Once Again, Canada on the Cutting Edge of Stupidity (HT: JPK

Have highlighted my favourite bits.

Controversial copyright reform to be unveiled Thursday

David George-Cosh, Financial Post with files from CanWest News Service Published: Wednesday, June 11, 2008

After months of delays and speculation, the federal government is set to unveil its controversial update to the Copyright Act of Canada Thursday.

According to a press release, Industry Minister Jim Prentice and Heritage Minister Josée Verner are set to introduce the legislation during the morning Parliamentary session. Both ministers will deliver brief statements and answer media inquiries shortly after the tabling of a bill to amend the Copyright Act.

Reports have also indicated that the two ministers will unveil the Copyright Act under the slogan "Made In Canada Copyright Reform" during a scheduled press conference.

The new Copyright Act has been updated to reflect the growth of digital media and is said to include a number of contentious provisions including:

-- A $500 fine for each illegal file shared online

-- Making it illegal to unlock cellphones or copy music from protected CDs to iPods

-- Forbidding the right to copy "time shifted" shows onto personal video recorders if flagged by broadcasters.

The Conservative government was set to introduce the new bill this past December but later decided to withhold introducing new legislation following an outpouring of protest by online grassroots organizations across Canada over fears the bill would fall in line with harsh U.S. copyright laws. For example, the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act makes all acts of circumvention an infringement unless subject to a specific exception.

University of Ottawa professor Michael Geist, who has been a harsh critic of the government's stance on copyright legislation, condemns the U.S-styled approach Minister Prentice and Mr. Verner have taken in tabling the new bill.

"While it is clear that thousands of Canadians are waiting for the details of the bill, they don't need to wait until tomorrow to know that when Industry Minister Jim Prentice stands before a podium proclaiming this to be a ‘made in Canada' solution, the reality is that he did not take the time to ask many Canadians for their views," he said.

"The heart of the legislation, which will have a negative impact on consumer rights, privacy, and education, is better characterized as "Born in the USA.'"

Although it is unclear how the copyright bill will be enforced, observers have said enforcement could be aided if Canada signs on to the proposed Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), to be tabled next month at the G8 summit in Japan.

The agreement, which was recently published on a Web site known for disseminating leaked documents, would require Internet service providers to police the content that travels over their network. According to the four-page document, ISPs could be required to filter pirated digital files and reveal the identities of customers suspected of infringing on copyrighted material.

The Copyright Act has not been amended since 1997 although prior attempts to draw it in line following the ratification of the 1996 World Intellectual Property Organization Performances and Phonograms Treaty have failed.

What I love about the above is how 1.) Geist is once again the go to guy for the contrarian point. And two, how he somehow elides this made in Canada stupidity with the US. In any event, it ain't gonna happen. If China can't control the internet, what chance does Canada hold? And, really, do we want a Great Internet Wall of Canadistan?

HT: JPK who doesn't blog nearly as much as he ought to.

You Have to Love America

Somehow the self-assuredness of these people to engage in such activities I find very admirable (if not the activity, though it would, undoubtedly, be fun.)

The 2008 Democratic Primary in 8 Minutes

Some of the time Bertie is Brilliant, Othertimes an Idiot (Can't Decide Here)

Science may set limits to knowledge, but should not set limits to imagination.
Bertrand Russell

I take it all back... God Exists!

Six Day War - Call For Destruction of Israel

How Do You Know When Someone From West Virgina Has Been Using Your Computer?

There's whiteout on the screen!

62 Years ago

Quote du Jour

Fran Lebowitz

"I've done the calculation and your chances of winning the lottery are identical whether you play or not."

Big Brown Lost, While Casino Drive Was Scratched

So I was wrong about Big Brown at the Belmont today.
The owners of Casino Drive, the 2nd favorite, had the grace to scratch Casino Drive from the card. Not so with the owners of the Big Brown. While Big Brown looked unhurt, there's no way he should have run with that hoof.

How Do You Say Goodbye To 1.4 Billion US$ in 1 second and Not Work in the Financial Markets: Crash A B2

They say it was moisture.
Lucky, these Area 51 specials are mainly used in the desert?

It Really Is True that England Sent Nazi Germany Disinformation to Have their Bombs Land in the East End Rather than the Posh West End

More news here.

