I saw an add for respectcopyrights dot org while watching 24, which I had TiVoed so I could watch it today. Anyways, there’s this add for respectcopyrights dot org which I’m all for…usually. There are certain instances when copyrights are really just plain stupid, for example, the Disney/Mickey Mouse incident. Back to the main point: the MPAA (Motion Pictures Association of America) is claiming that people stealing movies is bad for them. Well, yes, it is. Studios lose millions of dollars on every film because of pirates and don’t take me wrong, I’m not advocating pirating. However, the MPAA has severe issues with their claims and, to me, it feels like the MPAA is putting up a
facade. The MPAA has 4 main claims:

Cheating ourselves, threatening the livelihood
of thousands, making our computer ulerable, and breaking the law. For the
first claim, the MPAA says: Only 4 out of 10 films turn a profit. If people
take
the films for free and the Studios can’t recoup their investment, they may
not be
able to make the big summer movies we all enjoy so much; the TITANICs, the
SPIDER-MANs, the JURASSIC PARKs. So, not only will the creators lose, in the
end, you, the consumer, will end up with fewer choices at the
multiplex.

I don’t know about you, but I think fewer choices would be good. There are reasons that 40% of all films don’t turn a profit…it’s called sucking! If studios stopped making bad films, they wouldn’t loose as much money. Claim two:

But, when movies are illegally downloaded from the Internet,
these are the people that suffer the most.
It’s the woman who does the make-up,
the guy who rigs the lighting,
the sound technician,
the costume designer,
the set decorator
and the caterer.

What a load of crap. As far as I know, studios are in the business for profit. That means that all the above listed people get paid a flat amount for the work they do. Some actors, directors, and produces might get a percentage of the profits, but everybody else doesn’t. If the MPAA really wants to be fair, how about implementing equal wages across the board. Once every single person on the set gets the same salary and has somesort of profit sharing plan, then the MPAA can bring that topic up. The last two claims fall into the category of scare tactics. Yes, you could download a virus but you probably have anti-virus software…and if you don’t then your stupid, SOL, and probably shouldn’t be even using a computer. If you fall into this category, let me know and I’ll be more than willing to take that computer off your hands. The legal mombo-jumbo is pretty acurate, although somewhat missleading. Most ISP’s try their best to keep customer information private. Take Verizon suing the RIAA. Yep, in a turn of events “Verizon sued the RIAA for citing the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (PDF) as a way to subpoena ISPs for the names of their subscribers.” (Wired.com, 2004). And for those who have highspeed access at home, work, or school, don’t worry too much about getting caught. While work and school most likely track who’s using what IP address at what time, those logs won’t stick around for long. It’s too much datajstorage for something too mundane to track. At home, if you have more than one computer connected to the internet, it’s almost impossible for the MPAA to determine what computer was used to download movies illegally without actually having access to the computer itself. And if you notice, I didn’t actually link to respectcopyrights dot org, this was done on purpose. As Verbal might say, “A litte FU from me to the MPAA.”

*Sigh*, I feel a wee bit better know. I know that was long, but it was worth it. In other news, I’m heading off to Colorado next week for 4 some days. I’ll be touring a few colleges, so expect some pictures when I get back. Perhaps the coolest part of the entire trip will be flying to Denver on a 777. I’m so excited!

This is absolutely ridiculous! Who would ever want to go to a school like this? All I have to say is that Bob Jones sucks, and I would bet that Bob Dole thinks that Bob Jones sucks and is a disgrace to all people named Bob….or Jones. From Bob Jones University

