Gee, it seems the basic Econ 101 principles are a mystery to the overpaid leaders of AT&T. One of which is: Higher prices = Lower demand. Especially when there are several competitors to DirectTV.
You 'choose' the HOA when you decide to buy a house located in one. Don't like the HOA? Buy in a different location. Didn't read the contract and abstract that detailed the HOA and other covenants when you bought the house? Your fault.
Did the HOA mutate into evil after you bought the house? Read the HOA rules. Read the city/state rules governing HOAs. Chances are pretty good that if few folks are attending meetings, the HOA leaders are playing fast and loose with the rules since no one is going to object. The leaders may not even know the rules as it is likely they inherited the job from the previous leader who either died or moved out of the HOA area. Wait until the leaders make some mistakes. Proper public notice of meetings and proposed actions is one that is often overlooked. Show up with some neighbors and perhaps a lawyer and force the issue. If all else fails, be prepared to either live with the evil HOA or move.
I think an argument can be made that Officer Vickers committed fraud upon the good citizens paying his salary. Based on the evidence in this case, it seems he was impersonating a trained Police Officer.
One difference is most of the license applications are handled by FCC minions, not the actual Commissioners. Even a lot of enforcement actions are never seen by Commissioners.
Since 3 of the 5 (by either law or custom) are from the same party as the person in the White House, getting 4 to agree that a tech company is being neutral may be difficult. And that is assuming you have a full 5 person commission. And once one is denied, lawsuits are sure to follow and those could take years if not decades since both parties to the suit would likely have very deep pockets.
I have no issue with Doctors earning a profit. But from TFA, the issue here wasn't the Doctors, it was the hospital administration issuing medication orders. I am becoming more and more convinced that the solution to the 'Health Care Crisis' is banning insurance and government programs and returning to the patient directly paying the doctor/hospital. Many report say somewhere between 30 to 50% of health costs are administrative including insurance admin cost + profits, cost of complying with government mandates and compliance reporting, etc. Eliminate that cost and health care becomes affordable for a large number of people. Sure, some will get hit with bills for complex treatments they can't pay but I doubt the number will be much different then what we get today.
Some of their points about rural business are valid. A DSL hub has about a 3 mile service range. One in an urban location might have a potential customer count in the hundreds or even thousands. The same hub in a rural location might have a potential count of around 50. It is made worse by the problem of the farther you are from the hub, the slower the max speed. The folks in the 2~3 mile ring, which all things being equal, has the most potential customers, will also be the ones who will get the slowest max speeds. Not many folks will pay $70/month for 1.5mbs max download speed.
The plain phone service doesn't have the same distance limits but folks are dropping the POTS in favor of cell when they can get service.
BUT, Frontier surely knew this before they bought the assets from Verison. Sounds like they are hoping their assets in the government will pay off.
This should be renamed the "Let's Litigate Over Creation Time Act". By removing the registration requirement for lawsuits, there will be no easy way to determine who published first and therefore who is most likely infringing on the other. Since computer file dates are fairly easy to alter, can't rely on those. Someone can claim they created a work on such and such a date but didn't distribute it until much later. And not all works are created on things that leave a file date mark. Typewriters, pens and art brushes tend to not leave date created on records. The last thing we need are more "prior work" lawsuits and the resultant discovery motions.
Wonder how long it will be before one of the gaming networks start 'accidentally' interfering with the operation of competing networks by preempting/ blocking certain network ports on the end user's PC? All in the name of better client performance or security?
This is turning into another case of be careful what you wish for you might get it. A lot of folks wanted alternatives to Steam. Now you have them.
Pretty sure we heard much the same at this point in the roll outs for 4G and 3G and 2G and the switch from analog to digital. Life changing, new tech, blazing speeds, etc.
What we got with all those were incremental improvements and those often took years to get fully deployed.
When the press lives in the few minute news cycle, everything has to be hyped in order to gets its few minutes of fame before the next over hyped thing takes its place.
If I understand tariffs correctly, they are based on the price paid to the manufacturer not the eventual retail price. So that 25% tariff could result in a much smaller percent increase in the retail price.
And yes, in most cases, the end purchaser will pay the tariff, just as they pay for all the other costs like taxes, safety fees, transport surcharges, etc.
