James Burkhardt 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: Senator Wyden Releases Draft Of Privacy Rules That Silicon Valley Probably Won't Like Very Much

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 02 Nov, 2018 @ 01:15pm

    Re:

    I think the final section about looking for bias is designed to get conservatives on board

  • On the post: Senator Wyden Releases Draft Of Privacy Rules That Silicon Valley Probably Won't Like Very Much

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 02 Nov, 2018 @ 01:14pm

    Re: Re:

    NOne of what you are saying has anything to have to do with the point being made by Stephen T Stone - His citation needed is in refrence, explicitly, to the claim that Wyden's demand they assess their algorithms was so Wyden could force those algorithms to produce results he wants, not about the claim of bias.


    We have noted that we do not claim google's algorithm's lack bias. As you note, a bias towards finding search results/ads relevant to the user is what we want. Though, I'm not sure you can call that 'bias'. Bias is generally seen as an unfair prejudice for or against something. Serving ads for graphics cards to a person looking for CPUS and motherboards is not an unfair prejudice - its a valid and relevant connection. The 'Unbiased' section are likely designed to attract bi-partisan support given the rabble rousing around politically motivated bias against conservatives in google search. That's a 'political' purpose, but that doesn't mean its an effort to introduce a pro-wyden bias.

    I agree with Stephen Stone. [Citation Needed]

  • On the post: The Foxconn Wisconsin Deal Has Devolved Into A Pile Of Shifting Promises, Buzzwords, And Hype

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 31 Oct, 2018 @ 08:18am

    Re: This just in...

    I am unclear as to what point you are trying to make. Is this a "Why are you reporting this? its obvious."? But of course, this is the discussion of a government's actions and choices, which makes your discussion of a business strange. As well, the tone suggests you are trying to argue against Karl, even though you agree. So maybe you are one of those satire trolls? In any case, have a flag.

  • On the post: Pharrell Is Not At All Happy About Trump Using 'Happy' At His Rally… And He Might Actually Have A Case

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 30 Oct, 2018 @ 02:47pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:

    I disagree. The RNC is not the understood principal of the Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020. The Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020's principal is Donald J Trump. The RNC has no control over the Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020 as noted several times during the last election. I see no reason to send a C&D over the unlicensed use of music by the Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020 to the RNC over the principle of the Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020 - Donald Trump.

    As to Pharrell's ownership, the copyright was not pulled from ASCAP/BMI, the licensing rights were pulled. The licencing of music through an intermediary is done without relinquishing the copyright, rather you contract ASCAP/BMI to licence music on your behalf for a cut of the royalties.

    GMR is an ASCAP/BMI alternative, and many including Techdirt believe that one of the purposes of it's formation was to once again renegotiate Internet Radio 'market rates'. That is the only shady thing going on.

    Yes, its designed to draw eyeballs. Thats the point, he wants everyone to know he does not support Trump or his politics. It does serve as valid legal notice the the Donald Trump Presidential Campaign, 2020.

  • On the post: FCC Falsely Declares Community Broadband An 'Ominous' Attack On Free Speech

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 30 Oct, 2018 @ 07:55am

    Re: Re: Re: mistake

    Thanks to a number of factors, local government policy more often than not reflects actual desires of locals, you and I, more than special interests. These factors include but are not limited to: less money needed to campaign, a personal investment in the local condition, and a higher likelihood of personal connections in the area that can hold you to account.

    I'm not sure how a numerical minority controls a majority vote office like a mayor or city council seat. I agree that, particularly in major metropolitan areas, special interests can have major effects, but local policies are harder to sway than state or federal policies, because of the techniques play out far less effectively on smaller populations.

    But I'm sure the affordable Muni Broadband lobby is the real power here, right?

  • On the post: Texas E-Voting Machines Switching Votes For Non-Nefarious But Still Stupid Reasons

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 03:13pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not all that simple...

