Links 14/10/2023: TSMC Relationship With China, Many New Attacks on Journalists
Contents
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Leftovers
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Press Gazette ☛ Homeserve founder plans to build ‘great British business magazine’
Richard Harpin is bringing together Business Leader and a Substack and podcast from a former Times journalist.
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Kev Quirk ☛ Friends from Blogging
I've been lucky enough to make a number of friends off the back of this blog (and also their blogs). This is a bit of a feel good post about how social media isn't the only way to meet new people.
I've talked at length about my challenges with social media/microblogging vs traditional blogging, to which I generally get responses similar to this:
But Kev, social media is great way of meeting new people.
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Federal News Network ☛ Man pleads guilty to stealing ‘Wizard of Oz’ ruby slippers from Minnesota museum in 2005
A man charged with stealing ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in the “The Wizard of Oz” from a Minnesota museum has pleaded guilty. Seventy-six-year-old Terry Jon Martin was indicted in May on one count of theft of a major artwork. He appeared in federal court Friday in Duluth. The shoes from the film were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in the late actor’s hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005. No one was arrested until Martin was charged this year. The slippers were recovered in a 2018 FBI sting in Minneapolis.
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Drew DeVault ☛ Going off-script
There is a phenomenon in society which I find quite bizarre. Upon our entry to this mortal coil, we are endowed with self-awareness, agency, and free will. Each of the 8 billion members of this human race represents a unique person, a unique worldview, and a unique agency. Yet, many of us have the same fundamental goals and strive to live the same life.
I think of such a life experiences as “following the script”. Society lays down for us a framework for living out our lives. Everyone deviates from the script to some extent, but most people hit the important beats. In Western society, these beats are something like, go to school, go to college, get a degree, build a career, get married, have 1.5 children, retire to Florida, die.
There are a number of reasons that someone may deviate from the script. The most common case is that the deviations are imposed by circumstance. A queer person will face discrimination, for instance, in marriage, or in adopting and raising children. Someone born into the lower class will have reduced access to higher education and their opportunities for career-building are curtailed accordingly; similar experiences follow for people from marginalized groups. Furthermore, more and more people who might otherwise be able to follow the script are finding that they can’t afford a home and don’t have the resources to build a family.
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Science
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Science Alert ☛ The Way You Flip a Coin Could Mean It's Not as Random as You'd Expect
Don't bet on it.
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New York Times ☛ NASA Launches Psyche Metal Asteroid Mission: What You Need to Know
The probe launched on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, beginning a six-year journey to one of the most enigmatic worlds in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
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MIT Technology Review ☛ Scientists just drafted an incredibly detailed map of the human brain
This article first appeared in The Checkup, MIT Technology Review’s weekly biotech newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday, and read articles like this first, sign up here. When scientists first looked at brain tissue under a microscope, they saw an impenetrable and jumbled mess.
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Science Alert ☛ Scientists Find an Awesome Practical Use For Ping Pong Balls
Surprisingly effective!
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Hardware
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Silicon Angle ☛ Qualcomm says it will lay off more than 1,200 staff in California
Smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. plans to eliminate 1,258 jobs, the latest in a string of cost-cutting measures it has implemented this year. The company said in a filing with the California Employment Development Department that the job cuts will affect workers in San Diego and Santa Clara, California.
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Ruben Schade ☛ In defence of power points with switches
When I got my first external Iomega Zip drive as a kid, I was confounded by the instructions:
If you’ll be away for an extended period, unplug your Zip drive.
I remember thinking why I’d bother, when I could just flick a switch at the power point instead. Little did I know at the time, but this was another example of a weird cultural difference between where I grew up, and in this case the US where the Zip drive was designed.
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CNX Software ☛ SZBOX S100 pocket-sized Mini PC offers 2.5GbE & WiFi 6 networking, dual HDMI [Ed: It is "preloaded with Windows 11 Pro" but CNX publishes this anyway]
SZBOX S100 is a pocket-sized mini PC powered by an Intel Processor N100 CPU, with 16GB LPDDR5 memory, and features such as 2.5GbE & WiFi 6 networking and support for dual 4K display setups through HDMI ports. The mini PC is either offered as a barebone model with 16GB RAM and no storage or with a 256GB to 1TB M.2 SATA SSD preloaded with Windows 11 Pro. Other highlights include three USB 3.2 ports and a 3.5mm audio jack.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ TSMC Expects to Get Permanent Approval to Equip Chinese Fab (Updated)
TSMC got a waiver to equip its Nanjing fab in China with U.S. tools, but it wants a permanent permission.
