If any music files are involved?

No storing music online at all in Japan?

Poisoning the world

So...what's up with China? First contaminated wheat gluten in pet foods and now tainted toothpaste in Costa Rica containing diethylene glycol, a chemical commonly used in antifreeze and brake fluid?

Can you actually have a Communist Democracy or is this what happens when you try?

One blogger (posting from China) blogs a response to a bloggers comment in the linked story above, beautifully revealing (I don't know if accidentally or what) the true nature of the globalized marketplace which, if encompassing of capitalism, is designed to destroy the competition (in this case, the world), rather than to compete with the competition, at whatever the cost of the footprint.

"Our strategy is to import everything, food, fuel, raw materials, and export finished goods, making a profit on the value added" So basically they are going to suck it all up creating massive competition making these major mistakes along the way like...uh...I don't know...putting brake fluid into toothpaste maybe?

This tops the Illegal Alien Hormel Factory Raids unfortunately. I thought it would have stayed on top.

So, If this is all a truth then why doesn't the US as a single entity go on strike? We're buying everything from China and the mistakes of their "strategy" are dead pets and oily radiator fluid infused toothpaste on our end. I guess we can't make much of anything and need to outsource our productivity so that someone else do it for us.

CSS Deemed "Ineffective" in Finland

In an unanimous decision released today, Helsinki District Court ruled that Content Scrambling System (CSS) used in DVD movies is “ineffective”. The decision is the first in Europe to interpret new copyright law amendments that ban the circumvention of “effective technological measures”. The legislation is based on EU Copyright Directive from 2001. According to both Finnish copyright law and the underlying directive, only such protection measure is effective, “which achieves the protection objective.”

A New Copyright Alliance?

Backed by organizations like the MPAA, NBC, News Corp., Disney, Time Warner, the Business Software Alliance, Microsoft, ASCAP, the NBA, and others, this promises to be one exhausting money sucking organization. Stay tuned!

HDDVD ripping to become legal?

In a recent spike of WTF? Thursdays, and depending apparently on the acceptance by the MPAA, you may soon be able to make legit backup copies if HDDVD content. Now either someone out there is thinking it is a good move for the consumer front OR that same person might be seeing that AACS is defeated and if you can't beat them...join them. I personally think that its the second thought.

-From the article-
“We want to be able to maximize the number of movies that are able to be offered,” said Michael Ayers, a representative of an industry group that licenses the AACS (Advanced Access Content System) copy-prevention system.
-End Snippet-

Now there are always two side to every story but wouldn't you think that if the system they were just touting as "Unbeatable" just a few months ago suddenly becomes defeated with no future fix to be offered, that the only viable option to remain credible in an already hacked industry, would be to allow the the consumer to be able to then make legal copies. I think this smells like a defeatist argument to me. But of course in all fairness they also could be looking at how the rest of the industry in whole can benefit from allowing copying to occur such as a new HDDVD-RW for your computer plus DVD's for the rip and software as well as other types of technology peripherals not mentioned. But that point is my point which is why it should be legal in the first place.

A Noteworthy Release

Younger Brother will release the new album Last Days of Gravity which, after previewing, promises to be rich in sound sculpture and application. The release date is set for June this year and this will be an essential purchase. Music like this is making most music on the radio sound boring.

I would say that Mitch Bainwol should listen to this release and then ask himself again whether he thinks music creation is suffering. Mitch is the CEO of the RIAA.

Music Creation is Officially "Suffering"

"The creation of music is suffering because of declining sales," said RIAA Chief Executive Mitch Bainwol. "We clearly have a more difficult time tolerating gaps in revenues that should be there."

Now I usually don't like the LA times but at least someone publishes the blatant ignorance coming from deep within the RIAA.

What a short sighted thing to report to the public. The creation of music is not suffering because of sales. It is SALES that is suffering because:

1) The music industry seems to only latch onto Rap as its profit shepherd while Rap is Dead/Boring and anyone with half a brain can tell that any "new" rap song is not really new, it's just some other dude rapping over the same beat as the last guy for money.