    Since you seam to continue to fail to understand how I expect this to be done, its more like the machine counted punch card systems developed in the 1960s to what you describe. I just note that those same systems failed in the 2000 election in Florida due to inconsistent use by the voters and punched cards being not easy for human eyes to read when recounting millions of votes - leading to the system being difficult for both humans and machines to read.

    I remind you, I vote in a county with no machines the public accesses. My vote is done with nothing more than a paper and pen, a fully paper ballot. But I have physical limitations that make filling out that ballot difficult on presidential election years, when the list of offices tends to skyrocket both federally and locally.

    A machine which generates my ballot in a human readable manner, much like the current designations, while also machine readable ala scantrons or hole punched ballots, with minimal if any software needed and auditability, would be incredibly beneficial.

    Your instance that my stance is to just "trust" machines are doing correctly is completely inaccurate. I don't want what the machine reads to be anything other than what I read. I want the machine to read that information the same way I do. Any other design is contrary to the whole point of the system. And that you assume I didn't think about that, as well as insisting that we use a system that is proven to have major flaws in a close election, makes me wonder what you are advocating for.

  • On the post: We Brought Our Election Simulation Game To Chicago… And Learned The Chicago Way

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 11:34am

    Re: Re: Re:

    But the reasons behind that are not related to the behind the scenes politicking either. And Mike's argument (1) stands true, even if you think voting doesn't matter. But I would add that local changes drive larger federal changes, in many cases.

  • On the post: We Brought Our Election Simulation Game To Chicago… And Learned The Chicago Way

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 10:07am

    Re:

    Yeah, that's actually not the point. The point was that a lot of what we see in speeches and debates is not speaking directly to people, but is rather signaling to various other groups.

    This doesn't mean your voting choices mean nothing, or not to vote, but rather that this game gives us insight into how to assess candidates better.

  • On the post: Texas E-Voting Machines Switching Votes For Non-Nefarious But Still Stupid Reasons

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 08:59am

    Re: Re: Re: It's not all that simple...

    Bamboo, you mis my entire point - the machine you use to fill out your ballot does not count your vote.

    Most paper ballot systems, punch card, check box, ect, still use a machine to count the vote. That is part of the issues behind the 2000 election issues - the machines needed a proper punch for the vote to count, and during the manual count people had to determine at what point does the punch count given ambiguities in the law. With proper auditing before and after there is no reason why machine counted ballots should be a concern. It has the same potentials for manipulation as a person counting the vote.

    Also, you shouldn't count votes on site - it allows poll workers to associate your vote and invites reprisals. You take the lock box with the vote off site, where they are tallied, and then use the phone to report in.

  • On the post: Texas E-Voting Machines Switching Votes For Non-Nefarious But Still Stupid Reasons

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 08:48am

    Re: Better yet, skip the e-voting entirely

    I fully agree. It also manages to resolve concerns with hacking of the machines - any attempt to change the vote can be discovered before the ballot is cast, when the machine can do nothing about it.

  • On the post: Texas E-Voting Machines Switching Votes For Non-Nefarious But Still Stupid Reasons

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 07:52am

    Re:

    Actually, ATMs have a number of vulnerabilities. However, the financial losses are incurred by the bank, not the consumer. Its one of the reasons there used to be an ATM fee even if you used your own bank's ATM. Thats why you don't hear about them most of the time - the bank is taking the loss. And at this point the savings to the bank overcome the financial losses, so most banks are willing to waive ATM fees at your own bank, or even at any ATM.

    ANY vulnerabilities are bad in voting machines, so you hear about them a lot. A hard to exploit ATM vulnerability is just something to factor into risk calculations.

  • On the post: Texas E-Voting Machines Switching Votes For Non-Nefarious But Still Stupid Reasons

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 29 Oct, 2018 @ 07:44am

    Re: It's not all that simple...

    Santa clara has a really simple paper system that is less prone to voting error as a punch card, that is intuitive to use, and requires no equipment other then bic pens and a privacy screen.