Residence Hall Life

Residence Hall Life

• A student must live in one of the University residence halls unless he is living with parents or
  other close relatives (approved by the Dean of Men’s or Dean of Women’s office), is 23 years old or
  older, is married and over the age of 20, or is a graduate student.
• Freshmen may request a roommate. Other students are allowed one request for a friend to be in their
  prayer group, on their hall, or in their residence hall, but not in their room.
• For the sake of accountability, students must "check out" when they leave the campus. Students
  gradually acquire more freedom in this area as they become upperclassmen.
• Each night all students meet for prayer, either as a room or together with several other rooms.
• Students are required to be in their own rooms and quiet at 11 pm. All lights must be out by midnight.
• Students are required to keep their rooms clean and neat. Rooms are inspected daily.
• Facilities and furnishings:
  • Laundry facilities are provided.
  • All rooms are furnished with twin-sized beds, dressers, desks, closets, cupboards, sink,
    telephone, and blinds.
  • Computer network and high-speed Internet access is available in each residence hall room.
• An email account is provided for each student. Due to the flood of objectionable content coming
  through outside email services, students may use only this filtered campus email system.
• All wireless access to the Internet is forbidden since all Internet use must go through the
  University’s filtered access.

What to Bring

• List of what to bring
• Students may bring automobiles to campus. However, underclassmen (freshmen and sophomores) who are under
  21 years old may use their vehicles only to drive home and for extension.
• Cell phones are permitted. Students will be instructed in cell phone etiquette.

What Not to Bring

• Posters of movie and music stars and fashion models are not permitted. The subjects of personal photos
  should exhibit the modesty and appropriate physical contact we expect from our students.
• Music must be compatible with the University’s music standards:
  • New Age, jazz, rock, and country music is not permitted.
  • Contemporary Christian music is not permitted (e.g., Michael W. Smith, Stephen Curtis Chapman,
    WOW Worship, and so forth).
• Televisions and DVD/videocassette players are not permitted in the residence halls; computer DVD players
  may not be used to view movies.
• You may not possess or play computer and video games rated T, M, or A or having elements of blood and
  gore, sensual or demonic themes, or featuring suggestive dress, bad language, or rock music.
• Due to space considerations, appliances such as mini-refrigerators and microwaves are not permitted in
  residence hall rooms. A refrigerator for medical-related needs and microwaves are provided in each
  residence hall.
• Residence hall students may not watch videos above a G rating when visiting homes in town and may not
  attend movie theaters.
• All weapons must be turned in for storage. Trigger locks are required for pistols. Fireworks are not
  permitted on campus.

I think I’m going to write a email to query why BJ has this particular stance

by Andrew Ferguson

AndrewFerguson.NET

Based on content from:

Reuters and the Associated Press

In what amounts to little more than a surreptitious plot to take over the world, the RIAA has submitted a proposal to the FCC to limit the use and features of Digital Radio. The proposed limits would deny users the opportunity to use several of Digital Radio’s features, including metadata tags and CD quality sound, broadcast over conventional AM, FM, and even satellite radio. The RIAA says the proposals are intended to prevent users from “recording certain songs automatically when they are broadcast, allowing them to build a free library of music they otherwise might pay for and distribute it to millions of others over the Internet.” However, the RIAA’s proposal is simply another way to control content that is based on a 20 plus-year-old standard that provided state of the art sound in late 80’s to mid 90’s. Since then, higher fidelity formats have been developed and implemented, such as SACD and DVD-Audio, however, the RIAA has refused to adopt such formats in masse. So what then does this all boil down to? Many things actually. First and foremost, the RIAA among many other conglomerates are abusing the American Justice system by continuously extending the length of copyrights. In a time not so long ago, copyrights used to last for 14 years, plus the option for a 14 year extension. That was less than 80 years ago. Since then, copyrights can now last well over a century with current laws usually giving the lifetime of the creator plus an additional 70 years. This amounts to complete corporate control over all major songs, books, and cartoon characters. This is a completely ridiculous number and completely circumvents the entire point of copyright laws, which was to offer the creator of the content the initial exclusive rights because they developed the idea, but then to release the content to the general public so that it could be improved upon. This obviously is not happening now…at least not in the legal sense. Second, the RIAA is refusing to recognize that CDs are the millennia’s version of cassette tape. Once mainstream, they are an incredible piece of antiquated technology that should be completely abolished as soon as possible in favor for better formats, such as DVD and the impending Blue Disc standard. Also, incredible research has been conducted on complete solid state memory devices that utilize holographic storage techniques to store data in a 3 dimensional format. The CD is dead and the RIAA needs to figure that out if they don’t want to go bankrupt.

