And the timing is... interesting. Not that political party is really the issue (this isn't an issue that clearly differentiates by political party). But change of control is. We have a Republican Governor who is on his way out (he wants to be President, but not even the Republicans are likely to be dumb enough to choose him for their candidate). The Republican candidate for Governor is unlikely to be elected, both because he's an idiot and because another Republican is running on a third-party ticket. I have no idea what the Democratic candidate is likely to think about the issue, but he's not only a new person, it's a new party. There will be some state employees who view this with trepidation. So, for those whose meal ticket is tied to the current administration, there's not much more time to act to try to guarantee continued employment. And somehow I'd be surprised if the MS salespeople hadn't gently mentioned this.
What you buy is a license, and the contract you sign is the EULA you click through when you install the software.
So if I go into a store and tell them I want to buy a piece of software, and give them money, and they give me a sales receipt... have they just defrauded me by taking my money for something they were deceiving me about providing?
But more than that, if I shoplift the software and get caught, what are the damages? If the value is in the license, which I have not acquired a right to, and the box and CD are just trash, what have I taken and from whom?
If they want to control the license, they could have me sign an agreement before giving me the software. Back in the old days, I've done that, there's nothing to stop the companies from continuing the practice. (Except that it would hurt sales. Joe Plumber would stare at the clerk and say "What? You want me to sign a contract? I'm not going to do that." And money would be lost. Except to Joe, who'd go to his brother-in-law and get some of that free software.)
"Under Swedish law, molestation is defined broadly and can refer to anything from groping someone to inappropriate nonsexual behavior, such as disrupting public order. "
What that tells us is that whatever Swedish word that is translated as "molestation" has a somewhat different meaning than how we read it here, so it's a bad translation. (For that matter, in English, the word "molest" can mean "annoy" or "disturb", it doesn't necessarily have a sexual connotation.)
Someone actually quoted the text of the swedish law on molestation in a previous story and the wording was something along the lines of "if someone does something by word or deed that offends the sexual personality, integrity or something or other" I'd have to dig it up but I remember it being ridiculous, and a strict reading of it did mean that basically anything I woman found offensive could technically be a crime.
So, you read a law that was translated (well? badly? observing whatever fine legal shadings of meaning might be present in the original Swedish?) into English, and assume that the Swedish legal system is like your own (if you're in the US, it might amuse you to examine whether the legal system in Louisiana is like your own). I don't know enough about the situation in Sweden to have any kind of opinion about that law, except that if it was the way you think, wouldn't half the males in Sweden be in jail? (Always check your conclusions as to whether the answer is reasonable.) Is there a male alive who doesn't offend females sometimes? So, I suspect your take on it is wrong.
The full House is up every two years. That's 1/2 of 1/3 of the Federal Government and more than enough to change what's going on in Washington if the people aren't happy with it.
I'm reasonably happy with my own Congresscritter, it's those other bozos that are the problem. Unfortunately, everybody else seems to feel the same way.
Once they've been given power, no pol nor cop is ever going to want to give it back. For purposes of covering their asses, if nothing else. "What if we gave that power back, and then something happened? We'd be blamed." And most of the public is too cowed to demand it, because "it's for our safety". (So there aren't many complaints even about security theatre like scanners that make and retain nude images of travelers, or rules that won't let them take nail files onto planes.) That's why it's so very very important not to let them have that power in the first place.
It was the Bush administration's goal to vastly increase their control over the public, and they did. The Dems let them do it because the Dems were, by and large, too spineless to oppose it. I don't think Obama would have sought those powers, but don't look for him to be so superhuman as to throw them away now that he's got them.
Instead of trying to front-load success via heavier regulation, why not put real teeth in how we let people go after companies (and governments!) for the disasters they create that harm people.
So we can hear BP say "oh, heh, we're really sorry but the subsidiary who was involved has gone belly up, we did own all of their stock but you know that stockholders can't be held liable for the actions of the corporation, so long suckers"?