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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Reason ☛ The COVID Bailout of State and Local Governments Was Unnecessary
Well over half of those funds remain unspent, according to a new Government Accountability Office report.
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PHR ☛ Emergency Medicine Association Finally Withdraws its Approval of Policy Paper Endorsing “Excited Delirium” as Cause of Death
The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) board of directors adopted a resolution voted on by the ACEP Council that officially withdraws its approval of its 2009 white paper endorsing the medically baseless concept of “excited delirium,” which has been misused to explain deaths in police custody for decades.
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Latvia ☛ Pros and cons of hiking excise tax on booze in Latvia
The government plans to raise excise tax on alcohol annually for the next few years in order to benefit the State budget and invest in public health. However, there is resistance from the industry, which believes that the state budget will suffer from excise duty, Latvian Television's Vita Anstrate reported as part of the public media-driven alcohol problem-tackling series Zeme, kur dzer (Land that drinks) on October 13.
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Latvia ☛ Vape seller sues doctor over alleged slander
Riga District Court began to view the claim of the smoking products wholesaler “Pro Vape” for the recovery of 5,000 euros of non-material damage in connection with the dissemination of reputation-damaging, false news. The defendant in the case is Alvils Krams, a lung doctor at Eastern Hospital in Rīga, Latvian Television reports.
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Science Alert ☛ Sex Appears to Protect Brain Health in Older Adults, Scientists Say
The power of love.
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Science Alert ☛ Consciousness May Emerge Before We're Even Born, Evidence Shows
They know.
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Science Alert ☛ One Extra Cup of Coffee a Day May Help Avoid Weight Gain. Here's Why.
Good morning!
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ HKUST medical school plan will not solve manpower crunch in short term – Hong Kong lawmaker
Hong Kong’s medical sector lawmaker has said it was “unrealistic” to expect a new medical school to address the manpower crunch in the short term, after the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) proposed establishing the city’s third medical school.
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Defence/Aggression
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Atlantic Council ☛ #BalkansDebrief – What is the future of normalization process between Kosovo and Serbia? | A Debrief with Alicia Kearns
Nonresident Senior Fellow Ilva Tare is joined in this episode of #BalkansDebrief by British MP Alicia Kearns, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, UK House of Commons to discuss recent escalation of hostilities in Kosovo and the future of Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue.
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France24 ☛ One dead, two severely wounded in knife attack at French school
A man of Chechen origin who was under surveillance by the French security services over suspected radicalization stabbed a teacher to death at his former high school and critically wounded two other people in northern France on Friday, authorities said.
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The Strategist ☛ Australian navy, army, air force … what’s missing? A strong merchant navy
Queensland’s Kenilworth war memorial seems unremarkable to the average passerby. If you blink, you’ll miss it, and even if you don’t blink, you might still miss it.
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Reason ☛ Israel Eases Guns Restrictions Amidst Security Failures
“An emergency operation, in order to allow as many citizens as possible to arm themselves.”
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Breach Media ☛ Palestinian names true cause of violence in Israel and Gaza
Mona Abuamara refuses to let CBC host Rosemary Barton knock her off point: the root cause of Israel’s assault on Gaza is apartheid
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France24 ☛ This historic Orthodox church in Gaza was not destroyed by bombardments
As the Israeli army bombards Gaza in retaliation for Hamas attacks on Saturday, October 7, many people online have been sharing a video claiming it shows the Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius destroyed. But the footage does not show the destruction of the oldest church in Gaza, and the organisation that manages the place of worship says it was not hit.
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RFA ☛ Pyongyang denies N Korean weapons used by Hamas against Israel
Denial came after media reports on the suspected use of North Korean weapons by Hamas fighters.
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Press Gazette ☛ Israel-Gaza war: Ten journalists killed in under a week
The conflict is the deadliest for journalists since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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Atlantic Council ☛ The West must learn hard lessons from years of failed Russia policies
If Russia is able to achieve even a partial victory in Ukraine, the consequences for global security would be catastrophic. Western leaders must escalate their support for Ukraine to prevent this outcome and make sure Putin’s invasion ends in decisive defeat, writes Kira Rudik.
