mockingbird 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: Political Entitlement: Maryland AG Accused Of Regularly Turning On Sirens, Ordering Troopers To Drive Dangerously

    mockingbird ( profile ), 17 Oct, 2013 @ 10:14am

    police also the problem

    if the AG is breaking the law for 5 years in the presence of the troopers and he hasn't been arrested yet, the troopers are as much of the problem as the AG.
    the fact that the troopers claim he was endangering lives just adds to their horrific actions of continuing to let him do so for year after year after year.

  • On the post: Government's Redaction Fail Causes Exceptionally Grave Damage To Nation's Security

    mockingbird ( profile ), 27 Aug, 2013 @ 10:28am

    Re: Soooo, not Walmart

    plus, they're actually pretty lenient on their return policy, at least in my experience.
    and they're open longer hours.
    their employees, on average, are friendlier (if not more helpful) than govt employees.
    walmart, at times, lowers it's prices.

  • On the post: Cracked Shows How To Respond To Someone Infringing On Their Work

    mockingbird ( profile ), 27 Aug, 2013 @ 03:21pm

    many fold benefit

    along with playing to the crowd, just the savings on lawyer fees must be worth it. It would likely take over $1,000 to send the DMCA letter, and that's without a followup etc.

    just like copy protection, this shows a shift from focusing on theft, to focusing on what your customers want from you.
    it's a win win for the company, instead of a win-win for the lawyers and 2 bankrupt companies.

  • On the post: Why Trader Joe's Suing Pirate Joe's May Be Bad News For Ownership

    mockingbird ( profile ), 27 Aug, 2013 @ 02:37pm

    preventing a cutback

    I think TJs was considering cutting back on lawyers, and the lawyers are trying to justify their positions, time and wages.

  • On the post: Speed Cam Contractor Responds To Challenged Tickets By Cropping Photos, Moving Cameras

    mockingbird ( profile ), 07 Aug, 2013 @ 07:37am

    no cropping or editing that I can see

    I agree with McCrea.
    Those photos certainly aren't cropped.
    and the lines aren't photoshopped out, they're simply behind the car in one of the photos.
    if you flip back and forth a couple of times, you'll see the frame of the photo is the same (ie. no cropping).
    and the lines would be in such a place as to not be visible behind the car in the other photo.
    BUT... if you are looking for fault, and this could be conspiracy or incompetence, is placing the camera in that position with that timing would make it impossible to use the lines as a comparison for speed. it looks like the camera should be in line with the lane, allowing the lines to be visible in both pictures for comparison purposes without being blocked in any of the shots.

  • On the post: Pat Robertson: Murder Committed In Video Games Is No Different Than Real Life Murder

    mockingbird ( profile ), 06 Aug, 2013 @ 10:30am

    I'm a saint

    if I commit a miracle in a game, I commit a miracle in real life. woo!

  • On the post: Manning Faces Lifetime In Jail, While The Wrongdoers He Exposed Are Free

    mockingbird ( profile ), 31 Jul, 2013 @ 10:50am

    Pardon

    I hope the next president pardons him.
    sadly, I don't expect any actions against those actually breaking the laws, as long as they were part of the govt while doing so.

  • On the post: License Plate Data Isn't 'Personally Identifiable' Until The Public Asks Police For Access To It

    mockingbird ( profile ), 23 Jul, 2013 @ 08:35am

    how do you expect

    How do you expect the people who have promised to uphold and protect the constitution to do their job, when schools never really taught anything INSIDE the constitution, only when it was created and who signed it. These people have no idea what the 4'th amendment is or why it's important, same is true for the 1'st amendment. The only thing they know about the amendments is how they interfere with the rest of their job of collecting revenue for their municipality.

  • On the post: Microsoft Fires Off Rebuttal To Latest Leak; Angry Letter To Eric Holder

    mockingbird ( profile ), 17 Jul, 2013 @ 09:25am

    they're just as afraid as the rest of us

    although MS could go and talk on first amendment grounds and fight the govt in court later, MS is also afraid of what the govt can do to it, both directly and through back door agreements. No, I don't think MS cares tremendously about the users, but they are currently trying to side with their users and can't even do that in a strong way.
    how much would it cost MS if the IRS decided to do several audits of MS, and perhaps some foreign govts changed their laws in a way that would hurt MS.. Heck, the US made europe ground the plane of a south american president. the USA is a big bully that isn't afraid of hurting people, and you don't want to get on its bad side.
    I'm surprised they're (MS) standing up as much as they are.

  • On the post: CIA Memo On Stopping Leaks To Reporters Is Promptly Leaked To Reporters

    mockingbird ( profile ), 28 Jun, 2013 @ 01:27pm

    honoring the oath

    how about honoring the oath to uphold and protect the constitution?

