28.Feb.2013 - HEADLINES: Warrantless Wiretapping, Denial of Equality, Israel Torturing Palestinians, JP Morgan Chase Job Cuts, Fix the Economy, Humanity's Future, DOMA Challenger, God's Racket, Surveillance Law, Copyright Alert System, Keyboard Commandos, DNA Collecting, more.

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Supreme Court Effectively Says There's No Way To Challenge Warrantless Wiretapping

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130226/14360422120/supreme-court-effectively-says-theres-no-way-to-challenge-warrantless-wiretapping.shtml

Corrupt Capitalism - The Denial of Equality of Opportunity
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article34084.htm

Could Humans Go Extinct?
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/animal_forecast/2013/02/human_extinction_could_a_mass_extinction_kill_homo_sapiens.html

How Israel Gets Away With Torturing Palestinians to Death
http://www.alternet.org/world/how-israel-gets-away-torturing-palestinians-death

JPMorgan Chase Job Cuts: Bank Announces Plans To Slash Up To 4,000 Jobs
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/26/jpmorgan-chase-job-cuts_n_2764819.html

How the Fed Could Fix the Economy--and Why It Hasn't
http://www.opednews.com/articles/How-the-Fed-Could-Fix-the-by-Ellen-Brown-130225-281.html

What does humanity's future hold?

http://wcfcourier.com/news/opinion/columnists/what-does-humanity-s-future-hold/article_2676a3d8-7c4a-11e2-a46c-001a4bcf887a.html

Witnessing farce and cruelty in an Israeli military court
http://electronicintifada.net/content/witnessing-farce-and-cruelty-israeli-military-court/12225

DOMA challenger files brief with US Supreme Court
http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/02/doma-challenger-files-brief-with-us-supreme-court.php

God’s Racket: Why It’s High Time to Shut Down the Vatican Bank
http://www.alternet.org/world/gods-racket-why-its-high-time-shut-down-vatican-bank

Were Early Christians Really Persecuted? Historian Reveals the Surprising Truth
http://www.alternet.org/belief/were-early-christians-really-persecuted-historian-reveals-surprising-truth

Surveillance law: US group can't challenge it, Supreme Court rules
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2013/0226/Surveillance-law-US-group-can-t-challenge-it-Supreme-Court-rules

Welcome to the U.S. Copyright Alert System, Where Companies Can Slow Your Internet If You Download Illegally
http://gawker.com/5986813/welcome-to-the-us-copyright-alert-system-where-companies-can-slow-your-internet-if-you-download-illegally

The Copyright Alert System: How the New “Six Strikes” Anti-Piracy Program Works
http://lifehacker.com/5986961/the-copyright-alert-system-how-the-new-six-strikes-anti+piracy-program-works

Obama Admin Aims Keyboard Commandos at Gun Control
http://www.thedailysheeple.com/obama-admin-aims-keyboard-commandos-at-gun-control_022013

Chief Justices Should Not Allow DNA Collection During an Arrest Booking
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2013/02/25/editorial-chief-justices-should-not-allow-dna-collection-during-an-arrest-booking/

29.Aug.2012 - Destroying Precious Land, Stop-and-Frisk, Occupy Wall Street, Israel and Gaza, Climate Change, NYPD, the Press, Psychology of Choice, International Law, Domestic Terrorism, Honor of Thieves, Anti-SLAPP, Hunger Games, Westboro Baptist Church, Moral Gods Behave Immorally, Hospital Pay Price, Teens & Cannabis, Marriage Money Issues, Drones, IDF Abuses Kids, Subjective Laws, the 99%

Military Muppet: TV character urges Israelis to prepare for strike on Iran

A new emergency pamphlet in Israel instructs residents to prepare for the worst if Tel Aviv conducts a military strike on Iran. But the face on the brochure isn’t the country’s President or Prime Minister – it’s a Muppet.

http://12160.info/group/target-iran/forum/topic/show?id=2649739:Topic:972061&xgs=1&xg_source=msg_share_topic

The Kindle Wants To Be Free

Next week or next year, Amazon will start giving away its e-reader. Here’s why.

http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2012/08/free_kindle_next_week_or_next_year_amazon_will_start_giving_away_its_e_reader_here_s_why_.html

Destroying Precious Land for Gas

N the northern tip of Delaware County, N.Y., where the Catskill Mountains curl up into little kitten hills, and Ouleout Creek slithers north into the Susquehanna River, there is a farm my parents bought before I was born. My earliest memories there are of skipping stones with my father and drinking unpasteurized milk. There are bald eagles and majestic pines, honeybees and raspberries.

