Open Democracy (Free subscription) | 5 hours ago
The government has revealed details of its Digital Economy Bill, trailed in the Queen's Speech. One proposal which has already attracted a great deal of attention is the introduction of new penalties for those suspected of internet piracy, from disconnection to hefty fines. Laws which allow the swift termination of pirates' internet connections (often on a 'three strikes and you're out' basis) have...
GeekMedia (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
A couple of relatively unrelated news stories caught my eye yesterday. On one hand, Peter Mandelson announced amendments to UK copyright laws that appear to put the onus of illegal download prevention onto ISPs (reluctantly) and lawyers (eagerly). On the other, Google released more detail on what Chrome OS is going to look like when it launches next year. The signs are that the battle for control of...
Switched (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
For over a year, France has been considering plans to ban illegal downloaders from the Web. In the U.S., the FCC may actually begin regulating the Web by forcing providers to charge various fees. But neither of those disturbing developments compare at all to the rumors gathering momentum in England. Various outlets are reporting that the U.K. Secretary of State Peter Mandelson, referred to as the...
Waffle (Free subscription) | 15/11/2009
Possibly the only good thing to come out of the recent ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon (which, pithily but accurately summarized in a sub clause, makes the EU far less democratic) is the reallocation of seats in the European Parliament. Sweden gets two more seats, and one goes to the Pirate Party’s runner-up Amelia [...]
D-Notice (Free subscription) | 15/11/2009
There's a new website called Skeptical Voter . They describe themselves as: [A] new website where we aim to discover and catalogue the political positions of Members of Parliament and candidates in next general election, specifically with regard with issues that 'Skeptical' people are interested in. These include the attitude of candidates to evidence-based policy, the role of the libel laws in science,...
Healthy Gopher (Free subscription) | 14/11/2009
Sometimes I enjoy reading a movie review, even if I'm not inspired to go see the film. On this instance, though, both appeal. See note at bottom about German political policy. Pirate Radio: hopefully I'll get to see it around Thanksgiving, although The Author & I have a date to see The Road, which I'd do before this. from the movie review : The [English] government vows to sink the pirates and...
Another Green World (Free subscription) | 14/11/2009
'Illegal downloads would be prosecuted as a civil matter, she said, and could be subject to fines up to $150,000.' Having discovered that one user downloaded one Hollywood movie 'illegally' the entire wifi broad band in Coshocton, Ohio was closed down. 'About five years ago, the county made a free wireless Internet connection available in the block surrounding the Coshocton County Courthouse at 318...
D-Notice (Free subscription) | 11/11/2009
We have had the latest instalment in the on-going saga regarding the government's DNA database and its plans to deal with innocent people who are on it. As a recap, at the end of last year , in a 17-0 decision the European Court of Human Rights effectively told the Home Office to go screw itself if it thinks that it's right for innocent people's DNA samples to be kept on the register. Since then -...
p2pnet (Free subscription) | 10/11/2009
p2pnet news view P2P | Politics:- The Pirate Party could be described as the world’s first, and still the only, global political party. In turn, a2f2a.com is the world’s first, and still the only, site founded specifically by music artists and fans for music artists and fans. So it’s appropriate that John Barron, who leads the UK [...]
The Finer Things (Free subscription) | 09/11/2009
Planning a birthday party for your little one? A unique invitation can set the tone for a fabulously fun fête. If you haven't selected a theme yet, you may want to browse through FineStationery.com's vast selection of children's invitations to find inspiration. Painting Party Pirate Party
D-Notice (Free subscription) | 07/11/2009
I have been meaning to get around to write summat about the government sacking the head of its drug advisory body. In the unlikely event that you're not aware, he was sacked for the heinous crime of daring to criticise our Lords 'n' Masters for placing politics above evidence by saying that cannabis isn't as bad as the Home Office makes to out to be. There's not much I can say other than it shows that...
Gov20, HealthIT & Healthcare Reform (Free subscription) | 07/11/2009
Clay Shirky , NYU professor and leading thinker on the future of the Internet and communication technology, has opinions on everything from the “ Twitter revolution ” in Iran and GitHub ’s collaborative coding process to the death of newspapers and the rise of the Pirate Party in Europe. Shirky’s book Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations and his...
p2pnet (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009
p2pnet news view P2P | Politics:- As of December 1 Amelia Andersdotter will become Europe’s youngest MEP, and the second for the Swedish wing of the Pirate Party — Piratpartiet, locally — the world’s first and only global political organisation. She says on her website posted, obviously, before she was named as an MEP »»» My [...]
Kemptown Ben's Green Blog (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009
I've just read a news item that so turns received wisdom about copyright on its head I just had to share it with you. The Pirate Party UK are reporting that people who 'illegally' download music are, in fact, the music industry's best customers! On average, according to the results of a study carried out by left-leaning think-tank Demos, people who share digital files are likely to spend more cash...
Kemptown Ben's Green Blog (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009
Sometimes something unexpected happens in politics which re-affirms your belief in the political bedfellows you keep - I came across a small but heartening example of this yesterday, while musing over the Government's latest draconian attack on Internet freedom and discovering that the Green Party has been resisting it at EU level. Last week, Busimness Secretary Peter Mandelson, fresh from holidaying...
Videos