And let's fix the tort system so that the huge payouts are reserved for gulf coasters who BP SHOULD compensate generously, instead of lawyers inventing class action suits that get settled, with customers getting $6 and lawyers getting $6 million....
So you're saying that companies that injure a large number of people a small amount should be exempt from punishment? I'm not particularly keen on how class action lawsuits work either, but until you can show me a lawyer who will vigorously pursue my $10 claim for the customary 1/3 cut of winnings and not ask for money from me upfront, I'm not convinced that there are any other alternatives.
"Certified" mail can require a signature for delivery (it's an extra-cost option). But it travels the normal first-class mail channels until it gets to you. You may be thinking of "registered" mail, which is handled in a secure fashion (and costs correspondingly).
I will be cancelling my HSBC account as soon as I can find an effective replacement bank. We have an ESL Credit Union nearby; looking for any other alternatives if anyone has any suggestions.
I don't know anything about ESL CU, but my personal accounts have been at a (originally "state employee") CU for 30 years. Their Visa is operated by somebody else under their name, but has a pretty low interest rate (10%, IIRC) and "points", which someday I'll find out if those are good for anything. When they stopped taking deposits at [major scum bank] ATMs (due to fraud, and the cost of dealing with it when it's via somebody else's ATM network), I made unhappy noises, and they changed my account so that I can "electronically deposit" (fill in an online form with the check info, and they credit to my account immediately, I mail in the check(s) within 10 days, I avoid thinking about ways that one might game this system). Plus, of course, most banks are operated to maximize profit for their shareholders (probably not you), while CUs are owned by the members (account holders), so at least in theory any profits accrue to you.
The EFF is slightly more moderate, although they do employ Doctorow, and seem to have a habit of doing what they can to prevent any enforcement of copyright.
Cory Doctorow hasn't been employed by the EFF in the last 5 years. He's been a full-time writer since January 2006.
Can we assume that your other claims are of similar accuracy?
Coffee costs a buck to a buck and a half in most restaurants. Real coffee.
Well, Folger's. Or whatever brand Sysco (or whatever food service they use) sells.
Starbucks is better than that. Overpriced, sure. You can make better coffee at home, sure, if you buy good coffee and clean the coffeemaker out. But in the US, the average restaurant coffee is pretty bad.
treason (plural treasons) noun Definition: 1. betrayal of country: a violation of the allegiance owed by somebody to his or her own country, e.g. by aiding an enemy. 2. treachery: betrayal or disloyalty 3. act of betrayal: an act of betrayal or disloyalty.
First, his country is not the US. Therefore: Second, he isn't disloyal to it, because he owes it no loyalty; and Third, doesn't apply either.
OTOH, those of us who are citizens of the US, we find his info very interesting and relevant to what politicians we might support in the future.
$150? At the moment I'm using a HP-6MP that I got for $1.49 at a thrift store. Still on the toner cart that was in it when I got it. It replaced a NEC95 that worked fine but was out of toner. When the toner runs out in the HP, I'll have to see if I can replace the whole shebang for less than the cost of a reload, but HP is common enough so that probably a reload cart will be pretty reasonable. The NEC, and the Epson EPL-8000 before it, were hard to find toner for at any reasonable price, and the HP is a generation or so newer and less power-hungry.
This may be hard to fathom, but not everyone believes that government control and compulsory taxation are necessary to have a functioning society.
Of course they aren't. Any more than the government grants we call "corporate charters", which shield business owners (shareholders) from personal responsibility for their property. Any more than the fictions we call "intellectual property" (copyrights, trademarks, patents), or government enforcement of licenses and contracts, which are all government grants of rights.
In addition to my earlier post, check out this. It's the CMR section for the attorney general's office
That's actually pretty good, though it only applies to the AG's office (there may of course be corresponding sections for other agencies). And that there's no penalty for violation. (If anything, IMHO the penalties for violating the law should be even stiffer when the violator is government than when the violator is a private citizen, but I realize that ain't gonna happen in this life.) Apparently the AG is intended to be responsible for enforcement, so I guess he could sue himself.