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/271-38/13158-focus-destroying-precious-land-for-gas

NYPD stop-and-frisk race case set for 2013 trial date 

Controversial policy has sparked charges of racial bias.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/justice-story/nypd-stop-and-frisk-race-case-set-2013-trial-date-article-1.1145796#ixzz24uIV9BwR

Twitter Appeals Ruling in Battle Over Occupy Wall Street Protester’s Information

Twitter just filed its brief appealing a June decision by a New York criminal court judge requiring the company to give the Manhattan District Attorney detailed information on the communications of Twitter user Malcolm Harris, an Occupy Wall Street protester charged with disorderly conduct in connection with a march on the Brooklyn Bridge.

http://www.aclu.org/blog/technology-and-liberty-national-security-free-speech/twitter-appeals-ruling-battle-over-occupy

Romney Opposes Fuel Efficiency Standards Actually Moving U.S. Toward Energy Independence

Mitt Romney’s campaign has released a new statement on fuel economy standards: “Gov. Romney opposes the extreme standards that President Obama has imposed, which will limit the choices available to American families,” said campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul. “The president tells voters that his regulations will save them thousands of dollars at the pump, but always forgets to mention that the savings will be wiped out by having to pay thousands of dollars more upfront for unproven technology that they may not even want.”

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/08/28/744811/romney-opposes-fuel-efficiency-standards-actually-moving-us-toward-energy-independence/

Court: Israel at No Fault for Death of Rachel Corrie

Family's lawyer: 'Court has given its stamp of approval to flawed and illegal practices that failed to protect civilian life.'

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/08/28

UN: Gaza Won't Be 'Liveable' by 2020 Without 'Herculean' Efforts

Gaza may not be 'liveable' by 2020, and its aquifer may be unusable by as soon as 2016, according to a report from the United Nations published Monday.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/08/28-3

Meteorologists Adjust Official Stance: Human Activity Causing Climate Change

New language removes ambiguity from group's previous statements on global warming and extreme weather

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/08/28-0

How the US and Israeli Justice Systems Whitewash State Crimes

Courts are supposed to check the abuse of executive power, not cravenly serve it. But in the US and Israel, that is now the case

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/08/28-5

The NYPD'S Intelligence Division: It's Gone Rogue

Its mission was to eavesdrop on conversations in the 262 police-identified ethnic "hot spots" [including 56 in New Jersey] and to catalogue these locations as places where suspected terrorists might meet.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/len-levitt/nypd-intelligence-division_b_1833226.html

We, The Press, Are the Real Refugees

All of the news on CNN this morning was about Hurricane Isaac. On NBC, too. And Fox News, for the most part. Yes, the storm has already screwed the Republican convention in so very many ways. But here today, in (sunny!) Tampa, as journalists stream into our media holding pen like so many wayward Katrina refugees, comes the final indignity: this pseudoevent threatens to be completely upstaged by a real event.

http://gawker.com/5938474/we-the-press-are-the-real-refugees

Understanding the Psychology of the American Idea of Choice

Thinking about options decreases support for equality and reduces empathy

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=understanding-psychology-of-american-idea-choice&WT.mc_id=SA_DD_20120828

10 Things the GOP Platform Hates About You

The GOP of 2012 is a big tent. Especially if you're a white, wealthy, currently elderly, heterosexual, Christian, non-DC resident who plans on living forever.

http://www.alternet.org/10-things-gop-platform-hates-about-you

Israel Court Clears Army in Rachel Corrie Death, Angering Activists

An Israeli court on Tuesday cleared the military of any responsibility for the death of US activist Rachel Corrie who was killed by an army bulldozer in 2003, rejecting a civil suit filed by the family.

http://www.alternet.org/hot-news-views/israel-court-clears-army-rachel-corrie-death-angering-activists

How do you go underground?

