Category Archives: Random Rants

Usually set off by a tweet.

Are e-books the new content farms?

Posted on June 22, 2011 | 1 Comment

Laura Miller has a great article called Spamazon at Salon.com, which explains how e-book spam is clogging the Kindle. I was toying with the idea of getting an e-book reader, maybe for Christmas, but this new development is enough to put me right off of it.

It seems that these e-book spam operators are repurchasing cheap content, or are stealing the content outright, and posting them on the Kindle store as 99-cent e-books. Even worse, the same content may be repackaged into several different e-books with slightly different titles or publisher names. Often, this content is the product of content farms like eHow.com, and therefore not even worth almost a buck to buy, but the low price may lead to impulse purchases.

All this spam should make it hard for readers to find legitimate books worthy of spending their money on, which makes self-publishing e-books a dicey proposition. It will probably disillusion many readers, like me, from even considering purchasing e-books. And of course, writers are getting ripped off again, as they find plagiarized versions of their content bobbing in the spam soup.

I have to wonder why people are so quick to fill everything up with garbage. Amazon doesn’t seem willing to clean up its own store. Until it does, though, I won’t be investing in a Kindle.

 

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Obama releases his birth certificate & Twitter reacts…

Posted on April 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

So, Obama caved to the nutty conspiracy theorists today and released his actual birth certificate. This prompted many of the folks I follow on Twitter to reach previously unimagined levels of snark. Here are some of my favorite reactions to the news:

And a bonus one that’s older but still topical:

Thanks, Tweeple, for keeping it real.

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New pet peeve: “Once and a while”

Posted on December 22, 2010 | Leave a comment

I have a new pet peeve to report, and it’s kind of driving me crazy. I’ve been seeing this a lot in Internet comments recently: “once and a while.” This is a bastardization of the correct phrase, once in a while.

Let’s look at this a little more closely, shall we? Once in a while is not difficult to understand. It is used when something happens not often, but every now and then — “in a while.”

Once and a while is a bit more difficult to understand. The best I can figure is that it means that something happens once and goes on for a while. Or it means that the writer is too lazy to take a moment and think about what they’re saying writing. Which makes the rest of the comment completely worthless, in my opinion.

So please, if you care, type it correctly. What you mean to say is: once in a while.

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Happy birthday to me…

Posted on December 1, 2010 | Leave a comment

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The terrorists have won: I’m now officially afraid to fly…

Posted on November 11, 2010 | 3 Comments

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. — Benjamin Franklin

Everything I’ve been reading about the full body scanners that are being widely installed in airports across the country has frightened me. Although I am not a frequent flier, I am seriously considering not flying again as long as these are in use. Which would mean the terrorists have won, because our overreaction to the 9/11 attacks have succeeded in limiting my freedoms as an American citizen.

Here are the many things that concern me about these scanners:

a) Walking through one is essentially the same as submitting to a strip search. You would probably balk if the TSA asked you to take off all your clothes so they can take a picture, but that is basically what these machines do. This amounts to unreasonable search and seizure, as far as I am concerned.

b) If you “opt out,” then you must subject yourself to a full body pat down, which isn’t any better. American citizens are being treated like criminals just for the privilege of flying.

c) These machines emit radiation. No one knows how dangerous they are or how much exposure is safe. Scientists are warning that these machines could cause cancer or cataracts.

d) I have a young child. If I want to take him on a plane trip, I have to expose him to what under the law could be considered child pornography or sexual abuse. I also have to expose him to needless doses of radiation, to which children are particularly vulnerable.

Worst of all, I see no evidence that these machines are effective at preventing terrorist attacks. They are just the latest installment in the ongoing security theater that wastes taxpayer money while not addressing the real issues that cause terrorism.

I plan to write my Congressional representatives to ask that these machines be removed from our airports before I will fly again. Personally, I’d rather take my chances than walk through one of these.

Boycotts of the body scanners are being called for, particularly on November 24, one of the busiest travel days of the year. The idea is that if opting out bogs down security procedures and causes delays, people will get angry enough to demand change. Many people are also choosing to boycott flying in hopes of pressuring the airlines to call for changes. Here are some links for further reading:

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So I got suckered again…

Posted on November 4, 2010 | Leave a comment

It’s happened before. The last time was — let’s see — oh yes, two years ago. At first, I maintain my disdain and disgust at the whirling mania around me. But gradually, I get caught up in it. There’s a hopeful poll! Perhaps the forces of good finally have a chance! Go team! Go team!

Of course I’m talking about the elections. And I did get suckered into it again, even though this has been the most ridiculous election I can personally remember. At one point, I actually thought that our dud of a Senate candidate might beat the incumbent. Or that California might lead the way in starting a new national conversation on the worthless money pit that is our “War on Drugs.” Or that reasonable Americans would rise up and let the world know that our country does not stand for ignorance, fear and bigotry. (Well, at least Sharron Angle isn’t going to the Senate, right?)

