The Internet represents the return of the free press. Stories on the Internet are not written for the sole purpose of selling content or ad space. One reasons why certain stories are glossed over or buried is because if these stories hurt advertisers when they are brought to light, advertisers may take their business elsewhere. Also sensationalism sell more content. I remember when O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson were tried. That is all I heard about round the clock. It was boring and rather insignificant in the course of history, but it solve subscriptions as well as made advertisers happy, so that is why it got reported so extensively.
Some of the stuff I dug up online made for some very interesting articles. One of the big stories of 2004 in my humbl opinion was the Marvin Heemeyer story in Granby Colorado. This guy destroyed a town without physically hurting a single person (except himself). He would have done in plenty of people had he had the desire. Some say he was a raving lunatic madman, and others say he was an ordinary guy who was wronged once too many times by a corrupt local government.
He was big news in the region for a while, but he was only a footnote in national news. Other stories that receive only a small bit of coverage in the lamescream media such as Time magazine's "pitchfork rebellion" can gain national prominance in quite a hurry. Also, police corruption is being brought to light in many areas. In North Florida, the coverup of a boy who died as a result of a beating by sheriff's deputies has resulted in the top law enforcer of the state resigning. Had it not been for the Internet, lamescream media would most likely pass the story by. Since this story has received national spotlight, the "cockroaches have run for cover," so to speak. Coverups have become much more difficult, and those in power are very afraid.
Because the Internet is being used to cut out the middleman as well as being used to expose the wrongdoing of the powerful, policies are being passed to make it more intimidating, more regulated, as well as more watched. These policies will stifle free speech on the net as well as make it less useful. When this happens, hopefully, enough people will work to create a new type of network where the infrastructure will be owned by individual common people. The technology exists to easily create such a network.
"Trust me that you definitely WANT intelligent nurses in today's medical system -- you really do. Requiring high education standards for the people that spend the MOST time working with you and evaluating your heath, is a requirement. And a correct one."
Yes I do want inteligent people working to take care of me, but a college degree does not necessarily indicate intelligence. There are many ways of getting a good education, and college is just but one of these ways. I know of at least two nurses who act like backwoods trailer trash despite their polished 4 year degree. I know of some college grads who are great at nursing. I also know of one lady who was "grandfathered in" who is an excellent nurse. She is the one that trains new nurses at the local hospital (Yes most still require some training even after graduation).
Having a piece of paper does not make someone knowlegeable at their job. What makes a person knowlegable at their job is knowlege. Knowlege comes from many sources and not just a classroom. What a college degree actually means is that a person sat in a classroom for a certain period of time and was able to recall what was said in that classroom on a test. Whether this information came from the graduate's memory, a cheatsheet, or a PDA may not be clear. I actually know of one person who graduated with me from my electronic engineering program who had no real idea of how a diode or transistor worked (yes, she even told me so). I knew how these two devices work before I even started college. (I went to college for the paper, I already had the knowlege.)
"So pick on whatever you want to pick on that you know little about, but leave nurses out of it. You know NOTHING about nurses."
As a matter of fact I DO know about nurses, I know and have been around many. Some are good at their job, and other don't have a clue. As far as state requirements in order to be a nurse is concerned, each state has its own criteria. Some do it the right way, and others mandate college. The right way is a compency and performance test done in a reasonable secure area. I know I do not care if my nurse has a degree or not. I care if my nurse is good at the job and is willing to do a good job.
The fact that you call me a "tard" indicates your lack of skill or knowlege when you are debating. When people resort to namecalling, they cede the high ground to the person with whom they are debating. Linus Torvalds was NOT a college graduate when he wrote Linux (yes, he was attending). So does that mean that Linux is no good and should not be used? Billy Gates does not have a degree, yet he is one of the most shrewd (and richest) businessmen of this day. A college degree should not be necessary to be good at any job.
Government officials and policy makers talk about jobs Americans won't do. The reason why most Americans won't do certain jobs is not because of the work, it is because of the low pay! Americans need a certain amount of money to pay for housing, energy, food, as well as all the government-mandated expenses. Most mega corporations have become so obsessed with short term profit margins that they willingly sacrifice quality and customer service in order to squeeze another nickel in short term profits. Governments have become so obsessed with making sure that everything that is done under their auspices conform exactingly to every written specification and petty policy regardless of the costs. This is why costs are so high and service is so shitty.
What the author said is true when it comes to computer tech support. Most "technicians" receive about 2 weeks of training here in the Police States of Amerika before being turned loose on the phones. When I worked at Sykes Enterprise as a tech support agent, I was trained for two different clients. The first client was AT&T Worldnet. This training lasted about 3 weeks and included some basic computer troubleshooting concepts as well as training on how to use AT&T's troubleshooting database (Information Warehouse). The second client I worked for was SBC Internet, and this is where I received "training" on how to use their "Knowlege Base." The way "Knowlege Base" was organized made it next to useless, so a group of tech wrote a Web Browser sidebar that made finding relevant information much quicker. Many of the managers did not like that fact that this tool was created because they thought it would foster dependencey, however the technicians loved it.
The point is that different people with different skill levels become involved in tech support for various reasons. Some do not even know how to turn on a computer, while others are people who have programmed and hacked their way around systems for over 27 years. I took a tech support job because I (thought I) wanted a doorway into the I.T. profession. I became dismayed as to how management limited my ability to provide assistance to users simply because if I provide a high level of support, customers would expect other technicians to do the same. I finally got promoted to the I.T. department after a couple of years. I ended up leaving the company in order to accept a position as a software engineer at another (small) company. About 6 months after I left the company, it moved overseas to the Phillipean Isles.
Tech support pays nearly all technicians low wages regardless of the knowlege and skills of the technician. This is the same for nearly every job in the P.S.A. What the government and corporations don't seem to grasp is that people can and do learn very much outside the confines of a four year college program. These days, if you are working as an employee for someone else, about the only way to get a good paying job is to become a memebr of the bachelors' degree club. For many who choose to go this route, they have to spend much more than four years living under slavish conditions in order toscrape together the money to pay for their membership. A great majority of those who get their degree are lucky enough to have parents wealthy enough to pay all of the membership fees. Others manage to get student loans to pay for their membership. A membership in this bachelors' degree club is considered mandatory for most well paying careers that once accepted non degree holders.
An example of a job that now requires a college degree is that of a nurse. About 30 years ago, a person could become a nurse by studying some material and getting on the job training. Nursing school was also an option (which is a good thing). Now days, it is against the law to be a nurse without having a college degree. The cost of nursing school is simply beyond the reach of most working people. There are those who would say that this is done to protect that [patient from shoddy work. I would
The governments and Mega-corporations around the world will not be satisfied until every peon is stamped, tagged, looged, and taxed into oblivion. The answer short of world wide uprising is to use the same technology that is used against us against our oppressors. The choices are already out there. The government created ARPANET, and the resulting internet and networking technologies are beginning to make the cartel controlled media empires obsolete.
Pissed off hackers can easily write software that will cause the cartels and governments to stamp and log themselves into oblivion, and worms are currently the most effective software distribution tool.
The millions of wireless routers, NIC card, and computers out there can be turned into a very widespead network infrastructure that is owned by the people in general. Some people are already experimenting with Mininets, FreeWans, and other networks that operate completely independent of the Internet. Even a small box of DVD's (encrypted) sent by snailmail or courier allows a huge transfer of information. When Congress or any other government body overtaxes, over monitors, or otherwise over-restricts the Internet, then people will use alternative ways to communicate. Current technologies already provide ways for people to communicate independently of the government-cartel infrastructure.
RFID is eventually going to be used in nearly every piece of clothing or consumer item we purchased. Since many governments promote recycling, I will do the same. When RFID readers become widely available for a reasonable price. Embedded RFID chips can be removed and covertly planted on the verhicles, clothes and items belonging to government officials. RFID readers contained in peoples' vehicles (or even along side of the roads) can be connected to computers. These computers can form a tracking network. The question is, "How likely is that to happen?" Not very likely until some person or group comes up with a way to sell this idea to criminal elements or dissident organizations or that someone is a criminal, dissident, or hacker himself.
The wide availability of high power lasers in some industrial and consumer electronics allow people to create devices that can be used to blind others at a long distance. Just as computer and networking technology is making the printing press obsolete. Various types of consumer electronics may do the same with the gun. It is amazing at how a cheap $30 CVS disposable camcorder can be converted into night vision equipment. It is also remarkable that many different types of consumer digital cameras can be converted to covertly strip search people. The government spends several tens of thousands of dollars on this type of technology while hackers spend less than a few hundred.
Since it is mostly impossible to get a fair hearing in traffic court, technology can be easily adapted to foil the tools used by governments to extort fines from drivers. Simple high gloss clear-coat paint and a few LED's can be used to prevent most digital cameras from reading licence plates. A $5 laser pointer can be used to block the view of a $5,000 police camera. A home made device that quickly and randomly changes the brightness of an array infrared LED's can easily confuse the brightness (or AGP) control circuitry of most electronic cameras. A high powered BB gun can permantly disable the same camera. A piece of tape or paper can render a camera useless until the tape is removed.
A $100,000 X-ray system used to monitor the entrance to a building is useless if people can leave the same building through an unmonitored exit (prevent the door from locking when one leaves will allow that person to re-enter). A loud fire excape exit alarm can be easily muffled by duct tape over the buzzer (if a high pitched alarm) or by piercing the buzzer with a needle.
Am I worried about being on some list for posting this? Yes, slightly. When the governments come after people like me or the millions of bloggers out there, they will be having much bigger problems. Governme
When I get some type of broadband network access where I can download movies in a reasonably short period of time, I will very likely cancel my Dish Network subscription. There is nothing more annoying to me than seeing a pop-up cartoon advertising another program at the bottom of my TV screen. I believe that TNT is one of the worst offenders with these pop-ups. I no longer watch that channel.
I also believe that $12.99 per month for 5 channels that show constant reruns of the same few movies over the entire billing period is too high of a price. This is the type of shit people once had to put up with when dealing with government enforced monopolies. Fortunately, there are now ways around these monopolies. These ways are called movie swapping clubs, peer to peer networks, and independent producers creating via computers and camcorders. Since I live in an area where there is no broadband access, I only get to download entertainment when I visit another town. However most people have access to broadband networking in the U.S. Maybe this is why Dish Network keeps offering free weeks of HBO and Showtime. It may also be the reason why their telemarketers keep calling my house to get me to sign up with addidtional programming. People can now go to other sources rather than pay for mediocre, overpriced service.