What are the steps for leaving your old identity behind and creating a new one?

http://www.quora.com/How-do-you-go-underground

Lively discussion with US presidential candidate at Colombo meeting

The speech by US SEP presidential candidate Jerry White to last Sunday’s meeting at the New Town Hall in Colombo opened up an important discussion. Following extended questions and answers in the meeting itself, participants remained behind to talk to Socialist Equality Party (Sri Lanka) members, speak to WSWS reporters and buy literature.

http://wsws.org/articles/2012/aug2012/meet-a28.shtml

The Western Onslaught Against International Law

A new film, "Compliance," examines "the human desire to follow and obey authority." Liberal institutions, such as the media, universities, federal courts, and human rights organizations, which have traditionally functioned as checks on the blind obedience to authority, have in our day gone over to power's side. The subversion of these institutions has transformed them from checks on power into servants of power. The result is the transformation of culture from the rule of law to unaccountable authority resting on power maintained by propaganda.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Western-Onslaught-Agai-by-Paul-Craig-Roberts-120828-65.html

Domestic Terrorism American Style -- An Analysis

Intimidation took many forms. Non-whites and their allies who sought to assert civil rights were threatened, assaulted and frequently murdered. If they were women they were subjected to assault and rape. The property of these people was destroyed, their homes and meeting places attacked with bombs or burned. Finally, a favorite tactic was lynching.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Domestic-Terrorism-America-by-Lawrence-Davidson-120827-132.html

Tom Engelhardt: Losing It in Washington

In the wake of several deaths among its contingent of troops in a previously peaceful province in Afghanistan, New Zealand (like France and South Korea) is now expediting the departure of its 140 soldiers.  That's not exactly headline-making news here in the U.S.  If you're an American, you probably didn't even know that New Zealand was playing a small part in our Afghan War. 

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Tom-Engelhardt-Losing-It-by-Tom-Engelhardt-120827-300.html

How Republicans Live with Themselves: The Honor of Thieves

Not everyone takes a contemptuous ruler lying down, especially when that ruler is a party with a do-or-die, my-way-or-the-highway mentality. In order to defeat the Federalists, Thomas Jefferson fought fire with fire in the campaigns of 1800 and 1804, which rivaled anything we have managed of late for grit and grime. Jefferson won both times, whereas progressives lostboth times in the parallel instances of 2000 and 2004.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/How-Republicans-Live-with-by-C-S-Herrman-120828-36.html

TPP Creates Legal Incentives For ISPs To Police The Internet. What Is At Risk? Your Rights.

TPP article 16.3 mandates a system of ISP liability that goes beyond the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) standards and US case law. In sum, the TPP pushes a framework beyondACTA[1] and possibly the spirit of the DMCA, since it opens the doors for:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/08/tpp-creates-liabilities-isps-and-put-your-rights-risk

New Federal Anti-SLAPP Legislation Introduced: A Good Start

Recently, Senator Jon Kyl (R-AR) introduced a new federal anti-SLAPP bill called the Free Speech Act of 2012. While the bill doesn’t go nearly far enough, EFF is encouraged to see that Congress is showing renewed interested in passing legislation to prevent so called “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation” (SLAPP) that attempt to censor and chill First Amendment protected speech.

