Eric the Red

Should a government be able to sue its citizen-critics for copyright or trademark infringement? The University of Maryland, College Park did it at least once. Then, “Terp-Idiots.com” was shut down.

Now, an advertising agency hired by Maine is suing a blogger over a similar issue.

Can a citizen be sued for criticising the apparently inept actions of a government agency, even he uses trademarked material? I don’t think so. Good for Lance Dutson that Maine has an Anit-SLAPP law.

Lance sums the matter as an evolving policy issue quite nicely:

… is attempting to inoculate his department from public criticism. This is terrifying. If this were to work, every state department could simply subcontract a majority of their tasks, and public dissent would effectively end. Then these same subcontractors would be allowed to harass anyone who dared criticize the policy, and the government could stand back and say ‘That’s just our subcontractor, we can’t control them’.

Yikes!

In the past I have considered creating a forum for students to post about anything from class surveys/professor reviews to current University events. It would have its own domain name and run from my server here.

If you would like to help, drop me an email.

This is the house I started out life in. It is located at Lehigh Acres, Florida. There are units available that are more luxurious than this one! When I was born, my dad worked at a local K-Mart as a janitor and there was a hurricane bearing down.

Greenpeace founder Patrick Moore has reversed his 30 year course and suggested that nuclear power should be used in the future. Says Moore:

The 600-plus coal-fired plants emit nearly 2 billion tons of CO2annually — the equivalent of the exhaust from about 300 million automobiles. In addition, the Clean Air Council reports that coal plants are responsible for 64 percent of sulfur dioxide emissions, 26 percent of nitrous oxides and 33 percent of mercury emissions. These pollutants are eroding the health of our environment, producing acid rain, smog, respiratory illness and mercury contamination.

Meanwhile, the 103 nuclear plants operating in the United States effectively avoid the release of 700 million tons of CO2emissions annually — the equivalent of the exhaust from more than 100 million automobiles. Imagine if the ratio of coal to nuclear were reversed so that only 20 percent of our electricity was generated from coal and 60 percent from nuclear. This would go a long way toward cleaning the air and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Every responsible environmentalist should support a move in that direction.

Personally, I believe global warming is poppycock. To me, energy efficiency and renewable energy are a matter of good economics, not ways to head off a pending apocalypse. I would argue that the sun (among other things) has more to due with it. You, the reader, are always free to disagree.

I got this email today from the University of Maryland police asking students for assistance in identifying someone who is allegedly guilty of “Disorderly Conduct, Destruction of
Property and Civil Disturbance”. The riot occured after the 2006 Terp Womens Basketball Championship. Here is a picture of the offender:

This picture is teeming with property destruction! And who at the Terps riot could NOT be guilty of “Civil Disturbance” and “Disorderly Conduct”? I would wager that this request is a desperate attempt by the University to show off its new riot policy. Under the new policy, a student my be expelled if their name appears in a police report as a suspected rioter. While I think that rioting over basketball is idiotic, this policy is even more so: it presumes guilt.

The changes were adopted after some students were given probation before judgement rather than a conviction. Under the old policy, a conviction in court was required for a student to be subject to disciplinary action. In this instance, I agree with Christian Sullivan, who was given probation before judgement:

“This is just one more stupid act to fix the mistakes they made,” Sullivan said. “It’s just a bunch of kids trying to celebrate together to show their unity and love of [the] school. Since we don’t have traditions and nothing to do afterwards, that’s how we end up in a group on Route 1.”

I am all for traditions, but one can oly rub Testudo’s nose so many times. How about a decent post-game on the iconic frat row or Mckeldin mall?

This picture was taken out the window of my car as I drove along Alligator Alley (I-75) [Warning: PDF!] from Fort Lauderdale to Fort Meyers. My parents thought I would get rammed off the road and mugged. Fortunately, traffic was a bit heavy for that. Amazingly, the trip used a little less than a quarter tank of gas. Next time: pictures of the shack I was born in! YAY!!

As the debate over illegal immigration continues, a new Zogby poll suggests the the American people don’t trust the governments ability to handle it. Apparently, millions of illegals demonstrating turns us off to the whole immigration thing. Indeed, the majority of Republicans and Democrats across all ethnicities and economic levels agree that the government will be totally ineffective in addressing the issue.

I will research the voting records of each Senator and Representative on each immigration bill. I will try to provide some commentary covering the pros and cons of each bill voted upon.

I would also encourage anyone registered to vote to write their congressman to tell them what you think, regardless of your opinion.

Read the rest of this entry »

So some women were fired from a meat packing plant for skipping work to protest pending immigration legislation. This gives them a valuable lesson in at-will employment. If the don’t like it, they can move to France.

A manager at a Detroit meatpacking plant said Monday that 15 immigrant women were fired last month after attending a protest for immigrant rights. He said they had been told that they would be terminated if they missed work on the day of the protest.

“It was not fair,’” said Mercedes, a 31-year-old Detroit woman who attended the rally and was fired. “We went to fight for our rights.” Mercedes is undocumented and asked that her last name not be used.

This incident raises an interesting point: if all these “undocumented” workers are demonstrating, why doesnt the INS go round them up and ship them off?

Aside
As a child of immigrants, I feel that these people do nothing but further their own enslavement. Sure, they get paid, but how high can they climb up the economic ladder? Real wealth comes from education, hard work and a mastry of the English language. While my ancestors did not speak english when they came to this country, they worked hard to learn. They also educated themselves and worked just as hard at their jobs. The result: fulfillment of the American dream. I challenge my readers to show me a success story that happens without any of these things.

…needs to spend some time on the beach.

This picture was taken during Spring Break 2006, near Fort Lauderdale.

Also for those who are self-employed: Steve Pavlina has some advice for you!