Big and Brown Big Brown Will Win Belmont and Triple Crown (8:48 est)

Today's the Belmont, and while I think it is usually a bad strategy to bet on the out and out favourite -- particularly with the terrible odds and resulting minuscule payout -- I think Big Brown is going to win.

Summer's Here

Only in Korea

Only in Korea

Having Been Doing A Little Research on a Painted Turtle We Aquired: Here's their life cycle

More here.

Bloody Orkney, Never Been, Probably Now Never Will

Bloody Orkney

Bloody Orkney

This bloody town's a bloody cuss
No bloody trains, no bloody bus
And no one thinks of bloody us
In bloody Orkney.

The bloody folk are bloody mad
The bloody roads are bloody bad
Good night the bright is bloody sad
In bloody Orkney.

Oh bloody crows, Oh bloody rain
No bloody kerbs, no bloody drains
The council's got no bloody brains
In bloody Orkney.

The bloody things are bloody dear
A bloody bob for a bloody beer
And is it good? No bloody fear
In bloody Orkney.

The bloody dances make you smile
The bloody bands are bloody vile
It only cramps your bloody style
In bloody Orkney.

The bloody flicks are bloody old
The bloody seats are bloody cold,
You can't get in for bloody gold
In bloody Orkney.

No bloody fun, no bloody games
No bloody times. The bloody dames
Won't even give their bloody names
In bloody Orkney.

There's nothing greets your bloody eye
But bloody sea and bloody sky
Roll on the mob! we bloody cry
In bloody Orkney.

It's Amazing What You Can Find When You're Really Looking for Two Sunken Nuclear Subs

The story is here.

The 1985 discovery of the Titanic stemmed from a secret United States Navy investigation of two wrecked nuclear submarines, according to the oceanographer who found the infamous ocean liner.

Pieces of this Cold War tale have been known since the mid-1990s, but more complete details are now coming to light, said Titanic's discoverer, Robert Ballard.

"The Navy is finally discussing it," said Ballard, an oceanographer at the University of Rhode Island in Narragansett and the Mystic Aquarium and Institute for Exploration in Connecticut.

Ballard met with the Navy in 1982 to request funding to develop the robotic submersible technology he needed to find the Titanic.

...

Ronald Thunman, then the deputy chief of naval operations for submarine warfare, told Ballard the military was interested in the technology—but for the purpose of investigating the wreckage of the U.S.S. Thresher and U.S.S. Scorpion.

Since Ballard's technology would be able to reach the sunken subs and take pictures, the oceanographer agreed to help out.

He then asked the Navy if he could search for the Titanic, which was located between the two wrecks.

Once Ballard had completed his mission—if time was left—Thunman said, Ballard could do what he wanted, but never gave him explicit permission to search for the Titanic.

The Thresher and Scorpion had sunk in the North Atlantic Ocean at depths of between 10,000 and 15,000 feet (3,000 and 4,600 meters).

The military wanted to know the fate of the nuclear reactors that powered the ships, Ballard said.

This knowledge was to help determine the environmental safety of disposing of additional nuclear materials in the oceans.

The Navy also wanted to find out if there was any evidence to support the theory that the Scorpion had been shot down by the Soviets.

Ballard's data showed that the nuclear reactors were safe on the ocean bottom and were having no impact on the environment, according to Thunman.

The data also confirmed that Thresher likely had sunk after a piping failure led to a nuclear power collapse, he added. Details surrounding the Scorpion are less certain.

A catastrophic mishap of some sort led to a flooding of the forward end of the submarine, Thunman said. The rear end remained sealed and imploded once the sub sank beneath a certain depth.

"We saw no indication of some sort of external weapon that caused the ship to go down," Thunman said—dismissing the theory that the Russians torpedoed the submarine in retaliation for spying.

...

With just 12 days left over in his mission, Ballard began searching for the Titanic, using this information to track down the ocean liner. He speculated that the ship had broken in half and left a debris trail as it sank.

"That's what saved our butts," Ballard said. "It turned out to be true."

...

"The Cold War is over," Ballard said. "I'm no longer in the Navy."

And Atlee Would Know?

"Democracy means government by discussion, but it is only effective if you can stop people talking."
--Clement Atlee

Tagging Snails

From the innercitysnail blog.