"provided, however, that "Personal information" shall not include information that is lawfully obtained from publicly available information, or from federal, state or local government records lawfully made available to the general public."
See that? Government agencies are not excluded from the law... rather, information lawfully obtained from government agencies are not personal information, which means that people who use it - like you - are not violating the law.
Unfortunately, government agencies are excluded from the law. The law applies to
a natural person, corporation, association, partnership or other legal entity, other than an agency, executive office, department, board, commission, bureau, division or authority of the Commonwealth, or any of its branches, or any political subdivision thereof.
Good plan....except when the state or local governments fail to do it.....then what? Going to fine themselves?
They've thought of that. They made themselves exempt. The law applies to
a natural person, corporation, association, partnership or other legal entity, other than an agency, executive office, department, board, commission, bureau, division or authority of the Commonwealth, or any of its branches, or any political subdivision thereof.
Politicians should stay the fuck away from shit they don't understand!
Businesses have had decades to "self-regulate" good data practices. But many of them haven't bothered, don't bother, won't bother unless they're forced. And that includes businesses from ma-and-pa shops up through the world's largest retailers.
This week it's Blippy, but next week it'll be somebody else. You think there would be a bill like this passed if there wasn't an unending stream of stories in the news about reckless and negligent data loss, about fools leaving their laptops in cars and bars?
The only problem that I see with this law is that it exempts government agencies, who tend to be at least as negligent as private business.
If a person is sending email to those suspected of contributing to terror groups then our government needs to be able to study those emails.
And it's very convenient that "terror" is anything anybody in "our government" (down to and including the local sheriff) defines it as. The FBI has admitted that their agents have committed widespread abuses of the law in asking telcos and ISPs for data.
That does not imply that the government has either the intention or the man power to be studying every trivial bit of email that we send or receive.
Of course, it doesn't imply that they do not, either. "Intention" is a tricky one, perhaps not everybody employed by the government has the same intentions. How can they be sure that your email is trivial without examining it? It's true that manpower is a problem, but as I understand it, they're making great strides in computerized analysis. (It's also true that the FBI's computer system is so antiquated and broken that it may not be up to the task, but the FBI does have friends in other government agencies.)
Are they doing it now? I doubt it, mostly due to lack of resources. But I would not be all that surprised to learn that they are.
Hopefully, having learned their lessons from Afghanistan, Chechnya and Georgia, I'm pretty sure that arming the nations of Islam with nuclear weapons is *NOT*, repeat *NOT*, on the agenda for Russia.
Not Russia, maybe. But how about that poorly paid draftee who's guarding the munitions bunker? The only people who have any money in Russia are the mob and government officials, certainly not enlisted men, so how can he afford to take his girlfriend and go live in a dacha in the country? His friend is that really nice guy who bought the drinks last night, and now wants to give him a suitcase full of money. It's not like he's an Arab or a Chechnian, he says he's from Moscow and the money comes from smuggling stuff. And he'll cover while the guard takes a break to have another bottle of vodka and count the money. What a great friend.
Look, we just need a bright flash of light. It doesn't have to be a laser.
Put up a large number of satellites, much like GPS or Iridium. Each one holds a 30 megaton nuke. When an area is affected by a tsunami, we set off all the nukes that would be visible above the horizon.
Take out their power grid, their radios and computers, their cell phones, and their vehicles with the EMP. And, of course, the power grids of everybody else who can see those satellites above the horizon. Then while they're going "WTF???" hit 'em with the tsunami.
IIRC a few years ago, some of them were published. It was very embarrassing. Turns out the code was "0000". No joke. I think they've changed it since then, it might be "9999" now.
We didn't learn the secret code to unscramble the President's communications (I think that was "admin" but I might be mistaken).