Very possible that the President and/or lawyers knew this was a bogus request and hoped the recipient either didn't know the laws or wasn't willing to put their career on the line in fighting it. Bluffing is a time honored legal strategy. Sounds like in this case the bluff was soundly called and raised.
Another problem with targeted ads is there rarely a way to signal that you no longer are interested in Product A. You search for Product A and start getting ads for Product A. Two days later, you find the version of Product A you want and buy however much you need or can afford. But the targeted ad machinery will keep feeding you ads for Product A long after you finished with that search. End result is a lot of ineffective ad dollars being spent on unwanted ads targeted on someone that is no longer a potential customer.
Yet another move by a company that moves us toward a world where the end user doesn't own anything but a collection of monthly service bills.
Its not just the ISP drop to the end users that will be strained by this. Probably a lot of neighborhood trunk lines that will be swamped by the traffic if this and 4K video streaming catches on.
Having read many reports about bad conditions in US prisons and jails housing convicted criminals and those awaiting trial, don't really see why illegal invaders of the US should expect nice accommodations complete with good food and recreational facilities. The recent reports of kids being separated from parents at the border is SOP for US citizens sent to jail/prison. Again, why should the invaders be given special and better treatment?
I am glad Trump has made this an issue. Many past Presidents and Congresses have booted this can further down the road as it seems both major Parties see advantage in not solving the issue and blaming the other for the problem. Maybe rubbing all their faces in the problem during an election cycle will prompt action. But I am not holding my breath.
If AM General wins this, it will pretty much end any use of accurate depictions of US Military in games, TV, movies and other uses limited by trademark and copyright. Almost every bit of kit a soldier wears is made by one or more private companies. Underwear, socks, boots, uniforms, coveralls, canteens, canteen carriers, packs, holsters, knives, mechanics tools, first aid gear, etc. Many items have multiple suppliers. It could take hundreds of licensing agreements to cover everything worn/used by one Private Smith.
Don't see how this could "Promote the progress of science and useful arts" the Constitution refers to.
Most 'Smart' devices are designed to spy on the end purchaser. No hack needed. Whether it is your viewing habits, things you buy, how often you leave the house, etc, the data is being collected, aggregated with other data, and the result sold to other companies.
All one has to do is look at Facebook and Google's announcements about future 'features' to learn some of the things the data is being used for. I think it was FB that recently announced a 'Who you are about to meet with' feature being worked on.
If they know who you are about to meet with, very likely they know who your kids are about to meet with.
And it is likely that most folks have little idea this data collection is happening. After all, for most people, things like TVs, refrigerators, microwaves, etc are passive gizmos. Not even in their thoughts that the new TV is spying on them.
And most Congress critters are still buying the 'Computer companies needs special laws that exempt them from normal laws' line that was bought off on when Microsoft was still a small upstart company competing with IBM for the OS market.
Some news reports on this say Foxcon is still planning on the 13,000 or so employees, they just won't be manufacturing. Instead the plans are from some kind of tech/research/something white collar job facility. Of course, no manufacturing setup means any expected parts supplier jobs won't happen.
Yet another cautionary about the silliness of governments subsidizing corporations to build stuff.
On the post: Court Will Decide If AT&T Is Liable For Cryptocurrency Theft Caused By Shoddy Security
Re: This should be interesting
Step 1 for AT&T will be to add a "Security Cost Recovery Fee" to all cell data plans.
On the post: AT&T Loses 1 Million Video Users After Spending Billions On Mergers To Dominate Video
Gee, it seems the basic Econ 101 principles are a mystery to the overpaid leaders of AT&T. One of which is: Higher prices = Lower demand. Especially when there are several competitors to DirectTV.
On the post: Why A 'Clever Hack' Against Nazis Shows How Upload Filters Have Made Copyright Law Even More Broken
The more complex the rules, the easier it is to find creative uses for them.
On the post: The Newest Growth Market For License Plate Readers Is Those Assholes Running The Local Homeowners Association
Re: Re: HOAs
You 'choose' the HOA when you decide to buy a house located in one. Don't like the HOA? Buy in a different location. Didn't read the contract and abstract that detailed the HOA and other covenants when you bought the house? Your fault.