I won’t get fooled again, as they say. Our political system has become a never-ending football game with its own gaggle of commentators who just won’t shut up. In the meantime, there’s a country that needs running — a country with big problems and people who are suffering.

I do think this election was bought and sold by corporate interests. I don’t think it was the first one, but I think this time it was more overt and unapologetic than at any time before. Have you read any of those science fiction dystopias where mega-corps run everything and you essentially belong to your employer? That future doesn’t seem so remote anymore.

But I’d take that future over Octavia Butler‘s chilling vision in Parable of the Sower, which also seems all too possible. It depicts an America decimated by environmental disasters and a gigantic underclass that has succumbed to anarchy, violence and religious fundamentalism. I trust our fiction writers to know what they’re talking about more than any bunch of pundits you can throw at me.

Speaking of which, how can I continue to enjoy the Internet and yet still avoid the endless babble about politics, our new national sport? Oh well, I guess I’ll go read a book instead.

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Wise words from great writers…

Posted on October 27, 2010 | 4 Comments

I feel that now, one week before the election, is a good time to remind you of some wise words by a couple of our great writers:

“When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” — Sinclair Lewis

“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face— forever.” — George Orwell

Please vote next Tuesday. And take a stand against the fear, ignorance, hate and violence that seems to be sweeping our country at an alarming rate this election year.

This post was inspired by the following recent news stories:

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Sigh…

Posted on September 3, 2010 | Leave a comment
Satellite view of earth superimposed on crumpl...

Image via Wikipedia

So the news has been depressing me again lately. Every day, a new symptom of our continuing destruction of our own planet emerges (like this), and yet when I look around, I see my own country subsumed by bigotry, greed and xenophobia, while politicians and media outlets engage in propaganda and lying on an unprecedented level. No one is focusing on the real problems that face us, and there seem to be no strong leaders emerging who can unite us. If anything, we seem hellbent on our own destruction, both as a society and a species.

I have been fortunate enough to live my life so far in the best, most prosperous period of time and place on Earth for the human species. My most pressing daily problems are uncomfortable bras, telemarketers and trying to lose that stubborn last 5 pounds. But I have a two-year-old son, and every day I worry that the problems we are leaving him will be insurmountable, that the world we are creating for him will be a horrorshow we can’t even imagine. And he will hate us (rightly so) for our shortsightedness and failure to act.

As an individual, I feel powerless. What can I do against an intractable system of government, corrupt politicians, powerful corporations and the bizarre Tea Party insanity that’s distracting everyone from our actual economic, social and environmental problems? I find myself retreating into books, cooking, my own little world, and I know I shouldn’t detach that way. But it seems like that’s the only way to deal with it all.

More depressing stuff:

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Let’s review: What is free speech?

Posted on August 20, 2010 | 4 Comments
FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH WITHOUT E...

Image by roberthuffstutter via Flickr

It seems that some public figures (such as, for example, Sarah Palin) are a bit confused about what their first amendment rights entail. The first amendment states that:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Essentially, this amendment guarantees that you can express yourself freely without worrying about being censored by the government. It does not, contrary to what some people think, guarantee the following:

  • the right to say what you want without consequences. If you are a public figure and you say something offensive, then you may lose your job, audience, sponsorships or votes as a result. Just because you have the right to say it doesn’t mean you should.
  • the right not to be criticized for what you say, especially if you are a public figure, especially in the press. In fact, the same first amendment guarantees the freedom of the press to print what they like, including criticism of your statements.
  • the right to freely express yourself in any forum, such as on a radio show or in the newspaper. Private entities retain the right to editorial control over the content they distribute. This is not censorship; rather, it is the government respecting the rights of private businesses.

So public figures, before you start whining that your free speech rights are being violated, take a moment to learn what that right actually entails.

Related Articles

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Treat adults like adults and you get… adults!

Posted on August 19, 2010 | 1 Comment

Remember when you were a kid and you dreamed of being a grown-up and doing what you wanted when you wanted? No one could tell you to get up or go to school or do your homework. You get to decide! That’s freedom.

Then you grew up and got a job and found out that people still got to tell you what to do. They told you when to be at work, when to go home, when you could take time off, how much you could be sick. It was called the HR policy. So much for freedom.

In the 21st century, some companies are actually experimenting with not having any (or many) HR policies. Netflix has a freedom and responsibility culture, and they don’t have a vacation policy at all. Red Hat maintains a similar balance between freedom and accountability. Best Buy invented the results-only work environment: no meetings, no required time in the office, just accountability for results.

The experiences of these companies have been similar: The more freedom the company gave to its employees, the more accountability it received in return. In other words, the more the company treated its employees like adults, the more they acted like adults.

And when companies restrict freedom, should it come as any surprise when their employees start to act like children?

Does your organization need a “no policy” policy? (Opensource.com)
The Story of How We Uncovered the Red Hat Values (Dark Matter Matters)
Reference Guide on Our Freedom & Responsibility Culture (Slideshare)
Smashing the Clock (BusinessWeek)

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