rights
Ethical Patents
Another month, another petition. So what do you think about this
I, the undersigned, support this statement
The European patent system discriminates against:
- The Public, by letting those who benefit from the patent system set the rules for everyone.
- Real innovators, by granting patents too easily and in areas where patents are not needed.
- Fast-moving industries, by pretending that one size fits all.
- The free market, by granting overbroad monopolies that lock out innovation and competition.
- Smaller businesses, by creating risks and costs that small firms cannot afford.
- Open research, in software, medicine, and more, by blocking the free flow of ideas and knowledge.
This discrimination is unfair, and it is costly. We all pay for it, with higher prices, fewer jobs, and less freedom.
I call on the EU to build a new patent system on these principles:
- Fair to the public. It must be made by elected lawmakers of democratic European Union.
- Fair to innovators. It must allow patents only where needed to spur innovation.
- Fair to all industries. It must adapt to the fast-growing diversity of technology and business.
- Fair to a free market. It must ensure that patent monopolies are narrowly focused.
- Fair to small businesses. It must provide affordable, fast, narrow and predictable rights.
- Fair to open research. It must protect the independent creation of original works.
Well, I wholeheartedly agree that the current worldwide, not just EU, patent practices and laws are flawed. They are discriminatory, unfair, largely un-implementable in a sensible way but enforcible and prohibitive. There is no protection against misjudgement either.
Ok, I'll shut up for now. I don't have time, at the moment to substantiate my claims, so just take them at with a pinch of salt.
Happy Birthday Guantanamo!
On 11 January 11 2002, the first detainees from Afghanistan arrived at the US Naval Base of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Five years on, the baby is live and kicking and enjoys good health. It has been kept on a nutritious diet of injustice and abuse.
Celebrate it's five year on anniversary with all of it's well wishers at the Guantanamo Anniversary Special
Over £30 million of UK aid money spent on funding body for privatisation consultants
Britain’s Department for International Development (DFID) has channelled over £30 million of its aid through an institution designed to pay consultants to push privatisation in poor countries according to a report released today (Sunday 26 November 2006) by the World Development Movement. This compares, for example, to the £3.5 million DFID has pledged to spend over four years to help establish a new programme of support for higher education in Africa.
Worst Lobby
Who will win this acclaimed prize for being the master of spin and manipulation, the fastest painter of greenwash, the influencer of influencers, the black hole of transparency? It’s up to you!
In the lobbying game, it takes two to tango, the lobbyist and the public official being lobbied
from worst lobby
'nuff said
Protect Freedom #1: Eliminate DRM
Stikr aktion at factoryjoe's flickr garage.
European Software Patents - endless loop
More than a year has passed since the European Parliament’s historic rejection of the Commission’s and Council’s software patent bill. Now this zombie legislation is shambling through parliament again: on October 11 or 12, the EP is set to vote in Brussels on two competing motions for a resolution on future European patent policy.
Software Patents - back like a bad smell (Open Rights Group)
It's never too late to have an opinion, I suppose. It's the same arguments, different door. It seems the agenda of patent law harmonisation will never go away. As I was writing more that a year ago, this, strangely enough, always goes towards harmonise up - that is make the broadest possible treatment, as opposed to the minimum common denominator.
It is true, that there are powerful stakeholders - mainly patent law firms, patent/IP farms, to a lesser extent technology companies.
Nowadyas the majority of the software industry uses the patent laws for as a defense weapon anyway. There are parasitic companies and the odd litigious ones, but they are exceptions and usually end up in PR disastres.
Why feed the IP parasites?
Write your MEP/MP what do you think about it
Brussels, 21 September 2006 -- Commissioner McCreevy proclaims blissful ignorance about the consequences of the European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA). In a series of six non-answers to Members of the European parliament, the Commission reveals that until now it is unable to comment on cost, judicial independence, jurisprudence and treaty-related concerns. Meanwhile McCreevy keeps praising the virtues of said draft agreement.
Commission unable to answer MEPs on Patent Litigation Agreement (FFII)
You might want to read what the FFII say/do about it
Intelligent self-replicating robots assemble iPods
Well cheap(ish) iPods do come at a price, but they could been even cheaper! They don't grow on trees or in the rice fields - they are assemebled by cheap very intellegent self-replicating robots. The robots are provided with good maintenance, fuel and regeneration time. They are operational only 35.7% of the time. Approximately 8.33% of the time they refuel, 33.33% of the time they spend in their regeneration cycle. Approximately 4.17% of their time is spent in a work preparation cycle. That is fine, but what are the robots doing the remaining 18.47% - not producing iPods for sure. That is gross negligence from the contractors! Of course, due to the cheap robot design, the fuelling and regeneration are nessesary, but the unused 18%-22% inefficiency comes from the pockets of the iPod shuffling public. So our beloved iPods can cost even less or have more features at the same price if the robot time was not wasted.
Have you joined the pirate party
Join the pirate party. Now. If there is none in your area, immigration to Sweden might help.
The Pirate Party wants to fundamentally reform copyright law, get rid of the patent system, and ensure that citizens' rights to privacy are respected. With this agenda, and only this, we are making a bid for representation in the Swedish parliament in the upcoming national elections in September.
Apparently, the pirate party stands a chance in the next elections.
Hamlet, Home Edition
This is a lame adapted translation of the Russian story I posted a couple of days ago. The author unfortunately is anonymous. If you could polish it, so it sounds better in English, please do. It's in the public domain, as far as I know.
A house somewhere in Britain, some time in the future
- Dad, can I get 99 quid off your card? Need to pay for a book
- What book?
- Shakespeare, Hamlet
- Why, we have it
- Really? Which file?
- What have files have to do with it! It's on the shelf. It's your nana's.
- Nah, that's a deadwood book
- So what? I read it when I was your age.
IRAKLI - a not yet concrete and glass by the sea
I was browsing. Having a stroll around the web to find some pictures to show friends interested to go to Bulgaria on holidays. In my opinion the best way to relax is not in the concrete jungle of the packaged holidays. It's not in the overhyped modern and outdated built up areas, but what the locals call wild camping. It's the equivalent of having a tent on the commons. Well, you can always hire a room in one of the small villages or towns.
You could that is. At the moment, the well guided and funded forces of progress are having a very successfull go at turning the Bulgarian seaside into a huge series of private resorts. The hills and cliffs are augmented by concrete and glass.
This progressive activity destroys really beautiful and unique untouched nature. It's funny how blinded are the investors. Dark, but funny. You see, it's the nature, which makes people want to go to these places, not the urban jungle. If you want the latter it's not Irakli or Varvara, Sinemorec, Silistar or any similar plcaem it's London, Prague, Paris, Moscow, maybe Sofia which will attract people.
So why am I writing this? Well, a few brave souls are trying their best to raise awareness, mainly in Bulgaria, but not only. They organise protests, parties, make a lot of noise to try and save Irakli.
Have a look at a few pictures of Irakli. If you like it and support their cause to preserve it, just post your support in their forum. They will be really chuffed.
Поради проблеми с хостинга загубих българския, сега тръся подходящо решение. Извинете за неудобството.
