuse me of my curiosity in a moderated-comment I would be most grateful. Be nice.
I cannot offer any help, Father. But ” I’m at the top of my game in being an idiot.” is a line I am going to steal. I like it.
The title of this post, for some reason, reminded me of a joke about a Japonese Diplomat who was alarmed by a newspaper headline reading: General motors declares war on Japan!
Japanese, Japanese, Japanese!
It’s more that likely someone here in the US using a VPN. A VPN will obscure the IP address and “change” the location of the user. People can do this for whatever reason but a common one is users in China trying to get past government restrictions on the internet.
Chad, that would be weird. No one mere knucklehead in China could do that, unless having the go-ahead by his government. Hiding one’s presence on the internet isn’t what one does in China for recreation. That would amount to a sentence of labor or reeducation, if not worse.
I remember an ecclesiastical higher-up who got a letter from a potential seminarian in China, instructing rather pointedly that a reply was to be made to him by using registered or at least special delivery treatment. He said that this was so that the reply would not be read by the government. I laughed out loud when he showed me this for my opinion. I said that that was obviously the Religious Affairs Bureau of the government, as all such letters are opened by the government. I recalled for him the inside story personally related to me of a certain floor of a certain postal building in Managua that was given over entirely to opening all such special-treatment mail. All of it. Every day. Around the clock.
As I say, I don’t know, but I’m thinking that it’s pretty advanced to make one’s traffic actually come out of a named server, especially of another government, especially one which would deal with that other country’s national security interests, as would the central offices for border and customs control. Of two governments, not to mention the international group mentioned in the whois, which deals with the moving around of international monetary concerns. If I were a government worker, especially in China, I wouldn’t want to make it look like one’s own country were purposely kicking a number of other countries in the face, well, unless I were instructed to do that.
Or am I just digging myself into further entrenchment into stupidity? That’s very likely. China would make it all curiouser and curiouser. Woe is me.
Father, I may be as uninformed as you, but I think VPNs are meant to allow you to search the Internet without disclosing your identity or location.
Maybe you’ve still got a fan from Cardinal Obando y Bravo’s office, George 😉
I am not internet savvy and so cannot comment on that side of things but the Catholic Cathedral in Managua was recently attacked. https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-americas/2019/11/mob-enters-managua-cathedral-attacks-hunger-strikers-damages-property/
Since you were in Managua at some time Father, perhaps some group there was interested to see if you were reporting on this.
Nicaragua seems to be a potentially world-class political hot-spot. Our Lady appeared at Cuapa, about 50 miles from Managua, in 1980 and spoke of WWIII. Those few apparitions and messages are Church approved.
http://www.ncregister.com/blog/joseph-pronechen/1980-approved-marian-apparition-echoes-fatima
Certainly not an expert, not even close, but consider this: First, your church built a shrine to Mary (good job) and that shrine has special significance to people from Central/South America . Second, many Central American governments are nefarious. Combine the two. Then devout Catholics from your parish and devout Catholics from Central America are discussing your wonderful parish amongst themselves; Clandestinely using VPN’s because governments are (well) nefarious.
I showed this to a spook, so to speak, and he’ll look into it. Preliminary comment: those governments are so primitive, but, nonetheless, would absolutely have pretty hefty protection such that normal shenanigans are ruled out…
It is not uncommon for people who are under prying eyes, to try and protect their privacy
I don’t. Totally open book….
Father, further to your exchange with Northern Hermit.
Nicaraguan Catholics are living under a very hostile and dangerous regime and therefore disguising their internet movements would certainly make sense.
https://catholicherald.co.uk/issues/july-27th-2018/chapels-desecrated-bishops-assaulted-the-attack-on-nicaraguas-church/
As unfortunate as it seems, although it may be for his protection, Pope Francis has called Bishop Baez to Rome indefinitely, depriving Nicaraguans living in Managua of his help and witness.
https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-americas/2019/04/bishop-critical-of-nicaraguas-ortega-leaves-for-vatican/
And a number of governments are indeed nefarious. Our Lady told the Italian stigmatist Blessed Elena Aiello on Good Friday 1954 that “if men do not return to God with prayers and penances, the world will be overturned in a new and more terrible war … dictators of the earth, specimens infernal, will demolish the churches and desecrate the Holy Eucharist, and will destroy things most dear.” Infernal forces in Nicaragua are attacking churches and desecrating the Blessed Eucharist. It’s happening in other countries too. Horrible!