    There are arrows pointing to your option, with the middle removed. fill the correct gap, and that is your vote.

    I agree with your assessment of voting concerns. I have advocated for a e-voting system that just fills out a paper ballot for you. It would save space on the ballot (a lot of information could be presented simpler on the ballot), the actual vote is cast by turning in a paper ballot with a paper trail (so failure/hacking of the voting machine would be mitigated by checking your ballot), allow voter guide information to be displayed to the voter, and eliminate the 'did they vote' question that comes up with punch cards or check mark ballots occasionally, as it would create a clean ballot readable by both machines and humans.

  • On the post: Canadian ISPs Want To Amend Law To Outlaw Settlement Letters

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 26 Oct, 2018 @ 01:13pm

    Re: NO, the PIRATES did it to themselves.

    Assuming the Copyright holder holds a valid copyright, and has detected infringement at a particular IP address:

    1) This does not guarantee the software has accurately identified infringement. (Depending on the software/method - the files identified might not be infringing, or the movement of the files may be legal)

    2) This does not guarantee the account holder has committed infringement (the account holder also does not have a positive duty of care)

    3) This does not guarantee a member of the household committed that infringement

    4) this does not guarantee the infringement was committed by any person known to be using the Account holders connection

    Because of this, settlement with the account holder might easily not be a valid move. In America the courts are increasingly dismissive of assertions that an IP address in a torrent swarm is sufficient evidence to compel further discovery, because of these very facts. I can not assert knowledge of the environment in Canada.

    A notice of suspected infringement with education as to how to prevent unauthorized use of wifi and what infringement they think occurred is well within their legal rights.

    ISPs in Canada, having read these notices going to their customers, are concerned the letters misrepresent and/or falsify the law and the legal rights of the accused in an effort to strong arm legal settlements that are not, necessarily, valid. Copies we have seen in the past support this.

    The statement you quote notes that efforts to change this are due entirely to the choices made by rights holders to seek quick rents and hard-sell tactics.

    They are not calling for a ban on sending notices, or actual legal filings, just settlement demand letters. Because at that stage such a demand is not only unsupported, but the demands misrepresent the law. Unless you are suggesting copyright holders should get to break the law?

    And this of course ignores concerns about malicious actors. BY misrepresenting the law, a malicious actor (say, Prenda Law) could acquire settlements for copyrights they don't own, Honey Pots, or even fake the detection of infringement, and make a quick buck. Court punishments years later won't help the victims, and wont help the artists.

    You seem to be making the argument that no demand letters = no enforcement. But that entirely misrepresents the issues at hand.

  • On the post: Breitbart Snowflakes Threaten To Sue People Who Have Asked Advertisers To Stop Advertising On Breitbart

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 04:03pm

    Re: Re: Re: comment section apparently doesn't like the underscore in th

    Of course, your indignant sarcasm filled comment, when the comment right about it had the full link you could have (and it seems did) copypaste, seems a bit problematic. You in fact could see the problem he had. Helping him figure out the problem rather than attacking him for giving a fully linkified version is unreasonably hostile, given he did give you the base link.

  • On the post: The President's Phone OPSEC Continues To Be, Well, Crap

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 03:49pm

    Re: Re: Re: How are they eavesdropping?

    There are countermeasures that can be taken. I don't know the full details, but a secure phone can handle passive decryption by handling the transmission in different ways that are hard to crack, and if used in the appropriate fashion can avoid being vulnerable to SS7 Hijacking.

  • On the post: Breitbart Snowflakes Threaten To Sue People Who Have Asked Advertisers To Stop Advertising On Breitbart

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 03:45pm

    Re: "snowflake"

    So, several decades ago, apparently White women were indocrinating white children to be slaves to black dick in our schools with racial slurs. huh.

