Downes 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (28)

• On the post: Mapping Out The Revolving Door Between Gov't And Big Business In Venn Diagrams

  

  Downes ( profile ), 22 Dec, 2011 @ 02:05pm

  This is pretty one-sided. There are few Republicans listed, though Republican ties to business are as great as, and likely greater than, those of the Democrats.
  
  Yes, it's Kang and Kodos, but let's be sure to remember that not only is Kang a carnivorous alien, so is Kodos.

• On the post: Once Again, Law Enforcement Protects Us From The America-Destroying Scourge Of Children With Lemonade Stands

  

  Downes ( profile ), 20 Jul, 2011 @ 03:25pm

  And if they put half the block into the hospital with e coli, who do you blame then? This isn't hypothetical, it's exactly what happens, and why we have these laws.

• On the post: So Much Fuss Over A Photo That The Photographer Has No Problem With People Copying

  

  Downes ( profile ), 01 Jun, 2011 @ 04:17am

  > MSNBC feels the need to make it about copyright. Why?
  
  Because the very same people who complain and complain about people 'stealing' online content are the first to turn around and 'steal' content when the opportunity arises.

• On the post: One Mentally Deranged Shooter Is No Reason To Throw Out The First Amendment

  

  Downes ( profile ), 12 Jan, 2011 @ 02:38pm

  If it were just one deranged shooter, I would agree. But it seems that there's no end to them...

• On the post: NY Times Finally Speaks Out Against Financial Firms Blocking Wikileaks

  

  Downes ( profile ), 27 Dec, 2010 @ 08:12am

  You find this worrisome because it may lead to the conclusion that banks may need to be regulated?
  
  Have you not been following recent events? Banks need to be regulated, because otherwise they will crash the economy and then hold it for ransom, demanding billions of dollars in payouts.
  
  Any time anything gets too powerful, it needs to be regulated. Governments, telcos, and yes, banks. Because, otherwise, they *will* deprive you of all your money, and hold you in indefinite servitude.

• On the post: US Lobbyist: If Canada Just Implemented US-Style Copyright Law, US Would Drop 'Buy American' Provisions

  

  Downes ( profile ), 09 Dec, 2009 @ 02:55pm

  Nobody in Canada believes that signing any agreement with the United States will be sufficient to cause them to drop "buy America" provisions.
  
  Canada signed NAFTA fifteen years ago explicitly to avoid U.S. protectionist measures, and the experience has been that (a) the United States doesn't abide by the provisions of trade agreements when it doesn't feel like it, and (b) American protectionism continued unabated.
  
  That said, American lobbyists are spending a lot of money attempting to buy legislation here in Canada, and there is significant concern that they will be successful.

• On the post: In Going Free, London Evening Standard Doubles Circulation While Slashing Costs

  

  Downes ( profile ), 20 Nov, 2009 @ 03:36am

  > Charging can be expensive. It takes quite a bit of effort to charge, to take money, to manage the money, to set up the accounting and bureaucracy for managing each transaction.
  
  The same is true of government services, which is why it makes more sense to offer government services for free, rather than to charge a user fee.

• On the post: Congressional Study Says $42 Billion Could Be Raised By Legalizing Internet Gambling

  

  Downes ( profile ), 06 Nov, 2009 @ 05:40pm

  Well, if you're going to do that, you may as well just raise taxes by $42 billion (out of an overall budget that's $2,979 billion, it won't even be noticeable).
  
  I mean, really, the money comes from the same place, no good or service is exchanged for it, and it is exactly the same sort of drain on the economy. Except that the collection service is really inefficient, probably tied to the mob, and tends to tax the poor and uneducated disproportionately.

• On the post: Carly Simon Sues Starbucks For Not Promoting Her Album Enough

  

  Downes ( profile ), 13 Oct, 2009 @ 12:39pm

  The question is not whether or not Starbucks promoted the album - we know it didn't - and not whether or not some other label would have promoted the album - we know they might not have - but whether or not Starbucks had a contract with Streisand where it promised to promote the album. And that bit if information, really the most important bit of information, is missing from the story.

• On the post: New Infringement Defense? 'We Don't Roll That Way'

  

  Downes ( profile ), 11 Sep, 2009 @ 03:04pm

  > the labels are almost certainly right here, and will almost certainly win
  
  Not if they're just short clips. I think it's well established that you ran run 30 seconds without paying a royalty. Though some pay anyways, just to be on the safe side - that's why the "we don't roll that way" is actually a credible and meaningful response. And clever, too.

• On the post: What's Next? Can Senators Ban Stupidity While Driving?

  

  Downes ( profile ), 30 Jul, 2009 @ 03:29am

  No, sorry, texting while driving belongs in a category by itself and deserves to be banned.
  
  Whenever I see a car weaving on the road, missing stop signs, etc., these days (and I see it a lot) I look at the driver and he or she is texting or jabbering on a hand-held mobile phone.
  