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YLE ☛ Putin denies Russian involvement in gas pipeline damage
The Russian president pointed his finger at the West as the culprit behind the sabotage of the Balticconnector pipeline.
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European Commission ☛ Commission approves €24 million Romanian State aid scheme to support investments in sea and inland ports in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine
European Commission Press release Brussels, 13 Oct 2023 The European Commission has approved an up to €24 million Romanian scheme (RON 118,6 million) to support investments in sea and inland ports in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine.
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How Peter Thiel-Linked Tech is Fueling the Ukraine War
As war in Ukraine continues, controversial defense contractors and adjacent companies like Palantir, Anduril, and Clearview AI are taking advantage to develop and level-up controversial AI-driven weapons systems and surveillance technologies. These organizations’ common link? The support of the controversial, yet ever-more powerful Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel.
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RFERL ☛ Lawyer Who Defended Crimean Tatars Is Fined And Given 14 Days In Jail
Crimean lawyer Emil Kuberdinov said on October 13 that his colleague Oleksiy Ladin was detained by Russia-installed police in Ukraine's Moscow-annexed Crimea and sentenced hours later to 14 days in jail on a charge of distributing extremist symbols online.
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RFERL ☛ Exiled Russian Journalist Says Blood Tests Show No Evidence Of Poisoning
One day after police in Paris said an investigation had been launched into her possible poisoning, exiled Russian television journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, who staged a high-profile protest against the war in Ukraine, said on October 13 that blood tests show no evidence of poisoning.
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RFERL ☛ PACE Recognizes Holodomor Famine In Ukraine As Genocide
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on October 12 recognized the Holodomor -- the starvation of millions in Ukraine in the 1930s under Soviet leader Josef Stalin -- as genocide.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine Accuses Russia Of Using 'Phosphorus' In Avdiyivka Offensive
Ukraine has accused Russian forces of using phosphorus during their current assault on Avdiyivka in the eastern region of Donetsk, where heavy fighting has been reported over the past three days as Moscow attempts to break through the town located just south of Donetsk city.
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RFERL ☛ France Probes 'Malaise' Of Prominent Russian Journalist Who Staged Anti-War Protest
French prosecutors have opened an investigation into why an exiled Russian television journalist who staged a high-profile protest against the war in Ukraine was suddenly taken ill, a spokesperson for the Paris tribunal prosecutor's office said on October 12.
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CS Monitor ☛ How world averted a grain shortage, despite Ukraine war
In place of last year’s panic over rising prices, global wheat prices are falling. While food insecurity remains, especially in conflict zones, the progress is a sign of the farm sector’s resilience.
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New York Times ☛ Growing Wariness of Aid to Ukraine Hangs Over Polish Election
Last year, Poland was one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters. But pressure from the right to focus more on domestic problems is pushing that support to the center stage of Sunday’s election.
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New York Times ☛ Fierce Fighting Flares Around Eastern Ukrainian Town of Avdiivka
Russia’s assault there may be a sign that Moscow is trying to regain the initiative in the war, after it spent months defending against Ukraine’s southern counteroffensive.
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Federal News Network ☛ Russian authorities detain lawyers for Alexei Navalny as pressure mounts on political prisoners
Allies of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny say Russian authorities have detained three of his lawyers after raiding their homes. Activists say the raids are an attempt to “completely isolate Navalny.” His spokeswoman told AP the opposition leader, who is serving a 19-year prison term, is set to be transferred to a “special security” penal colony with the highest security level in the Russian system. His allies worry that if Navalny doesn't have access to his lawyers, he will end up in complete isolation and without proper representation. Other political prisoners in Russia in recent months have faced similar pressure in what appears to be an effort to isolate them as well.
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Defence Web ☛ Lady R report will remain secret
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa invoked the National Conventional Arms Control Act (NCACA) when telling the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) he had “no intention of compromising the work or safety of our security forces” as regards what might or might not have been loaded off or onto the Russian cargo ship Lady R.
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France24 ☛ Burkina Faso signs agreement with Russia for nuclear power plant
Burkina Faso's government said Friday that it had signed an agreement with Russia for the construction of a nuclear power plant to "cover the energy needs of the population," less than a quarter of which has access to electricity.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Teen Who Publicly Burned Koran Appears In Chechen Court With Bruised Face
Nikita Zhuravel, who publicly burned a Koran in the Russian city of Volgograd, appeared in court in the North Caucasus region of Chechnya on October 13 with what appeared to be bruises on his face as his trial started.
