An all-too-important site that I must take the time to mention: Digital Copyright Canada. Lately. Canada has been pursuing a number of initiatives that will prove damaging over the course of the next few years, mainly out of complete ignorance of what the Internet is, and what it’s capable of being.
As a producer of multimedia products, design work and plenty of written material, I understand the need for Intellectual Property rights. People have put plenty of time, effort and ideas into their products, and need to be compensated (that is, if they choose to be). So what’s the problem?
At issue here is the way the proposed system is a “catch-all” for all types of media, no matter what the source or intended end-use. This shows a misunderstanding of how the Net works. For example, what happens when, in this blog, I quote a passage from another blog or a news source? What happens when I put up some snapshots I took of my friend’s wedding? Creating a website of essays to share my thoughts? Even linking to another site without their permission? Copyright lawyers warn that the “Internet-friendly” update of the Copyright Act, as well as the ratification of the WIPO treaty, will suddenly legally jeopardise all of the above. Which means the potential for rampant suing, primitive hair-trigger notice-and-takedown policies, government-mandated witch hunts, and more.
It’s not the need to pursue valid Intellectual Property protection that I have an issue with: it’s the right to speak freely and without fear, it’s the right to share ideas and communicate with others, and it’s the right to learn without legal restriction. All these things and more are at risk today.
Digital Copyright Canada is a news site providing a running list of news reports, blog entries and initiatives that affect the rights of Canadians (and anybody else in danger of signing the WIPO treaty) wishing to share ideas. There, you’ll find more links than I could possibly offer in my blog.
Also, find a great summary of some of the notice-and-takedown issues on BoingBoing (written by Cory Doctorow, who is certainly coming out of his corner with fists flying), and a fledgeling online petition at PetitionSpot.
November 18th, 2004
Slate attempts to ring in with the definite last word in about moving north (although I can’t say I agree with all of what’s said about my country): Moving to Canada, Eh? - Let Slate help you decide if it’s really for you. Amusing, if nothing else.
Meanwhile, the folks over that the Joy of Tech have a new cartoon. I sense a meme.
But please, here’s a word for any Americans thinking about living (or even visiting) Canada: leave your troubles at the doormat. We’re generally pretty mellow folks up here, and it has nothing to do with the decriminalised marijuana. Life is too short for political or religious idealogues that create warring factions. Let’s just all meet down at Tim’s for hot coffee and donuts, complain about the weather, and hit the trike/ skidoo / mountain bike/ 4×4 trails. Just don’t forget the dog, your favourite fishing rod and some Backwoods Off from the Canadian Tire. (Tongue is in cheek, but only just slightly.)
November 7th, 2004
Found at Joi Ito’s Web: Someone at CNN.com has a sense of humor…. Just doing my part to spread the love.
[Update: Apparently, the culprit is someone at Netscape, a CNN partner.]
As for the election, I’m very disappointed. Kerry may have been a bit wooden, and may have not been as repetitive and focused as the populace would have liked, but four more years of Bush is terrifying —not just for me, but for the whole world, it seems. Say what you will of Dan Gillmor, but I believe he’s right when he says:
There’s no secret about what’s coming. We don’t have that excuse this time.
November 4th, 2004
Although my recent interest in the American elections has somewhat waned —with the exception of Jon Stewart’s appearances on Crossfire and C-SPAN, which were more about the media than the candidates— my wife Jenny has continued to be quite caught up in the whole song-and-dance show. I do share her concerns with all the potential negative repercussions of re-electing Bush, not only in the U.S., but the rest of the world (including Canada, where we live), and so I’d like to afford her the opportunity to share a few links and speak her mind. (Okay, darling, you can unlock the front door now. It’s cold sleeping in the Jeep….)
Jenny speaks:
I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t do my best to help make the world a better place. Doug (who is also rooting for Kerry, smart man that he is) is letting me guest blog at the risk of losing some of his growing readership.
The amount of information can be overwhelming, but I’ve picked a few things to think about.
The New York Observer today endorsed John Kerry, in an editorial with one of the better summaries of why Americans should vote for John Kerry on November 2:
“John Kerry understands that disorder is dangerous in this world, that intelligence and rationality are the right partners to passion, resolve and principle. As he showed in his three focused and well-prepared debate performances with President Bush, he is a man of intensity and rationality, whose 30 years in public life have prepared him to restore America’s fundamental understanding of what it takes to be the “last, best hope on earth.” A soldier of freedom, an American idealist, a public man with a tested private soul, he seems to understand that leadership in a democracy entails eliciting the better angels of our nature, and that greatness begins with goodness and surmounts in strength.”