Did the HOA mutate into evil after you bought the house? Read the HOA rules. Read the city/state rules governing HOAs. Chances are pretty good that if few folks are attending meetings, the HOA leaders are playing fast and loose with the rules since no one is going to object. The leaders may not even know the rules as it is likely they inherited the job from the previous leader who either died or moved out of the HOA area. Wait until the leaders make some mistakes. Proper public notice of meetings and proposed actions is one that is often overlooked. Show up with some neighbors and perhaps a lawyer and force the issue. If all else fails, be prepared to either live with the evil HOA or move.
On the post: Appeals Court Says No Rights Were Violated When A Cop Shot At A 'Non-Threatening' Dog But Hit A Kid Instead
I think an argument can be made that Officer Vickers committed fraud upon the good citizens paying his salary. Based on the evidence in this case, it seems he was impersonating a trained Police Officer.
On the post: Former Content Moderator Explains How Josh Hawley's Bill Would Grant Government Control Over Online Speech
Re: Government Control Over Online Speech
One difference is most of the license applications are handled by FCC minions, not the actual Commissioners. Even a lot of enforcement actions are never seen by Commissioners.
Since 3 of the 5 (by either law or custom) are from the same party as the person in the White House, getting 4 to agree that a tech company is being neutral may be difficult. And that is assuming you have a full 5 person commission. And once one is denied, lawsuits are sure to follow and those could take years if not decades since both parties to the suit would likely have very deep pockets.
On the post: Another Way In Which Patents Contributed To The Opioid Crisis: Hospitals Ordered Not To Use Better, Less Problematic Medicines
I have no issue with Doctors earning a profit. But from TFA, the issue here wasn't the Doctors, it was the hospital administration issuing medication orders. I am becoming more and more convinced that the solution to the 'Health Care Crisis' is banning insurance and government programs and returning to the patient directly paying the doctor/hospital. Many report say somewhere between 30 to 50% of health costs are administrative including insurance admin cost + profits, cost of complying with government mandates and compliance reporting, etc. Eliminate that cost and health care becomes affordable for a large number of people. Sure, some will get hit with bills for complex treatments they can't pay but I doubt the number will be much different then what we get today.
On the post: West Virginia's Biggest Telco Says Broadband Business 'Unsustainable'
Some of their points about rural business are valid. A DSL hub has about a 3 mile service range. One in an urban location might have a potential customer count in the hundreds or even thousands. The same hub in a rural location might have a potential count of around 50. It is made worse by the problem of the farther you are from the hub, the slower the max speed. The folks in the 2~3 mile ring, which all things being equal, has the most potential customers, will also be the ones who will get the slowest max speeds. Not many folks will pay $70/month for 1.5mbs max download speed.
The plain phone service doesn't have the same distance limits but folks are dropping the POTS in favor of cell when they can get service.
BUT, Frontier surely knew this before they bought the assets from Verison. Sounds like they are hoping their assets in the government will pay off.
On the post: Congress Moving Forward With Copyright-For-Censorship 'Small Claims' Act
This should be renamed the "Let's Litigate Over Creation Time Act". By removing the registration requirement for lawsuits, there will be no easy way to determine who published first and therefore who is most likely infringing on the other. Since computer file dates are fairly easy to alter, can't rely on those. Someone can claim they created a work on such and such a date but didn't distribute it until much later. And not all works are created on things that leave a file date mark. Typewriters, pens and art brushes tend to not leave date created on records. The last thing we need are more "prior work" lawsuits and the resultant discovery motions.
On the post: The Gaming Platform Wars Are Beginning To Screw Up Crowdfunding Games
Wonder how long it will be before one of the gaming networks start 'accidentally' interfering with the operation of competing networks by preempting/ blocking certain network ports on the end user's PC? All in the name of better client performance or security?
This is turning into another case of be careful what you wish for you might get it. A lot of folks wanted alternatives to Steam. Now you have them.
On the post: The Press Needs An Intervention When It Comes To Over-Hyping 5G
Pretty sure we heard much the same at this point in the roll outs for 4G and 3G and 2G and the switch from analog to digital. Life changing, new tech, blazing speeds, etc.
What we got with all those were incremental improvements and those often took years to get fully deployed.
When the press lives in the few minute news cycle, everything has to be hyped in order to gets its few minutes of fame before the next over hyped thing takes its place.
On the post: Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo Say Trump Tariffs Will Make Game Consoles Hugely More Expensive
If I understand tariffs correctly, they are based on the price paid to the manufacturer not the eventual retail price. So that 25% tariff could result in a much smaller percent increase in the retail price.