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RFERL ☛ Man Reported To Be Russian-Born Islamic Radical Kills Teacher, Wounds Two In Knife Attack In France
A teacher was killed in a knife attack in a school in the northern French city of Arras on October 13 and the investigation was handed to the anti-terrorism prosecutor's office.
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RFERL ☛ Three Navalny Lawyers Reportedly Detained After Houses Searched By Russian Police
Three lawyers who have defended imprisoned Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny have been detained by law enforcement after their houses were searched, according to associates of the Kremlin critic who added that the lawyers are suspected of participating in an extremist community.
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RFERL ☛ NATO Will Hold Major Nuclear Exercise As Russia Plans To Pull Out Of Test-Ban Treaty
NATO will hold a major nuclear exercise next week, the alliance's chief said on October 12, an announcement that came after Russia warned it would pull out of a global nuclear test-ban agreement.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Huawei is Still Operating and Hiring in Russia: Report
Huawei continues to work with Russian universities, keeps Russian Research Institute running.
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YLE ☛ Survey: Fewer Russians have a positive view of Finland
A recent survey commissioned by the Embassy of Finland in Moscow shows a decline in Finland's reputation among Russians mainly due to negative media coverage of Finland’s membership in Nato.
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New York Times ☛ Russia Detains Lawyers of Jailed Opposition Leader, Aleksei Navalny
Attorneys for the jailed opposition leader, Aleksei A. Navalny, had been helping him maintain a significant public presence, even from prison.
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LRT ☛ Revolut Bank suspends card payments in Belarus
Revolut, which has a banking licence in Lithuania, has suspended card payments in Belarus as of Friday.
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Latvia ☛ Saeima committee suggests nationalizing 'Moscow House' in Rīga
“In order to guarantee the security of Latvia's state, and to prevent threat to a democratic state in a timely manner”, the Saeima National Security Committee encourages the acquisition of the “Moscow House” (Maskavas nams) in Rīga into the state ownership of Latvia, the Saeima press service said in a statement on October 13.
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Latvia ☛ State Security Service advances 'Baltic Antifascists' case
On October 10, the State Security Service (VDD) recommended the Public Prosecutor's Office to prosecute six Latvian citizens for running the criminal organization “Baltic Antifascists” and participating in the crimes committed by this organization.
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Environment
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Energy/Transportation
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Science Alert ☛ World's Biggest Energy Agency Warns 1 Fossil Fuel Must Be Cut Immediately
There's no time to lose.
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Finance
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New York Times ☛ Jamie Dimon Warns of ‘Most Dangerous Time in Decades’ as Banks Report Big Profits [Ed: Jamie Dimon should be in prison (for many things) already, Wall Street Times portrays him as a guru of some kind]
JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup said that consumers continued to borrow and spend, but their chiefs warned that geopolitical risks were intensifying.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Protest over relocation of elderly residents at Hong Kong’s only private low-rental housing estate
A group living at Hong Kong’s only private low-rental housing estate has staged a protest against a relocation plan for elderly residents ahead of a five-year redevelopment period.
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Vice Media Group ☛ Is Inflation Getting Better? Not for Renters It Isn't
According to the latest numbers, rent increases are driving overall inflation numbers even as other sectors cool.
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda
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Digital Music News ☛ TikTok Announces Far-Reaching Disney Partnership Despite Continued Regulatory Scrutiny and Lawsuits
In spite of ongoing regulatory scrutiny – including high-profile lawsuits levied by Utah and other states – TikTok has inked a partnership deal with Disney. TikTok and Disney formally announced their tie-up, centering on a variety of “Disney100” media within the short-form app, today.
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New York Times ☛ Social Media in Wartime, Betting on the Future and A.I. Passes the Smell Test
The Israel-Hamas war highlights X’s moderation failures. What should be social media’s role in global conflict?
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Digital Music News ☛ European Commission Officially Investigating Elon Musk’s Twitter Over Alleged Disinformation
The European Commission officially opens an investigation into Elon Musk’s Twitter over the alleged spread of disinformation following the escalated conflict between Israel and Hamas.
