Twice, I have been named as a defendant in lawsuits. Not because I actually had anything to do with the behaviors the suits were about, but because my name appeared in some documents and they just named everyone they could in the initial filing. In both cases, my name was dropped in the first round of litigation without any action or representation on my part aside from reading the letters I got sent.
Could this be what's in store for Roblox? It sounds like it might be.
But the more vague and broad (i.e., the more "room to move") a law is, the greater the likelihood that it will be abused. The benefit of the "flexibility" of these laws is purely for the government -- either to allow them to do less work ("micromanaging legislation") or to allow them to engage in more abusive behavior without technically violating the law.
That's why broad and vague laws are bad, and whatever legitimate purposes they may have do not counterbalance the risk.
A while back, I noticed that "terrorism" had become such a common and overused excuse for pretty much everything that I had developed the habit of discounting any governmental or other authority figure's argument the instant that it's trotted out unless the subject at hand is actually terrorism.
For me, "terrorism" has achieved the status a red flag term: if it's being used to justify or defend something, I am much more skeptical of that thing. This isn't a conscious thing on my part, really, it's just how it is.
What I just noticed is that "for the children" has now reached the same terrible status.
You are making a lot of assumptions based on nothing.
"Every Nation gets the government it deserves"
This is not clearly demonstrated by history.
"If you won't participate to help resolve the problem then you become a cause of the problem."
This is assuming that the people you're talking to aren't participating. How can you know this?
"People like you refuse to accept responsibility, people like you think doing nothing but running your trap is a cure, people like you add to the burden of society while refusing to contribute to it!"
Everything here is assuming behaviors and attitudes that you can't possibly know are true.
In the bigger picture, by the way, if your goal is as you imply (which would mean that you & I are in agreement on this) and you want to encourage active participation in government, you may want to rethink your tactic.
Berating and accusing people will only harden the attitudes of those people who actually do fit your perception. It works toward the opposite of the result you want.
"I know plenty of women who like to go to gay venues so that they don't get aggravated by wannabe PUA assholes all night"
Me too. In fact, when my wife goes out for a "girl's night on the town", a local gay nightclub is their destination of choice for precisely this reason. They don't get hit on so much, and they are treated with a great deal more respect all around.
Re: Re: Re: God's Not Dead is actually really good
Disclaimer: I am not Christian, I am ignostic. That's not a typo, I didn't mean to say "agnostic".
"those aren't the 'true' christians."
Ah, the "no true Scotsman" fallacy, just in a weird form.
Here's the thing -- when it comes to whether someone is or is not an adherent to a religion, there is no litmus test. Religion is a matter of personal belief. If someone says they are a Christian (or any other religion), they are. End of story.
You could perhaps argue that they are imperfectly understanding or implementing the dogma linked to their religion, but that's the sort of debate that only people who are part of the religion find meaningful. It's a very different thing than saying they aren't "true" whatever.
This makes sense to me. Your comment reminds me of an interaction I had that stunned me so much that it remains near the top of my consciousness.
I was talking with a staunch right-winger and said that I was deeply concerned about the growing amount of fascism in the US. His response was "we need more fascism in the US."
It stunned me not because that was his belief, but because he was so unabashed and above-board about it.
Re: Re: Re: I doubt it is going to be a minor nuisance
According to the story, the homeless are using communal tablets, not their own personal smartphones.
That the poor in the US are better off than the poor in some other countries in meaningless. People in the US still die every day as a direct result of being poor. Every winter in my area, there are homeless people who literally die of exposure on the city streets. Homeless people in the US die of starvation. Homeless people (as well as poor people who have homes) in the US die due to lack of medical care.
Not sure why you bring up Obama, though. He doesn't factor into this at all.
Agreed. I've not been shy about calling it tyranny at all. What I find most interesting is that I have never had anyone argue against that assertion -- even when I've made it to people who I would have thought would be genetically allergic to the idea (cops, legislators, etc.)
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Can this incident be cited...
About rural hospitals -- I actually agree with you. My comment was hyperbolic snark (although has an element of truth).
I nearly took a job (I'm a software engineer) at a regional hospital in what passed for the "metropolitan center" of the area. It was a town with a population a little north of 5,000. They offered me an extremely generous salary and offered to employ my wife as well. Everyone there seemed pretty great, and when we asked around town for their impression of the hospital, we got nothing but positive comments.
I ended up turning the job down, but it was very, very tempting.
Here's her bio from the Chamber of Digital Commerce website:
Perianne Boring founded the Chamber of Digital Commerce in July 2014, and currently serves as President overseeing the Chamber’s operations, government affairs and public policy initiatives. She previously worked in network broadcast news and as a Forbes contributor. She began her career as a legislative analyst in the US House of Representatives, advising on finance, economics, tax and healthcare policy.
She's a news broadcaster and lobbyist, not a technology person. She may be unaware that technologists tend to care more about technical correctness than messaging.
On the post: Supreme Court Says, Yes, The Patent Office Can Review Crappy Patents Using Broad Standards
Re:
People here might know more than you think, but it's hard to tell since you've not actually said what the errors are.
"TechDirt will not mind if I start lifting its articles"
Techdirt has repeatedly, over a period of years, overtly said they don't mind when people do this. And they walk that talk as well.
On the post: MPAA Happily Gets Into Bed With Russian State Censor Agency... To Protect Copyright!
So now we know
On the post: Cinemark Files Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Against Roblox Over User-Generated Content
I wonder
Could this be what's in store for Roblox? It sounds like it might be.