In response to a statement made by MPAA President Dan Glickman (.doc format) regarding the appearance of Revenge of the Sith on BitTorrent:

Dear Mr. Glickman,

You are a bastard. How dare you lodge such complaints against the public without first realizing your own fallacies and the crimes you have committed against the public. You are a menace to society and America and should be tried for treason.
First, you need to realize that BitTorrent is an absolutely ingenious way of transmitting files, no matter what the size or content. You yourself state that piracy will “undermine legitimate businesses that strive to unite technology and content in innovative and legal ways.”
What are you doing to BitTorrent then? BitTorrent is a legitimate business that has strived to unite technology and content in innovative and legal ways. Just because people choose to use a legal and legitimate product for illegal and illegitimate purposes is no reason to ban it or make it illegal. This has been upheld in 1984’s Sony Corp. v. Universal City Studios. Where would the movie industry be if the video tape industry never thrived? No where. You, good sir, would be dead.
Your knee-jerk reaction and failure to analyze the long term effect of what you are doing will undoubtedly lead you to your own end. If you wish to be able to make movie content available online, you will need a method of transporting it. Using current methods (BitTorrent-type technology not included), it will literally take days to download just ONE movie. If you embrace the clever ways of BitTorrent, you stand to actually make progress with the general population with regards to providing movies online because such methods will be far faster — an essential requirement in today’s fast paced society.

Second, the MPAA and members of the MPAA are conducting a regime similar to that of Cuba. In fact, you are no better than Fidel Castro himself! Companies such as Disney have used and continue to use their financial strong-arm to gain unlimited control of their content for an unlimited time.
For example, Disney’s Mickey Mouse copyright “was due to expire in 2003.” The obvious implication of this, at least for Disney, was lost revenue. Furthermore, a majority of Mickey’s gang was also due to retire, so to speak, a few years down the road. Even more lost revenue for Disney. But why let this happen? Disney lobbied congress, holding over $6 million in annual Congressional donations over their heads, and the Sonny Bono Term Extension Act was born. This completely rips to shreds existing regulations and was even challenged to be unconstitutional in the Supreme Court, although that attempt failed. Never-the-less, companies that belong the MPAA, RIAA, and organizations of the such are fearing for their lives as they slowly lose control of their product to the public domain. And don’t think people don’t hear about this either. As I see it, “illegally” downloading movies and music is really just a fair trade for what you have done to the public domain. I would have no moral quarrels doing it, if that were what I chose to do. Did I mention you are a cunt, too? Because you are.

Now let me point out something reallyinteresting. What is the original source of the Revenge of the Sith files? What? I can’t hear you! Oh that’s right. Someone from WITHIN the studio leaked them. How ironic. You can’t control your own people so you decided to cry fowl on everyone else. That just makes me sick.
So, let’s recap real quick here. Dan Glickman is both a bastard and a cunt. The MPAA (and RIAA for that matter) like to shoot themselves constantly, and if it weren’t for our court system, they would be dead. The MPAA (and RIAA) have an anxiety separation disorder (can someone prescribe some Paxil for them?) with their beloved content. Then the MPAA can’t find the culprit from within their own organization, they point the finger at everyone else and complain that they started it. And Dan Glickman is a cunt and a bastard…opps, I already said that. Well, I guess it couldn’t hurt to say it again. Feel free to respond to this letter in what ever way you feel best, including ignoring me, your client. However, I reserve the right to take your silence as a legally binding confession of guilt. (You like changing the rules, so I thought I might change a few too…kind of annoying isn’t it?) I think I’ll also reserve the right to take your silence as a legally binding confirmation that you are Lucifer as well (see attached picture).