Another reason people go online in order to view content is because much of what is found on the internet is much more entertaining than the crap that is found on cartel controlled media. The crap that Hollydud is pouring out is for the most part completely unoriginal. Why should I watch yet another remake of King Kong when I already know what is going to happen in the movie? Where is the suspense? Where is the originality? I don't feel like I should pay premium prices for uninspiring reruns. Tech TV is no longer on Dish Network. Instead, there is something called G4. G4 IMHO is a pitiful replacement. For tech entertainment, I would rather download HackTV, "Welcome to the scene," or some other tech-oriented show from the Internet.
When some form of broadband access (be it muninet, FreeWan, or Internet) comes to my area, I will call Dish Network and ask them to reduce my bill to $35 a month without cutting access to any channels. Of course, they will refuse and the agent will most likely put his or her phone on mute while laughing at my request. However, my rquest would be a reasonable one, since I would be able to obtain equivilent or better entertainment online for the price of the connection without having to deal with the pop-ups, etc.
This is what Dish Network, Direct TV, cable companies as well as other channel providers provide - connectivity. These providers only stream content from producers and resellers such as HBO, Showtime and TNT. Currently, most Hollydud movies move through the following channels to get to me - studio > HBO (or other channel) > Dish Network. The studio manufactures the content, HBO buys and resells the content to a cable or satellite company, and the satellite company charges a fee to link the viewer to the content. The studios are beginning to have high quality competition from small time or even home studios which in many cases release their content for free. HBO and the likes only retrieve the content from studios and organize it in a way that they think will cause people to pay to watch their channel. The likes of web browsers and LimeWire will do the same task to the specific likings of individuals and mostly for free. The Likes of Dish Network, Direct TV, and Comcast only route content from the source to the viewer. The likes of cable Internet, DSL, Muninets, FreeWans, as well as sneaker networks provider a much lower cost of connection as well as better choice. In essence, when more and more people get turned onto the competition, the over-priced, under-quality service offered by the tradional media companies will have to be priced at a significantly reduced rate or else go the way of the dinosaur. When broadband comes to my area, the content distribution route will change to studio > LimeWire, BitTorrent, Mozilla, or FTP > me.
The P.S.A.'s military has the best equipped military in the world. On the conventional battlefield, the fight is over before it begins with the P.S.A.'s military in the winner's place. However, despite its armored exterior, the P.S.A. has a soft underbelly. As with the Roman Empire, the P.S.A. will be defeated from within. Many of its people and businesses are already poisoned with drugs, perversion, and lack of morals (along with the rest of the world).
While the P.S.A's government may be able to destroy the most well hidden military equipment, it would have a hard time defending against hords of people with Zippo lighters bent on setting everything in the P.S.A. on fire. Look at the panic two guys with a rifle caused in D.C. a few years ago. The weapons that will be successful against the P.S.A. will be those which are routinely bought in the Walmart's or other discount stores located in nearly every American town. The enemy spends $1 to destroy a thousand dollars worth of our wealth while we spend a thousand dollars to destroy $10 dollars of enemy wealth.
Go a few decades back (when the P.S.A. was the U.S.A.), one would find that this would be less and less the case. Back then, people had more freedom, and their purchasing power was much greater. Rather than spending most of their time adly playing video games, surfing the net, or watching one fo the four hundred channels of crap, they would be in their local communities talking with other members of the community. They would have had a much better idea of who belonged and who didn't. There was also reasonable tarrifs on imports which allowed goods entering the country to be more carefully inspected. This is no longer the case since large companies are allowing to import super cheap goods while having to pay few taxes and comply with even fewer regulations. The P.S.A. government giving special privileges to companies created by enemy countries also does not help our situation.
The only way for the P.S.A. to be secure again would be for it to return to being the U.S.A. It would have to return to basic morality as well as the principles on which it was founded. Since most people are now hostile to this idea, it can not possibily happen until major castastrophy strikes this nation. We have to heal the internal rot before we can effective fight against an enemy that remains largely invisible, and which changes shape and size. The P.S.A. is not only facing terrorists, it is also facing MS13, drug cartels, corrupt government officials (at all levels) as well as a corrupt "entertainment" cartel. Once the P.S.A. heals internally and returns to being the U.S.A., we have a chance of winning against our enemies. But unless that happens, we as a nation will be through.
I like your pleadings. Unfortunately, 'we the people' have long ago made it a habit to depend on our enemies for sustanance. This is one reason we are in our situation today. Rather than working at supporting and depending on each other to meet our needs, we have turn to the likes of Verizon, Safeway, Walmart, Krogers, as well as governments. Before exercising our Second Amendment guaranteed RIGHT, we should stop to think about how we are going to meet our basic needs. Those who think that freedom will be earned by arms ( or cable cutters ) alone need to study history. Look at some countries in Central America or Africa. Many people of those countries struggled and fought to remove repressive governments only to find that the government they installed to be equally repressive. How many people today even know the family living a 1000 feet away or even the family living next door. I hat to say that in America, many do not.
Technology has prograssed to the point to where we can conduct filesharing (news spools, movies, programs, music and so on) independent of the telephone cartels. A tremendous about of information can be held in a box of DVD's. Wireless routers, access points, and bridges can be used to transmit data from one point to another. Lasers can also transmit vast amounts of data. Even electric lines are now being used to pass information. Computers traveling (in an automobile) from one location to another can be used to convey information from one point to another. We are no longer dependent on monopoly controlled Internet to have information sharing in which anyone can be a producer or consumer.
What is needed are people cooperating with each other to get the job done. For a world wide network, what is needed is
protocol to specify the physical location of the information requester and information source. Participating computers in between can then be used to pass information onto the next point and so on. Shortcut links can be used where there are few obstructions. Computers that are nearby can also serve as source for information if they have the requested information on their harddrives.
High speed, low cost information sharing networks can also be local. This type of network is know as a Muninet or Freewan ( http://www.plaza1.net/FreeWan ). The biggest step in regaining our freedom is to stop depending on those who stifle that freedom. I regards to the freedom of those who work daily to make ther people's lives miserable, ostricism is one way of dealing with the problem. Creative uses of technology is another way.
Yup, you illustrate the problem. You stated that you are one of the TOP FINANCIAL FIRMS OF THE WORLD. Major corporations get the service that others only dream of. You either got that lease either because you could afford to pay exorbitant rates or because you have a "partnership" (special connections) with the phone cartel. These are something that most people do not have.
If having minimum basic moral standards in each state decided by the voters or legislation is a problem to you, and you want an anything goes society, then by all means, support the Libertarian Party. I also give that party support. I am NOT against government, I am against the UNLIMITED AND ABUSIVE government that is promoted by the democratic-Republican Party.
"In other words, the government will command you not to engage in trade that they disapprove of. They will command you as to what you are allowed to put into your own body."
Like I said some government is necessary. I have taken care of children who have had their legs broken because of their parents meth rage. I have seen what much of this poison has done to the youth. Some drugs are a menace to society. With that said, I also believe in the Constitution Party's stance that drug bust be made only in accordance to the Constitution. That means that there must be a probable cause to belive that these drugs are being trafficked and that SEARCH WARRANT be issued. That means NO RANDOM DRUG SEARCHES (4th Amendment), No Mandatory piss tests (Again, 4th Amendment).
"The Constitution Party finds that a cause of this national state of disgrace is the deterioration of personal character among government leaders, exacerbated by the lack of public outcry against immoral conduct by public office holders." In other words, only people whose character meets their arbitrary standards are worthy of honor and respect. The government will command you as to that which is considered "moral".
Most of the people of the Constitution Party believe that there needs to be some moral standard in order for this nation to survive. When public servants use their power in order to satisfay their lusts (sexual harrassment, forced sex and such) and greed (bribery, theft, cooking the books, etc), it is OUR money they are wasting. Basic morality (no, I'm not talking about religion) should be a concern for everyone. I personally do not like to see my property be used as a brothel or a loal party place when I am away. If the people who did this had morals, they would keep this junk off of my property and where this kind of stuff is wanted.
"We stand against so-called 'sexual orientation' and 'hate crime' statutes that attempt to legitimize inappropriate sexual behavior and to stifle public resistance to its expression." In other words, the government will command you as to what "appropriate" sexual behavior is and they will support those who wish to abuse those who fall outside of government standards.
No what this does is keep the government from granting special protections to certain classes of people that does not apply to others. It also takes away the peoples right to protest bad behaviour. Before 'hate crime' legislation, people could tell perverts that their behaviour is innapropriate and even mock or deride the perverts. However, they still had NO RIGHT to assult, batter, or otherwise harm that pervert. The pervert still had legal recouse against assailants. If you do not agree here, then what about giving special protections to paedophiles, then have the government put you in jail for spitting on that pedophile when he molests your six years old daughter.
"Gambling promotes an increase in crime, destruction of family values, and a decline in the moral fiber of our country." In other words, the government will command you to not gamble.
It does. However, the regulation of gambling should be decided by the PEOPLE of each state or community. Under Constitutional law, the Government cannot just come into your home and arrest everyone simply because they are playing a game of poker. The Constitution does not give the government carte blanch authority to do just what it wants. It would put a stop to the states having special powers that the average people do not have such as holding lotteries.
"We commend Former Chief Justice Roy Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court for his defense of the display of the Ten
If I were making money via bots, I would have a secondary means of control. This would involve code that uses gnutella protocol to search for a specific file (the filename can reflect a certain daye, etc) the contents of that file would be encrypted with a private key so that only the botmaster could implant control commands. When a bot becomes stranded, it could use gnutella or another p2p protocol to extract the address of the new control server. Botnets will continue to exist as long as there are people who do not take simple precautions when on the net or use insecure programs such as Internet Explorer and Windows under administrative accounts.
I am a supporter of the Libertarian party and even more so of the Constitution Party. I believe in limited government. I also agree that responsibility and accountabilitiy for one's actions is needed. Unfortunately, both the Republicans and Democrats continue to expand the government beyond the limits of the Constitution. Both want virtually unlimited privileges for government as well as major corporations. While this is true for corporate behaviour, the mainstream political parties (especially Republicans) want to regulate and control personal behaviour.
The Libertarian party wants to extend freedoms enjoyed by governments and corporations to individuals. While this seems to be very senseble to many people, there are negative consequences of allowing complete and unabashed freedom to do anything one wants. This type of freedom will cause this nation to disintegrate within a few years. What is really needed is a LIMITED government in which both corporations and government officials MUST OBEY the SAME LAWS THEY PASS. This means that when a law is passed, it must APPLY TO EVERYONE without making special exceptions for government officials or corporations. Individuals must have just as many rights and privileges that public official such as police officers, congress critters, and corporations. The government is also supposed to operate within the constraints of the Constitution. This is why the Constitution Party is my first choice (with the Libertarian Party coming in a close second).