  • On the post: It's Come To This: Commentators Arguing That The Press Commits A Crime In Exposing NSA Surveillance

    mockingbird ( profile ), 18 Jun, 2013 @ 03:18pm

    does not apply

    the first amendment argument aside for a second..

    I don't know that the quoted law (as I read the excerpt above) is relevant in this case. (Mind, I have not read the details of what has been revealed, but, I have not seen mention of the following qualifying criteria)
    that it had anything to do with item (1) or (2) cryptography or devices used,it was touched on by (3) - communication activity of US or foreign govt, but that's ANY news story.. and it also did not qualify under item (4)method used to obtain the information.

    Mind, this is from a layman, not a lawyer, but this event really doesn't seem prosecutable under this law, as only 1 of 3 criteria are met.

    And then there's the first amendment.

  • On the post: Discovering Names Of Secret NSA Surveillance Programs Via LinkedIn

    mockingbird ( profile ), 18 Jun, 2013 @ 10:51am

    I can only see the NSA response as

    I can only see the NSA response as, "Stop researching ME!"
    :-P

  • On the post: 86 Companies And Groups Ask Congress To Put An End To Abusive NSA Spying

    mockingbird ( profile ), 11 Jun, 2013 @ 12:55pm

    just a checklist for the IRS

    just looks like a checklist of companies the IRS is going to audit. :-P

  • On the post: Moral Panic Over Google Glass: White House Petition Asks To Ban Them To Prevent 'Indecent' Public Surveillance

    mockingbird ( profile ), 06 May, 2013 @ 09:56am

    Re: The question that needs to be asked...

    govt cameras are here to protect the children from the terrorists. ;-P

  • On the post: Alice In Chains: We Hate The Internet, Twitter & Dancing

    mockingbird ( profile ), 03 May, 2013 @ 02:01pm

    worth less than nothing

    so... if I pay to keep it OFF my pandora list, is that technically less than nothing?

    overall, it could be that they dind't have much to say and decided to rant about something they didn't truly understand but had heard things about.
    it doesn't really seem well thought out.
    so, maybe it was a stab at saying something that would tantalize, not realizing how backwards the statements were.

    I didn't know they were back together.
    I'll have to hop onto TPB to see if there are any new songs. ;-P

  • On the post: NY Police Chief Ray Kelly Says The Boston Bombing Takes Privacy 'Off The Table'

    mockingbird ( profile ), 02 May, 2013 @ 09:17am

    the chief is also incorrect as to stated facts

    the city has been attacked since 9/11, the guy who set up the car bomb that didn't go off in times square.
    that was an attack. just because it didn't succeed because of improper bomb setup doesn't mean the attack didn't occur.

  • On the post: IL Follows Suit: Employers Right To Ask For Social Media Passwords Codified Into Law

    mockingbird ( profile ), 30 Apr, 2013 @ 07:17am

    Re: unconstitutional

    how is the law unconstitutional?
    it seems like a nothing law, the employer had a right to ask for pretty much anything they want. like non smokers, drug testing, etc.
    they are, bizarrely, stopped from asking your age.
    but, I imagine the 1st amendment protects the employers right to ask for any info they want.
    a person always has the right to refuse.
    and another employer can market the fact that they support employee privacy and have a hiring advantage..
    I don't see how this law is at all unconstitutional.
    if anything, it seems like a 'nothing law' which already affirms a right the employer already had.

  • On the post: Uh Oh: US Postal Service Wants To Better 'Monetize' Its 'Intellectual Property'

    mockingbird ( profile ), 10 Apr, 2013 @ 12:16pm

    Re: Umm

    it's been cheaper because it's being subsidized by all the people who pay taxes, whether they are sending and receiving mail or not. that actual operations aren't cheaper or more efficient. and USPS uses fedex to actually get their mail bundles around the world.
    so, yes, it's faster and cheaper if someone else pays the bulk of the cost.
    it's certainly not faster if I need to walk in at 6pm and send something right now to get there next morning.
    cuz they're closed at 4:30 in most places. :-P

  • On the post: Uh Oh: US Postal Service Wants To Better 'Monetize' Its 'Intellectual Property'

    mockingbird ( profile ), 10 Apr, 2013 @ 12:18pm

    what IP does USPS hold?

    not sure if anyone knows, and maybe it's in the article and I ust missed it..
    but what IP does the USPS hold in the first place?
    and.. if that's tax funded IP, should they still be allowed to monopolize it?

  • On the post: Homeland Security 'Fusion' Center Director: We're Not Spying On Americans… Just Anti-Government Americans

    mockingbird ( profile ), 05 Apr, 2013 @ 10:56am

    Re: Simplicity

    well, yes. if you ignore white collar (financial) crime.. and those, especially law enforcement, who abuse power, physically beat people or kill them without cause, etc etc..
    just because you participate in an exercise (voting) that many think is useless at best and a rigged scam at worst, doesn't make you bad.
    you really have to revisit your concepts of people and how they fit into your buckets.

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