On the post: Supreme Court Says, Yes, The Patent Office Can Review Crappy Patents Using Broad Standards
Re: Re: Re:
On the post: Court Refuses To Uphold Evidence Seized During A Completely Bogus Traffic Stop
Re: Facts vs Law
On the post: Guy In Australia Pleads Guilty To Criminal Trolling On Facebook, Faces 3 Years In Jail
Re:
But the more vague and broad (i.e., the more "room to move") a law is, the greater the likelihood that it will be abused. The benefit of the "flexibility" of these laws is purely for the government -- either to allow them to do less work ("micromanaging legislation") or to allow them to engage in more abusive behavior without technically violating the law.
That's why broad and vague laws are bad, and whatever legitimate purposes they may have do not counterbalance the risk.
On the post: DOJ Insists That Rule 41 Change Is Not Important, Nothing To See Here, Move On Annoying Privacy Activist People
I just noticed
For me, "terrorism" has achieved the status a red flag term: if it's being used to justify or defend something, I am much more skeptical of that thing. This isn't a conscious thing on my part, really, it's just how it is.
What I just noticed is that "for the children" has now reached the same terrible status.
On the post: Court Refuses To Uphold Evidence Seized During A Completely Bogus Traffic Stop
Re: Re: Re: Entire Problem
"Every Nation gets the government it deserves"
This is not clearly demonstrated by history.
"If you won't participate to help resolve the problem then you become a cause of the problem."
This is assuming that the people you're talking to aren't participating. How can you know this?
"People like you refuse to accept responsibility, people like you think doing nothing but running your trap is a cure, people like you add to the burden of society while refusing to contribute to it!"
Everything here is assuming behaviors and attitudes that you can't possibly know are true.
In the bigger picture, by the way, if your goal is as you imply (which would mean that you & I are in agreement on this) and you want to encourage active participation in government, you may want to rethink your tactic.
Berating and accusing people will only harden the attitudes of those people who actually do fit your perception. It works toward the opposite of the result you want.
On the post: DOJ Drops Stupid Drug Trafficking Charges Against FedEx After Judge Criticizes Its 'Novel Prosecution'
Re: Quit giving him grief over the multiple posts
On the post: Customs Agents, Local Doctor Subject 18-Year-Old To Vaginal, Rectal Probing In Search Of Nonexistent Drugs
Re: Re:
On the post: Court Refuses To Uphold Evidence Seized During A Completely Bogus Traffic Stop
Re: Jury selection may have something to do with it
The idea that an officer's testimony should be accepted with any less skepticism than anyone else's testimony is inherently unjust.
Institutional corruption is institutional.
On the post: Facebook Still Deleting Non-Offensive Posts For Being Offensive
Re: Re: Is this from a news source?
Me too. In fact, when my wife goes out for a "girl's night on the town", a local gay nightclub is their destination of choice for precisely this reason. They don't get hit on so much, and they are treated with a great deal more respect all around.
On the post: Supreme Court Makes It (Slightly) Easier To Award Attorneys' Fees For Bogus Copyright Lawsuits
Re: Re:
So much this! Some of the Techdirt gear is very nice, but not so nice that I'd buy it if it didn't directly support Techdirt.
On the post: Screenwriters Accuse Christian Movie Studio Of 9th Commandment Violations Over General Script Ideas
Re: Re: Re: God's Not Dead is actually really good
"those aren't the 'true' christians."
Ah, the "no true Scotsman" fallacy, just in a weird form.
Here's the thing -- when it comes to whether someone is or is not an adherent to a religion, there is no litmus test. Religion is a matter of personal belief. If someone says they are a Christian (or any other religion), they are. End of story.
You could perhaps argue that they are imperfectly understanding or implementing the dogma linked to their religion, but that's the sort of debate that only people who are part of the religion find meaningful. It's a very different thing than saying they aren't "true" whatever.
On the post: Seeing Opportunity, Congress Tries To Rush Through Its Plan To Legalize FBI Abuses Citing 'Orlando!'
Re: Re: Re:
I was talking with a staunch right-winger and said that I was deeply concerned about the growing amount of fascism in the US. His response was "we need more fascism in the US."
It stunned me not because that was his belief, but because he was so unabashed and above-board about it.
On the post: NY Post Craps On NYC's Plan To Offer Free Wi-Fi -- Because The Homeless Might Watch Porn
Re: Re: Re: I doubt it is going to be a minor nuisance
That the poor in the US are better off than the poor in some other countries in meaningless. People in the US still die every day as a direct result of being poor. Every winter in my area, there are homeless people who literally die of exposure on the city streets. Homeless people in the US die of starvation. Homeless people (as well as poor people who have homes) in the US die due to lack of medical care.
Not sure why you bring up Obama, though. He doesn't factor into this at all.
On the post: Seeing Opportunity, Congress Tries To Rush Through Its Plan To Legalize FBI Abuses Citing 'Orlando!'
Re:
On the post: Techdirt Podcast Episode 78: What's Next For Online Video?
Re: Re: Picture this
On the post: Customs Agents, Local Doctor Subject 18-Year-Old To Vaginal, Rectal Probing In Search Of Nonexistent Drugs
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Can this incident be cited...
I nearly took a job (I'm a software engineer) at a regional hospital in what passed for the "metropolitan center" of the area. It was a town with a population a little north of 5,000. They offered me an extremely generous salary and offered to employ my wife as well. Everyone there seemed pretty great, and when we asked around town for their impression of the hospital, we got nothing but positive comments.
I ended up turning the job down, but it was very, very tempting.
On the post: Bitcoin Evangelist Has Podcast Go Bad, Threatens To Sue After It's Posted
Ms. Boring's bio offers the explanation
She's a news broadcaster and lobbyist, not a technology person. She may be unaware that technologists tend to care more about technical correctness than messaging.
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