I encourage all slashdotters to register under one of these two parties. I think this is important in order to send a message to the special interest controlled Democratic and Republican parties. If there are other political parties out there which actually work for the best interests of 'we the people,' I would like to hear about them as well. Most of the problems that face people all over the world cannot be solved by legislation. However most problems can be solved by caring and innovation. Look at what has been accomplished by the open source movement. Open source innovation and co-operation has resulted in viable software that has thus far been minimally affected by malware. When basement geeks and corporate programmers work co-operatively, major things can be accomplished. This is also true for societies and nations. There is coming a time when control oriented governments and cartels will be a thing of the past.
That is what is really dumb. On my ballot there were 6 people running for office. I voted for Michael Peroutka. If people bothered taking the time to look at each and every candidate on the ballot, people will find that there are true choices. The only reason why someone like Michael Peroutka or any other alternative party candidate "don't stand a chance of winning" is because people do not vote for them. People are without excuse if they have the Internet available in which to research ALL CANDIDATES on the ballot and they continue to vote for members of the same corrupt political parties.
I have to answer this question with another question. How many people would have been all for Clinton or Janet Reno having the same powers under the "Patriot" Act? I for one would not!!! Personally, I have very conservative values. Being a conservative does not necessarily make me a supporter of the Republican party. When it comes to choosing to keep the protection of our rights or giving them up in the name of a war against a tactic, I will choose to keep the protection of our rights. The media propagandizes a "War on Terrorism." Terrorism is NOT an ENEMY. It is a tactic used by an enemy.
I am not even questioning the intention of Bush, Congress, or the court system. Only the Almighty knows the true intentions of one's heart. I'm just questioning how politicians will use these powers in the future. History shows that just about ANY country that has created a Ministry of Internal Security became a police state. I already believe that police and government officials already have way too much power. The more a government does, the less power people have.
We are already told how and where we can build our homes, what equipment we can have in our homes, when we have to sell our homes and to whom (eniment domain abuse), when and if we can add to our homes, what evidence we can use in our defense, what types of code we can write, and the list goes on and on. I would rather see a terrorist get a fair trial in a local court and be hanged from the oak tree out in front of the court house (if he is found guilty) than I would for this nation's freedoms to be held hostage by runaway government.
There are several things that can be done that will protect Americans against those who would harm us from both within and without. Having the governemnt do a good job of monitoring and regulating the border is one of these things. If this was done the P.S.A. government could stop letting in people from countries which have high concentrations of enemy personnel. The U.S. government could also stop screwing over its citizens. A citizen which has been screwed over or feels that he or she has been sufficiently screwed over will make a prime candidate for recruitment by enemy personnel. When a nation has freedom and the people feel that the government works to serve them, the nation will have a massive army (the people) that will willingly fight to the death to protect that nation. Most American will be still willing fight to the death to protect this nation, however will we be willing to fight to the death to prop up the powers of the political cartel? I don't think so. If even 5% of the people of thi nation rose up and guarded the borders and coastlines, I guarantee that the courts and government would rise up against that 5%.
A nation that has a government that ignores, puts off the concerns of, or runs roughshod over citizens rights will grow a cancer from within. This is where the P.S.A. is heading. It is hard for a common man who works for a living to be able to get a fair day in court without almost depleting his savings. (It is extremely hard for any of us to get a fair day in traffic court on any day). Find a family who has had everything stolen from them by the I.R.S., or a family that has had their home stolen from them by a city council and given to a corporation, and I will show a family that is a prime candidate for recuitment by enemy personnel.
The last declared war on something other than an enemy was declared by President Reagan. This war was declared against various chemical compounds called drugs. What has happened since? Crystal meth, crack, and many others continue to be sold around this nation allowing drug dealers to wreak havoc on this nation while just about every working man, women, and child are forced to piss in cups in order to obtain even menial employment. In the Police State of Florida, there is a law (Unconstitutional) against publishing information about how to beat a drug test. Drug tests are almost as widespread as drugs, and yet the drug pro
Unfortunately monopolies are rquired for many different function such as the organization of telephone numbers, assignment of domain names, ip addresses and so on.
Let me be clear on this one. When I am talking about a monopoly in this case, I am talking about a consortium or a co-operative non-profit organization. I am not talking about giving control to a certain company. A monopoly is necessary in certain cases such as in the case of power lines. It would look a damned bit unsightly and be very croweded on the streets if two or three power companies each ran their own lines on each street. Rather than do this,
the two or three power companies that wish to serve a certain area can form a consortium where the expenses of maintaining the lines are shared between these companies. The consumer should be free to choose any of the power companies that are members of this consortium. They should also be free to join this consortium for only their part of the costs of maintaining the power lines if they wish to also sell electric power. While the production of power is no longer a monopoly, the transmission of this power to the customer would be controlled by a nonprofit co-operative. This way, anybody would be able to compete in the power generation market.
When these monopolies are controlled by profit motivated corporations, or control motivated governments, we all suffer.
This is very true. In my area and other areas like mine, there is only one phone company. The price of a phone line runs about $30 a month for basic service. In areas where there is competition, I have seen prices as low as $10 dollars. You said that when a marketplace is saturated by "profit motivated corporations" then we have this thing called "competition." And competition drives down prices and improves quality and or performance. I agree with this statement 100% This proves my point that when there is competition, there is no monopoly.
The Police States of Amerika has long ago ceased to be the land of the free. In just about each one of the police states, we are told what we can and cannot do with our own property. We have to ask permission from some government agency in order to improve or build onto our own homes. The right to drive our cars have been reduced to a "privilege." The right to own weapons is now decided at the whim of governments, and so on. The government even is alowed to decide to take your property and give it to a corporation or someone else if it deems that someone else is a better owner. The police are allowed to engage in wrongful searches with virtual impunity. When it comes to fines, whatever a government or police agent says is what the courts believe nor matter who may be a witness (unless it is another cop or government agent giving contradictory testemony). Even freedom of speech and freedom to write code is determined by the largeness of one's pockets. If someone does not like the code you release, all they have to do is claim patent infringment or make a claim under DCMA. It will cost YOU money to even make simple motions in your defense. This is the state of what was once the United States of America.
As for the indecency on Television, I HATE it. However, there are better ways of dealing with indecency such as Jerry Springer and others - other than violating their Constitutional rights. It can be done by not giving copyright to indecent material. By denying copyright, everyone would have the legal right to copy, modify, sell, and redistribute indecent material. If material can be had for free in high quality reproduction with no legal risk, then why would people pay for it. Rather than fine studios and networks for indecency, it would be better to remove their copyright privileges for a certain series for a certain number of episodes.
The Founding Fathers instituted provisions for copyright and patents in the Constitution for encouraging the production of USEFUL works. What good purpose does obscene material serve other than lining the pockets of those who make it? The simple answer is NONE! So, if a work is not useful to society, then why should its creator have monopoly privileges? I do not see any reason why the creator should.
I believe many child molesters, serial murderers, and general rapists have their obsessions fed and amplified by pornographic and violent content. Something can and should be done about it. Rather than stifle freedom, it would be better to remove the motivation (money) for producing indecent material. Unfortunately, the Democratic-Republican rulers of the P.S.A. would rather pass even more laws that infringe on our Constitutional rights. It is not just those from one party: it is those from BOTH parties!!! This is the main reason why I vote for candidates from the Constitution Party. I encourage people to reaserch the alternative political parties and quit voting for candidates in the bought and paid for mainstream political parties (Democratic and Republican parties). Our freedom is the casualty of voting mainstream political parties.
I just hope that the people who live in what is now the Police States of Amerika decide to wake up and have another "Tea Party." Short of that, I recommend that everyone who lives within the confines of the P.S.A. visit http://www.fija.org/ . That website explains the power that a single juror has. It is the power to vote a defendant INNOCENT REGARDLESS OF THE EVIDENCE OR JUDGE'S INSTRUCTIONS. If a person is known to have violated an unconstitutional or morally wrong law, then jurors should vote NOT GUILTY despite instructions from a judge. It only takes ONE JUROR to vote not guilty in order to deny the system power. If a jury does not unanimously agree to convict a defendant, then the defendant must be retried or released. I used my power to prevent the conviction of an old man who had an "illegal" gun for self defense. We who live in the P.S.A. have the power and means to regain freedom, if only we would excercise the power we have left. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!!
I wish I had mod points to mod you up. However, I do not. The best form of monopoly is a co-operative. Unfortunately monopolies are rquired for many different function such as the organization of telephone numbers, assignment of domain names, ip addresses and so on. When these monopolies are controlled by profit motivated corporations, or control motivated governments, we all suffer. We will also have a complete breakdown of communication if it is placed under the control of the unwashed masses who have no idea of how technology works. I believe that the best way of regulating and setting up domain names as well as ip addresses is by forming a cooperative of both coinsumers and producers.
I am not sure how much power individuals, corporations, and governments should have in such a co-operative. However, each of these groups should be represented. People with no idea of how networks, computers, or communications work should not be able to have majority say on how computer networks run because to allow this would invite chaos and confusion. Profit-motivated companies should not have a majority say because the rest of use will end up paying exorbitant amounts of money to register a domain, ip address, or even to act as a service, and thosw with the least amount of money will continue to have the smallest voice. Governments should not have a majority say because many governments are controlled by major corporations or are despotic and will attempt to block, distort, over-regulate, or over-tax comminication.
Maybe voting say in such a cooperative should be determined by some kind competency test. A test that allows a participent to demonstrate compency in network communication, DNS setup, and ip routing should ensure that those who have insight into how these technologies work will be the ones managing the technology. I believe that the best way to setup and control the allocation of domain names and ip addresses is by giving competent "Average Joes" the most say in setting policy. The end user are the ones who consume information produced and are the ones who altimately pays for the Internet whether through subscription fees or taxes. Whether the end user is a web surfer, or a person who posts information to the web, they are the utimate producers and consumers of information. These are the ones for which the Internet is set up to serve. These people should be the ultimate beneficiaries when it comes to maiking policies on how the Internet is run.
I remember when a few years agao that Internic had a monopoly on ALL REGISTRATIONS. Many people did not like the fees it was charging. Of course, since the only way to register a domain on the Internet was to go through Internic, Internic held all of the cards, and people were forced to pay its fees. That was until some had the bright idea of starting an alternate domain name registration system. All that is (basically) needed to set up a functional alternate domain name is a number of DNS servers with large bandwidth Internet connections and some persuasion to get people and ISP's to use these DNS servers. Of course this could cause mass confusion on the Internet if DNS systems did not respect each other's name to IP mappings.
This is almost what occured before Internic gave up its monopoly on Domain registration in the 90's. I believe that what is happening is that we are seeing a re-monopolization of Internet and telecommunication. The telcos are mergering as well as many different ISP's. Once this monoplolization is completed, the small voice will once again be drowned out. Yes, there will be those in Congress who will decry this re-monoplolization, but in the end, it will still happen. There will be token concessions by the giant telcos as well as giant ISP's that will somewhat limit the power that these entities will wield, but eventually the eneviable will happen. All of this can be prevented, but it will take more than voicing ones opinion to congress and complaining to the press. It will take work and innovation by us average Joes.