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/08/new-federal-anti-slapp-legislation-introduced-good-start

Our Hunger Games

Hunger and malnutrition are man-made. They are hardwired in the design of the industrial, chemical model of agriculture. But just as hunger is created by design, healthy and nutritious food for all can also be designed, through food democracy.

http://www.countercurrents.org/shiva280812.htm

Politicians Ignore Failed 'War on Drugs' at Their (and Our) Peril

We've spent more than a trillion dollars on this war. It's contributed to the highest incarceration rate in the world and it's made our society less safe by incentivizing violence and the involvement of organized crime in the drug trade. Each person who has been jailed is a person who forevermore will have trouble getting a job, may not be able to vote, will have issues renting a home or obtaining a mortgage and who would have been better served with treatment than with jail time. The lives of otherwise good people who happen to have addictions are destroyed, while bad people -- the violent gangs and cartels running the drug trade -- are funded, strengthened and made rich by the "war."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leonard-frieling/politicians-ignore-failed-war-on-drugs_b_1832723.html

Occupy activists clash with Westboro Baptist church protestors outside the Republican convention

While delegates and newsmakers more or less took the day off while waiting for Issac (and waiting out tornado warnings in the area), the March on the RNC went forward as initially planned. But when the official march reached its end point, a few of the participants decided they weren’t done, and headed toward the Tampa Convention Center to try to draw the media’s attention away from the official opening of the convention, where they were met by a bunch of bicycle cops trained to use their transportation as roving barricades.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/08/27/occupy-activists-clash-with-westboro-baptist-church-protestors-outside-the-republican-convention

Why Political Candidate’s Beliefs Are Important

I opine that one’s religious views are just as important —perhaps more important— than one’s political philosophy. As my psychologist spouse informs me: for all practical intents and purposes it is impossible to separate “private” beliefs from public attitudes, prejudices, decisions, and behavior.

http://vegasjessie.com/2012/08/27/why-political-candidates-beliefs-are-important/

Israeli soldiers expose plight of Palestinian children

THE Israel Defence Force’s arbitrary use of violence against Palestinian children, including forcing them to act as human shields in military operations, has been exposed by veteran soldiers in detailed statements chronicling dozens of brutal incidents.

http://theuglytruth.wordpress.com/2012/08/27/israeli-soldiers-expose-plight-of-palestinian-children/

What Would Jesus Say? (To The Religious Right)

I don’t have a religion, so I’m no expert on the subject—plus, I’m not personally concerned about what Jesus had to say.  However, I do care about hypocrisy, especially in public life.  And I do read, so I looked for myself at the quotes attributed to Jesus in the Bible.  Apparently, most members of the Religious Right DON’T, CAN’T, or WON’T read what Jesus is actually supposed to have said, so I thought I’d bring them up to speed on the political hot topics that get their shorts in a knot and make them start throwing around Jesus’ name.

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/08/27/what-would-jesus-say-to-the-religious-right/

NASA Under Attack By Anti-Climate-Change Lobbyists

From inaccurate claims to out right fabrications, it seems that Obama’s enemies will stop at nothing to blame him for every problem under the sun. Now, Breitbart.com has decided on creating a fiction out of whole cloth in its new piece “SPACEX: SOLYNDRA IN SPACE.” Not only does the writer, George Landrith, make an incredible stretch in labeling the California based Space Exploration Technologies Corp, commonly called SpaceX, an Obama donor (the total amount donated by SpaceX employees to Obama for this election season is $250 according to Open Secrets, compared to $5000 donated to Kevin McCarthy, Majority Whip of the House and a Republican) but also makes rather remarkable claims about NASA itself.

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/08/27/nasa-under-attack-by-anti-climate-change-lobbyists/

Gods & Theists Behave Immorally: How Can Moral Gods Behave Immorally?

Why Believe in Immoral Gods? Why Believe the Claims of Immoral Theists?

http://atheism.about.com/od/argumentsagainstgod/a/MoralBehavior.htm?nl=1

What are Religious Tax Exemptions?