Slashdot Mirror
And the timing is... interesting. Not that political party is really the issue (this isn't an issue that clearly differentiates by political party). But change of control is. We have a Republican Governor who is on his way out (he wants to be President, but not even the Republicans are likely to be dumb enough to choose him for their candidate). The Republican candidate for Governor is unlikely to be elected, both because he's an idiot and because another Republican is running on a third-party ticket. I have no idea what the Democratic candidate is likely to think about the issue, but he's not only a new person, it's a new party. There will be some state employees who view this with trepidation. So, for those whose meal ticket is tied to the current administration, there's not much more time to act to try to guarantee continued employment. And somehow I'd be surprised if the MS salespeople hadn't gently mentioned this.
What you buy is a license, and the contract you sign is the EULA you click through when you install the software.
So if I go into a store and tell them I want to buy a piece of software, and give them money, and they give me a sales receipt... have they just defrauded me by taking my money for something they were deceiving me about providing?
But more than that, if I shoplift the software and get caught, what are the damages? If the value is in the license, which I have not acquired a right to, and the box and CD are just trash, what have I taken and from whom?
If they want to control the license, they could have me sign an agreement before giving me the software. Back in the old days, I've done that, there's nothing to stop the companies from continuing the practice. (Except that it would hurt sales. Joe Plumber would stare at the clerk and say "What? You want me to sign a contract? I'm not going to do that." And money would be lost. Except to Joe, who'd go to his brother-in-law and get some of that free software.)
"Under Swedish law, molestation is defined broadly and can refer to anything from groping someone to inappropriate nonsexual behavior, such as disrupting public order. "
What that tells us is that whatever Swedish word that is translated as "molestation" has a somewhat different meaning than how we read it here, so it's a bad translation. (For that matter, in English, the word "molest" can mean "annoy" or "disturb", it doesn't necessarily have a sexual connotation.)
Someone actually quoted the text of the swedish law on molestation in a previous story and the wording was something along the lines of "if someone does something by word or deed that offends the sexual personality, integrity or something or other" I'd have to dig it up but I remember it being ridiculous, and a strict reading of it did mean that basically anything I woman found offensive could technically be a crime.
So, you read a law that was translated (well? badly? observing whatever fine legal shadings of meaning might be present in the original Swedish?) into English, and assume that the Swedish legal system is like your own (if you're in the US, it might amuse you to examine whether the legal system in Louisiana is like your own). I don't know enough about the situation in Sweden to have any kind of opinion about that law, except that if it was the way you think, wouldn't half the males in Sweden be in jail? (Always check your conclusions as to whether the answer is reasonable.) Is there a male alive who doesn't offend females sometimes? So, I suspect your take on it is wrong.
The full House is up every two years. That's 1/2 of 1/3 of the Federal Government and more than enough to change what's going on in Washington if the people aren't happy with it.
I'm reasonably happy with my own Congresscritter, it's those other bozos that are the problem. Unfortunately, everybody else seems to feel the same way.
Once they've been given power, no pol nor cop is ever going to want to give it back. For purposes of covering their asses, if nothing else. "What if we gave that power back, and then something happened? We'd be blamed." And most of the public is too cowed to demand it, because "it's for our safety". (So there aren't many complaints even about security theatre like scanners that make and retain nude images of travelers, or rules that won't let them take nail files onto planes.) That's why it's so very very important not to let them have that power in the first place.
It was the Bush administration's goal to vastly increase their control over the public, and they did. The Dems let them do it because the Dems were, by and large, too spineless to oppose it. I don't think Obama would have sought those powers, but don't look for him to be so superhuman as to throw them away now that he's got them.
They may not have believed them, but they were too spineless to say so. I'm not sure if that makes it better or worse.
Instead of trying to front-load success via heavier regulation, why not put real teeth in how we let people go after companies (and governments!) for the disasters they create that harm people.
So we can hear BP say "oh, heh, we're really sorry but the subsidiary who was involved has gone belly up, we did own all of their stock but you know that stockholders can't be held liable for the actions of the corporation, so long suckers"?