Verizon recognizes the dangers (or true competition) presented by muninets, FreeNets, FreeWans, as well as other types of networks. This is why this company is purchasing legislation in order to prevent local governments from working to set up these types of networks. Average Joes do not have the legal force required to seize land in order to install buried cables, nor do the have access to taxpayer financed cables that have already been laid. There are many miles of "dark fiber" that has been laid but never activated by the telcos for Interet infrastructure, yet the average joes does not have the legal authority to use these resources.
What the average Joe does have is the ability to research and innovate. These average Joes include amateur (ham) radio operator as well as hackers. These are the type of people who can build local local wide area networks. Even when only a hundred different computer users are connected together, a vast wealth of information can be shared with withing the network. Combine local wide aread networks or FreeWan cells with "Sneakernets", then just about all filesharing needs can be met. A box full of DVD's packed with files can be a huge chunk of information! Muninet or FreeWan cells that have limited or no connection between them can still have information relayed between them via roving computers or the proverbial sneakernet. Of course, instant messaging, fast email, and many type of rapid communication between different networks is nearly impossible without relying on cartel controlled infrastructure, this may change in the future with enough innovation. Todays technology is more than sufficient to meet nearly all filesharing needs independently from the cartels.
My FreeWan cell is set up as a mini Internet. Visit http://plaza1.net/FreeWan to get a small taste of what can be made available for little cost. If one connects to my FreeWan Cell wirelessly, that person will quickly see an introduction to the FreeWan system when a URL is typed into their web browser. I provide the DNS from the top-level on down for my little area. If this does not sound impressive, then maybe the blazing transfer speeds will. 10 Mbit per second at 0 cost will. This is the type of speed that should be made available across the United States, However, rather than being limited by technology, we are limited by the greed of the cartels.
This is just another case about how politicians are causing divisions among the people. Turn the Blacks and Whites against each other, turn the Creationalists and the Evolutionists against each other. It goes on and on. As long as people continue to argue and fight with each other, the government-corporate alliance can continue to pass new laws which take away our freedoms as well as drain our resources. If and when we decide to get our heads out of our asses and quit fighting one another, we can stand up to the government-cartel alliance and show them that WE ARE THE BOSS.
Just think about how much rancor and argument that has been generated by a simple statement, "Not all scientists agree with evolution as the origin of all life." That statement neither debases science nor religion. Most of the controversy is over moot points. It would be better for these politicians to look at legislation that will prevent the court-enforced theft of property by corporations. These politicians should be more concerned about making sure that the courts allow those who have little or no money get a fair day in court. In other words the legislature will better serve the people by protecting their rights rather than passing laws to increase their (politicians) wealth and power. But this will not happen until people decide to quit nitpicking over something this lame.
During the last special election to replace an outgoing congressman, a person from a party not affiliated with the mainstream republican/democratic party ran. Jim Gilchrist of the California affiliate of the Constitution Party won the most votes on election day. However, it was the absentee ballots that caused him to lose the election. Whether that was because the election was directly rigged by the corporate government alliance or whether it was due to the lack of information reaching the absentee voters we will never know. However, the alternative parties such as the Constitution Party, Libertarian Party and many others have been gaining ground. Many people who would otherwise stay home on election day are beginning to see that there are now choices in politics. As people stop voting for the perpetual bullshit of the so called main parties, it looks like these parties are looking for even more innovative ways to stay in power. If one of those ways involve manipulating votes, so be it. The day will likely come when people see that even their votes no longer count, they may very well be forced to take extreme measures to make sure they are heard.
One news story from a couple of years ago that has been severely underreported is Marvin Heemeyer's punishment of the rulers in the town of Granby, Colorado. This man converted a bulldozier into an improvized tank. He used this tank to demolish the buildings of those who he felt wronged him. However, he did not cause any injury or deaths to anyone besides himself. Whether he was in fact wronged or not, I will never know. What I do know is that it is extremely difficult to get a redress of grievances from any local, state, or Federal government.
Now that it looks like one of the only two legal weapons that can be used by the common man might be usurped by the corrupt government-corporate alliance. Even when reporting this corruption, a whistleblower is punished. I guess that freedom of speech is yet another right that is being usurped by government. The last power that the people have is when they get a chance to sit on a jury. I know that if I ever get to sit on a jury and I see a judge shushing the defendent or witness, I will vote NOT GUILTY. If the person is accused of violating an unconstitutional law, I again will vote NOT GUILTY. I encourage people to visit http://www.fija.org/ to learn about their rights and powers as jurors.
One of our Founding Fathers once stated that reasonable men are sometimes forced to do unreasonable things. Once the rule of law is usurped from a country such as the P.S.A., anarchy is the result. In the P.S.A. we have been living under anarchy. Anarchy is the lack of law. The P.S.A. is hardly ruled by laws anymore but rather by the decree of men in power. This type of government is called a democracy while a government that is ruled by laws that apply to everyone is called a republic. One day, there may be a general uprising of the people to restore the rule of law. If that day comes, it will mean hard times for years. Governments as powerful as the ones in the P.S.A. do not return their wrongfully gained power easily. I am afraid that if this uprising happens, many, many on both sides will lose their lives. Like the Civil War, there will be family members fighting on opposite sides. Hopefully, if and when that day comes, freedom and the rule of law will be restored.
Spirutal studies are what keeps me from getting angry about things. However, I believe that it is also my duty to warn people about the impending misery all of these so-called "free trade" agreements are going to bring to the people in this world. President Bush just proved that all of his talk about "Homeland Security" is nothing more than B.S. He just outsourced the running of our sea ports to Arab nations.
I have nothing against Arabs, but I thought we were supposed to be at war with "nations that support terrorism." Bush needs to decide if he wants America to be at war or at peace. He cannot have it both ways. I personally believe that "Homeland Security" is just an excuse to usurp even more power from the people of the U.S. He talks about how necessary it is to monitor the communications of Americans to those abroad and yet, he leaves our borders and sea ports open to drug smugglers and "terrorists."
I believed that if the American government would butt out of other nations business and start addressing its own problems and obey ALL of the Constitution, the "terror" problem will be solve itself in short order.
I could not say it any better.
on
Outsourcing Evolving
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· Score: 3, Interesting
There are plenty of qualified people to fill the jobs that these executives want to export. I have met many qualified applicants for many jobs that were simply overlooked because a different word was used on a resume, or there weren't enough letters in a specific title or some other stupid bullshit reason. I also know that there are many other places where one can aquire a quality education without having to spend time in a classroom. I know a lot of stuff, and most of this stuff was learned from nights spent reading books, doing the excercises and from doing experiments.
Yes, I went to college, and yes, I graduated. However, I have no formal education whatsover in the I.T. industry. The field in which I got my degree was made obsolete by all of the "Free Trade" Agreements. Even though I have no formal education in I.T., I do write code for a living and have taught college graduates in the I.T. field many things. I have also fixed the mistakes of many college graduates and yet, it is the college graduates in the field who get the credit as well as the money for the work I have done. I do not resent college graduates nor do I believe that their knowlege is necessarily any less than mine. I have worked with many smart people who have graduated college and was impressed with the knowlege and skills. However, I have worked with many just as smart people who have learned their profession on their own.
I am 38 years old, and I can definitely see why high school graduates may have second thoughts about attending college.
If I had to depend on student loans in order to make it through college, I would not go. There are many people who are finding themselves to be outsourced before they have paid back even half of their student loans!!! In the Police States of Amerika, we have governments that work against small businesses as well as employees. We need to quit voting for Democrats and Republicans (in America). Both are EQUALLY GUILTY for the decline America is currently experiencing.
People in other nations should also discard candidate in the top known political parties in their respectiver nations. The top parties in each nation usually have their campaigns financed in one way or another by the top money. Top money is what these lawmakers end up working for. It is time to change that, one way or ANOTHER!!!!
My message to Phillipeanos and Indians is that I do not doubt your capabilities or your smarts, or your willingnes to work. There are good, bad, ugly, pretty, smart, and stupid people in every country in every part of the world. From the media such as newspapers, TV news outlets and other places, you have most likely heard that most Americans are stupid, lazy, do not care about a thing, and live lives of luxury. This could be further from the truth! Most of my fellow Americans work two jobs just to make ends meet. Right now Indians and Phillipeanos may be experiencing an economic boom, but I guarantee that the outsourcing of your jobs is coming within the next few years. When the multinational cartels find other smart people that they can exploit for a cheaper price, then that is what they will do. You and your families be damned as far as they are concerned. The executives will then claim that they cannot find "qualified" people in India or the Phillipeans and are "foced" to look elsewhere. This is what happens when what is called "money" has it value arbitrarily set. When small time money printers print money, it is called "counterfeiting." When governments or Federal Reserve banks do it, it is called "Monitary Policy." The paper based currencies of most nations are backed by nothing, so the real value of this currency is almost nil. Talk about the blind faith of the religionists around the world. There is more blind faith being demonstrated on payday than any other day of the week.
The Mobile and entrenched utility companies are the ones that will continue making all the money. That will NEVER change unless the the same thing happens to these as what happened to Microsoft. Microsoft thought it had shut out competition such as OS2, Novell and so on.
The same thing is occurring in the information transport business. The incumbent utility companies will act in the same manner. Each carves out a territory and form "partnerships" with like large companies (priority transmission, peering agreements, and content sharing). In most places, these utilities "compete" with each other while gouging customers with surprise fees, etc. The market is fixed and all meaningful competition to this type of price gouged service will be shut out.
NOBODY can compete with these mammoth, government supported monopolies unless they provide nearly the same type of service under different rules like Linux has done to Microsoft and the entrenched unix companies. If there was a PC version of Unix that was sold at a reasonable price, Linus Torvalds most likely would have not been motivated to create Linux. The Linux model started out with do-it-yourselfers providing their own operating system and eventually, businessess caught on and started seeing the benefits of supporting Linux. Businesses now have a way of writing and distributing systems without being encumbered by overpriced licenses. The same type of thing will happen when hackers figure out how to build their own infrastructure. This type of infrastructure is already being built in communities around the world. These communities are called FreeWans, Muninets, and so on. If the entrenched monopolies do not start providing reasonable service for reasonable prices and without stupid restrictions, they might find a group of hackers forcing them to compete with free.
Maybe crackers can sell their exploits to the highest bidder with the 10 Grand to I Defense being the reserve price. With all of the programmers out of jobs due to outsourcing, this is a way for American workers to compete on a level playing field.