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Silicon Angle ☛ EU opens probe into X over alleged Israel-Hamas war disinformation
The European Union today began an investigation into X Corp., the company formerly known as Twitter Inc., over possible disinformation on the platform regarding Hamas’ attack on Israel and the subsequent Israeli air assault on Gaza.
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New York Times ☛ E.U. Probes Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Violent Israel-Hamas War Content
Regulators are examining whether X violated a new European law that requires large social media companies to stop the spread of illegal content, disinformation and other harmful material.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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Reason ☛ Taxing Nudity: Discriminatory Taxes, Secondary Effects, and Tiers of Scrutiny—part 1 in a series
Serial-blogging my recent article in the Journal of Free Speech Law
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong lawyer Leo Yau challenges conviction and jail time for obstructing police outside court
A Hong Kong lawyer has challenged his conviction and seven-day jail sentence for obstructing police outside a court in March 2021, when 47 pro-democracy figures faced a marathon bail hearing under the national security law.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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The Kent Stater ☛ Union workers reach a tentative deal with Kaiser Permanente after the largest-ever US health care strike
Kaiser Permanente reached a tentative deal with the unions representing 75,000 employees, following the largest-ever health care strike in US history.
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New York Times ☛ Kaiser Permanente Reaches Tentative Deal With Health Care Workers
The proposed settlement follows a three-day strike involving thousands of unionized workers in several states.
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New York Times ☛ U.A.W. Says Auto Strikes Will Become More Unpredictable
The United Automobile Workers union refrained from expanding the strikes at Ford, General Motors and Stellantis but said it could do so at any time.
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New York Times ☛ Experts Worry as Facial Recognition Comes to Airports and Cruises
Facial recognition software is speeding up check-in at airports, cruise ships and theme parks, but experts worry about risks to security and privacy.
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Reason ☛ Lawsuit: Mississippi Town Declared Houses 'Blighted' Without Notice
Mississippi only gives property owners 10 days to challenge a blight finding that could lead to their house being seized through eminent domain.
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JURIST ☛ US anti-affirmative action group drops lawsuit after law firm changes fellowship criteria
The American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER), a group founded by prominent anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum, agreed on Wednesday to drop their lawsuit challenging law firm Perkins Cole’s diversity fellowship program.
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YLE ☛ Traficom: Passengers on Finnish flights becoming more unruly
The most common types of disruptions include verbal harassment, intoxication and smoking.
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YLE ☛ Dozens of Thai berry pickers believed victims of traffickers
Police are investigating the suspected trafficking of Thai nationals working as berry pickers in different parts of Finland.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Israeli embassy employee attacked in Beijing
An Israeli embassy worker in Beijing was attacked on Friday, Israel’s foreign ministry said. “An Israeli employee of the Israeli embassy in Beijing was attacked today,” a foreign ministry statement said, adding that the attack did not take place at the embassy compound in the Chinese capital.
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France24 ☛ 'Large number' of North Koreans likely deported by China, Seoul says
A "large number" of North Koreans appear to have been repatriated from China, Seoul's unification ministry said Friday, confirming claims made by multiple rights groups.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ ‘Large number’ of North Koreans likely deported by China, says Seoul
A “large number” of North Koreans appear to have been repatriated from China, Seoul’s unification ministry said Friday, confirming claims made by multiple rights groups.
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RFA ☛ S Korean PM protests to Xi over N Korean repatriation: report
The report comes in the wake of recent allegations over China’s forced repatriation of North Koreans.
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RFA ☛ Activists slam China's election to UN Human Rights Council
Beijing is ‘unfit’ for membership, more than 80 groups representing Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers say
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RFA ☛ China issues warrants for ‘key leaders’ of Myanmar scam rings
Move comes as the junta clamps down on scam operations.
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Monopolies
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Patents
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Unified Patents ☛ Fractus antenna patent prior art found
Unified is pleased to announce prior art has been found on U.S. Patent 8,674,887, owned by Fractus, SA, an NPE. The ‘887 patent generally relates to a multi-band monopole antenna for a mobile communications device and has been asserted against ADT.
We would also like to thank the dozens of other high-quality submissions that were made on this patent. The ongoing contests are open to anyone, and include tens of thousands of dollars in rewards available for helping the industry to challenge NPE patents of questionable validity by finding and submitting prior art in the contests.
