jenningsthecat 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: This DMCA Notice Got Runover By A Reindeer…

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 18 Jan, 2011 @ 09:40am

    Shooting oneself in the foot...

    Gee - it's amazing how hard some people will fight against free promotion for their songs. Likelihood of the YouTube posting causing even one lost sale? Pretty close to ZERO. Likelihood of the YouTube posting generating sales that would otherwise never have occurred? Very high.

    I don't understand how people can think that a lack of exposure is somehow better than a very small handful, (if that), of sales lost due to 'pirating' some YouTube posting.

  • On the post: Indoctrinating Children To Hate Freedom Of The Press?

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 18 Jan, 2011 @ 09:29am

    Re: Poor kids indeed!

    You say that this "can hardly facilitate the development of thinking individuals". Your first mistake is in assuming that the purveyors of this crap WANT to develop "thinking individuals". The whole setup is pure propaganda, and its purpose is to indoctrinate children into uncritical acceptance of, and mindless acquiescence to, authority in general and the U.S. government in particular.

    The desired result is "The Land of the Free, (as long as you accept OUR definition of 'Free'), and the Home of the Brave, (as long as 'Brave' means risking your life for the money-making interests of our corporate overlords)".

    Constitution? We don't need no stinkin' Constitution!

  • On the post: Congress, Once Again, Looks To Extend Patriot Act With Little Or No Debate

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 13 Jan, 2011 @ 06:47am

    Constitution? What Constitution?

    If the U.S. Constitution was the American Flag, it would be tattered, muddy, burned, hanging upside down, and flying at half mast in mourning over its own demise. Too bad, really - there was much to love in that wonderful document before greedy, gutless politicians started finding ways to pervert it, ignore it, and shame it in the eyes of the whole world.

  • On the post: How Newark Mayor Cory Booker Made All Politics Super Local With Twitter Following The Blizzard

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 29 Dec, 2010 @ 08:37am

    More than a publicity stunt

    I don't know anything about Booker; his actions may well have been from the heart and not politically motivated. But even if this began as a publicity stunt, I'm sure it didn't end up that way. Being on the front lines talking to people and helping them, regardless of motivation, tends to reinforce our humanity, our connections with each other, and our sense of common cause. Even a cynical politician who does this kind of thing regularly probably won't remain cynical for very long.

    As a side note, 'CwF' and 'RtB' apply to this circumstance, except in this case 'RtB' is really 'RtV'.

  • On the post: Publicity Rights Gone Mad: Facebook Sued For Showing You Pictures Of Friends Without Paying Them

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 30 Nov, 2010 @ 11:21am

    Re:

    Actually, I'm pretty certain that Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, et al DO get permission from their customers before using their names or pictures in endorsements.

    To my way of thinking, Facebook is in a situation very similar to, and possibly legally equivalent to, that of a commercial photographer who must obtain model releases from all identifiable parties in a photo, before publishing the photo for any purpose other than journalism.

    Ignoring for the moment what Facebook's TOS may stipulate, using people's names and pictures without their consent, as an implied or stated endorsement of a product or service, either is or should be legally actionable. And aside from the legal aspects, it's a crappy thing for Facebook to have done; but in Facebook's short history there's no shortage of crappy actions and policies.

  • On the post: Why Imitation Gets A Bad Rap… And Why Companies Need To Be More Serious About Copying

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 11 Oct, 2010 @ 01:54pm

    A note about Kmart

    Altbough Kmart WAS officially founded in 1962, its roots go back much farther. Kmart grew out of S.S. Kresge, a 'Five and Dime' retailer established in 1899. In contrast, Walmart's roots only go back as far as the 1940's.

  • On the post: Reminder: You Don't Own Your Ebooks; Amazon Locks Customer Out And Doesn't Respond To Help Requests

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 02 Sep, 2010 @ 09:26am

    Re: The defference between a defective bound book...

    Oops! That should have been 'difference! Sorry about that!

  • On the post: Reminder: You Don't Own Your Ebooks; Amazon Locks Customer Out And Doesn't Respond To Help Requests

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 02 Sep, 2010 @ 09:24am

    The defference between a defective bound book...

    ...and a defective eBook, is that the bound book's defect was an ACCIDENT, whereas the eBook's defect is BY DESIGN.

    Publishing/studio/recording industry wonks keep whining loudly about theft. But what about the theft THEY commit when, via DRM, they effectively steal a book/movie/song which a customer has legitimately and legally purchased? I guess that doesn't count as theft...

    If people would just stop buying DRM-damaged content, (yes, I know the student in this case had no choice), then the damaged content would disappear from the market. It's long past time that we, as consumers, put our collective foot down and let these presumptuous dictators know who REALLY holds their purse strings.

  • On the post: Canada More Or Less Admits Its Copyright Reform Plan Is Driven By US, Following DMCA Exemption Rulings

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 27 Jul, 2010 @ 07:58am

    "it would take a US rulemaking for them to do so"

    What needs to be understood here is that, when the US breaks wind, Stephen Harper's head momentarily appears before it burrows back between the cheeks. As long as Harper is in power, Canada will continue to surrender its autonomy to the US, and Canada will continue to be an also-ran when it comes to world policy and perception.