And yes, in most cases, the end purchaser will pay the tariff, just as they pay for all the other costs like taxes, safety fees, transport surcharges, etc.
On the post: College Forgets How The First Amendment Works; Targets Its Own Student Newspaper With A Public Records Request
Very possible that the President and/or lawyers knew this was a bogus request and hoped the recipient either didn't know the laws or wasn't willing to put their career on the line in fighting it. Bluffing is a time honored legal strategy. Sounds like in this case the bluff was soundly called and raised.
On the post: Once Again: It's Not Clear The Internet Needs Creepy Targeted Ads
Another problem with targeted ads is there rarely a way to signal that you no longer are interested in Product A. You search for Product A and start getting ads for Product A. Two days later, you find the version of Product A you want and buy however much you need or can afford. But the targeted ad machinery will keep feeding you ads for Product A long after you finished with that search. End result is a lot of ineffective ad dollars being spent on unwanted ads targeted on someone that is no longer a potential customer.
On the post: Google Stadia Is About To Show Everyone Why Broadband Usage Caps Are Bullshit
Yet another move by a company that moves us toward a world where the end user doesn't own anything but a collection of monthly service bills.
Its not just the ISP drop to the end users that will be strained by this. Probably a lot of neighborhood trunk lines that will be swamped by the traffic if this and 4K video streaming catches on.
On the post: ICE Is Cramming Immigrants Into Filthy, Overcrowded Facilities
Having read many reports about bad conditions in US prisons and jails housing convicted criminals and those awaiting trial, don't really see why illegal invaders of the US should expect nice accommodations complete with good food and recreational facilities. The recent reports of kids being separated from parents at the border is SOP for US citizens sent to jail/prison. Again, why should the invaders be given special and better treatment?
I am glad Trump has made this an issue. Many past Presidents and Congresses have booted this can further down the road as it seems both major Parties see advantage in not solving the issue and blaming the other for the problem. Maybe rubbing all their faces in the problem during an election cycle will prompt action. But I am not holding my breath.
On the post: Activision Shouts 'First Amendment' Over Humvee's Trademark Lawsuit For Call Of Duty Depictions
If AM General wins this, it will pretty much end any use of accurate depictions of US Military in games, TV, movies and other uses limited by trademark and copyright. Almost every bit of kit a soldier wears is made by one or more private companies. Underwear, socks, boots, uniforms, coveralls, canteens, canteen carriers, packs, holsters, knives, mechanics tools, first aid gear, etc. Many items have multiple suppliers. It could take hundreds of licensing agreements to cover everything worn/used by one Private Smith.
Don't see how this could "Promote the progress of science and useful arts" the Constitution refers to.
On the post: Foxconn Still Trying To Tap Dance Around Its Ever-Shrinking Wisconsin Promises
Turns out the real winners are the ones that lost the Foxcon and Amazon bidding wars.
On the post: Forget Huawei, The Internet Of Things Is The Real Security Threat
Most 'Smart' devices are designed to spy on the end purchaser. No hack needed. Whether it is your viewing habits, things you buy, how often you leave the house, etc, the data is being collected, aggregated with other data, and the result sold to other companies.
All one has to do is look at Facebook and Google's announcements about future 'features' to learn some of the things the data is being used for. I think it was FB that recently announced a 'Who you are about to meet with' feature being worked on.
If they know who you are about to meet with, very likely they know who your kids are about to meet with.
And it is likely that most folks have little idea this data collection is happening. After all, for most people, things like TVs, refrigerators, microwaves, etc are passive gizmos. Not even in their thoughts that the new TV is spying on them.
And most Congress critters are still buying the 'Computer companies needs special laws that exempt them from normal laws' line that was bought off on when Microsoft was still a small upstart company competing with IBM for the OS market.
On the post: Wisconsin's Overhyped Foxconn Deal Keeps Getting Lamer By The Week
Some news reports on this say Foxcon is still planning on the 13,000 or so employees, they just won't be manufacturing. Instead the plans are from some kind of tech/research/something white collar job facility. Of course, no manufacturing setup means any expected parts supplier jobs won't happen.
Yet another cautionary about the silliness of governments subsidizing corporations to build stuff.
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