Tax Exemptions & Religion

http://atheism.about.com/od/churchestaxexemptions/a/whatarethey.htm?nl=1

Objective or subjective laws and lawgivers

Zach Weinersmith and Sean Carroll recently blogged about subjective and objective morality (see Pankration Ethics and Morality and Basketball). Their ideas are interesting but I found their comparison of physical laws and moral laws with the rules of basketball and pankration confusing – both games are rather foreign to me. So I am taking the opportunity to clarify my own ideas about physical laws and moral laws. And whether such laws are objective or subjective.

http://openparachute.wordpress.com/2012/08/28/objective-or-subjective-laws-and-lawgivers/

6 Right-Wing Zealots and the Crazy Ideas Behind the Most Outrageous Republican Platform Ever

They're breaking out the crazy down in Tampa.

http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/6-right-wing-zealots-and-crazy-ideas-behind-most-outrageous-republican-platform-ever

The 99% Take on the Republican National Convention

Despite mixed feelings about Obama, protesters fight Mitt Romney, the 'King of the 1%'

http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/99-take-republican-national-convention

Get a Job If You're Lucky, But You Might Be Looking for Another One Soon

Sharing the hopes and disappointments of trying to find work through a 'Job Club.'

http://www.alternet.org/economy/get-job-if-youre-lucky-you-might-be-looking-another-one-soon

How to Kill Student Curiosity in 12 Easy Steps

Want to stamp out the curiosity in even the most eager of learners? Here's how.

http://www.alternet.org/how-kill-student-curiosity-12-easy-steps

Hospitals to pay price for failure to innovate

Patients to be told if health authorities blacklist latest drugs

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/hospitals-to-pay-price-for-failure-to-innovate-8082532.html

Teen cannabis use may damage brain for life, warns major study

Fears that drug 'rewires' adolescent minds as scientists find persistent smoking reduces IQ

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/teen-cannabis-use-may-damage-brain-for-life-warns-major-study-8082533.html

How the US and Israeli Justice Systems Whitewash State Crimes

Courts are supposed to check the abuse of executive power, not cravenly serve it. But in the US and Israel, that is now the case.

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/287-124/13165-how-the-us-and-israeli-justice-systems-whitewash-state-crimes

America Planning for a Post-Israel Middle East?

Congresswoman Illena Ros-Lehtinen will have her hands full as she makes the political and social rounds at this month’s Republican National Convention. Illena, is the only female committee chair in the House of Representatives and arguably Israel’s most ardent agent. She is a constant thorn in the Obama administration's side, regularly castigating the president for playing "political games with U.S. foreign policy” and being “soft on Iran” and undermining the legitimacy of Israel. Ros-Lehtinen is a congressional cheer leader also for her Jewish voters in Florida -- a key battleground in the rapidly approaching US presidential election. Most recently, Ros-Lehtinen helped shepherd through Congress yet another bill tightening sanctions against Iran while calling for US military action against the Assad regime in Syria.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article32304.htm

Top six marriage-killing money issues

Arguments about money hamper many marriages. In fact, couples fight about money twice as much as they fight about sex, according to a Money Magazine survey. And the challenges can actually start even before you say "I do."

http://www.canoe.ca/Canoe/Money/News/2012/08/14/20101206.html

Copyright Reform Process Begins Down Under... And They're Actually Asking Good Questions

Australia's been an interesting country to follow on the copyright front. In terms of court decisions, there have been some good ones and some awful ones. On the lawmaking front, we've seen ridiculous ideas floated and good ones as well. The current regime is, unfortunately, supporting some of the bad parts of the TPP, but the Australian Parliament has argued forrejecting ACTA. All in all, it's a mixed bag. 

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120827/00470320162/copyright-reform-process-begins-down-under-theyre-actually-asking-good-questions.shtml

How The Press Misinterprets Scientific Studies

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120827/10532320169/how-press-misinterprets-scientific-studies.shtml

Drones: A New Death From Above

Listen here:

• Download mp3 • 
• Download 1 minute Preview

http://www.radioproject.org/2012/08/drones-a-new-death-from-above/

[video] Food can kill - or heal. Info to help you choose wisely.

Exposed: IDF abuses kids, uses children as human shield

Video: Bill Nye Scolds Parents Who Won't Teach Their Kids Evolution

“Evolution is the fundamental idea in all of life science, in all of biology. It’s like, it’s very much analogous to trying to do geology without believing in tectonic plates. You’re not going to get the right answer. Your whole world is just going to be a mystery instead of an exciting place. If you try to ignore that, your worldview just becomes crazy, just untenable, itself inconsistent.”