Link
Salon’s Eric Boehlert noted recently that Kerry’s endorsement lead is the exception rather than the norm for Democratic candidates:
“As the mountain of newspaper endorsements pile up in favor of Sen. John Kerry, including dozens from dailies that backed Bush in 2000, the Bush/Cheney campaign is dismissing the trend as no big deal. ‘Look, the Republican candidate will never win the contest for editorial board endorsements. The major dailies across the country tend to skew liberal,’ RNC chairman Ed Gillespie told CNN last week. That spin comes straight out of the GOP handbook that insists the mainstream press tilts to the left, so of course newspapers love Democrats come Election Day.
“Only problem is, it’s not accurate. In fact, the complete opposite is true. Since 1940 when industry trade magazine Editor & Publisher began tracking newspapers during presidential elections, only two Democratic candidates — Lyndon Johnson in 1964 and Bill Clinton in 1992 — have ever won more endorsements than their Republican opponent.”
I encourage you to visit the John Kerry website and blog to read reasons for the general endorsements and press endorsements from Republicans and Democrats alike.
The Daily Show on the missing explosives: Bush, Cheney and Guiliani blaming the troops! What would we do without the jester to tell the truth in the puppet-king’s court?
A must-see site: www.internetvetsfortruth.org. Its goal is “to present you with these clips to help you make an informed choice next Tuesday. We hope you enjoy, and draw your own conclusions. Please help spread the word. Tell a friend, a relative, a co-worker, or Ohio.”
From AriannaOnline:
Faith Abuse: When God Becomes A Campaign Ploy October 27, 2004 This is my last column before Election Day. With less than a week to go, I plan on doing everything in my power to defeat George W. Bush (need a ride to the polls?). Then I’m going to get down on my knees and pray to a higher power. Link
From the John Kerry blog (link):
“An Insult to All Self-Respecting Wolves
Wolves are fairly intelligent animals, but even the smartest wolf can make a mistake.
On a new website, Wolfpacks for Truth, the leader of the pack of wolves in George Bush’s recent commercial wails:
“We were tricked by George Bush.”
According to their spokeswolf, “They told us we were shooting a Greenpeace commercial! When the camera crew showed up, we wondered why they were all driving Hummers. Our agent assured us it was a Greenpeace commercial and they paid TWICE our hourly steak rate. Little did we know we were being tricked into this vicious campaign attack ad.”
Very funny, but also lots of important links with important information for all those that care about both the truth and the environment.
Bush is anything but a “good steward of the land”: link
Q: what is the difference between the war in Iraq and the war in Vietnam?
A: President Bush knew how to get out of the Vietnam War.
Meanwhile, the Iraqi civilian death count increases with each passing day:
New study puts civilian deaths in Iraq at 100,000 An estimated 100,000 civilians have died in Iraq as a direct or indirect consequence of last year’s US-led invasion, according to a new study by a research team at the Bloom-berg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Link
See Pro-life? Look at the fruits by Dr. Glen Harold Stassen for his take on why Pro-Life and pro-choice should both vote for Kerry on November 2.
I suggest you watch a Frontline documentary called “The Choice 2004″ from PBS, which I consider to be incredibly insightful, balanced, and well-made. It can be viewed online.
Canada’s premier investigative documentary and news program The Fifth Estate has produced a must-see documentary and companion website called The Unauthorized Biography of Dick Cheney. (Torrent) (In addition to its impact among viewers and on society, the Fifth Estate is also recognized by its peers. It has won a remarkable 227 awards, including an Oscar for best documentary, three international Emmy Awards, 28 Geminis, 20 awards and certificates for investigative reporting from the Canadian Association of Journalists and dozens of honours from The New York and Columbus International film and video festivals. The show’s credentials are almost beyond reproach.)
CBC has also aired the Canada-France co-production “The World According to Bush” (direct download and high-quality torrent), “a two-hour documentary about the inner workings of the Bush administration that will alarm even the most hardened Washington-watchers. Both fans and critics of the acclaimed Fahrenheit 9/11 will want to see this investigation of the U.S. administration.” Some choice quotes:
- “This administration has chosen to use the propaganda tools of Hitler, Goering, and Goebbels” — Robert Steele, CIA Covert Operations
- “It is starting to look like a third world republic – a banana republic that is.” — Robert Baer, CIA Covert operations
- “No administration ever allowed herself a single tenth of what has occurred under George W. Bush. None.” - Los Angeles Times.