Best Wishes,

Andrew Ferguson

Lawrence Lessig, in an article on the Foreign Policy site, predicts that the public domain will die a slow death at the hands of anti-piracy efforts. From the article: ‘The danger remains invisible to most, hidden by the zeal of a war on piracy. And that is how the public domain may die a quiet death, extinguished by self-righteous extremism, long before many even recognize it is gone.’

I couldn’t agree more and you’ll hear me say this time and time again. Our patent and copyright system is broken, perhaps even beyond repair. Without quick intervention, the US (and the rest of the world) will be doomed to a life dictacted by corporations greed for money and power.

From Slashdot via Lost Brain

And it begins… Creative Technology, a maker of portable music players, has accused Apple Computer of violating a newly granted software patent covering the way users navigate music selections.” From the NYT article: “Creative Technology, which is based in Singapore and has United States operations in Milpitas, Calif., said it would consider every option available to defend the patent, including possible legal action. Apple declined to comment on the patent. The patent, which the company calls the Zen Patent, covers Creative’s interface for portable players, which allows users to select a song, album or track by navigating a succession of menus. The patent office awarded the patent on Aug. 9.”

I’m sitting here shaking my head and trying to figure out what poor soul at the USPTO sits in a seculed booth all by himself, with no interaction with world, and authorized these patents. I went to the USPTO website and looked up the requirements for granting a patent and Creative’s patent is crap. It should have never been granted.

In particular, I would like to draw your attention to 35 U.S.C. 102 Conditions for patentability; novelty and loss of right to patent. The first part of this states

A person shall be entitled to a patent unless -

(a) the invention was known or used by others in this country, or patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country, before the invention thereof by the applicant for patent, or

(emphesis added)

US Patent #6,928,433

From Slashdot via Outz

It’s things like this that make me sick (and almost convinced the world is going to end):

Accompanying ex-prez husband George H.W. Bush on la tour de hurricane relief, Marie Antoinette Barbara Bush today commented on the poor who’d been displaced by Katrina:

This is working very well for them. (…)Almost everyone I’ve talked to says we’re going to move to Houston.

"What I’m hearing which is sort of scary is they all want to stay in Texas. Everyone is
so overwhelmed by the hospitality.

"And so many of the people in the arena
here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this–this (she
chuckles slightly) is working very well for them."

By these standards, 40 acres and a mule would have been too generous. Link to Editor and Publisher story; the remarks originally aired on American Public Media’s "Marketplace" program (Thanks, Pesco; Bernard Ouellette)

Reader comment: Cowicide says, Here is an audio file. Link.

Via BoingBoing

I haven’t been following the fallout from Katrina that closely. Most of what I know comes from BoingBoing and the highlights on the 5 o’clock news.
The picture that I see developing is very troubling. Here are the highlights of the clusterfucks that is The Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (from various BoingBoing articles):