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Trademarks
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TTAB Blog ☛ TTABlog Test: Is ANDRADE EL IDOLO Confusable With ANDRADE “CIEN” ALMAS For Professional Wrestlers?
I haven't been a fan of professional wrestling since Gorgeous George retired, so I ask you, my dear readers, whether the USPTO was right in refusing to register the mark ANDRADE EL IDOLO for professional wrestling entertainment services, on the ground of likely confusion with the registered mark ANDRADE "CIEN" ALMAS for overlapping services? The Examining Attorney argued that ANDRADE is the dominant part of both marks and "consumers could view ANDRADE EL IDOLO and ANDRADE ‘CIEN’ ALMAS as being two different nicknames for the same person named Andrade." How do you think this came out? In re Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza, Serial No. 90780014 (October 11, 2023) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Christen M. English).
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Copyrights
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Michael Geist ☛ Regulations Alone Can’t Fix Bill C-18: Why News Media Canada’s “Surrender” May Not Be Enough to Stop Google From Blocking News Links in Canada
After months of urging Heritage Ministers Pascale St-Onge and Pablo Rodriguez to stand up to Google and Meta’s response to Bill C-18, News Media Canada - the lead lobbyist for the legislation - appears to have waved the surrender flag as it is now urging the government to accommodate Google’s concerns with draft regulations. The shift in approach unquestionably marks a retreat for the group, which literally drafted a version of the bill for the government and wielded the power of major media outlets to skew national coverage in favour of the legislation.
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Digital Music News ☛ U.S. Senators Target Unauthorized AI Soundalike Tracks With Bipartisan ‘No Fakes Act’
With artificial intelligence music – including a growing number of unauthorized soundalike releases – becoming increasingly prevalent, four U.S. senators have introduced a bill that they say would “protect the voice and visual likenesses of individuals from unfair use.”
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Gemini* and Gopher
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Personal/Opinions
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Palm Leaf Biodegradable and Compostable Plates and Bowls
I like the fact that they are all patterned differently. They are easy to wash (and the dark colored bottoms are hydrophobic -- most of the water beads up and rolls off), but they will warp unless you put them on something flat and put a weight on top of them. All in all, I like them. However, they are expensive compared to the Dixie Ultra paper plates and bowls. To get something like the same cost you'd have to use each plate 4 times or so, which is probably more washing than I want to do.
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Tuning in
I've been walking over 15,000 steps a day recently - sometimes over 20,000. The weather was rather cool recently - in the 50s(F) - but it became nice and warm again today, and there is a lot to see here.
This city is full of buildings stretching back to the 1850s, which, thankfully, are rarely torn down. I think the red brick contrasts nicely with the foliage, for example, and it makes for nice scenery when walking around. Also I like how the streets and sidewalks are uneven here in places, as it gives things a certain character; sometimes there are large trees growing which push up the sidewalks. Things are so uniform and neat and clean in Japan that it gets boring.
[...]
Also my Palm E2 went dead the other day.
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Fallen leaves
This morning briefly I saw that leaves had fallen from the trees, so autumn is here. The humidity is gone, and for the past few days the weather has been quite cool. I can't express how wonderful it is to sleep without the A/C on all night. At work now I have my window open, and I hear the crickets outside.
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An autumn Friday
Since the humidity is now gone, shaving, for one, has become a lot easier. It's also nice to use a blanket when sleeping at night, and I have a good appetite again. Usually I don't like the end of summer, but this year I'm really embracing it.
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Three Day Weekend
Today it was back to work again, after a nice 3 day weekend. Yesterday was Sports Day, but I wonder who was doing any sports in all that rain. It was also quite chilly.
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Technology and Free Software
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USB Charging Standards
I collect high quality flashlights (torches) as a hobby. And, as a result, I've been trying to make sense of the USB charging standards. What I found was confusing and, frankly, not standard. Here's what I found.
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A Few Leaves
The growth of a site might be compared to a tree, typically vigorous when young but slowing as it reaches some size, whatever that may be. Trees are claimed by some to grow in silence, though will on occasion shed branches. Many never make it, judging by the "hello, world" sites one may find on a newest hosts page.
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Programming
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Migrating off the Lambda Go 1.x Runtime
AWS is deprecating its Go1.x runtime in favor of a more generic Amazon Linux 2 runtime. I don't completely understand the reasons why, and this post isn't about that. There's a pretty good post of theres on the specifics: [...]
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* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.