  It used to be, drunk drivers were the most dangerous thing on the road. No more. Texters are.
  
  The law is not intended to ban stupidity. It is intended to ban stupid behaviour. And that - when it so obviously endangers other people - is a good thing.

• On the post: Court Strikes Down Blackboard E-Learning Patent

  

  Downes ( profile ), 29 Jul, 2009 @ 06:49am

  > why doesn't anyone ask how such a patent got approved in the first place?
  
  What, you think nobody asked this? You think nobody in the learning community has been talking about this? D2L got a big boost from the community in this case as people got together and argued - via a wiki - that the patents should never have been approved in the first place. This page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_virtual_learning_environments - was created specifically in response to the question you say nobody asked.

• On the post: Oh Look, Citizen Journalists Can Do Real Investigative Reporting

  

  Downes ( profile ), 02 Jul, 2009 @ 04:06pm

  Actually, that's rather more care than the traditional newspaper or media would take.

• On the post: Student Found Guilty Of 'Disturbing The Peace' For Sending Nasty Political Email To Professor

  

  Downes ( profile ), 18 Jun, 2009 @ 02:46pm

  The original debate? No problem. The anonymous attack emails with the rude sender username? Harassment.
  
  The two cases should not be confused. And indeed, the presentation of the first case simply serves to prejudice discussion of the second.

• On the post: Too Big To Fail Isn't The Problem… It's The Hidden Risk That's The Problem

  

  Downes ( profile ), 18 Jun, 2009 @ 07:51am

  > The answer isn't to stop companies from getting so big. It's to provide more transparency into the actual risk.
  
  No. Wrong. The problem isn't that we are unable to see what the consequences might be. The problem is that the consequences can't be determined, and could not be determined, even if we had perfect transparency.
  
  You are talking as though what we have is a complicated system - there are many moving parts, but if we look at it closely enough, we can figure out what's happening. Watts is saying that it's a complex system - the parts depend on each other and influence each other recursively, which is essentially a chaotic system, which cannot be predicted.
  
  When you have a chaotic system, you cannot prevent or mitigate conseuqneces. Your only defense is to minimize the influence of each part, and in addition, to lower the probablility that one part will directly impact another part (i.e., to regulate the market).

• On the post: The Economist Debate On Copyright Needs Your Input

  

  Downes ( profile ), 07 May, 2009 @ 02:17pm

  Why do we care what the shills hired by the Economist to generate publicity have to say? The much more interesting - and free - debate is happening elsewhere.

• On the post: UK Says Street View Is Fine… As Canadian Politicians Get Worried About It

  

  Downes ( profile ), 27 Apr, 2009 @ 04:27pm

  Yeah, well, if I stood on the street outside your house and started taking photos into your livingroom window, you'd freak out too.

• On the post: Surprise, Surprise: Canadians Aren't Interested In ISP Levies

  

  Downes ( profile ), 21 Mar, 2009 @ 08:00am

  Nobody wants levies, sure.
  
  But if you word things a bit differently you'd get a very different result. Because Canadians have been paying levies for years without complaint.
  
  Ask Canadians this: would you be in favour of retaining current pricing on media, with this ensuring that there will be no lawsuits, restrictions on downloads, or DRM?
  
  You would get huge approval ratings.
  
  This, though, is the current state of affairs in canada, and it does include a levy.
  
  Even if the choice to increase the levy were offered, if it were given as the alternative to lawsuits, restrictions and DRM, I have no doubt most Canadians would choose the levy.
  
  Surveys are always a very questionable foundation on which to base a story, and this article is proof of that.

• On the post: Jill Sobule Shows She Can Create A 'Professional' Fan-Financed Album

  

  Downes ( profile ), 21 Mar, 2009 @ 07:23am

  Done earlier and better. Issa (formerly Jane Siberry, a well known Canadian musician) solicited fan contributions for production of her recent album, Dragon Dreams, recorded it and released it, and now sells it using the self-selected pricing system she has used for a number of years now.
  http://www.sheeba.ca/store/

• On the post: Florida Red Light Camera Law Doesn't Care Who's Driving: Car Owner Fined

  

  Downes ( profile ), 11 Mar, 2009 @ 11:56am

  The principle is, if you are the owner of a car, the you are responsible for what the car does. This is an extension of the same principle applied elsewhere.
  
  If somebody is driving your car and gets a red light ticket, sue them. That's what small claims court is for.
  
  As for people complaining about their rights - I am totally tired of having to watch for people running red lights. They are endangering everyone's safety for a few seconds saved - and they have the nerve to complain about _their_ rights. Pfaw.
  
  Oh - and for those complaining about due process - you _can_ have your day in court. That is your right. And at that day in court, a photograph will be presented with your car (probably with you at the wheel) easily visible running a red light. Fight it if you want.

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