Vidiot 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (907)

• On the post: Ajit Pai Throws His Employees Under The Bus After Investigation Proves FCC Made Up DDOS Attack

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 08 Aug, 2018 @ 06:23am

  Not sure why I'm even looking for plausibility, but really, what's the motivation for a CIO to cry DDOS? Site crashes under load due to unanticipated public response -- doesn't sound like a hangin' crime to me.
  
  This clearly comes from the top; and even if it didn't, accountability rests there regardless.

• On the post: Surprisingly Rational TSA Plan To Drop Screening At Small Airports Has Almost Zero Chance Of Getting Off The Ground

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 06 Aug, 2018 @ 02:22pm

  Re: Re: There are other issue besides terrorism

  "... the only place you feel showing more hostility towards you..." How 'bout those Canadians, eh? The only country where I've been "taken to the little room" to explain why I needed to enter the country.

• On the post: Ignorant Hysteria Over 3D Printed Guns Leads To Courts Ignoring The First Amendment

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 01 Aug, 2018 @ 11:24am

  Re:

  "... a gun that can shoot 2-3 rounds before it fails..." That's always the first thing I picture -- the moment you detonate a small explosive charge inside a sculpted lump of UV-cured resin. Run away... run very, very far away.

• On the post: Stupid Patent Of The Month: Upaid Sues 'Offending Laundromats' For Using Prepaid Cards

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 01 Aug, 2018 @ 04:46am

  Re:

  "...before that, Congress should start to do its damn job and..." (fill in the blank) Did you really want to start making that list?

• On the post: Congress Members Demand Answers From, Investigation Of Federal Facial Rec Tech Users

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 01 Aug, 2018 @ 04:52am

  Now can we re-run the test, using photos of Cabinet Secretaries and Presidential Advisors?
  
  Side wagers, anyone?

• On the post: Ajit Pai Lies (Again) To Congress With Claim Net Neutrality Killed Broadband Investment

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 27 Jul, 2018 @ 07:51am

  Maybe if the /s sarcasm flag was more like a 30-foot-wide flaming banner, we wouldn't miss these cues...

• On the post: Misleading Subscription Practices At The Financial Times

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 13 Jul, 2018 @ 01:19pm

  Makes more than a little sense to me. If you've got capital assets and need to stay in the know, paying progressively more for the Financial Times, even on a minute-by-minute basis, is offset by the ever-increasing returns you're getting on your investments, thanks to your jacked-up subscription.
  
  Using that logic, I'm going to try subscribing to the Po' Folks' Times (much more up my alley), and see if the subscription price continually drops until they're sending me a sack of cash every month.

• On the post: Inspector General: ICE Detention Facility Inspections Are A Joke

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 10 Jul, 2018 @ 05:07am

  This wacky "Inspector General" snowflake is clearly not aligned with the Administration's narrative. Play with the team or hit the road, buddy... we've got a nice desk waiting for you in the FOIA section.

• On the post: FCC Wants Ebay, Amazon To Crack Down On Kodi-Based Pirate TV Boxes

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 01 Jun, 2018 @ 06:59am

  "... exploiting the FCC's trusted logo..."

  Somehow, I'm not feelin' the trust. Trust would happen after you made it unlawful for a cable company to charge me $12/mo extra for a device that simply allows me to consume the seller's service.

• On the post: FCC Claims Perfectly-Timed Regulatory Handout To Sinclair Is Just Quirky Happenstance

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 31 May, 2018 @ 07:55am

  "...causing tremendous challenges to legacy broadcasters..."

  Ironically, technology advances have lowered the cost of broadcast hardware by orders of magnitude; a $50,000 camera of 15 years ago is easily replaced, at higher quality, with a $5,000 camera today. And idiot-proofed, automated applications mean a small, community-based station can be run with a fraction of the staff... and capital... previously required.

  Of course, the same economies that democratize hyperlocal broadcasting are the ones which turn multiple station ownership into a modern-day gold rush; a single regional playout server sends identical, pre-recorded programming to ten markets as cheaply as one.

  This is mostly about the (imagined) right to generate massive revenues by shedding those old-fashioned notions of benefiting the community.

• On the post: Despite Its Problems, More Consumers Should Behave Like Beer Drinkers To Keep Trademark At Bay

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 15 May, 2018 @ 04:52am

  "'Anyone think that's a bit rank?', the Beertown post said."

  I'm thinking "daft" plus "rank", which, according to my math, equals "dank".

• On the post: How Microsoft Convinced Clueless Judges To Send A Man To Jail For Copying Software It Gives Out For Free

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 27 Apr, 2018 @ 07:08am

  Not to pick nits, but it's not really "How Microsoft Convinced Clueless Judges..."; we don't get a peek at a brilliant MS strategy that delivered injustice. Instead, it's about clueless judges, a bogus expert, and plenty of misrepresentation; these are fairly standard fare for an infringement case like this. If we could really get to the how part, maybe there would be lessons as to how to defend/protect against this idiocy. (Although skipping the Microsoft/Dell logos would have been a good start.)

• On the post: Marsha Blackburn Wants ISPs To Sell 'Fast Lanes' Like 'TSA Pre-Check'

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 26 Apr, 2018 @ 05:31am

  Picturing a "fast lane", quick-service cashier window in Marsha Blackburn's congressional office... lobbyists with cash in hand can leapfrog that pesky "competitive marketplace" nonsense.

• On the post: We Interrupt The News Again With Hopefully The Last Update From The Monkey Selfie Case

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 23 Apr, 2018 @ 12:25pm

  Re:

  Have you seen Michael Cohen's photo side-by-side with Naruto's? Hmmm?

• On the post: Caymus Vineyard Sues Caymus Builders Because It Built Some Buildings For Its Wine Business

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 20 Apr, 2018 @ 05:56am

  Re: Uniqueness?

  I believe the response is this: What is it about the ability to bottle nicely-balanced Pinot Noir that would make you say, "Now that's the kind of construction company I need to build my new garage." Customer confusion, the ultimate arbiter, generally requires both entities to play in the same space.

• On the post: Comcast To Sell Netflix Subscriptions In False Belief This Will Slow Cord Cutting

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 17 Apr, 2018 @ 06:10am

  In other news, Titanic passengers are issued Dixie cups to help bail out the boat in case of leaks.

• On the post: Report Says Former FBI Official Andrew McCabe Lied About Self-Serving Leaks To Journalists

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 16 Apr, 2018 @ 01:18pm

  Re: Are anomalies dejure or defacto

  I once ordered a bowl of anomalie du jour... and dat's defact-o.

• On the post: At-Home Dental Appliance Company Sues Website For Having Opinions About Its Products

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 16 Apr, 2018 @ 01:29pm

  This lawsuit has no teeth.

• On the post: Senators Say The FCC's Broadband Maps are a Bad Joke

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 23 Mar, 2018 @ 06:56am

  Need to insert "mobile" every time broadband is mentioned

  There's an underlying issue here: in this story, "broadband" means mobile broadband, but in many contexts, it's used as a surrogate for wired broadband... high-speed household connections for multiple users. There's a big difference. Considering wireless broadband pricing schemes, it's no substitute for underserved low-to-moderate income customers.

• On the post: YouTuber Who Trained His Girlfriend's Dog To Be A Nazi Facing Hate Crime Charges In Scotland

  

  Vidiot ( profile ), 21 Mar, 2018 @ 06:00am

  Re: Re: Re:

  Or the entire sitcom "Mrs. Brown's Boys". All the lads would be in the feckin' hoosegow.

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