And let's fix the tort system so that the huge payouts are reserved for gulf coasters who BP SHOULD compensate generously, instead of lawyers inventing class action suits that get settled, with customers getting $6 and lawyers getting $6 million....
So you're saying that companies that injure a large number of people a small amount should be exempt from punishment? I'm not particularly keen on how class action lawsuits work either, but until you can show me a lawyer who will vigorously pursue my $10 claim for the customary 1/3 cut of winnings and not ask for money from me upfront, I'm not convinced that there are any other alternatives.
You are NOT liable for debit fraud over $50 on your account, provided you notify the bank within 3 days of it occurring. /I?
Is that true everywhere? ISTM the OP (or maybe just some of the original replies) was in the UK. TWIAVBP.
"Certified" mail can require a signature for delivery (it's an extra-cost option). But it travels the normal first-class mail channels until it gets to you. You may be thinking of "registered" mail, which is handled in a secure fashion (and costs correspondingly).
I will be cancelling my HSBC account as soon as I can find an effective replacement bank. We have an ESL Credit Union nearby; looking for any other alternatives if anyone has any suggestions.
I don't know anything about ESL CU, but my personal accounts have been at a (originally "state employee") CU for 30 years. Their Visa is operated by somebody else under their name, but has a pretty low interest rate (10%, IIRC) and "points", which someday I'll find out if those are good for anything. When they stopped taking deposits at [major scum bank] ATMs (due to fraud, and the cost of dealing with it when it's via somebody else's ATM network), I made unhappy noises, and they changed my account so that I can "electronically deposit" (fill in an online form with the check info, and they credit to my account immediately, I mail in the check(s) within 10 days, I avoid thinking about ways that one might game this system). Plus, of course, most banks are operated to maximize profit for their shareholders (probably not you), while CUs are owned by the members (account holders), so at least in theory any profits accrue to you.
The EFF is slightly more moderate, although they do employ Doctorow, and seem to have a habit of doing what they can to prevent any enforcement of copyright.
Cory Doctorow hasn't been employed by the EFF in the last 5 years. He's been a full-time writer since January 2006.
Can we assume that your other claims are of similar accuracy?
Go to their donation site and donate 0.01 on your credit card.
Nice idea, but if you do that, their site says the minimum contribution is $5.00.
Coffee costs a buck to a buck and a half in most restaurants. Real coffee.
Well, Folger's. Or whatever brand Sysco (or whatever food service they use) sells.
Starbucks is better than that. Overpriced, sure. You can make better coffee at home, sure, if you buy good coffee and clean the coffeemaker out. But in the US, the average restaurant coffee is pretty bad.
treason (plural treasons)
noun
Definition:
1. betrayal of country: a violation of the allegiance owed by somebody to his or her own country, e.g. by aiding an enemy.
2. treachery: betrayal or disloyalty
3. act of betrayal: an act of betrayal or disloyalty.
First, his country is not the US. Therefore:
Second, he isn't disloyal to it, because he owes it no loyalty; and
Third, doesn't apply either.
OTOH, those of us who are citizens of the US, we find his info very interesting and relevant to what politicians we might support in the future.
I've seen HP mono laser printers go for $150.
$150? At the moment I'm using a HP-6MP that I got for $1.49 at a thrift store. Still on the toner cart that was in it when I got it. It replaced a NEC95 that worked fine but was out of toner. When the toner runs out in the HP, I'll have to see if I can replace the whole shebang for less than the cost of a reload, but HP is common enough so that probably a reload cart will be pretty reasonable. The NEC, and the Epson EPL-8000 before it, were hard to find toner for at any reasonable price, and the HP is a generation or so newer and less power-hungry.
This may be hard to fathom, but not everyone believes that government control and compulsory taxation are necessary to have a functioning society.
Of course they aren't. Any more than the government grants we call "corporate charters", which shield business owners (shareholders) from personal responsibility for their property. Any more than the fictions we call "intellectual property" (copyrights, trademarks, patents), or government enforcement of licenses and contracts, which are all government grants of rights.
