Blaine’s Comments

• Oct 30th, 2018 @ 9:26am

  Which is a greater threat to free speech?

  on FCC Falsely Declares Community Broadband An 'Ominous' Attack On Free Speech
  If your ISP is owned by the Government, they can not interfere with your speech (except for a short list of limitations). - See Constitution 1st amendment.
  
  If your ISP is owned by a corporation, they can restrict you any way they want for any reason (including everything in the above 'short list'). - See EULA they make you agree to.
• Sep 30th, 2018 @ 10:39am

  Oh that's easy

  on Study Shows Facebook's Still Miles Away From Taking Privacy, Transparency Seriously
  "making you wonder what it looks like when Facebook truly doesn't give a damn."
  
  Just go to facebook.com.
• Jul 25th, 2018 @ 10:13am

  We do have Secure Encryption Backdoors!

  on FBI Boss Chris Wray: We Put A Man On The Moon So Why Not Encryption Backdoors?
  But we accidentally left them on the moon.
  
  Oh, and they can only be retrieved by the current FBI Director, in person.
• Apr 26th, 2018 @ 11:36am

  (untitled comment)

  on Software Legend Ray Ozzie Thinks He Can Safely Backdoor Encryption; He's Very Wrong
  At this point, anytime I see an "expert" claim that it's possible to pull this off, I assume that this "expert" is secretly a black hat hacker trying to make it easier for them and their black hat buddies to break encryption.
• Apr 9th, 2018 @ 7:40am

  Maybe Backpage HAD to come down before the law was signed

  on Politicians Who Said SESTA Was Needed To Takedown Backpage Claim Victory Over Backpage Takedown... Without SESTA
  I'd guess Backpage could have challenged the constitutionality of the law the second it was signed. All of the noise made about SESTA / FOSTA targeting Backpage specifically may have given them standing.
  
  With Backpage already gone, it will be more difficult for anyone else to challenge the law until it's used against them.
  
  Hell, the feds won't even need to charge anyone under the law, just being able to say "it'd be a shame if your nice little website violated SESTA / FOSTA" will probably be enough to make any site "voluntarily" take down whatever the government wants.
• Dec 13th, 2017 @ 12:06pm

  Wardriving for guns to steal

  on Smart Handgun Safe Not Smart Enough Not To Let Basically Anyone Break Into It

  Here's another scenario.

  Simply adapt the setup in the "Screwdriving" article to detect these "safes".

  Make a list of houses and wait till the owners are out, break in, pop open the crackerjack box for your prize.

  Even if they are hidden, there are a lot of apps you could use to watch the Bluetooth signal strength and play hot/cold till you find it.

• Dec 13th, 2017 @ 11:41am

  Could be fun

  on Smart Handgun Safe Not Smart Enough Not To Let Basically Anyone Break Into It
  Find a store that has a few of these on display.
  
  Use a Raspberry Pi Zero W ($10) with a USB battery pack. Put it in your pocket.
  
  Go look at the "safes" and turn on their Bluetooth "feature".
  
  Ask the salesman why they won't stay closed. Watch him play wack-a-mole trying to get them to stay closed.
• Nov 30th, 2017 @ 9:12am

  More accurate name

  on The FCC's Attack On Net Neutrality Is Based Entirely On Debunked Lobbyist Garbage Data
  Rather than calling it a "fact-optional fact sheet", how about we just call it a "bull sheet"?
• Oct 26th, 2017 @ 2:18pm

  Not to worry

  on Verizon-Funded Group Claims Killing Net Neutrality Would Really Help Puerto Rico Right Now
  This will probably be ignored since certain government officials appear to be unaware that Puerto Rico is actually part of the US.
• Oct 13th, 2017 @ 11:53am

  Ads are not helping the terrorists.

  on Another Ridiculous Lawsuit Hopes To Hold Social Media Companies Responsible For Terrorist Attacks
  I don't know about everyone else, but if I try to read some content and it's surrounded by annoying ads, I leave the page.
  
  Adding ads to terrorist content is an effective way to reduce its reach!
• Aug 24th, 2017 @ 11:20am

  Fair comparison

  on Tech Journalists Keep Completely Missing The Point Of Cord Cutting
  If they are using the cost of subscribing to all "non-cable" options, they need to compare it to the cost of subscribing to all cable options.
  
  Dish + Direct TV + Comcast all at the same time.
  
  Let's not forget to include below the line fees, equipment and installation costs.
• May 15th, 2017 @ 11:19am

  I don't get it

  on The FCC Spent Last Week Trying To Make Net Neutrality Supporters Seem Unreasonable, Racist & Unhinged
  Why does Reese's sponsor this guy? I don't see why the company who makes one of the best things I've ever eaten would be against net neutrality.
  
  Everytime his silly face hits my screen there's a giant banner for Reese's.
• May 5th, 2017 @ 8:08am

  Re:

  on 'Backdoor' Search Of FBI Records Helps Parents Learn How Local Cops Killed Their Son
  You have to factor in the direction of the lawsuit.
  
  Who is being sued is a major factor.
• Mar 15th, 2017 @ 2:42pm

  Good use for bad law?

  on Extra Digit Accidentally Typed By Officer Turns UK Man Into A Pedophile
  If there's ever going to be a good use for the right to be forgotten laws, this is it.
• Feb 21st, 2017 @ 1:05pm

  Re: Re: Hey Apple...

  on Apple Says Nebraska Will Become A 'Mecca For Hackers' If Right To Repair Bill Passes
  That may be what those words mean to you, but they mean different things for different people. For me, they are interchangeable depending on what I'm doing.
  
  People *make* all kinds of things using other things as components.
  
  While my Grandma could make a Raspberry Pie from scratch, my soldering skills will never make me a Raspberry Pi.
• Feb 21st, 2017 @ 8:00am

  Hey Apple...

  on Apple Says Nebraska Will Become A 'Mecca For Hackers' If Right To Repair Bill Passes

  'Mecca For Hackers'

  You spelled 'Makers' wrong.

• Jan 13th, 2017 @ 10:19am

  Question for Trump

  on Rudy Giuliani To Head Up Trump's Cybersecurity Team As The Internet Laughs At Giuliani's Security Bona Fides
  Would you put Rudy Giuliani in charge of "the cyber" security for all of your private businesses?
• Dec 28th, 2016 @ 9:30pm

  I appreciate how Microsoft handled the Windows 10 rollout

  on Microsoft Finally Admits Its Malware-Style Windows 10 Upgrade Sales Pitch Went Too Far
  If they had done differently, I would probably still be running a half ass dual boot windows/Linux system.
  
  Instead, I dropped the half that was ass and now I'm full Fedora.
  
  It might take a little more effort sometimes, but I'm also learning a ton of new stuff. So I guess its a win/win when there's now windows.
  
  As an added bonus, it's so much more fun when that guy from "windows support service" calls.
• Nov 16th, 2016 @ 8:32am

  Re:

  on Charter Says Its Sneaky, Unnecessary Fees Are A Consumer Benefit
  We already have a "Waiter Service Fee." It's called a tip. It's not optional and it's basically pre-calculated by social standards.
  
  This is a separate related discussion, but restaurants should simply raise their rates by %15 and pay their staff better.
• Nov 1st, 2016 @ 11:39am

  (untitled comment)

  on Canadian Police Use Cell Tower Dumps To Text 7,500 Possible Murder Witnesses
  If I ever got a text and/or call like this I would assume it was spam and treat them like I do all tele-molesters.
  
  Which of course would probably lead to an in-person visit....

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