2) Radio stations have zero interest in playing independent media unless they are ordered to because labels are so worried about their short term sales goals that they are afraid to take a chance even though the term taking a chance is only playing a different song!

3) The internet is a way more effective tool for finding the music that you like so you are less likely to listen to the radio.

4) Sharing music was made illegal after the RIAA realized that people were sharing music. At that time it was not illegal but it was made illegal which is the reason why now you are BOMBARDED by the exact same music that is on the radio, on the internet.

5) Crappy music is shoved up and into your face everyday so you are programmed to think that artists like Madonna (only an example) actually need more money from you.

6) The only right you have as a consumer is to listen to different music and that is exactly what the industry is trying to keep you from doing!

God forbid we have to tolerate a gap in revenue. Something music has nothing to do with. Why don't artists write songs about that? It's because a true musician doesn't care about it. Thats just my guess

Class action Lawsuite against Netflix?

Interpreting this in my opinion I would say that Blockbuster is just another one of those companies that is complaining about the fact that Netflix had and executed the idea first, got more popular all over Blockbuster as we watched Blockbuster squirm to figure out a competitive idea while failing continuously realizing that someone beat them to the punch until one of their ideas stuck with consumers and the only thing Blockbuster can do is sue their competition. If you read the claims in the complaint, essentially the file-ee's are trying to attack Netflix not by invalidating the patents, but by arguing that the patents are invalid and therefore Netflix is guilty of abusing monopoly power given to it (by the existence of patents that the complaint contends are invalid). Either way you look at it it is a pretty weak attempt at extortion. Netflix is awesome, sorry Blockbuster but the idea that I can drive to your location to get more movies while I'm waiting for my other movies to arrive in the mail is not as cool as being able to watch DVD's online as part of my subscription. I remember that Blockbuster had some issues with telling people about their fine print being that if the movie was not returned in 30 days, you will be purchasing the movie not returned, while advertising to the world that late fee's are gone. Blockbuster, face it, you've been beaten to the punch on a great idea and suing your competition does not make for a good capitalist.

Revised AACS cracked one week before release!

One of the few times I'll use LOL!!!

Here comes the Harmony Festival

Symbiosis Gathering is coming

One trip I would still love to take is coming up and called Symbiosis Gathering. Last year's talent included some top tier entertainers to the likes of Delta Nove, Bluetech (a favorite), X-Dream, Hallucinogen (never plays here so you kinda HAVE TO GO SEE POSFORD), Shpongle DJ set (Give it to me LIVE Raja!), Ott, Phutureprimitive and Tipper. Yeah I know what you are saying..Holy Crap no way...Shpongle and Ott and Simon Posford all in one area? Well yeah and I missed it so I would plan on seeing them maybe this year? We shall see.

Hybrid Vinyl-MP3's?

Coded Vinyl gives you the ability to download DRM free 320 Kbps MP3 Downloads. Its the greatest thing since CD-extras!....wait...well I guess we'll see what impact this has on the market. It does sound tasty a-la licorice pizza days of good cheap vinyl. Click the link in the title for the full story.

Attempted Piracy treated like Attempted Murder?

The recent talk about making circumvention techniques illegal has grown to making even the attempt to show what it is or distribute it illegal. This would mean that T-Shirts, postings and stickers containing DeCSS scripts or any form of electronic communication regarding DeCSS may lead to your imprisonment by the Department of Homeland Scrutiny.

My thought is: Doesn't anybody in our Government have anything better to do than create more Government? I watch a little TV here and there and what I see are clips of movies that have ads spliced directly into the movie! Movies like American Pie and that stupid baseball movie with Charlie Sheen (yes I still like that one but I don't remember the name of it) come on and you think you are seeing a commercial for the movie but what you are really seeing is a commercial with a commercial embedded in a movie clip making you think about another product. So the movie is now the commercial and yet Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, who's the top Republican on the House Judiciary committee is saying, "I applaud the attorney general for recognizing the need to protect intellectual property." and yet isn't splicing commercials into movie clips NOT respecting Intellectual Property!?? or is it really just about money?

