Technology, Innovation & Telecomm

To one and all!

And for goodness sake, try and take a moment to consider why it’s called “Christmas”…

You’ll be surprised by the author, but this article is absolutely worth the read.  I don’t think I could have said it better myself!

Apparently if you own an iPod (I own two) you are, by definition, a criminal. This according the Universal Music Group CEO (and resident horses’ patoot) Doug Morris. Here’s the quote:

“These devices are just repositories for stolen music, and they all know it, so it’s time to get paid for it.”

I’m so sick of the recording industry’s sweeping generalizations about who is and isn’t a crook. Lord knows I’ve spent a *ton* of cash on music over the last 25 years and I can tell you that I don’t copy music illegally. I buy it. Either I purchase CD’s (my preference), or I download from iTunes, which by the way is far and away the largest *legal* music download site in the world. The recording industry should thank their lucky stars that iTunes and the iPod exist, ’cause for sure they’d be in a world of hurt. With the general load of crap these clowns distribute for $15.00 a piece, it amazes me they’re in business at all.

And let’s not forget the (at least) two class-action lawsuits these bozo’s have lost, for price fixing. Yet they continue to hold the prices artificially high, in defiance of the suites. It goes to show you the overwhelming arrogance of this crew.
Plus, doesn’t it seem a bit disingenuous to suggest that iPod owners are thieves, when the iTunes store has sold so many of their crappy songs? That site can only be used by iTunes/iPod owners, so it stands to reason that those are the folks BUYING the music. So again I say, they ought to be truly thankful that not only does iTunes exist, but also that iPods are out there by the 100’s of millions.

So, here’s your chance to play a bit of a role in this whole mess — Stop buying their junk.  There are more and more high-quality independent artists out there and I highly recommend taking a listen.

These lame-brains will never get it.

I note with some degree of relief this item.  See my previous post on the subject.

Glad to see that there seems to be some remaining degree of sanity.

I just read this on Yahoo news. It simply blows my mind. It definitely makes me wonder what our society has come to.

…
Just so I understand, the Toys for Tots folk turned down *free* toys for kids, on the basis of a fear that they may end up in the hands of non-Christians who would most certainly be offended by a FREE gift.

A few questions come to mind:

1. Would they turn down a talking Allah doll? How about a doll extolling Satanism? Or, would they refuse a Pilgrim doll, since it could be taken as an affront to the Indians who felt abused at the hands of the early settlers? What about those with gender sensitivity? If someone gave a male doll to someone who prefers female dolls, what do you do about them?

2. How can the Toys for Tots folks say what the reaction will be to the dolls? It seems to me that they’re depriving a potentially large, grateful group of recipients of the *opportunity* to actually approve of the gift they’ve been given.

3. If someone is offended by the gift, what stops them from getting rid of it, perhaps by themselves giving it to some needy, appreciative Christian (or at least not anti-Christian) soul?

4. What is the percentage of folks who would dearly love such a gift vs. those who would be offended by it? Seems like a pretty un-balanced decision.

If the Toys for Tots folks start making these kinds of distinctions (which clearly they are), then aren’t they obligated to treat *every* gift as potentially offensive? We are talking about charity here…giving gifts, expecting nothing in return.

Man, have we gotten screwed up…

I’ve been posting *so* infrequently and frankly, I hate not doing it.  I need some kind of kick in the pants (metaphorically speaking) to get myself going again.  Talk about breaking one of the cardinal rules of blogging: “Post Often and Regularly” !  Yipes.

It seems that I sit down to pontificate on something profound…and I run out of steam before it’s ready to be posted.  Perhaps it’s that as I near the end of some post, I stop believing that it’s worth putting out there.  I dunno.

I’m not sure how to get things kick-started again. I’m open to suggestions (take it easy here!).  And, I’m going to start spending a few cycles coming up with material again.

With all of the international strife, political in-fighting, high gas prices, hurricanes, liberal-vs.-conservative issues,erosion of our moral foundations and so on…I still can’t imagine living *anywhere* else in this world.

All of those issues pale in comparison to the freedom, opportunity, blessings and human kindness that we enjoy every day.

Please take a moment today to remember all those who have sacrificed and continue sacrificing to make these things possible for you and me.

One last thing: Please don’t forget the Biblical principals that form this nation’s foundation. To do so is to risk all these blessings we so richly experience.

We have been and remain a truly blessed nation.

Happy Fourth of July!

Well. when last I wrote, I talked about American Idol and how sometimes it seems that the judges sort-of try to “lead” the public towards or away from specific performers. Since then, I was totally shocked to see Chris get canned by the viewing public. He was the odds-on favorite to win. For the longest time, I had it figured that the final two would be Katharine McPhee or Chris Daughtry. I was half right. Katharine was one of the finalists last night, along with one of my favorites: Taylor Hicks. Truth told, I wanted it to come down to Elliot Yamin and Taylor. I wanted Elliot to win. But alas, America wouldn’t hear of it. So, it was Taylor and Katharine. I think Taylor did the best over all, but of course he was my choice so I’m a wee-bit biased. In any case, tonight will tell the tale.

Next question: What do I do all summer long, now that my shows are off until fall? I guess I need to do something *outside*…! Let the warm weather commence.

So, I admit it. My wife and I have gotten hooked on “American Idol” this season.

I’ve never watched it before this year but for some reason, we started watching during the auditions. They were so entertaining, the good *and* the bad!, that we simply had to keep watching. In any case, we’re down to the final 4 and one is going home tonight. I really like Elliot and Taylor, but truth told, I think folks have pegged Chris as the winner. We’re holding our breath that our two guys hang in there tonight!

I will say that it stikes me that fairly early on, it appears as if the judges select one of the contestants as the winner. Since they don’t actually choose who wins, I’m not suggesting that there’s anything illegitimate happening that directly affects the outcome. What I am suggesting is that the comments that are made seem to me to be intended to “lead” the audience toward or away from particular candidates. Maybe I’m just paranoid, but that’s how it looks to me.

Anyhow, in 15 minutes the show will come on to tell us who gets the boot tonight. I’m a little nervous…

Who do you like?