• Thirty elderly who died in the nursing home were simply forgotten. They were supposed to be rescued but someone dropped the ball and they died.
• Under Homeland Security, FEMA is supposed to be in charge, but they have been marginalized due to their obvious screw ups. The National Guard is now in charge in the region and they have no experience in these matters. This is aggravating a bad situation.
• The plan going forward for New Orleans is to demolish all the houses and burn them. There is nowhere to bury the waste in the region so they will incinerate it all. Before that can go on, they will have to search every house for chemical hazards.
• The EPA ordered 40 satellite phones to get their people in contact. Those phones have arrived, but no one ordered SIM cards and these phones are currently useless.
• This contractor has been organizing reverse osmosis (RO) water purification units from all over the country since last Tuesday. He has over 100 units of various sizes available to move into the region, but no one will give the go ahead. No one will sign their name to a piece of paper for fear recriminations later. He says that over 80 million pint bottles of water have been purchased at $0.75 each. The RO units can produce a gallon of water from contaminated water for $0.01 and they can produce thousands of gallons a day. Two are staged near the zone and these alone can produce 250,000 gallons per day. The Army has RO units, but every functional one, and every operator trained to use them, is in Iraq or Afghanistan.
• Houston Independent media organizers, who have been working in concert with local community organizations, relief groups, the Federal Communications Commission, a major electronics manufacturer, and the City of Houston, have been denied permission to build a 30-watt radio station inside the Astrodome by R.W. Royall Jr., Incident Commander of the JIC (Joint Information Committee) at the Astrodome. When they asked why they were being turned down, they were told that the Astrodome could not provide them with electricity. When the Austin Airwaves team offered to run on battery backup, they were still denied. Did I mention that A) also have a license in hand from the FCC, B) have not one, but two sources of 10,000 radios [including Sony, which I applaud - despite the fact that I don't like their technology tactics].
• There are reported rapes, beatings, and murders. And while unsubstantiated at this point, I have no reason to disbelieve it.
  NOLA evacuee Clara Barthelemy, “A six year old girl was raped in here [the Astrodome].. 9 year old boy killed. A man in the shower beaten.” another evacuee says, “Over 20 rapes per night happening inside this place. They bring in national guard for media purposes. Bush wants us to stay here to raise his ratings.”
• “We have requested that no photographs of the deceased be made by the media,” a [FEMA] spokeswoman said in an e-mailed response to a Reuters inquiry. The Bush administration also has prevented the news media from photographing flag-draped caskets of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq, which has sparked criticism that the government is trying to block images that put the war in a bad light.
• “The media censorship here runs high. It was not easy to actually enter the dome as media. I am working with the group ‘Austin Airwaves’ and our badge says ‘PRESS’ in huge white letters on a red background. This has caused unending red tape. I have been the subject of removal a few times, bordering on a dozen. My camera draws the most fire.”
• An article in the Army Times is referring to American citizens in New Orleans as “the insurgency”.

Despite all this, I am still ready and willing to go to help setup a technology infrastructure. And in case you don’t know what a clusterfuck is, here’s the Oxford English Dictionary definition:

clusterfuck, n.
A bungled or botched undertaking; (also) a situation, state of affairs, or gathering (esp. a military operation) that is disorganized or chaotic.

Yup…we got ourselves a genuine American clusterfuck.

Wow. This article is simply amazing and incredibly indicative of how evil and powerful the RIAA really is. I can’t believe more people don’t know about this. Via Digg:

Time and time again we hear that the real reason for the RIAA’s scare tactics and lobbying is the welfare of the artists they employ and represent. Here’s a breakdown where a band not only isn’t paid much but actually ends up owing money.

read more | digg story

I’m actually not quite sure where to start with this one. Half of me just wants to let out a rather long string of explicatives. The other half wants to reach out and strangle Dan Glickman, president of the MPAA. This isn’t the first time, nor will be the last time, I’ve lashed out at Dano and Company (see An Open Letter to Dan Glickman). This is compiled from BoingBoing via the Electronic Frontier Foundation (whom I am now seriously considering donating to). Here goes:

Hollywood’s gearing up to introduce what is effectively “the Broadcast Flag on steroids.” Dubbed the Anal. Hole, Content Protection in the Digital Age: The Broadcast Flag, High-Definition Radio, and the Analog Hole is a piece of legislation that the MPAA is reintroducing (yes, reintroducing) to the House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property.

In a nut shell, the Anal. Hole Bill would “illegal to make anything capable of digitizing video unless it either has all its outputs approved by the Hollywood studios, or is closed-source, proprietary and tamper-resistant.” This honestly makes me sick to my stomach. And I’m not just saying that. Every time I read that line, I physically start to get queasy and feel like vomiting.

To give you an idea of just how damning the Anal. Hole Bill could be, if this Bill “had been around in 1976, the VCR would have been illegal.” Ho-ly Fuck. I would apologize for my language, but I’ve literally been watching the MPAA (and RIAA for that matter) whittle away our rights for years now. This is UNACCEPTABLE! The MPAA is becoming the Catholic church of the 15th Century.

BoingBoing also points out:

Any lawmaker who supports this is an idiot. Americans will forgive a lot of sins from their elected representatives, but there’s one thing they won’t stand for and that’s breaking their TVs.

Here here!