Slashdot Mirror
The Internet represents the return of the free press. Stories on the Internet are not written for the sole purpose of selling content or ad space. One reasons why certain stories are glossed over or buried is because if these stories hurt advertisers when they are brought to light, advertisers may take their business elsewhere. Also sensationalism sell more content. I remember when O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson were tried. That is all I heard about round the clock. It was boring and rather insignificant in the course of history, but it solve subscriptions as well as made advertisers happy, so that is why it got reported so extensively.
Some of the stuff I dug up online made for some very interesting articles. One of the big stories of 2004 in my humbl opinion was the Marvin Heemeyer story in Granby Colorado. This guy destroyed a town without physically hurting a single person (except himself). He would have done in plenty of people had he had the desire. Some say he was a raving lunatic madman, and others say he was an ordinary guy who was wronged once too many times by a corrupt local government.
He was big news in the region for a while, but he was only a footnote in national news. Other stories that receive only a small bit of coverage in the lamescream media such as Time magazine's "pitchfork rebellion" can gain national prominance in quite a hurry. Also, police corruption is being brought to light in many areas. In North Florida, the coverup of a boy who died as a result of a beating by sheriff's deputies has resulted in the top law enforcer of the state resigning. Had it not been for the Internet, lamescream media would most likely pass the story by. Since this story has received national spotlight, the "cockroaches have run for cover," so to speak. Coverups have become much more difficult, and those in power are very afraid.
Because the Internet is being used to cut out the middleman as well as being used to expose the wrongdoing of the powerful, policies are being passed to make it more intimidating, more regulated, as well as more watched. These policies will stifle free speech on the net as well as make it less useful. When this happens, hopefully, enough people will work to create a new type of network where the infrastructure will be owned by individual common people. The technology exists to easily create such a network.
A jar of about a 1000 moths released at the beginning will show what old clothes and old story lines will attract.
"Trust me that you definitely WANT intelligent nurses in today's medical system -- you really do. Requiring high education standards for the people that spend the MOST time working with you and evaluating your heath, is a requirement. And a correct one."
Yes I do want inteligent people working to take care of me, but a college degree does not necessarily indicate intelligence. There are many ways of getting a good education, and college is just but one of these ways. I know of at least two nurses who act like backwoods trailer trash despite their polished 4 year degree.
I know of some college grads who are great at nursing. I also know of one lady who was "grandfathered in" who is an excellent nurse. She is the one that trains new nurses at the local hospital (Yes most still require some training even after graduation).
Having a piece of paper does not make someone knowlegeable at their job. What makes a person knowlegable at their job is knowlege. Knowlege comes from many sources and not just a classroom. What a college degree actually means is that a person sat in a classroom for a certain period of time and was able to recall what was said in that classroom on a test. Whether this information came from the graduate's memory, a cheatsheet, or a PDA may not be clear. I actually know of one person who graduated with me from my electronic engineering program who had no real idea of how a diode or transistor worked (yes, she even told me so). I knew how these two devices work before I even started college. (I went to college for the paper, I already had the knowlege.)
"So pick on whatever you want to pick on that you know little about, but leave nurses out of it. You know NOTHING about nurses."
As a matter of fact I DO know about nurses, I know and have been around many. Some are good at their job, and other don't have a clue. As far as state requirements in order to be a nurse is concerned, each state has its own criteria. Some do it the right way, and others mandate college. The right way is a compency and performance test done in a reasonable secure area. I know I do not care if my nurse has a degree or not. I care if my nurse is good at the job and is willing to do a good job.
The fact that you call me a "tard" indicates your lack of skill or knowlege when you are debating. When people resort to namecalling, they cede the high ground to the person with whom they are debating.
Linus Torvalds was NOT a college graduate when he wrote Linux (yes, he was attending). So does that mean that Linux is no good and should not be used? Billy Gates does not have a degree, yet he is one of the most shrewd (and richest) businessmen of this day. A college degree should not be necessary to be good at any job.
Government officials and policy makers talk about jobs Americans won't do. The reason why most Americans won't do certain jobs is not because of the work, it is because of the low pay! Americans need a certain amount of money to pay for housing, energy, food, as well as all the government-mandated expenses. Most mega corporations have become so obsessed with short term profit margins that they willingly sacrifice quality and customer service in order to squeeze another nickel in short term profits. Governments have become so obsessed with making sure that everything that is done under their auspices conform exactingly to every written specification and petty policy regardless of the costs. This is why costs are so high and service is so shitty.
What the author said is true when it comes to computer tech support. Most "technicians" receive about 2 weeks of training here in the Police States of Amerika before being turned loose on the phones. When I worked at Sykes Enterprise as a tech support agent, I was trained for two different clients. The first client was AT&T Worldnet. This training lasted about 3 weeks and included some basic computer troubleshooting concepts as well as training on how to use AT&T's troubleshooting database (Information Warehouse). The second client I worked for was SBC Internet, and this is where I received "training" on how to use their "Knowlege Base." The way "Knowlege Base" was organized made it next to useless, so a group of tech wrote a Web Browser sidebar that made finding relevant information much quicker. Many of the managers did not like that fact that this tool was created because they thought it would foster dependencey, however the technicians loved it.
The point is that different people with different skill levels become involved in tech support for various reasons. Some do not even know how to turn on a computer, while others are people who have programmed and hacked their way around systems for over 27 years. I took a tech support job because I (thought I) wanted a doorway into the I.T. profession.
I became dismayed as to how management limited my ability to provide assistance to users simply because if I provide a high level of support, customers would expect other technicians to do the same. I finally got promoted to the I.T. department after a couple of years. I ended up leaving the company in order to accept a position as a software engineer at another (small) company. About 6 months after I left the company, it moved overseas to the Phillipean Isles.
Tech support pays nearly all technicians low wages regardless of the knowlege and skills of the technician. This is the same for nearly every job in the P.S.A. What the government and corporations don't seem to grasp is that people can and do learn very much outside the confines of a four year college program. These days, if you are working as an employee for someone else, about the only way to get a good paying job is to become a memebr of the bachelors' degree club. For many who choose to go this route, they have to spend much more than four years living under slavish conditions in order toscrape together the money to pay for their membership. A great majority of those who get their degree are lucky enough to have parents wealthy enough to pay all of the membership fees. Others manage to get student loans to pay for their membership. A membership in this bachelors' degree club is considered mandatory for most well paying careers that
once accepted non degree holders.
An example of a job that now requires a college degree is that of a nurse. About 30 years ago, a person could become a nurse by studying some material and getting on the job training. Nursing school was also an option (which is a good thing). Now days, it is against the law to be a nurse without having a college degree. The cost of nursing school is simply beyond the reach of most working people. There are those who would say that this is done to protect that [patient from shoddy work. I would
The governments and Mega-corporations around the world will not be satisfied until every peon is stamped, tagged, looged, and taxed into oblivion. The answer short of world wide uprising is to use the same technology that is used against us against our oppressors. The choices are already out there. The government created ARPANET, and the resulting internet and networking technologies are beginning to make the cartel controlled media empires obsolete. Pissed off hackers can easily write software that will cause the cartels and governments to stamp and log themselves into oblivion, and worms are currently the most effective software distribution tool. The millions of wireless routers, NIC card, and computers out there can be turned into a very widespead network infrastructure that is owned by the people in general. Some people are already experimenting with Mininets, FreeWans, and other networks that operate completely independent of the Internet. Even a small box of DVD's (encrypted) sent by snailmail or courier allows a huge transfer of information. When Congress or any other government body overtaxes, over monitors, or otherwise over-restricts the Internet, then people will use alternative ways to communicate. Current technologies already provide ways for people to communicate independently of the government-cartel infrastructure. RFID is eventually going to be used in nearly every piece of clothing or consumer item we purchased. Since many governments promote recycling, I will do the same. When RFID readers become widely available for a reasonable price. Embedded RFID chips can be removed and covertly planted on the verhicles, clothes and items belonging to government officials. RFID readers contained in peoples' vehicles (or even along side of the roads) can be connected to computers. These computers can form a tracking network. The question is, "How likely is that to happen?" Not very likely until some person or group comes up with a way to sell this idea to criminal elements or dissident organizations or that someone is a criminal, dissident, or hacker himself. The wide availability of high power lasers in some industrial and consumer electronics allow people to create devices that can be used to blind others at a long distance. Just as computer and networking technology is making the printing press obsolete. Various types of consumer electronics may do the same with the gun. It is amazing at how a cheap $30 CVS disposable camcorder can be converted into night vision equipment. It is also remarkable that many different types of consumer digital cameras can be converted to covertly strip search people. The government spends several tens of thousands of dollars on this type of technology while hackers spend less than a few hundred. Since it is mostly impossible to get a fair hearing in traffic court, technology can be easily adapted to foil the tools used by governments to extort fines from drivers. Simple high gloss clear-coat paint and a few LED's can be used to prevent most digital cameras from reading licence plates. A $5 laser pointer can be used to block the view of a $5,000 police camera. A home made device that quickly and randomly changes the brightness of an array infrared LED's can easily confuse the brightness (or AGP) control circuitry of most electronic cameras. A high powered BB gun can permantly disable the same camera. A piece of tape or paper can render a camera useless until the tape is removed. A $100,000 X-ray system used to monitor the entrance to a building is useless if people can leave the same building through an unmonitored exit (prevent the door from locking when one leaves will allow that person to re-enter). A loud fire excape exit alarm can be easily muffled by duct tape over the buzzer (if a high pitched alarm) or by piercing the buzzer with a needle. Am I worried about being on some list for posting this? Yes, slightly. When the governments come after people like me or the millions of bloggers out there, they will be having much bigger problems. Governme
When I get some type of broadband network access where I can download movies in a reasonably short period of time, I will very likely cancel my Dish Network subscription. There is nothing more annoying to me than seeing a pop-up cartoon advertising another program at the bottom of my TV screen. I believe that TNT is one of the worst offenders with these pop-ups. I no longer watch that channel.
I also believe that $12.99 per month for 5 channels that show constant reruns of the same few movies over the entire billing period is too high of a price. This is the type of shit people once had to put up with when dealing with government enforced monopolies. Fortunately, there are now ways around these monopolies. These ways are called movie swapping clubs, peer to peer networks, and independent producers creating via computers and camcorders. Since I live in an area where there is no broadband access, I only get to download entertainment when I visit another town. However most people have access to broadband networking in the U.S. Maybe this is why Dish Network keeps offering free weeks of HBO and Showtime. It may also be the reason why their telemarketers keep calling my house to get me to sign up with addidtional programming. People can now go to other sources rather than pay for mediocre, overpriced service.