Gas is like vegetables (Part 3)

Clicking on the Subject title link brings you to a story where gas prices are going up more due to..wait for it...wait for it....due to...uh...let me think...OH...planned maintenance and breakdowns at U.S. refineries struggling to meet tough environmental fuel regulations. BUT THEN another story by Reuters says that the high gas prices are a direct result of traders noticing a gas supply imbalance in the fine print of Wednesday's government inventory report. WTF? Which one is it? It changes all the time to keep you confused while petroleum companies make the biggest record profits of all time! Meanwhile it takes $80 to fill my tank. Lastly, I've noticed that some of the previous links to stories related to these oil posts have been removed. All I can say to that is thanks for that Yahoo, erase all the stories to archive so as to thwart the discovery of our nations oil hypocrisy. I tried to look up the stories I posted links to, but to no avail, they cannot be found at this time.

Speaking of the future

Frank Zappa was considered to be the most talented visionary in the Biz, most notably for the though process he used when dealing with the topic of music with the press. Zappa was a forward thinker who wanted people to think about how they get their music and the future of music in general. The link in the subject line takes you to an article where back in the 80's Zappa was already talking about iTunes and the distribution of digital media with monthly subscriptions and unlimited volume. "People like to consume music". I like that line. Here is Zappa on Crossfire also taking on hardliners with only a singular vision of music's impact society.

Digital Consumer Enablement?

You know...changing the name of DRM just because the consensus is, from one HBO executives' opinion, that it's the name DRM that actually is giving DRM a bad rep has got to be the single most retarded thing anyone could have said this year and its only May 10th. The company already has HD movies on demand ready to go, but is delaying them because of ownership concerns. Says Zitter, 'Digital Consumer Enablement would more accurately describe technology that allows consumers "to use content in ways they haven't before," such as enjoying TV shows and movies on portable video players like iPods. "I don't want to use the term DRM any longer," said Zitter, who added that content-protection technology could enable various new applications for cable operators.'"

Personally, I think that since the content is already there and available, its DRM that keeps you from using it in ways that would like to. Just because a company decides to "let me" view content on my iPod, does not mean that I should be greatful for the almighty DRM code. But if I wanted to give up my ability to do the things I like to do with content, then I would have to agree. Fortunately for me, I don't.

You too can own your very own illegal DMCA circumvention interger

The kind folk at Freedom to Tinker have set up a script that will generate a random number, encrypt a copyrighted haiku with it, and then deed the number back to you. You won't get a copyright on the number or the haiku, but your number has become an illegal circumvention device under the DMCA, such that anyone subject to US law caught distributing it can be punished under the DMCA's anti-trafficking section, for which the DMCA's Safe Harbor provisions do not apply.

I gave this a try and holy crap it works! So now I own my very own number that is considered illegal even though it is just randomly generated. Mine is...D7 87 99 50 7F F7 A3 D2 7F E3 3D 37 04 D8 84 65. get yours today!

P.s.

57 2A AD A2 FD 7F 08 E8 18 AA FC 9B 37 48 28 C4 and

09 EF 4D 51 14 68 D4 AA 35 5D DE AA 37 B2 FC E2

just in case are now mine!! Bwahaha!

Summer of Sequels and Threequels again?

The funny thing about another summer where the ideas coming out of hollywood (with a small h, damn them) just plain suck is that a communist economy centered around a socialist Government at least can come up with new ideas even though those new ideas may involve killing their own in order to get it done while excluding capitalism as a whole, unless you're China I guess. With hollywood, its all about repeating the same lame story line, each time making some lame CGI character plunder around a fake world full of utopianistic ideals ending in harmony. Now if that isn't capitalism in action then I don't know what is. Now I'm not for communism myself although sometimes my mind leans toward forced regulation but wouldn't it be nice to see hollywood have to accept at least 2/3's original idea manuscripts instead of just rewriting the same old ideas over and over again? I mean like forced! This summer is going to be yet another reason to not watch movies and rent them from netflix. For those of you that copy movies...DeCSS away...you wont have much to do this summer unless you like vomit. But Im sure hollywood vomit will bring in the most amount of money we've ever seen in any one weekend. 384 million in just two days for the new Spiderman...geesh...and we're complaining about the cost of a war? How about how absurd it is that a movie brings in that much in three days while movie companies are bitching about piracy. Stupid.