- “This administration is behaving like pigs at a trough.” - Joseph Trento, historian.
Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels said, “The bigger the lie, the more it will be believed.” He also wrote, “The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly… it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over.”
Does this sound familiar? All you have to do was listen to the way Bush reacted to Kerry in debates. In the face of reason, Bush kept repeating the same simplistic catch phrases which made no sense if you were listening with two ears and a brain.
Perhaps what Goebbels said it more true than ever in an age when quick sound-bites are caught, taken out of context, and served up to the public with their TV dinner. Trying to make sense of what I was seeing, I’m half ashamed to admit that I had the very same thoughts as Norman Mailer in the opening of “The World According to Bush”. It is shameful to see how this administration has cloaked itself under the name of faith, and in the guise of a government-induced “terror” used the Americans’ goodwill and true faith against themselves. But God is God, not Bush, not Cheney. To question people in power is not anti-patriotic, especially while the stink of hypocrisy grows stronger.
There is hope. With your vote, with your decision, you hold the fate of the world in your hands. Use it wisely.
(If you are an American living overseas and want more information about absentee voting (you can now use fax), see the site for Americans Overseas for Kerry.)
October 31st, 2004
I’m a Canadian. Like most Canadians, I’m pretty easy-going, not overly political or outspoken, and try to be nice to people.
My interest in politics goes as deep as trying to make sure essential freedoms are preserved, especially in the face of administrations that don’t understand how technology changes so many paradigms. Even then, I prefer to work the system from within. I barely followed the last Canadian election a few months ago, because I didn’t really care much who won.
So why then, am I so caught up in American politics lately?
Perhaps it’s because Paul Martin and the other potential Canadian Prime Ministers have all the personality of soup-logged crackers, as opposed to the dynamic or extreme characters fighting for power in the U.S.. Maybe it’s the fact that Canada is on a pretty even course, no matter who runs the show, unlike the roller-coaster ride that is America. But, most likely, it’s this: while Canada is well-known for humanitarian efforts, promoting peace, and just being a bunch of non-offensive people, whoever wins the U.S. election can make the world go boom.
It seems every day brings another sordid angle to the presidential race. Yesterday, Bush hoodwinked CNN and MSNBC by promising an hour-long speech on terrorism policies –definitely in the forefront of people’s minds, given the events of the past few days– and instead gave a one-hour campaign speech to “the faithful” (see the Slate article You Call That a Major Policy Address? for more details). With the former Bush-puppet Bremer’s declaration that the invasion of Iraq has been a problem because of a lack of troops, the CIA’s report that there was never any real evidence of WMDs, the 9/11 Commission’s devasting report, and the double-talk and lies exposed during this election, you’d think that now would be the perfect time to have a frank and inspirational discussion with the American public regarding terrorism. The fact that this opportunity was squandered as a one-sided debate, well… let’s just say that I’m more concerned than ever about which man should be put in charge of the most powerful and potentially dangerous country on earth.
While I don’t really want to rant within this venue (after all, I am an outsider, as well as a non-offensive Canadian), I am following the news, facts and speeches closely. Just like those 1950’s Cold-War film shorts they used to play in the schools, advocating jumping under your desk and covering your head if an A-bomb hit the playground, my helplessness is mitigated somewhat by the knowledge of knowing what could be coming.
October 7th, 2004
The Register has one of the more interesting takes on the recent Cat Stevens as terrorist debacle: Cat Stevens midair terror incident spurs tougher measures. Anyone familiar with the story of Cat Stevens will recall that after a number of love ballads and peace songs in the 1970’s (”Morning Has Broken”, “It’s a Wild World”, “Peace Train”, etc.), he converted to Islam and devoted his life to spreading peace and denouncing war and terrorist activities. That he would not only be put on a no-fly list, but that the plane would be ordered to an emergency landing, being greeted by federal agents and snipers, is proof that the system doesn’t work.
Only a few months before 9/11, I flew to San Diego through Toronto on a business trip. Normally, I take off my Leatherman Wave (a formidable tool which I wear everywhere) before boarding flights, but this time I forgot. I passed through all the airport security and customs without even a second glance. Now, they’re stopping well-known peace advocates, ethnic minorities, and even elderly ladies that dare bring nail clippers on board. How times have changed.
September 27th, 2004
