discussitlive 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: Twitter Demands Academics Who Won’t Pay $42k/Month Delete Any Twitter Data They Currently Have

    discussitlive ( profile ), 29 May, 2023 @ 12:27pm

    Good point, and one that never occurred to me. As to the spinner, I do 99.99% of my work either with an API or CLI. To misquote Worf from Star Trek, "GUI's have no HONOR. It is a good day to VI."

  • On the post: Twitter Demands Academics Who Won’t Pay $42k/Month Delete Any Twitter Data They Currently Have

    discussitlive ( profile ), 26 May, 2023 @ 10:45am

    Legal authority?

    As regular users are aware, I'm not an attorney, I don't pretend to be an attorney, and as long as an attoreny doesn't computer we'll get along fine. However, I was just wondering - what theory does Musk think this is legal under? Not copyright, as there are exceptions to that for academic study for one, and for another, copyright is only operative on republishing the work, not on the analysis of that work from my possibly flawed understanding of copyright. Trademark wouldn't stand because even a moron in a hurry would have to strain to confuse a university with Twitter, and there just doesn't seem to be a way to stretch patent law to cover this. I suppose contract law if they obtained the data via a contract rather than use the API, wget or curl. So, in the event they don't have even a simpleton around to create a simple bash script: ---8< cut here >8--- #!/bin/bash #Musk self pleasuring dataset=1,438,404,006 echo "*********** DANGER DANGER DANGER ***********" echo "* You have authorized mass delete and purge on dataset: *" echo "TWITTER DATA comprizing ${dataset} records!" echo "*********** DANGER DANGER DANGER ***********" read -p "Proceed? (yes/N): " askme echo "*********** DANGER DANGER DANGER ***********" echo "* ONE LAST TIME: *" echo "*********** DANGER DANGER DANGER ***********" read -p "Proceed? (yes/N): " askme echo "Purge complete: Dataset TWITTER now contains 0 records." ---8< cut here >8--- Obviously I'm joking. I would never assist anyone to violate the law. Unless it was funny as hell, anyway. Remind me to tell you what we did with the bronze cannon statue in high school.

  • On the post: Apparently Elon Doesn’t Think He Needs To Pay Rent Because SF Is A ‘Shithole’; So Why Should We Pay For Twitter?

    discussitlive ( profile ), 23 May, 2023 @ 05:42am

    My impression was that no-one liked Twitter,but it was good enough to do the thing it did that everyone used it.
    It was cheaper than buying a SMS feed for alerts (80K a year at the time) for the expected use case. However, that need has now been addressed and the Twitter functionality has been removed from things I am maintaining since Twitter wants to charge too much for API access. (Not that many sites use it really. No more than a few thousands.)

  • On the post: Apparently Elon Doesn’t Think He Needs To Pay Rent Because SF Is A ‘Shithole’; So Why Should We Pay For Twitter?

    discussitlive ( profile ), 22 May, 2023 @ 11:05am

    BREAKING: Mike doesn’t like Twitter.
    More accurately, it would appear Mr. Masnick doesn't like assholes. Having worked for quite a few, I tend to understand his mild aversion to them.

  • On the post: Supreme Court Leaves 230 Alone For Now, But Justice Thomas Gives A Pretty Good Explanation For Why It Exists In The First Place

    discussitlive ( profile ), 18 May, 2023 @ 07:21pm

    but I can’t fathom the surreality of it all. Like, da fuk?
    Oh. Good. It's not just me. Phew!

  • On the post: Supreme Court Leaves 230 Alone For Now, But Justice Thomas Gives A Pretty Good Explanation For Why It Exists In The First Place

    discussitlive ( profile ), 18 May, 2023 @ 07:19pm

    And usually handled by other laws, like the Criminal Codes of the state.
    I'm gobsmacked that Texas still has an obscenity law preventing the possession of more than six sex toys, has for many decades. Also an ad valorem tax of $50 per year per burner for coffee makers.

  • On the post: Important Things At Twitter Keep Breaking, And Making The Site More Dangerous

    discussitlive ( profile ), 17 May, 2023 @ 06:18pm

    Unlike a certain house troll
    "There's a tampermonkey script for that!"