The funniest thing said today

I work in a department of people in a large room full of cubicles constantly talking. Usually you can hear at any given time alot of different conversations going on. So today the funniest thing I heard amidst all the conversations taking place with clients was, "Are you taking a bath?"

Colony Collapse Disorder

The major event occurring in the world lately is the sudden disappearance of about 50% of the global honey bee population. Worker bees are flying off to pollinate and never returning to their hives. No one knows why although there have been some speculative theories. Now I will be the first to admit that we live in such excess in this world and am also guilty of participating in that excess and sometimes think that we could use, as a civilization, a lesson to teach us how lucky we are to have all that we have. But this one really gets me thinking about "WHY" this is happening as I am also the one who would not like to have to resort to eating only grains and meat...well not even meat if things go the way they are going. I tend to think of this from a spiritual standpoint as maybe a message that all things are temporary and even our egos can't stop something so natural that it causes our extinction. Eat whats on your plate because one day soon it may no longer be the plate you filled and threw out in ignorance because it didn't look appealing. This is very scary.

What the UN thinks fo the US

The United States gives out $13.3 billion tax dollars in direct Foreign Aid
annually. The United States is above and beyond the single most
generous benefactor of the United Nations, donating $2.4 billion dollars
of OUR money, to primarily third world dictators.

This amount is 25% of the United Nations budget. In addition, the United
States also gives another $1.4 billion tax dollars to United Nations'
programs and agencies. The American taxpayers fund more for the United
Nations than ALL of the other 177 member nations COMBINED.

What most Americans do not realize is that the vast majority of the
recipients of the of US Foreign Aid routinely vote against the wishes of
the United States in the United Nations at an average rate of 74%. In
other words, of the $13.3 billion tax dollars invested in direct Foreign
Aid only about 26% or $3.5 billion went to support people who endorse
American initiatives or causes. A staggering $9.8 billion tax dollars
went to causes and people who were and are in open and direct opposition
to the United States' interests and objectives.

Listed below are the actual voting records of various Arabic/Islamic
States which are recorded in both the US State Department and United
Nations' records:

Kuwait votes against the United States 67% of the time.
Qatar votes against the United States 67% of the time.
Morocco votes against the United States 70% of the time.
United Arab Emirates votes against the U. S. 70% of the time.
Jordan votes against the United States 71% of the time.
Tunisia votes against the United States 71% of the time.
Saudi Arabia votes against the United States 73% of the time.
Yemen votes against the United States 74% of the time.
Algeria votes against the United States 74% of the time.
Oman votes against the United States 74% of the time.
Sudan votes against the United States 75% of the time.
Pakistan votes against the United States 75% of the time.
Libya votes against the United States 76% of the time.
Egypt votes against the United States 79% of the time.
Lebanon votes against the United States 80% of the time.
India votes against the United States 81% of the time.
Syria votes against the United States 84% of the time.
Mauritania votes against the United States 87% of the time.

US Foreign Aid to those that hate us:

Egypt, for example, after voting 79% of the time against the United
States, still receives $2 billion annually in US Foreign Aid.

Jordan votes 71% against the United States and receives $192,814,000
annually in US Foreign Aid.

Pakistan votes 75% against the United States receives $6,721,000
annually in US Foreign Aid.

India votes 81% against the United States receives $143,699,000 annually
in US Foreign Aid.

Perhaps it is time to get out of the UN and give the tax savings back to
the American workers who are having to skimp and sacrifice to pay the taxes.