    I still call myself a Proud Canadian, but of late my government is doing its damnedest to destroy that pride...

  • On the post: There Is No Such Thing As Search Neutrality, Because The Whole Point Of Search Is To Recommend What's Best

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 18 Jun, 2010 @ 03:52pm

    Search Neutrality

    Most of the time I agree with you Mike, but when you say "search neutrality makes no sense", you couldn't be more wrong.

    Fist of all, making a true 'query' on Google, or any other search engine I've tried, is not possible. While we may kid ourselves that we're asking a question, in reality we're merely searching for words and phrases.

    Second, we search for words and phrases, NOT "sites that fit your query best". Web sites just happen to be the repositories of our search terms and the other text associated with our search terms. (This is not a trivial distinction).

    Third, the "whole point of search" is NOT to be biased. I'm forever bumping up against Google's attempts to 'correct' search terms that require no correction, and sometimes Google even 'auto-corrects' my query and does a search on GOOGLE'S IDEA OF WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR, instead of what I'm actually looking for. I don't think I need to explain why such behaviour is beyond exasperating, as well as totally unworkable.

    Should Google be forced to provide 'search neutrality'? Probably not. Should Google provide search neutrality in order to provide the most useful, flexible, and comprehensive search results? Absolutely, positively yes!

  • On the post: Woman Sues Mobile Phone Provider, Because Consolidated Bill 'Revealed' Her Affair

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 17 May, 2010 @ 08:04pm

    Re: Forget the infidelity, this is a red herring

    I agree too. If the account was indeed in the wife's name then Rogers had no right to 'consolidate' the bills. They screwed up big time, and need to be held accountable.

    It seems that Rogers has taken the concept of 'bundling' WAY too far. (The Canadians reading this will know what I'm talking about...)

  • On the post: Student Punished For Facebook Study Group Files $10 Million Lawsuit

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 24 Mar, 2010 @ 04:17pm

    A response purely out of spite?

    Not at all! Sometimes the only thing that gets the attention of lunkheads such as those being sued, is a VERY big stick. In my experience such people are generally incorrigible and unrepentant, and WILL NOT consider the morality, (or lack thereof), of their actions. Often the only way to get them to change their behaviour is to hit them where it hurts, and hit them hard. Enter the 10 megabuck class action suit...

  • On the post: Nina Paley vs. Jaron Lanier

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 22 Jan, 2010 @ 07:04am

    Artificial scarcity DOES make people pay!

    Unfortunately, it's true, and I've mentioned this here before. DeBeers has managed to enforce an artificial scarcity in diamonds for over 120 years. It's widely known that even gem-quality diamonds aren't uncommon at all, and that DeBeers creates an unnatural scarcity in order to keep prices ridiculously high. Yet most people still buy diamond engagement rings and other diamond jewellery at stupidly inflated prices. As long as people continue to willingly pay the extortion that artificial scarcity represents, then other people like Jaron Lanier will feel justified in roping in the rubes and accepting their money.

  • On the post: French Court Forcing Google To Remove Word 'Scam' From Google Suggest

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 15 Jan, 2010 @ 05:12pm

    Re: Pull out of France?

    I signed in to say much the same thing, but since it's already been said I'll just add my nod of approval. If Google et al simply 'turned off the taps' in France, I suspect the French people would convince the government to smarten up really fast.

  • On the post: Nanda's Alarm Clock Not Only Runs Away From You, It Runs Away From eBay Too

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 21 Oct, 2009 @ 06:37pm

    Re: Is eBay really the villain here?

    Who do you blame, the whining bratty kid who stamps his foot and demands to have his way, or the adult who caves in to the emotional blackmail? Yes, Nanda should get a clue and grow up, but they have only their own interest to look after. eBay's primary responsibility is to its customers, and they're shirking that responsibility. eBay needs to grow a pair and tell Nanda, and other such blustering bullies, to get stuffed.

  • On the post: Bad Ideas: Trying To Make Content More Like Physical Property

    jenningsthecat ( profile ), 11 Sep, 2009 @ 07:36pm

    Who would break such a machine?...

    "Who, in their right mind, would want to break such a machine, and force this newly abundant resource back to being scarce?"

    Ask DeBeers. You know, the diamond people. For almost 140 years they have made fortune upon fortune from the artificial scarcity of diamonds, a scarcity which they purposely created:

    http://www.theatlantic.com/past/issues/82feb/8202diamond1.htm

    Engineered scarcity is a great racket for anyone who has no conscience. Those who create, promote, and use Digital Restrictions Management clearly fall into this category.

    As an aside, neither diamond riches nor DRM abuse would be possible without the extensive rights and powers granted by law to corporations. Perhaps we need to turn our focus away from patent, trademark, and copyright law, and work on legislation which would remove corporations' state-supported ability to engage in the modern equivalent of plundering, raping, and pillaging.

    "You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one..."

    Does that qualify as 'fair use'? I hope so. ;-)