  • On the post: Age Verification Laws Are Terrible

    discussitlive ( profile ), 16 May, 2023 @ 07:52pm

    Good point, and one I'd not considered in the past. However, as I've pointed out in the past, it's trivial to add a X-AGE header to a web (or email for that matter) call.[1] As "most" underaged cannot afford their own devices the parental unit has to purchase it, and can have it set to scan for the header. If it's too low, then Junior is Disappoint. Is it possible to get around that? Sure. But it's low hanging fruit, trivial to implement, doesn't have 1st amendment impact, and the only flaw is that it doesn't allow for what law makers really want: To control what everyone sees, not just underage. EX: Mindgeek [aka PornHub] v. State of Utah (someone get the PACER for that?) If they say "It's for the children!" then it's not. [1] For NGINX and Apache, it's a call to enable a module, then add it to the directory stanza of a web page configuration. For apache: a2enmod headers then edit /etc/apache2/sites-available/ to add X-AGE= That's it. The lock out has to happen on the client end though. Which is why it's not 1st amendment impactful. The authorized purchaser of the device is in control. Not politicians. And they hate that.

  • On the post: Federal Court Rejects FBI’s Attempt To Glomar Its Way Out Of A Trump-Related FOIA Lawsuit

    discussitlive ( profile ), 16 May, 2023 @ 07:32pm

    I wish I could get a job where there was no need to show any productivity on my part.
    You're in luck. Congress Critter from Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, North or South Carolina, either Dakotas, Florida, Texas or Colorado would appear to lack this requisite for their positions. Grab a bucket - it's raining soup!

  • On the post: NY AG Doles Out Wrist Slap Fine To Companies That Helped Telecom Giants Use Fake And Dead People To Lie About Net Neutrality

    discussitlive ( profile ), 13 May, 2023 @ 02:26am

    What's the point?

    The point here isn't that the regulators are fooled by what's going on. All they are doing is insisting that companies do a better job of faking their supporters comments, not jobs so bad even a disaffected crack head sees through it.

  • On the post: Even The People Who Were Eager To Pay Elon Musk $8/Month Are Cancelling Their Blue Subscriptions

    discussitlive ( profile ), 08 May, 2023 @ 10:54am

    Meanwhile, in reality my crack dream, Twitter is better than ever!

  • On the post: Pornhub Says No More Porn For Folks In Utah (Unless They Know How To Use A VPN)

    discussitlive ( profile ), 03 May, 2023 @ 09:56am

    I seem to recall what might be a slight issue with this

    Now, I'm not an attorney, so I don't know all that attorney stuff like Sheapardizing and things, but did anyone ever codify Justice Stewart's Casablanca Test? Speaking of the idiots right wing's inability to understand non-binary answers.

  • On the post: Supreme Court Refuses To Hear Case Over AI’s Right To A Patent; AI Inventions Remain Unpatentable

    discussitlive ( profile ), 29 Apr, 2023 @ 01:07am

    Oh, I see

    The copyright uses some analogy to agency theory, to describe why the AI is the creator of the work, but somehow I don’t see why this is different than the two other examples.
    Could it be.... The USPTO is using Chat GPT to reject patents? Naaaaaa. Too easy.

  • On the post: Cheap Field Drug Tests Are Finally Getting Called Out By Courts As The Bullshit They Are

    discussitlive ( profile ), 28 Apr, 2023 @ 03:45pm

    Well, that saves a buck!

    First, they’re cheap, around $2/per
    Oh. So, a lot less than feeding and keeping a probable cause on four paws around. That surely explains it; It isn't lackadaisical, it's simply good fiscal management of Tax Payer Dollars.

