Archive for October 17th, 2011
Jeffrey Sachs describes his support for the Occupy movements
Jeffrey Sachs recently appeared at an Occupy Wall Street protest and explained that there are still “normal” countries where companies merely do business and they don’t try to run the government. That is what we need here in the United States, and Sachs believes that the People can take back their government. He has much else to say on sustainable living, media, corporate misinformation, campaign finance reform, warmongering, the top 99%, typical folks who are unwittingly doing the bidding of billionaires, candidates who need to swear off big money, and the fact that big money has thoroughly Barack Obama. Sachs has just written a new book: The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity.
Purported cure for restless legs makes use of domino run
I enjoy well-constructed imaginative domino runs, and this is a good one.
Word for the day: kleptarchy
Kleptocracy, alternatively cleptocracy or kleptarchy, (from Ancient Greek: κλέπτης (thief) and κράτος (rule), “rule by thieves”) is a form of political and government corruption where the government exists to increase the personal wealth and political power of its officials and the ruling class at the expense of the wider population, often without pretense of honest service. This type of government corruption is often achieved by the embezzlement of state funds.
How to protect your cell phone and data when you’re protesting
Electronic Frontier Foundation has offered a guide for using and protecting your cell phone and data while you are protesting. Here’s the introduction to this helpful article by Eva Galperin:
Protesters of all political persuasions are increasingly documenting their protests — and encounters with the police — using electronic devices like cameras and cell phones. The following tips apply to protesters in the United States who are concerned about protecting their electronic devices when questioned, detained, or arrested by police. These are general guidelines; individuals with specific concerns should talk to an attorney.
I’m a big fan of EFF. Here’s a bit of information from EFF’s About page:
From the Internet to the iPod, technologies are transforming our society and empowering us as speakers, citizens, creators, and consumers. When our freedoms in the networked world come under attack, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is the first line of defense. EFF broke new ground when it was founded in 1990 — well before the Internet was on most people’s radar — and continues to confront cutting-edge issues defending free speech, privacy, innovation, and consumer rights today. From the beginning, EFF has championed the public interest in every critical battle affecting digital rights.
Blending the expertise of lawyers, policy analysts, activists, and technologists, EFF achieves significant victories on behalf of consumers and the general public. EFF fights for freedom primarily in the courts, bringing and defending lawsuits even when that means taking on the US government or large corporations. By mobilizing more than 61,000 concerned citizens through our Action Center, EFF beats back bad legislation. In addition to advising policymakers, EFF educates the press and public.
EFF is a donor-funded nonprofit and depends on your support to continue successfully defending your digital rights. Litigation is particularly expensive; because two-thirds of our budget comes from individual donors, every contribution is critical to helping EFF fight — and win — more cases.
Small world
If you’re willing to sort through the offerings of Reddit.com, you’ll eventually come across quirky headlines like this one. “TIL that a Henry Tandey, a British soldier in WWI, had the chance to kill Hilter but didn’t.” And sure enough, it is true; it happened back in WWI.
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