Another reason people go online in order to view content is because much of what is found on the internet is much more entertaining than the crap that is found on cartel controlled media. The crap that Hollydud is pouring out is for the most part completely unoriginal. Why should I watch yet another remake of King Kong when I already know what is going to happen in the movie? Where is the suspense? Where is the originality? I don't feel like I should pay premium prices for uninspiring reruns. Tech TV is no longer on Dish Network. Instead, there is something called G4. G4 IMHO is a pitiful replacement. For tech entertainment, I would rather download HackTV, "Welcome to the scene," or some other tech-oriented show from the Internet.
When some form of broadband access (be it muninet, FreeWan, or Internet) comes to my area, I will call Dish Network and ask them to reduce my bill to $35 a month without cutting access to any channels. Of course, they will refuse and the agent will most likely put his or her phone on mute while laughing at my request. However, my rquest would be a reasonable one, since I would be able to obtain equivilent or better entertainment online for the price of the connection without having to deal with the pop-ups, etc.
This is what Dish Network, Direct TV, cable companies as well as other channel providers provide - connectivity. These providers only stream content from producers and resellers such as HBO, Showtime and TNT. Currently, most Hollydud movies move through the following channels to get to me - studio > HBO (or other channel) > Dish Network. The studio manufactures the content, HBO buys and resells the content to a cable or satellite company, and the satellite company charges a fee to link the viewer to the content. The studios are beginning to have high quality competition from small time or even home studios which in many cases release their content for free. HBO and the likes only retrieve the content from studios and organize it in a way that they think will cause people to pay to watch their channel. The likes of web browsers and LimeWire will do the same task to the specific likings of individuals and mostly for free. The Likes of Dish Network, Direct TV, and Comcast only route content from the source to the viewer. The likes of cable Internet, DSL, Muninets, FreeWans, as well as sneaker networks provider a much lower cost of connection as well as better choice. In essence, when more and more people get turned onto the competition, the over-priced, under-quality service offered by the tradional media companies will have to be priced at a significantly reduced rate or else go the way of the dinosaur. When broadband comes to my area, the content distribution route will change to studio > LimeWire, BitTorrent, Mozilla, or FTP > me.
The P.S.A.'s military has the best equipped military in the world. On the conventional battlefield, the fight is over before it begins with the P.S.A.'s military in the winner's place. However, despite its armored exterior, the P.S.A. has a soft underbelly. As with the Roman Empire, the P.S.A. will be defeated from within. Many of its people and businesses are already poisoned with drugs, perversion, and lack of morals (along with the rest of the world).
While the P.S.A's government may be able to destroy the most well hidden military equipment, it would have a hard time defending against hords of people with Zippo lighters bent on setting everything in the P.S.A. on fire. Look at the panic two guys with a rifle caused in D.C. a few years ago. The weapons that will be successful against the P.S.A. will be those which are routinely bought in the Walmart's or other discount stores located in nearly every American town. The enemy spends $1 to destroy a thousand dollars worth of our wealth while we spend a thousand dollars to destroy $10 dollars of enemy wealth.
Go a few decades back (when the P.S.A. was the U.S.A.), one would find that this would be less and less the case. Back then, people had more freedom, and their purchasing power was much greater. Rather than spending most of their time adly playing video games, surfing the net, or watching one fo the four hundred channels of crap, they would be in their local communities talking with other members of the community. They would have had a much better idea of who belonged and who didn't. There was also reasonable tarrifs on imports which allowed goods entering the country to be more carefully inspected. This is no longer the case since large companies are allowing to import super cheap goods while having to pay few taxes and comply with even fewer regulations. The P.S.A. government giving special privileges to companies created by enemy countries also does not help our situation.
The only way for the P.S.A. to be secure again would be for it to return to being the U.S.A. It would have to return to basic morality as well as the principles on which it was founded. Since most people are now hostile to this idea, it can not possibily happen until major castastrophy strikes this nation. We have to heal the internal rot before we can effective fight against an enemy that remains largely invisible, and which changes shape and size. The P.S.A. is not only facing terrorists, it is also facing MS13, drug cartels, corrupt government officials (at all levels) as well as a corrupt "entertainment" cartel. Once the P.S.A. heals internally and returns to being the U.S.A., we have a chance of winning against our enemies. But unless that happens, we as a nation will be through.
I like your pleadings. Unfortunately, 'we the people' have long ago made it a habit to depend on our enemies for sustanance. This is one reason we are in our situation today. Rather than working at supporting and depending on each other to meet our needs, we have turn to the likes of Verizon, Safeway, Walmart, Krogers, as well as governments. Before exercising our Second Amendment guaranteed RIGHT, we should stop to think about how we are going to meet our basic needs. Those who think that freedom will be earned by arms ( or cable cutters ) alone need to study history. Look at some countries in Central America or Africa. Many people of those countries struggled and fought to remove repressive governments only to find that the government they installed to be equally repressive. How many people today even know the family living a 1000 feet away or even the family living next door. I hat to say that in America, many do not. Technology has prograssed to the point to where we can conduct filesharing (news spools, movies, programs, music and so on) independent of the telephone cartels. A tremendous about of information can be held in a box of DVD's. Wireless routers, access points, and bridges can be used to transmit data from one point to another. Lasers can also transmit vast amounts of data. Even electric lines are now being used to pass information. Computers traveling (in an automobile) from one location to another can be used to convey information from one point to another. We are no longer dependent on monopoly controlled Internet to have information sharing in which anyone can be a producer or consumer. What is needed are people cooperating with each other to get the job done. For a world wide network, what is needed is protocol to specify the physical location of the information requester and information source. Participating computers in between can then be used to pass information onto the next point and so on. Shortcut links can be used where there are few obstructions. Computers that are nearby can also serve as source for information if they have the requested information on their harddrives. High speed, low cost information sharing networks can also be local. This type of network is know as a Muninet or Freewan ( http://www.plaza1.net/FreeWan ). The biggest step in regaining our freedom is to stop depending on those who stifle that freedom. I regards to the freedom of those who work daily to make ther people's lives miserable, ostricism is one way of dealing with the problem. Creative uses of technology is another way.
Yup, you illustrate the problem. You stated that you are one of the TOP FINANCIAL FIRMS OF THE WORLD. Major corporations get the service that others only dream of. You either got that lease either because you could afford to pay exorbitant rates or because you have a "partnership" (special connections) with the phone cartel. These are something that most people do not have.
If having minimum basic moral standards in each state decided by the voters or legislation is a problem to you, and you want an anything goes society, then by all means, support the Libertarian Party. I also give that party support. I am NOT against government, I am against the UNLIMITED AND ABUSIVE government that is promoted by the democratic-Republican Party.
"In other words, the government will command you not to engage in trade that they disapprove of. They will command you as to what you are allowed to put into your own body."
Like I said some government is necessary. I have taken care of children who have had their legs broken because of their parents meth rage. I have seen what much of this poison has done to the youth. Some drugs are a menace to society. With
that said, I also believe in the Constitution Party's stance that drug bust be made only in accordance to the Constitution. That means that there must be a probable cause to belive that these drugs are being trafficked and that SEARCH WARRANT be issued. That means NO RANDOM DRUG SEARCHES (4th Amendment), No Mandatory piss tests (Again, 4th Amendment).
"The Constitution Party finds that a cause of this national state of disgrace is the deterioration of personal character among government leaders, exacerbated by the lack of public outcry against immoral conduct by public office holders." In other words, only people whose character meets their arbitrary standards are worthy of honor and respect. The government will command you as to that which is considered "moral".
Most of the people of the Constitution Party believe that there needs to be some moral standard in order for this nation to survive. When public servants use their
power in order to satisfay their lusts (sexual harrassment, forced sex and such) and greed (bribery, theft, cooking the books, etc), it is OUR money they are wasting. Basic morality (no, I'm not talking about religion) should be a concern for everyone. I personally do not like to see my property be used as a brothel or a loal party place when I am away. If the people who did this had morals, they would keep this junk off of my property and where this kind of stuff is wanted.
"We stand against so-called 'sexual orientation' and 'hate crime' statutes that attempt to legitimize inappropriate sexual behavior and to stifle public resistance to its expression." In other words, the government will command you as to what "appropriate" sexual behavior is and they will support those who wish to abuse those who fall outside of government standards.
No what this does is keep the government from granting special protections to certain classes of people that does not apply to others. It also takes away the peoples right to protest bad behaviour. Before 'hate crime' legislation, people could tell perverts that their behaviour is innapropriate and even mock or deride the perverts. However, they still had NO RIGHT to assult, batter, or otherwise harm that pervert. The pervert still had legal recouse against assailants. If you do not agree here, then what about giving special protections to paedophiles, then have the government put you in jail for spitting on that pedophile when he molests your six years old daughter.
"Gambling promotes an increase in crime, destruction of family values, and a decline in the moral fiber of our country." In other words, the government will command you to not gamble.
It does. However, the regulation of gambling should be decided by the PEOPLE of each state or community. Under Constitutional law, the Government cannot just come into your home and arrest everyone simply because they are playing a game of poker. The Constitution does not give the government carte blanch authority to do just what it wants. It would put a stop to the states having special powers that the average people do not have such as holding lotteries.
"We commend Former Chief Justice Roy Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court for his defense of the display of the Ten
If I were making money via bots, I would have a secondary means of control. This would involve code that uses gnutella protocol to search for a specific file (the filename can reflect a certain daye, etc) the contents of that file would be encrypted with a private key so that only the botmaster could implant control commands. When a bot becomes stranded, it could use gnutella or another p2p protocol to extract the address of the new control server. Botnets will continue to exist as long as there are people who do not take simple precautions when on the net or use insecure programs such as Internet Explorer and Windows under administrative accounts.
I am a supporter of the Libertarian party and even more so of the Constitution Party. I believe in limited government. I also agree that responsibility and accountabilitiy for one's actions is needed. Unfortunately, both the Republicans and Democrats continue to expand the government beyond the limits of the Constitution. Both want virtually unlimited privileges for government as well as major corporations. While this is true for corporate behaviour, the mainstream political parties (especially Republicans) want to regulate and control personal behaviour.
The Libertarian party wants to extend freedoms enjoyed by governments and corporations to individuals. While this seems to be very senseble to many people, there are negative consequences of allowing complete and unabashed freedom to do anything one wants. This type of freedom will cause this nation to disintegrate within a few years. What is really needed is a LIMITED government in which both corporations and government officials MUST OBEY the SAME LAWS THEY PASS. This means that when a law is passed, it must APPLY TO EVERYONE without making special exceptions for government officials or corporations. Individuals must have just as many rights and privileges that public official such as police officers, congress critters, and corporations. The government is also supposed to operate within the constraints of the Constitution. This is why the Constitution Party is my first choice (with the Libertarian Party coming in a close second).