  • On the post: Elon Seems To Think The Cruelest Thing He Can Do To People… Is To Pretend They Want To Associate With Him

    discussitlive ( profile ), 24 Apr, 2023 @ 06:29pm

    Musk's wealth

    He got ten million from his dad, then got lucky with X (the precursor to PayPal). Wealth is, in large part, self sustaining in the US. The laws are slanted in favor of the rich. For instance, try to sue any company with an arbitration clause. Heads they win, tales you lose. It takes a phenomenally stupid person to not become richer and richer after about 50 million if wealth is their aim. Some choose to pursue it even more, others lose interest. Yes, Musk is wealthy. See the philosophy of great wealth. It's not pretty. Let me see if I can remember the coda "Love of money, go ahead, love it, love it more than your spouse, more than your kids, more than your parents or siblings. Wrap it around you in the night, whisper sweet endearments to it, caress it, and hold it close. It is easy to be wealthy, all one need do is love it to the exclusion of all else, to the point no moral wall will stop one from obtaining more. Remember: It will never, not ever, love you back. One can trade many many things to obtain their heart's desire but one. They cannot trade their heart." I likely mangled that somewhat, I didn't look it up as I can't remember the author. And no, Mr. Bennett, I don't expect you to understand it, much less be moved. Instead, another thought: Who was smarter, Nikola Tesla, who died broke, or the guy that ripped of his name to make a buck? Who benefited mankind more, the guy that invented the power grid used all over the world, or a guy that digs a tunnel for himself.

  • On the post: Microsoft Ditches Twitter From Its Ads Platform… So Elon Announces Plans To Sue Microsoft

    discussitlive ( profile ), 20 Apr, 2023 @ 09:30pm

    In fact, it’s better than ever.
    Great, then they won't miss my users for IT alerts when things go wrong. Not going to pay the API fee and have already pulled the functionality from current stable branch.
    You have an unhealthy obsession with denigrating Musk
    Truth is an absolute defense to defamation. Or denigration for that matter.
    and criticizing his proven business & management skills
    Would those be the same skills a colliuge of mine that worked for Musk describes as infantile and moronic?
    and demonstrated leadership abilities.
    Yes Matthew, but most of us really would rather not follow him into his decent into the eighth level of Deante's Inferno.

  • On the post: Fox Agrees To Pay Dominion Voting Systems $787.5 Million Just After Jury Selection In Defamation Lawsuit

    discussitlive ( profile ), 19 Apr, 2023 @ 03:13pm

    The court has no say in what consenting adults agree to.
    Er, OK. I'm not an attorney so I won't tell an attorney about the law. It was, however, my understanding that a judge can reject a settlement if they felt it was not in the interest of justice. If that isn't the case, I see little reason to have a Judaical system, even if it is as ineffective as it currently is.

  • On the post: Fox Agrees To Pay Dominion Voting Systems $787.5 Million Just After Jury Selection In Defamation Lawsuit

    discussitlive ( profile ), 18 Apr, 2023 @ 09:50pm

    800 million to a company the size of Fox is a little more than 15% of their market cap. Which, I do admit, I figured a settlement would be closer to around 6%. 15% is cost of doing business for Rupert. Fox won, America and the Truth lost. FOX's feeding the lies and sedition is worse than the Rosenberg's actions, and the Rosenberg's were executed. My opinion is that this settlement is in no way an appropriate punishment for those involved and that the court should have rejected it. That's why I'm not a judge.

  • On the post: Fox Agrees To Pay Dominion Voting Systems $787.5 Million Just After Jury Selection In Defamation Lawsuit

    discussitlive ( profile ), 18 Apr, 2023 @ 09:36pm

    The viewers already have access to the truth, and they’ve rejected it.
    They didn't just reject it, they closed their eyes, shouted NYAH NYAH NYAH and presented death threats to any that dared to speak truth to them. Oklahoma's McCurtain County isn't anything I didn't expect. Some wish to present that as an extreme aberration. No, it isn't. No. I'm not going to argue why I know that. Laugh it off and ignore it - as long as you aren't a progressive, speak the truth, or a person of color, you'll be just fine. For a while.

  • On the post: Apartment Broadband Monopolies Still Exist Because The FCC Has Been Lobbied Into Fecklessness

    discussitlive ( profile ), 17 Apr, 2023 @ 09:43pm

    Now now, that's isn't true. Everyone in my area can get which ever Internet Service Provider they'd like at an apartment complex as long as it's Charter, Charter, or Charter. See? All kinds of choices! PS: I never said they were good choices...

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