Tawhiri’s Comments

• Aug 24th, 2012 @ 5:57pm

  (untitled comment)

  on Help Us Expand The Insider Shop By Voting On Ideas For New Techdirt Gear
  Man, I really want that DMCA T-shirt now. If only I hadn't just spent a bunch of money on new oboe reed making supplies >.
• Jun 28th, 2012 @ 5:40pm

  Re: Re: I miss my America. (as Chris)

  on Rep. Jackie Speier Puts Forth Bill To Extend TSA To Mass Transit
  Hm, I wouldn't be so sure about that. Scandinavian countries seem to have their stuff together much better than we do. There are some downsides, but overall quality of life for citizens is much higher.
• Jun 26th, 2012 @ 5:36pm

  Re: But but but... (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Data Mining Exec Pays For Burgers In Cash To Keep His Insurance Company From Knowing His Bad Diet Habits
  This is kind of a fine line. In the case of data mining, it's not so much people choosing what they're sharing as it is companies going through and compiling records based on even actions that would casually be considered to be fairly private, like what someone is buying at the grocery store. It seems a little wrong that anyone other than my credit card company or bank should be sharing my every purchase with, say, my insurance company.
• May 17th, 2012 @ 5:49pm

  Re: Re: Re: (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Mark Twain: Copyright Maximalist Who Also Believed That Nearly All Human Utterances Were Plagiarism?
  Intent is generally pretty hard to prove in this sort of case. Your only real defense is, "Well, I forgot it was already used when I used it."
• Apr 26th, 2012 @ 4:21pm

  Re: (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Insanity: CISPA Just Got Way Worse, And Then Passed On Rushed Vote
  While it's certainly true that the 4th amendment is above congressional law, someone has to step up and challenge it for it to be overruled by the SCOTUS. The SCOTUS also have to agree that it's a case they want to take on. It's not so simple as someone pointing out that "Oh, you can't do that. Lulz!" Basically, just because a law may be unconstitutional doesn't mean that it'll be overruled right off. And given that our current SCOTUS tends to be fairly happy with giving the government more power (and isn't exactly up to speed on how technology works), I am not so certain we'd manage to get a majority against this. We'd probably get Sotomayor, Breyer, and Ginsburg, but the rest are fairly iffy...
• Jan 28th, 2012 @ 5:07pm

  Re: Can we clone him? (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Senator Ron Wyden's Favorite Techdirt Posts Of The Week
  Well, the school I go to DID just buy a new student printer, so I imagine it wouldn't be too difficult to mess with the settings until it could print up a Ron Wyden.
• Jan 18th, 2012 @ 3:53pm

  (untitled comment) (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Don't Think The 'Costs' To US Businesses From Bogus Claims Is Real? Read This
  So, hey, can we maybe start thinking about shifting the burden of proof back to the person making claims? Seems like that's the way to go. I can accuse anyone I want of anything - it's not the world's job to tell me why I'm wrong, it's MY job to say why I'm RIGHT.
• Dec 29th, 2011 @ 1:19pm

  Re: (as Christine Sandquist)

  on Reddit Turns Its Attention To Politics: Seeking Supporters Of SOPA & NDAA To Unseat
  I actually disagree - sites like Facebook and G+ aren't as focused on "issues" per se as a site like reddit is. Reddit is somewhat interesting in the way its bits and pieces are set up and devoted to each their own little niche, so it's much easier for like-minded people to migrate into the right places. Facebook, however, is based on real-life social interactions for the most part. Proximity, rather than belief, is what influences who gets together there. For apps like the ones you describe to be used, there first must be a bunch of people WANTING to use them. Reddit gets people excited, and makes them want to use them. Facebook is concerned with the local social scene because that's where its user base is drawn from. Reddit is from *everywhere.*