Among the many fine conferences I've missed (hello, Privacy Scholars) and will be missing (hello, TPRC) this year, was Computers, Freedom & Privacy. There's a nice write-up of a chunk of it by Wendy Grossman at net.wars.
And some of the good folks who attended sent me a poster with get-well messages on the back, for which I am very grateful.
President Obama fired Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal today.
This is not a big deal because Obama Says Afghan Policy Won’t Change. The policy is a big deal. The identity of the General implementing it isn't (much).
Viacom Loses To YouTube In Landmark Copyright Case. Key point: YouTube isn't liable for copyright infringement so long as it pulls stuff promptly when owners complain properly.
In other words, YouTube doesn't have a duty to proactively police its users; that's the copyright owner's job.
A cease and desist letter from the National Pork Board, protesting ThinkGeek's April 1, 2010 offer of canned Unicorn Meat (“the new white meat”) has produced the predictable and hilarious result.
Alas, they've only put the first page of the cease and desist letter online.
(via Slashdot, ThinkGeek's Best Ever Cease-and-Desist Letter)
Update: I am directed by a reader to the dragon sausage incident.
It's not even lunchtime yet, and I've learned two interesting things.
(1) The NYT brings me the lovely and occasionally necessary word, “shatara,” which it defines as “the Arabic word for cunning and guile with a hint of deception.” It even gives an example:
An example of shatara once overheard in Beirut: “I’m not going to cheat you,” a landlord told a prospective tenant. “Well, I am going to cheat you, but not a lot.”
I encountered shatara when shopping for a shirt in Egypt, and I gather it was the hallmark of certain legendary Deans.
(2) The reason modern Western carrots are orange is because they were bred that way, in the 16th and 17th centuries, in tribute to the Dutch royal House of Orange (via Boing Boing – see the nice 'carrot rainbow' photo).
Now, I admit that neither of these additions to my information store is absolutely essential. But like any dragon curled around its hoard, I am very happy to have them.
The Decider's Blog says “This article by Dan Froomkin is well worth reading.”
Don't miss the comments.
The spirit of Dennis Thatcher's Dear Bill letters lives on.
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