GOP Leaders Touting Fundamentalist Views in Bid to Drum Up Massive Religious Voter Turnout

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker both spoke on Sunday at a celebration of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, which has launched a massive push to get conservative religious voters to the polls in November. We discuss the religious right and its impact on elections with Adele Stan, longtime political reporter and Washington bureau chief for AlterNet.

______________
Steve Dustcircle can be found at: http://www.dustcircle.com http://www.facebook.com/dissentingheretic http://www.twitter.com/dustcircle http://www.reddit.com/r/occupy2point0 http://www.pinterest.com/dustcircle

Anonymous - Operation Black March

Thursday, March 1st 2012 to Saturday 31st March 2012

With the continuing campaigns for Internet-censoring litigation such as SOPA and PIPA, and the closure of sites such as Megaupload under allegations of 'piracy' and 'conspiracy' the time has come to take a stand against music, film and media companies' lobbyists.

The only way is to hit them where it truly hurts.

Their profit margins.

March 2012 is the end of the 1st quarter in economic reports worldwide.

Do not buy a single record. Do not download a single song, legally or illegally. Do not go to see a single film in cinemas, or download a copy, Do not buy a DVD in the stores. Do not buy a videogame. Do not buy a single book or magazine.

Wait the 4 weeks to buy them in April: see the film later, etc. Holding out for just 4 weeks, maximum, will leave a gaping hole in media and entertainment companies' profits for the 1st quarter, an economic hit which will in turn be observed by governments worldwide as stocks and shares will blip from a large enough loss of incomes.

This action can give a statement of intent:

"We will not tolerate the Media Industries' lobbying for legistation which will censor the internet." Regarding Black March: If you want to do something that makes a statement, consider shifting your money not only away from corporate media but to independent media. Buy comics published by someone other than DC and Marvel. Buy books from small and independent presses. Support independent production companies who fight to stay independent and fan-focused. Better yet, buy things directly from creators and artisans. Support independent retailers. Don't just blanket punish media producers and distributors—refocus those resources into supporting the ones who espouse and depend on free exchange of information and ideas. Because those are the people preserving intellectual freedom. Those are the people creating work of substance. And those are the people struggling to make a living, because they aren't bankrolled by the Corporate Elite lobbying for SOPA and PIPA.

Creative Commons and the enemies of creators’ rights | TechnoLlama

Creative Commons and the enemies of creators’ rights | TechnoLlama

[REPRINTED]


(Apologies to Aurelia and John for feeding the trolls). From time to time I come across an insidious, wrong-headed yet pervasive meme floating around the Internet; it can be encapsulated like this: Creative Commons is bad because it affects creators. How does it do it? There are two different versions of the meme. Firstly, it affects commercial creators because there are people out there making their work available for free, and it is difficult to compete against free. Secondly, creators are taken in by the fad that is CC, and they end up giving away important commercial rights that will affect them in the future. While this is F.U.D. at its best, I’d like to spend a little bit of time dealing with both.

However, first a little background about what has prompted this post. Yesterday’s post about Creative Commons in Portugal was retweeted quite a lot (to my surprise), and was generating a lot of hits. I was going through the referring tweets in the evening, and found some negative comments towards Creative Commons, amongst them this one. I did not agree with the tone, but hey, CC is not everyone’s cup of tea, so no worries, everyone is entitled to their opinion and all that. A few minutes later this one posted similar sentiments:

Time to move to Portugal! They're considering banning CC (and similar) licensing! technollama.co.uk... (Thx @musictechpolicy)
May 8, 2011 8:29 pm via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite
@LeslieBAP
Leslie Burns

Well, someone REALLY doesn’t like Creative Commons. Still no biggie, I’ve come across similar opinions before. However, some minutes later, the same person tweeted this message mentioning yours truly directly:

@dabitch sadly, that blog is anti-creators' rights, but you'll get the meat of the proposal, at least.
May 8, 2011 8:34 pm via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite
@LeslieBAP
Leslie Burns