I encourage all slashdotters to register under one of these two parties. I think this is important in order to send a message to the special interest controlled Democratic and Republican parties. If there are other political parties out there which actually work for the best interests of 'we the people,' I would like to hear about them as well. Most of the problems that face people all over the world cannot be solved by legislation. However most problems can be solved by caring and innovation. Look at what has been accomplished by the open source movement. Open source innovation and co-operation has resulted in viable software that has thus far been minimally affected by malware. When basement geeks and corporate programmers work co-operatively, major things can be accomplished. This is also true for societies and nations. There is coming a time when control oriented governments and cartels will be a thing of the past.
That is what is really dumb. On my ballot there were 6 people running for office. I voted for Michael Peroutka. If people bothered taking the time to look at each and every candidate on the ballot, people will find that there are true choices. The only reason why someone like Michael Peroutka or any other alternative party candidate "don't stand a chance of winning" is because people do not vote for them. People are without excuse if they have the Internet available in which to research ALL CANDIDATES on the ballot and they continue to vote for members of the same corrupt political parties.
I have to answer this question with another question. How many people would have been all for Clinton or Janet Reno having the same powers under the "Patriot" Act? I for one would not!!! Personally, I have very conservative values. Being a conservative does not necessarily make me a supporter of the Republican party. When it comes to choosing to keep the protection of our rights or giving them up in the name of a war against a tactic, I will choose to keep the protection of our rights. The media propagandizes a "War on Terrorism." Terrorism is NOT an ENEMY. It is a tactic used by an enemy.
I am not even questioning the intention of Bush, Congress, or the court system. Only the Almighty knows the true intentions of one's heart. I'm just questioning how politicians will use these powers in the future. History shows that just about ANY country that has created a Ministry of Internal Security became a police state. I already believe that police and government officials already have way too much power. The more a government does, the less power people have.
We are already told how and where we can build our homes, what equipment we can have in our homes, when we have to sell our homes and to whom (eniment domain abuse), when and if we can add to our homes, what evidence we can use in our defense, what types of code we can write, and the list goes on and on. I would rather see a terrorist get a fair trial in a local court and be hanged from the oak tree out in front of the court house (if he is found guilty) than I would for this nation's freedoms to be held hostage by runaway government.
There are several things that can be done that will protect Americans against those who would harm us from both within and without. Having the governemnt do a good job of monitoring and regulating the border is one of these things. If this was done the P.S.A. government could stop letting in people from countries which have high concentrations of enemy personnel. The U.S. government could also stop screwing over its citizens. A citizen which has been screwed over or feels that he or she has been sufficiently screwed over will make a prime candidate for recruitment by enemy personnel.
When a nation has freedom and the people feel that the government works to serve them, the nation will have a massive army (the people) that will willingly fight to the death to protect that nation. Most American will be still willing fight to the death to protect this nation, however will we be willing to fight to the death to prop up the powers of the political cartel? I don't think so. If even 5% of the people of thi nation rose up and guarded the borders and coastlines, I guarantee that the courts and government would rise up against that 5%.
A nation that has a government that ignores, puts off the concerns of, or runs roughshod over citizens rights will grow a cancer from within. This is where the P.S.A. is heading. It is hard for a common man who works for a living to be able to get a fair day in court without almost depleting his savings. (It is extremely hard for any of us to get a fair day in traffic court on any day). Find a family who has had everything stolen from them by the I.R.S., or a family that has had their home stolen from them by a city council and given to a corporation, and I will show a family that is a prime candidate for recuitment by enemy personnel.
The last declared war on something other than an enemy was declared by President Reagan. This war was declared against various chemical compounds called drugs. What has happened since? Crystal meth, crack, and many others continue to be sold around this nation allowing drug dealers to wreak havoc on this nation while just about every working man, women, and child are forced to piss in cups in order to obtain even menial employment. In the Police State of Florida, there is a law (Unconstitutional) against publishing information about how to beat a drug test. Drug tests are almost as widespread as drugs, and yet the drug pro
So soes the Constitution Party. I support both the Constitution Party as well as the Libertarian Party.
Unfortunately monopolies are rquired for many different function such as the organization of telephone numbers, assignment of domain names, ip addresses and so on. Let me be clear on this one. When I am talking about a monopoly in this case, I am talking about a consortium or a co-operative non-profit organization. I am not talking about giving control to a certain company. A monopoly is necessary in certain cases such as in the case of power lines. It would look a damned bit unsightly and be very croweded on the streets if two or three power companies each ran their own lines on each street. Rather than do this, the two or three power companies that wish to serve a certain area can form a consortium where the expenses of maintaining the lines are shared between these companies. The consumer should be free to choose any of the power companies that are members of this consortium. They should also be free to join this consortium for only their part of the costs of maintaining the power lines if they wish to also sell electric power. While the production of power is no longer a monopoly, the transmission of this power to the customer would be controlled by a nonprofit co-operative. This way, anybody would be able to compete in the power generation market. When these monopolies are controlled by profit motivated corporations, or control motivated governments, we all suffer. This is very true. In my area and other areas like mine, there is only one phone company. The price of a phone line runs about $30 a month for basic service. In areas where there is competition, I have seen prices as low as $10 dollars. You said that when a marketplace is saturated by "profit motivated corporations" then we have this thing called "competition." And competition drives down prices and improves quality and or performance. I agree with this statement 100% This proves my point that when there is competition, there is no monopoly.
The Police States of Amerika has long ago ceased to be the land of the free. In just about each one of the police states, we are told what we can and cannot do with our own property. We have to ask permission from some government agency in order to improve or build onto our own homes. The right to drive our cars have been reduced to a "privilege." The right to own weapons is now decided at the whim of governments, and so on. The government even is alowed to decide to take your property and give it to a corporation or someone else if it deems that someone else is a better owner. The police are allowed to engage in wrongful searches with virtual impunity. When it comes to fines, whatever a government or police agent says is what the courts believe nor matter who may be a witness (unless it is another cop or government agent giving contradictory testemony). Even freedom of speech and freedom to write code is determined by the largeness of one's pockets. If someone does not like the code you release, all they have to do is claim patent infringment or make a claim under DCMA. It will cost YOU money to even make simple motions in your defense. This is the state of what was once the United States of America.
As for the indecency on Television, I HATE it. However, there are better ways of dealing with indecency such as Jerry Springer and others - other than violating their Constitutional rights. It can be done by not giving copyright to indecent material. By denying copyright, everyone would have the legal right to copy, modify, sell, and redistribute indecent material. If material can be had for free in high quality reproduction with no legal risk, then why would people pay for it. Rather than fine studios and networks for indecency, it would be better to remove their copyright privileges for a certain series for a certain number of episodes.
The Founding Fathers instituted provisions for copyright and patents in the Constitution for encouraging the production of USEFUL works. What good purpose does obscene material serve other than lining the pockets of those who make it? The simple answer is NONE! So, if a work is not useful to society, then why should its creator have monopoly privileges? I do not see any reason why the creator should.
I believe many child molesters, serial murderers, and general rapists have their obsessions fed and amplified by pornographic and violent content. Something can and should be done about it. Rather than stifle freedom, it would be better to remove the motivation (money) for producing indecent material. Unfortunately, the Democratic-Republican rulers of the P.S.A. would rather pass even more laws that infringe on our Constitutional rights. It is not just those from one party: it is those from BOTH parties!!! This is the main reason why I vote for candidates from the Constitution Party. I encourage people to reaserch the alternative political parties and quit voting for candidates in the bought and paid for mainstream political parties (Democratic and Republican parties). Our freedom is the casualty of voting mainstream political parties.
I just hope that the people who live in what is now the Police States of Amerika decide to wake up and have another "Tea Party." Short of that, I recommend that everyone who lives within the confines of the P.S.A. visit http://www.fija.org/ . That website explains the power that a single juror has. It is the power to vote a defendant INNOCENT REGARDLESS OF THE EVIDENCE OR JUDGE'S INSTRUCTIONS. If a person is known to have violated an unconstitutional or morally wrong law, then jurors should vote NOT GUILTY despite instructions from a judge. It only takes ONE JUROR to vote not guilty in order to deny the system power. If a jury does not unanimously agree to convict a defendant, then the defendant must be retried or released. I used my power to prevent the conviction of an old man who had an "illegal" gun for self defense.
We who live in the P.S.A. have the power and means to regain freedom, if only we would excercise the power we have left.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!!
I wish I had mod points to mod you up. However, I do not. The best form of monopoly is a co-operative. Unfortunately monopolies are rquired for many different function such as the organization of telephone numbers, assignment of domain names, ip addresses and so on. When these monopolies are controlled by profit motivated corporations, or control motivated governments, we all suffer. We will also have a complete breakdown of communication if it is placed under the control of the unwashed masses who have no idea of how technology works. I believe that the best way of regulating and setting up domain names as well as ip addresses is by forming a cooperative of both coinsumers and producers. I am not sure how much power individuals, corporations, and governments should have in such a co-operative. However, each of these groups should be represented. People with no idea of how networks, computers, or communications work should not be able to have majority say on how computer networks run because to allow this would invite chaos and confusion. Profit-motivated companies should not have a majority say because the rest of use will end up paying exorbitant amounts of money to register a domain, ip address, or even to act as a service, and thosw with the least amount of money will continue to have the smallest voice. Governments should not have a majority say because many governments are controlled by major corporations or are despotic and will attempt to block, distort, over-regulate, or over-tax comminication. Maybe voting say in such a cooperative should be determined by some kind competency test. A test that allows a participent to demonstrate compency in network communication, DNS setup, and ip routing should ensure that those who have insight into how these technologies work will be the ones managing the technology. I believe that the best way to setup and control the allocation of domain names and ip addresses is by giving competent "Average Joes" the most say in setting policy. The end user are the ones who consume information produced and are the ones who altimately pays for the Internet whether through subscription fees or taxes. Whether the end user is a web surfer, or a person who posts information to the web, they are the utimate producers and consumers of information. These are the ones for which the Internet is set up to serve. These people should be the ultimate beneficiaries when it comes to maiking policies on how the Internet is run.
I remember when a few years agao that Internic had a monopoly on ALL REGISTRATIONS. Many people did not like the fees it was charging. Of course, since the only way to register a domain on the Internet was to go through Internic, Internic held all of the cards, and people were forced to pay its fees. That was until some had the bright idea of starting an alternate domain name registration system. All that is (basically) needed to set up a functional alternate domain name is a number of DNS servers with large bandwidth Internet connections and some persuasion to get people and ISP's to use these DNS servers. Of course this could cause mass confusion on the Internet if DNS systems did not respect each other's name to IP mappings.
This is almost what occured before Internic gave up its monopoly on Domain registration in the 90's. I believe that what is happening is that we are seeing a re-monopolization of Internet and telecommunication. The telcos are mergering as well as many different ISP's. Once this monoplolization is completed, the small voice will once again be drowned out. Yes, there will be those in Congress who will decry this re-monoplolization, but in the end, it will still happen.