    See, in the 80s and 90s (my school days) there was a big push on self-esteem in classrooms. The "the everyone is special in their own way" thing. Several people used the terms 'Snowflake' or 'Special snowflake' to describe children, in a positive fashion. It used the metaphor of the snowflake, each one is unique (at least, thats what we were teaching at the time). We had a glut of new middle class kids. At the same time in an effort to get more money for bankers, we pushed hard on universal college degrees, making everyone think manual labor isn't going to be their career path.

    Then Fightclub came out, and derided the idea you were a unique snowflake. As time moved on, the term became an insult, used by various groups for various reasons. (Tabletop gamers describe some players characters as snowflakes if their character's only gimmick is that 'hes different' or they have an overly complex backstory designed to make life hard, or a backstory designed so they become the focus of the story.)

    Until recently, I saw it used politically almost exclusively as a right-wing attack on left wing activists, generally those offended by actions percieved as hurtful to others. It became rampant as efforts to change entrenched veiws on gender became major political points with gay marriage, transgendered persons, and workplace equality.

    It has gotten a bit of traction from the left online in recent years. I see it a lot as a highlight of hypocrisy in right-wing figures and outlets, as it is used here. Safe spaces was the first debate i saw it crop up on the left, when right wing figures, getting called out on policy at every turn, started calling for spaces where they didn't need to deal with politics.

    So, while I don't have a source that backs up your definition, I have repeatedly experienced the form used in the title of this article, and am supported by every slang dictionary I have heard of.

  • On the post: Breitbart Snowflakes Threaten To Sue People Who Have Asked Advertisers To Stop Advertising On Breitbart

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 03:19pm

    Re: This screams SLAPP

    IANAL, but I listen to a podcast about digital forensics and one episode focused on retention demand letters.

    In the US, a letter like the one received in advance of an actual civil lawsuit should be followed, as long as the retention demands are reasonable. Not following the demands could result in adverse court action including a finding of spoliation. The idea is that a formal court filing, service, and a retention order might take quite some time during which valuable documents could be destroyed. So a formal letter notifying you of pending legal action and requiring document retention can be considered a valid request, but failure to adhere to a overly broad retention order will generally not be seen negatively. Again, IANAL, I am merely summarizing information I learned.

    Assuming the information we have fully documents preservation demands, it might be too vague and broad as to be difficult to enforce. The letter leaves out a normally neccisary component describing the types of documents they are looking for (internal or external communications? Email? Call Logs? Texts? Invoices? Spread sheets?). Normally the types of documents they expect to find and need are dictated.

  • On the post: The President's Phone OPSEC Continues To Be, Well, Crap

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 10:20am

    Re: Re: "But I don't wanna!"

    Are you attempting to equate the current president ignoring security concerns and discussing secure information over non-secure lines with the former presidents comments about trying to get some modern features like the ability to use a computer?

  • On the post: The President's Phone OPSEC Continues To Be, Well, Crap

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 10:12am

    Re: Nothing changes....

    No. But the blackberry was noted to be secure for its limited purposes, specially made to that end and everything we have heard is that Obama held to the restrictions placed on its use, and understood the device's limitations. Later in his tenure, He actually wanted to upgrade to a newer phone like an iphone, but couldn't for security, and so chose to keep his blackberry than shift to the similarly old DMCC-S devices, accepting the expert's lines on security issues.

    Techdirt criticizes Trump not just for having devices (ignoring the security experts), but for his poor opsec in handling them, disregarding the limitations of the device's intended use and regularly communicating classified info or info intended to be kept secure.

  • On the post: The President's Phone OPSEC Continues To Be, Well, Crap

    James Burkhardt ( profile ), 25 Oct, 2018 @ 10:00am

    Re: How are they eavesdropping?

    Read the goddamn article and its sources.

    The SS7 vulnerability and passive tower decryption, both of which would allow you to access the content of communications are possibilities, listed as 2 of at least 4 possible vulnerabilities that he could be vulnerable to if using a poorly secured line.

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