This comment really annoyed me at a basic level. There is no need to get defensive, but I really could not see in what way my blog implies that I am someone who is anti creators’ rights, whatever that means. I believe strongly in the creative process, consider myself a creator as well, and also give lots of presentations informing people about their rights and how they can use Creative Commons to their advantage. But perhaps there was a blatant post in these pages that prompted such comment. So I replied asking the poster what exactly makes me an enemy of creator’s rights. The reply is precisely what prompted this post. Ms @LeslieBAP wrote:

@technollama Anyone who supports CC is by definition anti-creators' rights. CC has put huge numbers of creatives out of business. @dabitch
May 9, 2011 8:12 am via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite
@LeslieBAP
Leslie Burns

Yes, you read correctly, anyone who supports CC is by definition anti-creators’ rights because it is responsible for leaving several people out of business. So I asked that I would love to see the evidence of how many people have been affected by Creative Commons. This I believed was a reasonable request, after all, if CC is such a scourge of creators, there must be some evidence of it somewhere. I got another interesting reply:

@technollama There are no studies, of course, but that's why you asked for figures--you know there are none. Anecdotal? Tons. @dabitch
May 9, 2011 9:08 am via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite
@LeslieBAP
Leslie Burns

There is no evidence that CC is affecting creators, but it must be true as there is some anecdotal evidence of it. The main problem I have with arguments like these is that it is clear that whenever the person is talking about creators, they are talking about a very narrow and specific type of creator. This is one of the issues that I always try to cover whenever I talk about open licensing in general, it is the idea that has been perpetuated in the collective psyche that there are a few worthy Creators, and then there are the rest of us, mere users. This is of course a false dichotomy, as the Internet has brought about a greater democratisation of the creative process. There are still cultural marketplaces, and these are still dominated by the few big sellers, but to imply that only the people at the head of the charts are worthy of the brand “Creator” completely misses what has been taking place in the last 15 years. It seems to me that the people who are still using such language are the people who were doing rather well in the pre-Internet days. Those were the times of the gatekeeper, where a small minority managed to profit from their work, and the rest of us were simply consumers. Nowadays there is a surplus of creation, and the old intermediaries are in crisis, and are being forced to change their business models, or are out of business entirely.

This is simply the reality of life in the Information Age (apologies for the use of this crass cliché). The intermediaries lose power, the gatekeepers are left guarding entry points while the walls all around them fall down. Technological changes have meant that I can write this blog without being a publisher, that you can upload a picture to Flickr, and that a person who attended a talk last week can upload a video on YouTube. Software has made it possible for more people to become musicians, editors and filmmakers. To ignore this reality is to deny the future and continue bemoaning the loss of an increasingly irrelevant golden era.

Creative Commons is not against copyright, it is simply the recognition of the new paradigm. CC allows the armies of new creators to publish their work online. This is the complete opposite of being against creators’ rights, it empowers larger numbers of creators to publish their work. CC does not work against copyright, it relies on copyright. Moreover, CC helps to strengthen copyright because larger numbers of people become owners. Copyright is not something that happens to a few pop stars and Hollywood producers, copyright is something that happens to every single person who crates an original work. By making people think about their own copyright, it also allows them to think about other people’s works.

Are there people hurting in the creative industries? Certainly! But this is not the fault of Creative Commons. The music industry is currently suffering from a combination of technological change, short-sightedness and piracy. Professional photographers are suffering from the fact that everyone is now a photographer, the surplus of digital cameras has created lots of competition. But again, CC did not create Flickr, it was already there.

In the last few weeks I have been presenting to creators here in Costa Rica about Creative Commons. Just last week I was inspired by the words of singer/songwriter Esteban Monge, who offers his music under a CC licence. He is one of the thousands of musicians who are not part of the minuscule minority who profit from contracts with large labels. He epitomises what I am talking about, he is also a creator worthy of respect. CC is working for him, I would like to see those who believe that Creative Commons is somehow against creators’ rights to have a quick talk with Esteban.

The world has changed, it is about time some people realised that 20th Century business models no longer work.