There will be token concessions by the giant telcos as well as giant ISP's that will somewhat limit the power that these entities will wield, but eventually the eneviable will happen. All of this can be prevented, but it will take more than voicing ones opinion to congress and complaining to the press. It will take work and innovation by us average Joes.
Verizon recognizes the dangers (or true competition) presented by muninets, FreeNets, FreeWans, as well as other types of networks. This is why this company is purchasing legislation in order to prevent local governments from working to set up these types of networks. Average Joes do not have the legal force required to seize land in order to install buried cables, nor do the have access to taxpayer financed cables that have already been laid. There are many miles of "dark fiber" that has been laid but never activated by the telcos for Interet infrastructure, yet the average joes does not have the legal authority to use these resources.
What the average Joe does have is the ability to research and innovate. These average Joes include amateur (ham) radio operator as well as hackers. These are the type of people who can build local local wide area networks. Even when only a hundred different computer users are connected together, a vast wealth of information can be shared with withing the network. Combine local wide aread networks or FreeWan cells with "Sneakernets", then just about all filesharing needs can be met. A box full of DVD's packed with files can be a huge chunk of information! Muninet or FreeWan cells that have limited or no connection between them can still have information relayed between them via roving computers or the proverbial sneakernet. Of course, instant messaging, fast email, and many type of rapid communication between different networks is nearly impossible without relying on cartel controlled infrastructure, this may change in the future with enough innovation. Todays technology is more than sufficient to meet nearly all filesharing needs independently from the cartels.
My FreeWan cell is set up as a mini Internet. Visit http://plaza1.net/FreeWan to get a small taste of what can be made available for little cost. If one connects to my FreeWan Cell wirelessly, that person will quickly see an introduction to the FreeWan system when a URL is typed into their web browser. I provide the DNS from the top-level on down for my little area. If this does not sound impressive, then maybe the blazing transfer speeds will.
10 Mbit per second at 0 cost will. This is the type of speed that should be made available across the United States, However, rather than being limited by technology, we are limited by the greed of the cartels.
Alternic was orginially put together t
This is just another case about how politicians are causing divisions among the people. Turn the Blacks and Whites against each other, turn the Creationalists and the Evolutionists against each other. It goes on and on. As long as people continue to argue and fight with each other, the government-corporate alliance can continue to pass new laws which take away our freedoms as well as drain our resources. If and when we decide to get our heads out of our asses and quit fighting one another, we can stand up to the government-cartel alliance and show them that WE ARE THE BOSS.
Just think about how much rancor and argument that has been generated by a simple statement, "Not all scientists agree with evolution as the origin of all life." That statement neither debases science nor religion. Most of the controversy is over moot points. It would be better for these politicians to look at legislation that will prevent the court-enforced theft of property by corporations. These politicians should be more concerned about making sure that the courts allow those who have little or no money get a fair day in court. In other words the legislature will better serve the people by protecting their rights rather than passing laws to increase their (politicians) wealth and power. But this will not happen until people decide to quit nitpicking over something this lame.
During the last special election to replace an outgoing congressman, a person from a party not affiliated with the mainstream republican/democratic party ran. Jim Gilchrist of the California affiliate of the Constitution Party won the most votes on election day. However, it was the absentee ballots that caused him to lose the election. Whether that was because the election was directly rigged by the corporate government alliance or whether it was due to the lack of information reaching the absentee voters we will never know. However, the alternative parties such as the Constitution Party, Libertarian Party and many others have been gaining ground. Many people who would otherwise stay home on election day are beginning to see that there are now choices in politics. As people stop voting for the perpetual bullshit of the so called main parties, it looks like these parties are looking for even more innovative ways to stay in power. If one of those ways involve manipulating votes, so be it. The day will likely come when people see that even their votes no longer count, they may very well be forced to take extreme measures to make sure they are heard.
One news story from a couple of years ago that has been severely underreported is Marvin Heemeyer's punishment of the rulers in the town of Granby, Colorado. This man converted a bulldozier into an improvized tank. He used this tank to demolish the buildings of those who he felt wronged him. However, he did not cause any injury or deaths to anyone besides himself. Whether he was in fact wronged or not, I will never know. What I do know is that it is extremely difficult to get a redress of grievances from any local, state, or Federal government.
Now that it looks like one of the only two legal weapons that can be used by the common man might be usurped by the corrupt government-corporate alliance. Even when reporting this corruption, a whistleblower is punished. I guess that freedom of speech is yet another right that is being usurped by government. The last power that the people have is when they get a chance to sit on a jury. I know that if I ever get to sit on a jury and I see a judge shushing the defendent or witness, I will vote NOT GUILTY. If the person is accused of violating an unconstitutional law, I again will vote NOT GUILTY. I encourage people to visit http://www.fija.org/ to learn about their rights and powers as jurors.
One of our Founding Fathers once stated that reasonable men are sometimes forced to do unreasonable things. Once the rule of law is usurped from a country such as the P.S.A., anarchy is the result. In the P.S.A. we have been living under anarchy. Anarchy is the lack of law. The P.S.A. is hardly ruled by laws anymore but rather by the decree of men in power. This type of government is called a democracy while a government that is ruled by laws that apply to everyone is called a republic. One day, there may be a general uprising of the people to restore the rule of law. If that day comes, it will mean hard times for years. Governments as powerful as the ones in the P.S.A. do not return their wrongfully gained power easily. I am afraid that if this uprising happens, many, many on both sides will lose their lives. Like the Civil War, there will be family members fighting on opposite sides. Hopefully, if and when that day comes, freedom and the rule of law will be restored.
Spirutal studies are what keeps me from getting angry about things. However, I believe that it is also my duty to warn people about the impending misery all of these so-called "free trade" agreements are going to bring to the people in this world. President Bush just proved that all of his talk about "Homeland Security" is nothing more than B.S. He just outsourced the running of our sea ports to Arab nations.
I have nothing against Arabs, but I thought we were supposed to be at war with "nations that support terrorism." Bush needs to decide if he wants America to be at war or at peace. He cannot have it both ways. I personally believe that "Homeland Security" is just an excuse to usurp even more power from the people of the U.S. He talks about how necessary it is to monitor the communications of Americans to those abroad and yet, he leaves our borders and sea ports open to drug smugglers and "terrorists."
I believed that if the American government would butt out of other nations business and start addressing its own problems and obey ALL of the Constitution, the "terror" problem will be solve itself in short order.
There are plenty of qualified people to fill the jobs that these executives want to export. I have met many qualified applicants for many jobs that were simply overlooked because a different word was used on a resume, or there weren't enough letters in a specific title or some other stupid bullshit reason. I also know that there are many other places where one can aquire a quality education without having to spend time in a classroom. I know a lot of stuff, and most of this stuff was learned from nights spent reading books, doing the excercises and from doing experiments.
Yes, I went to college, and yes, I graduated. However, I have no formal education whatsover in the I.T. industry. The field in which I got my degree was made obsolete by all of the "Free Trade" Agreements. Even though I have no formal education in I.T., I do write code for a living and have taught college graduates in the I.T. field many things. I have also fixed the mistakes of many college graduates and yet, it is the college graduates in the field who get the credit as well as the money for the work I have done. I do not resent college graduates nor do I believe that their knowlege is necessarily any less than mine. I have worked with many smart people who have graduated college and was impressed with the knowlege and skills. However, I have worked with many just as smart people who have learned their profession on their own.
I am 38 years old, and I can definitely see why high school graduates may have second thoughts about attending college. If I had to depend on student loans in order to make it through college, I would not go. There are many people who are finding themselves to be outsourced before they have paid back even half of their student loans!!! In the Police States of Amerika, we have governments that work against small businesses as well as employees. We need to quit voting for Democrats and Republicans (in America). Both are EQUALLY GUILTY for the decline America is currently experiencing. People in other nations should also discard candidate in the top known political parties in their respectiver nations. The top parties in each nation usually have their campaigns financed in one way or another by the top money. Top money is what these lawmakers end up working for. It is time to change that, one way or ANOTHER!!!!
My message to Phillipeanos and Indians is that I do not doubt your capabilities or your smarts, or your willingnes to work. There are good, bad, ugly, pretty, smart, and stupid people in every country in every part of the world. From the media such as newspapers, TV news outlets and other places, you have most likely heard that most Americans are stupid, lazy, do not care about a thing, and live lives of luxury. This could be further from the truth! Most of my fellow Americans work two jobs just to make ends meet. Right now Indians and Phillipeanos may be experiencing an economic boom, but I guarantee that the outsourcing of your jobs is coming within the next few years. When the multinational cartels find other smart people that they can exploit for a cheaper price, then that is what they will do. You and your families be damned as far as they are concerned. The executives will then claim that they cannot find "qualified" people in India or the Phillipeans and are "foced" to look elsewhere. This is what happens when what is called "money" has it value arbitrarily set. When small time money printers print money, it is called "counterfeiting." When governments or Federal Reserve banks do it, it is called "Monitary Policy." The paper based currencies of most nations are backed by nothing, so the real value of this currency is almost nil. Talk about the blind faith of the religionists around the world. There is more blind faith being demonstrated on payday than any other day of the week.
The Mobile and entrenched utility companies are the ones that will continue making all the money. That will NEVER change unless the the same thing happens to these as what happened to Microsoft. Microsoft thought it had shut out competition such as OS2, Novell and so on. The same thing is occurring in the information transport business. The incumbent utility companies will act in the same manner. Each carves out a territory and form "partnerships" with like large companies (priority transmission, peering agreements, and content sharing). In most places, these utilities "compete" with each other while gouging customers with surprise fees, etc. The market is fixed and all meaningful competition to this type of price gouged service will be shut out. NOBODY can compete with these mammoth, government supported monopolies unless they provide nearly the same type of service under different rules like Linux has done to Microsoft and the entrenched unix companies. If there was a PC version of Unix that was sold at a reasonable price, Linus Torvalds most likely would have not been motivated to create Linux. The Linux model started out with do-it-yourselfers providing their own operating system and eventually, businessess caught on and started seeing the benefits of supporting Linux. Businesses now have a way of writing and distributing systems without being encumbered by overpriced licenses. The same type of thing will happen when hackers figure out how to build their own infrastructure. This type of infrastructure is already being built in communities around the world. These communities are called FreeWans, Muninets, and so on. If the entrenched monopolies do not start providing reasonable service for reasonable prices and without stupid restrictions, they might find a group of hackers forcing them to compete with free.
Maybe crackers can sell their exploits to the highest bidder with the 10 Grand to I Defense being the reserve price.
With all of the programmers out of jobs due to outsourcing, this is a way for American workers to compete on a level playing field.