In addition to my earlier post, check out this. It's the CMR section for the attorney general's office
That's actually pretty good, though it only applies to the AG's office (there may of course be corresponding sections for other agencies). And that there's no penalty for violation. (If anything, IMHO the penalties for violating the law should be even stiffer when the violator is government than when the violator is a private citizen, but I realize that ain't gonna happen in this life.) Apparently the AG is intended to be responsible for enforcement, so I guess he could sue himself.
"provided, however, that "Personal information" shall not include information that is lawfully obtained from publicly available information, or from federal, state or local government records lawfully made available to the general public."
See that? Government agencies are not excluded from the law... rather, information lawfully obtained from government agencies are not personal information, which means that people who use it - like you - are not violating the law.
Unfortunately, government agencies are excluded from the law. The law applies to
Good plan....except when the state or local governments fail to do it.....then what? Going to fine themselves?
They've thought of that. They made themselves exempt. The law applies to
Politicians should stay the fuck away from shit they don't understand!
Businesses have had decades to "self-regulate" good data practices. But many of them haven't bothered, don't bother, won't bother unless they're forced. And that includes businesses from ma-and-pa shops up through the world's largest retailers.
This week it's Blippy, but next week it'll be somebody else. You think there would be a bill like this passed if there wasn't an unending stream of stories in the news about reckless and negligent data loss, about fools leaving their laptops in cars and bars?
The only problem that I see with this law is that it exempts government agencies, who tend to be at least as negligent as private business.
If a person is sending email to those suspected of contributing to terror groups then our government needs to be able to study those emails.
And it's very convenient that "terror" is anything anybody in "our government" (down to and including the local sheriff) defines it as. The FBI has admitted that their agents have committed widespread abuses of the law in asking telcos and ISPs for data.
That does not imply that the government has either the intention or the man power to be studying every trivial bit of email that we send or receive.
Of course, it doesn't imply that they do not, either. "Intention" is a tricky one, perhaps not everybody employed by the government has the same intentions. How can they be sure that your email is trivial without examining it? It's true that manpower is a problem, but as I understand it, they're making great strides in computerized analysis. (It's also true that the FBI's computer system is so antiquated and broken that it may not be up to the task, but the FBI does have friends in other government agencies.)
Are they doing it now? I doubt it, mostly due to lack of resources. But I would not be all that surprised to learn that they are.
Hopefully, having learned their lessons from Afghanistan, Chechnya and Georgia, I'm pretty sure that arming the nations of Islam with nuclear weapons is *NOT*, repeat *NOT*, on the agenda for Russia.
Not Russia, maybe. But how about that poorly paid draftee who's guarding the munitions bunker? The only people who have any money in Russia are the mob and government officials, certainly not enlisted men, so how can he afford to take his girlfriend and go live in a dacha in the country? His friend is that really nice guy who bought the drinks last night, and now wants to give him a suitcase full of money. It's not like he's an Arab or a Chechnian, he says he's from Moscow and the money comes from smuggling stuff. And he'll cover while the guard takes a break to have another bottle of vodka and count the money. What a great friend.
Look, we just need a bright flash of light. It doesn't have to be a laser.
Put up a large number of satellites, much like GPS or Iridium. Each one holds a 30 megaton nuke. When an area is affected by a tsunami, we set off all the nukes that would be visible above the horizon.
Take out their power grid, their radios and computers, their cell phones, and their vehicles with the EMP. And, of course, the power grids of everybody else who can see those satellites above the horizon. Then while they're going "WTF???" hit 'em with the tsunami.
Missile launch codes would be cool to see....
IIRC a few years ago, some of them were published. It was very embarrassing. Turns out the code was "0000". No joke. I think they've changed it since then, it might be "9999" now.
We didn't learn the secret code to unscramble the President's communications (I think that was "admin" but I might be mistaken).