Here in the U.S. we should be all too familiar with leaders that sign treaties or agreements and then go against their word when it is in their best interest (the wonderful world of baby Bush)... Likewise, China is not going to decrease the amount of spam that comes out of its borders because it is not in their self-interest. Once again, money is the motivator... anyone surprised? As long as someone can make a buck filling your email inbox with penis enlargement ads, they will continue to do so. It's not rocket science kids, it is economics. There is a great article (http://www.freep.com/money/tech/mwend22_20021122. htm)about a 57 year old man that has made a living off spamming. As long as the capability is there it will be manipulated. So, thank you China for coughing up your John Hancock, but please forgive me if I'm a tad unenthusiastic.
Regulating email spam to the degree of imprisonment and fines is a bit extreme, don't you agree? How well advertised or published will the new regulations be? Is there a grace period when companies and individuals can claim they weren't familiar with the law and be exempt from prosecution?
Attempting to regulate something as vast as the World Wide Web is ludicrous. The internet can not be controlled from the top down like T.V. and radio because it isn't organized like the other mediums. The beauty of the web is the free flow of new ideas, innovative products and peer-to-peer relationships.
To what degree will political campaigns fall under the new legislation? What would happen if someone registers as a Democrat on one website and three months later their information is passed on to a liberal candidate. Suppose for instance that the candidate is a strong pro-choice advocate and sends the person some literature intended to mobilize the voter, but actually offends her? Who is liable?
Put another point on the board for Bush, the extension of the PATRIOT Act is a huge impediment on personal rights, personal freedoms, and personal liberty.
No big deal right?
Bush convinces us all to simply look the other way - perhaps diverting our attention to the current terror level, that changes weekly for no apparent reason - while he goes right ahead and imprisons American citizens without respect for due process. By the time our four year sentence is up, we will truly live under a dictator!!
"All restraints on man's liberty, not necessary for the simple maintenance of justice are of the nature of slavery, and differ from each other only in degree!" -Lysander Spooner, Lawyer, 1808-1887
I completely agree with you - any kind anonymous, secretive voting without a paper trail is really scary. Let alone human error, any miscalculations or bugs in the system would be disastrous. Without a paper trail any voting devise, in person machines or online, (many younger people are advocating for some sort of secure website for Election Day) is too vulnerable. Hackers are getting more and more sophisticated... What is stopping them from hacking into the system and altering the results? And what about in the rare cases of recounts? It would be impossible to check on the validity of ballots without a paper trail...
Addicted? Me? No way! I would gladly give up my email privileges if the powers that be would let me! I am a full time graduate student (with three classes), I work three days a week (jealous?), and I am currently in a long distance relationship (he's in NC and I'm in DC)... and I check my email about ten times a day just to keep up with everything. I'd love to stop checking it so obsessively, but I'd be left out in dark and be forced to start every conversation with "Umm, no, I haven't read that email you sent yet, I'm sorry- but can you give me a quick recap?" I don't think it's better or worse than voice mail... when's the last time you neglected your answering machine for days at a time?
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Here in the U.S. we should be all too familiar with leaders that sign treaties or agreements and then go against their word when it is in their best interest (the wonderful world of baby Bush)... Likewise, China is not going to decrease the amount of spam that comes out of its borders because it is not in their self-interest. Once again, money is the motivator... anyone surprised? As long as someone can make a buck filling your email inbox with penis enlargement ads, they will continue to do so. It's not rocket science kids, it is economics. There is a great article (http://www.freep.com/money/tech/mwend22_20021122. htm)about a 57 year old man that has made a living off spamming. As long as the capability is there it will be manipulated. So, thank you China for coughing up your John Hancock, but please forgive me if I'm a tad unenthusiastic.
Regulating email spam to the degree of imprisonment and fines is a bit extreme, don't you agree? How well advertised or published will the new regulations be? Is there a grace period when companies and individuals can claim they weren't familiar with the law and be exempt from prosecution? Attempting to regulate something as vast as the World Wide Web is ludicrous. The internet can not be controlled from the top down like T.V. and radio because it isn't organized like the other mediums. The beauty of the web is the free flow of new ideas, innovative products and peer-to-peer relationships. To what degree will political campaigns fall under the new legislation? What would happen if someone registers as a Democrat on one website and three months later their information is passed on to a liberal candidate. Suppose for instance that the candidate is a strong pro-choice advocate and sends the person some literature intended to mobilize the voter, but actually offends her? Who is liable?
Put another point on the board for Bush, the extension of the PATRIOT Act is a huge impediment on personal rights, personal freedoms, and personal liberty. No big deal right? Bush convinces us all to simply look the other way - perhaps diverting our attention to the current terror level, that changes weekly for no apparent reason - while he goes right ahead and imprisons American citizens without respect for due process. By the time our four year sentence is up, we will truly live under a dictator!! "All restraints on man's liberty, not necessary for the simple maintenance of justice are of the nature of slavery, and differ from each other only in degree!" -Lysander Spooner, Lawyer, 1808-1887
I completely agree with you - any kind anonymous, secretive voting without a paper trail is really scary. Let alone human error, any miscalculations or bugs in the system would be disastrous. Without a paper trail any voting devise, in person machines or online, (many younger people are advocating for some sort of secure website for Election Day) is too vulnerable. Hackers are getting more and more sophisticated... What is stopping them from hacking into the system and altering the results? And what about in the rare cases of recounts? It would be impossible to check on the validity of ballots without a paper trail...
Addicted? Me? No way! I would gladly give up my email privileges if the powers that be would let me! I am a full time graduate student (with three classes), I work three days a week (jealous?), and I am currently in a long distance relationship (he's in NC and I'm in DC)... and I check my email about ten times a day just to keep up with everything. I'd love to stop checking it so obsessively, but I'd be left out in dark and be forced to start every conversation with "Umm, no, I haven't read that email you sent yet, I'm sorry- but can you give me a quick recap?" I don't think it's better or worse than voice mail... when's the last time you neglected your answering machine for days at a time?