Mikkel Paulson’s Comments

• Mar 14th, 2011 @ 6:41pm

  (untitled comment)

  on Canadian House Approves Bill To Make It Easier To Supply Cheaper Generic Drugs To Developing Nations
  It also bears mentioning that this is a private members' bill that was pushed through the House of Commons by the opposition parties against the objections of the ruling Conservative party. The vote did see some Conservative MPs voting in favour, but I doubt if it'll pass the Conservative-dominated Senate. (Unlike most votes in the House of Commons, this one wasn't “whipped”, which means that MPs weren't forced to vote along party lines. Notice that the Prime Minister couldn't be bothered to vote at all.)
  
  You know what would help everyone? Eliminate patents on all pharmaceuticals in Canada and reallocate the billions saved in our health care system to medical research. Wham bam.
  
  Step 1: Support the Pirate Party of Canada!
• Feb 22nd, 2011 @ 3:51am

  (untitled comment)

  on $2.3 Billion Lawsuit Against China For Copyright Infringement In Green Dam Filter Software Moves Forward
  That's well beyond the abilities of the court. It would require a change in state (or federal?) laws.
  
  Governments walk on eggshells where China is concerned, which is why it gets away with human rights abuses that would be condemned anywhere else (except possibly Israel). China has the market power to singlehandedly devastate entire economies, and broad enough trade relations that it wouldn't be similarly affected.
• Jan 5th, 2011 @ 12:03am

  (untitled comment)

  on Are Tweets And Text Messaging Actually Increasing The Appeal Of Long Form Writing?
  Absolutely. It would be interesting to see the news media take some cues, actually. There are too many vague, brief articles filled with conjecture that could be summed up in 140 characters with no loss, while the articles on important issues don't get nearly the attention that they should, either from the writers or from the public.
• Nov 30th, 2010 @ 1:34am

  (untitled comment)

  on Apple Forces Removal Of Steve Jobs Action Figure
  In their defence, I don't know that I'd want a bobble head made of myself either… although I'd certainly be bemused to see someone try.
• Nov 24th, 2010 @ 3:32am

  (untitled comment)

  on Colleges Cracking Down On High Schools Using Their Logos
  Trademark law and the enforcing thereof makes sense to me. Unlike other info laws, trademark serves to protect the consumer as much as the producer. You can only make an informed purchase if you have reasonable assurances that the product you're buying was made by the company whose logo is on the box. Obviously that doesn't apply to universities, but I thought the point of school identity was to create some sort of patriotic association with the brand, sports teams, and so forth. Ripping off someone else's logo isn't the best way to do that. So make your own, even if means letting one of the students loose with Illustrator.
  
  Mikkel Paulson
  Pirate Party of Canada
• Nov 9th, 2010 @ 3:43am

  @Anonymous Coward

  on Musician: Sell Physically Attractive Objects Worthy Of Purchase; Let Free Music Drive Success
  I think the lesson in all of this is that labels are no longer required, CC or no. Labels exist to sell a scarce product that no longer exists. The entire industry paradigm has changed, not just the outlet and source of profit. Music can now be written, performed, recorded, shared, promoted, and sold for next to no overhead cost. A label is no longer needed to grease the wheels or foot the bill. This is nothing less than the democratization of music.
• Jun 17th, 2010 @ 12:34am

  Not likely (as Mikkel)

  on Once Again, The Justice Department Fails To Tell Congress About Its Wiretapping Activities, As Required By Law
  This is why I refer to the judiciary as the "legal system". Justice? They've never heard of it.